(Author's Note: Hello my readers, and welcome to a new one-shot of mine.
As the title suggests, this is MY version of Ironwood's "conclusion" at the end of Volume 8. How his story ended…was atrocious. Truly an absolute middle finger to his character.
I don't like how Ironwood was treated, both in and out of universe. Throughout Volume 7, he's treated as if he's about to snap and go full-on "Joker" at any moment…even though he spends all his time trying to help everyone, while constantly getting shit from pretty much all sides. All of his good intentions and logical decisions suddenly mean nothing, and he's barely treated better than the villains. The part that irritates me the most is the fact that nearly all of his decisions are either good ones or have very logical reasons behind them (that get completely ignored).
The Dust Embargo? He knew that Salem would be coming for Atlas eventually (no doubt with a much larger force than at Beacon since Atlas is not only the most technologically advanced kingdom in the world but the only one with an actual army), so he called his army back and wanted them at their strongest to protect the nation.
Closing Atlas's borders? He was trying to make it as difficult as possible for Salem's agents to infiltrate Atlas (likely knowing that someone would EVENTUALLY get through, but figuring that closing the borders would buy them at least a little extra time to prepare).
Not telling the people about Tyrian? Certainly, a controversial choice that none of us would want from our government officials, but it made sense at the moment. What was he supposed to say: that a homicidal maniac thought dead was running through the kingdom, and the military doesn't know where he is, what he wants, or where he'll strike next? That'll cause a panic, which will bring an army of Grimm that they can't afford to focus on.
Choosing to abandon Mantle? The MOST controversial thing Ironwood did, hands down. But everyone who demonized him for this always ignores the context and WHY he thought that this was the best option. Assuming that Ozpin told him about his belief that Salem wanted to destroy Remnant entirely (which I think he did, as he'd have no reason to keep this from his Inner Circle), Ironwood knows that Salem CANNOT be allowed to get her hands on the Relics. His soldiers had just BARELY repelled the recent Grimm invasion, things seeming to look up…only for him to find out that not ONLY was an even larger force on its way, but it was being led by Salem herself (who is not only the most powerful being on Remnant, but who he just found out was immortal). He KNEW that they couldn't beat Salem in a straight-up fight, so his decision was made to keep the Relics away from her. It's cold, brutal, and harsh…but you CAN'T say that it was done without reason (especially since claiming otherwise completely goes against his personality).
Is the man perfect? Of course not. I'm not saying that Ironwood never did anything wrong, just that I'm sick of the needless bashing.
But what does this have to do with my annoyance with Ironwood's death? Nothing. Well…something. All of this was me addressing my feelings on Ironwood so you'll understand it going in. My opinions on Ironwood's canonical death will be in the ending Author's Note after you've seen what I wrote.
Anyway…hope you guys enjoy:)
"Before our allies fell, Neopolitan…killed Ruby," Cinder spoke, turning around as the black cloud of smoke began condensing into a larger form. "And, before Ruby and her allies fell, they used the Lamp's final question." The cloud of smoke quickly transformed into the cold visage of Salem: Queen of the Grimm and the greatest terror Remnant had ever seen. "I-I couldn't stop them! I couldn't even stop the Maiden from escaping without putting the Relics in jeopardy." Because Cinder had her head down, she didn't see Salem's narrowed red eyes (1). "I'm…I'm sorry," Cinder took a knee, holding a hand to her chest. After a moment, she held out both the Lamp of Knowledge and the Staff of Creation to her master. The Fall Maiden couldn't help but feel a twinge of fear growing in her at Salem's silence. After a few moments, however-
"In pursuit of a new world-," the Grimm Queen leaned down to take the Relics, "-no cost is too great. You've done well, Cinder," Salem smirked, raising the Lamp to admire its gold and blue tone. "Our work here is done." Salem began walking toward the exit, her protégé quickly following her, "You said that they used the Staff. I assume you rid the world of their creation. What did you create in its stead?" Salem looked back toward the young woman, noting the small smirk growing on her face (one that may have gone unnoticed to normal people, but Salem had lived too long to be so easily fooled).
"I merely added more flames to the fires of Atlas," Cinder replied, unable to keep the arrogant joy out of her voice as she thought back to her work.
A nearly indestructible window. A simple thing really…but when combined with a room quickly filling up with fire? And one of the people that Cinder despised the most of the world? It all came together to equal one of the most enjoyable experiences in Cinder's life.
Goodbye, Arthur Watts, Cinder was no longer able to hide her smirk…nor was she aware of the side-eye that her master was giving her.
BANG! Suddenly, a gunshot echoed through the near-silent chamber. Salem's upper body lunched forward, her head down as she stopped walking.
"MISTRESS!" Cinder spun around to the origin of the shot, seeing the man responsible slowly standing up. One James Ironwood, breathing heavily as he held a smoking silver gun in his hand. Cinder snarled like a Grimm, a flame manifesting from her eye, "You disrespectful-!" A fireball formed in Cinder's hand and she prepared to throw it…only for the Staff to suddenly appear in front of her, halting her action. "M-Mistress?" Salem picked her head up, revealing a large hole that had been blasted through her head. Just then, a black and red "liquid-like" substance began emerging from within Salem's wound. The substance quickly spread to cover the hole before the Grimm Queen's visage was fully healed (as if it had never been damaged in the first place).
"Cinder-," Salem spoke in her usual calm and collective tone (as if she didn't just have a hole blown through her face), causing her Fall Maiden to snap to attention, "-be a dear and hold these for me." She held out the Relics and Cinder, with a confused look on her face and a slight tremble in her hands, took ahold of them, "I'll only be a moment."
"O-Of course."
Salem turned her gaze to the Huntsman, holding her hands in front of her as she began walking towards him, "I suppose that I shouldn't be surprised by your endurance…should I, James? I have no doubt that's partially why Ozma chose you for his little cabal. What better choice for an unwinnable war than a pawn who refuses to quit?" Ironwood didn't speak a word as he stood to his full height. He gave his enemy a fiery glare as he held up the final piece of Due Process.
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
"What do you hope to achieve with this, James?" Salem asked, not slowing her walk or even flinching as the bullets pierced her body (with the wounds healing over almost immediately after forming). "Your army is vanquished, your kingdom has fallen…and your allies have abandoned you. What exactly is this little show meant to demonstrate?" When Salem was left only a foot away from Ironwood, the Huntsman tossed Due Process in the air and grabbed it by the muzzle. With a battle cry, Ironwood swung the butt of the gun at Salem with all of his might. The Grimm Queen twisted her body to dodge the first strike and leaned her upper body back to avoid the second. When Ironwood swung his gun in an overhead strike, Salem stepped to the side…before holding her hand to his chest, holding her middle finger by her thumb.
The force of the flick sent Ironwood flying through the air, sprawling across the floor once he landed. The Huntsman, however, was quick to bring himself to his feet, turning his glare back to Salem, who simply smirked at him.
Just then…Ironwood began to run towards the Grimm Queen. He fired numerous shots from his gun before leaping into the air, preparing to bring the butt of Due Process down as hard as he could. Salem, however, simply looked up and flicked up a single finger…causing a telekinetic force to slam into him from below, causing his body to spin overhead. The General quickly righted himself with a roll, expertly landing on his feet. He held up his gun again-
"AHHHHHH!" -only to have it knocked out of his hand and over the edge by a blood-red fireball.
"James," Salem shook her head, like a mother disappointed in her child, "Will you not cease this foolishness?" Clenching his fist and giving Salem another glare, Ironwood bolted forward like a bullet. "You're an intelligent man, James." Salem moved her head to the side to avoid a punch, firing a burst of telekinetic force to push the man back (though, he remained on his feet), "You must realize that these efforts are futile." Ironwood leaped into the air, rearing a fist back to drive into her skull…only for Salem to twist her body to avoid the attack at the last second, quickly grabbing him by the back of the head and slamming his face into the ground before tossing him near the edge. "Truth be told…I've always been a little jealous that Ozma got to you first. A man as strong and determined as you? A useful ally to be certain. You know…I could use a man like you." This time, Ironwood shot her a downright MURDEROUS glare.
Cinder was looking at the Grimm Queen as if she suddenly grew two heads, "M-Mistress-?!"
"Quiet, Cinder," Salem shot a glare over her shoulder, "The adults are talking." Turning back to Ironwood, Salem's glare was instantly replaced by a gentle smile, "This world, James…it's sick. It's dying. It has been for centuries. Ozma always believed that mankind could be trusted to fix its problems. He had faith in the "inherent goodness" of all." Salem chuckled, "It still amazes me that someone could live for so long and yet still be so naïve," she muttered, before turning her gaze back to the Huntsman, "But you're not naïve, are you, James? You understand the true nature of mankind. You've seen it firsthand in your kingdom. The complacency of your fellow Council members. The greed of Jacques Schnee. The arrogance of Robyn Hill and her so-called "Happy Huntresses". How often have they stood in the way? How many situations do you know, deep down, that you could have solved otherwise? How many lives could you have saved if they simply listened to you, who knew best?" For the briefest of moments, Ironwood's fists slightly unclenched and his pupils briefly left Salem (before quickly returning). "You know I'm right, James. I can see it in your eyes. The anger…the pain at being kept from doing what you knew needed to be done for your people. Wouldn't you like the opportunity to do just that?" She put a hand to her chin, "Think of Remnant as…a house. When something breaks, you fix it of course. When something else does, you repeat the process. But…as more things begin to break at once, it becomes a problem. For every problem you fix, they are replaced by three more. Even as you try your hardest to fix the problems, it becomes too much." She held out a hand, "The only sensible action to take-," she clenched her hand into a fist, tight enough to draw blood, "-is to tear down the house and build something even better from its remains." Salem began walking towards Ironwood, "Unlike Ozma, I don't want to simply let Remnant exist as is. I want to fix it. Make it better. Turn it into the paradise that I know it can be (2). But…this cannot be done without making difficult choices. You are a man who not only understands the necessity of these choices but is prepared and willing to make them. As I'm sure you heard me when I told young Cinder, there is no sacrifice too great when pursuing a better world. Throughout history, nothing great and worth having can be acquired without sacrifice." She shrugged, "Some call it "cruel" or "heartless"…but you and I know better, don't we?" In a sudden moment, Ironwood shot forward like a bullet…only to have his fist caught at the last second by Salem, "Come now, James, you're too old to have such thin skin." Ironwood shot out his other fist, only for Salem to catch that one as well, "Or…is it really so insulting to share similarities with me?" Realizing that he wasn't strong enough to free himself from Salem's grip, Ironwood instead chose to drive his head into the Grimm Queen's as hard as he could.
Salem didn't flinch, simply closing her eyes for the attack. Opening them, she gave the general an almost…disappointed look (3). She took in a breath through her nose, let it out through her mouth…and promptly tore Ironwood's right arm clean off his body.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The Huntsman pulled himself away from his enemy (being allowed to, of course), holding onto the remaining half of his limb.
"Why must you make this so difficult for us both, James?" Salem spoke softly, in a tone that an unknown party might even call "comforting", "You know that I'm right, no matter how much you try to deny it. Is this truly necessary?" The general gritted his teeth as he held his severed (sparking) limb, slowly pulling himself to his feet. Despite the pain he was feeling, Ironwood began slowly taking in and letting out deep breaths. After a few moments, he stood up straight while letting out one final breath (an almost… at-ease expression on his face), "Oh? Something to say, James? Might you finally be coming around to me? To acknowledge the truth that you already know?"
"You're a coward," Ironwood spat his words like venom, visible fire in his eyes. At that moment, it was as if any trace of sound had disappeared from the vault. Cinder couldn't decide whether she should be amused by Ironwood's stupidity or horrified by what she was about to witness.
As for Salem herself? She looked on with widened eyes, looking…confused.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me," Ironwood shot back, now letting go of his stump as if the pain no longer registered to him, "Your allies see you as some…divine savior. Your enemies see you as this unstoppable force of nature. But me? I see the truth: you're a coward."
"Oh?" Salem's surprised expression took one of…controlled frustration (like a parent disciplining her rowdy child), a single eyebrow being raised, "Tell me, James…what exactly leads you to that conclusion?"
"All this chaos…all this destruction…all this death…and for what? You stand there pretending to be some great force of change, someone who will turn Remnant into a perfect paradise. Heaven on the mortal plane. But, that's not what's going on here. That's not what your goal really is, is it?"
"And what do YOU believe my "true goals" to be, James?"
Then…Ironwood began to chuckle, "That's the best part…I don't even know. Maybe you want to rule the planet like the villains in those superhero movies from when I was a kid. Maybe you want to wipe out humanity and faunuskind so that you repopulate the planet with creations straight out of our worst nightmares. Maybe you just want to destroy everything on the planet so that there's nothing left but you. But, ultimately? It doesn't matter. Whatever your "grand goal" is for this world, you're no different than any other scumbag on Remnant."
"Is that. A. Fact?" By this point, Cinder was backing up as far from her mistress as she could without earning her attention. For as cocky as Fall Maiden was about her powers (even before becoming a Maiden), Cinder had ALWAYS been afraid of Salem since the moment they met. Part of the reason that Cinder joined Salem (besides the promise of gaining the strength and "notoriety" that she'd wanted since childhood) was that she wanted anything BUT to be considered an enemy of the Grimm Queen. Throughout the years, she'd become pretty good at keeping that fear under control.
Now? It was as if there was some…primal part of her brain that was sending out "DANGER!" signals throughout her body. Even though Cinder wasn't the target of Salem's building fury, just watching it grow created a sense of fear within her that she had never felt before.
"Tell me, Salem…what WAS your reason behind all of this? This chaos and carnage? What was your excuse behind all of it?" By this point, Ironwood's voice had taken the tone of a superior talking to someone below them, "Did your mother and father mistreat you? Could you not make any friends as a child? Did the person you fell in love with not reciprocate your feelings?" Ironwood scoffed, "I've heard every story there is. Every excuse people want to give to try to justify their actions of cruelty. The one thing that they all have in common? It's never their fault. No matter who they hurt or kill, they're never the ones to blame. If it's not their victims' fault, it's the fault of those nowhere near the cruel acts or of society itself. Your lieutenants are no different. Arthur Watts? Hazel Rainart? One lashes out because of petty jealousy while the other can't comprehend the basic facts of the Hunters that a teenager could understand. I'm sure that Fall and Callows have their own sob stories to justify every life they snuff out. And you?" Ironwood laughed louder than before, as if he had heard a good joke, "You're no different from the rest of them." Just then Ironwood found his voice caught off by a grip of steel wrapped around his throat.
"Oh, James," Salem retracted her stretched-out arm, pulling the man into her vicinity, "I think that we can both agree that I am VERY different from every other being on this planet."
"That's "General" to you, witch," Ironwood snarled before a harsh smile graced his lips, "And you're not special in any way that matters. Yes, you're powerful. And yes, you have a relationship with the Grimm that no one else could. Outside, you play the part of an "Invincible Goddess" well. But inside? You're just a cruel, petty, sad little girl, who can't get over the fact that everything in life didn't go exactly how she wanted." Salem's free hand clenched into a fist as Ironwood began to chuckle once more, "It's kinda funny, isn't it? I've been a part of Ozpin's war against you for decades, and it's only near the end that I can finally see you for what you are." Ironwood began laughing louder, not noticing (or not caring) how Salem's eyes began to glow in her fury, "That I find out that the Grimm Queen is so. WEAK!" At that moment, Salem's free hand "un-released" into claws…a split second before she thrust it through the general's chest, taking hold of the man's heart as she did so. She crushed the organ in hand before tearing the body apart (sending its various "pieces" to go flying over the platform's edges).
By this point, Cinder was TERRIFIED by not only what she just witnessed but the state of her leader. Salem was breathing heavily (which sounded like growling with her clenched teeth), fingers twitching in anger as the Huntsman's blood dripped down her arms. The Fall Maiden gulped before she tried her hardest to calm herself down, "Well…I'd say that the good general definitely lost his mind at the end there. Expected when one is so close to death, I suppose."
"Cinder." Salem snarled, quickly silencing the Fall Maiden. When Salem turned her head to lock eyes with Cinder, she literally froze in terror (not wanting to look into those burning red orbs but being too afraid of the consequences of looking away). "Be. SILENT." Taking a moment to stand up straight, Salem's arms suddenly ignite in red flames (causing Cinder to flinch)…quickly incinerating away the blood on her arms. Salem let out a breath as the flames died down, holding her hands in front of her as she always did. "Come along now." Salem walked toward Cinder and claimed the Relics from her (shaking) hands, "We still have work to do." Salem took to the air, black smoke coming from her body, and flew toward the exit, with Cinder following a bit slower.
Despite the perfect visage of calm on Salem's face…there remained a storm bellowing inside.
(Author's Note: Annnnnnnnnnd scene!
(1): There is no way in HELL that Salem genuinely trusted Cinder at that moment. She had already disobeyed Salem's direct orders twice and had made it perfectly clear that she cared more about her wants than Salem's orders.
That face Salem gave? That's the face of a woman thinking "I'm gonna have to kill you someday soon, aren't I?":/
(2): Ozpin told Hazel that Salem's ultimate plan was to summon the Brother Gods back to Remnant so they'll view the world as a "lost cause" and destroy it (finally allowing her to die).
I don't like that idea, and I'm hoping that it's just Ozpin's interpretation of Salem's desires. Personally, I think that Salem should be too smart for a plan like that. Think about it: if she summoned the gods back to Remnant to destroy it, she'd be putting her fate in their hands. After screwing her over twice (cursing her with immortality so that she couldn't even be with Ozma in the afterlife and wiping out all of humanity so that she'd be completely alone), Salem would have no reason to believe that they wouldn't screw her over AGAIN.
My personal headcanon? I think that Salem's ultimate goal is revenge against the gods (seeing as how they were the ones who ultimately caused all of her pain and misery, as well as likely being the only beings she hates even more than Ozma). I believe that she either wants to kill them outright or even steal their power for herself, and at least BELIEVES that she's found a way to accomplish one or both of these feats (whether it's true or not is another matter altogether). This also serves as a good explanation as to why her plans to gather the Relics are only being done in these last few decades, despite warring with Ozma for thousands of years.
(3): Basically a "Are you serious?" look. I think we all know the one. He'll, I'm sure we've all probably been on the receiving end of such a look at least once in our lives:/
-But, anyway, there we go. Now, what was my mindset in writing this "rewrite"? Well…because I felt like Ironwood's canonical death was dishonest to his character. A man that determined…that resolute…that strong of mind and character? I just don't buy that he would just "give up" like that. Sure, you COULD make the argument that the enormity of the situation crashed down on him and the depression left him just done (an argument I supported in my "Conversation with the Reaper" story), but…I feel like this was better suited to what we had seen from his character. If he's able to still move, he strikes me as the kind of person who (if he truly believes that he has no chance of survival) would prefer to die fighting than in any other way. Even in a hopeless scenario, I feel like he'd rather go on his feet than his back. Truth be told, the way that they killed him off (him being ignored by the villains and then not even getting to do anything) felt like just one last insult to his character. I'm convinced that CRWBY was pissed off at how many people liked and supported Ironwood over Team RWBY after Volume 7 and intentionally screwed with his character further because of this (scenes, like him killing Sleet and trying to shoot Marrow, show this to me, as neither makes sense). Which is SO fucking petty. And…pathetic, if I'm being brutally honest:/
(The funny part, though? Even after Volume 8, I still support him and think he's right over Team RWBY:/)
So…what did we think? Do you agree with me about how Ironwood deserved a better death? Do you agree with me on that fact but don't agree with my version of events? Or…do you think that Ironwood's canonical death was exactly as it should have been? Let me know what you think.
Constructive criticism ONLY…no flames allowed.
Review, Favorite, Follow, and I'll see you guys in the next story:)