Heya guys, sorry for the bit of a wait. Let's get right back into this.

Beta: CrowSkull

YBWR

Chapter 20- Source Gathering

"Is there something on my face?" Sun asked without realizing that what Yang was looking at was most certainly not on his face. "I can't really register what exactly is going through your mind right now, but I think we should um… go now?" He added, gesturing to the soldiers that were also shell-shocked about what had just occurred. Sun still had no idea that his metallic parts were showing through tears in his artificial skin. The pain wasn't something he could feel due to his body. Soon though, Sun caught on to where Yang was actually looking. He let his head fall and he gasped when he looked down at his hands and his abdomen. Metal with dimly glowing yellow lights acting as trims and joints stared back up at him and he covered himself in a desperate attempt to hide what he was.

"S-Sun…" Yang rapidly shook her head, snapping herself out of her shocked stupor. Without saying so much as another word, she reached forward and grabbed Sun by his forearm, yanking him with her as she ran off to the other side of the road and into a different alleyway. The soldiers were lost quickly, they were too busy reporting what happened to keep track of where they were going and a huntress in training and an android were always going to be faster than regular soldiers who likely didn't even have their aura's unlocked. If they did, body armour wouldn't have been necessary. Sun's eyes closed and they opened back up again when he felt himself stop as Yang finally decided that they had been able to move far enough away from any prying eyes or ears.

Yang stood in front of him, purple eyes wide with concern and a grateful grin on her face. Not at all what Sun expected after his true self was revealed.

"So, you're going to tell me what that is all about, right?" Yang asked, gesturing to the obviously visible metal parts of his body. "Because there's no way for you to get out of this one buster. I've got you um… silver handed?" She laughed, rubbing the back of her head and shrugging.

"Yang, I…" Sun tilted his head to the side, confused. "You aren't scared? Or confused? I saw the look in your eyes before… you must be shocked to see this side of me."

"Shocked? Yeah, I'm pretty shocked." Yang admitted. "But you also saved my life, so the least I can do is get you out of the public eye before this becomes the front page of the next issue of newspapers all across the world." She shrugged. "So, in return for the favor of the favor that you gave me first, wanna tell me that secret?"

"Oh, right," Sun, despite everything, couldn't help but smile back. "I am an android. The first android capable of generating an aura. I… I'm not a real person." He said sorrowfully.

"But you have an aura, right?" Yang asked.

Sun blinked. "Yes… I'll just say that."

"Then of course you're a real dummy!" Yang exclaimed, playfully punching him in the shoulder. "If you have an aura that means that you also have a soul! And if you have a soul, that means that you are real. It doesn't matter if your body has a little more iron than usual," she chuckled. "You still talk, walk, move, and act like a normal person. A person who might need to work on his people skills, but eh, semantics."

"You are taking this remarkably well," Sun said, smiling again. "But thank you, of course, I thought the same thing. I am able to generate aura, so with studies and hypotheticals, I am technically my own person. Even if the aura I have was given to me by my mother - the woman who designed and built me - I was able to make it my own and begin to maintain and generate more by myself over time. Lest I'd probably just be a soul-clone of her."

"Well, I never met your mom," Yang said. "But I can say with confidence that you are definitely your own person. I won't lie and say that this still isn't a shock because it definitely is. But it's also awesome! I can't believe that the random person that came up to me out of nowhere not only turned out to be amazingly strong, but you're also an android!" her eyes flicked to the blonde tail slowly swaying behind the Sun. "A faunus android at that. Huh, I guess the Mantilians over there really do favor faunus if they were willing to make an android designed after one, eh?"

"I'm actually designed after her son - he was stillborn - and she thought to make me in the image of what she believed that child would have grown to look like," Sun explained.

"Wow, that is actually a lot deeper than I was expecting," Yang said, sighing. "And now I am feeling bad that I made assumptions. Damn it, Blake, making me accidentally offend people I don't even know."

"It's quite alright," Sun smiled, placing a hand on Yang's shoulder. "Honestly, I am very relieved right now. I never thought you'd take this so well. No, even better than that. I am glad that you are the one I saved today, that you are the one I bumped into before. If I had a human heart, it would be beating calmly now because of you."

"O-Okay now," Yang's face flushed with red. "That's enough compliments for one day. I just wanted to make sure that you were fine and to let you know that nothing's changed between us."

Sun chuckled. "Of course, Yang. I will have to return to those soldiers now. They will probably take me to General Khan's flagship for repairs on my artificial skin, but I promise you that this won't be the last time that we meet, Friend Yang."

"Right," Yang threw herself forward and wrapped her arms around Sun. He had no body heat to exert, so he felt unnaturally cold, but she didn't mind. Sun hugged her back, humming lightly as he squeezed her gently. "Don't disappear on me again, alright? I owe you twice now."

"I thought you said you paid for one of them-"

"Shut up, I still owe you, which means you still have to show up again so I can repay that favor."

"Ah, alright." Sun is easily accepted. Slowly pushing Yang away but keeping his hands on her hips. "If we are going to keep owing each other like this, then I'd like to call in one of my favors now. All I ask is that you land on your feet and use your aura."

"Oh, sounds easy enough," Yang replied.

It took a second for her to realize what Sun actually meant.

"W-Wait, are you gonna throw- YAAAAAH!" Yang's voice echoed throughout the alley as she was tossed into the air higher than the buildings that were on either side of the alley. Without Ember Celica being deployed, she had to rely on what little momentum she had, and successfully landed on top of the building adjacent to Sun's left. She looked over the ledge, glaring down at the android but refraining from calling out to him when she saw him talking to the soldiers from early. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but thankfully it seemed that everything would be okay. Sun started following the two soldiers and spared a second to look back up at her, smiling and giving her a thumbs up which made her forget her anger for the moment and smile back.

"Wow," Yang said to herself as she leaned against the ledge, watching Sun disappear around the corner of the alleyway. "I can't believe the day is not even over yet. I guess I should catch back up to the others, hopefully, Blake was able to handle things on her own. I'll pay her back for that," she promised as she reached into her pocket to call her partner.

To her surprise, she didn't even have to dial a number. Blake was already calling her at that time, convenient. It saved her the trouble of pressing buttons. She picked up the call immediately, ready for the beratement she knew was coming.

"Where are you, Yang!?" Blake asked, definitely not happy with her as she suspected.

"I'm in Vale, relax, I'll meet up with you again soon-"

"Don't worry about that, Ruby and Weiss are just about to start their parts of the plan. We need to get to them and standby just in case anything goes wrong." Blake said.

"Okay sure, definitely. What about things on your end?" Yang asked. "Everything go smoothly?"

Blake flinched as the question was asked, which made Yang raise an eyebrow.

"Everything is fine. I have what we need." Blake replied.

"You sure-"

"Everything is fine just the way it is. You don't need to worry about me, Yang." Blake interrupted her.

"Sheesh, fine. Whatever you say." Yang rolled her eyes, she'd ask her again about it later. "Then let's meet up somewhere and we can regroup with the others. Use the tracker through our team app. I'll see you soon."

"Hey guys!" Penny exclaimed, waving at Ruby and Weiss as they slowly made their way toward them. "What a coincidence that we headed to the same place on the same night at the same time and met at this moment!"

"Oddly specific," Weiss said, narrowing her eyes ever so slightly at the ginger. "But yes, it is a coincidence."

"You didn't strike me as a party goer, if you don't mind me saying," Ciel pointed out. "She does though," she added, looking at Ruby. "But not you."

"Oh yeah, she's just along for the ride but she's actually going to go off and do something else while I handle some business here with the owner." Ruby explained. "We didn't think you guys would be here though. As much as I'd like to actually party here for once, I don't really have the time to do that."

"Oh yeah? What's happening, you guys on a secret mission or something?" Penny asked in a whisper, covering half her mouth with one hand and leaning in with arched eyebrows and a knowing grin. "Because that sounds awfully a lot like you guys being on a secret mission."

"Whaaat? Noooo, of course not." Ruby lied terribly.

If your nose grew whenever you lied, I wouldn't want to be next to you when you turn around. Weiss thought as she pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Oh, you totally are, aren't you!" Penny exclaimed, then silenced herself just as quickly when she realized that they were all still rather close to plenty of eavesdropping ears. "Don't worry, I can keep a secret. Like Weiss here, I didn't know she was actually a part of the Blue Rev-"

"What my idiot big mouthed partner meant," Ciel interrupted, slapping a hand around Penny's mouth and squeezing tightly as her one and only warning. "Is that we will help if you need it. Might as well let us anyway, because you know we aren't going away now."

"Hehe…" Ruby laughed nervously when she felt Weiss glaring at her. To be fair, it wasn't her who told anyone about what Weiss used to be, but saying anything to her now would only lead to her becoming more agitated. "Well, I guess we could use the help." Ruby pulled Penny and Ciel both off to the side and away from the line of people trying to enter the club. Penny and Ciel were a little frustrated because of that, but Ruby had a reason and she thankfully had a welcome pass thanks to Junior, the head of security, since she was known to get rather impatient. After getting away from the noesy bystanders, Ruby explained to Penny and Ciel what they were planning on doing that night.

"Oh wow," Penny said, widening her eyes with some shock. "That really is a lot bigger than I thought it would be. Alright, so you're here to talk with those cute Malachite girls, and Weiss here is going to infiltrate a recruitment speech conducted in some warehouse not too far from here. Right?"

"And your sister Yang and Blake went to the CCT to get some records from the WFC files about any reported robberies or instances related to the Blue Revolt so they could use that to help figure out what the BR's are planning." Ciel added.

"Yup," Ruby replied simply. "That about sums it up."

"Alright, let's make this easy then." Penny said. "I'll go with Weiss and Ciel will stay here with you. Both as backups. Sounds like a plan?"

Ruby looked at Weiss, and she at her, and they both shared a shrug. "Alright, fair enough." They both agreed. It was better to just let them help rather than argue with them and waste time. It would make things safer for each of them in the long run anyway, since Weiss was literally entering the heart of a metaphorical dungeon whereas Ruby was walking into a club with lots of security which she wrecked previously.

"Awesome," Ciel stepped over to Ruby and Penny to Weiss. "Then let's not waste any more time, team! Good luck on your end!" Penny exclaimed, wrapping an arm around Weiss to which the white haired girl rolled her eyes and slipped out of her grip. Ciel laughed along with Ruby as they watched the two of them head off in the direction of that recruitment setting. Leaving them to secure the information on Neopolitan's whereabouts and motives.

"Those two are cute together." Ruby commented as she and Ciel started heading back to the entrance to the club.

"They are," Ciel agreed. "I don't know how Penny will pull that off though. If she does though, then good for her. Do you know if Weiss is… well… reversely inclined?"

"Uh…" Ruby awkwardly chuckled. "I wouldn't know. I never really paid attention."

Ciel shrugged. "Oh well, I guess we'll see what happens later. So, we can just… walk in because of that pass you have?"

"Yup!" Ruby exclaimed as she skipped toward the bouncer, said bouncer instantly recognizing her and turning pale as a result. "You know who I am, so you're going to let me in, right?"

"R-Right," The nameless bouncer unclipped the velvet strap blocking entrance on their side. "Head on in, I'll let the sisters and Junior know that you're here."

"Good job, you do that." Ruby patted the bouncer on the cheek and headed on in, dragging Ciel along with her.

Ciel whistled an impressive tune. "Wow, you might as well be another one of their bosses. What's the history around you and this place? Seems that there's a lot of it."

"My mom, Raven, used to come here a lot when she was my age with her brother. This place used to be run by the Spider Malachites, but the Matriarch of that whole gang sorta was… arrested by my mom after doing something more than shady that couldn't be tolerated. Ever since then, the sisters here took over, and its sorta like the next generation of my family and their's going at it again." Ruby chuckled. "Although they can never really scare me away or beat me. They're alright, but only by street standards. I guess you could say I'm an unofficial leader here? As long as they don't do anything too shady I let them hang around, they're mostly harmless because of me, honestly."

"That is so cool." Ciel commented. "Man, I wish I had such an interesting story. I'm just some girl with a normal life, normal parents, who just decided they wanted to become a huntress."

"Those are the best kinds!" Ruby exclaimed, patting Ciel on the shoulder and smiling brightly. "You're doing this because you want to help people and kill monsters. I'm doing it for those same reasons, our motives are the same, but I am happy to hear that you had a happy life."

"Thanks. But didn't you as well?" Ciel stammered for a second. "W-Well, I mean, I don't want to pry at all but-"

"There's ups and downs to everyone's story." Ruby explained with an easy going smile, showing Ciel that she took no offense at all. "All that matters is that we're doing our best now. Don't get me started on all that mushy gushy stuff now though, I'm here for information, not drinks."

"Right," Ciel smiled back. "Let's go get it then."

Ruby and Ciel sat at the bar and asked the bartender to bring them the Malachites. The bartender took one look at Ruby, and decided that it was better to concede to her rather than cause any potential issues. Minutes later, two twins came up to them, both of them still having bruises from their last encounter with Ruby several weeks ago.

"What do you want, Red?" Melanie asked.

"I hope you haven't caused trouble around here again." Militia added.

"We still haven't finished paying off the repairs since your last visit."

"Relax, I'm not here for any of that." Ruby said, grinning as she traced a finger on the wood of the bar. "I'm here to call in one of my favors. You see, I want some information on a certain pink, brown, and white criminal that I know you two talk to every once in a while."

"You know that we always answer the favor calls of those we owe," Melanie said.

"But this is one that has a cost to it." Militia added. "If we give you what you want, we're sticking our own necks out."

"But you do know what she is really planning?" Ruby asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Can't say." the twins said at the same time. "The only thing we might be able to tell you is that there might be someone ordering her around. Rumors fly around day and night, and some say that Neo has been robbing around due to the orders of an unknown man."

"Hm… that might be the one that Yang saw at that dust store…" Ruby thought to herself out loud. "If that's the case, then I already knew that, which means that there is more for you to tell me."

The Malachites looked at each other and sighed. "We can't risk ourselves for you on this one. We might have been more inclined to take that risk before you trashed our club."

"Oh yeah?" Ruby said. "Look Ciel, this is a trump card that wins me every deal I make here. Ready?"

"W-Wait!" Melanie called out. "Calling her here isn't going to make this any easier!"

Ruby released the breath that she was going to use to call in a certain someone with a certain portal semblance that could transport her from one side of the world to the other. That same woman also doubled as the twins' greatest nightmare and fear. The one who arrested their mother and former matriarch, Raven Branwen. They gave up on revenge on her due to Ruby's intervention, which lead to them owing her favors, and their newfound business relationship that only remains that as long as they don't do anything too illegal that Ruby couldn't turn a blind eye too.

"So?" Ruby said, leaning forward on both elbows. "Are you going to tell me what I want to know then?"

"Ugh… You're not really giving us a choice here," Militia sighed heavily. "Fine, we can tell you what we know, but in return we want protection."

"Deal," Ruby agreed instantly. "I'll make a call to Seth and he'll send some of his men here to help protect you guys if anything happens."

"Isn't Seth a cop?"

"Yeah but he's scared of my mom too, so he'd do what I ask." Ruby said. "So, tell me the gritty details."

"Wow," Ciel stared in wonderment as Ruby handled the situation so dominantly it made her wonder why she was even there in the first place. "What a power move. I'm glad I'm your friend here."

Militia and Melanie looked at each other and sighed at the same time. "Deal." They both said. "There's only one thing we can tell you that we know for an absolute fact, but it's big enough that I believe would be enough to fulfill your favor call."

"Yeah? And that is?" Ruby prompted.

"Neo is working with the Blue Revolt closely." They revealed. "I dare say she might have some kind of tight hold on them, at least the Valean sect of them. Last I heard of them working together, it should actually be tonight at some recruitment rally where she's going to show off something that they captured from Mantle."

Ruby felt nervous suddenly. That was very likely to be exactly where Weiss and Penny were going right at that moment. Ciel seemed to be thinking the same thing, and they shared a nod that led to them both wordlessly stepping away from the bar and hurriedly leaving. They spent some time in there talking to the sisters, and at this point Weiss and Penny should already be at that warehouse. If anything did go wrong, then they'd be in a lot more danger than any of them thought they'd be in.

"Follow my lead, and try not to draw any attention to us." Weiss told Penny as she stuffed her white and easily recognizable hair into her hood underneath a scalp tight beanie. It still bulged out slightly, but it was normal to see people at these rallies trying to be unrecognizable after on purpose just in case they decided not to join at all. People got cold feet all the time, especially when it came to joining a self-proclaimed revolution that most of the world viewed as a meager terrorist organization. Penny didn't have to hide herself nearly as much, simply putting on a pair of green sunglasses that she had stowed in one of her breast pockets.

"Isn't trying to not stand out going to make us stand out anyway?" Penny asked with an amused chuckle. "I mean, look around, everyone walking in the same direction we are right now are probably also thinking about joining the Blue Revolt. They've seen us already and they are probably thinking deeply about who they are signing up with."

"That is a natural reaction." Weiss accepted with a shrug. "But still, it is better to be safe than sorry about it later when we're being chased down."

"Yeah, yeah, alright." Penny shrugged, accepting her reasoning. To be fair it wasn't as if Weiss was wrong to be as concerned as she was now. It was perfectly reasonable to be worried about being attacked from all sides by terrorists with guns and weapons. Perfectly reasonable indeed. "Just in case though, I've got my extra swords packed in this little backpack of mine," She said, gesturing to it on her back.

"You brought weapons with you!?" Weiss shrieked in a whisper. "Are you crazy!? If anyone finds out about that, I shouldn't have to tell you what would happen to us!"

"I know," Penny said. "But look ahead, do you see them checking backpacks? Frisking people down? I was worried about that before since I always carry my weapons around just in case, but look." Weiss looked at where Penny was pointing, finding herself wide eyed at what she was seeing. Someone masked with the face of a member of the Blue Revolt, letting people in with something as simple as a single look up and down and then gesturing for them to go inside. People were pouring into the warehouse so quickly that there wasn't even a line to get in. It both relieved and confused Weiss to no short extent.

"Why would they…? No, this doesn't make any sense." Weiss whispered so that only Penny could hear. "The Revolt are much more professional than this - My sister controls the Vale sect of the Blue Revolt, she would never allow this… No, that man isn't part of it at all, I reckon."

"What makes you say that?" Penny asked. "Maybe he's just being lazy, it's not every day that there is someone working somewhere that doesn't want to do their job properly."

"Yes but for something like a recruitment rally there is no exceptions." Weiss snapped under her breath. "Something is definitely wrong here. We are going to want to know what is happening."

"But if this guy is so lax about it, maybe that's because there is nothing to hide?" Penny remarked.

Weiss hummed. "Maybe that is the case. But we have to be sure. We have to."

Penny took one look at Weiss and nodded her head. Instantly accepting that there would be no convincing her to stop believing that there was something that they needed to know from this. "Alright, let's get in there then and see what's going on. Hoping that the best happens, we should have some juicy information to bring back to the others."

Weiss nodded back and the two of them made their way into the warehouse with as much ease as all the other applicants making their way into the place. There was just one hallway and a turn where a sign pointed them in the direction of the rally. They then made their way into a massive wide open room with a high ceiling. It was also full of containers, metal containers which Weiss recognized as WFC shipping containers. It was very likely that some of them were stolen at the docks not too long ago. There was a chain linked fence separating the containers away from the crowd with several guards standing by them as well. At least a few dozen. There were many there, now that Penny and Weiss were able to see them. It was rather dark as well, but the lit up stage ahead of them with something massive hidden underneath a large curtain was enough a source of light that enabled them to be able to see what was around them. Weiss and Penny hid in the crowd well, blending in and Penny even going as far as speaking to some of the passing applicants. She didn't pay attention to whatever it was that they were talking about, and instead had her eyes glued to the stage and what was underneath that curtain. It's shape looked remarkably similar, like she had seen something like it once before but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. After taking note of some potential escape routes, Weiss kept quiet and crossed her arms, fastening the old and used Blue Revolt mask on her face that was given to them as part of their entry.

Soon enough, their short wait came to an end as someone flickered onto the stage in a flash of white and with the sound of broken glass. The noise attracted everyone's attention, and Weiss's fear was confirmed. Neapolitan now stood on stage with a tired yet confident expression on her face. She held a microphone in her hands, and raised it up to her mouth and began to speak. Silencing every bit of conversation that came before her voice up until that moment.

"Hello members of the Blue Revolt!" Neo exclaimed diplomatically. "I can see that most of you are very surprised to see me! Some of you may recognize me and let me confirm for you all now that yes, I am indeed Neopolitan, the esteemed uncapturable master criminal that has been the councils worse nightmare for almost a decade now!"

Some voices began to whisper to themselves, but her receival wasn't at all discouraged. People were curious, wondering why she was there. It made Weiss sick. The Blue Revolt that she knew would never stoop so low… or would they? They didn't seem like the same organization that she had left.

"Now, some of you may be wondering; Why is Neo, the criminal, here working with the Blue Revolt to steal some dust? Well, let me answer that question for you. The revolt isn't working with me per se, they are working for me for mutual benefit. You see? Now, now, don't get your panties in a twist," she added when some angry shouts came from the crowd. "I'm not saying that I'm your new supreme leader or whatever, all that I am saying is that this arrangement was made for us, and there is no getting out of it. I'd just rather tell you the truth instead of stringing you along. So, here we are!" Neo gestured all around her to the crowd and beyond.

"So far, with the Blue Revolt under my tutelage, we have been able to steal billions of lien worth in dust from Vale, Mantle, and Mistral combined. That means profit for me, and endless ammo, munitions, and weapons manufacturing for you. You guys are all about fighting for the little guys, right? The ones who can't protect themselves like the huntsmen can, the ones who live out in the goonies- Sorry, the outskirts. The villages who are not able to rely on themselves for security, and so ask for help from the major kingdoms but are ultimately ignored? Well, thanks to me and my boss, we have been weaponizing you!"

Angrily, Weiss remained silent and bristled as she heard the crowd around her begin to cheer. She kept her arms crossed and a tight expression as she listened to people cheering, whistling, and chanting. They loved this, they loved the idea of using those weapons to hurt people in the name of revolution. Since when has her parents' legacy fallen so low?

"And with these weapons!" Neo continued. "You are all going to have the chance to make this world a better place! Security, justice, and without broken promise, you will be able to revolutionize the kingdoms of Remnant. Honestly, it nearly brings me to tears," Neo said with a chuckle. "Knowing that this is all going to happen because of a little old me and a few risky alliances."

More like crying out of laughter. Weiss thought. Neo must have been crying herself to sleep knowing that it had been so much easier than it should have been rallying an army behind her to do a lot of the dirty work for her.

"And yet there is more!" Neo exclaimed. Turning to the side and tossing one hand out in gesture toward the massive thing covered by a tarp. "I have a gift for you all! A gift from Winter Schnee herself!"

Weiss gasped. No, it couldn't be… she knew she recognized it from somewhere.

"Your very own collection of Mantlinian advanced prototype Spider-tanks!" Neo shouted as two members tore down the tarp, revealing the massive and angry looking mechanized tank on eight legs. The worst thing about it was that it wasn't just something built to look like one either. With a push of a button, Neo was able to turn the thing on! The cockpit opened up from the side to allow entrance for the driver. Neo turned back to the crowd with a wicked grin, enjoying the booming cheers and calls for the weapon to be put into action. "So I hope with that, I am able to garner some more of your favor. I had to pull a lot of strings and very carefully find a way to bring this here."

Weiss's heart skipped a beat. Penny's did as well, when they noticed that Neo's eyes had landed on them. Weiss turned to look at Penny, realizing that she wasn't very disguised at all. Her hairstyle was the most distinguishable, almost exactly the same as the one that she had when she first appeared at the docks with her to confront Neo for the first time.

Neo looked into her eyes and Weiss just knew that she knew. Her hand reached down to her hip where Myrtenaster was hidden in a hidden compartment on the inside of her skirt. Ready to spring into action at a moment's notice.

"And look at what we have here," Weiss took out Myrtenaster and stabbed its tip into the ground. "We have two people here who'd like to test out its firepower!"

"What are you doing!?" Penny asked the instant people started looking at them. Underneath them both, a glyph with a fastly ticking clock etched behind it appeared.

"Saving our lives!" Weiss gritted out as her beanie and hood came flying off.

"Maximum glyph output; Time Dilation!"

And there we have it, Volume 2 reaching its first action-packed portion for YBWR. Man, I have been busy as hell. I am sorry it took almost a month for me to get this chapter out to you guys but there is no need to wait any longer! Here we are again, I hope you all enjoyed it!