"There it is," Sun commented as he and Ilia crested the hill. "Doesn't look like much, but I guess it's super important for defenses around Argus."
Ilia looked up at the radio tower and narrowed her eyes. "It may be simple, but it's still going to be a hell of a climb with one arm. I've got half a mind to take this thing off, and try t-"
"Don't," Sun warned. "Climb slowly, and safely. Weiss is in the air already, and the other two won't move the boat until we give the go-ahead."
"Yeah, assuming they find the stupid thing," Ilia said as she pulled up a pair of binoculars. "I really hope Cinnamon pulled some strings and didn't… oh, shit!"
"What? What's wrong? Is patrol heavier than Terra said?" Sun asked as his entire body tensed. Ilia passed him the binoculars, and he raised them to his eyes. After a moment of searching the tower and its upper scaffolds, Sun's veins turned to ice as he spotted a corpse laying upon one of the metal platforms halfway up the tower. He trained the binoculars upward, and found another waiting at the top, near the control box.
"Tell me you see it, too," Ilia pleaded as all color drained from her face. "Tell me I'm not going crazy."
"No, I see it," Sun confirmed as he lowered the lenses. "I just don't… I don't understand. Who could have gotten here first? And why hasn't an alert gone out?"
"Maybe it has?" Ilia offered. "The wounds look fresh, from here. Sun, we need to get up there, and see if they're alive. Maybe they know something."
Sun hesitated, before placing a heavy hand on Ilia's shoulder. "No. I need to go up there. You're not climbing a radio tower and possibly fighting atop one with your arm in a sling. Go to the boat, and wait for my signal."
Ilia blinked, and emphatically shook her head. "Sun, no, you need me t-"
"Go to the boat, Ilia!" Sun repeated, his tone far less friendly. "I want you safe, alright? I'll contact you when I'm at the top and in the clear, and you can guide me through… whatever needs doing. I'll handle it, but I'm not risking you."
Ilia bit her lip, and pounded a heavy fist into Sun's chest. "Damn it, you asshole! Fine! But if something's wrong, you get on the line immediately!"
"I will!" Sun replied as he felt a familiar surge of anger in his chest. He took a deep, measured breath, and softened his tone slightly after Ilia recoiled in surprise. "I will. I just want you to be safe."
Ilia nodded slowly, and undid the tool belt around her waist, before offering it to Sun. "Okay. I trust you, big bro."
Sun accepted the belt, and slung it over one shoulder before beginning to head for the tower. "I won't let you down, little sis."
Weiss Schnee sat upon a cold, metallic bench in the main bay of a private Atlesian transport craft as it soared gently through the sky. She looked up toward the window across the plane to see only the open sea and blue sky, and let out a weary sigh. Slowly and carefully, she pulled her scroll from her dress, and navigated to her contacts to check on the signals of the rest of the team. Sun, Ilia, Yang, and Jaune's scrolls were all displaying two bars out of five, and Weiss' shoulders tensed at the sight.
"Something wrong, ma'am?" a nearby guard asked as he tilted his head at the former heiress.
"Is there anything we can do for you?" his partner inquired as a follow up.
"No, no, it's quite fine. Just… thinking of home," Weiss lied with a smile as she moved to put her scroll away. Suddenly, a change upon the screen caught her eye, and she brought it forward to look once again. Everyone on her contact list displayed no bars, and a large 'X' was flashing near the top of the screen.
"Hey! What's going on back there? We just lost radar, and command isn't coming through!" the pilot yelled from the cockpit. One of the guards turned to face the source of the voice, and made his way over to a small door before sliding it open.
"Nothing going on back here, sir! It must be external!"
Weiss immediately stood from her seat, and walked to catch up to the guard. "My scroll isn't picking anything up either, if that helps."
"Hey! Look out there!" the other guard said as he pointed toward the same window Weiss had looked out earlier. "There's a… a helicopter approaching, sir!"
Sun stood from his position kneeling over the corpse upon the platform halfway up the tower. His heart pounded in his chest as he surveyed the wounds, and thought about what horrible end the guard had met. Long, vicious gashes had torn through his body armor, looking almost like the claws of some massive animal, and his face was frozen in a silent scream as his head lolled just over the edge of the metallic walkway. Sun backed away slowly, before turning and beginning to climb the ladder that led to the upper terrace.
Suddenly, Sun's earpiece crackled with static, and Ilia's voice came over the line.
"-un? Sun, do you copy?"
"I copy," he replied as he quickly made his way up the ladder.
"I made it to the boat. Yang and Jaune are here, and we're ready to move up the coast, on your signal. What's the status on the bodies?"
"Dead. Definitely dead," Sun said with a full-body shiver. "I'm not at the top level yet, but the guy in the middle of the tower… someone, or something really wanted him to stop patrolling. I've never seen armor shred like that."
"Shred? What are you thinking, like a flak grenade, or some kind of bladed weapon, or maybe someth-"
Ilia's signal dropped out, and Sun paused in the middle of reaching for the next rung. He completed the motion, before bringing his other hand up to the side of his face and pressing two fingers against his earpiece.
"Ilia?" Sun paused, and licked his lips as only static came through the line. "Ilia, what happened?"
Again, he received nothing but an irritating crackle for his efforts. Sun shook his head and continued his climb, only to reach the top of the radio tower. Another mangled body awaited him, and the man was arguably in a worse state. The guard's head had been smashed into the side of the control box, and the metallic corner was stained with blood and brain matter. His back had been torn open and a puncture wound ripped through his torso, leaving little of the man's upper body intact.
"Gods," Sun exclaimed as he approached the corpse with apprehension. "What is going on? And why now?"
Sun took out his scroll and moved to Ilia's portrait, only to find no signal available. He continued to check his contacts, and came up with much the same result, before pocketing the device entirely with a sigh. A blinking light upon the control box caught his attention, and he moved closer to inspect it. Despite his limited knowledge, something about the configuration immediately struck him as wrong.
Atop the box was some other sort of large device, wired into the control panel of the box itself. Several waveforms were displayed onscreen and appeared synced to one, thicker wave. Two knobs rested next to the screen, and both had lights atop them that were blinking a bright red.
"What the hell…?" Sun asked as he took out his scroll once again, and snapped a picture. He moved to the railing around the platform and brought his binoculars up to look out over the landscape in search of anyone who might still be in the area.
"Why is it getting closer?" Weiss questioned as she leaned up against the circular glass. "What's going on?"
"We don't know, ma'am. It may even be more than one," the guard informed as he cocked his massive rifle. The other guard took a similar firearm off the wall, and began a basic check of the weapon.
"Never fear. The Atlas military won't let you come under any h-"
The guard never got to finish his sentence as a purple glow engulfed the door, and then pulled the entire metallic plate off its track and down into the ocean below. One of the guards opened fire with a yell, only to take a shotgun blast to the chest and reel backward down onto one knee. The other guard spun and took cover behind the wall adjacent for the door, before he popped out and aimed his rifle. He never got a shot off as the barrel was sliced apart and fell to the floor with a clatter.
Adam Taurus vaulted through the opening in the side of the plane and swung Wilt once again as the unfortunate guard raised his rifle to catch the blade. The crimson metal glowed softly at the impact, and the two began a struggling deadlock as Weiss screamed and ran for the cockpit.
"Turn around! Turn us around and head for Argus right now!"
"Wh-" the pilot began, as he looked over his shoulder to see sparks flying within the cargo hold.
"Do it!" Weiss commanded, before whirling and drawing Myrtenaster. A glyph appeared at the tip of the blade and a barrage of ice ripped through the air to impact Adam's chest, just as he had overpowered the guard and kicked the man to the floor. Suddenly, Adam's eye snapped to Weiss, and he gave her a sickening grin as his aura flickered around his body to catch the frigid projectiles. He slashed Wilt out to the side to deflect a bullet from the other guard, before sinking the blade into the fallen man's chest and earning an agonized scream.
"Schnee. At long last."
Weiss bit her lip and charged forward to throw out a flurry of stabs as the remaining guard fired a round into Adam's back. The faunus' aura absorbed the blow as he whipped Blush across Weiss' face and sent her careening into the wall while the plane began a sudden sharp turn. Adam stepped unsteadily as he tried to regain his balance, and the guard dropped his gun to favor the broadsword at his side as he approached.
"You! You're a terrorist! An enemy to all who call Atlas home!"
"And you will die another pawn, serving his callous, entitled queen," Adam spat before whirling on the man and locking blades. The two exchanged several blows as Weiss rose to stand and rubbed the side of her face with her free hand. She closed her eyes and leveled her fingers along her blade as another glyph appeared, and she yelled through the hangar.
"Buy me time! Please!"
"Aye!" the soldier responded as he lowered his weapon for a sweeping slash, only for Adam to leap the blade and fire a shotgun blast directly into the man's chest. The guard stumbled backward as his aura pulsed and faded, only to raise his sword just quickly enough to block the second shot. "You'll not fell me so easily!"
Weiss opened her eyes as the cacophonous sound of metal against metal rang out in the aircraft once again, and found that the suitcase she had set beside the bench was open. Maria was crawling across the floor toward the cockpit, and Weiss lowered her voice into an impassioned hiss.
"What are you doing!?"
"Focus, Schnee, and fight! Leave this to me!" Maria replied, before standing and ducking into the cockpit. She turned to the pilot and put a hand on his shoulder, only to receive a surprised look. "Do you have a weapon?"
"I… yes, but…"
"Then get out there and fight!" Maria commanded. "I'll fly us back to land, and you hold off that madman! Go, now!"
The pilot rushed out of his seat and drew a pistol as Weiss pointed her rapier toward the hole in the side of the plane, only for a large, wispy trail of white energy to fly out and begin a rapid descent. Finally, she readied her rapier and charged to add to the guard's assault on Adam, while the pilot began taking potshots with his pistol.
"Finally ready to face me, Schnee?" Adam sneered as he swirled Wilt, deflecting bullets and cleaving others while he caught the guard's blade with his sheath. "This will be incredibly satisfying."
Suddenly, one final bullet against the blade caused it to glow a dangerous, uncontrolled crimson. Adam's eye flashed with the same warning, and he spun into what seemed to be an immediate monochrome slash as Weiss barely managed to summon a time dilation glyph. She slipped beneath the blade at the last second as Adam sheathed it, and watched in horror as time returned to its normal speed around her.
The guard's hands shook as his blade was cleaved clean in half at a diagonal. As the metal fell, it revealed an echoing cut across his chest deep enough to show shattered bone and ruptured organs. The guard fell almost immediately, as the pilot's head tumbled to the floor along with it. Adam slowly drew his blade once again and leveled it at Weiss as she shook, watching the fresh blood upon the metal drip to the floor.
"Clever," Adam commented. "But I never let the same trick fool me twice… and now, we're all alone. Faunus, against human. Master, against slave. Your family has benefitted from the very lives of mine, and now, I plan to collect on that debt."
"Do your worst," Weiss threatened as she flourished her blade and darted forward for a stab. Weiss froze as Wilt impaled through her shoulder faster than she could blink, and Myrtenaster rattled in her grip before she found herself unable to hold the weapon any longer. The rapier clattered to the ground as Adam viciously ripped the blade up and outward. Weiss screamed and fell to the floor, before scooting backward toward the bench. Adam slowly approached while looming over her, and narrowed his eyes.
"Pathetic," he spat. Weiss closed her eyes and shook her head, her entire body shivering as she held the seeping wound.
"Please…"
Adam merely laughed as he leveled his blade at the side of Weiss' neck. "Please what, you entitled, unfeeling little bitch?"
"P-please… fly faster…" Weiss said as she opened her eyes once again to look through Adam's legs and out the open space that had once been the door of the plane. Adam froze before whirling and raising his sword just in time to catch the flying thrust of Sun's staff as he careened into the hangar.
"You!" he roared as Weiss' queen lancer hovered just outside of the plane, its stinger at the ready. "Of course it's you!"
"Miss me?" Adam hissed as he pushed back against Sun's staff. The younger boy held his ground and tensed his muscles as his entire body went numb with sheer rage.
"No one will!" Sun retorted as he collapsed his weapon into two and dodged to the side. Adam's sword cleaved downward into the floor, and Sun leapt into a spinning kick for the older faunus' neck before whipping one of his nunchaku across the man's face. Adam spun as he tried to right himself and thrust Wilt into one of the walls beside the cockpit to stop his momentum. He tore the blade out through the metal and flourished it once, before drawing the weapon upward and pointing it at Sun.
"You and I have done this dance one too many times, boy, and now, you're stepping in where you don't belong right at the moment I've worked so hard for. I won't allow you to ruin this for me."
Sun spat onto the floor, and kicked Myrtenaster along the ground toward Weiss. She took the rapier and stood shakily as she kept her other hand over her wound, and then finally pulled it away to reveal her blood-covered flesh and sleeve. Sun moved to stand in front of her, and narrowed his eyes.
"Call off the bug," Sun ordered as he whipped his nunchaku down and around to tuck them both under his armpits.
Weiss obeyed, and the queen lancer outside of the plane dissipated as the aircraft began a straight vertical descent. The vehicle soon landed upon the cliff just below the radio tower, and the propellers whirred down to fill the hanger with total silence. Sun took a deep breath, and opened his mouth once more to speak.
"…are you willing to help me kill him, right now?"
"S-sun, I can barely hold my wea-"
"That isn't what I asked," Sun interrupted as he turned his head slightly to face Weiss. A silent fury blazed in his eyes, and he asked again in a firm, unfamiliar tone. "Are you willing to help me kill him?"
Weiss found herself unable to tear away from his gaze. "I… yes."
"…then when the time comes, don't hesitate. Give it everything you've got!" Sun ordered as he flew forward, his weapons whirling and shells flying in all directions. Adam closed the distance between them and began to spin his sword in total silence, deflecting blows and aiming stabs for Sun's torso. The boy deftly avoided each attempt, while throwing out clones between attacks to pepper Adam with singular blows.
Weiss followed up his efforts with blasts of ice and fire, hurling shards and bolts during openings as she circled the pair of fighters. Adam continued to deflect and absorb the damage as Sun kicked off a wall and reassembled his staff, only to launch into a heavy overhead. Adam cast the attempt off to the side with Wilt, and the blade pulsed an angry red.
"Sun, his semblance!" Weiss warned. "We can't ju-"
"We have to!" Sun replied. Flecks of spit flew from his mouth as he spun into another string of attacks, only for Adam to calmly counter each blow as they became more predictable and wild. Weiss stopped her efforts as she made her way around the cargo hold, limping slightly and holding her shoulder as she watched Sun's fit of rage.
"Sun, please!"
"Shut up!" Sun roared as he advanced upon Adam. The older man merely smirked, and wagged two fingers toward himself with his spare hand as he rerouted another powerful blow to his side.
"And here we go again. So predictable, and uncontrolled. So trusting in your supposed friends, and abilities. I think we're done, here," Adam lilted as he began to move his katana down to his side toward Blush.
The very moment that Adam's hand moved and his eye flickered red, Sun dropped his own weapon and crashed his hands together. Three golden clones burst from his chest and grabbed Adam's sword arm and shoulder, holding him in place as Wilt made it into its sheath and the world became a monochrome blur. Adam jerked his arm forward by barely an inch as the doppelgangers kept his upper body pinned, and he opened his mouth to speak as realization hit him. Sun cried out before Adam got the chance, and his voice rang clear throughout the plane.
"Now!"
Myrtenaster tore through the center of Adam's jacket as the pointed blade pierced his chest with the harsh sound of shredding fabric and pierced flesh. The bull faunus sucked in a shuddering breath as the blade sank deeper into him while Weiss leaned against the hilt with the weight of her entire body, and let out a noise of effort as she embedded the rapier another few inches. Blood sputtered from Adam's mouth and rolled down his chin as he looked downward in horror, and Wilt and Blush dropped to the floor with a metallic thud as all color returned to the world.
Sun unclasped his hands and began to walk forward, before putting his fingers firmly around Adam's neck. His arms trembled as he held back from squeezing, and his face twisted into a ferocious sneer.
"You took something from me that I can never get back," Sun fumed. "You changed me into what they accuse us of being. Your actions made even me into a monster, and that's why you have to die, Adam. This isn't about revenge. This isn't even about Ghira. This is about what you do to people. People like me, and Ilia, and Blake."
For a brief moment, Sun's fingers tightened around Adam's throat, and the man lifted a weak and shuddering hand to try to stop the effort. Suddenly, Sun let go and turned to walk out of the plane as Adam slumped over to the floor while the rapier slipped out from his chest. Weiss watched breathlessly as the man crumpled before her, and all life drained from his eye.
"S-sun?" she asked as she grabbed his weapon from the floor and followed the tailed boy out onto the grass.
Sun stood shaking as he looked out over the water. He spoke in a tense, dangerous tone as he clenched his fists.
"Convince me… not to go back in there, and just lay into his corpse with everything I've got," Sun said.
Weiss walked up to his side, her bloodstained dress catching the light as the thick liquid almost seemed to glow in the afternoon sun.
"…because you're better than that. You're better than h-"
"Don't say it," Sun warned as he closed his eyes. "I'm no better than him, until I prove it. Let's go and prove it. Get Maria. The others are coming."
Sun pointed to a rather large boat speeding along the water beneath the cliffs. Weiss nodded and turned, before heading to the plane and shouting inside of the hangar. Moments later, Maria appeared and walked with Weiss to stand beside Sun, who was waving down at the crew of the boat.
"It's them alright," Sun said, his tone still dangerous. "I want to talk to you later. Privately."
"O-of course," Weiss replied curtly. "Let's… here, just… walk down."
Weiss transferred her sword to her off hand and summoned a series of black glyphs down the cliff. Sun walked off the edge and began jogging vertically down the artificial surface until he ended up on the surface of the boat, and Maria followed shortly afterward. Weiss brought up the rear, and dispelled the glyphs as she finally landed within the confines of the vessel.
"Weiss!" Jaune yelled immediately. "Come here! I'll take you below deck, and get to work!"
Weiss merely nodded and dropped her rapier and Sun's staff, before leaning into Jaune as her adrenaline finally began to wear off. Yang spared the pair a look from her place at the wheel, before accelerating the boat and causing it to lurch forward. Sun moved to sit in the center of the floor silently as he crossed his legs and stared down into the black carpeting of the vessel. Ilia slowly approached him and sank to her knees to try to catch his eye.
"…Sun? What… what happened? We lost signal, and figured that it got cut, somehow. Then, we saw Weiss' plane doubling back, and started speeding over here t-"
Everyone aboard save Maria jumped as Sun's scroll began to ring. Slowly, he pulled the device from his pocket, only to see 'UNKNOWN' and a blank portrait appear across the screen as all signal seemed to return to the device at once. Maria cocked her head to the side as Sun merely started the device.
"Well? Answer it."
Sun breathed in deeply through his nose, before connecting the call and putting it on speaker. A weary, unamused sigh came through the line, followed immediately by Cinnamon Shoal's voice.
"Not everything I was hoping to accomplish with that little stunt, but I suppose I'll take it."
"C-cinnamon?" Ilia stammered as Weiss and Jaune stopped mid-stride to turn toward the scroll. "Why are you in range, right now?"
"Why are you in range right now?" Sun repeated, his hand shaking as he held the scroll. "Why are you here, and why the fuck was Adam on that plane? You told us he was headed for Vacuo! You told us you were helping defend the relic, and that you'd take care of him for us!"
"And I am. Are you not on one of my boats? Be grateful for what you're given," came the reply through the speaker.
Sun set the scroll onto the floor, before standing and running his hands through his hair. "I want answers. Now!"
"Seems to me like your answer is already on board with you. The moment you threw your lot in with a Schnee is the moment we became incompatible."
Sun walked to the edge of the boat, and gripped the rail hard enough for his knuckles to begin to turn white. "This entire time, you've been lying to us? You just fed us a line of bullshit, so you could take a shot at Weiss?"
"Not quite this entire time, no," Cinnamon admitted. "As I said- the hospital was the breaking point. I can't abide faunus who will accept and fraternize with one of our oldest enemies. Everything I told you about Adam was true, and I was quite honestly hoping he would take care of Weiss, before you and yours killed him in a fit of rage. It would've saved me a lot of time."
"I am right here," Weiss seethed as she approached the scroll, still leaning on Jaune. "If you have something to say to me, then say it. I trusted you! I felt horrible for you, and thought that I was making up for what my family has done!"
"Oh, sweetheart, at a certain point there is no making up for it. Adam may have gone one step too far with his asinine plans, but killing your family? That's still on the table, as far as I'm concerned."
"I am not my bloodline!" Weiss yelled as she balled a fist.
"And neither am I!" Cinnamon countered. "My bloodline was happy to take work from your overseers, and claimed we should be thankful for being provided work at all. I'll do what my family couldn't."
"You'll do nothing with the Schnees, or you'll be answering to all of us!" Sun said as he turned and leaned back against the railing of the boat.
"If that's supposed to be intimidating, you really need to work on your skills, kid. I've danced around people twice the man you are, and come out on top every time. You're playing by my rules, now, and if you choose to break them… you won't like what I target next."
"…how could you?" Ilia asked from her position kneeling on the carpet, next to the scroll. "How dare you, Cin? I thought we were friends. I thought you and I were the same. That we were pulled into a bad situation by circumstances out of our control, and working against a common enemy ruining both of our lives. I trusted you. I admired you!"
"We all make mistakes, Amitola. It's become increasingly clear that your goals and mine are incompatible, and for that, I've decided to cut you loose. Honestly, I hope I don't see you again, because I have a feeling that you're the type to take this a bit too far, when it could be settled right now. As far as I see it, we're all even, here. Adam's dead, you've got your transport to Atlas, and we're both free to pursue our own agendas… provided none of you make something out of this that doesn't need to be."
"No," Sun replied without hesitation. "No, fuck that, and fuck you. You could have gotten all of us killed, and you just made a direct attempt on the life of a friend. How long have you been working with Adam? How long have you been planning to just unleash him on us like a rabid dog? What drove you to burn every single bridge we had built!?"
"Not long at all. He contacted me after Haven, and I harbored him in secret, for a while. He wasn't even officially Fang, ever since he failed his duties at the Academy on account of your little troupe and I working together. Just a crazed bull, seeking vengeance, and I delivered him his target on a silver platter. I actually told him not to harm you or Ilia, but you can see how well he listens. Just another reason to make sure he was disposed of properly. I knew you had it in you, Sun. Did you honestly think I'd leave his capture or execution to human police, out in the middle of nowhere?"
Sun growled, and moved to scoop up the scroll. He brought the device up to chest level, and snarled into the receiver. "Consider this me making an issue. The next time we see you, you're dead. I don't care what your goals are, or how you think this is all justified in your sick, demented little game!"
"Unfortunate, because you really should care. I've got Fang headed into Lower Atlas as we speak, who aren't expecting to see the Schnee girl alive. If they do… things might get unpleasant. As for me, I'm headed back to Menagerie. Kali had some… interesting ideas, about the future of our people. I think I'd like to talk to her a bit more."
Sun's grip on the scroll faltered, before he squeezed the device even tighter, to the point of feeling the casing strain in his grasp.
"Don't you dare go near her."
"Oh, I'm going near her, no matter what. It's what I say and do near, or to her, that might change, based on how this conversation ends… and you might never know the difference. After all, it's not like you're going to turn that boat around and come after me when the fate of the world might be at stake on account of Salem, are you, hero?"
Ilia closed her tear-filled eyes and stomped off to head below deck, as Maria moved to follow. Jaune, Weiss, and Yang all stared at Sun as he took several deep breaths, his hand quivering all the while.
"…what do you want from us?" he asked in a tense, even tone.
"That's better. Keep this whole… exchange under wraps, and I'll play nicely. Start causing problems, and I'll cause a few of my own. First, it would be nice to get a simple 'thank you' for the boat. It's one of my favorites, after all," Cinnamon teased, her voice dripping with satisfaction.
Sun took several harsh breaths through his nose, and ran his free hand through his hair as he twisted the locks about in impotent fury.
"…thank you, Cinnamon. Anything else?"
"Hm. Don't make trouble for my crew, if you see them in Atlas, but that should be obvious. I only plan to spend a little time in Menagerie, and then I'll be making an appearance in the lower city, to set my next little project in motion. We'll do lunch, and talk it over. I could use your help again, Sun."
Sun's breathing quickened as he set the scroll back down upon the ground, and began to pace.
"Sure. Be seeing you."
"Yes, you will. As a parting gift, I'll jam all signals in the area again for another half an hour. That should make it easier to get out of Argus' range."
Sun paused his walking and looked down at the scroll, only to see 'CALL ENDED' flashing upon the screen. He simply stared at the screen for several moments, before Jaune spoke up in a small voice.
"…Sun?"
Sun's fist whipped out in response, and crashed into the wall surrounding the staircase that led below deck. He let out an animalistic yell as he slammed another punch into the surface before stomping off to the opposite side of the boat. He moved up to the raised platform at the rear of the vessel and sat, staring off into the distance. Weiss shifted slightly in Jaune's grip, and shook her head.
"…let's head downstairs. Give him some space."
Sun remained unmoving as he watched the seemingly endless ocean trail off before him, the surface of the water glittering beneath the stars. The boy remained totally silent and motionless, bar the subtle, random twitching of the tip of his tail as his mind swirled in a maelstrom of angry thoughts. The footsteps on deck behind him completely escaped his notice, and he didn't realize that he was no longer alone until Ilia gently lowered herself to sit beside him. He caught sight of the girl in his peripheral vision, but neither of them said anything for nearly half an hour, before Ilia finally spoke in a strained, harsh tone.
"I'm… sorry. I'm really, really sorry, Sun. This is all my fault."
Slowly, Sun turned his head to look at her. His expression was one of defeat and detachment, as though the events of the day had drained all life from his features.
"Ilia, don't. It's her fault. Not yours."
"And I convinced you all to trust her," Ilia shot back as she drew her knees into her chest and wrapped an arm around them. "I should've known. I watched her manipulate and toy with so many people in my time with the Fang. I should've known that I… we wouldn't be an exception."
Sun's tail made a wide sweep of the empty air behind him, and he let out a dispassionate sigh. "At least Adam's taken care of, now."
Ilia shook her head, and frowned. "Sun, don't start looking for silver linings amongst her bullshit. That's how she got me. That's how she gets everyone. She pushes the boundaries inch by inch, until you're standing on the wrong side and wondering how the hell you got there. It's not just her, either. It was Adam, it's the Albains… it's the White Fang. Bitter people so fueled by hate that it causes everything good in a person who joins to just… decay, over time. If you hadn't gotten me out, I'd… probably be standing right there with her, treating you like some tool to be used for a personal agenda."
Sun fell silent once again, before letting out a sigh as he put an arm around Ilia's shoulder.
"But… I did get you out. You saw the truth, even if you couldn't put it into words, and came with us. You're one of us, now. Not one of the Fang."
"A member of SIN," Ilia replied with a muted smile. Sun returned the gesture, and cupped his forehead with his other hand.
"That's… still so awful."
Ilia chuckled for all of a moment, and then sniffled. "Yeah, it really is. But… you're family. Real family. And speaking of family… Kali can handle herself. There's no way Cinnamon is going to be able to take her, Blake, Neptune, and Qrow. They're going to be fine. She's just trying to scare you into obedience."
"I know, and once we see her again... there's going to be hell to pay," Sun admitted as he clenched a fist. "But for now… I don't want Kali in potential danger, or for Cinnamon to start some bullshit that's going to make their lives harder. Besides, with how well she played us… I don't want to take any chances."
"…he said, while sailing off to escort a grimm-attracting relic to a hostile foreign nation with plans to sneak into their most fortified building," Ilia pointed out.
"…shut up, would you?" Sun joked as he rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean."
"I do. I'm just being a pain in the ass."
"It's what little sisters are supposed to do," Sun finished for her as he rose into a stretch. "How do the beds look, downstairs?"
"They're pretty comfortable. The others are already asleep, but I came up to check on you before I turned in. Let's… get some rest, and refocus in the morning," Ilia suggested.
Sun nodded and helped Ilia stand, before looping a hand around her waist and beginning to walk to the staircase.
"Yeah. Once we wake up… we've got a job to do."
Author's Note:
The Haven/Atlas Academy issue and 'got for a walk' are both fixed in chapter 63. Thanks to ConstipatedGenius for pointing both out, especially the Academy one- that's a bit of a big deal. I think I've just about lost my mind rereading and editing these over and over, and sometimes, stupid happens.
And there you have it- What You Stole is 'complete' until after Volume 7. Now, as for what I was talking about with someone 'nailing it' several chapters ago: in a review for Chapter 50, a guest posted…
"You know a while back, Kali was talking to Sun about how she believes semblances reflect someone's personality. I think the same goes for Cinnamon, her semblance is using other people's semblances, I think that's a reflection on how she uses people and gets them to do what she wants."
That's exactly why that conversation existed- because Sun is selfless, and Cinnamon is a manipulative user. People are functions to her, and when those functions stop being useful to her personal goals, they become worthless. Cinnamon's entire purpose and reason for existence is really to give the White Fang teeth again after Adam's death, because I have a bad feeling that canon will do next to nothing with them going forward. Or, in an arguably worse scenario, a new High Leader will emerge from goddamned nowhere and walk in like they own the place and we should fear them. Cinnamon is my solution for that, and she received so much setup here so that she can effectively play that role as this story moves forward.
Speaking of canon, it should be pretty clear by now that I have several issues with it. I won't bother with a long rant or start listing grievances, but I will say that over time, I grew a little frustrated with What You Stole being tied to canon, since I started the story in Volume 4 and I can't exactly go back and retroactively add and subtract from canon without explanation. It's been slightly limiting to 'play by the rules' with this story, so I'm starting another one. The basic idea's been in my head for months now, and it's finally time to get started.
If you want more content from me between now and the 'Volume 7" updates for What You Stole, I'll be starting a new story on July 29th with the intent of completely rewriting RWBY from the ground up according to my own ideas. It will begin at "Volume 0" and establish the universe from scratch with some new rules, familiar faces, unusual ships, a few new OCs, and hopefully a lot of surprises and fresh takes on the world of Remnant and its inhabitants. Naturally, it will run through all of RWBY canon while twisting events along the way, and become a massive project much bigger than What You Stole. The story will be called Arboretum, and just for the people who have made it this far, you can have the summary early:
"While Team RWBY has JNPR, Team STRQ had OKRA. As two groups of four begin their time at Beacon and learn the truth behind the establishment of the school, its role in society, and their enigmatic headmaster, seeds are planted for future generations and legacies are set in motion. The only questions that remain are what exotic fruit those seeds will bear, and who tends the garden."
Have fun figuring out who 'Team OKRA' is. The only hint I'll give is that it's a combination of first and last names, and it's going to be wild.
Arboretum will update on Mondays and Thursdays every week, because this 'once every three days' update schedule nearly drove me out of my mind. I'm holding off until the end of July to give myself some time to breathe, and also to get ahead in terms of writing chapters, as I have a feeling that Arboretum chapters will be a bit longer than the ones found here. Not to mention, once Volume 7 finishes… both stories will be updating at once.
Hope to see you all there on July 29th, and I'd love to know your overall thoughts on What You Stole! It's been an incredible, ridiculous, whirlwind journey, and let's face it… it's only just beginning.
What exactly is Cinnamon's motivation and why does she hate humanity so much? Where the hell is Corsac? What's going on with Scarlet and Salem's crew? Will Ruby's team find Raven? Is Cinnamon actually headed to Menagerie, and if so, what's she going to do there? Will Weiss be able to deal with killing a man, and what does she think of Sun, now? What is Cordovin doing now that Argus' security is offline? Will Sun ever remember to shave? All that and more will be answered in time. See you around!
-RD