Necessary Sacrifices

It was now the day after Ilia's violent outburst. Blake had come outside with Scroll in hand and a small sigh. Nox was naturally behind her, for after the spectacle yesterday, the dark Blade was convinced that Ilia would try to murder Blake the first chance she got. Blake rolled her eyes but decided not to berate him. She briefly wondered if Weiss ever had bodyguards like this. Then again, Nox tried to keep himself as unnoticeable as possible. And the fact that he didn't speak also helped, although after the inhuman scream he gave Blake had sometimes wondered if he had some kind of throat injury that prevented him from talking. It felt weird for a Blade to be born that way.

Pushing the last thoughts to the back of her head, Blake took a deep breath. "Alright, can you do this?" Blake asked, turning to Sun who was walking down the steps with a Scroll of his own in hand.

"Please, I've fought monsters and giant robots more than once," Sun replied cheerfully, "I think I can handle getting a couple signatures.

"Looking forward to it." Said a smug Wu from behind the monkey Driver.

Blake found herself smiling.

"Just do what you can." Nox showed on his scroll to Sun without making eye contact. Sun smirked at what Nox showed, having actually figured out that the dark Blade now had a grudging respect.

With that, Blake and Sun split up to gather signatures from the Faunus of Menagerie in hopes of getting volunteers for the defense of Haven.

Unfortunately, despite what that boy shouted at Ilia, it seemed that no one was willing to give any signatures for Blake or Sun. Some politely said no, others heard them out before walking away. Few even flat out ignored them.

"Are you kidding?!" Sun exclaimed as he was talking to tall well-built Faunus man with ram horns. "We would love to have someone of your skills on our side." The guy apparently had apprenticed under a huntsman who had taught him a lot.

"Well…I," the ram faunus said unsurely.

"Mata!" shouted an elderly ram faunus woman who grabbed the man by his arm, "Get back inside!"

"But mom!" the ram faunus named Mata complained as he was dragged.

"You're not going anywhere!" the mother said firmly as she dragged her son inside their house.

"Such a shame," Wu said from the sidelines in actual disappointment, "He seemed at least interested."

"Yeah, he could've been a big help," Sun groaned, before glaring at this Blade, "Can't you at least try to help me out here?" it didn't help that the monkey Blade looked like he was watching a comedy show.

"Why? I'm having way too much fun watching you scurry," Wu replied cheekily, then he noticed something a little further along the path. "By the way, do you see that?"

"Huh?" Sun sounded out before turning to see what Wu was referring to. There on the side of a road, a group of three kids were pushing a fourth one around. Two boys and a girl were the pushers, while the fourth girl was the one being pushed. "What the heck?" Sun sounded out at what was clearly a kid being bullied. And none of the adults were doing anything. Just shaking their heads at the sight.

"Hey! You three!" Sun called out causing the three laughing kids to stop after one more push that toppled the fourth one.

"What?" one of the two boys asked.

"What do you think you're doing?" Sun all but demanded.

"We're teaching this human a lesson." the girl of the bullies said with a grin.

"What?" Sun sounded out before taking a better look at the girl on the ground. Sure enough, she lacked any Faunus features. "Hey, little lady," Sun said kindly, "Are you a human?"

The girl on the ground nodded with tears in her eyes, looking about ready to cry.

"See? It admits it," the other boy said while pointing at the human girl.

"It?" Sun sounded out angrily, "Didn't your parents teach you that bullying is wrong?"

"This isn't bullying, this is payback!" the girl of the group argued, "My mommy said that humans have done bad things to Faunus."

"Your mommy may be right, but not all humans are like that," Sun said with a scowl at the girl who looked confused at what Sun said.

"But they hate us!" the second boy argued back while pointing an accusatory finger at the human girl who had now began to sob.

"Oh, look, it's crying," the first boy said mockingly.

"You brats better get out of here right this- " "Sunny, let me handle this," Wu interrupted before Sun actually threatened any of the bullies.

"Wu, they're- " "I know what they're doing," Wu shot back before motioning to the human girl, "Let me deal with them, you try to cheer her up."

Sun wanted to argue back, but decided that consoling the now crying girl was more important.

With that, Wu gave the three kids a look before crouching to their level, "Now, why were you pushing that girl around?"

"Because it's a human," the first boy replied easily, "And all humans are evil."

"Says who?" Wu asked patiently.

"My dad," the boy said with a proud look.

"Your dad's wrong," Wu said, earning a shocked look. "It's true, that some humans are evil and like to hurt others, but there are also good humans that would never do what you're doing. In that regard, humans and Faunus are the same," Wu explained with an unusually serious tone.

"But…but humans have been mean to Faunus," the girl Faunus argued back.

"Maybe, but let me ask you, what has she done to you?" Wu asked, referring to the girl that Sun was doing his best to console.

"Humans have-" Wu brought out his staff and slammed the bottom to the ground with a loud thud. Effectively, shutting the girl up. "I didn't ask what humans have done to Faunus. I asked what she has done to you," Wu said more firmly.

"But…but…she's a human," one of the boys argued weakly.

"So, you're doing this because of what she is?" Wu asked with a raised eyebrow, "You know…the evil humans also do bad things to faunus because of what they are. What you do is exactly what they do. Are you three evil faunus?"

"But…but," the second boy tried to argue but looked very lost.

"You have been acting the same as the evil humans that your parents have warned you about just because she is a human. Is that what you want to be? A Faunus equivalent of them? Faunus that would inflict the same pain that you don't want on yourselves," Wu then asked.

With that, all three of the kids looked down with sad looks. "…No." the three said as one.

"Well then, "Wu said with a smile, "You three apologize to her, right now."

The three turned towards the human girl who Sun had managed to console if only somewhat.

"We're sorry," the girl of the three kids said.

"Sorry," the two boys added in unison.

The human girl looked surprised but didn't say a word.

"Hey," Sun said in a tender tone, "They apologized for bullying you. What do you say to that?"

"…Th-thank you?" the girl said unsurely.

"Not the word I would use," Sun said non-chalantly, before giving a happy grin, "I think 'it's okay' would be better."

This seemed to make the human girl more confident, "It's okay." Then she let out a small smile at the three who looked relieved.

"Azura!" shouted a voice which alerted everyone involved. It was the one antlered Faunus youth. "Is everything alright?" the boy sounded concerned.

"Yes, Haze," the human girl named Azura said to the faunus, now named Haze. She had already wiped her tears to hide any evidence to the contrary.

Haze looked at the three kids who looked worried, then at the monkey that had now stood up with a staff. Then at the monkey faunus who the deer Faunus recognized as the one that tried to jump that Fang. "Okay, I got the groceries so we should go back," Haze said, indeed holding a small fabric bag which was filled with groceries from the nearby market, before offering his hand to Azura. The little girl practically dashed to the hand before latching her own onto it.

"Umm…can I come here later to see my new friends?" Azura asked Haze who glanced at the three kids who now look surprised.

Haze smiled, "Sure, if they want."

"We…we would like that," the girl of the group said, now smiling, as did the two boys. With that, Haze left with Azura. The little girl waving at the three faunus kids and Sun and Wu. The three kids then ran off somewhere else for the moment.

"See Sun, this is how you make a difference," Wu said to his Driver with a smug look, "Sometimes it comes in the form of small things like- Whuh-WAOH?!" Wu then exclaimed as he happened to glance at the spot Sun used to be at. "Used to be" being the operative part. Then he moved his face to a particular direction. And then the trickster Blade growled in annoyance as he saw Sun following Haze and Azura. "Grrrr! That's what I get for trying to teach that moron a valuable lesson," Wu grumbled before reluctantly moving in to follow his idiot Driver.

It didn't take long for Sun to reach Haze and Azura. "Hey, wait," Sun called out, causing the deer faunus to quicken his pace with the little girl trying to keep up now. Then Sun jumped in front of the guy, "Hey, I heard you back at the press conference. What you did was pretty brave."

"Shut up," Haze said simply before moving to walk past Sun.

"Haze, you weren't supposed to be there," Azura pointed out, earning a surprised look from Sun.

"…No…I wasn't," Haze said simply, but with an apologetic look, "Please don't tell my grandparents."

Azura nodded while hugging the hand she was holding onto.

"Look, dude. I promise I won't get you in trouble, just hear me-" "Let me guess," Haze interrupted with an irritated tone, "You're looking for signatures for defense of Haven? Well guess what, I'm not going to fight. I'm done fighting forever, so leave me ALONE!" after the last outburst, Haze practically bulldozed through Sun and kept going while Azura was giving the nice monkey Faunus a sad look as they walked.

"Geez, what's wrong with him?" Sun complained, before feeling a familiar whack on his head, "OW!"

"That was for leaving me to monologue," Wu said before repeating the action with his staff, "And that was for being an idiot, as per usual."

Sun growled at his annoyed looking Blade, "Really dude!?" During this, Haze and Azura had disappeared into the crowd.

Later on, Sun and Blake are sitting at the docks, sipping drinks from coconut shells. "I just don't get it," Sun complained in frustration, "How can they just sit around and do nothing while the White Fang are preparing to attack?!"

"Because not everyone is like you and me, Sun," Blake replied, understanding where he was coming from. But the feline Faunus understood something he didn't, "The Faunus here in Menagerie, the ones that weren't born here, moved here because they were done fighting, having to struggle constantly."

"Hardly surprising," Wu spoke up as he sipped his own drink using his tail with his arms crossed. Nox also had one of the drinks which he sipped through a straw and a slit in his inner mask. "I take it those people just want to be left alone," Wu then spoke up.

"You hit the nail on the head," Blake replied with a sigh, "I was…hoping that the incident yesterday might have swayed the faunus further, but it hasn't. The problem here is, that Adam's attack on Haven will affect them, whether they like it or not."

"I guess I never thought of it like that," Sun commented on Wu's deduction before deciding to address Blake," Also, that guy didn't even want to listen either."

"What guy?" Blake asked.

"The guy who gave Ilia the verbal smackdown," Sun replied, "I heard he was called Haze."

"I see," Blake said with a sigh, "He must have been angered by what Ilia said that time."

"Say…are there any humans living here?" Sun then decided to ask out of curiosity.

"Not to my knowledge, why?" Blake asked. It's not unusual for humans like ones from ships visiting, but actually living here would be difficult for them. After all, there may very well be Faunus who don't want anything to do with them anymore.

"Because I saw a human child being bullied," Sun said, earning a surprised look from Blake, "Wu and I dealt with it, but then Haze showed up and he and the girl walked off together. If she was a Faunus, I would've thought they were siblings or something."

"That's…unusual," Blake said before having a worried look, "I wonder why though?"

"You are worried that someone with Adam's mindset might do something to the human child, my lady?" Nox showed on his scroll.

"Well…yeah," Blake said with a frown.

Sun also saw the text. "Adam…" Sun muttered loud enough for Blake to hear, "He was the guy you used to…work with?" The monkey boy clearly hesitated on the last part.

"Yes," Blake said with a weary sigh, which caused Nox to give the monkey a cross glare.

"I'm sorry, forget I said anything," Sun quickly said, but not because of the dark Blade.

"No, it's okay," Blake said reassuringly, before having a thought, "Sun…have you ever met someone and thought, they are the personification of this word?"

"Uhh…" Sun sounded out in confusion.

Realizing the problem, Blake started explaining, "Okay, when I first met Ruby, I thought she embodied the word 'purity'. And after a while I realized Weiss was 'defiance', and Yang was 'strength'."

Sun looked very interested now, "What am I?"

"The jury's still out on it, but I'm leaning towards 'earnest'," Blake explained with a smile.

This caused Sun to take a sip from his drink and let out a satisfied "ah".

Something that made Blake chuckle and Wu to shake his head in amusement. Nox didn't react. "At first I thought Adam was 'justice'." Nox's grip on his drink tightened at hearing that. "Then I thought he was 'passion'. But over time I realized he was none of those things. He was 'spite'." At the latter part, Sun and Wu had curious looks, while Nox tilted his head. "Yes, not 'rage', not 'hatred', 'spite'. Adam won't accept equality, only suffering for what he feels the world did to him." Blake explained with a sorrowful look, "And his way of thinking is dangerously contagious. That's what worries me about Ilia. She's not like him, not yet at least."

"But you're not sure how long that will last," Wu piped up again in a more serious tone.

"Exactly," Blake admitted.

"She was your friend, right?" Sun then asked in sympathy.

"Yes. Her chameleon traits meant that she could pass as a human," Blake explained, "But she chose to fight instead of living a normal life. I respected that about her. Like me, she was more or less trained on the road. And when my parents chose to leave, I didn't go with them…I had Adam and Ilia after all." At the last part, Blake looked sad as she remembered one of the few good times she had with Adam and Ilia.

"You know we have to face her eventually right?" Sun then said, feeling like a bad guy for pointing it out.

Blake let out a sigh at hearing that, "I know."

"On the topic of word personifications," Wu decided to pipe up, "What would you say about us Blades?"

Blake looked surprised at the question, "Why do you ask that?"

"Just curious," Wu shrugged.

Blake let out a smile at that before having a thoughtful look," When Roze was first awakened, I thought he was 'clueless'." Blake chuckled a little, "I know it might sound mean but he asked so many questions that I thought only a small child would ask. His physical incapability of comprehending Yang's puns and…intimate relationships didn't help. Then came Dahlia, she wasn't just a representation of the word but an incarnation of 'beauty' itself. And Dragunov is 'might'." At the end of that explanation, Blake was in a visibly better mood.

"What about him?" Wu asked as he pointed towards Nox.

Blake glanced at her Blade with a smile, "I struggled to find a word to effectively describe Nox. But recently I finally understood, Nox is 'loyalty'."

At that moment, Nox fell on his knees and revealed a lot of his scroll for Blake, which made the Faunus Driver blush profusely.

"Nox! Stop it! You're embarrassing me!" Blake hissed as she looked around frantically at the Faunus who had stopped to stare at the dark Blade kneeling before Blake.

Sun leaned in a little to see what the dark Blade was saying. "Wow!" Sun said while giving a weirded out look to the dark Blade, "Someone's obsessed." Nox's scroll was filled with praises to Blake like she was a goddess of some kind who was gracing him with the very air he breathes.

"Stop reading!" Blake said, gathering up the scroll in an effort to hide the writing.

Wu was laughing his head off until he leaned too far back on the fence and fell to the water below. Or he would have if his tail hadn't wrapped around the railing, which made him hang upside down with his silver mane barely above the water while he was still holding his coconut cup right way up despite laughing his head off. Then he somehow managed to take an upside-down sip from the coconut cup before throwing the cup over the railing before pulling himself back up and catching the cup. Not spilling a single drop of the drink that was still in it. "Someone's weak to complements," Wu said to a slack jawed Sun who saw the display in front of him.

As did several of the Faunus who clapped at Wu's performance. This was a welcome distraction for Blake who was desperately trying to make Nox stop worshipping her.


In Mistral, it had been a couple weeks since the training begun. All Remnan Drivers got a chance to go up against either Brighid or Pandoria. Sometimes Roc or Pyra/Mythra would join the training effort. That's not to say that the aforementioned Blade's Drivers didn't sometimes join up with them. But…well…it was apparent that as far as being a Driver goes, the Remnans were outclassed. Despite Ruby using her semblance and switching weapons with Roze, Pyra and Rex were able to keep up with them despite Rex, actually all Alrestians, not having an Aura. Ren and Jaune were overwhelmed by Mòrag's swordsmanship and reflexes that allowed her to avoid any and all attacks directed at her, and sometimes Brighid would just put up a barrier at critical moments. Finally, Nora and Penny got their asses handed to them by Zeke and Pandoria. Despite Nora getting supercharged by Electra and even partially from Zeke's Arts, the Tantalese Driver just switched off the elemental attacks and went with just his mastery of the Big Bang Edge. As for Penny, while Nora was practically immune to Pandoria, the artificial Driver wasn't. After getting a good dose of Zeke's "Overload Thunder Beam", Penny short-circuited for a time which really scared everyone. Especially Ruby who panicked about her mechanical friend dying. Fortunately, during what was later called "circuit recovery" Kos-Mos explained that Penny would be combat ready once again soon enough. Which also meant explaining to the Alrestians what Penny was. But needless to say, the real indicator of Penny being at least alive was that Kos-Mos never reverted to a Core Crystal.

Which was when Zeke revealed that sometimes Arts are more effective against certain kinds of enemies. His "Overload Thunder Beam" being very effective against machines for instance, which explained Penny's state. Thankfully when Penny recovered, she was acting like nothing was wrong, which Kos-Mos was able to confirm.

Speaking of Arts, not only were the Remnans working on discovering new Arts, but they were also working on strengthening their Blades through…alternate means. As it turned out, on Alrest there were items called Aux Cores that were used to augment a Blade's abilities. Nora and Ruby immediately wanted some, but unfortunately any usable Aux Cores they had were currently in use. That was the first method of strengthening a Blade, but the second method was what interested all Remnans, especially Ruby and Ozpin, Core Chips. Apparently, there was a market of several grades of Core Chips that were for sale which were used to strengthen a Blade's weapon. Through different Aux Cores and Core Chips a Common Blade could surpass a Rare One in strength. As luck had it, Rex and company had some spares, which they had gone into a long tangent of explanations on how they might affect the weapon's strength, effectiveness against some enemies and allowing a Blade to make stronger barriers. Which explained to them how Brighid was actually able to block a Special Art from Otohime despite them being of opposing elements.

Much to the Remnant crew's dismay, they weren't allowed to have any until they got down at least the basic powers of their Blades down. Because as it turned out, Roze revealed that he still had two more abilities that he has yet to "unlock". Sometimes a Blade needs to fulfill certain conditions for them to unlock their full potential, which ranges from killing certain monsters, exploration, and most often just deepening the Blade's bond with their Driver.

Right now however, Oscar was by himself practicing with Ozpin's cane that Qrow had held onto until meeting the farm boy.

"Hey," came the voice of Ruby who had come to the dojo-like room to check on Oscar, "Dinner's almost ready."

"Thanks," Oscar said with a smile.

Then Ruby glanced at the cane, "You've really gotten better using that. Are you sure you haven't had any combat training before?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," Oscar replied, "I've only worked at a farm and only fighting I've done was an occasional small Grimm. But…it's odd. " Oscar then looked at the cane, "I've only had this cane for a few weeks, but I feel like I've held it a lifetime. I'm sorry I must sound crazy."

"Hey, we thought Roze was crazy when we first met him," Ruby shot back with a smile, " But it does sound a little crazy." Then Ruby took on a more cheerful tone, "But don't worry, at this pace, you'll be combat ready in no time!" after that Ruby let out a small laugh.

"What?" Oscar asked unsurely.

"Sorry, it's just…I sounded like Penny for a moment," Ruby said happily.

"…How do you do this?" Oscar then asked with a frown.

"Huh?"

"How are you not scared of anything?" Oscar then asked, "I mean…I always knew I wanted to be more than a farm hand, but…nothing like this. I mean…who would ask for this?"

At this, Ruby's smile completely dropped, "Oscar…It's not that I'm not scared of anything…I just…I guess I just don't want to let everyone down. Especially Jaune or Roze."

"What do you mean?" Oscar asked apprehensively.

Ruby let out a sigh, "It's…well…back in the Battle for Beacon we lost a friend, Pyrrha. We had just defeated Cinder who had gotten the Fall Maiden's power together with our Blades. But Cinder managed to launch one last attack on Pyrrha, before Talos…ended her." At this part Ruby hugged herself a little. "I still keep wondering if there was anything that I could've done to stop it. Anything to save her. For a while…I actually wished that it was me who died instead." At this part, Ruby let out a few tears, as she had walked past Oscar and looked outside at the night sky.

"Then…how can you still keep going?" Oscar asked with a worried look, "I mean…I wouldn't know what to do."

"Neither did I, but…I had Jaune, Nora, Ren, their Blades…and Roze," Ruby said allowing herself to smile, "They all miss Pyrrha and I feared that they hated me for it, but if it had been me instead…then it would be Pyrrha here having these same thoughts instead of me. And…she wouldn't want us to stop either. But now I feel like I can do anything as long as I have-Roze!" Ruby screamed the last part as she turned back to the stairway to see the reaper Blade standing there. Which also caused Oscar to look into the stairway to see that Roze was indeed standing there with a smile. "How long have you been there?!" Ruby cried out accusingly.

"Long enough," Roze said with a smile, "Ren sent me to tell you that dinner's ready now."

Ruby gaped like a fish out of water before blushing at her Blade hearing this conversation, especially the last part.

"Hey, I'm glad you finally get it," Roze said with a smile, "Anyway, I suggest you get moving before Nora eats everything. Again." At the last part, Roze ran back up the stairs.

"Get back here!" Ruby shouted back before dashing after her Blade, not done with him hearing something that to her was so embarrassing.

This left Oscar wondering what just happened. "Miss Rose carries a tremendous burden on her shoulders, but it seems to me like Roze is trying to actively take some of it off of her," Ozpin piped up inside Oscar's mind.

"I guess…things aren't easy for her either," Oscar said with a sigh, now having newfound respect for Ruby. Although part of him also felt a little jealous as he was learning more about Drivers and Blades alongside Ozpin

"It most assuredly is not," Ozpin said back before Oscar's body felt a sudden chill.

"What was that?" Oscar asked aloud, feeling like hugging himself for comfort.

"Perhaps the night is getting chilly. We should head back inside," Ozpin said, although he sounded slightly on edge.

Oscar decided not to question it and almost ran upstairs. Shortly after Oscar left, a large figure in rags glanced into the dojo after the boy, clenching the doorframe tightly. "I just…can't believe it," the figure thought at what he had found out about the boy through very careful eavesdropping over the last few days. "That's supposed to be Ozpin? That bastard lives within that boy?!" The figure wanted nothing more than to kill that boy who housed that monster. But her memory gave him a pause. Would she want this?


In a room in the Menagerie branch of White Fang, Corsic and Fennec had just finished listening to a message.

"If this is how High Leader Taurus wishes to proceed, then so it shall be," Corsic said simply.

"Of course brother," Fennec said before frowning a little, "Still…"

The two's musings were stopped by a knock on the door. "Come in," Corsic said, which allowed a very distraught looking Ilia inside.

"Sister Ilia, thank you for meeting with us," Fennec said with a small smile.

"I will accept my punishment here and now," Ilia said as she kneeled down.

"Please, stand," Corsic said pacifyingly. "We are not here to speak of a punishment. We have called you here because we have a new mission for you."

Ilia looked surprised before standing up, "How can I be of assistance?"

"Let us start with wonderful news," Corsic said with a smile, "We have received a message from the Mistral brotherhood. The operation was a success."

"Adam Taurus is now the High Leader of the White Fang," Fennec finished.

"That's…wonderful news," Ilia said, sounding glad before looking more apprehensive, "And Sienna?"

"Dead." spoke up a voice that made Ilia turn to around in surprise. There leaning against the wall next to the door that she had previously entered was a figure that made the chameleon Faunus feel a chill of death.

"Who are you?!" Ilia demanded.

"Perceval," Perceval replied not registering Ilia as a threat.

"Calm yourself, sister Ilia," Corsic then said, "This is Adam's Blade."

Fennec then took over, "And it was he who brought this wonderful news to us."

"Oh, I see," Ilia said relaxing, "Please excuse my rudeness."

"It's alright," Perceval said simply.

"Now, the White Fang is going through a transitional period," Fennec then spoke up, regaining Ilia's attention.

"Growth requires change," Corsic continued, "And change can be painful."

Ilia steeled herself, "If it's for the betterment of the Faunus then that's what we must do. What's our next mission?"

"Containment," Corsic said, "With the CCT network still inoperable, news of Adam's ascension has yet to reach Menagerie."

Then Fennec took over again, "But when it inevitably does, the people will react poorly now that the Chief and what appears to be another traitor have spoken against us."

Ilia looked down in anger, "It's my fault that the Belladonnas had any ground to stand on to begin with. But then that one antlered traitor started spewing those things." At the last part, Ilia clenched her fists in anger. Unbeknownst to her and the Albains, Perceval unnoticeably perked up at hearing Ilia speak of a one antlered Faunus.

"Do not concern yourself with past failures, Ilia," Corsic said soothingly, "Focus on the future."

"As of now, the Belladonnas are the only real threat to us," Fennec then said simply.

"So they must be silenced," Corsic added in.

This caused Ilia to look horrified, "S-silenced?"

"Killed." Perceval translated.

"Must you speak so crudely," Fennec asked, getting annoyed at this living weapon speaking out of turn.

"Don't waste pretty words, just call it what it is," Perceval replied in a melancholy tone, "A kill is a kill. No amount of pretty words will change that."

Fennec looked at Perceval with clear anger before feeling Corsic's hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps you are right, but what about sister Ilia's feelings?" the wolf faunus said while motioning to Ilia who looked conflicted. "After all she was a friend of Blake Belladonna."

Perceval grunted in acknowledgement. "Ilia, was it?" The assassin Blade then spoke up, earning a nervous nod. "If you are having second thoughts about killing Blake, then rest assured, Adam wants her alive," Perceval explained.

This seemed to calm Ilia somewhat. "However," Corsic then spoke up, "We cannot risk her trying to defend her family."

"B-but the people of Menagerie-" "Will come to understand what happens to those who speak up against the White Fang, "Corsic interrupted Ilia, "Speaking of which, we would also like to eliminate the one who spoke against us."

"I…" Ilia sounded out hesitantly.

"Rest assured," Fennec then said, "You will not be alone in this endeavor, your fellow brothers and sisters will help you."

"May I take care of the Faunus who spoke against us?" Perceval then asked, earning everyone's attention once again.

"Why would you want to do that?" Fennec asked with a raised eyebrow.

"If you wish to maximize the impact of eliminating the Belladonnas, you might want these two events to happen at the same time," Perceval explained, "I move fast and am very efficient. Once I have eliminated the traitor, I will come to the Belladonna residence to assist you."

"No," Corsic spoke up, "You cannot."

"...Are you questioning Adam's authority," Perceval asked with an edge to his voice.

"Nothing of the sort," Corsic said quickly, "Your argument is sound, but we will need someone capable enough to ensure that miss Belladonna is delivered to Adam. So, once you have eliminated the stray, you will ensure that she is delivered to Mistral safely."

"...You are right, but I must also ensure that this mission is met with success," Perceval then argued with less edge, "Besides, I have heard rumors that there might be some people of considerable strength living with Belladonnas."

Fennec gave his brother a look, "He's not wrong brother. That Dagas Blade also had significant impact on the people."

"And we don't know the full extent of Nia's strength," Corsic admitted while rubbing his chin. "Very well, Perceval. You deal with the one antlered Faunus, and then come assist us when you are done."

"…A necessary sacrifice," Ilia muttered to herself, earning small smiles from Corsic and Fennec.

"As many as Adam may need," Perceval said, before exiting the room.

Ilia soon followed the assassin with a downcast look.

As soon as the two left, Fennec had a thoughtful look, "Sister Ilia was right to worry about the people of Menagerie. The people might come to see the Belladonnas as martyrs."

"It's a risk we must take for our High Leader," Corsic said before replaying the message Perceval had brought them.

"I will not allow them to ruin this!" a holographic projection of Adam shouted in anger, "The Belladonna name has brought me nothing but grief!" Then the projection Adam slid his right hand across his face slowly, seemingly calming down as he did. "You've done well in finding the deserter. Bring her to me, alive. But not before you've slaughtered her family. I have a promise to keep." At the end of the message, Adam had a sick grin.

"…He seems…unwell," Fennec commented on Adam's demeanor in the message.

"He carries a tremendous burden," Corsic said simply.

Fennec let out a sigh, "Are we sure he's the one to lead us?"

"For now," Corsic said. Then another knock sounded out at the door. "Come in," Corsic called out. Then a Faunus with batwings on his back entered. "Brother Yuma. Did you see to Ghira's messenger?" Corsic asked the bat faunus named Yuma.

"He rests beneath the waves, along with his message," Yuma said almost emotionlessly.

This brought a small smile on the Albain brothers. "Then all is well," Corsic said.

As the Albain brothers heard the last bits of good news, Ilia looked at Perceval who was walking to find an empty room he would stay in during this mission. Something about what the Blade said bothered Ilia. "Perceval," Ilia called after the dark Blade in the hallway.

Perceval turned around as he took a swig of his gourd. "What is it?" Perceval asked, sounding tad impatient for some reason.

"…Why did you say that?" Ilia asked carefully.

"Say what?" Perceval asked.

"You said…as many as Adam needs," Ilia said apprehensively before looking into the assassin's yellow optics, "…You also asked if Corsic and Fennec were questioning Adam's authority. Why did you do that?"

"Isn't it obvious," Perceval asked, "We are sacrificing as many people as Adam may need, and anyone who questions him should be eliminated."

"I know that, but…this all for the Faunus," Ilia said with a look of conviction, "So we must make necessary sacrifices for the betterment of our race."

Perceval chuckled at that, shaking his head even.

"What's so funny?" Ilia asked in irritation.

"What's funny is that after everything you have seen, you still believe that all of this is for the Faunus," Perceval said with a chuckle, "All of this is for Adam and no one else."

"That's not true!" Ilia shouted, "Adam-" "Would not have hesitated to kill you if you had shown hesitation about killing the Belladonnas," Perceval spoke up, "Adam is a killer. Nothing more."

"Well what about you?!" Ilia asked angrily, "You think your hands are any cleaner?!"

"No, they're not. But killing gives me no pleasure," Perceval said with a sigh, "And unlike Adam, I call these courses of action what they are, mindless bloodshed."

"Do you understand that you're speaking of treason against Faunus," Ilia said gritting her teeth while reaching for her weapon.

"Not Faunus…Adam," Perceval spoke up with a firm look, "Besides, I know what I am. I am a Blade that specializes in assassination, which makes me a mere killer, but the difference between me and Adam is…no, it doesn't matter."

"I can tell everyone that you're harboring traitorous thoughts," Ilia threatened before taking out her weapon.

"You could," Perceval said, "That is…if you ever leave this hallway alive." At those words, Perceval put his gourd away before making his Chroma Katana appear. Then he drew the purple Blade slightly out of the sheath with ornate purple blades on the outer curve of the sheath.

Ilia wasn't sure why, but at this moment, she felt like she was confronting Adam himself. "…Everyone will ask questions…w-why did I disappear," Ilia stammered in fear.

"And I am Adam's Blade who takes orders directly from him," Perceval replied as he took a step forward, "Who do you honestly think will suspect me?"

Ilia took a step back, now trembling. Then in panic, she lashed out with her blade in its whip form. Only for Perceval to sidestep the lash, before dashing at the chameleon Faunus who closed her eyes in terror. Only to feel nothing. Ilia dared to open her eyes to see Perceval staring her down with his purple Chroma Katana out of its sheath and the blade was inches away from her throat.

"Killing you right now would be so easy," Perceval said making small tears trickle down her face. "But I think not," the assassin said as he sheathed his weapon, "For the success of this mission, requires you. But should you decide to tell anyone about this conversation…well you should remember, I am Perceval, and none shall stand against me." After these words Perceval walked away to his room.

Which left Ilia slump down onto the floor with a horrified look. Ilia couldn't remember a time in her life when she felt this helpless even back in Atlas when she still pretended to be human. Ilia looked at the floor as she felt something that made her cry. Perceval had scared her to the point of wetting herself. Which prompted the terrorized chameleon to return to her safe room, and if anyone asked, she tried to pretend that this never happened. Lest that killer Blade decides to make good on his threat.


AN: There we go, Sun met the one antlered Faunus named Haze. To those of you guessing: Yes, Haze is the same Faunus who Perceval allowed to escape from White Fang in Blake's prologue. But some of you might wonder, why was the girl still with him? You can try guessing, or I can explain it later on.

And Ruby's little talk... I tried to make it different considering how many things had changed. And yes, Roze did get through to the worst of her survivor's guilt. But we shall see if she ever completely gets over it.

Finally, our mystery man in rags had found his way to our heroes' current residence. And he doesn't like Ozpin.