Tyrian was fighting off Emerald, who was barely able to hold her own against the crazed serial killer thanks to her semblance. Despite distracting him and constantly avoiding attacks, the scorpion Faunus was fast enough that Emerald still struggled to keep up with him,barely able to parry or dodge his relentless attacks.

Meanwhile, I had started to fight against Hazel, which was really a bad matchup for me. Hazel had way too much aura - way more than Jaune's reserves - that using a semblance would only whittle down a fraction of what he had before I ran out. Emerald would be a much better matchup here, especially if he had any thoughts of not hurting her.

Still, Hazel was harshly beating me down without hesitation, and it was hard to match his brute strength - not to mention the ridiculously large amount of aura that made him so durable. The lack of any kind of pain he felt didn't help me either.

Wilt bounced violently off of Hazel's arm, the sheer volume of aura not even dented by the sword. I backflipped away as he pounded the ground with an earth Dust infused fist. A massive shockwave of dirt and small rocks pelted me, but I swept aside most of them with the help of Wilt and Blush. Landing at least a dozen meters away from Hazel, the two of us stood still, eyeing each other.

"You know what my semblance can do. You are also aware of my capabilities and weaknesses," Hazel said, brushing off his shoulder with a glowing red and black arm, having been infused with fire and earth Dust respectively. "Yet you haven't moved in to take advantage of them. I hope you'll forgive me for asking why you're holding back."

"I don't want to hurt you. You really don't need to be doing this," I said, holding Wilt in a defensive position, held sideways instead of pointing at the larger man. Hazel seemed to recognize that, as he didn't seem ready to push his attacks just yet. "I know the reason why you're working for Salem."

"Then you should know that I can't stop. I can't leave, not until my demons and my sister are officially put to rest," Hazel said, clearly referring to Ozpin and Gretchen. "And for that to happen, my master needs you alive and brought to her."

"But you can stop it. Salem is literally the ruler of the Grimm. Despite her immortality, Salem can be fought!" I said, closely mirroring Ozpin's words from Volume 8. "What does wiping out humanity and Faunuskind's only protection against the Grimm accomplish?!"

Before Hazel could answer, Emerald flew by, skidding against the dirt with a cry of pain. I immediately swept in without missing a beat, between Emerald and a charging Tyrian, blocking his weapons with my own. With a loud cackle, Tyrian forced his entire arsenal against me, bullets, blades, semblance, and his tail.

Unlike Emerald, I could keep up with the unpredictable attacks, dodging backwards and swinging against any arms or tail that got too close. Luckily, Tyrian was merely toying with me. Hazel said that I was needed alive, so I could stop worrying about getting poisoned.

But they were no doubt going to make me hurt before taking me. Turning for a split second, I could see Emerald and Hazel fighting each other, the slower yet tougher giant easily holding out against the smaller and nimble girl.

I backflipped away from Tyrian's tail swing and slammed Wilt into the dirt so I didn't skid back too far. Tyrian giggled as he advanced. "You are skilled. My queen did say you knew our capabilities despite never fighting us before. Such an excitement...I've never had prey who fought back quite so well. Not even Qrow Branwen himself..."

"If I recall, he didn't struggle too much when you two fought," I said before ducking underneath a sudden tail stab, missing my caracal ears by about a few millimeters. I rolled back before swinging forward with Wilt, Tyrian slipping to my right flank to avoid my hit.

"Oh, you and I will have SO much fun!" Tyrian cackled as he jumped up, high into the air. I only just barely managed to dash to the left, Tyrian's boot slamming into the ground. Without missing a beat, Tyrian dashed forward and began to pelt me with kicks, blows, slashes, and stabs. A few hits landed, but because he didn't have his semblance active, my aura wasn't broken in any way - only damaged.

I heard a grunt behind me, and I turned to see Hazel firing a blast of electric Dust at us. I lunged to the side just as Tyrian jumped, the blast missing and sailing past the both of us. Tyrian landed and glared at Hazel. "Hello?! Loyal servant here!" he raged.

Hazel's expression indicated that he was "sorry not sorry", before Emerald lunged for him again, Thief's Respite scraping away at his aura before a fire blast skimmed her own aura. Tyrian had recovered from the angry near shock experience and had resumed his assault against me.

However Biscuit held him back when he barked and lunged for the faunas, biting onto Tyrian's scorpion tail. Growling, Tyrian shook Biscuit off, but by then I'd already gotten close. I slashed up at Tyrian and damaged his aura before kicking him in the gut. The lithe man was sent flying, before he grabbed the branch of a tree and pivoted himself back at me, too fast for me to properly dodge.

Panicking, I braced with both Wilt and Blush at once, shutting my eyes and awaiting the incoming blow. A thud filled my ears, and I opened to see my vision obscured by a black substance with the imprint of a boot pushed out about a few inches towards me, but it was by no means close to me at all.

Looking around, I saw that my neural Dust was back, a massive sheet with my belts hanging off one of the corners. As I heard Tyrian growling from the other side of the wall of Dust, I watched as it all flew back into my belt canisters in several steady streams before landing in front of me.

Grinning, I had my Dust come out and reattach my belts to my waist and thighs, before bringing the rest out to make a set of black armor to triple - at the very least, double - my chances of surviving this. Still, I couldn't help but wonder why my neural Dust belt hadn't come back much earlier. Maybe it was locked away in some house or shed somewhere and finally broke free?

Tyrian jumped back at me, before being met with a sweep of my Dust. I now had an even advantage against Tyrian, and I began attacking from all directions, using my Dust to form swords and knives, sending them at Tyrian.

Tyrian practically danced in order to avoid and deflect projectiles from the left and right with his arms and tail. Many of them struck houses, trees, parts of the wall, and the dirt. Calling them back took some time, so I made sure to not throw all of them at once.

However, Tyrian was on a whole other level, and he was deflecting my ranged attacks with ease. No, not with ease - with absolutely little to no effort. I remembered that he was able to hold off both my partner, Liya, as well as Pyrrha Nikos, the Invincible Girl herself. I was good, but those two were leagues ahead of me. If the two of them couldn't even slow down Tyrian, much less defeat him, what chance did I have at winning? The best I could do was survive, dealing absolutely no hinderance to Tyrian.

He was getting closer and closer to me as I threw everything I had at him. I eventually formed two tendrils of Dust to hold his arms and weapons back before he could reach me.

However, his tail still had full reach. With a cackle, the maniacal man launched his tail stinger at my face with immense speed.

Or he would have, if a large fist didn't smash into his side, sending the scorpion Faunus flying through two houses and a part of the village wall that was still standing. Turning, I saw that it was Jackie who'd rescued me from Tyrian's venomous tail. I didn't know if he'd use the venom - I didn't see his eyes when he struck - but I was most definitely not about to risk it.

And she looked very pissed indeed. She didn't seem to be interested in my Dust, which was fine in my books. "Do you know these jackasses?" she growled as she cracked her fists. I could tell she was getting ready to pummel me nonetheless for causing all this destruction.

"Yeah. But I thought they left," I said, turning to Hazel, who had just shoved Emerald away a few meters without much further harm to her. She stumbled and didn't get back up, Biscuit running over to check on her. "I thought you went back to her. After Haven Academy fell, I saw you all retreat. Is Mercury with you?"

"We were going to. But our master insisted we keep an eye on you. The Decius was sent to stop you, but it only slowed you down," Hazel said. "We were ordered to take advantage of that and bring you with us. She is in need of you and your knowledge, boy." He crossed his arms, awaiting my next move. "And to answer your last question, no. The boy had no need to be risked on this mission, so he's heading back with her."

"What are you talking about?" Jackie hissed as she whirled on me, ignoring Hazel for a second. And just like what Hazel would do, he wouldn't take advantage of the situation and attack while she was distracted. "I swear if you knew this would happen and you let these pieces of shit destroy my tribe-"

"I know plenty of things, lady. But this wasn't one of them," I snarled, getting ticked off at the massive woman next to me.

A groan was heard, and all of us turned to see Tyrian using his tail to completely impale one bandit who tried to attack Tyrian from behind. The body slumped on the ground with a wet thump as Tyrian approached them with a deranged smile. "Ah, yes. Master's orders. I do rejoice every time she gives us a purpose for us to fulfill. It makes me feel ALIVE!" he said with a manic expression before lunging forward at inhuman speeds.

Jackie and I dodged the multi-stage attack simultaneously, bullets and stinger grazing our aura before he kicked me aside. I struck a stone leaning against the wall as Jackie locked herself into combat against Tyrian. Tyrian was fast and agile, but Jackie was also not one to be trifled with. Tyrian was countered in almost all of his blows, getting dodged or struck when open.

"You'll break eventually!" Tyrian cackled as he flipped over, Jackie jumping and rolling to the side as the stinger swiped downwards and embedded itself into the ground inches away from her. "They all do!"

A barrage of crossbow bolts struck Tyrian, his aura flaring up violently as the salvo sent him skidding back a few meters. Stella, her skin bruised and clothes burnt, reloaded her weapon before she rushed in, firing another set of bolts. "Eyes on me, bastard," she snarled.

Tyrian rolled to the side, deflecting several with his tail before dodging a blow from Jackie by jumping. He landed on her large arm before using it as a launch pad to ram into Stella, who braced for impact immediately.

That was a big mistake.

Stella and Tyrian flew in opposite directions instantly after impact, Stella's semblance sending the damage back at Tyrian while the force of Tyrian's momentum sent Stella flying back violently. Stella received damage from the attack, but Tyrian had received much more.

Jackie was about to rush over and finish off Tyrian before he could recover, but Hazel slammed into her back before his ally could be defeated. "You aren't getting near him," Hazel warned as he cracked his knuckles.

Jackie eyed Hazel's arms, impaled with fire and electric Dust as energy coursed through his forearms and wrists. Growling at the use of that cursed material, Jackie got up and furiously lunged at him, slamming into him like an angered bull.

As Jackie and Hazel began to brawl, Stella fired more bolts at Tyrian. Whenever Tyrian got close and attempted to slash at her, he would feel his aura get closer and closer to breaking. I was honestly surprised at how well they were holding off the enemy.

I shook my head of any distractions and quickly made my way to Emerald, helping her up and checking her over for any injuries. "Are you alright?"

"My...my aura," Emerald gasped, struggling to breathe. "I think I'm out..."

Biscuit whined as he came over, licking Emerald's arm all the while. "We have to move," I said. "My aura's low as well."

"We might have a chance if we run now," Emerald said. Both of us knew it was unlikely, but there was still a big chance that we could buy ourselves some time to escape, maybe a few hours if we were lucky.

But the village was in flames. People everywhere were panicking, and the village leader and her lieutenant were fighting two of Salem's agents. We were out of our class, trapped with no escape.

That was, until I remembered something. "The horses! Stables!" I said. "We can use a horse to escape!"

Emerald's red eyes widened. "Wait, where?" she asked.

"Other side of the village!" I said. "Come on!" I got up and began to run, before I heard a cry. I turned to see Emerald sprawled face first in the dirt. "Em?"

"I...It hurts!" Emerald gasped in agony. I looked down to see her ankle looking rather twisted. I winced, and realized that she was in no shape to properly move. Without any hesitation, I quickly rolled her over and hauled her up, carrying her piggyback style before running as fast as I could for the stables, or at least where I last remembered the stables being. Biscuit barked once and ran after me.

I turned to see Tyrian spotting my escape. Before he could switch his target from Stella to me and Emerald, another salvo of bolts shattered the last remnants of his aura and sent him flying into the treeline beyond the walls, Stella jumping towards him to push the advantage. I wouldn't be surprised if Tyrian would keep fighting even if his aura was broken. And while the others were powerful, they were just bandits. At the most, they'd halt Hazel and Tyrian, unable to defeat them.

Nonetheless, that bought us more time. Jackie and Hazel gave no indication that they were going to stop fighting anytime soon. They disappeared behind smoke and flames as the village continued to burn. People were futilely fighting off the flames with water and blankets, giving us an undetected way out to the stables. I heard the sounds of horses whinnying and panicking in the distance, and slowed down. The stables were on fire, and several horses were gone. There were only two horses, and I saw my chance. I ran into the open gate with one of the horses and I hoisted Emerald up on top.

Biscuit barked before jumping on top, landing against Emerald, who pressed the moderately large dog as closely as she could against her. Untying and quickly freeing both jittery horses from their pens, I led the other one outside the burning stables before slapping it on the flank. As it ran off to its freedom, I quickly got to the other one and led it towards the outside, where empty grounds outside the village awaited us.

I slapped it on the flank like I did the other one, and managed to hop on by holding onto its mane as the horse took off. Emerald hauled me up by my other hand, and I managed to climb up, Emerald and Biscuit in front of me. The sounds of a burning village and a fight slowly vanished as we gained more and more distance from them.

Several minutes passed like seconds. The jostling of the horse galloping was only one of two things I felt. The second was Emerald in front of me. I had wrapped my arms around her waist and pressed my face against the crook of her neck, hugging her tightly. She didn't object, simply patting Biscuit softly as we rode away from that terrible place. We were both filthy and scuffed, not having our jackets anymore. My shirt was torn and I was bruised underneath, with my prosthetic arm severely damaged from before, while Emerald had that bad ankle and a few more bruises than I did.

"I bet you're really wishing we used that portal semblance when we woke up a while ago, huh?" Emerald whispered. Even if she didn't seem mad, I felt those words punch me in the gut, and I only hugged her tighter.

If only I had just used Raven's semblance first thing in the morning. Then all of this could be avoided. We'd all be in Atlas by now, saving the people and fighting Salem. But instead...

"I fucked up," I said, my voice quivering. "I'm sorry..."

Emerald huffed softly as she leaned back. "Yeah, well...if we didn't get caught, we'd never find Biscuit...not that we could properly take care of a dog." Biscuit whined, and Emerald changed her tone at once. "But we could try...

"Yeah...Biscuit is a good boy," I said before pausing for a second. "Wait, Biscuit is a boy, right?"

Biscuit barked once, and I got that as a confirmation. We rode for an hour at full tilt, the environment blurring past us. We were silent for much of that ride, trapped in our own thoughts over what we went through.

I was still wondering about my decision. Mainly, my screwup at deciding not to use Raven's portals right away. Why did I think it was such a good idea to waste time with Emerald in the wilderness? If this didn't happen, we'd be all safe and preparing for the war Atlas would inevitably fight.

I yawned, feeling very tired from before. No...not tired, drop dead exhausted. My body was hurting, and I could feel my aura violently struggling to heal my sore muscles and bruises. No doubt that Emerald was feeling the same way. Continuing to lean against Emerald, I felt my eyes get drowsy, and I fought just to keep my arms around Emerald.

I heard the sound of a hum a long distance away, and I slowly looked up. "What...what is that?"

Emerald looked up as well, before huffing slightly. "I think...that's an airship. An Atlas one..." she said. Squinting my eyes, I saw that it was indeed shaped very much like an Atlesian Manta, easy to make out in the moderately bright sky.

We were saved, yet none of us celebrated or cheered in any way - we were too injured to do anything other than sigh in relief. Regardless, I felt myself drift into unconsciousness as the Atlesian Manta shaped object lowered in front of us, the bay door hissing open.

- back at the village, a few minutes later -

The survivors, around sixty, were rounded up in the remains of the village that Tyrian and Hazel destroyed. Dozens of Grimm Ursai and Beowolves surrounded them, as Tyrian and Hazel awaited for their esteemed guest to arrive.

The Seer hovered slowly into the village, Tyrian and Hazel watching as it slowly made its way to the others. This particular Seer had been in Haven Academy serving as the eyes for Salem to watch over Lionheart before the fall of Mistral's huntsman academy, and Salem had instructed it to remain with Hazel and Tyrian in order to follow Markus.

And now that Markus was gone and out of reach thanks to the chaotic fighting, both men knew Salem would have stern words for them. Despite that, Tyrian insisted on salvaging the situation.

"Your Grace, the boy was here. While we were unable to retrieve him thanks to these infidels, I believe we may have a resource that may be exploitable," Tyrian said, eyeing Jackie, Stella, and the others.

The Seer floated between the two lieutenants before its glass ball body flickered to life, a dark fog like substance floating around inside. Jackie and Stella were restrained at the very front of the group of survivors, and they watched as the shape of a face formed through the fog. It looked a little bit distorted thanks to the rounded glass, but it did nothing to stop their shock at what lay beyond the glass.

A thin and deathly pale womanly face awaited the bandits as the fog cleared. Her hair and skin were about as white as pure snow, her eyes black with glowing irises as red as blood itself. Her hair was styled into a bun, and her face was covered in dark red veins that resembled cracks in an icy river. The diamond on her forehead only proceeded to make her even more off-putting than she already did.

"Tyrian. Hazel. What is the status of your hunt?" the woman said, ignoring what Tyrian said before she appeared on the Seer. Stella shivered at her voice - it sounded ethereal in some way. Despite the volume sounding a bit underwhelming thanks to it coming out of a small living speaker, it sounded chilling nonetheless.

"Your highness, we found the boy in a village of thieves and bandits," Hazel explained. "Despite our best efforts, we were forced to fight them while he escaped. By the time we subdued what was left, he was too far gone before we could properly give chase."

Tyrian eyed Hazel, no doubt wondering why he wasn't mentioning Emerald. Not that he would choose to mention the girl as well - Salem might very well punish them even worse if she knew they failed to capture a traitor as well. "B-but, we found something of value as well," the serial killer said as he gestured to the dozens of bandits. "Every one of these infidels have aura and a semblance unlocked. Despite our best efforts and our victory, they were able to hold us off. Some of these people have incredible powers as well. N-not that they don't pale in comparison to your beauty and strength,, but-"

"We believe that these people can prove useful to you, your Grace," Hazel said, picking up on the topic before Tyrian could devolve into endless praises. "They have no home, and are incredibly violent. If one could...guide these people - this army - to our cause for the sake of self preservation..."

Some of the bandits flinched when a few Grimm snarled dangerously. The deathly pale woman seemed to ponder the idea. "An army, you say..." she said, interested.

"Most of them won't be as powerful as Branwen or Ironwood. But they are more than enough for your current operation in Atlas," Hazel said. "Especially since one of our associates has been unable to properly infiltrate the kingdom."

"They could be cannon fodder!" Tyrian chimed in. "More pawns to be used for your glorious goals!"

"What is that?" Stella whispered. The two men turned to the woman with the deflection semblance, as did the ghostly woman beyond the Grimm.

"I am Salem, child," the ghost white woman said, and the Seer floated forward, getting closer and closer to Stella, who leaned back from the creature's fluttering tendrils nervously. "And I have no wish to throw away pawns like you believe, Tyrian."

Tyrian almost broke down in apologies before Hazel clamped his mouth shut, shaking his head.

Salem smiled. "I've seen your village thanks to Grimm flying around and about. You're all bandits, violent people who live a murderous lifestyle. You all value strength and power, not unlike a few other tribes in Mistral. However, you're one of the few to take full advantage of what huntsmen and huntresses are capable of for your goals."

"And what do you know about us?" Jackie asked. As the Seer turned to face her, she glared defiantly at Salem. Despite that, Salem didn't appear bothered.

"Jacquelin Lacer," Salem said. "Many years ago, you were a student at Beacon Academy. You were very powerful indeed, but you were shunned for your semblance and your mindset. Vocal Persuasion, if I recall."

Tyrian, Hazel, Stella, and everyone else looked shocked at that. Jackie growled as Tyrian spoke up, clearly surprised at Salem's words.

"You...you know who she is, your grace?" the scorpion Faunus asked.

"Of course. Whenever one of Ozpin's disciples chooses to betray him for their own gain, I choose to keep tabs on them. It's how I found you. It's how I located and made offers to Hazel, to Watts. To Cinder," Salem explained. "So I must thank you, my loyal servant. You found and approved of someone that can truly be useful to me. She was not a typical candidate on my list, but she is a candidate nonetheless."

Tyrian would've bounced off the walls and the Grimm with glee if it weren't for Hazel holding him still. Instead, Tyrian giddily vibrated like an earthquake at her praise. Salem turned back to Jackie. "So I'm going to give you a choice. You can save everybody you love, your people. Join me and work against the world. You may fight as much as you want, grow stronger under my guidance, and have complete protection from the Grimm under my control."

"Or what?!" someone yelled. Salem raised an eyebrow, and the Ursai and Beowolves surrounding the village snarled and rushed in, closing in on the group of people trapped in the middle.

"OK!" Jackie yelled. Salem raised a hand, and the Grimm held back at once, mere feet before mauling the bandits. "I'll...we'll swear our allegiance to you. As long as you keep to your word and not kill any of my people."

"But of course. I only protect those who are useful to me," Salem said. "It's how Tyrian and Hazel have been alive for so long." Jackie looked to the two aforementioned men, noticing Hazel's apathetic expression alongside Tyrian's gleeful smile.

Jackie growled before looking down. No one else said a word, mainly out of fear of triggering the Grimm. Luckily, they all dispersed, leaving the village. Salem sighed before the Seer turned away to face Tyrian and Hazel. "I'll be sending transport for you and our new...allies," she said as she clasped her hands patiently together.

"And the boy?" Hazel asked.

"It's not your fault," Salem reassured. "If these people were strong enough to hold you back while he escaped, then there is nothing you could have done. Regardless, he was just picked up by Atlas's soldiers. Chasing would give no other advantage than risking your capture. Report back to me with your new friends. I have a plan." The Seer blinked out, Salem's face gone, before floating back to Hazel and Tyrian.

- Argus military base, 2 hours later -

Ruby watched as the Manta carrying Markus and Emerald landed on the air base's main landing pad. Several medics and soldiers rushed by, heading into the landing areas before coming back out, along with two stretchers carrying the severely injured and unconscious Emerald and Markus. Specialist Elm was with them, barking orders and yelling for the way to be cleared. Alongside them was a large dog, barking as he ran with them before the door slammed in front of him, locking him out of the building.

Ruby's heart melted as the dog pawed at the entrance of the military building before sitting in front of it, whining sadly. Despite her insistence on seeing them, Clover had denied their entrance, stating that the professionals tending to Markus and Emerald needed complete focus and no distractions to save them. The saddened silver eyed girl gave up after that, sitting next to the dog and burying her face in her knees.

So imagine her surprise when the depressed looking dog decided to sniff at her foot, before scooting his way next to her, whimpering and laying his head in her lap. Ruby didn't know who the dog was, but she knew it had to have come from outside Argus, likely where Emerald and Markus were when they were lost.

"Who are you?" Ruby whispered as she rubbed his head.

"Ruby!" Looking up from the dog, Ruby saw Yang and Jaune ran over, sliding to a stop in front of them. "Was that Markus? Is he alright?!" Yang asked.

Ruby's lip quivered as she shut her teary eyes. "It doesn't look good. Markus and E-Emerald were hurt...the doctors inside are trying to help but-"

"Clear the door!" a soldier yelled from a balcony a story up, interrupting Ruby. "This is the main entrance to the facility, do not block the way!"

Yang growled angrily at the inconsiderate guard. "You-" She was interrupted after Jaune blocked her and grabbed her fist, shaking his head. Sighing, Yang calmed down before she looked down towards Ruby, who was already getting up. The dog got up as well, trotting sadly with the teens to find an empty space to sit.

They eventually found a vacant area far from any doors and walkways, where nobody could bother them. Yang sighed as she looked at Ruby, who kept petting the mysterious dog. "Where's Weiss?" she asked quietly.

"She went inside before Markus came," Ruby said. "She was demanding a ton of answers about why Atlas just...disappeared."

"So she got clearance to go in?" Jaune asked. He was looking up in the sky

"More like she stormed in and started yelling before anyone could stop her. That specialist - Vine I think, let her through," Ruby said, somewhat touched that Weiss would throw all composure to the win for the sake of their friends' well-being. "I hope they pull through."

Yang nodded slowly, wordlessly agreeing with her sister as she sighed. "The others are on the way," she said. "Pyrrha got caught up with all sorts of media crap, and Qrow's getting some last minute things before we can go. Probably more alcohol."

Ruby blinked as she remembered something that Jinn showed her.

"Hey, Ruby. You did great out there today, kid. Just don't go giving me heart attacks like that again," Qrow said as he lifted the flask to his mouth, before lowering it and looking down.

"Yang. About...what we saw..." Ruby said. Yang flinched, and Jaune raised an eyebrow in confusion.

Yang looked to Ruby, before turning to face Jaune as well. "What's going on?" Jaune asked as he looked between the sisters.

Yang looked back at Ruby, who was looking more and more conflicted. Yang had never seen Ruby so bothered before, and it really concerned her. Why did Markus have to be mixed up in all this?

Yang flinched yet again at that line of thought. Markus never wanted to be here. He was ripped from his home, his world, and forced to fight in some fictional universe. The worst part was that Markus had no idea. And despite having nothing of his old world thanks to the wretched Gods, he fought as much as he could to save as much as he could.

He saved Penny, Pyrrha, Roman, he turned Emerald to their side, and so much more. Despite some things ending up worse, he did this to protect them from even more terrible dangers.

Yang shuddered as she remembered her and Blake fighting Adam in that vision. Seeing her bury a blade in someone else's back haunted her. Despite knowing how bad Adam was from conversations with Blake, the idea of murder scared her.

And Markus murdered him so she didn't have to.

"Remember when Markus said...that he wasn't from here? That he changed some things and...well-" Yang said.

"He told me that Pyrrha died," Jaune said. "I know...and I believe him. He's done anything and everything he could to protect us. And...heh, it makes me feel kinda useless."

"You have your semblance. You saved Blake at Haven Academy," Ruby said. "You aren't useless, you help others. And since Beacon, you've always been a great guy. You're far from useless, Jaune," Ruby continued, as she gave him a smile.

Yang chuckled. "You know P-money will probably knock your ass out if she hears you talking like that," she joked before she fell silent. She didn't remember calling Pyrrha 'P-money' before. Or maybe she did at Beacon? Seeing her life in Beacon from an outside perspective was starting to really disorientate her memories, making her compare what events did and didn't happen...at least, that's what she thought.

Jaune chuckled dryly. "She's probably gonna be too busy shouting how much she loves me from the rooftops," he said. Ruby blinked in confusion, and Yang gaped. "Wow, big head much?" she teased.

"We kissed in public and it's all over the CCT in Argus. Pyrrha keeps getting stopped by people who have questions about it and she feels she needs to stop and start defending me whenever they say I'm not good enough. Thankfully, my sisters are defending me," Jaune said. "Which is probably the first time that doing so actually doesn't make things worse."

"Just wait. They'll start giving away details you don't want getting out. Like when I told everyone Ruby sleeps with Crescent Rose," Yang smirked.

"You act like it's weird," Ruby pouted as she looked away. "Honestly, it's no different from sleeping with a teddy bear!" Jaune and Yang exchanged a knowing look before all three of them giggled, the dog resting his head softly on Ruby's thigh and rolling over.

"Hey!"

The three teens and one dog turned to see Weiss approaching, looking rather frantic. "We're cleared to get on the ship, let's go!" she said.

"But what about everyone else?" Ruby asked, getting up to her feet.

"They're being picked up by airships in the city. Come on, the people in charge said they don't have any time to waste, let's go!" Weiss yelled as she pushed Ruby, Jaune, Yang, and the dog towards the tower.

"Wait, what about Em and Markus?" Jaune asked nervously.

"They're being transferred," Weiss explained. "They're alright, by the way. From what they've told me, their injuries look way worse than they actually are. Bruises and low aura, nothing a few days of rest and aura boosters can't fix."

Yang sighed in relief as they were all guided into the building for permission to board their ride to Atlas. Meanwhile, dozens of Manta airships flew towards the Atlesian aerial battle carrier still hovering above the Argus Military Base. While Yang had been interrupted, she still thought that it was important to tell everyone about what the lamp had shown them. Even if it would be…unpleasant. An image of Markus's still body and a glaring Ironwood entered her mind unbidden as she entered the ship.

- several hours later, Markus's POV -

I woke up, seeing nothing but white. I felt like something had woken me up, and I looked around. At first, I thought I was in a white void, like whenever the Gods wanted to talk to me. Instead, I was greeted by a ceiling light and walls, with the sounds of beeps, a light hum, and some various noises that sounded pretty miniscule in the background.

"Where am I?" I asked as I tried to sit up. I was still in my normal clothes instead of a hospital gown, which meant my injuries weren't too bad, or that I wasn't here long. My prosthetic arm was gone, probably under repair.

"You are currently aboard an infirmary aboard an Atlesian airship," the familiar voice of Aaron Dismuke said.

I turned to see Oscar at the door of the room. It was closed, and I wondered how long he'd been standing there. "Hello Mister Onissa. I'm glad to see you alive and well," he said, clearly indicating that Ozpin was currently in control.

"Emerald. Where's...Emerald?" I asked as I looked around. The room was only big enough for one bed, which did make sense for an airship - rooms tended to be fairly cramped, and I saw my things at a table in the far corner, specifically Wilt and Blush alongside my belt of neural Dust. My boots were sitting by the table as well.

"Miss Sustrai is alright. She has suffered minor and superficial wounds at most and is recovering smoothly in an adjacent room. Trust me, the two of you will pull through just fine," Ozpin said as he came over, leaning on the wall next to my bed. Long Memory rested in his hands, the cane retracted into the handle.

"So if I'm on an airship...are we heading to Atlas?" I asked.

"Indeed," Ozpin said. "I hope you don't mind me asking, why did you choose to stay behind with the train?"

"Kinda got caught up fighting the Decius," I said. "Had to keep it from reaching the rest of the train...I didn't even think-"

"The best decisions are often those 'spur of the moment' choices. You saved two children at the back of that train, and countless others," Ozpin said. "Despite the delay in our plans to reach Ironwood, you must not regret it. Saving lives is always something you should be proud of. And you must strive to continue that path."

I blushed a little. As common as it was to want to help others, hearing Ozpin of all people praise me for doing so made my poor and tired spirits soar a little. Still I couldn't help but feel stupid for not using Raven's semblance right away the moment I could.

"Now, what happened out there? There was no doubt you were delayed, especially since you were brought here by a search party so far away from the city," Ozpin said. "And while you and Miss Sustrai have not been injured in any long term way, you were still roughed up nonetheless, and that does concern me."

And so, I explained everything to Ozpin. I told him how we had to sleep in a cave with what little we had in order to recover our auras. I told him how we were attacked by bandits, beating them the first time before getting overpowered by a solo one hours later.

"There was a bandit tribe we were taken to after being beaten - the same ones we fought earlier, with the leader being some big and tall woman who was...pretty scary. She had some semblance that was like mind control or something," I said as I rubbed my head, still a bit bothered by the concept of persuasion. Ozpin seemed to tense at that, and he leaned forward.

"Tell me, what was her name?" he asked.

"Umm...uhh, Jackie. I think," I said. I almost asked why when I saw an unreadable expression fall upon his face. "Ozpin, who is she?"

"Jacquelin Lacer. A former student of mine at Beacon around...maybe a year before team STRQ," Ozpin explained. "Like the Branwens, she was also from the wilderness, though she only left to form a life for herself."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Jackie was a shy girl during her first years at Beacon Academy, and it took a lot for her to open up to her teammates and leader. However, her semblance was feared, and she learned to distance herself from others who sought to use her for their own means," Ozpin said as I looked away. This seems an awful lot like Jax's upbringing in the books surrounding Vacuo and the whole thing with the Crown, I remembered thinking to myself. Then again, Gillian's semblance was a lot like Jaune Arc's semblance with a few exceptions.

"Well, I found her while wandering through the wilderness trying to get to Argus. I would've used a portal like Raven does, but-" I said, but Ozpin held up a hand, smiling at me.

"I understand. Unfortunate circumstances after unfortunate circumstances tend to pop up in the most inconvenient times, it's rather bothersome, but it is an obstacle in life. We just can't let it stop us. Obstacles are there to be surpassed, after all," Ozpin said, chuckling lightly. Surprisingly, it did lift the mood a little, and I felt a little bit at ease. Our conversation was interrupted when the door slammed open with a thud.

Biscuit came barging in before leaping onto the bed and landing on my still sore gut. I yelped in pain before Biscuit began assaulting me with face licks and nuzzles, cutting off my groaning lest I wish to get dog fur and tongue in my mouth.

"Markus!"

Yang, Ruby, Jaune, Pyrrha, and Nora rushed in without hesitation, Ruby and Nora joining Biscuit in trying to crush my gut while the rest were crowding the bed as Biscuit barked and barked. Several Atlesian soldiers and officers had been trying to keep them from causing so much noise, but they had been unable to hold back the huntsmen and huntresses in training from seeing their friend.

I sighed, accepting my fate and returning the many hugs as best I could with one functional arm. After all, I had to have worried them all sick. As they began to pull away one by one I spotted Yang standing awkwardly away from the others, looking like she wanted to join in but hesitating with a strange look on her face. Was that guilt?

I didn't lie to her when I said I was scared of her, she had hurt me badly and nothing would change that, our relationship never being like it once was in Beacon. Still as I looked at the longing in her eyes I couldn't help the memories that passed through my mind. We'd never have what we once did...but I still cared greatly for her. That fear didn't seem so restrictive any longer.

With that thought I opened my arm invitingly towards her. She looked momentarily shocked, but it wasn't long before she had her arms wrapped around me in a near crushing hug and her head buried in the crook of my neck. I hesitated as well for a moment, but eventually melted into the familiar embrace, and I sighed in relief. After everything me and Emerald had to deal with it was comforting to know that we could rest now. Even if it was for a brief moment, any reprieve was a good one.

After a moment Yang reluctantly pulled away and joined the others, looking like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. I then turned to them, they no doubt had a lot of questions about what happened as well. "What did I miss?"

"Are you alright?!"

"Where'd the dog come from?!"

"How did you get hurt?!"

"What happened?!"

I shook my head and waved my arms in an attempt to stop the noise - it was giving me quite the headache. "I'm alright. Just...let me let me get a word in, please?" I asked, too tired to raise my voice. I felt like if I strained my body to do anything, I would pass out again. My voice was heard nonetheless, and things quieted down to a manageable level. "Where are the others?" I asked.

"They're checking up on Sustrai at the moment," a new voice said at the end of the room. We all turned to see Clover entering. "Ederne located you all on horseback a few kilometers away from a burning village."

"You burned the village down?" Ozpin asked, raising an eyebrow. The others turned to see what my answer was.

"That was actually Tyrian and Hazel. They tried to kidnap us and burned down the village as a distraction. Jackie and her henchwoman fought them and we slipped away," I said. Ozpin frowned, and Clover straightened up, no doubt having heard of Tyrian Callows.

"Are those-" Jaune said before Ozpin spoke up.

"Agents of Salem. We fought them at Haven Academy. One of these agents is one of the worst serial killers Remnant has ever known and the other one...has a rather dangerous history with me," Ozpin said, and we fell silent.

"Well, we arrived to pick you all up, but if we knew the enemy was that close to where we found you, we probably would've helped subdue them. Then again, I'm uncertain if we could divert forces to the village fast enough to stop any escape. We were spread pretty thin looking for you."

"Wait, you came to pick us up?" I asked Clover, focusing on that first part and blinking in confusion. Atlas had never come for the teams originally, could I have changed Ironwood's opinion that much? "Why?"

Clover's face went dark. "General Ironwood needs your help. Atlas is under attack by a massive Grimm invasion force."

"What kind of force?" I asked, getting serious now. The others looked at each other with concern, indicating that Clover hadn't told them this yet.

"You'll see it when we get there but...it's pretty bad. The entirety of Atlas is at risk."

(AN: There's no easy way to break this down in the story, mainly because Biscuit is a dog and is unable to speak, so Biscuit's semblance is the ability to sense bonds with those he bonds with. It's purely emotional based, and the first he uses it is when Emerald and Markus show him affection. He can use the bond as a form of tracking, and he can also sense the bonds of others with those he bonds with, which is why he goes to Ruby and the others so easily. I'd reveal it in the story, but I doubt anyone will focus on what a dog - no matter how adorable - can do, especially with what is coming up next.

This concludes the Volume 6 arc of the story. I do plan on picking up the story with a bit more gusto, and hopefully I can get into more frequent updates depending on work, classes, and the health of my beta readers and I. Thanks to RokenDarkly and Triscythe59 for reviewing and assisting me in writing this story, and we hope to continue for many more chapters to come.

But for now, I'll be going on another temporary hiatus. A lot of what I wrote and planned comes down to the next arc, and I need more time for me and my friends to further work out the process of how we'll tell the story. if you wish to help, shoot me a PM.)