"So very like a human to delay, and delay, and delay, until the time for action has long since passed. I am telling you, we strike now, and our victory is all but guaranteed. My specialists are ready, Kuo Kuana is in a stranglehold from the shadows, and the little girls responsible for the complications at Beacon are scattered and clueless. What don't you understand!?"

Adam's knuckles were ghost white beneath his gloves as he pressed his balled fists into the desk before himself. He was hunched over, furious and breathing heavily as he stared down the giant of a man who stood before him. Hazel Rainart considered the raging bull, arms across his chest as he kept his expression neutral. The man seemed less than impressed with the outburst, and remained silent as he let Adam continue his rant.

"I have sent letter after letter to my supposed contact, Cinder, and it seems that her employer only sent you to make an attempt to shut me up. The White Fang are not toys, nor an implement for intimidation. We do not get told to simply remain on standby while being told nothing about our mission. Give me the details that Cinder won't. At least give me a time frame!"

"Soon," was the only reply from the mountain of muscle within the candlelit tent.

"Soon," Adam repeated. "Soon. I'm familiar with 'soon'." He drew in a breath as he pushed himself off the table and stood straight. He cracked his neck and turned away from Hazel, before bringing his right hand to the hilt of his sword.

"Wouldn't do that, if I were you," Hazel warned.

"Do what?" Adam spat, while looking over his shoulder. He bared his teeth in warning, and began to draw the blade with a click.

"I've been told you're one for irrational rage. That's a waste, kid. Rage isn't meant to be a blade. Rage is a forge. Rage is where you temper your steel. Once you learn to focus it, and master it, there's nothing that a blade forged in focused anger can't cut. If you let rage be the sword, there's a good chance you'll just end up cutting yourself. Take it from me- there's only so much you can get done with a wildfire. Sure, you'll burn down more, but you may not burn down what you're aiming for. Gotta focus the stream."

Adam considered the words, and scraped the sword back into its sheath. "So that's why you were sent, is it? To pacify me, while repeating the same irritating orders to sit around and wait to be told what to do. The time to strike Haven is now. What reason could your people possibly have to wait?"

"As far as I understand it, we still need someone to get the job done. That 'someone' is proving a little harder to find than we anticipated." Hazel uncrossed his arms and let them hang at his sides. "If you want in on the Atlas job, you'll play along. Otherwise, she's gonna cut you loose after Haven falls."

Adam turned once again to face Hazel and bared his teeth, his tone icy as he spoke. "Atlas will fall by my hand. That entire city will become a meteor. A celestial projectile of the White Fang's bitter, focused rage. She swore that Atlas would fall to us. Don't even think about taking that away from me."

"If you play your part from the sidelines at Haven. That's what she promised," Hazel reminded him. "You blow the academy sky high for us, and we help bring the floating city down for you. That was the deal. That means you follow our lead, right now, and get your payoff later."

Adam drew one last, deep breath as he rested a palm upon the desk. "…fine. Run along home, and report that the White Fang is still at the ready, and eagerly awaiting our orders," he snarled.

"Actually," Hazel said as he approached, and bent down to place his own hands on the desk while leaning over to put his gaze at Adam's face level, "I was told to remain here. Keep an eye on you, and help you subdue Sienna just before we make our move."

An uncomfortable silence filled the tent as Adam searched Hazel's eyes from the comfort of his grimm mask, trying to determine intent. "…and just what happens to our dear leader after her… imprisonment?"

"Beats me," Hazel replied as he pushed off the desk and folded his arms once again. "I don't ask questions that don't concern me. Right now, there's only one at the forefront of my mind."

"Do tell," Adam replied coolly. Finally, he had managed to quell his anger, and mimicked the larger male's posturing.

"Why do you want to see Atlas fall so badly, anyway?"

Adam paused, and uncrossed his arms. Slowly, he brought his right hand up to his visor, and carefully removed the obscuring accessory. Beneath the mask, across his left eye, was the 'SDC' brand he had acquired during his time in the mines. Hazel narrowed his eyes as he looked it over, but said nothing more.

"…the Schnee family. They don't even know I exist, and yet they single-handedly ruined my life. They made me theirs. Their property. Their tool. I was seen as just another biological machine tasked with keeping their company running. The rich, pompous humans at the helm have no idea that they twisted their prized possession until it began to strain and warp… but not break. I will never break. I may be their property, but there is no more fitting end to their regime than one of their own tools breaking the entire system down from within. When the sky falls, then they will know my name. Then, the Schnee family will be ground into the dirt and rock that I was forced to trawl for their benefit. And sweetest of all, the Belladonna girl… the heiress is one of her closest friends. I will rip her from Blake's life as she ripped my family from mine. It's a simple matter of revenge, Hazel. I suppose you think yourself above it?" Adam asked, his head inclined to one side as his eyes narrowed with a wicked sneer.

"No, I'm not," Hazel said. "Revenge is a powerful motivator. Revenge should be your steel. I'm after Ozpin, myself. That's the whole reason I bother with this little band of misfits and vagabonds. The woman at the top promised I'll get my licks in, when we find him. She's my best shot at making revenge into reality."

"Then I suppose we have something in common. One thing, anyway." Adam used a gloved hand to dust off his shoulder, as the other returned the grimm mask to rest across the upper part of his face. "Find yourself a tent, within these grounds."

Hazel merely nodded and turned to leave, as another figure slipped into the structure. Corsac Albain clasped his hands and offered a formal bow, first to Adam, and then to Hazel, before he walked around the human and made his way to stand before the desk. Hazel turned his body with the motion to watch.

"Master Taurus. There may be cause for concern, in Kuo Kuana," he stated plainly. Adam merely stared as he took in a deep breath, his jacket flexing against his expanding chest. "Sister Amitola showed some… worrying signs, on the boat ride back. Fennec departed to follow and observe her, while I came here to inform you. We have reason to believe that her heart may no longer be committed to our cause."

"What evidence do you have of this? Leave nothing you know out of it," Adam commanded as he began to pace behind the desk.

"It would seem that she has two scrolls. One them appears to belong to Sun Wukong, the monkey faunus that arrived at the island with the Belladonna girl. She spent much of the trip back to the city filtering through his device."

"And what leads you to believe that she was doing anything more than collecting information? This sounds like a waste of time and energy, so far," Adam said with disgust in his voice.

"There was no relevant information to be found. Almost all of her time on that scroll was spent looking through his contacts, and at photos of him. It is no secret that she harbors feelings for the Belladonna girl, even now, and I caught sight of Ilia trying to contact her as the boat docked."

Adam's pacing stopped abruptly as he snapped his gaze to Corsac. "Did she?"

"…no. Not while in my presence, at least. She opened and closed the conversation multiple times, but it would appear that she does intend to address Blake directly. For what reason, who can say… but is that not somewhat concerning?"

Hazel looked between the two faunus, but remained silent as Adam walked around the desk and approached him.

"…remain here. Both of you. Corsac, you are in charge of this encampment until I return. Hazel, contact me immediately if our orders change," he commanded, before heading for the tent flaps.

"…where are you going?" Hazel inquired.

"…the temporary encampment off the coast of Kuo Kuana. If Ilia is not fulfilling her role according to my exact specifications… then I will deal with her personally, and then I will make sure the Belladonnas do not become a problem myself."

Adam pushed his way through the tent flaps and walked out into the night air. Corsac flinched as he heard a muted click from the other side of the material, and silence fell over the inside of the tent once more.

Sun began to pant as he ran across the sand of the beach, his shoes making a soft crunching noise as he pumped his legs as fast as he could. He kept his arms up and fingers bladed as he ran, moving as quickly as he could to reach the small dock at the base of the island's lighthouse. The wooden structure appeared nearly black beneath the muted starlight, and Sun found that even with his faunus vision, trying to make out the details of the harbor from a distance was quite difficult at night.

"Come on… come on, just a little more," he said to himself as he made his way through the dunes. The gentle sound of waves filled his ears as the tides came in and out, nearly touching his sneakers while he swerved around a large rock in the otherwise untouched sand. Sun strained his ears as he got closer and closer to the docks, praying that there would be no telltale scrapings of blades or clashes of steel. As he ran up to the rocky base of the tower, he slowed to a stop and doubled over to catch his breath, hands on his shins.

"Wish she said which dock… but this is the closest to that tavern. Come on, Blake, please be here…" he begged to no one in particular as he began to walk. His right hand pulsed with pain from the electrical burn as sweat began to well up within the torn glove surrounding it, and Sun paused his walking to slide the gauntlet off entirely. He tossed the torn fabric into the sand and replaced the red armored part around his hand, before flexing his fingers. The band holding the armor in place triggered a spasm through his palm, and he winced at the sensation.

"Damn it…" he cursed as he began to walk again. "Blake's gonna freak out…"

"Over what?" came the immediate reply from a nearby wooden support. Blake stepped out from behind the pillar, arms folded across her chest. She was just as sweaty as Sun, and his- her shirt and pants were soaked with what appeared to be sea water, as was the scraggly black hair matted down to her skin and shoulders. The raven-colored mop covered most of her chest beneath her arms, and she did not look pleased.

Despite the obviously soaked state of her entire body, Sun didn't hesitate as he darted forward and scooped her into a bone-crushing hug. Blake let out a surprised gasp as she found her arms pinned to her sides while he lifted her slightly from the sand before putting her back down, and her attempted cry of protest was silenced by an aggressive kiss.

Blake's eyes widened and her ears flicked uncontrollably as she tasted Sun's lips pressed into her own and felt the sensation of his bare fingertips cupping her cheek. As her own arms were freed, she slowly brought them up to snake into the open folds of his shirt and around the slick flesh of his back to pull him closer. Finally, she closed her eyes and let herself sink into the passionate embrace as Sun gently walked her back into the wooden pole. She tensed slightly as she felt her shoulder blades press up against the support beam, and brought a hand back around to his front and up to his chin to hold him in place as she slowly broke the kiss with a furious blush and guilty grin.

"Sun… while I'm not exactly complaining, what was that?"

Sun kept his eyes closed for a moment, before slowly opening them to meet Blake's. His blush outshone hers in intensity by a longshot, and he chuckled slightly as he shivered from the sensation of sea water all over his chest.

"Uh… probably terrible, I'm guessing?"

"…I wouldn't say terrible, no, but you know what I meant. I'm fine, Sun, really."

"I know," he replied quickly. "I knew you would be, but I just… I don't know. I got nervous, when you just waded into a crowd of three like a crazy woman. When I turned and saw four, with a fifth coming, I sorta… panicked. I almost stayed to help," he admitted as his tail drooped to touch the sand.

"Why didn't you, then? I'm glad that you followed Ilia and actually listened, but what allowed you to tear yourself away?" Blake asked. She shivered, too, for different reasons.

"…because I trust you," he said simply. Blake blinked, and looked away into the sand as she tried and failed to fight back a genuine smile.

"…so… why do you think I'm going to 'freak out', exactly?" she asked as she looked back at Sun.

"Well… I got a little roughed up. Also, touching you while you're covered in salt water was a bad plan. This stings more, now," he stated as he lifted his right hand to show her his palm. Her eyes widened, and she raised her arms to seize his hand and pull it closer for inspection.

"Sun! What happened? How…" As Blake looked over the wound, realization dawned upon her. "An electrical burn, from Ilia's weapon. How, and why did it get across your palm?"

Sun hesitated for a moment before heaving a sigh. "…because I offered her my hand."

Blake looked up into Sun's eyes, her expression a mixture of fury and disappointment. "Why?"

"You know why, Blake. I know it's not easy. I know she may not even deserve it, after what the White Fang has done… but she's your friend. She means a lot to you, more than you're letting on. I can see it in your face, every time you talk about her. I'd give my hand, if it brought you two back together."

"Don't say that!" Blake admonished as she began to trace her fingers along the edges of his palm. "You don't have to be my hero in every sense and try to right every single wrong. It's just not going to happen, Sun."

"…I'm your hero? GAH!" Sun cried as he received a swift slap upside the back of the head. "…alright, I deserved that one."

"You did," Blake agreed as she transitioned her grip from his hand to his shoulders, and pulled herself in for another kiss. Sun trailed his hands down to rest on her hips as they held the contact, slowly rocking back and forth for a few moments before she pulled away. "…and that one, too."

"I don't know about that, but… thanks anyway. They're certainly lovely gifts," Sun grinned. Blake rolled her eyes and huffed as she crossed her arms once again, one hip out to the side. "Was that one better…?"

"Sun, you're fine. I wouldn't have gone back for seconds, otherwise. Why do you keep asking that?"

The tide crept up the shore once again, and threatened to engulf their feet before retracting back into the sea. Sun watched it go, his head turned to the side.

"…I'm your first, aren't I? Is that it?"

Slowly, he nodded as he dared to give her a sideways glance. Blake's features softened as she took his unblemished hand in her own.

"Sun… that's nothing to be ashamed of. I'm sure girls practically swoon over you, all the time. You must have your reasons."

"Yeah. None of them seemed like anything more than a distraction, or eye candy, until I met you. I've been holding out for something 'real', you know? The other guys think it's lame," he finished.

"The 'other guys' aren't standing here with me, are they?" Blake asked as she massaged his hand.

"No. No, they're not," he admitted with a smile.

"Take comfort in that. Now, come on, let's get back home so I can take care of your hand, and we can get out of these clothes." Blake waved a hand to beckon him as she began to walk off, back toward the town proper.

Sun followed, and tried to keep his eyes off her rear. By fighting against his instinct, he willed himself to bring his gaze upward, and instead caught sight of her bra straps through the back of the soaked, white shirt. His flesh tingled as he looked off to the side, entirely away from her before he jogged to catch up and entwine his fingers with hers.

"…why are you still blushing?"

"…no reason," Sun replied with a nervous smile.

Author's Note:

I'm a little bit stunned by just how quickly this story has blown up over the last few chapters, and the tons of support that many of you have been leaving in reviews. It's certainly great motivation to keep going at this pace, and I have now, finally, hammered out all of the details of how the rest of the story will go down. I've had an endpoint in mind since the beginning, but the events from a few chapters after this to that ending have been a bit muddy thus far. Now, it's all clear, and I also have a big plan for the story after this one. A really big plan. It's certainly going to be… divisive. More on that in the final chapter of this, whenever that may be.

I'm very excited to share the next chapter with all of you on the 23rd. As they like to say in the FGC...

Get hype.

-RD