Hey everyone! So I know this is a little later than I usually update my chapters, but with my new job and school now in full swing I have been trying to find as much free time as possible to write new chapters. With this chapter we are getting to where Roland is going to be having a much larger role in the fate of Huntsmen and Huntresses. Expect for things to take a pretty awesome turn in the future. As always please feel free to tell me what you think! Love you guys.

XXI

Roland slowly opened his eyes and found himself back in his village. It looked exactly like it did the evening he left to go hunting just two days before his village was destroyed. He looked around confused before he started to search the small huts for his friends and family. While the huts looked the same as they did that evening, nobody was to be found. After what felt like hours he finally returned to the center of the village and sat on a small stump to think.

Okay, somehow I've found myself back home. But where is everyone? There's no signs of the beowolves or anything living... He thought to himself as he tried to collect his thoughts. Am I dreaming? The last thing I remember is blacking out in the simulation room and hearing the rest of my team around me. He finally thought as he closed his eyes.

"You came back. You finally came back." Came a raspy voice from behind Roland.

Roland spun around to see the mutilated Head Priestess Vel standing there. Her throat was torn open and blood poured from it onto her robes. As she reached her left arm out to Roland, he noticed that her arm was mauled severely with flesh hanging off of it in patches. She took a step towards him, her right leg giving way as it buckled from the damage done to it. Roland backed away slowly as the figure struggled to approach him.

"Where were you, son? Where were you when your people needed you?" Roland heard as he backed into a figure resembling his father. He turned around and saw that this figure was even more mutilated than Vel. His father's face had been halfway torn off and his abdomen had large bite marks in it with organs exposed in spots.

As Roland backed away from the figures of his father and Vel, he noticed that more and more figures of his dead tribesmen started to morph around him. Each of them held out their hands at him, beckoning him to stay with them. Some were blaming him for their deaths while others cursed him for surviving. He fell to the ground and squeezed his eyes shut as the shades of his tribesmen surrounded him, their voices growing louder by the second. Roland let out a frustrated scream as they closed in on him.

"I'm sorry! I'm fucking sorry! It's not my fault! I swear to the Dust Mother herself that I would have died protecting all of you!" He yelled as the voices stopped. As he opened his eyes he found himself alone except for one figure that still stood before him. This figure was that of his mother. She looked down at her son and finally knelt down in front of him.

"No son, this isn't your fault. The Huntsmen and Huntresses, they did this to us. Just as I lost my team many years ago, you have lost your entire way of life. You will lose everything you hold dear to you if you continue to help these people." She said softly as she took her son's hand in her own.

"Mother, what am I to do? These people are so kind to me and I've made friends out of them. It is against the way of our people to abandon friends, especially those that take up the blade alongside you." Roland questioned the figure as he felt the warmth of his mother's hand in his.

"Fear not son. There will be a time and a place for you to make your own fate. Be wary of those that would call you their friends but would betray you when times get tough. The life of a Huntsman is one of strife, death, and regret. If you pursue this life then you may find yourself standing alone in front of the graves of your team. But if you help those that are against these glorified mercenaries, you may see a brighter future arise." The shade replied slowly, its warmth fading from its hand as the color in its skin faded to a deep blue.

Roland thought about what the figure was saying for a moment before realizing that the figure was starting to decay in front of him. Much to his horror, his mother's hand became freezing and her face started to morph into that of a skull. He fought to get his hand from hers but was unable to break free from it. Finally, Roland started to punch her arm with his metal fist until he heard the sound of the bones snap. This allowed him to wiggle his hand free of hers and as he fell back he felt the back of his head come to a rest on legs of yet another figure. As Roland looked up he found himself looking into the eyes of Professor Ozpin. The professor stared down at him and smiled an evil grin as the now deformed figure of Roland's mother came closer to him.

"Don't trust the Huntsmen, Roland. Kill the Huntsmen and all who look to them for guidance." The shade hissed as her hands came up to his throat and started to squeeze.

Roland shut his eyes tightly as he felt his throat start to collapse under the pressure of the figure's grip. However, right as he felt himself grow close to passing out he heard a familiar voice ring out to him from somewhere else.

"Mr. Egle. Mr. Egle, wake up. Wake up!" Came the voice before he felt a sharp slap across his face. Roland snapped his eyes open to find himself handcuffed to a bed in the infirmary again. He quickly looked around the room before noticing that the nurse from before was standing next to his bed, handcuff keys in hand.

"What happened? Why am I chained to this bed? Why are you here again?" Roland asked quickly as he struggled to move away from the nurse that he hazily remembered attacking him.

"Now Roland, is that anyway to react to seeing the only true friend you have in this world?" Cinder replied with a smile as she unlocked his handcuff and sat in the chair next to the bed. "How did you dream? It looked as if you were seeing some things you didn't really enjoy." She continued as she crossed her legs and sat back into the chair.

Roland sat up in the bed, rubbing his back with his metal hand. "How long have I been asleep?" He asked as he sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Cinder. Cinder wasn't dressed as a nurse this time. She was in a black uniform that looked like it belonged to a military unit of some sort.

"Oh, about the usual stay for you. You've been asleep for three days, Roland. I'd say it's about time you stopped being sent here every time you leave the dorm, wouldn't you?" Cinder said with a smug grin as she pulled out a nail file and started to groom her nails.

"What happened to me? The last thing I remember was fighting in the simulation room and then I blacked out." Roland said as he stretched before standing to change into his clothes. "You're not a nurse, are you? Why are you here?" He asked as he started to change.

"I was wondering when you would ask the real questions. In fact, I'm shocked you didn't attack me as soon as you saw me." Cinder replied, the smug expression still on her face.

"I remember the last time we got in a confrontation. I rather find out the truth about you without being drugged." Roland said as put on an undershirt before picking up his uniform's shirt.

Cinder reached into her pocket and pulled out a small syringe as Roland spoke. She stood up and approached him with it in her hand, placing her free hand on his bare chest before speaking.

"Speaking of drugging you. I hate to ask this of you but I need you to take the shot again. In fact, if you want answers then I'm going to need you to do what I ask." Cinder said before giving him a sensual smile and pulling the top off of the syringe. Roland quickly grabbed her hand with his metal hand.

"What is it? Is this why I've been having those dreams and blacked out?" Roland asked seriously, being sure to put only enough pressure on her wrist to assure her that he was serious.

"This, my dear Roland, is the future of mankind. As I am sure you have learned in classes, every creature with a soul has an aura and many are able to project their auras outward for protection. However, there are a few rare cases where a human is born without an aura. These people are starting to be born more rapidly than ever before and many are starting to fear what this could mean for humanity as a whole. In fact, some more ignorant people are starting to attack those without auras and treat them worse than even the faunus are being treated." Cinder replied, quickly getting to the point of why she has been targeting Roland.

"So you know my people are born without auras, correct? What, is that drug supposed to give me one?" Roland asked as he loosened his grip on her wrist slightly.

"Yes, we have been watching your tribe and many like it for some time now. At first we thought it was just a fluke that made people like you 'freaks of nature' so to say. Scientists and governments have grown keen to calling people and faunus like you 'barrens'. But after several years of closely monitoring your kind we have found that people like you have a very strange DNA mutation in them. One not so different than the faunus your tribe worshiped." Cinder spoke smoothly as she looked into Roland's eyes, never once daring to break eye contact with the man who could easily snap her wrist like a twig.

"DNA mutation? Look you got to slow down a little, lady." Roland said as he shook his head in confusion. "What does this all mean? Who is 'we'? What do you want with me, and why is that syringe in your hand?" He finally asked after a few moments.

"Yes, DNA mutation. It has been long thought that faunus are a new branch in human evolution. This of course led to the severe persecution and enslavement of them. Now there are humans being born without auras and thus don't have semblances. But then we find your tribe, the Dust Eaters. Your people have found a way to enhance people with a semblance they were not born with by infusing dust into their very bodies. The people I represent have thus found a way to infuse the human body to create a manmade aura. Granted, as you and a few others have shown, this can lead to severe reactions." Cinder said as she wiggled her wrist as she grew impatient at having to discuss so much with the young man.

"Okay…that actually gave me more questions than answers. But you still haven't told me what your people want with me or who your people even are." Roland said as he loosened his grip on her wrist so she could slide her hand out of his.

"I am an operative for a highly secret military unit, if you must know. And we want you to be an agent for us. There are many that feel that the Huntsmen and Huntresses have failed the people of the world and want to see them taken down a few notches. That is why we have selected you, Roland. You are an outsider if you like it or not. As a warrior you have seen what a strong backbone and a will to survive has brought those without the so called protection of Huntsmen or Huntresses. I'm sure you haven't be able to tell because you are still young and know little about the way things really work behind the scenes, but the life you are training to lead is not what it seems. Men like Professor Ozpin are not what they seem, Roland. If you work alongside me then I promise you answers. But right now I have ran out of time to just sit here and talk ideally with you. Allow me to give you this injection so your body can become used to the serum. As long as you continue to have this serum then the dreams and seizures will vanish." Cinder said as she rubbed her wrist. She quickly began nervous as she realized how long she had been talking with Roland. She needed to give him the shot and get out quickly before her cover would be blown.

"What exactly is that serum? What does it do?" Roland questioned her after a few seconds of thought.

"It's the future of mankind, Roland. Imagine people and faunus of all kind being able to have stronger auras than ever before. Imagine having a semblance so powerful that you could destroy a hundred Grimm with your bare hands. That is what this serum can bring you. We are using barrens as an experiment to show that it can even help even those without auras protect themselves and fight. I promise we will talk again soon, just trust me. You have to take this shot and I have to get out of here." She said quickly as she offered Roland the serum.

Roland looked at the syringe cautiously as he thought about everything the strange woman before him had said. He hesitated but then finally took the syringe and put it against his arm before looking up at Cinder. She smiled slightly as he injected the serum into his arm, the liquid burning slightly as it entered his blood stream. He didn't feel anything like he did last time as he pulled the syringe out of his arm and handed it back to the woman.

"Good, it looks like your body has already taken to the serum. You shouldn't feel any drowsiness this time and the dreams will start to go away in a few days. Thank you Roland. And as promised, we will be in touch with you shortly to discuss these matters in greater detail and to talk about what we need you to do in return." Cinder said with a sly grin before moving towards the window and opening it.

"How will you get in touch with me?" Roland asked as he watched her leap up onto the windowsill before she turned back to face him.

"Don't worry about that, we have our ways." She said with a wink before stepping out of the window and onto the grass below her. She then dashed out of sight before Roland could even reach the window to look after her.

As Cinder ran along she quickly got in contact with her commander. Shortly after making contact with him she came to a stop behind a building and crotched low as she spoke into her headset.

"Did you recruit him?" The commander asked impatiently after a short explanation as to why she was late making her call to him.

"Yes sir, I am confident that he will be a good asset in our coming operation." Cinder replied calmly.

"Good job Lieutenant. Stay low for a few days, we'll be moving to the new phase in our operation shortly." The commander said happily before ending the connection with Cinder.