Ruby stood amongst her friends who were still in their sleepwear. Outside the room, just beyond the doorway lay her tanks and oddly enough for her, Neo. The clock had struck 6 o'clock only moments ago and the moon was still visible despite the rising sun. More notably, Weiss was particularly annoyed judging by her half-awake death stare aimed at Ruby's head.
With an awkward wave, Ruby bid goodbye, "See you guys, are you sure you don't want to join us to watch the rest of the matches? I know that the loser's bracket doesn't have anyone we know, but it's still exciting!"
Grunting as she said so, Weiss responded, "Ruby, you've been at it since last night. The tanks want to experiment with finding their semblances, just let them. It's not like you're permanently losing them."
"Oh... fine, but at least go watch the finals with us."
The tanks, of course, knew better than to heed that call too soon. As much as it pained them to do so. Tiger took up the conversation while he hummed his engine. "Don't worry. Even with these morons around me, I'm sure it won't take long. Besides, it's only five of us who have aura in the first place. We'll tell you the results later."
Without much fanfare, the door was swiftly closed with a light click by the heterochromatic… friend? Ruby wasn't so sure about that particular arrangement, and Yang seemed to agree.
"Was it really important for them to bring crazy umbrella lady?" Yang asked.
"She's been with them since yesterday night…" Ruby's chin dropped. "Do I need to act more like her? Maybe if I do, I can get back the attention of my tanks- ow!"
Weiss gave a harsh flick to her forehead. "Zip it, we do not need another psychopath."
"Hrm… another?" Ruby asked, rubbing a sore temple as she said so.
"Nora."
"Harsh," Yang adds.
"Have you seen that girl whenever you threaten to eat her food? Or insult it?" Weiss then addressed their team leader. "Point is, why are you so hung up on the tanks, Ruby?"
"I'm just worried, they've never acted like this towards me," Ruby responded, disheartened.
Yang waved her sister's worry away. "Hey, we had to be with Blake, I'm sure it's nothing bad compared to our brooding kitty."
Blake gave a half-hearted response. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Meow~" Yang taunted with a clawing motion with her hand. Blake rolled her eyes as she went back to her bed.
"I'm sure they're just growing up." Weiss at least attempted to comfort Ruby.
"How does that work?" Ruby slumped her shoulders as she gave Weiss' words a thought.
"Same way everyone else does, time. Anyway, we should really get some sleep. Waking us up for a send-off is just plain nonsensical."
"I don't know. I'm just… worried."
Just behind the door, the echoes of leaving footsteps faded into obscurity.
As for their destination, the tanks had opted to ask Ozpin to give them space in the Emerald Forest. It was filled with Grimm, away from civilians, and some areas were clear with just a few broken stumps or large stones breaking the evenness of flat terrain.
Ironic that they asked Ozpin for permission despite them going to have Neo spy on him. It was going to be a perfect alibi; Neo would do her spying later, they needed to let Ruby and by extension, the cameras around the Emerald Forest see that everyone was 'present' using her illusions since two of the tanks were out enacting the other part of their operation. During lunch, they'd go to the stands where Neo would find the opening to leave.
It was a weird mind game. Ozpin knows that Neo and Torchwick are kept close to ensure their continued 'cooperation', there's no doubt they physically provided aid and even gave them everything they knew about Cinder.
Improbable betrayal? No, it was certainly possible for the two criminals to switch sides yet again. But would they? Ozpin clearly has the upper hand if they ever tried to do something against them.
There's no way Neo or Torchwick would dare try to be hostile, right? It'd be suicidal. Ozpin knew Torchwick was a reasonable strategist. The greatest criminal knew he had no chance against Cinder, and when someone legitimately had a better chance to contest her, he gave his word on being allies.
Torchwick even admitted to himself that weapons you couldn't see or touch were impossible to beat. Heck, magic was probably second-rate at that point. Ozpin told him of Salem and magic, but Torchwick was surprised. Magic was all elemental based and could access relics but that was it.
Underwhelming.
Compared to machines that could enter another dimension? It was one-sided, at best, the tanks could hold a perpetual tie. Torchwick had seen it and went up to that kind of power. Torchwick was suspicious of the clear gap of abilities, there had to be more about Salem. But for now, he took the headmaster's words with small doubt.
Ozpin could somewhat relax, predicting that Torchwick and Neo wouldn't try to even do anything along the lines of betrayal. It'd be reckless. Never would he think that the tanks themselves were the ones that held that recklessness.
As they arrived at the spot with no one else nearby, Sherman asked a question that made everyone curious.
"Hmm, what would our souls be?"
Interestingly, Maus responded with a professional tone. "That depends on whether we are considered a normal soul. Which we are not. As I have heard, five of us have been given Aura, of which only three are present. Sherman, Tiger and Centurion."
"Woah, I'm surprised that you can form a conversation that lasts longer than a single paragraph."
"This is a situation that requires a thought process. It's been long since I have been able to flex what I can give to the team. After the attempt at a breach in Vale, I have been suffering under not being able to express my interests."
"Interests?"
"...I want to slaughter."
"...How nice."
"But I more so have the desire to learn! What if our semblances are based on our personalities? Perhaps this 'Aura' has been influenced more by our nationalities and stereotypes. So much to learn!"
"Oh! It's good that we have someone who can try figuring that out."
"JA! So that I can slaughter more people efficiently!"
"O- oh… uh… don't you mean Grimm?"
"Those too! They are all under us in the end! We are smarter, stronger and better!"
Suspicious at the shift in behaviour and voice, Sherman looked towards Centurion. "Uh… Centurion, don't you think we need to be concerned about Maus?"
The British tank nodded his barrel, "Undoubtedly. I think this is what psychologists call a dissociative identity. Such a quiet fellow these past weeks turning into this is… likely a national threat."
"A threat? I am no threat to Germanic brothers!" Maus interrupted, and Tiger was nodding along to every word.
"Crap, we are to call the SOE!" Centurion shook, enough to remove his accent.
"Utter fool! The world belongs to those who are strong! German science is the best in the world!"
…Meanwhile, Yamato was nowhere to be found. Forgotten by the tanks when she was left in the sink. A sad day for the Japanese.
At the opposite end of Beacon Academy, shadows shifted amongst people waking up to their daily lives. The people were untouched by fear, a complacent attitude to a threat that learned discreteness in the face of disastrous defeat.
The White Fang was defanged but their claws were still sharp. A cornered fox is more dangerous than a jackal. Driven back from their old glory and without a proper leader, those who survived the ordeal adapted — a sharp contrast to what everyone thought.
They knew what they signed up for, each man and woman of Faunus origin were swayed with simple promises. Those with a serene mind left the White Fang after the incident in the tunnels. After being confirmed as no more than terrorists with the goal of killing both fellow Faunus and Humans, reason had guided some of the grunts back into civil society, arrested but alive and on the road to reconciliation.
But for every five Faunus that sought a peaceful option, there'd be one that was not only rigid in their racist beliefs… but emboldened even more.
'It's because we were being led on by a human!'
'Taurus was wrong!'
'We had the weak amongst our ranks!'
Those words floated around the remnants of the White Fang after the battle, it was full of anger and hatred. Bittered after being part of a plan that was formed by a human. The Faunus majority needed to blame someone.
For a desperate few, they only needed a messiah to show up.
It was back then that they found one.
Such a large organization dwindled down to no more than a hundred, a far lower number than what Adam Taurus had under his command which reached a thousand. The White Fang used to reach every city inside Vale, not only in the capital but also in the frontiers of villages and Grimm-filled territory.
But their loss of manpower was a hidden blessing.
Such a small number could easily meld into civilian life. Being humbled in open confrontation only made the most extreme of the White Fang learn to take things slowly. There would be no more meetings, no more above-ground actions, the cornered foxes would stay silent until the time was right.
Finally, under proper leadership… they could finally strike.
"You're a rowdy one ain'tcha?" A deep growl came from the masked White Fang member.
Hurling his fist at an Atlesian soldier's stomach, the struggling man could only keep his dinner from last night back down. His wrists were tied with barbed wire, arms shattered by pipes and bats, and cuts along the line of his body shallow enough to not kill… for now.
"Ptoo!" the Atlesian spits, it was mixed with both blood and saliva. Despite his broken ribs piercing his lungs, the soldier managed to do a last act of rebellion.
Wiping the spit mixed with blood, the masked White Fang member smirks. "Hmph, enjoy that moment, human. It will be your last, along with the rest of this filthy plague in this city. Boys, get him to the room with the hydraulic, he needs to feel what breaking his femur feels like."
The Atlesian couldn't scream, either from fear or from his throat giving out from already screaming beforehand, his words fell silent as he was dragged raggedly by a pair of grunts. Later on, a cracking scream would be heard if not for the sound dampening of being underground.
The grunt paces upward towards the surface, removing his mask and revealing where'd they been hidden. It was inside the basement of a residential home at the edge of the city. The original owner was nowhere to be found as it was abandoned due to the building being at risk of collapsing.
For the Faunus, he took caution when leaving, making sure no one would be suspicious of a man leaving an uninhabited home.
As he walked, the sun breached the height of mountains and the wall surrounding Vale. No one would bat an eye at a man on a casual stroll, he kept his contempt for all the humans around him but he knew how to hide his disdain.
He reached another home, this time it was occupied by a fellow member. He didn't go through the front door, instead, he went through spiralling alleyways before reaching the back. He entered after someone inside let him in, a comrade.
A few moments later, he reached the basement with seemingly nothing out of place. Then, he knocked in a specific pattern on a nearby wall.
"Glory to the White Fang," he whispered.
The wall shifted in form, revealing a Geist's mask as it moved out of the way and showing stairs going further down. When the grunt reached the bottom, there were multiple members inside, each doing their own thing. Dozens of dust and electronics scatter a table as Faunus worked on more bombs.
Not only that… but a few of them were strapping explosives to themselves. A sign of a new strategy that would see the horrors of a desperate and extreme ideology.
The grunt reached a door before knocking and entering. In front was the Lieutenant, his face scarred across the eye by an Ursa during their escape from the tunnels.
"What did you get?" The voice demanded.
A furious nod followed. "Movement of the Atlesian scum reflects our reconnaissance. The bombs have made them work overnight, and some hunters and huntresses also aided. It will be long until they realise the threat is non-existent."
"Non-existent? The point was that it could be a threat. After a lot of preparation, I wouldn't want our boy's efforts to be downplayed."
"Apologies, Lieutenant."
"Good. What of our equipment, has it arrived?" He questioned, tapping his foot impatiently at the bland concrete floor.
"Yes, the other sections of the city confirmed their arrival."
"Then we are ready to strike. Glory to the White Fang."
"Glory to the White Fang!"
The door closed and the Lieutenant was left behind, he took a scroll to his ears, modified by a special someone to create a false network while replicating a blank call to disguise the location and use of the CCT. It was limited, someone could still hear their conversation, of course, if they got through the false network first.
"High Leader Tyrian, the trap is set."
The scroll echoed a hysteric laugh. "Really? Haha! I finally get to see some action! Call everyone, we are to celebrate the salvation are going to bring!"
"Yes, High Leader!"
Across the city of Vale, dozens of scrolls were opened to hear what to them would be their final message from the 'messiah' that saved them from ruin and guided them to this new approach to the race struggle.
It was a long speech, full of advisory talk and finalization of their plans. The final paragraph follows;
"Faunus! Humans have long fed the lies to themselves that you are inferior! They refused to give us our birthright because they feared what we really were. We are stronger, faster… and better! That realisation has been a message of our Fang but that message is not enough! Today is a sign of our worship and dedication to the cause! Tomorrow will be our day of reckoning, cast aside fear and doubt. The life you live will be nothing compared to the sacrifice you will all commit! In death, you will be a sign! In death, you will be reborn! In death, you will finally free your brethren! You will all be martyrs for the future world order, for the glory of the White Fang!"
"Glory to the White Fang!" would follow as Faunus resigned themselves to a fate they sought.
As the transmission ended, Tyrian Callows couldn't keep his head from spiralling into deeper insanity. "Augh! I'm so sorry my Queen! I'm a sinner! Goddess, please forgive me! My words should never be dedicated to anyone else but you! Repentance, repentance, repentance!"
"Would you shut up for one moment?" Hazel complained as he was doing exercise nearby. A few dumbells to prepare his body for the upcoming fight.
"Hazel, I will tear your eyes out of their sockets!"
"You'll have plenty of eyes to rip out when we attack, but for now put up with it. I am tired of being part of this charade as much as you but Cinder's pawns are useless with her on the helm. With all the cheering I heard, I assume we are ready?"
"What do you think?!"
"Hmph, finally."
Pinned to the wall was the entire city of Vale, there were a few marks present. Photos of streets, centres of marketplaces and gatherings. Targets, as they were. But none of them were as prominent as the two red 'x's on the tattered map.
At the industrial district, one of the marks went over the centre of the bustling area. Three photos were taken and stuck to it, the Valean Dust powerplant. It was the most important hub for energy production, without it, most of Vale would be plunged into darkness. Finally, on the far right was Beacon itself. Marked with another large 'x', labelled under it was 'emergency power'.
Eliminating the relatively complex ideas of Cinder was the far simpler act of plain terrorism. Besides, Watts had determined that the publicity the broadcast Cinder was intending to create was not important. The more significant aspect was how she'd receive the Maiden's powers.
Of course, Beacon was going to be unable to check for the relic, it was the major difference between the goals of Watts compared to Cinder. Though, Watts argued it'd happen in due time.
That left the Atlesians inside the city. Sure, the military would wipe out the White Fang in under an hour if they ever fought. But that was not the goal, Watts was realistic in realizing that the White Fang was going to be unreliable in the future. They'll simply have to cause as much havoc before destroying the people who knew about them because it was a security risk. So Watts intended to take out two birds with one stone.
In a heist, one would create fires beforehand to distract police elsewhere. That would be the same in Watts' plan to take the maiden's powers. Instead of fires, he'd make an explosive scar on the city.
As for how he planned to get the Maiden's powers? What would life support be without the energy making it work? It was a good thing that Cinder entered the Academy and learned the layout… Watts could use that knowledge to finally succeed where Cinder failed. None of them even needed to step inside the Maiden's room to take what was theirs.