This is the third chapter of the "Ghost of Vale."
Jaune Arc was by no means having good time. He had been fine at first. The winds even carried him to Vale faster but it didn't stop there it kept on blowing him until, he in a desperate attempt to stop moving plummeted straight into a sewer gutter.
"Oh, this is just great." Echoed a voice no one heard. "I mean I know I can't touch the stuff, but landing in…you know what I'm out." Rising he stuck his head out of the cement. Only to feel the tugging feeling of the wind starting to pull at him. Moving beneath the ground again he sighed. "Ok, new plan finding an outlet out of the sewer that is surrounded by walls preferably." Resignedto the fact that he would have to find a new way out he started exploring the tunnel.
"Weird. I still feel grossed out, but I can't quite smell anything at least sort of…?" Stopping he looked around. He could almost smell everything, kind of like when you see something and that smell comes to mind or if your nose is plugged but you can still smell it. Looking around he shook his head he muttered "I can figure this out after I get out." Grumbling about lame smells and bad vision he kept moving.
An hour later…
A black alley cat was sitting on a dumpster. It was eying a mouse preparing to pounce….and now- it was startled by a loud "Finally!" Surprised the cat fell off the dumpster and the mouse ran for it. Blinking in surprise it knew something was in front of it but what?
"What are you looking at?" the grumpy voice seemed to reach into its skull. Hissing the cat looked around for the source. "What's this? I feel something strange coming from you…" The alley cat continued to hiss finally making something out some dim outline… "Can you see me too? I mean I always thought cats were soulless but not literally." The cat felt its hair stand on end as the specter started to take a more material form. "Now I know I'm feeling something weird coming from you…I wonder…" The cat was paralyzed it wanted to move but couldn't do it. The specter moved its hand into the cat.
"Whoa!" He could read its mind like he read the Grimm's, but it felt different this cat definitely had a soul. He could feel a warmth that he couldn't with the Grimm. "..and I can see what you've seen…"
He could clearly watch through the cat's memories. The pounce the cat had been about to make, the bird it had eaten two days ago, a man in a bowler hat robbing a dust store, all the back alleys, and its fear of him and what he was.
"So that's what that was, I felt your fear…?" He paused "How can I feel fear from another creature? Or is it just this cat…?" Muttering he moved his hand. The cat sat motionless for a moment then bolted out of the alley. "Oh, he escaped ah well I've probably traumatized it." He then felt the same feelings he had felt from the cat echoed behind him in smaller quantities turning he saw some mice looking at him before fleeing. "Well that might have just been a fluke either way its time to get out of this alley. Also, might be smart to wait on the whole test on human thing at least for now." He didn't notice how he was giving off a faint light or how he's eyes glowed white (guess he should have cheeked the cat's memories for what he looked like) or how after all the creatures left how he faded. His Voice a whisper in the still blowing wind "Guess I should look for a way out of here."
Moving through the city of Vale avoiding any areas with heavy wind he was surprised by the amount of people out at night. "If that cat's memory was something to go by then there are a fair share of crimes going on in the back alleys and dust shops...well that's kind of odd." Well not the back-alley part even Jaune could see the sense in that. The dust robberies were strange though.
"Come to think of it, wasn't there a news report on the airship heading for Beacon about some guy stealing dust…oh what was his name?" Thinking back on it the seen came back in full clarity. "I remember! Roman Torchwick! Yup that's the one." Blinking he stopped. Had he just remembered something with perfect clarity? Thinking about it he could still remember everything the cat's memory had shown him as well as the Geist's "Well, I guess if I'm a different state of being my memory will be different too. Huh." Thinking about what the cat had shown him he started moving again. "Let's see it's a little hard to tell but looks like the cat saw Torchwick robbing another dust shop, guess he wants dust for some reason." Shrugging he weaved through the crowd. Only to stop five seconds later.
"Well, what do you know." Down the street next to a café there was police investigating what looked like a smashed-up dust store. "It really is dangerous here."
Moving closer heard the cops giving their theories on the matter "-looks like White Fang work, but no sure way to tell." Sighed a tired officer.
"Stupid beasts robbing a dust store but not taking the money." Snarked another
"Well that's hardly fair, it could just be they wanted the dust and don't call them beasts." Said a third.
"Oh, here we go." Sighed the first, as their other companion started the glare at the second.
"I can call them what I want, they're robbing dust shops so the mongrels are showing what they are really like, so what?" snarked the second.
"Ok. Awkward and I'm dead, I'll just take a look inside the shop and leave them to it." With his sympathies residing with the first for having two companions that were both failing at their job, he moved through one of the broken windows. "Not sure who the White Fang are but they sound like they're up to no good. Honestly though, I have my thoughts pegged on a different culprit." Inside the shop he saw destroyed shelves and some dust shards scattered across the floor.
There was also what looked like a detective and a huntsman talking together. "…and the footage?"
"It was Torchwick. However, his men were dressed like White Fang." Explained the detective.
"So, was it attempt to pin this on the White Fang or was it actually them?" Asked the huntsman.
"No, way to completely tell, some did look like faunus but they could be fake to frame them."
"Makes sense but why do that and not hide yourself?"
"Hmmm, not sure…"
"Well mind if I look at the footage?"
"Sure, but you'll have to come with me." As the detective and huntsman walked out discussing the robbery, they turned off the lights. They also didn't see Jaune floating there thinking.
"I wonder maybe if I sit here long enough." He nodded. "There might be a witness to confirm."
Besides it not like he could go to Beacon with the wind blowing the way it was, he might as well kill time while waiting. Looking around it was hard to see the signs but maybe… "There!" A mouse trap. "A little odd finding a mouse trap here, but there is a café next door so maybe the rodent problem ebbs over…perfect." Smiling, He moved into the wall, "Come here little mice~ come to your uncle Jaune~"
Mice did hear him and shivered.
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Detective Goodman opened the room to the video footage for the dust shop to take the robbery footage to HQ so they could analyze it better. He and huntsman Brown had talked and looked over the footage long enough. They talked about the possibility that the White Fang might be trying to frame Torchwick as well vice versa along with a dozen other possibilities…no concrete proof to be one way or the other.
"Oh well." Walking over to the memory drive and glanced at the current video screen then froze. Turning to look at the current footage he could have sworn he saw a young man glowing for a moment. "Stress of the day…" as he began to turn away, he heard a sound that made his hairs stand on end.
Laughter. Echoing. Haunting. Laughter.
It seemed to come from the walls themselves. Looking around he was unnerved. "Eh, likely one of those cops." He glanced at the footage again the screen darker because of the lights being off still could make out the empty front room. "Maybe, he just had a big laugh-" He faltered for the frame that he was looking at surveyed the room he was in and he saw…! Whipping around he froze.
No one was there.
Looking around the room he saw nothing. Turning his gaze back to the footage he couldn't see anything either "I-I think I'll just take the recording and leave now." Grabbing the memory drive, he briskly walked out of the room into the front of the store walking to the door he could see the others when home, (it was late at night) and opened the door. That's when it happened. An event that both parties didn't realize would change both their future's.
"He almost killed Ruby…"
Stopping Goodman turned around, and nothing. Turning on his flashlight he looked around the room. "Um hello?" He called nervously.
"He was here…. He was HERE!" The voice loudly echoed through the building causing the detective to jump almost a foot in the air. Looking around franticly he wondered if a sound system had been put in for a practical joke…
"Oh." Was he could manage as he dropped his light. For there in the middle of the room was the illuminated form of a young formless knight eyes empty and lit up with a white light.
"…..Torchwick did this!~"
Goodman didn't hear the rest for the wind picked up. The apparition laughed seeming to not have cared what saw it then disappeared. Goodman did what any smart person would do and ran for it leaving his flashlight behind barley noticing the mist that came in as well as the strong winds. All he could hear was the haunting laughter of a being that Monty Oum knows should not exist.
Thank you for reading the third chapter of "The Ghost of Vale." I would have had the third chapter out already but a friend of mine was literally struck by lighting and my wi-fi was also fried by the same bolt. Any constructive criticism is welcome. I also liked some of the thoughts presented. Hope your having a good day and that this story has been entertaining thus far.
-Lord Johnsen the 18th