Reviewer Acknowledgement

Parker- Yes, I have indeed gone into the raid. We just got past dogs and into gauntlet at the time I am typing this up. We will probably never finish, but a man can dream.

Re Drum- I believe I will, and I plan on going back soon and fixing up all the chapters for spelling mistakes and grammar mistakes that I missed in the other once overs I did.

I carefully stalk through the bushes in my new garb, with my carefully dyed hair and lacking my headphones so my natural ears are on full display. It was easier to slip out of Ansel than I thought it would be, so easily in fact that I saw some children doing it. That is one thing that's going to have to be brought up to the guards later.

Wait, focus on the task at hand, me. Following the trail of Faunus was extremely easy, with broken twigs and footprints everywhere, all converging on a single inconspicuous building hidden away by overgrowth. It looks to be an old storage building, so I look for any other entrance rather than the front and I spot a busted-out window that has a tree branch leading right on inside, so I mark that as my way in. Ensuring that there is nobody watching the area, I scale up the tree and stealthily make my way into the building.

There are a few floodlights here and there, powered by small generators, that provide some light. Of course, it makes it harder for anybody down there to see up here in the shadows because their eyes are acclimated to the lights. I step off the branch and onto a steel beam, hoping that it doesn't make any sound or fall right away. My hopes are answered as it stays put and doesn't emit any sound.

The front door is closed by two White Fang mooks and the chatter that had been filling the air died down. A few seconds later, the sound of boots alerted everyone to the presence of someone on the stage. New lights flooded the area and I nearly let out a sigh when I saw who it was. Big, burly, and black haired Banesaw, lumbering about like he owned the place. At least it wasn't Adam, he probably would have had something better to do, like angst about losing Blake or something.

"Welcome, brothers and sisters!" He spread his arms out. "I am pleased to see that you all have come tonight to join our righteous cause, to show that the Faunus are not animals, that we are to be respected and feared!" There was a smattering of applause at that. "How many of you here have been discriminated against because of your heritage? How many times have you been given the short end of the stick, or the sharp point of a blade?!" A few hands raised and there were some people that put their hands against scars. "We are better than that, and the humans and the Schnees need to see that."

He pulls out his chainsaw and revs it. "We need to show them that when they put us down again and again, we will not just take it like wounded cowards! We will fight back, we will break them, and take all that which is rightfully ours!" A few cheers ring out over the sound of the chainsaw and then it takes over the entire building. Banesaw waits for the noise to die down before he continues. "I will tell you now, that this will not be easy, that it will put you on the bad side of the law, but who cares about the law when it is what puts us Faunus in the dirt?!"

The cheers are louder. "There will be even some of our brothers and sisters out there that look down on you for being in the Fang, but that just means they're cowards. There is one that we have been looking to get rid of because she has been hampering our progress towards freedom. Anybody that kills her and proves her death will receive an automatic promotion in the Fang!" A banner rolls down at the back of the stage and I have to stop myself from smacking my face, which is what's showed on the banner. "Echo Arc! She has been working with the Huntsmen and Huntresses of Vale to bring us to the law!"

There are a few in the crowd that look taken aback by this. They're people I recognize. One of them is the mailman, another is a baker that lives close to the training complex. These people I recognize back away from the main group, forming a smaller group nearer the back of the building. I see Banesaw look at them, and my eyes narrow. It's clear that he's not going to let them out of here if they're going to go tell about this. I huff and start clapping. His attention darts up to me and he groans.

"Ritz, I didn't know you would be here." He puts the chainsaw down and I drop off the beam. I land among the larger group of Faunus, the ones that I don't recognize. "Did you come here for a reason?"

I inspect my nails, walking up to the stage. "Not really. I was just travelling, stocking back up on a few things when I heard about this little get together. Felt bad that I wasn't invited, so I let myself in." I step onto stage and look out among the gathered Faunus. "I doubt any of these guys have the backbone to kill her. I'll have it done in a week."

He grumbles. "If I had known you were in the area, you would have been told. And what do you gain from killing her? You're already higher up than I am."

I tap at his chest, and he gulps heavily. "I gain the amusement of watching her convulse on the ground, or floor, and die slowly. The light fading from her eyes, froth spilling out of her mouth. And her heartbeat slowly stilling until it doesn't beat anymore." I break out into a psychopathic grin and clap my hands giddily. "Oh, it is the best feeling." I walk to the back of the building and open the door just enough to slip out. "Don't wait up on me! Toodaloo!" I step out and the door closes.

Time to kill the batwoman!

0-0-0

The rest of the time before my plan is enacted is spent dillying and dallying around Ansel with the team, and then Pyrrha shows up. She's an absolute hit in the town, and people can't get enough of her. She comments on my new clothes, saying she likes them. I thank her and say that it was about time for a style change anyways. We can't all look good in the same outfit all the time, to which she agrees. I feel that she's subtly jabbing at my style, but I let it slide.

We're all sitting in the café's open-air seating now, sipping at our teas and coffees. Ren and Nora got some jasmine tea, while Pyrrha got a wild herb tea from Mistral. Jaune took his coffee with three creams and two sugars while I took mine with no cream, no sugars, but and added dose of tetrodotoxin! Don't know why the local clinic had it, but it's just what I needed. I added it when everyone was getting their drinks from the waitress. I made a show of flirting with her while I added the vial of toxin to my drink.

That was about ten minutes ago, and I'm starting to really feel the effects of it. My vision is going in and out and I'm having to hold back tremors in my hands. Everyone stands up and I go to follow them, but I fall straight to the ground, finally letting the tremors show. Jaune rushes over to me and crouches down, panicking over my prone form. "What's going on!?"

Nora and Ren are the next to fall out of their stupor. "I don't know. Nora, keep everyone else away." Nora nods and keeps the growing crowd away from us. "Jaune, I need you to make sure nothing is blocking her airway." Ren turns to Pyrrha. "Find that waitress!" Pyrrha nods frantically and darts inside.

Jaune holds my arms above my head so I stop thrashing around so much. "Come on, don't you do this to us!" He opens my mouth and gets hit with a spray of spittle. "I'm guessing it's not choking!"

Ren nods and his face grows grave. "You're ri.. ois.. Da…" His voice fades out as I lose consciousness.

0-0

Pyrrha comes out seconds after Echo closes her eyes, the waitress following behind her. She stops dead when she sees Jaune and Ren over the still form of Echo. "No…" She holds back her tears. The waitress stumbles back and lets out a scream.

Nora swings her head back when she hears the scream and she falls to her knees. "What?" She crawls over to Echo's limp body. "Echo, come on, you can't do this to us. We can't lose someone."

Ren holds his fingers against her wrist and then against her neck. He leans over her face and puts his ear to her mouth. He pulls Jaune away from her and shakes his head to Nora. She's heartbroken, tears spilling out of her eyes before she starts bawling. Jaune is trying to hold in his own sobs, but the tears are pouring down his face just the same as Nora. Pyrrha falls into a nearby chair, her legs no longer able to support her.

Their teammate, Jaune's sister, the girl who was just with them moments ago, died. No warning, no attack.

Dead.

Ren looks at the waitress with anger storming in his eyes. She frantically shakes her head. He looks around and sees Echo's cup, and the slight clear sheen sticking to the inside of it. He walks over to it and runs his finger along the inside. "This isn't coffee. She was poisoned." He pulls out his scroll and call the police.

They arrive minutes later with an ambulance. Echo's body is put on a stretcher and rolled into the vehicle before the doors shut and she's rushed off to the hospital. The police stay back and ask around, seeing if there was anybody suspicious around, or if anybody noticed anything off. The Faunus in the crowd stay back, fear in their eyes. Pyrrha makes a mental note of this.

Nobody is looking forward to telling the Arcs that one of their daughters is dead, especially when the hospital calls the police on the scene verifying her death. Jaune finally breaks down and sobs loudly with Nora. Pyrrha shuts down and Ren tells himself that he needs to keep it together so that he can get the rest of the team back to the house in one piece.

The rest of the week of break will be spent in mourning. For a teammate, a sister, a daughter, a townsperson.

A Faunus.

0-0-0

I wake up freezing. I wrap my arms around my torso and find that I've been covered with a sheet. Other than that, I'm as naked as the day I was born. I'm assuming that I'm in the morgue, in a refrigeration unit before the autopsy. Well, sorry boys, but this cadaver has got to skedaddle. I feel around with my feet and my hands for the door and find it at my head. I kick off the back of the unit, sending my tray sliding out the door.

The room is dead silent and the lights are off, meaning that it's currently night and the hospital is running on a skeleton crew. Not much happens out here in Ansel that requires a full-time staff at night. I wrap the sheet that was laid out on top of me around my body and take a peek out the door to the hall. The lights are dimmed and there's nobody out there, so I dart out and head to the stairs. The morgue is in the basement and there's a window in the stairs large enough to slip out of positioned in between the basement and the first floor.

I head to the place where my bullhead is and grab a blade along the way, cutting off most of my hair. It would give me right away if anyone saw it. I pull the sheet over my head and it now comes up to my mid thighs, but it's no problem because I reach my bullhead with no midnight meetings. I slip inside and start everything up BEFORE opening the doors. It'll allow me a quicker escape.

When I open the doors, alarms start blaring into the night. I punch it as soon as the doors open enough to get my ride out without damaging it. I see people rushing out of nearby buildings, but they're too slow as I'm already pulling out of Ansel airspace not two minutes later. I let back on the throttle when I'm out of range.

And just now am I realizing I forgot one very crucial step in this plan.

NOTIFYING OZPIN THAT I WOULD BE "DEAD".

I groan and lean back in my seat before laughing at the absurdity of it. I really, REALLY hope that Vale hasn't gotten the message of my early demise, because that means I'm flying a dead person's bullhead and using a dead person's flight credentials to get into Vale airspace.

Oh well, we'll see in a few hours.

0-0

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT'S GONE!?" Nicholas Arc was at the facility where his daughter's bullhead was stored, yelling at one employee.

"Sir, it was just fine and then someone opened the door and the alarm went off and they were gone! We don't know who took it, because everyone that has the code to get in is accounted for." The poor man was shaking in his boots, his second set of ears plastered back against his head.

"Well find it then. And fix your security!" His scroll rang, and he picked up at the first ring. "What is it?!" He heard his wife sobbing on the other side of the line. "What's wrong, what happened?"

"She's gone!" He stiffened. "Her body's gone! Someone took her body from the hospital!"

He ground his teeth. Whoever did this would pay dearly. They would wish they were never born when he got his hands on them. "I'll be right there." He hung up and dashed to the hospital. Time to avenge his family.

0-0-0

"Unidentified aircraft, please designate your flight credentials and reason for entering Vale airspace." The voice of an operator crackled over the radio.

"This is license six-one-nine-five-two, Echo Arc. Huntress license six-one-nine-four-A. Reason for entering Vale airspace is return trip to Beacon Academy. Permission to enter?" I let go of the headset line, letting static fill the line.

The silence was nearly deafening. "License six-one-nine-five-two, Echo Arc Huntress license six-one-nine-four-A has been marked as deceased. We repeat, what is your flight credentials and reason for entering Vale airspace. Failure to respond in thirty seconds will designate you as a high priority target and on the no-fly list."

I lick my lips. "Again, I repeat, this is license six-one-nine-five-two, Echo Arc Huntress license six-one-nine-four-A. Please patch me through to headmaster Ozpin of Beacon academy. I will hold position until the matter has been rectified."

The response was immediate. "I feel that it would be in your best interest to do so." Instead of the operator's voice, it was Ozpin's voice speaking over the radio.

I smirk. "What up old man? Is our favorite birdy around?"

He scoffs, and I hear him take a sip of his coffee. "If you and I are thinking of the same person, then yes."

"Send him to my position." I open the bay door. "Tell him he's welcome any time within the next thirty minutes.

The line goes dead, and I'm left to wait. Sixteen minutes later, and I hear the pounding of feet in the bay. A door opens and shuts, the cockpit door opening seconds later and a blade resting against my shoulder. "Who are you and how did you get this ship?"

"Chill Qrow, I don't want to actually be dead." The blade is pulled away and the chair I'm in is spun around. "Whaddup?"

He scrunches his face up in anger and pulls out his flask, taking a large swig of the alcohol inside. "I swear kid, this is some kind of bullshit I'm putting up with." He takes the co-pilot seat and rattles off his credentials, getting us into Vale airspace and on a course to Beacon. "Why did you do that?"

I spend the rest of the trip telling him about what's up and why I killed myself off and he takes a few more drinks from his flask. When we reach the hangar, there's practically nobody there, and I'm thankful because I'm still in only the sheet. Qrow tells me to head to the basement while he gets me my clothes. I make a joke about him rooting around a girl's closet and drawers, but he just shoos me off telling me he doesn't want to hear any more from me until he's gotten some sleep.

I meet with Ozpin when I reach the basement and he takes in my appearance before holding his nose between two fingers. "I assume that you have a good reason for what you did. There are multiple problems with this situation though that mean that you will be unable to work in the field for the foreseeable future."

Qrow steps in behind me and tosses me my clothes, underwear and all. I step behind a pillar and dress as they turn around to give me privacy. I feel around my pockets to make sure that this is the skirt I stuffed the stuff in and grin when I feel the crystal wrapped up in the napkin. "I have found the solution to our problems gentlemen!"

Qrow rolls his eyes. "What, you gonna turn into a kid again? I doubt it's gonna happen."

I pull out the Dust crystal and his eyes widen. "Exactly what I'm gonna do!" I pump aura into it and throw it at my feet, causing it to shatter and emit a bright light.

0-0

Ozpin and Qrow cover their eyes so they aren't blinded by the light coming off the crystal that's covering Echo. When it begins to dim down they slowly move their hands away from their eyes. They're met by the sight they were most definitely not expecting. "Huh, this is different." The voice was deeper and masculine. Standing where Echo had been moments before was a male, five foot eight with brown hair and brown eyes. He was wearing the female uniform and grunted before pulling down at the front and back of his skirt. "Wedgie."

Qrow put everyone's thoughts into words. "What the fuck."

0-0-0

We were now in Ozpin's office, along with Glynda who was still trying to take in the fact that I was alive and currently male. Gotta say, it's good to be a dude again, however long or short it may be. They got me a male uniform to change into, and I forwent using the tie because ties are stupid nooses. They were invented to strangle dudes, for sure. "…And that's how I got here and am now male! Any questions?"

"Yes." Goodwitch, straight to the point as always. "How did you know that the toxin would work the way you intended it to?"

I cross my arms and lean back in my chair. "Simple." I hold my hands up. "I didn't!" They look at me with these flabbergasted looks and I smirk. The only one who has a stoic look on their face is Ozpin. "I saw it in a bunch of spy movies and I have a basic tolerance for most toxins or poisons due to how I conditioned my body while working as Abyss. I just hoped that it would work and turns out it really did."

Glynda took in a deep breath and slowly let it out before heading for the elevator. "I'm working with complete imbeciles sometimes, I swear."

After she leaves the office, Ozpin turns to me. "Now that you're in your disguise, we need to figure out who you are now."

"Bay Stryder! Brown hair, brown name." I pull out my scroll and show him the thesaurus. "It's actually fairly simple making names with the color naming rule. Makes me wonder why my original parents named me Echo."

Ozpin entered the information on a student sheet. "Your identity is now in the computers. You will be staying in the visitor's dorms along with Sun Wukong and Neptune Vasilias as their other teammates have not arrived yet. I recommend that you see them now before they leave the grounds." He pushes away from his desk. "Have a good day Mr. Stryder."

I stand up and throw out a mock salute. "Aye aye, cap-i-tan!" I swagger on over to the elevator and ride it down to the ground floor. "~The stranger there among them had a big iron on his hip. A big iron on his hip~." Music always help pass the time, and since I didn't have my scroll I had to sing to fill the silence. "~Twenty-one would be the ranger with the big iron on his hip. The big iron on his hip~." I, thankfully, kept my vocal range. Ah, smooth dulcet tones.

I passed by a few people already walking the halls early in the morning and greeted them merrily. A few were off put that a stranger was being cheery to them, but the rest waved back with smiles on their faces. I make sure that I'm standing in front of SSSN's door by checking the name plate by the door before knocking, and then rapidly tap on the door. It's opened a few seconds after by the blue haired boy band wannabe.

"Uh, hey. You the guy that's rooming with us until the rest of our team gets here?" He leans against the doorframe.

I hold out my hand for him to shake. "Yeah, the name's Bay Stryder. What's your name, Water Boy."

He shuddered before asking, "Water Boy? Please don't call me that. The name's Neptune Vasilias. Sorry my team leader isn't greeting you, he just got some news from one of his friends that their teammate died. He liked her or something."

I rubbed at the back of my neck in an awkward manner. "Well that sucks to hear, man. And when you say like… you mean like 'like' or 'like-like' 'cause one sucks even more than the other."

He looked back into the room and grimaced. "Uh, not sure if I should be telling you, but the second I guess? He didn't really know her all that long but they sorta clicked. At least from what he tells me."

"WHAT?!" Sun was yelling, for some reason. "What do you mean the body is gone? Jaune, what the fuck is going on in your hometown?" Neptune and I look to where he's sitting up on his bed. "And the bullhead too? Was it the White Fang looking for revenge or something! Not cool!" He jumped off the bed and ran for the closet. "I'll show them!"

"Whoah, Sun, stop!" Neptune rushed over and pulled him back. "Rushing off to fight them by yourself won't help anything!"

Sun cut off his scroll and turned to Neptune. "Then what should I do? It's really easy to see that the police aren't doing the best job at controlling things here and hunters aren't doing anything yet?"

"What makes you think the huntsmen and huntresses aren't doing anything about this all?" They both look to me.

"And who are you?" Sun gets up in my grill.

"Bay Stryder, and again, what makes you think that the huntsmen and huntresses aren't doing anything? Emphasis on the anything part."

He crosses his arms and glares. "If they were doing anything then this would have already been taken care of. We're in Vale, not Vacuo! There are tons more hunters here than there are over there. Just burn those terrorists out of the woodworks!"

I shake my head. "And then what? Explain to the Valean council that over half of the city is gone because of fighting with the White Fang and hunters?" He made to make a rebuttal but I held my hand up to stop him. "The reason why you don't see them doing anything is because it's meant to be that way. They're keeping the fear levels down, means less Grimm. Because as much as I hate to say it, they're still as much a threat, perhaps even more, than this sect of the White Fang at the moment. The White Fang cannot be tipped off at this stage that there are people digging to the bottom of this case, because it would force them to speed up their operation, whatever it might be. And nobody wants that."

Neptune and Sun exchange a glance. "Wow, uh, we didn't really think of it that way. Are you the leader of your own team?"

I move into the room and shut the door. "No, I'm one of the members of a five-man team though."

They exchange yet another glance, more incredulous this time. "Seriously, another five-man team in this generation? I thought that it was only JNPER."

I check the windows before sliding the curtains over them. "Oh, but they are."

They frown. "Are you trying to make me angry, because I will beat you to dust if you are." Sun was slowly inching towards the closet again.

"No, no jokes." I pull off a sheet from one of the unused beds and stuff it into the crack under the door. "This doesn't leave the room, but right now I'm under the effects of what I'm now dubbing 'Trope Dust'."

Neptune scoffs. "Trope Dust, that's just stupid. What, are you actually the dead team member of JNPER turned into a dude? Did this dust also transport you here from another dimension where Dust isn't real, and the Grimm are just a plot element in an animated show? Like I would believe any of that."

I try to stop myself from laughing but I just can't. I burst into raucous laughter. "Oh my gods! The nerd totally got it. Do you just scroll through the net looking up tropes or something? Is this on your mind for another reason? If I search through your history will I find 'Rule 63' things?"

Sun looks at Neptune strangely for a moment. "You totally would."

"Sun!"

"What?" He holds up his hands. "I was curious and if this is really true, then we have a dead but not dead dimensional traveler in our room, and that means that Echo isn't really dead and that I don't need to go on a revenge mission to avenge her… his death?" HE turns to me. "Are you referring to yourself as male now or still female?"

"Male for now. The dust should wear off in about a week, just in time for the new session to start back up." I scratch at my chin. "That also means that my cover as Abyss will be useless."

They both look at me in shock. Sun is the first to recover. "Wait, what?! Abyss, like, Abyss Ritz the White Fang assassin? Over thirty-three confirmed kills, all by poisoning? Why… how… did you…?"

I hold up both my hands. "Hey, they wanted my dead, so I technically killed the batwoman!"

AN: I AM ALIVE! Holy heck, nearing three years of no upload and then a short chapter, sorry for that. Real life has been kicking my butt and I just got around to this because my muse came back for a while with this virus stuff happening. (I also went back and did some proofreading on previous chapters) For those of you who followed this story from the beginning, thanks for sticking around this long, and for those just finding it, welcome. I'll try to get out a chapter probably once a month from now on until it is finished, but there are no promises. I also have these other stories brewing in my head that I want to get out, but I'll put more effort into this one and put out chapters for this until it's finished before putting up anything else.

Long exposition short: Story not dead, just slow. Hope you stay safe and have a wonderful life.