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-CHAPTER START-

Realm R38Y

In the aftermath of the one-two punch of a massacre and the infamous Jacques Schnee gaining a council seat, to describe the people of Mantle as "agitated" would be a Goliath-sized understatement. People were scared and wondering who the hell that crazy scorpion Faunus was, how he was skilled enough to fight off four people at once, and why he targeted Robyn Hill's assembly. Robyn Hill had long championed for the rights of Faunus, so why would one try to kill her, to the point of wounding or killing several of her supports (including a few Faunus)?

A steadily growing number of people had come to the (correct) theory that it was an attempted frame-up – someone assassinating anti-Atlesian speakers down in Mantle in order to stir up even more distrust and vitriol against General Ironwood by making them all think the General, or someone in his inner circle, was behind it. A few folks thought it actually was the General or a close confidant, paying the killer to get rid of his enemies, though thankfully this was a rather fringe theory not being taken too seriously by too many. And some people thought the scorpion-man was just a lone nutcase, a sadistic lunatic who got his jollies ending lives and stirring up chaos for the fun of it.

In the meeting room of Atlas Academy, the heroes gathered, going over what they knew.

"Well," Winter sighed, "you kids confirmed to us that Tyrian Callows is one of Salem's people. That pretty much proves that Salem & company are behind the assassinations."

"And that was a pretty suspiciously-timed blackout" Clover added. "I'm willing to bet that her mystery tech expert, the one with intimate knowledge of Atlesian coding & security, is here as well. …Come to think of it, maybe Jacques didn't win that election legitimately after all; with how… 'divisive' he is, him getting into a position of even more power than he already had has definitely got quite a few Mantle-folk even more upset, and we all know what happens on Remnant when a whole bunch of people get really upset at once…"

Ironwood sighed. "Unfortunately, we'd need ironclad proof to be able to do anything, and our hacker 'friend' probably covered his or her tracks thoroughly." He turned to Robyn. "What's your take on all this, Ms. Hill?"

Robyn pondered for a moment. "…I think that, for the moment, capturing or killing Callows should be high-priority. He's way too dangerous to ignore."

"Agreed" Qrow replied. "He's crafty, though. We'll need a good plan to even lure him out, much less beat him. Especially if his mystery partner is able to talk caution into him."

"We'll brainstorm a plan," Ironwood said, "and we'll make it as airtight as we can before we implement it. For now, we should try to keep things from getting too out-of-control down in Mantle. And hope the defensive walls can hold…"

-Break-

That evening, Ironwood and Oscar were down by the Atlas Vault, philosophizing and discussing current & recent events.

"All this time," Ironwood sighed, "Oz had lost hope…"

"I… I'm sorry" Oscar lowered his gaze.

Ironwood shook his head. "If it weren't for you, we never would've learned the truth about Salem's origin, and… everything connected to that tale. …Maybe with the DDF's actually-competent deity allies on the case, this whole mess can get solved."

"When we told Xion everything, she mentioned hope that the χ-Blade, being a 'Genesis Weapon' as old as Creation, could overcome the Brothers' curse and put Salem down. But Sora's the only one to manage summoning it, and only once so far, and he's preoccupied on another mission. There's also 'Ea', the other Genesis Weapon; the Supreme Kais have it locked up on their world, for safekeeping. Though, using that thing sounds… risky, even for how bad our situation is."

"In any event… I've been thinking about the Lamp's wording. Just because Salem can't be killed, doesn't mean she can't be defeated. Toss her into a black hole, de-Grimmify her, seal her in, I dunno, a dumpster on the Moon…" He thought of their resident team of teenagers with attitude. "Ruby Rose seems to be a bit of a miracle worker; maybe she'll pull something outta her cloak."

"As long as she doesn't feel under too much pressure; she's resilient, but everyone has a limit…"

Ironwood looked down. "Despite his screwups, I'm really wishing Oz were here right now. We need any advantage we can get."

"He's still hiding deep inside my Heart; I don't know if he's paying any attention to the outside world."

"Well, if he does start watching, let's hope we can pull off a win – rekindle his hope."

The two of them decided to head back up from the Vault. When they stepped out of the elevator, however, they saw a rather anxious Winter waiting, with Penny fidgeting nearby.

"Winter?" Ironwood asked. "What's wrong?"

Standing at attention and visibly reining her feelings in, she very rigidly handed him an envelope, bearing a wax seal of the Schnee emblem. Opening it up, Ironwood looked the letter over, eyes widening slightly.

"What is it?" Oscar asked.

"My father's first act" Winter bit out. "We've all been invited to dinner, where the General will be defending his seat on the council."

-Break-

Team RWBY and Oscar were gathered in the former's dorm-room in Atlas Academy. Weiss let out a disgusted sigh as she looked down at the invitation.

"Only my father would turn a hostile takeover into a fluffy PR move…"

"On the news," Ruby said, "he said he just wanted to break bread and hash things out. Maybe it won't be so bad? We do want the General to start opening up to the Council, right?"

"Yeah, but on his terms" Oscar replied. "Ironwood's going to be locked in a room at his rival's own dinner party. I know Jacques says he's happy to moderate, but all that really means is he'll be the one controlling the conversation."

"Not hard to imagine how that's gonna play out…" Blake remarked.

"I still can't believe he won…" Weiss looked down. "Robyn was supposed to be the people's champion, wasn't she? There's just too many coincidences…"

"You really think your dad might have something to do with Team Salem?" Yang asked.

"I think he would do whatever it takes to win."

"And we should do the same" Ruby cut in.

"Meaning…?"

"Well, no one knows your dad better than you, and out of everyone going tonight, I'd say you're the only one who could snoop around the house and not be questioned. If Jacques Schnee is up to something, I think we should know what it is."

-Break-

Shortly after nightfall, four hover-cars drove up in front of the Schnee Manor, while a news airship hovered high overhead. From the cars emerged Ruby, Weiss, Yang, Qrow, Jaune, Pyrrha, Oscar, the Ace-Ops, Ironwood, Winter, & Penny.

"Suppose we should smile for the cameras?" Ironwood cracked.

Winter looked sourer than a lemon. "Sir, with all due respect, you'd have to pay me."

Everyone gathered at the huge front doors, with Ironwood ringing the bell. A few seconds later, the doors swung open, revealing Whitley Schnee looking as much like a smug little sh*t as always. [AN: Fic is 'T', don't know what swearing I can get away with before I have to raise it to 'M', playing it safe…]

"Good evening, everyone" he greeted.

Weiss looked confused. "Where's Klein?"

The young teen made a sarcastic smile, posing dramatically. "What an interesting way to say 'Hello, dear brother, how have you been?'." His smile dropped, as he crossed his arms and frowned at his sister. "I'm afraid you won't find him here. He was let go. I can't imagine why…" He smirked with that last remark, then looked out at the size of the party. "General, exactly how large do you think our dining room table is?"

Ironwood tried not to glare down at the smug brat. "I happen to know it's enormous. But most of my guests will be on standby in case the council requests additional eyewitnesses. Until then, I'm sure they'll be happily celebrating your father's victory."

Rolling his eyes, Whitley turned and led the group into the foyer. Small groups of guests in formal wear were scattered around, with waiters roaming the floor. Stopping in the center of the room, Whitley turned back to Ironwood's group and pointed to his right.

"For those of you joining us in the dining room, please follow me."

He walked that way, followed by Ironwood, Winter, Penny, and Clover. The latter turned to look back for a moment.

"Wish us luck" he remarked.

"I mean," Qrow shrugged, "they've already invited you, didn't they?"

As Clover chuckled and followed his CO, a rabbit-Faunus waiter strolled up to Qrow, holding a tray of wine glasses.

"Care for a drink, sir?"

Qrow's eyes widened. "Uh… No, n-no thanks. I'm trying to quit any & all alcohol; long, ugly story… I think I'll just stick to patrolling the grounds."

He walked away, with Marrow watching the waiter slink away with a frown.

"Words outta my mouth…" the dog-Faunus grumbled, following Qrow.

Watching them leave, Harriet turned to face Ruby's group. "Right, well… Don't wander off, don't break anything, and be ready in case the General calls on you."

She walked off with Vine and Elm ("Hors d'oeuvres?" "Let's eat 'em out of house and home!").

"Counterpoint" Yang said to her fellows. "How about we do wander off, consider breaking things, and then all that other stuff."

"I'll be in touch" Weiss said, pointing to the comm device in her ear. She headed for the stairs… only to stop at the base as Whitley descended them toward her.

"Dear sister, I was hoping we could use this time to catch up. I have to know: Why did you go through so much trouble to leave home, only to come crawling back?"

Weiss sighed. Looking on from the background, her friends looked either concerned, worried, or exasperated.

"This might be a problem…" Oscar remarked.

-X-

"General Ironwood, please…" Jacques waved the General in. "Have a seat."

Jacques stood at the other side of the room, at the head of a long dining-room table. Councilman Sleet and Councilwoman Camilla were seated to either side of him, and Robyn Hill stood by a window, arms crossed as she stared out into the night. Ironwood nodded to each of them besides Schnee, while Clover, Winter, & Penny took their seats near his.

"Councilman Sleet, Councilwoman Camilla, Deputy Hill…"

"Councilwoman Hill would've been better…" Robyn grumbled, giving Jacques the stink-eye. "Though, I suppose I should just be grateful I got invited to the table."

Jacque chuckled. "Miss Hill, that vigor of yours is precisely why we're grateful to have you with us tonight."

"So, why did you invite her?" Ironwood asked. "Her role as a deputized 'liaison' for the DDF?"

"Partially, I suppose" Jacques folded his hands. "We are here to address the concerns of our Kingdom, which means we have much to discuss."

Robyn came over, taking an offered seat next to Clover, who gave her a respectful nod. Councilman Sleet arched an eyebrow.

"I was under the impression Ms. Hill… disapproved… of some of the choices Atlas has made recently."

"Her deputization by the Dimensional Defense Force allowed her to be brought into the loop on a classified project that I and the DDF are collaborating on" Ironwood replied. "One that, if successful, will benefit all of Remnant, not just Atlas or Mantle."

"But there are bad actors that could sabotage it if news got out" Robyn added. "Hence, the 'classified' part."

"So classified that even the Council can't know?" Jacques asked accusingly.

Ironwood sighed. "Just because some members of the Council may be trustworthy doesn't mean that every single person that they may talk to is. We need to keep this airtight until the project is ready to… get off the ground, so to speak." (Penny briefly grinned at the pun.)

"…Some?" Jacques caught the veiled insult, frowning. In response, Winter spared him a smug smirk as waiters walked in with food & drink.

"You can't just buy trust like everything else, Father" she said. "You have to earn it."

-X-

Meanwhile, Whitley was still jabbering on at Weiss, as Ruby & co. (now joined by the rest of RWBY & JNPPR) helplessly looked on.

"Why won't this kid buzz off?" Yang scowled.

"We need to do something" Blake agreed.

Jaune pondered for a moment, looking around. "What was that earlier about breaking things?" he said with a smirk.

As Team JNPPR maneuvered into position, Weiss was trying not to grind her teeth as her little brother would not let her past him to climb the stairs and just would not shut up.

"-Of course, once I'm old enough to drive, the company has promised me my own parking space-"

Suddenly, Weiss heard a commotion behind her. She turned while Whitley looked up, and their eyes widened as they saw the plate of food soaring through the air toward them. She, with her honed Huntress instincts, had the speed and reaction time to get out of the way. He did not. The smarmy youth ended up covered in a mushy mess of hors d'oeuvres, all over his hair and shirt.

"…If you'll excuse me" he said through gritted teeth, turning and making his exit in quite the hurry. With a covert wave to her grinning friends, Weiss then made her move, climbing the stairs and slipping down one of the corridors.

-X-

Making her way down one of the presently-empty corridors of the mansion, Weiss arrived at her father's personal office… and found it occupied.

"Hello, darling" the broken woman known as Willow Schnee said. "I'm sorry I couldn't come down for the party. I'm… afraid I'm not feeling well."

"Um…" Weiss felt awkward. "It's okay, mom. It's fine."

There was a brief moment of silence, Willow setting a bottle of vodka down on the desk. "W… What are you doing in your father's office?"

Weiss was slightly caught off-guard, but recovered. "Just… looking for something I left."

"That's right, you… left. You left…"

Weiss moved toward her mother and the desk. "I need to use father's computer?"

Willow looked confused. "Why?"

"Because I think he may have done something very wrong."

Willow sighed. "I thought we all simply assumed that at this point. But at least you're trying to do something about it, unlike the rest of us…"

She poured herself a glass of vodka, went to drink from the bottle, but then paused and chose the glass instead. Weiss arched an eyebrow, and Willow cleared her throat at her daughter's look.

"One of your father's associates died of cirrhosis a week ago. Scared me. I'm trying to cut back. Even with an activated Aura providing a regenerative effect, I…"

"Wait… Mother, you have an active Aura?"

With a brief little tired smile, Willow held up her hand, conjuring a rotating Schnee Semblance glyph. "I wasn't always such a wreck, dear." She picked up a Scroll off the desk. "He's started locking his home computer. But… he still has blind spots."

She keyed in a couple commands, bringing up a live feed from a hidden camera. Weiss gasped.

"You put a camera in here?"

"I put them in every room of this house, for our safety. In case I ever needed to… …You haven't come back to stay, have you?"

"No."

Willow actually smiled at that, a tear in her eye. "Good." She took a moment to compose herself. "A man came by. Your father seemed to recognize him – be friendly with him, even. But… I'm afraid Jacques may be involved in something more dangerous than he realizes."

She handed Weiss the Scroll, showing a recorded video of Jacques speaking with a tall, thin, mustached man.

"No matter what happens, Weiss… Please don't forget about your brother."

"Whitley wants nothing to do with me."

"Of course not. You left him here… with us."

Willow headed for the door, stopping to hug Weiss from behind, resting her chin on the top of her petite daughter's head. She then made her exit, closing the door behind her. Gathering herself, Weiss stared at the paused image on the Scroll, at the mystery man meeting with her father.

"Who are you…?"

-X-

Down in Mantle, the man in question made his move, uploading a recorded video of his own and then striking his next devastating blow to the city…

-X-

The meeting continued.

"And how goes the effort to locate and catch Tyrian Callows, General?" Councilwoman Camilla asked.

"We're working a plan" Ironwood replied. "But we have to be careful."

Clover spoke up. "Tyrian is a bloodthirsty loon, but he's a smart bloodthirsty loon. If he realizes we're getting close, he could either go deeper into cover, or set counter-ambushes for us. We have to be sure we can get him before we make our move."

"And we'd prefer a method that doesn't involve waiting for him to strike again" Winter added. "Especially since we've no idea who he'd go after next…"

"Mm, yes" Jacques nodded. "I looked him up after that fiasco. He's a rather… egalitarian murderer – has killed rich & poor, human & Faunus, in more or less equal measure… He doesn't really seem to have a preferred prey."

"Then why was he going after people critical to Ironwood?" Councilman Sleet. "Unless it was simply to stir up trouble by turning Mantle's people against Atlas for his own amusement."

"That… may in fact be the case" Penny replied, knowing she couldn't (yet) tell the Council about Tyrian's boss.

"Qrow Branwen, Clover, and Ms. Hill will be the team to take Tyrian in or take him down" Ironwood explained. "Due to Ms. Hill's intimate knowledge of Mantle's layout and ability to provide ranged support, Clover's experience and "good luck" Semblance, and Qrow's top-class swordsmanship that has let him match Tyrian blow-for-blow in the past."

Jacques quirked an eyebrow, looking at his eldest. "What about Winter?"

The young woman shook her head. "I'm good, but… I'm not on Qrow's level, and thus not on Tyrian's."

"Ah, you'll get there eventually" Clover reassured her. "I know you can."

Suddenly, every personal Scroll in the room chimed, displaying an image of hissing static, while the wall-mounted television in the council room did the same. After a few seconds, the static cleared to reveal a black background with white words: "THE FOLLOWING RECORDING IS BEING BROADCAST ACROSS ALL OF ATLAS AND MANTLE". The screen then changed to show none other than the infamous Adam Taurus, seated at a simple black table, staring at the camera with a frown.

"Hey, folks. You wanna see something interesting? …Wanna know what set me on the path I walk?"

In the main ballroom, as the curious guests watched the displayed video, Blake's unease at seeing That Man again surged upward as she saw him reaching up for his famous bone-white mask. She knew exactly what was under that thing. On the screen, Adam slowly removed his eye-mask, revealing his icy blue right eye… and the hideous branding-iron scar over his ruined left eye, pupil scarred white and sclera tinted red.

"Look familiar?" he growled softly to the camera, which zoomed in on the unmistakable Schnee Dust Company brand marring his face.

"Oh no…" Jacques murmured softly, wide-eyed, as right away he realized how badly this was going to impact his company's image – his image…

The camera held there for a few seconds before going black, and the broadcast intrusion ended. Murmurs and slowly-loudening discussions started breaking out all across the two cities. In the council room, everyone slowly turned to face Jacques, who was starting to sweat.

Then, before anybody could say anything, one of Jacques' staff came into the room, leaning in and whispering into the man's ear. Jacques visibly paled, fidgeting as the waiter made a hasty exit.

"Jacques?" Ironwood said in a low tone, trying to keep as cool as possible. "Is there anything you'd like to share with the class?"

"I-I… Um…"

Just then, another surprise arrived, as the door to the meeting room was dramatically thrown open, revealing Weiss.

"Honored Councilors!" the girl shouted. "Begging your pardon for the interruption, but I have acquired some very interesting footage that I think you'll all like to see." Striding forward, shutting the door behind her, she pulled out a Scroll, sliding it across the table to stop between Sleet, Camilla, & Ironwood. "Take a gander at this!"

The recording was paused on a shot from inside Jacques' office, showing him deep in discussion with a tall, thin, mustached man. Councilwoman Camilla's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Is that… Arthur Watts?!"

Councilman Sleet shot to his feet. "Impossible! Dr. Watts died in the Paladin Incident years ago."

Now, Jacques was thoroughly flustered. "W-What is this?!"

Ironwood nodded to Weiss. "Play it."

Weiss tapped the 'Play' button, partially muffling the nervous gulp from Jacques as the clip began to run.

"That bastard is costing me more money every day with these trade restrictions. I'd lay off every employee in Mantle if I wasn't trying to get their damn votes for this Council seat."

"What if I said you could have your cake… and eat it, too?"

"…What did you have in mind, Arthur?"

"James Ironwood never recognized my genius. After everything I gave him, he still disgraced me. I simply wish to return the favor."

"What's in it for me?"

"A seat on the council. All I need is your login credentials for the Atlas network. You promise to make Ironwood's life a waking nightmare, and I will guarantee you victory at the polls by giving the voters down in Mantle a little… 'digital push', if you will."

There was a soft crack as Robyn's angry grip on the chair beside her made the wood start to give.

"I always knew you were a good scientist, Arthur… but I never knew you were such a good salesman."

Ironwood stood beside Weiss. "Enough."

Weiss paused the recording right after the onscreen Jacques cackled. The real Jacques was pale and sweating, getting to his feet.

"T- That is, I… I can explain that. That… isn't real."

"Take your seat, Jacques" Councilman Sleet growled.

After a brief pause, Jacques suddenly sprang into motion, sprinting for the exit doors and throwing them open… to reveal a 7-foot-tall Arma Gigas revenant-summon, hands resting on the hilt of its sword stabbed down into the floor. Jacques stumbled back in shock.

"Jacques Géle-Schnee…" Weiss pulled out her Huntress license. "You are under arrest."

A few moments of stunned silence passed… and then Weiss looked over to Ironwood.

"Can I do that?"

-X-

Soon, Team RWBY were brought into the meeting room. Jacques was seated in a chair against one of the walls, surrounded by the adults in the room, who weren't about to let him out of their sight for even a second. Clover stepped out for a moment to listen to his comm device.

"I knew you'd stoop low to get what you wanted, Jacques," Ironwood started, "but this?"

Jacques frowned. "This is all a great leap, James."

"No, it's quite simple really – now that I know Arthur Watts is alive. Working with a madman like Tyrian Callows, it would be easy for someone like him to coordinate an unthinkably heinous act like the one in that warehouse. Watts designed Mantle's entire security network. If Rattrap's infrared vision and glowing energy sword hadn't spotted & exposed Tyrian, Watts was probably going to hack the surveillance system and frame someone else for the massacre. All while stealing an election…" He stepped closer to Jacques, visibly unnerving the sleazy businessman. "And once you became a Councilman, your newly-granted clearance" he slammed his hands onto the chair's arms, making Jacques jump, "gave him a backdoor into Atlas' secure network. But you probably hadn't considered that, had you?"

"The people who died that night…" Robyn glared hatefully at the white-dressed man. "Their blood is in your hands."

Sleet nodded, looking grave. "Jacques Schnee must be tried – not only for treason, but as an accessory to murder."

Jacques growled. "These outrageous accusations! I had nothing to do with that bloodshed! I only intended to win the election!"

"Only?!" Robyn shouted, followed by a splintering crack as the nearby chair she'd been gripping gave way to her Aura-enhanced strength. "…Oops."

"Don't worry, I'll pay for it" Ironwood waved it off.

Camilla turned to the General. "What else will Watts be able to do with the access Jacques' given him?"

"With enough time? Whatever he wants."

Suddenly, the Scrolls of Ironwood, Camilla, Sleet, & Jacques all buzzed and pinged, making Jacques jump. Camilla pulled out her Scroll, showing an emergency alert, while Sleet answered a call on his.

"Wait… Wait, what? What do you mean the heat has gone off?!"

The girls of RWBY all looked shocked at that, Yang's fist clenching.

"You have to believe me," Jacques spoke up, "I-I-I didn't know he was planning this."

Winter slammed her hands down on the arm of his chair, making him flinch away from her.

"You are going to shut your mouth and get the heating grid up & running again" she growled.

"I… I've been informed that we can't get into the system. It's… it's been blocked off."

Ironwood kept staring at the emergency alerts on his Scroll's screen, while Robyn stared out the window at Mantle below.

"Without heat down there…" Sleet spoke, "people are going to die."

"General Ironwood?" Ruby stepped closer. "How bad is it?"

Thinking, Ironwood started typing and scrolling through things, checking data. "He's using Jacques' credentials. We can follow that activity on the network. If he's found his way into the Amity system…" He looked over the data. "No. The secret is safe… for now. But if he learns about Amity, she learns about Amity."

"Can you block his access?" Weiss asked.

Scrolling through multiple "ACCESS DENIED" screens, Ironwood shook his head. "Too late. He's already starting to lock us out."

"Can we trace him somehow?" Blake asked. "Find out where he's hiding?"

"He's going to be mobile. We need his access point. We need to get him out in the open."

"Wait, what's this about Amity?" Sleet asked.

Robyn looked at Ironwood, who sighed and nodded, then turned back to face the other Councilors. "The big secret project we've been working on? It's to turn Amity Colosseum into a CCT network tower and then launch it high into the atmosphere, out of the Grimm's reach, to bring the network back online."

The Councilors gasped.

"That's what you've been up to?!" Jacques turned to Ironwood. "James… Getting the network back up helps everyone! Including the SDC! Why wouldn't you tell me?! I would've given you whatever resources you needed! A-And why would Watts want to stop this?! Surely his grudge against you wouldn't override the logic of helping the world!"

Ironwood winced. "It's a long, ugly story…"

Outside the window, Mantle's lights could all be seen turning red, a siren faintly audible even from this distance. The meeting room doors were flung open, revealing Clover and Oscar.

"General," Clover reported, "the Grimm are all over Mantle. The one-two punch of Taurus' little reveal and the heaters shutting down has generated enough negativity to draw in almost as much Grimm was what hit Vale. The air fleet's doing everything they can, but they can't easily target Grimm in the city without risking casualties."

"This…" Ironwood sighed, looking weary. "This is what I feared would happen."

"Sir, we need ground forces down there now."

"What we need is to start evacuating Mantle" Robyn cut in. "If it's completely overrun, it's not going to be safe anywhere. Have the UNSC start sending in Pelicans, and move the fleet to-"

"If I move too much of the fleet," Ironwood replied, "then Atlas will be left vulnerable. I… I tried to keep the kingdom safe. And now we're losing everything."

"General?" Oscar walked up, one hand on the Lamp. "Earlier, you asked for advice. Ozpin probably would've told you to keep your secrets. But when we first got here, you already knew that wasn't the right course. You had a new plan."

"It's time to give up on that plan. It's all falling apart…"

"The panic you were worried about? It's already happening. The secrets you're keeping? They're about to be in the open anyway. It's time. For the truth."

"You're not in this alone" Ruby spoke up. "We're in this together."

After a moment, Ironwood nodded, giving the boy a grateful smile. "Thank you. Oscar, I think it's time to get you back to the Academy."

As Winter brought her Scroll up, keying in commands, Ironwood turned to the Council. "Councilman Sleet, Councilwoman Camilla, there are some things you need to know about. Let's figure out how we can help Mantle… together."

"I've called a transport" Winter reported.

"What about Watts and Tyrian?" Yang asked.

"You leave them to me" Ironwood replied. "Right now, you're needed down below."

Ruby stepped up to her team. "Alright, everybody, it's time to do our jobs." She looked to Penny. "All of us."

"What she said" Clover nodded, grinning. "Let's make it happen, Hunters."

The heroes rushed out of the room, heading off to battle. As they ran, they passed the dark-haired, green-eyed waitress who'd been assisting the serving of food to the meeting… who smirked as her eyes briefly changed to heterochromatic pink & brown…

-Break-

Soon, Teams RWBY & JNPPR, Qrow, and the Ace-Ops were aboard a Manta, flying down toward the besieged Mantle.

"Alright, everyone" Clover announced. "I need to stress to our new Hunters: we are prioritizing citizen safety over killing Grimm. Got it?"

The nine young Hunters (as Ironwood predicted, Pirika had caught up and earned her license not long ago) nodded. Nora looked at Ren, who had his head turned away and his eyes closed. She laid her hand on his, and he gripped back.

As the Manta flew through the air, a Teryx – a draconic Grimm – tailed it. Speeding up, the Teryx got in front and then landed on the front end, glaring through the cockpit window and letting out a shrieking roar, wings flared.

"Hang on back there!" Marrow shouted to the others.

The 'kids' buckled their seatbelts, while Elm grabbed Qrow & Clover and triggered his Semblance to root them in place for the incoming "turbulence", Weiss using the glyphs on Ruby and Vine for the same purpose. In the pilot's seat, Harriet started leaning and spinning the Manta in an attempt to dislodge their unwanted passenger, but the Teryx repositioned itself, standing on top of the dropship and swinging its claw at the starboard side. Blake & Yang moved just in time to avoid the razor-sharp claws that pierced through the thin armor, tearing rents in the hull.

"I can't shake it!" Harriet cried.

A second Teryx joined the fray, slamming its hind claws through the aircraft's right wing and then backing off. A severed fuel line in the wing erupted, the wing spewing flames, the Manta starting to waver and 'sink'.

"I don't think we're staying airborne" Marrow reported.

"Time to go" Qrow said.

"You all have your team assignments" Clover headed to the rear hatch, flicking his medal. "Let's go."

He smacked the hatch, making the door slide open, revealing the Terix roaring at him. Before the Grimm could do anything, the Manta's damaged wing gave way and snapped off, flying back and slamming into the Teryx, knocking it away and probably dealing mortal damage. One by one, the young heroes made their exit, airdropping into the city below.

"Don't stay too long, Harriet" Elm waved.

"Yeah, thanks for the tip" Harriet snarked, still fighting to keep the dying aircraft somewhat level.

Once a few more of the team had left, Harriet broke through the cockpit windshield and made her dramatic exit, Ruby close behind. With just Clover and Qrow still inside, Clover made a cocky salute and let himself fall backward out of the ship.

"Showoff…" Qrow griped with a smile, and then made his own exit.

-Break-

In the foyer of the Schnee Manor, Whitley sat at the bottom of the main grand staircase, staring sadly at the spectacle of his irate father being hauled off by Atlesian officers.

"How dare you?! This is highly unnecessary. I will not stand for this! Don't touch me like that!"

Willow, having been giving a very disappointed look at her husband, turned to look at her son, who got up and ran up the stairs.

"I'll be reporting this rough treatment! What is your name and badge number?!"

As the flying paddy wagon's door was slammed shut, a certain dark-haired waitress exited the manor, skipping along while the prison transport lifted off. She made her way to a nearby hotel, entering a security code and slipping into an empty hallway with a window overlooking the city.

"Huh" Cinder spoke up from where she leaned against a wall. "You're back early. …Tell me you found what we're looking for."

Dispelling her holographic disguise, Neo gave her partner-in-crime a satisfied smirk.

-CHAPTER END-