Ch.11

Means at Hand

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"Okay, so does everyone remember their roles?" Ruby, the eccentric leader of her team, asked of her friends as they all went about readying their weapons and with Blake giving practice swings of Gambol Shroud while Weiss narrowed her eyes and thrust the tip of myrtenaster in a quick succession before clipping her wapon to her belt.

"Ruby and I will head to the CCT tower to check the SDC records for any dust robberies or any gaps in the data and seeing as I'm a Schnee, it shouldn't be a problem," Weiss explained with a smirk and put a hand on her chest while Blake cleared her throat and put her hands behind her back.

"The White Fang has regular faction meetings to hand out orders and recruit new members so if I can get in, I can hopefully find out what they're planning," Blake said with a professional tone of voice that would have made Ironwood proud before she along with Ruby and Weiss glanced at Yang who had a smirk on her face.

"I have an old friend on the shady side of town that typically knows everything going on in Vale. Getting information out of him shouldn't be too hard," the brawler stated confidently with her arms folded causing Blake and Weiss to roll their eyes while Ruby just smiled widely and nodded at what her sister stated before standing in the center of their room.

"Great, we'll meet up tonight near Yang to go over what we've found. Let's do this!" Ruby shouted while balling her hand into a fist and bringing her elbow back to her ribs causing her teammates to cheer in agreement.

"Yeah!" a sudden voice from behind yelled causing the scythe wielder, Weiss, Blake, and Yang to raise a brow and turn her head to the window to find Sun Wukong hanging from a tree branch with his tail.

"Sun!?" Blake exclaimed incredulously while she and her friends jumped back defensively before Yang briefly scratched her head before putting her hands on her hips.

"How did you get up there?" the brawler questioned the martial artist causing the monkey king to laugh softly and fold his arms.

"Ah, it's easy; I do it all the time," Sun responded in an upbeat tone of voice causing the heiress to widen her eyes before she glared at the martial artist and gripped the hilt of Myrtenaster tightly.

"You do what!?" Weiss stated angrily while about to point her rapier at the martial artist causing Sun to frantically wave his hands and shake his head causing the heiress to fold her arms and glower at the martial artist.

"I climb trees all the time. Anyway, are we finally getting back at the Torchwick guy because I'll admit Ruby, Blake and I need to get some pay back," Sun replied while using his tail to swing himself into the girl's room and stared at Team RWBY determinedly while Blake glared at Sun and stepped forward.

"We, are going to investigate the situation, as a team. And you, are not a part of this team," Blake retorted sharply and hoped the martial artist would get the point, but to her dismay, what she said didn't erase Sun's grin causing Ruby to scratch her head before stepping forward.

"Sorry Sun, we don't want to get friends involved if we don't have to," Ruby said in a much calmer, softer tone than her friend's causing Sun to raise a brow while Blake folded her arms as the martial artist broke out into a wide grin.

"Pfft, that's dumb; you should always get friends involved which is why I brought Neptune," Sun responded cheekily while pointing over his shoulder with his thumb toward the window causing Team RWBY to exchange glances with one another and walk over to the window where they saw Neptune standing as close to the wall as possible with a smile on his face.

"Sup, " the polearm wielder stated simply causing Ruby and Weiss to look at each other before the scythe wielder looked back at Neptune with a raised brow.

"How did you even get up here?" Ruby inquired confusedly causing Neptune to chuckle and before clearing his throat.

"I have my ways...but seriously though, can I come in? We're like, really high up right now," the intellectual pointed out causing Ruby to nod and extend her hand to Neptune who cautiously moved toward the young girl's hand and grasped it.

Putting her foot on the wall just in case, the scythe wielder slowly pulled Neptune into the room while Weiss placed a black glyph behind her team leader and slowly stepped back while pointing her two fingers at the glyph. With Ruby's surprising strength and the black glyph yanking Ruby back, they managed to pull the intellectual into the room causing Neptune's brow to raise before nodding.

"Thanks for the help you guys. Especially you, Snow Angel," Neptunte told the heiress with a wink causing Weiss to flush ever so slightly before nodding as Ruby clapped her hands together and moved toward the center of the room.

"All right; Sun, you go with Blake to the White Fang meeting. Neptune, you can go with Yang since she doesn't have a partner," Ruby stated causing Sun to grin at the black cat who glared at him in response causing him to rub the back of his head while Neptune went as stiff as board upon laying eyes on Yang forcing the scythe wielder to push him toward the brawler.

"Okay, everyone good?" Ruby asked her friends causing Blake to let out an irritated sigh, but nod the nonetheless while Yang raised a brow as Neptune tilted back and forth like a pendulum causing the brawler to put a hand on his shoulder to keep him in place.

"Actually Ruby, why don't you go with Yang? After all, she is your sister," Weiss stated while bashfully smiling at Neptune and tapping her index fingers together causing Ruby to raise a brow and glance at the heiress.

"But Weiss, who would go with you then?" Ruby pointed out causing the heiress to smile ever so slightly and put one hand on her hip.

"Well...I guess Neptune could go with me," Weiss replied while gesturing at the intellectual with her other hand while staring off to the side causing Ruby to tap her chin and look up at the ceiling before breaking out into a wide grin.

"Ha, ha, ha, nah!" Ruby responded while wiping a tear away with her index finger causing Weiss's grin to turn into a blank, annoyed expression before the scythe wielder grasped the heiress's arm and began to drag her out of the room.

"But, but!" Weiss protested while reaching out for Neptune before she and Ruby disappeared down the hall while Blake let out a huff and began walking down the hall with Sun walking beside her.

"Didn't you get the memo, kid? The White Fang and I are going in on a little business venture so to speak," Roman's voice rang through Blake's head mockingly causing the black cat to ball her hand into a fist and gnash her teeth before regaining her composure and stoically staring ahead.

"Everything okay?" Sun asked the former White Fang member concernedly causing Blake to blankly glance at her friend and softly sigh before nodding and continuing to walk down the hall with her arms folded.

"I'm fine," was Blake's curt reply causing Sun to raise a brow and nod slowly at what the black cat said as the duo made it to the landing area and boarded an air ship with Sun instructing the pilot to take them into Vale.

"Adam wouldn't work with someone like Torchwick willingly; something else is going on here," Blake mused with a hand on her chin while Sun briefly glanced at her before looking at the scenery below with his hands behind his head.


"Wilma, on your left!" Lacey warned her friend while trapping an Ursa Major's arm underneath her armpit when it attempted to behead her with its claws, blowing off half of a Lesser Beowolf's head with a well placed shot from her rifle when it tried to sink its teeth into her neck, and sending a creep flying across the destroyed pavement with a vicious front kick where it was impaled on a jagged piece of debris.

Widening her eyes, Wilma shakily brought up her large, rusty pipe and quickly glanced to the left where she saw a Greater Boarbatusk the size of an armored van hurtling toward like a pinwheel while being backed up by three Beowolves and an Ursa Minor. With her adrenaline flowing, the stout faunus dove to the side and grit her teeth as fresh scrape marks marred her legs before widening her eyes as the demonic boar easily barreled through the stone walls of a building causing the building to collapse causing the ground to violently shake. Shaking herself out of her stupor, Wilma turned back to her other foes and yelped as she barely managed to roll with the claw swipe of the Beowolf which still managed to rake against her face causing the reindeer faunus to tightly gnash her teeth together as she fell onto one knee.

Twisting her body to the side to avoid the monster's strike, Wilma let out a war cry and smashed the rusty pipe into the back of the Beowolf's knee as hard as she could causing the demon to let out an unpleasant wail and fall onto its back as the reindeer faunus ducked her head and rammed her antlers into the gut of the other Beowolf just as it attempted to tackle her to the ground. The blow elicited an inhuman cry from the monster who was sent crashing to the ground with oddly shaped holes marring its chest thanks to Wilma's antlers which were lightly coated with the Grimm's blood. With a furious shout, Wilma dove forward to avoid the charge of the Ursa Minor and when she got back to her feet, the reindeer faunus let out a shout and brought the rusty pipe down onto the fallen Beowolf's head.

The demon's head caved in with a sickening crack where the thick, tar like blood of the Grimm slowly spread across the pavement, but Wilma would get no reprieve as she heard something approaching her from behind and rolled to the side as the Boarbatusk tried to skewer her with its sharp, curved tusks. One of the Beowolves lept over the monstrous hog and brought its claws over its head like it was praising the sun before bringing its claws down on where Wilma's head was causing the reindeer faunus's eyes to widen and backpedal where the claws passed mere inches from her face.

Gasping as she bumped into the furry chest of the Ursa Minor, she suddenly felt strong arms firmly wrap themselves around her chest which pinned her arms against her chest and squeezed causing Wilma to grit her teeth as she felt as if her bones were being crushed into dust. She suddenly howled in pain when the pointy, sharp teeth of the Ursa Minor clamped themselves around her skull and pressed down on her head as hard as it could while the two Beowolves sank their teeth into her neck while savagely clawing and raking her chest. The Boabatusk backed up a fair bit and began to rapidly spin in place while the three young Grimm continued to maul Wilma who was thankful that her aura remained resolute as a castle wall as the Beowolves and Ursa Minor began wildy shaking their heads to and fro in an attempt to dislodge Wilma's head from her body.

Letting go of the rusty wipe, the reindeer faunus put her hands on the Ursa Minor's arms and tugged down on them which didn't make any headway in freeing herself, but suddenly dry heaved as the Greater Boarbatusk slammed into her gut making spit up a glob of saliva and making her pupils constrict. Despite all the damage Wilma was suffering, her aura stood strong giving her the chance to get her breathing back under control and grit her teeth as she dug her feet into the ground and attempted to flip the Ursa Minor over her shoulders.

Wilma was partially successfully in that the demon let out a surprised growl as it suddenly flipped over her shoulder, but kept its grasp on the reindeer faunus causing Wilma's maneuver to turn into a front flip with the Ursa Minor unintentionally impaling one of its canid brethren with the bony spikes jutting out of its back as it hit the ground. The other Beowolf collapsed on its arm as it's ankle agonizingly bent forward with a gut wrencing snap when the bulk of the Ursa Minor landed on it giving Wilma some breathing room. Hissing, the reindeer faunus repeatedly slammed her elbow into the side of the Ursa Minor as hard as she could causing the monster to let out a pained wail with each successive hit as the reindeer faunus saw the last Beowolf sprinting towards them in spite of its broken ankle out of the corner of her eye.

Bringing one of her feet back, the Wilma slammed the ball of her foot into the monster's throat causing it to let out an inhuman whimper as its jaw slammed shut and its neck twisted irregularly before it crashed to the ground deathly still. Just as the reindeer faunus brought her elbow back for another strike, the monstrous bear tightened its grip on her waist and continued to shake its jaw around with Wilma's skull in its mouth causing Wilma to gnash her teeth. She suddenly retched violently as the Boarbatusk smashed into them from the side like a freight train sending them crashing into a wall and making spider web cracks in the structure.

Feeling herself being pulled to her feet, Wilma cried out as the Ursa Minor spun her around and slammed her face first into the wall while diggings its claws into her ribs as the Greater Boarbatusk dug its fangs into her calf and viciously tugged while repeatedly slamming its tusks into the back of her legs. Even still, Wilma's aura continued to soak up the damage like a sponge causing the reindeer faunus to frantically look around for anything to use as a weapon and saw a piece of rebar sticking out of the wall. Gritting her teeth, Wilma slowly reached forward and freed the length of metal from the concrete with herculean effort and felt it brush against the Ursa Minor's thigh causing the White Fang goon to carefully aim her weapon.

Letting out a hiss as the Ursa Minor began diggings it claws onto the side of her face, Wilma forcefully stabbed downward causing the monstrous bear to let out an eerie, pained howl as the length of metal pierced its thigh like hot knife through butter where its thick, tarry blood plopped onto the ground. Forced to release its prey, the Ursa Minor stumbled backward while putting a paw on its thigh while the reindeer faunus freed her makeshift weapon from the demon's leg before the monster let out a wail as Lacey managed to fire off a burst from her rifle after being harshly swatted to the ground by an Ursa Major. With a final, weak groan, the demonic bear collapsed on its back with thumb sized holes in its skull causing the reindeer faunus to let out a sigh of relief before glaring at the Greater Boarbatusk who scraped the ground with its hoof causing Wilma to wince as it sounded like someone dragging their fingernails on a chalkboard.

"Okay Wilma, remember what Lacey said. It's belly is its weak point," the reindeer faunus whispered while breathing heavily as she began circling the demonic hog with the creature of Grimm standing its ground with its crimson eyes seemingly piercing the reindeer faunus's soul.

The large hog struck first and lunged at the reindeer faunus who planted her feet and braced for impact as Wilma slowed down the boar's charge by grasping one of its tusks while planting the length of rebar against the other one causing a large shockwave that sent rubble flying everywhere and causing her feet to sink into the ground. Gritting her teeth as her muscles strained from the effort while gradually being pushed back by the Grimm's greater strength, Wilma stabbed the rebar between the bony plates of the hog, but narrowed her eyes when she saw the length of metal not even penetrate the armor like skin of the monster. The demon seemed to snort contemptously and snagged Wilma's wrist in its tusks and with a simple, but forceful twist of its neck, caused the reindeer faunus to cry out as her wrist contorted in the wrong direction and her weapon was wrenched out of her hands. With a growl, the Boarbatusk sent the rebar skidding across the ground like a ball before biting down on Wilma's other hand with its long, sharp fangs causing the reindeer faunus to tightly shut her eyes before she felt herself being rapidly carried backwards.

Dry heaving and her pupils constricting once more as she was harshly slammed back first into a broken down armored van which caused the car to cave in, Wilma slumped down onto her butt as she felt the demon take a few steps back which dragged her along with it before it sprinted forward. Crying out as the hog simultaneously smashed its tusks into her face with a sickening crack and slammed the back of her head into the armored van, the monster repeated this action with Wilma helpless to do anything as one of her wrists was trapped in its tusks, one of her hands was stuck in its mouth, and her legs were trapped underneath the hog's bulk.

Even so, Wilma's unusually high aura weathered the blows and with a shout, smashed her head into the boar's head just as it attempted to ram her again causing it to let out a surprised yelp of pain and shake its head before continuing to harshly slam its tusks onto her face. Before the demon could do anymore damage, Lacey smashed the dead bodies of the Ursa Major she was fighting and an Alpha Beowolf into the boar's ribs like a runaway train eliciting an inhuman cry from the monster as it along with its dead brethren were sent crashing through the wall of a small house kicking up a copious amount of dust. Letting out a breathe and wiping away the sweat on her forehead with her forearm, Lacey knelt down next to Wilma who grinned warmly and waved at the sergeant.

"Hey Lacey, thanks for the help," Wilma gratefully told her friend who chuckled warmly and nodded as the reindeer faunus winced when she saw the myriad of superficial cuts and painful bruises marring Lacey's body through her torn clothes before she felt herself being pulled to her feet.

"Ow! No problem, but the fight's not over yet!" Lacey responded with a grimace and clutched her arm before handing the length of rebar to Wilma who nodded as the Greater Boarbatusk shook itself free of the debris and hurtled toward the duo at breakneck speed.

Wilma and Lacey rolled out of the way as the boar expertly turned left and careened toward the reindeer faunus who barely managed to dive to the side and rolled to her feet just as the hog was turning to face her again. Before that could happen, Lacey let loose a flurry of bullets from her rifle that impacted the side of the Greater Boarbatusk's ribs causing it to collapse on its side which Lacey was quick to take advantage of. Quickly closing the gap between them, Lacey shoved the demon onto its back and was about to run the hog through the chest with her sword, but the boar managed to trap Lacey's blade in its tusks as the last second and yanked the blade out of her hands.

Widening her eyes, Lacey's blood ran cold as the boar seemingly smirked at her and twisted its body in order to mount the sergeant and planted its hooves on top of Lacey's hand causing the sergeant to howl in pain as her hand felt like it was being run over by a car. Before the boar could finish Lacey by bringing down all of its weight onto her skull, Wilma bullrushed the demon and tackled it to the ground before she forced it onto its back and firmly wrapped her arms around its neck.

"Lacey, now!" the reindeer faunus shouted as the boar flailed its legs and twisted its body in an attempt to break free causing Lacey to regain her composure and nod as she planted the barrel of the rifle against the demon's gut.

Switching to lightning dust, Lacey screamed as she depressed the trigger and emptied round after round into the monster's gut who was still kicking its legs and when she saw the monster still flailing after tanking an entire clip, Lacey grabbed the piece of rebar. With a war cry, Lacey brought her makeshift weapon down onto the same spot she shot the boar and to her relief it penetrated the monster's gut causing the demon to let out a monstrous wail. Gritting her teeth, Lacey pushed the rebar in further as the tar like blood of the Grimm coated her hands before the length of rebar was almost completely in its belly. With its last ounce of strength, the Greater Boarbatusk lifted Wilma up and slammed her arm first onto the ground causing the reindeer faunus to let out an agonizing screech and release her grip on the monster before the demon ran full speed down the length of rebar. Lacey's eyes went as wide as saucers before she howled in excructiating pain as the Greater Boarbatusk smashed its entire body tusk first into Lacey's ribs causing the sergeant to feel as if she had been nearly impaled by a knight's lance before the back of her head harshly impacted the pavement.

Whimpering, Wilma grasped her numb arm tightly and dragged herself next to Lacey who was breathing errratically with her eyes shut tightly while tears ran down her face causing the reindeer faunus to put a hand on the sergeant's arm.

"Please...tell me...that killed it," Lacey requested while gritting her teeth and clutching her ribs causing Wilma to grimace and sit up before glancing at the demonic hog who was breaking down into black mist causing the reindeer faunus to let out a sigh of relief.

"We got it," Wilma responded with a slight grin of triumph causing Lacey to smirk slightly before whimpering and gritting her teeth causing the reindeer faunus to wrap her arms underneath Lacey's armpit and help her walk to the store they would be using as a rest area.

"Sheesh, do they have Grimm like this back in Menagerie?" Lacey incredulously inquired before grimacing and putting a hand on her ribs causing Wilma to chuckle as she attached the length of rebar to her backpack.

"Yeah, along with giant spider, crocodile, shark, snake, scorpion, and kangaroo Grimm, and that's not counting the acutal animals that live there," the reindeer faunus responded with a laugh causing Lacey to chuckle softly and with Wilma's help, attached her sword to her backpack and kept her rifle raised in order to scan for threats.

"Geez, with Grimm like this along with the most dangerous animals in the world, it's hard to imagine anyone can live in Menagerie," Lacey stated causing Wilma to purse her lips and look up at the sky before shrugging as causing the sergeant to raise a brow as the duo approached the side of the store with a ladder on the side of it.

"I guess I can see why you would think that, but the chief takes good care of the faunus living in Kuo Kuana," Wilma replied causing Lacey to raise a brow before gritting her teeth as she approached the ladder and put a hand and foot on it while letting out a pained breathe before the reindeer faunus put a hand on her back.

Seeing Lacey nod at her, Wilma helped the sergeant scale the ladder who would sluggishly lean against it or tightly grip the bar while shutting her eyes before continuing to slowly climb the ladder causing the reindeer faunus to worriedly glance at her friend. After what seemed like an eternity, the duo made it to the roof with Lacey briefly collapsing on her knees before picking herself up and leaning against a broken down heater and patting the ground next to her. Shutting her eyes tightly and gritting her teeth, Wilma sat down next to her friend and rolled her shoulder as she placed her backpack in front of her while leaning back against the heater.

"Have you seen the chief before?" Lacey inquired causing the reindeer faunus to shake her head as she pulled out a bag from her backpack which contained a sandwich causing Wilma to take it out and bite into it before she glanced back at her friend.

"I wish I did, but no. My family and I lived near the desert and Ashanti and I were usually too busy helping around the house to see the chief, much less his family. When we did have free time, we'd rather spend that time goofing off; I know his daughter joined the White Fang, but I have no idea what she looks like," Wilma answered while taking another bite of her sandwich causing Lacey to nod as she took out her own sandwich and chomped on it as the duo ate in silence before the sergeant awkwardly scratched the back of her head.

"Soooo...you and Ashanti are related then?" Lacey asked with her head tilted slightly causing the reindeer faunus to shake her head and take another bite of her sandwich causing the sergeant to raise a brow as Wilma stopped eating her sandwich and stared down at the broken floor.

"Not by blood, but my mom, dad, and I consider her to be apart of our family," Wilma answered with a warm grin before letting out a soft sigh and looking down at the floor once again causing Lacey to put a hand on Wilma's shoulder.

"What happened to Ashanti's blood relatives, if you don't mind me asking?" Lacey cautiously pressed and expected the reindeer faunus to glare at her and say "mind your own business," but Wilma simply rubbed her arm and put a hand on her leg.

"I'm sorry, it's not my place to tell you," Wilma politely told her friend who nodded and took a bite out of her sandwich before gazing at the reindeer faunus who wiped her mouth with her forearm and looked back at the sergeant.

"I understand. If you don't mind me asking, how was it like growing up in Menagerie?" Lacey warily asked her friend causing the reindeer faunus to purse her lips and look up at the sky before shrugging.

"Well, my family has only lived in Kuo Kuana for three years, but it's nice, I guess. Living along the coast was very dangerous, but as long as I stayed safe I had a lot of fun," Wilma answered causing Lacey to nod as she downed the last bits of her sandwich before pulling out a water bottle and chugging a part of it down before wiping her lips with the back of her hand.

"So how come your family decided to make the big move?" Lacey questioned causing Wilma to consume the last chunk of her sandwich and drink some water before grimacing a bit from her wounds and giving a shrug in response.

"I think my parents wanted me to grow up in a relatively safe environment, you know? I mean, the coast is very beautiful, but I guess they didn't want to worry about me contracting a disease or getting mauled by an animal or Grimm," Wilma replied while chugging down some water with a grimace and inhaled and exhaled a bit to cope with the pain as the reindeer faunus saw Lacey fidget a bit before rubbing the back of her head.

"It must have been hard," Lacey stated solemnly causing Wilma to nod slowly before patting the sergeant's shoulders and hiding behind the heater causing Lacey to follow suit as a pack of Beowolves menacingly trudged past them on the ground below.

"It was, and I know this is going to sound bad, but my parents made sure to fatten me up before the journey so when we ran out of food, my body still had something to eat," Wilma explained with an awkward gesture of her hand before patting her gut causing Lacey's blood to run as cold as a glacier and looked at her friend with wide eyes before enveloping the reindeer faunus in a hug despite the pain it caused her.

Jolting, Wilma hugged her friend back before Lacey broke off the hug and took a deep breathe in before letting it back out before scanning the area around them and gesturing at the ladder.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that," Lacey told her friend causing Wilma to smile and pat her friend's shoulder before the sergeant took out a vial of water dust and with effort, converted it into ice.

"Don't be, it's not your fault," Wilma assured her friend causing Lacey to grin as she placed the ice on her ribs and was about to wrap gauze around it, but the reindeer faunus took care of it causing the sergeant to nod gratefully at her friend.

Hearing her walkie talkie come to life, Wilma unclipped it from Lacey's belt and handed it to her friend who was using her backpack as a pillow before holding the device up to her lips and pressing down on the button.

"Hey Gates, how's clean up going?" Lacey asked her friend as the sound of food being munched on could be heard on the other line before the White Fang soldier cleared his throat and spoke into the device while Wilma's heard perked up when she heard an inhuman wail unlike any Grimm she heard before far off in the distance.

"It's going good; Ashanti and I got into a pretty nasty scrap with a Beringel, a horde of Creeps, and a group of Ursa Minors, but the Southern sector is clear for now. We're going to check on the Eastern sector so we'll meet up with you guys later to compare notes on Grimm activity," Gates responded as smoothly as he could causing Lacey to ignore the pain in her chest and hold down the button again as Wilma took out her length of rebar and clutched it in her hands tightly.

"Okay, keep me updated. If you're able, come to the roof of the store near our base and if you guys are too injured, we'll meet up with you at the apartment complex south of our base," Lacey responded causing Gates to voice his affirmative and shut off the device causing the sergeant to let out a groan as she grasped her rifle and scooted closer to Wilma.

"I know, I heard it too. Let's keep a low profile so whatever it is doesn't find us," Lacey calmly told her friend causing Wilma to nod slowly while her body shook ever so slightly and moved closer to the sergeant while taking out her rifle and checking how much ammo she had.

Though certainly not her fault, Wilma did fail to notice the old, irregular hoof print behind the store that didn't belong to any horse as another demonic scream far off in the distance made Lacey unconsciously scoot closer to Wilma who shuddered at the terrible sound.