No update next week due to event and sure to be short upload today also due to it. Can't wait for this crap to be over to be honest. It's going to be a rough one too. Attendance is down almost a quarter, which is probably to be expected given we're just out of lockdown, etc, but still. I'm sure the paying sponsors won't be very forgiving for it.

Cover Art: Z-ComiX

Chapter 105

"I've already told you everything there is to know."

"What were Merlot's goals?"

"I've already told you that!"

"Answer the question."

"Merlot wanted to bring about the end of a system he saw as corrupt. To do that he was going to destroy the Collegiums. Everything else, I've already told you."

"What were Merlot's goals?"

Ruby wanted to scream. No. She wanted to take her Wild magic and lash out at the faceless man who kept asking the same questions from beyond a locked door. The room she was in was a generous cell for sure; it had a comfortable bed, a plush single seater by the corner and a bookshelf with six books on it. There was even a chamber pot in the corner, not that she was about to use it with people watching her. At least she thought they were watching her.

"Lady Rose," the voice said again. "Answer the question. What were Merlot's goals?"

"I've already answered them!" Ruby snarled and made her way to the bed, ripped the covers off and laid down with her back facing the locked door. "Come back when you have new questions or when you're letting me out. I don't care which."

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There were screams in the distance.

Ruby could hear them through several walls of wherever she was being kept. Distant cries and the sounds of battle. Of warfare. Among them, bestial roars. The Grimm.

Why were the Grimm attacking? The White had the sceptre and Merlot was dead, executed before her very eyes. There shouldn't be anyone left to order the Grimm to attack the city, and Glynda should have been able to order them to stop if she tried.

"Hey!" Ruby pounded a fist on the door. "Hey, why are the Grimm attacking? It should be over!" No answer. Ruby growled and hit it harder. "Hey! Hey! I know you're out there!"

Silence.

"I-Is anyone out there?"

No one answered and she couldn't make out even the sound of breathing. If the Grimm were attacking then it would make sense if everyone was busy, too busy to guard someone like her. Or maybe it was a test. The door wasn't magical and any Arcanist could blast their way out if they wanted. Do that and incriminate themselves.

Ruby stomped back to the bed and sat with her face buried in her knees.

/-/

A metal bolt was pulled back on the other side of the door. Ruby's head shot up, eyes bloodshot and hair a mess. In the open doorway stood two figures in white robes, neither of which she immediately recognised. A man and a woman. The man spoke.

"Lady Rose, you are requested to meet with Lady Goodwitch immediately."

"She can't meet the High Lady like this," the woman said. "I'll see her bathed and dressed properly. I'm sure Lady Goodwitch will appreciate that."

"I shall inform her of the delay, then."

The man left, and the woman ushered Ruby out and into the waiting hands of several servants. A noble wasn't about to lower herself to wash her – they probably didn't even wash their own children. In a dizzy haze, Ruby was brought to a bronze tub and submerged in warm water. Hands and brushes scrubbed over her body and fingers worked their way through her matted hair, peeling apart knots and rubbing some odd fragrance into her scalp.

It was over all too quickly. Made to stand naked in the water, an elderly woman held open a towel and Ruby hurried into it with a shiver. It was wrapped around her, and several maids rubbed her arms and legs dry, before she was pushed into a white robe and the elderly one ran a comb through her hair, straightened and then braided some of it behind her head. Ruby left the room confused and sporting a short ponytail, pushed back before the man and woman who had collected her.

"Better," the female Arcanist said.

"Where is her Arcanum!?" the man hissed. "To be without it is a breach of the tenets!"

Ruby flinched and her hand shot to her neck. Nothing there. "I-I don't-"

"It was taken from her under the orders of Lady Goodwitch," the woman said. "Don't worry, it was just for testing. An exemption was made, Lord Ricard. The Scriptorium was made aware. They are the ones looking over it."

"Ah. That is well then. Come." The man turned and ushered for her to follow. "Lady Goodwitch awaits."

Rushed through the halls and up the spiral staircase, Ruby was pushed alone into Lady Goodwitch's office. The huge desk had been swept clean of paperwork for once, and upon it lay a small feast. Cooked meat, steamed vegetables, whole loaves of bread and fruit that glistened. Ruby's mouth watered.

Behind all that sat the woman in question, her robes a little smudged and dirty, her eyes tired and framed with dark rings. She had the sceptre in hand – the same one Merlot had used.

"Sit." Glynda said simply. "Eat. I shall talk as you do."

No one had to tell her twice. Ruby fell upon the food like a ravenous animal, tearing and ripping with complete abandon. Glynda pulled a face but didn't stop her, even as Ruby ripped a chunk of beef off the bone with her teeth.

"You were supposed to be fed properly," Glynda murmured. "I will need to have words. I suppose I should start by saying that you are not, nor were you ever, believed to be complicit with Merlot's crimes."

Ruby looked up, gravy and juices running down her chin. "Then why-?"

"Let me speak. Keep eating. If only to spare my sensibilities. You were imprisoned and questioned because we must be seen to be careful. You were found with Lord Merlot, and you were his apprentice before, and if we were to let you go without even going through the steps of an interrogation, people would be angry. They would ask why you were believed so easily, and they would not accept that you proved your service against the Grimm before. Instead, they would suggest you were released because you are of the White Arcana. Because it is one set of rules for us and another for everyone else. We can't have that, so as unfortunate as it may have been, you had to be investigated fully."

Ruby hated the relief she felt. She shouldn't be happy that they'd imprisoned and basically thrown her in isolation just because it turned out they'd trusted her all along. That was worse! It meant they'd put her through all that for nothing. No, not for nothing. To preserve their reputation. They'd locked her away for nothing more than the good branding it gave them.

"How long?" Ruby wheezed.

"Three days."

Only three? It had felt like weeks! Ruby's face must have said it all.

"Time spent in isolation is not pleasant and many report that it feels much, much longer than it is. I can only apologise, but it is for the good of all. Yourself included."

Ruby scowled. "How was it in my good?"

"News has spread of Merlot's involvement despite our best efforts. It's impossible to keep as many people as we brought to the attack silent, and people talk. Your apprenticeship to him was no state secret either. There are many who have lost loved ones to the Grimm and lacking the ability to punish the one responsible for those losses, they may well have sought to place that responsibility on another."

People would blame her. Why? Not because they believed it, but because it was plausible. Because they wanted to strike at someone, and Merlot was dead. Ruby stared down at the meat in her hands, nibbling on it as she wondered just how much of that was true and how much was Glynda trying to make it sound like they'd done her a favour by locking her away.

"Your incarceration and interrogation has been advertised."

"What?"

"We couldn't keep it hidden with how loud people were being. As such, we've made it clear that you have been put through the most stringent interrogation. We have questioned you; we have stripped you of your Arcanum and run tests on it; we have even isolated you from any possible allies. The Collegium knows this, and they will know tomorrow that you have been found innocent. That you were used by Merlot to cover his tracks, but that you were abandoned to die in the Collegium with the rest of us. Hopefully, this will be enough to convince everyone of your innocence."

Hopefully. Ruby was less sure of why the White assumed she was innocent. They'd caught her meeting with him in his tent, literally right next to him, and yet they didn't care to ask why.

Maybe it's as simple as she said. If I really was loyal to Merlot, then I wouldn't have helped them find him. I wouldn't have been left in the Collegium when he started to attack the city either.

"Did the Grimm attack the city?" Ruby asked.

"You heard that, did you? Yes. They did."

"But the sceptre! Merlot is gone and you have it now. Why didn't you use it?"

"Merlot is gone, yes, but the Grimm he had already gathered have not. They've been freed of his control but that doesn't mean they're harmless. Quite the opposite. Luckily, it does mean their numbers are now limited. Once they're done killing themselves on our walls, the problem will at last be dealt with. We're just waiting for the final few to die. As for this…" Glynda brought the black rod up. It was glossy and smooth like a small club. The woman laid it on the table but kept a finger on it at all times. "We've not yet discovered how to properly utilise it, and even yet to decide whether or not we should."

"What!?" Ruby knocked her chair back as she stood. "But it could save lives! You can tell Grimm to go away and not hurt anyone! Why wouldn't you use it!?"

"Because it sets a precedent. Use it once and there is little reason not to use it again, and then again and again. To use it at all we would need to discover how, which would mean that information is passed down." Glynda looked her way sternly. "Would you trust future generations with that power? The power to control the Grimm? What would we do if unscrupulous individuals decided to use that to their own ends? Vale could march to war against the other Kingdoms before an army of monsters."

"It's all about accountability," she went on. "If Ozpin were still alive, I would trust him with it implicitly, but we cannot know who will be Grand Arcanist in the future. Or how the world will change. Also, which Collegium would have the right to such a powerful artifact? The Grimm are a problem for all of us. Should Vale keep it even if Atlas is in need? Will Mistral sit by as Vale and Atlas trade it between them? Something like this could spark all-out war if the various rulers caught wind of it. I dare say the King would love to have it passed down his family as a royal sceptre, and we are but servants of the crown at the end of the day. No. It is better something like this stay locked away, unknown and undiscovered, to be forgotten by history."

Forgotten like so many other things. The very thing Merlot hated most. It made some sense as well, which was what made it so hard. If the choice was between locking it away and the King getting it then Ruby knew which she preferred. The King of Vale wasn't particularly bloodthirsty from what she knew, but then he didn't have an expendable army of monsters either, so that could change. Even if it didn't, who was to say his son or grandson wouldn't think differently? On the other hand, doing nothing was so pointless. There had to be some middle ground. The White could keep it secret and only use it when they had to. Ruby said as much.

"Use it even a little and you will spark curiosity. How long will it take until someone like Merlot starts to prod into how it works? Into how to create another? Topics such as these are forbidden for a reason, Lady Rose."

"Topics from the Mage Wars?"

"Merlot told you of that, did he? Yes. Topics, spells and artifacts from that period. They fill vaults hidden beneath each of the Collegiums, and each is tasked with safekeeping them. Many may seem mundane, but even they have the capacity to cause great upheaval. The Mage Wars were a dark time, despite how poetic Merlot may have made them sound."

Ruby knew she should be quiet, and yet she couldn't help but prod. "He said people were freer back then. Free to research whatever they wanted."

"Freer? Yes, I suppose they were. On its own freedom is such an innocuous word, isn't it? What harm can come of freedom, hm? I'll tell you. Much harm can come of it. Far, far too much. The Mages back then were free to pursue what they wanted, true, and all too often did they pursue it. And what was it they wanted? Power, wealth, followers, slaves and influence. For every Mage who dallied innocently in the mountains, another was destroying all in their path, enthralling young women's minds or extorting people beneath them for profit. We should know. We have many of their special trinkets and scrolls locked away here. And yes," she added darkly, "All of the above."

"Not all of them were bad though…" Ruby said. "Surely."

"Of course not. I'm sure many were as kind as you and I. However, when you have the kind of power we do, it only takes one rotten apple. Look what Merlot achieved as but one man. Menagerie gone; it's people annihilated. Look at what this Salem achieved in her time, a war lasting decades, killing millions and creating Grimm in the first place. All this suffering, all that pain, and why? Because she could. Because there was no one to stop her."

Glynda stood and leaned forward. "Accountability, Lady Rose. That is what we stand for. We hold our kind accountable for their actions; we stand here not only as a means of bringing dangerous people to justice, but as a threat. As intimidation, to convince those who might dream of such cruel things to be too fearful to follow through on them. It doesn't always work. Merlot is one example, Maria another, but for every few that slip through many more are held back."

"Does that make it worth it?"

The question slipped out before Ruby could stop it. It may as well have been treason for the White Arcana. She slapped her hand over her mouth, but Glynda only chuckled.

"Never fear asking a question. It means you want an answer, and if I did not have one for you then that would be my fault. To answer, I believe it is worth it. Most people aren't even aware of what we do. That's no accident. There is ignorance in bliss. You've met several people who are against the Collegium and what they see as its restrictive lifestyle, but let me ask you – how many people have you met who don't even notice?" Glynda smiled. "A hundred? Two hundred? More?"

Almost everyone. Ren, Nora, Pyrrha, Coco, her classmates and almost every other Arcanist living in the Collegium. They were all content to learn their magic, live their lives and focus on what they could do. Coco was so busy trying to develop a spell for the Amber Arcana that she didn't have time to think about being limited to two. Ren had his research; Nora her efforts to win his affection. There were a lot more people she didn't know personally who were just carrying on their normal days.

"The truth is that people like Maria and Merlot are exceptions to the rule," Glynda said. "They are selfish individuals who have allowed themselves to become bored and want more. More magic, more knowledge, more power. Maria Calavera was a fine student of the Emerald Arcana. If she wanted purpose in life, why not go out and heal the ills of the world? Do you think we would have stopped her opening up shop in the poorer parts of the city and healing people there? Of course not. Healing magic encouraged, not forbidden. That she instead chose to dabble in necromancy is because she didn't care for people. To her, all that mattered was gathering more knowledge, more magic, more power."

"I don't… she didn't seem like that…"

"Maybe she isn't any longer." Glynda shrugged. "Time changes people. You can't deny she chose to leave, however. I doubt she will deny it either. The point I'm making is that ninety-nine per cent of Arcanists are content with their lives and this system as Merlot put it. Are we really expected to change all of that, to destroy all the good we have done, just because a loud minority wishes it different? Should we throw away all our protections because the Merlots and the Marias of the world want more power? Power," she spat. "Merlot used the Archives to study almost every Arcana. Maria mastered two and left the Collegium in a puerile rage when Ozpin was chosen over her for Grand Arcanist. Why? Both could bend the laws of nature to their whim. They had power, Lady Rose. The same power you and I have." She leaned forward. "Do you feel the need to threaten the lives of good people everywhere for more?"

Ruby shook her head. "No."

"Good. Neither do I. What is power without purpose? What is healing if you aren't going to heal? What is knowledge if it isn't being put to use? In a world of complete freedom, of no rules, either one of them might have become the next Salem. Maria Calavera might have gathered an army of acolytes to try and raise dead bodies. And what happens when the graveyards run dry? Easy to make more, no? Simply ask the nearest village to sacrifice their elderly or you will kill them. Or maybe you don't even ask at all. Simply destroy their crops with magic without them ever knowing and wait for hunger to claim lives."

"Then, when some brave soul decides to stand up to her – perhaps you in this hypothetical world – the war begins. You know you must defeat her, and Maria will naturally defend herself. You, as a good person, gather allies and seek to withhold yourself from evil, but that becomes harder as Maria destroys entire towns and raises the dead to her cause. Before long, you, too, are dabbling in new and potentially dangerous magic to counter hers. It's for a good cause, you say, so that excuses the means. It would be for one," Glynda said. "If I were there, I'd surely side with you over her. But that doesn't change the fact the devastation caused by such conflict would be terrible."

Like Ozma and Salem, the first instigators of the Mage Wars. Ozma, the creator of Conduits – or Wildmages – and Salem, the creator of the Grimm. Ruby couldn't even blame Ozma what he'd done, but it still took two people to have a war.

"I get it…"

"I know you do. You're an intelligent young woman and you sided with us against your mentor. That is why there was no doubt in my mind when others accused you. While they saw your arrival from Menagerie as suspicious, I saw the work you had done alongside Lord Qrow to fight back the Grimm. I saw your willingness to sacrifice yourself to protect people. You encapsulate all there is about the White Arcana, which is why I believe you may one day take my position."

Ugh. No way. Ruby smiled politely, but she couldn't think of anything she wanted less. Fortunately, Glynda didn't seem to notice her reluctance. "Thank you. Am I free to go then? I don't need to stay locked up any longer?"

"You are free."

"Good." Ruby let out a long breath. "I bet Weiss has been worried sick."

Something about Glynda's face told Ruby there was a problem. The woman's eyes closed, her mouth opening in a heavy sigh. When the chair behind Ruby was righted by magic and tugged back into her legs, making her fall back into it, she knew it was bad.

"I-Is something wrong with Weiss?" Ruby asked hesitantly. "What happened? She wasn't hurt in the attack, was she?"

"You would not have known, and this is again proof of your innocence." Lady Goodwitch took a deep breath. "Weiss Schnee has fled the Collegium. She has been declared a Rogue Arcanist."

Weiss!?

Ruh-roh. Well, this chapter was about seeing the other side of the coin. We have Merlot's positive view of the Mage Wars, and now the White's view. Both are biased and you're free to decide which side you think is right if any.

Next Chapter: 10th October (Two Weeks)

P a treon . com (slash) Coeur