Zane woke slowly. He was alive. That was still a surprise, but a welcome one. His chest felt like it was being crushed and pulled apart at the same time. Forcing his eyes to open he found himself looking up at a light.

It was clean and so was the ceiling around it, that was good. A few times he'd been in cells where you could tell it hadn't been cleaned in a while. He tried to sit up to look around. He was lying on a bed and wearing a pea green gown. As the room came into focus he recognized the design. The room was different but this was definitely the hospital.

'Hey. He's waking up,' A voice called.

Tilting his head up Zane found the others were in the room. Some had been bandaged up and a few were stuck in bed like him. A few other DeeBees marked up as medical assistants were there as well. Mostly checking the machines.

'Zane, oh thank goodness,' Clara said walking over. The DeeBee that had been at his bedside stood and left
'Ah. Still here. Don't think I'm going that easy,' Zane muttered trying to sit up.
'Be careful,' Clara said, running over, 'The doctors had you in surgery the longest.'
'You don't say. Feels like they left something in there.'

'Did we lose anyone?' Zane asked. Looking around.
'Not that we can tell. A few of us were pretty roughed up. They had us in the other rooms asking loads of questions. Anyone here though, needed more than just bandages,' Clara said gesturing to the room.

Zane took a moment to look the others over in more detail. The ones standing didn't seem too bad. Those in beds seemed to be the few that were like him. He also now noticed the two guards at the door to the room.

'I'm guessing we're not allowed to leave?' Zane asked. Looking at the DeeBees standing either side of the door.
'No. Apparently we're in "Protective custody" till further notice. They've got the whole wing under guard,' Clara said. Looking over at the machines.

'This can't be good,' Zane mumbled. Wincing as he managed to sit up.
'Come on we've been in worse right?' Clara said, forcing a smile.
'Clara, those androids are in black.'
'So? What does that mean?'

Zane blinked for a moment, 'How long have you been here?'
'A couple of months now. Why?' Clara asked.
'The ones in black work for the First Minister.'
'The Fir… You mean the big boss of the COG?'
'Yep. Any time he's about he has a bunch of troops and robots in black.'

'I haven't seen anyone in black yet,' Clara said.
'You may just have jinxed us,' Zane responded as the doors opened again.

A figure in black armor entered. This one was big like all the others and armed. The head swept across the room smoothly. Say what you would about Atlesian at least you could see the lower half of their face. This soldier might as well be another android, then again how would anyone know?

'If you are quite done I have a patient to see,' A familiar voice snapped.
The soldier stepped aside allowing Doctor Blerinca to stride into the room. He grumbled something under his breath. Nothing polite Zane could guess.

'Mr Serac. Am hoping you do not plan on making me family physician,' Blerinca said. Walking to the other side of the bed from Clara.
'It wasn't something I was planning on. Sorry for any trouble,' Zane said.
'Any trouble you say? I spend six hours in surgery fixing lung. How is breathing?'

Zane took an experimental breath. It was tight and he had to let it go faster than before. Blerinca watched him with a careful eye.

'Fine for the most part. How bad was I?' Zane asked. Six hours? He'd never heard of an operation taking that long.
'You're left lung had collapsed. The bullet managed to pass though your rib cage and out the other side. That was good, saved me routing around for it. Wound was deep but have managed to get it sealed,' Blerinca listed off. Lifting Zane's gown to inspect the wound as he spoke.
'Thank you. I don-' Zane started.
Blerinca held up a hand, 'Do not thank me. You are hero according to the news. Am happy to help you.'

It took a moment for Zane to understand what he'd just heard. Hero? Since when were they or better yet he a hero?

'Wait hero? What do you mean hero?' Zane asked, confused.
'You don't know? Appar-' Blerinca began.
'Hey Doc. If you're done I need you to clear the room,' The soldier said. Even the voice was distorted by the helmet.
'Yes. Yes. All finished,' Blerinca replied before winking to Zane, 'Don't be worried. The ones they didn't like were already sent away. Seems they want to keep you around.'

'Doc.' The distorted voice called again.
'I am old man. Give me some time to move,' Blerinca snapped back, 'Not all of us are as spry as we once were.'
'Sure. And I'm just a nurse. Now, please leave.'
'Am going. Am going.'

Blerinca left the room leaving the former White Fang, a few DeeBees and the soldier. For a few moments the two sides stared at each other. At least Zane assumed they were staring. Given the soldier was wearing a helmet they might be pulling faces for all he knew.

'So…' Clara said. Walking over to the soldier.
'So?' The figure in black replied.
'Who are you? Didn't anyone teach you to introduce yourself?'
'First Lieutenant Hudson. 4th Platoon of the Onyx Guard,' The soldier rattled off.
'Are we going to get anything explained to us or are we just meant to sit here?'

'Clara!' Zane snapped. Wincing as he felt a pain in his chest.
'Come on we have a right to know,' Clara replied.
'Your rights are not my concern. I have my orders,' Hudson responded.
'And they are?' Clara replied, folding her arms.
'To keep you here. Get you treated. Then wait for the First Minister.'
'The First… Oh shit,' Clara mumbled.
'What about our families?' Zane asked. A few others added their voices to his.
Hudson held up his hands, 'I've been told they will be contacted. But not anything further. Any questions you'll have to wait a bit longer.'
'How long?' Clare asked.
'Ten minutes or so. He's already on his way. Just picking some stuff up from his office,' Hudson said with a shrug.

It was a long ten minutes. At the eight minute mark the sound of a Raven could be heard. A few by the window watched it approach before it passed overhead landing on the roof. They watched the lift lights count down till it reached their floor.

The doors opened and he was there. The First Minister with his guards. They stepped out ahead of him, taking up position around the room. He was still surprisingly young for a leader. But there was no doubt this was the young man from the news.

'Good evening,' The First Minister said. As he walked into the ward. In his hand was a blue leather case.

A few mumbled replies came back. They'd never met someone like this. The closest most of them had been to someone like him was at rallies for Council seats.

'I'm sure you're all wondering why I've insisted on you remaining here despite your injuries being treated. Truth be told. If things were handled normally you'd all be on your way to a holding center,' The First Minister said.
'We didn't hurt anyone!' One of the faunus shouted.
The First Minister turned to face him, 'Perhaps. But you were all found with uniforms quite similar to the people who orchestrated the bombing.'

'We had nothing to do with that,' Zane said.
Now the First Minister looked at Zane, 'So you say. And the investigation being done agrees with you.'
'So… Why keep us here?' Clara asked.

'Because you've put us in quite the position,' The First Minister said, putting his case down, 'Illegal weapons possession is not a small charge. I have received a number of calls from people in Atlas and the other Kingdoms. Reports of prior arrests and convictions.'
'That's a load of-' One of the faunus began. Raising a clenched fist. She stopped when the guards snapped to look at her. Then she slowly lowered her hand.

'Needless to say,' The First Minister continued, 'The situation is quite complicated. Many of you are known to the authorities. And now you've been detained with clearly dangerous weapons in your possession.'

Many of the faunus were now looking at each other or the floor. The feelings were building. Anger, fear and shame. He was right. They had been caught.

'And yet you were trying to prevent further harm. If this goes to trial you will have a strong defense. You were acting in the interest of the COG from what I've been told.'

Many ears perked up at that statement. They had a chance? Was this some kind of plea deal? Say admit what they did and get a reduced sentence.

The First Minister opened the case reaching inside, 'Of course. Its quite a problem to even put you on trial. After all the footage of you trying to talk them down is making the rounds. So I've decided to use one of the perks of my job to… Streamline things.'

He pulled out a neat set of pages. Each had a header with the COG phoenix at the top. Beneath which was a set of text. Finally at the bottom was a smaller scribble and a pressed stamp.

'Should you accept your cases will be closed,' The First Minister said, turning to face them, 'No charges will be filed. As far as any official records are concerned none of you have been arrested let alone charged.'

There were a few moments of silence. Broken only by the shuffling of feet and sounds of the machines in the room.

'What's the catch?' Clara asked finally.
'The catch?'
'We've all heard about this kind of thing. Your offer is generous. Too generous. What do you want us to do?' Clara asked. Trying to look reserved but not hostile.
'Why you'll let us pin a medal on you of course.'

Many of them froze and tried to process that statement. A medal? They'd been caught red handed and not only were they getting off the hook. Apparently scot-free but they were being offered medals?

'You are joking right?' One of the others said, 'Is this what you do for kicks? Taunt people.'
The guards tensed again but stopped when the First Minister held up a hand.
'I apologize if I've at all sounded disingenuous,' The First Minister said, 'It was a long flight back from Mistral. Perhaps the trip is just wearing on me. If you don't want the award that's fine. I'm not one to take back a gift.'

He deftly flicked through the pages drawing out two, 'Mr Henry Redleaf?'
The faunus who had spoken up jolted back slightly, 'How did you?'
'Don't be surprised. We do have your records after all. Thank you for your service to the Coalition of Ordered Governance,' The First Minister said. Walking over with the pages held out in one hand and the other ready to shake hands.

Henry took them after a moment but didn't shake hands. Holding them to his face and reading. After a moment he fell backwards and sat on the bed mumbling. Others walked over reading over his shoulder.

'This… This looks real. Holy shit,' Henry muttered.

Others began to approach the First Minister. There was no rush, just shocked shuffling. As each reached him he drew out their papers and handed them over. They were addressed by name and each was thanked. Many took the handshake by reflex more than anything else.

With those who could move issued with theirs the First Minister began to move along the beds passing out the documents. Once more he addressed them all and thanked them. Finally he reached Zane.
'Ah Zane Serac. I've seen your speeches quite the display of courage and humbleness,' The First Minister said with a polite smile.
'I… Um… Thank you,' Zane replied dumbstruck.
'Don't worry I won't drag this out,' The First Minister said, holding out his papers, 'Thank you for your service to the Coalition of Ordered Governance.'

Zane nodded and took the papers and the handshake. The First Minister moved on to the next person. Zane looked at the documents in his hands.

One listed that First Minister Alexander Emmerich had granted Zane Serac a full and unconditional pardon for any crimes under COG law. The second was a notice of commendation for actions in service of the COG. And that he had been awarded the Ministerial Citizens Medal.

The First Minister was finishing up and had closed his case, now empty. He paused and spoke to them.

'Now I'm sure many of you are quite tired and it's no longer visiting hours. But I asked quite politely and there are a few people here to see you all. They'll be let in once I've left you in peace but once again. Thank you. All of you,' The First Minister said. Looking at each of them.

With his piece said he lifted his case and left the room. His escort filed after him leaving only the DeeBees behind. A few moments later the doors opened again and a small knot of people entered. Many called out to loved ones and ran over.

Zane saw Erwin and his father and smiled as they reached him. Seeing their faces again would have been reward enough.

Emmerich didn't mind missing out on the reunions. It was a private moment, as private as a hospital ward could be. And a group of looming figures dressed in black armor would probably spoil the mood. Besides he had other business to attend to.

They reached the other part of the building that had, against the protests of the head doctor, been declared off-limits. The person he was here to meet was leaning against the wall outside the room he'd been directed to.

'Miss Rider. How are you after tonight's events?' Emmerich asked.
The silvery haired woman nodded, 'Tired somewhat. Its been a long night.'
'Yes. I came to thank your team for your efforts tonight. Thanks to you no lives were lost.'

'I know what you're going to ask and the answer is no,' Waverly said, holding up a finned arm.
'Are you sure you know what I'm going to ask?' Emmerich replied.
'Something like "Please let us parade you on world wide news" I'd imagine.'

Emmerich wobbled his head from side to side, 'That was part of it.'
'Look like I said to that psycho my team is not a PR group. Sure we might do some display stuff to keep people up beat. But that doesn't make us some token faces you can stick on to make yourselves look better. So no we're not interested in anything like that,' Waverly said, folding her arms.
'What if we dropped that part and you heard the rest of my offer?'

Waverly glared for a long moment then shrugged, 'Fine then. What is it? Some long term job was all I've been told.'
'How much do you know about Sera? The world we came from?' Emmerich asked.
'Not much. A few words here and there. Why?' Waverly asked, cocking her head.

'Sera had one landmass. One,' Emmerich said, holding up a finger, 'That meant that the sea wasn't very important to us. We could go nearly anywhere by land. So we made plenty of train tracks and roads. But as I'm sure you're aware you have quite a lot of ocean on Remnant.'
'So?' Waverly asked her interest piqued. This wasn't like the other offers they'd had, that was for sure.
'Now the sea is very important. That means we need to rebuild our Navy and start training Marines. Both of which will need someone to teach them how to fight on and under the water.'
'So you want us to be instructors? I'm not sure I'd feel good teaching the military.'

'That's fine if you won't teach them, perhaps you'd consider a tenure at a combat school,' Emmerich offered.
'A combat school? But who wou-,' Waverly stopped for a moment, 'You're setting up a combat school. Aren't you?.
'Several in fact. Given how well your team performed we're quite interested in people with your skills.'

Waverly bit her lip for a moment. It was an interesting offer. A long term job. And they would still be able to do other jobs around it. Both with and without students. After all Huntsmen had to be flexible in their role.

'We'll consider it,' She said finally.
'Please do. And if you have any questions you know how to contact us,' Emmerich said with a nod.

Nora was tapping on her knee again. Ren knew better than to try and stop her. He was nervous too.

They'd been called back to the Old Camp for debriefing. Normally they, meaning Ren, would write up a report and submit it. That was normally how it went. If there were any questions they would be called in. But this time they had been waiting for half an hour. That was far longer than normal.

'Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie,' The debriefing officer called.

They both stood and filed into the office. Two chairs were facing the desk and they got seated.

'Sorry for the delay. There's been a bit of a mix up it seems,' The officer said, taking his seat.
'That's fine, it happens,' Ren replied, trying to remain calm.
'So it does but it's a bit unusual this time. You were both involved in the events at the docks, correct?'
'Yes. But we didn't do very much ourselves,' Nora said quickly.

'Yes I have the records here but... Well here's the issue,' The officer said putting his hands together, 'You were both taken on as Huntsmen thanks in part to a recommendation. It would seem that some sort of glitch took place. Because when we were going over your records we found your licenses were both for training use only and expired.'
'Ah. Well… You se-' Nora started
'We had to leave our last job due to a professional difference. It was noted that our licenses might be revoked after the fact,' Ren said quickly.

'That is correct. But needless to say we can't have unlicensed personnel working in the kind of role you are. Should anything happen the liability alone would be a problem to sort out,' The officer said.
'Given our performance so far, is there any way we can have some leeway in this matter?' Ren asked.
'I'm afraid not. The rules are the rules. You need to be licensed to work any longer.'
'Wait,' Nora interjected, 'You just need us to get licensed right? We have the money so we can take leave and go to the exam. When we get back it will all be done.'

The officer nodded for a moment, 'That is one idea. But we had another.'
Ren and Nora glanced at each other for a moment.
'Go on,' Ren said interested.
'The COG is going to put together a set of combat schools. It will take a few years to do. But for those schools to be validated we would need a class to be assessed. We'd like you two to be part of that first class,' The officer said.

'What would that involve exactly?' Nora asked.
'Nora,' Ren snapped.
'No no,' The officer said, holding up a hand, 'She's welcome to ask. You'll have to do basic combat training first. Then we'll run you through the curriculum. Finally you'll be sent to one of the academies. They'll run the assessments and deem if its all up to the mark.'

Both Nora and Ren sat stunned for a moment. Not only would they get trained formally. They'd get to attend an Academy and be licensed fully. They both looked at each other and nodded.

'You've got a deal,' Nora said with a smile.

'Are you sure this is a good idea?' Glynda asked from behind him.
Ozpin sighed and turned back from the window, 'Good? No. But it's better than the alternatives.'
'How so? You said we needed to keep an eye on them. Now you want them to train Huntsmen and send them here.'
'Yes. I want to see the people they pick to help protect their future. What we can learn from prying eyes and keen ears is one thing. But this will let us see how they work up close.'

Ozpin sat down in his chair, 'Besides denying them would have just antagonized the Council. It seems we've also received an offer much like Mistral. And quite a few councilors are only seeing lien. Our last meeting was quite the marathon because of it. The COG is building an embassy in Vale. Likely more in the other Kingdoms.'
'So that's why you had me do the approvals for this year? And not because you forgot?' Glynda said, folding her arms.
'Yes after all. I trust your judgment. You're one of the few people I can rely on to do the right thing.'

He looked at the message again. As though willing it to change would make a difference.

Dear Mr Arc

I, Miss Glynda Goodwitch Headmistress of Beacon Academy, am writing to inform you that your application has been declined at this time. There has been more then one factor responsible for this decision.

Firstly some of the documents you submitted seem to be in error. Whilst this will be recorded. No charges will be raised at this time due to your age. Such events are not uncommon. And whilst we applaud your desire to learn at our institution we must ensure all applicants are thoroughly checked.

Secondly as your documents are not correct we're unable to grant you a position since you have not passed the prior exams. Hence it will not be feasible to put such tremendous pressure on you to take remedial classes to attend.

I would advise you to attend a combat school of your choosing before reapplying. We will be happy to consider you next year.

Regards
Miss Glynda Goodwitch

Jaune closed the message again. How many times had he read it now? A dozen or more? What was the point?

They'd found out about the fake documents. At least they didn't want to press charges. But he'd committed fraud. So much for the vaunted flawless fakes he'd bought.

He walked along the street feeling defeated. He hadn't been able to get training at home. So he'd scraped together every lien he could. Then told his parents he was going to Vale for a trip.

Now. Now he had to think of a way to salvage this. How could he go back and explain what he'd done? That he'd failed?

The wind picked up for a moment and he felt something catch on his boot. Looking down it was a poster. Jaune reached down and grabbed it looking it over.

A figure in blue armor was pointing outwards. The text read, "We need YOU! Enlist now!", with an address at the bottom. He stared at the poster for a few moments. Was this fate? He'd often heard tales of how his ancestors had strode into battle as knights. Now here was the closest thing he'd seen in a while offering him a second chance.

He started typing the address into his scroll. It was shot and he didn't want to miss it. Not now.