A/N: Chapter 81 of REKT. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or teams of RWBY, they belong to Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum. What I do own are the characters and teams of my OCs: REKT, GTSY, KACE and DAZE. I also claim Ingrid, Teo, Reina's parents and aunt as well.

Special thanks to the reviewers and to the readers who Fav/Alert this story, I really appreciate it.


Chapter 81: The Lone Chameleon Spy

Somewhere in Kuo Kuana…

After a well-needed shower at the Belladonna mansion – Kairos and Nev split up to avoid drawing more attention to each other, the former did allow the latter to take a quick peak at the estate at a safe distance, delighted at how the child was radiating giddiness and awe at the structure. She even made the huntress swear on a pinky promise to give her and the other two a walking tour, with the Belladonna's permission of course – a quick change of clothes and two ice creams down the gullet later, the two of them continued their trek away from majority of civilization; from where they currently are the towns and civilization could only be depicted by tiny flickering lights. At first Kairos assumed they were going to some place closer to the Outskirts, however the smaller faunus took a much different route that avoided that place as well. What was strange was the smaller of the two made it a point to avoid everybody on purpose, no matter who it is, and the huntress questioned her about it once it was just the two of them. Not another soul around for miles.

"You'll see when we get there." was the quick reply, and nothing else, the lips were tightly sealed. Kairos wanted to prod and ask further, but decided against it and directed her focus on the walk instead. Through the silence she took note from the smallest minute detail like daffodils and local vegetation to the bigger picture such as glancing backward and taking in the splendid, superb scenery of Menagerie. Even though there was luscious green and clear blue at her back, she gazes near the front and is greeted by the shadows of the towering mountains. She remembered from the history of the world, that the mountains signals where Menagerie becomes inhabitable and stretches out towards the desert. The sounds of insects chirping reaches their ears as they climbed a bit higher, the air becoming quite dry and arid. A slight wind shuffled through their hair as well, feeling quite nice against their skin; she almost had a nice thought of walking around barefooted, to feel the land with her own feet.

"How…how much….further…" Kairos asked after a while of walking, stopping for a bit to catch her breath and stretch her aching limbs. She may be a huntress and underwent intense training during her time at Beacon, but continuously using her Aura to maintain a leg so she could at least walk and climb with ease is getting to be exhausting. She had half a thought to use Lancelot as a clutch to lean against, or even a walking stick, but she dismissed the thought almost immediately. "We're almost…nearing the border…if I had to guess."

"Not much further because we've already arrived! Honestly I was pretty lucky to find this area that didn't leak over to the other side, otherwise we'd have a completely different conversation." Nev proclaimed, opening her arms with a big smile on her face. No matter which way the huntress looked there was absolutely nothing that stuck out as strange. Just a small hillside with a couple of trees that loomed overhead, not to mention the wild, gnarly, unkempt vegetation that signified that no one ever explored so far out. Beyond that, shadows of the jagged mountains that looked more and more imposing and oppressive now that they're a lot closer. "Hee hee, pretty neat right? Tell me that your mind has been blown!"

"What am I looking at or for…exactly?" The huntress questioned with one eyebrow raised in confusion, her arms crossed over her chest. "Please tell me we didn't just hike all this way for nothing."

"Well, I'm not going to tell you that we just hiked all this way for nothing…obviously! The point is I actually wanted you to see nothing, which is great if you were just some ordinary nobody, wouldn't want my secret to be exposed otherwise it wouldn't be MY secret now would it." The smaller girl laughs at what she said, her tail wagging with happiness at her companion's reaction. "Don't worry, if this was a test you would have passed with flying colors! This reaction is what I'd hope would happen, which means the disguise I put in place is doing a great job. And seeing how the surrounding shrubs aren't well maintained since the last time I came here, that is another clue at how little this area is cared for, and how there's less public interest."

"Disguise? What disguise are you referring to?"

"You'll see, it should be right around…here." Nev trotted over to where one of the trees stood, and stood before it. Underneath seemed to be a hill, and the younger faunus began to rummage around with great precision like she knew what she was looking for. Removing the few large bushels of bushes from where they were, and placing them aside what they had been covering up was now exposed in the open. Kairos blinked in surprise as she was staring at a hidden entrance to somewhere, even rubbing her eyes to make sure she wasn't hallucinating or dreaming. From the route the girls took they would've seen the opening albeit somewhat clearly during the daytime, but because Nev had strategically covered the opening with the bushes it looked just like a natural part of the surroundings.

Skipping up to the yawning opening, the little faunus girl turned around and smiled with absolute confidence, "Come, and follow me!" Then she disappeared, allowing the darkness to swallow her up immediately. Kairos took a deep breath and moved forward, feeling as if the walls were slowly closing in. While she could have seen a little bit of her surrounding thanks to the entrance light it soon became clear that she couldn't see anything once the light became weak or nonexistent. Pulling out her weapon she allowed her Semblance to burst, lighting the pathway an eerie reddish-orange taint and the shadows that were cast slowly danced their way along the walls.

The tunnel wasn't as straightforward as she originally thought, with slight twists and turns that could only be naturally made. None of what the huntress saw led her to believe it was man-made, and soon she could sense salt in the air, which means she was approaching the sea. Because of the deafening silence she became more aware of the smallest noises, but more important was the soft beating of her heart within her chest, comforting and soothing. Coming to a halt, the huntress closed her eyes and simply…be in the moment, listening to the beating of her heart. She never realized how therapeutic and relieving it was to breathe and slow down, to let everything go and focusing on nothing; it was as if nothing else mattered in that moment: not Salem, not the relics, not the Grimm, not the loss of academies and institutions, not even the discrimination between faunus and man. Absolutely nothing. No responsibilities, no consequences. Here she can just be and that made her smile just a bit.

"C'mon, what's taking you so long? Are you dragging your feet? By the time you get here I'll probably be an old lady!" Nev's teasing voice floated through, bouncing off the walls and echoing around her and bringing her back to the present. She opened her eyes and stared into the inviting darkness where the voice continued to speak, "You have to see this, and it will blow your mind. I guarantee it." Shaking her head with laughter Kairos picked up the pace a bit and continued forward, trusting her instinct that the path she was running on was just a straight one, no forks and no roundabouts. Soon the opening on the other side stretch open and she found herself standing before a beautiful sight.

Water trickled down the impressive stalactites from the ceiling at a steady pace, the clear liquid dripping down into a deep basin; Kairos took notice that the structure was man-made unlike the rest and figured that the purpose was to cleanse a body or two, like a hot spring of sorts. The stacks of rocks that were held together with small bits of mud above the natural bedrock could only be done by human effort...well faunus effort in this case. In the middle of the grandiose space was a small circular plateau, the area surrounding it was a man-made garden. Most of the materials seemed to have been brought in from the outside. To top it off, luminous algae lined both the circular garden and the faces of the wall, giving the space a calming vibe. In front of them and beyond the chamber's lower lip was the vast openness of the sea.

"Wow." The older faunus could only utter one single word that encapsulated what she was feeling, and even then that one word couldn't capture it completely. Dispelling her weapon since she no longer require a light source, she quickly walked to the opening to look further out, and realized that they were in an opening on the side of a cliff. There were sharp rocks jutting out from the waters below, and the waves that crashed against the sides were wild and unruly. No matter how she looked at it trying to get to the chamber from all angles that didn't involve the tunnel was not feasible, which means that this spot was quite possibly the safest area on Kuo Kuana aside from civilization. "This is…amazing. Absolutely breath taking."

"Right? Knew you'd love this place, you could even think of this as some kind of subterranean chamber. There's a natural spring elsewhere that flows here, if the water wasn't a dead giveaway, and you can drink from it too! So you can always stay hydrated!" Nev explained, showing and guiding Kairos around with joy and happiness. Her antics nearly reminded the older one about Ruby and how excited she was as she went on and on and on about weapon mechanics. "The water then flows back out to the ocean which is why this place never gets flooded, you can go take a look it makes a small waterfall over the side. There's also a small patch of grass that grows here, and pretty flowers that blooms here and only here."

"What kind of flower can bloom here?"

"Hmmmmm I don't really know the name, but the old grandma of the Outskirts who gave me some random seeds says they're really pretty when they bloom and I hope to know the name of the flowers someday. You know, I've never brought anyone here ever since I found it, which is strange because you'd think I'd bring my family here first, but I guess I never got around to it. You're the very first person." Nev walked over to sit on the edge, her legs dangling without a care for danger.

"I'm touched knowing that, thank you. Hopefully one day you'll be able to show this to the other two as well." Kairos smiled as she sat down beside Nev, the two of them looking out to absolutely nothingness, nothing but the endless blue of the ocean. A moment of silence passed through the two of them as they just enjoyed each other's company. Then the former posed a question, "How in the world did you find this?"

"Would you believe me if I said I stumbled upon it while doing some exploring on my own? At the time Sen and Volug were off trying to do whatever they could to stay alive and keep our family fed, therefore they didn't really have time for me. Of course I felt a bit lonely at first, and thought that they were the worst for not giving me attention…however, once I came across this place my imagination just blossomed. I wanted to make this place mine, and mine alone. A home away from home if you want to call it, because sometimes life back in the Outskirts isn't as peaceful and loving as we've portrayed it to be. There's still some ugliness that reside in the shadows, and that can also be attributed to the other shadowy corners of the world.

"Anyway I fear I'm getting off track…what started with a few stones and sticks soon moved onto massive rocks and mud. I had to get creative with where I spent my days so that I didn't rouse any suspicion, and prevent others from following. This place is my haven, my safe place where I can gaze out into the world and imagine. Because even though the Outskirts is a place for faunus like you and I…we still get discriminated by others who live in the same place as us. You might find this a little surprising, but when you've reached your lowest point in life you'll get all sorts of nasty thoughts creep up unnecessarily, and you start wishing that others who are in the same predicament as you are worse off than you are…you hope and pray that you're better than the rest to a certain degree. In this dog-eat-dog world, the strongest ultimately survive…at least that's what Sen always tell us when we start feeling hopeless, among other things that comes to mind. So we try to live to our fullest every single day, because we don't know if we'll ever have a tomorrow."

Kairos silently observed the other, thinking carefully about the words that were being said and the heavy significance behind them. In a way she was lucky to pursue the path of a huntress when the opportunity presented itself to her, when other faunus like her are stuck with no way forward, they had to stick to the same routine with the feeling of hope slipping bit by bit; she even experienced such discrimination first hand while walking around Kuo Kuana and hanging out with the siblings, those feelings weighed heavily on her mind.

"Let me ask you a question that most, well if not all, parents will ask their kids at some point…what do you want to be when you grow up? Any dreams you wish to achieve?"

"That's like…so far out there, and something parents would definitely ask their kids around this age." Nev puffs up her cheeks in response, getting a small laugh from her companion. "A kid like me shouldn't be thinking about those kind of things so far into the future, for now I'll leave all the difficult decisions up to Sen since she's more mature than Volug and I."

"Sen won't always be there when you want her, you know."

"You mean she could die?!" The younger exclaimed in surprise and jumped up with worry, the words tumbling out about a mile a minute. "There's no way that'll happen! Sen has to live long enough to see me reach adulthood! Or at least until I get married and possibly become a grandma if I decide to have kids!"

God what a poor choice of words! Also the fact that she arrived to that conclusion so quickly…Kairos winced, staring into sad puppy-dog eyes, and a lowered tail. She tried to backpedal a bit, hoping to deter the conversation, but the damage had already been dealt. "Errrr…well, I mean…what I meant to say was she can't be the one to live out your dreams! Yeah! You have to be the one who decides, drives, and dictates how your life should be!"

"…somehow I feel like you're actively dodging that question." Nev scrutinized the huntress very closely, and once she got want she wanted – an apologetic 'sorry', she sat back down and sighed. "It's alright really, I know death is inevitable and when my time comes I'll be ready for it. I also know what it's like to not have someone be there to witness your achievements in life…our parents being two prime examples. Sen did try and talk to my brother and I, about the future and hoping for a better life for faunus like us. Volug felt as if she was just giving us weak lip service, because he's seen more of the cruelty than I and he really prides himself as being our family protector. No one else, not even Sen who is the oldest can pry that title from him because then he just fights harder to prove himself worthy.

"I too have had my own doubts about a brighter future then where we currently are, but I faked innocence if it helps make Sen feel better about herself, to give her a sense of purpose that she's been doing the right thing as our big sister. She's been burdened with raising us on her own so some nights have been incredibly bad for her when she goes out to get some extra cash; Volug or I would have to keep her company if she starts screaming or have nightmares, gently reminding her that she isn't alone. We know how hard she works to provide and we do what we can to not make trouble for her. Sometimes trouble finds its way to us without warning…one time Sen left with a bunch of scary looking faunus who showed up at the door, and demanded for her to go with them without a fuss. Volug tried to go with them and created a fuss when his path was blocked, but she firmly told us to stay home in a tone of voice that didn't leave any room for negotiation.

"At first we thought they were just borrowing our sister for something important, like to pay back some debts because we weren't earning much money at that time. But two or three days later, when she returned in worse shape than when we last saw her – she had to be dragged back to our home that day, her legs couldn't hold her weight and in fact one of them was still broken. The men said that our 'debt' was cleared completely and warned us not to take on more than was necessary, otherwise we'd see this kind of treatment again. When she regained consciousness Sen ended up limping for quite a while with a crudely built leg splint holding the broken limb until it healed – we found out that they had her chained up in an abandoned building in various positions, consistently surrounded by faunus of higher status. It was a secret, private event and the patrons had paid very handsomely to do whatever they wanted to the highest priced product. And as you can guess, Sen was the highest priced product at that auction, and the organizers at the event already rigged it such that she would win, because they knew she was prize worthy and even desperate enough to let anyone do anything to her.

"To this day she refused to tell us what happened in explicit details because of the trauma she accumulated, but Volug and I found that out because the kids of those patrons didn't bother to keep their mouths shut; they purposely wanted us to hear what their parents did when we were around, and they were incredibly proud of it as if they were the ones who gave our sister those horrid wounds. My brother was absolutely furious at the trash talking, up until the point where his emotions boiled over and he attacked a few of the kids whenever he could; he even went out of his way to stalk a few around the island, and even dragged them into the shadow alleyways out of public to unleash his vengeance. The attacks were so atrocious that when the adults were notified they immediately pointed the finger at him for instigating the fights every single time. No matter how I stood up for him and argued that what he was doing was retaliate against the taunting and mockery, no one took us seriously because of how we looked, how we were destined to always be beneath their feet. They chalked the incidents up as bad parenting….that we acted out because we weren't raised properly by our sister and they continued to slander her too in front of our faces. Sen even groveled to the angered crowd when they called her to take us back home and apologized profusely on our behalf. On that day watching the interaction not only humiliated her but us as well and we got reprimanded quite harshly for our actions when we got home, behind closed doors so we didn't get any more judgmental stares."

"Didn't you two tell her the whole story from your perspective?" asked Kairos.

"We did explain ourselves and why we did those actions, almost yelling ourselves hoarse because we didn't understand why we had to apologize while the others sneered at us and mocked us. Sen said that no matter how bad we get mistreated or what other people say, we have to continue being kind. She said we shouldn't have stooped to their level. We were so mad at our sister and why she took the side of the villagers, but…that night, we heard Sen crying by herself. And we swore we would never make our sister cry ever again." Nev sighed, clearly frustrated about the whole incident. "Honestly, it would've been better if we didn't have to be kind to others, that we can do whatever we want without having to explain ourselves to others who don't express the same ideals as us…it's simpler to just be cruel."

"And that would've been a coward's way of doing things." When she got a perplexed expression, the huntress explains, "Stooping down to the level of your tormentors will only give them the satisfaction of seeing you at your lowest, which is what Sen was trying to prevent you two from walking. Because if you are on the same level as them, then you wouldn't be any better than the rest. Your thirst for revenge will end up empty and you'll lose your reason and purpose to live. When Volug fought those kids was he satisfied with the outcome in the end?"

"…no, and he is still enraged about it when I ask him. However, instead of lashing out with his fists like he used to do, he resorted to a verbal fight. There were a couple of times where I feared that he'll snap back to his habit and fight, but after winning verbal bouts he decided that it was better that way then wasting his energy."

"So deep down he couldn't let the incident go, and uses what he experienced as a reminder to not let it happen again." Kairos nodded her head in understanding, hands folded over her lap. "But…who is to say he wouldn't throw punches once more? He might go into withdrawals if we aren't too careful."

"It's as you said, I do worry that it is a possibility that another fight may arise and it'll be a repeat all over again. Unlike my brother I…while I couldn't let the incident go myself I ended up harboring some killing tendencies within my heart, because of how we were treated. When nighttime comes around I would leave to hunt smaller animals, a way to dispel some of the feelings and bringing home some food. If I felt that these feelings weren't quelled by the time I returned, I ended up ransacking the homes of the other faunus for a few items. These items are so minuscule that the owners wouldn't notice if a few things are gone."

"Stealing is also wrong."

"I know, I know! Ugh!" Nev stood up, picked up a lone rock and threw it as hard as she could out towards the sea. The object sailed outward before plummeting down into the abyss below, the waves crashing against the cliffs muffling out the sound of impact. The younger faunus sat back down with an annoyed huff, "I know that…it's just, sometimes I can't help myself when I'm face to face with the opportunity to spice up our own home. It becomes too hard to resist temptation.

"Sometimes I wish the Chieftain recognizes just how bad the Outskirts had become, that we aren't any different from other faunus here in Menagerie except for a few more limbs and traits. But he's been too busy dealing with the extremist side of the White Fang, and the already strained relationship with humans on the other continents. We did get a representative from the Belladonna family come to assess the situation a few times, but it was glossed over like an inspection, or more importantly the reports that were probably placed on the desk had a lot of things redacted. So the Chieftain gets the water-downed version and probably thinks that our situation isn't as prominent as others; after a while the representative stopped showing up, and we are back to being invisible to the public. I wouldn't have had to resort to theft….if I wasn't so desperate for a better quality of life for everyone else."

The two of them sat in silence, watching the sky go from a reddish-purple hue to dusk; Kairos hadn't realize just how long it took them to hike to this area and how long they've talked to each other. For the younger faunus, she had said what she wanted, releasing the words she probably held onto within her chest. For the huntress she had words cramped into her thoughts, mulling over how to move forward from here. She thought she lived a life that most faunus like her was natural, but since her interaction with the Outskirts, witnessing and experiencing first-hand how the faunus there deals with discrimination from their peers. Everything she ever knew shattered, and makes her question everything she knew. What would it take to remove the barrier between subdivisions of faunus here in Menagerie? How does she advocate for others such as herself?

There's no doubt she'll have the backing of her friends, Blake herself would be a very prominent figure to have in her corner, but what the princess had been advocating since childhood to mend the relationship between faunus and human seemed to not extend to the faunus with two traits; they have not been invited to the table and have been shoved to a darker area of Menagerie…away from prying eyes and out of public spotlight. A single solution that popped into Kairos' head was having Ghira and other higher ups witness the depravity, hardship, and struggles the Outskirt inhabitants were experiencing. And it can't be just a simple 'show up and walk around', Nev just told her that doing an investigation or inspection didn't work out then so it won't work now…there had to be some kind of massive event that will unite everyone on the island. What that event would be, the huntress had no clue, but she'll continue to think about it. She can only pray that the event would be a glorious Hail Mary, a miracle of miracles.

"Shall we get going? It's pretty dark right now." Kairos asked the younger faunus, standing up and patting the dirt and dust from her pants. The sun had already set below the horizon line and she was starting to lose feelings in her legs from sitting too long. "The others must be wondering where we are. We can continue discussion some other time and figure out a game plan."

"…yeah. Let's get going, I'm getting a little hungry." The response was spoken in a soft tone, as if its owner was having some second thoughts. The walk through the tunnel was done in silence, and once they were outside the only source of light they can utilize is the shattered moon. Beyond the hill were the tiny lights of civilization. Nev quickly moved the bushes back over the entrance as Kairos watched a bit further away, placing them just as they were when the two faunus' first arrived, shielding it from view. Once she was done and was content about the disguise, the two of them began their trek back home, one a little ahead of the other. Kairos glanced over her shoulder now and then, making sure Nev was following. She wanted to call out, but she decided that she'll let the younger one stew a little more in her thoughts.

"Kairos?"

"Yeah?" The huntress looked over when her name was called to see the younger girl standing a bit further away, so she came to a stop as well. The expression on the other's face looked as if she was contemplating something, whether she should go through with what she was planning to do or not. Finally coming to a conclusion, Nev hurried to her companion's side, falling into step with the huntress and moved to hold hands. Smiling at the gesture, the older faunus reached out and wrapped her fingers around the hand, holding it with gentleness. The two of them continued together, hand in hand.

"Thanks for listening to what I had to say. Turns out I had a lot more words to get out of my chest than I originally thought. It felt really good to let it all out, especially when someone is willing to give the time of day."

"No problem, I'll go back and talk with my friends to see if we can get a plan in order. And hopefully tomorrow we'll get more progress done."


Outside the Belladonna Mansion…

"Haven't seen or heard from Kairos all day, must've been lounging around the market place or something while we were dealing with those sleazebag brothers. Would've been great if she had been there as like, back up or something." Blake's feline ears twitched as Sun walked up to join her on the terrace, his Scroll in hand and a puzzling expression on his face. The two of them returned home after an unsuccessful conversation with Corsac and Fennec at the café, so they weren't particular in a good mood. Ghira had stepped out of the house to take care of a little business, and hadn't returned yet so Kali was the one who greeted them with her heartwarming smile. "Although, it's a bit strange that she hasn't reached out to us or anything… usually she's great at that."

"Perhaps her Scroll ran out of battery, I didn't even remember charging mine since we got off the boat. Will probably do that before I sleep tonight." Blake offered, turning to give Sun her full attention. Before the monkey faunus joined her, she was by her lonesome self, gazing out to the other homes closer to the sea. She had time to think about all she went through at Beacon, and the events that led up to where she currently stands; she ended up thinking about the Vytal Festival, the Fall of Beacon, her confrontation with Adam, and finally Yang losing a part of herself to save her. All the emotions crashed down upon her, and she could only hold onto the railing to avoid falling over. "Besides, Kuo Kuana has so much more to offer than the marketplace, and since we still have some time left to figure out our next plan of action I'll have to do a better job to show you two around."

"Yeah that sounds like a great idea! Sure beats me trying to navigate my way around on my own. Anyway, Ms. B told me to tell you that we shouldn't be too worried about because Kairos is a big girl and can take care of herself. She's currently cooking dinner so whenever Kairos decides to show up, she'll be right on time!" Putting away his Scroll, Sun just smiles at Blake and folds his arms behind his head nonchalantly. "How about we chat for a bit since it's been awhile with just the two of us? We need to clear the air here."

"Clear the air? Why?" Blake cocks her head to the side, and folds her arms across her chest. "What do we need to talk about?"

"Well, you know, ever since our encounter on the boat and the fight with the sea dragon you've been acting quite…paranoid." Sun watches her face for any sign of movement, a twitch of the mouth or eyebrow; he even made sure to look at her feline ears since they're much more expressive and telling. "Not to mention, you were avoiding talks about the White Fang…and Yang."

"Sun…"

"Blake, if you continue to close yourself off and force yourself to avoid thinking about her or even saying her name because of how much guilt you're carrying, you'll go mentally and emotionally insane by buckling under the pressure until you lose your sense of self. I'm willing to bet that the guilt itself is currently eating you alive, tormenting you, because you blame yourself way too much."

"He was after me back at Beacon. And because I was in trouble she came to save me…rushing headlong into danger just like she's always done…but that was the worst possible outcome. I warned her not too, told her to go away. And she ignored me."

"I don't blame her for thinking that, but I do think the worst possible outcome…would be if Adam murdered Yang outright instead of maiming her." There was a loud gasp of astonishment, and Sun slightly curled in on himself when he witnessed the hurt flash across the golden orbs. He continued forward because the words couldn't be stopped, he wanted to get his thoughts out before Blake had a chance to interrupt, "I mean! If I were him and in that position – and I'm so glad I'm not because I am just a nice guy through and through – and let's say I really really REALLY wanted to hurt you, that's the route I would have took. Quick, simple, and moving on to bigger better things like protesting for more Faunus rights. This guy is drawing things out unnecessarily because he enjoys tormenting you, playing with you and making you feel less about yourself; I bet he even gets a thrill when you cry and beg him not to hurt Yang or yourself, and that makes my blood boil. I doubt he's done with the two of you yet if you were to cross paths once again, but I haven't heard any news since that day. So my guess is he's either laying low or plotting something nefarious that we're not aware about.

"But regardless of the fact…what I think is that this White Fang guy didn't come to Beacon because he heard you were attending as a student, it was probably because he was following orders from whoever is at the top…to burn our school to the ground. By causing all the panic, despair, and anxiety the Grimm invaded so much easier. It just so happened by coincidence that you ran into him in the commotion, and it was another chain of events of coincidence that led Yang to find you. But I don't think for a second that Yang blames herself for losing her arm…she'd gladly do it again if it meant protecting you."

"…what makes you so sure that that's what she'd do? How can you say those words to me with confidence?" Blake hugged herself tightly, one arm around the other, and her eyes downcast to avoid looking at the blonde before her. "I…I ran away from the White Fang when things went wrong, like the coward that I am. I even ran away from my parents who have been nothing but kind to me, and I threw that kindness back in their faces; they even warned me about joining such an organization, but I disregarded it and went along with what he wanted me to do. I'm nothing like the others girls who had gone through complicated, difficult childhoods…what I thought was the right thing to do at the time, raising protests under a banner to better the lives of Faunus everywhere…turns out to be a selfishness stemming from fulfilling my own agenda, and making myself look better in the public eye.

"And now…the school's a big mess, the global communication towers are all down, my team is scattered with no way of contact… and the person who I care for the most got wounded. A lot of people died as well trying to escape the carnage, they weren't even accounted for because their bodies were not recovered; as huntresses I feel as though I could've done better to try and save as many lives as I could, and those who didn't get saved their bloods are on my hands. Everything happened so fast before my eyes, ever since the Vytal Festival…and I am now having the time to process the choices I made that day, reflect and try to understand why I chose to do them, but even then it is so difficult to relive such an event without having panic attacks."

"Sometimes there are things you may not understand, and you don't need to understand." said Sun, smiling a bit to give her a sense of comfort. "Just know that you have done what you can, with everything that you had at that moment in time, and that you are okay with yourself. As long as you've made peace with yourself you'll be able to focus on the next big thing. You are so worried about the minute details and wrapped up in the what ifs or what you should have done differently, that you start having tunnel vision…and lose the overall big picture of what is at stake. That is just as dangerous because you may end up doing more harm than good."

"Thanks Sun, I understand." Blake responded in kind, a small smile slowly spreading across her face.

Rustle~ Rustle~ Rustle~ Rustle~

"Wait…did you hear that?" The feline faunus quickly turned to the noise with suspicion, her eyes narrowed and focused, while her ears were swiveled on top of her head like little satellite dishes. Sun also tried to locate where the noise was coming from, his tail lashing out in anticipation. "It seems like there's someone out there watching us, and I don't know how long they've been there. For all I know they could've been there since the beginning."

"Mmmmm I feel the same way, and this individual may not be on our side. Which makes what you just said all the more concerning." Sun pulled out his Scroll, turning on the light feature and holding it out over the railing. The light source barely illuminated the vegetation, but even so it was worth a shot. "Shall we try and attempt to drag our guest out another way? Because this light isn't as strong as I imagined, kinda a bummer now that I think about it."

"Shall we try another method of coaxing?"

"Huh? Blake, wait! That's–" Sun only managed to utter a few words before Blake pulled Gambol Shroud out in its gun form, point in a general direction, and fired a couple of warning shots. A couple of nearby faunus who heard the commotion quickly ran for cover, assuming that they were being targeted. After a few minutes, the gunshots stopped raining into the foliage, Sun uncovering his ears to see Blake just as stoic and the wisp of smoke coming from the barrel of her weapon.

At first there weren't any movements, and the feline princess lowered her weapon slightly under the guise that she hit her mark. The wind gently blew around her, and she didn't sense anything out of the ordinary. However it was short lived when the rustling began and an individual leaped from the shadows, showing themselves in the moonlight. Based on body frame, the faunus was female wearing a horned White Fang mask on her face, and a long brown ponytail flowed out behind her. There was something familiar about her that Blake took a second to observe. The mysterious faunus landed on a nearby rooftop and took off running away from the Belladonna Mansion, but not before flashing a sneer in Blake's direction, seemingly taunting her for the missed shots.

"Sun, I'm going after her! See if you can cut her off, and don't let her escape." Not waiting for him to respond Blake used Gambol Shroud's ribbon to latch onto the tallest palm tree, and propel her through the air after the fleeing individual. Her heart pounded heavily within her chest as she sailed through the air, her legs pumping as quickly as they could once she made contact on a nearby building. The other individual wasn't too far ahead, but it was a classic cat and mouse chase. Every time Blake thought she was closing the distance, the figure alluded her and never let her catch up. They kept up the chase, neither side wanting to lose ground until the amount of buildings started to dwindle.

Seeing the end in sight, that's when the mysterious figure decided to change her strategy to put an end to their chase. In the blink of an eye, she vanished, leaving Blake baffled. However, the feline didn't deter as she continued running, not even batting an eyelash when she had to slosh through some water puddles. She came to a halt as soon as something with murderous intent came towards her, the assailant making herself known with a weapon drawn. Sparks flew between Gambol Shroud and the other weapon – Blake could make out its thin, whip-like shape that reminded her of Weiss' rapier Myrtenaster – and her eyes widened as electric sparks began coursing through both weapons. The feline quickly unleashed a shadow, putting some distance between her and the person before her. Her skin lost its dark hue, going back to the owner's actual skin color, and that's when Blake understood that the faunus before her had an ability to camouflage.

"Explain why you were spying on us. What do you want?" The intruder glanced to the right while Blake asked her question, watching as Sun landed a few feet away with his breath coming out in soft pants. He may have had a late start, but he managed to catch up with the two females.

"Give it up while you're at it, I'm not about hitting a – wah!" Sun dodged the whip-like weapon as it flew straight towards his face, falling backwards as the weapon retracted when it didn't make its mark. Thanks to the diversion Blake went on the offense, throws hands, elbows, and even knees to keep her opponent off balance; unfortunately the other was just a good with close-quarter fighting, throwing her own punches and kicks to counter. Getting back on his feet Sun made a rush of his own, allowing Blake to fall back and provide support. The two of them pressed their opponent who was doing very well holding her own, at times grimacing when a punch or kick hit their marks.

At some point during their scuffle, something slim and small fell out of the faunus' pocket, sliding and bouncing across the ground from a misplaced kick. The movement and noise caught everyone's attention and something on the assailant's face gave Blake and Sun ideas. Giving the monkey faunus a head nod in acknowledgment, Blake distanced herself from the fight and made her way to the dropped item, turning her back at the opponent. This maneuver didn't go unnoticed and that caused the other to freak out, the tone of her voice indicating panic the moment she called out.

"No! Argh!"

"Oh no you don't! I won't let you get any closer!" Sun tackled his opponent in that moment of distraction, intertwining their hands and pinning them against the ground. He begins growling with annoyance, struggling as the thrashing became much more aggressive, the female faunus trying to get free and make a go at Blake. He readjusted his position for a better foothold when he felt his feet slip, pressing against his opponent using his full weight. "Quickly Blake, grab the Scroll! Seems like that thing is very important seeing how this one is acting like her life is depending on it. Must have lots of delicious, very thorough notes for the White Fang to use against us!"

"I don't need to tell you anything, monkey scum! Now get off of me!" The faunus reared back and dealt a quick head-butt, putting all her strength into the attack to dislodged the huntsman. Throwing Sun to the side she jumped back up and made a mad dash to Blake who was closing in on the Scroll; the feline didn't see the head-butt but after Sun told her to get the scroll her legs were on overdrive, she glanced over her shoulder to see the White Fang member coming for her. The assailant almost caught, arm pulled back to strike when she was tackled and pinned once more by a Sun clone. More golden monkey clones joined in, dog-piling and holding the struggling faunus down with their hands. "God damn it! You monkey bastard! Unhand me this instant!"

"Quit staring and grab it!" Sun screamed at Blake who had stopped running to look at him. His hands were pressed tightly together, sweat dripping down his face as he tried to maintain his Semblance; his clones were trying to hold their opponent for as long as they could, the light radiating from each one flickered due to the slowly dwindling Aura of their creator. Sun quickly took note of how much faster his Aura was flickering, and he panicked, "Hurry! I can't hold out…much longer!"

No sooner had he finished speaking he suddenly collapsed to his knees as his Aura flickered out and disappeared into tiny yellow lights. The clones that were holding down the other faunus vanished as well in a cloud of yellow particles. Sensing nothing else holding her back, the assailant quickly got to her feet and pointed her weapon at Blake, who at this point reached the Scroll and grabbed it with her hand. The princess of Kuo Kuana turned immediately at Sun's warning shout, and she stood tall to stare down the target poised to strike. The White Fang mask, broken and cracked from the harsh head-butt from earlier that exposed a single eye, slowly fell away into pieces and revealed who the intruder was. And Blake recognized her immediately, uttering a single word as she tightly held onto the Scroll with one hand.

"Ilia."