The dull hum of the ship was heard and the others were eating. While Ren and Nora were sleeping earlier, he and Maaya were talking. He had expressed his doubts about bringing her along, seeing several dangers that could happen. She wasn't mad at him for voicing his concerns, but did make it clear she wouldn't leave the ship or allow the other two to leave. The Monitor had also told him that she would take the ship away from the island as soon as he was dropped off.

The Sentinels flying nearby would keep it afloat several miles out while Auspicious and him went through the facility. She had scanned the nearby waters and detected nothing, which is why the ship wouldn't be there sitting on the island. If any of the three wanted to get on the island, then they would need to first get out of the ship before swimming several miles to shore. This was more to keep Ren and Nora from doing it rather than Maaya.

Although, they seemed different, in a good way. Nora seemed a bit calmer and Ren's expressions were slightly more relieved. It seemed Maaya had brightened up their moods and he just nodded his head in approval. He didn't know what to say to them, not at the moment anyways. When he got Myne back, he'd take her to spread the ashes like the note requested. It would be their final goodbye to the family before continuing on with their lives.

Maaya fell asleep after a while and pretty soon it was just him and the other two. He noticed that they seemed better in every sense, as if a massive weight had disappeared. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why. The only person sleeping in the other seat was the reason and he could only give his gratitude to her. She did something that he couldn't even do in the slightest, at least without making the situation slightly worse. Either way, she had lifted their spirits and made them truly happy for a short while.

Nora, still a bit bubbly, was a lot calmer than what she was before. The years of putting up a brave face came crumbling down and she couldn't do anything but rebuild at this point. Ren, although calm as always, wasn't burdened and shackled with his past all that much anymore and found himself looking forward instead of backwards now. They were better now, that's all he could ask for at the moment for them.

It was quiet, but it was the welcoming silence that the three usually seemed to come across often. He sat on the floor with his cloak spread out and his items in organized portions on the cloth. Ren was inspecting some of his herbs with interest while Nora was looking at his explosives, handling each one with upmost caution and care. He noticed that her expression was one of utter seriousness and calculated focus that would rival some of the veterans in the UNSC. There was experience in her eyes and he was glad he she knew the dangers of handling them haphazardly.

"Hey, Six." She called out.

"Hmm." He hummed as he crafted a smoke bomb.

"What's the biggest thing you killed?" She asked. He stopped and had to think for a second, there were a couple of large things he's killed in the past. He destroyed the Covenant Supercarrier as the Pillar of Autumn was departing, but he couldn't tell them that. They'd start asking questions and he would either have to lie or hope they forgot about it if he avoided answering.

"The Grimm dragon." He answered.

"An ancient?" She asked.

"Yes." He answered.

"That's awesome." She commented. He hummed and the silence returned, they looked when they heard Maaya shuffle around before getting comfortable again. A small smile made its way onto their lips and he noticed it.

"I take it you two like her?" He asked.

"Yeah." Ren said calmly.

"You bet. She's like the kindest person on Remnant." Nora said brightly.

"She fills the hole a bit." Ren said, and Six immediately knew what he was referring to. It was another reason he wanted to take these two with him to spread the ashes. They may not have anything to let the wind carry, but it would at least give them a chance to finally let go and move forward.

As the years went on, Six did return to Kuroyuri after some time. The destroyed settlement had been picked clean by the scum of Mistral and there were decomposed bodies everywhere. It took a while but he did find Ren's previous parents, their bodies nothing short of skeletons and the color of their clothes long since faded. He had to carefully remove the mother's corpse from the fallen building before placing it next to the father's. After that, he gave them a proper burial near a cliff that overlooked the settlement.

It happened a while ago though, back when he was still wandering around and stopped in Mistral for a couple of weeks. Back when he felt the small amount of regret for essentially abandoning these two when they needed someone the most. Six only felt regret a couple of times throughout his violent life, but leaving them was his top five.

"I buried them." Six said.

"Who?" Ren asked.

"Your parents." Six answered. He saw Ren's eyes widen for a second before there was some wetness building up in the corners of them. His hand rub the tears away a bit but could stop all of them from falling.

"You remembered." Ren said.

"I never forgot." Six responded. He saw Ren smile at him while Nora rubbed her brother's back a bit before smiling at Six. The Spartan swore he felt his soul gain some more humanity, even if it was just a miniscule amount. These two were by all means his own, although he would never openly admit it. They were an extension of him and he didn't have a problem with it anymore. He didn't want them to be like him in the end.

He wasn't a good person when it all boiled down to it. There were many monikers he had earned over the years; Spartan, lone wolf, assassin, comrade, freak, angel of death, machine, and many more. The one that he truly was, and would always be... was a monster. A monster that never escaped the dark space beneath the floorboards of his childhood home. His mind broke that day, and his soul was forever damned by the Covenant.

He knew what he was and didn't make any move to change it, accepting it since he began training. As the years went on, he started to piece together that in order to hunt monsters, he needed to become one. The one that hunted others until the ends of the whatever planet they resided on. He was unflinching, unyielding, and incorruptible to the common sins that would fall upon a normal man. He threw whatever part of him that was human in order to become the very weapon he was today.

Yet... his humanity never left. It was always in the back of his mind, never letting him fully be thrown into the void. It was that nagging feeling in the back of his mind that always reminded him of who he was. There was a reason that he was a Spartan, and his upmost duty was to defend humanity. He supposed it was hammered into his skull by his father when he was younger. Despite him forgetting his parents' faces and names, he never forgot the lessons they hammered into him.

His mother had gently worked her lesson in his head to forever hold some compassion and help the less fortunate whenever given the chance; something he held onto to this day. Meanwhile, his father had hammered into him to never harm an innocent unless given no other choice and to always defend them with his life. If it meant getting his hands dirty or committing the ultimate sacrifice then so be it. Those two lessons are what distinguished him from some of the others. He didn't rely on his physical power or weapons alone, he had to be smart as well. Determined and disciplined alongside those.

It's what he wanted to get Ren and Nora to understand. To never be like him and lose their humanity in the end. He'd gladly throw his away if it meant they got to keep theirs intact, just as he would for humanity as a whole. To him, that's what it meant to be a Spartan. They would shoulder the burden and horrors the universe threw at them if it meant the future generations could survive and be better.

After killing Ozpin, he realized how far he had fallen. The killings started out the way he operated, then started to get a bit messy, then to the point of full blown mutilations. He wanted his enemies to suffer horribly before they died, to feel the terror knowing that their deaths would not be painless. That they would die scared and alone in the end. He even pictured Myne fleeing from him in terror, seeing him for the monster he truly was. How she would essentially see Tyrian in his place and it made him vow to never go that low again against regular enemies.

Granted, if he did kill, it wouldn't be entirely clean either. The act itself was dirty, but that didn't mean he had to enjoy it like some rabid animal.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when Nora waved at him.

"What is it?" He asked, shaking his head a bit.

"You were staring." She said.

"I was." He closed his eyes and nodded, letting go of those intrusive thoughts. He was a killer, a very good one at that, but he wasn't sloppy anymore. Too much heat was drawn when he was and the last thing he needed was the people he cared about being caught in the crossfire. When he looked at them, he swore that he'd be better for each of them. He had to be and he refused to accept anything less.

After all, he did have high expectations.

The door to the ship opened near the beach and he jumped down on the edge. Water splashed as his boots met the ground and dug into the wet sand beneath the waves. The edges of his cloak were soaked with salt water but he didn't care as he waited for a few items to be thrown onto the beach. He looked up and nodded as the ship turned around before speeding off towards the distance.

His attention turned towards the island and in the distance he saw a radio tower despite the low light of the area. The sky was dark to infiltrating would be slightly easier, but that didn't mean it would be easier overall. The items were packed into his bag and he picked up his Binary Rifle, rotating it and inspecting it as several pieces snapped into place. It disassembled and snapped to his armor before he inspected the Boltshot before putting it on his hip.

"The radio tower should provide me with a means to access communications. Marking the waypoint now." Auspicious informed. A marker appeared on his HUD and he started to make his way towards it. He stopped when the sand shifted near him, making him bring out his DMR and twist the suppressor on it. Sand exploded in the air when two red figures sprung up and landed in front of him.

Their robotic bodies snapped to attention before bringing out two long glaives. He aimed and fired two times at their heads, noticing that they had their own personal shields. His eyes narrowed as they rushed at him and he dove back when the tip of their blades struck the spot he was previously at. He rolled to his feet and quickly ducked when they both slashed at him, before stabbing at him several times. Each one of their strikes or slashes was quick enough to keep him on his toes, it reminded him of the Elites when they fought.

Quick, precise strikes. Yet there were several openings, to which he had to find out sooner rather than later.

He shot the rifle at the left one four times before seeing its shield pop with an electrical noise. It jerked around violently as sparks erupted from several spots on its body, stunning it for several seconds. This allowed him to rush up to it and grab its weapon and twist behind it. He kicked the back of its right leg before shoving the glaive through its chest before ripping it out and cutting off its head. Black fluid and sparks shot from its damaged area before it fell and exploded shortly after.

The right one lunged at him, making him step to the side and jump back when it slashed at him quickly. His heightened reflexes allowed him to keep up with it and slowly adjust to its style. Had he been less experienced or had a slower reaction time, then it would have been very one sided.

It stabbed at him, but he leaned out of the way before raising his foot and stomping on it. It's head tilted before twisting the weapon and throwing it upwards. When it was open, he countered with several well places shots before seeing its shields pop like the last one. It convulsed in place and he went behind it before it could recover, bringing out his knife and sticking it in its neck. He violently dragged the blade across, slicing through the armor and wiring inside. His foot kicked it to the ground before he gripped its head and tore it off before jumping back. It exploded shortly after and he took deep breaths.

He had to admit, it's been a while since something reminded him of the Elites. They were, aside from the Brutes, were the only Covenant species to constantly keep him on his toes when engaging in close quarters.

"They belong to Dr. Merlot." Auspicious informed.

"I noticed." He responded before taking out the empty magazine and putting a fresh one in.

"We should head towards the tower." She suggested while scanning some of the metal from the robotic corpse. He hummed in acknowledgement and continued to walk along the path while she clamped to the strap of his bag. A few minutes of walking and he came across a gate with barbed wire on the top, behind it looked to be a shipyard. The tower was right in front and Auspicious popped off before a beam was seen. It cut a hole large enough for him to crouch through before he stood up and looked around.

He walked along the path to the tower and stepped up the stairs. The palm of his hand facing up and the Monitor floated above it before he guided her towards the panel. A couple of wires connected to the console and he saw several symbols quickly scroll by before it shut off. It turned on a second later and he saw a face on it, making him narrow his eyes behind his helmet.

A pale man with white hair and a bionic eye was the first thing he saw. Six ignored the man's gasp before walking away from the console and headed down the stairs. The Monitor strapped herself back onto his bag and the two of them traveled towards the next area. He stopped when a drone with a screen on it hovered in front of his face, making him back up and bring out his shotgun. The screen turned on and Merlot's face beamed in delight, as if he was being graced with a god.

"It's you." He said.

"..." Six just stared at the screen.

"Never in all of my years would I have thought the legend would grace this island with his presence!" Merlot raised his hands.

"..." Six continued to ignore the man and started to walk away.

"May I just say, you are perhaps the most dangerous and interesting entity on Remnant. I've been an avid follower of your work throughout the world. Your countless purging of the White Fang and criminals of Mistral, to the killing of the ancient Wyvern that terrorized the world in the past. You my silent protector, are what I've been looking for all these years!" Merlot exclaimed.

"What is that?" Six turned and spoke for the first time.

"Your speed, your strength and ferocity, your keen ability to track even the most hard to find individuals with ease. All of these what makes you different from the rest of the nobodies in Remnant. You are the ultimate organism, one that has no weaknesses, that cannot be chained by any individual, and ruthlessly kills anything that is a threat to him. You are an apex predator. One that I intend to learn as much about in the given time." Merlot explained.

"..." Six didn't grace him with a response and only stared, his grip tightening on weapon.

"Once I do that, then those useless, crying kids will actually have something to show-" Merlot didn't get to finish when Six shot the drone and watched as it plummet to the ground. He ejected the spent shell and listened to it clatter to the ground before heading to the next location that the Monitor marked. He had to stop when the Monitor scanned the drone for several seconds before zooming back up to him.

"Do you have his location?" He asked.

"Not yet, I will need one more of these measly drones in order to find it faster. That shouldn't be a problem though, considering you have another lunatic obsessing over you." She said.

"..." He wasn't amused but did see that she was trying to lighten the situation up a bit. The objective marker popped up and he started to walk towards it, thinking about his next course of action. He would have to make killing quick before Merlot could send any more of his drones his way, that's not including whatever cameras the psycho had planted around the area.

"It appears that Merlot has several areas that are crucial to the island's supplies. Disrupting these will cut down his options and possibly force him to a corner." She said.

"People tend to get desperate when forced into a corner." He retorted.

"That is true." She agreed.

"Keep me posted on the status of each area. I need to know what areas to destroy and what areas will lead me to the children and other possible hostages." He said.

"On it, marking the next waypoint for you now." She chirped. It was in a different direction and he followed it. There was no telling how long the deranged doctor was doing these deeds, but it ended now. He'd get the children out of this nightmarish land before sinking the place to the bottom of the ocean. He'd make wipe that smug smile off of Merlot's face and rip him apart, the bastard deserved it.

Two more red androids stepped out in front of him and he brought out his shotgun. He slid another shell in to be full before raising it against his chest and pumping it. The audible sound was loud in the quiet night before he charged quickly towards the two robotic enemies.

He dropped down a small cliff and landed, dirt kicking up when his feet hit the ground. As he stood up, he noticed a large metal container and walked ahead, seeing more containers and massive pipes spread out. He jumped off another ledge and landed in an open area, seeing large puddles of a glowing, green substance. Walking up to it, he picked up a nearby stick and poked it, raising the stick to eye level and seeing it begin to melt. He dropped it and backed up while the Monitor detached herself from his bag and scanned the substance.

"I advise avoiding this substance. It's highly-" She didn't get to finish before another red bot sprung out and lunged at him. His gaze hardened and he gripped the bot's weapon and swung around with it. The momentum made it land in the green substance and it splashed all over the ground. He jumped back a bit when he saw a bit of it fly through the air and pulled out his shotgun.

"..." He watched as the bot slowly stood up and stomped towards him, only to fall down onto one knee. It's metallic body started to slowly melt away and its outer covering dribbled onto the ground with several wet splats. Wires were exposed and eventually melted as well and he just watched as the enemy turn into a steamy puddle of goop, almost matching the substance it landed in.

The rancid smell of corroded metal and other burning fluids was thick in the air, but it didn't reach past his helmet.

"Corrosive..." She finished. He nodded before grabbing a special container out of his bag before collecting some of it. All she could do was shake her chassis when he got rid of the residue that was on the outside. He twisted the cap on tightly before locking it and putting it in his bag. The container was usually to collect dangerous samples such as this one.

"Any particular reason as to why you collected it?" She asked.

"It's in case a situation calls for it, plus I know you want a sample." He responded.

"I could very easily collect some if I wanted to." She huffed.

"Yet you didn't." He said before walking forward. There was a strange noise heard from her and she attached herself onto his bag. The dirt kicked up when he dropped down into another open area and saw that it was slightly larger than before. There were a series of large pipes running throughout the area and it all led to a certain location. He'd have to either follow them to see where they went or just follow the path the Monitor set for him.

His head snapped when he heard a faint sound in the air and pulled out his DMR, firing two shots into another drone. It cackled before plummeting to the ground and the lens shattered upon impact. Auspicious wasted no time and began to scan it quickly, eventually getting what she needed before disintegrating the surveillance device. She zoomed back up to him and connected wires to his TACPAD, allowing him access to the facility's cameras.

Just before he could start cycling through them, he dove back when several Grimm lunged at him all at once. There were three Beowolves and four Creeps. He saw one Grimm in the back that struck him as odd. It was larger than an Alpha and had several characteristics that rose some flags. Its eyes and the inside of its mouth was green instead of red; over a dozen large, green crystals were sticking out of its back and it stood on two legs rather than four.

He didn't waste any time reacting when the first Beowolf lunged at him, making him pull out his shotgun and fire. The loud bark of the firearm rang out and he watched the Grimm's head explode before ejecting the spent shell. He fired two more times at a Creep and crippled it before rushing up to it and gripping its jaws, pulling them in opposite directions and splitting its head open.

He ducked underneath a swipe from the second Beowolf and slammed his shotgun against its face, listening to its neck break before moving onto the next one. He fired into the last Beowolf's leg before ripping off its arm and bashing its skull in. A wet squelch and crunch was heard before he threw the appendage away and jumped back when a Creep lunged at him.

The Binary Rifle was pulled out and he fired into two Creeps, killing them instantly and watching their bodies disintegrate. They barely made a noise as he looked at the last one and punched it in the snout. When it was stunned, he elbowed it in the face and knocked it to the side. He gripped its tail and slammed it on the ground next to him. Blood splattered before he slammed it to the other side and more of the crimson liquid caked the ground. A grunt of exertion was heard from him as he slammed it in front of him with all his strength and listened to its head finally give away.

A wet, crunching noise was heard and he threw the body to the side to finally look at the mutated Grimm. It observed him before leaning forward and roaring loudly. Saliva flew from its mouth and he pulled out the Binary Rifle, taking aim and firing twice. It barely had time to comprehend what was happening to it before it started to disintegrate into ash. He just watched it flail around a bit in agony before finally succumbing to its lethal wounds.

He didn't have time to play with Grimm, mutated or not. They were an obstacle in his way and he needed to find Myne and the others before anything happened to them. He needed to squeeze whatever information was out of Merlot before mutilating the man. People like him deserved gruesome ends.

"How troublesome." He muttered before continuing towards his objective. Whatever stood in his way was going to die; whether it be the guards, scientists, robots, or Grimm. He wasn't going to waste time on them nor was he going to play with his food.

He stopped in his tracks and closed his eyes, taking several deep breaths before everything cut off. The man wasn't present at the moment and the beast was in its cage; neither one was in charge at the moment. Those two wouldn't be needed at the moment, not until he found what was his.

The machine was in control now.