Check on the boiler. Midnight. Back entrance is open.

That was the entirety of the message Cinder had texted to Jaune only a few hours before. It already elicited an uncomfortable and heavy sensation, but when he found out that Ren had received similar instructions, the two knew this was anything but an innocent night shift maintenance job. Tension flooded the interior of the car as it navigated the dark streets, so thick that even with the ac cranked to the max and no windows to prevent the rush of scattered cold air hitting them from every angle; it still wasn't enough to alleviate the phantom heat, or the itching.

"Don't you have any music on this thing?" Jaune whined, busying himself with the vehicle's radio. There were so many buttons, far more buttons than he thought a radio needed to be frank, and none of them seemed to do anything but make the screen text stutter as he endeavoured to punch each and every one of them.

"This car was kept in a lot for the whole duration of our time in the simulation without any maintenance, maybe some of the parts degraded." Ren barked back with more force than intended. He most of all felt the tension bubbling under the surface of his skin, his posture stiff as a board and hands holding the steering wheel in a death grip. Nothing about this situation sat right with him, the text had reached him the minute he'd returned from his date as if perfectly timed to deliver the perfect emotionally unbalancing punch. Like a distant storm suddenly overtaking a sunny sky.

Not even the environment cut him any slack. It was the first time he'd even seen this city at night-time hours, the projected fake sky stripped away and replaced by the deep, dark blue abyss of the ocean it was submerged in. Under a gaze of streetlights and fake stars, the city was once again an alien environment, a jungle of ugly grey metal made from concrete islands peaking over a swamp of undefined clumps. Any moment the shadows could unravel to reveal a sudden obstruction that would shatter his world. He feared that sudden ambush of panic would take him, even though there hadn't been another car in sight since they started their driven, even though the city felt so dead, so empty around him; he feared, so much fear.

"Fine, I guess oppressive silence is the next best option." Jaune huffed, swinging his torso back to bounce against his seat, eyes lazily wondering over the scraps of his surroundings their limited sight offered him. "They probably don't have any good music down here anyway. Probably a lot of corporate approved slop."

Ren scoffed. "Oh please." He needed to keep the conversation going, need to talk, air out the pressure before it threatened to rip him apart. He'd wager Jaune needed it too, but then again, he never was 100% sure of what went through his leader's head at times; and he meant that in both the stupidest and best of ways. "You're a sucker for those bargain-bin cash grabs, I've seen you on Karaoke remember? It's junk food for your ears."

"Hey!" Jaune turned over in his seat – proving his seatbelt was not up to safety standards with how much room he was given – and pointed his finger at Ren in a rather defensive display. "That's different. I was doing that under protest! It's not like I could disregard the selection of karaoke night, it's sacred."

"It's sacred to Ruby, you mean." The talking worked, it seemed, as Ren managed to muster a smug smile.

Jaune coughed awkwardly into his clenched fist. "Yeah, which means it's sacred to all of us."

"Sacred to you."

"Maybe a little…" He opened his mouth as if to continue with a better retort only to leave his jaw hanging, Jaune fumbling for words for a moment. He sighed. "But like… Well… It's not all about Ruby, you know?"

Ren shrugged, "Not in this world, strangely enough."

"What do you mean?" Jaune's brow stood at attention. "You expected her to be more important?"

Pursing his lips, Ren chewed on the thought before answering "Not important, but I expected us to have found something about her real-life counterpart by this point." The wheel felt light in his hands as the questions built up on the base of his tongue, the tip of his mind. "I mean, according to her, Torchwick is your connection. Which means you're the one who brought him into the simulation." His eyes narrowed, an irritated grumble making itself known. "Don't you find it strange how you never met him in the simulation? He was only a prominent figure to Ruby. Even for Blake he was just the annoying middleman. So how is he your connection and not Ru-"

The grumble developed into a full-on growl as the car lurched forward, courtesy of whatever crap had suddenly materialized onto this practically pristine road, and sent both occupants bouncing. "Seriously?"

Jaune tried to awkwardly laugh it off. "Guess your driving skills could use a little work."

Ren's face fell, looking none to pleased, but not taking it personally. "Where was I again?"

"You were making everything about Ruby for no reason."

Okay, that Ren took a slight offense to, scoffing once more with a chuckle. "Don't you go projecting your Ruby problems on me, Jaune."

"I don't have only Ruby problems!" Jaune protested "There's more on my mind than one girl, you know?"

Ren shook his head, resisting the urge to roll his eyes away from the road ahead. "Keep telling yourself that."

"Ren, I'm serious." The deeper tone Jaune took on was enough to get Ren to momentarily flicker his gaze away from the road before immediately turning back. "It can't be all about Ruby."

"Is this still about your hang ups about your relationship 'not counting'?" Dark brows furrowed as the illogical nature of it all washed over him, already a nostalgic memory of second-hand embarrassment. "Whatever we were before, that doesn't change who we are now. Ruby is still the girl you fell in love with, unless, of course, you specifically fell in love with her for her legal name, past and Crescent Rose."

"Look," Hands aimless wafted about off and on his lap as they did ay time Jaune's nerves were leaving him confused on how to phrase his thoughts. "I admit it, ever since I broke things off, I've been missing her. I'm head over heels for her, okay? I accept that now." He grit his teeth so tightly he could practically hear the whine of teeth particles grinding together and breaking apart. "But that's not all there is, right? That's not-… That's not all there is to me."

Confusion irritated Ren's eye, as unwelcome as ever. He blinked and the road disappeared underneath them, replaced with a dirt trail leading them down a new path dotted with the vague shapes of trees at the edge of their vision. "I'm not following. There's nothing wrong with loving someone."

Jaune sighed. "Just forget it."

"Jaune."

"It's just…" His shoulders rose, throwing his arms up in a repetitive circular motion, as if hoping his hands would just happen to reach out and grasp the right words. "When we first became a team, I had no idea what I was doing. I was just some dumb kid who knew nothing about Huntsman or fighting but made the award-winning decision to take my father's old sword and rock up to school with fake documents."

"None of us really knew anything yet. That's why we were Huntsman 'in training' after all." Ren made a purposeful pregnant pause, nodding his head to Jaune. "But shooting for an occupation with an expected body count with no qualifications is still probably the dumbest decision you've made, yes."

He didn't need to glance over to know Jaune was shooting him a sharp glare over pouting lips. "The point is that Pyrrha did know what she was doing, or at least, I thought she did. So, I always followed her lead, even as the leader." The tone quickly dropped to a dreary note between the two, still having to tense their muscles and prepare themselves to talk about that incident again, even if so much time had passed since. "When she died, I was on my own again. I was still the same dumb kid, but now I didn't have her to show me the way."

"You weren't alon-"

Jaune cut him off softly "I don't mean it like that, Ren. We were there for each other always, and I will always appreciate that, but it wasn't the same. We fought together, we lost together, we lived together, but we didn't follow each other. I love you guys, but not to that unhealthy degree where I can't separate from you." His gaze slumped to his lap, his fingers coiling into a tight fist offering a clean display of the nicks and bruises that never faded. "But then there was Ruby, she… It was like Pyrrha all over again. I followed her. I relied on her. We were supposed to be equals, just fellow leaders, but I used her as crutch. After the train, she was gone and I couldn't think of anything else but her. I was reunited with my own family and all I could think was 'What's Ruby doing right now? Is she okay? Of course, she's okay. Is she thinking about me? When will she be back? I can't do anything until she's back."

Ren found himself chewing the inside of his lip nervously. He wanted to help Jaune, but he couldn't really make heads or tails of what the problem was. These weren't unnatural or shameful things to experience right? You love someone; you think about them constantly. That was normal. "There's nothing wrong with being enamoured about the one you love, Jaune. That's just how love works."

"It's more than just holding her in my heart, Ren. I was paralyzed. I couldn't function without her there." His hand opened up to expose the rough surface of his palm, flushing a bright red under the pressure of his grip. "It didn't really click with me, not until I reunited with Pyrrha, not until Ruby told me about their conversation. The state I left Pyrrha in… It was familiar. She lived her life for others, and then for Larry, never for herself. I needed her. I needed Ruby. Not just because I love them, but because I can't feel worthy without them. I can't stand without either of them lifting me up."

"Is this about feeling shameful for needing help? We can't do everything alone."

There was a light thump as Jaune's foot slapped against the underside of his leg room. "But there should be some things he can do alone. Basic things, basic respect." He pressed his face into his palm, sighing deeply. "Not just for me even. I think that… Like…" He swallowed a full serving of nerves and guilt, knowing the minefield of a touchy subject he was about to enter. "Like you and Nora kind of have that problem too."

All Jaune could hear was the sound of screaming leather as Ren's grip on the steering wheel threatened to snap it in half. "Come again?"

"Don't…" A couple of curses under Jaune's breath. "I don't mean to- Don't take it the wrong way. I'm just saying that you and Nora met, in the simulation anyway, on the worst day of your life." Two hearts joined in an erratic rhythm; two friends fearful of the exposed nerves shameless being put into the spotlight. "And since that day, you two were joined at the hip. It was always 'Ren and Nora' or 'Nora and Ren', never just 'Ren', never just 'Nora'. I mean, even Nora said so, remember?"

It had been over a year back, during their chaotic introduction to Atlas, back when they were still navigating the tightrope that was how much they could trust Ironwood. He was friendly face who had proven himself as a harsh, but ultimately good man trying to do what he thought best; but after Lionheart, after realizing how little they truly knew about the world around them, they couldn't help but keep the man distant. Those turbulent times came to head with Salem's plot to undermine Atlas' security, manipulating the ever greedy and ambitious Jacques to sow mistrust, cripple Mantle's protectors and cut off the last stronghold of Huntsman that Remnant really had.

When Salem's invasion force hit the cities, it looked like the world was ending. It was only through honesty, trust and both Ruby and Ironwood managing to put aside their pride before the situation could force them to make sides that they were able to stand their ground, gain enough of a foothold to hold out and repel the invasion with some creative uses of the creation relic.

One particular crucial moment was Nora's near suicidal stand against Cinder. Penny, now the Winter Maiden, was left helpless against Cinder due to a nasty virus. Nora was the only one left standing and, in one moment of pure instinct, stuck an electrical cable in her mouth and crippled Cinder with one terrifying blow. A blow so powerful that the aftershocks left Nora hospitalized for the next few months. An experience that left her shaken, an experience that left her with a lot to think about, an experience that left her telling Ren that she realized she didn't know as much about herself as she once thought.

'I need to know who Nora is when you're not here.'

It was something that wasn't easy to hear for even the most passive and understanding boyfriend. You could grasp what they intend perfectly, but it doesn't change that immediate impression that you've become a problem, that you've been holding them back in a way you never considered accompanied by the fear that they're about to find out that they're better when you're not there. It took a long time for Ren to come to terms with Nora's intentions. He didn't stop her, he didn't protest, he simply nodded and gave her the space he thought she needed. But he never told her he supported it either, did he? By the time of the Grimm attack on the Dwarf, where this simulated story ended for them, the two hadn't sorted out where they stood or if this break was going to develop into separation.

He told himself it wasn't real. Ren still regretted never talking about it. Too fearful that any questions would be the final nail in the coffin, meaning they never had the opportunity to clear the air, meaning she had no way of telling if he truly supported her decision or simply preferred not to protest. Did he make her feel guilty for taking time for herself? Did she think he resented her for it? Did he let it become an obligation? He didn't know what he wanted. He shouldn't have left so much ambiguity.

He had to admit, following that trail of thought, perhaps there was a kernel of truth to Jaune's dilemma. If you don't know what you want, if you can't respect yourself enough to put your foot down; all you'll leave is ambiguity infested with fear that anything solid would destroy it all.

"I'm not knocking you two or anything, I'm just saying that…" Even as Jaune was stumbling over himself, waving his arms to gesture to an audience whose eyes were fixed on the outside, Ren's inability to talk still gave off that cold shoulder. That ambiguity. "People die. People leave. People take breaks. People want to visit other people. People want to be alone. No matter how much you love someone, you can't keep them attached at your hip forever. You have to have a baseline, a foundation to support yourself when they're not there."

The silence did no good for Jaune's nerves. He didn't expect Ren to gas him up or anything, hell, he'd probably take Ren blowing up at him and cursing him out for daring to bring Nora into this. Anything was better than the silence. It was like being stuck in that anticipation moment before an attack hits or an ambush is sprung, choking yourself on the fear that something might happen rather than dealing with something that has already happened. His fingers found themselves combing through his hair, only now realizing how much he was sweating as the obscene droplets trickled down his knuckles. "Well, a good relationship is about making each other better, right? It's mutual. But if you don't have respect for yourself, if you can't even stand them being out of view for a bit of time, it's not mutual anymore. How can they lean on you if you can't stand on your own?"

Ren didn't reply. He stared ahead, he drove on and he didn't reply. At this point, Jaune was half-convinced Ren wasn't listening anymore, he was outright ignoring the conversation and preparing to pretend it never happened. Jaune sank into his seat, eyes suddenly feeling tired as his mental energy left him high and dry. "We've had everything we've ever known brought into question. It's thrown a lot of what I know about myself out of wack. I love Ruby. I just need time to make sure that I'm in the right place to be with her."

"And what if you take too long? What if you pushed her away?" Ren's voice finally found it's way back with a booming and bitter drive, his shoulders shaking slightly under the duress of these new-found worries bubbling to the surface. "What if she moves on? Doesn't that scare you more than anything?"

"A bit." Jaune's eyes widened, both in surprise at the sudden outburst and in realization as Ren's own viewpoint dawned on him. "She moves on. And we'll be able to take it because we still love each other even if it's not in the romantic sense anymore. Because getting to love someone like that is a bonus in life, not the point of it." In a way, Jaune figured it was a fear that all four of them had, being so set on a simple constant in their life to be the sole thing that defined their life. And all those constants turned out to be false. He knew that no longer being a huntress or even a warrior cut Ruby deeper than she'll ever be able to admit. "We can't just deny when things are getting bad, just avoiding the issue doesn't solve it, it doesn't stop it from existing; it just means you let everything else stagnate because now avoiding that issue is all there is to you."

With a voice as weak as glass, Ren croaked. "Is that what's happening with us?"

"I'm not telling you to drop Nora, god no." Jaune shook his head "Just make sure you're in it for the right reasons. Not because you feel you need her, not because you need to make up for something, but because… Well, because you know you're a cool dude, she's a cool girl and you're ready to rock each other's worlds."

Another few seconds of tense silence. Jaune was ready to bumble out an apology or just beg Ren to say something, only Ren to slam down on the breaks and bring the car to a sudden and harsh stop. Jaune was barely spared the fate of smashing against the windshield when the momentum threw him forward, the loose belt just bare holding him back from a nasty collision.

"Ren?" He slowly turned to Ren, a cautious gaze, as if observing a Grimm ready to pounce, running over the now silent and stone-cold teammate. "W-wait, Ren! I di-" The seatbelts unbuckled, snapping back into place as Ren ripped them out of their socket and lunged towards Jaune. Right there and then, Jaune fully believed Ren was moving to sock him across the jaw and call it a day.

Only to then feel Ren's arms around him, accompanied by Ren's most unenthused, dry and 'I'm only doing this because it's you' voice (that seemed to mimic Jaune's own) as Ren mumbled into his ear "Hug me, 'Brotha'..."

Jaune didn't hesitate to hug the man back, grinning ear-to-ear. "I knew you'd come around to my hugs eventually."

"This is already awkward enough Jaune, it doesn't need commentary."

"Whatever you say."

Sanctuary didn't look clean at night. The surfaces were still scrubbed to perfection, as Jaune himself had made sure of the past few weeks, but the night could see through it all. The shadows funnelled around the dim lighting, splattered against the pristine walls like a black light, decorating them with a most gruelling texture. That's all the shine and bleach was; an extra layer of paint. But the gleam of the paint couldn't truly hide the stains.

As requested, Ren pushed the car further into the almost abandoned compound, steering towards the back entrance. It wasn't hard to miss, it was the only part of the building's exterior that had flood lights peeling off the darkness. "Do you have any idea where we're going once, we're in there?"

Jaune felt that itchy sensation hit his scalp once more, feeling like the two were walking straight into the Grimm's den with only a pea shooter to defend themselves. He'd never been to the boiler room, but that was exactly how he knew where to go. It was behind the only door he'd been locked out of, the door he swore housed a blood trail. "Yeah, I think I know where to go." Any optimism or goodwill generated by their recent reconciliation couldn't withstand the overwhelming drop in temperature the closer they found themselves to their journey's end. No speeches or hugs could assuage the ominous sensation that reigned over them both.

Something was truly, truly terrible tonight; they knew that with certainty.

Eventually, they had to leave the car. With that realization there also came the second realization that the car made them feel protected, safe, like there was always at least a couple of inches of reinforced metal between them and whatever lurked out of sight. It was something sturdy, something they could trust; something they could control. When the door opened and that cold night chill hit them raw, it was like an onslaught of ice-tipped spears plunging into their flesh.

They were not safe. They were not welcome. They had every alarm ringing in their head to run. They knew there was no going back.

"Ren, whatever happens…" Jaune's large form provided a temporary respite from the harsh glare of the flood lights as he turned to stand in front of Ren, an earnest expression buried in shadows. "You stay behind me, is that clear?"

"Not that I don't appreciate the gesture, but are you forgetting that I'm the one who's armed?" Ren tapped the vague shape of Kuriyuri's yet untested pistol pushing through his jacket.

"It's an order, Ren." He'd never heard Jaune's voice stand so firm, easily silencing any opposition Ren had the will to muster. "Doesn't matter who's in there or what we're doing; they gotta go through me first."

"You make a terrible point, but I will begrudgingly go along with this stupidity."

Jaune gave a curt nod, no smile, no reassurance, just an acknowledgement before he turned around and the lights burned Ren's eyes again. Thankfully, it was a short distance from the parking spot to the shelter of the open doors. It made it all the more jarring when they left the portal of light and were then plunged into dark, grey corridors with barely enough light to make out that the heavily armoured shapes flanking them each side were just the armour sets on display.

"It's just down here, watch your step. The stairs can creep up on you." Jaune could practically hear the horror sting rising in his head as they tip toed down the hall. Ironically, imagining the cheesy music preparing an audience for a jump scare was just what he needed to sooth his nerves. It made everything feel just slightly more fake, more laughable. While the deafening silence occasionally being broken by their heavy footsteps only served to put him on edge.

"Would it kill them to leave the lights on?" Ren grumbled, more for just the sake of saying anything really. Words kept them focused, interrupted the dreary atmosphere; reminded each other that they were still there as the darkness further threatened to separate them. "I'm not expecting them to roll out the red carpet, but I'm assuming they want us to actually get there in a relatively punctual timeframe and without breaking anything."

"Cinder's a petty one, Ren." Soon enough Jaune felt his foot pushing into the railing that marked the staircase, the door to the boiler room barely visible from this far up. At least he wasn't falling down the stairs this time. "She'd totally do this on purpose just to add a needless layer of frustration."

"Then let's hope we get to show her the same treatment at the end of all this."

As soon as they took the first step, their chatter ceased, stolen from them by the unmistakable sound of distant groaning revering through metal. They were going the right way alright. The two shared one more nervous glance before sucking their last clean breaths and continuing down the steps. In reality, the journey down was a brief affair, but from their perspective every inch forward took an hour, every depth dropped was plunging them off a cliff and deeper into the bowels of the world.

When they reached the rusted door, now looking particularly 'wet' under the hellish red lighting, there as no fan fair. There were just more noises. Voices, muffled by distance and rust, went back and forth with inconsistent volume. Metal screeched below them, like a rat skittering across the floor; something was knocked over perhaps? A wet, meaty thwack was the clearest sound to hit their ears. Someone just got a hard smack across the jaw. From the corner of his eye, Jaune could see just make out the shape of Ren's arm fiddling with the holstered gun, itching to draw it.

Jaune was weary of touching the door, the very surface of it's metal exterior looking rotten, bring forth images of a vile plague that would pull Jaune's skin apart if he dare touched it. Fortunately, in that regard at least, he didn't need to worry about grasping the door. For, as the deafening cry of rust grinding against itself announced, the door was already opening for him.

The light of the other room didn't wash over them so much as it leaked on them, dripping from a faulty faucet with little left to give. The room within might as well have had no walls as far as Jaune's eyes could tell, there was only a single island within the centre of a pure black abyss, forged from a spotlight idly swinging back and forth.

If it wasn't for Torchwick's cigar, Jaune wouldn't have even been able to see who opened the door in the first place.

"That's the ugly mug I've been missing." There was no time to prepare anymore, Torchwick's arm hooked around his neck and dragged Jaune into the abyss, just barely missing his cheek with the lit butt of the cigar. "Can't believe you left me here with this titanium dunce." There was nothing friendly about his gesture or tone, not a trace of genuine comradery, just words and actions thrown out to take up space. "How's your old lady? Still a smoke show?" He leans in, a wolfish grin on his lips and the devil in his eye. "Still an utter bitch? I bet she is. Oh! And your little slugger; I hear he's taking so much after you."

He laughed a ghoulish laugh. Jaune didn't know what was so funny, but he laughed anyway, laughed like his life depended on it, laughed until it hurt. "Oh, you know it, Roman. Can't shut her up these days." Something gave Jaune the feeling the two were on a first-name basis, and since Roman took no quarrel with it, he assumed he was right.

Torchwick's grin fell into an overly dramatic frown as his gaze turned past Jaune. "Oh boo, you're supposed to bring party favours, not party poopers." He threw his upper body back with a theatrics sway, elegantly pulling his signature bowler hat down own his eyes as he moaned. "Not enough that I have to deal with the kid, but now Corporate Lapdog too?"

It was all happening so fast, Jaune wasn't entirely sure how he was able to keep up. In any other conversation he was a terrible liar and left his emotions more exposed than an open wound, but thrown from the frying pan and straight into the furnace, with a friend at his back and possibly in the line of fire, he simply couldn't give in to his social inabilities now. "Hey, don't blame me." With the fake, painful smile of a professional, Jaune patted Torchwick's chest enough to slightly push the man aside, both to casually match Torchwick's overtly physical energy and just to gain some distance to breathe. "Boss' orders."

"What's this? You need to more guys to beat down on little old me? Ha, pathetic." It was only that voice, with a familiar brutish growl, called to them that Jaune finally registered what was in front of him. He truly looked for the first time, peered through the glare of the faulty lighting, and all the details jumped out at him at once.

Splatters of blood formed a trail up to the speaker, some fresher than others, some faded enough to look like rust stains. Mercury sat on the corner of a table holding a wide variety of bloody implements, bored out of his mind. At the centre of it all was a man. The man was bound to a chair by chains; a casual grey pyjama combo ripped apart, leaving exposed skin swelling through the tears with nasty red bruises. His skin was pale, denied the sun for a good few days at least, and a thick layer of sweat gleaming under the light and further accentuating the cuts in the flesh.

Jaune recognised those dull blue eyes, they were almost entirely sheltered from view by the fresh wounds swelling over them, it was a miracle the man was even able to see at all, but Jaune recognised them. He recognized the jawline, the bulky build that stayed strong even under the obvious abuse, he recognised the now drenched and wild brown hair that would have been combed back with gel. Aside from a few wrinkles and other marks of age: Jaune recognised that Cardin Winchester was bound, beaten and glaring back at him.

Before Jaune could say anything foolish, Torchwick stormed past him with heavy strides. There was no wind up, just a glove hand raised in the air for a split second before that sharp, meaty sound rang out without the muffling effect and Cardin's head snapped back. "I'm trying to talk to my good buddy here, Blockhead. I don't interrupt you when you're speaking, do I?" Cardin looked like he already had a remark ready to bark back, but Torchwick slapped his hand over Cardin's mouth, squeezing a tight grip over the already bruised lips. "Honestly, some people have no manners."

Glancing over his shoulder, Jaune could see Ren remained rooted to the spot, face as cold as ice as a battle of emotions raged in his eyes. Jaune nodded off to the side, silently telling Ren to move out of the spotlight. The advantageous part of Ren's distant and stoic reputation in this world is that it made it easy to keep your mouth shut and watch from a safe distance without raising suspicion. Never had that rung as true as it did in this moment, facing down an injustice they were now directly involved with.

Jaune had no such advantage, he could see Torchwick waiting for a response. He coughed. "The 'boiler's' looking a little dinged up."

"Oh, I tried not to give him too many dents." Torchwick pushed two fingers together, making a wide, circular gesture with them before pointing towards Mercury, presenting the man. "But somebody here has no patience."

"And the guy wouldn't shut the hell up." Mercury looked at Jaune and Ren through crooked brows and tiny eyes, spitting out his words as one would spit out the first bite of a rancid dish. "Besides, why should we wait for them? How many people do you need to ask questions and break bones?"

Torchwick made no effort to hide the distasteful sound of his lips popping, looking towards Jaune with a face that said, 'See what I'm dealing with?'. "We don't need extra hands, Kid." He paused, gaze turning down south – where the metal of Mercury's cybernetics were more prominent – with a small chuckle. "Or, in your case, extra legs." Striding over to the table, Torchwick snatched up his cane from behind Mercury, whipping around and, in one decisive motion, bringing the cane down just one inch away from bludgeoning Cardin's head.

Cardin's breathing spiked with a harsh gasp, his body instinctively wincing as it pulled away from the weapon. "However, when it comes to such dirty matters like this, we need eyes on us to make sure all parties involved are satisfied with the method and the outcome." Torchwick dismissively gestured towards Ren "Someone who your people trust." Then he nodded towards Jaune. "And then someone my people trust."

Jaune felt his fingers twitch, going back and forth between falling limp and tightening into a fist. It was hard to hear anybody over the sound of his own heart, the beat picking up in violent pace as he watched Cardin trying to steady himself against the pain knocking him off balance. "What are we dealing with anyway?" Steeling his nerves, Jaune pushed himself closer to the scene, placing himself between Torchwick and Cardin in some vein hope that the positioning would subtly push Torchwick's thoughts away from getting up close and personal to his new punching bag.

At the very least, it made Torchwick pull back, his cane returning to to his side. "Remember that shipment that got raided a while back? He's the cop who led the raid. I think you ran him over when we were booking it." Torchwick practically vibrated as his laugher came out, telling the funniest joke in the world. "Yeah, I don't know how he survived either. Thought he'd at least be crippled." Suddenly, it became very apparent that Cardin's eyes were slowly closing in on Jaune in particular. "Oof, I don't think he recognised you."

"You probably don't recognise him either, to be honest." Torchwick shrugged, but considering Cardin's existence in the game, Jaune was sure Larry remembered this man all too well. "Turns out he got involved in our little 'situation' at some point," His gaze turned cold and smouldering, falling upon Cardin once more. "and we'd really appreciate if he told us where Little Miss Robyn Hoodlum left her golden goose."

"And I'd really appreciate if you listened to anyone but your own voice for once in your li-" Cardin's unsteady voice was interrupted by a harsh coughing fit, barely able to pull himself back together to continue. "R- Ack! Robyn didn't trust me with shit. You're wasting everyone's time. I just protected her ass."

Mercury shook with one violent laugh, the loudest he'd been since they got there, taking special care to tap the side of his leg with a smug grin. "And you did such a good job of that, didn't you?"

Torchwick raises his hand, silencing Mercury immediately. "There's no point trying to pull the wool over our eyes, Kid. We know enough." He turned his back on Cardin, presenting himself to an imaginary audience. "Your scientist friend turned out to be quite the chatterbox after we told him about his little girl. We know Hill had him store all the goods on a nice, compact little disk. And we know he gave that disk to you."

Cardin gritted his teeth and Jaune noted Ren's breath staining more and more. "Sorry, are you talking about one of those computer things? 'Fraid I'm not that much of a tech guy, just a dumb old brute. You know?" He craned his neck up, the glare of the spotlight reflecting off his sweat and making it harder to see the damage, just his twisted grin. "Don't know what all the fuss is about. What, did Hill keep all her porn on there or something?"

"We're getting nowhere here." Mercury rose from his table perch, slamming his foot into the ground to make as loud a metal bang from the impact as possible. "One kick will shatter his kneecaps. A little more pain, a little less talking. That'll jog his memory."

"Oh yes, because the pain has been doing so well for you so far." Jaune didn't think through what he said, only that he had to push out something, anything, quick if he was to keep this from becoming more of a horror scene. All he remembered of Cardin left him with little love for the guy, but Jaune couldn't let this go on. Not when he was in a position to stop this. Not when he was a part of it.

Mercury's glare was a force in of itself, knocking the sudden confidence right out of Jaune the moment it fell upon him. Jaune tightened his stance, reserving his urge to scream to just a sharp intake of breath. "Uh, what I mean is… He's already battered and gasping for air. A few broken bones isn't going to crack him. Besides, torture is proven to be a pretty shoddy method of getting information." Jaune thumped his chest as he moved closer to Mercury, bending himself at a slight angel in order to lower himself before Mercury. He lowered his voice "Let me try a more delicate solution, reason with the man. I don't think he fully understands the situation, eh?"

It didn't seem to satisfy Mercury, but the suggestion was enough to make him shrug "Fine, he's all yours. Just don't take too long; I hate this room." He pushed past Jaune, shoulder shoving Jaune sideways as he made his way to the closest wall.

Ren and Jaune shared a single look, both painfully aware that their tight lifelines were at the mercy of Mercury and Torchwick's approval for the moment. It was a morbid affair, and they had no choice but the play along with it. It was ridiculous in a way, they knew what they were involved in wasn't anything clean, they knew this entire conspiracy was soaked in blood, they knew they were apart of it. But knowing something was different from confronting it. Being told, or figuring out, that something terrible was to occur, it was bad, but it was a distant event. It was like reading in the newspaper that people had been killed, you acknowledged that such a thing was a tragedy, but without personal involvement it's nothing more than a statistic, you could disconnect yourself from it for the sake of your own sanity.

Now here they stood, the terrible deeds of the past and the terrible deeds yet to be committed were no more words on a page or an idea proposed by a friend's conclusion. A beaten, bloody and probably innocent enough many sat before them, and if Jaune could not convince the man to give up information and aid terrible people's goals; the man would surely end up dead. And they'd all be responsible for it.

Naturally, Jaune considered fighting. He still had some muscle to him, still retained some skill and pain resistance from the simulation. Maybe if he and Ren were quick enough, they could drop the criminal duo with a kick to the unmentionables and batter their heads in before they could bring up their aura. No, that wouldn't work, Jaune's mind easily argued. The simulation was an accurate reflection of these two, they were still huntsman-level threats, they still had their weapons and probably their semblances (though Jaune didn't know what their's were). While Ren and Jaune were just above average people, a drug dealer who'd gotten in a few scrapes with the police and a bodyguard, only one of them armed; Mercury or Torchwick would probably wipe the floor with them alone.

There was only one way to save Cardin.

Jaune crouched in front of Cardin "Listen, Buddy-"

Cardin spat on Jaune, splattering his cheek with saliva and blood. "I ain't your 'Buddy', Scumbag."

Come on, Cadrin, I'm trying to save your life here. Make it easy for me! Jaune sighed like he was disgruntled and not disgusted by himself. "Look, the fact is: we don't need you." He wiped away the blood with the sleeve of his shirt. "We'll find the disk eventually with or without your help, you know that. All you can accomplish here is slowing us down by, what? A couple more days?" It nauseated Jaune how easily his words came out, how natural it felt for his voice to take on that condescending, cold tone. "Is it really worth getting killed just to be a minor inconvenience? Does your life mean that little to you?"

"What can I say? I'm a little things kind of guy." Cardin growled like a hungry animal, the savage desire to rip off his chains and go for Jaune's throat apparent in his eyes. "Imagining scum like you getting pushed back, getting chewed out by your bosses, getting every little pet peeve thrown in your face? God, that's the sort of kick they gets me up in the morning." His grin stretched far and wide, shamelessly revealing the missing teeth Jaune assumed Mercury was responsible for. "Every day you don't get what you want is worth me getting beaten like a slab of meat."

"Don't why you're so hostile," Unfortunately, Jaune noticed that, little-by-little, his own frustration with this whole damn situation leaked into his voice. "I'm the one on your side here. You just have to work with me, and you'll be on your merry way."

Cardin laughed, "What? You think any of us are walking away from all this? You're either a terrible liar or just as stupid as you are ugly."

"I… I can guarantee your safety." Jaune felt his teeth wobble under the force of grinding them against one another. He's right, Jaune thought in dismay, I'm an idiot and a terrible liar; I can't even convince myself.

"You're just not getting it, are you Arc?" It was one hell of a feeling to have the guy bound to a chair and spitting blood is looking at you, aghast at how pathetic you are. Cardin leaned forward, making sure every word was tipped with venom. "It doesn't matter if you could and would. I wouldn't let you put me out if I was on fire. Fuck you and your half-assed good Samaritan routine you piece of garbage."

Jaune could hear Mercury laughing his ass off, he could hear Torchwick's tired sighs, he could hear Ren pacing back and forth to contain himself; he could hear the scratching under his skin as the inevitable fruitlessness of this situation seemed to crawl ever closer. "Cardin." Jaune looked over the man face without composure, silently pleading for the man to see reason, to save himself from harm and save Jaune from the responsibility. "You'll die."

"Then kill me."

Jaune wasn't a killer. That's what he told himself. No matter how desperate, no matter who it was, he couldn't bring himself to be an executioner, not when the victim was far from an active threat. Words weren't working, Cardin refused to listen. No, the threat was from those around him, those who demanded he beat this man senseless. Was torture the only way to save Cardin's life today?

"What? You forget what you are? You think you're gonna pull some last minute make up session?"

Maybe they could take Torchwick and Mercury. At least, Jaune was more willing to die failing to do something right than live with what they wanted him to do. But then, it wasn't just Jaune who'd be in danger. If failed, they'd probably look to Ren to pick off and Ren's reputation was expected to be far more violent, he'd just be a coward passing the deed to his friend.

"You're a worthless, good-for-nothing drug dealer."

And then there was Ruby and Blake. If Jaune exposed them all now, that would put those two in danger, he'd be responsible for any harm that came upon them. His eyes widened, the panicked sweat now falling freely like tears down his cheeks. They knew his family. Torchwick had met Pyrrha, Jaune son went to this academy. Would they move onto Jaune's family out of petty vengeance if he failed to toe the line?

He needed a solution. He was silent for a whole minute and there was nothing. There had to be a way out of this. Well, there was a way out of this, but it required Cardin to trust him. But no, Cardin would never trust him, he'd made that painfully clear. In fact, Jaune noted, Cardin was still talking. While panic rose in Jaune's stomach, there also came frustration raging in his heart. Cardin wouldn't shut up. Every word out of his mouth was venomous, was loud, was continuous. How could Jaune be expected to think when this man just kept talking and yelling and grumbling and-

Cardin was still going. Jaune had to admit, as much as he wanted to say he understood Cardin's terrible position, all he could think was how irritating it was. Here Jaune was trying to save Cardin, to be the good guy, because he couldn't be the bad guy now, could he? He was doing a good thing, trying to think of a good thing, but Cardin just wouldn't let him think. A strategist needs to fucking think.

But no, that was too much to ask, wasn't it? Jaune just had to bear the spite and insults being thrown at his very moral character. He was risking his neck to save people, he was trying to help, he's a better person now, he's not Larry anymore, but Cardin just kept calling him the scum of the earth like he had any room to talk.

"You ruin lives, you ruin communities, you ruin everything. You don't get to act like the nice guy. You don't get to act like you have no choice."

He had to keep everybody safe. He had to find another way. Why couldn't Cardin see that?

No, Cardin had to see it. It was so obvious to Jaune. So, Cardin must be doing this on purpose.

Why would Cardin let him find another way? Why wouldn't he just shut up!?

Cardin was getting in his way. Cardin was stopping him. Cardin was endangering everyone. Everything would just be simpler without Cardin.

All Jaune needed was a minute to think, a minute of peace, if he could just shut this bastard up for one God damn minute.

"You made your bed, now die on it."

The sound of something hitting the ground was so quiet, Jaune didn't even notice the change. It was just a pop in his ears, a balloon filled to it's limits finally bursting and letting loose all that terrible, terrible pressure. All the heat faded from him, a relaxing stream of nerves and pounding thoughts trickling out of his system. Really, he'd never felt so relaxed.

He sighed, relieved. He brought his hand up scratch his nose, only to notice his fingers, more specifically his knuckles were wet. And a terrible copper smell was poking his nostrils. Examining his hand, he turned it over, the wetness was a red liquid, so bright and so deep, slavered over his knuckles.

He finally saw Cardin's body on the ground. The body that was no longer moving. The body that now stared up at him with that fierce, judgemental scowl etched into it's face. The body that left it's blood on Jaune's knuckles.

Suddenly, he registered he was being pulled back, Mercury's hand violently yanking him back by his shoulder. "What the hell is wrong with you? That as our only lead!"

That had to be it. Hell, Jaune thought, he was in hell. This was hell.

"That's gonna complicate things." Torchwick came into view, fanning himself with his hat. "We… We can fix this. Search the scientist's house again, maybe we missed something. We had to have missed something"

"Back to that house? After the last time? Are you nuts? If anyone see's us there again, the boss is gonna have our heads on a-"

"Then you won't get spotted again now, will you?" Torchwick hissed, no charm, no manners, just completely shutting Mercury down. "Because if we don't get that disk, we're all dead."

It was Ren's face scared him the most. His teammate had completely lost any sense of composure. There was shock, there was confusion; most importantly there was fear, fear of the bloodied man in front of him.

It only took one punch for Jaune to become a murderer.

This chapter was a... Doozy. And it's only gonna get worse from here as we enter darkest section of the story*, because our heroes can't go up until we've finished falling to rock bottom.

*I look at this story as four sections: New World, Settling In, Hitting Rock Bottom and Moving Forward.

Originally it was much shorter. Hell, in my story plan this chapter started right at Jaune and Ren meeting Torchwick in the boiler room. However, when looking over the chapter plans, I realized there was a bit of both Jaune and Ren's thought proccess over their current character conflicts that I felt didn't get enough development. So, I thought Ren and Jaune having a discussion leading up to their arrival at the school would be a good opportunity to flesh out those thoughts (and to make it clear that it's more than just romance troubles on the mind), as well as build a nice layer of tension to Jaune and Ren's relationship that seems to be solved for the short term before- Well things get intense and further drive up a new kind of tension between them.

And it gave me a natural vehicle to shed light on how this story's version of Volume 7/8, where Atlas doesn't fall, went.

Yeah, Jaune's accidental killing was the hardest part of this chapter. Originally, I had more description of Jaune's state in that moment, but then I stripped it to the almost third person monologue. I thought it'd work better to put the reader into Jaune's shoes and how his brain, in full panic mode as it becomes clear the situation doesn't have a good ending, quickly rationalizes a quick and fatal violent outburst.

Hope it came out alright and didn't feel contrived.

On this story's future, there should technically be only 10 chapters left. However, considering I've found myself both splitting chapters apart and merging some chapters together, that isn't a definite number.