October 6, 81 GWE (Great War's End)
"-root out the White Fang at their source. Menagerie is, and always has been, the recruiting center, training ground, and strategic leadership of the terrorist organization. They protect terrorists behind their walls. They give aid to murderers. NO MORE! No longer will they attack with impunity. Not one more settlement will fall to these despicable monsters. Our Great Kingdom declare absolute, unequivocal, and uncompromising war upon the White Fang! Atlas' 3rd Armada will bring peace to Remnant again!"
For a moment, it was as if all of Remnant held their breath in disbelief.
For a moment, Vale's nightclubs muted its music, Mistral's nobles stopped their parties, and Vacuo's markets ceased their trades.
For a moment, Team RWBY's dorm, that ever-flowing fount of laughter, arguments, Dust explosions, and puns, halted all activities.
Then, Remnant descended into a cacophony as the broadcast ends.
Then, the Great Kingdoms fell into panicked cries, heated discussions, and uncertain whispers.
Then, Blake Belladonna twitched, and Ruby Rose took this cue to tackle her teammate.
"Please don't run away again!" Ruby cried, latching on with arms and legs. Yang Xiao Long and Weiss Schnee moved to block the door and window. With a year's experience living alongside Blake, the three's responses were almost conditioned. It was an old song and dance routine, familiar and expected. Until Blake stilled, her cat faunus ears flattened, and she drew Gambol Shroud.
"Run away!? My home is threatened, my parents are in danger, and faunus-kind faces extermination! I'm not running away, I'm going where I need to be, let me through!"
Weiss piped up, nearly rolling her eyes at such melodrama, "You've heard the broadcast, Atlas will only target the White Fang. The people of Menagerie will be fine, now calm down!"
Blake shot back, "How will Atlas know who is White Fang and who is not? They live alongside other faunus in Kuo Kuana. Do you think Atlas will search house by house, or would they just wipe the whole city off of Remnant? Look at their ships, those cannons aren't precision weapons."
Ruby gasped, "They can't blow away a city, nobody's gonna allow that!"
"Who's going to stop them?"
A quiet question from the blonde dragon, face dawning in realization at the magnitude of the broadcast. These were not the words of some lone Huntsman or a corporation. This was the will of Atlas, a Great Kingdom. A being against which there are no higher power, only three equals. And not one would stand in its way, not after seeing an entire settlement, nearly a thousand men, women, and children butchered by White Fang. The depth such a being will go for vengeance, far outpaced her worst imaginings.
Her little fists can't punch that giant into submission.
Hesitantly, Yang moved towards Blake, "This…isn't just another White Fang crackdown. Atlas is sending a whole army. What can we do against that?" Yang's hesitance slipped away, and she held her friend's shoulders. " Blake, you can't go there."
"It's my home!"
"You can't stop them. We can't stop them. It's- it's bigger than us. If you fight them, they'll just kill you too."
The four fell into a silence of hitched breaths and uncertain glances. Weiss, raised in Atlas, understood that the word of her Kingdom carried weight, weight that forced Atlas to commit to their proclamation lest they be seen as weak by the other Kingdoms. Yang and Ruby, racking their brains for a solution for Blake, inevitably circled back to the image of airships raining death from the sky. Their skills and weapons would not put a dent in an airship, let alone dozens of the things.
Blake's mind drifted back to Kuo Kuana, to her father's warmth and her mother's smile, and she steeled her resolve.
"It's my home," the cat faunus repeated, with a quiet resignation.
Could Weiss leave Atlas to burn?
Can Yang and Ruby let their father die alone on Patch?
"We'll go with you." Ruby declared, determination in her voice. "We won't aban-"
"No. I won't drag you into my fight. Also, Weiss can't go, they'll tear her apart in Menagerie. And in the days to come, the faunus in Beacon may try to do the same. You and Yang need to stay and protect her."
"Bu-"
"If it looks like my people cannot win, I'll try to convince my parents to run," Blake lied. Her father and mother would not leave their people behind and, in the end, neither can she. But her friends needed a comforting lie, not the sad truth.
Blake took their silence as acceptance and walked past her team.
This time, they did not stop her.
In the weeks that followed, Team RWBY, and the world, tracked the progress of Atlas' aerial armada.
The news showed the glorious departure of the fleet, fifty ships led by a command craft that dwarfed them all. Days later, the CCT stations aired Argus' welcoming parade for the military force, the Atlesian base next to the city putting on a cannon salute. Yang wished it would put a hole in the flagship.
The next day, the remaining members of RWBY lost contact with Blake Belladonna as she moved out of CCT range. Likely, she has found passage home, thus sealing her fate. Ruby cried that night.
The Atlesian force then traveled southward, encroaching further into Mistral. All through the week, the channels blared debates, arguments, expert opinions, and dire analyses on this flagrant disregard for Mistralian sovereignty. Many feared a confrontation between the two powers, as others questioned Atlas' foolish decision to move over Mistralian land rather than the ownerless seas. Thankfully, the fleet halted and Atlas broached negotiations for safe passage. Most dismissed this incident as a sign of typical Atlas arrogance backfiring, and focused on the spectacles taking place between politicians from the two Kingdoms.
Ruby, Yang, and Weiss cheered at sight of the grounded ships, and even held hopes that talks would break down or that the fleet would turn around.
On the third week of the armada's stalled journey, the Beacon students sat down for breakfast. Seeing Weiss checking her scroll, Ruby leaned over.
"Anything new, Weiss?"
"Just more of the same, so far." Weiss answered, eyes on her scroll. "Atlas Worldwide is putting out more 'analysis' on how superior Atlas' military is compared to Menagerie's nonexistent army. Mistral's stations are focused on yesterday's talks."
Ruby sighed in relief, and Yang followed suit. Both sisters have been dreading every morning, that that day would be the day the 3rd Armada moves again.
"VNT! PUT IT ON!"
A shrill cry from a 2nd-year drew all eyes in the cafeteria. The short girl stared unblinkingly at her scroll, eyes wide in disbelief. In the momentary hush, her teammate looked over her shoulder, choked on his spit, then scrambled over to the remote controlling the screens mounted on the walls. Madly, he mashed the buttons, flipping through the channels to reach Vale's News Today. Impatient students were already pulling out their scrolls to check for themselves.
"-vender, bringing you this special report."
The screens surrounding the cafeteria, previously showing the Mistralian stations, tuned to the same scene. Vale's most beloved news anchor and investigative journalist, Lisa Lavender, stood outdoors in the shade. Behind her, a tableau of wooden homes stretched along a clear blue sea. A crowd of faunus milled in the background. They shouted, cried, or cursed, but all turned their heads towards the sky.
"That's Menagerie! She's in Menagerie!" A Faunus student exclaimed.
Faces dawned in realization. Lisa Lavender had been missing from the evening news for the past week. Most thought she must be sick, or even on vacation despite Remnant experiencing the most newsworthy event of the century. Now they knew. The journalist had traveled to the target of Atlas' fleet, and somehow, someway managed to broadcast from the isolated island.
As if answering their unspoken question, Lisa Lavender continued.
"How am I speaking to you? Even I could not believe it. Viewers, I am not standing in the shades of a tree or a building."
The camera view panned upwards. As it moved, the students' jaws dropped. Weiss gasped, Yang clutched her hair with both hands, and Ruby whimpered.
They saw impossible shapes on the screens. Sleek white hulls, interspersed by porthole windows. Dust boosters, humming with purple-black Gravity Dust. Layered wings, dozens of thin sheets on each giant appendage fluttering faster than the eyes can see. Massive rail cannons facing front, with smaller barrels lining the sides.
Airships hovered above Menagerie.
"I stand below the flagship of an aerial fleet, broadcasting through its personal CCT transceiver! They approached Menagerie two days ago, taking position throughout Kuo Kuana where they stood until this morning. For the past day, every ship have sent out the same message, calling on Menagerie to surrender. My crew and I intended to race back to Valean ports with this news, only to be contacted by the flagship above us. They've allowed us to piggyback on their military channel for this exclusive report!"
Weiss noticed it first, being one of the few in the room looking for it. She nudged Ruby and Yang, urgently whispering her observation. Lisa Lavender mirrored her words.
"Look at the bow of the ships."
They lacked the Gear and Staff of the Atlas crest.
"This is not Atlas' 3rd Armada."
They did not carry the symbols of any Great Kingdoms.
"These are not ships from the militaries of Vale, Mistral, or Vacuo."
Golden crown over twin crescents gleamed in the sunlight.
"Menagerie has been occupied by the Principality of Arcadia!"
"Atlas' glorious age of airship supremacy lasted all of three years, until someone blasted the secret the world over. Then Vale launched twenty ships, Vacuo scraped together enough parts for seven, and every noble house in Mistral had to have one and made their people pay for it. Funny thing, though? I noticed little Arcadia's new 'merchant ships' coming online at the same time, with golden accents on the wings, bas-relief along the hull, silk curtains on every porthole, and the biggest cannons I have ever seen.
"How, now, did the itty bitty Principality make these beauties so quickly?"
-Excerpt, I Dream of Dust and Air, by Captain Nathaniel Flint.
Two weeks before, Arcadia Roundtable
"What on Remnant did you just say?"
In normal times, an advisor blurting such a line towards one of the royal princes would be met with censure. Today, the minister simply gave words to the thoughts of almost everyone in the room.
Prince Jaune Arc, son of prince Jean-Luc Arc, grandson of the ruling Prince Jules Arc, ignored the rudeness and repeated his demand.
"We're taking Menagerie. Now."
The advisors, airship captains, militia commanders, merchants, and the royals have not heard wrong then. One captain, hands raised as if to placate a madman, made to speak.
"Your highness, our discussion is on whether or not to condemn Atlas' actions. We can't very well join Atlas."
Jaune scoffed, "This is for the benefit of Arcadia. Atlas can go hang."
"How-"
"I would hear what my grandson wish to say." The voice of Prince Jules Arc, soft-spoken as it is, silenced the room. "Jaune, speak."
Jaune hid his surprise behind the impassive face of a royal, "Thank you Your Royal Highness. Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to explain the situation as I see it. Atlas has declared war, ostensibly to eradicate the White Fang. Their 3rd Armada took the land route across Mistral, and Mistral negotiated instead of booting Atlas back the way they came. Vale and Vacuo? They're doing nothing at all. Three of the Four Great Kingdoms have shown that they will not take action against war, while the fourth is bogged down with politics. Menagerie lies ripe for the taking, and Arcadia can get there first."
"But why? Why wage war at all? Arcadia has always stood for peace!"
Jaune looked to the old ambassador to Vale.
"The times have changed. When was the last time we raised another Wall?"
The advisors grumbled. Forty-six years.
"How much more grain have we imported this year, rather than farmed ourselves?"
The merchants knew. Far too much.
"How much Dust did Schnee sell us?"
The captains grimaced. The reserves dwindled year after year.
"Why Menagerie? It is the only kingdom that is acceptable to wage war on, because Menagerie is not a Kingdom at all. It has the land we need, the only land left on Remnant unclaimed by the Four Great Kingdoms. If we can tame their desert, we can produce more than enough food for our entire population. Most important of all, their Dust deposits lie untouched."
At this, the room awakened in a cacophony.
A captain shouted, "There's Dust in Menagerie!?"
Jaune nodded, "Reports gleaned by a spy suggest there is enough Dust on the first layer to last for centuries, with possibly more below."
At that, he held their complete attention. Licking his lips, Jaune continued.
"Arcadia stands at a cross road. We can have our peace, and be squeezed to death in a few short years. We'll be forced to join Vale or Mistral, or to sell our livelihood to the SDC and Atlas. Vacuo would merely watch us starve. Or, we wage war. A war to save our people. A war to push our city towards the horizon. Land, food, and Dust, we will have it."
An advisor tapped her chin, and asked, "What about Atlas?"
Jaune grinned, "What about them? Their 'just cause' for this war is the White Fang's massacre of Durnel. They called for the death of the White Fang. We will simply oblige them. Surely, they have no proper reason to travel to Menagerie at that point?"
The men and women around the table answered his grin with their own. Even the reluctant ones were intrigued by the idea of getting one over the arrogant nation.
"The only enemies we must fight, are the terrorists. Our cause is just, our vision is clear. We will punish the wicked, and bring prosperity to Arcadia."
As the leaderships of Arcadia began to truly consider his thinking, Jaune dove into the plan he developed.
That evening, The Hall of Ancestors
"You've learned to manipulate the august advisors of Arcadia."
Jaune balked, " Grandfather, I-"
"I will say that I am impressed."
"Huh?"
"More and more, I believe Arcadia will be in good hands. However, you could have been more subtle. You had other motives for conquering Menagerie, didn't you? Why so many ships, Jaune?"
The jig was up, it was time to beg forgiveness and hope his head doesn't roll. Jaune dropped to one knee, "I apologize Your Royal Highness, I-"
"-will not ruin the surprise yet." Jaune's head snapped up, as his grandfather chuckled with a twinkle in the old man's eyes, "I know some of what you intend. The dream of the Arcs, Jaune?"
Jaune fidgeted under his grandfather's scrutiny. Finally, he nodded his head.
"That, and more."
A booming laugh rang out. "Hahaha! It always come back to that mad folly, doesn't it? As for the particulars of your plan, I wish to savor the anticipation for a while longer. I hardly rule now, and have whole afternoons' worth of time to observe my grandson's entry into the Great Game."
Jaune could not help himself, curiosity winning out, "Grandfather, why would you allow this? What I do will bring war and strife for us and for Menagerie. It goes against the peace Arcadia has held."
Jules Arc thought for a moment, gave a small laugh, and began walking through the Hall of Ancestors.
"Jaune, I support this endeavor because I am so very tired of the peace we've held."
Jules Arc of The Quiet Reign passed his own portrait without even a glance. Though, Jaune thought he heard the man 'tsk'ed.
"After the Great War, my grandfather waited for Vale and Vacuo to honor their promise of supplies and safe lands for Arcadia's expansion. When shipments dried up in a scant 6 months and the land remained undeveloped, he held his peace in understanding of the toll the war has taken on us all. Instead, he carved our territory out of the wild Grimmlands, remained an ever-faithful ally, and entrusted his dreams to the future."
In his portrait, Julius Arc of The Ten Walls looked to the horizon. He stood on the battlements of the newly-completed Sixth Wall, already planning the next expansion.
"After the Faunus Revolution, my father stood aside as the faunus are deceived. He held his peace in the hope that the Four Great Kingdoms will recognize Arcadia as the Fifth for rescuing their refugees and brokering the truce. Every year of my father's rule, I see the fire fade from his eyes, his dreams of a Great Kingdom vanishing with age."
They walked further along, past the rulers of centuries ago. In one, Juno Arc, Whose Castle Was Her Ship, posed at the helm. Behind her, the original merchant fleet that made Arcadia's fortune rested upon calm seas.
"Every year, for the last thirty years, I carried on his hopes and stood before the four councils to request our recognition as the Fifth Kingdom. As the fire fades from my own eyes, I see a gleeful mirth grow on theirs. On the day my hands could not lift Crocea Mors in salutations, their faces lit up in victory. They did not see in me the Champion of the Arcs, Ruler of Arcadia. They only ever saw a fool, another Arc who held his peace."
Janus Arc, Lawman in a Lawless Land, seemed to stare back at Jaune from his canvas. He built a safe harbor amidst the chaos of a worldwide war, and arrested two kings to end it. What would he think of the young prince invading another's lands?
"Today, in you, I see a greater fire than even my grandfather's. I had thought you would seek the favor and permission of the Great Kingdoms as I have, as your father does. Instead, you blazed forth on a path never dreamt."
The ruler stopped before the last portrait. Or rather, the empty frame, for its would-be subject never sat for one.
Looking to the frame, the Prince smirked, "I imagine, of all the Arcs, only she would do the same. A farmer, a mere slip of a girl, that simply did not know her place. Her fire burned the world."
The Prince gripped Jaune's shoulder.
"I made a show of placating my counsellors back in the Roundtable. In truth, I would have pitied any man or woman in that chamber who continued to persist against you, for what foe are they in the face of one who would challenge Kingdoms? You are not a man who holds his peace, and so in you I bet my hopes and dreams. Go forth, Jaune, and set Remnant alight."
Jaune Arc of Arcadia, bowed. Then, he marched ahead to a new world.
"With all due respect General, Menagerie is not a viable target to end the White Fang threat!"
"Enough, soldier."
"They're a moderating force on their nutjobs in the Kingdoms-"
"That will be all."
"-This makes no sense! Who made the report, who authorized-" "
ENOUGH!"
"…"
"This, is the will, of Atlas. That is all you need to know. Follow your orders."
-Deleted transcript, General Ironwood's personal meeting logs.
Author's Note: A 'Prince Jaune of Arcadia' story! Cheers to whoever came up with the original idea in the first place. Title is not Typo.
I like fanfics with this backstory, but I never liked seeing Jaune in Beacon's plotline with it, because it trivializes all conflicts. A Jaune with more power should get more problems. Continent-sized problems.
Little Butterflies: The Kingdoms never fully disarmed, keeping mostly defensive armies. Big military airships came a bit earlier. More settlements, bigger settlements. The Grimm take a backseat in this story