RWBY||Defender of Remnant

Chapter 38: Retribution

"All those people... all those deaths..." Harriet clenched her fists, and the edges of her eyes sparked with lightning. "He's the one responsible."

"I knew he'd stoop low to get what he wanted... but this...?" Ironwood clenched his fist. "Now that I know that Arthur Watts is alive... and working with a madman like Tyrian Callows, I'm not surprised that someone like him could coordinate an unthinkably heinous act like the Argus Assault."

"But how is that possible?" Clover protested. "There's no way he could have coordinated everything... especially the Leviathan. No one can control a Grimm like that."

Ironwood paused... then nodded, something that didn't go unnoticed by Sincline.

He hesitated, the mech-turned-human noted, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly. Does that mean that there actually IS someone like that out there? With the abundance of semblances in Remnant, it was possible, yet... something in Sincline's gut told him there was more to the story. Maria mentioned a God of Darkness... if silver-eyed warriors are still around, then maybe he still is. He hoped not. If they were up against a hacker, a serial killer, and a literal god... no. That could wait. Right now, they had a... politician to take care of. They could hunt down Watts and Tyrian later.

"General Ironwood," Sincline said, drawing all attention. "Jacque Schnee gave terrorists the ability to bring harm to Argus. That counts as Treason, which is a Capital Offense, does it not?"

Ironwood froze... then nodded, a gleam in his eye as he caught on to Sincline's train of thought. "Indeed. Punishable by death."

A dark smirk flashed across Sincline's lips so fast that the group almost missed it. However, none of them missed the surge of bloodlust that filled the air as the temperature dropped. "I see... and what of corporate espionage?"

"10 million Lien," Clover offered.

"Good." Sincline's eyes flashed, burning with malicious intent. "Therefore, I formally request that you assign the Ace Ops a mission to Schnee Manor to bring Jacque Schnee to justice. Warm or cold, doesn't matter."

The room fell silent, all eyes now on Ironwood as they awaited his call. I hope he calls it, Harriet thought, clenching her fists and imagining that she was wrapping them around a certain white-haired politician's throat. She'd always hated the man for what he'd done to the Faunus like Marrow, but now....

An ominous creak of metal filled the air as Ironwood's right fist clenched. "This is the Way... Ace Ops... you have a new mission: arrest Jacque Schnee for Treason, Conspiracy, and Corporate Espionage among other things. Bring him in alive... if possible." If not, they'd just be carrying out his inevitable sentence early, he thought.

The Ace Ops nodded, but before they could leave, Sincline spoke up once more. "General?"

All eyes watched the mech-turned-human, wondering what else he would say to rock their world. They weren't disappointed.

"With enough Dust as a power source, we've proven that the Particle Barrier works," he stated, earning a nod of agreement from the others. It went unsaid that if a certain crazed specialist didn't break through it from the inside, the shield would have lasted long enough for them to save more than half the lives that were lost. "But... your weapons weren't strong enough, and the Ace Ops could only do so much. That won't happen again." Raising his hand, he snapped his fingers, and Ironwood's scroll rang.

Surprised, Ironwood pulled it out, entered the password, and opened it... only for his eyes to widen as he stared at the contents. "Is this...?"