Hey guys! I know it's been quite some time since I last updated this story. Work went from busy to insane in the course of a day or so. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and are looking forward to more chapters coming up very soon.
VI
Ember Erinyes walked briskly down the street towards Yang's bar with a pair of headphones in her ears. The young faunus bobbed her head to the sound of her music. She stood at around five foot two with long red hair and black cat ears with red tips on top of her head. She had sparkling lavender eyes that shown like gemstones. She had an athletic body but was also curvy in the hips due to her shorter stance than her friends.
She was in her own little world and had completely didn't notice that the street she was on was empty of people. The only thing on her mind was seeing her friends and her lover, Gwyn. She and Gwyn had been dating for a little over a year at this point and every moment they were able to spend together felt like a lifetime. She had also grown quite fond of his teammates and the rest of the members of the VLA with her most recent, and quickest growing, friendship being that of hers and Frost's.
As Ember approached Yang's bar she noticed that there was something off about the place. She could sense that there was danger nearby and grew uneasy as she turned her music off and slipped the headphones back into her pocket. She slowly pushed the door open and her jaw instantly dropped at the sight she saw.
Inside the bar stood Frost with two ice swords rammed into the gut of a male faunus. She held him high above her before throwing him to the side and falling to her knees. Around her laid the dismembered and bloodied bodies of other faunus. Frost gently began to sob before allowing her swords to disappear. She looked up at Ember and gently smiled as tears began to roll down her face.
"Hey, beautiful." Frost said as she whipped away the tears. "If I knew you were coming I would have cleaned up the place a little better." She continued.
"Frost…what the hell? Why are you crying? What happened?" Ember quickly spat out the questions as she ran to her friend's side.
"These assholes were trying to get a little rough, that's all." Frost said with a nervous smile. "I'm crying because I let them get to me. I should have just roughed them up a little bit but I think I went a little too far. Now I have to get this place cleaned up a bit before Yang and the others come up." Frost said before standing and approaching the bar where she poured herself a drink.
Frost slowly sipped at the alcohol as she took in the sight of the bloody scene in the middle of the bar. She cursed silently under her breath at the sight of her work. It had been almost a year since she last let her temper get ahold of her like this. Winter had made sure that Frost had gone to the best mental health experts in all of Atlas just so she wouldn't snap like this anymore. And yet it only took a group of would be criminals to push her over the edge like this.
As Frost thought about what she had just done, the sound of the others approaching the door to the main level of the bar broke the silence between her and Ember. She quickly finished her drink before stepping in front of the door to the basement. As she did this, Yang opened the door and almost jumped out of her skin at the sight of the beautiful faunus standing directly in front of her.
"Frost? What are you doing? You about gave me a damn heart attack!" Exclaimed Yang as she put her right hand to her chest and took a step back.
"Before you come in, you should know something." Frost replied with a frown before looking over her shoulder.
"What? Did you break another glass? I told you they can be replaced…" Yang trailed off as she saw the bodies on the floor and blood spilled all around them. "What the fuck, Frost?" She asked with shock in her eyes before pushing past Frost and into the bar.
"They claimed to be members of a new White Fang group. They wanted to rob us and possibly do more. I ensured that Eira would be safe by telling her to hide and to not come out." Frost said calmly with a cold tone.
As Yang and Frost talked, the rest of the group entered the bar from the basement. As Weiss rolled into the room she gasped at the sight of the bodies and instantly glared at Frost.
"Where is my daughter?" Weiss asked with a sour tone. "Eira? Where are you?" She continued without letting Frost answer.
Eira quickly came out of hiding with Zwei at her heels. She ran up to Weiss and threw her arms around her neck before smiling gently.
"Don't worry." Eira said quickly, not allowing Weiss to speak. "Frost protected us. They forced their way into the bar and she protected me. Please don't be mad at her." She continued with a smile directed to Frost.
Weiss began to protest as she continued to glare at Frost but instead allowed herself to smile slightly. She nodded in approval before embracing her adopted daughter tightly and running her fingers through her long white hair.
As Weiss, Frost, and Eira talked amongst themselves, Gwyn ran up to Ember who was standing off to the side. He quickly embraced her and looked down into her eyes with a warm smile on his face.
"Were you in here during all this? Are you hurt?" He asked her as he started to look her over to ensure she wasn't injured.
"No, not at all." Ember replied. "I got here right at the end of it all. I've never seen Frost so worked up before. They really must have pissed her off to get her to act so violently." Ember continued as she thought about how she had never seen her friend do such a thing.
Gwyn smiled at Ember's response as he held her close to him. Just the thought of something happening to her made his heart almost stop. Even though they had only been together a short amount of time he still cared more about her than anything in the world and thus would do anything for her. As Gwyn embraced Ember, Weiss cleared her throat to get everyone's attention.
"I'm so glad everyone but the three dead bodies in the floor are okay." She said sarcastically. "But we really need to discuss our next plan of action. If what Eira was saying is true then some serious shit is about to hit the fan." Weiss continued with a worried look at the rest of the group.
Frost tilted her head in response before giving Yang a worried look. Yang sighed gently before putting her glass on the bar to signal Frost to pour more drinks. Frost had an idea in her head that everyone was going to need a drink to make it through the discussion that was about to happen. As she handed Yang a refilled glass she hopped onto the counter and sat down, curious of what was about to be said. Yang sighed again and closed her eyes before speaking.
"First order of business is this." She started. "We need to dispose of these bodies and clean up my bar. Frost, since you killed these poor bastards that means you are responsible for getting rid of their corpses. Secondly, we need to call Jaune. He is going to want to be here for this." She continued with a weak smile.
"And thirdly?" Frost questioned her friend.
"We need a plan." Yang responded silently. "Because if what Eira said is true then the visions she received from Amber means that Roland is coming back to Vale. And I am sure I speak for us all when I say that I hope that it doesn't come to that." Yang finished.
As the members of the VLA talked in Yang's bar, high above the city inside an Atlas airship sat Roland and the rest of Team CRME as they were being briefed via video call with General Ironwood. Roland, Cinder, Emerald, and Mercury had only returned from their separate missions in Mistral twelve hours prior to this meeting and the effects of travel, along with battle, were showing in them.
"Egle, your assassination of Team SHDW was flawless in every sense of the word. I've put in a good word in Atlas with Commander Schnee to have you receive a medal as soon as you can." General Ironwood praised Roland with a smile as he read over the report that Roland transferred to him. "Captain Fall, I will expect you and your team to get plenty of rest over the next couple days before beginning training for your next mission." Ironwood continued as he shifted through some more documents.
"Yes, sir." Cinder nodded with respect before sitting up straight. "Sir, may we know the name of our next mission or any other details?" She asked curiously.
"For now all you may know is that the mission is codenamed as Operation Foxhound. This will be a search and destroy mission. We will be finally be striking the VLA at its heart. I will prep you four in forty-eight hours. Dismissed." Ironwood said before ending the video call.
The members of Team CRME sat in silence for a few moments as the each began to feel the effects of their exhaustion. Each of them turned to Cinder who allowed an evil grin to creek across her face.
"You heard the man, team. You three get some rest and enjoy your time off." Cinder ordered her team.
"And what will you be doing, boss?" Mercury asked as he leaned back in his chair.
"I think I'll get myself a drink. There's a pretty nice bar nearby that I've just been dying to visit. Roland, would you like to join me to celebrate your success?" Cinder asked as she turned to Roland.
"Yes, ma'am. I would love that." Roland said with a sly smirk.
