Disclaimer: I do not own either RWBY or Star Wars
She was getting quite frustrated… certainly, matters in Atlas was proceeding fine…
But apart from that, things were not going well at all.
One of the weapon and supply caches that had remained after the operation in Vale had suddenly been stolen, the people meant to guard it either missing or dead, the team sent to recover some plans left behind after they moved from the old warehouse in Vale had been KIA and the plans were also gone.
And Roman Torchwick had dropped off the face of the earth, and was nowhere to be found… somehow.
She had considered whatever or not Roman was responsible for the trouble, but she dismissed it on the grounds that he wouldn't have been able to disappear so completely if he had.
That meant someone else out there had knowledge about their operations… and were against them.
She just didn't know who.
These thoughts ran through her mind even as she denied the possibility of treachery that had echoed in her mind ever since Roman left.
She couldn't have made such a gross miss-estimation, right?
And yet… she couldn't deny that Wayle Tyran had proved beyond estimation.
Yes… he was so much more than what could be seen from a glance, he seemed to hold power and experience beyond what she had first thought.
After all, it was obvious to her that he was no mere charmer… he was a manipulator that had the ability to see through her.
It was the only explanation. She had underestimated him, badly.
And now she paid the price for it.
She could only hope that she would be able to fulfil her revenge before he stopped her…
Even though that may have been preferable at this point…
-Break—
If there was one thing Latune had come to realise after a few days of observing Vale, it was that Yang was looking for Neopolitan… and Neopolitan was watching Yang…
It became almost amusing when one considered that she was observing both of them… although the petite multi-coloured woman was quite elusive for someone who stood out like a sore thumb.
Yang was easier to find, partly because there were only so many people with long golden-blonde hair about, and even fewer with even remotely similar clothing. But mostly it was just because she wasn't trying to hide…
And things tended to explode if she got really upset… Which happened a lot in her current somewhat stressed state.
Another was that, as a matter of fact, yes, Ruby and Weiss had somehow become a couple… which some might question all things considered.
Oh, and she had seen Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos partaking it what was suspiciously similar to dates.
And she didn't notice these things because it interested her… really…
Other than that…
Not much really, crime was down, mostly because Roman was gone, and there were almost no agents of the White Fang around.
It didn't help the few criminals and White Fang agents that they tended to meet unfortunate ends…
So yeah, everything was quite fine, and Master would hopefully be back soon.
She was actually getting a bit bored, especially after her third attempt to capture Neopolitan…
Yeah, she could see why people would call her Neo…
And seriously, was she mute or just didn't talk much? Because Latune hadn't heard her make a single noise…
Well… some noises, but she liked to pretend she never had…
It was a lot better for her wellbeing… and that of sever others around her.
-Break—
It was not often that the 'Lord' of the Army of Union actually showed himself…
So it was a pleasant surprise for all the people of the small town that was their base now when he showed up to personally deal with the horde of Grimm that had approached.
Pleasant surprise that turned into shock as he took on the Grimm, not by the walls as most would say was the only way, but by intercepting them while they were still quite a bit away, even drawing them all further away.
The events that followed would forever be carved into local legend…
From the walls the people watched as thousands of Grimm swarmed towards a lone figure, barely visible, if not for the fact that all Grimm were converging upon him.
And yet… the figure that should have fallen, swallowed by the dark tide stood firm, the frothing mass torn apart by masterful blade work, repelled violently by forces unseen or turned into ashes by arcing electricity.
While some might have heard of his achievements before, the stories that surrounded him were far too outlandish for anyone to take seriously… that is, until they experienced his power first hand.
They watched with bated breath as some of the most dangerous creatures known to man faced this lone person, the 'Lord' that now ruled their town… and died, even their great power, able to trouble even the best of Huntsmen and Huntresses, unable to take him on.
But even then the horde, suddenly closer to a swarm did not lessen. Even as thousands died more came.
And yet he did not falter, did not budge. The Grimm could not get close, he would not let them get close.
And when it finally seemed like he would fall, when he seemed to be overrun, a shockwave of power, a maelstrom of electricity burst forth from him, and turned all of his surroundings into a wrecked crater.
And with that, the Grimm withdrew, actually left the area, such was the power and devastation unleashed there.
And his only words as he returned, easily reaching the top of the wall, were:
"Forgive me, I attempted to keep damage to the surroundings at a minimum, but I underestimated their numbers." He said apologetically, his words carrying a hint of implication that, despite clearly having to have been able to see their numbers, he had thought it wouldn't be a problem.
And then and there, the people of that small town realised just what kind of being the Lord of the Army of Union was.
And their willingness to aid him increased, for he had saved them, yet asked nothing in return, and his followers simply kept aiding them, buying their supplies when they could and helping in various projects around the town.
For he was just and powerful, and as such they would not refuse his kindness, for it was great indeed.
And so the army garnered more power…
-Break—
"My Lord, if I may?" A strong and masculine yet youthful voice rang out from his left.
Wayle indicated his approval as he turned towards the person.
He was young, but with the build of a fighter, and he was Human. He was also one of many who had joined that he had yet to learn the names of.
The youth nodded and spoke up again. "Why are we carrying out all these menial tasks?" The question was not unexpected. Nor was it unwarranted.
Even so, he sighed slightly.
"Tell me, what good is an army, in times of peace?" He asked.
A slight look of confusion crossed the youth's face.
"But… we are not at peace, not truly. Nor can we ever be as long as the Grimm exist." Was the answer.
Not bad. He at least understood something.
"But is peace not our goal? What then, when it is achieved?"
"That… is not my place to say my Lord. Is it not yours?" The youth was confused.
It actually kind of offended Wayle.
So he snorted derisively.
"But it is. Regardless, an army's use during peace is for safeguarding and aiding the civilian populace. Be it disaster relief or reconstruction efforts, or simple things." He gave a small smile. "Or we could just be simple and call it gathering goodwill."
The youth seemed to struggle with the concepts slightly. "I… see. Of course my Lord, that is most certainly a most valid course of action." The youth said as he bowed slightly and excused himself.
Wayle was happy that things weren't going terrible… although as of yet they had not truly been tested.
First the White Fang… then…
"My Lord, as always, you see further than just the immediate future." A feminine voice that he most certainly could place floated in softly from behind him.
"Ouka, I thought I had made it clear, from now on I am not your Lord, but your Master." He sighed softly.
He had finally made good on his original promise to her. Not to help her as a Faunus, but to help her with her visions.
So he had started training her.
She was nothing like Latune in this regard. Where Latune was a capable tactician with great talent in controlling the flow of battle, Ouka was more suited to less violent methods.
So he had focused much more upon Empathy and meditation, to help supplement her skill in persuasion and to help her control her visions respectively.
As such, she was his Apprentice as well. She just hadn't taken to calling him Master all that quickly, but he found that being called 'Lord' by the person he was teaching was somewhat off-putting, so he insisted.
He just hoped Latune and Ouka wouldn't kill each other or something…
Although neither showed all that much tendency towards the Dark Side, so hopefully they wouldn't do something like that.
Actually, maybe he should have talked to Latune about that beforehand…
Oh, well… The die had been cast, nothing he could do about it now.
-Break—
Blake was convinced she was playing with fire, and yet she couldn't help but try to decipher Wayle's journal.
She wanted to, needed to know more about him… No matter if what she found out was terrible or admirable.
So far she hadn't really gotten anywhere. Wayle hadn't left any notes that indicated to her how to interpret the language. Although she had found what seemed to be references that compared it to some other language, she didn't understand it.
Chances were that the key to understanding that script without Wayle's help lay elsewhere…
But Blake didn't exactly have access to any other of Wayle's things, he simply didn't really have anything.
Still… even as she looked into it, she felt that she found glimpses of how he viewed the world around him.
She was certain that the notes were extensive, as it seemed to her as if the same subject stretched over several pages crammed with text and sketches.
Which she couldn't help but admire. It was apparent that Wayle had learnt well how to sketch things, and his sketches captured quite nicely many aspects of the things one could find in Remnant…
Which brought the unfortunate implication that chances were good that wherever he came from, the frightening beasts that were depicted on the earlier pages actually existed, and that he was familiar enough with them that he could produce detailed sketches of them.
There was another sketch that really caught her eyes though. If only because of the mostly humanoid appearance of the face sketched out.
The general shape was that of a Human or Faunus, but there were ridges on the forehead that looked pretty hard, and tendrils extended from the cheeks.
Blake didn't know who it was, and she felt relatively certain that it was a who, not a what, but she felt relatively certain that it was an important figure in Wayle's life.
This was further reinforced by what could only be a sketch of Amara on the following page.
This actually made Blake consider telling Wayle to sketch her, as she didn't feel it was fair that there was one of Amara.
It also made her wonder what Amara actually had meant, as well as the exact identity of the other figure.
Although a nagging feeling told her that whoever it was, that person was part of the deep darkness in Wayle's heart.
And in passing a name crossed her mind. Darth Melaion. Could that be him? She didn't know. Her eyes lingered on a random page that had caught her eyes because there seemed to be some sort of stains on it.
And on that page was a sketch of what she assumed to be a planet, as well as a few half-finished sketches of people and landscapes…
And in her mind, a memory of something Wayle once said popped up unbidden.
'It was a dream about the destruction of my birthplace…'
Author's notes: So... is this what one would call filler? Because I can't really tell. Also, Wayle is probably really overpowered. Not really much I can do about that any more apart from trying to write around it. I blame Star Wars and the really undefined limits of the Force and the amount of power Force Users are depicted having in the Extended Universe. But that's really just a bunch of excuses. And I'm rambling, so I should stop.
I hope you enjoyed and that you have a nice day.