The Burning Rose

by King of the unknowns

In an alternate universe, Summer lives and finds Cinder in Atlas. She decided to bring her back to Patch. Due to her traumatic past, Cinder is hesitant to trust the family, but after a close brush with death, she opens up to them and is eventually adopted by the loving family. After a few years of training, she heads off to Beacon to train to become a huntress!

42. Heroes villains and those in between

"I'm telling you I need back up! Do I sound like I'm joking or you!?" Amber yelled into her call. Apparently, someone high up on Music Fest's planning board had forbidden 911 calls within the event. Instead, they were required to call a special number that would contact 911 on their behalf. And while Amber was pretty sure that was illegal, she had already learned just because something was illegal didn't mean anyone enforced it. "I need huntsmen at Music Fest immediately! There's a kidnapping attempt as we speak! Send someone to the place I told you about! Check yourself! My team is down there fighting!"

The man on the other end let out a sigh, then replied in an uninterested tone. "Fine. I'll call the cops and they'll send someone to verify your story. Until then, sit tight and find something to defend yourself or a trusted adult until authority get there. Thank you and have a nice-."

Amber hung up before he finished and let out a frustrated groan. What was that guys problem!? Who in their right mind would put such an indifferent, uncaring asshole on an emergency line!? Did he not understand that people in peril would be using that number!? There was no reason to believe they were lying!

What was the sponsor's money being used for?!

She was broken out of her thoughts as the door opened and three people walked in.

"Ah! You're here! Cinder told me you'd be here. Please sit down! I'll get a different chair!" She said rushing over to help Summer into the chair she had just been sitting in. "You look pale. What happened? Cinder neglected to mention what had put you out of commission." This drew the attention of several other security members, but seeing as most of them were teenagers, none had the guts to cross a trained huntress.

"Never mind that. She'll be fine." Jiao said as he pulled out his personal scroll. "What's the situation with the kidnappers? We have any idea if your team caught up to them yet?"

Amber gave a sad shake of her head at his question, her expression falling into one of melancholy.

"Adam would have been the first to make contact, but I haven't heard from him." She said defeatedly. "Cinder would be next, but if something happened to Adam, like getting caught in a trap, I don't think Cinder will be able to avoid it. When angry, she tends to not pay much attention to her surroundings. Or anything else for that matter."

Jiao swore under his breath and turned away as he called the police, muttering angrily as he did.

Meanwhile, Yang rushed over to the security cameras, ignoring the cries of protest from the other people working there.

"Can't we get them on the footage? Isn't there a camera where they're taking Ruby?!" She asked, desperately pushing buttons trying to find one that would.

"Unfortunately that area's been abandoned for years and therefore there's nothing valuable in that area." Amber explained. "And all areas that connect to over there already are being monitored, there's not much reason to pay a lot of money to put a security camera there. And that's frustrating in its own right. If I could just see what was going on down there, I could help. But someone has to keep an eye on the Three Dragons."

Amber had expected Yang to become saddened by the news, or become frustrated by their powerlessness. But instead her eyes lit up and she immediately pulled her backpack off and began rummaging around in it.

Curious, Amber walked over to the girl. Then stopped in her tracks when she saw what the girl had pulled out.

"Cinder told me about your semblance. You can link eyesight, right?" Yang asked, holding the object out. "Then can you use this to help? If so, please, please! Help rescue my sister! My stupidity made me almost lose her once, I don't want to lose her again! So please save my sister!"

Amber eyes were wide as she stared at Yang. She had me idea what she was talking about, but she knew it was serious. Was that the event that had been hurting her before?

If she was younger or more innocent, she would have struggled to guess how she could have almost lost her sister. But Amber knew all too well how easily it was to take life. To this day she still remembers the screams as her village was destroyed, when she killed her parents, when she had attacked the bandits in anger, and of course, when she first saw the monster she truly was.

Quietly, she took the object from the blonde girl and gently reached out and rubbed her head in a comforting way.

"Don't worry, we'll get your sister back." She said kindly, yet reassuringly. "Remember, Cinder and Adam are the best in our year. If anyone can reach her, it's them! And I doubt I need to tell you how tough your sister is. If anything, we should be more worried about Cinder leaving something behind to be arrested!"

Amber gave Yang a smile, one the younger girl returned weakly. She was clearly still nervous, but understood that it wasn't a guarantee Ruby would disappear, that there was still hope for team AACE to pull off a daring rescue. And she had latched onto the hope with all her might.

Tightening her grip on the object, she quickly made her way out of the building. She may never atone for what she had done, but she refused to let an innocent kid like Ruby and Yang suffer for crimes they weren't responsible for!

---

Clang!

Slash!

Bang!

"Gah!" Cinder cried as she slid back against a shipping container. She had managed to slow herself by smelting her heels into blades and digging them into the ground, but the kick from Chesher still hurt!

But as she watched the Faunus charge at her again, a smirk spread across her face. She was starting to see the pattern!

Chesher's semblances made her fast, but it wasn't perfect. There was a start up time where she had to charge it and the longer she could charge, the farther she could go and she couldn't stop once she started. What's more, she seemed to only be able to move in straight lines, or at tight ninety degrees angles.

Meaning-!

"Aahh!" Cinder cried, parrying the huntress' next blow! Then, she lashed out with her foot, kicking the woman away and stabbing her with her heel at the same time! Giving Cinder enough room to counter attack!

Changing Midnight back into bow form, she released a barrage of arrows at the Chesher! She aimed wide to ensure she had the maximum area of attack! She might not be able to hit the woman at a distance, but she knew she had other options!

With a snarl, the Faunus took off running, dodging the arrows until they stopped where she slid to a stop where the top of her gauntlets popped open and a muzzle of a gun extended from it.

But before she could fire, the arrows around her let off a bright glow! Then next second they exploded! Covering the whole area in smoke and flames as glass shards rained down on the area!

But before the dust had even settled, Chesher's foot slammed into the back of her head!

"Wha-?!" Cinder cried, stumbled forward as she tried to turn around. Big mistake!

Moving faster than before, Chesher shot forward, slashing an X across her chest before kicking her away again! This time crashing to an abandoned, dusty crane, where she landed in a heap at its base.

"Hey idiot! Look around you!" Adam yelled as he dodged the blows from giant rhino Faunus! "She can propel herself in any direction she wants! Including upwards! And because that's not a speed semblance, she can do it even if she's in mid air! Be careful not to-!"

Adam was cut off as he was forced to block a powerful blow from Aften! The force sent him skidding backwards slamming into a container!

"Yeah, thanks for the heads up!" Cinder said sarcastically, rolling to one side as Chesher's claw tore through the metal where her head had been less then a second ago!

Seeing an opening, the dark haired girl tried to slash the huntress' legs out from under her, but the Faunus was faster! She launched herself up, onto the side of the crane before ricocheting back down towards the girl!

Unable to counter in time, Cinder backflipped away, letting the Faunus crash into the ground making a small crater! Dust rising to create a smokescreen around the huntress!

But that didn't stop Cinder!

The moment she had dodged, she had changed Midnight back into bow form! And without even waiting for the dust to clear, she fired a shot into the cloud, landing a clean hit on the woman's stomach where the arrow exploded on contact sending her flying back, forcing her to dig her claws into the ground to stop herself.

"How annoying." Chesher thought as she let out a snarl, slowly getting to her feet. "This brat is good. Way better than I was expecting. On top of that, she clearly knows what she's doing with those dust mixtures. Those arrows hurt!"

Grinding her teeth she glanced over at Aften and Adam as they continued their dance. Adam was on the back foot as he was trying to keep the brat safe while also trying to fight off the massive man and his near unstoppable punches.

"Adam knows too much about our fighting styles while we're in the dark on theirs. If he keeps blabbing to our opponents, we'll lose this fight for sure!" Chesher clenched her fist angrily at the thought. She hates losing, but she knew hiding from the truth wouldn't change facts. If they didn't find a way to beat these kids fast, they'd lose their prize!

And that wasn't going to happen with Adam right there. So…

"Aften! Piledriver formation!"

Both of the Faunus' eyes lit up at her words. One in excitement, the other in fear!

Immediately Adam grabbed Ruby by her cape and hurled her into the air, aimed for the top of one of the stakes on containers!

And while the little girl screamed as she flew through the air, she wasn't going to complain when she saw what was happening on the ground!

With a deafening roar, Aften charged at Adam, each step shaking the ground as he ran with surprising speed at Adam! And while said Faunus tried to jump out of the way, the rhino grabbed him by the legs and took off down the dock! Dragging Adam along the ground as he went!

As the two disappeared down the docks, Chesher turned towards Cinder with a smirk.

"No more hints. Now we can have a fair fight." She said crouching into her fighting stance. "I wonder if you can keep up without Adam giving you advice. A lowly human like you needs all the help it can get!"

Cinder let out a scoff as she changed Midnight back into two swords.

"Don't flatter yourself." She said arrogantly. "As if I need help taking down someone at your level. But enough talking! You hurt my sister! And for that, I'm going to rip you to pieces!"

With that, the two huntresses charged once again, their steel clashing with deafening scraps!

"Aaahhhh!" Adam screamed as he was thrown through the wall of an abandoned warehouse! His aura protected him from breaking his spine, but he knew he was definitely going to be feeling that one of a while!

"Did that wake you up, Adam?!" Aften yelled angrily grabbing the Faunus by the collar and pulling him up until they were face to face.

"Why are you siding with the Schnee's?! Have you completely lost your mind?!" He demanded, shaking the redhead. "We're your friends! We shouldn't be fighting! Can't you see that under Ghira, nothing will change?! We need to take a stand! You need to take a stand! So why are you on their side!?"

"I'm not on their side. I'm trying to protect the Faunus!" Adam shot back, kicking Aften in the chest, letting him spring away! "Why can't you see what you're doing isn't going to help us! It's going to hurt us! All you're doing is giving the Faunus hating bastards more ammo to use!"

"Oh please! Don't go acting all high and mighty on me!" Aften shot back. "I know about your little reacquisition of SDC property! You're running the same risk whenever you make a donation to the White Fang! This is the next logical step!"

"Stealing and murder are very different things!" Adam yelled, his frustration growing! Was this how Eric and Cinder felt whenever he refused to drop the Faunus rights subject? If so, he was starting to seriously understand their frustration!

"Aften, enough! Just drop it! You take Chesher and your team and get out of here! I'll cover for you! Just please stop trying to kill that little brat! She's not worth the trouble! Just cut your losses and go!"

The rhino Faunus let out a tired sigh at Adam's words. His expression becoming one of disappointment.

"Fine, I get it." He said with restrained fury. "You're too narrow minded to see it. I get it, Ghira is the same. I misjudged you. I thought you might be our savor, but you're just gutless! Fine! If you want to say a lapdog to the Schnees, then I'll just treat you like all the others! Prepare to get hurt, Adam!"

A sadness filled Adam's face as he crotched into his fighting stance, legs bent, one hand on his sheathed blade.

"Aften please. I don't want to hurt you." He begged, but his words only seemed to anger the rhino even more.

"Don't mock me!" He roared! "As if you could take me out that easily! Prodigy or not, I have way more experience then you! You can't beat me!"

With that, he charged, unleashing a barrage of powerful blows! And while Adam was able to block most of them, each one staggered him with its tremendous force! And after several such blows, one was finally strong enough to knock him off balance!

"There!" Aften bellowed, winding up and throwing his whole weight into a punch landing just under Adam's ribs!

"Gah!" Adam choked as the wind was knocked out of him as he was sent flying! He crashed painfully into another container, breaking through it and coming out the other side where he rolled several feet before coming to a stop when he accidentally stabbed his sword into the ground.

Wheezing, the bull Faunus pulled himself onto all fours as he gasped for air. If it wasn't for his aura, he'd probably be dead! Or at the very least, his internal organs would have ruptured. And he already knew come tomorrow, that would form a bruise even with his defenses!

Suddenly a shadow appearing around him drew his attention skyward. And his eyes widened when he saw two shipping containers flying towards! Aften had tossed them after him!

Gritting his teeth, Adam leapt to his feet, and doing his best to ignore the pain, he fired his semblance, cutting both containers in half with a single swing!

However, before the half's could land, Aften smashed through another container, charging at the Faunus with his horn down! He was trying to skewer him!

Adam didn't have enough time to dodge, so he positioned his blade to block the attack. And when the horn met the blade, Adam was carried backwards smashing through another container as the two Faunus took off even farther away from the abandoned dock! Tearing through everything that got in their way!

Eric glanced over at the shore as the sounds of smashing metal caught his ears. He glanced over to see several containers flying into the air from Adam's fight. He wondered why the Faunus hadn't dealt with his opponent yet. By now, he should have finished the fight given how fast he must be charging his semblance. So what was the hold-!

Immediately he threw up his shield, blocking one of Eskus' jade daggers shot towards him! There was a loud shattering sound as the frail glass shattered against his shield, barely moving the knight!

"Nice try, but you picked the wrong opponent!" He said as he threw his shield out, knocking the Faunus off balance! "Your weapons are useless against someone in full armor! It might have worked against Amber, but I'm another story!"

With that, Eric threw a punch at the Faunus, aiming to clock him in the face! And because he was off balance, he had no way to block! And all he did was raise his broken dagger up as if to stab his arm despite not having a full-!

"Look out!"

Weiss' warning came too late! Eric immediately let out a howl of pain as the pieces of the broken dagger flew across the boat and reformed into a proper blade, without really caring his arm was in the way!

Instinctively jerking his arm back, he shattered the dagger again, but the damage was done! The upper half was logged in his arm even though he had a near full aura cloak!

With a grunt of pain, the knight ripped the blade out and hurled it back at the Faunus! However, mid flight it changed course! Reattaching itself to the broken handle of the dagger!

"Unfortunately you're the one who got the wrong opponent." Eskus said as he approached the knight and the heiress. "My semblance lets me reassemble things. And no matter how far or how tiny the pieces are, they'll still rush back to whatever they were originally from. Even if something's in their way."

As he approached, Eric took a step back, teeth bared. This was bad. At this range, he was stuck taking attacks head on! And he couldn't beat someone this strong this way! He needed to get back to shore!

Glancing behind him, he saw the chain binding the young Schnee to the boat! If he could sever that, he might be able to get away and get back to land!

"Don't take your eyes off your opponent!"

Eric spun, but it was too late! Eskus lunged forward, dagger aimed for the huntsman's throat!

Immediately, the knight raised his shield, blocking the blade and shattering it once again! But before he could even think of counter attacking, the Faunus somersaulted over him and landed in between the heiress and the knight!

Eric spun around once again, this time to smash his head with the chainsaw shield! But right as he was swinging, several sharp pieces of jade shot past him, cutting into him at multiple points! This staggered the knight, letting his opponent kick him in the chest, sending him crashing to the other side of the ship!

"It's pointless." Eskus said as he leveled one of his blades at Weiss' neck, making the struggling girl freeze. "I can't be beat at close range. Not even Ghira has come close. And you're nowhere as strong. So now surrender. Or else this thing's death will serve nobody's purpose."

Eric's eyes narrowed at the Faunus. While he had a good hunch he was bluffing, he still couldn't risk the girl getting injured. But at the same time, he had no intentions of giving up. He needed a plan immediately!

Then his eyes went to shore. To the dark haired girl fighting! If she could stun him for even a second, he could get the Faunus away from Weiss and get back to shore! But to do that, he needed to contact her without letting his opponent know!

Brothers! Where was Amber when you needed her?!

As for Cinder, she and Chesher repeatedly slashed and parried each other's attacks! Neither side giving an inch!

Chesher was much faster, but Cinder knew she could only move at those speeds while traveling in a straight line. And she was starting to learn her attack pattern!

The Faunus wasn't good at close range! She preferred moving in quickly and then retreating back to a safe distance! It was just like the ice skating Adelaide! Only this was much less polished! Meaning…there!

Just as Cinder predicted, right as soon as the Faunus failed to kick her away, she leapt back to put distance between them! Immediately, Cinder shot forward, grabbing her by the tail and pulling her back!

Chesher's eyes widened as she was yanked back! But before she could counter, Cinder slammed the hilt of her blade into her face! Knocking her back where she smashed into a container denting it!

"You're mine!" Cinder yelled, leaping into the air and spinning like a helicopter down towards the Faunus! Her blades glowing blue with heat, were aimed to behead the woman!

Cinder knew this move was too flashy. She highly doubted it would land, but she had predicted this! Once the Faunus rolled out of the way, she'd use her three arrow formation to finish her off!

However, when Cinder came down, Chesher didn't roll out of the way! Instead, she used her semblance to propel herself up, shooting past the dark haired girl so fast she didn't have time to counter! Then right as she landed, the Faunus shot to the other side of the container!

Growling in frustration, Cinder got her bow ready and aimed at the ground to blast herself over. But right before she did, she heard a loud clunk from the other side, as if the woman had punched the container.

A second after she heard the sound, the container shot forward! Slamming into Cinder and dragging her across the docks, slamming her into another container on the other side, pinning her between the two!

"Aahhh!" Cinder whizzed, her aura flickering! Even empty, these things were very heavy! How the hell had Chesher-?!

Her semblance! She must be able to do that to more than just herself! It must be anything she touched! Or anything in contact with her body! Either way, this was really bad! She had to get out before-!

Suddenly, the container shot forward again, this time crushing Cinder between the two! She had been hit so hard her entire body had been pressed against the metal so the pressure was against her whole body and she couldn't even try to push it away!

This was different. Instead of a single shot forward, this was a continuous push! Almost like it was being repeatedly pushed with some kind of heavy equipment! Was this another aspect of her ability? Or was this her original ability and she had just changed it for her speed boost?

"Gahh.." She cried, only to find that her lungs were starting to be unable to inflate to suck in air! Terrified, she tried pushing herself off the metal only to find that she was now firmly pressed between the two containers with no room to move and air running out rapidly!

Panicked, Cinder frantically began trying to burn a hole into the metal with her semblance! But while she could definitely feel the metal heating, all it did was scald her. And by the time she had burned through, she would have her aura broken by the heat, or lost consciousness from the lack of air!

As the container pressed against her, Cinder saw black spots appearing at the edges of her vision. The initial impact had knocked the wind from her so she was already short on breath!

Struggling, she tried to reach around to her quiver. If she could get to her arrows, she could free herself with a massive blast! Sure she'd hurt herself, but it was better than dying!

However the space she was being crushed in was too tight for her to scratch her head, let alone reach something on her back! She could detonate all of them at once. But at this range, that would kill her immediately! And she doubted it would even take her opponent out given the protective wall of metal between them!

"Sorry kid. You really didn't seem that bad." Chesher said, though her voice sounded like it was much farther away. "Your sister was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. But for what it's worth, know that her sacrifice won't be in vain. She'll survive as a memorable example of what happens when people refuse to accept us as equals. She'll be remembered forever, if nothing else."

Cinder's lungs were burning and her vision had grown dark. A long ways away, she heard Ruby call her name. A few seconds passed, or maybe it was more or less, (she was losing the ability to keep track of time.) there was a gunshot followed by her sister's scream. The two painted a very clear picture to the girl, her sister was in danger and she needed to rescue her!

This sent a bit of adrenaline through her, dragging her back slightly. However, she was still in a very bad situation. She couldn't move and was still being crushed between two large metal containers that she couldn't burn through. Nothing had changed from before.

Looks like she had no choice. She'd have to detonate her quiver! It might kill her but it was her only option! And even if it did, the explosion should force Chesher back and hopefully injure her enough to force her to retreat! With any luck, she'd leave Ruby and go after the more valuable prize, Schnee. That should buy her sister enough time to run, as long as the stubborn little idiot could see that.

Taking a deep breath, Cinder began heating up an arrow. It was packed with enough fire dust to blow the container skyward! She hoped it'd be powerful enough to kill that stubborn Faunus, though she'd be lying if she said she expected it to!

Steeling herself, she closed her eyes and tried to prepare for the end. This was not the way she had wanted to go, but if it saved Ruby, it was worth it! She wouldn't let her sister die to a bunch of-!

"Cinder! Eric! Come in! I've got eyes on the battlefield!" Amber's voice broke through Cinder's thoughts! She hadn't expected her to come to their ad! Wasn't she supposed to stay back and protect the band?!

Meanwhile on the boat, Eric was thinking the same thing. His eyes even scanned the dock! But try as he might, he didn't see Amber anywhere! Eyes on the battlefield? What was she talking about?! He didn't see her anywhere!

But the next second, he felt a prickling at the back of his head and the next second his mind opened into something he didn't even know he had! And as he saw the world from both Amber and Cinder's perspective, he understood everything!

"Eric! See what I'm looking at?! Fire low! You want to flip it, not destroy it! Cinder! Be ready to get them off that stupid boat!" Amber yelled and Eric didn't need telling twice! Pulling a lever on his shield, the RPG launcher extended from it as he spun, aiming at the dock!

"What are you-?!" Both Weiss and Eskus cried, but he didn't answer and before either could stop him, he fired towards Chesher!

Eskus' eyes widened as he saw this. Too stunned to cut the heiress' neck! "Watch o-!"

Too late!

The Faunus had just enough time to turn, see the rocket, and then use her semblance to throw herself unceremoniously away from taking a direct hit, but the shockwave still threw her onto one of the far off containers! Though she took minimal damage from the attack.

Fortunately, that wasn't what Eric was aiming at!

The blast had launched one end of the container she had been pushing skyward, freeing Cinder!

Immediately the dark haired girl rolled towards the water's edge, turning her blades into a bow! And before the container had even landed, she had fired an arrow right into Eskus' face, knocking him away from Weiss!

Without a moment's hesitation, Eric rushed forward, grabbing the heiress and smashing the chain on her legs! Behind him, Eskus got up and was about to stab the knight from behind, but was stopped when three more arrows landed all around him!

Knowing what was coming next, the knight spun, clutching Weiss in one hand, the other using his shield to block the areas where the arrows had landed! And the second he did, they exploded! Blasting the snake Faunus into the water and the two Atlesain into the air and back onto the dock with a loud crash!

"Was being that rough necessary!?" Weiss snapped as she banged her head against Eric's heavy armor. Though due to how he was holding her, it didn't do much damage.

Ignoring her, Eric gave a thumbs up to a small drone hovering in the sky. It was the drone Yang had gotten earlier that day and given to Amber so she could help. From up there, not only Could she see everything, but using her semblance, she could give her entire team a perfect way to see everything around them! Something that gave them a huge edge as they all saw Chesher charging at Cinder from her blind spot!

Spinning around, the dark haired girl was just in time to parry the attack and fall back, forcing the Faunus to chase her! Meanwhile, on Amber's order, Eric carried Weiss over to Ruby and scooped her up before retreating with both of them away from the battlefield! All the while using his semblance on the injured Rose.

And as she saw Ruby's injury was nothing more than a nick on his shoulder, Cinder felt a wave of relief wash over her. She was fine and with their team's healer. That was more than enough for her.

Now she could focus on taking the bitch down!

The two clashed repeatedly! Each one trying to get one up on the other! However, it was clear Chesher was used to fighting Grimm, not people. This gave Cinder more than a few openings despite being less experienced!

Slowly, the battle turned in her favor! As Chesher tried to retreat, she'd chase her relentlessly! Not giving the woman a moment to breathe! Forcing her into close range combat!

And with a powerful kick, she sent Chesher sliding to the water's edge, trapping her between herself and the ocean!

However, Chesher smirked at the dark haired girl. And through Amber's aerial vision, she saw why! Eskus had repaired the boat and was driving straight towards them! And got closer, the cheetah Faunus spun around and fired a mini grenade into the water, blasting the boat into the air and right towards her!

"Eric!" Amber yelled, and not a second later, the knight leapt over Cinder and swung his shield into the boat, smashing it into a thousand pieces!

Caught off guard, but not willing to give up, Chesher charged at them claws out! At the same time, Eskus swung his daggers down, both of them broken so he could use his semblance!

"Cinder, go high! Eric cover her!"

Neither questioned Amber's order, both just acted on it without a second thought!

Leaping up, Cinder fired an arrow at the snake Faunus, forcing him to fix his daggers in order to deflect the attack! With that out of the way, the dark haired girl clashed blades with him, forcing him into a stalemate!

Meanwhile, Eric planted his feet and swung his shield broad side outward, catching Chesher off guard! Her claws useless and unable to stop, she was forced to take a direct hit from the massive metal weapon! Her knees bent as her upper body was thrown back! This awkward position let her continue forward despite the hit, but as a several foot roll!

The moment Eric recovered from his swing, Cinder planted her hand on his shoulder, using it as a platform giving her the upper hand on her opponent! Using it as support, she knocked Eskus' blades away and landed a kick to his gut with her sharpened heel, knocking him back to the water's edge!

As the two Faunus got to their feet, Cinder landed, standing back to back with Eric, each one watching the other's back! They found themselves unable to hold back a grin as they saw the tide of battle had changed! Now they had the advantage! And the best part was neither Faunus would be able to guess why!

"Good work you two!" Amber said through the radio! "But we're not out of the woods yet! These guys have more experience than you, so whatever you do, don't go one vs one if you can help it!"

Cinder rolled her eyes as she reached up to press the button on her earpiece. "Yeah, no shit." She said sarcastically. "Easier said than done. It's two vs two right now and we have no idea where Adam is! We need to finish this up before the third member gets here!"

Amber nodded as she turned the drone to look around the docks. A little ways away, she could see containers being launched into the air, as well as several flashes of red light. Adam's semblance was being fired repeatedly to destroy them before they hit the ground.

"Looks like he'll be fine for a while." Amber said, turning the drone back to Cinder and Eric. "For now, focus on the battle in front of you! These guys are tough! Your best bet to win is to take out one of them, then focus on the other! Start with Chesher! She has the KO power out of the two! Beat her, the Eskus should fall much easier! Go with Flaming Catapult"

"Yes Ma'am!"

Acting immediately, Cinder leapt into the air, her feet bending as she wanted. At the same time, Eric spun, swinging his shield in a powerful arc, catching Cinder on the soles of her feet! Prompting the girl to use both his momentum as well as kicking off it at the same time to shoot forward at tremendous speed! Flying straight for the cheetah Faunus!

Chesher had just gotten to her feet and managed to see and parry Cinder's attack. But doing so knocked her off balance, giving Cinder the upper hand!

As the two clashed, Eric ran at her from behind, his chainsaw running again! Obviously, Chesher heard that and immediately tried to kick Cinder into Eric to get them off her, but the dark haired girl dodged and tripped her up!

"Cinder! Behind Eric!" Amber yelled, though said girl and already seen Eskus charging at Eric from behind. Without a moment's hesitation, she began firing arrows at him, not to hit him, but to slow him down!

And it worked! Due to the explosive nature of the arrows, Eskus was forced to dodge, not deflected! Eventually, he was forced to retreat! Letting the knight continue his charge.

Suddenly, a barrage of bullets hit Cinder from behind! Chesher had got back up and opened fire on her!

Immediately, she spun and launched a flurry of fast attacks! Unfortunately, the Faunus was faster! Dodging every attack until she saw an opening, then knocking the girl off balance before slashing an X across her chest, then she planted her foot on the staggered girl's stomach and activated her semblance! Sending Cinder flying several feet where she smashed into the crane, her aura shattering!

But as she flew away, Cinder smirked. Chesher had sacrificed her ability to dodge Eric's attack in exchange for taking the dark haired girl out of the battle! And that would prove to be her undoing!

As Chesher turned, she had just enough time to see Eric's fist glowing green! She knew she was about to take a hit, but when it landed, she was caught completely off guard!

Eric had focused all his aura into his fist! So when it landed, it came with the force of a train crashing into the Faunus' face! Something the woman had not expected!

There was a boom like a cannon shot as Chesher was sent flying several hundred feet! Smashing through multiple shipping containers as she rag dolled across the dock! Finally, crashing into enough containers that she slowed enough to come to a stop inside another container. And while it was pitch black in there, they could see her aura flicker before going out. Then silence from the woman.

But the battle wasn't over!

Seeing Eskus climbing over several containers to get to the high ground, Eric had just enough time to spin, shield raised blocking both daggers from stabbing him in his unauraed neck!

Pushing the Faunus off, the two men began swinging at each other, once again trying to dove the other back! But even on solid land, it was clear Eskus had the advantage! His sharp agile fighting style was overwhelming the knight as he bigger swings just couldn't connect!

Getting to her feet, Cinder was about to rush back into the fight, but was stopped by Amber's commanding voice over the radio!

"Cinder! Move to higher ground! Get ready with a shot!" She ordered. "Eric, see that crane? Get Eskus under the hook! I've got a plan to end this now!"

Looking up, (though she really didn't need to.) Cinder immediately saw Amber's plan. A massive container was still attached to the hook (for some reason) and one hood shot to either said hook or the cable connecting it to the crane would send it crashing to the ground!

Immediately Cinder retreated, taking higher ground on a nearby container. She carefully drew her bow and took aim with an arrow. She normally wasn't great at long range shots, but given that the hook was stationary and a big target, she was confident she could make the shot!

Meanwhile, Eric continued to take hits from Eskus, struggling to match his speed! However, his defense was good enough that the snake Faunus couldn't land a killing blow.

Finally getting annoyed, the man jumped onto the shield, reassembling one of his daggers so it was impaled in the metal! Then he lunged forward with his other dagger, aiming for the knight's neck to end the fight once and for all!

Planting his feet, Eric yanked on the firing mechanism! Immediately his rocket launcher shot outward as it entered range mode, and while his weapon was empty, the barrel slammed into the Faunus' chest, knocking him off the shield!

Eskus skidded back in a crouched position, digging his daggers into the ground as he slid towards the crane, stopping him from going back far enough! Retracting his launcher, Eric ran forward, slamming his shield into the Faunus before he could get to his feet!

This time, the snake Faunus slid directly under the crane! Right in position for the plan! Without any hesitation, Cinder fired a shot right into the hook before Eskus even knew what was happening!

The arrow landed right in the hook, making the dark haired girl smirk! She waved at Eric, telling him to get back! And as he leapt away, she closed her hand into a fist and activated-!

Shit! Her aura had already been broken! She didn't have enough to detonate the arrow! Frantic, she began looking around, as if aura was something she could pick up off the ground! She had to detonate it before the Faunus realized what was happening!

Let's see, the ratio of dust to glass was about 30% to 60% with a bit of other ingredients added in to act as stabilizers to ensure they wouldn't blow up when bumped slightly! She had made them extremely volatile to high temperatures, but not powerful impacts! Meaning hitting it was off the table! So she'd need to generate enough heat to cause it to explode!

What if…?

Cinder turned back up and pulled a second arrow from her quiver! Taking aim, she held her breath and concentrated as she pulled back to her anchor point. She'd need to hit a Robin Hood (splitting your arrow with another arrow.) in order to make this work! Something that at this distance wouldn't be easy!

"Well, I always say I'm the best. Guess it's time to prove it!" She thought as a smirk appeared on her face. "Brothers, Amber is so rubbing off on me! I need to have a talk with that girl and make her less enjoyable to be around."

With that happy little thought, Cinder's expression turned serious as she aimed with both eyes open. "But first, I'm putting these losers in their place! Time to for the shot of your life Cinder! Don't mess it up!" She thought as she fired the arrow!

The dust empowered arrow whistled through the air, flying straight through the air towards the arrow stuck inside the hook, splitting it in two!

The sudden mixture of dust triggered both arrows, detonating both of them in a loud fiery explosion! This freed the container and it plummeted, falling down towards Eskus as he looked up!

And upon seeing the heavy object coming towards him, the snake Faunus leapt out of the way well before it came even close to him!

Cinder swore under her breath! They had missed their chance! Now they'd have to do things the hard way! Changing her weapons into swords, she was about to jump down and go on the offensive with Eric when she suddenly heard a voice through her earpiece!

"Eric!" Amber yelled! Her voice carried an authority she never showed before! And she wasn't the only one to hear it.

Eric acted on her command without hesitation! He charged forward, running straight towards the falling container! He threw up his shield and focused all his aura into it, then charged right into the huge metal object, letting out a roar as he crashed shield first into it!

Time seemed to slow as a green light emanated from his shield! Then there was a blast like a cannon shot as he expelled all his aura outward!

Immediately the container was launched forward! Flying like it was a rocket right at Eskus! The snake Faunus didn't even have enough time to scream before it crashed into him, knocking him backwards right into another container, sandwiching him in between the two! And from Amber's bird's eye view, they could see his aura go out and his head slump as he lost consciousness.

The battle was over and victory was theirs!

Meanwhile, Adam slid back as he blocked another punch! His throat was horse from begging the rhino Faunus to stop. But his words had fallen on deaf ears. Aften refused to listen and simply used his words as an opening to pound away at the bull Faunus.

Panting and out of breath, Adam's attention was caught when a shipping container fell from a crane after being hit by Cinder's arrow. She and Eric were still fighting over there! He had to go help them!

Shakily, Adam tightened his grip on his sword. Time to choose a side. Stay on Ghira's and hope change comes soon. Or betrays him and tries a new way for peace. And while even he could see the merits of Chesher's beliefs, he knew there was no decision to make. He wouldn't betray Ghira, not now, not ever!

"Aften!" He yelled, sheathing his blade. "Last chance! Stand down now or I will hurt you! I can't promise you'll leave without a scar! So please, give up this goal."

Aften let out a snort as he pawed the ground, preparing to charge again! "I already said don't talk down to me!" He roared! "Like beating me is that easy! I've gone toe to toe with pro huntsmen! I'm not going down without a fight!" With those words, he charged right at Adam, crushing the cement as he went!

"Not my fault you can't see past your loyalty to that failure of a leader! Savor of the Faunus or not, I'm going to crush you for turning your back on your people!"

Adam said nothing. He just closed his eyes, hands trembling. But not from fear, from resistance. He had never absorbed this much energy before. He could feel thrashing and writhing in his blade! Like a rabid dog champing at the bit to get off a leash!

And just like any rabid animal, he didn't know if he could control it once he let it free, but he didn't have a choice! He just hoped the Faunus would be fine after this!

Immediately the sky darkened and everything faded away! From Adam's eyes, he could only see the red of his hair, the highlights on his outfit, and his blade that still rested in his scabbard. Before him, even Aften seemed to slow down, though he knew that was just a side effect of his semblance.

Wordlessly he drew his blade, releasing all the power towards Aften. All his focus on holding the power together! And with that, there was a roar as his semblance created a single red blast that completely blocked out everything in front of him!

And as it raced towards Aften, the man didn't even have time to realize he had lost consciousness as he was swallowed whole by the semblance.

---

Back with Cinder.

"Okay, good work you two! But we're not done yet!" Amber said over the coms. "Eric, go help Adam! Cinder, get something to tie Chesher up, then bring Ruby and Ms. Schnee over here so we can-!"

A deafening blast cut Amber off as the entire docks shook! A bright red flash could be seen in the distance that knocked several shipping containers in front of it high into the air, cutting them in two at the same time!

Before anyone could even wonder what had just happened, Aften came flying through the air! Crashing into the top of the crane knocking it over where it came down to the ground smashing even more containers! And nobody needed to check to know his aura was gone and he was out like a light.

"What the-?!" Cinder began, but stopped mid sentence as she saw Adam making his way over looking a little worse for wear.

"Adam! Thank goodness you're okay!" Amber said, relief clear in her voice. "Are you okay?! It looks like you were on the receiving end of the fight!"

"I'm fine." The Faunus panted. "I was trying to settle things without violence, but the stubborn fool wouldn't listen." His aura was flickering and noticeably weaker than normal. He must have put everything into that blast. Either that or he had gotten way more beat up then he was showing.

"Talk things out? That doesn't sound like you." Cinder commented. "Normally you just blast through your opponents without a second thought. Why the sudden change? Don't tell me you had some bullshit reason for holding back. These guys are sickos."

Immediately Adam shot an angry look at the dark haired girl, eyes filled with rage!

"They're not sickos!" He snapped, taking a threatening step towards her. "They're trying to get even after years of oppression! They meant well! Just came up with a bad idea! Would it kill you to show a shred of empathy to the misguided Faunus who have suffered more than enough at your hands?!"

"Misguided? My hands?" Cinder bristled at Adam's words and immediately took a threatening step forward! "Let me tell you something about Misguided! Misguided people are people who out of ignorance or incompetence blindly follow someone else without thinking for themselves! And while that can range from incredibly stupid, to dangerously naïve, it doesn't account for deliberate actions of a team of full grown adults who make a conscious decision to kidnap a little brat and kill her on live TV because they aren't getting what they want!"

"They're…very misguided." Adam weakly countered as he turned his gaze to the ground. Each of the girl's words cut deep into him, making him question his standing. Before coming to Beacon, whenever he had heard about incidents like this, he had already written it off as misguided extremists rightfully acting out over their treatment. He had even been angry when Atlas had obliterated their branch of the White Fang.

But now? Now seeing it up close and hearing the ravings of one of said misguided individuals, he wasn't so sure. Yes, her ideology carried some weight, there was no denying that. But seeing how someone would be willing to overthrow another Faunus just to take power felt very wrong. They were supposed to help each, not fight over power! That was what humans did! Faunus were supposed to be above that!

Had it always been like this? Or had they become more extreme? Had frustration over the lack of change fanned the flame into this inferno of hatred where it was okay to throw your own brethren under the bus?

Or had he been the one to change?

Sure, he had always toed the line both as a kid and now. Stealing food, dust, and money, or sometimes spray-painting SDC own buildings. But that was a far cry form murder! And even when he had beaten some Atlesians, it had always been in self defense! There was never any malice in those actions!

But now sitting here, judging another Faunus for taking action against their biggest oppressor? Since when has he ever done something like that?! The Schnees deserved what they got! That was something nobody in the White Fang had ever questioned! Not even Ghira!

Had he really changed sides like Chesher said? Was his new found time on team AACE made him see things from the human perspective? Had he really turned his back on the Faunus because he was no in Beacon?!

"Oh for the love of-! How can anyone be this stupid!" Cinder exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air in frustration! "Look! I'm going to tell you something that's going to rock your little world to its core! Extremists are not misguided! Their-!"

"Okay, that's enough." Amber said as she deactivated her semblance. "You two can argue whether they are misguided or not later. The police just pulled into the parking lot and some are already on their way to the booth, let's restrain Chesher and her team before anything else they get to the sight. Adam, you and Eric go get Eskus out from behind those containers before he suffocates. Cinder, you tie Chesher up and bring her to the other. We'll hold them here until the police arrive. Hop to it guys!"

Cinder opened her mouth to protest, but then paused for a second before closing it. She shot an angry look at Adam before turning wordlessly and making her way to the far side of the dock where the cheetah Faunus had landed.

Adam stood as still as a statue staring at the ground for a few seconds before he too turned and began making his way towards the two containers that trapped the snake Faunus. Eric walked right beside him.

"Hey. For what it's worth, Cinder is just being emotional." The knight said. "Her sister was just kidnapped by the White Fang extremists. I think she's more than entitled to be a bit pissed at them. Besides, a few bad apples doesn't ruin the bunch. I do believe your organization does more good than bad. It's just hard to see that if you've never experienced racism before."

Adam let out a snort as they reached the containers and they grabbed one end, Eric using his shield as a pry bar.

"Yeah, well she's not the first." He muttered as the two began moving the container. A horrible screeching sound filled the area as it scraped across the ground. "That's not what's bothering me. I just-! Before now, I never questioned whether or not there was another way to achieve peace. But something Chesher said made me wonder if we're really on the right path. Is there another, faster way to equality? And what if to achieve that, you'd have to get your hands dirty now so there would be less bloodshed later? And why am I suddenly not able to understand the methods of our more radical members?!"

As he spoke, Adam became more emotional, his tone more erratic! "Have I really changed sides to humanity's?! Or have I just become blind to everyone else's opinions because of my relationship with Ghira?! What if his way causes more suffering due to how long it's taking?! Should I-!"

"Adam! Calm down! You're hyperventilating!"

Adam stopped as Eric's hand clamped down on his shoulder, forcing him back to reality. Slowly, he looked over at the knight as he steadied his breathing. His partner had a worried look on his face, but his voice was calm. Like a rock in the middle of the sea of turmoil that the Faunus had found himself in.

"You're scared, I get that." Eric said reassuringly. "But calm down and think rationally. If Weiss Schnee was killed on live TV, what do you think would happen? People would magically see Faunus as equals? Or that the SDC would change their employment policies to accommodate the murder of their CEO's daughter? No. They wouldn't. In fact, it would just prove to people you are the monsters they see you as. And if that happens, the White Fang is toast and nothing will change."

The knight's words cut into Adam and eased his uncertainty, making the Faunus heart rate slow and his breathing even. That's right, it wouldn't have helped either of those causes. If anything, it probably would have hurt them as it gave the humans more reasons to call them monsters or freaks. Something he was trying to stop.

"Yeah, you're right." Adam breathed out after a few seconds of silence. "Thanks, Eric. You're surprisingly good with words."

The knight let out a chuckle at that, returning his attention to the container. "I'm not, believe me. You're just easy to influence. Might want to take a class about that. Nothing wrong with being open minded, but we don't want someone taking advantage of you, now do we?"

Adam rolled his eyes at Eric's lossy joke, but didn't comment. His nerves were still a little twitchy, but they would calm down eventually. For now, he tried to turn his attention to the work at hand, freeing Eskus from the containers.

"Brothers, you lodged him in her deep!" The Faunus grunted as they slowly dragged the huge metal container another few inches, so at least the snake wasn't in danger of suffocation. "Did you do this to Chesher too?! I can't imagine what your battle must have looked like!"

"No! And you have yourself to thank for that!" Eric grunted with equal amounts of strain as he pried the container a little farther open. "You told us about Chesher's semblance, so we couldn't really use a trick like this on her! Gotta say, you're getting better at behaving! Back when we first met, I never would have dreamt you'd have…willingly…wait."

Eric froze mid sentence, eyes narrowed to slits as he gazed at the unconscious man now visible between the containers. How did he know? He knew the information had come from Adam, but for the life of him, he couldn't remember ever being told by anyone! Not Amber, not Cinder, and definitely not Adam!

Sure, he had heard Adam saying something about Chesher at the start of the fight, but he couldn't hear it from his distance! He only remembered her name being brought up and that was it! It certainly wasn't what her semblance was, was it?!

It was like the information had just popped into his head randomly and without any input from his side. He couldn't consciously remember the exact moment it happened, but he knew he was still on the boat. Right, it had been right before she had been blasted onto shore! He remembered thinking of ways to keep Weiss safe as Chesher and what her semblance did just appeared in his mind!

And even weirder, while that could just be chocked up to him actually hearing what Adam had said, (which he knew he hadn't!) it certainly didn't end there! Cinder and Amber both seemed to know exactly what Eskus' semblance was, as well as his fighting style! Something he definitely didn't tell either of them!

What was going-!

"Adam! Eric! Look over here!"

Cinder's shout broke Eric out of his thoughts and drew both huntsmen attention. Both of them looked over at the dark haired girl who was standing by a container with a massive hole in one side of it.

"This is where Chesher landed, right?!" She asked, the dark inside lit up by her scroll.

The container was completely empty!

---

Several feet away.

Ruby glanced up at the crane that marked where her sister was fighting. It had gone silent a few minutes ago. And while she wasn't an expert, she had a pretty good hunch the battle was over. Now it was just a matter of who had won.

Carefully, she glanced over at the young heiress who sat against a dusty container, hugging her knees to her chest, head resting on top of them.

Her clothes were ripped to pieces and she was covered in bruises and dirty. Her hair was still damp from when her head was shoved underwater and the little girl could see cuts forming on her wrists.

The big armored guy had broken the chain binding their arms, but hadn't had time to free them from the cuffs. So they could do nothing but sit there with the broken handcuffs dangling around their wrists. Something Weiss seemed very opposed to.

Ruby could tell the girl was miserable, not that anyone could blame her. The media had called her victory at the youth event a shame, she clearly didn't have any friends here, she had just been kidnapped and now was stuck waiting for a group of complete strangers to come back and take her to safety.

Ruby shifted uncomfortably as she stared at the girl. She knew how uncomfortable it was to be stuck alone without any friends. Most of her friends in Patch had moved away and she couldn't easily keep in touch with them anymore. Either that or they were just too distracted with their new lives in the big city to respond to the quiet island girl.

Maybe that was all the quiet girl needed. A distraction to help her get through all the stressful stuff.

"Hey. You want to play a game?" She asked, making the white haired girl look up at her. Her eyes were red and puffy indicating she had been crying. Motivating the younger girl to try even harder to pull her mind away from the situation.

"Let's play eye-spy! I'm really good at it!" She said with forced cheerfulness. "Mom is really proud of my eyes! She says I get them from her and to take really good care of them! I've had twenty-twenty vision and can spot things even Yang can't! I'll go first! I spy with my litt-."

"We're in the middle of an abandoned dock, we're being chased by a group of dangerous psycho animals, we have no professional help, and the only thing keep us from being killed by said animals is a group of unlicensed students and you want to play a stupid child's game?"

Weiss' tone carried a harsh and cold tone that sent a chill through Ruby's spine. Clearly she was in no mood for distractions or games.

Feeling a little silly for even being it up, the dark haired girl turned back to her companion and flinched at the cold glare the girl was giving her.

"I mean, we are children." Ruby half joked, blushing furiously under the gaze of the Schnee heiress.

"You are so immature! Do you have the slightest comprehension of what's going on?!" Ruby flinched at Weiss' harsh tone. She was quite surprised that such a small girl could feel so large!

"If those animals catch us, we will die! And that's if we're lucky! Do you not understand that?! Are you really so dense you don't realize that?! I've seen what they can do! Grow up around it! You don't know the kinds of deranged things those animals can-!"

"I do." Ruby said quietly, stopping Weiss in her tracks.

"My sister was adopted from Atlas. She's told me all the kinds of stuff the White Fang did up there. Buss bombing, kidnapping, attempted killings. I've heard all about it. I just wanted to make things a little less scary. Sorry."

While Ruby wasn't really sure she should be the one apologizing, she still gave a slight bow to the girl like she had seen Cinder sometimes do when she asked for forgiveness, (The number had gone down significantly each year.) and closed her eyes as she waited for the heiress to speak.

As for Weiss, she was caught off guard by the young girl. She hadn't expected her to now be like a maid. She decided it wasn't worth her energy and turned away with a huff.

"Fine. Apology accepted." She said with a dismissive wave. "But next time we should be more considerate of the situation. There's a time and a place for everything and this is definitely not one for games!"

Ruby still wasn't entirely convinced she should be the one with her head lowered, but didn't comment, nor mention how lucky it was for the heiress that it wasn't her oldest sister who was here. Instead she simply stood back up and made her way to a safe distance away from the heiress.

While Weiss seemed more mature than her age would dictate, she still had one final beef with the girl and wanted to be a safe distance away when she brought it up.

"By the way, it's rude to call a Faunus an animal."

Immediately the white haired girl's head snapped around to Ruby, glaring daggers at the girl.

"I'm sorry, what?" She said in a terrifyingly quiet tone. "I must have misheard you, because it sounded like you just tried to defend the people who just KIDNAPPED us."

Ruby felt her legs shake under the heiress' gaze, it felt like the temperature in the area had plummeted as the white haired girl began making her way towards her.

But Ruby stood her ground. Swallowing hard, she spoke in a shaky voice, trying to sound tougher than she felt.

"F-Faunus are living people, l-like us. It's very r-rude to call them animals!" Ruby had never felt smaller as Weiss came to a stop right in front of her, anger very clear on her face by both the narrowed eyes and deep scowl.

"The Faunus are not like us." She said slowly through gritted teeth, yet without having to stop or think. As if she had said this multiple times to multiple people. "They are lier, thieves, and murders! And after today, I think we can add kidnappers to that list! They are incapable of human decency and dignity! It's an insult to call one of us like them!"

"Hey! That's not true!" Ruby snapped. She had a few friends who were Faunus and while they moved out a while ago, she still wasn't going to let someone bash them!

"Just because you don't know the Faunus, doesn't mean your single opinion is right!" She said, stepping forward to meet Weiss. "I know good Faunus and bad humans! We're all different! Don't go preaching your philo…folosi…your ideas like their right! I bet I know way more about Faunus than you! Like…most of them can see perfectly in the dark! Or that depending on their trait they can-!"

"Did you they can cut the head off one of the highest ranking board members of the SDC on live TV and go unpunished, uncaught, and unpublished for months while people start protests saying they did nothing wrong!?"

Immediately Ruby froze, her stomach dropping at Weiss' words. She could feel bile in her throat just thinking of that! She had seen pictures of Summer's missing eye and that alone had made her stomach turn. But imagining a head coming off the body was just sickening!

But even worse, people thought they were in the right?! Why!? That was just plain old violence! Who would ever think something like that was okay?! Didn't they understand that all holding onto grudges would make more hate in the world?

Seeing Ruby's face go pale told Weiss she had won the argument l. But she felt no joy from her victory. If anything, there was just a hollow numbness in her gut. The memory of that horrible event was still fresh in her mind even though it had happened years ago.

She still remembers watching the man, someone who had attended her birthday last year, on his knees, hands bound as he begged for mercy from the Faunus standing over him. She still remembered watching them break his legs first! The sicken crack as they slammed hammers on his knees! The horrible scream that shook her to her core!

Then the masked Faunus had looked right at the camera and said that this was the price for not giving them equal before drawing his long sword returning the bound mad as his colleges for him onto his shattered knees.

She knew what was coming next, but couldn't force her eyes off the TV. The video quality was low, but she could still see him crying in pain as his entire weight was forced onto her broken legs as he head was pushed forward. He couldn't even plead anymore and just looked at the camera, begging someone to save him.

It was at this point Winter had come running into the room. She had tried to pull the young girl away, but it was too late. The last thing she saw as Winter carried her out of the room was the blade falling, the man's last desperate cry, then a dull thunk as his head hit the ground, blood splurging out of his open neck with each beat of his frantic heart!

Everything after that was a blur, she just remembered the scene replying itself over and over again in her head for what felt like an eternity. She had come around only after Winter had slapped her, returning her to reality where she had been informed she had been screaming hysterically before being pulled into a tight hug by her sister.

They had slept in the same room for a week after the event. While Weiss had heard about more board members going missing, she had thankfully not seen their final moments.

But as the heiress looked over at the younger girl and saw her face, she felt a twinge of regret fill her gut. It wasn't her fault the White Fang had scared her for life. Or that whenever it happened her father would come home furious. The kid just didn't understand what it was like to live in fear within her own house. And honestly, that was something to be grateful for.

"Sorry." The heiress said quietly, bowing her head slightly making the young rise look up in surprise. "I was out of line. I apologize for my words and will accept punishment for them."

Ruby blinked in surprise at her response. She hadn't expected such a formal apology. Especially from someone who came off pretty so up like the heiress.

And now that she thought about it logically, her words came from a place not of superiority, but a place of fear. She was more afraid of the Faunus instead of thinking of them as lesser. And after what she confessed, Ruby could actually understand to an extent. If she had to watch someone's head being cut off, she'd be terrified of the people responsible.

And as she stood there, she realized this wasn't the first time someone had apologized in this manner. The day Summer had brought back Cinder, she remembered her sister apologized in the exact same way. Back then, she hadn't understood that it was a form of submission, lowering themselves to make the person they were apologizing to feel superior. She now knew this wasn't common with Atleisns, but something more along the lines of something beaten into others. Something born out of fear.

However, before she could dwell on the subject, she saw the heiress look up at her with a slightly annoyed look. Immediately the girl realized she had been staring and immediately began waving her hands around in a futile attempt to wave the awkwardness away. (Because that always worked.)

"Oh! It's okay! I didn't-! I mean-! I still don't think you're in the right, but I get it! Sorta." Weiss' expression became even more annoyed, making the younger girl flush. "What I'm trying to say is that you don't seem like a bad person! Or not completely! Or something! I mean, some Faunus hurt you and now you're scared and I get why you would feel that way but just because a few bad ones hurt you doesn't mean they're all bad and I do understand that this experience hasn't made things much better and-!"

"Wanna know something else about us? Good hearing."

Immediately both Ruby and Weiss felt their blood run cold. Slowly, they turned pale faced to see Chesher walking towards them. Her aura was gone, but she still had her weapons and didn't look too injured.

"H-how-?!" Ruby gasped, fear filling her eyes as she took a step back, legs trembling as the older woman approached, her claws extending as she walked.

"Sorry brat, but I'm in a hurry." She snarled. "I'm not leaving here while that worthless bitch still draws breath. If I'm going down, I'm taking her with me!"

As she advanced, Weiss was the first to snap out of her daze. She rushed over to a piece of pointed metal debris that looked like it had been broken from one of the many shipping containers that sprinkled the area. She snatched it up, ignoring how the metal cut into her palm and without hesitation, she leveled it at Chesher like it was a rapier.

"S-stay back!" The heiress threatened shakily. "I know how to use this! And I won't hesitate to put down an animal like-!"

Weiss was cut off as a loud bang went off from Chesher's gun, piercing through the debris and tearing through her shoulder.

"Aaahhh!" Weiss screamed as she fell back, blood pouring from her shoulder as she clutched at it feebly tried to stop the bleeding.

As her blood poured onto the ground Ruby felt bile rising in her throat and could even taste some in her mouth. She had seen blood before, namely when Cinder had been torn into by the Werewolf, but still seeing this just made her feel that same sickness and terror from that night.

She couldn't even bring herself to scream. The fear was completely engulfing her and she thought any second she'd pass out! Her heart was hammering so hard in her chest it hurt! Every fiber of her body screamed at her to do something, anything! But she was completely paralyzed and could only stare in stunned silence as she watched Weiss going into shock.

The click of shoes on a rock broke the girl out of her trance. She turned just in time to see Chesher shoot forward, her claws fully extended and her arm pulled back with the intention of running the girl through.

It was at that moment one thing clicked in Ruby's head. If she didn't act, the young girl was going to die.

Summoning all her will power, she forced her petrified body into action, racing towards the heiress. The logical part of her brain knew how stupid she was being, but she didn't have time to think! She had to do something, anything to save the heiress! Because if she couldn't save one injured girl, what right did she have to even try to become a hero like her sister!

Suddenly, Ruby shot forward, moving faster than she ever had before in her life. She was literally flying across the ground towards the Faunus so fast everything around her turned into a blur!

And while Ruby had no idea what was happening, she did realize one thing, with this power, she could save the young girl!

As she shot towards Chesher, said woman's eyes widened in shock. The little girl she had deemed as helpless had suddenly just burst into rose petals and was moving at alarming speed towards her!

Spinning on the spot, she pointed both her gauntlets at the incoming blizzard of petals and opened fire. Yet the bullets passed right through it as if she no longer had a physical form!

However, as the petals reached her, the Faunus found a very solid form beneath all those petals, as Ruby rammed into her head first, knocking the wind out of her.

The blow staggered the Faunus, forcing her to take a step back where she fell to one knee. As she did, Ruby fell face first onto the hard ground, making her nose bleed as the last of her aura had been used up in that attack.

Through tear stained eyes, the little girl looked up at the Faunus, hoping her final gambit had paid off and that she had done enough damage to keep the women down.

But her heart stopped as she saw Chesher was already getting back to her feet.

Terror filled the little girl's mind as she stared up at the Faunus. She had landed a hit, but it wasn't enough! And now she had no more strength, no fight left in her.

Her eyes became wide in terror as the woman glared down at her, eyes filled with killer intent that even the little girl could feel.

"You know, I'll give it to you. You managed to do the one thing no kid has ever done before. Exhaust my patience." She said as she leveled her claws with Ruby's head. "Even Blake and Ilia with their constant yapping about those stupid dawn of Patch movies haven't pissed me off this much. You really are something special. Too bad this is the end. I would have liked to see where that stubbornness would have gotten you. Die!"

Ruby squeezed her eyes shut as the blade came down, posed to split her head in two. She didn't even have time to process the terror of her life ending. The only thing on her mind was hoping this wouldn't hurt.

But the blow she was expecting never came.

Instead, there was a loud clang as the blade was forcefully driven into the ground right in front of her head. The next second Chesher let out a cry of pain followed by the snapping of metal.

Looking up, she saw Adam Taurus standing in front of her, his back facing the girl as he looked ahead at Chesher, who had been knocked a few feet back. Underneath his boot, the broken remains of the claws from the Faunus' right hand. They had been snapped close to the base, so what remained was not capable of being a weapon.

"Run."

"Huh?" Ruby questioned as she blinked in surprise at the words. Her stunned mind still slow to understand everything going on.

"I said run!" Adam snapped, glancing behind to shoot her with a glare. "Take the brat behind you and put as much distance from here as you can! My team leader is already bringing the police here! Go now before I change my mind!"

That was all the encouragement Ruby needed.

Practically jumping to her feet, she rushed over to Weiss, who was by some miracle still conscious, and helped the girl to her feet. Then, the two began limping away as fast as the heiress' injury would permit.

"You're not getting away!" Chesher snapped, throwing herself after them only for Adam to slide in front of her and lock blades with the older Faunus.

"Chesher, enough!" Adam screamed as they two fought for the upper hand. "Didn't you hear me?! My team leader is on her way with the police! You can't escape! Just give up now before I'm forced to hurt you!"

Chesher let out a scoff as she pushed him back slightly, their blades still interlocked.

"Oh sure, how about I just give up and get a complete fair trial in a human run court?! What a brilliant idea!" She snapped, glaring daggers at Adam. "What happened to you?! It hasn't been that long since you understood this! Has being at Beacon really brainwashed into this submissive puppy?!"

Adam bit back his anger as he broke their clash and leapt back, Chesher doing the same.

"I'm not a submissive puppy!" Adam fired back, hands tightly clenched into fists. "I'm trying to save the Faunus from even more abuse that will follow if you go through with this plan! I'm trying to help you!"

Chesher was silent as she stared at Adam, then her gaze traveled to the retreating figure of Ruby and Weiss. Then, she turned and looked back at Adam.

"You want to help me? Then prove it." She said in a dark tone. "Time to pick a side Adam. Are you with the Faunus, or the humans? We can't live with them, so you can either aid us, or continue to be their lap dog!"

With that, she shot after the two kids, weapon aimed right at the white haired girl's back!

Immediately Adam charged after her, catching her from side in an instant! With a single swing of his blade, he tried to stop her, but to his immense surprise, she didn't even try to dodge! Running right in the path of the blade if hit, would be fatal!

At that one instant, Adam felt his heart sink. What was he doing?! Was he seriously about to kill another Faunus for the sake of a Schnee?! Were they going to take yet another life from an 'inferior' class once again?!

That's when it hit him like a ton of bricks. He had changed! Before Beacon, never once would he have ever considered helping a Schnee! Let alone the one who had the most to gain from their abuse and would undoubtedly carry on her father's tradition of enslaving the most desperate and most vulnerable Faunus! Someone who, if allowed to live, would see the entire future of his people destroyed to make her more money! So why was he helping the literal definition of pure evil?!

All these thoughts bombarding Adam's head causes the young Faunus to hesitate. To slow his attack to a crawl. And while it was still incredibly fast for the standards of a first year, it told Chesher all she needed to know about Adam's metal state.

Moving faster than Adam had ever seen, she spun, trapping his blade in between her claws! Now with her prey caught, she spun once again, this time leaping into the air and landing a powerful kick to Adam's side as she pulled his blade out of his hands and sent it flying through the air!

Adam let out a cry as he hit the ground, the last of his aura braking. But before he had a chance to get up, Chesher had landed, flicking the blade from her claws with a single effortless fling of her arm, then, before Adam could even regain his breath, she drove her claw into his leg!

"Aaahhh!" Adam screamed as the blade pierced through his thigh, ripping through skin and muscle until it reached bone and puncturing that too!

The red haired Faunus began rolling around in pain, until a foot planted itself on his chest, pinning him to the ground. Looking down at him, Adam could see a volley of painful emotions on the woman's face as they locked eyes.

She really did see nothing but a lapdog to the humans where she had once seen the hope of her people. It filled her with rage, frustration, sadness, and disgust. To think the most promising member of the White Fang had been corrupted by those things turned her stomach. Better to end him here and spare her people the pain of seeing their savor licking the boots of the humans.

Wordlessly, she drew her arm back and leveled her claws at his throat. One good thrust and it would be all over. There would be no pain, no suffering. He would be made a martyr for her people and they would never learn how far he really fell.

Adam struggled under Chesher's boot, desperately trying to get her off! But no matter how much he wiggled and squirmed, he couldn't move an inch!

Looking up at the blade aimed at his neck, he felt his heart stop as fear took over. His entire life flashing before his eyes. Watching his parents work themselves to death in an SDC mine, being found and taken in by the Belladonnas, being given a place among the White Fang, Blake's incredibly awkward eight year old confession, receiving his acceptance letter from Beacon, and of course his time on team AACE.

Some leader he was! All that talk about how Amber was incapable of her job, yet when he was forced to make a call, he had just screwed everything up! If he had just fought Aften with the goal of winning instead of trying to reason with him, then he wouldn't be in the fix!

All this was about to end. And as he looked up into Chesher's face and saw the rage on her face. And despite knowing there was nothing he could do, he still threw his hands up in a futile attempt to stop the end. He didn't want to die at the hands of one of his own peo-

Thunk!

Suddenly Chesher's eyes widened and her mouth fell open as she let out a gasp. Her face was instantly transformed from rage to shock as she took a staggering step back off Adam.

She tried to say something, but no words came out. Instead, she let out a weak cough, blood splurging out of her mouth. She stood there in stunned silence for another second, then she slumped over, resting on her knees revealing an arrow buried deep into the center of her back.

Slowly, the Faunus turned around to find Cinder standing a few feet back, glaring daggers at her.

"That's enough." The dark haired girl said, taking a step forward as she pulled her bow apart. "You have no hope of escape or resistance. Give up now or you'll leave me no choice. After all the trouble you've caused, I'll have to kill you."

Chesher stood there for a second, just staring at the dark haired girl. Then her head dropped and she let out a low, tired laugh as her posture slumped even more.

"Haha. That's cute." She said weakly raisins her head. "You think I have a choice? Under these circumstances? Hehe. No need for jokes. I know I'm finished." Slowly, she turned her head to where Weiss and Ruby ran and hid. Due to heiress condition, they couldn't go very far.

Chesher let out another weak laugh as she began panting heavily. Her head turned back to face Cinder.

"I might end here, but know this. Everything I did, I did it for my people. Knowing this, I go in peace. And I just hope you poor bastard can find even a semblance of that kind of purpose in your miserable life."

Suddenly, Chesher raised her arm! A dull clicking sound came from her gauntlet as the barrel of her gun extended, letting her take aim at Weiss!

But she never got the chance to fire.

Cinder shot forward, closing distance between them in a second! Chesher had just enough time to turn her head back to look at the dark haired girl before both of Midnight's blades were driven straight through her heart at two different points.

A deafening silence filled the docks, broken only by Cinder panting as she pushed her swords as deep as she could into the Faunus, blood leaking onto her hands in spurts with each rapid beat of the woman's heart.

They stayed there for several seconds until Chesher's wide eyes calmed, then dulled, before finally she let out one weak gasp and slumped onto the young rose, the light completely fading from her body.

Wordlessly, the dark haired girl took a step back, ripping her blades from the woman's chest, letting it fall to the ground, eyes still staring blankly as if to cling to some form of life, even though it had rapidly fled her body.

Cinder stared down at the corpse as the sound of sirens in the distance could be heard. Then she blatantly spat on the back of the woman's head as she sheathed her blades.

"Misguided huh?" She said, shooting a quick glare at Adam. Then she turned her back to him and walked towards her sister, her blades dripping with blood from one who knew nothing but hatred and the raw fury of a beast.

---

so what did you think of the battle scene? I'm still not very good at writing fights and it can be hard to tell how well it translated to paper. (You know what I mean!)

Not going to lie, it's was not easy making Chesher and her crew. You'd think having a 3 chapter long character would be easy to come up with, and it is to an extent, but balancing the, so they don't break the world yet still feel threatening isn't easy.

Random fact, Eskus semblances was originally planned to be the Phantom's. Back at this stage, he was meant to have a fighting style that mirrored Cinder's, fighting with jade instead of glass.

However as the plot developed, so did the character and it just didn't make sense anymore. So I swapped it out.

I hope anyone who's a development nerd like myself enjoyed this tidbit.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed and I hope to see you next time. Bye!