Happy New Year everyone!
2020 was... A thing, huh? Rough year all around but hey, we made it through the other side. I know something arbitrary like the clocks changing won't suddenly undo all the shit we went through - most of 2021 is liable to be lousy - but there's light on the horizon finally. I hope you're all doing okay, and if you're not remember you're not alone. Everyone's together on this rocky ride and you only need to reach out to find someone willing to help!
Take care of yourselves!
"When you had mentioned a concert, I imagined something more titillating than this."
Weiss' mouth pressed thin, her fingers grasping at the hem of her tunic hard enough for her knuckles to go white. "What exactly did you expect?"
Lady Malachite turned to her and managed to look simultaneously offended and amused. Or perhaps she had a need to pass gas but felt herself too prim and proper to do so. "A concert," she repeated curtly, rolling her eyes. A fan was produced and she waved the air before her face off with a grimace. "Not some plucky foreigner playing children's songs on the lyre."
Flynt, to his credit, took no offense to the scathing review of his performance. Not that he could hear them while they sat at the far end of the tavern, separated by a dozen other tables and twice as many patrons. The minstrel continued to play his simple songs to an exceptional degree, his voice ringing out as honeyed as the notes on his lyre. Or was it a lute? Weiss' elementary understanding of instruments said lyre, as she was pretty sure a lute had a neck. Then again it could have had a neck at one point and have broken off, thus making a lute that resembled a lyre.
Bored summed up how she felt. Flynt's playing was masterful but not anything she was interested in. The Mare's Ass, a place whose name was so uncouth it was any wonder more people didn't visit it, swam with giddy energy of drunken men turned infantile by mugs of ale.
The plan had been proceeding apace but it was proving far, far more arduous and duller than she had anticipated. When the final note struck and Flynt took a showy bow to a chorus of cheers Lady Malachite rose from her chair, frowning and turning her nose up at the display.
"I think I've had enough of jesters playing bards. Coming here was a waste of time."
Weiss slid off her stool and sighed. "But you've seen that the city isn't nearly as dangerous as you thought, yes? We've made it here unscathed."
The number of stares they'd received in the streets said plenty of people would love to relieve Lady Malachite of her purse. Or her head. Most likely both. Thankfully Weiss appeared to be enough of a deterrent to keep any ne'er-do-wells at bay.
Gustav belched beside them and slammed down his pewter mug, wiping his mouth off on his hand. His rosy face twisted, and his cheeks swelled briefly, clasping a hand over his mouth before waving to signal he was fine.
"I thought you'd handle your liquor better." Hannah smiled in amusement, folding her arms as she joined them. Gone was her serving girl's attire of an apron and gown and instead a full set of leather armor adorned her from head to toe. She shifted and the twin axes affixed to her hips glistened in the dancing candlelight.
"You're not really a servant, are you?"
Hannah smiled wider at Weiss and winked. "Perceptive, aren't you? I can see why our lady picked you for the job."
"A job she has still yet to complete." Lady Malachite had already begun for the door and stood impatiently beside it, tapping a foot. "Now, may we get back to my home? I hate it here. The air is stuffy, the people are blasé about personal hygiene, and I'm certain I've contracted half a dozen diseases from being in this shoddy tavern."
"Our lady awaits," Hannah sighed, then smiled and gestured for Weiss to follow, grabbing Gustav by the arm and dragging him along.
The not-quite-drunken Gustav took point, pushed along by Hannah until he made his way to the front, while Hannah and Weiss flanked Lady Malachite. As crowded as the streets still were, they managed to cut themselves a path through the thongs of bodies; gleaming blades might have something to do with that. Plenty of people carried weapons in the city - Weiss would venture more than not - but not everyone looked ready or even capable of using them. Even Gustav in his lightly inebriated state appeared more than capable of fending off a pickpocket or would-be assassin.
That or he'd simply topple over and crush whoever he fell on under his own weight. That served as a decent deterrent too.
If the plan had been to cause a stir with Lady Malachite's presence, then they had managed to accomplish that within moments. Merchants who thought to try their luck clamored for the woman's attention, throwing hollow pleasantries to a woman who actively let them swim in their own swill, keen to make a quick Lien off her. More common though were the people who hurled insults and, if they had it handy, trash, fecal matter, or whatever object was nearby. As it happened, putting Gustav in the fore proved a serendipitous idea as most of the thrown debris clattered off his armor, staining him but leaving the rest of the procession largely clean. Hannah sniggered, inordinately pleased by the man's cursing and futile efforts to keep clean, while Weiss focused on pinching her nose to drown out the smell.
Lady Malachite made no secret of voicing her displeasure. Though not nearly as verbal as her 'fans' she returned their glares or ignored them, deining the peasants that quite literally lived beneath her as not worth her time. Not until a glob of what Weiss hoped was mud splattered against her leggings did she respond, and between Hannah's brandished axes and Gustav's red-faced, slurred barking the man who'd tossed the mud took off, probably setting a land speed record in the process.
Navigating Liar's Bay's streets without someone to escort was a nightmare. The roads were nondescript and lacked signage to direct people unfamiliar with the layout. Ruts and divots made the roads rather than paved stone or gravel, making the simple act of walking treacherous. Dark corners, shadowy alleyways harboring danger, and skeevy merchants and addicts skulked about every five feet. While the smell had become almost a second thought by now it still existed, clinging to every fiber of clothing. If it had been a pleasant odor it would be cloying, but instead it left a sensation probably not unlike a Beowolf clawing its way up your throat.
Then there was the damned fog. Perpetual twilight sounded romantic until you considered there could be varieties of it. Lady Malachite signaled for their procession to stop and Weiss almost bumped into her back, scowling as the woman directed her through an alleyway.
"Make sure it's safe, won't you?" the woman cooed, smiling sweetly.
Weiss sighed and nodded curtly, strutting into the cramped quarters. A Faunus might not find the city too unkind, those with night vision anyways, but the rest of them had no such luck. Humans and elves possessed poorly sight in dim lighting and that meant the alleyway they cut through was dark as midnight. Weiss stumbled over an already spilled garbage bin, cursed when a rat skittered between her feet, and made it to the other side with a colorful, if muted, string of curses.
Lady Malachite emerged with her nose wrinkled and her fan working overtime, coughing and covering her mouth with the fan. "Filthy, isn't it? I almost think we should have the city washed. Hannah, do you think a flood would do the trick?"
"Barring the obvious problems with flooding a city? No. Water would stagnate, and disease would spread even more than it already does. We'd be up to our eyeballs in shit, ma'am. Literally."
"Shame. Oh well, can't say I didn't try."
Except they could. People had spent more effort trying to stack cards into houses than Lady Malachite had to improve Liar's Bay. The rest of the families too, for that matter. Instead of improving the lives of those under their care, and Weiss would still argue it was the responsibility of the families to make the city better, they sat on their wealth and grew fat.
Back onto the streets they went. Onto roads with so many potholes that a carriage would suffer a broken horse, axel, and driver, probably in that order. Some pathways through the grime and precarious footings had been forged by virtue of heavy traffic but those remained cluttered by people and so they were forced to tiptoe down the road. Lady Malachite and Weiss did; Hannah stomped through the puddles without a care for her leather boots and Gustav seemed much too preoccupied keeping upright to care about what he stepped in.
With the hazardous roads providing the only means of reaching the lifts it became painfully obvious how poorly Liar's Bay was laid out. Since the city was built not only up the side of a mountain but in the shape of a crescent moon everything both angled up and pinched in as one ascended. Sure, above the muck below and over the persistent fog there was plenty of space for the lucky few to stretch their legs but down below, sequestered in the poorer districts, the only options out of the city were to either traipse upwards until you found the lifts to ferry you to cleaner, greener pastures, take the long hike up the mountain or, if you fancied yourself a strong swimmer, dive into the ocean. Their merry band of misfits were pigeonholed into the first option since Lady Malachite would never do anything so austere as having to walk anywhere. It was a small miracle in and of itself she hadn't ordered Gustav to carry her through the streets.
She didn't, but they did proceed at a snail's pace. Part of the reason they had agreed to go to the Mare's Ass was the tavern sat on the outer edges of the city, further from where other murders had happened and, they hoped, making it an easier time of watching out for the killers.
The downside of course was the tavern sat on the outer limits of the city. With all the lifts centralized it meant needing to traverse quite a distance just to reach them at the city's center, and that was to say nothing of waiting for one to arrive. Since they operated on some semblance of a schedule there was no guarantee one would be present even if Lady Malachite demanded there would be. Work didn't stop because of a whim to visit the lower city.
After five minutes of walking Lady Malachite appeared to be reaching the ends of both her stamina and patience. After ten she looked ready to order the execution of the nearest person just to vent her frustrations. Gustave had sobered up thanks to the crisp if foul air and looked to fare little better, although that probably had more to do with the shit trickling down his breastplate than anything.
Hannah whistled away without a care, stopping when her mistress did and looking around. "Something wrong, miss?"
"Yes, something is wrong. This entire infernal city is wrong." Lady Malachite gagged, making use of her fan again. "These people should really make a little more effort to compose themselves. Honestly!" She pushed aside a rusted can with her foot and squealed when a mouse raced out, and she'd have tripped on a rock jutting out of the road if Hannah hadn't caught her. "And these roads!" she spat, tearing her arm free and kicking the can aside. "How hard is it to pave a road properly?!"
"You need material to pave it with, for starters," Weiss pointed out.
"As if these people would have the faintest idea how to do it properly!"
"Then you would pay someone to come to the city and fix them."
The very notion of hiring someone looked as appealing as sticking your head in a Boarbatusk's mouth. The analogy didn't really work as anyone who had ever encountered a Boarbatusk knew they had small mouths, made up in droves by their ready-to-gore tusks for which they were named, but the point still stood. Lady Malachite pulled a face and shook her head, abruptly turning off the street and marching down an adjacent alleyway.
"How much further until we reach the lifts? I'm through with these streets!"
"Shouldn't you know the answer? It's your city," Weiss said.
"Aren't you supposed to be polite to your employer, girl? I won't take more of your sass; keep this up and you can forget about our deal." Lady Malachite scowled, carefully shimmying around a stack of crates and sputtering as water which was certainly clean trickled onto her from above. "Gods take this entire city!"
Hannah brushed Weiss aside and shoved the boxes out of her way. "Ma'am, please don't get too far ahead!"
"Then keep up! I want to reach those lifts in the next two minutes."
"We can't protect you if -"
"Then move faster! I'm never coming back down here, do you hear me? I have people for this!"
They stormed out of the alleyway with Lady Malachite at the front, Hannah right on her heels and Weiss hurrying to keep up. Gustav cursed, his armor pinning him between crates and the wall until he smashed them apart, stumbling free and jogging after them.
"I'll just have the Church come to the city and root out the killers because clearly some people are incompetent!" Lady Malachite sneered back at Weiss. "They'll produce results within the hour. I'll suffer their presence in my city if it means these killers are brought to justice!"
"You mean killed," Hannah said, pushing aside workers with arms full of crates. They entered another alleyway and she huffed irritably. "Ma'am, please, slow down!"
"Move faster! My patience is wearing thin!"
"Or you can slow down!" Weiss shouted, passing into the near blinding dark of the alleyway. Hannah shouldered a drunk losing his lunch out of her way ahead and Weiss jumped over the pile of bile. "We can't protect you if you insist on getting yourself killed!"
Something from above tumbled across the roof, passing over the eaves before dropping onto the ground before them. Lady Malachite jumped back with a start, then inched forward cautiously. "What in the world…?" She pressed a foot against the black blob, and she gawked at the black bird, body simmering and slowly burning away. "Wait, that's -"
One of the buildings beside them rumbled so loud it could have very well been coming down. It didn't. What did happen was the outer wall suddenly exploded, jagged spires of earth slicing through the air and burying themselves deep in the adjacent wall, throwing brick and splintering wood. Another explosion went off and pieces of the roof tumbled off the eaves, burying the spot Lady Malachite had just stood in seconds before.
Though her ears rang, Lady Malachite managed to crawl forward and stand, grimacing as she did. Miraculously she emerged from the explosions unscathed, if covered in dirt. Alone now and separated by a wall of stone and debris she turned and banged her fists against the rubble.
"Ma'am, are you okay?!" Hannah shouted. "Stand back, I'll get through!" Twin axes pinged off hard stone, cleaving pieces away. Small pieces, far too small to reach Lady Malachite in any reasonable time. Sparks glanced off the blades and she turned to Weiss, panting. "Help me! Use your runes! Do something!"
Ears ringing, a common side effect of standing right beside an explosion, was at least expected. When the sound of a flute's chirping tune swam into the alleyway everyone paused, turning in the direction of the sound. Only Lady Malachite could see who played the song, backing up against the wall and splaying her hands flat against it.
"Ma'am?!" Hannah called desperately. "Say something! Are you alright?"
"My, I thought the explosion would kill you! You're a lucky woman, aren't you?"
Lady Malachite paled, shaking her head slowly and pressing harder against the stone. "Wh-who are you? What do you want? Lien? I can give you Lien!"
Melody hummed, running a finger along her flute and tossing her fiery red hair back. "A shame we wasted that Dust, but not the end of the world. You and I can settle our business in peace now." Melody smiled and twisted her flute, drawing a thin blade from within and waving it warningly. "Awfully arrogant of you to come into the city after leaving us all to suffer for so long."
"I'll give you a manor! You can live above all this! I'll buy you a home outside of the city!" Lady Malachite shouted, voice rising as Melody drew nearer. "Two houses! A home in the capital!"
"Not interested."
Melody lunged forward, aiming her blade square at Lady Malachite's breast.
The noblewoman clapped her hand against the stone twice and dove aside, cursing as the blade nicked her arm. Ice erupted from the stone and enveloped Melody's arm, trapping her in place.
"What?!"
"What?!" Hannah echoed, gawking at what little she could see. She turned to Weiss. "How did -"
Weiss giggled, putting a hand on her hip and twirling a lock of her hair. "Got you, didn't I? And you people act so assured here!" She popped her lips and smirked. "Sorry, love, but we had to. No hard feelings?"
Lady Malachite growled and stood, grabbing the brooch at her chest and tearing it free. The amulet landed at Melody's feet and Malachite's body shimmered before shattering like glass, revealing Weiss clutching her arm with a smug smile.
"I don't speak like that, Roman. And why are you making me sound like a ditz?"
"Improvising, Schnee!" 'Weiss' took a bow and laughed. "It worked, didn't it?"
Melody cursed and pulled at her arm, and failing that, planted a foot against the wall and pulled harder. When she didn't budge, she pulled another knife from her belt and swiped at the ice. The blade failed to do more than leave a scratch.
"Now then, I believe we have our culprit? I think Lady Malachite will be pleased with this, yes?" Weiss wiped her bloodied fingers off on her tunic, inspecting her wound before shrugging. Little more than superficial, fortunately. "What say we take her to the manor?"
/+/+/+/+/+/
Qrow cursed and stumbled back, nearly toppling over, and gripped his head with a hiss. "Fuck! What was that?"
Yang frowned and lowered the cloth from Ruby's forehead. "What happened?"
"I don't know! The bird was fine and then it just… Died?" Qrow rubbed his face and groaned, dropping into a wooden chair with a creak. "Can a summon like that die?"
"What do you mean it died?"
"I mean it's dead, kiddo. It hit the fog, found Weiss, and as soon as I tried to get it to talk to her it just died on me. Last thing I saw was hitting the roof, so pretty sure it's a goner."
"Fuck!" Blake groaned in the next bed over and Yang uttered a soft apology. "Fuck," she repeated. Drying her hands on her shirt she joined her uncle by the window, throwing it open and leaning out.
From there she could see the rest of the city, or where the rest of it should be. Impossible to see through all the fog there was no way she could hope to spot what had killed the bird. Hells, she couldn't make out anything beneath the veil, much less spot a lone bird. Wind rattled the panes and she leaned back, shutting the windows and exhaling while running her hands through her hair.
"Okay, okay, so we can't get a word to Weiss, and we can't even help her. What do we do now?"
Qrow rubbed his face again then leaned forward in his chair, hands cupped over his mouth. His brow furrowed and he looked to be talking to himself.
"Qrow? What do we do now?" Yang asked again. "We've gotta do something!"
Her impatience grew when Qrow didn't answer again and she watched instead as he continued talking to himself. Maybe something about the bird had fucked him up? Or maybe he was thinking. That was good if he was although Yang didn't have much patience left in her. Ruby remained catatonic, Blake little better, and they had no way of seeing how Weiss was faring anymore. Letting out another low growl she shook her head and stormed towards the bedroom door.
"Screw this! I'm beating the medicine out of these people!"
"Yang, wait."
"Screw waiting, all we've done is wait! They need help!"
"I know they do but wait." Qrow stood again and went back to the windows. Wind continued to assault the panes, trees and bushes rustling listlessly. He leaned against the glass to try and get a better view, then craned his neck, scanning the sky for something. Finally, he motioned for Yang to come over. "I need you to check something."
Yang took one look at the door, groaned, and skulked back over. "Fine, but it had better be important!" Her uncle slid aside, and Yang peered out the window. "What am I supposed to be looking for, exactly?"
"Birds. You see any?"
"Hard to tell with the window closed." Yang opened it and cringed as the glass shattered, window swinging wide and smashing against the side of the house. Whatever, not her window. She leaned out and brushed her sweeping hair out of her face. "No, no birds!" she shouted, frowning as she looked from the sky to the fog below.
"No birds," she said again, her hair settling as the wind died down. Even without the gale there was no trace of any birds anywhere.
"Usually, ports are lousy with gulls. And mountains will have hawks and other sorts of birds roosting on 'em." Qrow leaned against the wall and folded his arms, shaking his head. "I didn't notice any while flying down there, either. And come to think of it," he mused, "I've never seen gulls here. Not a single one."
That was odd, although not necessarily a bad thing, right? "It's gotta be the fog," Yang murmured, narrowing her eyes as she stared down at the swirling mists. "But fog's never kept birds away before. Hell, Galloway was lousy with them and that place was covered in the stuff."
"Exactly, which begs the question then…" Qrow stood beside her in the window, leaning out and frowning. "What's in that fog?"
/+/+/+/+/+/
Stone snapped under stone, rocks and rubble littering the alleyway. Weiss wove another rune and the spires crumbled, cleaving a pathway through the barrier. She stepped back and smiled at a still mystified Hannah and Gustav, waving them over.
"Whenever you'd like to take her into custody that would be lovely."
"Uh… Right." Hannah rounded the jagged wall and took a quick look at Melody and saw no weapons, sheathing her own and approaching the woman. "Let's not make things any more difficult than they have to be, yeah? Although I ought to hack an arm off just for the trouble you've caused."
"Me? What have I done?"
"Tried to murder Lady Malachite, for one," Weiss pointed out.
Melody sneered at the response. "Did I? You're not Lady Malachite, and if you are then I'm the archbishop himself."
Of all the absurd things Weiss had ever heard that was up there with the best of them. She shook her head in exasperation, stepping back to let Hannah work on binding Melody's lone free arm to her back with cord. Roman came around as well still disguised as her and wearing a smug smile, doubtless because their plan had worked so flawlessly.
"You know, for a small thing you have a decent chest…"
Weiss left him sprawled out on the alley floor with a throbbing head, her hand aching from the impact. A small price to pay as she pried her rapier from Roman's belt, snatching the enchanted locket off his neck and watching the man regain his true form. Had Neo been in the alley at the moment she'd no doubt object, or maybe she'd support Weiss' smack. Women sticking together and all that wholesome business. She nudged Roman with her foot just to make sure he wasn't dead, received a groan as an answer, and kicked his thigh for good measure.
Once Melody's other arm had been freed and she was summarily disarmed they sat her against the wall, trying to decide where best to go next. To the families, obviously, but the route back up either involved passing through crowds or taking a long trek up the mountainside. Neither were ideal with a prisoner in tow.
Although the method of delivering Melody to the families above might be the least of their concerns. Weiss had confirmed the veracity of the rocks in that they were indeed rocks, caused either by Dust or someone who could manipulate earth magic. That specific didn't matter; the fact an explosion had rocked that specific wall, in this particular alleyway, was what mattered. Coincidence did not begin to describe what had happened. There was no way Melody could have known they would come this way, nor could she have planted Dust and set it off from outside.
Which led them to their other concerns: Melody hadn't worked alone and thus they were missing a culprit.
"Hey…" Roman grimaced as he stood, rubbing his face. Grime came off on his hand and he sputtered, wiping more vigorously. "Why aren't there any people coming to see?" he asked through repeated rubbing.
Weiss had wondered that as well. Tentatively she approached the end of the alleyway and peered out expecting to see a crowd of bodies forming around the mouth. Instead she saw empty roads as far as the eye could see, which given the twisting, cramped nature of the city's streets was not much, admittedly. Liar's Bay may have lacked a former guard but there would still have been someone to keep the peace; pickpocketing was one thing but surely blowing up a building, even partially, warranted response.
Except they received none. Now that Weiss' ears had ceased ringing, she could make out all the noises of the city too, or the lack thereof. No voices, no calls to flee or investigate. Aside from the sound of wind whistling through narrow streets the city had gone completely silent.
"Isn't there another one working with you?" Gustav knelt before the restrained Melody, grasping her chin and twisting her face to meet his.
"Bards? Plenty of us. Try a tavern sometime, we're everywhere."
"Cute." Gustav's hand cracked against the brick wall beside Melody's head and shattered stone. Weiss watched the color drain from Melody's face, although she maintained a small, smug smile. "There's an illusionist, right Hannah? We confirmed that much?"
"We, as in people besides you, confirmed that, yes." Hannah frowned and joined Gustav. "Unless you're an illusionist there's someone else. Want to talk about it?"
"An illusionist?" Melody gasped. "Oh my, I've always loved parlour tricks. I've always wanted to see a performance."
Roman wiped his face on his sleeve, found no grime left, sighed in relief and smiled. "We could just kill her. They don't want her alive, do they?"
"They do."
"Pretty sure they do," Hannah echoed Gustav.
"We're not killing anyone," Weiss reprimanded. "Also, is no one else noticing the distinct lack of a crowd gathering?"
"We noticed, Weiss. People probably ran when the explosion went off. Not much reason to stick around and wait for another." Hannah patted Melody's head then, with surprising strength, grabbed her collar and hauled her to her feet. "Makes the walk back easier, that's all I care about."
Easier, sure, but it didn't make sense. One coincidence was more than enough, but this? Weiss stole another glance out and still couldn't see anyone. Then, someone came around the corner in a brisk run, stumbling and bolting straight towards them. Neo spotted her and changed course immediately, darting right past Weiss and colliding with Roman.
"Oi!" Roman staggered back and blinked, hands clasping Neo's shoulders. "What's the hurry?"
Gustav's sword hissed free from its scabbard and aimed at Neo's back. "Is she the illusionist?"
"Well yes, but actually no," Roman answered unhelpfully, holding one hand up when Gustav growled. "Hey Neo? I love the sound of your voice." His foot was swiftly stomped on and a finger held in his face, the small woman's own twisted in an indignant pout. "Yep, it's Neo…" Roman winced.
"Lovely, grand, fantastic!" Weiss threw her hands up. "Why. Was. She. Running?"
Neo turned and looked ready to explain herself with vague hand gestures when a howl answered for her. Weiss knew the sound anywhere and she felt her jaw drop, mirroring the expressions of everyone else. Melody seemed just as stunned which was promising; Grimm entering the city hadn't been part of the plan.
Unfortunately, that meant none of them were remotely prepared for it. Weiss darted into the street and gawked at the trio of Beowolves barreling down the road, slamming into the sides of homes and raking at each other as they vied for the lead, each keen on being the first to tear into whatever person was unlucky enough to be in their path. As it happened that meant Weiss who had no intentions of letting them do just that.
Rather than let them come close enough to attack she wove twin runes, releasing fireballs that coiled around one another, firing off like a ballista's payload. They struck the left and right Grimm and passed through them, bodies dissipating into smoke before reforming.
"What?!" Weiss wove a rune of lighting and let the bolt dance from her fingertips, arcing to the beasts and burning them away. That's what should have happened; instead they barreled through her assault wholly unphased.
"Weiss, do something!" Roman howled.
"What does it look like I'm doing?!" She fell back as they drew nearer, close enough that she could smell their fetid breath. Even as her heart worked overtime to pump adrenaline through her she kept calm. As calm as one staring down certain bloody death could anyways.
She wove an air rune and waited until they were nearly upon her, building up magic in the mark, then released it in a powerful gale. The wind slapped buildings and threw shutters open, then tore them off, picking up debris and shearing rotted wood off the walls. The Grimm, one of which had begun to leap at her, found itself caught in the maelstrom, followed soon by the two others. With flailing limbs and snarling jaws they tumbled haplessly into the air, flying over the two-story buildings and into the fog. The fog itself parted from the sheer force, pulling back like a curtain.
Genuine sunlight poured through the gap, the honeyed amber glow of a dusk sky, and Weiss enjoyed a breath of fresh air as she gasped desperately for oxygen. Releasing a spell of that magnitude meant pouring most of her magic hastily into a single rune and it left her feeling lightheaded.
Although that paled in comparison to the confusion she now felt.
Where sunlight touched the buildings they seemed to melt away not unlike Grimm themselves, shimmering before slowly burning down. Walls sank to their foundations, windows vanished without a sound, and rooftops crumbled. The sun's rays peeled back the city itself and she could only stare as the already poorly road became even more riddled with holes, twisting, gnarled vines sprouting up buildings and covering the street.
The fog ebbed back and returned to its place, blocking the sunlight from view. Walls reformed soundlessly, the roads, although already decrepit, looked a little less so as foliage receded. The buildings stood as they were but a moment ago. Baffled, Weiss approached one and hesitantly reached out, running her hand against a wall. It felt solid but when she applied pressure the wood distorted, shimmering and allowing her hand to pass clean through.
"What the fuck…?"
Weiss wasn't sure which member of their party said it loudest. Maybe her, perhaps Roman. Not Neo. The others moved into the street to join her and she looked to Hannah for an explanation, considering she was supposed to be the one who knew anything about anything here. The woman could only openly gape as she tested a wall similar to Weiss' and found it gave no resistance.
Sounds returned and it wasn't Grimm this time. From both ends of the street people began to converge, chatting among themselves, minding their own business, or settling down along the street's edges. No one appeared overly concerned to see Weiss and the others and no one acknowledged the alleyway with the very obvious explosion of stone jutting out of it.
Questioning her sanity now Weiss reached out and pushed at a man. Like the wall he appeared physical until she pushed harder and her hand passed through him. Unlike the wall however he stumbled, scowling while batting Weiss' hand away.
"Hands to yourself, bitch!" he snapped, drawing up his ruddy tunic and storming away.
Weiss stared, looking at her hand, then the man, then her hand again. Just to be sure she pushed at her own cheek and felt a small twinge of relief in confirming she did indeed exist. She looked at Hannah who put her hands up quickly.
"I'm real!" the not-barmaid said.
"Real too," Gustav chimed in, smacking his breastplate. He grabbed Melody and pulled her over. "She is too."
Roman was real, Weiss had confirmed that, and Neo barreled into him too. The crowds continued to move around them, giving their small gathering a modest birth as though they needed to. Beside herself, Weiss shook her head slowly and approached Melody. "Explain," she demanded, voice wavering on the edge of hysterics. "Now."
"I… I don't know…" Melody's voice broke and she laughed. "I killed people, didn't I? I'm sure we did. It felt like I did…"
"You murdered Feldgrau, Simmons, Heather," Hannah listed off. "Probably more too, you wench."
"Hannah?" Weiss swallowed nervously. "You've met all of those people, right?"
"Of course!"
"But you've only spoken to them?" Weiss pressed.
"No, I slept with everyone I met," Hannah drawled, rolling her eyes. Realization dawned on her and then she went white as ocean surf. "Wait…"
"Excuse me!" Weiss hurried after a gaudily dressed woman in a garish green gown and rosy red shawl. She turned towards Weiss and scowled. "What's today's date?"
"What?"
"Today's date! What day is it?" Weiss demanded.
"I don't know, Thursday! The year is…" The woman pursed her lips briefly. "787. Now leave me alone!"
Weiss watched the woman storm away and licked her quickly drying lips. The right year, but the wrong day. Only off by one though, assuming she'd been keeping track. Her head swam and she cupped one side of it, giggling nervously.
What was going on? Were these people real? No, people weren't intangible like that. Grimm didn't appear out of thin air or vanish along with it, and buildings didn't fall to ruin and destroy themselves.
Craning her neck, she started up at the swirling mists, watching indecipherable patterns work their way through the cloud coverage. Except they weren't indecipherable. While obscured by the fog itself and constantly changing shape Weiss recognized them after a moment's scrutiny. She never had a reason to stare at the fog so intently before but now it made sense. Except it didn't. Nothing about what they were seeing made sense.
"Hey, Weiss! Wait!" Roman shouted, cursing and jogging after her with Neo.
Gustav and Hannah exchanged looks before grabbing Melody and together dragged the woman along with her.
Weiss continued to run, barreling through people now. Each impact with a body felt real but brief, offering little more resistance than a gentle wind pushing her back. Ignoring the burning in her lungs she made a beeline up the street, up towards where the lifts would be.