bazerkerking
I trust you know where the happy button is?
- Joined
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Yeah... yeah it do be like that some times. Babies are fickle and want what they want
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[RWBY] The Great Temporal Step-Sibling War!
- Thread starter AndrewJTalon
- Start date
With Merlot and Watts
New
AndrewJTalon
Well worn.
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The laboratory was a converted sub-basement under Evernight Castle, the kind of place that still smelled faintly of rotten wood and Grimmfilth even after the ventilation had been upgraded. Banks of stolen Atlas equipment hummed along the walls. Holographic displays floated in the air, casting cold blue light across Arthur Watts's sharp features as he scrolled through another failed simulation.
He had not bothered to remove his coat. He rarely did when the work refused to cooperate.
Dr. Merlot leaned against a nearby console, arms crossed, watching with the mild interest of a man who had seen far worse tempers than this one. The biologist's coat was open, his usual easy posture at odds with the tension radiating off the other man.
Watts's lip curled.
"Ugh… That wretched Atlasian lapdog… Sucking up to Salem and playing at the loyal sycophant…"
Merlot's eyebrows rose. "Interesting insult, given your heritage."
Watts shot him a flat look but did not rise to the bait. His fingers flicked across the interface, dismissing another model that collapsed into cascading error messages.
"Not only do I have to compete with Cinder, I now must contend with more fools seeking Queen Salem's favor?"
Merlot pushed off the console and strolled closer, hands in his pockets. "Come now, Arthur. There's no need for this. You are the key part of our plans, after all. Cinder and Iri are just delivery girls. You are the mastermind."
Watts's jaw tightened. "Yet magic is the one thing I cannot crack. And that is what that empty-headed brat can use—" He paused and raised an eyebrow. "Iri?"
"Well," Merlot said mildly, "the young lady made a nice impression on me."
Watts turned fully this time, eyes narrowed. "You realize she's a homicidal maniac who would murder you given half a chance."
Merlot's smile was small and entirely unbothered. "True. But she asked me to use her nickname nicely. So I have."
Watts made a sound of pure disgust and returned to the holoscreen. "I suppose she's slightly more tolerable than Cinder and her little pack of minions… Or Tyrian and his lust for our Queen..."
"He's a young man and she's his fetish," Merlot observed, "Best not to think too long and hard about it."
"Pfft. At least he's more tolerable than Hazel. Such a sad sack brute, lamenting his lost sister and blaming Ozpin," Watts rolled his eyes.
"He does wear thin at times, I will admit," Merlot added. "As for the rest of our little band, I've yet to meet them all."
"That is by design," Watts sniffed, "We must maintain some kind of compartmentalization... Hmph."
He stared at the cascading data streams in silence for several seconds.
Merlot waited. Then, almost gently: "So?"
"I'm still working on this. It would be nice if you helped, you know."
"Don't look at me. My domain is biology, chemistry, and cybernetics. You're the polymath."
Watts's fingers stilled. The simulation froze on a complex lattice of interlocking timelines, each one marked with glowing nodes that refused to stabilize.
"The capacity for time travel in a Semblance has always been possible," he said slowly, "but the model would need to be a closed-loop system to avoid paradoxes. Yet the situation as described by Queen Salem is the definition of a paradox. All of spacetime should have turned into a singularity."
Merlot tilted his head. "But clearly, it hasn't."
"No. It hasn't." Watts's voice dropped, almost thoughtful. "That is the tricky part…"
He flicked through another layer of security logs and scowled. "It doesn't help that these brats have locked me out of the more sensitive parts of the CCT. They found the virus."
Merlot's expression finally sharpened. "That's not good."
Watts's reply was pure venom. "Thanks for that. However could I have gotten along without you, Viktor?"
"No need to snipe at me, Arthur… More than usual."
Watts ignored the jab and pulled up a different set of files—academic papers, theoretical models, old conference abstracts. His eyes narrowed further.
"Ugh… It doesn't help we're up against Doctor Weena Nebogipfel, the single greatest mind in physics since Fig Newton himself."
Merlot blinked. "Don't you mean Einholz?"
"His genius was incredible," Watts said dismissively, "but Nebogipfel has the potential to totally redefine our understanding of physics. Hmmm…"
He zoomed in on one particular cluster of data, the lines of the various timelines tightening around a single bright point.
"I can only conclude, based on the description and my reading of her works, that we exist in a kind of… superposition. Twelve enmeshed timelines, all held together by a number of critical factors, as the timelines try to correct themselves due to being caught. Not unlike twelve zippers all caught together..."
Merlot's voice was quieter now. "One of them being this Jaune Arc?"
"Yes." Watts's gaze remained fixed on the glowing node. "Which means there's something going on with him in particular."
"What about the time-traveling boy?"
"He is also a critical factor. But his removal would not threaten the entire structure of the universe as we know it… Arc's removal would." Watts tapped the interface, isolating the relevant data streams. "He is temporally displaced… but his existence is likely tied to Arc's, given he is native to this timeline and the key factor in the paradox."
Merlot waited.
"Having them both would be preferred," Watts continued. "But only eliminating one is a big enough threat to ensure compliance."
Merlot's usual lightness finally faded. "You do realize his elimination might collapse all of spacetime around our ears, yes?"
Watts turned his head just enough to meet the other man's eyes. A thin, cold smile touched the corner of his mouth.
"Yes… But to live is to risk. Besides…" He gestured at the unstable lattice of timelines rotating slowly in the air between them. "You can't tell me you're not the least bit curious about this incredible scientific opportunity."
Merlot was silent for a long moment. Then he exhaled through his nose, the sound almost a laugh.
"…I am. But I'm also not keen on mutually assured destruction as a plan."
Watts's smile widened a fraction, sharp and humorless.
"Then I suggest you start thinking of a better one, Doctor. Because the clock is already ticking. Our Queen wants to unravel this puzzle, as it may finally give us our victory..." He grinned, the light of the holograms reflected in his eyes.
"A victory for all time..."
He had not bothered to remove his coat. He rarely did when the work refused to cooperate.
Dr. Merlot leaned against a nearby console, arms crossed, watching with the mild interest of a man who had seen far worse tempers than this one. The biologist's coat was open, his usual easy posture at odds with the tension radiating off the other man.
Watts's lip curled.
"Ugh… That wretched Atlasian lapdog… Sucking up to Salem and playing at the loyal sycophant…"
Merlot's eyebrows rose. "Interesting insult, given your heritage."
Watts shot him a flat look but did not rise to the bait. His fingers flicked across the interface, dismissing another model that collapsed into cascading error messages.
"Not only do I have to compete with Cinder, I now must contend with more fools seeking Queen Salem's favor?"
Merlot pushed off the console and strolled closer, hands in his pockets. "Come now, Arthur. There's no need for this. You are the key part of our plans, after all. Cinder and Iri are just delivery girls. You are the mastermind."
Watts's jaw tightened. "Yet magic is the one thing I cannot crack. And that is what that empty-headed brat can use—" He paused and raised an eyebrow. "Iri?"
"Well," Merlot said mildly, "the young lady made a nice impression on me."
Watts turned fully this time, eyes narrowed. "You realize she's a homicidal maniac who would murder you given half a chance."
Merlot's smile was small and entirely unbothered. "True. But she asked me to use her nickname nicely. So I have."
Watts made a sound of pure disgust and returned to the holoscreen. "I suppose she's slightly more tolerable than Cinder and her little pack of minions… Or Tyrian and his lust for our Queen..."
"He's a young man and she's his fetish," Merlot observed, "Best not to think too long and hard about it."
"Pfft. At least he's more tolerable than Hazel. Such a sad sack brute, lamenting his lost sister and blaming Ozpin," Watts rolled his eyes.
"He does wear thin at times, I will admit," Merlot added. "As for the rest of our little band, I've yet to meet them all."
"That is by design," Watts sniffed, "We must maintain some kind of compartmentalization... Hmph."
He stared at the cascading data streams in silence for several seconds.
Merlot waited. Then, almost gently: "So?"
"I'm still working on this. It would be nice if you helped, you know."
"Don't look at me. My domain is biology, chemistry, and cybernetics. You're the polymath."
Watts's fingers stilled. The simulation froze on a complex lattice of interlocking timelines, each one marked with glowing nodes that refused to stabilize.
"The capacity for time travel in a Semblance has always been possible," he said slowly, "but the model would need to be a closed-loop system to avoid paradoxes. Yet the situation as described by Queen Salem is the definition of a paradox. All of spacetime should have turned into a singularity."
Merlot tilted his head. "But clearly, it hasn't."
"No. It hasn't." Watts's voice dropped, almost thoughtful. "That is the tricky part…"
He flicked through another layer of security logs and scowled. "It doesn't help that these brats have locked me out of the more sensitive parts of the CCT. They found the virus."
Merlot's expression finally sharpened. "That's not good."
Watts's reply was pure venom. "Thanks for that. However could I have gotten along without you, Viktor?"
"No need to snipe at me, Arthur… More than usual."
Watts ignored the jab and pulled up a different set of files—academic papers, theoretical models, old conference abstracts. His eyes narrowed further.
"Ugh… It doesn't help we're up against Doctor Weena Nebogipfel, the single greatest mind in physics since Fig Newton himself."
Merlot blinked. "Don't you mean Einholz?"
"His genius was incredible," Watts said dismissively, "but Nebogipfel has the potential to totally redefine our understanding of physics. Hmmm…"
He zoomed in on one particular cluster of data, the lines of the various timelines tightening around a single bright point.
"I can only conclude, based on the description and my reading of her works, that we exist in a kind of… superposition. Twelve enmeshed timelines, all held together by a number of critical factors, as the timelines try to correct themselves due to being caught. Not unlike twelve zippers all caught together..."
Merlot's voice was quieter now. "One of them being this Jaune Arc?"
"Yes." Watts's gaze remained fixed on the glowing node. "Which means there's something going on with him in particular."
"What about the time-traveling boy?"
"He is also a critical factor. But his removal would not threaten the entire structure of the universe as we know it… Arc's removal would." Watts tapped the interface, isolating the relevant data streams. "He is temporally displaced… but his existence is likely tied to Arc's, given he is native to this timeline and the key factor in the paradox."
Merlot waited.
"Having them both would be preferred," Watts continued. "But only eliminating one is a big enough threat to ensure compliance."
Merlot's usual lightness finally faded. "You do realize his elimination might collapse all of spacetime around our ears, yes?"
Watts turned his head just enough to meet the other man's eyes. A thin, cold smile touched the corner of his mouth.
"Yes… But to live is to risk. Besides…" He gestured at the unstable lattice of timelines rotating slowly in the air between them. "You can't tell me you're not the least bit curious about this incredible scientific opportunity."
Merlot was silent for a long moment. Then he exhaled through his nose, the sound almost a laugh.
"…I am. But I'm also not keen on mutually assured destruction as a plan."
Watts's smile widened a fraction, sharp and humorless.
"Then I suggest you start thinking of a better one, Doctor. Because the clock is already ticking. Our Queen wants to unravel this puzzle, as it may finally give us our victory..." He grinned, the light of the holograms reflected in his eyes.
"A victory for all time..."