Though it was a bit of a struggle, Daisuke did eventually manage to get his vest and mesh shirt off. The blood smeared across his shoulder obscured the colorful ink beneath it and stained his side a dark, reddish brown. It wasn't pretty, but he looked far better than the two figures lying still near the doorway. He had seen quite a bit of death in his tenure as a high-ranking official of the White Fang, but something about the councilmembers of Atlas mangled before him felt different. There was a time when it would have been cause for celebration, at least for his organization and the greater good… but there was no satisfaction or feeling of accomplishment in staring at the two middle-aged corpses. Only pain, dread, and a feeling of uncertainty about the path ahead filled his chest.
"…you're quick on the draw."
Daisuke looked to the side to find his unlikely companion equally shirtless, though far more mangled. Where General James Ironwood's right arm and half of his chest should have been were instead cybernetic parts and steel plates fused into the flesh. Though professionally done, the points of fusion were still grotesque, as though his skin had been stretched across the dividing line and fastened in place. Somehow, Daisuke had a feeling that the man would end up with more modifications and prosthetics before the war was over.
Perhaps several members of their crew would.
"Yeah, well, you do enough negotiations with Cinnamon, and you eventually reach a state of always being prepared for someone to get shot," the faunus explained. "This isn't the first time I've had to pre-emptively end a meeting with gunfire."
"Well, I'm glad you were here to do so," General Ironwood praised as he rolled his wounded, natural shoulder. There were bullet holes close to his neck- close enough that another, more calculated shot could have potentially killed him. "No more risks. Public appearances and meetings behind closed doors are going to be rare and screened from here on out."
"…I'll still be armed," Daisuke asserted as he cracked his neck, not looking for permission or at the General. "And so will Cinnamon and Weiss."
General Ironwood let out a small noise of amusement as he watched the faunus walk over toward the reinforced glass wall to look out over the city.
"…to keep me in check, and protect yourselves, no doubt."
Daisuke watched the reflection in the windows for movement from the General's high-backed chair. His undamaged arm hung down at his side, not obviously tense and ready to draw his shotgun, but not entirely loose, either. General Ironwood didn't move, keeping his eyes upon the door to the office as he focused through the pain.
"I'd like to ask you something," the man began as he typed something into the holo-keyboard before him with one hand. "Something a bit… unusual."
"I don't do birthday parties," Daisuke said without missing a beat. "A kid threw up on me once, it was a whole thing."
"What would your next move be had you not been here to stop them?" General Ironwood asked, his tone thoughtful. "If you had entered this office to find me dead?"
Daisuke furrowed his brows. He was taken aback enough to look over his shoulder and then turn to fully face the back of General Ironwood's chair. Without being able to see the other man's expression, he was left to simply guess at where the question was coming from.
Or if it was a sign of intent.
"Well… if I had been the one to find you? A wanted faunus terrorist, entangled with a woman supposedly involved in a plot to knock Atlas out of the sky, so far as people know?" Daisuke started. "Try to get security footage from Hope, and th-"
"No," General Ironwood interrupted with a wave of his robotic hand. "Forget all that. Assume you were never questioned. Assume as well that chain of command was off the table- Winter missing down in Mantle, Clover out of commission, and you and Cinnamon able to take the reins with support from the others, in this hypothetical. What would you do next, for Atlas?"
Daisuke blew out a weighty breath and experienced a full-body shiver that had absolutely nothing to do with his shirtlessness.
"I…" he said, before stopping to think. "…would defer to Cin. I'm the advice man, and the one who keeps her coloring on the page, if not inside the lines. I've never had that kind of power outside of briefly running the Fang in Kuo Kuana, because I've never wanted it. I don't want that kind of responsibility on my shoulders."
"Do you think I do?"
"I can't imagine anyone would," Daisuke admitted with a shrug as he approached the desk once again. He was desperately hoping to see the other man's hands free of a firearm, though he couldn't help but feel like something was wrong. "But to answer your next question… if it had to be me, I'd begin flying this city… somewhere. To Sanus, maybe. Begin work on building a united front against Salem... and maybe try to land the damned thing once we were clear."
General Ironwood narrowed his eyes as a floating screen popped up before him… and then he proceeded to completely ignore it as he turned to face the faunus.
"…really?" The General asked. "For what reason?"
Daisuke finally met General Ironwood's eyes once again, and the stoic, unfeeling quality they usually held was instead replaced by a curious scrutiny. It was enough to make Daisuke feel rather stupid.
"Well… I still only have a surface knowledge of Salem, the Relics, and this entire conflict, but having a staff capable of constructing anything tied up with keeping this city afloat seems like a waste in the long run, doesn't it? We could surely use it to make a weapon, or containment unit, or… something to help us take Salem down. Besides- I doubt we can sustain the population up here indefinitely, limitless energy supply or no."
"…so you believe our priority should be liberating the Relic of its usage here," General Ironwood pondered as he turned his attention back to the screen. "That is… not something I had really considered as a possibility, yet. Why Sanus, though?"
Daisuke tried to fold his arms, only for a stinging pain to rocket through his left as it fell limply back to his side and he let out a hiss.
"It just feels like this is all gearing up for a final conflict there, doesn't it?" the faunus asked. "That's the only Relic with a totally unknown location, outside of being 'in the academy'. She's eventually going to go for it, and we need to be ready to make a final stand if it comes down to it."
"That's what Salem wants," General Ironwood emphasized as a rotating projection of the Staff of Creation appeared before him in midair with a lengthy list of updating statistics beside it. "A final showdown. An all-or-nothing war, with us on the defensive. I'm hesitant to give it to her."
"Then what's the plan? Just… float around up here forever?" Daisuke asked with a sigh. "Is that actually sustainable, while Salem just takes over all of Remnant?"
"You'd be surprised," the other man answered as he pulled up another field of analytics around the staff. "That being said… there might be something to your idea of moving Atlas, especially if we can somehow do it without being seen…"
The shifting of the opening door was enough to make Daisuke's heart leap into his throat, and he almost went for his gun before realizing that there were two likely possibilities. Fortunately, it was Cinnamon and Weiss who arrived, wheeling two gurneys along with them as they entered the office.
"Sorry we took so long," Weiss said breathlessly as she approached Daisuke and offered him a green box. "We made a detour and found a first-aid kit, in case Marrow gets tied up…"
"How thoughtful…" Daisuke said as he accepted the box and set it down upon the desk before cracking it open.
"We also talked," Cinnamon said, neglecting to make eye contact with either of the men as she began positioning herself to pick up Councilman Sleet's body. "We'll take those council seats. I just hope you have an explanation ready as to why we're coming out of the woodwork to take them, and that your PR skills can spin Weiss taking her father's seat into something the people will accept."
"You and me both," General Ironwood said solemnly while waving away the medical supplies offered by Daisuke. "I'll… put something together in the coming days as we deal with the shelter and relief situation. That needs to be our priority before formal transfers of power."
"Of course," Weiss agreed as she begrudgingly grabbed the councilman's legs and lifted along with Cinnamon. "We have so much to…"
A floating hologram manifested next to the staff, reading INCOMING CALL: WINTER SCHNEE with the woman's portrait beside it. General Ironwood sat up a bit straighter as Weiss absentmindedly dropped Councilman Sleet's legs and ran around Daisuke to get to the desk.
"Yeah, if you could not knock me over, that'd be great…" the faunus deadpanned as he sat upon the edge of the furniture, working to dig out the bullets with a pair of large tweezers.
"Sorry!" Weiss said before flashing Cinnamon an apologetic look. "And… sorry. I'll be right over, I just…"
"Take your time," Cinnamon replied as she shook her head and put her hands on her hips. "Just don't look at me when your boyfriend arrives to two corpses and has a hissy fit."
"Settle down, children," General Ironwood chided as he connected the call. "Marrow will be professional, if a bit unamused. Schnee?"
Winter's face manifested in place of the Staff of Creation, set against the background of Robyn's tavern. The woman looked exhausted, though she allowed herself a small smile at the sight of her sister and superior.
"General. Weiss," Winter began. "I'm checking in to let you know that Ilia Amitola did indeed find us. Whitley is with me, as is Emerald. We're all safe."
"I meant to tell you earlier, until I…" Weiss started as she looked toward General Ironwood, only to stop herself. She took a moment to look through Winter and to the two bodies still in the room. "…there's just so much going on…"
"Indeed there is," General Ironwood agreed. "I'm glad to hear that you're safe… and that Amitola made it down to Mantle. Unfortunately, Lieutenant Schnee, I… Winter…"
"I know," the woman replied as she tucked an errant strand of hair back behind her ear. "It's too late. Atlas has risen, and you can't send a transport to pick us up. We have a plan to at least get to safety, if not Atlas. I've also got eyes on my father and Robyn Hill… and they're working together."
"Another thing I meant to tell you," Weiss admitted. "Though hearing it again… that gives me an idea. I… General, would you mind if I disappear for a few days? There isn't much I'd really be capable of accomplishing in the relief effort, and with this knowledge about Robyn Hill coming out, I think I would be more useful elsewhere… especially if I can take Cinnamon with me."
"What?" the faunus asked immediately, sounding almost offended.
Weiss watched as her sister's mouth shifted to a taut line. There was a nod of approval that went unseen by General Ironwood, who looked rather unenthused by the prospect as he swept a hand through his hair.
"…what did you have in mind?"
"I think the best move right now," Weiss began as she made eye contact with Cinnamon through the hologram, "and our best shot at creating a narrative that the people would accept… is for me to go home. If I don't have access to Jacques' information anymore, then either Whitley or my mother does… and Cinnamon will know where best to look to find exactly what we need. Once I have the information at our fingertips, I can also begin… redistributing his assets as needed…"
For the first time, Weiss saw Cinnamon actually smile. It was almost unnerving.
"…oh, I like this idea…"
Author's Note:
Political maneuvering and accidental corpse dropping. Weiss has many talents.
-RD