Chapter 22: Monsters
Disclaimer: I do not in any way or form own Gate: Thus the JSDF Fought There or RWBY. They belong to their respective owners, Takumi Yanai and RoosterTeeth Animations respectively.
At the current time, the Senators of the Empire were largely split into two fractions. The first and larger fraction was the pro-war fraction, whose plans mostly consisted of gathering the full might of the Saderan Empire to crush the barbarians of Alnus Hill. To them, the Empire was invincible, and it was only a matter of time before they won the war. The second fraction was pro-peace. They had seen how magic unlike any other had ground their armies into dust, and they wanted to avoid another war and the casualties it would bring. Instead, they wanted to diplomatically convince their enemies to leave.
Somehow, the crown prince of the Saderan Empire, Zorzal El Caesar, and princess Pina Co Lada, found themselves on opposite sides of this conflict.
Pina knew more about Remnant than almost anyone else from the Empire. She had been to Remnant and had seen their technology, as well as the threat of the Grimm. She knew about the Gate's collapse, which she had been keeping to herself out of fear of encouraging an immediate attack on Alnus - Pina knew that, even against the weakened Atlesian forces, it would be suicide.
Crown Prince Zorzal, however, knew little about the Atlesians' capabilities. What he did know was that the Empire dominated the world. He knew that no matter what his enemies tried, the invincible Imperial army would be able to crush their opponents.
So what if they had won once, at Alnus? The Imperial army had inflicted significant losses to the enemy, sending them back, victorious but in shambles and heavily demoralized. If only the forces of the conquered kingdoms were not so incompetent, the Empire could have already destroyed the enemy and taken their world, like how they always did.
Prince Zorzal wanted to destroy his enemies, the enemies of the Empire. And whatever his spineless sister Pina thought they were capable of, the Empire's full military might would crush them. Many of the Senators supported him as well, sharing in his vision of the enemies bring crushed under their heel.
This day, Emperor Molt had summoned them both to the throne room for a war council. There would be a larger, more public one that the senators were invited to the next day, but for now, it was just among a select few. Within the cavernous throne room, the emperor sat on his throne, with the princess and crown prince at his sides. The center of the room was dominated by a large table with a map of the kingdom, around which the few trusted advisors and generals sat.
Zorzal was displeased to see the territory held by the enemy. The invaders had used completely dishonorable methods in their combat. Magic that killed at range and reports of metal soldiers all disgusted him. Those cowards hid behind their magic and golems, all because they feared to engage in melee combat with the noble imperial soldiers.
"Tell me, Pina," Emperor Molt began, "What information do you have on our enemy?"
"We cannot beat them," Pina replied.
Zorzal laughed, "One defeat and you already surrender? You'd make a poor general, sister."
"You have not seen what I have, brother. The Atlesians are more powerful and resilient than you give them credit for," Pina said.
"Nonsense," Zorzal dismissed, "They are spineless cowards. Instead of engaging like men, they send mindless golems to fight for them, while they cower in their fortresses."
"Their world is overrun with the creatures of Grimm, Zorzal. You have not seen them, but I know what they can do. They live in a world of monsters."
Zorzal laughed, "So do we. And unlike them, we dominated the beasts. The ogres and other demihumans serve us now! Even the warrior bunnies have fallen before our might. When we destroy their armies and take their land, this Grimm you speak of shall serve the Empire as well!"
"You'd best hope that the Grimm never find their way to Falmart, Zorzal. Nothing we have can stand against them."
"You have too little faith in our armies, sister. Perhaps your knights with their toy swords may fail, but the men of the imperial army will triumph, against man, monster, or even demons!"
That seemed to annoy Pina. "The Rose Knights -"
Emperor Molt raised a hand, causing them to fall silent almost immediately. "Enough. In order to help us come to a better conclusion, I have summoned someone who can answer our questions." He ordered, "Send in the diplomat."
At his word, the great double doors of the throne room were pulled open. In walked a group of three strange people, two men and one woman, escorted by a pair of fully armored royal guards.
Prince Zorzal sneered. He felt that the Empire had no need to even attempt diplomacy when it could crush them so easily. These diplomats, wearing their strange clothes, should never have been allowed to enter the palace, let alone the throne room. Then, noticing the woman, he sat up straight in his seat. Zorzal grinned to himself, shamelessly checking out her body. She was a real beauty, and he would have her.
"Greetings, Emperor Molt," the one in the lead began, bowing, "My name is Sedge Plain, and I represent the kingdoms of Atlas."
Haughtily, Molt said, "Yes, yes. What is your Atlas like?"
"Atlas is one for the four Kingdoms of Remnant. The one where the Gate opened is known as Vale, and we have excellent relations with them."
"Pina here claims that your country is infested with something called Grimm. Is this true? Given the rumors of your powerful magic, why have they not been exterminated?"
"Because they are weak..." Zorzal muttered.
If Sedge heard that, he chose to ignore it. "The Grimm are no mere insects. They are a supernatural threat against humanity itself, and cannot be exterminated so easily, even with our weapons."
"Cowardly weapons!" Zorzal exclaimed, "You kill at a distance, fearing honorable combat."
"I assure you, Prince Zorzal, our warriors fighting ability is second to none."
"Bold words, diplomat. I'm sure you can prove it, can't you?" Molt challenged.
"So, you would like a demonstration? That can be arranged," Sedge confidently agreed.
"Then it shall be. Tomorrow, you will do your demonstration. The Senators are having a gathering; you will be there. I will send a servant to bring you there," Molt said.
"Of course. If that is all-"
"Wait!" Zorzal called out, "If you want to show off tomorrow, then so do I! Tomorrow, you will see the might of the Empire!"
Molt took a moment to think about it before nodding. "Yes, I will allow it. Zorzal, take whoever you need and set it up."
"Do your worst, enemies of the Empire!" Zorzal taunted, "See what the mighty soldiers of the Empire are made of, and see how outmatched you are!" It was a flawless plan. Strike fear into the heart of the diplomat, so that he would tell them all just who was the greatest. And when they were inevitably humiliated tomorrow, even the Senators who want peace will come to his side and lend their armies to crush these enemies once and for all.
Sedge gave a small smile, "I look forward to it."
Winter was very busy. Now in charge of essentially everything that happened in and around Alnus base on Falmart, she found that just about everyone wanted to talk to her, for one reason or another. She found herself in meetings daily, expected to deal with the hundreds of issues that had cropped up and the hundreds more that would.
This one had seemed no different from her usual ones. Winter sat at the table with her advisor and generals as they went through the rapidly diminishing dust supplies, the forces on standby, the trade with Alnus town...
"Winter, there is something that needs your expertise."
"What is it?" she asked, expecting yet another mundane issue.
What she was told jolted her into full alertness. "A dark elf by the name of Yao Ha Dushi came to the soldiers at this base, requesting assistance in 'defeating a flame dragon'."
"That flame dragon that we encountered? What else did she say?" Winter demanded.
"The elf reports that it is attacking her clan. They cannot stop it, so are requesting us to step in. She has offered us, in exchange for our help, a large diamond and, well... herself."
That was impressive dedication, Winter decided, to be willing to sacrifice herself for the sake of her clan. "What are our options?"
"Well, Winter, you have faced this dragon before. What can you tell us about it?"
"The dragon has armored scales. Most of our personal weapons do not hurt it. Its scales also repel dust quite effectively. If we are to kill it, we will need heavy weapons on the level of Paladins, or mounted guns and large quantities of dust," Winter said. "If we can bring heavy arms to bear, the size of the dragon will allow us to hit it. The issue is that it can take off and fly with considerable agility, so it must be grounded by first disabling its wings."
"So we need aerial forces to disable its wings, followed by large amounts of dust to bombard and kill it. Meaning that we have to mobilize a large group of Paladins, Bullheads, and escorting Hunters and soldiers, as well as use up large portions of our dust supply. Which is no longer being replenished."
Winter could tell where her advisors were going with this. Unfortunately, she could not argue against their points. "Yes," she admitted, "That is my estimate."
The advisors were not done yet. "Furthermore, the dragon is expected to be at mount Tube This means that not only do we have to mobilize the majority of our forces, we have to send them through hostile territory. Winter, we cannot afford to compromise our position in the upcoming negotiations."
"I know, I know. Sending the required forces through Elbe can be seen as a declaration of war, prompting a counterattack that the remainder of our forces cannot deal with," Winter said. She sighed, "Unfortunately, we cannot act at this point. Please send someone to inform the elf."
With that crossed off the list, Winter ended the meeting, leaving alone. As she walked down a corridor back to her room, deep in thought, she felt the presence of a man following her. Winter did not even turn around to ask, "What is it, Qrow?"
"Heh, can't sneak past you, eh, Ice Queen?"
"I have no time to waste, Qrow. You were listening in on that meeting, I assume," Winter asked. Without waiting for a reply, she continued, "Tell me. Do you think a squad of Hunters can defeat the dragon?"
"Based on what little I know about it? Maybe, if they have the right equipment for it. But I'll need to do some recon to make sure. Heh, I knew that you wouldn't just leave them, even with our resource situation. Not so cold, eh, Ice -"
"Enough talk. The elves need our help, and we can use theirs. That is all. Get a Bullhead and go check it out."
"I'll go, I'll go. Keep the Bullhead, though, I won't be needing it," Qrow said.
Winter came to a stop. "How do you plan to recon without a Bullhead? This is urgent, Qrow."
"Don't worry, Ice Queen. I'll get you the info you need in three days, alright? I have my ways," he smirked.
Winter was too tired to argue. "Leave me, Qrow. I still have things to do."
Fortunately for her, Qrow took the hint and left. Perhaps she was just tired, but as soon as Winter turned her back, Qrow seemed to vanish in a flap of wings.
Winter's scroll beeped, drawing her attention. Taking a look, she found that a new message had been received - from Vela Fauxen - and it was requesting a high-security code to open. Winter was relatively certain that Vela was not given that code, but decided that it was not important at the moment. Entering the code, Winter opened up the message and read as she walked.
'To Winter Schnee, commander-in-charge of operations, Alnus Base.
I am Vela Fauxen. My primary goal was to locate and recover my husband, Arta Fauxen, who went missing during the invasion and was suspected to have been captured. With the aid of Doctor Oobleck, I have successfully located him.
Arta is unharmed. While he was captured, he had managed to free a fellow captive, Blake Belladonna, and allow her to escape. Through clever use of his semblance, Languages, he has managed to convince several nobles of the Empire that he would be of use to the Emperor.
The original objective was to return to Remnant. That is no longer possible. As such, we have decided to further integrate into the Empire's ruling party. I have managed to tap into an information network within the Empire.
They are preparing for war. Primary estimations put their numbers at 50000, increasing by the day. They plan to march in Alnus within the month, unless convinced otherwise. I will send further information when I receive it.
We were aware of the team sent to reopen the Gate. When they reached Sadera, we had the emperor direct them to us. Doctor Oobleck will accompany them to Hardy's shrine. They have already set off. However, I am afraid that I will have to refuse. I can do more here, in the capital, to assist Sedge Plain with negotiations.
Focus on managing the base. Trust that Doctor Oobleck can handle the Gate, and that Sedge and I will handle the negotiations. Do not burn yourself out.
Vela Fauxen.'
Do not burn yourself out. Winter gave a sigh. It was too late for that. She still had many things to do. Now, what was next...
"My apologies, Ms. Yao. We cannot help you at this time," the soldier informed her.
Yao felt as though her world had shattered, "What?"
"Unfortunately, we cannot simply pass through Elbe territory without an agreement from their ruler, lest we trigger a diplomatic incident. We cannot help you."
"My clan is dying!" Yao shouted, tears in her eyes, "Only you can help me! Who else can kill a flame dragon? Please! Is the reward not enough? Whatever you want, I can give it to you." Desperate, she threw herself at the soldier, only to be restrained by another.
Yao could not see beneath the white of the soldier's helmet, but she could hear the regret in his voice, "I'm sorry, but we really cannot act at this point. Please, compose yourself."
They dragged her away after that. Ignoring her pleas, the soldiers summoned forth a pair of metal men, who emotionlessly led her away from the base.
Defeated, Yao returned to the forest to compose her thoughts. The commander of the 'Men in White' had refused her, but that did not mean that they would all refuse. She had to find one of them - with enough authority to get the help she needed - and bribe him to do so.
Something dark flickered in the edge of her vision, bringing back memories of her encounter. The tentacled creature and its master, Salem, were still an alternative. Yao was still suspicious of the demon-like creature, however, as both it and Salem gave her unnatural feelings.
Deep in thought, Yao did not realize that she had approached a familiar clearing. It was where she had slept before... and as promised, Salem - or at least her familiar - was waiting. Making her decision, Yao cautiously approached the creature, wondering if it was asleep. Or if it even needed to sleep.
Once again, smoke began to fill the air, the creature alerted to her presence by some unknown means. Yao drew back before she could stop herself, one hand resting on the hilt of her sword.
Salem's image formed, hanging in the air, and she got straight to the point. "So the fools have rejected you. As I said they would."
"They didn't care about us," Yao bitterly added, "So I come to you. Help me. Kill the dragon and save my clan."
"Of course. I will send a few of my servants to find you. Bring them and my Seer to this Flame Dragon of yours. Then we will handle it. But. There is a price for my aid," Salem warned.
"Anything," Yao promised, already expecting it. The diamond that she had brought with her was still in its bag, and she was ready to offer it, as well as herself, should there be a need.
Salem grinned, "Good." Her creature lashed out with its tentacles before she could act. They wrapped around her forehead and arms, restraining her movement. Then Yao screamed as she felt something bring torn away from her, as though part of her was being ripped off.
After what felt like hours, the Seer released her, and Yao stumbled from a sudden weakness. "What... did you do?"
"I took your magic," Salem informed her. "That is my price. Keep your diamond; I have no use for it."
Was it even possible to take someone's magic? Yao experimentally tried to use her spirit magic, but the world around her felt void, devoid of any connection to her. The wind refused her commands. The earth denied her its aid. It was a heavy price, but one that Yao was willing to pay. She had been willing to give herself completely; she could learn to live without magic, as long as her clan survived. "The price is paid. Now, please, help me. Help my clan."
"Of course. Wait here. Give me an hour, and then we shall hunt this dragon together."
With that, Salem faded away and her Seer too retreated, disappearing into the forest. Yao blinked in the sudden light; it was as though the presence of the Seer was suffocating the very land. With its exit, the forest returned to peace, the wildlife cautiously venturing back out.
With nothing else to do, Yao sat down and experimented once more with her spirit magic. It was soon painfully obvious that she was no longer capable of manipulating the natural world, a fact that pained her greatly. But as long as her clan was saved, it would all be worth it.
Time passed, and Yao's mind began to wander. Had she been tricked? If Salem never returned...
A/N: Prince 'punch-me-in-the-face' Zorzal is here! A little earlier than usual, but that just means that I get to punch him in the face earlier.