Author's note: Sequel to "It Has to Take a Village" and picking up just a tad later from where it left off, featuring family drama, expositional onslaught, pissed off Papa Schnee, sleazy businessmen, a tin-man, Jack Frost Jr., The Seven Dwarves and all the good little boys and girls.

CLAIMER (NO. Not "disclaimer". CLAIMER!): I've started writing this months ago. Any similarities you may notice between what I wrote and what happened in Volume 6, so far, are purely coincidental. I had block for a while and resumed writing a month before V6 premiered and have written at least half of this fic after that. I wanted to be done with it, before the volume premiered. But, I purposefully avoided using any ideas or themes introduced in V6, except for ones I coincidentally already wrote or already conceptualized and had in foot-notes, months before. I only took one...one thing that I saw in the trailer and included it in my fic. I wrote what it was, at the end.

Volume 6

Ch. 1 – Across the Board

The sun was still rising higher from behind the mountains as over half-a-dozen ships flew in a v-formation towards the North. All of them filled with men and women of the White Fang. Some were nervous, others were eager to act, to reach their destination and to fight, if necessary. Voices both male and female were swirling.

"This is huge! All of us going to Atlas like this!"

"Oh, I can't stand the cold! But, that's not gonna stop us! We're gonna show them!"

"Man, I can't believe the High Leader is still alive!"

"She's the Headmaster of Haven, now? I bet no one could see that coming! Least of all her!"

"Us working with humans is major, but the Schnees? Things couldn't get any crazier."

"Wow! The first-time I leave Menagerie and we're already going halfway around world!"

"So, we're practically going to Atlas and hoping they don't start another war? Sheesh!"

"Darn it, if I die, Kodi's gonna kill me! Then Mom'll kill me! And then Dad! And then his mom and dad!"

A male voice was thinking that last one as Yang was assaulted by what she slowly realized to be the thoughts of everyone around her. Ironically, she could not even hear her own, in all that noise. She placed her hands to the side of her head as she was getting a headache. Blake noticed she was frantically looking around.

"Yang?" she asked, from next to her, but Yang kept turning to briefly stare at everyone. Across from them, Weiss was talking to Ruby, on her left side, as Winter sat on her right.

"How did you not know that?" Weiss incredulously whispered to Ruby. "There's no way she hadn't, at least, heard of it." she thought, referring to what Blake told them about how Ilia felt for her.

"I just never thought it was a thing." Ruby shrugged, looking at her lap, in embarrassment.

"How can you be so innocent?" Weiss thought, as she almost imperceptibly shook her head at her.

"How sheltered was her upbringing, until she went to Beacon?" Winter thought along the same lines as Weiss, looking at Ruby from the corner of her eyes.

"The hell was Leo thinkin'?" Yang found Qrow with her eyes, as he sat with his arms folded and eyes closed. The relic was in a secure cage-like casing, with a black cloth draped over it, at his feet. "Oz can defend him all he wants, he sent 'em all t' die." He was seemingly asleep, but, in fact, deep in thought.

"Yang?" She heard Blake, again, but it was not in hear head and she turned to see a pair of yellow, worried eyes, looking at her. "What's wrong?" she asked, but instead of formulating a response, Yang had to bear another wave of thoughts. She shut her eyes and held her head, as the pressure was stronger. Then she abruptly stood and marched out of the hold they occupied to a more open and less crowded part of the ship, as Blake called after her. Ruby and Weiss looked at each other, silently asking each-other if they should follow them. Blake caught up to Yang, out on the narrow deck, by the guard-rail, on which Yang was supporting herself with both hands.

"Yang, say something! Please!" Blake cautiously put a hand on her shoulder.

"I...I have a headache." Yang lied by omission, shaking her head. "It's starting to go away." She was hearing fewer voices in her head, at least.

"That was more than a headache." Blake was not completely buying it. "You were looking around like you were seeing...something. Something that wasn't there. Maybe an illusion." she tried to guess. "Emerald. Maybe she's still-..."

"It wasn't that!" Yang interjected and Blake could tell it was not what she tried to pass it off as, either.

"Then what was it?" Blake pleadingly asked, wanting to help and Yang could see that.

"I...I'm not sure. Maybe I just...didn't have enough sleep. And I'm...imagining things." Yang leaned against the railing with a sigh.

"Are you sure?" Blake asked. "You can tell me anything." she added, placing a hand on hers, on the rail, as she faced her.

"I dunno know what's going on." Yang looked away.

"I'm here for you." Yang heard Blake say or she thought she said it and she looked up at her.

"Thanks. I know are." Yang told her, flipping her hand to hold the one Blake placed on hers, as she looked at her and Blake blinked in surprise and confusion.

"I...didn't say anything." Blake told her and Yang mirrored her expression.

"You just said...you're here for me." Yang stated.

"I...was only..." Blake's eyes slowly widened. She stared at Yang, who gaped at her like she just heard her, again and they both stared at each other, mortified.

"What do you think is going on?" They heard Weiss's voice coming from the hold, getting louder.

"I hope they're not arguing!" Ruby's voice was closer and both of them came through the entryway, before they saw them and stopped. Blake and Yang let go of each other and took a step back. Weiss could see they might have interrupted a moment, while Ruby looked equal parts confused and worried.

"Yang...?" Ruby turned to her. "You two aren't...fighting...are you?" she asked.

"We're not." Blake told her, reassuringly.

"I just got a huge headache." Yang quickly said and could see Blake briefly stared at her in surprise. "Needed some air." she added, glancing at Blake to play along.

"That's right. I...was worried it was something serious." Blake nodded.

"So were we." Weiss stated, looking at Ruby, who seemed to relax. She gave a small smile before the view, below them, caught her eye and she let out a long gasp, as she walked to the guard-rails.

"Wooow..." Ruby whispered, already past any worrying. Blake glanced at Yang and both knew they dodged having to explain things. Weiss looked between them, though, not in suspicion that they were hiding anything, but merely because of how they found them. Yang could hear, in her head, she was not as easily distracted as Ruby and that she was still curious what happened or what was still happening between them. Yang exchanged looks with Blake, again. "Look! Birdies!" Ruby exclaimed and they all turned to look at what she spotted.

"Ruby...I think those are..." Blake started to say.

"Nevermores!" Ruby giddily said, realizing what they actually were.

"Do you have to sound so excited?" Weiss shook her head as an officer above them, on the upper deck, snapped to attention and brought up a pair of binoculars to look.

"Got a flock of Nevermores, Ma'am!" he spoke into a radio to their Captain, as their ship was at the head of the formation they assumed with the other vessels. "Doesn't look like they're heading for us, unless a lot of the folks on-board suddenly got all depressed or something." he quipped as the flock was peacefully passing across their heading.

"Not funny, Alistair!" A female voice sternly responded. "Keep an eye on them! The last thing we need is those things swooping down on us." she added.

"Yes, Ma'am! Sorry, Ma'am!" he quickly responded. "Swooping is bad." he muttered to himself.

"We're good?" Yang raised her voice to ask him.

"Yeah. No need to get trigger-happy, just yet." He waved it away.

"He clearly haven't met you." Weiss quietly told Ruby, arms folded, with a small smile, leaning closer without looking at her and she could feel her smiling back.

"You kids should head inside! We're gonna be passing through some colder currents. It'll get even chillier as we get closer to the sea. Even worse when we'll be passing over it." The officer told them.

"That's true." Weiss stated. "We really shouldn't stay outside in that." she added and kept looking expectantly at the others, but they merely waited, probably for one of them to start towards the hold. "Really? None of you is going to make a joke about me, the Ice Queen, being afraid of the cold?" Weiss asked, almost genuinely disappointed.

"Oh. Right. I forgot." Yang was not exactly in the mood for jokes, otherwise, she would have surely made one, already. She could tell Weiss wrote her missing the opportunity off to the headache she said she had, as they went back inside.

...

Arthur Watts sat at the helm of a small, fast, sleek, airship that looked like a modified and customized version of the ones used in Mistral, except it did not have sails for wings, but used the more modern propulsion systems of the ones from Atlas, instead. Focused on his piloting, he flinched in annoyance from the high-winds and lightning around them. The moon was obscured by the clouds that heralded a larger storm he knew they would soon pass through.

A deck below him, in the lounge, Mercury smashed a full bottle of liquor he did not even drink from against the wall and leaned back at the table he was sitting at, fuming from the humiliating defeat they should not have had. He would be damned if actually started drinking and he was not going to give even his dead Oldman the satisfaction of seeing that.

In the ship's own small infirmary, Hazel set in silence, still in the clothes that were soaked in his own blood. He crushed the last of his fire-dust crystals in his shaking hand. His rapidly recharging aura already began healing his mostly self-inflicted wounds, before he could feel the effects of blood-loss. Shutting his eyes, he slowly breathed in and out as beads of sweat slid down his face. Pain was something he did not need to concern himself with, ever since discovering his semblance, but he was fully aware that what he did to himself still took a toll on his body, even if he could not feel it.

On the same deck, where the personal quarters were, in a cabin that, judging by appearance, was not even her own, Emerald was lying a bed with red, satin sheets that could not darken any further, from soaking, as her eyes ran dry. She was unable to cry anymore, even though she wanted to. Her eyes were open just enough that one could have seen nearly all life was gone from them.

They were all far too distracted by either navigating over the raging sea, quietly boiling in anger, tending to their own wounds or getting consumed by grief to be aware of a stowaway in their cargo hold. One, who was filled with hate. Adam sat, his red aura flickering around him, in the dark, as he healed himself inside a container he hid in. He looked at his own blood that stained his gloved hand and clenched his fist, as they flew above troubled waters, which seemed to be more unnaturally chaotic the farther they went.

...

On the bridge of the leading ship, Winter joined the Captain, who was wearing the goggled mask that was typically worn by the police and the military, looking out in front of them.

"What is our estimated time of arrival?" Winter asked the Captain.

"We won't be there for another few hours. Our ships aren't as fast as yours, you know." she replied to the perceived impatience with their speed.

"Evidently." Winter muttered, but the Captain was not going to let a small criticism affect her.

"Say they'll let us through the blockade. I'm still not thrilled to see how they'll respond when all of these White Fang will come pouring out of our ships." the Captain admitted.

"We haven't made it through all the trouble to accidentally start another war." Winter stated.

"Let's hope not." came the reply. "That would be a long and awkward report." she added and Winter gave her comment a unamused side-glance.

On the same ship, Ghira looked to his side to see Ilia was quietly sitting and staring into her own lap. He could tell she was nervous about returning to the kingdom where she lost her parents. A kingdom that did not care. Where hatred and prejudice towards the Faunus was the worst and where their kind was mistreated and exploited the most. He placed a hand on her shoulder, surprising her and bringing her out of her reverie. She turned to look up at the large man she nearly betrayed, seeing nothing but genuine concern and kindness in his eyes.

"I realize how difficult this journey will be for you. Even just to see the kingdom itself, again." he told her and Ilia averted his eyes.

"I…I just don't know what I'll find there." Ilia said, afraid of the past. "Maybe, it'd be better if didn't find anything. Anyone. How can I ask our people, there, for help, after what I did?"

"It already took courage to stand with us. And I can feel that this will take just as much. I'm glad my daughter could discover what took me decades to learn. And she did it, because of the kind of people her friends are. Remember that. And not what you didn't do. It helped you in Menagerie and in Mistral. And it will help you in Atlas." he told her and Ilia was overwhelmed by the support he was giving her, despite what she nearly did.

"Thank you..." she whispered and Ghira nodded with a smile.

Team RWBY came walking back and Yang slowed as they passed Ilia and Ghira. The dreadful thoughts she felt from her were slowly fading as she was starting to feel better. Blake noticed Yang's pause and kept pace with her, falling behind Ruby and Weiss.

"What is it?" Blake stepped closer to Yang, whispering. "Is it Ilia?" she asked, somewhat worriedly.

"Yeah. But...it's okay. She's…feeling a little better." Yang stated.

"Yang, how are you...?" Blake attempted to ask. "How did this happen?" she kept whispering and her thoughts kept racing, some of which Yang could hear.

"I dunno." Yang whispered back. "And I can't hear everything, so stop trying not to think. Because all you're thinking is how I'm reading all of it. And I'm not. Only, like, every second thought. Yeah, I know it's scary. You think I'm not freaked out?" She was trying not to raise her voice, then noticed from Blake's stare that she was freaking out and that she was voicing Blake's own thoughts, before she could. Yang took a few seconds to compose herself and Blake waited.

"You're not going to tell anyone else?" Blake asked.

"No! I wanna figure it out, first." Yang replied.

"So…when did it start?" Blake wondered.

"After we took off...I guess. Maybe sooner. I just...didn't know, I...I couldn't tell it was happening." Yang said.

"What do you think could've started it?" Blake speculated and Yang could hear it.

"I don't think it's got anything to do with my semblance. That's for sure. And it can't be a Maiden power." Yang stated and Blake did not even have to ask all of that. "It's just...I can't turn it off. It kinda comes and goes. Sometimes I can hear everyone, then barely anyone." She shrugged. "I'm gonna have to control it. Then I'll tell the others. Maybe." she added, unsure of how the others would take it or how she would be even able to live with it. She looked towards her sister.

"Oh, it's gonna be so cool to see Atlas! Weiss always makes it sounds so clean...and big! And kinda...serious. Oh, we've gotta see the CCT! I hope we can see all the sights, like in Mistral!" Yang heard Ruby's thoughts as she was smiling at Weiss and the latter was raising a brow at her, mentally sighing.

"Hhh. What's going on in that head of yours." Weiss was thinking as she looked at Ruby's face, seeing she was daydreaming.

"Oh, sorry!" Ruby realized she was drifting off. "I was just thinking about all the things they have there. I mean, in Atlas." she quickly added, in case it was not clear where and Weiss lowered her eyes at her.

"She'll definitely want to see the tower. I should take her there, after all of this is over. Or maybe before that." Weiss suddenly looked worried, thinking they might not have time for any of it, especially if one obstacle they will have to deal with is her father. She noticed Ruby was slightly tilting her head and was giving her a concerned look, as she had to be showing her worry on her face.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked.

"We'll have time to see everything. I promise." Weiss smiled at her, unconsciously placing a reassuring hand on hers and Ruby blinked, before her infectious smile returned.

Yang looked away from them, feeling like she was intruding, but she was also trying to get a handle on her sudden ability. She found Qrow, again, who was actually half a sleep and falling deeper into it. His thoughts were scattered and Yang could only catch some words as they swirled around in that ether.

"Ye'r crazy...'f ya think, y'can...Damn it, Oz!...Ye'r holdin' out on me...not a damn one...it's his fault...rotten luck, pal...another round...it's my...it was my...my fault...she's gone...I'm sorry, Tai-...!" Qrow suddenly woke up and Yang pulled herself back, out of his mind, even though part of her wanted to hear more. He glanced around and raised a brow when he noticed Yang's stare. She looked away and Qrow mentally shrugged, then closed his eyes, again. Yang turned to see Blake was giving her a curious look that turned somewhat worried.

"Please, don't be reading my thoughts." she thought.

"Sorry." Yang shrugged, letting her know she accidentally did and Blake's eyes briefly widened, before she averted her them.

"Don't think! Just don't think!" Blake was telling herself.

"Told you that won't work." Yang muttered. Blake stared at her, again and looked away with an uncomfortable sigh. "Yeah...we should just talk about something." she added, picking up on her last thought. "Maybe it'll stop if I'm not really trying to make it happen." She shrugged.

"Okay." Blake nodded in agreement.

"So...your folks are nice." Yang tried to stir the conversation. "Your dad's a big softy." she smirked.

"He is." Blake smiled.

"Didn't know I was hanging out with the daughter of a Chieftain. Sure couldn't've called he used to be the leader of the White Fang." Yang stated, raising a brow and Blake had a guilty look, ashamed she hid it and of how she parted from her parents, before going to Beacon. "It's fine. I get why you didn't tell me...us." she told her, including their team, before Blake would apologize. "Your mom seems nice, too." Yang let out a small snicker. "She really didn't like that Sienna woman, huh." Yang brought up what Sun pointed out.

"I...don't really know anything about that." Blake really had no knowledge of her mother's past with Sienna.

"They both look feisty." Yang smirked. "Maybe your dad had a thing with Sienna, before your mom." Yang shrugged as Blake looked uncomfortably at her. "What? Can't be more complicated than my family." she added, folding her arms.

...

Kali Belladonna was departing to go back to Menagerie with a dozen White Fang volunteers, all still clad in their civics with a few armor paddings and plates strapped over them, same as their brothers and sisters who were on their way to Atlas. The ship lent to them was taking off from right in front of Haven Academy and as she ascended the ramp with the men and women, nodding an appreciative farewell to the officers, she could feel they were being watched.

Sienna stood in the window of her office, with folded arms and Kali turned to meet her eyes through the window, having sensed them. She gave a small glare, at first, but it softened and she nodded to her, probably as a sign of wishing her good luck, despite whatever differences they had. Sienna had a small frown and as the ship took off she turned to look at the four remaining students, in team ABRN, who were silently standing in front of her desk, waiting for whatever she would say, if anything. They nervously shifted and Sienna sighed, looking at the ceiling, mentally asking how it all came to be that she was left running a huntsmen academy.

General James Ironwood stood in his office, gazing out at its reinforced window, from on high. He watched as gunships and guardsmen patrolled the sky and the ground that expanded over the decades from the foundations of the new kingdom, the first of which was the huntsmen academy, now the seat of the government and its military headquarters, all in one. No street or corner was left unmonitored and no unit and non-combatant personnel ever lost sight of another as they moved about, unaffected by the low temperature, as heat-generators and sealed domes were built over the modern years that formed the artificial biomes that the hearth of the capital was now housed in and protected by. Active gun-emplacements and vehicle-mounted defenses dotted the concrete forest, even within the city, all of which could have been covered, were it not for the heightened security. A small holographic screen, the size of a laptop, was projected over Ironwood's desk, with what appeared to be walls of texts and map-references he was likely tired of looking at. There was a small bar in the right corner, behind him, close to the window, with an empty glass he did not clean and a bottle that was started.

A knock at his door made him turn his head from the scene that no longer brought him comfort or insurance of their strength, no matter how prepared he felt they were. Not after what happened to his forces at Beacon. He briefly touched his own face, with his good hand, to feel the five o'clock shadow he let remain on it, again. Then he answered the door from where he stood.

"Yes?" he prompted whoever was outside to enter and a female officer opened the door, cautiously, then, seeing he was not in a bad or a good mood, walked in, more briskly.

"General, Sir." she saluted. "The forward scouts we left in Mistral reported in. A message was just relayed of an attempted attack on Haven Academy and that it was stopped by…a…group of children and the White Fang." she added, somewhat skeptically, finding it hard to believe and Ironwood raised a brow in surprise.

The marble halls of the Schnee Estate echoed from Jacque Schnee's voice, coming from his study.

"She what!?" He was talking into the phone and listened to the voice at the other end, as Whitley quietly stood, waiting for him to finish. He watched, completely unperturbed as his father's face twitched from annoyance. "She thinks her sister can protect her?" he asked, more calmly and it sounded as if he was issuing a challenge to what he thought was an affront to his authority over his daughter.

"From what I've seen, your daughter can protect herself just fine." Ironwood told him with some smugness, having a slight smile, on the other end and he knew it would get under his skin.

"I don't care if she can slay a dragon!" Jacque exaggerated, raising his voice. "She will be punished for making me look like an utter fool who cannot even discipline his own child!" he said. "Her escape cost even more than her scene at the fundraiser!"

"So I've heard." Ironwood recalled how the media reported on it, after some information was leaked.

"Then you know that as soon as they set foot in the city, I want her brought to me!" Jacque said.

"Half-a-dozen ships won't be hard to rein in. It's not like they can just slip through a secret tunnel." Ironwood made one last dig and hung up, before Jacque could explode. Whitely did not even flinch as his father slammed his fist down, with the phone in it and watched, in silence, as he contemplated the situation. Then he spoke to him, quietly.

"Tell the guards and the staff that everyone is to keep a close eye out. Anyone could still be colluding with your sister. Therefore, no one enters the estate and no one leaves, until she is returned. Understood?" he asked and Whitley nodded.

"Yes, father." he said and turned to leave with an almost sinister smile.

"They know what can happen to those who help her." Jacque added the thinly veiled threat, as Whitley left to delight in passing it on.

Meanwhile, a pair of gentle blue eyes gazed at a beam of light that shined through a tiny, sealed window of a mostly dark prison cell, where Klein Sieben quietly sat on a small bed, hoping that both Weiss and Winter were safe.

"A spider-girl shooting webs? A bat-guy with wings? And Mermaids?" Yang quietly listed, as Blake was telling her what happened in Menagerie, having never heard of such Faunus.

"Well, not mermaids. Not like in the stories." Blake corrected that image in her head.

"Sounds like Menagerie really lives up to its name, I guess. I mean, can you imagine those guys in a fight?" Yang asked and Blake stared at her. "Oh. Right." Yang realized she did not have to. "I still can't believe you're like royalty over there."

"I'm not royalty!" Blake whispered, blushing from embarrassment and tried to keep her voice down.

"Okay. A celebrity, then." Yang said, calmingly.

"Not even that. No one outside Menagerie or the White Fang knows who I am. At least, no one ever recognizes me. And that's a good thing." She paused to reconsider, given recent events. "Or…it was. Now, people don't have to be afraid of us, anymore." she added.

"Well, we weren't scared when you…sort of told us, back at Beacon. Even if it wasn't the whole truth." Yang quietly said and continued. "That didn't change who you are for me." she added and Blake turned away to hide a blush at the complement she still felt she did not truly deserve. And from Yang, of all people. "And don't say you don't deserve it." Yang flatly added and Blake stared at her, in even deeper embarrassment. She buried her face in her hands, leaning forward with a groan. Yang let out a quiet chuckle, folding her arms. She looked up, across from them, to see Ruby had her head on Weiss' shoulder as she was dozing off.

"It's also...a gun...it's...a cookie...chocolate chip...nooo...come baaack." Yang heard her odd dreamy thoughts as she started to drool.

"Hm? What is Yang looking at?" She heard Weiss think, before the latter turned her head to see a drop of saliva threatening to fall on her and she mentally gasped. "No! No!...Please, no! I don't want to wake her up!" she thought, frozen up.

"Your attention, please!" The female voice that was not the Captain's came over the intercom and it woke Ruby up.

"Hrh, huh?" With a small snort, she raised her head, not quite perked up, but awake enough to notice the drool, which she wiped from her mouth and Weiss let out a sigh of relief.

"We'll be reaching the Atlesian Blockade, soon! Please remain in your seats or return to them and secure yourselves." The announcement said and Winter did the opposite. She unfastened her seatbelt and stood.

"I'll have to be on the bridge to speak to whoever oversees the blockade." she told Weiss and the others, then left, glancing at Qrow, who could tell she silently told him to stay.

"It's time to see if Atlas will be an ally." Ghira stated. Oscar unbuckled himself and stood from his seat.

"W-We have to be there!" Oscar said and Winter stopped to turn and look at him. "We have to convince James, I-I mean, the General, we don't mean any harm." He was being urged by Ozpin, on the inside. Winter suspected as much, although she felt that she herself would have been enough to vouch for them.

"Follow me." she told him and moved along.

"Shouldn't we go with them?" Ruby asked, leaning out to look at her Uncle.

"Nah. You heard her." Qrow shrugged, nodding at Weiss, next to her.

"But...she didn't say anything about that." Ruby pointed out.

"Exactly. And what does that tell ya, in her language." Qrow pointed out.

"He's right." Weiss sighed.

On the bridge, a screen turned on, in front of their Captain, who was arguing with the one in charge of the blockade, as Winter and Oscar walked in.

"Our borders are closed to any and all travel." he roughly stated.

"Sounds familiar. Didn't you say it, like, two sentences ago?" Their Captain was sassing him.

"You are to turn your ships around or your approach will be taken as an act of hostility and will be dealt with as such!" he warned.

"Hostility...hospitality...so close in a dictionary, don't you think?" she replied.

"You are deliberately trying my-..." his words were caught in his throat, when saw Winter. "Specialist Schnee, Ma'am!" Her position might not have made him directly her subordinate, but it was not why she was respected and feared, almost, if not, as much as the General.

"I want to be granted safe passage to Headquarters, immediately! Time is of the essence." she said, without so much as a greeting.

"But, Ma'am...only General Ironwood can grant such a request. I do not have the authority to let anyone pass at my discretion. You understand." he replied.

"Then I wish to speak to the General." Winter replied.

"O-of course, Ma'am." he nodded and hastily began opening a channel. He nodded to someone, off-screen and a few long seconds later, the face of General Ironwood showed up, with the window of his office in the background.

"Winter." He was not completely surprised, considering the reports he received in advance.

"Sir." She clicked her heels together, saluting him somewhat awkwardly, given how she disobeyed orders to stay in Mistral.

"I wasn't expecting you so soon. Our scouts barely had time to relay their reports about the attack on Haven. I didn't..." he trailed off and raised a brow as Oscar slowly stepped forward, when he noticed him. "Who is this?" he asked, as the boy could not have looked more out of place.

"Um…it's nice to see you're using your scouts, instead of a flagbearer." Oscar told him, as he was also listening to the voice inside and it took Ironwood only a second to understand and recall they were Ozpin's words as he silently stared. His eyes wavered as he looked Oscar up and down, realizing who and what he was.

"Ozpin..." he whispered and Oscar nodded. Ironwood looked down and pressed a button they could not see on screen. "Captain, let their ships through and provide them with an escort to Headquarters!" he said, with urgency.

"Sir?" The Captain was slightly taken aback by his sudden change in demeanor.

"Now!" Ironwood raised his voice some.

"Yes, sir!" came the reply.

A short silence followed as Ironwood kept staring at Oscar and it occurred to him that if he was standing there, Winter had to know the truth. He looked at her and she gave him a small glare, obviously upset about having been kept in the dark and she averted her eyes.

"Well, that went well!" The Captain said, placing her hands on her hips. "Don't know what secret pass-phrase the boy just told you..." She nodded at Oscar, next to her. "But he sure spared me some headache with your men. You know, we figured your military didn't turtle up completely. You had to 've left some behind to keep an eye on things." she said as she gestured with one hand.

"Apparently any further reports couldn't stay ahead of you, even considering the speed of your ships." Ironwood remarked and the Captain raised a brow under her masked face, slightly tilting her head as a sign of annoyance at the comment on their speed, again.

"Then...you're aware of the situation." Winter understood.

"I've already been briefed on the attack. But, I wouldn't mind hearing the details from you, in person." Ironwood meaningfully nodded.

"You will, sir." Winter stated and slightly hung her head, chancing another glare at him, which he caught. He felt just as awkward about their meeting as her.

"It's only been half-a-day." he said, after a brief pause. "I didn't think you would arrive with a small fleet." he commented. "We'll talk, soon. There's something your sister should know, as well, before you arrive." Ironwood cautioned her and Winter narrowed her eyes. The Atlesian ships stood down and made way for them.

...

Feeling as the ship touched down, Adam waited until he felt certain no one would see him come out. What he saw upon emerging from the cargo hold was a realm unlike any he had seen anywhere on Remnant. The sky was a deep, dark purplish black and the shattered moon shone its light on a desolate, rocky surface, where the sharp edges of large purple crystals looked like they would come alive and try to impale anyone foolish enough to tread close to them. But, all of that was far from being the most disturbing aspect of the place. From pitch black puddles creatures of Grimm crawled forth as if the foul liquid itself gave birth to them and it reminded Adam of the dragon at the battle of Beacon. He rarely, if ever, felt he had overstepped or thought he was out of his depth, but where he was, at the moment, was somewhere he knew no living person should have been.

He spotted Cinder's associates, calmly lead by Watts, followed by Hazel, Mercury and a lagging Emerald, as they made their way to an ominous edifice that looked more like a temple than a castle or a fort. The Grimm were ignoring them, but that did not surprise Adam, from all he had seen at Beacon. Whoever they were working for obviously had power and influence, even over the soulless beasts. Adam remained at a distance, but noticed that as the last of them made it inside, the Grimm suddenly became agitated, as if whatever force had been keeping them docile was no longer exerting its control over them. He hurried and slipped inside, as the giant gates slammed themselves shut. Adam took cover behind a pillar and knelt in the shadows, waiting for them to move further in, but they stopped. He looked up to the top of the stairs, where a pale, feminine figure clad in a dark robe waited. Her unnatural complexion was emphasized even more as she stood in the moon's light and her black-on-red eyes stood out, even from a distance. Adam gritted his teeth, gripped, for the first time, in a long while, by a feeling that was uncomfortably close to fear. He could not even begin to guess who or what he was seeing. Watts' voice snapped him out of the creeping thoughts.

"Ma'am." Watts placed a hand in front of his chest as he gave a slight bow, before putting it behind his back with the other. Unlike the rest, he was not disheveled and worn down from fighting, but he also did not appear to be nervous or even upset, as he waited for her to speak. No fault for their failure at Haven lied with him, as far as he was concerned. But, he still hoped to gauge how upset Salem was. The latter did not say a word, as she seemingly glided down the stairs, past Watts, who raised a brow, as she passed him.

"Ma'am." Hazel's deep voice still had strength even as he addressed her softly and cautiously, stepping out of her way. Mercury flinched as he stood aside, giving her a nervous glare as he wondered what she was about to do.

Salem stopped in front of Emerald and reached out with hand that Adam could see had red veins running in them, as she placed a finger under her chin to lift her head, making her meet her nightmarish gaze. Emerald did not even dare to breathe as Salem's eyes drifted to the dried tears on her face, before she put her hand back down.

"You...are strong, child. You have a formidable power that has grown. We lost a great asset, but we have also gained one." she stated with a slight smile and her sinister stare made Emerald question if her obviously developing semblance was truly a good thing for her or was she about to become another, powerful pawn Salem could place on the board, turning her life even more upside down than it already was. Not that it truly mattered to her, as all she could still think about was Cinder and, now, how quickly she could meet the same fate as her. "And we may have another."

Salem added and from the corner of her eyes she looked directly into Adam's, who took a step backwards, only to sense movement behind him. Something lashed out at him from the dark and he jumped away, out into the open, driving it away with his sheathed sword, which he drew as he took a stance. A crazed laugh sounded from where the attack came from and it grew louder and more erratic as a figure emerged. It looked almost completely human, except his whole body was covered in what appeared to be white, thin armor-like shells, similar to that of Grimm, and its face was hidden behind a mask, with glowing red markings on it. The same glow could be seen through the holes where eyes should have been. Adam realized what exactly it was that attacked him as he saw a scorpion's tale wildly flapping around behind it and it looked as if it was taken directly off of a smaller Death-stalker, though it was common knowledge that taking limbs and parts off of Grimm was impossible. Then again, he already saw things, in just the last few minutes, that went directly against common knowledge and common sense. Watts had a somewhat proud smirk as the creature lowered itself close to the ground and came forth on its hands and feet, menacingly pointing its stinger at Adam.

"What the hell...?" Mercury whispered as Emerald stared in shock, along with Hazel.

"Tyrian..." Hazel muttered, barely recognizing the man, if he could even call him that, anymore, he thought. Tyrian began circling Adam as he continued to maniacally cackle.