Unexpected Incarnate (RWBY Ozpin Incarnate SI)

To call Leonardo Lionheart's office clean would be a lie right now because it looks like a bull ran through it and made an absolute mess of the place! Books were all over the place, as were pieces of paper, and the Headmaster of Haven himself looked as if he hadn't bathed or rested in a while. His eyes were noticeably bloodshot, as were bags underneath them, as was his appearance, which became visibly covered in filth. His hair and beard were growing long and unkept for some time now.

At this exact moment, Leon is in his chair and in the middle of writing paper after paper to give out order after order to recall all Huntsman and doing all he can to keep them alive from Salem. Ozpin had given him a chance, but even the lion Faunus knew his relationship with his dear friend was permanently destroyed. All he could do now was to do his best to write the wrongs.

It did not help that his thoughts were in a constant state of fear and paranoia over whether Salem would send her assassins to finish him off, and his nights were ruined by nightmares plaguing his every dream. In addition, it did not help that he had to pretend that everything was in control with his staff after the Battle for Haven a week ago.

"Goodness…" Leon mutters to himself before rubbing his eyes. He had really dug himself into a pit and willingly jumped into it. Tens of Huntsman died, all because of his cowardice and betrayal of his friend. Now the situation is worse and has come to bite him hard after the battle.

Especially now that he had to clean up his own mess.

Villages across Mistral now call for Huntsman's help with various urgent crises. Still, with many of them dead by his hands, they are severely overstretched, and those who survived are either too inexperienced or grown complacent and incompetent. Leon simply leans against his hands and lets out an exhausted groan before the knock comes from the door.

"Who's there?" The Headmaster of Haven shivers before finding himself hiding behind his table with his eyes just above it.

"Leon, it's me."

Ozpin's voice came from the other side as the lion Faunus gulped nervously. "Ozpin? Here? It has been a week already?" The lion Faunus could only gulp before standing up and turning his head over his messy room. "Of course, Ozpin, you may come in!" Leon felt that he was losing his bearings in the situation before the office door opened, and Ozpin, with his cane walked in.

Only to pause almost immediately when he sees the state of Leon's office. His golden eyes widened at the piles of paper and books all over the office and his fellow Headmaster's dishevelled looks. In addition, his large fox tail was notably swaying with the occasional twitch before Ozpin spoke again.

"I see you've been busy since last week after our talk." The ex-Headmaster of Beacon observes as he walks closer to Leon while taking note of the numerous papers and books on the floor.

"Uhm… Yes, I have been." Leon nervously dusts himself to make him more presentable, even if it does not do much. "I apologise for the mess. I've been busy the last few days. And uh… How is your incarnate doing?" Leon asks next before Oz pauses for a moment while glancing aside as if he is listening to someone.

As quickly as it took for Ozpin to stop moving, he answered. "As well as one can be when talking to you." He deadpans. "Mr Arakan has been quite vocal about the necessity of talking to you ever since we left our hotel," Ozpin says as he swiftly makes his way until he is in front of Leon's table.

"How bad is it?"

Under the pressure of Ozpin's glare, Leon caves in and addresses the rather blunt question. "Things… no… Everything's not well after last week, Ozpin." Leon begins as he paces left to right as he explains. "Mistral is overstretched on Huntsman after my… betrayal. What's left is either inexperienced Huntsman in training or showing signs of incompetence. It's the reason why those are not dead yet because, at the time, I figured that they wouldn't post a threat to her..."

"Well, that explains the stupid, useless and arrogant fuckers we'll probably meet in a week that were hired to protect the train. Only to suck at their jobs hard and one dying in the process." Zack scoffs while Ozpin is temporarily baffled by his sudden addition.

"Excuse me, what?" 

However, that did not last long before Leon audibly gulped when his eyes spotted Ozpin's hand turning white from gripping his cane too tightly, as did the sheer disappointment and anger radiating from his eyes. "I see… Please continue."

"That's not all Oz. The councillors of Mistral are up in arms about the high rate of Huntsman casualties, and even more so about the battle that occurred a week ago in Haven at the hands of the White Fang and Salem's group. I have reasons to believe that some councillors are cooperating with various criminal organisations in the lower levels of Mistral and are using them to assert more influence.

"It is that bad, is it?" Ozpin's eyes narrowed upon hearing Leon's report before he raised his hand against his chin. "Arakan. If I may ask, is there truth in Leon's words?"

"Maybe? I wouldn't be surprised that some councillors have ties to criminals below. It is possible that with fewer Huntsman around to main some sense of order, thanks to Leon having them dead and the recent battle for Haven. They may be trying to assert more influence over Mistral than Mr cowardly Lion over here."

Hearing Zack's explanation in his head made Ozpin raise an eyebrow. "Is that so? If I may ask, do you know anything else from your world that could be relevant to our current predicament?" The ex-headmaster then asks next but gets a negative reply.

"Unfortunately, not as much as it is to be desired, Oz. All I know is that Mistral's a hotbed for criminal activity and that the Spiders are one of the most powerful crime syndicates. Nor do I know what happens after everyone leaves for Argus. Rooster Teeth did leave the aftermath vague. Except that the Academy shuts down, and its students are transferred elsewhere. Shade Academy, if I remember the details correctly…"

"Curious…"

Ozpin couldn't help but be intrigued with what his next incarnate had just said before bringing his attention back to Leon, who was nervous by how silent he was. "Then it appears we have much to discuss."

"Uh- yes! We have much to talk through." Leon nods his head to the point that Zack swore that the lion Faunus would snap his neck at this rate with how fast his nods were. Nevertheless, the talks between both headmasters went on for hours, with Ozpin helping Leon clean up his office to make it more presentable before ordering him to get some sleep before he kills himself from exhaustion at this rate.

So, as Ozpin makes his way back to the hotel in Zack's body, the fox Faunus brings up a topic he feels the need to address. "Oz? While I wasn't paying much attention to your talks with that cowardly lion, I'm surprised you disagreed with my idea that having Haven's students move to Atlas Academy is the best option. We could use their help in defending Atlas against Salem in the future, since she knows that we have the relics."

"It is for the best, Arakan." Ozpin counters. "While you bring up several good points, it is wise to have backups in hand just in case. I believe you have a saying back home that all plans fail on first contact with the enemy. While I appreciate the effort to help us out, I feel that it will be unwise to place everything in one basket." Silence overtakes the both of them for a while before Zack speaks again in his head.

"I suppose you have a point there, Oz… So, now what? I guess we now just rest and recuperate with the occasional sparring before we leave for Argus in a couple of days?" He asks, while Ozpin simply nods his head.

"Yes, Arakan. From what you told me, you mention that the weeks after we leave Mistral will be quite frantic. Care to explain why?"

"Well, uh… Let us just say in canon, you failed to mention the Relic's nature to attract Grimm and let us just say… Shit hits the fan, and everyone loses their trust in you because you failed to tell that key point. Followed by… well, you know what happens next." Zack explains with clear hesitation. "Your friend, General Ironwood's sanity, is… not great right after the Fall of Beacon. And it's going to get worse until we can halt it or better, reverse it."

…

"This isn't all, is it?" Ozpin mutters next before he feels his next incarnate shaking his head.

"No… Ironwood goes absolutely bonkers with paranoia and becomes as much of a threat to Salem as to us. He… He even shot your actual incarnate…" Zack explains before projecting the scene of Ironwood shooting Oscar as he plummets. Ozpin could only freeze in place in disbelief that his dear friend had fallen that far.

"He didn't…"

"Yeah. I want to stop this madness before he becomes a threat to everyone. It did not help that his passive semblance, Mettle, I think its name is, helped him strengthen his resolve, which allowed him to carry through with his decisions and helped him hyper-focus on them. The problem is, with his fair share of trauma from Beacon's Fall, the General becomes so focused and uncompromising that he starts adopting a with me or against me mentality. And it includes threatening to bomb Mantle at one point if I'm correct."

"I can see why you've been quite anxious about reaching Atlas fast. Why didn't I stop him?" Oz asked next as he resumed walking.

"You were… elsewhere… You kinda shut yourself off after your secret was revealed to everyone… And by the time you return. It was too late."

"I… see…"

…

"Well… I'll leave you to take this- ngh…" Zack suddenly groans in discomfort when a pulsing pain is felt over his right arm. And Ozpin feels it as well. "What now?" He groans out again before both can feel themselves getting weaker and chiller by the second at the same time. With no one in the vicinity, Ozpin groans softly while leaning against his cane.

"I'm sensing a sudden magical build-up in your arm, Arakan. I have reasons to believe that your 'evolution' to stage two is about to begin, as you told me a while back." He then slowly pushes himself back up before firmly addressing what needs to be done. "We must get back. Now."

"You won't hear me complaining. Why now of all times?" Zack grumbles before Ozpin gives him control of his body. The fox Faunus released a startled gasp before he sloppily kept Long Memory on his belt and began rushing straight home. Though occasionally stumbling along the way due to the sudden weakness of his body.

By the time Zack reached the hotel doors, the pulsing pain in his right arm had grown unbearable, as did the state of his body. His skin has become even paler than before, sweat drips down his face, and the fox Faunus is pretty sure he developed a high fever or something similar. "Oz, are you sure this isn't just us falling sick?"

Though Ozpin immediately debunks it. "I can assure you that it's not an illness… Though I must admit, it's better it happens now than later on in our journey to Atlas." Zack lets out another groan as he leans against the door for stability. "Another thing, I believe we'll be out for some time once we rest."

"What… makes you say that?" The fox Faunus asks as he glances at his right hand to see the tattoos on it flickering every second in violet. Even more so when he picks up magic gathering all over the tattoos from the back of his hand all the way towards his shoulder blade. Zack was left wondering how the changes would happen. Would they suddenly appear out of thin air, or would they begin to develop slowly and (probably) painfully?

Zack felt a shiver crawling up his spine at the potential of his evolution being painful as Ozpin answered his question. "It is merely a hypothesis, but I suspect something similar to the last time we were rendered unconscious would happen again."

"Right…" Bringing his attention back to reality, the fox Faunus bangs his fist against the door and waits for a few seconds. He then picks up the sound of footsteps rapidly approaching the door, and from them, it appears to be from Jaune. Upon the door opening up, Zack brought two of his fingers up. "Yo."

"Zack?" Jaune asks before noticing his friend's state. "Are you okay? You look unwell."

"Very observant of you." The fox Faunus deadpans before letting out another pained groan while clutching his right hand and feeling his strength to his legs give way while his friend rushes to his side.

"Zack, are you alright?" Jaune calls out to his friend as he rests his hand on his forehead. Only to be shocked at how hot his forehead was. "Oh gods, you're burning!" Jaune cried out with worry over his friend growing by the seconds.

"Yeah. I need to get to bed now, Jaune. There's a sudden build-up of magic in my arm right now. Ozpin and I think I might be evolving into my second stage right now." The fox Faunus groans again as everything starts to become blurry. "Damn… I'm going to pass out…"

"Really? Okay! Should I tell the others?"

"Yeah… do that… I think I'm gonna take a nap… Just… Just have the others… watch over me… Until I… Nngh…" Zack didn't finish his last words before he seemed to slip into oblivion in Jaune's arms as he panicked.

With an unconscious friend now in his arms, Jaune quickly adjusted his friend's position so it would be easier to carry him via bridal carrying and with Zack in his arms, he ran off as much as his legs could carry him towards his room. Though halfway, he was stopped by Nora and Ren.

"Jaune? Is something wrong with-"

"Ren! Zack's burning up! I need you to grab a wet towel and water and meet me in his room!" The leader of JNR quickly turned his head towards his other teammate and addressed her with haste. "Nora! Help inform the others to meet me in his room now! I'll explain what happened to him once everyone is there!"

Recognising the severity of the situation with their team leader acting this way, Nora and Ren nod their heads grimly before spitting up while Jaune resumes his journey towards Zack's room. Worrying ever more when his Faunus friend begins to breathe heavily.

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Elsewhere, under the shining sparkling stars of the night in Argus and just outside the walls, were Celeste and Katharine, alongside tens of maids who stood by with lamps in their hands. The cooling breeze of the night blows against the young woman's black hair while her friend is a distance away. Both are primed and ready for tonight's spar.

In her hands, Katharine wields an elegant yet esoteric-looking weapon with two forms: a scythe and a semi-auto rifle that can fire at least ten rounds in black, brass, and white. However, she prefers using her weapon in scythe mode most of the time due to personal preference. In addition, she wears what could be described as a more feminine business suit that consists of a red inner shirt and a black tie alongside white pants, a coat and shoes that were reinforced to be able to take slash or piercing attacks.

The gloves Katharine wore were a shade of silver, as was her hair, which was tied up into a bun. She also has an adorable white top hat, which is smaller than it should have been, and it is placed slightly slanted on the right side of her head, held in place by a single piece of black string.

On the other hand, Celeste is now wearing a new white miniskirt with more purple and feather motifs with its more purple hues. Her miniskirt is now shoulderless and has white ribbons on the edges of her skirt. On her arms, Celeste has white and black ribbons wrapped around them, as were the white gloves covering her hands that open up slightly like a lily flower.

Her once-black leggings have been replaced entirely by a knee sock on her right leg, while her left has white ribbons wrapping around her shin and ankle. Celeste's heels have been replaced with something more practical in the form of white boots. Lastly, she has a headpiece that resembles several large white feathers attached with their edges becoming a dark shade of purple, and it's attached to the right side of her face without obscuring her vision.

Overall, Celeste is wearing what would be her unofficial Huntress outfit, despite how it makes her look like a performer. Even more so, she technically never went to Huntsman's academy before, but to the School of Arts and Music in Atlas. That doesn't mean she can't fight. Oh, no. She can because of her training every night with her caretaker and close friend, Katharine, after an unfortunate accident that caused Celeste to lose her entire left arm in the past.

Of course, her parents were understandably horrified that their daughter had lost her entire arm, and finally agreed to have Katharine personally train their daughter how to fight. And it all leads to this point at night. Katharine with her scythe/ semi-auto rifle, which she calls Galatea.

As for Celeste's weaponry, hers is the custom-made silver flute she always carries with her, with an inbuilt sword inside, which she calls Sarastro.

While still playing a melody from her flute with her eyes closed with Atlesian infantryman watching from the walls above, her friend Katharine draws Galatea from her back and points the barrel at her. "Are you ready, Celeste?" Her caretaker says as she cocks Galatea.

With a soft smile on her lips, Celeste pulls Sarastro away from her lips. "As ready as you are, Katharine." With a flick of her arm and into her stance, an arm's length blade emerges out of Sarastro on the end, away from the mouthpiece and becomes a rapier with a flute for its base. "Let us not keep ourselves waiting. I have something I need you to do for me."

"Of course, my mistress." Katharine nods with her eyes closed before they open and harden with her hands on the trigger. A second of silence passes before the howling winds feel their ears. Katharine fires round after round at Celeste as she kicks the ground and zips straight for her. With the elegance of a performer, Celeste swerved and weaved like water before thrusting Sarastro straight for Katharine's neck. However, the caretaker quickly veered her body to the side, changing Galatea into its scythe mode and swinging it full force at her.

Time seems to slow down as Celeste kicks the ground and flies over Katharine's attack with a backflip before she lands and thrusts Sarastro again at Katharine, who easily dodges it. The caretaker's expression barely changes as she twists her body and sends a kick that launches Celeste flying before she gets into her stance with Galatea behind her back, both arms gripping it, and slowly walks towards her opponent.

Groaning from the pain of getting kicked in the stomach and getting back onto her feet with her violet aura shimmering, Celeste frowned when she noticed her friend's stance. It is one which she knows too well. From an outsider's perspective, Katherine's stance may seem foolhardy since she appears exposed to any attack. But in truth, it is one of the most effective tricks in her hand, since any attacks on her will be guaranteed to miss her due to experience and predictive skills.

Even more so is that Katherine always goes for a dangerous lunging attack in this stance. Like a spring releasing all its stored energy, she would leap into the air and come down hard. Combined with her semblance and lunging attack, it will be a guaranteed death sentence or knock-out. Since her semblance will ensure that her opponents remain rooted in place, her lunging attack will always land.

Getting into her stance again, Celeste slashes the air before her, sending waves of purple aura straight at Katherine. But as she predicted, her caretaker simply dodged and weaved before performing a lunge attack to close the distance. Jumping back so as not to get hit by Katherine's attack, Celeste quickly changes Sarastro into a flute and plays it.

A simple melody from Celeste playing her flute made Katherine's eyes wide open, as it alone was enough for her to know that her friend was now using her semblance. Bringing Galatea out of the ground, Katherine swings it behind her and blocks an attack from a purple-translucent Celeste clone!

The clone continues to send several slashes and stabs towards Katherine. Still, she easily blocks or deflects them before Celeste dashes in and lands a good hit against Katherine's back. The caretaker winces at the impact as her teal aura shimmers in response before leaping into the sky and firing several rounds at her friend, who dashes with haste to the side to avoid getting shot.

However, her attempt to avoid Katherine's range attack failed as two rounds found their mark on her heel and shoulder.

Katherine lands gracefully on the ground before changing Galatea back into its scythe form and twirling it around her body with uncanny grace. Her eyes narrow as the caretaker brushes her hand on Galatea's sharp edge. And as she did that, the very air surrounding the two began to freeze. Celeste gasps before Katherine activated her semblance, and a shockwave of freezing mists erupts around her.

Freezing anything and everything near her in a layer of ice.

Much of the tundra terrain near Katherine froze almost immediately, and Galatea's bladed edge was also coated in a pristine layer of ice that sparkled like the stars above. With her semblance activated and the terrain advantage on her side, Katherine gets into her stance again as she slowly walks towards Celeste without slipping on the ice that seems to spread wherever she walks.

"Already? Alright. I cannot hold back any more. You got this, Celeste…" Celeste whispers with her eyes closed before spreading her arms open like an orchestra conductor with Sarastro in rapier form. In but a second, the ground below changes into stars, constellations and even galaxies beneath her feet! Awing to those who are seeing them for the first time. Especially the Atlesian infantry above on the walls looking down.

Now feeling empowered and supercharged by her semblance. Celeste dashes at unpredictable speeds towards Katherine and stabs her with Sarastro before zipping away before her caretaker can react with a counterattack and repeat. In addition, with every dash Celeste does, she leaves behind an ethereal clone that stands idly by. Waiting for the command to be given to strike.

But Katherine has seen this before and has prepared a plan to slow or even force Celeste out of her powered-up state. After parrying a blow, Katherine clenches her fist tighter and makes the overall temperature plummet even lower than it was before as the very air slowly begins to freeze and solidify.

Knowing both are pushing themselves to their limit again. The head maid rolls her eyes from the sidelines. "Not again…" She grumbles before signalling the rest of the maids with her. "Everyone, with me. Now. They're escalating it. Again. I swear, the mistress and her caretaker always go overboard with their nightly spars…" Rubbing the bridges of her nose, the head maid walks off to a much safer location, with the other swiftly following after her while Celeste and Katherine continue sparring.

With the temperature near Katherine dropping into the negatives and even lower than before, Celeste felt herself shuddering from the freezing temperatures. At the same time, her aura worked overtime to keep her warm and fuel her semblance. "Katherine. You sly woman, I know what you're trying to do." With a final dash to strike, Celeste zips a distance away as she changes Sarastro back into a flute and plays a final melody to end this spar.

Like a closing chapter of a play, The melody played by Celeste's flute ends the effects of her semblance, and the ground returns to normal and is covered in a layer of ice. But that wasn't the end. The melody also serves another function. Every single clone Celeste creates as she dashes around springs into life and attacks Katherine at the same time. Sparing no opportunity for her to cover all her sides or even evade out of danger.

Katherine's eyes went wide as plates. She had never seen Celeste control her clones at once like this before, and her shock at Celeste's growth proved painful as every single one of her clones began laying it down on her, despite her best efforts to negate most of the hits. With a final twirl of their blades, Celeste's clones unleashed a final attack on Katherine, which was strong enough to launch her meters back before all of them disappeared.

Leaving Celeste the only one there, a distance away, hunching on her back with Sarastro still on her lips. Sweat steadily pours down her forehead as the young woman gently removes her flute from her lips and pants. "Got ya…" She grins at the prospect of finally achieving victory against her caretaker. Celeste has grown tired of losing against her for years at this point.

But to her shock, Katherine simply stands back up with Galatea in her hand while gently dusting herself as if Celeste's final act did nothing. "Mm… You improved. Well done." A small smile grew on the caretaker's lips before it vanished. "But you fail to consider the costs of using all your aura in one battle. You'll be in trouble if you have to fight again minutes later. Your lack of endurance is still an issue, Mistress."

"Are you joking?! How about you tell me how you're still standing after that?!" Celeste angrily pouts like a child with her arms folded after pointing at her caretaker. "I mean seriously! I saved that final trick I learned just for this moment, and you still stand! I swear, Katherine. Your aura is like steel, I tell you!" She couldn't believe it. After so much training and preparation for this moment, it wasn't enough to knock her caretaker down!

On the other hand, Katherine simply blinks blankly before taking out her scroll to see that she's still in the yellow while Celeste's is nearly depleted. Yes. While what Celeste did caught her off guard, it drained almost all of her aura just to pull it off. Katherine could only subtly shake her head. For a girl who could act professionally and maturely on stage and in social gatherings, Celeste still has her childish streak once in a while or when emotionally compromised like this.

"Are you even listening to me?! Tell me how I can beat you! I'm getting sick of this-! Mmph!" Celeste angrily calls out only to be interrupted by Katherine shutting her up with her finger. However, that did not stop Celeste's anger as her violet eyes dug deep into Katherine's golden eyes.

"Mistress… I wholeheartedly understand your frustrations over this spar, but perhaps I will explain to you once you calm down and are in the safe confines of your room. It is unwise to continue remaining here in the open, especially around this time." She explained as Celeste's head maid and maid walked up to her.

"It is time we leave now, Mistress. It's getting late. You have a performance the next day." She says, bowing her head while Celeste's shoulders sink, and sighs before keeping Sarastro.

"Fine… We can go."

Celeste walked off, with everyone following her back to their lodge and Katherine by her side. "You know what? I'll give you your assignment tomorrow, Kath. I don't think I would be in the mood tonight."

…

"Are you sure?" Her caretaker asked with a raised eyebrow. "You did make this request an urgent matter. Did you not?"

"Ugh… I did. But I don't know if I want to do it with my mood this awful." Celeste grunts as she brushes her hair aside while they walk through the gate into Argus. Though the walk was silent briefly, it did not take long before Katherine offered a suggestion.

"Perhaps a nice bath and supper would make you feel better. You do love your butter biscuits with tea."

"Yeah. I think that will be nice."

Much later, Celeste was back in her room, wearing a simple nightgown and holding a cup of tea with biscuits on the table near her. Her eyes stared out the window and at the shattered moon above. Letting the silence take control for a moment, she reached over, grabbed an envelope on the table, and found her eyes on it.

Before she could do anything else, the door of her room opened, and a more refreshed Katherine walked in. "Celeste. Are you feeling much better?" Her caretaker asks as the young woman turns with a gentle smile on her lips.

"Yes. Much better than before, I can say." Celeste places her cup on the plate as Katherine walks towards her. "That and after explaining my weaknesses during our spar. But thank you for checking up on me."

Katherine just nods her head with her eyes closed and arms resting below her stomach. "If I did not, would I be your caretaker?"

Her response made Celeste giggle before offering a light-hearted scoff. "Kath, I'm sixteen years old. I think I can handle myself well."

"Of course. I shouldn't take much of your time. You have a performance to make for tomorrow and the next few weeks." Katherine says while Celeste sighs and stares out the window before her caretaker is soon beside her.

"I know. But I need you to take this and read through it." With both hands, she passes the envelope to her caretaker, who takes it. "Follow my instructions, and if things go well, we'll see each other soon." Celeste explains as Katherine unfolds the letter and reads through its contents.

Katherine's eyes narrow down as she closes her eyes and the letter within the envelope. "Though I question the need for secrecy and leaving me with more questions about why again, I will see it done." She keeps the envelope in her white suit. "But is there a particular reason why this must not reach your parents?"

Celeste's attitude changed on the spot as she grew nervous. "I'm… enjoying my freedom here compared to my life back home, but… It will not be a good idea to inform them what I'm doing here. I don't want them to intervene in my business yet." She explains while Katherine stares at her before nodding.

"I see… Very well then. I'll keep my lips shut."

"Thank you, Katherine. This means a lot to me." The caretaker nods her head silently as she makes her leave. But once she opens the door, she hesitates and glances back at Celeste, staring into the stars again.

"Rest well, Celeste. May we see each other soon."

With that, Katherine makes her leave with a new task at hand.

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POV ? ? ?

"Nerium! What in God's name did you think using your Semblance on that boy was a good idea?!" I found myself screaming at my second in command! I gave her one job! And that one job is just to watch that boy and test and see how much he has grown! Not use her goddamn Semblance on him! I specifically told her NOT to use it against anyone except the worst of scum or dire circumstances!

And here I received word that she did just that and stirred up the local Grimm so much that her escorts had to intercept them!

Letting out a growl, I could only rub my nose with frustration that I probably would have to oil my fingers again. "I leave you alone for ONE moment! And you did that? Was my instructions unclear for you to follow?" Nerium sat motionlessly in front of me with her eyes closed while many others were giving her the stink eye for her obvious fuck up for not following my orders. "Or did your restlessness from being stuck here helping me with the administration of the tribe make you sloppy that you have to resolve to use it?"

Despite my chastisement, my second in command remains silent.

Honestly, I try to be a fair Khan. But how can I do that when I have to deal with my subordinates' screw-ups? Especially my second in command! It not only looks bad on her, but also on me! The rest of the tribe will see this as a sign of weakness if my closest subordinate disobeys my orders like that! May the Gods guide me. I probably would have to deal with several tribe members challenging me in combat for the title of Khan in the coming days.

But to accomplish that, they must challenge her first and take her place to get to me.

I would have continued chastising my second if not for her eyes opening and finally deciding to speak her case. "The boy is strong, my Khan." She explains with all eyes on her. "And he has much potential to grow ever stronger than he is now. But to attain that, he must know that he is still weak and there's much he could improve on. If he can't even break out of my semblance with his strength and will, what chances does he have in your designs?"

Everyone, including me, listens closely as my second continues explaining herself. "He has potential, no doubt. But by your words, Khan. Only with strength can one persevere through the pain, save this world, and purge the darkness that lurks in all hearts. The boy's creative. Resourceful. Cunning even." She pauses for a moment with admiration. "But I see pain in his eyes. I see weakness. He hesitates mid-fight against me, as if the shadows of the past haunt his every action. What better way to push someone by giving them a reason to grow stronger?"

The whole court was rendered silent by my second-in-command speech. As for me, I merely adjust my seat on my throne. So, the boy has some sort of trauma, I suppose? Curious… The last report on him was that he was mentally well. But that was weeks ago. I can't help but wonder what happened to him to cast a shadow on his soul.

Alas, the silence did not last longer than I would have liked it to because the court quickly descended into an uproar, with some supporting Nerium's justification while others calling her actions unnecessary and cruel against someone still recovering. As for me? I just sigh in response. This always happens whenever something controversial is said here in my throne room.

A necessity when I reform the tribe after taking over my father.

And the thing is, I understand where my second is coming from. I have had eyes on him for some time now and have seen his growth from a who can't fight to a somewhat decent fighter in under a month. Impressive, yes. But he has a part to play in the vision one of my seers had predicted through her semblance before her passing.

It allows her to glimpse the future, and she has foreseen his future.

But to my frustration, the seer refused to give me the finer details except that our future depended on him and his hair colour. Admittedly, I was rather surprised to learn that he wasn't alone and found himself with a group of Huntsman and Huntress in training, even more so when my eyes came to me with news of a Schnee Heiress there, an older man who used to belong to the Branwen Tribe and others.

I hope he doesn't mind that I have taken the liberty of exterminating his tribe and enslaving the rest to serve as penal labour as repentance for their sins. I've been waiting for a while for the chance to exterminate that particular tribe for some time now with their disgusting track record.

But their leader and second has proven to be… frustrating to deal with. And she and her second will always rout us whenever we launch raids and attack them. In fact, it was because of her that I lost both my arms…

…

Nevertheless, when my scouts reported to me that the Branwen tribe were without their leader and second, for some reason beyond me, I took the chance and brought everyone with me. Together, we brought the Branwen's to their knees. For all their talk about strength and only the strongest will thrive, they were rather willing to run like cowards instead of fighting us head-on when we were on their doorstep.

Clearly, their only strength is the leader and her second. Too bad she isn't there to save them from us.

"The boy is important to our Khan's plans! He does not deserve to suffer against sister Nerium's Semblance, even if it is to test him! No one does! Speak another word that her actions were justified, and I will come over there and shut you up myself!"

Hmm… It appears I've abstained for too long now…

"You don't have the guts to do it! Our clan, our tribe, has been in decline for centuries at this point, girl! You were too young to understand the truth! If we are to take back what we lost, to reclaim our homeland and rightful place on Remnant, we need to focus on them! Not accept compromises and hold back. The darkness cares not for restraint!"

"Damn you!"

"SILENCE!" My order echoed throughout the court and silenced everyone. I know what must be done. Standing up from my seat, I spoke. "Are you all done with your bickering? Or did you all forget that you are all in my presence?" I said while walking towards Nerium, who remained silent the whole time.

"I will not lie. Both sides have raised a good point," I announce with my eyes stuck on my second. "I understand her intentions. Why did she do it in the first place? Her intentions are genuine and are to help the tribe. But I condone how she did it. Therefore, I suggest a compromise." Mutterings broke out throughout the court, while Nerium's eyes widened at me.

I'm still disappointed in you, so don't take my leniency as an escape card. Take it as a warning, woman.

"Nerium will remain as my second in command. But from now on. She must swear an oath to NEVER use her semblance under any circumstances for at least two years or until circumstances prove the requirement, and she is to be under watch all the time. She will have her position stripped and placed in the Redemption cult if she fails to uphold the oath. Never to rise the chain forever."

The court was silent at my words. And Nerium's eyes show dread and relief.

Good.

But the silence did not last long before I heard mutterings. "Place her into the Redemption cult? The Khan must be serious to place someone of her talent there…"

"I agree. I shudder to think of those who undergo its procedures. Last I heard, one of the Branwen tribe members was sentenced there for assaulting his master and attempted murder. I remember the screams as well, and when he exited that place, he became a mindless shell of himself loyal to our cause, but… It was almost as if… obedience and total loyalty to our cause were beaten into his soul."

"I wonder what makes the Khan think this is the correct decision…"

"Perhaps it is for the best."

After my speech, I return to my seat before waving my hand off. "We're done here. Unless any of you have any news for me or object to my compromise, you may leave. If not, speak your mind." My eyes glanced around as most of my court began to leave, except for a few and Nerium.

"My Khan." My eyes turn to see one of the tribe's elders walking forward to me before kneeling. "One of our trade caravans has come across an unusual sight."

It must be quite unusual for one of our trade caravans to report to me about it. "What about it? It's rare to hear them reporting about anything else besides wealth and rumours from the kingdoms."

"Of course, that's true, my Khan…" He bows his head. "They report encountering a red-haired wanderer with an awful SDC brand on his face." The Schnee Dust Company. Oh, how I loathe their treatment of their people and mine… "He appears to be a lost soul looking for his past. He goes by the name of Adam Taurus, and from what we know, he was once part of the White Fang and the man responsible for its radicalisation and the destruction of Beacon Academy in Vale."

"Adam Taurus…" I whisper his name while rubbing my chin. I'm surprised to hear that that monster's still alive. I thought he would have died for the sins he did. "To think he still lives… Is he on this way here?" I ask as the elder nods his head.

"Yes, my Khan. The caravan is coming back here alongside Adam Taurus in willing chains at his request." I blink in response. Did… did he willingly allow himself to be arrested? This is quite unusual…

"Nerium," I call my second in command as she perks upon hearing me.

"Yes, my Khan?"

"Meet up with our caravan and help escort them back here. And once you have Adam Taurus with you, bring him to me. It is rare that people willingly seek redemption… Especially one as infamous as he is. Last I heard, he tried to destroy Haven as he had done to Vale but failed."

"Of course. Your will be done." Nerium bows before leaving while I turn my attention back to the elder before me.

"Is that all?"

"Yes, my Khan."

"Good. That's all for today."

With a bow, I watched as everyone else picked up and left, and soon, I found myself alone on the throne. Ruling alone can be hard. Especially when once in a while, there will be a ritual combat of ascension.

Where a lower-level warrior challenges his superior for their place in combat.

It's part of our culture. It's how things were run here. I didn't get Khan's title out of nowhere. I fought my father for it because I believed that he lost his way and made us no better than bandit scum that attacked the innocent. I challenged him for the right to rule the tribe. But, as I feared then, he did not react kindly to my 'betrayal'. My father wanted me dead for opposing him at the time. And we would have been on the brink of a civil war had I not made the painful choice.

I killed my father in ritual combat and gave everyone a choice. Follow me, or leave and never return. No one left and yielded to my authority. All but one did. My twin sister. My dear little sister, with whom I shared my blood with. She has always been opposed to our ways since we were children. Always wanting us to be more than nomads that roam the world or bandits in the eyes of the Kingdoms.

She believes we could be a beacon of hope, not just for our kind. But for the rest of the world.

Just as our ancestors once did.

My father called her a naive fool. I called her ideas risky. But she always believed that we could be more than what we are. And that day when I slew my father, she couldn't take it anymore, especially after I killed my father.

She then came to me after my ascension as Khan and told me about her decision to leave the tribe. I was understandably shocked by it.

I didn't want to lose her as well after I was forced to kill my father.

I begged my sister. I begged her not to leave. Not to leave me alone after what I did for the sake of our tribe. But despite all my efforts to convince her to stay. She was as stubborn as my father and I ever were. It was in our blood. Even when I prostrate myself before my sister in front of everyone and offer the title of Khan to her in an attempt to convince her to stay, it does nothing to change her mind.

She was dead set on leaving me behind for my actions.

There was nothing I could have done that day to convince my sister to stay. And with a heavy heart, I gave her everything she would need to find a new life beyond our tribe. Food, water, Enough Lien to last months and other essentials before she departs. And ever since that day, I've never seen my sister for over twenty years.

No mails. No family visits. No nothing.

Not even once, and now I'm in my forties and without a child to call my own. Not ever since I learned that I was sterile ever since I was born. I always ask myself that day if it was worth it to rebel and challenge my father for the title of Khan and control of the tribe to take it away from its path. And the answer was a simple one.

No. It was not worth it.

It was not worth committing patricide for control of the tribe and losing my twin sister in the process.

Breathing out a sigh over the recollection of the past, I pulled out a photo of when things were simpler times… A photo of my father, sister, and me when we had our fifth birthday. Our hair was as white as snow, and our eyes shone as blue as the sea. Also, the photo showed us having cake and our first caught rabbit without help.

The time when my father did not become a shadow of his former self and became no different from the bandits I now hunt. But the past does not matter now.

"Leth… I wonder what you would think of me? What have I accomplished so far? If only I could see you again. Just one more time…" Is my sister even alive out there to begin with? Am I the last of my blood? Or did she at least have a good life beyond the tribe? I can't help but wonder alone in my throne room.

Alas, I can't just waste my time here thinking about it. This tribe isn't going to run itself.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Elsewhere…

Adam walked along a caravan of masked people in white on horses. Chains bound his arms at his request. It has been days since he woke up in the middle of the forest and… He can't remember. He can't remember what happened or what most of his life was like except for glimpses in which he spilt blood and committed heinous crimes. He remembers how he destroyed an entire school, how he murdered tens of people in the name of justice for Faunuskind.

And he feels horrified and disgusted with himself. Yet, Adam feels incompetent due to the lack of memories and is scared when he realises he has the same weapon he used to hurt hundreds. But it's a part of a life he couldn't remember. And now? He joins a group of 'merchants' as they call themselves. They claim that they could help him.

Help him piece his memories together and discover who he is and what those memories mean. A way to redeem and make peace with himself for some reason.

However, this was not the first time he encountered other people. There was a couple he met days before, but each reacted the same way with him, with terror or hate at the sight of him. Calling him a terrorist or a monster. Was he such a menace before he lost his memories? Then there were the black monsters that tried to kill him, but thanks to the weapon he took along and muscle memory, they were dealt with easily.

A part of him recognised those things as Grimm. Adam could remember how scared he was when he countered one of those Grimm things.

"How… How long until we reach your camp?" Adam asks, before a woman with deer ears and a white mask glances at him before answering.

"A couple of days from now. Two days should we burn the night."

"Oh… What do you do for a living?" Adam asks again.

"Mostly as a merchant, trading in villages and sometimes cities, and occasionally as a recruiter of new people who are keen to join us. I even joined in attacking bandits occasionally. Though it's not my cup of tea."

"Khan?" Adam could only ask. "Sounds like a… leader?"

"Yes. The Khan is the leader of our tribe, but we are nothing like those bandits we hunt. Many of us used to belong to towns or villages but joined the tribe because we became orphans when bandits or Grimm destroyed our homes. His tribe takes us unfortunate souls in. Trained us how to fight and taught us skills to survive, and we became part of the tribe. Some of us even have children there." The masked woman explained.

"In fact, the Khan's greatest warrior and second in command was originally an orphan like many of us. But she's more skilled than us all and was taken in to be personally trained by Khan himself. He favours those with the strength and talent, and she's the best of the best. And the only way to climb up the ranks is to beat your superior in ritual combat."

Adam was silent as he listened to the woman explaining her tribe. The idea of beating the higher-ups in combat to take their spot is strange to him. He finds it barbaric and unnecessary but chooses not to voice his thoughts. It would be unwise to say that to them.

"I will not lie. The tribe is not perfect. We regularly use captured bandits in our raids as penal labourers to repay for what they have done to others. I don't like it, but some see it as justice. And then there's the ritual combat thing, which I find unsavoury, but I'm not one to judge the tribe that saved and gave me a second chance at life." The woman shrugs.

"Besides, I'm happy where I am as a caravanner. I do have a talent for bartering goods."

"I see…"

"Perhaps this won't be so bad after all." Adam couldn't help but smile with hope. Perhaps he can find who he is there…