RWBY is property of Roosterteeth! I only own my characters.
CHAPTER 21
"So what's the plan?" Eve asked urgently, attempting to jolt Peleus from the shocked stupor he had fallen into in the days following the destruction of his home. The smoke rising from the Kingdom of Mistral could still be seen high above the trees. Peleus had barely said a word, and not moved far from the hill where he had first seen his home reduced to ruins.
They were running low on time. Eve sighed and collected herself. She grabbed Peleus' arm and the Senator suddenly stood much straighter. Peleus stood in confusion as it felt like something was being sucked from his very soul. He whirled on Eve, finding the woman with her eyes closed, tears streaming from her eyes.
"What... did you just do?" Peleus spoke after a shocked pause.
"I've temporarily... drained you of your sorrow..." Eve breathed out her answer, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I need you... to be focused..."
"I- Thank you."
"Don't... mention it..." Eve shook her head, taking deep breaths to bring the various painful emotions she had absorbed under control. "We need... to keep moving... before the Order finds us..." She stood straight, waiting for Peleus to choose a direction. He simply stood there and stared at her. "Is... there a... problem?"
"I think I've dodged around this question long enough..." the Senator said. "But, if I am to keep traveling with you, I need to know... Who are you, Eve? Where are you from?"
"I don't believe I catch your meaning," she attempted to deflect.
"You clearly aren't from Remnant, otherwise you wouldn't need someone to serve as a guide. On top of that, you're wearing pieces of the same armor as those "Order" terrorists," Peleus pressed. Eve remained silent for several minutes, weighing her choices.
"You're right," she finally answered, "I am not from Remnant. My home is a world called 'Earth'. I am looking for... friends... of mine that were transported here. The Order crossed over with them." For the next few moments, the Senator eyed her incredulously as he processed what she had said. The longer he seemed to think about it, the less insane the reply appeared.
"It certainly sounds crazy, but given what I've seen... I'll choose to believe you," Peleus relented. "But that still leaves two things unanswered. Who are you, and why do you wear Order armor?"
"I..." Eve trailed off. "I am nobody. I am someone who once thought they understood their place in the world, but found that it was all lies and illusions." Peleus quirked an eyebrow at her. She had essentially taken an extremely roundabout path to tell him, "it's none of your business."
"So, you used to be part of the Order?" Peleus guessed. Eve hesitated, but nodded slowly. "I see. I won't ask you to divulge your whole story to me, but you need to understand that I can not trust you completely. However, the fact that you seem to have been fairly honest with me lends you some credit. I'll continue to travel with you for now."
"So..." Eve began, "what's our plan?"
"First thing we need to do is get the word out about the Order to the other kingdoms. We're going to need to procure a flight-capable transport of some kind, then head for the Kingdom of Vale," Peleus outlined quickly, helped by the fact that his grief was under control for now. "Can you fly an airship?" Eve shook her head. "Good thing I can. In that case, I need you to concentrate on keeping the Order off our backs."
"That... I can do," the redheaded woman nodded. A thought seemed to occur to her. "Why is it that we have to deliver the news in person? Does the Kingdom not have a long-range communication system in place?"
"Normally, we would have been able to get news out via the Cross-Continental Communication Tower... but I'm betting that it was one of the first buildings the Order destroyed. No doubt they'd want to keep word of their presence from leaking out."
"Won't the sudden lack of communication with your Kingdom raise alarms?" Eve followed Peleus as the Senator began to walk towards the rising column of smoke in the distance.
"The tower was only built a few years ago. Chances are that most people will just assume it's the result of an installment issue that slipped through inspection."
"I see," Eve nodded. The pair walked silently beside each other for several more minutes, drawing ever closer to the outskirts of the wall surrounding Mistral. They came to a stop at the edge of the forest, hiding behind a couple of trees while they scanned the top of the wall for enemies. Peleus' ears picked up an interesting noise. In the distance, he could hear a steady stream of gunfire being exchanged, not the sounds of a firing squad, but a battle. A sense of pride welled up in the Senator's chest. It seemed that the people of Mistral weren't taking the order's occupation kindly.
Chaos awoke on the hard floor of the apartment building he had spent the night in. The first thing that he registered was how... cold... he felt. His eyes fell on Melody's bag, still laying abandoned in the corner. When his gaze drifted to the door, he half-expected the silver-haired girl to come bursting through with her usual energy... but no such thing occurred. On the plus side, it seemed that the voice had yet to make itself known for the day.
The sound of footsteps outside the door of the room caught the Bloodline's attention. Perhaps Melody had returned after all? Chaos felt an odd pang in his chest at the thought, but he paid it no mind. Someone knocked their knuckles on the outside of the door. Chaos stood from the ground, eying the entrance warily.
I sense a presence. The voice in his head spoke up. It is not that girl... This one is dangerous... Chaos wasn't sure what to make of that. The voice usually unleashed a seemingly endless torrent of murderous confidence. For it to advise caution was... worrying. The Bloodline tensed, swearing quietly when he attempted to flare his ability and failed. It seemed whatever Melody had done to him had still not disappeared.
Chaos quickly ducked behind a wall as the doorway blew open with immense force. Large splinters of treated wood flew by inches from his face, burying themselves deep in the cracked plaster of the wall. A woman stepped over the littered threshold and into the apartment. She was tall, slender, and would have been considered quite beautiful by many, but Chaos felt a malicious air around her. He suddenly understood the voice's warning. An emotion the Bloodline had long-since forgotten about sprung to life in his chest. Fear.
"Alright," Peleus breathed, "It looks like everything's clear. We should be able to get into the city through one of the old aqueducts that travels under the wall. There should be an opening not too far from here." Eve nodded her understanding, following the Senator to the edge of the towering wall around the city. The pair traveled along the perimeter until they came to an overgrown grate, cracked and covered in moss and vines. Peleus used his semblance to create a small dagger made of ice, and quickly cut away the thick vines coiled around the stone cover. Eve assisted him in lifting the grate and setting it slightly to the side.
"How did you know about this entrance?" Eve asked.
"When I was a boy," Peleus explained, "I used these old tunnels to sneak out on adventures." The Senator calmly dropped down into the aqueduct below. "Make sure to close the entrance behind us so no Grimm get in." Eve nodded and grabbed the side of the grate as she dropped down, pulling it back into its proper spot.
The pair began their trek down the low tunnel, both of them having to half-crouch to avoid hitting their heads against the ceiling. Peleus occasionally stopped to get his bearings, but he seemed to have a good idea of where they were heading. He came to a stop underneath a small beam of light, filtering in through a grate above him. They stood silently for a moment, listening for the sounds of anyone nearby.
"Where are we?" Eve inquired, readying her clawed gauntlets.
"We should be coming out in the oldest district in Mistral. It was the first section of the city ever built, and because of that, it serves more to preserve our history rather than act as housing or facilities. I'm hoping that the Order felt that old ruins weren't worth patrolling."
"To be safe, let me head up first."
"That sounds reasonable. I'll be right behind you." Peleus nodded, moving aside so Eve could open the grate above them. She quickly scanned the surface then pushed the manhole all the way off and climbed out of the hole. As promised, Peleus lifted himself out behind her. Eve took a look around at the ruins around her.
Mistral's Historical District was a testament to its founders. After over a millennium of wear and tear, the stone structures retained their strength. Even the Order's invasion had not shaken the buildings' foundations. Eve idly wondered if the people were the same. The Bloodline suddenly was shoved forward as Peleus tackled her from behind. A single bullet whizzed through the air where her head had been.
"Freeze where you are," a commanding voice called out from out of sight. The sounds of multiple weapons being primed could be heard. "You are under arrest by the- Senator Nikos?" Peleus rose to his feet, offering Eve a hand and an apologetic look. "Holy shit, it really is. Lower your weapons, men! He's one of us!" A man stepped out of cover, along with a few dozen other individuals. All of them were dressed in dark-brown and bronze armor. "Captain Aegeus, Mistral Guard Force, reporting for duty, Sir!"
Chaos maintained his hiding spot behind one of the apartment's walls as the ghostly-pale woman looked around. He could hear her walking softly across the moldy carpet.
"I know you're in here," the woman called sweetly. "Come on out, I won't bite." Chaos peered around the corner at the doorway. The woman was not standing there anymore. Perhaps he should take this opportunity to leave? In a flash, however, Chaos felt himself grabbed and pressed against the wall. He was turned around so that he was facing the woman. Her face was mere inches from him. She cocked her head at him with a smile, all the while holding the Bloodline in place with one hand. Her other hand grabbed his face.
"Huh... you aren't her..." the woman said. "But you're covered in her energy..."
"What in the world are you-" Chaos began, suddenly being cut off as the woman kissed him passionately. He struggled for several moments until she released him and licked her lips.
"So," she smiled, "You don't happen to know where a certain silver-haired girl went, do you?"
"No..." Chaos breathed and wiped his mouth with his arm. "And I don't especially care."
"Aw..." the woman pouted, "that means I made this detour for nothing... Well, anyway, my name is Shiro, who're you?" Chaos remained silent. "Don't be like that." The ghostly-pale woman suddenly kissed him again, causing the Bloodline to splutter. "Sorry, you had a little bit of her energy left on you. Also, it looks like your Semblance is... shadow control? Something like that?"
"What... the hell?"
"Tell you what," Shiro continued to dominate the conversation, almost like Chaos wasn't even there, "since you're kinda cute and you don't have a Semblance that interests me, I'll leave you be. Kay? Kay." She stepped back from the Bloodline with a wink, and as suddenly as she had appeared, Shiro turned and left the apartment with a slight skip to her step.
Chaos' first action was to drop weakly to the ground. What the hell had just happened? It had moved so fast, he hadn't even had time to process everything.
Aren't we lucky... It seems this newcomer will tie up our loose end. We will be free to engage Greene when we are ready. the voice in his commented. Still, that experience was tiring... I will leave you to your own devices for a while. With that, Chaos was left with only the silence of his own thoughts to occupy him. He made an idle motion with his hand from his spot on the ground.
A shadowy blade sprung to life and sliced through the air, leaving a deep gash in the wall opposite him. The Bloodline stared at his hand in surprise. Whatever had just happened, it seemed as if that had also returned his powers. Good, that meant he could deal with Greene and his friends as soon as-
That lady is going to kill Melody...
Chaos jumped at the sound of a new voice in his head. Unlike the normal screaming that he had been subjected to, this voice was soft-spoken and young. The ghostly-image of a child with white hair and red eyes had appeared in the corner of the room. The little boy was dressed in rags, deep cuts covered his body. He looked at Chaos with fearful eyes.
"Who... What are you?"
I think you know that already. The boy's mouth moved to the words, but the sound echoed inside Chaos' head. The Bloodline stared at the child in confusion.
"What do you want?"
You know that already too... Whether or not you do it... well... that's your choice...
A/N: Things are finally getting rolling in a big way. I'm mostly happy with this chapter, but something feels the slightest bit off to me, and I can't place it.
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