Getting closer to 40 now, that'll hopefully be a dose of excitement. Some things about the novel of last chapter. Pipsqueak saw the prison as crazy because, as a child (a very anime-esk child) seeing people in cages would no doubt bring a lot of questions up. The Latin speaking soldier will have a larger part at another time, just know his name is Hadrian Ferro. Yeah, that Hadrian, my fellow historians.

Anyway, this time it's back with the Abandoned, with more focus around Raiko in some sense. Hope you enjoy this chapter, which isn't 23,000 words. Sorry, but novels in the forms of chapters are a bit too long for me.

"...causality numbers are low, with only two deaths. Auxiliaries Arthur and Damos, under the command of Captain Foxtrot. Those in the towers were knocked out by a chemical gas, while the squad guarding the hunters that escaped suffered more physical forms of unconsciousness."

"..."

"The reports state that the huntsmen teams that escaped include CRDL, SSSN, NDGO and CFVY. Three of the high value prisoners were also-" The Legate was interrupted by Raiko shouting and slamming a fist into a tree, shattering the base and causing the old oak to collapse.

"Vulcan, where are they?" The Link snarled as he glanced at his taller ally, who had a frown of worry on his face.

"We don't know, the person responsible is currently on the loose. Trust me, Raiko, we will find them." Vulcan stated firmly, placing his mechanical arm over his chest. "I promise that."

"Promises have been losing their meaning, Captain Foxtrot will be reminded of that." Raiko snapped, his expression of pure anger.

"The Captain may have failed, sir. However, he's only been in command for a month now. Give him time-"

"Time has already been wasted, Vulcan. I sent that colosseum with Captain Glare two days ago, now we are weak. If news of this event reaches outside ears, Atlas may take the chance to attack. Our men may be strong, but we are still outnumbered." Raiko said with a sigh, sitting down on the stump of the oak. "It was a month right? One month until we have the reinforcements?"

"Two weeks, three at most." Legate Vulcan replied, moving to rest on one knee. "Vale has numbers, enlistment could be an option."

"Not yet." The Link grunted. "We do not have their trust yet, or the means to properly train these people." Raiko continued waving a hand at the city below them, at the people within its streets. "When they are forced into a war, perhaps then we shall begin enlisting civilians." Raiko finished, dropping his hand but keeping his purple gaze over the city. Vulcan however ignored the view to stare at the Link himself with concern.

"You are troubled." He stated finally. "About the girl."

"Velvet is irrelevant at this time, once we have found where she and her friends are hiding, I will personally see to her execution." Raiko snapped with a scowl, yet his Legate shook his head.

"You won't execute her, I already know that. Mark her and just be done." He said, almost begging to the Link.

"I'd rather a living hand take her, not by them." Raiko grunted firmly, crossing his arms and glaring at the Legate.

"Fine. Just don't let your emotions get in the way of leading us, Raiko." Vulcan warned before standing up, stretching his mech's arms and starting towards the cliff face. The pair of Centurions on his shoulders exchanged a glance before both disappeared from Raiko's view, the distant thud of the mech slamming into the ground echoing in his ears.

"If only I could." Raiko whispered before turning and walking towards Beacon, ignoring the black haired woman leaning against a tree a few metres away. She had a blank expression, one that never changed as she watched him leave the gardens. The academy was desolate, barely anyone walked its grounds anymore. Only hollow Centurions, the Link himself and very rarely any other soldiers. Some sort of taboo has been put upon the school, Raiko had a few theories, mainly the location being home to those that they now hunt.

There is one idea that he harbours privately, deep within his mind. It's that some of the soldiers fear him. Their stares, or lack of, unnerved him. He knew that the Link was to lead his armies to defeat the hunters that had betrayed their ancestors, but he also knew of how some went-

"Ave, sir. News from Captain Foxtrot." The Link blinked and turned to find a Legionnaire, saluting and holding his head high.

"This better be good." Raiko muttered then gestured for the man to continue.

"The one responsible for the breakout has been found and captured, the Captain is bringing him as we speak." The man reported, giving the Link a reason to keep that Captain around a little longer.

"Good, tell Captain Foxtrot that I will congratulate him personally for his efforts." Raiko said, a warm smile on his face. The soldier coughed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Ah, thing is sir, the Captain didn't actually do much. It was mostly Alex and Sam, with one other soldier popping in out of nowhere and knocking the coward out." The Legionnaire said nervously, his helmet looking out in thought. "Weirdly, I've never seen armour like that..."

"So, Foxtrot is taking credit?" The Link asked coldly, staring down at the man. "Ignore what I said, simply tell him I'll be waiting." He waved the soldier off and sighed, watching the man march off towards the docks. Then a Centurion passed his gaze, he glanced at it once then back at the soldier. The Link blinked and turned his head completely towards the knight, finding quite the sight.

Upon the Centurion's head, resting against his solid plume, was a tiny corgi. Sleeping blissfully with shallow breaths as the soldier lumbered around, both seemingly fine with the strange situation. The Link noticed the extra 'clunk' to the Centurion's jerky strides, peering at the midsection of the knight he found what looked like a white block, which was joined by a number of cans of dog food. Raiko couldn't get an answer even if he wanted, the Centurions were silent. No matter what, not even if they had a body again, they'd never speak.

Raiko shrugged and turned away, walking deeper into Beacon and towards a place that he had declared his own. He opened the door and stepped into the Music Hall, standing there in the doorway for a second to stare at the clean room. Vulcan had advised he do something to fight off boredom, so Raiko did the one thing that he felt needed to be done.

"Hmm. Goodwitch was right, it was a pity that nobody learns these arts anymore." Raiko said to himself as he ran a hand over a violin, far more clean now than in years. The purple eyed teen turned his gaze towards the pipe organ that dominated the wall, now smashed and ruined. The keyboard was bent and charred, while the pipes were melted and wrought. All because of her. "Damnit." Raiko snapped as he remembered tearing the instrument apart for its constant reminders, but it did little to completely halt her face in his mind.

The Link slammed a fist into the pipe organ and grunted, pulling back and watching the keyboard completely fall off. With that, Raiko left. No longer quite as interested as before to calm his nerves. It wasn't his fault though, well it wasn't just his fault. Many problems flew around in his head, almost one thousand. One thousand souls, one thousand thoughts, one thousand maddening emotions. Raiko knew that the Link's power wasn't a light burden, it was usually gifted to a child of Regnum Aes at the young age of six or seven. But from his own investigations, he found that many of the previous Links went insane early on.

Raiko shivered at the feeling of unease, he ignored it and glanced at his hands. His pale palms were sweaty, however what attracted his attention most was the tips of his fingers. They were charred black, skin that looked like coal or stone. This wasn't the only injury though, his shoulder ached from the multiple dislocations and his chest had newer scars around his ribs. The unfortunate curse of the Link, the Semblance of every past soul who held the name, but unable to wield every single one without consequences.

He blinked and stared back at the pipe organ, finding the wreck with confused eyes. Why did he break it? It didn't hurt him, did it? The Link shook his head and walked out of the room, not exactly knowing the purpose of entering the Music Hall.

Somewhere in Beacon, Denty the Centurion stomped towards the third head-pole that he had found. The knight found the first near the edge of a cliff, overlooking a big forest. He soon decided that he and his friend would find the rest. Of course, his little friend didn't mind as he snoozed atop the knight's head. Denty didn't turn his gaze from the tunnel vision on the other side of the gardens, both for his friend's sake and to complete his self-issued mission. Now that he thought about it, this was like a game! Denty liked games, but there wasn't anyone around that would play with the knight.

His musing was interrupted when he reached the carving, which stood before a bird fountain. The stone bowl had a few visitors, mostly sparrows, that were enjoying the water. Denty took the time to watch quietly, intently examining the avians with intense silence. The silence was only broken by Zwei, who awoke and let out a yawn. While it wasn't a loud sound, it still startled the birds enough for them to fly away. The Centurion reached out in vain to try to stop them, but stopped himself before he injured the tiny creatures.

Zwei tilted his furry head at the change of scenery, but accepted the change without a problem. His steed's movements were strangely comfortable, once he had gotten over the noise. The Centurion's left shoulder hovered up as he reached for the newest carving, placing it in the hollow socket with the other two, making a light bang against the metal. Denty turned his body slowly and took another moment to turn his gaze towards the main school. The knight had more than enough time on his hands, since the Link wasn't taking the chance to move a larger force out of Vale. So he explored the entirety of the interior, picking up many trinkets and other things on the way. After that, the exterior was next and the discovery of the first totem head.

Denty popped his arm into open segments, the screeching metal making Zwei react with a far too human wince. From the arm plates, a small doll fell into his waiting grasp. It was simple, wearing a little white dress and having a white ponytail off one side of the head. While it had horrendous craftsmanship, it was a unique find from one of the dorms. The Centurion's body shook ever so slightly, almost like a child who couldn't wait for an adventure. He held the toy with a gentle grip, light enough for... say a small corgi to tear the doll from his gauntlets.

Suddenly, Denty was tearing after the tiny dog, stomping and flinging his body this way and that. The pair passed a certain black haired huntress, who stood dumbfounded as the hulking knight swung his hands in a vain attempt to grap his toy back. At least now she could get her mind off her daughter.


Sam sat on a bench in some park, simply staring at the ground. His halberd rested against his shoulder, the blackened blade staring at the sky with red eyes. The golden eyed boy wasn't feeling anything at that moment, well other than sadness. He had heard from one of the soldiers that last night there wasn't one death, but three. Thankfully, that number should be only two thanks to the efforts of hospital staff, but while one may live two are dead.

Men of Regnum Aes... dead. It didn't seem possible in his own mind, not even a slight thought of the Abandoned losing men. The Breach wasn't counted, those soldiers were turned into martyrs fighting for the glory of the Link. These men? They died cruel deaths, deaths meant only for huntsmen.

"Sam." A voice called and the boy looked up, finding Alex walking towards him. His twin wore a concerned expression as he approached, his familiar greatsword resting on his shoulder. "Radioman is on air at the moment, come on." Alex said and gestured the way he came, yet his brother shook his head and remained seated.

"Not in the mood." He muttered, still torn apart by the deaths. Alex sighed and stepped closer.

"Sam, enough." He snapped and dragged his twin to his feet, letting the halberd hit the ground. "You are a soldier, you should expect deaths in this time. Do not allow the passing of two hinder you or any others, we must stay strong for our ancestors. For our family." Alex stated firmly, glaring into the eyes of Sam. The twins stared at each other with emotions of hate and anger, then Sam chuckled and cracked a grin.

"Man, I was turning into Felix there, eh?" He laughed and slapped Alex's shoulder before kicking his halberd up into his hand. "Yeah, let's go listen in. I'm waiting for some recognition for taking down that dapper bastard." Sam said cheerfully, walking off and leaving Alex to stare after his brother. It was obvious that he wasn't alright, but he couldn't dwell on it. The glory of battle numbs those feelings, at least for him. Speaking of glory, where was Raiko's banner?

"Hmph." Alex snorted and wandered after Sam, shrugging the thought away.

They both entered a street that was home to a gathering of soldiers, mostly Pathfinders and Legionnaires. The flamethrowing troopers sitting around a small radio, while the heavier soldiers stood and leaned against walls. All in all, about eleven people were there, including both twins and a small boy who was perched atop a Pathfinder's knee. The street kid wore scrappy clothes and a trench coat, probably stolen. Alex and Sam arrived just to hear the end of the Radioman's report.

"Ah, you were too slow!" One of the soldiers jeered, chuckling to himself.

"Oh! Turns out we got some more news!" The small radio cried in excitement, causing Sam to flash a smug grin at the man. "From the sounds of things, one Hadrian Ferro has in fact assisted and successfully arrested the one responsible for the second breakout of Vale. Come on guys, keep those prisoners in check. Like seriously, these huntsmen have been proven to be a danger to everyone. Ignoring the safety of civilians to attack rescuers, committing crimes and goddamn lying to everyone!" The man's voice roared, silencing the group as they stared at the radio. "That's all for now folks, enjoy this piece from Your Chemical Breakup. I need a moment."

As the music played, the boy piped up. "He seemed pwetty cwanky, and what did the huntsmen lie about?" It was an innocent question, but one that one of the Pathfinders was more than eager to answer.

"I'll let you in on a little secret that the hunters kept, yeah?" He suggested cheekily, adopting an accent. "There's actually a really bad person, like think a big ol' bully but even worse, that controls the nasty Grimm." He let out a bark of laughter at the child's expression of surprise and awe. "Yeah! I didn't even know until my friend, the Link told me." That got the others to laugh in amusement, with Alex surprisingly being the loudest. "So the huntsmen hid this from all of us, even though they didn't even try to stop them! Imagine that."

"I'm imagining what the Link will do when he hears of this." Another soldier pipes up, catching a glare from the soldier.

"Umm." The boy said uncertainly, twiddling his thumbs. "Who's the Link?" Once again the question was an innocent one, but it seemed slightly out of place in the eyes of Alex.

"He's our Commander, our boss." The twin grunted, shooting a glance at Sam. His brother mistook the silent gesture and smiled at the boy.

"The Link is a great warrior, far better than all of us. Thanks to-" Sam doubled over as Alex played off the albow to the gut as a stretch, staring at the soldiers around him.

"Back to work, you have patrols that need to be done." Alex stated frimly, jerking his head to the side. The soldiers grumbled but stood up, the Pathfinder lowering the boy down gently before hauling his flamer into his hands.

"Let's get back to the grind, boys." He said sarcastically and lead half of the men away down the street, while the other half took both the radio and the other way. All that was left was the boy, Alex and Sam. Alex leaned down to the boy.

"I'll be keeping an eye on you." He grunted and stood up, turning and walking away. Sam followed after with a confused expression.

"What the hell is up with you?" He asked curiously, raising an eyebrow.

"That kid stole that guy's coin, three of them, all in his back pocket." Alex answered, gaining a look of surprise that caused him to snort with amusement. "I may be the most beaten down, but I'm not blind. Now let's get back to Beacon, Raiko wants us there." The twins wandered off in silence, one calm and the other looking back and trying to find the boy.

Felix. That name was despised among most of the Pathfinders. That single Auxiliary has caused far too many problems, all due to either an outburst in a bar or an outburst outside a bar. So thus, about almost every bar in Vale had three or so beefy soldiers on constant watch for the shark faunus. Vex was one such soldier on duty, thought calling it a duty was being kind. It was boring, watch the same people walk in then out a few hours. Just the same old people. Nothing new. Just... the same.

"Hey, eyes up." His partner called, pointing out a particular man stumbling towards them. He wore the uniform of an Auxiliary, but it was in ruin. Stained and covered in something foul, even his once shining mask was dull. Felix wore an enraged snarl, his sharpened teeth equally filthy as his clothes.

"Sweet fuck." The second soldier muttered in disgust, moving through the crowd. Vex and the other man followed, pushing their way towards the drunk. Felix let out a guttural laugh and stumbled against the wall, leaning on in and staring at the three soldiers.

"S-su-sup, ca-can I g-gets a dr-dren-drink?" Felix slurred, somehow still conscious enough to poke Vex in the chest. The Auxiliary glared behind his mask and flicked the hand aside.

"Felix, you're filthy, get back to the camp." He ordered, only for the other faunus to scowl.

"Ge-get fu-fulk-fucked." Felix sneered and laughed, suddenly doubling over. He emptied himself of his most recent meal, almost directly onto the boots of Vex. Fortunately, he moved back before the vomit could hit. Felix stood up again and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, doing little to clean his face and only smear the disgusting mess across his face. The man next to Vex shivered.

"Get out of here." One of the soldiers barked, stepping forwards and shoving the Auxiliary.

"F-fuck off! You din-didn't ha-have yor-your best friend f-fucking killed, oni-only to be cawl-called a fucking ma-mar-martyr!" Felix shouted, stepping forwards and attempting to shove the other man. Unfortunately, the second soldier next to Vex stepped forwards to meet him and gave a swift cross punch to the jaw. Felix reeled around and smacked into the wall, sliding down it with an expression of shock.

"You're a disgrace to the Abandoned, and a disgrace to Regnum Aes." The soldier spat and kicked the fallen drunk's gut. "Conor died a true soldier, all you're doing is trying to desecrate his glory." Another kick. "All you've done since he's died is fucking cause problems!" Another kick. "Now Captain Crimson has us watch out for your sorry ass instead of reinforcing the border!" Another kick. "We came to kill huntsmen!" Another kick. "Not our brothers-!"

"That's enough!" Vex snapped and tore the man off Felix, throwing him back. "Watch your tongue, we are here to protect Vale." The man snarled, but soon noticed the crowd around them. The soldier spat to the side and stormed off, followed by the other man. Vex watched them leave and knelt down next to Felix, hearing the sobbing even louder now.

"I j-just wanted min-my free-friend here." He whispered. "Now he's gone." The Auxiliary sat there for a few hours, watching over the broken man. The man who once called himself a true soldier.


On the Beacon airpad, Raiko stood with his arms crossed. There was a pair of Centurions behind him, adopting their usual stance with their rapier held pointed at the ground. His purple eyes were locked on the Vulture approaching the academy, one that held Captain Foxtrot and the one who was responsible for the crime of freeing the hunters. The Link felt his blood boiling but quickly calmed himself, he would have another time to release it.

The airship slowly descended as the side door was thrown open, revealing a smug looking Foxtrot. He leapt from the Vulture to the ground and slapped off a salute, completely full of himself from the Link's perspective.

"Ave, the prisoner is onboard."

"You aren't." Raiko stated, getting a flinch from the man.

"W-well I was just-" The Captain babbled, ignored by the Link as the aircraft finally landed. Then a pair of Legionnaires appeared dragging out a suited man, a thick bag over his head. Though Raiko noticed that there was one person missing from the group, the soldier that actually caught the figure.

"Where is the soldier who captured this man?" Raiko asked calmly, turning his glare back to Foxtrot.

"I-I did, sir."

"So you say, Captain Foxtrot. That remains to be seen and proven." The Link snapped and gestured for the other two men to follow him, but stopped when a voice spoke up.

"Ah, so it's you." It came from the prisoner, slightly muffled. "I'm important enough for you, Raiko?" There was a chuckle, which was made into a grunt of pain when one of the Legionnaires smashed a fist into his gut.

"Silence, scum." The other barked and they started towards the tower, hauling the coughing man with them. Captain Foxtrot and Raiko stood alone on the platform, only the pilot and the other two Centurions as their company. Foxtrot was sweating as the cold stare from Raiko pierced his soul. Then the Link turned and walked away, leaving the Captain to re-evaluate his position. Of course that was a second priority, his thoughts were primarily focused on getting the hell out of Beacon and thus he hopped back onto the aircraft and watched the academy fade into the distance.

Sam and Alex arrived within a few minutes of the good Captain's departure, finding the knights still standing out on the platform as they were dropped off. Sam walked up to one and looked it up and down.

"You going to lead us to Raiko, or do we have to find him ourselves?" He asked sarcastically, putting the pair into motion as they turned and began to stomp with jagged and jerky movements. Alex cuffed the back of his twin's head as he walked past. "Hey, the hell was that for?" He snapped, getting a backwards glance and smirk.

"Just for old times." Alex answered and waved him up. "Let's not keep him waiting."

"Man, this place used to be bustling, now it's a ghost town." Sam noted as they walked the eerie grounds. "Not another person in sight, I've said this before, but the huntsmen would be a welcome change from constant silence mixed with grating metal." One of the Centurions turned his helmet, like an owl, to gaze at the boy. Sam flinched. "Don't fucking do that!" He shouted out of reflex, surprising himself when the knight seemed to flinch much like he did before turning back.

"Centurions are too similar to kids." Alex grunted with a shiver, Sam nodded in agreement.

"Honestly, they'd be better at being babysitters than people sometimes, eh?" Sam chuckled. "Hell, even giving one an animal would... be... amusing." Sam trailed off as he caught sight of another of the strange knights, this one had a dent in its chest, who was running after a small corgi which had a doll in its mouth. "How the-"

"Don't bother." Alex interrupted, patting his brother's shoulder. "Not even I would ask." They continued onwards, the Centurion and the dog disappearing around a corner. Soon they found themselves outside the door of one of the combat classes, now refurbished into a makeshift interrogation room. Alex opened the door and found a small crowd in the upper stands, all soldiers holding blunt weapons.

"FILTHY HUNTSMAN SCUM." A voice scratched up into the stands as the twins joined the crowd. "YOUR PAIN IS NOTHING COMPARED TO WHAT WILL BE GIVEN TO YOUR ALLIES." It was a harsh voice, garbled and unknown. Raiko himself stood with his hands on a table in the centre of the arena, staring at the pair in front of him. Opposite him was a Legionnaire, sturdy and thicker armour with a green stripe running down his arm. Lieutenant Brutus was throwing heavy punches at the prisoner, holding him up with one hand and savagely striking his chest and ribs with his other. Umber himself could do little due to the ropes around him except grunt with each punch, his Aura long since gone.

Sam and Alex watched as Brutus tossed the dapper teen backwards towards the table, where he slammed into it and slowly slid off. The Link glanced down at the teen and nodded at Brutus, turning and pointing up into the stands at the twins. They got the message and leapt over the railing, landing with heavy thuds.

"You started without us." Sam stated with a hint of hurt, Raiko just nodded.

"You took too long." Was the reply as Brutus dragged the tied up Umber into a discarded seat, giving one last punch to the gut before turning and saluting to the Link.

"CAPTAIN CRIMSON IS REQUESTING MY PRESENCE, IT WAS A PLEASURE DOING BUSINESS." The Lieutenant chuckled deeply, walking towards the locker rooms to get up into the stands. Alex cracked his knuckles and stepped forwards, but Raiko rested a hand on his shoulder.

"I think physical pain will do nothing more, though it will still be an option." He said calmly, getting a gruff grunt in agreement. Soon Alex and Sam stood on either side of Umber, the teen himself slumped in his bounds. Raiko pulled out his own seat and sat down, staring at the blank mask on the teen's face. There was silence as the Link merely stared at the breathless teen, though eventually it was broken when Sam groaned and harsly pulled up Umber's head. Umber glared silently at the twin before turning to the Link.

"You always were different, like me in another time." Umber hummed, coughing a few times.

"Different upbringing, different personality." Raiko responded with a nod, causing Umber to chuckle.

"Quoting my words, strange to hear them said back." He stated, tilting his head. "Though I'm not here to be quoted, or killed."

"No, you aren't." Raiko agreed, crossing his arms. "Though an execution could be arranged." The Link said casually, smiling at the dapper teen. Umber let out another pained chuckle, shaking his head.

"Should've arranged it sooner." Suddenly, Umber threw his arms up and stood up. Alex was already moving forwards, but was caught off guard when Umber turned and grabbed his outstretched arm and yanked. While he was pulled forwards, Alex felt another hand grab his helmet and direct him downwards. Right towards the table. With an echoing bang, the dapper teen released the teen and stared at the Link. Alex, while dazed, could see the dent in the table. Once more, silence reigned.

Until Sam let out a giggle.

"He got you good."

Then the soldiers leapt from the stands.

Ah, another chapter and another spot of Umber, he's been getting the spotlight eh? Anyways, I'll probably have another chapter after this to continue it, or I might actually see what Jaune and that are up too. Hell, maybe even Chirpy will get a chapter. I'll have to think about it, just know that Randy the mailman has left Vale.

Right, so a little look into my head. I'm thinking that the Legates, yes plural, will be the Link's advisors. Something like that, so they get the honor of saying Raiko's name. Captain Foxtrot will get replaced, but not now, not enough soldiers to be good candidates. Felix is going through hell for the reason of causing trouble, thus interfering with the mission and making it harder for the Abandoned to earn Vale's trust (just in case you didn't understand the hate train). That's about it for any important stuff, at least I think. Leave a review if you want and I hope you enjoyed