Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY or any of its franchise.

A helpful guide incase you get confused:
"Dialogue."
'Thoughts. Could be Jaune. I mean, there have been other thoughts of people displayed too.'
[Semblances]

Chapter 18 - Who Needs Stairs

It took me a moment to realize that my stupid plans were working. Honestly, I had half expected the girl who introduced herself as Yang to back out the second I proposed my question. Then again, as I observed more of her behavior, Yang seemed like the kind of person who wanted to start a fight over anything. The fact that she could direct it somewhat seemed enough to persuade her.

Which, while very helpful in my current situation, was a rather annoying personality that clashed horribly with Melanie. The two of them were arguing constantly while trying to direct people out of the club. It was a rather tedious and ultimately futile plan with how drunk some people were, but I felt it was enough to have something for Yang to do while I called my most definitely criminal friend.

"Well, well, well, look who's calling me now." I knew the man on the other end was wearing the smuggest grin on his face, and felt the need to resent him on a personal basis now. "What could the invincible vigilante need from little ol' me?"

Reigning in my retort, I glanced around to make sure no one was listening too closely. "Roman, now's really isn't the time for a back and forth. I need help; it's the Red's."

The line went silent for a second before there was the sound of something crashing on the other end. "Neo! Damnit Neo, get back! I'll ask him, you crazy girl! Stop!" Ignoring how Roman took a few seconds to catch his breath, the man finally answered, "Okay, let me give you some advice: leave wherever you are right now. You don't sound like you're in a fight, nor do I hear one of the twins around you screaming that you're a dumbass. As such, get out of there."

"I'm not going in blind like last time; I have backup and Melanie is with me." I paused as the four Auras below the club were pulsing constantly now. Whatever fight was happening was suddenly heating up. "Anyways, I just need you to send some men to help the civilians evacuate before something dangerous happens during the fight. Also, tell me about the 'Hole in the Wall.' This place definitely isn't just a club."

"Hole in the wa-" there was another crash and cursing on the other end before Roman came back into the call, coughing. "Alright, alright, damnit Neo… Fine blondie, I'll send some of my henchmen to help your little heroic bone…"

"Thanks Neo!"

Roman grumbled on the other end. "Whatever. I swear, you wouldn't know who's running this gang. Anyways blondie, you said 'Hole in the Wall,' right? Well luckily, that place was documented in Junior's stuff, and apparently they're some front for a smuggling ring. Specifically, one of the Union's largest underground Dust smuggling rings. I'm talking millions of lien minimum goes through that place monthly. If the Red's are there, then that means that they're trying to force the Union into a corner."

I frowned as the information came. "Then, what happens if the Union loses this place?"

"It means," Roman sighed, holding the words as if afraid. "That the Union will probably pull out all their stops. And once that happens, I doubt they'd limit their damage to only Vale's underworld."

"That's crazy. The amount of people that that will affect is just…"

"Well, the Reds simply attacking the place means that they're trying to kickstart the final conflict. Something must have happened for them to try and end it fast despite the consequences instead of slowly cutting away the Union's forces."

I took that information in, painfully deciding that it was better to help the Union. It wasn't very heroic of me to not capture all of them, but if the Union lost this place, then that would mean that Vale would become a battleground for the conflict between the Reds and one of the largest gangs in the underworld.

"Thanks, Roman."

"You owe me one, blondie. Now go and be an idiot- oops sorry, I meant hero. Common mistake, really."

I rolled my eyes. "Just send some more men."

My scroll clicked as the call ended, and I found the club still full. Melanie and Yang were trying to convince more people out of the club when I found them. Melanie nodded at me, knowing that their task was mainly to get Yang away so I could talk to Roman. Yang on the other hand, was on the verge of punching the drunk dancer as he talked about getting out of there so long as she came with him.

Before she could do anything, I slid in between them, smiling at the man. It took him a second to realize that I was there, but luckily he just backed off as I laid a firm hand on his shoulder. The Aura in my grip was enough to painfully press into his muscles enough for him to get the message.

"Sorry we didn't get many people to leave." Melanie said, failing to conceal the fact that she wasn't sorry at all.

"That was stupid in the first place," Yang grumbled, crossing her arms under her chest and forcing me to pay attention to her now red eyes. It was rather unnerving how they seemed to flash between lilac and red. "These idiots are too drunk to even care right now. Hey, blondie, where are these murderers? I need someone to punch."

Ignoring why everyone seemed to call me 'blondie,' I pointed to the back of the club at one of the 'staff only' doors. "They are downstairs." I paused as I noticed that one of the Auras below seemed to be getting weaker by the second. "And we need to hurry."

"Finally!" Yang said, grinning like a loon as Melanie directed a worried look my way.

"Do you know how to get downstairs?" Melanie asked. It felt more like she hoped that I didn't just so that the whole thing would end faster.

However, I cut down that line of thought as I waved my Scroll at her. On it were the blueprints to the club that Roman had sent along when I asked, and while it most definitely excluded all information on any illegal construction underground, the blueprints were mainly for us to sneak into the place.

"Follow me." I said, waving to the two as I moved away from the club's public areas towards the doors that led to its more sketchy sections. They were apparently bolted, Dust-infused metal, according to Roman's information. It was stuff that militaries used to stop high-grade explosions. The only thing that made it unnoticed was the thick black and blue paint job to hide the door's more prominent features. "We need to break through the club's employee backdoors and then find out how to get to their underground areas."

Yang paused off to the side, questioning, "Wait, this club has an underground?"

I shrugged a bit. "Technically it shouldn't, but they do, so we'll need to be careful when we go in."

"Cool," Yang whistled, "So, just to be clear, are we fighting the club or these murderer guys?"

I stopped for a second to think on that. "Probably both."

"Definitely both." Melanie said, huffing a loud breath off to the side.

"So, are you guys..." Yang trailed off, gesturing back and forth between the two of us. "You know, together? Is this like a date or something?"

Melanie understandably scoffed at the idea. " A dat- what even gives that idea? Don't get the wrong idea, goldilocks. We're just friends, and I'm just the one sensible person around him. Why does this even matter? You're going to be fighting the Reds in a little bit, so shouldn't you at least show some -I don't know, signs of regret or something?"

"The who?"

Melanie stared at Yang and I took a moment to pause too. I stared at my companion, and the two of us came to the conclusion that Yang might not be the best teammate. However, if I said that out loud, Melanie would force me to stop this operation now. Something that I was even less inclined to do.

"The Reds, the monsters of Mistral, the bloody killers, the killer killers, the... actually, they have a ton of nicknames that just make no sense. You've never heard of them?" Melanie stressed. I could see it building. The white-themed twin normally tried to be relaxed and composed, but there were times when the girl began to lose it.

Yang, not even seeing or caring for Melanie's mental state, just shrugged. "I think I've heard of a few of those nicknames on the news. Didn't know that they were all for one group. That means they're pretty tough, right?"

"...tough? The gods damned Reds might be a little tough? Jaune, I think I'm close to joining Neo in one of her unnecessary bouts of violence."

"Now, now," I patted my friend on the shoulders. She was working herself up more than necessary because I basically forced her on this mission, so I tried to ease her as much as possible. "No need to get too angry at her; her Semblance is enough of a helper by itself. Just focus on yourself."

"It is?"

"Uh, thanks?"

I smiled, Melanie had perked up at my words. She trusted me enough to know that when I guaranteed a Semblance, it meant that it was that good of a power. Of course, Yang not being informed just yet was something inescapable due to our meeting, but it wasn't like I was being purposefully mysterious. Instead, I wanted to show her.

We had already reached the barricaded door, and we had wasted enough time just to start here. The Union's people below were definitely having a tough time fighting the two Red members I sensed below. Lilac was a terrifying foe to fight against if you didn't counter her intangibility while the other Red member...

[Tactile matter stasis. Stasis manipulation.]

Pulling on their Aura only proved that it was a powerful Semblance. The information filtered into my mind allowed me to see how threatening fighting both of them would be. Someone to freeze their enemies with a touch and Lilac for the finishing blow. Honestly, I half expected the Union members to lose the second I understood who they were up against.

However, the how and why wasn't important at the moment. First, I needed Yang completely on board with following two people she didn't know, and I knew for a fact that the girl could hold her own. It was the confidence in how she walked with us. There was no trace of doubt or wariness on her face, but a calm, collected ease at which she took everything in. Even if we had turned out to be hostile, even when I had said of my knowledge in her Semblance, I doubt she would have even hesitated to fight back.

As such, I cleared my throat and lightly tapped on the metal door. The painted exterior chipped a bit as I knocked and I heard the metallic ring echo out. Melanie looked at the door with a bit of shock, but she quickly raised an eyebrow as I hadn't removed the obstacle yet. Even something that the military used on a regular basis was chump change in front of actual, powerful Huntsmen; the doors were mainly used to block people from getting in without an excessive amount of force. A mere speed bump to slow down the opposition enough that the forces behind the door had enough time to get ready.

And it was slightly surprising that Yang recognized the door. I saw it on her face. Melanie would definitely say that the blonde was a dunce by the way she talked, but I saw it more as trust in her abilities. I doubt who the enemy was mattered to Yang at all.

"Do you need me to knock down the door?" She asked, cracking her knuckles. "It's been a while since I've seen one of these, so it might take a couple swings."

I shook my head. "No need. You guys need to save your energy for the Reds. I need both of you to handle one of them while I take the other."

"I don't think that's a good idea, Jaune."

"It doesn't matter." I said, feeling my tone change a bit as I started giving orders. "Her Semblance makes her counter anyone who focuses on close combat without enough reaction speed."

"And I don't think that's you either, dumbass." Melanie glared while Yang pursed her lips. The blonde didn't know where to cut into our argument, and I appreciated her for that. Melanie was too agonistic when it came to conversations.

"I can counter her with her own Semblance." I said, idly paying attention to Yang's reaction. For her part, the blonde froze momentarily before I saw her ease up as if she had just been told the weather. And finally, my explanation seemed to allay Melanie's fears enough for her to approve. "Now, I think we should introduce ourselves before we, you know, charge at some of the most dangerous people on Remnant. I'm Jaune, by the way... if you uh, haven't been paying attention."

Yang, the woman who had taken the fact that we were attacking mass murders who were attacking the largest gang in Vale with the ease of waking up in the morning. The woman who had taken how I could apparently copy Semblances as a simple fact. That very same woman was now staring at me like I was the anomaly in the room after my introduction.

"W- what? What is it? Do I something on my face?"

Melanie just rubbed her temples, sighing. "No, you dumbass. I forgot how different you become during serious stuff before you do shit like this... I'm Melanie. I would say that it is a pleasure working with you, but I doubt the feeling is mutual."

"I real charmer. You certainly are Mel-ancholy, huh." I closed my eyes for a second after Yang spoke.

"Please never do that again."

"Do what?"

"Jaune, for once I want to start attacking the Reds. Hopefully, they'll end my misery."

"Wait, what?"

Yang Xiaolong was not having the best of times. Her day had started pretty well: she teased her younger sister, went to Vale for the weekend and decided to try to find more information about estranged mother. Supposedly, there was another information dealer around that was picking up traction in Vale, but they had suddenly been run out of town, so she was back to asking around any shady place she could find. After all, she was fairly sure her mother had been a Huntress, and whereabouts of any Huntress or Huntsman, whether they are excommunicated or retired, were always something carefully hidden to the point where people questioned why they needed that much secrecy.

As such, it was another long and pointless endeavor to find the information she wanted. Now all she wanted to do was vent the bubble of anger and disappointment somewhere, and luckily, she had run into two possible sources of fun. Of course, that was only the most basic of her thoughts on them. The idea that they, especially Jaune, were so gung-ho about fighting mass murderers of all things was almost laughable. When Yang had heard that it was the Reds, she was a little tempted to see what all the fuss was about whenever it came to them.

Yang knew she was walking the thin line of danger like her dad always complained about. She didn't even know her allies enough to decide that they had a chance at fighting the Reds. Jaune seemed like a nice guy, but too nice for his own good with not much to show for it. Melanie, however, was all bitter and thorns. Yang only had to spend a bit of time with her to know that Melanie wanted nothing more than to ditch everyone else and leave no matter what happened to those left behind. In other words, Yang had decided that Melanie was probably a bitch.

Despite that, her emotions were not easily vented. The bubbling emotions in the pit of her stomach urged her forwards. They were almost a relentless source of energy that her dad always said to be wary of. In the end, she found the only way to release them was either teasing people for most of the day or punching someone's teeth in.

When they had arrived at the thick, military grade door, Yang was half expecting Jaune to just turn around and call it a day. She had trained on one of these when her uncle came back with one, saying that she needed to 'punch clean through' in order to call herself a Huntress-in-training. It was only a couple months later when others asked her how she trained that she learned that no one practiced with those military grade doors. At most, only Beacon students close to graduating would consider practicing with them. They just weren't practical.

Of course, all of Yang's thoughts were put on hold as Jaune simply walked through the door as if it were even there. She had seen quite a bit of freaky Semblances, and even her own had screwed with her on a daily basis, but Jaune's was something crazy. Taking a moment to tap the door with her fist, she noted that it was, in fact, solid.

She jumped back as she heard a loud bang followed by some screaming on the other side, and caught the eyes of her supposed teammate. Melanie had simply raised an eyebrow at whatever was going on behind the door before not paying it any mind. The girl looked the least worried about the fact that her friend had disappeared in supposedly enemy territory.

"Is he okay?" Yang asked, finally deciding that the silence and loud noises going on behind the door was getting the best of her. Her fists were clenching constantly and the bubbling energy was beginning to spread into her muscles, prepping them to send people flying.

Yang noticed how Melanie frowned as the black-haired girl looked over her. "Jaune would tell us if there were any people to worry about. If he hasn't, then that means that he can handle the grunts easy."

"The grunts?" there were a few more bangs. This time, Yang clearly felt that something was being slammed repeatedly against the metal door. "So, he's got more skills than I thought, huh..."

"If it's just normal people, Jaune can take them."

"Right... on that note, you guys seem awfully familiar with this. Not that I mind, but what happens if blondie made a mistake about the Reds or whoever being here?"

Melanie scoffed as if the notion was nonsense. "You can leave if you want. No one is stopping you."

Yang felt her emotions fuel her for a second. Her eyes felt hot, and she knew they had changed colors, but quickly she reigned herself in. "Well, blondie promised me a fight, so I'll either get to fight these so called Reds or whoever is downstairs."

"Typical hothead."

"Thanks, I know I'm hot."

Before Melanie could retort, the heavy door slowly swung open from the inside. Yang hurriedly turned her attention to the seven, unconscious bodies sprawled on the floor of a long hallway that stretched further into the back of the building. The cause of their situation was standing by the door, holding it open with a wide, innocent grin on his face as if he hadn't spent the past minute or so beating seven men unconscious.

"Come on it," Jaune said. "I hope I didn't take long."

"It's fine, let's just get this over with." Melanie brushed past him, calmly stepping over the bodies where she could and directly walking over them when she couldn't.

"Thanks, blondie." Yang followed, carefully paying attention to the men and Jaune.

The ones on the floor had bruises beginning to form on their foreheads or bloody noses and split lips. Those could have either been from strong blows to the face, or- Yang paused as she found several bloodstains on the walls and floor. She mentally shrugged. Jaune apparently wasn't as kind to enemies it seemed.

Instead, she focused on Jaune. The teen was apparently her age, and while that wasn't that big of a deal, there seemed something off about him. The fact that he hadn't been injured in such a tight confrontation with multiple people was something that could be written off as Aura, but he wasn't even winded. She had put together that his Semblance could copy someone else's, but that just brought more questions about how he was sure that someone was down so far underground. It was almost as if he could sense Aura on top of copying someone's Semblance, but the only way she had heard of sensing Aura was through specialty machines or-

In the end, Yang decided that she didn't really want to pry. They weren't here on a field trip, and she was just here to have some fun and blow off steam. Based on how hurried Jaune was, he definitely wasn't in any mood to play twenty questions.

"Where to next?" she asked.

Jaune took a second, fumbling with his Scroll before pulling open something. Yang narrowed her eyes as she saw the club's blueprints currently displayed on his screen, and wondered where he even got that. While a building's floorplan weren't that hard to find, Yang didn't believe that some random teen just happened to get them so easily.

Still, the blonde girl chose to keep her mouth shut this time.

"There should be a way down if we keep going. It's a couple turns, so it's a little hidden."

Jaune paused all of a sudden before turning his attention downwards. There was a frown on his face as he continued to stare a hole in the ground.

"What is it?" Melanie copied his frown. "What's going on now?"

"One of the Auras in the basement are gone."

Yang took a moment to realize what he just said, and it was only after Melanie cursed did she understand what happened. Someone had died. A deep pit of nausea welled up from her stomach and only after a couple seconds did she calm down. She didn't know how strong Jaune's Aura sense was or if whoever was down there had been injured enough that he couldn't sense their Aura, but that didn't matter. This was no longer about her blowing off steam or beating some punks.

Say what you will about her bad habits or her unceasing need to punch someone's face in, Yang was still a Huntress-in-training. She had been subject to her sister's constant stream of hero worship, and while she didn't consider herself a hero, there was no way she was just going to sit on the sidelines and let people get killed.

"How close are they? Are they directly underneath us?"

"Well not directly, but yes. What are you-"

Melanie yanked Jaune back before he could finish his question. The correct action, really. Yang had focused in on the floor flexing her fists once again, but this time the yellow-painted, metal rings around her wrists activated. Ember Celica, her weapon, unfolded in an instant as the mechanisms inside the large bands shifted until two large gauntlets were wrapped around her fists and forearms. The interlocking plates rose up, revealing the barrels of a shotgun were hidden right under the largest plate of the gauntlet situated over her knuckles. A row of red Dust shells spun around her wrist within their own compartment as the last bits of Ember Celica fell into place with a loud click.

Yang grinned as she saw Jaune's jaw drop down at her mecha-shift weapon. If he was surprised at her babies, then she wanted to know what would happen should he meet her sister, Ruby. However, now was not the time to enjoy the limelight.

"Who ordered the express elevator to the bad guys?" Yang laughed pulling her fist back over her head. She felt the emotions raging within her ready to burst. Pure streams of energy and strength pulsed within her according to her Semblance, and she took that energy and funneled it all into her fist.

The next moment, she struck downwards. It wasn't an attack that had anything other than brute power. There was no finesse, no technique nor spin on it. Just a punch to the solid concrete floor.

And the floor lost badly.

The ground they were all standing on shattered in a spiderweb, crumbling in an instant. It broke apart almost the moment Yang's fist landed, and the whole floor was sent falling into the next level. Pieces of concrete and rubble slammed into the floor below, causing loud bangs to echo into the corridors as a plume of dust blew out from the destruction.

Jaune and Melanie were coughing in the dust cloud, recovering from what just happened. They were dazed and confused, but Jaune found his bearings fast enough to see Yang lining up the next strike to their current footings.

"Wait, wait!" he yelled, stopping Yang from destroying another floor.

"What? This is the fastest way down."

Jaune swallowed a lump of dust as he looked at the rather sizable hole above them. They had luckily been walking away from the unconscious Union grunts or else those guys would have been seriously injured in this fall. Even Yang could see that he was reeling from the impact despite his use of Aura.

Yang sheepishly noticed Melanie glaring at her. The blonde girl hadn't really paid mind to impacts or falls as her Semblance could mitigate them enough that it would take quite a bit of punishment before she could feel the pinch, so she hadn't really paid mind to her temporary teammates before deciding this was the best option.

Jaune sighed this time, looking over at Melanie with a look yang couldn't quite understand.

"No, no," the girl denied, crossing her arms. "Absolutely not! This bimbo is crazy!"

"Mel, please don't insult her. Besides, Yang's right, this is the fastest way down."

"Should I continue?" Yang asked, raising her fist.

"No!"

"Please do."

Yang looked back and forth between the two of them. Jaune had gone back to looking at Melanie while the girl had been glaring at him. Finally, the stare down ended when Jaune turned back to Yang and nodded.

"We'll continue, but move that way." Jaune pointed further into the corridor. "You can survive each impact without much trouble, but our Aura will take too much of a hit before we fight."

"Ah, got it... my bad."

Yang then moved a little ways away before repeating the process, smashing another hole in the floor. This time she fell into a larger, storage room. Metal lockers lined the walls and long metal rods were supporting the ceiling. In one corner, Yang caught the sight of large bags full of unrefined Dust crystals with labels over the top of each of them. However, what drew most of her attention were the several men staring at her with wide eyes.

"Hey," she waved, causing some to wave back in a daze. "If you don't mind me, I'll be on my way."

A gunshot rang in her ears as Yang felt a pinprick against her Aura. She had been expecting such an attack, so her outer Aura had been channeling enough to block their caliber bullets. As such, the attack had only flattened against her stomach, filling the pit of energy within her up by just a bit more.

Her red, burning eyes glared at them man who had shot her, and she listened as there were yells of 'Huntress' around her. However, before she chose to rush them, Jaune and Melanie dropped down beside her. Jaune frowned at the room, pulling out his Scroll instead of paying attention to guns pointed at them.

"We're still in the legal parts of the blueprints, but they've already moved their contraband here..." he muttered before turning to Yang. "Keep on going. Start punching outside this room; Mel and I will clean up here."

Yang paused in her actions. It was hard to focus her emotions once she had started taking hits and her Semblance had been activated, but slowly she pulled back on the pit of energy within her and nodded at Jaune. He had seemed pretty weak when they had first met. However, once they begun getting further and further into danger, it was like a switch had been flipped and Jaune suddenly seemed dangerous like being trapped in a room with a wild beast. Her instincts as a Huntress didn't know if that beast would attack her or not.

Still, Yang felt that Jaune was serious about fighting the Reds and saving whoever was downstairs. While they hadn't known each other for long, she felt that he was at least as kind as she tried to present himself as. If it was just punch through the ground, then she could do it easy.

Without a second of hesitation, Yang ran to the door, shielding her face and hair with Ember Celica. Gunshots echoed out as she ran and felt the bullets pinging uselessly against her gauntlets.

There was a man standing in front of the door, nervously firing at her at she charged him. He didn't have the time to form a thought of regret before Yang's shoulder crashed into his sternum. His breath rushed out of his lungs in a raspy wheeze, and Yang heard the man whimper as they crashed into the door, taking it off its rusty hinges and sending the two out into another long corridor with multiple doors on either side. Behind her, there were screams and shouts as Jaune and Melanie had gotten to work on cleaning up.

Yang huffed a bit, throwing the unconscious man off her shoulder. She carefully chose another spot on the hallway's floor. Then, she got to work on creating another hole.

"I feel like a glorified construction machine." She said, punching another hole in the ground. This time, she breathed a sigh of relief as no one was waiting below.

Moving a little bit away, Yang stared at the hole above her, waiting to see if Jaune and Melanie were coming down. As if one cue, Jaune's face peered over the edge with a smile. He didn't even wince as a bullet whizzed past his head, barely skimming along his blonde hair.

"Just keep going. More people just came out from the other rooms." He turned back and fired a few shots from a gun Yang knew he had pilfered from one of the grunts before. "Just be careful. You'll probably reach the basement in the next two drops."

Yang nodded before moving away. She decided to wait for Jaune and Melanie after the next floor just to be safe. They were nice enough, and she did trust them a bit, but it was better to be on the safer side instead of listening to the two semi-strangers.

With only a bit of effort and even less time, Yang was falling into another self-created hole. However, the expected fall time exceeded her estimations by a bit, and she found herself falling for a good couple seconds before her feet crashed into the floor below. A tinge of pain shot up her legs as she crouched to bleed off the fall, and she stared around to feel the rubble still falling around her, causing the ground to vibrate with each impact. A cloud of dust obscured her vision for a second as she steadily straightened her back.

"I feel that Jaune might have underestimated the next drop..." Yang grumbled to herself. However, she kicked off the ground in an instant to dodge a thin hand reaching through the dust cloud around her. She had only her instincts to save her as whoever they were didn't even disturb the cloud around them in their sneak attack.

Yang found herself within another large room like the last one she found company in. This one looked like a large cave that have been vaguely shaped into a box. Large concrete supports ran up to the ceiling, and she found that some supports were just the ends that attached to the floor or ceiling as the middle had been somehow ripped straight from them. Divots dotted the floor, indications of someone setting off explosives nearby. Way off on the opposite side, Yang saw a small entrance to the room with large double doors that rose up halfway to the ceiling.

"What do they even need to fit through those?" Yang wondered as her attention fixed itself on the two sets of footsteps nearing her.

Alarms were going off within her head as a lithe figure calmly stepped out from the dust cloud Yang had previously been in. The first thing that caught her attention was the blood red hair that was tied up in a ponytail and the wide, green eyes looking at her in surprise. The other person dispersed the cloud simply by walking through it, drawing Yang's eyes to the massive figure clad in thick, metal plates that surrounded their figure like an armor. They were big and burly like what bodybuilders wished they looked like. In their large hands were two concrete pillars that dwarfed their frame and caused a bead of sweat to gather on Yang's brow. The amount of strength to causally carry those support pillars must have been simply phenomenal.

Yang's guard was currently as high as it could go while the pit of energy in her stomach was beginning to burn wildly. Her breath began to pick up in both anticipation and dread as she stared down two of the Reds, and her conflicting emotions felt like she wanted to charge them and run away at the same time. However, the only thing keeping her from attacking them and running was the fact that the redhead just stared at her like some kind of ghost.

"Yang?" she whispered, but loud enough that Yang could pick it up. "What are you doing here?"

"I-"

"Yang! Yang!" Jaune's voice drew everyone's attention, and Yang as well as the two Reds looked up at him leaning over the hole. "Yang just run around! We'll be down in a minute! Scream if you need help, and we'll just forget about conserving Aura!"

The redhead's palm met her forehead as she stared at Jaune, and Yang felt like the girl might get along well with Melanie.

"I guess you could say I came in with a... Yang." Yang said, wasting not a second to scream as the armored giant dropped the two massive support pillars in his hands to rush at her.

Jaune and Melanie dropped into the room slightly hesitating over the merits of leaving her and her puns below.

Hello, sorry this took a while. I have been indisposed with work and procrastination. This chapter also gave me a bunch of trouble, and while I'm not that happy with it, there is enough in it to satisfy me. Of course, not much progress happens, so it's not the best.

Edit: apparently I had missed copying and pasting things in... whoops. And I got the title to this one and the next chapter mixed up... Hopefully everything is fixed now.