A Song of Ice and Fire Cut Short by Dust (RWBY in Westeros)

[ATP]

Nope, it's confirmed multiple times by the author, over on spacebattle, that you can't awaken your aura on Westeros. You can, however, do so if you go to remnant.

Click to shrink...

Thanks! it is good,Aura on Westeros would change too much.
P.S Merry Easter !

 

[Starfox5]

Chapter 20: The Investigation

'Much has been written about the assassination of King Robert Baratheon, both by contemporary authors as well as historians. Some works were clearly fictional, such as the various writings that claimed that this was a punishment by the Gods for a sinful life, penned centuries later during the Schism to support the reforms championed by the High Septon of the time. And amongst the slightly more factual reports, most focus not on the details of the actual assassination but its consequences. It is, therefore, quite obvious that this event has to be covered in a thorough manner lest popular myths keep being perpetuated by popular but mistaken assumptions. First, as unbelievable it might seem for the discerning student of history, one has to clearly state that the King's death is a fact - the myth that the King had faked his death with the help of the Ruby Order to spend the rest of his life as a sellsword in Essos was started decades later by a merchant in Pentos who claimed to be a descendant of the King and would have faded in the mists of history if not for a play based on the story that gained unexpected popularity and spawned several novels and other adaptions in Westeros.'

• A Treatise On The Ruby Order, by Maester Kennet Bracken

*****​

The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC

"You killed him!"

Pycelle froze as the sharp, shrill yelling cut through the hall, silencing the crowd for a brief moment. That was the Queen! He took a deep breath, ready to defend himself - there had been nothing he could have done! He was the Grand Maester, treating the King was his responsibility, but he couldn't work miracles! - when he noticed that the Queen wasn't accusing him.

His relief vanished at once, though, when he realised that she was pointing at Lady Yang. Oh, no!

"What? No!" Lady Ruby blurted out. "Yang tried to save him!"

"The blessings of the Seven were rejected!" some fool yelled in the back of the crowd.

"No! He was coughing, but alive, then you touched him and killed him with your witchcraft!" the Queen spat. "Guards! Arrest her!"

Pycelle gasped again. She must have lost her wits! Some women lost their minds at the death of their husbands. But the Queen had loathed the King…

No one moved. He wasn't surprised - The Battle of the Maidens was still fresh in everyone's memory. And no one would have forgotten the execution of Ser Gregor Clegane either.

"I gave you an order! Arrest her for murdering the King!"

"You can't!"

"They're the Blessed Maidens!"

Lady Yang slowly rose from where she had knelt next to the king, head still bowed, face hidden by her blonde mane. "What did you say?" she whispered in the sudden silence.

"Yang…" Lady Ruby whispered.

"What did you say?" Lady Yang repeated, louder, turning to face the Queen.

Pycelle flinched. Her eyes were glittering with tears - but her hair was starting to shine.

The Queen flinched as well, Pycelle saw her throat move as she swallowed, but then she raised her chin, a familiar mask of arrogance and disdain appearing on her face.

No!

The Queen opened her mouth, drawing breath for an - undoubtedly - repeat of her accusation, but before she could utter a single word, Lady Yang started walking towards her, and for the third time this evening, Pycelle felt his stomach sink.

Lady Yang's hair was burning. Her eyes had turned red - and her tears had turned to steam.

"What. Did. You. Say?" she slowly spoke as she approached the Queen.

The crowd nearby fell back, panic visible on many faces, leaving the Queen standing alone in the face of this advance. Even her ladies-in-waiting had fallen back.

But the Queen stood her ground. She was afraid - Pycelle caught how she clenched her fists so tightly, the knuckles of her hands were turning white, and how her facial muscles twitched as she clenched her teeth. But she didn't move a single step back. Too proud. Too damn proud. Or too stupid.

Once more, the Queen opened her mouth, and once again, Lady Yang, trembling with anger, literally burning with rage - Pycelle could feel the heat - cut her off. "I did everything I could to save the King. I shared my soul with him. And you dare to accuse me of having killed him? You damn stupid…"

"YANG! NO!" Lady Ruby appeared between them, facing her sister - who had pulled her burning fist back.

"Ruby…" Lady Yang spoke through clenched teeth.

"No!" Lady Ruby shook her head, arms spread, shielding the Queen with her own body. "Please!"

For a moment, Pycelle feared that Lady Yang would push her sister away and strike the Queen down. She didn't waver, didn't react.

But then she closed her eyes, her arm fell down at her side, and she all but fell into Lady Ruby's arms.

Her lips moved, but Pycelle couldn't hear what she was saying, only Lady Ruby's response.

"I know, Yang. I know."

Then Lady Blake was there, helping Lady Yang as well, and Lady Weiss stepped up to glare at the Queen before addressing her ladies-in-waiting. "The Queen is obviously mad with grief at the King's death. Take her to her chambers so she won't embarrass herself in public!"

Pycelle wasn't surprised that the noblewomen obeyed, surging to surround the Queen. He was surprised that the Queen let herself be led away, though. Maybe she had realised how close to death she had just come? Ser Jaime followed her as well, officially to guard her, but Pycelle assumed that he would attempt to calm down his sister.

"Father…"

Pycelle whipped his head around. Prince Joffrey was staring at the King, the crowd having parted for him as well. He was trembling, taking hesitant steps - smearing the blood the King had spewed in his last moments - as he approached his father's body.

"What happened?"

Lord Eddard stepped up to him. "My prince… It was poison. Lady Yang tried to save him, but…"

"It didn't work," Lady Ruby cut in. Lady Yang had collapsed, it seemed, held up by Lady Blake as her sister walked over to the prince. "She tried her best, exhausted herself, but…" She shook her head, tears glittering in her eyes. "I'm so sorry." She hesitantly reached out to touch the prince's shoulder.

The prince swallowed, shivering, then straightened, taking deep breaths and blinking. "I see." He swallowed again. "I see," he repeated himself, his eyes fixed on the corpse.

"My Prince…" Lord Eddard trailed off, looking around. Most avoided his gaze, Pycelle noticed, until he looked at Sandor Clegane. "Take him to his quarters. This isn't a sight for a boy."

Clegane approached, but the Prince raised his chin, eerily similar to his mother's manner, and said: "I am not a boy any more - I'm the King."

His eyes still hadn't left the corpse, and he hadn't noticed that he was standing in a pool of his blood.

Clegane stopped, and Lord Eddard looked confused for a moment before turning to the crowd. "Clear the hall! This is unseemly!"

The crowd seemed unwilling to move, but the order had prompted the Kingsguard into action - late, but welcome - and none were willing to stand up to them.

Soon, the only ones left in the entire hall, except for the Kingsguard, were the Prince, Lord Eddard, Team Ruby - although Lady Yang was held in Lady Blake's arms, unconscious or asleep - Lord Stannis, Lord Renly, Varys, Lord Baelish, Prince Oberyn, Lord Tyrion and Pycelle himself. And the Red Priestess.

And when everyone looked at him, Pycelle couldn't help but wish he had taken his meal in his own quarters today. They were clearly expecting answers, and he only had speculation to give.

And a letter to write to inform Lord Tywin about the proceedings, he reminded himself.

But first… He took a deep breath and addressed Prince Oberyn. "Do you recognise the poison, my prince?"

Prince Oberyn shook his head and knelt down next to a pool of blood, using a dagger to pick at a bloody piece of what Pycelle was sure was lung tissue. "I've never seen this before. I know poisons that will lead to your stomach and bowels filling with blood, but coughing out your lungs?"

Pycelle nodded. He hadn't heard of such a poison either. But… "I've heard that some of the men dying while trying to loot Old Valyria suffered the same fate. Or perhaps some of the fools trying to explore the jungles of Sothoryos."

"Poisonous vapours?" Prince Oberyn speculated.

"How would it have affected the King, but no one else?" Pycelle asked. "I would suspect a disease, but it acted far too quickly for that. Although there is another possibility…" He pressed his lips together as he trailed off.

Prince Oberyn nodded. "Magic."

Pycelle clenched his teeth. As much as it galled him, he would have to ask Marwyn for help. Unless… He glanced at the priestess. He wasn't the only one, either.

But the woman remained cool and unfazed. "If it was magic, it was no curse I am familiar with. But I would need to examine the body closely to determine that."

Pycelle wanted to groan, but that wouldn't be appropriate in the presence of a dead king. He'd have to work with Marvyn and Melisandre…

*****​

The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC

Ruby Rose bit her lower lip while Blake put the sleeping (Just sleeping! Exhausted, but not hurt!) Yang gently down on their bed. She really wanted to talk, but they couldn't speak until Blake had checked for spies.

Blake put a pillow under Yang's head, covered her with a blanket, and finally checked the secret door and secret passage behind it, then nodded at Ruby and Weiss.

"The King's dead!" Ruby blurted out. "We couldn't save him!" Dead, so soon after meeting his son for the first time! Gendry had barley met his father and now lost him forever!

"Yang couldn't activate his Aura," Blake said with a tight nod. She was tense, but not about to bawl either.

"But she did everything right!" Ruby shook her head. Another family destroyed - Gendry had lost his mother years ago. She forced herself to focus on something else. She was the leader of Team RWBY, she couldn't start crying now. This was important! "I saw it - we all saw it. She pushed her Aura into him. And he was still breathing when she did it!"

"He could have been too far hurt to live," Blake said.

Ruby shook her head harder. "No! He should have… gotten better, at least a bit." Showed a reaction - twitched, at least!

"Yes," Weiss agreed. "There was no reaction at all. It seems people in Westeros cannot activate their Auras. That fits what we already suspected, since if they were capable of activating their Aura, someone should have managed by now. They certainly have had more than enough opportunities during their history." Weiss was cool and collected. Focused.

Just as Ruby had to be. Focus on her team and the situation. She nodded. This wasn't Yang's fault. She had done everything she could. The King had been beyond their help. Beyond anyone's help - the Grand Maester hadn't been able to do anything, hadn't even recognised the poison. And neither had Prince Oberyn. So… "Do you think it was a curse?"

"They're looking into this," Weiss replied.

She didn't sound optimistic, Ruby thought. Of course, none of them had any idea about magic, but the Grand Maester, who should know something (if only from working with Marwyn), hadn't looked confident. "How do we protect people against magic?"

"We can't," Weiss said.

Blake pressed her lips together and glanced at the still-sleeping Yang. "The only way that comes to mind is stopping whoever is using it."

But how would…? Oh. That's what she meant. "We don't know anything about magic; how would we find anyone planning to curse someone?"

"Or one of us?" Weiss shook her head, and Ruby could see that she was so angry, her jaw muscles twitched slightly. "We lack the means and knowledge to identify and stop such threats. We can only hope that our Aura will protect us."

Yeah. Ruby nodded. "I hope it was poison." They were protected - somewhat, at least - against that thanks to Blake and their Auras. Unless it was some super-special-ultra-deadly magic poison.

She glanced at Yang. Even normal poison would be dangerous if their Auras were depleted. Yang's wasn't completely depleted, but she would be vulnerable for a while yet.

Ruby pressed her lips together. "We can't exhaust ourselves in the future. We'd be too vulnerable."

"I agree," Weiss said, and Blake nodded. "But we have more things to worry about than magic curses or poison."

"Or magic poison," Ruby pointed out.

Weiss narrowed her eyes at her. "Thank you for adding yet another reason for having nightmares, Ruby."

Ruby winced and smiled weakly.

"Closing our eyes and ignoring the reality of our situation won't help us at all," Blake commented.

"I am aware of that," Weiss said with a frown. "However, while we shouldn't ignore the potential threat from magic, we can't do much about it, at least at the moment, and we are facing more pressing potential problems."

"What are those problems?" In Ruby's opinion, having the King - who had been their friend - murdered by poison, magic or magic poison in front of you while you couldn't do anything - Huntresses were meant to protect people! - was a pretty serious problem.

"The succession."

Ruby frowned. The succession? What…?

"You think that someone will contest Prince Joffrey's claim?" Blake asked.

Ah! But… "He's the crown prince," Ruby pointed out. That made him the next king. Unless they changed the rules, but who had the power to do that, except for the king?

"He's also a child," Weiss replied. "There will be a regent for the next few years. And while I assume the King wanted Lord Eddard to take the position, and should have left instructions to that effect, being both regent and future father-in-law of the prince would be seen as a very powerful position by any other noble houses."

"He's an honest man," Ruby said. Of all the nobles she had met, he was probably the only one who hadn't schemed or plotted. At least, she hadn't seen him do it.

Weiss snorted, but she didn't look or sound amused. "That will only make his rivals consider him either weak or an even more dangerous plotter."

Ruby would have asked if she wasn't projecting - the few stories about her family and home she had told hadn't been very nice - but… Ruby had met lots of nobles at court, and all of them had had some agenda, and most had an offer for her and her friends. Still… "Going against the prince and the regent would be treason."

"Exactly," Weiss said with a grim expression. "And if anyone is planning that, they will assume we will take sides. They will want to either persuade us to join them or get rid of us."

"But who would want to do that?" Ruby asked her. "You're the one who knows them best."

Weiss grimaced, another bad sign. "Anyone who is seriously trying to make a pass at the throne would have to break up the alliance centred on the royal family. Prince Joffrey is the grandson of Lord Tywin and engaged to Lady Sansa. That's three Houses - Baratheon, Lannister and Stark. And through Lady Catelyn, the Starks have ties to House Tully and Arryn."

That sounded difficult. Of course, Lord Tyrion and the Queen didn't get along, and they were siblings, but it was still a tall order. And that meant… "They will want to get us on their side."

"Yes," Weiss said.

Blake nodded.

More marriage proposals. Great.

At least, they could stop any coup by not joining anyone wanting to launch a coup. They couldn't save the King, but they could save his family. It wouldn't bring their friend back, but it was something.

*****​

The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC

The King's death had shaken everyone up - the servants were whispering more than usual when they saw Team RWBY, Ruby noted, and the whole keep felt… subdued. Breakfast had been a quiet affair, with far fewer people in the hall than usual, and lunch had been the same. Which had been a good thing since there had been much less food than usual. And none of the cakes Ruby liked. Was everyone eating in their rooms? They didn't have kitchens there to cook!

She blinked. Oh, of course, the cooks wouldn't have much work until people knew if the King's food had been poisoned and who had done it! Especially nobles with lots of rivals! No wonder they had seen so few nobles eating today!

The Queen - was she Queen any more? The King was dead. - hadn't shown herself outside her chambers today. Ruby didn't think she was mad with grief - mad, for sure, though - but maybe she was afraid for her own safety; Blake had heard that Ser Jaime had stayed with her ever since they had left the hall, though that might… Ew! Ruby didn't want to think about the other reason Ser Jaime might be staying with his sister. Bleargh! And the children… they must be suffering. Ruby knew all about losing a parent. She could talk to them, help… No. The Queen would make a scene, and that would make everything worse.

She took a deep breath as they stepped out of the building. Like the hall, the courtyard was also almost empty. One man was working on a cart that had broken down, and a raven was watching, probably hoping it could steal something to eat from the food inside the cart. Silly bird! Ruby shook her head at it as they passed it.

She glanced at Yang as her team climbed the stairs leading to the Grand Maester's quarters. Yang wasn't exhausted any more, but she wasn't 'fine' no matter how often she claimed she was. Seeing the King die had been terrible, feeling him die while you poured your soul into him? That was much worse! She and Yang and the others would have a talk about it later.

"Ah, there you are!"

"Welcome, my ladies."

"Greetings, Lady Ruby."

"Ah! Are you feeling better, Lady Yang?"

Marwyn, the Grand Maester, that intense priestess and Prince Oberyn greeted them. They must have been working hard all day; the Maesters certainly looked tired, and Prince Oberyn looked not quite as handsome and elegant as he usually did. Lady - Priestess - Melisandre, though, looked as elegant as ever and not tired at all. With so many people and Team RWBY, the room was pretty crowded.

"So…" Ruby smiled hopefully. "You sent for us?" That would mean there was something Team RWBY could do. Something she could focus on.

"Yes, my lady." The Grand Maester nodded. "We have a few questions about… last evening."

Well, what else would they want to know? "Ask away!" she said.

"It's actually for Lady Yang," he went on.

"Shoot!" Yang told him with a wide but fake grin.

"You said you shared your soul with the King. What did you mean by that?" the Grand Maester asked.

Ah. They had expected that question.

"I tried to share my soul with him so he would resist the… whatever it was," Yang said. "But it didn't work. We think it only works in our world."

Ruby nodded.

"Oh." The Maesters exchanged glances.

"I told you it was magic! Soul magic!"

"That's not magic!"

"What else would you call it? Divine intervention?"

"Yes!"

They were arguing again! Ruby grimaced, cleared her throat, and when the two didn't react, spoke up: "So, did you find out what, ah, killed the King?"

"We found acid in the body's lungs," Oberyn said.

"But… how could acid get into his lungs?" Ruby blurted out. The King would have noticed that, wouldn't he?

Prince Oberyn grinned, flashing his teeth. "I believe it was created inside the King's lungs by combining two different substances, both of which were harmless by themselves."

"And I think that's mere speculation," the Grand Maester interrupted. "You said yourself that it was merely a concept that you'd heard about during your studies."

"It still is the best explanation for the fact that the King was the only victim - even though many ate and drank the same as he did, myself included," Prince Oberyn said with a smile. "In fact, I made a point of eating from the same dishes as the King."

"So you wouldn't be suspected should he be poisoned," Marwyn said.

"And so I would be able to detect poison."

"Well, that wasn't very successful, was it?"

Prince Oberyn nodded. "Alas, you are correct. Just as I am correct with my suspicion."

Ruby frowned - she didn't like that attitude.

"So, a binary poison killed the King?" Weiss spoke up.

"A binary poison?" Prince Oberyn cocked his head to the side.

"That's what we call what you described: a poison that is created shortly before deployment by mixing two harmless substances. It means it can be safely stored until it is used," she explained. "Though usually not inside the victim."

"Ah, yes. Depending on how long the substances could remain in a body before being expelled or rendered inert, the first substance could have been slipped into the King's drink days or even a week ago."

Ruby nodded. "Finding out what was poisoned by the culprit will be difficult."

"Lord Stannis and Lord Renly are personally interrogating the cooks and servants. I think we'll soon hear who was involved," the Grand Maester said.

Ruby blinked. "That will take a long time." The castle's kitchen had lots of people working there. And an interrogation took time.

Prince Oberyn shrugged. "Once the first one talks, they usually deliver more suspects. And everyone talks sooner or later."

"Torture isn't a reliable interrogation method," Blake said. "People will say anything to stop the pain."

Torture? But they… Oh, no! Ruby gasped. "You're torturing people?"

"The King was murdered. We can't let the culprit escape, my lady," the Grand Maester said.

"But…" Ruby shook her head. That was… barbaric, as Weiss liked to say. You didn't torture people! "We have to stop that!"

*****​

The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC

Weiss Schnee hadn't visited the Black Cells, the third level of the Red Keep's dungeons, before. Blake, of course, had, and likely through various entrances that even the gaolers didn't know, but showing off that knowledge might raise suspicions - Weiss had no illusions that the Queen's accusations had fallen on deaf ears; enough people would believe her, or fake believing her to score points.

So, they couldn't have Blake lead them directly to the Black Cells' torture chamber - even Ruby had accepted that. Although if the Head Gaoler hadn't agreed to lead them down, things probably would have become quite… messy. Fortunately, the man in charge of the dungeons was quite cooperative.

Though, as evidenced by the stench assaulting Weiss's nostrils - a nauseating mix of faeces, sweat and urine - they could have just followed their noses. She wondered how Blake could stand this; her friend's nose was far more sensitive than Weiss's own.

"Ew! They keep people down here?" Ruby made a gagging noise.

"Criminals, my lady."

"But… how could you tell?" Ruby asked.

"Err… the lords are interrogating them to find out."

The man was either a dullard or a very good actor. Since one didn't need to be very smart to run a dungeon like this, Weiss couldn't tell whether the man was as dull as he appeared or was faking it to avoid rousing Ruby's anger.

As they kept walking down the stairs, led by the gaoler with a lantern that barely managed to illuminate their immediate surroundings, Weiss suddenly heard Blake gasp - and a quick glance showed that her friend was tense and stiff.

That wasn't a good sign. Weiss braced herself for the worst.

They reached a sturdy-looking wooden door with massive metal bands covering much of its surface. The gaoler fumbled with his keys before opening it - he was more rattled than he tried to appear, then, since he must have opened this door countless times before.

As soon as the door swung open, Weiss heard a scream.

"Please… I didn't see anything! No! Please!"

Weiss whirled, raising a hand - but Ruby had already disappeared into a cloud of petals. Cursing, Weiss ran after her.

"STOP!"

Weiss clenched her teeth and sped up - she was tempted to use a glyph to boost herself forward, but she was too close and the passage too narrow.

"Lady Ruby! You are interrupting our interrogation!"

"Please, Stannis - it's obvious that Lady Ruby is not used to such a sight, necessary as it is."

Weiss rounded the last corner and came to a stop next to her friends - in the entrance to an actual torture chamber. Lord Eddard, Lord Stannis, Lord Renly, Ser Barristan - and Prince Joffrey? - were there, as well as half a dozen men. They surrounded a man she recognised as one of the palace cooks who was hanging from his bound wrists, his feet dangling above the floor, and even in the flickering light of the torches and lanterns, she could see the marks left on his chest and back by the whip one of the three gaolers present held.

"Shit!" Yang muttered next to her.

Weiss agreed. This was a sick display.

"You can't just torture people!" Ruby blurted out, shaking her head. A moment later, Crescent Rose unfolded in her hand.

"My lady… I am innocent, I swear!" the prisoner - the cook - stammered. "I didn't poison the King! I didn't!"

Ruby's arm flashed, and the man dropped to the ground - or would have, had she not caught it.

"Lady Ruby! You can't stop the interrogation!" the Prince yelled, jumping up from his seat. Why was a child here?

"That's not an interrogation - that's torture!" Ruby protested.

"I'm innocent, I swear!" the cook whimpered.

"Innocent? My father was poisoned through food you cooked!" the Prince screamed. "Whether you poisoned him or let it happen, you are guilty beyond any doubt! You failed in your most important duty!" His chest heaved as he glared at the prisoner. "You'll pay for this with your life! Being executed will be a mercy after your suffering!"

Weiss drew a sharp breath. The prince was losing it, mad with grief and anger - why had anyone allowed him to attend this… this scene?

"My prince!" Ruby blurted out.

Weiss took a step forward. "My lords! What is going on? Why do you let a child attend a torture session?" What were they thinking?

Lord Eddard flinched, but before he could say anything, the Prince spoke up again: "My father was murdered! How could I be King if I shy away from ensuring that justice shall be meted out to those responsible for his death?"

"We're still in the process of determining who among the suspects are the ones responsible," Lord Renly commented.

"Through torture?" Ruby asked, staring at the three - four - nobles. And Ser Barristan, who was avoiding everyone's eyes, Weiss found.

Lord Eddard nodded. "As distasteful as it is, we need to find Robert's murderer. Before he strikes again. And the Prince is correct - the poison must have come through the kitchen, which is this man's responsibility. The page who served him was innocent."

"Yes!" the Prince cried out, and Lord Stannis nodded.

Weiss stared at them, then looked at Ruby.

Her friend was shaking her head. "You can't torture people!"

"They will confess to any crime to stop the pain," Blake said in a flat voice. "Such confessions are worthless."

"The page didn't confess to a crime - he proved to be innocent," Lord Renly pointed out.

And Lord Stannis glared at Blake. "The law is clear about this."

"Then the law is wrong!" Ruby retorted, moving the prisoner behind her. "Lord Eddard! This is not just!"

Lord Eddard shook his head. "As Stannis said, the law is clear about this. And the Prince is correct that these men failed their duty to the King."

"That doesn't mean they deserve to be tortured! Do you expect them to stop an assassin?" Ruby shook her head, and Weiss saw tears in her eyes. "They aren't guards!"

"That doesn't excuse them. They were responsible for the food," Lord Stannis replied.

"Do you even know that it was the food which was poisoned? It could have been the wine," Weiss spoke up.

"That would still be their responsibility," Lord Stannis said.

"And they will pay for it!" the Prince hissed.

"Mistakes shouldn't get people tortured!" Ruby snapped.

Lord Renly stepped in front of Ruby. "What about we pause the interrogation? Tempers have risen - we all have lost a beloved brother, father and friend - and I think it would behoove us to get some fresh air before we take steps that cannot be taken back. Also, a day longer in the Black Cells might motivate the suspects to talk without torture." He smiled widely, though Weiss could see that he was far tenser than he tried to appear.

The Prince opened his mouth, but, against Weiss's expectations, he closed it without saying anything.

Even so… spending the night in a cold, wet, and filthy dungeon was torture, in Weiss's opinion. But if they pressed too far here… She looked at Ruby. "That sounds… acceptable."

Ruby's lips formed a thin line, and, for a moment, Weis feared their leader would not compromise, but then she released her breath and slowly nodded. "But we take him to the Maester to be treated. You don't leave wounded people in a cell!" she spat.

The nobles looked at each other. You didn't have to be a genius to realise what their expressions meant.

"You've got wounded prisoners in the cells?" Ruby blurted out. "How many did you torture already?"

*****​

The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC

Yes… yes… yes…

Blake Belladonna shook her head, her teeth clenched, as she remembered the Prince's whispered words before Ruby had burst into the torture chamber, and the expression on his face, hidden by the shadows from everyone but her own eyes, that she had seen.

She had seen that expression before, on Adam's face. To see it on a boy's face… She shuddered. Granted, the boy had just lost his father, but still, it was wrong.

As wrong as torturing people. Damn it - they were barbarians here! Even Lord Eddard had sat there while people were tortured just for having worked on food for the King!

But she couldn't dwell on this - she had a mission. Ruby and Weiss checked with the healers, and Yang had gone to grab Gendry, in case someone went after him, while Blake had to find out what was going on in the castle. They needed to know what everyone was planning and plotting.

Ahead of her was the secret passage to the Queen's quarters. But she couldn't use that since one of Varys's child agents was already using it. That meant she would have to use the second one, which had been half-closed off by a crumbling tunnel. But there was no helping it - Queen - former Queen - had stayed inside her quarters since the King's death, and by Blake's estimate, almost every member of House Lannister, as well as their retainers present at court, had gathered there. And the Prince hadn't left her quarters either since he had gone to visit her after the torture session had ended. In addition to that, none of the Keep's servants had been called in - everything was handled by her personal servants, as Blake had overheard when listening to two servants gossiping.

So, she had to sneak in and check out what the Queen was doing. Was she still trying to get RWBY arrested? And, more importantly - it wasn't as if anyone could arrest them, anyway, and the guards knew it - was she trying to frame the team or did she honestly think they had killed the king? Both were equally plausible, in Blake's opinion. The queen was crazy enough to think that Blake's team had killed the King, but Blake also had no doubt that she wouldn't shy away from murder.

Given how the law treated suspects here, especially when it involved the murder of a king, the odious woman had tried to get Yang tortured! Blake wouldn't let her get away with that.

She reached the half-collapsed part and checked for tracks and traces. If anyone had been here since her last visit, she would have to reconsider her plan; the chances of this being or becoming a trap were too high. And being caught or exposed while spying on the Queen would be very, very bad right now, with everyone wondering who killed the King - and a not insignificant part of the court either believing or pretending to believe that Team RWBY was responsible. Not just the nobles, either, but the servants too, though most of the smallfolk who thought that also seemed to believe that that had been the gods' will… And others were afraid of poison that not even the gods could stop or something.

But she didn't find any trace of someone else having passed through and so used a few clones to quickly pass the narrow gap left by the collapsed stone, then went on to climb a small shaft that led up to the queen's and king's quarters.

Soon, her ears picked up voices.

"...Cersei! I've told you many times - we cannot arrest them!"

That was Ser Jaime. And he sounded exasperated. So, even her own brother - and lover - was fed up with the Queen.

"Why not? They murdered the King!"

"If they had wanted to murder the King, they wouldn't have had to resort to poison. Or expose themselves like Lady Yang did. They would have just needed to watch like everyone else."

"That's exactly why they used poison! So people would think it wasn't them! You can't let them fool you with their act - they want to murder our family! They plan to take over the kingdom! They will kill my children! Our family! And then myself!"

Yes, the Queen was crazy. It seemed she hadn't murdered the King, though - unless this was an act for her brother.

"If they want to kill us, we cannot stop them, Cersei. You have seen how powerful they are."

"I have seen how the blonde beast collapsed! How they had to carry her out! They aren't invincible! Don't let them fool you!"

"I have seen them fight - I have faced them in the ring. They cannot be stopped!"

"That's what you think, but you're wrong! They can't kill everyone!"

"They don't want to kill anyone. They don't have the stomach for it - Joffrey told you how they broke up the interrogation of the cooks and servants."

"To protect their helpers! They are afraid that their helpers would betray them!"

"Cersei, please - you can't believe that Team Ruby wants to kill you and our family."

"They want to! They will kill the children, Jaime! And then they will kill me so that they can be queens! They have fooled everyone, but they cannot fool me!"

"If they wanted to replace you, why would they have killed the king? He loved them!"

"Do you think they would have wanted to marry him? That fat, disgusting monster? Even those sluts have better taste than that!"

"So, you think they want to marry Joffrey?"

Blake rolled her eyes. Her team had rejected that idea before - and to the Queen's face!

"Of course! And as soon as they have a child from him, they'll kill him, then Tommen and Myrcella, and then they'll kill me!"

"Replacing Lady Sansa will pit them against Stark."

"Not if one of them marries his son!"

Again with the marriages. Those people were obsessed!

"That won't put his blood on the throne, Cersei."

"It doesn't matter! He already betrayed us - he acts as if he's still the Hand! Even though I told him that I will make Father the Hand of the King!"

The Queen wanted to make Lord Tywin the Hand? Blake frowned. Could she do that? Last Blake knew, the court still had no official regent - the late King apparently hadn't left a last will, nor any instructions. According to Weiss, that would favour the Queen becoming regent, but things were not really ironclad in Westeros. But Lord Eddard hadn't struck her as interested in becoming regent - he hadn't wanted to become Hand and only agreed out of loyalty to his friend the King. If he opposed the Queen… Well, anyone could see she would make a bad regent, being completely crazy.

"And did Father accept?"

"Why would he refuse? He was the Mad King's hand!"

Not that someone who tortured people was that much better.

"Cersei…"

"Are you afraid of those sluts?"

"Anyone sane would be afraid, Cersei."

"Does that mean you will abandon me to them? Abandon our family?"

"Of course not! I won't ever leave you, Cersei."

"Jaime… "

Blake winced at the sounds that followed. She listened for a bit, but the couple wasn't talking any more, and so she continued to the Prince's quarters.

*****​

"...and I will have the murderer of my father found, Hound! And they will suffer for their crime like no one before! They will beg for death, but I will refuse them!"

"I think the four girls will have to say something about that."

"They won't! Lady Ruby opposed torturing suspects; she won't oppose the king's punishment for the guilty! And I will be king!"

"Once you're of age."

"Mother won't deny me this!"

Blake grimaced. That wasn't good either. Not as bad as she had feared after listening to the mad Queen, but she wouldn't call the Prince a well-adjusted boy, either.

Adam had argued similarly, she remembered. 'We will only kill those who deserve it - those who have tortured and killed our own." Had he believed that, then? Or had he already lied to her, knowing she wouldn't have agreed with indiscriminately killing, hoping she would agree later?

It didn't matter. She had to tell the rest of her team what she had found out. And check on the other nobles. But she was alone and could only do so much. Ironic, given her Semblance.

*****​

The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC

"So, Lord Tywin is coming to King's Landing."

"We don't know that yet, Weiss - only that the Queen wants him to become the Hand of the King."

"We have to assume he is coming, Ruby. Especially since her authority to hand the position to him is being questioned as we speak."

Yang Xiao Long, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, opposite Blake, who was standing watch at the secret passage, raised her eyebrows. "Hand him the Hand position?"

Weiss pouted at her. "A mere slip of the tongue."

Yang chuckled. She was going to get her laughs wherever she could. She had to. First, accidentally killing that knight without even noticing, then failing to save the King despite literally giving everything and exhausting her Aura, and finally almost punching the Queen's head off in rage, as if she hadn't learnt anything from her mistakes. "It's going to be weeks until he arrives. Things will have settled down by then." They better will, she added to herself.

"But will they?" Ruby asked. Yang could see she was biting her lower lip. "The King died without leaving a will. The Queen claims she is regent."

"The Queen claims a lot of things," Yang said with a scoff. "No one likes her or her family. Not even her own brother." Well, her younger brother. Her twin liked her far too much. "When she tried to get me arrested, no one moved. Not even Ser Jaime."

"They didn't want to fight us. They know they'd lose," Ruby said. "But what about orders that don't pit them against us?"

Yang shrugged. "No one likes the Lannisters. Prince Oberyn's family hate them for murdering his sister and her children."

"They probably blame the Baratheons as well," Blake cut in.

That was true, but… "That still means they won't support her."

"Maybe. But in politics, enemies allying for their own reasons is not too rare," Weiss said. "Yes, the Lannisters don't have many friends, but there is no truly united block facing them. Lord Stannis and Lord Renly don't get along that well - Lord Renly is close to House Tyrell, and Lord Stannis apparently fought them during the Rebellion and is married to a rival house in their kingdom. The Martells, as you mentioned, are no friends of either Baratheons or Lannisters. The Starks have ties to the Tullies and Arryns, but neither House has a strong presence at court. And while no one likes House Lannister, they are rich, and that grants them a lot of influence. The crown owes them millions of dragons."

Yang knew that that was a lot of money. But Prince Joffrey was the grandson of Lord Tywin, so it might be kept in the family. Still… "Do you think they have a chance to buy enough allies and influence to make the Queen the regent?"

"By law, she is, isn't she?" Ruby said.

"Opinions differ," Weiss said. "But everything seems on hold while they search for the King's murderer. If one of the leading Houses was involved, that could change the entire situation."

"Who could have done it?" Ruby asked.

"There are too many suspects," Blake said. "Anyone with the gold and contacts in Essos could have bought this poison. And many nobles will have bought such poisons the first time they realised how strong we are."

"Do they fear us that much?" Ruby asked, looking shocked.

"They fear our power," Weiss told her. "We could decide who becomes regent or Hand - if we wished to."

Yang nodded. "Or if someone forces our hand." Weiss glowered at her, and she beamed back. "But enough about how many suspects are around. What about the most likely suspects?"

"That's still a long list," Weiss said. "The Queen loathed the King. The Martells probably hated him, and Prince Oberyn is infamous for his knowledge about poisons."

And famous for a few other reasons as well, Yang thought.

"Varys is originally from Essos," Blake added. "He would have contacts there. We know he meets people in the tunnels below the Keep."

"But what motive would he have to murder the King? We can't assume that just because he employs mutilated children - and might mutilate them - he will go after the King," Weiss pointed out.

Yang snorted, though she wasn't really amused. "Yeah. No one here blinks at torture. Even Lord Eddard saw nothing wrong with torturing the servants." And wasn't that sick? Anyone could be a suspect through no fault of their own! Even Ruby had been arrested once, and that had been after fighting off a robbery by that bastard Torchwick!

Blake nodded in agreement. "And Prince Joffrey doesn't think it's bad either."

Yang grimaced. According to her partner, the Prince was planning to have the murderer of the King tortured to death. Slowly.

"What about Baelish?" Ruby asked.

"Ruby, I just said we can't assume that someone is a murderer just because they are responsible for other evil acts," Weiss told her.

"I know!" Ruby frowned at her. "But he is corrupt."

"We haven't been able to prove that." Weiss insisted.

"We know he is running at least one brothel, and he's gotten very rich in a few years in his position," Ruby said. "That can't have been legal. So, he has something to hide. People are willing to kill for secrets that could destroy them."

"But the King? What would he gain?" Weiss shook her head. "I doubt that he is involved. Blake would have found out something if he were - she's been shadowing him regularly."

Blake didn't seem to share Weiss's confidence, in Yang's impression. She pushed off the wall and rolled her shoulders - she was still a bit stiff from last night. "So, we have a couple of suspects, but we only know one thing for sure: We can't trust anyone." Not even Ser Barristan, depending on who became regent.

"We can trust Jon!" Ruby protested. "And Gendry."

"And the kids. But none of them are exactly movers and shakers at court, sis," Yang told her.

"And everyone will be looking at us - or to us - to see which faction we'll support," Weiss said.

"Let them look - and guess!" Yang grinned.

"We won't side with anyone," Ruby said, frowning. "We're not here to meddle with the succession. Or support a coup."

Yang nodded.

But Weiss kept frowning. "Not taking sides will be seen as a statement as well."

Yang scoffed. "If anyone is trying to use us, we'll have to teach them that that's a bad idea." She smashed her fist into her palm and flashed her teeth.

*****​

The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC

"Lord Stannis, Lord Renly and Lord Eddard want to talk to us?" Yang blinked as she sat up on her bed. "Privately?"

Ruby nodded. "So they said - well, Lord Eddard said it when he came to fetch Arya, Bran and Jon from our training session today."

Yang frowned. "He doesn't usually fetch his kids in person."

"No, he doesn't," Weiss confirmed. "If this was supposed to be discreet, it failed - tongues will have been set wagging merely by seeing him come to talk to Ruby. The entire court is on edge, and as the Hand, Lord Eddard will be watched by everyone. The same goes for the King's brothers, the Queen and her own brothers. And the Prince, of course."

Blake nodded. "People have commented on the fact that he supposedly has been spending so much time with his mother and uncle."

Yang hadn't noticed that. But she wasn't keeping her ears open as Blake was. She was actually trying not to hear too much about the whole issue - it was too frustrating. Hard enough to deal with the fact that she had failed to save the King. Hadn't been good enough to save him. Weiss and Blake could talk about how Aura didn't work the same here as in Remnant, but it still felt like her Aura, her soul, hadn't been enough.

She clenched her teeth. She'd deal with it. She had to. But once she could spare the time, not in the middle of this crisis, when everyone seemed to wonder when the next death would happen. Or when the first fight between the various groups would break out. "So, we're going to sneak to the Hand's office through that secret passage you know?"

Blake frowned, and Weiss shook her head. "I don't think revealing that we could spy on the Hand would be received well by Lord Eddard."

"And we might need to spy on him again," Blake added. She didn't seem happy about it - Yang could tell from the way she tensed - but she was right.

"They want to meet us outside the castle," Ruby said.

"Oh? Cloak and dagger?" Yang grinned, even though she wasn't really amused.

"Lord Renly has rented a room in a discreet inn, or so Lord Eddard said," Ruby explained. "They have a backdoor open for us."

Weiss nodded. "That should work. Of course, their trust in the staff's discretion might be misplaced, but they won't be able to blame us."

"Bet someone will do it anyway!" Ruby grumbled.

Yang nodded. "Anyway, what do you think this is about?"

"They must have found the murderer and want us to help arrest them!" Ruby replied immediately.

"I think that is likely, yes," Weiss agreed.

Blake nodded.

Yang agreed as well. The three noblemen had spent almost every hour since the King's death investigating the death. Still… Yang grimaced when she had a nasty thought. "But if they ask for us, they must think they can't arrest the murderer without us."

Weiss nodded. "And that would indicate that the culprit is a very powerful noble."

"They think the Queen did it?" Ruby said what Yang was thinking.

"Probably. The question is, do they have proof?" Weiss asked. "Arresting the Queen for the murder of her husband would end her attempt to become regent for Prince Joffrey and replace Lord Eddard with her father. Especially if our involvement will make it seem as if the faith supports it."

Yang scowled. She was all for arresting the killer. It wouldn't bring the King back, but bringing his murderer to justice would help a little, at least. But only if it actually was the murderer. "They better have proof," she said.

Ruby nodded with a firm expression. "We're not gonna let them torture anyone to get 'proof'."

*****​

King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC

The inn was a nice one, and the back door actually led to the stables in the back, first, so sneaking in was child's play - even for Weiss, who hadn't learned to sneak past Dad past curfew, as Yang and Ruby had back home. Well, Yang assumed Weiss hadn't done such things.

And it was more discreet than using Weiss's glyphs to get up to the window, or climbing down from the roof. But the servant who had opened the back door for them hadn't been fooled by their cloaks and hoods, Yang was sure. Especially since Ruby usually wore a hood anyway, even if she had changed it for this.

But that was Lord Eddard's problem. Or Lord Renly's, since he had organised this. At least Yang hoped so.

A trip upstairs and a knock later, they were inside a very nice room - for Westeros - and exchanging greetings with all three nobles. And only them, Yang noted. No servants. No guards. No witnesses.

"So… you wanted to talk to us privately. We're here," Ruby said, nodding in an obvious attempt to look all-business and not nervous.

"Yes, Lady Ruby." Lord Eddard glanced at Lord Stannis, then at Lord Renly.

Lord Stannis frowned a bit more than he already had, and Lord Renly smiled at Lord Eddard and refilled his cup with what looked like red wine. Sighing, Lord Eddard turned to face them. "We have called you to this meeting to discuss a heinous crime that will shake the realm's foundations once it is exposed. It might even lead to war."

"There will be war for certain," Lord Renly commented.

Lord Stannis nodded.

As they had expected then. Or not - Yang caught Weiss and Blake tense up.

"You mentioned that the crime has yet to be exposed. You're not talking about the assassination of the King, then, I suppose," Weiss said.

Blake nodded in agreement.

Once again, Lord Eddard glanced at Lord Stannis, who grumbled in return while Lord Renly smirked. "Yes. Although we are almost certain that the two crimes are connected, we're still tracking down the assassin. No, we're talking about something else." He hesitated for a moment. "We have proof that the Queen has not only committed adultery but that her children are bastards."

Damn. Yang hadn't expected that. Nor had her friends - Weiss and Blake looked grim, and Ruby looked as if she was going to be sick.

*****​

 

[prestdan000]

things are heating up and I'm here for it. Thanks for the chapter

 

[eager slacker]

It would be kinda funny if it was a binary poison and what happened was two people poisoned Robert at the same time with the opposing ingredient and was shocked that he died way earlier than expected.

 

[Ultimasaurus Imperatrix]

The way the poison worked screams mustard gas to me. Since that is precisely how it kills it's victims. The chemical bonds with the water in your lungs, turning it into acid. Same thing goes for any other liquid filled orifice that's exposed to the gas. But all the points both the characters in the story and the people on the spacebattle version of thread have made me uncertain.

(Valstrax9 is me)