The Frozen Flame Book 2: (Re)union

by tallgeese

Book 2 of 'The Frozen Flame Saga'. As Weiss and her ghostly familiar journey across Mistral, reunions await. Weiss finds her comrades again, as well as something Roman Torchwick believed he'd lost. All the while, the thread of destiny continues to unravel, and hidden enemies reveal themselves.

6. Team WRYR

Author's note: At the end of April, the events I alluded to in my last update played out in the only way they could, and my family and I have been coping with the aftermath. The only cure for tragedy is time, but I couldn't just freeze everything in my life while I waited for the pain to pass… so I kept writing. The increments were a lot smaller than before. Some days my progress could be counted in sentences, other day I progressed in single words, but I kept going… and I gotta say I'm glad I started this story. It gave me something to focus on at a point in my life where I really needed it.

As ever I apologize for the delays. As normalcy slowly returns to my life, I'm hopeful I'll get back to the point where I can update at reliable increments. I can't fault anyone who's given up on the story in the long hiatus, but if y'all want me to keep going just let me know. I appreciated all the messages wondering where I was these past few months.
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Weiss Schnee

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The stench of smoke flooded the area first, followed by the screeching of Grimm, and then the sound of pounding wingbeats. Weiss had braced herself for a frontal assault, but to her surprise the Fabled remained in place for now. Leanan reacted to the confused glint in the huntress' light blue eyes with a smug smirk and the jerk of her head, calling the party's attention to the maze of hallways they'd emerged from.

Had she triggered a bomb? The hissing screeches echoed through the area, and as Weiss followed Leanan's guidance, she could see that several of the crates that had lined the shelves were now shattered on the ground. In their place were small, insect-like Grimm which buzzed between the shelves, racing toward the office area in an awkward, drunken flight pattern.

Well, Weiss called them 'small', but that was by the standard of normal Grimm. Compared to wasps, the insects they borrowed their appearance from, they were enormous—each the size of a large dog—and the buzz of their cellophane wings rumbled like a snare drum as they approached. Weiss racked her brain, searching for the lesson she'd had on this type of Grimm.

'Lancers'? Was that their name? The appearance matched what she'd read, though they were supposed to be a bit larger.

One of the creatures finally navigated its way down the hall, heavy carapace thumping against the metal shelves as it darted into the open only to immediately be crushed beneath Nora's Magnhild. There seemed to be dozens more waiting between the shelves, though none of the remainder followed their crushed friend into the open space. Instead, they stopped at the edge of their respective halls, as if an invisible barrier kept them in place.

"Sacrificing a few Grimm to learn how you conduct yourselves in combat was a trifling cost. As you can see, we had plenty to spare. Should you entertain the thought of fleeing, I promise these children will be enough to rend your flesh asunder." Leanan's tone was mocking and superior, as if she were speaking to a small child. Weiss' eyes narrowed in reply, and her grip on Myrtenaster tightened. Ever since she was a child, she'd hated to be condescended to.

The smallest of the fabled leapt toward Weiss, who hopped forward to meet her and extended the tip of her blade. With lightning speed, the blade of the sword hissed forth and speared the air where Leanan's head had been the moment before. The two exchanged attacks for a few seconds before Leanan suddenly jerked her eyes to the side. She parried Weiss' sword with her clawed fingertips before letting out a hiss of frustration and leaping back, raising a hand to call her sibling's attention.

"Dian, you darling dolt, you said the others were behaving normally, did you not?" She asked her brother, her tone suddenly mirthless. The young man nodded in reply.

"Y-yes…" Dian's answer was hesitant, and this elicited a second hiss from his sister.

"Then your powers of observation could rival your powers of deception: the silver-eyed one approaches."

Silver-eyed one? That could only mean one person, right? Weiss wasn't sure how Leanan could sense Ruby's approach, but the news was welcome, regardless. A bit of pride began to swell in Weiss' chest at that thought. She knew her friends would be able to put her message together!

"I'm sor-sorry."

"Tsk. That girl vexes me. Tenuous though her grasp on her power may be, we must handle her with caution. It would not do to be ensnared by our own pincer. This calls for a change of venue."

Leanan's body was once again swallowed up in a violet light, her pupils expanding into reptilian slits as her teeth took on a still more pointed and predatory shape. The sound of fabric straining and tearing preceded the back of her jumpsuit ripping open to reveal a pair of black, corvid wings, and her clawed fingertips grew so long and sharp as to fully tear through the gloves containing them.

Only a couple seconds elapsed between the start and end of the transformation, but Weiss still did her best to capitalize, leaping forward with her sword raised. She only cleared half the distance between them before a Lancer moved to intercept her, forcing her to change her target. The insect Grimm's thick exoskeleton was tough, and Weiss had to ignite the fire dust she'd chambered in her sword in order to force her blade into its body.

This was enough to slay the creature, who vanished into a miasma of dark energy, but a half dozen more were quick to replace their fallen kin. The buzzing squad acted as a living barrier between the small team of huntsmen and the Fabled. Weiss clicked her tongue in frustration and called out to Oscar and Nora, signaling for them to fall into formation beside her. They had enough room to maneuver here, but these smaller enemies had the advantage, so she would have to fight carefully.

"Forgive the abrupt halt to our duel, Weiss Schnee. This is a wonderful place to spring a trap, but far too cramped for a proper battle. We shall be heading upward, then. Feel free to give chase if you're so inclined… and should the children fail to devour you."

Leanan beat her wings, and a shockwave of wind flooded the office as her body began to lift off the ground. Dian brought his hand to her shoulder as she rose, his lanky frame traveling beside her as she climbed first five feet, and then ten feet into the air—half of the distance between the floor and the overhead—and Brigid followed suit, leaping up to grab her elder sister's ankle. When fully unfolded, Leanan's black-feathered wings spanned more than three times her height, and each beat of them continued to lift her upward even despite all the additional weight.

"Wait-!" Weiss called out, but even now the advancing of Grimm kept her from pursuing. She chambered wind dust into Myrtenaster, firing it forward to slow the advance of the Lancers as Nora and Oscar picked them off one-by-one… but by the time Weiss could turn her attention to the Fabled again, they had ascended almost all the way to the roof.

A golden symbol began to spread across the overhead: what appeared to be a circle inside a circle, with two triangles jutting out from the outer-most circle. The airborne siblings took on similar golden glow for a moment, and in the next moment they charged through the symbol in a thunderous boom and a blur of motion. They tore through the steel of the ceiling as if it were paper, causing an eruption of shrapnel to fall onto the huntsmen like rain.

"Sounds like we got no reason to stick around here anymore, right?" Nora called out. The heavy sound of her hammer crashing into Grimm bodies echoed out every few seconds. Weiss gave her a nod of affirmation.

"Head for the entrance. Try to kill as many as we can as we go. If we leave these things alone, they might attack the other passengers."

"…How did they manage to smuggle this many Grimm onto the ship? I thought the captain double-checked everything in storage after the harbor attack." Oscar wasn't quite as adept at Grimm-slaying as the other two, but he held his own as the group slowly began to inch toward the shelves.

By now it seemed that the entire number of Lancers had finally come to assault them, a grand total of fifteen insects flying in formation… which meant around 20 had been here in total, counting the ones Weiss and Nora had already killed.

Were these all the Grimm they had? Weiss hoped, but deep down she knew there had to be more. All they could do for now was fight their way through the horde and try to regroup with the rest of their team.

"I don't know, but first thing's first." Weiss replied to the question, jerking her head toward the row of shelves before them. When they got to the edge of the nearest hallway, they paused. Fighting through these narrow confines would be tricky. "How are we going to make it through here?"

"No time for that, Weiss!" Nora shouted.

"What do you-" Weiss began to question Nora's logic, but the boisterous huntress had already swung her hammer in a wide arc, sparks flying as the surface contacted the side of the shelf before her. The welded hinges that bolted the shelf into the floor and the ceiling began to creak as the force of impact strained them, popping loudly as they were finally torn asunder. The first shelf to topple struck the second, repeating the process of ripping it loose until it fell upon the third, which proceeded to fall upon the fourth. Each successive shelf fell more rapidly, until half the shelves in the storage room had been knocked onto their side like a set of dominos.

"…Really, Nora?" Weiss sighed and shook her head, but there was no time to lose, so she had already begun to run through the now-expanded hall. For as much destruction as she'd caused, Nora had only bought them an extra two feet of space, but Weiss had to concede it was better than nothing. The extra elbow room offered her just enough movement to engage with the Lancers who swooped down against her as she ran.

"What? Grimm are attacking! Desperate times!" Nora gave her friend a cavalier shrug as they moved back toward the entrance, pausing only long enough to coordinate their movements when a Grimm drew close enough for them to slay it. Reckless though she was, Nora wasn't exactly wrong, but still… Weiss' soft blue eyes saddened as she looked at the debris they'd left in their wake, her head jerking to a stop as she saw the remains of one of the crates. 'SCHNEE DUST COMPANY' was printed onto the wood in large black letters above the company logo.

These boxes… were they the ones the Grimm had been hidden in? Or were they casualties of Nora's hallway expansion? Weiss didn't want to jump to conclusions, especially not in the heat of the moment, but something about the sight of that logo twisted her stomach into a knot. Her family's company had lost its way—perhaps it had always been deeply flawed—but it wasn't this twisted, right?

Fortunately, it was hard for her thoughts to tarry anywhere outside of battle in the moment, and the team had taken control of the fight's momentum. By the time they heard the entrance door sliding open and saw the silhouette of a woman step into the area, the blade of Myrtenaster had pierced the body of the final Lancer, leaving the storage room silent and peaceful… if slightly more horizontal than it had been before.

"Weiss! I found you." Ruby's voice was half-relieved, half-proud as she revealed herself, beaming at her teammate. Her smile grew a touch more concerned as she looked at the mayhem their crew had left in their wake, but the relief remained constant. "Whoa! Are we too late?"

"See? You were right, after all. Told ya to go with your gut, Sis." Yang's voice boomed from the other side of the entryway, heralding the arrival of the tall, muscular blonde. She gave an appreciative whistle as she surveyed the makeshift battlefield with her remaining eye. "Ah, man, Snow Angel! I didn't know you had it in you to cut loose like this."

"Ruby! Yang! You understood, after all." Despite herself, Weiss felt her eyes grow a little misty at the thought. "Rest assured you're just in time. We have to pursue the enemy."

"Well, I mean, you could have made the message a little less cryptic." Yang said in a dry tone, bringing a mechanical fingertip to trace the outline of the deep black eyepatch she'd come to wear. "…and the mess you made of the room! I feel bad for the housekeepers."

"What the ever-loving hell did you do in there, Weiss? I left you alone for five minutes." Torchwick sounded incredulous. Weiss chuckled nervously in response, rubbing her arm as she shook her head at Yang.

"I-I'll apologize to them properly later! Now isn't the time. All that matters is that you understood what I was trying to say! Ugh!" Weiss stomped her foot and folded her arms over her stomach, suddenly finding it difficult to look any of her friends in the eye. It wasn't her fault! She had to think fast, and she was sure the mess would come out… mostly.

A violent tremor of turbulence shook the area, followed by a series of chimes that echoed through the ship's PA system, sparing Weiss any additional teasing that Yang or Roman might have been building toward. The final chime bled into a long, static hiss before a voice finally spoke.

"This is an emergency alert: Grimm have been spotted aboard the ship. Guests are advised to remain in their rooms, lock their doors, and remain calm. Security personnel are to muster at their nearest checkpoints and await further instructions. Repeat." The message began to repeat on a loop, the voice on the line feminine and robotic. Darkness fell over them as every light in the area shut off at once, replaced by the ominous glow of the soft red emergency lights that flashed on a moment later.

"Guess these weren't the only Grimm on the ship." Oscar shook his head with a frown. The boy had a few beads of sweat forming on his temples, and his tanned skin had adopted a pallor that Weiss had never seen on him before, though admittedly she'd only known him a short while. He'd looked upset while they were talking to the Fabled—had he not recovered from that? Weiss made a mental note to check in on him once this whole mess was settled.

"We have to stop those three, but we can't ignore the Grimm, either." Weiss said firmly, thinking back to her battle with Aibell. "If they're like the one from the mountain, they can control other Grimm like puppets, but once they die, those Grimm go berserk. A lot of people will get hurt if we aren't careful."

"Which way d-" Yang began to question, but the upbeat sound of Ruby's ringtone interrupted her. The mousey young huntress looked at her scroll vacantly for a moment before expanding the device and accepting the call.

"Ruby! Everything okay? Find the snowflake?" The grumpy, distinctive sound of Qrow Branwen's voice. He was panting softly, occasionally grunting in exertion as the sounds of distressed screaming and monstrous growling filled the air behind him.

"Yeah, everyone's safe down here. What's happening over there? We heard Grimm were attacking?" Ruby responded, nodding to the rest of the group to confirm their status. They had already begun to walk back toward the elevator, though they quickened their pace as they realized how serious the battle above may have been getting.

"Damned things burst out of every storage hold on the ship. Dozens of 'em! Jaune and the others are trying to get them under control, but they're on every floor, and we have our hands full trying to keep the passengers from acting stupid."

"We're on our way right now! Weiss knows who's responsible for the attack."

"Whatever you're gonna do, do it fast." The rate of Qrow's breathing hastened again, with the hiss of a blade swinging quickly replaced by the sound of a Grimm's carapace being split open. The creature gave a pained cry before Ruby's uncle was finally able to return his attention to the call. "We've converted the observation deck into a refuge point. We can keep this place secure, but a bit more firepower wouldn't hurt. Ruby, Yang… Whether you back us up or go after the ringleaders, just try not to get yourselves hurt. You have no idea how passive-aggressively judgmental your old man's facial expressions can get."

The sound of the battle intensified before the signal was abruptly cut, with the words 'call ended' flashing across the front of Ruby's scroll before the device retracted to its original shape. The huntress team spent the next long minute traveling along the hallway connecting the storage room to the employee service elevator, not stopping to process the new information they'd received until they were inside the carriage and being lifted upward.

"Where are they headed, Weiss?" As soon as the elevator doors closed, Ruby was the first to break the silence. She walked to the far corner of the space and pressed her back to the wall, absently adjusting her hood.

"Up. All I can say for certain is that they're headed 'up'." Weiss punctuated her answer by raising a hand and extending one of her slender fingers toward the ceiling. She explained to the sisters the series of events that transpired between the battle beginning and their reunion. How Leanan seemed to sense their approach, and the three Fabled escaped by breaking out of the room and invading the floor above.

"How'd she know we were coming?" Yang frowned thoughtfully, letting the tip of her finger brush a strand of blonde hair away from her eyepatch. Her arms were crossed beneath her bust, and her shoulders rested against the wall beside Ruby. "We were trying to be quiet and everything!"

"I don't know, but they retreated as soon as she did. I think they intend to hide away and let the Grimm on the ship finish us off."

"Pfft, finished off? By punks like these? Kinda ticks me off to be underestimated that badly. I say we track 'em down and see how they like the taste of dust." Yang's frown reversed course, transforming into a cocky smirk as she cast the gaze of her violet eye toward Ruby.

"Hmm…" Ruby's only reply to any of their discussion was a contemplative hum. Yang's little sister didn't seem to share her outrage; her own eyes were fixed firmly on the ground between her feet, and a strained look had come across her face.

Was she trying to decide between hunting down the Fabled and going back to help Qrow and the others? That did sound like Ruby. For all her capricious and free-spirited mannerisms, their little leader was prone to overthinking when lives were on the line. The thought brought a light warmth to Weiss' chest, reminding her of their days back at Beacon.

"Oh, honestly! That look doesn't suit you, Ruby." Weiss offered her friend a smile, stepping forward, stepping forward to clasp a hand on the girl's shoulder. "If you say to attack, we'll attack, and if you say to defend, we'll do that. No matter what, we're going to stop them, and we're going to save everyone."

Weiss was proud of her words, although that pride was quickly replaced by doubt as an uncomfortable silence filled the elevator, with both Ruby and Yang shooting her a curious look.

"Wow, a pep talk from Weiss? I must have looked really miserable." Ruby said in disbelief, flashing the Ice Queen a teasing smile.

"W-well, I mean, it's just not worth this much debate, is all!" Weiss just couldn't get the hang of being put on the spot like this, no matter how many times it happened. She shifted awkwardly, her icy gaze wandering around the elevator as embarrassment once again stripped her of her ability to look her friends in the eye. "…Now that I'm here, I can pick up the slack when you screw up!"

"Oh…" Ruby hummed softly, her smile broadening as she watched her friend squirm. "That's actually kinda reassuring, Weiss."

"Hmph! Of course it is. Now stop procrastinating." Ruby was benevolent enough to give Weiss the opportunity to return to her haughty shell, and the rich girl gratefully leapt at it. She gave her friend an annoyed snort and stood bolt upright, her hands resting on her hips.

"…and here I thought I was roundabout with 'my' feelings." Weiss heard Roman's voice muttering beside her, but she refused to acknowledge the barb. She'd broker no more teasing today, dammit!

"If we ignore the Grimm, Uncle Qrow and the others could get overrun. If we ignore the Fabled, they might attack us while our backs are turned. I think we should split up." Ruby's voice was thoughtful, but firm. None of the hesitation from before could be found on her face as she looked from Weiss to Nora, to Oscar, and then to Yang.

"Yang, you an- BWAH!?" Ruby began to give her orders, but before she could finish, her elder sister suddenly dashed toward her. The blonde-haired huntress drew an arm around Ruby's shoulders, trapping her in a playful headlock as she brought the knuckles of her mechanical hand down to rub her sister's scalp.

"Nope. Denied. Not happening." Yang's tone was chipper, but it betrayed a hint of frustration. Ruby began to flail helplessly in her grip, her arms waving at her sides as if she were trying to fly away.

"I didn't even say anything yet!" Ruby's confused protests earned a judgmental headshake from her elder sister.

"Mm-hmm." Yang finally released her sister, watching with a narrowed eye as Ruby scampered a few steps away and rubbed her neck. "We both know you were about to send me back to the others while you ran off to fight the bosses."

"W-well, I…" Ruby hesitated, drawing in a deep breath. She began to explain herself, but trailed off, "it's just that…"

"I knew it was coming because you've been doing this for weeks, now! Any time things get rough, you find some excuse to keep me away from the fight." Yang groaned, running the fingers of her organic hand through her long golden hair. "I appreciate that you care, Sis—I really do—but that ain't where I belong. Have a little faith in your big sister! We're a team, right?"

"Yang…" For just a moment, tears flickered in Ruby's eyes as she fell silent. Weiss watched the exchange in silence, as well, knowing better than to butt into such a personal matter. She understood Ruby's position: Ever since the Fall it seemed like every time Yang went into battle, she left a little bit more of herself lying on the battlefield. If Ruby kept bringing her into fights, how long would it take for Yang to lose something irreplaceable? If Weiss were in Ruby's shoes, with Winter in Yang's, would she be able to give the order? Winter was one of the coolest, strongest people Weiss had ever seen in her life, but that didn't make the fear of losing her any less intense.

Ruby held Yang's gaze in silence as the elevator finally came to a stop. By the time the mechanical doors slid open, her face had hardened into a look of determined confidence, and she gave her sister a resolute nod.

"Okay, Yang. We can fight together." A smile broke across Ruby's face as she led the group out into the hallway. For all her trepidation, there was an unmistakable relief in her tone as she said those words. "Nora, you and Oscar head to the observation deck to help Uncle Qrow and the others. Yang, Weiss, and I will track down the ones responsible for this attack and stop them. Oh! Torchwick is coming with us, too, naturally."

"Right-o! Leave the passengers to me and Ren." Nora beamed at the command and flashed a goofy salute.

"O-oh. Understood." The beads of sweat that had been forming at Oscar's temples had started to streak down his face since last Weiss had looked at him, but he acknowledged the command with an unsteady nod of his head.

"You really didn't have to acknowledge me, Red. Like, seriously." Torchwick grumbled.

Nora and Oscar split from the group and headed down the hall toward the observation deck, but the rest of the team only followed part of the way. There was a framed map of the airship attached to the wall, and Ruby paused there to investigate. Her silver eyes narrowed as she studied the layout.

"So, above the storage area is the kitchen, then the penthouse cabins, then the topside." Ruby whispered as she traced an imaginary path across the map with her fingertip, "We'll track the path they took upward, and try to corner them."

Weiss followed Ruby's movements with her eyes, wanting to warn her optimistic friend that this may not be as easy as she was making it sound, but had scarcely opened her mouth before Yang gave a confident snort.

"Never fought a Grimm who could think ahead. Almost makes it a fair fight for them. Almost." The blonde smirked as she stretched her upper body, clasping Weiss and Ruby on the back with one arm each. "Even have the right numbers! Three-on-three."

"Well, actually, we have four. Weiss, you've fought alongside Torchwick before, right? I'll be relying on that experience to help us all coordinate during the battle." Ruby corrected her sister in a chipper tone. Weiss was a little impressed by her ability to remember Torchwick was with them, since neither she nor Yang could see him, but of the four members of RWBY, Ruby did seem to be the one among them who'd had the most history with the thief. Ruby held an extra bit of emotion toward him as an enemy, and Torchwick, in kind, seemed to have a special degree of animosity toward her.

"I- Gods-dammit." Torchwick groaned, letting his forehead come to rest in his palm. "Don't go overselling my presence, Red. Technically speaking I only have a vested interest in helping one of you."

"Is that so?" Weiss turned her nose up at the thief, gazing up at him with a good-natured frown. "Best re-think that attitude, crook. If I catch you going out of your way to let one of my friends get hurt, I'll get myself killed just to spite you!"

Torchwick's brows knit in concern, his lips screwing into a tight circle as he tried to process what he just heard.

"Suicide, Weiss? Pretty dramatic. Could have just threatened to cut the connection." His shoulders sagged, and a tired sigh escaped his throat. "Fine, whatever. I'll pull all your butts out of the fire. How hard could it be to keep Little Red out of trouble, right?"

"I only caught half of that, but knowing Weiss, I think that settles things!" Ruby beamed at her friend, looking between her and Yang thoughtfully. Her voice carried a level of excitement she seldom possessed when the subject wasn't weaponry. "So, Weiss is in charge for this battle, and the four of us are working together… guess for tonight that makes us 'Team WRYR'."

It was hard for Weiss to tell whether Ruby was consciously trying to tease Roman, or whether the thought of finally making peace with her old enemy genuinely made her this giddy… but the result was the same. Torchwick's shoulders remained slack, and his deep green eyes stared at the floor so intensely you'd think he was trying to drill a hole through it.

"I feel like someone's stepping on my grave…" He muttered weakly.

"Emphasis on 'for tonight', though." Yang clarified her sister's words, snapping her fingers. "Don't get the wrong idea here, Crime Boy. Our permanent fourth team-slot is taken."

"How, oh how, will I ever endure this incredible disappointment, Blondie?" Torchwick finally shifted his gaze back toward the group, throwing his arms up into the most apathetic shrug he could muster. "Can we go fight, already? I'm starting to hope we lose."

Weiss brought a hand to her cheek to conceal the smile she could no longer resist. He may be a grumpy ghost they couldn't technically see or hear… but he somehow managed to have his own kind of chemistry with her team, all the same.

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[Document Manager keeps erasing my trasition breaks and attempts to add spacing... so consider this a transition break]
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The floor of the deck was rough and uneven, with a mesh of metal teeth running down the center where it was designed to split open into the storage room below. On either side of the floorspace were two tree-sized mechanical trunks, ending in robotic claws designed to grip and transport any crate too large for human or faunus workers. It was behind these great mechanical arms that the Fabled had sat in wait while the huntresses pursued them, launching their assault the instant Weiss had stepped out from the stairway connecting the decks.

Only a few minutes had passed since the conflict began, with the huntress gang (and their undead tagalong) trying to adjust to the tempo of the fight, and their surprise attackers trying to grind through their aura with every strike.

There had been no time to plan, to assess the situation, or even to congratulate themselves when team WRYR found their quarry. They tracked the Fabled up to the top deck—a crew-only space on the highest level of the ship for loading large cargo into the storage compartments—and knew they had the right place when two of their enemies attacked without warning.

"Every time we fight these things, they insist on bringing back bad memories. Not gonna lie, it's getting old…" Torchwick was almost shouting beside Weiss, but it may as well have been a whisper against the sound of the violently thrashing wind. The top deck was sheltered by a barrier of opaque energy that enclosed the metal walk space within a dome of calm air, but while this protected them from the force of the storming vortex all around them, it did little to silence the wailing.

"We can complain when the fight is over. For now…" Weiss scanned the battlefield and wiped the sweat from her brow with a forearm, using deep, steady breaths to try to keep herself calm.

She was standing on an elevated platform at the center of the deck, which offered her a vantage point to track the combat going on around her. Yang was fighting with Brigid on the ground below; trading punches with the muscular fable as the two of them moved in circles around each other to avoid being pinned against the guardrail that surrounded the deck. Ruby had drawn Leanan's attention, and the two of them occasionally clashed in the air, with Ruby's Petal Burst enabling her to keep up with her opponent's speed.

"Ruby! Yang! Move up here with me. We'll do the triangle formation!" Weiss frowned and massaged her temple, trying to stimulate her brain. Ruby was trusting her to help the four of them coordinate, and she had no intention of disappointing her friend. These two enemies had such different fighting styles, and she had no idea where the third one was hiding, but all they could do was try to come together and fight like normal.

"You got it!" Yang complied to the order first, weaving around Brigid before delivering a right hook to the Fable's stout torso. Brigid was able to block the strike with one arm, but the force still pushed her back, allowing Yang to disengage and head toward Weiss.

Ruby attempted to do the same. Leanan hovered in the air above her, swooping down with her talon-like hands in an effort to gouge out the petite huntress' eyes, with Ruby parrying her claws and slashing at the Fable's wings with Crimson Rose. After one such exchange, Ruby used her Semblance to burst into the air, meeting Leanan halfway up and planting both of her boots into the winged girl's chest, using her as a springboard to launch herself toward Weiss.

Leanan groaned in pain and anger as she was pushed backward, beating her ebony wings rapidly to steady herself in the air.

"Brigid! 'Unstoppable Force'! Do not allow them to seize the initiative." Leanan's voice had taken on a shrill, breathless quality, and she barked this command with barely contained, pained rage. Weiss looked down at Brigid, who stood on the lower deck, staring back up at Weiss with a determined grimace. By the time Ruby and Yang had closed in on their assigned positions beside her, a golden glow began to cover the platform at Weiss' feet. It warped and curved until it became the image of a circle inside a circle. The outermost circle was a yard in diameter, with two triangles jutting out of the top like a pair of horns.

Weiss felt her body freeze in place for a moment, a pained realization dawning on her. That symbol was familiar to her… the last time she'd seen it was just before the Fabled had-!

Ruby's speed brought her to the edge of the platform first, though Yang wasn't far behind. Both were approaching from below, where they couldn't see the symbol forming. If it were like before, Weiss wouldn't have long to react, and she had to protect everyone!

Without thinking, Weiss raised a hand, forming a glyph of her own in front of Brigid. The snowflake-like emblem of white expanded and began to rise from the floor, replacing the empty space it passed through with the shimmering plates of mail that made up the body of Arma Gigas. Weiss had been steadily improving her ability to summon the knight, though in her semi-panicked state, and trying to prioritize speed over everything, the edges of the glyph flickered and warped in time with her wavering concentration.

"Ruby, watch out!"

She'd just completed the summon, watching as her gallant knight began to turn its attention toward the enemy in front of himself, when she once more heard that thunderous 'boom'. This time it was so loud that she could almost feel her aura triggering to protect her eardrums from rupturing. That thunderclap was followed by the sound of impact against metal as Brigid vanished from Weiss' view, slamming into the center of Arma Gigas' chest in a blur of motion. A shockwave rippled through the knight's body, and the turgid metal of his torso began to warp and compress before Brigid's charge, crushing away as effortlessly as a tin can before a boot.

Weiss had hoped that her biggest, strongest summon would be enough to absorb the charge so that she and the others could capitalize on the opening to strike down one of the Fabled. Failing that, she'd hoped at the very least he could slow the charge long enough for Ruby and Yang to realize the danger they were in and evade the strike. As Weiss bent her knees and leapt away from the symbol on the ground, she realized she'd been misguided in both of those of those hopes. Barely a second passed between when Brigid contacted the Arma Gigas and when she burst through his back in a rain of shrapnel, like some kind of malevolent Kool-Aid man. From there she charged through the scaffolding of the upper platform, sending jagged hunks of steel soaring toward Weiss. Only Weiss' aura spared her from being impaled by the debris.

Was… this a Semblance? Weiss recalled Aibell mentioning her elder siblings had them.

The snow-themed huntress leapt to the side, though she was scarcely airborne before Brigid finished her charge, rushing to the other end her circular symbol before coming to an abrupt, immediate stop. It was as if all the momentum Brigid had built up in her approach was erased from existence in an instant. This caused a shockwave to catch the helpless Schnee, as the laws of physics seemed to throw a fit at the disrespect this strange creature was showing them, and an explosion of kinetic energy erupted in a dome around Brigid. This spontaneous force sent Weiss flying, a bright flash of light momentarily stealing her vision as the platform she'd been standing on was obliterated.

Weiss would have landed on her back, but Torchwick followed her path through the air, catching her against his chest and guiding her back down onto her feet. She mouthed a weak, disoriented word of thanks to the ghost, looking down at her aura as it wavered around her body like the halo of a flame. She hadn't taken any real damage in this fight yet… but she also didn't need a device readout to tell her she was starting to run low on protection.

"Yang? Ruby!?" A mountain of debris now divided the top deck in two, with a thick layer of smoke filling the air and making it impossible to see more than a few feet away. Brigid was standing atop the heap of scrap metal that had once been the elevated platform, looking away from Weiss, but she was the only person the huntress could see from her new position.

"Still…alive." Yang was the first to respond, her words stopping long enough for her to cough and hack as the smoke assaulted her lungs. Weiss let out a long sigh of relief, which only felt sweeter when she heard the familiar sound of Ruby's Petal Burst.

"Weiss, try to make your way over to us this time!" Ruby called out from the other side of the pile. The sound of flapping wings drowned out Weiss' voice as she attempted to answer, and Leanan swooped down from above the cloud of smoke, landing with a heavy 'thud' in front of her.

"I leave those two in your hands, Brigid. The silver-eyed one's agility is vexing, but crush her underfoot, all the same." Leanan's voice was still strained, and she hugged her sides as she spoke, her sharpened fingertips grazing the denim fabric of her jumpsuit. "She represents a danger to us that we cannot leave in play."

The stout Fable grunted her acknowledgement and jumped down from the pile of destruction she'd created. Weiss felt anxious hearing that command, despite herself, trying to run in pursuit of Brigid before Leanan dashed to intercept her, and a clawed hand was suddenly swiping for Weiss' throat. The attack brought the young huntress back to reality, and she ducked beneath the strike, exchanging slashes with her enemy before hopping out of range.

She just had to stay calm and have faith in her friends. There were still too many unknowns in this battle—they didn't fully understand how Brigid's weird Semblance worked, they didn't know anything about Leanan's Semblance at all, and Weiss still hadn't seen a trace of where the third Fable had vanished to—but if they fought like they always had, they would come out on top! She'd tell herself that as many times as she had to before she started to believe it…

They'd endured the fall of Beacon, after all, and this was nothing compared to the danger they'd faced that night.

Minutes passed as the battle drew on, with neither side laying claim to the momentum. There were no more words, only the sound of dust igniting, occasionally punctuated by a grunt of concentration or the thunderous burst of Brigid's Semblance activating. Leanan used her small frame to dance around Weiss' strikes, escaping into the air each time she was cornered before swooping down to counterattack.

Geez! To think this girl had the audacity to say Ruby's agility was annoying. Still, Weiss was surprised to find that the battle wasn't difficult. Hard as Leanan was to hit, her own attacks were too wide, too clumsy, and she followed through with too much of her weight each time she slashed or kicked. These habits made it easy to see the arc of strikes, and Weiss' well-trained instincts helped her to avoid the Fable's assault in turn. However long the Fabled may have lived… it was clear that at least this one had done little fighting in that time.

Eventually, the dust and debris kicked up by the destruction of the platform began to settle, and visibility gradually returned to normal. Weiss could see flashes of the battle between Ruby, Yang, and Brigid out of the corners of her eyes, before long, though she strained to continue trusting them and remain focused on the task at hand…. An attempt made more difficult as she turned her head just in time to see Ruby sent flying by an unexpected shoulder-charge from Brigid.

From what Weiss could see, the battle seemed to be going as well for her teammates as her own. The charge aside, neither Yang nor Ruby had any visible injuries. By contrast, Brigid was breathing heavily, her shoulder-length red hair was matted and disheveled from the force of repeating her Semblance so many times, and a trickle of blood ran around her right eye in a crooked path from below her hairline.

"That Semblance of yours generates energy, right? Kind of exciting. You're the best type of opponent for me." Yang's voice was full of the cocky swagger she often carried into battle, though there was a hint of anger there, as well. Her hair had taken on a faint glow which lit up the darkness around her, making it easy to see the confident smirk that had come to plaster itself upon her face. "I've always wanted to find out just how much I could take all at once. Come on! Hit me with it!"

Yang finished up her taunt by blowing a kiss at the fable, whose dark gaze was narrowed in angered frustration. The stocky woman looked Yang over for a moment before nodding.

"I am Brigid. Sixth-born of the Fabled." For the first time since Weiss had encountered her, she heard Brigid speak. Based on her build, Weiss guessed she would sound husky and brutish, but the Fable's voice was soft and reserved. Brigid's body took on the same golden glow as before, and one of her symbols etched itself into the deck, six feet behind Yang. "There exists no wall I cannot shatter."

"That's the spirit. 'Unstoppable force', right? Let's find out if it deserves the name!" Yang slammed her gauntlet and mechanical fist together before she fell into a combat stance, bracing herself for the charge. Brigid's semblance could generate energy, and Yang's could absorb and reflect it… the indomitable blonde was staking everything on her ability to come out ahead in the exchange.

Weiss' attention was drawn away from the duel for just a fraction of a second by a swiping attack from Leanan. She swayed her body back to evade it and thrust the tip of Myrtenaster toward Leanan's chest to force her to leap up… when Ruby's voice suddenly pulled her attention back.

"No!" That was a voice Yang had never heard from her tiny leader before. There wasn't a trace of composure in the word, only a panicked, primal fear. She cleared the space between herself and Yang at maximum speed, Petal Bursting toward her sister with wide eyes and a face that was pale even by Ruby's standards.

"Ruby, stop! Don't!" Weiss was the next to panic, reaching toward her friend despite the twenty feet between them. Because she had been knocked away, Ruby didn't hear Yang taunting Brigid, and somehow, she wasn't able to tell what her elder sister was trying to do. Weiss' words hadn't even finished escaping her lips before Ruby made contact with Yang.

The eldest huntress turned toward Ruby as she was pushed away, powerless to do anything but watch as Ruby tackled her way into the path of Brigid's semblance just in time for the Fable's charge to slam into her body. An outline of red covered Ruby's form as her aura shielded her, beginning to shatter like glass as she was sent flying through the air. Ruby bounced twice against the deck, the last of her aura flickering in protection before fading away as she fell still upon the ground.

Brigid came to a halt at her mark with another explosive peal, but she didn't tarry there long. Instead, she immediately began to charge toward the downed huntress, leaping into the air to crush down upon her. Weiss had already begun to sprint toward Ruby, as had Yang, but they were both too far away to reach her before the Fable. Time seemed to slow, and then stop as Weiss' heart started to pound in her chest.

When push came to shove, she was always so powerless. Nothing had changed since she was a child… This feeling of despair and inevitability began to swallow her whole, marrying itself to confusion and surprise as a blur of white shot out of the pile of debris at the center of the deck. By the time Brigid's boots had slammed into the ground, Ruby was no longer there. She'd been scooped into the arms of the blur, who promptly leapt away from the attack.

"…Torchwick? It's you, right?" Ruby's eyes were closed, and her voice was weak and distant, as if she were narrating a dream.

"Roman, you-" Weiss began to stammer.

"I'm saving 'you' Weiss, not her. Yes, I know I'm great—and believe me, I live for hearing that fact acknowledged—but could you focus on your own damned fight, now? And YOU, Blondie-" Torchwick didn't even give Weiss the chance to accuse him of saving Ruby. He stomped over to Yang, who was wearing an expression of incredulity- likely a side-effect of seeing her sister floating through the air—and thrusted the little sister into the arms of the elder with an annoyed snort. "-take better care of your crap!"

…her own fight! As if on cue, Weiss felt the impact of a foot slamming into her cheek, knocking her off-balance as claws raked down across her chest. Her aura of blue light finally gave way as the claws pierced her flesh, and the fabric of her top suffered three deep, long tears that ran all the way from her right shoulder to just above her left side. Weiss attempted to counterattack, but Leanan gripped the wrist of her sword arm, leaning in until their foreheads slammed together.

"Are all huntsman as prone to distraction as you lot? Curious that humans have endured the centuries of our slumber." Leanan cackled, her dark yellow eyes shining with malevolent glee. She released her grip as her knee found Weiss' gut, the force of the strike sending the huntress flying back until she slammed into the far guardrail.

"Kh-" The wind was knocked from Weiss' lungs on impact, and she struggled to try to push herself back up onto now-unsteady legs, only for her knees to buckle in the attempt and send her slumping back down.

This was so frustrating… these enemies were strong, but they were far from the strongest team RWBY had ever fought. They were inexperienced, reckless, and one of them had a semblance that the huntress team had a perfect counter to. If Weiss, Yang, and Ruby could just fight like they always did, it was their battle to lose.

The fall of Beacon… it always came back to the fall of Beacon. Yang lost an arm, then an eye. Pyrrha lost her life. All of them lost their school and, in a way, their innocence. Ruby blamed herself for a lot of it, leading to a pathological fear of losing anything else. A fear so potent that, in a terrible moment, it overrode her brain and made her try to take an attack in the place of the teammate who got stronger by taking attacks.

…and Weiss couldn't even lecture her for it! Because when push came to shove; when she thought she was about to watch one of her friends die, she'd forgotten everything else, herself.

A deep frown crossed Weiss' lips as she looked up at Leanan. The winged woman stood in front of her, countering her frown with a sadistic grin as she ceased her attack for a moment. Wanting to savor the kill? She did seem the type.

Once more the sound of Brigid's semblance boomed across the deck, but this time it was followed by a pained grunt and a victorious laugh. This caught the attention of both Leanan and Weiss, who turned in time to see Yang and Brigid standing near the guard rail on the other side of the deck, embracing.

Well, Yang was doing most of the embracing, in all honestly. She had one arm draped around the smaller woman's shoulders, leaning against her as she let out a shaky, pained chuckle. Brigid's jaw had fallen open in shock, and she was shaking violently in Yang's grasp as she tried to tear herself free.

Weiss surveyed the scene as well as her blurring vision would allow. Yang had set Ruby down beside the guardrail, and she and Brigid had ended up making contact halfway between Ruby's position and where Brigid had been standing when Weiss had seen her last. It seemed that the Fable had attempted to use her Semblance to finish off Ruby, finally giving Yang the opportunity to try to intercept it.

"'unstoppable' my butt—knew I could handle it. Sorry 'bout the hug. Had to make sure you didn't go wandering too far away." The glow of Yang's hair had become so intense that it outshone the moon, as if she'd created a miniature sun and brought it to the deck. Yang finally lifted her head, allowing the bright red of her eye to join with the gold of her hair, giving her a visage that reminded Weiss of the angels she used to see in storybooks… though a demon seemed like a more suitable comparison for Yang. "After what you did to Ruby, I wanna make sure this hurts… and my depth perception sucks, these days."

Yang relaxed the embrace of her arm around Brigid, instead using her mechanical hand to grip the Fable's shoulder roughly as she drew back her gauntlet and slammed it into Brigid's face. She punched again. Then again. Pounding in a steady rhythm as she began to slowly relax her grip, allowing both of her fists to join in the fun as she began to punch in combinations.

At first, her punches were met by a golden barrier as Brigid's aura did its job, but before long she'd forced her way through it, eventually sending the squat girl airborne with a final right cross. Brigid flew through the air in a golden haze, like a comet, slamming into the pile of debris she'd created earlier and becoming embedded within it until only her legs were visible.

"Told ya, Ruby. I'd…" Yang began to cough and hack, drops of redness darkening her lips as trickles of blood began to leak down the corners of her mouth. She fell onto one knee, the glow that had bathed her hair and eyes now rapidly fading. She made one final attempt to rise, scarcely managing to lift her thigh from the back of her knee before she returned to her kneeling position and stopped moving.

Weiss felt like she was dreaming, now… Ruby was curled up on the floor, Yang had stopped Brigid's semblance, but the toll on her body incapacitated her, and Weiss had allowed herself to become distracted, and could barely move herself. Leanan watched her sister's beatdown with an emotionless expression on her face, standing in silence as she confirmed the status of each of the huntresses.

"Do not allow this defeat to mar your pride, Brigid. You accomplished your task splendidly." The words were the sweetest Weiss had ever heard come from the grumpy Fable. Leanan turned her attention back toward Weiss, her posture relaxing now that most of the threats were eliminated. Though she did raise her voice a bit as she added, "Spare me the theatrics, Fugitive! No matter how long you hide in the shadows, my back will never be open for you to strike."

"Can't blame a guy for trying, right?" Roman's voice was muffled, coming from below the deck. Weiss could see just the fingers of his black gloves poking up through the floor behind Leanan, and as she called him out, he pulled himself back up through the ground and stood with a confident shrug. "I'm not really a fan of violence, you see."

Ah, so that's where he'd gone after saving Ruby. He'd kept one hand solid at a time and tried to slowly climb across the underside of the deck as if it were a jungle gym, so he could spring behind Leanan and strike while she was distracted… Roman sure did love coming up with new ways to be underhanded.

"No? You must be, though. All this death is your fault. Now you stand alone, but in your current state you can do nothing to overcome me." Leanan laughed mirthlessly, drawing an arm toward the destroyed top deck space in a gesture of presentation. "Thus, I advise that you accept the consequences of your cowardice: and watch as these children die because of you."

"Nah. Taking responsibility for my actions suits me way less than violence." Torchwick jumped toward Leanan, phasing through her before turning around to face her again—now in a defensive position between Leanan and Weiss. "Sorry, Bitterbird, but I'm gonna have to be a sore loser, here."

Weiss tried to will her uncooperative body to move once again, but her legs felt like rubber bands that had been pulled until they snapped. She brought a hand to her chest, breathing as deeply as the pain would allow. The slashes across her front hadn't been deep enough to be life threatening, but they cut her enough that her blood had stained the whiteness of her petticoat, resulting in the three claw marks becoming lines of scarlet across the field of white. Ironically enough, it reminded Weiss of the emblem of the White Fang… how appropriate.

All of her regrets played on loop in her head as she struggled. If only she hadn't gotten distracted. If only she had insisted that they bring Nora and Oscar with them. If only she'd been strong or fast enough to escape from Leanan and reinforce Ruby when she needed her most. It was the deluge of self-loathing that often accompanied failure, for her, and it spiraled more strongly as the last of her hope faded away. She was just a sheltered rich girl who was too incompetent to accomplish anything when it mattered. Her father was right to dismiss her. Her mother was right to ignore her. The faunus were right to hate her.

Her team was the only group of people she'd ever felt love from, and she'd gotten most of them killed in one fell swoop. Roman would fight to the bitter end, too… but Leanan was right to be dismissive of him. He'd helped Weiss countless times since the day they'd teamed up, but usually in supporting her attack—his own offensive capability was limited. Of course it was! He was a soul sharing a body with her, like Oscar and Ozpin. The only reason he was able to move around her at all was because he had hijacked her Semblance and walked around half-summoned all the time.

Half-summoned…

A sudden spark of hope shot its way through the quagmire of darkness that had been swallowing her soul, and she found herself looking up from her wound to instead stare at Torchwick's back. She forced her eyes to focus, raising a hand toward him as she channeled every drop of her remaining energy into the glyph she began to etch into his coat.

"Huh…?" Torchwick gasped and looked down at his hands, casting a lone emerald eye back at Weiss before returning his attention to Leanan. "Call me crazy, but I could swear I was starting to feel… warm. Kinda buzzed, really. Haven't felt 'warm' in a long time."

Weiss' brain felt shrouded in fog, and her eyelids were heavy, but she fought off the call of sleep and continued to channel her strength. The glyph she'd etched split in two, with each sigil now moving in an opposite direction along Torchwick's body. Every part of his form the glyph passed through took on an unearthly sheen of white—the same halo of light possessed by all Schnee summons.

"Perhaps despair has driven you to madness? You were a pitiable fool to the very end." Leanan dismissed his words, not noticing the light that was covering him. She attempted to charge around him at full speed, her wings flapping to give her additional force as she brandished her claws. "Remain where you are, Fugitive. You occupy the perfect position to catch Weiss Schnee's head when I slice it from her shoulders."

Torchwick instinctively stabbed his left arm out as Leanan attempted to flank him, catching a handful of her raven hair in his grip and twisting it as he pulled her back toward him. Weiss had never seen him move so fast before! Leanan let out a cry of surprise and pain as she was forced to look at the opponent she'd dismissed as irrelevant. She attempted to slash at his throat in response, but he caught her wrist with the same swift reflexes he'd demonstrated before… squeezing so firmly that Weiss thought she could hear the Fable's bones creak.

"Again, darling… I'm a sore loser." Torchwick's breathing was uneven, but not from exertion—it was from restraining laughter. He lifted Leanan into the air by her hair, releasing his grip as he drop-kicked her… the smug confidence on his face replacing itself with a look of shock as the action launched the poor Fable so high into the air that her back struck the top of the energy dome protecting the top deck from the wind.

Weiss had… summoned Torchwick! It was a thought she'd had back when Ozpin explained their connection to her, but she'd forgotten all about it in the days that followed. Sweet relief began to wash over the semi-conscious Schnee as her ghostly partner turned toward her.

"I… I did not anticipate that I would kick her quite that hard. Not that I'm complaining." Torchwick shrugged, closing the distance between himself and Weiss. He got down on one knee before her, matching her eye level as his gaze met hers. "You responsible for the, uh, heavenly glow?"

"I thought it might suit you. The white brings out your eyes." Weiss mumbled in reply, her words a little slurred. As the mix of relief, triumph, and elation hit her all at once, Weiss couldn't help but smile. She laughed softly, though it turned into a groan of pain as her heaving chest aggravated her injuries. "You seem to be in high spirits, Roman."

"Oh, I'm over the moon. I 'FEEL' everything, now. For the first time since I got sent to that tower, I feel awake! Feel that breeze on your skin, Weiss. Smell that gods-damned air!" He flashed Weiss a toothy grin. "We can talk about what a miracle life is after I fry a chicken, though. Mind if I borrow this?"

Roman took Weiss' left hand into his right, a gesture that Weiss found equal parts confusing and embarrassing, until she looked down and realized that, even now, she had Myrtenaster clutched firmly in her grasp. He guided her fingers away from the hilt with such surprising gentleness that Weiss felt a blush spread across her cheeks despite herself, before he took her sword in his hand and stood up again.

"I think it worked like this, right?" Torchwick mused. He rotated the cylinder until fire dust was chambered; then turned the blade toward his left arm as he ignited the dust. Flames erupted along his coat, spreading along the length of his body until the glow of his summoning was fully eclipsed by the light of fire.

"Toasty… and only mildly agonizing." Once he was done, Torchwick carefully dropped Myrtenaster onto the deck beside Weiss, turning back toward Leanan. The Fable had stricken the barrier with such great force that the dome of protection was starting to crackle and hiss, small holes breaking out in the walls as the barrier threatened to vanish completely. Still, her aura had protected her, and she let out a shrill, primal shriek as she rebounded in the air.

The fog inside Weiss' mind grew thicker. It was so hard to form coherent thoughts now… but that was okay. As her eyelids finally began to droop, she leaned back against the guardrail, her soft blue eyes focused on Torchwick. That brainless confidence of his was strangely convincing… she was starting to understand why Neo got so attached to him.

By the time Weiss' stamina lost its battle with her exhaustion, all the cold negativity that was trying to consume her just minutes before felt so distant. Her sleep would be warm and restful… because everything was going to be alright. By this third repetition, even she was starting to believe it.

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EX Chapter 2—The Blackbird and the Bleeding Heart

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Qrow Branwen

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"Keep on your feet, lady. We're almost there." Qrow did his best to sound reassuring but a bit of his annoyance at the situation had bled into his voice. He was guiding a woman down the hall toward the observation deck, though she was so panicked that it would be more correct to say he was carrying her. His arm was draped around her shoulders, and she clung to his frame as they moved, with her feet only going through the motions of walking beside him.

At his words, she offered a meek nod and clung tighter, earning a disgruntled sigh from Qrow. Grimm were such an everyday part of life on Remnant, he could never understand why so many people fell to pieces during an attack. Ah well… it's not like he could just leave her here.

They cleared the last few feet of the hall, reaching the door to the observation deck without incident, though Qrow kept his head on a swivel all the while, as he didn't want to risk leading any of the monsters to the place they were gathering civilians. One of the ship's security crew stood guard beside the doorway, and when he saw Qrow coming he offered him a cordial nod, moving to throw open the entrance.

"There we go, you're safe now. Just take a seat at one of the tables and leave the rest to us." Qrow tried to sound like the proper, upstanding huntsman, but he couldn't stop himself from sighing in relief at the hope that he might finally free himself from the figurative dead weight. He looked around the area, not surprised to find that in the time since he'd left, even more people had poured in.

Apparently, this was the part of the ship a bunch of the kids had come to see before shit went down: an interior deck, surrounded by reinforced glass, where passengers could get a good view of Mistral from the sky. Though in the darkness of the night there wasn't much to see, save for a void of intense, ominous nothingness. They didn't have time to coordinate a proper strategy when the Grimm appeared, but since this was a large, secure space with a single entry-point, it was decided they'd use this as a shelter for anyone caught outside their rooms by the rampaging monsters.

"Ma'am, seriously, now. I'm gonna need the other half of my body back." Qrow grumbled, returning his attention to his rescued damsel only to find she still hadn't loosened her grip on his torso. He squeezed her shoulders and attempted to gently nudge her away. "Er… please?"

"Aww~ When's the wedding?" A familiar, teasing female voice spoke up behind him.

"Oh, hey Nora. Welcome back." Qrow responded dryly, rolling his eyes before casting a glance over his shoulders at the puckish girl. Over the course of a few seconds, he finally succeeded in peeling the other woman off his frame, giving her a last, reassuring nod and gesturing toward the group of civilians gathered in the center of the room. She muttered a quiet 'thank you' before finally leaving him be. Despite himself, Qrow smiled a bit. Sometimes it felt good to play hero. "Don't think that counts as an engagement, though, kid. If it did, suppose now I understand why they call a wife a 'ball and chain'."

"You're so mean! It's more like she was trying to be your other half." Nora chimed back. The young huntress' smile grew a bit more playful as she moved to stand beside him, clasping him on the back. "You sly dog!"

"Pfft, better we part now, then. While I'm dark and mysterious." Qrow shook his head and chuckled wryly, producing a silver flask from the inner pocket of his shirt and taking a long swig of the amber liquid within. "Where are the Kiddo and the Firecracker?"

"They took Weiss and ghost boy and went to take care of the masterminds!" Nora answered, letting her hands rest on her hips as she nodded her head in agreement with herself. "No worries, though, Oscar and I are here to help, er…"

A confused frown spread across her face as she looked to her left and her right, as if realizing for the first time that she was alone.

"Well, Oscar was with me when we left, anyway. Not sure where he ran off to now." She amended with a shrug. "He's got Ozpin with him, though. I'm sure he's fine."

"'Fine'? Maybe." Qrow audibly exhaled, scratching his unshaven chin with the shake of his head. Really? Now Oscar of all people was running off on his own? Sometimes Qrow swore these kids were intentionally trying to give him a heart attack. "Well, gonna have to hope so, for now. Our hands are full enough."

The old huntsman let a cool red eye scan the room. They'd gathered a few dozen passengers into the area, who were seated at the observation tables that wreathed the deck. Most of the ship's staff was here, as well, tending to the rescued while their security forces guarded the entrance. They left most of the work of venturing out to clear the Grimm to Qrow and the kids… not that he could really complain about it. They were riding for free, after all, and it was possible this whole mess was their fault.

"So, what do you need? I've smashed a few Grimm already, but that number could always stand to be a little bigger." Nora waved a hand in front of his line of sight, drawing his attention back toward her. He sighed in response to her enthusiasm and gestured toward the door.

"That so? Lucky you, then. Ren and Jaune are up top, clearing out Grimm. Since this section's secure, I'm on my way up to help them out. Bust a few heads, rescue anyone we come across, and maybe find time to track down Oscar or give Ruby some backup. That sound like something you can get behind?"

The girl nodded, shooting him an exaggerated grin.

"…I don't think I've ever felt half as enthusiastic about anything as you get about everything, Nora."

The two of them left the deck behind them, waving to the guard at the door as they passed. He gave them a knowing look and moved to throw open the door.

"Headed out again?" The guard asked. He was a scrawny young man with short blonde hair and curious green eyes. Once the doors had been fully opened, he stood to one side and slung his rifle over his shoulder.

"Think we're just about done. Hold down the fort while we're gone." Qrow responded in a tired voice. "We'll try to save as many people as we can."

"Oh, you're doing a fine job, Mr. Branwen! We won't know for sure until the danger has passed, but it sounds like we've been lucky. A few members of the crew were killed by that wave of explosions, but we haven't had a single fatality reported since you started clearing out Grimm."

That news did catch the cynical old bird by surprise; causing him to stop mid-step and look back.

"That right? Well, guess we'll try to keep the streak going, then. Be back soon." Qrow gave the guard a halfhearted wave before turning to Nora and jerking his head in the direction of the stairwell, leading the way with a tired groan.

The halls were quiet and abandoned, with enormous scratches marring much of the wooden paneling that covered the walls, and the eerie glow of the red emergency lights bathing every object and doorway in sight. Qrow couldn't deny he found it ominous, but at least it was safe. They'd prioritized clearing this floor when the attack started, figuring it would be best to have a base to work from.

"Ren and Jaune headed up the north stairway. Reckon we'll go up the south end, meet them in the middle, then push on up to the top deck. Once we do, the whole ship will be cleared." Qrow explained. As they left the relative safety of the hallway and began to traverse the stairway, Qrow pulled Harbinger free from its holster and extended it into its 'greatsword' form, allowing the edge of the blade to hover just above the metal steps before him as he walked. No sooner had they climbed to the new floor than was the stillness from before interrupted: with slow, heavy footsteps sending tremors through the ground beneath them.

Qrow had begun to turn to warn Nora of the danger, but whatever else may be said about the girl, she 'was' still a huntress, and as soon as the first tremor reached them, she'd already assumed a battle position. She allowed Magnhild to slip into both hands as she rushed forward, pressing her back to one side of the stairway as Qrow took the other, slowly peering around the corner.

A Beowolf lumbered down the hallway, its body so large that its great black shoulders grazed the ceiling as it moved, and it could only reverse direction by stopping and leaning to one side before turning. Its movements were sluggish and drunken… a state of being Qrow was intimately familiar with, but not something he was accustomed to seeing from a Creature of Grimm. As its great lupine head turning in their direction, it reacted not with the bloodcurdling roar Qrow expected, but instead with a low, guttural growl.

The enemy had even managed to sneak creatures this large onto the ship. Forget being stealthy, this required help from the outside! The only way this many Grimm got in without detection was if someone got paid a -lot- of lien to look the other way. Could a small group of transformed Grimm really have pulled this off on their own?

Qrow stepped into the hall and brandished his weapon as the thought brought a dour frown to his lips. The way Ruby had been talking, he assumed this was an attack on Weiss by those new enemies of hers, but this was an awful lot of preparation for an attack of opportunity from an enemy that couldn't have had more than a few hours advanced notice Weiss would be taking this flight. Something about this mess gave Qrow a bad feeling, and his bad feelings were the only things that ever seemed to come true for him.

He sized the creature up for a second before shooting forward at full speed, swinging his weapon in an arc as he ducked low and performed a lunging slash at the Beowolf's throat. The Creature of Grimm watched his approach with a patience unusual for its species, its glowing blue eyes tracking his movements as he drew closer; the rest of the beast not moving until moments before he struck. The Grimm pressed down as Qrow began to swing upward, catching the blade of the sword against the thick hide of its forepaws and knocking the swing aside before it could properly build up momentum.

"Tsk!" Qrow breathed in and out sharply as the counterblow compromised his balance. He rebounded, bracing himself for an attack while he was flat-footed, but again the Grimm defied his expectations, ignoring the Huntsman's moment of vulnerability to instead take several steps backward and stretch its limbs, as if trying to fill as much space in the hall as possible.

"Whoa! You okay?" Nora had been rushing to back him up, and she paused beside him as he recovered. He sighed, waving his hand dismissively.

"Clever bastard, ain't it? Or I guess…" Qrow's tired eyes narrowed at the Grimm, the beast leaning back on its haunches as it gazed back at him. Even after Weiss had told him about it, he'd found it hard to believe. "Whoever's pulling the strings is a clever bastard. They really can control Grimm like puppets, huh? I think they're using these big ones to try to stall for time."

"Yeah? Well, we got no time for that! Our friends are in danger." Nora replied.

"Heh." Qrow chuckled at her usual, straightforward attitude, reaching for the flask in his shirt and taking a long pull. Lush though he was, this wasn't an action he'd usually dare to take with a Grimm within lunging distance, but he felt strangely confident. "Glad we're on the same page, then. Let's save my troublemaking nieces. The snowflake, too… by the gods I don't need her sister scowling at me any more than usual."

"Sure you can handle it? You were looking pretty old for a second there." Nora stuck her tongue out at him, winking playfully.

"Hey now, I'm not 'that' old. Well, maybe I am, but at least I ain't senile, yet. They won't catch me by surprise twice. Let's smash our way through."

The pair of them moved in unison, Nora angling her hammer in an upward attack as Qrow targeted the Grimm's legs. Once more the Grimm lunged in response, but it was unable to match the rhythm of two different strikes. Nora was able to slip the head of her hammer past its lunging claw, slamming into the beast's lupine maw with a sickening crack. Qrow took advantage of that moment of surprise and severed the creature's leg below the knee, and then its forearm above the elbow, with two fluid slashes.

As they cut through the Grimm's defenses, it began to try to press its weight down onto them, as if finding any means at its disposal to slow their progress, but they pushed through quickly regardless. Less than a minute after the initial charge, the creature's body was already evaporating into an ominous black cloud.

They continued onward wordlessly after that, encountering another Beowulf a few minutes later, and dispatching it in a similar manner. This one, too, never pressed the attack when an opening presented itself; seeming less interested in killing them than in using its girth to slow their advance. Qrow found that kind of hesitation amateur, and it implied whoever was controlling these Grimm was either young or too softhearted. Well, Qrow wasn't inclined to complain about that: it was a lucky break that would help him keep the kids alive. He didn't get 'lucky' breaks very often.

There was a series of residential rooms lining the walls on either side of the hall here, and Qrow directed Nora to test the knob of each as they advanced, making sure all were locked and secured. The polished wooden doors were all locked and unblemished, even despite the marks and scratches that otherwise decorated the walls around them.

"Never known a Grimm who smelled fear nearby and didn't try to attack it…" Qrow mused in a low whisper, finishing off what remained in his flask. Bleh, he'd meant to try to pace his booze out a bit more- Ruby made it hard to get more—but these were special circumstances.

"That's a good thing though, right?" Nora asked, looking up from the door she'd been checking.

"Oh yeah. If our enemy had a mind to kill the people up here, we wouldn't have had a chance of getting here in time to stop 'em." Qrow shrugged. "None of this sits right with me, though. Let's reunite with the boys and then try to find Ruby."

A third Beowulf awaited at the bend of the hall, but by now they'd already adjusted to their unusual combat tactics, and the pair of huntsmen slew it without difficulty. They neared the lobby that served as the mid-point of the floor, a little breathless but otherwise uninjured from the battles beforehand. Qrow had told Jaune and Ren that he would cover the south en, so he'd hoped to find them waiting here for him. Instead, the space was deserted, save for a humanoid shape leaning against the door to the upward stairway.

The stranger was taller than Qrow, with arms so thin and gangly that the tips of his fingers rested against his calves. His body was clad in the denim jumpsuit of the ship's security detail, but his mask made certain no one could mistake him for a member of the crew. It was bony and white, save for the red lines that decorated the cheeks and the corners of its eye holes, with a flat, bat-like nose and a row of large teeth that served to cover the entire lower half of his face.

An imp…

Qrow recognized the design immediately. He'd fought Grimm of all types in his long career, after all. The only difference between this stranger's headwear and a traditional Imp was the horns: where an Imp's mask had two long, curved horns that jutted from the forehead, the horns of this guy's mask had been cut off at the base, leaving only a pair of stubs.

"Th-they're fighting above." When he sensed their approach, the stranger turned his head toward them, speaking in a soft voice. There was no malice in his light red eyes as they scanned first Qrow, and then Nora, but there was a curiosity in his gaze. Like he was trying to assess what the two huntsmen were capable of, and how he should react to them. It was the same energy Qrow had gotten from the Beowolves he'd encountered earlier.

"Good. That saves me the trouble of asking." Qrow spoke in his usual tone of cool, bored grumpiness, brandishing Harbinger as he took a few steps forward. "Out of our way."

"I won't…" The stranger's eyes narrowed behind his mask as Qrow approached, and he pushed himself off the door to stand between it and the advancing pair. "Lea's r-really mad, and the fug-fugitive has to die. She told me not t-to let anyone interfere."

"Wasn't a request, kid." Qrow paused a few feet away from this new enemy, angling his body as he looked him over. If this were the guy who was controlling the Grimm from earlier then he couldn't approach carelessly… the lanky stranger seemed to have a talent for counterattacking. "If you ain't gonna move, then let's get this over with."

"K-kid?" The stranger jerked in surprise at the title, but then shook his head as Qrow continued. "Please listen… When Lea's like this, I c-c-can't calm her down. I can't save the ones w-who went up already, but no one else has to die. Once the Fugitive is gone, we'll lea-leave and never return."

"That a fact? This 'Lea' of yours sounds like a certain acquaintance of mine…" Qrow's eyes remained fixed on the stranger, scanning his stance for the slightest moment's hesitation or vulnerability. He cut his gaze toward Nora as she took position beside him, and she nodded in silent reply, both huntsmen sharing the same frustration. "Means a lot that you want to look out for me, kid… but I'm gonna have to pass. I'm an unreliable guy, but even I ain't gonna leave family to die just to save myself."

A tension had begun to wind Qrow's guts, and it took conscious effort to keep his grip on his weapon loose and flexible. He looked from Nora to the stranger, and then to the door behind him, scowling deeply. Ruby and the others were fighting right now.

Qrow had faith in his nieces. He knew better than anyone how strong and reliable they were, but this was a type of enemy they'd never faced before. He couldn't shake the feeling that they needed help, and the thought made this final barrier between them fill him with a mix of frustration and anger. If anything happens to them it'll be his fault. He was the one who gave them permission to advance on their own.

"Family…" The stranger parroted the word with a warmness his voice hadn't possessed before. "I understand. I'm prot-protecting my family, too. My sister says the F-f-fabled and the humans of Remnant are d-destined to fight until we die… but if we understood each other, perhaps we co-could coexist."

A realization struck Qrow with the force of a lightning bolt at these words, and with it he finally conceived of a way to clear this obstacle before himself. The way the Beowolves had fought—refusing to capitalize on his vulnerability, and only fighting defensively—the fact that the Grimm had been controlled to pay no mind to the passengers, and the fact that the casualties of this assault were so light, despite being a perfectly executed surprise attack… if Qrow had to guess, this guy was the reason for all of that.

"Maybe so." Qrow smiled, shifting his weapon into its scythe form and slinging it over his shoulder. Nora uttered a surprised gasp at this, but he waved a hand dismissively. He was risking a lot on a hunch, but if he were right, he could get to Ruby and Yang in one shot. "Let's try to understand each other, then. What say we have a little talk?"

It was difficult to read the face of a masked man, but Qrow could see the stranger's eyes narrow and relax several times at his words.

"R-really?" The stranger's tone was cautiously optimistic, causing Qrow's smile to grow the slightest bit more sincere. Good, it was working. He just needed to get a little closer. Qrow gauged the distance between himself and the Fable for a moment. He just needed a few more steps and a moment of surprise.

"Hey, I'm no pacifist, but no sense in killing each other if we don't have to, right?" Qrow soothed the stranger's suspicions, slowly taking a step closer to him. "My name's Qrow. Qrow Branwen."

He looked back at Nora, who still seemed perplexed by what he was doing, but hopefully she would adjust quickly. If his plan didn't work perfectly, then it would be good enough if Nora found a way to slip past this guy. If even just one person made it up to help the others, they could call this battle a win.

"I am D-Dian of the Fabled… I-it is strange that you insist upon calling me a ch-ch-child… I have lived among humans for c-centuries." Dian's voice wavered as he introduced himself in kind. He still seemed unsold on Qrow's intentions, but as the old bird hoped, he also didn't adjust himself to Qrow drawing closer. Qrow tried to look as relaxed and casual as possible as he took yet another step toward him.

"It's just a vibe you give off, is all. It's a compliment, really." Qrow laughed, taking a third step toward Dian as he extended his left hand toward him. "It's good to meet you, Dian."

Dian's eyes fell to the hand extended toward him, the gesture stealing all his attention away from Qrow's gradual advance. After a long moment of silence, his gaze shifted up to meet Qrow's, and he gave a slow, hesitant nod. He took a step forward of his own, extending his own hand toward the one the human had offered him.

Qrow didn't hesitate, and his body moved with the instinctive fluidity that could only come from a lifetime of battle. By the time Dian's foot had fully returned to the ground, Qrow's right hand fell to the bottom of his scythe. The Fable grunted, eyes widening in realization of what Qrow was plotting, but while he caught on quickly enough to prevent the huntsman from catching his wrist in his grip, he couldn't pull back in time.

The blade of Harbinger arched through the air so rapidly wind hissed around it, closing the distance between his back and Dian's neck in an instant. Qrow felt the sharpened edge kiss Dian's skin—a sign that the trusting Fable had even lowered his aura—but by the time he followed through with the decapitation, nothing but air resisted the movement of his weapon.

Dian had ducked. When? He'd shifted from standing to crouching so abruptly he'd almost seemed to teleport. Qrow felt like he was moving in slow motion as he watched Dian catch the back of his right hand with his palm, pushing him through the remaining motion of his swing before leaping toward Nora.

As Qrow had hoped, Nora saw the opportunity his attack was providing, and attempted to move toward the door to the stairway. However, Dian had realized even that part of Qrow's plan, and headed her off in a single fluid movement. She attempted to bring Magnhild down on him, but he rotated his body, his leg whipping up to kick the head of her hammer as it reached its highest point above her head. The force of the impact, striking when her balance was most compromised, caused her to stumble backward, and her legs wobbled as she strained to stay upright.

"Nora!"

"I'm okay! Really!" Nora tried to sound reassuring, though she eventually had to resort to driving the end of her hammer behind herself to avoid toppling over. Her words aside, Qrow still instinctively moved between her and Dian, who had taken another step back to the stairway door. The Fable's eyes were on Qrow, narrowed thoughtfully.

This kid… it was exactly like when they'd fought the Beowulf earlier. He knew exactly when to strike to blunt an attack, targeted the weapon instead of the attacker, and declined to follow up on the opportunity he created. Qrow knew a thing or two about people who were entirely too soft… he'd been exasperated by more than a few in his lifetime… but it took a special kind of weirdo to keep pulling your punches even after someone attempted to stab you in the back.

"Why?" When Dian finally spoke, his voice was barely a whisper muffled behind his mask. Qrow sighed and scratched the back of his neck. What a pain in the ass today had been.

"Let me ask you a question, kid: if your family were dying a room away from you, and someone wanted to stop you and have a chat, would you go along with it?"

The question earned another moment of silence from the former Grimm, who rocked his head from side to side.

"…N-no." He finally answered.

"Good. Then you understand why I'm losing my patience with you. Protecting someone takes commitment. Hesitate and half-ass it, and someone you love is going to die, and you'll have no one to blame but yourself."

Dian's eyes widened behind his mask, but he nodded his understanding. When the hell did Qrow become a teacher, anyway? If the kid appreciated the lesson, then he should get the hell out of his way! Qrow shifted his weight, moving to grip his weapon in both hands. He'd just have to do this th-

Qrow's train of thought immediately halted, replaced by a sudden and intense spike of adrenaline. He couldn't put any strength into the grip of his right hand! No, it was worse than that—waves of tingling numbness were running up his right arm and into his shoulder blade. From there it became an aura of pleasant warmth that pulsed all the way to his brain, causing a rush of dopamine to start to relax his body. It would actually be a surprisingly good buzz, if he weren't in the middle of battle…

"…'Morphea'. M-my Semblance is 'Morphea'." Dian saw the look of confusion begin to spread across Qrow's face and offered the word as if it explained everything. The fable raised one of his hands toward Qrow, unfurling his long, bony fingers to reveal that his palm and fingertips were covered in a black, tar-like liquid. "I d-don't want to kill, but if I must, th-then at least I can ensure that there is no p-p-pain."

Qrow spat in frustration as he realized what had happened. He raised his right arm, though by now the numbness had set in so thoroughly that this took tremendous effort, and inspected the back of his hand. Surely enough, there was a spot of black dyed into his skin where Dian had touched him earlier. It was about the size of a coin, and the skin around it pulsed with heat. How the hell did it pierce his aura!?

"Fine, guess I'm using my left arm." Qrow exhaled sharply, careful to avoid letting the black spot touch the rest of his body as his right arm fell to his side. He didn't have time for this! For now, he hefted his scythe in his left hand and prepared to charge forward, but before he could do so the sound of gunfire echoed through the air. Dian jumped up just in time for a spray of green-tinted bullets to fill the space he'd once occupied.

"Qrow! Nora!" Jaune's voice, filled with a mix of concern and relief. Qrow shifted his gaze to the entrance of the north hallway, where the welcome sight of his two prodigal 'students' met his eyes. Ren had the barrels of Stormflower trained on Dian, while Jaune stood beside him with his sword drawn.

"Hiya, Ren!" Nora beamed at her partner, raising an arm to wave enthusiastically.

"Nora. Energetic as always. Have you been behaving yourself?" Ren returned her wave with a polite smile.

"You know it! This guy kicked my hammer, though. It was weird!"

…Qrow wasn't sure whether he was exasperated or comforted by the fact that these kids never changed.

"We can catch up later, guys." He interrupted the conversation, his voice sharp. "Ruby and the others are fighting on the top deck. We need to force our way through that door. You two attack from that side."

"Ruby's fighting? Understood. We have to go help!" Jaune's soft blue eyes narrowed in determination, and Ren nodded in acknowledgement of the command. The two of them wasted no time charging forward as Qrow and Nora did the same from their side.

"N-no!" Dian's eyes moved from one group to the other, his silvery aura whipping up around him to absorb another wave of fire from Ren. Without any hesitation, the Fable planted his feet and turned toward the door to the stairway, charging through it at full speed.

Tsk. He probably realized he couldn't prevent all four of them from breaching the stairway, so he decided to give it up and instead move to reinforce his comrades. Well, at least they had their way through, now.

The four huntsmen chased the Fable; the sound of footsteps-on-metal erupting like rain on a tin roof as everyone sprinted upward. The stairway was narrow and circular, offering Dian enough cover and blind angles to prevent Ren from drawing a bead on him as he ran… not that he needed the extra help. The lanky Fable moved so quickly Qrow could only barely follow the motion with his eyes.

"This might turn into a mess when we get up there! Let me take the lead!" Qrow shouted, deciding he had to pretend to be an adult from time to time. They followed the spiral upward to a pair of large double doors with "LOADING DECK: STAFF ENTRY ONLY" printed in large yellow letters above them. Dian had thrown the doors open in his dash, but Qrow had kept pace well enough that he reached the entryway before they could reset into their frame.

By now Qrow lacked the ability to lift his right arm more than a few inches from his side, so he slammed into one of the closing doors with his shoulder instead, brandishing Harbinger in his left hand as he dashed up onto the deck.

…and froze. Icy terror sank like a weight into his bones as he entertained the fear that he'd arrived too late.

The only sound was the hissing of the wind around them, and instead of the sights of the active battle he'd expected, there were only signs of a battle that had recently passed. The guardrails that ran the perimeter of the deck had several places where they'd been ripped out of the ground, the deck itself was scuffed and covered in large, jagged holes, and the elevated platform in the center had been completed obliterated… reduced to a pile of debris which battle had scattered everywhere.

Qrow recomposed himself and began to scan the battlefield, searching for any sign of his nieces or the snowflake. He found Weiss first—the pale huntress sitting on the ground with her eyes closed and her back propped up on the guardrail. Ruby was all the way on the opposite side of the deck, curled into the fetal position, with Yang kneeling a few yards in front of her. The Blonde brawler's head was downcast, and one hand had fallen to the deck in front of her knees to steady herself.

None of them were moving.

"Let's—No! Ruby!" Jaune led the group of students into Qrow's wake, his look of grim determination melting into horror as he, too, saw what remained of the battle. Without thinking he began to rush over to the fallen rose, but he came to an abrupt halt as Dian leaped out of the shadows, landing between the group and the huntresses.

"P-proposal." His voice was firm, and his gaze had grown narrow and serious behind his mask. He jerked his head toward Ruby and the others before continuing. "I'll l-let you save yours if I ca-can save mine."

Dian then looked to the other side, where Qrow spied a pair of short, stout legs poking out from beneath a pile of rubble in deck's center. Not far from them was a tiny woman draped over a length of the guardrail. Her large black wings hung limply at her sides, and her clothing had been charred, causing plumes of white smoke to radiate around her.

Qrow's eyes followed where they were led, eventually returning to Dian, and after a long moment he nodded with a sigh.

"Fine. We'll call it a draw." Qrow grimaced. Jaune didn't bother to wait to make sure it was okay; instead, he ran over to where Ruby was slumped over and knelt to check on her. Ren and Nora followed suit, moving to secure Yang and Weiss.

True to his word, Dian allowed all three to move past him unmolested. The Fable left to free his muscular comrade of the debris that had entrapped her, promptly whipping her unconscious form over his shoulder as if she were a sack of flour before gently scooping the winged girl under his arm. He headed to the edge of the deck, finding one of the holes the battle had torn into the wind barrier, and wordlessly leapt into the darkness.

All the while his eyes never once left Qrow, and Qrow likewise kept his eyes on Dian until the three creatures were pulled into the vortex of wind and disappeared from his sight.

Heh, guess the kid learned his lesson from the first betrayal. Well, even if Qrow had a mind to try to attack him while his back was turned, he'd have a hard time of it. The old bird gripped his right arm and squeezed it firmly—by now he'd lost all sensation in the limb, and it hung from the side of his body like an anchor.

"Was that really okay?" Jaune's voice pulled Qrow back to reality. He looked over his shoulder to find the blonde boy had scooped Ruby into his arms and carried her back over to the entrance.

"It was what it was. Got a funny feeling that we're lucky that one didn't want to fight seriously. What about the girls?"

"Ruby's been through way harder than this. We all have." Jaune said with a wistful smile, nodding down to the girl sleeping in his arms.

"Yang's fine, too! Just being a lazy-bones." Nora had slung Yang onto her back and curled one arm around her leg, her other hand using the end of her hammer as a walking stick.

"Weiss doesn't seem seriously injured, either." Ren confirmed the status of the Schnee, carrying her over to the rest of the group.

"Well, if they're feeling sleepy, let's get them into bed." Qrow did his best to offer the kids a reassuring smile, but it was an expression so alien to his normally dour face that it may have been a little off-putting. "Go on back down to the rooms. I'll make sure everything's okay, and then go debrief the ship's staff. Hopefully, we can put this whole mess behind us."

The students returned to the stairway and headed downward, leaving Qrow with his thoughts as he looked over the battlefield one final time. He reached into his shirt for the familiar comfort of his flask… only to remember that he'd drained its contents earlier and return it to its pocket with a defeated whimper.

The Creatures of Grimm… for as long as they'd existed, they were anathema to humans. They were bigger, stronger, unending, and unyielding… destroying lives and civilizations since the dawn of recorded history. Faced with such a threat, humans had only two weapons they possessed which the Grimm did not: intellect and determination. Using these tools, they'd resisted extinction, and managed to find a way to thrive.

These new Grimm, though… these "Fabled" … simply by existing they nullified humanity's one advantage. However reasonable they may be, however few in number, they represented a threat to all human life simply by existing. Qrow still wasn't sure who this 'Lea' person was, but he was inclined to agree with her assessment: between the Fabled and the humans of Remnant, only one group could be allowed to exist.

"Bah." Qrow shook his head, kicked the air, and turned away from the deck, slowly walking toward the stairway. He returned Harbinger to its folded form and settled it into its holster before entering the stairwell and closing the stairway doors behind himself. No use thinking too hard about it. Seeing how far the kids had come in the short time he'd been with them; it was hard for even a sourpuss like him to feel too nihilistic. Surviving was what humans did, right?

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[Document Manager keeps erasing my trasition breaks and attempts to add spacing... so consider this a transition break]
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Revenge of the Author's Note: Real life aside, this was just plain a hard chapter to get done. My lack of talent for fight choreography aside, it was yet another case of my outline drastically underestimating how much content it had crammed into a single two-chapter span.

As events unfolded, I began to realize I hadn't simply put two chapters worth of events into a single chapter… if I fully wrote out every event I'd wanted to include, it would have been 4 chapters. Two mainline, two EXTRA, with the perspectives going Weiss—Yang—Torchwick—Qrow. That wouldn't have been so bad… except the battle on the transport ship is a fairly minor plot beat in the grand scheme of the second book. It introduces some secondary antagonists, two-thirds of whom never encounter the heroes again, showcases an evolution in the bond between Weiss and Torchwick, and sets a few plots in motion regarding Oscar and the SDC.

Long story short, I ended up needing to compress things quite a bit for the sake of the pace, which did entail skimming over a few things. I do apologize that the update was a little messy.