All The King's Men

by backwardsaile

Long has the Fifth Kingdom, the Britannian Empire, been an isolationist among its peers. Long have the Kingdoms tried to establish contact. Now, in lieu of the Vytal Festival, Britannia sends a team of its best to compete as a show of cooperation. But how will the story of RWBY be affected by the new players? Are their motives as pure as they seem?

11. Hey, this isn't Kokomo!

I'm alive people. I'm alive and I'M BACK BABEEEEEEEEE. Rona hasn't gotten me yet and I hope it never will!

So much has happened since I last posted. The Hungry Ghost Festival happened. The world is in turmoil, as usual. Shang Chi and What If...? came out. Alec Baldwin shot one of his crew on accident (RIP), Halloween went off without a hitch (I think) and people are ALREADY preparing for Xmas. Happy Diwali/Deepavali to all those that celebrate it btw! Also, have you seen Inside Job yet? It's pretty good!

But for real though? I'm sorry. For not uploading as frequently nor as consistently as most on this site do. Call it excuses but most of the time I am swamped!

Between work (which I'm not comfortable talking about) and applying for uni, there isn't much time for writing. I can only go so far with piecemeal additions each day.

That said, I'm not giving up on this story. And I thank you all for your continued support. I would like to see. more reviews and hear more from you guys but I can settle for the follows and subscriptions :).

I'm putting up a new poll on my profile so do kindly put your vote in. I hope everyone is staying safe and not being an asshole to one another (though it is inevitable I'm afraid). If you're vaccinated, don't be complacent and stay responsible. If you aren't, I hope that you do get it soon. For everyone's sake.

And of course, the review segment.

Dragon Lord Syed 101: Nunally is doing her own thing. I'll explore her with time. My plans for her are just so, so fun.

Coment9: He didn't go out with Ruby. He went out with Ne- I mean Noire!

OBSERVER01: Ironwood may be a little tricky since I hadn't given much thought as of yet. I may keep him paranoid but I will give a btter reason to become so. You want more flirting? I'll give you more flirting! Just not this chapter I'm afraid. As for Charles, I'm going for a Family Man approach.

Dontus Powerus: If its the first three seasons Ruby vs Neo? Yeah, definitely. Lelouch, Yang and Cinder? Mayhaps. Admittedly not one of my well-planned parts. Also, thanks for the reassurance! I'll try to maintain that feel while still including the action RWBY is known for! And thank you for the explanations! On the topic of ships, I'm trying to keep it quiet for as long as I can till I feel its right to reveal. Like the one at the end of this chapter.

cassnova5424: Unfortunately, not the way I wanted to go :(. Hope you'll keep reading away!

Hehehe. Doing this :(. makes it look lkie he has a mole.

Once again, I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Do leave a review if you feel inclined to, be polite to others and please drop by the poll!

With all that said, onto the fic!

Posted 7/11/21

Chapter 10

---

One of the worst things to see in a battlefield is a Brit with a map, a stopwatch and some binoculars.

- Unknown Soldier of Mantle on the topic of fighting Britannians, War of 1529 A.T.B

---

Rolo opened his eyes and squinted wearily, the sun glaring brightly into them. Reaching up to shade his vision, he blinked the spots away from his vision, letting it clear up properly. What time was it? He looked out the window and saw rolling hills that stretched far, with a tall evergreen forest in the distance.

"Rolo! Are you awake? Time for breakfast!"

"Coming!"

He threw off clean white bedsheets and swung his legs onto the edge, his feet hanging above the floor. He hopped off and pattered barefoot to the ajar door, past a bed identical to his save a plush bunny on the mattress, and pulled it open.

"Good morning!" he chirped. He looked to his right, into the cabin's dining room, where Lelouch sat at the end of the table with Nunnally next to him, still in their pyjamas.

"Good morning, little Rollie!" said an older voice with cheer. He felt himself get scooped up and lifted into the air, giving him an aerial view of the place. And more importantly, his mother. Green eyes stared from a head of flowing raven black and greeted his purple with excitement and joy. The boy felt himself drop from the height before being caught at her chest level, her arms supporting his rear as she held him close to her bosom. His nose crinkled and he softly whined as she closed in, giving him a big, good morning kiss.

"My little baby," she cooed lovingly, one arm reaching up to scratch his ears. He swatted the hand away after a short moment, irritated by the feeling it brought. But in response, she just chuckled and settled for tousling his hair, taking a moment to gaze upon him.

"Sleep well?"

"Mm," he hummed, not fully awake yet.

"That's good. Now, it's time to wake up."

'What?'

The world distorted and turned to mush, the vibrant colours swirling into one incoherent spiral. Meanwhile, his mother seemed completely unaffected, eyes continuing to bore into him.

"Wake up," his mother said again. This time, her voice was distorted too, sounding deeper, younger. And just as those words were uttered, he felt something sting him on his glabella. What was that? What was going on with his mom?

"Wake up."

The cold kiss of water hit him between the eyes, making them snap open. They darted to his right and saw Lelouch seated on the edge of the bed, all kitted up in his field attire with a glass of water in his hand, tilted threateningly on top of him. Behind, Gino and Suzaku milled about their dorm, finalising their packing. The liquid oscillated with the slightest twitch of his brother's hand and he glared at the elder Lamperouge. In that woozy, I-just-woke-up-and-am-not-ready-to-deal-with-this-nonsense-yet type of look.

"Better response than last time," noted Lelouch with a light grin. Rolo wanted to say something but he only croaked, his throat dry as sandpaper, and he smacked his mouth to get some saliva going, cringing at his crappy morning breath. Lelouch let the glass pivot in his fingers so its weight made it upright and handed the cup to his brother. The young clouded leopard faunus accepted it with muted thanks and drank, draining the thing in one go. With a satisfied grunt, he passed it back to his brother, who watched patiently with a cocked eyebrow.

"You were saying?"

Rolo wiped his lips and spoke. "What time is it?"

"Exactly five in the morning," Lelouch said, casually checking a digital watch he had slapped on. "Five-o-one now, actually."

"Fine, I'm getting up." Rolo yawned widely, scratching his ear as he stood from his bed. "What time did you wake up?" he asked as he grabbed clothes from his dresser.

"Around half past four. The others roughly fifteen minutes later," answered Lelouch, setting the glass down. "Hurry up, get changed and finalise your stuff. We'll help clean up."

"Thanks," mumbled Rolo as he shambled into the bathroom. Why'd they wake up so early?! It wasn't even light out!

"It's so that we'll be first in line for breakfast!" answered Gino, pulling on a pair of beige cargo pants. Turns out, he was whining aloud. Crap.

"So you should hurry up!" called Lelouch, knocking on the bathroom door. "No wanking, you hear?!"

"Oh come on!" protested Rolo among the others' laughter. "That was one time!"

"Less arguing, more showering," fired back Lelouch, wrapping and tightening fresh bandages around his hands. "Gino, fix his bed for him will you? I'll handle his luggage."

"Of course, glorious leader!" he cried extravagantly. "Shall I shine your shoes too?!"

"That would be nice," said Lelouch as he bent down to tighten a strap on a large, brown knapsack. "But no thank you."

"What's in it for me?" asked Gino, tightening his belt.

"I'll do one assignment for you, no strings attached," he listed, wiping the lens on a blocky monocular device with little dials, switches and a clamp on its underside."And I'll take over the next time it's your turn to run the errands."

"Deal!" The blonde zipped over and got to work, hands a flurry as he made the sheets.

"You sure know how to convince people," commented Suzaku, picking up a large duffle bag.

"You're damn right I am," Lelouch proudly responded. "Sometimes, I wonder if my semblance influences me. Now help me with this will you? I want to beat the queue."

"Righty-o." Suzaku bent down and dragged a duffle to the door with a grunt, followed closely by his leader.

"Say, you haven't seen my garters anywhere have you?" asked Lelouch. "Haven't found them since we dropped in."

"So that's what was off about you! I knew you were missing something!"

---

-2 hours later, 7am, Beacon Academy, Main Avenue-

"Stupid, frickin' students," grumpily grumbled a baggy eyed Ruby, kicking a pebble in her path. Team RWBY trudged along the main avenue of Beacon, each member hauling a bag (or in Weiss' case a trunk) along. "Haven't they heard of sharing?!"

The Beacon cafeteria was infamous for its rush hours.

"Ruby, it was just a batch of cookies," replied Weiss, already tired of this. "It's not like you were denied a life-saving vaccine."

"THEY WERE THE PRIME BATCH!" argued Ruby, very obviously on her way to a sugar and sleep deprived tantrum. "Everyone and their mother knows that those are the best ones in Beacon!"

"Then it should be obvious that they would be snapped up quickly!" scoffed Weiss. "It's not any of our fault that demand is that high!"

Ruby grit her teeth in frustration. Weiss was right. And it was the worst type of right. She was objectively right. But couldn't she see her suffering?! She needed her fix! "Why're we even up at this ungodly hour anyway!?" whined the youngest girl.

"Ruby, it's seven in the morning," said Blake as she walked on. "Sun's already up. I'd hardly call this early, much less ungodly." She quietly hissed as a ray of light beamed itself through some branches and into her eye. She rolled her shoulder and adjusted the backpack she carried and went ahead. Weiss followed shortly after, wheels trundling and unable to take much more of her partner. "I told her that she should've slept early!"

"C'mon, Rubes! Lighten up!" cheerfully said Yang, bouncing forward in a blob of gold. "It's our first mission since Mount Glenn! Surely you must be excited!"

"Yang, let me grump in peace," her sister flatly replied.

"Just sayin', you were the one who chose this so you have no right to be such a grouch," she playfully pointed out. She booped her little sister's nose and scampered ahead before she could be caught, leaving Ruby to glower by her lonesome. "Besides, you wake up early for cartoons on the weekend!"

"That's different!"

"Is not!" called back Yang.

"Is too!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"You two should really not do this right now," Blake deadpanned as Weiss rubbed her temples. Though as she said that, the corners of her mouth quirked up.

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Why don't you come over and prove it then?!" challenged Yang.

"..." Ruby did not provide an answer.

"Your silence speaks volumes of the truth," Weiss haughtily said, thankful that this trivial matter had been settled. "Now come on! Stop dragging your feet!"

"Yeah, what Weiss said!" called out Yang. "Hurry up slowpoke! Stop dragon your feet!"

"That one didn't even make sense!" shouted Ruby indignantly, an eye twitching in simmering annoyance.

"Your anger doesn't make sense!" rebutted Weiss, looking back at her. "It's petty, childish and preventable! You could very well have prepared for this!"

"How!?"

"By not staying up till one doing Oum knows what!" called Yang, quickly catching up with Weiss and Blake.

"AND if you were so concerned about cookies," Weiss pointedly continued, "You very well could have stockpiled!" Seriously, why was Ruby team leader again?

"It's not that simple and you two know it!"

"Excuses!"

"Oh yeah?! Well blah blah blah blah blah."

"In that case, yadda yadda yadda yadda yadda!"

It was around that time that Blake got bored of the conversation and decided to close it off. She instead whipped out her new book and began leafing through the romance novel, Ninjas In Love: Serpent's Lair. 'Now that's a katana,' she thought to herself. Then she balked in realisation. 'Oh Twins, Ruby is corrupting me,' she sighed to herself in disappointed defeat. Ignoring that little slip up, she continued to read, despite the ever growing volume of the voices behind her. She reached to flip to the next page but hopped to the side at the last second, her ears perceiving a fast moving object coming from behind.

Good thing too. A rushing wind wildly whipped her black tresses and made the book noisily roll through its pages. Eyes widened in alarm as a red, spiraling blur zoomed past and away to the bullhead docks with a flurry of rose petals. Calming her heaving breaths, she turned to her other two teammates, and in a rare moment of expression, burst out, "What in the fresh hell was that?!"

Yang had the decency to look shocked. Or at least, convey the look of shock. She covered her mouth with her hands and widened her eyes. Then, she pointed at Weiss. "She did it!"

"Doubt it," deadpanned Blake, calming herself and far too used to Yang's antics. She looked toward the Schnee. "What happened?" she questioned with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yang was being, as she would so kindly put it, an ass."

"Ah. So the usual," nodded Blake.

"Hey!"

---

"You guys hear that?" asked Gino, not bothering to look up as he adjusted a strap on his breastplate. "C'mon, damn thing won't budge!"

The tree they rested under, situated just to the side of the main avenue, rustled as Rolo let himself dangle from the bough by his knees, turning to look at his partner. "Sounds like Team RWBY," he noted, his ears poking up from his hair. "I think they're arguing."

"Well at least we know one of the two other teams," said Lelouch, sharpening Oath. He was seated at the base of the tree on a nearby rock, his left hand holding it steady while the right slowly and smoothly glided down the blade with the fleeting scrape of a whetstone. He bit back a yawn as he put it aside and wiped Oath down with a cloth.

"I don't know about you," said Suzaku. He wore a black tank top and fiddled with a solid, matte olive green pack with four rectangular blocks protruding from the back, trying to unlatch a small flap near the top, "but I do not want to know the subject." He grunted at the unusually tight seal and twisted it open. His weapon was leaning next to him, against the tree.

The lid of the flap popped up and he unscrewed the inner plastic cap and put it aside to reveal a small, metal receiver port with a tiny hole in the middle. He picked up a pair of slender, silver, cylindrical cartridges beside him, whose sides were lined with a dark purple. He pressed and held a small button beside the opening, making it aperture open like a camera shutter and producing a small receiver port. He docked in the first cartridge and watched it drain its contents. There was a soft series of clicks and a high pressure, pneumatic hiss that gently vibrated the device. Then he did it all again with the second cartridge before securing the lid and tightening the seal, stowing the two away. There. All fuelled up now.

"I must say," said Lelouch as he walked over to Suzaku, Oath now sheathed and in his hand, "those new models are pretty nifty." He plopped himself down next to Suzaku and grabbed his own pack, removing a small, rectangular device from its side with velcro straps on each end. Its dull plastic screen lit up with power and became a neat order of gauges, each with their own measurements. "Thanks for lending this." He tossed back the whetstone and Suzaku caught it midair.

"That it is," agreed Suzaku, putting the pack aside. "Onto another topic, any idea where Port is? Or the third team?" He tapped a few commands out on his own panel and the hollow vents under the blocks flashed and gave a brief puff of air, tinted with a purple-blue light.

"I dunno," shrugged Lelouch as he stood back up. "I guess they're running late."

"Well I hope they won't take too long!" griped Rolo, lying on a branch. "I didn't wake up this bloody early to wait around."

"Lelouch woke you up," Gino corrected. He was seated on the grass, his beige webbing left in a pile next to him as he adjusted a grey knob on a thick, azure piece of armour with a soft padded lining and four soft, flexible straps that met at the back with thin wires across their lengths. The front, which pointed forward like the stern of a ship, converged onto an edge that was shaped like that of a kite split down the middle. It had tall recesses spacing themselves out regularly to either side of a central strut of gold that would run down the line of its wearer's nose and he watched them flash between the colours of different dust types, with the substance kept two small, silver cylinders fixed onto either side of the would-be wearer's jawline. It was currently completely extended, each individual component sitting flush with its neighbours, giving the whole thing the appearance of the lower visor of a knight's helm or a set of gnashing teeth, its edges coloured in gold. Yet despite the polished appearance, the areas around the vents were lightly discoloured like what would be seen on exhaust pipes.

"You're one to talk, horndog," scoffed Rolo. He then leaned over and looked down at his partner. "Did I ever say that you three, for lack of a better term, look excessively overarmed?"

"More times than I can count!" replied Gino.

"So what? Four?"

"Oi!"

"Let's not fight about this," said Lelouch. "At least, not now. Rolo, stop riling up Gino. Gino, you need to stop giving us as many openings as you do."

"Whatever, MOM," dismissed Rolo, scowling as a leaf dropped onto his nose.

"I'll have you know that I take great pride in playing logistician," Lelouch bluntly said. "So, Gino, is Donnersang working?"

"Working perfectly fine, Lelouch," said Gino. He picked up the jaw armour, undid the clips and pulled it up to his face. With both hands, he pulled the straps around his head, bringing two of them under his ears and the other two over, taking care to lift up his braids, securing them together with a soft magnetic click, perched on the base of his neck. "Testing," he muttered metallically as he pressed a small stud roughly around his masseter. He felt the device hum with energy and with a nod, he released it and pushed another button on the back of his jaw, making the whole assembly compact and fold down towards his jawline, hugging it snugly and giving it a bulky frame of blue and gold with a pointed chin. "All good to go!"

"What about Seiclon?"

"Gun's working fine." Gino held his gauntlet, which was placed next to him, and cocked the charging handle for emphasis. "Shield's working fine." He pressed a button around the area where his hand would go and hourglass-shaped piece of metal built into the middle of the forearm opened up with a sonorous *clang*, becoming a buckler with a swirling, wavy pattern and a large metal boss. "Rail is functioning." He jerked the device forward and the shield slid to the backhand of the gauntlet, over the gun barrel. "Hinge is serviceable," he said, giving the wrist a tilt. "Extension is working." He thumbed the same button as before, letting the shield extend from its buckler form to a larger large, its pattern likewise expanding.

"Weapon is fit for duty." He pressed a different button and the whole shield retracted back into its inactive form.

"Excellent." He looked up and knocked on the trunk of the tree with the toe of his boot. "Rolo, get down from there and do some final checks on-"

The brothers' ears pricked up. "You picking up on that, Rollie?" asked Lelouch, digging his ear with a pinkie.

"A high pitch, right?" said Rolo, looking down from his perch. "Yeah, I hear it. Goddamn, what is that?"

"I think I see it," said Suzaku, pointing to a red blur in the distance. "I'd give it fifteen seconds before it gets here."

"Oh that's definitely Ruby," commented Rolo, still lounged on the branch.

"Very astute, Rolo," commented Lelouch. "Suzaku, Gino, I suggest we step away from the avenue. Right now."

"Yes, let's."

"Wait, I gotta move the bags away from- OOF!"

Lelouch watched in mildly sadistic glee as the speeding bullet that was Ruby hit Gino center mass, his teammate's eyes bulging and spittle flying out of his mouth as his body folded around the impact. They tumbled together in a clatter of blue metal and red fabric, coming to a stop a moment later. 'Well,' he noted with a downward glance. 'He was right about her nearly hitting the bags. Good eye, Gino.'

"Told you so," Lelouch dryly noted, paying little to his blond teammate's groans. Gino had taken much worse after all.

"My...ribs. My...spleen," groaned Gino, spread-eagled across the cobblestone. Ruby was sprawled on top of him in a red and black heap, her head spinning and eyes in a daze .

"My...head," she groaned as she got up, pressing a hand against it. Suzaku came forward and gave her a helping hand, guiding her to sit down on the soft grass. "What did I hit?" she asked herself.

"Gino. You hit Gino," Suzaku responded, kneeling and checking her all over. "Which part hurts the most?"

"Hey Suzaku," greeted Ruby, her vision still swimming. "Around...here, I guess." She pointed to a spot on the frontal left of her cranium, already beginning to swell.

"Here?"

"Ow!"

"Sorry."

He removed his hand from her. "Your aura should take care of the damage. Mostly. Can you tell me what day it is?"

"Wednesday."

"Time?"

"Like, seven in the morning?"

"Where are we?"

"Beacon. Main Avenue."

"Okay, good. What were you planning to do this morning?"

"My team is going on a mission," she started slowly.

"Go on. Where?"

"To a bunch of islands northwest of Vale."

"Purpose?"

"Culling and...research, I think."

"Thank you. How many fingers do you see?"

"Four."

"Good," Suzaku nodded. "Have you any spare ice dust?"

"Some in my right side pouch. In a vial," answered Ruby.

"Perfect." He pulled a handkerchief from an inner pocket and reached into said pouch, producing a vial of the light blue stuff. He uncorked it, put a dash of it onto the cloth and passed the rest back to her.

"Watch this neat little trick," he said, pulling out a canteen. He folded up the cloth into a bundle and pulsed some aura. There was a light crackle of ice forming from the dust and the air around it grew frosty. He gave it a splash of water and passed it to the young Rose. "There. Press against the area for a few minutes, trust in your aura to do the rest."

"Thanks, Suzaku," she weakly thanked, slumping against the trunk.

"No problem."

"Well, Gino," Lelouch said as he pulled the Weinberg up, slinging the blond over his shoulder. "Looks like you're right. You did get a girl to lie with you in a week."

"Oh, ha ha," he replied sardonically, clutching his gut. "Very bloody funny. Is she alright?"

"She'll-" He looked over to Ruby, resting against the tree. "-be fine in a moment."

"Good. That's good," nodded Gino, wincing in pain.

"Can you stand?"

"I already am."

"I mean on your own, smartass," he said, helping Gino to the lawn.

"Just give me a short while," he replied, falling back on the soft grass. "Then I'll be right as rain. Is my armour alright?"

"No damage from what I can tell," said Lelouch, shaking his head. "Some scuffs at most. Easily removable."

"Good to know."

"Ruby!" Yang jogged up to them, Weiss and Blake behind them. "Slow down sis! No need to leave us behind!"

"Yang, can you shut up for a moment?" hissed Ruby, icing her head.

"What's got you in a sulk?"

"A minor concussion," said Suzaku. "Just give her a moment."

"Oh man," she winced in sympathy. "What happened?" She noticed the big, angry looking welt under what she assumed was a makeshift ice pack. It looked really, really painful.

"Your sister ran into Gino," Lelouch bluntly piped in. He gestured behind him, where the blond lay, sprawled out on the grass. "Actually, scratch that. She flew into him. Spectacular wipeout I must say. They went skidding at least ten metres."

"Hey, Lelouch," greeted Yang. "Allow me to apologise on my dumb little sister's behalf."

"You goaded me into it!" Ruby protested, too dazed to stand.

"Hush you!"

"See? Aura's already working it's magic," Suzaku pointed out.

"What about Gino?" she asked, looking over to him.

"What about him?" They casually looked over at him, still sprawled out like a starfish.

"He gonna be alright?"

"Eh, he'll be fine," drawled Lelouch with surety, strolling over to the Weinberg. "He's a tough lil bastard. Ain't that right, Gino?" He jostled the blond roughly with the heel of his boot, earning an annoyed grunt as Gino swatted the leg away.

"Motherfuck," swore Gino as he opened one eye, lazily glaring at Lelouch. "Can you not?"

"I can. But I don't want to," Lelouch sneakily replied. "Come on, up boyo. And watch your language, the ladies are here." He kicked Gino again.

"Ugh, finnnnnnne-ah!" he whined petulantly. He sat up and blinked away the sunspots from his eyes. Then he turned and regarded the trio. "Sup girl?"

"Why good morning to you too, handsome," Yang playfully replied. Lelouch and Suzaku silently groaned and rolled their eyes at the act. "Hope my sis didn't Yang you up too badly."

"...It's terrible but I'll accept it." Lelouch held out a hand that she eagerly slapped. "But really, at least have some variety in your work."

"I'll have you know that being punny and punctual is an art form, good sir," pouted Yang.

"That was just lazy, Xiao Long," he sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "But all jokes aside, I trust you're here for the mission?"

"Why else would I be here?"

"Taking advantage of the relative absence of students to skive a few lessons and go gallivanting in town? suggested Gino, cautiously pushing himself up to stand as he did.

"What Gino said," said Lelouch.

"Well, I'm not here to kill Grimm."

"..." The three blinked owlishly at her. She felt a weak attempt at a punch land on her arm. "That is LITERALLY why we're here, Yang!" spoke up Ruby from behind. Yang gave a subtle glance behind her little sister, whose red welt was big but less aggressive looking now. She clutched a little towel in her hand and trailed trampled grass behind her. Ruby must have dragged herself over.

"See? What did I tell you?" pointed out Suzaku. "The aura is already working its magic."

"Why thank you doctor!" Yang exaggeratedly said, taking a step toward him. "How can I repay you? I'm afraid that I have little to give. I'm just a poor little country girl from Patch after all!" She took another step, bordering on his personal space now and he inhaled heavily through his nose.

"This should be good," Lelouch whispered to Gino, who now stood tall and upright. The towering Mordian snickered in a mild schadenfreude and nodded, not trusting his voice at the moment.

"Yang, there's really no need," began a flustered Suzaku as he took a step back.

*THUMP*

That was him bumping into the tree.

Shit.

"Oh, but I insist!" She stepped even closer, trapping him and placing a hand next to him on the trunk. He could feel her warm breath ghosting over him. "There must be something I can do," she said, conspicuously reaching for her collar and jerking it up. Suzaku gulped as he saw her assets shift, his face growing redder and redder at the situation. God, this was uncomfortable. And the woman came closer still! "Something. Anything." She stared into his green eyes, cheeky lilac drilling holes into him.

"I must insist that-"

A finger came up and placed itself over his mouth. "Hush now." She leaned in, the distance between them rapidly closing. Without options, Suzaku closed his eyes and braced.

"Yang Xiao Long!"

He felt the air grow cooler and he breathed a sigh of relief. Even so, he heard Yang yelp in surprise and the raucous laughter of his teammates, no doubt watching his plight.

Damned traitors.

He opened his eyes and saw the Schnee girl, Weiss if he remembered correctly, tugging hard on the back of Yang's collar, leaving the taller girl windmilling her arms as she teetered back on one leg. Meanwhile, Blake stood back and watched with interest.

"It's bad enough to sexually harass one member of a foreign team!" screeched Weiss, yanking back Yang some more. "But two?! You! You are incorrigible!"

Ruby snickered, making Weiss turn to look at her. "Ruby!" she gasped. "What happened to you!?"

"Remember when I tried to hit Yang?"

"Uh huh."

"And I missed?"

"Uh huh?"

"Yeah, well I traded hitting one blonde for another." Her eyes flicked over to Gino, who looked decently sheepish about his role in her current condition.

"Aw, you poor baby," teased Yang, sidling up to her sister. "Want some milk and cookies to feel better? A kiss on the boo-boo?"

"Actually, that would be pretty ni- Hey, WAIT A MINUTE. You caused this!" She pointed accusingly at Yang. Ruby pounced on Yang as her sister tried to step away, leaving her clinging to the blonde's back like a koala. "Apologize!"

"Hey, watch the hair!" Yang warned.

"What if I didn't?!"

"Why you little!" Yang dug her fingers into Ruby's hood and yanked it forward, throwing Ruby off of her.

"I'm telling dad!"

"You better not!"

Ruby whipped out her scroll and Yang swooped in, trying to snatch it out of her hands. To Ruby's credit, she scrunched into a ball and shielded herself as much as possible from Yang's hands.

"Give it!"

"No!"

Suzaku, meanwhile, watched with a mild look of concern. He slinked over to Gino and Lelouch, who were watching with the same amount of interest. "Shouldn't we stop them? Wouldn't do to have two teammates injured prior to the mission."

"We probably should," said Lelouch, watching the two sisters struggle with a hand on his chin. "But not yet. I'm curious to see where this goes."

"That and we can't afford to get hurt in their scrap anyway," added Gino, crossing his arms.

"That too."

"Well what about Weiss and Blake?"

"Ehhhh." Gino looked a short distance across from them, seeing the last two members of Team RWBY, who too were watching the sisters go at it. "Probably doing the same thing we are." Did one of them just take a picture? Actually, that was a great idea. "Well boys, looks like we've seen our first catfight abroad. Wait, Lelouch, can I say that? It's not racist right?"

Lelouch sniffed as he crouched. "I don't care. Turn of phrase anyway," he said. He reached to his ankles and began to blouse his trousers with a pair of blousers.

"Cool, thanks." He pulled out his scroll and took some pictures.

"Y'know, I was under the impression that catfights were more…" Suzaku paused to think of the word, "...racy in nature."

"Normally they would be," replied Gino. "But we take what we can get. Besides, by definition, it's just an informal connotation for a fight between two women. That said, your assumption isn't unfounded."

"Really?"

"It's true. Look it up in a dictionary."

"I was under the impression that you didn't read the dictionary," muttered Lelouch.

"I heard that, cunt," said Gino, wincing at seeing Ruby bite Yang's hand. "Just because I like to chase girls, work out and fight doesn't mean I've no other things to me. I read, I can do my homework fairly well."

"He's got a point, Lelouch," admitted Suzaku.

"And even then, tell me. Who's got a Grade 7 certification in classical singing?" he asked smugly.

"...Fair point," conceded Lelouch. A loud yelp brought the three back to the fight.

"I'll shave you bald! For real this time!"

"Then I'll be removing cookies from the menu!"

"Traitor!"

"Baby!"

"Y'know, this reminds me a bit of Rolo and Nunnally," mentioned Lelouch. Suzaku squinted at the two before he gained a look of concession.

"Huh, I suppose you're right."

"Or maybe Gino and his sis."

"Nah, she totally had him whipped until we went to the academy."

"Hehe, yeah~" Gino agreed, reminiscing about his adolescence. Then he registered what they said. "Hey!"

"Suzaku, I think you need to work on your phrasing," snorted Lelouch, catching on.

"Why would I? Whipped is totally appropriate for..their..relationship.." His eyes widened in realisation and he covered his mouth. "Oh, I take that back."

"You better!" said Gino. "I don't need that kind of image in my head this early in the morning. I mean, what if I said that for you and Kaguya!"

"Okay, okay! I get it! It was a slip of the tongue."

"Hold still, I need your hair!"

"NEVER!"

"We should definitely stop them now."

"Right. Gino, you grab Ruby, I'll get Yang."

"Alright."

"Enough!"

His voice resounded over the vicinity and the two froze in place, with Ruby straddling Yang with her fists in bunches of blonde hair and Yang pushing at Ruby's face, her fingers digging into every sensitive spot. Gino quickly strode over and snatched up Ruby like a kitten by the back of her hood while Lelouch hastily grabbed Yang's jacket by the shoulders and pulled her away. "Put me down! I'm not done yet!" cried Ruby.

"Enough ladies. Enough." Lelouch let go of Yang, allowing her to get up. "If you want to fight, do it after the mission. Your sister's already got one ugly welt on her ugly head."

"Yeah Yang! I don't need another bruise!" Ruby chimed in before she froze. "Hey!"

"Nice one," snickered Yang.

"Comes with practice," he shrugged. "That said, save your fighting for later. Can we do that?"

"Mmmm, fine," Yang nonchalantly replied.

"Ruby? Will you save it for later?"

"Hmph! Fine!"

"Awww! How cute!" gushed Yang. "You're trying to look angy but you're held like a lil kitten! I need to take a picture of this."

"Yang, no! Yang, I swear-"

*CLICK*

"That does it! Lemme at her!"

"Yang, you should really stop now."

"What? It's just one photo. Besides, she's so cute!" She shoved the scroll into Lelouch's face.

"...That she is."

"Told you so," she smugly replied, pocketing the device. She gave Gino a nod and he unceremoniously let go of Ruby's hood, letting her drop to her feet shakily.

"So, Lelouch," asked Yang. "How long have you guys been waiting here?"

"Roughly, I'd say, fifteen to twenty minutes?" he replied, motioning for her to sit.

"Really? Sorry to keep you waiting."

"It's fine Yang," said Gino. "We're still waiting on the last team and the professor. Any idea who they are?"

"Nope."

"Guess we're waiting then," he sighed, bending to pick up his webbing.

"Now that that's over, we can finally settle down!" said Weiss with light relief. "Gino, Lelouch, ...Suzaku, right?"

"At your service," he nodded, sitting on a nearby duffle bag.

"Good morning to you all. Apologies for the ruckus the sisters have caused."

"Apology accepted," Gino said as he raised his hand. "You sleep well last night?"

"That I did."

"Good," he said neutrally, "You're going to need it."

"Wait a minute, where's your fourth member?" asked Blake, coming up to them.

A figure sat upright on a tree branch and silently shifted so his knees hooked around the limb.

"You mean Rolo? Oh, he's just chilling." said Lelouch, reclining against the trunk.

He gripped it tightly in the back of his knees and let gravity carry his body down.

"Really? I don't see him anywhere." said Weiss, pulling her suitcase so it would come beside her.

Rolo swung down with a slowness that spoke of control, pivoting about the branch. And just as slowly, he uncurled his body, letting himself dangle from the tree with nary a sound.

"Trust me, he's right behind you," Suzaku knowingly said.

"I find that hard to believe. Blake here is quite adept at picking out and sensing her surroundings, so I'd doubt she'd miss him."

"Why don't we ask Rolo then?" challenged Lelouch. His eyes went in between the two girls before he continued. "Well, Rollie? Your verdict?"

"Ciao Bella."

"GYAH!"

---

It would be another fifteen minutes of waiting before the second half of the mission's personnel came down to the docks. Professor Port was his usual cheery self, marching enthusiastically with his weapon, Blowhard, slung on his bag and a bulky travelling trunk dragging behind him. As typical of him, he boisterously greeted the, to quote him, "fine young students who would brave the tropical wilds with him". One side of those he addressed took well to his words. The other, not so much. "I wish we were with Oobleck again," whispered Ruby to Weiss. The Schnee bit back a snigger as she punched her leader on the arm.

And it would be another five minutes before "Team" CMNE decided to show their face. Under a typical guise that students would use to explain tardiness, like waking up late. Or their clock being slow. Of course, the infiltrators were in reality, impeccably early, arriving around ten minutes after LRGS, at a little rendezvous just off to the side of the main avenue where they would recce who they would be working with. All thanks to a handy dandy little tracking device.

So to put it in Mercury's words, a stakeout.

"You all remember the plan, right?" asked Cinder, using her scroll to spy on the nine at the docks.

"Of course! Get chummy with the students," lazily cited Mercury, lying on a black duffel bag.

"Learn their fighting styles and weaknesses," continued Emerald, lazily browsing some social media platform.

"And then consolidate the information and strike when the time is right," Neo's scroll robotically intoned. That text to speech function sure was handy. "Did I mention how I think this is a bad idea?"

"Mentioned, noted and filed," muttered Cinder, eyes unmoving from their targets.

"Because seriously, it is." For one who spoke very seldomly, Neo was very expressive with the TTS function. "You're compromising yourselves by risking attachment and it never ends well. In my line of work, it's practically lethal. One hesitation, one slip up in front of the people you're infiltrating and it's game over."

"Well, dear Neo," Cinder said with an annoyed bite to her voice. "I acknowledge the risks this course of action entails. But we are not just everyday thieves and gangsters and we are certainly wiser than them. You doubt us? Then let me prove you wrong. Because we will find the chink in their armour, we will tear them down like the rest and we will get our just rewards. No matter what it takes. Does that satisfy you?"

Noire made a show of begrudging acceptance, exhaling heavily through her nose while staring defiantly at Cinder. Then she closed her eyes and lowered her head in silent submission. Out of the corner of her eye, Cinder spied Mercury with a hand half raised.

"You have something to say Mercury?" she challenged, already irate as she passed the scroll to the mint-haired thief. "Tell me what you see, Emerald."

"I did, but she already covered them," he said, putting it down. "I agree with her, though. Sure, it's a smart plan, but it's too risky for comfort. I ain't confident with the lack of support we have either."

"We're trying to tear down not just an academy from within, we're aiming to raze and ruin as much of this arrogant city as possible and shake the geopolitical landscape in the process, all with the support of a force far greater than you could comprehend. Tell me, which part of that is comfortable or typical?" she hissed.

Mercury wisely held his tongue.

"Good," she smirked. She turned to the pickpocket. "Well? Any comments?"

"Nothing new," replied Emerald, handing back the device. "They're getting along well. Soon they'll be thick as thieves."

"Snrk."

"Hush, Mercury," chided Cinder, resuming her surveillance as a breeze blew by. "You do realise that we'll have to be just as cordial with them as they are to each other, right? I don't foresee the plan working any other way."

Ick. Emerald did not want anything to do with that but she held her protest, not wanting to repeat what happened just moments ago. 'Do we have to though?' she whined to herself. 'This doesn't sit well with me at all. Having to talk about boys and fashion and trends and going out. Makes me sick! Ugh!' She shuddered to herself at the thought, already feeling her mind rot away at the trivial subjects. Wait, never mind. That shudder wasn't cringe-induced!

The morning breeze was merely cold, sending tingles down her spine as it passed from their rear.

Hold on. Wind coming from behind. Oh, not good.

"Cinder, we should duck for cover right about now," Mercury warned, slouching low against the bench. He was practically lying on the cobblestones.

"And why would we want to do that?" she asked sceptically. He sent a slight glare her way, at the lack of foresight.

"Yeah, what's the need? We've got the sun behind us," pointed out Emerald. Great, leave it to her to be the kissass yes-woman at the worst possible time! Out of his field of view, he heard the rustle of cloth and the soft thud of a body dropping to the floor.

At least Noire caught on.

"Can't you two take a hint?!" he hissed at them, flipping onto his belly. "We are upwind from a group that is one third faunus. And those three are predatory species! Now if you know what's good for you, you will duck." Another breeze, a stronger one this time, blew over them, causing the two that were prone to flatten themselves further.

"Mercury, please. You're embarrassing yourself," lightly chided Cinder. "Your concern, like Noire's, is duly noted. Now silence. I'm trying to focus."

"Whatever. If you amateurs are discovered, it's not our problem. So don't come crying to us when your cover's blown. Come on Noire." He picked up his bags and gestured for her to do the same. "Let's go meet them first. Someone needs to explain our tardiness to the rest." As the assassin walked off, the girl in black scooped up her stuff and trotted up to him with a playful pep in her step.

"Ignore them Cinder," scoffed Emerald as she opened her own scroll. "They don't know what they're talking about. It's safer here." And Cinder did ignore. She ignored Emerald's sycophantic assurances and the sight of Mercury and Noire walking off to join the rest of the group. Surely, they were wrong about being discovered.

Right?

She zoomed in, surveying the nine others that would be joining them on their mission as the sun's rays peaked over the building, shining onto them. There was Schnee and Belladonna, talking to the younger Lamperouge who hung from a tree. Near to them was Rose, with a welt on her head and picking her nose not-so-discreetly. Cretin. After her was Xiao Long and Kururugi, engaged in conversation. They were also joined by Weinberg, who was fixing some sort of gauntlet onto his left wrist. And finally, there was Lamperouge the elder staring at them with a squinted gaze and Port. Probably discussing mission-related matters or making small-

She froze.

Wait a second.

Oh, that's not good.

"We should move. Grab your things."

---

Lelouch listened to Professor Port with half of his attention. The other half he used to take stock of who was present. And more importantly, of who wasn't.

'Where's that third team?' he wondered. As he was about to answer another of Port's questions, something about Wakewings, a breeze hit him square on the nose and it twitched. New scents. Turning to the source, he squinted through the sun in his eyes and sniffed. 'Chocolate. Vanilla. Strawberry. Oil. Gun oil? No. Closer to hydraulics. And a lot of body spray, recently. Mint. And chalk dust? That's weird.' He inhaled again, his focus on the area unshaken. Familiar scents. But from where?

Then it hit him. Just as a ray of sun glinted off some object in the distance, he smelled something new. A scent that was made very familiar to him in the past few days.

'Charcoal. Ash. Maple. Trace amounts of.. apple? Wait, that's hickory. Is that tobacco? No. Sandalwood.' The first time he got to know this scent closely was a few days back, in the ring, among the sweat and dust. 'Cinder Fall.' His eyes narrowed.

"Is something the matter, Mister Lamperouge?" asked Port.

"Nothing of the sort, professor," Lelouch calmly dismissed, rubbing his nose. He spared one last squint toward Beacon. What was she doing there? "Just giving the school one last look."

"Ah! I know the feeling," Port said, clapping him on his armoured shoulder. "Sometimes, I too feel homesick before I've even left! Does something trouble you?"

"No," said Lelouch, turning back to the teacher. "I don't think so."

"Very well, then," nodded Port. He checked his watch again. "Where is that third team? It's been five minutes since the stated time."

"Perhaps they got caught up in something," suggested Lelouch. "I'd doubt any student worth their salt would be late on a whim." As he said that, his nose caught another whiff and he looked in the direction, seeing two figures walking down the avenue with bags in hand, one taller than the other. "In fact, I think I see some of them now."

Port turned to see for himself. "Why, it's Mister Black and Miss Spumoni. Good eye Lelouch!"

"Thanks, professor." 'So it's CMNE that's joining us? Interesting.'

"Morning, prof," lazily waved Mercury. "Sorry for being tardy. Our room clock stopped working and the queue for breakfast was just the worst."

"At least you didn't take too long," said Port. "Where are your other two members?"

"Oh, well Emerald had a bit of a stomach ache so Cinder accompanied her to the john," he said with a straight face. Noire sputtered in surprise and Lelouch raised an eyebrow at the answer, but said nothing. "Probably something she ate. That or her IBS."

"My goodness! Is she alright? Does she want to sit out the mission?" asked Port, genuinely concerned.

"I wouldn't worry too much, professor," Noire chimed in, using her scroll. "Emerald's a tough cookie. A little explosive diarrhoea won't stop her!" Noire could barely contain herself, having to turn around and wheeze it out. If Port noticed, he didn't show it.

"Fine. But if any of you fall sick, please let me know immediately."

"Yessir," acknowledged Mercury, dropping his duffle with a *thump*.

"Now, Mister Lamperouge. Where were we?"

---

"So. You were mad because you were sugar deprived and Yang ticked you off?"

"Yeah…" Ruby answered sheepishly. Rolo looked at her with slight concern, hanging from the bough.

"And then you smashed into Gino?"

"Yeah…"

"Are you alright?" He reached out to touch the lump on her head and she winced. "Sorry! It looks painful."

"It's getting better," she said, touched by his concern. "It's fine. Really. Hehe…"

The two were caught in a period of awkward silence, the others idly chatting around them. "You know," Rolo said as he slid off the branch and landed with a deft flip. "If it's sugar you're looking for, I think I've got some chocolate in my bag. Would you like it?"

She latched onto him like a sloth, wrapping her limbs around him.

"Yes!" She looked up with watery eyes. "Please, save me from this hell!"

"Alright! Alright! Just let! Me! Go!" He tugged away fruitlessly, the petite girl somehow having an iron grip. "A little help?!" he desperately asked Suzaku.

The nihonian just gave him a grin and a patronising wave with his fingers, mouthing out "no" in the most smugass way possible.

"Wow, that's kind of mean, don't you think?" asked a voice beside him. He turned his head to face them and found himself looking down at a green haired girl.

He casually shrugged his shoulders. "Well, he brought it on himself. And he's a big boy. So he can handle it." He ignored the pained cries of Rolo as he struggled, turning to the girl. "Not risking my hide for something so small. You're.. Emerald, right? From Haven?"

"That's me," she admitted with false sheepishness. "And you're Suzaku, right?"

"Got it one," he said. The tank top clad teen picked up a sleeveless, double breasted vest that was white with black piping. It was reminiscent of a biker's riding leathers. He shrugged it on and deigned to leave it open for now. "I see you're dressed for the mission," he noted, giving her figure a quick once over.

"And you," she replied in kind, "are definitely not." The tightly laced black boots and black tank top he wore were a given in most scenarios. The compression arm sleeves he was sliding on? Debatable but still, fine.

But those navy blue cargo pants and the white leather vest? No way. That was asking for a bad time.

"It's the jacket and the pants, isn't it?" he guessed. She raised an eyebrow in surprise. Was she staring? "I get that a lot."

"You're not a mind reader, are you?" she asked.

"Nope. Just a habit I picked up from him." He nudged his head over to his left, toward Lelouch and Professor Port deep in conversation, with the former holding up a holographic display from his scroll. "By the way, shouldn't your leader be in the discussion as well?" He glanced over to where Cinder was, talking with Mercury about something.

"Shouldn't Ruby?" she rebutted. They looked over to where the youngest of the group was, separated from Rolo and now nibbling on a chocolate bar. Like a rodent.

"She's the youngest and most inexperienced out of the three. Same could be said about her team. Cut 'em some slack."

"Hold on. I clearly remember that you guys are freshmen too," she pointed out. She relished the small victory she had on her… colleague?

"…Okay. True," he admitted. "But three of us are ex-military."

"Really?" she asked, masking her surprise. "I didn't know that." 'Cinder's not gonna like this.'

"Weren't you at the exhibition?"

"Wasn't really paying attention at the time. I got distracted," she said sheepishly.

"Happens to the best of us," he dismissed. "It was a Saturday."

"So, on that topic," she began, careful with her phrasing. "What was it like?"

He hummed in thought. "Can't really tell you much, I'm afraid. Standard opsec protocol. What I can say was that the academy was one of the best and worst parts about it."

"Yikes!"

"Yeah! No kidding. Although, the training and places we went to afterwards was fun."

"So I assume that most of your team will be fine with the climate?"

"Most likely, yes," he nodded. "Gino might have some trouble, with all the weight he's carrying. But the training probably counters that. Same can be said for Lelouch, with the armour and the jacket and all. That and he's like a quarter Ventrillian."

"I have no idea what that means."

"Wow, you really didn't absorb much did you?"

"Only the Grimm section caught my attention. Sue me. Now, what about your youngest?"

"Rolo?"

"No, the flying spaghetti man. Of course Rolo! I'm gonna guess that he'll handle the environment fine."

"Oh, on the contrary, he's gonna die," Suzaku said, eyes wide with surety. "A baggy black hoodie and all those coverings will make him wish he was dead, ventrillian descent or no."

"No kidding?"

"Dead serious," he insisted.

"Shouldn't you warn him about that then? Seems like a dick move to let him suffer," she suggested, irked at the nonchalance.

"We already did," he said in turn. "Besides, he's a big boy. He'll figure it out on his own."

"If you say so," she conceded. 'Come on, give me something to work with!'

"By the way," he said, "Are you feeling alright? After your toilet run?"

"Toilet run?" she repeated, confused. "What do you mean?"

"You and Cinder were late because you had a problem right?" he elaborated. "Mercury was explaining it to Lelouch and Port. And then we heard about it. Something about "explosive diarrhoea?"

"..." Her expression darkened as she tilted her head down.

"I feel sorry for you. Really, I do." He gave her a quick pat on the shoulder. "But don't worry, happens to the best of us. Especially before big missions. Your nerves play games with your gut."

"Would you excuse me for a sec?" She said, looking toward another group with one assassin in mind.

"By all means." He watched her walk off to exact her vengeance, a plastic, eyes-closed smile on his face. 'And just like that, Mercury is dead. I'm sorry brother.'

He scooted around the tree trunk, making himself scarce. He did not want to be part of the fallout.

---

-Foreign Affairs Office, City of Dell-

"Arms up for me please, sir."

The man in the suit complied, lifting his arms up and allowing himself to be frisked by the security guard. After he was cleared, he picked up his items from the scanner and made his way to the elevator, his detail and peers following behind him. As they walked, he took some time to admire the old frescoes that decorated the quiet lobby, shoes quietly echoing on the marble floor.

"Ah, Rocco! I see you were invited as well!"

Rocco "Rocky" Montagna turned around to see an older gentleman catch up to him, his own little detail just behind him. He was pushing 60, with a brown suit and fading black hair. Rioja Vespucci, brother-in-law to Don Galassia of the Galassia family. Chairman and CEO of Roadrunner Logistics. A legitimate business of the family.

"Rio! Good to see you!" Rocky gave him a handshake. "Representing your legit company, I presume?"

"Correct you are, Rocco." The two entered the elevator with their detail and Rocco pushed the button that would bring them to the conference room. "And you're here on behalf of the real estate business."

"Yes I am."

"Looks like this Brit wants something out of all the big players, yeah?"

"Well, that Kingdom is trying to break into the market. It needs local partners."

"Right. And then they'll steal our jobs and have rapists and drug addicts immigrate over, flood our streets and steal our children."

"You don't actually believe that bullshit do you?" asked Rocky. The elevator stopped with a soft *ding* and the doors slid open.

"Me? Buy into that? Of course not," snorted Rioja. "Damn populist faffer saying whatever he needs to get into office."

"Oh, thank the Twins," said Rocky as they stepped into the hallway. As they made their way to their destination, they gave short greetings to familiar acquaintances.

"Can't believe some people actually think that he'd make a good councillor."

"He's a good speaker," conceded the Pioneer heir, holding open a door to the conference room. "After you, good sir."

"Thank you very much."

"You're most welcome." Rocco let the door close behind him and he scanned the large room, furnished with a long conference table and smaller bar tables that were closer to the entrance.

When the invite said industry leaders, it wasn't kidding. There was the CEO of a steel manufacturer in Vale. And over there was an heir to an agricultural empire. And of course, over in a corner surrounded by asskissers was the Councillor in charge of Foreign Affairs.

Was that the Trade councillor?

"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for attending this meeting." All heads turned to the door on the opposite end of the room, where a red haired man in a blue suit walked in with two bodyguards behind him. Sig Walken regarded the assembly of tycoons and industry barons that sat before him, be they from the agriculture, financial or trade sectors. They were currently standing at their seats, lining themselves up on the long, rectangular table. "Let's get to work, shall we?"

---

-Cargo Bullhead, Somewhere in the Western Valian Sea-

"C-c-c-c-combo Breaker!" Ruby's fingers flew all over her scroll as she barraged a virtual opponent with tiny electric fists. She sat in the hold of a Bullhead, a cargo variant to be exact. It was about twice as big as its smaller cousin and had an extra pair of thrusters in the back to help handle the extra weight. The hold was huge and spacious, with individual folding seats lining the walls on either side and large, rectangular windows on its sliding doors and along its body, currently closed by retractable sheets of metal. Long fluorescent beams were bolted to the ceiling alongside loop grips and it also possessed a cargo ramp in the back. In the middle of the hold was a mound of luggage of various types all tied down to the floor, from the usual dufflebags and backpacks to bulkier rucksacks and a stark white roller trunk.

Three guesses for who that last one belonged to.

Her curiosity was briefly drawn to four matte green metal packs that lay next to the bag pile. She could see the shoulder straps and buckles that one would normally see on a backpack but could not identify them.

The thirteen huntsmen and huntresses were seated, safely strapped in and doing their own thing with plenty of room between one another, Team RWBY on one side and Team CMNE on the other. Team LRGS was split in half, with Lelouch and Suzaku sharing their seats with CMNE while Gino and Rolo sat with RWBY. Professor Port sat on a seat towards the front of the aircraft, his back to the cockpit.

"No. No! NO!" She became increasingly engrossed in her game as the boss' difficulty ramped up significantly. She'd never gotten this far before! "Come on, come on!"

To her dismay, the boss got her in a stun, leaving her defenceless against their own salvo of attacks! "KO! Mel Volent wins! Defeat!"

"Pooh!" she grumbled, snapping her scroll shut and crossing her arms with a huff. She scanned the rest of the cargo hold to take her mind off the game. Most of the other students were minding their own business, focused on whatever garbage was on their scrolls and social media these days. The youth didn't know how to connect anymore. Ruby stopped herself before she could go any further. 'Oum, I sound like DAD!' she balked. She shifted her focus away from, to quote her dad, "brain dead zombies" and looked at those who were doing other things. Suzaku was writing something in a little notebook that he had retrieved from his bag while bopping his head to some music he played through a pair of earphones, a pair of white samurai style gauntlets (han kote) with padded insides covering his forearms. His vest lay folded on his lap. Gino, who sat next to one of the big sliding doors, slept with his mouth wide open, leaning onto a support beam next to him, that weird jaw piece he wore making it look like he had the worst case of underbite she had ever seen. If he was snoring, the hum of the engine was more than enough to save them from that sound. Lelouch, she noticed, sat still and quietly next to Suzaku with his eyes closed. She would've thought that he was sleeping, if not for the fact that he had one arm somewhat stretched out, his silver coin balancing on his fingers. She watched with attention as he breathed calmly, letting it daintily roll on its thin circumference from one finger to another with the lightest tilts of his wrist and fingers, never threatening to fall on its face. Colour her impressed! Despite the advances in technology, the rumble of aircraft in flight was something that could not be totally eliminated. And yet, he could balance and move the coin by feeling alone as if he were on level ground.

"I gotta learn how to do that," she muttered.

"Well then, be prepared for lots of practice," a voice said beside her. She turned to her right and saw Rolo, who sat with his right foot on the seat of his… seat. His beanie wasn't on at the moment and he was leafing through a thin hardcover book, propped up on his knee. "It took him six months to even get it to roll properly."

"You'll see! I'll get there!"

"I don't doubt it," he said in kind, flipping a page. What was he reading? She leaned over, peering over his shoulder to get a glimpse of the text. "Can I help you with something?" he asked, looking at her with a light tilt of his head.

"Whatcha reading?" she asked curiously. She lightly flinched when he snapped the thin hardcover close with a sharp *thump!* or whatever sound paper makes when such happens. "Looks interesting!" It was a small book with a blue cover and the silver symbol of royal flush. At the bottom it read: The Psychology of Gambling.

"Gambling theory," he answered simply. "Wanna read?" He offered the book over to her.

"No thanks," she declined. "Dad says I'll get addicted to it." Rolo shrugged and pulled back, flipping back to the page he was on. "Suit yourself. It's mostly math anyway. I get the feeling you won't like it."

"Math?! Blegh! I thought games were supposed to be fun!"

"When you're winning, yeah. That is how people get addicted to begin with," Rolo snorted as he turned the page. "But most of the time you're either doing something like counting cards or trying to read others."

"Wuh?" Ruby replied, trying to wrap her head around the subject. The minor turbulence they were experiencing was no help in that endeavour.

"Let's just say that there's a lot of thinking in the game," he summarised. "Which is why I'll almost never win and hence, never get addicted."

"Why?"

"Because that guy over there makes sure I don't." He pointed with his book toward his brother, who remained calm and had the faintest hint of a smug smirk forming. "He stomps all over me everytime."

"Ouch."

"Oh, definitely. Good thing is we don't usually play for money." He turned his body toward her and put the book down. "So, you nervous?"

"Kinda?" she answered uncertainly. "I just hope it doesn't go as bad as our previous mission."

"The Mount Glenn one?"

"That's the one," she nodded.

"Well, don't sweat it! You've got two teams worth of backup this time!"

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the pilot speaking," the intercom droned overhead. "Would Professor Port kindly come to the cockpit? I repeat, Professor Port to the cockpit." Said Professor perked up at his name and placed a notebook he was reading on his bag next to him. Unclipping himself from his seat, he stood and stretched his back. As if to follow suit, Lelouch unbuckled and stood up in one smooth motion, his outstretched hand engulfing his coin. Port gave him a quick nod before the two briskly entered the cockpit, with the Lamperouge having to dip his head to avoid the door.

"What do you think is going on? Can you hear anything?" whispered Ruby.

"Over the engine? At this distance?" asked Rolo, feline ears pricked high. "Not a chance," he said with a shake of his head. "We're bound to find out sooner or-"

*BONG BONG BONG!*

Lelouch stepped into the hold and slammed a fist on the wall, the hollow sound shocking everyone into giving them his attention. "Speak of the devil, that was quick," muttered Rolo.

"Huntsmen, Huntresses. Your attention please," he called, hanging onto one of the many handgrips fixed overhead as the windows slid open, letting sunlight flood the chamber. "There has been a change in plan. We will not be landing on the resort's bullhead platform. There's a spot of trouble," He gestured to the bay door on his right as the aircraft lightly banked. Those further away leaned forward and tried to get a better view of what he was referring to while the nearer students smooshed their faces where they could to catch a glimpse. "It seems the east coast of the main island is under attack."

Ruby gasped at the sight of a swarm (consortium, she would later learn) of crustacean grimm. From this high, she couldn't discern much beside bone white claws and big, spiral shells. They scuttled like an army of ants, weaving and darting through the waves and surf with heavy orbs of water sailing above. Their huge white shells were covered in all sorts of things. Some were crusted with barnacles, others had pieces of kelp and algae draped on top. Some had old fishing nets that had gotten tangled on spikes that dotted the spired shells and some were bare of decorations, shining a brilliant alabaster white in the late morning sun.

A few of them had already made landfall, only to be warded off or better yet put down by pattering gunfire from a small security force, who were little more than dots of green and brown from their height slowly retreating from the beach, marked with fallen palm trees, craters in the sand and fallen defenders. "That is a lot of prometheans," muttered Gino.

"They're not going to hold for much longer!" commented Blake, watching the security force slowly pull back amidst the pressure of the tide and white explosions of water. "We need to help them!" She suppressed a shudder that ran up her spine. If there was one thing that she hated almost as much as dogs, it was creepy-crawlies! And those things, with their spindly eight legs were very much creepy and crawly.

"If you're wondering, yes they look way worse up close," answered Lelouch. "But focus on the mission. This is what we signed up for everybody. We're three klicks away. ETA five minutes!"

"Alright then," said Gino as he stood up. "What's the plan?"

"Team LRGS will be forward deployment. You boys get your packs on. Now."

"Got it!"

Rolo gave Ruby one last look. "See you later," he said with a wink. He hopped out of his seat, putting on his beanie before attending to one of those strange green packs.

As Lelouch shrugged his own pack on, he scanned the hold. "Yang, Mercury. You're needed too. You're our second wave. Once the pilot gets low enough and the Prof says so, drop in and give us backup."

"Right on!"

"Sure."

"The remainder of Teams RWBY and CMNE will be the third wave. You, along with Professor Port, will come in once we've got a rough LZ for you and provide fire support," he said resolutely, clipping the pack on and drawing his sword. "Questions?"

"Don't the leaders have a say in this?"

"Surely, partners would work better together rather than just mashed together? Why does all of your team get to go?"

"Waves were chosen based on impact in battle, not chemistry. This is a grimm culling, not an arena fight. LRGS has dealt with this specific Grimm before. And finally, yes leaders have their say but time is running short. Unless you've got a plan rearing to go, I suggest you stow it for another time," he answered with a clipped tone. "Anything else?"

He gave the hold a quick once over with a serious gaze. With a curt nod, his blade shortened and retracted back to reveal its barrel, the crossguards swinging into one another to form a grip and the hilt turning into a stock. He swiftly loaded a magazine and cocked the weapon, the sound quickly followed by that of his teammates' own weapons being loaded as well. Holding it by its receiver, he peered out the window. "One klick left," he said. "LRGS. On me."

The other three members gathered round him, each catching a small bead-like item. As they whipped out their scrolls, they pressed a button on said items, activating a soft blue light the size of a pinhole. Suzaku had donned his vest and drawn his sword, the sheath hanging off his right shoulder via the rail system he wore. A flick of a switch on his rig activated a small mechashift process which resulted in its prominent steel throat ornaments into a sleek device, covering its throat and opening the butt of the sheath into a muzzle. He loaded a box magazine he took from a duffle and racked the slide of his firearm, having to pull the gun down a bit to do so. "I wish they would release the modular versions already, it's a pain to jump like this," he grumbled.

"They'll be ready when they're ready," Lelouch replied. He stuck the bead into his left ear, the others following suit. "Comms check."

"Loud and clear."

"Good! Gentlemen, this will be a LALO jump at a height of 250 meters. Wind speed is four km per hour, headed northwest and visibility is high. Stick to your partners and you'll be fine." There was a deep rumble that resonated through the aircraft as it sharply banked to the side, leaving its passengers holding tightly to what they could. "We are under fire! Ascending to a thousand feet!" the pilot said over the intercoms.

"Correction. Three hundred meters. Now, buddy check."

The others watched as each squire turned to his partner and pulled a thin, scroll sized block from their partner's left shoulder. Lelouch gave a nod to Suzaku for the all clear and the Nihonian responded in kind with a pat on the shoulder, letting the device retract back via tether. "Pilot! Open left bay door!"

"Got it!"

The portal slid open with a hydraulic hiss, letting the wind bellow into the hold and whip hair and clothes about. Lelouch surveyed the scene below as he pulled his necklace out and gave it a quick kiss before putting it back. "Say your prayers, boys! Get ready to drop! Activate gravchutes!" The three held tightly on the handloops as their packs' four blocky attachments extended from the main body via thick black cables, vanes tilting open with a soft purple glow. "Alright! We're dropping! Gino! Take point! Get us some ground! After that me, then Suzaku. Rolo take rear!"

"On it!" The strongest member gave one last nod behind him as he walked up to the front, doing some final adjustments.

"Don't you have a landing strategy?!" Weiss shouted over the wind.

"We do have a landing strategy!" Lelouch answered, one hand on the doorframe. "It's called tuck and roll!"

"That's a lame plan!"

"See you on the ground!" Gino cried as he jumped out. Team RWBY watched him quickly descend, arms and legs held close together in a controlled dive. A few seconds later, there was a glow the colour of gravity dust, quickly accelerating.

"Jumping!" Lelouch leapt out and began to freefall, hearing a wet and heavy crash. He looked at the source and saw Gino punch through a cone of water with his left arm, the gauntlet now having deployed its targe shield and Eisenbrecher in his right hand, now sporting a thin spike on top. "Incoming fire!" the Tanith-Mordian cried to the others.

"Copy!" Suzaku's voice buzzed over the communications, muffled by the roar of wind. Now only Rolo was left on the bullhead. Lelouch wanted to look back but couldn't. "Watch the AA !" he warned his team. The three, banked and tumbled, evading the great spheres of water that cannoned upwards.

"Keep at this height till we make some clearance, Prof!" Rolo took one step toward the edge and turned on his toe. "Second wave, get ready!" He gave them a cocky mock salute before letting himself fall out of the bullhead back-first. Ruby watched him in worry as he tumbled end over end with none of the finesse the previous three showed. But worry gave way to relief when he righted himself and shot downwards, catching up with the rest of the team while avoiding the globs of water.

"Gino! Make some space!"

"On it!" The blonde shot forward with the whine of his thrusters. He reoriented himself as he neared the shore, Eisenbrecher raised and glinting in the late morning sun. Then, with a faint green glow on its head, he swung down.

Lelouch saw sand and water spray into the air with a deafening, rumbling *THOOM*, the shockwave pushing Grimm back as the wind whipped his hair and roared in his ears. He struggled to keep his eyes open as he plummeted with practiced ease, bracing Oath tightly against his chest with the help of a small magnet on his crossbelt. He counted to five before he fed his aura into the gravchute and let himself be pushed upright by the pack's thruster vents, guiding himself to the pocket in the shore Gino had made, now quickly filling back up with seawater.

He took aim with Oath as he descended and drew a bead on the first Promethean in his sights. He depressed his trigger and the rifle chattered in automatic fire, a controlled burst launching four rounds at it. The volley was clustered around its face, one pinging off its bony carapace. Two managed to squeeze themselves into giant hermit crab's mouth and gain its attention while the final one popped its right eye with a wet *splat*. It's chittering mouth released something akin to a wet gurgle, though he was sure it was growling or screaming at him. It scuttled forward on its eight hind legs, huge claws brought to fore and ready to snap him like a twig. He dropped into the calf-deep water of the little crater and shot at its other eye, making it bring its claws up to guard it while it continued to barrel toward him.

As he shifted Oath back into its blade, he drew Treachery from his hip and shot a blast of ice, binding its legs in place as its inertia caused it to tilt forward. A harsh roar bellowed behind him, a great blast of wind bowling over some crabs. Focusing on his target, he ended it quickly with a shot of lightning through its head.

A giant cannonball of water careened over to him in the split second he took to catch his breath, forcing him to jump back with a boost from his pack. He landed behind Gino, who was surrounded by a loose, wide ring of several disintegrating bodies with punctured heads. "I see you've been busy," remarked Lelouch, making Treachery extend till it was as long as its sibling. With a flick of his thumbs, the two blades hummed like tuning forks, glowing with a miasma of purple energy.

"And you've been lazy," Gino fired back, his voice tinged with a metallic timbre. Eisenbrecher was poised on his shoulder, ready to swing at a moment's notice while his shield, Seiclon, was fully extended into its targe form, held in a sturdy guard. "Only one down? Unbelievable." He struck at a daring promethean that got too close, grounding it in one swing and caving in its head. "That's seven. Lucky me."

"Oh please, you know damn well that you're the best among us in anti-armour."

A tongue of flame sweeping across the beach broke their banter, Suzaku leaving charred, bisected corpses as he fought. "Could use some help over here!" The rapid, buzzing *chug-chug-chug* of a gun highlighted his situation as Suzaku fired a spray from his scabbard-turned-LMG, box magazine attached to its throat and the rest of its body straightened out, shortened to just over the length of his arm and perfectly straightened, such that the magazine was near toward the back and the butt of the scabbard was now a smoking gun muzzle, with air vents running down the sides. One hand grasped onto the pistol grip and the other held his tachi as he knelt atop a flat rock, the throat/receiver end of the gun mechanically attached to a ball-joint pintle mounted onto his railbelt. "I second that!" shouted Rolo. He rode atop a particularly large promethean whose eyes he had swiftly cut off, standing on its spiral shell with his junglers extended and snared into its flesh as reins, making it trample and crush its smaller kin in literal blind rage.

"Get soooooooome!" Suzaku roared.

"We'll be there when we can," Lelouch calmly answered. A wet *crack* sounded behind him as Gino pried open a claw wider than it had any right to be. He dodged back from a bashing limb and swung out with Oath, the gravity dust giving an extra weight and power behind it. It cleaved through the crab's knuckle, dropping its claw to the ground. He ducked into its guard and took advantage of its daze, thrusting Treachery forward and piercing through its body. He swiftly pulled away and stuck another, though he hit lower. Not a killing shot but then again, he wasn't going for that.

"Obey," he commanded, voice layered and hand webbed by violet veins. In a flash, his aura surged down the blade and injected itself into the Grimm like a venom, the essence of his soul infecting the soulless abyss of the creature's being like a plague. It chattered in defiance and shuddered as its will was subjugated and suppressed by one superior, the streaks of red that ran through its body slowly going dark. It's shuddering subsided and it lowered itself, Lelouch's will-imbued aura running through its veins, its eyes now a deep purple.

Quickly, he withdrew his blade, hopped onto its claw and then its back. "Gino! Get on!" He touched the promethean's head with his hand and gave a new command, thankfully now less aura expensive. "Go nuts." Given new purpose, it rose and gave a quiet chitter before it scuttled forward with haste, bearing down on a fellow, unsuspecting member of its kind. Before it could defend itself, the victim found a pincer cleaved off at the shoulder and its head crushed. The body was thrown aside callously as the enthralled grimm fell upon its next victim mercilessly, much to the enjoyment of its rider even as he ducked to avoid another blast of water.

"Nice!" he said. He bashed in the defending claw of a promethean and roasted its face with a fiery roar. Done with his current adversary, he jumped at the temporary ally as it stampeded by, his outstretched hand caught by his leader. Lelouch pulled the blond up and helped him onto the grimm's huge shell as they continued to speed toward the other half of their team.

---

-Meanwhile, up above-

"Come on, come onnnnn!" whined Ruby impatiently. It looked so fun down there! "I wanna go!"

"Well too bad, sis," said Yang, standing near the door. Her hair fluttered like a cape as she studied the combat with a bird's eye view. Sure, she wasn't book smart. But she knew her way around a fight! "You gotta wait your turn."

"Sorry kid," chimed in Mercury. He too analysed the fighting, though he was more focused on the participants with souls. "Your sister's right. Unless you can clear up that much armour as quickly as we can, no changes in the plan." He looked over to his side, where Cinder stood to get a glimpse herself. She was not disappointed.

'My, my,' she mused as she recorded the footage. 'What ferocity they hold! Maybe that could be of some use…'

"Miss Fall, I see you're documenting the grimm! Very diligent of you!" praised Port. Oh, just wait till he got his hands on one of those! He could feel the thrill of the (proverbial) hunt rush through his veins! How he barely contained it! "Do you mind sending it to me later? I would like to have such a perspective in my research."

"By all means, professor," she answered dismissively.

"Speaking of which, are you studying them, Ruby?" asked Weiss, who peered out a window.

"-now is that ten inches or fifteen? Blade looks like it's made out of high carbon steel, double edged. Hollow ground bevel? It would make sense for him. What about the cables? Composite? Soft core? What's their load capacity? And the propulsion system? Is there compressed air or is it wind dust? Likely to be pistols, but what calibre? Nine millimeters? Probably. What about the action, then? Blowback? Recoil? Gas?" she muttered to herself.

"Please tell me you heard at least one word."

"But how does manoeuvring work? Unless he has some compensating system his aura would be working constantly to keep his shoulder from popping out!"

Weiss sighed to herself in disappointment. She reached and pinched painfully on Ruby's ear, dragging the Rose away from the window.

"You dolt! Stop ogling and start analysing!" she scolded. "Think, Ruby! Which would be better right now! Knowing how those things fight or how your boyfriend's gear works?!"

"He's not my boyfriend!"

As the two bickered, Port's scroll buzzed in his pocket with an incoming call. Swiftly, he opened it and answered. "Yes?"

"Ground is clear. Send Wave 2."

"Right! Good job!" He snapped it shut and looked toward the curious students, who eagerly awaited for news. "Mister Black, Miss Xiao Long," he nodded. "You may proceed. Pilot! Take us lower!" He stepped aside to give them more space.

"Alright!" Yang's smile stretched from ear to ear as she engaged Ember Celica. She whipped on her shades and had a bounce in her step as she backed up. "It's about time!"

"Someone's itching to go," drawled Mercury as he did some final stretches.

"Wanna make a bet out of it?" she challenged.

"Sure. What's the game?"

"Simple. Highest body count wins."

He tilted his head as he processed what she said, getting rid of a crick in his neck. "So you would have a head start?" he joked. "I see you."

"You ass!" she sputtered, containing her laughter. "That's not what I meant. I meant to say-"

"That whoever kills the most wins!" Mercury shouted over the wind. They were nearing their second height, the bullhead already slowing down.

"Right!"

"So what's the prize?"

"A favour! Loser owes the winner one favour, no questions asked!"

"You're on!" He stepped aside and gave her the door. "Ladies first!"

"How kind!" she said as she got into a sprinter's stance. "Not going easy on you, though!"

"Just go already!" he replied, waving her out.

Yang laughed heartily as she dashed and leapt from the aircraft. Shortly after, Mercury jumped out too. With a gleeful smile, she aimed behind her and fired her gauntlets.

"WHOOOOOOOO!"

---

-Down on the beach-

"Where the hell is that back up?!" Gino roared a blizzard, the wind and ice dust combining in a deadly mix. The half dozen prometheans were buffeted by the frigid attack, the front most ones taking the brunt and freezing solid. His SMG buzzed and shattered the frozen Grimm like glass, leaving the black-tinted ice to slowly dissipate in the sand.

"Just be patient!" insisted Lelouch, cleaving another promethean head in twain. He slipped past the strikes the beasts threw at him, weaving between their large frames with an unheard rhythm, shearing and cutting off eyes and limbs as he went. His feet carried him swiftly and steadily, twisting and turning gracefully in the sand despite the surf that crashed against his legs as if it were a dance rather than a deadly conflict, avoiding attacks and leaving the beasts crippled and vulnerable. No movement went unwasted, each parry turned into a riposte and each overextension a chance to maim. He twisted and turned, avoiding attacks and dealing his own soon after.

Twist, dodge, strike.

Twist, dodge, strike.

Twist, dodge, strike.

'And that's twenty!' Lelouch pat himself on the back as he ripped Oath out of a promethean's belly, brutally eviscerating it. In the distance, he saw two clouds of sand plume into the air with loud, dull thuds. Ah. So there's the backup. "Second wave has landed," he spoke into the comms.

"Finally!" Rolo slung one of his cables around a promethean's claw, letting it run around the joint several times before its point anchored itself in soft squishy flesh. He flipped over a sweeping strike that came from behind and mounted the overextended crab. Securing his footholds on its large spiral shell, he drove his free knife down into a seam between two plates on the beast's head like an icepick , behind its eye stalks. And as it bucked and shrieked in pain, he activated the retract function of his rig and pulled his left arm back. Combined with the weight of nearly half a ton of malice rocking back and forth, Concrete Jungler pulled back easy.

But while doing so, the wire cable ran rapidly over the limb it entrapped, the sheer friction and speed of its motion burning and scraping off black flesh as it ran, throwing bone dust and flecks of jet into the air in a thin miasma like a belt grinder, producing a sound similar to a stuttering meat grinder. Worse still, the crescent blade at the end of the line bit deep into the soft tissue, tearing through it like paper and leaving a rend in its path. Rolo felt the line come to tension suddenly as the knife hooked onto a stray piece of shell from his victim's claw, pulled up from all the damage that came before but still firmly attached to the body. Steadying himself on the struggling promethean below, he gave the knife he had jammed into it a deft twist, earning a renewed burst of thrashing. He held steady, watching his ensnared opponent as he thumbed the retract function again, his focus on the damaged limb that now barely hung with the scarcest amount of meat and connective tissue.

With a series of wet *snaps* and *cracks*, the crab's muscles, tendons and shell came apart at the joint, the heavy claw savagely ripped from its knuckle. The disarmed promethean was flung up and back, half from its relentless struggle bearing gruesome fruit and half from suddenly being released from tension, much like a rubber band, squealing in pain as it threatened to turn turtle. His little objective complete, he "convinced" his mount to keep thrashing, using all that weight and kinetic energy to swing the detached claw around like an oversized flail, bowling over Grimm and breaking their shells. He let himself get launched off the bucking grimm, ripping his knife free and using the force of the launch to help lift the claw up into the air. With a grunt of effort he swung it overhead and down, crushing his enemy with a loud *crunch*. "Gino!" he shouted as he landed.

"On it!" The blonde launched his fist into a grimm's mouth,getting it nice and stuck in its broken mandibles. Then he opened fire, the twin barrels underneath buzzing away as bullets tore apart the crab's head till it was a mush. He smoothly removed his arm, made his way over quickly, got into a crouch as he got closer, and swung Eisenbrecher onto the cracked surface, ejecting a flat, wide cone of dust-powered wind. The burst of air launched the knee-high claw forward, rocketing into a rearing promethean that found its guts crushed in an instant. The claw pinballed into a few more of the crabs, breaking shells and mauling parts until it came to a rest.

'That's fifteen.' He heard a loud splash and glanced behind him. Yang spit out seawater as she pulled herself up. "Having fun?" he asked, giving her a helping hand.

"Ehh, could be better," she said, wiping some water off her face. "All this sand and salt isn't going to be good for my hair though," she scowled as held up a lock. "It's gonna take me hours to get it all out!"

"Oh, I know that pain!" The sound of gushing water caught his attention and he quickly grabbed her shoulder. "Get behind me," he said calmly, pulling her back. He activated the cache of ice dust in his shield and punched down onto the sand as a shot of seawater flew toward them. Any protest that Yang had was silenced as a pointed wall of ice, like a snowplough, rose from the ground. The jarring impact of the projectile smashing into the barrier failed to break it, the shot harmlessly breaking itself apart and dissipating when it hit the spearhead. "You alright?!" he asked over the crash of the water.

"I'm good, thanks!"

"Great," he said with a nod. He hit the wall with his hammer, causing a web of cracks to form all over it with a groan of ice. "Be a dear and send this flying, would you? Also, duck." His arm reached over her shoulder and fired, spitting lead into a rearing promethean's face. "Go, I'll cover you!" He moved past her rear and clashed with an oncoming Grimm.

"Got it!" She slipped under the taller squire and gave the wall a good swing! The barrier shook and groaned, cracking into thousands of shards but still standing strong save a few pieces that were shaken off the structure.

Again!

With a grunt, she threw a harder punch and the wall gave. A shower of crystallised water sprayed forward like grapeshot from a cannon, the shards peppering the Grimm. Most of the barrage was little more than a nuisance to them, at most diverting their attention. Some were more unfortunate however, the shards burying deep into eyes, joints and whatever soft spots they found themselves in.

With a yell, she surged forward, smashing her fists into a promethean's belly, her gauntlets barking with each blow. Soon enough, she blew a hole through the crab, leaving it dead without a doubt. "Who's next?!"

A chittering from behind was nature's response and she looked to see one of her victim's kind standing tall over her, one claw wide open with some sort of fleshy sack at the knuckle, inflated to large proportion and its material stretched taut. 'Naw, crapbaskets.' She couldn't raise her guard in time so she opted instead to dodge, her bracelets spitting fire to aid her.

The point-blank shot of high-pressure water, whose sheer force of collision could turn bones to dust, thankfully missed her, instead exploding upon the ground in a briny spray. The same could not be said for the shockwave of said explosion, which threw her back painfully and causing her to fall end over end on the beach. She spat out the sand in her mouth and shook off the rest, her instincts screaming at her to dodge. And so she did, avoiding a claw that smashed down like a club. She backstepped from snapping pincers, struggling to find an opening. This particular promethean was smart, alternating its snapping claws so that one was always guarding its face. At her current level, she couldn't see a sure fire way to slip in.

"Heads up!" Relief came in the form of a silver blur that fell down onto her foe, a heel of lead caving in its crown. A sole planted itself on the grimm's face and fired a shot, leaving it a mangled mess. Mercury Black deftly landed on the sand next to Yang and watched as the grimm toppled over dead. "You need to have some vertical diversity," he noted, pulling her up. They hopped back as another shot of seawater crashed into their position, gathering and readying themselves to take down another enemy.

"I don't suppose you know how to deal with those do you?" asked Mercury, eyes focused on the crab in front of them. It was gathering water from somewhere on its body as it stood in the surf, the waterskin-like sacks on its knuckles inflating with concerning speed. He blasted one that tried to crush him from the flank.

A shot rang out and popped the pressured sack like a water balloon, the force of the burst wreaking havoc on the crab's knuckle, the pincer left hanging on by a few precious bits. "Well. There's your answer," said Yang as the crab looked at its limb and chittered nervously.

"Coming through!" A blur of white and black thundered past them, crashing into their injured opponent with the crunch of breaking shells. The weird, purplish promethean bore down on its former comrade, taking it by surprise. It pushed over the smaller grimm and two heavy claws descended in a flurry, breaking through its belly armour and ripping through guts. With a final surge of its claws, it caved in the grimm's head. "Everything alright here?" asked Lelouch, crouched atop the crab. Oath was held in his hands as a rifle while Treachery was lodged into his mount's back.

"We had it covered, y'know," said Mercury, giving Lelouch a grateful nod. He gave a kick out to another promethean that tried to sneak up on it, blowing its head open.

"Yeah, right," snorted the Lamperouge. "Word of advice. Best time to hit their water sacks is when it's nearly full pressure. Makes a really satisfying backfire for them." His eyes widened and he leveled his gun, firing two shots into the distance. A second later, two sprays of water burst into the air with black debris dotting it. "Like that."

"Why, how kind of you Lelouch," said Yang as she shot off a flare. It found its home in a crab's maw, leaving the swarm with one less member. "You came in to save me. Must be my lucky day, having three strong boys come to the rescue!"

"Save it for later, Blondie!" said Mercury. He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back, firing his boots off as a water ball came crashing down. As Lelouch's mount fired in return, the two landed safely on top of a nearby rock. "Whew, thanks! I owe ya one."

"Like I said, later."

"You guys good?!" called Lelouch from a distance away.

"We're fine!" Mercury replied. 'Not my legs though,' he groaned.

The sharp metallic *BANG!* of a high calibre round rang above them, a black and red bolt surging forward as if lightning and thunder swapped places. Crescent Rose descended like a guillotine, digging hungrily into a Promethean's head. With a yell, Ruby fired again, using the rifle's recoil to rip the blade out. She ducked as a ball of water flew overhead before she saw it smash dead centre into another grimm.

"I haven't called you guys yet." Lelouch trotted toward her, a frown on his face. The bullhead was still in the air so that was definitely not the case. "What are you doing down here?"

"… I fell out of the bullhead?"

"You don't say," he said sceptically. "Can you handle yourself? We've enough on our plate as is."

"I can! I'll show you!" Her eye caught a twitch that came from his mount. The weird, purple-veined grimm was quivering and shuddering, it's veins and eyes occasionally flashing red. "Hey, is something wrong with your crab?"

"Hm?" He looked down and gave it a quick look. "So it seems. The boy is expiring. Pity." He reached forward and grasped onto Treachery. Without a thought, he twisted his wrist, letting the blade slice and mulch the promethean's interior. He thumbed the dust release on his dagger and loosed a jet of fire, cooking the beast from the inside out. As it was consumed in flame, he wrenched out his blade and hopped down onto the sand, the burning carcass falling flat onto the beach. "Well, at least we've made good progress." He reached up in his ear and spoke to Port. "Professor! Wave 3 clear for landing!"

"So what was wrong with the grimm?" asked Ruby. She had Crescent Rose planted into the sand and was taking potshots at the ferocious tide. "Why was it all purple? I've never seen them like that before!"

"It's part of my semblance!" Lelouch lanced out some ice, freezing a trio in place to be easy pickings. "I'll explain later!" Oath shifted into its sword form and he descended on a Promethean, blades humming with gravity dust.

'So cool," admired Ruby. She took aim at an approaching enemy, taking time to reload her rifle. Aim. Steady….

A barrage of green bolts peppered the Grimm from its side, stopping it in its charge. Enraged, it scuttled into the surf to fill its sacks, only for it to be consumed in a ball of flame.

"RUBY ROSE!" A black glyph shimmered into existence over another promethean, pushing and pinning it to the sand. A rain of huge, razor sharp shards of ice came down, skewering the beast in an instant with a white figure gracefully dropping onto its spiral shell. Weiss Schnee glared at her with a gaze so cold it would burn. "Of. All. The. Stupid. Things!" With each word spoken, she sent out bolts of dust at a target, giving her a clear path to the object of her ire. "You could have done! Why did you jump out the bullhead!?"

"…I fell?"

Second time's a charm, right?

Weiss seethed and grit her teeth. She raised Myrtenaster and conjured a glyph on its tip. An icy salvo shot out and flew past Ruby's head, turning the grimm behind her into a pincushion.

"We will have words later!"

"Indeed we will!" Professor Port blasted a promethean apart with a gout of flame. "But now is hardly the time to squabble, ladies! We have a job to do!" He swung blowhard down, lodging it deeply in the crown of another promethean.

"Let's get to work! HUZZAH!"

---

-Twin Pines Hotel,Vale Upper Class District-

Oak was in his hotel room, laying on his bed with his injured, heavily bruised leg raised up on a soft pillow and his brace left on the carpeted floor. Thankfully, he could put more weight on it now, the complete breakage now a few minor fractures. Soon, he'll be up and (literally) running. With some physio sessions of course. He sat against the headboard, poring through data over a spanking new work scroll whose display was put up onto the huge TV monitor opposite, along with a small stack of profiles stored in a brown folder, currently splayed out on the sheets. The scroll was completely clean too, according to Roberta.

'Let's see.' He read through the profiles of potential recruits and people of interest that Sig had given him, citing "prior experience" and an "additional perspective". As he did so, a small wave of nostalgia hit him. He used to help Adam screen the recruits who stepped forward. Those who "joined the fight" as they do put it. His job was to help analyse each new member and gauge their loyalty, abilities and other characteristics. Most of the time, this would help sort them into different roles. And occasionally, they would root out and…take care of any would-be moles. Really, what he was doing now wasn't that much different from back then. Just under a different boss.

And organisation.

And purpose.

And name.

And face.

Okay, so maybe it wasn't that similar but the point stood. He looked back at the screen and continued reading.

Jasper Elaph. Height: 5' 2". Hair colour: Red. Species: Deer Faunus. Trait: Antlers. Specialty: Demolitions and Gunsmithery.

Periwinkle Remus. Height: 5' 7". Hair colour: Brown. Species: Dog Faunus. Trait: Dog Ears. Specialty: Logistics and Accounting.

"Jasp and Perry? Interesting." He remembered those two well, especially with the chaos that went with the drive that they got recruited from. He didn't stick around for long once the gunshots started but he recalled an Atlas Paladin full on sprinting out of the warehouse. That and Perry was nothing like his colour. Apparently, his parents were hoping for a girl with a corresponding hair colour but Perry insisted that his name referred to periwinkle brown.

Well, to each their own.

Funny thing, that. He noticed that the vast majority of recruits he was getting were White Fang, both fresh and veteran. Even if they weren't, everyone on the list was Valian. Oak supposed that given his previous position, he would be the best suited to vet them.

A tab on the side of the screen popped up. Incoming call, it said. 'From Sig.' "Birch speaking," he said with practiced ease.

"Yeah?"

...

"Uh-huh."

...

"I'll be up right away, boss." He shut the scroll and began packing. He pulled on his pants and fastened his brace, feeling the prick of tiny needles on his injured leg as the device fastened and tightened itself to the limb. He felt a boost of energy and a numbing of pain as the concoction did its magic. He got up, stowed the papers in a fancy, biometric and aurametric briefcase that Sig gave him and locked it shut, feeling the locks whir into place. The spiffy little thing supposedly needed a pulse of programmed aura of specific frequency for it to unlock along with a regular thumbprint. Either that or use a specially made key. It was implied that if the briefcase was being tampered with, it would incinerate the items inside. Barry Birch was not about to try his luck.

He stopped by the bathroom to pick up his lenses. Two minutes of eye-searing pain later, he was shrugging on his blazer and wearing those fake glasses of his. Finally, he unlocked his safe and grabbed his wallet, keycard and gun. A gift from Nate for joining the group. He tucked the pistol into a holster that was attached to the back his belt, letting his jacket cover it. And then he walked out.

A few minutes later, he stood outside the double doors of the suite, a familiar sight in the past few days. He reached into his pocket for the key card to the room and inserted it into the electronic lock. The door unbolted shortly after and Birch let himself in. He could hear Sig talking loudly in the background in that mother tongue of his and saw him sprawled out on the couch, sleeves rolled up and feet on the armrests. What did he call it? Elysian? He nodded at a passing Nathaniel, who nodded back before heading into the kitchen. In the distance, the sun shone brightly, casting its rays into the room.

"You called for me, sir?"

Sig held up a pointer finger at him and gave him a sideways glance. Just a minute. "D'accord. Dis bonjour à maman pour moi."

...

"Mm!"

...

"Yeah!"

...

"Love you too." He ended the call and snapped his scroll shut. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Barry. Just wanted to check in on your progress. How're things coming along?" He lifted his feet off the armrest and turned himself to face Barry.

"Easier than expected," the boar faunus grunted as he sat down opposite Sig. He placed the briefcase on the coffee table and unlocked it. "I'm roughly 90% done." He took out the folder and placed it down.

"And I assume it helps that most of these people you've vetted before?"

"A lot, yes."

"That's good to hear." The room descended to silence as Sig set to making himself a nice cup of brew with the set laid out on the table, muttering to himself as he did. Meanwhile, Barry was still primed to answer questions and was sat at attention. Was his boss really doing this right now?

Plop.

Plop.

Plop.

Plop.

"Um, sir?"

"Hm?" Sig looked up from his cup, his fingers dropping in his fifth cube of sugar. Plop.

"You wanted to talk about the potential recruits?"

"Oh, right." He picked up the steaming cup and gave it a stir. "Sorry. My mind was preoccupied with the meeting earlier."

"Was it that bad?"

"Not really. But being so close to your adversary while playing nice can be a bit heavy at times. But I digress!" He took a quick sip and set the cup down with a *clink*. "Where were we? Ah! Right! Your recruits." He leaned forward and clasped his hands, elbows on his knees. "Do continue."

"Right..." Birch collected himself and leafed through the thin stack of papers. "I've also added notable skills and qualifications that each person has, to the best of my knowledge. Things like education and the like. Take these two for example." He pulled out two profiles and passed them over.

"Wow! Well done, Barry!" Sig's eyes scanned the papers quickly, taking in the information. "Elaph and Remus, huh? Interesting combination. One a gunsmith and dust chemist. The other a logistics and finance specialist. Talk about walks of life!"

"Yeah~. These two were some of the newer bodies I screened at the recent recruitment event.'

"That was the one with Torchwick and the Paladin, right?"

"Correct sir."

"Sound's eventful. Where did we pick these two up from?"

"The convention centre, during the exhibition."

"Ah, right~. Good catch, I must say. Very good indeed." He passed Birch the two profiles. "Send me softcopies of the rest when you're done. I'll look them over."

"Understood." Barry kept his files and closed his briefcase. "Will that be all?"

"Actually, I have some questions."

"Go ahead then. Shoot." Birch pushed his case to the side and leaned forward.

"Tell me about the White Fang's organisation. Its hierarchy," Sig said simply.

"...Don't you have intel on them already?" Birch asked.

"Yes, we do. I want to hear it from you however. Less subject to mistakes that way."

"I suppose," BIrch conceded. "Well, then. The active branch of the White Fang, that is to say the ones that carry out the raids and attacks and liberations, have a foothold in each of the four Kingdoms with varying degrees of accessibility. Each is led and governed by a Branch Head, a senior member who is vetted and appointed by the incumbents prior."

"So one director per Kingdom?"

"Yes."

"I see. And how do these branches operate?"

"From what I can remember," Birch said, massaging his leg, "Executive power used to be heavily centralised, back when the Fang used to be peaceful. But these days, there is a greater autonomy for cells within the branch. Granted, some, like Adam Taurus, the Vale Branch Head, command so effectively that there is little need to decentralise power for them."

"But then what about the larger operations? Like say, raiding an SDC shipment?"

"Ah! I remember that one. For events like those, usually the cell that plans it would do its own networking with its peers and seek approval from their regional Elder to gain the resources for the job. Otherwise, smaller operations are left up to their discretion."

"I see. Going back to Taurus, he's awfully young to be a Branch Head, isn't he?"

"He is, yes," admitted Birch. "But leadership called for a trusted young blood to lead the fledgling Vale Branch."

"Fledgling? What do you mean?"

"Mistral and Atlas have a heavy history of Faunus oppression while Vacuo is tolerant. Vale, meanwhile, is neutral in terms of its Faunus history so its branch is the most recent in establishment."

"And what do you mean by young blood?"

"Leadership felt that the new branch needed momentum to survive. So it opted for a younger, but still senior, member to eventually head the group. Taurus was originally brought on as Head of Operations in Vale. He was promoted to Branch when his predecessor deemed him ready."

"Interesting. And who are they? The predecessor, I mean."

"The one and only Genbu Wugui." Birch bit back a yawn. "Can I have some?" he asked, looking at the coffee on the table.

"Sure. Help yourself."

"Thanks." Barry set to making himself a cup and a moment later, held a steaming one in his hand.

"So, Wugui? That's a familiar name. He made himself known in the founding days of Menagerie, no?"

"I see you know your own bit of history."

"Why, thank you! I read up what I can."

"You should do it more."

"Indeed. So, where are your headquarters? Still in Menagerie?"

"Well, it was there originally, since that's where it started when it was still a grassroots organisation. But since the more active approach in recent years, it's moved to Mistral, the Kingdom where they could combat the most injustice without being majorly prosecuted."

"Really? I did not expect that. Though, it does make sense. Stationing your HQ there would mean greater immediacy of action. But that begs the question, why would your leader, Ghira Belladonna, choose to rebase there of all Kingdoms? And why the turn to violence? I know little about him but I know he is no warhawk."

Oak sucked air through his teeth. "Looks like you need to do some more reading, boss,"

He said, wondering if he misheard. "Ghira hasn't been the High Leader for the past, like, seven years."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm saying that your current intelligence on the Fang is woefully surface level. I'm talking Atlesian trophy wife shallow."

"Really? Looks like we have our work cut out for us. Then again, that's why we have you."

"That's a little blunt."

"That's putting it lightly. But back on topic, Ghira Belladonna-"

"-holds no executive power in the organisation. Unless there's been a dramatic change in leadership within the week that I never caught wind of, he is not the High Leader."

"He's not? Then who?"

"His lieutenant succeeded him. She's the one who guided us to where we are today."

"And who is this belligerent woman?"

"Sienna Khan, sir."

---

-Fuchsia Beach Resort, La Isla De Alabastro-

"We can't thank you enough for what you've done today!" A dark skinned man wearing khaki cargo shorts and a white shirt walked up to the group of students, shotgun slung on his back. The beach was now quiet, peaceful waves lapping against the corpses of promethean's. Little columns of smoke rose in the distance as bodies were burnt to aid their dissipation and security androids were picking up their fallen comrades as well as themselves.

"Merely our job, Mister?" replied Port, holding out a hand.

"Fussar. Roberto Naranja Fussar's the name. I'm the head of the local security." He clasped Port's hand in a firm shake. "I assume you're the teacher supervising this culling operation?"

"That I am!"

"You're students were most wonderful in their duty," he praised. "A godsend, really."

"Well, they are some of the best! They take their job seriously."

"Ruby! Put that Knight's arm down! Same goes for the rifle!"

"But Weiss~, I never got to see an AK-120 up close!"

"Give it here!"

"NEVER!"

"Most of the time," Port added in.

"They're kids. What can you do? But back on topic. Thank you for coming when you did. A shame about our drones but they can be fixed."

"Same goes for the property," said Port, taking a look at all the damage. "Life? Not so much."

"Hmm. Very well said, Professor."

"Thank you!"

"I'll have the bellhops handle your luggage in a moment. Might I interest you and your students in a buggy ride to your accommodations? To rest your feet."

"By all means, my good man! Lead the way!"

---

-Cellar, location unknown-

"Le dirò. Per favore, tieniti al sicuro."

…

"E veglia anche sui tuoi nipoti. Sai come possono essere."

...

"I love you." The red man ended the call with a soft *deet* and pocketed the scroll. A scream echoed down the halls of the cellar. "So noisy…" He rounded the corner of a brick wall and went through a door, coming to a room lit by a single, flickering light. There were four men in the room, excluding him. Two stood guard at the door in well-pressed suits, still and unmoving. The third was more lively and without a jacket. His sleeves were rolled up, his hair was out of place and his hands had trace amounts of blood. The fourth man, gagged and chairbound, was the owner of said blood. With the way he was heaving and wheezing, along with the spots of red that stained a disheveled t-shirt, he definitely was put through some rounds

"Has he squealed yet?" asked the red man.

"Not yet, Signore. My apologies. He has not given any word on his accomplices."

"Not even about the bomb?"

"No sir. I'm sorry."

"No fault of your own, Marco," snorted the red man. "Sometimes you get a tough cookie."

"So what do we do now?" asked Marco, washing his hands in a nearby basin.

"You three will take a short rest. Now watch and learn."

"And you? Sir?"

"Me?" asked the red man. "Simple." He turned to the hostage, who now had the privilege to breathe. The red man slowly lowered himself to his victim's eye level and stared at him with a predatory gaze.

"I'll make him an offer he can't refuse," coldly said Clarence Lamperouge.

---

"Will that be all, sir?"

"Yes, Nate. Thank you. You're dismissed for the day. Go get some rest."

"By your leave."

Nathaniel walked to his room, leaving Sig alone in the living room. He sat forward, going through the profiles Oak had taken so long to compile and vet. He blinked away soreness from his eyes. Too much screentime. 'Best go to bed then.'

With a quick stretch, he stood and entered his bedroom. One relaxing shower later, he was about to climb in when he stopped. The bed was a king size, made for two.

Why did it have to be her?

He turned to his closet and slid it open to reveal the safe. Punching in the code, he opened it and retrieved a braided bracelet of red and brown leather string with a silver locket attached. He opened it and gingerly picked up a tightly bundled lock of black hair, dulled with age. He tentatively brought it close to his nose, closed his eyes and inhaled, the faint smell of saffron, camphor oil and blood still present.

How long?

How long had it been? The scent brought back happy memories, when he was flash and younger and daring. When he met her.

'Sienna.'

His eyes opened and he gazed at the old photo in the locket with fondness. A faded photograph, depicting her in a translucent red shawl, golden eyes shining with joy.

'My Love.'

---

How Britannia is Run: Duchies and Areas

Under the Duchy system, the Emperors of Britannia were able to delegate close allies in helping them run their countries, using the local nobles' familiarities of their region to close up the feeling of alienation that the subjects of the Emperor would otherwise feel, on account of bending the knee to a ruler who was rarely seen.

The Dukes do not rule alone, however. An elected chamber is formed to help discuss and pass legislature, with representatives for all areas within the Duchy present, regardless of social class or race. Said chamber is headed by the Duke, who also serves as a moderator and the representative of the Throne. Amongst the territories, there are provinces (known as Areas) which may be part of a Duchy in terms of land but no so when it come to culture. To that end, the Throne chose to recognise said Areas as culturally distinct, even if the culture was muted through conquest by one of its neighbours. See below for the full list.

Administrative Areas (as of 2018 A.T.B)

Area 1- Old Britannia (referred to as Britannia)

Area 2- Tanith (Britannian Province)

Area 3- Mordia

Area 4- Valhalla

Area 5- Vostroya (Valhallan Province)

Area 6- Elysia

Area 7- Gilea (Elysian Province)

Area 8- Ventrillia

Area 9- Diepri (Ventrillian Province)

Area 10- Catachan isles

Area 11- North Nihon

Area 12- Southeast Mistral (No name has been provided, Rule is contested)

---

Grimm Profile (WIP)

Name: Promethean

Type: Crustacean Grimm (Hermit Crab)

Habitat: Deep Seas, though known to come to land to attack

Characteristics: Large spire shells, Crushing claws with water propulsion capabilities, amphibious

Height: Averages at around 6'

Weight: Averages at 900 lbs

Note: Claws generate a crushing force of 30k PSI. In addition, they can propel balls of water through the use of a pressurised system in their laws. Mr Lamperouge and Mr Fussar have informed me about how they can siphon seawater from their hind legs into watersacks, located at the elbow of the claw.

To combat Prometheans, one must aim for the chinks in its armour. Its soft areas. like its mouth, eyes and belly are prime targets. However, should one see themselves at the end of one promethean building up its water, it is best to aim for the watersack, which expands out of its shelled protection. A shot at the right time will cause it to rupture and incapacitate the Grimm.

I have also been informed of the following, though I have yet to see these for myself.

-They are known to expel water through the spikes on their shells, either to create a mist or to propel themselves underwater.

-Swamp dwelling variants are purported to propel methane fire from their claws.

-There is an "elder stage" for these grimm. Much like an Alpha Beowolf. It is called a Karkino and supposedly is even deadlier with its water abilities.

(Personal note: I'M SO EXCITED!)

---

I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! I'll do my best to have another up before Christmas though I can't guarantee that. Feel free to lmk your thoughts and opinions in the reviews! Did you like it? Did you hate it? What can be improved? Any grammatical errors? The reviews are the place for you!

And do help me with the polls! We're naming Suzaku's semblance!

Till Next Time friends!

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