Chapter 4: Seven Days to the Wolves

A week had gone by. Citizens of the City of Vale soon had to be evacuated due to the rising threat of Grimm. Thankfully, there was a large citadel just a day's journey away where they could take refuge; Fort Stein. Granted, it was built in the days of the Faunus War and designed to repel soldiers, but it would still serve to stand against the Grimm. Vale looked like a ghost town now, but with any luck it would not remain abandoned.

"Professor Ozpin," Ruby said when she heard about the civilians' evacuation to Fort Stein. "Are you sure it's a good idea to let them go there? Wouldn't putting a large number of humans in the same place be dangerous?"

"Hm?" he replied. "What do you mean?"

"Well, if even a single Grimm got inside, the death toll would be high would it not?"

He smiled. "You're right, but that's only if they get inside."

"What?" Ruby asked, confused.

"You've never seen Fort Stein, have you?" She shook her head. "Ordinarily, Ms. Rose, I'd be just as concerned as you are. But Fort Stein is...shall we say, very sturdy."

"You have faith that it will be safe from Grimm?"

"Faith is good. But faith is what I would have when I have nothing else to rely upon. I have the knowledge that Fort Stein is currently one of the safest places in all of Vale." He tapped his cane onto the stone floor beneath him. "It's as sturdy as the stone its named for."

That was that, and Ruby had to believe Ozpin. If Ozpin truly thought that it was safe, then it must be safe. Now the only thing she was worried about what when the Grimm would finally attack. They had been skirting the city, and their numbers were growing exponentially, but they still hadn't made a move against the city or the school yet. Even today, they were skulking in the shadows of the trees.

Beacon now had a rather sizable wall around its perimeter, designed to keep the lesser Grimm at bay should they come to the school. The first day it was made of plywood and planks, but with each passing day it was strengthened and built upon; now it was thick concrete on the surface with the original wood sitting in the core, as well as various pieces of metal to help it keep its form. Every one hundred feet there was a scaffold for the watchers to stand on as they cast their eyes towards the sounds of the distant Grimm.

It was on one of these scaffolds that Cardin Winchester stared intently into the distance, feeling the rage of confusion bubble up in his core. Though many people didn't like him, he was still trained and dressed as a knight, and as such he was one of the best sentries that Ozpin could have asked for. It wasn't because of his watchman status that Cardin was angry. In fact, his team mates were angry about it, but not he. He volunteered for it and had to order his team to join him. No, what made him mad was the uncertainty of what was skulking in the distant forest.

He'd fought Grimm many times before, and had won just as many times, but even the strongest and toughest can know fear, and Cardin was afraid. The howls he heard weren't the normal howls of Grimm; they were the blood thirsty, blood curdling, heart stopping sounds of death as it stalked its prey. In spite of his fear, however, he didn't want to be caught off guard. After a whole week, no one had been sent into the forest to scout it out, and that uncertainty is was scared and angered him.

He heard a small beep come from his scroll; his watch had ended. He turned and saw his replacement climbing the scaffolding. "Hey," said the boy; Cardin barely remembered that his name was Relius. "Time to switch."

"Yeah," Cardin said monotonously. "I really don't like that sound." He nodded his head towards to woods.

"Makes you uncomfortable, doesn't it. I've never heard howls like that before."

"I doubt anyone has," he commented before he jumped down. "Well, keep your eyes peeled." He began walking to grab a bite to eat. He'd been on watch since after breakfast, and it was now almost noon. He was so intent on watching for Grimm that he almost forgot that he was getting hungry. In spite of his attitude a week ago about how easy Grimm were to kill, the more he heard that howling the more he realised that they would be in grave danger. In fact, his watch spot is shared by Velvet, who watches at night. Normally, he'd use the opportunity to ridicule her, but he had put his racism aside in light of duty. He didn't like it, but he knew it had to be done. He felt he made up for it by never acknowledging that she's even there when he arrives in the morning.

Still, he felt unsure of what was really out there. Was that really the sound of an army of Grimm, or just several large Grimm? At this rate, there was only one way to find out; wait for them to attack first. The thought made Cardin freeze in his tracks. No, he thought. I refuse to wait for them to catch us off guard. With an idea in mind, he made his way to Ozpin's office to lay his thoughts on the table.

Ozpin's office was somewhat cramped; the Malachite Twins, Sun, and Roman were all present, as well as Ruby who was sitting off to the side. Ozpin was reading a report that Roman had lain in front of him a few minutes ago. Sun felt a smile burning on his face. He wanted to be respectful to Ozpin, but he really, really wanted to make a jab at Roman. Let it be said that Sun has zero self restraint.

"Must hurt your pride, Torch, eh? Look at you standing in front of someone else, acting like a glorified servant," Sun teased, opening a can of worms that he knew would eventually be opened; it was only a matter of time.

"Cute," Roman commented sarcastically. "Tell me a joke I haven't heard yet, then we'll talk."

"You've heard that one?"

"Different variations of it. All week. Got old fast."

Sun smiled. "Guess I'll have to try harder."

"Assuming a bum like you can." Shots fired. Sun was about to retaliate when Roman raised his cane and placed the tip on Sun's throat. "Give me a reason. I dare you."

"Quiet," Ozpin said calmly, forcing both men to stand down, though their glares at each other could cut diamond. The report Ozpin was reading was an inventory of all the things Roman had brought to Beacon. "And you're sure this is everything?"

"Everything I had, plus a little extra that the identical duo helped provide yesterday. Would you believe that Junior made me pay for it?"

"You paid for something?" Sun asked.

"Like you ever have," Ruby commented under breath.

Roman ignored the monkey faunus as he continued. "I only paid for it because we needed the supplies as soon as possible. Sorry, but if there's anything worth paying for, it's necessities to survive this nightmare that's spawned on us."

"I suppose you want to be compensated?" Ozpin asked. No one else but Ruby heard it, but there was a slight trace of annoyance in his voice.

"It wouldn't hurt, but since you're helping me as much as I'm helping you I'll only ask for half what I paid, which means you owe me 500,000 Lien."

The headmaster sighed. "Very well. We shall see what we can do."

"You spent a million? What did you buy from Junior?" Ruby asked.

"A number of things. Ammo, food, drinks, real drinks for whenever it's 'one of those' days, and extra fuel for my Bullheads, as well as the one private Bullhead he owned...most of the money went towards that last one."

"Why did you need an extra Bullhead?" Sun asked. "Aren't you the only one who can fly one?"

"No," Ozpin said. "Some of our professors, and I think one student, has a pilot's license."

"Also," Roman added. "The private one is modified. It's larger, which means we can fit more on it. More could be more huntsmen, more cargo; you name it, it'll haul it."

"Which brings me to why I called all of you hear. Roman, you've already said that you'll be our primary pilot, but what are you going to do if your Bullhead gets attacked while you're dusting off?"

Roman was about to answer, but he paused. "Hadn't thought about that, actually."

"I see. Well, it's too dangerous for just one person to operate a Bullhead. So, as our first extraction unit you are going to be a part of a team."

"What, Red's team?" he asked sarcastically.

"No. I was thinking of making a team with our newest assets." Ozpin stood and addressed the people it the room as a whole. "Sun Wukong, Melanie and Militia Malachite, and Roman Torchwick: you will form team SMMR (Summer). Roman, as much as I hate to grant you a position of power, you are the team leader."

"Believe me, Ozpin, I've been in a position of power since I got here. All I have to do is take my stuff and leave."

"Are you going to do that?"

He shook his head. "No. I'd like to be able to go home and sleep soundly at night; that incessant howling won't let me though. I'd like to see an end to that."

"Amen to that," Sun said.

"That means you two need to start getting along," Ruby added, pointing at Roman and Sun. Both men groaned. As dark as the situation was getting, and the fact that it was getting darker, the sight of Roman and Sun interacting put a smile on her face.

"What are you grinning about, Red?" Roman asked.

"Nothing," she said, deciding that she was going to tease them. "I just thought that you two make a cute couple."

Roman's glare shot daggers into Ruby. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a half smoked cigar. "Say one more thing, Red, and I'm taking this to Blondie."

Ruby went pale. "Why...do you still have that?"

Roman smiled. "A rainy day, as they say." He put it away. "You're a team leader, so why do you care about what big sis has to say?"

"Because she's my sister. She's practically my mother a lot of the time."

"Oh? What do you mean by that?"

"Well," Ruby thought. "Since mom died, Yang's always been there for me. She's taught me so much, protected me when I was weak, and she burns brighter than the sun when I'm feeling sad."

"She burns?" Roman asked. "Isn't that a tad literal?"

Ruby giggled. "Yeah, I guess it is."

Roman scoffed. "I guess I just don't see the big deal."

"Maybe if you had a sister you'd understand," Melanie commented, earning a high five from Militia and a smile from Ruby. Roman rolled his eyes.

Ozpin was about to add his thoughts on the matter when a knock came from the door. "Come in," he said. The door opened, and Cardin stepped into the room.

He looked around at the five individuals who were also here before stepping up to Ozpin's desk. "Sir, I think we should sent out a group of recon teams to see what exactly is in the forest. Our latest information is from the faunus who showed up a week ago."

"Standing right here, bro," Sun commented. Cardin didn't acknowledge him.

"Don't mind him," Ruby whispered into Sun's ear. "He, uh, doesn't really care for faunus."

"Ah, I see." Sun kept a watchful eye on Cardin now.

"My point is that we haven't seen a change in a week, but the sounds are getting worse. We need to see what we're up against so that we can plan for it should it attack," Cardin continued.

"I see," Ozpin said. "How many teams should we spare for this recon excursion?"

"I realize we don't have as many teams as we would like, but we should send out at least two. If we recon one area of the forest, it should be logical to assume that other areas are in similar conditions and we can make a rough estimate to plan with. Or maybe even send out two teams on different days to different areas to map it out properly."

Ozpin looked deep in thought. "I agree. I assume you are volunteering your team, Mr. Winchester?"

"Of course, sir. Team CRDL will gladly participate in a recon mission."

"You sure you're not using this as an excuse to skip out on watch duty?" Roman joked.

Cardin wanted to return the remark in kind, but instead he voiced his deeper thoughts to Ozpin. "Sir, I'd like to think that I don't scare easily unless my life is in danger. The last time I was this scared was when the Ursa attacked me in Forever Fall. I don't know what's in those woods, and I don't want to find out, but someone has to make a plan to counter them should they attack us. We can't plan properly if we don't figure out what's out there, am I right?"

"You are correct," Ozpin agreed. "And frankly, I'm proud of you for being proactive enough to suggest this. Thank you. Do you have any recommendations for the second team?"

Cardin shook his head. "I don't know the other teams' skills enough, sir. I'll leave that decision to you."

"Hm...how about team VLVT?" Ozpin asked. "They're very strong, and Ms. Scarlatina is both a very adept mage, and a faunus with heightened senses. I'd wager she'd be invaluable on such a mission."

Cardin was cursing inwardly, but he had to agree. Thankfully the recon he had in mind didn't involve the teams being in direct contact with each other, so he wouldn't have to see her. "Very well. When would you like us to go?"

"One hour. Do be careful, Mr. Winchester. And, that goes for you too, SMMR. Should they need to call for imediate extraction, it is now your job to pick them up. Keep the Bullhead ready."

Roman nodded. "Let's go, team," he said, mild sarcasm seeping through as he said 'team'. "We haven't got all day." The Malachite twins followed him as he left.

Sun stayed for a few seconds. "Well, this sucks," he commented as he finally made his way to the door. Cardin left as well to assemble his team, and Ozpin sent a message to team VLVT. Ruby said goodbye and began to make her way to her dorm.

CRDL and VLVT, huh? she thought. No one's going to be happy on this mission. Oh well, as long as they come back safe, everything...should...Her eyes went wide. Her thoughts flashed to her dream.

Velvet's body was recovered from the Emerald forest. The members of team VLVT were all crying, and Cardin stood over them with a look of sadness. He didn't like faunus, but he would like anyone who would save his life. He owed Velvet that much. The wounds that she died from were gained because Cardin was ambushed by a group of Ursa, and she just happened to see him in danger. Velvet didn't like Cardin, but she had a kind heart. That heart had ceased to beat, and now Cardin felt months' worth of guilt pile onto him at once, but he had no words he could say to make up for anything he had ever done.

"No!" Ruby screamed, tears in her eyes. "How could I forget that? I saw it! I saw it, I was there when they brought her back!" She looked up and saw her sister standing in the door in front of her; Ruby had made it to her room without realizing.

"Sis, are you okay?" Yang asked, concerned.

"Yang! We have to warn them!"

"Warn who? What? What is it?" Yang asked, getting more serious.

"Today, team CRDL and VLVT are going to go on a recon mission. Velvet's going to get seperated from her team by mistake, and in her attempt to find them she's going to find Cardin being ambushed. She's going to die, Yang. She's going to die to protect Cardin!"

"Tch!" Yang almost spat. "To think that she'd die protecting that scumbag after everything he's done to her."

"We have to warn her!"

"No!" Yang declared.

"Wh-what? Why? She'll die!"

"I know, Ruby. But there are other ways to change that. We can't tell her. Can imagine how scared she would be if she knew? She might die from something else because of her paranoia! Anything could happen when fear clouds someone's mind."

"Then...what are we going to do? I can't let her die this time."

Yang looked at her sister thoughtfully. "Leave it to me. You just stay in the room. Have Blake make you some tea. I'll be back."

"Okay," Cardin began explaining to his team, and team VLVT. He pointed at a map of the surrounding forest. "We're gonna start here in grids A and B for now. Team CRDL takes A, VLVT takes B. If you see anything major, do not engage; report it over the radio and keep track of as much information about it as possible. We're not going in for combat unless absolutely neccesary, understood?" He saw seven heads nod, four of which very clearly hated him.

He nodded, and the two teams began to assemble their equipment; weapons, ammo, headsets for communication, and so on. In the courtyard nearby, Cardin could hear the sound of a Bullhead firing up; Roman was getting ready in case he was needed. Cardin didn't like Roman, and suspected that he wouldn't be reliable should they need an extraction. Still, he didn't have much of a choice in the matter.

"Hey! Cardin!" he heard from behind. He turned and saw Yang calling him over.

That's odd, he thought. What could she want? He walked over, telling his team that he'd be right back. "What's up?" he asked.

"Listen," she said with a darkly serious tone. "I want you to look over there." She pointed and Cardin looked. He saw Velvet.

"What about her?" he asked, almost irritated. He had an idea as to where it was going from here.

"She's a sweet girl, don't you think? She's polite, doesn't get into trouble, has quite a few friends. Did you know my sister is one of her friends?"

"Look, if you're worried I'm taking her into the woods to hurt her, then you're wrong, okay? We're not even going to see each other until the mission's over."

"Oh, that's not what I'm worried about. Remember Ruby's dream?" Cardin nodded. Yang continued with, "Velvet is going to die today on this mission. She dies protecting your sorry ass."

Cardin's eyes went wide. "Why would she do that for me? I'm not her friend," he said defiantly.

"Like I said; she's a sweet girl." She leaned into Cardin's ear to whisper, "If I don't see her come back in one piece, I will personally give you a beating so hard that you'll wish you were dead." She leaned back. "So, promise me that she will."

Cardin didn't care for the blonde, but he knew she was serious, and that she could make do on that threat. "I promise."

She smiled. In spite of her menacing tone moments ago, her smile seemed sweet and gentle. Truly, Yang was a force to be reckoned with. "I'll be looking for you when you get back." She seemed to walk away happily.

Cardin nodded and returned to his team. "Time we left," he yelled for both teams to hear. "Mic check." He and the others tested the communication system. "Alright, let's head out!" The two teams left the confines of the concrete barrier and split up; one went East, the other went West.

Two hours had gone by. Team VLVT had been split apart. Minutes ago they saw a large group of Beowolves. There was no way that the team would go unnoticed if they stayed together, so the opted to split into individual groups until they could circumvent them. The only problem was that not long after the split, Velvet's headset stopped working. Great, she thought. Now I can't talk to my team. I won't know where they plan to rendezvous.

Maybe her scroll could still track where other Beacon scrolls were. She pulled it out once she knew she wouldn't be spotted by Grimm, and checked for nearby pings. Unfortunatley, this feature had a very limited range. That being said, she saw a single ping that was within range. "Must be one of my team mates," she said in a low voice as she began to make her way towards the ping.

Team CRDL had to split up as well, as they found several Ursa that had gathered. Cardin was in communication with his team still, but there was no need to talk yet; not all of his team had given the 'green light' that they were safe away from the Ursa. He was safe for now, so he waited to hear from all of them.

While he waited, he thought about Yang's warning. Why would Velvet sacrifice herself for me? he thought. Yang's response echoed in his head.

'Like I said; she's a sweet girl.'

He didn't like her; he didn't like any faunus. Although, he did ease up on her as of late. Even before the comet showed up, he started to take it easy. That was because of Jaune in Forever Fall. Cardin chuckled lightly. I don't know what's worse; the fact that Jaune saved me, or that I was sort of happy that he manned up. Cardin may have been a jerk, but with the comet and the Grimm that came with it, he decided to be efficient over his own wants and likes and dislikes. You don't have to like someone, so long as you can work with them for a common goal. That was his mentality.

No one would think so by seeing how he normally acted, but Cardin actually held promises very high on his priorities. Once a promise was made, it had to be kept. He had made a promise to Yang, but he didn't know how he would keep it. Maybe he would recognize the moment she was supposed to save him? If Ruby's dream really was a premonition of sorts, and today was the day that Velvet would perish protecting Cardin, then that means that he would see Velvet during the mission. He looked at his scroll: there was still an hour left in the mission before they were to turn back and return to Beacon.

He heard a break over his headset. It was Sky. "I'm clear," he said. Dove came in a moment later and said that he was clear as well.

"Alright," Cardin said. "We'll meet up in five minutes, understood?" They gave their affirmatives. He was about to tell them that he was on his way, but he heard a shuffle from behind. He turned and saw a large Ursa twenty yards away glaring at him. Fuck. he thought, hoping that is may not have spotted him. It had. "Guys, I could use some help. There's an Ursa that's spotted me," he whispered.

"On our way!" Russel said.

Cardin and the Ursa sat still, staring at each other. "Easy now," Cardin said. "You don't want to come at me." The Ursa thought differently. Cardin took one step back, and that motion prompted the Grimm into baring its fangs in a loud growl as his began charging him. Cardin cursed as he deployed his mace. He swung to try to deflect the bear, but it simply swiped the weapon from his hands and knocked him backwards into a boulder.

His weapon landed near him, so he wasn't truly disarmed, but he didn't feel that he had enough time to grab it and try to fight again. The Ursa was upon him, ready to claw at his flesh, when Cardin saw a brown blur appear in front of him; it was Velvet. She was in front of the Ursa, trying to prepare a spell to counter it with, but Cardin could see, almost in slow motion, that she wasn't fast enough. When a mage is focused on casting their spells, their Aura is weaker; Velvet was going to be killed before she could use the spell.

Cardin didn't think as he moved. Using his legs, he kicked Velvets ankles and caused her to fall backwards; just in time for the Ursa to miss her body and swipe at the air. In the same motion as the kick, Cardin twisted his body to grab his mace and he launched his body at the Ursa, hitting it with full force. With every strike the Ursa stepped back, and Cardin even heard bones breaking with large cracking sounds. He didn't realize it, but he was fighting recklessly.

Velvet recovered and stood up, once more charging a spell. This time, with no interruptions, the spell was ready. However, she couldn't cast it; Cardin blocked her shot. "Move!" she yelled. "I can hit it if you get move!"

"I'm trying!" He yelled back. The Ursa was getting angry and was swinging its claws at Cardin, usually making contact. Cuts and gashes started to form all over Cardin's face, arms, and torso. Instinctively, he went to block the Ursa with his left arm. The blow that the bear dealt was devastation, tearing off most of the flesh of his left arm, and even removing some of the fingers from his hand. He screamed in agony, but kept fighting.

Velvet was getting desperate; she saw Cardin about to be attacked by an Ursa so she jumped in to help, but now he was being injured and she didn't have a clear shot. One more blow and Cardin was once more sent flying into the boulder; this time he was so exhausted that his Aura failed him before he impacted, shattering many ribs and a few bits of his spine. Velvet took the opportunity to blast the Ursa. "Rot in hell!" she yelled as her spell fired off and the Ursa exploded.

She gasped for air, exhausted from holding the spell for so long. "Cardin!" she cried as she rushed to him. "Cardin are you alright?"

He tried to laugh. "You idiot. Of course I'm not alright. I...I can't feel my legs."

"Oh no," Velvet whispered. "We're gonna call for Roman, okay? We're gonna get you fixed up." She ripped off a piece of her top and tried to wrap it around Cardin's arm to stop the bleeding. There were too many open wounds to cover up, and Cardin was likely bleeding internally; he was most likely going to die. She grabbed his headset and turned it to where both teams could hear. "This is Velvet; Cardin's been severely wounded, and we need extraction!"

Within seconds, the sound of Roman's voice coupled with Bullhead engines came, "On my way, little lady. Hang tight!"

"It would have been you," Cardin whispered.

"What?" she asked.

"I was supposed to live, and you were going to die. Ruby saw it happen. Yang told me, and made me promise that you would come back alive."

"But...but you hate me. You hate all faunus." Velvet had tears in her eyes.

"I still do...but I don't wish death on anyone. Not even an animal like you."

The rest of team CRDL arrived. "Cardin!" Dove exclaimed. He turned to Velvet. "What happened?!" he asked angrily.

"I..I tried to help him, but..."

"This is your fault!" Sky yelled, preparing to strike her.

"Leave her alone," Cardin interrupted. "I saved her. I won't have you undoing what I've done." He turned to Velvet. "I know what they think of me at Beacon. I won't be remembered as a cruel, heartless bastard! I refuse that fate!"

"No," Dove said. "Don't talk like that. You're gonna be fine."

Velvet knew better. He was a goner, no matter what anyone did at this point; he'd lost too much blood. "Cardin, I'll see to it that you're remembered as a hero."

He smiled. "A hero, huh?" That doesn't sound too bad." He raised his right hand and placed his mace into Velvet's hands. "I made a promise, Velvet. Don't make me break that promise."

The sound of a Bullhead above them made them look up; Roman was landing in a nearby clearing. Velvet's team showed up around the same time and they helped Velvet carry Cardin into the drop ship. They didn't make it back to Beacon before Cardin slipped from life.

Team RWBY was waiting in the courtyard, prepared for the worst. Yang saw the Bullhead take off, which meant that something had happened and forced the recon teams to call for an extraction. I swear, Cardin, if she doesn't make it back...

Within moments, the Bullhead came into view and descended to land. School nurses rushed over and opened the doors, ready to help the wounded. Seven occupants slowly got out, wearing grim expressions on their faces; among them was Velvet, which made Yang breathe a sigh of relief.

"Where's Cardin?" Weiss asked. That caused yang to look again.

She saw Russel drop to his knees and scream incoherently. Oh no, she thought. Sun and Roman stepped out of the Bullhead, carrying a single black bag; a body bag. Yang ran, ignoring Weiss's call for her to come back.

She stopped in front of Velvet. "What happened?" she asked, almost frantically.

Velvet, still crying, met Yang's gaze. "He...he wouldn't let me help him. I tried to save him but he...he knocked me out of the way. He died trying to keep me alive."

Yang's heart sank. She had tried to save a life, and inadvertently caused another to be lost in its place. She hugged Velvet tightly, like she had for Ruby so many times before, but it wasn't Velvet she was trying to comfort.

It was herself.

Sun sat alone on a courtyard bench. It was night now, and he had swapped watch Duty with Blake for the night. She knew why he didn't want to sit watch, and she agreed. All of his life Sun had been on his own and had experienced hardship, but today was his first encounter with death in any form. Was this the bleak future that everyone was going to be subjugated to?

"Can't sleep?" he heard a voice; the voice of the man who helped him carry Cardin's body from the Bullhead. He looked up and he saw Roman. "Mind if I join you?"

Sun didn't like Roman, but he wanted some company. "Be my guest."

Roman nodded and sat down next to him. "The first time you've seen someone die?" Sun nodded. "It's never easy. In fact, I don't think it gets any easier."

"What do you care? You're a criminal. I've heard you've even murdered before."

Roman met Sun's gaze. "That doesn't mean I enjoy it."

"You shot at us all, remember? You tried to kill us!"

Roman shook his head. "If I wanted any of you dead, you wouldn't have had the chance to fight me. My murderous intent is for show; it's a trick. I'm a thief, and I will use any method to steal what I want, and that includes making you think that I'll kill you."

Sun stared intently at Roman, not sure what to make of his speech. "Why should I trust you?"

Roman smiled a sad smile. "You can't. Not yet anyway. I've always believed that you can't trust a man until you've had a nice, strong drink with him. Also, I'd say today's events are worth getting drunk over. So," he reached into his coat and removed a silver flask. "How about we get to trusting each other?"

Sun looked at the flask, then back to Roman. "Teach me how to fly the Bullhead tomorrow. If we're going to work together to try to save people, then we need as many people who are able to fly as possible."

Roman nodded. "Deal." He took a sip out of the flask and passed to Sun.

"Deal," he replied before taking a sip of his own. The night was darker than ever, Beacon was down a huntsmen, and the howling of Grimm could be heard louder than ever; it was almost as if they knew that they had killed one of their enemies.

"They'll attack soon, I'm sure," Roman commented.

"Yeah. And where will we be when they come?"

Song: 7 Days to the Wolves-Nightwish

AUTHOR'S NOTE

This is the longest chapter yet. I hope I made Cardin somewhat likable, while maintaining is asshole attitude. I literally have been sitting here since about 7:30 writing this (It's 11:30 now) I was in such a hurry to write it that I didn't eat much dinner and had to stop near the end (3 hours after i started) to grab more food. Don't skip meals, children. It's not healthy.

The first step into the night has been taken, and our first death has occurred. Our first death, I repeat. There will be more. And its just now hitting me that this is going to be a long story. I hope you guys stick around for the ending, because I actually know exactly how I'm going to end it. It's great, but you'll have to wait a while to see it for yourself. Quite a while it seems.

Till next time!