Chapter Six: Old Foes
The main gates of Rouge's base opened, and several hundred mounted and armored warriors trotted in on barded warhorses. These warriors wore white robes similar to that of Arch Deacon Albus Wolfe, they also possessed the same emblem on their chests and the armor of their horses. Rouge's men, along with Rommel Berg lined the entrance way as the warriors entered.
The Field Marshal took notice of their weapons, every-one had an arming sword at their left side, a dust powered energy rifle on their back, and a large kite shield on their left arm, however they had another weapon as well. The front portion resembled a typical knight's lance, but where the warriors held them, it resembled the stock and handle of an anti-tank rifle. As the last of the mounted warriors entered, Albus walked up to Rommel. He was escorted by twenty of the warriors, all were dismounted however.
"And that's the last of them," Albus said, "well Field Marshal, my men are at your disposal."
"Zank you," Rommel replied, "but tell me, vhy do you need so many men?"
"The shepherd must protect his flock, Mistral isn't as safe as it once was," Albus stated.
"Ok," Rommel replied, "vhy mounted zough? Cavalry is rather archaic."
"Horses are faster than men," Albus paused, "they are also faster than most Grimm."
"I see," Rommel nodded, "I can definatly vork vith zat."
Rommel and his men began to walk away as Albus and his bodyguard mounted some horses that were hitched to the posts off the side of the entranceway. As they went about their duties, Rouge walked past Rommel, on her way to Albus.
"Mein lady," Rommel bowed.
"My lady," the soldiers around Rommel bowed as well.
Rouge placed her clenched fist over her heart and bowed back to Rommel and his men before continuing on her way.
"Albus," Rouge called out.
"Your grace," Albus and his bodyguard bowed.
"Where is it you're headed?" She asked.
"It's Sunday you're grace, I have to be in Mistral in a few hours to conduct a sermon," Albus replied.
"Alright," she paused for a moment, "would you mind if I came along?"
"Not at all your grace," Albus said, "I believe we have a spare horse."
As Albus said this, one of his men dismounted and led his horse to Rouge. She petted the animal on its snout, before then mounting it.
"Thank you," She said to the templar.
The templar bowed respectfully, "it was my pleasure your grace."
Rouge, Albus, and their bodyguard rode out of the main gate of the base and into the bamboo forest that surrounded it. They rode along a narrow trail in two columns with Rouge and Albus at the front. Rouge lightly brushed the stalks of bamboo as she rode past and a small bird landed on her hand. She gently pet the small creature with her thumb as a soft smile came to her face. Albus looked over and saw the scene, from under his silver mask a smile graced his face.
Rouge slowly lifted her hand to the sky and the bird flew off, "nature is so pure and beautiful."
"Yes, it is, your grace," Albus said.
"When my mother was the Summer Maiden, she took me all over the world, we'd stop in cities and villages and we met so many kind and caring people, people too good for the world they were born into, but that wasn't my favorite part of our journeys," Rouge paused to take in the sights for a moment, "it was this, traveling through nature, eating by the campfire, and sleeping under the stars."
"I too grew up surrounded by nature," Albus said, "my father was a hunter, not a huntsman, just a normal one. When I grew old enough, he took me on my first hunt, and I got my first kill, an adult male Alpine Ibex, my father never looked prouder."
"My mother and I never hunted anything that large, mainly small game, like rabbits," Rouge replied.
Albus chuckled, "Rabbits are still good eating."
Rouge laughed in response, she ceased and looked to the Arch Deacon, "so tell me, how does the son of a hunter become the head of an entire religion."
He didn't respond immediately. Rouge couldn't make out his expression because of his mask, but she could tell by the silence that it had gone somber.
"The war, your grace," Albus replied.
"I'm sorry, If you don't wish to talk about it, I won't push you," she said.
"No, it's fine," Albus paused, "my village was neutral, we didn't side with any of the factions, but the war came to us nonetheless. We found ourselves in the middle of a battle between two factions, those who weren't killed in the crossfire, died in the subsequent Grimm attack, my parents were among those killed."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Rouge said.
"You don't have to be, I've long since come to terms with their deaths," Albus replied, "after that I wandered Anima, until I came across a man preaching in the streets of lower Mistral, my predecessor. He spoke of the glory and power of the Four Maidens, how they were much more than a mere story we tell our children, that they were actual divine beings watching over the people of Remnant. His words touched me, and I found myself following him. Over time I became one of his most trusted friends, I was his right hand in the quest to spread our faith."
"What happened to your predecessor?" Rouge inquired.
"About six months ago, my predecessor, a handful of the faithful, and myself were headed to Sanctum to spread the good word when we were set upon by bandits, many died both in the fighting and after, I was grievously wounded," Albus paused as he pulled his hand across his ornate silver mask, "I thought I'd surely perish, but then I was saved by a young woman who carried me to a nearby cave and tended to my wounds. When I grew strong enough to speak, I asked her what happened to the others in my group, she told me that by the time she found me, my companions were dead, I was the only survivor."
"Who was the woman?" Rouge asked, "she seems like someone I'd like to meet."
"Unfortunately, I was never able to track her down after she helped me," Albus said, "however, she did tell me her name, she said it was 'Spring.'"
"Intriguing, so, not only have you met myself, but you've also met the Spring Maiden as well," Rouge said, "so what happened after that?"
"I decided to abandon the quest to Sanctum and Spring helped me back to Mistral, once their we parted ways, and I informed the others of what happened," Albus said, "many accused me of murdering my predecessor and wanted to enact retribution, thankfully cooler heads prevailed. Our elders convened and seeing how close the previous Arch Deacon and myself were, and taking into account my encounter with Spring, they elected me as his successor."
"Accused of murder huh, being the lone survivor how did you get out of that?" Rouge asked.
"My wounds were proof enough," Albus paused as he turned his head to face Rouge, "I don't wear this mask for fashion's sake."
As the Arch Deacon looked Rouge in the eyes, she noticed something she hadn't before. While Albus' right eye was normal and gold in color, his left eye was solid white. She could also just barely make out a very faint scar running through it.
A few hours passed as the group continued to ride to Mistral. Rouge was mostly silent, she was content to listen to the templars and Albus talk among themselves. As they drew closer to Mistral, the group could see Haven Academy and the upper city at the top of the twin peaks which they rested. Up to this point, Rouge had only been to Mistral once, and then, she didn't take time to appreciate the spectacular beauty of the city. The old Imperial Palace of Mistral's Emperors was converted into what is now Haven Academy after the abdication of the last emperor at the end of the Great War.
"Your Grace," Albus said, "may I ask you a question?"
"By all means," Rouge replied.
"Why is it that you've decided to accompany us to today's sermon?" Albus inquired.
A slight smile came to Rouge face, "I think its high time I addressed the faithful."
Albus nodded once, "very well your grace."
As they Approached the gates of the city, Mistral's splendor faded, and the lower city's slums became the major sights. Rouge was nearly brought to tears as she witnessed the state in which these people lived. Those that had homes lived in shanties and those that didn't slept in the muck and mud of the streets as rats scurried around and over them. One other thing she noticed was that the majority of those who lived here were of faunus origins. Rouge's sorrow was overcome by anger, anger at those in power who would leave these innocent people to suffer in such filth.
"So, where do you conduct your sermons?" Rouge asked.
"The old amphitheater your grace," Albus replied, "it's only a few more blocks from here."
They soon reached the amphitheater, the sun had recently dipped behind Mistrals peaks, casting a shadow on this part of the city, the only light was from that of street lamps in the middle and upper districts and torches around the lower city and amphitheater. Several lesser priests were there to greet the Arch Deacon and his companions. Albus quickly ordered his Templars to take their positions around the amphitheater and set about making sure all the preparations for the sermon were in order.
After he finished speaking with the priests, he turned to Rouge, "Your grace, please follow me."
The two of them walked to a large white tent at the open end of the amphitheater. As they walked by the old stone structure, Rouge saw that it was large enough to fit a few hundred people, but there was no one inside as of yet. In it's center there was a large stage made out of a single stone slab.
Albus opened the curtain of the tent and allowed Rouge to enter first, "you know, I'm surprised Jet and Nilah didn't come with us, do you have them on a special assignment?"
"No," Rouge replied.
"We're always by our lady's side unless she says otherwise," two voices called out, startling Albus, one was apathetic and the other manic.
Albus turned around to see the Dusk twins step out of a shadow as a dark mist dissipated around them.
"Wait… how did you…" Albus was cut off.
"My semblance allows myself and up to one other person to travel through shadows," Jet said apathetically.
"We've been following you all since you left the base," Nilah added manically.
"Right… just please try not to startle me like that again," Albus replied.
"Our apologies," the Dusk twins said in unison.
Many people began to pour into an old stone and marble amphitheater in Mistral's lower district. It had fallen into disrepair like all of the lower city since the beginning of the Civil War, but it was still somewhat structurally sound.
Kim Hoàng was standing outside the entrance as the last few people were walking in the amphitheater, she was scanning the crowd and had a worried and somewhat disappointed look on her face. As she turned to enter the building, a familiar voice called out her name.
"Kim wait up!" The voice shouted.
Kim turned to see her girlfriend Ebony jogging up to her and a smile graced her face.
"I thought you wouldn't make it for a second," Kim said.
"Sorry, qualifiers ran a bit long," Ebony replied.
"It's ok, I understand," Kim said, "come on, we should grab a seat before the place fills up."
Ebony and Kim proceeded into the amphitheater. As they passed by the Templars guarding the doors Ebony made eye contact with one. The Templar simply nodded at her as Ebony and Kim walked past.
"What's with the knights?" Ebony asked.
"They're the Templars, they solely exist to protect and aid the faithful," Kim replied.
"But not non-faithful?" Ebony inquired.
"I'm sure they'll protect anyone who can't protect themselves," Kim replied.
"Mhmm," Ebony said skeptically.
The pair past by another set of Templars as they entered the amphitheater proper. They then made their way to an open spot in the crowd, the area was tight, but the two girls managed to fit. The crowd around them was lively and talkative, as most of the attendees made conversation as they waited for everything to start.
The crowd quieted down as a man in white priestly robes and a silver mask stepped out of the tent. He waved to the people as he strode to the stone stage.
"Who's that?" Ebony asked.
"That's his holiness, the Arch Deacon Albus Wolfe," Kim replied.
"So, what's with the mask?" Ebony inquired.
"He claims his face was horribly scarred in a bandit raid," Kim said.
"Seems like someone has a vanity issue," Ebony remarked.
"Ebby," Kim scolded her girlfriend.
"Sorry," Ebony said, "most people I've met that are in a position like his prefer to keep up positive appearances."
"I don't think the man is vain," Kim replied, "I've been to many of his sermons, he's very charismatic and kind, I doubt he cares what he looks like. Besides, it shouldn't matter to the faithful, he's the Maidens' chosen, he has communed with one after all."
"You're not serious, are you?" Ebony asked.
Kim leaned to her girlfriend, "shh, it's starting."
Albus stepped forward onto the stage and looked around the amphitheater. The people were as quiet as death waiting for him to speak, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
He spread his arms wide and spoke, "greetings brothers and sisters of the faith, I trust you are all having a blessed evening this day."
He paused as he looked at his congregation, seeing people nod and hearing a few people saying "amen." His gazed landed on Ebony for a moment, which made her tense up, but he soon moved on.
"I see we have some new faces in attendance tonight," he said, "for those of you just joining us, you have chosen a very special day to come into the Maidens' light. But first, allow me to lead us in a prayer."
Ebony slyly rolled her eyes as she heard this, but as Albus began the prayer she bowed her head out of respect, but she didn't follow along.
"We are gathered here today, O Holy Maidens, as your people to offer you our sacrifice of prayer and worship…"
She took a quick look around and saw most everyone else had their eyes shut and heads bowed as the Arch Deacon said a prayer. As she looked around, something, or rather someone she recognized popped into the corner of her eye.
Perched atop a tree branch watching the sermon was the girl in white her team had fought on the Beacon Docks a couple of months back. Ebony went wide-eyed and was no longer glancing, but staring in complete disbelief.
Nilah saw Ebony stare at her, she stared back, her baby-blue eyes locking with Ebony's Blue and Green Heterochromic eyes. A large manic smile graced Nilah's face as she creepily waved to Ebony, causing her to instantly break eye contact and look to the ground.
"…in the name of the Four Maidens, amen," Albus said as he concluded the prayer.
"Amen," the people of the congregation said in near unison with one another.
"Now, as I said earlier, today is a very special day for all of us here, and as such I will not be giving my usual sermon today, instead I have a guest for you all," Albus turned towards the tent, "you may have the floor your grace."
Ebony, like the rest of the congregation looked towards the white tent behind the stage. She saw yet another familiar face, the boy in black that she and Roy had personally fought back in Vale. Seeing both Jet and Nilah again sent a shiver down her spine, she knew she would have to inform her team and friends as soon as possible.
After he opened the tent's curtain, a young woman in her late teens or early twenties walked out and up to the stage. She had a tan complexion, red eyes, and a short black fauxhawk. She wore a black leather shoulder pauldron on her left shoulder and matching vambraces on her forearms over the top of a gray long sleeve shirt that hugged her athletic figure. With this, she wore red and black breeches, a thin red waist cape, and knee-high black leather boots.
Rouge walked to the stage with her arms held behind her back and her head held high, a noble posture that demanded respect. She reached the stage and for a moment, looked around the crowd.
"Hello good people of Mistral, my name is Rouge Armina, it truly is an honor to meet you all," she paused, "some of you may be wondering what is so special about me. You are all the faithful of the Four Maidens no?
The great majority of the congregation replied with "yes" or "amen."
"Then you should already know who I am, for I am the latest incarnation of the Summer Maiden," Rouge said.
A collective gasp could be heard from the crowd and some fainted as some shouted "hallelujah," while others cried "heresy!"
"How can you prove that you aren't just some charlatan?" A man shouted from the crowd.
"How dare you question one of the gods!" Another person yelled.
People began to argue in the stands. Rouge looked around and as she saw this her eyes lit up with a brilliant red-orange light, resembling that of a flame as gusts of wind began to blow into the amphitheater and the crowd began to quiet down. The wind coalesced around Rouge's body and she began to levitate. The wind soon died down as the crowd stared on in awe, all doubt being purged from their minds, and Rouge gracefully touched back down to the ground and her eyes ceased to glow.
The crowd, which was dead silent began to cheer. Ebony had a dumbstruck look on her face, she didn't know what she had just witnessed. When she looked over to Kim, she had her mouth covered and was crying.
"Hey, hey, why are you crying," Ebony wrapped her arms around her girlfriend.
Kim uncovered her mouth to show that she had a huge smile on her face, "it's just so surreal, I never thought I'd get to see one of the Maidens."
Ebony didn't say anything in return, but instead she pulled her girlfriend into a closer and tighter embrace.
Rouge stepped off the stage as people rushed down from the amphitheater. They fell to their knees and reached out to touch the Maiden as she walked by. Soon, most of the members of the congregation were surrounding Rouge and reaching out to touch her, their god. She stood in the center of the crowd and looked around to the people and smiled as she reached out to them as well.
Kim stretched out one of her arms towards Rouge as Ebony held her, "Hallelujah! Blessed be the Maidens!"
Ebony had no words for what she had witnessed, she had always thought of the tale of the maidens as just a story, but what she had witnessed changed that. However, she couldn't shake the thoughts of what Jet and Nilah were doing with the Maiden. This question ate at her mind for the remainder of the sermon and while she walked her girlfriend home.
The two girls stopped in front of a small house in the lower city, it wasn't the grandest of homes, but it most certainly wasn't a shanty like those of the lowest parts of the city. The single-story house was an off-white color with dark brown trim. It had a simple wooden patio that led to its front door. Flanking the door to each side were bay-style windows.
"Ebony, are you ok?" Kim asked, "you haven't talked since we left the sermon."
"I'm fine, I just have a lot on my mind is all," she replied, "with the tournament and the maiden, it's a lot to take in."
"Yea, I'll admit it was quite a lot to take in tonight," Kim stated, "take the night to think about everything and I'll say a prayer for you."
"You do that," Ebony paused, "oh, I almost forgot, the Vytal Dance is in two weeks, could you possibly make some outfits for my friends and I?"
Kim thought to herself for a moment, "It's kind of last minute, but my master and I don't have many orders right now, so possibly."
"Thanks," Ebony smiled, "so do want me to give you the details now or…"
"Text me in the morning, we'll go from there," Kim said.
"Alright then," Ebony replied.
Ebony and Kim exchanged a kiss as Kim headed towards her home. Ebony watched Kim until she closed her door behind her, the two exchanging a wave goodbye as it shut. Ebony then took a deep breath, put her hands in her pockets and made her way back to Haven Academy.
Haven Academy was quiet for the most part as it was almost curfew. Within the dormitory the visitors from Beacon were staying at, Ember Haze was having tea with Arslan Altan in her room. Ember's room was fairly similar to those the students were staying in, with the exception of a few furnishings; Rather than four beds, there was only one, off to the side and in the center of the room there was a short coffee table. Both women were kneeling on opposite sides of the coffee table as they drank their tea.
"This truly is amazing news, I'm happy for you and your fiancé," Arslan said.
"Thank you Sifu," Ember replied.
"So, have you decided on your bridesmaids yet?" Arslan inquired.
"Yeah, Sierra is going to be the maid of honor, I just asked her the other day, and my teammates from my days back at Beacon are filling out the rest," Ember stated.
"Do you know where you'll have it at?" Arslan asked.
"Jamie and I decided to have it on the beach," Ember paused, "I wanted to ask though, would you be willing to come and maybe uh…"
"Maybe what?" Arslan asked.
"Considering you're the closest thing I have to a parent; would you like to give the bride away?" Ember asked somewhat timidly.
Arslan reached and grasped Ember's hand lightly, "it would be an honor."
The two of them then heard a knock at Ember's door, "Professor Haze, it's Ebony, I need to talk to you about something, it's urgent."
"Come on in," Ember said.
Ebony slid open the door and saw both Ember and Arslan kneeling at the coffee table, "I'm not interrupting anything am I?"
"No, you're fine," Ember replied, "what is it you needed to talk about?"
"Do you remember the fight on the docks a couple of months ago?" Ebony asked.
Ember got a seriously look on her face and then stood to face Arslan, "Sifu, I 'm sorry but I have to ask you to leave please."
"Why? Something top secret?" Arslan chuckled.
"Yes, actually," Ember bowed respectfully, "I'm sorry Sifu, maybe we can pick this up tomorrow."
"Very well," Arslan stood and bowed to Ember before leaving.
Ember turned back to Ebony, "please, take a seat and tell me everything that happened."
Early the next morning, Ember told Neptune what Ebony had seen at the amphitheater. The seriousness warranted the attendance of Winter and Marcus, along with Oscar and Nebula attending via video call.
"Ember, are you sure about this?" Oscar asked with seriousness in his voice.
"Yes, Ebony is a good student, I trust what she saw was valid," she replied.
Winter was visibly angry, "she's just taunting us at this point!"
"This really is beyond frustrating," Neptune added.
"How has she been able to stay hidden under our noses like this, first in Vale, now here?" Nebula paused, "and why all of a sudden does she decide to make an appearance?"
"I have no idea," Oscar said, "there is also the question of why she's been hiding from us."
"With all do respect Professor Pine, we've been sitting idle for too long," Winter stated, "I believe we need to take a more active role in tracking the maiden down."
Oscar thought to himself for a moment, "I agree, but all my best huntsmen are occupied."
"Same here," Nebula added, "we've had a spike of Grimm attacks in the border Regions of Vacuo recently."
"Major Stallion is it possible you could spare some of your specialists to track the Maiden down?" Oscar asked.
"Yes, I can," Marcus said.
"Good, get your best men," Oscar paused, "this operation is need-to-know."
"Of course, sir," Marcus replied.
"Alright, we need to get on this ASAP," Oscar said, "General Schnee…"
"Yes sir?" Winter inquired.
"Have your security forces remain on high alert through the end of the tournament, we can't afford to take any chances," Oscar said.
"Yes sir," Winter said.
Teams BLAC and AYST were gathered in the former's dorm room discussing what Ebony had seen the night before. They were stressed out, for they had thought they had seen the last of Jet and Nilah, and now they found out they were in league with a Maiden.
Cyrus was leaned against the wall of the dorm, the look on his face showed frustration, "you can't be serious Eb, please tell me you're joking."
"I know I joke around a lot, but this time I'm not," Ebony said.
"So, you're serious then," Cyrus replied.
"Serious as a heart attack," Ebony stated.
"Well then, what do we do?" Alyssa asked.
"Why don't we try to go after them," Alani said.
"I don't think that's a very good idea," Roy stated, "Eb did the best possible thing by informing Professor Haze."
"So, we're just going to sit and do nothing then?" Alyssa inquired.
"It's all we can do, let the actual hunters deal with this," Roy said.
Alani looked over to Bianca, "what do you think we should do?"
Bianca had been sitting on her bed, looking to the floor. The memory of Jet and Nilah terrified her to say the least. She didn't hear Alani at first as she continued to space out, only focusing on those memories.
"Bianca are you ok?" Alani shook her lightly on the shoulder.
"Huh?" Bianca looked up, "oh, yea, I'm fine, I just spaced out is all."
"What do you think we should do about this whole situation?" Alani asked.
Bianca thought to herself for a moment, "I think Roy's right, we should let the professionals handle this," she paused, and her voice fell somber, "the last time we got involved in something like this… people got hurt."
There were no objections to what Bianca had said, only a silent acceptance by her teammates and friends.