Chapter 7

Farran awoke to a heavy metal song from his Scroll, causing his head to shoot up from his pillow and grab it while he heard Ecru moan in annoyance. He saw Ozpin's picture and quickly answered it.

"Hello?" he answered groggily.

"Farran, open your door," he heard over the line as he ended the call, got up and moved quickly to the door and opened it to the headmaster, whom he let in.

"Ozpin, sir, it's two in the morning. If you don't mind me asking, what the hell?" he said as they both sat on the couch.

"I hate to say it, but you have a new mission," Ozpin said, earning another groan from the bedroom as Farran shook his head.

"You said last week we had a month off and we've been training with our teams since. Why change your mind?"

"Because I need you and your teams. Remember where team RWBY found the White Fang outpost years ago?"

"Mountain Glenn."

"They're using an old building and the fields around it for a new outpost and Mercury is there but we don't know how long he'll be there for. You need to get the teams and get assembled within two hours, understood?" Ozpin asked in his usual down to earth tone, causing Farran to sigh and nod his head as got up, saluted Ozpin and quickly woke Ecru up. He got dressed and quickly walked downstairs, stopping in front of team RWBY's door.

Team RWBY was fast asleep when Weiss awoke to loud banging on their door. Yang got up groggily and walked slowly to the door, opening it to Farran in full combat gear.

"F-farran?" Yang asked sleepily as he walked past her.

"Get your things together, we leave in an hour. This is urgent, understood?" he said, loud enough to wake up Blake and Ruby while Weiss nodded at him as he left and made more preparations.

Ecru had gotten up in the meantime and had assembled his gear while walking down to team JNPR's door. He waited until he decided to suddenly kick the door down, eliciting screams from the room as he relayed the information to the team. He quickly left as he caught up with Farran, who was calling in two Bullheads and walking to the heli-pad in the darkness of night. They stood at the pad and waited, talking about certain things. In the week since their last mission, Yang was still mad at Ecru for trying to kiss her on their movie date while Ruby and Farran had talked some more while everyone had done more training after classes, with the knights getting the best of them only once out of the three times they fought. The teams walked over to them still trying to wake up mentally as Ecru, JNPR and Neptune got in one Bullhead while Farran, Sun and RWBY got in another.

"Okay, I know this is short notice, but it just came in," Farran said as he closed the doors, told the pilots to take off and pulled up a hologram on a console in the middle of the Bullhead, "Mountain Glenn is being used again by the White Fang, however they are concentrated in one building and the fields. Mercury is there so use extreme caution. We enter through the ground, jumping from this hunk of junk at 3,000 feet and land within 20 feet of the dilapidated building. Ecru and JNPR enter through the roof, engage any and all targets on sight. Understood?" Farran asked, looking at the team who sleepily nodded their heads in response.

They were all looking over their weapons when the pilot told them over the radio that they were descending. Farran opened the doors and saw the building along with the other Bullhead, which was matching altitudes with them, its doors open to Ecru relaying final instructions.

"4,000 feet!" the pilot yelled. Farran looked at the team, grinned and fell back, falling out of the Bullhead as Ruby and Weiss called after him. He held his arms and legs out as he moved over the landing destination and straightened out, landing feet first with a hard impact that cracked the ground. He quickly formed his rifle and shot two guards as Ecru, JNPR and Neptune jumped out of their Bullhead and descended on the roof while RWBY and Sun landed behind him and moved to catch up with him. They all moved quickly through the building as guards laid strewn about, Farran's group making it to the third floor before he spotted something down below.

"Ruby! Hold your scythe out the window! Grip the top of the blade! Handle facing down and out the window! Yang, hold her!" he yelled as they did as he said, questioning him when he suddenly leaped out of the window next to them, grabbed the handle of the scythe and swung into a window on the second floor, his boots connecting with a guard's chest as he looked straight and saw Mercury staring at him, who grinned.

"Ah, Farran, Rayne's told us so much about you," Mercury said with a grin as Farran growled and charged at him, his sword raised to strike. Mercury ducked under a strike and kicked Farran in the gut while simultaneously discharging a shot and sending him clear across the hall. Farran got up and charged again, ducking another shot as he grabbed Mercury's leg and punched him in the cheek, making him fall to the ground as Farran brought his boot up. Mercury quickly rolled as Farran's foot came down hard and tripped him with a shot to his shin.

Farran quickly rolled and watched Mercury go up the steps and then watched him fly down them as team RWBY came down the stairs, with Ruby helping him up as they surrounded Mercury. He grinned as he raised a leg and then suddenly face planted the wall from a shot to the back by Sun. Farran and Blake both quickly grabbed him and cuffed his legs and arms as Farran pulled him up by his collar.

"Sorry, what was that?"

"I said Rayne has said a lot about you…" Mercury said, letting the words drift through the air as Farran's radio suddenly came alive.

"Farran! Incoming Bullhead!" he heard his partner say and turned around in time to see one lowering to their floor, its minigun turrets spinning as everyone ducked under a flurry of bullets as Mercury turned so that two hit his restraints and took off. The airship quickly pulled up and followed him upstairs as everyone got up and gave chase.

"Ecru, he's heading your way!"

"Figured! Man, they have a lot of guards!" Farran heard over the radio as they reached the roof and witnessed a brawl. Jaune and Pyrrha were surrounded by ten guards and fighting them off as Ecru slammed his axe into two with Neptune shooting another while Ren and Nora knocked two down and turned to Mercury to fight him. The airship was there and immediately laid down fire, causing everyone to scatter as Farran tackled Mercury to the ground and yelled to his teammate to call their airships.

Ecru complied as both men got up and traded strikes, with Mercury landing a round house kick to Farran that made him spin, opening him up for a shot that made him skip on the ground. He looked up and saw Mercury walk over to him until he saw a flash of red as Ruby slashed Mercury from behind, launching him to Ecru, who clothes-lined him with the shaft of his axe. Farran got up slowly as the airship that shot at them landed and the doors opened to more soldiers and to a woman who stepped off and stared him down. She was wearing what she wore three years ago: same shirt, same skirt, same katana and quiver.

"Hello Farran," Rayne said lovingly with a smirk as he stared at her. He walked forward slowly as he formed his rifle and took multiple shots at her, causing her to quickly side step the shots as she drew her katana and charged at him. He blocked her strike and locked blades with her as Ecru came in and smacked her in the stomach with his axe as JNPR fought off Mercury with Sun while RWBY and Neptune dealt with the new troops. Rayne stumbled back and ducked under a big swing from Ecru and kicked him back as she and Farran fought, neither letting up as Jaune and Nora were flung back from two hits by Mercury while Pyrrha moved in. Rayne grinned at Farran as he took a few steps back to block her onslaught until she flew sideways from a kick from Blake as Farran shot a soldier coming up to her from behind. Mercury quickly ran downstairs, telling his men to hold off teams RWBY and JNPR.

"Guys! Go after him! Sun, Neptune, clear out the guards! Ecru, with me," Farran ordered as both of them turned back to Rayne, who quickly formed her crossbow and got off two shots, with one heading to Ruby. Ecru quickly threw a marble and smacked the bolt aside as it glanced off the wall to Ruby's right, who was startled by the impact. Farran turned around angrily and swung wildly at Rayne, who easily countered him as Ecru moved in, shooting off his shotgun, hoping to clip her. Suddenly an airship hovered overhead the three fighters as Ecru stumbled back to his fellow knight.

"Ecru, watch over them."

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Just tell the pilot to hold the ship still. I have no idea if this is gonna work but it may kill me, so just in case, watch over them."

"Farran, wait!" Ecru yelled as Farran ducked under a swing from Rayne, wrapped his arms around her and slipped both of them through the large shadow created via the shattered moon. They suddenly appeared right under the airship and fell 20 feet, disappearing again. Farran repeated this three times, gaining speed and momentum as Rayne beat his back and punched him. They reached the underside of the ship again and plummeted as Rayne quickly shifted her weight so that they were side by side instead of Farran being on top as they impacted the ground hard, causing it to give way as they fell through two floors. Farran coughed and noted the multitudes of broken ribs as he felt a rush of blood come up to his mouth, which he had to spit out as he tried to get up, his body weak from using his semblance so much. Rayne got up slowly as well, holding her ribs as he used his sword to brace himself.

"Well, that was new," she said to herself as he raised his sword and stumbled, falling to the ground in a heap, "and you still get weak from it, adorable."

Meanwhile, RWBY and JNPR had gone through the guards and caught Mercury, encircling him as he sighed, getting off two kicks and shots until Pyrrha caught his leg while Yang punched him hard. He shook off the hit and then felt three more from the rest of RWBY and a hammer to his gut, causing him to double over as they quickly reapplied restraints to him.

Ecru jumped down the newly created hole and saw Farran on the ground as Rayne smiled at him.

"Good boy Ecru, you're still watching over him," she said mockingly and laughed as he slashed at her but she dissolved into a puddle of clear water as Rayne made her way up the stairs, calling for soldiers and for the airship. Ecru ignored her, heard the confirmation of Mercury's capture and called for the second airship to get them in the field as he picked his friend up and quickly went back to the roof.

Teams RWBY and JNPR, Sun and Neptune boarded the ship with Mercury in tow, tape over his mouth to silence him as they smiled at one another. They were in pain but felt a rush of excitement as they finally had an associate of Cinder's in custody. As their ship took off, they spotted the other ship and saw Ecru looking over Farran. Ruby and Jaune watched as the doors closed automatically, the teams looking at one another and staying quiet until they arrived at Beacon. Everyone got off the airship quickly and turned Mercury over to the authorities as they walked over to Ecru, who was supporting Farran as they walked to them.

"Farran, what happened?" Pyrrha asked while Farran held his ribs, blood staining the skin around his lips.

"Never, ever, overuse your semblance… and think out plans first," he said with a small smile as they looked him over while Ren placed his hands on his chest. Farran looked confused then screamed in pain as his ribs re-connected suddenly, dropping to a knee as Ren followed. Ren helped him back up after he was done and looked him over.

"I'll take him to the infirmary," Ren said quietly as Farran nodded.

"Ecru, report… to Ozpin. Everyone else, go… go relax, you deserve it, great job," Farran said through gritted teeth as Ruby and Nora followed them. The rest of team JNPR and RWBY left in the direction of the dorms while Ecru walked to Ozpin's office. Ren, Farran, Nora and Ruby reached the infirmary as Farran sat on a bed, rubbing his ribs and grimacing as Ruby looked him over. Ren and Nora stayed as a nurse looked him over and told him that he needed rest for a week, which he nodded to as he thanked Ren for healing him.

"Of course, what you did was something I've never seen."

"You guys saw?"

"Me, Yang and Weiss did. That must have been really hard on your body."

"Yeah, it was," Farran said as he quickly explained what he did to Nora and Ruby who looked confused.

"Whoa," Nora said. Her and Ren made sure Farran was okay before leaving to be with their team and to de-brief with Ecru. Farran got up slowly with the help of Ruby as they walked to Ozpin's office.

"You need rest Farran," Ruby said quietly and sweetly as he smiled.

"Yeah, but I gotta report. I'm stubborn like that," he said as they finally entered the office to Ozpin, who was sitting behind his desk and looked surprised at the two before him.

"Farran, what are you doing here?" Ozpin asked as he got up while Farran slowly straightened and saluted Ozpin.

"Reporting sir."

"Ecru already did that in detail," Ozpin stated as he helped Farran stand up.

"Ah, you know me, gotta finish the mission officially. Mercury is captured, Rayne is still with them, and we forgot to look for anything that tied them to the area."

"Team CRDL just did, they were hoping to find a way back underground, possibly to transport Dust. Go get some rest Farran, please," Ozpin urged as he nodded his head and turned away with Ruby by his side, making sure he didn't stumble. They walked in silence until they reached the dorms.

"Why have us get Mercury?" Ruby asked as they ascended the steps slowly.

"To put you guys out of harm's way, I know how well Rayne can fight. Also because I'm still seeking revenge, ditto for Ecru," he said.

"We don't need to be put out of harm's way," Ruby said aggressively as Farran looked at her outside her dorm.

"Ruby, I made that choice because I didn't want to see you guys get badly hurt," he replied, an angry tone rising in him, causing Ruby to look down as he sighed, "I did that because I just wanted to make sure you guys were okay. I'm not losing anyone else under my leadership, especially you," he said with a smile as he nudged her shoulder with his hand. She slowly smiled back as she opened the door and allowed him to walk in to the rest of the team with Neptune and Sun.

"Okay, so, I'm officially confined to the bed for at least a week to properly heal up. You listen to Ecru and in the meantime if you need anything let me know or come up and see me. Great job out their guys," he said, earning smiles and nods from everyone as he slowly left and returned to his dorm. He opened the door to Ecru, who looked him over, helped him over the couch and grabbed medicine for him to take.

"That was really ballsy Farran."

"I know buddy, but it had to be done. You gotta push yourself sometimes," he said as he swallowed the medicine with no water, "Glad to see you and Yang didn't fight."

"Yeah, we're just gonna play it cool probably for the rest of our lives," he said, earning a chuckle from Farran who grimaced at the same time, "You and Ruby?"

"No clue, but I think I'm getting around to her," he said with a smile as the medicine kicked in very quickly, his eye lids growing heavy and finally closing as Ecru replied to him.

The week went by smoothly with Ecru handling the trainings as everyone came to visit Farran whenever they could. He did his best to move around to get back to training and by weeks end was back to jogging and hand to hand combat with Ecru. The rest of the semester went by quickly as no new missions were given out to anyone mainly because they took down a member of Cinder's crew. Farran and Ecru themselves were happier than they had been in a long time, loving the time they got with their teams as they interacted with one another.

Farran found himself on a bench, the end of the semester in two weeks with a small basket of strawberries to his right as a cool breeze blew, moving the branches of a nearby tree with newly green leafs sprouting on them.

"Are those strawberries?" he heard and looked to his left to Yang and Ruby in their uniforms, with Ruby asking the question as her sister laughed. Farran chuckled and held the basket out to Ruby, whose eyes got wide.

"All yours, I've had enough," Farran said with a smile as Ruby quickly grabbed the basket, sat in the grass a few feet away and started to devour them, saying thanks through a full mouth as Yang sat next to him, "Sorry about Ecru."

"Ah, its fine, we're all good now," she said with a smile as they watched Ruby consume the strawberries, "How did you know she loves strawberries?"

"She does?" Farran asked jokingly as Ruby slowed down, listening to them, "Honestly, I went to the market yesterday and bought them. I'll get a basket for you next time Ruby," he said with a smile that she reciprocated as Yang leaned over to him.

"Do you like Ruby?" she whispered, causing him to look at Yang with a curious smile.

"And if I say yes?"

"You better not do anything to harm her, that's all I'm saying," Yang said quietly, making both of them chuckle as they got up, with Farran conversing with them as he walked them to their class. He told them to get everyone in his and Ecru's dorm and said goodbye to them, leaving him alone to walk to the dorm, where he found Ecru laying on the couch.

"Say, wanna invite everyone to our house?"

"Oh it's our house now?"

"Oh shut it," Farran said, slapping his shoulder. The day slowly changed to night as the teams trickled in slowly to the two knights cooking dinner for them. Everyone took seats where they could find them as they ate and talked, chatting about finals when Ecru interrupted them.

"Okay guys," he said loudly as everyone looked at him, "So, Farran and I have been talking, and well, to be honest, we really like you guys, we can't live without you guys," he said, earning laughter and smiles as he continued, "And, thing is, we don't know if we can go three whole months without seeing you guys."

"Alright wiseass," Farran said, butting in and earning chuckles, "Basically, since we have a basic idea of what the enemy is doing, we want to keep training with you guys so that we can end this threat. So, here's our idea: you spend the first two months of summer with your families and then for the last month, you come to mine and Ecru's house and we train and get ready for y'all's next semester. What do you think?"

The room fell silent as the teams looked at one another and spoke in hush tones until Jaune spoke up, "I like it, I'm in."

"Same," Blake said as the rest of team RWBY agreed.

"Hell, why not!" Nora exclaimed as everyone laughed and agreed. Farran and Ecru smiled and nodded, explaining what they would do in the final month of the break and when they would get them. Farran and Ecru went to bed that evening happy that they wouldn't be alone in the summer, something that hadn't happened in a long while.

Holy Hell Chapter 7 already! Time is flying to me! So, after my first week of classes, I like how they are structured (though 3 writing intensive classes are gonna kill me). So, I'll basically decide whether to have one chapter or two chapters in any week. Next Wednesday will be Chapter 8 because of my work schedule (fuck movie theaters and minimum wage), so I won't have that much time to edit. In other news, I've reached Chapter 26! I am so excited for you guys to read the rest of the story, you guys are going to love it! Have a awesome weekend and I'll see you guys Wednesday!