Chapter 37: The Spider Trap
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Chapter 37: The Spider Trap
'One of the most defining cultural traits of Westeros, one that is shared by the entire continent despite the many regional differences, is the loathing of slavery. A sentiment so strong, even Aegon the Conqueror, born from a culture built on slavery, adopted the stance. Modern scholars occasionally wonder at this, citing the situation of the smallfolk, whose lives were often as hard as a slave's, as a cultural blind spot. Some go as far as to claim that the virulent hatred of slavery was mere hypocrisy or an excuse to distract the people from worse injustices in the Seven Kingdoms. That the Iron Islands used to practice slavery in all but name through the taking of salt wives and thralls in their raids is also counted as evidence of this, though any scholar will counter this claim by pointing out that it was ultimately exactly this disgusting practice that led to the Breaking of the Iron Shackles in the fourth century when the Church called for a holy war. Some historians speculate that the hatred for slavery is a result of cultural influence by those who fled the Valyrian slavers to Westeros, though the numbers and dates do not support that hypothesis. Others, often religious scholars, claim that the Seven themselves mandated this, and the faithful embraced it. Whatever the reason, no one can doubt that since ancient times, no crime was as detested, as dishonourable, in Westeros as slaving. Unsurprisingly, the Ruby Order shared that view, as their actions in King's Landing during the Coin Crisis show.'
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
Varys looked at the report from his little bird. The four witches had been invited to the Great Sept of Baelor by the High Septon. Nothing too unusual - though the report stated that they hadn't known the reason for the invitation. And it had been urgent, judging by the fact that they had left soon after the message had reached them.
That was Interesting. Their influence on the Faith of the Seven had been a concern for a while - unlike most of the Court, Varys wasn't blind to the threat a mob of smallfolk whipped into a frenzy could present if one managed to aim them at the right target. Provided one could surprise said target, of course; a mob going up against any organised force, even the gold cloaks, would be slaughtered. Although they could still serve as a distraction, of course.
Not that the witches needed a mob to do their bidding - they could slaughter any force, organised or not, in the realm, no matter its size. And everyone at Court was aware of that. But control over the Faith still offered some potentially crucial advantages, especially when it came to gathering information. The Church might not have spies like his own network, but between the Septons and the more fanatical faithful, they potentially had eyes and ears literally everywhere. Naturally, they lacked the organisation and training to actually use those sources, but it was still an advantage, especially for a group of foreigners.
Of course, Varys had realised that as soon as he heard about the growing worship amongst the smallfolk and had had his agents infiltrate the Church - what better way to keep an eye on the witches than to watch their tools? It had taken a while for his agents to reach positions of trust, and he still had none close to the High Septon, but he was generally well-informed about the happenings at the Great Sept. And concerned, of course, about the influence those witches wielded there.
But they should be distracted for a while still by Lord Baelish's death. Longer once they found the fake records his little bird had planted in the oh so tragically late Master of Coin's office and they started investigating the subtly placed links to the Lannisters. With a bit of luck, that would occupy their attention long enough for Varys's other plans to come to fruition. And wouldn't Lord Baelish, were he still alive, be rabid with rage at the thought that not only had Varys arranged his death but profited from it so much?
The Faceless Men, should they accept his request, would either kill the witches or distract them further. He might even manage to use their own pet Septons against them - if they were away from King's Landing, say to deal with the Lannister troops, it would be easy to manipulate the septons in the city to move against 'traitors' and 'heretics' - they had fistfights every few days over what the witches expected from them, or so his sources claimed.
Best, of course, would be if he managed to lure those monsters far, far away from King's Landing. Perhaps he might plant some rumours about Princess Daenerys controlling a Dothraki Horde? None with any knowledge of the lands east of the coast of Essos would believe that, but the witches might believe it because it was so absurd, they might not think that anyone would invent such a far-fetched threat. And if he managed to sabotage their ship…
He nodded. He would have to ponder this, and keep carefully studying the witches and their machinations to decide what would work best. The Game of Thrones was a game that required patience and restraint. Once he received the report from the Great Sept later today, he would know more.
Until then, he was free to consider alternative options. That would…
A knock at his door interrupted his thoughts. "Lord Varys?"
He recognised the voice. One of the regent's servants. "Yes?" He walked over and opened the door.
"Lord Varys! The regent requires your presence."
That was… unexpected. "Do you know the reason for this summons?" he asked.
The servant shook his head. "No, Lord Varys."
His tone and expression belied his words, though. The man was annoyed - no, angry at Varys. He was a Northener, but even those usually cold school their features better than this. That meant the regent was annoyed or angry at Varys.
He nodded. "Have the Four Maidens returned already?"
His eyes widened a moment. "I wouldn't know, Lord Varys. I was just ordered to fetch you."
Another lie.
Varys hesitated a moment. Had his attempts on the witches' lives been exposed? He couldn't fathom how it would have been possible, but magic offered all sorts of unnatural means. Still… Could he risk abandoning his position based on such flimsy hints? Could he risk not fleeing while he still had the chance?
If the witches had turned the regent against him… He nodded. "Of course. Please wait, I have to safely store a few scrolls detailing secret matters."
"Yes, Lord Varys."
He closed the door and went to the secret door behind his desk. He didn't have much time, but he didn't need but a moment to open the door, slip through and close it behind him. Ah, if he had had more time, he could have faked his death to throw off pursuit by making it look like he had fallen to his death by taking another secret passage near the ramparts, maybe he could have asked for a detour on the way to the regent to get some fresh air…
But no - the servant was too suspicious to be easily fooled and would only need to call for guards to foil such a ploy. While Varys was not nearly as helpless in a fight as he appeared, he wasn't the kind of fighter to take on two, much less three enemies at once and get away.
He shook his head as he quickly walked through the tunnel - he didn't need a light here, but he would have to briefly stop at the alcove where he had hidden a lantern and a change of clothes before continuing down the next tunnel; it wouldn't have done to expose his escape route by using it for other means after preparing it. Not even his little birds were aware of it - none who were still alive, at least.
A few twisted turns later, he stopped. Was that the sound of footsteps? He cocked his head to the side and held his breath, but he couldn't hear anything. Nerves, he thought - even though he had been preparing for this ever since he had first seen the witches work their magic, it was still quite a shock to actually have to implement his escape plans. And a thrill, of course. To outwit four witches who were likely all much older than he was? It was no mean feat. Too bad he couldn't brag about it. Not until he reached his friend in Pentos.
He would have to change his plans, of course. Mayhap see if he could use the little princess to send the Dothraki at the realm. The barbarians would die in droves against the witches, but they could force them to split up to deal with such an invasion, and once they were separated, the Faceless Men might find a way to kill them, paving the way for the Young Griff. Perhaps he could wait until the princess was pregnant or had borne her barbarian husband a son and have her assassinated? If he could frame the Regent for such a crime, not that hard with the assassins dispatched before in King Robert's name, that should be enough to turn the Dothraki against Westeros…
He reached the alcove and felt around for the lantern and the flintstone to light it. It took a few tries to get a spark to ignite the wick, but soon the soft light illuminated…
…familiar boots and breeches. He gasped, feeling his stomach drop as his gaze travelled up, revealing the slim but deadly form of Lady Blake, staring at him with her yellow eyes.
Had she been a guard or knight, he would have snuffed out the lamp and taken his chances in the darkness. But against this unnatural witch? That wouldn't be dignified. Besides, as long as he could talk, all was not lost.
He managed a smile despite the despair filling him. "In hindsight, it was naive of me to expect that mere darkness would hide me from dark magic."
He half-expected her to cut him down with her cursed blade, but instead, she snorted.
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
"As expected, he did a runner, but Blake caught him!"
Her sister sounded as proud, or more, as if she had caught Varys herself, Ruby Rose found.
Blake herself merely nodded as she held the bound and gagged Master of Whispers - now or at least very soon former Master of Whispers, Ruby corrected herself - up with one hand in the small council's chamber.
Lord Eddard and the other members of the small council (minus Varys) were staring, though. Well, except for Ser Barristan and the Grand Maester. Had they really thought they would let Varys escape? Her team had been chomping at the bit to finally get proof to get him!
"He was trying to flee through a secret passage," Blake said.
"I don't think I am prejudiced if I say that such an attempt to avoid meeting us strongly indicates his guilt. Innocent people do not attempt to flee," Lord Renly said.
That was true! Ruby started to nod, then frowned. No, it wasn't true. Innocent people tried to flee all the time if they were facing torture! "That's going to be decided at his trial," she said.
"Innocent until proven guilty and all," Yang added. "But we got proof that he was buying slaves in Essos."
"So you said," Lord Eddard said.
"Witnesses for whom the High Septon can vouch," Weiss replied. "And records they found. And we can search Varys's chambers now."
"You couldn't do that before?" Lord Renly asked.
"We lacked sufficient cause," Weiss kinda lied.
"And if he noticed the search, he would have been suspicious," Yang added. "And we didn't want to risk that he'd hurt others before escaping, as a distraction or to erase his traces."
"Ah." Lord Renly nodded. His brother nodded as well, though with a pretty satisfied expression. For Lord Stannis, at least - he wasn't scowling as much as usual.
"And we need to move quickly to ensure that his spies won't be hurt," Blake said. "He might have had contingencies to kill them if he had to flee." She dropped Varys to the ground.
Lord Eddard nodded. "You said you feared he might murder the children he brought to Westeros."
"The children he bought," Weiss corrected him. "And had mutilated so they couldn't talk."
Lord Eddard nodded with a grave expression. Lord Renly also nodded, and Lord Stannis scowled harder.
"We suspect he had killed some of them before already," Blake said. "There's a lack of grown men and women missing their tongues in Westeros, and I doubt he had sent them back to Essos when they were too old to work for him."
"Yes," Lord Renly said, with a scowl that clearly showed he was Lord Stannis's brother, "One can but wonder why Varys wanted little children as his spies - and not adult men. Wonder and worry, given what we found out about Littelfinger."
Ruby blinked. What was…? Oh! She grimaced. Ew!
Her friends glared at the man on the ground.
"I do not think that should be a grave concern, my ladies," Ser Barristan spoke up. "Varys is a eunuch, after all."
Right. Ruby nodded. At least, they didn't have to worry about that. He was still a child-abusing villain, though. And probably a child-murdering monster.
"Questioning him will be a challenge, though," Lord Renly said. "He will not break easily."
"No torture," Ruby said out of reflex. That was the rule! Even for child murderers. And even if they were good liars and might be hiding even more crimes. Well, maybe there were exceptions in such cases… No! She shook her head. Innocent until proven guilty, she reminded herself. It was always the most difficult to stick to the rules when you were sure you were right. Because you were likely to overlook or ignore things.
Lord Renly frowned at her, but slowly nodded.
"So, keep him under guard - multiples, from your households - while we secure the children?" Ruby asked.
"Yes, I think…" Lord Eddard was interrupted by a knock at the door, quickly followed by a servant - a panting servant, Ruby noted - entering. "My Lord Regent! There's a mob of smallfolk advancing on the Keep!" he blurted out.
Ruby blinked again. What?
There really was a mob marching on the gates of the Red Keep - well, they had stopped before the gates. Ruby stared at the gathered people from the top of the rampart. They were armed, though mostly with makeshift weapons - improvised weapons, to be precise, like clubs, and repurposed tools, such as hammers, pitchforks, and cleavers and large kitchen knives. But she could see spears and swords as well.
And they were shouting about 'the vile slaver'. Oh. "They must have heard about Varys," Ruby said.
"That is obvious," Weiss commented. "It seems the Sept's discretion was not as trustworthy as we were told."
"Can't beat rumours," Yang said. "School or Sept, stuff travels fast even without scrolls."
"Yes, yes," Ruby said. "But we need to deal with this before something happens." The people were keeping their distance, but they looked angry.
"Didn't they trust us to handle this?" Weiss sounded insulted. "We didn't ask for such a demonstration."
"Well… It's nice to have support?" Ruby asked.
"It is not nice or advantageous for us if the Court thinks we wanted this to happen," Weiss disagreed. "Or if the people down there think we wanted this. It doesn't take a lot for such a mob to spin out of control."
"The gold cloaks might overreact," Blake added. "Or the Court might feel threatened and decide that they want to make an example out of them."
"Not with us here, they won't," Yang said.
Weiss shook her head. "We can discuss the ramifications of this display of popular support later - we need to deal with this now."
"Right!" Ruby nodded. "Weiss, I need an air bridge!"
"You… right." Weiss moved her hands, and glyphs appeared in the air, forming stepping stones in front of them.
Stepping stones for Huntresses, at least. Ruby jumped on the closest and then kept jumping until she was standing above the first row of the crowd.
That didn't sound right. She shouldn't be standing above them. But she had to address them all, and that worked better if everyone could see them.
"Hello, everyone!" she shouted. The crowd grew silent, which was a bit… impressive. And kinda concerning. She cleared her throat. "Don't worry, we caught the slaver! And he will be tried in court!"
The crowd cheered. A lot. Mostly about 'Blessed' and 'Maidens' and the Seven.
"But!" She forced herself to smile widely. "We have a lot of things to sort out, and that will take time. So, you don't need to wait for news out here - we'll tell you more tomorrow, at the Sept."
Should she have said that without checking with the High Septon first? It was kinda rude, to just announce it like that, right?
But the crowd cheered again and then started dispersing, and that was the main thing, so Ruby counted that as a success.
Though while her friends smiled when she returned - Yang joked about Weiss better not dropping her - the small council, whose members had arrived on the rampart as well, now, looked kinda unhappy. And not just because they had probably had to run some.
They had lost their Master of Coin and Master of Whispers, discovered a huge sum of money was missing and that there was a spy network that a traitor had controlled in the city. Anyone would be unhappy in their place. But they seemed unhappy with Team RWBY.
"We need to check on the kids," Blake said. "They will know that Varys has been arrested now."
"Right!" Ruby nodded. "We'll be back," she told the others before jumping off the rampart.
They had some kids to catch. No, that sounded wrong.
They had some kids to save!
King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
Blake was very… worked up. Weiss Schnee could tell. Her friend was too tense, too impatient, as they raced through the streets and over the roofs to reach the lair of the children used as spies by Varys. Too… not focused, fixated.
Based on what Weiss knew about her past, she was likely seeing herself in those kids - children too young to know better, used for dangerous purposes by adults who manipulated them for their own gain.
Weiss could understand this, to some degree; Father had used his children for his own purposes as well, usually to improve his image and impress his acquaintances. Especially those who foolishly considered themselves his friends just because Weiss had performed a few songs at a private gathering.
But Weiss hadn't been used for dangerous tasks. She hadn't been sent to spy on people who would silence witnesses with lethal means to keep dangerous secrets. She had not been ordered to steal documents and plant falsified records in rival hands. Or poison someone's wine. Perhaps that had been the reason Father had thought she would back down when forced to fight an Arma Gigas to earn the right to attend Beacon; if he had been using her for more violent and dangerous tasks, he might not have made such a mistake.
But… Her eyes widened when Blake suddenly veered off, jumping down into a side alley instead of across it to the next roof.
"Blake?" Ruby asked a moment before she disappeared in a cloud of petals.
Weiss jumped down as well before she could consider the situation and landed next to Blake, who was holding a screaming and kicking child by their arm.
"Whoa." Yang joined them.
"They've begun to scatter already," Blake hissed.
"How… Oh." Weiss trailed off as she spotted the bag on the ground. It had fallen open, and clothes and food were visible.
"Varys must have left contingency orders in case he was captured," Blake all but growled.
"Fan out and move on to the house from all directions so we can capture the kids on the way! Let's go!" Ruby disappeared again.
"Yeah!" Yang jumped onto the roof.
Weiss looked at them disappearing in different directions as they split up, then at Blake.
"Can you keep them corralled with your glyphs?" Blake asked.
Could she? Of course! But she didn't say that out loud - she nodded instead.
"Let's stay together then!" Blake grabbed the kid around his chest and jumped.
If the child hadn't been mute, they would have surely screamed. Even so, they tried to yell as they cleared the last few buildings with a series of jumps until they reached the spies' hideout. One small kid was just leaving through the front door and froze for a moment, paling, before they tried to run.
They managed two steps before Blake grabbed them with her free hand.
Weiss was already summoning glyphs to form a holding area, though she couldn't help fearing that they were a little too late to save the majority of the children.
She pressed her lips together. Blake would be devastated.
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
"More than half of the kids escaped!"
Yes, Blake wasn't happy as she paced in their quarters, Weiss noted.
"Most fled as soon as they heard about the mob targeting Varys," Blake went on. "We only caught those who were either late to return or took too much time getting out since they had no bugout bag ready. Those were mostly the youngest."
"Well… if the older kids had a bugout bag ready," Rub said, "doesn't that mean they were expecting to flee?"
"Yes, Ruby." Blake was frowning, and Weiss wasn't certain herself what their friend was angling for by stating the obvious.
"So, does that mean the missing older kids we can't find had a bugout bag ready as well and left before, uh, they could get disappeared?" Ruby smiled a bit forcedly.
Blake frowned some more. "It's possible, but it could also be that they only did that because Varys gave them orders to be ready to flee."
"Drat."
Weiss nodded. That made more sense.
"And they didn't help the youngest get ready?" Yang scowled. Of course, she would resent that, having done her best to take care of Ruby as the older sibling, Weiss knew.
"They… might have been told that those would be taken care of," Blake said, but it was obvious to Weiss that she was reaching for excuses.
"Or they were raised not to care for those weaker and younger," Weiss said.
"No!" Blake shook her head. "They lived together. I saw them cook for the younger ones. They wouldn't just… abandon them like this."
Weiss wasn't as optimistic about the loyalties of kids who had been enslaved, mutilated and then trained and used as spies - and possibly assassins, but she nodded. "Whatever the reason, they have fled. And I am not sure that the gold cloaks can find them. They might not even be able to stop them from leaving the city." Lord Renly had said so, but Weiss doubted it; the noble seemed to overestimate the competence of the men serving him in order to please her team.
"They will make it harder for the children to leave the city, at least. That will stall them for some time. But we still need to find them before they vanish," Blake said. "Who knows what orders they have and try to obey?"
"Varys does," Yang said. She bared her teeth in a fierce grin when Weiss and the others looked at her. "Maybe we need to ask him."
"Yes!" Ruby nodded. "If anyone can stop this, it's him."
But would he be willing to help? Perhaps if they could offer him a deal, though, with the crimes he had committed, even taking the Black, as they called joining the Night's Watch, might not be possible for him. Could he be trusted to keep the oath, anyway?
"Let's go and talk to him!" Ruby said.
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
"We're still checking the black cells for secret passages," Lord Eddard explained when they were waiting for Varys to be brought to the small council's chamber. "So, we're keeping him under heavy guard."
Blake Belladonna nodded together with the others, but she couldn't help feeling as if she was sitting on needles; if Varys managed to escape… Maybe she should head out and escort him herself? It wasn't impossible that a handful of his kid spies might attempt to free him. Blake had shown the secret entrances to the Red Keep that she had discovered to the guards, but she couldn't be certain that she had found them all. Even months of searching were not enough to guarantee that.
Of course, children attacking trained, armed and armoured men, even from ambush, was a losing proposition. Still, it was not impossible, merely highly unlikely, that such an attempt would not only be made but succeed; even if they had contingency orders for such a case, the children would not have any up-to-date knowledge of the situation at court, they would not know the new schedules and routes, and they would have to improvise from the start.
Still…
Her attempts to calm herself down were interrupted by Varys being led inside by eight guards - Northeners, Stormlanders and gold cloaks, she noted, led by Ser Arys Oakheart of the Kingsguard.
"They would need a small army to get past them," she heard Yang whisper next to her as if she had read Blake's thoughts.
Blake glanced at her and saw her partner smile - not grin at her own comment, but smile warmly at her. She nodded in acknowledgement, feeling better for the moment. Varys wouldn't escape.
Two guards sat him on a chair and removed his gag; another precaution everyone had agreed on; if he couldn't talk, he would have a harder time trying to bribe his guards into helping him escape. Of course, it was more than a little cruel to keep him gagged unless he was eating and drinking, but the man had been the spymaster of King Robert and the Mad King before him; he had spent decades at court and would know too many secrets of too many people. Even with eight guards from three different houses and the gold cloaks guarding him.
Varys coughed a few times, for show, Blake thought.
"You must really fear what I could say to treat me like this. Should I feel lucky that you haven't ripped out my tongue already?" he asked with a wry smile.
Blake froze for a moment. He dared to make a complaint - or, worse, a joke! - about cutting people's tongues off? She glared at him, baring her teeth, almost hissing as she felt her ears flatten against her skull under her bow.
"What?" Ruby jumped up. "You cut the tongues of children! We're not like you!"
Vary's smile widened a little, but it remained more twisted than his usual, almost subservient expression. "Oh, I am certain that you aren't like me - or like anyone else present here - at all. Except, perhaps, Lady Melisandre."
"What?" Ruby blurted out.
Blake was as surprised as her friend, but not quite as vocal. What did the man mean? They weren't priestesses. Although…
"Because the Faith considers us divine messengers and Lady Melisandre has visions from her god?" Weiss echoed Blake's thought.
Varys laughed. "That is a pretty weak attempt at obfuscation, my lady. I know what you are."
"We're Huntresses," Ruby said. "We've told everyone that from the start."
Varys laughed again. "Unlike those fools who believe you, I know better. I know what price you paid for your power."
Ruby blinked and glanced at her friends in obvious confusion. Blake shared the sentiment.
"What do you mean?" Lord Renly asked.
"Magic demands sacrifice." Vary's smile twisted into a grimace as he leaned forward. "I know that better than most. I know how much even a small magic boon has cost people. How many lives have you sacrificed for your powers? Hundreds? Thousands? How much blood have you spilt to command such magic? How many people have suffered under you?"
"Are you… crazy?" Ruby stared at him.
"I know magic, witch!" Varys spat. "You may have fooled those simple minds in the Sept, and the naive at Court who cannot see past their own ambitions, but I know better! I have suffered such sacrifices myself - I know what you did!"
"Yep, he's crazy," Yang said, but Blake could tell that despite her flippant tone, her partner was shaken by the display.
"The man's mad," Lord Renly said.
"Our powers - Aura and Semblances - come from our souls," Weiss said. "That is a well-documented fact in our world. There is no sacrifice involved at all."
"Only the obligation to use your power for the good of everyone," Ruby added. "It's not magic!"
Varys chuckled in response. "Of course you would claim that - the truth would ruin your plans, won't it?"
"Our plans?" Ruby scowled at him. "We just want to go home!"
Varys shook his head. "If you merely wanted to go home, you would have left already instead of taking over the Court." He sneered at the assembled men. "Not that it took much to wrest what powers you thought you had from you, not when those witches wield such magic, but if you had had more wits than a fool, you might have offered more resistance."
"Mind your tongue or you might lose it!" Lord Stannis snapped. "This is the Lord Regent you're insulting."
"And us," Lord Renly added.
Varys scoffed. "What do I have to lose? I knew from the beginning that if I were ever caught, my life would be forfeit."
"There will be a trial," Lord Eddard said.
"A sham of a trial. The verdict is already set in stone," Varys retorted. "If there is even a trial and I won't simply be found dead in my cell - or disappear without a trace!"
"Do you expect to be saved?" Lord Renly asked, frowning.
Varys laughed in his face. "From anyone else, I would consider this a great jest. From you? Proof of how witless you are. You think you are a powerful Paramount, and yet, you are merely a tool easily manipulated by your desires and ambitions. And you cock, of course," he added with a cruel smile.
Lord Renly jumped up, hand going to the dagger at his side, but his brother held him back with a hand raised in front of him. "Have a care, Renly. He's trying to provoke you into murdering him."
"And that would break the law, wouldn't it?" Varys scoffed again. "You're no better than him. As rigid as a stone statue - and as smart. You think you would be a good king? You would ruin the realm with your blind zeal for what you call justice when it's actually naked ambition. If you were the man you think you are, you would have realised that you are not fit to be king and would have abandoned those desires. And if you were truly as dedicated to justice, you would have told your brother about your knowledge of the Queen's treason instead of going to hide on your rock in the sea when Jon Arryn was murdered. And you wouldn't have abandoned your gods for a witch!"
"Jon was murdered?" Lord Eddard gasped.
"You didn't know? Well, how could you have known when you trusted Littlefinger!" Varys laughed. "Lord Eddard, the honourable? Lord Eddard the fool! What do you think your friend Robert would say when he knew you were serving as regent for a Lannister bastard, betraying your friend's trust just because you fear those four witches? Where is your honour, my lord? Did you leave it in the North?"
Lord Eddard went rigid, and Blake could see the knuckles of his left hand go white while he gripped his sword.
"And you, Grand Maester. Sworn to serve the king, yet serving Lord Tywin! How much did it cost to sell yourself? And how much did you regret it when you realised where his pride will lead him and his? You think so highly of yourself because of your knowledge and wits, yet you tied yourself to a doomed cause out of greed!" Varys laughed again.
Ruby shook her head. "You try to make everyone look bad, but it only shows how bad you are. If you knew all these things and believed them, why didn't you say anything? If you knew Lord Jon was murdered, why didn't you tell anyone?"
"Because he's a sad old man who would rather see the entire realm burn than accept he lost," Weiss said. "You berate others for their pride and decisions, but you're no better - you're worse! And your own words prove it."
"How's that for being proud of your wits?" Yang chuckled.
Others chuckled as well, though it was obvious to Blake that they were not really amused. Varys's words had struck a chord in them.
"What do I have to lose? My verdict was already decided the moment you moved against me!"
"That was the result of your decision to buy child slaves and have their tongues cut out before you used them to spy on people here!" Blake hissed. "You brought that on yourself!" She stood and walked over to him, teeth bared.
He flinched back for a moment before sneering at her.
"What orders did you give them?" she asked. "They fled before we could gather them. Where are they?"
"As if I would betray children to you witches!" he spat.
"You risked their lives when you sent them to spy on nobles and others! Children were murdered as a result!" Blake yelled at him.
"Compared to their fates should they fall into your hands, that was a mercy!"
Blake blinked. "Did you just admit to murdering them? How many did you murder? Did you kill all of them once they grew up and were no longer useful? What did you do?" she shouted into his face.
"Blake…"
She blinked as she felt a hand on her arm and realised that she was holding up Varys by his tunic - that her fingers had ripped the fabric.
"If you kill him, we won't get any answers."
He wouldn't talk anyway. And the children deserved justice. She could just…
She let him drop on the chair and stepped back, taking a deep breath.
Yang wrapped her arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a hug.
After a moment, Lord Renly spoke up. "Speaking of answers…"
"No torture," Ruby said with a frown. "We're better than that!"
Blake wasn't sure she agreed. If they had to torture Varys to save the children he had mutilated… No, that was a slippery slope. She knew better. She had to be better.
She forced herself to slowly breathe out and relax, then step back from Yang and sit down again.
"You can torture me. I won't break. I've gone through worse." Varys smiled.
Blake wasn't sure if he was bluffing. But they wouldn't stoop to torture.
"Well, I think it has been amply demonstrated that the prisoner is uncooperative. For now," Weiss said. "Maybe we should talk to him later, when we have sifted through what records we found and what information we have."
Lord Eddard nodded. "Yes, gag him again and take him back to his cell."
"Silencing me? As if…" The rest of Varys's words were cut off when the guards jumped to push the gag into his mouth again.
Once Varys had been dragged out - somehow managing to sneer at them despite the gag - Lord Eddard sighed.
And Lord Renly spoke up: "Well, that was to be expected. Varys has been Master of Whispers for decades and would know exactly how to needle people and spread lies to manipulate them."
"Yes," Lord Stannis agreed.
Lord Eddard nodded as well, followed by the Grand Maester.
But Blake saw that Ser Barristan, who had remained silent until now, had that stony expression he usually wore when he didn't want to disagree openly but did so silently.
That didn't bode well for the future.
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
"That could've gone better," Yang Xiao Long said as they returned to their quarters.
Weiss scoffed. "It could have scarcely gone worse. We didn't get any answers we wanted, and the small council was obviously rattled by his words."
Words that had had more than a bit of truth to them, at least that had been Yang's impression. Of course, she wasn't an expert at spotting lies, and Varys was good at lying, but the reactions of the men there… "And there'll be rumours spreading. About everyone," she said. She wasn't an expert on politics and nobles plotting, but she knew how the rumour mill worked.
"About us," Ruby said. "People will say we're bloodthirsty witches!"
"They were already saying that after the tournament. That's what the riot in the sept was about," Weiss pointed out.
"And our side won," Yang said with a grin.
"Still…" Ruby bit her lower lip, clearly worried.
Yang went over and gave her a one-armed hug. "Hey! Those who know us won't believe them. And you know how many people believe us - they came to the keep for us!"
"And Varys proved he cannot be trusted; why would anyone believe him when he told us himself how he knew so many important secrets yet didn't tell the King or anyone?" Weiss shook her head.
Yang grimaced. She didn't like to do it, but her friend was a bit too optimistic. "Some will believe him because they want to believe him. And others won't but claim they do to harm us. But as long as the majority believes in us, we'll be fine," she added with a smile aimed at Ruby.
"But we still don't know what orders he left for the kids," Blake said. "We searched their home, but they must have burnt all records - as they were trained to."
"Well, they can't have left the city yet," Yang said. "But once they do… how hard can it be to find mute children? A simple question will betray them."
"Not all mute children were spies for Varys," Weiss said.
Yang shrugged. "Yeah, but that should be easy to sort out."
"I think you overestimate the competence of the local law enforcement employees and underestimate their motivation to report a successful capture to the crown," Weiss replied. "We need to ensure they understand that we are not looking for just any mute children, and we cannot offer a reward, or some unscrupulous criminals might attempt to mutilate children to turn them in for a reward."
That was… "Really?" Yang stared at her. That was too… That sounded like some cheap, stupid horror movie!
"Economic incentives have caused worse developments," Weiss said. "There was a scandal in Atlas a few years ago when a Hunter was revealed to deliberately attract Grimm to settlements so there would be a mission to hunt them down."
"But…" Ruby gaped. "How could he do that? How could anyone do that?"
"Greed," Weiss replied.
"Did they catch him?" Yang asked.
"They found his scroll and determined the events after he fell victim to his own success in attracting Grimm, so to speak," Weiss said.
Yang grimaced. Even if he had it brought on himself, no Huntress would make light of dying to a Grimm. Except when joking about their own death, of course. Couldn't dwell too much or too long on that.
"Whatever! We need to find the kids," Blake spoke up.
"They have survived as spies, I think they will be OK for a bit," Yang said. Her partner was a bit too worked up to be objective about this.
Blake frowned at her, so Yang's attempt to make her worry less had failed. "Yes, if they were ordered to hide or escape. But what if they had other orders? We need to ask the kids we saved."
"We mostly recovered the youngest kids," Weiss said. "Would they have gotten any orders? Would Varys have trusted them with such orders?"
"He probably wouldn't," Blake said, and Yang smiled. "But they were trained and worked as spies. They might have caught a glimpse of such orders anyway."
That sounded a bit far-fetched to Yang - the kids had to communicate in writing since none of them could speak, and, as Weiss had been vocal about, paper was expensive here. But it wasn't as if they had had anything better to do.
"Let's go talk to them, then," Ruby said. "The Septons will have treated them well, so they might be more open now."
"Can't be less open than they were," Yang commented. Those kids had been a pain to corral and gather. RWBY had been trying to help them, but they had reacted as if they were about to get murdered. Of course, if they had been told that they would be sacrificed in dark rituals if caught… Yeah, Yang would also have fought like hell in their place. It wasn't their fault, but Varys's.
The Great Sept of Baelor, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
Varys's fault or not, mutilated tongue or not, Yang didn't think this was working out. Those kids were more stubborn than Ruby when she wanted cookies as a toddler.
And speaking of her sister… "Look… we aren't witches. You were lied to by Varys. We know what he did to you - he had your tongues cut." Ruby was trying to appeal to the kids'... whatever.
Looking at how they were glaring at her and making those weird, creepy noises, not even Ruby was getting through to them.
"You were trained as spies. You should be able to spot the lies you were told merely by comparing them to the facts." Weiss was still trying as well. "Varys exclusively bought mute children as spies. That means he is responsible for your ordeal. Without buyers like him, you wouldn't have been mutilated."
More glares. The kids were not buying it.
"He manipulated you," Blake spoke up. "It's the oldest trick in the book. He picked you when you were hurting, helped you, gave you a few gifts and treats, and so you latched onto him as a saviour. But it's all a lie. He doesn't care for you."
"He has been doing this for a long time. And yet, there are only children here," Weiss went on. "What happened to those of you who grew too old?"
"We want to help you!" Ruby sounded almost desperate. "But we need you to tell us what Varys wanted. Err, write it down for us. He wants everything to burn down since he lost, and that would hurt everyone!"
Yang narrowed her eyes. One of the children had flinched at that - at the 'burn' comment.
She pushed off the wall she had been leaning against and walked up to the kid in question. "Hey!"
"And you can…" Ruby trailed off. "Yang?"
"You know something," Yang said, leaning forward, both palms on the table. "What do you know?"
The kid shook their head. They were about five - well, probably six; kids like them had to go hungry often here.
The other kids were looking at them. One, the most stubborn, shook his head and made a hissing noise.
But Yang was focused on the kid in front of her. "What did you see?" she asked. "What is Varys planning?"
The kid shook their head again, avoiding her eyes.
"Burn…" Yang gripped their chin and made them look into her eyes. "Is he planning to set something on fire?"
The kid flinched again. Right. Varys had ordered the kids to set something on fire. Or… "Is he trying to set the city on fire?"
The kid stared at her. Probably not.
"Are your friends trying to set fire to the Red Keep so they can use the chaos as a distraction to free Varys?" Blake asked.
The kid winced.
"But… we removed all the wildfire," Ruby said.
"He might have procured some himself," Weiss pointed out.
"Too dangerous to transport." Blake shook her head.
"Varys wouldn't care about that," Yang said.
"He wouldn't need wildfire. You can do arson with oil," Blake said. "If he just wants a distraction and doesn't want to risk suffocating in his cell, that would serve him even better."
That sounded logical. But Varys had been crazy.
"But they would need to sneak in through the secret passages - and those are now guarded," Blake said. The kids gasped - all of them. "If they try to force their way in…" She stood. "We need to hurry to stop them before the guards hurt or kill them!"
"Right! Let's hurry!" Ruby jumped up. "We have a keep and kids to save!"
'One of the most defining cultural traits of Westeros, one that is shared by the entire continent despite the many regional differences, is the loathing of slavery. A sentiment so strong, even Aegon the Conqueror, born from a culture built on slavery, adopted the stance. Modern scholars occasionally wonder at this, citing the situation of the smallfolk, whose lives were often as hard as a slave's, as a cultural blind spot. Some go as far as to claim that the virulent hatred of slavery was mere hypocrisy or an excuse to distract the people from worse injustices in the Seven Kingdoms. That the Iron Islands used to practice slavery in all but name through the taking of salt wives and thralls in their raids is also counted as evidence of this, though any scholar will counter this claim by pointing out that it was ultimately exactly this disgusting practice that led to the Breaking of the Iron Shackles in the fourth century when the Church called for a holy war. Some historians speculate that the hatred for slavery is a result of cultural influence by those who fled the Valyrian slavers to Westeros, though the numbers and dates do not support that hypothesis. Others, often religious scholars, claim that the Seven themselves mandated this, and the faithful embraced it. Whatever the reason, no one can doubt that since ancient times, no crime was as detested, as dishonourable, in Westeros as slaving. Unsurprisingly, the Ruby Order shared that view, as their actions in King's Landing during the Coin Crisis show.'
- A Treatise On The Ruby Order, by Maester Kennet Bracken
*****
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
Varys looked at the report from his little bird. The four witches had been invited to the Great Sept of Baelor by the High Septon. Nothing too unusual - though the report stated that they hadn't known the reason for the invitation. And it had been urgent, judging by the fact that they had left soon after the message had reached them.
That was Interesting. Their influence on the Faith of the Seven had been a concern for a while - unlike most of the Court, Varys wasn't blind to the threat a mob of smallfolk whipped into a frenzy could present if one managed to aim them at the right target. Provided one could surprise said target, of course; a mob going up against any organised force, even the gold cloaks, would be slaughtered. Although they could still serve as a distraction, of course.
Not that the witches needed a mob to do their bidding - they could slaughter any force, organised or not, in the realm, no matter its size. And everyone at Court was aware of that. But control over the Faith still offered some potentially crucial advantages, especially when it came to gathering information. The Church might not have spies like his own network, but between the Septons and the more fanatical faithful, they potentially had eyes and ears literally everywhere. Naturally, they lacked the organisation and training to actually use those sources, but it was still an advantage, especially for a group of foreigners.
Of course, Varys had realised that as soon as he heard about the growing worship amongst the smallfolk and had had his agents infiltrate the Church - what better way to keep an eye on the witches than to watch their tools? It had taken a while for his agents to reach positions of trust, and he still had none close to the High Septon, but he was generally well-informed about the happenings at the Great Sept. And concerned, of course, about the influence those witches wielded there.
But they should be distracted for a while still by Lord Baelish's death. Longer once they found the fake records his little bird had planted in the oh so tragically late Master of Coin's office and they started investigating the subtly placed links to the Lannisters. With a bit of luck, that would occupy their attention long enough for Varys's other plans to come to fruition. And wouldn't Lord Baelish, were he still alive, be rabid with rage at the thought that not only had Varys arranged his death but profited from it so much?
The Faceless Men, should they accept his request, would either kill the witches or distract them further. He might even manage to use their own pet Septons against them - if they were away from King's Landing, say to deal with the Lannister troops, it would be easy to manipulate the septons in the city to move against 'traitors' and 'heretics' - they had fistfights every few days over what the witches expected from them, or so his sources claimed.
Best, of course, would be if he managed to lure those monsters far, far away from King's Landing. Perhaps he might plant some rumours about Princess Daenerys controlling a Dothraki Horde? None with any knowledge of the lands east of the coast of Essos would believe that, but the witches might believe it because it was so absurd, they might not think that anyone would invent such a far-fetched threat. And if he managed to sabotage their ship…
He nodded. He would have to ponder this, and keep carefully studying the witches and their machinations to decide what would work best. The Game of Thrones was a game that required patience and restraint. Once he received the report from the Great Sept later today, he would know more.
Until then, he was free to consider alternative options. That would…
A knock at his door interrupted his thoughts. "Lord Varys?"
He recognised the voice. One of the regent's servants. "Yes?" He walked over and opened the door.
"Lord Varys! The regent requires your presence."
That was… unexpected. "Do you know the reason for this summons?" he asked.
The servant shook his head. "No, Lord Varys."
His tone and expression belied his words, though. The man was annoyed - no, angry at Varys. He was a Northener, but even those usually cold school their features better than this. That meant the regent was annoyed or angry at Varys.
He nodded. "Have the Four Maidens returned already?"
His eyes widened a moment. "I wouldn't know, Lord Varys. I was just ordered to fetch you."
Another lie.
Varys hesitated a moment. Had his attempts on the witches' lives been exposed? He couldn't fathom how it would have been possible, but magic offered all sorts of unnatural means. Still… Could he risk abandoning his position based on such flimsy hints? Could he risk not fleeing while he still had the chance?
If the witches had turned the regent against him… He nodded. "Of course. Please wait, I have to safely store a few scrolls detailing secret matters."
"Yes, Lord Varys."
He closed the door and went to the secret door behind his desk. He didn't have much time, but he didn't need but a moment to open the door, slip through and close it behind him. Ah, if he had had more time, he could have faked his death to throw off pursuit by making it look like he had fallen to his death by taking another secret passage near the ramparts, maybe he could have asked for a detour on the way to the regent to get some fresh air…
But no - the servant was too suspicious to be easily fooled and would only need to call for guards to foil such a ploy. While Varys was not nearly as helpless in a fight as he appeared, he wasn't the kind of fighter to take on two, much less three enemies at once and get away.
He shook his head as he quickly walked through the tunnel - he didn't need a light here, but he would have to briefly stop at the alcove where he had hidden a lantern and a change of clothes before continuing down the next tunnel; it wouldn't have done to expose his escape route by using it for other means after preparing it. Not even his little birds were aware of it - none who were still alive, at least.
A few twisted turns later, he stopped. Was that the sound of footsteps? He cocked his head to the side and held his breath, but he couldn't hear anything. Nerves, he thought - even though he had been preparing for this ever since he had first seen the witches work their magic, it was still quite a shock to actually have to implement his escape plans. And a thrill, of course. To outwit four witches who were likely all much older than he was? It was no mean feat. Too bad he couldn't brag about it. Not until he reached his friend in Pentos.
He would have to change his plans, of course. Mayhap see if he could use the little princess to send the Dothraki at the realm. The barbarians would die in droves against the witches, but they could force them to split up to deal with such an invasion, and once they were separated, the Faceless Men might find a way to kill them, paving the way for the Young Griff. Perhaps he could wait until the princess was pregnant or had borne her barbarian husband a son and have her assassinated? If he could frame the Regent for such a crime, not that hard with the assassins dispatched before in King Robert's name, that should be enough to turn the Dothraki against Westeros…
He reached the alcove and felt around for the lantern and the flintstone to light it. It took a few tries to get a spark to ignite the wick, but soon the soft light illuminated…
…familiar boots and breeches. He gasped, feeling his stomach drop as his gaze travelled up, revealing the slim but deadly form of Lady Blake, staring at him with her yellow eyes.
Had she been a guard or knight, he would have snuffed out the lamp and taken his chances in the darkness. But against this unnatural witch? That wouldn't be dignified. Besides, as long as he could talk, all was not lost.
He managed a smile despite the despair filling him. "In hindsight, it was naive of me to expect that mere darkness would hide me from dark magic."
He half-expected her to cut him down with her cursed blade, but instead, she snorted.
*****
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
"As expected, he did a runner, but Blake caught him!"
Her sister sounded as proud, or more, as if she had caught Varys herself, Ruby Rose found.
Blake herself merely nodded as she held the bound and gagged Master of Whispers - now or at least very soon former Master of Whispers, Ruby corrected herself - up with one hand in the small council's chamber.
Lord Eddard and the other members of the small council (minus Varys) were staring, though. Well, except for Ser Barristan and the Grand Maester. Had they really thought they would let Varys escape? Her team had been chomping at the bit to finally get proof to get him!
"He was trying to flee through a secret passage," Blake said.
"I don't think I am prejudiced if I say that such an attempt to avoid meeting us strongly indicates his guilt. Innocent people do not attempt to flee," Lord Renly said.
That was true! Ruby started to nod, then frowned. No, it wasn't true. Innocent people tried to flee all the time if they were facing torture! "That's going to be decided at his trial," she said.
"Innocent until proven guilty and all," Yang added. "But we got proof that he was buying slaves in Essos."
"So you said," Lord Eddard said.
"Witnesses for whom the High Septon can vouch," Weiss replied. "And records they found. And we can search Varys's chambers now."
"You couldn't do that before?" Lord Renly asked.
"We lacked sufficient cause," Weiss kinda lied.
"And if he noticed the search, he would have been suspicious," Yang added. "And we didn't want to risk that he'd hurt others before escaping, as a distraction or to erase his traces."
"Ah." Lord Renly nodded. His brother nodded as well, though with a pretty satisfied expression. For Lord Stannis, at least - he wasn't scowling as much as usual.
"And we need to move quickly to ensure that his spies won't be hurt," Blake said. "He might have had contingencies to kill them if he had to flee." She dropped Varys to the ground.
Lord Eddard nodded. "You said you feared he might murder the children he brought to Westeros."
"The children he bought," Weiss corrected him. "And had mutilated so they couldn't talk."
Lord Eddard nodded with a grave expression. Lord Renly also nodded, and Lord Stannis scowled harder.
"We suspect he had killed some of them before already," Blake said. "There's a lack of grown men and women missing their tongues in Westeros, and I doubt he had sent them back to Essos when they were too old to work for him."
"Yes," Lord Renly said, with a scowl that clearly showed he was Lord Stannis's brother, "One can but wonder why Varys wanted little children as his spies - and not adult men. Wonder and worry, given what we found out about Littelfinger."
Ruby blinked. What was…? Oh! She grimaced. Ew!
Her friends glared at the man on the ground.
"I do not think that should be a grave concern, my ladies," Ser Barristan spoke up. "Varys is a eunuch, after all."
Right. Ruby nodded. At least, they didn't have to worry about that. He was still a child-abusing villain, though. And probably a child-murdering monster.
"Questioning him will be a challenge, though," Lord Renly said. "He will not break easily."
"No torture," Ruby said out of reflex. That was the rule! Even for child murderers. And even if they were good liars and might be hiding even more crimes. Well, maybe there were exceptions in such cases… No! She shook her head. Innocent until proven guilty, she reminded herself. It was always the most difficult to stick to the rules when you were sure you were right. Because you were likely to overlook or ignore things.
Lord Renly frowned at her, but slowly nodded.
"So, keep him under guard - multiples, from your households - while we secure the children?" Ruby asked.
"Yes, I think…" Lord Eddard was interrupted by a knock at the door, quickly followed by a servant - a panting servant, Ruby noted - entering. "My Lord Regent! There's a mob of smallfolk advancing on the Keep!" he blurted out.
Ruby blinked again. What?
*****
There really was a mob marching on the gates of the Red Keep - well, they had stopped before the gates. Ruby stared at the gathered people from the top of the rampart. They were armed, though mostly with makeshift weapons - improvised weapons, to be precise, like clubs, and repurposed tools, such as hammers, pitchforks, and cleavers and large kitchen knives. But she could see spears and swords as well.
And they were shouting about 'the vile slaver'. Oh. "They must have heard about Varys," Ruby said.
"That is obvious," Weiss commented. "It seems the Sept's discretion was not as trustworthy as we were told."
"Can't beat rumours," Yang said. "School or Sept, stuff travels fast even without scrolls."
"Yes, yes," Ruby said. "But we need to deal with this before something happens." The people were keeping their distance, but they looked angry.
"Didn't they trust us to handle this?" Weiss sounded insulted. "We didn't ask for such a demonstration."
"Well… It's nice to have support?" Ruby asked.
"It is not nice or advantageous for us if the Court thinks we wanted this to happen," Weiss disagreed. "Or if the people down there think we wanted this. It doesn't take a lot for such a mob to spin out of control."
"The gold cloaks might overreact," Blake added. "Or the Court might feel threatened and decide that they want to make an example out of them."
"Not with us here, they won't," Yang said.
Weiss shook her head. "We can discuss the ramifications of this display of popular support later - we need to deal with this now."
"Right!" Ruby nodded. "Weiss, I need an air bridge!"
"You… right." Weiss moved her hands, and glyphs appeared in the air, forming stepping stones in front of them.
Stepping stones for Huntresses, at least. Ruby jumped on the closest and then kept jumping until she was standing above the first row of the crowd.
That didn't sound right. She shouldn't be standing above them. But she had to address them all, and that worked better if everyone could see them.
"Hello, everyone!" she shouted. The crowd grew silent, which was a bit… impressive. And kinda concerning. She cleared her throat. "Don't worry, we caught the slaver! And he will be tried in court!"
The crowd cheered. A lot. Mostly about 'Blessed' and 'Maidens' and the Seven.
"But!" She forced herself to smile widely. "We have a lot of things to sort out, and that will take time. So, you don't need to wait for news out here - we'll tell you more tomorrow, at the Sept."
Should she have said that without checking with the High Septon first? It was kinda rude, to just announce it like that, right?
But the crowd cheered again and then started dispersing, and that was the main thing, so Ruby counted that as a success.
Though while her friends smiled when she returned - Yang joked about Weiss better not dropping her - the small council, whose members had arrived on the rampart as well, now, looked kinda unhappy. And not just because they had probably had to run some.
They had lost their Master of Coin and Master of Whispers, discovered a huge sum of money was missing and that there was a spy network that a traitor had controlled in the city. Anyone would be unhappy in their place. But they seemed unhappy with Team RWBY.
"We need to check on the kids," Blake said. "They will know that Varys has been arrested now."
"Right!" Ruby nodded. "We'll be back," she told the others before jumping off the rampart.
They had some kids to catch. No, that sounded wrong.
They had some kids to save!
*****
King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
Blake was very… worked up. Weiss Schnee could tell. Her friend was too tense, too impatient, as they raced through the streets and over the roofs to reach the lair of the children used as spies by Varys. Too… not focused, fixated.
Based on what Weiss knew about her past, she was likely seeing herself in those kids - children too young to know better, used for dangerous purposes by adults who manipulated them for their own gain.
Weiss could understand this, to some degree; Father had used his children for his own purposes as well, usually to improve his image and impress his acquaintances. Especially those who foolishly considered themselves his friends just because Weiss had performed a few songs at a private gathering.
But Weiss hadn't been used for dangerous tasks. She hadn't been sent to spy on people who would silence witnesses with lethal means to keep dangerous secrets. She had not been ordered to steal documents and plant falsified records in rival hands. Or poison someone's wine. Perhaps that had been the reason Father had thought she would back down when forced to fight an Arma Gigas to earn the right to attend Beacon; if he had been using her for more violent and dangerous tasks, he might not have made such a mistake.
But… Her eyes widened when Blake suddenly veered off, jumping down into a side alley instead of across it to the next roof.
"Blake?" Ruby asked a moment before she disappeared in a cloud of petals.
Weiss jumped down as well before she could consider the situation and landed next to Blake, who was holding a screaming and kicking child by their arm.
"Whoa." Yang joined them.
"They've begun to scatter already," Blake hissed.
"How… Oh." Weiss trailed off as she spotted the bag on the ground. It had fallen open, and clothes and food were visible.
"Varys must have left contingency orders in case he was captured," Blake all but growled.
"Fan out and move on to the house from all directions so we can capture the kids on the way! Let's go!" Ruby disappeared again.
"Yeah!" Yang jumped onto the roof.
Weiss looked at them disappearing in different directions as they split up, then at Blake.
"Can you keep them corralled with your glyphs?" Blake asked.
Could she? Of course! But she didn't say that out loud - she nodded instead.
"Let's stay together then!" Blake grabbed the kid around his chest and jumped.
If the child hadn't been mute, they would have surely screamed. Even so, they tried to yell as they cleared the last few buildings with a series of jumps until they reached the spies' hideout. One small kid was just leaving through the front door and froze for a moment, paling, before they tried to run.
They managed two steps before Blake grabbed them with her free hand.
Weiss was already summoning glyphs to form a holding area, though she couldn't help fearing that they were a little too late to save the majority of the children.
She pressed her lips together. Blake would be devastated.
*****
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
"More than half of the kids escaped!"
Yes, Blake wasn't happy as she paced in their quarters, Weiss noted.
"Most fled as soon as they heard about the mob targeting Varys," Blake went on. "We only caught those who were either late to return or took too much time getting out since they had no bugout bag ready. Those were mostly the youngest."
"Well… if the older kids had a bugout bag ready," Rub said, "doesn't that mean they were expecting to flee?"
"Yes, Ruby." Blake was frowning, and Weiss wasn't certain herself what their friend was angling for by stating the obvious.
"So, does that mean the missing older kids we can't find had a bugout bag ready as well and left before, uh, they could get disappeared?" Ruby smiled a bit forcedly.
Blake frowned some more. "It's possible, but it could also be that they only did that because Varys gave them orders to be ready to flee."
"Drat."
Weiss nodded. That made more sense.
"And they didn't help the youngest get ready?" Yang scowled. Of course, she would resent that, having done her best to take care of Ruby as the older sibling, Weiss knew.
"They… might have been told that those would be taken care of," Blake said, but it was obvious to Weiss that she was reaching for excuses.
"Or they were raised not to care for those weaker and younger," Weiss said.
"No!" Blake shook her head. "They lived together. I saw them cook for the younger ones. They wouldn't just… abandon them like this."
Weiss wasn't as optimistic about the loyalties of kids who had been enslaved, mutilated and then trained and used as spies - and possibly assassins, but she nodded. "Whatever the reason, they have fled. And I am not sure that the gold cloaks can find them. They might not even be able to stop them from leaving the city." Lord Renly had said so, but Weiss doubted it; the noble seemed to overestimate the competence of the men serving him in order to please her team.
"They will make it harder for the children to leave the city, at least. That will stall them for some time. But we still need to find them before they vanish," Blake said. "Who knows what orders they have and try to obey?"
"Varys does," Yang said. She bared her teeth in a fierce grin when Weiss and the others looked at her. "Maybe we need to ask him."
"Yes!" Ruby nodded. "If anyone can stop this, it's him."
But would he be willing to help? Perhaps if they could offer him a deal, though, with the crimes he had committed, even taking the Black, as they called joining the Night's Watch, might not be possible for him. Could he be trusted to keep the oath, anyway?
"Let's go and talk to him!" Ruby said.
*****
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
"We're still checking the black cells for secret passages," Lord Eddard explained when they were waiting for Varys to be brought to the small council's chamber. "So, we're keeping him under heavy guard."
Blake Belladonna nodded together with the others, but she couldn't help feeling as if she was sitting on needles; if Varys managed to escape… Maybe she should head out and escort him herself? It wasn't impossible that a handful of his kid spies might attempt to free him. Blake had shown the secret entrances to the Red Keep that she had discovered to the guards, but she couldn't be certain that she had found them all. Even months of searching were not enough to guarantee that.
Of course, children attacking trained, armed and armoured men, even from ambush, was a losing proposition. Still, it was not impossible, merely highly unlikely, that such an attempt would not only be made but succeed; even if they had contingency orders for such a case, the children would not have any up-to-date knowledge of the situation at court, they would not know the new schedules and routes, and they would have to improvise from the start.
Still…
Her attempts to calm herself down were interrupted by Varys being led inside by eight guards - Northeners, Stormlanders and gold cloaks, she noted, led by Ser Arys Oakheart of the Kingsguard.
"They would need a small army to get past them," she heard Yang whisper next to her as if she had read Blake's thoughts.
Blake glanced at her and saw her partner smile - not grin at her own comment, but smile warmly at her. She nodded in acknowledgement, feeling better for the moment. Varys wouldn't escape.
Two guards sat him on a chair and removed his gag; another precaution everyone had agreed on; if he couldn't talk, he would have a harder time trying to bribe his guards into helping him escape. Of course, it was more than a little cruel to keep him gagged unless he was eating and drinking, but the man had been the spymaster of King Robert and the Mad King before him; he had spent decades at court and would know too many secrets of too many people. Even with eight guards from three different houses and the gold cloaks guarding him.
Varys coughed a few times, for show, Blake thought.
"You must really fear what I could say to treat me like this. Should I feel lucky that you haven't ripped out my tongue already?" he asked with a wry smile.
Blake froze for a moment. He dared to make a complaint - or, worse, a joke! - about cutting people's tongues off? She glared at him, baring her teeth, almost hissing as she felt her ears flatten against her skull under her bow.
"What?" Ruby jumped up. "You cut the tongues of children! We're not like you!"
Vary's smile widened a little, but it remained more twisted than his usual, almost subservient expression. "Oh, I am certain that you aren't like me - or like anyone else present here - at all. Except, perhaps, Lady Melisandre."
"What?" Ruby blurted out.
Blake was as surprised as her friend, but not quite as vocal. What did the man mean? They weren't priestesses. Although…
"Because the Faith considers us divine messengers and Lady Melisandre has visions from her god?" Weiss echoed Blake's thought.
Varys laughed. "That is a pretty weak attempt at obfuscation, my lady. I know what you are."
"We're Huntresses," Ruby said. "We've told everyone that from the start."
Varys laughed again. "Unlike those fools who believe you, I know better. I know what price you paid for your power."
Ruby blinked and glanced at her friends in obvious confusion. Blake shared the sentiment.
"What do you mean?" Lord Renly asked.
"Magic demands sacrifice." Vary's smile twisted into a grimace as he leaned forward. "I know that better than most. I know how much even a small magic boon has cost people. How many lives have you sacrificed for your powers? Hundreds? Thousands? How much blood have you spilt to command such magic? How many people have suffered under you?"
"Are you… crazy?" Ruby stared at him.
"I know magic, witch!" Varys spat. "You may have fooled those simple minds in the Sept, and the naive at Court who cannot see past their own ambitions, but I know better! I have suffered such sacrifices myself - I know what you did!"
"Yep, he's crazy," Yang said, but Blake could tell that despite her flippant tone, her partner was shaken by the display.
"The man's mad," Lord Renly said.
"Our powers - Aura and Semblances - come from our souls," Weiss said. "That is a well-documented fact in our world. There is no sacrifice involved at all."
"Only the obligation to use your power for the good of everyone," Ruby added. "It's not magic!"
Varys chuckled in response. "Of course you would claim that - the truth would ruin your plans, won't it?"
"Our plans?" Ruby scowled at him. "We just want to go home!"
Varys shook his head. "If you merely wanted to go home, you would have left already instead of taking over the Court." He sneered at the assembled men. "Not that it took much to wrest what powers you thought you had from you, not when those witches wield such magic, but if you had had more wits than a fool, you might have offered more resistance."
"Mind your tongue or you might lose it!" Lord Stannis snapped. "This is the Lord Regent you're insulting."
"And us," Lord Renly added.
Varys scoffed. "What do I have to lose? I knew from the beginning that if I were ever caught, my life would be forfeit."
"There will be a trial," Lord Eddard said.
"A sham of a trial. The verdict is already set in stone," Varys retorted. "If there is even a trial and I won't simply be found dead in my cell - or disappear without a trace!"
"Do you expect to be saved?" Lord Renly asked, frowning.
Varys laughed in his face. "From anyone else, I would consider this a great jest. From you? Proof of how witless you are. You think you are a powerful Paramount, and yet, you are merely a tool easily manipulated by your desires and ambitions. And you cock, of course," he added with a cruel smile.
Lord Renly jumped up, hand going to the dagger at his side, but his brother held him back with a hand raised in front of him. "Have a care, Renly. He's trying to provoke you into murdering him."
"And that would break the law, wouldn't it?" Varys scoffed again. "You're no better than him. As rigid as a stone statue - and as smart. You think you would be a good king? You would ruin the realm with your blind zeal for what you call justice when it's actually naked ambition. If you were the man you think you are, you would have realised that you are not fit to be king and would have abandoned those desires. And if you were truly as dedicated to justice, you would have told your brother about your knowledge of the Queen's treason instead of going to hide on your rock in the sea when Jon Arryn was murdered. And you wouldn't have abandoned your gods for a witch!"
"Jon was murdered?" Lord Eddard gasped.
"You didn't know? Well, how could you have known when you trusted Littlefinger!" Varys laughed. "Lord Eddard, the honourable? Lord Eddard the fool! What do you think your friend Robert would say when he knew you were serving as regent for a Lannister bastard, betraying your friend's trust just because you fear those four witches? Where is your honour, my lord? Did you leave it in the North?"
Lord Eddard went rigid, and Blake could see the knuckles of his left hand go white while he gripped his sword.
"And you, Grand Maester. Sworn to serve the king, yet serving Lord Tywin! How much did it cost to sell yourself? And how much did you regret it when you realised where his pride will lead him and his? You think so highly of yourself because of your knowledge and wits, yet you tied yourself to a doomed cause out of greed!" Varys laughed again.
Ruby shook her head. "You try to make everyone look bad, but it only shows how bad you are. If you knew all these things and believed them, why didn't you say anything? If you knew Lord Jon was murdered, why didn't you tell anyone?"
"Because he's a sad old man who would rather see the entire realm burn than accept he lost," Weiss said. "You berate others for their pride and decisions, but you're no better - you're worse! And your own words prove it."
"How's that for being proud of your wits?" Yang chuckled.
Others chuckled as well, though it was obvious to Blake that they were not really amused. Varys's words had struck a chord in them.
"What do I have to lose? My verdict was already decided the moment you moved against me!"
"That was the result of your decision to buy child slaves and have their tongues cut out before you used them to spy on people here!" Blake hissed. "You brought that on yourself!" She stood and walked over to him, teeth bared.
He flinched back for a moment before sneering at her.
"What orders did you give them?" she asked. "They fled before we could gather them. Where are they?"
"As if I would betray children to you witches!" he spat.
"You risked their lives when you sent them to spy on nobles and others! Children were murdered as a result!" Blake yelled at him.
"Compared to their fates should they fall into your hands, that was a mercy!"
Blake blinked. "Did you just admit to murdering them? How many did you murder? Did you kill all of them once they grew up and were no longer useful? What did you do?" she shouted into his face.
"Blake…"
She blinked as she felt a hand on her arm and realised that she was holding up Varys by his tunic - that her fingers had ripped the fabric.
"If you kill him, we won't get any answers."
He wouldn't talk anyway. And the children deserved justice. She could just…
She let him drop on the chair and stepped back, taking a deep breath.
Yang wrapped her arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a hug.
After a moment, Lord Renly spoke up. "Speaking of answers…"
"No torture," Ruby said with a frown. "We're better than that!"
Blake wasn't sure she agreed. If they had to torture Varys to save the children he had mutilated… No, that was a slippery slope. She knew better. She had to be better.
She forced herself to slowly breathe out and relax, then step back from Yang and sit down again.
"You can torture me. I won't break. I've gone through worse." Varys smiled.
Blake wasn't sure if he was bluffing. But they wouldn't stoop to torture.
"Well, I think it has been amply demonstrated that the prisoner is uncooperative. For now," Weiss said. "Maybe we should talk to him later, when we have sifted through what records we found and what information we have."
Lord Eddard nodded. "Yes, gag him again and take him back to his cell."
"Silencing me? As if…" The rest of Varys's words were cut off when the guards jumped to push the gag into his mouth again.
Once Varys had been dragged out - somehow managing to sneer at them despite the gag - Lord Eddard sighed.
And Lord Renly spoke up: "Well, that was to be expected. Varys has been Master of Whispers for decades and would know exactly how to needle people and spread lies to manipulate them."
"Yes," Lord Stannis agreed.
Lord Eddard nodded as well, followed by the Grand Maester.
But Blake saw that Ser Barristan, who had remained silent until now, had that stony expression he usually wore when he didn't want to disagree openly but did so silently.
That didn't bode well for the future.
*****
The Red Keep, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
"That could've gone better," Yang Xiao Long said as they returned to their quarters.
Weiss scoffed. "It could have scarcely gone worse. We didn't get any answers we wanted, and the small council was obviously rattled by his words."
Words that had had more than a bit of truth to them, at least that had been Yang's impression. Of course, she wasn't an expert at spotting lies, and Varys was good at lying, but the reactions of the men there… "And there'll be rumours spreading. About everyone," she said. She wasn't an expert on politics and nobles plotting, but she knew how the rumour mill worked.
"About us," Ruby said. "People will say we're bloodthirsty witches!"
"They were already saying that after the tournament. That's what the riot in the sept was about," Weiss pointed out.
"And our side won," Yang said with a grin.
"Still…" Ruby bit her lower lip, clearly worried.
Yang went over and gave her a one-armed hug. "Hey! Those who know us won't believe them. And you know how many people believe us - they came to the keep for us!"
"And Varys proved he cannot be trusted; why would anyone believe him when he told us himself how he knew so many important secrets yet didn't tell the King or anyone?" Weiss shook her head.
Yang grimaced. She didn't like to do it, but her friend was a bit too optimistic. "Some will believe him because they want to believe him. And others won't but claim they do to harm us. But as long as the majority believes in us, we'll be fine," she added with a smile aimed at Ruby.
"But we still don't know what orders he left for the kids," Blake said. "We searched their home, but they must have burnt all records - as they were trained to."
"Well, they can't have left the city yet," Yang said. "But once they do… how hard can it be to find mute children? A simple question will betray them."
"Not all mute children were spies for Varys," Weiss said.
Yang shrugged. "Yeah, but that should be easy to sort out."
"I think you overestimate the competence of the local law enforcement employees and underestimate their motivation to report a successful capture to the crown," Weiss replied. "We need to ensure they understand that we are not looking for just any mute children, and we cannot offer a reward, or some unscrupulous criminals might attempt to mutilate children to turn them in for a reward."
That was… "Really?" Yang stared at her. That was too… That sounded like some cheap, stupid horror movie!
"Economic incentives have caused worse developments," Weiss said. "There was a scandal in Atlas a few years ago when a Hunter was revealed to deliberately attract Grimm to settlements so there would be a mission to hunt them down."
"But…" Ruby gaped. "How could he do that? How could anyone do that?"
"Greed," Weiss replied.
"Did they catch him?" Yang asked.
"They found his scroll and determined the events after he fell victim to his own success in attracting Grimm, so to speak," Weiss said.
Yang grimaced. Even if he had it brought on himself, no Huntress would make light of dying to a Grimm. Except when joking about their own death, of course. Couldn't dwell too much or too long on that.
"Whatever! We need to find the kids," Blake spoke up.
"They have survived as spies, I think they will be OK for a bit," Yang said. Her partner was a bit too worked up to be objective about this.
Blake frowned at her, so Yang's attempt to make her worry less had failed. "Yes, if they were ordered to hide or escape. But what if they had other orders? We need to ask the kids we saved."
"We mostly recovered the youngest kids," Weiss said. "Would they have gotten any orders? Would Varys have trusted them with such orders?"
"He probably wouldn't," Blake said, and Yang smiled. "But they were trained and worked as spies. They might have caught a glimpse of such orders anyway."
That sounded a bit far-fetched to Yang - the kids had to communicate in writing since none of them could speak, and, as Weiss had been vocal about, paper was expensive here. But it wasn't as if they had had anything better to do.
"Let's go talk to them, then," Ruby said. "The Septons will have treated them well, so they might be more open now."
"Can't be less open than they were," Yang commented. Those kids had been a pain to corral and gather. RWBY had been trying to help them, but they had reacted as if they were about to get murdered. Of course, if they had been told that they would be sacrificed in dark rituals if caught… Yeah, Yang would also have fought like hell in their place. It wasn't their fault, but Varys's.
*****
The Great Sept of Baelor, King's Landing, Crownlands, Westeros, 298 AC
Varys's fault or not, mutilated tongue or not, Yang didn't think this was working out. Those kids were more stubborn than Ruby when she wanted cookies as a toddler.
And speaking of her sister… "Look… we aren't witches. You were lied to by Varys. We know what he did to you - he had your tongues cut." Ruby was trying to appeal to the kids'... whatever.
Looking at how they were glaring at her and making those weird, creepy noises, not even Ruby was getting through to them.
"You were trained as spies. You should be able to spot the lies you were told merely by comparing them to the facts." Weiss was still trying as well. "Varys exclusively bought mute children as spies. That means he is responsible for your ordeal. Without buyers like him, you wouldn't have been mutilated."
More glares. The kids were not buying it.
"He manipulated you," Blake spoke up. "It's the oldest trick in the book. He picked you when you were hurting, helped you, gave you a few gifts and treats, and so you latched onto him as a saviour. But it's all a lie. He doesn't care for you."
"He has been doing this for a long time. And yet, there are only children here," Weiss went on. "What happened to those of you who grew too old?"
"We want to help you!" Ruby sounded almost desperate. "But we need you to tell us what Varys wanted. Err, write it down for us. He wants everything to burn down since he lost, and that would hurt everyone!"
Yang narrowed her eyes. One of the children had flinched at that - at the 'burn' comment.
She pushed off the wall she had been leaning against and walked up to the kid in question. "Hey!"
"And you can…" Ruby trailed off. "Yang?"
"You know something," Yang said, leaning forward, both palms on the table. "What do you know?"
The kid shook their head. They were about five - well, probably six; kids like them had to go hungry often here.
The other kids were looking at them. One, the most stubborn, shook his head and made a hissing noise.
But Yang was focused on the kid in front of her. "What did you see?" she asked. "What is Varys planning?"
The kid shook their head again, avoiding her eyes.
"Burn…" Yang gripped their chin and made them look into her eyes. "Is he planning to set something on fire?"
The kid flinched again. Right. Varys had ordered the kids to set something on fire. Or… "Is he trying to set the city on fire?"
The kid stared at her. Probably not.
"Are your friends trying to set fire to the Red Keep so they can use the chaos as a distraction to free Varys?" Blake asked.
The kid winced.
"But… we removed all the wildfire," Ruby said.
"He might have procured some himself," Weiss pointed out.
"Too dangerous to transport." Blake shook her head.
"Varys wouldn't care about that," Yang said.
"He wouldn't need wildfire. You can do arson with oil," Blake said. "If he just wants a distraction and doesn't want to risk suffocating in his cell, that would serve him even better."
That sounded logical. But Varys had been crazy.
"But they would need to sneak in through the secret passages - and those are now guarded," Blake said. The kids gasped - all of them. "If they try to force their way in…" She stood. "We need to hurry to stop them before the guards hurt or kill them!"
"Right! Let's hurry!" Ruby jumped up. "We have a keep and kids to save!"
*****