Waking up and quietly groaning the next morning, Keegan's eyes slowly opened up as she rolled around. She blinked a few times, laying in her bed with a lack comforter half over her body, the other half sticking out. Yawning, she reached up, scratching at her head as she quietly exhaled. She sat up, blinking once before falling back down with a huff of air while closing her eyes. Her nose then twitched as her eyes shot open. She quickly sat up, deadpanning as her messy hair fell across her face. "There is four teenagers in my house."
Out in the kitchen, Elise was smiling as she practically danced around the room. Her hands flying from spatulas and pans to forks and plates as she whistled to herself. Sitting at the table with her head leaning into her hand as her elbow rested on the able, Kris groaned softly, her eyes shut as her brow twitched. "I'll never understand how you're so cheerful in the morning..." She exhaled, slowly letting her head slide down and fall onto the table.
"And I'll never know how or even why you would choose to not eat bacon." The brunet gave a small shrug, glancing back at her as her right hand shook a pan back and forth. "Some things you just never get an answer to." She winked, chuckling as she looked away.
Groaning back, she rolled her forehead around on the table, pressing harder up against it. "I hate you..." She mumbled under her breath with a low and quiet sigh.
Laughing slightly while sitting on the couch, Kagami shook her head softly with her eyes shut. She then flinched, pulling back slightly as she squeezed her eyes shut tighter.
"Sorry! Sorry!" Cheyenne yelped, holding up her hands while sitting next to her friend. In her right hand was a small white rag with a few red stains and in her left was a bowl of cool water. "I didn't mean to press that hard! I spaced out for a second! I'm so s-"
"Shh, it's fine." The jadette smiled, still half dazed from the looks of her droopy eyes. "Don't worry." She reassured, gesturing with her left hand to calm her down. "Just take a deep breath and finish cleaning it."
"Right. Right." She swallowed heavily, giving a nod as she dabbed the washcloth in water. "Elise... really hit you hard." She mumbled, setting the bowl aside on the coffee table as she moved the jade hair to the side, dabbing softly at the gash on her friend's head.
"Can't say I didn't deserve it." She smiled at bit, taking a deep breath as she shut her eyes. "Though... I really wouldn't mind the chills and body aches and this headache to go away. I think I'm over the rest of it. Well... physically at least."
"You blame yourself for attacking us, don't you?" She quietly asked.
"No, not exactly." She inhaled, pulling her head away as her hair fell back down. To which she turned her head, letting the deer Faunus put it back up in a ponytail for her. "I'm having trouble understanding what I did. I... was fully aware of what I was doing. I... I wanted to kill all of you even if it meant killing myself." She glanced down, looking at the bloody bandages around her wrist. "I carefully thought out each attack. Thought of every possible counter I could. I knew EXACTLY what I was doing. And I wanted to do it. It's so weird. It's like, it's like I was a whole different person there. And now I have these weird memories of wanting to kill my friends. And it's just so hard to comprehend that and come to terms with it now that I'm back to being me and thinking clearly." She shook her head, letting it fall between her shoulders with a soft sigh. "It's all just really weird and hard to understand."
"Hey." Cheyenne smiled, reaching over and grabbing the jadette's right hand. She gripped it tight, waiting for her to look up at her before smiling more. "You know that isn't how you think. And we know that isn't how you think. That's all that matters. Well, that and the fact you're strong enough that it took three of us to kick your ass." She chuckled softly, slowly undoing the bandages around her friend's wrist. "Now, let's have a look at-"
The deer Faunus was cut off again as Keegan scrambled into the kitchen in her white t-shirt and black sweatpants. "I swear if the four of you are burning down my kitchen I'm-" She stopped, blinking at six plates on the table. Three were the same: two scrambled eggs, two pieces of french toast, two pancakes, two pieces of bacon, two sausage links, and two hash browns. A fourth plate had half the portion of those three and a fifth plate had double the size. The last plate had two strips of fakin bacon and two soysage links in place of the bacon and sausage respectively. This one sitting in front of Kris. Each plate accompanied by a glass of milk.
"Oh damn." The dog Faunus' ears folded back at her nose twitched. Her jaw opened up slightly as she faintly drooled. "Just... oh damn."
"Super bad ass farm cooking skills are at max level!" Elise grinned, chuckling as she sat down in front of the double portion plate. "Now someone go get the small one so I can eat this!" She flashed her teeth, one of them pointing outward like a triangle as she picked up a fork and knife.
"Yeah, yeah! Someone go get Dino!" Keegan quickly sat down, licking her lips as she grabbed her utensils.
Cheyenne and Kagami both glanced a each other, rolling their eyes. The both stood, the Faunus helping her friend stand. "You good?"
Taking a moment, Kagami nodded, taking a deep breath as she looked up. "You can go wake up the kid. I can make it myself to the table. I'm not that out of it." She grinned.
"Alright." She gave a nod back, patting her shoulder with a smile as she turned around and walked off, heading towards Dino's bedroom.
The jadette slowly made her way over to the table, sitting down with shaky legs in front of a plate. She raised her eyebrows, staring at how much food had been placed in front of her. "Yeah um, I can't eat all of this. I couldn't even eat all of this if I was feeling better..."
"I call dibs on bacon and sausage and french toast!" Elise suddenly shouted, snatching away the food and adding them to her plate. Half of what she had given herself already gone as she began to gulp down a glass of milk.
"Hash browns and pancakes are mine then! My house, my rules!" Keegan mumbled, her voice muffled by the food in her mouth as she quickly took the items off her plate and set them on her own.
Kagami blinked a few times, staring down at the two remaining scrambled eggs on her plate. She gave a small shrug, groaning slightly. "This'll do just fine." She picked up a fork, taking a small bite. She glanced over, eyeing Kris who seemed to be staring at her. "Hm?" She quietly let out.
"H-Huh?" The redhead stuttered, quickly looking away as she shoved a piece of pancake into her mouth. "Nothin." She muttered under her breath.
The jadette stared for a little before setting her fork down. "Kris? Are you okay?" She asked, her brows raising slightly yet her voice still remained hushed and low.
Taking a deep breath, Kris slowly glanced over while keeping her eyes averted from her friend. "Yeah... I am. I'm just a little shaken from it all and..." She slowly looked up at her friend, her brows furrowing slightly. "I feel like I should be asking you if you're alright. You were kinda brainwashed and everything and... are we sure whatever was inside you is gone?" She gulped slightly, licking her lips.
She quietly exhaled, closing her eyes as she let her head fall forward some. "We're positive. But that doesn't make up for what I did..." She slowly reached up with her left hand, rubbing the back of her head as she glanced over. "But you shouldn't worry. Nothing like that will happen again."
"No. No, no." She shook her head some, smiling faintly as she brushed her hair behind her ear. "It's not that I'm afraid of it happening again. I'm just... maybe a little..." She sighed, shaking her head as her jaw flexed. "I'm just a tiny it scared of how strong you are. How much stronger than all of us you are. Your will power alone outweighs all of ours combined. And we just got lucky this time around. You're not the strongest person in all of Remnant either. That Tohopka was ruthless even against all four of us. What if we find more people out there who are just as strong and we don't get lucky like last time?"
Kagami blinked once before softly smiling as she leaned back in her seat. "We're not going to win every fight, you know. We can always get better and grow stronger, which also means there is always people stronger and better than us. If soldiers in a war gave up after one lost battle, we'd still be sitting back in the dark ages. Just because the tides weren't in our favor doesn't mean we won't rise to be victorious. The important thing is that we get back up and keep trying. That we keep on fighting." She reached up, placing a hand on her shoulder as her smile grew. "Okay?"
The redhead stared for a moment as her expression softened into a smile. "You know, even though you probably feel like hell, you're still as thoughtful and wise as ever." She rolled her eyes, looking back at her breakfast. "I don't know how you keep on pushing forward and doin that. Do you not have an off switch?"
She gave a small shrug, chuckling softly. "It's just the truth. That's it." She yawned, picking up her fork again.
As the morning went on, the four girls along with the police officer and her son each set aside their empty plates and set down their silverware. Stretching out her arms, Elise smiled with a soft groan as she placed her hands on her stomach and leaned back. "Ah, that really hit the spot after all that fighting. Just like coming back home after working on the farm all day to one of mama's home cooked meals."
"Do you ever stop eating?" Kris raised an eyebrow, glancing over at the brunet with her head tilted to the side.
"Well I mean I'm not eating right now." She chuckled some, leaning back more in her chair as she stretched her back out. "But the more calories I burn the more I gotta take in. The more hard work and fighting means more food in my stomach!" She smiled, holding up a fist.
Rolling her eyes, Cheyenne looked down at the young Faunus boy at her side as he messed with his fork between his fingers. "Did you like your breakfast?" She quietly asked, leaning down a bit towards him.
He blinked a few times, keeping his eyes locked on his hands before he shifted his head and glanced up at her. He gave a quick nod, smiling as he did so before he moved his head away, his eyes trailing back to the piece of metal as the light of the room shined off it.
"Okay." Keegan heavily exhaled, moving her hands behind her head with a yawn. "Well, I have work in forty minutes. So if you four are going to do something mischievous and try to save all of Vale today, which I know you will, mind telling me what exactly you all are planning?" Her brows rose. "You know, so I can make sure none of you die."
Blinking a little, the three girls each turned to their leader who had a blank look on her face before she let out a very low sigh. Slowly, she reached up, rubbing the side of her head as gentle as she could. "Well. I know one thing for sure." She gave off a soft and hushed chuckle, looking up. "I'm not doing anything. I am going to stay here. And lay on the couch. And do absolutely nothing. So all of you please don't get in a situation where you're about to get stabbed in the face. Because I'm not leaving to come save you." She smiled.
Elise chuckled back, leaning forward with her elbows on the table. "The great and powerful Kagami calling a day off? Man, I guess the world really is coming to an end."
The jadette rolled her eyes, sticking her tounge out as Kris shook her head. "I think she's trying to say fu-"
"Kris! Language!" Cheyenne quickly interjected with a glare towards her short friend.
"Fine!" The redhead groaned, looking at the brunet. "Kagami is trying to say fork you, Elise!"
"It's fine, it's fine. Calm down." Keegan waved her arms a bit. "Shush. All of you. Dino can't even speak. It doesn't matter what words he hears."
The deer Faunus blinked a few times before she brought her hand up to her face, slowly lowering her head as she shook it. "I can't believe this..." She mumbled under her breath.
"Whatever." Elise held out her arms while looking at Kagami. "What's the plan for today? Preferably something easy since we're all kinda sore. Maybe some recon." She chuckled.
"Hmm." The leader of team MACE thought for a moment, blinking a little before yawning. "Okay." She started to smile a little, flashing her teeth as she crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat. "Recon. I think I have a few ideas then. Not sure if all of you will like your part though." She glanced over, looking at Kris.
The young redhead blinked a few times, her eyes slowly narrowing as she let out a small growl. "Kagami... what are you having me do...?"
"This isn't fair!" Kris shouted in the back of a police car, kicking her legs a bit as she flailed her arms. "Why do I have to go with you to a stupid police station!?"
"Oh come on. I'm not that bad." Keegan chuckled to herself as she glanced back while taking a sharp turn. "Plus, stealth is definitely no your thing. And you kinda sorta have a bit of an aggression problem when talking to others."
"The hell is that suppose to mean?!" She shot back, leaning forward with narrowed eyes.
Driving with one hand, she motioned her other towards her. "My point exactly." She smirked.
She groaned back, slowly slouching with her arms crossed. "This is stupid..." She grumbled as she shifted her gaze towards outside.
Glancing up at her rearview mirror, the canine officer gave a small sigh as she stared at Kris. "So," She inhaled a bit before looking back at the road as she took another turn. "You have mother problems too?"
She glanced up for a moment, slowly nodding before she looked back outside. "Yeah. Though she's a problem to everyone she meets so it's not just a me problem." She cracked a faint smile.
"Heh." She scoffed back. "I can understand that for sure. Old hags are like that."
"Tell me about it." Kris rolled her eyes. "It's nothing but nag nag nag, you have to do what I tell you, blah blah blah, you have to do this and this to become a Huntress, your own interests aren't important, there is no real career in being a veterinarian."
The officer blinked a bit, turning her head back to quickly glance at the redhead. "You don't want to be a Huntress?"
"Well, I didn't a little over a year ago..." She blinked little, pushing a few strands of her hair behind her ear. "I hated the whole idea. I just wanted to be me and my mother would never let me. All I could think about when I was younger was helping hurt and sick animals. And now... I'm not so sure. Since she's no longer breathing down my neck about it, and since making friends, it's different. I'm not sure what I want to do anymore."
"Well," Keegan gave a soft sigh. "You're still here and still fighting like a Huntress. So it definitely means something to you now. But a word of advice," She glanced at her in the rearview mirror again. "Do whatever makes you happy. If you do, you'll never work a day in your life." She smiled.
The redhead blinked a few times before smiling and nodding back. "Right. Thanks."
After a bit more driving and a little more silence, the Faunus started to grin a little. "So, if your mother is as awful as mine was, I'm guessing she never taught you how to drive?" Seeing the young girl shake her head no, her grin only grew. "Do you want to learn now after we leave the station?" Her eyebrows rose.
"Okay, so, we'll need Tenebris, Sanguine one, Sanguine two, Sin," At her desk, Keegan started handing several files to the young girl one after another. "Hmmm." She rubbed her chin while picking up a couple more thick stacks of paper and handing them to her before quickly side stepping to rummage through some more. "Then there is all we know about the little goons she could be sneaking around and side forces."
"What about the BBB? Do you have any information about them?" Kris asked, stumbling a bit as she held onto the mass of papers.
"Not much." She was suddenly next to a cabinet, sorting through a few files. "Just a few past reports on raids and how they decided to attack the villages. And the head guy is... Monomane..." She trailed off a bit before glancing back at Kris. "Isn't your friends last name Monomane?"
"Yeah, long story." She waved her hand, eyes widening as she nearly dropped the papers. "They're long lost cousins or whatever and his daughter and Kagami fought for the safety of Vale a while back but I guess they're not keeping their end of the bargain."
Blinking a few times, her dog ears twitched as she pulled out a couple more files. "The four of you really get into trouble a lot, don't you?" She handed her the files before she continued searching.
"Yeah." She chuckled a bit with a grin. "We've gotten ourselves into some pretty crazy situations. Like fighting an Alpha Geist that once possessed a human and tried to kill all of us."
She stared, shaking her head with a soft exhale. "Good lord." She muttered under her breath, about to speak more before a knock came hammering down at her door.
"Scaaaaath!" A male voice roared followed by more knocking.
"Shit." Keegan uttered, snatching the stack of papers from Kris while shoving her down underneath her desk. "Don't move." She quickly demanded while looking up just as the door opened.
"Scath!" A large man in a white button up shirt. He reached down, grabbing his waistband, but instead of a belt being in place, there was a cat like tail wrapped between the belt loops. The tip of it swaying a bit. "I heard about your encounter with Tenebris. Care to explain?" He let out a low growl that sounded more like a pur.
"Right, about that, chief." She exhaled, setting the stack of papers down. "I had no idea it was him-"
He took a step forward, raising a hand. "I gave you strict orders not to interfere with him after-"
"I was responding to a fight in progress downtown! It's not my fault none of your boys showed up faster!" She quickly shot back, glaring with her jaw clenched.
He growled a bit more, lowering his arm. "Fine." He huffed and nodded towards the stack of files she had. "What are those for?"
"This fight between the Bad Blood Bandits and Sanguine's forces. I was going to take them home and look over a few things and talk to a few sources. Try to figure out what's happening. I have a bad feeling it's going to happen soon. Thought I'd come back tomorrow and see if we could get a few officers together to fight them back. Maybe a few Huntsmen too if at all possible." She crossed her arms.
He gave off a low growl, huffing a bit as his nostrils flared. "Fine." His arms crossed. "But you don't go anywhere near Tenebris. Understood?"
"Yes but-" She was cut off.
"Am I understood?!" He shouted.
Taking a deep breath, she squared her shoulders and nodded. "Yes sir."
"Good." He turned around, taking a few steps before pausing. "Scath." His tone softened a bit as he kept his back to her. "I don't need what happened to Duane to happen to you. Not when you have just as much potential as him." He glanced back at her. "Do not engage Tenebris." He looked away, closing the door behind as he walked out.
Keegan stared for a moment, her jaw clenched as she snatched one of her tennis balls up. With a low cry, she tossed it as hard as she could, sending the green ball bouncing across the room in a blur.
Gulping, Kris slowly popped her head out from under the desk. "Keegan..."
The dark haired woman reached up and without looking caught the ball, a small trail of smoke rising off it. She took a shaky breath, slowly lowering her arms as she looked down. "Yes?"
"Do you... still want to teach me to drive, maybe?" The redhead smiled faintly as she stood back up and grabbed the stack of papers.
"Go and check up on Nihilus and Thanaton and Val, she said." Cheyenne grumbled a bit as she walked up to an abandoned house in a forgotten part of Vale. "You should be able to connect with them since you're a former criminal, she said." She let out a huff of air. "Though I guess I would have to agree with her, sending Kris to talk to these three would probably have ended worse..." She gulped a bit, chewing on her lip. Keeping her rifle close to her body with her right arm, she knocked on the door with her left before stepping back.
After a couple seconds, a few gears were heard unlocking some locks before the door opened up to reveal Thanaton in a tight fitting purple shirt and a pair of black athletic shorts. She blinked a few times, slowly tilting her head as her hair fell across her face. "Cheyenne...?" Her eyebrows rose a bit.
The brunette slowly nodded back with a faint smile. "Yeah. May I... come in?"
"Um, yeah. Yeah. Hold on,"She waved her arms a bit while stepping back. "Uh, go to the kitchen. My brother has been trying to find you for a while. He's been searching all over. We were at Sanguine's and Katie told him about what happened. He's been really worried, though he won't admit it." She chuckled slightly with a grin.
"Well thank Oum the four of you are safe now." Nihilus let off a quiet exhale while sitting at a table with a cup of coffee. He lowered his head some, strands of blue hair and a few gray ones mixing in fell across his eyes as he stared at the dark drink.
"Yeah, it was pretty hard on all of us." Cheyenne swallowed slightly, rubbing the back of her head while sitting across from him. "I couldn't imagine having to do something like that again."
"As someone who had another voice inside her head," Val shifted around a bit while sitting between the two. "Keep a close eye on Kagami. It can really mess with her, even if she says she comes to terms with it."
"Right." The Faunus gave a nod with a small smile.
Groaning slightly, Thanaton rolled her eyes as she walked up to the table. "Okay, okay, now I don't know if these idiots are aware but I know I am." She stood beside the brunette, ignoring the glare from her brother. "But I very well know you wouldn't just come here to update us on your current status. So what is it you really want?" Her eyes narrowed a bit.
Staring up at her Cheyenne gulped, her body tensing as she looked forward again. Taking a deep breath, she heavily exhaled while locking eyes with Nihilus. "You and I both know, all four of us here know, there is a massive conflict heading towards Vale. But as the middle ground in all of his, my team and I don't have the best advantages to try and stop as much bloodshed. We need your help. Please." She added on the last word after a faint and quiet pause, a moment later a burst of laughter filling the air which made her cringe.
"You want us to help you?!" The purple haired woman slammed her fist onto the table while rubbing her face with her other hand. "Help you try to stop criminal activity with people we're close with?!" She shook her head, her laughter continuing until Nihilus appeared behind her, his hand covering her mouth.
"Be quiet for a moment, why don't you? We still owe them a lot for helping Val." His eyes narrowed as she huffed against his hand. He then looked up at the Faunus. "What was your idea?"
"Well, Kagami doesn't want any of you getting into trouble so she thought it through." She leaned back in her seat, her hands fidgeting with each other. "If you three come back with me, we could use your knowledge of Sanguine and her crew to help us set up defences with the police force and some Huntsmen. And if you target people from the BBB who are trying to cause trouble, it will seem like you're helping Sanguine. Just... don't kill them like she would."
The two twins stared at her for a moment as they both slowly lowered their arms. After a little more silence though, it was Val who spoke up. "I... don't want to fight yet." She muttered quietly. "I'm not ready to after everything that happened. Not yet at least." She looked down, brushing her hair behind her ear.
"That's... that's okay. I understand." Cheyenne nodded a bit before looking back over at the Aquilus siblings. "What... about you two?" Her voice was slowly getting quieter.
Looking up at her brother, Thanaton rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she saw him glaring down at her. "Oum, you have such a damn soft spot for these losers."
"No I do not." He hissed back. "I'm repaying a debt. That's it." He shoved her to the side. "Other than that, we wouldn't even be speaking now." He looked over at the deer Faunus who slowly started to smile. "Where are we going?"
Far from the city of Vale's border, Elise tredded silent footsteps. Once again she was wearing Kagami's hoodie. Her movements so precise even her breathing blended in with the wind. Hauling herself up into the tree tops without so much as a huff, she jumped from branch to branch. Keeping herself hidden amongst the leaves, she slowed her pace as she came to a very faint clearing. Stopping, she crouched down on a branch, her eyes narrowing at the campsite.
The Bad Blood Bandits campsite.
In her line of sight, she spotted a man sitting on a log. He wore a black suit that was unbuttoned, the edges trimmed with orange alonge with orange buttons. Underneath he had on an orange vest which rested over a white collared shirt. Tucked underneath his vest he had a silk like orange tie. His orange hair cut short as three scar stretched across the right side of his face. In his right hand, he twirled a small and unlit cigar.
"No, no." He ushered with his right hand, waving off a bandit who was holding a gun in front of him for him to inspect. "Listen, you can get far with that smile of yours, and even farther with that smile and a gun, but you're not going to get anywhere with your smile and a gun that's just a gun." His brows rose a bit as he leaned forward. "Think why don't you." He tapped the side of the bandit's head with a soft yet classy chuckle.
"Cheng!" A voice called out.
Sighing, his shoulders dropped as he leaned back and brushed the bandit aside. "Go on." He mumbled. "Build yourself something nicer."
Quickly nodded, the bandit stepped to the side. "Of course, Mr. Zi."
"Cheng." Shinrin grumbled as he walked up, his large and muscular body hidden underneath his green cloak. "Why do you insist on tormenting our newcomers?" His pale tea green eyes narrowed.
"What? You can't blame me?" He held out his arms a bit, smiling as he continued to twirl the cigar in his right hand. "They're going to climb their way to the top too one day and do exactly what I'm doing to them to the stragglers they pick up."
"That may be true, but that's not the main concern right now." He shifted, his cloak rustling as he crossed his arms underneath the fabric. "I need my best men right now."
"Men and women." He quickly interjected with a grin.
"Cheng." Shinrin half snarled before taking a deep breath. "I need my best to be at my side during this raid the day after tomorrow. This isn't a small village. This is a kingdom. And this is where we seek our revenge."
"Right... right. One of their scum took our own." He slowly stood up, stretching out his neck as he twirled the cigar between his fingers. "Who do you want me to gather?"
"Right now, find Anand Madder. I believe he took a walk to compose a few more songs and to finish syncing his guitar with Dust." He turned on his heels, stepping away as his cloak blew in the wind. "You two along with my daughter will be at my side during this." He glanced back before walking on.
"Of course." Cheng gave a quick nod, turning around himself as he walked off in the other direction, pacing by Jade who seemed to be going after her father. He blinked, stopping in his tracks as he glanced back at her. "Are you alright?"
Growling, the young woman quickly glared back, tossing her arms up. "No! I'm not! Someone took the black bladed bowie knife that I have and I need to sharpen it and clean it for-" She stopped, glancing behind him and at the trees for a moment before shaking her head and closing her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she balled up her fist. "Sorry, dad just has me stressed out."
"No worries." He reached out, patting her shoulder. "I'm sure you'll find it. Though it would be much more tactical if you had a weapon that fired bullets."
"Oh for the love of," She groaned, keeping her eyes shut as she turned around and crossed her arms. "Now you're sounding just like him. No one should ever bring a knife to a gunfight." She mocked as she began to step away. "Well I have. And I've one."
Back in the treetops, Elise was taking several deep and silent breaths as she hid behind the trunk of the tree. She could have sworn she was out of view. No one could have possibly saw her. Yet, she swore that for a moment, Jade had locked eyes with her. She slowly peaked back around, her eyes darting all across the campsite for any glimpse of the woman in green. She gritted her teeth, narrowing her eyes. She couldn't have walked that far that fast.
"What are you looking at?" A voice came from behind her followed by a faint mist of smoke that wrapped around her body. She blinked once in confusion, glancing back only to see Jade glaring at her as she crouched on top of the same branch.
Slowly reaching for her baton, the green haired woman rolled her eyes with a scoff. "How about we don't?" She blinked, her eyes turning into a lighter shade of green, her normal color. "If I was going to kill you I would have done it seconds ago. You wouldn't even know what happened." She exhaled. "I made a deal, and I lost that fight. None of you four are a target."
The brunet took a deep breath, slowly lowering her arms as she heavily swallowed. Smirking, Jade grinned as she brought her arms up, resting both her forearms on her thighs. "Now I asked a question and I expect an answer. What are you looking at?" She repeated.
Elise stared for a moment, her jaw flexing as she gulped. She heavily exhaled through her nose, her nostrils flaring as she looked away. "We know you're fighting with a gang in Vale. The whole city knows. And we're just trying to piece things together so we can stop it."
"You're trying to stop a war?" She cocked her head to the side, chuckling softly to herself. "You know you're just a group of four teenage girls, right? How do you even plan to stop us? If you push us away we're just going to come back. There isn't a blow too heavy that will make us retreat. We will snap back with just as much force. Every time."
"And so will we." She glanced up at her, keeping her jaw squared as she looked back down.
She scoffed, brushing her green hair back behind her ear. "You know, you're either brave or completely stupid. I'm not sure which one yet. But you have my respect." Her eyes slowly narrowed as her expression faded. "Just don't get in my way. I will not hesitate if you do."
Taking a shaky breath, she looked back up at her, struggling not to avert her eyes. "Are you done?"
"What? Upset I spotted the little spy?" Her grin quickly reformed as she stood up straight. "I'm the daughter of the best marksman and sharpshooter Remnant has ever seen. Leagues above you. Just because I prefer a blade over a bullet doesn't mean I can't see just as well as him."
Grinding her teeth, Elise lowered her head as her hands balled up into tight fist. She was lucky it was Jade who spotted her and she knew it. If it had been Shinrin... "Whatever." She quietly muttered, still keeping her voice low.
Stepping beside her, Jade face her campsite as the brunet crouching beside her faced the other direction. "Also, that hoodie is not yours." She tilted her head, staring down at the young girl. "It's a right of passage for those born into the Monomane Clan. Hundreds of generations ago, those of the clan weaved a special cloth that became indestructible. The elders would pass them down from generation to generation as a right of passage. It was meant as a tribute to showing the older generation believed the younger generation was strong enough to uphold the tasks they once did and to help them in battle. As the clan dispersed, it became a parent to child tradition. One day, when my father sees me fit, he'll pass down his cloak to me. I will be strong enough in his eyes to do all he did and more. So that means your friend, whether it was her mother or father, they believed she was ready for the world. You shouldn't take that lightly. That hoodie is not yours." She looked away. "Now leave." She muttered under her breath, jumping down onto the ground below in near silence.
Elise was still for a few moments, the color slowly returning to her face as she shakily inhaled and exhaled. With trembling hands, she sniffed a bit while rubbing her nose. "Oum, you can't do anything right anymore, can you? You let that stupid girl bite you. You couldn't help your best friend when she needed it most. And you couldn't even stay hidden when that was the one thing you were told to do. You're stupid..." She closed her eyes, reaching up to rub them before shaking her head and disappearing from sight.
Yawning a bit as she slowly shifted around on the couch inside Keegan's house, Kagami let out a quiet huff of air as she pulled the blankets farther over her shoulders. "Oh for the love of Oum..." She groaned while clenching her teeth. "I've slept so much I can't sleep anymore but all I want to do is lay here and sleep..." She rolled onto her back, letting her arm fall off the couch as she stared at the ceiling. "Ugh! I hate feeling so exhausted!" Her eyebrow twitched slightly.
Blinking, the jadette tilted her head as Keegan's young adopted son suddenly appeared standing above her. Dino blinked back, mimicking her movements before smiling slightly. His shoulders quickly rose as he held out his hands. A small wooden box in his grasp.
"Yeah, I don't know what you want but no." She muttered, shifting around as she got comfortable again.
He simply smiled more, nudging her a bit as he rapidly nodded.
Rolling her eyes, she exhaled as she sat up with a soft groan. "You know your mother told you to let me rest."
He nodded back to her.
"So why don't you listen to her?" She raised an eyebrow, holding out her hand for emphasis. "Huh?"
Dino glanced away for a moment before quickly shaking his head no as he looked back at her.
The jadette heavily groaned, her shoulders dropping as she pushed the blanket off her. "You know I could just slice your head off so you'd leave me alone." Her eyebrow twitched.
He flashed his teeth, his shoulders moving around a little. He looked over at the sword resting near the front door against the wall before back at her. He smiled more, using the box to point at her as he shook his head no.
Kagami rolled her eyes again, taking the box and resting it on her lap. "Fine. Okay. Whatever." She sighed, opening the box up to find a jumbled up mess of wooden chess pieces and a board. Her eyebrows rose as she glanced up at him. "You... know how to play chess?" She asked questionably with a tilt of her head.
The alligator Faunus gave a quick nod, taking the box back and setting it down on the coffee table, pushing aside a few papers as he began to set up the board and pieces.
She slowly got up, taking a deep breath as she sat down on the floor next to the low table and crossed her legs. "Are you good at this game? It's a very difficult game sometimes."
He waved her off, practically ignoring her as set the last few pieces onto the board.
Without wavering, a war was then waged, wrecking the weary warriors as they wove withered ways. Pawns picked and pummeled paladins, providing payback and protections for powerful people. Knowledgeable knights had a knack for knocking down knaves, knowing knives do not kneel. Brave and bold bishops broke down boundaries, burning bombs to bring buildings to their base. Rageful rooks were rapidly rectifying revenge, refocusing their rampage on removing royal rank. Quiet queens were quick to quarrel, never quivering, quaking, or queasy when quenching quest. Kings kept keepsakes from their kin, awaiting karma to kickback and kindle the other kingdom. And lastly the strategic sight, sniffing out snipers and secret soldiers staking out the sidelines in wait for surprise strikes.
Those seven things are all needed to win the battle, but on rare occasions, those seven things aren't enough to end it in glory. Sometimes it all ends and no one comes out victorious even with all seven things working together.
A while later, Keegan unlocked the door to her house, opening it up as she glanced around. She faintly scoffed, smiling as she saw Kagami asleep on the couch and Dino on the floor with a blanket. She eyed the chess board, seeing nothing but the two kings left on it and assuming the two of them had decided on a draw.
"Alright, come on in." She muttered, swinging the door open at the way. She immediately went to the table, setting down several files and papers as she grabbed a tennis ball and began to bounce it. She quickly turned around to face the door.
The canine Faunus smiled more, her right ear twitching a bit as she watched Kris, Elise, and Cheyenne step through followed by Nihilus and Thanaton reluctantly. She eyed Kagami for a moment as she spun the green ball in her palm. The seven of them had a lot of work to do.
Sitting at a table in her night club, Sanguine slowly tapped her fingers one at a time in a steady rhythm. Her eyes locked on the door in front of her. After a few moments, she lowered her arm, slowly leaning back as she eyed the wine glass resting on the table. "Hmm." She glanced back up at the door, blood red eyes narrowing as she picked up her drink. "Interesting." She mumbled quietly, taking a very small sip.
"What's interesting?" A voice cheered a bit as the music in the club grew louder and picked up pace. Sitting down across from her mother, Katie raised an eyebrow while tilting her head. In her arms her small chihuahua looking around with a glare in his eyes. "I haven't seen you with that look for a looooong time."
"These children... they're interesting." She couldn't help but crack a smile as she twirled her drink. "The control over that one is fading. I can barely feel it anymore. So they didn't kill her. But she hasn't returned. Which means she didn't kill them like I ordered. So somehow... they seemed to have managed a way around it. Perhaps I underestimated them."
She blinked a few times, her teeth slowly flashing as she started to chuckle. "They're just a bunch of nobodies. We shouldn't even be worrying ourselves about them. They're just a bunch of teenagers trying to play hero and turn my sweet poor baby Nihilus against me."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. Arrogance and overconfidence killed the cat before curiosity did." The blonde crime lord rose to her feet while finishing her drink. "I also don't believing they're just playing hero. They may actually become a threat." She set her glass down with a soft clink before turning around. "Come on. It's time to prepare." She started to grin, the light reflecting of her blood red eyes.
Deep in the heavy woodland on the northern side of the continent of Sanus, a one armed swordswoman sat high in the treetops, her left hand resting on the handle of her blade. Breathing silently and softly, Baren kept her eyes locked on a large buck wandering on the ground below. As the wind blew, her pink hair slowly swayed back and forth. She licked her lips, stretching her fingers as they slowly curled back around the handle. Her shoulders began to square as the animal stepped closer, her eyes narrow.
There was a sudden whoosh of air, followed by a faint whistling sound and then a harsh impact. She quickly straightened her spine, keeping herself crouching as she removed her hand from her weapon and glanced around. The deer below her falling down with a heavy thud.
"Bullseye!" A voice shouted. A few seconds later, the sound of rustling leaves and bushes echoed as two bandits emerged from their hiding spots. "That's the sixth one today! The Chief's going to be so pleased!" He grinned, putting his bow on his back while striking his palm with his hand.
"We're going to eat like kings before we slaughter those punks in Vale." The second chuckled back, rubbing his hand together. "The day after tomorrow just can't come fast enough."
"You think Shinrin is telling the truth?" The archer asked, kneeling down in front of the slain animal as he pulled out his arrow. The tip shining in a crimson read. "About that girl? The one that is just like him and his daughter with that eye reflection they do?"
"Dunno." He gave a shrug, leaning up against a tree as he shook his head and closed his eyes for a second. "Though we shouldn't have to worry. The Chief and Jade will take care of any nuisance and her friends. We just gotta do our job and let them do theirs and everything will be fine. We'll be in and out of their in no time with more of those bastards heads than they can count. Teach them to mess with us." He scoffed.
"Yeah. Yeah, guess you're right." The first nodded as he stood up. He then flinched slightly as he heard something shift. His hands quickly going for his bow. "Wait... did you hear that?"
Above them, Baren's expression had changed. It was no longer calm and neutral. No, now it was more protective. Her pupils had dilated, eyes narrowing as she flashed her teeth. Once again, her shoulders squared. The wind began to blow harder, her clothing waving up against her body. Her right sleeve as limp as ever. She reached down, flicking a few centimeters of her ninjato blade out of its sheath with a soft click. Grabbing the handle, she jumped down. Her right sleeve flying upwards and fluttering above her head.
Damn, that was nearly another three month hiatus. I'm really, really sorry. Things just seem to not get better despite how hard I try and it sucks. I also apologies for any inconsistences within this chapter. I didn't write I straight through like normally. I wrote the last scene first then I wrote the first scene, then the middle scene, second to last, fifth, third then second and it really messed with my thought process. So I apologies. Also since this little thing I have here is over 250,000 words, I was wondering what you guys thought of it exactly? *please don't throw me under the bus* But how do y'all like MACE? I mean you obviously like it if you read it this far.