Chapter 45

Dine & Dash

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

Flashback

"Scroll Communications / Tv"

Location / Date / Time Change

"My father… the only person on the planet who can turn a hostile takeover into a fluffy PR meeting." Weiss huffed as she stared at the invitation, surrounded by both teams and Oscar. "I don't care what anyone on the news says. He's not interested in talking."

"Maybe it won't be so bad." Ruby suggested. "We do want the General to start opening up and trusting people, right?"

"Yes, but on his terms." Natsu pointed out. "Think of this like walking into a Grimm den with only one round of Dust bullets."

"He's going to be locked in a room at his rivals dinner party." Ryuko added. "Jacques said he's happy to moderate, but all that means is he's going to be controlling the conversation."

"Not hard to imagine how that's going to go." Blake mumbled.

"I still can't believe he won." Weiss commented with a mixture of confusion and dissatisfaction.. "Robyn was supposed to be the 'people's champion', wasn't she? There's just too many coincidences."

"You really think your dad might have something to do with Salem?" Yang asked.

"Wouldn't surprise me." Vergil spoke up. "His business is selling weapons and ammunition. What better way to do that than to ensure a never ending war."

"I think my father would do whatever it takes to win." Weiss replied.

"Then we should do the same." Ruby declared, catching the others off guard. "Weiss, no one knows your dad better than you. And out of everyone here, you're the only one who can snoop around the place without any questions. If Jacques Schnee is up to something, I think we should know what it is."

Weiss hung her head before Ryuko gripped her hand. The two shared a nod before Weiss ironed her resolve.

Night

Schnee Mansion

Three hover limos pulled to the massive house that Weiss once called home. Yang helped Natsu out of the car as the Ace-Ops walked out of theirs. The third opened its door and Ironwood stepped out next to Winter. "Do you think we should smile for the cameras?" He asked.

"Sir, there's not enough money in the world to make me do that." Winter replied before the two walked forward. Weiss walked up and stared at her old home before letting out a sigh.

Ironwood pressed the button and the doorbell rang out in the house. Whitely opened the door and smiled at the massive amount of people in front of him. "Good evening, everyone."

"Where's Klein?" Weiss asked.

Her brother stared at her before he scoffed a bit. "What an interesting way to say 'hello, dear brother. How have you been?' I'm afraid you won't find him here. After he helped you and your little friend hide away, he was let go." His words made Weiss flinch as he turned to the group of people. "General, exactly how large do you think our dining room table is?"

"We both know it's enormous." Ironwood replied. "But most of my guests will be on standby. Unless the Council requests additional eyewitnesses. Until then, I'm sure they'll be happily celebrating your fathers victory."

A smug smile crossed his face as he lead the group in. Piano music filled filled ears as Whitely turned around. "For those of you joining us in the dining hall, please follow me."

Winter, Penny, Clover and James followed the preteen away from the party. "I hate this place." Natsu mumbled as wine was offered to Qrow by a rabbit Faunus.

"I think I'll just stick to patrolling the grounds." The caped huntsman said as he walked away to avoid temptation.

"Took the words right out of my mouth." Marrow mumbled as he followed Qrow.

"Alright, some ground rules." Lady said as she, Lightning and Gray stepped in front of the teens. "No breaking anything, no wandering off, no getting drunk, and be ready in case the general calls you." The trio walked into the party as Natsu looked around.

"Weiss, you do realize that your dad only has Faunus as servants, right?" Natsu asked. "It's… not a good look. And it's making me and Blake really uncomfortable."

"Father has a… unique view of the world." Weiss delicately replied.

"A racist view, you mean." Blake said back.

"I agree." The ex-heiress replied. "And the worst part… I saw nothing wrong with it for years…"

"Okay, changing the subject." Yang said. "How about we do wander off, consider breaking things, and then all that other stuff?"

"I'll be in touch." Weiss said with a point to her ear.

She started to walk up the stairs before Whitely suddenly cut her off. "Sister, I was hoping we could use this time to catch up." He said, reaching her. "I have to know: why did you and Ryuko risk so much to leave Atlas only to come crawling back?"

Off to the side, the others watched in worry as Oscar picked up a piece of food. "This might be bad…" He whispered to Ruby.

Dining Room

"General Ironwood…" Jacques greeted with pride from the end of the massive table. Two more Council members sat at his end as off to the side Robyn stared out a window. Ragyo was seated at the other end, leaving three seats free. "Please, have a seat."

The headmaster nodded to Clover and Winter and the two sat down before James and Penny did the same. "Councilman Slate, Councilwoman Manilla."

"Councilwoman Hill would have had a nice ring to it." Robyn said, turning around and walking to the table. "Though I guess I should be happy I was even invited to this table, being from Mantle and all." She turned to Penny and the robot flinched.

"That vigor of yours is precisely why you're here." Jacques chuckled, making Ironwood glare at him.

"What is she doing here?" The General asked.

"What we're all doing here, James, is addressing the concerns of our kingdom." The newest Councilman declared. "Which means we have much to discuss."

"I assume some of it will be things besides your bank account?" Ragyo asked, speaking up for the first time.

"That depends on whether or not we're safe with her here." Jacques replied, staring at Penny. "I do recall some confusion as to her involvement in that-"

"I tell you the same I tell everyone who asks me." Robyn interrupted. "Her blades were totally clean. She. Didn't. Do. It."

"And the report clearly says that footage was doctored." Ironwood added. "Penny is no threat to anything but Grimm."

"So you claim…" Jacques mumbled, staring at Penny. The door behind him opened and two Faunus servers walked in, each carrying a tray of food. "But for now, let's talk about the things you do control."

Main Hall

"So, is anyone gonna get this kid to leave?" Natsu asked as they watched Whitely continue to hold up Weiss.

"We need to get him away from her." Blake added.

"I might have an idea…" Ryuko mumbled, pressing send on her Scroll. "I gonna to owe a major favor to pay this off. Hope it's worth it."

"Well, Whitely, I'm sure the company is lucky to have you." Weiss said, trying to step by her brother.

"And just where exactly are your going?" Whitely asked, stepping in her way.

"Whitely Schnee." The siblings looked as Satsuki walked over. "I believe we have some business to discuss." Weiss walked past the two, catching a wink from Satsuki. A smile on her face, she walked up the stairs and into the mansion.

Dining Hall

Winter tapped her finger in annoyance as the bureaucrats continued to waste time talking. "The fact of the matter is you've be operating with a fair bit of autonomy over the last few years, James." Slate declared. "What we need now is for you to work WITH us."

"It's obvious that no kingdom intends to declare war on us." Manilla added. "We had no involvement in the incident at Mistral, and we have our proof that drones were hacked at Beacon. At this point, the closure of our borders is only serving to hurt our reputation."

"The rest of the world? How about us?" Robyn asked. "The people here are suffering, and we deserve to know why."

"Quite right, Miss Hill." James turned to Jacques and glared at him. "And I'm afraid it's more than just your choices that costing our citizens. Have your forces found anything behind the mysterious killings of innocents?"

"THAT is an ongoing investigation." Clover spoke up. "The details of which are classified."

"Another thing to the ever growing list of 'classified' information." Jacques added, annoying Winter even more. "I asked our fellow council members about your Amity Colosseum project, and as it turns out, not even Ragyo knows what you're doing out there."

"Wait, no one knows?" Robyn asked.

"The Amity Project will help bring all these issues to light." Ironwood finally got a chance to speak. "But discretion is a top priority of this project."

"Are you saying you don't trust us?" Jacques teased.

Winter finally snapped, slamming her fist onto the table and shaking her plate. "Trust isn't something you can just buy! You have to earn it!"

The mustache hid her fathers smirk, before it became visable to all. "I couldn't agree more. General, the three of us feel that you have spent what little trust you had left in this Council. Ragyo is the only one left who wants to defend you, but we must be honest. The hacker who turned corrupted our drones was never captured, whoever is murdering your critics is still at large. How are we supposed to trust you when you have given us nothing as of late?"

"That is not-"

"Winter." James spoke up, cutting her off. "That is enough."

Penny saw her clenched her fist in anger and look at the table. "Excuse me." She turned and left the hall, passing a servant bringing in a tray of wine.

With Weiss

Weiss walked through her old, cold hallways before finally finding her fathers office. She walked in and locked the door behind her, letting out a sigh. "Hello, darling." An all to familiar voice came from behind her, making her gasp. Weiss slowly turned around and found her mother sitting behind her fathers desk, a bottle of wine in her hand.

"I'm sorry I couldn't come down for the party. I'm afraid I'm not feeling well." She placed the bottle on the desk and walked around, getting closer to her daughter.

"A-actually, it's fine, mom." She mumbled, holding her arm.

"What are… you doing here, in your fathers office?" Willow asked.

"Just looking for something I left." Weiss replied.

"That's right… you left…" Her mother mumbled back. "You left."

"I need to use father's computer." Weiss declared, walking over to the desk and her confused mother. "I think her might have done something bad."

"I thought we all just assumed that at this point." Her mother chuckled, placing her hand on the glass.

"Yes, well, some of us are trying to do something about it." The Huntress said as she crossed her arms.

Her mother picked up the glass and bottle before pouring herself a new round. "He started locking his home computer." Willow declared as she picked up her Scroll. "But he still has blindspots." She opened up her device and showed an angle of them in the room.

Weiss turned and stared into the bug in astonishment. "You put a camera in here?"

"I put them in every room in this house." Willow replied. "For our safety. In case I ever needed-" She took a breath and stared at her daughter in shame. "You've not come back to stay, have you?"

"No." Weiss instantly replied, making her mother smile softly.

Willow wiped something from her eye before she picked up her bottle and glass. "A man came by a few weeks ago." She said, walking away. "I'm afraid your father might be involved in something more dangerous than he realizes." Weiss looked down and found footage ready to play. "No matter what happens, promise me you won't forget about your brother."

"Whitely wants nothing to do with me." The teen said back.

Willow came to a stop and turned around. "Of course he doesn't. You left him alone, with us." Weiss turned and looked up at her father's portrait before hearing the door close. Weiss looked down at the Scroll and hit play, intent on finding out everything.

With Winter

Winter stood in the hall, staring at the floor in anger. "Are you okay?" She looked up and saw Penny leaning out from behind a corner.

The android began walking over as Winter hung her head again. "I'm fine." She declared. "I just let my emotions get the best of me."

"What do you mean?" Penny asked, now within arms reach.

"You wouldn't understand." The specialist replied, turning away..

"Oh, right." Penny mumbled, staring at her hands.

"No, no not like that." Winter realized, pushing against the wall. "This place… it holds a lot of memories for me. I thought I was in control, but… well, you heard me in there. I sounded like a petulant child."

"I thought you sounded fine." Penny replied. "You were just speaking from your heart."

"And that is exactly the problem." Winter replied. "I should have stayed in line."

"I guess you're right, I don't understand." The android said before walking away.

The two returned to the meeting just in time to hear Manilla warn James. "I don't think you've been so ignorant as to not hear the people be skeptical of one man holding two council seats."

"And that is exactly why we have checks and balances to make sure that no one abuses their power." The general replied as Winter and Penny stood at the door.

"Correct, but lately you've been acting with far too much freedom." Slate declared. "You've run rough-shot over those checks, making utterateral decisions without us. Even Ragyo, the one person you trust more than anyone else, has been left in the dark."

"Councilman Slate, I never intended-"

"What people intend and what they do are two completely different things." The elderly man interrupted as a servant entered from behind Jacques and whispered something.

"What? For how long?" He asked, making the servant whisper again. "MY authorization? Check again." The servant quickly left the room and he could feel the eyes on him. "Forgive me. Something… unexpected came up that required my attention. Please, continue Councilman Slate."

"I have nothing else to add." The more experience councilman said.

"Well I do." Robyn spoke up before turning to James. "I think you're afraid of something, general."

"I have good reason to be afraid, Hill." He replied. "I'm trying to keep Atlas from becoming another Beacon, another Haven."

"But you don't trust your own council to help you?" She asked back. "Operating in secret? These are the actions of a man who has something to hide."

"I'm not hiding anything." The General snapped back.

"Then let's put it to the test." Robyn stood up and started walking over to him.

"WAIT!" The door behind Jacques snapped open and Weiss walked into the room. "You have the wrong man on trial! I know who's been framing Ironwood, who rigged the election. And so does my father, don't you?"

She slid her Scroll onto the table and the projection shot up, showing everyone a meeting in her fathers office. "Is that Arthur Watts?" Manilla asked in surprise.

"That's impossible!" Slate shouted as he stood up. "Arthur Watts did in the Paladin Incident years ago!"

Winter actually stepped away from the wall as Ironwood stood up. "Play it." He ordered, glaring at Jacques. Weiss nodded and hit the play button.

"That bastard's costing me more money every day with his damned embargo! I'd lay off every employee in Mantle if I didn't have to pretend to care about them and their vote for the council seat."

"What if I said you could have your cake and eat it too?"

"Just what are you proposing?"

"Ironwood never respected the likes of me or Zeref. Idiots always feared those far smarter than themselves. We gave him everything, and yet he disgraced us. I won't pretend that I'm doing this for Zeref, but I merely wish to return the favor on my behalf."

"Suppose I agree to this deal. What's in it for me?"

"A seat on the council. I need only your login credentials for the Atlas Network. You just need to make Ironwood's life a living hell, and I will make sure you give the voters of Mantle exactly what they deserve. One needs only to give them the right… digital push."

"I knew you were an amazing scientist, Arthur. But I had no idea that you were also such a shred buisnessman."

The recording ended as the entire table turned to the newest councilman. "This is all very well and good, but we also have footage that shows Penny slaughtering people." Jacques pointed out. "And you claim that was doctored. Now you show us a deceased man coming into my office? How can we ever know truth?"

"Then it's a good thing I'm here." Robyn said, walking over to her former opponent. "I'm sure you all know what my Semblance can do. If you have nothing to hide, take my hand and answer my questions." She offered her hand to Jacques, noticing the nervous smile on his face. "Now."

He reached out for the hand and gripped it, making the two glow. "Is that what actually happened?" Sweat started building up as he opened his mouth. Before even a single syllable could come out, the hands turned red and Robyn pulled back. "You son of a bitch!"

Jacques jumped out of his chair and stepped back. "I-I can explain!"

"Jacques Schnee, you're under arrest!" Weiss shouted. Her father sprinted towards the door only for a glyph to bar the door.

Mantle

Watts held out his hand and let the a snowflake fall into his glove. Looking around and seeing the frost expanding on the glass, he smirked and crushed his hand. Glass shattered behind him and he turned to see the people behaving just he wanted to.

"Atlas killed the heat on purpose!"

"They'll do anything to control us!"

The fires raged in the streets as Tyrian dropped down behind him. The two shared a smile before the Faunus' tail dripped cyber venom.

Schnee Mansion

Jacques was surrounded on all sides as the two teams stood off the side. A call came in and Clover walked away to answer it. "I knew you would sink to whatever level to get what you wanted, but this…" Ironwood glared at Jacques with disgust.

"This is all a great leap, even for you James." Jacques replied.

"No, it's remarkably simple." The general said back. "Now that I know Arthur Watts is alive, working with that madman Tyrian Callows, it would be easy for the two to coordinate that attack on that warehouse and frame Penny for it. All while stealing an election."

He stared walking closer to Jacques, making him lean back in his chair in a panic. "And once on the council, your new clearance level granted him access to the backdoor of Atlas' security system. But you never consider that, had you?" He trapped Jacques against the chair and leaned into his face.

"The people who died in that warehouse that night… their blood is on your hands." Robyn declared.

"Jacques Schnee must be tried." Slate declared. "Not just for treason and election fraud, but as an accessory to murder!"

"These are outrageous accusations!" Jacques shouted back. "I only intended to win the election. I knew nothing about any plans for-"

"ONLY!?" Robyn threw a chair against the wall in anger, actually scaring the others in the room.

"…What else can he do with the access Jacques' given him?" Ragyo asked.

"With enough time, whatever he wants." Ironwood confessed.

A buzzing caught everyone's attention as Jacques Scroll vibrated in his pocket. The council members did the same and pulled them out. "I think we just found out what he wanted to do…" Ragyo mumbled in fear. "He's killed the heat in Mantle."

"You have to believe me! I had no idea he was planning this!" Jacques begged, only for Winter to slam her hands on the chairs arms and scare him.

"You are going to shut up, and get the heating grid online again." She ordered.

"I-I can't." He replied in shame. "I've been informed that we can't get into the system. It's-It's been blocked off."

"Without heat down there, the people will die." Slate said as Robyn stared out a window.

Ruby stepped forward and walked over to Ironwood, who kept staring at his Scroll. "How bad is it?"

"He's using Jacques credentials." He replied, pushing buttons on his screen. "We can follow his trail on the network, but if he's found his way into the Amity system…" Robyn heard the mumbling and turned to him. "No, he's still out of that… for now. But once he learns about it…"

"Can't you just block his access?" Aerith asked.

"Too late. He's already starting to lock us out." He replied.

"What about tracing him?" Blake asked. "Can we find out where he's hiding?"

"He'll be mobile." Ironwood reasoned. "The only way to stop him is to get him out in the open."

"Okay, so I guess I'll be the one to ask this." Robyn spoke up, catching everyone's attention. "Yes, I'm still here. How exactly does a disgraced scientist and a disappeared serial killer find each other? Why would they target you? And why are you working so hard to hide Amity from them?"

"How did you-" He started.

"I used to think you were hiding something because you were trying to protect yourself." Robyn interrupted. "But now I can tell there is something much bigger: to protect something else. Us, Atlas, maybe even all of Remnant. And you're afraid of what might happen if you tell the truth."

The two stared at each other before the door burst open, letting Clover and Oscar run in. "General, the Grimm are all over Mantle." The Ace Op reported. "The air fleet and the drones are doing everything they can, but they can't easily target Grimm in the city without risking casualties. They need ground support and they need it now."

"This… this is what I was afraid of." James mumbled.

"We need to start evacuating Mantle now." Robyn suggested. "If it's completely overrun, it's not going to be safe anywhere. Use the fleet to-"

"If I move the fleet, then Atlas is vulnerable!" He shouted back. "I… I tried to keep the Kingdom safe. And now were losing everything."

Oscar and Natsu walked over to the distraught general. "James, earlier you asked for my advice." The farm boy spoke up.

"I wanted Ozpin's advise, not yours."

"And his advise would have been to keep your secret." Natsu said. "But you already know that wasn't the right course. You had a different plan."

"It's time to give up that plan." James replied. "It's all falling apart."

"This is the kind of panic you were worrying about." Oscar pointed out. "The secrets you're trying to hide are about be out on the open anyway. Why not let them out on your terms?"

The general turned to the two, surprised by their words. "Tell the truth. You're not on the island you think you are. We're all in this together."

Ruby walked over and joined the two teens, causing the general to sigh. "You're right. Oscar, it's time you head back to the academy. Councilwoman Camilla, Councilman Slate, Ragyo, there are somethings you need to know about. We need to save Mantle together."

"I'll call for transport." Winter said, walking over.

"What about Watts and Tyrian?" Yang asked.

"Leave them to me." The general replied. "Right now, you're needed down below."

"You hear the man." Natsu said, looking over to the others. "It's time to do our jobs. All of us." Penny raised at the mention and smiled at Ruby before Clover lead them all out of the room.

As the guests fled out the main entrance, Ruby suddenly sprinted over to Oscar. He turned around and both started mumbling, trying to talk over each other. "We should tell Ironwood." Both said at the same time, making them giggle.

"I guess were on the same page then." She chuckled.

"Looks like it." He added. "He's finally chosen the truth over fear. I think we should do the same."

"I'll tell him." Ruby offered. "It was my idea to keep it a secret from him, anyway."

"Ruby! Transport is leaving, we have to go!" Marrow shouted.

"I think you're needed in the city." Oscar chuckled walking back into the building.

"You sure you can do this?" She asked.

"I've got this." He chuckled as the two walked away.

"Good luck in there./Good luck out there."

The two chuckled again before Ruby walked out the door. "Ugh, kids." Marrow mumbled as he rolled his eyes.

Over Mantle

"Look alive, everyone." Clover said, staring out of the front window. "I wanna make this very clear to all of you: priority civilian safety over killing Grimm. Understood?"

"Yessir."

Ryuko gripped Vergil's hand as the screech of a Teryx echoed behind them. "Guys, we have company!" Natsu said over the comms.

The Grimm clasped onto the hull and stared into the ship. Natsu landed in top and started punching the pterosaur in the head as Gray rolled the ship. The beast was knocked off and dug its claws into the metal. "Get rid of it already, will you lizard brain!?"

"Not! That! Simple!" Natsu shouted back. Another Grimm crashed into the wing, causing it to burst into flames and smoke. "Uh, you guys might wanna thing about getting off. Like now."

"You all have your team assignments." Clover said as he marched towards the door. "Let's go, people." He punched the door and the Grimm hissed at him. Natsu kicked the broken wing off the ship and it pushed the Teryx off.

"Try not to stay too long." Lady chuckled at Gray as the others jumped off the ship.

"Thanks for the tip." He replied.

Lady slapped Clovers hand before she jumped out of the ship. Glass shattered as Gray blasted the window apart with his gun. "Think you can keep up?" He asked Ruby.

Ruby chuckled before the two flipped out the front and jumped off. The ship dived at the city as the other door opened. Clover saluted Qrow before he trust fall out of the ship. "Show off." He chuckled before he jumped.

Schnee Mansion

Oscar sat next to Ironwood, who clenched his fist in shock. "She… she can't be stopped." He mumbled in fear. "Jinn told you this?"

"No, she told us that Ozpin can't stop her." Oscar replied. "She showed us what Ozpin was hiding, and we realized that Ozpin isn't one who will stop her."

"Why would he hide this?" James asked. "From us? From the people who trusted him?"

"He was worried you'd lose your best weapon against her: hope." The reincarnation explained. "We had no right to keep it from you, but with Ruby wanted to make sure you had Remnants best interest in hand. And we weren't sure we could trust you. But you have a right to know before you make anymore decisions and sacrifices. So, what will you do now?"

"Focus on the present." He replied. "Save the people of Mantle, that's what's in front of us."

"This is the kind of hope he wanted to inspire." Oscar said with a smile. "The city in the sky should be held to a higher standard."

A beep caught the General's attention and he looked to his Scroll. "Our transports are here. We should move." Oscar stood up and walked away from the table, leaving the General alone. "Oscar… no more surprises. I'm not sure I can take anymore."

"You and me both." The boy chuckled. Oscar walked past Whitely as Jacques was dragged into a security truck. Willow turned to her son only to see him run away.

A single waitress walked out of the mansion before she started skipping, peeling off fake skin over her eye. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a purple eye-patch and slapped it on.

A keypad was punched into and the waitress entered the room. Throwing off her black wig snd letting her long hair fall out, she looked out the window over Atlas. "You're certainly early coming back." The waitress turned to see Zeref and Cinder standing behind her.

"The sign of a good party." Nui chuckled.

"Did you find what we were looking for?" Cinder asked, walkinf forward.

"Did I ever." The blonde chuckled.

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