Cover Art by CHE3ZY.
I hope all of you have been doing good. I'm enjoying the break from work while I can. I once again ask that you please be sure to share your thoughts in the reviews section.
Atlas Academy:
Winter always maintained a neutral demeanor when she was in uniform. Something about wanting to always maintain a professional image, but this time was different. She couldn't help but smile at the moment.
"That's excellent news, sir!"
Unit 117 discovered a link between the White Fang and the criminal underworld of Vale. If the White Fang was going to plan an attack on Beacon, then it would make sense that they'd need the help of the criminal underworld; in this case Roman Torchwick.
James merely nodded. Winter didn't know the whole truth, but she was right. This was a joyous occasion. Months of undercover investigating finally paid off for Special Mission Unit 117. He didn't know exactly why Salem's agent was utilizing Torchwick, but he didn't care. All that mattered was that Torchwick was captured so that he could be interrogated. Zero-One-One had explained the whole thing in the absence of Penny. He was able to assert that the White Fang had indeed been following Torchwick's orders, thus confirming that he was the prime suspect for the associate in Vale that Lacertilia mentioned. When he got the call from Zero-One-One, he'd thought it was more bad news, but it quickly proved to be the best news he'd heard in a while. They were finally making some damn progress.
"Indeed, it is Winter," he replied.
"What's our next course of action?" She asked.
"For now," he said, "Unit 117 is going to discretely track Torchwick down and capture him alive. They need to tread carefully to avoid drawing any unwanted attention. In the meantime, we are going to put in a diplomatic request to have the captured White Fang members extradited to Atlas. I know that in all likelihood they know nothing, but I'd rather not take that chance."
If Sage Lacertilia was anyone to go off of, then run-of-the-mill White Fang members wouldn't know anything. Lacertilia wasn't a low-ranking member by any means, but despite his position, he knew so little about Taurus' dealings with Salem's proxies. At the very least, Atlas would be able to ensure that these White Fang members were properly detained. That was the only silver lining of having them extradited. The real hope rested with Unit 117. If they could find Torchwick they'd be able to get some useful information and come one step closer to shutting this whole thing down.
"If and when this extradition gets approved, I want you to oversee their transport to Atlas."
"Yes sir," she said with a curt nod.
"Good. That will be all. Dismissed."
Winter stood up from her seat and saluted the general before she turned and left.
The general ran a hand through his hair as he let out a tired sigh. One thing that lingered uneasily in the back of his mind was the question of how Blake Belladonna knew where to find the White Fang. Zero-One-One assured him that they were looking into it and that in the meantime they'd keep a closer eye on her. He hoped that she wasn't involved with the White Fang. Her death or imprisonment could prove very troublesome for human-faunus relations. While her father was no longer the leader of the White Fang, he was the leader of Menagerie. He just hoped things played out for the better; he had enough things to worry about. James reached into one of his desk drawers and retrieved the remote to the television set on the opposite side of the room. With the click of a button the TV turned on and the Atlas news channel played. James reached inside his coat pocket and retrieved a flask. He removed the cap and took a sip of the liquor.
"And in breaking news, a group of Huntresses, known as the Happy Huntresses, have stolen the spotlight in Mantle," said a female voice. The general wasn't watching, but he was listening. "These Huntresses have made a name for themselves in their local community for taking on missions without pay."
The general let out a small laugh. This group sounded like a naïve, young bunch, but it seemed like their hearts were in the right place. The likelihood of their operations lasting long was low. These sorts of charities didn't survive long without a steady flow of income. After all, the bills needed to be paid.
"Their leader, Robyn Hill, joins us now."
The general's eyes widened and immediately went to the TV, and sure enough there she was. Robyn Hill. A video feed of Robyn showed her standing on a sidewalk in Mantle with her Huntresses standing behind her. The last time James saw her was at Melanie's funeral, but it was very brief.
"Thank you Verdona," said Robyn.
"Thank you for agreeing to speak with us. Tell us, what motivated you and your Huntresses to help the community the way you are?"
Robyn frowned and narrowed her eyes slightly.
"I understand that things operate a bit differently up there in Atlas, but down here in Mantle, the people don't get to sleep peacefully every night. Mantle's defenses are underfunded and undermanned to properly keep the Grimm far from the city. Atlas, its elite class, and its leadership have neglected Mantle for far too long. My friends and I couldn't stand and watch it happen any longer," Robyn gestured to her fellow Huntresses behind her. "We're doing this because no one else is doing what's necessary to protect the people of Mantle. General Ironwood doesn't care about the people of Mantle."
The general kept watching and listening.
"Don't you think that's a big accusation?" The reporter asked.
Robyn merely scoffed.
"It's not an accusation. It's the truth. The general has other priorities when it comes to the defense of this Kingdom. In fact," Robyn looked straight at the camera, as if she were looking straight at Ironwood, "I'd go as far as to say that I believe he's been misappropriating precious Lien that could be used to bolster the defenses of Mantle and help its economy. And because of that, I am going to make sure that real change happens in this Kingdom."
The general's eyes widened. Robyn's words amounted to nothing more than accusations, but if she somehow had proof of the billions that were siphoned off over the years then that could prove problematic to the political stability of Atlas. There was absolutely no way Robyn could have known anything about Project Guardian. He made sure that the money that funded Project Guardian was untraceable and that there was no record of Project Guardian that anyone except Cassandra or himself could access, and he didn't mean digital records. Nothing remotely related to Project Guardian ever touched a computer, and most of the physical records were destroyed. Anything that remained was buried where no one would ever find it. While Robyn wouldn't be able to expose Project Guardian, she could potentially expose Penny to the rest of the world. Penny's creation was highly classified, but it was nowhere near as classified as Project Guardian. Not even remotely close. On top of that, he had to worry about the potential instability such a revelation could bring throughout both Atlas and Mantle. He needed to tread carefully here. Robyn was just like her father, but at the same time, she was different. For one, she was smarter. She wasn't resorting to violence to bring change. Ibis didn't stick with nonviolence, and that's why he was able to deal with Ibis properly. He couldn't do a damn thing about Robyn.
James let out a tired sigh. He ran a hand through his hair, which he suspected was beginning to grey due to all the stress he was under.
He didn't have his black ops unit to keep closer tabs on Robyn, and at the moment, in all honesty, she wasn't a priority. He had a world to protect from Salem, and he needed his best on the front lines of that war. All he could do for the time being was keep an eye on her and her Huntresses. He'd be sure to follow the news on her more closely. The second she crossed the line of legality is when he could actually do something about her. Though, if he was being honest, the last thing he wanted was for this thing to spiral out of control. He hoped to whatever gods who actually gave a damn about Remnant that Robyn's words were mere speculation and that she didn't have any damaging evidence that could sow chaos and negativity in the Kingdom, and he especially hoped that Robyn didn't do anything stupid like her father.
Beacon Academy:
The sound of piano keys resonated throughout the room. Terre stood at the window, looking outside. He glanced over to Jai, who was fiddling with a keyboard that he'd borrowed from the music hall. The sounds were a bit uncoordinated, evidence of Jai's novice ability. Terre looked at his brother with a raised eyebrow.
"Any particular reason you're playing with that keyboard?"
Jai looked up from his desk and shrugged his shoulders.
"Dr. Lockhart told us to explore hobbies. I started listening to music a few weeks after when we arrived here. I figured that learning how to play an instrument was the next logical step in developing that hobby."
Terre didn't say anything. He just shrugged his shoulders, looking content with the answer. Dr. Lockhart did tell them to explore hobbies. Jai was merely taking her advice. Rahm already had a hobby in his aerospace magazines and Penny…well she was open to every new thing that came her way. At this point, she'd experimented with several hobbies. Terre, however, had yet to take Dr. Lockhart's advice. In his opinion, he didn't have time to do so. He had a team to lead and a mission to see through to the end.
The sound of the door opening drew the attention of the two super soldiers. The door opened to reveal Rahm, who quickly took notice of the keyboard at Jai's desk.
"You play the piano now?"
"Trying to learn. Just following Dr. Lockhart's advice."
Rahm smirked, impressed to know that Jai found himself a hobby.
Terre cleared his throat, drawing their attention.
"How'd the talk with the general go?"
"It went well," replied Rahm, "we've been green-lighted to search for Torchwick. He gave us free rein to do what is necessary to find him as long as we maintain discretion. In the meantime, General Ironwood is going to oversee the extradition of the captured White Fang members back to Atlas for interrogation."
"Finding him won't be easy," said Jai, "I've read up on Torchwick. The man has made a name for himself within the criminal underworld of Vale. He's been able to take credit for high-profile heists and avoid the authorities."
"We're not like the authorities," said Rahm.
"I know," replied Jai, "I'm just saying that finding him won't be a simple task."
Terre nodded.
"Jai's right. If we have to keep a low profile, then this will be a bit more challenging. We can't allow Professor Ozpin or anyone to suspect anything."
"What's the plan boss?" Asked Rahm.
Terre pondered to himself for a moment, thinking of the best course of action moving forward.
"The way I see it," he said, "we need to tread carefully. The three of us stand out with our heights. If word of three masked men of near seven feet in height going around and taking out criminals and White Fang members gets to Professor Ozpin, then we'd be the prime suspects. He has eyes all over Vale, and rightfully so."
Rahm nodded in understanding.
"You think we should send one man out while the other two maintain a presence to show face?"
"Precisely, Rahm," replied Terre, "if we send one man at a time then we can keep below the radar. On top of that, we should wait until the end of the semester before taking any serious action. We'd avoid a lot more suspicion from Ozpin if we're operating outside of the normal school schedule."
"I agree," said Jai.
"In that case," said Terre, "we're going to need additional gear: untraceable weapons, unmarked uniforms, the works."
"I'll make a few calls," said Rahm.
Jai looked down pensively, clearly in deep thought. He glanced towards his brothers before he spoke.
"There is potentially one issue I see with this."
"That being?" Asked Terre.
"What do we do about our targets? What happens if they return home during the break? We won't be able to monitor them and search for Torchwick at the same time."
"Good point," said Rahm, "I'll be sure to bring it up with the general. The worst outcome is that we have the Ace Ops takeover watching them. I know it's not ideal, but it's the only option we'd have."
Terre and Jai mused it over for a second before they nodded. He was right. It wasn't ideal but it would suffice.
"But in all honesty," said Rahm, "I don't think our targets will be going anywhere."
"Care to elaborate?" Asked Jai.
"Think about it. Why did our targets come to Beacon?" Before Terre or Jai could answer, Rahm spoke again. "Before any of you answer, I'll answer that first. Weiss wanted to get away from both Atlas and her father. I highly doubt she'll be going home."
Jai nodded before he spoke up.
"That's not too different from Pyrrha. She came to Beacon to escape her life in Mistral as a celebrity. Based on that logic, I doubt she'll be going anywhere. Ruby is a different story, though. She didn't come here to escape anything. What keeps her here?"
"Yang," replied Terre with a pensive look, "Yang is what would likely keep her here."
"What makes you say that?" Asked Jai.
"She and Ruby are almost inseparable," replied Terre, "and Yang has expressed no desire to go home for the break period. Ruby will stay close to her. And on top of that, Ruby has become attached to her new friends."
"Even to us? To you?" Asked Rahm.
Terre looked at his brother briefly.
"Make the necessary calls," said Terre, ignoring Rahm's question.
Rahm shrugged before he nodded. "You got it boss."
Blake was sitting beneath a tree in the Academy's courtyard as she read her book. The end of her first semester was near, the majority of her assignments were finished, and most importantly she was taking a much-needed break from the chaos that had transpired over the last few days, and that included getting some space from her team and her new friends. She looked up from her book towards the clear sky, taking note of the beautiful weather. The whole thing was simply peaceful.
"Salutations Blake!"
Blake let out a tired sigh. All good things had to come to end. She forced herself to smile as she turned to look at the familiar ginger-haired bundle of energy of team PGRT.
"Hello, Penny."
Penny smiled with her eyes closed. Blake's smile turned from a forced one to a genuine one. Penny was so sweet and nice that her smiles were naturally infectious. Even though she'd interrupted Blake's quiet time, the faunus couldn't stay mad at her. Not only that, but she truly respected Penny. She was willing to stand up for the rights of faunus, and that was something that many were still unwilling to do.
"What are you reading?"
Blake looked uneasy. She glanced down at her book briefly before looking back at Penny.
"It's called Ninjas of Love," she said with a slight blush.
"Is it a good book? I am always looking for new things to read."
Blake's face was looking like a tomato at this point.
"I don't think you'd like it, Penny. It's pretty boring." Blake could never live with herself if she exposed someone as innocent as Penny to such…naughty things.
"Oh," replied Penny, "well, in any case, I was hoping I could speak with you."
"Sure Penny. What did you want to talk about?"
Somewhere in Vale:
The sound of a bottle shattering against the wall resonated throughout the room. The liquor it once contained began to slowly drip from the wall. Roman tossed his hat and cane onto the table before he sat down with an ungraceful thud. Neo watched the whole thing transpire with a smile on her face and without a care in the world. Roman looked at her with narrowed eyes.
"This isn't funny Neo," he said, clearly annoyed. "Those damn animals don't know the first thing about being discrete."
Neo looked at him skeptically with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm not worried about the two of us getting caught," he replied, somehow understanding what the mute girl was saying, "those amateurs are going to bring this whole operation crumbling down, and if that happens then Cinder is going to kill us."
Neo rolled her eyes at that, earning a glare from Roman. Neo was good, very good. She was as lethal as they came, but even he knew that Cinder was something else entirely. They didn't stand a chance against someone like her, and if her boss was even more dangerous then he didn't want to take any chances.
What he needed to do was think, and he needed to think hard. If he was going to be pulling Dust heists with the White Fang, then he needed to keep a tighter leash on them. In his opinion, the reason that shit went south at the docks was because of the White Fang and their inability to follow simple orders. He told them to be discrete in their work. That cat faunus and her little boyfriend had figured out where they were, and that drew the attention of little Red and her pals. There was no doubt in his mind that the White Fang had drawn their attention because of the mess they'd left at the heist locations. Again, he wasn't concerned about getting captured by the police or any Huntsman that came after him. He and Neo were good at avoiding capture. But if another incident similar to what happened at the docks happened again then this whole operation was doomed. He was going to have to make sure that these animals understood discretion and that he was calling the shots.
Atlas Academy:
"What is it now James? If you keep pulling me away from my work, then you'll have no one to blame but yourself for the Project Sentinel prototype not meeting its deadline."
"This is serious Cassandra," he replied with irritation, "we've got a problem."
The chief scientist of Atlas ceased her playful smirking. She was serious now and listening carefully.
"It's about Robyn Hill."
Beacon Academy:
"Isn't it awesome when we can all get together and have fun?" Nora proceeded to pour an unhealthy amount of syrup on her mountain of pancakes before the energetic redhead began to devour them.
Yang, Penny, and Ruby watched Nora's spectacle with amusement while Pyrrha, Jaune, and Weiss looked a bit uneasy by the whole thing. Ren, Blake, Terre, Jai, and Rahm looked indifferent. Ren was simply used to this sort of thing, Blake was too distracted reading her book to pay any attention, and the boys simply didn't care. They'd seen far worse.
"I agree Nora!" Penny clapped her hands as she bounced up and down energetically.
"It is nice to get together and not have to think about school," said Pyrrha.
With the end of the semester approaching, Nora thought it would have been a good idea for all of them to get together as friends. They were currently in one of the many common area rooms enjoying Ren's famous pancakes while a movie played on the large television screen. Rahm took a bite of his pancakes, eyeing Belladonna discretely as he did so. Terre and Jai did the same as they ate. According to Penny, Sun had informed Belladonna about talks of a large Dust shipment that was due to arrive that he overheard on the ship he was stowing away on. They went to see if the White Fang would show up to steal the Dust and their guess turned out to be correct. Was the whole thing a coincidence? Yes. Was it possible? Yes. The boys, however, weren't satisfied with that answer. Belladonna had proved for the time being that she wasn't an imminent threat, but that didn't mean they wouldn't continue to watch her like hawks.
The hourly beeping of Rahm's watch drew his attention from the cat faunus. He glanced at his watch and saw that it was now 2100. His glance shifted to his two brothers, who were looking his way before he gave them the subtlest of nods.
Rahm cleared his throat.
"I think I'll be turning in for the night."
Yang and Nora stared at him incredulously.
"Oh come on Rahm!" Yelled Nora. "It's only nine."
"The party's just getting started," said Yang.
"Sorry. I'm not feeling too well," he lied.
"Are you okay?" Asked Weiss.
Rahm nodded.
"I'll be fine. I just need to rest."
"Feel better man," said Jaune.
"Will do," replied Rahm as he nodded politely and took his leave.
There was an awkward silence for a moment until Ruby spoke.
"I hope he feels better," she said.
"Do not worry Ruby," said Penny, "Rahm will be just fine. We should continue watching the movie."
Rahm looked about cautiously, ensuring that the coast was clear and that he wasn't followed. The Guardian stood in a forest on the outskirts of Vale, waiting patiently. The sound of radio static rang in the earpiece he wore.
"Javan-Five-Two calling Zero-One-One, airdrop en route, ETA two minutes," said the voice of the pilot.
"Javan-Five-Two, I've got you loud and clear, Zero-One-One is standing by," replied Rahm.
Rahm continued to scan his surroundings for any threats or prying eyes. True to the pilot's word, within two minutes he could hear the engines of a bullhead approaching. Despite the darkness, Rahm could spot the approaching aircraft with his enhanced night vision. It was an unmarked bullhead used for special operations. One would never guess that Atlas owned it. The aircraft flew overhead, but not before an object was dropped from its rear doors. A parachute deployed from the object, slowing its fall.
"Package delivered, Javan-Five-Two out."
"Copy that," replied Rahm.
Rahm ran off in the direction where he calculated it would land, and sure enough, it had landed in a small clearing about 500 meters away. Rahm scanned the area once more to ensure it was clear before he ran to the package. Rahm inspected the object, which was a large case with a digital padlock, before he typed in a sequence of numbers and opened it. It was all there. Everything he asked for was delivered. White Fang uniforms and masks, tactical gloves and boots, NVGs, Mistrali made rifles and pistols, Vacuoan blades, and even explosives. What better way to keep under the radar than by dressing up as the prey they were hunting? Ozpin wouldn't suspect anything, and this would only sow chaos within Torchwick's little operation. Rahm was making a mental tally of their gear. It didn't take him more than a minute before he closed the case and locked it. All he needed to do now was find a suitable hiding spot and then he could return to Beacon.
Looks like it's time for the boys to do what they do best. A little covert action was long overdue. Also, it looks like Jai's developing a new skill. I hope you all enjoyed this one. Please be sure to leave your thoughts or questions in the reviews section. Stay tuned for the next chapter.
-Dude64