Chapter Text
Enciodes Silverash had been minding his own business when in the blink of an eye he found himself in a place called Atlas.
The cold of Atlas was different from the cold of Kjerag. Kjerag maintained her chilly climate through elevation, while Solitas maintained it through high latitude.
Enciodes missed his home, he missed it desperately, not that anyone but his closest confidant could ever possibly glimpse that past his ever stoic exterior.
But the Doctor wasn’t with him now, it was just Gnosis, Courier, Matterhorn, and himself, stranded with no resources but their own hands in a foreign world. Men less prone to machiavellian scheming would be focusing solely on survival and possibly how to get home.
Gnosis and Silverash had both immediately agreed that whatever force that had transported them was beyond their current understanding, which meant a great amount of resources would be needed, which meant they needed power.
The group had very quickly taken to the streets of the lower city of Mantle to begin scrounging together resources. A little menial labor here, a little disruption of criminal enterprises here, a few favors for the neighborhood watch there, and Silverash had already acquired a base of operations for his men and a small batch of capital for Gnosis to begin experimenting with the substance known as Dust.
Silverash knew even before Gnosis gave him a preliminary report that Dust was the key. Where Terra had run on Originium, Remnant ran on Dust. Five companies controlled 90% of the world’s dust supply. To even hope of funding the research to get them home, they would need to dominate the profits of that market. They lacked the capital and expertise to start their own company, so they would need to insert themselves into an existing one.
Mantle Drilling Company? Too tightly controlled by its board of directors, acquiring enough shares to one day control it would be unreasonable without the profits of an entire other company.
Fjord Mining Cooperative? The fact that it was a cooperative made the takeover plan difficult if not impossible.
Vacuo Mining Concern? Unfortunately focused largely on another continent from their current location, and from what could be gathered Vacuo’s prospects were dwindling.
Atlas Dust Unlimited? The smallest of the big five, likely to be taken over within the next five years by its competitors. While inserting themselves into ADU and riding out the eventual merger could get them into a good position, it could also see them out on the street again. Too risky by half.
That left the Schnee Dust Company. Largely family owned and controlled, although poorly managed in places. The founder was widely admired but according to tabloids he was growing sickly in his old age with no clear successor. There was of course his daughter, Willow Schnee, but the young woman was far more interested in the arts than any aspect of her father’s business.
It was a good target, they just needed to get into the company. They focused their efforts on two fronts, acquiring accreditation for Silverash and developing Gnosis’s projects.
It took developing quite the shady contacts and a fairly large stack of lien, but after three months Enciodes Silverash had a very convincing diploma from Mistral Imperial University that labeled him as highly educated in matters of business and industrial logistics. With a few good words from respected people in Mantle and a few good words from respected people in Atlas who took bribes easily, Enciodes Silverash was gainfully employed at the Schnee Dust Company.
Gnosis’s work was another beast entirely. Dust was so similar yet so different from Originium and it had instantly enraptured the scientist. Silverash made sure that a large portion of their funds were heading towards Gnosis’s research which quickly began bearing fruit in the form of a recreation of Originium Arts using Dust as the medium. Already he was putting finishing touches on a Dust Arts Unit which he planned to patent as soon as its effectiveness was provable.
All in all, it seemed their efforts would pay off in time. Sure, it had required Courier, Matterhorn, and Silverash to work 12 hour days for weeks and subsist off of instant noodles, but there was something about the struggle that invigorated Silverash and gave him the energy to lead his
men to victory.
——-
Two Years Later
——-
The cork popped off the champagne bottle and the crowd composed of the SDC’s upper management cheered as Nicholas Schnee raised his glass beside Enciodes Silverash.
“To a year of soaring profits! You’ve all done so well in the last few years, turning our struggles into victory after victory! I think you’ll all be happy with the bonuses you’re getting at year's end!” Nicholas shouted once the cheers died down. This was met with more cheers before the workers turned to their own drinks and conversations.
Nicholas turned away from the crowd and towards Enciodes, speaking quieter now “And a thousand thanks to you Enciodes. Without your insights we’d probably be struggling right now.”
“It’s really nothing sir, I’m merely doing my duty,” Enciodes said.
“Ha! You’re definitely dedicated, I'll give you that. A man like you or your scientist friend could probably start your own business and put us in the ground within five years.”
“I wouldn’t go that far sir, your efforts in your youth gave the SDC strong bones.”
“Ah, if only my bones could remain as strong,” as if to demonstrate his own frailties, Nicholas nearly doubled over coughing, leaning heavily on Enciodes for support. After a moment spent recovering Nicholas wiped spittle away from his lips “Damn… damned dust-lung.”
“Sir, you really should get back to your private room. It’s no good to be seen like this,”
Nicholas waved him off grumbling “They all know, they all already know, son. Don’t worry after me, a little speech won’t be the thing that does this old warhorse in. Go, enjoy the party, everyone will want a chat with you, you’re a big reason they’re getting bonuses instead of severances.” Nicholas gave him a little push before leaving the party with a happy wave to everyone in attendance.
Enciodes set off into the party on his own, making small talk, checking up on the connections he had made inside the company, eventually finding himself towards the edge of the meeting hall. Most attendees were still socializing with each other, but Enciodes had noticed one person who was keeping all to herself: Nicholas’s own daughter, Willow Schnee.
She cut quite a beautiful figure, her long white hair done up in a bun, wearing a tight navy blue dress which contrasted nicely with her hair. She had a nearly empty champagne glass in her hand.
“Well there he is, man of the hour, savior of the company, three cheers for you!” She said somewhat sarcastically.
“I can’t take all the credit for that, I only helped. It was everyone working in concert that saved the company,” Enciodes responded.
“And if it’s a concert you’re the conductor, let me guess, my father sent you over here to take care of me?” A hostile tone tinged Willow’s voice as she narrowed her eyes at Enciodes.
“I came over here because I saw somebody in the party standing apart from all others. I know a little about you, you don’t need a caretaker.”
“Try telling that to my father. He’s so… scared of leaving me alone. He tried to set me up with Jacques. Jacques, the man who went on a racist tirade into your face a month ago!”
“Jacques was a difficult man to work with. A fairly brilliant industrial planner, but his biases were too strong and he was a tad too willing to throw away ethics for profit,” not that Enciodes wasn’t willing to sin to get his way. Jacques probably would be well on his way to taking over the company if Enciodes hadn’t slipped his way in and taken his prize. The biggest difference between the two was that Enciodes knew how to get people to actually like him.
“Ugh, so glad he’s gone now. I really should be thanking you for pissing him off enough to fly off the handle. If you hadn’t I’d probably still be dating him,” Willow sighed, “I’m sorry for trying to chew you out. It was uncalled for.”
Enciodes smiled “No offense taken at all. I’ve endured far worse, although I do admire your sharp tongue. Your life must be stressful.”
Willow looked somewhat surprised “What do you mean?”
“You’re the heir to one of the richest men in Atlas who happens to be of extremely poor and deteriorating health. Many opportunistic people are likely looking to manipulate you for that. I faced much the same, once.”
“Really, you’ve stood in my shoes before?”
“Not your exact situation of course. My family was very politically important in my village. My parents died far too soon, leaving the family’s duties to me. Continuing without them was difficult, and at every turn there would be somebody seeking to exploit my position and inexperience,” Enciodes explained.
For the sake of keeping their stories straight, their lies of their homeland were very close to what the reality was, they had merely scaled Kjerag down to a large village rather than a mountain nation. Enough villages on Remnant disappeared under the Grimm tide each year that fabricating one wholesale had been very easy.
Willow took the last sip from her champagne glass before responding “And how did you get past that?”
“It was both quite simple yet exceedingly difficult. If the world is a chess board, I removed myself as a piece, and made myself a player. It is difficult to place oneself in charge of your own destiny, yet it is the only way to achieve freedom from manipulation.”
“Take charge of your own destiny huh? That simple?” Willow mused for a moment before placing her empty champagne glass on an empty table, “In that case, I think we may want a more private chat…”
——-
It wasn’t until the next morning that Enciodes arrived at the large apartment he shared with his allies. Matterhorn and Courier were eating breakfast, and looked a little surprised to see him.
“Hey boss, where were you last night? You never came back from that party.” Courier asked.
“I was indisposed. In any case, I will have to alter my schedule somewhat, there have been developments that may alter the course of our long term goal,”
“What, has Gnosis made a breakthrough?” Matterhorn asked, standing to grab a plate for Enciodes.
“There have been no major developments on his end of things, no. Rather, one of the potential plans I had considered came to fruition of its own accord.”
“Meaning?” Matterhorn asked as he placed a plate of eggs in front of Enciodes.
“I am now dating Willow Schnee. I have no doubt that the Schnee Dust Company will be under my control in due time in any case, but if this relationship progresses further it will cement my control most definitely,” he explained before quickly scarfing down the eggs, “Thank you Matterhorn, if you’ll excuse me, I need to bathe.”
Courier and Matterhorn watched until Enciodes had closed the door to the bathroom and they heard the shower running before turning to each other “So, he’s smitten right?” said Courier.
“Oh yeah, the boss would never dare show it but he’s got hearts in his eyes. Can’t blame him, have you seen Willow?”
——-
25 years later
——-
Weiss Silverash Schnee narrowed her steely gray eyes at her opponent: a massive replica of her grandfather’s suit of armor possessed by a Grimm. Her ears twitched as she picked up the sounds of its slightest movements and her tail swayed to keep her balance perfect. This was her father’s final test for her. If she could defeat it she could pursue her path as a huntress, if she could not her father would bar her from fighting. She would not lose.
Above, Enciodes watched his second child engage the Grimm. It would be a hard fight, but he was certain she would pull through. He had been able to see where her drive would take her for years. As he watched, he noted the even and efficient sound of Gnosis’s footsteps behind him.
“Sorry to interrupt this Enciodes, but I thought you’d like to know that there’s been a development in my primary research,” Gnosis said. Enciodes tore his eyes away from Weiss’s fight to face Gnosis, who continued speaking when he saw he had Enciodes’s attention.
“It appears that the transposition dector I developed does actually work. A burst of energy was detected near the city of Vale, and a few hours later this image was posted on the CCT,” Gnosis produced a tablet and showed it to Enciodes, which caused him to raise a very curious eyebrow.
“Well then, I suppose that is a very large indicator that others from Terra have found their way to Remnant. Send somebody to Vale to check in on them.”
Enciodes heard a large crash from where Weiss had been fighting the grimm and turned to see the girl standing atop its fallen body, blood dripping from her face and panting heavily. She looked up at him with a look that mixed resentment and anticipation. Enciodes kept his face largely passive save for a small satisfied smile “Very well Weiss, you shall attend Beacon,”