Chapter 4: Forge

Weiss hurried back to the docking bay, cutting through the crowd of crewmates, Ruby followed at her side.

Ruby was talking on her scroll, holding it with her shoulder as she tinkered with something in a rifle-form Crescent Rose, "It'll be here within the hour? Yes. We might need an interceptor then."

Weiss stopped eavesdropping into the conversation, whatever she needed to know her partner would tell her eventually. She paced forth, thinking. Her thoughts bolted between the possibilities, her mind focused on calculating that dragon. Was it sentient as the elder Grimm were, able to think of tactics, make assessments?

The emblem of the Schnee Dust Company appeared on her mind, clear and intrusive, a wall that blocked her line of thought. She clenched her fist, anger getting the best of her.

How could they? In five years without communication they had already fallen into Jacques' way, no Specialist, nobody tried to warn them. Was it recent? If anything, she knew better than anyone how the man always tried to control everything within his grasp. Maybe he needed it in a pathological sense, and it had made life around him unbearable. After the Crisis, Weiss couldn't even take custody of her little brother, though given how he always tried to win their father's graces, she doubted he'd even want to follow her. He wanted the position of heir too.

Father's manipulation and the grandiose, meaningless title of heir, the stick and the carrot, she thought. And somehow, in some way, he had extended it to the city of Atlas.

Jacques was never liked by Ironwood, the general never liked the SDC, only ever saw it as a means to an end, that end being the destruction of Grimm. How had Jacques supplanted him? Was Ironwood even alive?

The Mirage rocked slightly, changing course. A moment later a figure flew in from the outside, not a ship but a person, Penny. She had some battle damage, smoke billowing from some parts, and hurried herself inside, barely noticing either member of Team Ruby. Weiss wished they could stop and talk, update each other. Penny had grown on her, and she cheered Ruby up, which in turn delighted Weiss herself. It was a trivial, mundane and meaningless wish, completely unbecoming of someone in her position, but one she had nonetheless, if only because it could distract her.

Ruby stopped talking into the scroll for a second, "Did you find her?"

Weiss shook her head. Finding renewed focus, she searched for Four Seven Niner, finding her near the repair crew, digging into an ammo crate, looking for something the same caliber as her rifle. As they walked closer, she noticed them, and sat her weapon aside.

"What happened? People are moving back and forth so I thought I'd prepare but nobody told me anything yet…"

Weiss considered her next words for a few moments, should she simply drop the reality of the matter? In any case, sugar coating it, or hiding the truth certainly wouldn't help.

"Atlas is moving, and they could be trying to start a war."

Be it thanks to the choice of words, or her own fortitude, Four Seven Niner seemed mostly unaffected, "That's… Not what we were expecting."

"It's not. We're under equipped, we came here looking to clean some Ruin Zones, then move to Atlas, get the CCTS back up. Not this."

Something aggravated Ruby, "I know it's on short notice but you still have the blueprints right? Yes. It doesn't have to be perfect," she beckoned a couple of crewmates her way, they were carrying a long wooden box, large enough it needed two people to carry it.

"I need to go now. Thanks," Ruby said, then clicked off the scroll. She closed a panel on Crescent Rose, then nodded at Weiss when the pair of crewmates planted the box on the floor in front of them.

"You'll be needing this," Ruby said, prying off the top of the box with little effort, revealing the weapon within.

The new Myrtenaster model. It was encased in form-fitting foam and clamped down by wood bars, to restrain it, keep it in place. It was a bit longer than she expected, but still kept the basic form of a rapier, made of something different that time, a bluish, dark metal. Likely Cinder alloy. Decorative engravings ran along the hand guard, all the way to the revolver cylinder inside, arabesque pattern scrolling and interlacing, forming her emblem at the center. At the side of the box, a wealth of brand new dust round, a crystalline, shimmering Dust inside.

Four Seven Niner peeked inside, "Holy shit,"

"You upgraded Myrtenaster?" Weiss asked, Ruby simply nodded in return. She invited her, gesturing a hand to the box.

"Pick it up, it's yours. I made it just for you."

Weiss picked up the weapon, the scent of freshly oiled metal lingering in the air around them. The chamber was unloaded, a prudent measure, 'the god of darkness loads empty guns' was a saying in Vale for a reason. She disengaged the cylinder, picked up a round and loaded it.

"Hard-light mixture," Ruby explained, "Electricity and earth Dust, some tempering, with some gravity Dust thrown in. The handle is divided in half, twist them at the same time to engage it."

Weiss followed the instruction, held the grip with both hands then twisted them in opposite directions. A bluish-green light gleamed from the guard, a line of light, extending all the way to the tip of the sword, then broadening as a blade outwards. A broadsword, wide as her torso. Some of the other crewmates turned, looking at the glowing weapon.

Weiss smiled, "When I mentioned some versatility I was thinking along the lines of modular parts, this is…"

"The greatest thing ever? Come on, I know you trained in more than just fencing, I've seen you fight," Ruby said, smirking.

Weiss tested the sword, slowly swinging it, "It's light."

"And you can use it to block too. The hard-light Dust mix lasts a long time and it's pretty sturdy, I think each vial can give you about an hour, give or take a few minutes."

Ruby had thought of so much, every detail and possibility. Weiss both envied and loved that about her, the ease with which she created, manifested innovation. And the smile, the godsdamned smile that always made her stomach feel light, blinded her sight and made her head lose track of all else, she should walk right her way and-

Four Seven Niner straightened up between the two of them, "Same stuff they use in deployable shields, right?"

"Pretty much, I think we've got some of those for you by the way, the Headmistress is allowing it. Oh, and she also gifted us a little something," Ruby gestured towards an aircraft, dark gray, slim and slick like a jet, with a pointed nose and cockpit window. Each wing was equipped with a pair of turbines.

Four seven Niner looked back, her eyes wide, "No way."

Ruby nodded once, "Yes way. The interceptor is ours, brand new, three times faster than The Robin. Not as much space, but we won't need space."

"I'll make preparations," Four Seven Niner said, rushing off towards the aircraft.

Blake and Yang caught up with them, striding into the docking bay. Yang whistled, looking at the new Myrtenaster.

"We just got the message- that's… one hell of an upgrade, Ice Queen."

Ruby cut in, "And there's more coming, by the way. I was just on the scroll with Goodwitch, she cleared my silver bullet."

Blake furrowed her brows, "Isn't that untested?"

Weiss shut off the hard-light blade, "I don't think we can afford being careful right now."

"Anything on your mind? I mean… We saw that thing, we'll have to hunt it, right?"

Before answering, Weiss remembered to look at Ruby, for confirmation. The leader must always give permission first, she thought, her atlesian way seeping in. Ruby smiled and nodded, the sign she needed. With that simple gesture, her restlessness was gone, no longer did the SDC, possible war or Atlas plagued her thoughts, there was only the task at hand. Examination, inferences.

"I analyzed the footage best I could. I think that dragon will be fighting at or around Atlesian ground, and that is wherever the city moves to. It seems like it can travel at mach one, speed of sound, but that limits it. Probably can't react as fast, turn or maneuver. If the video is any indication it'll be fast, tough and strong, but it definitely can't go full speed all the time."

"Well that's a relief," Yang said, "At least we don't need to worry about getting blitzed right now."

"Exactly. Think about Atlas as its lair."

"It's a defense mechanism then."

"We also need to take into account that it's definitely Grimm. Armored and enhanced with cybernetics, but Grimm. It'll think for itself, adapt, that means it has none of the usual android weaknesses. And on top of that, It'll definitely have company. Brand new Paladins, corrupted by Grimm too."

Blake looked uneasy, "We'll have to think on the spot then."

"Yes. If we depend too much on some highly coordinated tactic the plan will never survive contact. There are things I can't predict, it could have a hidden arsenal, abilities we've never faced before."

Yang grinned, "It's not like we never winged it before. Any other team with us?"

"No," Weiss answered, "The teams Juniper, Cardinal and Sable will be searching for the others as we attack. Coco and Team Auburn agreed to stay, for defense."

For the second time unease passed through Blake's expression, "I feel so bad for Coco, can't we do anything for her?"

Weiss shook her head. Best case scenario, if her team isn't in fighting condition yet, they'll be bedridden for a while longer. In the worst case…

She preferred not thinking about it too much.

"But," Ruby interrupted, "We did have a last minute addition."

"And I'm combat ready!" came the voice from behind them, startling everyone but Ruby.

It was Penny Polendina, the red haired robot woman, although it was hard attributing artificial qualities to her. She wasn't a simulation, but a real person, Weiss knew. Penny was seemingly healed of all previous damage, her body spotless.

Weiss smiled, "And how are you feeling?" she asked. A part of her wanted to ask the woman if she was fine, cured of all damage her artificial body took, but another told her not to do it so overtly, because it'd expose weakness. A silly thought, meant for Noble parties, not Huntresses. They were among allies and only allies, weaknesses exposed wouldn't be capitalized on by rivals beneath cloak and dagger.

But some habits were hard to break.

"I'm one-hundred percent! Father even equipped me with some upgrades."

Yang had both hands on her hips, her back straight, "Well that's even better. We'll be trusting you with our collective backsides," she said, with a wink and a smile.

"And I will take very good care of your backsides. Oh!" Penny's eyes widened and she nearly jumped on the spot, Blake and Yang both laughed at the gaffe. If she had blood, the poor woman might blush in shame, "Inadequate phrasing, apologies."

Ruby took a step forward, "So, everyone ready?"

—❖—

Damn, interceptors are fast.

Yang dusted herself off after landing, as always she'd been the last one to jump off, just in case. She walked out of the small crater she left on impact, looked off to the distance, and saw the city of Atlas, miniscule on her vision, who knew what distance away it was, or how fast it was moving. But at least it wasn't moving their way.

Around them, there were some trees, but mostly snow. So much snow, not a sign of life. How did Solitans even survive on the continent? They couldn't possibly subsist only on solid water.

Behind her, Blake, Ruby and Weiss fumbled with a trio of hoverbikes. Different from the old Atlesian ones, they were more aerodynamic, with curves that were closer to racing bikes. No wheels, so parking them was quite a chore too.

"So the hunt begins."

What came next was tedious but necessary. Using the terrain to hide, keeping their presence to a minimum, and their eyes open, always track the mark.

Yang felt a pull from her Aura, her teammates and Penny all perked up at the same time, right before the earth rumbled beneath them.

"Centinels!" Weiss announced, pointing to rising mounds of snow not far from them. There were three, as Yang counted in a moment.

She always hated how their names were spelled with a 'C'. Sure, they were giant centipedes, therefore centipede sentinels followed logically, but it still irked her.

Yang ran their way, to block them. She activated her semblance, the heat from her body melted the snow around her in an instant, she barely needed to cut through the snow . Penny flew above her, keeping pace.

The first Centinel surged out of the ground, the centipede body rose before it spat out acid. Yang evaded the green substance with a jump to the side while Penny struck from above, a brief laser burst, strong enough it knocked the Grimm's head into Yang's hands.

Yang gripped the bone plate that armored its head, then jumped over it, making it twist back, exposing the unarmored underside.

Behind her, she felt the beast jolt twice, then the head split off from the body. Blake had cleaved clean through with her own sword.

At their sides, two Centinels attacked, the right one charging for Penny in midair. She kept it busy, weaved circles in the air around it.

The other spit acid at Blake. No, her Semblance clone! The black haired faunus had sneaked off a mere moment before the strike hit, no doubt confusing the Grimm.

One of Weiss' Glyphs appeared beneath Yang, propelling her to the Centinel. She knew it could bleed acid, so concussing it to death was the best course of action. Yang jumped above it, brought both knees to her chest then kicked down, striking the monster's head. With a flash of her Semblance, a burst of flames was released into the attack, making it hit even harder.

The Grimm, for its part, had apparently taken such into account. It struck Yang out of the air with the other end of its body. The force of the strike fed into her Semblance, it was 'stored' for later use, but she was still bound by the laws of physics. Yang hit snow, then dirt, but dug a hand into the ground, pushed herself up and out of the trajectory.

It had been the correct choice. The Centinel fired a constant stream of acid, rather than simple shots, and it would've covered Yang had she not moved. Blake shot at its throat and the stream seized up, cutting off as the beast tried to recover.

Fine then, no jumping anymore. Yang dashed to it, gripped one of its many insectoid legs, then pulled its head down to her level, then used her Semblance, a slow, consistent drip of stored energy directed at the ground, keeping it down.

She stared deep into its red eyes, a moment before Blake stabbed them. It dissipated a moment later, still looking into Yang.

To the side, Penny flew around the Centinel as Weiss and Ruby shot it, downing the Grimm in a few rounds. High caliber rounds, but only a few nonetheless.

Yang glanced at Blake, she was seemingly unharmed.

"I had that under control."

One of Blake's ears swiveled in Yang's direction. She raised an eyebrow, amused, "You did then, huh?"

"Of course."

Blake brought a hand to her cheek, "So you're saying you didn't need me? After all these years?"

"That's not what I said!" Yang answered, then thought a little more, a grin spread across her face. She fixed a lock of blonde hair behind her ear, "I mean what self-respecting woman wouldn't need a beautiful…"

Yang stepped closer, "Dark…"

Another step, "Feline faunus with her?"

Yang loomed over Blake, a full head taller.

Blake was outwardly unimpressed. She crossed her arms, "I'll let you get away with it just this once."

"Aren't you generous today."

They walked to the rest of the team, Penny met them halfway, landing to check for injuries. Thankfully, the scuffle had barely grazed either of their Aura shields.

"You know," Yang said, looking at Penny, "I kinda envy you."

Penny tilted her head, confused "Why?"

"You can fly!"

"In theory, so can you, correct? You'd need a gravity Dust contraption, perhaps, but… It's possible."

"Still, flying around like that, without worrying about fuel or airtime… It has to be really cool, right?"

"Sometimes. I can take shortcuts, but there are sooo many bugs back in Vale, it's just not worth it. Once, I was hunting Griffons on a mission. I swear I accumulated at least five different species before it was over."

Yang chuckled, "I guess there's a downside to everything huh?"

Brake glanced at Penny, "Can't Pietro make you some kind of bug-zapper?"

"You misunderstand, he already did." Penny answered, then held her arms outstretched to the side. A moment later, she lit up like a bonfire, the hum of electricity filling the air for the brief second she maintained the demonstration. "Still, it's not a pleasant experience."

Penny kept her arms outstretched as she spoke, then for a few moments more. She sometimes only realized things were awkward way past the point of no return.

Yang shrugged, "I guess that makes sense. I wouldn't wanna get bugs all over me all the time, zapper or no zapper."

Yang checked the hoverbikes, opening the hood. They had their basis on pre-war models, but the engines worked by storing refined Dust into separate chambers, then discharging more to accelerate or decelerate. That was the difference between it and wheeled models, since it took gravity Dust to accelerate, simply stopping the chemical reaction wasn't enough to come to a halt, Dust had to be spent to create propulsion in the opposite direction.

It had higher Dust usage than wheeled models, but it was silent, had good maneuverability and wouldn't leave tracks on the snow. It wouldn't be used for months nonstop, so the benefits outweighed the costs.

Ruby and Weiss joined them, "Did any of them get hit?" Ruby asked.

"Don't think so. Reaction chamber is pretty sturdy so it can take a few hits, and they weren't even clipped by debris. I think we're good"

To Yang's nonexistent surprise, Weiss would be riding with Ruby. That left Penny with one hoverbike for herself, and Yang and Blake with the last one.

Apparently, Ruby had packed an extra weapon into that specific hoverbike. Called it a 'silver bullet' only Yang's Semblance could keep together.

She couldn't wait to use it.

—❖—

It was a map of Solitas, with points of interest marked on the paper, sprawled atop the desk.

Plans within plans, and while his had been foiled somewhat, he was still ahead. The element of surprise was still there, and there were fallbacks in place.

The white-clad Specialists around him babbled among them, meaningless chat of units defeated, no prisoners taken yet. Fools, the lot of them, for they saw only what was in front of their faces, the bare minimum, the surface. They reminded him of a certain man, best not recalled or else he'd launch himself into a tirade.

One didn't plan without losing sight of the bigger picture, same as one wouldn't jump headfirst into unknown waters. This was why they needed a General such as him. It was his mind, his expertise that brought them this far.

An operative spoke up. What was her name again? It didn't matter, he'd forget it as soon as she was out of the room.

"The Schnees won't like this. We were supposed to have the heiress, and now we're coming back empty handed."

The Schnee, singular, he thought. Willow Schnee was long gone to parts unknown for years, and she'd taken the boy with her. It was frankly ironic that the only person still directly associated with House Schnee was not one by birth, a sham. That one 'Schnee' had an unhealthy, and frankly disgusting obsession with controlling the heiress, he likely knew how little the name meant without some legitimacy to it, but he could be humored with little to no consequence. House Schnee, with or without a legitimate heir? It didn't matter in the grand scheme of things, but it was a matter of life and death to Jacques.

It was a calculated move by none other than the General himsel, of course.

He'd taken so little time to give the Mother and the boy a way to escape the continent, despite the complications that a lack of cross-continental communication brought. Some simple bribes, one extra family among a crowd of refugees? None would notice it. And yet that action, that simple push of the domino would lçead to Jacques' ruin eventually.

And when he was ruined? The Schnee Dust Company would belong to the Military. Weapons, Dust mines, servants, all in quantities no man could ever dream of.

It was a lynchpin in the General's plan, he admitted it, but it was also inevitable. Could he take it by force, ordering soldiers and declaring martial law? Most likely. It would've been short-sighted and deranged though. It would establish a 'might makes right' view of him, which was only a problem insofar as it gave the illusion that some might be able to take what belonged to him with strength alone.

Not to mention it could've made Jacques into a martyr fighting to the bitter end. He wouldn't allow for that either

No, there was no value in something taken, it had to be freely given, will power had to be broken first, and, as it turned out, Jacques had velly little will. If anything the man was excited by the promise of power.

There was no need to take out the Schnee so soon, he'd aided in so much after all. Jacques had been there for every step of the way. Experimentation on Grimm infused Androids. Their inner workings kept clean of Grimm influence. While elsewhere the beasts could, and would corrupt android programming, turn them against humanity, in the city of Atlas, such never happened.

This much was freely given to them by their benefactor. She was the one that so casually invented the way Grimm took control of advanced technology. She was the one that kept the monsters docile when they needed experimentation. She was an astoundingly intelligent and wise woman, the General recognized it.

A Specialist spoke up, the dark skinned one, with the hair shaved at the sides. It was another piece of useless babble among the cacophony, he didn't bother listening to her spiel.

The General never understood why she even bothered talking, when she'd just follow orders in any case, no matter the nature of orders received. She could be told to speak and stay silent and the fool would still try to follow it. He supposed he had the previous man to thank for the conditioning. If anything his collection of lemmings was particularly obedient, perhaps more so than the robots who had nothing but pre-programmed responses to eventualities.

He could see why, even if the move was made by his benefactor and not his own mind. Divided from the rest of Remnant, they fell into their most malleable states. Arrogance that fed into itself, stronger than any program written by a human mind. Taking it into consideration before making the next moves was important.

"The Dragon, is it intact?"

The Specialist answered, hesitated for a moment, "She's… mostly fine. We still haven't deployed her again, as you ordered."

"Have it at the vanguard again. I want another full force following it as we take Kastellfen. Paladins and Pegasus, no holding back."

"And the Grimm Hunters we detected, sir?"

"Inconsequential. There's nothing they can do now, so we proceed."

There was a moment of hesitation, but he didn't mind it. It only meant every operative, Specialist and soldier in the room was measuring their next words, considering if contradicting his words was worth it.

"Yes sir, General Watts," they answered in perfect harmony. Just the way he liked it.