Here we go

Cover Art: Z-ComiX

Chapter 27

Despite wanting nothing more than to rush out there and make sure Yang was okay, Ruby kept her head down. With a section of the wall destroyed, the city flooded and more Arcanists and Collegium Guard than ever before on the walls, not to mention her wild magic lashing out as it had before, there was too much to risk.

The Collegium was on lockdown. Arcanists were being checked on every gate. The destroyed part of the wall was manned by at least fifty guards. There was a perimeter around it where Initiates were shooed off if they came even within a hundred metres of it. Even catching a look at what was outside was almost impossible. Try, and the Guards were on you in an instant and pushing you back. It was like they didn't want anyone to see the world outside.

That didn't stop the rumours flying, however. Lessons were cancelled but the common rooms of the dorms were packed full of people, all chattering loudly.

"I heard the Noble District is ankle deep in water. The families are fuming. Carpets ruined. Walls soaked through. Heads are going to roll for this, believe me."

"-loads of damage. I saw the Arcanists outside helping repair."

"Surprised they didn't have us do it. What's the risk in letting us out for an hour or two to help?"

"You want to do basic labour?"

"No, but it seems like the kind of thing they'd have us do."

"Guards are already on it."

"The Newbloods?"

"Yes. Them and the official guard."

Ruby sat with Weiss in a corner, the two of them having claimed a quiet spot to themselves where they could listen in. Weiss had some guy on her left, but he wasn't paying attention to them; the room was just too cramped. As always, Ruby chose a corner where she only had to worry about one flank being open and that was covered by Weiss.

Guards and Arcanists helping to repair the district, huh? Never happened in the slums. The guards wouldn't even come down until the water had fully drained, leaving the area lawless. Ankle deep water, too. That was nothing. It got that bad within an hour in the slums, and soon rose to building height. The river is supposed to flood. The only reason it never did like this before is because the Collegium made sure it spared the richer districts.

She didn't feel bad about what happened. Not at all.

What she did feel bad about was Jaune. Jaune and the loss of control, since she hadn't meant to use her magic. It just happened. Burst out when she was angry. That was the very definition of wild magic according to Cinder, but she'd thought she had control over it.

"I hope Jaune's okay…"

"I'm sure he's fine." Weiss said. Ruby jumped, not having realised she'd spoken out loud. "Leaping in front of a raging river like that was certainly something. For Malneux no less."

"Should have let him be knocked around," Ruby mumbled.

"He could have drowned."

If Martyn drowned in a river, he needed to learn how to swim. Sure, the currents were powerful and all that, but the thing was flooding so he'd have been tossed out within a few seconds. Even if he hadn't, wasn't it justice after what he said? He wished the death of people in the slums to flooding, so seeing him go the same way…

Ruby shuddered. Such thoughts were cold, even for her. Yang wouldn't want her to wish that fate on anyone. Not when they saw it happen so often.

"How are the other districts?"

"I've no idea," Weiss said. "It's hard enough to get news for what we have, but everyone here only cares about their homes. I imagine the Merchant's and the Royal Districts are fine. The Royal is further up, and the Merchant's will just drain off into the lower. It all will eventually."

Someone clapped from the entrance to the room. The noise began to diminish, but not fast enough for the person responsible, who slammed a hand down on a wooden table and yelled out, "Quiet! Oi. Quiet down."

Warden Coco waited impatiently for everyone to stop. Warden Yatsuhashi stood beside her, his robes wet from the rain and floodwater that also coated the Collegium. Not deep – not even an inch deep – but enough that every step splashed, and water seeped through your shoes. Neither of them looked best pleased.

"Listen up, Initiates. As of today, all lessons are cancelled. We expect it to take a week, but if that changes, you'll be notified. You are restricted from approaching the wall until it is rebuilt. This is for your own protection due to construction equipment and masonry that will soon be brought in. The Guards will stop you if you approach, and they've been given permission to subdue if necessary. Again, it's for your own protection."

Ruby could feel Cinder's doubt, even all the way from the Sanctum.

"The school building will be open to you. Food, library and classrooms are free to use as you wish – within reason. You're also free to practice in your spare time. If you want dry ground, the south-east wall is the best place. You're also free to attend and visit the Arcana. However," she stressed, "The White Arcana has closed its doors and asked any aspiring Initiates to wait until the week is over to visit. Probably more floodwater."

"Can we send letters to our families?" someone asked.

"Sure. Visit the Scriptorium or if you know a guard who is free to come and go, ask them to deliver it."

"What about the river? We've got two in the Collegium now."

"Ahah. Yeah." Coco laughed. "Sorry but I don't know. I'm a Warden, not an Arcanist. They'll probably wait for the weather to calm down before making a decision, be that to fill it back up or divert it. I'd assume the Black Arcana will decide once they take a look at it, but that won't be right now. I'd stay away if I were you. Get swept into it and toward the wall and while the Guards will fish you out, they won't be best pleased about it. Until then." She clapped her hands. "Do as you like. Just be careful you don't get sick with all the water around."

/-/

It was a novel experience to see the floods from a higher district. Yang woke up in a soft bed in a warm room with Blake on a cot beside her. They dined on fine food, quail's eggs and delicacies that made her face pucker up. Their host's, gracious or not, talked over their heads and to someone who didn't exist. Blake weaved her magic continuously but warned they'd have to vacate the house for the day. She couldn't keep it up for too long at a time.

The Merchant's District was, for lack of a better term, in shock. It had flooded. For the first time in Vale's history, it wasn't just the slums that suffered – and suddenly, no one knew how to handle that.

"It's not even knee deep," Yang groused, sloshing through the water and shaking her head at those who looked to be lost in absolute despair. "Pathetic. They'd not last a week below."

"I take it this has never happened before," Blake said. The Arcanist had her hood up, which didn't look out of place given the rain. It let them both walk freely without being challenged, especially since Yang now had a richer, satin-grey hood from their generous hosts.

"Not like this. The water doesn't normally reach up to the height of the walls. If it's this deep here, it must be even worse in the slums. Fucking hell. This year has been nothing but trouble. First Ruby, now this?"

"The two might not be unconnected."

Yang shot her… she wasn't sure what to call her. Friend sounded too far, but they'd been through shit together and Blake looked after her while she was hurt. Companion? Yeah, that sounded like a good word.

"Bit of a leap to blame all this on Ruby…"

"She's a Wildmage."

No one was close enough to hear and the rain was loud. Yang still hissed and looked around just to be sure. "Yeah, well. You don't even seem to know what that means, so I'm not taking it for granted."

"A Wildmage must be powerful," she reasoned. "Otherwise, why would the Collegiums hunt them?"

"I'm not assuming anything."

Blake shook her head. "Stubborn."

"No. I'm a realist. I need proof before I'm going to accept shit." And even if she had it, she wouldn't blame Ruby for this.

They trekked on, splashing past people racing at warehouses to save stock and move it to higher shelves. The District was all a bustle, with merchants focusing on reducing the damage and protecting their assets. Typical. Skirting around the empty market plaza, Yang's feet unerringly took her toward the wall itself. Blake didn't try to stop her.

The Slums was still. Stagnant.

The water had stopped expanding and rising and now looked as peaceful as a lake, the tall spires and upper floors of certain buildings reaching above. It might have been tranquil to anyone not used to living down there. It had to be at least fifty feet deep. Reaching up to and pooling over the walls separating the two districts.

At the edge of that, a wooden platform had been built up raised above, offering a sheltered and dry – relatively, anyway – place for those rescued to huddle. A thin linen cover had been erected for them and a good hundred people lay and sat beneath it, staying close to one another for warmth. Some of the few charitable merchants had provided supplies, which were stacked in crates nearby, while a few more healthy survivors cooked them over a fire they'd managed to get going under an awning.

Most of the merchants hurrying to save stock nearby ignored them, but Yang caught the arm of a boy no older than twelve, who had reared back to throw a rock. Yanking him back, she sent the brat splashing down into the cold water.

"Oi!" he yelled. "What giv- blrrbl!" He thrashed wildly as Yang held a foot on his chest to pin him under.

"Yang," Blake warned.

"Relax." Yang let him go after no more than two seconds, allowing the boy to scramble up spitting water with a hateful expression. He still had the rock in hand and hurled it at her. It struck her palm and held, caught.

The boy looked terrified at the thought of it being returned.

"Scram, kid."

He fled. Scoffing, she tossed the rock into the water nearby and waved her hand in the air to work off the smarting feel of catching it in the first place.

"Charming children," Blake remarked.

"No one hates as much as a kid does. Cruel little fuckers."

"Is that why you wanted to give him a taste of what it feels like?"

"Sure." Yang grinned. "Let's go with that. I was totally trying to teach him a lesson and not just enjoying it myself." She watched the Arcanist roll her eyes. "What does it matter? He's obviously not with the ones who help us out so he's fair game."

"Hmm." Blake pushed her legs through the water to take her to the wall. It wasn't like a battlement of castle wall but a balcony. It relied on height alone to keep the Dredgers out, and that was enough when the water wasn't so high. Standing with her hands on the stone balustrade, she looked out over the lake that was the Lower District. "It's been swallowed whole. This is horrible."

"It's not usually this bad. Two lots of water coming at once did this. Normally, the water has more time to drain away in the mountains before it comes crashing down. Underwater caves or some shit. I don't know." Yang took her place beside Blake, leaning down to rest her elbows on the stone. "There'll be people caught out by this. Those who stayed in homes that have always before been above the water level."

Blake swore quietly. "Tragic."

"Nah." Yang was aware of the whipcrack of Blake's head. "Tragedy is when something unexpected happens. When it's bad but there wasn't shit you could have done about it. This is tradition. If people wanted to avoid this, they'd let us all stay in camps in the Upper District. Plenty of room there. They didn't, and this happens. Ain't nothing tragic about this as far as they're concerned."

"I suppose you're right. I can't believe the Collegium does nothing."

"Should they?"

"Yes!"

Huh. That was a bit of a surprise. "I take it Menagerie never had floods."

"Not at all, and while it's true we had a similar system to this, there were no tiered levels. Poorer parts of the city of course, but that's normal. We had tropical storms sometimes and those might damage buildings. When that happened, the Collegium always offered to help."

"Even for the slums?"

"We didn't have slums, but even for the poorest areas, yes. Fa – The Grand Arcanist once told me it was important to show people that we're human, just like them. That we suffer just as they do, despite our powers, and that we stand beside them when they need aid."

Sounded like a nice deal. Yang sighed and looked back over the slums. Maybe it was the way Vale was built on a river winding down a mountain that made it. The tiered construction was necessary because of the ground. That might have come first, then people decided the higher ground was more desirable and the divide built from that. At the end of the day, Vale's location made it both easy to defend and self-sustaining. The floods fed the farms which fed not only the city but exported across Remnant to feed many other towns and villages.

Menagerie sounded nice. Before it got destroyed, that was.

Yang's thoughts were cut off by a startled sob from Blake. Looking over, she followed the Arcanist's line of sight in time to see a small body float by face down. Yang sighed. "It happens."

"W-We can fish them out!"

It was pointless but she didn't argue, knowing Blake wouldn't be able to handle it otherwise. While Blake looked for something to use, Yang planted a foot on the railing and dove over. Everyone in the slums was a strong swimmer as a matter of course. Grabbing the back of the person's clothing, she knew they were dead from the lack of heat alone, but still kicked back to bring them to the edge. Blake was there, hands ready to haul them over.

The pale and slightly blue face of a boy not ten years old stared emptily back at them.

Yang laid a hand on Blake's shoulder. "Nothing either of us could have done."

"How many?"

"In total? No way to know until the water recedes. It's usually close to a thousand. A couple hundred over…"

"A thousand?" Blake whirled on her. It wasn't only rainwater that ran down her face. "How can you be so blasé about this? A thousand people. Dead. Drowned."

"How? Because I've seen it every year of my life since I was born. Because I've lived it." Looking back at her home, Yang sighed. "Because it's fucking amazing what you can get used to if it happens often enough. We gather the bodies once the water goes down. There's a big pyre."

"You don't even bury them?"

"Where would we? Farmland is valuable; we're not. Besides, we can't let disease spread. Main thing to do now is focus on the living." Pushing off from the balustrade, she left the body behind, staring up at the rain.

"What can we do?"

Now you want to help? Before, it was all about just us getting out and you having your mission. Yang didn't put words to the thoughts, knowing full well what changed. The floods had just been a concept to Blake. A nebulous idea attached to a word people were throwing around. Seeing how calm they were and mistaking that for evidence of what it'd be like, she'd made assumptions.

"We don't need to go fishing since the water is high enough for people to swim out." No need to explain what that meant anymore. Fishing for survivors. "Best we can do is gather food – and that's gonna cost money. How versatile is your magic?"

"Not at all. It's entirely designed for tricking people. That said, I think our hosts might be willing to make a generous contribution to help protect the people here."

"Heh. Good of 'em. Is it safe for you? To use magic with the Arcanists here and all…"

"It wouldn't be normally, but they're all busy further up the city. I can keep it hidden." She looked back to the huddled figures struggling for warmth and food on the raised platforms. It was charity enough that some of the merchants made that and provided for them, but it was still a far cry from perfection. They were left out in the elements while large warehouses were saved for the protection of trade goods.

Blake probably couldn't understand that, and Yang supposed it spoke well of her. To them, it was just another thing you got used to living on the bottom rung of society.

"You get money and I'll show you how best we can use it to help," she offered.

"Yes." Blake sighed. "Yes, I think that's for the best."

/-/

Ruby cautiously made her way into the Azure Archives, waiting to be challenged or asked what she was doing. With everyone having time off and the dorms full of gossip, sneaking away to visit Jaune had been the first idea. Sadly, he was off helping outside the walls, being a guard and thus able to leave as he wished. With the only other option being a study session with Weiss in the school library, she'd made her excuses and left.

Weiss didn't seem too upset. If anything, she acted like she was waiting for something bad to happen and was relieved for a chance to be left on her own.

Less so on her end. Being alone had her shoulders tense and she kept waiting for someone to realise she was the one to cause the river to bend. It was the Collegium. Someone had to have sensed the magic. Arcanists may have had to concentrate while it was instinctive to her, but it was unrealistic to expect no one to have.

Would they be able to narrow it down to her, though? Hard to say. There'd been a lot of people out there and most of them had been shouting or spitting into the river. Who could say it wasn't Malneux in a silly effort to make the water stronger? So strong it burst its banks and broke the wall? Well, everyone. The typical Arcanist couldn't do something like that.

Now is the worst time to go see Cinder. I bet they're questioning anyone who goes near.

The Azure Archives looked like it might be the quietest place to hide. Ruby poked her head in and saw a familiar figure by the fire, reading a book. "Ren!"

The older boy looked over. "Oh. Hello Ruby." He remembered her. Sliding over, she took the comfortable seat next to his. The Archives were dry and warm; a welcome change from outside. "What brings you to the Archives?"

"Lessons are cancelled and there's nothing to do. Is it okay if I stay here a bit?"

"I doubt anyone will have a problem. It's not a security risk if that's what you're thinking. You won't be able to read any of the books we have without being a full member, and any research chambers will be sealed. I'm just having a rest myself."

"Busy day?"

"I owed a favour to a friend and had to help them with some research. It involved standing still holding something with all my muscles tensed for about an hour. Not quite a fun experience." He smiled lazily. "On the other hand, I hear I missed quite the commotion outside."

"That's one way to put it. I'm surprised the Archives isn't flooded."

"The Arcana buildings predate the flood defences."

Ruby blinked. "Huh?"

"The defences that keep the river from flooding," he explained. "Those were made by the Black Arcana, and naturally there was not always a Black Arcana…" He trailed off, waiting for her to fill the rest in.

"Oh. The Collegium used to flood."

"Yes. Long before we were alive of course, but the Collegium was built first and the Arcana buildings sprung up later. Therefore, it stands to reason the Collegium was used to flooding. As such, the buildings built here are raised up on stone foundations. That is why you always have to climb several steps to get into a building."

She'd assumed that was just to make it look prettier but now that she thought about it, the water only reached about halfway up the steps. And he was right. The buildings must have come before the Black Arcana, who then found a way to stop the river in the Collegium flooding. It made sense all the buildings were constructed with that in mind. I guess it's a good thing the books don't get wet.

"Do you mind if I ask a question?"

Ren looked over his book. "By all means."

"Have you heard anything about what happened?"

"With the wall and the river? No. Well, apart from knowing what happened, but I'm sure you've seen that yourself. The Azure are mostly too focused on their own things to care. I did hear that the White are up in arms, however."

"In arms!?"

"Sorry. A saying. Angry. Upset."

"Oh, right." For a second she'd really believed they might be arming themselves for battle. It sounded like something they'd do. Does that mean they know it was a Wildmage? There'd be no reason for them to get involved otherwise. "Has anything like this happened before?"

"Not that I know of."

Damn. She'd been hoping to get an idea what they did in the past so she could plan now. If they found her, she was going to have to run, Blake's objectives be damned. All she'd come for was to learn how to use her power and she knew a little of that now. Enough to get by. Surges and all. Speaking of surges, she felt calmer now than she had for the last day or two.

Casting that spell hadn't been a surge. It had been intentional, even if she hadn't quite meant for it to be that big. Even so, just the act of getting all that energy out had settled her nerves. She felt now just like she did after burning it all out in the slums. Relaxed. Tranquil. Satisfied.

Is this why they hunt us down? It might make sense but by hunting us, they're going to make us retaliate. Wouldn't it be safer for everyone if they just let us live alone and gave us some place to burn our surges off in?

Thoughts for another day. Bringing her feet up onto the chair, Ruby snuggled into the cushions and closed her eyes in the warm glow of the fire.

Ren turned a page, spared a glance to the sleeping girl and chuckled.

/-/

Ruby hadn't confronted her.

Weiss had no idea what to make of it. Was she sparing her? Was it unimportant? Angrily, she ran a hand over her face, unsure if she wanted her friend to ask or not. What answers would she have? Would Ruby even look at her the same way?

The library provided scant comfort, particularly when some other initiates came with similar thoughts, saw her and made a point of choosing another table. Weiss packed up her books and made her way outside, drawing her hood up. The water was slowly starting to seep into the grass, turning it into a soft and wet marshy texture. Each footstep made bubbles rise and the ground squelch loudly. The broken wall lay before her, the ornate structures of the noble district beyond it.

Father must be furious. I hope Winter and Whitley are doing well.

Coming away from the wall were a collection of Newbloods and Guards. Weiss spied Sun among them, his tail giving him away even with his hood up. That would make the one beside him Jaune. Maybe bringing news he was okay would be a good way to break the issue with Ruby. Nodding, she moved forward, calling out for them.

"Hey!" Sun said, winking back. "Looking beautiful as ever, Weiss."

"I look a mess."

"As I said, beautiful."

"Hmph. Try your flirtations elsewhere. I was hoping to speak with Arc in private."

"Ouch. I'm hurt." Sun didn't look it. "And jealous." Again, he didn't look it. More amused. "Ruby might be upset if you're stepping in on her man, though…"

"It's precisely for her sake I want to speak with him."

"Ahhh. Checking up on him for her. Hah." Sun slapped Jaune's shoulder. "Makes sense. I'll go light the fire in our bunk. Don't know about you, but I want somewhere to dry my feet after slogging through water all day."

Jaune looked haggard and smiled. "That sounds good, Sun. Thank you."

The faunus left with a farewell for her; one Weiss returned politely enough. Standing out in the rain might have been awkward for the two of them remaining, if not for the fact everyone was already soaked through. Even so, she was painfully aware of the connotations Sun had laid bare.

"If I am being a bother, you can leave. I don't want to keep you if you're wet and tired."

"It's fine." He waved it off. "For all Sun complains, our boots are watertight, and this is nothing new. Honestly, the work is easier than our typical training."

"Easier than all the running?"

"We spent more time dealing with irate nobles than manual labour," he said, looking back. "Maybe the work will pick up once construction material arrives for the wall."

Understandable. There was precious little they could do for already flooded land and if the wall had crumbled, the debris must have been unusable. They were doing their namesake, guarding. Still, it would be improper to keep him long.

"How are you?" she asked. "Ruby was quite worried about you."

Jaune looked confused. "She was? Why?"

"You leapt into the river to save Malneux. You were hit rather hard…"

"Oh." His eyes lit up with understanding, as though he'd just remembered. "Well, that was my body moving before my brain could think better. I suppose that's a sign Lord Winchester's training works. As for me, I'm fit and healthy. Little to worry about."

"I'm glad to hear it."

"What of you?" he asked suddenly. "You look troubled."

Weiss bit her lip and resisted the urge to tell him it was none of his business. "So obvious?"

"For any normal person, no, but you're normally so calm that the difference shows."

A compliment masked within the accusation. Weiss would have snorted if such was allowed. It wasn't, of course, which was why she felt disappointed when it happened. As a noble lady, she had an image to uphold.

"You know of my family, I assume?"

"I know of them," he answered diplomatically.

"Do you know how they became nobles?"

"Through marriage."

"Yes." Weiss sighed. "More specifically, through marriage to a noble family struggling financially. A double blow to their prestige; both to need help from a lowborn and to be wedded to one. I and my siblings are the first true noble children of the Schnee family. We have an image to uphold. A responsibility to house and family."

"Do you think you've faltered in that somehow, Lady Weiss?"

"Please don't call me that." Weiss looked down. "People only say it as a sarcastic reminder of what I am. I'd prefer to just be Weiss, if I may."

"Of course." He bowed his head. "My apologies, Weiss."

He really was formal when Ruby was not around. A true scion of the Arc family, a well-known and well-regarded noble house with roots clearly connected to the royal family. Even when they did not serve as such, members of the Arc family were powerful Arcanists, knights, warriors or generals. Their history was one to be proud of. Ruby really didn't realise just how much an exception he made when speaking to her. Not that Ruby would care either…

"Are you worried about what Ruby would think?" he asked.

"Yes."

"You can't possibly think she would stop being your friend. I won't believe it."

"No. No." She didn't think that would happen. "I'm more… I suppose I'm worried she'll think I misled her. I've always been so critical of her, so quick to tell her off for anything she does that might be improper or impolite. It's hypocritical, isn't it? For me to harp on so much about what it means to be noble when I, myself, am nothing more than a merchant's daughter."

"You are Lady Weiss Schnee, First of the Schnee Family," he said. "Whatever your father may have been matters not to you now."

"Second," she said. "Winter Schnee? My sister?"

Winter was quite famous, as eager to prove her worth as Weiss was and old enough to do so. She was currently serving as a knight in the King's court. A high position to rise and a source of much honour for their parents.

"Oh. Of course." Jaune brought a hand up to his face and pinched his forehead. "Winter Schnee. I… I suppose I must have forgotten about her." He looked troubled. Almost frightened. Was he worried he might have insulted her? "I'm sorry; I meant no ill."

"It's fine. We've all been busy. No offence is taken."

"Yes. Busy." He shook his head. "The point still stands. You're a noble now and it's up to you to decide what that means. I think Ruby has already made her decision, and apparently it's that she cares not a thing for it." He smiled tiredly. "As such, I doubt she will care much for your perceived sleight against her. Talk to her. I have a feeling all will be well."

To hear it said brought comfort. Weiss took a deep breath and smiled. "Thank you. I do have faith in her and I'm sure she won't hate me…"

"But the fear is there, I understand. If nothing else, both Sun and I consider you a friend, Weiss."

"A friend thanks to Ruby."

"Does the method truly matter?"

"No. I suppose it doesn't. I'll be sure to tell Ruby later, and to tell her you're safe and sound. Would you care for us to visit later? Even if I say it, I'm sure she'll want to confirm it with her own eyes. There's precious little for us to do otherwise."

"No." Jaune answered quickly. Sharply. "Not tonight. I… I am not in my right mind. Perhaps my dip in the river has me more scatter-brained than I first thought. I don't really want her to see me like this." He laughed at himself, shrugging his shoulders helplessly. "Give me a day to recuperate and-"

The tolling of a bell deeper in the Collegium interrupted them. It bonged three times.

Jaune's eyes narrowed.

"Is there a problem?" Weiss asked.

"Ah. No. That is a summons bell."

"Summons?"

"For… For the guards." He smiled awkwardly. "A certain sect of them. Forgive me, I believe I'm being called away for the evening. You needn't worry. It's probably just a meeting to discuss how we'll work a rotation out to guard the wall. Or the hole in it."

Reasonable, if a little odd they wouldn't have decided upon that already. Maybe they had. Jaune and Sun were Newbloods, and so likely the last to know. Still, that bell seemed to come from the far edge of the Collegium. I can't think of much down that way other than the Sanctum.

"I really must go." Jaune had already half-turned away, one foot back and ready to run. "I will talk to you tomorrow. Tell Ruby I'm safe and well!"

"Y-Yes." Weiss watched him sprint away. "I… I suppose I shall do that…"

On the issue of "Did Ruby make the floods worse" it should be a hard no. The reason the floods are higher isn't because Ruby broke the river in two to flood the city, but because twice the floodwater came down as a result of the White Arcana's actions in the mountains. If Ruby didn't divert the second wave, it would have swept over and killed many more people while they were catching their breath thinking the worst of it was over.

Next Chapter: 9th February

P a treon . com (slash) Coeur