A/N: Hello there, everyone! Welcome back to the second part to "A Jolt from the Past"! And… well, I think I can safely say that the past couple of days have been… hectic. But hey, we're all here, so how's about we dive in and get right to the fun, huh? Let's see how our heroes will deal with that giant mech. This is…

Chapter 23: A Jolt from the Past, Part 2

…..

"A Class 12 Armored MECHSUIT?!" Kevin couldn't believe what he was seeing. Fistrick had in his possession one of the most high-tech war machines that had ever been created for alien-kind. …And they were staring right at it as it approached them. Its footsteps were thunderous as they made impact with the ground, with the group stepping back each time it got nearer. "Okay, seriously, what the FUCK?! How is it that bad guys ALWAYS get the good shit?!"

Gwen pursed her lips in apprehension, internally asking herself the same question while also wondering how they were going to take it down. "I don't know, Kevin, but no matter what, we need to bring this thing down."

"Have you ever dealt with on before?" Rook asked… right when the massive mech raised its right hand and balled it into a fist, with a laser cannon popping up from its wrist. "Oh no, scatter!" BAM! Within a single second, the cannon fired a powerful yellow energy beam at the team, forcing them to dive away as the floor beneath them was ripped asunder.

Team JNPR dove off to one side while Gwen, Kevin and Rook went to the other, the Anodite wincing as she answered; "No. No, we haven't battled a mech like this. Any clue how to beat it?"

"Sadly, no." Rook shook his head.

Across the way, Nora stood up and held Magnhild a loft, ready to strike the mechanical suit down. "Well, I guess we're gonna have to resort to the old-fashioned way; HIT IT REALLY HARD!" With a running start, Nora leapt at the mech and reeled her hammer back to deliver a powerful swing. However, as she closed in, the mech raised its arm… and then swatted her away as if she were a bug. Nora screamed and came flying back to her team, leaving a small trench in the ground as she landed.

"Nora!" Ren rushed to her side and lifted her head up, seeing that her shoulders had been scraped up by the impact. "Are you hurt?! Please say something!"

The redhead shook her head and growled in frustration, taking hold of her hammer to get back up. "I'm fine, Renny. Ugh, but man, that thing's harder than it looks!"

From inside the suit, Fistrick gave out a laugh. "HA! You ain't seen nothin' yet, bro! Check THIS!" The mech's arms rose up and, much to the gang's astonishment, the panels on the forearms opened up, revealing a set of missile launchers under each. In no time at all, Fistrick launched the missiles at the team, making them all run for it. The missiles ended up hitting the ground, but the aftershock of their impact still sent the Omni-Hunters flying to the other end of the compound, with all seven of them landing near the garage doors.

Jaune grumbled as he propped himself up with his sword, helping Pyrrha stand up afterward. "Okay, I think it's time we show him just what we're made of!"

"Exactly!" Pyrrha concurred, transforming Milo into its rifle mode. "Fire at will!" At her word, Jaune, Ren, Rook and Pyrrha all began firing at the mighty machine, though unfortunately, all of their firepower didn't really make much of a dent in it as it continued to come toward them.

But, the moment Nora saw one of Rook's shots rebound and almost strike the pods on the mech's back, she gasped and raised her arms up. "NO! Stop it, all of you!" The Pink Dynamo got in the way of her friends, taking them all aback. "You might hurt the Megawatts if you keep that up!"

Jaune glanced up to one of the pods, seeing the Megawatts all utterly terrified in there. "Ach, Nora's right. We can't risk injuring them."

"But if we can't fight back, then what're we supposed to do to stop that thing?" Ren inquired.

Kevin, with his Earth Dust arms still covered in the earthen armor, slammed his fists together in determination. "We CAN fight back, Ren. We just gotta take HIM down without hurting the Nosedeenians." He and Nora took combative stances next to one another. "And to do that, I suggest we go with Nora's original plan; HIT IT REALLY HARD!"

"That will not be easy." Rook noted.

"It never is." Gwen affirmed. "But I think I may know how to—WATCH OUT!"

The team duck and covered as Fistrick began firing more lasers at them, now using two blasters instead of just one. "Hehehe… you can come up with ALL the plans you want. I'm STILL gonna squash you all like BUGS!" Fistrick laughed as he closed in on the group, ready to come in for a full-on strike. However, Kevin and Nora charged in as well and jumped up to meet the hit, the opposing forces colliding before the more powerful one won out. With a mighty hit, Fistrick sent Kevin and Nora both careening into the wall, their bodies creating a HUGE hole in it as they went spilling out into the shipyard.

"Nora! Kevin!" Pyrrha and the others went up to the hole as the mech sprinted out, baring down on their teammates as they just started to get up. "Come on, we've got to help them!"

Just as she said that, though, the two heavy hitters made it right back up to their feet, with both of them giving out simultaneous roars as they went to meet Fistrick again. As the mech brought its fists down, Kevin caught one of them with his large hands while Nora swung her hammer as hard as she could, knocking the other hand back. She then jumped up to smack it in the chest with another swing, this one with an added grenade explosion behind it. The mech was sent tumbling and it landed right on its chest, leading Kevin and Nora to jump right up to its back.

"Alright, grab one and start pulling!" Kevin shouted as he stood in front of one of the Megawatt pods, using his new arms to try and pry it off. Nora went to do the same, grabbing the pod near it's base as she tried to lift it out of the mech's back. With a strong twist of his, Kevin managed to rip his pod off the mech's back, giving a victorious laugh. "Haha! Got it!"

"Awesome, Kev!" Nora smiled… only for it to disappear the moment she saw the mech's shoulder begin to move. "BEHIND YOU!"

Kevin spun around… and was met with a large laser having emerged from the mech's shoulder. And it was aimed at him point blank. "…Oh no—" BAM! "AAAUGH!" Before he could move, the laser blasted Kevin straight off the mech, the Osmosian's rocky exterior cracking in the process. He was slammed right into some more metal storage crates, his head bouncing off of them and knocking him out cold. His large, earthen arms fell away as his skin changed back to normal, his body slumping over the crate he had landed on.

"KEVIN!" Everyone shouted before Fistrick brought the mech back to its feet, grabbing Nora and tossing her in the process.

Jaune snapped his head around to Gwen, who appeared to be absolutely horrified by what she had just witnessed. "Gwen, you said you might know a way to stop that thing. Well, if you're gonna let us in on the plan, now would be a fantastic time!"

Gwen's expression went to sad to serious in an instant, the redhead balling her hands up as she glared at Fistrick's mech. "Right. The line has been thoroughly crossed." She directed her gaze over to Ren, her eyes showing how worried she was. "Ren, please, go to Kevin, make sure that he's alright, and then get him clear."

"Of course, Gwen." Ren nodded. "I'll have him out of here in no time." The green ninja then rushed off, darting toward the Osmosian's location.

"Thank you…" the Anodite trailed off as her focus shifted to Rook. "Rook, I'm going to need you to make sure that mech is off of Nora. We need her to fall back and get her bearings while we work on getting those Megawatts off." She eyed the Revonnahgander's Proto-Tool with a quirked brow. "On a related note, think your Proto-Tool has something that can get those pods off easily?"

"It does." Rook affirmed before giving a salute. "Worry not, Gwen, I do everything I can to—"

"AAAAAGGH!" The blue-furred alien was cut off by the sound of Nora's scream as she was suddenly grabbed by the mech, before it then tossed her away into some wooden crates near the edge of the port.

The group all gasped before Rook took up his Proto-Tool. "I will go help her now."

Gwen sighed as she watched Rook go, but quickly got refocused back onto what was important. "Right, okay…" She finally went to Jaune and Pyrrha, the two looking to her in concern. "Alright, you two, my plan hinges on the two of you being able to work together and keep that machine at bay. Think you're up to it?"

Pyrrha furrowed her brow and raised her xiphos, ready for action. "Gwen, if it gets our friends out of this mess, then I will be sure that your plan is performed to a T."

"Same here." Jaune raised a determined fist. "Whatever we have to do, we'll do it."

"Good…" Gwen said warily. "Because I need you both to combine your Semblances."

The couple's eyes widened considerably at that, their own faces contorting in apprehension at the sound of that. After giving one another an anxious glance, Pyrrha raised a single finger and pointed out; "Um, Gwen, I'm not certain if you remember this, but Jaune has only used his Aura Amp on my Semblance once, and it was with an old refrigerator."

"She's got a VERY good point." Jaune gestured over to the humungous mech suit that was currently wiping the floor with Nora. "Just how are we supposed to stop THAT thing? Because, in case ya haven't noticed, giant moving robot and an old, beat-up fridge are kind of in two different weight classes!"

Gwen raised her hands, hoping they'd listen to her plan. "I know, I know, it's a long shot, but hear me out on this one…" She reached into her back pocket and procured her spell book, turning to a certain page. "Pyrrha, I have a spell that can help you tighten your focus on your powers, and even give you a little boost in power. If I add that onto Jaune's Aura Amp, we may be able to help you kick your Semblance into high gear."

Pyrrha blinked at the plan in shock, though she was still intrigued by it to say the least. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, you'll be totally fine, I promise." Gwen raised her right hand. "I swear it."

"Well… it sounds promising, but…" Pyrrha faced Jaune with a small smile. "What do you think, Jaune? Want to take a chance?"

Jaune's shoulders sagged a bit. "I… I-I'm honestly not sure myself." the blonde knight admitted. "I mean, I really want to help our friends, b-but we're taking a bit of a risk here. You think we can pull it off?"

Pyrrha's smile widened and she reached for Jaune's hands, giving them a reassuring squeeze. "Jaune, you will be by my side throughout the whole thing. If we work together and stay in sync, then I believe we'll be able to pull this off." She leaned up and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "So, what do you say?"

Slowly but surely, Jaune's own smile returned, his eyes shifting from Pyrrha to Gwen before nodding to both girls. "Alright, you've convinced me. Let's do this!"

…..

Meanwhile, as all that was happening, Nora wasn't exactly having the best time in the world. She had tried to get back on track when it came to beating back Fistrick's mech, but every time she went in to take a swing, the machine would counter her with a dodge or a heavy hit of its own. It got so bad that the Pink Dynamo was covered nearly head to toe with scrapes and cuts, her Aura threatening to give out completely at any moment. Right now, however, she let out a loud and pain-filled scream as she collided with the pavement, making a sizeable crater as the mech came crashing down in front of her. Fistrick reared its arms back and began pummeling her with punch after punch, each hurting worse than the last. "You! Want! Some! MORE?! BRO?!" he shouted with every hit.

"Agh! Not—UGH—really!" Nora wheezed out.

Inside the mech, Fistrick narrowed his eyes at his target. "Too bad about your friend, Levin, over there…" He pulled his fist back for one more hit. "And too bad for you… that HE got off EASY!" Fistrick brought his mech's hand down for another hit… but then a shadow passed over his vision, making him do a doubletake. "Wha—" CLANG! "AAAAACK!" From out of nowhere, a large crane arm came swinging around and its hook caught right onto Fistrick's armor, sending him flying up into the air and crashing back down into the warehouse's roof.

Nora's eyes widened before she moved her head up and saw Rook behind the controls of the crane, the Revonnahgander smiling and giving her a thumbs up. She returned the gesture, if much more tiredly. "Hah… th-thanks, Rook. …I owe ya one."

"Do not mention it." Rook said before taking his Proto-Tool and shifting it into bow mode. "Now, I suggest you get clear. Gwen is going to enact a plan and I will be removing the Megawatts from the suit. But to do that, I will need a clear shot."

"Gotcha… but on one condition…" Nora furrowed her brow as she propped herself up on her hammer, giving Rook a determined gaze. "I'm gonna be the one that finishes that thing off. Fistrick's gone too far, and—"

BAM! The duo's attention was garnered when the mechsuit suddenly jumped right out of the warehouse, landing in a crouch as Fistrick yelled; "WEAK!" With a loud battle cry, Fistrick came running toward the duo, leading Nora to start moving away.

"Okay, do whatever ya gotta do, just make sure ya do it QUICK!" the hyper redhead yelled.

"We will try to be as fast as possible." Rook replied as he saw Gwen, Jaune and Pyrrha approach the scene of the battle.

As the trio watched the Armored Mechsuit come barreling toward them, Gwen gave Jaune and Pyrrha one final look. "Are you two ready?" The couple silently nodded before Jaune placed his hand on Pyrrha's shoulder, activating his Semblance as both his and Pyrrha's Auras glowed their respective colors. Gwen then held her hands up on either side of Pyrrha's head before chanting; "Potentia Centrumos!" All of a sudden, two mystical glyphs appeared in Gwen's hands and a mystical energy began flowing to Pyrrha's temples, the Invincible Girl's eyes snapping open to reveal that they had changed to a glowing pink.

"Oh… oh my." Pyrrha muttered. "This… this is a lot."

Jaune gave Pyrrha's shoulder a soft squeeze. "I know, I can feel it a bit, too. But remember what you said, Pyr. I'm here with you, so we can do this, right?"

Pyrrha took in a deep breath and closed her eyes, her focus intensifying in that moment. "Right." With a flick of her hand, Pyrrha raised her palm up to the massive mech and activated her Semblance… and in an instant, it stopped moving in mid-stride.

"W-Woah! What the—WHY CAN'T I MOVE?!" Fistrick roared inside.

Jaune and Gwen both broke out into wide smiles and laughed victoriously. "Haha! Pyrrha, you did it!" Jaune cheered.

The warrior's eyes snapped open, her own grin forming as well. "Haha! I-I did! I stopped it!" Her smirk grew as she went to move. "Now, let's see if this thing can take THIS!" Pyrrha twisted her body around, which made Gwen and Jaune move with her as Fistrick's mech went flying over all their heads. With a mighty crash, Pyrrha slammed the suit into the docks not too far away, keeping the pressure on to try and have it stay pinned.

However, Fistrick wasn't going to give up easily. He put his all into the controls, and while the mech's joints moved slowly, it still made a bit of progress in getting up. In fact, his struggle was enough to make Pyrrha wince as he pushed against her Semblance. "Hehe… got anything ELSE, weaklings?! I can't be kept down, in case ya haven't noticed!"

Pyrrha sneered at the armor in disdain. "I will NOT yield to the likes of you!"

"Also, incase ya didn't notice, the docks don't exactly like what you're doing!" Jaune shouted to the criminal.

"W-Wait, wha—AAUGH!" Unfortunately, the revelation came too late as the pressure that Fistrick was putting on the docks finally took its toll; the wood cracking in several places before the whole thing snapped beneath him. And with that, he was sent right into the drink, much to everyone's amusement.

"HA! How d'ya like THAT, tough guy?!" Nora shouted as she reloaded her hammer.

Pyrrha stuck her nose up in the villain's direction as she raised her hand up, pulling the mech out of the drink. "Indeed! How do you like this, "bro"?" With that, Pyrrha began to bring Fistrick up and down through the water repeatedly, making him sick to his stomach. "Think of this as retribution for hurting my friends AND those Megawatts!" With one final pull, Pyrrha sent the mechsuit flying overhead again, slamming it down into the concrete.

Jaune snapped his head up to the crane, seeing Rook having taken position on its arm. "Any time now, Rook!"

Rook gave him a single nod, his Proto-Tool at the ready. He took aim at the mech's back before pulling on the bow's energy string, with two energy arrows appearing as he knocked them back. Once he was sure his aim was true, Rook fired both arrows and they struck right into the mech's back, sending a surge through it on contact that made all of the pods fly off. They broke upon contact with the ground, freeing all of the Megawatts at once.

"Haha! YES!" Nora cheered.

"NO!" Fistrick hollered.

Rook jumped off the crane and put his Proto-Tool away, walking over to Jaune, Pyrrha and Gwen with a smile. "A very well thought out plan, everyone. But I believe that you are alright to let go of him now."

"Give me one moment." Pyrrha responded before flicking up her index finger. From that, Fistrick's mech was sent flying high up into the sky before falling back head first into the ground, at which point, Pyrrha stopped focusing on her Semblance. "Hah, that was cathartic."

"And AWESOME!" Jaune pumped his fists into the air before giving Pyrrha a kiss, much to her surprise. The two separated and Jaune pulled her into a hug. "Haha! Pyrrha, that was amazing! I can't believe we actually DID that!"

Gwen placed her hands on her hips. "Hmhm, believe it, Jaune. Nice work…" She trailed off when, in the corner of her eye, she saw two small shapes moving near street level. Gwen glanced up and saw both Ren and Kevin standing up there, the latter leaning on the green ninja's shoulder. He seemed to have just regained consciousness, but the Osmosian was awake enough to send Gwen a smile and a thumbs up, making her smile and return the gesture.

However, Fistrick was FAR from done. Inside his mechsuit, the punkish criminal grumbled as he heard his onboard computer tell him; "Power level critical; 12% remaining."

"Heh, just enough…" Fistrick pulled himself up, the suit standing tall once again, much to everyone's astonishment. "You little bros are ALL gonna pay for this! YOU HEAR ME?!" The mech's arms raised up as several panels all over its body began opening up, revealing even MORE missile launchers that aimed at the Omni-Hunters. With a press of a button, Fistrick launched every missile he had at the group, making him laugh uproariously. "HAHAHA! How'd you like… that?"

The man in the mechsuit was left flabbergasted as he watched Gwen come running up, transforming into her Anodite form so she could float directly in the way of the barrage of missiles. With a swift movement of her arm and a loud, powerful chant; "INEXPUGNABILIS SCUTOMOS!" she brought up a massive mana construct of a mighty shield, which successfully blocked the entire onslaught and blew them all to bits.

Everyone was left awestruck at the sight, and it was at that point Fistrick knew that he was in trouble. "Oh… crud."

Gwen spun around in midair and smiled down to a certain Pink Dynamo. "Nora, care to wrap this up?"

"Would I?!" Nora gripped the handle of her hammer and went to run forward… but she felt something tug on her skirt. She turned and looked down to see the six Megawatts that had been freed from the suit, all of them cackling and grinning at her wildly as they stared up at her. "Oh, hey! What're you guys…" One of the Megawatts said something in its native tongue while pointing at the robot, hoping that Nora would get the point. Fortunately, its meaning got through. "Ah! You wanna help me?!" All six of them nodded to her as their bodies began crackling with electricity. "Hahaha! Alright, let's do it!"

Nora stepped back toward the mech as her Semblance activated, the Megawatts pouring a TON of electricity into her body. The yellow lightning quickly shifted to pink as it began coursing through Nora's muscles, her hair beginning to stand on end as her smile became more and more manic. "AHAHAHA! Okay, big guy! You asked for this!" The hyper redhead suddenly shot forward like a bullet, almost unseen to the human eye as she leapt high into the air and headed straight for the mech with her hammer raised.

Inside the suit, Fistrick's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. "WHAT THE FU—"

"HAMMER… DOWN!" CLANG! BOOM! With a mighty blow, followed by a powerful explosion, Nora struck the mech with all her strength, sending it careening backward and to the opposite end of the port. It came crashing down into a small work building and Nora came falling after it, landing on its now-blown open chest to glare down at Fistrick. The man could barely keep his head up as she gave him a thumbs down. "And THAT… is what you get for being an asshole. Loser."

"B-B… Bro…" Fistrick immediately lost conscious after that, leading Nora to give a sigh of relief.

"Phew! Am I glad that's over!" She did an about face and waved down to her comrades. "So, anyone up for dinner?!"

…..

When Ben and the others had received the call, they were both disappointed and somewhat excited. The latter because they were always up for a good fight… but they were mostly a bit disappointed because they couldn't continue their romantic night. Nonetheless, he, Yang, Rex and Weiss all gathered up and made their way to Bellwood's water port, the quartet pulling up next to Kevin's car in the parking lot. "Man, Megawatts in Bellwood." Ben mused as the four of them exited his car. "Haven't seen any of them around in about seven years."

Yang raised brow to him. "Really, Green Boy? You saying they've been hear before?"

"Only once… right before Mr. Smoothie's grand opening." As the quartet walked over to the stairs leading to the port, Ben explained; "See, they were causing a lot of trouble around town, so I lead them over to Mr. Smoothie's to try and corner them. Thankfully, I managed to drain them all with Feedback and put 'em to sleep." The young man blinked as he remembered one other thing. "Huh… and now that I'm thinking back on it, I remember that I actually used to hate smoothies quite a bit."

The other three stared at Ben incredulously after he said that. "Woah… seriously?" Rex uttered. "Dude, that's kinda hard to imagine."

"Yeah, I mean, you're the smoothie guy." Weiss emphasized.

"I know, right?" Ben shrugged. "Hard to believe it myself… by the way, I should REALLY get you guys to Mr. Smoothie's at some point."

Yang placed a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe tomorrow, Green Boy. But for now… something tells me we've got a ton of other stuff to deal with." The blonde pointed out over to the port down below and the others all wore stunned expressions at what was going on down there. Countless Plumber vehicles had surrounded the whole place and the Plumbers themselves were moving about the area, inspecting it from top to bottom to make sure they didn't miss anything. The quartet made their way down and they immediately saw their friends, who were all talking with Six and Tetrax. "Hey, guys!"

The group all perked up and turned to them, the team smiling to the two couples as Gwen waved them over. "Hey, guys! Better late than never, huh?"

"Ha-ha, nice one, Gwen." Ben said sarcastically as they joined them. The hero scanned his eyes across the entire port, taking in just how much damage was done… as well as the giant mechsuit that was being loaded onto a Plumber transport truck. "Heh, damn, seems like you guys got the job done, anyway."

Kevin gave his friend a thumbs up. "You know it. Took down 'em down with little to no problem…" Suddenly, he winced and his hand went to his neck. "Ugh… er, well, I'm probably gonna be having a stiff neck for a bit, but we pulled through."

"The mech was… a bit intimidating at first." Jaune noted before putting his arm around Pyrrha. "But thanks to Pyr and I combining our Semblances with a little magical help from Gwen, we managed to bring it down!" He eyed Rook and Nora with a smile. "And thanks to Rook taking out its power source and Nora delivering the final blow, we can say that this mission was a big success."

"You know it!" Nora saluted. "We really showed that alien-abusing punk who's boss!"

"And without much collateral damage as well." Tetrax added as he took a glance down to a data pad that he was using. "Aside from that one control building, the damages here can be easily repaired."

Six gave Team JNPR, Gwen, Kevin and Rook an approving nod. "Good job, all of you. I can already see that training begin to pay off."

Ren rubbed the back of his head. "Heh… well, I suppose you could say that…"

Just then, Rex came up and nudged the ninja in his side before whispering; "Dude, take the compliment. Six doesn't hand 'em out willy-nilly." That made Six furrow his brow toward his pupil, making Rex throw his hands up. "Well, it's true!"

"Hey kids!" At the sound of approaching footsteps and a call out to them, the group all moved around and saw Max approaching them with his own data pad in hand. He smiled to his granddaughter and her team. "Good to see everyone made it out of here alright. All of you should be proud of what you did tonight." The team thanked Max all at once as the old Plumber set his sights to the newly-arrived quartet. "And you four… how were your nights out on the town?"

Weiss smiled brightly and clasped her hands together, letting out a wistful sigh. "Max, it was wonderful. Rex took me to a fantastic dinner…" She reached up and put a hand on his arm. "And… he sang a song for me… with a LIVE Mariachi band!"

There was a collective gasp… and then Gwen, Yang, Nora and Pyrrha all deafened everyone with the sound of their squeals of delight. "AAAAAAH! No way!" Gwen rushed up to the couple and gave them a big hug, much to their surprise. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, that has to be THE most romantic thing I've ever heard!" She pulled away, her eyes moving between the two. "I need ALL the details… and YOU!" Her finger pointed right to Rex. "You might be one of the most committed people in the WORLD having done that. Rex, you've just earned a TON of respect from me."

"Uh… thank you, Gwen." Rex scratched his head in confusion. "I think?"

The redhead then snapped her head over to Ben and Yang, clearly excited to hear how their date went as well. "And what about you two? How'd your night go?"

"Oh, it was fantastic." Yang assured. "Ben and I went to the local club, we danced, we ate, we got into a brawl with some assholes who tried to hit on me, the works."

"Oh, that's awesome to hear—wait, what was that last part?"

Ben gave a laugh as his cousin's gaze became visibly concerned, but he was quick to wave it off. "Ah, don't worry about it, Gwen. That whole thing's been taken care of and I doubt we'll be running into THEM ever again."

Yang reached around and pulled Ben into a side-hug. "Yep! And the place that Ben took me to after that MORE than made up for those assholes did at the club."

Pyrrha tilted her head. "Really? And where exactly did he take you?"

The couple glanced to one another before both of them shrugged, sharing knowing grins as Ben answered; "That's gonna have to be our little secret for now."

"AAAAAWW! No fair!" Nora bemoaned. "I want all the spicy details!"

"Sorry, Nora." Yang shook her head. "But right now, that spot's for me and Ben to know about exclusively." She gave her friend a wink. "Who knows? Maybe you guys will learn about it at some point in the future…" In the corner of her eye, Yang saw Gwen give her a suspicious look, but she paid it no mind. 'She'll probably figure it out sooner than the others.'

Max cleared his throat, bringing up his data pad. "Well, in any case, I heard that there's a colony of Megawatts that help power Undertown…"

This got everyone's attention, confusing them instantly. "Wait, really?" Jaune asked. "Since when?"

Tetrax pointed behind them. "Since now." The group moved around to see a Plumber transport truck come rolling up with a large, cylindrical container made mostly of clear glass being towed behind it. It was shining brightly in the night, and the closer it got, the more apparent it became that the lights were all, in fact, Megawatts. The little creatures chattered as the truck came to a stop. "The Nosedeenians didn't hesitate to take the offer when we presented it to them. With this, they have a home to call their own and they can help Undertown thrive with the electricity that they so desperately need." The Petrosapien eyed the team inquisitively. "However… we seem to be missing one. Anyone know where it might be?"

Without any hesitation, all eyes immediately went to Nora, the Pink Dynamo going wide-eyed the moment they did. Nora pouted and crossed her arms. "Oh, I see how it is! Blame the lightning girl when a Megawatt goes missing! Seriously guys, who do you take me for—" ZZZAP! "AGH!" Nora jumped about ten feet off the ground the moment she was zapped in her butt, revealing a small, cackling Megawatt standing behind her, laughing at its own prank. Nora landed, rubbing her rear in pain whilst everyone sent her accusatory expressions. "…Alright, you got me." Nora slumped over sadly. "I just… I wanted to keep one for myself, you know?" She picked the creature up and hugged it close. "I love these little guys!"

"Nora, I understand." Gwen came up and put a hand to Nora's shoulder. "But at the same time… my mother would never allow it in the house. Having a wolf puppy is one thing, but after having our home wrecked so many times by aliens, my mom doesn't want to take any chases."

Nora sighed and moved her head down more. "…Yeah, I get it." She stepped up toward the truck and one of the Plumbers opened the hatch for the container, allowing her to place the Megawatt inside. She wore a sad smile and waved to it, as it too wore a frown. "I know, it's not really fair. But hey, maybe I could visit all of you guys in Undertown whenever I get the chance! Sound fun?" The Megawatt immediately brightened up and chattered in its native tongue, nodding enthusiastically. "Great! Glad to hear it! …Well, take care." She shook the little guy's hand before the Plumber closed the hatch, allowing the truck to drive off to its destination.

Ren came up and put an arm across Nora's shoulders. "You did the right thing, Nora."

"Yeah, I know." Nora leaned on Ren's arm with a soft grin. "I'm still gonna miss them, though."

"Magister Tennyson!" The team all set their eyes over to another Plumber as he approached, saluting to Max as he continued. "All four of the prisoners have been sent off back to base, sir, including the one in Rook's Proto-Truck."

This, however, caught the patrol team's attention. "Wait, you are saying that you only collected four prisoners?" Rook inquired, to which the agent nodded. "There should be five prisoners. We dealt with three grunts, Fistrick himself, and a single other before coming here."

"Huh, that's strange." The Plumber agent put a hand to his chin. "We searched the whole compound top to bottom and got the kid, Fistrick, and his white and red mohawked lackeys. Who's this other guy?"

Kevin put a hand to his head. "An older guy with a black mohawk and handlebar mustache. You're tellin' me that you couldn't FIND him?! He should've been lying unconscious on one of those metal crates, I TOOK HIM OUT myself!"

The agent checked the data pad he was holding, going over the images of the people they had apprehended. "Kevin, there was no one matching that description inside the building. If he were, our operatives would've had him in cuffs on sight."

"DAMMIT!" Kevin stomped his foot in frustration. "Crush must've gotten away!"

"Probably while we were fighting Fistrick…" Gwen figured as everyone pondered on this new information. "Which is weird, since you'd figure he'd at least try to HELP him."

Jaune raised his hand up. "Well, um, I think I might have an idea why." Everyone's attention was on him now as the blonde explained; "You remember how guy we chased down earlier said that Fistrick had a boss of his own? Well… what if Crush ran off to actually report in to that boss?"

The groups were taken aback by the realization, with Pyrrha piping up; "An excellent deduction, Jaune. If Fistrick's operation has a higher power, it would make sense that one of the grunts would run off to warn said boss about things not going well…" She crossed her arms and pursed her lips. "But the question remains… who IS this boss of theirs?"

There was a long pause to let that query settle in before Yang let out a yawn, taking everyone by surprise. "Ah, oh, sorry… as much as I wanna think about that, I'm also kinda tired after today…"

"Yeah, so am I." Nora agreed before letting out a yawn of her own. "I think we should try to figure out who the big boss is another day, because right now, I really need to hit the sack."

"I think that's for the best, too." Max concurred. "Don't worry, we'll get everyone on the case to track down this man and find out who or what's REALLY behind this whole operation." He smiled to the group and waved them off. "You kids get a good night's sleep. After all, you've earned it."

"And remember; you're going to need it for tomorrow's training." Six added. "We're going to be upping the intensity a bit, so I suggest you get home and rest."

Just then, a loud rumble began to be heard from overhead, and from across the sky, the group saw a flash in the grey clouds a few miles away. Weiss' eyes widened and she gave a small gasp. "Hah, well if we're headed home, we'd better do it quickly before it starts raining. That looks like a pretty massive downpour might be coming."

"Weiss is right, we'd better go." Gwen said before facing Rook with a grin. "Rook, thank you for helping us out tonight. It was really great getting to work with you after hearing how you handled the mission in Undertown with Ben and the others."

Kevin extended a hand, which Rook gladly shook. "Yeah, man, hope to work with ya more in the future."

"I hope so as well." Rook smiled. "Have a good night, everyone." With that, the Omni-Hunters went up and got in their respective vehicles, though Rex and Weiss got on the former's ride so that Ren and Nora could hitch a ride with Ben and Yang back to Gwen's place. Once they were gone, Rook faced Max with an unsure expression. "Magister Tennyson… I believe that you wanted to discuss something with me about my placement?"

Max sighed and gave him a nod. "You're right, Rook. It may be a bit much, between you being on Manny's squad and being Swift's parole officer… but I'm strongly considering putting you on a position with the Omni-Hunters. Your missions with them have gone over very smoothly so far and it's obvious that they like you."

Rook's smile returned at that. "And I am relieved to hear that. However, I would not like to impose on any sort of team chemistry that they already have…"

"Oh, I'm sure they wouldn't mind that." Max waved off. "The more the merrier, and besides, they've gone through a few team expansions in the past. We'll give it a bit and see how things fair, sound good?"

"It does, thank you." After that, Rook let out a yawn of his own, though he made sure to cover his mouth. "Ah, my apologies…"

Max couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Hehe, get back to base and get some sleep, Rook. That's an order." The old man took in a deep breath as he watched the Revonnahgander comply, walking to his Proto-TRUK to take his leave. Max then set his sights skyward, taking note of how close that lightning really was. "Well, good thing we've got the Megawatts insulated, otherwise that'd be a problem… still, I don't recall anything being said about rain this evening." CAW-CAW! "Huh?" Max spun around to see… a pair of corvids sitting atop one of the warehouses. And they were staring right at him.

"Raven? Qrow?" Max's call went unanswered as the birds just flew right up and into the air, flying away into the night. His eyes narrowed as he watched them fly off. "…Strange."

…..

After a short drive across town, Gwen and Team JNPR made it to the front door of her house, all five of them relieved that they had made it home before the rain came. They all waved goodbye to Ben, Yang and Kevin as they pulled away from the curb, leaving them to enter the home. "Man, I am BUSHED." Jaune said as he set Crocea Mors down on a nearby chair. "All I need is a good meal and a nice bed and I'm set to crash."

"Yeah, same here, fearless leader." Nora agreed. "C'mon, let's—huh?"

The redhead suddenly paused as the sound of… weeping graced her ears, along with everyone else's. Their curiosity garnered, the five followed the crying sounds until they came to the living room… where they were met with an astonishing sight. It was Winter… and she was crying. And these weren't silent tears either, Winter was weeping with so much emotion that her face had actually become red. Kenny was giving her a supportive hug as Frank and Natalie offered their own aid, their hands on the young woman's shoulders.

Gwen was the first one to ask; "W-What happened?! What's wrong with Winter?!"

The three Tennysons all faced her at once, with Frank speaking up first. "O-Oh, hello everyone. Welcome back. How was the mission?"

"It went fairly well." Pyrrha answered before noticing something rubbing up against her foot. She set her eyes down to see Romulus, the wolf pup loyally nudging his head against her before barking happily. "Oh, and hello to you too, Rommy!" Pyrrha picked her wolf up and nuzzled him herself. "Were you a good boy for everyone?"

"He was a very good boy." Natalie answered before Winter's crying put her attention back on her. "Though unfortunately, Winter's been like this for the past several minutes."

"Yeah, we see that. So again; What. Happened?" Gwen reiterated.

Kenny sighed, keeping a hold of his grip on Winter's shoulder. "Well, our Disney marathon went well, I can say that much." He eyed his sister with a small grin. "But, uh, we actually just finished Bambi, so…"

Gwen's eyes widened while Team JNPR were left just as confused as they had been before. "…Oh, that explains it."

Winter sniffled and breathed in deeply, attempting to regain her composure. She lifted her head off of Kenny's shoulder, revealing that her eyeliner had been smeared by her tears. "I-I'm sorry, everyone. I-I know it's unbecoming of me to be doing this in front of all of you, but—"

"Winter, don't say another word." Gwen waved off before sitting next to the military specialist, placing her hand on her arm. "We completely understand…" Out the corner of her eye, the Anodite saw her friends all giving her questioning looks. "…Or at least I do. Trust me, I cried the first time I saw Bambi, too."

"You… you did?" Winter wiped her tears away, letting out a relieved breath. "G-Good, I'm glad that I am not the only one." She took another breath and went on. "That movie… it made me feel so many things all at once." Winter lowered her head and clasped her hands together. "And it also reminded me about several of the hardships that I've faced in my own life. I think… it may just be my favorite Disney film so far."

Kenny smiled brightly at that. "Hah, glad to hear it, Winter. If that's the case, then I can't wait to show you all of the other ones."

Winter turned to the redheaded boy and a tinge of red came to her cheeks as she grinned back at him. "Hmhm, I feel the same way, Ken."

"Ahem, uh, excuse me?" Ren piped up. "But what exactly IS the big deal with Bambi?"

Nora tilted her head a bit. "Yeah, I mean… it's a Disney movie, right? Shouldn't it be, ya know, fun?"

"Well, it IS a fun and good movie." Gwen clarified. "But it also has a ton of heavy subjects in it. Let's just say that, Disney aren't afraid to take some chances."

Jaune blinked in realization. "Wait… so is this like a Mufasa situation or something?"

Gwen bobbed her head back and forth. "Well, kinda, yes, but it's also a bit worse. You'll have to watch the movie to find out yourself, though."

Pyrrha pursed her lips at that. Gwen was obviously hiding something from them, but she wasn't about to press it. After all, she wasn't much a fan of movie spoilers. "Well, alright, we'll take you for your word, Gwen." Just then, however, Pyrrha heard something rumble next to her… only to then realize that it was her boyfriend's stomach. She sent a deadpan gaze up to him with her arms crossed. "Jaune, really?"

"Hehe… sorry. Like I said, I'm hungry." Jaune said sheepishly.

The whole room erupted into light laughter as Natalie made her way to the kitchen. "Well, you're in luck because we're having steak and potatoes tonight. You kids go get changed out of your gear and I'll call you when dinner's ready, okay?"

Team JNPR all gave Natalie a thankful bow before making their way upstairs, with Gwen following soon after. The two groups separated and went to their separate rooms, with Jaune shedding his chest armor the moment he walked in. "Hah… man, what a day. We trained our butts off, stopped a group of punks from using aliens for their own gain. Overall, I'd say we—hm?" He was stopped when he felt a certain soft hand press up against his back, the knight smiling to his girlfriend instantly. However, he also saw that she wore a serious expression, making his grin falter a bit. "Pyr? What's up?"

"Jaune… now that we're all here alone, perhaps it's time we told them… you know what." Pyrrha answered, nudging her head to Nora and Ren.

Nora perked up as she went to take off her jacket. "Huh? Who knows what?" But then, she let out a gasp and zipped over to the couple, getting right in their faces. "Ah! Oh my gosh, is this a love secret that you can only tell your closest friends?! Are you guys taking the next step?! PLEASE tell me what it is!"

Immediately, Jaune and Pyrrha both shushed Nora, the Pink Dynamo shrinking back a bit at their harsh action. After that, though, Jaune shook his head. "No, Nora, this isn't anything like that. …Honestly, it's something that I should've come clean to you about a long time ago."

Seeing how Jaune carried an air of seriousness about him, Ren and Nora were taken aback. This had to be important. "What is it, Jaune?" Ren asked.

"You can tell us anything." Nora added. "You know that, right?"

Jaune sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "I know… but this is a pretty big deal." He glanced over to Pyrrha, the warrior grasping his hand to try and put him at ease at least a little. Still, even with her support, he still couldn't help the feeling of nervousness rise in his gut. But he knew that he had to do this. It was now or never. "Here's the thing… I never actually got into Beacon. At least… not fairly."

Both Ren and Nora were visibly quite shocked, as he expected. "W-Wait, what?" Nora stammered. "Jaune, what're you talking about?"

"What I'm talking about is that I lied to get into Beacon." The blonde knight hung his head in shame. "I… I used fake transcripts to get into the school."

"WHAT?!" Both Ren and Nora shouted before the former stepped up. "Jaune, what in the world were you thinking?!" the green ninja exclaimed, not in any sort of malice, but in genuine concern. "You didn't go to ANY sort of Training School of have any mentors to recommend you to Beacon? You faked your way in?! Are you mad?!"

"Jaune, you could've gotten yourself KILLED at any point in the school year!" Nora cried out. "Why in the world did you do something like that?!"

Jaune swallowed hard. He had a feeling that his teammates would reprimand him like this, but he also knew that he had to take his lumps for pulling the stunt in the first place. "I know… it was really stupid of me to do and I realize that. Hell, I realized that during the first few weeks of school." His focus shifted to Nora. "But if you want to know why I did it… it was because I always wanted to BE a Huntsman. My father, my grandfather, my great-grandfather… they were all warriors… heroes." He gathered his courage and stood tall as he continued. "I wanted to be one too, but I was never good enough. I thought that if I had gone to Beacon, I'd be able to harden myself into the Huntsman I always wanted to be. Needless to say, things didn't turn out how I had planned."

"He confided this information to me a couple weeks after initiation." Pyrrha added in. "And since then, I've been helping him to improve his skills."

"So THAT'S why you guys kept training on the roof at night." Nora deduced. "I mean, I knew it was to get better, but I didn't know it was to get Jaune some ACTUAL combat experience!" At that moment, though, Ren stepped closer to Jaune without a word, the two boys locking eyes as they stood inches apart. "Uh… Renny, what're you—" WHAM! All of a sudden, much to the girl's astonishment, Ren delivered a straight punch to Jaune's gut, making the blonde knight double over. "AH! REN?!"

Pyrrha immediately went to catch Jaune while chastising the green ninja. "Ren! What is the meaning of—huh?" Just as quickly, though, she grew utterly baffled at what came next. Ren knelt down, caught Jaune, and then pulled him into a hug. The two girls were utterly silent at this new development. "…Uh, what?"

Ren pulled his head away to gaze straight into Jaune's eyes again. "What you did has to be one of the most idiotic things I've ever heard. …But, I can't deny that since you've joined Beacon, you HAVE become more experienced in combat. And well, you haven't died yet, so that's a big plus." Behind them, Nora couldn't help but giggle at that last part as Ren helped Jaune up, patting his best friend's shoulder. "Jaune, I think of you as a brother to me, and that's something that'll never change. You're my friend, you're my leader, I trust you with my life. I don't care that you faked your transcripts, but… just promise us that you won't make any stupid decisions like that ever again, please?"

Jaune's jaw had dropped in disbelief. "So… wait, you don't think any less of me?"

"Of course we don't!" Nora insisted as she moved in for a hug of her own. "Jaune, we love you like family and nothing will ever change that." She pulled away and gave a few light pats to Jaune's cheek. "Add the fact that you've been a great leader so far and you HAVE been getting better day-by-day and we wouldn't trade you for the world! We just don't want you to make any more boneheaded choices like that, okay?"

The blonde was still utterly stunned by the redhead's words, but Pyrrha quickly brought him out of it. "See? I told you they wouldn't be upset…" Her features scrunched up a bit though as she eyed Ren. "Although… could you have done without the gut punch, Ren?"

Ren's hand went to the back of his head. "What can I say? I felt the need for some tough love."

"Ah, don't worry about it." Jaune waved off. "If anything, it definitely drove the point home." He reached out and pulled Ren and Nora into a big hug, with Pyrrha joining in as well. "But thanks, guys. I'm glad that you guys don't hate me and all."

Nora reached up and flicked him in the nose. "Parish the thought! …Though, uh, I can't imagine it'll be much fun explaining it to the others." She raised a brow up to him. "I'm guessing no one else but us knows about this info, right?"

Jaune sighed and his shoulders slumped. "No, no they don't. But hey, one step at a time, as they say. But right now, I'm starving, so let's change and get some dinner, huh?" With that, the team took to their respective sides of the room and Pyrrha pulled back the large curtain that divided it, giving them all their respective privacy while they changed. As he exchanged his huntsman gear for some casual clothes, however, Jaune couldn't help but feel a massive weight having lifted from his shoulders. 'Well, hopefully it'll be all uphill from here.'

…..

Meanwhile, across town, Ben couldn't help but chuckle to himself as he pulled into his driveway, seeing Rex and Weiss already waiting for them there. The moment that they had dropped Ren and Nora off at Gwen's house, Yang went out like a light. It was obvious that she was tired from the day's experiences, but he didn't thing she'd be THIS pooped. The Blonde Brawler had effectively reclined the passenger-side seat ALL the way back, allowing her to crash without sleeping at an awkward angle. And the fact that she was audibly snoring was also pretty amusing to Ben, mainly for the fact that he couldn't get over how cut she was while asleep. And yet still, she seemed so at peace.

'I truly am a lucky guy.' Ben thought as he turned off the car and got out, closing the door as softly as he could before making his way over to the other side.

The moment Ben opened the passenger door, however, Weiss couldn't help but snicker a bit. "Hehe, oh my gosh, she is REALLY out of it, isn't she?" the former heiress eyed her teammate with a smirk… before promptly yawning herself.

Rex quickly smirked back and nudged her with his elbow playfully. "Heh, I don't think she's the only one about to crash, Ice Princess." As he expected, Weiss nudged him back with an eyeroll, which made him laugh even more.

"Har-har, very funny, Robo-dolt." Her focus returned to Ben and Yang… only to be surprised immensely at what the former was doing. Ben had reached in and actually lifted Yang out of the car, bridal style, and began carrying her to the house. Weiss couldn't help but clap her hands together and coo at the sight. "Aww! Ben, that's adorable!" Immediately, though, Ben gave her a shush, making Weiss squeak and cover her mouth. "Sorry." she whispered.

"No problem." Ben shrugged. "I just don't want Yang to—"

"Mrph… wha…" In Ben's arms, Yang's eyes fluttered open and, in a few moments, she was fully awake. It took a couple seconds, but the Blonde Brawler was quick to catch on to her current position and a devious grin came to her lips. "Oh my, Green Boy, I knew you were a gentleman, but this is taking it to the next level."

Ben blushed as Yang reached her arms up and gave him a peck on the cheek. "Ah, it's no problem, Goldie Locks. I just didn't want you to wake up."

"And that's very thoughtful of you." Yang winked. "Although, unless you want every one in that house's attention, you might wanna put me down."

"…Do I have to?"

"Now THAT is a response that a girl wants to hear." Yang said before giving him a much more passionate kiss.

Just then, Weiss cleared her throat, getting their attention. "Ahem, not to interrupt the moment, but I would like to get to bed."

Rex gave a small yawn as well. "Yeah, me too. And we've got more training tomorrow, so there's that…" He smiled down to his girlfriend and took her hands in his, placing his forehead against hers as well. "I look forward to seeing you tomorrow, mi amor."

"Oh stop, Rex." Weiss gave the EVO a small kiss on the cheek. "Just kidding, actually. Say more nice things, please."

"Hehe, there'll be plenty more tomorrow, for sure." Rex promised as he activated his Boogie Pack, giving a wave over to Ben and Yang. "Later, guys! Night!" The three waved back to Rex as he took off into the night, leaving them to walk into the Tennyson household.

Yang was let down by her boyfriend as they stepped onto the stoop and she reached for the knob. "Hah, finally. Gimme a warm shower and a good bed, because I am exhausted—"

BAM! The group let out a collective shout as the door was suddenly pulled open, and they were met with the beaming smile of one excited little sister. "YOU'RE BACK!" Without missing a beat, Ruby grabbed all three of them and pulled them inside, the door slamming behind them as they all yelped in shock. Ruby had them all in one of the biggest group hugs she had managed to pull off, her eyes glistening eagerly as she stared at them. "EEEEE! How was your night? Did you all have fun? PLEASE tell me you all had awesomely romantic times!"

The trio eyed one another before Weiss let out a sigh. "Hah, I probably should've expected this." She reached up and pushed against Ruby's forehead, freeing them all from her grasp. "Yes, Ruby, we all had a good time, I can promise you that. But please, we're all very tired and could use some space."

"Oh, sorry!" Ruby bowed her head. "I was just so excited when I saw you pull in, I-I couldn't wait any longer…" But then, she put on a smirk before sliding next to Ben and nudging him with her elbow. "Also, don't think I didn't notice how you carried my sister to the door, Ben. You sly dog."

Ben winced a bit while Yang rolled her eyes with a chuckle. "Hehe, Ruby, I swear, you're almost as bad of a romantic as Gwen."

"And proud of it!" Ruby put a hand to her chest with her head held high. "But enough about me, let's talk about YOU guys! What went down on your dates tonight?"

"That, I think, can be discussed tomorrow." Weiss asserted. "We're all very tired and we want to go to bed right now, to be honest."

Ruby's brow raised and pouted. "What? But it's only nine-thirty!"

"Early to bed, early to rise, as they say." Ben explained. "Besides, considering that we have training at ten every day now, maybe it's better to get up early. That way we can have more time in the day." The group agreed with Ben's point before the hero took a glance around the living room… only to find no one else there. "Uh… so where IS everyone, anyway?"

"Oh, well, Cooper and Team CFVY all left about an hour ago." Ruby explained. "Cooper's mom was cooking dinner for them and Coco didn't want to miss that. But the others are all in the kitchen." Ruby ushered the three to follow her as she continued; "They've been playing Uno for the past couple of hours now. Neptune won't quit until he's won at least one game."

Yang couldn't help but laugh at that. "Ha! Wow, he STILL hasn't won a game?"

"Nope. Blake's won SEVERAL times tonight, Sun's won a couple, and heck, Ilia, Penny and I all got at least one." Ruby wore a sympathetic smile as she came to kitchen entrance, with the others peering in behind her. "As for Neptune, though…"

"THIRTY CARDS?!" Came a loud shout that everyone recognized as Neptune's voice. The group's jaws all dropped at the state of the blue-haired boy's hand. There were indeed about thirty cards in his hands, and by the state of his face, it seemed like he was about to have a rage-induced meltdown. "YOU'VE GOTTA BE JOKING!" He pointed accusingly at Blake, who comparatively only had three cards in her hand. "I should've never agreed to your terms, UNO WITCH! "Draw till you match" is a TERRIBLE house rule!"

Blake let out a chortle that what both amused and had a sinister air to it. "It is, but you can't deny that it AND the jump-in rule makes things FAR more interesting."

Next to her, Ilia deadpanned to her best friend, her hand having about fifteen cards in it. "Speak for yourself, Blake. You're somehow a master at this game."

"Don't give up yet, Freckles!" Swift cheered from behind the chameleon girl, placing her hands on Ilia's shoulders in support. "You got this! You may be behind, but you're doing BETTER than Neptune, so take that and run with it!"

Ilia's spots became a pink-ish shade of red, a bit flustered by the Aerophibian girl's touch and supportive cheering. "Th-Thanks, Swift." However, she sent a worried gaze over to the person sitting across from her. "Although, I think it's someone ELSE that we should really be worried about…"

There, sitting with a single Uno card in her hand, was Penny. Thankfully, she didn't have any sort of conniving grin about her, though. She was just her same-old cheery self. "Aw, I wouldn't be too apprehensive, Ilia. There IS still plenty of things that could happen." Penny gestured over to Neptune. "Who knows? Perhaps Neptune could still pull off a win!"

"Oh, yeah SURE I can!" Neptune snapped as he fumed at his hand, his eye twitching along with the rest of his body. "At this rate, I may as well BURY myself in my cards because I'm not winning with this freaking hand!"

But then, he felt a soft hand on his arm, and his ears were graced with a soothing voice to accompany it. "Neptune, please calm down." Almost immediately, Neptune felt his frustrations wash away as he turned his head to Helen, the Kineceleran girl giving him a small grin. "You can't let the frustrations of a simple card game get to you, okay? In situations like these, it's important that you have a clear head and stay calm. Because right now, you're acting like Manny does almost every day." She gave him a wink and pat his arm. "Trust me, if you put your mind to it, you CAN do it."

Neptune stared back at Helen for a short time, his cheeks flushed a bit before his features lit up in determination. "Ha! You know what? You're right, Helen! Thanks for the advice!" Helen's smile brightened up as Neptune returned to the game with a renewed vigor. "Alright! Now let's get this show back on the road!" With that, he placed a blue 4 onto the pile… and then another blue 4 quickly covered it.

"AH-HA! I WIN!" Penny cheered as she jumped up from her seat. "That makes my second victory!"

Neptune felt all the blood drain from his face in that one instant as everyone stared in disbelief. He had gotten so hyped about continuing the game… that he had forgotten that Penny had Uno and jump-ins were allowed. Neptune dropped all of his cards and slammed his head on the table, shouting into his arms as Helen rubbed comforting circles into his back. "NOOOOO!"

Off to the side, Sun was leaning against the counter, watching the game with indifference as he sipped on a soda. "See, this is why I ducked out of the game a half-hour ago…" He trailed off as he saw Ruby, Ben, Yang and Weiss all standing in the doorway, which made him brighten up and wave to them. "Oh, hey guys! Didn't see you all come in."

All at once, the entire room's attention went to the doorway, and everyone began greeting their returning friends as well. "Ah! So you guys are back!" Blake stood up and went over to her partner, giving her a questioning grin. "Alright, spill lady. How was your date?"

"HA! It was great, Blake." Yang gave her partner a high five. "Thanks for asking. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow, but right now I'm BUSHED."

"Ugh, aren't we all?" Neptune said before he promptly stood up. "I think I'm ready to head out, anyway."

Ilia glanced up to the clock. "Yeah, it's almost ten o'clock, anyway…" Her eyes trailed over to Ilia. "And if I recall, that would be your curfew."

Swift threw her head back and groaned. "Gah, don't remind me. If there's one thing I despise about my parole, it's that."

"Hey, be careful of what you say, missy." Helen scolded, though she only half-meant it. "You don't want the Plumbers on your ass about this, do you?" Swift muffled an acknowledgment to her with a bit of an eyeroll, though Helen didn't see it as she turned back to Neptune and put a hand on his shoulder. "And hey, cheer up, Neptune. One day, I know you'll get a win at Uno. Keep practicing and I'm sure you'll get it."

Neptune's shoulders sagged a bit as he sighed, but nonetheless, he sent a thankful smile over to Helen. "Thanks, Helen, that does make me feel a little better. So, uh… will I see you tomorrow?"

Helen grinned back at him and gave him another wink. "We'll see. Until then, we'll be seein' ya!" She gave Swift a nod and the two began to head out… but not before Swift went back and gave a hug to Ilia.

"See ya tomorrow, Freckles." she whispered before following Helen to the front door.

"Y-Yeah! See ya!" Ilia waved back, trying to keep the heat in her cheeks and her heartbeat under control. 'Goddamn it, how does she keep getting me like this?' HONK-HONK! The chameleon girl was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of a horn outside, which caught the attention of Sun, Neptune and Penny as well. "Oh, that must be Kevin."

"Yep, time for us to head out." Sun concurred before heading over to Blake, taking her hands in his before giving her a peck on the lips. "Good night, Blake. So, we on for tomorrow at four like we planned?"

Blake chuckled and went in for a hug. "Hmhm, of course. And I'm really looking forward to it, Sun. I'll see you tomorrow." The couple separated and everyone said their goodbyes as Sun's group walked out the door, leaving Ben and Team RWBY as the only ones left.

Yang gave a light shove to her partner with her shoulder. "So, you and Sun goin' on a date of your own tomorrow?"

"Yeah, Sandra told us that there's a coffee shop nearby that also makes really good tea, so we're heading there." Blake answered.

"Okay… anywhere else?"

Blake gave her partner a slight frown. "Yang, I'm kind of an easy person to please. Tea and a nice conversation are all I really like in a date."

"Well, yeah, that's great, but don't ya wanna spice things up a little?" Yang put a hand to Blake's arm and quirked a brow at her. "I mean, c'mon, you and Sun have been in an official relationship for about… a week and a half, right? I'm sure there's SOMETHING exciting you'd wanna do with him, right?"

The cat girl pursed her lips at that, her hand traveling down to her side apprehensively. "Well… maybe at some point, but not yet." Yang's eyebrows rose up as she saw a hint of sadness and worry behind her partner's gaze. "Yang, I'm glad that you're so supportive, really, I am. But… remember, my last relationship didn't turn out so well. I just… want to take things slow here for now, okay?"

All at once, Yang realized where her partner was coming from. "Oh… yeah, right. I guess it DOES make sense that you'd wanna take your time after… that. Sorry, Blake."

"No worries, Yang." Blake's grin returned before her eyes went to the nearby hallway. "So, you ready for bed?"

"Oh, yes, PLEASE!" Weiss exclaimed as she and Ruby began walking to the hall, with Ben, Yang and Blake following right after them. "After tonight, I'm pooped."

Ruby giggled at that. "Hehe, I'm sure. I'll bet you guys experienced a LOT of interesting stuff tonight."

Just then, Ben snapped his fingers. "Oh, yeah that's right. At breakfast, remind me to tell you guys about what Kevin, Gwen and Team JNPR had to deal with tonight. Trust me, it sounded insane."

"AH! So they DID see some action?!" Ruby placed her arms behind her head. "Man, and to think WE were having a little party over here." Once the group made it to Team RWBY's room, Weiss opened the door and the girls began going in. "Well, in any case, night Ben!"

"Night, girls, see you in the morning." Ben waved back, only to see that Yang had stuck behind. She was staring up at him expectantly, and Ben knew exactly what she wanted. "Hmhm, of course. What kind of gentleman would I be without giving you a goodnight kiss?"

"Eeyup, now pucker up, mister." Yang grabbed a hold of Ben's collar and pulled him down to her level, crashing his lips into hers with a fiery intensity that spread throughout both of their bodies. They stayed linked for a good minute before they finally separated, needing to catch their breath. Still, they kept their foreheads pressed against one another, and Yang whispered; "Hah… you know, it's times like these that make me wish I could just… that I could share your bed with you now."

"I know." Ben placed his hand to Yang's arm reassuringly. "But right now, I think we should keep our expectations realistic. Our parents probably won't let us THIS soon, but… let's give it some time and see what they say. Still, no matter how long it takes, I promise that we WILL eventually share a bed. I haven't given up on that."

Yang's lips curled into a smile. "And I haven't either, Green Boy. Good night."

"Good night, Goldie Locks." Ben whispered before the two hugged and went off to their separate rooms, leaving the hallway completely silent

…Though that wasn't to say that it wasn't uninhabited. Around the corner, Sandra and Raven were standing as quiet as can be throughout their kids' conversation… and they had heard all of it. The blonde woman eyed the Spring Maiden warily. "You heard the same thing I did, right?"

"Yep." Raven said as she poured herself another glass of wine. "Not really surprising to me, though. I had a feeling those two would want to share a bed with one another eventually. In fact, they may already have." Sandra's lips parted in shock as Raven explained. "The night before we left Remnant, Yang and Ben had the basement to themselves to watch some movies and whatnot while everyone else celebrated upstairs. However, everyone ended up crashing where they were… so Yang and Ben ended up sleeping in the basement with each other. I have no doubt that's where this is coming from."

Sandra's hand went to her lips, taking the information in. "Oh my… well, I WILL say that I'm impressed that they want to take the next step, but… I don't think that now is a good time."

"Oh no, definitely not this soon." Raven concurred. "Let's give them a month and see where they're at. THEN we'll see about it."

"…Should we talk to them about it tomorrow?" Sandra asked hesitantly. "I mean, I wouldn't want to keep this under wraps from them. Plus, it would just feel dishonest not to tell them that we heard their conversation."

Raven tapped her chin in thought. "Hmm… well, not a bad idea. Let's do that—" CRASH! Sandra jumped in surprise as a flash of light cast over the both of them, with Raven's head snapping to the nearby window. Outside, the two women saw dark clouds begin to move over Bellwood, and Raven couldn't help but whistle. "Hoo boy, looks like we're in for one hell of a lightning storm…"

…..

Not too far away from town, though, standing atop a grassy hill, Orson kept a watchful eye on Bellwood, his gaze focused on the water port. He hummed to himself as he absentmindedly whittled on a stick, his horse laying on the ground peacefully next to him. However, at the sound of distant crowing, he moved his head up and chuckled at the sight of his birds flocking back to him. The pair came in for a landing on Sylvester's saddled and he gave them an acknowledging grin… right before a bright flash engulfed the entire area. Sylvester immediately whinnied in alarm, sending the two ravens flying again as he promptly stood up.

Orson, however, was unaffected by the flash, having grown accustomed to it over a long period of time. After all… he knew who had stopped by for a visit. He turned to see a large, imposing figure standing across from him, one who was a clear two feet taller than Orson himself, coming in at about eight feet even. His shoulders were broad and his build was burly, though aside from that, his appearance was shrowded by a large cloak and hood. The only other feature Orson could make out were the man's eyes, which glowed an intense electric blue and seemed to spark at certain points.

The hooded man spoke in a deep baritone as he approached. "So… THIS is where you've been. It's been a while since you've dusted off that old disguise."

"And YOU do not know the meaning of the word "subtlety" when it comes to yours, do you, boy?" Orson shrugged off as he continued to whittle his stick. As the man approached, however, he couldn't help but chortle. "Tell me, were you watching?"

"I was." the man responded, making his way to Orson to look across the city of Bellwood.

"And?"

"…They are impressive, I'll give them that. Could use some refinement, but they are truly powerful warriors."

Orson nodded, but quickly followed up with a question he knew should be asked. "And what about the girl in pink?" He received silence from the taller man, making Orson raise a brow at him. "Come now, you cannot deny that there are clear similarities."

"Perhaps so." The man shrugged his own massive shoulders. "But we shall we how she fairs with time."

Orson lowered his head and put his hat back on before grabbing Sylvester's reigns. "Hm, yes, we shall. Well, my boy, I'd best be off."

As he was walking off, though, the hooded man spoke up. "…The queen wishes to know when you will return home."

Orson paused and let out a sigh, though he didn't turn back to the man. "That… is not something I can confidently answer right now. You know me, I do this often and every time I return, it's somewhat expected." He reached up and pet Sylvester's muzzle tenderly. "This case, however… is a special one. After all, we are not the only ones who have taken interest in these children."

"Hmph, you're right." The man crossed his massive arms in thought. "I've been sensing the love weaver's aura for a while now."

"Hehe, indeed. No doubt that she is quite invested in the two young hotshots and their partners." Orson shook his head to get back on track. "In any case, tell my love that I will return whenever I am able, and that I will check in often." His smile returned and he finally faced the man again. "And then I believe you should continue observing things down here. Doesn't have to be with me, but I can tell that your curiosity has been piqued." He shot a knowing smirk at him. "Besides, shouldn't this technically be YOUR job to be down here in the first place?"

The man finally gave an amused chuckle. "Haha! Well, I cannot deny that. I will deliver your message to her… and then we'll see about that other part." The man began to walk away, though not before giving a final wave. "Take care… old man." With another crack of lightning, the man was gone as soon as he had arrived, leaving Orson to chuckle to himself before leaving on his own.

'Things are definitely going to get VERY interesting around here…'

…..

In the next town over, as the rain began to fall, Crush pulled up to his gang's de facto hide out, letting out a frustrated sigh as he parked the trailer truck he was driving. Things had gone to shit REALLY fast for him and his gang, and unfortunately, he was forced to abandon them if they had any chance of rebounding from this travesty of an operation. …That and the contents of the trailer truck HAD to be taken to their boss, otherwise none of them would probably survive.

As a shudder ran up his spine, Crush got out of the truck and hurried toward the back end, opening up the hatch and lifting it to reveal what he was hauling. And that was… a whole bunch of half-kegs of Miller Lite beer. Personally, Crush was more of a Bud guy, but his boss LOVED this stuff, so he wasn't about to argue. He grabbed one of the kegs and propped it on his shoulder before heading inside, only to be met with utter darkness.

"Uh… boss?!" Crush called out, setting the keg down as he scanned the area. "Y-You here?"

"Grrr…" Crush's eye's shot open as an animalistic growl graced his ears, sending a chill through his very soul. At the sound of clattering metal, he spun around and gasped, seeing a tall, imposing figure standing on the scaffolding above him. A pair of gleaming, red eyes glared back at him as the figure spoke in a deep, husky, southern accent. "Yeah, Crush, I'm here. Why WOULDN'T I be?"

Crush gulped and chortled nervously. "Oh, hehe… right. Ya don't have many other places to go…"

"Quit yer yappin'!" the figure barked before jumping off the scaffolding and onto the floor, making it crack upon impact. Right as he landed, a flash of lightning came through the windows, allowing Crush to see his boss briefly. The sight of his large, terrifying teeth were enough to make his stomach flip. "So tell me, ya got the goods there?"

Crush's boss pointed to the keg, which the older punk nodded. "Uh-huh, y-yeah. Miller, just like ya wanted." He jabbed his thumb back to the door. "And there's a whole truck load of it outside for ya, too."

"Well then don't just stand there like a stump!" The large figure held up his hand… which seemed to have claws sticking out of each thick finger. "Bring it over!"

"R-Right." Crush hefted the keg again and brought it over to his boss, who actually took it from him using only one hand. He held the keg in his large hand much like someone would hold a regular beer can, and if that weren't enough, he used one of his claws to actually OPEN it like a normal can as well, complete with a clicking sound of the keg being depressurized.

The boss lifted the keg up to his lips and took a big swig, letting out a refreshed sound once he was done. "Ah, yeah, that's the stuff right there…" the figure's eyes went back to Crush and he narrowed his gaze at the man. "So… what went wrong?"

"W-What?!" Crush stammered. "B-Boss, how'd you—"

"I can smell the fear on ya, Crush." the boss emphasized his point with a few sniffs. "Yer nervous sweat says it all. Now… what happened?"

Crush let out an apprehensive breath before explaining. "W-Well… to make a long story short… we were tracked down. Corvo ended up being chased down and—"

"GRRRR, I TOLD that boy to watch his step!"

"W-We know, sir, but trust me, the ones who found us were clever." Crush reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, bringing up a picture to show the boss. In the picture were Gwen, Kevin, Rook and Team JNPR, which was taken from his look-out post back at the port. He lifted his phone up and said; "Boss, these were the ones who found us. They're Tennyson's lackeys."

The boss let out another growl and his teeth clenched in anger. "Them… oh, I KNOW them." He pointed up to Kevin in the photo. "I especially know THIS one. Was Tennyson with 'em?"

"No sir, b-but they still managed to beat us. I managed to escape but… the others were caught by the Red-Spots. Everything we've been workin' on with the Nosedeenians is… gone." Crush shrunk back as his boss growled some more, and he quickly began apologizing. "I-I'm sorry, boss, trust me I wanted to go back, but—"

"NO EXCUSES!" the boss bellowed as he tossed a random machine into the nearest wall, making Crush flinch. The man covered his head as his boss approached, his voice low and dangerous. "Alright, here's what we're gonna do to correct the little mistake you boys made…" He began poking Crush in the chest with every point he made. "We're gonna break into that there Plumber Prison, we're gonna free our boys, an' then we're gonna make sure those heroes learn a lesson that they ain't EVER gonna forget!"

"W-We are?"

"Yer darn right!" With that, the boss brought his keg up again and just knocked back the entire keg in about six or seven gulps, much to Crush's astonishment. The boss then crushed the can before chucking it at Crush, making him stumble onto the ground.

Finally, the boss stepped into what little light that was being cast inside from the windows, revealing his full form. He stood about seven feet tall and was huge and muscular with broad, hairy shoulders. In fact, every part of him from his head, to his arms, to his feet was covered in thick, black fur… and his features were all very canine in nature. These included a furry tail, pointed ears, a thick muzzle and a set of sharp teeth. He wore a pair of torn black jeans, an orange undershirt with a solid red, V-shaped pattern going down the middle, and a black leather jacket with torn off sleeves. On said jacket were three spikes on each shoulder and there was a skull and crossbones on the left pectoral, along with another skull with jagged teeth on the back that had the words "Bone Gnasher" printed beneath it. The mighty dog-like alien lowered his head to Crush and hollered in his face;

"And THAT'S the bottom line… BECAUSE BASHMOUTH SAID SO!"

…..

A/N: Ooh… the plot thickens. Indeed, Bashmouth's back, everyone! AND it seems that he's taken up the reins of being the head honcho of Fistrick's operations ever since he escaped through that portal from Remnant oh so long ago. But how did that come to pass? Well, we'll find that out eventually. But, if you'll recall, he actually gave our heroes a pretty rough time back at Beacon, so it's likely that he'll probably do the same here as well whenever he and Crush enact their prison break. Oh, and if you couldn't tell, he's still voiced by Stone Cold Steve Austin.

But, of course, we got to see Team JNPR and the others bring Fistrick down, so there's that. Kevin got knocked around a bit, yes, but Jaune and Pyrrha were able to combine their Semblances to give Fistrick a good pummeling, Rook freed the Megawatts, and Nora had the Megawatts help in bringing down the massive mech for good! Overall, a pretty successful mission.

However, what happened after the mission was also considerably important, considering Jaune's finally come out to Nora and Ren about how he faked his Beacon transcripts. And while things seemed to be a bit rough around the edges, the two took it well and they still think of him as they always had, so that's nice. …Also, don't lie, at least SOME of you must've cried when watching Bambi, so Winter's emotions are very much justified.

On another note; Ruby's hyped up about the dates and Neptune just can't win at Uno. …So pretty much same old, same old, hehe. But of course, Ben and Yang are still determined to share a bed with one another… though the fact that their mothers now know this does seem to be an interesting turn. Just what will they have to say to them come the next day?

And finally, we see Orson once again. And it seems this time, he's got some interesting company… who also happens to be family? Intriguing to say the least. What COULD be going on around here?

Ah well, a question for another day! But for now… wait… next month is October! You know what THAT means! It's time for our next big story arc! NEXT TIME; Ben and Team RWBY are about to head out for training when Sandra and Raven ask their respective children to stay behind. It's time to have a little talk. But as that's happening, we check back in with the Ministry after their first day of Khyber's training… only now, a certain witch has decided to check in on everyone. This ends up leading to the gang bringing Khyber to with them to meet the "Boss Lady" herself. How will that go, you ask? Well, tune in next time to find out! Thanks for reading everybody and I'll see you later! And as always, stay safe out there!