Here we go. Was able to remind myself what I intended to write last chapter when I got to work. One of those "Oh yeah, god I'm dumb" moments. Not sure how I forgot but the human mind is a wonder of stupidity sometimes.


Cover Art: Curbizzle

Chapter 23


"Well, this is it. Cinder's new haunt."

Grimm eyed the building, a non-decrepit apartment block flanked by a convenience store on one side and another apartment building on the other. It was nothing special, all the better to hide from Ozpin and Ironwood. Fortunately, only Cinder, Emerald and Mercury's faces had been put out on the news as wanted criminals. Ozpin couldn't afford to alienate any potential Jaunes by releasing his, or their, faces. To say nothing of having to explain why there were so many people who looked functionally identical.

"How did she get this place?"

"Roman owns it."

"The whole building!?"

"Three apartments inside it," Headmaster clarified. "One of those dodgy investment deals where they promise you a return on investment. He has them owned under a fake identity he uses to launder his stolen goods. You'd be surprised how much real estate he owns, actually. Apparently, it's the easiest way to get rid of dirty money. Apartment 201 – second floor. Apartments 200 and 202 are empty, so you should have some privacy."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Hm?" The older man, the older Jaune, smiled innocently. "Why am I bringing you here? Well, Cinder asked – or rather demanded – I find you and bring you back. You know how hard it is to say no to her."

"Not this. Why are you-" Playing games; allowing himself to be controlled by Cinder; reaching out to people on both sides; involving him in that. Grimm sighed, closed his eyes and dismissed the questions. It wasn't like he would answer honestly. "Never mind. I'll be sure to tell Cinder how useful you've been. Goodnight."

"G'night. Let's keep our little party tonight a secret, hm?"

"Obviously." Cinder would have his head as much as Headmaster's.

"She can try," Remy said. "You're strong enough to kill her on the spot."

"That's our adopted sister you're talking about," Grimm whispered as he let himself inside. Headmaster was already strolling away. The main door was unlocked, leading to a dingy corridor with a public restroom and a couple of vending machines. A staircase at the back led up, the elevator beside it lit by a flickering lamp. Corridors branched off left and right to the ground floor apartments.

"It really isn't. Our Cinder would talk just as much shit, but she'd come through where it counts. There is no way she'd have left us to fight all those soldiers alone."

True. Their Cinder would have sworn and cursed up a storm, but she'd have thrown herself into the melee with him, dragged him out by his ear and then screamed at him until he was a nervous wreck about how stupid he was. Of course, she'd never admit that she might have been worried about him. Not a chance. If he so much as suggested it, she'd bluster and burn bright red and demand he spar with her – her way of getting away with burning him in the name of training.

This Cinder was cruel and vicious, with little loyalty for him, her team or even their mother. It was sad to look at. This whole world was a mess, a sorry, unhappy, tangled mess of all the worst things that could have happened. Or maybe my world is a mess of all the good things. Ashari looks at mom like she's evil as well.

"Were we the lucky ones?"

"Maybe."

Grimm moved for the staircase, not really wanting to face Cinder all that quickly. He didn't want to be here at all. Ideally, he would be back in the Grimmlands looking after his mother even if she didn't want him there. This war, yet more proof that he'd been right to bring an end to the gods' conflict, was being treated like a game. He'd managed to avoid killing anyone so far, but how easy would it be to slip? If he hadn't sensed Null sneaking up on Ruby then he wouldn't have been able to order a Grimm to interfere and save her. Right there, Ruby might have died. Executed by Null with not a chance to defend herself.

"It's not our Ruby."

"It's still our responsibility if any of them die, Remy. Especially if it happens because of the Grimm we summon."

"We could join their side," the parasite suggested. "What is Salem going to do - kill herself to unsummon you? We both know that won't work."

That was a fair point. The anchor system seemed to be the gods' way of ensuring some degree of loyalty by threat of a crippling weakness, yet his wasn't relevant. Mother couldn't be harmed even if Ozpin did get to her, and there was no way for her to punish him if he chose to betray her. The Gods hadn't thought to incorporate some kind of punishment or binding system to stop them switching loyalties. Maybe they thought that part of the game.

"Do you want me to switch sides?"

"I don't want to be in this world at all. Neither do you. I miss Yin."

Grimm smiled. "I miss him too – and Yang. Weiss is reaching out to Vale for diplomatic purposes as well. It's going to be strange if life continues there with us missing, especially if our memories are wiped when we go back like Jinn suggested."

"I reckon we'll be sent back to when we left. No time having passed."

"That'd be the convenient way to do things."

"I'll support you whatever you choose. It's not like anything we do here will impact out world. Unless you want to try and win and get that wish."

"What would we wish for?"

"An end to world hunger?"

That was the typical idea, but now that he'd taken over as King of the Grimm and Salem had retired, he could just order the Grimm away from farmlands and let the kingdoms expand their food production. He supposed he could wish for an end to sickness, disease or suffering, but that would only be achievable if Salem won this war, which would mean a healthy dose of death, suffering and pain for the people of this world. "I can't do it."

"Then let's switch sides." Remy stuck a tentacle out his back and stabbed it into the wall, all but halting his ascent up the stairs toward Cinder. "Your mom created me to look after you, and I'd be doing a poor job if I let this continue."

"Remy, I can't abandon her."

"She isn't the same. Your mother is-"

"Suffering. Unhappy. Miserable."

"Much like you."

"The difference is that I'll be fine once this is all over. I get to go back to my world, my loved ones and happiness. I can handle being upset now if I know it won't last. What does she have to look forward to? Killing Ozma? Killing humanity? We both know that won't make her happy. It's just a goal to distract her. Once they're all dead, she'll continue to exist as the only sentient lifeform on the planet. Remnant will become her prison, solitary confinement for all eternity. It'll drive her insane."

Grimm gently tugged one of the tentacles from the wall with his hand. He knew Remy was looking out for him and he couldn't fault the parasite's words. They'd been together since birth, so they rarely argued and only ever over stupid stuff.

"Hey, give me some blood?"

Remy answered by removing the other tentacle, bringing it around and hooking into the flesh of Jaune's palm. He let his aura drop and grunted as the prehensile tentacle tore at his skin. Blood dripped to the floor. It was but the work of a moment of thought to have it pool and expand upward like a balloon, forming a bulbous, floating head with a dangling curtain of thin tendrils hanging underneath it.

The seer bobbed up and down in place, obedient to his every whim – not that they were known for being particularly aggressive in the first place. They could kill a human if they managed to wrap their tendrils around a throat or could pick up speed and ram into them, but that was like saying you could trip on a rubber ducky and break your neck. Being attacked by a Seer was like being savaged by a balloon animal. Smiling, he waved his hand over the head of it, concentrating on a distant tower. The Seer's skin misted over as a woman's pale face appeared.

"Cinder, it is about- you are not Cinder."

"Hello mother."

"I am not your mother!"

"You are."

"Do not contact me like this again," Salem spat, eyes blazing with fury. She made to sweep the Seer away, but Jaune took control of it even over such a great distant, making it dodge. She looked stunned, and then angry. Very, very angry.

"I'm contacting you to give a status report, mother," Jaune said. It distracted her. "Cinder doesn't seem interested in doing one and keeps changing the subject whenever I remind her. I am loyal to you, however. Not her."

"I see." Salem looked angrily at the disobedient Seer and extended her control. The feeling was not unlike having some snatch an item from your hand, except that it was your brain. He could have fought her but let her win the contest of wills. Salem waved the thing toward her throne, stormed to it and sat down. "Speak then."

"We have reached Vale as you instructed us and begun action against Ozma's forces. We've clashed numerous times already and thankfully not lost any of our number. We've gained one recruit who sought us out, but Cinder has had Null go out and kill others who might have been loyal to our cause."

"You are certain of this?"

"Absolutely. Null has been missing most nights and other versions of me wind up dead in the morning. There is at least one other killer out there because Ozma has lost two champions to them and I know for a fact Null wasn't involved, but that doesn't change the fact our position would be stronger without Cinder's actions."

"You do not trust her then."

"Do you?" he shot back. Her eyes narrowed and he knew he'd crossed a line. "Sorry, I – Cinder has no loyalty to you, mother. I'm almost certain she intends to try and usurp this war for her own ends."

"You're speaking of nothing I haven't already figured out. The girl's was only ever loyal to power. For now, I am the best means of achieving that."

"You were," he pointed out. "Now she has the gods."

"The Gods will curse her as much as they did me. She would be a fool to trust them."

"You and I know that, but Cinder is… well… a fool."

Salem snorted. "You're not wrong there. The girl would leap first and look after if she was told there was power to be had at the bottom of a cliff. Still, it matters little whether she chooses to betray me or not. The Gods dictated there would be one of two winners to this war – myself or Ozma. Cinder cannot usurp that which is not offered."

"No, but she could side with Ozma at the last in exchange for power." Jaune said angrily. "Blackmail him. You're taking this too lightly – Cinder is running this whole thing like she's in charge, killing off competition and positioning herself to be the last survivor!"

"Why are you angry about it?" Salem asked. "Her betrayal comes as no surprise for either of us. Let her play her games. You have the power to kill her, no?"

"I… Yes." Null could try and stop him, but while he could turn off his aura, the fact his body was half-Grimm and further reinforced by Remy's protection would continue regardless. He could survive a bullet, if not block it entirely. "I can kill her if she acts out, but that's not the issue. You're being betrayed. Why does that not bother you?"

"I would need to have delusions as to her loyalty to feel betrayed by it, you foolish child. No one is loyal to me. Watts sees me as his last option; Hazel sees me as his only hope for revenge; Tyrian is insane and believes me a goddess; Cinder serves me to gain power and escape the feeling of helplessness she felt before. No one is truly loyal to me."

That was too sad. Grimm said in a whisper, "I am…"

Salem stilled upon her throne. For a moment, for the briefest moment, he thought he saw her eyes truly look at him. Her hard brow softened, and she parted her lips to speak, looking so much like his mother.

And then it was gone, washed away under centuries of bitterness.

"You will be rewarded with a wish for being loyal to me. It is not the same."

"That's not true. I couldn't care less about the wish. You're my mother and I love you-"

"Enough!" Salem roared. "This discussion is over. Do as Cinder says, continue this war, fight and kill in my name. And if she should seek to subvert my victory at the last, kill Cinder as well. That is all."

Salem reached out and clutched her hand tight. The Seer in front of him, thousands of miles from her, burst like a rotten fruit, spraying Grimm ichor over his clothes. The brief flash of pain it felt echoed in his mind, forcing his eyes shut and sending him reeling back. This time she hadn't pried it from his control but taken over and killed it while he still commanded it. He'd felt its every sensation.

"That thing is not your mother." Remy said.

"No, she is. Didn't you see-? For a moment, I saw her."

"You're grasping at straws. She's insane."

"Anyone would be driven mad by millennia of loneliness. That doesn't mean we get to write them off as not worth helping." Grimm steadied himself, took a deep breath and pushed his feet forward. His resolve was strengthened, his mind set. "We do our best for her, Remy, even if it costs us our lives. If it works, it works, and if it fails… well, we go back to our world and don't remember this anyway. I want to try either way. I won't abandon her just because everyone else has."

"You and your bleeding heart. Null! Ahead!"

Grimm's head shot up, taking in the hooded figure coming down the corridor toward the stairs. They each paused on seeing one another, Null's hand slipping down to his side before he caught himself. The grungy-looking teen brought it back up to thumb his nose, then walk toward him.

"You're back," he said.

"I am." Grimm replied. It sounded stupid to his ears, so he added, "Headmaster managed to find me and get me here undetected after I escaped the soldiers. I've exposed the tunnels to Mountain Glenn, though."

"Cinder isn't interested in those anymore. Too many security leaks."

"One of us is a traitor now?"

"No. I mean the other champions." Null nodded in the direction of Beacon. "Ashari knew about the breach, as did I, so it stands to reason it's a plan she's used in the other worlds, in which case Ozpin probably already knows. I wouldn't be surprised if the tunnels aren't already swarming with Ironwood's men."

"Fair." It was sometimes hard to remember that old plans would be known by multiple people. "What are you doing then? Ironwood is on the lookout for us and you're going out alone. Doesn't seem safe."

Null snorted. "Let's not pretend you care."

"I care when you're endangering our safety and jeopardising the war for your own ends."

"Our aura just dropped." Remy warned him.

"I wouldn't try that if I were you." Grimm smiled and played it cool, watching Null's eyes flicker back from shining gold to indigo. "I don't need aura or a semblance to defend myself. If your semblance doesn't kill Grimm on touch, it won't kill me."

"I'll make a note of that for future reference."

"See that you do." Grimm said, walking past the very tense young man. "And let Cinder know as well if you want. Maybe it'll remind her that she fights for Salem and not for her own wants."

/-/

"I've had my men scour the tunnels from Vale to Mountain Glenn and back." General Ironwood told Ozpin, Glynda, Nicholas, Warchief and Magnis. "Winter led the party and reported that while there were train tracks and even a train as Fate's notes predicted, they had been abandoned. Recently, however. The White Fang were definitely there within the last two months."

"They must have backed out recently." Ozpin said. "Did they detect you?"

"It's more likely they realised any prior plans would be useless given Fate's existence." Ironwood said. "Headmaster was able to access your records on him, and maybe even saw a copy of the records he wrote for Winter and I. That information is useless to us now as they'll never stick to those plans again."

"I'm sorry." Ozpin, for his part, visibly looked it. "I never expected I'd give that backdoor to someone. This is entirely my failure."

"Did Winter close the tunnels?" Warchief asked.

"She did, yes. Whether Cinder and the White Fang planned it or not, they won't be able to make use of them now."

"Grimm could open them again with another subterranean monster." Nicholas said.

"According to your son, Grimm is not entirely loyal to their cause."

"Not that I am doubting the young man," Ironwood said carefully, "but our enemies will obviously be looking to feed us misinformation. I'll admit that the fact Grimm has yet to kill any of my men grants his words some degree of validity, it isn't enough for me to stake the fate of the human race on his character or words."

"I'd call that paranoid if the stakes weren't so high." Nicholas said.

"This coming from the man who apparently impregnated the Queen of the Grimm in another life." Magnis teased.

"Hey. Hey. I don't want to hear that from my son – and definitely not anywhere my wife might overhear it."

"Speaking of your family," Glynda said, "Have you had words with your son about his actions?"

Nicholas' face fell. "I have. Jaune thinks he was doing the right thing. A certain someone's results-oriented mindset isn't helping matters any," he said, staring hard at Ironwood.

"The fate of the world rests on this war. Your son risked his life but came back with invaluable information. I won't criticise him for that."

"Yeah, well, I will. I got him to talk more about Headmaster, too. I don't like that the man is interested in my son when he's neither an iteration nor an anchor. Jaune might accept the story that he's curious about a world where he's a student instead of a teacher, but I don't buy it. That man has something else in mind."

"The fact he is playing both sides against one another does imply that." Magnis said. "But what can we do about it? Even if we know he's planning something, he's feeding us valuable information as a double agent. We can't afford to lose that."

"Then we can't outwardly move against him." Ozpin said.

"We have another problem as well." Ironwood said. "This Agent who operates independently. They were stalking Fate and Mr Arc, presumably from when they entered the city but possibly even from the Emerald Forest. Do we know anything of them or their motives? They were clearly heavily armed and dangerous. They might have been the one to kill Leviathan."

"Why would he be following my son?" Nicholas asked. "Jaune is no threat to any of them."

"It might not have been him who was the target." Warchief said.

"You think Fate was his target?" Magnis asked. "I guess it's possible. Where is he now?"

"He should be on his way to my office to serve his detention." Glynda said. "Whether he is or not is another matter, but if he is not then he had best prepare for me to hunt him down and drag him there by his ear."

"I doubt Fate would be so reckless as to leave Beacon with Agent on his tail-"

The building vibrated suddenly, shaking as a loud blast echoed from below the tower. It was not the first time this month they'd heard such, and chairs scraped violently back as they all dashed for the elevator. By the time they reached the bottom, students were already running – this time toward the noise.

They rushed to the first floor and down the corridor where people were already milling about. Thankfully it wasn't filled with thick black smoke as it had been before, and to their immense relief there were no dead bodies. Instead, Fate was sat back against a wall opposite a shattered door. His face and chest were black with soot, and some of the splinters from the door had scratched his cheek enough to make it bleed.

"Out of the way!" Ironwood barked to the assembled students. "Out – all of you! Someone ring the fire alarm. Get out on the lawns. Does this look like a drill?"

His quick instructions got people moving. Nicholas and Magnis collected fire extinguishers and took to Glynda's office, blowing foam inside to put out the fires that had started. The desk was totalled, the bookshelves destroyed, and the far windows had shattered outward.

Stunned, Glynda looked to the ruins of her office before paying attention to the man on the floor being tended to by General Ironwood. "What happened?"

"I, gnh, came to your office." Fate gritted out. "B-Bit more explosive a detention than I expected. Ugh. That was crap even by my standards."

"Are you well?" Ironwood demanded.

"I'm burned, bruised and scratched but I'll live. Got my aura up in time."

"Those would be some very fast reactions." Ozpin noted.

"Yeah, well, not the first time I've died to a bomb." He winced as Ironwood pulled a large splinter out his cheek. The wound oozed blood lazily. "First time was Cinder. I think. Might have been her posse. Rigged our dorm to blow. Ren stepped in first – never saw it coming. Another time it was White Fang sympathisers in Beacon. I was doing a loop where I tried to take them out early, get rid of her allies. They took… hah… offence to that."

"Tell us what happened." Ironwood said. "In detail."

"I was coming to detention at the time I was told to," Fate said. "I came and knocked on the door, but no one answered. Let myself in. Heard a clicking sound when I did. Didn't instantly know it was a bomb – could have been a gun – but old instincts die hard. Aura went up, then the office went up and then I went out very, very quickly. My back is killing me."

"Did you see anyone?"

"No." Fate made to shake his head and winced. "Room was empty."

"Take Fate to the infirmary." Ozpin instructed Ironwood. "Glynda, go with him. I will inspect the office with Nicholas and Magnis to see if any evidence remains. This clearly looks like a repeat of the attack that killed Barista, though this time targeted toward Fate here. Interesting that the attacker knew he would be here. That means he, or she, knew of the detentions you gave him."

"Probably that Agent motherfucker." Fate said, groaning as Ironwood helped him to his feet. The wall had been cracked where he struck it, and if it weren't for his aura then that would have surely broken his spine if the explosive hadn't killed him. "He's in Beacon. Or close by. Has to be. No way Knight can rig an IED."

"Revolutionary?" Ironwood posed the idea.

"Warchief, please go check with Team RWBY as to whether he has been with them or not. Miss Belladonna should have kept her eyes on him at all times."

"Yes sir." He ran off.

"Whomever is behind this will be found." Ozpin said. "We are losing more of our people away from fights than inside them. I will personally look into the matter and find out who was behind this. I assure you of that, Fate."

Fate met his eyes. The two men stared at one another for a long moment. "Yeah," Fate eventually said. "You do that. Infirmary please?" he asked Ironwood and Glynda. "I could really do with some painkillers right now."

/-/

Team RWBY were assembled outside on Beacon's lawns with the rest of the student body, being counted off by Port and Oobleck, who were calling names on a register and looking far too out their depths. Two teachers for every student in Beacon was a ridiculous ask as it was. Warchief found Team RWBY alongside Team JNPR, with Knight and Revolutionary both in school uniforms.

"Hey." Warchief rushed over, his own Atlas military coat flapping behind him. He drew more than his fair share of looks, but Ozpin had ultimately decided that the best way to keep their secret was to just not tell people why Jaune had so many doppelgangers around and let them make their own conclusions. Most people had assumed it was a ridiculously large family. "I need a word with Blake alone."

He nodded to the side, and the faunus narrowed her eyes before following him a few metres away.

"What is this about?" she asked.

"There's been another explosive set in the school." He watched her eyes widen. "No one was killed but it was targeted at Fate. We're not making any accusations, but we need to know if Revolutionary has been out of your sight at all today-"

"No." Blake shook her head. "Not today and not last night either. He slept in our dorm on the floor in a pair of sleeping bags with Knight. He had breakfast with us today, came to lessons and then had lunch. I can guarantee he wouldn't have had time to do anything. You can check any of the school's cameras."

"I trust you." Warchief said. "The teachers do too. We're just narrowing down suspects." Warchief's scroll buzzed angrily before he could continue. He apologised quickly and answered. "Jau- I mean, Warchief here."

"It's Winter. We have an issue in the city."

"Vale or Mountain Glenn?"

"Vale – we came back out the tunnels only to find our vehicles and equipment have been stolen."

"Stolen? What? Someone just walked up and took them? What about guards?"

"We had guards obviously. They were attacked. I have sixteen injured, no fatalities but some injuries are critical. Bullet wounds for the most part – no Grimm. I suspect White Fang or Null. I've got them moving to the closest hospital, but I need General Ironwood to send people down to locate our missing equipment. If this is the White Fang or Cinder's forces, we don't want them so well armed."

General Ironwood was busy with this, though, the timing of which was just too good. "I'll find him. We have a situation in Beacon, however. Reinforcements might be limited. Warchief out."

"Understood. Winter out."

"More problems?" Blake asked. "We can help. Team RWBY-"

"Would be walking into a trap if they went to Vale," he interrupted. "Whatever is happening has happened already. You know full well if this is Null then you'd all be vulnerable. It might be Adam trying to regather supplies after we captured all those weapons at their base."

"Then send me." Knight stepped up. Did he have super hearing as well as everything else now? The man crossed his arms. "I can resist these weapons your people rely on so much, and I can deal with Null if it comes to it."

"That's not my decision, Knight. You'll have to speak with General Ironwood."

"And in the meantime the enemy is getting away with who knows what. Ironwood is being too cautious. We can't surrender Vale to them and hide away in Beacon. It isn't working. If needs be, I'll take matters into my own hands."

"What!? No, no, no, that's a bad idea. You can't."

"Can I not?" Knight asked. "What are you going to do, kill Ruby? I think not." He looked past Warchief and to the school. "Tell Ironwood that I grow tired of waiting. I'm used to war. I have fought against Salem before. I tell you now that if we hide away here, Cinder will find a way to draw us out, likely to the detriment of innocent lives. General Ironwood may think sacrificing them worth it if the war is won, but we are not his soldiers. I won't stand for it."

To Warchief's unease, he saw Ruby, Yang and Blake nodding.

What was he meant to do? This wasn't the kind of thing he was used to, and he didn't know a damn thing about convincing people to change their plans. The Civil War had been much easier, much safer too, and lives hadn't depended on it. Only dignity. Now they were looking at him like he was the enemy, or the personal envoy to one anyway.

"I'll tell him," he promised. "Just… give me some time to talk him round. Don't go off and do something stupid now."


Yeah, the good guys are getting stir crazy sitting back and playing overly safe. That's not to say Ironwood is wrong with that approach of course, but all this time the bad guys are being given is letting them secure their own power bases.


Next Chapter: 30th April

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