It was the night of the third day of Music Fest. Cinder was making her way through the deserted docks. She knew she had an early start tomorrow, but this was more important right now and she'd only have this one chance to do it.
Jiao had gotten up to go to the bathroom, and instead of going into the bush like Adam or Eric, he had walked into the docks to find a proper toilet. This meant he was away from both the other band members and Amber, so nobody could stop the dark haired girl from getting her answers.
Luck was on her side tonight and she found the singer just as he was exiting the bathroom, shaking water off his hands.
Upon seeing her, he was noticeably surprised, but didn't seem to know why she was here.
"Oh. You." He said dryly. "Look, I know it's your job to keep me safe, but is this really necessary? It was a short walk and I had to go. And let me tell you from experience, when you need to go, you-."
"Cut the crap. I don't come out here to listen to you talk about taking a piss. I've got better things to do." As she spoke, she positioned herself in such a way she was blocking his way back to the trailers.
"Back when I attacked you, you said Eric healed you up good as new. But now that I think about it, that doesn't make sense." She said, taking a threatening step towards Jiao. And to his credit, he didn't back down. "Eric can heal, but it's not instantly. You can still see the burns on Adam when he was attacked during his little stunt. You on the other hand, you were healed to the point there wasn't a single visible mark. That would normally be impossible with what Eric can currently do. Unless something was blocking and healing you during the attack. Something like an active aura."
Jiao raised an eyebrow at the dark haired girl, then let out a low chuckle.
"And even if you're right, so what?" He asked mockingly. "First, your hypothesis is based around extremely circumstantial evidence, which is hardly valid. Second, even if you're right, so what? I haven't done anything wrong. If anything, you're the one who needs to watch her back. After all, one phone call and-."
Cinder had heard enough. She had used the time during his ramble to sense if he had activated his aura, and now that she knew, she could act!
Without a moment's hesitation, she smelted herself a dagger and threw it at the singer.
"Eek!" Jiao screamed as he threw his hands up, shielding his face as the blade struck him. But as Cinder expected, instead of cutting right through his arms, the blade shattered as a light blue aura appeared around him, shielding him from harm!
"I knew it." Cinder said as the glass shards fell to the ground. "You have an active aura. That's how you were fine after I beat the shit out of you. And how you heal so fast. Which explains a lot."
Jiao took a step back as Cinder advanced, eyes hard and set as she glared at him. "So, the next question. How did you get it?"
"What's it to you?!" Jiao snapped, his playboy persona completely gone. "Why should you care?! If anything, you should be afraid of me firing you and your team! After all, this is the second time you assaulted me! I could ruin your future with a single phone ca-!"
"You won't." Cinder said plainly, grabbing Jiao's arm.
"If you were going to fire us, you wouldn't have done it already. I don't know what you're hiding, but you can't fire us because you're scared of something. You and your stupid manager know that." Cinder threw Jiao against the wall, making him let out a cry of surprise and pain.
"Sometimes people can awaken an aura for you. But I guess nobody cares about you enough to do that. So I'm guessing you either awoke it by accident or…"
"Shut up!"
Jiao ripped his hand out of Cinder's grasp and spun around pulling a gun from a hidden pocket in his vest.
It was a large revolver, with around twelve chambers. It was also made to except dust rounds as well as higher caliber rounds. Blades coved the top and bottom, they were made to slide closed over the muzzle and connect into a short sword. What's more, the handle was also designed to straighten to make the grip more comfortable for swinging in sword mood.
It was a huntsman's weapon.
What's more, he had widened his feet when he turned and put enough distance that he was out of (a much weaker opponent's) striking range. His gun was leveled at her chest and Jiao had both eyes opened as he aimed at her painting a very clear picture for Cinder. This wasn't a kid playing a huntsman. This was someone with training.
"I told you to stop!" Jiao snapped, his breathing had become heavy and his eyes were narrowed in anger. "I could-! I can fire you for something like this, but I was going to be generous! Now, I think maybe I'll rough you up a bit to shut that mouth of yours before telling Bobby what you did toni-!"
In a heartbeat, Cinder's leg lashed out! Striking Jiao's wrist, jerking it away and sending the gun clattering to the ground several feet away.
"Now, with that taken care of, shall we talk?" She said, ignoring the shocked face of the singer. "I want to know why a little nothing like you has an active aura. Was it for a publicity stunt? Or maybe for a song? Talk! I'm not dropping this or letting you go until I have my answer."
Jiao took a step back, biting his lip. "What's it to you?" He demanded defensively, eyes flicking to his gun.
"I've been thinking, why didn't you fire us after I attacked you? But now that I know you have an active aura, I made an educated guess. You want the secret of your aura to stay a secret and you think that you can blackmail me to ensure my silence. "
Cinder took a threatening step forward, cornering him between herself and the bathroom. Her eyes burning holes in his head with their intensity.
"I don't know why it's so important you keep that a secret, but I want to know why. And you're going to tell me. After that, you can go back to your spoiled rotten life where you cheat on girls or whatever you do. You-."
"Shut up."
Cinder stopped mid sentence, her eyes narrowing at his words. "What did you just say to me?" She demanded, her hand tightening into a fist. "Care to repeat that? I don't think I hear you properly."
Jiao's head shot up, eyes glaring back at Cinder. "I said, Shut up!" He snapped, voice filled with loathing. "I'm so tired of listening to you talk! You don't get to judge me! Someone like you, who had all the support and love you could possibly dream of, has know idea what it feels like to be forced into someone you don't want to be! To be made into something you hate and can't stand! You are just a basic bitch! So stop acting like you know everything and being an unbearable eyesore!"
Jiao didn't have time to react before Cinder grabbed his collar and lifted him into the air! She could feel his aura protecting him, but it was weak compared to her teammates and she knew one good hit would break it.
"You are so annoying! I'm sick of listening to people like you and Adam whine about how unfair your lives are!" She gave the singer a shake, then pulled him down to eye level. Those he didn't seem to be fazed by this.
"I don't care how 'hard' you claim your lives are! You have no idea what it's like to experience true pain! I dream of getting your treatment for my entire childhood! I was a slave in Atlas you stupid pig! And I'll have you know-!"
"And I was a slave in Mistral, you stupid cow! So get off your high horse!
Immediately Cinder's mouth fell open! Her grip on Jiao slipped and he fell to the ground as she struggled to process what she had just heard!
Jiao was a slave before?! What?! How?! He was such an insufferable brat! This didn't make sense! If he was a slave, how the hell did he become one of the most wealthy people in Mistral!?
"Explain." She demanded looking down at the singer as he got to his feet. He rose to his feet, dusting himself off as he returned her glare.
"I was born into poverty. From the moment of my birth life was a struggle." He said, still glaring at the dark haired girl. "My parents were bound by contract to a farming company. I don't know how they got in as deep as they were, but it didn't matter. I was forced into work on the fields. My first memory is of being told to begin working on a child's assembly line to train us for real work."
Cinder had heard about this kind of stuff during her time in the orphanage. Back then, she had assumed that would be her fate. But then the mistress of the Glass Unicorn took her away, taking her to Atlas for a different kind of work.
Those thinking back on it, she wasn't sure if she had gotten lucky or not.
"After a few years, the plantation fell into hard times. Importing our resources had become difficult and to cut costs, they decided to hire less huntsmen. Unfortunately for them, slave labor and few huntsmen make for a terrible combination."
Cinder let out a grunt in response. She knew if you didn't have the right location, doing anything involving unwilling participants would end badly.
"We all saw what was coming. Grimm coming closer and closer to the fields. We knew it was only a matter of time before the inevitable happened. So everyone made their plan for when everything went down." Jiao paused for a second, eyes unfocussed as he remembered that day, though Cinder couldn't tell if it was a happy memory or a scarring one.
Probably a mix of both, just like the day she had escaped the Glass Unicorn.
"When it finally happened, we were in the fields working. I still remember the screams in the distance that alerted us to what was happening, and how we immediately jumped into action. Some of the more hot headed ones tried to take the huntsman's weapons believing it would increase their chances out in the wilds. They never got that far. And the first blood those weapons spilled wasn't Grimm." Jiao was speaking much more rapidly, as if he could no longer stop himself. He must have been dying to get this off his chest for years now.
"When the Grimm came into range of our field and the battle began, me and a few others hid among the crops. In the chaos, one of our team got shot and killed in the fighting. We hacked off his leg, freeing us from the chain gang we were kept in. After that, we ran towards the main road and freedom."
"Cute story. But I didn't ask for your life story." Cinder said dryly. "I want to know why you have an aura. So cut to the chase. I'm not in the mood for games."
Jiao didn't respond right away, simply looking down at his hands, lost in thoughts.
But after a few minutes, he turned and walked over to a nearby bench where he plopped down looking exhausted.
"I don't have many fond memories of my childhood, but I remember one thing." He said defeatedly. "How the huntsmen would come and go. How they would negotiate for higher pay or better hours. Not sure when, but I started idolizing them. And when we were picked up by a group of passing huntsmen, I thought I could finally begin training for my dream."
Cinder bit her lip and went to pick up the gun to avoid the expression from the singer. His past was so similar to hers she was getting uncomfortable. If she didn't know any better, she might have thought this was a play to make her emphasize with him. But as he had no way of knowing her past, she quickly ruled that out.
"I was ten at the time." He said, making Cinder even more uncomfortable. "So I was put into an orphanage. And eventually I got adopted by a well off family. I thought with them I could finally start my journey to achieving my dream. I was wrong."
He spat on the ground, disgust in his voice as he continued.
"The day after I got adopted I learned how the real world worked. The way you're born dictates everything about your future! That people, at the end of the day, only care about themselves and have no problems screwing over people who are different just to get ahead!" His tone carried so much rage, Cinder found herself unable to look away from the boy. He had the exact same look in his eyes that she had before she met Summer. The same hatred towards everyone and everything.
A look that still burned deep behind her eyes.
"They wanted me to make them money! They had heard me humming when they came by and thought they could make me into a singer! Everyday since then, I was beaten black and blue until I was perfect! They didn't care about my interests or my needs! To them, I was an investment that needed to pay itself back! So I had to train myself at night. Away from them! I knew what would happen if they found out, what they'd do to keep an animal like me in line! I thought, once I turn eighteen, it won't matter what they want! I'll be free! Ha! What a joke! There's no such thing as karma in their world! Only pointless suffering!"
Jiao was ranting at this point, no longer trying to make his story make sense. Or even checking if Cinder was listening!
"After my semblance awoke, I learned that hard lesson! It was useless in battle and had no advantage to me! I couldn't use it to escape! And more over, once I used it, it became obvious what I was doing! My parents found out and shut me down! Kept me under lock and key until they could put me on stage for my voice!" Jiao was now yelling, voice filled with rage. Cinder opened her mouth to try to make him be quiet, but he ignored her and continued ranting!
"All that abuse made me what they wanted: a talented singer with a pretty face! And when they got an offer, they signed me up immediately! Suddenly I was trapped in the world of business! Forced to become someone I wasn't! I don't care about singing or girls or any of that crap! They just thought it would be the best marketing persona for me! And after even more harsh lessons, I was eventually hammered into what they wanted me to be! A disgusting playboy who wasn't allowed to engage in his culture or even help those like him! Everything I do has to be perfect or else! I-! Aahh!"
Jiao was silenced by Cinder driving her elbow into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. He doubled over as he gasped for air letting Cinder glare down at him.
"Okay, first. Shut up. You're making too much noise and I'd rather not have my leader angry at me." She said as Jiao coughing began to subside. "Second, you're not making any sense. Slavery was outlawed in Mistral years ago. They wouldn't have people like that because of how much their council relies on human rights for re-election. And while never enforced, they still preach endlessly about it."
Jiao let out a scoff. "Yeah, funny thing about that. You need to be a human for that to count. And I can't remember a single one on that farm."
Before the dark haired girl could ask, Jiao lowered his head and brushed some of his hair aside revealing something that made Cinder's stomach churn.
Stitches covered the top of his head right above his temples. That hair there had been cut away and never properly grown back. But even more sickening was a small tufted of fur at the edges of the stitches that seemed to stand out even more against the dark string.
"You're a Faunus?" Cinder breathed barely believing it.
"I WAS a Faunus." Jiao spat. "My parents made sure I wasn't as soon as they could. Went to the cheapest doctor they could find too. But you could probably tell that from the scars."
A long silence followed Jiao's confession. Neither really knew what to say next. Cinder was in complete shock from what she heard and Jiao was in shock he had told so much.
Finally after a few minutes passed, the singer broke the silence as he stood up and held out his hand towards Cinder.
"Now, give me my gun. I told you what you want to know, so now let's get back to bed." He said shortly. "I have a lot to do and I can't be on anything but my best feet. Unlike you, I do have something called responsibility and I take my job very seriously."
Cinder let out an irritated huff and threw the gun at his feet.
"As far as sob stories go, that wasn't too bad." She said in a condescending tone. "But your brattish personality makes it very difficult to see you as a victim. In fact, I barely even feel sorry for you."
Jiao responded with a dry laugh as he put his foot under the gun, then shot his leg up making the gun sail into the air where he effortlessly caught it.
"Oh please. Don't go acting all high and mighty on me." He said, turning towards his trailer, spinning his gun before loading it into his holder. "I've been around the block more than once. I know at the end of the day, that's the true nature of people. Selfish, greedy, condescending, and only interested in what's best for themselves. Put anyone in my place with all the influence and money they could want and they'll all end up exactly the same. You and your team are no exception."
Cinder opened her mouth to counter, but stopped as she felt a very sick feeling slip into her stomach. How many times had she said something like that before? That because she was stronger she could treat others who were weaker as lesser? As inferior? She had even hurt Yang and Ruby all while being to stupid to see it!
Cinder clenched her hand into a fist. She hated to admit it, but she wasn't that different from Jiao. Both in ideology and how they acted. Was this really how others saw her? Brothers, no wonder people were always pissed at her. She was incredibly annoying!
It was a hard pill to swallow. Excepting the fact that she was similar to this pompous brat, but she had nothing to counter this fact. And both of them knew it. If anything, her actions up till now were proof of his point. She was very conceited, all because of the power she had obtained! She was a walking example proving his point!
But while she might be, she knew someone who wasn't.
"Amber's not like that." She said plainly, making the boy stop. "The first thing she did after becoming our leader was try to pass it off to me, eventually giving it to me. And even after that, she hadn't let her position go to her head. She's nothing like you."
Jiao let out a laugh as he turned around to face Cinder.
"You really think that proves anything?!" He laughed, his voice filled with hard cruelty. "I've seen your team! A reckless hot headed Faunus whose actions are ruled by emotions, a lazy knight who has no backbone, and a egotistical megalomaniac who puts herself first every time, all the time! None of you listen to her! Do you honestly think she has a speck of power Or influence with a team like that?! She probably feels more like a babysitter than a team leader! She wasn't chosen because she was a good candidate! She was chosen because she was the only choice!"
Jiao's words hit Cinder somewhere very deep, making her insides squirm. He wasn't off, at all. And having it spelled out for her in such simple terms, she almost felt like a complete jerk for all the hell she had put the dark skinned girl through. Amber had been nothing but nice and respectful towards her, and what had she done in return? Make a ton of unnecessary stress and paperwork for her.
But with that said, there was something she could refute in the singer's statement.
"Your wrong. Amber is nothing like that." Cinder said tightly. "She's kind and works harder than anyone. She'll be a great huntress someday. She's patient with people and is always trying to see the good in others, even if it's not there. And…I…-"
"Sure, whatever." Jiao said with a dismissive wave. "Ya know, that's what I can't stand about you. You assume you know everything about everyone, yet you're probably the most in the dark. Not everyone is as they seem. In fact, your little friend is probably the most bloodthirsty of you all. After all, you'd have to be pretty heartless to kill your own parents."
Immediately Cinder's head snapped up, eyes wide in surprise.
"What are you talking about?!" She demanded, taking a threatening step towards the singer. "Amber killed her parents?! That's bullshit! She would never! And how would you know anyway?! You're just a-!"
Jiao raised his hand defensively, stopping the dark haired girl's approach. But his smile became all the more smug.
"It's called research, you useless moron." He said in a condescending tone. "I could just leave you in the dark about it, but I'll give you a little hint. There was a Grimm attack on a village that bordered Vale. At the time, despite the war being over, Vale had a general stationed in the area. The general, Nicholas Arc, took an army to the village to find that it had been pillaged by bandits after the attack. And after tracking them back to their hideout, he got the shock of his life."
Jiao paused for a second, relishing the shock on Cinder's face. Revenge was truly a dish best served cold.
"By the time he got there, the bandits had already been wiped out. Yet there wasn't a Grimm or huntsman in sight. No, what he found was the camp in shambles and a ten year old girl, lying unconscious in a pool of blood at the center of all the destruction. And after a few months, she gave an official report."
Jiao smirked seeing Cinder's interest peaked. He loved how easy she was to read.
"But that's all you'll get from me." He said, turning away and shoving his hands into his pockets. "If you want the rest, you can look it up yourself. I'm going to bed."
With that, he began making his way back towards his trailer, leaving Cinder standing dumb struck by the bathrooms.
After a few seconds, Cinder snapped out of her daze, though her mind was still racing.
Amber was an orphan?! And her village had been destroyed?! Why hadn't she said anything about it!? With how bright and cheerful she was, the dark haired girl would never have guessed she was unpacking trauma like that! And what had Jiao been talking about her killing her parents!? There was no way she would, right?!
Shaking her head to try and focus, Cinder leaned against the bathroom wall as her heart hammered in her chest.
"Relax. There's no need to get worked up over this." Cinder thought to herself as she began trying to clear her mind the way Summer taught her. "Jiao's a dick! He doesn't know what he's talking about. He's just saying shit to get under my skin!"
Despite telling herself that, she still found that she was burning with curiosity about what happened to Amber. Thinking back on it, she really didn't know much about the dark skinned girl. She never talked about herself much, and when she did, it had been random stupid things like how she had accidentally poured water on her pancakes instead of syrup.
Carefully, she pulled out her Scroll as she made her way back to the trailers.
A quick peak couldn't hurt.
Unknown location at roughly the same time.
Adelaide, the leader of the Enlighten Seraphim, stood in a narrow corridor filled with elite members of her organization. Many were carrying boxes with the Atlas military emblem on them towards a door on the far side of the base. They had everything from guns and munitions, to food and clothes.
The bunker they had made was nearing completion, but it was still taking a fair amount of time. And time was a luxury they couldn't afford.
"What do you mean we got hit again?!" She snapped at the member who had brought her the news.
"We were taken by surprise! That location was supposed to be a secret to everyone!" He said, nervously. Of course not because he was scared of his leader, but more for what this implied. "We still don't know how he found out but at the rate he's going, it's only a matter of time before he completely breaks us!"
Adelaide swore under her breath as she looked over at the door at the end of the corridor. Once they got all the equipment inside, the door could be sealed and their armory kept safe. But if they didn't hurry, they wouldn't have enough weapons to destroy Atlas once and for all!
"What about John and Betres? We're they out or something? Why did they let it fall under their watch?"
The scout hesitated for a second, then spoke in a somber tone.
"Betres was killed in their home defending her daughter. John was warned in time, but when he rallied the rest of that station and fought back, he was utterly defeated. We…we found his body with critical injuries all over him, probably tortured. Cause of death was a broken neck."
Adelaide's mouth fell open at this revelation. Those had been some of her strongest members! They had fought in the war next to her, cutting away the Atlesian scum alongside her for years! Even when she had been forced off the front line, they had continued their fight!
"Damn it!" She screamed in frustration, slamming her fist into the wall.
"My, my. Someone's upset." A patronizing voice said, making the woman look over at the entrance to the bunker.
"Igor, perfect timing." She said to the vile huntsman. She honestly had never thought she'd be happy to see him. A sign of the dire times. "I need you to return to our other project. We've stolen enough goods from Atlas to make them suspicious as is, but with our newest hall, they're going to actively come after us. I need you to guard it until the mission."
Igor laughed at Adelaide's order.
"That bad, huh? With members dropping left and right, wouldn't it be better to go on the offense?" He asked, casually playing with his weapon. "I'd much prefer to cut up that loser then run and hide from him."
"We can't!" Adelaide said through gritted teeth. "I told you, we can't move on Atlas until we have enough strength! If we go on a manhunt with no information, we'll be completely wiped out! We can't make a move against him until we are sure we can win! And with that kid, we'll finally have that assurance!"
Igor rolled his eyes at her comment and spun his sickle casually in his hand.
"I still don't get why we need that annoying brat. Or why we need to hurry. Seems a lot easier just to bomb the whole area next time he shows up. That way he'll die and we won't need to spend a single resource." His words made Adelaide groan.
"We do that, innocent people will die." She said, glaring at the man. "Our beef is with Atlas, not our own people. Now if you don't have any other input, can you get to your job?! Unlike you, I'm very busy with preparations for the coming war! So move your ass and get back to work!"
Igor rolled his eyes again, but didn't talk back. With a bow, he turned and made his way out of the bunker, leaving the woman who was already making her way into the vault on the others.
Once she crossed the threshold, she picked up a clipboard off the mountain of other provisions that had already been stashed inside and turned to take inventory of the new items.
"Don't worry, my love." She thought as she made her way to the beginning of the newest stash. "I promise I'll protect this kingdom and it's people, even with this setback. Atlas thinks they can once again prepare for an invasion without anyone noticing, but they're wrong! That arrogance will be their undoing! When they come, we'll be waiting! And then they'll know our fury!"
She tightened her grip on her pen as the last of the goods were placed inside the bunker, her mind going to the same place it had gone for the past several months. And at the same time, a fear wiggled its way into her chest that she was very used to. The fear before a battle against the unknown! A battle she couldn't afford to lose.
Taking a deep breath, she forced the fear down as she had done so many times before, steeling herself by remembering everything she had gone through during the war. Compared to that, what was one single man?
After all, the Phantom of the Witching Hour worked alone. How tough could killing one man really be?
Honestly, I'm kinda surprised nobody made the connection between Cinder's and Jiao's behavior. Glad to see I still can keep a secret or two.
As I'm sure you've all noticed by now, this arc is a humbling experience for Cinder. One that's going to get pretty interesting soon. The main meat of the arc is just around the bend and I can't wait for what's coming.
Anyway, I hope to see you next time and I hope you enjoyed. Bye!