No demands on my time this weekend. Very nice.

Cover Art: GWBrex

Chapter 52

In the end Neptune and his crew elected not to travel with them to Menagerie. Too many of them had family and loved ones on the mainland in Vale, and Atlas, and didn't want to give that up for an uncertain future. It turned out to be a convenient thing because they could take the Schnee siblings back to Vale. It was a shame to see them go but they'd only ever been allies of An Ren and the resistance, and asking them to follow the Dark Lord was a step too far. That they parted on good terms was as best as could be hoped for.

The White Fang armada set sail not soon after, eager to get going now that food supplies were dwindling. People fished up and down the lengths of the ships, and great nets tailed behind those at the back, but there were thousands of people on board and there was no hope of catching enough to supply all of them. The days on the open ocean were mostly calm. There wasn't much to do as they made their way to where the more dangerous waters were, following the map Jinn had made them. So, Jaune took to training Ren and Ruby as Sienna had suggested, and Blake and Adam even joined in, trying their best to access their aura and learn from Ozma's ancient advice.

To everyone's surprise, Blake managed to unlock hers after only three days – and Adam after five. Neither could use it properly yet, but both recognisably had their aura and could feel it swelling inside of them, and that was an eye-opening shock to many of their nervous spectators. The church had always held that girls either had aura or did not, and that it was something only the Chosen could detect. That a man had unlocked his own – three men, now – was even more shocking. People had seen him use magic and whispered in fear, but now they were conflicted, because if three different men could use magic then didn't that mean it was untrue that only the Dark Lord could? Didn't that also mean that the blonde man accused of being the Dark Lord might not be? After all, men could use magic. Adam and Ren were proof of that.

Jaune didn't see the need to dissuade them or tell them the truth. He may have been the Dark Lord, of his reincarnation, but it was safer for everyone if people were conflicted over that. And if more and more men on Menagerie learned to use their aura then it would be even more proof. Sienna had confided in him that a few others had expressed muted interest in his lessons, and were thinking of asking to join when they reached Menagerie.

"Maybe we really will be making a school," joked Ruby. "You can be its headmaster and I'll be the deputy!"

"If anything you'd be a student since you haven't mastered your aura yet. If Weiss had stayed with us then she'd have made for a better teacher."

"Hey! I was your first follower!"

"I don't have followers, Ruby. Please don't refer to yourself like that."

"First friend, then." Ruby poked his ribcage as she said it. "That still means I deserve the better position. And I'm better than Blake and Adam." The fact they had only unlocked their aura days ago didn't make that a grand achievement. "You're going to need to have people helping, though. It sounds like Sienna wants a lot of people signing up."

He didn't doubt it. From Sienna's point of view, it was a huge boon to have people with functioning aura and a basic grasp of magic on Menagerie, especially if they were more loyal to the island than the church. Chosen took aspirants away after all, and it was doubtful they'd come and defend Menagerie if the Grimm turned up.

"It'll be a while before we can think of making a school. We need to settle in first."

"You two might want to clear off the deck!" shouted a faunus sailor. He was tying things down to the decking, and to the railings, with thick rope. "We're coming close to where things will get rough. Everyone not helping out needs to be off the decks where it's safe."

"Already?" Jaune glanced to Ruby. "We should check with Sienna."

The guards on the large wooden hall that housed Sienna's quarters let them in without much of a fuss. They were recognised at this point, and widely respected – even adored in some circles – for having brought the Relic of Knowledge to the White Fang. Sienna was talking with several sailors while looking over the map from Jinn, copies of which had been made and disseminated among the other sailors. She saw the two of them and waved them over without pausing her speech.

"-shouldn't need the extra maps if you all just follow the ships ahead, but there's always the chance one of you gets blown off course. If that happens you should sail out to sea and then try again. Don't take any risks trying to get back onto the right path. It won't be the end of the world if you're a day or two late to Menagerie."

"The arks need to make it through," said an older faunus with greying hair. "They'll almost certainly have to go first. The question is, do we fill the arks to the brim, or do we spread the risk out and have people across every vessel?"

"We're going to have to risk it with the arks. Distributing people will take too much time and I expect it'll lead to some wondering just why we're doing it. Besides, the arks will have an edge against the storms thanks to our visitors." Sienna drew gazes their way, and the faunus captains nodded respectfully. "Can we count on you to help out?" asked Sienna.

"If you need me," said Jaune, shrugging. "But what good will I be? What do you need me to do?"

"Our biggest fear is going to be bad weather," said another faunus. "Lightning strikes a mask and it'll crack, and in straits this narrow even a moment of us being pushed off course by uneven sails could spell disaster. We can't afford to sit around waiting for better weather, either. Is there anything you can do there?"

Was there? Ozma had proven capable of summoning storms before, so dismissing them should be possible.

"It is not so simple," said the spirit. "Creating a storm on a calm day is a matter of playing with air currents. Those are turbulent enough over the ocean, and it is easier to stir the pot than calm it down. We could ensure any strike hit us instead, and safely bleed those off with aura. If we were going to do that then we should be somewhere in the centre of the convoy, however. Or the ships behind us will be at risk."

Jaune relayed the message and the faunus considered it. "We can put my ark in the middle," said Sienna. "The smaller vessels will have to brave the storm but then they should be capable of it. They won't have the same trouble recovering as we would – not when they're a tenth the size. The important part is that the arks make it through and deliver our people safe to Menagerie."

"Aye!" agreed the captains, beating their hands on the table. They dismissed themselves soon after, splitting up to take ladders down the side of the ark to their own ships. Sienna was left to ponder the map and waved them over as she did.

"You'll need to be lashed to the ship so you don't fall off. Ask someone for rope and to lash you to the railings but be careful. If those break and take you off the ship then you'll need to cut yourself free."

"How likely is that?"

"The waves won't manage it. The arks are taller than anything short of a tidal wave could reach. The real problem will be wind and lightning. Take care of that and you shall be fine." Sienna shook her head. "If the goddess is with us then we won't have a storm at all." Jaune cleared his throat. Sienna closed her eyes, chuckling. "Yes, I suppose the goddess wouldn't be with us with you here, would she? Well, let us hope the sea is merciful then. There won't be any turning back once we enter the strait. The ark is simply too large for it."

/-/

It was no big surprise that the goddess wasn't with them, and that they faced a hellish storm as they entered the straits around Menagerie. The sky was dark, thunder cracked, and salt spray splashed against his face as the ark manoeuvred perilously in the centre of a column headed single file down a narrow passageway. The passageway had no sides nor features to suggest it was narrow at all, but Jinn's route had been very specific that there was danger on both sides. Invisible danger under the water, presumably. It must have been terrifying for the sailors to know it was there and not be able to see it.

They were superstitious folk, Jaune had come to realise, and saw the storm as a bad omen, even if Ozma had disagreed. He had patiently explained to Jaune that the storm was less chance and more a facet of the currents, wind, and water around here. He had explained many terms that went over Jaune's head – things about wind currents clashing together, geographical hotspots, and more. The short of it came down to the fact that this area of Remnant might just be under near-constant storms, and that luck, fate, or divine intervention had little to do with it.

The heavens opened up again and light sparked down. Jaune's hand caught it – or it seemed to. In truth, the lighting bit down on a spike of invisible aura above his hand. It would have wounded or even killed him if it really hit him, but to the casual onlooker it must have looked that way. Aura radiated off his hand as it dissipated into the air, carrying the current with it.

The great wooden ships creaked their way through the water, following a narrow route that only they could see. There was no sign of land ahead, but then the storm had left everything dark and gloomy, and had kicked up fog in the water. Every now and then they would pass some landmark, usually jagged rocks, rising up from the water. It felt like a good sign since those would surely be closer to land.

Beyond the lightning, they didn't face any significant threats. There were no Grimm – a factor, Ozma claimed – of the turbulent waters. Grimm were not immune to crushing currents and being dashed against rocks, and there were no people on Menagerie for them to prey on so the waters were naturally quite clear.

"It won't protect them forever. They shouldn't expect safe waters just because of the natural barriers. Grimm will find their way past and be drawn once Menagerie begins to thrive. They will be compelled to."

"Compelled?" asked Jaune, speaking into the storm. "Compelled by what?"

Ozma did not answer.

A bell was rung from the ships ahead, and carried back to them where it was rung again on their own. The sound grew in volume as bells below deck were rung, and on the ship behind – and then further and further back. Normally, it would have been an alarm, but Sienna had spread the news of what it would mean to every vessel and every soul on the arks. The ringing of bells would mean that Menagerie had been sighted. The lead ship had identified land. Jaune was caught up with the whooping and cheering of the sailors, and joined in himself. The sky above had already begun to clear as they sailed through and out the patch of rough weather, and under gloomier but calmer clouds. The water was still rough, but not violent, and the mists ahead had begun to clear.

Sienna Khan strode out onto the deck and up beside him on the prow. Her hands settled on the railing and she looked out with desperate relief. "It's here. It's really here. We've found it. Home. Menagerie." A laugh bubbled from her lips. "I thought this moment would never happen. Goddess, it's finally here."

"Shouldn't you bring everyone up to see it?"

"Hah. And capsize the whole vessel when they jump for joy? Slats will have opened below for them to witness it – and they'll get a chance to feel it beneath their feet when we land." Her good cheer didn't fade, but a cautious smile came over it. "We'll need to secure landfall first. I know you – or Ozma – said there shouldn't be many Grimm in the waters, but the island fell to them and there must still be plenty on the shore. Will you assist us?"

"Of course."

"Thank you. It won't be you alone. You will have an army at your back."

"Are we settling right here, then?"

"No. We'll make a temporary camp and then send lighter ships up and down the coast to scout for a good spot. We'll want a river and running water at the very least. We might even pack up and settle again later if we find a better spot. A good location will shave decades off the time it'll take for Menagerie to thrive again."

"We could use Jinn's last question for that." said Jaune, but Sienna only shook her head.

"There might be any share of emergencies later where we need that. I won't waste it on something we can find out with a little effort."

/-/

Jaune breathed out slowly and let the fletching tickle his cheek. He held his arm extended and still, briefly considered the wind, and then released the shot. The arrow zipped out the low and spiky brushes and struck the hog in its throat, sending it squealing and trotting the other way. It was a lethal wound by all accounts, and he rose from the underbrush with several other faunus, who all congratulated the shot.

They were hunters like he, and they'd initially been nervous of having him among them. Now, three days into their life in Menagerie, they'd come to realise the Dark Lord really had been a hunter once. He moved like them, considered the land like them, shot a bow like them, and could skin and tie an animal just like they could. It had created some odd bond between them, and they were some of the few faunus in the new settlement to approach and talk with him whenever they fancied. Laughing, the small party of four followed the bloodstains to where the warthog had finally expired and fallen, picking up herbs and any useful bits and pieces along the way.

He could have brought it down with magic, or killed it in an instant, or even cooked it from the inside out before it could react. Aura and magic made things easier, but there was something familiar and comforting about doing as he'd used to with his father. It reminded him of home.

The act of hunting, anyway. Menagerie wasn't much like Ansel at all. For one, it was much larger despite consisting mostly of tents and huts at the moment. There were several thousand people in the camp, and said camp had moved from the shore to a spot not too far from a wide river. According to Sienna, her farmers had said the soil quality was good and they'd already begun tilling it for planting crops. Immediately, food was taken care of by their supplies, but there were also freshwater fish from the river, meat from hunting, and quite a bit of mushrooms, fruit and wild vegetables to forage.

The island had been completely abandoned and nature had very much taken over, leaving the place unusually abundant in wild onions, blackberries, and other foods. It was enough for them to get by for now while farmers planted, hunters hunted, and everyone else did their best to build rudimentary shelters from the supplies brought on the ships. Some of those were even being broken down – the arks primarily – for their timber. It was industrious and surprisingly efficient, likely because they weren't yet at the stage where they'd have to cut trees and fashion those into planks. Coming here with construction material aplenty meant there were already six large buildings erected – little more than rectangular barns within which a few hundred could sleep, but it was a start. The ships on the shore served as homes for the rest.

It would likely be months before everyone was even able to live on land, but at least they had the option to stay warm on the ships. It wasn't like there was any great rush, and they'd be fine through winter if it came to it. All in all, things were oddly peaceful.

"Grimm to the west!" called one of the hunters.

Other than that.

They'd have been much more afraid if he weren't there, but they were downright relaxed about it at that moment. Jaune simply sighed and handed his hog off his shoulders to another hunter, then placed his bow on the ground and drew his father's sword. The creature – piglike, much like their earlier prey – came rolling toward him with an angry, grunting snarl. It could have run the hunters down without him here and crushed them into the grass.

"We called them Boarbatusks," whispered Ozma.

It didn't really matter what they'd been called. Jaune teased aura into the ground before him and then made the rock jut up at the last second like a small wall. It cracked and crumbled as the Boarbatusk struck it, but so too did the creature, bouncing back with a squeal and landing on its back, stomach exposed. Jaune stepped forward, brought his sword up in two hands, and stabbed it down into its soft underbelly. The creature writhed, stuck to the floor as Jaune backed away. It had no hands from which to pull itself free, and no strength to roll itself over and snap the steel. It struggled there until it expired, and broke apart into motes of dust to flutter away. A minute it took to die, and then Jaune drew the weapon out the grass, cleaned it, and sheathed it at his side. The hunters clapped their hands appreciatively.

"We're facing them near enough every hunt now," said one of them. "Can't so much as search for deer without stumbling upon one. We might have to make our parties larger and bring back more meat if the only one that'll be allowed out is the one protected by you."

"That might be best," said Jaune. "This area is packed high with them. You could go your whole life back home and never see a Grimm, yet it's one per day here. Minimum."

"Good thing we have you around, eh?"

It really was. He didn't want to say everyone would have died because villages could fight off the odd Grimm, and there were a lot more people here than in Ansel. Even the worst Grimm could be brought down by enough numbers, but there'd definitely have been a lot more death if he wasn't around. The more militant members of Menagerie were doing their best, and they'd slain a few that came close, but those weren't bloodless battles. Already, about forty faunus had lost their lives to Grimm, and it had only been three days. The only good news was that there had only been deaths among the guard. It wasn't great news but at least that meant everyone who died had volunteered for the duty and had known the risks. No Grimm had gotten to the farmers, the townsfolk, or goddess forbid, the children.

Trekking back, the first bits of civilisation could be seen at last. The six halls, many more tents, the low picket fence that hardly even served as a wall and was mostly to keep wild animals away from where people slept. Dotted campfires and bonfires were a bigger sign, with rows of them placed together under metal pots cooking up food. Almost everything was communal right now because they just didn't have the space or buildings for individual cooking and sleeping. Everyone had to cook, eat, and sleep together – and that included Sienna, Jaune, and the rest of them. Ironically, Taiyang was the most okay with it. He'd grown up in a bandit tribe where this was every day, and he'd only gotten used to more civilised life later. The man took too much pleasure in teasing his daughter over how uncomfortable she found it.

"Jaune! Hey!" Ruby waved excitedly to him, and he parted from the hunters to walk over her way. There, Ren, Blake and Adam were practicing their aura without him. Ren had managed to summon a tiny flame yesterday and was spending today trying to make it grow and shrink without loss of control. His face was stretched with concentration, but his lips were in a wide smile. The clear and sudden progress had caused an explosion in morale from him, as if this were all the proof he needed.

Blake and Adam were more focused on the applications of aura as a shield for now, and Ozma had them taking turns beating one another with wooden sticks while the other tried to block the blows with aura alone. It was slow progress. Not to block them – they managed that well enough – but not to cause their aura to flare all over their bodies, blocking the strike, but wasting a lot of it.

They needed to learn to control their aura and use it where it was needed, and not just push it all out their bodies from every pore at once. It was something he'd never had to learn since Ozma took care of all the control issues for him.

"Hey yourself. We faced another Grimm on the hunting party. No losses. Has there been any here since I was gone?"

"One or two were spotted roaming past the fields," said Adam. "They didn't come near. The farmers were evacuated either way, though they're back out there now the Grimm left. We're fortunate it's mostly land-based Grimm. If there were any flying Grimm then we'd be in trouble."

"All the Grimm that could fly would have left Menagerie years ago in search of prey. There wouldn't have been any point in them staying here. It's the land-locked ones that couldn't get away that we need to deal with. Has there been any interest in aura?"

"People have been asking us every day," said Adam, gesturing to himself and Blake. Nearly no one had talked to Jaune about it, nor Ren or Ruby, but then they were the outsiders here. "But they're mostly curious for now. They want to see evidence of what we can do before they come ask for lessons."

"I wouldn't be surprised if they ask lessons from you and not me."

Blake shrugged. "Then we'll tell them to stop being foolish and ask you. We've barely learned to feel what aura is; we can't teach them."

They could pass on his instructions, though. Or Ozma's. He knew they were trying to involve him more but forcing the people of Menagerie to accept him wasn't going to be easy. Most of them had grown up under the church's teachings – himself included. The goddess was a part of their everyday lives and had watched over them for thousands of years. Such faith wasn't going to be easy to throw away just because you wanted to learn to control your aura.

Ren turned, sensing something before Jaune did, and Nora's voice rose a moment later. The girl was coming at a quick jog – too quick to be casual. "Hey. Has anyone seen-? Ah, Jaune! You're there. Sienna needs you. Like, right now!"

"What is it? Grimm?"

"Worse," panted Nora. "It's a ship."

"A ship?" laughed Ruby. "How is that worse?"

"Because it shouldn't be possible for a ship to reach Menagerie without the route plotted to us by Jinn," said Blake. "And for one to arrive so quickly does not make sense. We haven't been here a week." Her eyes narrowed, suspicion taking hold. "Who is it? What kind of ship is it?"

"It's a missionary ship from Vale." Nora's eyes slid to Jaune. "From the church."

Next Chapter: 26th February

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