PFK 31 - Cold Fuzz (Patreon)

Right, first question: Who the fuck was that?

Straightening up with a grunt, I double-checked that Zora hadn’t somehow disappeared the unconscious White Fang, but they were all still there. [Detect Aura] told me that Ren, Leo, and Sun were all outside, not moving but still alive, and after another few seconds the forced cooldown on my Aura ended.

So does her Semblance just straight up turn off Aura? But then how the hell did she pull the disappearing act? I pondered as I pulled a stack of zipties out of my [Inventory], tying the White Fang grunts hand and foot, then binding them together so they couldn’t run off. It felt like she teleported. I didn’t feel her traversing the range of [Detect Aura], she just wasn’t here and then was. And then wasn’t again. Collecting their weapons and masks, I stacked them on the other side of the store.

Stooping down, I scooped up the Scroll I’d dropped. Pulling it open, a smirk crossed my face before I put it back in my [Inventory], then pulled out a different one and sent a text.

Aegislash -> 'Seven Deadly Sisters (And One Badass Baby Brother)' | Friday, 19:37

     ‹Aegislash› anybody listening on the police band atm?

     ‹Gengar› u kno only im n vale rite

     ‹Aegislash› that wasn’t a no

     ‹Aegislash› did they mention a 211 at a dust shop on 400W?

     ‹Gengar› nah

     ‹Aegislash› fuckin useless

     ‹Aegislash› no danger, shit’s over, but brb

Slipping it back into my pocket as I made my way outside, I quickly bound the last two White Fang, then found Ren and Leo slumped against the side of the destroyed van. Sun was facedown on the alley floor nearby. None of them were particularly injured in terms of HP, they just all had the status effect Unconscious.

[Observe] told me they were fine, but the fact she could so precisely knock both of them out — something that was not as clean and safe as movies made it look — made me revise my estimate of her danger level up yet again.

Grabbing Ren’s wrist, I triggered [Cleansing Touch], waiting impatiently for the 24 seconds needed to remove the malus. The moment it procced, his eyes snapped open, immediately scanning for danger. I held still until he actually looked at me, then got started on Leo as Ren sat up.

“What happened?” Ren asked, rubbing his eyes.

“They had backup,” I explained briefly. “She got the drop on all of us, let Roman and his partner get away, then vanished.”

Leo jerked awake, his hand slamming into the van and crunching through the chassis before he got hold of himself and groaned.

“One of you call the cops,” I added, moving over to Sun. “I assume you were intending to before, but they should have been here by now. Let them know we averted the burglary and detained half a dozen White Fang.”

Ren nodded and placed the call as I brought Sun around, taking an extra moment to give him some [Lay On Hands] since he actually took some hits to his Aura in the fight.

“Sun, if you don’t want to deal with the fuzz, you should probably bounce,” I said, hauling him to his feet.

His mouth twisted, but he shook his head. “Nah, the only thing I’ve done is enter the Kingdom illegally, and I’ve got a Hunter ID so they can’t do shit about it,” he said, tail flicking. “They might call Haven, but what are they gonna do? Send me back so I can turn around and come here again for the tourney? Lionheart isn’t the type to bother doing that.”

“Suit yourself.” I pulled my own Scroll back out and dashed off a message to Ozpin.

DM: Paladin -> ManBehindTheVale | Friday 19:43

     ‹Paladin› broke up a dust store robbery

     Paladin sent their location!

     ‹Paladin› me, Lie, Tenne, + haven student

     ‹Paladin› captured 6 white fang. roman t and neo p escaped with unknown associate

     ‹Paladin› police inbound, thought you should knowledge

     ‹Paladin› know*, damn autocorrect turned itself back on

     ‹ManBehindTheVale› Thank you for letting me know about this incident, Jaune. I daresay many students in your place would not have thought to do so. Please do your best to cooperate with the Vale Police Department so that we can see justice done. However, should you encounter legal trouble, remember your rights and do not speak without a lawyer present. The school will handle obtaining representation for each of you if that situation should occur. If I do not hear from you within thirty minutes, I will begin making arrangements. Barring some unfortunate circumstance, you will be able to return to Beacon tonight. Finally, congratulations on stepping into a situation in which you were not obligated to intervene; it speaks volumes about your character, and reassures me that I was correct to bring you into our confidence.

Is it a stereotype that the immortal texts like an old man? At least he doesn’t sign his name like Azure says Watts did, I mused as sirens dopplered belatedly toward us.

“Weapons safe, everybody,” I called out as the VPD turned onto 400 W, tapping my Scroll one last time and slipping it into my pocket.

Ren slipped his StormFlower up his sleeves, while Sun carefully set his nunchucks on the ground, the ends pointing at the wall of the alley. He straightened up and lifted his hands over his shoulders, his Scroll held between two fingers with his Haven ID displayed. Leo, while not armed, also pointed his palms at the sky, likewise already holding his Scroll with his ID pulled up.

Ren and I exchanged a look, but had no time to say anything as the police cruiser screeched to a halt and two officers jumped out, hands already on their weapons. “Everybody stay where you are!”

“…Okay,” I said, nonplussed. “Is there a van coming for the White Fang we captured, or-?”

“I’ll ask the questions,” snapped the nearer cop, a thickset woman with chestnut hair and a scar on her cheek. “Who called this in?”

“That would be my classmate,” I tilted my head at Ren. “He was knocked unconscious shortly after the start of the altercation, though. I can give you most of the details.”

“What was the reason you chose not to call for assistance before engaging?” asked the second cop, a pale, freckled blonde with rather thick eyebrows. She was wearing a saber as well as her service pistol and — unlike her partner — had a nametag, which read King.

“Misunderstanding,” I admitted. “I thought it was getting done while I went inside to stop Torchwick from rabbiting after we disabled the getaway van.”

“I don’t see him,” the first cop accused, drawing my attention back before I could check either of their names over their heads.

“No,” I agreed. “Let me start from the beginning. We were walking to a club nearby when we briefly heard an alarm. It cut off pretty quickly, but by then we’d spotted someone in a White Fang mask idling in the van. Ren called his locker down on it, then he and Leo subdued the wheelmen while Sun and I,” I indicated the monkey faunus, “Went in to stop the burglars. Torchwick was ordering around four more masked people; Sun brought down those four while I dealt with Torchwick and his associate. I had them when a woman in a Vacuan hat showed up; the two got away before the woman disappeared right in front of me.”

“You’re students?” King asked, glancing at Leo’s ID, and I nodded. “Impressive. You did a good job.”

The shorter cop snorted. “Letting the ringleaders get away is impressive? Don’t blow smoke up their asses, King, or they’ll just keep pulling shit like this.” She eyed Leo and Sun. “And that’s assuming that story’s even true.”

My eyes narrowed. “I’m sorry, would you care to repeat that?”

She jutted her chin toward them. “The ones ordering around the White Fang escaped and you’ve got a couple of faunus right here. Why don’t we just ask them where they’re holed up?”

“I’m not White Fang,” Leo said tonelessly, staring over the cop’s shoulder.

“Neither of them is,” I said, stepping between them and the police. I gestured at the half-dozen bound White Fang, some of whom were starting to stir. “I called you to take our statements and pick up the criminals, not insult my friends.”

She spat on the street. “I am picking up the criminals. King, call a wagon for all eight of them.”

King’s eyebrows creased. “Officer Flicaille, there are only six prisoners.”

Flicaille tugged a pair of cuffs free from her belt. “I’m about to cuff the last two,” she said, watching Leo and Sun closely, at least until I stepped directly in front of her.

“Considering you lack probable cause to accuse any of us, I’d like to know if the four of us are free to leave,” I said evenly.

Flicaille glared at me. “It’s called reasonable suspicion.”

“My friends being faunus does not constitute reasonable suspicion. Are we being detained?” I insisted.

“They are,” she snapped.

“Then kindly call a pickup for nine, Officer King, because I will be accompanying them.” I raised my hands and presented my wrists to Flicaille for the handcuffs.

“Ten,” Ren corrected softly, stepping up next to me and regarding both the police coolly. “Or you can pick up the actual criminals and let us go back to school.”

Flicaille slammed the cuffs around my wrists, ratcheting them as tight as they would go. Ignoring the slight discomfort, I said loudly, “I am invoking my right to remain silent and to speak to a lawyer before answering any questions. And as you cannot possibly have a warrant I do not consent to a search.”

“You are under arrest on charges of obstructing of an officer in the performance of duty,” Flicaille snarled. “All four of you, up against the vehicle. King, read them their rights while I call a wagon.”

I looked over at Sun and Leo as King reluctantly cuffed them. “We say nothing until Ozpin sends a lawyer. Nothing. At all. For any reason. Understood?”

Sun’s lips were pressed together, and his tail was twitching furiously, but he nodded. Leo just looked resigned, while Ren radiated serenity as usual… if you didn’t notice the crease in his brow that all but shouted his irritation.

Focusing on my Semblance, I subvocalized another text, firing it off to Ozpin via the interface as King started her recitation of our rights.

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Ren and I climbed into the van quietly when it arrived, bracketing Sun and Leo without needing to discuss it. As soon as we sat down, a groaning White Fang was shoved down next to me, and our shoulders brushed as I kept his weight from pushing me into Leo.

“Hey. You, the blond human.” Looking up, I raised an eyebrow at the faunus man with the horns of an ibex on the opposite bench, nursing a broken nose. “You stuck up for them.” He jerked his head at Leo and Sun. “How come?”

I gave him a level look. “They’re my friends. They’re fellow trainees. They didn’t break any laws; I wasn’t about to let a racist meter maid drag them off.”

He stared at me uncomprehendingly. “But you’re human.”

I huffed. “If that’s what you’re hung up on, you’ve been listening to Taurus too much. I’m not gonna tell you ‘most humans aren’t so bad’ because humans are people and people can be real dicks. But not every human is your enemy.”

“Quiet back there!” the driver barked, banging on the transparent divider separating him from us.

I rolled my eyes, but stopped talking. Fortunately I could still see my HUD with my eyes closed, so I took the opportunity to review the popups from my fights.

[Quest Alert!]

[Common Enemies]

[You have discovered Roman Torchwick and his associate Neo Politan burgling another Dust Store in Vale with the help of the White Fang. Stop them!]

[Bonus Objective: Capture all the would-be burglars.]

[Time limit: 10 minutes]

[Reward: 5000 EXP, increased reputation with ???, decreased reputation with ???.]

[Bonus Objective Reward: +1000 EXP per captured burglar.]

[Failure Penalty: Roman, Neo, and White Fang escape, advancement of Cinder Fall’s plans.]

[Accept/Decline]

[Quest auto-accepted due to Paladin Oath.]

Lol. Lmao, even. Some choices aren’t choices at all.

[Quest Complete!]

[Common Enemies, Part 1]

[You have gained 6850 EXP. Increased reputation with Vale Underworld. Decreased reputation with the White Fang.]

[Bonus: 6 burglars captured. You have gained 8220 EXP.]

[Secret Objective complete: Turn Roman Torchwick or Neo Politan to your side.]

[You have obtained Neo Politan’s Scroll ID. Increased reputation with Vale Underworld. Decreased reputation with Spider. New quest will begin.]

[Secret Objective complete: Identify Zora Salazar]

[[Small Arms Mastery] has increased by 10!]

[Secret Objective complete: Refuse to ignore the unjust arrest of Leopold Tenné and Sun Wukong.]

[This questline will continue.]

[Your skills have increased: Detect Aura x2, Pīquán, Steadfast x2, Martial Arts, Blunt Weapon Mastery x2, Bear's Endurance, Deception x2, Eagle’s Splendor, Charm x2, Sleight of Hand, Piercing Resistance x3, Observe, Cleansing Touch.]

Oh hey, haven’t leveled up [Observe] in a hot minute. Nice. What does that bring my level progress up to… 68%? Damn, so close. Almost nice.

[Quest Alert!]

[Common Enemies, Part 2]

[You have been wrongfully arrested by the Vale Police Department on suspicion of abetting the White Fang because you interfered with the arrest of two unrelated faunus. Clear your name and that of your fellow students.]

[Bonus Objective: Obtain an apology for the wrongful arrest.]

[Reward: 5000 EXP, 1000L per captured White Fang, increased closeness with Ren Lie, increased closeness with Nora Valkyrie, increased closeness with Leopold Tenné, increased closeness with Sun Wukong, increased reputation with Vale Underworld, decreased reputation with Vale Police Department, increased reputation with Menagerie.]

[Bonus Objective Reward: ???L, increased closeness with ???]

[Failure Penalty: Jail time, potential disciplinary action from Beacon Academy, immediate failure of [A Thousand Roads’ End] quest.]

[Accept/Decline]

[Quest auto-accepted due to being arrested.]

Interesting, I don’t think a monetary reward has ever been question marks before. And what’s this quest that I auto-fail if I screw this up?

[Quest Alert!]

[A Thousand Roads’ End]

[Roman Torchwick and his associate Neo Politan are being coerced by Cinder Fall into assisting the White Fang with her plan to cause a Grimm Surge during the Vytal Festival. You managed to get their attention, now convince them to help you stop her.]

[Reward: 20,000 EXP, 200,000L, ???, greatly increased reputation with Vale Underworld.]

[Time Limit: Vytal Festival beginning, 12th October.]

[Failure Penalty: Roman Torchwick and Neo Politan will reveal your knowledge and identity to Adam Taurus and Cinder Fall, death and destruction.]

[Accept/Decline]

[Quest auto-accepted due to player action.]

Yeah yeah, I fuck up story quests and everyone dies. Get new material.

The van rumbled to a stop just then, and I drew a breath, tilting my head to the side until my neck popped. Meeting my friends’ eyes one last time, I raised my cuffed hands and pressed a finger to my lips. All three of them nodded.

All righty, let’s see how this plays out.

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Name: Jaune ArcLevel: 58 (Next: 68.29%)Title: Academy StudentRace: HumanAge: 18Job: Beacon StudentClass: PaladinSemblance: The GamerHP: 7545/7545MP: 4177/4177STR: 213 (100)CON: 261 (101)DEX: 151 (53)INT: 130 (50)WIS: 106 (52)CHA: 144 (52)Points: 97Money: 947,788LStatus: Cursed – Yellow Death [High]

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A/N: If you’re enjoying this story, feel free to check out my discord server at https://discord.gg/H6V854Fvbg

If it wasn’t clear, Jaune doesn’t recognize Zora (and won’t recognize any of the other Epithet Erased expies, such as Officer King). Our boy has been working from a cheat sheet up to now with only a few curveballs; it’s time for another one.

Why does Vale have American Miranda rights? 1. RWBY is an American show written by Americans, and 2. More Americans need to know what to say if they’re stopped by the cops:

Police can lawfully ask you questions if you’re in a public place. You do not have to answer their questions. Ask them if you’re free to leave. If they say no or in any way stop you, ask clearly if you are being detained.

You should be detained only if the police have ‘reasonable suspicion’ that you’re involved in a crime, based on specific facts, such as if you match the description of someone who committed a crime. Vague reasons like ‘looking suspicious’ or being a minority do not constitute ‘reasonable suspicion’.

If they ask to search your person or your belongings, you are not required to consent and should clearly state that you do not consent to the search. They may do so anyway (and it may be legally justified) but make sure you state it clearly.

You may be frisked (patted down or the outside of your clothes swept to check for weapons) even without giving consent if they have ‘reasonable suspicion’. They cannot reach into your pockets, bag, underclothes, or belongings without ‘probable cause’, which is a higher legal standard; i.e. it requires a higher level of certainty, such as actual evidence. Repeat aloud that you do not consent to be searched, but for your safety you should physically cooperate.

If you are arrested, you should be read your rights (as many copaganda shows demonstrate, though the exact phrasing may change). You should verbally invoke your right to speak to a lawyer before answering any questions, and then stop talking. Do not answer any police questions until AFTER you have consulted with a lawyer. Again, physical cooperation is necessary to avoid escalating the situation, but police are very much allowed to lie and/or trick you into saying things on the record. Don’t. Answer. Any. Questions. Until you have talked to your lawyer.

The after-school specials you watched growing up lied to you. Cops are not your friends. Know your rights. Educate yourself. Stay safe.

Anyway. Now we learn what was going on with the Scroll(s) last chapter: Jaune was convincing enough that Neo and Roman are willing to hear him out further. Surely this won’t result in even more butterflies derailing the canon storyline. Surely.