Chapter 12

Few months after Beacon's fall

Schnee manor

Weiss was eating her breakfast alone when Klein, the family butler, arrived with the guard robot that the Atlas council had ordered be placed in her family's manor to protect them. Though Klein was against the robot at first, he grew to tolerate it as it didn't really do much other than keep an eye for the Schnees'.

"Shall I get some more tea for you, miss Schnee?" Klein asked as he carried a tray of tea and sugar for her.

"No thanks." Weiss said as she looked at Klein. "But thank you though." Klein simply bowed at her before leaving. Upon him leaving, Weiss looked at the machine that stayed behind. "It's Noblesse Oblige, correct?"

"Yes, madam." Noblesse said with a bow. "Is there anything that you wish for me to do?"

"Not really." Weiss said as she finished her breakfast. "I just wish for you to give me some space." For the past few days, since he arrived here, Noblesse had done nothing, but keep a close eye on her and her family. Quite frankly, it was getting on her nerves, despite him keeping a respectable distance away. She knew it was his programming, but it still bothered her.

"But I give you more than sufficient space, ma'am." Noblesse said. "Do you simply wish for me to leave you alone?" Weiss just sighed before speaking.

"Yes." Weiss said. "I would actually like that." Noblesse just bowed before leaving her alone. Once he was gone, Weiss left the dining table to take a walk in the garden.

Her mother wasn't planning to drink today, having promised Weiss that she won't, the garden would be free to stroll around without hearing a woman yelling in anguish or a bottle of expensive wine being thrown around. After arriving in the wonderful garden that was in the Schnee manor, Weiss went into thought as she enjoyed the peace. She thought about her team and how they were doing. She missed them considerably along with JNPR, Neptune, and even Jack, who was declared missing during the fall of Beacon, though he was assumed to be dead along with many others. Winter took it hard but steeled herself to carry on in her duty. She was surprised at that, but stayed silent, not wanting to bother her sister when she was in pain. Her thoughts soon went to the memory of that robot and the two that saved her, Xayah and the one called Master Chief. She wondered what those three were doing and what side they were on. The robot was obviously on the side of whoever staged the attack on Beacon, but she didn't know about Xayah or the Master Chief. Were they on their side or their own? Before she could contemplate it more, she heard something coming toward the garden. She turned around and to her annoyance, she saw Noblesse Oblige walking toward her.

"I thought I said I wanted to be left alone." Weiss said, placing a hand on her hip, annoyed that her order was ignored.

"Forgive me, miss Schnee." Noblesse said. "But your sister is here. She wishes to speak to you." Surprised at this, Weiss thanked the robot before allowing him to escort her to her sister. The machine led her to where her sister was, which was the main entrance to the manor.

"Winter." Weiss said with excitement as she raced to her sister and hugged her, who returned with the same affection. "Will you be staying tonight?"

"Not really." Winter said. "I'm afraid that I'm just here to give a message to father from Ironwood. If you would like, we can talk while we're on our way to the office. I feel like I need it." Wanting to spend some time with her sister and a want to see how she is, Weiss accepted the offer, leaving Noblesse alone. Once he was left alone, Noblesse wandered around the manor, ignoring the looks from the staff. He was about to go somewhere safe, so he can speak to the Internecine when he heard the sounds stomping feet in heels and a door being slammed. Curious, he pinpointed the origin to be from Willow Schnee's room. As she was his ward for the moment until the Internecine decided that it was time get rid of the Schnee family, Noblesse went to Willow's room to check up on her. Upon arriving at her room, he knocked on the door.

"I wish to be left alone!" Willow yelled before she drank a cup of wine. Noblesse, a respecter of people's privacy, choose to simply wait outside until miss Schnee will leave her room. Meanwhile, Jacques Schnee, Weiss's father, was reading the message that Winter delivered. He wasn't at all happy.

"Who does that man think he is!" Jacques yelled before putting down the letter and going on a rant. After he finished, he calmed down and spoke to Winter. "Tell me that this is a joke, Winter."

"I'm afraid not, father." Winter said with a tone of authority. "He placed a ban on exporting dust to other kingdoms until stated otherwise. And before you ask, the majority of the council supported him. Very firmly, might I add." Growling in anger, Jacques sighed to himself before speaking again.

"Then tell James that I wish to speak to him later in the week about this." Jacques said. "And that he better do so or else." Winter raised an eyebrow at that threat but complied. The two sisters then left their father and to the doors that led out of the manor.

"Are you fine, Winter?" Weiss asked, gaining the courage to speak to Winter.

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"It's just that…I know that you cared for Jack a lot. And that him being declared missing in action would have left you depressed." Winter then sighed before speaking.

"I will admit, it hurt me that he's declared missing. Possibly dead. But I knew that one day, that would happen. It's just the life that he, you, and I choose, after all. I just wish that it wasn't so soon. He would have made a fine huntsman." Weiss simply nodded as the two stopped before the door. She would have liked to ask of their exact relations but she felt like it wasn't the right time, not when she's still grieving. Before she left, Winter hugged Weiss and told her good luck. With that, she left, leaving Weiss alone in the manor again. Sighing, Weiss left for her room, having nothing to do for the day. As she walked, she heard some laughter coming from her mother's room. Shocked at this, as her mother never laughed since being married to her father, she rushed to the door and leaned on it.

"Oh my!" Willow said as she tried to contain her giggles. "You have quite the humility in you, Noblesse."

"I do what I need to do, miss Schnee. To ensure that your family is safe and relatively happy."

"Well, I must thank whoever programmed you. I certainly needed that. I suppose those people that said laughter is a good medicine for depression or anger weren't wrong, after all."

"Thank you, ma'am. I'll be sure to notify him of that." Willow simply nodded in understanding before walking over to her door and opening it. To her surprise, Weiss was at the door, having backed away to avoid hitting it.

"I suppose you heard all that, my dear?" Willow asked, slightly disappointed that Weiss had been spying on her. Weiss, to her credit, blushed a bit before speaking.

"Forgive me, mother. It won't happen again."

"I'll let it go, my dear. After all, you have never heard me laugh in your life. Ever." Willow then sighed before leaving to get something to eat from the kitchen. Once they were alone, Weiss looked at Noblesse.

"What did you do?" Weiss asked, crossing her arms at the robot. She had never seen nor heard her mother laugh in her whole life. She recalled sometime ago, during her elementary years, that she tried to make her laugh, to no avail. She was always to moody or depressed to even bother. Or was just too busy. And yet, this machine had done what she couldn't do.

"I merely engaged my humor protocol." Noblesse Oblige explained. "Miss Schnee was depressed about something, so I merely entertained her until her mood improved considerably, enough that she won't drink to relieve herself." Hearing that answer, made Weiss raise an eyebrow.

"You have a humor protocol?"

"Of course. My duty is to ensure that the Schnee family is safe and secure. That also includes keeping them happy. I hope that doesn't offend you, ma'am." Weiss just starred in shock at the machine before shaking her head.

"No, that's okay. Thank you for what you did for my mother."

"It's simply my duty." Noblesse Oblige said before leaving. Once he turned the corner, Weiss let out a bigger smile.

"Perhaps keeping him around won't be so bad, after all." Weiss thought as she walked to her room. Meanwhile, Noblesse was thinking of the Schnees.

"I have to admit that the females in this family are bearable compared to the males. A pity that they all have to die for the Internecine." Noblesse thought before walking away. Unknown to him, a shadowy figure was watching him before leaving.

Boat traveling to Menagerie

"So…what's Menagerie like?" Sun asked as he watched Blake watch the sun rising. He had to admit, it was something to look forward to. The Faunas woman next to him sighed before turning to him.

"It's better if you see for yourself." Blake said, making Sun groaned, wanting to know more about Menagerie now. Unknown to the two, two Faunas like beings were in the cargo hold. Ahri just sighed to herself as she watched Xayah trying to hold in her bile.

"I told you to get those enhancements." Ahri said as she let her tail swish back and forth.

"Screw...that." Xayah said before cupping her mouth, causing Ahri to sigh.

"I hope this boat ride will be over soon. We're almost out of barf bags for you." She then smirked when Xayah gave her the middle finger. "Wonder how the others are doing?"

Vale

"I'm telling you, we should be out there, helping the Hunters and Huntresses out." Coco said as the rest of her team were deep in thought.

"I have to agree, Coco." Velvet said. "It is kind of our duty to help take out Grimm, right?"

"Exactly." Coco said before turning to the huntsman that she had talked to. "So, why aren't you letting us help."

"I'm sorry." The huntsman said. "But the council forbid any huntsmen/huntresses in training from helping us retake Beacon. For now, just go and help those that are doing the relief efforts." Sighing in frustration, Coco and her team left the huntsman and went to a relief zone, where people that had lost their homes to the Grimm were located.

"I can't believe this." Coco said. "We're just as capable as them. We should be out there and helping. Besides, they need all the help they can get."

"While I agree, that they need as much help as needed." Yatsuhashi said. "We aren't as skilled or experienced as fully trained huntsmen. We need more training."

"Which won't be as good as Beacon because that was the only huntsmen academy in Vale" Coco said. Sure, the school meant for preparing people for Beacon were okay and had fine instructors that used to be Huntsman, it wasn't as rigorous or strict as Beacon in Coco's mind.

"Relax Coco." Velvet said. "We'll get out time to shine. But for now, we need to help these people." Knowing she was right, Coco sighed before the four began to help pass out food and water for the people in need. As she was passing out some soup, Coco noticed a woman in a fine black dress looking at her with an impassive face, but her eyes held some amusement in them. Raising an eyebrow and wondering why she wore such a dress while everyone else was wearing casual wear, she walked up to the woman after passing a family their rations.

"Got something to tell me?" Coco asked as she looked at the woman, who simply chuckled as she looked at Coco.

"Just amused at your spirit." The woman said. "You really want to get out there and take the fight to the Grimm, huh?"

"Well, yeah. It's what I'm meant to do."

"Oh I know. But isn't it the purpose of a Huntress to also protect the people as well? And that should extend to helping them restart their lives or get back on their feet?" Coco just stayed silent.

"So, your saying that I shouldn't be complaining about this assignment?"

"Maybe." The woman said while twirling a strand of her hair. "I'm just telling you that there are other ways other than fighting to do your job. If you think that the job of a Huntsman is to just fight, then you'll have the chance for that soon enough." With that the woman began to leave. "Names Solaris, by the way." Coco just rose an eyebrow at that before going back to her kitchen duty. Solaris, meanwhile was thinking about Coco.

"Quite a character, that girl." Solaris thought. "Stubborn, but willing to fight for their beliefs. Just the way I like them." With that she began to walk to the apartment that she rented while she spied on team CFVY.

Mistral

A few days later

"I'm telling you guys. Keep an eye on our map!" Jaune said as he looked at their map after they went back to the town they left to acquire a new one after they discovered Nora lost their original one.

"I'll be sure to keep an eye on it." Ren said as the four walked to their next designation while on their way to Heaven Academy.

"Oh, just let it go, Jaune." Ruby said as she held the map. "So, what's our next designation again?"

"Shion." Jaune said with a smile. "My family used to go there all the time. You guys will love it. There's a great hiking trail and a perfect camping spot. Plus, the people there are some of the nicest folks you'll see out here." As he ranted about Shion, Nora and Ren saw the village and gasped. Jaune and Ruby too distracted with either describing Shion or looking at the map.

"Guys." Nora said as she and Ren looked at the village. "Look." Ruby and Jaune then looked and gasped upon seeing the destroyed remnants of what used to be Shion.

"My god." Jaune said as the four made there way to the destroyed village, hoping to find any survivors. Soon, they found a heavily wounded huntsman. After running toward him and putting pressure into his wounds, Jaune spoke to the man.

"What happened? Who killed all these people!?" The huntsman just coughed before speaking.

"Bandits." The huntsman said, barely able to say the word. "They came with the cover of night and started pillaging and slaughtering the villagers, creating panic. And because of the panic…"

"Grimm." Ren said, getting the picture. Everyone looked solemn at that before they looked at the huntsman.

We'll get you a doctor." Ruby said. "Just hold on." Unfortunately, the huntsman then succumbed to his wounds and died, horrifying the teens. Sighing in frustration, Ren looked away.

"Should we bury him?" Nora asked, uncertain.

"No." Ren said. "We don't have the time and the Grimm may come back and investigate who buried him. Or the bandits may come again and do the same." Sighing again, Ren walked away. Jaune, who was distraught at seeing death again, just held his head.

"Jaune." Ruby said, holding his arm.

"It's okay, Ruby." Jaune said before sighing. "I'm just sick of losing things that I love." He then followed Ren, leaving Nora and Ruby to look at the dead huntsman. They looked at the man for a few seconds before following the boys, eager to get away from the destroyed village. Unbeknownst to them, John was watching them through the scope of a sniper rifle. Besides him was another figure wearing armor that completely obscured their identity.

"Should we bury those people?" The armored man asked, turning to face John.

"We can't." John said. "It'll just draw attention around here. And we can't afford it. Still, that doesn't mean I can't get someone to do it." He then put a hand on the side of his helmet. "Ra. Send a unanimous request to any huntsman team in Mistral, that request the acquiring and burying of anyone in Shion." After getting his reply, John got up.

"Let's go." John then cloaked himself and leaving with his compatriot, who also cloaked himself.

Unknown location

The Internecine was interested. For the past six months, its remaining active facilities were being destroyed with coordinated attacks. The attackers equipped with technology that surpassed the technology of the nation called Atlas, which was the most technologically advanced nation in this planet. His forces tried their best to defend themselves, but they were all destroyed with alarming ease. Such things both frustrated and fascinated the Internecine. It was clear to the Internecine that these unknown entities had fought Mil forces before. Their tactics mirror this very much.

"Tactics and plans will require change. Along with significant upgrades to standard grunt units." Thought the Internecine as he reviewed the combat logs of his lost combat units. The units themselves were lost, but their memories and combat data was not. Reading through the logs, the Internecine concluded that he needed to increase the durability of his units as well as increasing their production. Though he didn't have as many facilities as it liked, the location it was in was more than capable of creating the units he desired along with a few major facilities. Sending the request, the Internecine was checking the progress on acquiring the remaining pieces. To its annoyance, the piece of the key was nowhere in the primary training facility on the nation called Vale. His forces simply couldn't find it. It was more hidden than the rest as they still can easily detect their presence in the other three kingdoms. Briefly wondering why this is, the Internecine ignored it and focused on acquiring the other pieces. It seemed to the machine, that the nation called Vacuo was the least defended. To entice the machine's decision to attack Vacuo, it seemed most of its elite fighters, the huntsmen, were all dead, leaving them dangerously low on fighters. This in mind, it ordered a base to be established near Vacuo's main city so that they're ready for an invasion. With the order passed, the Internecine went back to the task of rebuilding its forces.

Unknown location

"This is ludicrous." Said a man with a metal helmet that's eyes glowed orange. The same one that Jack found unnerving. He was currently looking at a monitor. What he saw annoyed him beyond measure. "That foolish Quarian thinks to revive this native is a wise course of actions? For intel? Our intelligence unit is more than capable of doing that! How that fool acquired the rank of admiral is beyond me!" Once he finished his rant, he looked over to see his assistances going over the progress of the boy. Sighing, the man went over to a capsule in the room. Tapping at the capsule, a holographic screen, showcasing various vitals. Touching his chin, the man looked over to a platinum blonde-haired woman with pearl earrings. "Doctor Burns. How is the patient?" The woman just brought up another holographic screen from her wrist via a device mounted on her wrist and showed it to him.

"It'll be only a few days before he could be fully revitalized safely. He's been elapsing in and out of consciousness in increasing frequency." The man then waved his hand.

"Make that a few moments, Miss Burns. I just received a message from Admiral Zorah. He wants the patient be revived now." Miss Burn's eyes widened at that and so did everyone who heard what the man said. They attempted to protest but the man raised his cane, making everyone shut up. "I don't want to do so either, but this was a direct order from the admiral. And he just messaged the captain and commander John. We can't do anything but follow his orders, unless we want a court martial. So, do as I say and start the procedure." Everyone looked angry at this, but complied, knowing that they had no choice. A few minutes later, a small detachment of guards came inside the room.

The guards' armor was overkill, to say the least. They wore full body armor more suited for combat than guard duty. The armor also looked to be designed with intimidation in mind as well. The four glowing slits where eyes should be did nothing but scare civilians as they looked at the armored being. The armor itself was slim, but heavy duty with heavy armor plating that protected the user completely. The guards themselves were huge, at least one and a half foot taller than even the tallest individual in the room. The guns were also large and were quite overkill for simple guarding.

After arriving in the room, the guards took defensive positions in the large room, their guns pointed at the capsule, before turning invisible. With everything done, the man with a metal mask told everyone to proceed. With a push of a button from a holographic screen on the man's wrist, the capsule began to glow brightly from the glass that showed what's inside.

"Okay, vitals are stable. The subject is doing fine for now." Burns said as she stood next to the man in charge, who stayed calm. After a few seconds, she spoke to the man. "Viktor, if he does come back, mind intact, what will you do?" The man, now named, just moved his head a bit to his assistant.

"After I get him under control and calm, I'll contact the commander and the captain. They'll explain the situation to the boy. Better than me anyway." With that, Burns didn't say anything and watched as the glowing began to die down. Once it ended completely, she looked at her wrist mounted holographic screen.

"Okay, vitals are all good and the boy is starting to wake up. You'll be able to speak with him soon." Viktor just nodded before walking over to the capsule. Looking inside, Viktor can see that the contents of the capsule was a slim and lanky creature. After bringing his hand on the capsule, he spoke.

"Welcome back to the living Jack."