These last few weeks have been awful. Just one thing after another, and all while the weather plots to kill me. If it's not brutally hot and muggy, we're getting hit with massive thunderstorms and flash flood alerts. Considering I get migraines whenever a big front approaches (sensitive to pressure changes, making me an aggravatingly good weather predictor), July has been terrible. Then had the heart attack of hitting Ctrl+A instead of Shift+A while writing and deleting 30 chapters on my original copy of this work (Google docs has character limits, so it has two files so far). Fastest undo button hit ever, only for it to freeze up. Finally undid my terrible mistake, thankfully. Just takes a while to undo a deletion of hundreds of pages.
Got to around 4k words last night and told MrsTheGoose what I had planned for the rest of the chapter. Told her it wouldn't be too long. She guessed 7k words total. I said 6k or 6.5k at most. Naturally, I ended around 8.5k. Guess she wins.
In brighter news, In RWBY's Shadow reached 100 favorites recently! Kinda crazy to see Scarred Steps hit 25 at the same time. View counts are looking good recently, too.
Adam awoke with a start, hands flailing to catch himself as his bed tilted and threatened to dump him out on the floor. Instead, a thick strap caught him against his chest, halting his momentum as his knee struck another further down. Plan foiled, his mattress rolled back the other way, but this time he was ready for it.
Groaning, Adam looked around the darkened room, spying two others in nearby bunks. One snored on, but the other was awake now, having survived the latest roll of their ship. He hurriedly undid the straps that connected between his bunk and the one above, frantically sprinting out of the room. Adam hoped his feet could outpace the rising vomit he held in. A retching sound outside the door reached him only a moment before an acrid smell pierced his nostrils, proving the man hadn't been quick enough.
Adam tried to get back to sleep, forcing his hand down before he could scratch at the fresh bandages across his face. The edge of it tickled his nose and nearly drove him insane, but that was nothing compared to irritating tugging around his left eye. Everything on that side of his face felt wrong, even as his body healed as best it could.
Closing his eyes - at least, the right one, since he couldn't really tell what the other side of his face was doing half the time - Adam rolled back onto his back and tried to settle down as he awaited the dark embrace of sleep once more. He'd done little more than sleep since they'd boarded the ship days ago. The march from Orostachys to the coast had been relatively simple. They'd lost two men along the way, one of them to injuries and another to a sudden Grimm attack before Adam could intervene. Fighting with an axe still felt weird. Doing so with only one good eye made it worse. The only other Grimm they'd seen had been brought down in a hail of gunfire courtesy of the weapons they'd liberated from the camp.
The men called it a good omen, but Adam had a feeling it was more the Grimm's nature than any design of the gods. Grimm were drawn to negativity, and despite everything they'd been through, there was a sort of infectious energy that came with the promise of freedom. They'd probably stumbled on the Grimm rather than drawn them in.
Besides, the Grimm had a much bigger magnet drawing them to Orostachys.
The humans left behind would serve their purpose. They'd been left with limited weaponry inside the dank mines that had claimed plenty of faunus lives over the years. Few had aura, and they weren't all guards. Office workers. Doctors. Cooks. People that had never even seen a Grimm before were trapped with the monsters clawing at their door. Not to mention the rush of the guards to gather what few resources they could to hold out with after Adam and the faunus left. Part of him hoped they'd learn what fear really felt like.
Another part of him hoped they wouldn't live long enough to learn.
Either way, their terror drew the Grimm for miles and helped the faunus reach the coast without too much trouble. They'd lucked out to find a decent-sized ship docked there - some sort of commercial vessel from Mistral that could brave the long voyage better than the assortment of small fishing ships dotted around the harbor. None of them knew much about sailing, but that didn't matter when you had massive motors instead of fabric to catch the wind.
As he expected, no one was eager to give them passage. The locals knew what a bunch of faunus in matching uniforms meant. Their assortment of weapons hardly helped. Well, they did, but in a different way.
Forcing a skeleton crew aboard at gunpoint should've felt wrong, but how often had Adam been forced to work under the same conditions? Or worse? They hadn't hurt anyone, though. Plus, they'd promised to let the crew sail back once they landed. Adam doubted many of the sailors believed them, but he'd prove as good as his word. They'd loaded up on what provisions they could force from the locals and set sail as fast as possible. The sooner they got away from Orostachys, the better.
If their march to the coast had been easy, they made up for it on the ocean. A storm kicked up on the second day and battered them through the night. Even some of the seasoned sailors had gotten sick. Needless to say, the inexperienced faunus didn't stand a chance.
Since then, things had been better, though they still hit the occasional rough seas. The actual sailing was handled by the crew, but Jakob and a few others kept watch in the wheelhouse, ensuring they stayed on course and didn't send out any distress calls. Adam offered to help, but Jakob practically shoved him into a bunk and told him to rest. That he could push Adam around so easily only reinforced how much he needed sleep.
The moment he'd laid down, the last few days finally caught up to him. He'd slept through the first day and only woke up afterwards for food. He spent most of his time in his bunk. On the rare occasion he ventured topside, someone from 3C always found him and chased him back to bed until Bane started guarding his door and shadowing him if he dared to leave the room. He even started bringing meals to Adam's bunk until Adam began to feel like he was under house arrest.
Keeping track of time proved nearly impossible. Three decks down and with no window or even a clock, he had no idea how long he hid from the world. All he knew was that they were still moving. He hoped they'd make land soon, but that came with plenty of new problems.
Where could they go? They were fugitives now. No one believed the SDC would just ignore what they'd done. The moment he stepped off this boat, the call would go out. He didn't believe for a second their transporters wouldn't rat them out the first chance they got. Killing them would be the smart move, but he'd promised to spare them, and he wouldn't go back on that. They'd report the hijacking and where they landed, triggering a massive manhunt to sweep them all up again. They'd be hunted down and arrested for their crimes. Adam almost laughed at the absurdity. For refusing to accept death and suffering, they'd be condemned to a cell…or worse. Jakob had been sentenced to Orostachys all those years ago. How ironic would it be to be sent back there for escaping? Or even to a new camp?
Adam wouldn't go back. He couldn't. He'd rather die than face the mines again. Which meant if they came for him, he'd have to fight his way out. Even if that meant killing whoever came to arrest him.
Some of the workers might get away. Like Axol, not everyone had an obvious feature. They could pass as human and escape. The heat would die down in time, especially if they could make it to the outer settlements or even leave Anima entirely. Atlas would be a bad choice, but Vale sounded promising. They could flee there, start new lives, and do their best to forget the horrors of Orostachys. Everyone would forget about a bunch of escaped faunus in time. Their names and faces would be forgotten and they'd get to live out the rest of their days in sweet anonymity.
All except Adam.
He couldn't go back to normal, and he knew it. No matter what happened, he'd forever bear their mark. Everywhere he went, people would know where he came from - who he belonged to. One look would be enough to ruin any hope he had of putting the past behind him.
The SDC hadn't just hurt him. They'd ruined him.
Which is why he pulled Jakob aside one morning - at least, he thought it was morning - for an uncomfortable chat.
"What's up, Adam?"
Adam grit his teeth as he forced out the familiar words. "I'm leaving."
"You can't!" Bane immediately insisted, having followed him as usual.
Jakob kept it together better, but Adam could see the panic in his eyes. "Why?"
Too familiar. It was the caravan all over again. People insisting he stay. Demanding an explanation. They had to be nearing landfall soon, so he needed to get it out of the way before it was too late. He wondered if they'd have a big party tonight to complete the similarities.
Always leaving people behind. Always knew you had commitment issues. Nila and Erik. The caravan. And now, all of the men he'd helped and protected. His own crew, who had bled and died for him. Seb had fallen in the fight at Orostachys, along with sixteen others. He hadn't even known until Maurice told him a day ago. Nearly half of 3C was dead because of him now. He couldn't doom the other half to a similar fate.
"It's not safe with me. I'm…I'm marked." Adam pulled the edge of his bandages down, exposing the corner of the S for them to see. "The rest of you should make a break for it. Find somewhere to hide until this all blows over, then live your lives. Forget about Orostachys. Forget about me. It's…better this way."
"I'm not leaving you," Bane swore, just as Adam feared.
"You have to!" Adam shoved Bane's hand away before it could reach his shoulder. His loyalty was admirable, but Bane deserved better than being dragged down alongside him. "I promised I'd get you all out, but what's the point if you just get caught again because of me? I'm too dangerous to be around."
Not just because of his brand, either. Adam was cursed. Everywhere he went, those close to him suffered. Just knowing him seemed enough to have fate turn on people. With his luck, the SDC would find him in a couple days. Anyone with him would be rounded up and sent back to the mines, this time with much tighter security. No one would get out again. If he wanted to give his friends a chance at freedom, he had to let them go. The further away he got from them, the more likely they were to survive.
"We'll be fine," Jakob promised, but Adam knew better.
"You won't!" His voice echoed in the small, metal room they were huddled in. "You won't. None of you will. The moment people see this," Adam pointed to his face, "they'll report it. Mistral will swoop in and arrest me, along with anyone else dumb enough to stick around. We'll be back in the mines. It's better…" Adam gulped as his voice dropped. "It's better you not be there when it happens."
Better he suffer alone. He'd served his purpose, and he could take comfort in knowing he'd played a part in freeing his friends from that awful place. Even if they came for him, they couldn't take away what he'd done. As long as some of them went on to live better lives, he could rest easy in the knowledge that he'd fulfilled his purpose. Jean probably hadn't envisioned something like this, but he'd done something great and saved people's lives in the process.
And no one could take that away from him.
"You're not going anywhere," Jakob ordered, stubbornly refusing to accept the inevitable. Bane stepped in front of the door, trapping Adam inside for some reason. Adam didn't mean right now. He was hardly planning to swim for shore. He meant he'd leave after they got to land.
Shoving past Bane would be a pain, but ultimately pointless. "Mistral will find us. The moment we land, they'll be looking for us. Heck, they might be watching the coast right now!" Once word of their escape got out, they'd know exactly where to look. Well, not exactly, but they'd know to watch the southern coast. "Every village in Mistral will be on alert. Hard to miss a bunch of matching faunus showing up in the middle of nowhere."
Jakob smiled cockily. "Mistral can look all they want."
"This isn't a laughing matter," Adam growled. Jakob had always been a bit of a cut up, but now really wasn't the time. This was serious. "If they catch us-"
"They won't," Jakob promised.
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because we won't be in Mistral." Adam froze for a second as his brain tried to process the new piece of information. Not in Mistral? They didn't have the fuel or supplies to make it all the way to Sanus. Anima was their only real option. Wasn't it? "We're heading south. To Menagerie."
"Menagerie?" The faunus island? He'd heard of it, but never really given it much thought. It sounded like some mystical fairytale to him. A far-off land where faunus could live in peace, free from the tyranny of humanity. If he remembered his studies correctly, it was…not much farther than the coast of Anima! "That…that's great!"
"See? Told you he'd be surprised." Jakob's smile widened as he joked with Bane. "You were out when we made the announcement. Figured we'd keep it a secret 'til we got there, but if you're worried about people coming after us, then Menagerie's the one place we'll be safe."
Adam couldn't contain his sudden excitement. "When do we get there?"
"Two days," Jakob answered. "We should be able to see the island tomorrow night, but the sailors said it'd be best to wait 'til morning to dock. Unannounced ship in the middle of the night might look a little suspicious and all." Or it was just a human policy to land with the sun up. Easier to see the dock and unload. Of course, faunus had the advantage there, but he could wait a few extra hours if he had to. Not like Menagerie was going anywhere.
Then again, with how many of them were wearing their bright orange mining outfits, arriving at night looking like a bunch of prisoners could lead to some misunderstandings.
"Two days," Adam repeated to himself. He didn't want to wait that long, but it sure beat becoming a fugitive the moment his feet touched Mistralian soil. "Two days."
/- - - - - - - - - -/
Adam bounced with newfound energy at the deck rail as they neared the port. Passing fishing boats waved their greetings. People on shore mostly went about their business, though some paused to watch their approach. Those nearest the dock scratched their heads and whispered to one another before one ran off to a nearby building and vanished inside. They'd arrived unannounced, which probably concerned a few people at the dock, but Adam didn't care. He was too wrapped up in what he saw to worry at the moment.
He'd heard the stories, but still he scanned each and every person in the other boats and on shore. Horns. Tails. Ears. Even fins. There were so many! And every single one of them was a faunus? Adam had never imagined there were so many in the whole world, let alone in one place! He even saw children running and playing. It was almost too much to take in.
Even as they slowed to a stop and dropped anchor, Adam stayed glued to the rail, watching as a gangway was wheeled alongside their vessel. Several men and women - all of them faunus - hurried up to meet them. A few were armed, which worried Adam for a moment, until he remembered that they'd just sort of shown up without any had every right to be suspicious of the sudden invasion.
Jakob, Bane, and the ship's captain met the boarders at the quarterdeck - at least, that's what Adam had heard the captain call it that morning. He'd warned they might face an investigation for not radioing ahead, possibly at gunpoint. Jakob promised to handle it, though the captain insisted on tagging along. Whether that was proper procedure, a sign of respect, or just the captain being concerned they'd be thrown to the wolves upon reaching port, it didn't matter. Hurried words were exchanged, though no one looked overly angry. Back and forth they went until Jakob led the group back toward the wheelhouse.
"Menagerie." Adam jumped as Maurice's voice sounded right beside him. He'd been so wrapped up in watching everything he hadn't even noticed the older man's arrival. Maurice took a deep breath, sighing through a smile as he leaned on the rail beside Adam. His leg still hadn't healed properly and probably never would, but he could still hobble around with the best of them. "Never in all my days did I think I'd see its shores."
"I can't believe it's real."
"Seeing is believing," Maurice laughed, lightly slapping Adam's back. "We made it, Adam. And it's all thanks to you."
"Thanks to us," Adam corrected. He hadn't even fought in the final battle. His torture may have started the rebellion, but they were the ones to fight, bleed, and die for their freedom. He'd lost an eye. They'd lost their lives. "It took everyone banding together to make this happen."
"And you were the one who did that." Stubborn old fool. Adam was in too good a mood to argue, though. They basked in the warm sun as the tropical breeze wafted all sorts of delicious smells their way. With the armed escort having gone aboard, more people stopped to stare and point. They'd become a spectacle.
After a few minutes, Jakob returned to the deck alongside one of the men from Menagerie - some sort of fish faunus by the looks of him. The smiling faces all around promised good news.
"This is Adam Taurus," Jakob announced as he led them to the rail. "He's the Huntsman I told you about. The one that rescued us." Huntsman? This again? "He was injured during our escape, as were several others aboard."
"I'm fine," Adam assured them. His face was still uncomfortable and badly scarred, but there wasn't much they could do about that. Aura had sped up his recovery significantly to the point he knew it wouldn't get any better, meaning he'd always have those three hated letters visible on his face. "There are others who still need help."
"And they shall have it," the faunus leader promised. "Our chieftain has asked that we escort you to his house. He wishes to meet our new arrivals in person and has invited you to share his home until we can arrange lodging for you all."
"That sounds marvelous," Maurice said. With the cheap food they'd been rationing since leaving Orostachys, a proper meal sounded perfect.
"Lead on."
The walk through Menagerie felt a little weird, what with everyone crowding the streets to see the impromptu parade. Everywhere Adam looked, more and more faunus seemed to appear out of thin air. Some were already hard at work but paused to watch them pass. A few even followed them, curiosity adding to the size of their troupe as they marched through the main street.
Their destination was obvious long before they arrived. Straight ahead, nestled near the foot of the mountains and surrounded by the rest of the town, stood a mansion. There really wasn't any other way to describe it. The place was huge! The closer they got, the more it seemed to dominate the island to the point Adam found himself staring straight up at the intimidating structure when they reached the stone stairs leading to a massive wood door.
Atop the stairs stood an equally massive man. He looked a match for Bane with how large the man stood, purple jacket open to reveal a chiseled chest punctuated by a thick tuft of hair in the middle. An ornate, armored plate covered his stomach, resting atop a wrap that matched his jacket in color and ended in loose khaki pants tucked into thick boots. Despite the shine on his armored plate and matching pauldron across one shoulder, they bore the small nicks and scratches of use, showing they weren't just for decoration. The whole ensemble seemed a mixture of authority and functionality, establishing him as both a leader and a warrior. More importantly, it spoke of someone not to be messed with.
"Chieftain Belladonna," their escort announced. Adam had to assume he meant the bearded monstrosity of a man towering above them. "These are the men who arrived this morning. They say they escaped from Orostachys."
"The mining camp?" His gruff voice hid a note of concern as he looked over them all.
"Indeed. This is Adam Taurus, their leader and the one who freed them." The chieftain's eyes narrowed for a moment as Adam stepped forward, as if trying to place the name. "He and some of his men were injured in the escape."
"At least they made it out alive."
"Some didn't." Adam couldn't stop the words before they slipped out.
Far from being offended, Chieftain Belladonna's face softened with concern. "I'm sorry to hear that. Come inside. All of you. I'm sure you're all starving. My table is open to you all, as is my home."
"They have injured among them."
"Who will undoubtedly be hungry," the chieftain answered. "Come. Let us eat. Afterwards, we will see to your wounded."
/- - - - - - - - - -/
Dinner was…interesting. The Belladonna dinner table was just as opulent as the rest of the house, easily fitting all of them, their escorts from the docks, and Chieftain Belladonna and his wife with ease. Or Ghira and Kali, as the chieftain insisted they call the pair.
Which led to a startling revelation.
"G-Ghira?" Adam choked on the word. Or the food. He wasn't really sure which. No one else at the table seemed to have connected the dots yet, looking at him in confusion. "As in the leader of the White Fang?"
Ghira, monster of a man that he was, looked almost embarrassed at the title. A shock of silence swept over the table at the more familiar name of the White Fang. The SDC news channel spoke often of the organization, though they all knew how biased the reporting had to be. "I am. Is that a problem?"
A challenge, but a subtle one. Adam saw some of the nearby guards tensing almost unconsciously, prepared in case things devolved into violence but unwilling to start it themselves. He felt an itch for his missing sword in response but pushed past as he stared at their host.
"I-I heard about you on the news," Adam blurted out, only adding to Ghira's blush. "Before Orostachys. I even saw one of your protests in Mistral."
"Peaceful protests," Kali said, her hand gently resting on Ghira's arm to reassure him. "My husband and I have been pushing for equality for the faunus almost our whole lives, but violence isn't the answer."
"It was for us."
Adam nearly facepalmed at the sudden comment from Jakob. He was pretty sure someone else did.
Far from being cowed by Jakob's interruption, Kali's eyes narrowed as she faced the challenge head-on. "You were defending yourselves. No one here would ever blame you for that, but you shouldn't have ever had to. The White Fang wants to make it so you never have to."
Striving for a world in which we will no longer be needed. Adam could get behind that, but clearly they had a lot of work to do still. Their group was proof of that.
Adam may have agreed, but Jakob didn't give up so easily. "No offense, lady, but not all of us can wait around for your perfect world. Some of us are out there bleeding and dying already."
"Jakob," Maurice tried in vain.
"And some of us are too young to understand the horrors of the last war." Adam doubted Kali had been on the frontlines of the Faunus War. She looked a little young for that. Her eyes strayed from Jakob to the empty chair across from her.
"Well maybe if-"
"Enough!"
Ghira and Adam froze for a second as their voices sounded in unison. With a nervous chuckle, Ghira nodded to Adam before placing a hand on his wife's knee. She stilled under his touch. "My apologies. We've had quite a few…discussions on this topic lately."
"Good," Jakob said, his voice clipped and sharp. "Easy to criticize when you're not the ones being beaten and killed every day."
"Then help us." Ghira's sudden words disarmed Jakob. "Help us expose what's happening in these camps. If enough people see the truth, the SDC will have no choice but to fix things."
As if telling people would help. No one would believe them. Not against a company as big and important as the SDC. They'd just brush it all under the rug with empty promises of an investigation. Orostachys had been operating long before Adam got there, and no one had bothered to fix it. Even if they had proof, who would believe them? They were just a bunch of angry faunus going up against the most powerful people in the world - people that every Kingdom relied on day in and day out.
"How?" Adam asked aloud. "How can we help?"
"Tell us about Orostachys," Ghira replied, sitting back now that tempers had cooled. "We'll get the word out. Let everyone know what went on there. If it's as bad as I fear, there'll be more than a few people eager for change."
Adam didn't share his optimism, but hadn't this been part of his plan? He'd always wanted to escape and tell others about Orostachys, then get the place closed down once and for all. Ghira's plan ranged a little farther. He also had more connection and recognition than some random faunus from the middle of nowhere.
Even if he didn't really believe anything would change, Adam detailed everything he could remember as they all ate and drank together. Jakob chimed in from time to time, adding things that happened well before Adam arrived. Mining accidents. Suspicious deaths. Punishments. They got progressively worse and worse until they finally reached the final days of Orostachys.
Ghira bore it all stoically, but Kali paled at the mention of the brand, not to mention the bloody battle that followed. Adam gulped as her pitying eyes roved over his face, zeroing in on his bandages as if trying to see the damage beneath.
"Thank you," Ghira said when he finished. "I…I can't imagine what you've been through. I'll make sure we get word of this out immediately." Ghira rose, motioning to his guards waiting patiently nearby. "Take their wounded to the den. The rest of you can follow me. I'm sure you could use a rest after such a long journey."
Adam felt fine, seeing as he'd done little but rest for the last week or so. Still, he wouldn't mind relaxing on solid ground for a while. Even now, he could still feel the roll of the ship, his mind trying to account for the non-existent waves he'd endured for so long. He made it about two steps before Jakob snatched his arm. "Wrong way, bud."
Adam sighed, knowing what he meant. "I'm fine," he said for the thousandth time. "Didn't you say I needed to rest?"
"That was because the closest thing we had to a doctor was Sully." Jakob betrayed him as he raised his voice. "Adam needs to be looked at."
"This way." Adam felt tempted to punch Jakob and force him to follow, but Jakob dodged away, sensing the imminent danger with an unapologetic grin. That rat ba- "Follow me to the den, please. We'll have someone look at that eye and see what we can do."
Adam stomped his way to join a handful of others. Jakob would pay for his betrayal. He'd make sure of it.
When they reached the den, Adam couldn't help but feel they'd undersold it a bit. The room was massive! They could've fit the entire dining hall of Orostachys in there with room to spare, not to mention the balcony above that led to more rooms on the second floor. The handful of workers that had been led in lingered awkwardly in the middle of the room after the guard dismissed herself until one of them finally broke the tension by plopping himself on a large couch nearby. Soon, everyone had claimed seats in the room and waited impatiently for treatment.
No doctor appeared. Instead, the doors opened for Kali Belladonna, followed by four faunus in matching outfits - guards of the Belladonna house. Two of them took position near the doors, while the other pair followed as assistants, pushing small carts along with an array of basic medical tools and equipment.
One by one, Kali examined them. There wasn't much for her to do, though. Injuries from the fight had already started to heal by now. Those serious enough to need any real treatment were sent to the hospital for further evaluation. Maurice went with them, hobbling along on his bad leg. A few others had hurt themselves on the ship, but those were mostly small cuts or minor illnesses.
Adam realized early on that they were passing him over on purpose. The number of patients in the room dwindled quickly until few remained. Even then, Kali avoided him, focusing on everyone else until it became obvious she was saving Adam for last.
Once the room was empty - well, other than Kali and her four guards - the matriarch of the family finally approached him. "Adam, wasn't it?"
"Adam Taurus."
Kali's cat ears drooped against the black hair that ringed her head. "I'm sorry about earlier."
Earlier? Adam tilted his head in confusion. "For what?"
"I…I got carried away arguing with your friend…Jakob?" Adam nodded. "I didn't mean to attack him. It's just…"
"It's fine. Jakob…he's a bit of a hothead sometimes. I'm sure he didn't take it personally." If he did, Adam would have a talk with him later. There was no reason to be fighting with their hosts right now.
"And what do you think, Huntsman?"
"I'm not a Huntsman," Adam quickly corrected. "Just a guy with a little training."
"Still, what do you think of our approach? You were awfully quiet at breakfast." He really wasn't. He'd spent a good chunk of the morning describing everything that happened in Orostachys, to the point that they were already nearing lunchtime. Adam kept waiting for the bell that would never come. The routine of the mining camp would be hard to break. "Are we wrong to want peace?"
Talk about a biased question. Maybe she'd saved him for last so she could have a one on one conversation like this. Get a feel for the group's so-called leader and see if they could actually work together. Jakob hadn't exactly made a great impression. She probably worried that they'd be calling for blood and leading the charge to go blow up an office building or start a war.
"I think…I think you're both wrong." Kali arched an eyebrow at the unexpected answer. "And you're both right, in a way. I don't want a war, but I won't sit by and watch people suffer if I can do something." Even if it cost him everything. Searching for an explanation, his mind dredged up lessons he hadn't thought on in many years. "My father once told me that violence isn't the first answer, but that it's still necessary at times. Especially when others are in danger."
"He sounds like a wise man," Kali said.
"He was." Kali's smile faltered a little, but Adam refused to wait for the obligatory apology. "He said it was my job to protect people in need. Then Jean taught me how."
"Jean?"
"My-" His what? Trainer? Teacher? Taskmaster? "My friend. He unlocked my aura. Taught me to fight. Said it's our job to protect people - to fight until we don't have to fight anymore."
Kali smiled at the words. "He sounds like my husband when he was younger." Meaning something had changed along the way. Had they given up the fight? Apparently not. "We just learned to fight with our words instead of our fists."
"Strength of words over strength of arms?" Soji would like Kali.
The woman before him paused, considering the words with a whimsical smile. "I like that. Another friend of yours?" Adam nodded. "You seem to have a lot of those."
Did he? It didn't feel like it. It seemed like every time he made friends, fate tore them away from him.
Kali reached forward, taking his head in her hands as she tilted it this way and that, checking for injuries. As she finished, she ordered, "Now, take off your shirt."
"No!"
Adam lurched away, smacking her arms aside as he almost toppled the chair he was in. C'mon, Adam. Just take it off. Take it all off.
Adam shivered as the voice teased him. Adam panted as his wide eyes watched Kali's hands. His whole body tensed, ready to spring away if she reached for him again. You're so tense. You need to relax a bit, Adam. Adam knew it wasn't Alyssa. Kali looked nothing like her. Still, it all felt familiar enough to have him on edge.
Kali noticed. Of course she did. She waved her guards back, making Adam realize they'd come forward, ready to defend their lady if he tried anything. "Adam, calm down. Is everything okay? Did I hurt you?"
They both knew she hadn't. How could she? She'd barely touched him. "N-no," Adam panted, trying to force himself to calm down. He failed miserably. "I…it's not you. I-it's me."
Is this a break-up or a check-up?
Kali's hand reached forward in concern. "What's wrong?"
"No!" This time, Adam's chair tipped a little too far and spilled him backward. Adam scrambled to his feet, eyes darting to the door - the one leading back the way he'd come. The one leading to escape. He hardly even saw the two guards standing in the way. "I…I can't."
"Can't what?"
"I just can't." Adam knew he wasn't making any sense, but what could he do? "Don't…don't touch me."
An attractive older woman wanting him to take off his clothes so she could get her hands on him? He doubted Kali had the same evil intentions Alyssa did so long ago. She just wanted to check him for injuries, but that's how it started before. A quick check-up. Minor treatment. Familiarization. Then the moment he lowered his guard, Alyssa had turned their friendship into something far more sinister.
No matter how much he tried to rationalize it away, he couldn't risk going down that path again.
Kali didn't question it. Didn't push for more. Instead, she sat down several feet away and calmly asked, "Could someone else look you over?"
Someone else? Yeah. That sounded better. Someone who wasn't anything like Alyssa. "Y-yeah. Someone…someone else."
"Is it because I'm a woman?"
Yes, but not in the way she thought. "No. Just…not someone your age." Adam winced at how insulting that sounded. Kali didn't seem too upset, thankfully. "A guy. Or someone older." He'd been looked over by an older lady back in Oniyuri, when Jean had tried to beat the stubbornness out of him. Adam hadn't had a problem with her.
Both of her assistants didn't fit the bill, both being young women themselves. The two guards at the door, however, were both guys. One of them started forward, resigned to his fate before Kali stopped him. "What about someone younger?"
"How young?"
"Pre-teen," Kali answered, voice soft and measured as she tried to get him to relax. "My daughter. I've taught her first aid, and she's done some training at the hospital, but she could use the practice." Adam considered it, but when he didn't immediately refuse, Kali decided to push ahead. "Go. Find my daughter. Tell her I need her assistance with a patient."
The two guards at the door stayed, leaving one of her assistants to hurry away with a quick "yes, ma'am." Adam took a few deep breaths before righting the chair he'd knocked over. Only once Kali made it clear she'd be sticking to her own seat did he feel comfortable enough to sit down once more, even if his eyes kept glancing at her hands from time to time.
"S-sorry about that," he tried, knowing how ridiculous everything must look. "I've had some bad experiences in the past."
"No need to explain." Kali's disarming smile helped. "Besides, like I said, Blake could use the practice."
"Blake. Your daughter?" Kali hummed in agreement. "Is that her?"
Kali turned to look at the large portrait across the room, showing Ghira, Kali, and a small faunus girl that looked far more like her mother than the giant man hovering behind them in the picture. "It is, though she's grown up a little since then." Adam hoped so. If she was that small as a pre-teen, Adam would be concerned. "If she thought she could avoid me by skipping breakfast, she's got another thing coming."
Kali sounded so motherly all of the sudden that Adam couldn't help but laugh. "Teenage rebellion?"
"She's early," Kali agreed. "But it's more than that. A few arguments I could handle, but lately, she seems hellbent on picking a fight with us."
It didn't take a genius to piece the clues together. The empty seat at breakfast. Kali's comments. How her eyes drifted to the empty space while arguing with Jakob. "Those discussions your husband mentioned?"
"That obvious?" Kind of. Kali sighed. "She's grown up in the White Fang. Seems convinced she knows best, like your friend Jakob." Meaning she wanted to push back a little harder. "It wasn't that long ago she was happy to stand at the front of every rally waving the signs we'd made together."
Something about that sounded familiar, but Adam couldn't quite place it. "You sure she should see me?" He'd basically led an armed rebellion and even killed a few people. He hadn't held back in his explanation before. They knew he had blood on his hands.
"Not really," Kali admitted, "but she needs to see the aftermath of such violence. Hope you don't mind."
In other words, he was a lesson on the horrors of fighting. It sounded cruel to subject a young girl to that, but he couldn't think of a better lesson. He had a feeling they'd be discussing his escape while her daughter listened in, especially the torture and deaths.
"It's fine." He normally wouldn't want the attention, but he'd be an object lesson one way or another. Better he be present. Plus, if it meant wrapping up his check-up faster, then he'd take it. "Gotta warn you. It's not a pretty sight."
"I'm counting on it."
They sat quietly for several minutes, only occasionally coming up with small talk to break the silence here and there. Finally, the doors behind him opened, drawing his eyes to the final member of the Belladonna family.
Blake reminded him almost instantly of Nila. Stubborn. Defiant. She was in the awkward phase of being somewhere between a child and a woman, and it showed. She refused to meet her mother's eyes at first staring at the ground as she waited for a telling off.
It never came. "Blake, this is Adam. He arrived earlier this morning." Blake looked up at last, amber eyes looking at Adam. "I would've introduced you at breakfast, but it seems you decided to head out a little early today."
There it was. She hadn't said anything confrontational, yet Blake clearly heard the combination of accusation and question that only a mother could master. Where was she? What could be so important?
"I was out training," Blake muttered. Her flattened ears, matching her mother's almost perfectly in appearance, betrayed her guilt. She could've been a copy of Kali minus her much more developed figure. Her hair hung just a little longer as well, brushing against her shoulders. She rubbed a hand across her arm nervously as she waited for the inevitable follow-up.
"Sienna?" Blake's wince confirmed Kali's suspicions. "I thought so. I'll be having words with her later, but what else is new?" Adam had no idea who Sienna was, but she sounded like she'd been a bit of a thorn in Kali's side for a while. "That can wait. Adam here escaped from Orostachys. It seems our fears of mistreatment there were right."
Blake straightened up at the news. "Really? I knew it! The SDC-"
"Are not the concern at the moment. Our patient is." Kali's words might as well have slapped Blake across the face. "But if you're so excited about violence against our kind, then maybe you can help me treat the aftermath."
Adam felt a little weird being caught in the middle of whatever family drama was unfolding, but he knew better than to interrupt. Instead, he sat patiently as Blake approached. "What should I do?"
"You tell me," Kali countered. "After all, you seem to know more than me lately." Blake winced at the dig but held her ground. "Adam has his aura unlocked, so most of the damage has already healed. I thought we'd save the last injury for when you got here, though."
More like there was only one thing to bother looking at and Adam had stopped her already. Blake took the obvious hint. "Take off your bandage."
"Such compassionate bedside manner," Kali laughed. "Maybe you can order him to treat himself next." Blake pouted adorably. It did little to ruin Kali's mood. "Maybe his doctor should remove it for him."
Adam fully expected the eye roll from his so-called doctor as she wasted no time reaching forward and loosening his bandages. The long ribbon of gauze unwound from his head until the thicker pad over his injured eye started to loosen. It still clung to his face, vainly holding on with the last few remaining fibers that had gotten used to staying put. Blake carefully peeled it away, only to jerk back as she revealed the damage underneath.
"Thi…This…They branded you?!"
Adam figured she'd overreact a little. Kali too, though she tried to hide it. One of the guards looked like he'd be sick. Adam had to wonder just how bad it looked today. He hadn't looked recently. "They did. A demonstration for fighting back."
Adam knew what Kali wanted, and given the chance to teach a lesson to someone so young, Adam decided to embrace the opportunity. Kali definitely approved as Blake paled.
"What did you do?"
"I killed one of the guards," Adam answered nonchalantly. "He hurt one of my friends, so I fought back."
"And you k-killed him?"
"Accidentally." Adam hadn't meant to kill him. He still wasn't sure what happened. He shouldn't've been able to deliver a killing blow so effortlessly. Adam had his suspicions, but he'd figure that out later. "I just wanted to stop him. Guess I went a little too far."
"So they branded your face?" He'd killed someone. Murdered them. Could they really call his punishment an overreaction? Was there such a thing when it came to killing? If one of them had killed his friends, he would've wanted them dead. Then again, this was just the latest in a string of violence.
He'd fled to the camp after killing someone in Mistral. They'd tried to kill Axol, so he killed Geryon. In return, they tried to kill him and ended up doing in a few of his friends instead. He'd killed Gideon. They tortured and planned to kill him, only to have losses on both sides when the faunus rebelled. It had been a bloody tug-of-war that ended with him fleeing to Menagerie with a gruesome scar.
"Violence begets violence," Kali summarized, twisting the knife a little more. "So, what do you see?"
Blake had to practically force herself to look at Adam's face again. Her face clenched up as Adam worried he might suffer a sudden vomit shower any second. Blake forced it all down, much to Adam's relief, as she gently touched his scarring. "It's…it's already healed."
Kali's tone went from lecturing to educating in an instant. "Aura healing. Closed the wound and matured the scar faster."
"But why didn't it stop the damage?" Blake asked, curiosity finally winning out.
"Aura doesn't stop everything," Kali answered. "It helps, but things like heat can still pass through to a degree." Adam and Blake both deadpanned at the pun, intentional or not. "Otherwise, you would never get cold if your aura was up."
A simple explanation, but there was a little more to this one. "And they kept pushing until my aura broke."
Kali and Blake both froze at the new info. It spoke of a much greater cruelty than they'd imagined, which was saying something considering the trio of letters on his face.
Blake decided to distract herself by continuing her assessment. "His right eye is fine, but the lids of his left eye are sealed shut. Likely damage to the eye beneath."
"Are you sure?" Blake looked to her mother for answers. "How do you know his eye's damaged? It could just be sealed behind his eyelids."
"How can we tell?"
Blake's question proved the wrong one. Or the right one. Adam didn't really know which. What he did know is that Kali looked far too pleased as she held up a scalpel and waited for her daughter to notice.
"Mom!"
"What? We'll never know if we don't have a look. Or did you just want to give up on him ever getting his eyesight back?"
Adam's breath caught. His eyesight? He still had one good eye, but one eye would never compare to two. He'd be vulnerable on one side, not to mention the impact to his depth perception. He'd given up on ever using that eye again. After all, if aura hadn't healed it by now, then what hope was there?
But what if it had healed his eye? What if it was working perfectly but trapped behind eyelids that refused to open? A quick surgery could give him back what he'd lost. Worst case, they opened it up and his eye didn't work, leaving him back at square one. There was literally nothing to lose.
"Do it."
"Are…are you sure?" Blake asked.
"Yes." If it meant getting his eyesight back, he had to try. "Cut it open."
Blake hesitated, because what normal person wouldn't? He was asking her to cut his eyelids open. That would put her perilously close to his eye underneath - a risk they were all well aware of. "I-if you're sure…"
"I am." Adam laid down on the couch and waited. If the scar was still fresh, this would've been an even worse idea. Immature scars were dangerous to operate on. But thanks to his aura, it had already matured way faster than a normal scar should.
Adam closed his eyes, making sure not to shut them too tightly as he waited for the inevitable pain. He heard Blake approach. Sensed her hand hovering somewhere above his face. He did his best to steady himself, knowing that any sudden movement might ruin everything.
"I can't." Blake said, pulling away. "I…I can't do it." Adam exhaled slowly as he cracked his eye open, making sure the coast was clear. "Someone else has to. Mom. Mom can do it."
"I can't." Kali looked for confirmation, and Adam gave it. He'd already lost it just from her touch earlier. He couldn't guarantee he wouldn't do the same again, except this time with a blade hovering right in front of his face. "You and your friends want violence, then you've got to be prepared for the aftermath."
Blake looked ready to bolt, but the challenge had been thrown down. Leaving now meant proving her mother right. Like any stubborn pre-teen, Blake couldn't accept that and stepped forward again.
"Do it with the handle first," Kali advised. She must've known Blake would chicken out the first time and was only now offering help. "Line up your incision and let the patient feel it. Helps you gauge their reaction before you try for real."
Sure enough, Adam felt the cold, thin metal against his face a moment later. It traced where his eyelid should've been, following the scar. He forced himself to stay as still as he could through the motion, which seemed to give her a little courage as she went again.
After a brief silence, Kali asked, "Are you ready, Adam?" Adam gave a thumbs up, unwilling to move any part of his face. He could hear Blake breathing above him, somehow more nervous than he was as the tiny blade made contact at last. The sensation of it cutting through flesh barely registered. Instead, he lay still, feeling the sensation of his eyelids loosening at last.
The moment the blade moved away, a rag was thrust in his face, likely to catch any blood that might seep out. There wasn't much. When Adam opened his good eye, he caught Blake hopping back and ditching the scalpel on the nearest tray.
Adam pushed his aura to the fore, hoping to close whatever small cut lingered. The cloth was withdrawn slowly as Kali instructed him, "Careful. Your eye has been shut for a while now, so it may not function properly at first. Do you see anything?"
He did, but then he had his right eye open still. It felt weird keeping only his left eye open, but he trusted that would fade in time as well. At first, there was nothing. Just darkness. But then, he could make out the faintest glow. It warmed slightly, turning into a murky gray, but nothing else. "It's…I can't see anything." He heard the sharp exhale and rushed to clarify. "It's not dark. Just…clouded. Like a thick fog." He waved a hand in front of his face. The mist darkened and lightened slightly as he did. "It's there, but…I don't know. Nothing's clear."
"Blurry's better than nothing," Kali assured him. "It might get better in time. Maybe."
He knew something was wrong even as she tried to cheer him up. "What's wrong."
Kali didn't answer, which only made things worse. Adam opened his good eye, his brain struggling to make sense of the combined images for a second. Blake refused to meet his eyes. Kali's were filled with sympathy. "Your eye…it's definitely damaged. Badly."
"How bad?" Kali cleared one of the metal trays on the nearby cart and held it up for him. He caught his reflection easily and saw what gave them all pause.
His eye looked terrible. Whatever happened had turned the white of his eye a deep red. The vivid blue of his iris had faded to a lifeless gray, ringed around a pale pupil. No wonder he couldn't see anything. He didn't know a lot about eyeballs, but he knew enough to tell that damage that extensive wouldn't be temporary. His heart sank once more, the fleeting hope of even a little normalcy being ripped away before he could even savor it.
Still, he had to keep a brave face, if only for everyone else in the room. "Well, guess I'll have to shop for eyepatches when I get back to Mistral."
This time, even Kali wouldn't meet his gaze. "About that…" She nodded to one of the guards, who approached with a piece of paper and handed it over. Adam flipped it over to reveal a picture of his face. "You might not want to make any travel plans."
Wanted: Adam Taurus. Dead or Alive.
Adam's first wanted poster. Maybe he'll frame it.
For the record, burns and scarring are my least favorite thing to research. Funny how this is the second story I had to look stuff up for. If my sources could not have a billion example photos, that would be great. Not much info on eyelids fusing together, so can't promise it's realistic. Won't go into all the other things I read, but clearly I'm not cut out for the medical field. Much less gruesomeness in my cube and tech labs.
And we have our first real Blake appearance! I'm sure they'll be lifelong friends and nothing bad will ever happen.
The White Fang haven't officially changed leaders yet, but there'll be more on the current state of the group in the coming chapters, as well as details on Adam's new status with the authorities. Adam's kind of coming in at a rough time, where Sienna and others are already pushing for more confrontation while Ghira and Kali are desperately trying to stay the course. We all know how that turns out.
On the start of the chapter, I actually got to ride along on a Navy ship for a week and a half back in February. Was kind of a crazy experience. The straps on the bunks to keep you from rolling out. Rolling with the ship as you powerwalked down narrow halls. We even raced a storm on the first night and hit some really rough seas. Even the experienced sailors got sick. Nothing like watching sailors dive out of the way as I run down the hall trying to hold in lunch. Whoever planned Taco Tuesday should've been keelhauled. And then, when I got off at the end, it felt like the ground was rolling constantly. By the time things calmed down, I was already on a plane back home. Fun times!
Next chapter: Adam learns just how wanted he is.