The Games We Play - Chapter 195: Hello

Chapter 195: Hello

DISCLAIMER: This story is NOT MINE IN ANY WAY. That honor has gone to the beautiful bastard Ryuugi. This has been pulled from his Spacebattles publishment at threads/rwby-the-gamer-the-games-we-play-disk-five.341621/. Anyway on with the show…err read.

Hello

I chuckled quietly and smiled at her, ignoring the way my exoskeleton was growing into place. As my skill with Monstrosity and Metamorphosis improved, so had both my ability to transform myself and the strength of my transformed state—though in truth, it was rare that I fully transformed. As both of those skills improved primarily through the process of transformation, I simply kept the virus in a constant state of reduction and contraction using my healing skills. At the level the skills were at now, however, I didn’t even really need that to keep the Grimm disease in check; it was as much a part of me now as my own flesh and blood. This was my first time fully changing in quite a while.

At present, I was adopting my ‘usual’ form as Jian Bing. White armor spread over me quickly, smooth, sleek, and built for speed. A smooth mask formed over my face, devoid of any openings or features, and a pair of horns formed shortly after. Just in case thing continued to go downhill, I also grew my dark wings, because if I didn’t do it now, it’d be too late to regret it later.

Well, even if I said that, she continued to transform as well, and frankly…I didn’t like what I saw. After the crystals grew into place on her arms and legs, something particularly noteworthy occurred—a series of almost hornlike protrusions began to sprout from her forehead, cheek bones, and temples, each of the spike a pure and beautiful white.

Cinder was growing herself a crown of white Dust.

Fuck me, but I had underestimated her.

“It’s good to see you again, of course,” I said before heaving an exaggerated sigh. It was becoming increasingly obvious that the strength of my transformed state wouldn’t not be enough to accomplish anything on its own, but having it in place made me feel a little bit better and I was taking what I could get. “But to think my dear sister would attack me after we were finally reunited…”

She clicked her tongue again, giving me a reproachful look.

“If you didn’t want to be attacked, you should have introduced yourself earlier,” She replied, but made no move to renew her assault. “What did you expect with such an aggressive approach?”

“Mm, but weren’t you the one who was trying so hard to hide?” I asked. “You’ve been so secretive that it was hard to meet you until now and you were so tightlipped about everything that it was hard to get any answers. More than that, even though I thought it was you, haven’t you behaved a bit oddly of late? I was a bit worried about you, you know.”

It was a risk to bring it up, but pretty much everything I could possibly say carried some risk now. I was trying to pretend to be one of my greatest enemies and was running only on what I’d put together thus far. I had no idea how Conquest—who wasn’t even a singular being to begin with—behaved around his erstwhile siblings and right now my only real advantage was that Conquest’s nature was so variable and divided. Even then, however, I was banking on my past theories that the Rider’s weren’t normally in direct contact with Malkuth. And while a part of me was hoping that the conversation didn’t stray towards any questions I couldn’t answer, the fact of the matter was that I couldn’t hope to steer it fully away from things I didn’t know without drawing suspicion towards myself, as they’d be the type of things most likely to come up in a conversation like this one.

Best, then, to mitigate the risk and stick to subjects I thought I could fake knowledge of convincingly and control the flow of the conversation myself. I already knew that my enemies weren’t all knowing and while I sadly wasn’t either, I did have some advantages. Besides, I couldn’t pass up this chance to fish for information, either.

“Shouldn’t I be the one saying that?” She asked, a brief flash of emotion flickering through her. I noted it curiously, but wasn’t sure what it meant—yet. “It isn’t like you to take the subtle approach, Conquest.”

I sighed again and nodded.

“It’s not,” I agreed. “But it can’t be helped for now. War’s been taken out of the picture temporarily so a part of me is filling in for him.”

“War?” Famine asked, sounding surprised. “He’s been defeated?”

“It seems he made a mistake with the horse he chose to ride,” I said before squinting at her carefully. “I was a little worried that you had done the same, Famine. When I heard about your past and met you face to face…aren’t you acting a bit strangely? That body of yours…tell me, is the woman inside it really undercontrol?”

Famine frowned at me for a long moment before replying.

“It’s nothing for you to worry about,” She replied. “There were special circumstances that presented an interesting opportunity.”

“Even if you say that, I can’t help but worry, you know?” I told her. “The master entrusted me with this, after all.”

“The master?” She said, blinking once. Her eyelids made a weird scraping sound as they closed over crystalizing membranes. “He spoke to you personally?”

“Not directly, no,” I said. “But this iteration of me was awakened specifically to deal with this matter. Crom even dragged me around for a while.”

“Why would—” She began before pausing, eyebrows furrowing in…concern? “Is it time?”

“It is,” I stated before looking at her carefully. “But do you know what that means or are those simply empty words?”

Not that I had any room to talk on that front…

“Of course, I do,” She answered with a slight scowl. “He’s been reborn, hasn’t he? Keter.”

I watched her for a moment longer before nodding.

“My apologies,” I replied. “Yes. As you might imagine, Lord Malkuth has been watching things with great interest.”

I emphasized the name to brush away the suspicion in her own eyes and saw her purse her lips and nod towards me in return.

“Naturally,” She said. “And Death? If you and War have moved, where is he, then?”

“I don’t know,” I admitted truthfully. “I recall that Keter attacked when he was away from the master’s side and it seems he managed to wipe Keter’s soul clean, but I don’t know where he is at present. Presumably occupied with something important.”

“So that’s why you were assigned,” She mused before nodding. “It seems you’ve been working hard, Conquest.”

“It’s nothing,” I dismissed before making a grandiose gesture towards myself. “What do you think? Even if it’s not how I’d usually play around, I’m a bit proud of my work this time.”

“The White Tiger of the White Fang,” She mused. “I suppose it’s a bit obvious in hindsight.”

“What can I say?” I replied. “It’s my color.”

“Have you take the entire organization, then?” She asked.

I shook my head.

“Too much risk of exposure,” I replied. “Keter can see our infections as well, after all. Right now, it’s best to simply observe him from a distance without him being aware and wait for him to grow stronger. And besides…most of them are useless, anyway. There’s only a few I’m really interested in.”

“Raven Branwen, huh?” She mused. “Yes, I suppose I can see why she’d be of interest to you, but…why haven’t you taken her yet, then?”

“Sadly, things are so rarely that simple,” I answered with a sigh. “She’s tied to Keter as well and has regular contact with him. While I don’t believe she suspects me yet, she’s been on her guard and is protected. Best not to take any chances with her yet, alas.”

“Then you should just kill her,” She stated. “If she’s already allied with the enemy, there’s no reason to hold back.”

“Don’t underestimate Raven’s power,” I answered. “Or her usefulness, especially to me. She’s not something to simply be thrown away, Famine.”

Cinder considered it for a moment longer and then exhaled slowly as she nodded.

I didn’t quite sigh in relief, but it was a near thing. I’d been fairly confident I could make that fly, but not certain. My words were true, though—one of the reasons I’d been careful to keep Raven separate from anyone I suspected as a Rider was because of the enormous risk she posed as a carrier. Even if I was as close to her during the fight against Conquest as I was to her now, I probably wouldn’t have been willing to risk it. For that same reason, however, she was an ideal target for at least Conquest, who’d be able to use her power to easily spread on a global scale. Anyone who knew of his abilities could see the deadliness of that combination.

Which should be enough to make Cinder hesitate before dropping a Time Stop and killing her when she couldn’t resist. Now that I had a better grasp of Cinder’s power, it wasn’t enough to simply guarantee my own protection—it was just as important, if not more so, to make sure she wouldn’t attack my friends or family, either. If she’d been willing to kill Jian Bing, then it was unlikely she’d hesitate too much before dealing with Adam or Raven the same way. Even if I had to reveal a few things to ensure their safety, it was more than worth it.

Now, to protect my best friend.

“Normally, I’d start with her son and go after her that way, but…” I heaved another sigh, shaking my head. “Sadly, this entire situation is bit troublesome.”

“Why?” She asked before pausing for a moment. “Is he connected to Keter as well, then?”

“Oh?” I asked, inserting a bit of playfulness into my voice. “Could it be you really don’t know? Should I make fun of you for being unobservant, sister?”

She looked at me flatly until I sighed again. I could honestly say this wasn’t something I’d ever expected to reveal to one of the Riders, but under the circumstances, I suppose it was the best choice I had. It was dangerous, of course, but it’d be worth it if I could keep this charade going and, if not control, then at least guide Cinder’s actions. While she had attacked Jian Bing with lethal intent, I was well aware of the fact that the Grimm had been deliberately sparing my life for quite some time now. If I did it right, I should be able to manage it and ensure that nothing happened to me or my friends in the process.

Besides which, as information went, there was no way to be sure that she wouldn’t find out, whether on her own or through a message from the other Grimm. Best to keep that in mind and avoid basing any plans around things I couldn’t rely on in the first place. This lie of mine could fall apart in an instant so I needed a way to make sure she wouldn’t turn on me immediately—it wouldn’t do me any good if she killed me before learning something that might stay her hand and right now, that was looking disturbingly possible. I was liking my chances against her in a fight less and less by the moment.

“Fine, fine,” I muttered under my breath before looking at her again. “Haven’t you noticed? He and Keter go to that school of yours.”

Cinder’s eyes widened, a shock of surprise running through her, and I was glad to see that she honestly hadn’t known who I truly was. Any reminder that my enemies weren’t all-knowing was a good one in my books, especially when it helped to outline their weaknesses and flaws. Cinder was obviously horrifically powerful—whether she was actually creating Dust or drawing it from somewhere else, it was obvious that her ability to combine and utilize the material dwarfed those of anyone I’d ever even heard of. By mixing Dust in various ways, she could probably create a multitude of effects, meaning that her ability to stop time for long durations was sadly not the full extent of her power. From setting fields aflame to brutally twisting space to even drawing upon the awesome power of white Dust…I could only speculate on what she was truly capable of and that alone was horrifying. It was obvious now that any thoughts I’d had of beating her in a fight as I was now were faulty.

But for all her might, she was no more omniscient than Conquest had been. Sure, she knew a great deal and was very intelligent, but she didn’t know everything and she wasn’t instantly aware of everything that happened around her. Conquest had had access to my father’s memories to put the pieces together, but Cinder didn’t seem to be able to tell me apart from the rest of mankind at a glance—that is, she couldn’t see my soul or my power. Though I was still up against a vastly superior opponent, she could be deceived and misinformed. At the very least, I had that advantage on my side.

Even so, she was smart and I was beginning to get an idea of precisely how wary I would need to be of her in the future. A moment after her eyes widened in surprise, they narrowed again and I could all but feel her putting the pieces together. Granted, I hadn’t been particularly subtle in my civilian identity and the pieces weren’t too hard to put together, but I’d need to keep in mind that she wasn’t blind.

“Jaune Arc,” She murmured under her breath. “Yes…I suppose I can see that. Certainly, he does stand out.”

“Honestly, I’d thought you were already aware, sister,” I replied. “You’ve spent so much time with him lately, I’d thought you had something in mind. If it wasn’t his true nature that drew you in, though, then why did you take so much interest in a human?”

“I’d simply thought he might be useful,” Cinder answered dismissively. “It is no different from you and the Raven. For a human of his age, he is exceptionally powerful and it’s always useful to have competent allies.”

“Mm,” I mused before shrugging. “Fair enough, sister. But be careful with him—you should be well aware of his importance. Don’t do anything reckless, okay?”

“Who do you think you’re talking to, brother?” She answered with another touch of scorn. “Did you think I’d make such a mistake?”

“Hm?” I wondered aloud, masked face unfortunately unable to smirk. “But didn’t you completely fail to notice who he was, despite being in regular contact with him?”

Cinder stared at me hard with glowing crystal eyes. It was uncomfortable as all hell, but I did my best to laugh it off anyway.

“No offense meant, sister,” I added through my fake mirth. “It’s simply that he’s a wily one—you and I both know that. While he’s probably no match for you, he’s only used a fraction of his true power within that school of yours; as someone whose interest he caught and as someone who knows the nature of his power, it should go without saying that you should be wary, right?”

At that she frowned, not in denial but rather in consideration.

“You believe he knows who I am?” She asked.

“Mm, isn’t it possible?” I asked. “While you leave behind more subtle traces than I do, you’re markings still make you stand out, sister. If I’m not mistaken, your plans should be coming to fruition soon, right? Someone like Keter should have no need to attend a school, so isn’t it likely that he’s going for some other reason?”

Cinder had nothing to say to that, instead letting her frown deepen as she mulled over my words.

“At the very least, I know for a fact that he can detect my presence,” I chose to admit when she didn’t respond. “To be honest, several iterations of me have already fallen.”

Suddenly, her frown turned my way.

“What did you do?” She demanded, sounding annoyed.

I shrugged at her, remaining at ease.

“It couldn’t be helped,” I replied. “He was moving too slowly. Death did its job too well and left him almost directionless—he needed something to make him pick up the pace. Crom was the one who made the decision, however; I’m not certain if he received orders or not, but he transported one of my Shells and forcibly opened it some time ago. Sadly, I’ve only outside knowledge of the matter because the situation was contained, but it seems I took his father and several others and forced him to kill them? Too bad I don’t remember it all; it must have been fun.”

She continued to ponder that for a moment before sighing.

“If it’s like that, I suppose it makes sense,” She admitted. “But if Death wiped him clean, he shouldn’t be aware of the rest of us. You didn’t say anything, did you?”

“I wouldn’t do that,” I defended. “Even if I wasn’t there, I know better that too make such a mistake—there’s no reason to tell anything more than what’s necessary. But still, with that power of his, I can’t be certain he didn’t discover anything; I was able to observe him from a distance and he certainly seemed to have gathered a fair bit of information about my bacterial state. Still, he shouldn’t be aware of the truth, no.”

“Then there should be no way for him to connect the two of us,” She said. “Unless he learnt something from someone else, he shouldn’t even know about me. Even if the markings I leave are distinctive to those who can see them, they shouldn’t mean anything to someone who’s never heard of me.”

Which was true, in fairness. If I hadn’t run into Ruby…if I hadn’t managed to summon Keter…then without a doubt, I’d still be in the dark about a great many things.

“Perhaps,” I admitted. “Do you have something in mind, sister?”

“Given that he already knows about you, wouldn’t it make more sense if I was the one who dealt with him from now on?” She asked. “I am, as you said, already quite close to him.”

“Hm,” I made a show of considering. “I admit, I wanted to ask you for help for that very reason…but at the same time, it’s too early to make any assumptions. What he should and shouldn’t know aside, this is too important to take chances with. The fact remains that he must have chosen to attend Haven for a reason—and if that reason is you, he wouldn’t approach you so blatantly without a plan for dealing with you, would he?”

Because that would be stupid. Though, in my defense, I had had a plan—it had just burst into flames and leapt into the abyss on contact with Cinder’s overwhelming power.

Cinder for her part, gave me a somewhat dubious glance which I had mixed feeling about. On one level, I found her skepticism appealing; I remembered every interaction I’d had with Cinder in the past few weeks and the impression I’d given her should be one of cocky arrogance. Which, after this particular fuck up, I may well have to admit to somewhat, but the fact remained that that wasn’t the entire picture and that there was a lot more to it. That she didn’t seem to know that meant that she was underestimating me somewhat, which could give me an opportunity to exploit later.

On the other hand, while being underestimated was good, I didn’t want Cinder to start thinking she could crush me effortlessly and walk all over me.

Mainly because she totally could.

“Just take my word for it and be careful?” I requested. “War has already been removed and Keter isn’t working alone—and we know what he could become. I don’t want to take any chances with something this important and I’ve already established surveillance on him and have been arranging to have him tested regularly. Things are going fairly well and I’d rather not risk you exposing yourself just yet, so while I don’t mind you doing what you can, please be careful. At the very least, can’t you do it just to make things easier for me?”

Cinder’s gaze became annoyed, her eyes narrowing.

“Is that something you should say after making me do so much extra work?” She asked. “If you knew it was me, then why didn’t you just play along with my plans quietly?”

Ah, I remembered after a moment’s confusion. The Atlas thing. Suddenly, challenging Cinder so boldly seemed a bit premature.

Out loud, however, I just chuckled again.

“Ahah, sorry, sorry,” I apologized, even as I laughed. “But what kind of image would it have sent had I just agreed? I am in charge of the White Fang, after all; I can’t simply accept a deal that seems so disadvantageous without coming off as odd, can I? Even if we’d had known history, there’s a limit to what I can do for a friend, and with how secretive you’ve been…well, it couldn’t be helped. I don’t mind helping you, but it’d need to be a bit fairer if we want to keep playing things safe, right? Don’t be mad at me, sis.”

Cinder huffed and looked away, still seeming annoyed. But, if nothing else, I noticed that she wasn’t particularly upset with me, either.

“I’ll make it up to you, how about that?” I continued. “I can still help you out in subtle ways; I should be able to make things easier for you, at least. So forgive me, okay?”

“Very well,” Cinder accepted with a tired sigh. “I suppose that under the circumstances, there was no other way. But in the future, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t make things difficult for me.”

“It should be fine,” I said with a shrug. “Once this is done, it should be easier for us to work together and explain things away, so please just put up with it for now. Now then…what should we do about this?”

Despite not having eyes, I did my best to look over our transformed states and our frozen surroundings.

Cinder tilted her head at me inquisitively.

“Despite what I said earlier about being alone, the truth is that Raven was worried about me,” I explained, keeping my tone amused. “Well, given what almost happened, I suppose I can’t blame her, can I?”

“You knew far too much to leave you alive,” She replied. “And I’m not one to leave loose ends untied. Next time, remember to say something earlier.”

“Mm,” I hummed in confirmation. “Well, at least it was just that. For a moment, I was worried that I just had the type of personality that people found aggravating and that you were going to kill me because I annoyed you.”

“Don’t be foolish,” She replied before sending me a look that glimmered with amusement—and also just kind of glimmered in general, glowing crystals and all. “Although you do annoy me, brother.”