But it shouldn't. Because they're wrong. Stopping someone from killing people is not morally equivalent to forcing them to kill people.
And she's not able to even try to explain that with normal words and no supernatural persuasion?
Miracles of Ancient Wonder [RWBY/Exalted]
- Thread starter Graveless
- Start date
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- Tags
- exalted (white wolf) rwby
And she's not able to even try to explain that with normal words and no supernatural persuasion?
I'll reference something I posted on SB. She's 16-years-old, in the middle of a Limit Break, and is under an enormous amount of stress. Why would she be thinking rationally?
kinigget
Best Demon
- Location
- People's Republic of Portland
...yes?
Wait, are you saying that it's morally excusable to mind control people if you're doing it to save lives?
Because that is not a position I can see Ruby ever taking, regardless of how any of us feel about it
You do remember how horrified Ruby was at the concept of someone being able to strip her of her will yes?
As for the second point, there really isn't any argument she could make right now that would convince anyone to stop
Especially after that show she just put on
- Location
- Germany
Since she can't do it with words of course her Curse is justified. And she is keeping the important part up in the end, that's the decision she came to.
azoicennead
Overly-Affectionate Zombie Squad
- Pronouns
- He/They
Did you forget about her arguing with Ozpin about this?
Book 1 Chapter 8.i
- Location
- NOVA
Miracles of Ancient Wonder
~
Chapter 8.i
~~~
~
Chapter 8.i
~~~
Fire… Fire and pain were all that she could feel.
A single spark lit upon her hand and ran up her arm. It burned long, burned deep, made her skin blister. The flames stopped just below the elbow, consuming everything in their unquenchable thirst.
They burned hotter and hotter, filling the air with embers and smoke.
In time, the heat became too much, her throat igniting as well.
Cinder threw herself from her bed with the sick tearing of flesh and a wordless scream. Her new arm, its form as dark as the bodies of the Grimm with white spines extending from every surface, had formed a mouth and bitten into her thigh… again.
She growled and clenched her teeth, forcing her rage into the creature. It growled back, teeth grinding along each other. The stump of her arm burned as they bit into it, moving through the creature, but slowly, surely, they disappeared. It formed into a long, thin, but almost completely human arm. Though it only had three fingers and a thumb.
With another thought, the nails extended into claws that could slice stone. Claws that would take the life of the girl who had done this to her. Adam was dead and the White Fang knew her to be a traitor. She no longer needed to worry about what he thought.
Heavy footsteps sounded from the hallway outside. They were slow, powerful. It was likely Hazel, coming to 'check up' on her again. Cinder's Grimm arm growled, fangs reappearing as it split down the middle. With another forceful thought, the hand returned to having fingers rather than a mouth.
As the footsteps grew closer, Cinder glowered at the door. Someday, she would burn that condescending look off of his face, but there was nothing she could do right now.
They grew louder and louder, until the door was kicked in by Mercury carrying a tray. The smug smirk that he normally wore was especially prominent today.
He flinched back as soon as he saw her. He also stopped stepping so heavily.
"Uhh… Breakfast?" The boy's grin shifted to a stupid smile. He was smart enough to recognize his mistake. She wouldn't have kept him around so long if he wasn't.
Cinder's glare held him in place for nearly a minute, stopping only when the itching around her neck became too much to bear. She motioned for him to approach as she raised the arm, an additional elbow forming in the middle of what should be her forearm. She pressed the extra elbow against her throat, slightly soothing it. It was nothing compared to what fingers could relieve, but she wasn't about to risk its nails turning into talons and reopening her wound to the air.
He delivered the tray. Her meal was the bright red oats and black fruit native to this continent that all of them ate.
"Emerald'll be by soon. She's a little tied up right now." Mercury backed away, leaving her with a cooling bowl that she lacked the dexterity to actually eat.
Cinder lowered her head and allowed her Aura to bleed through her eyes.
Mercury stepped back. "I'll be right back."
He failed to closed the door behind him, his footsteps miraculously light as he left. While Mercury was one of her most dependable assets, he also required a great deal of handling. Without others to torment, to hurt, he rapidly approached the boundaries of his position.
A chill breeze swept through the room, but she was fine, because the Mantle of the Fall Maiden burned within her. It infused her, permeated every fiber of her being, and smoldered with a wonderful heat. A hunger that would not be sated until she acquired the rest of it. She drew on the power, rolling heated air over her tongue, and blew a stream of flames onto her bowl.
<"Very good,"> the voice of Lady Salem, Architect of Horror, Fell Queen of the Grimm, the true Goddess of Remnant, echoed from the doorway.
Cinder immediately bowed her head. She should have noticed her mistress's approach.
<"Rise."> Her Majesty glided into the room. As she approached the Grimm arm tried to shrink down, bowing to its Queen. <"How is your control progressing?">
Cinder forced the arm to raise and spread its fingers.
Her mistress narrowed her eyes. Cinder lowered hers in response.
<"You're missing one.">
Cinder nodded, the humiliation burning in her chest. She should not have needed this and it was not supposed to be this hard. She could command regular Grimm with ease.
<"Without maintaining a human appearance, you will never be able to succeed at your task."> Lady Salem held her own hand up. Cinder could feel the invisible threads pulling at her arm, forcing it to match what she once had. <"Clear your mind of your frustration. By remaining calm, you will hold onto that shape.">
It sounded so easy, but as soon as the threads were removed, it tried to snap back to a mouth. Cinder's breath quickened as she forced it to remain normal. Teeth, bones, eyes; all of them and more tried to form, tried to ruin her mistress's work.
A spine erupted from the forearm as she grit her teeth. Another tried to shoot into the stump of her arm, but her Aura blocked it.
<"If you cannot maintain the one, then there is no hope for two. You would have to replace my gift with crude metal."> Lady Salem towered over her. <"You would need to depend on Dr. Watts to maintain it.">
Cinder took a deep breath and redoubled her effort. Calmness, emptiness; those were what she needed. Within three full breaths, the bone began warping and cracking as she forced it back in. She needed to do this. She would not depend on anyone else.
Every inch it pulled back took seconds. By the time the arm was back to mostly normal, Cinder's sheets were soaked through with sweat.
<"Congratulations are in order, for more than one reason."> Lady Salem lifted her chin with a finger. Her eyes were bottomless pools of darkness that Cinder plummeted into.
She was falling into an ocean of darkness. A bleak, emptiness so complete that back when she still had hands, she'd have tried to wave them in front of her own face without being able to see anything. Worse was the lack of sound. This was a realm of nightmares and terror, the mind and soul of her Mistress. And even someone as accustomed to it as Cinder felt her pulse race faster and faster while she fell.
Her heart pounded in her chest, beating with a strength that reached her ears. After what seemed like an eternity, a sound entered her mind.
<"Your manipulations have born fruit, dear Cinder."> Lady Salem's voice echoed between her ears as an image appeared before her. It was a view of Beacon, the citadel of their greatest foe. The sight came from far, far above the campus, but the tower was unmistakable. So was the destruction covering the center. <"The Sidereal girl has broken from Ozpin.">
Cinder took a deep breath. In this world, she still had a voice. <"Are we to move in?>"
<"No. Dear Ozpin deployed an unknown weapon against us as the attack began.">
The image was replaced with a wave of black motes, the remains of the Grimm, being turned to white and exploding towards her.
<"It destroyed all of my creations within ten leagues of Beacon.">
Cinder was struck speechless. That was ludicrous; no weapon, no spell, no technique could have such an effect.
<"But, by doing so, he has revealed his hand.">
<"Was it one of the Maidens?"> Cinder could only dream of being able to do such a thing.
<"No. Such power and precision are beyond their control. Only one class of being could both accomplish such a feat and would be present."> Lady Salem brought forth additional images. They were the known and suspected members of Ozpin's cabal. <"Ozpin must have been harboring one of the Exalted among his pawns for quite some time.">
The images rotated, cycling through each. All were accomplished Hunters, each within the top of their field in whatever they had chosen to specialize in. Cinder had spent a great deal of time studying the mannerisms and fighting style of each. <"Why would he do this and not stop the Sidereal?">
<"Perhaps he tried to stop her. This occurred before her public rebellion.">
Cinder thought about the various plans they had made to conquer Beacon. <"What about the great dragon? Wouldn't he have been within the range?">
<"Fubarushu yet lives, though he will need to hibernate for quite some time before he's recovered from the injury.">
<"What shall I do?">
<"Have your thief observe Beacon. You must acquire the remainder of the Fall Maiden's power, but until we identify this threat, you could not risk infiltrating directly, even if you were whole.">
Cinder tensed as she nodded. Those were her orders, as distasteful as hiding like a coward would be. Her spells and the fragment of power that she had should have rendered her unbeatable, but Belladonna had proven that to be false. A teenager, gifted with a power that she refused to grasp, had cut through her best without any difficulty.
It was sickening how the girl refused her potential. If Cinder were in her place, the kingdoms would have already been burned to ash. Both of them, her and the blonde, should have ruled over their school, not been reduced to cowering in the wilderness. They didn't deserve the power they had.
While she could think of nothing more satisfying than basking in their fall from grace; their slow deaths from Tyrian's venom would also be acceptable. So too, would his arrogance being shattered by their blades.
<"I understand,"> she said aloud, none of her inner anger reaching her tone.
<"Very good. Soon enough, you will awaken to the potential that I saw in you all those years ago.">
Cinder bowed her head again. She owed Lady Salem for more than her mistress would ever know. She had been saved from a life of pointless sacrifice, toiling uselessly for the foolish masses that would never appreciate the sacrifices made in their name. She had been given a purpose. She had been given the power she'd always dreamed of.
<"But for now, you must recover. There will be other opportunities to strike against Beacon and it will take several months for my spiritual creations to take root once more.">
She fell out of the vision as abruptly as it began.
Cinder opened her eyes from within her crippled body once more. The arm had maintained its human-like shape, but the nails had grown into talons that speared through her mattress. Lady Salem frowned slightly at the sight.
Emerald gasped from the doorway, bowing her head as Lady Salem glided out. Mercury was nowhere to be seen.
Cinder watched her most loyal servant carefully as she approached. The cool light did not do her complexion wonders, nor the obvious stress. She would need to be rewarded soon, perhaps a meal at one of Vale's finest restaurants, one of the ones she'd never dreamed of going to. It would both sate her and give Mercury ample opportunity to abuse the waitstaff.
Emerald quickly checked the temperature of the bowl before picking up the spoon. Cinder could not wait for this humiliation to be a distant memory.
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Hm. I think I missed that, actually. I don't suppose you can point me to the right chapter?
So, not only did Mars stop the attack, she bought Beacon a great deal of time while Salem and her minions look for an exalt that doesn't exist. And she did it all while appearing to simply remove a distraction from her lesson.
Edit: It's near the end of 8.2, shortly after Mars shows up.
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Hm. Didn't realize it had such a large radius at the time.
I don't think anyone else did either, mortal line of sight is rather limited.
kinigget
Best Demon
- Location
- People's Republic of Portland
I dunno, it might lead them to Weiss
That said though, forcing Weiss out of Beacon would most likely lead to her tracking down the rest of her team, which should be interesting if nothing else
Weiss isn't capable of feats on that scale yet, so even if Salem finds her she'll probably keep looking. You may be right on this forcing her out though.
Book 1 Chapter 9.1
- Location
- NOVA
Miracles of Ancient Wonder
~
Chapter 9.1
~~~
~
Chapter 9.1
~~~
"Make it all worth it. Keep them safe," Weiss quoted her partner's last text to her own reflection for the third time since Ruby left. She had their entire room to herself and had made a desk where she could watch herself in a personal mirror. It reflected the entire room, reminding her of what she'd already lost.
It was part of her work routine now, repeating Ruby's final command. Weiss had woken up to it the next day and Ruby hadn't turned her scroll on since. Given the reactions from both the news and the rest of campus, Weiss couldn't blame her.
With that in mind, she paid slightly more attention to the extra scroll that was playing the morning news. "An anonymous source told us that the Vale council has contacted the Atlas military for assistance in the Anathema crisis. Hunters in Vale remain unable to comment. More on this story after the break."
She groaned. It hadn't taken long for the panic to set in after Beacon was attacked. Between the videos posted online and the obvious inability of the Anathema Hunters to respond, there was no way to keep it under wraps. Vale needed to respond quickly to calm her people, but it didn't look like they were able to.
Weiss ran her fingers through her hair while watching herself very closely in the mirror. She let her Aura run wild as she planned for the next day. Its edges threatening to push outside of her own body. But, with each wave of Aur-Essence, she wrapped another around it, and kept herself from bleeding any away.
It was inefficient, but it also allowed her to access the vast depths of her true power. Considering she would never touch that Essence normally, the extra cost was more than worth it. And in the coming months, she would dearly need as much power as she could grasp.
Ruby had set the stage for a number of different, very risky, actions that Weiss could take. If she succeeded, she'd acquire enough power to keep not only herself safe, but also the rest of her team. The problem was that actually doing so would put her into a morally grey area without Blake, Yang, or Ruby to rein her in if she went too far.
While it may be tempting to take advantage of the chaos, it was also-
A frantic knocking came from the door as Pyrrha called out, "Weiss, are you there? Can we talk?"
"The door's unlocked."
"Thank you, I-" Pyrrha cut herself off when she stepped in and saw all of the other items still strewn around. Her eyes lingered on Ruby's desk for longer than any of the others. "I'm really sorry about this, but I can't just sit there and listen to them anymore."
Weiss locked her scroll, just in case Pyrrha recognized what was on it. "What's happening?"
"My team's talking about what happened and… and they're saying such terrible things. That she betrayed us, that she's going to kill us all… That she's Anathema." Pyrrha paced back and forth, fists clenched. "It was all I could do to not interrupt."
"Why didn't you?"
"It would have been rude and I don't-" She took a deep breath. "They're not entirely wrong about what they're saying, but they didn't see what I did and… and I don't have any proof of it and I would sound mad if I began trying to explain that... that..."
"Explain that you know what Ruby's goddess said." Weiss finished the sentence. "You know the truth, but that doesn't change what she did or how they're reacting?"
"No, it doesn't, especially because Nora has so much trouble remembering the good things that Ruby did." Pyrrha sighed. "We've also had people waiting at our door every morning who want to talk about it. Other want their chance see Ren, Nora… or Jaune."
Weiss raised an eyebrow when Pyrrha started blushing.
"Some of them have been, er, very explicit about what they'd like to do to him."
Weiss didn't understand why Pyrrha was so hung up on someone who had been utterly incompetent until very recently. She deserved better than that, but didn't seem to want to find it. "You could put a stop to that if it's bothering you this much."
"I wouldn't want to just kick them out, even if-"
"That's not what I'm talking about." Weiss stepped closer." Pyrrha, you are an incredible person who someone like Jaune would be incredibly lucky to ever catch the eye of."
"I, ummm… I'm not," Pyrrha stammered, cheeks blazing.
"Pyrrha, it's fine." Weiss laid a hand on her arm and squeezed. "I'm not going to tell him."
"Is it that obvious?"
"Just a little." She paused for a moment, watching for Pyrrha to start breathing slower. "Feeling better."
"Just a little." She laughed slightly. "What am I supposed to do?"
Weiss raised an eyebrow. "You're at Beacon to learn to be a Huntress, aren't you?"
"Yes, I thought that was my Destiny, but… but now that an actual champion of Mars has appeared, I should be helping her, but she left before I could ask her anything else."
Damn, there was so much that Weiss could do with that attitude. It would be far too easy to turn Pyrrha in whatever direction she wanted to. But what would be best for Pyrrha? "What have you thought about?"
"I thought about going after her, but I have no means of finding her. Similarly, I could try to find Blake or Yang. If they've truly been blessed by other gods and aren't demons, then I should do my best to help them as well. But… I have no idea where to begin."
"For that matter… Ruby believed that you too were chosen. I've assumed that you used your gifts to watch what happened without me noticing you. Is there anything that you would need?"
Weiss grit her teeth. That was far too tempting. There had to be something she wasn't seeing here something she- A harsh cold ran through her veins as a threat became obvious. "Pyrrha, how many people did Ruby tell that theory to?"
"I'm not sure. Jaune, Ren, and Nora know of it, but I'm not sure-"
"They're enough." Just those three were more than enough to ruin all of her plans if they told the wrong people or thought about it long enough to make the connection. "Ruby… why? I told you I didn't want to do that."
"Weiss?"
"Pyrrha," Weiss met her eyes, her own expression as intense as she could manage. If Pyrrha were at all capable of deceit, then this would be even dumber than it felt. "There are two things that you can do to help me right now and several more based on the results of the first two."
"What do you need?"
"First, I have a question for you." She waited for the nod before continuing, "What do you think I am? What would people call me if they knew?"
A light of realization appeared in her eyes. "An An- someone who's… been."
"Then you understand how dangerous this is for both of us."
Pyrrha nodded.
"I want to help humanity and I'm going to need help if I'm going to do that." She reached for her scroll. "You'll need to be able to lie if you really want to help."
"I- I'm not really comfortable with that. I avoided taking part in any social games because it felt wrong."
"Isn't one of Mars' themes debate and argument? If you really want to serve her well, then you would become proficient with all of her weapons." Weiss watched the gears turning even as Pyrrha grimaced. "Knowing how to wield a sword against people doesn't turn you into a murderer, knowing effective techniques to convince people won't turn you into a harpy either."
"I really want to smack you right now. You're right, but it feels slimy to think about doing that."
"That's a good instinct, because the main task that you can do for me right now is to tell me if any step of my plans would either be immoral or go to far."
"I can do that, but why now? What're you going to do?"
"If I'm going to remain able to act and change people's minds, then I'm going to need to acquire protection."
"I'm still confused."
"Ruby thought that I wanted to take over Beacon. I suspect that she's put events in motion to make that happen."
Pyrrha nodded, but didn't look convinced.
"I've underestimated how devious she can be. She's gotten everything that she said she wanted, but none of us expected how it would occur."
"I don't think she would've wanted any of this to happen."
"At the beginning of the semester, she wanted to know the secrets of the investigations. Then, the professors broke all forms of protocol and allowed her to watch mine. When she wanted to know what we were keeping from her, Yang was revealed in the middle of a fight she planned. And when she wanted the Anathema investigations to stop, she decisively stopped them." Weiss listed the major events she'd observed in order. "If she wanted to help the image of me she had, then she would put Beacon into a state where I could take over and also give me a reason to do so."
"I don't think Ruby would do that."
"I'm not sure I can risk making that assumption right now." Weiss locked the door and sat back down. "But, you may be correct, that's why there's something else you can do to help me."
Pyrrha nodded.
"I'm going to try something new with my own blessing. I don't know if it will work, but I'm not sure how cognizant I'll be while I do it." She shifted, settling into the most comfortable position she could. "I need you to make sure that I stay in this room and that no colorful Aura or symbol appears. If either starts happening, then you should wake me up or knock me out. Can you do this for me?"
"Yes." She nodded immediately.
Weiss looked at her, unleashing a hint of the primal fury within. "Please say what it is you're going to do."
"I-I," Pyrrha stuttered, her hands flying to her sides, where she would normally have held her weapons. The lamp behind her flew into her grasp instead of anything threatening. "I'm going to make sure you stay here and don't reveal yourself, either by waking you up or knocking you out."
Weiss released the effect. Pyrrha fell to her knees, gasping for breath. "I'm sorry that I needed to do that, but I had to be sure."
"Don't do that again. It was… horrific."
"I won't and thank you." Weiss closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
One… two… three.
She pushed her Essence to her mind, making it move faster. When she reached the bounds of what a human could do, she moved even further beyond. A web of connections appeared in her mind's eye, the spokes shining with silver light. Many faces forced within the web, their bodies obscured by stands tying them in place.
She reached her own limits, the line she'd never crossed before. She wrapped her Essence around itself and stepped beyond. The faces became distinct, they spoke among themselves and told the secrets that she knew they knew. As they chattered, a hidden web of connections revealed themselves by the vibrations of the strands.
She could have stopped there, formed a plan from the unconscious information that was now obvious to her, but she didn't.
Weiss pushed herself beyond the limit of what would be sane. And she became a spider, searching for the most nourishing target.
~~~
James scrolled through the reports of each of Atlas's current deployments from the extra office that Oz loaned him. The screen was smaller than he was used to and he had far more reports than normal, but he also lacked any of the distractions that being on site at the academy caused.
It also meant that he would be ready to take over if the offer to Vale's council was accepted. They would hate ceding any authority to him, but none of Vale's Hunters had figured out a way around the curse. With every day that passed, the Anathema already running loose would be able to gain a stronger foothold.
Without their authorization though, there was nothing that could be done.
Someone knocked on the door with three short raps, followed by two more. The second set indicated that there was someone else who could be listening in.
Sergeant Aiken called out. "General Ironwood, sir. We have a person of interest who wishes to sit with you as soon as possible."
That phrase meant it was someone wealthy who they had a file on, who was looking for a secure meeting. There weren't many options for who it could be in Vale, but someone could have flown in. "There are some openings." He had the time for the right person. "Who are they and what's the topic?"
"Miss Weiss Schnee and the Anathema."
That he would need to hear. "Send her in."
"General Ironwood." She curtsied. "Thank you for seeing me."
"I heard that you have important information about the Anathema."
"I do." She nodded, hands clasped in front of her. "But first, I wanted to extend an offer from the SDC."
"Oh?" He tried not to sound annoyed. It wouldn't be the first time that they tried to use her to gain sympathy for a better deal. Now that she was a victim of the Anathema, most of his men would cave.
"If Atlas is going to be providing security for Vale, then the SDC would be happy to provide additional support." She smiled very slightly, obviously uncomfortable with the idea.
James sighed. "You can tell your father that I'll speak to him after an agreement is reached."
"You haven't begun operating then?" She raised an eyebrow. "I would've thought that it would've been decided more quickly with the Anathema running rampant."
"No, nothing has been decided yet." Not that he would have revealed such information if they had.
"I see," she said plainly. "There must be a lot to negotiate."
"Yes."
"Very well." She nodded and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, a chill ran down his spine. She'd changed like night and day. Before, she'd been a sweet child, but now it was just like sitting across from her father. "Regarding the other reason I came here, the Anathema."
"You have some information about them."
"I do, but." She glanced at the soldiers flanking him. "Can we speak privately?"
James checked her for visible and hidden weapons. He couldn't see any, but that didn't mean he hadn't missed them. If she was a Silver or Golden Anathema in disguise, it also wouldn't do him much good.
"Men, patrol and check in papa-five-golf-eight-whiskey" They'd grab the rest of their squad and check in at predetermined times, ready for Anathema. The Schnee family was considered a high priority target for any who would infiltrate the Atlas upper class.
After they left, she continued, "From my observations of Yang Xiao-Long, Blake Belladonna, and Ruby Rose, I believe that I've discovered a trait of the Anathema that hasn't been documented before."
"Ruby Rose hasn't been classified as Anathema."
"She exhibits all of the important secondary traits and Yang didn't have the primary ones. Blake has been classified as such as well despite not displaying any primary traits."
"While your logic may be sound, it doesn't mean that we will label her as such."
"That's good." Weiss smiled slightly. "Regardless, she is the same type of being, one who was blessed with divine power."
"What proof do you have of that claim?"
"The words of a goddess herself."
James watched her expression, it was completely neutral. "I didn't take you as the religious type."
"I'm not. Or, it would be more accurate to say that I wasn't." She met his eyes, holding them without blinking. "The Goddess Mars appeared before Ruby while I watched with two others: Pyrrha Nikos and Qrow Branwen."
Qrow hadn't mentioned that she'd been there during his drunken rant. Then again, he hadn't been able to stand up unsupported either. "Let's say that I accept this assumption. What have you found out from observing all three of them?"
"That aspects of their behavior is most likely caused by a being beyond themselves."
"Explain."
"I don't know how much you know about Ruby, but she took actions that shocked those of us who've lived with her. She may be reckless and idealistic, but never to the point of harming people." Weiss held a hand out to the side as she spoke. "Regarding Yang, the differences are much more apparent."
He thought back to the reports and lectures about their targets' recent behavior and potential weaknesses. "The report about her breaking down in the middle of a fight."
"Precisely." She returned her hands to her lap. "There is also one more piece of information which I have that I doubt many others would."
James leaned forward.
"Yang knew what she would have to do to prevent that from happening and she refused to do so because she found it evil. There were other options that would be acceptable to most people, but were unavailable to her at the time."
'If I don't kill someone, I'll die.' The words of the late new-type of Anathema who had given them so much information echoed in his head.
"Blake had similar feelings, but found more ethical solutions more easily and never dealt with her patron's displeasure."
He would need to order that lab swept for leaks as soon as he could. While it was entirely possible that she came to this conclusion by herself, especially considering some of the reasons why she was investigated, it was too conveniently timed. "Her patron's displeasure?"
"Considering that the number of Anathema who know of their relationship with the gods is low, I doubt that many would be able to identify the source behind their urges. Or even that they come from anywhere besides their own minds."
"You seem awfully sure of this theory."
"It's consistent with both what I've been told by two Anathema, my observations of Ruby, and a number of historical cases where one evaded notice for a long time. They usually were caught when they decided to do something extreme and ill advised for no apparent reason."
"You must have known about them for some time to gather that much information."
"Failure to report an Anathema, especially considering their known ability to control minds, is not a crime in any Kingdom." She was quick to defend herself, which was unsurprising considering her upbringing.
"While it may not be illegal, it does speak to the character of the person."
"If I hadn't come to you about this now, then no one else would have ever known," she said with an edge, the same one her older sister Winter had whenever she was getting annoyed. "I would've been free from suspicion and you would have lacked important information about the Anathema."
While that made sense, something was bothering him that he couldn't quite put his finger on. "Why would you bring this to me? You're a student at Beacon and such a vulnerability is not very relevant to combating them. One of your Professors must be researching the Anathema."
"The Anathema Hunters within Vale have been paralyzed by Ruby's curse. Even if I gave them this knowledge, they can't act on it." She grinned. "And, I also know that you know the Anathema are still themselves, not demons walking around in human guise. I can't be so sure about the staff here without putting them at risk."
"You've read the top secret sections of our investigation manuals."
"Multiple editions."
That wasn't a surprise, military intelligence knew that the Schnee family, along with several others, had acquired knowledge of the truth behind the Anathema and did their best to profit from the genius discoveries before turning in any they found within their ranks.
"The power that they have could turn the tide against the Grimm."
"Or spell our doom. They could turn their powers on us just as easily as the Grimm, after becoming so convincing that none would fight back."
"Even the strongest anathema could be killed once the Grimm were removed. It may take the lives of thousands, but they would fall eventually."
"I could arrest you for saying this."
"But, you haven't."
"Not yet." He drummed his fingers on the table. She was parroting ideas that he'd been thinking about more and more lately. "You're too smart to put yourself in that position without a good reason."
"They would be an incredible force multiplier, no matter which type you found. Once their particular issues have been identified and workarounds found, they would be no different than an extraordinarily powerful Specialist."
"A Specialist who could take over the entire military if they so chose."
"There are system in place to prevent that and many would not choose to."
"Your girlfriends? That's what this is about."
She briefly flinched. That was where this was coming from. "Neither Blake nor Yang want to rule. Instead, they would work for Faunus rights and fighting the Grimm, respectively."
He could hear the implication in her words clearly. 'Both of them know their own weaknesses and wanted to be Hunters even though they knew the risks of getting caught. They would be happy to be the vanguard in an offensive.'
"A moment." He pulled a notebook out of his jacket and paged to the recent entries. To anyone else, it would look like gibberish, but he'd memorized the cipher he used and could quickly decipher the shorthand. Unless she'd modified this notebook, she hadn't implanted what he was currently thinking about herself.
Three knocks sounded. "General Ironwood, sir. Patrol checking in, oscar-mike-six-bravo."
"Alpha-xray-lima-three." He rattled off the clear and continue patrol phrase. There was one important question that remained. Was Weiss Schnee more like her father or her grandfather? One could be counted on acting in his own best interest in all cases. If you could make your interests align with his own, then he would help you too, However, he wouldn't hesitate to stab anyone in the back if he felt like it would be a net benefit. The other had been an inspiration to James' generation.
He slipped the notebook back into his jacket. "I should bring you in, right now, for immediate investigation."
"By your own words, you don't have the authority to act in Vale just yet and all of the Hunters who do cannot." She had him there. There were emergency powers that any Hunter or Specialist could invoke, but the political situation was very precarious. "And, I've prepared several dead drops and emails which will be sent if I don't stop them. Ruby may have hurt Beacon, but the right words at the right time could destroy Vale."
"You would kill millions to keep yourself safe?"
"If you allow me to walk away, then none of that needs to come out and I disappear."
More like her father so far. "Was that offer true, about the SDC, or simply a method of gathering information?"
"I have the authority to make offers like that and meant every word." Icy eyes bored into his own while the room's temperature fell. She was a sorceress, just like Glynda. It gave her plausible deniability for any strange abilities, including controlling minds. "And I believe that I could help you as well."
"What do you want?" If he was at his normal desk, he'd have a silent alarm that could have been pressed, but at Beacon it would need to be loud.
"I want to banish the blight from our world." Her voice rang with a clarity and passion that any politician would sell their soul for. "Since the dawn of time, we've lived in fear and isolation. We carved out our kingdoms, but still depend on their walls for protection. For countless centuries, we have cowered in fear. Both fear of the Grimm and fear of each other.
"This fear is logical. There will always be those who are selfish, those who would take from others for their own benefit. They exist among all classes of people and all classes of being. We Hunters, we stand head and shoulders above the masses. If we wanted to, we could all stop fighting and allow them to be slaughtered, but we don't. We could take over, rule like the lords of old. Who would be able to fight back besides our own? Again, we don't."
She stood up and extended her hand to him. "Our strength comes from our unity, our willingness to sacrifice so that we can build a better future, together. Just as a Hunter stands above a mere human, so to does one of the Chosen stand above a Hunter."
He forced himself to keep still.
"What I want is to use my talents, my blessings, to enable our kingdom to be the best that it can be. We can become better as soon as we stop getting in the way of our best: whether they be human, Faunus, or something more. Together we would push back the darkness surrounding us and reclaim our world."
Many mysteries that James had been trying to solve suddenly revealed themselves. Three of their worst case scenarios had all coincided in a way that had never been planned for: an Anathema sneaking into a combat school for an extended period of time, multiple Anathema meeting before anyone found them, and a higher ranking member of a family known for toeing the line being Anathema. She'd had all of the information required to circumvent the investigations and would have been able to pass it along to her allies.
The timeline played out for him. Following the assassination attempt on the main Schnee family, the SDC suddenly became more lenient on their Faunus employees, unlike every other time they'd been attacked. Their destructive business practices, forcing others out of business by undercutting, had been curbed and the SDC reinvested with an explicitly long term focus. The sudden changes had baffled those who were looking deeply at them, but no source had been found for the surge of compassion.
No information was leaking because they'd been looking at the wrong source. This was the first conversation he'd had with the head of the SDC in months. Which put all of his other worries into a new context.
Would an empowered Nicholas Schnee destroy the world? James doubted it, but many would disagree with that decision.
"What is it that you'd want?"
"A position as an intelligence contractor. No leadership, no direct reports. I would have access to difficult problems that need solving. If needed, I would be happy to be behind several communication barriers for your peace of mind."
"You could have gotten a position like that without revealing yourself." Her sister was very close to the role, but was too junior to be given access to any black projects.
"I won't be able to stay completely hidden for much longer, not if I'm going to help more directly. If I'm forced to retreat to the wilderness with my team, I will, but how much potential will be lost when that happens?"
"What makes you think I would be able to protect you?"
"Someone, I suspect Professor Ozpin, protected Ruby. She should have been the first of us who was investigated. Instead, she was ignored until the very end."
"You're not asking for the others to be protected as well?"
"If I thought it was possible, I would. But, it would be far too suspicious and I'm confident that they'll be able to survive until Ruby finds them. With the three of them working together, you would need an army to take them down."
"That doesn't fill me with confidence about keeping them alive."
"They want to fight the darkness and you'll never catch Ruby anyway. Even assuming you have Specialists who can remember her long enough to track her, she can become nigh-invisible and soundly defeated the best fighter at Beacon."
James was very aware of his lack of a hand right now. "And, if this is to happen, what exactly does your patron want?"
"Change."
There were several potential gods that he knew of who that could be. But, he would bet on the moon if he had a choice.
"They desire," Weiss continued, cementing his assumption, "that our civilizations grow past what they are right now."
"That seems oddly specific."
"It's a gut feeling."
"I see." James took a deep breath and stood up. He should sound the alarm and be prepared to submit himself for mental decontamination. He should destroy her before she could dig her hooks in further and shatter the kingdoms.
But, if he did that, then the shadow war would be lost. Ozpin, Glynda, and he would all be removed for an extended period of time, while Vale was at its weakest in years. Salem would be able to sweep in and claim the Fall Maiden with only Qrow standing in her way. "You've left me with very little choice."
"I intended to."
"There are two problems that would demand immediate attention, as soon as you prevent those messages from being sent."
She pulled out her scroll and continuously typed while speaking, "I've delayed the ones which were timed for half an hour. The hourly and daily ones remain. What are the problems?"
"We'll need to speak with Professor Ozpin before saying anything else."
If she could find the Winter Maiden or help Amber, then this risk would already pay off.
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kinigget
Best Demon
- Location
- People's Republic of Portland
...holy shit
and that was just straight mundane manipulation and wordplay
she was able to reveal herself without ever explicitly saying anything that could directly identify her as an Exalted, told Ironwood that his worst fears had come true and kept him from immediately sounding an alarm or trying to kill her, and even wrangled herself a position where she could potentially do even more damage, and all of that by just pointing out how useful she could be
I am in awe
and that was just straight mundane manipulation and wordplay
she was able to reveal herself without ever explicitly saying anything that could directly identify her as an Exalted, told Ironwood that his worst fears had come true and kept him from immediately sounding an alarm or trying to kill her, and even wrangled herself a position where she could potentially do even more damage, and all of that by just pointing out how useful she could be
I am in awe
Kind of.
But it was taking advantage of several opportunities. Even if everything blew up on her, she could escape and join her friends. And the hunters wouldn't be able to pursue or stop her because of the curse.
MiracleGrow
Miracles for only $19.99 [They/Them]
- Location
- DOOR STUCK DOOR STUCK PLEASE I BEG U
Ahhh yessssss, that's everything Ive wanted from this story recently. Now I'm pretty sure were hopping back to Black and Yang. Lets hope the Yangst dosn't drag on to long and we start getting to the real meat of the story like this chapter.
This is one of the situations where the GM throw up there hands and auto succeeds the rolls because you stunted so hard that a +3 isn't nearly enough.
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kinigget
Best Demon
- Location
- People's Republic of Portland
true enough, but taking full advantage of those opportunities without having to run away was no mean feat
I mean, there were so many ways that could have gone horribly wrong
Spectrum
Tell me a secret~
- Location
- Behind you~
Happy Friday!
Then again, it is Pyrrha...
...no, stay strong Weiss! "NTR is a trash fetish"!
Then again, it is Jaune...
But now...we're at the precipice. Weiss did a sick amount of prepwork and research before this scene, including picking her target correctly and approaching the right way, and handled it quite well. But was it enough or is the GM going to take the easy out to not split up the party?
Or Weiss says "fuck you guys for running out on me, just you wait and see" and next time they meet up it's "by the way, I've acquired Backing 5, Resources 6, Cult 5, and Allies 4 powered by setting up Pyrrha as a fanatically devout and loyal Maiden".
Its
Poor Weiss, in every depiction ever she's always the one with stamina problems.
The chaos is right there serving itself up to you on a platter! Stay strong, Weiss!
Then again, it is Pyrrha...
...no, stay strong Weiss! "NTR is a trash fetish"!
Then again, it is Jaune...
Oh dear. Well, credit to Ruby's player for moving the campaign forward I guess? Still, she's going to yoink something tasty. (Someone more up on their charm trees know what this is?)
It's a sad day for the past SDC when being taken over by a benevolent Anathema really was a big improvement.
But now...we're at the precipice. Weiss did a sick amount of prepwork and research before this scene, including picking her target correctly and approaching the right way, and handled it quite well. But was it enough or is the GM going to take the easy out to not split up the party?
*clapclap* One hurdle down. Now she needs to see if this was just a hope spot before the GM says "no, god, I can't deal with these logistics any more, off into the wilderness with you too!"
Or Weiss says "fuck you guys for running out on me, just you wait and see" and next time they meet up it's "by the way, I've acquired Backing 5, Resources 6, Cult 5, and Allies 4 powered by setting up Pyrrha as a fanatically devout and loyal Maiden".
- Location
- U.S.
Eh, Cult is hard to do on Remnant. Especially on the scale cult 5 takes. Now Influence/Arsenal 5? That would be doable. Also fun as hell. Backing Resources and Allies are perfect for her right now though. I kinda hope Weiss picks up some of the Lunar perception charms for analyzing Amber, those might yield interesting results.
Spectrum
Tell me a secret~
- Location
- Behind you~
I almost kinda want to see Weiss offscreened for awhile and then come back in with a Big Damn Heroes moment wearing some ridiculous set of flying artifact armor with SDC logos on it.
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Spectrum
Tell me a secret~
- Location
- Behind you~
I thought it was nailed down pretty hard that she was a Lunar at this point (and Blake is her Solar mate fight me)
It's basically confirmed that she's a Lunar.