Chapter 23: A Dangerous Bargain (Edits)
Roman had just gotten out of the bath in a clean robe with a glass of Death Stalker Fire Whiskey in his hand. Even the pumpkin-spiced scented candles, which were supposed to relax him, did nothing to improve his mood.
He wasn't sure who to be angrier with, Qrow certainly for how he'd made a mess of his coat, which his personal associates were currently cleaning, or toward the kid for having the gaul to peek into his head.
He really didn't want things to go that way, blood was always such an unpleasant thing, but he hadn't made himself the undisputed kingpin of the underworld by being soft. Off to the side, he saw Neo playing darts with a picture of Jacen, who already had several darts in him.
He still had a bit more information regarding what Jacen could actually do.
From how Neo described from her fight with Jacen, it seemed that the Jedi had a kind of code of honor regarding killing, yet he had the eyes of someone who'd undoubtedly killed before.
Then there was this Separatist who gave the White Fang members at the Black Citadel those droids.
Roman hadn't heard anything about that from his contacts in the White Fang, though given the White Fang's recent reputation, they were probably dead. The only name Roman had heard was the name Axis. Rather pretentious name now that Roman thought about it.
Still, one thing Roman could concede on Jacen's description of this so-called Separatist was that they'd try manipulating Roman into being either their cat's paw or more likely, a scapegoat.
Roman Torchwick was no one's puppet; he lived by his own rules, and the foremost principle was in how good he could lie, steal, cheat, and survive.
He rather wished his men, who had been sent to investigate the remains of the Black Citadel, brought more than just the tattered remains of the White Fang members. One of those droids might have yielded better results if they had been salvaged.
The few bits of information he'd received within the White Fang was that those droids were said to be even more advanced than the Atlesian Knights that were commonly seen taking up military roles. Evidently, Axis, whoever he or she was, didn't want to run the risk of anyone else uncovering the situation.
Yet, all wasn't completely lost, while Roman couldn't get his hands on even a damaged droid, there was a silver lining that came up recently.
His men mentioned finding something interesting, and Roman managed to bring back at least one of the so-called cortosis blades. Unfortunately, Jacen and that interfering huntsman Qrow made off with the other one.
Jacen hinted that wherever he was from, cortosis was very valuable. That sounded like something Roman could capitalize, that is once he found out why it was so important that Jacen was neglecting to mention it.
Roman learned the value of being patient, especially with the prospect of making a profit. Still, part of him lamented that Jacen had to go playing the part of a noble hero rather than put those unique powers of his to other uses.
What good had being a hero been when Avantine was on that bed emaciated, pale, and wasting away? The world had an order to things. One was either at the top or became food for those that lived at the top.
Grabbing his hat, he lit his cigar and went into the back to change. It was time to see what exactly his men discovered and if it might be just as promising as whatever Atlas had under tight wraps.
Neo had been sour over the entire ordeal. She'd hoped she'd be able to get the drop on that Jedi, but he kept using that power of his.
Most people didn't even realize she was using her semblance until they were already dead. Yet, Jacen was able to predict nearly every move she made. She shivered when she recalled what Jacen said about a Separatist turning her into something inhuman.
Though what was particularly jarring was what he'd do if he wasn't bound by some moral code. He did just hurl her across a room into Junior's liquor shelves. She cared about Roman, but sometimes he got himself into situations in which she was the one to get him out of trouble, as she did when they had to pull out of that debacle at Junior's club.
Neo looked at the blade that Roman was trying to get inside from Jacen. What was it about this that made it unique? He said that it was made with cortosis, whatever that was. To Neo it just looked like any other blade.
She turned her head when she heard Roman, now in one of his suits with his hat and cane motioning for her to bring the blade with them. While she couldn't talk, Neo was able to communicate in an alternate way.
-What exactly are we doing with this sword?- Neo said through a combination of signals with her hands.
"Bringing it with us to our storage areas," Roman said.
"I want to see just what exactly my men discovered a while back."
Neo gave a silent sigh, grabbed the sword and her parasol, then followed Roman out the door.
The woman Roman put in charge of the storage room waited at the front entrance for him to arrive. Dressed in the style that was recognizable due to its Mistralian design with a high collar while the dress kept her legs hidden save the point of where her pants met the shoes she wore.
Her black hair was cut short with the bangs being symmetrical on both sides and she often wore black glasses that reflected one's image. She made sure that Roman's interests in Mistral were running smoothly and if not, she'd made it plain what happened if someone proved incompetent.
She was equally a deadly assassin in addition to being a severe supervisor. She laid a hand on the black lotus flower pinned to her chest, which was also where she got her sobriquet.
She had a few of her bodyguards with her to greet Roman when he finally arrived in one of his cars. Roman still cut a very charming and handsome air about him in addition to that confidence which always left an impression.
She had to repress a grimace at the sight of Neo walking beside him. She never let it show, but she envied how Neo was often always at his side while she was in Mistral taking care of whatever business Roman required.
"Good evening, sir," she said, her voice kept in a professional tone as she gave him a respectful bow.
"Ah my dearest Black Lotus, I hope our men were able to discover what exactly we've uncovered," Roman said, giving a tip of his hat toward her.
"It has proven difficult, but they were finally able to get it opened sir," she said, motioning to her escort and entering the storage area.
The inside was filled with a number of crates and boxes which held much of Roman's personal collection. She led Roman to the center where a team of people worked on a large metal crate. It wasn't like anything she'd ever seen, even from the crates which held refined dust Roman or his associates had acquired from the Schnee Dust Company.
She fixed one of the men who'd been trying to crack the unfamiliar lock on the crate and the man stiffened when he saw both of them.
"B-boss," the man said nervously.
She was about to berate him, but Roman lifted his hand.
"No need to be nervous," Roman said with his customary gentleman's voice.
She stood back as Roman placed a reassuring arm over the man's shoulder.
"At least tell me that you've managed to find a way to open this thing," Roman said.
The nervous worker nodded his head as Roman followed him to one end of the crate. Roman could make out that whatever this thing was made out of wasn't dust infused alloy. Part of him had a suspicion that Jacen might have been right about the Separatists making off with something Atlas might have safeguarded.
But this crate didn't match anything that Atlas typically created.
The information he'd received regarding what occurred before the Black Citadel was destroyed wasn't very illuminating. He'd hoped his men would at least have found something else other than the so-called cortosis blade like those alleged droids.
Roman folded his arms when the worker managed to pry a panel that would allow him and Black Lotus to see what was inside. Neo stepped back a bit since her diminutive height wouldn't allow her to see.
He'd expected to find whatever Atlas and this so-called Separatist had been working on, but what he found wasn't what he'd expected. There were unfamiliar weapons neatly assorted by size, everything from what might be a type of sniper rifle to hand guns.
"These don't match anything Atlas has ever created," Roman said as he picked up one of the hand guns which he appraised
One thing he didn't see was any indication of a cartridge or any dust canisters.
How was anyone supposed to use this? There was one way to find out.
With a quick glance at a far off crate, he aimed the gun and fired, but it didn't make the sound normal guns typically did where it fired then a spent round fell out. What came out of the gun was a white blue bolt of energy that hit the far off crate which exploded in a brilliant blast.
Roman looked at the gun in astonishment as Black Lotus and Neo looked at the crate he hit which was now burning.
This wasn't the standard for even the most top of the line side arm for the average Atlesian soldier and this was only a handgun.
Off to the side, he saw Neo signing at him about what the other weapons inside might do.
Roman grinned at the possibilities and Black Lotus gave him an inquisitive look.
"This is definitely military grade," Roman said as he appraised the rest of the weapons.
Unfamiliar or not, Roman could recognize a military arsenal.
-What about that lightsaber thing that the Jedi brat uses?- Neo signed to Roman.
Roman contemplated Neo's question. Jacen was hinting that there was more to cortosis which made it valuable. Roman closed his eyes as he tried to picture whoever Jacen was fighting who previously owned the cortosis blade. Was it possible that the cortosis impregnated into the blade made it possible to block a lightsaber?
Roman frowned, Neo's parasol had stopped it, but Roman suspected that had more to do with Neo's aura. Roman hated struggling to put together puzzles like this, especially when it might lead him to the mother load.
"You," Roman said to the nervous lock picker.
The man jumped when Roman addressed him. Roman motioned him over and handed the nervous lock picker the cortosis blade.
"Stand over there with that blade held in a guarded position," Roman said pointing at Neo who was miming one of Jacen's fighting positions.
The lock picker hesitantly did as Roman instructed, standing in the position Neo had mimicked. Then he aimed the gun in the man's direction.
"Sir!?" The man said with shock.
"If that blade is as extraordinary as that Jedi kid hinted they were, you might not have anything to worry about," Roman said.
Sure, Roman was aiming for the blade, but the lock picker was shaking so much that he was likely going to be shot with the energy bolt. Ah well, can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.
Roman fired the energy bolt, which hit the cortosis blade. However, rather than the man being shot, the lock picker was sent flying into Neo who was standing out of the way.
Roman gave a suddenly satisfied grin, though Neo looked at him grumpily.
"Now it all comes together," Roman said, giving Neo a hand before looking at the blade.
Rather than having a white hot spot where the bolt hit, it had made some kind of star burst pattern then it disappeared or rather, the energy dissipated once it made contact with the cortosis.
Apparently, cortosis's biggest quality was how it dissipated energy and another question was forming in Roman's mind. What might cortosis have that would affect Jacen's lightsaber? Given that the energy blade and the bolt he fired seemed to be of the same quality. Roman made a point of testing that particular theory the next time he encountered that Jedi.
Neo was studying the unfamiliar weaponry Roman had taken out of the large metal crate and placed into a neat assortment. She didn't understand the appeal Roman saw with these weapons, they didn't appear to have dust canisters which was what all the other weapons she and Roman sold or gave to their associates were.
Then there was another thing that was nagging her in the back of her mind. Where did these advanced new weapons come from?
From how they fired a bolt of pure energy, some firing blue while the rest fired red, it seemed like the bolts matched the characteristics of that Jedi's lightsaber. Neo hated struggling to put pieces of puzzles together and Roman wasn't sharing what Jacen had hinted before when he spoke of cortosis.
She picked up the aforementioned cortosis blade, remembering Roman's test and how the energy from the bolt he fired made the energy dissipate on contact. Therefore Neo could see the potential of using it in armor, but what was it about cortosis that Jacen was reluctant to share?
She studied the cortosis blade which Roman also allowed Neo to keep and she could see why Jacen was reluctant to discuss cortosis.
It looked like the energy bolts these weapons fired was similar to what a lightsaber was composed of. If that were the case, then Jacen's lightsaber was less of a threat.
Yet, even if they managed to negate Jacen's lightsaber, Jacen still had that strange power of his. She insisted that Roman look into anything on it even before the showdown at Junior's place. Hadn't that Jedi brat referred to it as the Force?
Roman had reached out to every possible bookworm or philosopher that he had in his network, yet none of them had anything to say about the Force. Neo didn't like the idea that Roman was starting from square one. Jacen had access to this Force and until they found out how to deal with that, Jacen had something of an advantage, or at least unless he abandoned his moral obligations.
It was much more powerful than a mere semblance. Neo gave the cortosis blade a twirl before turning to Roman who was giving orders to have any additional containers similar to the one in the store house collected then distributed to select members of his network. Roman was dismissing Black Lotus before he and Neo were by themselves.
-Say we actually have a way to counter that punk's lightsaber, what about that power of his?- Neo signed.
"One problem at a time, Neo," Roman said.
"Surely if there's a way to nullify Jacen's fancy weapon, there must be something to counter even that odd power of his."
Neo hoped Roman was right, Jacen had interfered with their operations one too many times. While the prospect of finally getting rid of Jacen was enticing, the fact that Roman himself probably didn't know where these weapons came from.
Roman tended to be meticulous in finding out every detail he could and Neo hated struggling to put puzzles together.
-Do you know where these weapons even came from?- Neo signed.
To her frustration, Roman shook his head.
"Whoever it was, I have a feeling we might meet them later on," Roman said.
"One doesn't simply leave stuff like this lying around."
Neo looked at the box and noticed it was marked with a sigil she didn't recognize. It definitely wasn't the familiar snowflake sigil which marked items belonging to the Schnee Dust Company. It was circular, not especially elaborate, but there was something purposeful in the design.
"First a Jedi comes here, then he claims a Separatist or whatever is here from wherever they came from, now we have people or persons unknown leaving various cashes of these new weapons," Roman said as he held his cigar in his mouth.
-What if they're something worse?- Neo signed.
Roman exhaled some smoke as Neo continued signing.
-What if Jacen was telling the truth about Separatists and these weapons belong to whoever or whatever this Separatist is?- Neo finished.
"First off, that word implies that the individual Jacen mentioned had broken away from, let's say, another government to form an independent state," Roman explained.
"Furthermore, Jacen mentioned something about a war, but unless they've been lying, there was never anything that said a Jedi or a group of them fought during the Great War."
Neo thought back to her tutelage under Roman before becoming his right hand. The Great War mentioned several countries rising, breaking away, or new ones being founded. However, the term Separatist wasn't utilized and she definitely didn't find anything about these laser weapons Roman now had. She was certain that there also wasn't any mention of the word Jedi.
Roman inhaled more cigar smoke than Neo saw him contemplate what Jacen hinted about the Separatist.
-Do you think this Separatist has a way of countering Jacen?- she signed.
Roman's smile showed she was on the right track, but hadn't reached the main point.
-They might have a way to counter Jacen AND these weapons Roman,- Neo signed.
Roman exhaled more cigar smoke grinning and Neo figured Roman had already reached that point.
-You knew the Separatist might have a way of dealing with Jacen didn't you?- Neo signed, accusing Roman.
Roman nodded and Neo frowned. Why didn't Roman share that particular point earlier?
-Then why not find this Separatist first then use whatever they might have to deal Jacen a fatal blow,- Neo signed.
"I had thought about that, but why just seek out this Separatist when we could potentially find whoever these weapons came from and take advantage of both to rid us of Jacen?" Roman pointed out.
Neo hadn't thought about that possibility and Roman took Neo gently by the chin.
"While I'm not sure what really happened during Jacen's fight at the Black Citadel, I have a feeling Jacen will be busy looking for whoever created this," Roman said, lifting the cortosis blade upward.
"Why not keep up the element of surprise?" Roman asked.
Neo looked puzzled, -What do you mean?- she signed.
"Let's say Jacen isn't even aware of these weapons we've discovered, he's mainly going to focus on finding this Separatist he'd mentioned," Roman said.
"If we plan on finding out who Jacen is looking for, we may as well use Jacen to find out who it is and what this Separatist is giving to Atlas."
Neo smiled realizing what Roman was saying. Use Jacen to lead them to the Separatist.
Meanwhile Roman would have his network find rumors of who might be leaving these weapons caches for them to discover.
As Roman watched the last of the trucks leave, he found himself contemplating something he'd never thought of in years. Jacen's words about Avantine rang into his mind.
To think that the infamous Roman Torchwick was originally a young farm boy known as Remus Brunswick. Whatever his old man thought he could accomplish with a farm in the middle of nowhere was something he'd never understood. Yes, Avantine had been something very important to him, but she was gone, just like everyone else.
Roman had Neo to consider and while he and Neo had been together for a long time, he never really bothered telling her about Avantine. There were so many painful memories in Roman that he closed the door to his past and he wanted it to remain that way. That Jacen so casually dug into that past angered Roman.
Roman Torchwick was who he was now and Remus Brunswick was dead. Jacen would pay for digging up that past Roman buried.
Jacen was the most interesting thing Roman had ever encountered before, as was what seemed to be following him lately in the form of those droids some of his connections within the White Fang mentioned and now his men were finding similar caches of new weaponry that didn't match the ones his network said the droids Axis gave them used.
Even with his annoyance and anger at the kid's audacity to peek into his head, not to mention thwarting a few of his other jobs, he still had some respect for Jacen's evident skill as a warrior and tactician. If only that kid wasn't bound by that delusional belief of heroism or walking the moral high ground, though that turned out to be a blessing in some way.
He turned toward Neo who was twirling her parasol. Jacen had used that Force power of his to toss Neo into Junior's liquor shelves in the back of the bar. If Jacen wanted, he could actually have done far worse.
The Jedi, the Force, and their lightsabers were such a new concept that one might think it sprang up from old legends and fairytales about powerful warriors or even magic. In that instance, who might have more information on the Jedi? This Separatist who's taken up residence in Atlas or whoever gave him and his men those caches of advanced weaponry?
What was most interesting was that Jacen, at least according to the lack of birth certificates, shouldn't even exist. He also wasn't blind to the fact that Jacen's name didn't match what was standard for those born throughout Remnant after the Great War. So where did this strange Jedi come from and, moreover, who else might be looking for him that he didn't want to be discovered by?
At the ruins of the Black Citadel, a scrappy huntsman was rummaging through the damage that had been done. In truth, he didn't want to even be within close proximity to this place even though it was now in ruins. Though it wasn't like his current client was giving him a choice.
If his employer was hoping to find something of great value here, he was going to be disappointed. From what he gathered from the remains of a scorpion Faunus who wore the more frightening insignia for the White Fang, an intense battle took place which saw the White Fang warrior loosing his hands and, from the festering wound on his neck, used his own venom to kill himself when the fight got out of his control.
"Well?" A raspy metallic voice said breaking him out of his investigation.
His client spoke to him in that same voice, but he never actually met the client in person. The fact that the same metallic rasp of a voice sounded close, meant that he was about to meet his client in person.
"Whatever else was here is gone," the huntsman said trying to be professional despite his apprehension.
"Unless you want to examine the dead Faunus over there."
The huntsman turned as if expecting to be face to face with his client, but he couldn't see him, her, or whoever they were. His eyes could make out a shrouded figure with a hood over its head. It was difficult to detach the figure from the darkness surrounding it as its clothing seemed to bleed into it rendering the individual semi-invisible.
"You're displeased at having come to this place," that same metallic voice said.
The huntsman gave a slight sneer at the comment. Of course he wasn't thrilled to be investing this place. Of all the places in Remnant one of his clients had to be interested in, why did it have to be the Black Citadel.
He'd used his talents as a huntsman into being a freelance investor for clients that wanted a deep understanding of some of Remnant's oldest landmarks. He'd of course hired himself out to the criminal underworld who always paid well for his services.
Plus this new client had offered him a generous amount of lien, over 8 million to be exact. Still, why he was interested in the Black Citadel was something his client never explained.
"I just don't understand why this place caught your attention," the huntsman said.
"It was impractical to get to it even when it was still intact and now whatever was within it has undoubtedly been destroyed."
He pointed toward the crumbled remains of the mountain in which the citadel was carved. He'd already figured that whoever destroyed it utilized explosives in specific places then let gravity do the rest.
A motion from the dark figure indicated that it had crossed its arms over its chest. Once he finished with this job, he promised that he'd be much more selective about which clients he accepted.
"I don't care about what purpose this old relic held, I'm curious about what events occurred prior to and leading up to its demise," the figure said with a tone that sent chills down the huntsman's spine.
"All that I know is that there was a huge fight between the scorpion Faunus and someone else," the huntsman said indicating the foot prints which he associated with movements during combat.
He indicated another section which suggested that the one the scorpion Faunus was fighting wasn't the only one here.
"There were others," the huntsman said.
A noise from the client suggested he'd just made an amused laugh as if the huntsman had said something funny over a cup of Mistralian Green Tea.
"I'm telling you, I don't see anything else," the huntsman said.
"You wanted me to look at this place for you and I've done that, now where's my payment?"
For a moment , the figure just stood there as if it were only a statue and the huntsman began to feel a chilling sensation that the figure was staring at him with its unseen eyes.
"Yes, payment has been promised," the figure said.
Finally, now the huntsman could get away from this place with a decent amount of money in hand. He had barely taken a few steps when he felt his throat closing as if he were being strangled. His hands flew to his throat, but there was nothing there for him to grasp at.
He felt his face turning red as it became harder to breathe. Through his blurry eyes, he saw the figure emerge to be made visible from the moonlight.
The figure was clad in black from head to toe with a hooded cloak covering the figure's head. It also had armor which covered its chest and arms. The Huntsman hoped to see some of the figure's face, but it was no use.
Whoever or what ever the figure might be was hidden behind a mask which covered its entire face. A look at the figures hand showed that it was made into a slight fist which seemed to be getting tighter.
Now the man's eyes were bulging out and he was moments away from blacking out. He tried to scream and beg the figure to release him, but his voice never left his lips.
The last thing he felt was the sensation of having his neck being broken then he fell to the ground motionless.
The figure itself took one final look at the area before turning on its heel and wondering into the darkness.
End