Border of Atlas
10:03 PM
3 years to the fall
Y/n pov
Holy shit did it get cold fast! I know its a tundra but holy crap man! We had been traveling for a few hours. In that time, Roy and I have smoothed out the details of how we're going to do this. The general consensus is to play along with whoever we're working with and when its time, we pull the rug out from under them. Now, that wont stop the attempts on their lives. The only way to do that is to find some use for Jacques. As much as I want to just cut him loose, that wouldn't save the rest of them.
We also have to worry about the fact that we're walking into not only a kingdom, but the most militaristic one on remnant. Now, I knew absolutely nothing about Atlas. I knew who ran the show there and that was it. Roy however did know a bit more. He had explained that the kingdom was essentially a military state with a mandatory conscription of anyone turning 18. The Huntsman academy here was also a military branch, called specialists. That was a terrifying thought that Huntsmen had access to military assets. What would happen if a man like Tai got his hands on something like a army of Knights?
The council was mostly useless since the only ones who had any substantial pull was Ironwood himself and Roman Sionis. Speaking of those two, Ironwood had a military contract out with Sionis. The deal was that the metal used in any and all military assets. The reason was because during the smelting process, Sionis mixes the metal with a specific amount of dust to give it a extra coat dust resistance. Infusing dust into clothing was a practice that dated back quite a long time. But infusing metal with it? People thought it was impossible for the longest time because of the volatility of dust to begin with. Sionis however decided to say "Fuck safety" and tossed a shit ton of dust of all kinds in and watched the magic happen.
It occurred to me that the dossier on Sionis didn't list his semblance. That was a strange detail to miss, especially for the League. I pushed it out of my mind as I heard a radio call in the cockpit. I guess we just entered Atlesian airspace. Lets hope the pilot can talk his way in. Atlas military or not, the guy on the radio seemed jumpy, and that made ME jumpy.
Radio: Yeti-1, You have re-entered Atlas airspace undocumented. Please state your business.
Pilot: Yeti-1 to control tower, I have important cargo to deliver in Mantle. Requesting clearance to land at Fortuna air base for offload.
Radio: ...Yeti-1, We don't have any notices for a delivery for Fortuna air base. What cargo are you bringing in?
I was starting to get nervous. This guy had weapons, dust and other basic supplies loaded into the bullhead. The problem was that apparently, someone dropped the ball. Things were going from bad to worse with each passing second. The pilot was also beginning to look a bit nervous. I honestly couldn't blame him, if they start shooting and they manage to hit the dust. Well, dust is about what we'll be.
Pilot: Yeti-1 to control, It was a emergency request for a offload of dust and ammunition.
Radio: Yeti-1, Dock at Atlas academy and submit to a search of your vessel.
...Oh shit. Roy and I exchanged looks. If we were caught, then we'd be thrown into the stockade. That was not something either of us wanted to experience. Prison was bad enough but being placed into a military holding facility? Yeah, they can keep that shit. Roy quickly walked to the cockpit.
Roy: Can you fly us low to the rooftops?
Pilot: Yeah, why?
Roy: We're going to jump.
Y/n: We're gonna what now!?
Roy didn't respond. He simply hit the button to open the door and prepared a broadhead arrow with a rope tied to the end. Guess we're gonna jump then.... Roy readied his bow and loosed. The arrow traveled a good distance until it embedded into the side of a building. He wasted no time jumping. The bullhead wasn't all that low but it was the best the pilot could do given that any suspicious actions on his part would result in him getting shot down.
I placed my mask over my face and dived out. The cold air was made ten times worse since I only had a short sleeved shirt on and was currently speeding to my death. I readied my grapple gun and prepared myself. This was going to hurt...
I fired the grapple as I became level with the building I was aiming at. It hooked and yanked me in an ark sending me into the wall. As I impacted into it, I lost my grip on the grapple and began to fall head first towards the ground. I panicked a little as I tried to activate my semblance to save myself, but found that Roy had seen my blunder and launched another rope arrow that wrapped around my foot. Normally, I would be happy about this. But I was then sent back toward the building, but this time.... there was a window....
Y/n: This is gonna be baaaaad!!!
I smashed through the window and began to tumble. My shoulder had been dislocated on impact so that was going to have to be fixed first before anything else. I looked up only to see a older, dark-skinned man in some kind of robotic chair with legs. Now, I was in some really deep shit now. How was I supposed to talk my way out of this!? My arm is fucked and I just noticed that my mask was busted up from the fall. This guy could see part of my face...
Old man: Are you alright? That looked like a nasty tumble.
Y/n: ..U-um.... Y-yeah, I'm goo-*Pained Grunt*
Old man: Hey now, hold still! Your just going to hurt yourself worse if you move to much.
What was I supposed to do? I was completely at this guys mercy. Add on that he can see my face, and I'd say that I was screwed if he decided to turn me in. I could run all I like but I doubt I could out run the Atlesian military in their own country, much less their capital. The pain in my shoulder was beginning to become unbearable. The old man walked up to me in his robot chair and began to examine my shoulder.
Old man: Hmm... The shoulder itself doesn't appear to be broken, nor does the arm. We can just pop it back into place and splint it. It'll be good as new come tomorrow.
Y/n: So long as my shoulder is fixed, I don't really care.
Old man: Let me see if I can find some pain medicine to help before we pop it back in.
The old man began to walk... or sit away from me as he searched through the wreckage that seemed to be a workshop. Medical equipment was scattered around with mechanical parts and machinery. I felt a bit bad about busting up his shop but in my defense, it was a complete accident that I went through his window. I would rather have went face first into the side of the building again.
Roy swung down through the busted window and walked towards me.
Roy: Hey Red, you good?
Y/n: Look at my arm and ask me that again....
Roy: Oh that? That's an easy fix!
Y/n: NO WAIT RO- *POP* AAAAHH!!!
Roy: There! Good as new!
Y/n: I'm going to shoot you...
The old man must have heard my scream as he rushed back in to see me with a fixed shoulder and Roy looking oh so fucking proud of himself. We both turned to see him in the doorway holding the painkillers. Roy simply smiled at the old man like he didn't just invade this mans house. Technically we were both invaders, but that wasn't important....
Old man: And who might you be?
Roy: This guys friend. Don't worry about his arm, I fixed it.
Y/n: Oum, your an asshole....
Old man: I see... Well, this medicine should help with the pain. Might I ask why you came crashing through my window, young man?
Y/n: Uuuuh...
The old man and I just stared at each other for a little before Roy, finally, realized that this wasn't the best situation to be in. Roy began with some bullshit excuse but I quickly answered over him.
Y/n: We jumped out of a bullhead....
....
....
....
Old man: You did what?!
Y/n: It was a perfectly reasonable thing to do.
Old man: ...I might need to check your head.
Y/n: Well I did hit it on the way down.
Old man: *Sighs* Can I at least get your names?
Roy and I exchanged looks. Roy clearly didn't want to give out his name. I on the other hand was ok with it. The old man didn't have to help me, or rather, attempt to help me since Roy beat him to it. He also could have called down the law on me when he went to get the painkillers that he is injecting me with now, Thank Oum. But the thing about that was that he didn't have all that much time to have done so. The way I figure, he's been straight with me, so I'm going to be straight with him.
Y/n: Y/n Todd.
Roy looked shocked that I gave my name so easily but relented.
Roy: Ah, what the hell. Roy Winchester, but people call me Arsenal.
Old man: My name is Dr. Pietro Polendina. A pleasure to meet you two.
Y/n: Yeah. Sorry about the window... and workshop.
Pietro: Its quite alright. The equipment was outdated and needing to be replaced anyway. Say... Your mask is quite broken. May I see it?
Y/n: Sure.
I wasn't really hesitant about forking over the mask. He had already seen half of my face, what's the other half going to hurt? He examined my mask as he brought it to a undisturbed table. Pietro then used a scanner of some kind to see the makeup of the material used in the mask.
Pietro: I should be able to fix this, and even improve it. But that is going to take a bit...
Y/n: You want to fix my mask, just like that?
Pietro: I like to tinker, and this mask looks like advanced Atlas tech.
I wasn't about to say that the reason it does is because I pulled that same tech off of Huntsmen who were going to forever sleep. I was honestly quite glad that the Doc was willing to fix my mask. I had dreamed of it for years on end, same as the princess. I was attached to it. That being said, I would need a replacement and some new clothes for the cold climate.
Y/n: I don't suppose that since most of what you got in here is Atlas tech, you would have a mask or helmet that I could use until mine is fixed. Or some combat gear fit for this weather. We cant really go around with out something.
Pietro: I do actually. Its prototype tech so I don't know how reliable its going to be. But I have a request for you before I give it to you.
Roy: What you need from him.
Pietro: The truth. Why would you jump out of a bullhead? Why are you in full combat gear?
Roy: Well, should have seen that coming...
Y/n: It should be fine, Roy. He's done this much. The least we can do is tell him what's up. Its not like its anything too bad.
Roy: Are you being serious right now?
Y/n: Ok, so its pretty bad but maybe he could help us. We need all the help we can get.
Roy: Whatever. I guess we're going to find out the hard way if this guys trustworthy or not.
After that, we explained everything. He sat quietly through most of it, only asking questions to clarify something. All in all, he took it pretty well. I kept the whole magic and coming back from the dead thing under wraps. Roy knew about the Lazarus pit but was completely in the dark regarding magic. I even took the time to explain to both of them about the dreams I had regarding Weiss. Roy still didn't fully believe that but accepted it. If the Lazarus pit can bring me back the dead, why cant I have weird dreams about some random heiress? Pietro on the other hand posed a possible answer.
Pietro: That's interesting. It has been said in many folk stories that those who teeter on the brink of death for an extended period of time has their souls entwined with another that bears similar hardships to them. Kindred spirits, if you will. Or alternatively, there are some who are born with their souls tied to others who they later meet and fall in love, like soulmates. But that is all conjecture. There has been no scientific evidence regarding either of those possibilities. I apologize for not being able to give a concrete answer.
Y/n: No, that was more than what we had a few minutes ago, thank you.
Pietro: But why not just notify the general that something of this magnitude is happening right under his nose?
Roy: Because his first reaction is going to be to send everything he has at it. That's not going to work on these guys from what I've seen so far.
Y/n: He's right. We need subtlety until we're ready to go after them and void that contract. Not only that, the contract Sionis placed on the Schnee family smelled wrong. Why would a man like Sionis order a hit on a whole family when he should be trying to simply silence Jacques. If he was after their assets, he would have accepted Jacques's deal to take Weiss in marriage, which is a disgusting thought, and turned the tables on Jacques. Killing them all does nothing but bring down a shit ton of heat. So why?
Pietro: Why indeed... If you'd like, You two can stay here as long as you need and I'm willing to help however I can.
Roy: Are you sure you want to do that. If this fails, you'll have a target on your back. You'll also technically be helping foreign invaders. If the League doesn't get you, Atlas will.
Pietro: I'm aware of the risks and I still wish to help. I'm sure Penny would agree.
Y/n: Penny?
Pietro: Ah, she is my daughter. Come with me, I'll introduce you.
Roy and I followed behind the Doc as he hurried to the next room over. Inside was a medical table that had a girl who looked a few years older than me. What caught us off guard was the fact that she was strapped to a machine that seemed to be siphoning aura from a glass tube. We had never seen anything like this. Roy was dashing around looking between the girl and the machine. I on the other hand simply asked.
Y/n: What is this?
Pietro: This machine is called a Siphon. It is used to take aura from one person and transfer it to another. The aura that is being used is mine, to bring her to life.
Roy: Wait what? Bring her to life? Is she-
Pietro: No. She is actually an artificial girl. The idea is that in giving her my aura, she will continue to replicate and generate it.
Y/n: Aura is a piece of ones soul, so in giving her a part of yours and having her constantly generating it, your essentially breathing life into the first artificial human.
Pietro: Correct! While she may not be flesh and bone. I am hoping that in giving her my aura, It will also carry over some of my personality into her.
Roy: Which would make her your daughter...
Roy and I were dumbstruck by this mans genius. How the hell did he even come up with a idea like this? It was downright amazing! I felt bad that we would be pulling him away from his work on her, but it looked like he was nearly done with the process. I hope we get to meet her when she wakes up. Both me and Roy are terribly short on friends right now...
Y/n: I hate to rush this, especially after seeing Penny. But I should check out the gear you have.
Pietro: Of course. I'll take you to it.
We all exited the room. I felt a bit depressed that I wouldn't get to truly meet Penny until after the aura was done transferring. I hope that it works. The room the Doc took us to was downstairs in the lobby area. The second we got down there, I laid eyes on the gear... and it was perfect.
I grabbed it and bolted to the restroom and began to change. There were a few tweaks that I would give it but otherwise it was indeed perfect. The mask was solid black so that would need to be repainted but that can come later. I stepped out of the restroom sporting the gear I would be using for now.
(A/n: Ignore the bat)
Y/n: Oh, I love this suit.
Roy: What about your other one?
Y/n: I'm keeping it. As much as I like the new getup, That mask is important to me. once its repaired and we're done here, this suits going into a closet for a rainy day.
Roy: Gotcha.
Pietro: I'm glad the suit is to your liking. The helmet has the same lenses as your broken mask so you can do the same things with it.
Y/n: I cant thank you enough, Doc.
Pietro: If you'd like to thank me, then get this business sorted quickly. I'm sure Penny would like to spend as much time as she can with her new friends.
Roy: We'll try our best!
Y/n: Seconded.
Pietro: That's great to hear. Now its getting quite late. There are guest rooms upstairs that you two can stay in.
Roy: Much appreciated. After all this, bed sounds nice right about now.
Y/n: Definitely, My arm should be back to normal by morning.
Roy: Then we can get an early start and get this over and done with.
Pietro: Before you two go, I wanted to bid you welcome to Mantle.
Roy and I nodded and bid Pietro goodnight and went to our separate rooms. I was glad that the Doc was willing to help us. He could have just as easily not. I put my old suit up and undressed. I took a moment to think about Weiss. I finally knew her name after all these years. It was a surreal thought that the random dream girl was real but I couldn't be happier about that. I only wish that our first meeting would be on better terms...
The Next Day
8:00 AM
Roy and I got up early enough to take a look around Mantle and get a feel for it before we began to track down our "team". I was up well before Roy though, had to recolor the mask red. Roy had brought up the possibility of the outsourced help that the League mentioned would be the White Fang. I despised the idea of being within a hundred yards of a breathing member but if they are who we're looking for, then we'll have to play nice.... At least for a little.
Roy: We should split up and stick to the alleyways. We can cover more ground and stay discrete about it that way.
Y/n: I agree. Last thing either of us need is to get picked up by the cops.
Roy: Yup, stay safe Red.
With that, Roy took off out the back door and down the alley. I was heading up to the roof so I could cross the street without anyone seeing me. As I arrived up there, I took in the view. This place looked like shit. Atlas was one of, if not THE most well off kingdoms in the world. Why does this place look so weathered and worn? I shook my head and used my grapple gun to hook onto a building across the street and took a running start off the the edge...
Weiss pov
At the same time
I had awoken early so I could go out with Klein today. He had told me of a small bakery down in Mantle that had some of the best cakes in the region. Father gave his permission for the two of us to go the night before. I was surprised that he had agreed but it also seemed like he wasn't listening. Whatever the case, Klein and I were on our way down to Mantle.
Klein: Oh, I just know that you'll find a flavor you like there! There is quite a selection to choose from.
Weiss: I cant wait to try it. Its good to be out of the mansion. It was beginning to get awfully dull.
Klein let out a hearty laugh, which in turn caused me to smile too. Klein was always looking for something for us to do. He knew just how boring it was to be cooped up in the mansion all day, every day. I don't know why but I felt today was going to be amazing.... Maybe I was just really excited about getting cake.
After a few minutes on the families bullhead, We disembarked and I followed closely behind Klein as he led me through the streets. I rarely ever come down to Mantle, so I didn't know my way around. As we passed, some people began to take notice of my white hair. It was a tell-tale sign who I was. I continued behind Klein, now a bit self-conscious about the stares I was getting.
Klein: There is no need to worry, my dear. People just aren't used to seeing you or your family walking so freely. Especially around these parts.
Weiss: I know... How much further are we from the shop?
Klein: Its not far, we're just about there now.
Klein then turned the corner with me in tow. Directly in front of us was the bakery that we were headed for. There was a alleyway on the right side, between it and the other building that looked like a apartment block. We entered the shop and took a seat at a booth near the window. There was a clear view of the entire street from where we were seated. Not long after, a waitress came to take our orders. Once she was done, she made her way to the back, leaving me and Klein the only ones in the dining room.
Klein: May I ask if something is bothering you, Snowflake?
Weiss: Its nothing. I'm glad that we were able to come out this morning.
I had put on a smile for Klein. Honestly, I had been dreaming of him more and more. I don't know why but I felt anxious. I didn't know if he was even real. Oum, I hoped he was. I hoped that the dreams were a sign that he was close. Klein must have picked up on what I was thinking about since his eyes shifted to a gentle yellow color.
Klein: Is it the boy you keep dreaming of?
Weiss: How did you know?
Klein: Haha, Its my job to know these things, Snowflake. Though, I cant say that I know much about why you've been having these dreams.
Weiss: Its strange, isn't it? That I've been dreaming of him all these years...
Klein: Not at all! Whatever the reason you've been dreaming of this boy, I'm sure its for a reason.
Weiss: Do you think I'll ever meet him... rather, do you think he's real?
Kleins' eyes shifted to green.
Klein: I'm sure he does exist, just as I'm sure that you will meet him eventually.
I smiled at Klein. He was the only one I had ever spoke to about the boy. Everything from how I saw him as a child, when he was about the same age as me, and the red mask and hood that he wore. Klein at first thought that it was a overactive imagination, but as time went on and the dreams continued, he began to speak to me about it. Telling me stories of times that it had happened in the past. He also knew about my "fascination" with him, much to my embarrassment.
Not long after that, our orders arrived. Just as I was about to take a bite of my cake, I glanced out the window.... and saw him....
Y/n pov
Y/n: I continued making my way through the alleys. I had been running, climbing, and occasionally sneaking for the past 40 or so minutes. I wasn't used to this weather. The cold was sapping me even with the gear designed to aid in withstanding the freezing cold. People on Solitus were just built different.
I came to the mouth of the alley, right on the other side of the street was another one between a random cake shop and a apartment complex looking place. My stomach rumbled, reminding me that neither Roy or I had breakfast this morning. I had a moment where my discipline faltered.
Y/n: Fuck it. I want some goddamn cake.
I took of my mask and clipped it to my belt. It was still way to visible for my liking but I didn't give a damn. I was cold and hungry. I began to walk across the street. I felt like I was being watched, which did not bode well for me. I pushed that out of my mind. I was confident that whoever was watching me wasn't stupid enough to pick a fight with me alone. I had a bit before I would have to leave though. Reinforcements and all that.
I opened the door to very homey bakery that smelled wonderful. The only things on my mind were food and warmth. A waitress came out as I was looking at the selection they had to choose from. All of it looked amazing, but I think I'm gonna go with vanilla coconut. I placed my order and turned to make my way to a booth.
And then I stopped and stared at the girl who was staring at me. My eyes were wide and my jaw was on the floor. This was bad... but also good.... but very bad!
Y/n: ....Princess...
The girl in front of me simply got up and smiled at me. I absently registered the older man that was sitting with her in the booth. Her light blue eyes had me completely captivated. There was no scar running past her eye, like in the dreams. Maybe that hasn't happened yet? I don't know, this whole thing is weird.
She then spoke in a welcoming and kind tone. A tone I haven't heard in so many years...
Weiss: My name is Weiss Schnee. Its a pleasure to finally meet the boy in the red hood.