Marrow followed Weiss down the hall, not entirely sure where his partner was headed. The young woman was walking slightly ahead of him and moving with purpose, at a pace more brisk than usual. Her heels clacked along the tile of the hallway as she went, and each sound struck Marrow almost like a personal attack. The faunus' heart was hammering in his chest as he continued to walk, unsure if he should say anything. Eventually, the tension became too much to bear, and he sped up to close the distance and place a gentle hand on Weiss' shoulder.
"Babe, I'm s-"
"I'm not angry," Weiss interrupted, speaking quickly as she turned to face him. The girl had tears in the corner of her eyes, though she was doing an admirable job of fighting them back. "I just… I-I thought that maybe there was another way…"
"There isn't," Marrow said solemnly as his tail drooped behind him. "Not an ethical one, anyway. I have to do this. I know you'd do the same, if our roles were switched..."
"I would, but…" Weiss agreed before taking a long, labored breath that sounded almost more like a sob. "…you said our safety was a priority, for the sake of our future together. That we needed to look out for ourselves, so we could get through this and start a family after the dust settled…"
Marrow made a noise as well, deflating as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"And I meant it, too. But if we're going to make a sanctioned effort to rescue Mantle and Argus… it should be the Aces leading the charge. The people need us and Penny at the forefront to give them hope, and they especially need my medical skills to save as many of the injured as we can. I had no idea that Ironwood was thinking about doing this, but as soon as he said we have an obligation to try… I knew what I had to do. I'll be careful. I will come home to you, Weiss. I promise…"
"Please don't say things like that," Weiss replied as she stepped forward and pressed up against Marrow's chest. "We can't possibly make promises like that anymore. Not after everything that's gone on. Not after Ruby."
"I know, but I feel like I have to," Marrow admitted as he wrapped his arms around Weiss. "I mean, I can't not say it. I don't want you to feel like I'm… like I'm putting the mission before you. Before us."
"But you should," Weiss stressed as she squeezed tighter. "I understand why you suggested this to Ironwood. I… I even support you doing it. I'm just scared, Marrow. Things between us have been so good lately, and I don't want it to end. You've made me feel like no one else ever has… and I don't just mean physically."
"I won't let it end," Marrow insisted. "I will do everything in my power to make it back up to Atlas, and I'll keep you updated constantly. Okay?"
"It's not okay," Weiss answered. "But… okay. I just… wish I could come with you. Fight at your side and watch your back."
"Clover and Elm will be watching my back, and I'm sure Penny will, too. You're needed running the dust company and coordinating with me on the ground," Marrow reminded. "You're really not mad at me…?"
"I'm not," Weiss confirmed. "I want to be, but… I can't be that selfish. Volunteering yourself for this mission is just another example of the kind of thing that made me fall in love with you, so… why would I be angry? Still… let's make the most of the time we have together, before you head out on this new mission."
"You won't hear any argument from me," Marrow said as he pulled back slightly to look Weiss over. "We've got a few hours before the meeting with everyone reconvenes, and the earliest we would leave is tomorrow. It wouldn't shock me to hear that we're holding off for at least a few days while Ironwood figures out what vehicles and artillery we can spare down on the ground."
"I hope you're right. You know… we're quite near my old room that I shared with Ilia and Yang," Weiss pointed out as she nodded over her shoulder. "We'd have it all to ourselves…"
Marrow merely blinked as he watched Weiss' expression shift into a smirk.
"…Weiss. Now?"
"Now," the heiress confirmed. "Or else I will be mad at you."
Marrow couldn't help but chuckle as the much smaller girl began walking again and tugged him along. It was going to be a long few hours… but he wasn't about to complain.
"So, I know you're in a bad way and that this really sucks for ya, but honestly… this has the potential to be a lot of fun."
Ilia didn't look behind herself as she continued to descend the metal staircase, heading deeper and deeper underground. She had already started feeling sick back up on the surface, and the closer she got to their destination, the more she felt like she was just going to throw up. There was no safety net. There was no backup. It was just her, Alice, and one of two possible endings. Everything hinged upon her ability to negotiate and lead… likely including what Sun thought of her when they eventually reunited.
"Don't wanna hear it," the faunus said tersely. "I know I fucked up last time."
"Did you?" Alice asked, sticking close to Ilia as they made it to a metal platform and began taking the stairs down in the opposite direction. "This is just a continuation of your efforts from before. It's only over when you give up, or they're both dead. You have an opportunity to turn things around."
"I guess," Ilia said noncommittally. "If I pull this off, you swear you'll help out in Mantle without squeezing any of us or Ironwood?"
"Scout's honor," Alice swore as the women made it down to the ground level. "I'm an opportunist, and what you're potentially offering is too good an opportunity to pass up. Are you sure you're ready? And… a good enough shot to pull this off?"
"I'm sure of one of those two things," Ilia answered cryptically as Alice offered one of her pistols. The faunus took it and checked that it was loaded before beginning to walk down toward the cell blocks. "That's all I'll say."
"…you know… I really do like you," Alice said with a grin. "You'd make a pretty badass pirate, if you're looking for work when this is all over."
"I'll think about it," Ilia said before taking a deep breath just out of the line of sight of the prisoners. "Here goes everything…"
Ilia took one more inhale before holding her breath and striding forward, full of confidence. As Jacques Schnee's cell came into her line of sight, she stopped, raised her pistol, and fired without a moment's hesitation. The sound of the bullet was absolutely deafening in the cavernous hall, causing Robyn to sit up from where she had been laying upon the bench in her cell to see what was going on. Ilia still didn't breathe as she surveyed the damage with a cold glare.
A bullet hole had appeared in the wall mere inches away from Jacques' head, exactly where Ilia had meant to put it. The man was wide-eyed and frozen as he stared at the faunus, lightly shaking in sheer terror.
"…next one goes in your fucking forehead, unless you do exactly what I tell you to do," Ilia seethed, slowly redirecting the barrel of the gun toward its new target. "Get up."
Jacques immediately rose from his bench and raised his hands up to shoulder level in a gesture of surrender. It was not at all lost on Ilia that there was a slowly growing wet patch on the crotch of his suit. Going by Alice's snort of laughter as she approached the cell with a set of keys, she had noticed it as well.
"Hope you're ready to work, mate," the woman said in a singsong voice. "We've got a lot to do."
"W-what exactly is going on?" Jacques stammered as the cell door was opened.
"Out," Alice ordered, stepping aside as Ilia kept the gun trained on the man.
"Do you, or do you not know how to manage resources and organize people?" Ilia asked. "Because if it turns out you've been doing nothing but collect while your underlings do your bidding, you're a dead man."
"I-I know how manage," Jacques asserted, unable to take his eyes off the barrel. "I promise you, I c-"
"Good. That's all I need to know," Alice interrupted. "You work for me, now. We're heading topside, where you'll get a new pair of pants- cargo pants, just for the irony- and then you're going to do a review of everything in the Cradle and help me optimize for the coming war. You get to stay here, safe and protected, I get to stay out of Mantle, and our stockpile of tech gets upgrades, organization, and tune-ups on your dime to get ready for wherever we're attacking next. Well. That, or you take some lead between the brows. Your call."
"…I'll take the job," Jacques answered quickly.
"Volunteer work," Alice corrected. "You've been paid more than enough for one lifetime. C'mon, asshole. This way."
The woman began walking, not even bothering to check that Jacques was following. There was only the briefest of pauses where the man looked at Ilia before he hurried to catch up, leaving the faunus alone with Robyn. Ilia finally lowered her weapon as she approached the other cell. Robyn Hill looked less than impressed with the display as she remained seated upon her bench, arms folded across her chest.
"What? Not gonna threaten me into compliance?"
"Oh, I will," Ilia reassured. "But only if I need to. You're a cunt, you know that?"
"I've been told so once or twice, yeah," Robyn acknowledged. "Upset that I called your bluff last time?"
"A little bit," Ilia replied as she moved closer to the bars. "But at the same time… as absolutely shitty as it was to ask me that, when you've got the choice of sitting here in total safety or risking your ass on the front lines for a redemption that may not matter in the end… I can't even really be mad. Why the hell would you join us if I thought this whole crusade was a lost cause?"
"Exactly my thinking," Robyn agreed as she stood up and moved closer to Ilia. "There's nothing in it for me. As far as the people of Mantle and Atlas know, I'm a saint… and who knows how many of those people are even still alive? Unless we've actually got a shot at winning this, the safer move is just rotting in a cell. I chose my path. It's a shitty one, but… I'm not alone in choosing that. It's practically the Solitas way."
"And yet, when Shiv asked if you'd be willing to assist us if you were let out of your cell, your hand was green," Ilia reminded. "You want to be who the public thinks you are, don't you?"
Robyn's expression shifted to a lopsided frown, and the woman shook her head.
"…it's complicated, and it doesn't really matter. We're not friends. Why are you here? What are your terms?"
"Simple," Ilia said as she offered forth her hand. "Ask me again. I'm ready, this time."
"Are you?" Robyn asked as she gripped Ilia's hand with her own. "Don't give me a bunch of qualifiers with your answer, either. I just want to know, straight up, what you're really thinking. Do you think we really have a chance against Salem?"
Ilia felt Robyn clench down on her hand, as though the other woman expected her to pull away again. The faunus had no intention of doing so as she closed her eyes. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she thought back through everything she had experienced. All of her time with Sun, getting to know and making friends with Weiss, fighting Salem herself and barely surviving, Cinnamon's betrayal and attempted murder of Corsac on her behalf. Ilia was terrified of what was about to happen… but there was more to it than just trying to make another useful ally.
She had to know the definitive answer as to what she was feeling, even if it was what she feared.
"Yes. Yes, I do."
No matter how irrational the notion was, Ilia's entire sense of self-worth hinged upon what she saw when she opened her eyes. The value of her friendships, the validity of her ability to turn her life around, whether or not she actually had any belief at all that life was worth living and she could be better- it all came down to what Robyn's Semblance showed her. Slowly, Ilia opened her eyes as she held her breath.
Her hand was glowing a bright, hopeful green.
Author's Note:
She's beginning to believe.
-RD