I do not own RWBY or Warhammer 40,000, only my original characters.
Return of Faith
Chapter Ten: Betrayal of Hope
"That's not mine," Ruby blurted out, instantly regretting the desperate excuse the moment it left her lips.
"Why was it underneath your mattress then," accused Weiss, her voice, and eyes cold as ice. Ruby scrambled to come up with something, anything, that might save them. She shot a sideways glance at Jaune, the blonde leader of JNPR looking just like she felt as his own team stared him down too.
"I… We…" Her heart beat furiously in her chest. What should she say? What could she say? Ruby's eyes darted back and forth between the assembled teenagers, realizing how trapped she and Jaune were. How alone they were.
Was this what it was like for Blake, Ruby thought. Had this been how she felt when she revealed she was a faunus? Was this why she ran?
"You what," hissed Blake, her eyes burning with barely contained outrage and betrayal. "Tell us, Ruby. Why was it under your mattress."
"Why were you even looking under my mattress," Ruby asked quickly, hoping it might distract or at least delay them a bit.
"Why were you and Jaune running through alleyways today?" The question threw Ruby off-guard, not simply for how direct it was but because it was Pyrrha who asked it. The Mistral champion's face was stoic and her normally friendly voice held an unfamiliar edge to it.
"I… I-I don't know what you're talking about," Ruby stammered. "Jaune and I were having brunch together. We didn't go into any alleyways-"
"Gods damnit, Ruby," Yang shouted, throwing the book onto the ground. A number of pages came loose from their bindings, spilling onto the carpet floor, much to the young reaper's dismay. "Stop lying to us! We know what you two were really doing in Vale. We all saw it! Brothers above, what were you thinking!? Do you have a death wish!?"
Weiss and Blake joined Yang in her outburst, adding their own outrage and disbelief twist their words into hateful accusations.
"How could you associate yourself with those lunatics!?"
"Don't you realize how dangerous they are!?"
"How could you support any of this hateful dogma!?"
Ruby couldn't get a word in edgewise, her friends and sister too heated to let her defend herself. She shrank into herself, wrapping her crimson cloak around her petite body and throwing up her hood in a childish effort to become invisible. It was finally happening. The dreaded nightmare she had prayed would never come to life. The discovery of her faith by those she considered friends.
And it was playing out exactly how she feared it would.
"Stop it, all of you," Jaune cut in suddenly. "The book's mine! I was letting Ruby borrow it becau-"
Before Jaune could finish, Yang strode over to him and slammed her fist into the side of the blonde knight's face. The punch sent Jaune flying, and he impacted hard against the dorm's wall. Books toppled from their shelves and RWBY's makeshift bunkbeds shuddered from the force of the blow, and the blonde leader of JNPR slumped to the floor with a pained groan.
"Jaune!" Ruby cried, pushing past the others to reach her friend. She knelt down to help him up, thanking the Emperor the moment she saw the telltale shimmer of an Aura play across his body.
"Yang!" Nora cried out, taken aback by the brawler's attack, but Yang didn't care.
"Don't you try taking the blame for this, Vomit Boy," Yang snarled, her eyes now burning crimson and her hair smoking with her fury. "You're in more shit than Ruby is! I know you're a clueless idiot, but even you should have known what she's doing is dangerous. You're supposed to be her friend, aren't you? Why didn't you try to talk her out of it, huh? Think going along with her religious mumbo jumbo would get you inside her pants!? Is that it!?"
"SHUT UP!" Ruby shouted at her sister, enraged by her insinuations about Jaune. "Shut up, Yang! You don't know anything!"
"She's looking out for your safety," Weiss said, moving to stand next to Yang. "What are you thinking, hanging out with those… disgusting cultists? Don't you understand how dangerous their beliefs are?"
"They've caused the deaths of thousands, Ruby," pointed out Blake. "Their crusades led to the slaughter of countless innocent people all over the world! They called for the banishment of the faunus and started the Great War, claiming it was all in the name of their 'God-Emperor of Mankind'." She spoke His name with scorn and ridicule, her disregard for Him making Ruby's blood boil. "Their whole religion is based on xenophobia and hatred-"
"Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP!" Ruby screamed, jumping to her feet, tears of sorrow and rage streaming down her cheeks as she glared silver daggers at Blake. "You don't know anything about us except the lies the government tells you! Our faith is about unity and brotherhood. Not hatred! We aren't mindless zealots that go around bombing people's houses – or leading Grimm into cities – because they disagree with us!"
Everyone recoiled at that, not expecting such a thing from the normally bubbly fifteen-year-old. Blake was stunned, looking like the words had physically struck her. Her expression shifted momentarily from outrage to shocked hurt then back to outrage as she opened her mouth to retort. Weiss beat her too it though.
"If that is the case, then why was it outlawed after the Great War." The heiress answered her own question a second later, "because it was a corrupt system used to exploit the people of Vale that forced its ideology onto others. Oh, and we can't forget all the atrocities they committed in the name of their 'god'."
"Your family would know a lot about committing atrocities, wouldn't they, Weiss." The heiress, just as unprepared for the venom in Ruby's words as Blake had been, took a step back, aghast. They had never seen Ruby speak this way before, completely void of that child-like levity she usually had.
"Ruby, that's enough," Yang barked, eyes still burning crimson. But Ruby rounded on her sister, anger and years of pent-up emotion lending her courage.
"No! It's not," she snapped back, "The Faith isn't the White Fang! The Faith isn't the SDC! But everyone believes we are worse than both of them! We aren't, and I am sick of everyone saying we are! We don't attack people in the streets for disagreeing with us. We don't force people to join our religion. We help people. All we have ever done is help people. All the homeless in Vale the Council likes to ignore, we are who they come to because we are the only ones who don't turn them away. We give them food and shelter, warm clothes and company. And if they decide to join us and accept the God-Emperor's love because of that, then it's their choice and their choice alone to do so."
"Do you hear yourself, Ruby," asked Weiss, "You are spouting nonsense! The church of the Emperor advocated war with Mistral and Mantle from the very start! They contributed more to the war effort than Vale itself!"
"Because Mantle was killing members of the Church for advocating self-expression!"
"They were telling people to overthrow their own government for 'offending the Emperor's Will'," Weiss pointed out, "it was a member of the Church that fired the first shot that caused the Great War, Ruby. Millions died because some stupid zealot couldn't take a simple joke about his god."
Without warning, Ruby lunged at Weiss in a flurry of rose petals. The leader of Team RWBY lashed out at her blaspheming partner, slapping and hitting her again and again. Weiss, unprepared for such a response, let out a cry and fell over, taking Ruby with her. Yang and Blake quickly ran over and roughly pulled the younger huntress off the heiress.
"What the hell is wrong with you!?" Weiss exclaimed as Pyrrha helped her back to her feet.
"Ruby, stop it," Blake shouted, "can't you see what your faith is doing to you?"
"She isn't the one ganging up on people because of their religion," Jaune stated, getting back to his feet and glaring at Blake. Pyrrha looked about to say something in support of the faunus, but she was cut off before she could open her mouth.
"Yeah!" Everyone turned in surprise at Nora. The Ginger of JNPR had moved to stand beside her leader, hands on her hips and her eyes narrowed. "You guys are taking this way too far."
Yang, Weiss, Blake and Pyrrha looked at Nora like she had just grown a second head. Their shock allowed Ruby to yank herself free from her teammates' hold and run back to Jaune, Nora, and, surprisingly, Ren who stood beside Nora and looked equally appalled by the rest of RWBY.
"Wha… what are you talking about!? 'Too far?!'" Weiss was completely flabbergasted and Yang was glaring lasers at all four of them.
"Yeah," Nora repeated, "too far. I mean, come on, you guys are cool with a former White Fang member, but not someone who worships the Emperor?" Once more, Blake flinched at being called out.
"What god she and Jaune choose to follow shouldn't concern any of us," Ren chimed in.
"You guys don't care?" Jaune asked, as stunned as everyone else was by the duo.
Nora shrugged. "Not really," she admitted, "I mean, I'm kinda bummed you guys weren't having secret dates and stuff. You two really lead us on there for a bit."
"Nora and I have run into many worshippers of the Emperor before coming to Beacon," Ren added, then looked to the others in the room. "And they are no more monsters than you or I."
Ruby couldn't believe it. She had given up hope that any of their friends would accept her and Juane's faith, expecting them to do everything in their power to force the two away from the Emperor's Light. Joyous relief filled Ruby's soul as Ren and Nora placed themselves beside her and Jaune, giving her hope.
"That. Doesn't. Matter. Ren," growled Yang. The girl's golden hair was completely ablaze now, and her eyes were glowing with crimson fury. "It's illegal to worship the Emperor. Ruby is putting herself in extreme danger every time she goes out to pray with those whack jobs. Don't you understand what could happen if you got caught, Ruby? You'd be thrown in jail, or put in a correctional center, or… or…" Yang couldn't bring herself to say.
"Or killed?" Ruby finished for her sister. Yang flinched at the words she had been too afraid to say. In that moment, Ruby's angered toward Yang lessened. She only feared for her younger sister's safety. Still though, "Yes, Yang, I do."
"Then why are you still doing it!?" her sister demanded, the temperature in the rising as soulfire flickered across her golden mane. "Why are you risking your life over this!? You are putting your life on the line every time you go there!? WHY!?"
"Because I have faith," Ruby answered. "The Emperor protects His faithful."
"Then why'd he let mom die!?"
Silence.
Complete and utter silence filled the dorm room at Yang's declaration, save for the crackling of the blonde's burning mane. In this quiet, silver met crimson as two sisters gazed into the eyes of each other in a silent battle of wills, ignorant to the other six pairs of eyes upon them.
It seemed to last for ages, when it was in fact just a few seconds. Yang blinked, her eyes once more violet, as she finally realized what she had just said. Sudden shame overtook her once furious features. "Ruby," she began, reaching out to her sister, "I-I didn't mean…"
Ruby stepped back, tears trickling down her cheeks as she regarded her older sister like she had just shoved a dagger into her gut. Yang realized her mistake too late, and as she tried to apologize – to explain herself – Ruby was already gone. Her teammates brought their arms up to shield their faces as a cloud of red rose petals blew past them and made for the door.
The petals gathered back together and Ruby rematerialized out from them. She threw the door open-
"Ruby Rose."
Only to be met by an officer of the Atlas military and a squad of soldiers, all of whom had their weapons raised and aimed at her face. Her team gasped behind her, as surprised by the soldiers' presence as she was.
The officer stared down at her, hands held behind his back and his eyes hooded by the white cap he wore. His green eyes regarded her with barely hidden disgust. "For the crimes of affiliation with extremist organizations, participation in outlawed worship, and conspiracy against the four kingdoms, I place you and Jaune Arc under arrest." He turned to his men. "Take them."
The Atlesian soldiers obeyed, quickly moving in and apprehending both Ruby and Jaune before the two could respond. Ruby's arms were roughly forced behind her back and a pair of cuffs were palced around her wrists.
"Hey!" Yang shouted, "what the fuck do you think you're doing!?" The blonde made to advance on the officer, but was stopped when over half the soldiers trained their sights on her.
The officer regarded her for a moment, maintaining that aloof air of superiority the Atlas military seemed oh so proud of. "Do not attempt to impede us, young lady, or I will have you charged with aiding and abetting two criminals. Now stand down."
The soldiers not aiming their guns at Yang began shoving the two team leaders out the door. Ruby threw a look over her shoulder at her older sister, who glared furiously at the man. A dainty hand placed itself on Yang's shoulder as Weiss stepped in to stand next to the brawler of RWBY.
"Let them do their job, Yang," the heiress said, catching Ruby's gaze and meeting it with one of utter loathing. "It's for her own good."
Stunned, Ruby could do nothing as she and Jaune were roughly led out of the room by the soldiers and marched off to meet their fate.
~o0o~
"Bless you, Father," the sick man said as he took the offered water bottle. "Emperor bless…" his words were cut off as another bout of heavy coughing overtook him, causing him to double over.
Carmine reached down and gently pulled the man back up. "Drink, Benjamin," Carmine said to him, "save your thanks for the Emperor."
Benjamin took a swig from the water bottle before nodding to him. Carmine gave the old homeless man a reassuring smile, who returned it with a smile of his own.
"When the Angels come," Benjamin began, leaning back against the wall, "I'm going to reopen the Dustbin. I've been saving, you know? Saving up to buy the old storefront back from those SDC devils."
"Have you now?" Carmine said, feigning surprise. Benjamin had told the priest many times of his plan to retake his old Dust shop. He always said he was saving money, that he was almost there, but Carmine and the others knew that Benjamin only ever had enough money to keep himself fed. Benjamin had started to realize that too, but when Carmine shared the news of the Angels return, the old man's determination had resurfaced ten-fold.
And he made sure everyone knew it.
"It will be just like it was before," Benjamin went on, "The right wall will have the dispenser tubes on them, right next to electronics and Dust batteries. On the left will be where the crystals are kept, cut and uncut, every sort you could want. And the counter…" the sick man's voice took on a nostalgic tone to it. "The counter will be smack dab in the middle. I'll be there, smiling at everyone, answering any questions they got. It will be just like before."
Carmine said nothing. He just sat there with a smile, listening to the old man reminisce of better times. They appreciated it when he did that, just sat and listened. That it was his duty made no difference to them.
Benjamin turned to Carmine then, "I will have the Aquila on the sign too," he said. "Right on the front sign, above the name, so everyone knows that this Dust store is one of His." He looked around at the room and everyone in it, waving his arm over them, "and everyone here, I'll give them all a discount. I swear it, Father. I will not have any of you paying full price for anything in my store."
Carmine chuckled good naturedly. "I thank you for your generosity, but I cannot accept such a thing," he said, "I will receive no special treatment for being a priest, you understand?"
"B-but you are His voice," Benjamin argued. Carmine chuckled again.
"I am but a humble interpreter of His divine Will, Benjamin. He speaks through me, but I do not speak for Him. To think that I can is hubris of the worst kind." Carmine took the old man's hands into his own. They were rough and filthy, but Carmine did not care. "I am no more important to Him than you are, Benjamin. We are all His blessed children and He loves us all equally."
"That doesn't mean we won't accept those discounts," called out one of the room's other occupants, causing everyone to laugh.
Benjamin laughed too, only to stop when another fit of coughing to take him. As he brought the bottle back to his lips, Carmine stood up and moved over to the next member of his flock.
It had become something of a habit of Carmine's to sit and speak with the less fortunate of his congregation after every service, those without homes or loved ones to return to. Sometimes they would talk for only a few minutes, other times they would talk for hours. Sometimes they told him of their pasts, how they came to be here, other times they spoke of some interesting thing they heard or saw that very day.
To some it might seem tedious and time wasting, but for Carmine, it was anything but. For him, it was not a mere habit, but an almost spiritual undertaking. Each story he heard, every word they spoke brought both them and himself closer to the God-Emperor. Their appreciation for his presence invoked a sense of fulfilment in the priest that he had felt nowhere else in his life.
A sign, he had determined, after many long hours of mediation and prayer, that the Emperor smiled upon him and his folk.
Carmine had just sat down next to young May, when he heard shouting coming from outside. The priest froze when he heard it. It was far-off and muffled to the point of unintelligibility, but it had been recognizable as a human voice all the same.
Then he heard the gunshots.
A second of complete stillness followed, only to be broken as one of the Golden Crown gangers pulled his pistol out and cocked it. The sound triggered mass panic as Carmine's flock began to frantically whisper amongst themselves, afraid and uncertain.
"What's happening?"
"Who's out there? Do you think it's a Huntsman?"
"That was a gunshot, right? Are the gangers fighting someone?"
"Do you think its Atlas?"
"Everyone, please, remain calm," Carmine's reassuring but firm voice cut through the crowd's panic. "This is no time for panic. We all knew this day could come and we have planned for it," he turned to the Golden Crowns in the room. They met the priest's gaze, zealous determination burning in their eyes as they readied their weapons. "Head for the escape tunnel! Quickly now!"
It was slow going at first. Many of his flock were old and sick, and needed to be carried by their comrades and each second saw the sounds of conflict grow closer. Carmine and the gangers ushered the crowd of homeless men, women, and children out into the courtyard and toward the basement.
As they did so, the door to the false dumpster was heaved open. The sound caused many of the Golden Crowns to raise their guns, only to lower them when they saw it was one of their own.
"Father," the ganger groaned, limping toward the priest as the door slid shut behind him, clutching his bleeding right arm. Carmine moved to meet the young man, ignoring the gasps of horror behind him. The ganger suddenly fell forward, and Carmine rushed forward to catch him.
"Kobi," Carmine breathed, staring down at the boy in his arms in shock, "My son, who did this to you?"
Kobi looked up at Carmine, face pale from blood loose. "R-robots," the young Golden Crown forced out, "A-Atlas robots… Coming up the alley… K-killing everyone…" he trailed off, eyes becoming unfocused.
Carmine reached over and gripped the young man's hand, ignoring the blood coating it. "Hold on, Kobi! Hold on! The Emperor still has need of you!"
But Kobi was not listening. He stared up at the ceiling lamps of the room, a strange smile creeping across his face. "Better… t-to die for the… Emperor… then live… for…"
The boy never finished, taking in one last shuddering breathe before going still in Carmine's arms, smiling up at the lights. Carmine stared at the body in shock, his brain seemingly unable to process that Kobi, a person he had watch grow from a child into a devout young man, now lay dead in his arms.
Carmine may have stayed like that indefinitely, had Malach not grabbed his shoulder.
"Come one, Father," the larger ganger urged, "we need to get out of here!"
Carmine stared up at Malach, then to Turk who stood beside him. He remembered where he was, what was happening outside. Reverently, Carmine set Kobi's body on the ground and closed his eyes, whispering a short prayer to the Emperor before standing back up. He nodded to his two bodyguards, who set about swiftly escorting him to safety.
They entered the courtyard, where many of Carmine's flock still trying to get into the basement. The narrow stairs forced them to slow their pace, further intensifying their fear and panic as they began to push and shove each other. The gunfire did nothing to help this. Clearer and louder now that they were outside, it further exasperated the already panicked crowd.
"One at a time! One at a time!" A Golden Crown shouted, trying to instill some order into the frightened crowd. Another ganger raised her gun and fired off two shots into the air, causing everyone to shriek and cower.
"One at a time, dumbasses," she barked at the Faithful, "now calm your tits and move it!"
But they were not listening to her, their focus was on a sound coming in over the gunfire in the alleys. The unmistakable whirring shriek of engine turbines. Carmine looked up just in time to see a pair of Atlas gunships soaring over the courtyard, their troop bay doors yawning open to disgorge their mechanical cargo.
The crowd's pushing and shoving resumed with increased panic and fervor as the Atlesian Knights dropped into the courtyard. They landed hard, cracking the cement ground beneath them before rising up and bringing their rifles to bear.
"Please, do not resist," they all demanded as one, all of them speaking with the same nonthreateningly cheerful yet unnatural voice. "You are all under arrest. Please come with-"
"Suck my dick, tinman!" one of the gangers retorted, blasting one of the robots with his shotgun. The shot visibly damaged the Knight's frontal plating, but other than knocking it off its feet, the attack did little else. As the machine returned to its feet, the rest opened fire.
Gunfire and screams filled the courtyard as the knights mowed down Carmine's flock like cattle. The priest himself was thrown to the floor by his guards as they and the remaining Golden Crowns returned fire. They only managed to take down one or two of the Knights, but their guns not designed to deal with the robots' advanced armor. Seeing this some tried to charge at the Knights, only to be gunned down before they even reached them, their weak Auras unable to withstand the Knights' superior firepower.
The Golden Crowns were not Huntsmen. They didn't have Semblances or special training or mecha-shift weapons capable of blowing a Grimm's head off in one shot. All they had were civilian-issue gun, wooden bats and rusty pipes, none of which stood a chance against the arms and armor of Atlas' newest robotic soldier.
Yet they fought on. Despite the futility of it, the Golden Crowns continued to fight, determined to avenge the murdered Faithful and buy as much time as they could for the ones who had made it down the basement.
It inspired the priest, and he quickly began looking for a weapon so that he might join his warriors. Carmine caught sight of a pistol on the ground, dropped by the ganger would had tried to calm his flock before the gunships came and now lay dead next to it. He started toward it, crawling on his elbows and knees. He reached the gun, took it, and pointed the weapon at the first robot he saw.
Only to find every Atlas robot aiming its gun at him.
In his mad crawl to reach the pistol, Carmine had failed to notice the sudden silence that had gripped the once chaotic courtyard. He had missed the last of the brave Golden Crowns being gunned down by the mechanical soldiers, his body so riddled with holes as to be nearly unrecognizable. The priest was the only one left, the last living soul in this freshly made graveyard.
The pistol trembled in his grip.
The Knights closed in on the priest, weapons raised, but did not open fire on him. Carmine felt his heart thundering inside his chest, as a terrible realization dawned on him.
One of the machines, the one that had taken the first shot, shouldered its rifle and took out a pair of cuffs. "Please, do not resist. You are under arrest," it told him, in that same sickeningly friendly voice.
Carmine knew what awaited him. Interrogation. Torture. Then once they had extracted all they could from him, they would hand him over to the Vale correctional facilities where his mind would become as broken as his body and the Emperor's Holy Aquila would inspire nothing in him.
Carmine glared defiantly up at the faceless black visor of the Atlesian Knight, knowing what he must do. With a voice that completely hid his fear, Father Carmine loudly proclaimed:
"It is better to die for the Emperor than to live for yourself!"
With that, the priest raised the pistol to his head and squeezed the trigger.
~o0o~
"You are taking things too far!" barked Glynda to James, "taking over security for the Vytal Festival is one thing, but this is a whole new level of arrogance."
"And how is upholding the law arrogant," the general countered. James stood tall, hands held behind his back, as Glynda glared daggers at him from behind her glasses. His calm demeanor only angered the deputy headmistress more. "Possession of outlawed religious items is grounds for arrest and investigation. Collusion with any individual in possession of said items is also grounds for arrest and investigation. My soldiers have done nothing wrong."
"'Nothing wrong,'" Glynda parroted, "Your troops entered Beacon Academy and arrested two team leaders without permission! They undermined Ozpin's authority and made him look like an idiot. You had no right to do this, James!"
"I had every right," James snapped back, glaring at the deputy headmistress, "as chief of security for the Vytal Festival, it is my duty to protect both the Kingdom of Vale and those visiting it from any threats, regardless of who or what they are."
Glynda scoffed and folded her arms over her chest. "And that includes two first year students? Oh yes, I am sure they pose a huge threat to your legion of death machines!"
"Given they were able to sneak a copy of that damned book into your school, they could be," the general argued, ready to say more.
"Enough!"
The demand was punctuated by Ozpin slamming his coffee mug down on his desk, some of its contents spilling out over the rim. He had been listening to them bicker for over ten minutes. Ozpin was a patient man, but he had limits, and watching two of his closest allies and friends squabbling like children was beyond tiring for him.
He looked at his two comrades, traveling first to Glynda before landing on James. The old immortal's face was stoic despite the outburst, though his eyes were anything but.
"Glynda is right, James," Ozpin said, "I understand why you acted as you did, but you should have informed me before moving to arrest Miss Rose and Mister Arc."
"Not to mention that horrible raid," Glynda muttered. Ozpin gave her a look and she quieted down.
In a display of remarkable restraint, James chose to ignore Glynda's barbed remark. Instead, the general turned to Ozpin, "I had no hand in their arrest, Oz. My subordinates were given crucial information regarding a possible threat to security and acted accordingly. As I have told you," he shot Glynda a glare, "I only learned of it after they apprehended them."
"Whereupon you ordered two gunships into the city to slaughter dozens of Vale citizens," Glynda accused, "Without even seeking the approval of the Council! Vale is not Atlas, General. The military does not have free reign to act however it wants! By the Gods, do you ever stop to think about the consequences of your actions before going in, guns blazing?"
"I will not apologize for prosecuting criminals!"
"There were children with them!"
"I said ENOUGH!" Ozpin repeated, louder and more forcefully. The immortal allowed a fraction of his magic to slip into the demand, letting it buffet the two with his power. They fell silent, surprised by the Headmaster's actions. Ozpin sighed, "there is no use arguing over the matter, Glynda. What's done is done. All can do now is focus on containing the fallout of this… tragedy as best we can."
Glynda took a moment to recover, the force of Ozpin's magic had left her in awe. She gave the Atlas general another glance, before focusing on Ozpin again. "Of course, headmaster."
Ozpin nodded to her, grateful. He then looked to the general. "James, I formally request that you hand Ruby Rose and Jaune Arc over to our custody. As students of Beacon Academy, they fall under my jurisdiction, not yours." Ozpin saw the expression on James' face and added, "I assure you; a full investigation will be launched into those two, you have my word."
James just looked at him, his expression troubled. "I'm sorry, Oz, but your word isn't good enough."
Ozpin blinked, maintaining his composure despite the surprise he felt. Glynda looked ready to explode or worse. "And may I ask why?" the Headmaster asked.
The general of Atlas straightened and placed his hands behind his back, taking on that imperious air he often did when making formal addresses or speaking with his troops. "Due to multiple accounts of disciplinary leniency towards Team RWBY, as well as your own personal interest in Ruby Rose, I cannot trust you to properly investigate this matter and must refuse your request."
"You cannot be serious!?" Glynda exclaimed, but James' expression remained firm.
"I've never been more serious, Glynda," James said, "and were things different, I may have been willing to look the other way. But we are living in dangerous times. Grimm attacks are on the rise, as is cult activity. Vale just suffered what could have been the worst Grimm attack in years, were it not for my army, and my sources in Vacuo say the two-headed eagle is being flown openly in open disregard to the law!"
James leaned forward, placing his hands on Ozpin's desk, his firm expression now cracked with months of pent-up frustration. "And let's not forget the incident in the CCT tower where Miss Rose confronted our unknown infiltrator – who has still not been identified – only to allow her to escape the moment I arrived on the scene."
Ozpin's eyes narrowed dangerously behind his spectacles, "take a moment and listen to yourself, James," he said as calmly as he could, "what you're suggesting is preposterous."
"Is it? She managed to convert the White Fang to her side. What's stopping her from doing the same with these religious zealots?" He didn't give Ozpin a chance to reply, "The docks, the stolen paladin, the breach, Ruby Rose has been at the center of each of them, involved in things she should have no right to know about. You may see it all as mere coincidence, Ozpin, the hand of fate or even the will of the Gods, but I don't."
"This is absurd!" Glynda all but shouted, "Ruby Rose may be naïve and a magnet for trouble, but she isn't one of Salem's pawns! She's fifteen years old, for goodness' sake!"
"Exactly," James agreed, "she's fifteen, yet she was able to take down a group of armed thugs singlehandedly, all while wielding one of the most dangerous mechashift weapon designs. Isn't that convenient, Ozpin? That she was at that store just before it was robbed, and that Glynda just so happened to be close enough to respond?"
"James, you are being paranoid," Ozpin replied calmly, though an edge of exasperation was there, "Ruby is a child, and more than that, she has silver eyes. Salem's made it a point to kill anyone with silver eyes, and I doubt she'd change that now."
"Why?" James argued, "you said we cannot afford to underestimate her abilities. What if this is when she decides to change? To recruit a silver-eyed warrior into her ranks so that she can send her on a mission she will never come back from? All while dragging down anyone else that could stand against her. Or, worse, she plans to groom Ruby to be-"
"Enough!" Ozpin declared, for the third and final time. The Headmaster of Beacon shot from his seat, nearly sending the chair to the ground. He met the general's gaze with a cold glare, his earlier calmness all but evaporated. The two headmasters stayed like that, eyes locked, for what almost seemed like hours.
"I brought you into my circle because I saw a man willing to do what was needed to protect humanity from our true enemy. You have the determination and will that many do not, as well as a mind well suited for strategy. But you are letting paranoia get the better of you. Seeing shadows in the dark where there is nothing at all." Ozpin's voice became low and commanding then, "I will ask you one more time, General. Return my students to me, and I will pass judgement as I see fit."
It was not a request, but a demand backed by a millennia's worth of experience. It was not a headmaster asking his equal, but a king commanding his subordinate. Lesser men would and had dropped to their knees and bowed when he spoke in this way.
James seemed to consider his words, and for a moment, Ozpin hoped he had gotten through to his old friend. That he would see reason and return the children to his custody.
Time seemed to slow as the general considered his next words.
"Ruby Rose and Jaune Arc shall remain in Atlas custody, until the end of the Vytal Festival," James answered. "I will hand them over once I am certain they do not pose a threat to the Festival or the Kingdom."
It was not what he had hoped for, but far better than what he had feared. Ozpin accepted the compromise with a nod. "Very well," the headmaster breathed, sitting back down on his chair, resisting the urge to simply slump down in it. He clasped his hands together over his desk again, resuming his appearance of the calm and collected headmaster despite his outburst a second ago. "May I speak with Miss Rose at least, James?"
The general narrowed his eyes. "For what reason?"
"As you said, I have an interest in Miss Rose, I won't deny it," Ozpin began. "She has great skill and possesses many of the traits that all Huntsmen and Huntresses should exhibit. Those traits are also why I believe she has gravitated toward these cultists. She thinks they are victims, innocent people in need of protecting, not realizing the level of strife and chaos their beliefs caused."
"You think you can convince her to renounce the creed," James said, making no attempt to hide his doubt toward the idea.
"No," Ozpin admitted, "not right away at least, but I could make her start questioning things about the faith. With time, she may renounce the emperor of her own will, and become the paragon of peace she strives to be."
James considered his words carefully, analyzing what he had said and what he hadn't said. Ozpin had made it a point to avoid mentioning her silver eyes. Though they were a potent weapon against the Grimm, he did not want Ruby to be viewed as nothing more than a weapon by James. It might appeal to his more practical and militaristic side, yes, but it would dehumanize Ruby, something Ozpin would not allow.
Furthermore, he knew the true reason why she believed the emperor to be a god. Summer Rose had also been an avid believer in the Imperial creed, even going so far as to try and convert her team into the religion. Thankfully, she had only succeeded with Tai Yang, the Branwen twins being too clever to fall for the false promises of the creed. Ozpin had only learned of Summer's faith after she had graduated, and by then, she had become too valuable an asset to him.
James didn't need to know any of this however, it would only undermine Ozpin's request. Ruby Rose had inherited more from her mother than just her looks and eye color. If Ozpin managed to pull her away from the creed and into his own circle, groom her to understand the true threat Remnant faced, then he saw her becoming possibly one of his most powerful champions, and a true defender of humanity.
"Very well," the general decided after a minute, "but it will be under guard. I'm not taking any risks here."
"Thank you, James." Ozpin said, "please contact me when you have made the necessary preparations." The general nodded to him, he nodded to Glynda too, but she just glared scornfully at him. Sensing that there was nothing else to discuss, James left Ozpin's office. The Headmaster of Beacon let out a loud, exhausted sigh before addressing his second in command. "Glynda, contact Qrow."
"Are you sure," she asked with a slight hint of worry.
Ozpin nodded solemnly. "We can't keep this from him, she's his niece, after all. Better he knows about it now than finding out later. Besides," Ozpin spun his chair around, saw Vale and the fleet of Atlas warships hanging above it, "I'm getting tired of the company of soldiers."
~o0o~
Ruby had been praying when the door to her cell suddenly slid open. Bright flooded into the dimly lit cell, forcing the young Huntress-in-training to shield her eyes.
"Get up," A voice roughly ordered. Ruby blinked, still adjusting to the light. She felt a hand grabbed her arm tightly and pulled her up and out of the cell. She yelped, more out of surprise than pain of being handled so forcefully and staggered to stay on her feet.
When her sight finally adjusted, Ruby shot a silver glare at the Atlas soldier grabbing her arm and tried to wrench herself free of him. He let go, deliberately, and caught off guard by this, Ruby stumbled several steps to the side before something rammed into her side.
The girl's muscles locked, and her body began to spasm as bolts of electricity were sent shooting across her body. The pain was terrible. Ruby had experienced being electrocuted before in a match against Nora. It had hurt a lot then, but she'd been protected from the worst of it by her Aura. She had no such protection now, thanks to the cuffs around her wrists. The pain she felt was excoriating, like a million pins and needles stabbing into her over and over again. When it finally stopped, Ruby dropped to her knees hard, coughing and gasping for air as spots filled her vision.
"Don't try anything, kid," another voice growled, "or we'll give a lot worse than a little shock."
Ruby groaned and glared, unfocused, up at the speaker. It was another solider, a woman. She wore the same armor and helmet that all the Atlas soldiers wore, concealing everything but her mouth. Ruby didn't need to see her face however to know the soldier was glaring at her.
Before she could retort, Ruby was hauled back to her feet. Besides the woman, there were three more soldiers in the brig, the one who had pulled her out of the cell in first place, and two standing guard at either side of the brig's only entrance. Both had their guns out, and were no doubt waiting for an excuse to fire them at her.
The one that grabbed her shoved her forward. "Get moving," he said. Ruby glared at him again but obeyed when the woman brandished her shock baton again. They marched her out of the brig, roughly shoving her when they felt she wasn't moving fast enough. Ruby tried to spot the cell they'd put Jaune into, but there were a lot of cells and no windows to tell which one the blonde was in. Before she could find it, she was out of the brig and shoved inside the elevator.
The two soldiers took position on either side of Ruby as the elevator door closed. She kept her head down, glaring at both of them from behind her bangs. The trip was short. They reached their level of the ship and once more, Ruby was pushed forward. The man chuckled a bit, amused by her stumbling.
Stupid heretic, Ruby thought bitterly, you wouldn't be laughing if I had Crescent Rose.
Ruby didn't have Crescent Rose with her though. The scythe, along with Crocea Mors had been confiscated by the Atlas military upon their capture. Their weapons weren't all they took. They'd taken almost everything off the two students, from Ruby's red hood and aquila necklace, to Jaune's Pumpkin Pete hoodie and armor pieces.
Ruby was terrified for her weapon. She'd made it herself after her first year at Signal, it had been blessed by Mother Rosina back on Patch and had killed countless Grimm in the name of the Emperor. She was beyond proud of her Crescent Rose, it was like her own child in a way. The thought of it being taken apart and rendered down into slag by these faithless heretics was both terrible and infuriating.
The soldiers led her into bare white room with only a table and two metal chairs and a surveillance in the top right corner. It was like the interrogation room she'd been placed in the night she fought Roman Torchwick for the first time, and Ruby quickly realized that was just what it was. She was placed at the other end of the table, the soldiers standing at either side of her as they waited for her interrogator.
Ruby wasn't sure how much time had passed before the door finally opened, and a familiar gray-haired man stepped inside. Ruby blinked in surprise at her professor's presence. She had expected some Atlesian officer to be the one to interrogate her, not Headmaster Ozpin. Was the relationship between Beacon and Atlas so great? Or was the general up to something more sinister?
The professor offered Ruby his usual knowing smile, "hello, Ruby," he greeted, then looked to the guards. "Thank you for bringing her here. Would you two mind waiting outside for a moment?"
"The general gave us orders to guard the prisoner," the male guard answered.
Professor Ozpin gave him a nod of understanding. "Of course, but as you can see, she is no threat in her current state," he said, "I am sure you can follow your orders as easily from outside this room as from within it."
"With respect, headmaster," the man said, his tone suggesting anything but respect for the Beacon headmaster, "we are staying here. As ordered."
Ozpin let out a small sigh and nodded his head, accepting their decision. He saw no reason to further this argument, and instead took his seat across from Ruby. He laced his fingers together before him on the table's surface and offered the girl a reassuring smile before speaking.
"I'm not telling you anything," Ruby interrupted, before Ozpin said anything. She glared at the headmaster with defiant eyes. "You can torture me all you want; you won't get anything out of me."
Ozpin blinked at her, "I am not here to torture you, Ruby," he said after a moment. "I just wanted to talk. After all, it is a serious thing when a Beacon student is arrested by a visiting foreign power."
If the soldiers were agitated by the subtle barb against their kingdom, they didn't show it.
"Then why are you here," she asked, wary but genuinely curious. Ozpin gave her that smile again.
"As I said, just to talk," he repeated, "I was hoping you might give me a better understanding of what happened. James was kind enough to lend me the report, but I prefer a more involved perspective."
"You already know what happened," Ruby spat, hoping the quiver in her voice wasn't noticeable. "I was arrested because my friends found out I believe in the true god of Mankind and turned me in to Atlas. It's pretty easy to understand."
"Well, yes, I suppose that does sum it up rather well," he admitted, "I think I may have used the wrong words. What I meant, Ruby, was that I want to understand why. Why would a follower of the emperor want to join Beacon Academy? Why would she put herself at such risk? Surely, it would have been safer to remain on Patch."
Ruby glared at the headmaster. "I want to help people," she growled.
Ozpin nodded his head, "I know, you said so the night we met, but how much of that is actually true?"
Ruby's cheeks flushed with frustration. So, even Professor Ozpin thought they were monsters. She was more surprised than she should be. Ozpin took her silence as the cue to keep going.
"The Church of the Emperor caused untold damage to Remnant, Ruby. Long before starting the Great War," he said. "Did you know that, for a long time, they preached that Semblances were signs of corruption and evil? Anyone who had a Semblance was driven out of their homes by the Church and thrown to the wilds and left to the mercies of the Grimm."
"That's not true," Ruby muttered low. Aura and Semblances were the Emperor's gift to Mankind, powers He gave to His children to help in the never-ending fight against the Creatures of Grimm. Carmine and Rosina had taught that Semblances were signs of the Emperor's favor, slivers of His very being placed inside worthy souls. They were not marks of evil.
The professor kept going, either not hearing or ignoring her words, "The Church also encouraged the discrimination of the faunus race," he told her, like she was a stubborn toddler refusing a basic fact. "They viewed the faunus as inferior and corrupted, told people to drive them away or kill them. The Church spearheaded the persecution of the Faunus for years, all because they were different."
"It's not true," Ruby repeated, a bit louder. The faunus were as much a part of Mankind as humanity was, despite their impurity. It was the Faith that pushed the outlawing of slavery and strove for harmony between humans and faunus. A true member of the Faith did not use the Emperor as an excuse for discrimination.
Ozpin continued, "they also called for the destruction of any and all "false gods", demonizing anyone belonging to different religions as infidels and heretics. In their crusades and witch hunts, they destroyed countless pieces of art, culture, and history, and even put whole communities to the torch, not because the emperor told them to, but because they were threats to the Church's power."
"That's not true!" Ruby barked, slamming her bound fists on the table, prompting the guards to aim their guns at her head. "You don't know anything about us, you just know what the Heretic King thinks we are. Where's your proof? It doesn't exist because you only have the lies that he spread about us."
Ozpin wasn't fazed by her outburst, giving her an impassive stare as he gestured for the guards to lower their weapons. When they did, he said, "I can provide you with proof, Ruby. Firsthand accounts of the Church's corruption and cruelty before and during the Great War."
"From Mantle and Mistral, kingdoms that already wanted us dead," Ruby guessed. Much of the anti-Imperial propaganda had been provided by Atlas' predecessor as they were the ones to pioneer the destruction of the Imperial Church.
Ozpin shook his head however, "no, Ruby, from here in Vale, the seat of the Church's power. With the general's permission, I can provide you with copies of these documents to read during your stay about his flagship. I can imagine it can get rather boring."
"I'm not going to stop believing in Him," Ruby said, prompting Ozpin to raise an eyebrow, "the Emperor. You're trying to get us to renounce Him. Well, it's not happening!"
"Us," the Headmaster prompted.
"Yes, us. Jaune and I," Ruby clarified. "You are going to try this on him too. It's not going to work. H knows the truth now; he follows the Emperor's path."
Ozpin was silent for a moment, head angled so his eyes were hidden behind the tint of his glasses. Was he surprised by her belief in Jaune's faith, or that she even brought him up in the first place? He must have realized she would figure out he'd try to interrogate Jaune too, right?
"What I want, Ruby," the professor began finally, "is for you to understand. That night you first confronted Torchwick, I saw something in you. Behind your silver eyes, I saw the potential to be one of the greatest Huntresses of our age. A paragon of all that is good and just on this planet. I want to see you reach that potential, Ruby, to see you become the hero you strive to be."
"But I can't do that unless I give up my religion, right," she finished for him, her words carrying an uncharacteristic bite to them.
"Well, when you put it as bluntly as that-" Ozpin began, but stopped when he saw Ruby roll her eyes with a scoff. He sighed, shaking his head before standing up from his seat. "I'll speak to the General regarding those documents, Ruby. I am sure you will find them… enlightening."
He turned to leave before Ruby could reject his offer. She didn't need or want to read the lies of the Heretic King, no matter what he said about them being true. She glared at him as he made for door, the guards already reaching to haul her up and take her back to her cell.
"They are coming."
The words left her mouth before Ruby even realized she said them. She did not know why she said those words, but the moment Professor Ozpin heard them, he froze in his tracks. The headmaster turned back to Ruby, gesturing for the guards to stop as well. He looked at her, his expression curious but also worried.
That galvanized her, she sat up, pushing against the hands of the guards as she glared defiantly at the Headmaster of Beacon. "They have heard our prayers," her words were thick with conviction, "and now come to save all of us from the tyranny of the Heretic King. They will bring His light back to Remnant and all will bask in its glorious brilliance!"
The female guard raised her stun baton to silence Ruby, but the professor shot her a look that gave the soldier pause. He looked back at Ruby, expression serious. "Who is coming, Ruby?"
Ruby smirked at his question. She replied with only two words.
"His Angels."
~o0o~
Oliver ran through the twisted corridors of the Back Alley with all the speed his young legs could muster. He turned this way and that, following paths and routes memorized from countless games of tag and hide and seek with the other children of Father Carmine's flock. He hurdled over fallen trash cans, dodged strewn about crates, avoided stray dogs and cats, and he didn't stop running.
His lungs burned with every breathe he took, and his arms ached from the weight of the treasure he carried with him, but he didn't stop running. He could not hear the gunshots or the screams anymore, but still, he didn't stop running.
He couldn't stop. He wouldn't stop. If he stopped now, they'd find him and shoot him and take the treasure away. He couldn't let that happen. He had to run, had to get it away from here, take it someplace safe.
He owed it to them…
Oliver was grateful for the sweat streaming down his face in that moment. It made it hard to feel the tears rolling down his cheeks.
The sun began to set, and darkness began to creep into the Back Alley. It was no issue for Oliver though. He was a faunus. The Emperor had blessed him with night-vision, allowing him to keep running without fear of running into a wall or tripping over a stray piece of trash.
Oliver adjusted the treasure, pressing it close to his chest as he ran. It was so heavy now, far heavier than he had expected it to be when he removed it from its place on the Father's altar. The others had been ready to abandon it, or save lighter treasures from the soldiers' rampage, but not Oliver. He had saved it. The cult's most important and precious treasure.
It was almost a third as big as he was, and was as heavy as a brick, but Oliver refused to leave it behind. It had been what lead Father Carmine to them, it had been what brought everyone in the Back Alley together, it was important.
So, he saved it.
A figure suddenly stepped out from behind an alley corner and Oliver nearly fell over in his attempt to stop. His heartbeat thundered in his ears, all four of them, as he stared at the person who had stepped into his path.
It was a man, a grown up. He was dressed in weird clothes, like someone out of a comic book. Straps over his chest and belt held all kinds of strange devices and machines, not half of which Oliver could guess to the function of. He was big, in that way all grownups are to children, but he was lean too, like the Golden Crown, Turk. He had white hair too, cut short, and features that made the young faunus' instincts scream in alarm.
The man smiled, revealing white teeth, "Hey there, son," the man began, moving to approach the frightened child.
Oliver didn't bother shouting at him to stay away, he didn't have the energy for it. Instead, the faunus boy turned tail and ran in the opposite direction.
"Wait!" the man called out, but Oliver didn't listen.
He was after the treasure. He had to be. He was one of the soldiers sent to kill them. He was going to kill Oliver too. He had to get away. But he was running on fumes. His legs felt like jelly with each step he took, and he felt like he was about to throw up his meager post-worship lunch.
Compared to the solider, who was older, stronger, faster, and not nearly as tired as Oliver, it was a no brainer that he would catch up to the exhausted faunus. Without making a sound, the white-haired man reached Oliver and grabbed him by his shirt, pulling the young boy's feet out from under him.
"Easy there, lad," he said, his accent weird, but Oliver wasn't listening. He thrashed and kicked and bit and screamed with as much might as his little body could. He held the treasure close to him, practically curling up around it in an attempt to protect it. He struggled with the last of his strength to break free of the man's grip, but the soldier's hand was like iron.
"I said, easy!" he barked again, and Oliver felt something hit him on the side of the neck. It got really hard to keep his eyes open suddenly. His arms and legs became very heavy and the treasure he'd saved left like a lead weight.
Still, he held onto it. Even as blackness overtook his sight and he drifted into unconsciousness; Oliver refused to let go of the treasure.
When the abhuman's body went limp, Yole reached down to pick up what the boy had been so desperately trying to protect. It took a moment longer than it should have for the Inquisitorial infiltrator to pry it out of the child's grasp, but when he did, he couldn't help but smirk.
"Only a boy and already protecting the faith," he asked the unconscious abhuman, who did not answer him. Yole chuckled regardless, "oh, the Lions are going to love you."
Yole stored the copy of the Lectitio Divinitatus away and picked up the boy, carrying him and the holy book off to somewhere far safer than here.
~o0o~
Author's Notes: So, yeah, that happened. I apologize if I don't have much to say in the end here, can't really think of anything at the moment. Still, hope you all enjoyed it. Was a ton of fun to write, but I did struggle a bit on the interrogation scene, wasn't sure how to have it play out. If anyone was wondering about Ozpin's reaction when Ruby mentioned Jaune, its because he wasn't actually planning to interrogate him. Ozpin was only focused on Ruby, as she was more valuable to him.
As always: Please fav, follow, and review. Thank you!
DeadRich18 Out!