"A defeatist attitude now would surely lead to defeat... We can't opt out of the future."
- Seán Lemass
Why me?
Oscar must have asked himself that question a hundred times.
'In the last hour, perhaps,' Ozpin quipped unhelpfully.
"You're not the one that has to actually walk the distance," Oscar sniped, not sure if responding to Ozpin out loud made him feel more or less sane.
Yeah, definitely less.
"You did not choose this destiny, but it is yours, just as my destiny is mine. A defeatist attitude only leads to defeat. We cannot opt out of the future."
Oscar didn't respond. He didn't need ancient wisdom and snappy quotes — he needed a soft bed and a warm meal.
He pulled his coat tighter to no avail, the wind and rain slamming into him as if it weren't there.
"Hide!"
Oscar didn't think twice, hearing the urgency in the immortal's voice and dashing into the treeline as fast as his mud-logged boots could carry him. He slid behind a tree, out of sight of the main path. It wasn't perfect, but in the misty night he would be as good as invisible.
Only a few seconds had passed before he heard the low din of voices approaching — multiple voices, their words concealed by the light patter of rain.
Slowly, the conversation died out.
"They know we're here," Ozpin supplied.
What do I do? Oscar panicked, begging the wizard in his head for an answer.
"Hope they're friendly."
"Come out, we know you're there!"
Sure enough,They had spotted him.
More afraid of what would happen if he didn't comply, Oscar slowly pushed himself to his feet and walked out with his hands raised.
The group that had spotted him was large — too many to see through the rain. Maybe half a dozen or so cloaked figures stood in the rain, an array of weapons pointed in his direction. Closest to him near the treeline, a woman aimed a pistol at him.
Oscar swallowed. He was so dead.
"You'll be fine," Ozpin assured him, a recurring promise that Oscar was coming to trust less and less. "Repeat after me,"
Having no better option, Oscar took a deep breath.
And began echoing the words that filled his mind.
Ren's eyes tracked their newest companion carefully.
He watched as the orange haired girl walked alongside Ruby, their animated chatter a stark contrast to the squelch of boots in the mud. She was in bright spirits despite the dreary weather, trotting along with a hop in her step.
His hand gripped the device in his pocket, fingers anxiously tracing the metal.
"Hey, Renny," Nora whispered, jabbing him in the side. "You're not really being subtle."
Shifting his head to look forward, Ren pulled his hood a bit further over his head, concealing his eyes, which remained locked on the machine.
"Better," Nora nodded, satisfied.
Ren's hand clenched that much tighter as Jaune approached the pair, awkwardly greeting 'Penny' before pulling Ruby aside to talk about where to set up camp.
At the head of their group, Blake stopped suddenly. The rest quickly followed suit, slowly and quietly unsheathing their weapons.
Blake crouched low to the mud, and Ren quickly made his way to her. He crouched beside her, only needing a moment to see what she had seen — a boot print in the mud, angled toward the treeline.
And it was fresh.
Knowing she didn't need a second opinion to confirm the obvious, Ren quickly moved back down the road and cautiously entered the treeline, scaling a tree quickly after.
He moved between trees, leaping silently from branch to branch until he was on line with where the boot print had been.
Readying his daggers, Ren scanned the ground beneath him. Sure enough, a boy lay huddled in the divet of a tree's roots.
"Come out!" Blake called, right on cue. "We know you're there!"
Ren remained perched above, motionless but ready to pounce.
Luckily for him, the boy complied, revealing himself without reaching for the crude spear strapped to his back.
Most of the team visibly relaxed at the sight of a seemingly harmless young boy — everyone but Ren and Blake.
"Are you alone?" Jaune questioned, him and Ruby making their way to the front of the pack until they were within speaking distance. Ren cringed at their lowered weapons, and readied himself to make up for their carelessness if the boy tried anything.
"Yes," the boy answered, voice seeped in anxiety. "I'm traveling to Mistral, I want to become a huntsman."
The rest of the group had caught up now, loosely crowded around the boy.
Jaune and Ruby shared a glance.
"Do your parents know about this?" Ruby asked. "You're lucky we found you — there are Grimm and bandits out here. Not to mention the weather — you don't look very well equipped."
As if summoned by her words a cold breeze rolled through the forest, causing the boy to shiver.
"I don't have any parents," he said, quietly. "They- they died. Almost a year ago, to a Grimm. The innkeeper has been taking care of me since they passed."
Ren's eyes narrowed.
"I know I'm not well prepared and I probably won't survive seeing a Grimm, but I don't have a choice! I'm told I'm already too old to get into a combat school the normal way, if I wait any longer I won't have a chance at all. I- I could go with you!" he suggested at once. "If you'll have me, I mean."
"I'm sorry to hear that, but, well, we're headed the opposite way," Jaune pointed out. "Sorry, but there's not much we can do for you. You should stop at the next town and wait until there's a convoy passing through to hitch a ride. It's dangerous out here."
"I'll go anywhere I can train!" the boy offered. "Even if I have to go to Vale, I'll do it!"
"Sorry, kid." Jaune shook his head, "We have a job, we can't-"
"We're heading to Vale anyway!" Ruby cut him off. "We can take one person, it's not that big of a deal."
"The rations-"
"We packed extra!" Ruby supplied, smiling brightly. "And we can always hunt! You can join us!" she assured the boy.
"Thank you!" The boy exclaimed, cutting off Jaune. "You have no idea how much this means to me, thank you so much!"
"I'm Ruby, it's nice to meet you," Ruby extended her hand, smiling widely. "What's your name?"
"Oscar," the boy answered, breathing a sigh of relief. "Oscar Pine."
"Jaune," Ren's team leader grunted, clearly not pleased. Ren shared the sentiment.
The others introduced themselves one by one, with varying levels of enthusiasm.
"Ren should be around here somewhere," Ruby recalled, looking around for him. "Where did he go?"
"Ren."
He dropped at his leader's prompting, landing directly behind the shorter boy.
He leaped in surprise, spinning on the spot. "I'm Oscar," he nervously introduced himself, extending a hand.
"Ren."
"He's always like that," Ruby assured him awkwardly.
"Let's keep moving," Jaune sheathed his sword. "We're barely halfway there."
"We were going to set up camp soon anyway," Ruby pointed out. "Why not just set up here?"
Pausing, Jaune looked around briefly.
"Blake?"
The faunus shrugged a single shoulder, scanning their surroundings. "Not great, not horrible."
Jaune nodded. "Alright then, let's set up camp."
Many miserable minutes of setting up tents in muddy grass later, their tents were set up in a loose circle around a central pit. The wood, too wet to be lit conventionally, was helped along by some fire dust.
The large group sat around the far-too-small fire while Nora cooked a large pot of mystery stew, muttered conversations sporadically popping up and dying out.
"Ugh," Weiss groaned, massaging her foot through a boot. "Remind me again, why didn't we just fly to Vale?"
"Because if we walk through Mistral, we can keep an eye out for Yang on the way — and ask around whenever we pass through villages," Ruby pouted.
Weiss rolled her eyes, "Yes, but we could've covered so much more ground in a bullhead. Besides, she went missing in Vale, and Perseus controls Mistral — if she was here, we'd have a better chance of knowing than anywhere else."
Ruby huffed, and Blake rolled her eyes.
"If I recall," Pyrrha spoke hesitantly, "You were the one who spoke up and agreed with Ruby when she and Jaune were arguing about the best approach."
Weiss blushed. "Well, it is her sister. It only made sense for her to make the decision…"
"Well then don't complain ice queen," Blake quipped, leaning forward to intercept the bowl of stew being offered to Weiss.
"Hey!"
"Fascinating, isn't it?" Penny asked Oscar quietly next to Ren.
Oscar hesitantly nodded. "Is it… always like this?"
Penny placed a finger on her chin in an overly-intentional gesture of thought. "Often, but not always. Towards the beginning of the journey it was even more lively! Sometimes it still is, but on days with inclement weather there is an increased frequency of diminished mood."
"Ah… right."
"But sometimes it is worse — tempers can be fragile in such a tight-knit community of people."
"I see…"
"Hey Oscar, hey Penny!" Ruby interrupted their enlightening conversation. "Mind if I have a seat?"
Glancing at where she'd been sitting, Ren realized he'd missed something. His leader picked at his stew half-heartedly, while Weiss sat angled away from him, eating from her own bowl and making a show of ignoring him. Pyrrha was trying to engage him in conversation, to little success.
Ren stifled a sigh. Conflict wasn't frequent, but it wasn't exactly rare either.
He glanced at Ruby, Oscar, and Penny chatting animatedly on his left.
No prize for guessing what it was about this time.
Setting down his bowl, Ren watched as one-by-one his teammates began retreating into their tents to get some much-needed rest.
He envied them. Unfortunately for him, he had two internal threats to watch out for now.
He was glad — and a bit envious — that his team leader hadn't had to experience what Ren had as a child. But sometimes, he wished Jaune had just a little bit more difficult of a past. If he had, maybe he'd have the confidence to put his foot down and tell the kid to get lost.
Maybe Ren wouldn't have so much work cut out for him protecting his friends from their own bleeding hearts.
When Yang left the CCT, it was to find someone waiting for her. He was on the younger side — maybe mid-thirties, but wore a checkered plaid vest and a long cape. He had tanned skin like many of those that lived in Vacuo, and a mischievous grin was highlighted by a wiry goatee.
"Theo," Zeke, her tattoo-clad protector, grunted.
Yang did a double take. This was the headmaster of Shade?
Oh my gods. Forget about having a hot teacher, in Vacuo they had a hot headmaster?
"Zeke," The two men grasped forearms and shared a respectful nod.
Without a word, the only person she knew in Vacuo walked off.
"Miss Xiao-Long," Shade's headmaster turned to her with a friendly smile. "Welcome to Shade. I am Headmaster Theodore, but please, call me Theo. Now there's much to talk about, but first I would be a horrible guest if I didn't offer you refreshments and rest first."
Yang almost collapsed in relief.
One shower, nap, and a warm meal later, Yang sat with Theo in his office, sinking into a lounge chair that felt like a cloud. After a few weeks in the desert — she really should check the date — sleeping on rocks and sand, she had learned how much she could miss simple things like cushioned chairs or air conditioning.
"Coffee?"
Yang nodded. She had never liked coffee all that much, but caffeine? Yes, please.
He poured her a cup, and she threw in a handful of sugarcubes and filled it halfway with creamer before taking a long draw of the drink.
"You remind me of your mother."
Yang launched into a fit of coughs, pounding her chest. "You knew my mom?"
The man smiled patiently, crossing his legs and leaning back. "I worked with her. When I first became headmaster and had no reliable huntsmen of my own, Summer was Ozpin's go-to huntress. Whenever he offered help in Vacuo, she was the one to show up." his smile faded. "Including her last mission."
Yang sat up straighter, trying not to show her interest. Dad never told them about their mom's final mission. He always avoided talking about it, and they had learned quickly not to ask.
"You know about her last mission?"
"Taiyang never told you?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow.
"Err… he doesn't like talking about it." she explained.
Theo hummed. "Of course. Well, I see no reason you shouldn't know, if you wish to hear about it."
Yang nodded a bit too quickly.
"Very well." he cleared his throat. "Years ago, just after I took over the position of headmaster at Shade, a huntress in my employ was patrolling villages around the mountains in the east, near the border with Vale. All was normal until one night I received a broadcast from her emergency transmitter. Fearing the worst, I requested help from Ozpin. He sent two huntsmen — Summer, who had been on a mission close by, and Qrow Branwen, who immediately set off from Patch."
Yang's breath hitched. She remembered Uncle Qrow not being there when they got the news that mom died, but she didn't know he had been involved.
"Summer arrived first. She was met by a scorpion faunus named Tyrian Callows, a serial killer who had escaped imprisonment shortly before. He was particularly dangerous to huntsmen as he had a semblance which could bypass aura."
If it were possible Yang's eyes would've grown larger. A semblance that let someone ignore your aura was a terrifying thought.
"We can't know exactly what happened, but it's likely that by the time she arrived he had already murdered the huntress, and engaged your mother in single combat. When Qrow arrived not long after, Callows informed him that your mother was dead."
Yang fought back tears. She could handle this — she had to prove she could handle this.
"Qrow fought Callows, heavily injuring him before he managed to escape. Qrow searched for your mother, but never found her. He gathered a sample of her blood from the battlefield, and we were able to confirm the presence of scorpion venom well above fatal levels. Unfortunately, she wouldn't have survived long enough for the blood to dry."
Yang pursed her lips, and coughed into her hand. Her eyes weren't burning. She was not crying.
"I… thank you for telling me," she told him sincerely. "The serial killer, you said he escaped. Is he still…"
"Truthfully, we don't know," The headmaster admitted, taking a sip of coffee. "My guess? No. Qrow did injure him quite grievously, and they were in a rather remote area. It would have been difficult to seek medical attention, and we don't know if he could have survived even if he did. As far as I'm aware, he hasn't been sighted since. And remember, this is not a sane man — he possesses no self control."
Yang let out a deep breath. She didn't know why, but it did make her feel better knowing that the man who had killed her mom was — very probably — dead.
She didn't say anything for a while, just thinking about the new information. She'd always thought her mom had died to Grimm, but it was another human all along. A serial killer.
She swallowed.
She had had her own brush with death recently, and it, too, had been at the hands of another person. Not Grimm.
Could she have ended up like mom?
"I'm sure you'd like some time to process all this," Theo stood slowly, offering her a hand.
Yang shook her head vehemently. She ignored his hand, standing on her own. "Nuh-uh, I'm not one of those typa' girls. When I'm in a bad mood, best thing for me is a good fight." she grinned, filling it with as much bravado as she could muster. "So how about you give me your best shot, and try not to get too sad when you get your butt kicked by a girl half your age."
Theo laughed loudly, his laughter so full that it almost reminded her of professor Port. "I like your attitude. Hang onto it, it will do you well."
Yang ignored the tiniest flush that rose to her cheeks. "I'm not hearing a no. You in, or are you too chicken?"
The older man smiled knowingly. "Very well, Miss Xiao-Long. Let us head to the arena, I'm looking forward to facing another fist fighter."
Yang's smile only faltered for a moment. He used his fists too?
Maybe she wasn't so sure after all.
Percy reclined in his seat, a leather chair at the head of a long oak table. Along the sides, roughly a dozen men in crisp military uniforms sat before a varying array of papers, folders, and terminals.
It was all way too formal for Percy's liking, but even he had to admit that sometimes a bit of formality was called for.
"Our first airship crew is nearing graduation from their accelerated training program, and will be stationed on…"
Percy tuned out the drivel, knowing Shiro was keeping up with it. He was interested in big picture stuff, not knowing the exact fleet composition and size of their airforce.
Instead his attention rested on the varying officers at the table, studying each one as they diligently pretended not to notice his gaze. Only one — a younger, army-type soldier with a buzzcut — acknowledged his attention, meeting Percy's eyes and nodding curtly before returning his attention to the meeting. Percy let his amusement show, smiling faintly.
He usually didn't attend these things, letting Shiro run them as the commander in chief, and Saturn fill in for him on behalf of the navy.
He shifted his gaze to his second in command, noticing the medals on the man's dark blue uniform. He had more than anyone else in the room on account of the navy — and Saturn himself — being involved in more battles than any other unit.
Percy's attention was suddenly piqued as General Gray — the general he'd left in charge of the forces in Menagerie — began his report.
"The situation has stabilized, and skirmishes with remnants of the White Fang have diminished to once a week or so," the hologram reported, the man made of blue light sitting in a seat around the table as if he were here in person. " Initial construction of the temporary outpost has been completed, but we will continue work to fortify it for as long as we are here. Additionally, we've begun training and supplying local volunteers. We expect the first class — around two thousand — to graduate basic training before the end of the month. We'll be supplementing their chain of command with our own officers until some of them gain enough experience to hold leadership positions."
"How'd Kali take it?" Percy spoke for the first time, leaning forward.
"The chieftain and chieftess were reluctant until the reminder of recent events in Mantle," Percy winced. "They've agreed to allow it, but wish to organize them into a defense force which will be constitutionally prohibited from taking military action outside of Menagerie, except against Grimm."
Percy hummed to himself. A restricted military? He didn't mind, but he knew there had to be some wasted potential there. Maybe some volunteers could be absorbed into a special unit in Mistral's military instead? He wasn't sure, but it was something to bring up with Shiro later.
He nodded his thanks to the general, leaning back and letting the meeting continue.
A few more officers gave their reports, including Saturn — which Percy actually paid attention to — until they had all spoken.
"Thank you," Shiro nodded to the last speaker, an older, overweight man who looked uncomfortable in his uniform. Percy thought he might have recognized him as nobility of some kind. "Now," Shiro cleared his throat, "We have some announcements. Our military is, relatively, a brand new one, and that has come with some temporary drawbacks. One of those has been the lack of senior command staff at the highest level."
Only the slightest shifting of fabric revealed that they understood what Shiro was implying.
"Today, we will be rectifying that issue." Shiro stood. Catching his cue, Percy stood as well. The room was filled with the sound of chairs rolling on carpet as everyone around the table stood at once.
"Colonel Bondoer," he called. A large man with several scars covering his face stepped forward and snapped a sharp salute. "You are being promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General, and assuming full authority over the command of special forces," Shiro announced without fanfare, stepping forward and replacing the ranks on the man's lapels before returning the salute and shaking his hand. "Congratulations."
Percy half-tuned out the rest. Not everyone in the room was being promoted, but a healthy majority of them were. It would take some time to get through.
Finally, many promotions later, Shiro called the name of someone Percy was actually interested in.
"General Smith!"
A dark haired man in his early middle ages — the same one that had originally proposed the structure that they were currently using to him and Shiro all those months ago — stepped forward. He was the first one Percy had seen to be visibly nervous, but figured that was because he guessed what was about to happen.
"You are being promoted to the rank of General of the Army and placed in charge of all operations of the Army of Mistral. You are to assume full authority over ground forces, and be held responsible for the coordination of Mistral's military organization in its entirety."
Like a thousand times before, Shiro saluted him back and then took his hand. "Congratulations."
Percy reached his own hand out, a ghost of a smile crossing his lips when the general stared at it for a moment, as if he wasn't sure if he was allowed to take it.
He did though, and Percy shook his hand. "Congratulations."
"And lastly," Shiro pulled out a last set of pins, turning and handing them to Percy. "Perseus." He nodded respectfully, playing up the formality a bit for the peanut gallery.
Percy let Shiro drop the tiny metal insignias in his hand, dipping his head slightly in thanks.
"Vice Admiral Vasilias," he called. The man stepped forward, sharp salute following quickly after.
Percy stepped up to him, only having to fiddle with the pins for a moment before he fixed them to the much older man's lapel.
"You have shown yourself to be of the sea, and the sea is nothing if not loyal. May the tides answer your call, and may the currents guide you." he held Saturn at arm's length, staring directly into his eyes. "Trust in the sea, and it will never fail you."
Saturn nodded minutely. It was advice he would take to his grave.
" What belongs to the sea will always return to the sea ," Percy muttered.
"You're being promoted to the rank of Admiral of the Navy." Percy let his arms drop, sharing a genuine smile. "Congratulations."
Jaune placed the Lien on the tavern bar, waving a short goodbye and joining the rest of the group outside.
The occasions that they could stay the night at a town were luxuries, and it was well worth the lien — not that money was a problem, with the stash Pyrrha and Weiss had supplied to pay for everything.
He stretched, yawning deeply as they all made their way out of the town without a word. Jaune waved back at a couple locals who were up early, recognizing a face or two from making conversation at the bar the night before.
He knew what it was like living in a small town. A rag-tag group of huntsmen in training traveling through would probably be the most interesting thing to happen in this village this year.
It wasn't long until the village disappeared behind them, though, and then they were back to Mistral's wilderness.
Penny seemed to be the only one in the mood for talking, bouncing between Ruby, Oscar, Jaune, and Pyrrha — the ones too polite to tell her they really didn't want to talk.
Only a few miles from the village, though, Blake stopped in her tracks.
Both immediately stopped and reached for their weapons, and Jaune reached out to grab Oscar by the shoulder when he didn't immediately stop with the rest of them.
"Wha-" Jaune slapped his hand over the boy's mouth.
The forest was silent, but Blake's ears twitched tellingly.
They waited for something to happen for several long moments, Jaune slowly removing his hands from Oscar to grasp the handle of Crocea Mors.
Not a moment later, there was movement down the road as a large, hulking man stepped out of the treeline into broad daylight.
"Stand aside, children."
Ruby and he shared a quick glance.
"Why were you hiding in the treeline?" Jaune called.
"I was not hiding," he disagreed, his powerful voice reaching them clearly. Intentionally, he began walking towards them. "I was waiting."
"For what?" Jaune asked.
He stopped his approach several feet away from Blake, and pointed past her, directly at Jaune.
"Him."
Eyes turned towards him, and Jaune looked to his right.
Oscar was frozen, staring at the man with wide, terrified eyes.
"He is guilty of crimes you cannot imagine. I am here to bring him to justice for those crimes."
"If you want him, you'll have to go through us!" Ruby stepped forward, deploying Crescent Rose. Penny, Weiss, and Blake followed suit.
"What she means is," Jaune stepped in front of her. "We'd be glad to help you turn in a criminal, but we need proof. Do you have any?"
The man shook his head. "I am afraid I do not — none that you would accept anyway. I do not wish for more innocents to be casualties of this man's evil. Stand aside, and I will not harm you."
Jaune drew Crocea Mors. "Sorry, but we're not gonna do that."
Behind him, he heard the telltale sounds of his own team unsheathing their weapons.
The large man nodded morosely, seeming genuinely distraught. "Very well. If you choose to perish here then I have little choice. I believe that every man has the right to know the one to take their life, so know that I am Hazel Rainart."
Before Jaune could so much as blink, Hazel was charging.
Directly at him.
Hope you enjoyed! I am tryin to make sure the 1 chap a month doesnt become a trend so peer pressure me to 2 a month again.
Also, yes, I am aware the quality is worse than before I went on hiatus, thank you. Taking a year break from anything tends to diminish your skills somewhat. All I can do is keep it going consistently and hopefully get back to where I was.
Thank you to those who reviewed :)
Next Chapter December 15