The Fall Project

War

Risk and Reward

"But you said you know where they're keeping all the Dust!" Weiss exclaimed, trying to convince her team, as well as team CMSN, that this would be a perfect way to move against the White Fang. "If we steal back the stolen property we could balance things out and get back at those miscreants!"

Milo sighed once again, palming his forehead in annoyance. "Yes, that's great and all but like I said, Adam is overseeing things now." He stated, noticing one of Blake's cat ears flinch and turn in his direction at the mention of the White Fang leader's name, even though she wasn't listening to the conversation in the slightest. Rolling his eyes, he returned his focused to the young heiress. "Since he's there, the whole operation would be far more dangerous than it's worth."

Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and all of team CMSN sat together at the corner of a secluded, yet brightly-lit warehouse at the edge of the city. It had become the chosen place for training, with minimal to no civilian interference and few people who would care about a bit of damaged property. After getting Yang on her feet and training her with her prosthetic for the better part of the morning, he asked the others to join him for a training session of their own.

Unfortunately, team JNPR all said they were preoccupied. Jaune and Pyrrha were spending the day looking for, as Jaune put it, 'the right people.' While he didn't exactly know that that meant, he dismissed it as unimportant. Ren wanted to go to a library outside of town, and Nora refused to go anywhere without him. That left the three remaining members of team RWBY, along with CMSN and their newest addition, Neo.

Rather than training, they had been arguing for the past hour.

Most of them were all for reclaiming the Schnee Dust Company's lost property or getting back at the White Fang, but Milo and Cade were both worried that doing so without an effective plan would be a death sentence.

"Then what do you suggest, Milo? I mean there has to be something we can do to make it happen!" the young heiress exclaimed.

"Well, we'd have to distract Adam somehow," he responded with a shrug. "The problem is that there isn't much he can't either ignore or deal with extremely quickly. To be completely honest I'm at a loss here."

"He isn't easily distracted, and his frustration gives him focus," Blake said, suddenly adding her own piece into the conversation.

"Why the sudden interest, Blake? It's almost as if you want to see him," the avian teased, earning him a venomous, cat-eyed glare.

"OH! OH! THAT GIVES ME AN IDEA!" Ruby screamed, leaping to her feet. She pointed directly at Blake and hopped with excitement. "You can go talk to him!"

Blake's eyes widened and she nearly panicked, "W-What? Ruby that's not a very-"

"I'M NOT DONE!" the reaper yelled, then slowly pointed at Milo. "You can pretend to be her boyfriend to make Adam mad!"

"WHAT!?" Blake shrieked, nearly losing her book as she jumped up. "Ruby, that is a terrible idea! Besides, Adam wouldn't care who I'm with anyway!"

"Oh come on Blake, you two spent years with each other! There's no way he didn't like you," she said, then snickered, "Wasn't it just a couple weeks ago that you told me you guys used to-"

"RUBY!" the young faunus squealed in a panic, her eyes wide with terror. "That was between you and me! Only you and me!"

Gabe immediately threw an elbow into Mike's ribs. "Told you so. Pay up man, fifty lien." With a disappointed groan, the teleporter pulled out his wallet and handed his brother what he owed while Milo suppressed a laugh and Cade sighed in disappointment.

"Well maybe you shouldn't leave you're diary sitting out on the desk for someone with irresistible curiosity to pick it up!" Ruby countered.

"I locked the door for a reason!" Blake hissed, her ears sweeping back as she grew more frustrated.

Milo gained everyone's attention with a not-so-subtle cough, then stood from his seat and started circling the group. "Well, as abhorrent and terrible of an idea as it is… It actually might work. Adam has been known to be partial to you and he definitely hates me, so I suppose he would have reason to get upset."

"No!" Blake voiced angrily, "I wouldn't even consider pretending to be with him!" she exclaimed, pointing harshly in his direction.

"Okay first of all, ouch..." Milo said with a sly grin, "and second, how are we supposed to get him to listen to us without attacking on sight?"

The cat faunus groaned, knowing that they weren't going to back down and this really was the only thing productive they could to right now. No matter how distasteful, it would be worth it in the long run. "He won't attack. I know how we can talk to him..." she said, rubbing her temples as if a headache were coming on.

"So you'll do it?!" the young reaper squealed. "Ooooh I can't wait! This is gonna be awesome!"

Cade jumped up before everyone dashed off to gather their equipment and yelled for them to stop. "We need to have a plan in place, guys. We can't just go in guns blazing or something will go wrong." The group slowly sat back down, everyone thinking of a viable strategy to go after the Schnee Dust.

"Where are we going anyway?" one of the twins asked Milo, who pulled a map from one of his seemingly countless pockets and started marking the entrances to the underground cave system at the base of a nearby mountain range.

"The full camp is to the north, past this mountain here. The warehouses are actually in a cave system under the mountain, on round-the-clock guard. It's most heavily guarded to the north entrance here, but there are still protected entrances to the south and east, right next to the main warehouse facility. The only way to get in undetected is to the west, but then you'd have to go straight through the barracks to get to the Dust. Cargo Bullheads can enter through a small ridge near the peak of the mountain, but trekking up there would take a full day."

Cade watched carefully as he noted each position, doing his best to formulate a plan. "Okay, hopefully the distraction with Adam will attract some people from the barracks. That way we could try and get past them quickly."

"But what will we do to get out?" Weiss questioned, "Once we grab the dust, how are we supposed to get it back here?"

Ruby tapped her chin for a few seconds, an idea quickly coming to mind. "Can any of you guys fly a Bullhead?" she asked, watching hopefully for someone speak up. The only person to raise their hand was Neo. "There we go! We'll just load up a bullhead with as much Dust as we can, and fly our way back here!"

Cade looked at Milo, eyes searching for some kind of assurance. The young faunus simply shrugged, "What? It has a good chance of working. If we want to get back Dust, this is probably the best way to do it."

The young leader took a deep breath, feeling the nervousness swell in his heart. "Well, I guess we better get ready then."

The teams determined that an hour to prepare for the raid would be enough. Everyone spent their time checking weapon mechanisms, ammo, and went over Cade's plan a few hundred times to make sure they knew each of their parts.

Cadence knew it would be difficult and dangerous, but it could set the White Fang back by a substantial margin, so it had to be done. In a small dressing room outside of Haven, he put his armor on slowly and methodically to help ease his nerves, Neo helping him with some of the hard to reach places.

He grunted as one of the straps on his back was given a harsh jerk. He ignored it at first, until Neo shifted to his front, tugging on the belts at his neck with a deep frown. The young man sighed at her grim expression, "We don't have to do it this way, you know."

She blinked, her mismatched eyes switching colors as she started treating his armor a little more gently now that she realized what she was doing. Brushing a few strands of brown hair out of her eyes, she looked up at him with slight annoyance. "We can figure out another plan, one with less risk-" he was interrupted when she shoved him back, forcing him down into a chair at his desk. The multi-colored girl pointed at herself, then placed one hand on her heart and the other on his, and finished by pointing at him.

I trust you.

"Okay," he responded, raising his hands to adjust Neo's collar. She caught his fingers with her own, silently drifting forward and into his lap while guiding his hands around her waist. The young woman leaned forward and rested her chin on his shoulder, pressing the curves of her petite frame against him and sighing in contentment.

Cade easily lifted Neo off his lap, earning a pouting sneer from the young woman as she stood and took a few paces back. He smiled and started to hum a quiet tune, her eyes softening and a smile growing at the corners of her lips when she recognized it as the first song they danced to when they first met. She leaned into him as he wrapped his arms around her, slowly dancing throughout the dimly lit room, losing themselves in each other. The act brought back the memory of the Beacon dance, when they had been simple strangers simply trying to enjoy themselves.

Ever since she could remember, Neo had been involved with criminals. She had stolen from people, raided family homes, even killed whenever Roman had told her to do so. Cade was an escape from it all; a pinch of happiness in an otherwise hellish life.

To be honest, she didn't expect their relationship to grow beyond the physical. He was a kind young man, very easy on the eyes, and always treated her the way a woman should; with kindness, respect, and… and love. Over time, she grew to depend upon the time they spent together, away from all the criminals and killers.

He gave her the only taste of a normal life she's ever had.

When Adam and Roman told her that he was getting in the way and had to be disposed of, she couldn't bring herself to do it. He was a part of her life now, a part that she could hardly live without.

As she relished in his warmth and comfort, Neo felt a twinge of fear stab at her heart. They were about to infiltrate a White Fang base. While it wasn't filled with the elite fighters, there were still bound to be a handful of lieutenants that even she would have trouble dealing with.

If Cade were to fight them… there's no way he would survive.

She clutched him tighter, her heart plummeting deep into her chest. What would she do if she lost him? It would be like living on her own again, barely scraping by each and every day. There would be nowhere to go, no one to fight for, no reason to continue. She shook her head and pulled away, quickly picking up Cade's heavy shield with a huff and holding it out to him.

"Thanks," he said, finishing by checking the revolver at his hip. "Are you ready?"

Neo nodded, her brow furrowed and her heart growing heavy. If it came down to it, she would do everything it takes to make sure he survives. Her eyes shifted to a shade of angry red as she clenched her teeth and had a white-knuckled grip on the handle of her parasol.

She swore to stick to him like glue, and no one will lay a finger on him without getting through her first.

"This is literally the worst idea Ruby has ever come up with," Blake grumbled as she stepped past the confused glances of a few dozen White Fang members.

"Ah, come on honey. We need to talk to the psychopathic terrorist," Milo teased, a wide grin on his face. "We should probably make it quick, that way we can get home to the kids before dinner. Are you cooking tonight or I gonna have to call aunt Ruby and have her make cookies for everyone?"

"… I hate you," the young woman groaned as he chuckled to himself, her face turning bright red out of anger and embarrassment. This torment had been going on for hours, and had Blake nearly ready to tear out his throat. Unfortunately, doing so would certainly not play out well with the countless number of White Fang members currently staring at the 'couple' as they made their way to Adam's tent.

The grass had been trampled to the ground, creating a large clearing for the Fang to keep their tents. They had become accustomed to living in such a manner, unable to hide their operations when inside Kingdom walls for very long. The late afternoon sun burned hot, beating down on the damp ground and heating the unbearably humid air.

Her ears twitched at the whispers between those in the growing crowd, catching a phrase here and there. Not to her surprise, they recognized both of them, though the things they said of Milo were a bit more hostile. The words 'traitor' and 'murderer' came up often. By Milo's grim expression, he heard a few whispers as well.

"Blake? Blake Belladonna?" a voice called from the growing masses, a few faunus parting to make way for a young woman of small stature and bright red hair. She had an attractive hourglass figure, the graceful movements of a temptress, a pair of fox ears atop her head and a bushy red tail, both of which were tipped with white fur. She removed her mask as she approached, her smile growing wide as her blue eyes met Blake's and she dashed forward to embrace her long lost friend.

"Cinna?!" Blake laughed in surprise and returned her enthusiastic hug. "I thought you went back to Vacuo."

"Yeah, and I thought I'd never see you again!" she exclaimed, pulling away and gently holding her hands. "It's so good to see you, Blake. We've missed you."

"And I, you," Blake said, then peered over the small girl's shoulder. "Where's Hama? I'd like to see her too, if I could." The young woman flinched at the name, biting her lip with a hint of pain in her eyes. She simply shook her head with a frown, and Blake sighed. "Oh. I'm sorry..."

After an awkward pause, Cinna tapped her on the shoulder, "So are you back? Are you staying with us again?"

Blake shook her head somberly, "No, unfortunately I'm here on business. I have a message for Adam from my father."

"Ugh… sounds boring." Her gaze fell on Milo, eyes widening and a predatory grin growing on her lips. He raised a questioning eyebrow at the hungry gleam in her eyes. "So who's your big-muscled friend here, hmm?" She asked, making sure to give him her most seductive smile.

The raven-haired huntress cleared her throat, "This is Milo; Someone I met in Vale."

The fox faunus gasped and whirled around, a look of excitement on her face. "Ooooh! Is this a special someone?" Blake smiled sheepishly and nodded slowly, not wanting to blow their cover. The young woman squealed, hugging them both together as tightly as she could manage before letting go a few moments later.

"Hate to cut this short, but we should get a move on, Blake. Time is running short," Milo urged, nudging her toward Adam's tent at the center of camp.

"Aww..." Cinna pouted, then released a long sigh. "I was hoping to see you for a bit longer. Either way, it was good seeing you, Blake." She turned on her heel and started to leave, but looked back. "Hey Milo." He looked in her direction with a furrowed brow, quickly growing impatient with the young woman. "If you get bored of her, you know where to find me," she said with a sly grin and turned away, her hips and tail teasingly swaying back and forth.

He rolled his eyes and shook his head, immediately resuming the walk to the center of camp as the crowd started to disperse. Blake hid her gaze from him, embarrassed of the way her friend had acted. "Sorry… She's always been addicted to attention."

A long pause filled the air, before he sighed. "What are you going to do if you meet her on the battlefield?" he asked in a low whisper.

She pursed her lips, not giving an answer. If it came to a battle she would defend herself like any Huntress would… but there is no way she would ever intentionally harm a friend.

As the team reached the base of the mountain that contained the White Fang's base of operations, butterflies gathered in Cade's stomach. A hundred things could go wrong, but luckily they had the element of surprise.

Still, Neo had not been gentle when she tied all their wrists to a long rope so it would look like they were her prisoners. As a final touch, Weiss had the 'genius' idea of having their mouths taped shut. Admittedly, their disguise was convincing, but left the long walk toward the large cave entrance at the south a quiet and anxiety-filled walk of shame.

They had also piled their weapons onto a makeshift sled made from some sticks, more rope, and a large piece of treebark. Neo dragged the sled behind her the whole way there, trying to keep up the deception until it was no longer needed.

When they came to the mouth of the cave, three masked guards approached from the depths with their weapons raised. Before any of them spoke, Neo stepped forward like she owned the place and shoved her scroll in the hand of a burly-looking Ram faunus that was likely the sergeant of this location.

The man glossed over the hastily-typed summary before turning to his comrades. "She was with that Torchwick guy from Vale. Says she captured these guys just outside of the base."

"They look like they were ready to fight an army," another guard observed, eyeing the impressive amount of ammunition and weapons piled onto the sled.

The third faunus had a twitching lion's tail, swinging every which way as he thought out loud. "Maybe they were about to attack. I mean we only have a handful of men guarding right now- Ow!"

"Don't talk about what we have and don't have in front of Hunters! They could be spying, damn it!" the leader exclaimed, pinching his nose in frustration. "Just take them to the brig before they find anything else out."

He handed back the scroll and reached for the rope when Neo slapped his hand aside, giving him a dangerous glare. After gaining his attention, she rubbed the fingers of her free hand together and held her hand out expectantly, waiting to collect on some form of bounty for turning in the infiltrators.

The guard sighed and shook his head, "We don't have much in the way of cash, but we've got plenty of supplies." He pointed a thumb to the left of the cave, "The place is almost filled to the brim with Dust, so take whatever you can carry and I'll take care of this," he said as he again reached for the rope, this time Neo releasing them. The ram then handed the rope to one of his subordinates, ordering one of them to take the group to the cells and add the weapons to the pile while the other tells the commander of the new arrivals.

"If any of you give me any trouble, you'll be tasting the dirt," the guard threatened as he tugged on the rope, pulling them all toward the cave entrance. Cade ignored him, instead watching Neo as she strolled inside. Just before she rounded the corner, she glanced back at him with a worried expression. He reached up and crossed his heart, promising that everything would be okay, making her nod and turn back inside.

They got a good look of the inside layout of the base as they were pressed toward the cells, seeing the cave open into a massive cavern under the mountain, held up by stone pillars that littered the inside of the cave. To the left was an area gated off from the rest, the space he knew was the warehouse, which was connected to the other entrances and contained a small landing pad for Bullheads that could get in from the ravine at the break of the mountain peak.

He noted from the corner of his eye that the one guard was right; few people were here right now, with more and more of them leaving through the north entrance by the minute. He didn't know if this was due to Blake and Milo, who no doubt just arrived at the camp to the north where nearly all of the White Fang members gathered for routine daily events and planning. At least, that's what Milo said.

A few minutes later they reached their destination; a small collection of iron jail cells built to hold you're average criminal... Not exactly what you would call 'Huntsman proof.' Just as the guard opened the metal door, Cade saw a flash of blue light behind him. In an instant, Mike threw a heavy punch into the back of the guard's head, knocking him unconscious before he even hit the ground.

The young man ripped the tape off his mouth and reached down, gripping the hilt of his sword. With a series of bright flashes, everyone's bindings were cut in a few seconds time. Everyone started tearing off the tape, sounding a few grunts of pain.

Hilariously enough, Weiss was having trouble actually getting hers off until Ruby used her lightening-quick semblance to rip it from her lips before she could stop her. "Ooowwwww…." they young heiress cried as she covered her injured lips and tears welled in her eyes.

"Sorry, Weiss," Ruby said, giving her partner a quick hug and handing over her rapier. "We need to be quick so let's get going!" she excitedly whispered.

Once the weapons and ammo were gathered, the group moved as quickly and quietly as they could toward the warehouse, silently taking down every guard they came across with a sweeping blade or a powerful choke hold.

Cade let out a sigh of relief when he saw a stationary Bullhead inside the fenced in area of the cave, right next to a dozen shipping crates of Dust labeled with the Schnee family emblem. Built into the ceiling of the cave was a crane system to help in moving the large crates around. They would probably have to commandeer it in order to move the Dust around.

He noticed Neo out of the corner of his eye, shifting through a large pile of dust vials and canisters. Her gaze flickered toward them for a moment, then she immediately started moving toward the Bullhead while the others cleared the rest of the warehouse.

Along the way, he noticed a large gate that led to a different section of the cave. It stood at least twenty feet tall and was chained shut with what looked like the absurdly thick chain of a ship's anchor. Curious, he looked for a different entrance, a small door to the right that seemed to go to the same area. Thankfully the door was unlocked, but what he found inside was certainly not what he expected.

The cavern stretched back nearly a hundred feet and housed two extremely large trucks that both had thick armor plating, a plow covering the front grill and bumper, mounted weapons, and each had a very long trailer hitched to the back. They looked like machines of war, built to bulldoze through anything that got in their way. To top it all off, the keys for both trucks were on a desk right next to the door.

A devious smile grew on his face. For someone in his position, wouldn't it be prudent to relieve them of these machines? Perhaps he could modify his original plan to steal these two huge trucks rather than one standard Bullhead.

He quickly ran out of the garage and brought the group together once the area was secure, letting them know of his new plan. "Guys, there are two huge trucks in a garage over there. We could get three times the amount of supplies out of here if we use them, so I think we should."

Ruby blinked, one concern on her mind. "Okay, but who's gonna drive? They're probably too big for me, Weiss, and Neo."

"Gabe and I can drive, but they probably won't like us stealing their trucks," Cade answered, having already thought of the problem ahead of time. "Everyone else will have to hold them all off while we drive to Mistral."

Gabriel gave the dust cartridge on his wrist a spin, sending bright electric sparks down the edge of his saber. "We better get started then, before someone notices that we're here."

The crew set Mike as the lookout while they got to work on trying to break the massive chain on the garage door. After some thought, Weiss decided to use Dust to freeze the metal to the point of making it brittle, then with a sweep of Ruby's scythe the chain shattered into pieces.

They piled inside, Gabe giving a slight whistle at the impressiveness of the two rigs. They checked fuel levels, and after finding them both full, Gabe and Cade climbed up into the driver's seats. "They're probably gonna hear these so we only have a couple minutes to load the Dust," Cade declared. "We'll exit the same way we came in, okay?"

Gabe nodded in the affirmative, so the young leader turned to look at Neo. "Do you think you can operate that crane?" She put a finger to her lips to think for a moment, then shrugged. "Hopefully you can figure it out. We need you to put two crates on each trailer." The young woman nodded and ran off to find the controls.

The moment she sent him a message saying that she was ready, he put a hand on the ignition. "Alright, from here on out, we have less than five minutes. Stay focused, fast, and fierce." With a flick of his wrist the powerful engine roared to life, a loud rumble echoing through the deep caverns of the mountain.

Blake shook her head into focus, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves as they came up to Adam's tent. The faunus must've heard them coming, because when they reached the canvas he called out to them, "What is it? I've got a lot to do so make it quick."

"Adam," she called, just loudly enough for him to hear.

A short, silent pause followed, likely the result of his stunned surprise at hearing her voice. The entryway was pushed aside as he swiftly exited the small tent, his eyebrows raised in astonishment. "Blake?" he tentatively stepped toward her unable to hide his surprise. He looked her up and down, seeing that she was whole and healthy. "You… When did you get here?"

She opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the rapid footsteps of a mouse-like young boy running up to the White Fang leader. "Sir! I have something important to-"

"Not now, Jiro," Adam interrupted, waving the courier away.

"But sir! Someone is trying to-" Blake tensed up as the boy spoke, knowing that their entire operation could go up in flames in a matter of seconds.

"I said not now! I'll take care of it later!" he yelled, making the boy huff and step away.

"I need to speak with you, Blake" he said with urgency, reaching to pull her inside the tent.

"Not without me," Milo said, stepping forward and spreading his wings in a challenge.

Adam's brow furrowed in anger as his gaze fell on the young avian. He glared at him with disdain, the only visible portions of his face locked in a harsh frown. "Why are you here?"

"I go where she goes," Milo replied, turning in Blake's direction. "Isn't that right, sweetheart?" he asked, scratching behind her cat ears with a smile. Catching her completely off guard, her ears drooped and her eyes lost focus, until she snapped back into reality and smacked his hand away, her cheeks burning bright red.

The raven-haired faunus had to fight every instinct in her body to keep her from lashing at him, smacking him in the face and scratching his eyes out. Touching anywhere near her ears was completely off limits! Touching her at all was off limits! How did he know her ears were that sensitive anyway? It had to be Yang… she was the only one from Beacon who knew about it when Blake purred in her sleep when the brawler scratched at her ears.

She looked back at Adam, who wore an expression she could only describe as disappointment. "Really? Of all the people… him?" he asked her, an eyebrow raised in annoyance.

"Yes, him. Since when did you care?" she sneered, holding true to Ruby's plan for reasons she couldn't comprehend.

The man growled through his teeth, his hair and the red details in his black clothing starting to glow. "Big Bird here isn't exactly someone you would consider 'mentally sound'."

"'Big Bird'?!" Milo spat, a hand flashing to the hilt of one of his blades.

Before negotiations could crumble before they even began, Blake held a hand up to Milo and stepped between them both. "I'm here to represent my father on behalf of the free people of Menagerie," she said firmly, making Adam raise his eyebrows in surprise once again.

After staring in her direction for a few seconds trying to read her stoic expression, he shook his head. "You didn't… You didn't reconsider your choice of leaving?"

"No Adam, I won't be returning to the White Fang," she declared pursing her lips in annoyance.

He ran his fingers through his hair, clenching his hand in barely hidden frustration. "What is this message from your father, then?"

Blake took a deep breath, remembering the lie she had rehearsed for the past few hours. "Ghira Belladonna, Chieftain of Menagerie, would like to congratulate you on your promotion to High Commander of the White Fang. However, he regrets to announce that because your connections with the attack on the Kingdom of Vale, you and the White Fang are henceforth barred from the Kingdom of Menagerie. He hopes that one day you will see the error of your actions and seek redemption."

Adam seemed distracted as she spoke, his eyes flicking back and forth between her and Milo. He simply couldn't believe that they were together, yet there they were! Shaking his head back into focus, he closed his eyes and sighed in disappointment. "And here I thought you might be here for personal reasons. Instead, you're just a messenger."

Blake cleared her throat, curiosity eating at her. She wanted to know what he wanted to tell her, but they couldn't blow their cover just yet. "You said you wanted to speak with me. What was it you wanted to say?" she asked, trying not to seem too interested.

"I…" his head twitched, likely eyeing the avian faunus. After a moment, he let out an exasperated sigh and waved them under the tent. "We need to be quiet, so come in here and keep your voice down." They listened, quickly entering and seating themselves in a small circle around a small table at the center of the tent.

Once seated, Adam cleared his throat. "Blake, I need to apologize for how I acted in Vale," he said in a hushed voice. "You have to understand, I was being watched the entire time! Cinder wasn't the actual mastermind of the attack; It was something much, much worse. If I showed any sign of weakness, she would've destroyed everything we've worked so hard to build for Faunus on Remnant! I couldn't let that happen," he said, bowing his head before he finished. "Please forgive me, Blake."

Needless to say, Blake was speechless. A new threat? One that they had no clue even existed, that had enough power to make Adam speak in fear like that. "Slow down, Adam… Who are you talking about?"

"I can't say any more, Blake; Her eyes and ears are everywhere," he said. "Just know that there is something worse out there than that Schnee bastard. She's helping me take him off his pedestal, but once that's done we might have to go after her," he thought aloud to himself.

"It's getting harder and harder to figure out who to trust, I suppose," Milo added.

"Funny you should mention that," Adam countered, lips locked in a deep frown.

Suddenly, the young boy from earlier burst inside the tent. His eyes were wide and his breathing heavy as he looked up at Adam. "Sir, someone is stealing the war rigs!"

He whirled around at Blake, eyebrows furrowed with rage. "Did you have something to do with this?!"

Before she could respond, Milo stepped between them. "So what if we did?"

The scrape of metal on metal sounded as the two young men drew their swords, and shower of sparks sprayed as a clash of blades echoed through the camp.

Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth.

-Revelation 3:10

I just occurred to me that this story has been going on for a full year now. Thank you everyone for all your support; It keeps me going!

Thanks a million,

JonesyUSA