Moroes
One thing they don't tell you in the history books is how mundane it is to actually rule after the conquest.
That being said, all the mundanity seems to help me in the end, so it is an acceptable form of mundanity.
Such as this meeting I am in, holding my inner circle's reports on the current state of Atlas.
It had only been a day since the liberation of this city, and thus, much work is needed to keep it afloat. Considering the previous council members have decided to flee the city, it's not inaccurate to say that we're currently trying to work out a machine that we have no instructions for.
"All in all, the Aura Liberation Army has suffered around 62 casualties since its inception, of which only 12 were fatal, all of which you've since then revived." The man whose job it is to keep track of this sort of thing droned on.
I couldn't care less of what the number was, only that I am able to revive them all to increase my reputation in the eyes of my people.
Still though, that was a tough battle, eating the awful tasting fruit for almost an hour straight to be able to revive them all…
"Thank you for your report, Funeral," I said politely, hiding the fact that I didn't care too much, "Yosemite, considering your presence here, have you found the reason why the grimm seems to ignore our liberated city?"
Yosemite was a relatively young man who had come up to me a few hours after I had returned to Atlas, telling me he had a semblance that allowed him to reveal semblances to himself.
It was a thing I could do myself with Observe, however it is quite handy to have on another person in order to expedite the process of documenting semblances.
Yosemite nodded, moving aside to reveal a…
Well, that's a child. Likely not even hitting the double digits yet. Her eyes seem to indicate that she doesn't mind being here, however.
"She awoke her semblance and aura on the same day. It was the day after your big debut when the grimm attacked," Yosemite said, keeping a hand on her shoulder as if to silently signal to her that she's stuck here, "Her semblance is aura distortion. It basically blocks out aura signals in a very large area. Since her awakening, all of our aura sensors have stopped working, and, the theory is, it also blocks our aura from alerting the grimm."
…I see, "And her parents?"
"She is an orphan."
Well, this is quite literally the freest gift I've received in the past few days, "She is now under the care of the Aura Liberation Army. Find someone to look after her and announce that an unnamed person's semblance is the reason why grimm are not on our doorsteps currently."
"Of course, sir" Yosemite says, taking the girl and leaving the room to accomplish his task.
Well, now that that question has an answer, "Gladiator," I said, knowing that he knew what I was asking.
Gladiator is my 2nd in command of the Aura Liberation Army, thus, he has the ability to direct its movements to his own will. His will, coincidentally, is my will.
And his current job was to find the two hero players I encountered a day ago, although…
Gladiator shook his head, "If we knew the whereabouts of those two, we would've told you already. Despite getting the aid of many tracking semblances, we've yet to find them, mostly due to you being the only one to physically see them."
Of course, it is the expected answer… Yet it is endlessly irritating.
I sighed, "Of course. What of the returning army and huntsmen?"
Ironwood's last official directive was sending out all of his huntsmen and the majority of his army out in order to quell the rapidly rising grimm threat and document the number of towns that had randomly appeared all over Solitas.
It left Atlas quite undefended, allowing me to strike, but it also does bring the inconvenience of having to deal with many people returning to a home they don't recognize.
"While the majority of the army, all of the robots included, has made the decision to stick around. Most of the huntsmen have made the rather bold decision of calling the Aura Liberation Army a 'stain on Atlas.' and have yet to return."
Well, that's irritating, although it's possible to kick that particular can down the road until the players are dealt with.
"I see," I said, pushing down on my irritation, "Robyn, your report?"
That being said, Robyn is ruining the trend of having a code name. Something that draws just a bit of my ire.
Robyn doesn't even pretend to like being here, or have the position of being in charge of public relations, "Everyone on this continent is basically eating out of your claws, sir. And according to the reports, 80% of the population have their aura now, with about 30% having their semblances already unlocked. As for everyone out of this continent, condemns your takeover. Except for Menagerie who supports you, no surprises there though."
80% of the population is quite good, so I'm perfectly willing to end forced aura awakenings and simply force the remaining 20% into lower classes until they agree to have their auras unlocked.
As for the rest of the world, "Will they turn their words into action?" I asked, fully knowing the answer.
"...Not likely." Robyn said, although the look on her face seemed as if she wanted the opposite to be true.
Quite honestly, Robyn is likely going to be replaced sometime in the near future if she doesn't straighten up. The only reason she's here is because she was already rather popular in Mantle, and that I owed her a minor favor.
It's also likely that if I have a leak, it'll be her, which is why I have people following her constantly.
But details, really.
And lastly, Giran, who had been given the unflattering task of documenting crime.
"Well, that leaves me then," Giran said, getting straight to the point, "Your ex-crime boys are perfectly fine civilians. Obviously mostly because they're the smart ones who avoided jail. As for the basic criminals, it's actually gone down, because most people can actually fight back now. And everyone with a semblance is getting some basic fighting training and money for it, which is doing wonders for not doing crime. It makes me sad, really."
Yes, that's good. It's also boring.
"Thank you for all of your reports," I said, bringing things to a close, "We all work together to create a perfect and free world. May all our aspirations bare fruit in our new world. You are all dismissed."
Now I have to go make sure all of the corporations don't abandon the nation… Ugh.
"Isn't it super convenient how Moroes holds that important meeting on the most obvious day possible, Sunday, and in the most obvious room possible, the room with the big window overlooking the city?"
"Yeah, super."
Ruby Rose
The sight of finally seeing Mantle's gates was like finding an oasis in a very grimm-infested desert!
After being completely abandoned by Sicias and Mythandras (Seriously, what was their deal anyway?) They had to finish their boat trip, end up in the harbor that seemed like it was going through CHAOS at the time (Team RWBY totally did not accidentally make themselves a target in the chaos. Absolutely not. (But seriously though how did they make themselves to look like 'loyalists'?!)) and then they had to trek through tons of snow just to FINALLY make it to Mantle, where they were supposed to be together!
This totally sucks!
"This totally sucked," Yang said, completely mirroring Ruby's thoughts, "I was so hyped to get this mission too…"
Weiss simply looked on in silent brooding.
It… Probably really sucks to know that your home's been taken over by some guy and his weird cult.
At least she toned down her racism? But that part is probably just because there's a lot of other reasons she's talked about to hate Moroes.
Oh, wait, he's called Reincarnation now, right?
Blake, probably being the most mature of the group, called out, "Well, are we going in or not?"
Ruby, being the leader of her team, nodded, "Alright team RWBY! Let's go do…"
Ruby paused, "Wait, now that they're gone, why are we even here?"
RWBY all simultaneously groaned.
Maybe they'll meet Weiss's dad while they're there. Make the most out of it.
Moroes
With all of the big corporations now firmly intimidated to continue their cooperation in ensuring business stays as usual in Atlas, I now have the free time to finally keep looking for the two players.
Quest: Team RWBY has Arrived!
Description: Team RWBY has arrived on your doorstep. Make sure they aren't here to wreck your house!
Objective: Coerce team RWBY onto your side or into neutrality.
Reward: 130% Exp, 1 gacha token.
…Or I suppose I'll have to quickly deal with this situation.
Turning into a bird, I quickly fly over to the gates of Mantle. Seeing a small group of four making their way over to the two guards standing, I land and make an entrance.
"Huh?!" all 6 of the people around me shouted.
"Guards, please leave for… Around 10 minutes. I require a private conversation with these 4." I said, looking back to the men on guard.
Said guards did not say another word as the gates opened and practically rushed inside.
Looking back at team RWBY, I observed their leader to just check what level they're at-
Ruby Rose
Level 95
Hp: 25,000
…
Str: 600
Dex: 1,000
End: 500
…Ah.
Observing all 3 other members, they're not too far behind in power as well.
I now see why it's imperative to get them on my side or out of my way. I'll have to pay those heroes back for this one, likely.
"Welcome to Mantle, or perhaps you're looking to go to Atlas?" I greet, "Either way, my official title is Reincarnation, Grand Commander of the Aura Liberation Army. You may refer to me as Moroes, however."
The entire team looked rather uneasy about the leader suddenly appearing in front of them, but they all introduced themselves anyway.
While they were introducing themselves, I mentally noted that Weiss Schnee shared the same name as Jacques Schnee, who was one of the monopolizers of dust in the city. If worst comes to worst, I could likely turn her over to my side by blackmailing her family's safety.
"Ahem, soo…" Ruby began, speaking on behalf of her team, "We were here because Ozpin, uh, that's the headmaster of Beacon, sent us here with Sicias and Mythandras, who we have nothing to do with! Just to clarify! To do… something here. But those two abandoned us so we're kind of just stuck here until we get something to do?"
…Ah, so Sicias and Mythandras' carelessness brought these 4 to me.
I should send them a gift basket. Really, all of those modifiers and self-inflicted bouts of insanity are truly the life-saver here.
"In that case, I will arrange for transportation back to Vale for you." I said, "However, that will likely take a day or two to happen. In the meantime, I will provide you with a place to stay."
Weiss made her presence known at that moment, "We could always just stay at my father's, unless, of course, something has happened to him…?"
What is it with people being suspicious of me doing the most basic things? Really, all the work I do…
"I met your father less than an hour ago, asking for his continued service in running our dust corporations. I am fine with you staying with him." I answered the question, forgetting the notion of doing something to him.
Ruby, sensing Weiss's displeasure, tried to say something, "Uh, Weiss, you didn't really give off the impression that you… Y'know, like your dad? It's probably fine if we just stayed at a hotel or something…"
Weiss, finding the opportunity, accepts, "You know what? Sure, I take it back, we can stay wherever you're taking us."
…So deadbeat father, and the earlier proposal was likely just to check if he was gone.
Ah, well. I suppose there are much worse situations to be in right now.
"Then we will handle that shortly," I said, as a little thought in my brain comes back to me.
Wasn't the scythe I was using made by this girl…?
[Crescent Rose: Dancing Petals - Divine - An upgraded copy of Crescent Rose. Deals 10*Str + 10*Dex damage per hit with both melee and ranged. Deals quadruple damage to grimm. Deals 10x extra damage when used by Ruby Rose.
Becoming God was great and all, but the best part of the experience is making my weapon better! ]
Ah, Ruby Rose, yes.
Quite honestly, I owe her a significant debt due to the fact that without it, there were definitely some fights I would've likely had a much harder time with without this weapon.
…But should I show it to them?
…Ah, why not. They're not hostile to me at the moment, and this is something I've been somewhat curious about…
"Ah, by the way, Ruby Rose," I said, making way for my next topic.
"Huh?"
I took out my own Crescent Rose, showing it to her, "This has been in my possession for a while now, and I thought it might look similar to something you own?"
The entire team's eyes went wide as they recognized the shape, but Ruby was the one who fully replied, "Wait a minute! That's like… Some super version of Crescent Rose!"
Taking out her own weapon, which looked exactly like mine with some minor color changes, she said, "Yeah, it does look similar!"
Taking the chance, I observed Ruby's own Crescent Rose.
[Crescent Rose - Gun-Scythe owned by Ruby Rose. Deals whatever damage the plot needs it to do in the hands of Ruby Rose. Deals 2*Str + 2*Dex damage for players.
Red Like Roses. ]
Ah, yes, the notion of a super weapon does sound correct.
Yang took the moment of silence to ask questions on the behalf of her team, "So, uh, Moroes. Why do you have my sister's weapon, but super?"
…Sister? Them?
Ignoring the thought, I answered in the most vaguely correct way I could, "Someone gave it to me. I could not tell you who, but that is how I obtained it."
Yang didn't like the sound of that, but Ruby interrupted any other questions, "Can I hold it?!"
…Ah, why not.
Sicias
"So, Myth." Sicias said cautiously, walking around several unconscious bodies, "I was just thinking, in movies, the baddies are all criminals so the good guys can hand them over to the cops… But what do we do here?"
Mythandras was looking down at a specific corpse in contemplation, "You know, I didn't think that far ahead. But at least we got the experience for it?"
Well, small mercies.
A cough from the other side of the room caught our attention. Likely somewhat they beat up and just so happened to still be awake.
"Lord Reincarnation…" A raspy voice said, Observe said his name was Kala, so that's that, "...Will avenge us…"
Mythandras raised her eyebrow, "Who?"
Yeah, actually. Who is Reincarnation?
Fortunately, Kala was kind enough to say, "Grand Commander… Of the Aura Liberation Army…"
And then she passed out.
…
"That guy really named himself that?"
"Man, that's so embarrassing, really…"
AN:
I have a favorite child and IT'S NOT THIS FIC.
It's definitely a product of "not watching the show" but I have no idea how these characters speak, how they think, how they act.
Which, coincidentally, makes it hard as hell to write because, "oh, isn't X supposed to be kinda Y?" and it just makes it AUUUGHGH
I'm in definite need of a liberation over here.
There's like a 30% chance that in the next chapter, Moroes will just convince team RWBY to beat the shit out of Sicias and Mythandras and end the fic there.
[Happy new year!]
[Is 2k words short? it definitely feels short...]