So, I have returned from hiatus, and those of you interested in 'The Third Faction' probably noticed that they were no updates last month despite me taking the month to write. I assure you, both Chapters 15 and 16 are written and with Draconic for beta-ing. However, he has been hit by school far harder than I have been and thus has had to delay. Rest assured, if all goes as planned, both chapters should be out by the end of December, as will Chapter 2 of 'One to Find All'.

Meanwhile, this story returns to weekly updates. Enjoy!

If you wish to support me and my college tuition, please check out my P a treon for future chapter summaries, story ideas and more: p a Treon.(c om) (backslash) themaster4444

Beta-ed by xenosaiyan

"Listen girlfriend, can't you see?

I'm all of the things that you'll never be!

I'm cool like the rain, and I'm hot like the sun!

I'm a neon rainbow and you're. no. fun!"

"I didn't know she could sing," Weiss remarked, leaning back in her snug little booth.

In her months working with Atlas Intelligence, a lot had changed in the kingdom, mostly at the hands of General Ironwood. He'd fired Commander Obsidian from his post at the head of the Specialist Core and promoted Winter in his place. And while Weiss would normally be ecstatic at such a boon to her sister's career, she couldn't help but worry when her face started appearing alongside Ironwood's in quite unpopular public safety messages down in Mantle.

Quite unpopular seemed to be a common phrase when referring to General Ironwood and all his associates these days. His dust embargo was hurting businesses all across the kingdom, with those in Mantle bearing the brunt of the economic pain. During her stints in the lower city searching for information on Adam, Weiss had seen hundreds homeless on the streets begging for food and lien. Mobs and riots were only barely dissuaded by the substantial military force stationed in the slums, obstinately there to protect from Grimm, but just as capable of quelling people.

After so much time spent digging through the squalor her friends and family had caused, Weiss found it strange to be back among the splendor of Atlas Academy.

Next to her in the booth, Flynt Coal, her old opponent from the Vytal Festival, cracked a smirk. "Neon's one of the best there ever was on the mic. Could probably even give you a run for your money."

"Gray's certainly enjoying her," Weiss smiled back.

The pair had secluded themselves in a booth in the back of a club known as the Sterling Knight, a popular hangout among both students and alumni of Atlas Academy. Multicolored lights flashed across the dance floor as young men and women who would normally be the height of military discipline and décor let loose all their energy like the best of Vale or Mistral's party animals.

Up on stage, Neon sang an energetic tune, the three clones of Flynt's Killer Quartet semblance providing backup on the trumpet. The rainbow cat faunus (apparently the Knight was the only bar in Atlas that would let her in, let alone let her sing) leaned over the edge of the dais, serenading one particularly funky fresh dancer below.

Weiss didn't know when she'd seen Juvia again, but she'd already recorded a long video for her consisting entirely of Gray Fullbuster in leather pants, an open red dress shirt, and a fedora, breaking out some of the most extravagant dance moves she'd ever seen. Already, the crowd had formed a wide circle around him, clapping and cheering him on as he went.

Flynt chuckled. "He sure is. Where'd you find this guy anyway, Schnee?"

"He's an old friend," Weiss replied, smiling as the onlookers of Gray's dance, mostly the female ones, cheered when he completely removed his shirt. She couldn't deny she didn't enjoy it as well. Neon even hopped off the stage and began rubbing flesh with him while she sang. That would certainly be a section she'd need to edit out before showing it to Juvia.

"He's got some sweet moves, I'll give him that," Flynt nodded.

"That he does," Weiss nodded. She turned back to face her drinking buddy. "How's your father doing at his new position?"

"Pretty well. Being a manager under your father ain't easy, but he's putting food on the table again," Flynt said. "Thanks for getting him the job."

"It was my pleasure."

During the course of investigating possible corruption links to the Council Chairwoman, COMMAND ESR had given Weiss a list of known corrupt members of the SDC as leads to look into, as well as a token of goodwill. Intelligence had been keeping the list as possible blackmail material on the employees, but with Adam Taurus on the loose, they weren't going to take any chances.

While Weiss had unfortunately not been able to turn up anything on the Blood-Soaked Bull or any hints of treason, she had been able to take the opportunity to oust a few of the more disgusting employees from the company. And since father left the hiring at that level to others, it had been a simple matter to drop in on that department with a few suggestions.

"Pleasure or not, it means a lot," Flynt insisted, sliding over his soda. "If you ever need a hand, just say the word. Team FNKI will be there."

"Thank you," Weiss said. Granted, there was no way she would actually take him up on that offer. Team FNKI were skilled students, but they were still students. There was no way she was putting them in Adam Taurus or Atlas Intelligence's path. Though, given Flynt had family connections throughout Mantle, gathering information was hardly out of the question. Apparently, he even had a family friend on the Happy Huntresses, Robyn Hill's band of Mantle hometown heroes. "I don't suppose you've been able to find any more information on the dust flow?"

Flynt shook his head. "Not much. Most of its going where the SDC records say it is."

"Which is to say stockpiles?"

"That or the military. They're really taking advantage of your pops being forced to lower his prices," the trumpeter confirmed. "But there is one minor difference between the records you pulled, and the ones dad showed me. For some reason, a large shipment was sent to a Polendina Labs."

"Polendina?" Weiss muttered. "How large a shipment are we talking about?"

"The kind that requires a Specialist escort."

Weiss' brow crinkled. Ruby had been far closer to Penny than her, but she had still considered the sunny girl a friend. Being a robot didn't change that. Having a laboratory bearing the same last name as her, the same lab that produced the magic that freed Gray from his Fairy Sphere, suddenly getting an absurd amount of dust from the military? That would raise more than a few eyebrows, and not just from her. The convoy may have been well hidden in the paper trail, but the White Fang had managed to hijack the prototype paladin shipment. There was no guarantee that this wouldn't turn out the same, even with a Specialist escort.

Still, said escort would be an intimidating factor. Adam Taurus had never been what one would call mentally stable, but he hadn't conducted so many successful raids by being stupid. If he knew about the specialists, would he still take the chance at such a bountiful target?

"Hey, heads up." Drizzella's voice crackled in her earpiece. "You've got company at the door. The familial kind."

Familial? Well, since Intelligence knew Rosenflos was having a conference call with Ironwood at the moment and father wouldn't be caught dead in a place like this, that only left one option.

Weiss glanced over to the club entrance and found her hunch to be right on the money. Winter, smartly dressed in her new uniform, had arrived, fidgeting uncomfortably at the edge of the flashing lights. Her eyes flickered all around the bar, obviously searching for someone.

Given that this place was hardly her sister's scene, Weiss could only conclude that Winter was here for her.

"See if you can get out of there. It wouldn't do for anyone to wonder why the Ice Queen Schnee sisters were meeting in a place like this," Drizzella advised. "I'll run interference for you—"

"Driz! Hug your sis-sis!"

"Ana, what—"

A startled gasp cut off any more words from the spy. Weiss glanced over at her position at the bar and found her currently engulfed by a red in the cheeks Ana Tremaine, which explained why Drizzella hadn't drop-kicked her already. And given that she hadn't been there several minutes ago, it seemed likely that Winter had done some reconnaissance of the bar and brought her own interference.

Weiss smirked at her sister's tactics. "See you, Flynt. It seems I have some family business to attend to."

The jazz musician tipped his hat, and Weiss took her leave, standing and striding up to her elder sibling. "Of all the clubs, in all the kingdoms, in all the world, you walk into mine."

"Cute," Winter smiled, though it lasted only a moment before her face became serious again. "Is there somewhere safe we can talk? Somewhere no one can overhear us?"

Weiss nodded and soon enough the two were secreted away in one of the club's private rooms. Winter personally checked to make sure the doors were sealed tight, before checking over the surrounding area.

"What are you doing?" Weiss inquired.

"Checking for listening devices," Winter explained. "There's no telling who could have bugged this room."

"It's a public bar. People use this room all the time. If someone wanted to listen in to this specific conversation, which we just decided to have five seconds ago, they'd probably have to get a lot of wild teenage make-out sessions in the bargain," Weiss pointed out. "Winter, what's all this about?"

Winter coughed, rising to her feet. "Nothing. It's just… the general has been trying to reach you for months to speak about mystical matters, but father has been blocking him."

"Sounds like father."

"Indeed," Winter nodded. "So, when Ana called me and said you were down here, I seized the opportunity."

"Sensible," Weiss acknowledged. "So, what's up? Does the general need my help with something?"

Winter cringed. "More he wants you to be aware of a situation. Certain details that are being kept quiet about the forces behind what happened at Beacon."

Weiss' eyes narrowed. Forces behind Beacon? Wasn't that just Cinder and the White Fang?

"What's your favorite fairy tale?"

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"Holy crud! No wonder Weiss is so awesome if you taught her everything she knows. You've got some moves. And abs you could grate cheese on."

"Uh, thanks," Gray replied awkwardly, smothering the embarrassed redness in his cheeks as he threw his shirt back on while Neon dashed backstage. Flynt's clones kept the crowd going while his partner rested from the last several numbers. Or in this case, passed on intel on White Fang movements she'd gotten while visiting family in Mantle. She had slipped the chip containing the data into his pocket while the two were dancing together, in one of the few moments when he was glad that Eclipse Cancer's spell never faded from his subconscious (which he would never tell anyone ever. Natsu would never let him live it down). Weiss and Flynt had been so espionage style obvious talking in a shadowed booth in the back that anyone in the know would dismiss the rainbow cat faunus and half-naked ice mage dancing in full view of a crowded club as an obvious distraction. Granted, both activities were legitimate avenues of acquiring information, but when they suspected the Council Chairwoman of being their enemy, there was no such thing as being too careful. Anything they knew that the traitors didn't know they knew was a weapon for them to use.

As was anything their 'allies' didn't know they knew.

Gray had been through one hell of a time since he'd gotten to Remnant. Scrounging for food, squatting in abandoned buildings, doing jobs he probably shouldn't have done just to get enough lien to eat. Reuniting with Weiss, even if they were stuck working for Intelligence, was easily the highlight of his time there. He might not have seen her for years, but she was still his friend, always and forever. Fairy Tail always had each other's backs.

Which made him all the more suspicious of Atlas Intelligence. He was grateful for what they'd done for him, but he wasn't blind to the moral gray areas an espionage agency worked in, no matter how COMMAND ESR and Eleanor tried to paint it otherwise. They no doubt wanted to stop Adam Taurus from harming the kingdom, but he wasn't so certain that they cared if Weiss came out of it smelling like roses, no matter what they said about needed a public figurehead.

They wanted to work with them though, and they did want to save lives. For now, that was enough to work with them. But trust them? Not until he had a clearer picture.

Which led to him sneaking around to an alcove close to the bar, Drizzella and her sister easily within his hearing range while he was absent from their sight.

"Would you get off!" the Intelligence operative demanded.

"Not until I get a hug from my sis-sis," Ana sang. "Come on, you know you want to."

"I'm working!"

"You're working in a bar and still frowning? I always knew there was something wrong with you. How about you take yourself off the clock for a second and relax with your sis-sis. I mean, Win's already taken hers to a private room."

Drizzella's eyes shot over to where the Schnee sisters had just disappeared and glared at her sister. "She sent you to run interference."

"Yup!"

Gray expected her to growl or make some harsh remark towards her sibling, but instead she just sighed. "You're ridiculous."

"From a certain point of view," Ana grinned. "I'm still waiting on that hug."

Drizzella rolled her eyes but surprisingly did just that, returning her sister's embrace. For several seconds, the Tremaine siblings just sat there hugging. Despite himself, Gray cracked a smile at the display.

Soon enough, the huntresses separated, Ana raising a hand and calling over a pair of shots for them. The two of them leaned over the counter, sipping their drinks.

"So, how's specialist life treating you?" Drizzella asked. "Any discontent in ranks since Winter's promotion?"

Ana, suddenly seeming far less intoxicated than a moment before, shrugged. "A bit. The old guard isn't happy that Obsidian was kicked out for an operative that isn't even thirty. But Winter's got enough of a reputation that no one's saying stupid stuff like she slept with Ironwood for the job or something like that. And the Ace Ops are behind her and the General one hundred percent, so there really isn't anything anyone can do about the whole thing."

"That's good to hear. Winter's earned that rank," Drizzella nodded. "Why haven't you joined the Ace Ops? I can't imagine Clover turning you down if you asked."

"I'm a goof to them, remember?"

"So are Marrow and Elm. They're still on the team."

Ana turned away, frowning. She raised her shot to her lips. "They're also not alcoholics."

"Neither are you."

"To them I am. And I plan to keep it that way. Mom would just make me use the security clearance to get her more intel," Ana replied, taking a measured sip. "Besides, I like drinking. Let's me forget. You should try it."

Drizzella raised a hand and pointed towards the jagged scar under her left eye. "I can't forget."

Ana chuckled darkly. "Yeah, I suppose that is an issue. Hard to forget that shitshow with that thing staring you in the mirror."

"We did good work with Godmother's Haven," Drizzella insisted. "We stopped a war before it could start. Saved millions of lives."

"Ella wouldn't have given you that scar if it was 'good work'," Ana spat. "Ella and her father wouldn't be dead if it was 'good work'. For gods' sake, don't start spouting stupidity. Not even mom thinks that was 'good work' and she's fucking bonkers."

Drizzella scowled, setting her shot down. "Please don't speak that way about her. You know as well as I do that everything she does is for the good of Atlas."

Ana scoffed. "You might want to think of a new line. I don't think it's gonna cut it with Winter's little sister. Especially when she finds out you tried to arrest her teammate back in Vale."

Gray's eyes widened. They tried to do what? Which member of Team RWBY did they try to arrest?

"COMMAND ESR wants wizards. If I had gotten Belladonna to Atlas, she just would have made the same offer she made to Fullbuster," Drizzella defended.

"She wants those four in particular," Ana said. When Drizzella's eyes widened, prompting the redhead to roll her eyes. "Come on, don't tell me you haven't figured it out? She only sent you to Vale after Team RWBY's first match at the Vytal Festival, when they first showed off their magic. And yet, even before then, Intelligence was looking at them."

"Ruby Rose is a silver-eyed warrior," Drizzella argued. "After what happened with Ella, tracking down another one would obviously be a first priority."

"Yeah… probably," Ana admitted. She snatched up her shot and drained the rest of the alcohol before rising to her feet. "I'll say hi to Holly for you."

"Thank you," Drizzella said. She placed a comforting hand on her sister's arm before the other woman could go. "Ana, I know it doesn't feel like it sometimes… but we are making a difference. When we're finished, Atlas will be safer and stronger."

Ana spared her sister a tiny slip of a smile. "So mom says. And so you listen." She patted her sister's hand and removed her arm from her grip. "Give her and her hellcat my best, will you?"

"Lucifer is her semblance. It doesn't have feelings."

"She treats it better than us. See ya, sis."

Ana strode away through the crowd, cheering and throwing herself into the crowd. Drizzella watched her go and turned back to the counter, shaking her head with a sigh.

"It doesn't have feelings. What was I thinking?" she muttered, leaning her head into her palms.

Gray knew he should go. He'd found out bits of helpful information. Intelligence had some larger agenda involving all of Team RWBY, though he couldn't tell if Ana Tremaine was a spy in the Specialist, or a Specialist who her Intelligence family went to for inside information on their interservice rival. Maybe this Godmother's Haven was something to look into, Eleanor had mentioned it during her rant at the briefing? He should've gone to track down Weiss and told her what he'd learned.

But, seeing Drizzella keeled over at the bar counter, looking so lost, so unlike the stoic spy he'd come to know and tolerate because of apparent family troubles… it made her feel… well, like an actual person. And Gramps, great man and fountain of compassion he was, would want him to at least try to comfort her.

Of course, Gramps had also nearly died more times than Gray could count… and did die that one time… goddamn it, he was still going to do it, wasn't he?

"Hey," he said, walking up next to the spy. "Are you okay?"

Drizzella sighed. "Probably not. But we have a mission to finish. It can wait for later."

"The mission is pretty much done. As soon as Weiss finishes with Winter, we can head back for debrief," Gray pointed out. "and since we have no control when they'll finish up—"

"Look, Gray," Drizzella interrupted. "I understand that you're trying to help but… we're not friends. And we don't need to be friends to work together. So, you and Weiss can handle your personal issues, and I'll… weather mine."

Gray shook his head. "If we're going to work together, we'll be stronger if we help each other."

"If we're fighting the same enemy," Drizzella countered. "If we're on different missions, and we learn the other is in danger… if we're friends, then there's a chance either of us might compromise our tasks to save the other. And that could result in thousands of innocents paying the price for our friendship. Is that a risk you're willing to take?"

"Is it one you've ever had the courage to make?" Gray asked.

Drizzella scowled, turning aside as the strobe lights flashed across her ivory face. In the ever-changing energetic colors, her scar was an even more prominent anchor of rigid despair.

"Once," she revealed. "It didn't end well for anyone."

Gray was about to ask for more details when the door to Weiss and Winter's private room opened up, the Schnee sisters striding out. Well, Winter strode. Weiss stumbled out of the room, trying, and failing, to mask an expression of utter shock on her face.

"I'll meet you two back at the rendezvous point," Drizzella stated, already marching away. "Go give your friend a shoulder to lean on."

Gray scowled, but the spy wasn't wrong. He quickly made his way through the throngs of people to the Schnee sisters. Winter's eyes narrowed as soon as she caught sight of him, stepping forward to block him from reaching Weiss.

"It's alright, Winter," Weiss assured her, placing a gentle hand on the back of her hand. "He's a friend."

"He's Atlas Intelligence," Winter said sourly.

"He's Fairy Tail," Weiss countered.

That seemed to do the trick, Winter's eyes widening for a moment before she stepped aside. Gray shot her a thankful nod. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise… wizard," the Specialist replied. "I'm sure there's an interesting story behind how you got to Atlas and ended up working for COMMAND of all people. My apologies that your first impression of our world was that paranoid lunatic."

Gray shrugged. "Don't worry, I've met worse. Can I assume you're handling our bull problem from your end?"

Winter sighed. "Among others. The General recently brought me into his confidence on a number of projects, most of which I can't speak of. Not even the Council knows the details of them."

"Not even the Chairwoman?" Gray asked.

A frown crossed Winter's face. "Not even the Chairwoman. Though, rest assured, the general is aware of COMMAND ESR's preposterous suspicions towards Madam Rosenflos and finds them just as asinine as I do. Don't stick your neck out trying to prove such stupidity."

"Didn't plan to," Gray remarked. "Though, I don't suppose you could provide any insight on an Operation Godmother's Haven? Everyone seems rather prickly about that."

Winter cocked an eyebrow. "I've heard the name, but I don't know the details."

"Can you find them out?" Weiss inquired, her shock finally pushed aside. "Father got even more upset than usual when Ironwood mentioned it during their talk at the start of the embargo. It might be useful as leverage."

"As Specialist Commander, I likely have the clearance," Winter acknowledged. "But if it's classified, I can't tell about it."

"I'm pretty sure what you just told me is more than classified," Weiss protested.

"There is a difference between state secrets and… mystical matters," Winter said. "I will ask the general, but that's all I can do. I'm sorry."

Weiss grit her teeth, but in the end, she just engulfed her sister in a hug. Winter was startled for a moment, but quickly returned the gesture.

"Be careful, Winter," Weiss said.

"I should be telling you that," the elder sister chuckled. "I may not have magic, but you're going after Adam Taurus."

"Don't worry. I owe him one for Blake."

"I'm sure."

The sisters separated and Winter turned to go, pausing only briefly to look at Gray. "Protect her."

Gray nodded. "Always."

Winter returned his respect and exited the bar.

Weiss came up to him, her brow furrowed and unsure. "We should get to the rendezvous. Then, there's a lot you need to know."

"Same to you," Gray replied, frowning. "This place just keeps getting more complicated."

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Deposed. Exiled. Betrayed.

Always betrayed.

First Blake, his dear love, had abandoned him and their cause, just like her cowardly parents. All their hard work to make humanity pay, to make them kneel and suffer for all they've done, and she just walked out on it, on him. To be a huntress, their pet attack dog. And what they'd done to her…

Adam shuddered at the memory of the Fall, the three long scars across his face flaring with pain. He did not know how Blake had been turned into such a monster, either by science or witchcraft, but he would not rest until he had driven his sword through her skull and put her out of her misery. Whatever her crimes, no one deserved to be turned into some human scientist's half-Grimm monstrosity.

It was kinder fate than he would afford the others who'd crossed him. Hazel and his master, who'd stabbed him in the back. The Albain brothers, who had done nothing as he was cast out. When he finished this suicide mission Sienna had forced him on, he would return and make them all suffer.

But first, an old and tried foe.

"I don't know!" the human screamed, his previously pristine SDC uniform left in rags. His wrists were bound above him, hanging him like a stuck pig. Blood dripped down from dozens of lacerations all over his body. "I swear! I don't know the codes!"

"Then who does?" Adam demanded, running his hand across Wilt's sheathed blade.

"I don't know!"

Adam turned to one of his men, one of the few remaining that he trusted, a loyal man who'd participated in the ill-fated coup on Sienna Khan. He raised a pair of sparking electrical wires and stalked towards the bleeding meatbag.

"I don't know!" the human screamed. "It's a military convoy! We just load the dust! We have nothing to do with it after that!"

"I believe you," Adam assured him.

The masked soldier stepped forward and slammed the wires into the human's chest. There was a scream, a sweeter music than Adam had heard in a long time. Then, silence.

"What are we going to do?" the soldier asked. "Without those codes, we can't launch the attack. And if we can't launch the attack, there's no way High Leader Khan will let us come back—"

"I am High Leader!" Adam growled. "This… setback, is only that. Understood?"

The soldier gulped. "Of course, sir—High Leader."

Adam grunted in approval before turning away from their former hostage. "Clean that up. We'll get another one."

"And if they don't know the codes either?"

"We'll find another," Adam snarled. "And another, and another, until someone talks."

"How barbaric… and more importantly, ineffective."

Both Adam and his torturer whirled around, both knowing the voice they heard, distorted as it meant have been, shouldn't have been possible.

And yet, the human, the man they had just killed, raised his head, his eyes blank and yet still speaking.

"What the hell?" the grunt gasped, dropping the wires. "He's… he's dead! His heart stopped!"

"Yes, it did," Adam noted, ice in his voice. "I take it I am no longer speaking to… whoever this human rat was."

The human corpse's twitched to the side, its chained arms ambling like a puppet with limp strings. "I… I… I am SD… SDC… I am your new benefactor."

Adam sneered. "You're magic. A wizard. Your kind isn't to be trusted."

"Magic is only a paltry fraction of what I am capable of. And as proof of my goodwill, I will gladly give you the clearance codes you so desire."

The bull faunus frowned. Getting those codes would finally allow them to make real headway in their efforts against the SDC, something the brand over his left eye very much hungered for. Whatever his fury at Blake, or Hazel, or his other enemies, the Schnees above all other humans would pay for their crimes against him. However, he also wasn't going to trust a disembodied wizard who'd possessed a corpse he'd just killed.

But… the longer they stayed inactive, the greater the chance Atlas Intelligence would track them down. Sienna wasn't giving them any assistance at all, and they'd nearly been found out half a dozen times. The only reason they'd been able to escape was because they'd received mysterious warnings from someone called… wait…

"What's your name?" Adam demanded.

The ends of the corpse's mouth rose up like a child forcing a person's mouth to smile. "My name is of no concern to you. But, for the sake of communication, you may call me Keyes."

The same name as those mysterious warnings. It appeared that the wizard did not want him dead after all. He'd be careful, ready to drive a sword into this new ally's back just as easily as he'd had one driven into his own. But, if he could use this necromancer to launch his attack on the SDC, to make up lost ground, to finally begin delivering just a fraction of the justice mankind so richly deserved…

Well, perhaps then he'd get what he deserved after all.

A manic grin spread across his face. Justice was coming, for all his enemies.

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"While I'm grateful for your company, Ilia, you know there's really no need to escort me to the fishmonger's."

Ilia shot Kali her best reassuring smile, the both of them strolling down Kuo Kuana's sunny streets, passing vendors and their colorful stalls along the way. Several civilians waved to the cat faunus as they strode through the marketplace, pleasantly calling greetings to the Chieftain's wife. Though technically not employed by the settlement's government, her husband's position granted Kali a great deal of public influence, which she in turn increased through various charity projects.

And the reason Tyrian would probably go after her if he got impatient. Thus, not wanting to jeopardize their already tenuous relationship with Ghira, the Albain brothers had assigned Ilia as the older woman's bodyguard.

"It's no trouble at all, Mrs. Belladonna," Ilia assured her, having to remind herself not to reach for her whip when a ram faunus woman came over to shake Kali's hand. "I'm just not used to people smiling at me so much."

Kali sighed. "I take it Corsac and Fennec are still on edge? I will admit Mr. Callows is… unusual, but it has been quite some time since he arrived, and he has not hurt anyone. Perhaps he has changed since they last saw him."

Ilia almost chuckled at the older woman's remark. She and Blake really were mother and daughter. Beyond how similar they looked to each other (Ilia had to remind herself every other minute that Kali was happily married), both of them believed in people, that they could change for the better if given time and the chance. Though the chameleon faunus found the idea naïve, humanity wouldn't change unless the White Fang forced them to, she couldn't deny there was something beautiful about it, like the world would be better if they just believed it could be. Maybe that was part of why she'd fallen in love with the younger Belladonna.

However, a beautiful naïve idea was still naïve.

"Do you really want a guy who breaks out in psychotic laughter every few minutes and rambles on alternatively about a 'dark queen' and a 'goddess' who may or may not be the same person to take Blake away to meet said person?"

Kali cringed. "Fair point. Though, after all this time I wonder if he might simply be a distraction of Sienna's to keep Ghira from trying to reassert control over the White Fang in the wake of Adam's attempted coup."

Ilia's jaw nearly dropped. Like Blake, she often forgot that while Kali might have some naïve ideals, that didn't mean she was naïve. According to Sienna's stories, she attracted Ghira both with her beauty and by talking politics with him back when he led the White Fang.

"I… honestly don't know," she confessed. "High Leader Khan might be trying to consolidate her position, but I don't think she'd use Blake against you two. You have too much history together."

Kali sighed, the pair of them finally arriving at the fishmonger. "I hope you're right. Sienna may have our differences with us, but I'd hate to think she'd fallen so far. Still, we must have combed the settlement top to bottom a dozen times now, and we haven't even found a hint of Blake."

The two of them opened the door to the fishmonger shop, a little bell chiming at their entrance. Surprisingly, for once, they weren't the only ones in the shop, a blond monkey faunus adamantly speaking with the shopkeeper at the counter.

"Look, man, just sell me the trout," the monkey faunus pleaded, holding out a handful of lien bills. "Come on, my friend's been having trouble with her training and she needs a pick me up. I'm just trying to help her."

The seagull faunus snubbed his long beak at the blonde. "Yeah, I'm sure you're just trying to help."

"I am! Why does having abs automatically mean I'm trying to get into her pants?"

The shopkeeper rolled his eyes. "Look, kid, I'm sorry. You've given me good business for the last few months, but fishing was slow this week and I only have enough to fill my reserved order. Speaking of, I'll have your order ready right away, Kali."

"Oh, so you're the one hogging all the trout," the monkey faunus whirled around. "Well, you really don't want to make my friend—Blake?"

Ilia's eyes widened instantly, Kali's amber irises doing the same. "What?"

The blonde flinched back, suddenly looking very nervous. "Oh, sorry. You sort of remind me of a friend, and I said the wrong thing."

Like Ilia was buying that. In the blink of an eye, she had her whip out and at the monkey faunus' throat, crackling with electricity.

"Okay, okay, you can have the trout!" the boy protested.

"Ilia, put that down now!" Kali commanded.

"You said Blake," Ilia said. "You called her Blake. You know where she is!"

"Of course I do!" the monkey faunus shouted. He pointed towards Kali. "She's right there!"

"Not her! Blake!" Ilia shouted. "You know where—ah!"

She'd let him work her up, and for a crucial moment she'd forgotten that being able to see a person's hands and feet didn't mean you were safe on an island of faunus. His golden tail shot up from behind him and lashed itself around her wrist, jerking her weapon to the side. Thrown off-balance, the monkey boy dropped down and swept her legs out from under her.

"Sorry," he said, saluting Kali and dashing out the door, casually dodging a weak swipe of Ilia's whip. "Nice to meet you!"

Kali rushed to Ilia's side, but the chameleon faunus had already leapt back to her feet and given chase, ignoring the matriarch's clamor of protests. This guy was the first lead they'd had on Blake in months, there was no way she was letting him get away.

Unfortunately, that wasn't going to be an easy task. Just from their brief scuffle, she could tell the blonde was well-trained, his movements fluid and his strikes solid. He weaved through the marketplace crowd like a snake through a swamp, navigating the throngs of people and stalls with barely any loss of speed before quickly ducking down a back alley. Clearly, this was not his first time being pursued.

But Ilia wasn't one to give up easily. She knew these streets better than almost anyone and had quite a bit of agility learned from dodging Atlas Security. Once she knew she wouldn't accidentally hit any civilians, the pulled her whip back and thrust it into the side of a nearby building. With a simple tug and a mighty leap, she carried herself onto the rooftops, quickly catching sight of her simian scoundrel.

With her height advantage and knowledge of the area's shortcuts, she was swiftly able to catch up to him. However, said height advantage also cast her shadow across the alley, a fact that her target quickly noticed, glancing back to catch sight of her approaching form. He scowled and jumped up onto a nearby construction frame, evening their ground and beginning to pull away again.

Eventually, their chase brought them to the edge of the settlement, the lush jungle extending out in front of them. Not that it stopped either of them. They simply shifted from dashing across rooftops to hopping through the tree branches. The new environment provided Ilia with many more things to latch onto with her whip and before long she flew towards her target with a flying kick.

The monkey faunus whirled around and caught the bottom of her foot as it came towards his face, pushing her off into the air. She rolled with her momentum and landed on the same branch, lashing out with her whip to force him back towards the trunk.

"Where is she?" Ilia demanded, sparks flashing past her face. "Where are you keeping her?"

"Keeping her?" the monkey faunus squeaked, frantically dancing around the lash. "I wouldn't be able to 'keep' Blake anywhere even if I wanted to."

… That was actually a very good point.

Ilia took a deep breath and recalled her whip. She didn't drop it, but she stopped recklessly attacking the guy, which in hindsight, may have been uncalled for.

"Look," she said. "I'm sorry. But that woman back there? That was Blake's mother."

"Mother? Looked more like a sister."

"Yeah, they're both really hot," Ilia agreed immediately before shaking herself back to seriousness. "She and her dad, and me, are worried about her. There's this psycho on the island looking for her—"

"Adam Taurus is here!?"

"Adam is not- ugh! No, it's a scorpion faunus. Calls himself Tyrian Callows."

"Never heard of him," the blonde replied. "How did he even know Blake was on the island?"

"No idea, he just does," Ilia said, not wanting to explain the psycho's obsession with his 'wondrous and magnificent goddess of dark stars'. "But we need to find Blake before he does and make sure she's safe. So, where is she?"

The monkey faunus winced like he had just stubbed his toe. "Yeah, see, there's a small problem with that. While I personally would like nothing more than to have Blake be surrounded by family and friends who care about her and support her… she herself is less enthusiastic about that prospect."

"Why?!"

"She has a lot of self-worth problems she needs to work out," he replied. "And, admittedly, another issue that is a bit of a better reason to isolate herself."

"What?!" Ilia demanded. "What could possibly be a good reason for isolating herself?"

"So she can master her magic power of turning into an out of control super-Grimm."

Ilia snarled, her whip flaring up again. "Are you mocking me?"

"Gods I wish I was," the blonde sighed. "But she wants to be careful with this, to protect the people she cares about. I'm doing my best to convince her that doesn't mean cutting herself off, but all I can do is try to convince her. I can't make that decision for her. All I can do is support her choice."

"That's not good enough."

The monkey faunus shot her a small smile, his youthful face far more tired than it had any right to be. It was an expression Ilia had seen in the mirror many times before. "It'll have to be."

"She's in danger. We can't protect her if we don't even know where she is," Ilia declared. "Tell me where she is. Please!"

The boy let out a long breath. He reached behind his back, withdrawing a pair of red and gold nunchucks. "I'm sorry."

Ilia sighed. "So am I."

Her whip lashed out like a striking viper, its electrified tip streaking for the monkey faunus' exposed chest.

It never reached him. The blonde's first nunchuck flew out and wrapped around the whip's thread, allowing him to tug it to the side, the boy's teeth gritting as his aura weathered the electric shock. He swung his second nunchuck around and smacked Ilia in the face, before pulling his weapon around and firing a shotgun blast into her stomach.

After that, the rest of the fight was admittedly a bit of a blur for the chameleon faunus. One moment, her opponent was blitzing her with a flurry of shotgun blasts and rapid-fire headshots, and the next, her head was ringing while she plummeted through the trees, the monkey faunus leaping away into the foliage.

"No…" she muttered, reaching out with her hand. "I'm not letting… Blake get… hurt."

She threw out whip and snagged onto an errant branch. It nearly wrenched her arm out of her shoulder, but it arrested her fall.

But at this point, it was pretty clear that a straight-up confrontation with the monkey faunus was not going to go her way. Ilia was a capable fighter, but this guy was huntsman-trained at the very least and his hard-hitting close combat style was a perfect counter for her strategy of wearing an opponent down over a drawn-out battle. She wouldn't be able to force him to tell her where Blake was.

But the White Fang had trained Ilia to do more than just fight. She was a scout, an infiltrator who moved behind enemy lines unseen causing chaos and retrieving vital information. Combat was only one tool in her arsenal.

Her skin faded to a camouflage of green, olive, and brown and she immersed herself in the jungle, stealthily trailing behind the monkey faunus. She would find her friend, no matter what.

So, I saw the first five episodes of Volume 7 and so far I am loving this season. Don't want to make any calls right now, since I thought the same of Volume 5 during its first few episodes, but if RT keeps it up they might produce their best Volume yet.

However, this also creates a problem for me as I want to include all the awesome new characters from Volume 7 I can and I need to introduce them, especially since certain developments from Ironwood's plan have given me great ideas for the future that won't pay off for a while. Rest assured, Ironwood told Winter the truth about the Salem war and she just told Weiss and Gray with his permission. Still not sure if I like the Atlas sections in this chapter. Feel too much like clunky exposition at parts. I can only hope they were entertaining.

Oddly enough, I liked Ilia's section the best this chapter. Her and Sun's chase, conversation, and fight was a lot of fun to write.

An extra huge thank you to my patrons: ArcherMcMuffin, Gregg Tracton, Keith Traction, Annaya Chan, Nora Okonus, Paula mandel, KefkaesqueXIII, Christian Howard, and SanyaBane.

Thank you for Reading! I hope you enjoy what comes next!

Go Forth and Conquer!