Weiss could hear her heart pounding in her ears as she entered the dim hallway that was illuminated only by red backup lights. This was stupid. This was beyond stupid. If there'd been a soldier here . . . No. Her faceless ally wouldn't have unlocked the door if the way wasn't clear. Getting caught here and now wasn't the main concern. It was what comes after she escaped that terrified her—tracking down her brother, clearing her name, hoping that was enough to forgive fleeing custody. Even if she pulled it off and everything went right, that didn't mean there'd be no repercussions for this choice. But she feared the repercussions of staying and playing right into Whitley's hands more.
Weiss stopped outside a chamber up the hallway, the one she'd seen Ruby put in before she was locked into her own. Weiss contemplated leaving her here, to not force Ruby to shoulder the same risks she was taking. This was Weiss's gamble, not hers. But she wasn't confident she could even escape at all without Ruby's semblance, and Weiss knew the girl would never forgive her if she went alone.
The door opened before she could finish making her decision, and Ruby stepped out.
"You heard him too? With the chamber noise?" she said.
"Yes, we need to hur— Wait, 'him'?" said Weiss.
"The friend of the protector. It's got to be Pietro, right?"
Weiss stared at her for several seconds, and in that time the only thing she could come up with to say in response was, "What?"
"Think about it! He's the world's leading expert on paragons and semblances. He made the semblance inhibiting chambers used all around the world, and he also discovered how to copy a paragon's semblance and give it to a non-paragon. That's something everyone thought was impossible, at least with current tech. Sound familiar?"
"Ruby, this isn't the time for wild—"
"The small-scale inhibitors! If Pietro was able to do what he did to save Penny, then he's got to be the same person who figured out how to inhibit semblances without a chamber. So if he made those, then he also built Pyrrha's hideout and could probably find out that we were using it with Jaune—"
"I get it," Weiss cut her off. She had to admit that the theory had some merit, though it was still a stretch. This wasn't the place to discuss it, though. "But we really need to focus on this . . . crime we're in the middle of committing. Oh god, this is really stupid."
"Oh, right. Do you have the Key?"
"Yes. How did you—?"
"Not the time, right? Give it to me so I . . ." Ruby's eyes drifted to the battery-powered lights on the wall. "Right. He cut the power. It's not going to help us."
"Then let's go. Someone's bound to check on us soon."
"Okay. Stay close to me." Ruby led the way toward the stairs at the end of the hallway. They weren't likely to find any windows to teleport from down here in the basement.
There was no resistance as they ascended the staircase with cautious footsteps, pausing upon reaching the ground floor. The only window here was on the door leading out to the main hallway. Ruby peeked through and then reached for the handle, but Weiss stopped her.
"Let's keep going up," she said.
"Why?" Ruby asked.
"The main floor is bound to have the most traffic. If we don't want to run into anyone, we should head to the roof. You'll get a much better view there, anyway."
"But what about our stuff?"
"We've already got the Key. We don't need anything else."
"We should at least grab the inhibitor. The whole reason I brought them to Atlas was for insurance, and now we know Tyrian's out there, and he's seen our faces."
Weiss bit her lip. That inhibitor was the most valuable thing in the world to her right now. She didn't want to throw it away on someone like Tyrian Callows.
Ruby seemed to know exactly what she was thinking. "If we have to use it, there's always more back in Vale for your mom. You won't be able to cure her at all if you're dead, and the inhibitor could save our lives."
"It's too risky," Weiss said. "What if we get caught?"
"I won't. Wait here." Ruby winked, and then she teleported away.
"Wha—? You dolt!" Weiss hissed, though no one heard her. The back of her head connected with the wall as she leaned against it and proceeded to wait, her arms crossed and foot tapping anxiously.
For a full minute she remained alone in the stairwell, then someone else entered—and it wasn't Ruby. Weiss's heart sank as a door opened above her and a pair of footsteps began to descend the stairs at a quick pace. She flattened herself against the wall so she wouldn't be visible if the newcomer looked over the railing, but she had maybe fifteen seconds at best until she was discovered. She knew leaving and hiding somewhere else was her only option, yet she hesitated. If Ruby came back at the wrong time . . .
Whoosh. Ruby returned with a self-satisfied smirk and two plastic zip-seal bags in her hand. Weiss, feeling an immense wave of gratitude toward her, immediately clasped her hand over the girl's mouth and pointed up. Ruby's eyes widened, and she quickly understood. She grabbed Weiss's wrist, stepped forward, and teleported them both.
Weiss blinked away the disorientation and didn't dare move an inch for fear of making noise. Ruby held onto her to keep her from stumbling as the footsteps, now beneath them, continued moving farther away without pause. Several seconds later, a door opened and closed down below, and then there was silence.
Weiss sighed in relief. Her foot slipped as she tried to straighten herself, having landed on the very edge of a step. Once she regained her balance, Ruby let her go.
"Told you I wouldn't get caught," she said with a nervous laugh.
Weiss smacked her arm. "I told you it was too risky, you absolute dunce!"
"We made it through, didn't we?" Ruby defended half-heartedly.
"Barely."
Ruby could only sheepishly hold up the bag containing Weiss's belongings, wearing an apologetic smile.
Weiss snatched it from her, still fuming. "Let's go."
The roof was vacant. An empty helipad took up most of the space and there wasn't much else to see beyond the usual ventilation systems and antennae. The building wasn't the tallest around, but they were high enough up to see past the base's walls and a considerable distance into the rest of the city.
"So, which way was the place he wanted us to go?" Ruby asked.
Weiss walked closer to the edge to get a better feel for their location, shielding her eyes from the sunlight. It took her a few seconds, and then she pointed east. "That way, somewhere."
"Alright. Then . . ." She formed binoculars with her hands and stared off in the direction Weiss pointed. "Hmm. Not a whole lot of options. I guess I can Blink us to that other rooftop over there and then we can climb down the fire escape. Go from there."
Weiss had to agree that there weren't many places in view where no one would see them appear out of thin air. "Fine, then hurry up and—"
Bang! The stairway door slammed open. Weiss and Ruby both whipped around to see Marrow standing there, looking slightly out of breath. He approached slowly, a taser drawn and leveled at them. "Don't. Move. Stay right where you are."
Weiss tried to think of something to say, but she didn't owe him any explanation. His appearance here didn't change anything.
"Come back to your cells right now, and this never happened," said Marrow. "I don't know what you think you're doing, but—"
"We're going," Weiss asserted. "And you're not stopping us."
"You! Step away from her! Now!" He adjusted his aim toward Ruby, who'd just made a reach for Weiss's wrist.
Ruby, reluctantly, raised her hands and followed his order.
"Stay," Marrow ordered. "One movement and—"
"I get it," said Ruby.
"Whatever you were told, it's a trick," said Marrow. "You know that only bad things can come from this, don't you? There's not a single way that escaping here ends in your favor."
"I don't believe you," said Weiss. "The game's rigged against us, and I don't intend on losing."
"The g—? Oh, come on. You have no motive! The evidence against you is still minimal. Your charges will never even make it to court, and if they do, there's no jury that will convict you—so long as you don't actually commit a crime! Also, who talks like that?"
"I know my brother," Weiss said. "Whatever he has planned, you won't beat him. If I stay here, then I'm just a sitting duck with no means of fighting back. Let us go."
"No. Who do you think—?"
Whoosh. Ruby teleported behind him and tried to execute the same maneuver she'd used earlier against the soldier who'd taken them to Schnee Tower. But Marrow was ready for her. The instant she disappeared, he rolled forward, spun around, and fired the taser. Whoosh. Ruby teleported again before it could hit her. Weiss felt a hand take hers, a tug in her gut, and then they were gone.
"Are you going to be alright?" Weiss asked.
"Yeah, I think I'm mostly past the point of suddenly fainting from using my semblance," said Ruby. "Unless I take it too far, you know? I'm woozy, but I'm fine."
"If you're sure. I'll go down first." Weiss descended the ladder at the bottom of the fire escape and then watched as Ruby went next, worried despite the girl's reassurances. She wasn't at all confident that she'd be able to catch Ruby if she fell, but she'd be ready to at least try.
Ruby had teleported them three times in a row to different buildings to ensure Marrow wouldn't be able to tell which way they'd gone. That wasn't quite comparable to teleporting three people from the altitude of a free-falling plane to the ground, but it was still significant. Nevertheless, Ruby made it to the sidewalk without issue and was able to stay on her feet.
"Where do we go from here?" she asked. "Walk the rest of the way?"
Now that the situation called for less urgency, Weiss took the time to input the address their rescuer had given them into the map on her scroll. It led to an unlisted building two miles away between a bowling alley and an embroidery shop.
"We can't," said Weiss. "Too many opportunities to be spotted. They likely already have an APB out for us. We need to get off the streets as soon as possible."
"Take a cab, then? Have them drop us a block or so away?"
"If the driver remembers our faces and reports us, it'll vastly narrow down the area they'll have to search for us."
"Well, what's your idea?"
"Public transportation. The subway is usually rather busy, meaning we could blend in, but there's still a chance someone or a camera sees us, and I don't want to get cornered underground with you as tired as you are. So—"
"We've got the Key. Cameras wouldn't be a problem."
"If the Key works on whatever ones are down there. Regardless, leaving a trail of disabled cameras in our wake would be just as bad. We'll take the bus and try to keep our heads down. It's not great, but it's the safest option we have."
"Alright. Lead the way, then."
Weiss took a bit of time to plan their route, then made sure to turn off her scroll as soon as she was done—Ruby, having already done the same, had pointed out that they could be tracked via cell tower given enough time. Staying in one place for too long was a bad idea, so Weiss picked a stop that they could reach around the same time as the bus's arrival. Minimizing direct interaction with people was also optimal, so it was fortunate that no transfer was needed. Pay the fare, go to the back, avoid eye contact.
"So far so good," Ruby muttered as they took their seats.
Weiss stared out of the window and said nothing. She was just glad the bus had arrived on time. It was possible that the Schnee Tower attack could have resulted in delays, but there was no way to plan around that.
"I didn't think you'd know Morse code," Ruby eventually said, having grown bored of incessantly drumming her fingers on the armrest.
Weiss kept her sight on the passing surroundings, her eyes darting every which way for any sign of trouble. "It was a required subject when I was still in private school, for whatever reason. Where did you learn it?"
"I went my entire life without ever sleeping until recently, remember? I had a lot of time to learn a bunch of useless skills. I also memorized the alphabet in binary, three hundred digits of pi, and the entire scripts of my top five favorite movies."
Weiss rolled her eyes. "You did all that, but you never learned a second language?"
"Does HTML count?"
"I don't know what that is."
"Then, nah. Too boring."
It was a very nerve-wracking ride. Twice, Weiss had to quickly duck her head back as a military vehicle drove by in another direction, gone by the time she looked back. Her paranoia made her wonder if one or both of the vehicles were lurking behind out of sight, tailing them, but the rational part of her knew that wasn't likely.
"This is us," she said on the fifth time the bus slowed to a stop.
Weiss followed Ruby into the aisle and then onto the sidewalk. From there, it was a five-minute walk to their destination. If Ruby was as on edge as Weiss was, it never showed. Weiss admired that about her. No matter how bad things got, the one thing she could always be certain of is that she'd be able to lean on Ruby so long as they were together.
The building the address led them to appeared to have been some sort of auto shop at one point, judging by the two garage doors next to the right of the glass entrance. None of them opened.
"It's locked," Ruby said.
"Just teleport us inside," said Weiss.
"Hold on." Ruby nudged her head to the right.
A group of four was passing by, heading into the neighboring bowling alley. The girl wore a pair of those shoes with wheels in the heels and carried herself with a peppiness and hyperactivity that made Ruby look downright docile. Weiss would have wondered how the three boys could tolerate being friends with her, if only their outfits weren't as loud and eccentric as she was.
"You sure this is the right place?" Ruby asked once the group was out of sight. "If he wanted us to meet here, why wouldn't he leave the door unlocked?"
"Of course it's the right place," said Weiss. "Just hurry before anyone else comes by."
Ruby hesitated, then looked around one more time to ensure they were in the clear before doing as she was told.
The lobby was dark, cold, and empty. The light from the windows illuminated the spiderwebs in the corners as well as a layer of dust that covered just about everything. Trying the light switch did nothing but prove that there was no power running to this place.
"Hello?" Ruby called out, her voice echoing.
No response.
"Let's try the back," said Weiss.
There was nobody there either. Weiss, beginning to wonder whether they were at the wrong place, led the way to the only area they hadn't checked: the garage. There was a black van parked within, but it didn't look abandoned like everything else. It looked clean, and the faint smell of exhaust suggested that it had been running recently.
A door opened on the other side and someone that they couldn't see stepped out.
"I'm glad you made it," said a voice that made Weiss's blood run cold.
The speaker walked around the vehicle from the driver's side door to reveal himself to them. Whitley wore the same suit he'd had on two days ago when she'd spoken to him at the manor, but it was now wrinkled and less pristine as if he hadn't taken it off since then. His hair also looked greasy and slightly unkempt, and he had bags under his eyes. As much as someone who carried themselves with such elegance and dignity could be, he was a mess. But none of that fully registered within Weiss. All that sat at the forefront of her mind was that it was him, and he was here.
"You took longer than expected," he said. "I had begun to worry."
Ruby stepped forward and held a protective arm out in front of Weiss. "What's in the van?"
He didn't seem bothered by her, his gaze never leaving his sister. For what felt like an eternity, there was silence. Then, with nothing in her head at that moment but blind rage, Weiss pushed Ruby aside, marched forward, and punched her brother.
Whitley's eyes widened in shock as she approached, and he immediately collapsed to the ground upon the strike making contact with his face. Weiss, feeling only a small sense of satisfaction at his complete loss of composure, wasn't satisfied. She drew her fist back again, but Ruby caught it and held her back.
"Wait!" she said, then repeated her question to Whitley. "What's in the van?"
"Nothing." He didn't move, still staring at Weiss with a hand on his cheek. He was trying to come off cool, but he still had the dumbstruck look of someone who'd just been hit for the first time in their life. "You have been training."
"Or you're just weak," Weiss seethed. "Ruby, let me go!"
"Just hold on!" Ruby didn't have to exert too much effort to keep her restrained, despite Weiss's best efforts. "He wouldn't corner himself here if he didn't have something up his sleeve!"
No, he wouldn't, Weiss thought. She finally stopped fighting and cast a nervous glance at the van's rear doors, a semblance of clarity finally starting to take hold.
"See for yourself," Whitley invited.
Once Ruby was sure Weiss had calmed herself, she let her go. But she remained wary and didn't approach the vehicle.
"You open it," she said to Whitley.
He made no objections. Slowly, with his palms spread in a placating gesture, he stood and took two steps closer to the back of the van.
"Stop!" Weiss said suddenly, running over all the possibilities of what could be inside—a trap, a bomb, hostages, mercenaries . . . Tyrian Callows.
Whitley didn't listen. He quickly wrenched the doors open and stepped back, raising his hands above his head. Weiss and Ruby both made small, identical movements but ultimately remained in place—a reaction resulting from a simultaneous desire to rush forward and stop him as well as to retreat away from whatever he'd just unleashed.
But it was empty. He'd told the truth—there was nothing of interest contained within. By all appearances, he truly was completely alone and helpless . . . But that wasn't like him. He'd led them here. There was no reason to do that if he had no leverage. There had to be something, some scheme or trick or—
"There's nothing," Whitley said. "I did not bring you here with ill intent. I'm being framed. And I need your help."
An eternity of silence followed his claim. Weiss met her brother's eyes, and she tried desperately to interpret what she saw in them. The siblings had never been close to each other, not once in their lives. They'd grown up together, eaten countless meals at the same table, slept in adjacent rooms, yet they had been separated by a great chasm of their own loyalties—Weiss's to Winter, and Whitley's to their father. But there was always a mutual respect that persisted despite their differences. And there were always commonalities that should have led to a bond as strong as that between any normal pair of siblings—their stubbornness, their pride in their family name, their love for their mother, their strive to not only succeed but to excel, and their desire to hear even one word of genuine praise from a father who cared equally little for both of them.
Was it still too late?
"Listen to me now," said Whitley, "for now what I speak is true."
That was a Warriors of Grimm quote. Weiss didn't remember ever telling him of her fondness for that show, though it wasn't too shocking that he'd managed to find out anyway.
"I told the lies I told and put up the facade I did in an attempt to keep you as uninvolved as possible," he explained. "I knew you'd be unable to sit back and watch things unfold without retaliating in some way—we're too alike in that regard. It was a vain hope that if I convinced you that I was unconcerned by Father's attack, you would be as well. When that failed, I called you while you were snooping at the manor, intending to lead you into the soldiers who happened to be there at the same time. I'd preferred you be in trouble with them, as it'd limit your ability to continue meddling—doing so could only lead to you proving yourself a threat to someone far worse."
"Partridge?" said Ruby, earning a quick glare from Weiss.
"Indeed." He glanced at the girl with an unexpected amount of respect in his eye. "I went to the prison under the pretense of visiting Father but changing my mind at the last second. I never actually saw him. I only needed to get far enough in to plant a backdoor into their systems so I could gather information on the perpetrator. What I found was a symbol of a bird, hidden somewhere only another hacker was likely to find it—a declaration of war meant for my eyes alone.
"I came to Atlas for the reason I said I did—to see mother and establish connections for my business before attending the Vytal Festival in Vale. Then I received this challenge, and I decided it was a battle that I had to fight on my own. I didn't want you, Winter, nor anyone else earning Partridge's ire . . . But, loathe as I am to admit it, I've come to realize that I can't win this by myself. I've been ten steps behind at every single juncture, no matter what I do. Every stratagem I've employed has only served to strengthen their goal of framing me, which is something I learned far too late. I'm at a severe disadvantage in that I still do not know the identity of my enemy, while they have the means to learn everything about me. You two, however, each present less predictable variables. Together, I believe we might stand a chance at victory."
The lingering doubt Weiss had been holding onto made her want nothing more than to believe his words. Everything that happened, all the evidence pointing toward him, how haggard he looked here and now—none of this made sense if Whitley truly was the mastermind behind it all. The pieces could finally start to fit together if someone else was pulling the strings and using him as a scapegoat. But . . .
It had been his voice berating her in that basement. He'd sabotaged their plane. He'd staged a breakout at Atlas Supermax, set one of the deadliest serial killers alive loose onto the streets. He'd tried to drop a building on her. It was all him . . .
Right?
"Show me," Weiss finally said.
"Pardon?" said Whitley.
"I need proof."
"I wouldn't have needed to break you out of custody if it were that simple."
Weiss took out her scroll and held it up, her thumb over the power button. "Winter's searching for me as we speak. As soon as I turn this on, she'll be able to triangulate my position and have a team here within minutes."
"That sounds accurate," he said. "I'd prefer it if you didn't."
Weiss walked forward so she was close enough that she could reach out and touch him. "Do you consent to me using my semblance on you?"
His brow furrowed. "I'm not mentally ill."
"We'll see." She extended her hand to him, palm up, and waited for his answer.
After a brief hesitation, he placed his hand in hers. "I consent."
She entered his mind.
A/N: Credit to my beta readers: I Write Big and Bardothren. They're great writers who are a huge help with making this story as good as it can be.
