Jaune Arc gave himself a final once over in the mirror, taking a long, deep breath as he threw on his most confident smile. Shockingly, he didn't look half bad in the suit, despite the fact that he hadn't worn it in months, despite it sitting in the back of his closet, untouched for quite some time. Definitely since graduation.
It was weird, at first, moving away from home, but he needed to get out and see the world. He really needed space from his family. They loved him, he recognized that, but they didn't have much faith in him either. They didn't expect him to make it far on his own, so he had to prove them wrong, no matter how long it took.
"Well, seems like this is as good as I'm gonna look for the time being." He muttered to himself, before shaking his head and exiting the bathroom, emerging into the main hallway of his apartment and making his way towards the front door...only for a familiar voice to call out from the opposite end of the hall.
You see, living on his own was a nonstarter, even Jaune recognized that. He only had so much lien saved up, so he was going to have to either find a cheap venue or some roomies. Luckily, a gaming friend of his told him that her sister was looking for a third roommate for an apartment in Vale. While he'd normally have some reservations about rooming with strangers, desperate times called for desperate measures, so Jaune took the offer.
"Yo, lady killer! You mind whipping up some breakfast for me and Blakey?" Yang Xiao Long requested with a sickeningly sweet tone, making her roommate groan slightly as he turned on his heel and shuffled down the hall into the adjoining kitchen, fixing the smirking bombshell with a withering glare. "Ha, I knew you'd oblige us! Thank you~!"
"Leave him be, Yang. He has a job interview today, he doesn't have time to baby us." Blake Belladonna chidded lightly, initially keeping her gaze locked on her book before glancing up at Jaune and flashing him a small smile. "Good luck, by the way. I'm sure they'll be very impressed with your resume."
"Thanks, Blake. I hope so too." Jaune replied with his own smile, before noticing Yang's disappointed expression and rolling his eyes, turning back towards the front door. "And quit your pouting, Yang. I'll grab some lunch on the way back from that Italian place you like."
"Aw, really? Thanks, Jaune! You're the best!" Yang chirped, her pleasant mood having returned with an apparent vengeance while Jaune chuckled lightly as he made his way to the front door, stepping outside with little pause and hastily descending the nearby staircase before emerging onto the sidewalk outside of his apartment complex.
Yang and Blake were both his age, and while they certainly had their hurdles like any roommate would, they were both pretty cool to have around. That, and they always pitched in their share of the rent on time, without fail, which did take most of the edge off for Jaune. Still, Yang seemed to prefer having him run errands compared to doing them herself, which would never stop bugging him.
Suddenly, a voice rang out from the street nearby, surprising Jaune enough to yank him back to reality.
"Yeesh, there you are! I've been waiting for almost ten minutes, dude!" Daniel Wilson, Jaune's childhood friend and current ride, shouted from his car on the adjoining street, tsking playfully as the blonde hastily entered the passenger seat. "Honestly, I'm kind enough to offer you a chance for an internship at the Atlas Hub, and this is how you repay me? For shame, Arc, for shame!"
"Ha, ha. Very funny, Dan." Jaune scoffed, eliciting an amused chuckle from his older friend as he put the car in gear. "Seriously, though. Thanks again for setting this up. Even with online courses, it's been hard to find stable work since leaving home."
"Hey, no problem, brother. I got your back." Daniel assured him with a light smirk, before adopting a slightly more serious tone. "But remember, nothing is guaranteed. I was lucky enough to get the spot I did in the Specialist program, and considering you're younger than I am and looking for an internship...like I said, nothing's set in stone."
"No worries, Daniel, I get it." Jaune replied earnestly, before taking a deep breath and sorting his emotions out, an unexpected but welcomed wave of confidence overtaking him. "I got a good feeling about this, actually. Maybe today's the day that my luck finally changes!"
~~~Line Break~~~
"I'm sorry, Mr. Arc. I'm afraid I'll have to reject your application." Pietro Polendina stated, a sad smile lingering on his face as he addressed the surprised young man in front of him. "You certainly show promise, but I'm afraid that the internship program is winding down in the coming weeks. We won't be accepting any more applicants at this time."
"Oh...I, uh, I see." Jaune managed after a second or two, momentarily at a loss for words. "Well, I suppose that's that, then. Thank you for the time all the same, sir."
"Of course, and please don't allow this to discourage you from reaching out in the future if you ever like to apply for another position within the Atlas Hub." Pietro assured him, extending his hand to Jaune, who gave it a firm shake. "Until such a time, it was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Arc."
"Likewise, sir. Thank you again." Jaune replied with a polite smile, before standing up and exiting the head scientist's office and stepping out onto the third floor of the Atlas Hub, releasing a small sigh of disappointment. All in all, that could have gone much worse.
"Hey man, how'd it go?" Daniel asked from his position along the railing overlooking the rest of the building's courtyard. As his friend approached, however, his lighthearted grin fell into a grimace. "Oof, that expression's not a good sign. Did the doc say no?"
"Yeah, apparently the internship program is winding down or something." Jaune confirmed, joining his friend next to the railing with a shrug. "Honestly, it kind of makes sense, given how much backlash Atlas has been getting as of late. People are really peeved about just about anything related to them at this point."
"You're telling me. I know I wasn't the only one who noticed the damn mob outside when we drove in." Daniel groused, his gaze shifting to the slowly growing crowd outside of the building, held back by a set of barricades and patrolling Atlas Military police as they shouted and waved signs in protest. "Every day, it feels like the city is trusting us less and less. I get some of their reservations, not to mention all the Faunus rights issues, it's all just a damn mess."
While he didn't put it to words, Jaune shared his friend's sentiments. With every passing day since he'd arrived in Vale, the city felt more and more like a powder keg.
Between the basic protests against the Atlas Military having any sort of presence in their country, to the rising tensions regarding past indiscretions towards Faunus, stoking the fires of the White Fang, an extremist group that was causing trouble all over the country. Put simply, Atlas wasn't particularly popular at the moment.
"Yeah, maybe this is a blessing in disguise. I mean, I'm still not completely sure what my duties would have been here, even as an intern." Jaune admitted, glancing around the courtyard was a look of mild apprehension. "I mean, this place is a dual recruitment office and laboratory, right? What would I even be doing as an intern?
"Honestly, probably just a mix of coffee runs and some light paperwork. You likely wouldn't be allowed into the lab, given the work us Specialists do and the confidential nature of it." Daniel admitted with a soft scoff, shrugging his shoulders loosely. "The more I think about it, the position wasn't exactly glamorous, so I suppose you aren't wrong. Still, it would have been nice to work at the same place as my best buddy."
"Yeah, it would have been pretty cool." Jaune admitted with a small smile, though most of his disappointment had fizzled away at this point. He still had a few job offers to check out, and even so, money wasn't the biggest concern considering Yang's job at the local mechanic's and Blake's...well, he still wasn't quite sure what her job was, but it brought in cash regardless. Either way, he wanted to take the strain off of them where he could. "Well, I should probably start heading back. Your shift starts in a few minutes, right?"
"Yeah, next ten or so. Still, if you need a ride back home, I'm sure I can talk my partner into letting me drop you off." Daniel replied, a playful smirk rising on his face as he bragged lightheartedly. "I may or may not have mentioned that she's totally infatuated with me."
"Slander is a punishable offense, Wilson. Keep that in mind with your next words." A new voice chimed in, prompting the pair to turn and face the sharply dressed woman with white hair approaching them from the nearby stairwell. "Mr. Arc, I'd presume. Daniel speaks very highly of you."
"You must be Winter Schnee. It's nice to finally meet you." Jaune greeted pleasantly, taking the woman's offered hand when she came to a stop in front of him. "Believe it or not, Daniel thinks very highly of you, too. He insists you're the best partner he's even had in the Specialist program."
"Really? Well, I'm pleasantly surprised to hear that." Winter replied, a much more suppressed smirk rising on her face as she cast Daniel a pointed look. "Regardless, I'm afraid Mr. Wilson is going to be predisposed with an upcoming assignment. As such, he'll be unable to deliver you back to your residence."
"Oh, no big deal! I was planning to pick up some lunch on the way home anyhow." Jaune replied, before turning to Daniel and lightly bumping his shoulder. "I'll see you Friday for game night, right?"
"That's the plan! I'll be sure to bring the snacks this time, pinky promise. Have a safe trip home, buddy!" Daniel started with a bright grin, offering his friend a two-finger salute as his friend departed. Once the young man was out of ear shot, Daniel offered Winter an awkward smile and accompanying chuckle. "So...how much of what I said is gonna come back to bite me in the near future?"
"Oh, you have no idea what kind of trouble you are in." Winter assured him, though her tone didn't portray any anger, moreso passive irritation typical given their partnership. "Penny is waiting for you in the lab. Apparently, whatever prototype you two have been working on is finished. Once you're done there, meet me in the second floor conference room. General Ironwood has a briefing for the both of us."
"Really? Boss man himself is planning on paying us a visit?" Daniel asked in surprise, before straightening up his posture slightly and clearing his throat off the sparse glare his partner sent his way. "Alright, I'll be there. And I'll be on my best behavior too."
"Good. While I'm not entirely sure what the purpose of his visit is, I can assure you that whatever has prompted it must be of the utmost importance." Winter replied, her eyebrows furrowed in stoic consideration. "Given the current state of Vale, who knows what could be coming our way."
~~~Line Break~~~
"This is boring."
"Marc, it's breakfast. I'm not particularly sure what you were expecting here." Emerald chidded with a mild scowl as she cast her silver haired partner a disappointed look while she childishly poked at the eggs on her plate. "And would you stop that? You're a grown woman and we're on the job, either eat your food or focus."
"Eat a dick, Em." Marceline Black shot back without a second of hesitation, laughing at the glower her partner sent her way. "We really couldn't choose a better venue for this little get together? I mean, this cafe is so fucking bland, would it hurt for us to meet at a fucking nightclub or something?"
"If you recall, Marceline, we used to have contacts at Junior's before you instigated a fight there last week." Cinder Fall's voice sang out over their respective earpieces, making both of them startle slightly with the reminder that their leader was listening in on the conversation. "Remember that the next time you feel like complaining. Now, do either of you see Torchwich's messenger?"
Their respective boss sat not too far away, merely across the room sitting patiently at her own table, nursing a fresh cup of coffee as she scanned the room with cautious amber eyes. Her employer was expecting an update from Torchwick regarding his current mission, and the man couldn't even be bothered to deliver his response personally. Instead, his diminutive associate was scheduled to meet them...and was unsurprisingly running late.
"Mhm, no sight of the short stack as of yet. Sure she's taking her sweet time, little goblin." Marcie snorted, downing the last of her coffee in one go, much to Emerald's evident disdain, before setting the cup down and glaring out the window with an agitated huff. "Should have just kicked Torchwick's door in and gotten the info manually."
"Unfortunately, I'm beginning to agree with you. Torchwick's reliability has been wavering as of late." Cinder mused from her nearby seat, eyes glowing softly to a practically unnoticeable degree thanks to the ample lighting of the cafe. "Regardless of his message, perhaps we will need to start reconsidering our mutual arrangement with him."
Marcie grimaced at that, knowing damn well what Cinder did to people they couldn't rely on anymore. While she couldn't give two shits about Torchwick himself, she wasn't a total sadist. Poor bastard had one hell of a storm coming his way…
"Finally, eyes on Neopolitan. She's headed our way." Emerald interjected with almost palpable relief in her tone, prompting Marcie and Cinder to follow her gaze to the entrance of the cafe, where sure enough, the diminutive minion was carving out a path towards them.
She sent Marcie and Emerald a mocking smirk of greeting, resulting in the former flipping her off and the latter scowling. However, she didn't linger on them, instead moving to where Cinder was seated and sitting across from her. She nodded in greeting, which Cinder returned diplomatically.
"Neapolitan. I assume Torchwick sends his regards."
Neo nodded before hastily tapping out a message on her scroll, holding it out to offer Cinder a proper reply. "Indeed. Unfortunately, he's a bit caught up with our mutual masked friends at the moment, hence my presence in his stead."
Cinder nodded in understanding, and a fraction of her irritation simmered away. Of course the Fang were pulling Torchwick's attention. Disillusioned fanatics with plenty of lien to spare, and a habit of pushing their luck when they got too deep. Perhaps she'd send Marceline to help Torchwick with his prior obligations, thin the herd a bit…
"I see…well, wish him my best when you return. Does he at least have the data I've requested?" She queried easily, resulting in a so-so gesture from the mute as she typed out her response and offered it to her.
"Most of it. The virus itself is still being finalized, our spy in the Atlas Military is dragging his feet. I've insisted to Roman that I could make a trip out to the facility to incentivize its completion, but he says that'd only make the bastard drag his feet more."
Cinder bit back a grimace at this news. She wasn't shocked on either front, and was frustrated by the vexing fact that Torchwick was likely correct. Their spy was a prickly, pompous bastard. Further threats would just make him dig his heels in, and he was far too valuable to kill. Seems like an impasse had been reached.
"Well, do what you can to force his hand. Roman may not like it, but our mutual benefactor wants results post haste, and we both know the dangers of disappointing her, don't we?" Cinder replied, less threatening Neo and more informing her genuinely that delays were of little excuse to her.
Neo grimaced, but nodded in understanding, quickly typing out a quick message about how she was due back soon, and would pass along her warning immediately upon her arrival. With that, she then rose from the table and made her way back towards the entrance, the trio watching her leave.
"So…what happens now, boss?" Marcie asked with a quirked eyebrow, looking to Cinder curiously as she nursed the last of her coffee before gingerly setting the cup down a rising, walking over to her subordinates table and answering them directly, her eyes still glowing dangerously.
"For now, we continue on as scheduled. Make what preparations we can, and hope that Torchwick delivers on his promises for both our sakes." She replied coolly, motioning for both women to rise and follow her as she likewise started to the exit. "Come along, now. We have a war to prepare for."
~~~Line Break~~~
Beacon Academy. It was meant to be so much more than just a school. It was to be a birthplace of heroes, where a new generation of legendary warriors would train and grow into their new roles as protectors, as Hunters.
Now? It was practically a joke. A shadow of its potential. The entire campus is run down, overgrown and unruly. Nature had reclaimed the entire area unsettlingly fast, with even the smallest of trees and foliage starting to sprout throughout the common grounds and among buildings.
Still, one vestige of this bygone idea stood tall and relatively untouched by Mother Nature. The old CCT Tower. Vale had since built a new, larger model near the city center for an upgraded range. Plus, no technician wanted to drive nearly ten miles of the city for an older, seemingly obsolete tower.
Of course, that was only a fair assumption when considered that most didn't know what remained inside the tower. Up the spiraling stairs high into the misty sky above, a dull green glow was apparent to those of a keen eye. Further up the tower, the glow intensified, at its worst in the control room.
Two dozen screens lined a central monitor system, some with data meandering endlessly in an eternal trickle downward, others monitoring Atlas Military frequencies and closed communication systems, waiting to be reactivated by a built in numbers station. What remained showed security feeds, of both the surrounding commons and the city of Vale at large.
Before it all sat a single man. A sole sentinel, content to watch on for eternity, at least for the moment. His calm brown eyes flicked from screen to screen slowly, deliberately. Monotony could not force him to break his concentration, or risk missing something of vital importance. Still…he was nothing if not mortal…perhaps a break would suffice soon enough…
As if on cue, the double doors behind him swung open, and two sets of footsteps echoed throughout the tower roof above. He didn't turn at first, struggling to tear his eyes from the screens. When he finally did, his gaze fell upon two cloaked figures. One lavender, one brown.
"I assume things are going well, at the moment?"
"As well as they can be." The brown figure snorted, earning a terse jerk of the head from the lavender one, ending any levity in their voice as they cleared their throat. "But I'm keeping my eyes open. Plus, I've yet to make contact with the Crow. He should be in the city tomorrow."
"Make sure of it. We can't afford a late report, not now…" The man replied, receiving a nod in return before the brown figure turned and hastily descended the stairs once more. He turned back to the screen, the room silent save for the gentle whir of machinery, before cracking a small, mirthful smile. "I can practically hear your blood pressure rising, Glynda. What's wrong?"
A terse scoff, then the sound of cloth being pulled away. He turned his head back to her easier this time, his dutiful second in command looking about as exhausted as he felt, and exasperated to boot.
"You know damn well what's wrong, Ozpin. You've been running yourself ragged, burning the midnight oil and then some. You need a break." She insisted, not harshly, but out of concern for her oldest friend.
The man sighed, a fresh excuse on his lips before his eyes shut, and for just a moment…peace enveloped him. There was no threat, no constant battle of light and darkness. Just…bliss. For a single moment.
"Very well…is there anyone you can pull in from the field? I'd prefer to not leave the network unattended." He replied, holding up a hand to cut her off before she answered, his smile turning rye in a moment's notice. "And no, you will not suffice. You look remarkably tired, Glynda. It doesn't suit you. If I rest, you rest."
"...stubborn old bastard." She grit out with a soft chuckle, before nodding to him with no small amount of appreciation in her eyes. "Very well. I'll see if any of our city side friends can make the trip out. Until then, I will hold down the fort."
"Ah, the beauty of compromise." Ozpin mused softly, chuckling to himself for what felt like the first time in a week…maybe even months…he tore his gaze from the screens after one last glance, and started for the stairs. There was a single, well kept bedroom on the third floor he could use. "Only for a few hours."
"That we can debate later." Glynda replied with an almost mischievous glint briefly entering her eyes. Ozpin missed that optimism, that warmth. He didn't see it enough in her these days. Sure enough, it vanished as she released an exhausted sigh, and patted his shoulder gently. "Rest, Ozpin. The fight will still be here tomorrow."
He knew she was right, so he complied with her wishes. He descended the stairs, made his way to his bedroom, and slumped onto the bed, nearly keeling over as the full weight of his depletion hit him. How long had he been scanning those monitors?
Sleep didn't come, though. At least, not for a good while. He stared at the ceiling, thinking of her. Of how all this started. His failure. Her rage. The endless war that now stretched between them. He wondered if the fighting would ever end…and if it did, who would be left standing in the aftermath?
Eventually, his eyes flickered closed, and he sighed deeply as he let himself finally drift off. Tomorrow was another day. He would rise to the challenge yet again, do everything he could to protect the world from the monster he created.