"It has been one month since the body of Isaac Howard was found in Fairy Tale park. Since then, the rate of hate based crime has skyrocketed. From basic refusal to hire those of Atlas, to outright public stoning, refugees are now living in fear for their lives and safety." The news anchor said as pictures of the events flashed on screen behind him. " Now, police are patrolling the slums to act as a deterrent to these types of attacks. Unfortunately, their presence seems to have little impact as new bodies are found everyday, many in similar positions and damage to the beloved war hero. And this trend doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon."

The screen changed to show a young, brown haired man in his mid twenties wearing a fancy suit, standing outside a large hotel before an audience of reporters, a comically large number of microphones on the stand in front of him.

" Anton Maywther, the youngest member SDC's board as well as one of their major shareholders and the head of the Vale branch of the company has denied any involvement between the company and the murder, even coming to the main kingdom from the marshlands to answer questions from the public at the Nicholas memorial hotel. A subsidiary of the mining company. However, things didn't stay peaceful for long."

The screen changed to show a video of people storming the stand, brandishing makeshift weapons as they ran towards the well dressed young man, overpowered his security with sheer numbers where they began beating them to death as Anton ran back into the hotel disappearing behind the doors as two more members of security tried to stop others from entering.

"Things turned south when the peaceful talks turned into a full scale riot due in no small part to Mr. Maywethers complete lack of empathy towards Mr. Howard, as well as several agitators from the criminal gang, the Enlighten Seraphim. When police tried to respond to the attack, they were met with road blocks on every route to the hotel, each one with several armed gang members who open fire at any and all approaching vehicles, resulting in a stalemate between the two groups."

The screen changed again, this time depicting the firefight. On the Seraphim's side, they had parked a bus going diagonally across the road, blocking both streets while using the vehicle as cover while they fired everything from small caliber handguns to fully automatic rifles. They had also fortified their defenses with several cement barriers as well that protected the sides of the bus so bullets could pass them as they ducked behind it.

As for the police, several standard cars were parked on the road, doors open as the cops initially returned fire. However when the automatic weapons were brought out, showing how outgunned they were, they had retreated to a safer distance as the more heavily armed SWAT teams took their place.

"The standoff with the police has been raging on for half an hour with neither side making any progress. But as lawmen struggle to break through this obstacle, the situation at the memorial hotel gets more dire by the second as the mob who originally stormed the building to find Maywether are now taking out their anger against any Atlesian they can find."

With that, screen cut, this time to long range footage of the mob carrying a man aloft above their heads as he helplessly flailed before throwing him head first off a third story balcony, his scream so loud it even reached the camera man before going silent as he hit the ground, the only sound being a horrible splatting sound that echoed out deafeningly loud for being so far away.

The next cut was to inside, shaky footage as someone streamed the event from the mob's perspective. There, they could be found running through the halls of the hotel, coming to a stop at an open door as a scream came from inside.

Pointing the camera in, they caught the scene of a family being dragged out of a closet, the husband being thrown to the floor as four teens angrily beat him over the head with furniture they had grabbed from the room, screaming the words the Seraphim had been preaching ever since Music Fest.

Meanwhile, the mother fought and screamed desperately as a large man dragged her out into the hallway, heading toward the stairs as three others made a makeshift noose that was being hung from the chandelier on the ceiling, a gleeful look on their faces as they watched the woman being brought close and close to their death contraption.

As for the two children, the daughter lay face down as the mob ripped any form of riches from her body, even her hair which they happily pulled out in tufts, mocking her screams of pain and stepping on her hands as she desperately tried to cover her head. One even grabbed her earring, ripping it off along with a part of her ear, making her scream in pain as blood fell from the wound, staining the carpet as they began beating her senses.

As for the son, who looked around seven, they had took several rings off him by cutting off his fingers, leaving them laying on the floor for some of the older people to pick up and pry the silver off as the younger, angrier part dragged him to the couch, forcing him down and tying him up before being out a large hacksaw, one happily placing it on his neck while another held his head in place by his hair, the boy's screams of agony quickly drowning out as they began pulling it saw back and forth, pushing the blade down with each pull.

But before it got to that point, the screen cut back to the news anchor, this time resting his hands on his desk as he stared at the audience.

" As you can tell, the situation looks grim for the people within the memorial hotel. However, things only seem to get worse as General Arc has issued a city wide warning as Grimm flood into the outer walls. Right now, the entire kingdom's military has been mustered and are fighting back the hoards by raining fire down on them. This strategy, while effective at stalling them, has proven less so at actually destroying them. And as such, the general has issued a request for any available Huntsmen or Huntresses to aid in the situation, even calling forth year students from Beacon to aid in the battle, with many having already answered his call. But even so, the request is still being broadcast on every huntsman channel. So if you know someone who is, or you are yourself, please go and meet with the general to-."

Crash!

The sound of glass shattering silenced the TV playing the news as someone was thrown into it, their body hitting it so hard, it not only knocked the wind from them, but also sent the now destroyed television crashing to the ground, landing right next to the young employee as he tried to crawl away.

"Please! I'm telling you, I'm not from Atlas!" He begged as two men grabbed his feet and dragged him back into the hallway, his hands dragging into the carpet as they went. "I'm from Vale! I'm just working here for the money! I don't-!"

Before he could finish, someone ran forward, kicking him in the head stunning him as the man responsible began shooting down at him through a Megaphone.

"You work for the devil! A demon who is evil incarnate! Are the wage you're getting worth selling your soul for!" The man, a Seraphim agitator, screamed. Stomping the young man's head as he did. "These jobs only exist to put local businesses under! You supporting it is treason by extension! Who's taking food out of the mouths of our children?! Who killed Isaac Howard for daring to call them out on their bullshit! And who is working tirelessly to take over the kingdom through manipulation?! You support that? Huh?!"

The mob cheered as the man continued to stomp on the employees' head, some even joining in, releasing his legs to kick him in the stomach, letting him curl up into a ball in a futile attempt to protect himself.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" The boy cried as more and more of the mob began gathering around. "I lost my job when everything had to close! I took this one to make ends meet until things blow over! I didn't-!"

"And now children starve in the streets!" The Seraphim cut in, screaming into his megaphone. "You put our business under! Went to the other side just to satisfy your greed! You're just like those Atlesian! Trying to destroy everything we stand for! No way you're from Vale! Who was it?! Was your father a rapist?! Or is your mother a whore?! Which side did this evil come from, huh?!"

The boy whimpered in response, as now, he was being repeatedly stomped on by half a dozen people. Each one hitting him so hard, blood was quickly drawn, staining the carpet as it leaked out of tears all over his body.

"Nothing to say? Hah! So you're pure Atlesian! I knew!" The agitator screamed, taking a few steps back and turning to a couple of teens standing by the stairs. "Looks like we've found another boys! Get the noose ready! Let this lying pig know his kind isn't welcome here!"

"No!" The boy screamed, his panic rising as he scrambled away, trying desperately to get to his feet and run. However, the mob effortlessly seized him, lifting him high into the air on their shoulders as they carried him toward the stars, chanting "death to Atlas" as they approached, the teens quickly tying a nose from the railing.

"No! Please! I'm innocent! I haven't done anything! Please stop!" He screamed as they reached the railing, throwing him across it as they began forcing the rope around his next. His struggles doing little against the mass of people who held him down.

"You are not innocent! You are hardly human!" The Seraphim screamed at the mob. "You are Atlesian! And as an Atlesian, you are a monster who must be purged! You've tried to kill us multiple times, and now that the shoe's on the other foot, you have the audacity to play ignorant?! The noose is too good for you! Break his legs first! Then throw him over! That'll be a more fitting punishment!"

The mob cheered in delight at the idea, immediately dragged him to the floor and rolling him onto his stomach, three men holding in place, one by his shoulders, the other two on his legs, holding them straight as the Agitator approached, pressing his foot onto his knee, pushing against it forcing it to start to bend backwards!

"No! Please! Stop!" The boy screamed, his panicked struggles becoming more frantic as he felt his limbs pop in ways they definitely weren't intended to.

"Did you stop when you burned our villages during the war?! Did you stop when our homes were overrun with your kind's filth?! Did you show the slightest amount of mercy when you slaughtered our children?! We never laid a hand on your kind while they lay in a crib! Justice for your kind has been a long time coming! And now, you get a taste of how we felt! We will not be deceived any longer! We will bring justice to you monsters like we should have done years ago! We-!

"Oh just shut up already!"

The man's rants were cut short as Amber came flying out from the corridor, driving her fist into his face with a savage haymaker, breaking the sunglasses on his face and sending him flying into the wall on the far side of the hall where he slumped to the ground, completely unconscious.

Immediately the mob froze in their tracks, eyes widened as they watched the infamous girl straighten up, looking down at her fist as blood from the agitator dripped off her knuckles.

"Huh. I'm starting to see why you like punching everything. That felt good." The dark skinned girl said as the mob stared at her, slightly petrified at the appearance of a huntress.

But that only lasted a few seconds before one snapped out of it and pulled a knife from his belt, launched at her, blade outstretched, poised to hit her in the neck.

However, before he could land a blow, a high heeled foot came crashing into his face, sending him flying, hitting his companion, forcing him to drop the boy's leg as they both tumbled back into the wall. And in doing so, giving the huntresses an opening.

Seeing this, Amber shot forward, driver her elbow into the face the one holding the employee's shoulder, sending him crashing into the teens who had tied the noose, knocking them both over the railing, hitting the stairs below with a dull thud, letting the huntress quickly pull a sharpen dust crystal from her pouch and use it to cut the rope off the boy's neck.

"T-thank you." He stammered, shakily rising to his feet. His entire body trembling from the near death expresses.

Unfortunately, this was far from over.

"Thank me later. For now, you might want to get ready to run." Amber said, pulling him behind her as she turned to face the rest of the mob who were now glaring at her, brandishing makeshift weapons as they began to advance. The Seraphim's chant still ingrained in their heads.

Taking a step back, still keeping the boy behind her, Amber glanced over at her partner. Her voice low so the nob couldn't hear her.

"Cinder, can I leave this to you?" She whispered as the two backed up, keeping the mob in front of them. "The civilians down stairs are going to be defenseless if we're both stuck up here. And I don't know if Eric is going to clear the fourth floor before-."

"Yeah, I got it." Cinder cut in, rolling her eyes playfully at her partner. "Come on Amber, you should know me by now. I like to show off. Handling these punks alone isn't anything to worry about. I'll be fine."

"You're not the one I was worried about." Amber replied, though the dark haired girl could hear the smile behind her words as she turned before her voice took on a much more serious tone. "Remember, no killing on this mission. So keep damage to a minimum. And I mean on both property and people, got it?"

"Got it." The dark haired didn't look back as she replied, calmly drawing her blades as she shifted her stance, positioning herself between the mob and her partner before letting out a shout. "Now go!"

Acting immediately, Amber steered the employee down the stairs and running with him as behind them, they heard the mob let out a scream, "he's getting aw-!" Only for them to be cut off by a scream as (presumably.) Cinder took them down.

This was followed up by more shots and screams as a fight between the dark haired girl and the mob, the sounds echoing down the hallway as the mass of people tried to force their way past the huntress, only to be met with the blunt end of her sword, effortlessly holding them back as she held the choke point, letting her team escape.

Meanwhile, Amber raced down the stairs, skidding to a stop upon reaching the lower floor as she grabbed the boy and pulled him toward the a staff staircase, quickly typing in the code upon reaching it and shoving him instead, making sure to rearm the lock before following him in where she was met with both the patron as well as the staff her team had managed to rescue on the top floors.

"Amber! Good, you made it. Where's Cinder?" Eric asked as he darted in from a lower level of the staircase, a small group of children following close behind.

"She stayed back to hold off the mob." The team leader replied breathlessly. "There were no huntsmen there so she should be fine. Is this the last of them?"

"Yeah, the fifth through third floor is clear." He said. "Fang called in recently. Said he was clearing the first and second floor. Though with this much carnage, I'm not sure how many will have been able to escape. I mean, these people are so bloodthirsty, I don't think I've seen anything like it before. In the nursery, they were-."

"They'll be fine." Amber cut In quickly, not wanting to think about what Eric must have seen. "Right now, we need to focus on getting these people out. Remember the plan, we get them to a choke point on the first floor and hold out there until the roadblocks are cleared. Then, secure a vehicle and get everyone out at once."

Before the knight could respond, she turned to the crowd that had been hurried into this cramped staircase and cupped her hands over her mouth so she could be heard by everyone.

"People, listen. We are going to get you all out of this. Please stay close and follow our orders!" She said, drawing their attention. "We are going to go to the first floor shortly. Stay close and be as quiet as you can. Right now the mob has moved up the building so there shouldn't be as many people on the ground level. With that said, remember to stay calm and stick together! If the need arises, try to find something heavy or sharp to defend yourselves. Remember, if you can, fight with numbers on your side! Don't try to be a hero!"

Her words sent murmurs through the crowd, many seemed scared by the prospect of having to fight, not that Amber blamed them. These people weren't trained huntsmen or even seen real combat before, now she was partly asking them to fight against an angry mob who wanted them dead. Of course it was terrifying.

But right now, she knew she couldn't let them think about it. Because if they did, they probably would lose hope. And if that happened, she knew that would only make things harder.

Fortunately, her earpiece crackled to life, and a voice she thought she'd never be happy to hear gave her the news she had been waiting for.

"The cargo receiving area is secure!" Roman reported. "You are cleaned to bring them down. Just make sure you hurry! I've got a huntsman patrolling this floor. And let me tell you, I am not getting paid enough to deal with that shit!"

"Roger that! We're on our way." Amber replied before turning back to address the crowd. "Okay everyone, that's our cue! We move to the cargo bay! Keep close, stay calm, move fast, and stick together! I promise we'll have you safe soon. Just a little more time and this will be all over!"

While not completely satisfied, her words did seem to reassure some of them, letting them move in a surprisingly orderly fashion down the stairs and toward the bottom floor.

Eric, after making sure the coast was clear, stepped out, gesturing to an employee to lead the group while he stayed in the back, ensuring all the stragglers got out while Amber took the lead. Her eyes darting around to make sure nobody spotted them.

"LTIS (Lotus) here!" Lee's voice suddenly chimed in over their radio chimed in, catching Amber off guard. Those not in an unwelcome for once. "My team and I have blasted through one of the roadblocks! Moving to dismantle the others! Once done, the cops will storm the building and arrest anyone still inside. What's the status of the evacuation?"

"Top floors are clear." Amber replied quickly. "Escorting civilians to the cargo bay. But the penthouse team is still silent. And we'll need transparency before the cops show up. We need to keep as many people out of the raid when it happens. What's the status of-?"

"A prison bus has been commandeered and is on route." Lee cut in, the clicking of her fan could be heard through the coms. "As you might have expected, I planned ahead, so they'll be arriving shortly. Make sure they have a landing zone properly secured. The man driving it isn't a cop, so he isn't going to show unless he knows he'll be safe."

"I'll see to it." Amber replied, rolling her eyes slightly at the pompous tone Lee always seemed to use. "Once he gets here, we'll only have a limited amount of time before the Seraphim learn our location, so have him hide somewhere nearby until the evacuation is-."

"Aaahhhh!"

A scream broke Amber from her conversation. Looking up, she saw the people by the staircase doors running towards her, panicking as a rocket was fired toward them, the weapon sailing straight toward the head of the crowd!

"Eric!" The dark skinned girl screamed, immediately alerting the Knight and letting him throw himself forward, blocking the explosive with his shield, not even knocking him back as he dug his feet in to absorb the blast that shook dust from the chandeliers..

However, before the smoke from the explosion had even cleared, a huntsman came crashing in, slamming a club into his shield and knocking the young man back into the wall, like he was hitting a baseball with a bat!

"That was for Adelaide, Atlesian scum!" He snarled as he glared at the smoking hole in the wall before rounding on the crowd. "And this is for my brother who you killed! You monsters aren't leaving this place ali-!"

But before he could finish, Eric shot from the wall, smashing into him shield first, sending him crashing into the wall where he pinned him, his weapon trapped between the metal shield and its welder's body!

"I got this! Go!" Eric yelled as he pushed the man against the wall, crushing the wind from him as Amber rushed forward to help, stopping a few feet away as he called to her.

"Oh sure? You're still-!"

"I'm fine!" Eric yelled, cutting her off as the man began regaining his breath. "I can't fight him with all the civilians around! Go!"

The dark skinned girl hesitated, giving the boy's neck brace a nervous glance. This was his first real battle since he got it and it didn't take a genius to figure it was also his weakness. Aura, while it could heal the body as well as protect it, wounds like that required more to defend unless it was a completely prosthetic. And that collar didn't meet that description.

"Eric, are you-?"

"Go!"

Unsure, but with her question still answered, Amber turned and ran, leading the civilians down the hall and away from the knight, heading for the evacuation point as behind them, they heard the huntsman regain his breath.

"Stupid Atlesian!" He snarled, making a scraping sound as he punched back against the shield, freeing his club which he raised above his head. "Think you can beat me? I'll crush you flat you stupid mutt! Make you regret ever challenging the great-!"

"I'd like to see you try!"

With that confidence cry, Eric pulled a lever on his shield. Immediately, the barrel of his rocket launcher shot out slamming the huntsman in the stomach, sending him crashing through the wall with a loud crash, making Amber smile to herself.

"That's right. What was I so worried about?" She thought as she ran. "This is Eric. Easily the most consistent member of the team. Injury or not, he'll be fine."

Reaching up to her earpiece, she changed it to a more secure network, one that's frequency was more hidden compared to the others.

"Penthouse team, what's your status? We're only going to have one open window. We need Maywether secure before then." She said, only to be met with silence making her nervous. "Penthouse team, what's your status?"

A few more seconds of silence passed, then, she heard an out of breath voice call back.

"I'm at the doors." Adam replied, sheathing his blade as he stepped over an unconscious body that lay on the floor next to the twenty others he had taken down. "Had to fight my way past a few huntsmen as well as a dozen gang members. You were right, this was all coordinated by the Seraphim. They're really pushing their agenda today. You'd think this was a Schnee themselves."

"The death of Adelaide's and her major lieutenants left a huge power vacuum among her ranks." Amber replied over the radio. "This is probably a power play by one of the ones left who's vying for leadership. If they can bring the head of a high ranking official, they can stake a claim over their competition, letting them gain a large amount of control over everyone else."

"Well that's fucked up." He murmured, disgusted in his voice. "Say what you will about Adelaide, she at least had what she thought was the interests of the kingdom at heart. This feels more like hungry dogs biting both each other and the person who feeds them, without a care about who gets hurt."

"All the more reason to stop them. I may not like any of them, but someone willing to go this far is definitely not someone I want with the full power of a unified Seraphim."

Adam couldn't agree more, this sentiment making him pick up his pace, coming to a stop right before the door to the massive penthouse on the roof of the building, the expensive double doors embellished with gold doorknobs and bronze door knockers hanging over them.

"How lavish." He thought with a roll of his eyes before reaching up and banging on the door. "Hey! I'm here to get you out of here! There's an evacuation point being established as we speak, I need to take you there before the mob can get to you."

There was a moment of silence. Then, the sound of hurried footsteps before the door was thrown open by the young man still in an expensive suit, holding a loaded hunting rifle.

"About time you showed up!" He dismissively, swinging his gun over his shoulder. "Are you a huntsman fresh out of the academy? Where's your team? Are they waiting nearby to ensure nobody else can get up here?"

"I'm a first year student of Beacon academy. And my team is evacuating the rest of the people in the building." Adam fought the urge to roll his eyes at the young man. Did he seriously think a pro huntsman would show up when general Arc had declared a state of emergency?

Maywether's face fell at Adam's words, his expression becoming much more concerned than before.

"One first year student? Are you kidding me?" He took a step back, face pale as he slumped down onto a nearby chair, hand pressed to his heart. "I mean, I knew Vale was a savage, uncivilized place, but to not even have a proper military presence is just outrageous! I mean, do they not understand who I am? If anything were to happen to me, I can't begin to imagine how Mr. Jacques would react to something so horrible! Why, without me, those worthless animals down in the mines might start slacking off or worse, unionize!"

Adam bit back a retort building in his mouth. He had known this brat for all of a few seconds and already couldn't stand him. He almost wanted to throw him to the mob and let them tear him apart just for the satisfaction of it!

However, he had a job to do. And unfortunately, failure wasn't really an option.

"Yeah, what a tragedy that would be." He said dryly, reaching out and grabbing him by the elbow to pull him up. "You can bemoan that later. For now, we need to get moving before more of them show up. Right now, one of my teammates is holding them back, but I have no idea how long that will last. We need-."

But before he could finish, the man spotted the horns resting on Adam's head, immediately jerking his arm out of his grasp as if on instinct.

"Hey! No touching!" He snapped, standing up and brushing his shoulder off with the vigor of someone trying to remove a stain before it became permanent. "I know you animals aren't civilized, but at least try to treat your betters with respect! After everything we do for you, it's the least you could do! I mean, without us, where would your kind be?"

The Faunus immediately bristled at the response, hands tightening into fists as he leaned in and to glare at the man.

"Look, buddy, I'm trying to-."

"I'm not you buddy." Maywether interrupted rudely, waving Adam off. "And quite frankly, I have my doubts that a kid your age can keep me safe. Do you know when backup will arrive? Because it seems to me that it'll be safer to wait for them then rely on someone of…questionable skill."

His eyes darted once again to Adam's horns as he said the last bit, a cold sneer spreading across his face that he didn't even bother to hide, making the redhead's blood boil.

"Okay, look here Mr. Maywether." The Faunus said, trying his hardest not to add insults or show his rising anger. "An evacuation plan has been laid out and a bus is on its way to get everyone out of here, you included. So you can either take your chances with me, or wait until the police blast through the three remaining roadblocks and come to rescue you!"

Maywether wrinkled his nose at this, staring at Adam like he was some kind of unsightly bug. Practically snubbing his nose at him.

"Tell me, was it someone with actual skill and ability who made that plan? Or was it one of your kind?"

At this, Adam bared his teeth in anger at the man, his entire body shaking with rage as he fought the urge to punch him in his stupid face! This man, acting so high and mighty when he was one of the ones who blatantly opposed his people, had the audacity to talk down to someone who was trying to rescue him just because of his race. A quality he couldn't control! All to feed his ego and belief that a Faunus couldn't become someone within his help. What a piece of filth! He deserved whatever the mob wanted to do to him!

Taking a step forward, Adam made to grab the man by the collar, to yell at him or throttle him. The Faunus wasn't sure, but one thing he did know was that this human was the lowest form of scum!

"Look here you-!"

"Adam! Status!"

Amber's voice interrupted the Faunus before he could give the man a piece of his mind. As well as drawing him out of his anger long enough to remember that they were on a mission, one sanctioned by Professor Ozpin himself. They were to get EVERYONE out of the mob's reach, no matter the cost.

Furious, but restraining himself, Adam took a couple steps back, reaching up and pressing the mic in his ear, turning it on.

"Penthouse is secure. We're on our way down right now." He said, holding up his hand as Maywether tried to say something. "We'll be going down through the employee staircases which should put us just shy of the kitchen. From there-."

"No! Don't come through the kitchen!"

The panic in his leader's voice was loud and obvious, catching him by surprise making him press the device deeper into his ear. An act he deeply regretted as the next second, something exploded on Amber's end, deafening the Faunus and making him stagger back, clutching his ear as he did.

"We've been compressed! The mob's found us!" Amber yelled into her ear piece as Dudley and Dee fought to barricade the passage between the kitchen and the receiving area, pushing several large and heavy pallets of food and other supplies in front of it as mass of angry people slamming a oriental table against it as a makeshift battering ram, a Seraphim member standing in the back, shooting orders to unify the unruly crowd.

"Take him down the fire-escape and wait for us to give you the signal before reaching street level! Then get him to the bus by any means-!" A clunking sound drew the dark skinned girl's attention. Turning, she looked down to see one of the Seraphim members had managed to roll a grenade past the barrier, the weapon landing right next to the wall.

"Oh shit!" Amber screamed, lunging forward immediately, throwing herself on top of the grenade, covering it as much as she could with her arm before it exploded, sending her crashing into the ceiling before falling back to the hard cement floor, letting out a pained grunt as she landed.

Coughing, Amber slowly tried to rise to her feet, her limbs shaking as she gasped for air. This was bad. She didn't realize some of the gang members had brought such heavy weaponry with them. If they used a few more in here, they wouldn't be able to hold!

And if things weren't bad enough.

"Aahhh!" A scream for Dee drew the dark skinned girl's attention back to the entrance, her mouth falling out to see Dudley accidentally toppled a large, full water cooler against the barricade, knocking Dee over, but more importantly, pushing several heavy objects out of the way, allowing the mod start pushing their way in.

Jumping to her feet, Amber immediately spun her staff, leveling it at the door before she fired a weak burst of electricity at one of the people trying to squeeze through the gap.

The second he was hit, he recoiled, screaming in pain as he stumbled back, out of the way as another replaced him, this one a teen girl armed with a fire extinguisher, one she tried to use to bash her way through. But another blast of electricity from Amber sent her back as well.

Blast after blast, Amber shot the crowd as they advanced on the door, sending them screaming backwards in pain, eventually managing to slow them as they quickly realized what was happening.

"Now! Fix the barricade!" The dark skinned girl screamed. "This window won't last long! Hurry before-!"

Bang!

"Ahh!" Amber let out a scream as a bullet struck her in her ankle, causing her to drop to one knee, her barrage of electricity ending as she was forced to use her staff to catch herself from her fall. Looking up, she saw someone had pushed a rifle through the crack and was blind firing into the room, letting his bullets sail around without a single concern for who it hit.

With a quick spin of her staff, Amber blasted the gun with a burst of electricity, making the man fire one last shot before retreating back in pain, leaving his gun in the hole.

Unfortunately, it was too little too late.

Several other people were sticking guns into the cracks, firing blindly into the room, their bullets cracking the wall and sending the civilians screaming to the side of the room, panicking as they tried to stay out of the way.

"Damn it! There's too many!" Amber thought as she returned fire, sending people screaming back. Many left their guns just in the cracks, letting someone else just run up and take up the mantle. "We can't hold them here. We need to repair the barricade before they break in! But for that, we need to take them out all at once! I need a way to-!"

Before she could even finish that thought, she saw movement beside her. Turning, she saw Roman raising his cane, the bottom popping open revealing the barrel of his gun before he pulled the trigger, releasing what looked like a glowing green flare.

But that was no flare, something demonstrated when it hit the ground, exploding into a mass of tear gas that blew into the kitchen, immediately turning the cries of anger to shocked yells as the people were forced to back up, retreating further into the kitchen.

However they were sent screaming out when two more were fired past the barricade, immediately filling the whole kitchen with tear gas sending them screaming out while leaving a lingering effect, making that room completely impassable.

The four students stood there, listening to the mob retreating before the redhead turned on his heel, arms extended to either side as he inclined his head toward his teammates.

"Well, now that they're gone, how about you two idiots make yourselves useful and fix the barricade?" He asked sarcastically. "Because if you haven't noticed, we're not the most inconspicuous group right now. And it's only going to be a matter of time before they circle around the building to find another way in. So I'd hurry and get everyone out of here before someone gets seriously hurt."

Amber nodded in agreement. She would have preferred to give Fang and Adam more time, but Roman was right. It was now or never!

"Adam, get into position. I'm going to signal for the evacuation. You have five minutes to get the payload here." Amber said as she rushed to one of the garage doors, pulling it open enough to crawl under it and come out on the outside. "After that, if you don't make it, find somewhere to bunker down until police reinforcements arrive. Cinder, regroup with Fang and go help Adam with the payload. I didn't see that many Seraphim members on the bottom levels, which means they're probably somewhere on the high yet floors. Lee-."

"Yeah, yeah. I heard you the first time." The girl interrupted. "And one more thing, would you stop trying to act like you're in charge of the whole mission? We were dispatched with different roles to play, so don't go acting all high and mighty because you were given evacuation."

Amber opened her mouth to reply, but stopped mid sentence as she saw a glowing red flare launch high into the sky, sailing above the building trailing red smoke behind it, signaling to the police a point had been secured for evacuation.

Smiling at the signal, Amber let the words she was going to shoot back die in her throat. Due to all her bullying, she sometimes forgot how reliable Lee could be. The girl might talk too much and do everything in her power to infuriate her, but when the chips were down, she had her priorities straight.

"Fang, Cinder. Did you copy." The dark skinned girl said instead, pressing the mic in her ear. "What's your status? How close are you? What is the eta on rendezvousing with-?"

"Just a minute!" Cinder's cry was followed by a loud crash as she kicked the last mob member through an orient wooden door, sending them crashing to the floor covered in splinters, bruises, and debris from when the huntress had thrown them into a painting.

With a heavy breath, the girl dusted off her hands and wiped some blood that wasn't her's off her face. "Yeah, I copy. I'm on my way to Adam , meet me on the fourth floor elevator. I'll be waiting." The girl replied, discarded the led pipe she had taken from one of the mob members before turning and walking towards the employee staircase, releasing the button on her mix as she let out an annoyed grumble.

"No lethal force. We don't want to hurt the violent inserters. That would be against the huntress code." She said, mimicking Amber's orders at the start of the mission.


A few minutes later.

Back in the receiving area.

Amber stood guard in the parking lot, her back pressed against the wall of the building as she scanned the road looking for the incoming bus. Her hands had turned white as she gripped her staff, sweat running down her brow as she repeatedly glanced to either side.

Something was wrong. Ever since Roman had driven the mob off, the hotel had gone completely silent. Sure, there was the occasional sound of fighting above them, but that could only make up a very small portion of the mob, maybe a dozen at most, nothing compared to the hundreds who had tried to rush her when she had led the Atelsians through the kitchen. Where had the rest of them gone?

That tense fear only seemed to strengthen when she saw the bus rapidly approaching, speeding down the empty road heading straight toward her. Whatever was happening, they needed to make this exchange quickly, before the mod finished whatever they were planning.

"Eric, Adam. Transport is here. What's your status?" She whispered. "What's happened with the evaluation? Have you encountered a large portion of the rioters? Or even seen them? I need eyes everywhere, people, something's not right."

A moment of silence followed her question. And while in reality, it couldn't have been more than a few seconds, it felt like an eternity to the nervous girl until finally, she heard the radio crackle to life, her red haired teammate's voice on the other end of the line.

"I'm in position." The words making Amber let out a sigh of relief. "Fang and Cinder are here too. We've taken refuge on the roof. What's the eta of our evac vehicle?"

"Yeah, right now." The dark skinned girl replied as she looked up just in time to see the large, fortified bus driving into the employee parking lot in the back of the hotel, two armed guards plus the armed driver on board. Nowhere near enough to protect, but she supposed it was better than nothing.

Waving to the vehicle, Amber didn't even wait for them to wave back before she rushed back to the doors, pulling them open and signaling to Roman and the Atlesians immigrants, promoting them to hurriedly rush outside and toward the bus as it skidded to a halt, doors swinging open as the armed guard leapt off, both taking positions on next to it, guns aimed at the building.

"Evacuation underway. Bring the payload down." Amber said, pressing the button on her earpiece, eyes fixed on the barricade, making sure nobody was trying to squeeze through. "Make it quick. I don't like how quiet it's gone. Something feels really off about-."

But before she could finish, she heard a shrill scream from overhead.

Looking up, she was just in time to see Adam, Fang, and Cinder dropping from on high. The former digging his blade into the wall letting him slide down as he held on with one hand, the other used to hold the screaming Maywether. As for the other two, they both fired a projectile into the ground to create a blast that slowed their descent and let them land on the ground with a practiced flip.

"The payload has arrived." Cinder said with a confident smirk, sheathing her weapon as she walked over to her partner. "And it looks like we've driven the mob off. Cowardly bunch, aren't they? Starting a fight against a bunch of unarmed civilians, then runs away when the tables are turned. What a bunch of jokers."

Amber raised an eyebrow at Cinder's carefree attitude, quickly opening her mouth to chastise her partner for making such a baseless assumption.

But before she could, she was cut off by an infuriated scream from the payload.

"Unhand me this instrument, you stupid mutt!" Maywether pushed himself out of Adam's grasp, falling to the ground before jumping up and dusting himself off. Still snapping ungratefully as he did."Do you know who I am?! I'm the public relationship manager at the Vale branch of the Schnee Dust Company! I will not tolerate this rough treatment from the people who are supposed to be protecting me!"

"Oh, wow. A bit of rough treatment by someone trying to keep a couple hundred people from throwing you out a window with a noose around your neck. That must have been so traumatic." The Faunus' sarcasm wasn't lost to either the man or his teammates. "I can't imagine anything worse than that. I mean, it's not like there are a few thousand slaves your company is keeping to make profit. Or how many Faunus live in poverty in your kingdom because those at the top don't want to share their wealth. Yeah, being bounced around is definitely a horrific experience one should be tried for."

"Don't take that tone with me!" Maywether snapped, jabbing Adam in the chest, glaring up at him in an attempt to intimidate him. "Do you have any idea how powerful I am?! I could put you in the ground for the comments, you worthless animal! Remember, without the SDC, your kind would still be living in the forest eating raw meat like the savages you are! We civilized your kind and this is the thanks we get?! I have half a mind to-!"

"Oh, I am so sorry, Mr. Maywether." Amber cut in, stepping between Adam and the man, lightly grabbing his shoulder and arm and slowly turning him in the direction of the bus people were quickly filling up. "Being assaulted by a mod like that must have been terrifying. You have my sympathy. But don't worry, I promise we'll get you to the guarded safe zone shortly. From there, you'll be back on an airship back to the swamplands before you know it!"

Amber's calming words were slightly interrupted as she shot a glare at Adam when the Maywether wasn't looking. One that practically ordered him to shut up and put up for now. She was still nervous about the missing mob and she wanted everyone out of her before something bad happened.

Unfortunately, not everyone shared her haste.

"What?! Me? Leave? What utter nonsense is that?!" Maywether demanded, yanking his arm out of her grasp. "What are you talking about? I have several thousand dollars worth of items in that penthouse! Hunting equipment, camo gear, tents, dust cartridges, taxidermied animals heads, multiple real fur rugs! I'm not leaving without those being secured! Do you know what I get paid? I can't afford to replace all that! I need a team to go up there and bring my possessions back to me!"

Amber grimiest at the man, trying very hard to banish the memory of one of their previous client from her head. Instead speaking as kindly and respectfully as she could as her gaze flicked to the traffic jam at the doors to the bus.

"Sir, I'm afraid that's not possible. Until the building is secure, the transfer of personal items is absolutely forbidden. No matter how sentimental they might be. And even if we could, the bus doesn't have enough room to store it. There's to many people-."

"Then throw some of them off for all I care!" Maywether roared, throwing his arms toward the crowd in front of the bus. "It looks like there's more than enough here to reopen the business tomorrow! And even if not, this business has a strict no union policy! A few extra hours of no pay overtime never killed anyone! And we can just scrape up a few worthless kids! The business will be fine!"

Amber stared blankly at Maywether, her mouth hanging open as she took in the blatant disregard of life or the wellbeing of the employees. Not even Bobby was that bad! Sure, he'd screw everyone over if he could turn a profit, but at least he pretended to actually care about his band!

Shaking off the shock, Amber hardened her face as she turned back to the man, her face becoming noticeably darker even as she forced herself to smile.

"With all due respect-."

"What did you just say?"

Amber broke off as she was interrupted by a surprising source. Slowly, both she and the businessman turned to the person responsible, one with an air of irritation, the other one of surprise and bewilderment. She hadn't expected to be interrupted, and even if she had, she would have bet on either Adam or Cinder, (namely the latter.) not him!

"What did you just say?" Fang repeated as he made his way over, a dark look in his eyes Amber, or anyone on her team for that matter, had never seen on him before. He wasn't tense or showing any form of outward aggression, but his eyes had been cast into shadow by his bangs giving the gray orbs the appearance of glowing against the dark they were put in.

His strides were even and calm, but somehow, each step echoed through the parking lot, making a menacing aura seem to flare up around him. His mouth was open as he breathed through it, each breath audible and growing louder as he approached, calmly sheathing his blade before he finally reached them, looking down at Maywether with pure contempt etched on his face.

Seeing the (admittedly) terrifying huntsman approach, Maywether took a faltering step back, trying to hold his ground as the boy glared down at him.

"I-I said that business will be fine if a couple employees die!" The man's voice had a noticeable shake in it, one that he failed miserably to conceal despite his best attempt. "A-and even if it's not, who cares! We'll just hire more! The company can keep moving despite the loss! We-!"

Maywether was silenced as Fang took another step towards him, his mouth setting into a hard line as he glared down at the man, the veins in his eyes seeming to spread closer to his iris unnaturally, terrifying the man even more.

"W-who do you think you a-are?! Get away from me!" The business man took another shaky step back as he tried to keep up his tough act. "I-I'm the head of t-the SDC's public r-relations head! You can't j-just threaten me like-!"

Fang took another step forward, his arms still simply hanging at his sides as he glared at the man, his face slowly morphing into one of disgust, his breath becoming louder as he moved so close, they were practically nose to nose.

Immediately, Maywether took another step back, opening his mouth to throw some more insults or threats the white haired boy's way. But this time, Fang stepped with him, in almost perfect sync, keeping that close distance between them, not allowing him a second to breathe.

"G-get back!" The businessman cried, his fear now clear in his voice. Frantically, he scrambled back, trying to put distance between himself and the boy, immediately tripping over himself and falling to the ground, still staring up at the boy.

Surprisingly, the huntsman in training actually hadn't stepped forward that time, allowing him to put some space between. But now that Maywether was on his ass, Fang took a step forward, now standing over him, trapping him between his legs as he knelt down, keeping his eyes fixed on his prey.

"S-stay back! Get a-away from me!" Maywether's high pitched scream echoing through the parking lot. Immediately, he tried to scramble away while still on the ground. However, no matter how fast he crawled across the ground, Fang simply followed, keeping that closed distance between as he slowly raised his hand, reaching out and grabbing his tie.

"Get on the bus." Fang's voice was quiet, but deep, filled with malice and disgust as he held his prey in place, not making a single threatening gesture but still making sure every bit of the man's attention was fixed on him, on his eyes.

"Y-you can't-!" Maywether began, but immediately fell silent as suddenly, Fang's aura flared up, his aura becoming visible as a gray, glowing mass of energy that writhed and twisted around him, radiating from his body in dark tendrils of fury, effortlessly eclipsing the man's weak, putrid soul.

"Get. On. The . Bus." The boy's voice was filled with deadly intent, one that didn't go unmissed by anyone there. Even drawing the attention of the panicked citizens who were still pushing each other in an attempt to get on the bus before them.

And as the two men's gaze remained locked, Maywether caved almost immediately, bowing his head and nodding.

"Y-yes sir." He stammered, crawling back just enough to get to his feet before turning and racing to the bus as fast as his legs could carry him, Fang's gaze following him as the two armed guards helped him onto the vehicle, much to the frustration of everyone else."

And as the man disappeared into the throng of people, Amber let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. Thank goodness that hadn't escalated further, she didn't want to think about what-.

"Nice job, Fang." Cinder said, immediately drawing the dark skinned girl's attention. "I love scare tactics like that. You got him to follow orders while barely touching him. Where'd you learn to do that? Because that's a skill I desperately need."

Fang, keeping his gaze on the bus for a few extra seconds, let out a breath as well, tuning to face the dark haired girl, his face back to its normal, softer expression.

"Picked up a lot of things working for criminals. That was one of them." He shifted his weight to his other foot absentmindedly looking back at the hotel's skyline. "Had to find a way to deal with some…people I either couldn't hit or didn't want to. So I learned how to intimidate people so I wouldn't have to. And besides, I can't stand people like that. They're supposed to protect the people under them, support them. Not exploit them for more money they definitely don't need."

"Well, either way, I'm very glad you're on our side." Cinder chimed in happily. "That skill definitely will come in handy at some point in the future. Not EVERYONE is so open to using intimidation as a tactic, despite how effective it is." With that, she turned to shoot a look over at her team leader, folding her arms as she turned away pouting slightly.

Amber, with a roll of her eyes, turned to her partner, crossing her arms as she countered.

"You punched someone we were hired to protect in the face." She pointed out deadpanned. "I think you'll find I'm a bit more lenient with intimidation tactics when surprising a mob or dealing with rescue operations rather than bullying our client and trying to scare them into silence. And even then, I don't think fear should be the go to answer for everything."

With that, she turned to Fang, arms still crossed as she sent him a hard look.

"And as for you," She said, addressing the white haired boy directly. "intimidating someone who can't fight back with the threat of violence is reprehensible, no matter how much of a slime ball they are. Huntsman and huntresses are supposed to carry themselves with honor and mercy, using fear tactics to get your way is below one of the protectors of humanity."

At the accusation, Fang's eyes narrowed, a deep frown spreading across his face as he directed his attention to Amber, his tone serious and hard.

"And what's your point?" He asked in a slightly annoyed tone. "If I hadn't, that spoiled brat would've wasted valuable time arguing his point. I did what I had to do in order to keep everyone safe without hurting anyone. I fail to see how that's wrong in any way shape or form."

"I could have handled it." Amber countered immediately, her tone becoming darker as well. "And if you can't see the problem with threatening someone, that's a serious problem. You know how many huntsmen have gone rouge trying to protect everyone? How many of them started with good intentions? They didn't see their actions as wrong, but many are still remembered in history as great tyrants. All because they couldn't see the problem with using force to get what they want."

"The concept of black and white morality is an outdated concept, one that is no longer backed up by modern circumstances." Fang retorted without missing a beat. "The fact is, the dogma we're taught isn't perfect. In fact, it's normally wrong when faced with most real life situations. When faced with an enemy who has the potential to cause the suffering of thousands, what's more moral? Killing them by any means possible, even if it's a horrific method? Or allowing them to continue their actions while you play second fiddle trying to catch them and off them with moral means?"

His question caused Amber to come to a halt as she began weighing the question. She actually hadn't really thought about it up till now. Sure, she knew things in the classroom couldn't simulate real life, but back then, she had always simply stated it was a huntress' duty to sacrifice her own happiness, health, and life to ease the suffering of others. To bear the pain and suffering so others wouldn't have to.

And while deep down, she knew she was just looking for an excuse to kill herself, it had blocked the question of how to deal with a situation like that.

Honestly, she could see Fang's point. Under those circumstances, she could understand why someone would use an extreme method to carry out their duties, if it decreases the suffering of others, then one could justify it. Which was honestly pretty admirable.

However…

"I see your point, but-!"

"Over there! I found 'em! Get them!"

A shout from above broke the team from their momentary respite, drawing all attention to the balcony where a member of the Seraphim was standing, screaming into his megaphone so his voice carried to every part of both the parking lot, and probably the building.

And the next second, they found out why.

Immediately the sound of shattered glass filled the air as several other gang members broke the windows of the hotel, pointing an assortment of guns at the bus as they got ready to open fire. At the same time, the sound of several hundred running feet drew the team's attention to the sides of the building where the vanished mob had reappeared, now armed with police grade batons and swords, rushing toward the gathered crowd screaming war cries as they came!

The next second, a bullet buried itself into one of the civilian's back, sending them screaming to the ground and inciting panic among the rest. Causing the group split in two, one half fleeing toward the safety of the hotel, the other practically tipping others out as they scrambled onto the bus, screaming at the drive to go!

However, with some many people panicking around him, the bus driver found himself unable to move forward or backward without running them over. Frantic, he tried to move forward slowly, doing his best to avoid everyone. But this only attracted the attention of one of the shooters.

Raising his gun, the Seraphim took aim at the driver, the scope of his rifle zoomed in on the driver's head, finger caressing the trigger as he let out a breath. "Nice try, Atlas scum." He purred. "But I think you've done enough for our kingdom. Now it's your turn to be ripped to shre-."

Before he could finish, he was cut off by a deafening crash behind him. Spinning around, he leveled his gun at the commotion to find a knight in full green armor charging towards him, shield raised between them.

Quick as he could, he fired a shot from his rifle, aiming for Eric's legs in an attempt to trip him up.

But the green knight had predicted that, lowering his shield so it dragged against the ground, blocking the bullet and catching his opponent off guard, letting him close the distance where he ripped his weapon up, smashing it into the sniper's face, knocking several teeth out and sending sailing a few feet before landing straight on his back, completely unconscious and with the imprint of Eric's family crest.

"Well, that takes care of that." He grunted before walking to the balcony and looking down to see Roman and Fang (who had attached a grenade launcher to his sword.) firing tear gas at the advancing crowd, driving them back slightly.

However, unlike inside where space had been limited, in the open parking lot, the was able to surge around it, barely slowing down as the returned fire with everything from stone and knives to guns and even molotovs.

"Shit!" Amber swung as she used her staff to blast one of the fire bottles out of the air. "There are too many to protect! We're going to be overrun at this rate! No choice!"

Spinning around, she turned her attention to both the crowd and the armed guards, who were firing shots at the advancing mob.

"Go!" She screamed at the driver. "Take everyone already on and get them to safety! Everyone else, retreat back to the receiving area! We'll hold up there until the police arrive! Until then-! Ahh!"

The girl was cut off as she was struck in the head by a bullet from one of the windows, causing her to stagger against the side of the bus, one hand resting against the metal, the other pressed to her skull where she had been hit, her yellow orange aura becoming visible from the strain.

Seeing this, Cinder immediately spun around taking out an arrow and knocking it into Midnight in a single fluid movement, firing the area into the shoulder of the shooter's shoulder, causing him to collapse to the ground screaming in pain as it implade him.

"Eric, do something about these damn shooters!" Cinder screamed as she turned her bow to the advancing mob on the ground, shooting her arrows into the ground and detonating them, showering them with debris, slowing their advance.

"Trying!" Eric replied as he smashed straight through one of the nearby walls, catching a group of shooters off guard, letting him easily knock out two before they could put up much of a fight. "There's to many, all on different levels! I'm going to need some help to clear all floors!"

"I'm on it!" Roman replied annoyed as his hat was shot off, prompting him to begin reloading his gun with proper ammunition. "Fang, Dudley! You two handled things on the ground! Dee, with me! We're gonna take out these damn snipers!"

"Understood!" Fang called back as he detached the grenade launcher from his sword and attached his shotguns in their place. "Leave it to us, we won't let you down."

Roman nodded, then used his cane to blast himself up to one of the balconies before charging in, the sounds of surprised cries as he set to work beating the people inside into a pulp, quickly defeating them as Dee pelted back through the garage doors, the fleeing Atlesians just behind him.

As this happened, the bus finally managed to navigate out of the clump of people blocking it, quickly speeding toward the highway as the two armed guards jumped up the back, holding on as they fired back at the crowd, trying to keep them away as the five huntsmen turned to face the incoming storm.

"Cinder, Fang, With me! Cover the retreating crowd! Adam, Dudley, you two cover the bus! Don't let anyone touch it!" Amber screamed before charging towards the advancing mob, drawing her staff as she ran, Fang and Cinder quickly appearing next to her where they began engaging with the members of the mob who were noticeably faster then the others, mostly consisting of Seraphim members and huntsmen.

Meanwhile, Adam and Dudley sprung into action. The former slamming his blade into his scabbard and activating the pistons on the sides, hammer his blade letting him build up his semblance as the latter opened fired on the crowd, shooting the ground in front of them forcing them to scatter, buying time for the Faunus to fully charge his blade.

And not a second to soon, as almost immediately after he finished a loud screeching pulled his attention to the highway, eyes wide as he saw a massive armored with a mounted gun barreling toward the employee entrance, trying to block the bus in as the gunman on the top opened fired, spraying bullets at the fleeing civilians seemingly without a care.

Seeing this, Adam immediately raced towards to bus, the screams of the passengers resounding through the area as the driver swerved, narrowly avoiding a hail of gunfire, bullets racking access the back, knocking out the taillights and hitting one of the armed policemen in the chest, knocking him to the ground killing him instantly, several holes in his chest leaking blood onto the pavement below.

"Cinder!" The Faunus' screamed, drawing his teammate's attention. And upon seeing the situation, she realized exactly what he had planned.

Without wasting a single moment, she drew two arrows from her quiver. Taking aim, she fired them high into the air, letting them sail well over Adam's head, landing a few feet in front of him, heating the cement where the tips had dug in.

Adam, seeing everything in place, acted immediately by jumping into the air, flipping as he went. His times his jump perfectly so his feet would be facing the ground when he passed over the arrows.

And right on cue, Cinder tightened her hand into a fist, detonating the ground, launching Adam forward, letting him catch up to the bus, landing on the roof with a roll.

And the second he came to a stop, resting on his knees, the entire area darkened as his red hair and horns seemed to glow a bright red, silhouetting his frame against the pitch black night he had conjured.

"Aahhhh!" The Faunus screamed as he drew his sword, swinging it toward the armored truck, releasing a wave of energy that ripped through the air, tearing up the cement as it traveled toward its target!

But this time, unlike his normal blasts, this one was different. Adam, instead of releasing all his energy into a large area had condensed it, focused his power onto itself, making the energy grind against themselves turning his attack into a much smaller, more focused attack with a significant increase to its destructive capacity!

And as it shot toward the truck, the inhabitants didn't even have the time to scream before his semblance ripped straight through the side of the vehicle, sending them spiraling off the road and into the ditch, landing on its side as half the truck had been ripped off.

"Go! Go now!" Adam screamed at the driver, who didn't need to be told twice. Immediately, he floored it, driving out onto the highway, past the armored car as the occupants slowly crawled out, injured and bleeding, but alive.

"Amber, they have military grade vehicles here!" The Faunus warned as he sheathed his blade, acting the pistons again to charge his semblance. "I don't know where they're coming from or how they're affording them, but it's too dangerous to leave them alone. Requesting permission to accompany them to the evacuation point."

There was a moment of silence. Then, the voice of his leader came on over the radio, slightly strained, but clear.

"Permission-! Gah! Bastards!" Her words were followed by the sound of someone else crying out in pain, most likely being on the receiving end of Amber's deadly kicks. "Permission granted! We'll hold this point here! You get everyone-! Ahh! Cind-!"

The dark skinned girl cut her mic as another gunshot could be heard on the other end, supposedly hitting her. But her message still got across. He was allowed to escort the civilians to safety.


Back at the hotel

"Yah!" Amber shouted as she kicked one of the rioters in the face, sending the crashing into two others behind, knocking them all to the ground.

And not a second too soon as she was forced to roll to the side to avoid a metal pipe that was swung at her head from behind less than a second later. From there, she was able to plant her feet and lunge back at her assailant, wrapping her arms around their waist, lifting them up before throwing them to the ground, winding them as well before she rushed forward and kicked them in the head, knocking them out.

As this happened, Cinder took a step back as two men swung their fists at her, forcing her to retreat back to avoid their clumsy strikes. Then, seeing an opening, she throw herself forward, driving the hilt of her blade into one's solar plexus, driving it in deep causes them to wheeze in pain before slumping down to his knees, hands wrapped around his stomach.

With one disabled, Cinder acted quickly, dodging around them to get right up in the face of her other opponent, catching him off guard where she drove her sharpened heel into his leg, piercing his leg dropping him to his knees as well.

There, with both her opponents on the ground, Cinder spun, hitting both men with the hilt of her swords, one right in their throat, the other in the back of their neck, sending both crashing to the ground unconscious.

"Amber, stop being so damn soft! These guys are trying to kill us! We have the authority to fight back!" The dark haired girl screamed as one of the rioters wrapped their arms around her, pinning her own to her sides as they lifted her off the ground, trying to squeeze her hard enough to suffocate her. But Cinder simply slashed his leg open with her heel, weakening him enough for the girl to throw her arms up, freeing herself before spinning and kicking them in the head, sending crashing to the ground, a gash in the temple.

"Just because we have the authority, doesn't mean we should use it!" Amber called back, side stepping an attack before grabbing their arm and pulling them forward, tripping them over her leg resulting in them crashing face first into the ground. "We're here to save lives, not cause more bloodshed! There's no point in stopping this riot if we turn it into a bloodbath!"

"Oh you cannot be serious!" Cinder groaned, firing an arrow past the mod and into the leg of a Seraphim member who was approaching with a rifle, causing them to drop it as they fell to the ground clutching their injury. "These are criminals! I hardly think it's immoral to kill a bunch of killers! Especially these weak minded morons! I mean, they're here killing on behalf of-!"

"Cinder!"

The frustrated yell silenced said girl, reminding her of the original object given to the first year class from Ozpin. Subdue the riots and protect civilians, not act as judges, jury, and executioner. In fact, the headmaster had given very specific instructions to keep the body count as low as possible to avoid any more strife or panic.

Like it or not, the faith people once held for the huntsmen who protected them had been all but shattered when the SDC sent an assassin that had not only infiltrated the kingdom without raising any alarms, they hadn't left a single trace on how they had done it or how they had defeated one of the most powerful men in the world. And that wasn't just in combat abilities.

As usual, Amber was right. Any more distrust between the kingdom wouldn't help anyone. For right now, they couldn't afford to leave a mass of corpses in their wake. Not if they wanted to restore any of the faith that had been lost.

However, before she could reply, someone else beat her to it.

"Well, if we can't kill them, how about making a spectacle of it instead?"

Before either girl could answer, there was a sudden scream from their right as three grown adults were thrown high into the air, landing painfully around the parking lot, immediately drawing the attention of the mob towards the speaker.

Fang, who had drawn his weapon, stood in the center of several unconscious bodies, calmly staring at the mob with the death glare he had sent Maywether. Wordlessly, he detached the grenade launcher from his sword, attaching his shotguns in their place before spinning his weapon so the barrel's point behind him, away from the charging rioters.

Then, with a single pull of the trigger, he shot himself forward, flying at them so fast, he was right in their faces before they even realized what was happening.

"Wha-?!" One began, but was silenced immediately as the white haired boy slammed the guard of his sword into their face, cracking their jaw and sending the flying into a parked car where they lay still.

But Fang was far from done.

Before they others could even realize what had just happened, the white haired boy stabbed his blade into one of their feet before quickly silencing their scream by grabbing their head and slamming it into his hilt, staggering them which let him pull his blade out, driving it into their chin before dropping to the ground and legs sweeping a third member, sending them crashing to the ground as well.

Unfinished with his combo, Fang shot pasted those three, driving his elbow into the collarbone of another rioter, breaking it as he used a shotgun blast to move with incredible speed before spinning once again, this time using the blunt side of his blade to smack through four other members of the mob, sending the flying several feet, crashing into other members, knocking them to the ground as well.

At this point, the rest of the mob had taken notice of the boy and his aggression towards them. Immediately, several other members broke off from their battles with Amber and Cinder to charge at the boy instead. Brandishing their makeshift weapons as they let out battle cries, hoping to overwhelm him with sheer numbers and the weight of their fury.

However, Fang's face remained the same dark glare, eyes narrowing to slits as he swung his blade behind him, positioning it in the exact same way as he did last time as he crouched down, raising his free arm in front of himself as he seemed to get ready for something.

And the next second, the two girls saw what he was getting ready for.

Pulling the trigger, Fang shot forward, repeatedly blasting his gun behind to pickup a ridiculous amount of speed, using it to slam into the crowd launching several screaming into the air, leaving them helpless and and spinning upwards as a noticeable streak in their ranks as the boy skidded to a halt behind them before spinning his gun, and launching himself to the side of the crowd.

Slow to react, the mob had just turned to where Fang had been before he ripped straight through them again, sending another streak into the sky before once again blasting himself around the mob.

"He's over there!" One of them yelled, pointing to the place the boy had just been, unable to keep up with Fang's incredible speed. Something that was proven very quickly as another blur of white shot through them, digging his blade into the ground to come to a stop just past them.

Staring at the display the boy had just put on, the mob were understandably taken aback, taking a hesitant step back out of fear as Fang turned to them, that same death glare etched on his face, sending shivers down their spines.

However before they could either fight it off or even plan their next move, they were sent crashing to the ground as the mob members he had launched into the air came crashing down on top of them, pinning them underneath a pile of bodies as those below were slammed against the hard concrete, and those above felt their bodies shatter from the impact of the several feet they had fallen, both side's fracturing bone.

"Humph." Fang slid his sword back into its scabbard as he turned away from the now disabled mob, dusting off his hands as he faced both his teammate and the girls.

"Was that really necessary? You do know most of them don't have an aura, right?" Amber asked, looking somewhat concernedly at the moaning mob laying on the ground, clutching their various injuries.

"Fighting should be as gruesome as possible. That way, it ensures people will fear it, avoid it." Fang said immediately, folding his arms as he walked over to the beaten mob. "Maybe now that they've seen what real combat looks like, they won't be so willing to go all in on the warpath and the hell it brings. Besides-."

Fang causally kicked one of the defeated members in the leg, causing them to groan in response.

"They're far from dead. Injured, but not dead."

At this, Amber frowned. She knew Fang had it rough and as a result, his opinions had changed. But still, inflicting this kind of damage to civilians, rioting or not, felt like a line crossed to the girl. Huntsman were supposed to have standards they carried themselves with, to bring safety and security to those who they protected. Not scare them into behaving when they could have just as easily defeated them without the excessive force.

"Fang, you can't just use fear to get what you want." The dark skinned girl chastised, approaching the boy as she folded her arms. "Fear, anger, oppression, these are all things that will draw in the Grimm. You can't just force people to behave, if you want people to change, you need to show them empathy, compassion. Beating people into submission is a temporary and shortsighted solution that won't ever bring about real change."

Now it was Fang's turn to frown, turning his attention to Amber as he shifted his weight to his other foot.

"Not everyone is so readily willing to change." He stated, locking eyes with the girl. "I wish people would see the error in their ways just by being kind, but reality doesn't work that way. Here, a sword drawn keeps another's sheathed. Fear of violence, or repercussions keep people in line is far more effective than trying to be empathetic towards them. The unfortunate truth is, for people to have something, others have to lose it."

"But it doesn't have to be!" Amber pushed, throwing her arms down as she took another step toward the boy. "I'm not going to argue everything's perfect, but if we keep using the past to reignite hate, that hate will never go away. That's exactly what this riot was about! People not letting go of the past!"

"And that's the problem." Fang shot back, eyes narrowed to slits as he took a step forward. "Even if we. No, the entire kingdom chose to abandon their anger, their hate, it wouldn't matter. Another kingdom would just take advantage of it and attack. People aren't designed to get along. No matter how many times you save the world, it's just going to get screwed up again. Sure, you can live your life helping others, but at the end of the day, you're just treating the symptoms, not the sickness. And sometimes, things will have to get worse before they get better."

"And this is better?" Amber threw her arm out, gesturing to one of the fallen mob members, who was awake and clutching his arm, screaming about how he couldn't feel it. "This, this isn't what we should be doing to a group of civilians. Sure, they were attacking us, but-."

"And that's just it. They aren't civilians anymore, they're criminals."

Amber froze at Fang's interruption, her eyes widening as his words hit something that caught her completely off guard. She hadn't thought of that before. They were technically criminals now, breaking multiple laws from simple trespassing to murder. They couldn't just go home after this and live like nothing happened. They were going to jail at best, and the electric chair at worst!

"These people, while yes, egged on by the Seraphim, are still full grown adults. They are fully responsible for their decisions. And will have to face the consequences of their actions. And the way I see it, I highly doubt any competent justice system would allow people who force their way into a building with the intent of hanging the people who worked there to walk free. Honestly, it'd be a failure of the system if they didn't. Putting these people behind bars is the best way to keep the city safe. Not just from them, but as a message to anyone else who might think of acting out a power fantasy like this. That no matter what you do, you will have to pay for your actions in one way or another."

Amber said nothing as she let his words sink in, an uncomfortable feeling filling her gut. She really didn't have a good counter or argument to his points. He was right, if a kingdom didn't punish criminals, then there would be no deterrent to stop others. A simple fact that was basic enough for anyone to understand.

But on the other hand, she still didn't like the amount of force Fang used. It just felt…wrong. Like police brutality, only for huntsmen. But even so, she couldn't honestly say without that, the mob might have been able to get to the Atlesians who had been stuck in the hotel. Her and Cinder couldn't fight off that many without need to draw blood, and he technology had brought the fight to an end without killing anyone. So it technically wasn't all bad.

"I-." Amber began, but was cut off by a scream from her radio.

"Hey! Team AACE." Lee's voice interrupted the conversation as it radiated from the radio, a noticeable strain as she yelled over what sounded like police sirens in the background. "You're getting company real soon. Get ready and look up!"

Confused, Amber exchanged a look with the other two before reaching up to the button on her ear piercing.

"Lee, what are you talking about? Who's coming? What's that sound behind you? And what do you mean look-?"

But before she could finish, she was cut off as suddenly a siren blaring up in the distance. Then another, this one closer and quickly followed by yet another even closer before it finally reached their district, echoing through the entire area.

Slowly, the mob stopped their groaning, looking up in confusion as the siren blasted through the area. It sounded familiar, but surely they were just mistaken. After all, there was no way this could happen, not to them. Not again.

But as the people slumped up dumbly, the four huntsmen slowly turned to the sky, their hearts sinking as a black figure flew above them, casting the entire building into its massive shadow as it shot past before turning and doubling back around.

A long, heavy silence fell between everyone in the parking lot as they watched the thing approach, it's dark black wings obscuring the light, blood red eyes fixed on the mass of negative emotions that was the beaten crowd. It's very presence sending a wave of terror pulsing through them all as they stared up in stunned tranfiction until finally, one of the broke the silence with a deafening scream.

"Nevermore!"

No sooner than the words left Dudley's mouth, the bird like Grimm let out a screech that deafened those below it, its cry so loud it shattered the few still intact windows, sending glass raining down on anyone below, cutting them to pieces as they screamed, covering their heads.

Immediately, panic completely overtook the mob, the ones who could still move leaping to their feet, ignoring their fractured bones as they sprinted towards the hotel, trampling everyone in their way as they ran screaming for cover, leaving those who couldn't lying helplessly on the floor.

The panic, assuming it hadn't already noticed, drew the Grimm's attention to the parking lot, its eyes fixing on the fleeing civilians, or the center of all the negative emotions that attracted it.

Letting out a screech, the Nevermore dive bombed the mob, its wings stretching out as far as it could, feathers bristling as they loosened themselves getting ready to fire. Below it, the conscious crowd members who couldn't move, let out screams for their able bodied friends or family who had left behind, abandoning them to seek shelter for themselves from the encroaching Grimm.

And right as they were in range, the Nevermore beat its wing, pushing itself back into the sky as it rained massive feathers down onto the panicked crowd, the sharpened points descending like hundreds of spears ready to impale the helpless mob, many of whom were desperately trying to crawl away, or crying as their death approached with a fast whoosh of air, their pitiful screams landing on the deaf ears their comrades.

But while the rioters chose not to hear the screams, others weren't so willing to abandon those in need. Something made abundantly clear as suddenly, the feathers were engulfed in a jet of flames as someone slid in front of the mob.

Amber had seen enough. Combining her fire and wind dust crystals, she had in front of the crowd, positioning herself between them and the Grimm as she activated the dust at the same time, creating a burst of flames fanned by gales of wind, burning away several feathers as they entered the inferno.

"Cinder!" The girl screamed, and even without being linked, the young rose knew exactly what to do. Drawing her bow, she blasted herself onto one of the balconies on the second floor before taking aim at the Nevermore above them. Then, she began firing arrows into the sky, detonating them if they got even close to the Grimm, distracting it with her volley of explosions, forcing it to retreat higher into the sky.

Once clear, Amber lowered her spear with a gasp, both her and the mob slightly singed from the flames raining down on them, but critically not dead.

Above them, the sky was filled with explosions and falling glass as Cinder fired arrow after arrow at the beast, trying to bring it down only for each and every one of her shots to fall short, reaching the top of their arcs several feet below the flying Grimm

"Thing's staying out of my range! I can't hit it!" The girl snapped as she emptied her quiver in a barrage that kept the Nevermore away. "We need a new plan and fast! Once I stop shooting, it'll be dove bombing us again! We need to kill it before then!"

Amber nodded as she watched the situation play out in front of her. She didn't need to be told they couldn't win with all the civilians around. But neither her nor Cinder had the destructive power to get past its guard feathers. Those things were as tough as nails and couldn't be penetrated by a mere bullet or blade. They'd need a really good plan to finish it off before anyone died, especially when it was hanging outside of their efficiency range.

And with Adam gone, she could think of only one person who could give them a chance.

"Eric, I need your heat seeking rocket out here immediately!" She called into her radio. "There's a Nevermore here and we don't have the power to-!"

Bang!

Suddenly, before she could finish, a deafening gunshot resounded from next to her as Fang catapulted himself into the sky, using his shotgun to propel himself even in the air, flying straight toward the beast at a surprisingly high speed.

"Fang!" Amber cried out in surprise, watching the boy flying straight up towards the Nevermore. She had only ever seen him in spar once, and while his aerial combat abilities were impressive, she also knew how tough this Grimm could be, especially if you were taking air bases combat.

And soon enough, the bird proved why.

Seeing its new challenger approaching, it immediately let out a screech, rounding on him immediately with pure killer intent. With a single flap its wings, it sent a blizzard of feathers flying at him, completely darkening the sky with just how many there were!

"Damn, that's an Alpha!" The thought flashed through Amber's mind as she acted immediately, swinging her staff and creating a gust of wind that blew the injured mob out of the way, getting them away from the splash zone where the feathers would land.

"Cinder!" She bellowed, drawing her partner's attention. "Prioritize protection to the injured! Do not let anyone get caught up in this battle! I don't know what Fang's thinking, but until everyone is safe, we can't fully back him up!"

Her words made the dark haired girl send one final glance at the white haired boy, her position making it impossible for her leader to judge her expression. But she did see her hand tighten into a fist, trembling with either fear or frustration at not being able to join the aerial dance above them. She either couldn't stand watching him steal her spotlight or wanted to back him up out of a sense of companionship, Amber wasn't sure. But one thing she did know was that Cinder had matured significantly since they had met. And she had total faith she would do the right thing.

Faith that proved to not be misplaced as with a slump of her shoulders, Cinder spun and raced back toward her team leader, quickly helping the girl drag the injured back into the hotel, out of the way of the fight.

Meanwhile, in the sky above the building, Fang watched the hundreds of feathers raining down on him. He really shouldn't be surprised, no way a Grimm like this would go down without a fight. No creature who had survived long enough to understand the most basic tactics would be a pushover.

Still, he supposed he should be grateful it was a simple attack like this he was facing. After all, he could dodge something like this in his sleep.

Spinning his sword, he fired another shot to the side, rolling out of the way a feather and landing on another, running up the side unto he reached the end where he kicked off, jumping back into the air where he used his gun to blast himself forward once again, dodging a few more as he flew toward his target.

Repeatedly doing this, the boy was able to dodge effortlessly around the feathers, flying gracefully through the sky like a kite, not even being grazed by the deadly spears, emerging on the other side without a scratch where he straightens out, flying straight at the Nevermore once again.

Seeing this, the beasts screeched, dive bombing its opponent, pointed beak aimed to impale the huntsman!

And as the two approached, right at the last second, Fang spun his sword, firing a blast to the side, letting him roll out of the way, slashing its underbelly as he dodged its attack.

Caught off guard, the Nevermore wheeled around, opening its wing to do a sharp turn to keep its front to its opponent!

Unfortunately, this slowed its momentum significantly, causing it to practically come to a stop as it tried to change directions, something the white haired boy immediately capitalized on.

Launching himself backwards, by the time the bird had turned, Fang was already right in its face again, too close for it to use its projectiles against him, letting him drive his blade into its chest, piercing its feathers and drawing blood at the same time.

Roaring in pain, the Nevermore beat its great wings, shooting backwards in an attempt to force the blade out. Unfortunately, his opponent had grabbed a fist full of the non sharp feathers on its chest, holding onto it as he began firing blasts from his shotgun into the wound he had opened up, ripping more and more of its natural armor off, sending it falling to the ground below!

"Come on, come on! Just a little more!" Fang thought as he was sprayed with black blood from the Grimm. He had to kill it before it got to the ground. A creature of this size could easily flatten his teammates if it fell onto them. He had to kill it before it got that close to the ground!

Unfortunately, he made little progress in that regard before the Nevermore changed tactics once again.

With a flap of its wings, the Grimm suddenly shot up, high into the sky rolling violently as it attempted to dislodge the huntsman!

This, this wasn't an instinct thing! This was planned, thought out! Not just the mindless thrashing of a normal Grimm. Where the hell had it learned this?! This was the maneuver of a session combat airship! Had this thing somehow fought one and come out on top?

Having no choice, Fang ripped his blade out of the Nevermore, retreating with his shotgun blasts before allowing himself to fall a few feet, trying to put some distance between himself and his opponent to plan his next move.

Unfortunately, the Grimm had plans of its own.

With another flap of its wings, it took off into the clouds, making the young man bite his lip as a sickening feeling took root in his stomach.

It was using the clouds to cover itself, staying hidden while still sensing its opponent's emotions, resulting in it gaining the advantage. Another tactic that it must have learned from a pilot or something. No way it could know to do something like this on its own!

Damn it, under these circumstances it would take too long to kill it the old fashioned way. Much as he hated to admit it, he just didn't have the destructive power required to break through its armored feathers. Like it or not, he'd have to use one of his specialties in order to kill it.

Taking a deep breath, Fang pulled one of his grenade-like weapons off his pouch, gripping it tightly in his free hand. These were expensive to make, so he'd have to time it perfectly so as not to waste it. He only had one shot at it, so failure wasn't an option.

Closing his eyes, he took another deep breath, steadying himself as he allowed himself to enter free fall, face still looking up toward the clouds. Then, as his eyes shot open, he activated his semblance.

Meanwhile, at the hotel, Cinder and Eric raced onto the roof, the latter slamming his shield onto the ground with the center pointed skyward, the rocket launcher sliding forward as the metal plates on the center opened, the heat seeking projectile loaded into his weapon.

"Well?!" Cinder called as her teammate steadied his aim, using a pair of expensive (stolen) binoculars to watch the battle taking place in the sky's above, her face tense as she watched Fang in free fall.

"No good! Can't lock on! They're too far away!" Eric replied, shifting his shield as he tried to get a clear shot, even though he couldn't even see the Grimm. "We need to lure them closer to the ground! That way, I'm certain I'll-!"

Before he could finish, Cinder let out a gasp as she saw the Nevermore break through the cloud cover to the right of Fang, not making a sound as it entered a glide to use its downward momentum to shoot towards the boy at high speeds, giving him even less than a second to react.

Eyes wide, time seemed to slow for Cinder as she opened her mouth to scream a warning to the boy, even though deep down, she knew her voice would never reach, but having to try anyway.

However, before she could even get the words out, she saw the boy suddenly turn mid air, facing the Nevermore as if he had been expecting it. Flicking his wrist to close the chamber to his gun which was now fully loaded as he faced his opponent.

And as he did, he unintentionally turned so he was facing Cinder, letting her get a look at his face where she noticed his eyes were bloodshot, veins stretching all the way to his iris as the normally light pupils turned blood red in an unnatural, yet hard to notice fashion, something even she would have missed had she not been looking at him so closely.

But she quickly lost sight of his face as he used his gun to blast himself toward the Grimm, using the same ridiculous speed as before to close the distance before the Nevermore even realized what was happening, passing right in between its wing and neck as he flew past it.

However, instead of slashing or shooting it like Cinder had expected, he stuck a small, familiar looking canister device to its neck, using its own feathers to hold it in place. Practically hiding beneath the many black things that someone would easily miss if they weren't looking for it.

But Cinder did, and she recognized it immediately from the night they had gone to Junior's. Back when she had needed to be bailed out from her first fight against Adelaide. And she immediately knew what was about to happen.

"Get ready!" She screamed with no context, making Eric look up confused. Opening his mouth, the green knight was about to ask what she was talking about when high above him, the question answered itself.

Suddenly, a burst of pale blue gas escaped the device, completely covering the Nevermore's head, making it reel back, screaming in pain as the feathers on its neck and face began to freeze. Along with the skin beneath it.

The raw energy of dust, turned into a gas, more than doubling its potency, froze everything it touched, practically destroying the Grimm at the cellular level, ripping through its nerve, blood cells, and any other living tissue on the beast's face. Resulting in its complete blindness, deafness, and stopping several cognitive functions as the extreme cold stopped both blood flow as well as directly damaging the brain from the subzero temperature.

And that wasn't even counting the damage being done to the rest of its body as it inhaled the gas!

Flesh, feathers and bone, all turning to ice right before her eyes. Freezing over the creature's head as well as spreading down its spine, freezing everything it touched and turning the hulking creature into a giant, bird shaped icicle. One that was looking like it would never thaw out.

With all this damage being done, the Nevermore dropped almost immediately, plummeting out of the sky and toward the ground, its body twitching feebly indicating it was somehow still alive, but had taken too much damage to function properly.

And as it fell further and further towards the ground, Cinder finally heard a beeping sound coming from Eric's shield.

"Now!"

The second the scream left her mouth, there was a deafening bang from right beside her, staggering her as a heat seeking rocket shot past her, flying with incredible speed towards its target leaving a trail of white smoke in its wake before striking the Nevermore!

Immediately, the bird like Grimm vanished in a burst of heat and smoke. Shards of shrapnel, black blood, and feathers which turned to dust raining down on the now empty parking lot, leaving a cloud of blue gas still rising in the air from where the container had been.

And as the sun shone down, making the debris shimmer in the light, contrasting with the black feathers the that had been blown off the bird, Fang landed on his knees on the roof with his two companions, sheathing his blade with his back toward the carnage the rained down all around them.

Smirking, Cinder calmly walked over, stopping a few feet away making the white haired boy turn to look at her.

"The Obsidian special, right?" She asked despite already knowing the answer. "Not a creative name, but I have to say, that's pretty impressive. I've never seen anyone take out an Alpha Nevermore so easily before. Think you could teach me how to make them? I could use a weapon like that in my arsenal."

Her joke drew a chuckle from the boy, lowering his head with a shake before turning towards the door to the roof, dusting himself off as he began making his way over.

"Family recipe." He called over his shoulder with a dismissive, but not insulting wave of his hand. "The day I teach it to you will be the day I die. So you know, not gonna happen. Besides, knowing you, you'd end up killing yourself by detonating the thing while you carried it. Stick to your little arrows, at least those won't end up ending you in an embarrassing way." His words paused slightly as he reached the door, pulling it open for the other two as he waited for them to catch up, a small smile playing on his lips.

"But enough of that. Let's catch the last of these rioters before they can escape. After all, I'm pretty sure the local authorities would love to have a cup of tea and coffee with them over some donuts. And if we're lucky, who knows? These people might even end up getting a couple years in a special hotel themselves. I'm sure that will help curve the jealous zeal they seemed to have."

With that, he disappeared down the staircase to the lower floor, ignoring Cinder's laugh closing in behind him as she ran to catch up, her teasing grin still plastered to her face. A grin that the boy couldn't help but return.

Rivals they might be, they still enjoyed the other's company, even if that company was spent stopping a rioting mob of angry citizens.


So, not much happened this chapter, but I promise this is setting up important context for not only next chapter, but the whole arc. Namely how crazy Vale has become and where each of the main characters are going with their respective growth.

Now, I know there are a couple questions floating around and to address one of them, (probably the least important/interesting.) Fang's semblance will be explained next chapter, including what actually happened during that final fight.

But that's it for today. Thanks for reading and I hope to see you back here next chapter. Bye!

ps.

by the way, if you're reading this it means you're caught up to the Ao3 site and will now have to wait for me to actually finish writing each chapter. so expect longer delays between uploads.