Caelum and Raiden watched from the bullhead as Roman's mech chased multiple figures down the highway before suddenly plummeting fifty feet to the concrete supports below.
"Bring me in low and keep at a distance so he can provide support with his rifle" instructed Caelum gesturing to Raiden. Neo looked back distrustfully. "Keep this bird in the sky and we'll get him out of his mess" he insisted.
The tri-colored girl pressed the controls downward and flicked a switch as the bullhead built speed and the loading ramp lowered. Caelum and Raiden stood near the exit as Raiden attached a carabiner and strap to the bullhead to prevent himself from falling out.
Peering through his scope at the figures amassing before the mech, he gasped in disbelief. "Ruby?!"
"What?" demanded Caelum. "Rose is here?!"
"No! Team RWBY" clarified Raiden.
"Great!" shouted Caelum. "Try not to kill them" he ordered jumping from the bullhead as it began to gain altitude again.
"I should say that to you!" shouted Raiden as Caelum descended onto the ground with a roll and began sprinting towards the combat. Heart pumping and worries racing, Raiden watched the battle from his scope and began to time his breathing, silently apologizing to his classmates under his breath.
Team RWBY watched with confidence as the mech approached. Suddenly a burst of fire came from their right scattering the girls from their formation. A look at the perpetrator was a lone individual with a white fang mask and dressed in black. He ducked behind the support pillars laying fire at the girls as they prepared to retaliate.
Then shots began arriving from their other side. A hasty glance around revealed the perpetrator to be on the back of a bullhead and firing between the masses of pillars at them with frightening precision. Roman watched this unfold from within his mech and with renewed confidence charged.
"Freezer burn!" shouted Ruby as Weiss planted her rapier in the ground, creating a sheet of ice that Yang evaporated with a shotgun blast of fire. Steam enveloped their surroundings, halting Raiden's DMR fire and Caelum's suppression.
Red lasers from the mech sought out the four girls, its pilot searching for them in the fog.
Caelum ran as close as he could, hiding behind a pillar for cover as a laser landed on him, tracking his movement. Roman's voice reverberated from the mechs speakers as he recognized the thermal outline. "You're in the way Killer!"
Caelum watched as the laser began scanning again and the four figures of his classmates circled the mech with frightening speed. "And you're in over your head Torchwick!"
The mech fired, tripping up Blake and Yang as Ruby emerged from the distance as the concealment began to dissipate, striking at the machine. A reverberating clang sounded as the mech recoiled. "Checkmate!" sounded the young huntress.
Blake and Weiss sprinted to the front and began delivering successive blows in tandem, forcing the mech into a backpedal to keep its balance. Weiss summoned a glyph and stabbed at one of the mechs sensors when that pesky Marksman from the bullhead fired once more, striking her wrist and sending her into an instinctive retreat.
Caelum was upon Blake the same moment, emerging from his cover and surprising her as he appeared from behind the mechs leg. She had no time to react as he swung his rifle buttstock at her head. The weapon grazed her ears beneath her bow as she ducked and was met with a fist to the back of her head. Her head bobbing low a knee met her forehead as she was sent reeling backward to disengage.
Roman took the opportunity to bring the mech's foot down atop her. Weiss attempted again to summon a glyph to retrieve her teammate only to be struck in the side by the ever-moving marksman.
Seeing the glyph dissipate, fear rose in Blake's eyes as she saw the mech descend. Just below her sight, the masked man delivered a dropkick to her chest, knocking the wind out of her chest and her out of the mechs path.
Narrowly avoiding the stomp meant for his classmate, Caelum watched as the mech shifted and Roman fired a barrage of missiles in all directions. All members of team RWBY avoided direct blows but suffered from the explosive radius. Even Ruby and Yang's attempt at flanking was disrupted by the unexpected barrage.
As the two sisters repositioned, Blake endured the concussive heat as Weiss was unfortunately sent flying by the force of the blasts. Mid-air and in an uncontrollable spin, Weiss waved her rapier and cast a glowing rune toward Blake. She successfully applied the rune but soon received a painful shot in the back from the unknown marksman, stopping her momentum and slamming her harshly into the concrete below.
Blake saw the spinning rune her friend had suffered for and sprinted for it before it dissipated. The glowing clocklike symbol began to brighten as she closed in only for the same interfering man in a mask to shoulder bash her. Rolling into the blow, Blake resumed her sprint only for the Rune to fade away before she reached it. With fury in her eyes, she aimed at the man only to see him gone and the mech firing more missiles at her.
Blake braced for the impacts and was sent careening away, her aura flickering and nearly broken. Seeing Blake struggling to stand and Weiss near unconscious, Ruby intervened, no longer able to wait for an opportunity to strike.
With a passionate scream and the rifle fire of her scythe, Ruby hurled herself towards the mech at a breakneck speed. Delivering two strikes with her blade at its joints, the mech temporarily faltered as she sped past it only to meet a sudden stop.
The masked man stood with his arm out and clotheslined her as she sped towards him. In the moment she felt the sudden pain and surprise at his appearance, her eyes widened in a fraction of a second she saw his aura flare from the speed of her impact against his arm.
Ruby was sent backspinning from the strike as the man hissed quietly and grasped at his surely bruised arm. Suddenly the sound of multiple explosions arose from the mech drawing his eyes. A head of golden hair stood on the mechs blindspot, its back, and threw punch after punch of explosive rounds into it.
Yang didn't get to go unimpeded as the pesky DMR fired two shots, both striking her in her ribs. Her golden aura flared as she grit her teeth. Yang fired another blast into the mech out of frustration as she shot a furious glance at the bullhead that carried the distant nuisance. The bullhead took flight before she could hurl any blasts.
Taking the momentary break in fire, Yang jumped off the mech only for its torso to unexpectedly spin and batter her with its fist. The strike caught her mid-air and sent her through a pillar, cracking the foundation she landed on. Collecting herself, Yang slowly stood, glancing at her teammates. Blake was struggling to stand, Weiss could barely hold Myrtenaster, and Ruby, her sister wheezed as her chest shakily breathed, recovering from the unexpected strike.
Shaking off her daze, Yang scowled, glowering at the machine and mysterious man with her burning red eyes.
"Roman!" Called Caelum seeing Yang's expression. "Time to call it!"
The mech emitted static as Roman's voice emerged. "What?" it hissed. "We're just getting started, kid!"
"No! It's over!" called Caelum, throwing down his rifle and running behind the mech.
"Pfft, can't trust a kid to do a man's job" snarled Roman as he focused his machine on the girls.
As Yang faced down the mech alone, Blake called after her out of worry. "Yang!"
"Don't worry" assured Ruby, short of breath. "With each hit, she gets stronger and she uses that energy to fight back. That's what makes her special."
With a determined glare of crimson eyes and shimmering gold hair, Yang braced herself as Roman sought to crush her under the machine's strength. Both the mech and Yang reeled a fist back and struck each other matching the other's strike with a loud crunch of steel, locking in place.
As Yang reeled back her free hand and the mech copied her, suddenly the masked man appeared again. Swinging down from the mech's back and between the legs, striking an opportunistic blow and driving his elbow into Yang's throat.
The crushing strike shocked Yang, sending a wave of pain through her body as aura and focus flickered, bringing her to her knees as she gasped for breath with a hand clutching her throat. The instinctual panic in her body and mind cut her semblance short as her eyes flickered to lilac and her hair simmered to its usual blonde.
Hacking for breath, Yang received a blow as the man kicked her to her teammates, preventing them from attacking as they retreated with her to ensure her safety.
Unfinished, Roman prepared to fire on the girls once more as he heard a clack from above the mech's cockpit. The monitor flickered and showed an upturned angle of Neo standing atop, clacking her heel against the steel frame with a frown on her face. With a stomp of her heel, Neo drove the blade of her umbrella into the cockpit's crevice and disabled the security latch.
A laughable safety on the prototype led to Roman sheepishly looking up at Neo as she pulled him out by his collar. Seeing their aggressor and the masked man who caused them so much grievance, the girls began firing wildly at the three figures atop the mech despite their wounds.
With the sound of breaking glass, an illusion shattered and the three figures were no longer present, leaving the mech intact. A gust of wind and engines brought their attention upwards as the second masked figure with the DMR helped the three onboard the bullhead which had been hovering on autopilot.
The girls watched in frustration as the second masked man and the tri-colored girl hoisted both Roman and the other masked individual aboard before taking off into the sky. Roman hadn't even had time for a parting remark before they left. With the battle over and unexpected damage taken on their side, the girls collapsed in relief that it was not worse while also harboring frustration at the two individuals who had caused them so much trouble.
Aboard the bullhead, Roman was thrown onto a seat as Neo dusted her hands and patted Caelum on the shoulder while he took off the White Fang mask. The older man would have given a piece of his mind to the boy if Neo wasn't currently standing with her hands on her hips and staring down at him.
Caelum took the opportunity to speak first. "It's getting really tiresome saving your ass."
"There wouldn't have been any saving if you hadn't interfered!" hissed Roman nigh belligerently. "I almost had them!" he argued, losing his usual calm. "We would have finally been rid of those pests!"
Roman looked to Neo for support but only received her rubbing the bridge of her nose in silent frustration. She raised an open palm in front of Caelum, asking him to explain. As a look of shocked betrayal crossed Roman's face, Caelum sneered and took a scroll from Raiden.
"No. You didn't. They almost had you and by that extension, my supplier." Caelum presented the scroll to Roman where a map of the city district lay with dozens of red, green, and white dots splayed all over. "Those" emphasized Caelum, "are the recorded sightings of one hundred and fourteen cops, seven huntsman, and forty of the kingdom's domestic security forces converging on our area courtesy of the Coil Syndicates informants. All to bring you in."
The evidence was damning and silenced Roman who realized the implication. With a bitter sneer, Roman crossed his arms and legs, reclining in his seat. "Well then, I guess we'll have to adjust our deal after losing such valuable merchandise" pouted Roman.
Caelum looked to Neo who looked away and threw a hand to the side as she went to pilot the bullhead. "Who knew the Roman Torchwick would turn to pouting."Taunted Caelum as he received an angry glare. "Our deal was done. As you said your reward was just that, a separate transaction for our work. It was your insistence to pursue that lost you that mech."
Grimacing, Roman countered. "Kid you gotta understand. In business, there's give and take. What we lost, was more than a mech, it was information. Now all of Vale knows the size of our operation and just what we're doing."
"Your operation" countered Caelum. "And it's all thanks to you. Spin some of that charisma of yours into saying it's useful propaganda. A good scare for the city. We don't take the fall for others and you're lucky we covered for you twice now. We'll continue business as usual and nothing will have to deteriorate."
Roman leaned forward and leered. "Is that a threat?"
With a condescending smile, as if daring him to think so, Caelum answered. "Let's not make dangerous assumptions. We have enough risks and you have enough enemies. Keep the status quo in our transaction and we keep a fruitful relationship."
Roman leaned back slowly. Rocking his head and pressing a palm against his cheek. "You're killing me, Killer."
Team Rwby was detained temporarily as police and security forces swarmed to close off the stretch of road and battlefield where the mech had rampaged. A handful of huntsman, under the employ of the kingdom, observed and recorded the surroundings before getting testimonies from the girls with assistance from the police.
Badly beaten and bruised, most of team RWBY couldn't provide their side of the story aside from their leader, who was frantically watching over her sister as she was aided by paramedics. No lethal injuries thankfully yet they had clearly been overwhelmed.
The painful truth haunted her mind as she thought over the what-ifs. What if they hadn't retreated? What if she had given better orders? What if she didn't know what she was doing after all and was only pretending?
Ruby could hardly provide her account of the battle and the masked men who aided Torchwick's escape amidst her pessimistic thoughts. The only worthwhile information she could provide was the fluidity of their combat, seemingly huntsman trained, and that they wore White Fang masks but with no discernible faunus features.
The huntsman thanked her and attempted to console her, assuring that she was safe and did what she could. They then turned in amongst themselves and spoke in a worried and hushed tone.
"The mechs confirmed as stolen"
"Better than produced by them, it'd be terrifying if it was."
"Dont talk too soon, a scan showed that someone had downloaded Atlesian blueprints and data off it. Says it was done days ago."
"Isn't that when the kingdom reported the incident to us?"
The grown men's words faded as Ruby fought back tears. The feeling of helplessness stung, but the sight of her sister bent over in pain, at the mercy of an enemy who strangely showed leniency and even saved her and Blake by kicking them away was not lost on her. They were lucky, just like she was told.
"Lack of direct command, improper assessment of the situation, reading of opponents intent, and most of all hand to hand Combat"
His words bit into the recesses of her mind and strangled her heart as she lingered over them. She had thought improvement over time would see her overcoming her weaknesses. But there was no time to wait. No excuse. Her team had sought danger and may have paid a high price if the situation were any different.
The painful realization brought forth a burning fire within her. A newfound resolve.
The night's events were plastered across news outlets across Vale with some exposure in other kingdoms. Despite the ruckus school life continued as normal for all involved and the usual routines resumed with minor differences.
Team CRLN sat in their usual seats in Professor Goodwitch's class. Today they were observing an almost humbling sight. Pyhrra Nikos was facing all four members of team CRDL by herself and winning handily.
With the lights dimmed and creating the ambiance of a solitary arena, paired with both the teacher and other students intently watching the one-sided massacre, the boys of team CRLN spoke in hushed whispers, namely about the ever-more prevalent foreign students.
As Niel and Lukas were quick to point out appearances and personal scales to rate them, Caelum and Raiden discussed their weapons and attire. A distinct feature they found strange was how their weaponry seemed aimed against human opponents with tasers, batons, and small caliber weapons as opposed to them and most of their peers at Beacon.
Their conversation involved future schedules and any possible fallout as to their previous ventures but was cut short as the lights flashed on and the Professor announced the winner. Wincing in the sudden light, the class applauded at the obvious outcome.
As a new challenger volunteered to face Ms. Nikos, a Mercury Black, the boys gave the same indifferent attention as the previous match. Even Raiden's polite clapping was absent in the face of remaining guilt.
"I know we can't but I still want to apologize…" he muttered.
His teammate's eyes drifted over to team RWBY. The girl's usual cheery disposition was absent. While Weiss and Ruby seemed to be little different, Blake and Yang seemed to be suffering the aftereffects of the incident.
Yang once again, donned her scarf a little higher and tighter around her neck to conceal the bruise underneath. Blake strangely enough seemed sleep-deprived as she nodded off into a book even as the loud sounds of sparring continued.
Yang cast a quick glare in their direction which the boys averted their eyes from. Caelum had long since stopped gawking and was watching the fight below, enduring and ignoring the burning stare before she lost interest.
"Did you have to hurt her like that? Again?" asked Raiden, stiffly moving his mouth so that his lips couldn't be read.
"If you ask me he helped make her more attractive without that yapping" quipped Lukas, earning a disapproving look from Niel.
A glare from Professor Goodwitch silenced the boy's discussion as she resumed overseeing the spar below. It mattered little as Mercury soon conceded the fight.
"I wonder what his intention was if he knew he would lose as he said?" asked Niel curiously, his attention turning to the strange event.
With suspicion in his voice, Caelum answered. "He was sizing her up. Same as I did in our team spar."
"How admirable to seek victory against a more skilled opponent" noted Niel.
"I'd say admirable is far from someone who acts like that" retorted Caelum.
"I don't think you're one to speak" quipped Raiden.
"Enough psycho-analyzing students and motives! More importantly, what are you gonna do for the dance?" asked Lukas abruptly changing the subject. "I've already gotten a few choices of gals and my hands full helping this oaf try to get a dance, so what about you two?" declared Lukas pointing at a sheepish Niel, ashamed at being assisted. Caelum and Raiden looked at each other and back to Lukas with a blank expression.
"Work on my Weapons cooling system" answered Raiden.
"Skip it" answered Caelum bluntly.
Lukas fought and failed to restrain a sigh and the group stood to leave as class was dismissed and Lukas began lecturing them. "It's mandatory first off, headmaster's words. Second, you just don't understand. This is the best opportunity for you to be a little like me."
"To be a womanizer?" Raiden asked blandly.
Lukas swung a finger in his sarcastic friend's face. "To talk to a woman and dress like you know how to." Lukas then looked his teammates up and down mockingly. "We've got our work cut out for us. And no! You can't wear the school uniform and leave after showing up to avoid trouble" he preemptively declared giving a pointed look at Caelum.
Chastising his peers, Lukas and Niel brimmed with anticipation for the event as Raiden humored his direction. Caelum followed behind his team out of the classroom as he felt a tug on the hem of his jacket. His team continued without him, not realizing his absence as he turned.
Behind the classroom door waiting for him was Ruby. Raising an eyebrow, Caelum looked down at the petite girl and into her silver eyes. They seemed tired and pleading. He waited in silence as she looked up at him and stared momentarily.
Looking into his brown eyes, she saw the usual stern expression. A hardened indifference to his surroundings. It only made asking that much harder for her.
As he awaited her to speak, Professor Goodwitch exited the classroom, sparing a curious glance at them before moving on and down the hall where she pretended to not notice Caelum's team watching from behind a corner with interest.
With their teacher out of earshot, Ruby's cheeks flushed in mild embarrassment. "C-can you…" her voice drifted off in embarrassment as he stared quizzically at her.
"Help… train me?"
-Chapter End-