A/N: So, I goofed. After trying to estimate Vale's population, I decided to compare some maps. Turns out the City of Vale is… fuckoff huge, from what I've found. The Rocky Mountains and everything west of them to the Pacific kind of huge. Oops. That said, I'm pretty sure that wasn't the intention while Miles and Kerry just suck at making logical maps. So uh… that's getting downscaled significantly from being possibly nearing a hundred million people to something like ten million, which is just a little over NYC's population.
Word of the day: casualty. A casualty is someone that is injured or killed in war. Not just killed. I've had this discussion with people before where someone thought a casualty is only a death. A large number of casualties does not mean that many people died.
That said, I'm sorry this post took so long to get out! I thought things would settle down after classes ended, and I was so horribly wrong. I decided to split this chapter in half ultimately, partially because I haven't posted in so long and because the chapter would have been extraordinarily long as well. Anyroad, here's the chapter!
"Good morning Remnant! I'm Lisa Lavender, reporting for both the Vale News Network and Remnant Reporting, the emergency news network spanning all four Kingdoms. As most of the world is aware, Vale came under attack by a Grimm invasion spurred on by the terrorist organization known as the White Fang's Vale branch. Their leader, the infamous Adam Taurus, was apprehended four days ago by the combined efforts of General James Ironwood of Atlas, the late Ozpin Gruene, and Vale's own savior, Aran Vinland. The High Leader of the White Fang organization, Sienna Khan, has condemned Taurus's actions while the former High Leader and creator of the organization, Ghira Belladonna, has outright called the true purpose and motives of the White Fang into question.
"Casualties from the horrific event are estimated to be between one million and another quarter million, roughly a tenth of Vale's total population. Of those lives lost among the casualties, only four hundred thousand are estimated to be military personnel, while a further two thousand are Huntsmen and Huntresses, including some who were students of Beacon or other academies attending the Festival.
"In other news, the Champion of Vale, as the public has taken to calling Aran Vinland, has yet to be seen publicly after her last known sighting aboard a Valean military Bullhead. When pressed for comment, King Braylor Vale had this to say last night."
"The Dragonsong's recovering from her own battles. I have given my word that she will be safe and unaccosted during the duration of her recovery period. She is in good hands between her own friends and several others who have vested interest that she remains safe and recovers quickly."
"For those who did not see the Vytal Festival, Dragonsong is another title that the Erzans have given for Miss Vinland. Despite King Braylor's words, General Ironwood has brought the legitimacy of Miss Vinland's actions into question, further disgruntling the population of Vale. He has given the video seen at the Vytal Festival Tournament championships as the reason why she should not be trusted, and tried for the murder of one Mercury Black. In response to this, King Braylor has demanded Ironwood to remove himself and his forces from the Kingdom of Vale entirely for the currently baseless accusations, as the General has yet to relinquish Beacon Academy from his grasp. Should the General refuse to submit to his demand by tomorrow evening, the King of Vale is prepared to take the Academy with lethal force, with aid pledged to Vale by several newly-arrived Huntsmen and Huntresses from the Kingdom of Vacuo, among them being the notorious Vacuoan Council member, Voldo Xanth. With this political statement by Vacuo, hostilities have resumed between the Kingdoms of Atlas and Vacuo, leading to a closure of trade routes that have been guaranteed to reopen should General Ironwood evacuate Beacon Academy. If he doesn't, Vacuo has promised open hostilities. Tensions between the Kingdoms have not run this high since just before the Great War, a fact that has not been lost to the Kingdom of Mistral. Though the Mistrali Council have refused to comment, it is clear that its leadership is split by the actions of Haven Academy's own Leonardo Lionheart and Queen Lysithea Orgold. The Headmaster of Haven has stated that General Ironwood is in the right for questioning and seeking to detain the Dragonsong, while the Queen of Mistral defended the heroine while bringing light to a number of criminals infiltrating Haven Academy and somehow making it to Vale at his behest to participate in the Vytal Festival, among them being the late Mercury Black."
"Moving away from politics, Vale is making haste to make repairs on its defenses. The damage to both Vale itself and the land surrounding it is immense. In her final act of the battle which saved Vale, the Champion of Vale created a firestorm the likes of which has never been seen. Millions of Grimm were engulfed in the flames, but the damage to the lands around Vale will take years to heal. Miles of land that once housed thriving ecosystems of grasses, trees, and wildlife have been reduced to little more than ashes and received the nickname of The Ashlands, while the epicenter of her action has revealed the ground to have turned to glass. This area has been cordoned off, where Beacon's deputy Headmistress, Glynda Goodwitch, has given the following statement.
"The destruction caused is… massive. But it is not catastrophic. There were very few farms near Vale itself, so the food supply is in no danger. While the view outside of Vale will be an eyesore for upcoming years, there has ultimately been little damage done to Vale itself by Miss Vinland's actions. Several Huntsmen and Huntresses have come together to create a monument of remembrance for those lost, using this glass here. For the next few weeks, this area will be off-limits to the general public while specialists begin to extract this glass for the monument and its creation. Afterwards, it shall be opened back up to the public."
The television turned off as Aran sat forward, placing the remote back on the table in front of her. She was currently sitting on a couch with Y'Shtola curled into her while Ryne, Alphinaud, Alisaie, Roman, Qrow, Neo, Amber, Pyrrha, and Emet-Selch glanced at Aran. Back in a corner of the room sat Emerald, though she wore cuffs and was bound to the building by magick. In the last few days, she had remained mostly despondent until only that morning, where she finally began to speak and otherwise show that she wasn't completely shattered in a mental capacity. Alphinaud and Alisaie, amusingly, were still stuck with looks of amazement to see Y'Shtola cuddling with anyone. Back in another corner rested Winter Schnee, clicking around on her scroll as she gave the occasional glance up to show she was listening. She reminded Aran of Glynda in some ways and mannerisms.
The room was spacious, though Aran shouldn't have been surprised. It was a room meant to bunk up to ten people comfortably, though it had seen little use as of late until Aran's arrival with her friends and allies. It was a Kingsguard barracks, though by Braylor's own admission the construction of such things scattered throughout the city had been rather extravagant. When one thought of a barracks, they thought of cramped quarters and bunk beds, not large suites suitable to house royalty.
Seeing their questioning glances, Aran shook her head.
"I'm not going out in public to be interviewed so long as I have this. All it takes is one person getting a glance to freak the public out." Aran stated, holding up her right hand.
It seemed her control of the Light was not as total as she had thought. The moment she cast her spell to destroy the Grimm, the Light struck while she was focused. In her panic, she very nearly caused the firestorm to sweep over the defenders of Vale, and the broken focus combined with her panic resulted in her total loss of control over Light. If not for Hades' quick thinking, she would have been consumed by it. But she did not come out unscathed.
Her right hand and arm, leading all the way up to just past her shoulder, was the same white color as a sin eater. Her fingers had become disfigured, turning into sharp talons that she even now kept hidden beneath a hastily modified articulated gauntlet which replaced her old one. Truthfully, the hand and arm up until the elbow now looked like it could pass as a prosthetic while she wore the gauntlet. The rest of the arm was also partially disfigured, though it too was hidden beneath an oversized black sleeve. Beneath the sleeve, the otherwise smooth white skin was interrupted by gold ridges, much like that of a Forgiven Obscenity.
The only good thing about it was the ease with which she had found herself able to mould aether with the arm, in place of a staff. Which was all well and good, since Emet-Selch had destroyed her staff in the process of halting her transformation into a Lightwarden.
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow in an Aran-like fashion.
"I don't see what the problem is if it's covered up. You've never been one to shy away from -"
"It's different, Pyrrha!" Aran interrupted sharply. "They've all seen Mercury's transformation, they know the monstrosity of pale flesh."
Surprisingly, it was Emerald from back in her corner that responded before the others. She cleared her throat, drawing the attention of those in the room. When she noticed this, her head sunk and she looked away.
"Well… I mean, it seems like people saw the edited footage, but they know it was edited footage now, right? And Ironwood… he hasn't exactly been setting great examples lately. His claims for you killing Mercury - even though you actually did, but in self defense - well, they've mostly been dismissed with how much Vale's venerating you. I, uh… don't know you, but you've seemed like an okay person. You know, before Cinder tried to… yeah. And you took me in after I was arrested, and all you want in return is just… to help me, I think? So, even though I don't really know what it was you did to Mercury, and what's happened to you, and don't know what a sin eater is, I think you're pretty okay."
Alphinaud shrugged, taking his gaze off of the Miqo'te and Aran before speaking. Elsewhere in the room, Roman was quietly cracking up to himself.
"Our goal at present is to help anyone we can. Even if you aided the enemy, you yourself did not hurt anybody, and were being manipulated in a most unpleasant manner. To provide succor seems to be the only course of action in my mind."
Roman's quiet chuckles finally got away from him, startling the others in the room. Alphinaud donned an affronted frown.
"I beg your pardon? I fail to see the humor in my statement."
"It-it's not you, kid. It's Aran. At the rate she's going, she's going to have every criminal in Vale eating out of her palm. For being the 'Champion of Vale', she has some very shady connections."
The twins looked at each other in confusion.
"I fail to see his point, dear sister. Is it not the norm for people in positions of power to have at least some shady dealings?"
"I'm of the same mind, dear brother. I've no idea what point he's trying to make."
Aran smiled at their antics before addressing Roman.
"I've no shame to admit I've done worse than you ever will, Roman. I've said it before, and I'm saying it again. War is nasty business, and I've never found myself shirking my share of duties when they become unpleasant and even straight up morally wrong." Aran paused and glanced at Emerald, deciding quickly that it didn't matter if she learned anything about her past. "I've killed, I've taken pleasure in it, and much more. Do I regret that I've done all of it? Not in the least. But I do regret the circumstances that brought those opportunities around. What the people don't know, either here or in Eorzea, is that I am a monster, and I don't regret it because it means someone else doesn't have to be the monster."
In her lap, Y'Shtola lightly smacked her shoulder.
"You're not a monster. A monster wouldn't have helped Ruby with fabricating plans for prosthesis to be used by her sister. Or get her started on several other plans to be fitted to other people that she knows. A monster wouldn't do the things you do to help people."
Emet-Selch cleared his throat as he began to speak, pride clearly in his tone.
"Yes, well, she's something of a marvel when it comes to machina if it doesn't use too complicated of an aetheric basis. That is where Garlond's expertise outstrips hers."
"Cid or his father?" The twins asked simultaneously.
"Both. But she's rather well known for technologies which don't use those principles. Or rather, Aran wir Galvus was. Ceruleum-based machina in particular she took a shine to, though many of her own inventions were not originally created for the purpose of warfare. They were repurposed and remodeled, one of the many sources of discontent that led her to where she is now."
Aran's face soured even as the twins looked at Aran in confusion. It was clear that they were not old enough to remember her old name, nor had anyone told them of her past.
"It was one of these repurposed machina which dealt the lethal blow to Eoma. An older model taken by our foes and turned against us. It was why I originally only was willing to create enhanced suits of armor, powered by Ceruleum or something else."
The Ascian's eyes widened.
"Wha- I was told she - you - were struck down by an assassin! The messenger was one of your soldiers!"
His outburst made Aran raise an eyebrow, while Y'Shtola seemed to look on, intrigued. Everyone else began to feel out of place in the conversation.
"I sent nobody to inform you of anything. Eoma knew of my intentions to leave. She left me a letter on my armor stand, after taking it and posing as me. She was intelligent; more so than you or I. She had plans, contingencies, and contingencies to those contingencies. One of those was upon her death, that I would flee under a new name. It was not I who prepared forgeries to get myself and my soldiers out of the Empire, it was her. She even had suspicions that you weren't what you appeared; back then, I thought she meant about your plans. But now I believe she suspected something about your being an Ascian."
Emet-Selch crossed his arms, deep in thought.
"Did… you ever tell her of your dreams of Amaurot?"
The Warrior gently nudged Y'Shtola away so she could stand and grab her scroll. She didn't answer immediately, opting instead to send a message to Glynda. When she finished, she looked at Emet-Selch.
"She knew them by heart. You were never around to hear me tell of them, at least not what they really were."
The Warrior walked towards the exit of their hideout, grabbing an oversized cloak and donning it over her armor. The glamour over the hood allowed her to pull it over her head easily to hide her face in shadows, not unlike an Ascian, though close inspection by someone taller than her would certainly notice that her ears were protruding through no discernable holes. Luckily, it was extremely rare to find someone that tall. As she was doing so, Y'Shtola stood up and walked over to her, followed by Pyrrha. They both donned similar cloaks, though Pyrrha's armor had been replaced by a simple spring athletic outfit. Bronze was not as inconspicuous as the blackened metal of Aran's armor.
"I'm going to see if there's been any progress on finding the Eyes. They can't fall into someone else's hands."
"I think not," Y'Shtola stated. "Alphinaud, Alisaie, you two can go do that. It might be wise to contact Thancred as well; he's probably dying from curiosity."
"Eh," Qrow interrupted. "Something else happened with his host and her friend that's keeping him preoccupied. I wouldn't worry too much."
"Did Summer wake up?" Alisaie asked excitedly, earning a smack to the shoulder from her brother.
"Alisaie!"
"Wha-" she began for cutting herself off. "Oh." Behind them, Qrow sighed as he rubbed his eyes with his fingers as he debated how much to say. He ended up shrugging to himself with a low mumble.
"To answer your question at least, yeah. She's awake, and giving your friend and mine a hard time. Thancred's doing just fine, just hasn't had much time to worry between helping get her back up to snuff and caring for your other friends. There's a rough estimate of them heading this way in a couple of weeks, with your friends."
In the back, Emerald frowned as she began to put pieces of information together while Aran turned to leave along with Y'Shtola, Pyrrha, and the twins. When she finished, her face brightened.
"Wait! Summer, like Summer Rose? The Huntress? Like, Team STRQ Summer Rose?"
Qrow's head rounded shockingly fast to the green-haired woman.
"What do you know about her?" He asked aggressively. The effect was immediate, as Emerald flinched away and began to stammer.
"I-I-I… s-she saved my v-village when I was small… s-saved me. A-along with Team STRQ - you I suppose- of course. But it was Summer that saved me… Until Cinder found me, anyways."
Qrow seemed to be deep in thought until a memory struck him.
"You're from Variat? The village was overrun a week after we left by Grimm. Summer was trying to take an orphan with us, but we barely had supplies for ourselves. Raven and Tai finally talked her out of it in the end, because we wouldn't make it back to where we needed to be otherwise."
The thief nodded slowly.
"Yeah… the orphan was me. I got away because of another kid drawing off the Grimm. I still don't know if he actually got away, he had his Aura and Semblance already though so it might not have been a suicide run."
Qrow nodded.
"He got away. In fact, you've already met him at Beacon. Dolan Adarra, the prodigal survivor. He survived long enough to make it to the village my team was resting at, and due to some… early maternal instincts, Raven actually took it upon herself to get him back to Vale with us. Don't think we valued him over you though, Raven tried giving up her rations for the kid but Tai ended up giving him his so that Raven would keep up her strength."
Emerald cocked her head.
"Because of Yang?"
Qrow nodded, though he gave Emerald a strange look.
"Tai was close to starving by the time we got back to civilization. How did you know of Yang's parentage?"
"My sister and I will go out to check on the excavation for the Eyes. Try to stay out of trouble, would you?" Alphinaud stated and asked with amusement. In response, Y'Shtola's eyes lit up while Pyrrha's shoulders seemed to mimic Aran's as if searching for a reason to smack the back of his head.
"Worry not about us, little Alphie. We've lived here for almost a year." Y'Shtola answered.
"Well of course, but you can never be too-"
Alphinaud's statement was cut short as Aran's scroll rang, prompting her to step away and answer while the others continued their antics.
"Aran speaking."
"Good morning. We've a small problem and an opportunity rolled into one, Aran." Came the grave voice of Arget. The man seemed to want to get straight to business.
"Do explain."
"Straight to the point, as always. An operative within Beacon has informed us that General Ironwood intends on coming into Vale with the intention of seeing you. The problem is that he's under the impression that Yang Xiao-Long's name on a recovery room is merely a cover for yours."
The Viera raised an eyebrow.
"And how does he figure that?"
"I'm unsure of the details, but I'm sure his Semblance has something to do with it. The General likes to keep it hidden, but his Semblance is a mental one. It reinforces his own willpower to great magnitudes, effective for his own morale and challenging impossible odds, but very easily taken advantage of to have him make bad decisions. Such as those made during the battle, and the things he has chosen to do up until this point. The more he continues to rely on it, the more questionable his actions are going to become until he looks to be nothing more than a monster in human skin, all while thinking that he is in the right."
"Indeed. I can see why he wouldn't want that getting out, it would make manipulating him extraordinarily easy. Perhaps, he is already being manipulated without his knowledge. Either way, it makes his actions no less abhorrent."
"Quite so. Now, this leaves us with an opportunity as well, for you to sneak into Beacon. I'm confident the only reason he is still occupying the academy is so that he can find the entrance to Ozpin's relic."
"A futile effort, unless he has Ozpin's knowledge as well as Amber."
The line was silent for a few moments.
"And you have this knowledge? How?"
"Suffice it to say that Ozpin didn't really know I had it. Seeing into the past is a specialty of mine. Anyhow, the entrance to Beacon's relic isn't a where, it's a when. And unfortunately for the General, the when will never be in his lifetime. But it is in mine. Ozpin's created a pathway that reads the age of one's soul. If the soul didn't exist at the time Ozpin chose upon its creation, then it will not reveal itself. I don't think he anticipated there to be anyone besides himself and Salem who would be able to find the Vault. That said, I'm certain he made modifications to its defenses with my arrival."
Not a total lie, though it had been dumbed down enough for a Remnite to understand with their knowledge of souls. Ozpin's - Ozma's - spell was not one of reading an age of one's soul, but to read if one's soul had been Sundered and awoken. Which meant Ozma knew full well what exactly she and Emet-Selch were, and chose not to say anything. The man was playing mind games on the highest of levels.
"You would be correct, but I cannot tell what kind of modifications. Would you be willing to sneak into Beacon today, when Ironwood decides to make a visit to 'you'?"
Aran glanced at her companions, who had involved Pyrrha in one discussion or another, somehow. A moment of listening revealed it was Pyrrha who had somehow brought up the topic of Estinean.
Aran, Y'Shtola, nor Ryne had informed their allies of Pyrrha's possession of the Echo, and the results had been a great source of amusement when she would recall a particularly embarrassing moment that Aran had witnessed at one point or another.
"What's your plan?"
"With Neopolitan and Emerald Sustrai in your care, we could set up a very convincing illusion. Ironwood will make his way to the Xiao-Long girl's room one way or another, so why don't we make things interesting for him?"
"I'll talk Pyrrha and Y'Shtola into heading that way to help, but under one condition. There's more going on here than what you've told me. You have another reason for wanting Ironwood occupied, and I would know what you're making me complicit in."
Silence greeted her for a few moments before the grave voice was heard once more.
"You are correct. The nature of the operation shall remain discreet at this time, but Team SKTR shall retrieve you from Beacon and place you on to their mission. Saffron will fill you in and give you operational control once the circumstances are explained. It will be time sensitive, so do try to hurry your own mission."
The corner of the Viera's lips twitched. Somebody was losing their life, it seemed.
"Fine. Let me know the moment Jimmy is beginning to leave Beacon."
Cardin Winchester wiped the sweat from his brow as he took a step back from the task he had set himself to. As he did so, he observed the repairs to the multi-storied apartment complex being made.
"Winchester! Take a break!" Called one of the workers further down the street. "You've been working more than most of us, and it's not even your job!"
The armored man smiled as he waved the worker off.
"Ah, I'm good. I can keep going."
The worker shook his head as he approached, revealing the slitted eyes of a serpentine faunus.
"It wasn't a recommendation, Cardin. We appreciate what you've done, but you're still a student at Beacon. Your team needs you more than we do at this point."
Cardin sighed and nodded reluctantly.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right. But it's not like we can even return to Beacon right now, not with Ironwood still occupying it."
A heated exchange made itself known further down the street, leading to a grumble from the worker.
"I need to separate those two. I mean it Winchester, get some rest. Spend some time with your team, maybe even your family if they haven't given you the boot for helping us down here."
Before Cardin could respond, the worker was gone. Another sigh followed a shake of the head, leading to his departure from the construction zone.
He had arrived early in the morning, before most of the workers. It also wasn't the first place he'd been helping with reconstruction, along with the other members of C(R)DL. As he walked, his mind wandered from his team's partial dysfunction due the loss of Russell, to Team ARY. He had tried to call both Aran and Ryne (as far as he knew, nobody had Y'Shtola's private number besides Aran, Ryne, and Blake) and settled on texting both of them when neither answered. Aran gave a vague answer saying they were fine, but Ryne had gone into a little more depth though she didn't talk about Aran.
Unfortunately, it created more questions than answers as he delved deeper into her answers. He had taken the questions to Jaune in the hopes that he had heard more from Pyrrha, but he was at just as much of a loss as Cardin. Apparently Pyrrha hadn't even texted them at all, though her parents, whom had rented a hotel room for JNPR's sake, were also unable to contact her. By their unworried explanation, it was very possible that her scroll had been destroyed during the battle and she was simply unaware; it wouldn't be the first time she had done so when she used her Semblance excessively. Magnets and electronics did not blend well, after all.
Parents. Cardin looked down as his fists clenched, remembering the reaction of Russell's parents when they learned that he had died defending a faunus student. Like Cardin's own family, they were perhaps some of the worst when it came to human supremacy. Unlike Cardin's own, they had many children, with Russell being the fourth in a line of nine. While Cardin was the sole child of the renowned and very traditional Winchester family and his opinions couldn't be shirked due to it, Russell had essentially been banished postmortem from his family, with Cardin being told to feed the body to the faunus animals he had died defending.
It had taken both Glynda and Peter (Professor Port insisted upon being called Peter, due to their having fought together as comrades as opposed to teacher and student) to pry Cardin off of the well-beaten Thrush patriarch. After the fact, he was glad that Sky and Dove were with their own families when that happened. In a strange turn of events shortly after, he found himself spending time with CFVY as they went around the city performing odd jobs in an effort to help.
His wandering finally brought him to Cadence Hospital, a medical facility that specializes in taking in Huntsmen and Huntresses and the medical applications of Aura. He frowned as he glanced up at the sun; he didn't realize it was already noon. He had been walking lost in his thoughts for a couple of hours.
Shrugging, he decided to enter. He knew that Yang was here, and if she were here then perhaps Blake, Weiss, and Ruby would be too.
As the large man made his way towards Yang's room, his eyes were drawn to a woman standing across from her door, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and a foot flat against it. Long black hair, red and black clothes, and a few pieces of blood red armor… along with very recognizable red eyes that Cardin knew Yang possessed when she was pissed. Plus, her facial features were a mirror of Yang's. While he had deduced that this must have been the Firecracker's mother, she could have easily passed as an aged twin to Yang if she smiled.
The woman's head swiveled as she heard his approach, and something clicked in Cardin's mind.
This woman was Raven Branwen, a Huntress that had gone missing eighteen years ago. And Yang was nearly a copy of her, minus her hair color and taste in fashion. How did nobody notice this?
"Winchester." Raven said lowly. Her head turned back to stare at the door with a frown.
He stopped a couple meters away, giving the woman a curious look.
"Raven, right? You know who I am?"
The woman didn't answer his question. Instead, she pushed off of the wall and began to walk past him.
"I know everyone that comes into contact with my daughter. You are no exception, though your loyalty to Aran alongside her is duly noted. And I know that you have occasional contact with Qrow as well, through her. Pass on a message for me. Tell Aran and Qrow that we need to talk. Qrow will know where I'll be and when."
Cardin frowned.
"Wait. You can't just brood outside Yang's room without talking to her. You do realize she's been searching for you for most of her life, right?"
When no answer came besides the sound of a flapping of wings, he turned around to find the hall empty. Shaking his head, he turned around and knocked on the door to Yang's room. A faint 'come in' sounded, so he did.
When he entered, he wasn't expecting to see Ruby talking to a tall doctor in a white coat with fiery red hair and Professor Mulberry while holding what looked like a mechanical arm several feet away from Yang, who surprisingly was paying apt attention to what was being said. The leg itself was strange, and looked more organic than mechanical, with a muscled outer appearance that looked like shiny rubber rather than the usual mechanical robotic limbs he was used to seeing. Having walked into the conversation partway, Cardin had no idea what they were talking about, but he did recognize Ruby's and Yang's dad sitting in a chair against the wall behind them, leaning forward with his hands folded together. It appeared that he at least fully understood the medical technobable that was being spoken.
"- nerve ending will need to be plugged into several of these sensory relays throughout the prostheses. Taking into account how many nerves we're talking about, the undertaking will be… massive. But not impossible, especially if Aura can be tricked into thinking that the relays are in fact viable pathways for the nerves to connect and heal into. I must say Miss Rose, this is an incredible piece of technology that you have made a prototype for. Not even Atlas has been able to come up with a way to give prosthetic limbs the ability to feel, and I've worked with Doctor Polendina personally to try and find this answer. Professor Mulberry, what do you think of the strength of the limb? Would it hold up to military and Huntsman-grade replacements?"
The bearded professor stroked said beard as he nodded excitedly with a spark in his eye.
"Oh, most certainly Doctor Lind! I've worked on Saffron's limbs myself, and I daresay that this piece of tech could hold up to those in a heartbeat. It is more than satisfactory for the duties of a Huntress. The only problem I foresee is that it would require maintenance on a more regular basis than usual, and it would be more complex than the normal person would care for."
"With respect sirs," Ruby interrupted, "I intend on being Yang's mechanic. And Yang herself possesses a good mind for these things even if it's not on the same level as me, so she'd be able to do the maintenance on her own once I teach her. I'd be happy being able to keep working on this and the arm as well, seeking to improve it through field testing so long as Yang doesn't mind either."
"Which I don't mind. She's my sister, and I trust her." Yang interrupted in turn. "I want to do this. Let me try it, please."
Doctor Lind, the tall man, crossed his arms.
"I'll allow it, Miss Xiao-Long, but I need to warn you. The attaching of the nerve endings, as well as your Aura healing them into the prosthetic, will be the most painful thing you've experienced or likely ever will. And it'll be a pulsating pain that will last for nearly a day. I cannot in good conscience allow you to make this decision without that warning. The operation cannot be reversed without permanent damage to you, so once it's done there will be no going back."
Yang snorted, motioning for Cardin to come into the room fully before she responded.
"I'm already permanently damaged, by my own decision. I'm not losing anything if this doesn't work. So yes, I still want to do it. Preferably tonight, so we can get it over with."
Professor Mulberry and Doctor Lind looked over at Ruby, along with Tai.
"Sweetheart?" Tai asked, leading to Ruby to smile and nod.
"Yes! I have the leg here too, but can you really get to it so quickly?"
The doctor nodded.
"Yes, in fact we're going to need to do it tonight before her Aura heals her too much. I'll make sure we have a room ready. And I'll need you here too, Mulberry, for your mechanical expertise."
The Professor smiled and agreed, then turned to leave. Upon seeing Cardin, his eyes sparkled again.
"Ah, Mister Winchester. I've been informed by a mutual acquaintance of ours that you're going to be reforging your weapon soon. She asked that if she wasn't available at the time, then I would take her place along with Miss Rose."
"Uh… yeah, sure. That'd be great!" Cardin responded with a smile as Doctor Lind brushed past him.
"Excellent. You have my number, just give me a call whenever you're ready. I should be free most anytime besides tonight, at least until we have Beacon back." As Mulberry began to move again, he patted Cardin's shoulder. "And you did a good job the other day and night. Thank you for your efforts, young man."
Then he was gone, leaving Cardin alone with a young Reaper that looked ready to explode with excitement, a bed-bound beauty, and the worried father of them both. He rubbed the back of his head nervously.
"So… hey there?" He started with a shrug.
Yang shook her head.
"Seriously, you are just as bad as Vomit Boy was at the beginning of the year, you know that?" She said with a chuckle. "But seriously, glad to see you're okay. So why'd you come here? It's not like we're good friends, though I suppose we do have a good rivalry going from our sparring."
"I guess I was just kinda looking for Blake. She has Y'Shtola's number, so I was hoping to have her ask something for me is all. I don't quite think I was expecting to hear what I just did."
Ruby giggled excitedly as she dashed for Cardin to show off her construct. She began going into the specifics of it for nearly a minute until Tai cleared his throat.
"Sweetheart, I don't think Cardin shares your passion for machines. You might be breaking him a bit if you continue."
Ruby stopped immediately and looked at Cardin's glazed over expression before muttering an apology.
"I'm just so excited! When I first saw the idea in the schematics Aran sent me originally, especially with dense carbon weave acting like muscle, I just… it got me really really really excited, and I can't help but to keep talking about it and trying to improve upon the design. It's powered by the heat of the wearer's body, which is something revolutionary along with several other parts, like the sensory system. She's a genius! I hope I can match her someday."
Cardin blinked once more and tilted his head as he scratched at his temple.
"But… isn't this exactly what she recommended you do anyways? I recall you turning her idea down in favor of continuing as a full-time Huntress."
Ruby's face turned as red as her cloak.
"W-well yeah… but now that I've actually been working on a prosthetic, or I suppose actually made it completely as opposed to repurposing an old one, which would have required a total overhaul of the structure which would cost more and take more time than making one from scratch…" she halted again as Cardin's eyes glazed over again. "Right. Sorry. Um, I guess now I see the appeal of doing what she suggested. But I still won't give up being a Huntress for it. So, I'll just have to use my spare time to prepare and experiment with new ideas for prosthetics, maybe even start weaponizing them somehow. Then…" Ruby began to go off on yet another tangent, causing Cardin to glance at both Tai and Yang as they both shrugged and smiled in turn. Idly. Cardin wondered how Ruby even knew so much about the body of a human in the first place. He wasn't aware he spoke out loud until Tai answered him.
"Ah, she doesn't, really. That's why she asked me to get in contact with Yang's doctor, so she could run by her prototype with him. She even had an economic version drafted up in reserve which Professor Mulberry immediately greenlit for testing. Apparently, she's been spending a bit of her free time with Aran before everything happened, doing some research on the most advanced weaponized prosthetics."
"Only a bit?" Yang asked with a chuckle. "Ruby's been spending all of her free time researching those things, with or without Aran, since she first brought them up as a potential future career. I think it actually annoyed Weiss, because she would keep asking her about Atlas's current standards."
As they chuckled, a knock came from the still-open doorway. Turning for Cardin revealed the knocker to be none other than Qrow Branwen, along with the green-haired girl Emerald. Behind them stood the tall man with the strange white gem (or was it something else? Cardin had never worked up the courage to ask) in his forehead, Hades.
"Sorry to interrupt, but I was hoping we could borrow your room- oh, hey. Fancy meeting you here, Tai, Firecracker." As he spoke, Cardin could practically feel Ruby begin to vibrate in excitement behind him.
Several moments passed in silence until Qrow finally gave a muttered "...Pipsqueak." Then, Ruby broke loose as she charged at the man with her Semblance.
"UncleQrowUncleQrowUncleQrow!" She began as she tackled him hard enough to make him stumble. Then she latched onto his side. "How's Aran? Is she okay? Will she be all right? Does she need any help? Were they able to-"
The barrage of the same question being asked in different words was halted as Qrow's hand clamped over her mouth. He glanced at the prosthetic that was left on the table a short ways away
"Can you ever ask a single question or will it always be multiple choice with you?" The red-eyed Huntsman asked with a smile.
"I-"
"Always multiple choice. Sometimes there's even choices to make within those choices too." Tai overrode Ruby.
"But-"
"Yeah, that sounds about right. I'm not sure how Aran's able to get her down to a single question." Qrow responded to Tai.
"She-"
"Well, she doesn't really ask Ruby. She found a way around it by making the questions into statements that only need a yes or no for an answer." Yang joined in, making the younger Reaper's shoulders slump in defeat. Behind Qrow and Emerald, Cardin noticed Hades don a wry smile before he too spoke up. Oddly, the man seemed to be trying to hide some form of guilt in his eyes.
"Ah, yes. She has years of practice and patience stored within her, along with the experience of raising someone very similar to Ruby here. Even when she was fully grown, Veela was still rather hard to narrow down to a single question, yet Aran managed it. Like Ruby, Veela was prone to listening to the stories of heroes past."
"Was?" Cardin asked, making both Qrow and Hades flinch slightly before the Erzan (Was he Erzan? Cardin wasn't too sure, Aran only introduced him as an old friend of hers. He would have to ask at some point. At the very least, he certainly had the height to be.) Cleared his throat.
"Veela Vinland was executed during a rebellion."
Oh, so he did hear right.
Vinland. Raised. And Aran doesn't talk about her age. Was she even old enough to have raised a child? Did she perhaps even have one of her own?
Cardin felt concern for one of his best friends and mentor grow, and apparently it was obvious to Hades.
"Worry not, young man. Her will is stronger and more flexible than any other, and she shall outlast every single one of us. Like all of those who have been lost to her, Veela lives on in her memory and her soul. But I feel the same concern as you; no parent should bury their child. But, that is the curse of such long lived beings such as she and I. Our longevity does not pass on to our offspring. We are to die alone, our friends and families long passed. But even before all came to be as it is now, she was among the eldest and most wise. Why we never stopped to fully consider what it was we were doing even as she demanded for us to see what we were creating, I will never know."
Qrow cleared his throat, making Hades blink in surprise.
"Perhaps a history lesson on Aran's past should wait until she's present, no?" Qrow asked more defensively than any in the room had expected.
In the chair near Yang's bed, Taiyang smiled.
"Whoa, calm down there Qrow. I get you like her, but-"
"No Tai, I don't. Not in the way you're insinuating. If you think otherwise, I'm always up for a good throwdown with you."
Cardin shook his head. He would have expected such a response from children in an academy. Then he blinked as he realized that he himself was still a student.
"Okay children, that's enough." Cardin said, getting between Tai and Qrow, the latter attempting to claw Ruby off of his side. Cardin glanced at Emerald, who so far had remained silent and looked at Taiyang as if trying to remember something. The moment he did, her eyes tore away to glare at Cardin as she folded her arms. Matching the glare she gave him, Cardin decided to continue. "You three came here for a reason, and I doubt it was to antagonize Mister Xiao-Long. Well, Qrow might, but the other two wouldn't be here for that. And if Hades is here, it has something to do with Aran. And don't say otherwise, because when it comes to the people from Erza, it ALWAYS has to do with Aran. Even Ryne."
Somewhere in the back of Cardin's mind, he heard the vague whispers that had settled there after the Battle of Vale. Unlike before, they were always present, always keeping him on edge. And they were always making sense. Because who knew what lurked around every corner? He mentally clamped down on his thoughts to get them back on track.
"Well, I suppose we'd better get down to business then. Wouldn't want to ruin killjoy's day over there." Qrow replied with a sigh. "We need to borrow your room. Jimmy decided that Yang's name being assigned to a room here is a cover for Aran, so he decided that he's going to make a stop here tonight."
Tai looked at Qrow in confusion.
"How in the hell does he figure it's a ruse?" He asked heatedly. "My daughter is clearly here!"
Another voice sounded from out the hallway, raspy and damaged. Its owner wasn't visible.
"That would be my doing and my mistake, Mister Xiao-Long. I may have pushed Ironwood too far during the final hours of the defense."
Cardin's eyes widened as Ferrick Arget, the Captain of the Kingsguard himself, stepped into the room. His scarred face glanced around, his eyes cold and calculating, his step aided by a black quarterstaff that was nearly half a foot taller than the man's already towering height. Even Cardin, who was taller than almost everyone except for Aran, felt short compared to the legend that had just strolled in.
"You have my sincerest apologies for this inconvenience," the man continued as his gaze finally settled on the bewildered Xiao-Long pair. "Rest assured I shall strive to make things right. This woman known as Emerald has volunteered her talents along with another woman under Aran's employ to create an illusion of sorts which we shall use to fool the General."
Ruby made a face before raising her hand next to Qrow, as if to ask a question. Luckily, the Captain seemed to have sensed it.
"Miss Rose, this is not a classroom. You are free to speak as you will."
She gave a small squeak before she began to speak.
"Um… wouldn't it make more sense to just have Aran here herself?"
Captain Arget shook his head.
"She will be otherwise indisposed, dealing with a matter for King Braylor as a fully licensed Huntress. Now, I believe most of you have met the young Miss Sustrai before. Working with her to aid in this will be Neopolitan, one of Miss Sustrai's former acquaintances and a woman I know several of you have grown to associate with Miss Vinland of late. She will join us shortly before Ironwood's arrival. In the meantime, I must ask you all to move to a different room for the matter of the Kingdom's security. I fear sensitive subjects may be brought up."
Qrow frowned as he held a hand up to his ear, then cursed.
"Time's up, Captain. Jimmy's Bullhead will be making touchdown in a minute. We don't have time to move them."
The relatively undamaged half of the Kingsguard's face grimaced.
"Very well. Status update on the younger Miss Nikos and Miss Rhul?"
Qrow shrugged.
"Don't look at me, I don't have their scroll numbers."
Captain Arget raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as he shook his head.
A moment later, a short woman most of the students partially recognized entered the room, twirling a multicolored umbrella around her fingers and donning a mischievous smirk. She glanced at the other occupants before she began to usher Ruby (who gave a squeak of indignation as she was separated from her Uncle with much more strength than Cardin would have guessed the woman to possess), Cardin, Emerald, Captain Arget (who walked/hobbled more on his own than with her assistance) and herself into a corner of the room, sparing a glance at Taiyang and moving back over to grab him by his ear.
His protests were silenced by a glare from Qrow, but he certainly looked more than annoyed at being separated from Yang's side.
"Can you maintain two illusions at once, Neo?" Qrow asked, earning a playful grin from the tamed psychopath.
Immediately, Yang's form was replaced with Aran's sleeping form, looking oddly more at peace than Cardin had ever seen her, thoughChe did notice a rather distinct difference from the last time he saw her.
Her right arm was gone at the shoulder. Wrapped around the stump at the shoulder and her (he wouldn't say it aloud, but a very generous bust that he wasn't aware she had) torso with field dressings that he had grown accustomed to seeing over the last few days on people in Vale.
Any words he might have said were silenced when a faint shimmer appeared in front of everyone in the corner.
"Nice touch with the arm on the table, Neo. Jimmy might have gotten suspicious if it didn't look like it was meant for Aran." Qrow praised.
Curious, Cardin glanced at the prosthetic Ruby has left behind. He nodded as he saw that Neo had apparently lengthened it to fit onto Aran's shoulder, instead of an elbow. The woman in question took off her hat and gave a bow, though something told Cardin that the observers in the room outside of the shimmer didn't see it.
"You know what you need to do, Miss Sustrai." Captain Arget added as Qrow moved to the door and closed it. Then, he moved towards the table with the prosthetic and sat on it, while Hades sat in the chair Taiyang had vacated.
Silence reigned for another minute until loud footsteps could be heard marching in unison down the hallway.
"Atlesian Knights," the Captain muttered. "Ironwood must be running low on actual manpower." The way he said it sent a chill down Cardin's spine. This man fully meant to use that information to end lives if necessary, the student Huntsman realized.
The footsteps stopped outside the door, resulting in momentary silence. Then, the doorknob turned, allowing the door to open. Ironwood marched in followed by a short dark skinned woman that seemed to be using some sort of exoskeletal suit.
Harriet, Cardin remembered, did not look happy in the least. He had seen the Ace Ops briefly during the attack, and Sky had informed him of their names.
Qrow growled as he stepped forward, hand reaching towards the sword on his back.
"Jimmy. You have no business being here."
Ironwood didn't bat an eye at Qrow, opting instead to keep his gaze locked on Hades and the Aran illusion. Harriet moved to block Qrow from getting any closer.
"Aran Vinland is a criminal. She must be tried for the murder of Mercury Black, as well as falsifying her Huntress License and subverting governmental authority. All three of these are serious offenses in any of the four Kingdoms. Step aside Qrow, and let me do my job."
Qrow's grip tightened on his weapon.
"The footage was doctored to spread terror through Vale. Her license is legitimate as you well know, and she has done no subversion of any government."
The General's eyes finally left Aran and Hades glare at Qrow.
"This woman has conspired against both the Valean Council and the Atlesian Council proven when-"
The room suddenly dropped in temperature, enough to cause everyone to shiver. Everyone's eyes shot to Hades, who even now had his fingers stroking his jawline in thought.
"It seems to me, General, that you've a vendetta against Aran. Before you make any further transgressions against royalty, allow me to inform you that she is, in fact, a representative of a foreign nation. Remind me, what was the commonality before the Great War in regards to representatives of foreign nations?"
"Diplomatic immunity, unless the leaders of a wronged nation have all agreed that the representative has violated their law." Ironwood replied with his eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by royalty?"
Hades leaned forward as he displayed a wolfish grin.
"Forgive me if I'm wrong, but this commonality between Kingdoms was signed into law with the Treaty of Vytal, with a very exact wording that includes 'The King or Queen of the nation, combined with the unanimous vote of that Kingdom's Council, can strip this diplomatic immunity.' Ergo, Aran is exempt, as King Braylor has clearly dismissed any and all charges against her. As for Atlas, well… you may hold two of the five seats of the Atlesian Council, and perhaps you hold enough sway to convince the others… but the King or Queen of Atlas does not exist, nor that of Mantle to represent Atlas. In Atlas's takeover and dethroning of Mantle's Monarchy, you have removed from yourself the ability to punish any foreign diplomat from a legal standpoint."
Cardin could practically feel Captain Arget bristle in excitement beside him as Hades spoke.
"That may be so, but justice must be carried out." Ironwood stated. "Tell me what you meant by royalty."
Hades sat up in the chair, his smile unchanged as he began to tap his temple.
"Oh, that's right. She was always too embarrassed to admit that she is royalty by marriage. I know you folk don't have much knowledge on our home, but I trust you'll understand her position when I say that she's technically an Empress? Bah, this is falling upon ears that are deaf to anything but your own mind."
He stood up and snapped his fingers, plunging the room into near darkness except for the bed with "Aran", Hades, Ironwood, Harriet, and Qrow. The others could still see them, but around those five, there was nothing but darkness. Ironwood reached for his weapon, but Hades was faster than even Harriet as he snapped again.
Blue crystalline chains shot from the darkness and wrapped around both of them, making them both gasp when they began to glow.
"Do try to calm yourself. Your aether, your Aura, will replenish itself in due time. I do this only to maintain a civil sense of decorum as I give unto you an ultimatum."
Hades slowly walked forward until he stood only a foot away from the Atlesian general, a glowing red mask appearing in front of his face. When next he spoke, his voice had deepened and become nightmare fuel for Cardin's dreams.
"Persist in your threats to Aran, and I shall see to the destruction of everything you have strove so hard to build and defend. I care not for these Kingdoms, but she does. And so I shall defend that which she holds dear. Hear me now, General, for I am Hades. My word is oath, my intent a promise. The will of the Architect is law, and the law has been written. Begone, I tire of your idiocy."
He snapped once more, flinging Ironwood and Harriet away. The chains shattered, and the darkness lifted to reveal the two Atlesians having been thrown out the door of the room. The Atlesian Knights had been destroyed, their parts strewn about, though Cardin was unsure of the cause. He was sure that Hades was the one who did it, however. The door slammed closed a moment later.
Nobody spoke for a few moments until Ironwood's heavy gait was heard walking away. Then, Neo's illusions broke with the sound of shattering glass. Cardin glanced back, watching the mute woman put her hands behind her head to help her breath. Sweat was trickling down her temples and cheeks.
"Good job, Neo. That was perfect." Qrow praised once more, though his eyes were narrowed toward Hades. He seemed to nod to himself as his eyes shifted to Captain Arget. "Pyrrha and Y'Shtola finished a few moments ago. They'll be gone before Jimmy gets back on board."
The Captain nodded and rolled his eyes at Qrow's blatant cheek at his own comment from earlier.
"Good. That should buy our operatives a little more time."
As if on cue, his scroll rang. He pulled it from an embroidered pocket and answered immediately.
"Progress update."
The man nodded to himself as he listened to the other end. After a few more moments, he spoke again.
"Very good. Terminate the traitor on site. Our mutual acquaintance is about to take to the skies, but I doubt it will get him all the way back to Beacon. If you wish to go back and try something else, you will have the time to do so."
Then he hung up and replaced his scroll in a pocket.
"Thank you for your cooperation, ladies and gentlemen. I'm afraid I must be off, though I do need you to deliver a message from King Braylor to your second half, Neo."
He reached into his breast pocket and pulled free a small envelope before passing it to the assassin.
"I bid you all good day."
And then Arget was gone, moving deceptively fast with his cane.
Cardin released a breath he wasn't aware he was holding, before glancing down at Ruby. Taiyang was holding on to her shoulder, comforting the girl though Cardin wasn't sure why she looked to close to a breakdown to begin with.
Finally, the young man cleared his throat to draw Qrow's attention. He motioned towards Yang, who now looked lost in thought herself.
"That illusion, it was Aran, right? Did… she get hurt worse than she's telling us? Did she lose that arm?"
Qrow sighed as he patted his own breast pocket, clearly wanting to take a drink from the flask within. Surprisingly, he refrained and dropped his hand.
"She got hurt, kid. But Hades saved her. Did she lose that arm? I suppose it's a matter for debate, but suffice it to say that she'll be perfectly fine. Hold your head high, Cardin. Aran needs allies now more than ever, and soon she'll be checking in on you to see where you stand. The political climate of Remnant's about to go pear-shaped, and I have no doubt that Vale's views will be whatever she decided hers are." The former bandit's eyes roamed to the others as well, even as Y'Shtola and Pyrrha (her appearance shocked Cardin somewhat. He didn't recall seeing her in anything besides a Beacon uniform and her armor before) came into the room without knocking and closed the door again behind them. "These words aren't just for Cardin. They're for all of you, and your teams. You're all known parts of her faction, and her opponents will know that as well. The time is fast approaching a point of no return. You need to decide wether or not your with Aran, because after tomorrow I can promise you that the Kingdoms are going to be in uproar." The man's gaze landed on Taiyang last. "And this includes you, Tai. Salem won't stay hidden forever if Aran has her way."
The pugilist nodded as his eyes wandered between Qrow and his daughters even while Cardin tried to recall the name Salem. He couldn't remember ever hearing it before.
"I know, Qrow. I'm ready to get back into the fight. The girls can take care of themselves, and they do have the Dragonsong looking after them too. Don't worry about where my allegiance sits like it did with Ozpin. I'm with you one hundred percent this time. What are partners for, after all?"
Qrow smiled and held out his fist.