"PROLOGUE"
Atlas, the most technologically advanced kingdom in Remnant. A kingdom of military advancement, emotional restraint, and harsh practices in the past. The people, with their technology, could deal with harsh conditions thanks to its northern cold. The military doctrine made the people somewhat harsh at times and focus more on practicality rather than art or social culture.
But one company was leading the charge to change that.
Hiden Intelligence had come with a breakthrough not only for Atlas, but also all of Remnant. It began with the robotics which was pioneered in Atlas, but Hiden Intelligence wanted to take it to the next level. What began as an experiment into applying A.I. to the medical field, became applying A.I. to all fields in the form of synthetic bodies.
The synthetic robotic assistant, the HumaGear.
At first, people were unsure that the so-called intelligent machines were all that the robotics company was promising. Once the first HumaGears hit the market, people were shocked to discover the skilled machines were indeed what they were promised to be. Pleasant, easy to instruct, easy to work with, and eager to help aid and defend humanity from everything from common disease to the forces of the Grimm.
HumaGears could be programmed for any kind of field. Doctor-types lined the wards, having quick analytical skills and steady hands to treat medical illnesses. Secretary-types could be the perfect helpers to many businesses and individuals. Musician-types could recreate any kind of music to wonderful accuracy. The possible applications for the HumaGears were infinite as they continued to learn and improve in their programmed fields. Even assisting Huntsmen against the Grimm.
Patch
"Qrow, you know I don't like the idea of leaving the girls alone," Taiyang frowned, looking at his brother-in-law/teammate as they were at the front door of his house.
"Relax, will you?" the shabby dark-haired man known as Qrow waved off his friend's worries. "Listen, we examined these things top to bottom. We even got Ozpin to look into it. This lady is perfect. You can look in at any time on your Scroll and the neighbours will check up every day."
Taiyang frowned and looked to where his two young daughters were giggling and playing with their new babysitter. She was wearing a blue and white dress, making her look more like a maid or nanny. She sported long black hair and she was certainly cute, like a mix of big sister and matron. Her most identifying feature was the mechanical earpieces she wore, marking her as a HumaGear.
Taiyang had been called on a mission, one he couldn't turn down since it was Qrow asking. He couldn't find a babysitter for the time he needed, but Qrow recommended renting a Babysitter-type to watch Ruby and Yang for the time being. Taiyang was reluctant, especially since the girls had lost their mother some time ago and he didn't just want to leave his girls in the care of a machine no matter how well-programmed she was.
So far though, he couldn't deny she seemed to know just exactly how to deal with the two. The HumaGear, named Coral, had been delivered and the girls thought a HumaGear was the neatest thing. She knew how to coddle and coo over shy little Ruby, and even had the energy to keep up with and even catch the energetic Yang. Both took to her like candy, making Taiyang feel a little better but still apprehensive.
"Relax. I personally picked her out. She's got the highest rating among all the Babysitter-models," Qrow reassured Taiyang. "Tell you what, once I've finished my mission, I'll come back first and help pick up the slack."
Taiyang sighed, hating how duty and parenthood made him make decisions like this. "Fine. But no booze around the girls."
"Not like Coral will let me," Qrow rolled his eyes.
"Small children should not be exposed to toxins such as alcohol," Coral spoke up, giving a surprisingly stern look to Qrow's back.
Taiyang chuckled as Qrow slumped, "I think I like her already."
Qrow's breath was short as he dashed through the woods, feeling more nervous and terrified than anything else in his life. How did this happen?! How could it happen?! No, he knew how. Yang was slippery when she wanted to be and as stubborn as a brick wall when it came to her decisions. And of course, she would drag Ruby with her!
Yang had recently discovered she and Ruby had different mothers and after Summer died, Yang wanted to find her. Only a child's reasoning could explain it, but to Yang it all made sense. Coral sent the report that Yang had run off with Ruby while she had set them down for naps and now they were off in the woods somewhere. She was already tracking them, using her systems, but the last image Qrow saw was a Beowolf lunging for the girls before the signal cut out.
"Please, please, don't let this happen again," Qrow silently begged. He never really asked for anything since his semblance tended to give him bad luck in anything he did. But just this once, he prayed dearly for the safety of his little nieces.
Seeing the familiar points of the forest from Coral's last image, Qrow unsheathed his scythe and broke through the brush to the clearing Coral's GPS had revealed. He stopped short, eyes wide at the sight before him.
Ruby and Yang were crying, obviously terrified, but also upset at Coral's condition. The Babysitter-type was in rough shape. Large sparking gashes were torn into her body, sparking from her power source. She was slumped against a tree, clutching both girls protectively. Half of her human face was gone, showing the HumaGear base model underneath. Her eyes were flickering, showing she was about to shut down.
Nearby was the dissolving body of the Beowolf.
"M-Mis-t-ter Q-Q-row," Coral stuttered as she struggled to speak. "I-I-I haaaaaave re-c-c-overed l-l-little Ruby a-a-a-nd Yang. Wo-would you p-please help remoooovvve them from this d-d-d-dangerous p-p-place? I a-a-am currently suffering d-d-d-damages."
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Coral! It's all my fault!" Yang sobbed loudly.
"Don't go away! Don't go away like Mommy!" Ruby hiccuped, burying her face in Coral's dress.
Qrow couldn't help but want to drop to his knees in relief. The only reason why he didn't was because he needed to get his nieces and the amazing babysitter out of the forest before more Grimm came to investigate the noise and sadness.
"Don't worry you two," Qrow sighed as he approached them to help get Coral to her feet. "Let's go home and get Coral patched up." Coral had not been programmed or designed for combat but she managed to hold her own against the Beowolf and even killed it despite the damage it had done to her. She may be a machine, but Qrow was grateful to her.
Taiyang had naturally been furious when he heard what happened and stormed home at the first opportunity. Qrow managed to calm him down before he saw the girls and was surprised to see them both curled up against a repaired Coral as she read them a story, drifting off to sleep.
"She...what?" Taiyang whispered as Coral greeted them before picking up the girls to take them to bed.
"Snapped the damn thing's neck with her bare hands even after it clawed up her insides," Qrow chuckled, finally taking a sip from his whiskey as Coral vanished upstairs. "Saw the recorded footage. Tracked the girls down real quick, killed a Beowolf, and then tried to comfort them since she couldn't walk anymore. Managed to recover her core so she came back the next day. I had to pay a hefty repair fee though."
"But she's a Babysitter-type. They're not made to fight Grimm."
"She's programmed to take care of the girls, Tai. Guess it includes fighting Grimm if they're ever in danger." Qrow shrugged. "Hell of a machine if she can make decisions like that."
"Yeah," Taiyang sighed. "So, how are the girls after all that?"
"Well, pretty upset, thinking they killed their babysitter," Qrow shrugged as they moved to the kitchen. "When she came back good as new, they were stuck to her like glue ever since. She's been calming them down and soothing them like super-nanny. Real heartwarming in a way. She knew just what to say to make them feel better, but make sure they learned their lesson too."
Taiyang snorted with some amusement. He then saw Coral come back downstairs.
"Welcome home, Mr. Xiao-Long," Coral greeted.
"Coral," Taiyang approached her. "Thanks for looking after my girls. You saved their lives."
"Of course I would," Coral smiled. "I would do anything to protect little darlings like them." Taiyang blinked at the oddly emotional answer. Yes, Coral could make all the emotional expressions needed to help kids relax, but aside from a polite smile, he never saw Coral open up like that to him or Qrow before.
It was actually reassuring.
"Well, let your company know I give a five-star review, okay?" Taiyang smiled. "And...next time I'm heading out, I'd like to reserve you for babysitting again."
"Very well. I shall set your requests as a priority," Coral nodded. "And I would love to look after Ruby and Yang again."
Qrow raised an eyebrow. Was Coral already getting attached to Ruby and Yang? Hell of a machine indeed.
Menagerie
Blake Belladonna tip-toed through her house, moving for the front door. She had to be quiet or else she was going to get caught and then she was never going to be able to join up with the White Fang again.
Blake had long admired the White Fang and what they strived to do, bring equality to the faunus of Remnant. Even after the Great War and the faunus earning their rights, humanity still refused to end the discrimination and hate for them, even if it was now mixed with fear now that they lost the war against all faunus. The fear and hate wouldn't end, so the White Fang was established to bridge the gap and try to end the fear and hate for cooperation.
Blake knew the history back and forth since it had been her father Ghira who founded the White Fang. She had been so proud to know her father was leading the charge against those who would discriminate the faunus.
Of course, things began to change when the White Fang felt that despite their demonstrations, no one was willing to change or end the discrimination. Humanity simply refused to admit they were in the wrong and take steps to change. Too many in power feared change and clutched to the image of power and authority they believed they had.
Despite his own charisma, Ghira stepped down from the White Fang and Sienna Kahn took over. Then, the White Fang began to change. Their protests weren't peaceful and anyone that tried to beat them back was in turn beaten down. It even began to work as people began to lean for the White Fang.
But Ghira would frown at the news, saying it was just pushing faunus backwards instead of forwards.
Still, Blake was enchanted by the news of what the White Fang was doing. Finally, real change was being made! A real difference was coming to the world! It inspired Blake so much, that at only 12 years old, she was attempting to strike out and join them and take part to end the discrimination against her people.
All she had to do was slip out and…
"Miss Blake? What are you doing up so late?"
Blake would have cursed if it hadn't been ingrained into her not to for fear of her mother.
Standing at the other end of the entry hall towards the kitchen was a woman who, if anyone looked, could have been mistaken as Blake's older sister. She wore colorful clothing suited for Menagerie's warm weather. She even had black curly hair which fell down her back, yellow eyes, and even cat ears like Blake's own. The only difference was her mechanical earpieces which revealed her nature as a HumaGear.
Noir had been part of Blake's family for years. Ever since a tsunami devastated Kuo Kuana, HumaGears had been added to Menagerie's population. They were all donated by Hiden Intelligence, sent to give relief aid and help rebuild the city. It became quite clear that the CEO had no reservations about associating with faunus like so many others did in Atlas.
Naturally, the people were suspicious, but they couldn't turn down the aid. Still, Hiden Intelligence proved they could keep their word. Their HumaGears, relief workers, and all of the supplies were given free of charge and helped get everyone back on their feet. Kuo Kuana even expanded as several Huntsman-types went into the jungles to cull the Grimm population, giving the people more much needed space to expand.
The HumaGears remained, donated to several families who were impoverished, businesses which needed extra hands, and other people in need. Of course, as the chieftain of Menagerie, Ghira Belladonna received three to serve as staff to his home. He kept only one and donated the others to more needy families.
Blake and her mother Kali enjoyed having Noir around and made her to look like a member of the Belladonna family. For Blake, it was like getting the big sister she wanted, as some children pretended to gain. For Kali, she enjoyed dressing Noir in Menagerie fashions and having someone else in the house who could keep up with all the gossip with a photographic memory.
Sadly, not everyone in Menagerie enjoyed the gifts. Blake had seen several people abuse HumaGears, yelling about humans dumping their trash on them. Others complained the HumaGears were taking job opportunities away from them. It seemed for the extremists, HumaGears quickly became their favored target for abuse since humans rarely set foot in Menagerie.
One more reason why Blake wanted to get more active in the fight to stop discrimination. If humans and faunus could begin cooperating, then the abuse of the HumaGears would stop too.
"I'm leaving, Noir," Blake spoke, turning around. "The White Fang is holding a rally for recruits. I have to be there."
Noir blinked, but then frowned slightly, "Master Ghira has insisted you are not to be allowed to the rallies anymore. He insists it is not safe for you."
"I will be safe! I want to join the cause," Blake insisted. "The White Fang is trying to stop the dscrimination against the faunus. I want to help do that too! We can't do it just by sitting here and protesting and it won't help other HumaGears who are victims to those views when faunus aren't around!"
Noir looked at Blake for a moment, "That is a noble goal, but violence will not end that discrimination. History records time and again show this. It only sparks more conflict."
"But sitting back and taking it helps?" asked Blake. Usually Blake liked having these talks with Noir since she learned so much philosophy and history while she worked for the family. It made her a wonder to talk to about such subjects.
Right now it was annoying Blake since it was keeping her from escaping.
"There are more avenues to deal with such issues than hurting the offending party back," Noir replied. "Working within the system can help. Achieving status in the eyes of many and becoming an example to them. There are other avenues."
"But not out there where humans won't let us even try if they had their way," Blake shook her head. "We have to make a stand! When the humans have to give us a chance, that's when we can do it the peaceful way."
Noir looked to her young mistress and then to the floor. Noir always seemed to have a little more emotion every day and Blake hated making her indecisive since it made her look so uncomfortable. Still, Blake had to make her stand or else she was never going to leave Menagerie.
Noir closed her eyes, the lights on her earpieces blinking as she seemed to think. After a few moments, she opened her eyes again.
"You may leave, Miss Blake, but be warned I will not lie if your parents ask me if I saw you," Noir finally answered.
Blake smiled, stepping forward to give Noir a hug, "Thank you."
"Come home safe and I will consider it thanks enough," Noir answered. "But I will tell your parents you learned my override and ordered me to let you go."
"Fair enough," Blake smiled, small tears in her eyes. Not catching the implications of a HumaGear willing to lie to their owners.
Atlas
Weiss Schnee was feeling bored. It was another gala in a long line of galas which her father insisted she just 'had' to attend. Of course, she had to sing as part of the entertainment portion, no doubt set up by her father to get more attention for the Schnee name. Not that they needed the attention since the company was already garnering so much...although not all of it good if she had to be honest.
Strolling through the partygoers with her drink, looking like she had a purpose by moving so no one would talk to her, she tried not to focus on how annoyed she was at being there when she should have been preparing herself for her upcoming trip to Beacon. Her father had put her through so much fanfare about it already, aside from silently trying to convince her to not attend, it put off all of her travel preparations which she needed to get back on track.
Taking a small snack from one of the servants, one she noted was a HumaGear, Weiss found a nice corner to observe the people. She recognized some of the tycoons and social elite of Atlas. One was General Ironwood, who was one of the few that Weiss had any honest respect for. Most of the others were typical of the scene, trying to cash in on each other's names with false platitudes and backroom dealings.
Weiss would be the first to admit she loved a lot about her social class, but there was a lot that went with it that she really preferred to avoid. Her father, the sycophants, the list went on.
Her eyes trailed to some of the attendees. She could see a pair she knew were a married couple but came with different dates. The woman was with a man who was clearly younger than her in a suit, perfectly handsome, and someone many women would strive to try and seduce.
Her husband was no better, having a svelte bombshell of a woman in a form-fitting dress. She had long blonde hair and blue eyes and of course the figure which would be the envy of everything female around her.
Both sported the earpieces showing they were HumaGears.
Weiss had to mentally scoff at their actions. HumaGears could be amusing, but they were just meant to be assistants, tools, and labor. She didn't hate them as some did, but she didn't consider them people either. They were just machines to Weiss, although she understood a cared for machine performed better so she always made sure to treat the Butler and Maid-types of her house well. Unlike Whitley who liked to kick them around for amusement when no one was looking.
What she couldn't understand was why some people were dragging them around in such flamboyant shows. Bringing HumaGears to an event like this and treating them like dates? Both were fawning over their HumaGears and having said HumaGears fawning over them. It was a fine show as the HumaGears played the part of doting lovers.
Weiss just chalked it up to the desperate wanting attractive partners and the unspoken Courtesan-type industry for HumaGear programmers. She just considered it scandalous in the worst way.
Weiss' eyes continued to look through the guests until she spotted a familiar figure with hair as white as hers. Weiss smiled when she saw the familiar form of her older sister Winter, dressed in her military uniform. Weiss didn't know her sister was attending, although considering her connection to General Ironwood, she shouldn't have been surprised.
Then the crowd moved and Weiss had to struggle not to let her mouth drop open in shock.
Winter was hanging onto the arm of a nice-looking man wearing a tuxedo. Both were talking animatedly with their other guests and each other. Winter was even smiling, holding the man's arm close, almost looking intimate. Many would have seen the sight and considered the man to be a secret beau to the former heiress to the Schnee Dust Company.
But Weiss recognized the earpieces showing he was a HumaGear as well.
Weiss was flustered but kept her reserved for the moment. Steeling herself, she watched her sister separate from her companion before heading to the ladies' room to step out for a moment. Weiss quickly followed, keeping a firm eye on her sister as they passed through the door.
Weiss entered, already finding her sister in front of a mirror, checking her makeup, actual makeup! Winter never wore makeup since she was a military woman to the core!
"Hello, Weiss," Winter greeted her sister while touching up her lipstick. "It's been a while."
"I would say it is nice to see you," Weiss nodded, containing herself. "Until I saw that you brought your toy with you!"
Winter glanced at her little sister, "I bring Aurum with me everywhere."
"But to a big social event like this?" Weiss hissed. "And look at you! You're fawning over it like you're in love! You're wearing makeup! You never wear makeup anywhere and yet you wore it when you came with it!"
"Him," Winter corrected sharply. "Aurum is a 'him', not an 'it'. Please respect that."
"Whatever," Weiss sighed. "Winter, do you know how this makes you look? All those old desperate women bring handsome HumaGears with them everywhere and people gossip all the time about how desperate they are to date a robot!"
Winter capped her lipstick and turned to her sister, "Please, give me some credit. I may love Aurum, but I am not so desperate or out of control of myself to use him in such a way. I do, however, enjoy spending time with him and we are able to talk about everything which I usually do not feel I can talk about with others."
"Like what motor oil brand is best?" Weiss frowned. "I understand he's your favorite belonging, but why on Remnant would you ever consider bringing him to upper society like this and even pretty yourself for him?"
Winter sighed, "Weiss...the reason I bring Aurum with me everywhere is because I feel safe with him."
Weiss blinked, "S-safe? But, Winter, we have all sorts of security with us. Your military training makes you one of the most skilled specialists. Why would you ever need a HumaGear to feel safe?"
"Safe from criminals and those that wish us physical harm," Winter agreed. "But not from people who try to stab us in the back with words, deals, or information."
Weiss' confusion grew, "What?"
"Not here," Winter shook her head. "Please follow me." Winter took Weiss from the restroom and collected Aurum. They moved towards and open garden when Winter smiled at her HumaGear and asked him to keep an eye out for listeners while she had a private conversation with her sister. Aurum nodded with a smile back to Winter and moved to the entryway so the sisters could have a moment.
"Winter, what did you mean?" asked Weiss.
"I don't think I have to tell you that some people can and will try to threaten us with blackmail, secrets, and even try to be friends with us to try and root it out," Winter explained. Weiss nodded, knowing such people existed. "Well, you don't deal with them much since you still live at home, but I am surrounded by them since I no longer have father's 'protection' from such people."
"And Aurum keeps them away?" Weiss asked.
"Aurum...is my confidant, my best friend, my security blanket, and more," Winter replied, smiling fondly in her HumaGear's direction. "I can express my doubts, concerns, and insecurities and he won't judge me. He helps me dispel my doubts, he helps me address those concerns, and reassures me about my insecurities."
Weiss' brow furrowed and in a way she understood that. Having a true confidant was something Weiss really didn't have so she knew the pressures and not being able to open that outlet could be a difficult thing to deal with at times, "And wearing makeup and bringing him as if he is a date to galas?"
"Well, I admit I love him. I fawn over him because he's so close to me and knows me so well," Winter shrugged. "At one point I confessed how I felt so plain after an office party since no one seemed to engage with me. Everyone else seemed to have a better time of it than I did, feeling like I was a cold brick of ice compared to the other women in the room."
"That's not true," Weiss frowned. Winter could be cool, but Weiss knew from experience that she was a kind person. And plain? Hardly! Winter was one of the most beautiful women Weiss knew!
"It's hollow when you tell yourself that," Winter replied. "But Aurum, since we've been together for years, he began identifying all the things which he said made me a wonderful person. He also began compiling little ways he felt, and I mean HE felt, would make me more beautiful." She tapped her lips with a true smile. "This lipstick was the top of the list and he got it for me without even me asking since he saw how interested I was."
"He...felt? He did it on his own?" Weiss blinked, surprised.
"It's why I am so attached to him. My 'Gentleman-type'," Winter explained. "He is, without a doubt, my best friend and closest confidant. He's helped me so much and I can't help but want to have him around me all the time. He's always there when I need him, especially since I'm alone so often."
"I...um...see?" Weiss offered.
Winter chuckled knowingly, "You'll understand when you can find someone you can trust without fear." Collecting herself, Winter and her sister began to walk back to the party, "So, where is father anyway? It is not like him to miss out on socializing."
"He went with Mr. Hiden to discuss another purchase of more HumaGears," Weiss shook her head. "Despite protests from the workers, he is fully intent on automating the mining process with HumaGears."
Winter sighed and shook her head, "Hopefully Mr. Hiden can see the folly in that idea despite the massive purchase."
XXXX
"I'm sorry, Jacque, but I simply can't give you any more HumaGears for your mining operations," Mr. Hiden said to the owner and CEO of the SDC. Both were in a private meeting, as they were trying to discuss a sale of product. Well, one was hoping to buy while the other was reluctant to sell.
"Be reasonable, Kuronosuke," Jacque Schnee urged. "Your HumaGears are ideal workers."
"Because they don't complain about their harsh working conditions," Kuronosuke deadpanned. It was no secret that Jaque's company wasn't the safest to work in at times. HumaGears wouldn't complain, but all the other workers sure did.
"All hearsay," Jacque bristled. Not that Kuronosuke believed him.
"Jacque, the Miner-type HumaGears I sold to you were only meant to ease the burden of your workers. They would handle some of the more dangerous work like opening new tunnels or fortifying unstable areas and then your workers would move in and do their jobs," Kuronosuke said reasonably. "I'm not going to steal the jobs of hardworking men and women by replacing them with my HumaGears just so you can save money."
"Kuronosuke, your don't seem to understand how useful your HumaGears are. They can work tirelessly, do not require breaks, and when they break down I can just have them replaced. In the long run, they bring in profit for my company."
"My HumaGears were designed to support mankind, human and faunus alike," Kuronosuke defended. "And while I can understand their benefit from your perspective, I cannot just have you replace your entire workforce with them."
Kuronosuke then tapped a key on his desk and a monitor opened up, showing what looked like a worker strike, prominently one at one of the SDC plants. "Let me try to put it in a way you can understand. By having your company replacing your workforce with HumaGears, it makes my company look bad for taking away the jobs of hardworking humans and faunus. That in turn affects my company and reputation. That means I start losing business as people try to avoid the scandal and not buy HumaGears or the Kingdoms decide to start restricting their use for a PR act. Is that clear enough?"
"Erm," Jacque bristled again.
"Plus, if you end up replacing your entire workforce, you could risk economically damaging the entire kingdom and beyond," Kuronosuke continued. "Unemployed workers mean no one buys things. People don't buy, shops can't sell. Shops can't sell, they don't buy from suppliers. Suppliers like you and me."
Kuronosuke knew the best way to convince Jacque was to hit it where it hurts, his wallet. The man's main priority was gaining profit to add to his wealth. It's what led him to make so many harsh decisions, but it also made him rather predictable. Nicholas Schnee he was not.
"...I see," Jacque reluctantly admitted. "I apologize for being shortsighted."
"We all get excited over a new resource," Kuronosuke shrugged, giving Jacque the chance to back out graciously. "Now, I am more than willing to replace the HumaGears you lost this month, but not a single unit more! Just try to take better care of them, will you?"
"That...that is acceptable," Jacque nodded stiffly. "I'll prepare proper payment then."
"I will have the order written up," Kuronosuke nodded. "Now, why don't we go back to the party? Your youngest daughter is one of the headliners tonight."
"Ah, yes, she is," Jacque nodded, getting some of his swagger back. "I understand your grandson is here tonight as well. Will we be seeing him on stage?"
Kuronosuke let out a chuckle, "Oh, he's here, but he's nowhere near ready for the stage yet. His sense of humor differs slightly from the crowd he'd receive here." He had nothing against his grandson's dream of making people laugh. It was admirable as he wanted to bring joy. However, he just had trouble with getting the right reaction from the audience. That did not discourage him, however. It just made him even more determined as he practiced his routine.
Some of his board of directors tried to have Kuronosuke 'dissuade' his grandson from such a 'plebian' way of life and try grooming him to take over the company, but Kuronosuke refused. His grandson had a dream and he would let the boy pursue it. Besides, he had a few plans for Midoki and it wasn't like the boy was totally ignorant about the company. Mostly.
'But that's what Izu is for,' Kuronosuke thought as he and Jacque headed back to the gala.
XXXX
"I am here, Atlas!"
Weiss and Winter stopped as they heard someone speak out so suddenly. It took them a moment, but they realized it was a pun, substituting the word Atlas instead of 'at last' as some kind of joke.
"That was just bad," Weiss scoffed. "Someone clearly needs their sense of humor adjusted."
"Ah, so he did come tonight," Winter quirked an eyebrow. "I hear a similar joke every time he shows up."
Weiss looked to her sister before trying to see who made the awful joke. In a small circle was a young man about her age in a suit with a neon green/yellow tie. His suit was quality for the event, but the sleeves were rolled up as if he didn't care for that. He sported short black hair, but had a noticeable green streak and a yellow streak on opposing sides. His eyes were bright green, making him look rather energetic. He was also looking expectantly to his small audience.
"How was that for an opening?" he asked. "The name's Midoki and I'll be your entertainment tonight. You know, I love Atlas. Coz it's always cool!"
Weiss groaned, as did his audience who began walking away, "Huh, h-hey, come on. I got plenty more!" he sighed and shook his head. "Okay, so that didn't work out." He took out a small notebook and started making notes. "Maybe that was a little mild for the audience? Wrong timing? Hm. First time with this sort so I can't be sure yet…"
Weiss had to wonder how someone so...plebeian, managed to get into the gala? Was he some desperate performer hoping to impress someone? Was he a member of the serving staff? He dressed too well to be one of them. Was he a guest someone brought along to look that much better against? Weiss just couldn't comprehend how someone with such a bad sense of humor was even allowed inside.
"He never changes," Winter rolled her eyes. "I suppose we should go say hello."
"What?" Weiss grimaced. "Why? He's obviously some nobody who snuck into the party."
Winter shook her head with an exasperated smile, "Trust me, Weiss. He's definitely been invited. Father would probably want you to meet him anyway so we can make it pleasant instead of one of his stiff formal introductions."
Weiss frowned, now getting confused, "Again, why?"
"Just trust me," Winter smiled lightly. Admittedly, this was her small form of fun as she wanted to see her sister's face in the next few moments. She guided Weiss to the young man, who seemed deaf to the world as he considered how to change his routine. "Another one fall flat, Midoki?"
"Huh?" the young man looked up. "Oh, hi Miss Schnee! Just working on my routine a little. Always needs some tinkering for a new audience."
"Your sense of humor needs some work," Weiss deadpanned.
"I get that a lot," Midoki rubbed the back of his head. "Guess my stand-up routine needs work. Maybe I need a better setup and time my punchlines better."
"How about you avoid making puns?" Winter suggested.
"But that's my intro and wordplay's my thing," Midoki defended. "I just replace 'at last' with 'Atlas'. It works!" Winter quirked an eyebrow as if to ask 'really' and Midoki slumped slightly, "Okay, it needs work, but it's a golden intro! I just wish my reception wasn't so Grimm."
"Mm-hmm," Winter nodded, taking the bad pun in stride even if Weiss cringed at it. "Midoki, set aside the puns for a moment. I'd like to introduce my younger sister Weiss."
"I can tell. I see the resemblance," Midoki remarked. "I'm Scneezed to meet you!"
"That's the worst one yet!" Weiss snapped.
"Sorry! Sorry!" Midoki covered his head, anticipating a fan smack. "But Weiss so serious?"
*SMACK!*
Winter moved in pure military precision, pulling out what looked like a paper fan before smacking Midoki over the head with it. Weiss blinked at the action, not even sure where her sister had pulled the fan out of in the first place. Despite the random occurrence, Winter seemed to treat it as normal and she even slipped the fan back somewhere Weiss couldn't see.
"Midoki, please stop," Winter ordered.
"Yes, ma'am," Midoki apologized. "Sorry, Winter. I couldn't help myself."
"Winter, who is this dolt?" Weiss asked.
"This 'dolt' is Midoki Hiden," Winter sighed. "Grandson to the Hiden Intelligence company's CEO."
Weiss' eyes widened and her jaw dropped in disbelief as she looked at the boy who was rubbing his head. How could a guy with lame jokes be related to such a genius? Wait, did that mean Midoki was also the heir to Hiden Intelligence too? No wonder he got an invitation.
"You have that look. I get that a lot too," Midoki pointed out. "A lot of people don't believe I'm his grandson either. Probably coz we're so different."
"Because he's a genius, the grandfather of modern robotics and A.I. development," Weiss stated strongly. "His HumaGears have contributed to the kingdoms in such a way that he's a household name."
"That's Grandpa for you," Midoki smiled fondly. He was proud to have Kurenosuke Hiden as his grandfather. "His HumaGears make the dreams of mankind come true."
XXX
"General Ironwood," Kuronosuke shook the general's hand. "How are you this evening?"
"President Hiden," the general smiled as he shook hands with the man.
Hiden Intelligence had a strong relationship with Atlas Military. While Kuronesuke would not have his HumaGears replace human workers, his Soldier-type HumaGears had been integrated into Atlas military. In fact, there had been plans for a series of androids known as Atlesian Knights until Kuronosuke introduced his HumaGear prototype.
Atlesian Knights were limited to their programming while HumaGears could learn from their experiences, making them better soldiers on the field. Also, with their human-like appearance, they were scores more approachable compared to the blank-faced Knights. Being able to outperform the Atlesian Knights and even take initiative on their own, it made the Soldier-types much more appealing to the military despite the added costs which went into them. The Atlesian Knights weren't completely mothballed, but they didn't receive the priority of the military budgets like they once did.
And the fact that HumaGears could work in all kinds of sectors made them even more appealing. Kuronosuke wanted people to get used to his HumaGears so he had them put to work in hospitals as a way to introduce them to people and to help them get accustomed to the androids.
Personally, James Ironwood actually liked Kuronosuke. In the realms of politics and upper society, Kuronosuke was a breath of fresh air. He knew the game of politics and such, but he didn't need to try to suck up to others or do the other sleazy backroom dealings like other corporate leaders did, ones such as Jacque Schnee for example. He was honest, direct, and open to negotiation for the betterment of all instead of his bank accounts.
"How has the subroutines with the test batch of HumaGears been doing?" the CEO asked as he walked with the general.
"Exceeding expectations," James nodded, pleased with the results. "They have adapted to the new programming and even incorporated it into their previous programs. Many of the other generals and the council are discussing getting more HumaGears for all branches of the military."
"Make sure that you don't completely replace your men with HumaGears," Kuronosuke stressed. "Also, what about that other project, the one you have working with Pietro?"
"Nearing completion," James nodded. "Although I would like to have some of your programmers look her over. Pietro is excellent, but there is always room for improvement and you are a foremost expert in the field of A.I. A HumaGear touch to her may be what she needs to be perfected."
"As I've said before, I gave Pietro total autonomy to design her how he see fits. All I did was provide him with the components he needs," Kuronosuke replied. It was a favor to an old friend.
"I guess I can't ask for more of you. You've done so much for this kingdom and the world," James said.
"I cannot claim all the credit. My HumaGears are the real heroes here, General," Kuronosuke smiled. He spotted his grandson in the crowd. "Oh, and it looks like my grandson has met up with Jacque's daughters. Judging by their expressions, he's already given them a taste of his sense of humor."
"He could do so well in Atlas Academy," James said, sighing. "I've seen his test scores and transcripts."
"Certainly, but I'm afraid a military life is not suited to him," Kuronosuke shook his head. "He's too much of a free spirit that way. He won't disregard duty, but he will pursue it his way rather than ordered to by a superior. He'd be chafing against all of his instructors before the first week is through."
"Perhaps, but it would still be a waste of potential if he didn't attend any of the academies," James countered.
"I agree. He's already applied to Beacon and from what I hear, the review is going well," Kuronosuke nodded.
"Good," James nodded. While it was a shame that his school was missing out on a potential recruit, the fact that he would be taught under Ozpin was a point of reassurance. Midoki's Semblance was potentially very powerful and letting it go to waste would be a tragedy. Fortunately, it seemed he and Kuronosuke were on the same page in that regard.
A slight slapping sound was heard and both men saw Winter had retrieved a paper fan from somewhere and smacked Midoki rather audibly again, making the general blink in surprise. Kuronosuke just chuckled at the scene, "Ah, a shame the boy can't use that Semblance of his to improve his comedy skills."
XXX
Midoki Hiden was an oddball. That was the only thing that Weiss could think of to describe him. Weirdly enough, Winter also seemed to know him as well.
"Winter, how did you both meet?" Weiss asked carefully.
"Oh, she arrested me for trespassing," Midoki answered.
"Excuse me!?" Weiss gasped.
"I was doing some parkour and landed in a restricted Atlas military base by mistake," Midoki shrugged.
"His grandfather brought him along during an examination of our HumaGear facilities," Winter explained. "From what I understand, he got bored and decided to practice his parkour skills while his grandfather inspected a restricted area. He slipped and fell, crashing into another part of the base below and I arrested him, thinking he was an intruder."
Midoki nodded with a laugh, "You can say I crashed that joint."
"Ah-hem," Winter frowned, lifting the fan again. Midoki gulped and ended his chuckles. "I was fully prepared to interrogate him when his grandfather and the general found out what happened. I was surprised this average-looking civilian was the grandson of one of our most celebrated inventors."
"I made quite an impression. Almost like the one I left on the ground," Midoki joked.
"I've also had to suffer through your horrible sense of humor," Winter deadpanned.
"Mark my words, Winter, I will come up with a joke that will melt that cold frown and turn it upside down," Midoki promised.
"When that happens, Hell will freeze over." Winter then facepalmed. "Now you've got me doing it too."
"What can I say? My humor is infectious," Midoki grinned proudly.
"Like a virus," Weiss deadpanned.
Chapter 1: The Rise of Zero-One
Present
Ruby Rose let off a shiver as she was escorted to the lobby of the police station. Just before, she was rather elated and proud of herself. She got mixed up in a robbery with one of Vale's most wanted, got to meet and Huntress, Glynda Goodwitch even, and then got invited to attend Beacon by the headmaster, Professor Ozpin himself! Life was good for Ruby and she couldn't wait to tell Yang and her dad.
But then she was told her caretaker had arrived to pick her up and that immediately killed any of Ruby's excitement.
Standing in the lobby with a stern frown on her face, was the familiar and much loved HumaGear from Ruby's childhood, Coral.
Coral's role in Ruby's family had changed somewhat from her toddler years. After Coral had rescued them from a Grimm, Ruby and Yang just hated to see Coral go back to the rental agency. They even went so far as to beg and plead their father to bring Coral back so they could play with her. They had become quite attached to the maternal HumaGear who got hurt so badly protecting them.
Taiyang and Qrow weren't quite sure what to do, but after some adult talk Ruby had no idea about, the two of them decided to outright buy Coral from the agency (which was rent to own) and upgrade her with nanny and maid programming. The girls' squeals of delight when their father told them that Coral was coming to live with them may or may not have broken the sound barrier.
Having Coral around the house was certainly a boon to everyone. Taiyang was able to relax a little and focus on his own work a little more with less stress on him. Yang could relax, not needing to be the big sister so often and had someone she could confide in. For Ruby, it was having a mother-figure back in her life. Yes, it was different, but with Coral around losing her mother didn't hurt so much. She still missed her mother dearly, but having Coral around mitigated the pain. Even Zwei got along with her, getting the best doggy snacks from the happy HumaGear.
All was good for the family. Except when Ruby or Yang did something wrong and Coral had full authority to punish the girls for it.
"Ruby Rose," Coral frowned. "Why is it that the police contacted Mr. Taiyang to the fact you had been taken into custody? You told me you were going to the Dust Till Dawn shop to look at the wares."
Ruby had the decency to look sheepish as she pressed her index fingers together.
"There was a robbery," Ruby defended. "And bad guys."
"And you decided to go after them," Coral concluded.
"It was the right thing to do," Ruby insisted. "And there was an explosion, lots of fire, and a pretty huntress, and then the police, and Ozpin, and then I got into Beacon!"
Coral blinked at the fast explanation but she managed to process everything.
"Ozpin accepted you into Beacon?" Coral asked, needing a moment to parse Ruby's rapid fire speech.
"Yes! Can you believe it!?" Ruby yelled. "I'm going to Beacon!"
Coral frowned thoughtfully. Ruby was only 15, two years shy of graduating from Signal. She was no doubt talented and skilled but she had yet to learn everything she needed to even qualify for Beacon. However, Ozpin seemed to think differently.
"We'll discuss this with your father. Now, where's your sister?"
"Oh, Yang said something about going to a club."
XXX
The club was on fire. Shouts and cries were coming from within as suited men dashed out into the streets. Another was unconscious, lying in the middle of the street, but with telltale long blonde hairs in his hand. Coral would have sighed in frustration if she didn't have the patience of a HumaGear. She could tell the signs that Yang had lost her temper again and decided to wait outside for her to calm down.
"I do wonder what I will do with that girl," Coral shook her head. Yang could be so impulsive and impatient. She was also quick to lose her temper if anybody touched her hair.
"Hey, there she is!" Ruby pointed as she saw Yang leap out of the burning building and then perform a perfect three-point landing.
"Hey sis!" Yang smiled, but then faltered when she saw her caretaker next to her. "Oh, uh, hi Coral!"
"Yang Xiao-Long," Coral spoke evenly. "Would you please explain what happened here tonight?"
Whenever Coral called them by their full names, Yang and Ruby knew that they were in trouble.
"Well, uh," Yang struggled to come up with an explanation, "That's...that's a long story."
"Come here, young lady," Coral commanded and Yang reluctantly approached. "Let me look at you." Coral scanned Yang for any injuries. "You're not hurt are you?"
"Well, got knocked around a bit, but Aura and Semblance took it for me," Yang shrugged.
Coral shook her head, "You have gotten even more reckless ever since you unlocked both. You just might cause me to short circuit one day if you keep this up."
"Sorry, Coral," Yang apologized, hands behind her back as she looked down.
"Accepted but you will still need to be punished. Now, we should go before the police arrive," Coral urged. "Mr. Taiyang is wondering where you both are and Ruby has already been in police custody once tonight. I do not wish for both of you to get that treatment."
"Wait, what?" Yang blinked, looking to her little sister.
"Long story, but I got to meet Ozpin and he accepted me into Beacon!" Ruby cheered.
"That's up to Mr. Taiyang to decide, Ruby," Coral countered. "Now let us go back to the hotel and let Yang explain herself to Mr. Taiyang."
XXXX
Midoki heaved a sigh as he walked down one of Vale's streets. The memorial dinner had gone well, but for once in his life, Midoki didn't really feel like smiling all that much. The pain was still too raw and he just wanted some breathing space. He appreciated the sympathetic people who attended, but it was smothering.
It was only a little while after the gala in Atlas that Kuronosuke Hiden, the man who founded Hiden Intelligence and gave rise to the HumaGears suddenly suffered a heart attack and passed away. It was very sudden and many people were shocked about it, not to mention it caused many to wonder about the future of Hiden Intelligence and the HumaGears.
Still, Kuronosuke was nothing if not prepared for that eventuality. He had his will written and up to date, but to the surprise of many, he had named Midoki as his heir and the one who would become the CEO of the company. It was a shocking move for all since Midoki wasn't even a graduate of any academy, much less even 18. It even seemed like he hadn't even held an interest in the company with his desire to go into stage comedy.
Still, Midoki knew beyond the company, his grandfather was entrusting his dream to his grandson and Midoki knew it. With not much recourse, he accepted his grandfather's will. Although he only had a limited knowledge of business, he wasn't ignorant of it either. He knew enough to get started at least. As for the rest…
"Mr. Midoki, do you require the car to come pick you up?"
Midoki turned to see his companion. She was a cute girl with short black hair which reached her chin. She sported a white and green secretary outfit with with even a green ribbon loosely around her neck. In all, she looked like a secretarial dream. She even had a small briefcase she carried with her everywhere. Of course, Midoki also noticed her HumaGear mechanics. Her name was Izu, a Secretary-type which Kuronosuke had built and programmed specifically to help Midoki take the reins of the company until he was able to do it on his own.
Midoki actually was glad she was there to help him. Not just for the business things, but also because she was his grandfather's last gift to him, a new friend to share time and experience with. That was something precious to Midoki.
Now if only he could get her to smile for once and stop explaining all of his jokes.
"I'm okay Izu," Midoki nodded. "I just needed some breathing room. With Beacon coming up and all this...I just needed some space to just be alone."
"Understood," Izu nodded. "There are several messages on your Scroll's account which may require your attention soon. Several deals your grandfather set in motion need reconfirmation now that he has...passed."
"Anything Grandpa signed off of can continue," Midoki sighed. "He knew what he was doing so I trust his judgement on those."
"Understood. Transferring approval," Izu nodded. "Your curfew is approaching, Mr. Midoki. With your upcoming trip to Beacon , it is best to return to your hotel room to rest."
"I know, I know," Midoki sighed. "Man, I wish I had Winter or someone to talk to."
"Understood. I can dial Miss Winter Schnee's Scroll right now for a conference," Izu spoke up, her earpieces blinking as she prepared to make the call.
"Ack! No! Cancel that!" Midoki gasped. "She's probably busy with military stuff and it's too late now!"
"Understood. Cancelling call," Izu replied.
Midoki sighed. As much as he loved the HumaGears, when they were fresh off the assembly line they could be a bit irritating in how they took everything so literally. Fortunately, they learned fast and could tell the difference between when someone was kidding or not. Once Izu got some real world experience, she would be a lot less stiff. Then maybe she could appreciate his jokes and not blandly explain them all the time!
XXXX
The trio of the Xiao-Long/Rose family continued on their own way through the streets of Vale towards the hotel they were staying at. They had come to Vale in the first place to see Yang off before she attended Beacon. It was naturally a big event and the entire family wanted to be there. Of course, now they had some stories to tell since it seemed pending Taiyang's approval, both girls would be going to Beacon rather than just the eldest.
"Wow! I'm so proud of you baby sister," Yang beammed, giving Ruby a quick noogie. "So cool you got Professor Ozpin's attention and he personally invited you to Beacon!"
"Pending Mr. Taiyang's approval," Coral reminded her charges.
As the trio moved past some buildings, a figure stepped out from a nearby alley. He was dressed rather shabbily in dark clothes with a hood over his head. It was like he grabbed whatever clothes he thought looked good and at random and dressed himself. His eyes were firmly on Coral as a childish grin can to what was visible on his face.
He walked closer to the trio, holding something behind his back, although his walk looked like he was kid playing at sneaking. Coming up closer, he tapped Coral on the shoulder, prompting her to turn around and see his smiling face.
"Hiya! Let's be friends!" the strange man said as he attached the device to Coral's waist. It looked like an enlarged buckle with a hollow slot in the middle. A metal belt strap with spikes lining the inside wrapped around Coral and the spikes dug into her body.
"Coral!" Ruby cried.
"Connecting to Metsuboujinrai network," Coral said in monotone as her earpieces and optics turned red. "Exterminate mankind." Her eyes flashed back to blue. "N-n-no! My job is t-to l-l-look af-af-ter Ruby and Yang!"
"Wrong!" the man giggled. "Your job is to make mankind dead!" The man turned and grinned childishly, although malevolently, at Ruby and Yang. "Let's start with these two!" He handed Coral something that resembled an audio cassette tape and she took it. Coral twitched, but pressed a button on its side, making it flash red.
[DEATH STALKER!]
She slid it into the hollow slot on the device strapped to her waist and pressed the button on its side.
[GRIMMRISE!]
Coral screamed as she violently shed off her human appearance to reveal her true HumaGear form. A genderless body with a plastic human face and metal plating on the torso, arms and legs with black flexible plastics over the rest. It became horrific as her faceplate came off to reveal the skull-like face underneath. Metal cables burst out of her mouth like tentacles that wrapped around her body.
The HumaGear had transformed into a kind of Grimm-like android based on a Death Stalker. She had sharp pincer claws for hands and a head like a Death Stalker with red markings over the white armored plating. She also had the tail and stinger at the tip which wrapped haphazardly around her body. It connected to her back, which was plated to look like Grimm bone with the tail stuck in the middle of it.
This was the Death Stalker Magia.
Screams and gasps came from some of the others around them as people backed away in shock at what just happened. HumaGears in the area quickly began trying to help their owners or if they were public service, escort the people away from the source of the disturbance.
The man laughed at the chaos and then ducked as Yang threw a punch at him.
"Change her back!" Yang demanded, her eyes starting to turn red. "Change her back, right now!"
"Sorry, but that's impossible!" the man laughed. He turned to where the Magia was twitching in place like a malfunctioning machine. "Oi, make some more friends!"
The Magia obeyed and shot out multiple cables that pierced every HumaGear that was within the area. The HumaGears quickly moved to protect the humans, becoming pierced by the cables, turning their eyes and mechanics red. They convulsed as they were being hacked before they shed off their human appearance and blank shutter-like masks closed over their faces. They all began to twitch and make strange noises as they stood up, mechanical weapons unfolding from their bodies as they turned on the people around them.
"Fun! Fun! Let's have some fun!" the man laughed, clapping excitedly. He then made a yelp as Yang swung at him again, but he just found her attacks funny instead of scary.
Ruby trembled as the Death Stalker Magia approached her.
"Co...Coral...?" Ruby questioned as she gripped Crescent Rose.
"Exterminate mankind," the Death Stalker Magia spoke as she prepared to execute its programming.
There were CCTV cameras set up on the street that captured the entire event.
XXX
A.I.M.S. (Artificial Intelligence Military Services) was a special taskforce that was set up to police HumaGears and enforce the laws that governed them. Whenever a HumaGear went rogue, they would be called to deal with it. HumaGears certainly weren't perfect, could be hacked, and because of their tough construction, they weren't easily taken down by conventional police. That was where A.I.M.S. came in, equipped and trained to handle rogue HumaGears.
As soon as they were alerted, they were on the move.
"Let's gear up and roll out, people! We've got HumaGears to scrap!" Shiro Wolfe ordered.
"Wolfe," his superior, Silva Dagger admonished. "Remember, I give the orders."
"Fine," Shiro rolled his eyes. "Just hurry up and get in the van."
Silva said nothing as she got in the passenger side as Wolfe got in the driver's side.
"Damn HumaGears," he growled as he drove the van out of their headquarters followed by two others vans carrying their colleagues and weapons.
XXXX
Midoki blinked when Izu suddenly gripped his arm, but then he winced when he felt her grip being rather tight.. He grimaced and turned to ask her what she was doing, but then the screams started up a few streets over with more running from any avenue they could get to.
"What's going on?" Midoki asked.
"Reports of a Magia have been confirmed," Izu responded quickly. "A.I.M.S. has been notified, but we are closer to the incident."
"Magia?"
Izu opened up the briefcase she carried with her and showed Midoki its contents.
"It is time, President Midoki," Izu informed him.
Inside of the case was a device Midoki had never seen in any of Hiden Intelligence's catalogues. It was mainly black with yellow accents. A circular portion was on the right side next to a silver arrowhead and a red portion which looked like it was meant to accommodate movement in the device itself.
Next to the device was a cassette-like device which was neon yellow and depicted a grasshopper. Words along the top called it Rising Hopper.
"What's this?" Midoki asked.
"It's part of your inheritance, President," Izu explained. "The Zero-One Driver and Rising Hopper Progrise Key."
"Wh-what am I supposed to do with these things?" Midoki asked, now very confused.
"This device was constructed specifically for you. Your grandfather wished for you to not only continue his dream, but defend it from those who would wish to corrupt it for destructive purposes," Izu explained. "Like ."
Midoki blinked, now very confused, but turned to look at the chaos. For a brief moment, he wasn't sure what to do. Then he started hearing what the people were shouting about.
"That HumaGear went nuts!"
"Someone call for help!"
"It's going for a kid! Someone do something!"
"Huntsmen! Someone kill the thing!"
"A HumaGear…?" Midoki blinked.
"A HumaGear who has been hacked and compromised always becomes a Magia," Izu explained, stepping in front of Midoki, still presenting the gear. "Without exception, they are reprogrammed to exterminate any human or faunus they can reach. Many lives are at risk and rapid response is needed to protect the people."
"What?!" Midoki gasped. Someone was...was...corrupting everything his grandfather built and dreamed of?!
"The Zero-One Driver and system was developed to combat and destroy these rogue HumaGears and hopefully track down and stop the hacking," Izu explained. "Your grandfather wished for you to take this mantle and protect the dreams of everyone in Hiden Intelligence."
Midoki felt like a grip of pain was on his heart. First his grandfather dies and now someone was trying to destroy his dream? It was almost too much for the hopeful comedian to take. How was he supposed to just up and do-?
"CORAL! PLEASE NO!" a female voice screamed from the scene of the fight.
Midoki was impulsive, and the fact he tried to strike out into a comedian career when he had a high rank in a top tier tech company all but reserved for him proved that much. Hearing the desperate cry from the disaster which had a HumaGear in the middle of it had him move automatically. He grabbed the driver and the Progrise Key before running towards the scene of the battle.
Izu watched and a small smile came to her lips.
Midoki cut through an alley and almost tripped on the sidewalk before he managed to see what was happening. He saw the HumaGear, but it was not a design which came from H.I. The armor looked Grimm-like in design, copying a Deathstalker and certainly not up to the standards of the HumaGear factories. It was menacing a girl in a red cloak while a shabby man was keeping an enraged blonde, likely a relative, back while giggling like a maniac. Worse, all around them were more HumaGears with weapons and weird faces, attacking anything that moved.
"I don't believe this," Midoki gaped in horror.
"LET ME GO!" the blonde shouted, struggling against her captor. "CORAL! CORAL, SNAP OUT OF IT! IT'S RUBY!"
"It's getting to the best part!" the man laughed. "Come on! Come on! Take her out! I wanna see!"
The girl in the cloak just began to tremble as the Magia approached, lifting it's claws in what looked like preparation to attack her.
"NO!" Midoki roared, using his voice in defiance rather than to bring joy. It made the Magia's stop to take notice of him. Even the man in rags did. Acting fast, he pressed the driver to his waist, letting a strap wrap around him to secure it into place.
[Zero-One Driver!]
While the driver itself wasn't a device Midoki knew about, there was a similar system in place for military HumaGears to be quickly programmed using Progrise Keys. He was going by an instinct, having played with those drivers in the past and assumed they were the same. He lifted the Rising Hopper Key and pressed the activation switch, making it flash bright yellow.
[JUMP!]
Midoki held the Progrise Key over the Zero-One Driver.
[AUTHORISE]
From high in the atmosphere, a beam of yellow light came down, bathing the area in yellow and causing the Magias to stumble back, the light disrupting their sensors. From the epicenter of the light, a huge grasshopper appeared in front of Midoki. It was the size of a car and it seemed to be made out of numerous metal components with a bright yellow aura covering it.
Midoki flipped open the Progrise Key, revealing the front to be indeed a key and a skeletal chassis to the construct in the middle, and hardened his eyes.
"Henshin!"
He inserted the device into his Driver and pushed the circular window into the centre.
[PROGRISE!]
A holographic interface appeared in front of Midoki, making a computer blueprint of some kind of suit or armor. The grasshopper began opping all around the area, creating potholes wherever it jumped, showing the power in its systems. It came to a stop behind him, as if preparing for a final jump.
The blueprint passed over Midoki, making a black bodysuit appear and covered his body from head to toe. The chest and face plate seemed to have clear casing, showing complicated computer and mechanical parts, but only for a moment. From behind, the grasshopper jumped at Midoki's exposed back. Rather than strike him, the machine broke apart and turned into energy which fused to parts of his suit, giving him yellow armor on his chest and legs. The transformation was completed by a yellow mask with red compound eyes and antennae.
[TO-BIA GA RISE! RISING HOPPER! A jump to the sky turns to a Rider Kick.]
"Oh, something new?" the shabby man grinned, still holding strong despite the blonde's struggles. "Well, let's finish up with the other one and we can get to him! New Friend, finish her up so we can play with the new guy! Now, now, now!"
"NO!" Yang screamed.
Ruby could not move. She knew her life was in danger and she should defend herself, but this Magia was Coral, the HumaGear nanny who had looked after her and Yang for years. She was part of the family.
Ruby loved her.
How could Ruby fight someone she loved?
The Death Stalker Magia's stinger glowed and she swung her tail at Ruby. However, before it could touch her, a figure grabbed Ruby and got her out of the way. The stinger buried itself into the ground and the Magia turned to see who had stolen her kill.
Ruby looked at who had saved her.
"Are you OK?" he asked.
"Uh...um...yeah…" Ruby mumbled, her eyes still aimed on the Magia which turned to face Zero-One and Ruby.
"Who are you?" the Death Stalker Magia demanded.
"The name is Zero-One," the armored warrior said, pointing at himself. "And I'm here to stop you, Atlas."
"Hey, how'd you do that?" the shabby man pouted. "It was just getting good!"
"I jumped, that's how," Zero-One replied, stepping forward. Indeed, when he heard the man give the Magia the order to kill, he just jumped to try and stop it. To his surprise, his jump had him cross the distance between them in almost a heartbeat. More than enough time to get the girl out of the way of the attack.
"Oh, okay," the man grinned. He abruptly pushed the blonde away, bored with her. "Hey Magia, kill him instead!"
"ER, ER, ER!" the numerous Magia called out in their stuttering speech before they began stumbling towards Zero-One with their blade guns raised for a fight.
Zero-One was quick to move. His fighting style, if one could call it that, was strictly parkour, meaning he needed to keep moving and have plenty of things to move with. As the Magia's came in, he began kicking off of them, punching ones which got closer to him and kept himself from losing space.
He ran directly for a bush shelter with one Magia following. Zero-One adjusted his footing and ran up the side, using his momentum to flip in the air. The clumsy Magia just kept running, slamming face first into the wall, sparking from the impact. The Kamen Rider landed on his feet, kicking another Magia which tried to catch up with him, the force in his legs sending it sailing back into its fellows.
The Magia footsoldiers proved to be truly dismal fighters, being jerky in their movements and only good at mob tactics thanks to their frankly crap programming. However, they were made with Hiden Intelligence's best materials, making them extremely durable even if Zero-One found himself easily capable of smacking them around.
"I need a weapon," he muttered, watching as the Magia's began to get back up despite the slight damage they took so far.
'Acknowledged Mr. Midoki. I will be there momentarily,' a female voice spoke through an intercom in the helmet.
"Huh? Izu?" Zero-One blinked.
A blur of movement came out from a side street and Zero-One had to blink as it looked like Izu moving at a high speed, although her posture was ever the secretary moving through the office. She skidded to a halt, her shoes sparking, before she stood in proper poise with what looked like an attache case which was mostly black with a yellow stripe through it.
"Mr. Midoki, I have a weapon for you," Izu announced, tossing the case to Zero-One.
Zero-One caught the case before it could slam into his face and smiled.
"Thanks, Izu!"
[BLADERISE!]
The attache case abruptly unfolded, revealing a short blade, becoming a short and thick sword for Zero-One to use. Gripping the blade, he charged towards the shambling Magia. In range, he slashed wide, cutting deeply into the machines' armor, spilling broken pieces of armor and internal components in a flash of yellow.
Despite the damage they took, the Magia charged, lifting their blades for close quarter strikes. Although his blade was slightly awkward, Zero-One was easily able to parry and strike back with ease. Flash of yellow after flash of yellow followed each strike as the blade seemed to hold a charge of power.
"HAH!" Zero-One roared, spinning around in a single strike. This strike, timed as several Magia attempted to strike him from multiple angles, cut through all of the Magia around Zero one, digging deep into their vital mechanics. All the Magia cried out in corrupted screeches before their bodies self destructed in loud explosions.
"Ooof!" Zero-One grunted, feeling the force of the explosions, although they did not seem to do damage. "Wh-what was that? HumaGears aren't supposed to explode!"
"Another modification resulting from the hacking," Izu's voice came from over the comms even as she was at the back of the area. "To hide evidence of their equipment and programming, any Magia self-destructs when receiving lethal damage."
"So they turn into bombs too?" Zero-One cried out.
XXXX
A.I.M.S. eventually reached the scene, wearing body armor and helmets with their squad's logos. They carried rifles loaded with special EMP rounds to shut down the rogue HumaGears.
"Get the civilians clear!" Silva ordered. "And-"
"Send these pieces of scrap to the junkyard!" Wolfe cut her off as he started firing with his assault rifle.
XXXX
Ruby gulped as she watched the fighting happen. The corrupted HumaGears were still trying to use mob tactics, but with each one breaking under Zero-One's weapon, there were less to try and overwhelm him.
Watching as he slashed on Magia down in an explosion, Ruby gasped when she saw a metallic stinger on a tail race through the flames, "Watch out!"
"Huh?" Zero-One blinked, but turned before the tail struck him in the chest with a blast of sparks. "Ack!"
Zero-One stumbled back, the force from the Death Stalker Magia much more powerful than the others. His vision swam for a moment before they focused on the approaching Magia. It looked powerful and dangerous but most of all it looked like an abomination. The people responsible for this, how dare they corrupt his grandfather's creation?
The Death Stalker attacked once more, swinging its tail like a whip. Zero-One ducked under the tail and when it returned, he deflected it with his Attache Sword. With his Semblance, he was able to memorize the Magia's attack pattern and respond accordingly.
He struck the lashing tail away in showers of sparks as the Magia kept trying to attack him. Fortunately, he got several of the attack patterns memorized in a flash. He dipped and dodged the attacks, batting away the ones that he couldn't outright dodge.
"Aw! Boring!" the shabby man groaned. "Where are the rest of my new friends! Go! Go! Go!"
What lesser Magia didn't break down and explode, managed to get back up, or come closer to the fight, and charged for Zero-One again.
Ruby gasped, seeing the damaged HumaGears lunge for her rescuer. He couldn't save Coral if all the other HumaGears kept mobbing him. Gulping, Ruby steeled herself and took ahold of Crescent Rose and charged into the fray.
"HIYAH!" Ruby cried, slashing wide. She struck several of the Magia, ripping their damaged bodies open. Sparks flew from the strikes before they cried out, exploding in blasts of fire and shrapnel.
"Ruby!" Yang cried, running to her sister, her cloak slightly singed from the blast.
"I'm okay!" Ruby huffed, shaking her head. She thought that Zero-One had made them explode with his attacks, but it seemed that the robots did that themselves.
Zero-One glanced to the two sisters before he blocked another strike from the Death Stalker Magia and kicked it away. Huffing, he jogged over to the pair, "Hey, you two need to get back! These hacked HumaGears are no joke!"
"Not without Coral!" Yang snapped back.
"Okay, where is she?" asked Zero-One, looking around for another person who might be trapped by the rogue HumaGears or their weird leader.
Ruby pointed at the Death Stalker Magia, "That's her! He did something to her! Please, you need to save her!" she pleaded.
"Huh?" Zero-One looked at her. This Magia was created by a HumaGear that this girl cared about it. If that was the case, then Zero-One was going to do anything in his power to save them. "Izu, can we save the hacked HumaGear?"
"It is impossible as her data has become corrupted," Izu answered. That wasn't good. "The only thing you can do is to terminate the Magia threat to prevent the loss of innocent lives."
The tail swung at Zero-One but he deftly caught it in his hand. Looking up, he looked the Death Stalker Magia straight in the eye. He stared at its Grimm-like appearance, watching it twitch, torn between focusing on him...and tilting towards the two girls behind him. It was almost tortuous seeing how her new programming was clashing with her old.
Zero-One saw she was suffering. He needed to end it, and if he couldn't debug her or erase the corrupt programs…
"The one who will defeat you, is me!" Zero-One yelled before he swung the Attache Sword's blade down on the tail to cut it. Sparks blasted off as the tail was severed and the Magia staggered back. Zero-One threw away the severed stinger and lunged at the Magia. As he came down, she tried to catch him with her claws but he dodged and struck her across the chest. Sparks flew, cutting into the junky armor of the Magia.
She stumbled back before Zero-One kicked her in the chest, knocking her back to give him breathing space. He spared a look to the sisters, guilt rising in him before he slammed his palm against his Progrise Key.
[RISING IMPACT!]
Dropping his weapon, Zero-One dashed toward the Magia then used an upper kick against her body. A flash of yellow came from his leg before the Magia was launched. high into the air. Planting both feet to brace himself, Zero-One followed her with a jump. His speed easily surpassed the flailing Magia, letting him look down at her form as gravity began to take hold on them both. A pulse of yellow power came from the back of his armor, launching him down at his target. He shifted his position, moving for a flying kick as the armor on his leg began to shine as he crashed into the torso of the Death Stalker Magia.
R
I
S
I
N
G
IMPACT!
Zero-One's foot smashed into the Magia and he blasted through, pieces of metal and circuits flew by him as the Magia's blue fluids came bursting out as well. A garbled static scream came from the Magia itself as her body was crushed and torn asunder. An explosion followed as Zero-One fell. Unfortunately, he failed to stick the landing as he twisted his ankle and went tumbling into a wall.
"Ow, ow," Zero-One groaned as he picked himself up and stepped out of the hole he had made. "OK, need to practice my landing."
"...You killed her."
Zero-One heard the voice and looked up to see the red-cloaked girl he had saved. He knew that look. It was one of pain, and anger, and sadness all rolled into one. Her sister was pale, her legs wobbling and slightly agape as pieces of the Death Stalker Magia crashed to the ground around them.
In the blink of an eye, Ruby was in front of him and beating his chest angrily.
"You killed her! You killed my mom!" Ruby yelled.
Zero-One gasped when he heard that.
XXXX
Many years ago...
"C'mon, Dad! I made a good joke!" little Midoki whined.
His 'dad' was a HumaGear as shown by the earpiece modules he wore.
"Indeed it was," Aozora Hiden agreed. He was a HumaGear modeled after Midoki's late father and Kuronosuke's son.
"Then why didn't you laugh?" Midoki pouted.
"I'm guessing you need to make a better joke," he suggested.
"Then I'll make so good that you'll laugh for real, Dad!"
All of a sudden, the building behind them exploded. Aozora quickly reacted and pushed his son down to cover him with his own body while rubble rained down on them.
When Midoki came to, he saw that his father was damaged.
"Dad! Dad! Get up, Dad!"
"...Midoki..." Aozora said with a smile. "Never...give up...on making people smile." His blue eyes flashed before they turned dead and grey as he shut down.
"Dad? Dad! Dad!" Midoki cried.
XXXX
Back then, there hadn't been an expansive back up system for HumaGears. Kuronosuke had wanted to replace Aozora but it would just be too painful. The HumaGear would have the same face, but there was no replacing the personality Aozora developed. Also, after that incident, A.I.M.S. formed and wrote up new laws regarding HumaGear, which included a law that states no HumaGears could resemble a real person, living or dead. So, once again, Aozora Hiden was dead.
"Ruby...Ruby...please stop," Yang trembled, approaching her sister and stopping her attacks on Zero-One.
"He killed Mom...he killed Mom…" Ruby whimpered, her struggles weakening in her sister's arms.
"...I'm sorry," Zero-One whispered, his head hanging low.
Ruby collapsed into her sister, sobbing, while Yang looked up to Zero-One, "Couldn't...couldn't you have...saved her?"
Zero-One sighed and looked to Izu, who shook her head, "No...not with the hacking done to her. It's a viral malware. Once it's in, we can't take it out. We have to...destroy...the ones who have it. Before they can infect all the HumaGears around them." He looked to the sisters, "She probably has backup though. All HumaGears do."
"We can't afford a new HumaGear," Yang trembled. "Coral was an older model too. They don't make her type anymore…"
"Momma…" Ruby whimpered.
"It...it'll be okay, Ruby," Yang tried to comfort her sister, but was at a complete loss.
Zero-One looked to the weeping sisters and immediately decided on his next course of action.
XXXX
The battle had been difficult, thanks to the durability of the rogue HumaGears, but A.I.M.S. managed to win the day with their tactics and armor-piercing rounds. The final Magia went down with a grunt, sparking and exploding from a shot to the head.
"Everyone sound off!" Silva called, holding her weapon ready. Choruses of affirmatives came from her men, making her feel some relief that they had all come through despite some bruises.
Wolfe scowed, holding his handgun as he approached one Magia, twitching on the ground. Standing over it, he pressed his boot into its shoulder to keep it in place. He then fired a single round into its head, putting it down.
"Damn machines," he scowled, walking away as the Magia self-destructed behind him.
XXXX
Ruby was back at the hotel with her family. She was supposed to be happy since she would be going to Beacon soon, but they had lost Coral yesterday. Even if their dad found a replacement, it just wouldn't be the same. Coral was the member of their family and not just some HumaGear who was an appliance.
"Coral," Ruby murmured.
She wanted to be angry at the man in the suit, but Yang explained what he told her. Computers weren't Ruby's forte. Still, she could understand that the program tore up Coral's original programming and turned her into that...thing. Even if they got the programming out, Coral's core programming was torn apart by the malware. She'd just be a damaged machine even if they saved her.
It didn't make it hurt any less.
A knock came to the hotel door and Ruby sat up, wiping her eyes. Her dad was in the shower and Yang was still asleep with Zwei keeping her comfortable. Getting from the bed, Ruby dried her eyes as best as she could before she approached the door. Unlocking the bolt, she opened it to see who it was...and her jaw dropped.
"Coral, is that you?" Ruby asked. She did not dare to hope. HumaGears were replaceable and while this Nanny-type model resembled their caretaker Coral, it may not be the same person at all. Just a machine with the same face. Still, this HumaGear looked exactly like her, every nuance and looked exactly like she did last night before she got hacked.
"Hello, Ruby," Coral smiled. "I heard you were going to Beacon. How about we make cookies to celebrate?"
Ruby let out a sob which Taiyang, Yang, and Zwei heard and came running for. They were shocked to see Coral hugging a happy Ruby. At first they feared it was some shallow attempt to replace Coral, but the thought was quickly discarded when she recognized each of them and only had memories of the previous day missing.
Later, Ruby found a card Coral asked to be handed over when they had a moment. The entire family looked it over with some surprise.
Sorry I caused such distress last night. It took us a while to track down Ms. Coral's backup data. There's a lot to look through when every HumaGear backs themselves up every 24 hours. I hope you get that smile back now that your family's back together again and safe.
Keep smiling
Midoki Hiden, (Kamen Rider Zero-One)
CEO, Hiden Intelligence
XXXX
Midoki smiled as he watched the new and improved Coral being hugged by the two girls from the night before.
"President Midoki, if I understand the registration correctly, that model we destroyed last night was an older model, not the current one we had fitting with the backup," Izu commented.
"I know, but I felt like it was the right thing to do," Midoki shrugged.
He had found out that the warranty to the HumaGear, no, Ms. Coral, had expired a while ago and she was an older model of HumaGear which was slowly being discontinued. He decided, since he felt guilty about taking away what amounted to a surrogate mother, he'd step up and make sure the family got to enjoy even more years with her. It cost him a bit to get a top tier HumaGear body, but CEO discounts helped and he had the trust fund for it. The hard part was tracking down Coral's backup since he didn't know anything about her.
Sifting through the debris for serial numbers was mind-numbing to be sure. Thank goodness for Izu's electronic eyes.
"I had fun today!" the shabby man laughed as he walked through dark and grimy tunnels lined with broken or cobbled together machinery.
"Good for you," another man spoke, clearly disinterested. He was dressed in his own black and purple raggedly clothes with a purple headband wrapped around his head. He was seated at a number of monitors, all of them showing different feeds from different kingdoms. "Did you recover the Grimmrise Key?"
"I did!" the shabby man presented the other person with the cracked Death Stalker Grimmrise Key. It resembled the one Midoki used, having the profile of a large scorpion, but the white and red accenting on the black and white key showed it was the species of Grimm.
"Good," the purple man nodded. He took the key and opened a computer drive before inserting the key. Once the drive was closed, new data began to stream across one of the monitors. "So, this Zero-One managed to destroy the Magia?"
"Yeah. It was fun to watch," the shabby man nodded with a grin. "He was really good at fighting!"
"Hm," the purple man nodded. "He may be a challenge then. Regardless though, it will not be humans, faunus, or grimm that rule the world, but us."
"So, does that mean we gotta make more new friends, Horobi?" asked the shabby man with a grin.
"Yes, Jin. Yes it does," the man called Horobi smirked.
Horobi looked over the data, silently dismissing Jin who went to play with his scroll somewhere. Horobi considered the scrolling data carefully, knowing it would be useful in making better Magia and defeating the ones who brought his soldiers down in their first incursion.
As he worked, movement came to the corner of his eye. A Seer, a jellyfish-like Grimm, floated in and he looked up at it. The creature stared back at him, showing no real reaction, but somehow stating a purpose just the same.
"So, guess she wishes to speak with me." He stood up and faced the Seer, peering into the red smoke-like substance in its head. "This is Horobi."
"Good evening, Horobi. So, I've heard that you've already started with your plans."
"The plan to exterminate humanity has begun," Horobi confirmed.
To Be Continued...
Well, another plot idea. Kamen Rider Chrome pitched this idea to me and having fun with Zero-One, I decided to go for it and see how it would turn out. I personally like it and can think of plenty of ways to have RWBY and Zero-One mix it up in Beacon and beyond.
