Still sicky, but here we go. It's some writing. Yay.

Cover Art: Kirire

Chapter 63

Blake had questions. So many questions.

"So, this person behind the Grimm-"

"Anomaly."

"This anomaly," she said, finding the correction easier to accept than the idea of this being a normal person. "They're telling the Grimm to attack humanity?"

"Hmmm. Not so much." Jaune made an either-or kind of sound. "They're definitely antagonistic toward humanity, but 99% of the Grimm around the world aren't specifically acting under her orders. They just sort of exist because she does. The few that do act under her orders are kept close to her, which is very far away from any human inhabitation. Oh, and she didn't technically start the Grimm in the first place."

Blake found that the explanation didn't satisfy her much. "What?"

"It's really complicated." This, she could tell. "But it goes all the way back to two other anomalies that the original ARC Corp called The Brothers Grimm. Keep in mind all records we have are heavily outdated and were written by the original ARC Corp, so there may be some biases in there. But, basically, they were a pair of anomalies who seemed called themselves the God of Light and the God of Darkness."

Blake spat out her tea. "ARC Corp captured gods!?"

Jaune delicately wiped tea from his face and shirt and shot her an unhappy glower. Blake wiped her lips and apologised with a slight hunch of her shoulders. He sighed, rolled his eyes, and continued. "ARC Corp did not capture god, or gods. They captured a pair of anomalies with a god complex. It's very different."

"How different? Could they have been right?"

"They'd have been pretty crappy gods if they allowed themselves to be captured and incarcerated for a few hundred years and turned into a renewable energy source for human civilisation, wouldn't they?"

"Touché."

"They didn't even escape until Ozma caused the first major containment breaches. There'd been others before obviously, but never on that scale or all at once. Ironically, the Brothers Grimm never even managed a single containment breach before. As far as we can tell, they were newly sapient anomalies who assumed – for no reason whatsoever – that they were divine beings."

That was much easier to accept and didn't require a sudden lurch in religious beliefs or suspension of disbelief. Blake sipped her team and hummed for Jaune to continue.

"So, the Brothers Grimm were a pair of anomalies that had limited powers to create and destroy respectively. They had this theme going on where the light one would create and the dark one would destroy. They were convinced they were gods of creation and destruction as a result, when, in reality, they both had fairly similar powers. The dark one was even noted to create dark creatures with black fur and bone plates to aid in destroying things."

"Grimm."

"Yes. And, of course, the notes even say the researchers questioned it to point out that its claims of being a god of destruction to its sibling's creation didn't make much sense when it was also creating things, but it was noted as either being confused by the questions or wilfully ignorant."

"It didn't want to hear the truth so ignored it?"

"Pretty much. Though I imagine the notes didn't contain everything that was said. Most of ARC Corp was destroyed in the breaches and we only managed to save some files and databanks. Anyway, they both pretty much focused on creation and the whole god of destruction schtick comes across more as an edgy sibling wanting to be cool. The problem came when a lead researcher on the team got a little… uh… close with the anomalies."

Blake raised an eyebrow. "You're not saying she slept with them, are you?"

"No. No."

"Oh, thank goodness-"

"She slept with Ozma instead.

"What the fuck?" groaned Blake, face in her hands. "I mean, at least he has a human host, so it makes sense. But, also, what the fuck?"

"Tell me about it. Again, records are incomplete because by the time this was discovered the breaches were pretty much already happening – and yes, she aided Ozma in them. ARC Corp had a mole on the inside. But, from what we can tell, it was a highly ranked researcher and scientist known only as Rebecca J. Salem. She goes by Salem now-"

"Now? She's still alive!?"

"Oh yes. Getting there. Anyway, Salem had unparalleled access to many anomalies because of her position and how good she was at her job. She was lead researcher on some of the most dangerous, and her name features heavily in a lot of files making notes or running studies. Obviously, she never wrote down what she did, but, from the sounds of it, she was romanced and seduced by Ozma. No doubt some ploy on his part. Salem even became pregnant with his child, or, technically, the child of the host he was inhabiting at the time. But it looks like things went bad when the breaches happened because instead of running away into happily-ever-after together, she hates his guts and swore to destroy everything he ever stood for, and she went to the Brothers Grimm who… did something to her."

"Salem has become an anomaly of herself in the same way Qrow Branwen has – that is to say they've been changed or influenced by the power of an existing anomaly. Salem was changed by the Brothers Grimm, gaining functional immortality from the creation-focused twin, and the ability to command spawn Grimm from the destruction-focused one. We think the immortality bit comes from her body creating new cells and organs to never die, so that's how it ties into their theme. The angle for the dark one's powers is much more obvious by comparison."

It really was. So, this researcher banged an anomaly, fell in love, did its bidding and orchestrated the biggest jailbreak ever seen, crushing the company in the process, and unleashing a horde of anomalies out onto the world, before being cursed or empowered by a pair who thought themselves gods and unleashed on Remnant with an axe to grind and a really big wheel to do it with.

"That's insane…"

"Hmhm." Jaune finished his drink. "Keep in mind that before the original collapse of ARC Corp, there was no such thing as Grimm. When the Brothers Grimm were contained, all existing Grimm on the surface were culled. Remnant was very much at peace. It was only after their escape that things got this bad, and then our ancestors had to classify them as a Reality-Class anomaly because we couldn't really pretend they didn't exist anymore."

"It all comes back to Ozma, then," said Blake. "What a bastard. Why, though? Why do all this?"

"For freedom, I guess." Jaune shrugged. "I won't pretend an eternity locked away in some cell while a business syphons energy off you is fun, and he must have wanted out. As for why he released all the others, it's probably because that was his only chance of staying free. He needed ARC Corp too busy chasing all the anomalies to hunt him down. Instead, he got them destroyed. We've no idea if he planned for that or not."

"And the Brothers Grimm? What happened to them?"

"No idea. They've been absent. Maybe they left. Maybe they died. Maybe Salem killed them when she gained their powers. It's hard to say. All we know now is that Salem and Ozma are stuck in their bitter love spat, and ARC Corp can't really do anything about it. To intervene is to reveal the history of it all, and the existence of all anomalies. And we have to focus on the dangerous anomalies that do exist. The Grimm are a problem huntsmen can deal with – using Light of the Soul as they do it. And All Becomes Dust technically, since they almost all use dust-powered weapons."

Put like that, it really showed just how many Reality-Class anomalies had become an everyday part of modern life, from aura to Grimm to even the faunus themselves. Blake set her cup down and pinched the bridge of her nose. She could feel a headache coming on. There were only so many world-shattering revelations she could handle in one day.

"What's our relationship with this Salem, then? Does she have an anomalous name or are we just calling her that?"

"Technically speaking, she's the new Brothers Grimm until they're located, but she would recognise the name from her time working for the company and be quite upset about it, so Salem is always safest. Or Rebecca. Last I checked, she was fine with that. Or even Juniper."

"Her middle name?"

"Yep. Same as my mom's. Crazy coincidence."

"Could you be related…?"

"No idea. Doubtful. My family came from the security teams who survived the collapse of the ARC, and I guess it's possible they were related to her, but the last name puts a stop on it, and she was pregnant with Ozma's child, though it's again possible his host at the time could have been someone from ARC Corp." He shrugged. "Like I said, the records we have are really fragmented. They would have once had a full family tree for every host Ozma ever had, but instead all we got was a brief description of his power and a few notes about him being dangerously eloquent. As for our relationship," continued Jaune. "It's fairly relaxed to be honest."

"Really!?"

"Yep."

"Salem doesn't care that you're an organisation dedicated to containing or killing her…"

"That she used to work for."

"Fair. But she doesn't mind that she was a traitor to said organisation?"

"Oh, she's actually quite apologetic about it all."

Blake's brain cells tumbled out her ears. "Seriously…?"

"You'll get a chance to meet her soon," said Jaune, setting his cup down.

On a table made of wood.

In the middle of a forest.

In the furthest reaches of northern Vacuo, near the coast, where the trees had begun to grow toward the border with Vale. Blake was cold, the cracked moon high in the sky, and hadn't much appreciated this idea of a neutral meeting ground with the freaking Grimm. But, Jaune was relaxed, as always, so she took her cue from that as dark shapes snuffled at the edges of their little clearing, and red eyes watched them. The fact the Grimm had not attacked them had been the first sign things were not as they should be, because she'd never in her life seen Grimm so calm around a pair of people.

Suddenly, they stilled, monstrous forms bowing low.

Jaune stood. "She comes. Stay calm. No matter what you see."

A figure glided out of the woods. Her eyes were glowing dots of red in black pits, and her face was an unhealthy, pallid shade of white. Angry red veins criss-crossed over her face and down her arms, and a long, black robe reached down to the floor, hiding her feet. The woman's hair was white as well, as though all colour had been bled from her.

Inhuman, was Blake's first thought.

But it wasn't just the way she looked. It was the way she moved. It was the presence she radiated, that told Blake this was a very dangerous, and very inhuman creature, despite the vaguest shapes of a human woman.

The woman – no, the anomaly – glided over to stand in front of Jaune, their eyes locking and their hands remaining straight at their sides. They looked one another up and down, while the Grimm growled menacingly and paced around their clearing.

Slowly, Jaune extended a hand.

Just as slowly, Salem did the same. Their palms touched.

And then slapped together. Jaune held his hand high, she held hers low, and they clapped in the middle, twisted, locked fingers, wriggled them left and right together, made a "beewoobeewoo" noise and then bumped their hips together. "ARC! ARC! ARC!" they chanted, as one, raising their hands in the air like a sports crowd. "Waheyyyy!"

Blake stared.

And stared.

Until, eventually, she managed, "What the fuck am I watching…?"

"Jaune!" the inhuman woman said, clasping her boss in a tight hug. "It's been too long!"

"You too, Salem. How's the world conquest?"

"Oh, you know. Always something getting in the way. It was good of you to let me claim the credit for the Mountain Glenn thing. I heard you lot found a way to finally kill it. I sent a couple of Grimm in to take over and pretend they'd always been there."

"That's good of you!"

"Hey, I know how hard it is to sell the story sometimes." The monstrous ruler of the Grimm slapped Jaune's back and walked over to the table, the both of them laughing. "And who's this? Jaune, have you come to introduce your girlfriend to me?"

Blake spluttered. "I'm not his girlfriend!"

An Ursa roared angrily. "RARGHHHHHH!"

Salem looked over, then back, and said, "He says he can smell you're lying."

"I'm not lying!" hissed Blake.

"Growf."

Blake slammed a hand down, stood and pointed at the Ursa. "COME OVER HERE AND SAY THAT TO MY FACE!"

Salem laughed. "Oh, I like her. She's a keeper."

"She really isn't my girlfriend, godmother."

Blake rounded on him. "Godmother!?"

"Did I not mention that part?"

"No!" hissed Blake. "No, you did not mention that part!"

"Calm down, dearie." Salem tugged her into the seat to her left and, much to Blake's horror, began fussing over her hair and ears. "Oh, one of Fauna's children. Such a lovely young creature she was. I was actually sad to hear she'd been hunted down. Not much I could do about it though, as I was already reeling from my own little crisis and transformation. As for the godmother part, well, I reached out to ARC Corp soon after it was re-founded. Had to make up for my hand in ruining everything, didn't I? Juniper was such a sweet young woman. Even tried to kill me." Salem smiled happily. "Twice, in fact! Such a precocious young woman."

"Um. And that didn't bother you?"

"A young woman doing her job? Of course not. And, besides, I'm ARC Corp myself. Or former ARC Corp. Things were different back then, and I wouldn't trust myself in such a position anymore. Letting the world down once is quite enough for me." Salem leaned in to whisper. "Be careful of who you fall in love with, girl. It's easy to be swept into the wrong cause by a handsome face and a charismatic voice."

Adam, thought Blake, grimacing at both the memory and the subtle reminder that she wasn't much better than Salem in that regard. They'd both fallen for people they shouldn't have and made mistakes they regretted because of it.

At least I didn't end up this bad…

But she could have ended up dying to the Welcoming House if not for Jaune.

"Salem and ARC Corp technically have something of a non-aggression pact slash alliance going on," explained Jaune. "We're not allied on her goal of destroying Ozma – not if it means taking down the cities with him – but we work together on other things."

"And I wouldn't have to bring civilisation down with him if he wouldn't stop hiding behind it," said Salem. "If he'd just come out and face me, we could bring an end to this, but he's quite happy using humanity as a shield and hiding away behind others. The coward."

Blake wasn't sure if Ozma would agree, seeing as how he'd be walking into a war as a single person against innumerable Grimm, but she decided she didn't much care. The anomalies rampaging across Remnant, including the nightmarish one the SDC had unleashed on the world in the pursuit of profit, were all his fault.

"So," said Salem. "What did you call me over to discuss?"

"Two things," said Jaune. "The first is that we've seen an increased number of human-to-anomaly transformations this year. We thought it was the SDC, but now we've destroyed them and while they were trying to master it, it doesn't look like they were responsible for all the other instances. I don't suppose you've seen anything?"

"Only the obvious one in Mountain Glenn," she said. "You know I don't interact with humans very often. I'll let you know if I do, but chances are slim. This is more your wheelhouse. What was the other?"

"There's been a surge in outbreaks of BTF."

"Hoo boy." Salem leaned back. "Now that's unwelcome news. I can see why you want my assistance on this one. BTF isn't going to be any human settlements. Well, not near any inhabited human settlements." On account of it having killed everyone. "You're asking me to keep an eye out with the Grimm. I can try. They don't hunt my children, and their blood has no effect on the Grimm either, but it persists. If my Grimm kill an instance of Blood that Feeds and then bites a human, and doesn't destroy the body after? Or if the human survives? Then my Grimm will just become a carrier for them."

Blake couldn't help but wonder why that would be such a bad thing from Salem's point of view. It seemed like an easy way to be rid of humanity. Salem noticed her watching, and her silence, and laughed.

"I'm not trying to eradicate humanity, girl. Only Ozma. It was bad enough I unleashed the first wave of anomalies upon the world alongside him, but I won't be responsible for another. You might not see it this way, or agree with me, but I see myself as a victim of his manipulations."

Salem was right; Blake didn't agree with her.

But she knew better than to say it. There was no need to turn this meeting antagonistic, not when she was being cooperative thus far.

"Any help you can give in scouting out BTF is all we ask," said Jaune. "We're happy to deal with it ourselves, and don't want you spreading it – even accidentally. What we're really looking for is a source for the increased numbers. It's possible they came from a single large town destroyed somewhere, but we doubt it."

Salem nodded. "Because they would be travelling together. Blood that Feeds seeks the closest source of blood. If a hundred were created in one area, then that hundred should travel to the next area together. They don't have the intelligence necessary to consider splitting up and spreading out in search of prey."

"Exactly. Again, it's possible something happened. Maybe a hundred were made in one area but fleeing civilians pulled them apart, and then they roamed loosely, but it's all too convenient an excuse, and it doesn't explain why we have sightings of them on all four major kingdoms."

Blake's ears twitched. "What about Menagerie?"

"None reported there – and trust me, we've kept an ear out. I'm sure your parents would have mentioned people being sucked dry as well." He was right. And Kuo Kuana was the only settlement on Menagerie, so it would already be dead if Blood that Feeds got there. Jaune turned back to Salem. "Any help you can give would be appreciated."

Salem hummed. "Have you considered it might be aquatic?"

Jaune blinked. "What?"

"Typical security teams," laughed the monstrous woman. "Fully prepared to wade into the worst shit imaginable but stumped by the simplest crossword puzzle. Stay in your lane, boy, and let a member of the research division put some thought into this." Salem leaned over the table, smiling brazenly. "You're looking at instances of BTF that are spread wide and far, but that don't reach the island kingdom of Menagerie. The source must be an instance of BTF itself but it's sporadic you can't find it. Meanwhile, the incidents are occurring in far flung locations with no real connection between them, and it's almost impossible that they could have gotten there on their own power. Correct?"

Jaune nodded.

"Consider this, then. Instead of asking why the anomalies are there, ask how they could have gotten there in the first place. The options, to me, are simple. They were either transmitted by avian creatures flying over the land, or they were brought into the food chain via terrestrial animals or even humans. Extrapolate that and ask yourself what type of food could connect four kingdoms at once, but not Menagerie, and which land animals also eat."

It might have taken longer if she hadn't given them a hint before. "Fish," said Blake.

"Correct." Salem pointed finger-guns at her. "The four kingdoms have fairly regular fishing areas, especially Atlas, Vacuo and Vale, which pretty much secure all their fish from the same spot between the kingdoms. Those same fish also flow between Vale and Mistral, drawn into the strait between the kingdoms. But, tellingly, that current does not connect to Menagerie."

"We fish our own waters and it's mostly tropical fish," said Blake. "Fish who are local to the area and who don't travel to wherever the others come from." It made sense. "You're saying there's an instance, or multiple instances, of BTF that's beneath or in the ocean somehow, and they're being fed on by fish, which are then captured by humans or animals and eaten or sold on elsewhere, spreading BTF."

"It would be highly inconsistent," said Jaune. "Which fits the theme. It'd be one in a million fish that actually eat any BTF matter, and then another one in a million that those specific fish are the ones to be captured, but all it would take is them coming into spawn in-land, or washing up on the coast, and animals would help themselves." Jaune groaned. "But if it's a source of BTF in the ocean then how the hell are we meant to find it? There's more water than land on Remnant."

"You can leave that to me," said Salem. "Send me the appearance sites of BTF and I'll use my old researcher brain to figure out the most likely areas it comes from. This is my kind of work, to be honest, and it'll give me a break from dealing with Ozma's bullshit." She rolled her eyes. "I can't even imagine what nonsense about me he's filling the heads of his latest acolytes with, and I don't want to." Salem snapped her fingers. "Oh, that reminds me. I'd consider not attending the Vytal Festival if I was you."

Blake blinked.

Jaune sighed. "Salem…"

"I'm not attacking. Well, not technically attacking, but I have a little someone plotting a little assassination. It'll be fine," she added, waving away their worries. "All goes well then it'll just be Ozma taking a little sleep for a bit. Hell, his host would probably welcome being freed from him. You'd like the girl I sent too. Real go-getter." Salem leaned in. "I hear she's single, too."

"Salm, no."

"Black hair, yellow eyes, no cat ears if that's a specific kink you're indulging in right now, but you could make it one hell of a threesome."

Jaune pushed himself off his seat. "I'll send you the coordinates from the latest BTF sightings. Please let us know if your aquatic Grimm find anything interesting."

"I'll tell Cinder to pop by and sleep with you!"

"Salem!"

"I meant pop by and say hello!" The monster was grinning madly. "That's totally what I meant!"

Oh god it's White Sheep Salem all over again.

Next Chapter: 31st July

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