"Are you kidding me? That's beyond insane! We'd all die before we could even sneak off with a single crystal!" Kandase cried out, slamming her closed fist onto the table and map in front of her.
"Hey! Watch what you say to Brother Adam!" Blake countered, pointing an accusatory finger at Kandase. Kandase didn't even reply. Instead, she kept her eyes on Adam.
"What does she have to do with this? Surely, we have no use for children who run the risk of compromising the entire operation!" Kandase loudly inquired.
"Sister Blake is a vital part of the operation. I can vouch for her ability to execute this without flaw, as I am granting with the other child in the room." Adam said, turning his head towards Velvet. She immediatley felt self-conciousand lowered her head, glazing her eyes on the intricate map and table in front of them.
The map sat on an old oak table, worn from what Velvet was sure were decades of use. Her eyes studied the map, which she realized was a diagram of the geographic layout of the nearby forest of Forever Fall. The map looked to be as worn as the table itself, torn at the edges, seams from constant folding evident down the middle of the paper. At the center of the map was a hole that was about an inch big. On the map were several markings in red, indicating the planned movements of a Schnee Dust Company train through the forest on a frequented, but isolated, railway. Times were written down to inform the reader of how long it would take the train to reach particular points of interest.
"How long have you been planning this?" Velvet asked absentmindedly. Once she realized that she had spoken aloud, she felt the stinging of all eyes on her.
"That information is of no importance to you. Any more outbursts like that, and I may just be so inclined to choose someone else for this job. Do I make myself clear?" Adam said, gritting his teeth halfway through. Velvet nodded, then decided it wise to take her attention off of the map and study something else. Her eyes then fell on the intricacies of the table.
There were assorted knicks and cuts all over its dark, burgundy surface. It was supported by four rickety legs that looked to have seen their best days. At some point in time, someone had decided to engrave their own swirled designs into the legs, and, in Velvet's opinion, had done a horrible job of it. Regardless, it still appeared to be the most tasteful thing with them in that cramped, eggshell white tent.
"Alright, Adam. How are we getting about doing this?" Kandase asked, putting her palms on the map, bending down.
"Since the Grimm population around the old Home Base is too concentrated for a salvage mission, we're in dire need of
Dust to ensure that business continues as usual.This will be a two-pronged operation. You and your...protege are up first. Your responsibility will be getting into the train and incapacitating whoever is behind the wheel. After that, you'll find a way to disable whatever automated sentries they're bound to have on board. You'll have approximatley 8 minutes to accomplish this before Blake and make our insertion near the rear. Afterwards, you're to hold your position in the front car until we come. If we don't come at all, you're responsible for making off with whatever Dust possible and putting the contingency plan in action."
Kandase sternly looked to the map, nodding intently. Velvet watched her, unsure what said contingency plan was. Blake wondered by the same thing, as evidenced by her asking of such a subject. All that Adam did in reply was put his arm around her and softly shush. "All in good time, my darling. The greatest things come to those who wait for them." Blake seemed to try to interpret his words, then nodded and smiled, though the smile was a thin veil for her concern. Velvet eyed the girl warily, slowly becoming more and more sure that the young girl was not entirely aware of what was at play here, but merely pretending.
"Kandase, you and your protege will leap from a cliff at these coordinates onto the roof of the engine. You won't have long to get inside and maintain the element of surprise, so dealing with whoever is inside quickly is a must. This operation is extremely time-sensitive. We won't have another chance like this should we fail, so we are going to complete it the first time. Am I understood?" Everyone in the room nodded. Velvet kept her head ducked down so as to not attract any unwanted attention. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched as Kandase merely grunted and crossed her arms, as if she was uncertain about something concerning the plan. Velvet decided then that she would discuss it later with her in privacy. For the time being, she would keep her tongue in check. "Good. The operation will commence at dawn tomorrow. Until then, rest and don't do anything strenous. You're no good to us if you can't even move." Adam walked past Velvet towards the entrance of the tent. Both offered glaring looks that, once again, Velvet only caught in passing. Once they were both gone, Kandase walked out, prompting Velvet to follow. The two exited, the bright sun battered down on their adjusting vision. Kandase sighed, putting her hands on her head.
"What's on your mind?" Velvet asked.
"I'm not sure. I just have another bad feeling, like the one before."
"You weren't wrong before." Velvet observed with a grimace.
"I know. That's the part that scares me the most."
The two nodded and parted ways, going off to their respective tents. Velvet was still extremely sore, and wanted nothing more than her mission than to sleep. She opened the entrance of the tent and crawled onto the floor of the tent. She remained dressed, and covered herself with the sheet that was in there with her.
For the next few minutes that passed, Velvet tossed and turned in her tent. She was unsure why, but something was irking her. Something aside from the mission was on her mind, and she couldn't quite place what it was. It remained so for several hours.
Finally, she gave up on sleeping and simply stared up at the roof of the tent. Her mind went blank, and she listened intently to the world around her. The birds chirped as if all in the world was right. The bustle of the crowd threatened to drown out the serenity, but, miraculously, failed to. It was a small miracle that she was grateful for. This was one of the few times that she longed for the world to wash away.
In this silence, Velvet thought to an earlier dream that her father had appeared to her in. She recalled the words that he had told her in that dream. In the silence, she began to allow those resounding words pass her lips in a voice just beyond a whisper.
"I don't know what to tell you to do about your problem. I understand that it's all just one bad thing topped against another, and the world is literally against you. All I can tell you is to make sure that you do what feels right in your heart, and not willingly go down the wrong path like Neo did. Promise me that much, Velvet. Because there's so much that you're still destined to do.
"Destined, Father? Destined how?"
"It will all make itself clear in time, my dear. Promise me you won't stray."
"I promise."
"Follow your heart, and you will never be wrong, no matter how bad the consequences. Your heart is not wrong, only the situations around it. Never forget that."
"I wont, Father."
It was then that Zandu told Velvet the one thing that he wanted to tell her one last time.
"I love you, Velvet."
Velvet put her hand to her face and realized that she was crying like she was the first time that she experienced that moment. She wiped her cheeks in the unlikely event that someone would walk in on her, and put her hands behind her head.
Have I failed him? Wasn't this exactly what he told me not to do? I have strayed, run the risk of corrupting who I am. And for what? To preserve my own existence? What good is that if I can't even savor the time that being here has bought me? What's the point of all this if Iose sight of who I am in the process?
It was then that Velvet came to a conclusion that had been sneaking around in her mind for quite some time.
I need to get out of here. If not, I am going to die, one way or the other a thousand times over. These people aren't me. I can't follow their ideals. I was raised better. Father would not tolerate me being here, and neither should I.
Velvet's train of thought was broken by the sound of Kandase calling her name outside. She rose to a crouch and slunk out of the tent to meet the night air. She rose to meet her friend, where she was presented with the standard masks that all members of the White Fang. Velvet gasped and looked into her friend's eyes. "You earned it, Velvet. Since this is your first operation, we can't have someone seeing your identity. Do you know the stories of why these masks are the way they are?" Velvet shook her head in the negative. "I thought not. Not a whole lot of people outside the Fang do. Well, as obvious as it seems, I should probably start by pointing out that they're Grimm masks. The why is short and sweet: The higher-ups and their buddies treated us like we were subhuman trash, monsters who should be cast aside, and these masks helped us became just that. Why not prove them right if it means we get a little respect for a change?"
Velvet fought the urge to correct Kandase's misguided views, but she knew that now was not the time to debate over ethics with her. They had a job to do, and she knew that any negative feelings towards her would compromise their side of the operation. Even if she didn't agree, Velvet would do her part to ensure that there would be no more death as a direct result of her.
Kandase placed the mask in her hand and placed her own on her face. "Try it on." She said with a smile.
Velvet took a small deep breath and placed the mask to her face, adjusting it to her liking. The first aspect that she noticed was that her view of her surroundings was considerably narrowed, causing her to rely more upon her hearing and nerves and what she perceived in her mind. How poetic. She thought. "It's... different." Velvet observed, trying her best to remain optimistic and not disappoint Kandase.
"Don't worry. After a while, you'll get used to how it feels on you. After a while, you'll forget it's even on you. It'll feel totally natural."
Velvet feigned a smile, but she was screaming internally. None of this feels natural. She prayed she didn't stay long enough to have it feel as such.
"Well. I suppose you're going to need some of the proper garb as well if you're gonna fit in with the cool kids. I made sure to slip a set of unused unison the way out of Home Base." She joked. She pulled Velvet by the wrist to her tent. Once there, Kandase leaned into the tent and swiftly threw the fabled clothing at Velvet.
She gripped it in her hands, looking on intently at the telltale insignia of the White Fang on the back of the White vest. Her brain knew that this wasn't right, but she forced herself to retreat to her tent and change into the uniform. Minutes later, she met with Kandase once more. Kandase placed a hand on her shoulder, as she was prone to do.
"Welcome to the Brotherhood, Sister Velvet."