"What are you talking about?" Velvet asked, assuring herself that what Kandase had said must have been misinterpreted by her hearing. Despite her strong negative feelings about Adam, she could hardly see him as the person who would willingly kill two of his own comrades for the sole purpose of obtaining materials for the group.
Kandase rubbed her chin, likely trying to figure what she should do. It was not clear to Velvet whether or not she had even been heard by her partner. She looked out of the windshield of the engine, grunting to herself. The sounds of battle and gunfire erupted through the wind somewhere behind the train, but neither of them bothered to pay it any mind.
"Kandase..." Velvet began, but trailed, unsure of what she would even say to her. Kandase met eyes with Velvet, a look of grave concern on her face.
"Velvet, I'll be honest with you. I have no idea what to do. If you have any bright ideas about getting out of this jam, then by the gods, I'm all ears." She said, removing the hood of her uniform and running her hand through her hair. Velvet looked out at the blur of the Forest of Forever Fall, racking her brain. She knew not what to do, and she knew that, if they didn't come up with a plan fast, they would most certainly die. This desperation caused her to say the first thing that came to mind.
"Why don't we simply leave?"
Kandase turned and squinted her eyes, as if she was unsure how to process what Velvet had said, whether to perceive it as treason or stupidity. "What do you mean by that, Velvet?" She said, turning to face Velvet with her head cocked and arms crossed.
"There's no way to contact Adam. If we go back there and try to explain to him what is happening, he'll likely see our failiure as an unforgivable one and kill us on the spot. If we stay, and wait for them to do what we came here to do, we'll be killed in a fireball. What I'm considering is an option 'B'. We jump off the train, leave the White Fang. No one will suspect anything if they think that we're dead, right? So what's to keep us from simply leaving?"
"Velvet. You're suggesting simply abandoning these people, not trying to atone for what we've done. What if they need our help? What if they end up fighting for their lives because of our mistakes and we can't help them? Would they do the same for us if they were in our position?"
Velvet broke her gaze, looking off into the distance, embarrassed by her own selfishness. Her face became warm as she came to grips with what she was suggesting. "You know they wouldn't." Kandase's ending to her declaration took Velvet by surprise, and she stuttered aimlessly, unsure how to process this. Finally, she was forced to settle on a single word that properly embodied her confusion.
"W-What?"
"Velvet. I've known these people for a long time. Blake isn't ruthless, but she can be a coward at times like these. She's the type to run whenever things get too hairy for her liking. Adam, on the other hand, is the total opposite. I know that he acts like he puts his men before himself, but he's also a coward...of the more ruthless and selfish sort. I've seen him lead men into battle, then save himself rather than allow his men the chance to stay alive. It's quite disgusting, rather. Why should we offer them the same courtesy that they wouldn't give us? That's why you should leave, Velvet."
Once again, Velvet was dumbfounded. "What?" was all that she could manage to say once more.
"You don't need to pretend with me, Velvet. When you've been with as many lowlives and been through as much as I have, you get a knack to cut through the crap on a lot of people. I was able to read you like a book, from the first time that we met. I learned that we're not so different. I never would have taken this life willingly if I didn't have a mission."
"What do you mean by--?" Kandase shushed Velvet by putting a finger over her lips.
"Velvet, do you want out of the White Fang?" Velvet, severely confused and concerned for the mental stability of Kandase, eyed her finger and slowly nodded. Kandase removed her finger, placing her hands on her hips. "Alright. I've been racking my brain about doing this for a while now, and I feel that you're a pure person. That's why I'm offering you a way out."
"A way out. How do you intend on doing that, Kandase?"
Velvet jerked as she felt Kandase place her large hands firmly on her shoulders. "I have a contact. Well, he's more of my boss. I've told him about you, what you've been through. He already knew who you were, so I didn't need to explain much. Apparently, you met up with one of my...associates and she was able to fill him in. The point is, he's expecting you. He told me, if you ever wanted out, then I was to give you the items in this bag." Kandase removed the bag from her person and tossed it to Velvet. "You'll find an address, supplies, and a change of clothes that you're more familiar with in there."
"Kandase, what are you...what are you doing? What are you talking about?" she asked, warily eyeing the bag and strapping it to her back.
"Velvet. I--I'm not exactly who you think I am. I'm not one of these people. There is a lot that I can't possibly explain in such a short amount of time. Let's put it this way, okay? There a lot of things going on in the world. Scary stuff. Stuff that is bigger and badder than the Grimm themselves, run by people who are twice as bad as the worst of the worst within the White Fang. I am one of the people who's helping to make sure that these people don't get their way, or the total destruction of the Four Kingdoms."
Still dumbfounded, Velvet felt her brain fill over with all of the questions that she had accumulated in the short time that Kandase had spent talking. She put her hand to her forehead. "You're part of the police?"
"No, Velvet. The police have no idea that any of this is going on. No one outside of the group I'm in do. If they did, there'd be mass panic. That's why I'm trusting you with this, and also why I'm not giving you all of the details."
Velvet stood, in stunned silence. She was unsure whether she should have felt honored that Kandase had entrusted her with such a secret, or upset that she had been deceived once again. "Kandase, what about the people that you've killed?"
"Velvet. I've only killed one person since that night at the warehouse. I've been fortunate enough to get by without doing it, been able to keep my hands mostly clean. Then I was hired to help put an end to the Business I told you about. The only reason that I killed that officer is because he forced my hand. If it were anyone else he was trying to kill, to be perfectly honest, I probably would have let him. You, though, Velvet. There's...something about you. Keeping away from the fact that I've grown partial to you over this short time, I sense something strong inside you. When I told my boss about it, he became quite intrigued. You don't have to, but I suggest that you get off of this train and meet up with him. He's going to wait at a restaurant at the address in that bag for two hours everyday from noon to two. It's in the Commercial District, just at the edge of the walls. He'll do that for two weeks. You have until then to make a decision."
Velvet was perplexed beyond words. She hadn't the slightest way of comprehending what the woman she thought she knew had just told her. "I--What?"
"Look, I know that this is a lot to take in so quickly, but the gist of it is this. You are much more important than being here. You're destined for so much more, Velvet Scarlatina." Before Velvet could get another word in, Kandase gripped her in a hug. Velvet gasped, feeling the warmness of Kandase's body convect onto hers. Her eyes closed, and she could think of no proper words that she thought would assuage her friend.
"I want to thank you, Velvet. Before I met you, I wasn't sure if there was anyone left in the world worth fighting for. For the first time in my life, I'm glad that I was proven wrong. You gave reassuarance that what I was doing was the right thing. He was right about you."
"Who, Kandase?" Velvet asked, taking on a quizzical demeanor. She paused, as if to decide whether or not she should disclose any more. Finally, the answer that she settled with was one that was dissatisfying to Velvet.
"No one. Now, you need to get out of here!" She said, breaking from her embrace. She turned Velvet on her heels towards the window of the engine. "I'd send you out the door, but there's too much chance of you getting caught underneath the train. This is your best option at making it off of her alive." Kandase rushed over and eased back on the throttle slowly. The train coasted slowly to a more moderate speed, though it did nothing to ease Velvet's fears.
Despite this fear, Velvet leaned out of the window and sat on the sill. The ground sped all around her, and she couldn't find a proper place to drop. Rather, she didn't want to find a place to drop herself off at.
"Kandase," She began, looking over her shoulder at her friend who had joined her side. "I don't want to do this. I don't want to leave you here. You shouldn't be alone to face those people, whoever they are. I want to fight with you, to be by your side." She shouted over the wind.
She felt Kandase put her hand on her shoulder. Velvet became reassured, and was almost certain that Kandase would agree and hoist her back inside the car. It was a tangible hope of hers that she would assist Kandase in her fight and bring down whatever corrupt organization conspired against the world of Remnant. "I know you do, Velvet. Don't worry. Someday, you'll get your chance. Make me a promise until then. Don't just fight the battle; win the war."
Confused, the feeling became more amplified as she felt herself pushed off of the train and onto the gravel that supported the track. She rolled into a ball for protection, her legs, back, and forearms taking the brunt of the natural assualt upon her body. Her advance was ceased when she struck a nearby tree. Her vision flashed for a split second before she came to a full stop, resting on her back.
Velvet laid there, on the ground, in a daze. She was unsure what quite had just happened. She didn't have much time to recuperate from her latest ordeal, however, as the distinct battle cry of a what she thought was a nearby Huntsman. Her conscience getting the best of her, she powered through the immense pain searing thoughout her body and advanced towards the noises.
Her ears were soon filled with the sounds of both Beowolves and Human, causing her to rush forward more than before. When Velvet reached the source of the noise, she was appalled by the sight.
A boy who looked to be her age, and about the mass of Kandase, faced off against a single King Taijitu, among it being an evident Alpha Beowolf. There were another three Beowolves dead and beginning to dissolve near the Huntsman's position. He was tan, with jet-black hair and a clean-shaven face. At the moment, Velvet saw that he looked worn, blood soaked through his light-green robe, and scratches evident all over his face and forearms.
He possessed a long short-sleeved robe, which he wears on one shoulder over a black muscle shirt. Velvet saw that his robe was fastened at the waist by a leather armored belt, housing two pouches on it. His legs and feet were adorned with brown pants and black-and-green boots. His left arm bore asode that extended up past his shoulder. In his hands was a bronze-colored greatsowrd with a hooked tip.
One of the heads on the King Taijitu snapped at the Huntsman, prompting her to take action. She dove, as much as it pained her to do so, and summoned a Hard-Light copy of a Broadsword. She brought the tip down on the center of the beast's mouth, sending it retracting back. The second head slunk about and attempted to attack while Velvet was on the rebound of her previous attack. The strange Huntsman blocked the attack himself with powerful strike into the earth from his blade. Velvet dismissed her weapon and performed a technique taught to her by Kandase upon the near Beowolf.
She leapt upward and focused a large amount of Aura into her right leg. She spun in the air and landed a direct hit on the beast's chin. She proceeded to swiftly dropkick the Alpha in the abdomen and propel herself back. Not hesitating in the slightest, she focused her energy on her fist and landed a direct hit on the nose of the Alpha, sending its head jerking back and neck snapping. There it fell, dead.
Velvet, full of adrenaline to numb the immense stresses put on her own body, altered her course of descent to land back at the strange Huntsman's side. He looked over at her with his large brown eyes, as she did as well. "Do you mind if I ask you your name?" He asked in a surprisingly innocent and soft voice. She noticed that he was short of breath, and felt that it would be in his best interest if they would end the battle quickly.
A small wave of hesitation passed through her, and she decided that there would be no harm in disclosing her first name. "It's Velvet. What about yourself?"
The two eyed the remaining beast as it looked right back at them. The black head of the Taijitu stared at Velvet, its head swaying as if planning its next move. Her Huntsman fighting partner breathed heavily, back arched and sword tightly gripped as he readied himself for another attack.
"Yatsuhasi. Yatsuhashi Daichi."