Jaune and the Real Girl.

Chapter 21

Ironwood looked at the casualty report in front of him feeling a heavy weight on his heart. Three dead including two huntsmen and all the supplies destroyed beyond salvage. The laser burns and bullet marks found in the wreckage had left him with little doubt as to where the attack had come from.

His initial concerns about the prototype were that it would be sold on the black market to terrorists or some group of shady mercenaries. But it seemed clear to him that Vasily had indeed activated the android himself and had made use of it in this most recent attack. He had not expected an assassin to have the capabilities to activate Penelope himself but he couldn't deny that he was looking at a worse case scenario.

Too many questions were left unanswered. Why the sudden spike in assaassionation attempts? Why was an assassin using his weapon? He would have expected an assassin to try selling it for easy money, surely even someone like Vasily Patterson had to understand that using his prototype would attract the wrong kind of attention.

The General couldn't help but get the cold feeling that Salem's hand was involved with this somehow. They were targeting the supply trucks for Amity Tower as they headed for the launch site. They were impeding his operation and he would have to commit more resources to assure they didn't get easily attacked, two huntsmen would wasn't enough now, they would have to utilize convoys to help secure everything.

Officially the report would say that the supply truck was ambushed by grimm. He couldn't quite admit to the existence of his prototype, Pietro would not be very pleased to learn what he had been doing with Penny's spare parts and he needed to keep the man happy. Unfortunately with an enemy of Atlas running around with a stolen military prototype and using it for wet work meant he needed to take control of this situation before it was exposed or worse. He was sure that the next time a huntsman and huntress ended up dead he wouldn't be able to use grimm to cover up.

His terminal flicked away from the actual report on the truck and it's various losses and to another file specifically on the assassin Vasily. An interesting character to say the least, a self trained huntsmen who managed to pass initiation at Beacon some thirteen years ago. His record as a licensed huntsman was short if impressive, he took contracts to kill rare and exotic grimm and eventually moved on to bounty hunting, now he seemed to accept work against other huntsman, and it seemed he wasn't going to stop anytime soon.

The fox tailed accomplice had yet to be identified but in many ways she worried him more than the assassin. Whoever she was she had been able to get past security right here in the heart of Atlas and helped get an assassin close enough to strike at him. Pluse they had been able to build the equipment necessary to activate the android, for an assassin Vasily had resources and personnel that to him seemed wasted on mere wetwork.

Ironwood massaged his temples as he considered his options. Too many things were happening right now and this was and this wasn't a problem he could ignore or delegate to a subordinate, he needed to handle this personally.

Ironwood picked up his scroll off his desk and pulled up his list of contacts and calling. "Hello sir," the voice greeted him.

"Clover," Ironwood said, cutting past formalities, "assemble the rest of the Ace Operatives... I have a new priority mission for you."

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The only thing Jaune could hear was the grind and ring of steel against steel. Floating Array danced in front of him sending a flurry of thrusts and slashes at him and it took every bit of energy and concentration just to keep up and defend himself from the blades.

Penny wasn't even using all of her blades on him only limiting herself to six as she attacked him from multiple angles and directions. Jaune could only parry and block so many before he was forced to withdraw and reorient himself for the next assault.