Volume 2, Chapter 1: Not There Yet

The whirring of machinery, the gentle hum of electronics, the pale green light washing over his face, the sound of his breath echoing against the metal and back to him.

Nash's face split with a small smile as he rolled up the sleeves of his plaid overshirt, his hands tightening around the controls on either side of the rotund cockpit, fingers drumming against the controls.

He took a steadying breath, eyes closing tightly. "...Ok, buddy... let's see what you've got." His foot pressed down on the right pedal beneath him- and he jolted a quick step forwards; he pressed down on the left- another step forwards. He raised his right arm- and the great length of steel rose with it.

The mechanic pulled his hands back, rubbing them together, shaking out the jittery excitement flooding through his body. "Okay, okay, okay..." He whispered repeatedly, gently leaning forwards, pushing the handles with him- the rings encircling his arms following the motion.

The shell lurched with him, the heavy sounds of machinery dragging the steel, beginning to move with great, lumbering steps; picking up speed with each weighty movement. The mechanic let out a short, disbelieving laugh, jettisoning forwards quicker and quicker- the sprawling green display a few inches from his face giving a real time image of the wide, empty field yawning before him. He pushed the pedals further forwards, grips tightening around the handles-

And then suddenly shuddered to a stop.

He jolted in his seat, nearly bashing his head against the dim display ahead of him- the cool air of the air conditioner went stagnant, the lights illuminating the space around him went dark, and the cockpit went silent. Nash blinked, bringing his hands back towards him, looking around his pitch black encasement in surprise.

"...Hello?" He called, tapping against his screen in vain, before giving the handle to his side a tug- in vain, as it refused to move. He leaned back into the padding behind him, raising his left hand.

The screen embedded in his palm lit up, brightening the deep red and pale gold steel around it. He began to tap against it with the dulled sounds of padded fingers against the glass surface. He rapidly shifted across multiple screens, before coming to a stop, eyebrows raising in surprise as he scanned the motley of information staring back at him.

"Oh?" He asked, voice lightening in something akin to impressment. "...So, the Phalanx Program crashed, that's an interesting one..." He reached up and tapped a trio of buttons in the ceiling of his cockpit- hydraulic hissing sounded, before the back of the shell split, letting in bright sunlight to wash over him. The mechanic climbed free, continuing to surf through his embedded Scroll as he hit the soft grass below.

As he rounded towards the front, he looked up to Phalanx, its massive, polished steel form locked halfway through a stride.

The mechanical suit towered over the teen- thrice as broad as he was and twice as tall; its body was rounded at the top, its scanners and cameras barely jutting out over it. The mech's arms were as wide as the mechanic himself was, lined in jutting plates and slabs, its impressive size perched on equally hulking legs. The entire mech was an untouched steel color; burned and dark from flame in some places, bumpy and uneven from welding and loose screws and plates in others.

Nash's gaze rose to meet the pair of small green dots that served as the mech's ocular devices. He leaned back onto his heels, arms crossing in disgust, face twisting sourly. "You really wanna do this to me right now, Phalanx? Huh? Cause I don't have to use your shitty program. I could use any other program! This thing's a piece of garbage! Garbage, straight from the toilet!"

He lashed out with a vicious kick to the mech's leg, cracking his sneaker clad jean against its own.

Nash and Kyana stared out at the brilliant green of the forested skyline- the latter looking concerned towards the former, while the mechanic simply glowered angrily, arms crossed tightly across his chest. Nash raised his ice cream to his face, taking a bitter lick across its surface

The girl took a swipe of her own treat, slowly- and discretely- looking down to her friend's foot propped up onto the bench beside them, an ice pack laid on top of it. She pursed her lips thoughtfully. "...Well, maybe you could-"

"-Maybe I could what?" He muttered with a glare. "You tell me what to do..." He took another lick of his cone. "...Just so sick of it, man..." He adjusted, giving a wince at the movement. "Hey, Young Nash, I've got a- a quick bug report for ya, uh... your broken piece of trash program has cost me weeks of my life!"

"So... where's Phalanx now?"

"He's in his box- the bad box until I stop hating looking at him."

"Well..." She said with a hum. "You could always just trash 'im and not go."

"Well, that would fix it. I'm just... so fuckin' over it."

"You've got this, bud. I believe in you."

He let out a sigh, adjusting himself as he finished eating the rest of his cone. "Alright... back to it, I guess... stupid friggin' robot."

"Hey," She called as he rose to his feet with a wince, giving him a glare. "You're not supposed to be walking on that!"

"Try and stop me!" He snapped back, beginning to limp away towards his workshop, hissing and muttering curses as he went, his ice bag still strapped to his foot.

Kyana sat for a moment, watching him go, with a small smile claiming her face. She let out a quiet sigh, leaning back into the bench. "...I'm gonna miss you."

"Don't touch that."

Lance looked up at the sudden call, his gaze drifting to the other side of the room to meet Professor Phoenix's own, holding an ornate, golden jar in hand. "What? Why do you care? It's not your office."

"Yes, it is." Phoenix shot back evenly, face drawn in a tight visage of disapproval.

"Eh, are you though?"

"I am the man running Shade Academy. For the time being, this is my office."

"You Professor Theodore?"

"No, not-"

"Then it's not your office."

With that, Lance looked back down to the painted jar, turning it over in his hands busily, running his fingers over it. The professor's gaze narrowed onto the huntsman. He, however- with a more than irritated exhale- brought his attention back forwards.

Daria leaned back, her own expression one of distaste, giving a small sigh and wave. "Ignore him, he's... he's an asshole. You were saying?"

Phoenix cleared his throat, gathering his papers in front of him. "...Like I said, I have no concrete leads for you. And, furthermore, your efforts could be better spent here, instead of rushing back off into the desert with nothing more than a hopeful attitude, and bright-eyed optimism on your side. Refugees from Vale continue to arrive daily, and we are understaffed and overwhelmed. Shade could use more huntsmen."

"Pass." Lance called over dryly, continuing to make his way around the office, looking over the artifacts and mementos lining its walls.

"But, if you're all going to be so insistent on leaving, then I'll help you in anyway that I can- though, I doubt you'll get much farther than our own huntsmen have gotten."

Ulysses let out a dark scoff of a laugh, drawing up to his full height behind Daria, arms crossed over his chest. His leader gave a small shrug, looking to him approvingly. "Professor, we've beaten worst odds than that."

"...Perhaps you have," Phoenix muttered, before shaking his head. "Nevertheless, there aren't many leads we haven't exhausted..." He trailed off, a hand going to his chin. "But... perhaps..." He looked around to the five huntsmen. "There's a possibility that Theodore might have gone home."

"Home?"

"The village of Sacra, near the north-western coast... the only problem is that Theo hated Sacra. At any mention of it- or any of the lands around it- he would ramble on and on about it, until some other insignificant, small thing grabbed his attention and he forgot all about it. However, besides his personal distaste for it, it's a fairly small village with little, if any, strategic value. But, perhaps he thought there was something there he could find... perhaps."

"So..." Daria began, voice more than a little disbelieving, leaning towards the elder huntsman. "You're expecting us to walk halfway across the continent on a bunch of 'maybes' and slight possibilities."

The Professor shook his head. "I told you, there aren't many things that we haven't considered. There's a possibility, a small possibility, yes, but a possibility nonetheless. You're correct in believing that bringing Theodore back is our best way to help protect Vacuo, and there's a chance he may have returned to Sacra, a chance that hasn't been explored yet. If you won't stay and aid the Academy, then that will be your safest bet."

Lance stepped back over to his teammates, looking to Daria with a raised eyebrow. She turned towards the other four, taking in their expressions- the swordsman expectant; Ulysses' face colored with his near permanent scowl; Shinai's face unreadable; and Gail, giving her leader a small, supportive smile, and a small nod.

The Mistrali huntress sighed. "Alright. It's worth investigating at the least," She nodded towards the Professor, dark eyes resolute. "We'll make our way to Sacra. At least that way we'll know."

Phoenix nodded, motioning with his hand over the desk- and a large, holographic map of Vacuo appeared in front of them. "Very well, then. The journey there will take a couple of weeks, though I doubt it'll be quite as... daunting as your last one. We'll provide you with food, supplies, and ammunition to at least make it to..." He trailed off, drawing a finger towards the coast. "...Ciudamuerta. An old mining town. They'll have supplies for sale to make the rest of the way to Sacra. Meet with our supply manager when you leave, and they'll help you with the rest,"

He went quiet, looking up at the map, his gaze falling to their destination; a small, barely visible dot on the coast. "...Good luck, Vali. I pray you find him."

Daria nodded, rising from her chair. "Thank you. I pray we do, too." She gave him a slight bow, before turning after her departing teammates, the great wooden doors closing softly behind them.

Gail let out a grunt as she lifted the huge bag, heaving it up and over the metal railing of their cart, its contents letting out a loud clatter with the impact. She let out a breath, turning- as Ulysses raised another bag with one hand, idly tossing it next to the one she'd moved. The archer gave him a disbelieving smile and a small laugh, shaking her head- he gave a short grunt back, turning away.

Coco stared at the duo, and Shinai standing quietly beside them, her arm slung over Daria's shoulder. The taller huntress cocked an eyebrow towards her fellow leader. "Sure we can't convince you to stay?"

Daria gave her a thin smile back, arms crossed over her chest. "No, I don't think so."

"Shade could really use a crew like you- plus, and way more importantly, we could use some old friends. I don't know if you noticed, but, uh," She looked around at the Vacuoan students giving them a wide berth, distrusting or downright disgusted gazes shot their ways. "Well, everyone here's a dick."

The shorter warrior let out a short laugh, smile warming. "I appreciate it, but... this isn't really our place. It's not yours either."

"...Yeah. I know," Coco muttered quietly, voice tinging with old grief. "Not much choice in the matter, though, huh?"

"Course there is," Lance cut in, stepping past the huntresses, a duffle bag slung over his shoulder. "Say fuck this place and come save the world with us."

"Or go die in the desert." Fox muttered sourly, standing off to the side, arms crossed.

The greatswordsman gave him a nod of agreement, taking his bag to the cart. "That too."

Daria shook her head. "We've gotta find Theodore. That's the best bet we've all got of keeping Vacuo safe," She looked around at Shade Academy's campus, nodding. "You guys are doing good work here. We do good work out there. Maybe between the two of us we might not mess it all up."

"Ha! Maybe."

"We will miss you, though." Yatsuhashi said, a small smile on his face.

"Well, fifty fifty chance you'll either see us again, or you'll see us on the news."

The gathered huntsmen looked to the side- as Oracle stepped up to them, her left arm pulled up in a sling. She pushed her hat back on her head, looking to her old friends with a bright smile.

Coco returned the grin, inclining her head to the redhead. "I'll take those odds. How you holdin' up, cowgirl?"

The gunslinger's smile tilted into a cocked smirk, one hand rising up to rub across her clavicle. "Little sore, but nothin' I can't handle. You expect dragon lightnin' to kill me? C'mon, hon, you know me better than that. Few more days of fistfuls of painkillers and I'll be right as rain."

"That's about what I'd expect from you."

"And you're sure y'all don't want to grab some grub with us before we head out?"

"Nah," CFVY's leader said with an arm wave. "We've gotta be out of here in an hour. Distress call down south, probably more refugees. I've seen you all eat, and we don't have that sort of time."

"Mmph, not my fault you like to starve yourself. Mama's gotta eat."

Velvet stepped forwards, shaking her head in amusement, before taking Gail's hand in her own. "You guys take care of yourselves, okay?"

The archer brought her into an embrace, smiling widely. "Of course."

"We'll try," Daria said, looking to Team CFVY, expression serene. "Thanks for everything, you guys. Try not to die. We'll get together when we get back. Hopefully the city's not burning when we do."

Coco let out a short laugh, pulling her arm free of her fellow leader. "Right back atcha. We'll have to show you guys VC's nightlife- you'll be surprised."

The rest of the huntsmen began to say their farewells, the two groups slowly gathering across from each other. Daria gave Coco one last smile, before nodding to Ulysses. The giant lifted his kickstand, beginning to push his bike forwards and away from their fellow Beacon huntsmen, marching away from Shade Academy and back out into the Vacuo City.

The horse came to a stop, hooves digging into the dirt, muscles going taut. It glared upwards; its large, dark brown eyes boring into a pair of lupine yellow ones.

Rainier glowered back down at it, hand holding the horse's reigns tightly. "Is this truly what we're doing today?" The small beast snorted in response, waving its head; its long, dark mane whipping behind it. He raised a hand and patted the beast's pitch black head, beginning forwards again. "You have been perfectly fine all week. Why now, hm? What have I done to spite you, you rotten bastard? Let's just go. We're-"

The horse jerked to a stop again, coming to a steadfast halt. The faunus scowled, and pointed forwards, looking back from the horse to his destination. "See that? That's home. We are almost there- stop being a stubborn bastardo for five for minutes and you won't have to deal with me a moment longer, yes?"

The horse's gaze fell forwards, then towards its rider. After a moment, it gave a harrumph, dropping its head low, and began towards the gate beckoning them forwards, the green grass of the Platina villa yawning on the other side.

"There," Rainier muttered, walking alongside it. "That wasn't so bloody difficult, hm? You needn't be such an ass, Sun. It reflects poorly on me, you are aware?" The horse gave him another snort, leaving the Vacuoan to roll his eyes. "Of course you don't care. Come along then, I'm tired of you."

The horse and its rider stepped through the gate, turning up along the wall towards the broader, fenced off section of the field. Sun's gait picked up as they neared, now leading Rainier towards the second threshold. There was an excited chorus of whinnying; and, with the thundering of hooves, three more horses, of similar breed to Sun, came hurrying to the fenceline to meet them.

Rainier smiled as he pushed open the wooden gate, allowing both him and his mount into the paddock. "Hello to you all as well. Yes- yes, hello- hello, I've missed you as well!"

Sun turned hard onto the faunus, shuffling impatiently from side to side, glaring towards him. Rainier rolled his eyes, beginning the process of removing the horse's saddle, throwing it and its bags over his shoulder as he did. "Go, go," He spat in faux irritation. "I'm through with you. Begone."

The horse needed no more goading, taking off at a trot away from the faunus, the other horses joining him in excited play. Rainier watched them go for a moment, his smile warming, leaning back against the fence. He took a breath, tension draining from his shoulders.

His gaze rose past the celebratory horses to the villa beyond, expression souring slightly. He pushed off of the fence with a sigh, stepping back out of the paddock, closing and locking the gate behind him. Silver toed boots and silver claws dug into the torn dirt of the pasture as he made his way towards his home, stopping momentarily at an open air pavilion to drop the saddle and bags.

The faunus hummed to himself as he reached his family home, wiping his feet off onto a welcoming mat before pressing the button to slide open the broad glass door, cool air greeting him as he stepped into the warmly lit, sprawling villa. He turned and began to make his way through the winding hallways of the house, idly finding his way to the considerably sized and gleamingly perfect kitchen.

As he stepped in, the woman occupying the room straightened up, wiping her hands off on the towel tucked into her apron. Her face, weathered with years, split with a wide smile. "Ah, welcome home, Rainier." She said, meeting him halfway in to embrace him.

He returned the hug gladly, his expression warming in contentment. "Hello, tia."

"How was your trip?" She asked, turning back to the counter covered in flour, pastries sprinkled with cinnamon laying across its surface.

"Oh, I can never complain. Mm, busy at work?" He asked, reaching past her towards her current project- and received a slap to the hand as a result.

"Don't touch, mijo!" She said sharply, tone scolding. "They're not ready. Go, go, get out of my kitchen."

"Alright, alright, tia," He laughed, quickly stepping past her to snatch an apple from the fruit basket on the kitchen's island. "I'm going, I'm going. Enjoy."

"Hmph," She muttered, turning back to her task sourly. Before the faunus could beat his hasty retreat, she looked over her shoulder to him. "Rainier... it's good to see you smile again, mijo."

He hesitated in the threshold of the kitchen, warm expression wavering- then, his smile returned, and he gave her a small nod, turning to march further into the depths of the villa. He stopped in the grand entrance, leaning down to untie his boot, letting out a relieved sigh at the sudden release of pressure, exhaustion washing across his features.

"Welcome home, pup."

Rainier jumped in place, spinning around. His hand went to his heart, breath catching for a moment. "Mis dioses, Remy."

The White Wolf gave his brother a small smirk from his position leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest. "Anything to report?"

"Nothing we did not already know," The younger Platina grumbled, finishing removing his boot. "Some reports from Fronteriza of Fang in the region, some rumors and hearsay, a handful of tracks and such of a large force- no way to know if they're Fang or someone else. The trail had gone cold long before I'd been there," He straightened up, raising an eyebrow to his elder. "So, no."

Remy nodded, pushing off of the door. "Good to know. I'll be heading out passed the border, see just how close they've gotten. This came for you." He extended his hand, pushing a pristine white envelope to Rainier.

The young wolf took it with a raised eyebrow, looking over its surface. "And what is this?"

"Came for you while you were gone."

"Yes, I'd gathered such. And?"

"And what?"

"Who's it from?"

"Why would I know that."

"Because Father would have to know, and you would know because Father would know."

Remy gave his brother a bemused raised eyebrow. "Not my problem."

Rainier rolled his eyes, sliding a finger under the light blue seal to open it. Inside was a duo of fine parchments- and the wafting smell of flowers. "...Crocus?" He muttered, unfolding the first paper. His eyes scanned over its surface, muttering under his breath. "'Dear Rainier, it warms my heart to hear from-'" His breath caught in his throat, and the faunus went deathly still.

"...Rain?" Remy asked, voice low with suspicion.

The younger faunus took another moment, swallowing hard as he regathered himself. He took a sharp inhale, gesturing to his brother with the letter, returning the papers into its folds. "Thank you, Remyngton." He managed huskily, quickly turning on his heel to march towards his room.

"Rainier," The White Wolf cut in flatly after he had taken a few steps. The young wolf stopped in his tracks, though didn't turn towards his brother. "...Nothing in that letter's gonna make you feel better. It'll just hurt you. It'll drag you into the past and make you suffer there. Trust me on this; I know better than anyone."

Rainier hesitated for a moment. "...I'll keep that in mind." He muttered lowly. His body stiffened, hand clutching the letter tightly; and he continued down the hallway, disappearing around the corner and out of his brother's sight.

Remy stared after him quietly, face twisting in disappointment, before he turned and walked away.

Lance wiped the remains of his food off of his face, nodding. He leaned forwards over the booth's table, looking at the map spread out across its surface. "We head a little further south than the main road, we can avoid the Fang out there as well as the Boleros."

"Boleros?" Daria asked with a frown, looking up from her drink, the hubbub of the busy breakfast diner fading back into reality.

He waved her off. "Nasty gang that hangs around that part. Road tolls, extortion, that kinda thing. Nothing we can't handle, but they'd just slow us down, and we're kinda on the clock. Same thing with the Fang; not that important right now."

"Alright, so south here. Cut through this part of the desert and back onto the road here, and we'll take it rest of the way to Ciurda-whatever. Sounds like a plan." Oracle said, drawing her finger across their chosen path.

Gail chewed on a mouthful of eggs thoughtfully for a moment, before clearing her throat. "I... do we have any plans for stops along the way?"

"Stops?" Daria asked.

"We stopped a lot when we were coming into the kingdom; and we helped a lot of people along the way. Are we... not planning on doing that?"

"We're runnin' on a short time table, hon," Oracle said softly. "The quicker we make it to Sacra, the better chance we find out where in the hell Theodore disappeared off to. Trails go cold eventually."

"I know, I just..." Her head bowed, a sigh escaping her. "...Isn't helping people our job?"

The table went quiet for a moment, the other trio looking to each other with varying degrees of uncertainty. After a beat, Daria nodded. "...You're right. It is. We'll deal with these situations as they come up, alright? If we think we can help without burning too much time, we'll do it. Deal?"

Gail was hesitant for a moment, features not entirely satisfied; finally, she let out the breath she was holding, tension draining from her. "Ok. Deal."

Lance nodded, sliding to the side, dropping a handful of lien onto the tabletop. "Aight, we're burnin' daylight, so let's get a move on. I'd like to make as good of time as we can... hate the fuckin' desert cold."

"You and me both, darlin'..." Oracle muttered dryly, joining him in rising from their booth. Ulysses silently joined them, followed by the trio on the other side of the table. The sextet looked to each other in agreement, beginning to file their way down the narrow aisle to the restaurant's exit.

Before the shattering of glass echoed through the diner, bringing the noise around them screeching into thick silence. Instinctively, the huntsmen jolted to attention, turning on their heels, bodies tensing.

Standing in the aisle ahead of them was a woman, dressed casually in a dress, perched over the remains of a destroyed glass of water. She was middle aged, her tan skin mostly untouched by the sun; her eyes, wide with shock, were brilliantly lilac; her dark hair, messily put up behind her head, touched by gray.

Not once did she draw her eyes from the huntsmen, nor even blink or move- utterly frozen in place.

"Mama! What are you-"

The woman in the booth next to her, dressed in an exquisitely ornate silver and gold blouse, riding pants tucked into knee high riding boots. She turned in her seat, arm thrown over the side- and her golden gaze met Daria's own dark. Her tanned features- only a few years older than the warriors themselves- lit up in realization, one hand idly pushing a stray lock of light silver hair- done up in an intricate series of braids and curls- behind her ear. The pair of canine ears perched atop her head went completely rigid, twitching.

She carefully rose to join her mother, gently grabbing onto her. "Mama..." She said lowly.

The older woman ripped herself free, and began to storm down the aisle towards them, hands balling into fists at her sides.

"Woah, woah, woah-" Lance warned, hands raising to her.

The woman reached Daria, and quickly took her face into her hands; and the shock faded to awe, a warm smile claiming her face. "You're Daria Copper." She whispered, voice thick in a Western Vacuoan accent.

"Uh... yes." Daria muttered, shying away from the older woman- though held an abating hand to her teammates, silently asking them to stand down.

"You're- you're Team DRGN," She straightened up, looking frantically around them. "Is he- is he here? Where is..." She trailed off, realization filling her features. Slowly, she crumbled, face twisting in grief and horror. She stumbled to the side, bracing herself onto the booth beside them. Sobs began to wrack her form, head shaking side to side, all the while whispering to herself; "No, no, no..."

The younger woman drew even with the sextet in a heartbeat, faster than even the woman did, staring with hard lupine eyes at them, ears pressing down flat against her head; her features were sharper and harsher in comparison to her mother's own softer face; her frame drawing even with Shinai's own, while her mother stood shorter than Oracle.

"Where's Rainier?" She said lowly, and evenly, voice little more than a growl.

The world faded around Daria as she looked up into the painfully familiar eyes of the woman above her. Her mouth fell agape, body going limp.

"...You're his family." She whispered, voice wavering in disbelief.

"Rafaela Sangüesa Platina. Now answer the question; where is my brother? Is he..." She trailed off, letting the question hang in the air, looking over to her sobbing mother- Camilla Platina slowly slinking down into the seat, body shaking.

The huntsmen looked to each other; their faces filling with confusion. Daria brought her gaze back to the wolf, searching for her words carefully, balling her hands into fists as she forced the words out. "Rainier... Rainier left Vale six months ago."

Slowly, Camilla Platina's grieving waned, watery lilac eyes uncertain. Rafaela shook her head, snapping to draw the huntsmen's attention back to her. "What do you mean, he left?"

"He... went home with Remy after... after Beacon fell. He would've gotten here before we did."

The two Platinas looked to each other, Camilla slowly rising to her feet. "And..." She tried, voice still shaky. "Was he... was he alright? Was he hurt?"

"I..." The leader trailed off, face falling as she came to a loss for words.

"He'd been better," Lance cut in. "But he was alive. He and his bro were heading back home."

Camilla's face split with a smile again, taking her daughter's hands into her own. "Did you hear, Raf? Rain's alive, he's alive, dioses de arriba."

Rafaela gave her a small grin, before turning forwards again. Her mouth opened, trying to force words out for a moment, the stern tension draining from her features to fill instead with joyful mirth. "I..." She let out a small laugh. "I... have so many things to say to you- so many questions."

Daria swallowed hard, lips pursing, knuckles going white with her tight grip. "...That's okay."

"He spoke so much about you, every chance he got. He- he adored you, you know?"

"Really, there's no-"

"-And I need to say thank you."

Daria jolted, body going ramrod straight. She took a steadying breath, preparing her next word carefully. "...For?"

"For saving him."

The huntress didn't wait another moment, turning sharply on her heel. She pushed through her teammates bodily, her chest rising and falling with short, hard breaths. The Mistrali beat a hasty retreat from the diner, throwing its glass door open and stepping out into the Vacuoan heat beyond.

Camilla stepped forwards slightly, watching her go with an expression of concern. "Is she-"

"Uh... she's fine," Oracle muttered. "She, uh... Rainier's a... nevermind, it's not a big deal."

Rafaela's expression showed that she wasn't convinced, but she averted her gaze anyways, turning to Gail. "And you must be his partner, he told me how much he teased you- and you all must be SOUL, and- Shinai Kyani," The samurai shot to attention as the conversation turned to him, heavy eyes wide. Rafaela gave him a small smile. "I have so much to talk about with all of you."

"...Maybe next time," Lance said, gesturing his head to the side. "We're on a tight schedule right now. Hey, great meeting you guys, though."

"We need to go," Camilla said, rising to her feet. She turned her beaming expression to the huntsmen, taking Gail's hands in her own, giving them repeated small bows. "Gracias. Thank you all for everything, gracias, gracias, gracias. I... I wish we could talk, but we need to go. Are you all coming to Tear's Fall? Is that why you're here?"

"Uh... nah," Lance said, rubbing the back of his head. "Not anytime soon anyways."

"That's so terrible. Rainier must have wanted to come home after Beacon, horrible, horrible what happened- but... why didn't you all go home?"

"He... had a rough go of it," Gail managed quietly. "He needed to leave. It's alright, though. We just... we had something we needed to take care of."

"Mama." Rafaela cut in evenly.

"Si, si," Camilla muttered, waving her daughter off. She stared at them for a moment, her smile turning somber, tears filling her eyes. "...You are all so brave. Thank you. For what you've done for our Rainier, and for what you did at Beacon. I pray that you find what you're looking for," She hesitated before beginning to walk away. "...Is... is there anything you want to tell Rainier?"

The quintet stared at her quietly- Shinai averting his gaze, while Gail's face twisted slightly, and Lance's jaw went tight. After a beat of silence, Oracle cleared her throat. "Uh... just, uh... tell 'im that we hope he's doin' alright."

"...Of course. Bless you all," She balled a hand and pressed it to her sternum, bowing her head. "Que los dioses muestren tu camino. Godspeed." She placed her hand onto Gail's shoulder and gave it a light squeeze, before she turned to march towards the other exit, her gait urgent, pulled into a half run.

Rafaela stared at the huntsmen for a moment, giving them a small smile. "Good luck. I... don't know what happened between you and my brother, but... he cared about all of you. I don't know why you're here, but if you ever need help... any friend of Rain's is a friend of the Platinas. Remember that, and take care of yourselves, amistades." She gave them a nod, and turned gracefully after her mother, evenly striding her way out of the diner, disappearing into the glaring light beyond.

The remaining huntsmen watched her go for a moment. Lance blew out a heavy breath, running a hand through his hair. "...Shit."

"Yea?" Oracle said. "That was a lot for a Wednesday morning."

Gail jolted back to reality, quickly turning on her heel to follow after her leader, the rest of her team only a beat behind.

Daria pressed both hands against the seat of Ulysses's motorcycle, staring down at its black leather, though not truly looking at it. She took several deep, steadying breaths, blinking repeatedly.

"You okay?"

The Mistrali looked up at the voice- Gail walking towards her, the rest of her team a step behind. Their leader took a moment to ready herself, before rising to her feet, giving a short nod. "Yeah, yeah, I just..." She shook her head, looking across the thin parking lot- to a brilliant white and gold vehicle, a golden wolf's head emblazoned on its side. Its engines whirred to life, and it began to rise into the air, taking only a moment to clear the diner before soaring off, quickly disappearing into Vacuo City's airways. "...Wasn't expecting that."

"Like I said; whole helluva lot for a Wednesday morning." Oracle repeated, tilting her hat back slightly.

"I'm good, though. Really," Daria said, looking to her team. "I'm good. Did they... say anything else to you guys?"

"Just more thank yous," Lance said quickly, cutting Gail off. "That's about it."

"Ah... alright. Well... my panic attack's over, so you guys ready to get a move on?"

Oracle snorted, Ulysses stepping around them to draw even with his bike. "You're incorrigible, D. Yeah. Let's get a move on. Old Theo ain't gonna find himself."

The huntsmen began to march forwards, finding their way to the street and in the direction of Sacra, the deserts of Vacuo beginning to yawn before them.

"Back into the breach we go..." Lance muttered, hands folding behind his head.

Wind whistled peacefully through the trees, brilliantly green under the early summer sun, swaying slightly in a calm breeze. Birds chirped busily from the canopy, filling the woods with song. A deer made its way forwards calmly, looking around at the quiet shade. A fawn followed after her, pressing its nose to the grass, sniffing idly.

After a moment, the blissful quiet was interrupted by the sound of a dull thud. The doe straightened up, ears perking as she looked around.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud thud thud thud.

Something tore through the trees beside the deer, jolting them to action, the duo taking off running as their aggressor slid to a stop, loose mud flying all around the woods, a shower of wood kindling falling from above.

"Sorry!" A light, synthesized voice called, and Phalanx rose to its full height. The hulking mech sat back on its hunches slightly, its deep red metal, trimmed in gold, gleaming in the rays of sun poking through the boughs of the trees overhead. Nash leaned back in his cockpit, letting out an excited breath. "Ok, ok, ok; Phalanx, run diagnostics?"

There was a beat of silence- and a familiar, jolly robotic voice droned back- "Operating at 100% efficiency. Power remaining: 98%. Conducting test three hundred and-"

"Yeah, yeah, don't need to hear it," He muttered, waving the mech off. "But 100%. That's what I like to hear... let's go a bit more. As a treat. Hi-ho, Crimson! Away!"

He leaned forwards, pressing hard on all his controls, and Phalanx suddenly lurched back into motion. A quartet of rockets ignited to life behind the mech-suit, thrusting him forwards; great metallic boots crashing against the dirt and grass below, cleaving heaves of land free in his wake.

The charging robot suddenly jerked to the side, shoulder thrown heavily into the tree beside it- the trunk shattered with ease from the impact, the evergreen toppling over and beginning its descent. Phalanx lashed out with both arms and latched onto the tree before it could fall, six thick, metal fingers digging deep into the bark; its feet buried into the shorn dirt below, a pneumatic hiss ringing out as the mech steadied itself, coming to a standstill.

Nash stared up at the tree held aloft, eyes wide, smile widening. He bit his lip in deep concertation, and pivoted in his seat. Phalanx followed the movement, swinging the massive evergreen through the air with an immense show of force.

Trunk met trunk as the towering mech crashed its impromptu weapon into another tree- his shattering with the impact, the top half coming crashing down to the ground with a mighty thud. Phalanx took a few steps back, Nash beaming from ear to ear as he looked down at his handiwork.

"Atta boy!" He called, turning on his heel, and barreling back forwards- one, two, three great strides- before he leapt, both feet landing steadfastly.

And then leapt again, his rockets coming back to life once, then again, even brighter and larger than before. Mech and rider took off through the air, higher and higher, ripping through branches and pines like papier-mache, cleaving upwards through the canopy, Nash cackling all along the way, arms waving around him wildly.

The resistance gave way- and gave way to clear blue, cloudless skies, the wind rushing past him, and the emptiness around him.

Nash let out a long, joyful shout as he arced through the air, watching the blue whir past him. The moment dragged on, feeling like he was floating in place; until finally, the moment ended and Phalanx began to descend. The ground rushing towards him came into view; a wide spread of green rapidly approaching.

Nash gripped his handles tighter, adrenaline coursing through his veins. He grit his teeth tightly, breathing in and out quickly in anticipation. He winced hard, and a beat later, reached the ground.

Phalanx skid against the dirt with a thunderous thunking sound, skipping with the impact, earth splattering around him. Nash was sent face first into the interior of the cockpit- and the soft material reacted with the force, puffing out and burying him inches into the cushioning. The mech, however, continued to skip and roll, skittering meters further through the field.

Finally, the great red construct slid to a stop, digging a foot deep trench in its wake. The mechanic within lay still for a moment, staring into the darkness of his cockpit, blinking owlishly. He pushed himself away from the deflating cushion, bringing himself onto his hands and knees.

"...Phalanx?"

"...Yes, sir?"

"I'll call that a success."

"Noted. Test three hundred and twenty-seventh marked as 'success'."

Nash pressed the button, closing the numpad as he did. He looked up, watching the door to the workshop begin to fall; the lights within going out one by one, slowly plunging it into darkness.

His gaze settled on the slit visor of Phalanx 3.0 for a moment before it was gone. He let out a sigh, reaching down to lift his bag off of the ground, hefting it onto his shoulder. The mechanic turned and began away from his workshop, setting off across the Aspis' wide yard towards the road waiting beyond.

His gaze met Kyana's own, her face split with a broad smile- Helen beside her, smiling as well; though her expression was colored with a sadness. The older woman embraced him as he neared, pulling him tight against her, eyes closing as she breathed his scent in.

He pulled back, giving her as reassuring a smile as he could, giving her arms light squeezes.

"Are you..." She began hesitantly, before trailing off. She shook her head, smile brightening slightly. "Do you have everything you need?"

He looked up to his mother for a moment, before nodding. "Yea. Think I do, at least- I dunno, I definitely forgot something."

Helen gave him a bemused grin, before extending her hand, offering the brown sack held within. "Lunch. Save it for after you get out of town. Vale's a long ways, and you'll want to make sure that your money lasts you until Charter Town, alright?"

"Uh huh, this is only the third time you've told me," He took the bag- and gave her another hug. "Thank you." He whispered quietly.

She returned the embrace tightly- light drops of tears falling onto his head. After a long beat, she let him go, giving him a watery smile. "Be careful, hon. Come back to us."

"Course. I'm like a cat- eight lives to go. More like seven. Ok, probably six-" He stopped at her expression, smile widening. "I will. I promise."

She nodded, and looked to Kyana. The girl grinned at the two Aspis', her hands folded behind her back. At the turn of the conversation towards her, she jolted. "Uh... hi."

"Hi." He shot back, their eyes locking.

She took a moment, mulling over her words, teetering back and forth on her heels. "So..." she reached out and punched his shoulder, drawing a yelp and jump from the mechanic. "Take care of yourself, Nashton. And if you fix those stupid towers, call! Pretty please? Nine months was way too long not to hear from you."

He rubbed his shoulder sourly, before letting out a sigh, giving his old friend a small nod. "Course. I mean, I could probably fix it in a day or two, that's just how good of a... yeah. Will do."

"Yeah..."

Nash nodded, shouldering his bag again, letting out a breath. He turned over his shoulder, to the waiting form of Phalanx, the mech humming quietly. "Ok..." He whispered, ringing his hands together nervously. "I'm off. I'll see you guys... when I see ya. Hopefully after I'm a big hero and saved the world."

"Bye, honey," Helen said, fighting valiantly to keep her voice and expression even; though already holding a handkerchief tightly. "I love you."

"Love ya too, mama."

Kyana stared for a moment- then leaned forwards quickly, pressing a kiss to his cheek. She pulled back, cheeks going dark with blush. "...Bye, Nash."

He froze in place, stiffening in surprise. A hand slowly reached up to his face, the cold of his fingers brushing against his cheek. He turned to her, smile slowly widening. He swallowed hard, beginning to walk backwards. "...Yep." He managed, before turning on his heel, pace quick as he made his way to Phalanx; his grin splitting his face, shaking slightly.

As he reached the mech, he pressed a button on his palm, and the back of the construct split open, offering the lightly glowing interior within.

The mechanic stopped, one leg perched onto the mech's interior, and turned back to his mother and friend- they waved to him, Helen's face streaked with tears, Kyana's own expression split somewhere between grief and joy. Nash gave them a reassuring smile, and nodded, before climbing the rest of the way into the mech, dropping his bags to the floor.

The hatch closed behind him, sealing with a hiss. The lights of the mech brightened, the display ahead of him coming to life with the field ahead.

"Welcome back, sir." Phalanx droned robotically.

"Thanks, pal..." Nash muttered, taking a breath. He reached towards his display, and began pressing a series of buttons, bringing up and then navigating through a map of Vale, before the mech beeped brightly back to him.

"Set course for Charter Town?"

"Set course for Charter Town."

"Command confirmed. ETA- six hours."

Nash leaned back with a groan, head coming to rest on the padding behind him. "Oh my gods..." He whined. "Shoulda just stayed home..." The mech whirred to life, beginning to stroll forwards at a leisurely, though efficient, pace, marching along the side of the road- heading north.

The huntsman settled into his cockpit, kicking his feet up ahead of him, watching Phalanx begin the journey to Beacon Academy; and slowly, a determined smile claimed his features.