Cole dedicated himself to training, studying, and trying to connect with various teams, but he soon realized that most of them didn't genuinely care about him, except for Ruby, Weiss, and a few teachers. This realization shattered something inside him, shifting his focus from meticulously analyzing every detail to hoping he was mistaken.

He overheard that only Weiss and Ruby defended his reputation among the entire student body, with others remaining indifferent. Even the professors didn't intervene, despite his requests to ignore the rumors. One day, Penny told him she had reviewed all the data on his life and concluded that he was nothing more than a caged beast waiting to break free. Those words pushed him to only engage with those who reached out to him, valuing the silence.

As he spent time in the halls and classes, he felt his reputation tarnished, accused of things he didn't do, despite his previous good deeds. This abrupt perspective shift infuriated him.

Eventually, he learned why everyone's perception of him had changed, and the rumors escalated to the point where he trained tirelessly, causing concern among Glynda, some teachers, Ruby, Nora, and Ren. Conversations with Ruby led to confrontations with fourth-year students, who tried to justify the gossip as typical behavior. This transformation disturbed him as he went from releasing steam to dangerously embracing the adrenaline rush of battling Grimm until he lost consciousness.

One particularly bad day, Cole attempted various forms of self-improvement, but most of his attempts to seek help were met with rejection or excuses, even from Weiss. Frustration pushed him to stop asking for assistance altogether.

His temper neared a breaking point when first - and second-year students provoked him, prompting him to train alone as an apology to Weiss and Ruby and to reflect on who deserved his time.

It became clear that Cole needed to distance himself from those who no longer mattered to him, as fighting them outside of class could lead to severe consequences.

In the present, Cole prepared to don an experimental bodysuit secretly developed with Ruby's help. Ruby emphasized the need for secrecy, providing a duffel bag of items, and explained the suit's features, including its crystalline gel layer and ballistic armor. Cole playfully teased Ruby about potential legal issues, which she dismissed with a threat.

Cole inquired about the suit's resistance to his lightning abilities, and Ruby assured him that it was designed to handle them. As he packed away the suit components, he couldn't help but think about what could have been if Weiss had been involved in its creation instead of Ruby.

Four months ago, Cole's life was improving, with Ruby's support and newfound friendships. However, eavesdropping on Weiss, Nora, and Pyrrha's conversation about him behind his back shattered his sense of security.

He witnessed their lack of faith in him, particularly Weiss, and snapped, breaking a pencil with his anger and glowing brightly. Cole stormed out, feeling betrayed.

In the following months, Cole continued to face criticism and rumors about his suitability for a team. He chose to remain solo, even as Ozpin designated him as an on-call hunter for support and reinforcement. Despite his accomplishments, team (RW)BY and JNPR still treated him as an outcast.

Cole stood in his dimly lit room, the weight of his actions heavy on his conscience. His mind was a tumultuous sea of conflicting emotions. He thought back to his days before the betrayal, to the memories that haunted him now. "I can't stop here."

With his mentality deteriorating, he'd taken to putting his attention into investigating the eight hunter's past and dug up some absolutely fantastic dirt. To say it was hard was an understatement. Investigating eight people required Cole to delve into personal records and buried documents in the police department database, Ozpin's office, and even he was shocked by how expensive and extensive it all was.

He alphabetized his eight targets and pieced together a detailed list for himself to look over.

His victims were lined up with the letters of their first names from top to bottom on shelves inside his closet: B, J, N, P, R, R, W, Y. The problem with this was Ren and Ruby were mixed up, so he added the word 'leader' under Jaune and Ruby's letter and went to work reading everything over, and believe it or not, Cole was getting angrier and angrier the more he read into both teams.

Blake's background was first on his to-do list, and he hated her before Ezra's death. Imagine it made worse reading about how she had technically come from a wealthy home, had two loving and influential parents, joined the terrorist group White Fang. His blood boiled that she wasn't convicted by a court of law for all she'd done, and worst of all, she was happily living free of consequence for it!

Next was Jaune. He forged his papers to get admitted into Beacon with zero training, and Ozpin had allowed him to stay. Almost got people killed for his inadequate training while in Beacon, cheated on tests, and was literally given everything to excel too. His team had even held him up so that they could all pass, but the three suffered for it.

Nora was next, but honestly, there wasn't much to work with since she was just an orphan and had Ren with her. Both technically had the least dirt on them...that is until he found that collateral damage was the most extensive, and the costs were staggering if isolated on Beacon grounds. She had, however, six complaints against her for eating too much in the cafeteria, breaking tables, as well as causing a destructive food fight her first year in Beacon.

Pyrrha had just a few things on her he'd dug up, and it wasn't really much honestly. She had been the perfect student, a model, and like Blake and Weiss, Pyrrha was filthy rich and had an image that could break the majority of people. She had nothing he could use on her, and he was kind of shocked.

Ruby had so much on her record that had been hidden, and it horrified him to even read it all but read it he had. Fought Torchwick and crippled dozens of criminals, destroyed city property, got into the academy two years too early, cheated on tests, used her weapon to intimidate people to silence bullies, but that was all he found.

Ren had nothing on his record. He was the perfect student, and if not for him, his team would have been disbanded two years ago. Cole was actually impressed for once and went to the next person's records.

Weiss, he found out, was once called a racist for her disdain for Faunuskind, and for good reason. Her father emotionally abused her, her brother, and older sister. She fought White Fang members and crippled every one of them too. Her and her team inadvertently killed hundreds their first year when fighting Torchwick in a Paladin mech and destroyed stolen military property. For all her complaints against her father and White Fang respectively, she had done remarkably very little to help fix the problems her father had done and made zero attempts to do so. She essentially ran away to be a Huntress while letting Jacques do as he pleased, making life in Atlas worse as a result.

And the worst of them all, Yang. She had destroyed a club, several city businesses, homes, and half of a highway, almost hospitalized everyone in combat class over something as shallow as her hair, assaulted innocent men and women, used her position as a Hunter-in-training to intimidate people into treating Ruby right, and subsequently made her the easiest target to gather dirt on since EVERYONE was more than willing to talk to him about.

But now, Cole had chosen a different path. He had delved into the dark world of secrets and vendettas. He had spent weeks digging up dirt on his former peers, unraveling their hidden flaws and imperfections. It was a path of vengeance, driven by anger and betrayal.

As he gathered the evidence, he couldn't help but feel a sense of disgust wash over him. He had become a shadowy figure, collecting hours of recordings and documents that could destroy the lives of those he once considered friends. But he was too consumed by anger to care.

He glanced out of his window, the night sky more beautiful than he remembered it being. The memories of happier times flashed before his eyes-camping with Ezra, counting stars with Rayla, that first kiss with Weiss. Those were better days, days he had left behind on his quest for vengeance.

"Time to cast aside all ties to the people here," he muttered to himself. He grabbed his keycard and scroll, preparing for the next phase of his plan. In a bugout bag, he stowed away the incriminating evidence, making sure it was well-hidden.

Satisfied, he closed the shutters and curtains, latching the window and deadbolting the door. He needed to sever all connections to his past life, to leave behind the person he used to be.

In the bathroom, as the warm water washed over him, Cole's conscience wrestled with his actions. He considered destroying the evidence, erasing the path of vengeance he had embarked upon. But his anger burned too brightly, the orange glow of his lightning marks a testament to his rage.

"Maybe a paper trail would do more damage than good in the wrong hands," he thought aloud, emerging from the bathroom half-naked, his skin marked with the remnants of his fury.

"Fuck it," he decided, mustering the courage to grab a backpack. He filled it with the damning evidence and a jacket to conceal himself with. The die was cast, and he was committed to this dark path, leaving behind the memories of happier days for a future driven by vengeance and spite.

As he stepped out into the unknown, he couldn't help but wonder if he was making a monumental mistake. The night was unforgiving, and the shadows of his past loomed large. But there was no turning back now.

Walking down the cobblestone path towards the fire pit, Cole became quite reminiscent as Ezra came to mind. Ezra, his favorite mother, had always been there for him when she found him. They had shared stories under the starry night sky, dreaming of becoming great Huntsmen together. But those nights were now bittersweet memories, overshadowed by the darkness that had crept into his life.

Rayla's smile, her laughter, had once been a beacon of light in his world. The memory of their days playing in the forest was still etched in his mind. It had been a moment of pure happiness, a fleeting hope that vanished into the hole in his heart.

Speaking of holes in his heart, Weiss came to mind as he approached the six-foot pit with contempt, the girl he had once admired and cared for deeply, now seemed like a stranger. He couldn't forget the day he overheard her conversation with Nora and Pyrrha, their words cutting deeper than any weapon. Their lack of faith in him had shattered his sense of security, leaving him feeling exposed and vulnerable.

And then there was Adam, the enigmatic figure who had shown him a different path. Cole remembered the nights they had spent together, teaching him the art of survival, the efficiency of killing when necessary. He had become a mentor of sorts, and the memories of those lessons were etched into his very being.

Adam was like a brother he'd wanted but never got, and he loved that Adam hated toxic people and learned from Cole that yes humans were the worst, but there were some humans that were capable of doing good for those who reached out for it.

As Cole prepared to destroy the incriminating evidence, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched. Unbeknownst to him, Velvet stood in the shadows just beyond the window, her heart heavy with concern. She had known Cole for a long time, and his recent actions had raised serious red flags.

She wanted to intervene, to step in and ask him what was going on, but she hesitated. She didn't want to upset him further, especially after everything he had been through. Velvet knew that Cole was on the edge, and she feared that pushing him might push him over the brink.

Silently, she watched as he dumped the pages into the pit and lit them on fire with his lightning. The flames consumed the evidence, the crackling sound echoing in the night. Cole's face was illuminated by the fire's glow, and for a moment, Velvet saw a mixture of determination and pain in his eyes.

She clenched her fists, torn between her desire to help her friend and her fear of making things worse. Velvet knew that Cole was on a dark path, one that she couldn't fully understand, but she couldn't bear to see him suffer alone.

As the last remnants of the evidence turned to ashes, Cole's shoulders slumped, and he let out a heavy sigh. Velvet watched as he turned away from the fire pit, a haunted look in his eyes.

Unable to contain her worry any longer, Velvet stepped out of the shadows, her voice gentle but filled with concern. "Cole, please, talk to someone. You don't have to go through this alone." She hoped that her words would reach him, that he would realize he had a friend who cared, someone willing to stand by his side through the darkness.

Cole turned sharply at the sound of Velvet's voice, surprise and guilt flashing across his face. He hadn't expected anyone to witness his act of burning the evidence, especially not Velvet. Her genuine concern touched a nerve he thought he had buried deep.

"Velvet," he began, his voice heavy with the weight of his emotions. He wanted to push her away, to maintain the facade of independence he had built, but her sincerity made it difficult. "I appreciate your concern, but you don't understand what's been happening. I can't burden you with this."

His words carried a mix of frustration and despair. He had shut himself off from everyone, including those who cared about him, to protect them from the darkness he had embraced. It was a lonely path he had chosen, one that he believed was necessary for his twisted quest for vengeance.

Velvet took a step closer, her ears drooping slightly as she looked at him with empathy. "Cole, you don't have to face this alone. We're your friends, and we want to help you. Keeping all of this inside is tearing you apart. Please, let us in."

Tears welled up in Cole's eyes as he struggled with his conflicting emotions. He had isolated himself for so long, pushing away those who cared about him, and now, someone was offering him a lifeline. It was a choice he hadn't expected to make.

For a brief moment, he felt the walls he had built around his heart begin to crack. But then, he clenched his fists, his resolve returning. "I can't, Velvet. Not yet," he whispered, turning away from her and walking into the darkness, leaving her standing there, her heart heavy with worry.

valian forests*

Geralt and Ciri sat by the crackling fire, the dancing flames casting a warm glow across their faces. The scent of roasting meat filled the air as they enjoyed a quiet dinner together in the wilderness. The stars above sparkled like diamonds in the night sky, and the forest around them was alive with the sounds of nature.

Ciri broke the silence first, her voice soft and contemplative. "Geralt, there's something I've been thinking about."

Geralt glanced at her, his silver hair catching the firelight. "What's on your mind, Ciri?"

She took a moment to choose her words carefully, her gaze fixed on the flames. "It's about- well, the young man we met in that village. He seemed troubled, didn't he?"

Geralt nodded, his expression serious. "He did. There was pain in his eyes, a burden he's carrying."

Ciri sighed, her thoughts clearly deep. "I couldn't help but wonder what could drive someone to such darkness. It's like he's on a path of no return."

Geralt skewered a piece of meat with his fork and took a thoughtful bite. "People can be pushed to their limits, Ciri. Sometimes, they make choices that lead them down a dark road. It's a path that's hard to turn away from once you've started."

Ciri nodded, her brow furrowed. "But what can we do for him? Is there a way to help him find his way back?"

Geralt leaned back against a log, his eyes fixed on the fire. "Sometimes, all we can do is offer a helping hand and hope they choose to take it. It's not easy, and it's not always successful. People have to want to change, to find the light within themselves."

Ciri picked at her food, lost in thought. "I just hate to see someone suffer like that, Geralt. To feel so alone."

Geralt reached out and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "I know, Ciri. It's a hard world out there, and not everyone finds their way. But you, you have a kind heart. Just remember, you can't save everyone, but you can make a difference for some."

Ciri looked up at him, her eyes reflecting the fire's warm glow. "I'll try, Geralt. I'll try to be there for those who need it, even if I can't save them all."

Geralt gave her a reassuring smile. "That's all anyone can ask, Ciri. And if you ever find yourself lost, remember, you won't be alone. I'll always be here for you."

As they continued to enjoy their meal by the fire, the night around them seemed a little less dark, a little less lonely. In the quiet of the wilderness, they found solace in each other's company and the hope that, even in the face of darkness, there could be moments of light and connection.

Ciri's thoughts drifted back to their encounter with Cole, and as she continued to eat her meal by the fire, she couldn't help but voice her suspicion. "Geralt, there's something else that's been bothering me about Cole."

Geralt raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued. "What is it, Ciri?"

She hesitated for a moment, then leaned in closer, her voice lowered. "Remember when we first found him, and he used those lightning powers? It's just... it's strange. I've heard stories about Witchers' silver swords being stolen, and I couldn't help but wonder if there might be a connection."

Geralt's eyes narrowed thoughtfully, and he took a sip from his flask of wine. "You think the boy might have stolen my silver sword?"

Ciri nodded, her expression serious. "It's possible. His powers, the way he wields lightning... it's unlike anything I've seen. And you mentioned that the sword went missing around the same time we crossed paths with him."

Geralt leaned back, his fingers tapping against the hilt of his remaining sword. "It's a theory worth considering, Ciri. But we can't jump to conclusions. We need more information."

Ciri sighed, her frustration evident. "I know, Geralt, but it's just... I can't help but worry. What if he's using that stolen sword for something dangerous? What if he's become a threat?"

Geralt reached out and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "We'll find out, Ciri. We'll investigate further and determine the truth. If he is connected to the missing sword, we'll handle it accordingly."

As they continued their conversation, their resolve grew stronger. The flickering firelight cast shadows across their faces, and the night around them seemed filled with mysteries and possibilities. Ciri couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to Cole's story than met the eye, and she was determined to uncover the truth, no matter where their journey led them.

"If it can be helped maybe we can get his side of things" she said snuggling into her sleeping bag and fell asleep with geralt staying up to watch over the campsite.

I want to extend my sincerest apologies for the delay in completing my story. Over the past months, I've been grappling with the challenges of battling my mental health while simultaneously navigating the complexities of transitioning from the military. This journey has taken a significant toll on my motivation and creative energy.

Your patience and understanding mean the world to me, and I'm truly grateful for your continued support. Writing has always been a source of solace and inspiration for me, and I'm committed to returning to my story with renewed vigor.

Thank you for standing by me during this difficult time, and I promise to deliver the story you've been waiting for.

Warm regards, not LUC1F3R-117