A/N: I wrote this to see how I could pull off the Isekai and Gamer genres of fics, and while I was initially not going to post this story, not for a long time at least, I decided I'd put it out here to see how people feel about it, and if it's worth pursuing further. Hope you enjoy!
I saw nothing but a white, never-ending void. Time felt fluid, hard to describe. How long was I staring at nothing? A second? A year? A decade?
I felt myself being lifted, but I had no weight, I was not in my body.
Was I anything?
A masculine figure that appeared to shine gold looked at me, and despite not having any facial features, I felt a warmth, a pity, in his gaze, "Your end was unjust, your life cut short. I do not bend the rules easily, but you…I have a use for you."
I couldn't speak, and yet as I wondered who this being was, and what he wanted from me, he spoke, "You are scared, confused, uncertain. This is understandable. I will send you to a new world, and with you will be a gift. Treasure it, for it will guide you true, should you let it."
He did not elaborate further, instead, he began to move. Molding my being in his hands, he pushed me down again, the laws of reality fell away. Light gave way to darkness, and I knew no more.
Suddenly, it all came rushing back to me. One second, I was nowhere, the next, I was standing in the street of an unfamiliar city. The sound of cars, the constant roaring ambience of the cityscape, the sound of people talking, walking, living, all filled my ears.
It overwhelmed me for a second. I was standing on a sidewalk, and as I glanced at the people around me, some glanced at me, others ignored me, yet nobody recognized me.
My first thoughts were a slew of questions. Who was I? Where was I? What…happened to me?
I had a name once, but it was gone, frustratingly out of reach, a blurred smudge of letters.
Did I know anyone?
My mind's eye brought no familiar faces, I remembered that they once lived, or maybe they still did, but I didn't know their names, nor could I describe them, they just…were.
I looked down, I was wearing clothes, I remembered clothes. I remembered…basic things. Yet, anything beyond muscle memory or engrained instinct was lost, I knew.
The clothes were a black T-shirt, a pair of jeans and a pair of running shoes. The most interesting thing was what was around my neck, a necklace.
On closer inspection, I saw the chain was made out of gold. The pendant was shaped like a light blue heart with gold lining the gem, what the gem was, I didn't know. It held some significance to me, I knew that, but I couldn't tell you why.
Someone bumped into me, and on instinct I apologized. My voice was a bit soft, not high-pitched, not slow-pitched, but gentle. Maybe it was just the way I apologized, but I had a feeling that was just my voice now.
I remembered how to talk, that was a basic thing.
The sudden human interaction made me realize that I should move, I didn't remember anything but standing on the street was not going to solve that.
I walked, I didn't know where I was going, but I walked nonetheless. If I didn't feel so confused and overwhelmed I might have started to break down then and there, because I didn't know where I was, I didn't know what happened to me, I didn't-
That was when things started to click inside of my mind, all prompted by the signage of a store I ended up standing in front of.
'From Dust till Dawn'
I felt around in my pockets and, thankfully, there was what I thought was a phone, I remembered smartphones. Yet when I pulled the thing out, it wasn't any smart phone I had ever seen. Maybe something that would come out in a few decades back home, but nothing we would have had now…
Back home…I remembered that I was from the United States, but as for where I lived or what year it was exactly, I couldn't remember. I did remember the name of this store, though, and what this device in my hand was.
Was this heaven, or was this hell? Did I die, was that what it was? I didn't know, but I immediately felt the panic I had warded off so far starting to take root in my heart. I was on Remnant. At least, that's what it looked like, sure on a passing glance this place looked like a regular city, but the signage, the technology, the people, everything was just off enough for me to know that this was not home.
That was when suddenly the pendant around my neck began to glow.
If anyone around me noticed it, they didn't say anything.
Acting on instinct, I reached my hand up to the pendant and clasped it in my palm. That was when time started to slow down, causing me to look around in confusion and panic as suddenly people started to slowly stop walking, before freezing in place. A bird that was flying up above was, similarly, stuck in place.
A blue fog started manifesting from the pendant, causing me to let it go, unabated the smoke covered the area in front of me before suddenly a being began to coalesce out of it.
Glowing blue skin, an androgynous body that I could neither call male nor female, similarly the face of this person was androgynous enough that I just decided that they were supposed to look like this, in the middle of everything. After they manifested, they gained a dark blue T-shirt, a pair of jeans, shoes, and a puffy blue winter coat. Their hair was light blue and every part of them, even the clothes, emitted blue smoke.
Their eyes were dark blue in the sclera and a lighter blue in the irises. They regarded me with a look of curiosity, tilting their head and speaking in a voice that was, similar to the rest of them, neither definitively masculine nor feminine, yet it still held this strange ethereal warmth to it, "So…You are the one I was made for. You…do not have a name anymore, you do not have a home anymore, nor do you know anyone anymore, you must be terrified."
I swallowed a lump in my throat before nodding, and the figure smiled, "Rest assured that you are not entirely alone. I am your…personal assistant, so to speak. I believe you could call me a 'Tutorial Character' to use words you're familiar with."
I tilted my head, "...Like in a video game?" They nodded, and I continued, "This…doesn't feel like a video game. This feels very real…" I still wanted to freak out, but the presence of this being seemed to have some sort of calming aura to it. That was nice, but it only muted my emotions so much.
"Because it is." They responded matter-of-factly, "You're in this world now, you know it as Remnant. The year is 90 AGW, 'After Great War.' Which puts you a couple months before the events you may be familiar with would be set into motion. However, I was given instructions to inform you, that if you are expecting to stay…compliant with the timeline of this world, that your mere presence has set in motion a chain of events that will change a great deal of things. It would be futile to try and avoid the changes."
I shook my head and looked down, "I'm not a fighter…All I remember about my life before was…I was just a regular person, a college student, and not a good one either…Now I'm here. How did I die?" I looked up at them.
However, they were already shaking their head, "I can't tell you that. The trauma of reliving those memories would be too much for you to handle right now, maybe it always will be, but if you are going to become integrated into this world, it is better to try to move past it anyway. Now…"
Suddenly the area I was in melted away and I was standing in a featureless white room with my…'assistant' standing across from me, they raised their hand and snapped their fingers. Suddenly, my vision was filled with a bunch of…dialogue boxes?
The first and largest read thusly:
SAVE 1
C̵͚͕͚̥̹̖̼̩͈̭̘̰͂̂͛̽̍͆͐̈́̚͜͝Ó̸̞̹͙̋̽̓̊̂R̸̡̜̥̟̗̱͕̲̜͔͈͒̊͐̀͑̈́̐̇͘͝͠Ȑ̴̬̰͉̙̝͇̒͜Ǘ̶̖̗͙̮͙̯̤͎̝̹̩͖̚P̷̲̰̩̤̩̍͐̄͘T̵̞̟̲̉́E̷̡̪̼͎̔́̈́̔̏̾̈́̈̉͌͗̕͝D̸͚͍̜̞̰̗̗̠̐̂͆̿̐͊̌ͅ. ERROR, USERDATA IRREVERSIBLY DAMAGED.
WORLDSTATE
ALL GONE
I shuddered as I read the text. There was something ominous and foreboding about it, I knew looking at it that wherever I had come from before was gone. There was no going back, and all I could do was lament and mourn the loss of people and places I could not, and would not remember.
There was another box just beneath it, this one was no less foreboding, but for an entirely different reason.
DELETE SAVE DATA?
YES/NO
Whatever there was for me in that old world was gone, and now this system was trying to tell me to wipe it clean, start over and move on to this new world that I found myself in. I shuddered, and hesitated to tap anything before the Assistant spoke, "Do it, rip the bandaid off. There is nothing left for you in the old world."
I swallowed a lump in my throat and felt goosebumps on my arms as I raised one hand and tapped 'YES.' The 'save data' that was taking up that slot vanished, "So long…" I muttered mournfully.
The Assistant smiled, "Good. Now it's time to move on to the next…" Those two dialogue boxes melted away, and in its place there was one, with a simple question on it.
NEW GAME?
YES/NO
I tapped yes and suddenly the save slot that had been wiped out was filled with new text.
SAVE 1
Neve Cadere
Level 0
WORLDSTATE
STABLE
So that was my name…? I didn't remember my old name, so a replacement would have to do. The Assistant continued, "Your appearance and name have been generated already, after all, in what reality do you pick your own appearance?" They snapped their fingers and a mirror appeared in front of me.
I had black hair and ice-blue eyes, I knew, somehow, my age was eighteen. My skin was fair, and my clothes were different now as well. I was wearing a blue T-shirt with a white jacket over it, a pair of jeans and a pair of running shoes. Nothing extraordinary, but I liked it.
"You will gain access to an ability called Gamer's Body, and with it you will now be able to see your health, limb status, status effects, and more. The second innate ability you have is Gamer's Focus, if you focus hard enough, you will be able to discern illusions, however, at the start, this will not be very strong. You will have to train it, and everything else, to get better at it. You will carry over some of your skills and memories from the old world, parts that are relevant to you now, but most of it will only be remembered upon reaching a certain level of synchronization between who you were, and who you are. Should you learn to live with the best of both, you may learn more memories and skills you had hidden, and remember more of who you were."
The Assistant must have seen the hesitant look on my face, because they offered a reassuring smile, "Do not despair. You will pick up on some things faster than most, however, you will still have to work for it. The Brothers were only able to come to an agreement on you because the God of Light agreed to not give you a free pass."
Well, good to know that my life was entirely in the hands of two bickering brothers, but there was no turning back, I was here. The Assistant said with finality, "Now go. Call upon me if you need my assistance, otherwise, I will offer you guidance in the form of the textboxes that you have been reading."
In the blink of an eye, suddenly I was back in front of the dust shop and time started again, people began moving, the sound of the cityscape returned, and the bird up above continued on its flight.
I felt a couple things in my pocket, the first was a wallet, and when I pulled out the second thing I saw that it was a scroll, Remnant's version of a smartphone. It was a lot more advanced than what I remembered things were like back on earth, although the vision was fuzzy. The screen, I knew, could project holographic images, it could act as a video phone and a regular phone, and could download apps just the same as a phone from the old world.
Well, that was handy. It also had my ID on it, which I felt was going to be useful.
However, there was still a problem. The buzzing despair in the back of my head, the feeling that I lost everything returned now that the Assistant was gone. So, there I was…no money, no memories that would tell me anything about who I was, and no direction.
I didn't know what else to do, so I just started to walk down the street, aimless and without care. Who knew where I would end up? It didn't matter, because I didn't have anywhere to be, anywhere to go.
I was taken out of my thoughts while I was walking by a text notification appearing in the top right corner of my vision.
Skill discovered: Urban Navigation!
In the world of Remnant, you will often find yourself in cities of all shapes and sizes. This skill represents your ability to find your way through urban jungles, and to locate places of interest within those jungles.
Current Skill Level
1 out of 100
Well, there was that…If this system worked on a hundred point scale, I had to wonder what game it was basing itself off of. Adding more to my frustratingly spotty memory, I remembered a few games with systems like this. The first to come to mind was Dark Souls, and I sincerely hoped that that wasn't the equivalence, because that meant I was going to be in a lot of trouble…
…Who was I kidding, I'm on Remnant, I was going to be in a lot of trouble, regardless.
I didn't want to do the obvious thing and tap the button to close the notification, so I tried something different. I thought about it closing, and thankfully, it actually closed. Good, that meant I wouldn't need to look like a crazy person…Well, no more of a crazy person than I was already going to come across, walking around town aimlessly with no memories about who I was, or who I am now.
I did get some looks from people, probably wondering why I looked so lost. I looked around a lot, tried to figure out where I was exactly, what landmarks there were…
Someone bumped into me, but I didn't think anything of it until I got a quest notification.
Quest Created!
Welcome Wagon
Your wallet has been stolen by a rather suave man, get it back!
Quest Rewards
?
Well, great…
I looked around and tried to find whoever could have possibly stolen my wallet as the crowd thinned out. We were getting close to a park, so there were going to be a lot of places for someone to hide, not that I even really thought I'd be able to get my wallet back. There was nothing in it, and depending on who stole it, they might be able to beat me into next week if I tried to take it back, especially because I didn't know the first thing about fighting.
Well, I didn't know the first thing about most things, but fighting especially.
I separated from the river of people and stepped into the entrance to the park, where the sidewalk gave way to a cobblestone path. I looked around back at the sidewalk, trying to find who could have possibly stolen my wallet.
New Skill Discovered: Perception!
There are a lot of things in life that require a keen sense of hearing or seeing to pick out. Faces in the crowd, where you misplaced your scroll, and getting a better look at the cute girl you're interested in! This skill helps you do all of those things and more
Current Skill Level
1 out of 100
I didn't like that my 'Assistant' had some sort of sense of humor when giving me this information. I was a long ways away from thinking about cute girls right now.
I eventually gave up and deflated, turning towards the park and walking away from the crowd, finding a park bench and sitting there, looking up at the sky. I resigned myself to a failed quest, however that was the precise moment when I heard a guy clear his throat.
I looked towards the source and saw my first familiar face from the series. Bowler hat, nice suit, weird haircut…Yep, it was him. He was leaning on his cane with a smirk on his face, holding up what else but my wallet, "Hey kid. Missing something?" All I could do was nod, he continued, looking at it, "I'm not gonna lie to you, I saw how fresh-faced and stupid you looked and thought hey, tourist, easy pickings! Then I saw, man…You've got nothin'."
He tossed the wallet towards me and I fumbled trying to catch it, but thankfully still managed to get ahold of it before it fell to the ground. Torchwick continued, "That's when I realized you didn't look lost and stupid because you were a tourist, you looked lost and stupid because you had nowhere to go." He gained a wry smile on his face, "Life ain't easy, is it kid?"
I opened my mouth to respond but found myself struggling to find the right words. Instead, I just closed my mouth and shook my head solemnly. The melancholy stuck in my mind that I couldn't even place the cause of was proof enough of that. Torchwick walked closer, "I was like you once." He stated with an uncharacteristic softness in his voice, something I never imagined I'd hear from this criminal mastermind. "Nowhere to go, nobody to turn to, the world is unfair, and the best way to carve out your place in life has always been to be unfair right back. Why don't you look inside that wallet of yours?"
I did so and my eyes widened as I saw a card in it. I recognized it as being this world's equivalent of a debit card, or a credstick in a setting like Shadowrun. I looked up at him, and he nodded, "There's fifty Lien on that thing. Get yourself some food, get your shit together, and keep going." He turned on his feet and started to walk away, "Don't end up like me, yeah? Lying, cheating, stealing, all to get ahead. Get yourself an honest job and settle down somewhere."
I was shocked to hear Torchwick of all people giving me good life advice and warning me away from crime, but as I felt some tears welling up, I looked down and spoke my first words in this terrible world that weren't spoken in some pocket dimension, "...Thank you." My voice was soft and shaky.
Torchwick paused for a moment, before nodding his head, "Don't worry about it kid, just keep going. The best is yet to come."
As he walked away, I got a new notification, floating in front of me.
Quest Complete: Welcome Wagon!
After an unlikely meeting with Roman Torchwick, you've gotten your wallet back, along with some money and sage advice.
Rewards
A new acquaintance: Roman Torchwick
50 Lien
+1 Mind
I closed the dialogue, Torchwick was gone now and I was the only one sitting here. I realized that since the thing had been talking about EXP, that meant that I must have had stats.
I thought about looking at my stats, and sure enough a couple panels of information appeared in front of me.
Neve Cadere
Level 1 Wanderer
Age: Eighteen
HP
50/50
Aura
Requires Unlocking!
Stats
Vigor - 5
Mind - 6
Endurance - 5
Strength - 5
Dexterity - 5
Intelligence - 5
I could infer what most of these meant, vigor was my health, endurance was my stamina, strength, dexterity, and intelligence were all self explanatory. The question was, what was mind? As I thought about that question, an explanation appeared in front of me.
Mind
A representation of your mental fortitude and intuitive knowledge. Intelligence can be gained by learning, reading books, listening to lectures, etc. Mind is learned through experiencing the world and going through events that strengthen your state of mind and weathering tests of emotional strength, as well as specific types of training.
So Mind was just a fancy way of saying 'Wisdom.' I supposed that made sense, and it explained why I gained one point of it from that quest. Experiencing getting pick-pocketed and then having Torchwick give me life advice definitely counted as experiencing the world…
It was at this point that I felt my stomach grumble, I looked around to make sure no one heard that before standing up and sighing. Well, Torchwick did say to get something to eat…I supposed that would be the best thing to do, maybe I could start asking around about work, or vacancies…
As I thought about this, I got a new notification.
New Quest Obtained!
A New Normal?
With just enough money to keep you fed for a few days, you now are presented with the question of what you should do now. You need money, food, and a place to stay, and all sooner rather than later.
Quest will be complete when you have a paying job and a place to sleep OR when you gain admittance to Beacon Academy.
Quest Rewards
Not starving to death, not sleeping on benches, a paying job OR an ongoing education.
The quest was more or less what I was going to do anyway, minus the Beacon part, so I supposed that worked out. I got back on the sidewalk and started on the path, following signs that pointed me towards the commercial district. The first thing I needed was some food, and maybe some coffee…I was incredibly tired already, despite having basically done nothing today.
I checked my scroll and found that it was three PM, way too early to sleep, even if I had a place to do so.
I sighed and continued on my way, eventually reaching the commercial district. It was bustling with activity just like I expected it to be, the whole place felt very cozy and safe, but that probably had more to do with the fact that I knew several people in the crowd could probably kill any Grimm or fight off any bandit that tried to come to this part of town. Nobody was trying anything in what was basically the heart of the city, at least, that's what I always assumed this place was.
I bought a hot dog from a street vendor and ate it, for some reason I knew that street food was often the best kind of food to have, maybe residue from my former life? It was inexpensive and usually made better than a lot of chain restaurants, although I wasn't sure if Vale had any of those, I hadn't seen anything that looked like a chain yet at least.
While enjoying my food and trying to keep myself busy by thinking of what to do next, I spotted a cafe not far from where I was standing, near the vendor I had just bought from.
I headed over to the place, intent on getting a cup of coffee, and saw a 'Help Wanted!' sign posted on the door. Well, I could work at a place like this, if they would take me…For some reason, it reminded me of stories I used to read in my old life. Stories that almost always took place in coffee shops or cafes. They were usually lighthearted, and focused more on romance or feel-good storytelling…
…Well, I knew my life wasn't going to be anything like those stories, if the God of Light was right, but a part of me hoped that maybe, if I got a job here, I could just…Stay working here, live the civilian life. Ruby and her friends could fight their war, I would just get in the way.
When I entered the shop I was immediately hit with how calm and peaceful it looked. There were only a few booths on either side of the walls, a handful of tables in the middle, and more outside, yet there didn't seem to be that much traffic right now.
I wondered what constituted 'good' traffic for businesses in Remnant? I knew the population was a lot lower than where I came from, so maybe everything was naturally sleepier? At least, when there was nothing to worry about.
There was a middle-aged woman sitting on a chair behind the counter, she smiled at me and stood up, "Welcome! You look tired." She had brunette hair that fell to her back, earthy brown eyes, a heart-shaped face, and a warm look about her, she wore a dark green T-shirt and a pair of jeans under a red apron.
I nodded as I walked over and my voice betrayed just how right she was as I spoke, "...Something with lots of cream and sugar, please." I took out the card I had and placed it on the table.
"Comin' right up." She responded, turning around and started to make some coffee for me using one of the strangely hi-tech coffee makers she had on a counter behind her to do so.
Remnant was nothing if not futuristic, I supposed. While she was going through the motions, I asked, "Uhm…So you're hiring?"
I wasn't sure exactly how hiring worked on Remnant, hell, I couldn't remember how hiring worked back where I came from right now…She nodded, glancing back at me, "Yep, used to just be me and my son, then he got it in his head to go train to be a Huntsman with his father. They're off in Mistral or some place, so I'm lookin' for an extra hand to take some of the load off. You interested?"
I nodded, "I'm…I've never applied to a place before, or anything like that, but…I need work." I sighed and looked down, I didn't want to tell her how bad my situation really was, so instead I fixed out my scroll and showed her my ID.
She walked back over with my coffee in hand and set it down on the counter, "You mind?" She asked, looking at my scroll, I shook my head and she took it, looking it over, "Neve Cadere, eighteen. Gonna run a background check, assumin' ya don't object?" It was a rhetorical question, I was looking for work, of course I wasn't going to object, so I shook my head to her question and she disappeared into the back room.
That left me with my coffee and my card, which she hadn't charged yet. I leaned against the counter and sipped the hot drink, it was exactly what I needed. I found that I liked coffee, quite a bit actually. Maybe it was a hold-over from my last life, maybe it was new, there was no telling.
She came back after a few minutes, I had almost finished my drink at that point, and felt a bit more awake for it. Although she had a look of concern on her face, not worry, concern. She handed me back my scroll and I closed it before putting it in my pocket while she spoke, the concern was dripping from her voice as well, "No police record, but…Nothin' else either, I didn't go through your phone, just put it through my machine. The records have your name, say you're a citizen of Vale, but family? School records? Nothing…" She placed her hands on the counter, "What's your story, Neve?"
I looked away and sighed, before sipping my drink, "I'll be honest with you, I don't know. I…remember a lot of things, but nothing about my life, no family, no home…Only reason I have any money is because someone took pity on me."
She only grew more worried, "That's mighty strange…Maybe you were a victim of some criminal ring or something? Do you need to talk to the police, or go to the hospital?" Her tone was turning more caring, concerned, she must have seen some part of her son in me, or maybe she was just a naturally motherly woman.
I shook my head, "What could I tell them? I really just…need a place to work, a place to stay, too, but I'm not going to ask that of you…I'll go looking for a place to live after I find a place to work." I looked back at her and tried my best to smile, "I'll…understand if you don't want to hire me, it's risky."
Surprisingly, she smiled at me, "...I'll hire you, and I'll do you one better. I also own the place upstairs, used to live there, now I just use it to store stuff. I can let you stay there, at least until you get on your feet…"
I tried to object, my eyes widening, "Ma'am, you don't have to do that. I don't want to impose-"
Yet she interrupted me, "None of that now." She patted my shoulder, "I know you're not a criminal, just based on the check, and even if you were…Well, I used to be a huntress myself before I retired to run this place and raise my son, I think I'd be able to take you." She grinned at me as any further protest died in my throat.
I sighed shakily, relief washed over my body, "Th-Thank you…" I looked down, "I-it means a lot…"
She shook her head, "Naw, don't worry about it…You'll be working and taking a load off me in the process, that's more than enough. Although I expect you to pay your own bills."
That was understandable, so I nodded, "What do I need to do now, then, ehm…Boss?"
She chuckled, "Call me June, and now, I'll teach you how to work this place…"
It didn't occur to me until that night that she never made me pay for that cup of coffee. I felt bad, but she probably did it on purpose, so I wasn't going to bring it up.
After she finished giving me the run-down on how everything worked, she showed me to the place upstairs. It had some boxes scattered around it, but fortunately for me she had an old twin-sized mattress and a bedspread she said I could use, which took care of my other primary issue.
It was only after she had me take some of her boxes to her car and load them so she could take them back home that I was able to say I was done for the day. She showed me how to lock up the shop, and then I was free to head upstairs and get some rest. Once I headed upstairs and shut the door behind me, I got a new notification.
Quest Complete: A New Normal!
You have found yourself a place to live and a place to work, for the moment. That should give you more than enough time to find your footing.
Rewards
Not starving to death, not sleeping on benches, a paying job.
Immediately after I closed that box, a new one appeared.
Quest Received!
The Shining Beacon!
Classes at Beacon start in two months, plenty of time to get on your feet. Once you have, you should endeavor to find a way into Beacon, perhaps the Headmaster might be sympathetic to your troubles?
Rewards
New Acquaintance: Ozpin, Enrollment to Beacon, further rewards depending on path taken to complete quest.
I closed the notification and shook my head. That was one quest I was more than happy to let fail. Based on what I knew, I could assume that Ruby would still get into Beacon, and if I didn't intervene, then the events of the story would play out as they did on the show. So, what did I have to worry about? Ruby and her group became competent huntsmen over time, the God of Light was probably being overly cautious by sending me.
Surely he'd understand if I just tried to integrate into Remnant and live my own life?
Pushing it out of my head, I found myself going to sleep surprisingly quickly after laying in bed.
The next week or so was spent entirely in a simple routine: Wake up, go downstairs, work, then go back upstairs and sleep.
I used the Lien I had to buy some extra sets of clothes so I could use the shower that was in my apartment without wearing dirty clothes. I also bought some food, although that was the last of the money I had until my first payday, which was thankfully weekly.
I had hoped nothing of interest would happen that week, but looking back on it, there was at least one notable 'interesting' thing that happened.
It was my third day of work, Wednesday, and I had just finished waving goodbye to one of the customers and looked away to do some cleaning when I heard the door open with a ring, I started to turn around, and in my best customer service voice said, "Welco-" Although the words died in my mouth and my eyes briefly widened when I saw just who it was.
Fair skin, ashen black hair that covered one of her eyes, both of which were amber, and were looking around the place with a sense of familiarity that told me that she'd been here before. She had on lipstick and violet eyeshadow, and wore a red off-the-shoulder v-neck mini-dress with some yellow designs on it.
The rest of her outfit was exactly as I expected it to be, what I knew she looked like at the start of the show, her hair was still long and she still wore those heels that made her nearly six feet tall, just a couple inches taller than me. The only difference was that she was carrying a black purse.
Her eyes almost seemed to glow, and when they rested on me, I realized I had been staring. I cleared my throat and finished what I was saying, "Welcome! What can I get you?"
Cinder hummed as she walked over to the counter, regarding me with disinterest beyond my novelty, at least that's what it seemed like to me, I couldn't tell what she was thinking, I was too inwardly afraid to, and it took all I had to behave like a normal person as she spoke, "You're new…" She looked at the name-tag on my chest, "Neve. I like my coffee with a small amount of cream and sugar, your boss had it down perfectly. Try not to mess it up." Then, without another word, she walked over to a booth and sat down, casting her gaze out to the clouds above the city.
It was all I could do to nod and say, "R-Right away!" Then I began to work, going through the motions. That was Cinder Fall! Half a Fall Maiden, top lieutenant to Salem, the immortal wicked witch who wanted to destroy the whole world.
Memories rushed into my mind, as I realized that was not all she was either.
Clean the linens, sweep the floors! Shut your mouth and do your chores!
She was…A woman who had been treated wrong her whole life, although while I couldn't place it, she somehow looked…younger than she did in the show, not too much, but it was noticeable…I had to wonder how old she was in this universe. I doubted asking would earn me anything more than, at best, an angry glare, and at worst, a sword through my chest.
Nope, not barking up that tree…I finished making her coffee and walked it over to her, not making eye contact as I set it down and she turned her head to look at me, intrigued by my action. Normally, customers were supposed to get up and get their drink, she was perhaps not expecting me to do this, but…Through my terror, I wanted to try to be nice, not just to appease her, but to just…be human.
Some part of me though, naively, that if I was nice to her, maybe she would be less evil. It was a foolish hope, I knew, people didn't change on a dime, but…if I could be a part of her doing at least a few things differently, like not killing Pyrrha, then…I would try. I had to.
Cinder reached into her purse and produced what I had just settled on calling a debit card, "A couple donuts as well, if you would, glazed." She spoke in short sentences, her tone was neutral and disinterested, although her gaze lingered on me after I took the card, nodded, and started to walk back to my station.
I didn't know why until she spoke again while I was putting what she ordered on a plate and going to use her card to pay for her order, "Neve." She got my attention, I almost reacted with a start to her words, yet I reminded myself to keep it calm. I was sure she could see how skittish I was, but maybe she was just writing it off as me being shy? There's no way she could know that I knew who she was and what she was capable of, "How long have you been working here?"
It was a basic question, I wasn't sure why she wanted to know, or why she cared, but I responded as I brought her food and card over, responding in as casual a tone as I could muster, rather than my customer service voice, "...Just three days, ma'am." I still tried to be respectful, even when responding casually.
She gained the faintest ghost of a smile, "My name is Cinder. Cinder Fall. Call me Cinder." That was…Surprising, to say the least. The Cinder I knew from the show would have asked me to call her 'Miss Fall' or something that denoted her superiority to me, I was sure of it, and while I was certain she was still the same villain she was in the show, there was something a bit…different about her.
Maybe it was just the setting? I wasn't one of her lackeys, nor was I her enemy, I was just a coffee shop employee, "Okay…Cinder." I responded, using her name like that felt weird in my mouth, I would have to get used to it, "Do you…come here often? I-I mean that genuinely, n-not as anything…untoward."
Cinder covered her mouth with her hand and closed her eyes, I could see she was suppressing a giggle, she was…giggling? At me? "I'm a regular here." Then she returned to her normal, neutral expression, "Make sure you meet my expectations. So far, you've done well."
I nodded eagerly in response to her words, "I will try my best Ma-Uhm, Cinder." Then I returned to my station and resumed cleaning. I felt her eyes on me every so often, I wasn't sure why she was looking at me, but if she wanted something, she didn't say anything.
When I was finished cleaning, I sat in the chair behind the counter and looked at my scroll. It was a font of information, telling me all sorts of things about what was going on in Remnant, and in Vale specifically, at the time. Torchwick seemed to have already started his dust robberies, but he had yet to hit the one I knew Ruby would be at. There were also a few articles talking about the upcoming semester at Beacon, and other less notable news.
Between news stories, I glanced up at Cinder every so often. I saw her enjoying her coffee, a satisfied and peaceful smile on her face, and I saw her take a bite out of the donut and regard it with some surprise, before she finished it. She must have liked it, that was a relief.
I got a new notification at that point, a new quest.
Before Midnight
Cinder Fall is a regular patron of the coffee shop you work at. Perhaps getting to know her better might be a good idea?
Rewards
New Friend: Cinder Fall
+1 Charisma
That was…A tall order. I willed the quest away and went back to reading the news.
Cinder eventually left, and the rest of the day was unremarkable, although even that night my mind was stuck on how my strange circumstances had continued to find ways to get stranger.
I found that she became part of my new normal, for better or for worse. Cinder would come into the shop almost every day after that, although there were days she wouldn't, she'd order the same thing, and I would always bring it to her.
Sometimes she'd ask me questions about myself, and I would respond as best I could. It was a passing acquaintance, something you gained from seeing someone so frequently. Perhaps it shouldn't have meant anything, but the foot traffic to the shop was mostly regulars. I began to get to know them, their quirks, and what made them tic. Although I still couldn't get a good read on Cinder, there were small glimpses of who she was, small things that I would never expect out of her.
For example, one day in my second week of working, she saw me talking to a girl who had come in and struck up a conversation with me while she was drinking her coffee, and when I did bring her her coffee, she spoke, "New customers taking up all your time, Neve? Or has my novelty worn off?"
At first I thought she was upset, but I saw this…glint in her eye, it was playful, and through the sophisticated way she carried herself, I saw that she was actually teasing me. Let me repeat, Cinder Fall was teasing me. I wasn't sure how to respond, exactly, but I swallowed a lump in my throat as I sat her coffee down and managed a small smile and tried my hand at quipping back, "Just more customers than usual…Are you jealous?"
She seemed surprised at my response, I kept my sentences short and tried to remain casually polite with her. This was new territory, a new risk I was almost certain would get me killed, but instead she…she pouted at me, "Nonsense. I'm just used to getting my coffee as soon as I arrive."
My smile widened ever so slightly, "...I'll make sure I get it to you as quickly as possible when I see you, okay?" She seemed taken aback at my response, but a wordless smile was all the evidence I needed that she was satisfied with my response.
After that, I had to return to helping other customers, and the rest of that day was uneventful. It was just a couple days later when I learned something new about Cinder again.
June had ordered a new machine to make frappuccinos with, and there were a lot of kinds put on the previously small menu we had hanging above the counter. Some of them were fairly normal, chocolate chip frappes, vanilla, strawberry, others were…more out there. I wasn't sure what exactly 'unicorn sparkle cotton candy' was supposed to taste like, but I was sure it was some overwhelmingly sugary affair that would leave me with dentures by thirty, if I drank enough of them.
We saw an uptick in customers thanks to this machine, although it was nothing I couldn't handle. During a lull in customers, Cinder entered and approached the counter, and while she would normally just say 'the usual' and pay for everything, this time was different. I watched as she stared hard at the menu, specifically, I saw her eyes staring at the chocolate chip frappe, one I had personally planned to try myself after the day was done.
Yet, instead of ordering that, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes before opening them again and ordering the usual. It was confusing, but maybe she just didn't want to look immature, but I didn't know why she would care, who was she trying to impress?
I decided that it was just the standard she had set for herself. Her life had been full of instances where people treated her like a child, from the Glass Unicorn all the way to Salem, who treated her more like a sometimes rebellious daughter than any sort of adult.
While the quest was still in the back of my head, I didn't prepare the frappe alongside her usual order out of a desire to check off another quest in my log. I did it because I knew she wanted it, and I wanted to be nice to her. There were times when Cinder got upset, it was never at me, but I'd seen her get angry with people outside of the shop, when she was on her way here, and it was never pretty, but with me, she always seemed polite, sometimes downright friendly.
I could, if nothing else, return the favor.
So I brought her a tray with her coffee, donuts, and frappe on it, and as I set it down I saw her eyes widen in shock, "Neve, I didn't order this." She sounded upset, but I knew it was just an act.
I cast her a small smile, like I usually did, and responded softly, "...On the house."
The look in her eyes softened, and I might have been seeing things, but I could have sworn I saw Cinder Fall blush, then she softly spoke, "...Thank you." Now, at this point in time, Cinder had never thanked me for anything, I didn't expect her to, most customers didn't, even if it would have been the polite thing to do, but most customers weren't very polite.
So, when this happened, I couldn't help but feel a mixture of surprise and happiness from those two simple words, and the slight lifting in my usual rather restrained tone of voice betrayed that happiness, "Don't mention it."
When I went back to the counter, I saw her completely ignoring the coffee as she drank her frappe, and in that moment I saw Cinder smile in a way that she never had before. It wasn't just polite, or small, it was bright and sunny. I felt my heart flutter as I watched her for another moment before returning to work, but I tried to push it down.
She was still Cinder Fall, and I reminded myself of all the horrible things she would most likely go on to do. Even if, in that moment, she was not the mortal enemy of Ruby Rose, nor the Fall Maiden, not even Salem's right hand.
She was just a girl enjoying her drink.
That night, while I was laying in bed and staring at the ceiling, out of curiosity, I decided to check my stats, skills, and a new tab I had discovered called simply 'relationships.'
Over the past two weeks I gained one point of Charisma, which I assumed was because of all the talking to people I had unfortunately been doing as part of my job, the rest of my stats were unchanged.
My skills were…well…
Cleaning - 30 (Average)
Cooking - 30 (Average)
Urban Navigation - 2 (Inexperienced)
Perception - 5 (Inexperienced)
Entirely civilian.
I knew the Assistant wanted me to go to Beacon, but so far I hadn't heard anything from them further on it.
I decided to check 'Relationships' next. The screen opened with an explanation of how things were quantified.
Relationships! Be they lovers, friends, coworkers, or bosses, you can't get by in life without them, as much as some might wish they could. Relationships are quantified on two separate leveling scales: Platonic and Romantic. Your platonic relationship to someone can and will change separately to your romantic relationship with them. Each tier will demarcate an increase in how the other person views you.
After I dismissed that tutorial, the actual screen appeared and showed me all of the relationships I had with people, all were thankfully sorted into separate categories based on how I met them.
Most of them were just people I had met and served that were kept in a folder named 'Customers', almost all of them were just viewed as passing acquaintances, entirely transactional in their relationships to me.
There were only three people not inside that folder.
June Meadows
80/100 - Reliable Employee (Tier 0)
0/100 - No Interest (Tier 0)
Roman Torchwick
20/100 - Passing Knowledge (Tier 0)
0/100 - No Interest (Tier 0)
The last one was someone who, for all intents and purposes, should have been in the customers folder, but she wasn't.
Cinder Fall
90/100 - Acquaintance (Tier 0)
90/100 - Interest Sparked (Tier 0)
That was both incredibly surprising and somewhat alarming. Had I really left that much of an impression on her? I found that hard to believe, I was just the coffee boy! Maybe it was because of how nice I was to her? Still, that wouldn't explain how she was almost at tier one on the romance scale…I had certainly not been flirting with her.
Ultimately I knew there was nothing I could do to change that, at least nothing that wouldn't make her want to kill me. Besides, it was still at Tier 0, and we hadn't even communicated outside of the coffee shop, so if I could just…keep it that way, then I wouldn't run any risks.
I would be lying if I said I didn't kind of want to…go further down that path, see where it would go, but I knew that Cinder meant Salem, and Salem meant I would most likely die due to being an annoyance and disruption to her plans.
I had remind myself, over and over again, that she was still the same woman who had murdered several people in the past, almost killed Amber, and was on the path to killing Pyrrha Nikos, if nothing changed.
The simple solution, I realized, would be to enroll in Beacon, because there's no way she'd still be interested in me if I did that, I could still keep my head down, but…I also didn't really want to go to Beacon, because that meant fighting, that meant training, that meant being at ground zero of what was to come and possibly dying in the process.
I was taken out of my thoughts by a news notification, 'BREAKING: Famed dust store 'From Dust till Dawn'...' The headline cut off right there, and I cursed how my app cut off things like that before tapping on the notification to see if my suspicions were confirmed.
Of course, they were.
'BREAKING: Famed dust store 'From Dust till Dawn' suffers attempted robbery!'
The news article talked about how the shop had been held up by infamous criminal Roman Torchwick, how the criminal's actions were only thwarted by the heroic efforts of a Signal student named Ruby Rose and the timely intervention of Glynda Goodwitch. It talked about how Torchwick escaped in a stolen bullhead, and how the authorities were not allowing the media to question the hero of the hour until their own investigation was done.
So, the die had been cast, with a month and a half left before the timeline I was familiar with would kick off in earnest. So far this whole 'keeping my head down' thing was working great, if nothing happened then I could just keep doing what I was doing now and live a peaceful life…for the most part.
Well, I thought that was the case, at least, until I got a new notification.
Urgent Quest Update!
The Shining Beacon!
Classes at Beacon start in March, and the events you were sent here to change are beginning to be set in motion. Per the God of Light's instruction, you are to work with the heroes and play a part in saving the world from Salem's machinations.
You have until the day of initiation to gain admission to Beacon.
You will Receive
100 Lien, Survival, Loss of Reputation with Cinder Fall, New Acquaintance: Ozpin, Enrollment to Beacon, Further rewards depending on your method of entry.
Penalties for Failure
Your amulet will detonate and take you with it. You cannot remove the amulet until you have gained admittance to Beacon.
…Well shit.
I had trouble sleeping that night.
True to the quest text, I couldn't remove the amulet, which meant my life was now on a timer, and the thing that would prevent me from literally exploding was getting into Beacon somehow.
The next several days were spent just trying to figure out how I would even get into Beacon, considering I had no combat experience, no records, nothing like that.
Cinder didn't show up for the first few days, but she did eventually start coming back. I had to assume she was laying low because of her part in the robbery. I had thought about confiding in her about my need to get into Beacon (without explaining exactly why), but I saw that reputation loss 'reward', and I knew that she most likely didn't want me going there for one reason or another.
One day, she appeared close to closing time, in fact she was the only customer left. When she entered, she cooly stated, "The usual, Neve." Then took her seat. I did as she asked, preparing her coffee, donuts, and a frappe. She never asked for the frappe, but I had started giving one to her every so often when she visited, not every day, but semi-frequently.
While I was going through the motions my thoughts turned to her. I could have easily sent a letter to Beacon, to Ozpin, to tell them the woman who stole half of the Fall Maiden powers was a regular at this shop, so they could set up an ambush and arrest her, or…kill her, if they had to. I didn't, though, and the very idea felt wrong to me.
Why, you might ask? Well...Over the almost month I had been living in Remnant, trying to fight off the feelings of loss and sadness that came to me almost every night, I had found myself growing accustomed to seeing her here. Hell, as much as I hated to admit it at the time, I looked forward to seeing her. We didn't talk all the time, but our interactions, short as they usually were, revealed things about her that would have never come up in the show because she was too busy being villainous.
Benal, pedestrian things. Like how she liked her coffee, that she liked frappes, that she seemed to enjoy teasing me, that her favorite color was red. I could make a decently sized list off of the information I had learned about her that had absolutely no importance at all, outside of it being things to know about her.
I was constantly reminded of the observation I made on our first meeting, that in spite of all of her flaws she was still human. She had been treated terribly her entire life, and how my interactions with her started not just because she was a customer, but because I wanted to change that. She asked me questions, I would respond, she would give her opinion, it was from that that I learned all of the things I did about her.
It was surreal, but it was also enticing, a strangely dangerous appeal I should have not wanted any part of, and yet even if I could have found a way to remove myself from the situation, I didn't want to. Instead, while I could, I wanted to learn more about her. I knew that the day would come when she would fall deeper into her villany, she would kill Pyrrha and this calm fantasy I tricked myself into believing was reality would come to an end.
I wanted to enjoy it while it was still here.
I brought her her order, and the frappe. Her gaze was fixed on the clouds above, just outside the window at the booth she usually sat in, she seemed distant, although when I set the tray down she smiled ever so slightly and said, "Thank you, Neve."
She had started to, more and more frequently, thank me for the things that I did. It was a welcome respite of politeness during the job. I smiled wordlessly at her and then started to head back, only to stop when she called my name again, "Neve." I looked back at her, her gaze had never left the sky, "Have you ever been to Mistral?"
I shook my head and turned fully towards her, even though she wasn't looking, "No…I've never left Vale. I was born here."
Cinder turned her gaze towards me, then she glanced at the seat across from her. It was a silent request, and I did as she asked, even if it made me nervous to be sitting across from her like this, "I was born in Mistral. I was never fond of it. I like Vale more. It's a middle ground between the frigid cold of Atlas and the humidity of Mistral, and I much prefer the…look."
I never anticipated that Cinder would be talking to me about aesthetic appeal, it was strange. Still, I nodded, "I like living here…It's my home. I don't think I'd do very well anywhere else."
I had only lived here for a month but I could firmly say that I was comfortable in my current life. It was that comfort that kept me from falling into the same pit of despair I was in on the first day I came here, and yet I knew it wouldn't last.
Cinder nodded in agreement before changing the subject, "...Tell me, Coffee Boy, do you have any…ambitions in life?" The nickname was new, something about the way she said it made my heart flutter.
I swallowed a lump in my throat before nodding, this would be a good way to bring it up, "...I've always wanted to be a huntsman. I am…trying to get into Beacon, right now, but it's hard. I don't have any formal training…"
I got a notification that I had unlocked a new skill, deception, but I dismissed it. I didn't like having to lie, but I did. Cinder gained a small frown, she didn't look angry, rather, she looked…sad? "Why on earth would you want to do such a thing?" She asked, her voice soft and quiet, "That's a very dangerous job, most people never live to see retirement. Why not stay working here?"
Well, if I had to give a reason…"It's exactly because of places like this." That got an intrigued look as I continued, "I like working here, I like the routine, the comfort, I like…seeing the people I do almost every day."
I didn't want to say 'I like seeing you almost every day' but the implication was there, "I…want to keep it all safe, everyone…I'm no hero, that's…not my business. I just…want to protect what's dear to me."
Cinder seemed almost moved by my small speech, although that gave her a new question to ask, "...What is dear to you, Neve? We speak often enough, and yet there's still so much about you I don't know."
I smiled a sad smile, my mind was immediately drawn to what I had already lost. The life I had, the people I knew, all just out of reach. I had gained some smidgen of my old memories regarding what some of the people I knew looked like, but all that served to do was make me upset. I would never see them again, whatever their relation to me was.
"I…" I took a deep, shaky breath, "I lost a lot of what was dear to me already. Most of it, even…I came to work at this place trying to start over, because I knew I could never get back what was taken from me. This place is dear to me, now, this coffee shop…The customers I mentioned before, my boss, who gave me a place to stay and a job to work when I had nothing, and…" I glanced away, knowing I couldn't stop myself from saying what came next, "...I especially hold dear the time we have spent together. Even if it's just as…customer and employee."
When I looked up at her again, I saw her eyes were wide, and her face was red. If I didn't know any better, I would have said she looked about ready to shed a tear, but Cinder didn't cry except in extraordinary circumstances. I wondered just what was going through her head, in that moment?
I continued, "...I know it won't last." I looked down, "You said it yourself. I'm just the coffee boy, some day I won't even be that. You have your duty, and I will have mine…" I kept it cryptic, but I couldn't help but give voice to the complicated way this woman made me feel, "...I wish I could make it last forever. I wish I could get to know you more, outside of this shop. I wish…that moments like these weren't so fleeting, but I know that they're just…sparks. Blink, and they're gone…too soon." I chuckled softly and sadly as I lowered my gaze, "I'm sorry. I told myself I wouldn't let it come to this. I…don't want to make it awkward for you to come here, so…If I've done that, just say the word…I'll leave."
My hand was resting on the table, absently. My attention was drawn to it when I felt hers over mine, it was so warm, too…I looked up at her, and I saw this look of melancholy in her eyes that showed that she knew I was right, "...You're not making anything awkward, Neve…You're right, my employer has her expectations of me…She will assign me somewhere else some day, and I will leave. Our lives have only met on this brief intersection that we will both be walking away from soon enough."
She smiled softly at me, it played with my heart even more. It was a bittersweet feeling. The trajectory the God of Light had me on meant that someday, she would have her sword to my neck, rather than her hand on mine, "We're still here now, though…There's this trail I walk in one of the parks in this city, when I want to clear my head. Why don't you come with me? Close up shop early, and we can walk…At least, if nothing else, we can enjoy that, and make the most of the month we have left, before you're gone."
I got two notifications after she said that.
Quest Complete!
Before Midnight
You have grown closer to Cinder Fall and can, for now, call her a friend.
Rewards
+1 Charisma
New Friend: Cinder Fall
The next one was…shocking, even if I saw it coming.
New Relationship Status!
Cinder Fall
50/100 - Friend (Tier 1)
50/100 - Crush (Tier 1)
I knew it wouldn't last. Once I got into Beacon, I would be her enemy. For now, though…
I returned her smile and met her gaze.
"I'd love to."
