//------------------------------// // Chapter 47. // Story: Embrace of Light and Dark // by Knight of Crows //------------------------------// Cassiel POV I returned to Menagerie for two days before I returned to Mistral. To say everyone was surprised that I got Sienna on our side would be an understatement, and that's not just because they expected her to try to kill me. I left out that man and Salem of course, want to avoid that if at all possible. Nothing really happened while I was gone getting Sienna's help, word got around that Gira would be holding a public announcement or whatever in a few days to let Menagerie know what's going on as well as try to get some help from the people, and that's really it. After I returned, the first thing that happened was Kali dropping a tray of tea cups in surprise, it's amazing how useful Stop can be. Ghira and Blake came in from the other room and Blake looked ready to pounce at me, but just walked towards me, saying she was glad I was okay as she hugged me, purring again. I looked between Kali and Ghira, Kali looked happy for her daughter while Ghira looked like he was remembering the words I told him, and he still doesn't know how to respond to that. How do you respond to that? Being told off that technically your daughter might be a pedophile if only because of 3 years once she turns 18 in a few months and that the "activities" he's worried about her being involved in with a then-crippled(?) kid would probably involve said kid being the bitch and getting bent over? Actually, he might be more worried about what goes on in my head if I'm able to think of all that on the spot. Before the first day ended, I learned from Kali where she and Blake went fishing the week Blake returned home. She looked at me with a knowing smirk before telling me to have fun when we go. Fun... I can't remember the last time I've enjoyed myself when someone wasn't getting screwed over in some way. When I'm done with my Mark of Mastery and become the "King of Darkness", I'll probably return to Remnant and see if I'll like the life of a Huntsman, not before I showthe others Equestria at least. It's funny how objectives change. The second day started and Blake helped me practice my Semblance. She spared with it as it learned how she fought, it was holding it's own after maybe 15-20 minutes, still takes too long though. I remembered Weiss telling me something Winter told her, how a Semblance is like a muscle, I guess that's fair. I can count on one hand the number of times I've used it, each with a bit of time between each use, it's not like I should expect anything from it so soon. I did ask the Belladonnas if they'd be against me having the original White Fang and their family emblems sown onto my cloak. They were fine with the family emblem, but the other one was a no. It didn't matter to me. (Imagine it with white outlines on the back of the KH Organization cloak, couldn't find a better one.) I stayed alone in Blake's room until Kali was done sowing it on the cloak back, large enough to easily be seen. They don't need to see the scars, or the incomplete Heartless emblems, that, and I really don't want to explain all that. Nothing else really happened besides me seeing if I could summon Exile and open the Corridors. I was, but it felt a little heavier than I remembered. I'll be ready for the attack on Haven soon enough though. The things I'm going to do to Cinder, Emerald, and Mercury. I left again on the third day. I appeared in a room above everyone again, as much as I wanted to, I didn't stay, I had to fly out the window to avoid whoever was coming up the stairs. Sienna said to go to the lower parts of Mistral and keep an eye out for anything with a marking of a spider in it's web. It took several hours and a few would-be thieves, but I found a person with said marking enter a building. It wasn't the right one, but I at least found someone who could lead me to the destination. After a few minutes of waiting, I heard shouting and glass breaking before the Spider walked out and shouted some more before leaving. About 20 minutes of stalking the Spider, he walked into another building, this one had the marking. I entered it after about a minute and looked for anyone that looked important. It didn't take me long to do so. As I got closer, her two guards stepped forward in a threatening manner while the woman looked at me uninterested. "It's cute they think they're a threat to me." I commented. "I'm here to exchange services, am I speaking to lil' miss Malachite?" I asked. "I'm gonna be lil' miss-skin-you-alive if you ever take that tone with me again!" She threatened. "Now unless you have some money, I'm afraid that we won't be doin' business with each other, certainly not with someone hiding behind a mask." I opened a Corridor, causing the entire tavern to jump out of their seats. "I never said I would be receiving your services first. Let's just say that I can get around undetected. You want something transported without getting the attention of the authorities or something like that? I can eliminate that possibility, though nothing bigger than a person can fit through." I offered. "As for the mask?" I moved it to the side to show her my eye problem. "I doubt you want to clean up blood unless it was someone you wanted dead." I closed the SR. "... You want to exchange services you said?" She asked. "I just want you to find someone who is as likely to try to kill me as she is to hear me out." I answered. "What do you need first?" "Hmm... An acquaintance of ours is holdin' out on us, he still owes us a few weapons. Collect'em for us, as well as some interest, and you have yourself a deal." "Who am I robbing and where is he?" I asked. "You were bein' serious? Ha! Never thought I'd be doin' business with a kid!" She laughed. "In that case, you'll wanna go to to the outskirts east of here. A weapon shop called 'Best Chance', I don't care how you do it, as long as he ain't dead or links this back to us." She answered. "I'll be back in an hour or two, I might have to make a few trips though depending on how much he's holding out on you." "Hmm... That'd be about 10 cases of Dust, 20 rifles, and 20 PDWs. Don't forget the interest, late fees and all." She smiled like she was going to enjoy this more than she should. "For a moment, I thought you were going to hold info on what he owes from me. Hahahaha, good thing I brought that up." I leaned on the table, ignoring the guards getting ready to draw their weapons. "I think I might come back if I need info again." "If you do, we just might have a job for you, Cassiel." What? "... I have a few ideas of how you know my name, but I don't feel like doing another favor just for an answer I probably already have." "Well that's disappointing." She commented. "Now run along, we can fulfill our end after." (2 hours later) I took what I could into the SR with me, but didn't bring it into the tavern until after I piled up everything. I reopened the SR a few feet in front of Malachite's table and threw anything that wasn't explosive out. I had to make several trips carrying everything to the tavern, and several in and out of the SR. Once I was done, everyone looked at me like they were goldfish. "How much did you take?" Malachite asked slowly. "Everything that wasn't bolted down, locked up, or under a camera, which was a lot surprisingly." I answered. "Now as for who I want you to find. Her name is Neopolitan. Brown and pink hair, dichromatic eyes, she's mute, fights with a parasol, illusion type Semblance, and worked with Roman Torchwick. If you're as good as I've been told, that should be more than enough information. So long as I get it before the next full moon at the beginning of the fall semester, I don't care when you get the information." She looked at me, pleased with the results. "Come back in a day or two, we'll have what you need." I summoned Exile and opened a portal to Ruby and the others, I think it's time I get them in on all this as well. Why do I keep teleporting into a bedroom? Questions for later. I unlocked the door and heard an unfamiliar voice speaking to the others. "For thousands of years, I've walked the surface of Remnant, living, dying, and reincarnating in the body of a like minded soul." A two toned voice said. "The Professor Ozpin you all met was not my first form, and clearly wasn't my last." What? I walked down the stairs. The one calling himself Ozpin looked like a farmboy. "Time the fuck out! What the fuck are you doing alive??!!" I shouted. "Cassiel? How-" The kid/ Ozpin tried to ask. "Shut up you manipulative piece of shit! I don't want to hear anything from you!" "Cassiel, what's going on?" Ruby asked. "Did you know that Ozpin, Glynda, and Ironwood tried to get me to join them after they learned I had power over Grimm and still kept quite a few secrets from me such as the Maidens?" I asked. "Cassiel, I must ask that-" I pointed Lionheart at Ozpin, Qrow jumped out of his seat and tilted Lionheart upwards as the others stood in front of Ozpin. "Kid! I need you to calm down and hear what he has to say! Killing him and Oscar won't solve anything! Qrow tried to reason. I ignored him, and who the fuck is Oscar? "Has he told you what he tried to do to Pyrrha? Make her the Fall Maiden knowing that the chances of her surviving were less than certain, even less for her to stay the same?" "We already know that." Jaune said. "How about the fact that he ignored ALL my fucking warnings about who and when the attack would happen? I was right about every fucking thing! Or that they ignored my warnings during the attack too?" I pulled Lionheart away and struck the stairs with it in anger. "As Qrow said, it's probably best we hear what Professor Ozpin has to say." Ren said. "Let me summarize it for you. The Maidens are a key, why else would they be prioritized over whatever is in the GIANT BASEMENT beneath the schools, he and Salem are old as fuck and mortal enemies, and Ozpin has spent countless years fighting a losing battle that has fallen heavily in Salem's favor after Beacon. Now, you're trying to secure the Maiden in Anima so you can secure whatever is under Haven. Close enough, Ozpin?" I asked. "The battle may not be in our favor, but it's far from over." He answered. "No, you're done, I'm taking over." I said to his confusion. "... I thought you said you wanted no part in this war?" He said. "I wasn't, until She made it personal." I laid Lionheart against one of the chairs before sitting down. "While you've been jerking yourself off with your thumb up your ass, I've been doing actual work!" I started to explain. "I apparently saved the leader of the White Fang from a coup when I killed Adam. One thing led to another, now the true White Fang is on our side. I also killed a servant of Salem who fights by injecting Dust into his body-" "You killed Hazel??!!" Ozpin asked, shocked. "He wasn't really a threat, I'd consider Cinder before she became a Maiden more of a threat. So long as the White Fang gets a few things they want, Sienna will knowingly fight with us against Salem. Now as of a few minutes ago, I might have gained a new ally, or someone else I'll have to kill. I won't say who, though she'll be a good addition if she joins. Next up, the White Fang that sided with Adam will be attacking Haven just short of two months from now, the last full moon before the fall semester starts. Sienna is preparing to intervene, provide silver eyes if she finds any, and for good measure, Blake is trying to recruit people in Menagerie to defend Haven." Everyone looked like they were still processing what I said. "When and how did you learn all this if he didn't tell you? And why are you working with the White Fang??!!" Nora asked. "In order, because I have way too much time to think, and because the White Fang that attacked Beacon was a splinter group." I answered. "Does miss Belladonna know of Salem?" Ozpin asked. "No, and if it were up to me, they wouldn't either." I pointed to everyone else. "So you would make that choice for us?" Ruby asked, almost accusingly. "The difference between me and Ozpin is he built the schools to train kids to fight in a war that they don't even know of. All you were told was that Huntsmen and Huntresses kill Grimm, nowhere in that job description does it even so much as imply you would be fighting an immortal with an ever increasing army of monsters to protect a power and an item that no one knows exists." I started to explain as I summoned Exile and Nightfall. "Cassiel, regardless of your opinion of me, we need to work together to stop Salem." Ozpin said. "Work with the guy who advertises a job that is secretly meant to sign kids up for your war that I'd be more surprised to find that you didn't start? This is fucking Raven and Faust all over again!" I said, frustrated, not realizing what I said. "Who?" Ruby asked. "Not important. Anyway, back to what I was saying. I haven't told any of you about the keyblade. To summarize them, they are sentient weapons born of varying degrees of Light and Dark, which is why they cut through Grimm like a hot knife through butter. I'd compare them to silver eyes, but they are just as effective at killing people, reducing their bodies to nothing, and destroying hearts, or souls so to speak. I had no intention of fighting this war until the Fall, and I have the means of removing Salem from the picture." "I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I've already destroyed Salem once, she returned from the grave seconds later and finished me off." Ozpin said. "Destroyed the body with regular magic? Unlike you, I have what are essentially divine/ demonic weapons, and powerful enough magic to destroy a soul when they rip it out. Even if I can't kill her, I can still pull her into another dimension and be done with her." "Ozpin's been doing this for a long time, kid. You're overestimating yourself a lot!" Qrow warned. "This kid wiped the floor with Adam, Hazel, and would've beaten Cinder if Pyrrha didn't decide to play hero against an opponent she couldn't beat!" "Don't!... Don't EVER talk about Pyrrha like that again!" Jaune threatened, his voice cracking up. "She was a true Huntress, she was everything Port said a Huntress should be, but it doesn't change the fact that her death accomplished nothing unless you count Ruby's eyes! I will avenge her, I promise you that, but she knowingly went into a fight she couldn't win. In doing so, she got herself killed, me injured, Salem officially claimed the power of the Fall Maiden, and Salem most certainly has whatever was under Beacon. She did the equivalent of betting everything on a losing hand against someone who was in complete control of the game the entire time!" Jaune moved closer to me. "Shut up! JUST SHUT UP!!!" He tried to punch me, but I caught his fists before pushing him away, causing him to fall over the chair. "She made a mistake that can't be undone. Accept it and move on. If she truly meant that much to you, then you should stop letting her death hold you back, instead, let it drive you. Cast aside your weakness and trade your Sorrow for Hatred, the desire to kill helps more than the desire to grieve. We both want the same thing, attacking me won't change anything." He clenched his fists as he tried to get his breathing under control while he got back up. "Cassiel is right about one thing though. Salem at the very least has the territory holding the Relic of Choice now, and her next target is the Relic of Knowledge under Haven." Ozpin said. Why am I always right??!! "I can most likely bypass the lock because of the keyblade and shadow realm. Though since I'm certain Cinder will attack the same time as the White Fang, I'll wait until then. At the very least, make sure the headmaster here is on our side too before then." "Unfortunately, that might not be the case with headmaster Leonardo." Ozpin got out of his seat and walked towards a painting. "He isn't just behaving irrationally from what Qrow told me about their meeting with him. He's disobeying specific instructions I had left him. Something's wrong. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but I don't want to rule out any possibilities either. No one outside of this room knows that I've paired with Oscar, and I think it may be best to keep it that way." "I'm guessing Oscar is the kid you're possessing?" I asked. "Unfortunately, yes, though he is still here mentally." He answered. "Great, a literal kid dragged into this by you." I commented. "If Oscar didn't come to Haven, he would've either been collateral damage or inevitably been targeted by Salem who would for the most part, be unopposed in claiming the Relics. Thanks to Oscar heeding my words, we can work to turn the tables in our favor." He turned around. "While I'm not happy with you involving the White Fang, I can't deny that more silver eyed warriors would be welcome if they have any. We have two steps ahead of us. The first is enlisting the aid of more Huntsmen.-" "Now would be a bad time to mention this," I interrupted. "but according to Sienna, no one can find any of the Huntsmen. Either they're hiding and not doing their jobs, or they're dead." Everyone looked shocked at the news. "That's troubling news." He commented. "Hopefully she meant the Huntsmen owned by the council. If not, we might be in trouble. I've been in Haven enough times to know a few people who'll put up a good fight., I'll look around tomorrow." Qrow said. "After that, we can move on to step two." Ozpin continued as he walked back to his seat. "What's step two?" Nora asked. Ozpin turned around and pointed his cane at the others. "Getting you four into fighting shape." He answered. "But, uh, we already know how to fight." Ruby said. Ozpin held his cane in her face. "You can only fight so long as you have Crescent Rose, but you're still lacking in hand-to-hand combat." He pointed out. "Well, uh, yeah." She shrugged. Ozpin turned his cane towards Jaune. "Mr. Arc, I'm glad to hear you've improved, but sorry to say, you've yet to unlock your Semblance." Jaune looked away from him. "What about Cassiel?" Ren asked. "I have real magic, I have a Semblance that makes copies of who I'm fighting along with how they fight, I have basically the most versatile weapons you can get, I'm good enough to kill a Maiden, I can tame Grimm, and I can probably kill Salem. Need I say more?" I got out of my seat. "Also, I only came to bring you all up to speed, I didn't come to work with the most incompetent man I've ever known. So with that said," I used Exile to open a portal. "I'm returning to Menagerie. Expect to see me in less than two months. If you find Cinder, immediately call me, I will drop everything to kill her and her friends." I looked to Ruby. "It was nice seeing you again. For now though, this is goodbye." "Tell Blake I said hi!" She said. "Will do." I stepped through back to Menagerie. Now to see what we can do here.