Hey there everyone! I would like to make an amemdent to an earlier statement of mine in one of my author's notes. I wrote that the idea for this fic came from me thinking "What if Remnites weren't Humans, but aliens?" What prompted that line of thought is this video from YouTube: /watch?v=rRoAfD6bCQ4&t=204s.
It seems to me that Remnites don't possess the same aggression or ambition that Human beings do, at least in regards to being the masters of their own planet. I've read RWBY fanfic that describes their Great War as being much less destructive than World War I, and I can honestly see that, as the Grimm would make waging a world war an even more difficult affair, with the Grimm taking advantage of the chaos and negative emotions, and the war's participants seeing the Grimm as more of an enemy than each other.
Ultimately though, I don't see the Remnites' apparent lack of aggression or ambition against each other as a con. In their world, with the existential threat of the Grimm over all, it would make sense for their species and their civilization to develop so that cooperation, not competition, is natural and normal. Here on Earth, Humanity doesn't have a universal enemy like the Grimm, so we're more prone to see other individuals and groups of Humans as enemies, as the "Other", and to pursue greater measures against each other.
This isn't completely bad, as competition has produced excellence in many areas. As many Commoners have yet to learn, the strengths and weaknesses of different alien species aren't an indicator of their inferiority and Humanity's superiority; rather, they are an indicator of the conditions of their homeworld, and how their ancestors and civilization adapted to exist there. Humans are adapted to live on Earth, Remnites and Faunus are adapted to live on Remnant, and so on and so forth.
With that said, here's the newest chapter of Huntsman, Student, Rogue Agent. Feel free to leave a review telling me what you think!
Edit as of 3/2/2023: Removed subdermal pockets.
Arc One, Part Four
To anyone watching, it would have appeared as though Jaune had ignored Ozpin's question and just walked out the broken window high above the ground.
There were many perks to having psionics. Telepathic communication, much faster and more efficient than verbal communication, was one of them.
Deprived of psionics for much of his life, Jaune wouldn't lie that he loved being able to finally establish mental communications himself, no longer having to wait for someone else to "set up" as he had with his parents and sisters. However, he couldn't say that telepathic coms were his favorite psionic power.
Jaune found himself smiling as he felt the cool night whip by his face, the wind chill factor making it feel colder on his skin. Ozpin's psionic signature was disappearing quickly behind him as the ground rushed up faster and faster to meet him.
Between his resilience, his shields, and his fortified ankles, Jaune could tank the impact from falling all the way from Ozpin's office all the way to the ground. However, a "Huntsman landing" was very hard on the knees, and he had an alternative.
Jaune waited for as long as he dared before he flared his psionics hard, coming to an abrupt stop about a meter above the ground. His smile illuminated by his purple glowing eyes, Jaune gently floated the rest of the way down and broke into a light jog the moment his feet touched the ground.
Defying gravity was his favorite psionic power, hands down.
Jaune shouldered his duffel bag and picked up his pace. He needed to get out of Vale, fast, before the other Commonwealth agents in the area realized his treachery. Thank Oum that Beacon had its own fleet of bullheads for quick transport around Vale.
Jaune reached for his Scroll only to find his pocket empty. He cursed as he remembered leaving his Scroll outside his and Pyrrha's study room. He was going to have to just go to the bullpads and hope there was one or more available to him.
Then again, the first thing that his fellow Commoners would do upon learning of his betrayal would be to check his Scroll, see where it was, and what he had last done on it. This way, all they'd learn is that it was outside a Beacon study room, and that the last page he had accessed had been a Vale News Network article on the graduation.
Jaune's smile fell off his face as he remembered Pyrrha. He couldn't say that he blamed her for her reaction. If the shoe had been on the other foot, if the Commonwealth was a pre-FTL civilization and Pyrrha had transformed into a near-Human form right in front of him, and then told him that she was an alien and that the government of Remnant was out to infiltrate and take take over Unity, he doubted that he would have reacted much better.
The newfound guilt and sorrow threatened to well up inside of him and leave him a sobbing wreck lying on the ground. He squashed down the raw emotions and forced his mind to think.
It was probably better this way; if Pyrrha hadn't left him, she would have insisted on helping him, and despite the fact that Jaune liked that idea, him and Pyrrha against the world, it would have been incredibly dangerous for them both. This way, she was safe, and he could work to dismantle Operation Shattered Eclipse without worrying about her.
He forced himself to focus on that thought, make himself believe and accept it. Otherwise, he was going to break down, and he didn't have time for that. He would find the time to grieve when the risk of being gunned down by his fellow Commoners was less likely.
Glancing around, he found that there were very few people walking around. Thankfully, his little stunt with dropping out of the sky to hover above the ground had gone unnoticed. Noticing the security cameras that dotted the walls of the CCT Tower, Jaune quickly pulled his hood up and over his head.
He then proceeded into the nearest restroom. Once locked in a stall, he took off his backpack and opened one of its secret compartments, from which he took a tube of medigel, which he placed on the toilet paper cover.
He then took out his Commonwealth Army Knife from his sleeve again and flipped it open to a scalpel. Pushing back the sleeve on his right arm, he found the spot where he had taken the disintegration implant, which also doubled as a tracker, from the assassin.
Gritting his teeth, he held the scalpel over his arm for a moment before making the first slice. Years of interrogation training, both as the interrogator and the interrogatee, allowed him to work through the pain and keep his heart rate from achieving escape velocity. Blood oozed from the wound and drippled onto the floor as Jaune avoided his arteries and continued working his way to the implant.
Just when he was starting to think that their handlers made sure to place their disintegration/tracker implants in different places to ensure they wouldn't be easily found and disabled, he hit plastic. Gritting his teeth, he extracted the little bloody ball and tossed it into the toilet with a plop.
Avoiding dripping blood onto his clothes, Jaune quickly picked up the medigel tube and applied it to the cut on his arm, taking care not to use too much, lest he began hallucinating. Medigel was supposed to match the skin color of its user as it was applied to wounds, but they could never get it right. With the cut obscured and the blood absorbed, it looked like his left arm had some discoloration.
After wiping up the blood with toilet paper, flushing it all down the toilet with the implant, and putting the tube back in its pocket, he opened another secret compartment (his bags had a lot of those) and took out a photostatic veil and wig. Anyone who saw the items in passing would think them merely some pieces of clear plastic. A closer look, though, would reveal the hexagonal pattern that ran through both.
He switched out his black hoodie for a blue one, before putting the wig on. He made sure that all of his blond hair was concealed underneath it before fitting the veil over his face. Feeling along its edge, he found and pressed a button, nearly imperceptible from the rest of the veil. As the veil turned on, he felt along the edge of the wig and did the same upon finding its nearly visible button.
Exiting the stall, he walked over to the mirror, keeping his eyes on the ground until he was standing in front of the reflective surface. Instead of blond eyes, yellow ones met his gaze, and instead of his straight blond hair, he had a spiky blue hairdo. If Neptune and Blake were to ever have a kid, this was how a son of theirs might look.
"Azure Sym" was the name he had come up with for this look, the opposite of Jaune Arc, and an identity that he had come up with himself, so the higher-ups in Shattered Eclipse didn't know about it. Along with the inverted eye and hair color, he had also programmed the veil to give Azure prominent cheek bones and rounder cheeks than his real face. In short, Azure Sym was the opposite of Jaune Arc. Hopefully, that in and of itself wouldn't attract attention and suspicion.
Satisfied with his disguise, Jaune made his way out of the restroom and began walking to the bullpads. With any luck, there'd be a bullhead waiting for him and he could take a quick trip across Vale to the airport and find an outgoing flight.
As it turned out, there was indeed a bullhead waiting for any last minute passengers. Jaune got in line behind a few others, thanking God, Oum, or whoever else was listening. A few minutes, and he'd be gone from Beacon, and then from Vale.
Another chapter in the life of Jaune Arc was over. He was sad to see this one come to an end, especially as he'd be going it alone.
"Jaune?"
He froze before looking over his shoulder, not trusting his ears.
It was Pyrrha. She had her "public anonymity" hoodie and cap on, and she was also bearing her own backpack, duffel, and weapons, Milo and Akouo. She was standing at the edge of the pad, looking at the people as they were boarding the bullhead, searching. She looked desperate and afraid, just barely keeping it together.
Jaune reached out with his psionics, just enough to gauge her emotional state. She was indeed desperate and afraid, afraid that she had missed him and would never see him again, and desperate to find him. She was full of regret, for reacting the way she had; anger, both at herself and at Jaune; and hope, that she wasn't too late, that she could still find Jaune, and that she wouldn't find herself all alone, again, after finally finding her Auramate.
She still wanted him after all, still loved him.
Jaune looked back at the bullhead, the line to it now only separating him from it by a few people.
He glanced back at Pyrrha. He didn't need his psionics to see the hope draining away from her.
It was insanity to bring her along. He was setting himself against Operation Shattered Eclipse, against people considered fanatics by even the most patriotic of Commonwealth citizens, and against the will and power of the Commonwealth itself. His chances of surviving were slim; the odds of his success even more so. To bring Pyrrha along was to drag her along with him to his very likely death; to ask that of her was unthinkable.
It was even more unthinkable, though, to leave her alone on that bullpad, and to live his life, however short it was going to be now, without her.
Jaune left the line and began walking back towards Beacon. As he passed by Pyrrha, he reached out with his mind and tapped against hers.
"Pyrrha."
"Jaune?!" Her voice broke out in hope and confusion. He could imagine her looking around for him, wondering where in Remnant his voice was coming from. "Jaune, where are you?!"
He could sense people looking her way. "I-I can communicate telepathically, Pyrrha. Direct your thoughts towards me, be able to hear you. Try it."
There was a moment of silence, both physically and mentally.
"LIKE THIS?" Pyrrha's mental voice boomed out like a megaphone in Jaune's skull. He winced and grit his teeth before answering.
"Yes, Pyrrha, like that, ju-just," he reached up and rubbed his head. "No-not nearly so loud, please?"
"I'm sorry," she said, much less loudly this time. "This better?"
"Much," he answered. "Now, see guy with the blue hair-blue hoodie walking away? Follow him, lead you to me."
There was a second of hesitation; Pyrrha was likely scanning for his fake blue hair.
"Ok, see him," she said. "Following him. Who is he, why has your bags?"
"Explain in-in a moment," he answered. "See you then."
He shut down the link and began looking for a spot where he and Pyrrha could meet without drawing eyes. Annoyed when none presented themselves in the vicinity, he looked at one of the street lights that lined the paths of Beacon's walkways and clenched his fist.
The street light's lamps cracked and then broke, going out and creating an oasis of darkness in a sea of light. Jaune continued walking until he came up to the post, stopping to lean against it and wait.
He didn't have to wait long. Pyrrha almost crashed into him, having broken into a run to catch up to him.
"Where is Jaune?" she demanded as she just barely stopped from plowing into him, desperation in her voice.
Jaune reached up for the veil's button and switched it off. Pyrrha's face twisted in confusion as his own visage began blinking back and forth between his and Azure's, the hexagonal pattern flickering over the veil.
"I'm right here," he said, the blinking veil distorting his voice. Pyrrha's eyes widened as he peeled it off, revealing his face fully.
Before he could say another word, Pyrrha launched herself at him, latching onto him with both arms and her legs in a full-body hug. Jaune stumbled back, almost falling into the street light behind him. He regained his balance and then hugged Pyrrha back just as fiercely, shoulders shaking with unshed tears.
Pyrrha drew back and then kissed him hard, almost bruising their lips. Jaune kissed back, unable to keep a smile from forming. He could feel her smiling as well.
The moment their kiss ended, Pyrrha began apologizing.
"I'm so sorry, Jaune. I was just, upset, but I shouldn't have reacted like that. I'm so sorry for pushing you against the wall like that, did I hurt you? I shouldn't have walked out like that, I didn't know what to do, and I'm so sorry, can you ever forgive me? I-"
"Pyrrha, of course I forgive you!" Jaune interrupted. "Oum, you sound like Nora."
"Sorry," Pyrrha said, red coloring her cheeks.
"It's ok," Jaune replied. "I dropped a real bombshell on you. I'm not surprised you were upset, that would have been a lot for anyone. What made you come looking for me?"
"I found a message on my Scroll from Goodwitch," Pyrrha said, taking her Scroll out. "Apparently, you were running in the halls, on the walls, and she wasn't happy about it. By the way, why was my Scroll outside the study room?"
Jaune swallowed. "Throw that away!" he mentally urged. "My people can-can listen/watch through Scrolls. Left them outside room so-so they couldn't hear tell-telling you truth."
Pyrrha paled and then turned and threw her Scroll away, its blue glowing disappearing into the night. She reached into her hoodie pocket and took another Scroll, his.
Jaune didn't bother throwing it; he simply lifted his old Scroll out of Pyrrha's hand with his mind and then crushed it. He unceremoniously let the pieces fall to the ground.
"I'm sor-" Pyrrha began.
"Nope!" Jaune put a finger to Pyrrha's lips, cutting her off. "It's fine, Pyrrha. You didn't know."
They were silent for a moment before Jaune spoke again. "That wasn't what I meant though."
When Pyrrha looked up at him questioningly, he continued.
"Why come looking for me?" he asked. "I'm an alien, and not only that, I've been helping my government take over your planet for four years now. I've lied to you, for four years, about who I am, why I'm here, and where I'm from. I've spied on Ozpin, who trained me how to be a Huntsman and how to use my psionics, and I almost got him killed just now-I stopped it," he added quickly at Pyrrha's horrified look. "He's alive, but he was almost killed because I told my handlers his weaknesses, and Remnant might still become the Commonwealth's anyway!"
Jaune was breathing hard from his rant. He sighed heavily, staring at the ground as he gathered his wits again.
"I've lied to you about so much," he said softly, hanging his head. "I've hurt you, and I wouldn't blame you if you just walked away from me."
There was only silence for a moment and then Pyrrha walked up to him. Jaune looked up at her to find her staring at him with the strangest expression on her face. She reached up and embraced him, not with the desperation that she had earlier, but with a strength and steadfastness that was grounding to Jaune after his confession. He hugged her right back as she brought her mouth to his ear.
"Jaune Arc, you listen here and you listen good," Pyrrha spoke softly. "I love you, with all of my heart. I don't care if you are an alien. I won't lie, I am upset with you, but I'm never going to stop loving you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, Jaune, no matter what happens."
Jaune swallowed and then pulled back to look at her.
"Pyrrha, are you saying what I think you're saying?" he asked, searching her face.
"I don't know, Jaune," Pyrrha gave him a light smirk. "You tell me, you're the one who can apparently read minds."
Jaune raised an eyebrow at her before his eyes glowed purple as he gave her mind a cursory scan. His eyes widened before the glow subsided.
"Pyrrha, you need to understand," he began slowly, "telling you the truth and saving Ozpin, I've betrayed the Commonwealth and Humanity. They'll be coming after me sooner or later; they may try to take me alive for 'psychiatric help', but they'll have no issues with killing you. If you come with me, you'll be giving up your life and everything you have. You might never see your mother again, or Ren, or Nora, or any of our friends. You come with me, and it means looking over your shoulder and risking your life every single day. Are you sure you're up for that?"
Pyrrha furrowed her brow as she took in Jaune's words before replying.
"I've never been so sure of anything in my life, Jaune. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, even if it means dying with you tomorrow. Besides," she smiled at him, "I'm a fully licensed Huntress now; it's my duty to protect the kingdoms of Remnant from any threat, whether they be Grimm, Remnite, Faunus, or alien."
She cleared her throat. "No offense meant, of course, and I do believe that I would probably make more headway against the Commonwealth's agents if I was with you, don't you think?"
Jaune stared at her before letting out a bark of laughter. He grabbed her by the shoulders and kissed her hard on the mouth. He chuckled again when he pulled back.
"It's crazy, but for some reason, having you by my side, I suddenly feel so much better about my chances at actually succeeding," he told her. "I love you too, Pyrrha Nikos, with all my heart."
For a second, all that existed in the world was him and Pyrrha, staring into each other's eyes and holding each other's hands, Remnant's shattered moon shining down on them. How and when he had gotten so lucky, Jaune didn't know, but he had something worth far more than the Commonwealth and his family's expectations to fight for now, and he would be damned if he didn't go down fighting.
The moment ended, sadly, and Jaune let go of Pyrrha's hands.
"Now, we should probably get away from here. Before we do that though…" he opened the pocket in his hoodie and took out his spare veil. "You need a better disguise than a hoodie and ball cap."
Pyrrha took the offered veil from his hand and studied it, holding it like it would bite her.
"Do I just put it on then?" she asked uncertaintly, holding it up to her face. She jumped and almost dropped it when it began contouring itself to her face the moment it made contact with her skin.
"Now what?" she asked, lowering her hands from her face. The mask was barely perceptible over her face, just a hint of light reflecting off its surface.
"There's a button on the edge," Jaune told her, reaching over to Pyrrha's face and feeling along the edge of the mask. He found the button and pressed it, the hexagonal pattern flickering over Pyrrha's face before settling. A stranger's face looked back at Jaune, eyes as red as her hair blinking at him.
"How do I look?" Pyrrha asked, jumping at her altered voice.
"You look good," Jaune replied as he reapplied his own veil and turned it back on, Azure's face overtaking his own. "I've only got one wig, but we should be good."
When they got back to the bullpad, they found that the bullhead had long since departed for Vale. There were no other bullheads or airships at any of the other pads.
"Oh dear," Pyrrha said, rubbing her arm. "Maybe another one will be around shortly?"
"We don't have time to wait," Jaune said, walking across the pad towards the edge. "Remember our initiation?"
"Yes, of course," Pyrrha replied, jogging to catch up with him. "What about it?"
"Vale is right at the foot of Beacon's western cliff," Jaune answered. "All we have to do is jump down there, make our way to the air- or seaport, find a ship, and we should be homefree."
"Isn't that illegal?" Pyrrha asked uncertaintly. "Jumping down, I mean. We'd be causing property damage when we land; we aren't supposed to do that unless we're actively in combat."
"Who said anything about landing?" Jaune said with a grin. "There's this one thing I've been wanting to do with you, and now's as good a time as any."
"What's that?" Pyrrha asked as they came to the edge of Beacon's western cliff. Vale stretched out before them, its light twinkling like a dense field of stars had descended from the sky and landed on the planet's surface. It was a sight that Jaune, Pyrrha, and their friends had gotten used to over their time at Beacon. Jaune looked out over Vale, wondering when he'd see it again, if he'd ever see it again.
"This," Jaune replied, scooping up Pyrrha in his arms. She squealed in surprise and instinctively put her arms around his neck. "Hold on tight," he told her. "I haven't done this with someone else before."
"Done WHAT?!" Pyrrha yelped as he levitated straight up into the air and over the side of the cliff. He was slower than usual, as he was bearing his weight, Pyrrha's, their armor, weapons, backpacks, and duffel bags combined. He glided out onto the night air, leaving the cliff and Beacon behind them as he and Pyrrha levitated forward.
"Jaune!" Pyrrha cried out, holding on tightly as he had asked. "You're flying!"
"Levitating, actually," Jaune told her, readjusting her grip on her. "Think of it as telekinesis, but I'm applying it to myself rather than an object."
"My Oum," Pyrrha breathed, looking around them, the entirety of Vale now under them rather than before them. "I never knew your Semblance was so versatile."
"It's not my Semblance," Jaune admitted. "It's my psionics. Humans don't have Semblances."
"You don't?" Pyrrha's head swiveled to look at him. "But, you have Aura."
"Actually, no I don't," Jaune sighed. "I've got a shield generation implant, lets me imitate Aura. As far as we know, Remnites, Faunus, and Remnant animals are the only living beings that can generate Aura or manifest a Semblance."
"Oh," Pyrrha said, looking downtrodden. "I just always thought that if there was alien life, it would have Aura too."
"Because Aura is the manifestation of our souls, right?" Jaune asked. "Well, guess that means I and every other Human being in existence doesn't have a soul. Would that make me a Grimm then?"
"Wha-NO!" Pyrrha burst out, shaking her head. "That's not what I meant at all, I-"
She noticed the grin on Jaune's face and glared at him. He burst into laughter at that, shoulders shaking.
"You are so mean," she muttered, lightly smacking him on the chest. He just laughed again.
"I'm sorry," he said, "but I've been wanting to say that ever since I heard the whole 'Aura is the manifestation of our souls' thing. It annoyed me pretty badly back then."
"Well, what is Aura then?" Pyrrha asked, annoyed.
Jaune sighed. "Honestly, we don't have a damn clue. Years of research by the Commonwealth's best scientists with the full backing of the biggest military budget in the galaxy, and they still can't figure out what Aura is or why only living things on Remnant can manifest it."
Pyrrha hmmed. "What are psionics then?"
"Now there's a question I can answer," Jaune began just before he lurched in midair. Pyrrha gasped and tightened her grip on him as they began descending.
"Jaune!" she called out, "what's happening?"
"Pyrrha, air…" Jaune choked.
"I'm sorry!" Pyrrha quickly loosened her grip. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Jaune replied, clearing his throat. "There's always a limit for how long you can levitate, just as there's a limit on how high you can reach. Good news is that we're just going to coast back to the ground. We should be able to make it to the airport if we hoof it from there."
"Alright," Pyrrha said, nestling against him. They drifted the rest of the way to the ground in silence, the lights of Vale's streets, businesses, and homes coming up to meet them. He squeezed Pyrrha back as they continued to descend. Jaune had to change course twice, the first time to avoid landing on an apartment roof, the second to keep from bashing his and Pyrrha's heads into a street light.
Finally, Jaune's feet alighted on the sidewalk of a quiet street in Vale's residential district. Behind them, a cliff face rose upwards, the CCT Tower, Beacon's tower, just visible over the edge. Jaune let Pyrrha down and she couldn't help but laugh as she got her feet under her.
"Jaune, that was absolutely amazing!" she told him, smiling widely. "I am never going to forget that!"
"Good," Jaune smiled back before his face turned somber. "I'm just sorry that we didn't do that sooner, you know, before…." He lapsed into silence.
He'd done it before, by himself, floating out over Vale in the dead of night. Like he'd told Pyrrha, he'd never done it while carrying someone, and he had never floated all the way down to Vale either. He had been ordered, by both his handlers and Ozpin, to never let anyone know just how powerful he truly was, to let everyone else think that his Semblance was simply telekinesis.
Before he told Pyrrha the truth, he would have never done that with her, never would have shared that experience with her. His loyalty to the Commonwealth would have prevented him from that, and if they somehow hadn't been a factor, he would have kept from doing it out of a sense of loyalty to Ozpin.
Now, he was free from the Commonwealth, because he wasn't going to let them take over Remnant, and he was free from Ozpin's rules, because he wasn't going to hold back against the agents of Shattered Eclipse. From now on, he was going to show Pyrrha all that he could do, and who he really was.
"Jaune," she assured him, putting a hand on his cheek. "It's alright. We're doing it now, and that's what matters. By the way, did I ever tell you that I've always liked the way your eyes glow when you're using your Semb-sorry, your psionics?"
"No," Jaune put his hand over hers fondly. "I don't think you have, but I'm glad to hear it, Pyr."
Pyrrha smiled and then stood on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear.
"Last one to the airport is a Dusted Grimm." With that, she turned and began running, her Aura granting her speed and agility far beyond an ordinary Remnite.
Jaune grinned and took off after her, as he was far from an ordinary Human.
It was stupid, he supposed, for the both of them to be running pell mell through the streets of Vale at night, as any attention they drew would be sure to eventually make its way to the ears of Shattered Eclipse, but at the moment, he didn't care.
He was free, Pyrrha was still with him, and they were going to stop the Commonwealth from annexing Remnant without a fight, or die trying.
Well, I hope you're all glad to see Pyrrha forgiving Jaune's deception and accepting his Humanity. I hope it's not rushed; I don't think so, as I think Pyrrha would be quick to forgive Jaune after having a moment to think.
And I'm sorry, VSX-2018, but Jaune won't be telling his friends what's going on, at least not now. It's not that he doesn't trust them or think that they're capable of protecting themselves. He just doesn't want to put them in danger, especially when it's partially his fault that Shattered Eclipse has the hold and power they do over Remnant. Don't worry though; they'll find out eventually.
I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter. I've been able to post regularly and staying two chapters ahead. Recently, I got a cough and it kept me from writing after work, so hopefully I'll be able to catch up today and later this week. Have a great day, and happy reading!