Chapter 6: The First Official Mission

Location: Mantle

Levi stretched his arms above his head, almost expecting his mechanical arm to pop the same way his real one did. It had been awful to get up early, but the faster he adjusted his internal clock to his new work cycle, the better. He and his friends had been debriefed by Clover, but given that the Communication Tower Project was still in the fledgling stages, there was nothing for them to do. He encouraged them to take missions and get some training when possible. That was exactly what Levi wanted.

Walking through Mantle was far different than he had expected. Now that he wasn't at risk of death or afraid of being found by the Military, he got to look around. The city was far different than what he had imagined. Atlas looked like a foreign country when compared to Mantle. The city looked old, worn… tired. The parts that weren't in the shadow of Atlas were covered in sleet and rainwater. The whole city looked like the area he used to live in while in Vale. He briefly wondered how Clarisse and her children were doing. It had been a long time since he had seen her.

"What do you think we're in for?" Weiss asked, pulling him from his thoughts. She had been reading the mission details on her scroll, something she had been doing since the previous day. She didn't seem nervous, but her eyes said everything. "The file doesn't say much."

"I'm not sure. I've been reading up on this string of murders since I was at the hospital. That guy that was with us in that police airship was one of the latest victims. He was seen in one of Ivy Brown's rallies. Not only that, but he was a vocal protester of General Ironwood. With his death, the consensus is that the General is sending someone to kill his opposers." the miqo'te replied, tilting his head a bit. "Clearly that isn't true, but it paints the General in an even worse light."

"You've been hung up on that Brown woman for a while. What do you think of her?"

"I don't have any opinions, but from what I've read, she's been vocal against the Embargo and General Ironwood as a whole. Not only that but she's made promises similar to what your father has promised. On top of that, she's stated she's going to lower taxes across the board for the poor while taxing the rich, something that has angered Jacques. If we look at the popularity votes, she ranks behind Robyn Hill."

Weiss didn't say anything, pondering everything he said. She tapped her chin in thought, closing her scroll as she did so. "I'm not a fan of politics, but something tells me that these murders are closely tied to them. Thankfully, I sat through enough meetings to get a solid grasp of things."

"My my, Weiss Schnee is gonna become a politician? Can I expect a tax cut on all ice cream and dairy products?"

"Yeah no… that's not how it works, first of all, and second, who are you, Neo?"

"Neo can't talk, so clearly no."

She rolled her eyes, holding her nose up high as she walked. It wasn't long after that they arrived at the Police Headquarters. Downtown Mantle wasn't as dirty or as dreary as the outer fringes. Looking around, most of the buildings looked rather modern, interlaced with holo-screens and other advertisements. Not far from where they were was the tallest building in Mantle, belonging to the Mantle Tribune, the most-read paper in all of Atlas.

They entered the station, seeing several people in the waiting room. A few officers walked by them, dragging a drunk man by the hood of his sweater. The man was kicking and screaming, slurring his speech as he tried and failed to get away. Stepping toward the front counter, Weiss gave the lady a wave, pulling her out her scroll. Levi did the same, his License being visible.

"Good Morning ma'am. I'm Weiss Schnee and this is my close friend and teammate Levi Athan. We accepted a mission put out by the Chief of Police. Would it be too much trouble to speak with him?"

She looked at the pair dejectedly, her eyes lingering on Levi's ears before reaching for the phone. She dialed a number, holding the receiver to her lips. "Oi Chief, those Huntsman you ordered are here… yeah… yeah… some Cat and the Schnee Heiress…. Yep… alright, I'll tell them."

Levi narrowed his eyes as he watched the woman slam the phone into the receiver. She popped her gum, gesturing to a nearby door where an officer was standing. "Tell the officer over there who you are. The Chief's office is on the third floor."

"Thank you, ma'am. I hope you have a nice day."

"Yeah yeah, whatever."

With the grace and poise drilled into her, Weiss stepped away from the counter, briefly chatting with the officer before they were allowed through. Once the door shut behind them she deflated, grumbling under her breath.

"Stupid bitch, how dare she call you 'some cat'. Do people not know what a miqo'te is?"

"Given the fact my race is nearly extinct… uh no?" Levi asked, earning a glare from her. He let out a laugh. "Relax, Snowflake, do you think I'm going to give a rat's ass about some dumb comment?"

"I know you don't care but… ugh…"

He took a hold of her hand, giving it a light squeeze. They didn't share any words, just kept climbing the stairs. Once they had arrived at the top floor, they stepped through, showing their IDs to a couple more officers. After leaving their weapons behind, due to security reasons, they stepped into the Police Chief's office.

The room reeked of cigarette smoke and whiskey. The whole office looked tired and miserable, the rich royal blue carpet was old and dingy and looked like it hadn't been cleaned in years. Wooden cabinets lined the walls, filled with old yelled boxes and manila folders. The pictures hanging on the wall were covered in a layer of dirt and the awards and trophies were caked in cigarette tar. Standing by the windows overlooking Main Street was a grisled-looking man, who looked far older than he seemed to be. He was puffing on a cigarette as he stared out the window, a deep frown on his face.

He had bags under his eyes, his black hair being slightly thinned in gray in parts. He wore a long sleeve tan shirt with a worn red striped tie. A pair of navy blue slacks adorned his legs, along with polished leather shoes. He had a belt around his waist containing his Badge and Weapon. He took a puff of his cigarette, glancing over his shoulder at the pair. Slowly exhaling the smoke he shook his head.

"I thought I told the General I wanted Huntsmen, not fucking kids."

"With all due respect, sir, we are Huntsmen. We might have recently gotten our licenses but we're ready and willing." Levi said, meeting the man's gaze. He gave him a once over, eyes locking with his ears for a moment, only to scoff.

"Great, another damn faunus I gotta deal with, here I thought that Erune lady was enough. Whatever, you think you can take this mission on?"

"Considering the fact these murders are not only harming the General's image, but the community, I would say so. We've dealt with psychotic murderers before, we can deal with this one." Weiss confidently said, stepping forward, hand outstretched. "Weiss Schnee, a pleasure to meet you, sir."

He nodded, shaking her hand. Levi did the same, standing tall and proud. "Levi Athan, we are at your service,"

"Conrad Howard Roth, but that's Chief to you," he said, heading to his seat. He gestured to the pair to sit as he put his cigarette out on the edge of the desk. He flicked it toward the trash can, the butt falling to the floor. Levi and Weiss shared a look but said nothing as he placed a thick file on the desk top. "I'm gonna be frank with you two, this is one of the most fucked up serial killers we've dealt with. I am going to ask you this once because after you open this file, you will not be allowed to leave unless the General himself asks you."

"We're here, aren't we? How bad could it be?" Weiss asked. The man pushed the file forward, allowing her to take it. She flicked it open, her eyes widening. Ever so slowly her jaw dropped as she looked at the picture that was attached with the file. "Oh… dear Gods I think I'm gonna be sick."

"I told you, Princess, this shit ain't for the faint of heart. That picture you are looking at belongs to a man named Joshamee Hobbs, who used to work for the Mantle Tribune," he said firmly. Levi took the file from Weiss who looked close to vomiting, the cigarette smell wasn't helping her in keeping her breakfast down. He looked at the picture, grimacing a bit.

"Fucking hell…"

"This man was supposedly tracking down a lead. Apparently, some high-profile person was laundering money. Just as he was about to discover who that person was, he went missing. He was found in an alleyway not long ago, completely dismembered. His organs had to be scooped up with a shovel and his head was found in a drain. They had to identify him with his dental records." the Chief explained, causing Levi to grimace.

"A murder that grisly had to have been some sort of vengeance killing, don't you think?" Weiss asked, having regained her bearings. The Chief shrugged.

"Could be, the next two were equally as bad, and they shared something in common. Both of them were reporters, both investigating the same thing, money laundering. Gregorio Rojas worked for the Atlas Inquirer and Blanca Hernandez worked for the Mantle Times. Both got close to figuring something out, both were dismembered, disemboweled, and decapitated."

The man paused to light a cigarette, taking a long drag from the black stick, exhaling the smoke as he flipped to a few other files, stopping when he got to a young woman. One who couldn't have been much older than 18. "This one threw us for a loop, this girl was some protester, got brought in for questioning, and for throwing bricks at some campaign cars. She was let go with a warning due to it being her first offense. She was last seen at one of Ivy Brown's rallies shortly before being found dead."

"Ivy Brown huh? That's a name that's piqued my interest. I've been keeping up with the news and it seems a lot of her supporters are turning up dead. All people who vocally oppose General Ironwood." Levi said, reading a few lines from the file. "I believe they're connected."

"So do several others, but we've looked into Miss Brown's history. She's squeaky clean. When asked about campaign funding, she produced legitimate records of all private investors and donations. All of her private investors are public figures as well, company owners and the like, all of them opposing both Jacques Schnee and General Ironwood."

Levi nodded, listening to the man speak while examining the other files. He finally arrived at the most recent one, the one belonging to Forest. He looked at the picture, a Mugshot that had been taken by the Atlas Police Department. Behind it was a picture taken of the crime scene. Compared to some of the others he had seen, this one was far cleaner. A single slash across his stomach, his cause of death had been blood loss, due to the obvious wound. He also noticed something peculiar near the edge of the wound, something that didn't look normal.

"Huh… this is… Chief, did you notice this violet liquid at the edge of his wound?" he asked, sliding the picture to the man. "It doesn't look like blood."

"Someone pointed that out as well, yes, but the autopsy didn't reveal anything. There wasn't anything in his body aside from alcohol. Seems our friend went out for a drink after his release. Whatever that violet liquid was, we don't know, maybe ink from a pen or something of the sort."

"Hm… interesting."

"Are you onto something, Levi?" Weiss asked, still a bit queasy from the pictures. He shook his head.

"Nothing yet, but Ivy Brown is still a suspect of interest. Several people die after investigating money laundering, all of them violently dismembered, all her supporters and vocal opposers of the General… something fishy is going on there," he said, glancing back at the Chief. "Would you mind if I recruit a couple more Huntsmen for this case?"

"Have at it kid, the more the merrier. The fact you two were crazy enough to even consider this is impressive. You seem to be taking this seriously unlike the last dumbshits who took it. The Police Force is at your disposal, whatever resources you need, I'll provide, including ammunition." he said, handing the pair some small SIM Cards. "These will allow your scrolls to connect to the Police Network, you need backup just call for Captain Noir, he'll set you straight."

"Thank you, sir. I promise we'll get to the bottom of this. I assume you have digital files, correct? If so do you think we could get copies? Carrying this thick folder might attract unwanted attention."

"Sure thing, you'll get those in a few minutes. Now if you need anything else, do ask, if not, then I suggest you get to it. I got a lot of other shit to handle." the chief said, brushing them off. Levi nodded, politely excusing himself. Weiss followed shortly after, coughing loudly once they left the office.

"Ugh… would it bother him not to smoke that in the presence of a lady?"

"I don't think he gives a shit if I'm being honest." the miqo'te faunus admitted. He leaned up against the wall the second they entered the stairwell, glancing up at the ceiling. "Fuck me, I didn't expect this shit to be so gruesome."

"You're telling me, I was expecting regular murders, not fucking dismemberments. How can you stare at those pictures and not get queasy?"

"Who said I wasn't? I was just hard-focused on not throwing up. It isn't the first time I've seen dismemberment, sad as I am to admit it." he said, trying not to recall what happened in the Amity Colosseum. "Something isn't adding up though. Those first 3 murders were all the same. 3 journalists close to hitting paydirt, were eliminated by someone in the same vile way. The last 7 however are an enigma. They stand out, it's too clean… as if the modus operandi changed."

The former heiress narrowed her eyes a bit, tapping her chin in thought. "You don't think they were done by separate people, do you?"

He remained silent, pondering her query for the moment. After a while, he spoke. "I'm not sure, but isn't it peculiar? Hobbs and those other journalists were killed before our arrival in Mantle, the rest were done shortly after. All of them are dissenters of the General and all of them support Ivy Brown, who by all intents and purposes is squeaky clean, yet those journalists were searching for answers to a money laundering scheme. There's something there that just doesn't make sense."

"We don't have anything to go by, though. We need to get information on what those journalists were close to discovering. That's our first clue." the white-haired woman said, closing her eyes for a moment. "Though I must ask, who are you planning on bringing aboard? It can't be anyone from our team or our friends, they're all busy."

"Don't worry, the people I've got in mind are likely to know more about Mantle than anyone we know. I just hope that girl can keep her hands off of me," he said, further confusing his friend. He reached for his earpiece, tapping it on. "Hey Ruby, do you hear me?"

"Hi Levi, what's up? Is something wrong?" she asked, sounding worried. "You and Weiss aren't hurt, are you?"

"No no, we're perfectly fine. We just left the meeting with the Chief, we'll have to explain things to you back at the Academy. I got a question though, that business card you got from that Huntsman the first day we got here. Do you still have it?"

"Hang on, let me check…" she replied, the line going dead for a moment. It sparked back to life, her cheery voice filling his ear. "Yep, I still got it. Why do you ask?"

"I'll let you know later, just forward me the number on there, I gotta make a call." the miqo'te said. Weiss gave him a look of interest, silently wondering what he was cooking up. She would, of course, find out in due time.

xxx

"Aaaah… these ears are so dang fluffy, and you have the cutest complexion too! It's such an honor to be in the presence of a Miqo'te faunus like you~"

Weiss glared at Metera, wondering when the older woman would stop petting Levi as if he were some house cat. The second he had decided to call them, she figured something like this would happen. She didn't quite like the woman if she cared to admit, but she did owe her one for killing that Megoliath during their arrival in Mistral. Valentine seemed to share her sentiments, not exactly enjoying his girlfriend petting another man. The miqo'te managed to brush her hands away, giving her a glare.

"Miss Roux, I didn't call you here so you could continuously pet me. I have some serious business to discuss with you and Mr. Aeterna. Some very serious matters, in fact."

"No need to be so formal with us, kid. Val and Teri will suffice," the raven-haired man replied, taking a sip of his coffee. "It's a good thing you contacted us, we have been wanting to speak with you as well, regarding a certain individual you may have met."

Weiss cocked her head, brow quirked in intrigue. "Oh?"

Metera sighed audibly. She didn't want to get to work, but she knew that Valentine would get angry with her if she didn't get serious. She reached into her top, pulling out her scroll which she flicked open. She slid the device forward, a photo of Forest being on screen. "The day you were arrested, this man was in your transport vehicle. We want to know if he said anything to you guys, anything of interest really."

Levi and Weiss shared a look, neither of them surprised at this turn of events. The young man was quick to reply, shaking his head. "Other than complaining about Jacques Schnee running for the election, hating both the General and kissing Robyn Hill's ass, he didn't say anything. He was arrested for throwing bricks at Atlas military ships, and from the report we read, was released under bond."

"Damn, that's a shame. We were hoping you had something substantial… we…" he paused for a moment, taking another drink of his coffee. "We have reason to believe the guy who killed Forest is the same one who killed our friend. We don't have any damned leads though, it's just a hunch."

"Well then, let me be the first to say that the person who killed your friend is someone else." the silver-haired miqo'te said. He pulled his scroll out and placed it on the table, the file belonging to Hobbs on the front page. "We got this from the Chief of Police. We took on a mission to figure out who this bastard is so we can capture him."

"The only connection seems to be money laundering. Three journalists were all murdered in similar ways. All of them were from the major news organizations in Mantle and Atlas, all of them were researching the same thing. A Money laundering scheme." Weiss explained, meeting the firm gazes the pair were giving her. "We have reason to believe whoever it is that is running said operation killed those three. Everyone else is a separate string of murders meant to paint the General in a poor light."

"We talked to the Chief and he said we could recruit more Huntsman. I'm gonna keep it brief, I want the two of you to join us on this mission. We need contacts that are well acquainted with the area, contacts that know the ins and outs of Mantle and Atlas. What better contacts than a pair of journos whose noses are buried deep in Mantle's asscrack?"

Metera let out a giggle, tracing her lower lip with her fingertip. "Oh my, I wasn't expecting you to be so vulgar, darling. But I must agree with you, we are the best contacts you could get. Not just that, but the two of us are Class B Huntsmen, meaning we could get you into more restricted areas."

She turned to her boyfriend, who had been reading the files with interest. His eyes were narrowed, scanning every word with scrutiny. Metera pursed her lips, giving him a poke on the cheek. "Isn't that right, Val?"

"Hm? Oh yes… right sure." he hastily said, lowering the device. "I gotta ask though, why did you take a mission like this? Forgive me for saying this but… you two don't exactly look like the type to handle grisly murderers."

"Heh… trust me, normally I wouldn't touch a mission like this with a ten-foot pole. But this person is killing innocents, making things in Mantle worse… making things for the General worse. He is trying to help not just Mantle, but the world. We can't say why or how, but this needs to end." Weiss said, folding her hands on the table. "I am tired of dealing with psychotic murderers who think they can do what they want. We're here to put an end to it, because that's what Huntsmen and Huntresses do."

"How painfully patriotic…" the brown-haired Erune added, her ears twisting a bit as she looked around the diner. The whole building was empty, safe for a lone man at the bar eating some waffles. The light scent of bacon and freshly brewed coffee permeated the area, giving it a warm and homey feel. Metera couldn't help but smile, holding her hand out. "It would be an honor to work with you two. We are invested in this guy's capture as well, especially because our best friend was murdered by him."

"Indeed, normally I wouldn't focus on petty revenge plots, but Hobbs has been our friend since we were kids. We all grew up in the slums together and he didn't deserve to go out that way." Valentine said, squeezing his coffee mug tightly. "I won't stop until I find the one that did that to him and kill him myself."

"Revenge won't bring your friend back, Valentine, and it isn't something I'm intending to die for." Levi quipped, standing up from his seat. He placed several lien on the table, pocketing his scroll as he walked. "Now come on, we need to gather some information, got any leads on where we could start?"

Metera eagerly raised her hand, bouncing around almost like Nora at the mention of pancakes. "Ah, ah! Me! I knew a place where we could go! It's a fancy bar, one that opened slightly before the closure of the borders. It's one we frequent whenever we want to relax or need info. I'll lead the way~"

Valentine sighed, trailing after the Erune, making sure she didn't bump into anyone while floating around. Weiss matched Levi's pace, giving him a curious look. "Revenge isn't something you intend to die for, huh?"

"Call me a hypocrite if you want, I said it because it sounded cool."

"My ass, you stayed up watching that Pirate movie, didn't you? That's why you are wearing makeup, to hide your dark circles."

"Wha? No, I'm not! And I didn't stay up late watching that movie!"

She glared at him, her sapphire eyes staring deep into his soul. He shuddered a bit, looking away from her. "Okay, okay. Me and Neo stayed up late because they were on, sue me."

The former heiress smiled to herself, walking with the grace and poise she was instilled with.

xxx

"Wonderful, a nightclub. The perfect place to gather information," Weiss said in a sarcastic tone. Levi gave her a quizzical look, but remained silent, looking around the building.

It was quite grand, a large dance floor took up most of the available space. There were spacious booths at either side of the dance floor, the seats made of posh-looking leather. Several metal spans hung over the dancefloor, holding the multicolored lights that flashed at odd intervals. Beautiful glass ornaments were erected around the place, glowing in a myriad of colors. He even spotted some artificial trees, giving the otherwise dreary-looking club a bit of color. A large deck overlooked most of the dancefloor, the DJ standing behind some expensive-looking equipment.

It all looked rather familiar to Levi. Before he could ask, he felt Metera grab a hold of his hand, pulling him along. "This way to the bar, we wouldn't want to lose you in the crowd."

"Why the heck is this place like this? It's 10 am!" he cried over the booming music. Valentine stuffed his hands in his pockets, leaning back as he walked.

"Mantle is a place that hardly sleeps. Whether during the day or at night, people come to try and forget. About the crap they deal with day to day, so they come here to lose themselves in the music. Ever since this place opened up, the owner has been making a killing." he replied, rolling his shoulders. "Heard he had a club like this in Vale but he lost it all during a Grimm attack. He decided to move his operations here for the time being."

A multitude of questions invaded Levi's mind, but before he could ask them, they had made it to the bar. A beautiful granite countertop with plush-mounted barstools. The back shelves were filled with the most expensive-looking alcohol in all of Remnant, though he could see some of the Vale, Vacuo, and Mistral spirits being on the highest shelf, likely due to the Embargo. A familiar man stood behind the bar, cleaning a glass. The second he looked up, his eyes widened in surprise.

"Junior?"

"Holy shit… I wasn't expecting to see you here, kid." the man said. He didn't look any different from the last time he had seen him. He still had his hair slicked back neatly and wore a fancy suit. The only thing that seemed to change was the color of his tie. Junior looked him over, eyes settling on his mechanical arm. "What the hell happened to you?"

"We had a run-in with Adam Taurus, lost a couple of limbs but I survived. Though now I'm curious, why are you in Mantle and not in Vale?"

Valentine looked between the two, brows furrowing. "Wait a minute, you know each other?"

"Of course, we do, if you needed information for a modest price, Junior was the person you went to. I bought some information from him before I left Vale, and a lot of it checked out," he replied, sharing a brief look with Weiss. "What?"

"This is the man that Yang beat up because he got fresh with her. I don't think I feel comfortable speaking with someone like that," she said. At the mention of the blonde brawler, Junior shuddered, shaking his head.

"Ugh… don't bring her up, please. Also, it should be stated that Miss Xiao Long came into my establishment, started demanding things from me, and then assaulted me first. Not only that, but she destroyed my henchmen, destroyed my DJ equipment, and sent my girls flying through glass tables and ornaments, all unprovoked."

"Is this the same blonde girl that grabbed you by the balls for calling her sweetheart?" Metera asked, floating slightly off the floor as she looked at Junior. The man glared at her, making her burst into giggles. "Oh, it is! Oh how embarrassing, darling. What an upset."

"If you just came here to piss me off then I suggest you leave. I'll have you know, my guards don't like people toying with me."

Levi looked past Metera, spotting the familiar faces of the Malachite Twins. Melanie and Miltia hadn't changed a bit. They both sported bright red and blue newsprint dresses and wore matching armor. Miltia had grown her hair out so now she truly looked indistinguishable from her twin sister. Their emerald green eyes bore into his own, but he just gave them a happy wave.

"Hey girls, been a while, eh?"

"Tch… whatever," they replied in unison, both looking away at the same time.

"Okay look, we didn't come here looking for trouble. Barring what happened in the past with my teammate, I know you are a good source of information. As it turns out, we are in need of some information. Would you be able to assist us?" Weiss asked, causing Junior to scoff.

"What makes you think I'd part with information? Especially for a Schnee? That bastard father of yours is making things hard for all of us. His damn company is pushing our business down the shitter."

"Just because she's a Schnee doesn't mean that she's like her father, you know," Levi said, reaching into his wallet. He pulled out a pair of 500 Lien cards, dropping them onto the countertop. The man looked at them for a moment before taking them, giving him a nod. "Have you heard anything about a money laundering scheme around these parts?"

"Money laundering, huh?" he asked, setting his glass down. He leaned forward a bit, pondering his words before speaking. "Rumor has it, some big honchos are doing some shady dealings. Stealing materials bound for the outer wall and reselling them to the Happy Huntresses. They don't seem aware of where the materials are coming from. All those funds are being funneled into some Mattress stores dotted around the city."

"Mattress stores?" Metera questioned, visibly confused at his words. "Are you sure about that?"

"I am. Lot of shady characters come here at night, they chatter on and on about things. Some businessmen came here a few months ago and closed some sort of deal. They consolidated some dingy Mattress Stores into a larger Atlas-based conglomerate. Ever since then, they've been doing some rather shady operations."

"And where's that money going?" Valentine asked, earning a chuckle from Junior.

"Can't say, I don't think I know enough to give you a proper answer," he replied, only for Weiss to slide another pair of Lien cards his way. "Though I did hear a name that hardly comes up in casual conversation. Tell me, have you heard of a man named Armando DiCappriccio?"

Levi stiffened a bit at the name. His throat went dry for a moment, dumbly nodding. "I… yeah I have. He's the leader of the DiCappriccio Opera Company. He was… he was the father of my late teammate, Cadenza DiCappriccio."

"Ah, so that's how it is? Regardless, ever since he lost his youngest daughter, he hasn't been the most stable man. While his wife and the rest of his family operate and maintain the opera house, he has been absent. Once a proud man now is hardly in the limelight and when he is, he tells the cameras to shove it. As the rumor mill goes, he's apparently got connections to a very powerful individual, someone who he intends to put on the Council Ballot."

Junior paused for a moment, looking up from the glass he was cleaning. "But the million dollar question is, where's he getting that extra funding when his operas aren't performing how they used to? They lost their star ballerina and opera singer after all."

"Who's he funding?" Weiss asked, earning a shrug from the man.

"Dunno, it's just a rumor-" he paused, taking another 500 Lien from Levi. "-As I was saying, it's just a rumor, but my sources say he's funding the campaign of one Ivy Brown."

"Ivy Brown, huh? Of course, it leads back to her." Levi muttered eyes narrowed as he processed everything he had heard. He tried piecing a few things together in his mind, but he didn't have a lot to go on. What he did have, was rather useful. "So someone is stealing Atlas military grade materials to fix the outer wall, selling them to the Happy Huntresses, laundering that money using some Mattress stores. Not only that, but Antonio DiCappriccio is funding Ivy Brown's campaign, and it's her supporters being assassinated in order to make General Ironwood look bad."

"Do you think the one sending those killers out is her?" Weiss asked, causing him to shake his head.

"No, I don't think so. For someone to kill those three journos, they'd have to get paid the big bucks. She'd have to pay them handsomely not just for their work but for their silence as well. There's no way whatever DiCappriccio is giving her is enough to fund her campaign and pay some goons. Besides, she'd have to report everything spent, and as the Chief said, her ass is squeaky clean."

"There must be a middleman then, someone bridging the gap between DiCappriccio and Brown. The Opera House might be a cover for all of this as well… perhaps it's the owner of the Mattress Stores?" Metera suggested, causing Valentine to frown.

"Perhaps, but I'm not sure about that. Junior, do you know who owns that conglomerate?"

"I'm afraid I don't. I've already given out all that I know," he said firmly. Metera sighed audibly, reaching for her back pocket. She pulled out another thousand lien, handing it to the man. He snapped his fingers, causing one of the twins to approach them. She held her scroll out, showing the picture of a man in his mid-forties.

He had soft blue hair and strong features. He had bright sea-green eyes and a brilliant smile on his face. He looked to be dressed in a very fancy suit with an equally posh-looking tie. Levi didn't recognize the man, but Weiss certainly did. She practically tore the scroll from the raven-haired girl's hand, looking at the picture closely.

"You know him?"

"Yeah… this is Quintus Piccolo… Sonata's father." she replied, causing the young man to stiffen. His ears flattened against his head, a deep frown appeared on his face. He looked past his friend at the red-themed twin, the hurt look still on his face.

"Is this accurate?"

"Of course it is, I don't skimp out on information. Me and Melanie learned from the best, you know," she boasted, arms crossed in annoyance. Weiss reached for her own scroll, connecting it to the bottom of Miltia's to transfer the information over to herself. She handed the device back, giving her a nod.

"We appreciate everything you've shared with us. Despite it being a bit more expensive than I was imagining. This will hopefully assist us in catching the bastard murdering these people." the former heiress said, swiveling on her foot. "Let us go, Levi. We have much to discuss."

Levi nodded, glancing back at Junior. "It's good to see you again, Junior. I hope business goes well for you."

"I'm sure it will, so long as Jacques Schnee loses the election," he said with a chuckle. "Come back for a visit sometime, I'm sure the twins would like having you around."

He shared a brief look with them. Melanie looked away in a haughty tone while Miltia seemed disinterested. He glanced back at Weiss, the freezing glare she was casting on him made him shudder. He merely nodded, following after his friend. Valentine and Metera did the same, the Erune woman giggling under her breath.

xxx

"Welcome to my home away from home," Valentine said, flicking the lights on as he entered his office. Metera trailed behind him, tapping away at her scroll. She was reading the midday news from Atlas in case something stood out to her.

Valentine's office was large and spacious, boasting several filing cabinets filled to the brim with old news articles. He had a large oak desk, covered by various knick-knacks, pens, files, and other things Levi couldn't identify. He took his jacket off, hanging it off of the nearby coat rack, moving toward the back filing cabinet. "The Editor in Chief will have my ass if he finds out but I think these files are relevant to everything we're researching."

He set it down on the desk, gesturing for them to look through it. Sitting down in front of the desk, Levi opened it, seeing a bunch of handwritten notes paperclipped together. He skimmed them for a moment, realizing what he was reading. "These were written by your friend, right?"

"Yeah… Hobbs was in deep. He was confident he could solve this case, I forgot where he originally heard this rumor."

"He heard it at some bar. I remember him calling me one night and telling me he was onto something big. He thought that if he covered this story and brought the ones involved to justice, that he'd get the respect he deserved," Metera said, shaking her head. "That dumbass, we already respected him. He didn't need the respect of some haughty humans to know his worth."

The look on her face told Levi everything he needed to know. He sighed, shaking his head. "Humans underestimated the hard work and dedication of a faunus. Tale as old as time,"

The office was silent for a moment, no one daring to break the silence. Valentine reached for the bottom drawer, pulling out a decanter filled with whiskey. He poured out a couple of shots, handing one to Metera before downing his own. "Whatever the case, we need to solve this. Hobbs and those other journos won't rest until we do."

"We need to separate this case into parts. It's clear that the journos and the other victims were done in by separate people. Let's handle the first half first. Hobbs heard this rumor at a bar and decided to follow the leads, when he was close to solving it, he was taken care of. Gregorio Rojas and Blanca Hernandez likely arrived at the same conclusion, so they were eliminated as well. They must have found out who was doing it and well…"

She pulled out her scroll and flicked it open, opening the hologram function. She placed it on the desk, displaying all of the information she had collected. Levi was honestly impressed. She had been quiet on the walk to the Mantle Tribune, he didn't think this was what she was doing. She stood straight, almost resembling her sister as she looked at the others.

"Alright, I compiled everything we heard from Junior into some easily digestible chunks. At the moment, our main suspects are Ivy Brown, Antonio DiCappriccio, and Quintus Piccolo. Someone is stealing materials meant for repairing the outer wall, selling them to the Happy Huntresses, and laundering it in those Mattress Stores. The DiCappriccio Opera House is funding Ivy Brown's campaign. Our main objective is to figure out who the middleman is, the one doing the stealing, selling, and presumably, killing. It may be one person or it may be several people. Right now, what we need to do is figure out how these three individuals are connected to each other,"

She finished her speech, looking around the room. "Any questions?"

"When did you compile all this?" Metera asked, causing the former heiress to look at her.

"While you were busy floating around, chatting with Valentine and petting Levi as if he were a cat. I decided it was necessary to have a basic list of things we're going to need. This is a shared file I'll be sending all of you. Whenever you find something new, you add it to the file so it gets compiled together."

The miqo'te faunus remained quiet, looking over everything she had written. His gaze fell on the two men that were on the suspect list. The fathers of his previous partners. He hadn't been expecting either of them to be connected to all this. He was certainly hoping it was all just a coincidence but things rarely ever were.

"So where do we start? We hit up each of these people and ask them questions?" Valentine asked, causing Levi to shake his head.

"We can't just go willy-nilly and ask things to them. If they are doing shady things, they'll be tipped off. The worst scenario being we get caught up in all this and end up like those journalists. Doubtful, given our training, but you never know,"

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Weiss asked. She gauged his expression, trying to read his thoughts. He kept his gaze on the three suspects, his eyes narrowed. His eyes shifted toward the bottom of the file, which showed a picture of who he assumed was Robyn Hill. He smiled inwardly, an idea formulating in his head.

"How about a good old-fashioned stakeout? Junior mentioned these guys are stealing Atlas Military materials meant for the outer wall. What we need to do is watch them from afar, snap a couple of pictures for evidence, and then trail them. Once they make contact with the Happy Huntresses, we'll take pictures as well."

"Okay… and that helps us how?"

"It's quite simple, Miss Roux," Levi said, brushing some hair out of his eyes. "We need to catch Robyn conducting business with these people. She's the favored candidate to win, the one the people are choosing. But if the people were to find out she's buying stolen Atlas Military materials to patch the wall, and from shady people well… I don't think they'd be happy learning that."

"You wanna blackmail her?"

"If it gets information out of her, then yes. We need to figure out who is stealing those materials and who they work for. Once we have that, we can start asking questions to those three suspects. I'm sure the middleman is the one who is dishing out the orders to those men, and I am sure they are also the one responsible for killing your friend. We figure out who he is and who he's connected to and the house of cards falls." Levi said.

"Hm… not the soundest plan, but it is straightforward. What about the other murders though? Someone is responsible for those and they aren't tied to anyone else."

"Perhaps by eliminating this money laundering scheme, the murderer will be flushed out. After all, if the ones responsible for the deaths of the journalists are dealt with, then he has no cover, no one to blame it on. It's perfect," Metera said, clasping her hands together.

Valentine quirked a brow, ignoring his girlfriend's antics as he looked at Levi. "I'll admit, this is a pretty solid plan. How old did you say you were?"

"I never mentioned my age, but if you are curious, I'm 21." the silver-haired man replied. He gave him an impressed look, surprised to hear he was so young.

"Well if this is what we are going to be doing we'll need to speak with General Ironwood. Once we know where the materials will be sent, we'll be able to plan this accordingly." Weiss added, taking a hold of her scroll. She sent the files off to each of them, pocketing the device. "If anything comes up, keep in touch. Valentine, I know this is personal for you but don't get ahead of yourself. If you could search for any other articles or files Hobbs was writing and add them to the master file, I'd appreciate it."

"Sure thing, Miss Schnee. You can count on it, thank you for contacting us. We'll keep this off the books. The Editor in Chief is bound to ask why two Huntsmen from Atlas are here. I'll come up with some bullshit story to cover our asses. In the meantime, Metera will go on patrol and see what she can see."

"Mhmm! I find out a lot of things just floating around. I'll give you a call if anything comes up. Levi, darling, do you think we could talk one of these days? There are a few things I'd like to share with you. There aren't a lot of descendants from Eorzea left, so I'd like to share with you some of what I've learned."

"I… suppose I can, whenever we can find some time. I'd like to work on this mission for the time being. I've gone through a lot these last few months and I just want to focus on something. Something that isn't…" he cut himself off, not wanting to complete his statement. Weiss sighed, glancing at Valentine and Metera.

"Thanks for agreeing to assist us. We'll reconvene in a few days and formulate a plan of attack," she replied, forcing a smile onto her face. "It'll be a pleasure working with you two."

"Just as long as you don't mind a couple of troublemaking Huntsmen who have gotten in trouble with the General," Valentine said, giving them a wink.

"Believe me, Valentine, we're probably gonna get in way more trouble with the General in the future. Par for the course when working for the military, I suppose." Levi added with a chuckle.

"We should get going, Levi. If we're lucky, we might catch my sister before her afternoon missions. We could get some training in with her," Weiss said, pulling him along. He rolled his eyes, giving Valentine and Metera a wave as they left his office. Metera waited for a few seconds, ears wiggling to and fro until they finally stopped. She sighed, clasping her hands together.

"They're so cute together. I wonder when they'll admit they love each other," she said, shaking her head a bit. "I'm gonna talk to Levi, give him a push in the right direction!"

"Teri, I told you not to get involved with the relationships of others. Remember what happened with Hannah?"

"I do not recall any Hannah."

"You got her involved with a man whom she thought she loved and she ended up finding out he was married and with kids! You ruined her life and the life of the other woman who didn't know her husband was a cheater!" Valentine said, causing Metera to scowl.

"The way I see it, she needed a reality check, he didn't love her like he used to."

"You aided him in cheating on his wife…"

"I did not!"

"Teri please, just leave those kids alone. They can figure that shit out on their own. Besides, the way Levi is acting, I doubt he has time for a relationship. The kid is broken, I can see it on his face and in his eyes. Whatever shit he went through to get here fucked him up. I can't begin to imagine what he went through. Being at the Fall of Beacon, whatever happened after…" he shook his head, reaching for his decanter. "Come on, let's start searching for Hobbs's old files, there might be something in some of them that could lead us somewhere."

"Hai hai." the Erune woman said dejectedly, floating toward one of the nearby files. She had a look of disappointment on her face. "Muu… Val is always spoiling my fun. Those two just need a tiny push in the right direction. That's all… maybe I can figure something out, huhu~"

Her smile continued to grow as she began formulating plans for the two Huntsmen.


Location: Atlas Academy

With a snap of his fingers, Levi formed several glyphs in front of himself. He swiped his hand in a circle, causing them all to spin around almost in a spiral. Hundreds of fireballs and ice crystals shot outward, raining down on the Boarbatusk racing toward him. It jumped into the air, entering its spinning death spiral, looking almost like a wheel as it sailed forward. He clicked his tongue, canceling his glyphs, forming a Vermillion one beneath his feet.

Launching himself into the air, he spun around, avoiding the Boarbatusk entirely. Landing in a crouch, he pulled Overture behind his back, an Energy Dust bullet already chambered. He launched himself forward, throwing himself into a death spiral as he sliced the Boarbatusk clean in half. He let out a sigh, only to be pelted by a wave of miniature Nevermores which sent him flying back into a nearby wall.

"You got sloppy, Mr. Athan. Pausing to catch your breath is an opening for the enemy," Winter's stern voice said. Behind her a large glowing glyph spun, still firing the barrage of flying projectiles.

He growled, swiping his weapon to and fro, destroying the projectiles. He quickly spun around, forming a Hard-Light Glyph in front of himself. His hand shook a bit as he kept his focus, the Nevermores continued slamming into it causing it to crack in a few areas. Aiming Overture beneath his feet, he formed a Vermillion glyph, shooting himself into the air. He quickly cast a Gravity glyph, cocking his gun before propelling himself forward.

"Haah!" he cried, clashing blades with Winter. She parried the attack, countering each of his swipes with well-trained strikes. He darted forward only for him to stop completely and looking down, he noticed the black glyph holding him in place.

Without breaking a sweat, Winter summoned several glowing glyphs around him, all glowing a deep ice blue. He merely smirked, reaching into his pocket.

"That isn't going to work on me, Winter." he boasted, flicking the Rock Bullet into the air, he spun his weapon around, expertly catching the round in his weapon simultaneously firing it. A thick plume of sand erupted around him, and with a well-timed Green Glyph, he formed a large sandstorm that destroyed all of Winter's glyphs much to her surprise.

Finally free, he darted forward, taking a few flips to dodge the incoming projectiles. He brought his sword down only for the older women to parry it, Overture flying out of his hand. He grit his teeth, watching her angle her blade. As she darted forward to finish him off, he drew his pistol, angling it just in time to catch the weapon. He pushed her back a few paces, spinning the pistol around and taking aim.

She was quick to dodge it, propelling herself upward catching herself on a black glyph. With a flick of her wrist, she summoned several white glyphs around him. She let out a cry as she jumped forward, slashing him repeatedly as she jumped from glyph to glyph only to slam her leg into his chest, the ground cracking beneath him. Let out a gasp, his aura shattering from the strike.

"Haah… fuck! Weiss… I'm dying. Help me."

"Sorry, you're on your own." the white-haired girl said, slightly amused. "Though I must admit, you lasted longer than I thought you would. A whole two minutes."

"What? I thought it was longer!"

"Well if you want an accurate count, it was one minute and fifty-eight seconds," Winter said, making him deflate even more. She shook her head, holding her hand out which he readily took. "Your control over your semblance is exemplary, but there are a lot of issues we need to fix. Issues that I'm sure you adopted from my little sister."

"Hey!"

"However, your hand-to-hand combat is uncanny. Combining Capoeira with Baritsu is quite an interesting style. It's refined, strong yet flexible. It must have taken a lot of practice to become that good with it." she said, a genuine smile on her face. "If you are able to properly master a combination of the two, you'll be an unstoppable force, I'm sure of it."

"Glad to hear it… I'm sure Neo would be proud to hear that, seeing as she spent the last 10 months drilling that style into me. You have no idea how embarrassing it is for a man to get thrown into a tree via leglock by a woman shorter than he is." he said, scratching the back of his neck. "Still, I need to practice my hand-to-hand a bit more, I'm still getting used to my prosthetics after all."

"I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon, Levi. You are still capable of defending yourself, and that's what really matters." Weiss added, turning to her sister. "Thanks for taking the time to train with us today, sis. We appreciate it."

"Of course, I did say I would be supervising the two of you. Now tell me, what is that request you wish to ask of me? I'm not the General but I'll help in any way I can, within reason of course."

"It's a simple request really. If you can, would you mind letting us know when the next shipment for the outer wall will be? We recently discovered those materials are being stolen and sold elsewhere. We have reason to believe it's part of a money laundering scheme." Levi said. If the woman was surprised she didn't show it.

"Hm, I see… we figured something like that was happening. We received scattered reports from several patrolmen stating there was a shortage of building materials. We were hoping to have the wall repaired by the time the Amity Project was set to begin. Now that we have diverted all resources there, I don't think we'll have it finished,"

"We intend to figure out who is doing it, sis. We have a few suspects but nothing concrete. Levi suggested we stake out the delivery to catch them in the act. If we can recover the stolen materials, we may be able to repair the wall," Weiss added, sounding rather hopeful.

The pair watched as she withdrew her scroll from her pocket, flipping through it for a moment. Having found what she was looking for, she held it out for the pair to look at. "The next shipment is on Thursday. It's set to arrive at 4 in the afternoon, but it's clear this is happening at night. We can schedule it for a later delivery if that'll help you."

"No, that'll tip them off. If the delivery time changes then they'll think someone figured them out. We're prepared to wait as long as it takes to catch them in the act."

"Levi's right. We can't interfere with the schedule they've already adapted. We'll be fine with just this, it'll give us enough time to plan things out," she said, jotting down the time and location.

"Of course… I'm glad I could assist you." Winter said, tucking a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. She cleared her throat, glancing at Levi. "Would you mind giving us a few minutes?"

"Sure, I'll meet up with the girls. They must be back already," he said.

"Okay, see you soon," Weiss said. She hugged the miqo'te, much to his surprise. He wordlessly returned it, giving Winter a wave as he left the room. The older Schnee held back the urge to smirk, waiting for a few moments before speaking.

"So… is that who you've chosen?"

"What do you mean?"

"Hm… a young woman doesn't hug a young man like that unless she feels something for him. I don't sense the two of you having a sibling relationship like your other teammates." Winter said, causing Weiss to flush.

"Don't assume things, it wouldn't be proper for a woman like me to be thinking about that."

"You aren't a Schnee heiress anymore, I doubt the people will care who you date, Weiss," Winter said, sighing. "But I see your point, you are far too busy to indulge in things like that. I'm certain in the future you'll find some time."

Beating back her blush, the white-haired woman looked away from her sister, crossing her arms. "What was it that you wanted to talk about again?"

Winter sighed, looking away from her sister before speaking. "It's about Father. I got a call from Whitley today saying he's been visited by some imposing man. He didn't learn his name. Apparently, he's been even more motivated to take the election seriously, to the point where he's left Mother to her own devices."

"That bastard." she hissed, clenching her fist tightly.

"I was planning on visiting her. She doesn't know you have returned to Atlas yet so I figured I would give her the news. I know you aren't ready to return yet, especially knowing how Father is. But would you consider at least speaking to her?"

"Yes, of course, you know how much I love Mom. If it wasn't because of our Father, I would have gone home the second I set foot here. Even though I'm a Huntress, I am fearful of what he might pull. Not only that but… I'm just not ready to return, not after last time," she said, rubbing her arm. "It's still too fresh for me."

"I understand, so long as you speak to Mother, everything will be alright," Winter said, giving her a pat on the head. "You have no idea how proud I am of you, Weiss. You've accomplished so much in such little time. Keep working this hard and you might have my position in the future."

"Special Operative Weiss Schnee… hm it does have a nice ring to it. When do you expect to be promoted to General?"

Winter laughed, wrapping an arm around her sister's waist. "Probably when General Ironwood retires, which is short of never. I don't think he ever takes a vacation."

"Given all the shit currently going on in Atlas and in Mantle? I don't blame him. Not one bit." she replied, hugging her sister back. "How about we get some tea before you go? It's been a while since we've done that."

Checking her watch for a moment, she gave her sister a nod. "Alright, I suppose I can have one cup. We can chat about those sloppy moves of yours and how to improve them."

Weiss groaned inwardly, perhaps taking some tea with her sister wasn't such a wise idea.


A/N: I knew from the moment that I wanted to write this story that I wanted to sneak something like this into the story. I latched onto the name Ivy Brown the second I saw it on that polling screen. One thing that CRWBY does is add things that never get fleshed out. So I wondered, why not take that name and make a character of it. I won't spoil anything, but I think I've come up with a half-decent plot point for this woman. Fleshing out the politics of Atlas was something I wanted to do, but personally, I feel like I failed at that, but I think I came up with a decent plot, all things considered. Suppose I'll let everyone else decide. I have recently finished Chapter 18 of the Atlas Arc and am fast approaching on the end of the events of Volume 7. The Season I've been looking forward to the most is of course Volume 8, I had lots of ideas for that Volume when it came out, mostly revolving around one of my favorite characters in this series, James Ironwood. But I'm getting ahead of myself. I don't have much else to say this time around, so I hope you liked what you read and if not, well, let me know how I can improve!

Ah yes, as a small edit, I decided to change Neo's name from Rosa Maria to her canon name, Trivia Vanille. I haven't read Roman Holiday at all, mostly because I didn't want the backstory that I gave Neo to interfere with her canon one. I wanted to use the Brunswick Farms theory as the basis of her backstory, and I felt that it was perfect for that section of the story. Brunswick Farms is one of my favorite parts of the series, the only event that surpasses is being "Take. The. Girl." from volume 8 because holy shit was I not expecting that to happen. But yes, that's all I have to say about that. As for why people still call her Neo... that'll be explained soonish lol.

Until next time, this has been Celestial. Signing off for now, see you~