AN: Sorry this is a bit late, I forgot I skipped a scene I had writers block on so I had to finish putting that in before posting this. Happy to see most of you approve of how I handled Ozpin and Sasuke's interaction last chapter. Hope you enjoy this one as well!
DeathlyJazzHands55- Always happy to hear from you! Afraid I can't spoil any MS decisions unfortunately. As for his sword- well I can't spoil that either but he's certainly not giving that up without a fight.
KnightOfZaku- Not going to tell you when Sasuke takes his bomb out, but how he does it is probably not what you're thinking.
Hbkisback14- Happy birthday man! In hindsight I probably should have tried to limit Sasuke's dialogue a bit more, but at the same time his typical one-word answers weren't going to satisfy Ozpin and he knows it, so he wouldn't have drawn out the interrogation more than he had to by appearing uncooperative. Glad to hear you seem to like the story for the most part!
MrSir17- I hope you enjoy what's coming in the next few chapters. Ruby is not the only interaction he has to look forward to!
CrapCase39- Ozpin is perhaps rushing this, but hopefully this chapter will shed some light on what his reason is. As for Beacon, yeah there are going to be some changes.
Dakonna- I hope you approve of how I handle that little aspect of Sasuke's character when I get to it.
Rio Skyron- I suspect you'll approve of what I've got in store.
Lector Noob- You have something to look forward to in the next chapter.
KuramaUchiha7- A lack of viable options meant that going to Beacon is really the only logical place to have him go at this point in RWBY unless I wanted to write an entirely different setting from scratch, and I was not about to do that. You seem to have a pretty good grasp on Ozpin's motivations here, and I think you might like what's coming up in this chapter.
Also, good job nailing why I used Hebi Sasuke. MS Sasuke is just too powerful and too unhinged. On a side note I loved the Deidara v Sasuke fight too- the strategy involved on both sides was great, and unlike pretty much all of the other Akatsuki fights, it was essentiall fight with both combatants starting at full health.
Orochimaru does still have a role to play here, but that's still a ways away.
Misfiredmahem- With Robyn in the picture giving short answers would only prompt Ozpin to ask for more details. Sasuke had to at least give some information voluntarily so he wouldn't pry too deep. Also Sasuke has no reason to withhold as much information on Remnant as he would if he had been captured in the Elemental Nations; no one knows about Itachi, the Uchiha Massacre or the like here, so he has no reason to believe giving bits and pieces of that is going to mean anything.
KageKitsune9001- Yeah, Robyn is definitely the type to try and dig that up, but Ozpin's literally had centuries to cover that up at this point.
DragonBean- I hope you'll enjoy what I have planned for Beacon.
Philosophy when- Shyla is older than Sasuke, I'd put her in her early twenties. I was actually going to write in a scene or two with her little brother at some point, but I'm leaning against it now because this story is taking way longer than I had thought as it is.
Overlord TH- Damn, if that's what you think of Ozpin I'm almost scared to ask what your opinion of Adam or Salem is. But yeah, Sasuke is certainly not taking this lying down.
'thoughts'
Uchiha of Remnant
Chapter 19: A Shot in the Dark
Ozpin took a swig of coffee from his mug, looking all the world like a man trying to drown his troubles with a strong shot. He unfortunately did not have a flask with alcohol on his person like a certain dusty old crow, and felt the urge to swing by a bar and take some of his edge off. It was an impulse he would ignore for now- he had one more stop to make before he headed back to Beacon.
He traveled to his destination almost on autopilot- his mind was racing far too quickly for him to focus clearly on anything else. For all of the questions Miss Hill had and for all that she didn't know, the truth was that Ozpin was not much better off.
The moment he had heard Sasuke Uchiha's name from young Ruby Rose that fateful night he had expected beyond a shadow of a doubt for the boy to be a subordinate of Salem of the highest order, with knowledge of Salem's current goals and plans, who knew the details of her inner circle and everyone in it down to the smallest detail. He would likely be on an infiltration mission of sorts, or manipulating Torchwick and the criminal underworld of Vale to add more fuel to the fire when he summoned his army of Grimm to flatten and destroy the kingdom.
Ozpin had been very much befuddled as to why Sasuke had called off the hordes of Grimm he had summoned; the creatures of darkness had more than enough strength of numbers to overwhelm most or even all of Vale's defenses, so there did not seem to be any obvious reason why he would have them retreat. At first he had thought the Uchiha had made a mistake of sorts, or that he had merely needed the Grimm to act as a diversion for him to fulfill some other unknown goal. But then Qrow and Glynda managed to find him, and after recovering enough to speak the former had told Ozpin everything he had seen the Uchiha say and do during their fight.
Qrow did not have to speak for very long before Ozpin realized he had made a major miscalculation somewhere. Judging from how easily he had defeated Glynda and Yatsuhashi it was obvious he could have killed all of the Hunters and Police Officers he had encountered without much difficulty and evaded capture, not to mention call a number of Grimm to either aid him in battle or to help him escape. Yet he had chosen to do neither of these things- opting to fight with a handicap on top of his injuries.
Ozpin for the life of him could not think of any rational reason he would do such a thing. None of his expectations or assumptions added up to the paradoxical choices the Uchiha had made.
An error of some kind on his part? An elaborate deception of sorts? Perhaps he had wanted to be captured in the first place for some reason and simply needed the battle to look genuine to avoid suspicion.
No matter what the Uchiha was thinking, he wasn't going to fool Ozpin. His family name placed him in league with Salem- that was an indisputable fact.
Getting the information he wanted out of the Uchiha without being misled by false words and lies was going to be the challenge. It would be all too easy for the boy to simply lie his way through the interrogation. Not for the first time in his life Ozpin thought he would have to ignore his moral compass and resort to torture to get the information he needed and hope that the boy would be in too much pain to bother trying to squeeze out a lie. Fortunately Ozpin had remembered a brief conversation he had had with General Ironwood a few months previously where he mentioned a recently-graduated Huntress by the name of Robyn Hill whose Lie Detection Semblance had been very useful in closing several tricky cases for the Atlas Police. He had managed to persuade James to send her to Vale for the sole purpose of interrogating Sasuke, and had been presented with the capability to cut straight through any web of lies or deceit this wolf in sheep's clothing attempted to weave.
He had walked into that room with the Uchiha fully confident he had all of the methods and means at his disposal to uncover the truth no matter how complex or terrifying it was. Even on the short travel from his office to the holding cell he had brainstormed every possible answer or story the boy could have possibly told him, and what Ozpin would say or do in response. Ozpin had left nothing to chance, and was ready for anything.
Except for…
"Why did Salem send you to Vale?"
"I don't know who that is."
Every scenario, every possibility he had considered even remotely plausible had been thrown out the window with that one statement.
That was impossible. Utterly impossible.
His last name was Uchiha- just how the hell could he not know who Salem was!?
It was at that moment another conversation regarding Sasuke Uchiha came to the front of his mind. It had only happened a few short hours ago, when the doctor overseeing the Uchiha's recovery had given Ozpin his report on several very unusual observations they had made on the boy in their care. He had been momentarily astonished at what he had been told, but had shelved the matter after Robyn had arrived in Vale minutes later and he focused all of his attention on the upcoming interrogation.
There was one possibility that could explain the Uchiha's unusual behavior and ridiculous story. One that would certainly make Sasuke far easier to manage, but also led to a most terrifying conclusion.
Ozpin was brought back to Remnant at the slight creak of the door he was opening. Turning to face him inside was a slightly more unshaven than usual Qrow Branwen sitting at the foot of the hospital bed of Glynda Goodwitch, who still sported a cast around her reattached arm as well as a wrapping of bandages around her head.
"So, how did it go?" asked Glynda.
The Headmaster locked the door behind him before pulling up a chair.
"I left with more questions than I went in with, but overall I would say it went better than I could have hoped. You were right to take him alive, Qrow."
At this the aforementioned man let out a sigh of relief. It had been his decision to go against Ozpin's standing orders to kill Sasuke when he had engaged in battle, and had worried it would bite him in the ass later. Luckily it seemed he had made the right call.
"Well that's a relief. What did you find out? Is Salem about to make a move on Vale?" Qrow asked.
"He doesn't know who Salem is."
At this both Glynda and Qrow couldn't hide their shock.
"But how!?" The bedridden woman exclaimed. "If what you told us is true there's no way he couldn't be in league with her!"
"Sasuke does have a relationship of some kind to Salem," Ozpin interjected. "Of that I am absolutely certain. But given what he told me he isn't aware of it himself."
"How is that possible? Do you think he's under some kind of mind control or something?"
"Nothing so crude, Qrow. And I highly doubt any form of mental manipulation, even from Salem, would work on him anyway. It is impossible for him to place anyone on Remnant in illusions with or without his Sharingan, but as his battle with Mr. Daichi showed and according to his own testament he is still more than capable of fighting off any mental probes or attacks with ease."
Ozpin paused, taking another sip from his mug as his eyes took on a heavy tone.
"I believe Sasuke was created by Salem artificially, as well as given false memories."
Glynda and Qrow looked at him a moment in a confused daze, almost unsure of how to respond.
"Wait, you think she grew him in a test tube or something?" Qrow asked incredulously, scratching his head. "I know the world has some weird shit in it, but I need a bit of evidence before I can buy something like that."
"As fate would have it, I do." Ozpin took out his scroll, pulling up the earlier report from the Doctor overseeing the Uchiha's recovery. "During Sasuke's recovery Doctor Jones made several very unusual observations about his body that cannot be explained by normal science. He had multiple second and third degree burns and several severe puncture injuries, and his body had regenerated and completely healed all of the damage in two days."
"Well that is quicker than average," Glynda chimed in, "but it's not that far from how fast a normal Huntsman can heal. It was a fairly simple matter to reattach my arm once I had medical attention."
"You're missing the point, Glynda. Sasuke didn't heal in the same way as you or a normal person would. When the human body is injured severely it heals itself by repairing the damage; it builds scar tissue that is not as strong nor as flexible as what it is replacing. Your arm for example would have just healed over into a stump had the medical staff been unable to reattach it before the cells in your arm began to die. Sasuke's body regenerated; it made fresh tissue that was a carbon copy of what was damaged. If Sasuke had lost his arm, he would be able to regrow it completely like a lizard that had lost its tail. That is a feat no Semblance would be able to replicate- it requires fundamental genetic engineering of the entire body to accomplish healing like that."
"If Sasuke is capable of that, we're going to have to kill him if he goes rogue," Qrow pointed out. "It won't matter how many injuries we give him- as long as he survives and manages to escape it's a guarantee he will fully recover."
"I'm afraid his body's resilience goes even further than that," Ozpin continued. "We wanted to keep him unconscious until Miss Hill arrived from Atlas so as to not give him any time to formulate an escape plan. Unfortunately she had been in the middle of a mission when I requested her presence that delayed her departure, during which time we noticed that Sasuke was recovering so quickly he would be awake days before she could arrive."
"Wait a minute, then how did he only wake up now?" asked Glynda.
"They used a continuous infusion of IV sedatives to prevent him from awakening before we were ready," the Headmaster replied. "Or at least, they tried to."
"Tried to?" Qrow said, raising his brow.
"All of his vitals were being closely monitored. Like everyone else his heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure were lower when he was unconscious, and slowly began to increase when he was about to wake up. The infusion the gave him should have dropped his vital signs back down and kept him under, but it had absolutely no effect. They kept increasing the drug dosage, gradually at first, and tried adding a second sedative that was just as ineffective. By the time the dosage had increased enough to make a dent in Mr. Uchiha's vitals, he was being given enough sedatives to kill an adult elephant."
Qrow and Glynda could do no more than sit there with their mouths hanging open. They had both seen firsthand how durable Sasuke was during their fight- taking injuries without any protective Aura that would have forced anyone else to surrender. But he was resistant to sedatives too!? Just how indestructible was he?
"So how was kept asleep until today?"
"It was determined that even combinations of drugs would not keep him under by itself, so the staff was forced to place a second IV line to physically remove enough of his blood to the point he was too anemic to awaken. Even at that point keeping him unconscious was difficult- he was apparently able to regenerate over six gallons of blood in only four days and forced the nurses to keep pulling the excess off."
Qrow and Glynda turned to look at each other in a moment of realization. If Sasuke's body was capable of that kind of feat, it went along way to explain how he had been able to keep fighting for as long as he had.
"And speaking of blood, his was extremely unusual." Ozpin continued, "When we took a look at his DNA we found that he had far fewer genes in common with the average person than would be expected, even when comparing to all different regional groups."
"Sooo, what does that mean?" Qrow questioned. "All I'm getting is that the kid doesn't have any close relatives anywhere. Considering Grimm constantly run around destroying smaller settlements that would hardly be unusual."
"No, not just close relatives," Glynda corrected, "Professor Ozpin is saying that Sasuke doesn't even have distant relatives. Even someone with no living close family would still share most of their DNA with people from similar regions. The people of Vacuo for example, have been isolated from the rest of the world in their Oasis for so much of their history that any two individuals from there share far more genes with each other than they would with someone from any of the remaining Kingdoms. But for Sasuke to have DNA that is too different to place in any known population… well that could only mean-"
"He had to have originated from a population or clan that has been completely isolated from every civilization in Remnant's recorded history." Ozpin finished. "That is, if he was conceived naturally at all. There is one feature of his body that was most certainly created artificially."
Before Qrow or Glynda could ask him to elaborate, Ozpin pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket before smoothing it out and handing it to the mostly recovered Huntsman, who turned it sideways enough for the still bedridden woman to see.
They both recognized it as a printed photograph, and they both remembered enough of their earlier education in basic biology to know that what they were seeing was a shot of a blood smear on a microscope. The round, saucer-like appearance of Red Blood Cells overwhelmed most of the picture, with a handful of larger White Blood Cells scattered throughout along with several small Platelets. But there was something else in the picture that made their eyes widen, and even now questioning if the person who gave the picture to Ozpin hadn't photoshopped it.
"Professor," Glynda began, turning the paper back to the Headmaster, "what the hell are those?"
Mixed in with the blood were several dozen or so insectoid-shaped… things about the same size as the cells that surrounded them. They were pure white in color, and despite their arthropod-like appearance they had no visible mouths or wings.
"No idea," Ozpin replied curtly, "your guess is as good as mine at this point. I've heard that everyone studying them has simply been referring to them simply as 'nanobots' until a more appropriate name can be found. It has been incredibly difficult to isolate and study them due to their size, but it has been determined that they are made of some kind of clay that has not yet been described by science. Unfortunately none of these nanobots have made any movement or been active in any way, so as of yet we have no idea exactly what their function is or how they got into Mr. Uchiha's bloodstream in the first place."
"Why not just ask Sasuke?" Qrow asked with his brow raised. "You had that Truth-Semblance Huntress here, didn't you ask him?"
"No," Ozpin shook his head. "There wouldn't have been any point. I told you earlier that I believe many if not most of his memories are fake and were implanted in his mind artificially somehow. I did not come to that conclusion without reason."
"So he told you something that you knew was false, and still passed Miss Hill's Semblance?" Glynda asked.
Ozpin's eyes took on a tired look, one that neither Glynda nor Qrow had seen more than a handful of times despite working for the man for years. Yet somehow this time he seemed more distant somehow.
"He told me he was from a village called Konoha."
Neither the recovering Huntsman and Huntress knew what the village was to Ozpin. But they hardly needed to in order to see those ancient eyes that hid just behind the veneer of the living reincarnation of a man whose life had spanned beyond the horizon of recorded history reliving memories that were older than the first letter written on a humble tablet of clay.
"So, does that place not exis-"
"He could not have come from there," Ozpin interrupted, his tone sharp enough to cut through the air itself. "It is impossible."
There was a pregnant pause, the tension still palpable as Ozpin stared for a moment at his Cane in a tense daze. Qrow and Glynda looked at each other for a moment, neither one willing to bring up the subject again.
"So do you think Sasuke is a sleeper agent or something?" Qrow asked, trying to change the subject.
Ozpin looked up, his mind leaving thoughts of the past behind him and focusing once again on the future.
"Unlikely, but due to the unreliability of Sasuke's memories there is no way of knowing for sure. Though I can only say Salem would not have created something so powerful and similar to herself for no reason."
Internally Ozpin was cursing his misfortune. If the Uchiha had not given him that damned answer, if he only had his real memories, he would not have ended his interrogation of the Uchiha so quickly. There was so much he still needed to know.
Had he been set free by Salem deliberately to fulfill some other purpose, or had someone in her inner circle set him free of their own accord? Was the attack Sasuke used to cut off Glynda and Daichi's arm a Semblance or was it Magic? Or was it perhaps… Chakra? That would explain how he had a mature Sharingan with three Tomoe- something that should have been flat-out impossible.
The one person who should have been able to give him these answers was a completely unreliable source of information.
The headmaster calmed himself. Nothing would be gained by regretting the hand fate had chosen for him- he would just have to figure it out.
"Thankfully there is some good news," Ozpin said with a hint of optimism, "Young Sasuke may not have accurate memory, but Miss Hill's Semblance was able to determine his motivations and intentions accurately. He has no desire to harm any of the four kingdoms and killed Stonewall and his men because he refused to take part in crimes that went beyond robbery. Not to mention he summoned the Grimm that night completely by accident and sent them away from the kingdom to avoid unnecessary casualties the first moment he realized it."
Qrow heard himself heave a sigh of relief. Despite his initial willingness to give the kid a fair shake after his unexpected reluctance to call in Grimm reinforcements during their fight, he still feared that perhaps Sasuke was merely biding his time before summoning his army of Grimm again. With Ozpin's confidence and Robyn's Semblance claiming that the kid was not an active threat, he could feel the weight lifted off of his shoulders.
It was an odd thing, he thought. He remembered weeks ago when he had spoken to his niece about the missing teenager she had found on her way back from Summer's grave. Ruby had said he was kind of awkward company, especially since he couldn't speak to her, but was polite and a very gracious guest. He had been terrified when Ozpin had told him of who and what Sasuke was, and could only imagine that he had infiltrated what was left of Tai's family with nefarious intentions that would perhaps put another grave next to Summer's. Now it seemed Ruby had made a far better judgement of his character than the adults who were supposed to teach and protect her had.
For the first time in Qrow's life he was happy Ozpin had made the wrong call.
"So if Sasuke poses no active threat to Vale but could potentially be used as a living weapon by Salem later, what are we going to do with him?" Glynda asked. "Keep him imprisoned?"
"No," Ozpin replied. "He will be transferred to Beacon Academy and begin the first-year course along with the rest of the student body."
At this Glynda couldn't help but recoil in disbelief and no small amount of alarm. The kid had killed dozens of people (even if they were human traffickers), had cut her arm off, and now she was supposed to teach him in a classroom!?
"You can't be serious!" she objected. "Even if he isn't an active threat, who's to say he won't change his mind? And what about the other students!? He could easily take one or several hostage!"
"All valid concerns," Ozpin calmly replied. "But we implanted both a tracker and a bomb inside his body before he was fully healed. He will be forbidden from leaving Campus grounds, and none of the regeneration abilities we have seen from him will be enough to save his life if we are forced to detonate it."
The Huntress leaned back into her bed, letting out a small sigh of stress. "It still seems like an awful risk. If we call this wrong Sasuke could destroy this entire kingdom down to the last child without any help from Salem at all. He is certainly powerful enough to do so."
Ozpin gazed back at her with a slight tension in his gaze.
"You may be right. This plan is a gamble, and if we get on Mr. Uchiha's bad side enough it could prove to be the end for Vale," he admitted.
Qrow and Glynda looked at him with stunned expressions. Ozpin was normally so patient a leader and looked so far ahead that he rarely made plans that involved rolling the dice like this, and never with so much to lose if he got it wrong.
"But I believe young Sasuke will be far more likely to burn Vale to the ground if we refuse to reach out to him. If he believes he has no chance of escape from us, no chance to live a life of his choosing, we will find ourselves as his enemy very quickly." He turned to his two subordinates with an unusual glint in his eye. "However, as with any true gamble, we stand much to gain if we play our cards right. Mr. Uchiha has already effectively made Vale immune from any and all Grimm attacks these past weeks, and the kingdom would reap nigh boundless benefits if that trend were to continue."
Two pairs of eyes widened as the recovering Hunters realized what their leader was hinting at.
"Vale, and all of the territory immediately surrounding it, could be colonized and developed at absolutely no risk of attack," he continued. "Towns, settlements, farms, and more could all be built and established in only a few years' time. We would be able to almost triple Vale's territory!"
Glynda and Qrow looked at Ozpin, the man exuding an almost palpable sense of optimism they had rarely seen from the normally more pragmatic man. They could both easily see why he was in such spirits- one of the basic reasons none of the four kingdoms had been able to grow much beyond their original borders despite hundreds of years of attempts had been that each kingdom simply did not have enough manpower to claim and defend any significant new territories without spreading their manpower too thinly to protect it all. One of two thing inevitably occurred at that point: either the Grimm attacked the new territory, whose defenses were often incomplete and destroyed it and killed an enormous number of defending Hunters and hopeful citizens, or they attacked the main kingdom itself, which had far fewer Hunters in place to fend off any attacks and were usually easily defeated, forcing the fighting force in the new territory to abandon the settlement and return to save their homeland.
Despite humanity's ingenuity and resolve, it was a pattern that had been endlessly repeated over the centuries. And the main reason for the continued failed attempts, aside from lack of natural barriers, was that no kingdom had enough defenders to hold the line on two fronts. The reason there was not enough manpower was because there was simply not enough territory available to grow enough food to support the kind of force that would be needed to expand further. It was a catch-22 that had stumped humanity for centuries.
What Ozpin saw in front of him now was an opportunity to break that cycle. With more land available, within two to three decades Vale would be powerful enough to take another slice of land from the hordes of Grimm without sacrificing its ability to defend its borders. Once that new area was established, they could repeat the process until the Grimm would be all but helpless to hold them back. They would be able to send Hunters and soldiers to Atlas, Vacuo, and Mistral in enormous numbers that could shore up the other kingdoms respective defenses to the point they could begin expanding their own territories alongside Vale!
And maybe, eventually, humanity would be present in such numbers and might that even the Dark Continent, the lion's den of Salem herself, could be brought down.
The age-old conflict between man and Grimm could be turned into nothing more than history.
It was a dream that seemed too good to be true, but if it paid off the Grimm would be of no threat to humanity in only four or five decades.
Still, it hinged on one individual whose cooperation was hardly guaranteed.
"I get what you're suggesting Oz, but if I'm understanding your plan right it will take years to bear any kind of fruit." Qrow pointed out. "Once we establish the new territory we should be able to effectively take land back from the Grimm, but before that happens Sasuke is going to have to both be in Vale and willingly prevent Grimm attacks for at least several years until the new areas can be built. How are we going to give him a reason to stick around?"
"We aren't going to give him any reason," the Headmaster replied, "but with some luck there are others in Vale who just might."
"What do you mean?" Glynda asked, her curiosity piqued.
"Working alongside Torchwick was not Mr. Uchiha's only line of work," Ozpin reminded them. "He was also an underground fighting champion as well as a bouncer in two separate establishments that are both rather popular. He thankfully never gave out his real name easily enough for the general populace to know it, but his face is well-known enough among certain crowds. And even if it wasn't, I have no doubt each and every one of Stonewall's victims Sasuke rescued will be spreading word of who rescued them that night regardless of any attempt by us or law enforcement to keep word from getting out."
"Wait a minute, Stonewall's victims?" the Huntress exclaimed. "Didn't they see him summon Grimm? Why on Remnant would they have anything nice to say about him!?"
"They saw him both summon and command Grimm," Ozpin clarified. "Then they saw him kill their kidnappers, then they saw him spare their lives and grant them their freedom back."
The man paused in his words for a moment, a small smirk making its way onto his face as though he had remembered a mildly amusing joke.
"All of them were questioned by the Police, not to mention I talked to several myself- and yet not a single one spilled his secret. The only reason I was able to confirm it was because of Miss Hill's Semblance."
"I would assume they were probably too terrified to say anything," Glynda suggested a bit forcefully. "They likely thought Sasuke would come back to kill them if they said anything."
"A not implausible explanation," Ozpin conceded, "but based on what I saw, they were not motivated by fear. All of the ones I spoke to became rather defensive when I tried to dig through their stories a bit too far, and one almost got violent when I suggested Mr. Uchiha might be just as evil as the ones who had imprisoned them."
Ozpin thought back on that amusing moment. He hadn't known exactly what to expect when he had told Shyla Hopkins that Sasuke was arguably more dangerous than Stonewall, but he had certainly not expected her to erupt from her seat, pull him over the table by his collar, and threaten to punch him in the nose if he repeated his words.
Her actions did not necessarily speak for the others, but he at least knew that Shyla was not scared of the Uchiha in any way.
"And for those in Vale who have never heard of him, an unlikely ally has given Mr. Uchiha quite a positive first impression over the past several days. I'm sure the two of you have seen it?" Ozpin asked with a rhetorical smile.
Almost automatically, Qrow and Glynda pulled out their scrolls before typing a few words on the search bar. They didn't need to look at each other's scrolls to know they were reading the same thing.
International Crime Lord Stonewall Killed Outside Vale- Mysterious Vigilante to Blame?
Roman Torchwick's Cop-Mauler Rumored to be Stonewall's Killer!
Vale's Dark Angel: Lawless Vigilante or Rogue Hero?
Sex Traffickers Massacred by the Dark Angel!
Similarly titled news articles were found for several pages on the search list- an impressive number considering the event that sparked them had only taken place six days ago.
"Vale's Dark Angel, huh?" Qrow huffed, looking in hidden amusement at Glynda suppressing her irritation that the kid who cut off her limb was being treated like a hero in all but name by the press. "I see the press is still doing their thing."
"It's hardly surprising." Ozpin said. "The story itself is sensational enough by itself- but because Sasuke's name and origin has not been made public it leaves the press with freedom to make their own assumptions. A mysterious warrior who may have been involved with Roman or Stonewall, betrayal, the rescue of mostly female slaves, a harrowing battle with Hunters sent to arrest him, and a refusal by authorities to release any details- a story such as this is guaranteed to grab the eye of whoever sees it."
"And it will give Sasuke a better reputation than he deserves," Glynda snapped, shutting her scroll closed with a bit more force than necessary.
"Perhaps," Ozpin conceded, "but we can hardly hope for him to willingly cooperate with us in the future if the people he is supposed to be protecting do not accept him."
"Even if he does get into the good graces of the general public, I don't see how that will keep him here." Qrow voiced skeptically. "What was the old saying? 'A man doesn't have himself killed for a lien a day or for a petty distinction- you must speak to the soul in order to electrify him'."
He stared at Ozpin with a half-questioning and half-curious look.
"As long as Sasuke is cooped up in Beacon, he won't see or hear much of anything from anyone in the city itself. So, what reason will he have to want to stay?"
"Mr. Uchiha's standing with Vale's population will be of secondary importance for the time being," the Headmaster admitted. "Most of the burden of forging ties that bind to Mr. Uchiha will fall to his future classmates for the time being- a job I believe your niece will certainly be more than eager to start."
For a moment the image of Ruby Rose flashed in Qrow's mind, followed immediately by a sense of terrific anxiety. How could he have forgotten! Ozpin had already accepted Ruby into Beacon a full two years early- she would be going to school with this kid!
He didn't want to make any harsh or rash assumptions of the Uchiha, especially after he had already proven their initial assumptions about him so wrong, nevertheless he couldn't help but fearfully ponder the influence of such a boy on his innocent niece. Ruby had grown into as sweet and generous a girl as her mother had been, and Qrow, not to mention Tai and Yang, all wanted to keep her that way.
Qrow doubted she was in any danger of Sasuke physically or sexually assaulting her, he wouldn't be stupid enough to do such a thing with a bomb in his chest, and from what he had seen and heard he didn't seem like the type anyway. But that didn't mean he couldn't corrupt her in other ways. She was still very young and impressionable- how much would she change if she were exposed to Sasuke and his less-than romantic experiences of the real world? She already held the Uchiha in a high standing after he had helped her during their first meeting, it was possible she would try to emulate him to some degree even if she learned of his criminal actions.
And speaking of his actions…
He had single-handedly rescued kidnapped slaves. He had fought and killed an international crime lord. He had fought and severely injured multiple police officers. He had fought and almost defeated a group of Hunters sent to arrest him.
…
…
…
Yang was going to worship the ground upon which Sasuke's feet treaded. She was at the height (or at least he and Tai both hoped) of her teenage rebellious phase, and was unhealthily obsessed with anyone and anything that fought back against rules or any kind of authority. Qrow could practically see her admiring the Uchiha with stars in her eyes if she learned of half of his exploits.
Qrow blinked for a moment before bringing himself back to the conversation. That was a worry for the future- he had enough confidence in his nieces that they would retain enough judgement for the Uchiha to not be too toxic a presence for the short-term. As for now…
"So… what? You're expecting Sasuke to want to stay on our side by making friends?"
Ozpin gazed at him with mischievous eyes, ignoring the humorous sight of Glynda's jaw almost detaching from her face.
"A slightly simplistic view- but essentially yes."
Despite the sheer ludicrousness of the idea, Qrow could see what Ozpin was going for. Neither he nor any Hunter he knew accepted and performed life-risking missions for 'the people' for the most part. Protecting humanity was their nominal goal, but there was only so much he could care about masses of people whose names he did not know. He wanted to come home to see his precious nieces again, or to just knock back a couple beers watching sports with Tai. The logic made enough sense, but getting Sasuke to that point seemed like a tall order.
Glynda was fully in agreement with him.
"How the hell is a child with Sasuke's history and nature going to form any kind of positive relationship with any of his classmates!? Even without considering that he will be the only one who doesn't know anyone from prior schooling, he will only see the students around him as either naïve trash or useful pawns! I for one think he is far too prone to violence to even consider putting him in the same room as the rest of the students!"
"I understand your concern regarding the safety of our students, Glynda," Ozpin replied calmly, "And there is a good chance you will be right- Sasuke may well have no interest in socializing at all. But I believe there just might be a chance he will be more receptive to the idea than one would think."
"…How?"
"Whether his memories are false or real, Sasuke at the very least believes that with the exception of a brother he seemingly loathes, his entire family is dead. He had a visceral hatred and bitterness in his voice when he told me this, so it stands to reason he did love them dearly and still feels the pain of their loss."
Glynda and Qrow's gazes softened slightly. There was no way of knowing if what Sasuke believed was actually true, but like everyone in their profession they knew the heart-wrenching pain of losing someone close.
Perhaps Sasuke Uchiha was more human than they had given him credit for.
"Whether they are real or not, he will never get his family back. But I believe that like anyone else who has lost someone dear to them, he does still want people he can be close to. Even if he doesn't realize it yet himself."
Both Qrow and Glynda instantly saw where Ozpin was going, and couldn't help but look at him as though he had claimed stuffing lead into a life jacket would help it float.
"Professor," Glynda started after a pause, "forgive me for doubting you, but I feel as though you are making many dubious assumptions."
"I have to agree with her. Tai never seriously dated after losing Raven and Summer; I think if someone goes through enough trauma there's no going back for them. I don't think Sasuke would be in any mood to get chummy with anyone even if we didn't have a bomb in his chest."
Ozpin leaned back in his chair, taking another sip from his mug. He was almost out- it had been a while since he had gone through a single cup so fast.
"You are both probably right."
The two Hunters glanced briefly at each other with a hint of nervousness and uncertainty. Ozpin had been around for ages- well beyond the point where his plans or goals would be uncertain or so dependent on rolls of the dice. Neither of them had ever seen Ozpin so bluntly admit his designs might fail.
"This is a gamble- an enormous one that will bring ruin to Vale and possibly all four kingdoms if we should fail."
Twin pairs of eyes hardened, remembering just what was at stake. It was all too easy to forget the true threat to humanity the rest of the world was so blissfully ignorant of.
"Unfortunately given the alternatives this is the best option we have going forward. Imprisoning him will certainly make him our enemy, one who would be more than happy to join Salem if given the chance. Killing him would almost certainly eliminate the Patch Anomaly completely and subject Vale to Grimm attacks again, not to mention I doubt Sasuke would let us execute him without setting an army of Grimm to destroy as much of Vale as they could first."
All three shared almost forlorn looks. Ensuring the Kingdom's survival by what could essentially be summarized as a coin toss was grossly unappealing- but they were in an unfortunate situation in which all of their alternatives were worse.
"Mr. Uchiha will be admitted as a student. We will need to do everything in our power to give Sasuke more reason to stay at Beacon, and on our side, than to leave it. That will be our first priority until we get accurate information regarding his origins."
Glynda and Qrow gave nods of acknowledgement.
"Understood, sir." Glynda said, placing her doubts aside. Gamble or not Ozpin was right- until they had more information this was their best way forward. She was terrified of the havoc and devastation the Uchiha could cause, both to her students and to herself, but she brought her hand up to the bandage on her head as she remembered how she got it.
Sasuke had been under no obligation to knock her out- he could have just as easily cut her head off instead. She had not been lucky- Sasuke had spared her.
Giving him one chance- just one- was the least she owed him.
"You got it Boss," Said Qrow. "But if I get any news that Sasuke's giving my nieces a hard time or is trying to pull some funny business with them, I'm detonating that bomb myself."
Glynda couldn't help but give a mild huff of amusement as the corners of her mouth were raised almost imperceptively. It was nice that the man valued the family he had left. It was a pleasant change from the half-drunk scoundrel she usually had to deal with.
But then she noticed something that caught her eye- and had caught Qrow's as well. Ozpin was not standing to leave yet. He had a look on his face both of them had seen several times in the past fifteen minutes- an almost dazed look of recollection. His brows were slightly furrowed, his eyes cast slightly down, not focusing on anything, his hands gently grasping his cane in contemplation.
"Professor?" Glynda said curiously. "What is it?"
Ozpin was brought out of his thoughts, looking briefly at the Huntress.
"Oh, I just… I feel as though I've heard his name somewhere before."
"What are you talking about?" Qrow asked. "You were the one who told us who the Uchiha were."
"No, not the Uchiha," the Headmaster corrected. "Sasuke. I believe I have heard that name somewhere before."
It had been nothing more than a near imperceptible flicker in his mind when he had first heard Sasuke's name spoken by young Ruby Rose that fateful night- one that he had completely forgotten when she had spoken his last name. In the following days he had been far too busy ensuring the Uchiha was adequately contained and that he could be interrogated to bother thinking about why his first name did not seem as unfamiliar as it should. But after talking to the Uchiha himself the sensation of familiarity only grew; now it was an irritating mental itch he couldn't quite reach.
He could not recall where he had heard it, but he knew it wasn't the first time the name 'Sasuke' had left an impression on him.
"Well whoever the Sasuke you knew before was, he couldn't be someone that important. You would have remembered who it was right away if he had been, right? It's probably not a big deal."
Ozpin pinched his forehead for a moment before getting to his feet. There was no point in trying to remember anything now- just like anyone else the harder he tried to recall something the more elusive it would become. In the meantime, he still had work to do.
"I hope you're right Qrow. It is a mystery that will have to wait, though- I have another favor to ask from General Ironwood."
"Another one?" Qrow said. "He's gonna start demanding some answers about what the hell is going on in Vale before he agrees to anything."
Ozpin couldn't have agreed more. He hadn't told Ironwood anything yet- there was no reason to risk inflaming the General's excessively proactive nature until he had more than his own hunches and best guesses to go on. He was honestly impressed the man had held off trying to contact him to get answers for as long as he had.
"Now that we have a concrete plan and some credible information, there is no reason to hold off getting James in the loop," the Headmaster replied. "And I daresay that without the usual hordes of Grimm at Vale's borders we could use his assistance to this year's initiation to ensure it will be sufficiently challenging for all of the incoming students."
"DAMN IT! DAMN IT! DAMN IT!"
With a terrifying crack a solid oak table was smashed in half by two furious fists, the papers that had been lying on top of it scattering and fluttering to the floor. Normally they would have been hastily picked up by someone and put back in their proper place, their boss was a bit of a neat freak and liked to have things organized. But no one present had the courage to so much as step forward, let alone get within striking distance of the man.
"HOW THE HELL DID THAT LITTLE SHITSTAIN SQUIRM HIS WAY OUT!?"
Standing in the center of the room was Roman Torchwick, his usual suave and collected mood nowhere to be seen. His hands were trembling with rage with several veins visible on his forehead, and perhaps most alarmingly his cigar snapped in half after he heard the latest news from his mole in the Vale Police Department.
Roman had needed Sasuke permanently out of the way for some time to save his own skin from being replaced, and had come up with a solid plan to put the stuck-up brat six feet under. It was no simple feat; Sasuke was skilled, powerful, and most alarmingly- smart. Only by using overkill and leaving nothing to chance would any attempt succeed.
Fortunately Roman's new 'business associate' Stonewall was infamous for his Semblance that, as the kids would call it, 'OP'. He was almost completely invulnerable to physical harm while it was active, and had hundreds of armed men at his disposal for good measure. Even Sasuke, with all of his talent and skill, would not be able to come out on top in that fight even if he saw it coming.
And for good measure, just in case, Roman had set up a remote-controlled bomb using a significant portion of the Dust they had stolen from Vale over the past weeks to blow the motherfucker to smithereens in the off chance he survived.
It was a good thing he had- Stonewall had agreed to call Roman to let him know how his meeting with the Uchiha had gone as soon as the kid had arrived, so when the man had not called him and did not answer his Scroll, the thief knew then and there his trap had failed.
Well, his first trap at least. Roman had pulled up the video feed form his scroll of the warehouse he had left the bomb in and waited for over half an hour before his rebellious subordinate returned. He had watched the feed and pulled the trigger himself- he wasn't about to delegate such a task to one of his grunts. Sasuke had managed to find the scroll providing the video feed to him and had pieced together what Roman was planning- because of course the damn kid would, and attempted to escape, but it hardly mattered. There was enough Dust to blast a hole halfway to the center of Remnant, and the kid had been well within the blast radius. When Roman had felt the tremors from the explosion's shockwave he had mentally congratulated himself on a hitjob well done.
The next day he learned that Sasuke had survived. But after a close fight with the police and several Hunters he had been captured and arrested. It was incredibly frustrating to Roman, who had to hastily evacuate all of the bases and hideouts he had now that Sasuke would inevitably spill their locations, but at least the kid would be locked up and out of the picture for at least ten years. His plan had hardly gone smoothly, but the kid was out of his hair nonetheless.
But now he had learned Sasuke was not going to be going to prison, but attending Beacon Academy.
That was not good.
The mole had informed him that Sasuke would be under 24 hours surveillance and forbidden to leave the school grounds, but Roman knew better than to think that would make the slightest bit of difference. He could safely assume Ozpin had cut some kind of deal with the Uchiha, likely a lighter sentence in return for using Sasuke's prodigious talents to become a good little Huntsmen and keep the world safe from all of the nasty things in the world, but that moron was too overconfident for his own good. If Sasuke could survive a fight with Stonewall and several tons of Dust exploding in his face he could escape Beacon.
Even if by some miracle Ozpin's idea worked and the kid was stuck at Beacon, it would only be temporary. Whether it was a few months or a few years Sasuke would eventually be allowed to leave Beacon.
And when- not if; when he got out, he would come straight for Roman to settle the score.
"DAMMIT!" He kicked a stray piece of lumber from the broken table into a nearby wall, terrifying a few grunts who happened to be standing nearby.
And as a cherry on top, Neo had abandoned him. He had suspected she might considering how close she had become to the Uchiha, and in their line of work switching teams and backstabbing old partners was hardly unusual, but Neo had been with him through thick and thin for so long the thief still found himself stinging from being abandoned. Roman could console himself a bit that based on what he had heard the woman had at least abandoned the Uchiha as well, one of his contacts reporting having seen her board an airship to Mistral several days prior. Nevertheless, it was a pitiful consolation prize for what he had lost.
But that was nothing compared to the fear he was hiding beneath a blanket of anger. Roman was all alone now, with only his reputation and his title as Vale's biggest crime boss protecting him from being devoured by bigger fish in the pond. Sasuke wanted him dead. Stonewall was dead. Neo was gone. Junior, who still held significant sway in the Vale underworld due to his contacts, knew what he had tried to do to his employee and hated his guts.
Roman had plenty of other contacts in Vale, businessmen and political officials and the like, but none of them were going to stick by his side when Sasuke came knocking.
There were still plenty of hired hands, but they were as useful as they were cheap. Not to mention their morale and loyalty to him had plummeted after his attempted assassination of one of their most respected colleagues. It was only due to the fear of having hitmen sent their way they hadn't jumped ship yet.
Roman was alone.
Had he been in this situation two weeks ago he would have at least taken some comfort that once Cinder returned Sasuke would no longer be an insurmountable problem. The girl had ridiculous power that dwarfed those of regular Huntsmen so much both he and half of his men were convinced there had to be some secret behind her abilities, and even if Roman's standing with her took a significant hit by begging for her to get rid of his little problem at least he would survive.
Now, Roman wasn't sure if even Cinder could defeat him. He had managed to not only kill Stonewall and all of his men, but if the video feed of him approaching his hidden scroll camera was anything to go on he had suffered no serious injury from the fight.
Sasuke might be able to defeat Cinder.
He was no longer just a nuisance for Roman- he was a threat to their entire operation.
Roman racked his brain trying to think of some way; any way, to kill that damn kid, when the back door to the warehouse opened.
"Did we come at a bad time?"
Roman snapped his head toward the… disturbingly familiar voice, halfway tempted to blast whoever had decided to drop by in the face with Melodic Cudgel, before he saw who it was. Or rather, who they were.
Standing in the door were Cinder's two lackeys; the gray-haired Mercury being the one who had spoken, already wearing a cocky smirk the brat was far too green to be boasting, his father's background be damned, and the little street rat Emerald in tow with a more serious expression.
'Wait, where's Cinder?'
Roman's eyes narrowed. Whenever the woman had needed to see him she had always come herself- she had never sent those two little greenhorns in her stead by themselves.
"As a matter of fact you did." Roman snapped. "I really hope you adorable kids came with some good news, because let me tell you I have had a fucking day."
"Then you should be happy we're here" the green-haired girl replied with a hint of snark. "I trust you recall Cinder informing you that we would be bringing you additional manpower from the local chapter of the White Fang?"
"It does ring a bell," Roman replied, inhaling deeply.
"Well then, I'm sure you will enjoy meeting your newest colleague."
Mercury and Emerald stood aside, allowing two other figures to enter the room and stand before him.
The first one was a man Roman had never personally met but knew of all too well, and had hoped in vain that fate would keep it that way. Standing as tall as Roman with an aura almost as intimidating as the white Grimm mask he wore, was none other than Adam Taurus.
Wearing Grimm masks had become increasingly popular amongst the White Fang organization in the past few years, the better to strike fear into the hearts of their enemies by emulating the dark creatures that had attempted to extinguish man from the face of Remnant. Fittingly, the idea had originated from an individual who seemed less interested in obtaining peace and equality with humanity as he was with taking vengeance.
Roman couldn't see Adam's face through his mask, but he didn't need to in order to know the man was staring at him with a revulsion and hatred that made even Cinder's company preferable. By Roman's very identity as a human Adam would detest him, and now he was going to be expected to work with him.
Now more than ever Roman found himself wishing Sasuke had been born with a ruthless streak. If that damn kid hadn't gone all noble the thief would have been happy to keep him around- he would have felt much safer around the infamous bull Faunus had that been the case.
Interestingly, Adam was not the only guest Cinder's pawns had brought. The second individual was a man, but he was wearing a hooded cloak that covered him so much he couldn't make out any other features.
Strangely it was the second guest that terrified Roman more. Despite his blatant racism and hatred Adam was at the very least somewhat predictable. As long as the thief was a useful ally the Faunus would tolerate his presence. The hooded figure though, just sent chills down Torchwick's spine. He felt his hair stand on end as he saw the figure's head slowly sweep the room as though he were sizing up his next meal.
"Well isn't that just wonderful? I'm sure we'll all be the most wonderful of pen pals." Torchwick said mockingly. "Now that that's out of the way, do you happen to know where Cinder is? I have a little problem I need to discuss with her."
Roman knew full well the woman was not with them. Why that was he had no idea, but he knew that with his current problem asking for her help was his only way out.
The response he got to his question was rather disturbing.
Emerald and Mercury couldn't keep the annoyance off their faces, and Adam was predictably furious at being ignored so easily- not that it mattered much to Roman; he knew damn well the Faunus would hate him regardless of what he said. But he saw the hooded figure turn to look at him, and could have sworn he saw two yellow glints of light where the man's eyes should have been that made Roman feel like he was a lamb in the crosshairs of a butcher.
"Cinder's not in town," replied Mercury with a false smile. "But seeing as how we're such close friends I'm sure we can give you a helping hand."
At this Roman stood up to his full height and advanced on the grey-haired boy with a scowl.
"No offense, kid, but my problem is a bit past your pay grade. Now I need you to stop wasting my time and let the grown-ups step in to remove this little thor-"
It happened almost in an instant. In one moment Roman was holding up Melodic Cudgel, half-considering smashing the brat's jaw with it, and the next his weapon was torn out of his hands by a swift kick from the infamous assassin's son. He barely had time to comprehend what had happened before his head was smashed to the ground by a follow-up axe kick, and with his world still spinning Roman felt the crushing force of a knee on his windpipe. Looking up he saw the face of Mercury Black, his usual care-free and jovialness nowhere to be found. Instead he saw the stern face of one who could and would suffocate the life out of him as easily as his father.
"Do you think Cinder's absence will keep you alive?"
Roman felt the blood freeze in his veins. Cinder had always been the one who had been front and center, her two subordinates always taking a back seat whenever they had interacted. In hindsight he had made a critical mistake- he had forgotten why someone as dangerous as Cinder had bothered to recruit the two to begin with.
"I asked you a question."
Mercury increased the pressure, putting more of his weight into the knee suffocating Roman. His throat was crying in pain, the tissue keeping it open for life-giving air almost buckling from the strain as the boy purposefully held off just enough to allow the thief to choke out a reply if he wanted to avoid blacking out.
Roman took the opportunity.
"N- no!" he choked.
With that Mercury let up, looking at Roman as though he were a piece of garbage stuck on his shoe.
"I know you're used to licking Cinder's boot," the boy started, "but just because she's not here doesn't mean you can forget your place."
Roman coughed violently as he tried to catch his breath, his silver tongue for once utterly useless.
It was at this point a giggling laughter made its way to Roman's ears. Quiet at first, before turning into an amused chuckle that disturbed the thief to his bones.
"He he, well now that was quite the show!"
The cloaked figure dropped his hood, and Torchwick wished he hadn't. A lanky face with brown hair in a ponytail was revealed, wearing a smile so wide his face was almost split in two. The man began clapping slowly, enjoying Mercury's display even as the boy scoffed and refused to meet the man's eye.
"And here I was thinking the two of you would need a bit of practice handling yourselves without your mistress holding your hand! Children grow up so fast, don't they?"
Unlike Adam, Roman had no idea who this guest was. But he did not need to know that to recognize how dangerously unhinged he was. He seemed to laugh and twitch randomly, his eyes gazing upon the room with what the thief could only describe as a psychotic hunger.
Against his better judgement, Roman spoke.
"I'm sorry my good man, I know who Mr. Sunshine is," he gestured to Adam, "but I'm afraid I'm not familiar with you."
"Call me that again," Adam said, stepping forward with his hand on his weapon, "and your men will be scraping you off the floor."
Roman wisely shut his mouth.
"Oh, how rude of me!" the brown-haired man exclaimed in feigned shock. "I beg your pardon, my name is Tyrion Callows, friend! I'm afraid Cinder was recalled back by our Mistress and will have her hands full with her new duties for some time. As such, I was sent to take over Cinder's position in her stead overseeing this adorable operation until further notice."
At that not only Torchwick, but his entire crew of henchmen practically voided their bladders. Cinder was terrifying enough as it was, but at the very least she hadn't been crazy. No one knew who Cinder's boss was, but the fact that Tyrion had been seen fit to replace her spoke volumes about how dangerous he was.
"But you won't have to worry about me being the annoying boss who looks over your shoulder too much! I'm afraid I have a… particular quarry to track down in this city that will take much of my time, so most of the day-to-day affairs will be left in the youthful but capable hands of Emerald and Mercury here."
Roman saw with some satisfaction that the aforementioned kids most certainly did not appreciate Tyrion's presence there, and even Adam Taurus was giving the man a wide berth.
"Not that I don't have faith in the capabilities of you or our dynamic duo," he started, watching with trepidation as dozens of rank-and-file members of the White Fang began pouring into the now crowded warehouse, "but I have a not-so-little problem that needs to be solved, and I'm afraid anyone short of dear Cinder's talent will not be up to the task."
Golden eyes turned to a piercing, toxic purple as an eager grin made its way onto the man's face.
"My dear Roman," he said, putting an arm around the thief's shoulder, "that's what I'm here for!"
At this the thief could barely control his urge to run. He recalled getting reports of how all of the men he had sent with Sasuke to meet with Stonewall who had survived had all fled town immediately upon returning, most of them not even bothering to pack most of their belongings from their apartments. He knew full well why they had left- they had sided with Sasuke in his betrayal and could look forward to having their throat slit by Roman's hitmen if they stayed.
Now, Roman found himself wishing he had followed their lead. Between this new psychopath and housing hundreds of human-hating animals Torchwick was between a rock and a hard place.
"Now then," said Tyrion with a sickening grin, "tell me about your little problem."
AN: So another short, non-action chapter. Probably a bit boring for many of you seeing as how this is mostly just a part 2 of the last chapter that just cover's Ozpin's perspective, but it is what it is.
Next chapter is Beacon, so something for most of you to look forward to! I'll try to have it out in one week. See you then!