Emerald’s heart was racing.
It had taken so long to get out of Vale that she had been starting to lose it, being stuck with Mercury for extended periods was bad for her mental health, but with the Atlas pull out it had been a relatively simple thing to escape. Under the cover of night, and with that creep Watts taking care of any cameras in their route, she’d only had to use her semblance on a handful of people to see them outside of the walls and into the forests outside of the city.
But an escape from the authorities of the kingdoms didn’t mean an escape from all authority, and if the way Cinder and Watts had talked over the span of their captivity was any indication, being on the wrong side of their boss was very much worse than being on the wrong side of the law.
Cinder, the wonderful woman that she is, had warned them about what was going to happen, what they were going to see, but…
Well, watching as a creature of grimm floated over to them, a Seer, she’d been told, and Cinder stood respectfully at attention was a very odd sight to see. At any moment one of those bladed tentacles could lash out. Cinder was amazing, and Emerald would defend her of course, but to be in such close proximity with one and not be trying to kill it…
And then, of course, it spoke. Or rather, Cinder’s boss… their boss, spoke through it.
“I’ve been hearing some very interesting things lately.” The voice echoed oddly, like the sound was bouncing around the inside of the orb. “Cinder, do you have something you wish to tell me?”
Emerald saw the way that Cinder’s body tensed, but beyond that she seemed calm, or at least collected. “Of course. Our plans-”
“Your plans, Cinder.” The grimm interrupted.
“...apologies. My plans have… been forced to change. I’ve discovered an obstacle.”
Emerald bit her tongue, worried about how Cinder was going to frame this. She and Mercury had managed to curb some of her more… intense… worries about Arc’s semblance, but she still seemed dead set on the idea that he knew all of their plans.
“An obstacle?” Salem prodded. “It sounds to me as if you have failed at every turn. You failed to finish off the Fall Maiden, gaining only a fraction of her powers. Your work with the White Fang failed to cause any significant damage to Vale. You and those working for you were outed due to your foolish actions. The Vytal festival went on as planned, Ozma still lives, and only two of your pawns are still loyal to you. Tell me, Cinder, how is it that you consider this string of failures a mere obstacle, as you’ve so elegantly put it?”
Mercury cringed beside her, and she couldn’t blame him.
Cinder took a deep breath. “I’ve discovered that each and every one of these issues can be attributed to a single source. One of the students has a semblance that allows them some manner of clairvoyance.”
“Ah, yes, this drivel.” Her tone made it clear that Salem thought about it the same way Watts did. Which, given that he was most likely the one to tell her about all of this, made sense. “The one that knows your every move, isn’t it?” Emerald figured she was rolling her eyes. “If that’s the case, then would you not be useless to me moving forward? Someone whose every plan is accounted for in advance doesn’t seem like someone I should be involved with. Perhaps I should cut ties with you right now, save myself the trouble.”
One of the Seer’s tentacles raised up, pointing at Cinder in a clear threat.
“That won’t be necessary!” Cinder quickly replied. “Second Thoughts certainly makes things difficult, but we did manage to leave Vale. That we stand here now is indication enough that there are limits to the knowledge they hold, and it is a matter of discovering what those limits are. Once I’ve deduced how to maneuver around such an annoyance, things will proceed smoothly once more.”
The tentacle lowered, but Emerald didn’t feel any safer.
“See to it that you do. If you do not produce results, and soon… I’m sure you’re aware of what the consequences shall be.”
“Of course, I’ll begin right away.”
Salem said nothing more, and the Seer began to drift away, disappearing between the trees.
“Sooo…” Mercury hesitantly began, “what is the plan then? Vale is a definite no go, and getting the White Fang to work with us will be problematic…”
Emerald glared at him. “Shut up. The White Fang will still obey us, they’re weak.”
“No,” Cinder denied, and Emerald instantly flushed with shame. “Knowing Adam, that fool will refuse now. Sienna is likely still willing, desperate fool that she is, but I think it likely that she will find herself replaced soon. Any further plans involving them will need to wait until we see who takes her place, lest we be seen as part of the old regime that needs to go with Khan.”
“So it’s just the three of us, and our names and faces are known,” Mercury unhelpfully pointed out. “How are we not fucked?”
Emerald bit back a growl. That moron didn’t know what he was on about, Cinder had a plan. She always did.
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
“The White Fang are not the only criminal organization in existence, Mercury, surely you of all people know that. It’s only a matter of deciding which one would be most beneficial to us.” She hummed for a moment, thinking it over.
“I’ve heard rumblings about a group in Vacuo with some considerable pull. What do you two know of them?”
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As the airship finally crossed over from the deep blue of the sea to the yellow sands of the desert, Bart checked his weapon for what must have been the fifth time. Going into uncertain situations like this, it was never a bad idea to ensure that you’d be in top form.
It had been quite some time since he’d last been in Vacuo.
“I’ve just received an update,” Glynda informed them. “It seems that most of the grimm have been taken care of, but there is still the matter of the… unrest. If it’s not taken care of quickly it may well bring in another surge of negativity.”
It’d been surprising to receive that call. To hear that Vacuo of all places had suffered a breach of their own…
The people of this kingdom were a hardy bunch, well used to the cruelties of life. In his previous visits he’d found that the harshness of the desert had molded them into a people who were always able to find a silver lining, taking pleasure in the simple joys they were able to find. Making a new friend was cause for celebration, another day spent with family was to be honored, and the opportunity to be generous was a reminder that you had more than you needed.
They were not the sort of people to be easily worked into a panic. To dwell on the negative.
So why would they be suffering from a sudden grimm invasion?
“What’s with all the crazy semblances lately?” Qrow complained. “I get stuck with bad luck, meanwhile I have to meet Jimmy’s little bastard with good luck, Jaune gets Second Thoughts, and now we’ve got some bastard with mind control? Life just isn’t fair.”
“Had someone with a mind control semblance,” Glynda corrected. “They’ve confirmed the body.”
Bart frowned.
If the information that had been passed on to Glynda was correct, the source of the negativity had been discovered shortly after they had left Vale. Hundreds of people, at a minimum had suddenly been released from the grasp of a mind control semblance, all at once.
What sort of person must they have been, to have that be the reflection of their soul? Assuming that semblances really were to be viewed in such a manner anymore, given the whole Second Thoughts debacle.
He supposed it didn’t matter anymore, since they were dead. They must have gone after someone who put up more of a fight than expected, and paid the price for it.
And now that their control had vanished, those hundreds of victims had suddenly realized what had been happening to them. They’d probably not get the details until everything was wrapped up, but he could understand how that might be enough negativity all at once to draw so many grimm in.
“Whatever the case, be sure to keep your guard up,” Bart reminded the alcoholic. “With our suspicions of who might be involved, there could be a dagger behind any corner once we land.”
Second Thoughts hadn’t warned them of this. Bart couldn’t recall him mentioning Vacuo at all. And while that didn’t speak to anything definitively, it did point towards their adversaries being involved, adapting their plans now that the old ones had been ruined.
Cinder and the rest of Salem’s crew had been awfully quiet since the breach, after all.
But what was their goal? Was this an attempt to get close to a mind controller that had gone awry? Or was it a convenient distraction, a way to lure out the capable huntsmen and huntresses who would no doubt be called in to assist with the disaster. Vacuo had Shade, of course, but the school was smaller than Beacon and the kingdom’s other huntsmen were typically out in the desert helping wandering tribes and whatnot, many of them unable to reach the city in time to help.
It was reasonable for them to request outside help, and with Vale being the closest kingdom, they would be called upon first.
An event like this would be oh so perfect to draw the protection that Jaune usually had away, leaving him open to retribution from Cinder. And while she was there, why not try for the rest of the Fall Maiden’s power as well?
And so Beacon had spared only Glynda, Qrow, and himself, with Ozpin and the others staying behind to defend against any surprise attacks.
Enough of a response to be meaningful, but not so far as to leave themselves undefended.
“Yeah, yeah, I know, Bart,” Qrow waved off his worries. “If they’re here, I’ll kick her ass. If they’re back home, Oz will kick her ass.”
“You’re leaving out the possibility that this is completely unrelated,” Glynda reminded him.
Qrow simply raised a brow. “With my semblance?”
Glynda shrugged. “I don’t think it’s likely, just remember that it’s a possibility. Bad things do just happen sometimes, not every event is a plot against us.”
“Glynda is right,” Bart agreed. “I don’t see why Cinder would be any more likely to take out the source of the mind control than anyone else. It’s entirely possible, nay, even probable that this is someone else.”
And yet, though he knew his words were accurate, he could not help but feel they were wrong.
Coincidences didn’t seem very coincidental when you knew there were Gods out there, influencing your world.
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Team JNPR watched the news on their scrolls in somber silence. Nothing gruesome was being shown in the broadcasts, but it was clear that a large number of people had met their end in a sudden breach of the walls by a horde of grimm.
“I just don’t understand… why Vacuo?” Second mumbled.
“You don’t have any ideas?” Nora asked. “You know all sorts of stuff, there has to be something.”
Second shook his head. “Honestly I don’t know much about Vacuo. I know it’s mostly desert, and they have Shade for an academy. I think Sun might have been from there? Though I’m not certain on that one…”
“He must be taking this especially hard then…” Pyrrha grimaced.
“This does raise the question, though.” Ren hesitantly pointed out. “If Second doesn’t know anything about this, then what changed?”
Second sighed, his head falling back to look at the ceiling in exasperation. “I have no idea. This is why I was so worried about the butterfly effect. Does the voice of a first year’s semblance cause a breach in Vacuo?”
He looked back down at the news feed. “Apparently, the answer is yes.”