Enslaved To A Flame

by ShadowedSword21

Roman has never had just one trick up his sleeve. With the stakes rising rapidly, he enlists his Ace. A man who is both an accomplished thief and assassin. His mission? Capture or kill Ruby Rose. His freedom is riding on this task, but innocent souls have a knack for shifting perspectives. Reboot. Warning for darker themes in later chapters. OC

12. Siren's Call

Enslaved To A Flame

Chapter 12

Siren's Call

William's footsteps were sharp in the silence of the lab. Victoria trailed behind him, matching his step as she slowly peered around.

"What are we looking for?" Leo asked, careless of stealth.

William pursed his lips, listening for a moment longer before he answered. Nothing had stirred at Leo's voice, but he wasn't sure that was a good thing or not yet.

"Mutants. The lab should have everyone else. Two are already dead. With twenty-five cells and three levels, the maximum should be around seventy-five. But I doubt they'd get that many."

"How can we check?" Victoria asked, stepping away from his side and towards a door.

"The experimentation room should have a computer database with a list of all experiments, both alive and dead, from before the Breach. We can work from there." William said, heading down the hall.

The experimentation room would be around the corner, a double set of doors that belonged in an operating room, not a dark science room. William glanced around the halls again.

All the doors were still shut. A good sign considering the explosion had knocked out the main power. It was likely running on backup generators at this point.

The doors were double-sealed. A heavy bolt with a hatch served as the manual lock, but the system had an automatic magnetic lock if power went out. If the system had shut down after those locks engaged, they'd need to run a full reboot just to check cells.

William pursed his lips. An inconvenience that couldn't be helped.

"Come on." He urged Victoria and Leo. "I don't want to stay out here." He looked up, two layers of catwalks above his head. "It's vulnerable."

"Something going to come down from the ceiling or something?" Leo asked, casting his own eyes up. "What kind of Grimm are we dealing with here?"

"These aren't Grimm anymore. They're something else entirely." William nearly made it to the lab doors before he heard it.

The soft clang of shaking metal. Like someone running across a catwalk.

William jumped backwards as he heard a sharp creak of metal. He twisted, catching him on his hands and summersaulting backwards further.

He just barely cleared the radius as the monster hit the floor, crushing the concrete underneath it's fists.

"That fuck is that?" Leo muttered as William settled on his feet.

Its torso was twisted, a tight and shrunken stomach and legs. The upper body was enlarged, it's ribs and chest seeming to have expanded beyond human limits. That wasn't counting it's arms, which had to have made up the bulk of it's mass. It balanced on it's fist, choosing to use it's hulking arms instead of it's feeble legs.

"Beringel." William observed. "Or a variant of it. Be careful. The Grimm has a tough skin."

The Beringel mutant sized them up, shifting as onto one arm as it stared at them. A snarl rippled across it's pale face as a roar exploded out of it's chest.

Victoria ducked behind William, sweeping her sword out. William could feel her cock her arm back. She was going for a sweep.

William surged forward, jumping forward and reversing his grip on Moonlight Sonata as he cast out his semblance. Victoria's chainsword whipped out below his legs, raking across the Beringel's wrists.

William shot a wire out, wrapping it around it's head, cocking his arm back. He had the aim for it. Easy kill.

Leo's greatsword swung across, cleaving through the Beringel's arm. It toppled over, sending William over it's head.

William landed with a skid, coming up on his feet, a snarl on his lips. Damn that punk.

Leo swept around, pulling the greatsword back and slamming it back down to decapitate the monster. The greatsword came to a halt as the creature caught it in it's armored palm.

William rushed back, seeming the strain in Leos arms as the beast roared in pain and anger. Leo was going to lose that fight. It was just a matter of time.

Victoria's chainsword sparked and tore at the beasts chest, but didn't really do any damage. A moment later she coiled it back, glancing at William before aiming. She squeezed the trigger, sending a pellet straight though it's skull.

The tension vanished from it's arm and Leo completed his swing, cleaving it's head off. He smirked, bringing the weapon back up to his shoulder.

"Got it."

William pursed his lips, swallowing his rage before he spoke.

"Victoria killed it. You're working in a team now Leo. Work with us. We're not here just for show. You can't go into a fight without consideration for where me and Victoria are. Unless you want disaster."

Leo glanced at him, anger rising in his features. Instead of lashing out, he let out a heavy sigh and stepped over the corpse.

William gritted his teeth, glancing at Victoria.

"Good shot."

Victoria shrugged, a small smile playing on her lips. "You almost had it in the first few seconds. I didn't even hear it."

"I was always told to keep my eyes and ears open. Combat is always just around the corner." William dismissed the compliment, brushing it off with a shrug.

Victoria let it drop, instead they headed after Leo. He'd stopped at the lab doors, arms crossed over his chest and his greatsword back in its holster. William chose not to comment on that one. If there was a fight, he was fast enough to save Leo from his own stupidity.

William pushed past him, into the lab. It was dark inside, but he flared his Aura lantern, bathing the room in a soft orange glow.

It was a long room, a set of desks with computers lined up on them, two to a desk in the middle of the room. File cabinets lined the right side of the room, cubbies above them for other items. Four pairs of sneakers had been tucked into them, which mean four scientists had been here during the explosion.

Where were they now?

"The lab I presume?" Leo asked, heading to one of the computers.

He tapped a few of the keys, pursing his lips in annoyance when it didn't boot up. He tried the power button, but the computer didn't even blink in response.

"Back up generator must not be enough for it." William said, heading over to the switchbox, conveniently located by the door.

"Seems a weird place to put that." Victoria commented.

"Not really. Think about it like this. The lab would be the deepest part of the lab, closest to the generators, as well as most easily defendable other than the entrance proper. Plus," William trailed off, feeling Leo and Victoria's weighty gaze on his back as he inspected the switches.

"Why do you know so much about this facility?" Leo asked.

William didn't answer for a time as he scanned the breakers. They'd all been tripped. Where the main generators running then? He flipped the switch, waiting a moment before hitting the breaker for the lab.

The lights flickered, then came on, casting luminescent lights around the room.

William left the box open in case he needed to adjust anything else. The computers would be up now.

"William."

William glanced at Victoria but chose not to answer until he had gotten to a computer.

"Because I've been here before." William tapped the computer, waiting a moment as it started booting up.

"What do you mean been here before?" Leo dropped a hand on William's shoulder.

William glanced at the hand, but focused on the computer. "Exactly what I said. I've been here. Seen the experiments. Watched them go wrong. Watched them go right." He paused, "And I've had to put them down when they outlasted their usefulness."

"Your uncle." Victoria guessed, her voice a whisper.

"Correct. He's not a clean business man."

"But to be workign with Roman Torchwick?"

"There are many investor for all sorts of research and experiments. Names arent important in the underworld Victoria. The only thing that matters there is power and cash." William informed her. "And results." He jerked his thumb backwards, to the darkened left wall.

"What? It's a wall." Leo asked, his footsteps retreating as he headed to it.

"That's a glass wall Leo. Check the color."

William turned in the swivel chair, watching at Leo tapped on it, feeling the glass. He frowned, glancing up and down the wall.

There was a door on the left, by the entrance to the lab. But the entirety of the wall was stained a reddish-brown color, blocking any sight into the next room.

William smiled as realization his Leo.

"Is that… That's impossible."

"Blood." William answered for him.

Victoria went pale, looking like she was going to be sick as she looked across the wall. Twenty feet of wall, stained and coated in blood thick enough to stop the lights in the next room.

"What happened?" She whispered.

"Let's find out." William turned back to the computer. It was password protected, but William had memorized Roman's username and login before he had turned ten.

He used them now, login in as admin. He perused the files for a moment, then found the folder he needed. Security tapes. Roman was careful, he wanted all experimentation documented.

The footage from the train incident hasn't complete, but the file was half-saved. It ended five minutes before the crash, likely when the first explosion had happened on the train.

William selected it, waiting a moment for the computer to pull up and load the video.

It was a little grainy, but it was high enough quality William could see everyone in the room, and nearly identify them. He knew some of the scientists first hand from when Roman had kept him stationed here.

Two experiments were going on, splitting the group of four scientists into two. That was the most they ever did at once. For various reasons.

The first was a teenage looking boy. He had a black fluffy tail, possibly a wolf-Faunus, but William couldn't be sure. Not from this angle and level of quality. He was getting an injection, likely his third or fourth since he was already showing signs of changing. His face was paler, and his eyes had turned one color. His arms were bigger than the rest of his body, almost puffy looking.

Across the room, which would put it in the very back from the entrance, was girl. William almost didn't recognize her. Her hair had been cut short from the last time William had seen her, into a bob cut. She looked thinner as well, her limbs slightly longer than before.

Like a porcelain doll that had been crafted too thin, too delicate to even be put on display.

The lab coats came to her with a syringe. William had seen all the mixes before, and they were always a dark red or black. This one looked clear in the camera, but then again, the colors were off. It could have been blue.

Was it the booster? Or the second dose of Grimm mutate?

William glanced at the time. Six minutes before the crash. What had happened? A minute left in the tape.

The injections were textbook. They strapped down both patients, slowly inserting the needle into their arms. The male reacted badly. He thrashed, his skin shifting colors, his mouth open in a scream.

The camera didn't have audio, and for once in his life, William was glad.

The girl seemed fine. She took the injection calmly.

Thirty seconds until the clip needed.

He almost missed it. He was focused on the male he missed her opening her mouth. The lab coats dropped to their knees, hands going to their ears. The camera lenses cracked, but William could see her though it still.

The girl was screaming. The male was going wrong, his body bubbling and cracking, nearly splitting at the seams.

Her voice had done something. What was she spliced with?

The clip cut off in static, but William didn't mind. He needed to check the list. Another moment of browsing and he had it.

He glanced up. There should be a printer in the room somewh-there. End of the desks. He pulled the list up in a word doc, printing it out for later reference before he pulled up the search bar.

"What are you looking for?"

"Latest experiments. That girl." William answered, typing in her name.

Sandra Carmine.

She showed up at the bottom of the list. Two or three lines of useless data involving time here and body status before William found what he needed.

Spliced: Siren.

What was a siren?

Greek mythology spoke of mermaids that would charm sailors off their ships to watery graves. Or coax them to drive their ships into jagged rocks.

What that it?

"Stay here." William advised, pushing up from the desk and into the room. "I don't think it would be wise to take this with more than one person."

Victoria's hand wrapped around his wrist, making him stop.

"You can't go lone wolf on us. You just told Leo not to." She rebuked, taking a step to the door with him.

"I'm not. She can neutralize with her voice. Of all the people here, I'm the least likely to be able to counter that. You can nullify those vibrations with your semblance. Leo can try to override the systems with his and kill her that way. But I'm also not going in there to kill her."

"Then what are you doing?"

William glanced at Leo, then shrugged. "Making amends I guess." He reached down, unclipping the little Aura lantern from his belt, attaching a wire to it. "If that lantern goes out, then I'm dead. Kill her. The generators, or the back up generators are in the basement, that computer should have floor prints. Blow them. And get out."

William slipped out of Victoria's grip, wrenching the lab door open and slipping inside. He shut it behind him, reaching up and grabbing the bar, slamming it down over the handle.

The bar was on the inside for a reason. Anything outside could be isolated if it was overrun. While everything inside could be killed if it was compromised.

William stepped into an exploded chest cavity, crushing the mangled ribs under foot.

The male experiment had been torn to pieces. Interesting. He glanced around the room. Scientist pressed to the glass, likely blown there from the failure experiment, blood spattered across the glass. William could tell it all came from the failure. Everything else was just collateral.

He tracked the wall down, finding the her sitting on the gurney she'd been on in the experiment. Behind him the glass door banged, shaking in it's frame. The metal barricade bar held though. He was isolated. With a creature that could kill him with her voice.

William smiled.

She visibly stiffened, curling up on the gurney. She drew her legs to her chest, bunching the hospital gown to cover herself. So, she was still human enough for modesty?

A good sign.

"Sandra Carmine." William's voice broke the silence in the room.

She froze at her name, staring at him in awe. Her spring-green eyes looking like they would pop out of her gaunt skull.

"My name is William Faolan. I was sent here on a mission by Professor Ozpin, from Beacon Academy. You're familiar?" William proceeded, carefully taking a step out of the corpse and onto the tile floor.

She nodded. Of course, she was familiar. William had intercepted two letters in the week he'd surveyed her. One for application, and the other for admission. She wanted to be a huntress more than she wanted to be a singer.

"I know what this lab is for. I know what happened here. And I can guess what happened to you." William broached, taking another step towards her.

She stiffened, her stance going hostile. William's eyebrow raised as he saw gills on her neck, flared out wide. He wasn't sure that was a natural reaction for sea creatures.

He saw her intake a breath, her chest filling.

"Stop." He commanded, snapping his semblance out and across the room, winding a wire around her neck. He squeezed, careful of the pressure.

She choked, gagging and coughing. William loosened the wire, but kept it around her throat just in case.

"I'm not here to hurt you unless you try to hurt me Sandra. I know what happened to you. And I know who did it." William pressed.

He wouldn't get another shot at this. If she tried to kill him again, he wouldn't hesitate. She was threat. Simply collateral.

"Who?" Her voice came out ragged, a mixture of a breathy sigh and a gasp for air.

"Roman Torchwick. A criminal mastermind that's expanded his territory."

"Why?"

"Because you must have caught his interest." William could recall Roman being excited a week earlier, just before he posted William on the Carmine estate. He'd acquired something, something special he'd told William. And he needed a special person to use it on.

Now William could see Roman must have gotten his hands on a Siren. So, he naturally picked a girl with talent for singing. Build upon the innate talent with Grimm functions.

Carmine's face morphed, her cheeks red with rage. William might have been scared, but her body was too thin, too weak, for him to be scared of anything but her voice.

"Kill him." She snarled, or at least tried to.

"If you come with me you'll have the opportunity." William assured her. Was that a lie? William wasn't sure. He wanted to kill Roman too. But he had debts to pay back, and a chain around his neck.

Sandra stared at him long and hard. William kept his gaze steady as she examined him.

"You work here?" She deduced.

"No. But I know this place very well." William replied. "I know how many things are in this place. I knew you were here. And I know that you have an explosive chip implanted in your neck."

Her hands flew to her neck, shock on her face. William could see her fingers pick at it, finding the scar at the base of her neck.

"Roman has the key to that." William assured her. "But he thinks you're dead." For right now. William wasn't sure how reliable Roman's information was at Beacon. If Sandra was brought back, how long would it take for him to find out who she is?

She swallowed, slowly lowering her hands to her lap. "Fix?" Her throat was parched and even a few words were starting to be too much for her. William could see the intelligence behind her eyes, it was simply her throat that was restricting her.

Smart enough girl to conserve her strength. She might just make it. William hummed, filing that information away.

"Later. Let's get you out." William took another step forward, slowly extending his hand. "So, I'm going to come over, and I'll carry you out the door."

She nodded, scooting to the edge of the gurney.

"Can I trust you?"

She surprised him, making William stop in his tracks. He cocked his head to the side, weighing his answer. He might have a wire around her neck, but if she screamed, he might be too stunned to tighten it.

But if she saw a lie she would kill him. If she heard the truth she might as well.

William chuckled, taking a few more steps until he was by her side.

"You can trust me to get you out of here alive. You can trust me to take you to Ozpin and make sure that this lab is destroyed. But past that, you'll have to figure out on your own." William reached around her, putting one hand on her back as he slid his other hand under her knees.

He picked her up off the gurney. She was light. She had to be less than ninety pounds. Malnutrition? Likely. A day or two without food or water. Her body had started to metabolize itself.

She folded her hands in her lap, looking up at him as he made his way to the door.

"Can you trust yourself?" Again, she hit him with a deep question.

"No." Same answer. But this one, William didn't have to play with semantics. He couldn't trust himself anymore. He was a liability. He didn't know what he was fighting for anymore. Roman was full of shit. His debt meant nothing. Nothing except that Roman would track him down and make him suffer for it.

But that debt was starting to mean less and less.

His mission was unclear. His path unsteady. And his mind cracked.

"Okay." Sandra turned her head to the door, leaving William to his thoughts.

An alternative William wasn't sure he wanted. At least her questions kept his mind on track. Now he had to wonder if he even wanted to keep working for Roman or see if he could run and get away.

Or kill him.

William paused at the door, kicking the bar up. He took a step back as the door burst open and Leo tumbled in. He sidestepped around Leo as the brute charged past him, skidding and sliding into the far wall.

"Watch the ribcage." William said, slipping out of the room.

He heard Leo give something akin to a strangled yelp before he came rushing out, blood on his boots, but his face pale.

"That's…"

"Disgusting." William and Sandra answered at the same time. William paused, glancing down at her, wondering if she realized what she had done.

"Who is this?" Victoria asked. She held William's lantern in her palm, thumb going over the glass in an anxious habit.

"Sandra Carmine." William said, walking over to the desk and setting her down on the edge of it. "Previous the daughter of Michael Carmine, and future singer to their family quartet." William introduced her. "Until Roman got his hands on her. Now she's here."

She smiled at them, but her eyes betrayed her emotions. She wanted to run. To hide. Too many people. She was scared.

William slapped a hand on her shoulder.

"Sandra. This is Victoria Violet." He extended a hand towards Victoria, and the blonde filled in.

Victoria got up, stepping closer and bypassing William, taking Sandra's hand in hers.

"Hey. Victoria. I'm glad you're alright. I can't imagine what you had to go through. I'm glad we got here in time." Victoria said, squeezing Sandra's hand. "If you need anything let me know. I'm not as strong as William. But I do my best."

Ever the saint. Ever the person to care for others. William smirked at her. She cared about others because no one cared for her before.

William's eyes shot down to Victoria's wrist. Her scars were concealed beneath her sweatbands, but the tell was still there.

Her skittish stance. The way she tilted to the side, and how her hand dropped down to clasp her wristbands. As if making sure they were still there.

Sandra smiled, then reached up and rubbed her throat. Then she shook her head.

"Her throat is strained. And she's malnourished." William filled in for her. "I don't think she'll be walking around here, or talking, for a while."

Sandra nodded, giving William a thankful look.

"So, what do we do?" Leo asked, keeping a few feet from Sandra.

"Keep Sandra safe. She's a victim, not a target. And we clear out the rest of the base." William explained, pausing as he noticed a sink in the corner of the room.

He headed towards it, tearing open the cabinets and throwing files aside, searching around the room. There had to be cups somewhere in the damn room.

"Sandra, hows your throat? Parched?" William asked, glanced back at her as he moved to the next cabinet.

He found a coffee cup a moment later, a little dusty on the inside, but clean. He wiped the inside out with his shirt sleeve and turned the sink on.

There was a pause, and William wondered if the pump was on or if it was on a different breaker than the generators. His worries were for nigh though as water spurted out a second later.

He filled up the mug, walking it over to Sandra and pressing it into her hands.

Sandra smiled, moving it to her lips and taking a sip. Then another, before tilting the cup back and gulping it down. Some spilled out, tricking down her chin and down her neck.

As it crossed her gills she jerked, taking a deep breath in, eyes wide in shock.

"Sandra?" Victoria asked, noticing the reaction.

"Gills. I bet they're connected directly to her throat, which explains why she's so parched." William replied, taking the mug from her. He slung it across the room, connecting a wire to it. With a flick of his wrist he strung up seven more lines, bringing the mug to a halt below the faucet.

He let it fill, then pulled it back, handing it to Sandra.

She drank again, deeply this time. William leaned back, sending a wire into his pocket.

He'd seen this coming. Not Sandra. But the lab incident. He also knew exactly what Roman would want out of it. Data. He'd come prepared.

He pulled the zip drive out carefully, positioning Sandra's body between Victoria and Leo as he pulled it into his palm. It was a thin one, more of a stub than a stick, but it had plenty of memory.

He'd already written a short code on it, just a few lines of Montom*, that would let him copy the data onto it without having to do it manually.

He got up, pushing off the desk. He let his hand trail behind, flicking the zip drive to his fingertips before shoving it into an open port on the CPU. The computer hummed a little louder, but nothing happened.

"Thank you." Sandra's voice was smoother, less strained and steadier. "I needed that."

"I don't like this." Leo commented. "What if she tried to kill us." He leaned back against the wall, closest to the door out.

"Then we die." William replied matter-o-factly. "But so does she. Because she can't call the Bullhead in without us, and she won't last long enough to live by herself."

"True." Sandra replied, taking another heavy drink from the mug. "Plus, William promised me something." She shot a glance at him, almost reading his expression.

"I did." William agreed. "And you'll have it if I can help it." She'd die before she killed Roman. He'd die before he could as well. But the promise hadn't been as empty as William wanted it to be. He really wanted to give her a chance to kill him.

He really wanted a chance at his head.

And he was almost willing to give up his just to see her get one.

William shook his head slightly, dismissing the thoughts. "Look. Leo, you're going to have to carry Sandra. You're the only one that has the muscle to carry her for any length of time and still fight. My weapon is mobility. And Victoria just doesn't have the muscle mass."

Leo scowled, "But-

"Leo." William pressed. "You might not like me, but you have to acknowledge two things right now. That Sandra isn't one of these things." He pointed at the lab doors. "And that she needs help. I know you're trying to be happy-go-lucky, but let's be real for a minute."

Leo perked up at that, seeming to reevaluate William for a second.

"I'm a shit leader when it comes to empathy, but I know what we need to do, and I know how to do it well. That's all I can do. And right now, I know that Sandra needs to be off her feet because her body is shutting down from malnutrition. She won't be able to walk. She won't be able to run. And I know that you are the only person strong enough to carry her and still fight. That's a fact."

Leo pursed his lips, staying silent for a second. Then he sighed, crossing from the door to the desk. He reached down, slinging Sandra over his shoulder.

"Fine. I guess that puts me in the back too?"

"Precious cargo. You're carrying the daughter of a millionaire." William replied with a smile.

Leo grunted, adjusting his grip on Sandra. She twisted in his grip, thrashing slightly before Leo let go. Her fingers dug into his back for a moment before she turned, putting her butt on Leo's shoulder. She sat up, balancing on his shoulder carefully.

"Better." She informed him simply.

William rolled his eyes. She looked flexible. Slimmer than Victoria in the chest, smaller in the hips and legs. But then again, sirens from the myths were seductive.

He dismissed the rest of the notion, and instead headed out, swiping the printed list off the desk. He flipped through the pages, carefully noting the cells and mutations.

The facility had been cleared. Mostly. A dozen were left, the others had been moved before had to a separate facility. William was familiar with it, but he didn't recognize the name Roman had put it under.

The Synapse Neuron-Research site was supposed to be compromised. It's where Roman had started the splicing project. To move things back was uncharacteristic of Roman. It played at too many loose ends, and begged questions of what he was planning.

Expansion being the likely factor.

William bit his lip, contemplating that as he pushed through the doors.

Two were dead outside the tunnel. The Beringel made three. Sandra was four, but she was still listed as a patient, not a mutant yet. William scanned through her report quickly. One injection. One booster. Which meant the shot she'd gotten during the crash had been the second dose, still recoverable.

"Plan?" Victoria asked, peeking over his shoulder at the pages.

"Should be nine of these things left." William replied, then paused. "Nine." He ascertained. "Nevermore, Boarbatusk, A Behemoth variant, two spiderlings, a Deathstalker, a Drake and two Ursa." He rattled off the names as he came off. "The Nevermore and the spiderlings are on the third floor. The Drake, Behemoth and Stalker. The two Ursa and the Boarbatusk are on the second."

"Split up and handle them?" Leo asked, stopping behind the pair. Sandra seemed comfortable on her perch on his shoulder and hadn't seemed to move.

William glanced back at the door. She had a foot of clearance. She must be more flexible than he'd originally though to maintain her balance and bent back on such a weird platform as Leo's shoulder.

"Drake first then. He'll be the hardest." Victoria reasoned. "They spit fire, right?"

Grimmology. Of course. The one subject William would never get a handle of. He could study the damn book for ages and still never remember anything.

"Drakes do. But they don't have hard armor like a Beringel or a Dragoon. They're certainly more manageable than a Wyvern." Leo piped up.

William glanced back at him. "Grimmology a strong subject for you?"

"Aced every test since I got to school." Leo replied with a shrug. Sandra grimaced, slipping a hand into Leo's ragged hair to balance her. Leo didn't seem too phased by it, and just let it happen.

"They have a weak underbelly if that's what you want to know." Leo supplied, tucking his hands into his pockets. "I'll hang back. Precious cargo and all."

"Fine by me. You can watch." Victoria replied, her reply a little sharper than a conversational tone. She was a little bitter about earlier is seemed.

William folded the list up, heading out. He didn't have time for idle banter. Not when he had things to do, and dangerous creatures about.

The Drake was around the corner. William grabbed the hatch, spinning it counterclockwise to unlock it. He paused, waiting a moment before flinging it open and taking a step back.

A gout of flames shot out, but he'd been prepared for it. More importantly, Victoria had been prepared for it.

Her chainsword slashed through the fire, hitting something through it. The fire cut off abruptly. William charged in, finding the Drake mutant with a deep gash on his chest. He was already gone, but William finished him off anyway. Moonlight Sonata sliced through the meat of his neck and clean out the other side.

"Behemoth." Leo called from outside. "Slow, doesn't register pain very well, but it doesn't have armored skin."

William gave his sword a quick slash, shaking most of the blood on the tip of the weapon off before he flipped it around and dropped it in his holster.

"Good to know." He mused, walking out of the cell and down the hall.

The Behemoth didn't even get out of the cell. William came barreling in, Aura Blades in each hand. It had grown to a Behemoth size but retained its human figure.

Victoria didn't have much time to help as William sliced its hamstrings, slashed the tendons out of it's arms and drove both knives into it's chest, cutting a square through it's ribcage.

"Dead." William didn't even wait for it to hit the ground before he was walking out.

"Behemoth's have two hearts." Leo hummed softly from the door.

William paused, considering that before glancing back at the body.

It collapsed, hitting the concrete limp. William's lips spread in a small smirk. "I guess the biology doesn't change too much."

Leo shrugged, shutting the door as William and Victoria left.

That left the Deathstalker, which they found a bit more troublesome. It had turned into some freakish centaur looking form, with an armored carapace that kept William from piercing it with his Aura Blades and Victoria from slashing through it.

William backed up, cutting the Aura to his knives as he retreated.

"Leo give me your sword." William said, holding out a hand behind him, keeping his eyes on the monster.

Victoria danced around it, avoiding the stingers and the wild swipes of it's clawed hands. William had to admit, even if Sandra was more flexible, Victoria had a knack for reading the rhythm of a fight.

The greatsword slid into William's hands, reluctantly. But Leo had handed it over all the same.

William hefted it, feeling the weight for a second time. He'd have to swing with his whole body to get any real force or speed. He could manage that.

He charged, pursing his lips and letting out a sharp whistle. Victoria sidestepped, dancing out of the way of another pincer and giving William an opening.

William could feel a smirk on his lips. She had a knack for rhythms. But could she keep up with his?
He ducked around another pincer, using his run up to skid under the next. The Stalker turned towards him, prioritizing the large weapon. Tail bristled, arching back. William was about to get the big gun.

It shot forward, but William was prepared. He planted his feet, springing up and over the stinger, bringing the greatsword around. He put his hips and shoulders into the swing, and then flung his body into the rotation as well.

He felt the blade resonate as it hit the heavy carapace of the tail. A moments resistance. It sliced through it a moment later, coming out clean. William flipped, using the weight of the blade to drag his body around it.

He was in position, and still had a little air. He swung around, bringing the blade down hard on the Stalker's broad back.

The carapace cracked, splintering up and down it's back. William jumped away, dragging the sword after him. It slowed him down, but he'd taken care of the hard part. The armor was compromised.

"Got to put more of your ass into the swing." Leo said, snatching the sword from William's hands.

William blinked, shock running through his mind as he registered Leo's broad back and Sandra's soft curls in front of him.

He wasn't supposed to be combat right now.

"Le-"

"I know." Leo replied. "Work as a team. Protect her." He flexed, muscles rippling as he tightened his grip on the sword. "It won't even touch her."

Leo closed at a slow walk. Pincers lashed out at him, but surprisingly, Leo batted them away with his sword. As much as William hated to admit it. He wasn't doing terrible.

So he switched tactics. Moonlight Sonata returned to his hand, and he ran interference with Victoria. Together, they distracted the Stalker. Giving Leo the room he needed to take a final step into range and swing.

The greatsword ripped through the concrete floor, cleaving through the beast, splitting it down the middle. It froze, slumping to either side. Blood oozed out of it, but parts of it melted away.

"Tank." Leo said after a moment, earning a curious look from William.

Leo jabbed his thumb at his chest. "That's what role I am in this team. I'm a fucking tank. I have a big gun, but I walk slow, and I take a lot of hits. Use me as you will. But I can't change what role I play. And sometimes I want to play others."

William pursed his lips. He supposed he'd rate that as progress. More or less. Leo had accepted his role. Or rather, he'd reminded himself what he was.

"Well. Let's get moving." William said, leaving the corpse to rot. Victoria was the last one out of the cell. William slammed it shut behind him, locking it.

No one had to know what was left in these cells. Only them and Roman.

William and Victoria used Leo for the Ursas on the next floor, distracting them while Leo looked for an opening. Neither beast took long.

The Boarbatusk went down easy, even with the mutated spikes on it's back. All it took was leading it out the door and sending it over the catwalk. A flick of William's wrist and he had it in a noose.

Its neck snapped long before the wire cut through it's throat though.

Sandra clung to Leo throughout the whole endeavor, seeming content to cling to his back. Leo didn't seem to mind, and he moved about the same, though he was more careful with how he faced enemies, careful to not give him a shot at his side of back.

It was a step in the right direction, even if it wasn't totally team work.

William and Victoria took the lead when they moved to the third floor. The Nevermore was found in it's cell, a twisted amalgamation of limbs, feathers and a hard beak. It was pathetic, barely capable of sending razor quills across the room as an attack. William killed it quickly.

The spiderlings were more difficult. They had escaped, and laced the catwalk leading up to their cells with thick swaths of web that William hadn't known they could produce.

"Cut it." Leo said, stepping forward and bringing his sword up.

"Stop." William said, holding a hand up. "Thread and tension is my area of expertise."

Leo seemed reluctant but stepped back as William examined the set up. William snapped his fingers, drawing out a wire between his fingers. He plucked a few of the threads, examining the lay out before he took a step back.

"Easy." He pronounced.

He flipped Moonlight Sonata, expanding it out into bow form. He strung it, pulling it back to his lip as he formed the arrow. He hesitated, letting the arrowhead shift as he adjusted the tight cluster of wires that made it.

Then he fired.

The arrow shot though a few threads but sped off into the darkness. The webs still hung, but William seemed satisfied with his shot. He let out a slow breath, lowering the bow.

"Nice miss." Leo muttered, taking a better grip on his sword as he stepped forward.

William smirked, holding up a hand. A thin blue thread coiled around his finger, rapidly snaking around it as the line dragged more and more out.

"Take a guess what I just pegged." William said.

Victoria whistled. "How'd you managed that?"

William shrugged, giving no answer. Instead he wrapped the wire around his palm, jerking it back. The wire snapped taunt, slicing through a row of webbing. A moment later the wire went slack. William retracted it all the way, instead of dissolving it.

"One." He pronounced, his little wire coming into view, dragging the severed half of a spiderlings along.

A malformed human with six spikes like appendages. An enlarged mouth with mandibles and a cluster of eyes on its face. William smiled, using the weight as he retracted the wire to clear the path.

"Still could have used a sword."

"Web sticks to metal. Aura won't stick."

"You little Aura things could have worked." Leo protested, seeming unwilling to give William a victory.

"And loose a shot like that? Not a chance." William chuckled, finally letting the thread dissolve as he walked down the cleared path.

"So where's the other one?" Victoria asked, looking up and around the catwalk.

The lights were on, but they cast heavy shadows into the craggy rock ceiling. Plenty of space for a crafty mutant to hide.

"Hiding. I cut the web, so it probably scattered if it had sense. That's how normal spiders work. I don't know about Grimm variants." William muttered.

He took a few steps, suddenly jerking his arm back, hissing sharply. He grabbed the shoulder, grip tightening on it as a snarl crossed his face.

It took Victoria a moment to recall that it was his injured shoulder. He had handled it so casually she'd forgotten. She rushed to his side, taking his hand off the wound to fumble with the bandaging.

The wound hissed as it hit fresh air, a mixture of yellow pus and green ooze squirting out. Victoria yelped, taking a step back as it squirted out. William's face contorted into a grimace as it spattered on his sleeve, smoking.

"That's gross." He hissed, taking his eyes off the wound and looking to the ceiling.

Victoria swallowed, taking a step back to reexamine the wound. She could see the muscles underneath it. The acid, or puss, or venom, she didn't know which, had burned the skin through. It was raw, pink and red muscle flexed and shuddered as William stretched the arm.

"William. This is bad." Victoria's hands dropped to her belt, wondering if she could neutralize it again with more Dust.

"Wipe it clean." William told her, flipping Moonlight Sonata around and slidding it into the holster. He pulled an Aura Blade out, the blade coming to life in his hands as he craned his head back to look at it.

Leo pushed past him, heading down the catwalk. "I'll go ahead with Sandra and see if I can find this spiderling."

"Wait." William called. "Take Victoria. I'll do first-aid." Victoria opened her mouth to protest, but William snapped his bad arm up, puss squirting out again as it pinched a knot of blisters. "Not a word you. Give me your Dust."

Victoria seemed less than pleased with that, but she didn't press the issue. She pulled out two vials, one white, the other green, and set both down by his side. She straightened up as William dropped into a crouch, letting her see that he was going to take care of it.

"Go." William ordered, popping both stoppers out of the small jars.

Victoria grimaced, but headed after Leo down the catwalk.

William waited patiently, watching them cut through the spider silk and around the corner. He was glad the facility had been built in an L shape. It gave him a heavy corner to work behind.

He picked up both bottles, shaking them experimentally before flipping them around and dumping the contents into the pocket burned into his shoulder.

The Dust activated instantly. The green dust chewed through the acidic puss, scorching the remnants of his muscles and cleansing the poison with brutal force. The white Dust burned even more. An itching feeling as it bound with his Aura, amplifying his healing factor. It didn't do much at the moment, but he could still extra grains of Dust in the cavity. He'd absorb it over time, but that was all he could spare. He had a mission to keep to.

He cast out his semblance again, looping several lengths of wire around the handrail and then his waist. He had to retrieve that data stick.

He vaulted the railing, giving the wire plenty of slack as he fell. He twisted through the air, reaching out and grabbing the second-floor handrail. His grip was loose, his touch soft on contact. He tightened it, flexing his arms to slow his descent before letting go before he put his full weight on his arms.

He hit the ground hard but rolled forward to disperse some of the force. He'd hit badly, his shins burned from the impact, and he didn't the forward momentum to truly get anything out of the roll. He'd survive.

He left the wire connected to his waist as he headed back to the lab. The double doors welcomed him, and for a moment he saw it as it was.

Crisp and clean white tile floor. Freshly washed and cleaned glass wall. A boy strapped to the gurney, a yellow mixture in the syringe as the scientist approached, ever so gently sliding it into his arm.

William blinked, and the image was gone. That was the first time he'd walked in. And he recognized the boy as well. He'd become an Ursa.

William shoved that memory to the back of his head as he made it to the computer. He checked the code, finding that it had already copied the computer's database onto it. He stuffed it into his pocket, turning to go.

The doors were open, but it wasn't his teammates standing in the doorway.

Roman.

The ginger smiled at him, taking a few steps forward to block William's path.

"Got something for me wolfie?" His voice came out strange, muddled. Like William was listening to it through water or blown out speakers.

William took a step forward, but gravity had shifted. He stumbled, passing Roman as he hit the doors. His head ached. He brought a hand up to it, pressing his hand to his throat.

His pulse was quick. His skin hot. Poison. Why? He should have a resistance. And he had the Dust.

William stumbled, catching himself with his good arm and shoving himself forward. Catwalk. He just needed to get to the catwalk. Pull himself up. Then he could have a hallucination.

Roman swiped his legs out from under him, sending him crashing to the ground. William swore as the concrete met his skull, sending a new pain through his head.

He rolled onto his back and the vision shifted.

Hairy mandibles. Six legs. Webs around his ankles.

Then Roman was back, leering over him. A chain was around William's arms, and a syringe in Roman's hand.

"Don't you just love these fun times?" Roman's voice muddled through the haze in William's head.

William kicked, sending his steel boot into his stomach. Roman staggered back, the needle clattering to the ground as William found his feet and ran.

William's lungs burned, his pulse pounding in his ear, louder than the rasp of his lungs. He was hallucinating. He had to be. Roman wouldn't come back. It was the venom. And it had to be the other spiderlings.

But that didn't make it any easier to deal with. Not when he saw that syringe. Not when he knew what that syringe did. Not when he knew first hand.

A chain pulled tight at his waist, sending him to the ground for a second time. William swore, catching himself on hands and knees. His vision swirled, blotches of shadow and light flashing and mixing as he looked back.

Roman was back, the syringe in his hand.

"Get away from me you fuck!" William snarled, his hands fumbled for his belt.

He had Moonlight Sonata. He could handle it. He could handle his mind throwing this at him. He could kill the spiderlings. He could survive the fake-Roman.

His breath hitched at his next thought.

What if that syringe was real.

And what if that was Roman.

His fingers brushed Moonlight Sonata's hilt, but he couldn't bring himself to draw it. Roman would give him another dose out of spite if he did.

"Glad you know your place." Roman cooed. He towered over William, bearing down on him.

Roman leaned down, getting uncomforatbly close as he raised his hand, the syringe getting closer and closer to William's neck. William closed his eyes, bracing himself for the rush of cold. For the visions, the dreams, the pain.

But it didn't come.

Instead William got jerekd back, thrown through the air and into the far wall. His head hit the concrete for a second time, his mind spinning. Someone was touching his head. He recognized that voice.

Cool and crisp, a tone of melody in the higher octaves of her voice. Like a smooth jazz singer. Victoria.

He blinked, and his vision cleared for a split second. Leo had handling the spinderling, greatsword swiping back and forth, severing legs and fending off manibles. Sandra leaned against the wall, her body nothing but dead weight. Victoria was over him, slapping his neck and shaking him. Her eyes dropped to his shoulder, but he couldn't reason why.

He leaned his head back against the wall, staring at the ceiling. Roman wasn't here.

Roman wasn't here.

Roman hadn't been here.

There was no syringe.

There wasn't any torture today.

He didn't have to see them.

Face them.

Cry for them again.

Kill them.

Electricity rippled through William's body, like brisk mountain air after a day in a stuffy classroom. William's lungs gasped for air, his hair standing on end as he felt his mind rewire, his heart skip a beat and his muscles flex and tense. He shot to his feet, stumbling a step and puking onto the concrete. He collapsed next to it, groaning softly as he stared at the mess.

"He's awake for sure now." Leo's voice.

William rolled away from his vomit, pushing himself back onto his feet. He pressed a hand to his head, feeling his headache come back two-fold.

"Fuck." William whispered, pressing his thumb to his temple. "Did you just shock me?" He turned to look at Leo.

His tank top was plastered with webbing, but he seemed fine otherwise. His hair was crackling with electricity, his eyes alight with it. He'd sheathed the greatsword, but he still looked raring to go.

"William. You're pretty bad off." Victoria walked over, pressing her hand against his chest. "You looked like you were hallucinating. That spider-thing was right on top of you and you just let it. What happened?"

Tell the truth. Part of him begged him to. Her violet eyes were wide with concern as they dropped to his shoulder and then his neck. Tell her. Tell her. Tell her.

Tell no one.

Roman's voice in his head.

"When you left…" William started, recollecting his thoughts. It took him a few second to get it all together. And only a split-second to twist it into a lie. "It ambushed me. I got the Dust out, but it knocked me off the catwalk. I caught myself with my semblance. But then I just started seeing things. I hit the ground pretty hard." William shook his head for emphasis. "It gets fuzzy after that. My uncle was here. Talking to me about something. He was telling me about my mom when…" He trailed off on purpose, letting his eyes drift to the spiderling's dead body. He licked his lips, turning his eyes back to Victoria.

"So, I guess I need to see a nurse huh?" William supposed casually.

Sandra stared at him from across the hallway, her gills puffing out for a second. Leo headed to her, picking her up and setting her on his shoulders for a second time.

"Let's go." Victoria took his hand, squeezing it in hers. "You scared me."

William hummed softly at that. She was growing attached. He nodded, straightening up and following Leo. The poison still burned in his arm, but he knew that wasn't what made him see Roman.

The poison had nothing to do with it. Just a simple flashback at a bad timing. The poison had slowed him down. He'd have managed it if it hadn't.

That's what he told himself.

That's what William hoped. But he knew he was just lying to himself. He'd have let it end right there.

"Let's clear out. Leo, head down to the lab one more time. Through the experimentation room is a stairwell. Code is 7842 for the keypad." William dug into his pockets for a second. His fingers tapped the drive, but that wasn't what he needed.

He produced a small jack, a little magnetic ball that looked harmless. William handed it to Leo.

"Slap that on the module over the interface and I can override it from outside."

Leo looked at the device skeptically, but didn't argue.

"Where'd you get that?" Victoria asked, giving him a puzzled look.

Roman.

"Ozpin gave it to me. He said he didn't want a trace of this facility. Generators are easy to overload wirelessly." William supplied, bedning down and sliding an arm under Sandra. He helped her to her feet, waiting a moment as Victoria got her other side.

Together, they walked to the hole in the wall that would drop them into the railroad. William set Sandra down by the ledge, taking out Moonlight Sonata and stringing it.

"Shouldn't you be saving your Aura?" Victoria asked as William drew the arrow back.

"You have a better idea on how to get down princess?" William replied, letting the arrow fly.

He went for an angle this time since he had the catwalk to work off now. The arrow hit the burnt out traincar, punching through the steel and anchoring in the hull. William turned, measuring and firing the second anchor into the catwalk above them. He let the wires loop and secure, then tugged on it.

It seemed stable.

"Ladies first." William said, nodding his head at Victoria.

"Hey, I'm not leaving you up here!" Victoria started. William took a step, invading her space as he grasped her wrist. She stopped as William peered into her eyes, letting his face get awkwardly close to hers. She swallowed, starting to lean back just as William leaned forward.

"I can either let you go down this zipline on your terms or my terms." William said calmly. "Your choice."

Victoria swallowed again, then swung past him, making a point not to look at him as she examined the wire. After a moment of hesitation she took off her belt and sheated her sword. She slung the leather accessory over the wire, tugging on it before looking over at William.

"I won't drop you." William assured her.

Victoria jumped, sliding down the line. She hit the ground awkwardly, but stayed on her feet. Then it was Sandra's turn.

William didn't bother with pretext. He handed her an Aura Blade, lashing it to her hands with his semblance. A moment of playing with the wires and Sandra slid down, as graceful as a sack of potatoes. Like deadweight and awkward hanging.

Leo arrived shortly, not even waiting for William to explain it before he leapt onto the wire, sliding down it with his barehands. William smirked, admitting that it was an amusing move, if foolhardy.

Still, Leo at least had gloves.

William glanced back at the lab, tapping his foot anxiously at the concrete walls and metal doors.

'You belong here. With all these other monsters' Roman's voice bounced off the walls, seeming to echo against the ceiling.

"Only because that's what you made me." William replied, sliding an Aura Blade out. He expanded the blade, pushing it past the confines of the blade and forming it into a hook.

He jumped onto the wire, feeling the Blade shift, unwilling to accept the form, but he forced it to anyway. He slid the full length of the wire, but caught himself against the cart with his feet, letting his knees bend as he slowed to a stop.

He dropped to the ground, dispelling his Aura.

"Mission complete." William muttered, glancing up at the hole in the tunnel ceiling. "Let's get out of this dump."

Leo smirked, picking Sandra up. He waited for Victoria and him to join, then started walking back the way they came. William smirked.

"Thought you'd never ask." Leo muttered, "First date and you take me out to a murder house." So he was pulling those jokes now? William supposed that was acceptable.

"Thought you might like the scenery." William countered.

"Both of you two stop it. I'm not chaperoning." Victoria tried to be hard, but her lips curled up in the hint of a smile.

Sandra smiled laughed, opening her mouth for the first time in a while. A pure tone rang out, which quickly turned into another, which lead into a soft melody that echoed and rang throughout the tunnel.

William hummed, finding the tune refreshing. It was soft, but free-flowing. A fitting tune for a freed prisoner. He could almost hear her joy in the notes. The soft lull of the low notes, followed by the quick but smooth rise as she transitioned to a higher tone.

Leo snorted suddenly, seeming to have found a joke.

"What?" Victoria asked.

"Siren's trying to enchant us." Leo shrugged, giving Sandra a slight jostle.

William shook his head. "Leo, you're terrible."

Leo shrugged, but that didn't matter.

Sandra's singing had stopped, but an equally pure sound rang out across the tunnels now. Her laughter.

Alright. So that was a thing.

This came out so much longer than I had planned. I wanted to keep it around the previous chapter length, but for any of you oldies. You can see it didn't. Things happened. Specifically, Sandra.

For everyone else, as in, first-time readers, I hope you enjoyed it. I considered cutting this chapter in half, but I couldn't find a good time to do it since I already sliced one of these chapters in half due to expansion.

Don't get me wrong, expansion isn't a bad thing, but I didn't want to dwell on the location or the mission. I wanted to dwell on the characters and their interaction, which I think I accomplished so much better this run.

Also, consider everything that William has done. I want feedback on how you guys think his alignment is going. Is he still serving Roman as a faithful dog, or is he considerin Ozpin? Or is he fighting his own war?

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I certainly enjoyed rewritting William and Sandra's confrontation as well as William's inner turmoil and choices. I hope to get more indepth with those as the story picks up and I get indulge in my darker side.

Have fun. Sorry it's a bit long. Review! I really do love reviews and feedback, especially comparing and contrasting the rough draft and this one!

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