AUTHOR'S NOTES: Sorry this is so late. I went on vacation, and though I was able to knock out another chapter, I had some real formatting issues-I was able to post a chapter on AO3, but not here. I was also busy, y'know, vacationing, so I wasn't able to write as much as I would like! Anyhow, here's the "latest" chapter, which is something of a bridge chapter as we ramp up to the big finale of "Season 8" in this fic. I hope to get the next chapter up soon.

SACEUR Forward Headquarters

Near Zielona Gora, Poland

5 September 2001

Winter Schnee walked into Ironwood's tent. A decontamination section had been added to the entrance, and she had to pull off the heavy, awkward MOPP gear before she could go in. Well, she thought with a wry smile, at least they're not making me shower, too. "General-"

Ironwood was sound asleep. His head was resting on his arms, a report crumpled underneath them. "Sir?" She cleared her throat. "Sir?"

The general stirred, then sat up. He blinked twice, then shook his head. "Winter." He rubbed his eyes. "I fell asleep."

Winter stepped forward and came to attention. "Yes, sir." Without being asked, she assumed a parade rest position. "Sir, begging your pardon, but why don't you get some rest?" She motioned at the cot in the tent. "I can come back later."

Ironwood rubbed his face, then got up and poured some coffee. "I'm sorry, Winter, did you want some?" He checked the clock on his desk. "5 AM. Dawn already. You've been up all night."

"I managed to get some sleep on the way over, sir." Winter still felt exhausted, despite the catnap, but dressed in a fresh uniform, she knew she looked and felt better than Ironwood did. His beard was growing longer, he was pale, and he looked like he could sleep a week.

He smiled tiredly. "Did I order you to report to me after the mission was over? I honestly don't remember."

"No...not specifically, General."

"Well, thanks for coming anyway." Ironwood sipped his coffee. "I have to say, the mission looks to have been a complete success. We recovered JINN, Salem got a bloody nose, she detonated her nuke too early, and we got Oscar Pine back as a bonus. Ozpin would be dancing a jig right now. I didn't even have to use the Winter Maiden."

"Would you have, sir?"

Ironwood nodded. "Yes. Even with Delta on the ground. They know the risks." He sighed. "I like Oscar, Winter, but in the grand scheme of things, he's expendable. Hell, in the grand scheme of things, we're expendable." He sat down. "I understand you led the air portion of the assault."

"Yes, sir. We lost Vine Zeki and the crew of Kingpin Three."

Ironwood nodded sadly. "I know. Zeki was a good man."

"We also recovered Emerald Sustrai." Winter knew she was dancing around the subject of why she was here, but one part of her didn't want to admit her own disobedience, not when a man she regarded very highly was actually getting good news for a change. "She doesn't know where Salem's base is, but she knows enough that we might be able to reconstruct her journeys there."

Ironwood's face split into a grin. "That's wonderful news, Winter!" He picked up the phone. "This is Ironwood. Have the cooks whip up some bacon and eggs. Two portions, for myself and Colonel Schnee. Yes, soon as you can." He hung up. "Have to cover everything because of the radiation. Luckily, it doesn't seem too bad yet. I'm going to have to move my headquarters north, but I've been here too long as it is."

Winter opened her mouth to reply, but then the tent flap was drawn back. For a moment, she wondered if Ironwood's cooks were that good, but into the tent came Harriet, Elm and Marrow-all that remained of Ace Flight. Winter was surprised: they had flown to Poznan with her, gotten a little sleep as well, then accompanied her to Zielona Gora. They were supposed to remain in the same tent as Penny, but evidently they had changed their minds. Marrow looked upset, his tail drooped; Elm looked unsure; Harriet looked furious. Then again, she usually did. The three came to attention. "Ace Flight, reporting as ordered," Harriet barked.

Ironwood looked from her to Winter. "There seems to be a lot of people reporting to me who I don't remember ordering to."

"We're using our own initiative, sir," Harriet said before any of them could reply.

"I suppose that's all right," Ironwood said. "Allow me to express my condolences on Captain Zeki. He was a good man. I understand he sacrificed himself to ensure the helicopter got away. I'll phone Prime Minister Erdogan later and inform him-I'm sure the Turkish Air Force will want to make sure he's posthumously awarded their highest honor."

"Thank you, sir," Harriet replied tightly, "but Vine isn't what we're here for."

"Harriet, this isn't a good idea-" Marrow warned.

"Quiet, FNG," she snapped. Harriet glanced at Winter. "General, with respect. Ruby Flight was there. Over Warsaw. And it gets worse. Yang Xiao Long was with the Delta team."

Ironwood stared at Harriet strangely. "I suppose they were," he said at length. "So?"

That took Harriet aback for a moment. "But, sir...they had no business being there! They're allowed to run around Poland despite being...being mutinous, sir!"

Ironwood nodded. "That is true, Miss Bree, but there's also not much I can do about that at the moment. I have somewhat bigger problems on my plate than Ruby Rose and her merry band of mutineers." He chuckled ruefully. "Mutiny. I thought that was a word for the Navy."

"General, sir, I...I don't understand," Harriet said finally.

"Flying Officer, I will deal with Ruby and her bunch when I can. We've hurt Salem, but she's far from finished. As soon as she gets organized, she'll come at us again. Because of the radiation, I'm going to have to pull half my force out of southern Poland, probably to the Czech Republic. That allows Salem to shorten her lines as well. Ruby seems intent on defending Poland-let her. Salem seems to have a personal issue with her, so those two can sort things out while I pull what's left of our force back behind the Oder River."

"Sir." Marrow used Harriet's shock to finally get a word in. "What about all those refugees in southern Poland? What happens to them?"

"I don't know, Lieutenant," Ironwood admitted. "The 1st Armored and 5th Infantry will probably get as many out as they can, but our first and foremost priority is evacuating Poland while we still have some forces left. The refugees are secondary. It's terrible and I may answer for it in front of God, but so be it."

"There may be an alternative, sir." Winter told Ironwood about Whitley's plan. The general listened in silence, stroking his beard, then gave her another nod, then a shrug. "Not a bad idea. There's plenty of airfields in southern Poland. If they can get it organized fast enough, they should get the bulk of the civvies out. Your brother is pretty resourceful for a teenager, Winter."

"Yes, sir; I'll be sure to pass that along to him. But all those aircraft will present a very tempting target to Salem."

"Good," Ironwood replied. "Then she won't be concentrating against my forces." He stopped, then rubbed his eyes. "Damn, that sounded callous as hell. Still, the point stands."

"What do we defend them with, General?" Elm wanted to know.

"Nothing. It seems Ruby and her bunch helped hatch this scheme, so they can defend the transports. You'll cover our retreat." Two men in the floppy MOPP gear came into the tent with two covered plates. "Ah, here's breakfast. I'll make sure to get some food sent over to your tent as well, people."

Ironwood meant it as a dismissal, but Harriet, recovered from Ironwood's apathy towards Ruby Flight, was not quite finished. She took another step forward and looked directly at Winter. "Colonel, with all due respect, if you don't tell him, I will."

The general was pulling the metal covers off the trays. "Tell me what?"

Winter took a deep breath. This was what she was here for, but she threw Harriet an icy glare that promised dire punishment in the near future. "Sir. I released Qrow Branwen from prison earlier tonight-yesterday," she corrected herself.

Ironwood stopped with a piece of bacon halfway to his mouth. "You...you did what?"

"Yes, sir. I felt Colonel Branwen would be an asset to the exfiltration of Team Metal from Warsaw. And he was, General."

Ironwood was silent for a moment, then slowly rose to his feet. "You disobeyed an order. A direct order. Qrow was under arrest."

"Yes, sir. No excuse, sir."

Ironwood slammed a fist onto the desk, making the plates jump. "Goddammit, Schnee! Why?" He held up a hand. "No, wait, don't tell me. It's because you love him, isn't it?"

Winter knew that was the real reason, but she wasn't about to admit it in front of Ace Flight. "No, sir! We needed his leadership, his experience, and his F-117-"

"Bullshit, Winter!" Ironwood shouted. "That's complete and utter bullshit!" He slammed both hands down on the desk this time, which audibly cracked. "Is there something in the water around here? Something in the air? What is it that makes every fucking person suddenly decide that the chain of command is optional, and that my orders don't mean a damn thing?" He threw himself back in his chair, head in his hands. "Did you let your worthless excuse for a father out, too?"

"No!" Winter snapped. "You know me better than that, sir."

"No, I don't!" Ironwood shot back, then repeated it more softly. "No...I don't. Not anymore."

The silence stretched for several uncomfortable minutes, then Winter spoke. "General. I came here to tell you that. That I disobeyed your order. Not to tell you about Warsaw-I surmised you already knew." A sidelong glare at Harriet, who was looking insufferably smug. Winter wanted to beat her senseless. "I came here to tell you, sir."

"You came here to confess. Fine." Ironwood made a sloppy Sign of the Cross. "Mea culpa, I absolve you, whatever it is that you Catholics do when you've fucked up." The Schnees were actually Lutheran, but Winter knew this wasn't a good time to bring that up. Ironwood was silent for awhile longer, staring at the breakfasts. His earlier ebuillence was gone, along with his energy. He looked drained, defeated.

He looked alone.

"Sir-" Winter began.

"That's enough, Colonel." His head came up and his eyes fixed on Harriet. "I don't know what you were trying to accomplish, Flying Officer, but if you're expecting a pat on the head and a medal for fucking over a superior officer, then think again. There is nothing worse than disloyalty. Nothing." Ironwood sighed. "However, I guess I can't throw all of you in the brig, no matter how much I want to. I'm short on qualified pilots. But I can't trust you, either." He picked up one of the breakfasts and held it out to Winter. "Take it."

"I'm not hungry-"

"Take it," Ironwood growled. "Obey one order, if that's not going to inconvenience you." Winter took the plate. "Now get out. All of you. While I figure out how to unravel this clusterfuck you've gotten me into." Slowly, all four of them filed out, closing the tent flap behind them.

Ironwood sat at his desk for a long time, unmoving. He suddenly shot to his feet, grabbed the remaining breakfast, and was about to throw it at the wall when he suddenly stopped. "No...that's stupid." Instead, he grabbed his mug of coffee and walked to his map table. He set the plate and mug down, then began eating. Between bites, his fingers moved over the map. He tapped at the circles that the NEST team commander had made, showing the lethality cones of radiation. Then he ran a finger over the front line. "I've still got Penny," he mused aloud. "And I've got my own nuclear weapon." He nodded, a thin smile on his lips. "You want to play rough, Salem? Fine with me."

"I'm sorry?" Ironwood looked up as RIssa Arashikaze came into the tent. "Is this a bad time?"

Schnee Manor

Zagan, Poland

5 September 2001

It was midafternoon now, and everyone at least felt well-rested after a few hours of sleep. Klein made a late lunch, and all of Ruby Flight was gathered around the table-including, to everyone's surprise, Oscar. He still looked terrible, but his eyes were no longer bright with exhaustion. He stared out the window. Outside, it was a rather beautiful day, with a lot of fluffy clouds and blue sky. The idea that radiation was invisibly raining down seemed absurd. Ren was still with Nora; he had refused to leave her side. Pyrrha was still asleep, having only gone to bed after being assured everyone else had.

Another surprise was that Emerald Sustrai was now at the manor as well. Arashikaze had essentially dropped her off before heading to Zielona Gora, remarking that Emerald was probably safer there than she would be anywhere else: there were now three security teams and a company of Polish regulars camped around Schnee Manor. If Salem or Cinder Fall-who was still at large-tried to get at Emerald, it would be a lot more difficult now. It was also, Ruby thought morosely, a way for Arashikaze to keep all her bad eggs in one basket. Emerald was now leaning against one wall, away from the others, clearly weighing her options.

For her part, Ruby had slept well, waking up next to Oscar, his arm around her, neither wearing a stitch. Reluctantly, she'd woken him and they had gotten dressed. It was hard, so hard to push herself back into the real world; Ruby wanted nothing more than to stay in Willow Schnee's bedroom, to pretend Salem, Ironwood, the nuclear explosion, and the war didn't exist-that only she and Oscar existed. That was an impossible dream, she knew. Her squadron didn't need Ruby Rose, the flesh and blood young woman that just wanted to find a bit of light in an increasingly dark world; they needed Captain Ruby Rose, acting commander of the somewhat defunct 77th Tactical Fighter Squadron.

The problem was, Ruby wasn't sure she could be that person.

Whitley Schnee sat at the table, nibbling at strawberries. "So, the good news is that I'm getting answers already. We have eight transports ready to fly. Probably get more by the end of the day."

"Not enough," Blake remarked.

"It's a start," Whitley replied. "Can't just restart everything from zero to a hundred. The aircraft and crews have been idle for months. We'll get there-we just need some time, that's all."

Weiss was pacing. "That's not something we have a lot of. Salem's going to renew her offensive soon. Cinder Fall is out there with Watts somewhere. And Winter's told us that Ironwood won't be defending the transports. He won't interfere, but we're on our own here. We have to find runways."

"There's airports and airfields all over southern Poland." Yang finished off her Coke and crushed the can in her metal hand. "Besides, I doubt Salem's going to go for the transports. She'll be trying to catch Ironwood before he can finish running to Germany." She snorted in derision. "Asshole. If he had any balls, he'd attack while Salem's still on her butt."

"Too bad you weren't able to shoot her," Oscar said, smiling.

Yang chuckled. "Yeah, well...I punched her in the tits, so that's got to account for something." She looked at her sister for a smile, and didn't get one.

"Noted," Blake said, "but our biggest problem is telling the refugees where to go to be rescued. They have no idea. They're just running north and south now to get out of the fallout zone, and Ironwood's ordered the roads cleared so that his troops can move. It makes sense militarily, but they're getting shoved aside. We need to get them out sooner rather than later, otherwise it's going to be academic." She looked to Ruby. "Any ideas?"

"No," Ruby answered. "I don't have any." They all looked at her with concern, hearing the hopelessness in her voice. "I'm sorry, everyone," she said. "I'm just tired. Not physically...emotionally. It just seems so..." Ruby sighed. "I don't know. I know I'm supposed to know, but I don't. The transports have to get here. We have to get crews for the transports. We have to get someone on the Commando Solo-if we get access to it-to get out the word to everyone. Then the refugees have to get to the transports, and we have to hope Salem wouldn't attack just to kill people. Then what? We fly them to Germany and just drop them off, and hope the German government says 'Oh hi, sure, we'll take hundreds or thousands of Polish folks' without telling us to get lost?"

"We could fly them to the good ol' USA," Yang said. "Unwashed masses, light by the golden door, all that jazz. The airliners will have the range, right, Whitley?" He nodded. "Well, there you go."

"And we have to escort them, Yang," Ruby said. "Just us. Me, you, Weiss, Blake, Ren, and Pyrrha. Maybe Uncle Qrow and Winter. Oscar's out, Nora's out, and the Huntresses will be trying to defend Poland. Not a lot if Salem goes full court press."

Yang threw up her hands. "Fine, let's just fucking surrender then. I don't believe this."

"If Miss Hero with all the answers doesn't have an answer, then we have ours," Emerald suddenly spoke up. They all stared at her. "Look. I grew up on the streets. None of you did. And I can tell you that the European governments don't give two shits about those refugees. They might just tell you to get lost and not even allow you to land."

"Oh, shut up," Weiss snarled. "Two days ago you were Salem's little errand girl." Emerald balled her fists, but didn't leave her position against the wall. "So what's your solution, then?"

"We get the hell out of here," Emerald replied. "Get out while we still can." Her expression went from resentment to fear. "You haven't seen Salem's GRIMM factories. Believe me, she's got a lot more to throw at us."

Yang pointed to the door. "Then leave, bitch. Don't let the door hit you where the good Lord split you."

"Stop it!" Oscar hobbled over to the table. "Stop it, please. Can we just give each other a chance? Emerald's not with Salem anymore!" Yang rolled her eyes. "She isn't," Oscar insisted. "All of this doubt and worry and distrust-it isn't getting us anywhere."

"I'm done." Ruby suddenly rose from her chair and ran out the door. She didn't want to; she knew it was wrong, but she just couldn't take it any longer. Running was bad enough. Bursting into tears or punching someone-probably Emerald-would be even worse. She needed to run, even if it was wrong.

"Oh, hell." Yang ran after her sister.

Yang found Ruby sitting against the balustrade of the staircase, knees drawn up to her chin, staring at the still-visible bloodstain where the Hound had died. She didn't look up as Yang walked into the foyer. That deeply worried Yang; she had never seen Ruby like this.

"You know," Yang said by way of opening, "it's a hell of a note. We're fighter pilots, and last night, we were fighting on the ground like Army pukes. I think air combat is a hell of a lot safer." Ruby still didn't reply. "Heard Weiss was the one to kill that Hound SOB."

"Did she tell you what he had?"

"She didn't have to. The bastard almost killed me at Swidwin, remember? When they kidnapped Oscar?" Yang involuntarily shuddered. The Hound had her dead to rights, as Yang's pistol had snagged on her holster, but had hesitated, because he had been unsure which sister had silver eyes.

Ruby finally looked up. "You know what that means, then."

"Doesn't mean a thing," Yang said sharply. "There's probably a lot of people with silver eyes, Ruby. Maria said it was a genetic thing because of radiation-"

"That's what happened to Mom," Ruby said, cutting her off.

"Bullshit," Yang snapped. She stared down at her sister. "Salem killed Mom."

"Did she tell you?" It was a genuine question. "When you met her?"

Yang hesitated, then sat down next to Ruby. "We didn't do a lot of talking." But Yang knew that wasn't true. Salem had not said that she had killed Summer. Yang reflected that she also hadn't said that Summer was still alive. She didn't want to say that to Ruby, but sighed. Ruby deserved to know. "She didn't deny it. But she didn't confirm it either." The thought of Summer Rose, chained up somewhere in a dark corner of Salem's unknown headquarters, chilled Yang. She'd be in her forties now, Yang thought. She disappeared when Ruby was three...twenty years in a dungeon. And if Salem was experimenting on her... "Oh God," Yang said, her voice breaking. Their mother might still be alive, but was it as a broken husk of a woman somewhere? Had Salem blinded her? Turned her into human spare parts, somehow? Or was the Hound not genetically engineered from Summer somehow, but the product of some unholy union between Summer and a Faunus? Mom would never have an affair on Dad, which means...Salem forced her? Yang felt like she was going to vomit.

"When I saw his eyes, I knew, Yang," Ruby said in a small voice. "Salem sent assassins to kill people with silver eyes. It doesn't make any sense, but that's what happened to Maria. But Tyrian wanted me alive. The Hound wanted me alive. What changed between Maria and me? I'm younger than Mom, of course. What if Salem needed someone younger-"

"Ruby, please," Yang pleaded. "Don't say any more. Just don't. I can't think about that. Neither should you."

"Yeah." Ruby put her head back on her knees. "Yeah...you're right." She wiped her eyes. "I really made a mess of this, huh? Ruined everyone's careers. I thought we could save Poland, and we didn't." She shook her head. "Ironwood's right. I've been acting like a child."

"No," Yang said firmly. "No, Ruby. You've been acting like a leader. And you've been optimistic when damn few of us have been." She reached out and took one of her sister's hands. "Look. Sometimes your optimism is kinda boneheaded, but if we don't have it, we lose. We'd be back at Lakenheath or the States watching all this happen. We needed hope, and you gave it to us. And yeah, we've got to take risks. What was it Dad used to tell us? Better to dare and lose, than to never try?"

"But my risks didn't work," Ruby replied.

Yang got up. "Yeah, well...that's the thing about risks, Ruby. They're not sure things. It was probably the dumbest thing I've ever done, aside from jumping Adam Taurus, to go in with Delta. But we got Oscar back, we got JINN back, and we did good." She knelt and hugged her sister tight. "Mom took a risk too. It didn't work out for her, either. But she tried, Rubes. She tried. She's still my hero."

Ruby gripped her arms. "Mine too, Yang. Mine too." She held on for a few more minutes, then got to her feet. "I think I'm okay now. Sorry I went weak sister there."

"Ain't no crime to feel, sis." Yang let go of her and stepped back, then came to attention with a sharp, cadet-style salute. "Captain, I await your orders."

"Yeah, yeah." Ruby reached up and messed with her sister's hair. "Okay, don't lay it on so thick." She smiled, and walked back to the dining room. Everyone looked up as she came through the doors, Yang in trail. "Sorry, everyone. Just needed some air. I'm okay now." Ruby paused. "Well, I'm not, but I'm not gonna quit."

"Glad to hear it," Blake replied with a smile.

Ruby looked at Emerald. "Are you staying or going?"

Emerald laughed humorlessly. "Pretty sure the CIA guys will shoot me if I try to leave, so I guess I'm staying." She pushed off the wall, came to the table, and sat down. "Wouldn't mind having a fighter under me."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Weiss leaned against the back of a chair, glancing over as Klein brought in a Black Forest cake for dessert. "There goes my waistline."

"Nonsense, Miss Weiss; you're too skinny as it is." Klein set down the cake, then as if by magic produced plates and silverware. He retreated back to the kitchen, but paused. "You know, ladies and gentleman, there is an old saying: how do you eat an elephant?"

It was Emerald who answered. "One bite at a time."

"Quite so, Miss Sustrai. Quite so." Klein closed the kitchen door behind him.

Ruby nodded. "He's right. One step at a time." She took a deep breath. It was time to lead. Reluctantly, Ruby put Summer Rose back into her box of memory. "Okay. We've got to get the word out to the refugees where to go. We'll have to assume Arashikaze can get the Commando Solo."

"Fair assumption," Weiss said. "She's been quite persuasive so far."

"Okay. So we get the bird. Then we have someone send a message out." Ruby rubbed her chin in thought. "But who do we get?"

Blake cut a piece of the cake. "It needs to be someone people know and trust."

Whitley laughed. "That lets us out. Nobody's going to trust a Schnee."

"And nobody knows who the hell we are," Blake finished. "Can't be Arashikaze. Ironwood won't do it. Maybe Robyn..." Her voice trailed off as the dining room door opened again, admitting a yawning Pyrrha. "Good afternoon," she said. "Oh my, I slept so good. Sorry I was out for so long..." Now it was her voice that trailed off, as Pyrrha noticed everyone staring at her. "What?"

Yang grinned, an expression taken on by everyone else at the table. "Perfect."

"Yeah, it is," Emerald agreed. "Even I know the Invincible Girl of Greece."

"The Pumpkin Pete girl," Whitley put in.

Pyrrha glanced around frantically. "What? What are you talking about?"