Big Issues

I'd like to say thanks to everyone who has favorited and are following this story. Seeing that helps to motivate me in continuing this project. Things will be getting serious for a while and dark at the end.

Investigations

Blake sat in her bed, curled in a ball while leaning against the headboard. The disguised faunus was deep in thought with a worried look on her face, she wasn't afraid to express herself with her team not around right now as she thought back to the night at the docks. The night where she had actively opposed the White Fang along with Sun.

"Brothers of the White Fang. Why are you aiding this scum?" She had questioned those who she had once called comrades after removing her bow from her ears, never letting the blade of Gambol Shroud move from the neck of Roman Torchwick.

"The White Fang and I are going on a joint business adventure together." The criminal mastermind had said, cocky as anything as if he had everything under control despite being held hostage.

The sounds of combat rang through her ears as the fight plays through her head. The shriek of Romans explosive rounds, his taunting laughter, her own grunts of pain from being shot, punched and smacked with his cane. Sun's laughter at dealing with the grunts, his seriousness when taking on Torchwick in his defense of her. The thoughts of how things might have gone differently if she had listened to the monkey boy instead of rushing head first without any sort of plan… her head filled with rage as her mental image of the White Fang and what it used to stand for crumbling before her eyes.

"Well, this has certainly been an eventful evening." Ozpin had greeted her in the small room at the local police station used for questioning. She wasn't restrained at all, even being allowed to keep her weapon on her.

"Hm?" She had been lost in thought when her Headmaster had arrived and decided to sit down across from her. His cane being leant against the table and his ever-present mug of hot chocolate in his hand.

"I'm sure that after a night of thwarting attempted robbery, you probably just want to go home and take a nap, but… I was hoping that maybe we could have a chance to talk."

It felt weird to be remembering that night just a few months ago. She was still thin, the thought of outgrowing her own clothes was non-existent. Not to mention the part where when she had tried to push everyone away, there was one who stayed by her side, even when she didn't want him around. Yet, it was him who she had finally opened up to, revealing the secrets that she had kept from her teammates, the three girls who despite her efforts- had become like family to her. That connection that she had tried to break that weekend… had only grown stronger.

She found it almost funny to think that if someone had told her that she'd be friends with Weiss Schnee last year, she would have laughed in their face. The thought of being anywhere near a Schnee without a weapon drawn on them had been laughable. Yet, the same Schnee that she shared this room with, had tested the strength of their bonds of … friendship at the time was too strong of a word, but teammates... would do. Weiss had pulled until that bond had snapped, her bigotry towards faunus as a whole had cut through every thread of that bond with every sentence.

Yet it was the night that they had met again, nearly immediately, Weiss had declared that she didn't care about her ties to the White Fang… that she was a faunus. Somehow, someway… her pathetic disguise of a silly ribbon over her ears had gotten the results that she had wanted.

"Of course." Blake had agreed with Ozpin.

"Wonderful!" He paused a moment. "As you know, in order to enroll in my academy, students must first pass a rigorous entrance exam. Most applicants spend years of preparation training at one of the many combat schools around the world… you are one of the few who did not." He takes a drink from his mug.

"And you passed the exam with flying colors." His face was unreadable yet his tone hinted at a point of pride.

Likewise, Blake maintained her calm façade. "I was raised outside the kingdoms, if you can't fight, you can't survive." She had responded as though it were a matter of fact. Something that she was sure the older man knew well.

"Well, you have most certainly survived, Blake." He waved a hand towards her, a prime example of that philosophy. "I admire your drive. And I am proud to run a school that accepts individuals from all walks of life." He picked up his mug again. "Rich, poor, human…" Pause for a sip. "Faunus."

His expression changed, softening to try to understand her, ignoring the slight glare that she cast at him. "Why do you wear that bow, Blake?" He sighs. "Why hide who you are?"

Blake couldn't help the welling of anger, her passion for the rights of her species from rising to the surface when she addressed him now. "You may be willing to accept the Faunus, Professor Ozpin, but your species is not." She had called him out, even as she looked away and down at the ground in disgust at what her people have had to endure.

"True…" He admits, even leaning back in his chair far more causally than she'd ever seen him act, though he had put his hand back on his cane. "… but we are continuing to take strides to lessen the divide.

Once again, the same simmering anger from her days in the White Fang rose to the surface. "With all due respect, you need to start taking some larger strides." Her tone held an edge… perhaps a hint of a threat. Then she seemed to calm a bit. "Until then, I'd rather avoid any unnecessary attention. I want people to see me for who I am… Not what I am."

Ozpin leaned forward now with a question of his own. "And what are you?"

All confidence and anger left her at that simple question, being replaced with the fear of what he could do right now. They were in a police station and in a room with only one door and he is a fully trained Huntsman between her and that door along with being her headmaster. She avoided looking him in the eyes, "I… don't understand what you're asking."

Ozpin turned serious. "How did you know the White Fang would be at the shipyard tonight?"

"I didn't… I just happened to be at the right place at the right time." She asserts.

"You wouldn't have been the first…" Ozpin freely admits. "But what happened tonight was not an isolated incident. I may be your Headmaster, but I am also a Huntsman… and it is my sworn duty to protect this world from the forces that conspire against it." He reminds her with all seriousness. Once again though, his tone turns soft and pleading. "Blake, are you sure that there is nothing else that you'd like to tell me?"

She faced away from the man yet still looked him in the eyes, "I'm sure." She affirms.

"Very well, thank you for your time, Miss Belladonna." He suddenly became very stiff and professional with how he said that before he rose from his seat and grabbed his cane. He paused in front of the door and tuned to look back at her still sitting at the interrogation table. "If you ever need to talk to me…" He pauses to lock gazes with her amber eyes. It was hard not to notice the pleading tone he now was using instead of the abrupt one from moments before. "Please, don't hesitate to ask"

For someone to see her for who she is, not what she is… Weiss had seen her for her, Blake Belladonna. A member of team RWBY who happens to be a Faunus. Not Blake Belladonna the Faunus.

It was something that she found some pride in. Her thoughts turned to her parents… would they be proud that she had somehow found what they had been trying to achieve for the better part of two decades? Or was her friendship with Weiss just a fluke?

Either way, that bond that had nearly broken had been restored that night and strengthened beyond what she thought was possible. Not just her bond with Weiss, but with Ruby and Yang as well. Even her relationship with Sun had improved since that weekend… she could admit in her own head that he was nice to be around. Annoying perhaps, but he had nothing but good intentions when it came to her… even if he was quick to steal a bag of apples during their stakeout that night at the shipyard. But with that annoyance he brought… he had a certain charm that made her feel calmer… she could speak her mind openly without fear of judgement.

Was it simply because he was a faunus as well? Or was it some part of her seeking companionship? He was so different from the last person she was close to, the one who nearly drove her over the edge with his willingness to cause harm. The one who had served as a friend, a guide, a mentor to her after her parents left the Fang. The one who tried to poison her with his ideals… the same ideals that she had seen had begun infecting so many of her brethren and she had seen how far that they were willing to stoop for power and their spite of the humans.

She sighs as her thoughts started drifting in circles… she needed a focus. Maybe a few hours in the library trying to track the actions of the White Fang would help. Maybe she had missed something yesterday. Her hidden ears perked up as she heard voices and footsteps, ones that she was quite familiar with… though to her sensitive ears she was beginning to notice that the footsteps were getting a little rougher, landing a touch harder than they used to just a few weeks ago. Moments later, the door opened and the rest of her team filed in.

"Ugh! We should have never let him play!" Yang was clearly frustrated, perhaps if she had been with her, she'd have some context.

Ruby laughed at her sister. "You're just angry because the new guy beat you!"

Still, if the sisters were going to argue about a game they were playing, she'd occupy herself with the library. That thought in mind, Blake nearly silently slipped off her bed and walked to the door.

"Stop!" Weiss commands just as her fingers were about to grasp the doorknob. Reluctantly, she pulled back to face her friends.

"Lately you've been quiet, anti-social, and moody." The heiress states.

"Uh… have you met Blake?" Yang comments. The subject of the joke didn't make any indication that it bothered her, the blonde could be a bit blunt at times and not always the most thoughtful.

Weiss continued as if Yang had said nothing. "Which I get, is kind of your 'thing'." She even used air quotes. "But you've been doing it more than usual, which quite frankly, is unacceptable. You made a promise to me, to all of us that you would let us know if something was wrong." Her tone seamed pleading… almost uncharacteristic of the rich girl.

Then her demeanor switched drastically, "So Blake Belladonna!" Suddenly in a blur of white, the girl performed a flip to land in front of her, actually pointing down at her nose. Blake couldn't help momentarily going cross-eyed to follow the digit. "What! Is! Wrong?"

Wait? How was the shortest member of the team able to point down at her all of a sudden? A glance down revealed that the Schnee had, for some dramatic reason, grabbed one of their desk chairs and was now standing on it. Not just standing on the chair, but having it balance on just two legs with her foot on top of the backrest.

Weiss suddenly hopped off the chair when she realized exactly what she had done and put it back before scooting shyly back in front of the Faunus. Yet she waited for Blake to respond.

"I just… I don't understand how everyone can be so calm." She says, letting out some of her frustration.

Ruby stepped forward as Yang moved closer to the beds to lean against them. "Are you still thinking about Torchwick?" The younger girl asks, though it also seemed to be a statement, as if her leader was calling her out on her own thoughts.

"Torchwick. The White Fang. All of it!" Once again, Blake was letting her passion drive her and it showed as she gestured widely with her arms. "Something big is happening and no one is doing anything about it."

Yang steps up next to Ruby, "Ozpin told us not to worry. Between the police and the Huntsmen, I'm sure they can handle it." The taller girl had some optimism in the capability of others but they had all seen and experienced that robberies and thefts all over Vale weren't stopping at all over the past couple of months… since even before they had attended their first classes or orientation.

"Well, I'm not!" Blake had no such confidence. Perhaps it was her experience with being on the other side of the law or the lack of results so far in the authorities, or both that fueled her desire. "They don't know the White Fang like I do!" She states, causing the three other girls to look at each other and silently acknowledge the point.

Weiss waves her hands horizontally. "Okay, between blowing up night clubs, stopping thieves, and fighting for freedom, I'm sure the three of you think you're are all ready to go out and apprehend these ne'er-do-wells…"

"Ah… who?"

Weiss ignores Ruby as she continues. "But let me once again be the voice of reason… We're students. We're not ready to handle this sort of situation."

Ruby tries to interject. "Well… yeah, but- "

Weiss shuts her down. "We're not ready!"

Blake's anger at the situation was spiking and she let it release. "And we never be ready!" A small breath calmed her slightly as well as having the full attention of her team. "Our enemies aren't just gonna sit around and wait for graduation day!"

Blake points to the wall to emphasis her next words. "They're out there, somewhere, planning their next move, and none of us know what it is, but it's coming! Whether we're ready or not!"

Silence reigned over the room for a few moments as her words sank in. Then Ruby raised her hands with a smile. "Okay!" Now she only raised one hand as her words spilled quickly from her mouth. "All in favor of becoming the youngest huntresses to single-handedly bring down a corrupt organization conspiring against the kingdom of Vale… say 'aye'!"

Yang stomps on the floor, making her body ripple from her foot to breasts from the impact as she raised a fist in front of her. "Yes! I love it when you're feisty."

Weiss crosses her arms as she leans back on one foot. "Well, I suppose it could be fun."

Ruby turns away from them feeling dejected. "None of you said 'aye'."

For the first time in a while, confidence rose inside of Blake… even forcing her to smile at her friends. "Alright then… we're in this together."

Ruby turns back to the trio of older students with her happy-go-lucky attitude back in full force. "Let's hatch a plan!"

Yang fires finger guns at her sister, "Yeah!"

Ruby suddenly gasps, "Ahh! I left my board game back in the library!"

The sudden twists of attitude during the whole debate left Weiss holding her head in her hands as she shook her head. "We're doomed."

Ruby rushes out the door. "I'll be right back!" Only to run into a trio of students from Haven the moment she tried looking where she was going.

"Sorry… are you okay?" The cloaked girl asks despite being the one on the floor.

"I'm fine. Just watch where you're going." The girl with green hair and dark skin says, offering a hand to pull the younger girl back to her feet.

"Oh… right… sorry." Ruby is pulled upright and dusts herself off a bit. "Um… I'm Ruby. Are you new?"

A dark-haired girl steps forward, "Visiting from Haven, actually."

"Ooooohhh! You're here for the festival! Oh, but exchange students have their own dormitory."

The sole male in the hallway finally speaks. "I guess we just got turned around." For someone who seemed lost on campus, he sure sounded confident.

Ruby laughs a bit. "Don't worry, happens all the time!" She seems ignorant to the Haven students walking past her. "Your building is just… east of here." She provides with some hand gestures in the general direction.

Their apparent leader walks by. "Thanks, maybe we'll see you around." She sounds friendly enough.

Ruby waves goodbye to them. "Yeah, maybe. Oh! And welcome to Beacon!" She never saw the smirks on the trio's faces as they walked away nor did she pick up on Cinder recognizing her from months earlier.

A little over a week later and nearly twenty pounds added to their frames…

"It's a good thing that we made sure to get these a size up." Yang comments as she slips on her clothes, different from her usual Huntress outfit. This consisted of a cream-colored vest over a low-cut black shirt, a dark grey shrug with a collar, three-quarter length sleeves and golden cuffs, and a black mini skirt. With garter belts that attach to thigh high leggings with her emblem in gold on the thighs. A pair of black belts hung loosely on her hips- or as loosely as they could on her expanding waistline- with a purple sash hanging from the lower one. Black ankle boots with buckles on the front and ribbons on the back adorned her feet while a purple pendant set in silver rested on her chest.

Despite her choice to upsize her outfit when she bought it, her clothes were notably snug around her middle- which the belts emphasized by pulling back on her vest under her belly- and chest as evidenced by the soft flesh bulging upwards in the wide opening created by the shirt and vest. Similarly, her skirt was barely covering her butt, thankfully the garter belts helped to keep her decent. A dozen or so pictures of herself were added to her scroll for her own amusement.

"I really wish that they'd find a cure for this weight gain soon. I've already spent more on clothes since the semester started than I normally do in a year!" Weiss complains as she finishes buttoning her coat. She chose to wear a white, double-breasted peacoat with black edges and buttons along with a white skirt edged in black lace. White thigh-high boots with black soles and black stockings completes her look. Thankfully the skirt helped to conceal exactly how wide her hips have become though the coat hugged her figure- nearly straight from shoulder to her hips where the skirt flared out widely.

The heiress smoothed out her pleated skirt a bit, not that it wasn't wrinkle free already but it was something done more out of habit. Along with making sure that she wouldn't flash anyone given that her hips had a tendency to make her skirts flip a lot more than they used to when she was thin… or Yang would have called her a stick with tinsel wielding a toothpick when she was particularly moody around that time of the month.

Ruby hops off of her bed with a loud thump, the floors weren't exactly built to muffle such heavy impacts as a nearly two-hundred-pound girl in boots dropping six feet. The sheer mass of Crescent Rose in its holster on her back didn't help her weight either. The young girls' body shook like jelly from the impact and was emphasized by a pencil rolling off a desk to the floor. Weiss was lucky that she didn't get her feet squished by the younger girl as she had pulled her legs up onto her bed when the younger girl had fallen.

Ruby had her trademark cloak on but the hood was wrapped around like a scarf. Under that she was wearing a long-sleeved grey shirt with belted cuffs. Over her shirt is a black pinafore with red lacing that looks like her usual corset and a red skirt with a rose embroidered in black and a black tulle under it. She still wore her usual black stockings and boots. The oddest part about the outfit had to be the pieces of metal on her left shoulder, at least they weren't clanging together as her thickening arms pulled the pieces apart in the tight sleeves.

"We could try asking Denko's team to help us." The team leader suggests for probably the thirtieth time since they began their planning for tonight.

"Sorry sis, Denko said his team will be just outside of the northern wall for the weekend. Said something about a troop of Beringels poking around."

"Ruby, we agreed that we're doing this ourselves." Blake reminds her leader as she hikes her pants up in the back, something that she had found herself doing a lot more often as her rump grew larger. It's not like the rest of her didn't grow fat as the weight piled on, it's just that her behind took more than its fair share. She did find it helpful when finding a place to sit as she brought her own padded seat wherever she went now which also meant that curling up with a good book was that much better.

The Faunus had changed from her standard Huntress attire to something different, and probably for the best given her part of the plan. Tonight, she had chosen to wear a white, V-neck, zip-up crop shirt that showed her soft stomach and muffin top that bulged over her black pants and belt. From the back of her belt hung a sort of half-skirt, a piece of black cloth that reached from hip to hip with a slightly larger purple piece under that, but they did little to hide the pair of bubbles they rested on.

She wore black high-heels with buckles on them on her feet, black ribbons wrapped around her arms where her sleeves ended at the elbow to her wrists, and her ever-present black bow to hide her cat ears.

"Oh, right… Okay! Does everybody remember their roles?" Ruby asks with a bright smile, her excitement for today's mission was infectious.

Weiss stepped forward now that there wasn't the danger of a heavy weight dropping on her. "You and I will be going to the CCT and checking Schnee Company records for any Dust robberies or inconsistencies." She poses a bit with her hand on her chest- still the smallest of the team despite the weight she'd put on- "Seeing as I'm in the family, it shouldn't be a problem."

Blake picked up where Weiss left off, even going so far as a parade rest with her hands behind her back when speaking. "The White Fang has regular faction meetings to hand out orders and recruit new members. If I can get in, I can hopefully find out what they're planning."

Yang crosses her arms over her chest, and a bit under them by necessity now with her arms resting on her stomach… something that she had found to be somewhat helpful as it was no longer her bras holding up the weight of her girls. "I have an old friend on the shady side of town that typically knows everything that's going on in Vale. Getting information out of him shouldn't be too hard."

"Great, we'll meet up tonight by Yang to go over what we found." Ruby finishes before pumping her arm in the air excitedly. "Let's do this!"

"Yeah!"

The big surprise was that the agreement hadn't come from any of the girls in the room… or anyone in the room. Looking to the source of the voice they found Sun Wukong hanging outside the window by his tail, arms and legs crossed as if her were sitting on the ground. Needless to say, all four members of Team RWBY were shocked enough from his sudden appearance to take a step back towards the door and away from the window.

"Sun!" Blake yells at him with some annoyance.

"How did you get up there?" Yang had to ask.

"Ah, it's easy. I do it all the time." The boy shrugs, looking somewhat awkward considering he was still upside-down and the action made him swing a little.

"You do what?" Weiss yells at him with an accusatory tone, her mind automatically going to depraved actions.

Sun seemed oblivious to her tone as he answered nonchalantly, "I climb trees all the time."

That response only made the heiress narrow her eyes at the Faunus who swung into the window to flip upright onto his feet.

"So… are we finally getting back at that Torchwick guy?" He asks once he was on his feet, his eyes settling on Blake.

The cat girl stepped forward a bit and waved her hand towards the girls. "WE, are going to investigate the situation. As a team."

Ruby pipes up to help her teammate. "Sorry Sun, we don't want to get friends involved if we don't have to."

That only made the monkey laugh. "Pfft, that's dumb. You should always get friends involved." He waved off her concern before pointing a thumb back at the window. "That's why I brought Neptune."

The four girls stuck their heads and shoulders out the window to see the blue-haired Mistral boy standing on the ledge with his back to the wall a fair distance from the window. "Sup?" He greets them with a smile.

"How did you even get up here?" Ruby asks for the entire team.

"I have my ways." Neptune shrugs. He made a glance down. "Seriously though, can I come in? We're like, really high up right now."

It didn't take Ruby long to revise her plans for the team. "All right, I'll go with Weiss. Sun, you can go with Blake." She gestures to the Faunus pair before pushing a rather stiff looking Neptune over to stand by her sister. "And Neptune, you can go with Yang since she doesn't have a partner. Everyone good?"

Weiss raises a hand, "Actually Ruby, why don't you go with Yang. Afterall she is your sister." The rich girl seemed somewhat nervous about asking this.

Ruby turns back to her partner as Yang puts a hand on Neptune's shoulder to steady the stiff boy. "But Weiss, who would go with you then?"

"Well, I guess Neptune could come with me." She suggests with a light blush adorning her pale cheeks.

Ruby's response couldn't have been much further that what Weiss had hoped for- the younger girl laughed and even snorted at her idea. "Nah!" Before walking out the door and dragging Weiss by the scruff behind her, completely ignoring her protests.

Along the northern wall of the Kingdom of Vale that marked the end of Vale's official borders and where the wilds began, Team DAIT could be found wandering in the large open expanse between the wall and the surrounding forests. Nearly three acres of land from the edge of the wall was kept clear of anything more substantial than a bush to ensure that the Vale Defense Force had a clear line of sight of anything approaching. Several small watchtowers were built out and away from the walls as small steps to expand the city. Some watchtowers are several miles out into the forest, and only staffed by the bravest, strongest, and/or unluckiest of the VDF. They maintained a constant eye out for the Grimm that prowled the forests, sometimes picking off a few that wander too close for comfort, sometimes simply letting the dark creatures walk by simply so they can report what types of Grimm are in the vicinity.

The watchtower of interest to the team right now sat near the edges of the forest, nowhere close to being the furthest away yet not even the closest as some of the older towers were actually part of the walls that defended the kingdom now. But there was no activity from the tower, it was manned by a team of three guards set in a one week stay inside, where one should be able to sleep, one rest or proved back up, and one to maintain a vigilant eye on the forest. By now, there should have been at least one person by the windows waving at them as the other towers had.

Traveling from one tower to the next was easy when driving in the Scarab, allowing the team to have interview three other watchmen teams. Two of the teams had seen a Beringal or two during the past week, but since the Grimm made no moves to attack, they had let them go. It didn't help that none of them were confident that they could have taken on the Grimm as the best they ever had to fight had been an Alpha Beowolf. The third tower had seen nothing beyond the occasional Beowolf and Boarbatusk this week.

But their reports had painted a picture that the Beringels had been moving in this direction. Transmitted reports from this tower claimed that they had seen more of the gorilla-like Grimm before they had gone silent.

It was during their approach to the tower that they saw their first clues. Two of the large windows near at the observation deck had been smashed, several of the cement blocks that formed the outer walls of the tower had chunks broken out of them- a few large stones near the base seemed to have been the reason. Pulling up to that only door to the facility, they found the small tunnel to the door covered in scratches from claws and the heavy steel door had been knocked down into the floor.

Silently, Denko made his way to the door, his guandao held ready in his hand, Anya just behind him with her bladed gauntlets activated. Talon waited by the Scarab where Itazura sat inside the vehicle watching its scanners.

"Any movement?" Talon asks the fox.

"Nothing that's not us so far." She never took her eyes from the display as she watched the soft footfalls of her teammates on the screen. Talon said nothing in response as she looked around, her twin blades on her back.

Denko carefully stepped inside the structure, making sure to watch where he stepped. Not only was there broken glass from a shattered cup next to the broken wooden table but there were dozens of spent shell casings littering the floor. Obviously, the team had not gone down without a fight. Too bad that Grimm dissolve to ashes and smoke upon death or there would have been a decent story to be told by the carnage that must have happened. The entryway was designed to form a kill zone before reaching the door by funneling anything trying to come in into the tunnel. Naturally this kept many of the larger Grimm out such as Ursa and Death Stalkers but the smaller Beowolves could fit just fine.

Walking further inside, it was Anya who found the remains of the guard, barely recognizable as a man as they had been mauled and ripped apart. A massive double-barreled machine gun rested nearby in a corner covered in its owners' blood. He must have been the main line of defense for the floor and judging by how wrecked the room is, he must have put up one hell of a fight. Bullet holes littered the walls, furniture smashed to splinters, the few potted plants that had added some color to the otherwise dull room lay trampled into paste.

Climbing the stairs to the next level of the three-story structure, they found that it wasn't much better. It served as the kitchen and sleeping area of the guards. A number of knives were embedded in the walls, regular kitchen knives oddly enough. The actual throwing knives that were spread across the floor indicated that the woman in the corner was the one who threw them. By her side is a large kitchen knife that she must have used in melee range along with the more ornate dagger still resting in her limp other hand.

While her demise had certainly been cleaner than her comrade's downstairs, no one should die from their head being crushed. A quick inspection of her remains showed that her end wasn't due to a pair of jaws, like what a Beowolf or Ursa would do, but looked like that of large hands squeezing a fruit. It must have been one of the Beringels that killed her as they were the only Grimm that didn't have claws and had the strength to do something like this.

With nothing left of use here the pair moved on to the final level. Glass littered the floor from the shattered windows. A pair of mounted machine guns were attached to the railing just outside, one of them bent to be unusable and nearly ripped from its foundation. The other gun looked to be relatively untouched by the carnage, clearly that one hadn't been used at all during the attack and left ignored by the Grimm. A control panel was smashed beyond functionality but the distinct imprints of tusks and hooves on the screens and panels left little to the imagination as to what destroyed it.

The final member was found on the other side of the panel, her arms ripped from her body still gripping the hand cannons and one arm was next to the stairs while the other had landed near the opposite wall, the blood splatter on the wall behind her told enough to indicate what had happened, though the fact that her throat had been ripped out told that she likely didn't suffer long.

Denko drew his scroll from his pocket. "Itazura, the tower team is dead. Tell the VDF to send a collection crew and a repair team." He sighs as he puts the devise away once more. It was a sad fact of life that he wasn't too phased by the destruction he saw today. Once again it was a reminder of why he was a Huntsman, to minimize scenes like this.

Anya was as stoic to the carnage as always but if one knew her well enough, they could see that she was upset. Probably the only thing that could make her feel better about this destruction would be to see the numbers of Grimm that had attacked the tower in the first place. She had wandered out to the railing to see the view that the three corpses once had to guard. From her place next to the ruined gun, she could see the bullet holes and trenches from the large gun, the small craters from the built-in grenade launcher were far easier to map out. Judging by the spread of the torn-up landscape, there must have been dozens at the very least attacking from the forest. The Beringels must have thrown rocks to attack the gunner while they were distracted by the other Grimm, maybe even been how the Boarbatusk had made it up here in the first place. It also must have been one of the Beringels that had broken through the door at the entrance.

A few minutes later the pair were back in the Scarab and waiting for the Bullhead that was being sent out to collect the bodies. Not much was or had to be said for the wait. Even when the plane landed nearby, the team remained to guard against any Grimm that would try to take advantage of the collector's sadness and attack while they had little in the way of defense.

In short order, three stretchers covered in white sheets were taken from the tower and loaded onto the Bullhead. There was another team within the structure documenting the carnage and would be there for a few more hours. The entire time, Team DAIT waited inside their vehicle and keeping watch.

Only when the Bullhead had returned after taking the bodies back to Vale for their funerals and extracted the investigators did DAIT leave the ruined tower, opting to return to the nearby guard barracks inside the walls for the night. The next day, they were going to return and start tracking the Grimm for extermination. Afterall, the best time to kill Grimm is before they gained enough experience from their battles to learn from them and start fighting smart.

A response to a review from the last chapter by Track Pot. I'm really not sure how you get to comparing Yang to a Mary Sue character- she is pretty much the exact opposite of the definition. As for calling her trash and should be killed off just because you don't like her... it kinda leads me to think that you just don't like strong women. Yes she has made mistakes, owns up to some, denies others, has learned to control much of her anger issues but these are the qualities that make her the opposite of a Mary Sue.

Next chapter will be containing a lot of what we've seen in 'A Minor Hiccup' and 'Painting the Town' but with plenty of little twists that result from how our villains are distracting the schools. Plus the hunt is on outside the walls of Vale. Might actually wind up making this a three parter with the sheer amount of action that's coming up. And yes, I did copy much of the dialogue from the episodes... kinda nice when subtitles are an option.

Reviews are welcome! Point out any mistakes I may have made or offer suggestions to help me improve the quality of this story.