Well! Here we have it, start of a new arc and all. This has been the hardest chapter for me to write till date, and I'm still not completely satisfied with it. It's a necessary chapter, though, to set up characters and plot points for the coming arc. Hoping you'll enjoy it!
I also made a discord for my stories to combat the atrocious email notifications system this site has. So if you want details on how to join that, the link is at the end of the chapter, as well as on my author profile!
There was a thing to be said about distance making the heart grow fonder, that being away from a person or a place long enough made one feel stuff for it that they would not otherwise entertain.
Jaune could not say that for the castle town of Phalanx.
The nigh-impregnable walls dominated the skyline for miles in each direction. The infallible home to tens of generations of Arcs, Phalanx was, and would ever be, a wonder of Remnant. Wars had been fought at the base of the castle, armies had surged against the walls of the town and broken time and time again.
A fitting home for a family that valued strength over all else.
Jaune had grown up here. He knew every street, every shop, every great hall the town had to offer. He remembered being carried through Market Street as a kid, borne on his father's back. Very little could mar the memories he'd made here.
The good, and the bad.
Reminiscence aside, the town of his birth now posed a significant problem for Jaune. He'd staked out the main gate for two days now. The lead he had over his sisters and mothers was gone, considering he'd seen their bullhead fly into the castle boundary earlier this morning.
It was a logistics issue of all things. The walls were simply too high for him to scale with any stealth. Sure, he could fly up and past the walls, but he would be discovered before he could even make it close enough to begin his ascent.
The Guardian Corps was many things. Vigilant, terrifying, even deranged. Incompetent, though, was not a word that could be used to describe them, ever.
If push came to shove, he could fight his way through. Trained huntsmen or not, they could do little to stop someone of his calibre. After what he had done to Lau's Legion, it was unlikely any volume of run-of-the-mill huntsmen could stop him if he wanted something done.
That itself was a conundrum. Fighting the Legion had been unavoidable. Too much lay on the outcome of that fight for him to pull his punches. Here, on the other hand? Multiple members of the Guardian corps were family friends of his. Some were even personal friends.
Plus, he was quite sure Cerulean's boy toy was a cadet in the Corps. That was not a conversation he wanted to have.
So, his strategy had to change. If he couldn't go over the walls, he had to go in through the gate. That itself posed a significant issue. Immigration into the city was tightly controlled. Scroll-keyed checkposts had to be crossed just to get through the gate. Even if he'd changed enough physically to pass as someone else, his Scroll would give him away the moment he stepped through.
So entry through the gate was out, which left only one real option.
He needed help from the inside. Someone in the corps who could let him in through one of the deployment doors.
He needed a guy on the inside, and thank the brothers, he had one.
As he lay in his slightly damp hammock, unable to relax even though he knew there was no chance anyone was going to make it here, to this remote cave hidden half a mile away from the road leading to Phalanx except the one person he was waiting for.
It was their little secret, after all. Discovered when ditching school as kids, this cave had seen more sneaky night-outs than they could have ever imagined when they first found it.
Considering how well-kept it was, Jaune knew that his childhood friend had kept maintaining it, even after their falling out when he decided to leave for Beacon almost a year ago.
Felt like a lifetime ago.
The snapping of fallen branches and the constant rhythm of heavy boots on rocks was what alerted him that his erstwhile best friend had decided to turn up for a routine checkup of their little hidey-hole.
Jason Bleu walked into the cave, stopped, got a good look at Jaune, and chose to act like he wasn't even there.
He'd changed slightly over the last year. His handsome, square-jawed face was still topped by the same spiky mop of brown hair, but now there were flecks of grey in that mop. There was a tired look in his eyes, but he was happy. He'd been humming to himself all the way up to the cave.
Not much escaped Jaune's enhanced senses, after all.
"Still mad at me, huh?" Jaune commented, sitting up in the hammock, giving Jason a beatific smile.
"No, I'm just stunned at the sheer stupidity of your actions." Jason spoke in an irate tone, choosing to pick up the broom propped up against the back of the cave.
"You're gonna have to be a bit more specific, Jason. I've made some pretty stupid decisions lately. At least things that your risk-averse ass would consider stupid." Jaune stated, only to be levelled with a withering glare from his friend.
"You faked your papers to get into Beacon! Literally anyone who took one look at you could tell you've never held a sword in your life! Fuck the fact that you did it, how did it end up working?!" Jason all but yelled.
Jaune shrugged. "The mechanics behind the admission process of Beacon is a mystery to me. They had a sixteen-year-old and an honest-to-god ex-terrorist in my year. Honestly? I think they might as well decide their entrant roster at random."
That gave Jason pause for a second before he remembered that there was more where his original outburst came from.
"Okay, sure. Sixteen-year-old, an ex-terrorist, whatever. We're talking about you here, not them." Jason sat down on a little stool next to the little dust stove they had kept for emergency cooking. "How the fuck did the fact that your transcripts were fake get leaked?"
Jaune responded with an awkward chuckle. "I may or may not have told someone about them in a moment of emotional vulnerability."
A look of knowing appeared on Jason's face. "Like back when we stole Prim's scroll to play Super Fighters Ultra?"
"That, but a hundred times worse." Jaune shot back, a solemn look on his face.
"Fuck…" Jason sighed out. "Either way, the stupidest thing you could have done was something you did before you even left the compound." Jason continued.
Jaune raised an eyebrow. "Okay, considering the monumental scale of my fuckups till date, what did I do before I left that could possibly be worse?"
"Of all the weapons you could steal from the Armory, you stole Crocea Mors!" Jason yelled.
Jaune was silent for a second. "And I sent it back. What's the big deal?"
"What's the big deal? IT'S YOUR GREAT GRANDFATHER'S LEGENDARY BLADE." Jason yelled. "Just the idea that someone could have stolen it was so foreign to the entire family that no one found out it was gone till photos of your expulsion made it to mass media!"
Jaune shrugged. "It was great grandpa's training blade, man. No one uses that shit anyways."
"No one uses it? Jaune. It's the blade used to induct every family ruler! It was literally used to coronate your father! How do you not know this?!" He spoke, exasperation lining his face.
"Because I wasn't alive when dad was crowned, duh." Jaune replied. "I don't get why it's such a big deal. I sent it back before it was ever needed."
"It's not the fact that it wasn't needed, Jaune. It's that you exposed the family's negligence that matters! You know how much the council loves to portray themselves as infallible. The fact that they didn't even know it was gone for MONTHS is a serious damage to their reputation!"
"You act like I care about their reputation. Pretty sure dad wouldn't mind." Jaune commented, only for Jason to shake his head.
"Dude, you have no idea what's going on these days. Your public expulsion was the straw that broke the camel's back, man." Jason spoke, holding his head.
"Okay, you've lost me now. Mind filling me in?" Jaune asked.
"You, the only son of the illustrious Helios Arc, went and stole the sword of coronation. If that wasn't bad enough, you then faked your entrance into Beacon and then got expelled in the most public way possible. How much damage do you think that did to your father's credibility as patriarch?" Jason finished, but Jaune was having none of it.
"The council can't do shit to Dad. If they could, then Dad wouldn't be the patriarch to begin with." He countered.
"It's not the council, you absolute dolt. It's the public. Imagine, you live in one of the most secure places on earth, guarded by one of the greatest living huntsmen on earth. Now imagine finding out in the most public way possible that the huntsman, who you have spent your entire life idolizing, suddenly turns out to be so very fallible?" Jason spoke, leaning forward, never breaking eye contact. "Can you imagine the negativity? Can you imagine the amount of Grimm that swarmed the walls?"
Jaune was silent. "I… honestly did not account for the public opinion. Fuck."
Jason sighed. "Of course you didn't. That's your problem, you don't fucking think. You don't fucking listen, and you don't fucking make a lick of sense."
"Okay, I agree with the first two, but I take offence to the third." Jaune crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Elaborate."
"Why are you even here? Last I heard, you were giving the great Arc hunting party a run for their money. The next thing I know, they all return beaten and bruised. Jaune, that hunting party's exploits are legendary, and yet, the news is spreading that you put them in that position. The same Jaune that could barely throw a punch to save his life." Jason finished, exasperated.
"Things change, Jason. I'm not the same person I was when I left. I've done things so stupid you'd get an aneurysm even thinking about them. I've been places so remote they don't even show up on maps. And until this conversation, I was thinking of walking in with your help and beating down the council till they stopped being a fucking issue." Jaune spoke, getting off the hammock.
"Now, though, I feel like this entire situation needs… a gentler hand. So. Why don't you let me into the city? It's been a while since I've met Ria too. Maybe hanging out with you two a while will get my brain working for once." He gestured with his the cave exit.
Jason sighed. "And I don't get any say in this madness? No opt-out?"
Jaune gave him a quick smirk. "Since when did you have an opt-out?"
"Since I became a fucking father, Jaune. I can't afford that stupid shit anymore!" Jason yelled, and for a second, there was absolute silence in the cave.
"Wait… you…and Ria?" Jaune choked out.
"Yes… we have a little baby boy… and I guess today he's going to meet his godfather." Jason stated, walking out of the cave.
Jaune choked as he saw Jason walk past. It wasn't till a few seconds later that he realised he should probably be following the only man who could lead him into the city.
The father of his godson.
"The sewers? Really Jason? The fucking sewers?" Jaune whinged as he climbed out of the sewer hole.
Jason's nose wrinkled as he got one last whiff of the putrid smell of the sewers before replacing the manhole into its intended spot.
"Hey, we didn't have to actually go into the water. Ria would've never let me into the house if the smell stuck." He answered, once again looking at Jaune.
There was something to say about growth spurts. Whatever Jaune had gone through was not one of those. It wasn't unheard of for someone to gain a few inches of height in the dying years of growth, but this much change was unheard of.
It was a holistic change, for lack of a better word. Jaune had never been a confident individual, which was at odds with what he tried to portray all life long. Empty bluster, thy name was Jaune Arc. Yet, when Jaune spoke oh-so-offhandedly about taking down the fucking council, there was no empty bluster, none of his common physical giveaways that Jason had learned to catch on to growing up together.
"I'm telling you, we shoulda just gone through one of the deployment routes you Guardian Corps members hide." Jaune countered, waving him off.
"There are no secret entrances, man. It's always just been the sewers. I'm surprised you never made the connection." Jason remarked.
"You're telling me the secret Arc ambush tactic was to jump out of the sewage system and bum-rush our enemies while stinking like shit?" Jaune asked, an incredulous look on his face.
"The commanders say that the smell serves to inflict mental damage. It was a surprisingly effective tactic during the war." Jason countered.
Jason had never been a supplicant of the theory that you could drastically change the measure of a man. Sure, a man could build on his personality, on his life over time. Yet, the foundations of a man never changed. Talking to this new, foreign version of Jaune was shredding his beliefs like paper mache.
"You've been staring holes into me since we left the cave, Jason. If there's something on your mind, lay it on me." Jaune asked.
"What… what happened to you, man?" He asked. What could have someone possibly gone through that could change him so fucking much?
Jaune's grin dropped, softening into a far more serene expression.
"The last year… Well, calling it 'eventful' would be a massive understatement." He spoke, pulling out his scroll. "You've seen the video of Lau Ka Long's death, right?"
"Yeah, but what does that have to do with-"
He thought back to the video. To the huntsman that had shocked the world. A tall, blonde boy, much younger than what someone with his skill should be. The physical attributes matched Jaune, sure, but he had never made the connection. How could he?
The Jaune he knew could have never fought like that. This Jaune who now stood in front of him, however?
"Fuck. So you saying you wanted to beat up the council was no bluff. Shit…" Jason stopped. Only for Jaune to pat his shoulder.
"Well, yeah, but you talked me out of that. Good job." Jaune spoke.
"Just the fact that you can do it is honestly more terrifying than the thought of you wanting to." Jason continued. "Still, how? I've been training since I was five, and I couldn't hold a candle to Prim, let alone your uncles and aunts."
Jaune shrugged. "I unlocked my semblance."
"That's… that's it?" Jason reacted. "What, like Sir Julius?"
"I don't know. Lau said Great Grandpa's semblance allowed him to gain power from those who followed him. Mine's not that, but honestly? I think might be better?" Jaune replied.
"What does it do?" Jason asked.
Jaune chuckled. "Honestly? It does too much to explain. We could be here all night and I wouldn't be able to go over everything it does. If I had to explain it in essence, though…"
"I grow stronger the more battles I win… and the growth doesn't seem to have any limits."
Jason's blood froze in his veins as he heard Jaune calmly explain what could be the greatest semblance he'd ever heard of. Sir Julius' semblance was one of the greatest semblances known to humanity, but it was a conditional ability. Take away his fame, take away his name, and you'd reduce him to just another man. A seasoned warrior, yes, but nothing that a group of huntsmen couldn't take down.
"That's… fucking absurd." He croaked out.
"You got that right." Jaune shot back. "Huh, you still live here, even after getting married?"
They stood in front of the ancestral property that had belonged to the Bleu family for generations. His Dad had grown up here, his granddad had grown up here, and so had generations of his family before.
"Ain't one to break tradition, you know? Plus, It's a pretty good house to raise a child in." Jason countered, knowing full well that Jaune had chosen to derail the conversation as a mercy. He didn't care, he'd take it.
The weight class Jaune was playing in was beyond him now, and sting as it may, it was best he didn't dwell on it. Only chagrin lay down that path.
"Man, this place reminds me of the good old days. Remember when you tried to jump into the lawn from the first floor? The first time you broke a bone." Jaune continued to steer the conversation away from himself, and Jason decided to follow suit.
"Like you were any better, remember the treehouse you tried to build into the old Apple tree in the backyard?" Jason countered.
"Hey, the idea was genius, the branches just didn't want to cooperate. At least I got away with a few bruises." He countered.
"Meanwhile you drew a hundred dicks on my cast while I was asleep. Just shut up, Arc." Jason shot out.
"There's the Jason I know! Glad that domestication hasn't changed you a bit." Jaune smiled.
"And why, oh husband of mine, are you coming home at midnight smelling of shit?"
He turned to find his wife sitting on the porch chair. On her beautiful face, there was a frown that only spelled disaster. In the face of such impending doom, he decided to take the best course of action.
"Sorry darling, I was held up trying to get Jaune into the city." He spoke in a calm, soothing tone, emphasising the 'sorry', all the while pointing straight at Jaune.
Ria's brown eyes moved off him and onto Jaune, confused. A second of searching later, the confusion was replaced by a moment of recognition, only to be replaced by shock.
"Holy shit Jauney, why the fuck are you in Phalanx?!" She exclaimed, trying to keep her volume low so as not to disturb the neighbourhood. "Also when the fuck did you go from dork to hunk?"
Jason couldn't even be angry about that. Even he had to agree that this new Jaune was supermodel level when it came to looks.
"Oh you wouldn't believe it. Our little Jaune came back to stamp out the big bad council." Jason sighed.
"You mean the same council staffed by his own uncles, aunts, and cousins?" She asked, cocking an eyebrow. "The same council that manages everything around Phalanx?" Jason nodded sagely. "The same council that pays our bills?"
"Okay! Okay, I get it! Maybe the fist first philosophy isn't the best way to deal with the council, but don't you even deny the fact that someone has to deal with them, and it ain't going to be Dad." Jaune countered, sulking in a corner.
Ria sighed. "It's getting chilly out here. Why don't you two come in and I'll fix us something to drink? Plus, you two need a shower. Especially you, Jaune, I can't allow you to meet your godson smelling like that."
Jaune took a sniff of his clothes, only to blech in disgust. "Yeah, I wouldn't want to subject anyone to this smell. Thanks."
Ria gave him a radiant smile. "Please, we're practically family, there's no need for thanks." She spoke, getting up and opening the front door, ushering Jaune in.
It was true. The three of them had been inseparable ever since they were kids. The three had practically been joined at the hip ever since play school. The fact that Jaune had trusted Jason not to report him to the Guardian Corps even after the falling out they had when he chose to leave Phalanx to become a huntsman only solidified that some friendships were just impossible to break.
"By the way, what's my little godson's name?" Jaune asked.
Both Jason and Ria flinched, causing Jaune to stop mid-way through the door and level them with a suspicious gaze.
"I'm not going to like this, am I?" Jaune hesitantly asked.
"Well… I wanted to name him Megatron, but Ria had an aneurysm when she heard my opinion…" Jason tried to rationalise.
"We named him Jaune." Ria ripped the bandaid off.
"... guys, not to say I'm not flattered, but why?!" Jaune asked, exasperated.
"The nurse wanted a name for the birth certificate and I got spooked! You know I don't perform well under pressure! I just gave her the first name that came to my mind that wasn't Jason!" Ria tried to explain, as Jaune tried to digest that information, a thousand-yard stare on his face.
"...shoulda named him Megatron… he'd be the coolest kid in school" Jason grumbled.
As Jaune stepped out of the shower, he found a change of clothes waiting for him. They were clothes from the Arc militia, probably from when Jason joined them. It was interesting how he was already part of the Guardian Corps, considering it took years of proving oneself as a militiaman before getting a chance at the promotion.
He guessed it had something to do with his proximity to Jaune, and by extension, his family. While nepotism was looked down upon in the household, Jason had enough talent that he would be wasted in the Militia to begin with. His father had trained him since he was a little kid.
He had also been forbidden from teaching Jaune, which had always stung.
He was midway through putting on the white button-down shirt when Ria walked into the room, not even sparing him a sideways glance.
"Umm. Occupied!?" Jaune whispered, closing the buttons on his shirt. In response, Ria gave him a completely uninterested gaze, before picking up the laundry hamper he'd thrown his dirty clothes into.
"Please, Jaune. We've all seen each other naked. Remember the class trip we took to Mistral? We all went to the hot springs together." She commented matter-of-factly.
"That was when we were like, thirteen!" Jaune complained, putting on the fur lined jacket that came with the uniform. It was slightly tight, considering he was a good three inches taller than Jason and wider to boot.
"Eh, doesn't change much. Although to be honest with you, I think that was the night Jason first fell for me." She giggled, putting Jaune at ease. She took one look at Jaune before nodding. "Though, I'm not gonna lie, Jaune. The fact that you have abs that can be seen through a fucking shirt is wild to me. What happened to my soft little Jaune? That set is supposed to be a size larger than what Jason wears every day."
Jaune smirked. "Oh, this and that. I assume Jason's already told you about the video?"
Ria chuckled. "Yeah, hell, I'm surprised I didn't see it. I do now, the guy in the video was too… supermodel-ish for me to make the connection. Now that I see you, I can believe it."
"Supermodel-ish, huh? Never thought of it like that." Jaune spoke, lacing on his black boots.
"Well, yeah. Honestly, I'm sure women have treated you differently since your change." She commented, "But to me, you're just my troublesome little adopted brother."
Jaune smiled at her. "One, I'm older than you, and two, I already have too many sisters, honestly I don't need more."
"Oh, they wish they were as sisterly as me," Ria spoke. "Now come on, we have quite a bit to talk about."
"Many things indeed, like the fact you named your kid after me," Jaune spoke, following her into the living room, where Jason was busy making their drinks.
"Honestly? We gave you our reasoning, and we're sticking by it. Plus, there's always the need for a Jaune in this trio, and you don't seem like you're sticking around." Jason spoke from the countertop, offering them drinks, which they graciously accepted.
"Damn, what the fuck is in this?" Jaune asked, taking a single sip of the drink and wincing.
"Rum." Jason replied.
"Rum and?" Ria also questioned, supporting a grimace on her face that matched Jaune's.
"...and Rum." Jason finished.
"This, Jason, is why I never allow you near the kitchen," Ria spoke, taking a seat on a plush sofa. "Though something tells me we're gonna need this tonight."
"Hey. It's not going to be that bad. I promise!" Jaune replied, sitting across from her. Jason sat down next to Ria, wrapping an arm around her.
"Your opening argument was that you wanted to beat up the council, Jaune." Jason stated, downing half his drink in one gulp.
"...Okay, I see your point," Jaune spoke. "But the council has much to answer for. They've put the entire main family under their thumb. They tried to excommunicate me, and once they failed at that, they're trying to put me to trial."
"You ran away from the clan, stole the ancestral sword used to crown the Arc leader, and then got expelled in a worldwide fiasco. Legally speaking, they have every reason to try and prosecute you." Ria spoke up, getting withering glares from both males in the house. "Hey, I'm a lawyer. I'm just stating that from a legal perspective, they have been genuinely lenient."
"They sent everyone save dad and grandma to hunt me down." Jaune replied.
"And you beat them within an inch of their life and sent them back. 'Resisting Arrest' is also a charge they haven't pushed against you." Ria spoke. "Though, why haven't they?"
Jason sighed. "The amount of damage that would do to the aura of being unbeatable the Arc family exudes is why. You saw how the Grimm were at our doors the moment news of Jaune's expulsion reached Phalanx. This would be a repeat of that, but worse."
"Of course. Public morale and all. It's why the family hasn't left the estate since they came back. Can't let the public see their wounds." Ria completed Jason's rationale.
"They should be out and about in a day. I didn't hurt them too bad." Jaune spoke.
"You twisted Prim's prized spear into a pretzel." Jason shot back. Making Jaune frown.
"Considering the pent-up aggression from a lifetime of being smothered and coddled, a tryst with humility was the least they owed me." Jaune spoke. "Plus, I had to get the message through somehow. I had to tell the council I won't be controlled anymore. They were just the messengers."
"Still, it must have taken a lot, dealing with them all without hurting them too much?" Ria interjected.
"No, it was easy to hold back against them. They aren't threatening enough to make me mess up." Jaune replied, and silence fell over the room.
"Okay. Ignoring the fact that you just called one of the strongest huntsmen teams in the world a 'non-threat'. You do understand that violence is not an option here, right?" Jason spoke.
"Any internal conflict in Phalanx has a ripple effect. The entire reason we are prosperous is that the population of this town believes their defenders to be infallible. To them, the mere thought that the world could pose a threat to their existence while the Arc family still stands is an impossibility." Ria continued. "Remember, the council is also your family. Hurt them, and the illusion of invincibility breaks."
"Then what's the solution? I can't let them have free reign over the city, over my family." Jaune countered.
"Well, while we can't make progress through violence. A… subtler approach might be possible." Ria spoke up.
"I'm all ears," Jaune replied, annoyance writ clear to see on his face.
"Well, you know that I work with the council on internal legal matters, right?" Ria spoke, and Jaune nodded. "Well, since the news of your expulsion broke, the council - which has historically stood quite united - has seen fragments appear in its midst."
"Fragments? Tell me more." Jaune asked.
"Well, I'm not exactly privy to the details, but it took the council a good month to decide to put you on trial." She spoke. "Originally, the council didn't even want to do so. They just wanted you excommunicated. But then your Grandmother stepped up. She wanted you brought back."
Jaune sighed. "Yeah, I can see that. Grandma cares about the family too much. So what did Dad do?"
Ria shook her head. "I don't have the details. It was after the decision was made to bring you to trial that Helios Arc went out on his expedition. He's still not returned. After that, your uncle Cyan also fragmented off the council with his followers. Last I heard, it was your Grandmother's faction against the council, meanwhile, your uncle pressured your father."
"Uncle Cyan opposed Dad? That sounds unbelievable." Jaune spoke. Uncle Cyan was his father's younger brother. They had always been inseparable. The only reason his father became patriarch was because Uncle Cyan never wanted the position.
Why would he openly oppose Dad after having his back all life long? That was the question, and in Jaune's mind, there was only one real answer, only one reason why Dad's most ardent supporter would oppose him publicly. Uncle Cyan had always loved him and his siblings, considering he had no kids of his own.
Helio Arc, his own father, had pushed for his excommunication.
"Them's the breaks, Jaune. I'm sorry I can't tell you anymore because that's all I know." Ria finished. "Your best bet would be to find your Grandmother or Uncle. That's what I would do."
Jaune smiled back at her. "Honestly, Ria. You've been a great help. You have no need to apologise." he sighed, sinking back into his seat. "I'm probably gonna make something of a ruckus before all's said and done, but I want you two to know, if things go down south, I'll make sure you are taken care of."
"Bold words, Jaune Arc, you've got no idea how expensive my dear wife's tastes are." Jason shot back, a hesitant smile on his face.
"Trust me, Jason, with the plans I have in motion, I could have you swimming in cash in a year or so," Jaune commented. "Plus, I'm gonna apologise in advance for what's coming?"
"Just warn me before we get caught in one of your harebrained schemes again. God knows I've had my fill of those for a lifetime. I'm a father now, can't afford it." He joked.
"Oh? But I just warned you, didn't I?" Jaune spoke, just as the three of them heard a knock on the door.
None of them got up to answer it. An expression of dread spread on both their faces.
"Remember what I told you when she found us playing in the Militia Barracks at night?" Jaune spoke as he got off his ass and walked to the door.
"Nothing in this town escapes Grandma's notice." He spoke, swinging the door open to see the familiar visage of his Grandmother. Right behind her stood the man who had served as a surrogate father for his family when his Dad was out on missions.
"Ah, Grandma, Uncle. Fancy running into you two tonight." Jaune spoke with a shit-eating grin on his face.
"Jaune Arc. Dear grandson. You have a lot of explaining to do." She spoke, her icy tone belaying the sickly sweet tone in which she spoke her piece.
"Hey Jauney boy! You know I rarely agree with Mom on matters of importance, right?" Uncle Cyan spoke, an amiable smile on his face. "Well, this time, we're both in agreement for once."
Faced with such adversity, Jaune tried to do the smartest thing that came to mind.
He closed the door on their faces.
Behind him, he heard Ria yelp in surprise as Jason saw his fugitive best friend rudely close the door on both his bosses and promptly passed out in his seat.
"Are you really going to make your poor old Grandma stand outside in this chill, Jaune? I thought I raised you better." Came Grandma's voice from outside.
"Oh please. You don't look a day over thirty, Grandma. Plus, cold air does wonders for the skin!" Jaune replied. "Plus, poor Jason passed out when he saw the two of you. Is that any way to treat your underlings?"
"Would you rather have the two of us ambush you the moment you left his house?" Uncle Cyan countered from outdoors.
"Well, yeah!?" Jaune answered.
"...you have a point. Well, what's done is done! Don't worry, Captain Bleu won't be penalised for this, you have my word as the General of the Guardians." Uncle Cyan stated.
"What about you, Grandma, do I have your word too?" Jaune asked, noting her suspicious silence.
"You know I can just break through this door, right?" She threatened.
"And I'm standing behind this door. Do you really want to take your chances, old woman?" Jaune taunted. The second of silence that followed was tense. For a second, it felt like she might, before he heard an audible sigh from the other side of the door.
"Open up, you disrespectful brat. We're only here to talk." She spoke, then with a pause, she continued. "We won't take any action against Captain Bleu."
"That's all I ask." Jaune spoke, opening the door once again and coming face-to-face with his grandmother.
Even though she was a head shorter than him, she had an aura intense enough that it made him feel like that smaller person. Even deep in her sixties, she still looked like she was in her mid-thirties. Then again, Professor Ozpin was likely older than that but looked even younger.
She still had beauty, still had grace, and looked like she wanted to punch Jaune's face.
On the other hand, his uncle had an annoyed smile on his handsome face. Unlike his mother, Cyan Arc was the tallest in the family, easily towering over Jaune himself. With his bear-like build and the massive axe slung over his shoulder, Jaune did not have any difficulty believing that this man was once equal to or better than his Dad as a fighter.
"Come on in, then. Let's talk." Jaune spoke, letting them in.
"You sure I'm not getting fired, Field Marshal Jeanine? General Cyan?"
Jason was trying to sink into his sofa, almost as if trying to disappear entirely from view. Ria had moved to the kitchen, making snacks for their unexpected guests. Cyan was sitting on the lounging chair next to Jason with a bemused look on his face and a rum and cola in his hand.
Jeanine, on the other hand, was drinking straight from the bottle, exasperation lining her face.
"For the love of the Brothers, Captain Bleu, I've already given my word to my grandson. You'll be fine." She said between swigs of rum large enough to bench a seasoned sailor. She got another good look at Jaune between drinks. Gods her little boy had grown like a fucking weed.
"So, Jaune, I get it that you've always held the militia in high regard, but why dress up in their uniform? You know that impersonating a soldier of the town will get you into hot water with the council, right?" She asked him, and he gave her a sour pout.
"Hey, it's not by choice, okay? I didn't wanna smell like the sewers, and these are the only clothes these two had that would fit me." He spoke.
"It was Jason's first uniform. They gave him a set that was one size too large. Can't tell when Jaune's wearing it though." Ria commented, walking in with a tray of cookies and a pot of coffee.
"Ah, so that's how you got it. I was sure doubling the watch on the gates would keep you out. Should've known it wasn't that easy." Jeanine spoke, nursing her head in her arms.
"Hey it was Jas- I mean, It was completely and singularly my idea," Jaune spoke, changing his words mid-sentence after one quick look at Jason's terrified expression. If the situation wasn't so grave, Jeanine would have laughed at Jason's discomfort.
"So, you didn't know how I got in, but you knew that I got in nonetheless. So, how did I slip up?" Jaune asked.
"You didn't switch off your scroll. I had a person monitor the local CCT. He tipped me off when you were outside the walls." Cyan answered matter-of-factly. "I didn't know you got inside though, that was all Mom's doing."
Jeanine wilted under Jaune's inquisitive gaze, as she had all his life. "Considering you couldn't just come home like a normal boy, I've had operatives posted outside all your friends' houses since the incident with your sisters."
"I was friends with practically every person within a five-year age gap from me. How many operatives do you even have?" Jaune shot back.
"Two, and trust me they took a lot of shifts. It paid off, though." She sighed. "So will you stop deflecting the topic and tell me what madness possessed you to come back home when you are wanted by the fucking council!" She seethed.
"I'm more interested in learning how you 'ol Lau ended up in your crosshairs. Even more so, how did a kid with next-to-no training end up killing grandpa's greatest nemesis?" Cyan asked.
Jaune leaned back in his seat, "Honestly, it's been an interesting couple of months. I'll update you when we aren't in a standoff, uncle, preferably over quite a few drinks." He then looked straight at Jeanine."As for why I'm in Phalanx, I have unfinished business here, so here I am." He spoke.
"You were doing so well too! You gave the kids the runaround for far longer than any of us expected. A month or two more and I could have pressured the council into dropping all charges against you." Jeanine hissed.
"I don't see how you'd be able to do that considering Dad himself pushed for my excommunication." Jaune shot back, and what a shot it was.
"You…how do you know that?" Jeanine said. Her gaze moved to Jason. There was no way the poor kid was privy to such information. His wife? Unlikely too. While she did work with the council, the order to excommunicate Jaune was something passed down by Helios in perfect secrecy.
"Don't look at them like that. They didn't know. Till moments ago, I wasn't sure either." Jaune stared at Jeanine, and Jeanine couldn't tell what unnerved her more, the fact that Jaune knew, or the fact that his reaction was so nonexistent.
The look on his face was cold, yet not harsh. It almost felt like he already assumed the worst. She had only confirmed it.
"Jaune, dear, I promise there is a method to your father's madness." She tried to placate him, but he raised a hand to interrupt her.
"Dad is not someone to take decisions rashly. He spent my entire life making sure I was kept as far away from the huntsman business of the family. It wasn't malice, and I understand that because, in all other aspects, I couldn't have wished for a better father." He stated, displaying maturity beyond his years.
"Doesn't mean I don't want to punch his face for denying me my birthright." he finished with a smirk.
Cyan piped up from the side, "The only reason we didn't publicly oppose him till recently is because he has never made a decision without ample consideration. It's why I did not challenge him for the position of patriarch."
"Dad, for all his misgivings, is a natural leader," Jaune replied, his words measured. "Yet, he is passive. He does not want to ruffle any feathers, and his inaction has let the council control the family, it has let the council control Phalanx." He sighed, a softer expression meeting Cyan's own.
"With that out of the way for now, I can see that both of you have had very different reactions to learning I made it back into the town. Care to tell me why?" Jaune asked, moving his gaze over to Jeanine.
She took another swig of the bottle to calm herself. "Honestly? Jaune. Between the fact that you've become terrifyingly strong with no apparent explanation of how, and the fact that you now own a small fucking country, I don't think I can do anything to stop you. I planned to smooth things with the council and your dad and get you back home. I've failed, so I'll let Cyan say his piece, as much as I fucking hate it."
On cue, Cyan leaned forward. "So, I'm not gonna ask how you suddenly turned into some sort of pro huntsman, that shit is pretty common in our family. My question is, what do you want to do with this?"
Jaune nodded, "Currently? I just want to deal with the council, get some answers from Dad, and bring Jade into the family." he answered, getting a blank look from Jeanine.
"Don't tell me you somehow had a kid in the one year you were gone." Jeanine spoke, getting an eye-roll out of Jaune.
"Yeah, a teenage kid. Definitely." He responded. "She's someone I've come to see as a younger sister during my time in the frontier. She's an incredible huntress who will fit in with the family perfectly. You'd love her."
"Okay, so you adopted a sister because you didn't have enough of those." Jeanine shot back, before mellowing in the face of the glare Jaune gave her. "Okay, sorry, I'm shooting my mouth because of nerves. You know how it is."
In the back of her head, she realised that Jaune had pacified her sass with one glare, something that only her father could claim to do.
"That aside, I cannot bring Jade to Phalanx knowing that she'd end up a slave to the Council's whims, present company excluded," Jaune spoke, a faraway look on his face.
"Plus, I owe them for the shit they tried to pull with Saph."
The chill that ran through Jeanine's spine on hearing those words felt almost physical. It was a grim reminder that even though she had managed to get the Council off Saph's case, no one had forgotten their fuckup.
"And what about the land you now own? Sources say you're sitting on a massive Dust deposit. I don't have to tell you that the council will try to extort that from you, right?" Cyan asked.
"They can try, and they will fail." Jaune shot back with unwavering conviction in his voice. "And even if they manage to subdue me by some miracle, I'm already in talks with both General Ironwood and Winter Schnee with regards to setting up mining operations there. Push comes to shove, I'll just give them the land. The council will get nothing from me."
"Do you even know who you are up against, Jaune? Me and mom here are also part of the council. For all you know, you could be talking to the enemy." Cyan asked. Prompting a throaty chuckle from Jaune.
"Oh sure, the uncle who wrote and signed the letter of recommendation that gave legitimacy to my fake transcripts. The Grandmother who took my mother in even as everyone else considered her a pariah for not being a huntsman, the one I'm named after?" He laughed. "Yeah, sure. That's a risk I'm willing to take."
"Glad to have your trust, squirt," Cyan responded, laying a hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Though, I don't think that moniker holds much weight anymore. Damn kid, you grew like a weed."
Jeanine scoffed. "You can say that again. It feels like just yesterday when you'd sit on my lap and demand bedtime stories. Oh, where does the time go?"
Jaune gave them a warm smile. "If it's any consolation, if I did kick the Council's ass, I promised myself that I'd go easy on you."
"To be pitied by my youngest nephew, what has this world come to?" Cyan joked.
"Sucks to suck, dear unc." Jaune shot back, making them both laugh. Jeanine cracked a smile as she watched. For all the changes he'd been through, this was still her dear grandson, her little Jauney.
"Cyan, I think you were right. I give you my blessings." She commented, before leaning back into her seat and taking another swig of her drink.
"Your blessings? Don't tell me you're getting married, Uncle. I'd hate to tell the woman you managed to bag that she's going to regret her decision." Jaune quipped, getting a punch to his shoulder for his efforts.
"Oh shut up you little shit," Cyan spoke, the smile on his face at odds with his words. "And thank you, Mom, I'm glad you're finally seeing reason."
Jeanine tried to respond to her son's provocation, but Jaune spoke up first.
"Okay, I feel like I'm out of the loop here, Do either of you mind filling me in?" He asked.
"I'll do the honours." Cyan spoke, "But what I'm going to tell you about is a secret the family has kept for centuries. It would be best if we could get some privacy." He finished, giving Ria and Jason a kind smile.
The speed at which the two shot off out of the room could give a trained huntsman pause. Jeanine had to hold back a laugh. Poor kids were already traumatised enough by her and Cyan's presence.
"Okay, Jaune. I'm going to start with a few questions. This is merely to sate my curiosity. That okay with you?" Cyan asked, walking up and pouring out two rums. One for himself, one for Jaune.
"Go ahead, we have all the time in the world." Jaune replied, taking the offered drink and sitting down.
"Would you agree that the world has forgotten our family?" Cyan asked.
Jeanine observed as Jaune withdrew into introspection. A few moments of silence passed before Jaune finally spoke.
"I don't have much recollection of how things were when Great Grandpa was alive. I was still a baby, after all. But I've met more people who don't know about us than otherwise." He spoke. "Case in point, I had the ill fortune to meet Weiss Schee at Beacon. She seemed to have no idea who I was, even though Great Grandpa's statue is literally located in the main boulevard of Beacon."
He leaned back, taking a sip of his drink. "On the other hand, her sister, Winter, knew of us, and even had a decent amount of reverence in her manner of speaking while talking about the Arc hunting party."
Cyan nodded. "When I was a kid, it was a different matter. Great Grandpa's legacy isn't the only one in the Arc household. His father was a huntsman of legend, and so was his father. In fact, it was easier to find an Arc legend than not."
Jaune cocked an eyebrow. "What changed?"
Cyan sighed. "The world, Jaune. The world changed. We went from a world of wars and bloodshed to one of uneasy peace and tenuous alliances." He stated, "We earned our glory by shedding the blood of our enemies. Once the war ended, so did the need for bloodshed."
"And we didn't adapt," Jaune completed. "The huntsman life is one of individual glory. Qrow Branwen, Glynda Goodwitch, Ozpin. They stand as units. Their glory is their own."
"Glad to see you've caught on. The Arc way is one of co-operation. We work together, we bleed together, we earn glory together." Cyan spoke. "In this landscape, one needs to work as an individual to accrue glory. I assume you understand where I'm going with this."
"You're trying to tell me this is why Dad is never around." Jaune answered. "This is why he's always out on his hunts. He's trying to recapture the glory we've lost… but why?"
Cyan nodded. "It's because of mom's generation, Julius's daughters." Cyan looked right at her, prompting her to clarify.
"Dad only had girls, and considering none of us can be patriarchs, the line of succession fell into jeopardy, allowing the Council to take power." She summarised the issue, completely glossing over the bloody battles for succession between herself and her sisters. Battles that lasted even after her sons were born.
Battles that ended up in her dear husband's death.
Thankfully, Jaune didn't question her any further. "Okay, I can see how that's an issue. But then Grandma had you and Dad. Between the two of you, you could have cleaned house with the rest of the council. So what happened?"
Cyan sighed, "Do you know what 'conditioning' means, Jaune?" He asked. Whether he knew or not, Jaune stayed quiet, much to his credit as Cyan continued. "We lost dad young, and mom's duties as patriarch-regent kept her busy. To say that we were raised and moulded by the rest of the council is an understatement." He fell silent for a moment, choosing to down his drink instead.
"By the time we learned to think for ourselves, the damage was done. The council drilled into me a complete lack of trust, which is why I could never find love in my life. Helios, on the other hand? They filled him with doubt. Constant comparisons to Grandpa, constant berating for not living up to the illustrious legacy of the Arcs. Had he not found your mothers, their ministrations would have led him to an early grave. Meanwhile, distrust and paranoia kept me from helping him. I failed him as a brother, and in learning that, I finally found my feet."
Jeanine watched as Jaune's face went blank. She could empathise with him. She had failed her sons just like Cyan had failed Helios.
"Thankfully, love helped him recover. We reconciled, and he became patriarch. Things were going according to plan. Things got even better when it became clear that your father was just like his grandfather, incapable of birthing a boy." Cyan chuckled. "And with mom's guidance, we set a plan into motion."
Jeanine nodded. "My sisters were brought up in a time of war. We barely knew our father, who was always busy on the front lines. Our mothers taught us just one thing. If we wanted power, we'd have to fight for it. Little could they know, the war would one day end, and leave behind eight daughters who'd instantly go after each other to secure their own power." She continued. "My whore sisters still preside over the council, save for those I was able to put six feet under."
"So between Mom, Helios, myself, and Helios' wives, we planned to raise your sisters right, like real sisters. We raised them to be a unit, so when they took their positions in the council, they would slowly push the old guard out."
"I assume all of that went out of the window the moment I was born," Jaune commented. "Can't imagine you lot were happy about that."
"If you ever say that again, Jaune Arc, your strength be damned, I will whoop your ass." Jeanine growled from her seat. "Don't you ever dare consider yourself a mistake."
Jaune nodded. "Wasn't calling myself one, just commenting on how fucked the situation would have been." Jaune placated Jeanine. "Makes me appreciate how much love I got from you all even more."
"Then you must have also realised why you were denied training your entire life," Cyan stated. "We hoped that, if they didn't see you as a threat, they wouldn't be interested in you. We even had a precedent in Saph, who didn't want to have anything to do with being a huntress."
Cyan shrugged. "Once Prim was strong enough to become the first flagbearer, I even tried to push you towards Beacon. I hoped to get you out of Phalanx while we engineered the final steps of our coup. With you gone, they would have no hostages, no staying power. By the time you returned, now a fully-fledged huntsman, we would have weeded out the dissenters from the council. In a perfect world, you'd return to find Phalanx once again run by the main family." He sighed. "Sadly, this is not a perfect world."
"So I've fucked over your plans twice without meaning to. Yikes." Jaune whispered from his seat, gazing into his half-empty glass of rum.
"I… wouldn't say so." Cyan spoke, yanking Jaune's interest back to the conversation. "While it is true that our plans are no longer possible, they weren't probable to begin with. We learned when the Saph fiasco happened that the Council wasn't going to sit idle while we got all our ducks in a row. That incident put a dent in the legitimacy of Helios' lineage that set our plans back a good half a decade." He commented. "The current situation has done the same. The only way Helios can see to salvage the plan is to excommunicate you, at least temporarily. Distance you just long enough to buy us time to upstage the council."
"And the council responded by going behind father's back and siccing the hunting party on me." Jaune commented. "Well played to them."
"When they were deployed, we thought all hope was lost. You'd become a political prisoner, and it would instantly make our plan an impossibility." Cyan explained, "And yet, what we thought was a death knell turned out to be the best possible solution to our situation."
Jaune raised an eyebrow. "Go on, I'm all ears." He beckoned.
"You, Jaune, went and killed a man the world wrote off as unkillable. You went and reclaimed enough land that every nation in the world took notice." He leaned back in his chair, a smirk on his face. "In one fell swoop, you earned more glory and riches than the last eight generations of our illustrious family combined."
"And the council will try to extort me for it. Failing that, they will try to excommunicate me." Jaune replied. "I can't just walk into the council chamber and beat each one of them within an inch of their life. The amount of doubt and fear that will sow in the masses will bring an army of Grimm down on us in hours. So I can't see how I can help."
Cyan shook his head. "There are only two people in the hierarchy that are immune to the Council's judgement. One is your father. Who do you think the other one is?"
Jaune shrugged. "I assume Prim? She's the first flagbearer, after all. In case dad dies or puts down the crown, she will assume leadership until she marries someone who can inherit the position."
Cyan nodded. "Yes, the position of flagbearer is immune to the Council's machinations. On that note, how do you think one becomes a flagbearer?"
Jaune shrugged. "Isn't that a family secret?" He asked.
Cyan only smiled in response. "Then I believe it is high time you learned of our family's best-kept secret." He asked. "After all, the flagbearer can challenge the Patriarch any time they feel the Patriarch is unfit to rule."
Jaune was silent for a moment. "So you want me to challenge father, take over the family, and then root out the dissenters within the council?" Jaune asked. In response, Cyan gave him a smirk.
"It's time, Jaune, for you to reclaim your birthright."
He had never seen this place.
He'd spent his entire life in Phalanx. He'd prided himself on knowing every nook and cranny of the town. Every little hidey-hole, every great view from the walls. Jaune was a walking, talking encyclopaedia on all things Phalanx.
Yet, he had never seen this door. How could he have? Cyan had taken him through three false walls, each separated by a flight of stairs that seemed to lead downwards endlessly.
It was an ornate door, staffed by a man he had never seen before. He looked to be the same age as Uncle Cyan, but there was an ageless quality to his features, almost comparable to Professor Ozpin.
Either that or the all-knowing look on his face, which unnerved Jaune more than it should have.
He was an Arc, though. Between the arc sigil embossed on his fashionable overcoat and the similarities between their features, Jaune could say as much with surety.
"Ah, Cyan. It has been ages." The man gave his uncle a cheerful smile. "I see you have brought new blood to challenge the gaol."
Cyan nodded with a smile. "Yeah, meet Jaune." Cyan motioned toward Jaune. "He's different gravy."
The man levelled Jaune with an intense, searching gaze. Jaune didn't wilt underneath the man's scrutiny, neither did he let the intense pressure the man exuded bother him.
He was stronger than that, and the man seemed to recognize that too.
"I see. You're Helios' son, then?" He asked, getting a nod from Jaune. "Wonder where he was hiding you all this while, you seem far more impressive than the girl he sent a few years ago."
"That girl was my sister," Jaune spoke icily, letting presence manifest around him. "Disrespect her at your peril."
If he was affected by the oppressive pressure of Jaune's presence, he didn't show it. Instead, a genuine smile split his face.
"Yes, I believe he will do nicely." The man stated, shooing Uncle Cyan away with his outstretched hand. To Jaune's surprise, Cyan did not take any offence, opting instead to give him a quick bow. He then stood to face Jaune.
"Good luck, Jaune. You'll need it. Once you're done, you'll find me and mom in the family home." He spoke.
"I won't be long." Jaune answered back. His piece said, Cyan left.
"You really shouldn't make promises you can't keep, Jaune Arc." The man spoke, pushing open the ornate door in front of him. "Now, walk with me."
Choosing not to question the word of someone even his unruly uncle showed deference to, Jaune decided to comply. Walking in through the door, he found himself in what could only be described as an arboretum. Trees and plants of all kinds blocked his view. The very idea that something like this could exist under Phalanx.
"Wondrous, isn't it? That we would go so far to create such an elaborate jail?" The man asked. "Makes you wonder just what kind of prisoners live here, doesn't it?"
Jaune shrugged. "Eh, I've seen weirder shit."
The man chuckled at that. "I assume you have, young empyrean. I can feel the magic of the phoenix deep in your soul."
Jaune's eyes widened in surprise. "How do you know about that?" he asked, Flameseeker manifested in his hands as he quickly put some distance between himself and the man.
"There are very few things in this world I haven't seen, Jaune Arc." The man spoke, still smiling ear-to-ear. "I have no quarrel with you, but it's good you've drawn your weapon."
Before Jaune could respond, he heard what could only be described as a small sonic boom. His body moved before his ears could catch up, yet, it wasn't fast enough, as something impacted his chest, right above his heart, hard enough to slash away half his aura.
The projectile disintegrated on impact, leaving behind only an arrowhead.
"Welcome to the Gaol of Immortals, Jaune Arc." The man spoke. "I hope you make it to the end, it would be a shame if you didn't get your answers, after all." The man spoke, and then simply vanished, leaving Jaune in shock.
Not that he had time to worry about it. Now that his body was ready for battle, the next arrow shot at him was easy enough to dodge. Two more shot out from the trees in rapid succession. Jaune dodged one and blocked the other with Flameseeker.
Ignoring the stinging sensation in his arms due to blocking the projectile, Jaune focussed, allowing his senses to expand. He heard footsteps lighter than his own dance through the underbrush. Given enough time, he could locate and intercept his quarry.
But time was a luxury he didn't have, as more arrows were fired at him, he decided to use another skill that came with his class promotion.
Class Skill - Soul Process
Allows the user to create and utilise a secondary 'mind'.
Mana Cost: 100 MP/S
The skill was hard to explain. In a single moment, it felt like Jaune could do everything twice. While one process could be used to manage his evasion under fire, the second could use the sounds picked up by his enhanced hearing to triangulate his opponent's location.
After dodging his tenth arrow, he finally saw a glimpse of his enemy. Instantly, he dumped upwards of a thousand mana into Fulmination, fully intent on frying his opponent's skin.
The lightning spell fired, and he saw it overwhelm his quarry. It kept on going, completely disintegrating every tree in the direction it was fired, all the way till it crashed against the other wall of the Gaol, smashing the eviscerated body of his hunter into it.
He quickly closed the gap to the wall to confirm his kill. While he knew no one who could survive a spell like that, something felt off, and as he came to a rest mere meters from the charred corpse of his opponent, he realised - much to his chagrin- that his worry was warranted.
The man's body was little more than a charred corpse, but he willed it to stand up. As he did so, his body began to restore itself. Jaune had an inadvertent flashback to the Phoenix healing itself, but the two were nothing alike.
The man's body seemingly grew new musculature from nothing. Once that was done, it grew new skin. And finally, new hair appeared over the man's once-charred scalp, and Jaune was left staring at a man who he could only describe as primal.
The man growled at him, his teeth bared like a Grimm trying to intimidate its prey, His face was pitted and scarred, something his healing factor had left untouched. There was only anger in the man's eyes, and Jaune understood the unspoken fact that there would be no reasoning with this man.
"Guess it's called the Gaol of Immortals for a reason." Jaune spoke as he brought up his sword. In reaction, the primal man pulled out two stone-headed hatchets.
Jaune could tell this would be a hard fight.
He wasn't wrong.
His opponent didn't have skill. He didn't have finesse, but he was unrelenting. While Jaune wasn't a swordmaster in the least, he didn't need to be one to fight this man.
The man attacked with reckless abandon, trying to hew through Jaune with his axes. For his efforts, he would lose an arm, a leg, and sometimes even his head. Yet every single time, he would be back in seconds.
Adding to that was the man's inhuman strength. Even when his attacks missed Jaune, he could feel the force behind them. He had to duck as the man's swing hewed through a banyan tree in one cleaving slash. If any of those attacks hit, he'd be in deep trouble.
When his blade failed to have an impact, Jaune switched to magic. The fires of the phoenix gave his opponent some pause. Having your eyes boiled out with plasma-hot fire would do that, yet, the man surprised Jaune once again.
Facing his fire, the man retreated into the foliage. Again, Jaune made to follow but found his progress hampered by arrows, each fired through the trees with unerring accuracy.
"Fucking asshole," Jaune muttered as he cleaved through the treeling with a charged Aura Blade, only to be rewarded by a supersonic arrow to the head, dropping his Aura into the red.
Still, he had bought himself some time. His opponent couldn't linger in the destroyed treeline, having been forced deeper into the treeline, he couldn't get an easy shot at Jaune, putting the two at something of an impasse.
One that Jaune decided to break first.
"You like your little Jungle, don't you, you sneaky shit?" Jaune taunted, holding an orb of the phoenix's fire in his right arm, pumping it with as much Mana as he could muster.
"Let's see how you hide after this!" Jaune yelled, smashing the mana-charged orb of fire into the ground below.
The fire seeped into the earth, turning land around him into slag. It spread, and as it reached the treeline, it finally erupted in pillars of fire, setting fire to the entire room.
As he predicted, the primal man ran out of the treeline brandishing his hatchets. Sadly for him, Jaune was ready for him.
Jaune dismissed Flameseeker, lunging at the man. He grabbed him by the face and planted his body into the melting earth.
The man screamed, clawing at Jaune's hand as Jaune pushed him further into the molten ground. Jaune's immunity to fire damage was the only thing keeping him alive as the man's body started to melt. After a few moments of struggle, the man's grip went slack, and the last of his torso dissolved into the slowly cooling earth.
Jaune took one last look at the slag to make sure the man couldn't recover from complete immolation before falling backward on his ass. He finally allowed himself to breathe.
After beating Lau and the Phoenix, Jaune thought he was practically invincible. This, this was a reality check, a reminder that there were things in this world that could still kill him if he let down his guard.
At least he'd gotten three levels out of the whole thing.
"My my, I must say, I've never seen the Hunter die a death this gruesome. Your sister and father both just crucified him on a tree."
Jaune almost jumped out of his skin when the man who had led him into the Gaol spoke up from behind him. Even with his enhanced senses, he hadn't even felt the man arrive.
"Brothers, you scared the shit out of me!" Jaune exclaimed. To his surprise, though, he saw a look of annoyance cross the man's face for a single moment. He regained his facade fast, but Jaune's reference to the brothers had annoyed him. He would have missed it had he so much as blinked.
How very intriguing.
"You'll excuse me for trying to extract some fun from this situation. I rarely get visitors anyways, I have to get my laughs in where I can." He spoke, leaning down to touch the now-cool ground. "My, you did him in good. I don't think he'll be able to reform for at least a decade."
"Wait, you're telling me he isn't dead?" Jaune asked, shocked.
"Well yes, what part of 'Immortal' do you not understand, child?" The man said, standing back up, his inspection of the hunter's 'remains' concluded. "Your lack of intelligence notwithstanding, I must congratulate you on your promotion to 'first flagbearer'."
Jaune gave him a nonplussed look. "Wait, that's all I had to do? What about the rest of the Gaol?"
The man gave him a cocky smirk. "Oh, did Cyan not tell you? Aspiring patriarchs only need to lay low the Hunter to qualify as flagbearers. Going further does have its benefits. There are five floors to the gaol, and conquering each floor does confer a unique title. That said, the last time anyone went past the first floor was centuries ago."
Jaune folded his arms in front of his chest. "Not even Great Grandpa Julius attempted the second floor?"
The man chuckled. "Oh no, he attempted the second floor. He simply didn't succeed." The man shrugged. "Of course, he attempted it when he was younger than even you are now, much before he came into his peak. I daresay if he had tried it at the peak of his prowess, he might have made it as low as the third floor."
"That said, I have a proposition for you, young Empyrean." The man continued. "I can see your questions written bold on your face. You've gained an incredible power, and you know not what it is. If you can clear the fifth floor, I'll give you some answers."
Jaune raised an eyebrow. "And how do I know you even have these answers? Hell, I don't even know your name" he asked, trying to call the man's bluff, only for the man to laugh in his face.
"Oh by the lords, you really have no idea, do you? I saw you use both the phoenix's magic and the spell of the lord of Levin. You wield the magics of the lords in a magicless world, yet you have no idea where these powers originate from."
Jaune gave the man a blank look. "What do you mean magic doesn't exist in this world? It's literally in every single crystal of dust!"
The man levelled Jaune with a blank gaze. "Were you dropped on your head as a kid? Other than you and me, you could count every single magic user on your fingers and still have fingers left. Don't tell me you think magic is a widespread thing."
"My ex-friend could turn into a bunch of petals on command. You telling me that semblances aren't magic?" Jaune countered.
The man froze in place. "Oh dear. This is dire. You really don't know anything, do you?"
"In my defence, I was kept away from anything Huntsman related till about a year ago." Jaune stated, making the man hold his forehead in frustration.
"I… I'm at a loss for words. Are you not curious about any of this in the slightest?" He asked.
"Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm extremely curious about all of this." he replied. "What I'm more curious about is just who the fuck you are."
The man sighed. "Then am I right to assume you plan to brave the depths of the Gaol?"
Jaune nodded. "It's been difficult for me recently to find opponents to go all out against. If the rest of these immortals are as strong as this hunter guy, I'm not going to pass up on this chance."
"Good, then I wish you best of luck, Jaune Arc. I shall await you at the end of this test." The man spoke, walking away.
"You never did tell me your name, you know?" Jaune quipped.
"Oh yeah, my name..." The man spoke, turning around to lock gazes with Jaune.
"I am known as Arc, the first of my name, and likely to be the very last."
Okay! Here's chapter 7, the beginning of the House of Arc story arc! This is a 2-part arc so expect a good 4-5 chapters to be spent here.
A decent amount of new characters have been introduced in this chapter. A few of them will be recurring, a few of them exist just to flesh out Jaune's childhood (because RT fucking fifn't)
for the discord server I promised, it's going to be (slash)DQnmaHECfA for anyone who wants to join. This is in order to combat the shitty email system this site has, as well as so you guys can provide feedback directly.
Make sure to request for the updates role in the server if you want notifications when there's an update!
Also, big thanks to BlackJackHero for beta-reading my work! It's also been a joy to bounce ideas and concepts off him. Overall, great collaboration.
Finally, and most importantly, the first of my new fics is now out. It's a Kuroko no Basuke fic that had been on my mind for a while. If you like KnB, or NBA basketball in general, please give it a try! As far as I can tell, it's a pretty one-of-its-kind concept! More fics will join the roster soon. The next one will be a Fire Emblem Three Houses fix, and the one after that is a pretty amibitious Highschool DxD and Jujutsu Kaisen multicross. Hope you'll like those too once they are out!
Happy reading!
- Cold Daylight