A year older, a year wiser? Maybe? Probably not. What I definitely am is more than a little delicate after last night. Birthday party and all. There was quite a bit of drinking, and plenty of stupid stories.
Cover Art: GWBrex
Chapter 42
Jaune stepped down the ramp and off the ship alongside Neptune, to meet the man flanked by another man and a woman stood on the docks. They were garbed from head to toe in black, with their faces covered for their own protection. The lead man lowered the veil over his mouth, no doubt as a sign of trust. His bodyguards didn't look nearly as eager to follow his lead. The man's skin was dark, his eyes a dark brown so black that the whites of his eyes stood out boldly. He had broad shoulders, a strong face and a stronger handshake.
"You're the Dark Lord?" asked the man. "You don't look nearly as insane as I was led to believe."
"I'm handling it well," said Jaune. "Do you need a demonstration?"
"A little one. If you will."
It was fair. There had been pretenders in the past, and these people were risking a lot. Jaune stepped back and turned, drawing breath and focusing his eyes on the water. He struck his hand out, casting up a great wall of spray that washed out and splashed against the side of the Seaspear. Not impressive by any means and knowing what he did now of aura he knew that any man could do it given enough training. Still, that wasn't commonly known and the trio before him were suitably convinced.
"Excellent. You understand my caution, I'm sure. I am… well, it's perhaps best for us all if we kept names out of this, yes?" He chuckled. "You can call me leader if you must call me anything. I'm in charge of the local cell working against the Schnee family's unjust rule over our country. I'm also a close ally of the Kuroyuri sect."
"It's true," said Neptune, for Jaune's sake. "I've ferried letters and supplies between them plenty of times. They don't see eye to eye on everything, but they do on enough to be considered close."
"An Ren wants to leave Mistral under the Goddess' rule so long as the Schnee are ejected," said the man. "I want freedom for us in fullness. A minor disagreement, and one to consider after the Schnee are gone."
That was all well and good, but Jaune was more worried about what they had in mind for him. "To make something clear," he said. "I'm not interested in waging a war against anyone right now. I'm prepared to help, but I'm not leading the charge against anyone – and certainly not against innocent people trying to live their lives."
The two guards on either side of the man tensed, but he did not. He just smiled and said, "That's fine. We have people on the inside and out ready to overthrow the Corps the moment the signal is called. The only problem on our end is that we really need the in an the out to be ready to support one another, and that's not going to happen when there's a big ass wall in the way."
"You want me to rip the walls down?"
That was probably something he could manage with Ozma's guidance, but there would be people on the walls to worry about. These were stone too, not wood like the lodges, with a short but survivable drop. Anyone who fell off these towering walls would die.
"Not the outer walls," said Neptune, understanding his concern. "They want to hold the town after taking it and a big chasm in the walls isn't going to help with that. There's a sea gate protecting the harbour. Huge wooden thing between two stone posts operated by huge, knotted ropes under the water. It can be opened and closed from the inside."
Jaune felt the relief take him. That sounded much easier. "You're attacking by boat, then?"
"That's the plan," said the rebel. "Can't much sneak a force close with sentries on the walls but we're a strong seafaring nation. Or we were. The Schnee didn't much care to keep that up in case some of us snuck away to raise the alarm on their corruption, so the navy stagnated. That's their problem now. That gate stays closed most of the day now, and when it does open they send Deterrence Corps out to search your vessel." His scowl deepened. "And skim a little off the top at your expense. Not unusual for them to deny honest merchants and fishermen if you don't pay the tax. Or worse, arrest you on made up charges."
"Blasphemy," whispered the woman to his left.
"Aye, blasphemy is the usual charge. Hard to argue that when the justice is decided by the Schnee. That's neither here nor there." He shook his head sadly. "What we want from you is to break that sea gate down – break it all down. The gate, the walls, blow that harbour wide open and let us sail in."
"And then?"
"Then, it's our business," said the rebel, spreading his arms. "But you're welcome to get involved if you wish. And, of course, you're welcome to restock after."
"Us getting involved will depend on how much we trust your plan," pointed out Neptune. "Which isn't likely if we don't know what it is."
"Alright. Alright. We're going to sail into the harbour loud as you please – even louder after the Dark Lord shows his hand. That's sure to draw all but a skeleton away from the walls to deal with us – and we don't intend to go near the main walls and gate at all, so all that stay there are wasted. Once the battle begins in the harbour, our allies inside the walls will send the bulk of their forces to attack the backs of those we're dealing with, while others will capture the commander of the garrison and seal off the barracks to prevent resupply. All in all, we should be done quickly. That's the goal, anyways."
Jaune hummed, and wondered what Ozma thought of it, knowing the Dark Lord would be listening into the conversation intently. He had more experience with armies, invasions and this kind of thing.
"The plan hinges on how well prepared the garrison is. Given what we know of the Deterrence Corps, I don't expect too much discipline. They're taught to throw their lives away recklessly, and they shall. A more organised defence would surrender the harbour and prepare a more concentrated defence around key buildings in the town." There was a moment of silence, and then, "It is your decision ultimately. Having more for the Schnee to focus on benefits you, but I won't pretend it isn't also in my interests. I could keep us safe if you did choose to join the fight."
It was about what he expected. The plan looked like it'd work, but he couldn't tell if that was luck or because the rebels knew they didn't need a more complicated one for the SDC garrison. He hoped it was the latter.
"What of the people living inside?" asked Jaune.
"Mistral's own people?" asked the man. "We will liberate them."
"And if they are afraid or don't want to join you?"
"If you're asking whether I'll force or punish them, then no. That would rip the heart out her rebellion in an instant. They can leave if they wish, or they can stay and complain, or join us. The choice is theirs."
"The Schnee won't see it that way."
"I can't fix that." The man spread his arms again and shrugged. "I would change a lot of things about the Schnee if I had that power, but I don't. I can't tell you if the Schnee will blame them all for our actions or not. I'll tell you what I can say." He pointed at Jaune. "That thinking these kinds of things and being afraid to act because of their reprisal is exactly what they want us to do. They rule with fear – no, with terror. And that won't change. It'll never change. Not unless we do something." He crossed his arms. "You don't have to agree with us, you don't have to like us, and you don't have to work with us. We had backup plans before your arrival in Mistral. We can fall back on those. You'll make this easier for us, and safer, but don't think you're necessary."
"I like him," chuckled Ozma. "A good leader should never rely on one thing, especially not if it's the whims of another person. He speaks the truth, however. The Schnee may well punish everyone in this town for the actions of the rebels, but they do this precisely because they want to instil fear in the populace. Abiding by their rules has not protected these people. You've seen that. They are abused if they obey and killed if they do not. This is no way to live, and we – you – have the power to stop it."
He was being guilt tripped by the Dark Lord, an evil being who possessed people and drove them to insanity, casting Remnant into millennia of constant war. Jaune would have snorted if he was alone.
"It is what it is. My past mistakes don't mean I am wrong here."
"Alright." Jaune offered his hand, and the man grinned, then took it. "I'll knock the sea harbour gates down. And I'll involve myself in the fighting. Don't rely on me, however. If there's a single huntress in there I'll need to deal with them. You won't have me at your side."
"That's fine. That's fine. But whatever happens, you will have us at yours. We pay our debts, here in Mistral, and we won't forget what you do for us this day."
/-/
He came back onto the ship to see Ren wandering about on the top deck with Nora hovering so close by she might as well have been holding his arm. Little wonder when he could trip off the edge and fall in the water. He had grey bandages about his eyes, acting as both a blindfold and a way to hide the nasty scar and the empty sockets.
Jaune approached, and made sure to speak loudly to signal himself, "Are you practicing?"
Ren nodded. "Yes. I… It comes and goes." He didn't sound upset – quite the opposite. There was an excitement to his words that practically vibrated. "Holding my aura around my body isn't easy, but when I do… I can see the shapes of things. Vaguely. It's not perfect, much worse than before in fact, but it's there." He was smiling. "I can't deny it's there."
Nora was much less excited, and honestly looked a little suspicious. Ren had told her the truth of aura and the offer he'd accepted, and Nora hadn't been pleased. Jaune wasn't sure if it was the promise of serving Ozma or the idea of Ren using magic that upset her more. There was the stigma, and the belief, that magic in men was derived from the Dark Lord, and thus tainted. It drove men mad, or so everyone grew up learning.
Shaking that belief wasn't as easy as him saying so.
"What's been decided?" asked Ren.
"I'm going to blow open the sea harbour and join the fight. You're not." He would have said obviously but wasn't sure if it was or not. "Just because you can use aura now doesn't mean you can use it well."
"I know. I'm not stupid."
Yes, you are, thought Jaune, remembering the man's suicidal charge at the huntresses from only a day before. Ren had either calmed down a lot or wanted to stay alive to learn magic and benefit his country more. That wasn't going to happen if he got himself killed.
"Can I be of any use in blowing the harbour open? It might be a chance to learn."
Jaune pondered, then relayed Ozma's answer. "Ozma says it's no use trying to teach you ranged magic until your aura vision is good enough to see what I'm trying to show you. He says touch-based magic is better to learn at first, and we're not going to sail right up to it."
Ren let it go with a nod. "Makes sense."
"You should keep practicing with holding aura without losing it for now," said Jaune. "We'll do more in-depth training when we're out on the water again."
It wasn't exactly what Ozma suggested, but he didn't want or need Ren trying to interfere in what was about to happen and keeping Nora busy looking after him was for the best as well. I feel manipulative doing this but I can't focus on so many things at once. There had to be a limit, and this rebellion was taking longer than he expected. It's been over a week now and they still haven't made any headway.
He wasn't sure if that was reasonable or not, never having led a campaign, but he at least expected some news from An Ren and the Kuroyuri cell. He didn't even know if they were still alive.
"Information is not so easily spread across a country in lockdown."
He understood that, but he was worried what would come of his promise to "help" the rebellion if they failed on their own terms.
"I won't demand you commit yourself – or us – to a losing battle. It is enough that you make the effort. Still, do not feel such dread yet. We will know if the rebellions are thwarted because we would be hunted with far more focus than what we have currently seen."
He supposed that was true. He'd been in Mistral for weeks now and only faced the three Chosen at the last lodge. That was a miracle. No. Jaune's eyes narrowed as he considered that. It was more than just a miracle, wasn't it? The Goddess had all of Remnant under her heel and every huntress across every kingdom eager to do her bidding. Why wasn't Mistral swimming in Chosen? Why wasn't he fighting his way through hordes? Why weren't ten, twenty, or even fifty, present at every single lodge? Something was wrong.
"Perceptive," praised Ozma. "You are right that there are games afoot, but you are incorrect to think this is anything new. I have risen to power and challenged Salem hundreds, perhaps thousands, of times. Do you really think all those reincarnations could have gotten as far as they did if Salem had committed every huntress to them?"
Salem was letting him get this far…? No, that was ridiculous. Why would she? He was her enemy, willingly or not, and every teaching, every scripture, painted him as the monster who would destroy the world.
"She and I will outlast the world. Your kingdoms, your faith, are but transient things. When you have lived as long as we have, life loses its meaning. The days seem to pass so quickly. All that remains are brief flashes of brilliance when everything you have worked for is in danger. Brief moments of excitement."
Jaune frowned. "Are you implying she's intentionally holding back to make me more of a challenge?"
"Me, Jaune. It is me she wants. You are nothing to her. And does it surprise you? She has power akin to mine, and yet she did not even try to harm or stop us at the tournament."
That was true, and he remembered how bored she had looked. Utterly uninterested in the fighting despite it being in her honour, and unfathomably distant from it all. Listening to Ozma, it all made sense, and yet it made humanity seem so small and inconsequential. They were but fleeting things that could be ignored in the long run, their lives good for little more than the entertainment of greater beings. Which, he supposed, made sense for a pair of gods.
"We are not gods!" barked Ozma, angrier than Jaune had ever heard him. He paused, then quietened. "No matter what she might claim, no matter what you may have been taught, she and I are closer to you than any divine being. Don't forget that."
/-/
The town they approached lay on the shore and was built up of sandy stone with white and blue flags streaming above it. It was grand, for a boy raised in a tiny hamlet village, but somehow after seeing the capital city of Vale he couldn't find himself impressed by it. Still, there must have been over ten thousand people living inside, all essentially prisoners and slaves of the Schnee even if they had a slightly better life than those in the villages outside.
Once upon a time it must have been a bustling trade port town, but now the huge wooden gates surrounding the harbour were shut, and there weren't even any fishing boats out despite the bounty available there. It was wasteful. Foolish, even. The more he saw, the more he could tell Mistral wasn't just being abused, but also mismanaged. It was like the Schnee didn't care what they could do with the place, so long as no one dared revolt against them.
The lack of ships worked more to their advantage than it did the town's. The Seaspear rode at the head of several flat-bottomed fishing vessels with their bright sails, and there was no effort made to hide. There was nowhere to hide. The town could see them coming for miles and, having no vessels of its own, knew they weren't in the waters for innocent reasons. Of course, they also couldn't do anything about them.
"I don't even know what this place is called," said Jaune. "And yet I'll be helping to conquer it."
"Fleetsport," said Sun. He, along with most of the crew, would be taking part in the fighting, and the faunus was leaning against a staff taller than he was. "Used to be, this was the home of Mistral's navy. The best of the best would come to train here, and the shipwrights would construct the finest galleons. Neptune's old man used to tell us all about it. Course, when the rebellion failed and the Goddess took the land and put the Schnee in charge, they didn't see the point of a navy. No one to face. No one to defend against."
Peace had never looked so dystopian. Jaune sighed, able to see people rushing along the walls in reaction to the obvious armada. They didn't take to the sea walls because they no doubt thought there was no need. The ships could in theory dock against them and have their crew climb up, which would make them easy pickings for archers on the main walls. That must have been the primary idea.
"I leave this one to you," said Ozma. "Show me what you have learned."
A lesson? Now of all times? Jaune almost laughed. Almost. The moment was too tense for it. Instead, he drew a deep breath and closed his eyes. He reached out with his aura, down off the edge of the ship and into the water. He could feel the current. He could feel the swell of the water, and the waves that crashed against the thick wooden door. He could feel the water slipping into the wood and causing it to swell. Over years, that would cause issue, and the gates would need to be replaced, but it would ever be cheaper to replace huge wooden gates than make them out of anything stronger. And besides, there were no enemies left to fight. That was their reasoning.
Jaune focused on those gates and the feeling of the swell, and he pushed water into it. He reached through, and pulled from the inside, and flooded the gates over and over, pushing and pulling, swelling, and bulging, rocking, and cracking. Seemingly of their own volition, the wooden gates had begun to thrash and shake, evidenced by the water churning up and sloshing on either side of them. They trembled and groaned and creaked, and people began to murmur around him on the deck. They knew who he was, but it was hard to remember that when he spent time with them, chatted, and smiled. Now, they saw proof yet again of his power, and it frightened them.
The water pushed against the gates, weakened, and he felt the crack form, even heard it as a dull and echoing crunk through the water. His eyes snapped open. Now! Tearing his right arm up and back, he drew the water with it, casting a great geyser up and out the ocean at an angle back toward the ships. It pounded into the fragile gate and shattered it in one go, hurling beams of timber and sending shards of broken wood flying up into the air. With it went a good section of the sandstone wall on either side, which had begun to crack and fracture under the constant barrage striking the gate. It tumbled into the water, splashing and crumbling.
It was not well made. Again, no enemy to face. No need to make it strong. The Schnee hadn't ever planned for this. Or maybe they'd fought the grace of the Goddess would be enough. That divine favour would see them through.
A horn sounded on another boat to signal the attack. Sails unfurled, oars were stuck out, and the fleet of ships surged toward the open harbour and the undefended town beyond. On the walls, Deterrence Corps panicked and rushed for the staircases, while the archers took their positions and did their best to rain arrows on the fast-moving ships. Jaune stood, unbothered, as they thunked harmlessly into the Seaspear's hull. None even came close to him or the others on the deck.
Why train yourself when all you had to do was belittle and beat helpless farmers and villagers too destitute to fight back? The real archers available in Mistral were struggling to make ends meet, forced to hunt wild animals, and game and have most of their quarry stolen from them.
"We'll be crashing into the harbour!" shouted Sun as their ship, guided by Neptune, swept into the shallower waters. "Brace yourselves. And remember, don't push into the city! We hold the Corps here until our allies strike their flanks."
Jaune watched the dock approach. There were few people there, barely any, the Corps being too focused on the walls and now struggling to catch up. He could just about see some rushing down a street, but they were a small party and had no hope of holding the wide docks. These had once been a military wharf, and they were so large that ten huge ships could have docked at once. It would take a hundred men to form a wall from one side to the other, and even that would be sparse.
He crouched and gripped the railing as the ship turned and scraped the side of its hull against the stone docks. It was a horrific experience that had the world shaking and the Seaspear's hull grinding and even cracking in places. It turned fully against it, momentum driving them perfectly parallel, albeit with a whole lot of structural damage that would need to be repaired. Even so, they had docked in an instant, mere seconds, compared to the minutes or more it would have taken. Even as water seeped into the lower holds, Sun roared and leapt forward, and Jaune vaulted the wooden railing, and dropped the six or seven feet to the stone below. The fishing vessels were pulling up now, less speedy than Neptune's ship.
The Corps were only just beginning to arrive, in their disorganised groups, howling and pointing their twin weapons forward. "Drive them into the sea!" howled one. "Drive them back! For the Goddess! For the Schnee!"
I'm committed now, thought Jaune.
No more excuses. No more holding back. He swept his left hand toward them, caught the small amount of air pressure created by his hand and imbued it with power. The tiny bit of wind grew into a thunderclap of air, exploding outward and down the street and throwing the six men onto their backs. The blast echoed in his ears, and the ringing continued for several moments after.
He raised his father's sword into the air. "For Mistral!"
My delicate head is hurting. Man, the worst things about getting older are experiencing, in real time, how little you can handle the things you were fine with before. All-nighters, heavy drinking, heavy exercise, it all just hits you harder and the aftereffects last for longer. My thighs are still killing me from a bunch of kettlebell squats I did, like, two days ago.
To be fair, it's been ages since I went to a gym so fine, expected, but still. Ow.
Next Chapter: 27th November
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