Atonement XIV

My gentle heart still burns bright, even as the snow falls without end.

SLASH!

The Grimm went one final screech before it finally died, and its body dissolved a moment later. The woman responsible immediately sheathed her long sword and walked away, leaving no footprints. After walking a few yards away, she came upon a cliff. Taking one breath, she took one step over the edge and fell…

A moment later a raven flew up and into the sky.


"Hazel, it is so good to see you have returned."

Hazel fell on one knee and bowed. "Ma'am."

"Dr. Watts provided me with a recording of the machine you fought." Salem leaned forward in her chair. "You put up an impressive fight."

"I still lost."

"Perhaps but given the fact that no one, not even myself could have accounted for that machine appearing, I am willing to forgive failing to bring me Ansem Schnee. At the very least, you ensured Dr. Watts made it out of Atlas." Salem stood up from her throne. "Still, this machine's appearance is troubling. The fact that Watts did not know anything about suggests that Ironwood might have a secret weapon that he's kept hidden very well."

Hazel lifted his head. "That sounds…troubling, ma'am. Given how strong it was, I am…concerned that our future plans will be more difficult to carry out."

"Perhaps but given that the machine appeared just before you could smuggle Ansem Schnee out of Atlas, it's possible he is the one behind it. If Watts knew nothing about it, it suggests that Ansem might be keeping a few secrets of his own. We can perhaps use that form of distrust between him and Ironwood at a later date. For now, we must focus on trying to adapt to this machine's presence and ensure it does not surprise us again." Salem strolled from her and stopped in front of Hazel. "You are perhaps one of the strongest enforcers I have had the fortune to have on my side. Your Aura strength and reserves, your mastery over Dust and your sheer strength in both will and body makes a force to be reckoned with."

Hazel stood up, facing Salem…or rather facing down at her. "Thank you, ma'am."

"But that machine's presence shows that perhaps there is room for improvement." Salem noted as she took a moment glide around Hazel. "You never fight with a weapon."

"Yes. I believe my fists; my body alone is all the weapon I need." Hazel admitted.

"Perhaps but that machine might be too strong for your body alone." Salem grasped Hazel's left hand and lifted it up. "If Ansem is building a powerful fighting machine, it might be in our best interests to see if you can become even stronger…With a little assistance from Dr. Watts and even Dr. Merlot."

Hazel considered the proposal for a moment and then nodded. "As you wish."

"In fact, I think you might prove to be perfectly suitable as a subject for this project the good doctors discovered. The Aesir Project." Salem grinned but frowned. "But bear in mind, Hazel if you do accept that project outside of creating a weapon to increase your own power, it might prove to be dangerous. The potential of the project is aimed for creating artificial Maidens."

Hazel raised both eyebrows. "Artificial Maidens…Is it possible?"

"The potential is enough for me to give it a chance. Your Semblance along with your control over Dust makes you a candidate…However, I should warn that the project aimed at those who Semblances were based on absorbing energy. They could contain the energy but would need to release it eventually due to the volatile nature of Dust when exposed to Aura." Salem explained. "Your Semblance would block out the pain, but we would have to work carefully to make sure you can properly contain this power, or your life would end."

Hazel closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Since I joined you, ma'am it has been a guarantee that there is no guarantee that I will live a full life. I've long since accepted that."

Salem smiled. "Good. Allow me to quicken your departure then."

Salem held out her hand and with a single wave, a black and purple colored pillar of energy appeared in front of Hazel, surprising him for a mere second before he nodded and stepped through it. Salem closed the portal as soon as Hazel stepped through and turned to the windows, looking out across the dark land.

'So much to do and so little time.' The Queen of the Grimm thought idly to herself. 'That machine…It could only have come from Ansem…Was this something you anticipated, Aqua?'

Ever after all of these years, the thought of her old 'friend' still made Salem's black blood boil.

She hated her almost more than she hated Ozma.

And yet, she could admit to also being jealous of her as well.

For all her powers, all the knowledge she had gained, all the fame she had in at certain points in her life, she not only couldn't have cared less for any prestige she might have been given but in fact, there wasn't a trace of arrogance in her.

She didn't care about being the Empress of Mistral, a title that had technically been forced on her by Salem herself in an attempt to paint Aqua as the enemy to freedom, using her against Ozma and that other…knight who had appeared during the Great War. She had been tempted to kill Aqua when she had the chance but that would have been too easy.

She had wanted to make her old 'friend' suffer as she had.

The years of being trapped in that crystal, unable to move, unable to see once the crystal been buried, unable hear, completely cut off from the world and everything.

It had been worse than when she had been locked in the tower by her father.

Salem wanted retribution, she wanted to make Aqua go through that same suffering she had put her through. A hundred years of complete nothingness to atone for what she had put Salem through. Letting her die would have been too easy, too merciful, allowing her to escape into death and become free of Salem's judgement.

No, Salem would rather see her imprisoned in a crystal like she had done her.

All she could think while trapped was how she was going to make Aqua and Ozma pay for their betrayals and treachery. She had her chance when Aqua had been captured in Mistral at the onset of the Great War and that had been her chance. She remembered the glee she felt when Aqua had been locked up and imprisoned in a special cell designed to emulate the same sensory deprivation that Salem had been subjected to in that cursed crystal.

It had even been better when she had been imprisoned literally in her own element.

Of course, the Emperor of Mistral stated that keeping her alive was costly, making sure she didn't starve to death inside that cell or escape but Salem had paid him no mind. Working to make sure Aqua lived through the torture was worthy any cost and even better when the cell's purpose weakened her physically and mentally enough for Salem to use her special Nightmare Grimm to reach inside Aqua's heart and mind.

To find out who she really was.

Unfortunately, that hadn't turned as easy as she had hoped as no matter what torture she was put through, Aqua had refused to relent. It was enough that Salem considered killing her before her sentence had been not even a quarter finished when she learned something.

There was another on Remnant.

Another with the same key shaped sword and powers as Aqua.

And was on Ozma's side.

If there was someone else as powerful as Aqua working with Ozma, then Salem needed to carefully consider what to do next. It was then she decided to go along with the Emperor's idea of putting Aqua through the same programming he had begun putting dissidents in his kingdom through. The program in which any criminals or dissidents would be brainwashed into serving Mistral. Unlike Mantle which executed any dissidents who spoke out against the laws of suppression emotion and culture, Emperor Alexander had believed that execution was a wasteful process, seeing his subjects could be controlled to serve a great purpose.

Salem had seen his work, the secret police that abducted any naysayers and brainwashed them in secret facilities. It was enough for her to actually assist him, perfecting the brainwashing process for what she and the Emperor planned to do about the 'Bronze Knight' that was allied with Ozma.

Brainwash Aqua herself.

As much as Salem wanted Aqua to be locked up and rot away for the rest of her life, or at least her current life, the thought of turning her into a pawn felt too good to pass up.

Though what to turn Aqua into?

A mere soldier?

The Silver Knight's reputation was too great for her to be a simple soldier conscripted into Mistral's army.

A general?

Perhaps, but it would take time and despite the reputations of some generals in Mistral and Mantle's armies, Ozma's host overshadowed all the leaders in Vale and Vacuo's armies.

The host being the King of Vale.

The Warrior-King.

The King whose sword and scepter seemed to command the very weather itself.

Salem considered that she would need a counter to Ozma's incarnation of that era, a king who wielded great power along with a deep wisdom that allowed Vale to flourish.

It may sound ludicrous but turning Aqua into an enemy of the free world was too good to pass up.

Forcing her to become a counter to the Warrior-King, the Imperator of the Mistral-Mantal Alliance, Empress Izanami.

It even had a touch of irony when Salem remembered how Aqua had once told her she thought thrones were overrated.

So, Salem allowed them to put Aqua through the programing, aiming to not only turn her into a counter against Ozma, but also both a puppet and ruler, the perfect way to humiliate her for how she had humiliated Salem for so long. The added bonus of turning Aqua into something she stood against was just the icing on the cake to allow this plan.

Only Aqua had somehow managed to break free of the conditioning when they had least expected it.

She wasn't sure how, as the Emperor of Mistral had assured her that they had made sure she was fully conditioned several years into the Great War. Still, somehow Aqua had broken free of the conditioning and made sure that Mantle and Mistral had lost the final battle and thus the Great War. Salem considered her own desire for revenge had blinded her to how dangerous Aqua really was but there were still questions to be answered at the time, even if it had ended badly for Salem. It seemed her plan to turn Aqua into a pawn had backfired on her and left as the Empress of Mistral even after Mistral had formally surrendered at the end of the Great War.

Speaking of Aqua, Salem knew the family she had with Nicholas Schnee was likely connected to the machine that Hazel had fought. Given what she knew about Ansem, she suspected he had designed that machine and if so, there were two likely dangers:

Ansem had created a prototype machine that would soon be shown to General Ironwood and mass produced by the Atlas Military which would be extremely detrimental to Salem's eventual plans to strike Atlas and take the Staff of Creation. If one machine was capable of defeating Hazel, one of Salem's most powerful enforcers, an army of them would be more than a match for an entire army of Grimm.

The second danger was that Ansem created the machine in secret and thus was operating a secret agenda not aligned with either Ironwood or Ozma. While not as dangerous as an entire army of them, a secret fighting machine with a secret agenda could endanger Salem's plans before they even began.

She would need to watch him closely.


"So, are you looking forward to a trip to Vale?"

Weiss nodded with a smile, making sure her things were packed. Her father had stated that it would be a brief trip, likely only lasting the weekend. So, she only packed a few dresses, a few simple clothes and few Dust vials for her weapon Myrtenaster.

"I am looking forward to it, Father." Weiss admitted. "Even if it is only a couple of days."

"I would be more happy to treat it as a vacation but I plan to spend at least a few hours of free time with you, your mother and brother." Ansem remarked with a soft smile.

Weiss smiled back.

Ansem Schnee was without a doubt a very busy man but no matter busy he might be, whenever he had the time, he would make sure to be there for Weiss and her other siblings, especially when she started her singing career, attending each and every concert she was at. Despite his own hesitations, he supported Winter joining the military and supported Weiss in training to become a huntress. He even brought her and Whitley to several business meetings to show them what to expect if they wanted to one day run the SDC.

"It's fine, father. I know you try as hard as you can." Weiss said once her packing was done. "At the very least, I get to see what things are like in another kingdom."

"Just remember, you should not expect everyone to suddenly know who you are. At least outside of Atlas." Ansem reminded her as they walked out of her room.

"Right." Weiss nodded with a humorous smile on her face. "So, I won't have to worry about countless people walking up to me, claiming to be my number one fans and asking for an autograph."

"Well, I am not sure if we can claim you are that unknown outside of Atlas." Ansem chuckled softly.

"So, then I should treat this trip like another other day in Atlas." Weiss mused.

"Aside from dressing less warmly than you would here." Ansem replied.

"Of course."

If there was one thing that she inherited was her father was his dry wit.

Her mother said that her father's wit was one of his more entertaining qualities but warned her to be careful with it from time to time.


"So, Ansem is going to Vale?"

Harriet rolled her eyes. "Yes, Marrow. Ansem is going to Vale. Do you need someone to clean your ears out for you?"

"Hey, I'm just asking." Marrow pouted, leaning against the door to the training room. "I mean, we're pretty much regulars around here."

"Can you not sound like we're going to a bar?" Harriet scoffed.

"What's wrong with that?"

"A: we don't drink. B: we don't socialize outside of work. And C: we come here for important training." Harriet counted with her fingers. "I mean, I'm the only one here who has upped their Semblance with the man's Limit Break thing."

"Sure, rub in our faces." Elm rolled her eyes. "In case you haven't noticed, Bree the roots from Semblance have grown and I can finally use them to walk up the wall, across the ceiling and right back down. That's progress."

"She's got a point, Harriet." Tortuga commented, examining his green shield. "We're making progress. Not everyone got an instant upgrade like you did."

"Guess not everyone is as lucky as me." Harriet smirked with her arms crossed.

"Wow, Bree. Playing the luck card with me in the room?" Clover asked, holding up a deck of cards. "Care to make a wager if anyone gets a Limit Break, theirs ends up better than yours?"

"Trying to use your Luck Semblance on me, Clover?" Harriet raised an eyebrow but smiled and held out a hand. "Deal. What's the stakes?"

"Whoever gets a Limit Break and ends up better than yours, gets to brag about it," Clover began.

"Uh-huh."

"To you."

"Oh?"

"When we're not around."

"Thank you." Morrow, Elm, and Tortuga whispered.

"And you have to take it." Clover finished. "All of it. No witty remarks or comebacks and you have to do it…" Clover put both fingers on the edge of his lips, curling them up. "Into a smile."

Harriet narrowed her eyes…but didn't retract her hand. "Deal."

"Good." Clover shook her hand. "It'll also interest you all to note that General Ironwood is considering expanding the Ace-Ops."

"Seriously? So, we won't be six anymore?" Marrow asked.

"Well, actually Marrow it would be a second Ace-Ops team." Clover clarified. "You're the newest one here but with more applicants you might actually be assigned to a brand new team of Ace-Ops that will operate alongside us."

"Oh goody. The rookie will look after the rookies." Harriet rolled her eyes. "You'll finally be a senior in something."

"Ha ha." Marrow laughed sarcastically at Harriet.

"It is something to be proud of." Vine was meditating next to Elm. "You will be the senior of the second Ace-Ops."

"Yeah…" Marrow considered it. "That's actually pretty cool. I'll be able to show the new kids the ropes."

"Have you even the learned the ropes around here yet?" Elm asked with a smile.

"Sure, I have. Why would you have me around here if I didn't know the ropes?" Marrow asked, looking confused.

"Good question." Harriet rolled her eyes.

"Okay, let's stop with the banter." Clover noticed the doors to the training room opened. "If Ansem is not supervising our training, I wonder who is."

The answer came in the form of a man wearing a heavy, ornate suit of armor with a black shirt and pants underneath. The man also wore a red fur-trimmed cloak which was held by a gold chord.

Marrow was stuttering while everyone else looked surprised. "Ni-Ni-Ni-Ni-"

"Greetings, Ace-Operatives." Nicholas Schnee greeted while holding up an ornate looking claymore, his signature weapon known only as Spalten. "Given that my son in law is heading to Vale with my daughter and grandchildren, I thought I would take over in his place."

"Nicholas Schnee…" Marrow was gaping now.

Nicholas laughed at the dumbfounded looks on their faces. "Indeed I am. I was growing interested in the training Ansem was putting you all through and decided to see for myself the fruits of your labor."

The Ace-Ops were speechless.

They were going to be trained…by Nicholas Schnee?

The founder of the Schnee Dust Company?

A man considered to be one of the most powerful Huntsmen of his time.

Even Nicholas had been born before the Huntsman Academies, he had fostered a powerful reputation as he traveled around Remnant, battling not just Grimm but bandits, crime lords and rogue Huntsmen. It was even said that he had survived over a thousand battles with barely even a scratch on his armor.

"Now then." Nicholas pointed at Harriet. "You, the girl with the super speed."

"Yeah?" Harriet shook her head.

"We'll start with you." Nicholas held up his sword. "Come at me and show me your strength."

Harriet hesitated but the daring look in the Schnee Patriarch's eyes practically ignited her competitive spirit and prepared her Fast Knuckles. "If you say so."

She shot forward, believing she would easily take him down.

No matter his reputation, Nicholas Schnee was in his seventies, far past his prime while Harriet's Semblance had received a boot not even she thought was possible.

Only she hadn't realized that as soon as she had started running, a glyph appeared underneath her and had spread out. While Harriet thought she was moving at super speed, she was only moving at regular speed much to the surprise of her teammates.

"What's happening?" Marrow asked, unable to believe his eyes. "She's not moving fast at all."

"From her perspective, she is." Clover replied, catching on to what was happening. "She's been caught in a time glyph."

"A what?" Marrow looked at Clover.

"Time glyphs can speed or slow anything inside them. I think Mr. Schnee's glyph has slowed Harriet down to the point she is moving at what we consider normal speed while she still thinks she's still moving fast." Clover explained, keep an eye on Nicholas who watched impassively.

"And Harriet has no way of knowing the trap she is in." Vine added.

Just as Harriet was nearing the edge of the glyph where Nicholas was waiting, he summoned another pair of glyphs that appeared around Harriet's legs. The time glyph vanished and much to Harriet's surprise she found herself skidding forward, her legs now frozen and she was taken completely off guard as Nicholas slammed the hilt of his claymore into her torso. Harriet cried out as her Aura shimmered from the hit.

"You have impressive speed." Nicholas noted passively. "But my time glyph can slow you to the speed of a turtle from my perspective. Even if your speed is beyond any known record for a speed Semblance in the history of Remnant, time is one of the few absolutes."

Harriet's eyes widened as another glyph appeared under Nicholas and several more appeared around them.

"You think because you have superior speed, you could trounce any attempt I made to stop you." Nicholas's voice had now turned cold with his eyes looking down on her with a steel gaze. "It appears you might not be familiar with me or the names and titles I inspired as I built the legacy I sought to pass down to my daughter and grandchildren to carry on when my time had finally come."

Nicholas suddenly vanished but Harriet could still feel the cold steel slicing at her, cutting at her Aura.

SLASH!

"In my life, I have been a laborer,"

SLASH!

"A husband,"

SLASH!

"A father,"

SLASH!

"I was a Huntsman before the Academies were even built! I have gone by many names:"

SLASH!

"My admirers named me Saint Nicholas for my work to bring people together and foster good will to all who accepted."

SLASH!

"I was called the White King by the people of Atlas and Mantle, building a reputation to inspire the next generation and even given the seat to match the title!"

SLASH!

"And to my enemies, I went by many names, but one name stuck most after all this time,"

SLASH!

With one final slash, Harriet's Aura was broken, and she was sent flying towards the other end of the training room, flying past her teammates and hitting the wall.

"The title that fostered endless fear when my patience was pushed to the limit." Nicholas lowered his sword Spalten, casting his cold stare on the rest of the Ace-Ops. "Nicholas Schnee: The Night King of Atlas."

The rest of the Ace-Ops, even Clover felt the icy chill through their bodies from both the title and the ice-cold tone from Nicholas's voice.

Nicholas Schnee may have grown old, but that did not mean he had lost the strength and power he had spent a lifetime honing.

"Now, who is next?"