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RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth
Chapter 6: Authority
It was a lovely day. The sun was shining, new students were arriving, and the coffee was amazing. Man, he loved his coffee. Black, white, bitter, sweet, mocha, latte, cappuccino, etc. Granted, he preferred the stronger, more bitter side of coffee, but Ozpin loved his coffee. He took a sip as he stood up and looked out over the world he helped protect.
Vale was bustling. Students could be seen exiting the bullhead landing craft. It was nice, yet it felt so… wrong. Blackflame Manor stared proudly out over the city. Many thought it was a museum more than anything else. A testament to the height of the Blackflame family. Only a precious few outside knew the truth. A precious few like himself, Glynda Goodwitch, Qrow Branwen, and General James Ironwood. They knew the truth about the Sanguine Pyre… or at least of the building that hosted them.
Qrow was the only one who was ever able to really share knowledge of the inside. The ability to shapeshift into a crow certainly helped. Especially since birds of the Corvidae family were quite common throughout the kingdom. Crows, ravens, rooks, jays and magpies were a common sight amongst the skies. Unfortunately, that also included the giant Nevermores. Granted, they were far fewer in number, and unlike most Grimm, preferred a pretty solitary lifestyle in their nests. That still didn't change the fact that Nevermores preferred nesting in Vale over every other kingdom on Remnant.
However, despite Qrow's unique ability, (and the abundance of Corvidae family birds) Ozpin knew very little of what the Sanguine Pyre was actually doing. Qrow had actually been less helpful in the previous months though. He was currently acting as the hidden bodyguard of the young Fall Maiden, Amber. Ozpin knew that Qrow could be well served as an informant on the Pyre but protecting the Fall Maiden was a more important task. Especially considering how potent a wanderlust the young girl had. She was only 14 for goodness sake, and she had little control over her powers. Though, she had been learning, so that was a promising sign.
Ozpin smiled as he took another drink of his coffee. He had gone with straight black today. Good lord he loved his coffee.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and for Ozpin, that end was signified by the dinging of the elevator to his office. He had no appointments scheduled for today, and Glynda was busy getting prospective students set up for his opening speech then initiation. Ozpin turned around to greet his visitor, only for his normally stoic face to fall into a slight frown.
Exiting from the elevator was none other than his biggest regret, Agreus Blackflame. The leader of the Sanguine Pyre stood there, clad in a pair of black slacks, blood red dress shoes, and a red polo. The only thing conspicuously missing from his usual getup was a jacket. Then again, Vale was experiencing an uncharacteristically warm spring season this year. A blood diamond shone proudly on his left hand, while his gold wedding band glinted on his right. He still had the fang of a Taijitu pierced through his ear. A grisly sordid reminder of events that neither of them would soon forget.
Ozpin sighed as he sat down. This was not how he wanted his day to start. Fortunately, he still had his coffee. He went to take a sip, only to sigh again as he realized his cup was empty. And he didn't have a pot in his office. Were it not for the fact that Glynda had specifically forbidden that appliance in his office, Ozpin could probably have depleted Vale's supply of the precious bean in a week? Dang, he loved coffee.
"Mr. Blackflame." Ozpin greeted.
"Ozpin." Agreus returned with a rather forced smile. "Haven't I asked you not to call me that?"
"I do believe you have, but how I'm an old man, and my memory isn't what it used to be." Ozpin replied.
"You're certainly old, I'll give you that. But cut the crap, Oz. You and I both know that you have a better memory than most. Or has taking care of the messes of children finally addled your aged mind?" Agreus answered, his grin dropping from his face.
"Fortunately for Remnant, no." Ozpin said. "Now please, Mr. Blackflame, I am a busy man you know. I assume you didn't come here to face me in a battle of wits?" Ozpin prodded.
"No, I've learned that you don't fight a battle of wits against a man whose only half armed, 'tis not as fun." Agreus responded with a smug smile. "Of course, you are correct. I did not come to face you. I'm actually here to tell you about a grave issue."
"An issue of grave importance? I'm flattered, but I thought I was worth nothing more to you than Grimm from whose mouth you pulled that fang." Ozpin said gesturing to the Agreus's ear. "Is it not enough to rob me of my school by making it into your personal recruitment office? Must you also add insult to that injury?"
"As much fun as that sounds, no." Agreus replied as he took a seat across from Ozpin's desk and swung his feet onto it. "I truly am here to tell you have a problem facing Vale. I'm sure you and your group of "guardians" might actually be able to help the Pyre."
Ozpin's eyes narrowed slightly. The headmaster steepled his fingers and leaned forward. It's not every day one of the most powerful men on Remnant comes begging for help.
"And why should I help you?" Ozpin asked.
"You don't even know what the problem is." Agreus stated. "And helping me will help the people of Vale."
"I thought you didn't care about them." Ozpin responded.
"That is a misconception. Believe it or not, Oz, I do care about the people under my organization. I care about the people I employ, the first responders and the innocents." Agreus said.
"You could've fooled me, Agreus. I know you've got several gangs and criminals of Vale in your pocket." Ozpin said.
"They are all on a tight leash. Besides, they should be the least of your concerns. And you don't have to believe me. I really am looking for my people though." Agreus said.
"Fine." Ozpin sighed. "What was the issue you wanted to bring up with me?"
"Two things. First, did you hear about the Vale Museum of Huntsmen and Huntresses?" Agreus asked.
"No." Ozpin said.
Agreus nodded to himself and pulled out a scroll. He rapidly flicked through tabs and browsers until he came to what he wanted.
"Watch this." Agreus said as he put the scroll in front of the headmaster.
"-ight, the Vale Museum of Huntsmen and Huntresses was attacked. Reports say that four guards are dead, but there are no other casualties. No one can really say what it was that destroyed the museum. Witnesses and first responders say that it was a fire, but only the central atrium of the building was even damaged. Fire also fails to explain the blue crystal that now makes up about half of the atrium."
The news broadcast panned from the reporter to the blue crystalized building behind her. Ozpin's eyes noticeably widened at the sight. The broadcast continued with some witness interviews. Ozpin handed the scroll back to Agreus.
"That was dust." Ozpin stated.
"Unbound dust." Agreus confirmed. "Whatever or whoever it was to attack the museum last night has developed a method of creating unbound dust."
"And the Pyre has no idea?" Ozpin asked.
"No one does, yet." Agreus answered. "I took some samples and sent them to a dust alchemist one of my Huntsmen knows, but I'm not holding out hope."
"And you think I can help?" Ozpin asked.
"Well, yes. Ozpin, I control pretty much everything in Vale. You however, have influence that reaches beyond. And you are recognized as one of the foremost experts on dust. Unbound dust does not occur naturally." Agreus stated.
"Or unnaturally in such quantities." Ozpin continued.
"I fear that this isn't the end, but the evidence doesn't lead anywhere." Agreus explained.
"That is interesting. And the other issue?" Ozpin prodded.
"We've had another round of Harvester murders." Agreus said.
"Great." Ozpin replied as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Again?"
"Unfortunately, yes." Agreus confirmed. "We have anomalies this time though. A link and an addition."
Ozpin stared pointedly at Agreus. "A link?"
"Yes. eight victims, all members of the Sanguine Pyre." Agreus said.
"It could be worse." Ozpin said.
"Ozpin, I am here for a ceasefire. I hate you and I know you hate me. We are trying to keep this on the down low as much as possible to avoid inciting mass panic. The least you could do is try to be accommodating." Agreus exclaimed.
"I don't hate you." Ozpin said.
"Oh yes you do. You've just deluded yourself into thinking otherwise." Agreus growled. "But that's beside the point. We are dealing with more than one Harvester killer this time."
The atmosphere grew tense. Ozpin could see that Agreus was close to snapping. He was quite confrontational when he was frustrated. Though, Ozpin was doing much to placate the man in front of him, who was growing increasingly irate as the seconds ticked on.
"You know what, forget it." Agreus snapped before getting up to leave. "I came here looking for peace, a truce, but you don't seem to want it. Can't look past the Pyre can you Oz?"
"Agreus, why do you hate me so?" Ozpin asked as Agreus called the elevator, conveniently ignoring Agreus's accusation.
Agreus turned his head sideways, just to glance back at the headmaster.
"You know why, Oz. Oh wait, you don't. You're just 'an old man whose memory isn't what it used to be'. Let me remind you." Agreus said as he tapped the fang in his ear. "You cost me a woman who was so close to me, that I considered her my sister. You cost me one of the only friends I have ever had. You cost me a member of my family."
The elevator arrived. Agreus stepped in and turned to Ozpin. He held the doors open for a second to speak.
"One more thing before I leave. I have allowed you to keep control of the school. However, as of this semester, I am overriding your authority. Starting this semester, the Sanguine Pyre will be providing a substantial security force for Beacon." Agreus said in a monotone, but commanding voice. "However, I am not without mercy. I will allow you the choice from a list of approved Huntsmen, Huntresses, officers, and other security personnel. The Pyre is fronting the bill, and I will expect an answer in two weeks. The list will be mailed to you soon."
Ozpin didn't say anything as Agreus removed his hand from the door. As it closed, Oz heard Agreus say one last thing.
"Honestly, Oz, I do hope you come around to my side. I tried to let our grievances go, at least for a short time." Agreus finished as the elevator began its descent.
Ozpin leaned back in his chair and turned to the window. The day looked far less cheery now than it had an hour ago. His scroll dinged, indicating a message. The list of approved security for Beacon. Ozpin sighed; this was going to be a long semester. He needed more coffee. He suspected though, that wasn't going to be as good as usual. Right now, though, he had an orientation speech to give. Ozpin got up and called the elevator. He'd have someone bring him a mug afterwards.
He'll have Ironwood look into previous Harvester cases. Maybe Atlas knew something Vale didn't.
Man, he really needed more coffee.
… /…
The warehouse was empty. Well, empty of life. It would do for a temporary base of operations. The loss of the Pyre was disappointing, but they had gained Torchwick, he would be such a useful and loyal lapdog. She was slowly working on the foolish leader of the White Fang. For now, though, they needed a place to lie low.
Their plans would happen, the problem was that the Pyre had too many eyes on the streets. Like Agreus said, he owned almost everything in Vale. It turned out that his boast of owning Beacon was hyperbole. It was the only thing that wasn't true.
That being said, it would be too dangerous for their plans if they began their crusade now. They would have the lapdog performing small crimes. Maybe some things he was already known and hunted for. Dust robberies would be among the less notable crimes.
Cinder smiled in satisfaction as they explored the warehouse. There were a few empty wooden crates on one side of the building, some large shipping containers, a set of stairs leading to a second-floor catwalk, and a guard office underneath them. It was a pretty standard Valean warehouse. There was only one thing odd about the warehouse. In the center of the room was a steel table. A flat steel table, directly under one of the lights.
"Cinder?" Emerald called.
Cinder turned to her pickpocket. The green haired girl walked towards her with a black leather briefcase. On the top was a five-digit gold combination lock. A gold plate existed on the front of the briefcase. The universal symbol for biohazard was engraved in the gold. No other identifying marks.
"I found something." Emerald stated the obvious.
Cinder took the briefcase. She would have inspected it further had she not heard humming and a slamming door. The three took a quick look at each. A silent command from Cinder told them to hide. They could not be revealed yet. Mercury hid behind a stack of crates. Emerald ran to a dark corner by the larger shipping containers and was presumably using her semblance to hide herself. Cinder ducked into the guard house.
The person was whistling a rather haunting tune. It sort of sounded like a waltz of some sort. The person stopped when he saw that the lights were turned on. Cinder assumed he just shrugged to himself before he shut off all the lights except the one over the table.
"Can't have any distracting lights, now can we." A slightly raspy, somewhat muffled, suave male voice said. "Augustus, guard the place. No entry or exit without my say so."
With lights off, Cinder peaked a glance at the newcomer. She couldn't tell much about him. The robe he wore led to many of his features being hidden. The fact that he was carrying a body certainly didn't help. She could see that he was a broad-shouldered individual, with quite some strength to him.
He reached the table and slammed the body down onto it. The body grunted in pain, and Cinder realized that the person was still alive.
"Oh, good. You're awake." The robed man said. "I was beginning to think that you would never awaken. Give me a second to grab my… tools."
The man glanced at the briefcase next to him.
"Huh, I could have sworn I left this in the guard house…" The man said confused. "Oh well. Old age must really be affecting my memory. Hm."
The man turned to the case. In the light, Cinder caught his profile. It was a beak, specifically the mask of an old plague doctor. An odd getup sure, but it would go well toward hiding an identity.
"You know, since you're awake, I can play some of my favorite music for you, would you like that?" The doctor asked.
The person on the table said nothing.
"I'll take your silence as a yes." The doctor said as he walked toward the guard house.
Cinder ducked under the desk. The doctor walked in and with hardly a look around, grabbed a small portable speaker. He walked back to the table in the center of the room where the man on the table was trying to escape. Cinder could definitely tell he was a man. He lacked the proper curves to be a woman.
"Now, now. We can't be having that." The doctor said as he struck the man. "Can't let you escape and return to your overlord."
He set about tightening the restraints on the man. He turned to the speaker and opened it up. In the dim light, Cinder saw him pressing a few buttons. It appeared to be a CD player. Old tech, to be sure. That thing was ancient in by modern tech standards.
"Tonight, I will play for you one of my favorite pieces of music." the doctor narrated as a haunting waltz like melody came through the speaker. It was the same melody he was humming earlier. "It was composed a few years ago by a person named Alex Roe. He called it Dance of the Blood drunk. The music has the most lovely melody with a fine operatic section and a choir of voices that enter about halfway through. I burned it onto a CD. Now I have it looped for a good hour on this disk. I love it and it helps me focus."
The music began to play as he opened the briefcase. He withdrew a syringe. Inside it was a dull blue liquid. He pressed the plunger down and tapped the needle a couple times.
"Now before we begin, I must tell you, as all good doctors do, that this won't hurt. The operation itself will hurt, but this part won't." The doctor said as he stuck the needle into the man's neck. "This needle will deliver a paralyzing agent straight to your vocal cords. You'll still breath, but you can't scream. You can't even talk. You can only breath. It will also have a minor effect on your nervous system. Enough to hinder movement, but not enough to halt feeling."
As he spoke, his voice grew less suave, more raspy, and more menacing. He lowered his hood and removed the mask. Cinder couldn't see him in the dull light. She could see a light blue glint though.
"Here's what's going to happen." His voice was old and raspy, menacing and slightly… artificial. Not robotic, per se, more like… an impressionist. Someone doing their best to mimic a voice and just barely missing it.
"Since you refuse to give information, I'm going to harvest you. Your blood is of good purity. A rather rare AB+. I haven't gotten to work with this one yet. This is exciting." The doctor said as he tore the man's shirt off.
The doctor rubbed his hands together, withdrew a scalpel from the briefcase and began cutting. The man tried to squirm in pain, but his movements were completely hindered by the restraints and paralyzing agent the doctor had used on the man. He tried to cry out in pain with each incision. No sound issued forth from his mouth. The only thing that could be heard was the haunting melody from the CD player and the doctor going about his work.
Cinder ducked back down into the booth. She could handle gore and blood just fine, but this doctor's work took it to a whole other medium. For him, it was an art. Make your victim's death as gruesome and gory as possible. She could handle a lot, but this was a bit more than she was used to.
At one point during the operation, Mercury tried to move to make an escape. He barely scuffed the floor with one of his boots. The doctor stopped what he was doing and launched several darts of some sort in Mercury's direction. None of them hit him, but it was pretty clear he knew what was going on in the warehouse without having to see anything.
Thinking on his words, Cinder realized that there was a possibility for who the doctor was. She had learned from Lady Salem about the psychopath known only as Doc Harvester. He would "harvest" his victims. Surgical removal of the blood and some of the organs was the killers general MO. Granted, the original killings happened almost one hundred and fifty years ago. There were copycats though. This man looked to be one of them.
The music stopped. A full hour had passed. Cinder chanced a look at supposed Doc Harvester. His victim was dead, and the doctor was cleaning up his utensils. Several packets of blood now lay next to the body, as well as the man's heart, one of his lungs, and what looked to be the liver. He threw the ribs he had broken into the open chest cavity. That done, the doctor got busy stitching the body back and speaking to it.
"I thank you for your patience. You have provided for me a great boon this night." He rasped as he finished closing the man's chest cavity. "Now, to find out why my briefcase wasn't in its proper place."
Cinder peaked out of the guard booth and watched. Harvester began walking around the warehouse. In the lowlight she couldn't really see much of the man, but she could see that he was ready. He eventually found his way towards the shipping containers Emerald had hidden amongst.
"Aren't you interesting?" Harvester said to no one in particular.
He continued his walk around the inside perimeter of the building. Eventually he reached the crates where Mercury was hiding. He stopped and looked down at them. She couldn't see him, but she could practically feel the smile that was surely gracing his face. His body language screamed of a delighted smugness. Harvester reached down to the ground behind the pile of crates, and Cinder knew the game was up.
"Well, well, well. What have we here?" Harvester asked. "A snake in the grass?"
With deceptive strength, Doc Harvester pulled Mercury from the crates. The assassin tried to fight back, but that is rather difficult to do when a man who towers over you is holding you by the ankle. A good hope on Mercury's side was the fact that he could reach the Doctor's arm. Unfortunately, every kick thrown at it did nothing more than make the doctor chuckle.
"Not gonna happen, son." The doctor said as he lifted Mercury above his head. "You aren't escaping this grip. I suggest your fellows come into the light, let us have a proper discussion."
"Let me go you bastard!" Mercury yelled in anger.
Cinder didn't move. Emerald didn't move. A few minutes of tense silence passed. The Harvester scowled.
"Or we don't have to. I wonder, who do you work for?" The doctor said, turning his attention to Mercury who was trying to escape.
He started squeezing Mercury's leg. The sound of metal grinding on metal could be heard. Metal was being crushed under the Harvester's grip.
"Prosthetics? How delightful." The Harvester said as he relented his grip on Mercury's ankle. "I do like a challenge. Tell me, would you rather be gutted or fileted?"
Mercury wasn't given a chance to answer. The doctor slammed the assassin into the table in the center of the room. A loud crack was heard, and Mercury groaned in pain. His struggling eased up a bit. The doctor slammed four light blue crystals into the steel bench. The four crystals began to grow over each of his limbs, effectively pinning him to the table.
"Now, that crack you heard was probably your back breaking. At best, I've only dislocated some of your vertebrae. Now here's what's going to happen, I'm going to ask you a question, you're going to answer. If I like your answer, you'll be rewarded. If I don't… well, you'll just have to see. Capiche?" Doc Harvester said.
"I'm not telling you anything." Mercury snapped.
"I don't like that answer." The doctor responded. "However, I'll let you have one freebie. First question, who are you?"
"Go to hell, you bastard." Mercury spat.
The doctor wiped the spittle off his face. Cinder could only assume that he was looking at Mercury with a look that just asked, really? The doctor sighed deeply.
"Very well then." The doctor said before turning to his briefcase. "I get to have a little fun."
The doctor opened the briefcase and pulled out a larger needle.
"Gonna inject me with a paralysis agent, you hack?" Mercury said angrily.
"Oh no, this needle isn't so much for injections, but it does wonders in the realm of torture." The doctor said, "You see, there are multiple places in the body where the nerves cluster. This needle has been specially treated to pierce auras, and flesh. Our first test is a bundle of nerves right behind the shoulder blade."
"You don't think I can handle pain, think again." Mercury responded with a smugness that Emerald really hated.
"Oh, my unnamed guinea pig, you don't know the meaning of pain." the doctor said as he slammed the needle into Mercury's shoulder.
Poor boy. He was an excellent assassin, and quite loyal. However, everyone had a breaking point. Even Mercury. Now, Mercury had quite a high tolerance to pain. Sure, he would be sore from the back injury, but that was nothing compared to some of the things he had gone through. However, nothing could have prepared him for the torture that Doc Harvester had in store.
The needle slid right through his aura, right through his flesh and he felt it slam into the bone. It gave a whole new meaning to the word pain. He cried out in pain. It was so bad, he felt tears begin to leak out of his eyes. He felt weak, like he would pass out any minute to protect himself from the pain. His scream would have been a lot louder had the doctor not slammed a heavy solid fist over his mouth.
He quickly extracted the needle. Blood coated the end, and Mercury could feel blood leaking from his shoulder.
"Ready to talk now?" The doctor asked.
"My name is… Mercury." He panted, weakly.
"That wasn't so hard now, was it? No, I thought not," Harvester rhetorically asked. "Now, why are you here? Who do you work for?"
"Not telling… you anymore… bastard." Mercury answered.
"Stubborn aren't you…" The doctor trailed off. When he turned back to Mercury, Cinder would have sworn she saw a lightbulb go off. "I can remedy that situation. How about another amputation? A little more off the legs? Your arms perhaps? Ooh, I know, how about the head? A good decapitation never hurt anyone."
Mercury didn't say anything. Cinder would have entered the room and said something. Surprisingly, it was Emerald who revealed herself first.
"Enough!" She tried to command. The quiver in her voice did little to dissuade the doctor.
"A thief in the shadow and a snake in the grass." Harvester commented. "But for whom do you work?"
"Let him go." Emerald said.
"I could, then I'd lose a bargaining chip. He's clearly a subordinate, and so are you. You don't have the spine to be a leader. Tell me girly, who do you work for?" Harvester commanded.
"Let him go, and I'll tell you." Emerald repeated.
"Hm… I think not." Doc Harvester said. "However, since I'm clearly not getting anything from him, what about you? Do you have as high a pain tolerance as he?"
Emerald didn't respond as the doctor threw four crystals at her. They grew around her and restrained her. She couldn't keep her balance and fell to her side. Cinder noticed that his arm was extended.
"Hm…" The doctor hummed as he turned back to Mercury. "So, it's obvious you're not of the Pyre. Their leader wouldn't hire boneheads such as you."
The Pyre? This guy was after members of the Pyre. Cinder could use that. Deciding not to risk the health of her lap dogs anymore, Cinder exited the guard booth.
"I would advise against harming them again." Cinder said in the sensual sinister voice she was known for.
The doctor turned to her. Cinder had to suppress a gasp upon seeing the man's face. The quarter of his face around his right eye was completely crystal. The crystal eye in the center moved as though it were still human. Through the crystal, she saw parts of his skull. His lower jaw was also completely crystal. One section of his head was so translucent that Cinder saw all the way into his skull. His brain looked relatively normal… or at least as normal as a partially crystallized human could be. His smile showed Cinder that all of his teeth were the same light blue crystal.
"Now you, are a leader. Your subordinates, I presume?" Harvester asked gesturing toward the two on the ground.
"Indeed." Cinder replied. "And I would appreciate it if you released them."
"Maybe. Depends on if I like your answer to my next question. Why are you here?" Harvester asked.
"We are looking for a temporary headquarters. We didn't know this place was in use so-" Cinder began.
"So, you hid as to avoid being spotted. Clearly you don't want Remnant knowing you're here. Very well, I'll release them. Of course, that is, if you'd be so kind as to give me names and explain to me why you're looking for a base of operations?" Harvester asked as he started circling around Cinder.
"That wasn't part of the deal." Cinder glared at the doctor while lighting up a fireball.
The slight glow of her dress did not go unnoticed by the doctor.
"I merely asked for your names. I can always force your hand." the Harvester responded.
He raised his right arm, clenched his fist and pulled it towards his body. Cinder's dress responded to the movement. It constricted around Cinder and pulled her toward the doctor. The smile on the insane man turned sinister. Cinder tried to burn him, but the fire dust refused to answer her command. Looking down, she noticed that her dress now had a light blue hue to it. The same light blue as the crystal on the Harvester's skull.
"Now will you answer my questions? Or do we have to take this further?" He asked, a hand clasped on her throat.
"We serve a mistress who intends to see Remnant changed." Cinder gritted her teeth.
"Changed?" Harvester asked. "How so?"
Cinder thought about her answer. This man was medically trained. Perhaps she could appeal to that training? Maybe, maybe not but she had to try.
"She sees Remnant afflicted with a disease. She wishes to cure it." Cinder answered.
Harvester raised his crystalline eyebrow. She had his attention. Now to reel him in.
"And what better way to cure a disease than to get a doctor to treat it?" Cinder asked.
"Interesting…" Harvester said as he set Cinder down.
He brought his hand to his chin. He stroked his nonexistent beard while he thought about the answers she had given him. He looked at Cinder, a small satisfied smile graced his face. He waved his hand and released Mercury and Emerald. Mercury was unconscious, the pain had taken it out of him. Emerald got up and began checking over him.
"I think we can work out a deal here. First though, your names?" The doctor asked.
"The one you tortured to unconscious is my assassin, Mercury Black. The girl stroking his hair and making sure he's alright is my right hand, Emerald Sustrai. I am their boss, Cinder Fall." Cinder answered.
"A pleasure. I am Doc Harvester." the doctor introduced himself with a bow. "And don't worry, your assassin will be fine. I can fix him. What can you do for me while I'm working for you?"
"What do you want?" Cinder asked. "I'm sure we can provide."
"Oh, is it that simple? In that case, I want you or someone working for you to take the attention of the Sanguine Pyre off of me." Harvester said. "Now what do you want of me?"
"That can be done." Cinder replied. "As for you, we will call you when we need you. A favor now for a favor later."
"Fair enough. Just know, I won't come if I'm in the middle of a harvest." Doc Harvester said.
"Understandable. I do have one more question for you." Cinder said. "What is the deal with the crystals?"
"Hah." Doc Harvester barked. "That my new friend, is a tale for another time."
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