The door of a bearded man's room opened, and his special group appeared, with their leader dragging an older man by the collar, though the latter didn't put up any resistance. The man was then thrown to the floor, and his glasses fell from his face.

The bearded man was busy typing on his laptop, but he paused to smirk at what happened. They were right on time; he was just about done with his work. And he would have done the same thing his agents did, along with a lot more force.

"Welcome back," he said to his group. He was the highest ranking general in the Atlas army, but the job came with boundaries that he always found suffocating; what he wouldn't give to have the same leeways he enjoyed during his time at black ops. But he wouldn't be dealing with any restrictions tonight. He and his special squad were currently deep in a secure location, wearing their undercover operations clothes instead of the standard white and blue Atlas army uniforms, doing what they did best. "How was the mission?"

"We didn't encounter any problems, sir." The leader was a man named Clover Ebi, with short brown hair and teal green eyes. "He hid himself deep inside an abandoned factory, but the extraction went as smoothly as it could."

"Did you find anything incriminating on him?"

"None, sir."

"I see." Nothing, hm? "Job well done in getting him here nonetheless, Clover. Now stand at ease, the three of you."

"Yes, sir." The three said in unison, and they did as commanded.

They weren't quite done here just yet, though. It wouldn't be right to send them off without their two other teammates, who were still looking for someone else; they should be reporting back shortly. Hopefully those two would also bring him good news. Because he was tired of sending reports to placate the royalty about the data breach that happened, assuring them that there was no attack from the other kingdoms, and that the data stolen was of little consequence in the grand scheme of things… So far it looked like he was keeping things under control, but it was a close call nonetheless.

A close call that he had no intention of repeating, which meant that loose ends had to be dealt with immediately, and that was what he was going to do right now. Setting aside his laptop after sending his last reply for the night, the bearded man then stared at the older man on the floor, and put his elbows on his desk, steepling his hands. "Long time no see, Sleet."

Wearing a suit with a grayish blue vest and a dark blue tie, Hale Sleet was still in his middle years, not that much older than Ironwood, though his graying hair and weak, lanky figure did him no favors. The look suited him, given his failure; Sleet picked himself up with a visible effort to hide his fear. "Yes… It's been a while, Ironwood."

James Ironwood spared a glance at his group. "How would you rate my team here? They're splendid Hunters, aren't they? All of them were diamonds in the rough, fated to languish in poverty had it not been for me. But look at them now. And you haven't even seen the other two, mind you. You should see them all in action. They're the finest aces in all of Atlas, and one of our kingdom's best kept secrets."

"…yes, I believe so too."

"I take it you know why they dragged you here, don't you? Did you really think you could hide from me?"

Sleet's eyes widened. "No, I wasn't trying to!"

"I'm sure you weren't." Sighing, Ironwood stood up from his chair and walked towards Sleet. "You should have told me immediately that you were no longer fit for the job. You know that I'm a fair man, I would have completely understood." Ironwood moved his hands as if he was talking to an audience, though his eyes were fixed only on Sleet. "I know being Atlas's Chief Security Officer is hard work. The job comes with a huge responsibility, and not everyone can have their opsec in good order. Only a few people are deserving of the job. Don't you agree?"

"Ironwood, I…"

"I had high hopes that you'll do well in it, because why else would I have gone through all that effort to put you there?" Ironwood clenched his fists. "But you were about to abandon me at the mere likelihood of everything getting exposed."

"No, it's not like that at all!"

Ironwood then stepped on Sleet's glasses, and they broke under his boot. "Then tell me what you were doing while hiding in the middle of nowhere, leaving me to answer to the royalty by myself."

"I… I was trying to solve this mess too, Ironwood!"

"You mean this mess that you yourself made?"

Sleet gulped as Ironwood now stood quite close to him, the latter's brow furrowing. "But I feared that others might find evidence that would link us together, so I thought it was best that we kept our distance. I swear that was it, nothing else!" He then made a deep bow, shaking as he did. "…I'm sorry, Ironwood. I didn't mean for the access keys to be jeopardized–"

"You moron!" A kick straight at Steel's bowed face sent the man falling to the ground. "You goddamn idiot!"

None of the three that brought Sleet to Ironwood reacted to it; they continued to stand at ease.

"How could you leave the access keys unsecured?!" Snarling, Ironwood kicked Sleet's chest, the memory of how all this happened sending him over the edge. "After all I've done to protect our research from other kingdom's eyes… Do you know what you've just allowed to happen?!"

"I found out something…" Sleet groaned. "I found out who did it… It was some old faunus…"

"I already know it was a faunus spy!" His eyes wide with rage, Ironwood kicked Sleet's side three more times. "But what use is that when that man got away with our plans?! He could be reporting it to his kingdom right now as we speak, and it's all thanks to you!" Now Ironwood kicked the man's back. "I ought to rip your throat out!"

"Ironwood…" Sleet raised his hands feebly, wincing from the pain. "I know I made a mistake, and I'm sorry… Please forgive me! I swear I wasn't running away! I wasn't trying to betray you!"

"You dare lie to me now?" Ironwood kicked Sleet one more time. "Do you really think I'm a fool?!"

"Please, Ironwood! I'm sorry! You know I'm loyal to you… I've always been loyal to you! Please… You have to believe me!"

"You want me to believe you?" The bearded man stopped his attack on Sleet, and breathed deep; he let a few moments pass. "Then stand up."

The cold sharpness of Ironwood's command made Sleet go back on his feet, though he kept groaning in pain as he did, his posture unsteady.

Ironwood then took out his dustmetal weapons from their holsters on his sides, unsheathing them in the process – they were large dual desert eagle handguns he called Eminent Domain – and pointed the one he held in his right hand straight at Sleet's face. "Now tell me why I shouldn't blast your head clean off," Ironwood growled, a metallic aura surrounding him. "Go on, convince me. Tell me that you're not dead weight at this point."

"…wait, don't! I'm sorry! Please don't do this!" With a barrel of a gun just a few inches away from him, Sleet raised trembling hands at Ironwood, and he recoiled so much that he fell again to the floor. "Please, Ironwood! Don't kill me! I'm sorry! I'll make it up to you somehow!"

"You're not convincing me very well."

"No, please don't!" Sleet cried out, literally begging for his life. "Please forgive me… Please! I'll do anything! Please give me another chance!"

"Then I'll ask you one more time. Did you plan on betraying me?"

"No! Never! I never planned to! I would rather die than do that… You have to believe me, Ironwood! Please! Please don't kill me!"

Ironwood shook his head. Only the fact that his agents found nothing on him – and that the two of them worked together for so long – kept Hale Sleet alive right now, aside from the faintest of hopes. But why even bother with this fool anymore? Ironwood knew he could kill Sleet right now, spare himself of this pathetic blathering, and no one would ever find his body… It would all be too easy.

But Ironwood lowered his weapon instead.

"…thank you." Sleet breathed a sigh of relief. Sweating, he then put an effort to show a small smile. "…you and me, right?"

"…"

"We've worked together for so many years, with you at the front lines as a Hunter, and with me working at the backend…" Sleet gulped again. "This isn't the first time we've encountered problems, but we've always seen them through, haven't we? You and I both know that we would never betray each other… Not when we share the same ideals…"

Ironwood began to reminisce. He first met Sleet after a mission involving the protection of key witnesses testifying against corrupt kingdom officials, which soon became a firefight as the criminals attempted an assassination. In the end Ironwood and his team got to save the witnesses and apprehend both the officials and the police protecting them; it was a famous case in Atlas. With Ironwood having led the operation, it was the catalyst of his rise through the ranks, all those years ago.

Sleet wasn't a Hunter, serving as a lowly assistant to one of those corrupt officials, but he had the skills Ironwood needed, and more importantly the man shared the same vision about what the world would become once the Grimm were finally put under control, so Ironwood had to shield the man from prosecution and place him under his wing. What Sleet once did to cover up the crimes of his superiors were now put into good use, and in many ways, Ironwood wouldn't be so close to achieving his dreams if it weren't for Sleet's talents. So maybe, despite his errors, he could prove useful still. Assuming he didn't do something completely stupid.

"We've made Project Collodi into a success too." Sleet's smile widened; he seemed to be getting his confidence back. "And we've also kept Polendina hidden from the outside too, especially from that meddling Colonel Hill."

Ironwood nodded. Robyn Hill was head of the 31st Atlas Brigade Combat Team, but also part of Internal Affairs; a woman too zealous in her job to ignore, and too high profile to just dispose of easily. So he had eyes keep a close watch on her, to make sure that she was never close to finding out the truth and threaten to derail their gains.

That was because Ironwood stumbled on something hidden deep underground, shortly after becoming a general, one that accelerated his dreams a thousandfold. It was a secret project named Project Collodi, made by an inhumane fool, one that had to be eliminated at first sight. And while Ironwood didn't hesitate to do so, the project itself held too much potential to be destroyed, so he took the thing for himself and spared the one other person working on it… An old scientist named Pietro Polendina, who was wise enough to transfer his loyalty whole the moment he realized that his original employer was dead.

Ironwood scowled briefly. Polendina was smart enough to appreciate the new goals he gave him, but there were others who couldn't, and he despised those people. As if peace could ever last without an iron hand and a grand vision at the helm. His critics were simply fools who could never handle a drop of blood on their hands, and they were limp at the wrist to boot. But he on the other hand was a real Hunter in all senses of the word. He made no compromises in his pursuit to eliminate any threat, Grimm or otherwise, and held a great love for Atlas to match, so it was only natural that the royalty would eventually understand his goals and give him their blessings.

Now the royalty didn't need to know everything of course; that was for the best. There were some things only he needed to know. And he certainly didn't need to explain to every soul in the world that his heart was in the right place. The fact that only he had the nerve to ask the hard questions to the royalty proved that his love for Atlas and its people were real. Or at least, only he had the will to act on it. And so he allowed Project Collodi to continue on with its experiments. The benefits it offered were just too great, and he would never make any apologies for what he chose to do. And why would he? This was all in the name of destroying the Grimm for good, and turning Atlas into the world power that it was meant to be, eclipsing all others… The success of M374 was a testament to his sincere efforts.

"Járnviðr is also ahead of schedule," Sleet continued. "While the public initially had a mixed reaction last month from its announcement, but now most of the neutrals are fully onboard with eradicating the Grimm… Our supporters within the royalty proved vital in convincing them. And progress on the weapon is almost at 100%, so it should be finished within a few days."

"Good." Járnviðr was something the Atlas military planned in secret long before Ironwood was born, though suspended indefinitely due to its technological failings. But that only made it easier for him to take control of that project, because why not? Utilizing the findings of Project Collodi, Járnviðr was restarted, and it was finally becoming the Grimm extermination weapon that it was meant to be, much to the royalty's delight; better late than never, he supposed. It was such a waste of tax money before he took over. In comparison, Project Collodi's creator used embezzled taxes to keep its secrecy, along with the funds of their special donor… Ironwood made efforts to keep the tax money flowing, but he also put that donor under a tight leash. Until now, unfortunately. There was another reason why he sent his agents out on a mission. "By the way, our donor disappeared yesterday without a trace."

"…what?"

"General Ironwood."

Ironwood turned to the two people that entered his office; a bald, thin man and a muscular woman with short brown hair in a ponytail. About time they arrived. They were the two remaining members of his special group, and Clover and the others quickly walked to the two to greet them. But they brought no captive, which didn't bode well. "Welcome back, Vine. I suppose he really did get away?"

"He's still here in Atlas, that we're sure of," the bald man said with a soft voice and a deep bow; Vine Zeki was always polite. "While we couldn't find him, there's no sign that he had left Atlas either. He's quite a famous man, and with Atlas still on high alert from the data breach, he would need a lot more help to escape the kingdom."

"I see." Ironwood slowly nodded. The news could've been better, but he accounted for this possibility nonetheless. "Did you find out how he got away from us, at least?"

"Now about that…"

Vine paused, and the stocky woman beside him spoke up, named Elm Ederne. "Yes, sir. We caught three of the last five guards who were with him and were left behind… We extracted enough info from them. We know exactly how and who helped him escape."

"Is that so, Elm? Then how did he do it?"

Elm looked at Sleet. "All of the guards that were with that man were actually working for Sleet, for one thing."

"That's not true!" Sleet screeched, now paler than a ghost. "That's a total lie! I would never do something like–"

But Ironwood gave a cold glare at Sleet, shutting him up, then he said to Elm, "Go on, continue."

Elm cleared her throat. "Anyways, they said that the two were supposed to leave the kingdom together due to Atlas's data breach, and they were supposed to leave on Sleet's signal. But the other man thought that things were taking too long, especially when Sleet hid himself so well they themselves didn't know where he was. That's when he took matters into his own hands, and our captives say he must have bribed his two other guards at the last minute to make his escape, for them to vanish so fast. But here's the kicker… Sleet planned on breaking away from you and right into Robyn Hill's arms, willing to confess everything in exchange for clemency."

A moment of silence, then Ironwood laughed.

"I'm sorry," Vine said. "But it's the truth."

"No, don't be." Composing himself, Ironwood turned towards Sleet. To think that he assumed that his old comrade wouldn't do something stupid… He would have wanted to continue in their current course, but many things had to be changed now because of this, and Ironwood's mind whirled to formulate a new plan. But he had a few words to say to Sleet first. "So you were covering your bases after all, you lying little bastard." He wasn't raging like earlier, but his tone was deathly serious. "And you dared think of going to that woman, of all people…"

"It's not like that, Ironwood! I would have never taken any deals with Robyn Hill seriously!"

"So you did plan on going to her, didn't you?!"

"But I would have kept her under the palm of my hand!" Sleet shouted, panting hard, and he was taken aback upon seeing that Ironwood didn't react. "Ironwood, please… You have to understand that I had to do it… Think of what you would have done if you were in my position!"

"If I was in your position, I wouldn't have been so stupid as to risk the access codes."

Sleet breathed hard. "I told him that he had to wait for my command, when I believed that the coast was clear…"

"He was a caged bird for a long time, Sleet. Whatever it was you told him, did you really think he would wait for you for long, when you dangled his escape so close to his hands?"

Sleet shook his head. "Those guards are just making it sound way worse… They're just lying to save their skins!"

"Yes, that's why they must be lying, right Sleet?" Ironwood still held his guns, so he still had his Semblance active all this time, and his metallic aura made him look all the more menacing. "Because the gods know that in my hour of weakness, the signs were there for you to make a run for it, even if it meant going towards my enemies, and if I found out that you were betraying me, then you'd have a lot to answer for, wouldn't you?"

"But I had to, Ironwood! I had no choice!" Sleet finally admitted it, and he had a look to him that told everyone that he deserved to do so. "You would have never given me the chance to explain at the state of mind you were in at the time! I know you too well… You would've killed me on the spot!"

"And why shouldn't I do that right now?"

"…!"

"Because for all that man's faults, at least he was wise enough not to listen to your plans of going to Robyn Hill, wouldn't you say?" Ironwood chuckled darkly. "So in the end, you planned to do to me what you did to your former boss, the very person I saved you from… How ironic."

"Ironwood…" Sleet had a panicked look on him, realizing that none of his words were working, that none of his bows were being acknowledged, and his eyes widened with fear upon seeing the glares from Ironwood's agents. "…please, listen to me! We would have returned to you immediately once I found out for sure that things were ok! I was only trying to check on the situation at a safe distance, that's all! I swear, that was the only thing I had in mind! Please, remember all I've done for you! You know I'm loyal to the cause! I know you're thinking that!"

Silence fell upon everyone, and Sleet gasped for breath.

Then suddenly, Ironwood smirked. "But do you really want to know what I'm thinking of, Sleet?"

Sleet was so shocked that he once again fell to the floor. "…wait, no! Don't–"

Sleet was then shot twice in the face, one from each of Ironwood's guns, and the old man's body crumpled.

"It had to be done," Vine said.

Ironwood sheathed his weapons and let go of his Semblance. Incompetence was one thing, but betrayal was the one thing he couldn't allow… What a mess Sleet had given him. And since he had to die, then his death might as well serve as an example to his very own Ace Operatives. Not that he believed that they would ever betray him, but it was better they saw this, for their own sakes.

Elm made a terse glance at the corpse. "We'll take care of that right now."

"He can wait." But what was done was done, and Ironwood had to make the most out of the situation; with Sleet dead, he finalized his new plan… It was an audacious one for sure. "I need to update the five of you with your new missions first, in light of what Sleet did."

Ironwood told them their main concerns. First was the issue with Robyn Hill, since Sleet thought of allying with her… What did she know? Second was to find their donor immediately; he needed to be found before he got any bright ideas. Both had to be dealt with while ensuring that the royalty and the public were kept unawares, which compounded their issues with the movements of the other kingdoms. Not a good situation to be in objectively. Then again, the Atlas public was ready, he still had his backup resources, Járnviðr was near complete, and M374 was ripe to be sent out in the field for combat… Well, why not be bold this time? And that was exactly what Ironwood told them. "Because we've come too far to be stopped now," he continued. "Regardless of this setback, never lose sight of the true prize. The Grimm must be eradicated, one way or another, and Atlas must become the rightful leader of the world."

All five of his Ace Operatives nodded.

"Just say the word, sir." A young faunus man with long dark green hair tied in a bun, dark complexion, and blue eyes said, his dog tail going up and down; none other than Marrow Amin. "I don't care if it's foreigners or the locals here in Atlas we have to fight. Whoever our enemies are, we'll crush them before they even realize that we were there."

"He's right. No one can stand up against us," said the other girl from Ironwood's group named Harriet Bree, a woman with light yellow and brown hair shaved on the sides, dark skin, and dark pink eyes. "You've trained us five into the best Hunters we could be, so there's no one out there we can't handle. We'll complete any task you give us, and we'll never fail you, unlike Sleet."

"We will accomplish your commands," Elm said.

"And our loyalty to you is absolute," Vine added.

"We're with you all the way," Clover thumped his chest with his fist. "We can never thank you enough for what you've done for us. Give us your orders, and we'll see them done."

"Thank you." Ironwood smiled. The loyalty they had for him was heartening – a devotion as sincere as his efforts to save them from poverty, many years ago – and it assured him of his righteousness. Sleet was right about one thing; Ironwood really had achieved so much, and he was so close to his dream. But he was very much in the wrong to have bailed on him so quickly… He could have learned a thing or two by seeing the dedication of his Ace Operatives. So much for the old fool claiming to have believed in his cause. But no matter. Ironwood had every intention to win, and maybe, in whatever part of hell he went, Sleet could now see the truth, and settle for watching Ironwood triumph over his enemies.

The bearded man gave out the rest of his commands.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Weiss went over a fallen log as they searched the nearest forest from where their train did a complete stop last night. She, Blake, and Yang had just arrived here, with helicopters sending out drones along with them to assist searching a wider area, but there was this feeling in Weiss's chest that they were just wasting their time here finding Ruby, which she immediately shook off. But that didn't change the fact that they had no idea where Ruby's teleport could have brought her, and Ruby's phone not responding didn't help matters one bit.

A sudden thought about Ruby having drowned far away in an ocean somewhere invaded Weiss's mind, and she blocked it off her head as quickly as it arrived.

Jaune and the others expressed their regrets, being completely cut off from the battle against Cinder, and Jaune especially could barely contain his guilt; his team was currently doing their own search on the opposite side of the area. Weiss wished she shared Jaune's optimism. As furious as he was at himself over what happened, and even though more than twelve hours had passed since she went missing, he still believed Ruby was nearby, just waiting for them to pick her up.

But at least Jaune had his team backing him. Compared to them, the solidarity Weiss had with Blake and Yang was… Less than ideal, if their arguing back and forth in their room last night was any hint. Tensions between the three of them were high ever since Ruby vanished.

Weiss brushed off the memory, and recalled the discussion they had with Ozpin and Glynda when they returned to Beacon. That proved not much better, as she had never seen them so unsure before. Other than finding out that their clients were Dust smugglers and were apprehended accordingly due to their hidden cargo, Ozpin and Glynda gave no answers as to who Cinder was and why she killed Leon, and only commanded them to find Ruby, investigate unusual activity while doing so, and wait for more information while keeping this incident secret. Well, that didn't sit well with Weiss at all, and why would it? Especially when Cinder was fixated on Ruby, as well as Yang telling them that Leon mentioned Ruby's mom Summer, and that Cinder referred to Ozpin by name… Surely those things meant something to them? And yet after all that, they were told to just wait, not tell any of the other Hunters of what happened, with nothing to tide them over for the meantime? Only Jaune giving her a look stopped Weiss from pressing the issue, and only just.

Who was Cinder anyway? Setting aside the fact that grafting Grimm to a human was actually possible, Weiss had never met anyone insane enough to even want it, much less one that wielded no less than four Semblances… Fire, ice, regeneration, and a speed blitz, all while wielding a dustmetal scythe. Fighting Cinder felt like fighting a hurricane, and that was with the woman clearly holding back. What about next time? Weiss didn't know if she would even last half as long at that point, much less protect the others.

Ruby, I'm sorry… For all their arguing back and forth, what Weiss and the others could agree on was that Cinder had messed with Ruby somehow for her to blink one last time, and everyone felt responsible for leaving Ruby alone against that woman. She clearly remembered that murderous look Ruby had; there was no other explanation, and Weiss could feel her own guilt weighing her down. She should have stopped Ruby. But Cinder was just too strong, and by the time Weiss recovered some of her strength back, it was already too late.

"You ok?"

Weiss was snapped out of her thoughts. She realized she was just standing there beside a tree, doing nothing. "…don't worry about me, Yang. I'm fine."

"Alright, because we don't have time to waste. We need to find Ruby as soon as possible." Yang paused, then began to mutter to herself; Weiss managed to pick up 'stronger' and 'destroy'…

"We all wish we were stronger," These past few days made Weiss more understanding of Yang's obsession with strength, mainly because weakness never helped anyone. "But our fight with Cinder is in the past, and with no leads, there's nothing else we can do but this." Well, Ozpin wasn't telling them anything, that much she was sure, but Weiss didn't want to sow any doubts right now. "Best we can do is trust that Ruby knows to control her blinks better. She did say that she was working on her teleports, right? Hopefully she's somewhere nearby." Weiss stifled another thought that they were wasting their time here. Ruby had to be found soon, because if she wasn't…

"Then let's go find her," Yang replied, and Blake followed suit with a nod.

Then two hours of searching the forest passed with nothing to show for it.

"Pyrrha just texted me about their current status," Blake said to Weiss, putting her phone back into her pocket. "She figured we have nothing, because they have nothing to report on their end either."

Weiss sighed, and looked at the blue sky, the chirping of the forest birds providing no comfort. She had just received a report just minutes ago too, about the drones finding nothing. The fact that it was Pyrrha who texted seemed to imply that Jaune wasn't giving up, though. Maybe. Or perhaps… Weiss tried not to think of the worst, but…

Ruby, where are you? Weiss suddenly felt like crying, and she quickly stifled that by biting her lip. Please… Tell me where you are, Ruby…

"Hey guys, take a look at this."

Weiss and Blake turned to find Yang observing the ground – the blonde was actually quite far away from where they stood – and went towards what she was looking at; two faint pawprints on dry soil. They looked like wolf tracks at first glance, except they were much larger than those left by any wolf Weiss knew of.

"A wolf?" Blake's eyes narrowed. "No, it can't be. Apex predators don't live within kingdom walls."

"Maybe some seller of exotic pets had some of his wolves escape?"

"…I don't think that's very likely, Yang."

"Why not?"

Blake seemed torn if she wanted to reply; Weiss meanwhile kept silent. Wolves and other wild carnivores lived in the wilderness, and they had no reason to risk their lives mingling with humans – much less be capable of sneaking past the walls – especially when wildlife had always coexisted peacefully alongside the Grimm, which never harmed them, ironically enough. Of course, it was still possible that these prints were from some escaped exotic pet, and that might very well be the truth, but Weiss's intuition told her it wasn't as simple as that…

Weiss happened to look at a nearby tree trunk.

And it was there, hidden by vegetation, she noticed something very familiar…

A beowolf's right palm print, its claws etched right through the bark.

Wait, how? They were within Vale's walls, and they weren't informed of any Grimm breaches, so how could this be here? Looking back at the two faint wolflike prints, Weiss noticed that they weren't very far apart from the one on the tree. More like a large body's distance away, actually. And yet she couldn't find a trace of a beowolf left palm print… These apparently had a pattern of… Three legs?

"What the…" Confused, Weiss searched the ground for more prints, with the other two following close behind. They didn't have to walk too far. The soil was poor in preserving the trail, and if it did it was incredibly faint, but yes, there seemed to be a pattern of something moving forward, of two wolf prints – they were from hind legs, upon closer inspection – along with a beowolf's right hand imprinted on soil and tree trunk. Still no sign of a fourth print, though…

Weiss then noticed that deep lines were alongside with the tracks this time, as if something large and sharp was being awkwardly dragged on the ground…

"…I heard beowolf howls while we fought Cinder."

"Wait, are you sure?" Weiss turned to face Blake. "Like, actual beowolves? Here inside the walls?"

"I know what I heard." So saying, Blake moved her cat ears up and down. "I understand that you guys don't have the ears for it, but I really heard two beowolf howls last night."

"And why are you telling us this now?"

"I thought at the time that it was from outside the walls, and fighting Cinder and finding Ruby made me forget," Blake said it as if stating the obvious. "And to be honest, I didn't think it would matter." Her amber eyes then stared at the tracks; it seemed she hardly believed it herself. "But seeing these pawprints, It seems I was wrong on that."

"…a beowolf? In Vale?" Weiss didn't think Blake would make up a story like that, but even with the evidence, surely no beowolf could have breached the walls by itself? Then again, Weiss had seen a woman grafted with a Grimm arm wield four Semblances at the same time… And that was the thing. This wasn't what Weiss hoped they would stumble on, but it was still something that needed to be reported nonetheless, because who knew what kind of monster left behind these tracks…

Weiss really didn't want to, but in accordance with their orders, she had no choice.

Weiss took out her phone. "Jaune, are you there? Alright, good. Listen, we found some Grimm tracks here in the forest… Yeah, you tell me what it means, I don't know either. But it's not like we can ignore this… No, Jaune. We're not giving up on her. We were ordered to check on other things if they popped up, remember? And these pawprints are the only thing we've found all day… Yes, I'm telling you, these are real tracks… Look, I know this is hard on everyone…" Weiss shook her head; Jaune was being difficult. "I can tell you right now that we'll find her. We will, I swear to you we will. Just trust me on this, ok? I went along with you during the meeting, so go along with me on this one. Don't report this to Ozpin just yet, ok? Good. I'll update you later."

Weiss hung up, and she was soon met by Yang's frown. "Hold up," the blonde said. "What did you just say?"

"We're going to investigate these tracks first. They're faint, but they might just lead us to something."

"But what about Ruby? Are you saying that we leave her behind?"

"No, of course not–"

"But that's what it sounded like. Didn't you just say we were going to find her?"

"Yang, we're just checking on–"

"Then why the hell are we abandoning Ruby?"

"I already said we're not doing that!" Weiss snapped.

"So why the sudden change of plans, huh?!" Yang carried her greatsword Embercleave on her right shoulder like always, but she seemed almost ready to point it at Weiss. "We still have a lot of area to go through, you know! We haven't even begun to search for her!"

Weiss tried her hardest to stifle her scowl. "Yang, please don't make this any more difficult than it already is."

"Aren't we going to at least go to the villages first before we go on some monster hunt? We can tell the drone operators to check!"

"The nearest villages are still many miles away from here," Blake said to Yang, in a rather blunt manner. "There's a good reason why we started our search from where the train stopped. Since Ruby could literally be anywhere, it's more practical to start at her last known location, then expand in all directions. Splitting up our resources to check on other things won't make us find her faster, yes, but if we have to do that anyways, then we might as well do it while looking for something we have more clues about."

"…what?" Yang's eyes widened with disbelief. "…what are you saying? Are you siding with Weiss?!"

"No, that's not what I meant."

"Well, you two may not think of Ruby much, but I do, ok?! I know I haven't been with her as much as I would have wanted, but Ruby reminds me of…" Yang suddenly stopped herself, then stomped her foot and kicked some dirt. "Damnit, I can't believe you guys! What the hell!"

"I'm not siding with anyone here." But this time it was Blake who seemed to be holding back her scowl. "Look at the situation logically. Ruby's important to us too, but if she–"

"I shouldn't have listened to you," Yang grumbled. "I should have taken out my bandages and burned Cinder when I had the chance!"

Blake's amber eyes widened. "You're blaming me for what happened to Ruby?!"

"Shouldn't I?"

"You really think you're strong enough? You can't even control your dragon without me!"

That clearly stung Yang harder than Weiss expected, and for a moment, she thought she saw the blonde getting ready to embrace her Semblance. "Blake, please control yourself…" Weiss said, not wanting her to agitate Yang any further.

"Really now?" Blake rolled her eyes, clearly not liking what she heard. "You're telling me this, and not her? Tch, you of all people would surely know about controlling oneself, wouldn't you Weiss?"

"And you think you know all about me, don't you Blake?" Yang shot back. "Stop being a know it all! Thanks for the training, but you still don't know a single shred about what I can do!"

Blake glared at Yang, and the blonde responded in kind; the faunus's right hand inched closer to her dustmetal weapon.

"Guys…" Weiss realized what was about to happen. "Stop, please…"

A cold wind passed by, and the two continued to ignore Weiss.

"Please stop! Both of you!" Weiss pleaded.

Still nothing, as Blake and Yang sized each other up.

"Damnit, you two! I said stop it! Stop!" Weiss yelled, physically separating the two now, and this at least made them look at her instead. "Can't the three of us not fight for once? Ruby would be crying right now if she saw us like this!"

An awkward silence followed.

"…please, let's not fight." Weiss had more than enough of that last night. Were they still going to do this every few hours? "I'm sorry that Ruby's missing, ok? But please calm down, both of you." Weiss made sure to tap a gentle hand on both Blake and Yang's shoulders. "Ruby wouldn't want us bickering and arguing over her like this." But if that did happen, then Ruby would have gone out of her way to reconcile them, like she always did whenever they argued.

Though if you can help it, being more patient with them goes a long way. I know they're good in their own way, and I'm sure these two will pick up on your goodwill sooner or later. Just look at the good side of things… Yang can't be that bad, you know?

And Blake too, of course. Weiss recalled Ruby's words, fully aware that she didn't have close to this much patience back when she studied at Laran. Goodwill… Weiss tried her best to take that to heart, ever since Ruby brought it up.

"Ruby really brought a ragtag bunch like us together, huh?" Weiss said to her teammates; a rhetorical question intended to bring back memories of their time studying in Beacon. And it worked, as both Blake and Yang were calmer now, which made things a lot easier. "Makes one wonder what she saw in us. But whatever it was, I don't plan on disappointing her, because I sincerely believe that we can't be this bad."

Blake slowly nodded.

"…sorry," Yang replied, scratching the back of her head. "…I guess we're all on edge."

"I know, believe me. Last night didn't do us any favors. But even so, can we work together in finding her without getting into each other's throats? It's the least we can do."

"…we can," Blake answered, as she glanced solemnly at the distance. "We will."

"We should," Yang added. "…because Ruby would trip on her own two feet doing so if she was here."

"Yeah, she would have. Though she really tried her best not to bump on other people, you know? Even when she doubted herself too much." Weiss chuckled at that, then quickly felt awkward about it, in the sense that their discussion sounded like Ruby was already dead. Weiss hastily shook off the thought. You're not dead, Ruby. You can't be. "And she would have done the same thing here if she was in my position," Weiss continued. "She took being a Hunter close to heart, and she knew that meant making hard decisions sometimes. I don't think she'd take it against us if we investigated this first. Just enough to make a good report on it, ok? This shouldn't take long." Weiss looked at the path in front of them. "We'll see where it leads, and once we find out what it is, then we continue our search for Ruby, alright? And if it helps… Maybe, just maybe… These pawprints might just lead us to her."

"I understand," Blake said. "Then let's get going."

"…alright, deal." Yang still showed some apprehension though, and she was quick to point that out to Weiss. "…because this might lead us to her, or maybe not… So only a few hours, ok?"

"I promise." Weiss replied, nodding back. We'll find you soon, Ruby. Just hang tight for now. "Only a few hours. You have my word. And then we'll find Ruby, one way or another, I swear it."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sitting alone at a desk in the storage room, Emerald observed the night sky through a monitor, the shattered moon and the stars shining bright as they flew right above the clouds as they headed back to their headquarters in Vacuo. She had no reason to be here, really. But she had uneasy thoughts she needed to mull over, and she figured she might as well explore the place too while she was at it, hoping that doing so would clear her head. It almost did, actually. She spent some time wondering how Merlot grafted an airplane's fuselage into a domesticated doomgape he named as the Monstra, and more time about Cinder herself, which this doomgape paled in comparison; seeing what was behind her black cape for the first time almost made Emerald gasp in shock.

But even with those thoughts, her mind still went back to her fight in the train, and all too familiar feelings came creeping back.

Emerald recalled her fight against that girl with the greatsword, who was the first person she met that was immune to her Semblance. She had always thought that no human could resist her powers. But she was proven wrong in that fight, and seeing that blonde shrug off her nightmare attack bothered Emerald so much that she also forgot to keep track of her limits, letting the girl's teammates recover like that. It was an embarrassing double failure that both Mercury and Cinder witnessed, and Emerald couldn't get the whole thing off her mind.

She clenched her fists. Even after having an idea of every team member's Semblance via Merlot – even after knowing how strong Cinder was, with her Grimm arm and multiple Semblances – Emerald still thought she had the upper hand in a fight against them, even though the others now had a general idea about hers. She swore that she would never be helpless again, and she deserved that, given how hard it was for her growing up. But she didn't think that things would change so quickly. Now that a hole in her powers was revealed, here she was, back to uncertainty, back to when she was a child, and…

She heard the door open.

"Hey, there you are. I've been looking all over for you."

Emerald turned to find Mercury approach her while eating something from a bowl; she gave him a cold look. "What do you want?" she asked dryly, not in the mood to talk to him, especially when he saw her moment of weakness.

"What, you really expected me to humor Cinder the whole night?" Mercury took a seat opposite Emerald and slouched on it. "Nothing against her, but I'd rather not hear her cackle anymore tonight if I can help it, you know what I mean?"

"Hmph." For a cold and calculating type, Cinder surprisingly had an insane side to her as well… A fire out of control. And Emerald was now all too familiar with Cinder's laugh.

"Can't expect a woman with an arm like hers to be completely all there in the head." Mercury smirked as he ate a big spoonful of what looked like mashed potatoes. "She's on the phone with Merlot, giving a standard report, so it's nothing I need to hear for myself. We should be debriefed of our next mission soon enough."

"Thanks for the update."

"And I like hanging out with you more, so there's also that."

"I'm sure you do."

"Oh, I know I do." Mercury then put his now empty bowl to the table; Emerald saw that there were indeed traces of mashed potatoes on it, along with some traces of meat. "Tyrian's recipe by the way, he moonlights as a cook of sorts. A bowl of powdered mashed potatoes, frozen beef, and duck fat, suitable for long missions." Mercury chuckled. "No poison, of course. But we all need to eat a meal that scares us every now and then."

Emerald found that quite funny actually, but she did her best to stifle her laugh, keeping a cold look instead.

The two fell silent for a while, which Emerald broke by saying, "Are you done?"

"That depends," Mercury said. "I'm doing my best being friendly here, and I don't think I'm that bad for you to keep playing up the cold act. So feel free to drop the act, and save yourself the effort."

"You, not being a bad guy?" Emerald rolled her eyes. "Don't flatter yourself, we're all the same in the group."

"What's with the bad opinion of me? What, you miss Tyrian already?" A frown from Emerald only made Mercury chuckle again. "Still grumpy, eh? I thought you and I were making some headway… Wait, don't tell me… Are you still thinking of your fight with the blonde? Relax, I'm not going to tell anyone. I know it can feel awkward to ask for help against a strong enemy with an aurastone weapon, but we're a team at the end of the day, so it's no big deal."

Emerald glared at Mercury for saying that, and she thought of just walking out of this. "Like hell you know anything. And don't pretend you do."

"You sure about that?" Mercury laughed one more time, then paused as if remembering something. "Anyways, you should calm down. You're a vital part of Merlot's plans, so I don't think he would have hired you if he didn't think that you weren't any good, now would he? Especially when you look a lot more level headed than how you're acting now."

"Tch…"

"But with that look on your face, I suppose you still don't trust me, huh? Well, what can I say? You sure make things difficult, Emerald." Mercury sighed. "But Merlot did make me your partner during our last briefing, so I'll just keep offering and hope for the best, protecting you while I'm at it."

"What do you want from me?" Emerald snapped, not wanting to be reminded of that annoying fact. "Thanks for helping me out with my bike, ok? But I told you that many times already, and–"

"How about a nice chat this time?"

"What?"

"All friendships start with a conversation, but we just haven't had the time to talk. And since we're both here doing nothing, why not start now? Or would you rather just brood here by yourself?"

Suddenly Emerald wondered why she wasn't walking out of the room already, or why she hadn't even started; she didn't need to bear with Mercury any further than she already had. But it wasn't like he was lying either… Before Emerald knew it, a long pause had fallen between the two of them, with Mercury looking at her straight in the eyes.

"Well, what do you think?"

Emerald sighed, deciding to just go along with it. "…whatever."

"Nice, that's the spirit. A little friendliness never hurt anyone, and it wouldn't hurt to have a friend among the people you work with." So saying, Mercury stretched his limbs, smiling as he did. "Now let's talk about something else. What do you think about the Monstra here?"

"…"

"Or Cinder, if you want to cut to the chase?"

"…you tell me." Now that was a good question, one that spoke to the discomfort she felt when she first saw Cinder's actual form, a feeling that she did her best to hide from the others. Hybrids, she recalled Merlot terming it like that… She asked the first thing that came to mind. "Did Merlot have a hand in what Cinder did to herself?"

"I can't confirm that if you want to get technical, because I never saw anything. I met Merlot in Vacuo, and I'm the second one he hired after Cinder, and she already looked like that when I first saw her. But with how those two act, I don't feel the need to ask… Why ask obvious questions, right?" Mercury smiled again. "But almost all the others don't really make a fuss about it, in case you're wondering. Neo doesn't care… She doesn't care about a lot of things, actually. Hazel meanwhile is convinced he's still stronger, and Tyrian… Well, the less said about him, the better. But Arthur's scared of Cinder, no matter how hard he tries to deny and cover it up."

"And what about you?"

"Cinder…" Mercury seemed to gather his thoughts on this one. "There's a method to her madness, I'll put it that way, so I respect her to that extent."

"You do?"

"Why not? Don't you?"

Emerald's eyes narrowed, and the two once again went quiet.

"You know the myths about the origins of the world?" Mercury then asked, changing the subject.

"…huh?"

"Have you noticed that the myths of the kingdoms aren't all that different from each other, that they all say that humans didn't come from this planet? But if you follow that train of thought… What if both humans and Grimm were born from the heavens?"

"What are you talking about?" It was said that the planet was once such a barren wasteland that the gods sent humans here to populate it, and while there were variations of that tale – Vacuo myths thought that this planet was an actual living being for example, while Atlas ones thought that this was but a reflection of the true ideal world – basically every myth from every kingdom believed that humans came from outer space, though current scientific research had yet to find any evidence for that. The Grimm, on the other hand… Well, those monsters coming from space seemed just as likely as them coming from the depths of hell, now that Emerald thought about it. Then suddenly, it all clicked in her head. "…wait, are you saying we…"

"Share the same blood, the same genes? I know it sounds crazy, but that's how Merlot described it. Just like humans can be implanted with metal parts during surgery, so too can Grimm like this doomgape, and like transferring blood from person to person, so too can humans and Grimm…"

"But how…" It sounded ridiculous at first thought; how could humans and Grimm be in any way related? Then again, what other explanation was there? How else could one explain how Merlot could graft the two together? And how exactly did Mercury know all of this… "…have you seen him do the grafting yourself?"

"Like I said, I haven't seen anything." Mercury shook his head. "I'm just basing this on what he tells me, and it's not like he has any weird machines with him for me to check on. But he once told me that the process has something to do with human and Grimm DNA compatibility, a certain kind of Dust, and fusion on a molecular level… Lots of trial and error, and lots of pain to the patient."

"…"

"You ok there?"

Emerald slowly nodded. She was no longer thinking about her Semblance being exposed, but what replaced it wasn't any better; hiding her discomfort was much harder than she thought. "…just who is Merlot, anyway?"

"You mean beyond what he told you when he introduced himself? Heh, it's not like he told me to keep it secret, now did he…" Mercury scratched his chin as he said that. "Merlot's a biological engineer alright, but what he didn't tell you is that he also used to research on Dust as well, and helped Atlas find a better replacement for it, in the hopes of creating new weapons."

New weapons? "…go on."

"You can't really blame the kingdoms for trying, of course. We may be under peacetime in the Dust Revolution era, but they still worry about what would be the new state of affairs in the world, now that the Grimm are mostly under control. Yeah, there's no more flying Class Three Grimm terrorizing the citizens, but the world's still a big place. Lots of room to expand on, lots of resources to take, and the royalty has probably lost some sleep wondering if their neighbor would launch some unknown weapon on me to take all their stuff."

"So did Merlot succeed in that last part?"

"Does Cinder count?"

Emerald didn't want to answer that, so she changed the question. "Then why did he leave Atlas?"

"Someone from Atlas stole his research basically, that's pretty much what he told me. And that's why he hired us, so that we can help him get his revenge." Mercury smirked. "And to top it off, he says that they're not even close to uncovering the truth he discovered."

"Truth? What truth?"

"Where humans actually came from, why the Grimm arrived, why they keep on trying to kill humans, what Dust really is, and what all of that means for the future of mankind." Mercury paused, as if letting it sink in to Emerald, before cracking a smile. "That last part's pretty grand, huh? But Merlot's got that glimmer in his eye… He's convinced that a new world order is closing in on us. Though if his future also means more Cinders… Well, maybe he can do a little better on that, just saying."

Emerald wasn't sure what to say. Not because of Merlot's reasons for revenge specifically – she understood that, and she wasn't one to judge – but if the old man's talk of a new world order was of horrific mutations, then she–

"The money's very good though, so I suggest you don't worry too much about these things." Mercury shrugged. "And who knows, maybe I'm wrong here and being a hybrid isn't all that bad. It would be nice to be able to use more than one Semblance at a time, don't you think?"

"…"

"Then again, I've been wrong before."

"…"

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?"

Emerald slowly nodded. The answers Mercury gave her only raised new questions, but maybe that was a sign that she was better off not thinking about this anymore. The last thing she wanted to feel right now was doubt and regret, so it was for the best that she just changed the subject. "Speaking of plans, any ideas on what we're up to next?"

"Atlas should be our next stop if you ask me. I have a feeling Merlot want to get his revenge asap, and wrap this one up for the books."

"Atlas? Are we going to go after their secret weapon too?"

"Oh, that one? A supposed new weapon to defeat the Grimm… Now that I think about it, yeah. Even though Merlot's unimpressed by the thing, there's a good chance that we go for it, simply because it's still a weapon that can be used to attack us. But I'm sure Merlot will give us more details soon enough." Another pause, then Mercury cleared his throat. "Hey Emerald, want to make an alliance?"

"A what now?"

"Our job's messy, but you're a good kid, no matter how hard you hide it." Mercury showed a warm smile that caught Emerald off guard. "Whatever happens from here on, I won't lay a hand on you, and you do the same to me. Deal?"

Emerald kept quiet. Now she was being offered an alliance? Normally she wouldn't have given this any thought, but given what Mercury just told her… She found herself not scowling at the thought, surprisingly enough.

"Well?"

Eventually, seemingly on a whim, Emerald nodded. "…alright."

"Glad to hear it, Emmie."

Emmie?! She was sure she still had a calm face, but this sudden use of pet names caught her so off guard it almost gave her a headache. But then, seemingly on another whim, she said, "Glad to be part of this alliance too… Merc."

"Likewise."

Emerald nodded back, making it clear that they had a mutual understanding, but her mind was anything but having any. What was up with her, playing along with silly nicknames? Wanting only to keep to herself, she didn't plan on getting herself into any secret agreements with anyone in the group, but somehow Mercury convinced her to do so… And to top it off, what really bothered her was that she didn't feel bad about it.

She took a glance at the night sky through the monitor once again. But when she turned to look back at Mercury he was gone without a trace, along with his empty bowl.

That left Emerald wondering how Mercury did that. She knew he had a mutated fire elemental Semblance, but he didn't have a speed blitz too, now did he? Surely she just happened to have stared a bit too long at the screen to have noticed him leave the room on his own two feet. Then again, they worked with someone like Cinder, so in retrospect… No, it couldn't be. But maybe there was more to this new alliance of theirs than she first thought.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ruby woke up to the sight of a starry night sky through the window of her room, and recalled the dream she had about her mom Summer. It had been three months since she passed away, and the dreams about her became less frequent as time passed. But the ones that she did get were good; mostly about Summer being with her growing up, with the rest about her being a hero on the battlefield. A far cry from the nightmares she had in the past, and Ruby was sure that had something to do with Cale being by her side. Ruby smiled, knowing how important he was in her life. She would be together with him as a Hunter one day, and become a great one at that, just like her mom was.

With Cale in mind, Ruby stirred to feel his warmth – his touch as well, and his love – and immediately found that he wasn't there with her.

Her heart skipped a beat. Where did he go? Normally he would be right beside her, waiting for her to wake up so that they could kiss, and maybe tell her how much of a sleepyhead she was. But since he wasn't here, then he must have gotten something to eat. She didn't feel like waiting for him, though. Feeling an urge to meet him right now, she got up from bed, dressed into her pajamas, and went down to the kitchen.

But there was no trace of Cale there either.

"Cale?" It was the middle of the night; where could he be? Ruby looked at every room in the house, but there was no sign of him. Could he be outside at the canopy swing? It wasn't unlikely, given that he was somehow impervious to the cold, so Ruby made sure to grab her red cloak before making her way out of her house.

He also wasn't at the canopy swing, or anywhere near the house for that matter; Cale had simply vanished.

"…Cale?" Ruby was worried now. Where was he? She checked her phone earlier before going down, but there was no message or missed call. Which of course, prompted her to call him right now, but there was no answer. She checked the time too while she was at it; hours had passed since she last saw him. "…where are you?" Ruby already had her arms crossed close to her chest due to the cold.

Right at that moment, her phone rang and shook in her pajama pocket, and Ruby hurriedly picked it up.

"Ruby, wake up and get dressed. There are hordes of Grimm amassing at the walls right now, and they're very likely to break through."

"What? An attack?" Attempts by the Grimm to break through into Vale had happened before, but the urgency of his tone was unmistakable. She looked at the southern wall, and only then did she notice that there were no lights turned on out there; the whole place was like a dark monument due to the lack of light, and there was no blaring siren to alert the people that something was terribly wrong.

"I'm on my way back right now. Dress up and wait for me outside for the meantime, because once I get there, we'll start evacuating the villagers."

Evacuate the people here in Patch? Ruby once again looked at the walls. "…alright. But why aren't there any alarms or lights?"

"I don't know why the systems aren't working… There's no power at all at the walls, as if everything just failed completely. And it doesn't help Patch is a long way's out from the capital too. But hopefully backup makes it in time. I'll be there with you, so hang tight, ok? I love you."

"I love you too."

Cale hung up, and Ruby went back to her room to change to her usual red and black attire. Saying a small prayer to the gods, she then grabbed Crescent Rose, then Ruby went back outside and locked the doors to her house. Cale arrived soon after that, driving his old blue truck. Parking his vehicle in front of her house, Cale stepped out with his giant sword Blaze Blue in hand. "Sorry for not leaving a message, everything happened so fast."

"Cale! I was looking all over the house for you…" Ruby reached out to hug him, and she instantly felt his warmth; putting his greatsword down, Cale hugged her back, and gave her a quick kiss as well. "How are the walls doing?" Ruby asked. "What's happening out there?"

"Your mom gave me contacts of a group of soldiers manning the southern wall before she left Patch. She vouched for me beforehand… She had a feeling my power would prove useful to them, and she figured I'd make good use of this info to protect you as well…" Cale paused as he broke their hug; he looked like he was collecting his thoughts. "They called me a few minutes after you fell asleep. They asked me to drive to the walls to assess the situation, and it doesn't look good. I saw it for myself, Ruby. These Grimm aren't attacking in random waves like they usually do. They're amassing a huge force as we speak, a stone's throw away from the walls, and they have a Class Two Grimm tagging along, a dread."

Ruby felt a shiver run down her spine. Cale was right; the Grimm usually attacked haphazardly, but hearing them accumulate their forces for a massive attack at a single point, with a Class Two dread in the mix as well… Had this ever happened before? Nothing came to mind, no matter how hard Ruby tried. "But the walls…"

"The walls won't last without any counterattacks from Vale to support it. And believe me, we tried everything to contact Vale, but we just can't reach them, and there's no electricity to do anything else there either… Even the drones there don't work. And have you noticed that there isn't even an alarm on our phones? That's how bad the situation is."

That made Ruby check on her phone, and true enough, there was no alert from the southern wall about any kind of Grimm attack. "But why can't Vale be contacted? Why wouldn't they respond back?" Suddenly Ruby realized something horrible, and right then and there, she saw Cale's face darken.

"Ruby, I don't want to even think right now if Vale's entire defense system has been sabotaged."

"But what if…"

"We'll worry about that later," Cale said as he shook his head. "The guards at the southern wall had already sent out men to report to Vale in person, and if failing that, ask for help from the academies. But even on a vehicle they'll take some time, and there's always a chance that they get delayed long enough that the people in Patch are put at risk. So it's up to us to warn the villagers."

"The town hall," Ruby said. "Everyone in Patch knows what to do once we ring the bell there… We were told to use it if we've confirmed that there really is something wrong at the southern wall."

"Yeah, that's what the soldiers told me too. Apparently it's a backup you guys have to alert everyone." Cale nodded. "Alright, let's go."

Nodding back, Ruby took a few steps forward along with Cale, then a thought stopped her cold in her tracks; she still hadn't heard anything about what they would do once they finished evacuating the villagers. She said as much to him, adding, "Did the soldiers tell you any plans?"

"They told us to stay with the villagers until Vale arrives."

"Huh? But wouldn't we be of more use if we help the defense instead?"

Cale frowned, saying nothing; he seemed to be thinking about something.

"…well?" Cale's silence surprised Ruby. "…don't tell me we're just going to–"

"We'll talk about it later," Cale said firmly, cutting her off. "Now come on, hop in already. We need to go."

The two went inside the truck, and Cale drove straight for the town hall, located in the middle of the village. The two were silent the whole way, and Ruby mulled over what Cale said. She didn't doubt the gravity of the situation, and the possibility that Vale's forces could arrive late, but after evacuating the villagers… Were they supposed to just stay there and wait? She didn't like his answer at all. Surely he meant something else with that, didn't he? Ruby couldn't imagine doing nothing while the Grimm destroyed Patch.

Another point pricked her. Her mom made Cale as a point of contact for the village? He never told her this before, and her mom never made any mention of it either. Not that Ruby would have demanded to know, but still… She glanced at Cale, who still had a dark look on his face. He didn't look to be in a talking mood, but she somehow had an idea of what he would say if she pressed the issue, and she didn't like that either, especially when memories of her mom being a hero came to mind.

They arrived at the town hall, and Ruby cleared her thoughts; she didn't want to think about this right now. The townsfolk had to be rallied first. Being already familiar with some of the people in the building, she did the talking about what was going on, and the bell rang soon after. Then, it was Cale who did the explaining to the villagers that promptly assembled. Luckily they didn't ask too many questions, and made little fuss about evacuating; the Patch officials quickly took over in readying the vehicles to transport the villagers.

But Ruby still hadn't talked to Cale since leaving her house, and she still couldn't shake off the idea in her head that Cale really wanted them to sit this one out. In contrast, her mom would never have… Ruby's heartbeat raced as she thought more and more about fighting in the front lines. That was what her mom would've done if she was here, because she wouldn't be a hero otherwise. Surely Cale knew that too? Fighting the Grimm seemed to be the right thing to do the more she thought about it, especially upon hearing how he told everyone what the situation was.

Ruby instinctively caressed Crescent Rose, sheathed behind her waist, just to make sure that she brought it with her. She failed in passing the Hunter tests, but she learned her lesson back then, and the urge to prove herself and make up for her mistakes grew strong. If she could convince Cale to–

"Would you happen to know anyone else here in Patch with a Semblance, Ruby?" Cale asked.

"Well, I'm pretty much the only one I know of with a Semblance that's still here…" But Ruby had a feeling that she knew what Cale was getting at; she refused to think about it. "But maybe there is one… One who either failed the tests, or someone around 16 and still learning about their powers…"

"Never mind, it's alright." Cale then touched Blaze Blue's handle, as if making sure his greatsword was on his back. "If there are any, I'm sure they'll pop up eventually to help out the villagers. But if not, then that's exactly why I need you to stay here, because I'll be helping out the remaining soldiers at the walls form a defense. Just in case the worst happens, at least the villagers still have someone here to protect them, while we wait for Vale's forces to arrive… Holding the fort here will be your job."

There it was. Ruby felt a sharp ache in her heart; it was just as she thought. She vehemently shook her head, with a frown to match. "No, I'm coming with you."

"No, you stay here. It's too dangerous."

"Huh? What do you mean by that? I can fight too, you know. We'd be of more use helping the soldiers defend the walls."

"Here, take a look at what's outside." Cale took out his phone, and showed pictures of the invading force. There were pictures of the Class Two Grimm with them; a long, sinuous snake with insectile legs and a bulbous stinger at the end of its tail. "That's the dread you're going to face, Ruby. A Class Two Grimm that can mess up your mind, and it's somehow leading an army of Class Ones. When was the last time you've fought something like that?"

"I don't care. The villagers will be far away from Patch assuming the Grimm do break through, but we also have to protect their property and livelihood as well. I want to fight too, Cale. It's the least I can do for everyone."

"You're staying right here," Cale commanded, still holding that dark, serious face. "Don't be stubborn right now. Just be a good girl and follow what I say."

That last part rubbed Ruby the wrong way. "I know you're better than me at fighting Cale, but don't be like that to me right now."

"Then listen to me, because this isn't a game or a test. You might think that a dread is easy to kill for a Class Two, but it can easily grab hold of your mind and treat you like its puppet before you even know it!"

"I know how to defend myself, Cale. I know how to fight Grimm!" Ruby then crossed her arms, showing she had no intention of budging. "My mom fought to protect her allies, and I plan to do the same to my village. You're not stopping me on this one, I mean it."

Cale scowled, clearly losing his patience. "Just listen to me, Ruby! I'm only trying to protect you, like what your mom told me to!"

He then grabbed Ruby's right arm, but in a manner much stronger than either expected; Ruby felt like her arm was being crushed under his grip. "Ow, it hurts! Cale, it hurts! Let go! Let me go!"

Cale quickly did so, and surprise was now etched on his face.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Are you trying to break my arm now just so I don't get to go?!"

"…!"

"What, you think I'm going to be a burden, is that it?!" Rubbing her throbbing arm, Ruby couldn't recall being this angry at Cale before. But there was no way she was bailing out on Patch, and stand idly by while it was attacked by the Grimm. Doing otherwise would mean that she didn't care about her mom's sacrifice, and she wasn't having any of it; she would fight regardless of what Cale said or did. "Look, I know I can never be as strong as you, alright? And I know I'm not smart enough to have passed the Hunter tests… I know I can never come even half as close to your potential. Trust me, I know that all too well. I think about it every time we train, every time I fail to do some exercise you want me to do…" A few tears fell down Ruby's cheeks; she quickly wiped them off. "But I still know a good thing or two about protecting people, so don't you dare look down on me! And my mom would never say something like this to me by the way, so don't use her as an excuse either!"

"And how are you planning to fight those Grimm, much less get there?" Cale snapped. "You don't even know how to drive! And what, you think you'll be effective in the current state you're in? You're in no condition to fight so many Grimm! So stop this already, Ruby! Damnit, don't be stupid and just stay here like I told you to!"

"Oh yeah? Then I'll just blitz there!" With a huff, she then grabbed Crescent Rose and embraced her Semblance. "I'll perform sniping duties to help the soldiers at the walls! You'll see… I'll show you just how good I can be! I'll show you that I don't need you!"

"Ruby! Don't!"

Ruby had enough. She blitzed away, leaving a stunned Cale behind as she moved swiftly with the power of her speed blitz Semblance.

But she had to stop eventually to take a breather, and looking back, she was very much far away from the town hall, and she wasn't even on the road herself, as she felt long grass touching her legs.

No, she could still go further! And so she blitzed again, with more intensity than usual, with her feelings to protect the village, her wish to make her mom proud, and show both Cale and herself what she could really do, fueling her to go on… And after numerous periods of rest in between – and she exerted a lot of effort to minimize those rest periods as much as she could – she arrived a short walk away from Vale's southern walls, and she fell to one knee from fatigue, panting and gasping for breath.

But instead of a sense of pride, Ruby felt pangs of guilt instead, as she realized that she was foolish to put so much energy into blitzing. Not that there was anyone else willing to drive her, and she did arrive faster here because of her Semblance – her blitz seemed to be much faster than the last time she used it, now that she thought about it – but still, she could have at least asked Cale to drive her, though that meant that she shouldn't have been so difficult to him in the first place.

"Cale…" Ruby's guilt magnified as she wiped a few tears, and she knew for sure that she was in the wrong. What she did was nothing short of mean; regardless of her emotions, she shouldn't have said those things to him, no matter what his opinion was of her strength. A wave of shame filled her heart. Ruby still wanted to be here and fight – she would never take no for an answer to that – but given how much Cale had done for her ever since they first met… She was sure there was a much better way of doing this, but that chance had long since passed.

Ruby sheathed Crescent Rose and let go of her Semblance. Well, she was here now, and it would take her far too much energy to go back to the town hall. And since she had made her decision, she felt compelled to commit to it. And so she did just that, resting enough after a while to continue, choosing to walk to the walls instead to conserve her energy. But Ruby stopped to spare a look behind her. Cale was probably driving his truck right now, looking for her…

Ruby's phone rang, and saw that it was Cale calling her. But she turned off her phone instead, embarrassed at how she acted, unable to bear talking to Cale right now, though still determined to defend her village. Because while she could never take back the words she said, Ruby could still honor her mom, and prove to Cale that she was good at fighting Grimm, right? Surely she was strong enough to do that. She had trained with Cale many times, and while she wasn't as strong as him, she was still stronger than she used to be… Yes, now was the time to make use of her new strength. She would just have to ask Cale to forgive her later, once they met face to face… Saying a prayer for forgiveness and understanding, Ruby made a mental note to really make it up to him once all this was taken care of.

Ruby walked towards the entrance to the southern wall; there were no guards there. Where was everyone? Ruby found the main door unlocked, so she went inside, though the darkness of the silent main hallway made her pause. Illuminated only by the moonlight, the place was indeed suffering a blackout, just as Cale said.

Suddenly Ruby heard footsteps, and even in the darkness, with the moonlight guiding her, she thought she saw a man's figure in one of the floors above… Or was it a girl's?

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

But the figure vanished before Ruby could say anything else, though that only assured her that at least someone was still here in the walls.

Ruby then noticed a flashlight on a desk nearby, so she took it, turned it on, and went on her way up, stifling her natural fear of the dark. She had been here before as a child on a school field trip, so she still recalled how to get up to the highest point, and that was exactly what she did.

"Hello? Anyone here? I have a Semblance… I can help you guys defend!" But no answer came, and the eerie silence troubled Ruby. Where were the guards? Didn't Cale say that there were others who remained here to form a defense? But maybe they were all at the top? That had to be it, then… With the flashlight this time serving as her light, she made her way up the stairs, still conserving energy by not blitzing, and she was at the top of the southern wall soon enough.

But there was still no one there, with only the wind as her company. And upon looking what was down below, clutching on the guard rails, Ruby couldn't have prepared herself for the sight she would see, even after seeing Cale's picture of the scene, and she dropped her flashlight to the floor in utter shock.

Right below her was the Grimm horde, in full display under the moonlight; hordes of beowolves and rakshasas, and a Class Two dread behind them, as if acting as their general… The sheer number of them was staggering. Yet they still haven't started their attack on the walls, even when they had every opportunity to do so. Not that Ruby wanted them to do that of course, but what were they waiting for? Or perhaps, they really were waiting for something…

She then looked further down, and Ruby saw the corpses of so many guardsmen on the ground, being feasted on by the Grimm closest to the bodies.

Ruby's silver eyes widened, feeling something awful form deep in her gut. How did all those guards fall to their deaths from up here? She looked again at the Grimm horde, and at the Class Two dread. She had expected backup, but now that she was alone here in the southern wall…

A horrible thought entered her mind; Cale was heading here too! And while he had incredible combat talents as a Hunter, even he would be hard pressed to hold back so many Grimm of this number… She had to tell him to turn back! And so Ruby hurriedly went for her phone…

But before she could even grab her device, and still looking at the dread, Ruby heard a girl's giggle, right behind her…

Suddenly the dread's red eyes flashed a bright red, brighter than the sun, and Ruby felt like she was being blinded by it even with the height difference atop the walls, and cried out in pain as she closed her eyes shut.

The next thing Ruby knew, she was on her knees, rubbing her eyes.

What happened there? Her vision was fine, but whatever that bright light was, it made her head hurt too, and…

Wait, how long was she out? And right as she thought of that, the southern wall began to shake, which could only mean one thing; hurrying to look at the opposite side of the walls and grabbing the guard rails, Ruby saw beowolves and rakshasas heading towards Patch.

"No, no, no…" Somehow Ruby had slept through it, but the Grimm have now broken through the walls, and there were so many of them… So many… Howls and roars from the beowolves and rakshasas echoed in the night. There was still no sign of friendly forces anywhere, and there was no way she could stop all of them. And Cale… Cale was heading straight for this!

Her heart hurt deeply as she remembered her last words to him.

She grabbed her phone to call Cale, but for some reason, he couldn't be reached. Ruby's silver eyes widened with fear. No, not now. Not now!

Putting her phone back, she then embraced her Semblance, transformed Crescent Rose into a sniper rifle, and prepared to aim at a Grimm, any Grimm. She had to distract them somehow, and delay their onslaught. She had to give Cale every opportunity to turn back…

Ruby felt the southern wall shake again, this time much more considerably. But she didn't have to wait for too long to find out what caused the rumbling. It was none other than the Class Two dread, hissing and chirping and crying out rather loudly actually, as it headed towards Patch along with the beowolves and rakshasas, which also began to howl and roar in rather peculiar ways.

Undeterred, Ruby once again went into a sniping position. A Class Two was much more dangerous than even a great number of Class Ones, but if there was any target for her to attack, it was that dread. And so, still holding Crescent Rose in its sniper form, Ruby aimed and fired at it.

And somehow, she missed, instead narrowly missing a beowolf that carried a tree trunk, oddly enough.

"Tch…" Ruby chambered another round into her bolt action rifle and aimed, but found her sights set on the same beowolf she missed.

"What the…" Shaking her head, she forced herself to aim at the dread. But to her surprise, the Class Two Grimm turned to look at her, finding her location even from this distance, and it charged towards where she was, its red eyes burning bright red despite somehow showing wounds.

Standing her ground, Ruby prepared to aim for the dread's head; it couldn't possibly climb up the walls itself, and that was quickly proven by the Grimm unable to scale the walls. But not only did she fail her next shot – instead missing the same beowolf from earlier – she also didn't expect the dread's bleeding tongue to reach up to her so quickly, well before she could even think of blitzing out. She was dragged down by the dread's tongue, before being thrown a short distance to the ground; Ruby winced as she got back on her feet.

She then heard a hiss, followed by a guttural cry, all coming from the dread, and it seemed to back off from her, as the sound of beowolves and rakshasas wimpering and mewling echoed in the night. The Grimm weren't even surrounding her for whatever reason, seemingly busy with something else, even though she was vastly outnumbered.

But Crescent Rose was still in her hands, and that was what mattered; with her Semblance still active, Ruby switched her sniper rifle back into a scythe. She could always blitz away to safety, but she still had to protect Patch, and she wasn't about to leave without at least taking down as many Grimm as she could.

Ruby then noticed that there was a beowolf approaching her, familiar to her now due to the tree trunk it wielded. Well, this Grimm kept appearing in her sights, so she might as well start with this one. With Crescent Rose's blade glinting the moonlight, she charged forward, a thousand rose petals swirling around her like a blizzard as she blitzed, aiming to cut its head off.

But the beowolf simply dodged her swing, though instead of counterattacking, simply mocked her with a doggish grin.

Ruby tried again with another charge. She missed again, but she predicted that the Grimm would dodge, so she did a quick transition to her sniper rifle, hoping to catch it by surprise, but the beowolf somehow blocked her shot with the tree trunk it held.

Ruby couldn't believe it. She had never missed more than once against a beowolf before. There was just no way, even if this beowolf was the first one she saw that used tools before, much less fight her like this.

Switching back to her scythe, Ruby made another attack, adding a feint this time, but the beowolf dodged just as easily as before.

Suddenly the Grimm was inches away from tearing her apart with its claws. Terrified at how close it was, Ruby did all she could to blitz out and escape.

The beowolf just stood there, watching her catch her breath, and gave out an amused howl.

"Damn it…" Ruby somehow remained unscathed, but only because this Grimm was being unusually passive, for all its skill. And this was just one of so many beowolves and rakshasas around her, which all seemed to be busy with something else, including the dread. Ruby then found herself wondering if she should escape; she had done more than enough already, given the circumstances…

Ruby shook her head. Run away from a beowolf of all things? No! She had to stay and fight! She had to make her mom proud, that she wasn't a useless weakling, that her skills could protect people… How could she back out now?! What would be the whole point of her going here in the first place if she did that? She just had to kill some of these Grimm, just a couple… Hell, she would gladly settle for this one lone beowolf. So why was she having such a difficult time taking this one out? She felt a compulsion egg her on, demanding answers. Was she just being careless? Had she weakened somehow? No, that couldn't be. Regardless of how strong this Grimm was, it was still only a beowolf. Ruby refused to believe that her failures in the Hunter tests would have any bearing on–

Ruby was then struck down by the beowolf, with a blow that felt very much held back, and it reached out to grab her…

No! Her rose petals swirling, Ruby blitzed out, escaping its claws, and prepared for another attack. Ruby had enough, she wasn't letting this Grimm get away any longer. This goddamned mutt… A surge of anger rushed through her. Just one kill, just one! This beowolf had to die, like how her mother would want it, and that was how this fight was going to end!

Ruby made one step, then blitzed forward, and she saw the beowolf prepare to parry her swing. But she went for not one, not two, but three feints instead, trying to fool its defenses – her rose petals spreading out violently in the air from her movements, she aimed for the Grimm's chest… And she was dodged just as easily as before.

The beowolf simply laughed.

Their fight continued, and Ruby did everything she could to kill this beowolf. She didn't take any rests just so that she kept the offensive, and used every feint and distraction she knew of, not holding anything back, spending every bit of energy she had just for the chance to catch the Grimm by surprise. And Ruby tried, she really did, to the point that what was first an honest attempt to take out as many Grimm as she could to save Patch slowly become something else. She now fought ferociously, with abandon, with fervor; her previous feelings had simply dissipated. Victory was the only thing on her mind, the thrill of killing Grimm the only thing real to her, even when the beowolf seemed to be doing anything but.

But exhaustion eventually took its toll as Ruby fell, her legs giving out from having used up so much of her energy, with nothing to show for her efforts. With her face upward and her back on the ground, Ruby gasped for breath, no longer able to continue the fight, though she still held on to her scythe.

Then the beowolf with the tree trunk reached out to grab her with its clawed hand.

But its defenses…

For the first time, it had left itself completely exposed.

It must have thought she was completely spent. But she still had some strength left for one more swing…

Now was her chance!

Digging deep, Ruby went for a diagonal upward cut at the beowolf's chest. With her target leaving itself wide open and at such a close range, there was no way she could miss. And this time she didn't. Ruby immediately felt the blissful satisfaction of landing a direct, clean hit.

Ruby grinned as blood came pouring out of the wound she dealt, a large one that gushed blood but somehow came short of cleaving the beowolf in two. No matter; she began to chuckle. She was finally getting rid of this Grimm… Finally, she was proving herself that she was strong, that she could protect people… She wasn't useless at all! She was–

"Ruby…"

It was right then and there, when a splash of blood hit her cheek, did Ruby finally come to her senses.

Her vision blurred a bit, then everything changed. The beowolves and the rakshasas… Even the dread itself… She had noticed that they seemed busy with something else, but now she could clearly see the reason why. To her surprise, a giant blue wolf avatar that looked like a beowolf itself was taking them on, the whole thing almost as big as her house, rending any Grimm it caught with its claws.

And the one in front of her wasn't a beowolf. It wasn't even a Grimm at all…

Wait. That blue hair and greatsword…

Ruby gasped in horror. "Cale?!"

There was no mistaking it. The beowolf she struggled against was actually Cale, bleeding heavily from the slash he received from her scythe, and he was on one knee, using his greatsword as support.

"…are you finally awake?"

Ruby's mouth hung open in shock.

"Whew, that took you a while… But I'm glad you're back… Could have done a better job restraining you though…"

She suddenly felt so cold, as if her blood was being drained away… Her chest tightened like never before. She almost felt like fainting. She was overwhelmed by a sense of complete wrongness, and it was the most horrible sensation she had ever felt. Ruby trembled where she stood like a helpless child. "…Cale? …how?"

"That damned dread kept skittering away, and I thought I'd never snap you out of its influence…" Cale was visibly in pain, his voice weak, and his hand held his chest as if it that could stop the bleeding. Still, he forced himself to smile in between groans. "…heh, pretty cool avatar I got here though, huh? I can take them all on, no problem…"

Cale suddenly cried out in pain, coughing out blood, and hot tears fell down Ruby's cheeks. Cale was almost torn in two by her own doing, his chest a red gash and nothing else.

"Don't cry, Ruby… You just got mind controlled by that dread, that's all… Using you like a puppet… I know you didn't mean it…"

"Oh god…" Ruby said in between sobs, now realizing the full extent of what was happening, as well as the cause of it. "What have I done…"

"It's ok, Ruby… Just go make a run for it while I'll hold them off…"

"I'm sorry… Oh god, I'm so sorry…" Cale was dying right in front of her, and Ruby wanted nothing more than to blitz him straight to the nearest hospital and beg for forgiveness as she stayed by his bedside. But her body wouldn't have any of that. It wouldn't have anything from her at all, actually. She was frozen still where she stood, her body numb to anything she commanded it to do, and her heart pounded so bad she felt like her chest would burst at any moment.

"Go on, get out of here…" Cale made a quick glance of his surroundings; he coughed out blood again soon after. "There are still many Grimm heading for Patch that I couldn't distract… So go and save the village. I'll only slow you down, and I have to…" Cale groaned in pain. "I have to take care of the remaining Grimm here… But I'll catch up with you, don't worry…"

"I should've listened to you… I'm so sorry…" Ruby didn't want Cale to talk anymore, wishing that he saved his strength. But he kept talking nonetheless, while her body refused to budge, regardless of how hard she struggled or prayed, letting only more of her tears to fall as she bawled, which she couldn't even wipe away for her own sake. She couldn't even throw up upon seeing her weapon's blade glisten in the moonlight with Cale's blood, or upon remembering how happy she was when she made her lethal strike… "Please forgive me… Please don't die…"

"It's hard to control my avatar right now…" Cale's right hand shook from holding his greatsword, the only thing that stopped him from falling to the ground. "So leave… Go, run away…"

"Cale…" If Ruby could just gather enough strength to move, she could save Cale. If she was only half the Hunter she thought she was, Cale would be taken care of right now. So why?! Why wouldn't her body move?! Why couldn't she save him?! Ruby wanted to tear herself to pieces for what she had done and what she was failing to do, but her body might as well be a statue, even with the guilt she felt.

"I told you to run away… What the hell are you waiting for?"

"No! I won't leave you!" If she could just move… Move! She had to save him! She couldn't just watch him die like this!

"Ruby… Listen to me…"

"No! I can't! Cale, I have to save you, and–"

"GODDAMNIT, RUBY! I SAID RUN AWAY!"

Cale's words cut right through Ruby's heart, and the weight of her guilt crushed what was left to dust.

His wolf avatar vanished right after that, and the surviving Grimm instantly took their chance and charged towards them, even as maimed as they were, the dread included.

And so Ruby did the one thing Cale told her to do, which was what her body suddenly allowed her to do as well, right at that moment.

She ran away.

And in doing so, left Cale behind, her rose petals falling where he knelt as she blitzed.

She didn't how far she got – moving so fast and only thinking of running away, everything was distorted and hazy to her now, as she felt only guilt and shame – but soon Ruby hit something hard, and her last thought was wishing that the void just swallowed her up.

Ruby slowly opened her eyes.

"Cale…"

She realized she was lying in bed in a room somewhere, with her arms hugging a pillow. At her left was a table lamp that served as her only source of light, and the door was nearby that, with a window on the right side that showed the night sky.

Wait, how did she get here, and how was she bandaged up? Ruby knew she had teleported somewhere in a forest, and that she was taken by a beowolf with the most amazing sword she had ever seen, but she couldn't remember anything after that; she must have passed out somehow. And she had no idea know how she got here in bed, much less still be breathing, because no Grimm would've kept her alive.

Memories of Patch suddenly flashed in her mind, and any thoughts she had about her fight with Cinder simply evaporated.

She recalled Beacon and Signal Hunter forces arriving too late to prevent property damage to the village, but coming in just in time to destroy the invading Grimm before the townsfolk were massacred, as she herself was woken up by them, finding her in some field. But she was too shocked to do anything other than stare into the distance with a blank and unfocused gaze, so they dragged her away to treat her wounds… Only after many hours later did she snap back to her senses, long after the situation with the Grimm had been put under control. But no one she talked to ever saw Cale again after he left Patch to chase after her, and upon blitzing back to the southern wall, to the spot where she last saw Cale, Ruby found nothing but his blood on the dirt. And despite her looking everywhere, blitzing throughout Patch, there was just no sign of Cale, regardless of how hard she shouted his name.

The mental image of her cutting him down with her scythe, as well as the glee that she felt… The blow she dealt to him kept replaying itself in her head, along with the fact that it happened simply because she was stubborn and stupid. Then came the thought of him being torn to shreds and devoured alive, with her to blame for it…

"Cale…" Ruby whispered to her pillow, and she imagined it to be him, like she had done before so many times. But no dream could change what her life had become after that, if she even managed to sleep at all. Brooding and loathing were constant, slowly driving her deeper into despair, and they ultimately drove her to go to Forever Fall that fateful night.

"I'm sorry…" Her friends must be worried sick about her, but with her phone destroyed, Ruby had no other way of contacting any of them, and with no energy at all to move right now, she figured she might as well just continue to hug her pillow, and wait for sleep. Whatever happened that caused her to be here – or whoever it was that helped her – maybe some answers would come to her later. Besides, what else was there for her to do right now? Or to be more accurate, what else was there that she wouldn't just screw up? Ruby knew she made the right decision to withhold telling her past to Weiss during graduation night, because she was sure she would've been slapped by her for how stupid she was.

A few minutes passed, and tears fell from her cheeks as Ruby kissed her pillow. "…I'm sorry for what I did to you," she mumbled. "…you know, I'm trying my best to lead a team, but I'm not doing a very good job at it…" She stifled a sob, recalling the past once more. "Knowing how bad I am when it counts… Are you really surprised?" Ruby sniffled. "I can't do anything right… I can't even die right when I'm supposed to." Ruby knew she had escaped death so many times now. But did she really deserve any of them, especially when other Hunters die from the Grimm? This couldn't continue on like this. She shouldn't be relying on Cale – or anyone else, really – all the time to save her from her fatal mistakes.

I'll never leave you, no matter how long this takes, I'll always be by your side. And I'll protect you with all the power I have.

"Are you still ok with protecting me and being by my side, when you know how I really am?" Ruby whispered. "It's ok if you want to move on from me…" The irony of that last part wasn't lost on her; Ruby kissed her pillow again, and after a deep breath, smiled warmly. "You've always kept your promise to me, and I know I've always wanted you to be by my side…" She stifled another sob. "But I can't let you keep worrying about me anymore, even in the afterlife… I know it's wrong for me to do that… I should learn to be fine on my own two feet…" She caressed her pillow like it was really him. "Remember when I was in the mountains… I only asked for one chance? And you appeared before me…" Whether real or imagined, Ruby truly felt him that time. "…I guess I wasn't very clear on what I said back then. But I'm letting you go from your watch now, ok? I'm serious. I should know how to take care of myself, I'm a Hunter now, you know? I can't always be depending on you to save me…" This was for the best; Ruby kissed her pillow once more. "Because I love you so much, Cale. With all my heart." She closed her eyes, holding her pillow in a loving embrace. "You can rest now. I'll be fine. You don't have to worry about me anymore. Great Hunters know how to save themselves from danger, and they aren't burdens to anyone…"

The door to her room suddenly opened.

"Hey, you're finally awake."

Ruby gasped as she opened her eyes, and instinctively moved her pillow away to get a better look. That voice, that figure right in front of her…

But it couldn't be. It just couldn't be. She was dreaming, she had to be. All of this had to be a dream!

Because why else would he be here right in front of her?

Or she was in a nightmare once again, caught under the spell by those people that raided their train…

"Everything's alright, we're at an inn here in Patch. The townsfolk here are recovering slowly, but they seem to be taking things in stride."

"…Patch?"

"Yeah, Patch. Oh, and be careful, I put your scythe under the bed. I couldn't sheathe it without you… And there's a lot of stuff taking up space in that big drawer over there." So saying, he sat beside her using a nearby chair. "How're you feeling? I took care of your wounds, so you should be good."

That steel blue hair, those copper eyes… He was even wearing the same kind of clothes he wore when they first met… And they were in Patch, of all places…

"I know you have a lot of questions right now, so let's take it slow." He smiled softly. "Sorry if this is all coming as a shock to you… It's a shock to me too, Ruby. And I have so much to say…"

Ruby never once believed she would ever see or hear from him again, much less that he would ever come back. Visions of him in her dreams, yes, and at the edge of death, like that time when she fought the nihilith, and when she blinked into the mountains. But not like this. Not like this…

"…Cale? But how?" Ruby couldn't help but ask, especially when all she could recall before waking was being found by a beowolf that for some reason didn't kill her right then and there. So she should be dead, right? She was in some purgatory, that had to be it. Or else Cale would just appear as a ghost, a figment of her imagination…

"…I don't know how," Cale said, looking at the floor briefly as he did. "…I don't know a whole lot, to be honest. But you and I are alive, no question about that."

"Cale…" In the depths of her despair, only the memory of Cale's love kept Ruby going, even if it slowly broke her down, thinking only to find a way to keep her promises. Become a Hunter and protect the citizens; that was all she thought about ever since getting into Beacon. Never in her wildest dreams did she ever think that this could happen. Ruby believed in the higher power of the gods, but surely even they couldn't bring a dead man back to life.

Ruby's heart suddenly clamped, and she clutched her chest, her breathing becoming labored.

"It's ok." Cale stroked Ruby's hand. "I'm here, Ruby."

"Oh god…" Ruby whispered, tearing up once more as she felt her heart slowly calm down at his touch. This warmth… Could it really be? Was she still imagining things? Wiping away her tears, she found enough strength to sit up from bed, and she slowly reached out to him, and gently touched Cale's face, reciprocating his earlier caress. Her hands then went to his chest, and it was at that point when she felt the thick, raised bumps of a large scar… He was real. He was truly in the flesh beside her right now, and tears began to fall down Ruby's cheeks, knowing what that scar meant. "I'm so sorry…"

"It's alright, don't cry anymore."

"But I didn't listen to you…" A painful memory of what happened at the walls hit Ruby's mind, and this time she couldn't stop herself from bawling her eyes out, just like that time in Patch. "…I cut you up, and I left you out there! I abandoned you!"

"Ruby…"

"But it's true, don't ignore it! I let you down when it mattered most! I left you out there to die, Cale! I left you behind to die!"

Ruby buried herself in Cale's chest, feeling that familiar warm comfort once again, and she quickly lost track of how long she sobbed, constantly asking for forgiveness, letting out everything she held these past few months. She held him tight the whole time; there was no telling if he would just disappear right in front of her, and life could very well be cruel enough to do that. To make her feel his touch, only to take it away like some sort of punishment… Not that she didn't deserve it, but she feared that more than anything right now, and the thought of that made her cry harder, as if she had any more tears left to give.

Cale kept quiet all throughout, caressing the back of Ruby's head as he held her close, and slowly – eventually, after what seemed like hours – Ruby's tears subsided.

"I'm glad that you survived what happened at Patch," Cale finally said. "Because I would never forgive myself if you were killed. I can't bear the thought of losing you…" he then gulped, pausing for a bit. "So imagine how I felt when I found you unconscious somewhere in the fields."

"Thank you…" Ruby did her hardest to calm herself down, trying her best to stop her tears. So Cale saved her again… That explained how she got here. But as for him not being mad at her, even after what she did to him… "…aren't you mad at me?"

Cale shook his head. "We're here together now, and that's all that matters."

"But I–"

"I can never be mad at you," Cale replied. "I swore to love and protect you, and promises have weight."

Overwhelmed with emotion, Ruby hugged Cale tighter, with him doing the same, and the warmth of his hug was enough to put her to sleep if she allowed it. But she didn't dare do that, once again worrying that he would vanish the second she did, so much so that she had to say it. "…I don't want you to go."

"I don't want to go either."

"Then please stay with me…"

"I'll always be with you, Ruby."

"Yes, me too…" Ruby sighed, and immediately felt a massive weight being lifted off her chest. "I'm so happy you're here…"

They stayed like this for some time, hugging each other for warmth, and Ruby couldn't remember the last time she felt so happy and at peace, even while so many questions still lingered in her head. How Cale survived these past two months, how the beowolf that grabbed her seemingly vanished… But those questions could wait for another time. Because her heart didn't clench painfully anymore, but was racing instead; an all too familiar feeling that she hadn't felt in so long was building up inside.

And so she kissed him softly. "Cale…"

"Ruby… I don't know much about what happened to me…" Cale began, "but there's something I want to talk about–"

"It can wait."

Ruby kissed Cale again, this time a deeper, sensual one, with Cale doing the same, and she felt his hands roam throughout her body. This was also how she remembered it, and she wanted more, so much more… Ruby trembled and moaned.

"Ruby, I…"

Ruby craved for more; it wasn't enough. No, not nearly enough! How could it even be close to enough? Especially when Cale was here, that he wasn't just some dream, and that he felt more real than any of the days she lived without him by her side. "Cale, please…" Her cheeks a bright red, and breathing heavily, Ruby guided Cale's hands. "Please… I love you so much, Cale."

Cale looked uneasy, but only for a moment; sighing, he wiped away Ruby's remaining tears, even while his own copper eyes glistened. "…I love you too, Ruby. Always remember that."

He kissed her once more, this time taking command, and Ruby held him tight to feel the warmth of his body as much as she could, as she melted once more in Cale's embrace.