I was watching a RWBY introduction, what Salem said. Hunters dieing while protecting the lifestyle that they become so accustom to. WTF? I don't remember ever seeing/hearing that until watching EruptionFang's Was There Ever A Choice?
Friday night
The sky was showing the first silvery clouds of sunset as Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang approached there temporary home. The group was happy, tipsy, and somewhat tired from there long day.
"In a way I'm glad this day is ending." Commented Blake. "It was to me a bit of a shock, what The Bane does is somewhat drastic, so it seems."
"Perhaps the need to be different is driving them." Weiss offered. "A new nation not even out of the crib, so to speak, needs an identity. Other then the fact that most here are Hunters. Ummm." Weiss paused in thought. "Like with those arm bands, instead of finger rings."
They all stopped to watch Yang unlock the front door, then they filed in. Past the small entryway one could hear off key singing.
"The bear necessities, the simple bear necessities, forget about your worries and your strife." Sang Isaac.
"Please tell me, that is not a real song?" An exasperated Weiss asked. "The tone alone made me cringe." Isaac was so intent on the papers and folders laid out on the kitchen table that he didn't register the four entering the house from the front door. Until Weiss spoke up he had been completely oblivious to them, even when her group entered the kitchen, Isaac turned, staring at them surprised.
"Well, looks like your having fun, for a bureaucrat." Yang teased cheerfully. Isaac gave a single hi hand wave before turning back to the paperwork he was doing.
"I heard, you saw Harvey performing? He asked in an offhand way before commenting to Weiss with a tilt of his head. Some of us never took voice classes, or performed professionally for the rich and well fed."
"What's that suppose.." "Did we ever!" Ruby all but yelled, interrupting Weiss before she could complete her sentence. Weiss stood one hand on her hip visibly annoyed at Isaac.
Ruby continued not even seeing Weiss giving her a disapproving frown. "I didn't know semblances could do anything close to what we saw." Yang chuckled at Ruby practically jumping in place as she glorified what they saw.
Chuckling rather evilly as Ruby wound down, Isaacs words held a bit of a sting to them. "Your lot are only exposed to combat semblances. That's about eighteen percent of the population. With effective semblances. Well. Those of the population whose auras are unlocked that is. The others? Lot's of then have construction type. Most have the basic pump up your strength, with aura, speed enhancement, protection, that kind of thing. A majority have, well, just weird semblances."
Blake moved around the table heading for the corridor linking the homes. "Your version of a vital festival, is." She hooked a hand on the door, attempting to look neutral. "Different." Opening the door Blake left.
Isaac looked at the rest as she left. "What's she on about?" Then went back to arranging paperwork. He seemed to be focused on three different things, and jotting notes.
With an arching eyebrow at his seemly dismissal of Blake, like he didn't even care for an explanation, and with a mild annoyance in her own voice from before Weiss chimed in. "Oh, if I have to make a list, I would say, an abusive interview, drowning, almost getting eaten by a shark, or milled by an industrial meat grinder, that may have dampened Blakes mood, towards you, and this place, at the very least."
Isaac looked up a bit confused. "Oh, I see, well, you all seemed to want the class. There confusing at first, but at least you didn't get stuck on the ceiling, that happens sometimes."
"If you do?" Asked Yang walking up to the table and picking up a folder. She found it contained a short biography of a faunas named Silver Walk.
"It means something went wrong. Semblances, strong ones, and ones that effect the environment in particular can leave behind a kind of residue that can build up, especially in a small area, and if its concentrated enough, and the amount is powerful it can snap, or release like a lighting strike, kind of like static." Isaac tried to take back the folder but Yang, slightly smiling, took a step away from the table. With a sigh he finished explaining. "Usually it's just the safety's are off, but sometimes it's worse."
Isaac sighed again at Yang, looking down before looking back at her. "Yang, don't, its been a very long day, and I need these in a certain order." Isaac pleaded as he stood, closed the distance, and almost yanked the folder away. "If I can't deliver this right, Khan is not going to give two penny's about those White Fang members who died in that train wreck."
With shocked realization Asked Weiss. "The Sienna Khan? The leader of that Terrible organization? The White Fang?" She stared at him confused before asking a bit unsure. "You are not, rumors aside, working with her? Are you?" Isaac looked at Weiss as if he was studying a particularly ugly bug.
"Grimms Bane kills grim, any who hire us, we work for. Atlas could hire us and we would give the same professionalism." He told her. Before putting the folder back on the table. Then waved a hand over it all. Pointing at the different colored folders. "These are from those White Fang member's in that train debacle you and your history professor got involved with. Took our investigating team, if they are even a team, this long to get most of the needed information."
"The white folder's are locked/no aura, the blue, unlocked but less then two months training. The green are ones with unlocked auras, who have been in the White Fang for more then six months, and the red, more then a year. Neo and Torchwick are not counted." The white pile was the biggest, the red the smallest consisting of just two.
He emphasized his next worlds by stabbing his finger on the table. "These are the faunas your team, and that crack filled professor fought and killed in that train tunnel."
Yang picked up the folder Isaac had taken from her. "There's a lot here." Then opened it.
"Over eighty." Isaac said quietly. "Forty five of them had locked auras. Over seventy percent were in the White Fang less then two weeks."
Ruby walked up placing her hand on top of the white folders, like she needed to touch to believe this was real. "We? We, killed them?" The look she gave Isaac, like she was asking, hopeful this was a misunderstanding. Isaac stopped trying to get back the folder that Yang had retaken and stared at Ruby as if she was dense.
He was, it looked, about to unload on Ruby when Yang interrupted. "What's this? It says DNA identifier?"
Turning to Yang he leaned back on the table folding his arms across his chest. The tone of his voice lacked any feeling. "They were a smear, a meat or blood sample was all any could get to identify them. It was all anyone could find."
That cold voice he used, sometimes Yang felt a chill when he spoke that way, like all the life left him, and only an automaton remained. A part of her was glad he was focused on her, Ruby had an almost shocked blank look on her face.
Yang froze, a lighting strike of a memory hitting her. "That's what he meant." She took in a deep breath settling her emotions. "You wink, and party, like." She couldn't finish, and refocused on what was before her. Retelling a memory. "One White Fang had come up a hatch. I knocked him off his feet, then punched him down, into that same hatch, railcar, whatever. I smiled and winked at him when I did it, I was, enjoying the fight at that point. He went down quick, so I moved on, there, there were just so many, then the mechanized suits came out and the fight got serious."
Isaac nodded finishing up her story. It seemed to Yang with a bit more humanity in his voice. "Meanwhile that railcar disconnected and exploded with him still in it." Then he more demanded then asked. "You didn't even check for aura? Were you that eager for a fight?"
"They had Ruby." Yang whispered surprised at his change in tone, like he was accusing her of murder. "When we rescued sis. The train, it started moving." She looked at Ruby an almost plea in her eyes. "We had to stop it."
"And Killed over eighty people doing it, not bad." Isaac said rudely before sitting back down. "That shows a real conviction, save you didn't stop it, or know that everyone there was a pushover, save for a handful of White Fang, any one of you could have taken all of them. That professor with you was just overkill."
"I don't think so, I ran into one with a chainsaw who took my best and still soundly overpowered me, and, I truly don't see what the problem is." Weiss told them. "So they were untrained. That sill does not change a simple fact. That group was trying to bring grim into the city using a train as a battering ram."
In the quiet Isaac said "Looks like one got away, no chainsaws found." He looked at each before continuing. Ruby had opened the top white folder and Yang now held two, reading all the information they had gathered on that faunas who had been in that group.
"Yep. Your professor would agree with you, after all, in the aftermath, when it was completely over, he didn't even tell you. Did he? That most of there auras were locked? I bet he knew when the fight started, yet still hasn't, nor I think, has any intention of telling any of you." Isaac sadly smiled at Weiss. Who bridled a bit at the blatant forged sympathy of her battle on that train.
Giving a shoulder shrug like he didn't care how she felt Isaac continued. "That's also how the media sees it." He took out a smoke from a half used up pack and lit up. Taking a deep puff before letting it out, a cloud of white directed at the ceiling. "Media covered it pretty well, heroes all." He waved a hand in a half circle at them. Then he became serious. "Save for one fly in the ointment. Grim." He finished. Leaning back his body language changed, like one explaining to a child something beyond them.
"Think about this. Where did they get the idea in the first place? Why were so many White Fang, who distrust humans, working with that Torchwick fellow? For the money? Dust? Don't they work for the Vale White Fang leader? Don't they work for Adam Taurus?"
"If so, ask yourself, why did he approve of this? I mean, this wasn't a small operation, he had to have known, and what did anyone think they were going to get out of this? It was, if anyone looked at it, even sideways, a one way ride. Most of them if not already dead would die when the train hit. Those that lived, like the ones in those mech suits would be surrounded by grim. Grim don't care, they would attack the White Fang as readily as any. So why do an expensive suicide run in the first place? For so little gain?"
Ruby put the folder down walking away from the table, the smoke bothering her. "We stopped them." Ruby told Isaac with sincerity. "Only a few grim got in."
"Think about it this way. That breach the train made into Vale was the goal. Yet. It was a choke point, one small entrance for the grim to go through. You didn't stop the train wreck. That part of their mission was a success. Grim entered the city. That too was a success. I think the mech suits were to rampage a bit, take on any hunters, or police responders, or some other goal. Now. The people of Vale are a bit more nervous, they don't feel safe, add all that military floating around in the sky the robots marching up and down the streets, and people are going to be worried about what else is coming." Isaac pointed out.
He held up a hand to an almost protesting Ruby. "Having huntresses on sight, as it happened, limited to nothing what would have been a small massacre, if I understand it right, big nevermore's were also on sight? They showed up almost as the train wreck happed. But not a lot, Right?"
"Wait." Weiss made a hand motion to shush Ruby, stepping in front of her, then all but demanded from Isaac. "You, your too military minded, are you are implying air support?" Isaac smiled relived that someone got it and nodded. Weiss started talking slower making sure her word were in order. "You, also, said something, yesterday, about a woman, who was controlling the grim?" When Isaac nodded again any could see the connection's Weiss was making.
"This just leveled up." Yang whispered. Remembering how she had been all but tossed to the nevermore's, which implied, she had been targeted, it wasn't just a happenstance. Like that Death Claw someone could tell them what to do. Weiss next words derailed her thoughts.
"Your implying, Torchwick, and Adam Taurus were working together? With who ever this person is?" Isaac again nodded to Weiss before getting up and taking a folder out of a leather shoulder pouch hanging on a chair. Heading towards Weiss with it.
His voice, for a kid was grave as he handed it to Weiss. "This is a photo of her." Weiss took the folder and carefully opened it, then her face contorted with revulsion.
"No, we didn't doctor it, well removing the red tint, but that's how she looks, pasty white skin, red eyes, red veins, and all. Somewhat like a grim, in human form." As Yang went to look Isaac plucked from her the folders she was holding, made sure they were in order, and placed them on the pile. Then closed the one Ruby had been reading. Straighten up the piles anew. Then from under the table pulled up another leather shoulder pack flipped it over, grasping the satchel he started stuffing the folders into it.
As the two pressed around Weiss, Ruby looked up from the photo to Isaac a bit worried. "My uncle, Qrow?" You say, he knows? Um. Knows her name?" The worry in her voice actually got to Isaac, if pausing in what he was doing is getting to someone, looking down he answered regretfully. "Yes. And he won't tell, because, he wasn't given permission. That points to. Well, simply put. He's got a boss. Which implies an organization. As I've read or found nothing about this woman I'm assuming Qrow is involved in a secret."
Isaac pointed to the leather bag he had pulled the photo from. "With what I've arranged in there I think I can persuade Qrows inner circle of friends to tell me some of what's going on."
"Do you intend to have Mr. Taurus own up to his actions as well?" Weiss asked. Isaac waved a hand over the remaining folders. "Just this, I'm sure his justification grievance list is a long one, but with this here I can prove he was sloppy, extremely sloppy. It's like he cobbled this plan together in one meeting. Or." Isaac offered. "He just gave equipment and people to Torchwick and did the equivalent of saying, have fun."
"Adam is many things, sloppy is not one of them, and he does not trust humans." Declared Blake, her voice carrying clear and sharp into the room. Isaac actually acted surprised, if his rigid ears were any indication.
"You're a quiet one." He told Blake as he turned to her. "What made you come back? Your folder says you like privacy after any major stress." Blake after a start of surprise all but snorted in disgust at Isaac.
"So you like to spy, even on us?" Blake demanded.
"The buzz, watchers, and our leaders are a curious bunch, comes with the mindset, so yes. I guess they wanted to know more about my new sisters, and their teammates." He candidly answered. That's why these folders on the White Fang came about. Truthfully no one here gave a shit about that train, at first. Again Blake snorted.
Blake with grace moved forward. Touching the remains of the largest pile. "Dead?" Any in the room could hear pain in her voice. Isaac only wondered about how long she had been standing there. Concerning the dead he lacked any tack for social situations, and he found he was a little annoyed at her.
"Yep, and to add to the fun, Adam or his underlings didn't tell even one family member there child or husband or wife, or brother or sister was gone. He let the police do that." He stood and rather angrily almost stuffed the satchel, his words aimed towards Blake. "When the cops kicked down their doors, searched their homes, arrested members, sometimes whole family's. For interrogation. That's when they found out." He emphasized.
"So, what do you think you can do?" Blake heatedly demanded as she stared back at Isaac, her eyes locking onto his. When it came to the White Fang Blake was touchy and defensive of them.
Isaac half smiled as the last folder found its new home. He went to the sink filling a glass of water talking the whole way. "Me? One person? Not much. But this whole event stinks of the grim. Grimms Bane can and has, for months now, been involved. The Bane has use some of our lawyer's, to make Vale keep to legal protocol, and not let them go all medieval on the ones the cops have arrested, get the ones out who have trumped up charges on them. Did you know Vale has been arresting some on vague charges, its done just so the cops can say there doing something about the White Fang problem to the public."
"We get them freed. Or the ones who are just being detained past operational guidelines and Vale protocols released. The police are trying to force confessions from frighten citizens. Volunteers are carting those who want out of Vale to here. The trouble is they have to support who ever they transfer until there on there feet, no just dumping them off and saying good luck." He took a deep inhale of his tobacco, letting it out as he continued. "Grimms Bane can. And will, come Sunday. Tell the White Fang leader, what happened, and maybe a few months down the road tell the founder too?" He leaned back in the chair and using no words just his body language all but asked. "What are you doing?"
"You look like a kid." Blake retorted her voice steadily darkening, becoming more heated. "Do you –Think- anyone will lend you a sympathetic ear?"
That cracked smile started presenting it's self on Isaac. "If your talking about Khan? Yes. But. Only if the main branch of the White Fang don't know this happened. The White Fang is too off center of the communication towers for direct feed. Some stupid set them up to beam signals, like some kind of microwave, with a spherical range around the city's of just over five hundred miles without a strong receiver and one hundred each side of the beamed signal. There even linked so if one goes down everyone goes dark, but that's a different fuck up for later. So, if you can't tell, I'm betting Miss Khan doesn't have a clue this even happened."
"That is. Impossible." Blake said with conviction.
"Not if Adams profile is right, and he has betrayal for power in his agenda, ascension as a goal if you will. Ya know. The old dream of power." Isaac took a drink and a puff, then started grinding the thing into an ashtray letting the smoke out as he talked. "I bet a years wages, which is in the tens of millions for me, that Adam made sure Miss Khan doesn't have a clue, information presented to her has been altered, or is minor, a nonevent. I don't believe Adam would still be the leading the White Fang in Vale if she knew, sending children out to die. No. Yet. If Khan doesn't know. That in itself shows us a lot of White Fang members are siding with Mr. Taurus. That is more then a concern."
Blake looked like she was about to turn the table over to get at him when Yang jumped in. "Blake, we, we killed over forty people who didn't even have there auras unlocked on that train." That stopped Blake. She seemed to go ridged before stammering. "N, no?" Was all she could get out.
"We most likely killed each one we hit, or tossed off that train." Weiss added still holding the photo. It was like an afterthought before she turned it to Blake. "This is the face of the grimm, she, if Grimms Bane is being truthful, or accurate, controls these creatures, and, I'm sorry Ruby, Yang, but, your uncle Qrow, he seems to know of her, possibly her name. Take it just one more small step and he is, good or bad, involved. Blake need's to know that."
Ruby let out a sad sighing breath. "Ya, I understand." Kicking half heartily at a dust particle as she spoke. Blake was more leaning on the table for support now as her eyes stared at the photo. Her eyes traveled in a circle from picture, to the satchel, then back, as she tried to deal with this. Blakes mind was swilling with memories, fighting the White Fang on that train, pushing hard to get to Torchwick.
She hadn't even checked to see how hard she should hit them, she gave them all her most lethal attack's, to take them down quickly, and move on, to stop that train from reaching Vale. Blake felt sick to her core. She felt defeated on a strange level, because she had killed faunas, and that train still made it, breaching the city. Torchwick being arrested was small compensation for all the lives lost. Now fear of another surprise attack was in the back of most of the peoples minds in Vale, and the grim outside the walls were growing in numbers.
"Anyhow." Isaac cut in, interrupted her thoughts. "Adam I'm betting has some kind of outside support, that group of eighty three White Fang, not including Torchwick and Neo, were completely supplied, uniforms, weapons and those walking tanks, even if Ironwood says they were just prototypes. I asked and no mech units have been stolen. Ironwood is concerned and doing an inventory to check. As someone may have let those units be taken. Still it's a lot less trouble to ship them if the power suits were bought. That's cargo van's full of cash to pay for it all." He walked to Weiss and retrieved the photo closing the folder and putting it back in its satchel before continuing.
"Takes skilled technicians or engineers to bring life into an old neglected train engine. Hel.. Just the cost of processing the stolen dust to condense it? Turn all that dust into a powerful enough blast to blow a hole through thirty feet of solid rock? That's impressive, and one for each train car? It must have taken months. All these events, before and after, it takes more moneys then the White Fang have at this point. All that dust Torchwick stole? Was it all in that train? If so. Someone is, not has been, supplying Adam Taurus with what ever he needs, and it's not Sienna Khan. Now to add to the pot, I heard about that White Fang meeting that Blake and Sun went to, there was gathered what, over three hundred? They need outfitting, training, food, medical, dust, weapons, and equipment. So, want to take a guess who is supplying him?" He looked at Blake like he thought this was funny.
"Your insane to treat this so lightly, were not in school, this isn't one-upmanship, this is not a game." Blake growled out between her teeth. "Lives are on the line. The entire face of the White Fang could change." Blake waved a hand at him while looking at her teammates. "He smiles like this is a funny puzzle, a joke."
"Oh Please." Isaac scoffed. "I know full well the dangers and what may happen, even my death may happen. Worrying about the maybes, and what ifs just gets you tired." Isaac seemed to think for a bit before adding. "I think. No. I believe. Your all acting like kids, because you are. You over worry about the wrong stuff, or have no concern for the events around you, you're still, surprisingly, taking it one day, one problem at a time. And before you ask. No I don't consider going out on the town to look around as planning. You all got lucky someone was with you who knew about that White Fang meeting."
Blake and Sun went, and Torchwick spotted you. Then." Isaac looked down thinking about the events, becoming quietly somber as he talked.
"You tore up the town fighting that thing. Well, running away from that thing. A highway chase even. Cars being scattered all over the place. Now. Did you even hear anything public about that mech you took down? Web sites? News? Your School? It was on a major hwy system after all. Right? All those damaged cars? Any thing about it on the news?"
Rubbing his hair with a sigh Isaac continued in a condescending way. "Sadly your not even trying to stitch the actions together, or is it lack of actions, so, now you're here, after face planting into a trap, and were trying to get you all to wake up before that town swallows you up. Or you'll soon be in so far over your heads you wont know what to do."
"Fine." Bake grated out. She just wanted him to shut up, he talked and talked like this was a more annoying mater then the hundreds, thousands of lives being endangered.
"Hay everyone." Called out a loud voice from the front door belonging to that rainbow haired woman. She came quickly into the kitchen. "Watchers called me, they want to get you four out of this section of the house before you destroy all our good work, so common, everyone, scoot. Not you Isaac."
"Isaac." Whined Ruby. Weiss bumped her, gently pushing Ruby to the door. Blake and Yang had headed for the door almost as soon as the woman's words hit their ears. Simply too upset by Isaacs berating to even want to stay.
"Forget your Buspirone?" Asked Rainbow. "Two doses, missed?" Isaac laid a hand to his face leaning into it and moaned.
"I got deep into laying this out." His hand swept the now almost empty table. "This has to be done, right, and by Sunday, while Adam is with Sienna. Then Qrow with Ozpin right after taking the girls back to Beacon."
"Yes, I know, I gave you that information, and assignment, remember? Isaac you've got to understand, you're too young and too strong, you could have crushed someone in a child's fit, take your meds, so, if for no other reason, we will be safe, from you." She earnestly encouraged him.
"Ya, ya, I'm on it." Isaac tiredly agreed and stood with water glass sloshing in hand, heading for a cabinet. While Weiss pushed Ruby completely out the door closing it behind her.
"Sorry about that." Said a male voice from the couch. As Yang and Blake entered the add on houses main room. "We started coming over when Isaac was startled by your arrival. Isaac never acts surprised, so a little digging found he's off his meds."
Standing to the side of Yang, Blake all but demanded to know. "You keep an eye on him? Us?"
When he stood slowly turning and the two could see it was that male rainbow haired man they met earlier. "Yes. Isaac is the founder of Grims Bane. The protagonist of all of this if you will. The figurehead we all rally behind. A. If a child can do this so can we concept. One of the reasons he was put on the back burner is he needs time to recover from what ever happened to him. Medically, right now with him behind on his meds, his parasympathetic nervous system and sympathetic systems are out of whack, completely gaga."
"Yet, we get the tools from him to help us destroy the grim, not push them back, destroy them." He turned fully facing the two as Weiss and Ruby entered.
The two stopped starring at him somewhat disturbed. "Do you have a good reason? For being in this building?" Weiss asked.
"Yang didn't hesitate to give her view. "Yep, he's one if these buzz people. News flash, our rooms are bugged, guess there's even cameras in here."
"No, not in here." He pointed to the main house as if saying there. "Isaac insisted." The rainbow haired man explained. "Bluntly put. We don't care about you, Isaac does, so we also care, somewhat, for now." He explained. "We learn some interesting things watching him that make us ask. What is a doppelganger? Why does this word keep Isaac awake after a nightmare?"
"Spying?" Blake asked, she was so angry she didn't care about the other noise to the point she almost spat out the word. She was mad at Isaac, with his light hearted view on so many dieing, grandiose explanations, and Grimms Bane using the White Fang for what amounted to political maneuvering, his talking and talking, he just wouldn't shut up, it's like he felt he needed to beat the nail to the other side of the board.
"Are you twelve?" That man asked mimicking Blakes voice. She looked up shocked. "Yes, we spy." He made a motion to the east. "The White Fang has sent people to spy, we sent spy's to the White Fang." He gestured to the west. "Vale sends spies, Atlas sends spy's." His voice rose as he became more animated and joyful. His arms raised in adulation. "We all partake of the great game of spying on each other, we gather information, of all kinds, looking for that edge, that tiny crack, so we can slip in the thin part of the wedge. Yes, we spy."
Then his demure shifted as if talking to a twelve year old. "Sorry kids this is an adult game, you must be cynical to this degree to join." He made a motion with his arm for someone about seven feet tall. Then with the show over, at least in his head. He shifted back into his normal voice. "Or, just be really good at it." He declared.
"How did this even start?" Yang asked. Ruby jumped over her older sister asking in an almost desperate way. "Is Isaac going to be ok? That other woman, Rainbow? Said Isaac hadn't taken his medicine."
"Yes, he will be, someday, when we saw his reaction, abnormal for him, we did a log scan, he just forgot, sadly. The kid has just too many irons in the fire that we feel only he can do right. Jr., White Fang, Beacon." He made a curt hand jester. "You."
The way he flipped his hand at them was dismissive. "All in a four day weekend. Not giving an excuse, or an apology, this is just the way it is. So. Look. Blake. I know this upsets you, I understand that breaking from the White Fang does not signify hating them, but. If were successful with this presentation. Several things can happen. The White Fang may all but abandon Vale, Miss Khan may give a public apology and declared Mr. Taurus ousted or punished."
He looked out one of the windows sighing before focusing on the four. "If Adam is just punished, that will tell us he has a lot of influence in the White Fang, if Miss Khan does not give a public apology, well, Mr. Taurus just may have killed her for her throne, and the White Fang in Vale will increase in members, with this third parties deep pockets, and using what the police are doing to the faunas as propaganda, Adam will grow, expand, and become quite dangerous." He kind of clapped his hands together looking at them happily. "Any questions?"
"All that?" Asked Blake slightly disbelieving it. "From a list of dead White Fang members?"
"Lives matter sweetie." He winked playfully at her. "Miss. Khan has a history of taking care of her members, hatred for humans aside, she's quite nice to be around in an informal setting. Even building a village, soon to be town, then becoming a city, kind of like were doing, just, hers is for the faunas only club." He seemed puzzled for a bit before asking Blake. "I wonder what she's going to do with those mixed marriages?"
Blake stiffly tightened her folded arms glaring. The rainbow haired man kept changing attitudes or personality's and she couldn't decide if this was all and act or just what he was. He kind of half heartily shrugged. "Wellll, so much for that answer. We get a lot of that here, so, just asking." He finished lightly.
Imagine if you will, a city of the crazy. Yang chuckled.
"One just needs to look out the window. Or into a mirror." The rainbow haired man answered. Then his temperament shifted again. "Seriously thow, you four, if what we've gathered, spied if you want, you all, and by that I include Beacon, Vale, are heading into some pretty nasty stuff, with the grim building up at Vales borders, ready to spill into the city, the restrictions placed for hunting that mob of grim, and from what I'm seeing you're not near ready for any of it. However….." He dug into his pockets. "Don't take this personal. But. Your headmaster seems to be just, sitting, like he's waiting for the other shoe to drop, And. I just may have something here to help you along."
"You are not going to try and stop us?" Weiss asked. The man stopped and comically blinked at her. Drawing out his next words, almost comically.
"Uh, um. No? That would infringe on your freedom to die as you want too." Then he pulled from his pockets and held out small business cards. "Pick one, you may like what you get, or trade them for something you do want."
Ruby in an uncharacteristic manner reached out taking all the cards. Looking them over for a bit. "Classes?" The man nodded. Adding. "Private classes."
"Aura Harding? Aura Movement, Aura Stamina, Aura Recovery?"
These teachers are the best we have, they're taking Isaacs teachings to the next level. If they think you have the sparkle, they teach, if not, then no amount of bothering will change their view. But. Don't let it get you down if you are refused, there's a lot of students here, and you still have your finals in that Mnemonic class."
"I thought it was a Memtic class?" Weiss asked a bit unsure.
"Yes, memtic was the first part, next you will be influenced by an actual enemy, so Mnemonic." He chuckled a bit as the four glanced at each other a bit worried.
At that point Rainbow walked in, gave the room a once over. "I see you've met my maternal twin." The man bowed as if being introduced. "I gave them the cards." She nodded as if that explained it all. Then she walked up to Yang and Ruby.
"I know things didn't go well in there, but I think Isaac wants to apologize to the two of you, just give it a few more minuets for the meds to kick in."
"To them and not to all of us?" Asked Blake.
Rainbow sighed. "Would you even take the I'm sorry to heart? Or do you just want to hear him demean himself?" She shook her head. "No, I'm judging Yang and Ruby have the best chance to get a real apology from him, you two?" She pointed at Blake and Weiss. "Are not family. That's believe it or not a big deal with him, emotions aside." She added as an afterthought.
"On something like this?" Yang started to ask. "He was more then a bit rude." Rainbow shrugged seeming more amused then anything.
"He's lived too long, seen too many die, that will twist anyone seven ways to Sunday." She smiled at their shocked looks, how they averted their eyes. "You all do remember were spies, right?" The twins grinned at each other a knowing grin before Rainbow continued. "We know about that dust accident, and the door he walked through, he arrived by teleport or gated in from somewhere. Didn't he. He's not fauns nor human, but what were sure about is he is one messed up kid."
"What my sis is saying is metrology or the measurements of aging using genetic markers like Methylation gives us a number on the divisions a cell undergoes, Isaacs is way up there around thirty or forty years old. His bisulfites underwent a massive rewrite at the DNA level, his cytosine's to uraciles conversions are twisted to the point where it's made new enzyme's. Telomers found at the end of our chromosomes get shorter as we age, his have a whole new section, grafted on, artificially."
"My bro, the science guy." Rainbow declared with a smirk. "In a nutshell he's older then he looks, and by you fours reactions, you knew."
"Busted." Yang declared. The two twins started snickering then laughing. Yang had to wonder, did these two even care? Was Isaac and her team just tools. With a sigh Yang reflected, and had to admit, everyone was a tool in one way or another. Ozpin interviewing them after that battle at the docks. More for information then anything else. Yet nothing on the mech battle. Then him changing the level of their class assignment. Saying he knew they wanted to go, so he changed it from a 2nd year students only outing to a first year. Did he know this would go over there heads, did he suspect, or care? Were we just a scouting party? Observation? Ozpin sent along Professor Oobleck, who let them do all the fighting save when it became serous. The professor vanished from sight after the train crashed. Why? He could have helped, his abilities were way beyond their own. Yang didn't believe for a moment he had been injured. So, he left, to do what? Yang groaned, her head was starting to hurt. Too many things were starting to make sense and each question filled let in more questions that needed answers. With it all piled up in her mind there was only one thing to do.
"I need sleep." Yang declared. As the room went quiet she gave her version on the day. "Look, I know you both want me and sis to have a sit down and talk heart to heart with phco bro, but. We started our day with the most dangerous class you could imagine, saw how Grimms Bane does the vital festival, which makes me wonder, why is it, that what we do amounts to a promotional commercial for hunters? Saw the best clown act, ever. Then we come home drunk and all but exhausted, and get berated by my youngest brother, then learn he is in deep with spies, taking assignments no less."
"So." Yang took a breath.
"Isaac deflected a criminal organizations contract on my sister, now he's trying to change a terrorist organization. And then if that wasn't enough. Start the week with Isaac interviewing or interrogating what amounts to a secret society that my uncle seems to be a part of." Yang sighed with half a smile. "It's a day, I'm done." With that said, and without so much as a good night Yang headed for her room.
"Good idea." Weiss told them. Making it obvious her disdain for the two.
Blake was shaking her head at it all. Still she needed a question answered. "Just what kind of faunas are you two?" Weiss stopped at her bedroom doorway then stared from Blake to the twins.
The two glanced at each other giving a shrug. "What gave us away?" Asked Rainbow.
With a raised eyebrow Blake shifted wondering if she should tell them, knowing they would compensate for it next time. Still Blake decided to gamble for some information. "Your explanation about Sienna Khan, too knowable. Sienna would never let a human near her like that if she could avoid it. Besides you two seem to have your hands in everything. So?
"Well." Began Rainbow. "We talked to her a bit." Said her brother. "Just to smooth things along." Said Rainbow. "So we let her know." The brother said. "To expect Isaac with some important information come Sunday." Rainbow finished. "To answer you, were peacock faunas." Said the brother.
"I just hate it when twins do that." Complained Weiss. With a short inhaled sigh Weiss was about to voice her opinion. "Nuts to this, I'm completely exhausted. I am not going to continue with any more of this." With out another word she went to her room. Just before closing the door she turned, and looked about the room before asking. "Where is Ruby?" Weiss rolled her eyes making a good guess, and knowing Ruby she was already with her brother. Saying "Good night." Weiss closed the door.
Thanks for reading:.