"On the ground White Fang scum."
"Come quietly now, son. Don't make it more difficult than it needs to be."
"Let go of me! Let… ILIA! Don't you dare touch her you bastard. Don't you…"
Looking up, barely able to lift his head from being pinned to the ground, Adam could not believe what he was seeing. Nobody laid a hand on his sister, nobody even so much as pushed or handcuffed her. Instead, two detectives merely approached from behind – patting Ilia on the back.
She turned her back, walking away with them. Not even a glance back where Adam lied. Where he lost his strength to fight back, not even enough strength to grind his teeth in rage. Letting the soldiers take him away in their armored vehicles.
His mind was spinning, heavy lights flooded his eyes, twirling him down a mad spiral without an end. This spiral was the pillar of his memory, he dug deep inside, trying to look back through his life to contemplate what just happened. Trying to match the life he had lived with his sister, and how she could've come to this.
Before he knew it, however, he was sitting inside an interrogation room with both his hands firmly cuffed onto a steel table. Caught inside this metal box, concrete walls all around him, being lined with a special polymer of some kind, making it perfectly soundproof. There, two Atlesian Knights stood guard by the door, readying their rifles onto him. He assumed the computer would trigger if he were to even try to stand up from his chair. He dared not even lift his pinky finger in fear of the potential speed of these two androids. Though if he were honest with himself, the fear was much more mild compared to the being who descended from the heavens hours ago.
It wasn't that Adam was afraid of this Guardian being. It was more so that the rage and envy deep inside overtook every other feeling he had toward that flying – demon. The image of an entire train being sliced in half was seared inside his mind. But the one image that paralyzed him entirely was the scene of the Superman standing behind the wreckage he caused, absolutely unfazed by his full power.
He struggled to comprehend and imagine what this Superman being was truly capable of. But the thing he puzzled over most was what exactly this being really was. What species was she? Was she really human? One thing he was certain, however, was that she was not an android. The gravity slice proved it.
Unbeknownst to Adam, while he was sitting there trying to piece together what he had seen, on the other side of the one-way mirror of the interrogation room, the Superman hovered in mid-air, with her arms crossed as she stared intently inside – unblinking.
"Oh, Miss Schnee," two detectives descended the stairs, removing their hats as they entered. "How do you do?"
The woman responded with a nod.
"Would you like to speak to him before we do?" Asked one of the men, "We can give you a few minutes if you wish."
She turned her head, still yet to blink.
"No, it's alright," she said decisively. "The room is yours, gentlemen. I am here for someone else. Now if you'll excuse me."
And thus she floated off down the hallway. But not before leaving one final glance back towards where Adam sat, just as the two detectives closed the door behind them. There was something that caught her eyes, the man seemed familiar somehow. From where she herself could not say for certain.
She had flown around this planet for decades now, most of her life as a matter of fact. With enhanced eyesight that allowed her to see farther than even the horizon allowed, she could see the millions of people who walked this planet. Everybody seemed familiar to her – that was just the way things were when one had been flying for so long.
Much like the one person in this next interrogation room, the one whom she came down here for.
Through the door, she floated in where he sat, a man in a ragged red cloak that seemed as old as the city. He had bandages covering all over his body, on his forehead, under his shirt, on his forearms. His fingers were filthy and rugged, covered in scars and other wounds that simply refused to heal. Similar markings can be found on his face, a dark face covered behind short dark hair.
There were these peculiar shades of red that hovered over small strands of his hair, dangling just over his forehead. From afar, one could be mistaken for thinking the red was in his eyes, raging like an angry demon. But his eyes were silver, not red. A very peculiar color.
The man did not seem fazed by the floating Superman, in his eyes there was only exhaustion. Like he had been staying up all night, now only trying to catch some sleep, even if it was for a few hours. There was very little fear in him, even when confronted by the most powerful person on the planet.
"You were hiding on that train during the incident," she said, looking down, "I want to know why. Talk! I want answers."
The man, however, did not even flinch. He only tapped his finger on the table his hands were cuffed to, as if nervously waiting for something. After a good long minute of silence, he muttered under his raspy breath:
"Milk…"
The Superman raised her eyebrow. The man continued:
"… and cookies. Mother used to make me some in the cold weather. It's cold out today, don't you think so?"
"I wouldn't know," she said, inexplicably holding a plate of cookies and a glass of milk when mere moments ago there was absolutely nothing in her hands.
"Of course, you wouldn't," the man chuckled. "Nothing can pierce your skin. Cold, heat, steel, acid, poison. Skin of diamond a lot of people call you."
"You can drop the act by the way, Rubio," she told him, setting the plate down. "I've disabled the camera."
"Thank the Seasons for that," he sighed, relaxing at last before shoving a handful of the cookies into his mouth. "I am famished. Have you ever had to test your limits? Put your super speed to the test?"
"No… I suppose not."
"Weiss Schnee the Invincible Girl, title was well-earned I suppose. The boy on the train learned that the hard way, didn't he?"
"You mean Adam? He caused a real commotion. He snuck past my hearing somehow. I didn't hear him until he triggered the alarm. Am I getting rusty?"
"Well, can you hear what the detectives are asking him in the other room?"
Despite the thick concrete walls separating both soundproof rooms down the long hallway, the sound coming from the other room was still very much audible to her ears. Detective Vasilias and his partner were doing the old 'good cop, bad cop' routine. It was rather tiresome.
"I don't think the problem is that you can't hear what's going on," said Rubio. "I think the problem is that you're not listening. You need to focus."
"I am focused."
"Not on the right things, the things that matter," Rubio shook his head. "If you can focus, you can save the world."
"My concern is not the world, only Atlas. Enough of this, tell me how close you are to finding King Ozymandias?"
"Well, he's not an easy person to find. It's not as if he left behind his calling card. The man's not exactly thrilled to be found out just so your people can arrest him."
"General Ironwood is offering amnesty. He does not want to arrest the King of Vale, how would that look to the press abusing a man of holy power?"
"About the same?" Rubio shrugged. "Let's not pretend the media is feeling favorable towards a government that is suppressing their freedom to speak freely."
"They lost that freedom when they smeared and slandered Mayor Ebi during the Patch shooting. I cannot allow that sort of immorality to run rampant. The media needs to be held accountable."
"And I don't disagree with you there, but regardless, the King doesn't feel safe unless he has some guarantee for his safety during negotiations."
"I could've scanned the entire planet and searched for him within a matter of hours and have him thrown into prison twice as fast. But I didn't. Isn't that enough of a show of goodwill?"
"Hmm… maybe. Or maybe it's just a sign that he's besting your sight still with his magick."
Weiss sighed, lowering her head:
"Finish your milk, I'll clean up for you. If you can get me an audience with the King in two days' time, I'll talk to the General and maybe he'll be able to make an appeal to the Council to give you a reduced sentence. Maybe community service, and that's it. I don't want you staying in here for long, you know that, right?"
Rubio gulped down the entire glass in one breath, wiping his lips he said:
"I do. But I'll need your help. Rumor has it that the King is hiding with a rebel base somewhere in the south of Forever Fall. That White Fang boy, Adam, right? Perhaps he saw something during his train heist. Give me some time alone with him, maybe my Semblance will show me something."
"You're asking me to stick out my neck a whole lot, you know that?" Weiss grinned softly.
To which Rubio smiled back:
"Nothing you can't handle. You can take it."
"For all this effort, it would've been easier if you had just joined the Empire. After all this time, you still refuse to be by my side?"
Rubio shook his head:
"You know I can't do that. We both know that nobody can truly be by your side. We are all beneath you – always. That will never change."
Weiss turned her back, still with her arms crossed. And yet the room had been cleaned up faster than Rubio's eyes could track. She floated outside to catch the two Atlesian Knights' attention at the end of the hall.
"He isn't talking," she said. "Maybe he'll open up if you put him in the chair. Start on low, but don't hesitate to go max voltage."
Rubio's last words echoed inside Weiss's head, haunting her. Rubio once said something similar a very long time ago. And it looked like he had not changed his mind. Weiss leaned against the wall, crossing her arms. Pondering about the possibilities of the future, because she was envious of what Rubio was capable of with his own Semblance.
Rubio Rose was a seer, that was his ability. He could see into the future. How far he could see was a little unclear. And how vague and murky it was seemed to vary on a daily basis. It was however absolute, and could not be changed. Once Rubio made a prediction, it was bound to happen, and it will not change. Naturally with an ability as powerful as this, he would often keep it a secret from others. Keeping it from his friends, families, from government and kingdoms. Some people of the underground world would dub him the Street Prophet.
But only a handful of people on the planet were aware of that powerful eyesight. And Weiss Schnee was one of those people. She had always wondered why Rubio chose to reveal the secret to her. She had always figured it was because she too shared a powerful pair of eyes that could see far beyond the horizon. She thought they shared a kindred spirit of some kind. But she could never truly read what Rubio was really thinking.
From afar Weiss began picking up chatter from the schoolboys. She recognized Cardin Winchester's voice, alongside one of his teammates Lie Ren. They met once during a class inspection, rambunctious lot these boys were. Especially that Cardin boy.
"Oh hey, it's the Ice Queen," Cardin said to his friends, waving his hand. "Princess! Just the person I wanted to see."
The boy was curt, but predictable. A nice change of pace from Rubio at the very least.
"You're not hovering?" Ren asked as the boys approached.
Weiss looked down at her feet, only now noticing.
"Ah yes, I was deep in thought," she said before floating back up once more.
"So what's going on, Princess?" Cardin smiled. "So anyway, me and the boys here got an assignment to patrol some of the Patch refugee camps. We was thinking maybe you like to come with us, and maybe grab a drink later in the evening? We're going to the dance halls later."
"Patrolling is serious business," Weiss's gaze sharpened into a scowl. "I would hope you will be taking them a little more seriously."
"Yeah, well, I am," said Cardin, "but now that everybody's getting their Semblances it'll be a breeze right? No Grimm can mess with us when we're this strong."
"Is that what you think?" Weiss hovered above the young tall boy. "Is this just a game to you? Are the innocent people who lost their lives to these monsters a joke? Are the countless brave men and women who volunteered their lives for the Empire a joke?"
"Whoa, chill out, Princess," Cardin raised his hands. "I'm just saying they don't seem so tough. I've handled a few big Beowolves myself. It wasn't a big deal."
"When you've seen the things I've seen, maybe you'll think differently," she said.
"Please, Princess. I bet you if I could fly like you I can be a Superman, too, no problem. You just wake up every day, salute the flag, sing the anthem and go out to clean up the small fries. I can do that, too, maybe even better."
"Is that a fact?" Weiss raised an eyebrow.
"What are you doing? You dumbass!" Ren whispered, tugging on his arm.
"You don't want to take on this wager," said Weiss.
"If I were wimpy Renny boy here, sure. But I'm not like him. I can lift a truck on my shoulder like it's nothing."
"Then I'll make it easy for you then," Weiss extended her hand as if to offer a handshake. "If you can pull me down to have my feet touch the ground – I'll talk to General Ironwood and have him appoint you as the new Superman of the State of Atlas."
And just like that, with this one small wager, they had managed to attract a crowd of onlookers. All gathering from afar at the sight of the Superman looking down towards a mortal man. Both of these people were fine specimens of peak physical condition. Tall, muscular, and extremely powerful.
There was, however, a certain gravitas about Weiss that made people drawn to her. Something about the way she floated high above the ground that made people question her physical condition, even to go as far as to question the state of her mortality, and what species she truly was.
"Hey, Ren!" One of the students approached him from the emerging crowd. A young blond student in white uniform.
"Oh, Jaune. You're here."
"What's going on, man?"
"What else? It's Cardin being Cardin again. Made this stupid bet, trying to show off his strength. You know, same old same old. Guy just doesn't know when to quit."
"Holy crap, it's the Superman," Jaune stared on. "This isn't going to look good."
"No, it isn't. I'm going to have to stick around to clean up his mess again."
"I guess he stands a better chance than anybody in this school," Jaune scratched his head. "He won the jackpot of the Semblance lottery. Is it really genetics? Or is it random chance?"
"I'd say genetics," said Ren, "super strength just kind of fits a knucklehead like him. But none of that really matters. It's the Superman we're talking about."
"I never really understood why she's called the Superman when she's a woman," said Jaune.
"You can ask our professors about it. They'll probably hit you with a bunch of research papers on etymology, philosophy, biology, and the like. I actually have several books on the subject if you want to borrow them."
"Ah, ha-ha, no thanks. It may be a little too advanced for me."
And without another moment of delay, Cardin had begun pulling. He grabbed a hold of Weiss's palm, wrapping both his grips around her, pulling as hard as he could with every ounce of strength powering his calves. So much to the point the concrete ground beneath him had cracked like they were made of glass, leaving very clear indentations.
The force Cardin was exerting out of his entire body was immense. Overwhelming everybody nearby with an Aura that was unlike anything they had ever experienced before. Almost as if an invisible gravitational force was pushing them back for the showdown between two of the strongest people on the planet.
Cardin's body began to glow a bright furious shade of red, pouring out from every inch of his body as his veins began to pop up on his forehead and the back of his hands. He repositioned himself numerous times throughout, trying different angles to find a convenient point of leverage.
Despite all that strength, crushing the concrete beneath his feet into powder, the Superman remained floating in midair, still yet to move a single inch. She hovered above him, clasping his grip as she stared down with an unblinking gaze of rage. Or at least that was what Jaune assumed at first, but it was quite frankly hard to tell. These shining blue eyes were focused, not really one belonging to a rage-fueled monster or god. Instead, they seemed a lot more disappointed somehow, a lot more somber as the minutes went on. It was as if Weiss was expecting an entirely different outcome – saddened by the things that remained unchanged.
"If this is the best the sons and daughters of Atlas could produce – then perhaps it is Destined that this Empire will one day fall," Weiss said just loud enough for Cardin to hear, "are you going to be the end of Atlas?"
Cardin seemed too distracted with his struggle to even hear what she had just said. The rage was piling up inside, and he had yet to stop pulling with every ounce of energy left inside him. The crack on the concrete ground beneath him continued to grow with each passing second.
All that effort, in the end, was rendered completely futile at the ringing sound of the alert siren in the distance, roaring by tall megaphones suspended on various flagpoles and hovering surveillance droids. All of which echoed into an ear-piercing sound so incredibly loud that some of the students leaped back from where they stood, startled by this sudden growing noise. It was a sound that they had been trained for in countless drills during their time at this Academy or similar training camps. It was all too familiar, the urgency the alarm siren sounded off.
What wasn't familiar was the distant roaring of a beast far off in the land thousands of miles away, seemingly coming from where Forever Fall was, where the train crash was just a day ago. It was at this moment the students realized that this was no drill – this was real.
This was the siren alerting them to an impending Grimm attack – disaster status: Kaiju.
An old ancient term that came from a civilization long lost to time, buried beneath the sand. Archeological findings and available texts suggested, however, that this was the term ancient people used to describe any sufficiently large monster. A rare breed of creatures long thought to be extinct, now inexplicably still roaming the planet serving as reanimated creatures of Grimm – a race of Giants. The roar of this monster overwhelming the booming echo of the siren was evident enough of its gargantuan size.
Many of the students were stunned, startled by the scale of it all, some even tripping over themselves as they scattered off deeper into the Academy where it was safe. But only one in this crowd remained focused among the commotion, her eyes steeled towards the direction of the roar, powered by absolute focus and determination. Her hands still yet to let go of Cardin's grip, or rather it was the other way around – Cardin being the one who still had yet to let go.
And that was the true difference between these two specimens – one was made of determination and focus, the other was forged out of simple pure obsession.
Still yet to let go of the grip, but only now realizing he was being lifted through the air, darting at an unimaginable speed. The overwhelming strength of both the wind and the flight of the Superman forced Cardin's grip off her, thus falling down to the crimson forest below.
He could only catch small glimpses of what the mountainous monster in the distance looked like – a monstrous drake of some kind, with a huge white dome for a skull and fangs sharper than any blade he could ever imagine. Arms dragging along with twisted claws growing out of lanky bony fingers that were still easily the size of a massive tree trunk.
Rows upon rows of teeth baring against the approaching flying Weiss Schnee, who was but a single speck so small, she might as well be an ant compared to the Giant before her. One slobbering with hideous Grimm essence and foul breath that could corrode the nearest plant if given the chance. The creature's red eyes glowed with intense fire of a hunger that could not be contained.
But Weiss's shining blue eyes shined brighter, shimmering like diamonds as she casually broke the sound barrier flying towards the lumbering Giant drake in the distance spewing out its putrid toxic mouth foam. Cardin could only catch the tail end of the scene, but it was still enough for him to witness her flying with such force and ferocity that the creature's skull was instantly shattered into fragments of the undead flesh upon contact, so fast Cardin could barely keep up and process what had happened.
He knew, however, the moment the monster stopped roaring was the moment this battle was over. He knew then – the Giants which once roamed this vast mysterious planet were merely the precursors to the strength of the ultimate being in the evolutionary line.
The colossal stature of monsters and men meant nothing in the face of a being who could soar far above the skies and deep into the murky cosmic heavens above. Only to then descend upon the realms of mortal men to show everybody the power to break a planet in two. The ultimate evolution of power belonged not to those who walked this planet, but instead to the one being who broke off the gravity of the surface and achieved the freedom of flight. In breaking off the planet's gravity, she may have also broken off the gravity of Destiny itself.
"Come on, hurry," Sun said to his White Fang brethren, hopping through the bushes.
"Slow down sun," said Tukson, following shortly behind. "How do you even know Adam is even there anymore?"
"I don't. But knowing Adam, he isn't going down without a fight. They're going to have to drag him kicking and screaming if they want to arrest him. Plus, we still need to find Ilia, we can't just leave her out there."
"There's the train track!" Sienna called them from afar, looking through her binoculars.
"By the Seasons," Sun looked on in horror at the sight of destruction. They were still a far distance away. But once Sienna handed Sun her binoculars, the carnage they saw was indescribable.
A massive crater located at the very center of the track with construction robots nearby still there trying to clean up the remnants of the train crushed like a tin can. Carriages still scattered about, some with their walls punctured. Walls made of steel, completely crumpled like they were made of paper.
What was most intriguing, however, was the single frozen rapier lying in the middle of the crater on the track. The blade dug deep into the soil, like some kind of flower bursting out of the ground with frozen petals erupting from its roots. Conveniently, none of the construction robots seemed to even notice the presence of that sword, let alone go near it. It was as if they were programmed to ignore the blade entirely.
There was a certain gravity about the sword, however, that drew Sun's gaze. Something about the way the blade was placed into the ground made him want to walk up and pull it out of the soil. His gut feeling told him, however, that even if he had tried to do such a thing, he would not be able to pull the sword out of the ground. Nobody on the planet could.
Except…
"SUN, LOOK OUT!" Sienna cried, pointing high up in the sky.
Emerging from the misty fog of the Forever Fall forest, stood the gigantic shadow of a black beast roaring to the heavens. Its steps were heavy, lumbering forth as if an entire mountain had learned to walk. The power of this Giant beast felt primordial, echoing of the ancient past of a world roamed by mysterious gargantuan monsters.
"Let's get out of here!" Sienna pulled Sun back. He nodded his head and the three of them began to flee back where they came from.
But not before Sun took one final look back to where the monster stood, only to see a small speck flying from the West at a speed that defied imagination. Instantly breaking the sound barrier to ram into the skull of the monster, instantly rupturing its brain into foul Grimm essence.
Never in his entire life had Sun ever felt so small and insignificant in the grand scheme of things. How could a mortal like himself compare to the presence of this one being who soared so far above the heavens? This thing, whatever she was, was divine. Sun could think of no other explanation.