Cinder took a moment to admire the dreary landscape. Everything was just so calm, so... void of distractions or rage. The poison sky, the dull stone landscape, all of it stayed quiet minus the occasional groan from the nearby Grimm. Despite what many people were familiar with the creatures of darkness and natural predators of humanity could be surprisingly lax when not hunting. From the balcony of the dark castle Cinder felt as though she could truly relax.

It would not last.

"Shall we go?" The voice crept across her eardrums, and unfortunately Cinder knew she was walking right back into the chaotic mess that was the human kingdoms.

"I suppose now is as good a time as any." She turned and faced the masked woman. "I take it you've informed Merlot of our arrival?"

"No." The voice held just a tad too much sass for Cinder to write off. "But he won't be a problem I assure you. The man is obsessed with his work, and I doubt he'd take the time to talk with us."

"I see." Cinder let go of a sigh, her focus redirected to their less stable ally. "It's a shame we could not spark his interest, even with the offer of countless resources for his little experiments."

"You could have told him of the queen. Such knowledge, even if he didn't believe it at first, would have drawn enough curiosity for inspection. Once he realized you spoke the truth he might have been eager to join you." The masked woman crossed her arms as the wind played with her ragged dark hair.

"I could have..." Cinder eyed the woman. "But then I'd have another lunatic to deal with. Men like him seek knowledge, but it will never be enough. If he were to make any moves against Salem not only would he be disposed of, rather painfully mind you, but a portion of blame would then be hoisted upon my shoulders as well." Cinder leaned back against the railing. "Salem expects success, and shares her love as we gift it to her, however she also shares her disappointment when we fail. You may not know this but those 'punishments' tend to be more extreme than that of your average ruler. Each one is tailor suited to the individual, and has a wide range of options to convey her disappointment."

"Then, if I may, why is it that you follow her?" The masked woman asked. Cinder couldn't help but chuckle at the question. The woman clearly feared Salem, Cinder had known that since they first met, but she did not know Salem.

"While punishment may be extreme at points, the rewards for success more than make up for it. Salem makes promises, and she never goes against them. If she says you will have an entire kingdom to do with as you please, then you will; she will make it so, even if she has to raze the place to the ground first."

"I see..."

"I believe that is enough talk for now, we'll leave soon. I need some time to prepare myself first; meet me back here in three hours." Cinder told as she strolled forward past the woman and back into her room.

"Should I go pick up Taurus as well?" Cinder paused as the woman continued. "He is part of your group, is he not?"

"You needn't bother with that." Cinder felt a small smirk slither across her lips. "He'll be there when we arrive."

"Very well."

With that Cinder could hear the woman leave, at which point she began to prepare.

.

.

"This is the place." Yang said as she looked at the door.

"This is the headmaster's office." Oscar told as he stepped forward and stood next to Yang. "We need to be careful."

"I could have told you that." Yang steadied herself. "But thanks anyway."

"Are we ready?" Pyrrha asked from behind, and Yang turned to face her, giving a thumbs up.

"We got this." The words flowed easily from her tongue, but in truth Yang wasn't so sure. This was supposedly the man who not only allied with the Fang and took over Haven, but also the one responsible for those strange Grimm they'd fought back in the city...

And the man who killed the headmaster.

"How are we doing this?" Ren popped quietly as he moved to the side of the door. "We don't know how powerful this man is, or if he has something up his sleeve."

"Our only entrance is this door. It's direct sure, but we're just coming to give a report remember." Yang smirked. "Keep the hoods on and follow my lead. If there's one thing I'm good at it's spinning a tale."

"You weren't so good at fooling Oscar." Nora pointed out, and Yang bit back a grumble.

"He caught me off guard, that's all."

Yang could hear Pyrrha speak from behind. "There may be more surprises in store. Can you be sure you won't be caught off guard again?"

"I know I can." Yang breathed out and steadied her focus. Her eyes hardened. "I have no sympathy for monsters like him."

With that Yang reached out her hand to knock on the door.

"Come in." The voice was an odd mix of gruff and scratch, and Yang felt a chill shoot through her spine as the words tickled her in all the wrong ways. Regardless of that she lead on.

"Sir." Yang gave a curt response as she stilled completely.

"You've come to see me directly, and without notice might I add." The man was sat at a large - and rather plain - desk, which added to the feelings of danger, not that he needed it. "You're either foolish, or you have urgent news. Regardless of that for a moment, I don't believe we've met." He stood. "I am doctor Merlot, an honor for you I'm sure. Now tell me, why have you come?"

And he's full of himself... great. Yang wasn't all that impressed really, madmen were always full of themselves in cartoons; she just didn't expect it to ring true in the real world. However despite how comical he sounded and looked - if 'crazy' had a definition, he would be the photo used - there was just something wrong about the situation.

Why did he introduce himself?

Yang was no stranger to those with heads too big for their shoulders, but guys like him shouldn't have given them the time of day. She and the others looked like nothing but grunts, and for men like the doctor that wouldn't even warrant a passing glance. Sure it was comic book logic, but it was all she had to go off of, and he already acted and looked like the stereotypical villain. She had been ready to blurt out news of the explosion after being refused entry, but he just let them in with no fuss at all.

It was wrong.

"Something has happened." Maybe she was thinking too much on the comics thing. This was the real world, so maybe he wasn't that sort of guy; he was smart enough to take over Haven after all, and so it made sense he'd at least hear them out... she hoped that anyway.

"Hmm?" The man sat back down and linked his fingers. "Do tell."

"T-there was an explosion just out front." Yang cursed internally at the stutter, and yet the man gave a nod of understanding.

"Ah yes, the car bomb." He gave a slight smile. "That was quite the mess don't you think?"

"Yeah, so we-" She froze, and her voice locked up as her gaze zeroed in on him as he sat there. He said car bomb... he knew it was a car bomb...

He wasn't supposed to know that.

"Oh, you've stopped. Is something the matter?" Yang's unease grew with his smile. "Did that not go as perfectly as you hoped?"

"You..." Yang stilled for a second, knowing damn well they'd been caught, all the while Merlot stood with a manic glee.

"I'll give you props for execution; had I not had cameras and men all over the city you would have surely caught me out of the loop. Unfortunately for you I've made this whole city my testing ground."

"Testing ground?" Yang didn't know what to make of that, and yet her voice was drowned out by a single question.

"For what?" Ruby had been the one to speak this time, with a cautioned tone that caught even Yang herself by the back end.

"Take a wild guess."

Yang was about to move... only, she realized she couldn't. Her eyes shot around. Nothing held them, and their target - the man now adorned with a perverse face of twisted excitement - stood just a few steps from them. No, Yang realized that it was her own body which refused to budge. Her limbs felt weighted, and her legs yearned to criple and rest, all the while Merlot strode around the desk and stood just before her face.

"You'll make fine targets."

With that her vision faded, and his laughs echoed throughout her last moments of consciousness.

.

.

I leaned back a bit and sunk into the cushions of the couch.

It had been around an hour after the announcement, and I was feeling beat. After I said my peace I turned and left without another word, and what followed was nothing but silence. The lack of any outcry or even reaction of any kind had me worried. People always had something to say when it came to news of all sorts, and the fact that I received nothing only served to strengthen my concerns. Silence, deafening silence; a dead lack of sound; such a response in the past was often an omen of doom.

I shook those concerns off for the time being as my mind wandered to new distances. If I had failed to get the people's help then I would need to brainstorm a new approach for Adam and his goons.

"Hey V." Sun's voice took me from my doubts. "How's it hanging?"

I looked to him, my mind placing the worries on the back shelf for a moment. "Fine enough I suppose."

"No, really, are you doing alright?" He took a spot by my side, and I allowed a breath to escape me. I could see the calm in his eyes, and I knew he wouldn't leave without an honest answer. I shoved aside my pride, and for reasons unknown even to me I obliged.

"No, not really." I steadied my breathing. "We're up against a whole army of extremists, and my best bet has flown out the window." A small chuckle made it's way past my lips. "I don't know whether to feel relieved or depressed. On the one hand the people are safe, and on the other we have nothing to use against the Fang." I looked to Sun. "Be honest with me here, what are the chances we can end this without putting several of them down?"

"I..." Sun's uneasy looked morphed to a small chuckle as his look softened. "Well that's a tough one. I guess going against them alone with just the three of us..." His eyes shut as he leaned into the couch and allowed his body to go limp. "In a front on assault we'd have no hope." He stretched his neck to the side. "On the other hand if we snuck in we'd need to take this Adam guy hostage, and even then we don't know how tough he is or if his goons would even care. Sounds like he's hammered it into their heads that the cause comes before everything else."

"So low chances huh?" Fatigue washed over me. "Guess my worries were true after all."

"Yeah. We're royally doomed of we go it alone." Sun's smile was way too cheerful for the gloomy circumstance we'd found ourselves in. Looking closer I could even see a hint of playfulness in his eyes.

Cheeky bastard. "What are you so happy about?" I asked as I fought back the irritation. "We're out of options."

"Yeah." His smile grew. "We're stumped." His hands relaxed and linked behind his head. "Guess we'll need to find some help."

His snarky demeanor threw me for a loop, that was until I heard the door crack, and with it Weiss walked up. Given all the excitement I never got the chance to really take in how a simple clean up could accentuate a person's appearance; the stress of Adam and the planning served to blind me of almost everything. She wore a rather simple robe similar to Kali's, only it was white and blue with accents of red, rather than the mother's black and gold.

"So this is where you two have been." She sighed. "Figures Sun would be lounging around."

"C'mon, I'm not that bad." The man leaned forward, his tale wrapping around his waist as he spoke in a chipper tone. "Besides. I've done what I needed anyway."

"Oh really?" Weiss looked to me. "So are you ready?"

"Ready for what?" I asked, and her eyes zeroed in on Sun again.

"Done what you needed to huh?"

"Yep. He just hasn't caught on yet." Sun's words had me send him a - well deserved - look of confusion. Weiss however shook her head as I looked her way and spoke.

"Caught on to what?"

She sighed, only for her features to relax. "Well, I suppose if he hasn't said it yet then it's best they do so instead."

"They?" My question was answered moments later as she left for a bit, only to return with an all to familiar face, followed by many more who weren't so familiar.

"Oooh." Sun clapped. "Everyone's here, nice."

"Mr. Quartz?" I couldn't stop the words, and the man smirked my way.

"Don't look so down my boy. Surely you didn't think I spent all my time here downtrodden over Sienna's passing." The man drew closer. "Since the news hit I've been speaking with the others, and we were thinking a way to remember her from the days of old; back when Ghira led and she was a pure and kind soul." He sighed. "But it seems that may need to be put on hold now won't it?"

"I... I don't understand." I couldn't either. Mr. Quartz stood in front of me, and yet for some reason I couldn't quite fathom what was going on. The man ducked down, his hands cupping mine as our eyes met.

"It may seem odd at first, but I could tell from the day we first met that you've often spent time separate from most others. Sienna was like that once, and I'm telling you the same thing I told her; you are never alone." For a second I could swear a warmth crept up on me. "No matter what trouble you find yourself in, or how bad a situation may seem there will always be someone there waiting for you. Even when you feel as though you're beyond their reach, or you've become something so horrid as to drive everyone away, know that there are always people who are ready and willing to come to your aid."

"Something horrid..." I cracked a minor scoff at the thought. "That's foolishness."

"Maybe so, but over the years I've come to discover that people's greatest features are born from foolishness. It is how we act on those thoughts that determines whether the choice was a waste or not." He spoke so casually, as if I didn't just tell him and many others to stand before rabid beasts.

And yet I felt the need to question him once again. "If that hopeful chance asks too high a price would you still be saying that?" My eyes met his, and yet while I radiated frustration he welled with a serene acceptance. "How much is too much before the cost overtakes the victory?"

"I suppose that is for the individual to decide, and as you can see..." He stepped back towards the others, and I found my eyes flow over each of them.

Several had been up close, and the mother of the child was specifically caught in my eye as I took note that the young one was nowhere amongst the crowd before me. They appeared nervous, and yet there was a rebellious spark jumbled within the whole of them. Maybe it was the little speech that Mr. Quartz gave, or perhaps he had spoken with them before coming, but regardless of what it was the lot stood firm in their seemingly newborn resolve. My vision fell upon the man again as he allowed for a small jolly chuckle.

"We have made our choice."

I looked to several. "All of you... really?"

"Not everyone was frightened away with what you said." One elderly woman spoke as she adjusted her glasses. "Several of us have youngins away with that lot, and I may be just an old missus but I don't much find any joy in knowing my nephew is out getting himself into trouble."

"He might turn his weapon on you." I curtly let out, only for her to chuckle.

"Sure sure, but that little thing don't scare me. Even if it turns out for the worst I like to hope he still has some love for his old grandma."

"You're... not afraid he might be too far gone?" I questioned, and the woman allowed herself to relax a bit.

"Oh I'm plenty afraid, but I care for my little ones too much to allow that fear any control over me." Her eyes looked to soften. "And besides, I've lived a good long life. If he does do me in then I can at least rest knowing that I got to see my grandbaby one last time, even if he is the one to cut our time short."

I'll love you no matter how much you hate yourself.

Her crimson eyes glazed over softly for a moment, and I found myself pulled back to reality much to quickly. I recognised the affection this older woman wore across her, and for an instant I remembered just why I was fighting these battles to begin with. A goddess to our kingdom and a queen to them as well, but to me...

A second mother.

Salem had been there almost every step of my life, and she had brimmed with kindness and love which quelled the rage of even the most hateful of hearts. Knowing she was being used as nothing more than a pawn tore open my rage anew, and yet I eased the yearning to give into that hatred. Rage was best paired with motivation and finesse; it was the emotion that had taken hold over most who used it. Salem taught me not to allow it control over me, and to instead use it to fuel my drive and ambitions.

I would do so, even if it cost me everything.

I couldn't help the chuckle that broke past my lips, and it soon evolved into a full blown laugh. I heard Sun move closer to me, his hand resting on my back.

"You okay man?"

"Y-yeah..." I breathed out. "Yeah. It's just that I haven't seen someone with that level of conviction in a long time."

"Aw, c'mon man. You're breaking my heart here." Sun's smirk betrayed any sense of anguish.

"You're a hunter, and so fighting comes natural; you signed up for this." I eyed the old woman. "She's a citizen, ignorant to the true horrors of Grimm, and yet she speaks of dying to her own grandson." Another laugh escaped me. "It's just so ridiculous." I let out a heavy breath and lounged deep into the couch. "In a sick sort of way it gives me hope. She's living proof that courage still strives even in the wake of fear."

"That's a funny way of admitting you're glad they've agreed to save our bacon." Sun said with a grin. "But I guess it's fitting for you."

"Glad that's all settled." Weiss spoke up. "So when are we moving out? Sun and I agreed to meet the others at Haven."

"Right, I guess it's time we've set out." I stood and stretched as Sun followed suit. "Time to put an end to Adam's ambitions."

Author's note

...

Back once more. Sorry for the late upload, unexpected sudden schedule change occurred and I was caught unable to edit. We're here now though, and as you can tell we're moving along.

Not much of a note this time, mostly because I'm tired.

Catch you later.

Quick note however, to answer the question from last chapter: yes, the story is going somewhere. We're around the halfway point right now.