Menagerie Relay Tower
October 6th, 0829 Standard Time, 2552
Lieutenant Clark kept the questioning short, recognizing Ben was probably even more confused than he was. For some reason, he had insisted that they debrief on the roof of the building, which did little more than give Ben a chance to see the fortifications the marines had set up.
Sandbags and a crate of grenades are not going to cut it, we need to dramatically up our arsenal here. Ben thought, thinking about how the marines would have been all but defenseless without him and Mags. I'll make sure to suggest that in my after-action report.
"Is this just an everyday occurrence for you?" Clark asked incredulously, his eyebrows raised as he admired the wreckage from his position, bits and pieces of the Geist having been scattered practically everywhere.
"Nah, things like this aren't that common. I'm shocked this thing didn't trigger the Grimm Alarms, must be broken." Mags explained in a strange casual manner. "Geists are tricky, especially the older ones that know how to hide. You gotta wriggle them out and break em', not just in the physical sense."
"How did it slip through the cities defenses?" Ben asked her. "Shouldn't it have attacked someone before it got here?"
"It was probably gathering materials for a body, they can be picky." Mags explained. "And Menagerie has a large border, lots of it is left unfortified. But the land isn't where I do most of my fighting, it's not my strong suit."
I should have guessed that, given her... aesthetic. Ben thought as he looked at her truly unusual uniform.
"I could imagine that, your forces must be stretched thin." Clark said, obviously thinking about something else while he spoke. But Mags was too busy giving Ben an indiscernible expression to care.
"Is there something in my hair?" she asked, even though her short hair was covered by her hat.
"No, it's just... Your uniform is rather different than what I've seen." Ben explained, trying not to be rude.
"Shoot, and here I thought you were gonna tell me how pretty I am." She jokingly replied. "But I already know that, so I can see why you didn't."
"Madame, you said you're a huntsman, yes?" Clark interjected. Ben giving him a silent thank-you for getting them back on track.
"Huntress, yes." She corrected. "But I do other things from time to time."
I thought "huntsman" was gender-neutral, like "Corpsman" or "Spartan". Then again, maybe she just takes pride in her title. Ben thought.
"Have I been correctly informed that you operate similarly to mercenaries?" Clark asked, leading Ben and Curie to both let out quiet sighs.
"It's a wee bit more complicated than that, but I guess you're "officially" correct." Mags said, making air quotes with her hands. "That being said, if anyone born this planet said that to me, I'd floor the gobshite."
Clark gave a quick nod. "My apologies, I meant no offense."
"We're a bit... new around here." Ben added, backing up his superior.
"And learning new things!" Curie added, voicing what Ben was thinking far better than he had...
"Aye, none taken. What's your point?" Mags asked, placing her hand on her hip sassily.
"I meant to inform we don't exactly have... money." Clark said. "Obviously we didn't hire you, but I could perhaps arrange something with the Commander when I get a chance."
Ben thought about voicing the defiance of protocol, but realized Clark had probably already taken that into account. He hadn't given any indication of going off of the books yet.
If anything, he's too textbook. His defenses should've accounted for the old power relay, even if they weren't using it. Ben thought, making another mental note for his report. Then again, I also wouldn't have expected a giant hostile abomination made of garbage to emerge from the junkyard either.
"My wages are already paid for by my group, but there was one thing if you don't mind." Mags said, speaking with a degree of eagerness. "I want a picture of your mothership."
All three of them were dumbfounded by her request, leaving Curie to speak first. "You want a photograph of the Dominion?"
"Aye, I love ships, always have. I want to see what a genuine spaceship looks like." Mags said, without a hint of irony. "Is that something you can do?"
"Lieutenant?" Ben prompted. It would be his call to make, but Ben couldn't think of anything that said it wouldn't be allowed, of course, that didn't mean there wasn't anything that said he could do it.
"I don't see why not, Curie can you-" Clark began.
"It is done, I can also confirm the relay station is now back online." Curie reported cheerfully. "It should be in your inbox, but it is quite a large file comparative to your storage space, you may wish to downscale it."
Mags grinned. "I see, did ya need anything else?"
"Not presently, no. We may contact you in the future, should the need arise." Clark responded. He extended his hand in a formal handshake, which Mags viciously accepted. "We will likely use the CCTS, so keep an eye open.
"I certainly will." Mags said before turning to Ben. "Later Ironclad."
Ironclad? Ben thought, mildly insulted as she walked away.
"Spartan, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like Curie to have one last look at the system before I relieve you." Clark said, grabbing his attention again.
"Absolutely Sir." Ben said along with a similar acknowledgement from Curie as they went back down to the lower level.
UNSC Dominion
Bridge
October 6th, 1001 Standard Time, 2552
So much for having free time. Richard thought to himself as he took one last sip out of the absolutely dreadful coffee he was drinking.
Several major incidents had occurred on the Dominion over the last twelve hours. A fire had broken out in one of the heating units for the food in the kitchen, but was thankfully stopped rapidly by the cooks. A series of fights had taken place, mostly between marines but some navy personnel were involved as well, and it wasn't hard to guess why.
Richard had finally been convinced that the effort wasn't worth it anymore, and it was starting to take its toll on the young bridge officer. Chen had made some complaints about trouble sleeping, and she'd become far more irritable than normal. The final straw that convinced him she needed to stop was when Curie quietly reported that she'd taken a drink heavy visit to the Officers Club
I messed up, and it got one of the bridge officers hurt. Richard thought regretfully. The worst part is that we already knew going home wasn't likely, but the pressure to perform must've overpowered logic.
Most of the crew, however, had not known that, and word of Richard's order spread like a wildfire. The scuttlebutt that they were stranded had been spread for some time, and having confirmation only plummeted morale to rock bottom. Fights and arguments erupted across the ship, and Richard was being forced to make some tough calls in order to maintain discipline.
The report from the Menagerie Relay Station was a mixed bag. On one hand, Grimm had been proven to have a degree of intelligence, and the Geist's abilities were disturbing, to say the least. But on the other hand, Ben and a Huntress named Mags had killed it without any friendly loss of life, and the footage of Ben climbing the Geist taken from a marine helmet camera had become extremely popular amongst the crew. The morale boost it offered was critical, even if it was temporary.
I'd be lying to myself if I said I wasn't proud of him. Richard thought pleasantly.
"Commander." A familiar voice said, coming from the entrance to the bridge as Agent Thomas walked in, taking a position next to Bradford. He didn't seem much worse for wear, but at the same time, his posture suggested he had not slept well.
"How goes your task Lieutenant?" Richard asked, hoping for good news.
"I've made some progress, although I'll admit that most of what I've been doing is research." Thomas said with a shrug. "And not just on the locals here, I'm trying to figure out what I'm actually allowed to do as well. Not that I have much to work with, since these guidelines haven't been updated since 2525, right after first contact."
"Look on the bright side, at least you have guidelines." Bradford said somewhat reassuringly. "I'm still trying to figure out what we're going to pay the crew with if our currency is meaningless."
"That hasn't stopped them from gambling with it." Thomas muttered awkwardly. "Regardless, I have made some progress. I've enlisted the help of some of the marines to quietly fan some of the rumors regarding our existence, that way it's less of a shock when we do go public."
"The marines?" Bradford asked, his surprise evident. "Why them, and how?"
"They weren't doing much besides spreading rumors anyway, they might as well do it productively." Thomas argued. "As for how, I have them browsing the CCTS leaving "leaks" of information. A harmless bit of public knowledge on one forum, a picture of a marine in battle-dress on another, that sort of thing."
"They aren't exactly trained for propaganda." Richard pointed out.
"What if they start sharing things that we'd rather keep private?" Bradford asked, far more accusingly. "We've fueled enough conspiracy theories."
"Curie and Ensign Gillespie are filtering their uploads, the sensitive ones don't get posted." Thomas said, like it was obvious.
"It's a job and a half." Gillespie added from the operations station. "By the way, I got Gage to help me since Curie needed to use the processing power for something else."
"Ask me next time! This is an important assignment, don't go roping the whole ship into this!" Thomas said, looking very unhappy, but he kept his composure. He turned his attention back towards Richard and Bradford. "Trust me, I've thought this through. Although getting them off of more... vice related topics, was rather difficult."
Richard nodded, Thomas's plan had some merit. Telling the public that a rumor was true would be less of a shock than springing the reveal on them suddenly. Bradford seemed less than convinced, but didn't make any further arguments.
"We also released a slightly edited version of the footage from our encounter with the Geist, redacting sensitive information and such." Thomas added. "The idea is to show that we're more than capable of helping with the Grimm."
Bradford snorted. "How well did that turn out?"
"With a little tweaking of the recommendation software on a few key social media websites, very." Thomas said proudly. "It's too early to tell just how successful this little information campaign is going to be, but it looks very promising."
"What about official diplomatic contact?" Richard asked, trying to keep them focused. "We're going to have to go public officially at some point, being a rumor isn't great for making ties."
"I've also been working on that." Thomas reported. "I've scheduled a call with a member of Vacuo's Council, although my research suggests they're something of a minimally functioning government."
"Their actual recognition is minimal, but go on." Richard said, causing Thomas to frown slightly.
"I've also managed to secure some information for someone whom I would strongly recommend establishing contact with." Thomas said as he handed over his datapad, the screen displaying an information profile on a man. "Headmaster Ozpin of Beacon Academy."
He looked very different than General Ironwood, with little to no military influence in his appearance. His green and black suit matched with his reading glasses and white hair didn't give off the appearance of a warrior, but rather a quiet intelligence.
"Beacon was Vale's Academy, right?" Bradford asked.
"Yes, and this man is its Headmaster." Thomas said. "He's extremely well respected, and his word is generally followed by the other Headmasters."
"Even Ironwood?" Richard asked doubtfully, as Ironwood had a visible streak of pride.
"Even Ironwood." Thomas confirmed. "That file has everything you need, except for one thing. I thought I'd do some digging in Beacon's servers to see what I could find on him, and I inadvertently discovered something unsettling."
Richard thought about criticizing Thomas for violating Vale's cyber-security, but he decided to wait. He watched as Thomas made several gestures, before bringing up an empty folder.
"I present to you, Headmaster Ozpin's personal data storage." Thomas said in a somewhat mocking tone.
Ok, not what I expected. Richard thought.
"Nothing?" Richard asked, voicing his surprise. "A man with that much on his plate has to have somewhere he puts his paperwork."
"My thoughts exactly, which leads me to my biggest problem. I have no idea where that is." Thomas finished with a stony expression. "In fact, nobody seems to know much about his personal life."
"That is disturbing, do you think he has something to hide?" Bradford asked with a worried frown.
"Short answer, no." Thomas replied. "My guess is that he's paranoid, or he's correctly deduced that he's not at the top of the technology ladder. My best guess is that he keeps his personal information the old fashioned way."
"It doesn't matter either way." Richard interjected. "Ironwood had a point, we shouldn't be poking holes in the firewalls of people who we want to trust us."
"I would argue that the stakes of our current goal outweigh Chivalry, but I will no longer intrude into private software unless ordered to." Thomas said, seemingly surprised by Richard's objection.
I'll admit his point is a good one, but maybe destroying Remnant's cybersecurity shouldn't be our first reaction to a problem. Richard thought.
"We still need a course of action if we are going to contact him." Bradford pointed out, getting them back on track.
"We can use the CCTS again, now that we're reconnected. We'll see if he's willing to work with us." Richard said, before turning to Thomas. "Was that all Lieutenant?"
"It was, but I do have one final request." Thomas said. "Would you let me know when Curie is back aboard? Her assistance would be much appreciated."
"I'll make sure to send word along, you're dismissed." Richard said, prompting Thomas's exit. Once he was gone, Bradford gave him a look of confusion.
"He seems a bit... insecure." Bradford noted.
"He doesn't have much reason to be, he's doing a decent enough job given the circumstances." Richard replied. "I'm going to make preparations for our call to the Headmaster, can you-"
"Sir!" Gillespie called out loudly, getting everyone's attention. "We have a fistfight breaking out in the mess hall, requesting orders."
Richard sighed, that put a slight damper on his plans. "-deal with that?"
"I'll see to it personally. Gillespie, have the MP's meet me at Section 7!" Bradford yelled as he walked out of the bridge, the sounds of his boots reverberating far more than normal.
He can give off the look of the intimidating Commanding Officer very well. Richard thought with a degree of admiration. Now then, let's see what I can expect from the Headmaster.
Menagerie Relay Tower
October 6th, 1320 Standard Time, 2552
Ben and Curie wouldn't be leaving Menagerie until the next supply shipment. Left stuck on the ground until then, Ben and Curie ended up with a rare opportunity of some free time. Curie commonly directed what they did with that free time, but Ben had no complaints. Curie usually picked good places to go and things to do, and Ben didn't have many. Curie hadn't been very subtle in her demands to see the coastline, and Ben hadn't argued. It was only a few blocks away from the Relay station, and Clark had cleared it without argument.
The closest thing we had to a sea on Onyx was the saltwater swimming pool, or maybe Christmas Lake, but that was more like a glacier. Ben remembered as he listened to Curie speak.
"I've always wanted to see an ocean! I have in the past of course, but satellite feeds don't compare to actually being there!" Curie said happily, they continued to use TEAMCOM, as to not confuse the pedestrians.
"I'd be inclined to agree, almost makes me wish I wasn't wearing the armor. The sun seems nice." Ben said, noticing some of the people walking along the street giving him various looks.
"You could take your helmet off at least, you certainly could use the Vitamin-D." Curie proposed.
"I'd rather not. I could get photographed, and I'm sure there's already plenty of dangerous information on the CCTS about me, no need to add to it." Ben replied cautiously.
"I think you underestimate my talents." Curie replied calmly, without a hint of indignation. "If there was any such information, I would notice it and erase it from existence."
"Oh I'm well aware, I'd just rather not add to your workload if I can help it." Ben said. As he finished speaking, they arrived at a large wooden boardwalk which seemed to border this area of the coast. Multiple extensions stretched from the central structure on the coast, with several sets of stairs leading down into the water.
There were lots of people, all of whom were Faunus from what Ben could see. Most of them gave him either wary looks or friendly ones, but some seemed to not even notice him. A pair of hooded Faunus wearing peculiar clothes gave him wary glances, before turning away when they noticed Ben looking at them. He heard Curie audibly gasp, snapping him out of his thinking as he looked out at the ocean.
Most water Ben was familiar with was either totally clear, or muddy and dirty. This was very different, it was a magnificent blue that stretched as far as the eye could see, with waves smashing into one another as if the water was intentionally trying not to stay still. The sun reflected off of it in a powerful manner, coating the whole ocean in magnificent light.
Several ships prowled its surface, not like the massive cargo freighters or water-based aircraft carriers Ben was familiar with, however. These were far smaller, and many of them seemed to be powered by sails. Most of them had some sort of wooden construction, which Ben assumed was a cost-saving measure.
"It's very beautiful, is it not?" Curie asked after a moment of quiet.
"In an odd sort of way I suppose." Ben replied, speaking honestly. "It's bigger in person, that's for sure."
"I would say that a view from orbit does not always offer such an honest perspective." Curie said wistfully.
"That, and it's only the sight, you can't hear it." Ben said genuinely, the ocean was louder than he had expected. He tried lowering his helmet's sound muffling all the way, and was surprised by how loud the crashing waves were.
"I'd mention the other senses, but they aren't applicable in my case." Curie said. "I know there was... oh my goodness, Ben look!"
Curie had two very different tones for when she was excited. One was for when they were in danger, and the other was for when she spotted something interesting. Thankfully, this was the latter, as a pair of Faunus swam past beneath them, each of them bearing distinctive aquatic features. One had a large fin protruding from their back, and the other a set of webbed feet, which they used with practiced ease.
"Now there's something you don't see every day..." Ben muttered, it seemed Remnant had far more surprises hidden away.
"That's incredible!" Curie said ecstatically. "I had not considered the possibility that Faunus could be born with traits inherent to sea creatures!"
"How exactly do they work, the Faunus?" Ben asked, trying to word his question as kindly as possible, even though he knew the people walking by couldn't hear him.
"It is complicated, and beyond my understanding at the moment." Curie said apologetically. "I am putting together a collection of these anomalous sciences for later study, as well as presentation to monsieur Richard."
"That's probably a good idea, I'm still not entirely sure how "aura" works, or even what it does." Ben said before he spotted another Faunus, this time with a far more dramatic animal trait. She had the tail of a fish,which she moved behind her with practiced ease, allowing her to swim rapidly. "Hey, Curie, what were the half-fish people called in those old legends?"
"Mermaids." Curie replied, obviously fascinated by the sight.
"How do they... walk?" Ben asked, turning his attention away as to not give the impression he was staring.
"I... don't suppose they do." Curie said with a tone of realization. "That must be why this place is built how it is, so that they may interact with land-based Faunus."
"Or humans." Ben added.
Curie scoffed. "I will examine that particular debate once I can find a willing donor of Faunus DNA. I can't imagine that they truly classify as a whole new species."
That confused Ben. "What are they then?"
"My theory is that their difference lies in race, not species." Curie stated. "Look at any of these people, and you can very clearly see the blatant influence of human DNA. Humans and Faunus can even interbreed if my research is correct, which is what spawned my hypothesis."
"What about the scientists on Remnant and their research?" Ben asked. "I find it hard to believe that someone, at some point, didn't do a study on this."
"You do make an excellent point, but I had already considered that. I requested permission to contact the various learning institutions of Remnant, so that I may ask for copies of their records. Unfortunately, I have been instructed to wait until a later date." Curie said, mildly disheartened. "But I am undeterred, there is much we can learn from this planet and its people."
"I will certainly not deny that." Ben replied, before a feeling of realization kicked in, followed by a very sudden sense of urgency. "We should head back, they might need us."
"We have plenty of time." Curie reassured. "The Relay Station is perfectly fine, and we will be informed if that changes."
"I... yeah, you're right." Ben said apologetically. "Sorry, I'm not sure what happened there. I guess I'm just jumpy."
"If you're eager to move on, I'd certainly like to see the Museum of Beach Artifacts." Curie offered.
"Beach artifacts?" Ben asked.
"Things that wash up on the beach. A group of collectors made a museum to keep them all and show them off." Curie said. "I read about it on the CCTS."
"I don't see why not, as long as the Lieutenant signs off on it." Ben said.
"He is already aware, and has given us his approval." Curie said reassuringly.
"Very well, point me in the right direction." Ben said, following the Nav-marker that appeared on his HUD shortly afterwards.
Atlas, Schnee Manor
October 6th, 1834 Standard Time, 2552
In truth, Jacques had a few regrets about his gut decision that he had made earlier. Having several of his men killed had made a lot of bad press, and keeping the press off of him was of utmost importance. He was more than willing to admit he'd acted irritably due to that, and it had potentially cost him dearly.
It doesn't matter, being seen as weak isn't an option, not to the council, not to Ironwood, and not to some animal-lovers in a spaceship. Jacques thought, now committed, it was too late to go back.
It didn't take a genius to figure out what the UNSC were considering. From what his advisors had told him, the UNSC was a military organization, one with powerful weapons and talented soldiers. Almost everything they had found was on the CCTS, and most of it originated from Menagerie, which they had apparently reconnected to the rest of the world.
They should know there's a reason we didn't build a proper CCTS tower on Menagerie, it's because it wouldn't last a week. Jacques thought bitterly, though it didn't really matter. If the Aliens wanted to ally themselves with an inherently violent and stupid people, he wouldn't argue, they would be the ones hurt in the long run.
If the UNSC were going to potentially attack, he was more than willing to fight back and defend his assets. Even if Ironwood would fight to keep the Atlesian military out of the fight, Jacques was positive that a large portion of it would be at the very least sympathetic to his cause.
The first stage of his plan was stepping up his recruitment. The SDC security forces needed to be much stronger if they were to keep his assets safe, and their expansion had been put off for too long. Mistral proved a perfect source of manpower, the crime-ridden kingdom having no small amount of combat-experienced individuals willing to hurt people for a few Lien. Some moderately increased wages paid on time did a very good job at securing an employee's loyalty.
The personnel expenses may be vast, but you need to spend money to make money. At least they aren't on salary. He thought.
Equipment was another major concern, but his contacts in the Atlesian military would take care of that. Ironwood was a busy man, and "losing" a few bits of experimental tech in an organization that large would be easy enough. For now, they would be forced to work with somewhat out of date weaponry and only a handful of airships primarily meant for decorative purposes.
I put Mr. Carrison in charge of security for a reason, he'll get it done. Jacques thought, reassured that his personally-appointed staff would see this debacle ended.
Jacques was faced with handling the biggest problem of all, funding. Any good company needed capital to fuel its projects, and the SDC was no exception. Building a private army was going to be an expensive challenge, but they had an advantage in their Dust monopoly. The whole world would be funding their war, whether they liked it or not, everyone needed Dust after all. Jacques had many contacts in the higher echelons of society that also made contributions, with many of them going so far as to deliver their investments in person once he had asked.
I've dramatically overestimated Ironwood's popularity it seems. Amongst the rabble of Mantle he may be well respected. But to anyone with an education, he's a nuisance. Jacques had thought.
His final move was to liquidate all of his existing dust stores, selling it for what most of Remnant considered an extremely low price. This was a precaution in case the UNSC managed to impair their ability to conduct business and helped alleviate their financial problems. It wouldn't lead to major profits, but it would do more good then if it was just lying around in a warehouse.
Hopefully, none of this will be necessary, their demands weren't very extreme, there's a chance they could back down. Jacques thought. But it never hurts to be prepared.
He didn't have any remote expectation of winning a prolonged war, but winning a war wasn't what he needed to do. All he needed to do was gather his strength and make it so that taking him and his company down wasn't worth what it would cost. Deterrence worked on the Grimm, it would work on the UNSC as well.
His planning was interrupted by a ringtone, which he gave a quick reaction too. It seemed that the call was coming from one of his aides.
"Make it quick." Jacques said curtly.
"The Council is about to vote on the demands that the UNSC gave them." The man reported. "We've pulled every string we have, and it looks like we'll be able to block it."
"The UNSC gave the Council demands?" Jacques asked, more confused than angry. "And the Council are acknowledging them?"
"They are, but it's related to the Company. The meeting is being held secretly right now, the public doesn't know about it."He reported. "They want the Security Chief of the Breezeway Mines on trial, apparently they didn't get the memo that they killed him."
That speaks volumes as to their intelligence. Jacques thought, coldly amused. "Is that it?"
"They also want the Council's approval to demand reparations, which is what's being voted on." The aide reported.
Jacques scowled. "Damn fools, we'll see how this all plays out."
"I figured I would call and warn you Sir, they're talking about summoning you for your input on the matter." The aide said. "Should I have your ship standing by?"
"No need, I have nothing to run from." Jacques replied.
"Of course Sir, I'm afraid I'll have to cut our conversation here." The aide said before complaining extensively about bad signal in Mantle, which Jacques ignored.
Not unexpected, acknowledging the aliens are real publicly probably wouldn't do a good job at keeping everyone calm. Jacques thought. "Understood, thank you for the warning."
He ended the call and returned to his thinking, the Council's vote on the matter would be instrumental in whatever plan he came up with. He could only hope his influence outweighed Ironwood's.