Chapter 5: Headmistresses and Hijinx
"We've got one injured!" Harvey called as he exited, gesturing to Zed, who came out shortly after with a limp in his gait. A few officers grabbed him by the shoulders, and lead him to the open trunk of a van, where he sat down on the lip. Harvey moved to speak with a tall woman off to the side, who was wearing a short but gaudy purple cape.
"Alright, uh, tell me where it hurts?" Zed's attention was then drawn to the short woman standing in front of him. She was young, in her early twenties, and was dressed in standard white military fatigues, but she had somehow managed to incorporate a knee-length skirt. There was a blue plus-sign emblazoned on her right shoulder. Her large, blue eyes were staring at Zed, slightly unsure.
"Lower chest and abdomen," Zed replied. "Blunt force. I may have sustained additional injuries."
"U-hm. Alright, let me just take a look here…" She brushed her hair to the side, and hesitantly began to inspect the indicated region. Zed was unsure what exactly was causing her nervousness, but he figured he would try a technique he learned from Kayn, in this situation.
"You know, I won't bite."
She paused and looked up, likely bewildered that something as sinister-looking as this huntsman was even capable of uttering a joke.
Zed attempted to smile with his eyes. It probably didn't look very friendly.
"R-Right, sorry. It's just, things have been a little crazy recently, and I didn't expect something to happen at two in the morning...Oh! It looks like you've taken some buckshot. Let me just grab that out."
"Wait, what are you-"
Zed's muscles tightened and he stifled a curse as this seemingly docile woman jammed the tweezers into his wound, and pulled out a small metal ball that had been embedded in his side. Good to know that the mannerisms of medical professionals transcended dimensions.
"There you are! All better." She gave him a pat on the head.
"Don't patronize me," Zed grumbled.
"Don't worry silly, nobody likes being shot! Now I just have to fix you up." Her hand began to glow a baby blue as she reached towards Zed's injury.
He stopped the movement halfway. "What are you doing?"
"Healing you. With my semblance."
"And how does that work, exactly?"
"It's easy! I just push some of my aura into you, and it'll just-" She made a motion with her hands by interlacing her fingers. "-come together!"
"...I don't know if that's a good idea."
"Oh, relax. I've done it a hundred times before."
Zed was unsure of the nature of aura. Semblances, from what he understood, were personal skills somehow manifested from this "aura," but other than that, he was clueless.
"If you're sure…"
The girl hovered her hand over the damaged area, and a strong tickling sensation came over his chest. The feeling wasn't entirely unfamiliar. He had encountered multiple summoners during his time battling in the League, and naturally one of them had cast "Heal" on him previously. The effect was almost identical. His flesh and bones had knit themselves back together within seconds. She seemed to stagger for a moment, her eyes rolling to the back of her head, before they snapped back into place and she regained her balance.
"Are you alright Ms…?"
"Alice, and yes, I'm fine. It just takes a little bit out of me." She smiled a fake smile to complement her lie, but Zed didn't bother questioning it.
He instead nodded and stood up, stretching his muscles. Good as new.
"Well, thank you Ms. Alice," Zed bowed, "I suppose I owe you a debt of gratitude."
"Just doing my job! Anyway, I've got other people to check, so I better get to it." Zed observed as she half-walked-half stumbled over to Karl and the Overseer whose name Zed could not recall. The ninja opted to join up with Harvey, who seemed to be wrapping up his conversation.
"Hey, Zed, I was just about to come over," the man greeted. "There's someone I wantcha to meet. Glynda?" Harvey gestured over to the woman next to him, who stood ramrod straight, with a nice-looking pleated top. Her blonde hair in a bun, and a pair of ovular glasses were pushed to the top of her nose. The poise in her stature reminded Zed somewhat of Fiora. He didn't care very much for Fiora.
"Mr. Zed, was it? My name is Glynda Goodwitch." She nodded.
"Just Zed," he answered, with a nod of his own.
"She works directly under Ozpin, the headmaster of Beacon Academy." Harvey added.
"Yes," Glynda began, "And I'd like to thank you for your assistance in this rather tenebrous matter. Needless to say, your efforts saved many lives today."
"Of course. I must ask, however, what became of those in the disconnected portion of the train?"
Her stone-cold visage faltered for a moment. "Thirteen of the civilians had already been killed by the time our evacuation team arrived. Everyone else was retrieved safely, disregarding a few minor injuries, thanks to the intervention of our Beacon staff. I'll personally send condolences to the families of the lost." She cleared her throat; a clear indication she wanted to change topics. "Now, this is all fairly standard regulation, so if you would just show me your Huntsman license, you can be on your way, unless you wish to speak to the press."
Zed was about to voice that he didn't have a Huntsman license because he wasn't a Huntsman, but as he took in a breath to respond, he saw Harvey standing behind Ms. Goodwitch, and he was shaking his head frantically; making a "cutthroat" motion with his hand.
Zed needed an excuse. "O-Of course. Allow me to just…" He feigned checking a pocket, and then proceeded to theatrically pat around himself in an attempt to seem surprised. "I'm afraid I don't have it with me. Perhaps I lost it when recovering from my injuries?"
Glynda let out an impatient sigh, before expanding her holographic tablet and bringing up a menu. "It's fine. Simply give me your full name and Huntsman ID number, and I should be able to confirm your identity."
Blast! "Yes. Birth name is Zed..." He paused, both to find a proper answer, and because he saw Harvey making a "poof" motion with his hands some twenty feet behind Goodwitch.
"Zed…?" Glynda asked in an elongated manner, anticipating a last name.
"I-"
The ninja was graciously interrupted when the noise of an engine running loudly caused the blonde huntress to turn around. Leaning out the window of a blue pickup truck was Harvey, waving his hand in the air. "Hey Glynda! I'm headin' home for the night after such a long day! You'll vouch for me with the Vale PD, right?"
"I don't have the patience for your shenanigans tonight Mr. Bueller! If you drive away, so help me God I will-"
"Great, I knew you would! ThankssomuchIoweyouonebye!" Harvey shouted has he floored the gas pedal, kicking up a wave of mud and dirt behind him.
"HARVEY BUELLER!" She shouted, before realizing the action was pointless, and promptly shook her head in frustration. "That man, I tell you. Now, where where w-" Glynda stopped herself mid-sentence as she turned around, only to find Zed completely gone - absent without a trace. Sparks practically shot from in-between her teeth, and the Scroll stylus she had in her hand snapped in pure rage.
"Ms. Goodwitch?" The police sergeant asked as he approached, "I was just coming over to tell you that…" He took one look at her face before heading back the way he came. "Actually, I'll just send you an email."
"WOOOOHOOOO!" Harvey cheered over the rushing wind; left arm hanging through the open window banging gleefully on the door of his pickup. "Oh man what a rush! Cappin' Adam Taurus, savin' a train, and trickin' Goodwitch all in one night! I could put that shit on my résumé!" The conductor threw his head back in another mad cackle before looking over to his partner in crime with a toothy grin, and giving him a hearty slap on the back.
Zed was turned around anxiously looking through the rear window, half-expecting to see a rampaging, caped witch right on their heels. When no such thing appeared, he let out a long sigh and rested his helmeted head back against the seat cushion. This had been one of the most stressful days of his life; almost as terrible as when he found a rebellious Akali on his doorstep. The letter he had sent to Shen was...interesting to say the least. Despite his momentary reminiscence, one fact still still didn't sit right with him… "Harvey, may I ask you a question?"
"Shoot."
"Why exactly are you assisting in my escape? Surely you don't make a habit of transporting assassins." There was a short pause.
"Why?" Harvey asked aloud, as if he wasn't quite sure of the answer himself.
The pickup jostled as it transitioned from the dirt path onto a gravel one, and a city came into view between the trees.
"Look, Zed. I don't know a whole lot about you. I don't really know where you come from, or what it is that got you all wrapped up on my train, But what I do know, is that you saved me tonight. Hell, you saved everyone on the damn train!" He let out a small laugh at his own joke, before settling down, and returning to a calm seriousness. "We all got our little slice of heaven. I've got my wife, and my son, y'know? And err'body else got their loved ones out there. They're still alive because of what you did. That's what us Huntsmen signed up for: to be human shields against the Grimm. Against evil. I figured gettin' you outta trouble here would be returning the favor, I don't know. Does that make sense?"
"I… think I understand Harvey, thank you."
"Dontcha thank me just yet, we still gotta get through wall security. I know these guys though, so it shouldn't be too much trouble. Just let me do the talkin'." he informed. Wall security, as Harvey called them, was comprised of a series of armed officers and emplacements surrounding the city of Vale, defending the massive concrete wall separating the city from any encroaching Grimm. There were a few guards stationed on the outside that watched the battered vehicle slowly approach. One of them peered through the open driver's-side window with a flashlight as Harvey brought the truck to a stop in front of the gate.
"Evenin' officer," Harvey greeted with a tip of his brown homburg. "Slow night?"
"As always, Harv." The cop replied, giving Havey's ID a once-over before handing it back to him with a nod. "Any goods or passengers?"
"Yeah, actually. I got-" Harvey began, only to pause when he realized that the seat next to him was entirely empty. A half smile came across his visage as he turned back to the policeman. "Naw, naw. Just me, same as always."
"Alright. Move along." The solid iron gate rose on a large, mechanized pulley just enough for the blue pickup to pass through.
Harvey shook his head in muted disbelief, and let out a long sigh before taking out his scroll and dialing a number. "Hey Ozpin? We need to talk. I think the Queen just gained a new bishop." Harvey took another look around the surrounding area before driving off. "Call me ASAP."
Zed watched, crouched on the edge of a parapet running along the outside of the Vale battlement, as Harvey's rusted pickup proceeded through the gate without issue, and the militiamen resumed their post. Good. No guards needed to die tonight.
A quick glance across the wall revealed an assortment of guards leading down into the city. They were tired, unalert, and few in number. Easily avoided for a practiced thief, but child's play for even the lowest-ranking ninja in the Order of Shadow.
Zed moved silently across the cascading series of walls and floors as he made his way towards street level. His silhouette melded flawlessly with the stretching shadows across the sparsely-lit corridors of the guard barracks, before he reached the lowest lip of the innermost wall, and leapt down onto a dilapidated concrete building. He brushed himself off, and looked upwards towards Vale proper.
"By Aurelion Sol's beard…"
The city was absolutely magnificent. Not even the high spires of Demacia could hold a candle to the pure beauty of Vale at night. Shops and buildings lined the streets, complexes and skyscrapers pierced the heavens, and sparkling, multicolored lights shone brilliantly across the landscape. Zed could stare at it for hours.
The city itself seemed...alive. People strolled down the distant streets with smiles on their faces, and self-propelled metal carriages made their way across finely-paved roads. This was nothing compared to Ionia. To Zaun, to Noxus. To all of Runeterra.
Zed sighed, and sat down on the lip of the building's roof, where a beige cat had clambered up the drainpipe and sat curiously, watching him.
He stroked its fur affectionately, and the feline purred and laid against him in response. He sat for a few minutes, enjoying the view, before resigning himself to the day's next task.
Zed reached around on to his back, and grabbed the left shoulder pauldron Harvey had clapped earlier.
"Oh man what a rush! Cappin' Adam Taurus, savin' a train, and trickin' Goodwitch all in one night! I could put that shit on my résumé!" The conductor threw his head back in another mad cackle before looking over to his partner in crime with a toothy grin, and giving him a hearty slap on the back.
His fingers wrapped around a small metal disc that was magnetized onto his back, and brought it in front of his face. It was some sort of technological device, that much was certain.
Thin, circular, and magnetic, Zed thought to himself again.
It was meant to attach to something, and stay there. Small enough to remain hidden for great lengths, and placed surreptitiously onto his epaulet. Was it some sort of tracker?
Zed resisted the overwhelming urge to crush the disc as he pictured doing the same to Harvey's skull. This man was no train conductor, that much he had admitted himself, but Harvey was far more astute and cunning the Zed had initially given him credit for - a mistake he would not be making again.
Zed smiled deviously behind his helm as he noticed the cat's collar: a red, leather ring sitting graciously upon its neck, and a single metal medallion hung from the rim, engraved with the word "Baxter." Zed took the potential tracker, and attached it to the back of the cat's collar with a satisfying "click."
"Perfect," he said aloud, giving Baxter another pat before moving to rest against a nearby brick chimney.
His time spent in this "Remnant" so far had been hectic and action-packed; Deeds done out of necessity and survival, rather than choice or profit. It was now, staring at the impossibility before him, that it truly dawned on him how far away from home he truly was. He had no friends, no enemies, no allies, no subordinates, and no identity. A blank slate.
Zed fell asleep to the comforting lights of Vale, and his memories of Ionia.
Wherever he was, he hoped Kayn was doing okay.
Pax'Natar flitted nervously across the rocky plains of his home, searching for the High Chamber of his master. He passed other small creatures along his way, who were also going about their assigned tasks with an infectious fervor, lest they meet the same fate as the last messenger: disintegrated to atoms.
The Void was a treacherous place - a wrong step across the plains, or drifting too far away from stable matter could result in the transportation to another world, or instantaneous death. The creatures that inhabited this Void had evolved to survive, whether it be through strength or knowledge, and none were more knowledgeable than Pax'Natar's master.
He came across a large chunk of rock more solid than the others, and pulsing with violet Void energy. The small tentacle creature floated up to the top, and came across a series of hovering slabs, all engraved with runes familiar only to those of the Eternal Darkness. A voice rose from one of the back corners.
"You're disturbing my work. This had better not be a trivial matter."
"O-of course not, oh Infinite One. I come as a herald of a new discovery."
"Oh? Pray tell, what chaff have you scrounged up today?" The tone grew dismissive.
"A-A portal of sorts opened in Ionia. The Prophet tracked the wormhole to its source, and we have found where it leads. A new world, master. Untouched by the Void."
The various tablets lost their glow and crashed to the ground. Large, purple tentacles crept their way out of the darkness, revealing a large, violet eye, bearing down on the subordinate voidling. "Truly? Perhaps you have some merit after all. Show me what you have found. If what you say is correct, there is much to learn."
"Absolutely, Wise One of the Void. Pax'Natar will show you, great Vel'Koz, what he has discovered. Knowledge is the gateway to domination."
"Indeed it is, my servant. Indeed it is…"
AN: Holy shit! This took way too long. College Applications, NHS, service trips, and AP classes really keep your ass busy senior year. Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter, because it took nearly a year to upload for literally no viable reason. I'll try to update more in the future. I think it's partially because of my perfectionist attitude, and I tend not to write anything until I've found the right words.
Also, the Void is already here guys! I figured it wouldn't take them long to find Remnant. After all, it's the sole purpose for their existence! Also, (if anyone is even still here (lol), be sure to LEAVE A REVIEW! It's the only way I can tell if y'all like what I'm putting out, and namely, your REVIEWS AND PMs are what keep me motivated, so the more you review and comment, the more words get written. Hope everyone's been having a wonderful time.
P.S. - At the behest of a friend, I've been considering starting a RWBY x Infinity Blade Crossover featuring the God King, as he moves to take his rightful place a king of Remnant. If this interests you, please comment your opinion.