Volume CRBN!

by Dancesnapple

Four individuals. Four different people of different walks of life resulting in an adventure. Hopefully, a bond that can last. Team CRBN (carbon). Features: OC Main character, main team has two OCs alongside a lovable crime duo, and some family drama on all sides. Features a 'soundtrack' element for the fic. ENJOY! Story begins on third listed chapter. Very slow start.

6. 4 When You Comin Home, Dad?

Chapter Four: When You Comin' Home, Dad?

The sound of fabric flapping in open air. A thin, protective sheet flows to the ground, or more accurately, onto the scene. A plain sheet falls lightly over, allowing the shape of the covered object to show... a person. Though the sheet covered the whole body, spots of the surrounding concrete was painted a dry red.

Standing over the covered corpse, a cop looks over it. A protective helmet obscures his face, but his posture seems is apprehensive. A cop siren sounds for one note, a red and blue flash reflecting off the cop's visor. He sighs, turning to the rest of the scene.

A dozen cop cars littered up and down the street, all parked in undamaged spots. Which, all things considered, was difficult. The concrete roads, side walks, and entire sections of bushes, trees, and grass ripped away. Many parts were scorched, a fire fighting crew looking over the scene. Other parts of the flora were just... dead. They'd been frozen over when they'd first arrived.

The worst part was the house. The front living center of the building was unsalvageable. Scorched, broken walls on three sides. Bullet holes throughout. The bedrooms were relatively unharmed, but nothing else survived the carnage.

This was a long night... morning now.

An engine rev catches the cop's attention. His shoulders drop, expression dropping. "Oh, no..."

A black car skids to a halt behind the furthest cop cruiser. Its door bursts open, Jared Uhlric kicking out of the vehicle. He looks around frantic for just a second, then bursts forward towards the scene. Upon seeing the house, his eyes widen even more. "Senaya! Carmine!" He yells out, cupping his hands with the scream.

He rushes towards the house, seeing the forensics team all through the living room. Jared's gaze is everywhere, trying to take it in and getting overwhelmed at the same time. Jerking back and forth, he finally sees the cop watching him. The masked cop frowns back, giving a tired salute. "Uhlric..."

The father is at the guy in a second. "The ambulance already took them then?" The cop's tilted, confused head made Jared narrow his eyes dangerously. "You know, the comfort blanket brigade, takes the victims to a safe location? Where are they?"

The cop swallows. Jared's his superior and always wanted direct results, but... "Jared, I need you to be calm-"

Jared stepped forward dangerously, anger clear. "I'll be calm when you tell me where my wife and child are! Now, where are-" Jared's words die out, eyes trailing over his subordinate's shoulder. All the anger died, shoulders dropping, skin paling.

The cop gulps, turning to look back at the covered body in the road. He looks rapidly between the cover and Jared, the inspector already taking a shaky step towards it. The cop puts a hand on Jared's shoulder. "I-I-No. You don't want to-"

Jared shakes his hand off, walking over to the covered body. His eyes trail over the silhouette, eyeing the still drying blood on the concrete. He made it to the fabric, dropping roughly to a knee. Short shakes of his head as he reaches down, clutching the edge of the sheet. He pulls it over one of the silhouetted limbs, revealing a clawed hand with a wedding ring. It also reveals a black bracer weapon, all dust canisters lining it empty.

Jared flinches, dropping the sheet edge down. His arms shake, brows scrunched, as he sways just slightly. Eyes lose focus while the man rocks on his heel and knee. His eyes clamp shut, hands coming over his head and pushing at his hair.

His breath hitches, shallow breaths coming while he drops one hand. The other covers his mouth, his eyes opening with forming tears. A contained cry is squelched as he shakes his head, as if the image would vanish. "No..." His distraught voice mutters as he starts to choke.

The cop beside him stands patiently. It takes a minute, but Jared manages to stand again. The former hunter usually stands a solid five inches over the underling, but he just looked small.

He takes a raspy breath, looking at the cop with... as much composure as one could expect. "What. Happened?"

The officer nods. "According to the witnesses in the neighborhood, they were alerted to the sounds of gunshots at just after 2100 hours. None of them were willing to leave their homes once they began watching what happened out here. The..."

The cop hesitates, Jared's eyes narrow in response. "- Victim appeared to be fighting two of the assailants out in the open, though forensics and witness account shows she tried to engage them inside the house first."

The officer continued. "The struggle appeared mostly even until the third assailant entered the picture. From what we gather, it was the group's leader. While the result..." The cop turns towards the body in the street. He looks to Jared, seeing the huntsman's eyes growing more and more angry.

"The attackers did not leave unscathed. The three were all identified as Faunus, but a fourth assailant appeared from within the house with your boy."

Jared's body went rigid. Anger. Anger is good. Anger means he can act. He gives a stiff nod, though his red rimmed eyes leave the cop on edge. "Why didn't anyone arrive here in time? A standard response time around here is two minutes."

The officer's gaze trails down, muttering. "There were... six separate store fires and robberies reported in town... A terror attack of sorts. They were all started at exactly 2100 hours, just before the attack here. Given the timetable, the assailants likely planned the fires and waited just long enough for us to be too busy to help here."

They'd cased the place. Jared immediately thought. They'd known how the town worked. They were all trained if two of them were able to match Senaya. "What have we got for tracking them?"

The officer nods towards the house. "Not much was stolen other than standard jewelry boxes and lien. We also noted that your wife's scroll was missing. We tried pinging that, but found it's been shut off. We don't know why they would take that. Otherwise, we've blocked off all conventional means of leaving the town without inspection, and posted a cop near the hospital since our culprits left wounded."

Jared's stare trails off, taking that information in. He nods. "Good. Could you identify the attackers at all? Sen-" He chokes up, shutting his eyes to focus. "She called me beforehand. They'd approached the house to entice conversation, probably to learn if I was home. She identified one, definitely the leader, as Killa."

The officer's mouth gaped a bit, but clamps shut a second later. "That... explains why they're so strong, AND how they could travel without leaving scents, given Killian's semblance on record. We tried canine tracking and came to sudden stops of the scents, but since the bastard can travel through surfaces.. But that does leave the other problem."

Jared raises a wary brow at him. "Other problem?" He questions back.

"The motive. Just because you're a former huntsman?" The officer questioned.

Jared shakes his head. "I don't know." He lies lowly. "But we can at least track them. They won't use conventional traffic to leave, and are likely outside the city already."

He looks to a watch under his jacket sleeve. 01:20. This was four hours ago. If they were smart, they'd have already had a ride to leave. The trains don't run at night, the only road out of town was taken by Jared on his way back. He hadn't seen a single vehicle pass him on the way in. The air ships weren't scheduled today since, well, HE approves shipments and contacting the services when nothing's going on.

That left... "The docks. They'd be leaving by boat." Jared states. He looks at the officer, the two nodding. Jared moves back to his car as the officer starts calling out orders. All the available men and women react, half the parked cars filled and moving in the minute.

The drive was short, helped by the time of night and police escort. Arriving at the docks, Jared leads a squad in, his revolver drawn and aimed forward. They scan the area, moving from warehouse, to dock to each boat tied to the pier.

A few minutes of fruitless searching until they arrive at one of the smaller boat shacks. Jared raises a hand, pausing the group. He looks over the front of the shack, the cracked windows and barely attached door. Jared waves them closer, speaking low. "Two on the right. Two on the left. Provide support, but don't move from your positions."

Two of the troopers move to cover behind crates, the other two moving to the next building. Jared marches up to the shack, wasting no time. One hand on the knob, he moves to-... He stops. He looks up at the crack in the top of the door, seeing the thread of a tripwire. A sneer comes on his face. He steps backwards from the door with a growl, aiming at the top of the door. "Don't have time for amateur jobs."

He fires two shots into the top of the door, setting off the rigged trap. The front door and chunks of the wall blow out, odd wood chips flying by the former huntsman. He dashes forward into the wrecked inside of the building. Broken tables, signs of a scuffle... and a few bodies of dock workers.

Jared grimaces, but notices a paper on one of the tables. One last check of the building, and Jared grabs the paper.

"Let Big O know... we'll be in touch"

Jared's hand crunches the paper in his fist. Teeth gritting, he turns to exit the shack. Under his breath, his breath is choppy as he speaks. "Bastards..."

. . .

Vision blurred. The boy's eyes strain to open, instantly regretting it as piercing light makes him shut them. He tries to move, only then registering the painful ache going through the back of his skull. Carmine's blue eyes move, trying to see, but everything is just a blob, blurred out colors. No definition to any object.

The boy's eyes clench, a choppy gasp as he attempts to move. Only, his arms are caught. He jerks his hands, the pain of metal digging into his wrists as he stops. Suddenly, his center of balance shifts, the way gravity pulls on him changes. As if the floor is bobbing.

He then makes out the crash of a wave, ocean waters. He opens his eyes again, much of the blur gone, but everything still fuzzy. He can make out the color blue overhead, but still piercing light. The sun! His breath rasps as he shakes his head lightly. "Wha-what?"

A blurry blob of black hits the floor next to him. A... boot? "Well, aren't you just a heavy sleeper?" The rather obnoxious voice rings in his ears. "Hey, uh, Candy Cane? Yo! How hard did you hit the kid?"

Carmine's legs shift as he writhes on the floor, an attempt to gain footing. He finally gets a knee under him, but the weight shifts. He hears and feels the waves shifting whatever boat they're on. The boy hears a far off scoff, a condescending tone, though it sounds younger. "Who knows? I just wanted to keep him quiet."

Carmine finally rocks back to balance on his knees, but the floor shifts, the boat dipping and raising. He releases a yelp, losing balance and falling on his side, face into the floor. The voice over him gets worked up. "Well, look now! Kid's waking up and he's broken! We can't do anything with a broken kid." Carmine twists onto his back, eyes opening again. He sees the vague man shape over him stroking his chin in thought. "Or... can we?"

"You planned this for months and didn't think of all his use- GAH!" The now rather bratty voice just sighs. "Whatever, the Addict has a question for ya."

The blur focuses more, showing a tanned man with a gray duster coat standing over Carmine. He waves his hands in anger. "Ah, come on! I hire you people to be reliable, not needy!" He angrily stomps away, another figure walking out onto the deck.

Carmine's breath hitches as he recognizes the man. He'd accidentally bumped into him before going into the hospital... before he went home with-

Carmine rolls back, jerking away. He looks back and forth, parts of the surroundings focusing. "Mom?! Mom!" The young man, teen, begins to walk towards him.

Carmine continues jerking, pulling with his hands, but they remain bound. A jiggle of chains, he feels. They used freaking chains to tie his hands! Carmine scoots away, back hitting the wall of the deck. He uses the wall for leverage, standing up with considerable effort, and sees that they're on a rather large boat... A yacht. They're on the second level of the boat, a rather large size, though well worn from upkeep.

Carmine eyes the water for just a moment, clenching his eyes as he moves to roll over the edge to the water!

A slightly curved point hooks into the back of his shirt, jerking Carmine back just as he got one foot over. He lands harsh on his back, hurting his forearms behind him. He grunts out in pain, opening his blue eyes to meet the green dully staring down. The tip of the cane jabs into his chest, holding him down.

The teen speaks, annoyed. "Tell me. Was the plan to drown to death, simply annoy us for having to swim after you, or to attract aquatic Grimm? Cause that might have made the top ten worst choices I've ever seen." The teen rolls his eyes, looking around in exasperation. "Seriously, it's like running up the stares in a horror flick. As if to say 'kill me, kill me!'"

Carmine tries to push himself up, but the point of the cane presses him back down. The boy looks around once again, seeing nothing close. His breathing grows rapid, panic setting in. He inhales, ready to scream. "MO-"

His shout chokes out as Roman ducks down, grabbing the child by the collar of his shirt. Roman wrenches the six year old up onto his feet, then roughly pins him to the railing of the deck wall. "Listen, brat. Everything, and I very much do mean everything, will be a great deal easier if you just stay quiet. So. Stop. Shouting."

Carmine looks the taller boy, man, in the eyes. He takes a gulp and gives a slight shaky nod. "W-w-what's going on?"

Roman looks around. The deck is rather organized, though everything looks dirty and rarely used. Several crates, ropes, and tools are left in various corners. Organized or not, a lot of this could go inside, but Roman rolls his eyes at the thought. He jerks Carmine away from the edge of the deck, planting the kid on the nearest crate as a seat. "Hey!" Carmine cries out at being jerked around.

Roman groans and glares down at the brat. "You done?" Carmine opens his mouth, but Roman back hands the kid's forehead, eliciting a whimper. "That was rhetorical, brat."

He over his shoulder at a door to the inside of the boat. From it, a large hairy gorilla faunus exits. "Aye, KG has me on guard duty." Towering over Roman, Earl looks over at Carmine, the boy's body paling. The large hulking man's form strikes fear in the tiny child. Earl looks back to Roman. "He has a question for you, by the way."

Roman nods. He glances once more at Carmine, only to sneer down at the child. The action made the redhead flinch, satisfying Roman as he left.

Carmine's wide eyes followed the teen as he disappeared into the interior. A thud sounds to his left, bringing his attention to the massive wall of muscle standing near him. He panics, fear coming over him. The kid twitches, moving to get off the crate.

He gasps as a large hand grabs him by the back of the neck. He's pinned to the top of the crate, struggling. Earl sighs over him. "Aw, kid, you get one by from me." Carmine is wrenched back to a sitting position. Earl releases him, looking him in the eye. "Just. One."

The large man begins tending to the deck, turning away from the child. Carmine spends the next few minutes getting his breathing under control. He watches the massive lumbering man finish cleaning before pulling out a pair of binoculars. The faunus begins checking the horizon in all directions.

The boy shakes, looking anywhere but the tall lumbering man looming nearby.

. . .

Beacon Academy

The ornate halls bustle with noise. Students of all sizes and looks march on in their cliques. The only commonality among them is the uniform on each individual.

Several teens smile and part ways as two taller adults pass by. "And I must confess, even I felt a twinge of fear at the sight of the Deathstalker. Its carapace proved completely invulnerable to the lowly tools I had at my disposal! At least, it was that to the conventional tools..." The large of the two men with a great mustache spoke, weaving a story.

To his left was Professor Ozpin. The man held the ghost of a smile, humoring the musings. He walked with one hand on his cane and the other holding a steaming cup of coffee. He took a tepid sip, giving a hum of satisfaction. "Quite the conundrum. I should hope for a happy ending, considering you're still full of life."

The mustached man bellowed a laugh. "Bah! The beast allowed me to lead it into a tight canyon, where I fending the best off with the crochet mallet as the villagers poured oils onto the beast from above. Once satisfied-" He makes a wide gesture with his arms, not breaking stride in the slightest. "And the villagers' trap was sprung! I lit the mallet as a torch and set the vile creature ablaze!"

The fellow professor leaned towards Ozpin, putting a finger up. "Yet, the beast was not yet slain." He shook his head, looking ahead of them. They'd come to a conference room, some other adults already entering inside, fellow professors. The bushy mustache bristles. "But, it seems the story shall continue. We do have a meeting, don't we?"

"That we do." Ozpin chuckles. However, he pauses, a generic ring catching the two's attention. Ozpin looks down, seeing a dimmed light in his pocket, his scroll.

The mustached professor chuckles. "Let me take that in there for you." He reaches out and takes the cup of coffee from Ozpin's hand. He turns towards the room. "Take your time, sir!"

Ozpin nods his head, using his now free hand to withdraw his scroll. "Thank you, Peter." He brings the scroll to his ear as he speaks. "You've reached Professor Ozpin." His professionalism never breaks.

"Carmine's been kidnapped."

Ozpin's eyes widened, his mouth opening as he turns rigid. The stiff posture gets a weird look from a wayward straggling student who shrinks away.

Ozpin doesn't freeze. Ozpin doesn't break... right?

He doesn't know how long he remains like that, processing that sentence again. The voice, Jared, speaks again. "Ozpin, you here me?" His voice sounds rougher. Exhausted.

Ozpin blinks, moving breaking his rigid posture. His low voice replies. "Apologies." He breaks into a fast walk into the conference room. He sees the professors look up at him, questioning looks on their faces. "I'm sorry for the abrupt news, but something else requires my immediate attention." He nods to the mustached professor, Peter. "Please allow Professor Port to direct the meeting."

He turns without another word, exiting the room of confused faces. He marches down the halls, now nearly empty. The students have filed out almost completely.

"What happened?" Ozpin speaks clearly with slight enunciation.

"I believe he was targeted for that mugging he threw himself at a while back." Jared speaks quickly. "But, I left the town limits to deal with a possible Grimm infestation a fair distance from the town. Upon finding it, there were only small, malformed and immature Grimm. No majors. No large packs."

Ozpin's eyes narrowed, speaking lower. "A trap."

It wasn't a question. "Had to be. I'm not even out a single day, and Sen-" His voice cracks, cutting the sentence.

Ozpin's eyes widen again, hearing Jared's ragged breathing. "... I'm sorry. I truly am. Please, continue." Ozpin eases on, voice showing as much empathy as he could.

A deep intake of breath sounds, Jared speaking again. "She calls me. There was a scent, something trailing her and Carmine from the hospital. S-She-" He stutters and takes a steady breath. "In the town, several fires went off simultaneously, keeping the police occupied. It was just after 9 pm when she called me again."

"She identified the leader as Killa, as in Killian 'Killa' Gonzola, and at least two others."

Ozpin stops walking, eyes widening at the name. His grip on his cane tightens. "Where have they gone?" His speech grows more curt, short.

"They left bodies at the docks. They left a note behind, bastards..." Jared growls in anger. "Some of the marks and people of the area show they likely left by a decent sized boat. I've alerted several coastal towns within a few days cruise from here, but nothing back yet."

Jared breaths heavily. "I need a group of Huntsmen, now. I'm going after them as best I can, immediately."

Ozpin continues walking, eyes narrow, head inclined down. He speaks lowly. "I'll make some calls to General Ironwood to lock down ocean ports in Mantle. He'll act only on Mr Gonzola's name. However, there's plenty of underground methods to enter Atlas."

"We can also cross Menagerie off the list of locations. Killa's been on the blacklist for their land for a while." Jared speaks with some relief. "Vacuo?"

"Theodore may be able to monitor some of the coastal docks with his resources. Yet, he will likely not be willing to allocate resources unless he knows the full reason for it. One career terrorist isn't enough for him."

"Then tell him! He's a damned headmaster of Shade Academy! He can't be that against helping with something this important!" Jared's irritation mounts, scream whispering into the call.

Ozpin frowns, nose wrinkled. "... I'll try to convince him, but he may find the request a mere personal interest and nothing more."

Jared scoffs, but doesn't say more. "Not much able to cover Mistral, what with those bandit clans and rundown towns. That's where I'll go."

Ozpin's head raises. His gaze is focused straight ahead. "No. I have an operative that knows Mistral intimately. He's already there on other business. I'll inform him, and he'll know the most likely dock if that's their destination."

"Wait, the old bird?" Jared takes a second to reflect on that. "Fff-n damn it! He's who I was hoping to have as backup. I'll head up the coast line along the towns, send backup to Derry to meet me. I'm the one making the request, so you don't need to come clean."

Ozpin's gaze trails down, his jaw sets, eyes downcast. His teeth clench before he speaks. "I cannot do that."

. . .

Jared stops, paused behind his desk. He shoots an incredulous look at the scroll in his hand. "Excuse me?" He voice dips, grip tightening.

It takes a moment, but Ozpin's voice comes back. "All our spare huntsmen have taken student teams out on observational hunts... All but the first years."

Jared's teeth clench. "Oh, bullshit, Ozpin. You can't tell me you have no one you can send." His eyes, while showing bags from lack of sleep, fill with fury. "Don't you DARE say that-"

Ozpin cuts in. "We only have support staff at Beacon. Any more leave, and Beacon and Vale won't have enough coverage to even deal with day to day troubles."

Jared grits his teeth, glaring daggers at the wall. "This is your kid." He says plainly, taking deep seething breathes. His voice builds. "This is YOUR kid that Senaya died for! Any backup will do!"

A beat of silence, nothing but haggard breathing. Finally, a response. "I will NOT... send first year students against a first class murderer like Mr Gonzola."

The inspector felt as if he'd been punched in the gut. This man. This BASTARD... Jared could swear that his vision began to blur from pure rage. "Don't you ever, EVER say that Carmine is your child. You're nothing to him."

He hung up the call, already knowing full well his game plan. He puts his darkened red leather jacket on. His weapon strapped to his thigh, he walks out the door. The glass of the door shatters as he slams it shut...

. . .

The boy hits the ground. Carmine curls up on the wooden floor of the deck, his hand coming up to his cheek. A smaller man, barely 5'5", stands over him with a raised fist.

Cal growls at the child, sneering down at him. "That hurt?! It better have after what your bitch mother did to us!" The raccoon faunus steps his boot onto the side of Carmine's head, pressing down onto the wood. The boy cries out, squirming and writhing to remove the foot from his skull.

Day three out on the boat with these men. The three he'd seen kept alternating watch over him while he roasted in the sun, splotchy red skin.

The gorilla faunus was strict, never leaving him comfortable. He'd made one mistake around him when he tried to run, but that didn't work. The gorilla now placed a tied chain around the boy's neck whenever it was his turn to watch.

"That all you got? Your mama was a colossal bitch to kill, but you're just a damn brat!" He removes his boot, grabbing Carmine and wrenching him up. He wraps his hand around the kid's head and holds him against the wall, crouching to eye level.

Carmine chokes out. "P-pl-please-" If the man wanted to snap his neck, he could. Bruises covered the child, an odd spot of dried blood, some odd cuts. The boy had a black right eye swollen.

And that summarizes the relationship with this man, Cal he'd learned. The raccoon faunus was jittery, antsy. He didn't like sitting still. So, since whoever watched the boy was also on lookout duty, he was very full of pent up frustration. He'd chosen to unleash that frustration on said boy...

Cal releases the boy's throat, standing up fully. Carmine fell down the wall, leaning against it. One hand wraps over his neck, the other covers his head protectively.

Cal scoffs, rolling his eyes as he walks a circle around the deck. His eyes trail over the horizon in all direction. It was late afternoon. The daylight dimming by the minute, but not quite sunset.

Once he completed a full rotation, the man twisted his head back to the boy, wrinkling his nose as the boy cried and sniffled. "Pansy ass..." He mutters under his breath. Stalking over the boy, his hand snaps down, grabbing and balling the boy's hair.

"AH!" Carmine yelps, being pulled up. Cal snarls, raising his off hand-

"Oh, for god's sake, again Trash Heap?" The smarmy voice makes Cal pause.

The faunus scowls, turning his head to look at the door to the yacht interior. Roman walks out, holding his cane at the center of the shaft. The low level thug's shoulders sag as he shakes his head at the faunus. Cal sneers. "What do you want, Litwick?"

Roman gestures towards Carmine with the cane, raising a brow. "To be paid, and I can't well do that if a certain withdrawal victim goes postal on the merchandise, can I?" He scoffs, walking to the center of the deck. "It's Torchwick, by the way. Remember that through your next high, please."

Cal releases the boy's hair, dropping Carmine onto the floor again. The faunus turns and stares down the teenager in front of him. His hands twitch, offsetting his glare. "Oh, I can't wait until this job is over so I can wring your neck."

Roman scowls back, though it soon turns into a smirk. "Oh, I'm not worried. You'll forget about little ole me the next time you go dumpster diving for needles." Cal takes an aggressive step, but Roman continues, disregarding him. "Your shift is up, anyway. Boss needs you to drive the ship while he naps."

Cal snarls, turning sharply and marching past Roman and inside. Roman's smirk wipes away as he marches over and sits on a crate, looking over the ocean.

Carmine winced and sniffled as he slowly crawled his way to a crate on the opposite side from Roman. He curls in on himself, whimpering as he hugs his legs.

This one was his favorite. By far. He wasn't nice by any means, but he was the least physical of the three. He was the most relaxed, allowed Carmine to just... be. The boy initially thought that the teenager could be outwitted, that he could get away. However, he quickly found that this guy was also easily the smartest of the three.

Something the orange haired guy clearly LOVED to show off.

Without glancing the boy's direction, Roman raises his left hand with three fingers up. "Count the fingers, Silver Streak."

Carmine sniffs loudly, looking up to the man. His breath is ragged, and vision slightly blurry, but not too bad. "T-th-three..."

He lowers his hand, snickering. "Got it in one! The idiot's learning compassion." The shakes, hugging his knees closer. His head droops down. "Stay awake, kid. Won't be good if he concussed ya."

Carmine lets out a painful gasp, pulling his head up and looking dead ahead. The two fall into silence. A few minutes pass, sky going from bright blue to a darker azure fading into violet and orange where the sun falls.

"What's gonna happen to me?"

Roman tilts his head at the question, a click of the tongue. "Now, I know you're trying to make me like you. You asked the smart question first." He looks over, seeing a confused look on the boy.

He smirks as he continues. "You didn't waste time asking 'why'. At this point, the why doesn't matter. You want to know what's going to happen, so you can prepare." The thief nods. "That'll take you far in this crapsack called Remnant."

The orange haired teen leans back. "To answer the question, one of two things. One, you'll be ransomed for a high price or favor from a very powerful man..." Roman hangs, looking over at Carmine.

The pause lets the boy process, brow starting to scrunch. "But... I've never met him."

"Oh, so you know? Good, that makes things easier." Roman shrugs. "And it's not like that matters. Does he know about you?"

Carmine's thought runs off, his gaze trailing to any spot that can distract him. He answers still. "I... think so."

Roman nods. "Then things are looking good for number one!"

The boy huffs. "What's number two?" Roman turns to eye the kid, but Carmine speaks again. "And don't say my... dad's joke." He trails off.

Roman recoils slightly, raising a brow. "Ah, the chief inspector." He makes a look of disgust. "Now, that's a VERY dad joke. No, thank you."

The comment brought some of the kid's focus up to him. The kid almost smirked, but it died before it could form. Still, Roman noted that, so he continued. "Number 2 is so unlikely, I doubt it will happen."

"But what is it?" The kid persisted, focusing more on Roman.

The teen grimaced, looking out over the waters. The older boy seemed to come to a conclusion and shrug. "It's what happened to me." He turns a smirk onto Carmine. "And that's all you're getting on that subject."

The younger boy pouted and looked away. Silence fell again for a moment, but soon enough the boy began to stare at the teen.

The stare began to annoy the thief, so Roman rolled his eyes. "What now?"

Carmine's gaze didn't leave the man. "Why did they ki-" He broke, nearly coughing. He takes a steadying breath, looking at Roman with slightly less determination. His voice comes quieter. "Why... did they kill my mom?"

Roman raised a brow. It was a fair question. One that came with a fair answer, that she got in the way, and the correct answer... And Roman wasn't one to say something that wasn't correct. "Because they could."

Of course, the boy still hadn't been met eye to eye with Killa, something Roman was thankful for. In fact... Killa was quite passive while recovering from the boy's mom's shock therapy treatment. Probably for the best to keep him away from the kid. If Cal was one of Killa's first choices for partners...

Roman looked over the boy's shoulders, eyes immediately widening. "Oh, crap." Carmine perked at the statement, moving to turn around.

And he sees a large ocean police transport... On the side of the ship, double the size of the yacht, were the massive letters. 'ATLAS BORDER GUARD'

Roman stood up, shouting into the yacht. "WE GOT COMPANY! ATLAS SOLDIERS!" He screamed down.

Immediately, Cal and Earl came bursting out onto the deck. The three each had the same reaction to the enemy ship. It was clearly making its way to them, now on a collision course.

Roman shrugged. "It's okay. We're just some folks on a cruis-"

A ringing voice called out from the ship. "Civilian vessel. Remain where you are. We will be boarding you in search of the criminal fugitive Killa Gonzola!"

Roman groaned. "Well, there went that." He looked at Carmine, the boy simply wide eyed and in shock. Guess that answers whether the kid's real dad knows about him or not to have freaking ATLAS going after them!

"Killa is driving the boat." Cal said, gritting his teeth.

"Somehow, I feel that's an excuse to call us his 'chumps'." Roman grumbles.

"Up to us to handle the suits. Aw, yeah." Earl pops his neck and pulls his hammer forward.

Just like that, the yacht turned to point at ramming speed towards the larger, more reinforced ship. Roman facepalms. "Great... Killa is suicidal too." Both boats point directly at one another at ramming speed.

The orange haired teen looks at Earl. "Think you can redirect a transport?"

The gorilla faunus chuckles. "I can knock away a meteor if I wanted. Go 14th century on their ass."

Roman shrugs. "Then redirect the boats before they hit." He points to the front of the yacht, then to Carmine. "And make sure the kid doesn't go anywhere!"

Carmine flinches as Earl looks him over. "Aw, man..." The gorilla faunus sighs, grabbing some chains off the deck and grabbing the boy. Carmine doesn't mean to struggle, but he'd manhandled as Earl begins tying him in chains onto the man's back, like a human backpack.

While the faunus manhandles the boy, Roman turns and meets glares at Cal. The raccoon faunus snarls. "What makes you Mr Combat General here?"

Roman's glare dulls to an annoyed stare. "Me and you are boarding the enemy ship and clearing out the pigs. Or, do you have a better idea?"

Cal opens his mouth to answer, then shuts his mouth fidgeting.

"Thought so."

"Damn it!" Cal snaps, his katars ready.

With a twirl of his cane, Roman moves with the two onto the bow of the yacht. Upon landing on the bow, the three steady themselves with the rise and fall of the boat with the waves.

The Atlas transport boat continues its course, closing it. The voice on the megaphone comes in again. "Cease your course and surrender, or we will initiate suppressing measures."

"How many you think are on that ship?" Roman asks out loud. "I haven't actually see one this close."

Earl nods his head back and forth, settling on an answer. "Just over ten..."

Roman looks surprised. "OH! Well, then-"

"-to about forty. Depends on the equipment stored inside." Earl finishes.

Roman deflates. "Helpful."

"Showtime!" Cal calls out.

The two ships close in, neither slowing down. The sounds of the waters drowns out all others as Earl rolls and loosens his shoulders.

The gorilla takes a running start, sprinting up the bow to the very tip of the boat. Carmine jolts around on the man's back, yelping with each sudden movement. The man reaches the tip, performing and theatrical spin as he brings the massive great maul around.

With the forward and spinning momentum, Earl strikes the bow of the oncoming Atlas boat just before the boats crash into one another. The strike bashes through the reinforced metal, jolting the larger ship to the side. The hammer rips through the metal, ripping the tip of the Atlesian bow completely off.

Despite the massive strike, the two ships begin to scrape against one another as they speed along the other's side. The port of the Atlas vessel scrapes along the starboard of the yacht.

The friction makes all three criminals stumble, but remain on the bow. Earl turns to the other two. "Come on!"

Cal and Roman sprint towards the larger man. Cal leaps forward, grabbing the head of Earl's hammer. The larger man twists and swings his hammer, slinging Cal up and onto the deck of the Atlas ship.

Immediately, the sounds of gunfire and screaming ignite to life.

Roman reaches out, grabbing the head of the maul as Earl does the same maneuver. Roman is propelled up into the air.

For a mere second, he sees a deck with many walls and obstacles, and at least a few dozen guards throughout opening fire over their cover. Weaving through spots on the opposite side is Cal, who tackles a soldier katar blades first behind a metal crate.

Cal moves around the create, katars open and firing. He moves to the next two guards, dodging gunfire. He jabs one closed blade into one, then uses him as a shield from the other's gunfire.

Cal then uses the first guard as a blunt instrument to pin the other. He then brings his other katar up, currently split, and jabs so that the man's neck is between the blades.

Just as he's closing the blades, Roman lands on the deck. He takes cover behind a knocked over crate, a soldier aimed at Cal yelps in surprise. He turns his gun on Roman.

The teen reacts quickly, smacking the gun aside with the tip of his cane. With a twirl, he uses the curved pick side of the cane head, piercing into the man's helmet. Hook in place, Roman pulls the soldier down and knees him in his exposed jaw.

Roman steps over the unconscious guard as a second walks around the crate swinging his nightstick. The teen ducks the swing and counters with the club side of the cane head. Dazed, the soldier stumbles as Roman hooks his front leg.

The guard falls into the guard railing at the edge, Roman quicjly grabbing and tossing him off the boat. The teen ducks back behind the crate, a spray of bullets crashing around the edges of the crate.

He checks the first soldier he'd knocked out. Around the corner, two more soldiers step out, one with a gun, the other with a pistol. Just before they open fire, Roman pulls the unconscious man up as a shield.

The men hold their fire, predictably, as Roman moves to stand holding the meat shield between them. He charges forward, shoving the meat shield into the pistol soldier. He releases the KO'd meat shield, and smacks the rifle aimed at him aside.

Roman punches the head of his cane into the rifleman's gut. Then, kicks the man's leg out, dropping him to a knee. The pistol man stands straight, aiming from the side. The teen parries the gun with his cane, then palm smacks up into the man's jaw.

The pistol man stumbles, stunned. Roman takes the time to spin kick the rifleman before the guy can stand straight. It knocks him out. The teen grabs the pistol man's weapon, pulling him in and gut punches him with his cane. He finishes the man grabbing him by the helmet and smacking the head into the nearest crate.

Roman ducks behind cover again, using his free hand to take the pistol. He sprints between crates, taking potshots with the pistol. He hits two soldiers, dropping them.

Reaching cover, he ends up ducked beside Cal. The faunus opens return fire with his open katars sub machine gun fire. The faunus ducks back as bullets spray over the two thieves' heads.

"Ten to forty, huh?" Roman mutters, unhappy. "How many you see, Twitch?"

Cal gives an animalistic growl. He tweake as he begins counting om his finger. "I got six take downs."

Roman nods. "So, ten down."

The two look at the visible stream of bullets overhead. They share a look, neither happy. The teen sighs, as he shakes his head. "Ten to forty, my ass." As if in response, the deck begins filling with lines of soldiers taking a firing squad position. All are aimed at the two's cover.

. . .

The yacht rocks as it finishes scraping against the Atlas vessel. Carmine jolts on Earl's back, facing behind the gorilla man. His wide eyes catch the various flashes and sparks coming from the deck of the taller ship.

However, just as the two ships separate, five men land on the roof of the yacht cabin and bow. They all train their guns on the large man. By extension, also the boy strapped to the man's back. "Gah!" Carmine yelps, kicking back against Earl's lower back for attention.

One soldier raises a hand to his ear, calling out into an earpiece. "We got eyes on a hostage! Preparing to retrieve!"

Earl turns to face them, the boy now unable to see the soldiers. Gunfire sounds, Carmine clamping his eyes shut and tucking in.

The world shut out, the boy can only feel and hear what happens. He's jolted around. The chains holding him against the faunus pull and dig into his limbs. He cries out as more shots sound.

Then Earl's shoulders jolt back and forth, some stops from resistance. He's swinging his maul. A soldier's cry sounds with a sickening smack sound.

More gunfire. This time, Earl staggers, then begins moving fast. A sudden stop and the sound of another cry. He just charged another soldier and... Carmine doesn't wanna know. The chains dig into him more, and he wants nothing more than to be free.

… He could be free. The boy's eyes open, taking in gun fire spraying around him. In front of him, behind Earl, sits a body... a streak or blood.

The boy gasps. He quickly diverts his attention. He feels Earl tense as he starts running. A other full charge. Carmine jostles back and forth until he feels it. Now is his moment.

Carmine's semblance activates. His visage disappears from Earl's back, from the chains. The faint shimmer moves back by the dead soldier, Carmine flickering back existence in the air.

The boy then falls, yelping as he hits the bow of the yacht hard. All his bruises, aches, pains, flare at once, getting a pained wail from the boy.

Earl stops his charge. The faunus turns to see the boy on the ground a few feet behind him. "Aw, come on!" He tskes a step, but brings his maul up to shield himself from a burst of gun fire.

Its Carmine's chance. He makes a break for it, initially stumbling before getting to a sprint. The boy gets to the cabin, beginning to climb his way on top. At that moment, he looks around. Anything at all would be invaluable.

However, he looked to see the Atlas ship and yacht were each turned back towards each other. They weren't charging directly this time, but were making another pass.

Carmine pulls his way onto the top of the cabin, looking around with wide, fearful eyes. What the hell could he do?

. . .

Roman fires the last bullets from his stolen pistol. It clicks, bringing a grimace to the orange haired man. He chucks the pistol out at another soldier, then ducks.

Cal continues to open fire before he drops. He begins reloading clips into his katar guns, snarling. "We got guns firing all around, and you have a cane! That all you have?"

Roman scoffs, rolling his eyes. "Oh, you're carrying this team SO far." Sarcasm drips from each word.

Cal glares at him. "I got 17 down! Something wrong with me, brat with six?!"

The two tuck, arms over for cover, as most of their cover blows out. The two are left with two small pieces of debris for cover. On the other side, a line of soldiers take aim. They start to march forward. One calls out to the others. "Move up! We got them pinned!"

Cal sends a narrow glare at Roman, bristling in anger.

Roman's head cocks back, eyes staring up in irritation. He turns to the faunus, snapping. "Fine! Guess I'll do everything!"

His hand reaches into his coat. He produces a black fabric circular piece. It's lined with deep red and white plates and a locking mechanism on one side. Cal raises a brow. "Oh yay. A perfect drum magazine for a gun we don't have. We're saved."

Roman sends a smirk his way. He brings his cane up. Near the tip, a rod folds down, a grip. Near the head of the cane, a handle folds out, a trigger showing. Just in front of the trigger, Roman locks the drum magazine into the cane. The tip of the cane folds up, forming a sight.

Roman grins like a madman, bringing up the Tommy Gun design, using the cane head as a stock. The white of the drum mag burns a bright orange.

The conman snaps out of his cover, smile growing. "Surprise!" He opens fire, the entire deck and line of soldiers getting knocked around, many hit directly, and all their cover exploding out. The white of the cane burns orange, fire dust rounds blasting out.

Cal's jaw drops as the deck lights up in explosions, all drowned out by Roman's wicked laughter.

. . .

Carmine flinches, seeing what looks like fireworks erupting on the Atlas ship. The blasts on the ship blow out a container. From it, various ropes and fabrics rip out and over the side of the Atlas vessel.

Carmine's eyes hone in on a string of rope hanging from the ship. He looks down to the bow, seeing Earl baseball swing his maul into a soldier. The poor man is launched from the yacht and into the ocean waters.

Standing on the cabin, Carmine steadies himself. The ships move by each one, sides ghosting and scraping. The boy looks and seeing the dangling rope from the Atlas transport.

The kid shakes, fear seizing him for the moment. However, it was his chance. As the rope moves by along the Atlas ship, Carmine runs off the cabin and makes a leap.

He grabs it! The boy manages to cling on, eyes scrunching as four masses leap off the deck above. He opens his eyes and peeks over to the yacht. Four more soldiers land as Earl finishes the last of the initial five.

Carmine's eyes widen as he gulps. He hastily begins to climb, moving his way up to the deck of the Atlas vessel. The ships separate again, putting open water under the boy.

He yelps, crying out as he feels the ship turn. He glances up, seeing more flashes and hearing gunfire from the man deck of the ship above.

With effort, he grabs the guard rail of the Atlas ship. The flames and gunfire cuts out, only the sound of waves coming through. Carmine's look around, but he isn't able to see yet. He groans, body protesting, as he climbs fully onto the deck.

He breathes heavily from the effort, and looks around. All the breath he'd taken leaves him. The all the crates, containers, items, and cover of the transport deck were destroyed, merely debris littering the ground. Much of the wooden parts of the deck were aflame, and the area was littered with unconscious soldiers.

On second look, many of the soldiers were clearly bleeding out... some were dead. Carmine shook his head in shock, shaking all over.

Standing by a few broken containers, Roman stands with his smoking gun resting on his shoulder. A click sounds as he detaches the drum mag from the Tommy Gun. The sight folds back into the tip, the grip, handle, and trigger fold back into the shaft and handle. He pulls a strap from the drum mag, wrapping it around his shoulder and clipping to the other side.

The mag hangs at Roman's side like a side pouch, the teen giving a smarmy grin to Cal. "so, six?" He takes a look around at the soldiers not responding. "I think I'm well into the twenties."

Cal's look of gaped shock twists into a snarling sneer. He chokes a growl out. "You-... little-"

"Yeah, yeah. Let's move on. Fairly certain the only one left is whoever is manning the bridge." Roman nods his head to the cabin/command center of the ship. Through the glass, he sees one man, using a console and looking panicked.

As the teen takes a step, Cal grabs his shoulder and wrenches him back. "He's mine, damn it!" He walks aggressively around Roman, grumbling. "Don't need a damn kid to do my job, little piece of garbage."

Roman smiles at him from behind. "Aw, Trash Panda thinks I'm garbage? Didn't know you cared that much." God, he loved poking the bear. Or raccoon in this case.

Carmine ducks around a corner, looking in shock. The two criminals move to enter the ship, until a very loud metallic clang sounds.

The two turn around, seeing the deck of the ship... opening up? A ten foot section of the deck opens up, revealing a hole that leads into the lower levels. Through the hole, mechanical clangs and the sound of a conveyor belt ring. Slowly, rising up, a metal container on a ten by ten foot platform rising.

"Oh, gash me in the alps..."

"What is it?" Roman asks, eyeing the container as each side separates and opens.

"How much do you know about Atlas law enforcement?"

"Not... much, actually."

"Well, let's just say they really love their-"

All four sides of the container blast out in all directions. The blowout cuts off the sentence, a cloud of steam spurting out before revealing the contents.

An electric cable sparks as power channels from it into the back of a chassis. The pearly white humanoid being of metal faces them with a black visor. Its limbs are disproportionately fat with metal plating.

Roman gapes looking at it. He raises a finger to point, tilting towards Cal. "Is that a damn robot-"

The lining of the metal arms glows yellow as the robot dashes forward. The electric cable goes taut before disconnecting. The robot closes the distance, cocking a massive electric charged fist.

Roman brings his cane up to block, but the fist smashes through the block and hits him head on. Roman is launched through the door into the interior of the ship.

Carmine gasps looking around the corner and seeing Roman get launched. The boy jolts, looking wide eyed as Cal leaps over the robot. The faunus lands a safe distance away, both katars open to fire mode.

"Metal or no metal, I'm gonna give ya' a gash! Ha!" He yells out while opening fire on the enemy.

The robot raises both large forearms, completely shielding its chest and head fully. The shits ricochet off, a few shots pinging off near Carmine. The bullet spray ends, the robot charging.

Cal snarls, closing his katars into their blade form. The faunus crouches, dodging to the right as the robot pounces.

The machine begins swiping around, arms lit with sparks of electricity. All the while, the faunus ducks and weaves around the punches. Moving under a left hook, Cal slashes at the machine's exposed wiring under the chassis.

However, the robot's torso spins, the slash hitting the plating on its back. The machines right arm elbows Cal back as the torso finishes its 360 spin. The faunus lands on his back, the machine looming over him and bringing its first down.

Cal yelps as he rolls backward, dodging, and getting to his feet. However, the robot dashes in, fist jabbing like a piston and knocking the wind from Cal.

The criminal falls a knee, snarling up as the robot raises its fist. It punches down at the faunus. Cal uppercuts with his katar, the blade sticking into the seam of the fist and forearm. Cal's blade gets an arc of electricity sparking out

He smiles, happy to get damage done. However, the fist glows. A shock moves through the blade and begins jolting Cal.

Carmine watches in awe. The amazement of how tough Atlas technology was... It was beating one of the men that attacked his home. The boy smiled, a shot of hope coming.

That's when an object strikes the bot in the back of the head, pinging up and dropping between it and Cal. The jolt of the object makes the robot pull back from the faunus. Cal looks down, breathing heavy as his eyes widen.

It was the drum magazine.

Roman emerges from the ship, free hand now aiming a pistol. He screams at the top of his lungs. "MOVE IT!"

Cal listens, ducking and rolling under the distracted robot. He makes a sprint to the side. The machine turns fully, unaware that Roman's sights for the stolen pistol are lined on the magazine behind it.

Roman smirks, cocky pride filling his features. His cane hand tips his hat up, showing more of his face's glee. "Time for a light show!" Almost like slow motion, Carmine watches the thief fire at the magazine. ("Yeah... AH-")

The bullet sparks the magazine. The container erupts as all its remaining fire dust explodes. The blast blows out the front of the deck behind the robot. The machine's form rocks forward, plating shattering off its back chassis. The machine drops and stutters getting. (Heavy drums and guitar riff begin. "So what'cha waiting for, anticipating more.")

The robot stands on its feet, electricity sparking off its limbs and open back. It looks up towards the hatless conman. ("While you debate what it can take to instigate a war!")

Roman smirks, twirling his cane. "Over here, automo-Ton of Fun!" ("Yeah, I've been hated more than time I wasn't hated for.")

A sparking click sounds as the robot's arms lock upward. It charges, loud clanging footsteps. It brings one arm down. Roman swings his cane two handed to deflect the punch while jumping to the side. ("There's nothing they can fucking say they didn't say before-")

The robot rotates its torso with a right hook, but Roman hooks his cane into the fist. Punch drags Roman to the other side, the teen anchoring his feet for traction. ("But you could never see it. Your battle's not mine.")

Roman yanks on the cane, dragging the Robot off balance. Behind Roman, Cal runs in firing from his katars. The shots deal light damage to the robot's head. ("Wanna skate and play it safe, but this is 'take a shot' time!")

Cal jumps onto the nearby wall, then leaping at the bot's side. He kicks the off balance machine, knocking it away from Roman. The teen pulls his cane free. ("You're waiting for a purpose? I already got mine!")

The robot stumbles out further in the deck, near the blown out hole. Cal lands, katars back in blade form as Roman stands next to him. ("While you tell me step to it like, 'One, two, three, four-")

The robot lets out a loud bang, an arc of electricity moving out one arm scorching a line on the metal flooring. It rises to its feet, a leg sparking as it hums with power. Cal takes a step, but Roman waves his cane to get his attention. ("And if I do what you demand-" "You say!" "-You'll let me understand!" "You say!")

"I'll try occupy his arms, so you can go for the back." Roman calls out. He twirls his cane, pick side up. Cal's face drops, a snarl coming on. ("You're gonna hold me to your wo~ord!")

The faunus shoves Roman's cane down, taking a step forward. He glares forward. "Stop giving orders, brat!" He rushes forward, leaving the teen grimacing and face palming. ("And if I sell myself away,-" "You say!" "-I'll have no debt to pay!" "You say!")

Carmine peaks around from his corner. His eyes widen as he gulps, seeing the faunus sprint at the robot. ("I'm gonna get what I dese~erve!")

Cal cries out in anger as he throws a stabbing right hook. The automaton raises its large sparking left hand. The blade pierces the palm of the metal hand, then the hand clenches on the weapon. Cal's lips purse, looking up as the robot raises its right fist. It throws the punch. (Instrumental dies down. "Whoa~oh~OH~oh!")

The fist hits Cal dead on. It draws the fist back, punching twice more. Cal's left katar separates, and he uses it as a pincer to catch the offending fist. (Heavy instrumental returns. "Your word, obeyed." "My debt, repaid.")

The robot spreads its arms, opening Cal open. The visor of the machine shimmers violet as it pulls in, headbutting Cal. The strike knocks Cal from the grips, landing on his back. The robot quickly steps over him throwing a punch down. ("Our trust, betrayed" "All for nothing! All for nothing!")

Roman's cane swings up, hitting the punch aside. "Change your mind?" Cal snaps his gaze to Roman, nodding an, "Uh, huh!" (Second verse. "Kick back. There's no other way to say it.")

Roman cracks the hammer side of his cane into the robot. It steps back with the hit, Cal rilling back to his feet. Roman swings the pick side, stabbing into the socket of the machine's right shoulder. ("So let me break this fucker down for ya'. I really don't know ya'.")

It tries to move its right arm, but it locks up. Instead, it swipes its left arm. The teen blocks the swipe, getting knocked back. The cane remains lodged in the machine's arm. Cal pounces in, throwing slashes at it. ("You talk, but let me show ya' where to put your paranoia!")

It throws a punch, but Cal parries it and lands a stab into its side. The machine sparks, the shock pushing Cal off. The robot moves to punch again, but Cal hits first with a slash at the right shoulder. ("You're joking? I don't have a half a sucker bone to throw ya.")

The slash lands in the socket, disconnecting its right arm. The cane pops out from the robot, dropping to the ground. The robot stumbles, then swings a kick out. Cal ducks back, the fat leg misses by an inch. ("I'm disgusted! Wonder what could've made ya tuck your tail below ya!")

Cal comes up, immediately ducking back from an uppercut. He ducks back as Roman switches in around him. Roman kicks, knocking the bot back a step. The machine swipes its arm again, but Roman ducks and picks his cane up. ("And no, I'm not your soldier. I'm not taking any orders!")

The teen swings up with the pick side, jamming into the left arm this time. Before it can try to move, he shoulder rams into its chest. The robot continues stumbling back towards the hole in the deck. ("I'm a five-star general, infantry controller!")

He rips the cane out, twisting to swing the hammer side into a leg joint. He dents the left knee. It sparks, but doesn't stop the machine from punching Roman off balance. ("Need a lesson? Let me show ya'. Have you checking your composure-")

The robot starts shielding its chest and head as Cal charges in, firing sprays of bullets. Roman smirks, moving between the faunus and machine and cupping his hands. ("While I make you step to it like, 'One, two, three, four-")

Cal lets out a war cry, jumping into Roman before the human springs him up above. The robot uncovers its head, seeing only Roman. The teen spins and swings his weapon again. ("And if I do what you demand-" "You say!" "-You'll let me understand!" "You say!")

The cane pick stabs into the machine's arm. Roman yanks back, drawing the damaged limb towards him. ("You're gonna hold me to your wo~ord!")

Cal lands on the edge of the deck, opening fire. The bullets spark as they hit the exposed damaged portions of the machine's back. The sparks start to smoke heavily as the robot drops to a knee. ("And if I sell myself away,-" "You say!" "-I'll have no debt to pay!" "You say!")

Roman pulls the cane free, twirling and hitting the hammer side into the robot's jaw. Its head angles up. Its arm locks in place. Cal grins as he dives in from behind. ("I'm gonna get what I dese~erve!")

The faunus spins and slashes, the hit decapitating the mech. Cal slides to a stop beside Roman, snickering. The robot stops moving, still sparking, before falling back into the hole of the deck. ("Whoa~oh~OH~oh!" Instrumental fades with chant...)

The two criminals stand, looking over their work. "Good riddance." Roman claps his hands to get dust off the gloves. He turns around, marching off from the faunus. "I'm gonna go get my hat back while you deal with the captain."

Carmine watches with awe, and fear. These guys just took down an Atlas warrior robot! His breath runs a touch ragged as he realizes something. He's not escaping them... strangely, that's only the second thing he notices.

Cal's smirk falls, seeing the smug teenager walking away from him with his back turned. His eyes narrow, a scowl forming. "Right... I'll get right on that..." His arm raises, katar separated to reveal the gun barrel.

The boy's eyes widen in shock. The faunus is aiming his gun at the orange haired teen's back. Carmine's jaw drops. He wouldn't...

The raccoon faunus' aim locks on the back of Roman's head, the teen nearing the cabin of the ship. Cal's scowl morphs into a sadistic grin. "Good riddance." His finger itches over a trigger on his weapon handle.

And so, Carmine acts without realizing it again. Why was he moving? Why should he care? He did not know, but he was angry. He sprints out from cover and screams out. "Behind you, look out!"

The child's shout makes Roman pause in his walk, head snapping first to the kid. It also had the benefit of taking Cal off guard, the faunus snapping his look at well to him. The aimed weapon drops, the moving catching Roman's peripheral vision.

Roman side eyes Cal, though the faunus is already marching towards the kid. "Damn, brat. I'll break you down until you can't even think about wanderin-"

He's cut off as Roman flicks his cane up in the path. "I got it." Without giving Cal time to respond, he steps towards Carmine. The thief waves for Carmine to come forward. "Don't be stupid. I'm not in the mood."

Carmine's wide eyes flick to Roman for only a moment, but return to Cal. He moves forward, stepping through the carnage of the deck. His eyes stay on the faunus while he moves closer to the teen.

Roman sends another side glance over to Cal, who sends a narrow glare at the orange haired teen. The thief looks back to the windows of the ship's bridge, seeing a shadow. He nods to it. "Go on. Do whatever heinous act you want to the poor man. I got the stupid kid."

Cal growls, huffing out as he marches towards the cabin of the ship. Roman watches him disappear.

After the Faunus's departure, Roman grabs Carmine by the back of his shirt, lifting him up and over his shoulder. The kid yelps, squirming for freedom. The orange haired teen grumbles. "You are so annoying, kid."

. . .

Jared drove through the almost abandoned highway. His car speedometer read 150, the engine howling as he made his way to the next town.

His eyes held bags under them, his head tilted and resting in his left hand, propped on the car door. His radio blasted music, but did little to drown out his thoughts.

The music dies out, the dashboard of the car lighting up blue. His scroll begins to ring, locked abd plugged into the central console with the radio. Jared's eyes trail from the road to the screen.

He sighs. "Please..." He whispers, then speaks loudly. "Answer." The voice command elicits a beep. The dashboard dims in brightness. "What did you find?" He speaks, none too patiently.

Ozpin's voice responds. "An Atlas patrol vessel ceased responding near the the ocean fronts to the south west of you. Their last transmission was that they would be approaching an older model yacht. Looked dirty and not well kept."

Jared's eyes widened. "Closer to Vale, proper?" He takes a moment to think that over. "Then we can cross Mistral and Atlas off our lists." His gaze narrows, hand tightening on the steering wheel.

"A whole Atlas crew was taken down?"

"According to the captain, initial confrontation went fairly even, but quickly went south. Killa himself was not involved, it seems. However, two of the three combatants match the two from your department's report's description."

Jared tilts his head, a grimace forming. "So, we have at least four..." His focus is honed. However, his scowl forms again. "It's closer to Vale, at least, right?"

The call remains silent for a moment. "I cannot send students to fight this battle... Not yet."

Jared's scowl remains. "I'll head that way, then."

. . .

The child cries out as he lands on concrete. He rolls with the landing, ending up curled in pain on the ground.

Earl steps by him, looming over. "Need to straighten out a few things, yeah? You have a habit of trying to get away."

Carmine writhes for a moment, looking around. It was night time, a day and a half after the run in with the Atlas ship. True to what he believed, Cal and Earl had sunk the Atlas ship after looting anything they could from inside.

However, the aftermath of the battle revealed... a bit more damage than the crew thought for the yacht. Said issue was discovered about ten hours after the fight. Cal screamed, waking the whole group about the storage hull starting to fill with water.

Thus, they had to make a stop for repairs...

Around them looked like a haunted shipyard. An outpost, it seemed. Roman appraised the place, hand to his chin. "I didn't know this place existed. Where are we?"

Earl picks up the injured boy, carrying him to one of many moss covered, cracked buildings and shacks. Cal clicked his tongue. "This used to be an underground railroad for slave trading and child trafficking, but Vale hunters wiped out that business chain a decade ago."

Roman looked over with a raised brow. "So, if we have Atlas on us for the kid, odds are, some hunters will come here?"

Earl halted his march to the nearest shed, Carmine struggling with the man's grip. "Not gonna be a problem. Place was wiped from Vale records about eight months ago."

Roman raises a brow at that. "but... the only person with the pull to do that is-"

"Senior." The new voice answered.

The group turned to see Killian, standing atop his yacht. The ship is tethered to the concrete dock. He hops down, landing in front of the group.

Carmine's eyes lock on the man. His voice chills him. That... cheer and attitude. He looked up, pupils shrinking. This... was him.

His skin has red marks across his neck and chest, one red splotch on one side of his face. The remains of burns. His duster coat covers any other possible blemishes, but his wide smile is still in place. "Why is that surprising?"

Roman tilts his head, looking around at the building. The walls of the compound and buildings are lined with claw marks, and crusted material in various areas. Dried blood, some long since decayed bones. Grimm come through here often, it seems.

The teen raises a brow at his current 'boss'. "I didn't know Senior had any vested interest in child trafficking."

The faunus cackles. "Oh, brother. He's into a lot of things, and we benefit from it." He walks around the human, approaching the gorilla faunus and little boy. He smiles up at Carmine, a large toothy grin. "Well, well, well. First time face to face, isn't it?"

Carmine's frozen stare remained on the man. His jaw shook, teeth inaudibly clattering.

Killa chuckled. "Aw, looks like we need to bond." He waves down. "Put the kid down, will ya? Get comfortable."

Earl eyed his boss a moment, then slowly places the rigid boy on a concrete bench. Carmine shook, eyes locked on the grinning criminal in front of him.

The man spreads his arms wide. "There we are!" He kneels in front of the boy. His smile is just too crooked. His eyes aren't honest. The only thing the boy can make out... humor. He finds the boy funny.

Killa continues. "Let's bond over a story, then." He sways lightly on his feet while crouched by the boy. "You see..." Very slowly, he lifts his right hand up.

Carmine flinches, the hand coming up and cupping his cheek. The boy shook, wide eyes still locked on Killa's.

"I did it with this hand."

He spoke plainly. Honestly. A touch giddy. In that instant, Carmine felt as though the hand burned him. His eyes began to mist over.

"and I can do it do you too." Killa tilts his head slightly with the grin. "So, do what I say, Okay?" He ends by patting the boy's face with the hand that killed his mother. Killa stands, waving them off. "Take him away, big guy."

Earl nods as he takes the shaking child into the shack. Killian grins madly as he looks at Cal and Roman. "Okay, so I looked over the damages from the inside. Good news, we can continue on our maiden voyage after only two days worth of work on my baby."

Roman's brow scrunched in confusion. "Well, we're just out of Vale's outer territories. If you're cutting Senior in, we can cut a deal with Ozpin immediately. Why are we still going by sea?"

Killa slinks up to Roman, arm going around him. "Buddy, buddy, buddy. See the big picture. I spent a month planning the ins and outs of this endeavor we have here." He grins madly. "There's a boy just a year older than that brat in a small town in Vacuo. That's our next location."

Roman looks to Cal, who seems to be ignoring them, already moving to a warehouse for tools and supplies. He side glances the overly friendly psychopath. "And since I'm the only one confused... Why are we going after ANOTHER brat?"

Killa pats Roman's shoulder, sighing with a smile. "Ah, come on, Ro Ro. Work that boat through the stream of thought." He releases Roman, stepping in front of him. He leans in, holding up one finger. "I want YOU to figure it out."

The teen frowns at the man for a moment, looking up in thought.

It lasted only a few seconds, the orange haired boy's eyes widening. He brings his gaze down at the smiling faunus in front of him. In hindsight, he should have seen that sooner.

His look must have translated, Killian's smile widening. Roman scoffs. "Would work better if you went and took out the kid's foster dad already."

The criticism makes Killian's smile morph to a scowl. "Not necessary!" The gloomy look morphs back to a showy smile. "After all, we just need to cash in Ozpin's favor before giving the kid back. Doesn't matter if they realize it's not the right one."

The group leader chuckles as he turns to walk away, leaving Roman simply staring after him.

Killa stops as if remembering something, turning back and calling out. "Oh! By the by, now that we're through possible Atlas waters, job risk has gone down. Call your man with Senior's staff to come pick you up tomorrow."

Roman tilts his head. "Done that easily?"

Killa's smirk twitches, irritated. "You weren't even the one I wanted, and all I truly needed was someone good with arsen and thievery. From this point on, you aren't needed." He waves his hand in a 'shoo' gesture.

"So, call your ride home. There's a Rata Railways station to the South five miles in some hobo filled village." He waves his hands in a dismissive manner, head bobbing back and forth. "Oja Terrace, I think is the name."

Roman watches as the faunus disappears into the warehouse. He blinks, looking around in confusion.

Huh, so this is it? Part of him felt like he should be chipper from the news. However, just as his typical smirk started to appear, a thought occurred.

"What's number 2?" The boy's curious voice echoes.

His own words from hours ago echoed in his mind. "Number 2 is so unlikely, I doubt it will happen."

Roman scratches the back of his head. He mutters under his breath. "Way to prove me wrong..."

. . .

The boy's stomach ached, a loud growl sounding.

Carmine looked straight at the wall, stock still. Hours had passed since arriving at this... whatever place it is. The boy couldn't bring himself to care.

Earl had taken him into a concrete room. All sides had cracks, but were still sturdy and strong. The area had a tile floor, dining tables and chairs lining up and down the long area. It reminded the boy of his school's cafeteria.

His cheek still burns. The child had scratched at his cheek, trying to forget the feeling of... that man's hand.

It hadn't worked. Now, his awareness was more... hollow. He'd barely fussed or put up any resistance to Earl's manipulations or carrying.

The gorilla faunus had brought in a tool kit, cleaning his weapon. The large man and small boy sat in complete silence. Neither glanced at one another, and neither seemed to want to.

Finally, something distracting occurred, as Roman walked into the room. He yawns, showing his own tiredness, but he still tosses a package onto the table.

The small pouch package landed on the table with an echoed thud, making Carmine jump violently. The action made the boy fall back off his seat with a deep gasp. He hits the ground, whimpering in pain.

Roman ignores it, looking at Earl and nodding. "Some of the bigger pieces will need you, big guy. Since I'm out of here tomorrow, I suppose Killa wants me doing as little as possible to his 'baby'." He puts air quotes on the word 'baby', obviously mocking.

Earl huffs, picking up his tools and shaking his head. "Always doing the heavy lifting."

Roman raises a brow at him, curious. "What even IS heavy lifting for you? Like, three buses or something?"

Earl lets a low laugh out, waving him off, but pausing. "Nah... well, maybe." The gorilla thinks on it. "Last I checked, I lifted A bus, actually."

Roman nods, impressed. He then shrugs as he takes a seat on the opposite side of the table Carmine is at. The boy gets up, rubbing his side and head with a groan.

Earl lets out a huff as he moves to the exit. "You call your ride yet?"

Roman snaps his scroll out. The device beeps as it begins turning on. "I'll be doing that here. I trust you'll have fun on the ocean with Multi Color and the Addict?"

Earl chuckles again. Seems the human and the big guy have hit it off. "You be careful with Grimm. Even a five mile hike isn't a cakewalk."

"Yeah, yeah." Roman answers lazily, setting a wrapped pouch in front of him.

At this time, Carmine's gaze trailed from the two pouches to Roman. His eyes widen. "You're leaving?"

Roman spared the kid a glance, raising a brow. He lets out a smarmy grin. "And thank goodness for it. If I had to keep looking over my shoulder for the Addict, I'd go crazy."

The response made Carmine freeze. His brow scrunched, eyes locked wide. It took a moment, but Roman noticed that the boy's jaw shook. The teen didn't comment as he began opening his package.

The boy asked, voice shaky. "So... I'll be going to... my dad tomorrow?"

The question stopped Roman in his workings. He met the child's glance, and immediately wishes he hadn't.

The boy's eyes were renewed with life from just a moment ago. Yet, the 'life' in his eyes came only from fear, not hope like one would imagine.

Still, Roman wasn't one to go easy on people. "No... It would seem you won't be going home to daddy."

The two sat like that, nothing really going on between them. Just Roman watching the reality slowly weigh down on the child in front of him.

Finally, Roman nudged the pouch in front of the kid. "Eat, kid."

Carmine numbly nodded, then looked at the bag. He spoke... but it was low, nearly silent. "What is it?"

Roman turned his own bag, showing the letters 'MRE' on it. "'Meals. Ready to Eat.'" He demonstrates what's inside his package, eating some crackers and a food bar from inside.

The display enticed the boy to satisfy his own. It seemed to dissolve some of the boy's tension. Stress eating, for the win! At least it kept the boy from just breaking in front of Roman. He was no in the mood.

Speaking of things Roman had to deal with, the teen raises a scroll in his hands. He looks at Carmine, narrowing his gaze at him. "Stay quiet. Got it?"

Carmine swallowed a bite of food, meeting Roman's gaze for a moment, then nodding. Roman smirked, hitting call. Carmine looked to the corner of the room, seeing Cal walk in. The faunus walked up to the two humans, raising a brow.

The call just rang... and rang... and rang... Roman's smirk turned to frown. "What is taking so long-" The scroll read 'connected' as the calls started, audio only.

Roman smiled broadly, leaning back. "Hey, Benny! Good news! We got the job done!"

Carmine couldn't catch it, but he could tell the person he called was responding. However, before the voice could finish, Roman continued.

"Yes, we nabbed the kid. Paychecks all around, but seems we got into a scuffle with authorities. Currently laying low for repairs on the ship."

The voice on the other end of the line stops replying.

Roman chuckles. "Our courageous journey on the ocean will continue in two days. Or, rather, Killa's will. I need an escort home. Killa will contact the boss with payment for my lovely services. Yata yata yata."

Cal snorts, growling out. "Get off the phone unless you want a gashin'. Your ride doesn't need details about the job!"

Roman meets the faunus' look with a smirk. "Anyway, I'll be at the Rata Railways station in Oja Terrace tomorrow at 6 pm. Can you make that?"

Cal scowls, taking out an MRE from some supplies in the corner. He retreats from the room, leaving the humans be. Carmine's gaze follows the faunus out, then trails downward.

The general gloom seemed to barely affect Roman as he grinned widely at the line's response. "Good. See you then. Bring Patty, too. The extra chit chat will make the ride home smoother. Chow!" He ends the call, pocketing the scroll.

Honestly, he's surprised there's CCT coverage out this far.

. . .

The dashboard lit, a call coming in. The chipper ring tone pierced Jared's ears as he continued along the highway. He sighed, shaking his head. "Ozpin, I'm not in the mood-"

He stopped, eye locked on the center console where his scroll was locked in. The lights of the dashboard weren't lit blue like before... but yellow.

The name on the scroll, the ID. It read 'SEN'.

The inspector slams his foot on the breaks. The car screeches along the road, swerving and threatening to roll. The speedometer drops from over a hundred rapidly down.

The man catches himself from smacking into the windshield as the car comes to a grinding halt. Jared breathes heavily, eyes locked on the dashboard. A few seconds passed, the ring continuing as he just stared at his wife- deceased wife's name on the caller ID.

Before it can automatically hang up, Jared reaches down, hitting answer. His face contorts in rage as he growls out. "Who is this?"

The answer was not what he expected. A young and light voice responded. "Hey, Benny! Good news! We got the job done!"

The call out was just casual enough. The former hunter's eyes narrowed. He punches the door of the car and yells. "Where's my son you bastards?!"

"Yes, we nabbed the kid. Paychecks all around, but seems we got into a scuffle with authorities. Currently laying low for repairs on the ship."

Jared opens his mouth to make a demand, but one small portion of awareness hits. What's the purpose of this call, and what's the meaning of the words.

His mouth snaps shut, eyes narrow as they stare at the scroll. The voice continued. "Our courageous journey on the ocean will continue in two days. Or, rather, Killa's will. I need an escort home. Killa will contact the boss with payment for my lovely services. Yata yata yata."

A second voice, very faint, sounds in the background. "Get off the phone unless you want a gashin'. Your ride doesn't need details about the job!"

Job? Ride? Someone not wanting them on the phone? Needless details...

These guys are professionals. None of them would be stupid enough to speak on the phone so lightly about updates on the job... at least, not in this situation. Jared's gaze widened, mouth dropping.

Someone was ratting them out! Jared's face filled with life as he took a breath. "Where am I meeting you?"

"Anyway, I'll be at the Rata Railways station in Oja Terrace tomorrow at 6 pm. Can you make that?"

Jared immediately checked the map, pulling it up. He checks the areas, finding the location as a small spot on the edge of the core Vale territory. Not too far from the ocean.

Good news further, he can absolutely make the journey in 8 hours, which gives him time to rest and prepare. The guy likely plans to get there early to scope for a police ambush.

Jared smirks for the first time in days. "I can be there by 5."

The voice responded chipper. "Good. See you then. Bring Patty, too. The extra chit chat will make the ride home smoother. Chow!" The line cut out, the call hanging up.

'Patty'? He's heard that... A generic name given in anonymous police tips to refer to a patrol.

The extra 'chit chat' to make the ride home 'smoother.' Well, not that it needs much translating. Whoever it is is suggesting he bring back up, the more the merrier.

Of course... that brought that issue to mind. Jared eyes the scroll. "Damn it..." He reaches for the scroll.

. . .

The scroll buzzes, moving from vibrations atop the desk. The motion barely registers to the man behind the desk.

Ozpin stares at the screen, looking through updates on different teams out on hunts. His sleep deprived eyes remain narrowed before he slowly moves back from the screen. He leans back into the chair, bringing one hand up to rub his eyes under his glasses.

Not a single team was available yet. That was concerning, not only for the current situation, but meant that the hunts likely were more dangerous than expected.

His eye twitches at the thought. His son is in the hands of a world renowned criminal... and his first concern at this news was that the students were in danger.

Jared's words echoed in his mind, the headmaster sighing as he reaches for his coffee. The scroll buzzes a second time.

This time, the headmaster takes notice, picking up the scroll. Two messages from Jared.

'5 pm, Oja Terrace's Rata Railways. They have a turncoat'

'Still no backup? Turncoat suggested it'

Ozpin stared at the texts, eyes widening as he reread the messages. His lips slowly curved to a ghost of a smirk, but he tamed it. He turned his head back to his computer screen. All the updates, and not a one available.

The thought came briefly about sending a first year team after all. However... he still couldn't do such. Much as Killa was a high profile threat and Carmine was in danger, Ozpin couldn't risk inexperienced huntsmen and huntresses in training like that.

So, he pulls the location up on a map. The location appears on his computer screen. Near the edge of the kingdom limits. Outside the limits are territories routinely tied to Vale, like Sanctuary. This was near the ocean on the Northern edge of the mainland territory.

Ozpin's hand clenches, eyes narrowing. None of the hunts were sent to that area. The easy solution of course couldn't be easy.

The surrounding areas didn't exactly hold much either. Small village of Zeef, Hardleg trading post, some bandit hubs. The only reason Jared could make the journey is because he'd already been traveling along the roads for over a day.

Although, someone could come by sea?

Ozpin tilts his head in thought. No, the only other location a ship can make it there in time from is Patch-.

Ozpin stops moving. He stands frozen, looking at the map. His gaze flicks to the scroll by him. The message sits plain on the screen.

'Still no backup? Turncoat suggested it.'

The silver haired man looks out the windows, out to the city of Vale in the distance. After a minute, his hand moves back to the scroll, typing one handed. He eyed the screen once more before hitting send.

'I have one more contact. They'll come.'

He interacts with the device more, looking through contacts before hitting the call button. He waits a moment. Given the time of night, there's little reason to expect an answer.

However, the answer came. A female voice came on. They answer awkwardly, as if they just sprinted for the phone."Ow! Oh! Xiao Long Residence?"

The statement brought a small smile of nostalgia to Ozpin. However, now was not the time. "Hello. I'm afraid this is not a social call." He speaks urgently.

A pause in the line. "Professor Ozpin! What's wrong? What do you need?" Ozpin's eyes shut for a second, gathering himself.

Ever helpful. She hasn't changed.

"I need your help, Mrs Rose."

And thus ends this chapter. Hope it was enjoyed, and hope everyone has a happy New Year. A lot of Roman focus with Carmine in this one, and we're moving, or crawling, away from the OC's.

The song used in this one was Linkin Park's All For Nothing zwieR.Z. Remix. Only the first two verses.

Next time is Chapter Five: Alpha Male.