Up on his office, Ozpin was more relaxed than ever on what he felt was the best Friday evening since reincarnating on this body. The whole White Fang incidents passed without major developments and no sign of Salem and her lackeys meant he could enjoy a nice coffee, listen to some music, read something, or do whatever he wanted.
Everything was going smoothly; but after a few minutes, his scroll rang. He looked over and saw Glynda's face on the screen. Convinced nothing could destroy his current mood, he answered. "Glynda, I thought you'd be taking the night off. To what do I owe the pleasure?".
"Very funny, professor, but the man from that school in the woods is here again, he insists on an audience with you".
"Have you told him that he has to wait for next year like any other school before their students have an opportunity at entering Beacon?".
"Yes…"
"And what is the difference this time?"
"He came with a specific section of the academy rules and, well… it does mention a special admission test after the school year has begun".
Ozpin spitted out his coffee. "Impossible!" Surely enough, Glynda sent him the page and the highlighted part in question:
'People of corresponding age who wish to become huntsmen or huntresses and have missed admission deadlines can apply at any time and must pass evaluations set by the corresponding faculty members according to the level in which the current first years are now on'.
"Oh… now I remember…" Ozpin deadpanned. 'When huntsmen academies where created, I wanted to enroll the biggest number of people possible. Guess I never felt the need to re-write the rules after they became a standard institution on the kingdoms' Ozpin thought. "Very well, Glynda. Let him in".
An elevator ride later, and Glynda entered with the man in question. Feher, was the man's last name; Szél Feher. His tanned skin and white hair were on second plane considering his multicolored shirt that worked as a robe, the ridiculous branch crown on his head and his sandals with socks combo. This was his third time trying to get an audience with Ozpin since the first time no one believed his supposed 'school in the woods' was legitimate and that his 'star pupils' would be on-par with first year students of Beacon. But surely enough, he arrived with the corresponding certificates of authenticity and now the special clause of admission. If anything, his determination was admirable.
"Professor Ozpin!" The man exclaimed with open arms. Ozpin went for a handshake but was surprised when the man went for a hug.
Both Ozpin and Glynda were at a loss for words; definitely not expecting this. "Uhhhh… Mr. Feher… you can let go now… please?".
"Oh, brother. Why is it that city life makes everyone so uncomfortable with their brethren?".
Once free, Ozpin proceeded to fix his suit and show their guest a chair. "Well, I have to admit that you are a tough one; so, we are indeed going to have a special evaluation for your students. As many theorical exams from our curriculum as needed and one combat test against the lowest performing team. Does that sound fair".
"A chance is indeed all I ask for. I can assure you; the children hold skills that will surprise you".
Glynda then stepped next to Szel. "Do you have their profiles?".
"I have." He handed her 4 folders. "Kuai, Thomas, Hanzo and Jerrod. Remarkable warriors. I guaranty you won't regret this!".
Ozpin took a sip of coffee while reading the information on these kids. "Seventeen. Good. All orphans?".
"Sadly, yes. You could say I raised them myself".
"The last one. Jerrod… he is wearing a mask…"
"A tragic accident, his skin is was left very sensitive. He does have issues with it. Hope it is not a problem".
"Sorry to hear that. But if we can allow Mrs. Rose's cape, I'm sure his skin condition is enough to justify his mask".
Glynda was next to question him "Why didn't you present them earlier this year?".
"Their training was not yet completed. The travel here also took us longer than expected".
"And why aren't they here with you?".
"They wanted to see the city. They've spent so much time on a small village and the woods, they get impatient after long. Teenagers, you understand".
Some minor questions about them continued until finally everything was set for their exams on Monday. "Very well. Everything is set and we'll see your students first thing in the morning at the Bullhead landing platform".
After another elevator ride, Both Glynda and Szel then walked towards the courtyard and heading towards the landing area. "Don't worry about me, Glynda. I can take it from here. Thanks for giving us a chance".
"Well. This is a first for my tenure as vice-principal, but I do expect that your students are as good as you say they are". Changing her serious persona, she then spoke more calmly "And don't worry, I can escort you to the… bullheads…?". Before she could finish her sentence, she was able to see Szel already bording the bullhead. "How did he…?" She was left to wonder as the vehicle closed and flew away to the city.
The bullhead was fortunately empty. And Szel took advantage of it. He took out his amulet from under his shirt and the avatar of a dark-skinned young man with metal arms appeared. "Greetings Jax, I see the age altering talismans are working".
"It has fooled all those we have met so far. Wow, what did Cage make you do?".
"Yes… I am a free spirit, but I feel kind of offended this is how Johnny Cage sees me. Anyway, how is the situation in Atlas?".
"Same as Beacon. We are gonna need you here and more of those fake certificates to get in".
Fujin grunted. Teleporting in Earthrealm was easy, he knew all the wind patterns and the quickest routes. Here though? He would need to take small steps and leaps of faith. Until Raiden returned and gave him more time, that is. "You'll have to give me some days, have Johnny create a new profile for me… make it two, I feel we'll have the same reaction from Heaven".
The weekend finally arrived. And Jaune's team was already on the move… with a surprise additament to their team. Although Sun agreed to join their operation, Neptune insisted on hanging around. At first, they rejected, but Sun insisted on him being a part of it; adding his involvement to his conditions.
"So, let me get this straight… Torchwick used to work with the White Fang, but now he is not; and he only did it because of a connection to a woman. And all the failed dust robberies are somehow connected to this 'her'; and if we find her, we find Torchwick?". Neptune insisted on questioning Jaune as they followed Yang.
"Yes, that is the basic idea".
"Right… and… where does Pyrrha fall in all of this?".
Jaune looked around to make sure no one was paying attention to them before talking again in a lower voice "Because if we can find that woman, she can link us to Torchwick and we can then bust Seido!".
Neptune took a moment to let all sink in "Ok, I'm already here. Might as well make the best of it". He thought that what they were doing was admirable; but a long shot at best. He kept walking thinking about nothing when he suddenly recognized the route they were taking. "Hold on. Yang are we going to-".
"Yep!".
"But… aren't you…?".
Before anyone could ponder, they were surprised by the building. Instead of the rundown look from before it was now a clean white building with no windows. The music was already playing, and a handful of people were already lining to enter.
Yang was ready to kick the door open but was stopped by one of Junior's men. "Please step in line to enter" he said.
Annoyed, Yang then stepped close to the grunt. "Look we only want to talk to Junior. Are we doing this the easy way…" She then cracked her knuckles. "Or the one you already know".
Unaffected by Yang's display of possible violence, the man then spoke again. "Please, step in line or We'll be forced to call the authorities".
"Ok, you asked for it. Hey Nora, how about some scrambled legs?".
"Oh, now we are talking!" Nora was getting ready before the rest of the group stepped between them.
"No. You are not doing that, Xiao Long. We have a chance to enter the nice way, and we are going to do it! Got it!?" Weiss scolded them.
Yang did not move and instead confronted Weiss with her own frown.
"Yang, chill" Neptune then suggested. "It's only, like 8 people before us. It's no problem".
She just wanted to get through with things. But it seemed that a majority of three to two decided to take the long route. "Ok, fine I've seen longer lines anyway…". It, however, took them two hours to finally get to the front of the line; and once the bouncer checked that everything was ok, he let them in.
They entered through the door, but instead of a dance floor, the bar and booths; they arrived at a vestibule that had a sofa on the right wall, a muted TV showing the news on the left and right in front of them a door with a futuristic screen, a metal platform and another bouncer.
"Welcome to Junior's. Please leave your electronic devices, luggage and weapons on the platform. Then proceed to the scanner for clearance".
All this bureaucracy was finally getting on Yang's nerves. "We just want to enter! Is it really THAT hard!?".
The bouncer did not flinch and instead just repeated what he said before. "Welcome to Junior's. Please leave your electronic devices, luggage and weapons on the platform. Then proceed to the scanner for clearance".
Yang gave up and proceeded to hold her face on her hands. Neptune, on the other hand, was sceptic about what was going on. "Why should we give you our weapons?".
The bouncer said nothing at first, remaining stoic for a few seconds before answering. "New policy. No fighting inside and therefore no weapons of any kind, sir. You will be given an access card which you can use to reclaim whatever you left when you are ready to leave. It is a free service and we guaranty 100% safety".
Raising an eyebrow, Yang then questioned the bouncer. "Are you really expecting us to go and talk with Junior without any way to defend ourselves?".
The guard looked at her, and after a few seconds gave the same answer "New policy. No fighting inside and therefore no weapons of any kind, madam. You will-".
"RAAAAAAAHHHH!" Yang was getting her gauntlets ready before being stopped by Jaune.
"Yang, it's ok. Let's just do as he says. We'll be in and out before you know it".
She took a long breath and conceded. One at a time, they proceeded to put their weapons on the platform and looked at the screen as instructed by the bouncer. Once the screen turned green, their weapons were picked up by a mechanical claw and a card was given. But when Yang tried to use the scanner, it turned yellow.
"Miss… Xiao Long." The bouncer announced. "You are a yellow alert in this establishment. If you wish to enter, please have your companion or companions ask security for your clearance if you wish to enter again. Your personal objects will be held, and you can reclaim them at the exit door if you so wish. Thank you for your understanding". The claw then took Ember Celica away while everyone just looked with panic at Yang believing she would trash the room. To their surprise however, she just stood there.
After a while, Nora was the first to try and get a response from her. She slowly went to touch her shoulder, but stopped dead on her tracks when Yang spoke on a neutral tone; obviously holding back her rage.
"Just… go… try to talk to Junior… and try to get me in… I have had it with this place's crap… I just want to get the job done".
"Are you…?" Weiss tried to ask.
"YES!" Screamed Yang. "Sorry, I'll just… stay here. Text me after you are done". She then walked over to the sofa and sat. The rest of the group understood and then walked in.
Inside, everything looked normal. People were dancing, drinking and having a good time overall. Neptune, however, noticed that the decoration looked different. The decoration was lighter in color with the pillars now looking like cylindrical waterfalls and the dancefloor an ocean of everchanging colors. The DJ booth now was in the shape of a pyramid and an entire new section on the second floor with private booths.
"This place… it's so… different from last time".
Sarcastically, Nora responded. "I wonder why…". They all turned their heads to where she was looking and found the club's logo. Under the name 'Junior's', in small letters, was the text 'A proud member of the Seido Industries entertainment branch'.
"Should we be surprised?" stated Weiss.
"Ok, team. New strategy: Never, ever, mention the name Torchwick or imply that we know Seido is doing something shady. Neptune. Yang is not here; so, do you remember how this Junior guy looks like?".
"Yeah, don't worry just stay here. I'll go look aro-AAAAHH!". A soon as Neptune was turning, they were greeted by a set of twins that no one saw when they arrived.
"Well what do you know, Melanie. Xiao Long's friends".
"What do you want here?" asked the other twin with clear dissatisfaction in her voice while folding her arms on her chest.
"How did you-" tried to ask Jaune.
"The girl who trashed our club tries to enter and you think we wouldn't notice?" answered Melanie first this time. Holding her scroll which showed a picture of Yang.
"Besides, I remember blue-blunder here. It's not so hard to make the connection". Miltia complimented.
Seeing as they were already on thin ice with the heads of security (as previously briefed by Yang). Weiss decided to play the middle ground. "We don't want to cause any troubles. We don't even have our weapons with us. What's the worst we could do?".
The twins gave a quick glare at each other before continuing their interrogation.
"Again".
"What do you want?".
"And don't think we are dumb enough to believe you just want 'a good time'".
"When Xiao Long is involved, it's always about information on something".
"Or someone".
The team looked at Jaune, trusting on his judgement to handle the situation. "Ok, yes we are looking for Junior".
Both girls stared at Jaune, not showing any emotion and expecting him to tell them more.
He was nervous, but thankfully he did not crack. "That is all you need to know for now".
They kept staring at him, then looked at the other with the same determination on their faces.
"Fine…".
"Suit yourselves…". They stepped out of their way and Neptune was finally able to spot Junior on the bar. "But just so you know…".
"You are wasting your time".
They all walked to the bar along with the twins. Nora congratulated Jaune on not breaking but Weiss was just puzzled about what they meant by their last sentence. Sure enough, they reached the bar where they were surprised by Junior's smile.
"Heads up, boss!".
"Xiao Long's friends".
"Really? Well, what will it be kids?".
By the way Yang described Junior, everyone was expecting more hostility from his part everything considered. After a quick moment of silence, Nora spoke first. "Sooooo... Mr. Junior, right? Why the big smile if you know who we are?".
His smile then turned from happy to smug "You may be huntsmen in training, but you have no weapons while we do, and blondie is not here. What's the worst you can do?".
Although insulting, they decided to just let it slide; they needed to know about the White Fang and whatever they could get on their ally.
Jaune started. "Ok, we need information".
Junior pretended to look surprised. "Information? On what?".
"The White Fang. What are they up to now?"
Junior signaled with his finger for them to get closer; and once they were close enough, he told them "I have no idea".
Confusion turned into indignation when they saw Junior laughing at them.
"What do you mean? Didn't you give us information last time?" Neptune almost screamed.
"Last time, kid. A long time ago. I don't care about that business anymore".
Nora then tried to press on and tease him. "What, the big boys no longer want to tell you secrets?".
"More like I no longer need them. If you want to know about the White Fang, look at the news. If they have not been arrested, they are fighting amongst themselves over on Vacuo".
Seeing as asking for the White Fang was turning useless at this point, Jaune then tried to get something on the woman. "Ok… so the White Fang are gone… but why were they here in the first place?"
"Faunus rights, terrorist attacks, stealing things, how should I know?".
"You seemed to last time".
"Hearing about something happening is not the same as keeping a record on what they do".
"Are you really telling us you don't have any idea how the White Fang came into possession of an altesian paladin?".
Junior's cocky smile was finally gone, but he still gave no signs of delivering what they needed. "I found out about that the same way you all did. I read it on a news article".
"Really? Because I don't think someone in the Atlas military is very willingly giving weapons freely to them".
"And why should I know who their supplier is?".
Seeing that affirmation as a weakness in hi alibi, Weiss decided to keep pushing. "So, there is a supplier".
"What…? Well… maybe, they got it from somewhere, right?".
"And you know that supplier!".
"I… NO!". He was now refusing to meet their eyes.
He was on the brink of breaking "Don't lie Junior. Who did he give that Paladin to!?".
Everyone's enthusiasm, even Nora's, fell at that moment. While Weiss had not outright stated that the 'he' was Roman, implying that there were two people in that deal was a very specific detail. One that Junior caught.
"What do you mean by 'he'?". Asked a now reinvigorated Junior. "Who is this 'he'?".
"Well… isn't it obvious there needs to be two people for such a delicate operation?". She tried to regain her train of thought, but he just kept pushing.
"Two? And you know who one of those suppliers is?".
"No, of course not!" Nora then took over. "How would we know about him?".
"You seem sure to know that one is a man".
The team was now losing. It felt like every answer was slowly but surely revealing they knew about Torchwick and Seido. It felt like a they needed a miracle.
"RED LEVEL THREAT DETECTED! RED LEVEL THREAT DETECTED! RED LEVEL THREAT DETECTED!" an alarm suddenly announced. Junior ignored speaker and looked directly at the twins. They were looking at their scrolls but could not figure out who or what the threat was.
"Well!? What is it!?" a frustrated Junior asked.
"We don't know!"
"It doesn't show any names. Just two bearded guys!"
Security started to move to the main door and a thought popped into Weiss' mind. "Wait, are they in the vestibule?".
"Yes." Answered Miltia.
"Why?" continued Melanie.
"YANG!" All four students replied.
They rushed to the door, ignoring the safety protocols being announced on the speakers, but when they climbed the stairs, there was an explosion and one of the bouncers came flying through the doors crashing on the opposite wall. They all got up and went running through the smoke finding Yang holding one of the security guards by the neck of his shirt with both hands.
Once she saw them, the twins, Junior and the rest of security, she quickly dropped him and raised her hands in the air. "I did nothing! I swear!".
The council of the Elder gods was a structure that existed on a plain of reality to which mortals referred to as 'The Heavens'. It was a wasteland with cosmic properties that laid in perfect entropy. All except for a structure that held six platforms on a circular formation and a pillar in the middle of it. On top of each platform was a giant throne in which shadowy figures sat in complete stillness.
The tranquility was broken when a blue lighting fell on top of the pillar and the shadows became translucent humanoid figures of beings with different shapes and forms. The lighting then took the form of a kneeling Raiden to whom the figures spoke in unison.
"You arrive earlier than expected, thunder god. We sense trouble within you; speak your mind".
"Elder Gods! As requested, ever since those dimensional rifts appeared, I feared that Shao Kahn or the remains of Shinnok's cult would try to use them for their evil purpose. The essence of this other world also feels tainted with evil from our reality and it falls into place with the sudden disappearance of beings from here. But we have found something more worrying". Raiden then took out the knife that Fujin found and produced a bigger astral projection of it. "This knife was made in the other world. And it is marked with the kamidogu from Orderrealm".
"You suggest that the Realm of Order has ill intentions towards the other world?".
"I do not know, I come here looking for answers from you. They have isolated themselves from all other realms. Entering it without authorization from you or their gods is a transgression".
"We Elder Gods do not interfere with decisions of mortals or their actions. We only act when the existence of the realms is threatened. In that same way, the location and users of those rifts are unknown to us in the same way as the portals created by Shinnok's amulet".
"Are you saying there is no way to find out who is carrying out these actions?".
"While we respect the decisions made the inhabitants of the realms, this knife proves that Orderrealm is acting differently from what Grava has told us".
"What do you mean? Is the protector of Order lying?".
"That is about to be determined". As soon as they finished, their eyes began to glow and a moment later a purple woman wearing a white kimono and her black hair in a bun materialized next to Raiden. She then bowed to the Elder Gods.
"Lord Raiden, Elder Gods, I answer your call. What can I do for you?".
"Grava. You reported that no rifts have been found in your realm".
"Indeed. Despite the Senate's best efforts, no rifts have been found".
Raiden then stepped closer to her holding the knife. "Then how do you explain this!?".
Grava looked as Raiden showed her the kamidogu engraved on the sheath.
"A standard knife engraved with a figure you and I know. What is your point?"
"My point, Grava, is that I found it in the other world. A universe Orderrealm can't reach unless they can create a portal to it!".
Enraged, Grava slaped the knife out of Raiden's hand and confronted him directly to his face "You dare accuse me of lying to Elder Gods!?" she then stepped away to address the Elder Gods once again "Seido is a realm of peace, we seek no conflict with other realms. Outworld's civil war, the return of Edenia, the power void in the Netherrealm are events which do not interest us". She then slowly turned towards Raiden. "Why are you so quick to believe this tale? He kept Shinnok's amulet after his defeat, a weapon which can create untraceable portals. How do we know he did not just use it to frame my realm?".
Raiden crossed his arms as he rebutted her question. "I casted the amulet into the Dream Realm, Grava. And even if I kept it, what would Earthrealm gain from it?".
"Three invasion attempts from Shao Kahn, one that almost succeeded and ended with the deaths of almost all of your champions. Shinnok being almost able to claim your realm's life source. Maybe the 'blunder-god' has had enough and wishes to… show some strength? The amulet is powerful… but also a source of corruption!".
"Enough, Grava!" The Elder Gods demanded. "Raiden was tasked by us to investigate the other world. If he claims he found proof of seidans acting there, then we believe him. We believe that there are rifts in your realm, and we believe they are being used. You will give Raiden access to Seido, and that is final!".
Defeated, Grava just bowed and then looked directly at Raiden. "You may enter, but the realm remains closed to any other god or mortal!". She then grabbed Raiden and they both teleported away, the Elder Gods became shadows, and the realm fell into complete silence once again.
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Me: I'll have a head start on the number of chapters so even if I fail to write a new chapter one week, I'll have a backup to go to.
End of the year crunch: ORLY?
Sorry it took me long to update after a constant flow the first month.
Comments are more than welcome!