A.N. (4/21/23) - For once, I'm posting early instead of late. Here's your regularly scheduled Friday release chapter!


Atlas (22) - True Identity

After the conclusion of his story, Rin and Ironwood decided to take a break and take in all of the information they just acquired. Since they no longer required the services of Marcus, Rin figured that it would be fine to dismiss him until they needed to talk to him again.

His final parting words stuck with her before he disappeared.

"The only thing that I'm confused about is their motivations. From what I know, the twins aren't the type of people to do something like this. Revealing themselves to the world, that kind of thing would normally be reserved for their kingdom to give them a home-field advantage."

"Where are you going with this?"

"I know them, so I can tell that something isn't adding up. There's no reason that they would go to Atlas, even with their grudge against those who wronged Vacuo. So I'm wondering… was it really their idea to begin with?"

Once he said that, the doll he was possessing finally lost all signs of life and fell to the floor.

Moving to an adjacent room, Ironwood was the first to break the silence once the two of them were seated.

"What do you think?"

"I think that we learned a lot more than we were expecting," Rin began. "At the same time, I feel like we also learned nothing that would help us in our current situation."

"That about sums up my thoughts as well."

"You have more experience in matters like this compared to me. What do you think the motives of the Crown are? Do you believe that their motives lie beyond simply destabilizing Atlas?"

"Did his final words affect you that much?"

Rin frowned. "Something Marcus said rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe I'm being paranoid, but him meeting them while investigating ruins related to Malik seems off somehow."

"As I recall, you are somewhat experienced in ruin diving yourself."

"That was because I wanted to discover signs of magic in places that originated from ancient history. There was this one time where I did encounter magical traps in a recently discovered ruin, but I learned later from Ozpin that it was actually one of his tombs that he forgot about."

"What exactly did he say that bothered you?"

"Let me ask you something. Without knowing Jax's personality, do you think he would be so accepting of a stranger who was also searching for ruins related to the first king of Vacuo?"

"I would suppose not."

"And yet, he seemed to give Marcus the benefit of doubt. If I were in Jax's position, I would have tried to take control of his mind just in case he was someone who would get in the way of my goals."

"Didn't Black supposedly have something to protect him from his Semblance?"

"That's right." Waving a hand, Rin called forth a bracelet from her storage mystic code and lifted it into the air. "To be specific, he carried a magical object that bestowed upon him protection from mental interference. But according to his story, he only managed to acquire this after he had already accepted their offer to join them on their first expedition."

"So you're wondering why Jax didn't try to take control of his mind?"

"No, I think that he did try to take control of his mind but somehow failed."

"Explain."

"It's most likely that his Semblance is touch-based, at least that's what I figured from the brief moment that I ran into him. When I attacked him, he didn't try to use anything like mystic eyes or command me vocally. Either he preferred to use that unknown Noble Phantasm of his, or he simply was incapable of doing so. This reasoning is also supported by the fact that people under his control have a nearly identical Aura to his. Most Semblances that affect other people's Aura like that are usually limited to close range capabilities."

She was inferring this from what she knew of several Semblances, such as those belonging to Lie Ren and Jaune. Their abilities allowed them to affect another person's Aura directly but weren't something that could be used from a distance. Even Gillian's Semblance had a similar tactile requirement, requiring her to touch Marcus before giving him Aura.

Of course, there were probably exceptions to this rule somewhere out there, but it was an idea that she would go with for now.

"The handshake," Ironwood realized. "So you're assuming that Jax attempted to use his ability then?"

"That's what I'm thinking."

"But how would Marcus have protected himself from Jax's Semblance."

"What if he couldn't? What if something else protected him instead?"

He frowned. "Is this something to do with that Emilia person he mentioned earlier? Or is there some other bit of magical knowledge that you're relying on to reach this conclusion?"

"Remember what I told you earlier about ghosts and how graves link this world to the next? Unlike living beings, most ghosts are apparitions made up of leftover thoughts and fragments of a person's past records inscribed in their surroundings. If you take a temple, something that can also be viewed as a type of grave, then you can use the memory inscribed in the land to maintain the existence of someone's thoughts even after they leave this world."

"So a temple can act as a hard drive to store a backup of someone's memories in the form of a ghost?"

"I suppose that analogy fits what I'm talking about. To clarify, this isn't limited to the capabilities of magecraft but is classified as something closer to a natural phenomenon. You don't need to be a magus to create a result like this, even if most cases like this usually only matter to those that possess spiritual abilities."

"Are you saying that a ghost protected him?"

"It would explain how he was suddenly capable of navigating the ruins as well as gaining skills that he never had before. Information transfer is a type of magecraft that spiritual entities would be capable of if they possess a target."

It was considered a high-class act of magecraft, but if a magus was capable of telepathy it was possible to transfer information directly into a recipient's brain to teach them new skills. Even for spirits unable to use magecraft, the act of possession itself could allow a recipient to gain new memories and skills as a side benefit.

"Marcus was probably being possessed by a spirit without him being aware of it. Based on his story, the likely culprit would be Emilia's ghost. But there's also another possibility as to the spirit's identity."

"Since it's a tomb, you must be referring to the owner of the temple."

Marcus said it himself. The only reason he encountered the Crown was that he was looking into places related to Malik the Sunderer. And if Tyrian's words were to be trusted, that temple was supposedly the final resting place of the Sunderer.

"Either Emilia's ghost was possessing him… or it was the spirit of Malik himself."

Ironwood frowned. "If Malik is the identity of the spirit, it would make sense how Marcus would know how to navigate the ruins related to him. After all, Malik likely oversaw the construction of such places that would give him the knowledge of how to navigate them."

"And also…" Rin bit her lip. "If you're right, and the Noble Phantasm that Jax has belonged to Malik, then it would make sense that he would be able to use it. Since I know for certain that Marcus isn't being possessed, it's possible that Malik might have moved on to possess Jax instead."

"That's under the assumption that this hypothetical spirit is Malik," Ironwood pointed out. "Even if we accept the fact that Black only gained those newfound navigation skills of his due to some supernatural reason, it could be that the spirit of that girl Emilia is the reason for it."

"Sadly, there's no way to confirm the spirit's identity. Even so, I have my doubts about Malik being the spirit's identity."

Again, her thoughts went back to how unlikely it was for a Noble Phantasm to naturally exist on Remnant. Developing a Spirit Origin to the level of a proper Heroic Spirit was something that required a level of fame and worship that was almost impossible to attain in this world line. At the very least, only someone like Ozpin or Salem might be recorded on the Throne of Heroes, but it would still be impossible to summon them as Heroic Spirits due to Remnant being a world line that lacked the necessary characteristics to support them.

Ironwood spoke. "I think we're going about this the wrong way?"

"Hm?"

"So far, I've been keeping quiet and deferring to you as the sole magical authority. But in my experience, wondering whether something is possible is usually an exercise in futility. After all, the sheer variety of Semblances means that you cannot always know the full scope of your enemy's abilities. Because of that, trying to figure out how your enemy did something or what they're capable of are meaningless questions."

"You're saying that there's no point trying to think about our hypothetical spirit?"

"Exactly. What matters is trying to figure out the Crown's motivations, such as why they decided to act in Atlas instead of their home kingdom."

Once again, they circled back to the beginning of their conversation.

"Let's go over what they've accomplished thus far," Ironwood continued. "First, they attempted to take my life in a sudden ambush. You theorized that it was due to my Semblance making me invulnerable to Jax's abilities. But why was I a target in the first place?"

"Isn't that supposed to be an easy question? You're the leader of the biggest militaristic force in the world and hold a council seat due to your position as headmaster of Atlas Academy."

"That's three things." Ironwood began counting off his fingers. "Military leader, council member, and headmaster. As a foreign national terrorist group operating in Atlas, those characteristics are perfect as a target if their goal is to destabilize our kingdom. And yet, how come I was the only person they targeted?"

"Hm?"

"Suppose Jax uses his Semblance to take control of other people with important roles in the kingdom. If his goal is to destabilize Atlas, then having those people end their own lives would cause the most chaos. If his objective is to take over the kingdom, then his reach would have to cover all the different parts of the government to fully take over from the shadows. Except that his public reveal at the Schnee Gala means that he isn't thinking of hiding his involvement. Taking over our kingdom would be easier if nobody knew about him, and yet, he hasn't thought to cover up his actions."

"So he's not interested in taking over Atlas."

"That leaves his objective being to destabilize the kingdom, but his actions thus far have been too limited. Sure, the death of a top general and head of the SDC might be significant in the short term. But while damaging, the possibility for recovery still exists. During my ambush, Jax was fully capable of attacking the rest of the council members as well."

"Maybe he already used his Semblance on them."

Ironwood grimaced. "That does sound likely. I was wondering why Sleet was acting stranger than usual. But even so, the fact that he didn't attack them means that there is a purpose in keeping them alive."

"So he wants to manipulate the council without you interfering," Rin summarized. "What about Jacques Schnee? Are you saying that there's more to his death?"

"I'm wondering why only he was killed rather than everyone in his family. As far as I'm aware, there were at least four members of the Schnee family attending the event at the time of the attack. Out of the three children, one was taken over while the other two were left alone. And that's despite the fact that one of them was already in their grasp."

"Weiss wasn't targeted by Jax's Semblance," Rin confirmed. "I know that for certain."

"But they took Winter for some reason. What makes her more valuable than her siblings? It can't just be her fighting capabilities."

"She was military?" Rin guessed. "It's public knowledge that Winter works closely with you, and many see her as your right-hand woman."

"My ambush, Jacque's death, and Winter's abduction. What ties all of those together?"

"If we're assuming military, didn't Jacques recently start a new venture to work on developing new airships? I think I heard something like that being mentioned on the news."

"That's right. The project is supposed to be a new fleet that would debut by escorting Amity all the way to Mistral…"

Both of them realized it at the same time.

"Could they be thinking about doing something to affect the Vytal Festival?"

"Amity launch is expected to occur this week," Ironwood continued. "I was pushing for its launch date to be moved to a later date. The other council members were pushing to send more forces to escort the arena during the meeting that occurred on the day I was ambushed. Jacques was called that day to give his opinion on incorporating his new fleet of airships. Without my voice in those meetings, there will be nobody to delay the launch and veto the addition of more troops to escort the arena."

"So that covers why the Crown would want to target you and Jacques," Rin replied. "But what about Winter? What role does she play in all of this? Did she get targeted just because she's a strong combatant, like how the Ace-Ops were targeted?"

"No, it has to be something other than that…"

"Did you think of something?"

"The black sovereign has no face. For he imposes his will upon the people and stands above the headless giants' king…" He frowned. "That message was sent to me when I was ambushed. For some reason, those words hold some special meaning to Jax. A phrased based on records of the ruling times of Vacuo when Malik was still alive."

"Again, Malik is somehow involved?"

"We can assume that Jax is obsessed with Malik since his organization seems to be based on restoring the monarchy back to Vacuo according to Theodore's words. From Black's confession, it appears that this obsession of theirs has been brewing for quite a while now, to the point where they would investigate ruins related to him in the past. We can ignore the other parts of his story like the black mud or mysterious Emilia for now."

For some reason, those words seemed significant to her. Rin couldn't help but think back to Marcus and his story once again, especially since it was likely that his involvement with the Crown had in some way affected things so that this timeline had diverged from the one that she knew about. After all, there was supposedly no major attack on Atlas as far as her knowledge of the plotline was concerned.

Malik.

Ruins.

Emilia.

Again, that name evoked some reaction from her. She knew somehow deep within herself that the person known as Emilia was far more important than anyone realized.

The Crown desired the return of the monarchy based on the ruling times of Malik. Their leaders' obsession led them to somehow acquire a Noble Phantasm and learn how to use it. Ignoring how they acquired it, the fact that they were able to even use it was supposed to be impossible without at least accepting the fact that they were somehow dealing with magic.

"This is a place of prayer. An act like this is equivalent to offering up a part of oneself. For places like this, what is not offered is usually taken instead."

"The Temple of the Sunderer. A resting place for a zealous ruler who sought the impossible. Whether it was a coincidence or not, his tomb was built in one of the few places left that contained crystallized remnants of mystery."

"Spirit Origin… no, that's not it. Leftover thoughts are manifesting using fallen warriors as a medium. And yet, the resulting enemies are at least Phantom-grade in power level."

She froze.

Until now, she denied the possibility of Malik fulfilling the requirements of possessing a Noble Phantasm because of his inability to ascend into a Heroic Spirit. But what if that still held true, and he was able to manifest a Noble Phantasm anyway? If he somehow prepared after his death the necessary components to ensure that his legacy would survive…

But that theory would mean that Malik would require some knowledge in magecraft to complete such a goal. And yet, the existence of Emilia hints at something far beyond the purview of this case.

"Everything flows. All things eventually reach their end. All flames eventually go out. All that lives shall die. The only one that remains is the person abandoned by the gods."

A person abandoned by the gods…

Black mud of a broken doll…

Curse of coercion…

Darkness swallowed everything as a black shadow attempted to paint over the planet's texture. It was indiscriminate in what it covered, and she was no exception.

Even though there was no escape, someone reached out to her in a vain attempt at safety.

Hope.

It was a half-baked idea created from putting together multiple assumptions, so she wasn't confident with her theory yet. But if what she was thinking truly was the case, then there was only one real answer.

"Magic," she whispered. "The Crown knows that magic exists, there's no other way…!"

"What?"

But before she could elaborate, Rin froze as another thought crossed her mind.

If her theory was right, then the situation was far more dangerous than they realized. After all, the entire reason she was here in Atlas was because of Ironwood and Winter. Ironwood had missed one other key factor that linked him and Winter together, something that the two of them had overlooked before because they assumed that nobody else would know about it.

"This is bad. We have to return to Atlas as soon as possible by any means necessary!"

"Huh?"

"I figured it out. The identity of the spirit, it's neither Emilia nor Malik. I was right, there's no way for a Noble Phantasm to naturally exist in this world. And if that's the case, then the Crown is nothing more than a decoy for the real culprit behind all of this. They're just pawns in this grand scheme, and we've been fooled by them all this time."

The answer was within her all along.

After all, even the simple fact that she was unable to tell Ironwood her conclusion was evidence enough. The curse that was placed upon her was confirmation that her theory was the correct one.

This wasn't a case based on the script of this world.

But rather, an intervention caused by an outsider trying to create a story of their own.


Not a lot of this chapter will make sense until much later. It was a bit difficult trying to write a speculation chapter where both Rin and Ironwood take their time to sort through the facts. Trying to balance a mix of right and wrong information to either throw off the readers or establish some kind of mystery is hard since this is the first time I'm trying something like this.

The next few chapters will mainly be from other people's perspectives for a while. Rin will probably reappear near the finale of this arc when she confronts the main villain.