Chapter 17: Trust is a 2-way street
"Hrrrrrrrrmmmm! You aren't a very trusting fellow, are you?"
"It's important to be able to trust someone, you know."
Hooktail - The thousand-year-old man-eating Dragon.
At the Beacon Headmaster's office located at the top of the CCT tower, a faint blue glow can be spotted if one were to look up at the clockwork panel.
Watching the flame-like flare surrounding the bull knight, King Bob-omb asked with mild interest. "Well, Bully, how do you feel?"
The bull knight observed himself, before starting to move his body, feeling the newfound energy that surged within him.
"This one feels… it doth feel liketh this one is und'r the effect of a pow'r boost. And the feeling of the FP flowing through the surface of this one's corse hast becometh m're apparent." He gazes at his fingertip. "I couldst almost seeth mine own FP flowing at mine own fing'rtip." True to his word, a thin layer of deep blue energy formed at the surface of the fingertip he was focusing on.
Bob-omb lowered his brow as he analyzed Bully's description. A boost to the FP then, and one that's significant enough to feel it at the surface of the skin? Back in their world, anyone can tell their own current FP value, and wouldn't be able to cast magic skills if the FP is below the required casting value.
Casting another look, the fact that Bully now has enough FP is also a big change. Bully as they were, are a species that doesn't possess much FP in their body, as their's genes mostly focus on their primary physics defenses nature instead of magic capability due to the way the Bullies live. (with the only exception of Prince Bully, who acquired the power to breathe flames.) But now, with Aura interference, the low FP reserve becomes big enough to make a difference, perhaps enough for Big Bully to learn a buff charge or maybe even acquire new skills.
"In other words, your FP reserve has increased, and you can control your own FP flowing in your body, is that so?" Asked Goomboss, half getting the idea.
The bull at first wanted to refute but halted as he contemplated his choice of word. "Inc'rrect, instead of controleth, this one believes yond the FP's flowing at a m're activateth rateth, and hast becometh a… an activity defense pow'r i bethink."
"An activity defense." Bob-omb mused. He and the Boss Minions then turn to the professors.
Seeing the need to explain, Goodwitch takes over. "Not quite, Aura, as we have explained, is a manifest will force that resides in those that have a soul, and those that have their Aura unlocked will have their very will unleashed to the acting as a protection force to the body. With enough training, you can will your Aura to focus on certain parts of your body for efficient protection."
"So, in other words, the unlocking of Aura for us Mushroom World citizens basically made our FP act like how your Aura does." Mused Bob-omb. "Indeed fascinating. Which means that FP and Aura are quite similar, but not exactly the same." Says his mouth, but his mind is pounding a different matter.
'This contradicts Ozpin's claims that magic is a forgotten thing in Remnant, it was right here with them the whole time. While I am no expert in Magic, I'm fairly certain that FP isn't something that could easily be changed in the core functions, never mind the physical manifestation.' He cast an instant glare at the man. 'So this could either mean Aura is very powerful, powerful enough to affect Magic… Or that Aura itself is a form of Magic, and this factor is being purposefully getting scientifically denied and hidden from the masses.'
He wasn't sure how to take it, but it is apparent that Ozpin's words had contradicted.
'For now, let's address other matters first, we had time to figure out what game he's committing.'
Turning to face Ozpin, Bob-omb continued his curiosity. "So, does this mean our friend here has unlocked his semblance?"
For that question, Ozpin stroked his chin as he pounded. "Not quite, while there are cases of Semblance power manifested before Aura unlocked, in general, Semblance usually comes with the unlocking of Aura, but it may not be instantly, and would usually take some time for one to discover what exact specialty they have, or even have the power to manifest itself in a visible way. Usually, it would take a teenage child about a year to figure out how to call forward their power during physical training, as it usually comes naturally with no telling sign… but that's because their body and aura are still in the stage of growing." He then tilted his head. "You five, however, are no child; and, while it may be rude of a comparison, we haven't made enough research to determine what triggers normal animals to unlock Aura in compare to mankind; and now, including the origin of your biology, I'm afraid that there's no telling what may be the trigger to unlocking Semblance for you." The Bosses nodded, seemingly accepting the explanation.
"But, what is known about Semblance is that it usually reflects an aspect of the owner's inner spirit, the soul." At that, the Bosses raised confused eyebrows.
"Inner spirit?"
"Take professor Goodwitch here for example, her natural preference for following and maintaining order manifests in the form of telekinesis, a telekinesis power to perform a wide range of control over objects around herself, and, over the years, it evolved with the capability of re-assemble and repairing broken inanimate objects that are non-living creatures back to their unbroken state." They looked at Glynda, who in response nodded her head to support the claim.
The Goomba monarch and Bull knight nodded in understanding, now realizing the feat they have witnessed during the repairing of the Amphitheater they damaged is the unique specialty the Semblance at work possessed.
"Although, do note that semblance won't always perfectly reflect every bit of a person's characteristic or be related, but instead an aspect of their general character. So, in your unique case, it might reflect something your origin species may possess." The Bosses nodded, now understanding the general idea about Aura and Semblance.
Ozpin, however, wasn't done with his explanation. "But, there's also many known records of Aura and Semblance unlocking during… let's say, unfortunate circumstances."
Many raised their eyebrows, awaiting the man to elaborate more.
"Unfortunate circumstances such as extreme situations, severe emotional stress or turmoil, and near-death experiences."
"Because the power reacts as a natural self-defense, self-preservation, and survival mechanism. Was it?" Inquired King Bob-omb.
"If you want to look it that way, yes. There are cases of Semblance Power manifesting as a counterpart specialty to help the owner to have an easy time surviving. Take the example of one of the students here in Beacon, Mister Fox Alistair, despite born blind, his semblance manifests in the form of Telepathy, allowing him to sense people around him." Explained the headmaster, which the bomb monarch wrote down the note.
"So in theory, we can technically influence Semblance manifestation by external factors, I assume?" Asked Bob-omb.
Ozpin slightly frowns, not liking the way the monarch is suggesting. "In theories, it should be possible, however, the scientist in Remnant haven't been able to successfully prove that theory, much as I'm aware. And as you can imagine, those aren't exactly the best way to discover them, plus the unpredictable nature of one's inner spirit, there's no telling if the unlocking Semblance would prove to be useful in overcoming the crisis right on spot. Taken the more extreme example, a pyro-telekinesis power manifests during the middle of a fire disaster; or lighting absorption after getting struck by lightning."
"A needless gambit then." Said Goomboss.
"Affirmative. This one shalt not attempteth to unlocketh the pow'r by f'rce then." Replied Big Bully as he made a mental note to keep his usual training route. No need to rush things.
His friends either rolled their eyes or shook their heads, of course, the Bull would think of going through extreme training to get the job done.
"Well, then, if this thing doesn't hurt us, guess there's no reason to not get it." Shrugged Goomboss, now seeing that they can benefit from the following results.
Ozpin looked at Goodwitch, and with another wordless conversation between the two, the duo director of Beacon began to unlock the rest of the Boss Minions' Aura.
- (Time Skip) -
The process of unlocking their Aura goes smoothly without any issue occurring, as each of them gets their respective Aura unlocked, Ozpin makes notes to keep track of each of them's differences.
King Bob-omb got the biggest reserve out of the five, an amount far surpassing anyone he had ever known, himself included. (Colored Black)
Goomboss got the strongest visual glow out of the five, which is no surprise given his characteristic. (Colored Crimson)
King Boo got the most activated Aura out of the five. It took him a moment to stop himself from glowing like a light bulb. (Colored White)
Petey Piranha got the most unique color out of the five, possibly something to do with his Dust adapting biology. (Colored Rainbow)
Big Bully got the least reserve out of the five, but still a decent amount to rival or match most Huntsman. (Colored Deep-Blue)
"Alright, my turn, finally." After what feels like forever watching his colleagues doing the word exchanging and getting their Aura unlocked, seeing that they've got it wrapped up, King Boo finally gets to speak his mind.
Hearing him using a serious tone tells his colleagues that he is not fooling around, which is an extremely rare sight, and so they let him have the stage. "That crown, what was it? That thing is a magical artifact, wasn't it?"
Hearing the words, Glynda's body went stiff and immediately sent a side glance at her boss. No way.
The said boss could only avoid her eye contact, with an expression that expresses thousands of apologies.
Although ashamed of his mistake he may be, he was at the very least, willing to own up to it. And with a heavy heart, Ozpin moved his lips. "You are correct. Mr. Boo, at the age of dawn, before life begins, there were once two gods, one with the power to create, while another with the power to destroy, together, they create the Human race, beings that could choose to do good or evil. The Human race was bestowed with knowledge, choice, creation, and destruction, to help them develop their civilization. And these were not gifts in mere metaphorically, but actually in physically as well in the form of four Relics." He then goes under his desk, and gently lifts the crown in his hands. "And this crown here, is what we called: 'the Relic of Choice.' one of the four magical artifacts left behind by the creator of our world."
Looks of surprise formed on the otherworldly guests' faces, although none of them looked flabbergasted or dumbfounded, and Boo only nodded his head in acknowledgment while glaring holes at the headmaster. This tells Ozpin that they are familiar with the concept of magical artifacts, and perhaps the concept of the existence of gods, which may not be a bad sign, he hoped.
"Knowledge, choice, creation, and destruction?" Bob-omb mused as he stroked his mustache.
"Choice you say? So this trinket made people see the future?" Eyeing the crown with yet another look, the ghastly man asked, cutting straight to the business.
Flinching despite having tried his best to stay calm, Ozpin can't be helped but dread whatever vision it was shown to Boo. "You...'re correct, the crown will show its wearer a glimpse into the future, for a certain moment, a decision they will make. As for the date, it was random, it could be in a few days, weeks, months, or years. What's known is, the relic will show you a moment where you'll have to make a decision."
Hearing that, Boo made an eye-roll as he huffed, annoyed. "Of course, just my luck."
The rest four Bosses looked at their ghost friends and the headmaster with puzzled looks. Had something happened before their arrival?
Wait, no, that's a dumb statement, something definitely had happened.
"You wore that thing, didn't you?" Deadpanned Goomboss after linking the two together.
Ignoring the condemning glare from his Goomba friend, with a long sigh and disgruntled grumble that is alien to his usual cheerful persona, King Boo leans in and glares glued on Ozpin. "Would you like to know what I saw?" The cheerless voice he used was a giveaway to his colleagues that this situation is awful.
"What you saw?" Inquired King Bob-omb.
King Boo pinched his nose bridge as he let out another troubling sigh, as if finally accepting this cluster of a situation he was tangled in.
He turned to face his friends. "Ya guys remember that psychopath brother of mine? Glowing magenta eyes; blue tongue; and the big ass purple jewel crown?" He spoke as he made an air-quotes gesture with his hand. "The one who attempts to conquer our world with paranormal phenomena?"
"That psychopath?" Goomboss raised an eyebrow at the mentioned brother.
"The guy that tries to get rid of the Mario Bros?" Asked Big Bully.
The ghost monarch bopped his head in affirmation while making a "told you so" yep sound.
In the meanwhile, Ozpin and Goodwitch listen on with great interest and distress. Psychopath? Brother? World conquer? Paranormal phenomena? Mario Bros?
Turning to face the Beacon Headmaster, Boo spoke as his deadpanned deeper further. "I saw my nutjob of a brother, here, at Beacon, holding your students hostage."
"What?!" The mention of students being put in danger was enough to make Glynda lose her composure.
Ignoring the glare from the deputy, King Boo sighed again as he shrugged. "Hell if I know how he got into this world, all I saw is that me and one of the new year students confront him. From what I could guess, the reason he's here is likely him up to his usual kidnap shenanigan."
Huffed Goomboss as he furrowed his brow. "By that you mean he's imprisoning people in arts again is it?"
The disheartening dropping head and shoulder he received from Boo says it all.
It was then King Bob-omb's turn to pinch his nose bridge. "Oh dear, this certainly complexed… everything."
From the outside perspective, you may think they're simply talking about a bad case of a criminal issue. But in truth, they're worried about their plans to conquer Remnant.
But no one needs to know that…
Recomposed his gathering, Ozpin cleared his throat. "Gentlemen, I believe myself and Miss. Goodwitch here is quite lost in your conversation. Would you care to… give us some explanation?" While it never was his intention to let this happen, the vision Mr. Boo saw may provide enough information for their unknown enemy. A double edge sword that turns out to flavor him this round.
King Boo groaned as he rolled his eyes before burying his face in his hands. "This is going to be a long night..."
And the worst part? he won't be enjoying any of it.
- (Time Skip) -
The discussion lasted longer than any of them had estimated, after all, the severity of the situation just keeps getting bigger and bigger. From the exchange of knowledge about King Boo's dangerous brother, the brief description of the Relics, and the true history of Remnant, how the god departs from the world after creating mankind.
Needless to say, headaches were had, witty sarcasm remarks were thrown, alongside some emotional insults, and their morale and overall mood were ruined.
This rabbit hole just seems to get deeper and deeper the more they go. Just like the elevator cabin they're riding…
Inside the metal cage, all except Petey, nobody made a noise or sounds, the Piranha Plant man's breath being the only source of noise accompanying the group.
Where are they going?
Shooting a glance, king Bob-omb saw the floor monitor slowly decrease in number from T to digitals, until it stopped at B5.
The descending, however, continues, revealing that there are more floors underneath. That there's more to this academy facility.
'An underground chamber I see…' Having about just enough fair grasp of the situation, the old walking bomb mused. 'Whatever secret we're about to witness, it must be a huge one, if it needs to be hidden all the way underground.'
Glancing at his fellow Boss friend, they too seem to come to the same conclusion, minus Petey as they couldn't tell if he was still following up with all the knowledge dump and revelation.
Narrowing his brows and focused, King Bob-omb mentally prepared himself, he can only hope his current employer would not be so bold as to lead them into an ambush. He really hopes. While he has no doubt about their capability to fight their way out, it would make quite an inconvenience for the royal family to suddenly make enemies with the academy openly.
But again, one can never be too careful, especially since the headmaster has yet to prove himself to be trustworthy.
Plus, in closed space, explosions really aren't the most ideal or smartest choice of weaponry, not to mention the fact they're heading underground, having the school collapse on top of them really isn't something worth risking for.
*Ding*
The noise of the elevator drag him back to reality and announced to the group they have arrived at their destination.
As the metal gate split up, what has revealed to King Bob-omb is a big open space, visually, the ceiling are as high as his Battle Mountain, and the whole space was dim and gloomy to say the very least, with the ominous green torches that illuminated the room only makes everything suspicious and unsettling. It is as if this big place is an underground tomb.
Without any word, the Headmaster & Deputy move forward, gesturing to their accompanying to follow them.
In a short pause of a few seconds, the Boss Minions made no moves to leave the cabin, intensely staring at the big unknown that was in front of them, after seeing no danger or traps in sight or the danger that was supposed to jump their way, the Boss Minions nodded to each other, and stepped out of the elevator in vigilance, ready for any surprises.
Says that, but they had no idea what to expect, nor does they know how to process this development. (Cut them some slack, they specialized in conquering, not mystery solving.)
"Okay… where in the world did you take us to?" Goomboss takes the bait, this is too much and out of context for him, what is going on?
Without missing a beat, Ozpin promptly answered. "The Vault, as we like to call it, we are in the Beacon Vault built directly underneath the CCT tower."
"Follow us." Requested Goodwitch, as she and Ozpin turns to move into the deeper end of the darkness.
The Bosses once again shared a look of doubt among themselves, before following behind the two professors.
"So… this vault, I take it as the namesake, holds something of great importance here does it not?" Asked King Bob-omb as they followed behind the duo in the seemly endless liminal space.
"Correct, the Crown of Choice you saw earlier, was stored in this place before I took it out." Answered Ozpin.
"And I take that the other relics are treasured in a similar fashion in the other three academics, no?"
"That is correct."
Bob-omb mused. "I see, well, this place seems to be well hidden, not to mention it was built directly on top of the most well-known warrior school, with capable fighters around all times."
"A soundeth and well-thought strategy." Commented Bully as he reconnaissance the corridor they walked by. "Shouldst one bethink to receiveth their handeth on the artifacts, those gents wouldst certes, needeth to receiveth passeth through an army of warri'rs." It certainly was a sounding security measure for a powerful treasure. As proud Minions who guard important territories, the Bosses certainly could see the genius in this strategy. Bowser's own stash of treasure storage in his private vault certainly is a good example of it. You would have to be a madman to want to steal money from the evilest kingdom in existence. That or you happen to be a greedy fat man who doesn't know when to quit.
That being said, what kind of threat would require such a measure to protect a magical artifact?
"It was a strategy designed by the previous member of the guardian, King of Vale his highness himself, who created and lay out the foundation of the Huntsman Academy System and utilized the strength of its defense." Explained Goodwitch. Left unsaid was the thought that these men immediately figured out the strategize the Academy acted in guarding the Relic.
"That aside, you want to show us something, correct? Something just as important as the Relic you brought." Inquiry Goomboss, the crown the headmaster brings along with their visit here, is no doubt to be put back in the vault, and he doubts this is just a simple tour walk to show them the place.
"Correct." The man replied simply, choosing to not elaborate further.
And then, as they seemly come to the end of the space, as they approach, what comes into their view, is a machine of some sort, humming isolatedly at the other end of the room.
Upon getting closer, they could make out the appearance of two… machine pods of some sort, with three control screens operating the whole thing. And more importantly…
A person that was sealed inside one pod. A girl, light-brown skin with shoulder-length brown hair, dressing in only a pair of white undies. Her face had an intense facial scar, covering almost the whole left side of her young face.
Blinking, the Bosses each let out a confused breath. Clearly at a loss.
"Wha… what is this?" Inquired King Bob-omb, of all the things, he did not expect a living person to be the thing that was being guarded. Yes, despite all the crazy and wackiness in the Mushroom World, things that usually require guarding are either a huge amount of treasure; powerful energy sources like Super Stars; some sort of inanimating relic objects protected by ancient spirits or guardians; or maybe evil spirits that were sealed away. Far as he can recall, no one ever used excessive force to protect a living person. Not even Princess Peach.
A living Person, that is a first for them for sure.
Facing away from the five henchmen, Ozpin looked at the girl in the pod with what appeared to be remorse and regret written on his face. With a long sigh, the headmaster turned to face the henchmen.
"Gentlemen, right now, what you're looking at is one of the remaining five people on this planet that wields magic." Ozpin then gestures to the girl in the pod. "And this is the Fall Maiden of the Four Seasons, Amber Rufous." [1]
The five bosses approached the machine pod, inspecting the girl in question and getting a better look at her. Although they were bad guys back in their world, the nasty scar on her face raised some pity in them, the girl looked… terrible in health.
Feeling bad as they did, it didn't stop their rational brain from asking the important question.
"Maiden?"
"Four seasons?"
"One of the remaining five?"
"Gee, what happened to her? That scar looked fresh."
With yet another exhale, Ozpin began to explain. "Gentlemen, on your first day in Remnant, I mentioned that Magic no longer exists in Remnant, I would like to rectify my claims that day and apologize. Magic did exist in Remnant, but it was forgotten by the world and hidden away from the masses."
The Bosses listen on, letting the headmaster explain first, whatever question they have, it can wait.
"This Magic, exists all the way back thousands of years ago and has been passed down from one to another to this very day. The Maiden of the Four Seasons I mentioned, was the title that originated from the fairy tale that describes the wilder of this Magic."
"Hold it." Interrupted King Boo. "Fairy tale?"
"Sometimes, historical events of the past passed down by people becomes a bedtime story for entertainment, and ancient history becomes the folklore in the afternoon. The stories that were passed down throughout the history of Remnant. Although generally regarded as mere myths and legends, some of them do possess some basis in reality. And the Story of the Season happens to be one of them that was true."
"Kkkk…" Mused King Boo as he stroked his chin with a raised brow. "Care to enlight us further on the detailed context?"
"The basic nutshell please." Goomboss chip in. They don't have all day, and he doubts his brain could handle another lore dump.
Nodding, Ozpin politely replied. "Of course, but…"
He then turns to face Goodwitch, and says nothing but looks her way, although his eyes struggle to focus on her, as if ashamed to look straight at her.
This goes on for a few seconds, and everyone was no doubt puzzled by his behavior.
"Glynda, I would like to apologize in advance for what I'm about to reveal."
Said deputy taking a sharp inhale, she sort of expected this conversation to go in this direction the moment Ozpin decide to take them to see Amber, but despite that this is still too stressful.
Gathering her bearing, Glynda nodded. Ozpin knows what he's doing, if this is what he believes the best, then she'll follow.
Returning the gesture, Ozpin turns to face the group. "I have been hiding things from you, in fact, I have been hiding a certain information from all of you."
"Oh great, drama. Oww!" Boo huffed exasperatedly, in which he received an elbow to the ribs from Goomboss.
"There's one thing you need to know about if we want to make everything make sense."
Ozpin elaborates. "What we have been hiding from the whole Remnant, the secrets that had been purposely kept away from the world."
Goodwitch swallowed a nervous gulp, her hands unconsciously clench tight.
"First, the Grimms. They… they had a leader, a leader who possessed human intelligence, a mastermind that was cruel and cunning."
"A leader?" Goomboss responds, in a way of intrigued instead of confusion.
The thought that the Grimms may have or have not possessed a leader did come across their mind in the past few weeks of their stay in the academy. Given their biological origin, the hive-mind-like behavior the Grimm displayed, and the comparison between the two. It was hard to not draw that kind of conclusion. That there had to be some sort of dominating superior among them.
Although they were hoping that to not be the case. Oh well, another enemy for them to crush.
Continuing his great reveal, Ozpin forced the word out of his throat, despite his inner mind screaming in protest. "At some point through mankind's history, a leader rise among the Grimm, and has been seeking the destruction of mankind. She establishes her control of Grimm across the Remnant, plotting her move from the shadows, diving mankind against each other, working in the shadow to divide humanity…" He hitched, as if something stuck in his throat. "They…"
"Her…"
"Her name…"
"She…"
The 6 watched the headmaster having great difficulty getting the word out of his mouth, the man looks like he'll tear himself apart by the inner struggle he was having at any moment.
"She named herself Salem. Queen of the Grimm."
To be...
Continued...?
OMAKE
- ? ? ? ?
Under the illumination of the dreadful purple light, Cinder watches the land of darkness through the window frame from the Evernight Castle. Below her, various creatures she had never seen before were exploring the dead land that no man in Remnant ever get to touch or trample with. Machines that bear the form of a giant sledgehammer are smashing their very being down the ground to excavate precious resources from mother earth. Despite being the intruder of this unexplored land, the Grimm made no move against them, solely because the queen have ordering them not to.
The Smithy Gang, the so-called machine-beings that were made by the un-living animatronic weapon smith, Smithy. After creating enough numbers of them, had ordered his underlings to gather more and more resources for him to make more weapons to help advance their plan in tearing down the four kingdoms.
Of course, Cinder Fall does not believe in that at all, not a single bit. The way these freak shows looked at Remnant, they were looking at it as their playground. They do not care about this alliance at all, and they're likely plotting their chances to seize Remnant as their own, hell, they may as well as doing that right this moment behind their back.
And speaking of freak shows…
"Umm, Red?"
"What?"
"This body feels queasy."
"Urg, unbelievable, even after our grand reconstruct, you're still out of shape!"
"Hey, Red!"
"What?"
"I'm hungry."
"For the love of-! Chew on your tongue then!"
"Red!"
"What?"
"This background is ruining my aesthetic!"
"Then change style!"
"Red!"
"What?!"
"I dig this place."
"Good for you! And I don't care! Now stop bothering me!"
Here they are… these colorful freaks, bearing the shapes of humans in all but the head, dressed up like they're some sort of superheroes from a cartoonish show. And calling themself some sort of rangers. If she could physically roll her eyes all the way back to the brain she would do so already. Elite warrior? Fearsome? Unmatchable? Don't make her puke, just by looking at these colorful clowns makes her blood boil.
And to think that Salem would so easily let them join their rank.
"So, frustrate, isn't it?" A breeze of invasive cold air pushed against her back all a sudden, followed by a low and brooding voice, putting a halt to all the brewing anger from rising, and sending literal chills down her spine.
Hesitantly, Cinder slowly glare back, and was met with a pair of glowing red eyes and the presence of a monster, moving out from the shadow, Bonechill, the animating dragon skeleton remains, lord of the death as he self-proclaimed, facing directly at her.
His hollow eye stock that contains the malicious glare piercing her amber eyes, and his imposing figure as well as that overwhelming amount of ice magic that emitted from his corpse body made Cinder's body tremble. Ever since the undead dragon has been revived by the alien entity Dark Star, the temperature of the Evernight castle has dropped several degrees, and every strategic meeting held here has been made unbearable, both mentally and physically
And of all the freak show that's been revived, he had to be the most untrustworthy above them, speaking and acting like a snake.
"Presumptuous, isn't it, to think that a group of freaks has stolen your show, it had to be infuriating. How could the queen favor these unknowns? Unknown that may detriment our long time goal." The dragon corpse mocked, speaking as if the two of them are old acquaintances.
Narrowing her brow, Cinder stood her ground and retaliate. "What do you want you bonehead?"
As if expecting her reaction from the very beginning, the eyelid of Bonechill formed a smile, indicating him to be in the mood of amusement, and so the ice dragon moved his jaw. "It was not by my intention to read your mind, my dear. It was but you who gave out the invitation to tell the world your thoughts."
The false maiden's glare hardened further, the tattoo on her back lit up with a furious red glow, as well as her elegant red dress.
Only her souring mood seems to feed on Bonechill's enjoyment. "Feisty little thing, aren't you? Just the way I prefer." With a rattling cackle, the ice dragon retreat back from Cinder's face, his golden chariot grinding as he move pass the Maiden, treating Cinder as nothing but empty air. While said woman was debating if she should incinerate this animating corpse.
Only for the undead dragon to suddenly stop his movement.
The lord of death tilted his head as if considering something, his skeleton remaining wings flapped as he swings his tails left and right like that of an excited canine, Then, despite the lack of flesh and organs, the jawline of his remains formed a smile. "From one soul to another. If I were you. I would make sure to seize my chance." He calmly began, yet not turning back to face the Fall Maiden.
Hearing that the question is addressed to her, Cinder narrowed her eyes. What game is this monster playing?
"After all, Without power, one can do nothing." The animating skeleton then turns to face her. "And you, my dear. Are powerless."
That's it, she's burning down this pile of bones.
Intense heat burst through her palm, in a split of a second, a ball of flame was formed and aimed at the head of the dragon.
The smile on Bonechill's jawline, however, widened further.
"Believe in whatever that makes you feel good, but it won't change the fact your role is being threatened by our presence, little cinder."
"What, do you want?" Trying her best to keep her composition, CInder bite down the growl that almost slipped through her teeth.
"The real question here I believe… is you should ask yourself just that. What do you want?" Averting his eyes from Cinder, Bonechill looked at the door that lead to Salem's chamber, where the Jester is giving his report to the Queen of Grimm. "The end goal of your… grace has always been the same. The downfall of the four kingdoms, the end of mankind, the end of this world. It matters very little how the whole process played out." The ice dragon then looked toward the sky, as if reminiscing something. "Just so you know, there are thousands of ways to bring forward ruins."
"And you, little girl, it matters very little how you played the role in her ambitious."
Hearing enough, Cinder sends out the fireball right in Bonechill's face, only for him to simply blow out a cold breeze, nullifying the attack as it was candle fire.
"Beacon will fall, it may be by your hands, it may be by not. Point is, from the very beginning, it matters very little to dear Salem, whether you follow her plan or not." He rattled, drawing near toward Cinder as he reposition his chariot, his long neck extended right into CInder's face. "Because what she wants, does not equal what you would want."
Her instinct screamed at her, yet Cinder stood her ground. "And why… would you know about that?"
Her inquiry only feeds into Bonchill's gladness. "Would you like to experience the end?"
For the first time, Cinder's heart and bravery skipped a beat.
Making yet another gleeful squint with his eye stock, Bonechill elaborated his enlightenment. "Calling it the instinct from the Lord of death. The goal she's always chasing has never changed, and it certainly doesn't matter if you become a full-powered Maiden. She'll get what she desired, and nobody can change that. Not even me." Looking toward the door again, Bonechill continues. "She may be able to fill your head and the others with those temptations, but again, those are just empty promise, it always has been."
"Weighing and change the destiny of others, but can not to her own, hmmp, the irony." He then gently crept a claw at Cinder's face, his giant boney hand carefully pressed against the cheeks, the chilling touch from the fingertip made the false maiden freeze in terror. "A pawn is a pawn, it becomes obsolete the moment it served its purpose."
He then draws in, his face just an inch from hers. "So, my dear. Are you obsolete? Are you a pawn?"
"However, I believe, the rrrreal smart question to ask here: Is Salem a pawn?" And with that, the fear in Cinder came to a stop.
Seeing the gear in Cinder's mind in motion, Bonechill let out a satisfied huff. "Considered this your homework if you really want to take charge of your current predicament." With that, the blue skeleton let go of Cinder and proceed to leave.
Catching her bearing, Cinder glared at the monster. "What are you trying to achieve?"
Amusing, the lord of death turned slightly. "My goal? Simple, I wish to rule the realm of the gods. This feeble realm is meaningless to me."
Eyes widening from hearing his claims, Cinder finds herself at a loss for words.
"Like I said, from one soul to another. I was careless in my last attempt, hence my ultimate demise, and that's why, this time. I will not let anything stop me from achieving that goal. Not you, and certainly not dear Salem." He then turns around to face Cinder, but this time, without any expression of disdain as he regards her. "And you, my dear, I hope you would not repeat the same kind of mistake that I unfortunately took. When the chance arrived. Seize it."
"And by all means, do not mistake us to be allies, I have no need or use from any of you, whether your dear queen succeeds in achieving her goal is irrelevant to me, my goal just happened to align with hers."
An answer seems to click in Cinder's mind, a smile found its way to the end of her lips. "I supposed that makes the two of us."
Hearing that, the smile removed itself from Bonechill's jawline as he adapt a look of boredom. "One last thing, toying you mortals has always been amusing. I was merely killing my time here. Do make it enjoyable for me, will you?"
And with that, the smile on Cinder's face is gone.
[1] Rufous was basically me wanting to give her a name that is alluding to autumn but not directly (Technically Amber Autumn is fine, but that's a bit too lazy), so I settled for tree colors, which I had Rufous/ Aurelia/ Leaf/ Maple/ Bronwyn selected as possible names, and ultimately I choose Rufous due to Amber's hair color being reddish brown. So there we go.
First, I want to take the chance and talk about my plans. So, where does my goal lies? Well, to start, making an ending that I want and like for RWBY, selfish I know, which is exactly what fanfiction is all about. We, the consumer, dissatisfied with the product we get from the manufacturer, took it upon ourselves to make something we want. With the amount of fiction this series gets on this site, or even other sites like Ao3, or even Wattpad. The amount of fiction driven by passion from fans spoked it all, how many people saw the potential RWBY had, and how many hearts got shattered seeing that potential all going to waste.
So, the direction of this story? For now, it's about the power of trust and mistrust. Don't worry, I'm not migrating this story to be drama, uh-hu, this story will continue staying in the adventure category. But with how the… cannon of RWBY is, plus the general consent of the development to the later volume plots, these are what I had to work with, so I had to deal one and one at a time.
Rest assure, the Bowser Kingdom us Nintendo fans know for years earned their reputation for reasons, we won't be seeing them turning a new leaf solely because of a few bonds with the RWBY main cast, and they certainly didn't choose to help Remnant out of pity or kindness. When I said this story is about how the Bowser Kingdom tries to conquer Remnant but ends up saving the whole world unintentionally. I mean it.
Second, Ozpin as a character is really hard to write. Especially when you're trying to humanize him while bashing him at the same time. Either a flawed good guy or a bad man trying to do good, like him or hate him, there's no in-between. And it sucked so much in my scripting process. Out of the whole cast, I liked him a lot, but I also freaking hate him. Alright, enough bitching, let's move on.
Third, I hope you like the way I write Bonechill, seriously, the biggest letdown throughout the whole Super Paper Mario, especially considering the guy is supposed to reference Lucifer/Satan in the Bible.
For those that don't know, Bonechill is the end boss of Chapter 7 in Super Paper Mario, a chapter with the overall motif of The Underwhere and The Overthere, basically, The Hell and The Heaven, which draw heavily from both Ancient Greek mythology and the Christian religion. In the case of Bonechill, the concept of a fallen angel (Nimbi) is inspired by the Biblical story of Lucifer, who became the devil after betraying God. To add the point, in Dante's Inferno (of the epic Italian poem, the Divine Comedy), Lucifer (now known as Satan) is depicted as a giant, six-winged beast imprisoned in ice in the deepest circle of Hell. This is all paralleled by how Bonechill has six wings, was imprisoned deep below the Underwhere, and is a self-styled "master of the cold dark" who uses ice breath to attack and is "something of an evil celebrity in certain circles of the Underwhere". Additionally, his being released during an apocalyptic event (the emergence of The Void) may be derived from the Book of Revelation, where Satan escapes from hell and he and his army are battled and defeated in heaven.
Very Epic isn't it?
But no, guy got completely screwed by 2D-Mario-style gameplay limitation. I guarantee you. if Super's gameplay is following the same as the TTYD turn-based combat, Bonechill will definitely be a tough boss, perhaps tougher than Crystal King in the first game. But very sadly, that was never the case. Instead, we get a joke of a boss fight that can be cheezed in under 30 seconds with just Luigi.
#JusticesfortheMarioverseSatan
