The Way of the Maiden

by The Court of Talons

The world of Remnant is notable for warriors such as Huntsmen and Huntresses. It is also notable for the Mandalorians, groups of mysterious and nomadic warriors just as ruthless as the Grimm. This is the story of one particular Mandalorian, and how a chance encounter with a child leads to the adventure of a lifetime.

62. Chapter 62

Quick note: hey everyone, hope you're doing good. Before I start this chapter, I'd like to give a special shoutout to deathwing17 for giving me the idea to use Durge. I didn't think I could do it at first, but I proved myself wrong. So thank you, deathwing17.

Without further ado, here's the next chapter.

Chapter 62: The Weapon

"This has gone too far. I should have never let it happen."

"James, we should at least hear them out. They said that they-"

"You saw what Robyn's been doing with the supplies we desperately need! And don't even get me started on the crime lord she brought here!"

"..."

While he was more than used to the General's stubborn mind, Ozpin had to admit defeat when he couldn't disagree with what Ironwood had said.

About ten minutes ago, Djarin and Cinder returned with SCAR Squadron from a successful mission in Mantle. Just as she promised, Cinder was able to fix Mantle's broken wall with her powers and the very tundra that the Kingdom resided in. However, they had returned with five very unique passengers.

Boba Fett and the Happy Huntresses had found themselves to be under Atlas' supervision because of what transpired in Mantle. Robyn's appearance at the wall was expected, but Boba made a rather impromptu appearance with alarming news. He claimed that he knew who was truly responsible for the attack on election night, someone who was most likely also responsible for the recent string of murders in Mantle.

Robyn and her friends had accompanied Boba, to see if his theory was correct. Boba claimed to have a sample of blood from the attacker, and now he needed it to be analyzed for confirmation. And though he was accompanied by the Huntresses, none of them were under arrest just yet.

The only thing protecting Boba was his theory. And Robyn avoided arrest by reluctantly telling the authorities where she and her friends were keeping the supplies they had stolen.

Boba and his friends were taken to a lab where they could study the blood sample, while the clan of two reported back to Ironwood. They thought he would be happy with the results of the mission, but Ironwood now had something else to worry about.

Unlike the other times he was worried and paranoid, however, Ironwood had a valid reason for not trusting someone like Boba right away.

"General, with all due respect," Djarin began calmly. "You don't know Fett like I do." Djarin gestured towards Cinder. "He and Robyn helped me save Cinder from Gideon. He knows how to keep his word, and so do the Happy Huntresses."

Ironwood knew that the supplies had been returned, but his mind wasn't swayed just yet. "And with all due respect to you, Djarin, you don't know Fett like I do," the General countered. "I know about his ties to organized crime, how powerful he is in the black market. We tried multiple times to arrest him, and they all ended with my soldiers in body-bags! You can't ask me to trust a known crime lord!"

Djarin was also aware of Boba's ties to the criminal underworld, but he wasn't willing to give up just yet. "Nobody's asking you to trust him. But if he's right about Durge, then we have a big problem. Bigger than Merri and Fauna combined."

For the first time since her arrival, Cinder found an opportunity to speak. She remembered how scared Boba Fett was about the name "Durge," and now her father's warning was even more troubling. "Why's that?" she asked. "Who's Durge?"

Djarin looked at his daughter once more and decided to explain himself. "He's a bounty hunter, like me. Well, according to some, he was a bounty hunter."

"..."

Djarin could tell that he had everyone's attention, so he explained himself further. "Most bounty hunters are just in it for the money. It's a profession, like being a Huntsman. But Durge... he was always out for blood."

"..."

"Nobody knew who he was or where he came from, but Durge was known for being the most violent and ruthless bounty hunter known to Remnant. He was more of a mercenary than a bounty hunter. He fought in small wars, blew up entire buildings to kill one person, and rarely took a bounty alive. As long as he got to kill, he was happy."

"..."

"And Boba was right about one other thing. Durge hated Mandalorians. Every chance he got, he would hunt a Mandalorian and kill them where they stood. He didn't even do it for money, some of his hunts were illegal. And the Mandalorians were hardly known to have attacked or hurt anyone. Teams, entire tribes fell to Durge. He was unstoppable. An oncoming storm. He was so feared that we Mandalorians called him something else."

"..."

"The Gen'Dai."

"..."

The story was upsetting for both Ozpin and Ironwood, but it greatly disturbed Cinder. She was well aware that the world was scared of Mandalorians, but people never tried to hunt down Mandalorians. What Durge did was cold-blooded murder, without honor and mercy.

And based on what her father said... Durge sounded like he did it all for sport.

"Then he would be a grave threat indeed," said Ozpin. "But I thought I heard reports of his demise."

"That's true, Oz," said Ironwood, who began to type on his computer. When he was finished, a report appeared on a screen with an image of a unique helmet. "It's true that Durge's actions were highly illegal. Years ago, a joint team of Huntsmen and Huntresses from Vacuo and Vale tried to recapture Durge after he escaped an Atlesian compound. They hunted him down north of Vacuo, where he stole an airship and flew northwest. It took the team time, but they eventually found the wreckage of the airship in the ocean. Apparently, he flew too close to avian Grimm."

"So he's dead," Cinder assumed. "The Grimm killed him."

"Except for one problem," said Djarin. "They never found a body."

Instead of questioning Djarin on how he knew such information, Ozpin asked Ironwood a rather important question. "James, you said that Durge's airship was found in the ocean of Vacuo?" he asked.

"That's right," Ironwood confirmed.

"Could you show me?"

Ironwood typed on his computer once more to show a map of Vacuo. When he and Ozpin could see it, Ironwood looked at the report to find the coordinates of the destroyed airship.

"It was found... there," Ironwood said as he pointed at the screen.

Ozpin could see for himself, but his mind wasn't at ease. "Oh, dear," he said as he looked at the screen. "Salem."

Djarin and Cinder were surprised to hear Ozpin say Salem's name. The surprise led them to looking at Ironwood's computer as well, where they saw Ozpin pointing to a landmass close to the northwest part of Vacuo.

"Durge's airship was found not far from this landmass," said Ozpin. "That's where Salem's lair is."

"Wait, what?" Ironwood asked. "Right there?"

"Yes. I've only been there once. It's a place home to thousands of Grimm. Nobody could survive going there... unless Salem wishes it."

"You think Durge might be involved with Salem?" Cinder asked.

"It would explain the string of murders Mantle has seen. We already know Atlas is Salem's next target, Durge may be working with her for a monetary reward."

Ironwood shut down his computer. "Assuming that Durge is alive," he said. "Which is news we can't trust from the likes of Fett."

Everyone looked back at Ironwood and tried to reason with him. "Fett wouldn't lie about something like this," Djarin repeated.

"And he seems to have little to gain lying to us," Ozpin pointed out. "When he could have just as easily stayed away from the wall."

"And we'll find out if he's telling the truth," said Cinder. "Isn't Doctor Polendina looking at the sample Boba brought?"

"Yes, along with SCAR Squadron," said Ironwood. He had sent SCAR Squadron to keep an eye on Fett and the Happy Huntresses, in case they tried anything that went against Ironwood. "We have Durge's medical file from his time in our compound, so Pietro can cross-analyze it. But that evidence could have been tampered with. And it may not even be evidence. It could be a red herring Fett gave us. He could be the one working with Salem."

"..."

Djarin and Cinder couldn't help but glance at each other when they heard this theory. They understood that Ironwood didn't have much reason to trust Boba, but everything he was saying now was sounding more and more delusional.

And paranoid.

"Maybe so," said Ozpin, who cautiously played along with Ironwood's thinking. "But that doesn't explain how he would have Durge's DNA. If it's in the sample he found."

"And when he knew what he was looking for, Qrow found it in the warehouse too," Djarin pointed out. After he listened to Boba's story, Djarin asked Qrow to confirm that the sample actually existed.

Ironwood sighed as he stood up. "We can rationalize it all we like, but this is not proof," he said. "Until we have proof, Fett and the Huntresses are not leaving the academy grounds."

"..."

It was hard to say that Ironwood's decision was unreasonable, given that Robyn's vigilantism had hampered the progress on the Amity project. But everyone hoped that the General would keep his word about offering Robyn a deal since she gave the supplies back. And they also hoped that he would see the possibility of Boba's claim.

But for now, all they could do was wait.

*BEEP*

*BEEP*

Ironwood reached for his ear when he heard a familiar noise from his earpiece. When he pressed a finger on it, the General walked towards the window of his office and stared at the night sky.

"Report," he ordered calmly.

"..."

"You're sure?"

"..."

Ironwood let out a sigh as he listened to the voice in his ear. "Understood. I'm on my way."

"..."

When he lowered his hand, Ironwood turned towards his present allies and delivered news.

"That was Pietro," he said. "The sample Boba gave us... was a match for Durge."

Cinder gasped when she heard this. "He's here," she said.

"...Gods help us all," said Djarin.

---

"It's what?"

"It's a match. It was Durge at the warehouse."

Boba was still with the Happy Huntresses when he heard the news. Thanks to Pietro's efforts, with help from R2 and Penny, they were able to prove that the DNA sample Boba brought back was indeed from the thought-to-be-deceased bounty hunter Durge.

Not only was he still alive, but he was also in Mantle.

"Oh, Gods," said May Marigold. "I can't believe it."

"I know," said Joanna Greenleaf. "This... This is hard to swallow."

"What about those other murders across Mantle?" Fiona Thyme asked. "Was Durge responsible for those too?"

"You said they were found with their heads smashed in," Boba reminded his friends. "Durge could do that easily."

"..."

One by one, the Happy Huntresses began to realize that they had made a terrible mistake. Everyone had blamed Atlas for the murders in Mantle, specifically Penny, but now they had proof that an armed and extremely dangerous mercenary was responsible.

And even more proof, Pietro had shown everyone that Penny's footage from the warehouse was indeed doctored while he was waiting for the results of the analysis. The real footage was from Penny's work killing Grimm and protecting the city.

Everyone could see that the two pieces of footage were an exact match, that someone had cropped out Durge and replaced him with Penny.

The only thing that didn't make sense to Boba was how this could happen. Durge wasn't dumb muscle, but he wasn't smart enough to create fake footage and make it appear so real. Clover knew about Merri and Fauna, but he explained that Durge's accomplices were still at large.

He and SCAR Squadron were still watching Boba and the Huntresses, but they had a chance to talk amongst themselves while Boba talked to the Huntresses.

"Well, I'll be damned," said Cav. "First we have to deal with Grimm, and now we have to deal with ghosts?"

"What's the matter, Cav?" Zuke asked jokingly. "Scared?"

"Don't go all superstitious on us," Mic warned. "He's alive, that's all we can say."

"And he's here," Misty pointed out. "He's been framing Ironwood since day one."

"Can't believe we gotta thank him of all people for it," Shrap said as he gestured towards Boba. "Isn't he still a wanted man?"

"Hard to say," Aero replied. "But are we not gonna talk about how the kid fixed the wall in ten seconds flat? That was a solid two week job, at best."

Everyone had seen how Cinder had managed to fix the wall of Mantle, albeit temporarily. The people had been demanding for it to be fixed as soon as possible, and now they got their wish. Now, the soldiers wished that it would be enough for things to get back on track for Amity.

They managed to secure the supplies after Robyn told them where it was, and now they were on their way to Amity. Whether or not it would be enough to finish the tower soon was unknown. But Clover Ebi knew one thing was certain.

"Well, what Cinder did fixed one of our biggest problems," the leader of SCAR Squadron said. "Now it looks like we're on to the next."

"Fine by me," said Zuke, who cracked his knuckles. "This 'Durge' guy, whoever he is, got by me once. I'm not gonna let it happen again."

"We gonna do it with him, by the way?" Cav asked after he made a quick gesture towards Boba. He made sure to speak quietly enough for only his allies to hear. "He's still on our radar, isn't he?"

SCAR Squadron, like General Ironwood, was aware of Boba Fett's ties with organized crime. Whereas Ironwood was more paranoid of letting people know about the larger truth, Clover and his squad didn't feel right about working with a criminal.

And even though Clover respected Robyn, he hadn't forgiven her for her acts of vigilantism just yet.

Speaking of Robyn, she became the center of attention when she excused herself from the room. Clover remembered his orders not to let Boba or the Huntresses out of his sight, so he immediately followed her. Boba followed as well, since he was confused as to why Robyn would suddenly want to leave.

Robyn didn't go very far when she left the room. When she found herself in a hallway, Robyn looked at a garbage can with a piercing glare and a low growl.

*BAM*

"Dammit!" Robyn yelled as she kicked the waste disposal. "Dammit, dammit!"

"Hey!" Clover yelled. Boba remained silent, but he immediately rushed over to Robyn with Clover to make her stop kicking the can. "Robyn, calm down!"

"What are you doing?" Boba asked after he watched Robyn hit the wall. "Robyn, we found out what happened! I thought you'd be happy!"

"I am happy!" Robyn yelled to Boba.

"Are you sure?! You're not acting like it!"

"..."

Robyn leaned against the wall in defeat and ran a hand through her hair. "Clover... on a scale of one to ten, how much trouble are we in?" she asked.

Clover was surprised to hear a question like this come from Robyn of all people. Between stopping his truck in the tundra and robbing the military, Robyn always came off as a "consequences be damned" kind of person.

Seeing her concerned about the law was so unlike her.

"Well..." Clover began unsurely. "General Ironwood hasn't placed you under arrest yet."

"But what if he does?" Robyn asked. "How much trouble are we in?"

"Robyn, you know that's not part of my job. I-"

"Just tell her," Boba ordered. "Just answer the question."

What Clover was trying to say that he wasn't in charge of carrying out sentences of imprisonment. That was the job of the courts and legal system of Atlas. Nevertheless, Clover decided to do what Boba said.

"Breaking the curfew wouldn't get you in too much trouble," he began. "But stealing military property... that could be a long time in prison."

"How long?" Robyn asked.

"..."

"How long, Clover?"

"Ten to... twenty years."

Robyn grabbed her head as she slid down to the floor. Words couldn't express her anger and contempt, but for the first time in a long time, the anger wasn't towards Ironwood or the military.

Robyn was angry at herself.

"I was sure," she said as she grabbed her head. "I was sure they had it out for us. I was so sure they left us without a choice." Robyn hit her head against the wall. "This was my fault. I told them to go through with it. Every time we ambushed one of those trucks."

This kind of conversation wasn't the kind Clover or Boba were used to. "Look, Robyn," Clover said. "Let's just-"

Robyn curled her fists and slowly raised them towards Clover. "If you're gonna take anyone in, take me." She moved her hands closer to Clover. "Not Boba. Not my friends. Just me."

Clover was once again surprised to hear Robyn give up so easily, but he didn't accept the offer. "It's not that simple, Robyn."

"Yes, it is. The Happy Huntresses were just following orders. Boba was never involved, it was all my decision. So go ahead. Just get it over with."

"Robyn-"

Suddenly, Boba stepped in between Robyn and Clover to say his piece. "Nobody's arresting anyone," he declared. "We'll help you with Durge instead. Both of us."

"..."

Once again, this was something Clover didn't expect to hear. Boba wasn't known for being the most charitable person on Remnant. He was, however, someone very close to Robyn. So it would make sense that Boba would be willing to help Robyn. And Clover remembered how he helped Robyn avoid a fight in the tundra.

But on one hand, accepting a deal like this wasn't Clover's call to make. On the other hand, however, Clover didn't have much information on Durge.

"How could you help us?" Clover asked. "How did you even know he was here?"

Boba had the perfect answer for both questions. "Because I know him," he said. "I've met him before."

---

Years ago

It was a dark and stormy night.

That was almost always the condition of nights in the southwestern district of Mantle. The snow always had a habit of striking that part of the Kingdom first, and the heating grid would always turn the snow into rain.

Boba Fett had spent ten years, his whole life, in the district of Mantle. He was always warm and safe in the apartment complex he shared with his father, so he didn't mind the rain. His best friend, on the other hand, hated it greatly.

"You know, Boba," said a young Robyn Hill. "If I had a Lien for every time it rained when I come over, I'd probably have enough to buy a new house in Atlas."

"Well, the joke's on you, Robyn," Boba said as he walked away from the window. "I already have that kind of money."

"What? Nuh-uh!"

"Uh-huh! Dad lets me see every Lien he's earned when he comes home. We could have moved there yesterday if we wanted to."

"Why doesn't he want to? You'd be really happy up there."

"I know. But he said he learned how to live without needing to have too much. He wants me to do that too."

"My dad says that to me sometimes. That it builds character."

"Does it?"

"Nah. He just says that when he wants me to do chores I hate."

Boba laughed at the joke before he sat on the couch with his friend. "So, what do you want to do tonight?" he asked.

"That's actually why I'm here," Robyn replied. "My mom heard your dad wasn't home, so she wanted me to invite you over for dinner."

"Thanks, but he said he'd be home tonight." Boba suddenly reconsidered his answer. "Wait, what are you having?"

"I don't know. I asked my mom, she said it didn't matter."

"Why not?"

"Because I'd still be eating it." Robyn giggled before she spoke again. "I mean, that's fine. As long as it's not stew. Ew!"

Boba shrugged at the idea. "I think it might be stew. I heard that's the easiest thing to make around here."

"Yeah, I guess so." Robyn looked out the window and up towards Atlas. "What do you think everyone up there is eating tonight?"

"I don't know. Something different, I guess? What, are you going to go up there to eat?"

Robyn shook her head. "I just don't get it. Sometimes, I don't see why it's such a bad idea for everything in Atlas to stay up there." Robyn leaned against her hand as she began to daydream. "Sometimes, I think there's gonna be a day when some of that stuff comes down here."

Boba listened to Robyn's story, but he didn't think too much of it. "Atlas has been up there for years. If somebody actually wanted to bring stuff down to Mantle, they would have done it by now."

Robyn shrugged again. "Maybe someone from Mantle could do it then. Someone like you or me."

"..."

*CLICK*

*WHOOSH*

Boba and Robyn turned to see that the apartment's front door had been opened. On the other side was the hallway, and one person who had just opened the door. Most citizens of Mantle would be wearing heavy coats that were usually dirty, but the man entering the complex was wearing something else.

He was also dirty, but he was wearing silver armor instead of winter clothes. Dirt on his boots and scorch marks on his chest were indicators that the man had seen combat rather than the slums of Mantle. The only thing that wasn't damaged or dirty was a silver helmet with blue accents near a visor that looked like a "T."

The man underneath the Mandalorian armor was used to seeing people looking upon him in fear or envy, given the rarity of the Beskar armor. But for the young boy in front of him, and sometimes his friend, seeing the armor was a joy.

He immediately recognized the sight of Jango Fett, one of the best bounty hunters on Remnant.

And his own father.

"Dad!" Boba said as he ran over to his father. "You made it!"

"I told you I would," Jango said as he rubbed the head of his son. He then noticed that Boba had company. "How are you, Robyn?"

"Fine, sir," Robyn replied. "And you?"

"Not bad. Just tired."

Robyn took this as her cue to leave the father and son to their business. "Well, I'd better get home." She then moved to the door while waving goodbye. "See you later, Boba!"

Boba waved back to Robyn, but only for a moment. His friend didn't notice it, but Jango was putting on an act in front of the children. It wasn't uncommon to see Jango with his armor dirty from work, but his slow movements and hugging the wall were indicators that the bounty hunter wasn't feeling his best.

"Are you okay, Dad?" Boba asked after he closed the door.

"Been better, but I'll live," Jango replied as he staggered towards a seat. Once he sat down, Jango began to remove the armor and scatter it around, not caring where it went. He then revealed bloodied hands and a bloodied face, which were also indicators of Jango's poor condition. "Just one of those days."

"What happened? Did they put up a fight?"

"My bounty? No. But my competition? Yes." Jango moved his arms until a loud cracking sound could be heard. "Everyone can be after the same prize, Boba. You'll have to watch out for yourself when you're in that spot."

Boba looked on his father with pity, but also resolve. "I'll go get the kit," he offered. Jango had taught his son how to tend his own wounds without an Aura, so Boba was equally prepared to treat the wounds of his father as well.

But after Jango let out a groan when he cracked his neck, the bounty hunter had another idea. "I think I'll need the bath tonight, Boba," he said as he extended his hand. "Help your old man up?"

Boba helped his father off the chair and led him towards a special room of the apartment. Rather than going to the bathroom, the father and son moved to a room where a large cylinder was waiting.

This was a rather expensive medical tool, which utilized an even more expensive kind of medicine. The machine would take the rare substance known as Cobalt Dust and liquidize it completely. Then, after a person laid down in the machine and connected themselves to an air supply, the liquid would fill the cylinder and cover the person inside it.

Jango reserved using the tool for when his injuries would usually take weeks to heal. The bath would help make this recovery less than a couple of days, depending on how long he planned to stay inside. Boba never really liked the machine, however. Seeing his father, the strongest and bravest man he ever knew, require something like this to help his wounds, always made a shiver grow up the boy's spine.

Jango was aware of this, but he told his son the same thing every time he needed to use the equipment.

"Nobody's invincible, Boba. And there are some things that help us better than Aura and Beskar."

Boba always understood what his father meant. Whenever he came home from a hunt, Jango's Aura would always be recharging after healing and using his Semblance. The process was rather long, and Jango had been taught to fight without relying on an Aura. Healing, on the other hand, would occasionally require something extra.

And so, Jango found himself resting in the medical cylinder in a pool of liquidized Dust.

Whenever Jango needed to use the tool, Boba would leave his father alone and see him in the morning. They would then spend the day together talking about their days apart, train, or go out into the city. But tonight, Boba had a different idea. He didn't know why, but his instincts were telling him to stay in the same room as Jango. That he would have to be there for his father tonight, more than any other night.

Boba didn't think too much about why he felt this way, but he eventually pulled up a chair and sat by the large cylinder. He wasn't used to sleeping in a chair, but Boba eventually fell asleep. He awoke, however, when he heard an unexpected sound.

*SPLASH*

Boba awoke with a jerk when he heard the sound of water flowing around him. The water touched his feet, which served as an indicator that the water was definitely inside the room.

As for the cause of it, the sounds of a growl and a struggle answered that question.

Boba almost didn't believe his eyes, but he could see that a large figure was hovering over the medical bed and strangling his father. Jango was taken by surprise by the sudden attack, and was powerless against the strong grip around his throat.

This grip didn't last long, however, since the figure threw Jango out of the tank and against the wall.

*BAM*

"Dad!" Boba yelled as he rushed over to his father. He began to help his father stand, but he couldn't help but freeze up when he saw Jango's attacker.

When Jango hit the wall, he inadvertently turned on the lights in the room. Now that the room was well-lit, Jango and Boba could see that the assailant was a large man covered in steel armor. It wasn't Mandalorian armor, but rather a custom design that struck fear into the boy's heart.

The man had large arms with red painting on the shoulder pads, a foreign blue symbol on the chest plate, and a helmet with multiple slits that served for both eyesight and breathing. He almost looked like a large knight, but he appeared to be carrying two pistols at his side rather than a sword. He didn't take these guns out, however.

Durge relied only on his fists for fighting.

"Boba, get out of here!" Jango yelled as he pushed his son out of the room.

*BAM*

The father and son barely missed a fist meant for the boy when the man's fist hit the wall. Jango moved forward and grabbed Durge's waist in an effort to pin him to the ground, but the assailant wouldn't budge. So Jango resorted to hitting his opponent's sides where his armor wasn't covering him.

*BAM*

*CRACK*

Jango fell to the ground again when a large fist hit his back. He then slid across the ground when an even larger boot kicked him.

Jango felt himself hit something metal when he slid, but the metal didn't hurt him. Instead, it served Jango a reminder that he had littered pieces of his armor across the apartment when he arrived. He was going to pick them up when he was done in the bath, but now he had the chance to use his weapons to defend himself.

*BANG*

*BANG*

*BANG*

*BANG*

The red blasts that escaped Jango's weapons all met their target, but Durge was completely unfazed. His armor wasn't Beskar, but it was enough to protect him from each blast that Jango fired.

The assassin was not only protected, but he was able to hit Jango again.

*BAM*

Jango was thrown across the room when the giant's fist hit his face, and he crashed into a few pieces of furniture before he hit the wall. His eyes needed to readjust to see that Durge was still on his murderous path, which told Jango that he wasn't getting out of this easily.

Nothing short of a miracle was going to stop Durge now.

"Leave him alone!"

Durge was forced to stop moving when he felt something tapping against his leg. When he looked down, he saw a young boy throwing harmless punches against his leg. He didn't care if he caught the man's attention, the boy just wanted Durge to stop.

But Jango didn't like that.

"Boba, no!" Jango said after he coughed out some blood. "Get... out of here!"

The boy was throwing these punches to make Durge stop attacking his father without cause. And while he momentarily succeeded, Boba had unfortunately drawn Durge's attention.

As well as his fury.

*BAM*

*CRACK*

The punch Durge threw was enough to make the boy stop punching and starting bleeding from his head as he fell to the floor. The strike was one without honor or mercy, which Durge possessed neither.

He had spent a long time tracking Jango Fett. He almost had him when they were after the same prey, but Jango was able to elude the man. Unfortunately, the escape was only temporary.

Durge was not only an excellent mercenary, but he was also known for his tracking abilities. It was easy for him to track Jango to Mantle, and it was just as easy to break into the Mandalorian's home and finish him off.

Whether it was his hatred of Mandalorians or his hatred of Jango in particular, Durge wasn't going to let anyone stand in his way. That was why he sent a head-crushing punch to the boy.

"Boba!" Jango screamed as he saw his only son fall. His inability to protect Boba and the sight of the boy's apparent death filled Jango with rage and purpose to finish the fight, so he grabbed Durge's blasters and shot at point-blank range.

*BANG*

*BANG*

Jango's shots were at parts of Durge's body where his armor wasn't protecting him, so Durge threw Jango aside with a roar.

*BAM*

Durge wasted no time in striking again after Jango hit the ground. He reached to his side to pull a chain with metal spikes at the end, and he swung it as hard as he could.

*CRASH*

The chain didn't make contact with Jango, who was continuing to shoot at Durge. But the assassin simply swung his chain again and again.

*CRASH*

*CRASH*

*CRASH*

The flail was destroying the room, but not Jango. And so, Durge was ready to swing his weapon as many times as it took to kill the Mandalorian, but he was unable to swing it a fifth time.

Someone had caught the end.

"I said leave him alone!"

Jango and Durge both looked to see that a young boy had caught the end of the flail. They both shared a feeling of confusion as they looked at the boy, since they believed that he was dead.

Clearly, they were wrong.

"Boba?" Jango asked. "But you were-"

Jango stopped talking when he saw a limp body continuing to bleed on the ground. He couldn't deny that the boy on the ground was his son, but Boba was standing right behind Durge holding the weapon back.

This was impossible.

*BAM*

Once again, Durge struck Boba hard enough to make the boy fly across the room. He was uncertain if the strike was fatal, but Durge was only concerned with Jango. So he turned back to the Mandalorian and prepared to swing his weapon once more.

But just like last time, Durge failed to do so.

"Get him!"

Suddenly, the room was flooded with multiple versions of Boba Fett. Roughly a dozen of the same boys all grabbed and jumped on to Durge, preventing him from attacking Jango once more.

Durge was moving and swinging his arms to shake the boys off of him, even though he was confused as to where they came from. But for every child he knocked off his body, two more took his place.

One version of Boba had even picked up a knife, which he stabbed into the man's neck after two other copies gave him a boost.

*SHICK*

Durge howled in pain as he grabbed the child and his neck. Blood poured off his neck as well as out of his mouth, which he spit out to create a unique pattern on the ground.

Given that some of the blood had hit some of his mouthpiece, Durge unintentionally created a special symbol on the ground.

Jango didn't look at the symbol, however. He looked to see multiple versions of his son attack Durge without mercy.

It was hard to comprehend, at first. Jango knew he only had one son, but now there were multiple versions of that son attacking Durge simultaneously. He was grateful for the salvation, but dumbfounded as to how it was possible.

After a few moments of thinking, Jango remembered that he had helped Boba unlock his Aura. He helped the boy train with it, as well as train how to fight, but Boba hadn't unlocked his Semblance. No training could help with that, given that Boba had to discover what it was on his own. So ever since he had an Aura, Boba worked hard to unlock his Semblance.

And now, all that time and patience had paid off. Boba Fett was using his Semblance to make copies of himself; copies that were all fighting for Jango.

"Well, how about that?" Jango said as he watched the multiple versions of his son take on his enemy. Words couldn't express the pride he had for Boba, nor the joy he had knowing that his son was alive.

"Psst, Dad!" a young boy's whisper said.

The whisper was too quiet for the struggling Durge to hear, but Jango heard it as clear as day. He turned towards the door of his apartment, where another version of Boba was sitting. Unlike the copies, the color of Boba's Aura was enveloping him all over. Jango had no doubt in his mind that the glowing Boba was his real son, and he had used his Semblance to save his father.

"Hurry!" Boba whispered. "I can't... do this forever!"

It was clear that Boba was struggling with using his Semblance for the first time, so Jango wasted no time in collecting his armor and running out of the room. He had placed the chest plate and helmet on his body, but Jango was forced to leave his jetpack behind when he saw his son faint.

"I got you, Boba," Jango promised as he lifted his son off the ground and ran. "I got you."

---

Present day

After Boba explained his story, after he emphasized the part about Durge spitting blood to make a similar shape in the warehouse, Clover didn't know what to say. If it was true, then Boba's Semblance had helped handle Durge before.

It could be helpful again, along with the experience.

"I remember that," said Robyn. When Boba looked to her, Robyn continued to speak. "You left Mantle for a while. I didn't know where you went, but I saw your apartment. You never told me it was Durge who did that."

"We didn't want Durge to know we had friends in Mantle," Boba explained. "My father and I."

"...So, what happened?" Clover eventually asked.

Boba looked back to the soldier and answered the question. "We had a safe-house outside the Kingdom, where we planned to stay in case Durge followed us," he replied. "But not long after that, he was captured and taken beyond Solitas. I guess you know the rest after that."

Clover had read the report on Durge while Dr. Polendina was analyzing the sample Boba found, so he indeed knew the rest of the story. And while Boba and Jango seemed to set off a chain of events involving the mercenary's capture, Clover had to admit something else.

"You did a number on him, from the sound of it," the soldier admitted. "But that doesn't mean you know how to find him."

"That doesn't mean I can't help," said Boba. "That we can't help." The crime lord turned to Robyn as he made his point. "Robyn knows every inch of Mantle. She'll know where to look in order to find him."

Robyn had gotten off the ground, but her confidence hadn't exactly risen as well. "Boba, I-"

"And I know what kinds of questions you need to be asking," Boba continued. "About how he pulled off a job like the warehouse."

"We saw the other evidence you brought us," Clover admitted. "He got in through that door to the alleyway and took his chance when the lights went out."

"It doesn't matter how he got in. You should be concerned with-"

"How did he get out?"

Boba, Robyn, and Clover turned to see that they were joined by Djarin and everyone else who was in Ironwood's office. Clover stood at attention and saluted Ironwood, and the General saluted back so Clover could stand at ease. Djarin was the one who asked the question, and Boba had the same thing on his mind.

"Exactly," said Boba. "Durge was always one to stand out in a crowd. He's big, tall, and covered in armor from head to toe."

"Which begs the question," Djarin continued. "How did he get out of the warehouse without anyone seeing someone his size walking about?"

"..."

Clover had to admit two things. The first was that the question was a rather good one, that nobody on the streets would see someone as big as Durge walking about. And the second was that Clover had absolutely no idea.

And from the looks of it, neither did Ironwood.

"We need to find out exactly what happened," said the General. "How Durge has been going about Mantle and killing dozens without being noticed." Ironwood looked towards the door to the lab, where Dr. Polendina was waiting outside with his two droids. "And framing someone else for the job."

"..."

Penny looked down to the floor in silence, still feeling ashamed and sad about the night in the warehouse. R2 looked to her and extended a mechanical arm to pat her side.

"I was able to prove that the footage in the warehouse was doctored," said Pietro. "That someone edited out Durge and put Penny's work across Mantle in its place."

"Durge isn't smart enough to do something like that," said Boba. "That's way beyond any bounty hunter or mercenary."

"I'm afraid it's beyond anybody's work," Pietro continued. "Anyone not from Atlas, at least."

"Meaning?" Ozpin asked calmly.

"Someone is using our own technology against us. The doctored footage of Penny came from her work all around Mantle, stolen straight from our surveillance network."

"So Durge isn't working alone," said Boba. "Who would have access to that network?"

Before Pietro could reply, Ironwood stuck out his hand to make the scientist pause. "We should debrief together," he decided. "With everyone here." Ironwood put a hand to his radio. "Schnee, I'd like to see you in Dr. Polendina's lab."

"I'll call Revan and Obi-Wan," Ozpin decided as he moved to the side.

"I'll reach out to Qrow," Djarin decided as he walked towards the lab with Cinder. One by one, everyone moved into the lab, with Boba and Robyn being the last.

Clover would have joined them as well, but he had to speak with Ironwood first.

"Are we working with them, sir?" he asked his superior.

"Not quite," said Ironwood. "Fett has some knowledge regarding Durge that we can use. We'll only be using his advice, and nothing more."

"So he knows..."

"Absolutely nothing. And we're going to keep it that way. Just like we're going to make sure he and his friends do not leave this academy. They've caused us enough trouble for one lifetime."

Clover nodded and promised to relay this decision to the rest of his squad before he and Ironwood stepped inside the lab.

---

When Winter, Qrow, Revan, and Obi-Wan found themselves in Pietro's lab to see both new and old faces, everyone summarized what they had learned. Boba once again shared the fact that a mercenary named Durge was responsible for the murders in the warehouse, while Pietro pointed out that someone was using Atlas' own technology to further their agenda. Given that such access would be granted to Ironwood, the Council, and members of the cybersecurity and surveillance teams, Pietro believed that the hacker was either a genius or one of Atlas' people.

And now Pietro was afraid the answer was both.

Obi-Wan immediately stepped forward and shared what he had learned from Bo-Katan. He revealed that Merri was responsible for the creation of the Basilisk war droid, that she was quite adept in engineering. And if that were the case, perhaps she was responsible for hacking into the surveillance system.

"Wait, what?" asked May Marigold. "Merriweather? Who's that?"

"..."

Everyone had forgotten that Robyn and the Happy Huntresses were still in the room with them. Robyn was mostly keeping to herself, but she still listened to the conversation. And she too was curious about the possible suspect Obi-Wan had identified as "Merriweather."

Ironwood was prepared to explain that Merriweather was part of an ongoing investigation, but Cinder replied faster with the truth.

"She was my teammate from Beacon," she said. "At least, that's what I thought she was." Cinder still felt like a fool for believing everything the Blairs had said to her, and she still hated them for what they did.

"Your teammate?" Fiona asked. "Wait a minute... are you talking about Merriweather Blair? The triplet?"

"..."

All of Ironwood's allies were surprised to hear this fact come from someone outside of their circle. Ironwood didn't know what to think, but he had to press on for more information.

"You know her?" he asked in disbelief.

"Well, yeah," Fiona replied. "Not personally, but we all saw her."

"Yeah, you're talking about the girl from the Vytal Festival, right?" Joanna asked with confidence. "Her and her sisters?"

May pointed to Winter before she asked a question. "Weren't you involved with them?" she asked. "We all saw you attack one of those girls and Cinder."

Winter recalled how she had been possessed by a Chill to do what May had said. The white mark on her skin had disappeared, but the experience didn't leave Winter's mind.

"That's... a long story," she said. "But that wasn't me."

"No, it wasn't," Cinder said in her friend's defense. "Merri was responsible for what happened to Winter. And Beacon."

"Wait, what?" May asked. "You're saying she's-?"

"A terrorist. She and her sisters."

"..."

Everyone let this detail about the Blairs sit for a few seconds. Cinder and Djarin turned to Ironwood to see that he was remaining silent and rather calm; given that there was no mention of Salem or the Relics, and that this was still the truth, Ironwood accepted Cinder's actions.

And it was only better when the Happy Huntresses, and perhaps all of Mantle, knew who they were looking for.

"And they're here?" May asked. "In Mantle?"

"I saw Fauna at the warehouse right before the lights went out," Cinder confirmed. "I tried to act, but I was too late."

"We have reason to believe Merri is here too," said Djarin. "She must have turned off the lights in the warehouse. Obi-Wan was right about the Basilisk, I fought it in Mistral. If Merri built it, she might be smart enough to hack and alter surveillance footage."

"Do you remember seeing either of the sisters?" Clover asked the Huntresses. "At one of Robyn's rallies, maybe?"

All of the Happy Huntresses shook their heads, but Robyn was the only one to speak. "There... There were always so many people," she said. "So many faces. Nobody stood out." Robyn didn't look at anyone while she was talking, and she immediately fell into silence again.

This silence gave Ironwood the chance to talk again.

"But we know they're in Mantle," he said. "With Amity under control, we can turn our attention to finding them. We'll turn the city upside down if we have to, but we can't let them keep killing people."

As expected, Clover and SCAR Squadron were ready to carry out whatever plan Ironwood had to finding Durge and the Blairs. The Happy Huntresses, however, were reluctant.

"Whoa, wait a second," said Joanna. "What do you mean 'turn the city upside down?'"

"And what's with Amity being 'under control?'" May asked.

"We can't do anything without telling the people," said Fiona. "We have to tell them what they're really dealing with!"

Fiona was right, of course, but Ironwood was more focused on the first word she uttered.

"We?" he asked. "I'm afraid there's no 'we' in this situation, Thyme. The last time you and your friends got involved with military operations, you all played right into the Blairs' hands. Try to interfere again, and you won't be leaving this academy. And we haven't even begun to discuss your acts of vigilantism across the city."

"..."

Ozpin and his allies were very upset by Ironwood's unwavering stance on the Huntresses. Ozpin believed that they would be valuable assets in the search for the Blairs and Durge, and the feeling was mutual for his friends.

Boba and the Happy Huntresses were even more upset by the declaration, and their first instinct was to disagree on it.

"To Hell with that," said Boba. "I fought Durge before, I can do it again."

"And this is our home we're talking about," said Joanna. "We're defending it whether you like it or not."

"All of us," said Fiona before she turned towards her leader. "Right, Robyn?"

"..."

"Robyn?"

The leader of the Happy Huntresses looked away from the floor when she heard her name. "Huh?" she asked. "Oh, uh... do that. That's good."

"..."

While they all agreed that fighting for Mantle was good, nobody believed that Robyn ignoring them and giving them a half-hearted answer was very good. Boba and the Huntresses couldn't help but glance at each other as they worried about Robyn, but Clover saw an opportunity to follow Ironwood's lead.

"Sounds like this is a little too much to understand all at once," he said. "You can leave the rest to us."

The Huntresses looked back to Clover with skepticism. "To you?" May asked. "But you don't even know how to find them!"

"Neither do you," said Zuke, who was supported by the rest of his team.

"..."

Before anyone else could say anything, Pietro turned away from a computer he had been looking at and turned to Ironwood. "General, I'm getting a call from the brig," he said. "They're asking to speak with you."

Ironwood didn't know what someone from the brig would want with him, but he decided that he would take the call. "Put it through, Doctor," he said. "Clover, take the Happy Huntresses and give us the room."

"Yes, sir," Clover replied. "Let's move, team."

SCAR Squadron moved closely towards the Huntresses and escorted them out with Boba. May, Joanna, and Fiona were all protesting and wondering where they were going, but Boba decided to play things by ear. He still had his armor, so he could fight if he needed to.

And get his friends out as well.

Ozpin and his allies remained in the room with Ironwood. Since Djarin, Revan, and Obi-Wan had spent some time in the brig earlier, they wanted to see if one of the prisoners they talked to was causing trouble. Cinder stayed by her father's side, but not without taking a remorseful look at the Happy Huntresses as they left.

Ironwood nodded to Pietro so he could start the call. Once he did, the moving image of a soldier appeared and saluted the General.

"General Ironwood, sir," the soldier said as he saluted.

"At ease," the General ordered after he saluted the soldier back. "Is there a situation in the brig?"

"Negative, sir. But Inmate 4859 is requesting to speak with you. He says he has something you need."

Normally, Ironwood would need to check the prison roster to see the name behind the prisoner identification. But this was a special circumstance; Ironwood knew exactly who the soldier was talking about.

"Gideon?" he asked. "Standby." Ironwood left the view of the soldier and moved towards Djarin. "Didn't you say you tried to get information out of him today?"

"I did," Djarin replied. "I almost forgot about that."

"I thought you said he didn't have anything to say."

"He didn't. But after I talked to him, he said he would make his decision by tonight... whatever that means."

Ironwood knew better than to trust prisoners who would say anything to get themselves a lighter sentence or a favor. And he thought he knew Gideon, once upon a time. However, Ironwood was certain that Gideon wouldn't do anything that wouldn't benefit himself. And the idea of "helping" was strange to consider beneficial for Gideon.

Ironwood's curiosity eventually won over and gestured for everyone to join him by the screen. "Put him on," he ordered. "Let's hear it."

"Yes, sir," said the soldier, who turned away and moved his head towards the screen. Two more soldiers moved with a man in orange suit, who wore a familiar grin on his face.

"Hello again, James," Gideon said. "It's been a while."

"...Gideon," Ironwood addressed the man calmly, with a hint of malice in his voice.

Rather than saying what he wanted, Gideon took a chance to examine everyone who had joined Ironwood. He expected to see the Mandalorian, but the mixture of adults and children was rather unexpected.

Especially one particular child.

"I see you're still holding on to the orphan," he said as his eyes locked on to Cinder. "Her power was too tempting to let go of, I understand."

Cinder growled at Gideon in contempt. Even though she spent years trying, Cinder could never forget everything that Gideon had put her through. Every experiment and every needle sticking into her arm without consent resided in Cinder's mind, which brought her back to a time when she was thought of as less than human.

And for a while, Cinder believed, she was.

Djarin stepped in front of Cinder to shield his daughter from Gideon's view; he didn't want to listen to an enemy hurt Cinder again after so many years. "Gideon, what do you want?" he asked.

"Tell us now or this meeting is over," said Ironwood. He too shared Djarin's view of the man, and also wanted to make sure he couldn't do anything to Cinder.

"Very well," Gideon replied. "Our Mandalorian friend paid me a visit earlier today, saying that you're looking for terrorists in Mantle."

Ironwood didn't want to reveal too much to Gideon, especially anything about Amity. But Djarin had told him what he shared with Gideon, so Ironwood knew it was safe to talk about the Blairs with him. "That's correct," he said. "And while you denied it earlier, I'm sure there's something you know about them and their plan."

"I'm afraid I've been kept in the dark about their details. But one way or another, they'll make Mantle into another Beacon. Maybe even Atlas altogether."

"..."

When most people heard silence and saw a concentrated expression from Ironwood, they believed that he was able to brush off comments like the one Gideon made. However, Gideon knew that Ironwood was internalizing the problem; choosing to take it in while trying his best to avoid breaking down.

Gideon was pleased with this action from Ironwood, to see that there was a grave threat to Atlas and everything Ironwood had built. And based on this reaction, Gideon knew that Djarin was right.

Ironwood needed help to succeed.

"What if I said that you could defeat your enemy in one fell swoop?" Gideon asked. "That I had a weapon to erase the terrorists from the face of Remnant?"

"...I'd say that we already have weapons," Ironwood replied after a moment. "Dozens of them are above Atlas as we speak, ready to fire on command."

"Yes, I'm well aware of the mechanized war machine you've created. But look how that's been working for you." Gideon turned towards Penny this time. "A robot disguised as an innocent little girl, torn apart by Mandalorians and believed to have killed dozens in Mantle. Bravo, James. Bravo."

"..."

Penny looked down as she recalled everything that happened. She still felt saddened by the events in the warehouse, and the incident with the Mandalorians was still in her memory banks. Winter offered a hand to Penny's shoulder for comfort while she listened carefully to Gideon and Ironwood.

"No, this weapon isn't some machine or gun," Gideon continued. "I have something else, in a vault outside the main cities of Atlas and Mantle. Something that would be very useful to Professor Ozpin's... bigger picture."

"..."

Ironwood and Ozpin couldn't help but look at each other when they heard this. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the "bigger picture" Gideon was referring to was Ozpin's fight with Salem. However, it would take a genius to figure out what kind of weapon he was referring to.

And how it could help against someone like Salem.

"Not another word," Ironwood ordered. "I'm coming down there now. Soldier, return the prisoner to his cell."

"Yes, sir," said the soldier who was monitoring the call. He was slightly curious about the weapon and the "bigger picture" Gideon referred to, but the soldier didn't question an order from Ironwood. And so, he turned off the video and left everyone to talk about what just happened.

"Okay..." said Qrow, who broke the silence. "What the heck was that?"

"A weapon to use against Salem?" Ozpin asked. "But... that shouldn't be possible."

"Unless it's a Relic?" Djarin asked. "Could Gideon have one?"

"Absolutely not," said Ironwood. "With the Winter Maiden here, Gideon has no access to the staff." Ironwood then pointed to the Relic of Knowledge, which was on Obi-Wan's side. "And we still have the lamp. Gideon has nothing to help himself."

"What was that he said about it being outside Mantle and Atlas?" Cinder asked. "There's nothing there but the tundra."

"Not exactly," said Winter. "There are three small settlements beyond the two cities that are a part of Atlas; Essen, Crossed, and Dormir. They're not the safest or advanced settlements, but they're all Atlesian places beyond the cities."

"Could Gideon be hiding something out there?"

"Not likely."

"I'm afraid it is likely, Winter," said Ironwood. Everyone was surprised to hear Ironwood admit this, but he explained himself. "I remember reports of Gideon's insurrectionists being near Essen. More specifically, the tunnels around it."

"I thought those were all filled with Grimm," said Qrow.

"They are, but it wouldn't be difficult for Atlesian soldiers to clear out some of them." Ironwood looked towards the screen again, even though the call was over. "And given our recent discoveries, we have to consider the possibility that Gideon is hiding something out there. It could fall into enemy hands easily."

Given that there were three of Salem's agents roaming freely in Mantle, the idea of a weapon in their hands was daunting. However, Cinder couldn't shake the feeling that all of this was a trick.

"I don't like this," said Cinder. "Gideon will do anything to get his way." She then rubbed her arm as she relieved the experiments she lived through. "I know that better than anyone." Djarin put a hand on his daughter's shoulder, and began to agree with her.

"I have a bad feeling about this too," he said. "Gideon's always been one to have something up his sleeve. He could have been lying to divert us from Durge and the Blairs."

"It was hard to determine if he was lying or not," said Revan. "All I sensed from him was confidence."

"As did I," said Obi-Wan. "It was almost as if he had nothing to fear. He wasn't even afraid of the consequences of helping us instead of Salem."

"Unless this does help Salem," said Ozpin. "We need definitive proof of Gideon's word before we consider anything else he says."

"..."

Everyone wanted to believe Gideon when he said he had a weapon to use against Salem and her allies. They wanted to believe that they had found a way to truly turn the tide against her. But this was easier said than done. Obi-Wan and Revan couldn't determine his lies with ease, and nobody in the room had any reason to trust Gideon.

But they didn't need to trust him. They just needed proof that his proposal was nothing but the truth. And they needed a way to determine that for sure before going on a wild goose chase.

Fortunately, Djarin and Cinder had the perfect idea.

"Come to think of it..." the Mandalorian began. "I was just given a lie detector test not too long ago."

"Hey, yeah," said Cinder. "The Happy Huntresses had the best lie detector I ever saw. And we have her right here in the academy."

"..."

Nobody was aware of what Djarin and Cinder were talking about at first. But when Cinder said "her," Ironwood remembered that Robyn's Semblance allowed her to determine if someone was lying or telling the truth. Ironwood couldn't deny that Robyn was a great lie detector, but he also couldn't deny that she already caused him enough trouble.

The last thing he couldn't deny, however, was that they needed the truth more than ever.

"I... I don't know," the General said, completely unsure of himself. Normally, he would refuse an idea of working with Robyn, but tonight had shown that there were so many variables and uncertainties to consider. There were so many that it was hard for him to make a choice.

Fortunately, he had Ozpin's help.

"James," the old man began as he approached the General. "A while back, you reminded me that you wished to do things your way. That we would continue with your plan on your own terms."

Ironwood recalled the conversation with ease, and his declaration hadn't changed. "I still do," he said.

"I understand. But nobody is asking you to do it alone." Ozpin gestured towards the large group in the room. "We're all your allies, your partners. You've done more than anyone could have asked to recover what we needed for Amity. Let us make the next choices. Let us help you."

"..."

Ozpin didn't want to step over Ironwood's authority or take back control of the group, but he did wish to exercise some authority in the matter. Specifically, authority with the Happy Huntresses.

"I understand you see Robyn and her friends in a more negative light. I can't deny that they caused us enough trouble, but I also cannot deny that they had good intentions for Mantle."

"Their intentions nearly ruined everything."

"Indeed. Which proves that when I look amongst them, all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose. Direction."

"..."

One by one, everyone could see where Ozpin was going with this. Djarin, Cinder, and Qrow recalled Ozpin making a similar notion to new students at Beacon, while Obi-Wan and Revan recalled similarities Ozpin once spoke to Jedi younglings.

Winter, Penny, and Pietro also agreed with the sentiment, and decided to follow Ozpin's lead.

"If I may, sir," Winter spoke up. "You gave me the direction and purpose I needed when you allowed me to attend the academy early. And when you chose me as the next Winter Maiden."

"And when you gave my father the authorization to create me," said Penny. "I was given the purpose and direction I needed to serve the Kingdom."

Ozpin was grateful for the Atlesians' help, which gave him the confidence to keep speaking. "If we were to offer the direction they need to best help Mantle, they wouldn't make the same mistakes they've made recently," he said.

"..."

With every word he heard, every reminder that he was given, Ironwood was able to make sense out of the situation. Robyn was always one of the more independent Huntresses of Atlas, which had both benefits and drawbacks. And based on what he heard from Clover, Robyn regretted some of the beliefs she had regarding Atlas' view of Mantle.

With the right direction, Robyn could see where her skills were most needed. And how she could be the best Huntress she could be.

"We can give them that direction," Ironwood decided. "But let's leave Salem out of it for now. I don't want anyone to know until Amity is ready."

"..."

"Or unless I think they should know."

Everyone was happy to hear that they would be giving Robyn and the Happy Huntresses the direction they needed to help Mantle. And Ozpin's group was happy to hear that Ironwood was still willing to share the truth when Amity went up. And the last sentiment was also good to hear, that Ironwood may be willing to share other information earlier than expected.

This was great.

---

It took some convincing, mainly the idea of a lighter punishment, for Robyn to agree to Ironwood's offer. Though she was hesitant about going to the brig of all places, since she could justifiably be thrown into one of the cells, Robyn understood what everyone was asking her to do.

And the large group soon found themselves in front of Gideon's cell, where Ironwood made his demands.

"Robyn Hill is going to help us determine if you're lying or not," Ironwood declared. "And all we want to hear is about your so-called weapon. Nothing more, nothing less. Is that understood?"

Gideon nodded slowly. "Quite understood," he said. "Now that we have that out of the way, here is my demand. I-"

"Your demand?" Ironwood immediately shook his head. "That's not how this works."

Gideon didn't appear to be worried or angry when he heard this. "Very well. Then I suppose we're done here, good day." He then turned around and walked deeper into his cell, back towards the bed he had.

The message had been sent without error. Everyone now understood that unless Gideon had some kind of repayment for his knowledge, he wasn't going to say a word. Ironwood and Revan believed they could make the man talk, that they had enough drive and resources to make Gideon spill whatever information he was holding.

But Cinder beat them to the punch.

"Wait!" she said to make Gideon stop. "Just tell us what you want. I can't promise you'll get it, but just tell us. Maybe we can negotiate."

Ironwood wasn't happy to hear the offer, but Gideon certainly was. When he turned around with a smirk, the former officer made his demand once again. "I'm so glad you asked," he said. "Because James won't be the one to give me what I want, Cinder. You will."

"...Huh?"

Gideon looked to everyone in front of him and made something else perfectly clear. "I'm not asking for a reduced sentence. I'm not even asking for my freedom. I know that there's no way I'll be getting out of here. But there is something I know I can have." Gideon looked to Cinder again. "And that... is a simple favor."

Cinder was even more confused. "A... A favor? she asked.

"Yes. I don't know what it is yet, but I'd like to know I can reach out to someone when I need help."

Everyone had their objections to this plan, especially Djarin. "No," he said. "Absolutely not."

"If you want to negotiate, you can do it with me," said Ironwood. "You can leave Cinder out of it."

"I'm afraid not," said Gideon. "If I were to ask someone for a favor, I'd prefer someone with real power." Gideon pointed to Cinder's side, where the Darksaber was resting. Gideon knew that Djarin had lost it, but he wasn't expecting to see it in the hands of Cinder.

But now that he did, Gideon knew what kind of power Cinder had. And that power was something he planned to use in the future.

"Forget it," said Ironwood. "Cinder, you don't have to do this. I can make Gideon talk."

"And so can I," said Revan who cracked his fingers as he prepared to hoist Gideon with the Force. Robyn was surprised to hear this, to see what Ironwood and Revan were implying. She didn't like the idea, but she couldn't find it within herself to ask the men to stop.

But Gideon could.

"Is this how you wish to solidify your rule?" Gideon asked the child. "By immediately resorting to violence?" Gideon pressed his hand against the door of Dust. "I guess the apple didn't fall far, now did it?"

"..."

Cinder began to feel extremely disappointed with herself. She had no desire to deal with the likes of Gideon, someone who kidnapped her and used her for unspeakable experiments. However, it was true that she wanted her rule as Mand'alor to be different. She didn't want the first resort to be violence, to use physical force and the threat of death to get what she wanted.

If she did that, how different would she be from Saxon? From Vizsla? Or any other Mandalorian of the ancient past?

Cinder knew that she would have to create change... and she had to start somewhere.

"Just one favor?" she asked. "...Fine."

"Cinder, no," Djarin protested. "You don't have to do this."

"But he's right, Dad." Cinder turned around to her father and friends. "General Ironwood, Revan, I appreciate the offers, but... I have to be better. I can't let violence be my first resort."

"..."

Djarin would have been very proud of Cinder, but he wished her first example of honor as Mand'alor wasn't with someone like Gideon. This made the Mandalorian hate the prisoner even more than he already did.

"I'll do it," Cinder said to Gideon. "Whatever it is, I'll grant you your favor."

Gideon heard Cinder loud and clear, but he believed a test was in order. "Swear to it," he said. "Swear upon the Creed."

"..."

Djarin and Cinder had almost forgotten that Gideon knew much about Mandalorian culture. If one were to swear upon the Creed, that every Mandalorian was expected to keep, the promise couldn't be broken under any circumstances.

It would be honored until the deal was done... or one of the parties died.

"I... I swear upon the Creed," Cinder reluctantly replied.

"..."

Without another word, Ironwood opened the cell door and looked to Robyn. When he nodded, Robyn walked up to Gideon and took his hand, which led to a soft purple light enveloping both their hands.

"The truth," Ironwood demanded. "Now."

After Gideon took a moment to revel in his victory, he kept his side of the bargain and began to explain himself.

"I have a virus," he began. "In a vault beneath the Essen settlement. It can be programmed to eradicate anything you wish while leaving others unharmed."

"..."

The light on Robyn's hand turned green for everyone to see. Now they all knew that Gideon had a weapon, one that could potentially turn the tide against Salem.

"...Go on," Ironwood ordered.

"The virus is a biological weapon, not one for computers," said Gideon. "Cinder is well aware of my works in genetics, so I ordered its creation while the insurrection still existed." His hand remained completely green, which signified the truth in his words.

"What does the virus do?" Ozpin asked. He wished to know what Gideon meant by its ability to help in his "bigger picture."

"The virus is meant to target a specific specimen. Its programming will make it seek out a positive match for the target, while leaving those foreign to the programming unharmed. You could unleash it upon two dueling factions, killing one while leaving the other unharmed."

As they listened to Gideon, everyone began to understand what he meant by Ozpin's bigger picture. And yet, only one person managed to find their voice to confirm the idea.

"Could it... Could it kill Grimm?" Cinder asked. "Without killing people?"

Gideon smirked when he saw that everyone was listening to him. "Of course," he said.

The green light on his hand was like a godsend.

To say that Ozpin had spent his life looking for a way to defeat Salem would be an understatement. The Huntsmen and Huntresses were the closest thing he had to stopping her, but he could never find a way to completely stop her. But this virus was a silver bullet. If he could send it out against the Grimm, the most powerful weapon his enemy possessed, Salem would be practically powerless.

This was it.

"That's... quite the weapon," said Ironwood, who was doing his best to contain the same joy he had as Ozpin. "But if you had it for so long, why did you never use it?"

"You could have used it against me or Cinder," said Djarin. "Why didn't you?"

Gideon sighed before he answered the question. "Believe me, you would have been my first target," he said to the Mandalorian. "But I'm afraid the virus isn't complete. Watts made significant progress in the project, but he was just one man." Gideon turned to Ironwood. "If you recover it, bring it to the countless scientists you have under your command, I have every confidence they would finish it."

"And then?" Obi-Wan asked.

"And then you unleash it. All you need is a sample of your enemy. Program the virus, tell it who or what to look for, and let it do the rest."

"Sir," Winter whispered to Ironwood. "We have Durge's sample from the warehouse."

"Dad," Cinder whispered to Djarin. "I have that Beetle on my arm. We could use that for a Grimm sample."

"Okay," Djarin said aloud. "So if we find the virus, we can use it against the Grimm?"

"You can use it on whoever you wish," Gideon replied. "Wherever you wish. Whenever you wish."

"..."

---

After everyone listened on where and how they could acquire Gideon's virus, they all left the brig to discuss a proper plan. They left the brig relatively happy with the silver bullet they uncovered, something they could use against Salem and her forces. Pietro said that he would lead the effort while the technicians under his command handled Amity.

Ozpin and his allies recalled how they all had a brainstorming session on how to best deal with Salem, but they never imagined something as ingenious as stripping her of her greatest resource. Cinder could use the Beetle on her arm as a way to not only provide a sample of Grimm, but also see if they could finally get rid of it.

And if it died, the rest of the Grimm could follow suit.

So everyone was very confident with their approach. Using the information Gideon gave them, Ironwood would send a small force to Essen to retrieve the incomplete virus and hand everything over to Pietro's team of scientists. It was a foolproof plan, one that everyone agreed to.

Almost everyone.

Robyn understood that the virus was a good way to deal with the Grimm, but what she didn't understand was why Ironwood wanted to use it on the terrorists responsible for the recent string of murders. Since she wasn't aware that Merri and Fauna were Grimm hybrids, the idea of poisoning who she believed to be people didn't sit well with her.

Normally, she would fight tooth and nail against such a plan, but that was before Robyn had made a fool of herself. To say that she was lucky that she wasn't in a jail cell was only the beginning of what Robyn thought of her situation, and how it all started the day she decided to challenge Ironwood.

She still had no idea what he was doing with Amity, but Robyn knew that she had been targeting the wrong man. And Ironwood may have had his secrets, but he and his allies weren't the murderers Mantle believed them to be. If anything, after fixing the wall, they were all heroes.

Heroes whose only failure was not acting in time. Robyn's failure, however, was acting too much.

So, in order to redeem herself, to reduce whatever punishment she and her friends would get, Robyn made Ironwood an offer when they got back to his office.

"You want to go back to Mantle?" Ironwood asked. "You want to try and find them?"

"I do," said Robyn. "S-Sir."

"..."

The word "sir" sounded wrong when it came from her mouth, Robyn thought. But it was very necessary at a time like this. Instead of being brash and brazen, Robyn needed to be more humble and open to cooperating with the man who wielded all the power.

"With all due respect, I'd like to see if there's a more... humane method of finding the terrorists," Robyn continued. "Rather than gassing them out."

"..."

Robyn could see the heads of Ironwood's allies turn to look at each other. Everyone who was in the room was looking at each other and began to understand what Robyn's mistake was; but since they didn't want to reveal anything about Salem, they didn't reveal the true identity of the Blairs.

But they let Robyn continue to talk.

"I used to think you were hiding something to protect yourself. But I can tell there's something much bigger going on here. Now I think it's to protect something else. Us… Atlas, maybe even all of Remnant." Robyn recalled the vague information Djarin gave her at the wall, and now she had to admit that he was right. "And now I can tell I got in the way of it. Not my friends, me. So before I go to prison, I'd like to see if I can help too."

"..."

Between her remorse and excusable ignorance about the hybrids, Ironwood found himself at a crossroads. He could see that Ozpin was right about Robyn requiring guidance, which was something she was apparently asking for. And she definitely seemed remorseful for the trouble she had caused him.

But Ironwood wasn't ready to uncover anything just yet. If he were to let Robyn go after the Blairs before they used the virus, there was a chance that she could see them for what they truly were.

And it was too soon.

"I'll have to think about it," Ironwood decided before he put a hand to his radio. "Clover, report to my office."

"Yes, sir," Clover said before the radio went quiet.

"I need to strategize with my partners," Ironwood said to Robyn. "I'll let you know my decision soon."

"..."

Once again, Robyn didn't argue with Ironwood or try to call him out for the continuation of his plan with Gideon's virus. Instead, she quietly let Clover escort her back to Boba and her friends, which left everyone to talk amongst themselves.

"It's settled, then," Ironwood began. "We'll send a small contingent to Essen. Extract the virus from Gideon's vault and bring it back here to complete it." Ironwood turned to the Protector of Mantle. "Penny, I'd like you to be a part of this mission. If this virus is as dangerous as Gideon said, you'll be safe in case anything goes wrong."

"Affirmative!" Penny replied, ready to help in any way she could. She had been cooped up in her father's laboratory long enough, and now she was ready to get back out there.

"I'll most likely send SCAR Squadron to assist you, but they'll be on Grimm detail," Ironwood continued. "If anyone else would like to volunteer, you're welcome to do so."

"I can go," said Cinder. "My powers can help with the Grimm anytime."

"I'd like to go too," said Winter. She had only seen Cinder use her powers a few times since her arrival, so Winter would like to see more of them.

"In the meantime, I think it prudent to bring up what Robyn Hill just taught us," said Ironwood. "I believe it's clear that we can use the virus to kill Grimm like Merri and Fauna. But Robyn and the rest of Mantle clearly have no idea who, or what, they are."

Ozpin could see where Ironwood was going with this. "And if we were to use a weapon like Gideon's without anyone being none the wiser, there would be nothing but panic," he said. Panic was the main reason Ozpin never told anyone beyond his allies about the Relics. It would indeed cause a panic, and that panic would bring Grimm.

There would be more chaos and more lives lost than ever.

"So if we use this virus, we have to be subtle," said Ironwood, who was taking a page out of Ozpin's book. "And we need to figure out where they're hiding with Durge."

Everyone agreed, but they had some more questions. "Are we sure they're still in Mantle?" Djarin asked. "They've caused enough trouble there, they could move it to Atlas if they wanted to."

"They could, but they haven't." Ironwood stood up from his desk and showed everyone something from his Scroll. A holographic screen projected in front of them with words and pictures.

Both of which depicted a crime scene all too similar to the ones before election night.

"They're still killing people," said Obi-Wan. "They're continuing where they left off."

"Why stop a good thing they have going for them?" Qrow asked sarcastically. "Makes sense they're still at it."

"Securing and finishing the virus will take time," said Ozpin. "Time that Salem isn't giving us."

"And with Amity on top of that, there's still so much we have to do," said Ironwood. "And so little time."

"..."

With that in mind, Ironwood made a decision. "Djarin, Qrow. Ozpin always spoke highly of your hunting abilities. I'd like you to pick up where you left off prior to learning about Durge. Search Mantle, find out where the Blairs are hiding, but do not engage them. If we finish this virus in time, we can ambush them right where they're living."

"Understood," said Djarin.

"You got it," said Qrow.

"What about Robyn?" Revan asked. "What will you do?"

Ironwood sighed before he turned back towards his desk. "That's been on my mind ever since she came here," he said before he sat back down. "Oz wasn't wrong about Robyn needing guidance. With it, we just got the silver bullet we needed against Salem."

"..."

Nobody could argue against that. Without Robyn's help, they may have turned down Gideon's offer and learned nothing. She was already proving to be a valuable asset.

"But I would be lying if I said involving her would sit well with me," Ironwood continued, which saddened everyone. "She caused us a lot of trouble. And one of her friends isn't exactly a model image for Atlas."

Once again, nobody could fault Ironwood for simply stating the truth. However, Robyn had great potential to help the city of Mantle, just like she always wanted to do. She just needed the opportunity to do so.

And everyone wanted to give it to them.

"Clover was telling me what Robyn and Fett were saying," said Qrow. "How they could help and get the Happy Huntresses a lighter sentence. Sounds like a good deal to me. And we could use people who know Mantle well."

"We have dozens of maps of Mantle," Ironwood countered. "And I have soldiers who've patrolled the streets multiple times."

"Yeah, but there's the factor of the people to consider."

"How so?"

Djarin stepped in for Qrow, since he agreed with what his friend was saying. "I've been on enough hunts in my life to know when to ask for help," he said. "Sometimes, people see something they're too afraid to talk about. I've had to rely on paying them a few Lien to talk to me, but Qrow showed me a different way."

"Being a Huntsman on the streets has its perks," Qrow explained. "When people see someone who can definitely help, maybe a lot more than they could, they'll lighten up."

"But that's what my army's here to do," said Ironwood. "Now that we have proof that Penny was framed, the people should see that they were wrong."

"They won't exactly do that overnight James," said Ozpin. "Qrow and Djarin are right. Seeing people working independently to solve a problem may give someone the courage to talk about what they saw, if anything." Ozpin suddenly remembered something else. "And the people trust the Happy Huntresses. They'd be more willing to talk to them, if you allowed them to help."

"..."

Ironwood would have countered the argument once more, if he hadn't spent the time looking over the latest police report. The greatest fact that stood out was that there were no witnesses to the crime, other than the person who found the body.

So either Durge was good... or everyone was too scared of everything to talk.

Ironwood knew better than anyone how popular Robyn was in Mantle, as well as her friends. And as much as he hated to admit it, he was aware that Boba was relatively admired by the population. None of them would have much of a problem talking to people, especially people who may have seen something.

"Djarin... you told me that you didn't know Fett like I did," Ironwood said. "Do you still stand by that?"

"I do," Djarin replied. "If he were to offer his assistance, he wouldn't back out. And neither would the Huntresses."

"And you'd be willing to supervise them?"

"Yes, I would."

Obi-Wan suddenly stepped forward. "Revan and I are very good at being unseen," he said. "We could keep an eye on them if it would make you feel better."

"Perhaps we've spent too much time at the academy to begin with," said Revan. "It may be time to put our skills to work once more."

Ironwood was still reluctant to place even the smallest faith in Fett and the Happy Huntresses, but his confidence in his partners was growing by the second. They hadn't let him down yet, and they knew what was expected of them.

"...Alright, then," he said. "Let's go break the news."

---

The next morning, the plan was put into action. Djarin, Qrow, Obi-Wan, and Revan went to Mantle with Fett and the Happy Huntresses to see what they could find. And in the meantime, SCAR Squadron was to escort Penny, Winter, and Cinder to the city of Essen were Gideon locked his virus in an underground vault. Penny decided to let R2 come with her, who showed great proficiently in unlocking sealed doors.

Ozpin and Ironwood remained behind at Atlas Academy, where they would observe both teams.

"Command, this is Team Alpha," Clover said on his Scroll. "We're en route to Essen as we speak. ETA is two minutes."

"Copy that, Clover," said Ironwood. "I'll be keeping a close eye on our team in Mantle. Your primary point of contact will be Professor Ozpin."

"Let me know if I can be of any assistance," Ozpin said over the call. "Cinder, you are free to use your powers as you deem fit, but be careful. The citizens of Essen may be following Grimm protocol, but even the walls have eyes."

"Got it," said Cinder. "I'll be careful."

"Good luck."

When the call ended, Zuke moved closer to Cinder. "Finally," he said. "We get to see how those powers of yours work in the field."

"Yeah, I've only seen them in the academy," said Aero. "We all have."

"Some of us more closer than others," said Cav, who pointed to a cut on his armor he got from Cinder's training. "Let's see how a Grimm can handle it."

The last time Cinder had the spotlight on her like this was when she made her speech at Haven. And just like she did then, she wasn't used to it very much. It was at times like these when Cinder couldn't believe that she was going to be leading the people of a nation soon enough.

It was all so daunting, but the support she got from her two friends reassured Cinder that she wouldn't be doing this alone. And soon enough, Cinder promised that Winter wouldn't have to be alone when she got the powers of the Winter Maiden.

"Alright, team," said Clover, who gained everyone's attention. "Essen's one of the remote villages outside the city walls. As much as I dislike the idea of anyone living in the tundra, they still fall under the Kingdom's jurisdiction. Fortunately, there's enough Grimm near the settlement to justify our arrival. But our true mission is classified. The less they know about a biological weapon in their midst, the better."

*BOOP*

*WHEE*

Everyone turned to R2, who was able to project a holographic map of Essen through a projector built under the camera that served as his eye.

"R2 says that he has all the data from Gideon to pinpoint where his vault is," said Penny. A red light soon appeared on the map, in rather uncharted territory.

"Wait, this can't be right," said Misty. "Sir, this droid's telling us the objective is a click and a half east of Essen and two hundred feet underground. I say we go AI-free on this one."

"Don't hold your breath," said Mic, who was tapping on the computer on his arm. "Essen's got enough natural tunnels to tempt the SDC into digging. Only problem is that they're full of Grimm."

"Which makes them the perfect place to hide an insurrectionist vault," said Clover. "We lure them out, clear them out, and have a straight path to the vault." Clover turned to the children. "Cinder, Winter, you're gonna be our lookouts. Make sure no Grimm get past the tunnel we're clearing out so they can't get to Essen."

"Understood," said Winter.

"Sounds good to me," said Cinder.

Clover then turned to one of his allies. "Mic, stay close to Penny and R2. Your tech should help them out with this vault. But once they get that door open, stay close to us." Clover tapped the helmet he held on his side. "Our helmets help us breathe through smoke, but gas is something else."

"Yes, sir," said Mic. "And the droid's our storage unit?"

"That's right. Anyone not helping secure the virus will be on Grimm duty. Nothing goes in the vault, and nothing gets out the tunnel. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" all members of SCAR Squadron, including Winter and Penny said.

Clover noticed that the ship was not only touching down, but also that its doors opened to reveal that a few Grimm had emerged from the tunnels and were rampaging across Essen.

It was time to get to work.

"Good luck, team."

---

Back in Mantle, things were proceeding rather slowly than they were in Essen.

Boba, the Happy Huntresses, and their temporary allies had finished talking to the officers at the latest crime scene. They understood that the victim was found with a fatal head injury, just like the other ones, and there were no clues as to where the murderer went. Boba and Djarin even used their Mandalorian helmets to scan the area for more clues, but neither of them could find anything.

Obi-Wan and Revan were keeping their distance as promised, but they were also able to look around without being noticed.

Djarin and Qrow were right about the factor of people, however. The Happy Huntresses made everyone feel more comfortable with talking to the authorities, along with Qrow and Djarin. Unfortunately, nobody had seen anything of significance.

It was true that they were scared of the multiple soldiers Ironwood had sent after election night, but that didn't change the fact that nobody had seen anything to help with the case.

"Thank you for your time, ma'am," said Qrow, who had just finished talking to a single mother with a young boy. After the woman closed the door, Qrow walked back to his allies and shook his head. "Sorry, everyone. Dead end again."

The Happy Huntresses, save for Robyn, couldn't help but groan in response. "Ugh, great," said Joanna.

"That's the seventh person in a row by my count," said May.

"Well, the police were able to track down the victim's family," said Fiona. "They said he would usually walk home from work the same way and make it with enough time before curfew. When he didn't come back, they called the police."

"So this guy managed to pull it off before the curfew," said Qrow. "Right before the soldiers could practically have the city to themselves. He's good."

"Too good," said Djarin, who walked over to the group with Boba. "We couldn't find any signs that someone else had been here."

"Which means this is either a dumping ground, or Durge is covering his tracks," said Boba. "He's smarter than I remember. And more careful." Boba suddenly realized that something was wrong with that picture. "He was never one to be subtle about his kills."

"We still have his accomplices up in the wind," said Qrow. "Maybe they covered what Durge might have left behind."

"Or they dumped the body and moved on," Djarin pointed out.

"..."

Djarin decided to take a step back and think about this. The crime was all too similar to the ones that have been plaguing Mantle before, the ones that were done in an effort to frame Ironwood. No witnesses, no clues as to where the murderer had went, just nothing at all.

But there had to be something linking the murders together.

"We should look at the other murders again," Djarin decided. "There's got to be something we missed. Something's linking them all together."

"You mean besides the fact that nobody liked Ironwood?" Joanna asked. May nodded with Joanna's sentiment, given that it was a feeling the Huntresses shared.

"No, he's right," said Boba. "There's something we missed, just like everyone missed what Durge left behind."

"I don't know," said Fiona. "We all saw the reports during Robyn's campaign. Nothing really stood out."

"Yeah," said May. "Unless Ironwood has something else he wants to cover up." May was referring to Amity Colosseum, since their new partnership still hadn't revealed anything about its secret. May could tell that Fiona and Joanna had the same idea, so she decided to let the team leader have her chance to speak. "Right, Robyn?"

"..."

When they heard silence from Robyn, the Happy Huntresses suddenly realized that they hadn't heard much from her all day. She was being unusually quiet, just like she was last night.

"Uh, Robyn?" Joanna asked.

The repetition of her name was enough for Robyn to pay attention, but it wasn't enough to satisfy everyone around her.

"Huh?" she asked. "Oh, sure... I can do that." Without another word, Robyn began to walk back towards the crime scene, leaving dumbfounded Huntresses and two concerned men.

"Uh... is she okay?" Qrow asked when Robyn was far away enough to be unable to hear him.

"I... I don't know," said Fiona, who was just as surprised as Qrow was.

"She was pretty quiet last night after the wall went up," said Djarin. "Is something wrong with what Cinder did?"

"The wall's still up, if that's what you're asking," said Joanna. "We don't know what your daughter did, but we're not ungrateful."

May was starting to feel guilty about what she said. Not that she forgave Ironwood for continuing to be quiet about Amity, but more that it seemingly pushed Robyn away. "Look, I didn't mean anything about Ironwood," she said. "I just thought Robyn would still want to know about Amity, that's all."

Djarin and Qrow knew they had to keep quiet about Amity, but that didn't mean they couldn't be concerned about Robyn. "James hasn't said anything about Robyn being in trouble, if that's what she's worried about," he said.

"Is that it?" Djarin asked Boba.

"Probably," Boba replied. "I'll go talk to her. You all can look at the crime scenes together."

Djarin had to call Ironwood in order to get the details of the crime scenes to him and Qrow, and Boba silently made his way towards Robyn. He too was concerned about her, since she was never the quiet type of person. But unlike the rest of his allies, he knew what was wrong.

Boba recalled one of his last conversations with Robyn, how she didn't take the news of being wrong and being manipulated very well. She claimed to be happy about finding out the truth, but she was far from happy. Boba believed it would be an easy fix; he believed that all Robyn needed to hear was that she wasn't responsible for the damage done to Mantle.

Unfortunately, he was wrong.

"Don't be stupid, Boba," said Robyn, who just heard what her friend had to say. "Of course I'm responsible."

Boba wasn't used to Robyn being this negative or hard on herself; if she was out in the tundra, she would have been killed by the Grimm by now. Fortunately, he wasn't the kind of person to give up easily.

"Okay, sure," he said sarcastically. "You're the one who hunted people like Grimm, killed them, and then attacked your own supporters at your own rally. Yeah, you're the one responsible."

"Ugh, shut up!" Robyn turned away from Boba and looked at an alley. "You know what I'm talking about."

"And you think feeling sorry for yourself is gonna change that?"

"I know that poking our heads where we're not supposed to isn't going to change it either."

"..."

A few moments ago, Boba simply believed that Robyn was simply stuck in a rut. That she needed some kind of reassurance that they would succeed in finding Durge and stopping him from attacking the home she shared with Boba. But now, the crime lord believed that he was talking to a complete stranger.

He had his differences with Robyn, that much was true. But Boba knew that Robyn wouldn't believe that everything she did was meaningless. She always believed she had a purpose, that she was always fighting the good fight.

But now, that idea seemed to be at risk. And while it could potentially mean that he wouldn't hear any disagreements with her, Boba didn't like the Robyn Hill he was talking to.

"What's gotten into you, Robyn?" Boba finally asked. He now knew that the question he had to be asking, rather than highlight the fact that this wasn't Robyn's fault.

Because she believed differently.

"I'm a fuckup is what!" Robyn yelled at Boba. "I got way in over my head and now everyone's paying the price! I lost the election, I pointed fingers at the wrong person, and I haven't done a damn thing that actually helped anyone! And now that Ironwood's gonna get this secret weapon for the Grimm, I'll be even more useless!"

"..."

"Everything I did, everything I believed after Ironwood closed the borders... it was all for nothing." Robyn kicked a can down an alley in her frustration.

"..."

Boba was glad that not only was Robyn able to let out her frustrations, but also glad that she kicked a can down a particular alley. Because he saw something that was perfect to show Robyn.

"They still got those things up," he said as he pointed down the alley. "See the wall?"

Robyn looked where Boba was looking to see that one of the walls had been spray painted. Spray paintings of gangs or juveniles were rather common in Mantle, but the message Boba was pointing to was something Robyn had said countless times.

"Show Your Teeth"

"...I've seen them," Robyn admitted. "So what?"

"I've seen a lotta signs like that," said Boba. "Usually from some gang I've had encounters with. When I do, it's not long until they get painted over. Their territory, their legacy... it's all gone." Boba pointed to the message again. "But yours is still there."

Robyn couldn't recall if she saw any more of her propaganda across Mantle, but she could see that nobody had touched her sign. Nobody was trying to surpass her work in Mantle, according to the sign.

But it was just one sign.

"It's just one sign," Robyn said.

"And it's been days since the election ended," said Boba. "It's still here. And so are you."

"..."

"Robyn, nobody's lost hope in what you can do for them. And it's a lot more than I did."

"Boba, you stopped a war with the Pykes," Robyn argued. "I just hit a few trucks in the dark."

"You acted when nobody else would. Wrong man or not, acting against Ironwood took courage. Courage that nobody else in the city had. I mean, besides me."

Robyn resisted the urge to laugh at Boba's last sentiment, but she could see where he was coming from. Boba did have the courage, but he didn't have anything to gain from starting a fight with Ironwood. Robyn believed she did, and her inability to see that she had been played was her main issue.

However, she had forgotten that her actions got her the results she wanted. Robyn had no idea how Cinder did it, but she was able to create a wall for Mantle in order for Robyn to make a deal.

"I think Ironwood's starting to see the same thing I do," said Boba. "The same thing my father did when he started giving you lessons. If he didn't, you'd probably be rotting in a cell with your friends."

"Well... yeah," Robyn agreed. "But I mean, we're just living on borrowed time right now. All of us." Robyn looked to her friends. "If we do this for Ironwood, what's gonna stop him from throwing us in jail? I mean, I can live with it, but them?" Robyn shook her head. "I can't watch them get locked up for something I made them do."

Boba shook his head in disagreement. "Nobody lives forever, Robyn. You just have to make use of the time you have." Boba looked closer at the Huntresses with Djarin and Qrow. "They knew the risks. And they're using the time they got to look at the crime scenes again. See what's really going on around here." Boba looked to Robyn once more. "All they've been missing is their leader."

"..."

Between her sign, her friends working, and Boba's wisdom, Robyn began to stop feeling sorry for herself.

It was comforting to know that the city hadn't given up on her like she was giving up on herself. And her friends, despite the rather inevitable future, still chose to fight. Robyn suggested they help to get a lighter sentence, but the Happy Huntresses were working because they genuinely believed they could do what they had to do.

And Boba believed Robyn could too. Such praise was rare from him, since he didn't really wear his emotions on a sleeve. But he was capable of giving commendation and respect when he believed it had been earned.

As well as comfort.

"And don't worry about Durge and those Blairs," Boba said as a beginning to finish his conversation. "You know the city as well as I do. We'll find them even if they're hiding under our noses."

"Heh, heh," Robyn chuckled, finally cracking a smile. "I guess if everyone thinks they can do it, then-" Robyn stopped smiling when she looked upon the crime scene again. "Oh..."

"..."

Robyn suddenly let out a gasp. "Oh!"

Boba looked back at the scene once again, unsure what Robyn was seeing. Before he could ask what had caught his friend's attention, Robyn began to walk back towards her allies. "Come with me," she requested.

Just as Boba said, everyone was looking over the details of the crimes once more. Ironwood had sent Qrow and Djarin everything the police had, from pictures to names. Everyone was reviewing them carefully, even though May and Joanna didn't see much of a point, but they stopped looking when Fiona spotted her leader's return.

"Robyn!" she said with a smile. "Are you feeling-?"

"Are those the crime scene photos?" Robyn quickly asked as she pointed to the screens Qrow and Djarin were looking at.

"Um, yeah." Fiona also looked to the screens to see that Qrow and Djarin were finally looking up from them. "Did you want to see them?"

Qrow handed Robyn his Scroll when he saw the Huntress nod. She spent a few seconds looking over each of the pictures and reports, and she began to mutter to herself as she did so.

"Uh-huh... Right... There's another... Yes! That's it!"

"Huh?" Qrow asked. "What's it?"

Robyn looked back to everyone, but she didn't hand back Qrow his Scroll. Instead, she moved towards the center so everyone could see the pictures. "Boba and I were just talking over there, and I noticed something about the scene here. I didn't notice it at first, I don't think anybody did. I mean, you'd have to be nuts to go there."

"Go where?" Djarin asked.

"Here, look." Robyn pulled up the first photo. "What do you see here?"

"Um... just the body."

"And a few buildings," said May. "They found him near an alley."

"And so was that guy over there," said Joanna. "These guys thought there was something in common about the scenes, but that's it. Happened near an alley."

"They're right," said Robyn. "The places are similar, but it's not about the alleys." Robyn tapped an icon that allowed her to draw on the picture, and she drew a circle near an object. "It's about this..." She moved to the next picture and circled it again. "This..." She drew on the next picture. "And this."

"..."

When Robyn finished her drawings, she let everyone around her look at what she did. They could swipe to the other photos and see Robyn's other drawings, and they soon saw what she was able to see.

"Wait..." said May. "You don't mean..."

"Boba, you were right," said Robyn. "They are hiding under our noses." Robyn ran over to the scene once more, and pointed directly at the sidewalk.

At a very specific spot where the sidewalk met the street.

"You see it now?" Robyn asked. "Each of these murders... happened right next to a storm drain."

"..."

Everyone looked right at the storm drain, and remembered that they all saw a storm drain in each of the photos Ironwood sent them. Not only was there a storm drain, but there was a large metal grate that workers could use as an entrance.

Large enough for a man like Durge to enter.

"They've been hiding in the sewers," Djarin realized. "All this time."

"That's how he got out of the warehouse," said Boba. "That's how nobody spotted him."

"I didn't even notice," said Qrow. "I was at the warehouse last night and didn't see it."

"It's the perfect spot to hide," said Joanna.

"Robyn, you're a genius!" Fiona said in approval.

May immediately moved towards the larger sewer grate and jabbed its side with her staff. Once it was in a good spot, May pushed on the lever she made and watched the sewer grate open.

"We need to get down there," she said. "Find out where they're hiding."

Djarin looked over to Qrow before he descended. "Call Ironwood," he said. "Tell him to get a man on every sewer entrance in Mantle."

"On it," said Qrow, who moved aside and put his Scroll to his ear. "James, I think we got something."

---

Robyn's hunch was not only enough to make her feel like herself again, but it was also the spark that led to two missions going well.

In Essen, SCAR Squadron and the younger fighters were all making progress with clearing out the Grimm. Blasters and weapons were used left and right to kill Sabyrs and Beowolves, but the appearance of a Goliath was where things began to get serious.

Cinder had mainly relied on Midnight, the blades in her gauntlets, and the Darksaber to carry out her work. Each weapon was sharp and powerful enough to cut through the Grimm without much of an issue. She had even managed to swing her gauntlet-blades faster than a Beowolf could swing its claws at her.

But when she saw a Goliath, Cinder decided to put her powers to work by creating a halo of flame to prevent the Grimm's continued rampage. Penny struck with lasers from above, but all they were able to do was knock some ice off its back. Winter was able to summon a Manticore to take care of the more common Grimm, which left SCAR Squadron to finish off the Goliath.

With a gust of wind Cinder provided, Misty was able to use his cloak to soar in the air and fire at the creature. His shots made direct hits with the Grimm's eyes, which blinded the beast completely.

Zuke and Aero were the first to work together. Using his Semblance, Aero breathed a mist of Ice Dust at the Goliath's leg, which turned part of it to ice. Then Zuke charged towards the beast while covering himself in iron to shatter the ice-leg like glass.

And the leg with it.

*CRASH*

Mic and Sharp worked together to shoot calculated blasts at the creature's rear left leg, as well as the weapon Sharp used in the mines. When a small shield formed on the Grimm's leg, the soldiers watched it explode and take a large chunk of the leg.

*BOOM*

While this was happening, Clover and Cav worked together to tie the remaining legs together. With Clover's fishing pole and Cav's knives with string, they spun around the creature and pulled on the weapons to make the creature stumble and fall as soon as its other legs were injured.

*CRASH*

The Goliath fell to the ground, but it didn't die just yet. Cinder was prepared to finish it off herself, but Sharp jumped in her place.

"Better get back," the soldier said to the young warrior. Just then, Sharp's body began to glow a bright light. The light was encompassing his entire body, all across his plastoid armor, and steam was even beginning to move off his shoulders.

"Take cover!" Clover yelled as he began to run towards a large rock.

When she saw SCAR Squadron and her friends move in various directions, Cinder finally acknowledged the order and took to the air. She flew towards a large windmill and moved behind it, just in time to see a blinding light and hear a resounding explosion.

*BOOM*

Everything began to shake as the sound grew louder and louder, but this was only temporary. The light, shaking, and sound all began to disappear as soon as it came.

All that was left was a crater with Sharp right at its edge.

"Clear!" the soldier said to his allies.

One by one, everyone got out of their cover and regrouped by the crater. It wasn't too big or too deep, but it was definitely something one would easily notice. And based on the amount of ash, it was enough to take out the Goliath.

"Whoa," Cinder thought to herself. "He can make a big bang."

*GROWL*

Cinder turned around just in time to see a Beowolf was right behind her, ready to strike. Its right paw was lifted above its head and it was about to strike Cinder's Mandalorian helmet off in one fell swoop.

But it soon stopped itself when blue electricity began to spark from its back.

*BUZZ*

After a few seconds of spams and shocks, the Beowolf fell to the ground and began to dissolve. Cinder was able to see that her savior didn't come in the form of a soldier or Penny, but a small droid with what looked like a shock baton on its side.

"Phew," she breathed with a small laugh. "Thanks, that was close."

*WOO*

*WEE*

R2 returned his weapon to its compartment and made a spin. After ejecting his third leg, R2 began to move across the tundra and away from the group.

"That is the direction of the vault," said Penny. "At R2's current pace, it should take us precisely nine point twenty minutes to arrive at the tunnel."

"Then we have our heading," said Clover, who whipped his fishing line back in place. "Let's move out, team."

After they caught up to R2, everyone began to walk the tundra at a consistent pace. Everyone had checked their Scrolls to see their current Aura levels, which were bordering the green and yellow zones. Cinder decided to conserve some of her Aura by creating fire on both her hands so the freezing cold wouldn't be too much trouble.

Unfortunately, the Grimm on Cinder's left hand didn't like that idea.

"Ah!" Cinder quietly moaned when she looked at her left hand. She had to remove one of her gloves to see what was going on, but she wasn't surprised to see that the Beetle latched on her hand was squirming.

She was, however, greatly annoyed by the sight and the pain.

"Knock it off!" Cinder said as she shook her hand. The Beetle had been mostly docile for the past week, but it was prone to hurting Cinder when she used her powers for a long time. And now, it was trying to make sure that Cinder couldn't use her fire much longer.

Cinder grimaced at the pain she was feeling after she stopped shaking her hand, which was a sign of the Beetle rebelling. "I said stop!" Cinder yelled as she swung her hand again.

*THWIP*

Suddenly, the Beetle threw itself off Cinder's hand and landed on the cold ground. A line of black web followed the Beetle, but that didn't change the fact that it had left Cinder's hand.

"Whoa!" said Aero, who saw the whole thing. "How'd you do that?"

The rest of SCAR Squadron turned to see what Aero was looking at, and they were just as surprised as their ally. "Look at that," said Mic, who was studying the substance.

"Hey, isn't that what you did to me back in Mantle?" Zuke asked when he recognized the black substance.

Clover was also surprised by the substance, but he was more concerned about Cinder's wellbeing. "Cinder, are you okay?" he asked.

*THWIP*

Cinder looked to see that the Beetle had returned to her hand, as if nothing had happened. Cinder didn't know how that happened, but she didn't feel much pain at the moment. "Uh, yeah," she said. "Sorry, Clover. I'm okay."

Clover was mildly curious about Cinder's hand, but he remembered that the mission came first. "Alright," he said. "Back to it."

SCAR Squadron began to walk once more, as did the teenagers in their care. Winter and Penny, however, moved closer to Cinder to see what the matter was.

"Are you?" Winter asked, easily noticing her friend's distress.

Cinder sighed as she put her glove back on. "Sorry, Winter," she said as she took off her helmet. "That thing just won't quit."

"Have you seen a doctor?"

"I saw Penny's dad, but he didn't really find anything."

"Actually, Cinder," Penny began. "My father was able to study the results of the tests he performed. Your blood appears to be normal, and the x-rays seem to show no expansion of the Grimm's attachment beyond your hand."

"Yeah, I remember," Cinder recalled. She and Djarin were happy to hear that the Beetle wasn't developing any other kinds of attachments. "But I meant he didn't find anything about getting it off."

"Oh. I'm afraid that's true. I'm sorry."

Cinder shook her head. "No, it's not your fault. It's not your dad's either." Cinder looked at her hand once more, even though the Beetle was hidden. "I just want this thing off. And this virus seems to be my best shot."

"If our scientists can finish it," said Winter. "It may take some time. And don't jump the gun just yet, Cinder." Winter put a hand on Cinder's shoulder. "We don't really know what kind of effect this virus will have on Grimm. Nobody wants to see you get hurt."

"I know," said Cinder, who was well aware that caution had to be considered. "This thing's just getting on my nerves, that's all."

Winter was able to understand Cinder's plight, as well as Penny. Though Penny was about to tell Cinder that she had no familiarity with the human nervous system, given her friend's use of the word "nerves."

However, Penny had a better idea.

"You know, my father usually says that we must work with what we are given," said Penny. "Perhaps you can make your attached Grimm work with you."

Cinder understood Penny's good intentions, but she wasn't as optimistic. "Uh, I don't think this is the same thing, Penny," she said. "I mean, it's a Grimm that's hurting me."

"True, but that web you made was quite remarkable! Perhaps there is a use you can find for it!"

Winter shared Cinder's opinion about the Grimm, she couldn't deny that the web her friend had made was rather astounding. "She's not wrong, Cinder," she said. "Didn't Zuke say that you used it to fight him before?"

"Oh, uh... Yeah, I did," Cinder confessed as she looked at her hand again. "I mean, it made him break the grip he had on me. That was kind of useful."

"How did you do it?"

"I don't know, I was just shaking my hand." Cinder shook her hand again in a similar manner, but nothing was happening. "Maybe it wanted to do that? As much as I hate to admit it, but this thing has a mind of its own. It must want to shoot itself off my hand."

"Does it usually do that?" Penny asked.

"I guess? I mean, Aurora used this to take some of my powers, and she had to throw it off her hand to latch on to me." Cinder let out a sigh as she recalled her last experience with Aurora. "Wish I got to see how she controlled this thing."

"Does it only work on Maidens?" Winter asked. "Or could you use it on other enemies to drain Aura?"

"Or maybe even the Grimm themselves?" Penny asked.

Cinder had to admit that she didn't know if either scenario was possible. But the more she thought about it, she couldn't help but feel that her friends had really good ideas. The Beetle was an irritable Grimm, but Cinder couldn't deny that it was also a weapon. Aurora had used already, and Cinder used it as a means of self-defense.

And while she thought about it, Cinder began to vaguely recall hearing one of the Blairs say that Aurora transferred Aura to them with the Beetle.

"Those... might be possible," Cinder surmised as she looked at her hand again. "I hadn't thought of it, but you two might be right." Cinder was starting to see that maybe she could make the best of her situation.

"Splendid!" Penny said with her usual enthusiasm. "The next time we see a Grimm, we will let you try to kill it with your Beetle!"

*WOOP*

*BEEP*

*BEEP*

"And R2 agrees as well!"

Cinder and Winter each smiled and rolled their eyes at Penny's excitement as they walked. There wasn't much more talking after that, which left a silent and cold walk towards a tunnel out into the distance.

The tunnel appeared to be similar to a cave, but everyone was aware that it would be taking them underground. So it was very likely that there was a natural ramp that led downwards into the earth.

The only things they needed to worry about were a steep drop and the presence of the Grimm.

"Here we are, team," Clover said as he stood in front of the cave entrance. "Our vault's right inside waiting for us. Mic, Penny, see if you can get a scan of the tunnel."

Mic and Penny moved to Clover and took a look at the cave. Mic had to press the side of his helmet to get a good scan, but Penny simply had to look while her eyes rotated and glowed.

"Zero Grimm detected!" Penny said loudly.

"My scan's clean too," Mic reported calmly. "But this looks like the perfect place for an ambush by Centinels."

"Agreed," said Clover. "Be ready, everyone. Watch your backs." He then turned to Cinder and Winter. "This is where we split up, girls. Make sure that no Grimm get in or out while we're in there."

"Understood," said Winter.

"Be careful down there," Cinder said after she nodded. "And good luck."

"Don't worry." Clover took a horseshoe off his armor and began to swing it. "Got plenty of it already." With that last remark, Clover and the rest of the team began their trek into the tunnel, leaving Cinder and Winter alone.

"Let's hope they're not gone for too long," Cinder said as she made some fire in her hand. "It's freezing out here."

"I suppose that armor isn't helping?" Winter asked.

"Well, it blocks out the wind, but I can still feel the cold." Cinder formed a smirk under her helmet when she had an idea. "Hey, Winter. I'll give you ten Lien to stick your tongue on my armor."

Winter rolled her eyes at the obvious joke. "Forget it," she said. "I'm not getting it stuck on cold metal."

Cinder laughed as Winter saw through the obvious ruse she had. "Come on, don't you want to see if it's really true? I've never seen it happen before! Well, except in the movies."

"Everyone knows that it's true. So let's focus on the mission."

"Wow. Months apart and you're just as professional as ever."

"Well, I haven't exactly stopped learning since my return. General Ironwood let me continue being a cadet at the academy, I still have my classes and everything." Winter suddenly remembered that Cinder had been learning as well, but not in the classroom. "I'm sure you can come to the classes too."

"Uh, no thanks," Cinder replied. "No offense, but I've seen too many rigid things around the academy that aren't really my cup of tea."

"I wouldn't think of it as 'rigid.' Think of it more like you're always on the job. I know you're the Fall Maiden and Mand'alor, but you still want to be a Huntress, don't you?"

Cinder had to take a moment to think about that answer. She hadn't really thought about being a Huntress since she awoke from her coma, or when her own teammates betrayed her. And the responsibility of her titles were very large, maybe large enough to not leave room for being a Huntress.

And there was one more thought that Cinder had that made her reluctant to the idea.

"Well... I'll still be hunting Grimm as a Maiden and Mand'alor," Cinder admit. "Just as long as there are still Grimm to hunt."

Winter paused when she heard the answer. She was expecting a "Yes" or "No," but not an idea that there wouldn't be Grimm to hunt. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"Well, I was just thinking that... No, forget it. It's stupid."

Winter gave Cinder her full attention. "No, go on. What is it?"

Cinder took a moment to collect her thoughts once more. "Well... we all know this virus can destroy anything that it's programmed to. Ozpin and Ironwood want to use it on the Grimm."

"Yes, that's true. When that happens, Salem won't have much to work with."

"No, definitely not. But... doesn't that kind of leave us in the same boat? I mean, if we try to use this to kill every Grimm... what's gonna be left for the Huntsmen and Huntresses to fight?"

"..."

---

"Hey, Boba? Think you could pop your helmet off for a second?"

"What? No, why?"

"The smell down here is killing me."

"Yeah, me too!"

"I don't think I can stand it much longer."

"Keep it together, ladies. The sooner we find them, the sooner we can get out of here."

The team in Mantle were currently in the city sewers, thanks to Robyn's hunch about the Blairs and Durge hiding underground after committing their murders. Nobody disagreed with Robyn's idea, but they weren't too enthusiastic about excavating the sewers that were flowing with dirty water and city waste.

The only people who could handle the conditions were Djarin and Boba, who had air respirators built into their Mandalorian helmets.

"How are you holding up?" Djarin asked Qrow.

"I'll live," Qrow replied. "But Robyn's friends aren't wrong about the smell."

"You can say that again," May said as she covered her nose.

"No kidding," said Joanna. "But Robyn's got the right idea about this. The sewers are the last place I'd think to look."

"Yeah, and they're big enough to hide an army down here," said Fiona. "My dad and my uncle told me all about it when they worked down here."

"Wait, that's right," said Robyn. She knew Fiona's family, and she recalled certain stories they told about working in the sewers. "Fi, do you remember hearing about any places that might serve as a hideout?"

"Or where they might go to strike next?" Boba asked calmly.

Fiona took a moment to think about the idea. "I think they said something about the heating grid connecting to the sewers," she said. "And the local SDC refinery has waste disposal too. Oh, and there's the central hub for a lot of the tunnels. Nobody really goes there unless something's broken."

"I got a good feeling about the hub," said Djarin. "I've taken a few Huntsman missions about Grimm in the sewer tunnels, but they never said anything about the Grimm breaking things. Just that the Grimm were running around."

"We saw those missions too," said Robyn. "We were always more focused on the streets rather than the tunnels, but there was nothing about Grimm breaking anything down here."

"That's a good lead," said Boba. "Anyone got a map?"

"James sent me one when I told him where we were going," said Qrow, who took out his Scroll. "Looks like the hub is..." Qrow lifted his head and pointed down one tunnel. "That way."

"You got the map," said Robyn. "Feel like taking the lead?"

Qrow smirked as he began to walk through the tunnels. "As long as you all can keep up."

"Just you watch us." Robyn looked back to her fellow Huntresses. "Let's do this."

One by one, the group followed Qrow into the first tunnel as the leader watched his map. Djarin was the last one to join them, since he had to answer his radio.

"Djarin, this is Obi-Wan," said the voice of a Jedi. "Per your instructions, James has his soldiers near every manhole in the city."

"Most of them are his Atlesian Knights," Revan pointed out. "But every entrance into the sewers is guarded."

"Copy that," said Djarin. "We're on our way to a central hub that's mostly unoccupied. It's our best lead."

"Understood. We'll find its entrance and wait above, should you need assistance."

Djarin acknowledged the idea and set off to rejoin his allies. Once he did, the Mandalorian found himself right behind Boba Fett.

"Ironwood has soldiers on the manholes," he said. "Escaping won't be easy for them."

"Good," said Boba. "About time those constant patrols were useful."

"..."

Djarin didn't have much of a response for Boba, given that he knew the soldiers were supposed to help for inevitable panic in the Kingdom. But at the same time, he couldn't disagree with the idea that they were rather... numerous.

Boba easily noticed the silence from the Mandalorian, but it didn't stop him from continuing the conversation.

"I couldn't help but notice how close you're working with the military," he began. "Fennec and I never took you as soldier-material."

"And you're right," said Djarin. "I'm not one of Ironwood's soldiers or a Huntsman, if that's what you're wondering."

"Then what's going on?" Boba had taken a few bounty hunts that required espionage and blackmail, so he knew when secrets were being hidden. It was this experience that gave him an idea. "Does he have something on you?"

"Ironwood? No, not really."

"And your daughter? If you're in trouble, maybe I can help."

"Thank you, but no. It's not like that, it's just that our... interests are aligned."

"...Is that so?"

Between recent events and Ironwood's deeds after Beacon fell, Boba knew that there was something going on he didn't like. Ironwood definitely had some "interests" he wanted to keep to himself, especially with Amity Colosseum.

This led to Boba and his friends not trusting Ironwood completely. And now, the same could apparently be said about a friend.

Fortunately, Djarin could see that Boba was suspicious. And he also saw a chance to clear that suspicion.

"You may have heard that the war with the Mandalorians is over," Djarin began. "It was a civil war, actually. It ended with Pre Vizsla's death, but he had allies that escaped capture. You're already aware of their work."

"You mean... Durge was working with the Mandalorians?" Boba asked.

"No, not Durge. But the Blairs? The ones who tricked Cinder into thinking they were students? They're the ones who worked with Vizsla. They're the ones we want."

"Okay..."

Like the Happy Huntresses, Boba knew the Blairs from the Vytal Festival. He knew that they were terrorists instead of students, and now he knew that Djarin was hunting them.

But there was something he didn't understand.

"So these Blairs," he said. "How did they make the switch from working with Vizsla to Durge? My father told me that he hated Mandalorians."

"That's true," said Djarin. "My people said the same thing. But I have no idea how they met. I'd like to find them before they make any more allies."

"And Ironwood does too?"

"He'd do anything to prevent another war from breaking out."

Boba nodded slowly. He hadn't seen much of the war and its effects on Remnant, but he understood that nobody would want to see another war begin.

After all, he didn't want to see one either. The Mandalorians were known for warfare, but Jango had taught Boba better than what the Mandalorians under Vizsla had done.

"Alright, then," said Boba, who was convinced of Djarin's mission. "Guess we better get to it, then."

---

Back in the tundra, SCAR Squadron was still descending down the natural tunnel Gideon had guided them to. As they expected there were Centinels that blocked their path and tried to rip them to pieces. But SCAR Squadron and their robotic companions were able to make quick work of the Grimm and keep moving downwards.

And eventually, they found themselves in front of a large metal door.

"I'll be damned," said Cav. "It's really here."

"Yeesh," said Zuke. "Now I wanna know how Gideon built it."

"Only question is whether or not our weapon is there too," said Aero, who was focused on the mission.

"That's right," said Clover. "Penny, R2, you're on. Everyone else back up."

All of the soldiers who were vulnerable to a virus backed away from the door while Penny and R2 advanced. Penny knew that her swords could easily cut through the metal door, but she was aware of the caution she needed to exercise. The last thing she wanted was to unleash an unfinished virus that could hurt people.

And so, after she looked at the door, Penny decided to let R2 unlock it.

"R2, you should be able to unlock this door with your scomp link," she said.

*WOO*

*WOO*

*WEE*

*WEE*

R2 moved to where Penny was standing and ejected something from his body. Just as his friend had requested, R2 was using a tool called a "scomp link" to open the door. The link acted as a sort of key used to unlock doors with a special lock. Instead of a key card or a special code, the lock required a signature of movements to be unlocked. The gears would have to be turned with a link multiple times until the door was unlocked.

Normally, locks like the one on the vault were used by Atlesians to secure classified projects or military secrets. Only authorized personnel were allowed access to a scomp link to unlock such a door. Pietro had to go to various lengths to get R2 such an important tool, but the effort was clearly worth it.

Because R2 had just unlocked the door.

*CLICK*

*CLICK*

*WHOOSH*

Slowly but surely, the metal door of the vault began to open. Penny and R2 stayed right where they were as they marveled at the sight of a secret vault being opened for the first time in years.

SCAR Squadron, however, kept their distance.

"Steady, everyone," Clover said as he prepared for a possible trap from opening the vault. Whether it was an explosion or gas, Clover wanted to be ready for anything.

"Sir, the air readings look normal," said Aero. "My suit's not picking up anything toxic."

"I'm not detecting anything either," said Mic, who was looking at the computer on his arm.

Between the clean air and a rather normal environment, Clover sighed in relief before he gave a new order. "Penny, R2, have a look inside," he said. "We'll join you when you give the all-clear."

"Affirmative!" Penny said as she understood the order. Her Aura and metal body would protect her from immediate threat. "Come on, R2!"

*WOO*

*WEE*

The two droids entered the room and scanned the environment. It was a rather large vault, filled to the brim with multiple papers, mechanical parts, and what appeared to be lab coats. This vault was definitely a place of science.

While the danger was being assessed, SCAR Squadron followed protocol and made a report to the academy.

"Come in, Command," said Clover. "This is Team Bravo. We have found the vault, and are currently searching for the objective."

"..."

"Command? Please acknowledge."

"..."

Clover took his hand off his radio when he continued to hear silence. His first thought was that the radio signal wasn't strong enough to be picked up underground, but he wanted to test this theory.

"Mic, I'm getting silence on the comms," he said. "Can you check our signal? Maybe boost it?"

Mic immediately turned to the computer on his arm and began pressing the screen. "Our signal's not perfect, sir, but it's not dead," he reported. "I can try to boost it, but it might take-"

"Task Force 99, this is Admiral Thrawn," said a voice over the radio. "Acknowledge."

The rest of SCAR Squadron heard the officer's voice, and they were just as surprised as Clover was. They had worked with Admiral Thrawn before, since he was the one who helped organized their team. However, his presence in their mission wasn't expected.

Nevertheless, Clover responded to the Admiral's hail.

"This is Operative Ebi, sir," Clover said after he put a hand to his ear. "Acknowledging."

"And what is the status of your mission?" the Admiral asked.

Clover didn't respond right away, given his confusion about a new point of contact. "Forgive me, sir, but I was told Professor Ozpin was our primary contact for the mission."

"Professor Ozpin is currently engaged with Cadet Schnee and her friend, defending your position against a group of Manticores. I am aware of your mission and will be taking temporal command until the threat outside is neutralized."

This was easy for SCAR Squadron to believe, so Clover acknowledged the order. "Yes, sir," he said. "We currently have one objective; locate and transport a bioweapon Major Gideon was working on before his arrest."

"And what is your status?"

"The vault is open. We're assessing any possible threat before securing the objective."

"Excellent. Once the package is secure, you may begin your secondary objective."

"Sir?"

"In addition to the bioweapon, you are to secure Gideon's research on his other projects and send them directly to me."

Clover didn't question orders, but the nature of this order was confusing. "Other projects?" he asked. "With all due respect, sir, we were led to believe only Gideon's virus was here."

"I have reason to believe Major Gideon has more in that vault than he previously admitted," the Admiral explained. "Should that be true, I require you to send whatever else you may find to me. Is that understood?"

"Understood, sir. We'll send over whatever we find."

With that, Clover ended the transmission and looked to his team. None of them were willing to question the order, but that didn't stop them from expressing their surprise.

"Huh," said Aero. "Wasn't expecting that."

"Me neither," said Cav. "But it's not completely unwarranted. Gideon could have more in there than we know."

"Didn't General Ironwood say that Gideon was telling the truth?" Shrap asked.

"About the virus," said Misty. "He could have kept everything else a secret."

"Not for long," said Clover. "Admiral Thrawn was right. Whatever we find in there will be safer in our hands."

"Maybe we'll find some plans for new weapons," said Zuke. "Dibs on the prototype."

Before anyone could reply, Penny stepped out of the vault and waved to the team. "The vault is danger-free, sir!" she said.

"Good work, Penny," said the commander of the team. "Move in."

As he walked into the vault, Clover couldn't help but think about his conversation with Thrawn. It was an interesting change of pace, given how much time Clover had been working with General Ironwood. He trusted the General with his life, but having more people noticing him and his team was welcoming.

After all, Thrawn was the reason Clover was on an elite team. It was comforting to hear that someone as important as the Admiral was still invested in the project.

It was unusual, however, for Thrawn to ask Clover to send any kind of new intelligence directly to him. Normally, Clover would send it to the academy; to Ironwood's main computer.

But given the stress of Amity, Robyn, and now Durge, Clover knew that General Ironwood had a lot on his plate to contend with. So sharing the load sounded like a good idea.

And based on what everyone had found so far, it seemed that Thrawn would have a lot on his plate as well.

"Looks like Gideon had a thing for airships," said Cav. "I'm seeing a lot of blueprints for different kinds of them. LAAT, Torrent, ARC-170... and something called a 'Venator.' Whatever that means."

"Found something labeled under 'Watts,'" said Shrap. "A bunch of projects he didn't work on." Shrap opened the file and began to read it. "This one's about something called 'Blackwing.'"

"I got something about enhancing Aura," said Misty. "It looks like Gideon wanted to make a Semblance stronger."

"Mine!" said Zuke, who grabbed the file from Misty. "I got dibs!"

"No, you don't, Zuke," said Clover, who took the file from his teammate. "We have our orders. These are going to Admiral Thrawn." After he brushed off a groan from Zuke, Clover issued a new order. "Penny, Gideon said we need to be looking for a sample in a vial. I think it was called 'Blue Shadow.' There should be a file here somewhere."

"R2 and I will find it," Penny promised before she turned back to R2.

"Take your time," Clover replied before he looked back to his team. The job in front of him wasn't the most exciting or dangerous, but it was a job nonetheless. And from the sound of it, the future of Atlas might depend on whatever they find.

And it was going to be worth every second of digging.

"Alright, team... let's see what we can find."

---

With the mission at Essen close to being accomplished, all that remained was the mission in Mantle. And while progress was being made, working conditions could have been better.

Nobody was really used to the smell of the sewers, which was getting worse by the minute. Djarin and Boba were mostly unaffected, and Qrow said that he worked in worse conditions as a Huntsman.

The Happy Huntresses, however, couldn't say the same.

The Huntresses were no strangers to Mantle; they knew the city inside and out. However, they never had to stay in the sewers for this long. All of the dirty water and waste smelled worse than decaying Grimm, and they were praying for the ability to breathe fresh air again.

But seeing Robyn act like her old self again was worth the bleak working conditions.

As she walked with her allies, Robyn made sarcastic remarks about the sewers and made her dedication to the city known to everyone. She mostly did this while talking to Qrow, who she had easily struck up a friendly conversation with. They were mostly talking about their work as Huntsmen and Huntresses, and what was going on in the outside world. Robyn even told Qrow a funny story about Joanna losing a fight.

While Joanna hated to be reminded of that day, she and her friends could tell that Robyn was out of whatever rut she was in before. Even if they didn't succeed today, they were happy to know that they got their leader back.

"Hold up," said Qrow, who stopped walking. "Looks like we're right outside the hub."

Everyone looked at Qrow's map to see that he was right. The central hub Fiona had mentioned was just a left turn down another tunnel. There were multiple tunnels connecting to this hub, which explained how the Blairs could move about the city so easily.

If they were here.

"I think Fiona was right," said May. "Look at all these tunnels."

"They go all over the city," said Joanna. "No wonder we never noticed them."

"So what's the plan?" Boba asked. "If Durge is with them, we should be ready for a fight."

Djarin had noticed a ladder that led to a higher tunnel, which gave him the idea to split up. "We have the element of surprise," he said. "We should split up and get the drop on them. Fett, you have your rifle. You can get into a sniping position up that tunnel."

Boba looked where the Mandalorian was pointing and agreed with the idea. "The Huntresses have their long range weapons," he said. "They'll come with me."

"I'll take this tunnel with Mando," Qrow decided. "And remember, don't engage them. Unless you have to."

The Huntresses had their objections about this being a recon mission rather than arresting them, but Djarin and Qrow knew that arresting the hybrids would be difficult. And if Durge was as strong as the Mandalorian legends said, arresting him would also take some effort.

Robyn had made too many mistakes to not practice caution, so she reluctantly agreed to keeping a distance.

"Alright," she said as she moved to the ladder. "Race ya."

The team broke off into their separate groups and moved down different tunnels. Robyn took the lead on the upper tunnel and readied her weapon, just in case someone tried to ambush her. However, she decided to let Boba and Fiona move ahead of her when they shared something.

"Wait," said Fiona. "Do you hear that?"

"..."

Robyn and her friends listened carefully, but none of them heard anything out of the ordinary. "All I hear is running water," she said.

"Probably from some of this," said May, who looked at the flowing water at her feet.

"No," said Boba. "I hear something else." His helmet, like Fiona's ears, was capable of hearing things that normal ears would miss.

"What is it?" Joanna asked.

"I think... I think it's voices," said Fiona.

"I hear voices too," said Boba. "Down that way."

"Mando and Qrow?" Robyn asked.

"No. Somebody else." Boba readied his rifle and pointed it down the tunnel. "We're not alone here."

"..."

Everyone moved slowly and quietly down the tunnel when they realized that someone was indeed in the sewers with them. Eventually, they reached the end of the tunnel to see the large nexus.

The central hub was akin to a large draining system, where all of the sewage would flow downwards to be disposed of. The ground was a metal frame similar to a cage door for the water to flow down while preventing larger objects from falling with it.

Directly in the middle of the metal frame was a spire with four bridges that connected to other tunnels. And right on the spire were two young women dressed from head to toe in black.

"Here you go," said the brunette girl, who dropped a bag in front of the second girl. "I brought us some food."

"What?" the blonde asked. "I thought I told you we can't use the people we dump! If Mantle sees a body missing pieces, they'll ask questions."

"No, this is just some homeless human. I found him on my way back. Nobody saw me kill him."

"Oh." The blonde opened the bag and smiled at its contents. "In that case, thank you."

As the duo laughed and began to take the "food" out of the bag, Robyn and her friends watched as closely as they could without being spotted.

"That's them," said Robyn. "The Blairs. I recognize them from the tournament."

"I think I heard them mention that person we found above us," said May. "They're the real murders."

"Those poor people," said Fiona.

"What were they saying just now?" Joanna asked, who was having trouble hearing over the flowing water. "Something about a homeless guy?"

"...You don't want to know," said Boba, who could hear everything.

As they ate and laughed, Merri and Fauna began to discuss everything they had done in Mantle. They were completely unaware that they were being watched, which gave them the idea that they could talk about their work without being interrupted.

"So, that guy up top makes, what, the seventh critic that Ironwood wouldn't mind having killed?" Fauna asked.

"I've lost count," said Merri. "But that doesn't matter. What matters is how the people are taking it."

"When I was up there, I heard that people still want that 'Penny' thing Ironwood has shut down. I don't get why he went through the trouble of rebuilding it, but I'm not complaining."

"Neither am I. Framing her for the warehouse was too easy. And if Ironwood shuts it down, I could reprogram it when we're ready for Atlas."

"Hey, that's not a bad idea. But are we going to be leaving anytime soon? We've done enough down in this craphole of a city."

Robyn growled when she heard how little the Blairs cared about what they did to her home, and how little they thought of Mantle. However, she was able to contain her rage as she listened more.

"Not yet," said Merri. "Mother said we need the people of Mantle to act against Atlas. All we've done is make them mad."

"Mother?" Fiona asked. "Who's that?"

"Shh," said Boba. "Maybe they'll tell us."

"Not all of them," Fauna said after she took a bite of the meat. "I heard Mantle's 'Hometown Hero' is doing a number on some military trucks. Looks like we got her and her friends fooled."

"Hmm..." Merri hummed as she chewed her food. "I heard about that too. Sounds like she really wants to stop whatever's going on with Amity."

"Looks that way. What're you thinking? We finally shut it down?"

"Soon. Just after we're done in Mantle."

The Happy Huntresses all listened closely to Merri and Fauna, wondering if they knew anything about Amity. They were clearly interested in the colosseum, but they weren't exactly saying why.

Boba, however, was more concerned about something else.

"Where is he?" Boba wondered as he looked around the area. "Where's Durge?" He could see the Blairs just fine, but Durge was apparently nowhere to be found.

"We've spent too long down here," said Fauna. "If we're going to properly prepare, we should move our work up to Atlas. I heard the new Councilman is anti-Ironwood. If he had an 'accident,' that could set everything off."

"It could," Merri agreed. "But like I said, we're not done in Mantle. If we were to kill someone who's speaking out against Ironwood up in Atlas, the people of Atlas and Mantle might rally together and try to find us."

"Then what are we supposed to do? How can we make Mantle strike against Atlas?"

Merri formed a devious and cunning smile at her sister. "It's simple. We kill Robyn Hill."

"..."

Everyone turned to Robyn when they heard Merri's plan. They were all surprised, but Robyn was completely dumbfounded. She began to grow pale by the shock she received, given the threat on her life she just uncovered.

Robyn was never afraid of risking her life for Mantle. But she never thought that she would have enemies that wanted to end her life. She didn't know what it was that drove those people to want to kill her, but a choice had just presented itself.

Robyn could stay and listen more or leave to protect herself.

*BUZZ*

*BUZZ*

The sound of a small fly in her ear snapped Robyn back to reality. After she brushed the insect away, Robyn moved closer to Boba so she could talk to him. "Did you hear that?" she asked.

"I heard it," Boba confirmed. "They're going to kill you."

"Not on our watch," said Joanna.

"Yeah," said Fiona. "I think we heard enough, we should leave."

"No," May disagreed. "We can stop them right now. Before they hurt Robyn or anyone else."

"Mando and Qrow said we shouldn't attack them," said Robyn. "But it's just two of them down there. Right?"

"I haven't seen Durge yet," said Boba. "He might be above us, looking for you. If we're gonna do this, we have... Wait." Boba looked through the scope of his rifle when he noticed something odd. "What are you doing?"

The Happy Huntresses all looked back with Boba to see that one of the Blairs was standing up. Rather than continue to eat or talk to her sister, Merri was looking all around her in a state of readiness.

"What is it?" Fauna asked as she stared at her sister.

"...We're not alone," Merri said as she reached to the ground. Once she picked up her sickle, Merri examined the tunnels again. "Someone's watching us."

"..."

Fauna began to look around as well while Boba and his friends retreated into the shadows of their tunnel. Nobody knew how they had been spotted, but they could tell that the element of surprise was escaping their grasp. They either needed to act now or leave to attack later.

"There's only two of them," said May. "And their weapons aren't that impressive."

"Do we fight?" Joanna asked.

Robyn knew that she had to exercise caution, and she knew what Djarin and Qrow had told her. However, a threat on her life, just like the Grimm, had to be neutralized.

"Forget waiting," she decided. "We're taking them down."

All of the Huntresses were happy to hear Robyn sounding like her old self again, and so was Boba. "I have a clear shot," he said. "Say the word."

"Don't let them see us all yet," Robyn ordered. "Huntresses, go to the other tunnels. Boba and I will take this one while you sneak around."

"You got it, Robyn," said Fiona, who was already starting to walk back the way she came. "Whatever you're gonna do, you'd better do it-"

*THUD*

Fiona couldn't help but stop walking when she gently bumped into something metal behind her. At first, she thought it was part of the wall or the ladder she climbed up with her friends. But when she turned around, she was met by a shadowy figure who grabbed her throat with a large hand.

When everyone heard Fiona stop talking and start choking, they turned around just in time to see the large figure charge at them. The figure ran like a Grimm would when charging at its prey, and the strength it hit everyone with was like the strength of a Goliath.

They were all hit at different times, but everyone in the tunnel fell out and hit the ground hard.

*THUD*

Nobody had enough time to engage their Aura, so they were injured when they hit the ground. Boba was protected by his armor, so he was the only one who could look up and see his attacker.

And all of a sudden, Boba Fett had a case of déjà vu.

The armor was covered in dirt and ash, and a strange black liquid was dripping from the mouthpiece of a helmet, but there was no denying that Boba had seen the suit of armor before; as well as the man beneath it.

Durge was alive. And he was working with the Blairs.

"Well, well, well," said Merri, who became much more calmer. "Look what the cat dragged in."

Fauna joined her with a giggle and a twirl of her sickle. "If it isn't Mantle's Hometown Hero," she said as she kneeled down to the Huntress. Robyn had lifted her head to look at her enemy, but all she could see was bloody metal close to her face. "And I thought tracking you down would be hard."

Boba and the rest of the Huntresses were starting to get up so they could help Robyn, but Durge was quick to stop them. His first instinct was to grab Boba and hoist him off the ground, crushing him in a tight grip while he did so. He began to crush Fiona and May as well, by standing on their backs with his heavy feet.

Joanna was the only one to escape the grasp of Durge, but she couldn't escape the blasts Durge fired at her from a pistol.

*BANG*

*BANG*

*BANG*

"Aah!" Joanna yelled as she fell to the ground. The shots weren't fatal, but Joanna was left badly injured with three scorch marks on her torso.

"No!" Robyn yelled as she tried to get up. But she was met with Fauna's hook around her neck, as well as Merri's.

"Uh, uh, uh," said Fauna. "Not so fast."

It was clear that Fauna was toying with Robyn, but Merri wasted no time with starting an interrogation. "How did you find us?" she asked.

"..."

Robyn wasn't going to entertain the young girl with an answer. Robyn knew that she was not only a child, but she was the true enemy of Mantle. Someone who had let the giant holding her friends kill dozens of people without a thought. Robyn may have been a vigilante, but she had no intention of talking with terrorists.

Unfortunately, the Blairs realized that.

"She's not gonna talk," Fauna said as she moved her sickle tighter on Robyn's throat. "And she just heard everything we said. Let's just kill her."

"Patience, Fauna," Merri ordered. "I think what our new friend needs... is a reason."

"..."

Without hesitation, Merri turned to Durge and snapped her fingers. Once he heard the snap, Durge moved his hands up to Boba's head and threw the helmet off. Now that Boba's head was vulnerable, Durge wasted no time in grabbing both sides and squeezing tightly.

As he was doing that, Durge increased the pressure his feet had on Fiona and May.

All three of Durge's victims either groaned or screamed as they felt enormous pain in their bodies. Boba tried to use the weapons on his armor to burn and shoot at Durge, but his efforts barely hurt the man. The Blairs moved away from the flames with a gasp, but that didn't change Robyn's predicament.

Seeing her friends suffer was certainly making Robyn reconsider her earlier decision to stay quiet. She didn't want to cooperate with terrorists, but Robyn didn't want to see her friends die either.

Fortunately, she didn't have to make any decision.

*BANG*

*BANG*

*BANG*

Three blasts rang out from another tunnel, and they made contact with the Blairs. Both girls couldn't help but fall back as they were hit, just like they couldn't help but free Robyn from their grasp. Robyn escaped with a small cut on her neck, but she was mostly unharmed.

Boba soon found himself to be free as well. When Djarin teleported himself and Qrow behind Durge after he fired his rifle, he and Qrow struck Durge with Harbinger and the electric staff.

*ZAP*

*BAM*

The shocks and strike to his back were enough to make Durge release his prisoners, but he was quick to move his arm and strike at his attackers.

Djarin would have used his Semblance once again, but he lost focus when he believed he saw Durge's arm become... elongated.

*BAM*

The strike was enough for Djarin to return to reality and teleport himself back to Robyn and Boba. Qrow had turned into a bird to recover from the attack, and now he was ready to fight again.

Robyn was also ready, but first she had to help Boba get back on his feet. Both of them had started to engage their Auras to heal from the attacks, but Boba needed a few seconds. Blood was pouring from his nose and his head was aching; another few seconds in Durge's grasp would have killed him.

However, he was able to stand up straight and ready himself for a fight.

The Blairs and Durge had recovered as well, and they reunited on the other side of the central hub. The rest of the Happy Huntresses were still down, which left a fight of four against three.

However, Merri was confident with a swift victory.

"Well... this should be interesting."

---

Author's notes: hey everyone, hope you're doing good. Sorry this chapter came rather late, hope you enjoy it. I don't think there's too much Star Wars news at the moment, save for Outlaws and Tales of the Empire. I am super excited for Tales of the Empire, I've been waiting to see what became of Barris Offee after The Clone Wars. And seeing more of Vader in Clone Wars animation is gonna be great.

To The Avenging Titan, you're not wrong about that tough time. And it's only just beginning for our group of heroes. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

To Rider126, oh shit is right. You've gotten a taste of Durge's mettle, and you'll see much more in the future. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

To nandipanzee12, hope you like this cliffhanger as well. And you'll be seeing more of Durge in the future. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed the chapter.

To Don Cheeto, you'll have to wait and see what happens to Durge. Sorry, can't spoil anything yet. As for Team RWBY, I do have plans for them, don't worry. And Thrawn is definitely up to something, as you can see. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

To Servos New Head, the shutdown took a lot of people by surprise, even me. But like you said, I will definitely be continuing the story. Glad you liked Tarkin and Durge, as well as how the characters interacted with each other. Don't worry about the Winter Maiden and Winter, I'll try not to make it too confusing. And glad you liked Boba and Fennec doing a little detective work, I got the idea for Boba's helmet vision from the world's greatest detective. Can you guess who? Thanks for reading, glad you liked the chapter.

To GojiraRWBYSW18, Durge is indeed on Remnant. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

To AtomicR4y, hope you had fun reading a sample of Durge's strength and ruthlessness. Don't worry, there will be much more to come. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

To CT7567Rules, glad you're writing your other stories, hope we see more of your Star Wars one soon! I added a little more of the gauntlet blades here, hope you liked that. Robyn did have to resort to crime, but she's making a turnaround now that she knows who the true enemy is. And yes, Durge is indeed on Remnant. And it will take a lot of effort to put him down. You'll see how this fight goes next chapter. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

To GojiraFan455516, glad you liked all of the twists and turns in the last chapter. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

Once again, I have to thank deathwing17 for the idea of using Durge. This chapter was mostly meant to serve as an introduction to the bounty hunter, but don't worry. You'll soon see how dangerous and powerful he truly is in The Way of the Maiden.

And before I forget, thank you all for helping me surpass 500 followers! You're a terrific audience, and your support is really helping me out. With that being said, don't forget to leave a comment before you go.

The Court of Talons is adjourned. See you next time.