AUTHOR'S NOTES: The calm before the storm chapter. Next up will be the Battle of Haven chapters.
Lossiemouth
Northern Scotland, Menagerie
20 June 2001
Sienna Khan sat on the rock, watching the sea crash against the shore. It was a cloudy, cold morning, but she didn't notice, other than tightening her cape closer around her body. The sun was rising, burning away the clouds, but Sienna didn't see it as an omen.
"Good morning, High Leader."
She turned. Adam Taurus walked to her side, one hand on his sword as usual. "There's nothing good about it."
"I suppose not," he sighed. "So…what is our next move?"
She picked up a pebble and threw it into the ocean. "We have to lie low for a time, I'm afraid. The failure of the raid on the Belladonnas will cost us a great deal of goodwill and political capital. The defection of Ilia Amitola badly compromises our security." She smiled wanly. "Well, we've done this before when the heat has gotten too much. We will rebuild and come back stronger than before."
"Where will we go?" Adam asked.
"We still have a base in South America." She shrugged. "I would suggest the Russian Dead Zones, but I imagine Salem won't be happy with us."
"And Haven—Japan?"
Sienna shook her head. "Ilia knows that plan. I'm afraid it's compromised as well."
"I warned you not to trust her," Adam reminded.
"Yes, you did." She looked behind her, and saw her remaining White Fang gathering by the hangar. There were still a fair number of them, and there were still cells worldwide. They'd suffered a setback, a grevious one, but not a fatal one. "I suppose I should address them." She got off the rock, dusted off her skirt, and walked towards the gathering, Adam at her side. "I'm sorry you'll have to wait for your revenge on Blake Belladonna," she said.
"We'll see," was all he answered.
Sienna stopped about twenty paces from the crowd. "White Fang!" she spoke loudly, letting none of her sorrow or worry enter her voice. "I will not lie to you! We have suffered a defeat the past few days, with the loss of the Tabey seat and the failed raid on the Belladonna Lodge and Glasgow Airport. Added to this is Sister Ilia turning traitor. However, though these events are indeed defeats, we must not despair!"
"What will we do, High Leader?" a wolf Faunus in the front row asked.
"We will go quiet for awhile. We will relocate our base elsewhere—Menagerie will be too difficult for now, and too close to the British. We will gather our strength, plan anew, build anew, and come back stronger than before!"
Sienna halfway expected a cheer. There was nothing but sullen silence. Very well, she thought. They're angry and upset. Good. I can channel that into hard work. "We have much to do and little time," she told them, in a less strident voice. "Let's go to work. Dismissed."
"No." The word came from Adam. Sienna whirled on him, and he gazed back calmly through the mask.
"What did you say?" she shrilled.
"I said no." To her surprise, he stepped forward and raised his voice. "The High Leader is not wrong, White Fang. We have suffered defeats. The raid on the Belladonna Lodge was worse than a defeat—it was a mistake. Attempting to win a political solution through the Menagerie Council was a mistake. Putting our faith in pirate gangs like the Torchwick Gang was a mistake. And each time, these mistakes have cost us valuable people, time, and equipment." He glanced back at her. "And each one of these mistakes was planned and executed by High Leader Sienna Khan."
"You son of a bitch," Sienna exploded at him. "You agreed to every one of those, you bastard!"
"I did," Adam admitted. "And I made a mistake. And I intend to rectify that."
"Oh?" Sienna raised an eyebrow. "And what is your plan, Adam?"
"We will attack Haven as agreed upon. Because that plan is not a mistake."
Sienna laughed derisively. "Attack a prepared target?"
"Not a prepared target," Adam told her. "Ilia thinks she knows what the target is. She's wrong. Haven is not the base she thinks it is." He turned his back on her, and saw Hazel Rainart at the periphery of the crowd, his powerful arms crossed across his broad chest, but his address was to the White Fang. "Listen to me, my brothers and sisters. We can win a war against the humans, and we will not win this war by retreating and hiding. We, the Faunus, are the dominant species on this planet. We're better than humans. We have everything they have and more. Humans shouldn't just fear the Faunus…" his lips curled into a smile, a smile he saw reflected on many of the White Fang "…they should serve the Faunus." There was no cheer, but there was a rumble of agreement; there were smiles, nods, snarls, and clenched fists.
"I've had enough of this, you fucking lunatic." Sienna motioned to the two burly Faunus that were her bodyguards. "Take him away. Lock him in the toilet until Adam recovers what's left of his senses." The guards did not move. "I said, arrest him!"
"On what charge?" one of the guards replied. Then they did move—to stand next to Adam.
"It appears that you have no support," Adam told her.
"A coup, then?" Sienna snorted, and raised her voice. "You would follow a madman?" she told the crowd. "A Faunus that is obsessed with Ghira Belladonna's daughter, and would lead you into ruin so he can have his petty revenge on her for leaving him?"
"Better a madman," said Adam, "than an incompetent."
Her fangs bared in a snarl. "If you think I'm going to just step aside and follow beneath you, you're wrong."
"I know." Adam drew his sword.
Sienna considered asking for a sword or a spear to make it a trial by combat, but realized that her chances of winning were remote; Adam was a superb swordsman. And even if she did manage to win, the White Fang were no longer hers to command. She was dead either way. She stepped to one side. "Is this your choice, White Fang? To follow this lunatic?" The stares she got were mostly hostile; a few were sympathetic, but too few, and even those looked at her with pity.
She was going to die. Sienna was surprised at how calm she felt. She had tried hard, fought hard, and she had failed. Now she would perish at the hands of her own second-in-command, a man she had groomed to take over if something should happen to her. She had exploited Adam's ambition, and now it would cost her life.
So be it, Sienna thought. At least she would be spared the indignity of prison.
She looked at Adam. "At least let me pick where I die. And do it yourself, you bloody fool. Don't hand it off to these hamhanded idiots." She motioned at her former bodyguards.
"Naturally," Adam replied.
Sienna turned around and returned to the seashore. She heard Adam walk up behind her, and the crowd at a respectful distance. "I won't die on my knees," she told him without looking at him.
"I wouldn't ask you to do that, Sienna."
She faced the rising sun. "It's a beautiful morning, you know that?" She blinked back tears. She would not cry. She would not scream. No matter how much she wanted to do both.
She felt the cold steel of the sword against the back of her neck. "I suppose it's overly dramatic," Adam said, "but do you have any last words?"
"Apres moi le deluge," Sienna answered after a time. "And don't make a hack job of it, Adam. I'd prefer not to suffer."
"Certainly. Goodbye, Sienna."
Adam kept his word. The sword cut was clean. Sienna Khan died instantly, a faint smile on her face. Blood poured into the sea, staining the sand red; her body spasmed twice and was still. Adam washed the blade in the surf and replaced it in its scabbard. He turned to the White Fang. "Give our leader a proper burial. Our official statement was that Sienna was murdered by a human assassin. She will become a martyr for our cause—her final act as High Leader."
"All hail High Leader Adam Taurus!" the wolf Faunus shouted, and the White Fang answered with a cheer of affirmation.
Adam bowed to them. "I will do my best to serve you, White Fang. My first act as High Leader is to tell you to prepare to move—to Haven. We leave tonight. That puts us on the ground by tomorrow morning. It will be a long flight, but we will make it."
"That doesn't give us much time," another Faunus said.
"I know. It will be difficult, but the traitor Ilia has undoubtedly told the humans that we will attack in two or three days. Imagine the humans surprise when we launch the assault tomorrow afternoon!" He clapped his gloved hands together. "Now let's move! We will strike first, fast, and hard!" Another cheer erupted from the White Fang, and they began running back towards the hangars. Four—including Sienna's former bodyguards—detached themselves from the crowd, and took Sienna's body and head to be washed and buried. Adam watched, and noticed Hazel had joined him. "You may tell your mistress that the attack on Haven will proceed as planned. The attack will not be on Matsushima or Atsugi. It will be at Ashiya."
"Close enough to major population centers to make a statement, but far enough that a JASDF counterattack will not devastate you," Hazel observed. "A good plan."
"And close enough to cover your true objective," Adam smiled. Hazel stared at him, and Adam laughed. "Our former Sister Ilia informed me that there is something on Tsushima that you want. She didn't know what it was, and I don't care. I imagine she was instructed to leak that to me so I would ask you, and inadvertently inform her of the real objective of Salem's attack." He shrugged. "It doesn't matter. We get what we want, and Salem gets what she wants. Your mistress was concerned about Sienna's willingness to cooperate. Now she doesn't need to be."
"A bad business," Hazel said, watching Sienna's body carried off.
"This was my business, not yours." There was enough steel in Adam's voice to warn Hazel. Then his voice softened a little. "Do you speak French, Hazel?"
"I do."
"I'm afraid I never learned the language. It's rather odd, I admit…I was born in the United States, I've lived much of my life in Europe, and I've studied in Japan. I speak fluent Japanese, and passable German, and even a smattering of Russian. But I've never learned French." He looked at Hazel. "Do you know what Sienna said, before she died?"
Hazel smiled, but there was no humor in the smile. "Apres moi le deluge. It was reportedly the last words of Louis XVI, the French king executed at the beginning of the French Revolution. He too was beheaded." He shook his head, still smiling. "It means 'after me, the flood.'"
"Flood?"
"Prophetic words, Adam," Hazel answered. "After Louis was executed, it unleashed the Reign of Terror….and the people that executed the king themselves died in the same fashion."
Naval Air Station Atsugi
Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
20 June 2001
"I was wondering when you'd show up," Qrow Branwen grinned.
"We meet again, at the turn of the tide," Rissa Arashikaze smiled back.
"Okay, Gandalf." Qrow took a pull at his flask. He leaned against the desk in the ready room Reaper Flight—now split into Ruby Flight and Norn Flight—had been using. It was as secure a place as any. The diminutive CIA director sat in one of the seats. The dark circles under her eyes betrayed she hadn't slept well in awhile; she cradled a cup of coffee in her hands. "Thing is, I don't exactly see the turn of the tide here. Things aren't good."
"It could be worse. The White Fang's attempt to kill the Belladonnas and end any chance of the Faunus of Menagerie coming to assist Japan backfired badly. From what Ilia Amitola has told me, over five hundred Faunus have signed on to help. They'll be arriving in Japan tomorrow night." She took a drink of the coffee. "It will be rough losing my only asset inside the White Fang, but better that than lose Ilia."
"The Faunus will be a big help," Qrow said, "but we've still got the fact that we've lost almost thirty Huntsmen and Huntresses. We're not helpless or anything, but that's not a good situation." He paused. "Especially given who ordered those thirty out."
"Yes, I know." Arashikaze finished her coffee. "I'm working on that." She sighed. "Major Branwen…I know it should be Ozpin sitting here giving these orders, and giving out sage wisdom. Not me. I can't replace that man." She laughed softly. "I'm already missing my cushy desk job back at Greenbrier. I haven't been field personnel in a long time."
"Why not send out agents?"
"Three reasons." Arashikaze ticked off the points on her fingers. "One, you won't trust strangers. You barely trust me. Two, I can't be completely sure Salem hasn't infiltrated the CIA. The problem with being a spy: you see shadows everywhere. And three, the CIA has always been something of a sieve. There's always leaks. With Ironwood ramming Reforger down the EU's throat and the rest of the world wondering just how many orbital weapons the United States has, our reputation isn't the best on the planet right now. The last thing we need is a leak that our supposedly elite pilots have either died, disappeared, or been transferred away from the next hotspot. Or worse, the press gets word about Salem." She rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Worldwide panic is not something we need either."
Qrow's reply was interrupted by a ring from his phone. He got it out of his pocket and flipped it open. "Qrow, talk to me." He nodded his way through the conversation. "Yeah. You're sure? Okay…you passing this on to the JASDF? Great…yeah, we'll be up. I'll have them sitting ramp alert. You just give us the word." He was quiet for a moment. "Quick question: how did you get this info?" Qrow went silent again. "Yeah…yeah, that sounds legit. Okay. Thanks, Leo. Much appreciated." A last pause, and then a derisive laugh from Qrow. "Yeah, I wish you were going up with us too. Talk at you later." He flipped the phone shut. "Speak of the devil," he told Arashikaze. "That was Leo Lionheart. He says he's got actionable intelligence of a large GRIMM raid over the Sea of Japan tomorrow. He wants us to be ready to scramble in the morning."
Arashikaze considered that. "Where did he get this intel?"
"Contact in the Malachite Gang."
"Interesting. The Malachites do have contacts in Siberia. That's almost plausible…if we didn't know who Leo is actually working for." She nodded, half to herself. "The GRIMM raid is cover. The real attack will come at Tsushima. The question is, who will carry it out?"
"You think the White Fang will attack too?" Qrow asked.
"Not likely. Right now Sienna Khan is running for her life. The last thing on her mind is going through with an attack on 'Haven.'"
Qrow nodded as well. "Maybe Cinder Fall's bunch, if she's still alive. Maybe even my sister, though Salem would really have to pony up something to get her out of California. You think it's a trap?"
"Yes," Arashikaze answered simply.
"Me too," Qrow sighed. "Me too."
Misawa Air Base
Aomori Prefecture, Japan
20 June 2001
Leonardo Lionheart stared at his office phone, lost in thought until Raven Branwen, sitting in a chair across his office, broke into them. "You know, I have some questions for you."
"You're not alone in that," Lionheart replied.
She got up and walked over to his desk, leaning against it. Raven was dressed casually, and the skirt she wore ended well above her knees. "I never expected you would be the one to betray Oz. So I have to wonder…what does Salem have on you?"
"I'm helping her for the same reason you are," Lionheart snapped back. "I'm afraid. We can't stop Salem. No one can."
Raven nodded. "That's why I left Strike Flight when I did. I'm not afraid; I'm smart."
"Call it whatever you want. It doesn't really matter. We're both here, helping her." He put his face in his hands. "We've crossed a line. I've done things…things that Ozpin would never forgive. Things that I will never forgive. I don't know where I go from here, Raven. I have nothing left."
To her mild surprise, Raven found herself feeling sorry for the old Faunus. He'd married late in life, and Raven remembered his wife well. Dorothy Lionheart had been a lot like Summer Rose. Of course, Summer at least had died where her family could not see her; Dorothy had crashed at an airshow, right in front of her husband and toddler daughter. It had broken him. She reached across and took one of his hands. "You did what you had to survive," Raven said gently. "There's no shame in that."
Lionheart looked up at her, and Raven withdrew her hand: behind the eyes, there was a fire, one she hadn't expected to see. "Who are you trying to convince, Raven—me or yourself?"
Raven stared back at him in shock for a moment, then scowled. "That's what I get for showing sympathy. Fuck you, Leo." She turned and stormed out of the office, before Lionheart realized just how hard those words had struck home.
Lionheart waited until the slam of the door finished reverberating through the office. Then he slowly got up from his chair and opened the door to the side office. A quick look showed no one there. He went in, checked the bathroom, then sat on the toilet and closed the door. It was as secure as he was going to get.
He opened his cell phone.
"Self-righteous old prick." Raven was still grumbling to herself. The base was quiet; it was after five o'clock, and the sun was going down. One shift was getting off and going to look for something to eat; the other had just started. Other than to admire her legs, no one paid any mind to her.
There were loudspeakers mounted around the base, and they crackled. Raven instantly stopped out of nothing more than instinct. The crackle was replaced by a tinny recording of bugles playing Retreat. Remembering, she turned in the direction of where she thought the flag was and came to attention. Raven noticed two airmen running for the library doors, so they would not have to stand outside. "Hold it!" Raven shouted. Her voice, used to command, was obeyed. "You stand for your anthem, you fucking idiots!" Both airmen came to attention, not sure why they were listening to a civilian, but assuming that, by the tone of her voice, she must outrank them. Raven was oddly glad of their presence; it gave her something to take out her temper on.
The Star Spangled Banner came on a moment later; she was sure that the USAF had a standard issue recording of it, since it was the same she had heard at every base in her career. Raven brought up her hand and executed a perfect salute. It had been years, decades since she'd last done this. Part of it was to maintain her cover; part of it was simple memory. With a start, Raven realized the last time she had stood at attention like this was at Summer's funeral.
She held the salute until the last notes died away. The two airmen, with one last fearful glance at her, retreated into the library. Raven turned and, to her surprise, Vernal was standing a few paces behind her, bringing her hand off of her heart. She quirked a smile at Raven. "I can't believe I remembered that! I haven't stood for the anthem since I was little. Hell, I haven't even heard the anthem since I was little."
"Mm," Raven grumbled. She began walking again, and Vernal hurried to catch up. "What did Lionheart say?" she asked.
"He informed Qrow and his little helpers that tomorrow's the big day. He'll scramble Reaper or Ruby or whatever they're calling themselves in the morning. We'll nail them over the Sea of Japan."
"I guess that sounds okay. What about the other bunch?"
"Cinder? She'll rendezvous with us at the appointed time tomorrow afternoon. The White Fang will hit Ashiya first—Leo got the call right after I got there. They'll be coming in on a charter flight. They'll have to pour on the coal to make it, but that nutcase Adam Taurus is leading them now. He'll get them there." She kept her voice low, but no one noticed them.
Vernal nodded, and rubbed her wrist, where the Maiden controller was. "I wish I felt better about this."
"I'm not crazy about it myself," Raven admitted. "Mainly because Salem is going to betray us the first chance she gets. I imagine Cinder has orders to kill us as soon as we open up JINN for her."
Vernal missed a step. "Then why the hell are we helping her?"
Raven sniffed a laugh. "Because we're going to betray her first, Vernal. The moment you get that vault open on Tsushima, I'm going to put three feet of cold steel through Cinder's back. And then I'm going to take JINN for the tribe." She put an arm around Vernal. "And then Salem is going to have to do more than just stop threatening us…unless she wants the whole fucking world to know about her."