Atlas

One Year Ago

Weiss sat in the high-backed chair, the very picture of calm and restraint. She was aware that her new scar, having been received just a few days prior, was still bright and pink on her cheek, but she didn't mind overmuch. It was poetic, in a way. Both of the scars that now crisscrossed her features were received from her father. She no longer regarded her first scar as a disfigurement. No, it was a badge of honor, that she'd survived, and with the new scar, she wordlessly announced to all how she was now finally free.

Pacing in front of her, exhibiting considerably less aplomb, was her older sister, Winter. They were meeting in the office of the CEO, the office that she'd worked so hard over the past few years to attain.

The office that had been unceremoniously yanked out from under her by the traitorous weaklings of the SDC Board of Directors, newly reinstated with the same cronies her father had put into place. Evidently, they preferred an unknown quantity leading them rather than a proven, though combative, one.

"I cannot believe you," Winter hissed, her pale face flushed. This was the first time they'd spoken since the duel, and even before then it had been a year or so since they'd communicated. Weiss had actually done that on purpose, tried to keep her sister isolated from what she was doing. Her younger brother Whitley was a known factor, unproven in the eyes of the board and so not yet a threat, but was still the likeliest candidate other than herself to take over the company. Hence her parallel campaign to paint him in as incompetent a light as possible over the past few years. It should have been a simple matter, with Winter off in the Atlesian military as a Specialist. And yet…

And yet here they were.

"I don't know why you're surprised," Weiss retorted levelly. "You know how he was."

"I know what you pushed him towards!" Winter replied angrily, whirling around to face her younger sister. "Did you really think he would just give up his company so easily?"

"Easily?" Weiss barked out a bitter laugh. "You have no idea how hard I've worked over the past five years to overthrow that man. The dealings, the subtle sabotage of his projects… Funneling budgets into my areas of control… No, Winter, I never expected him to give it up easily." She stood, still shorter than her sister by several inches, but the cold fury that shone from her pale blue eyes gave her stature. "I expected him to be defeated soundly and by my hand."

The elder Schnee sibling recoiled slightly. "You… Did you plan on this? Did you actually want him to duel you?"

Weiss smiled coldly, taking her seat once more. "It was one of several possible, and acceptable, outcomes, yes. As usual, he underestimated how far I've come or the depths of my determination."

Letting out a slow breath, Winter turned and retreated back behind the mammoth white desk, lowering herself into the plush and matching leather chair. My chair, she thought with only a trace of bitterness. That should have been my chair, finally.

"So you went into that duel, prepared to kill our father."

Weiss nodded slightly, just a minute incline of her head. "I merely met him with an equivalent lethality."

Winter glanced down at the desktop before meeting her gaze once more, the hereditary pale blue eyes distant. "But you didn't plan on the Board."

Frowning slightly, Weiss sighed. "No, I did not. They should have remained a non-factor, especially after father had dissolved them… It would appear that they were his contingency plan, in case I won."

"Indeed." Winter leaned forward, steepling her fingers on the desk surface. "Weiss… I know how you must feel about this…"

Do you, sister of mine? Do you truly know how furious I am at the corrupt cronies that rolled over for a dead man, just to spite me?

"...But please, please do not go against their wishes in this." Winter sighed heavily. "Allow me to rebuild the SDC from the ruin you and father have left it."

Weiss nodded as she stood once more, her posture and face betraying none of her feelings. "I will depart the SDC as instructed," she agreed calmly. "My shares have already been liquidated and my access revoked." The platinum-haired woman adjusted the bottom of her suit jacket. "So I suppose this is goodbye, then."

"It doesn't have to be," Winter whispered with a trace of desperation, perhaps heeding a sense of foreboding in regards to what Weiss might be planning next. "We… The injunction merely pertains to the SDC, not us."

"But you are the SDC now, CEO Winter Schnee," she returned, careful to remove any trace of spite or chagrin from her voice. "Congratulations. Give my regards to the family."

With that, she spun on her heel and departed the office for the elevator. Guards were waiting in the lobby to escort her off of the premises, but she steadfastly ignored their very presence.

As she entered the back seat of her private car, ordering her driver towards her safe house on the edge of the city, she sat back and finally allowed her face to tighten in anger.

Fine, you want me out so badly? I'll simply return to the shadows and fight the corruption that forced me out and defeated me just on the cusp of my victory over my father, may he rot in a hole.

You will all regret this.

Downtown Vacuo

Today

The platinum-haired girl strode determinedly down the sidewalk of downtown Vacuo. Though her stature was diminutive, the steely glint in her pale blue eyes combined with the regal way she held herself and the slender rapier at her belt caused most pedestrians to outright swerve out of her way.

Her white overcoat was unbuttoned, showing the silken light blue blouse she wore over crisp white pants. The sounds of her boot heels clacking against the pavement were as good a warning as any to those in her way. Move, or be moved.

While outwardly focused and purposeful, inside she was anything but. Her mind had been a veritable maelstrom ever since she'd been reunited with her old team. With… Ruby.

Most puzzling to her were the emotions that the brunette now evoked. While once she was the dominant force in their relationship, though she most assuredly did love the excitable girl when they were younger, now…

Now I feel nothing but guilt… and fear.

Those flat grey eyes, the dispassionate way Ruby dealt with those who had once been closest to her… Frankly, it unnerved her. Weiss pondered on what she'd learned regarding her ex-lover's actions while she herself was engaged in brutal and bloody corporate warfare. The body count the brunette had personally amassed was likely far greater than hers, enough so that she seemed callous about the taking of life.

Consequently, the former heiress was forced to confront her own past actions, and she didn't really like what she saw.

Have I lost some of my humanity as well? She frowned slightly as she turned a corner, several blocks still from her destination. Taking a life used to be so… so abhorrent to me, and yet I have unhesitatingly done so on numerous occasions.

She remembered the faces still, those who succumbed to her blade. All were trying to take her own life, of course, but that didn't ease the twinges of guilt she still felt when she saw them in her mind's eye as she tried to sleep at night.

I wonder if Ruby even has an accurate count of those she's killed. Or Blake, for that matter.

Frowning once more, Weiss realized she'd hit upon the crux of her current dilemma. Annoying as they could be at times, her former team had been her friends, dear ones, in fact. And yet six years had changed them all so much. Was the glimmer of humanity she felt creeping back into her chest just an illusion? Could she even begin to comprehend what Ruby and Blake had turned into, the years of violence and bloodshed that would make an experienced Hunter quail?

How is it, she mused, that the one I now feel closest to is Yang? What an odd reversal...

The brash blonde had always been arrogant and loud, relentlessly teasing the platinum-haired girl. Said teasing only increased once she was dating, and sleeping, with her little sister. Granted, that was better than the outright violence that she'd feared, but the oaf had certainly been at the bottom of her regard on the team, even if she could at times show a warmer, nurturing side.

And now she just seems so… broken. I understand that, though, I went through the same, though not in a physical manner. I wonder which was worse, her losing her arm or the loss of my own self-worth?

She paused, glancing up at the street signs on the corner. She'd memorized the directions to where she might find her contact but had neglected to use her scroll to visually trace the route. With a sigh, Weiss turned down the alley that would cut across to the main street she needed.

Instead of an avenue, however, she ended up in a wide concrete cul-de-sac, apparently used for the loading docks at the nearby warehouse. The area was deserted, suspiciously so.

She hadn't survived the numerous corporate assassination attempts over the years without finely honing her danger sense, and right now it was screaming at her.

Well, then, let's spring their little trap and see who we're dealing with, shall we?

Weiss stood in the middle of the concrete courtyard, surrounded by towering brick structures. She strained her aura, eyes closed, and picked up on furtive steps approaching. The alleyway she'd just left seemingly had the most, while the broader entrance to the loading docks contained perhaps only three men.

Divide and conquer.

Her ice-blue eyes flashed dangerously as they opened, Myrtenaster whipping out from its place at her side. She hadn't made any modifications to her weapon other than increasing the Dust capacity and make the triggering mechanism faster and more reliable. Switching over to her blue chamber, she twirled, sending a blast out behind her to seal the alleyway off. Immediate shouts of alarm indicated they were close enough to see her actions, but that was of little consequence.

Spinning once more, this time in a crouch, she allowed an eager grin to flit across her face as a white glyph formed at her feet. The platinum-haired woman shot forward like a bullet, slashing out as she went. Two men, clad in paramilitary fashion with deadly-looking assault rifles, crumpled to the ground in a heap without a sound. The third stared at her, shock plastered across his features as he fumbled his rifle into position.

With a haughty sneer, Weiss batted the rifle out of his hands and kicked him in the chest. The aura-assisted strike sent him flying back against the wall, to be anchored there by another blast of ice.

Now, then, for the main force.

She turned and strolled nonchalantly back into the cul-de-sac. Her ice barricade was broken down by this point by eight men and women dressed the same as the ones she'd just faced.

Weiss sighed. Not much of a challenge, really. Ah, well, at least I got to stretch my legs a bit.

"I'm terribly sorry," she called out to the would-be ambushers as they spread out, weapons at the ready. "I have somewhere I need to be. It'd be awfully rude of me to leave you without entertainment, though."

A complicated white glyph formed behind her, twice her height. Out of it stepped a towering beast, one that struck fear into the hearts of those before her, their rifles shaking in unsteady hands.

The Alpha Beowolf leaned over so that its massive snout was at the same level as Weiss' head. She reached back and scratched it affectionately under its chin. "Have fun, sweetheart," she cooed.

Turning, she ignored the screams of terror that quickly turned into howls of agony easily heard over the sporadic gunfire. Several steps took her to the struggling man she'd contained earlier.

"Now, then," she stated calmly. "You have a choice. Tell me who hired you to ambush me, and I let you down. If not… well, my pet won't be satisfied with your friends for very long."

The wiry man's eyes were bugged out in fear. Weiss' nose wrinkled at the acrid smell of him voiding his bowels. Needless to say, he was soon babbling everything he knew. Which, admittedly, wasn't much, but it was enough to spare his pathetic existence.

A Schnee never goes back on her word.

Her summoned Grimm dispelled, she proceeded onto the next street, marveling how the incident hadn't brought any sort of law enforcement upon her head. Vacuo has its merits, I suppose, she smirked.

Before she could enter the apartment building of her contact, her earpiece chirped.

"Weiss, this is Ruby. Blake and I were ambushed by several paramilitary types."

She frowned slightly. Not used to working with others, I should have thought to do that. "Yes, I was just ambushed as well. Are… Are you both well?"

"No injuries. You?"

Weiss shivered slightly at the cold, uncaring way the brunette posed the terse question as if she were merely checking on a piece of machinery, that it was still able to function.

"I'm fine, thank you," she replied through numb lips. "Heading to my contact now."

"Right. We'll regroup as planned."

And with that, the transmission ended. The platinum-haired woman sighed, pushing her misgivings to the back of her head once more.

Squaring her shoulders, the former heiress resumed her cold and haughty expression, the one that was expected of her, and entered the building.

Vacuo Safehouse

They reassembled for dinner, one Nix had thoughtfully prepared for them. It featured the spicy meats and vegetables that the locals were famous for, but had some freshly-caught fish as well. Blake dove into the latter with abandon, while Weiss delicately sampled a little bit of everything, her bites small and measured.

Yang, having been the last one to stumble in and obviously inebriated, took a huge plateful of the meats with only a small sampling of veggies. Ruby and Nix, sitting side by side, seemed content with far less meat and a healthy portion of the greens.

The first to finish, Ruby pushed her plate away and wiped her mouth on a napkin. "Appreciate the meal, Nix," she said, a trace of warmth in her now-usual cold demeanor.

"No problem," the pilot said cheerfully. "I like to cook, it's one of my talents."

"You don't say," the brunette deadpanned. Her flat grey eyes bore into the Fox Faunus, who for some reason blushed as she sat her fork down.

"Um, yeah… That is, I'm a medic too, so there's, y'know, that…" She cleared her throat and busily went about cleaning her face off.

Weiss looked at the redhead, brow furrowed. Now what is with that reaction?

Before she could pry, Ruby turned towards her estranged sister next. "Yang, no ambushes?"

"Nope, didn't get to kick anyone's ass," the blonde mumbled around her mouthful of beef. She swallowed and issued an abashed apology.

Ruby just gazed at her levelly without any reaction. "Did you find out anything today?"

"Um, no, sorry, didn't uncover a thing."

The brunette stared at Yang for a few moments longer before turning to Weiss, one eyebrow arched in question.

"My contact didn't have much," she admitted. "Taupher Sas isn't a person who has run with any of the organized criminal elements here in Vacuo, but he was able to identify the name of the employer of my attackers. Alistair Black is a major player, but very secretive, in the underbelly of Vacuo. Mostly racketeering and smuggling."

"That's the same name we got from our ambushers," Blake spoke up in her customary monotone. "I was able to get a connection between the two, however."

"Oh?" Weiss prompted, eyebrows raised regally.

"Alistair Black and Taupher Sas were friends at Shade Academy here."

"Not the same team, though?"

"No."

Weiss nodded slowly. "So, then, we can assume they are working together."

"I think that's a safe assumption," Ruby agreed, though her voice contained no eagerness for their breakthrough. "Did your contact have an idea of where we can find Black?"

"Yes, I have an address of a warehouse by the docks."

"Good. We hit them tonight, then, if they're smugglers I'm sure they'll be occupied and, more importantly, all present."

The five of them retired to the living area on the same floor where a planning table was set up. Weiss made a few calls on her scroll and managed to procure the floor plans for the warehouse. It wasn't all that out of the ordinary, with only two entrances to worry about.

"We'll pair up," Ruby stated softly as she stared at the map. "Weiss and Blake take the rear entrance, Yang and I the front. We'll pin them down between us. No killing unless it's absolutely necessary, as we don't know what Taupher looks like yet."

"No stealth?" Blake asked without inflection from her chair.

"Nope." Ruby stepped back and plopped into another cushioned chair. "No need, we go in hard and loud, draw everyone out. Just make sure nobody gets past you. Sing out if you find someone who could be our target."

Weiss frowned as her gaze flickered around her former teammates. Though I should stop referring to them by the past tense, like it or not we're a team once more. Not knowing the identity of their target was troubling.

There didn't seem to be anything else to say, so Weiss stepped back to sit on the end of the couch where Nix was perched. She crossed her legs demurely, lost in thought. The silence stretched on between them all, save for the rustling of fabric where Yang stood as she restlessly fidgeted against the wall. She was considering just up and leaving when the quiet was broken by an unexpected source.

Standing in the corner with her arms crossed and a scowl affixed on her face, Yang was feeling more than a little unappreciated.

Granted, she'd not brought anything of use to the table, but she was as much a part of this reformed team as any of them. And yet they'd just put together a plan of assault without even glancing in her direction.

The blonde hiccuped slightly, frowning as she tasted the stale beer in the back of her throat. Shoulda had something stronger if I was just gonna be a spectator here anyways.

She wasn't even sure what the hell she was doing here anyway. Both Ruby and Blake had the look of stone-cold killers now, a fact that didn't sit well at all with her. She was a washed-up has-been, a bounty hunter for Oum's sake. What did she have to offer?

Yang pushed aside the negative thoughts as she always did, unwilling to dwell on the past nor her failings. I'm here now, and I'm gonna show 'em that I'm not worthless.

But you are, a small, niggling voice whispered.

Fuck you, she grimaced. The blonde brawler fidgeted, wondering how long they were all going to stare at each other before she could leave and attend to the bottle of whiskey in her room, the only thing that ever got that irritating conscience inside her head to shut up.

The blonde woman was about to just give up on it all and walk out when she heard a level voice speak up.

"So," Blake murmured from across the room. "Adam."

Ruby sat back in her chair and regarded the Cat Faunus levelly. "Yup."

Yang started slightly at the mention of the Bull Faunus who had taken her arm. Memories flashed through her head, of the dark-suited man standing over Blake, plunging a sword into her abdomen as she choked back a scream… a haze of red as the blonde barrelled in, once more throwing herself into a fray without thought to consequence, only the burning desire to protect Blake…

The very last image she had of Blake, prone on the ground, hand outstretched in warning towards her. Then, waking up to be told she was gone…

Her prosthetic fist clenched momentarily, the artificial gears whirring silently. But she knew they were there, inaudible as they were she was always cognizant of the artificialness of what had replaced her real arm, what tried and failed to make her whole again.

She shook off the reminiscing as Blake rose gracefully from her perch, stalking slowly towards Ruby. The blonde tensed, ready to… do what, exactly? Intervene? Help? She just didn't know what she felt anymore, what she wanted.

Yang frowned slightly in confusion as the Faunus woman crouched down at eye level with the brunette. Flat grey eyes regarded intense amber ones, neither woman moving a muscle. The silence stretched on for over a full minute, long enough to make both Yang and Weiss shift uncomfortably, though Nix seemed frozen in place, her pale green eyes wide.

"I see you," Blake finally murmured.

Ruby nodded slowly, her gaze never leaving that of the raven-haired woman's. "I see you, too," she replied softly, without inflection.

Blake returned the nod with a satisfied one of her own, rose to her feet, and walked from the room.

"Alright," Ruby grunted as she rose and stretched her arms over her head, acting as if nothing at all had just transpired. "Nothing else to plan for, I think."

"Do you want me standing by for extraction if needed?" Nix asked hesitantly.

Ruby gave her a brusque nod. "That'd be best. Let's all rest up, though."

As she stood and walked towards the door, she paused, not looking back. "You going to be sober by then, Yang?"

"Pfft, I'm good to go now if we wanna," the blonde retorted.

Her sister didn't respond, just headed out and up the stairs to her room.

Nix made her exit next, mumbling uncomfortably about how she wanted to get dinner cleaned up, leaving the remaining two former teammates alone.

"They're so alike now," Yang murmured aloud. "Ruby and Blake."

"They are," Weiss agreed. "Seems a bit incomprehensible, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," the blonde sighed, her face troubled. She levered herself up from the wall, swaying slightly. Maybe I did have a few too many beers… Eh, I'll be fine by tonight.

She paused with her hand on the doorframe, glancing back at the pale woman still seated on the couch, staring off into space thoughtfully.

"Hey," she began. "Um, I know I don't need to… I mean… Look, Weiss, I'm… sorry you had to leave everything. I don't blame you, though, not for leaving. I know you didn't want to."

Weiss' icy eyes bored into her as if looking for some ulterior motive behind her words, but then they softened infinitesimally. "I… Thank you, Yang."

Any number of her old taunts and teases tried to spring to her lips, calling her Princess or Ice Queen or… But nothing seemed appropriate anymore.

They'd changed too much and left their carefree years far behind them.

"You're welcome, Weiss," she whispered simply, before turning to head for her room.

She had a bottle waiting for her.

A/N: Aww, Weiss has a pet, how cute… Part of me wanted her to call him Zwei, but I thought that might be a bit overboard. Next chapter we'll see some more action as RWBY takes on their first major opponent as a team.

Stay shiny!