The area was silent as the snow quietly impacted the ground in the city. The only sound present was the crunching of the snow underneath several pairs of boots through the monitors. It was almost impossible to believe that just over three years ago, this place was bustling with activity, now it was like it had been abandoned for decades.

Destroyed cars and crumbling buildings gave it the appearance of a husk of a city, that didn't include the massive sinkhole from the Heaven's Spear deeper within. Nobody came here, and the few that did were either smugglers looking for supplies or people searching for loved ones. Despite Beacon keeping everything as secure as they could, people always found ways to sneak out and into the city.

"You're approaching the location." Blake told them as she watched them make their way through the empty streets. Despite the Glowies having crystaline growths on their body, they still retained some semblance of their humanity. She had seen a few of them beg for their lives before reverting back into their violent state. It was heartbreaking to see people go from regular citizens to feral beings.

The BSS needed a living specimen for further study and it gave everyone an idea as to what they were dealing with when it came to the Glowies. She was confused when a new set of orders were sent and when she asked who sent them, she was met with nothing. Normally, it wouldn't bother her, but for orders to be sent to the Gears without notifying her rubbed her the wrong way.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she saw them arrive at the location, moving inside the building and clearing it out. She constantly gave them updates regarding the surrounding area and informed them to quickly bag the target for retrieval. It only took them seven minutes to reach the target.

The Onyx and Obsidian Guards lived up to their name and constantly proved themselves battle after battle. When asked why regular Gears couldn't all be trained like them, they were always met with either the long answer or the short answer. Each of the famed elite Guards went through advanced training and have experience from when the Gears was first built up from the dirt. It was also extremely expensive, for each one that was trained was the equivalent of ten to fifteen regular Gears.

Specialized missions like these called for their services and Blake knew that they took their jobs seriously. She watched as they cleared whatever opposition stood in their way before securing the target. The VDF stationed around the building killed whatever approached them. It was times like these was she glad that they had helped establish an organized army. She couldn't fathom how disastrous things would've been had they waited too long.

"Good work. Bullheads should be arriving to come pick you up." She said and watched as they gathered around, surrounding the unconscious target until the Bullheads arrived.

After several minutes, the aerial vehicles arrived and they piled inside after loading the target in. Although they weren't being paid for this mission, information was enough once the researchers found out more. They needed all they could if they wanted to make it through and Blake felt that things like that were most important above other things.

The screens were shut off and she rubbed her face before starting on the report. People always assumed that she didn't write reports, but they couldn't be anymore wrong. She couldn't even bother to think of how many she's written since the start of the war and knew the numbers would only grow.

Minutes turned to tens of minutes before that eventually turned into an hour and the door opened up. Her eyes flicked to the person entering and she saw that it was Jessica and Ruby's team. While she wasn't necessarily friendly with them, she did enjoy talking to Jessica. The girl was an honest soul, too good for this world sometimes, but she knew how to get the job done.

"Are we heading back tonight?" Jessica asked.

"We'll be heading back tomorrow morning." Blake answered, as she glanced at her.

"Okay. Is it alright if I rest a bit? This mission was a little more stressful than I thought." Jessica rubbed the back of her neck.

"Yeah, go ahead." Blake nodded and the other Faunus nodded gratefully before heading to one of the cots and taking her gear off. She sighed pleasantly as she lied down and closed her eyes, feeling the adrenaline quickly fade from her system.

It was quiet as Blake turned back to her work while the other three just awkwardly stood in place and looked around the safe house. It was clear that the Gears were well equipped and were professionals. While they respected the Gears, it was clear that they took their job seriously and Yang almost learned the hard way.

"So are the others coming back here?" Ruby asked after a few minutes.

"They're delivering the target to the drop off location." Blake answered.

"Is this the right thing to do?" Weiss asked.

"No, but we don't have a choice. This one is the only living specimen that we've been able to get our hands on. You've seen what the rest do when they die." Blake answered as she stood up and crossed the picture of the target out. A red marker was drawn over it and she put the cap on with a loud squeak before sitting back down.

"Yeah..." Ruby whispered as she kept thinking about the infected. It was horrifying to see them when they died, because they just turned into a thick, black sludge or exploded into bits. The horrid smell constantly clung to her nose and the sickly sight of them literally melting always bothered her.

"So when Mantle fell and Ronin got his-" Yang started, only to stop when Blake's face turned emotionless and she just stared at her.

"Atlas is prepared for an assault if the Locust emerge, right?" Weiss changed the subject quickly. While she didn't always see eye to eye with the Gears, she knew better than to try and meddle with things she had no business in.

"If Mantle's fall wasn't enough for Atlas to actually get their heads out of their rears, then there's a chance that it'll fall. They should know by now how dangerous the Locust are at this point, nearly everyone does." Blake answered as she subtly narrowed her eyes at Yang before turning away.

"This war will end soon... right?" Ruby asked hopefully.

"..." Blake just glanced at her before shrugging after several seconds. It was hard to tell when it would actually end, it could be another few years or another decade before a conclusion was in sight.

They fell into an uneasy silence and the three left Blake alone, deciding to retire for the night and get some rest. It was hard to talk to her and they were sure she didn't feel like having a conversation with them either. Compared to her, they still felt like kids, even though she was just several months older than them.

Weiss and Yang fell asleep relatively fast while Ruby was the only one up. When she initially joined the military, she felt that bubbly sense of excitement like every other newbie next to her. She got to serve with her friends and meet all sorts of new people. It was alright for a while and she was content; of course the jeers at her idealistic approach to things hurt a little, she was willing to look past it.

Everything came crumbling down after the Redrock Raid. She lost more than half her friends and started to see how horrible everything was now. Sometimes she pleaded to whatever higher being out there to wake up from this sick nightmare, only to be reminded that this was her life now. How she missed the days when the most horrifying thing she heard was a Grimm attack.

At least the Grimm killed their victims quick. The Locust took sick, sadistic pleasure in the pain they caused. Each malicious action they took part in did little to satiate the bloodlust that never ran dry. What kind of god would allow such creatures to exist?

"Do you think Patch is safe?" Ruby asked from her cot.

"Is there military presence there?" Blake asked as she worked on her report.

"The VDF is starting to go there." Ruby said.

"..." Blake just hummed in acknowledgement and continued her work.

"Do you have family still alive?" Ruby asked.

"I do." Blake answered curtly.

"Do you miss them?" Ruby asked.

"I do." Blake nodded.

"That's good." Ruby whispered. That uneasy silence returned and Blake stopped scribbling on the piece of paper, glancing back at Ruby to see her blankly staring at the ceiling.

"Why are you asking?" Blake asked.

"I... don't have many people to talk to anymore." Ruby confessed.

The pain in her voice was hard to catch, but Blake caught it easily. She saw a young woman who had her dreams shattered before her very eyes, had to deal with genocidal monsters that were worse than the Grimm, and deal with the pain of losing everyone she cherished.

Beacon was such a bleak place to stay in, the sky hasn't seen a sunny day in months, the environment seemed to lose some of its color and spirit as time passed, and people were always scared. They were scared of another attack and the possibility that their days were numbered.

"I'm sorry." Blake apologized.

"It's okay. They can take it easy now." Ruby said.

"Yeah..." Blake whispered and turned away again. The silence returned and wasn't broken this time due to Ruby falling asleep. It was peaceful and the only sound present was the typing on a keyboard and the scribbling of a pen.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Jaune rubbed his face tiredly as he sat up in his chair and finished writing his report. He had been up all night getting everything in order and had to deal with Ozpin's antics. As usual, the older man was being senile but he was glad Ironwood was starting to have some sense.

He perked up when the door opened and Blake walked inside with Red following her. They greeted him before plopping down on the couch and chair respectively. All three of them were tired but had the next few days off, so they were looking forward to it at least.

"How was the mission?" He asked.

"Tense, as usual, but we managed to get the specimen." Blake answered as she covered her eyes with her arm.

"What about you, Red?" Jaune asked.

"Nothing out of the ordinary. Just killed a few Locust." She shrugged and closed her eyes.

"I'm glad you two got out, I've been stuck doing paperwork. This sucks." He murmured.

"Walker did say that like fifty percent of his job was paperwork." Blake said.

Before he could say anything, there was a knock on the door and he sighed loudly before walking to it. On the other side was Velvet and he relaxed a bit before stepping to the side and letting her in. She thanked him and held Amiya in her arms, adjusting her coat a bit before setting her on the sofa.

"Hey, Velvet." Blake greeted.

"Hey." She greeted the three of them.

"What brings you here?" Red asked as she sat up in the chair.

"Just visiting. We haven't seen you three in a while." Velvet said as she gestured to her and Amiya. The young girl crawled on the sofa and leaned back against the cushion before raising her hand once and dropping it, letting out a little grunt.

"Sorry about that. We've been busy recently and haven't had much time to ourselves." Jaune rubbed the back of his neck.

"I know... I just hope one day everything will turn out alright. I don't want her to grow up in a world like this." Velvet said as she put Amiya on her lap and poked her belly.

"I don't think anybody would want that." Blake said and Velvet hummed in agreement before looking around the house. It was quite cozy in its own right and Beacon had come a long way from being a school to a fortified location.

"I'm surprised you're here though." Red said.

"In all honesty, coming here was the last thing on my mind but I figured the idiot would like to see his daughter." Velvet said.

"Did he?" Jaune asked.

"He doesn't know how to interact with her. Plus... I don't think she likes him anyways." She shook her head.

"Do you think he deserves another chance?" Blake asked.

"No, not anymore. I've given him all this time and he still can't seem to get the idea. He wasn't there when I was pregnant and when I gave birth to her, then I doubt he'll want to be in her life at all." Velvet rolled her eyes.

"Aside from that. How've you been doing?" Blake changed the subject because she could feel the tension in the room growing heavier.

Velvet smiled as she started to tell them how they've all been doing these last few months. Menagerie was peaceful for the most part with the exceptions of a few incidents. Nobody really caused trouble since they knew that their situation wasn't as bad as some. She then told them about her job as a photographer and how much she was enjoying it, much more than what she initially thought.

Amiya made a noise and was set down, crawling over the ground and eventually to Red. She sat on her butt and looked up at her before gripping her pants and shakily standing up. Red just looked at the others before awkwardly picking Amiya up and setting her on her lap, going stiff when the toddler rubbed her face in her collar.

Children were never her thing, she didn't know how to interact with them and the same applied to adults as well. She was content with being in the background and only keeping a few people close to her. Although, she couldn't help but feel a throb of joy from her heart. It felt nice and she subconsciously brought Amiya a bit closer to her. Her eyes flicked up when Blake snapped a picture of her and she frowned slightly when she put the scroll away before she could do anything.

"Someone's embarrassed." Blake let out a smug look.

"I hate you sometimes." Red responded as she handed Amiya back to Velvet.

"I think a certain someone would love to-" Blake stopped when Amiya crawled on her and rubbed her face in her collar as well. Her face heat up a bit and she covered her mouth before hearing the sound of a picture being taken. This time it was Red and Velvet who took the pictures, making her huff and grumble underneath her breath.

For the next couple of hours they just talked with one another, enjoying each other's company and discussing various things. While they weren't allowed to disclose certain information, the three of them told Velvet how everything was going so far. While it was different to not have Walker around, they were getting the hang of it and felt that he would be at least a little proud they were managing well enough without him.

"You know, I saw Cardin the other day." Velvet said.

"Oh yeah?" Jaune asked.

"Yeah, he seemed... sad." She said and noticed that their expressions saddened a bit. They knew something that she didn't and it felt almost wrong to ask.

"It's only him." Blake said.

"Oh..." Velvet whispered. That was all she needed to hear to understand what had happened. While she didn't necessarily know the details, she knew that his team was gone now and it was just him. Despite him being a rather rude, abrasive individual in the start, she saw that he started to shift his behavior the more time he spent as a Gear. If there was one thing he cared about, it was his team.

They were basically his family, and to hear that they were gone meant that he didn't have anyone left now. This war constantly robbed everyone's loved ones away from them and left them bitter, resentful, and depressed in some type of way. She was lucky enough to have the people she cherished the most next to her.

She looked at the time and realized that it was getting late. Amiya was nodding off and they'd all be departing back to Menagerie in several days. For once, she looked forward to seeing the vibrant colors of that place and feeling the warm air kiss her skin.

"Are you three headed back soon?" Velvet asked.

"We're probably going to head back in another two or three months." Blake answered.

"Why so long?" Velvet asked.

"A lot needs to be done here, plus I'd rather be here than Atlas." Blake responded truthfully. In all honesty, she pitied the Gears that were stationed there.

"I think anyone would. Anyways, it was nice seeing you guys." Velvet said as she walked towards the door after putting hers and Amiya's coats on. The other three bid her farewell and led her out the door before shutting it.

They looked at one another before heading off to their own rooms for the night and prepared for the next few days, hoping to enjoy their time off. Just before they could go to sleep, they received a message wanting them to come back to base.

Walker bobbed up and down in his life support tank and looked at the various screens surrounding him. Even as he continued to recover, he was still managing and checking up on everything. The multiple Skull-Drones hovered throughout the air, observing people and assisting them with their daily activities. His eyes flicked to one of the screens and saw the state of the farms, seeing that the farmers were harvesting the crops.

He looked at another screen and saw the Skull-Drone under the waves, looking at the underwater farms and the Faunus that tended to them. It seemed like there were more than a dozen more than the last time he was awake. More crops and he saw that they were harvesting new types of fish as well. He looked at another screen to see some of the fishing boats hauling up large amounts of fish and crustaceans up.

Another screen showed the different factories running at maximum efficiency. People seemed to go about their day the best they could, treating one another decently. He felt a bit of pride that they were managing well enough without him. It meant that when he finally found a way back to Sera, people could at least have some state of normalcy in their lives.

They weren't going to start from the ashes like Sera had to. Now that he was awake again, he could finally get back into it all after he recovered fully. It would be at least a few more days before he could get out of this thing, and he was all the more eager to finally leave it. While he was glad they had put him in this thing, a simple bed would've sufficed.

His eyes trailed up to see the Onyx Guards standing still. From what he understood, they performed and exercise in which some would try to infiltrate different parts of the base and find an opening to cause destruction. While it was mainly Locust tactics, they used tactics from bandits, rogue Huntsmen and Huntresses, and even Atlas' military. They would then analyze the opening in their defenses and fortify it.

While their main goal was to defend him at all costs, they extended it to the entire base as well. Even when they were at home, the Gears constantly practiced exercises for whatever could come knocking on their doorstep. If there was one thing they followed Walker religiously on, it was always have multiple contingency plans to keep their home safe.

"Lord Commander." Somebody said, and he looked up to see a Gear approach him, the man stopped when the Onyx Guards stiffened, but Walker simply put them at ease.

"What is it?" He asked.

"I... I need some advice." The Gear said.

"I'm going to need more context." Walker said as he bobbed up and down.

"My girlfriend is pregnant and I need some help." The Gear said.

"With what exactly?" Walker asked.

"Do you think I'm doing the right thing? Bringing a kid into this world, I mean?" The Gear asked.

"I don't think any child should have to be born at this time." Walker admitted.

"I thought so too." The Gear said dejectedly.

"Did you mean for it to happen?" Walker asked.

"No, but... I want to be in their lives. I want to see my kid being born and to see them when I come back, but I don't want to die... I don't want to leave them alone." The Gear said stressfully.

"..." Walker just stayed silent as he watched the Gear look so unsure of himself. He looked a year younger than Walker, but he was already having a kid in a time like this. Normally Walker would scold him for not being careful, but he had come to accept that some things just happened. It reminded him of when Velvet got pregnant and she looked so unsure, the only difference was that the Gear in front of him didn't want to die and leave his new family alone, unlike a certain idiot.

"Am I a wrong for that? Have I lost my bravery?" The Gear asked.

"No." Walker answered curtly.

"Then what?" The Gear asked.

"While I will admit that you picked a bad time to have a kid, I won't fault you either. You haven't lost any of your honor or bravery for wanting to be in your child's life. Just the mere fact that you're ready to take responsibility is a commendable feat on its own." Walker started.

"..." The Gear just listened carefully and looked up.

"Are you afraid?" Walker asked.

"..." The Gear nodded and Walker hummed.

"We Gears, although fearless a majority of the time, have our moments of uncertainty and that's alright." He said.

"Even you?" The Gear asked.

"Even I have my moments." Walker nodded and the Gear, as well as the Onyx Guards, looked at him. Never once had they heard he felt uncertain and fearful at times.

"Just like you all, I have moments where I feel uncertain and afraid of what may become if I die." Walker admitted.

"So what pushes you forward?" An Onyx Guard asked.

"I look towards the people. The citizens, the Gears, BSS, even VDF. When I look at them, I realize that so much could go wrong but I push through it because I realize that if we fail then those countless faces will end up in the dirt. Whether it be from the Glowies or the Grubs, if we strive to have a tomorrow then we push through our uncertainties and fears to see a new day." Walker said calmly.

"..." They all just looked at him in silence.

"What I'm trying to say is that there's nothing wrong with being afraid at times, so long as you don't let it keep you down forever. We Gears conquer our fears and kick it to the side when the time calls for it." Walker said.

"I understand... thanks, boss." The Gear nodded and stood up.

"I expect you to be there for that kid, if there's one thing I don't tolerate, it's a deadbeat parent." Walker said.

"I will." The Gear nodded and walked down the aisle, feeling his doubts banished and he held his head high as he walked out the door.

The Onyx Guards looked at Walker and he barely gave them a glance as he turned back to the screens. If there was one thing they respected about him, it was that he knew how to uplift people's spirits.

Walker went back to looking at the status of everything at the base. The factories were running at maximum efficiency, the farms were decent but they'd need to plant more soon and get more animals, and more Gears were being trained. A robotic sigh was heard from him as he thought about what to do next when it came to the Locust. He knew that they were going to deliver a bomb, but they needed a place to detonate it.

He still needed to talk to everyone once he got out of this thing and get back to work like before. His thoughts drifted back to what his parents said about telling them a bit, and although he didn't want to do it, a bit of information was needed. Nothing personal, but just enough. He had a feeling they'd understand, especially from what he's been told about them recently.

Blake and Jaune were alright, it was Red he needed to speak with the most. Both about her being manipulated and her reckless behavior now. He didn't want her to throw her life away for a scrap of his forgiveness, and if he didn't nip that attitude in the bud now then it would be too late.

A lot of work needed to be done, and he was more than ready to take it on.

So it's been a while since I've updated this and I just want to say happy late New Year's and all that. Chapter's a few hundred words short but that's alright, so long as there's content for you guys to enjoy. Anyways, thanks for sticking with me so far and I'll see you all next time.

Bye.