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Chapter 20: Bad Romance

The week had passed in a blur of comfortable predictability as lessons and life in general continued within the walls of Breaktide Academy, masterful schemes and grand conniving being conducted in the shadows of Remnant being deemed of a less immediate importance than the steady routine of lessons, assignments, personal training, maintenance and the campus social life with all of the gossip and chattering that it provided. That they had become a topic of conversation and source of no small amount of amusement for those who partook in said gossip and chattering almost certainly played a part in the nervous energy currently coursing through Astra Mars to the point that it gave the Deer Faunus an almost constant twitch. News that either Wolfram or Astra had finally acted on the obvious attraction and chemistry between the pair had spread like wildfire and a lack of specifics being provided by either of those directly involved or their closest friends had naturally led to a wave of rumours and debates, along with lien changing hands as bets were declared won throughout the student body and though Astra's response had been to laugh good naturedly whilst still trying to assure a degree of privacy Wolfram had been more blunt and direct in his disapproval; glowering and looming over any who discussed his personal matters where he could hear them and spending a great deal of time either alone or simply unreachable entirely to such an extent that Astra had become quietly worried that their date might have been quietly cancelled without their knowledge.

However the previous evening Wolfram had called to confirm that their plans, as vague as they might be were still in place for the following day and it was now Saturday morning, sun streaming into Team MARZ's dormitory illuminating the incongruous yet oddly endearing sight of Astra being helped to prepare for the occasion by Athena-Jade whilst Zirconia and Regalia watched with rapt attention, neither of the pair having been a part of such a ubiquitous and almost cliché affair before; Athena-Jade had also called her adopted sister in Atlas and now the Crab Faunus, Coral Scylla was present in the form of a video-chat which she used to critique Astra's choices and offer her own advice.

Whether Astra wanted it or not.

"Okay but I could work with the leather jacket….I really could, it's got a vibe" Coral mused, pincers clacking slowly as she considered before letting out a bemused sigh "But that Mohawk has got to go, even if it is too late to wash the dye out and-"

"AJ tell your sister that I will flush her head down every toilet in Atlas if she ever comes near my hair" Astra replied in a tone that was entirely devoid of emotion as they stared at a point directly ahead of them whilst Athena-Jade helped apply their make up, the Bear Faunus pausing only briefly to swat lightly at the side of their head. Regalia muffled her laugh so as not to interrupt the moment whilst Zirconia merely rolled her mismatched eyes before Coral spoke again.

"Ugh, died red Mohawk, black make up and glitter….I bet you still have a button up shirt with flames in your wardrobe; you dress like you're thirteen-"

"Yeah well we don't all have Edna Mauve on speed-dial" Astra grumbled irritably, trying to appreciate the help but growing steadily more annoyed at what felt like simply being talked down to by someone with more income; thankfully Athena seemed to notice the way her sisters' words were being interpreted.

"Coral be nice, we're not sniping at the spoiled rich kids in Atlas now"

"Pot, meet kettle-Ow!" Astra's sarcastic comment was cut off by a yelp as Athena casually twisted her friends' ear.

"Okay" the stocky and snowy haired young woman nodded to herself "I think we're done here"

"Stand up, let me see" Coral urged and Astra did as they were asked, rising from their seat and slowly twirling to show off make up that was more involved than their usual striking black, a mix of deep scarlet and smokey blue greys complemented by an outfit consisting of practical flat shoes, creamy white shorts that reached a little way above the knees which were in turn covered by a series of deep red side-skirts in a style that were similar to those worn by Ursinia Red paired with a simple shirt, short sleeved to allow for Astra's weapons to be worn in the unlikely event that the situation called for it and with several buttons undone which revealed sharply defined collarbones and borrowed, eye-catching jewellery.

"Not my best work, but on short notice when you don't even know where you're going….well it's better than letting AJ give you a haircut-"

"You suck, you suck so bad, you are the suckiest" Athena interrupted dramatically and Astra couldn't help but chuckle at the interaction between the sisters even as it made them conscious of how long it had been since they had spoken properly with their older bother although that line of thinking was quickly cut off by Regalia's comment.

"You look good" the Racoon Faunus told them earnestly "Pretty, but still cool and bad-ass"

"You're gonna make me blush and ruin the look" Astra shifted their weight self-consciously and made to pop their collar out of habit only to swatted again by Athena who gave them an exasperated look.

"I'm sure Wolfram will appreciate it" Zirconia noted dryly and quietly from her bunk in a tone that might have been mistaken for sarcasm by someone who did not know her as well as her team-mates; before Astra could give the Grasshopper Faunus a properly and fittingly witty reply a firm rap at the dormitory door revealed that it was time to put Zirconia's assertions to the test as before Astra could utter a single word Athena-Jade had opened the door revealing Wolfram Ironside stood behind it.

Whatever the young man had intended to say promptly left his mind the moment he and Astra locked eyes.

"You...I….wow" Wolfram breathed "You look….wow"

"And that" Coral's voice declared proudly from Athena's scroll "Is the reaction I was hoping for, I am great at this….so, you're what all the fuss is about….a little underdressed-"

"Oh my gosh will you shut up!" Athena demanded incredulously before giving Wolfram an apologetic and mortified glance "I am sorry about my sister"

"It's fine, she's probably got a point" Wolfram noted gruffly, indicating to their own outfit which consisted of a pair of admittedly smart jeans and boots paired with a simple black t-shirt which hugged their figure and the sleeveless jacket they wore with their combat attire along with the spiked choker that was usually slung around their gorget though the armour itself was absent, the fact that Wolfram was also carrying his weapon across his back was notable though it was a fact that offered little in terms of answers and conclusions and so instead of focusing on it too much Astra simply gave a bright, nervous smile as they collected the belongings they intended to take with them and sidled over to their fellow team leader and managed to turn their grin into something more confident as they nodded towards Athena's Scroll.

"You wanna leave the others to babysit AJ's kid sister?"

"Hey, I heard that you jerk" Coral called out indignantly, which earned her a genuine, barking laugh from Wolfram who simply slung an arm over Astra's shoulder and led the profusely blushing Deer Faunus out of the dorm, leaving Athena-Jade, Zirconia and Regalia in the dormitory, momentarily at a loss for what to do without their leader until Coral once again provided her input.

"Hey AJ, do you know if Aunt Ruby or Penny are gonna be on campus today? The twins said they might visit and it'd be nice to get a surprise call together"

"It would" Athena nodded "But I don't think they are and I can't stay on the call for long, I promised some older students I'd join them for a gym session this afternoon….In fact Hops, Regalia are either of you coming?"

"I think not" Zirconia shook her head and gestured to her violin "It's been too long since I really practised.

"I probably should work up an appetite but I need to head into the city" Regalia shook her head "I'm meeting Laser and Ursinia in Port Alistair later, you should join us"

"That's fine, we'll do something tomorrow when Astra's free"

"Now come on, let me see the academy gym….I wanna see all of these guys and girls you think are hot" Coral's voice was quickly silenced as Athena frantically pressed the mute button before she gave her friends a thumbs up whilst trying to ignore the heat steadily rising in her cheeks; before Zirconia could deliver the no doubt scathing comment that was on the tip of her tongue the Bear Faunus gathered her gym-bag and took her scroll in her free hand, setting off in search of somewhere private to continue her conversation with her sister somewhere that the younger yet far taller girl would be unable to embarrass her further whilst her team-mates prepared to attend to their own matters.

Each of Team MARZ was currently pre-occupied with their team leaders' social life and whilst none of them would admit it all of them were privately waiting for news from Astra so that they could be happy for their friend in earnest.


Diabla had spared no time, thought or effort on Wolfram's admittedly laughable attempts to prepare himself for his upcoming date; foregoing all excuses or justifications and simply stating that she had better things to do with all of her usual biting bluntness in stark contrast to Laser and Ursinia's efforts to calm their friend and leaders' obvious nerves. Whilst a universally gruff and sullen demeanour that ranged almost teasing and yet unmistakably snappish and unapproachable to downright blistering in its open hostility was chief amongst the issues that the rest of Team WULF took with their Mantle-born team-mate it was far from the only one, another point of contention had been the schedule she imposed on herself and by extension those forced to share a dormitory with her; a situation which had almost come to a head that morning when Diabla had delivered her parting comments to Wolfram after accidentally waking him shortly after sunrise as she prepared to begin her day.

What none of Diabla's team-mates knew or understood, simply because Diabla herself refused to part with the information willingly was that the brutal and seemingly endless regimen of training and self improvement was the exact opposite to the act self-flagellation that Laser had suggested on more than one occasion; it was instead an act of self care and comforting familiarity. Diabla Fuego had been born in the Free Cities of Mantle but considered herself to have been truly made in the Atlesian Cadets where she had spent several years as a ward of the Kingdom and lived on barracks since she, as she had once told Wolfram had no family any more; in truth she had never planned or intended to find herself studying at Breaktide Academy or even to leave Atlas at all and her routine was simply a cherished reminder of a time when her life, difficult as it had always been had at least felt like it was on the right track.

That search for peace of mind through physical strain and exertion had, naturally brought Diabla to the gym.

She had neglected breakfast, assuring herself that she would eat before she returned to the dormitory lest she face Ursinia's ire, Diabla minding the Scorpion Faunus's motherly tendencies far less than she pretended to though she knew that she would likely still keep Ursinia at arms' length along with everyone else who attempted to peer at whatever vulnerabilities lay under her harsh exterior. Now, after an impressive amount of cardio training and a weight session that had left her entire body consumed with waves of burning, aching pain and her very bones feeling as though they had been hollowed that lack of food was beginning to take its' toll on Diabla as her vision began to blur and her movements grew sluggish whilst a sheen of sweat coated her light brown skin, leaving her clothes plastered to her body and almost sending her to the ground as trying to shake away sweat that was falling into her eyes left her light-headed.

Overall a bad situation to find oneself in during a boxing match.

She had been approached by Nugget, the Chicken Faunus who lead Team NUGT; a team of fellow first year students whose performances in combat training were collectively underwhelming who had asked Diabla if it would be possible for the two of them to spar for a few rounds, since the gym would likely not be crowded for some time due to it being a weekend and the outcome of said matches would not have to be discussed or acknowledged. Diabla had agreed, if only because she respected the Chicken Faunus's admission of their own shortcomings and efforts to correct them, however she now found herself particularly grateful for the lack of an audience as she managed to weave around a left that was loudly telegraphed that she would have verbally derided it were she not wearing a gumshield only to be punched square in the nose by a right cross that sent her staggering back several paces and almost falling onto her backside, though she did thankfully manage to reach the corner of the ring and instead prop herself up on the ropes where she took several deep breaths.

"Are you okay?" her impromptu sparring partner asked cautiously, panic rising in their voice as they realised that they might have genuinely angered one of the most volatile students in their class. Diabla took a moment to reply, first removing her gloves and then her gumshield; gingerly touching the spot where she had been struck to check for blood or any immediate damage before finally answering in a breathless gasp.

"I'm fine….Just need a minute….and water"

"I'll go get my water bottle" Nugget offered hastily, slipping through the ropes of the ring and setting off in the direction of where he had been training before he had spotted Diabla whilst the brawny young woman ran her hands through her close cropped and almost buzz-cut hair and took several gasps of air in an effort to steady herself; mentally cursing how weak she must have allowed herself to get as she scanned her surroundings and found that several other students had made their way into the gym without her noticing, though in fairness they were all older students who had responded to her lack of interest in kind which suited Diabla just fine. She was, as she had told her team-mates often enough, not here to make friends.

The door to the gym was flung open a moment later and Diabla found her train of thought interrupted by a far more familiar and far less welcome face, namely that of Athena-Jade Slate.

"And now the rich kid is here" Diabla snarled under her breath, pointedly ignoring the slight exhausted slur in her own words and glaring in the general direction of the snowy haired Bear Faunus who paid her a complete and infuriating lack of attention as made a round of the sizeable training area, seemingly more interested in greeting and chatting with all of her fellow students than actually training herself for the time being and even more annoyingly in Diabla's mind, being well acquainted enough with each of them to do so.

It was simply enraging to have to watch.

No matter how often Diabla said that she had no interest in friendship and turned her back on opportunities to be part of the social life of the student body it would always be galling to her how easily accepted Athena had been considering the way that the wealthy socialite had acted upon her initial integration into Team MARZ; unreliable and outright insubordinate to a degree that would have been harshly punished in Atlas. Yet here Athena stood, once again proving to Diabla that she would always have to claw and fight for every little scrap that she had and even then that she would still have less than those whose wealth and connections allowed them to live free of consequence.

Once again that reality only made Diabla determined to fight harder still.

"Fucking bitch, would have been hazed out of the cadets in a week" she muttered under her breath, still lacking anyone nearby to hear her and as she watched Athena continue to take up space and not actually do any kind of work she decided that she would not suffer it any longer; Professor Altan had warned them both about any continuations of their previous altercation however it was unlikely that the former prizefighter would actually punish them for sparring in he gym.

Wolfram had also warned her against antagonising Athena any further however, Diabla noted with a feral smile that Wolfram wasn't here right now.


Whilst the absence of the rest of Team MARZ had seemingly left Zirconia with free reign over the dormitory, likely for much of the day that privacy and solitude had not in fact brought the introverted and often mysterious Grasshopper Faunus the peace or relaxation that her demeanour often suggested that it would.

Zirconia had first worked on her cybernetic legs further, spending no small amount of time on minute adjustments and calibrations to features that her friends were entirely unaware of as she kept everything about her prosthetics from their workings to the reason she wore them entirely private From there she had shed the cloak that had become synonymous with her in much the way that Ruby Rose's own iconic garment was, along with the single cape that hung from her belt which featured her emblem and covered the holster of her weapon, her armour-plated gloves which reached to her elbows and finally the shoulder armour that hung from her right side which was styled to resemble the skull of some insectoid Grimm before departing for a seemingly aimless wander through the campus where she noted the comings and goings of her peers and the Professors who had found themselves on the campus despite the fact that it was a Saturday until finally she had made her way back to the dormitory to retrieve her violin and then subsequently found her way onto the roof of the tower in which the first year dorms' were situated, to the spot she often shared with Athena-Jade which afforded her a truly magnificent view of Port Alistair as she practised with her instrument until it to began to bore her.

In truth Zirconia was restless and impatient, both qualities that privately childed herself for, considering them to be childish and beneath the standard she set for herself even as her mismatched eyes darted once again to where her Scroll lay beside her in a clearly hopeful expectation that it might ring at any moment. It was only a few short minutes later that normally inscrutable young woman's obvious eagerness was rewarded by the sound of the device vibrating against the hard surface of the roof and upon seeing that the caller was indeed who she had hoped it would be the insectoid Faunus paused for the merest fraction of a second, the ghost of a frown crossing her face at the fact that the call was audio only before answering it with an uncharacteristic brightness to her usual rasping monotone that she had been unable to convey through the text of their most recent communications.

"It's good to be able to speak to you properly again" she declared happily, pink and orange eyes twinkling brightly as her features were pulled into a bright smile; brushing the sweeping curtain of raven black hair that formed downturned spikes away from she spoke out of force of habit despite knowing that she was not visible to her guardian at that moment.

"Indeed it is, we all have our goals to accomplish but I do miss having you close at hand" the voice of Chairman Damascus Nero of the Clara-Die-Novum Conglomerate was a far cry from what those who knew nothing of them man, which was in truth the vast majority of the population might expect; where one might have imagined the unseen and reclusive head of such a vast network of business interests to have a commanding presence or possibly an oily aura about him which spoke of conniving and ruthless ways Damascus Nero was in fact underwhelming in his mediocrity, an unremarkable voice with the faint traces of an accent belonging to a region of the Kingdom of Vale and hints of a stammer that hard work and vocal training had lessened.

"I suppose congratulations are in order, I saw on the news that you've made some progress in your own goals" Zirconia's dry tone had a rare playful edge to it and the man who had taken her into his home and hear after the deaths of her parents, both of whom had been dear friends to him let out the softest of chuckles in response.

"Don't congratulate sloppily done work, it sounds condescending at best" Chairman Nero admonished her equally playfully "I prefer to work in privacy as you well know, however now that my business affairs are being discussed in the financial times and bloggers are discussing me in their accursed social media tripe about 'grind culture', whatever that is I have to contend with every social climber and clammy-handed opportunist from here to Atlas wanting to monopolise my time….Although I hear you've been attending to at least one of the Atlesians on my behalf"

"Athena-Jade Slate is my partner and you are insufferable" Zirconia's usual quiet rasp was firmly back in place as she rolled her eyes, the briefest pang of sorrow and loss stabbing at her as she wondered if this was the feeling of embarrassment towards ones' parents that so many of her classmates took for granted. With that sobering thought she quickly changed the subject

"Regardless" she cleared her throat "The businesses that the Conglomerate has taken ownership of, they were owned by the attendees at the Grimm fight club that Team MARZ found on our mission….you acted fast"

"Indeed, I began preparations as soon as you told me about what you found….whilst the crime itself was unexpected the Kingdoms' reactions to it were entirely predictable so I moved to ensure that those assets didn't simply end up in the hands of another villain" the man allowed himself a weak, stuttering laugh before adding "The paradox of wanting things to be handled by trustworthy people and at the same time having almost nobody to trust, it means you have to do everything yourself….however that much power and wealth should not be in the hands of people with no vision for a better future"

"Agreed" Zirconia said simply, enjoying listening to one of the rare times where her guardian discussed the machinations of his thought process out loud; his current train of thought was quickly brought to a halt however as something in the teen he never presumed to call his daughters' voice caught his attention.

"You sound tired, are you sure you're well….I know the temptation to party and engage in things I would rather leave in the hazy memories of my own time as a student must be hard to ignore" Nero sighed "I know I've kept you under too watchful an eye over the years and that I'd be lying if I said that it wasn't for my own peace of mind as much as your safety but remember Zirconia, you're attending the academy to be part of something great and that takes precedence"

"I am well aware of that" Zirconia's voice betrayed a rare hint of emotion, namely an aggravated testiness which was quickly subsumed as she continued "I'm fine Damascus….I sleep enough, however my team leader has a first date today and so naturally I was woken earlier than I would have liked.

"Ah dating, crushes and all of those awkward uncertainties….I'm almost glad that it's been so long since they were of any concern to me"

"You're not that old" Zirconia sighed, rolling her eyes at her guardians' self-deprecating.

"Perhaps not" his voice carried the hint of a shrug "What of the rest your team, we've hard far too little opportunity to talk about how you're fitting in at the academy. Your partner, the daughter of Weiss Schnee and the former head of the Atlesian Specialist department; what can you tell me about her?"

Zirconia answered that question with gusto, happy to talk about Athena-Jade Slate for an extended amount of time as the sun began to sink in the sky, entirely unaware of the knowing smile that her guardian wore countless miles away in the upper echelons of Neo Vale.


"You're seriously gonna keep this a surprise until the last minute?" Astra fought the urge to pout as they flopped back in their seat, leaning in to Wolfram's shoulder whilst taking care not inadvertently strike him with antlers or the sharp points of their Mohawk as they did so which their date and fellow team leader responded to with a smile that tried to convey a sense of self assurance as he draped an arm over Astra's shoulders even a lump formed in the teens throat and a sudden heat radiated out from him, colouring his cheeks faintly.

The two of them had made their way into Port Alistair, which Astra had expected and stopped at a small, family owned cafe and coffee shop where they had enjoyed lunch together whilst discussing anything and everything that came to mind, trying to maintain their previous rapport and easy friendship despite the awkwardness, blustering nervousness that came with this new dynamic to their relationship. From there Wolfram had excitedly, though still keeping an aura of stoic coolness about himself led Astra a short way through the city to one of its' smaller airship terminals catering to local flights between the settlements of Menagerie for those with the means and desire to avoid taking the long, Grimm ravaged and often undefended roads that connected the various cities and towns, this particular terminal so small and under-represented that it did not in fact house a single full sized airship. The craft that the two of them had boarded was allegedly the product of an older and all-but entirely scrapped and forgotten Atlesian model being repurposed and given a new lease of life by those seeking to make the Island Kingdom their home, an unarmed civilian transport known as an Albatross Sky-Bus which outwardly resembled a winged bread-bin if one were feeling decidedly generous, its' curved and slanting hull slathered with chipped and fading paint declaring the name of the company operating the flight thought its' interior was at least moderately comfortable, resembling the first class section of the average train in Astra's mind.

After allowing Astra to a pout few moments longer, simply because they looked adorable as they pretended to sulk Wolfram finally decided to put their date out of their misery and tell them what they had in store.

"Okay I don't know if you know this but because of how Menagerie was founded the laws about big public events are really lax once you're outside of any of the big settlements….basically nowhere used to have jurisdiction outside of their own walls and things haven't been updated so there's lots of loopholes"

"That sounds….mildly terrifying" Astra noted, managing a weak smile even as their mind immediately raced to the events of only a few weeks prior where they had seen first hand the horror and cruelty that took place beyond the settlements of Menagerie for the amusement of the wealthy; a reaction that Wolfram noticed and winced in response to as he made the connection only a few seconds later, realising his possible mistake but pushing onwards anyway.

"Well there's been plenty of attempts to make a big music festival, something like the 'Upload Festival' in New Vale or 'Ethernet Festival' in Atlas happen in Menagerie but none of the big security firms who handle sporting events would touch it and hiring Hunters individually would be too expensive"

"And the Grimm would get drawn to the first mosh pit and it would be….well it'd be a disaster" Astra nodded in understanding, not being entirely certain of where the conversation was going.

"Well I was looking for tour dates and stuff for that band you got me into, Kraken-Force….They're not coming to Menagerie but one of their usual warm up acts are; I looked into it and some maniac is actually gonna pull it off-"

"A music festival on the island?" Astra asked, pulling away from Wolfram to sit up in genuine interest "How come nobody has heard about it?"

"The advertising has been really bad, it's the first event so it's almost a trial run" Wolfram shook his head "But it's not just a festival….Instead of paying Hunters to stand around doing nothing they're actually gonna be hosting exhibition matches, it's gonna be like a low budget, mini Vytal festival….I was looking at the names of some of the people and one of them was a Halo Academy student around the same time as your brother, maybe a couple years under him"

"That's awesome!" Astra exclaimed, sea-green eyes suddenly bright as the possibilities raced through their mind, as they glanced around the interior of the sky-bus they saw for the first time, as their attention had previously been directed towards Wolfram that many of their fellow passengers did indeed seem to be the sort of crowd that the Deer Faunus would have expected to see at a concert headlined by some of his favourite bands, may of them wearing t-shirts and other merchandise in support of those musicians whilst others still sported emblems representing the Hunters that they intended to support; Astra's excitement only increasing to almost frenetic levels as they realised that they recognised more than emblems from tournaments that they had watched as a child and young teen. Any comparisons between what had occurred under the supervision of Persian Green at his monstrous colosseum were rendered null and void as Astra was quickly reassured that this was an altogether different venture.

"So….not bad for a first date right?" Wolfram voice had an edge of uncertainty to it that Astra was not sure that they had ever heard before and quickly reassured him by leaning into him for comfort again and nodding enthusiastically.

"It's great" they assured him earnestly, managing a genuine laugh as they added "Definitely better than dinner and a movie"

"Oh I was hoping you'd say that" Wolfram breathed out a sigh of relief before idly rubbing at the shorn sides of their blue-grey hair and adding "I was uh….Actually thinking about seeing if I can get in on the exhibition matches, see if anyone is doing a 'take all comers' type thing y'know?"

"You don't have to show off for me, I already think you're cool" Astra noted, teasing yet entirely honest in their assertion though Wolfram merely shrugged.

"Yeah but….Team WULF's mission was a joke, the supplies we shipped were important but I need to something more hands on or I'm gonna end up like this guy" he gestured at the Hunter who was currently acting as the sole form of security on the unarmed and lightly armoured sky-bus; a middle-aged man whose armour and weapon had clearly seen better days and only added to the suggestion that their owners' career had peaked several years ago that had been created initially by the fact that the qualified Grimm Hunter was doubling as a flight attendant and in charge of the trolley serving refreshments. Astra had been raised by firmly working class parents, their mother being a waitress and their father being a unionised dockworker before opening his own business a mechanic, further to this the Deer Faunus had taken many lessons on board from their half-brother who had been adopted by none other than Blake Belladonna, one of the most famous Faunus rights activists on the face of Remnant so to say that such comments rankled Astra was a vast understatement.

"Come on Wolfie the guy's just trying to make a living" they noted, clearly displeased.

"I get that but….come on, is that what you picture yourself doing as a Hunter?" Wolfram replied and Astra found themselves silent for a moment as they tried to formulate an answer that argued their case whilst still being honest, a more difficult prospect that it first seemed as Astra could not see themselves taking on such a mundane role after their graduation.

The disagreement was cut short seconds later by the sky-bus lurching violently in the air and pulling strongly to one side.

"The hell was that?" Wolfram demanded "Turbulence?"

"No, it felt deliberate" Astra noted, already on their feet as instinct and a desire to do something took hold, a feeling that was only amplified by the vocal and urgent panic beginning to set in amongst their fellow passengers and the fact that the Hunter had vanished into the cockpit to confer with the pilot. The aircraft lurched again and this time Astra caught sight of a flash of bright light surging upwards within less than a dozen meters of the sky-bus which was followed immediately by a series of sirens and alarms blaring which only added to and intensified the noise filling the passenger compartment.

"Everyone be quiet!" Wolfram barked, voice authoritative and commanding as they made their way to where the Hunter had been stationed "Everyone needs to stay calm!"

"Panicking will only make the situation worse" Astra added, flashing their scroll and hoping that nobody was astute enough to notice that what they posited as a Hunter's licence was in fact their student identification "There're Hunters on board and more Hunters at our destination, the situation is under-"

"EVERYONE IN YOUR SEATS, BUCKLE UP AND BRACE FOR IMPACT!" the Hunter who had temporarily vanished declared as they returned from the cockpit, face ashen and expression bleakly resigned "We have Grimm on the ground, security for that concert you're all going to obviously didn't sweep a wide enough-" The explanation was cut short by another trembling motion of the sky-bus and flash of light, this one leaving Astra blinded as it erupted upwards through the floor; a direct hit that not only tore through the hull of the aircraft but also struck the Hunter mid-sentence, leaving his yells of pain added to cacophony of terror that filled Astra's ears until it was drowned out by the howl of rushing air and the unmistakable sensation of falling as the sky-bus, now broken almost entirely in half began to plummet towards the ground.


Regalia almost regretted the fact that she had ridden Clunker into the city, simply due to the fact that now she was once again at the freight docks she was being given the occasional sideways glance and derisive sneer that made it abundantly clear that her previous exploits would not be forgiven or forgotten any time soon.

The Racoon Faunus had, as planned ventured into the Capital City alone shortly after Astra and Wolfram had departed so that she might attend to a few small matters of no great concern to anyone other than herself such as finding a post office from which she could ship a collection of small items she had fabricated in recent weeks in order to repair or replace old and worn components of the enormous dune crawler that her people called home along with several other trinkets to a village that Clan Aiktishaf were known to visit on occasion so that they would find her way to her mother and the other leader of her nomadic clan. After these and an assortment of other mundane tasks that were still interesting to Regalia simply due to how little experience she had of them she had finally her way to the docks where she had arranged to meet with Laser and Ursinia so that the three of them could once again sample the food at the small diner that they eaten at previously; the owner of the family run business had informed the three of them on their last business that she made something special on weekends to cater to those dockworkers unfortunate enough to have been scheduled to work on those days and Regalia had naturally found herself drawn to the prospect.

Which was largely how the Racoon Faunus came to be seated outside the diner, resting on Clunker whose Dust-powered engine had fallen silent and enjoying a relatively cool breeze by the standards of the Island Kingdom as she enjoyed a crab dish, something that she had never experienced before with the two members of Team WULF she was the closest to sat beside her on chairs that had been brought outside for the benefit of the customers; though Regalia would freely admit that she was poor company at that moment were she paying attention to anything happening in the immediate vicinity.

"Still with us there?" Laser's nasal tones cut through her unfocused musings "Sizing up everything that's not bolted down is kinda my thing….but if you've got a headache, I think I've got some painkillers, the good ones that they keep in medical-"

"And pray tell how you came by those, varmint?" Ursinia drawled managing to sound conversational and nonchalant yet at the same time utterly menacing as she loomed over her team-mate, tail rattling in a way that made him instantly stop rummaging through the seemingly infinite pockets, hidden and otherwise of the bomber jacket he wore; a garment that Regalia had learned featured its' own internal cooling system amongst the countless other tricks, gadgets and trinkets that Laser kept on his person.

"I'm okay" Regalia assured him "Just looking at that crane" she pointed at a truly behemoth piece of machinery out in the distance yet still within the expansive domain of the docks, Laser watched the crane in question lift a series of shipping containers and promptly drew a conclusion so laughably wrong that it was certainly intentional.

"You thinking of scoring big, we could definitely make some line if we had one of those on hand" Ursinia let out a wordless sigh as she pulled her hat low over her face in a display of exasperation which made Regalia laugh out loud, the interactions between the oddly matched pair always interesting to watch.

"I'm thinking about what my people could do with something like that" she answered eventually "If we could fit a crane that size onto the Aiktishaf, maybe onto some of the old turrets used to be….we could clear out whole new routes"

"Hell, it'd make life easier on the farm for my parents now I'm not around to do the heavy lifting" Ursinia drawled, Laser paused for a moment as if considering giving a less than serious answer to draw attention away from the circumstances of their childhood before deciding that his friends knew enough already and had more than earned his honesty.

"Yeah some heavy equipment would really help on the overspill….We could actually clear out all the collapsed sections, clear out the Grimm that are hiding in the ruined ships and turn it into something people can actually live in" he sighed as he removed curved and heavily tinted visor from over his vibrant, almost poisonously greenish-yellow eyes and ran a hand through his spidery mess of chemical yellow hair.

"Maybe one day we can help" Regalia beamed brightly, nudging his shoulder gently "If there's one thing my people know about it's finding a way"

"Thanks" Laser nodded before searching for a distraction from the suddenly too-serious conversation and finding one in the way Regalia practically inhaled the remainder of her food "Where the hell do you even put it all?"

"Heh, was just hungry I guess" she shrugged

"But you eat absolute garbage and walk around with abs you could wash clothes on….makes the rest of us look bad" Ursinia laughed as she gestured to the tank-top Regalia wore under the leather jacket she had inherited from her mother, the garment shortened to expose her midriff and reveal just how lean and well defined her muscles truly were. She would have blushed at the unexpected compliment were it not for the fact that her attention had been swiftly redirected by a new arrival.

"Wait here" she murmured, almost inaudibly as her gaze honed in on a group of figures seemingly returning to work from a smoke break, passing by the diner as they made their way into the endless maze of shipping containers. A small group of men and women numbering roughly half a dozen all of whom were clad in black overalls with balaclavas resting atop their heads, rolled up to resemble woollen hats; flanking the group were a pair of Atlesian Knights of an older model whose shoulder mounted weapons swept the area around them and if the presence of the automatons were not enough to raise Regalia's suspicions then apparent leader of the group most certainly was. A redhead woman of an indeterminate age marched ahead of the rest of the group with her overalls partially opened to combat the heat whilst under it the racoon Faunus saw that she wore what was clearly a tactical vest of a design similar to that which Athena-Jade wore although of a much lower quality; whilst the Racoon Faunus would freely admit that her knowledge of fashion within the Kingdoms was likely outdated she could still see no reason for the armour, not for the various weapons that the group of supposed dockworkers had secreted on their person.

She had pulled Clunker into position and slung a leg over the jetbike before she had even made a conscious decision.

"What're you doing?" Laser demanded, hand clamping over one of the bikes' handlebars as instincts that had been honed within the blood and treachery of the Vaccuan Overspill and the heart of the desert Kingdom itself made him instantly aware that something risky was about to take place.

"I might be wrong" Regalia answered hesitantly before setting her jaw and lowering her goggles "But I think those guys are the same people who were running the Grimm fight club"

"Well now….no sense in standing here wobbling our jaws then" Ursinia declared, reaching over her shoulder to grasp the hilt of The Adventurer in a display of gung-ho intensity that at first seemed at odds with her usual demeanour until her friends realised that this was likely the exact kind of adventure or intrigue that she had been craving since leaving her sleepy rural homestead; which left Laser Greenback, thief, sneak and opportunist supreme in the rare and unenviable position of being the voice of reason.

"We can't just chase down dockworkers and go in guns blazing" he noted, raising a hand to cut off any complaints "So we'll follow them….and we'll be quiet about it"

"Okay fine" Regalia nodded, preparing to pull Clunker along beside her rather than bring its' engine roaring to life whilst also finding her Scroll so that she could send a text message to Athena-Jade or Zirconia in case the three of them found themselves in need of assistance.


Athena-Jade's workout session had been one of her lighter and more relaxed routines, though still a thoroughly enjoyable one which had left her muscles burning with a deep, thrumming ache that felt to the Bear Faunus like vindication and a tangible proof of progress. Rather than spend an almost comical amount of time either bench-pressing dead-lifting or squatting with a barbell whose contents bordered on both dangerous and ludicrous as many people often assumed she did upon seeing the sheer size of Athena-Jade's shoulders, arms and legs along with the rare peek at her sculpted back muscles the snowy haired young woman had instead focused on cardio before turning her attention to the heaviest available punchbag and practising dozens of combinations of fluid strikes from all angles in her distinctively dazzling and eye-catching style of fighting. Athena knew well that simple brute strength alone was far from enough to ensure victory, especially with her often-teased lack of height and so she had studied and developed a technique lent reach and unpredictability to her natural athleticism as well as, if she were entirely honest with herself simply looked every bit as impressive as a Hunter in motion ought to.

The time spent in the gym had not been solely for the sake of keeping up her demanding training regimen, the press and their attempt to circle around her and Zirconia like vultures as they simply enjoyed dinner together as friends had served as an unpleasant and unwelcome reminder that as a child of the Schnee family she was and would always be a public figure no matter how little the attention appealed to her; however whilst far from as mysterious as her partner Athena had been taught the subtle art of misdirecting and almost herding the worst of the media from none other than Whitley Schnee himself and as such the Bear Faunus had taken several photographs and short videos of her training session which had been promptly posted to social media accounts which she almost never used, allowing herself a small and toothy smile at the knowledge that the footage of her unleashing a series of acrobatic kicks, many of which were delivered from a handstand whilst wearing yoga pants would give the tabloids and other peddlers of gossip something new to talk about for long enough to forget their current misinformed obsession.

With her workout and small bout of subterfuge taken care of the Bear Faunus was currently walking out of the gym at a slow pace, taking a sip of water and largely distracted as she thumbed her scroll, texting some of her fellow students outside of her usual friend group of Team MARZ and Team WULF to see if anybody was interested in a game of basketball on the academies' court.

Only to be brought to a halt by someone colliding with her with a jarring amount of force.

"I'm so sorry-what the hell Diabla!" Athena's tone changed from apologetic to infuriated the moment she realised the identity of the person who had caused her to spill the contents of her water bottle all down the front of her clothes. Diabla herself merely rolled her shoulders back, further cementing the idea that she had barged into Athena deliberately whilst her usual scowl morphed into a confident smirk and her fiery orange eyes seemed to shine, giving her a striking appearance that was made only more imposing by the thin scar that curved around the edge of her right cheekbone.

"Oh I'm sorry" she sneered, every syllable dripping with sarcasm and venom "I didn't realise the rest of us were supposed to step aside, we wouldn't want to interrupt your workout….I'm guessing it's thumb day?"

"Y'know what" Athena reared up to her full but unimpressive height, searching for a suitably witty and scathing retort to the jibe before realising that nothing in her own extensive vocabulary would have the desired effect and she lacked Astra's occasional gift for one-liners or Zirconia's cutting observations; so instead she simply shook her head and sighed before adding "Piss off"

"What's the matter rich kid?" Diabla sneered "There's a ring free, come and get some real exercise….or don't you have time for any actual work in your busy schedule"

"Okay I don't know what you're problem is and I really don't care" Athena stepped forward and prodded a finger into Diabla's chest, her rising temper allowing her to ignore the small crowd of students stepping away from the various weight and machines to watch the situation unfold.

"I worked for my place at this academy, I earned this just as much as you did and I'm getting really sick of you acting like I've gotta prove myself to you….who even are you really? Just an annoying little pest who's angry at everything because you've got no social skills and no friends who aren't literally forced to deal with you" she jabbed as Diabla's chest again, a slight pang of guilt accompanying her words as she ripped into where she thought the taller and leaner girls' insecurities might lie only for it to be submerged beneath a burning, righteous fury. Diabla herself merely rolled her neck with an audible crack and leaned in close.

"Fuck you, fuck this academy and fuck everyone here. This wasn't my first choice and I didn't come here to make friends-"

"Good for you, I don't care" Athena snapped, barging passed Diabla and driving her muscular shoulder into her upon deciding that turnabout was fair play; from there she stormed out of the gym, sapphire eyes narrowed in frustration that Diabla, whatever her problems might be could get under her skin so easily with her constant needling; even as a Faunus within the upper echelons of Atlesian society one of the privileges Athena was most thankful for was that she had never truly felt as though she had been bullied. Her steadily darkening thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a text message, which she initially assumed was a response to her own offers to meet her classmates only to be mildly surprised to see that it was Regalia; she had left the Racoon Faunus's offer to join her in the city later on open ended though the idea that the former nomad who rarely used her scroll would text her to get an answer seemed odd somehow.

Before she could read the contents of the message a light brown hand with a crushing grip closed around her wrist and dragged her off-balance.

"We weren't done" Diabla snarled, having evidently followed Athena and now wearing a truly murderous expression upon her plans to publicly thrash the Bear Faunus backfiring and leaving her stood amidst her fellow students both looking and feeling something of a fool. In retaliation she casually plucked Athena's scroll from her grasp, only for the Bear Faunus to break free of her grip on her wrist and immediately prepare to lunge at her, Professor Altan's warnings be damned.

"Wait!" Diabla snapped.

"What? You just tried to rob me, you-"

"Shut up and listen!" Diabla yelled, thrusting the device back into Athena's hand "Read it, your idiot of a team-mate is going to do something that puts Ursinia and Laser at risk"

"What the heck" Athena mouthed, mind racing in a futile attempt to keep up with the situation as she frantically read the text message and saw, with increasing panic that Regalia was indeed about to try and spy on what she believed to be the same group of criminals that Team MARZ had encountered on their mission and was asking for both Athena and Zirconia to come and lend their skills.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it" she whispered under her breath whilst quickly typing a message to Zirconia instructing her partner to bring Mould Breaker from Team MARZ's dorm and meet her at the main entrance as soon as possible only for Diabla to intrude upon her thoughts once again the moment the message was sent.

"So what's the plan?"

"What?" Athena cocked her head, utterly perplexed.

"The plan rich kid!" Diabla looked as though she might punch something at any moment "We're going in as reinforcements….Did you seriously think I was gonna sit here and leave team-mates behind?"


Astra's senses were jarred and rattled to the point of uselessness as they tried to dig themselves free of the mangled wreckage of the sky-bus whilst barely capable of discerning which way was up. Their vision was riddled with specks of light after the attack that had torn through the hull of the aircraft and their ears rang whilst their sense of direction had been entirely lost as the sky-bus spiralled and fell; leaving the Deer Faunus nauseous and disoriented with their fiery red Aura flickering around them but ultimately holding firm as they clawed, scrabbled and forced their way out into open air, flopping onto the cracked and baking ground with a gasp as they took stock of their situation as well as possible and concluded that though every part of their body was in pain they did not seem to be suffering from any particularly grievous injuries. The sound of scraping steel cut through the haze and ringing that filled their senses and Astra turned towards where they thought the source of it might be, vision slowly returning to them even as a sense of dreadful familiarity set in as their addled mind gave unbidden comparisons between their current predicament and having to dig themselves out of the ruins of the Desert Claw only weeks prior.

"You're okay" Wolfram's currently disembodied voice let out a sigh of relief and a moment later Astra found themselves hauled to their feet as they blinked away the final few spots from their vision and the blurry shape before them coalesced into that of Team WULF's leader, black t-shirt he had worn in place of his usual armour ripped and sporting a bloody gash along his left cheek whilst Berserker was already in hand in its' sword and shield form.

"What the hell happened?" Astra demanded, jaw twinging with each word in a way that suggested that the bone might have been cracked or bruised in the fall.

"Grimm" Wolfram answered simply, wiping his cheek and inadvertently smearing blood across his face as he added "Whatever they were they've got a ranged attack, that's what brought us down….the security for the festival must have cleared the Grimm in the immediate area and the roads but not accounted for air-traffic"

"And so everyone flying towards the festival, already pumped up for the show looks like a big target to the Grimm that were pushed back" Astra surmised, disjointed fragments of what the older, somewhat passed his prime Huntsman overseeing the flight had managed to explain before being caught in the barrage of attacks.

"Exactly….and we've got another problem" Wolfram nodded whilst turning to point behind him and in doing so reveal that he was limping slightly.

"Oh shit" Astra breathed out, the sight of the passengers; many of whom had clearly been pulled from the wreckage by Wolfram himself forced the Deer Faunus's mind to snap into sharp and unrelenting focus, the last of their rattled daze being forced aside by the sight of a small crowd of men and women, most of whom were injured to various degrees and some of them in clear need of urgent medical attention huddled fearfully together and staring at the pair of first year students with wide, frightened eyes in a silent plea for help and leadership rather than the qualified Hunter supposedly in charge of the situation whose armour was a twisted and blackened mess through which blood spilled in a steady stream from countless injuries they had already suffered, revealing that his Aura was unequivocally broken.

Astra rapidly began to regret trying to pass their student identification off as a license before the crash.

"Okay, we can't stay here, even if the Grimm aren't drawn to the crash there's no way that the engines aren't gonna go up in smoke after a crash like that" Astra stepped forwards, trying to hide how much they swayed on their feet and inspire some sense of confidence is the people counting on them as they addressed the older, bloodied Hunter "Have you called in for backup?"

"I have" he managed to wheeze out, blood trickling from his lips as he shrugged off the pilot and co-pilot attempting to administer what limited first aid they could "We've got the transponder so we can set off get away from here before the Dust ignites on those engines without worrying about our evac missing us-"

"But can we move all of these people" Wolfram asked, trying not to dampen the sense of optimism as he knew what that would entail though still unable to ignore the fact that at least one untrained civilian was suffering a broken leg, to so nothing of the woman he suspected to have a spinal injury or the pair of unconscious teens.

"We've got stretchers" the co-pilot, clearly injured and bleeding profusely herself declared "We keep several medical kits in the cockpit and we managed to secure those before we went down"

"Okay that's good" Astra nodded, allowing them a slight breath of relief only for it to be undercut by the next words of the Hunter whose name they were yet to learn who used the ruined and inoperable remains of his weapon as a crutch as he attempted to stand despite the chunk of his own armour jutting from his abdomen where the blast that had felled the sky-bus had struck him directly.

"Only one problem, we were close enough to where we were heading that that's the nearest place we're gonna find any help….but that's the direction that the Grimm were coming from; so either we fight through 'em or we take the long way and I don't wanna lie to you kids, a few of these people need a doctor now; I don't think they'll survive the long way"

"Then we fight through 'em!" Wolfram snarled, grip on his axe tightening "Are you a Hunter or not? This is what we trained for!"

"He's right" Astra nodded, albeit more diplomatically than his fellow team leader "If that's the only way to get people to safety then that's what we'll do….Wolfram, help me start getting people onto stretchers, we're gonna have to see who's well enough to help us carry the others"

Neither teen had chance to move before a low, dull trumpeting cry filled the air; sending a palpable wave of panic through the huddled survivors.

"Looks like we're fighting then" Wolfram's voice took on a manic, almost unhinged edge as he widened his stance and bared his teeth in the direction of the unseen threat. Astra unfurled Buckshot Ares, silently glad both that they had brought their weapons and that they were undamaged after the crashed. Beside them both the injured Hunter proved himself to be more than his appearance would suggest as he made himself ready for battle despite barely being able to stand without aid, wiping away blood that had begun to stain his greying beard whilst giving both Astra and Wolfram a stern glare that dared them to challenge his actions as he finally forced his weapon to shift into the form of club with a spiked head, damaged components screaming in protest as they did so.

"I see 'em" he murmured gruffly "A whole herd of 'em" Astra peered into the horizon where a cloud of dust had been kicked up into the air by the stampeding charge of the monsters responsible for their current predicament; large, bulky and muscular things whose saurian appearance made Astra grin despite themselves as they remembered a movie that they had watched with Regalia, one that was regarded as a classic and featured a line which they repeated, feeling that the situation called for it and that their partner would appreciate the detail when she learned of this.

"They're uh….they're herding this way"

Author's Notes:

Well, two chapters into Vol.02 and we're already having a grand old time aren't we?
Seriously, my overall plan for this story is gonna have a slower pace to FADE or Downward Spiral but at the same time….Vol.01 chapter 02: AJ and Astra get to Breaktide and we meet Regalia and Wolfram (With a subtle introduction to Zirconia) Vol.02 chapter 02: Antics galore.
Also I'm writing this on July 10th 2021, which means I just saw the Vol.09 sneak peak and the announcement for Arrowfell yesterday….I said it on Tumblr but the girl-gang in Arrowfell are a better Powerpuff Girl reboot than the CW show.

But anyway, let's summarise shall we?:
I didn't know if I wanted to call this chapter Bad Romance or the next chapter which has the conclusion of the date gone wrong.
Of course people were taking bets on these two dorks.
Wolfram isn't as completely self-assured as you'd think, at least not about everything.
Okay but Coral was an absolute joy to write in this chapter and the differences between her and the other two Schnee/Slate kids coming from the fact that she doesn't have the pressures and workload of being a Hunter are fun to show off, she's closer to a normal teenager despite everything she's dealt with.
I was gonna have Astra in a skirt for the date but compromised and gave 'em something they can kick in, also heels are definitely off the table.
I know a Hunter's outfit is usually just as personal as their weapons but you can't tell me these kids don't swap accessories for dates and parties.
Coral is never gonna let AJ forget the haircut she gave herself in chapter 01.
Trust Coral, she will get you the slow motion hot-person entrance you were going for.
AJ is bi and she has absolutely told her sister that literally everyone at the academy is absurdly hot….seriously, it's the Olympic village for superheroes.
Yeah Diabla is up at Jesus o'clock even on weekends.
So we get a tiny little bit more insight into Diabla, she was basically raised by Atlas military, her first choice for academies was Atlas and she basically feels like she's lost control of her life and note that when she says she has no family she doesn't actually say that they're dead.
There is actually art of Nugget the Chicken Faunus on Tumblr.
Okay so the thing is Diabla has kinda got a point to an extent, except she's disregarding changed behaviour.
Hidden features in Zirconia's legs, it's more likely than you think.
She tries so hard to be cool and above it all….but she's a dork who misses home.
Chairman Damascus Nero, we're getting introduced to him slowly; we won't actually get a face reveal for a while.
"Don't congratulate sloppily done work, it sounds condescending at best" okay let's be real, that's something I could hear Winter saying.
"Bloggers are discussing me in their accursed social media tripe about 'grind culture', whatever that is" is a perfect 'Dad' sentiment, but also fuck grind culture.
"The paradox of wanting things to be handled by trustworthy people and at the same time having almost nobody to trust, it means you have to do everything yourself" or as we say in Yorkshire "If tha wants owt doin' reight then do it thi'sen"
So this is the guy who's been buying up the business of the people who were backing Persian Green, what do we think of him? I wanted to try give of the vibe of the two of them loving each other like family but there also being something maybe a little amiss there.
Nothing like a date to kill chemistry.
Upload and Ethernet Festivals or references to Download and Wireless festivals in the UK.
Also I feel like the justifications I gave were both plausible and a fun bit of world-building.
Of course Wolfram wants to jump in the arena and fight, he's wanted to every since he heard Astra did it.
And here we see some of Wolfram's dickhead tendencies.
Astra's parents raised 'em right.
Astra flashing his ID like it's a license is a callback to the "I'm a Hunter….kinda" in chapter 01.
"The situation is under-" why did that have the feel of a John Mulaney routine.
Yeah this is only a few days after the last chapter, long enough for everyone to know about Regalia's little stunt and not long enough for anyone to have forgotten.
You tell this hungry little explorer that there's a Saturday special then you'd better make enough for a second helping.
Laser would absolutely loot the medical wing for anything that wasn't immediately lifesaving just so he's got things like painkillers and Aura stimulants on him if he needs them.
How strong is Ursinia? So strong you need a crane meant for shipping containers to replace her.
Yeah just a reminder for the builds of Team MARZ; Astra is lean and athletic, AJ is short but bulky and kinda thicc, Regalia is absolutely shredded with a six pack she shows off and Zirconia is kinda curvy and still in shape.
Well, we knew that this was gonna happen the second that we heard Regalia was going back to the docks and those people are definitely involved with Grapeshot and Carmesi's operation, their benefactor confirmed as much last chapter.
Oh you know it's bad when Laser is the voice of reason.
Let's be clear AJ can bench a truck, she just chose not to today and decided to show off her Capoeira on the bag instead.
Whitley Schnee is, in my head the master of handling PR.
Now I'm sure "Show off in yoga pants" is not the exact lesson Whitely taught his niece but it will absolutely give the media something else to talk about.
Enter Diabla, just being herself
"Thumb day" is a great insult for gym-heads it really is.
Oh AJ went for the neck….that's her nastiest put down since her sparring match with Astra on the first day.
Yeah nobody bullied AJ at school, there were some uncomfortable moments in history lessons but she's been able to throw hands from a young age and she has claws for fingernails.
The sheer audacity of Diabla, robbing a scroll and then saying wait, how dare….
Does Diabla have a soft spot for her team or is just a case of being raised in the military for years and having "Nobody gets left behind" instilled in her.
Petition to stop having Astra buried or trapped in wreckage.
First time hosting a big festival outside of the settlements on the island and it was organised by people who don't live there, mistakes were made.
Yeah those civilians got pretty mangled.
So the plan was gonna be to fight through the Grimm or get around them to get the civilians to where the festival was taking place and have the Hunters already there back them up, now it looks like two first year students and a half-dead pro are gonna have to hold the line because the Grimm came to them, and these Grimm clearly have a ranged attack that's basically just 'Hyper Beam'.
The Hunter's weapon looks a little like one of Rhodes's maces in my head.
Yay for dinosaur Grimm….and yay for Jurassic Park references.

Thank you to SumoSnipe and Funlander for their reviews on the last chapter.
He is a compulsive swindler….But he did also have the good sense to bring a six foot six tower of beefy-Scorpion with him.
Also the general rough and readiness of blue collar workers like dockworkers, factory workers, miners and so on probably does give a lot of cover to criminals working in those groups/places since outsiders looking in can't tell one group from the other.
You have no idea how mysterious Zirconia's straw buying habits can be.
Funnily enough I wouldn't even say Carmesi was insulting the students….He was giving an accurate appraisal of the students and insulting the people he'd just watched get gutted, crushed, decapitated and melted….Which is honestly not better.

As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.