Angelfusion : while you're making a good point, Qrow was hit really hard by Summer's death, and would likely find the idea of smiling in front of her corpse insulting at best. Moreover, Qrow knows Neo, and that she's murdered many people, so looking for signs of madness would be normal.
The fact that Neo is crying is to be expected, and the biggest reason why he didn't tell Ozpin that she was definitely crazy. That and because Qrow didn't want to crush Glynda's hopes.
merendinoemiliano : yup. The most recent fights are certainly not up to my standards. Hopefully I can pick up the slack.
jamesoagel123 : Cinder's semblance is actually heating stuff up, as shown in her backstory. But yes, I did give hints that Ember wasn't Cinder outside of simply her name, even if I made them similar on purpose.
In the dark castle of the grimm, Salem was waiting. Tyrian, her most faithful follower, had came back from his hunt. He didn't have anything on hand, so she was sure he would have information to give her.
The scorpion faunus walked into the throne-room, bowing to his queen in reverence, and waited for Salem to allow him to speak.
"Tell us what you found, Tyrian." she said.
Tyrian head shot up, a crazed look in his eyes as he gave his report.
"I have found the Fall maiden my queen." he explained, "Qrow Branwen is protecting her, but with a suitable diversion we could separate them long enough for a sneak attack."
"If so, why didn't you already attack her ?" asked Salem.
"The maiden is a fully fledged Huntress my queen." answered Tyrian, "She most likely had plenty of time to master her powers, and is at the height of her career. I do not believe I am capable of subduing and taking her away before Qrow Branwen interferes. I hoped to get Ember with me so she could steal her powers on site. That I'm confident I can do."
"Reasonable." admitted Salem, "However..."
She snapped her fingers, and Cinder came out of the shadows.
"Ember has left us." explained Salem, "Here is our new maiden, Cinder."
Tyrian looked at Cinder, and let out a small cackle before his queen spoke up again.
"She will be taking care of this maiden. Alone." she said, "Recent events have given me an idea, and our plans can now start. You will help me make it a reality."
"Yes my queen." said Tyrian before even knowing what his mission would be.
"You will be going to Mistral" said Salem, "and tell our friend to give you all the details on the missions outside the city. It is time we start trimming away these Huntsmen. Do try to find Spring at the same time."
"With pleasure." chuckled Tyrian, who bowed before leaving the room.
Then, Salem turned towards Cinder, and spoke.
"Taking the powers of that maiden is your new mission." she explained, "I will give you a grimm capable of transferring it to you. How you do it matters not to me, but I will not tolerate a failure."
"Yes." said Cinder.
"And at the same time, I will give you another task." added Salem, "Go to Vale, and spread fear. When the Vytal festival comes around at the end of next year, you will make someone die in the arena, where everyone's attention will be focused on. This will bring so much negativity that it should wake the grimm sleeping within Mt Glenn, and you will be able to destroy the entirety of Vale. And kill Ozpin."
"I won't disappoint you." said Cinder before leaving as well.
"I am sure you won't." said Salem, now alone in her throne-room, "You have taken such a great risk in killing Ember, so I know you will do anything to keep your current position."
Neo was exhausted. She had been so worried about being found during the trip that she had barely slept. Now she was in Vacuo though, and she was sure everything would be better.
She had some savings from her last missions for Lil' Miss Malachite, so she should be able to find a place to sleep. Then, she'll just have to find a job and everything would be fine.
She'll have to stay clear of Shade and it's surroundings though, to make sure she never ran into the teachers there, or anyone that would be able to recognize her really.
Neo stepped out of the airship that had transported her here, hidden behind an illusion. She'll have to keep it up for some time, long enough for people who watched the final of Mistral's tournament to forget how she looked.
Now back on solid ground, Neo's first order of business was actually to call up Roman. Unlike Mistral or Atlas, Vacuo did little to no surveillance of it's population's communications, so she should be safe calling him from pretty much anywhere.
She quickly found a call center, and entered the number Roman had given her to make contact. She would have to wait a bit for Roman to get to an underground call center, so in the meantime she scrolled around, looking for a flat.
About an hour later, her call was picked up, and Neo beamed as she saw Roman on the other side.
"Already at Vacuo huh ?" asked Roman, "How's it going ?"
Neo shrugged. It was hot, there was sand everywhere, and the town looked like some poor lower district all the way through. However, Neo was used to that. It kind of felt like home already.
"Yeah, Vacuo's always been a mixed bag." giggled Roman, "Did you find a place to live ?"
Neo nodded, she had found a few options, now all she had to do was set-up an appointment. People in Vacuo didn't really check for someone's background, ever, so she should have no issues getting her own place. Plus she can just use illusions to age herself up if needed.
"Great, I don't have to worry then." said Roman with a smile, before checking the time "I'm sorry I can't stay longer to chat, but a new job came up. It's pretty big, and seems like it'll bring a fair amount of profit, so I don't want to miss the opportunity. I won't be able to talk to you much from now on."
Neo gave Roman her best puppy eyes, trying to guilt-trip him into talking a bit longer.
"Don't give me that look." said Roman, "You know I have to earn a living too."
Neo pouted, and Roman laughed.
"It's been nice catching up with you." he said, "I'll call you whenever I can !"
Neo waved him goodbye, and the call shut down.
Now it was time to get a place to settle in.
Glynda burst in Ozpin's office, and stomped towards his desk.
"Ozpin !" she shouted, "Why did you refuse my request for some days off ?"
"Because I know exactly why you want those days off Glynda." answered Ozpin, "Leave Torchwick to the police. I can't allow you to leave while school is still in session."
"It could be our best chance to find Neo !" objected Glynda, "I'm sure he knows where she is !"
"She is most likely in Vacuo. Theodore will find her." said Ozpin, "And if she isn't, then she would have come back to Vale, and we'll know about it soon enough."
"But we could end this so much sooner if I simply take a week to track him !" said Glynda.
"No." firmly stated Ozpin, "We must keep our priorities straight, and our priority is the education of our students. Neo will have to wait, and Roman is irrelevant."
Glynda gripped her crop so hard it started to crack, but after a moment, she sighed and left.
"Fine."
When Neo walked out of the call center, she was accosted by a young boy, who tugged her pants to grab her attention.
Neo looked down at the child inquisitively, and he pointed at a tavern across the street.
"A lady over there wants to talk to you." said the kid.
Neo was confused, to say the least, but decided to follow the boy inside. Since she was in Vacuo, if anyone wanted to harm her it was best to know beforehand.
When she walked in, the child pointed at a table, where a woman smaller than Neo was sitting. Before getting any closer, Neo observed her.
Name : ? Rumpole
Age : ?
Level : 2? (?%)
Class : Rogue
Path : Underground protector [You protect people from the shadows. Nobody knows exactly who you are]
Title : White Bishop
HP : 1?/1?
AP : 1?/1?
STR : 1?
CON : 1?
DEX : 2?
INT : 1?
WIS : 1?
CHA : 1?
Semblance : Golden touch [You can change anything you touch into gold. Aura cost depends on the initial weight of the object]
Status effects :
Child of Remnant [You are from Remnant and follow different rules than other worlds. Your HP is always equal to your constitution and any bonuses that would normally improve it are transferred to your aura]
Defenses :
AC : 2?
For : 2?
Ref : 2?
Will : 2?
Neo almost ran out on the spot when she saw the woman's title. She couldn't believe that she had been found so soon after getting in Vacuo, even with her disguise on.
She didn't run though. Instead, she sat down in front of Rumpole. The woman hadn't tried to arrest her on the spot, and Neo had no safe place to run to right now.
Still, she was uneasy. She had no idea what was going to happen, and was ready to run as soon as the woman made any strange movement.
"Neo Politan, is it ?" asked Rumpole with a smile as she pushed her scroll to the middle of the table, "Please relax. I am not here to arrest you. In fact, someone wants to talk to you."
The scroll lit up, and a rugged man appeared on the screen.
Name : Theodore
Age : 48
Level : 20 (100%)
Class : Dust Brawler [You fight with your fists, using Dust to enhance your attacks]
Path : Unwavering Fortress [Nothing will put you down. And nothing will hurt the people you want to protect, so long as you're here to protect them]
Title : White Rook
HP : 14/14
AP : 148/148
STR : 23
CON : 14
DEX : 12
INT : 17
WIS : 12
CHA : 14
Semblance : Truth-finder [You always know when someone is being truthful]
Status effects :
Child of Remnant [You are from Remnant and follow different rules than other worlds. Your HP is always equal to your constitution and any bonuses that would normally improve it are transferred to your aura]
Defenses :
AC : 22
For : 29
Ref : 24
Will : 23
Neo cocked her head to the side. What did the Headmaster of Shade want with her ?
"Hello Neo." he said, "It's nice to see you again ! I haven't seen you since you were... what ? 10 ?"
Neo rolled her eyes. The headmaster had only came to Vale once, but had been overly excited to meet her at the time. Not that she knew why, but she didn't really care.
"So I heard you killed a lot of people ?" he asked, "Ozpin was really mad about that."
Neo shifted in her seat. That wasn't good was it ?
"Glynda still loves you though. If you regret what you've done, I'm sure she'd help you get a new life." said Theodore cheerfully, before getting more serious, "If you regret it that is."
Neo shook her head. She hadn't meant for the big accident, however she didn't regret killing all the individuals she had done in before.
"I Expected as much." said Theodore, "Now, normally I should be arresting you and sending you to Ozpin. However, I believe doing so would waste your potential."
Neo listened carefully. That had grabbed her attention.
"You're strong. That I am sure of." explained the headmaster, "Even without aura, you managed to go all the way to the finals of Mistral's tournament before even getting hurt. And you're not shy about killing people."
"So, I have an offer. Instead of arresting you on the spot, you will help Rumpole in her underground investigations. She is also a teacher, so she can't be on the streets all day. But you can." offered Theodore, "What do you think ?"
Neo took out her own scroll, and showed the headmaster what she had written on it.
Do I even have a choice ?
"There is always a choice." answered Theodore, "But it doesn't mean there is always an option you like."
Neo thought about it. Try to escape Rumpole's grasp now, or work for her for a while.
There wasn't even a question about it in her mind. She loved the job Theodore was offering, and she wouldn't have to bother hiding too much. This was a golden opportunity.
And so, Neo showed Theodore her answer.
When do I start ?
So, I've thought for a while about what Theodore's semblance should be. As far as I know, it wasn't told in the books, however when CVFY fights brainwashed Rumpole, he chose not to interfere. It would normally make sense for him to take a side, however if he knows that both sides are telling their truth, then it would make sense for him to stay aside.
So I gave him a lie detector. It's simple, but it really works with the character in my opinion.
To be continued on May 8th.
Name : Neo Politan
Age : 15
Level : 14 (47%)
Class : Illusionist [You add both your Intelligence and Dexterity modifiers to your AC and to Dexterity or Intelligence based attacks as long as you can still cast illusions]
Path : Me, myself and I [You live for yourself first and foremost, no matter what pain you might cause others]
Title : The Gamer
HP : 10/10
AP : UNUSABLE
STR : 11
CON : 10
DEX : 18
INT : 21
WIS : 12
CHA : 16
Semblance : The Gamer
Status effects :
Gamer's body [Your body follows game-like mechanics. You can restore 1/4th of your total HP (rounded down) by resting 15 minutes. You can only die if your HP reach 0 and you fail your last breath]
Child of Remnant [You are from Remnant and follow different rules than other worlds. Your HP is always equal to your constitution and any bonuses that would normally improve it are transferred to your aura]
Fighting for your life [Your aura behaved in the only way that would let you survive, and will continue to do so until you overcome your trauma. You cannot use aura, but you can will any item you wield for it to reflect 100% of any attack that hits it]
Words that shouldn't be said [Your last words almost caused you to lose your life. You cannot talk until you overcome your trauma]
Defenses :
AC : 25(29)
For : 18
Ref : 24
Will : 22