Looking at her new arm, Amethyst started to think about why does it work as a natural extension of herself. She moved its fingers as simply as it were her own. Why is that?

I'm at your command; you are the Alpha. She heard the voice in her head.

"So you're just a tool now?" Amethyst said, reluctantly thinking about the concept of any living thing being subservient to another.

The weak follow the strong. That's how we survive.

The moment the Faunus started to ponder on the nature of those words, Aria entered the room. She looked tired.

"What's up, girl!?" Ame jovially asked her captor.

"How can you be so cheerful in circumstances you find yourself now?" The woman was more puzzled each time she interacted with the Faunus.

"I find that a positive outlook brings better results," she smiled.

Ame sat down, leaning over the bars of her cell. "Do you have anything to eat? I'm starving."

"Right… Food," Aria rubbed her eyes. "I totally forgot." She sat at the only desk in the room and buried her face in her hands.

"Is everything alright?" The Faunus girl was growing concerned. She might be her jailor, but it's hard not to feel empathy towards someone visibly distressed.

"Why do you, of all people, care?"

"If you don't want to talk about it, it's ok. Just know that I would be glad to help if I'm able to."

Aria's eyes widened to a comic extent. She never saw anyone like this lizard Faunus. "You helped enough already," she said to get the girl off her back.

In truth, it was the case. She's the only stable subject of the experiment that hadn't collapsed from the strain of hybridization. At this point, it was the only subject she had and a precious asset to her research. Still, there was something troubling her: how to reliably replicate this process without killing the host. Grimm feeds off of aura, and in time it will drain the human it is attached to. Her own research reached a dead end. Her eyes landed on Aurelius' voice recorder. After escaping the hospital, she returned to the site and retrieved it from the rubble. Surprisingly to no one, the police didn't really search the place that well.

"I really would like some food, though," the subject again voiced her concerns.

"Fine," Aria sighed. "Just wait a moment."

The silver-haired woman went to the neighboring room and came back with two plates of a neatly served dish after about half an hour. She put the plate on a small reach in the cell door and sat back at the desk herself.

"Thank you!" Amethyst chirped, wagging her tail from side to side.

Aria grabbed the recorder and played it while eating. The familiar voice of her former mentor ringed in the room.

"Raddock is still breathing down my neck. However, he's a smart man and should be aware that progress cannot be rushed! Sometimes I do wonder why he's so adamant about this project?

New entry: Subjects perish too quickly when exposed to the process. At this moment, we cannot discern the connections between the subjects that survive the Grimmification and those who do not. Alas, Aria seems to be greatly inspired by the work we do here, which, in turn, makes me motivated."

Amethyst started to listen in on the recordings as well. She already finished her meal and had nothing else to do.

"New entry: The progress of the research is getting slower. We require more subjects to increase productivity. Raddock proposed hiring Huntsmen, which seems like a decent idea, but I'm not so sure.

New entry: After a talk with Aria, I agreed to increase our staff and hire a Huntsman team. If that what it takes to have a breakthrough, then so be it.

New entry: The team is doing wonders. I'm glad I got persuaded into hiring them. With more subjects, our trials seem to progress. However, we still are unable to determine what exactly makes the subjects perish during the tests. Aria's insight helps immensely with building new cases and upgrading the processes. I don't think I would get this far without her…"

The woman turned off the recorder, which surprised Amethyst, and turned her gaze towards her. Tears were running down her cheeks.


In just one day, Kain acclimated to the group he was supposed to infiltrate. Many Black Sheep members shared his views and beliefs, which made it easy to blend in. Surprising how similar backgrounds can help people connect.

"Cerulean! Someone raided the armory!" One of the gang members exclaimed for everyone to hear.

The brutish leader of the Black Sheep gang stood up. "Need to check that up," he looked pissed. His eyes briefly stopped at Kain, whose heart started to beat faster. Cerulean, however, took his leave to the armory that was next to the pub.

"Who would have the guts to rob us?" One of Kain's comrades he played cards with stated.

"Someone who doesn't value their lives, that's who," another one added.

Kain grumbled as a response and continued to play his hand. After a round, the door slammed, and Cerulean furiously entered the establishment.

"Ok, lambs. We're going to war," he stated through his teeth.

The silence grew as everyone's confusion was so vast that it almost could physically manifest itself.

"What?" One member from behind the further tables asked out loud.

"The Wave left us this," he tossed a card with a Jack of Diamonds.

"That's the Jokester's calling sign," the guy who was playing with Kain exclaimed. "He's one of the most known Wave members."

After a further second of stupor, the entire place boomed with rage and threats towards the Wave members. They all quickly grabbed their weapons and stood ready for Cerulean's command. Kain did the same and held his sword. The members of the gang helped him fixing its prior damage and even made it more sturdy. They were all excellent and experienced Huntsmen.

"New guy," Cerulean addressed Kain. He raised his eyes that met with the deep blue eyes of Black Sheep's leader. "You will have the chance to prove yourself today."

The warrior smiled. "That I will."

They all moved in a strong group through the streets of Kuchinashi towards the place where Lemon was hiding. In the lower parts of the town. The paths were empty, and a tense atmosphere could be felt through the air. The moment Cerulean led everyone to their destination, a group of guards stopped them in their wake.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" One of them asked, looking rather terrified seeing an entire squadron of experienced fighters and retired Huntsmen.

"Paying back," Cerulean said gloomily. He stomped the ground, and the guard started slowly levitating. In slowly rising terror, the man started screaming. The leader of the Black Sheep swang his fist into the opponent's head. The skull caved in, folding like paper, and the body fell to the ground with a soft flop. A sound resembling porcelain breaking echoed through the streets and made the other guard run in fear.

"Maim or kill, I do not care," he stated to his followers. "A message needs to be sent that NO ONE messes with the Black Sheep. When you find Lemon, inform me. I want to deal with her personally."

"Yes, sir," everyone stated and ran inside the building.

"New guy," the leader again addressed Kain. "You're going with me."

"Sure."

Everything that happened from that moment was like a blur. Kain followed Cerulean through corridors and rooms, slaying anyone who stood in their way. His guillotine-sword was drenched in the blood of people he knew had nothing to do with the stolen goods. Room after room, his resolve was tested as Cerulean observed his every move. Did he know he was a spy?

"Lemon's hiding on the second floor, sir," a communication through the boss's scroll pulled him out of his haze.

"Good, we're heading there right now."

Kain was breathing heavily, his shoulder tenser than he ever felt. He looked towards the leader, who smiled towards him with approval.

"Pretty difficult first day on the job, ay?"

Kain wasn't able to speak. However, his blank stare was enough of an answer for Cerulean, who just chuckled. They ventured towards the second floor, Kain following the brute. He did kill before but never in such a mindless, baseless way. I really got to get paid more for this shit.

When they finally arrived, they were greeted by other Black Sheep members trying to ram a door.

"Let me handle this," Cerulean said, and everyone stepped aside.

He touched the door briefly to then kick them open. The wood and steel shattered into thousand little pieces leaving the way clear.

"So you finally decided to let loose the dogs of war?" A woman surrounded by a few guards said contemptuously. She was wearing a yellow dress.

"Lemon," Cerulean sounded boisterous. "It's nice to see you again!"

One of her guards dashed towards him with his sword aiming at the giant man. The leader smacked him across the face, not giving him a chance to attack. The man fell to the ground, "unfortunate that it's in such circumstances."

The woman in yellow touched a neckless she was wearing. It was a silver and gold chain with an orange-blue jewel. The moment she did, a pack of Beowolfs emerged from the curtains behind her back. A fight ensued, but Cerulean was fast enough to break through the Grimm and grab the woman by her neck.

Kain quickly moved forward to combat the beasts. There were many, but with the strength they had, it wasn't much of a challenge. When the last Beowolf fell by the Huntsman's hand, Kain raised to look around the place. The black speckles of dust still swirled in the air, a sight that made him nostalgic. When was the last time I truly fought a Grimm? He reached back in his memories, but the fought eluded him. For the past dozen years, all he did was random jobs for protecting supplies or fighting other people.

"New guy!" Cerulean wrapped his arm around the Huntsman. "You're good. Tonight, drinks are on me!"

Kain did not respond. His mind was still racing from all the thoughts and doubts he had. The brute of a boss noticed his mood. "What's wrong?"

Kain still struggled to form a clear statement. "I don't remember the last time I fought a Grimm."

The leader boomed with laughter. "Me neither, friend. Many here are on the same boat."

Kain's eyes were glued to his blade. The blood from the previous rampage was still warm, slowly dripping from the edge to the ground. He raised his head so that his eyes could meet with Cerulean's.

"I miss that."


"So the plan looks like an excellent success!" Yakshith exclaimed in a cheerful and bouncy manner. "I knew my homie Kain would deliver."

Raymond, still studying the map of the city, nodded. "Looks like it, but I would say we're not out of the woods just yet."

"Sheesh, man, are you ever satisfied with your work?" The smaller Huntsman said, picking his nose at the same time.

"Not until it's done."

"Do you believe this guy?" Yara addressed Rory.

She shook her head. "Can't you stay silent for even an hour?"

"Why? If I did, you wouldn't have the opportunity to hear my amazing voice," he smiled towards his colleague. A twisted smile that made him more demon-like instead of a human.

The pink-haired woman rolled her eyes and stepped closer to Ray. "So, what's the next move?"

The one-eyed Huntsman considered many possible outcomes of their plot. Many options they had were reliant on the success or failure of the bait they set for Cerulean and his gang. Ray knew the Black Sheep leader quite well. He was the easiest to accumulate intel about as he didn't work in secret. Mostly. The mountain of a man was a bold guy and lacked the subtlety and finesse of the other leaders. However, years spent fighting Grimm and then taking to the life of Kuchinashi made him dehumanized, a ruthless man who doesn't like being pulled by the nose. Merlot was counting on his temper in this instance.

While thinking about their next course of action, a symbol on Yakshiths gear piqued his interest. Ray looked at the emblem; It was a King Taijitu eating its second head.

"What is that?" He asked, intrigued, pointing out the symbol.

"This? The family crest," Yakshith answered. "It meant to symbolize the cyclic nature of all life or something, but I personally like to interpret it as a woman swallowing a huge…"

"Shut up, you pig," Rory stopped him before he could finish the thought.

All of a sudden, Liam Fawn entered the room, panting.

"Ray… Hunter Ash… He…" The Faunus was taking deep breaths before every word.

"Calm down," Merlot got closer. "I can't understand you."

Liam calmed down a bit and took few breaths before speaking. "Hunter Ash caught wind of another gang wanting to fight for influence in the city and is preparing something to fight it."

"Even more people in the mix? Why is this city so popular," Yakshith exclaimed with a chuckle.

"He means us," Ray explained, looking disappointedly at the hired gun. "Do you know what exactly is he planning or at least where?" He turned towards the Faunus.

"Not what the plan is. They don't trust me enough yet. However, I know where."

"How urgent is the problem?" Rory asked.

"Knowing Hunter, he's probably mobilizing this very moment."

"Liam, lead me to the place," Ray stated. "Rory, you're going with me. I want to scout out what exactly we're dealing with, and if it requires immediate action, we can counter them quickly."

"Sure thing, boss," she nodded.

"What about me?" Yakshith asked, annoyed, but no one gave him an answer before leaving the hideout. "Guys?"

He was left alone without any instructions. "Fuck!" He kicked the table with the projection plans of Kuchinashi in frustration.

The trio followed Liam's lead to the lower parts of the city: The Lower Valley and the warehouses. When they got near the destination, the Faunus pointed them to the storage facility where Hunter Ash should reside at the moment. Or at least his people that got delegated to dealing with the threat of the Spider gang.

"Sorry if I won't be accompanying you further," he said towards Ray. "I still want to have my cover when dealing with the Hana."

"You did fine," the one-eyed warrior understood. "We'll take it from here."

"Great," he nodded and stifled a chuckle. "Hope I'm wrong."

Liam moved back the way they came, towards the upper districts.

"Do you really trust this guy?" Rory asked, looking at the tattered tail and bruised back of the Faunus.

"As far as I can throw him," was his response. "I know he hates my guts, but he's a valuable asset to the family."

"If you say so," she shook her head, and they both moved closer to the warehouse.