Doing What's Right Reloaded

by negative 97

Lisa Lavender, a close correspondent with law enforcement, was always happy to get useful information to the public whether it be warning them about breaches in the wall by Grimm, the whereabouts on Roman's Gang, or the activities of the White Fang. The situation she was about to get wrapped in, however, might prove to be too much for her, but she would endure.

3. Chapter 3 Ruination

Ch.3

Ruination

RWBY is the property of its respective owners, Ocs belong to me

"I knew the White Fang was bad, but...who is Cinder anyway?" Ainsley inquired with a pained breath as Deshret pushed open the door to their barracks and carried her over to a bed with Ashanti's assistance.

"I don't know, but I was there when she and her cronies...recruited us. Out of all the troops, I was the only survivor," Vickers responded, which didn't inspire confidence in Ainsley as she looked over at Ashanti who was sitting down next to her.

Maybe...maybe it was time to cut her losses and leave the White Fang with her daughters and find somewhere else to live. Somewhere far away from this Cinder character so she and her family can live out their days in peace.

"Ainsley, I give you my vow that I will rescue Jin and your daughter, but leaving once Wilma is freed will seal your fates," the young conqueror cut in, shaking Ainsley from her stupor, as she stared at the desert fighter with wide eyes.

"How did-"

"I saw it in your expression. You're worried, rightfully so. You've heard of Tukson, correct? He left to live out the rest of days as a humble bookshop owner and only to be slain by Cinder's enforcers. A sad fate indeed that befell the most principled member of the White Fang," Deshret solemnly stated, making Ainsley look down at the ground before releasing a breath.

"Deshret...you and Jin have been so kind to us ever since we joined a while back, but staying here simply isn't safe for us anymore," Ainsley replied and to her surprise, the desert fighter nodded in agreement.

"I know, you're in...quite the predicament," Deshret responded as she leaned against the counter and put a hand on her chin as she wracked her brain for solution.

Staying in Vale was too risky even if they got new identities and lived along the fringes of the city. Living in Vacuo carried greater risk since it was a lawless wasteland where Grimm and bandits ruled. Sending them back to Mantle would just be cruel, as would sending them to Mistral. There was no doubt in her mind that they would end up in the White Fang again if they were sent to the former or the latter. Suddenly, a knock came at the door, causing the desert fighter to gesture at her warrior's weapons.

"Enter," Deshret stated calmly while warily gazing at the door, her weapons at the ready.

When the figure entered, the young conqueror relaxed when she saw it was just Ebony who politely nodded at them. While Deshret and Vickers returned the gesture, Ainsley forced down the pain she was in, got out of bed, and protectively placed herself in front of Ashanti. The soulless soldier noticed this, but accepted the slight with grace.

"Hiya, what brings you here?" the desert fighter inquired while gesturing at a bed. Sitting down when a seat was offered, she noticed Ainsley and Ashanti watching her every move like hawks, which she didn't take issue with.

"Well, Adam performed 'advanced interrogation' on Blake and Lisa, so now both of them look like they're at death's door. I, along with my fireteam, took offense to that since we've already stated how the prisoners should be treated, so I killed Adam's commandos and put the prisoners in my fireteam and I's custody," Ebony explained, causing Deshret to nod slowly while Vickers pursed his lips.

Quite honestly, he was never fan of the commandos. Even for the White Fang, they were fanatics in every sense of the word. Despite her misgivings with Ebony, even Ainsley found it hard to fault her for committing such an act.

"Adam is not going to take that lying down so I'm assuming you've come here to ask for help in guarding the prisoners?" Deshret surmised, which Ebony nodded to.

This made the desert fighter consider the possible benefits and consequences agreeing to this request would entail. If Ainsley, Ashanti, Vickers, Jin, and Wilma were on guard duty, then it would deter Cinder's enforcers from attacking them if only because there would be so many witnesses. Then again, they risked being ostracized from the rank and file for playing nice with a traitor, and a huntress in training no less. Moreover, safeguarding the human who constantly exposed the true nature of the organization any chance she got would undoubtedly draw the ire of many of their so-called brothers-in-arms. She had to table the issue for the time being as the arm cannon soldier cut into her ruminations.

"Not only guard them, but make sure the Vytal Conventions are followed regarding their treatment," Ebony added, causing the desert fighter to nod slowly, as she was still considering what could happen to her and her warriors if they took this deal before coming to a decision.

"We'll help watch over the prisoners, but I must ask of you something," Deshret requested and to her surprise, Ebony locked eyes with her and determinedly nodded.

"If you're asking that I come with you to rescue Wilma and Jin, then you don't need to," the arm cannon soldier remarked, which made the desert fighter appreciate Ebony's help in that matter.

Not everyone was as grateful for the offered aid, however.

"I don't want your fucking help! I don't even want you to be in the same room with either of my girls!" Ainsley roared as she preferred to remember the Ebony whom she was best friends in middle school with.

Not the Ebony who went on a nigh unstoppable rampage throughout Argus when they were both thirteen.

"Ainsley-"

"Shut up! Do you have any idea how many dead you left in your wake!? How many people you left traumatized!? You're more of a psychotic bitch than I thought if you think I'm going to let you anywhere near-"

"Ainsley, enough. Ebony, we are grateful that you and your fireteam are going to help, but that is not what I was asking of you," Deshret calmly, but firmly interrupted the reluctant soldier, who indignantly huffed, as Ebony raised a brow and motioned for Deshret to speak.

"I want you and your fireteam to look out for us and in turn, we will look out for you," Deshret requested, causing Vickers to purse his lips as he certainly found no problem with it.

Ainsley, meanwhile, looked like she wanted to put her head through a wall.

"You're sure you want to be associated with people like Lacey and I even more than you're already going to?" Ebony asked, causing the reluctant soldier to gaze at her leader with an expression that said, 'We don't, please.'

"I do, in spite of the numerous atrocities you and Lacey have committed," Deshret responded coolly, which made the reluctant soldier scrunch her brow and groan.

Ashanti, meanwhile, scoffed as she read the news report on the killing spree, and saw the pictures of the aftermath too. Reading about what happened and seeing the wounds Ebony's weapons left in their wake made her stomach churn. So how exactly she would react to being close proximity, much less working with, the very person who caused such carnage made her...uneasy to say the least.

"Alright, Blake and Lisa's cell is near the airfield so if you could send some of your guys, it might just deter Adam and any commandos he decides to bring. I'm going to the infirmary to get one of the doctors to look over the prisoner's wounds" Ebony stated while extending her arm towards Deshret, who tightly clasped the soulless soldier's forearm.

Nodding, Ebony broke off of the hold and exited the room. Ainsley, waiting until she was sure the arm cannon soldier couldn't hear them, rounded on her leader.

"Deshret, I don't want her help!" Ainsley protested, causing the desert fighter to understandingly nod and clasp her warrior's shoulder.

All this did was make the reluctant soldier narrow her eyes.

"I know, but there's safety in numbers and said safety has increased now that we have them looking out for us," Deshret reasoned, but the reluctant soldier wasn't convinced and, by proxy, neither was Ashanti.

"Once we get Wilma, we'll find someplace safe for you and your daughters to hide out and give you sufficient funds so that you don't have to take such desperate measures again," the desert fighter assured Ainsley, who wondered if her motives were that obvious.

Ashanti, for her part, was fine with anywhere as long as they weren't going back to Mantle.

"Deshret...that's not-"

"It's fine, I know you're only with the White Fang to pay the bills and put food on the table. I won't bring you or your family any further into this war than you want," Deshret declared, causing the reluctant soldier to stare at the desert fighter for a moment.

After some hesitation, she scooped up Deshret into a tight, affectionate embrace.

"Thank you," Ainsley said in a voice barely above a whisper as Deshret returned the hug, but saw Ashanti leaning against the wall.

Hesitantly breaking off the hold, Deshret walked over to Ashanti and put a hand on her shoulder, causing the White Fang goon to look up at the desert fighter.

"What happened wasn't your fault," Deshret genially assured Ashanti before pulling her into a hug, causing the foot soldier to go stiff for a moment before returning the embrace.

Suddenly, Deshret's scroll started beeping causing to break off the embrace and turned to all of her warriors.

"Vickers, Ashanti, help Gates and Lacey watch over Blake and Lisa. Ainsley, get some rest," Deshret ordered, causing Ashanti and Vickers to nod as the former hugged her mother while the latter gave Ainsley a two-finger salute before they both exited the room.

"What are you going to do?" Ainsley asked as she got into her bed with a grimace and pulled the sheets over her with a wince.

Seeing this, the desert fighter engaged the barrack's defense system as a precaution, just in case there were any...uninvited guests.

"Attend to business," Deshret answered as she approached a part of the wall and placed a burning, glowing hand on a certain section of it, causing the structure to split in half reveal a dark, shadowy room.

Ainsley, along with Ashanti, Wilma, and Vickers had seen her go in there countless times, but only Jin was allowed in. Deciding that Deshret deserved to keep some secrets considering her treatment of them, the reluctant soldier glanced at the myriad of patches of synthetic, metallic flesh marring her shoulders, arms, legs, chest, midsection, and back, with one patch in particular replacing her entire bicep. Despite being looking like she had been put through a particularly vicious meat grinder, the reluctant soldier couldn't help but worry about her imprisoned daughter. Meanwhile, Deshret let the flame in her hand ebb away which left her in complete darkness with not even her species innate night vision helping her see. However, the desert fighter walked through the abyss with practiced ease, came upon a console which she placed the scroll in, and answered the call.

"Melanie, Miltia, what news do you bring?" Deshret inquired as two separate screens for the twin bouncers projected from the console and dimly lit up the room with a blue light.

"That we have a better idea of where not only the Fall Maiden is, but the relic as well," Miltia answered as she showed the desert fighter footage of Ozpin's office from across a rooftop.

Despite the camera angle not being the best, the desert fighter saw Ironwood, Qrow, and Glynda walking over to a specific part of the wall for whatever reason. Nodding, Deshret put a hand on her chin as judging from the film, there might be a secret entrance of some sort. It was tempting to capture Glynda, Ironwood, Qrow, or Ozpin himself to gain entry, and it was certainly something she would have done a lifetime ago, but experience in this matter made her quickly erased the idea from her head. Individuals like these proved to her time and time again why she didn't take prisoners if she could help it. They were often more trouble than they were worth.

"Great work, both of you," Deshret genuinely complimented her partners, causing Melanie to smugly smirk while Miltia let an ever so slight grin tug at the corner of her lips.

"We do nothing less. So, when we attack Beacon, who are you going to bring? Obviously, you're going to bring Jin even though Miltia and I are the only help you need, but is there anyone else you've considered?" Melanie inquired while folding her arms, causing the desert fighter to think of her unit and Ebony's fireteam.

Obviously, Ainsley, Ashanti, and Wilma were out of the picture as much as she enjoyed their company and they hers. Vickers just might prove to be a worthwhile addition though.

"I'm considering bringing Russet Vickers into the fold and should they prove trustworthy, Ebony Satsuma, Lacey La Montagne, and Auburn Gates," Deshret replied, causing Melanie to cringe upon hearing the first two mentioned names while Miltia stared at the desert fighter with her brow raised and hands on her hips.

"Deshret, Ebony and Lacey can quite literally fill an entire water park with the blood they've spilled and there would still be a lot left over," Miltia bluntly pointed out, which the desert fighter acknowledged with a nod.

This made the twins stare at Deshret as if she grew a second head, causing the warrior to hold up her hand in order to forestall any responses on their part so she could explain.

"I know, but I have seen their noble sides so maybe they aren't too far gone," Deshret responded, prompting the twins to exchange glances with one another and shrugged.

The only sign of dissent on this decision was Melanie adding "I hope you know what you're doing." which the desert fighter grunted at.

"There are other matters I wish to take care of. Could you two bring up footage the in the VPD's holding cells?" Deshret requested, causing the twins to raise a brow, but complied.

While Miltia brought up the footage of the south and west wing, Melanie brought up the footage of the north and east wing. Putting a hand on her chin, Deshret meticulously looked over all of the footage where she saw numerous White Fang foot soldiers sitting around their cells and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Wilma and Jin in their cell.

"Good, the police haven't moved them yet. Melanie, Miltia, you are familiar with Jin, but the other young lady is called Wilma Beekman, one of my warriors within the White Fang. I want you two to delay the police moving them for a week at most. By then, I'll have a plan and the means to free them. If I don't, then we'll settle for brute force," Deshret ordered, causing Melanie and Miltia to nod as the former worked on gathering the necessary information on the White Fang goons before forging the necessary documents.

The latter, on the other hand, hacked into the VPD's database, searched up the high ranking police officers, and discerned which one of them were susceptible to bribes.

"We'll go with you even though beating up rent-a-cops isn't our idea of a challenge," Melanie boasted making Miltia huff and roll her eyes while Deshet, used to this kind of bluster from the bouncer, just chuckled.

Miltia, however, suddenly gave a surprised gasp, causing Melanie and Deshret to look over at her. In response, the claw wielder brought up the footage of Wilma and Jin's interrogation on the screen. Deshret proceeded to narrow her eyes when she saw Yang brutalizing her warriors only to widen them when she saw Wilma break the huntress' grip, throw her against the wall, and tear the table she was handcuffed to off of the ground.

"I guess our training paid off," Deshret remarked as she watched Wilma batter Yang with the steel table over the head, causing Melanie to cheer like she was ecstatic fan watching their team score the winning point in the championship game.

Said cheering then became deafening when the trio saw Jin bash Yang's skull through the one way mirror and then choke her out with even Miltia unable to hide a subtle, ever so slight grin.

"Yeah, serves that bitch right!" Melanie proclaimed with a fist pump causing Miltia to mutter 'Someone's a sore loser.' under her breath.

In response, Melanie put her hands on her hips and glared at her. No matter how true the comment may be, it was still annoying to hear.

"She humiliated us so forgive me for wanting some payback. Next time I see her..." Melanie began as she activated her recently unlocked semblance causing her entire being to glow white, making it seem as if she was composed of pure, white snow.

When the light subsided, it revealed Melanie who was of equal, if not slightly bigger build than Yang.

"There's going to be a reckoning," Melanie finished and to up the intimidation factor, took her aura up to its maximum output causing her veins to glow a bright, bluish-white.

Pursing her lips and giving an impressed nod, Deshret thought Melanie just might be able to to give the blonde brawler a run for her money should they cross paths again.

"I'll say it again, someone's a sore loser," Miltia remarked, causing Melanie to huff as she deactivated her semblance, causing her to return to her normal size.

She also reduced the output of her aura which made her veins no longer visible through her flesh.

"Indeed, but I digress. I also need you guys to help me find a home for Wilma, Ashanti, and Ainsley Beekman as they only joined the White Fang out of desperation. Preferably somewhere they can live comfortably and without the threat of someone recognizing them," Deshret explained causing the twins to nod as they set aside their paperwork for the time being and pulled up a holographic world map of Remnant.

"Hmm, the best place would be Menagerie since the people there tend to not want to get wrapped up in the kingdom's drama. However, the White Fang have a minor presence there, and by minor, I mean they have that creepy cult stationed in the heart of the city," Melanie responded while bringing up the profiles of Corsac and Fennec Albain, Trifa, Yuma, and Ilia Amitola.

Seeing this revelation, even the desert fighter's usual calm was broken slightly as she couldn't help but pinch the bridge of her nose.

"What if they stayed in the outskirt villages? Would they be able to avoid detection?" Deshret asked, causing Melanie and Miltia to shake their heads as they brought up articles about murders happening in the outskirt villages.

Tellingly, all the victims were former White Fang members who defected, causing the desert fighter to resist the urge to let out a long, frustrated groan.

"Look, I say it's worth the risk since they're just foot soldiers so the cultists might leave them alone so long as they keep their heads down," Melanie pointed out, making the warrior incline their head and look off to the side for a moment.

"Slight problem, Wilma and Ashanti are not the type to keep their heads down," Deshret replied, causing Melanie to purse her lips and nod due to being more understanding of such a trait.

"Well, when you send them on their way, just tell them to pick their battles carefully," Melanie advised, with Miltia added 'We'll have transport ready for them whenever you give us the go ahead.'

"Thank you, both of you. My last request for now is if you could give them some money so they don't have to join the White Fang out of desperation again?" Deshret asked, causing Miltia to say 'I'll wire some money to Ainsley's bank account once they get settled.'

Breathing a sigh of relief, Deshret thanked the duo and bid them farewell as the call ended. Removing the scroll from the console, the young conqueror was left in total darkness once more, but the warrior simply began retracing her steps. Coming to a stop at the door she came in from, the desert fighter opened it and found Ainsley, who tied her magenta hair into a pony tail, doing sit ups despite her weakened state.

"Well, I see where Wilma gets her stubbornness from," Deshret playfully quipped, making her warrior grunt, as she wiped the sweat off of her brow with her forearm.

"Ugh, don't remind me. She was a fucking nightmare to deal with when she was a kid," Ainsley replied, causing the desert fighter to chuckle softly as she thought of the footage from the interrogation room and certainly could see a younger Wilma, who had no mastery of her rage, being a monster.

"I bet, but anyway it's done. You and your family are going to Menagerie once it's safe to do so after we rescue Wilma. From there, one of my friends will wire some money to your bank account. There is a minor White Fang presence there so try to avoid them even if they don't consider you worth the trouble," Deshret suggested, causing the reluctant soldier to stare at the desert fighter with a wide, blank stare before embracing her once again.

"I know you're a warlord, but...you've been so kind to my family and I," Ainsley said in a voice barely above a whisper as tears fell down her face which fogged up her glasses.

"A leader serves their people," Deshret responded as she gently patted the reluctant soldier's shoulder. Ainsley, due to her lenses fogging up, lifted up her glasses and wiped her teary eyes with her hand.

"Since you're up and about, are you well enough to accompany me in watching over the prisoners?" Deshret inquired, causing Ainsley to nod and grab her rifle before following the desert fighter out of their barracks.

She was certainly going to miss the Beekman family as they brought a sense of normalcy, compassion, and warmth that was largely absent in the White Fang. Even so, she would rather not drag them into this endeavor of hers. The scramble for the maidens and the relics was certainly a bloody, violent undertaking, one she wasn't sure the Beekman family could handle.

---

Groaning, Lisa groggily opened her eyes and the first thing she felt was her body was heavily wrapped in gauze with most of her head and one of her eyes being covered as well. Next, she saw an elderly man with dog ears standing over her and cleaning the amputation point, causing the reporter, who nearly went wild as she thought she was strapped to a table, to calm down as she realized that she was being treated for her injuries. Sucking in a breath, Lisa sat up with herculean effort and immediately regretted doing it as her body screamed at her to lie back down. Immediately, Blake was at her side and gently pushed her back down with the doctor helping.

"Stop, you need to rest!" Blake all but shouted at her ally who jolted a bit at the huntress' forceful tone, but otherwise didn't protest as she let the doctor do his work.

"I know. Blake, I'm sorry I was...so useless back there," Lisa explained, though it didn't make the awful taste in her mouth go away as Blake saved her twice, but she herself had yet to return the favor.

"You're not a huntress so it can't be helped," Blake replied, making reporter indignantly huff as she put a hand on her bruised gut while staring at the huntress out of the corner of her eye.

"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence," Lisa retorted as while she could hold her own against the standard White Fang soldiers and local mobsters from Junior's family, the Grimm were a different story.

"How are you able to fight Grimm with just your bare hands?" Lisa curiously inquired as while she would rather not fight a Grimm hand to hand, she could do it as a last resort so long as it was a Creep, or some other Grimm that didn't outclass humans in height and weight too severely.

"That's something you should be asking Yang, but I guess the answer is once you fight other huntsmen, a Grimm should be manageable in theory," Blake responded as she thought about the Wechuge and wondered why it bothered to help them in the first place when it could have easily indulged in the slaughter.

The huntress didn't know it, but Lisa was thinking about the same thing. A silence fell over them as neither knew how to continue the conversation, but after a moment, the reporter broke the silence with one, rather unpleasant question.

"If the Wechuge was hostile, could we have handled it?" Lisa asked, causing the huntress to remain silent as Grimm like Beowolves and Wechuges were meant to be killed in droves in order for their more dangerous brethren to close in.

For a Grimm whose line was born to die, those who reached Elder Grimm status were formidable indeed. Before the huntress could respond, however, Lacey snorted, making Blake glare at the fallen hero.

"No, even if you had a gun and Blake had her full set of weapons. That thing has been hunting Adam, Adolf, Lacey, and I for quite some time now and every time we've engaged it, it's given us a run for our money," the knight errant explained, causing Blake to ball her hands into fists.

Lisa, meanwhile, was both impressed and bit horrified that a Grimm, even a very old one, was able to match the very warriors trained to kill them.

"You don't know that! I might have been able to stop it!" Blake retorted, causing Lacey to approach the cell and stare at the huntress dead in the eye.

"Get that pride in check before it gets you killed. You want to stop us, right?" the fallen hero inquired, causing the huntress to narrow her eyes and walked right up to Lacey.

The doctor, who was treating the huntress, gave Blake an incredulous look and wondered why she thought it was good idea to try to provoke a fight here and now.

"I will stop you, even if I have to do it on my own!" Blake growled, causing Ebony to click her beetle mandibles before locking eyes with Lacey and motioning for her to step back.

Tilting her head, the fallen hero complied as Ebony opened the cell door and tossed the keys to Lacey who caught them without even looking.

"Since you seem to be fired up, I'm going to teach you a lesson," Ebony told the huntress who warily raised a brow as the soulless soldiers disarmed herself of her arm cannon and handed it to Gates.

Now armed with nothing but her fists, Ebony slowly approached the huntress while Lacey locked the door.

"And what would that be?" Blake asked as the soulless soldier rolled her shoulders and neck, cracked her knuckles, and put her fists up.

Huffing, the huntress spared a glance at Lisa, who confusedly shrugged, before looking back at Ebony and bringing her hands up as well.

"If you beat me, we'll let you and Lisa go," Ebony offered, causing Blake and Lisa to widen their eyes as the offer sounded too good to be true to the latter while the former slowly inched her way towards the soulless soldier.

"You're a lot of terrible things, but I know you're not a liar," Blake replied in a voice barely above a whisper before throwing a punch at Ebony when she closed the distance between them.

Blocking the punch with her forearm, the soulless soldier retaliated with a punch of her own to the Blake's head. Seeing this, the huntress leaned her head to the side to dodge it and then saw Ebony throwing a knee at her midsection. Under normal circumstances, Blake would have been able to block or dodge it, but in the state she was in now, she was a step too slow and ate the firm, but restrained strike to her gut.

Wincing, the huntress had to strain to not topple over as she gritted her teeth and charged at Ebony. Feinting as if she was going to go for a kick, the huntress leaped in the air and threw a punch at Ebony's face who stepped to the side, trapped Blake's arm underneath her armpit, and gave the huntress a stiff, but withheld punch to the ear. While Blake was reeling, Ebony kicked the huntress in the shin, making Blake gasp as she toppled over and crashed to the floor face first.

"What's wrong? I mean, Blake is a huntress so shouldn't she be doing better?" Ashanti asked as she watched Blake take a deep breath in and let it back out before slowly climbing to her feet.

"Under normal circumstances, yes, but these are not normal circumstances," Lacey calmly responded as Ebony didn't fall for Blake's feinted punch and stopped the roundhouse kick to her ribs dead in its tracks.

Before the huntress could recover, Ebony struck Blake's balancing foot with a side kick, making the huntress yowl and fall over with a loud thud. Hissing, the huntress tightly gripped her bruised leg and glared daggers at the soulless soldier.

"Okay, Blake, what did we learn?" Ebony asked while extending her hand to the huntress who snarled like a feral cat and slapped her hand away.

"That you love hurting people who can't properly defend themselves?" Blake spat with as much venom she could muster.

In response Ebony to sighed softly and knelt down next to the huntress who stared at her with a gaze that could kill many times over.

"Only some people. Blake, even when you were working with us, you had a tendency to push yourself beyond what you could handle. From the look of things, you still haven't learned that lesson," Ebony remarked, making Blake snarl as she tackled the soulless solider to the ground causing Ainsley, who had just arrived, to widen her eyes.

Similarly, Deshret tilted her head at the violent spectacle as the huntress, after a prolonged grappling sessions in which she was nearly overpowered and outmaneuvered, managed to get on top of the soulless soldier

"So what!?" Blake roared as she slugged Ebony across the face and then brought her elbow down onto the soulless soldier's nose like a sledgehammer.

The soulless soldier winced, but managed to grab Blake's head, wrap her legs around her waist, and toss the huntress aside with a twist of her hips. Grimacing, Blake struggled to regain her bearings as Ebony sat on her chest, clasped the huntress's wrists, and slowly contorted them, eliciting a hiss from Blake.

"It means that while you certainly have the will to keep on fighting, your body simply can't keep up, especially in the state that it's in now," Ebony coolly replied while twisting Blake's wrist even more.

Screaming, the huntress desperately, but ultimately futilely, tried to resist the pressure being applied to the limb, but the seemingly unbreakable hold was applied perfectly by the soulless soldier.

"But that's not the only problem you've retained. Why else would you accept a fight you knew you couldn't win? You want to protect Lisa because you believe she's incapable of protecting herself, huh?" Ebony surmised while breaking off the submission, getting off of Blake, and backpedaling in order to give her former ally space to get back up.

While Blake would never admit it, she was glad for the reprieve as she took a moment to gather her bearings before getting back on her feet, glaring daggers at the soulless soldier all the while. Roaring, Blake feinted a punch to Ebony's gut, something which finally took her foe off guard, and let her land the actual attack, a fierce overhead cross to the soulless soldier's skull. Seeing stars, Ebony winced and covered up, her mind in a daze.

Seeing her chance, Blake immediately followed it up with a roundhouse kick to Ebony's ribs, making the arm cannon soldier's body curl to the side, and tried to end the fight with a front kick to knock Ebony on her ass. Unfortunately for Blake, Ebony managed to simultaneously dip to the side and catch Blake's thigh, which the huntress still hadn't processed.

Not giving her the chance to, the soulless soldier slugged the huntress in the groin, causing Blake to retch and double over. Next, Ebony kicked Blake's Achilles tendon, causing the huntress to hit the floor where she saw nothing but blurry shapes and colors. Deciding to end this, Ebony wrapped her arms and legs around the huntress' leg in a tight submission hold before twisting the limb to the side and wrenching it back, as if she was trying to tear it from Blake's hips. Wailing in agony, the huntress arched her back as she tried to break the hold to no avail.

"You're going to have to be more willing to accept help from others," Ebony informed her former ally before breaking off the hold, eliciting a deafening, unconsciously gasp from Blake that echoed throughout the base as if she was coming up for air.

Tightly grasping her leg with tears at the corner of her shut eyes and her jaw clenched, Blake just lay on the ground, heaving as if she was about to throw up.

"Learn your limits, accept them, and work to overcome then. You still won't be able to beat us, but you will stand a better chance," the soulless soldier advised as Lacey unlocked the cell door and handed her partner her arm cannon.

"You want to be arrested?" Lisa incredulously as she limped towards the huntress and offered her hand to the still downed Blake.

The huntress, who forced down the pain enough that she was able to open her eyes, looked up at the offered hand before taking it into her own.

"I want to be killed," Ebony corrected, which made the reporter grunt, as she helped Blake to her feet and let the huntress lean on her for support.

"Let's hope that happens soon then," Blake venomously spat, causing Ebony to snort, as the doctor under the watchful eye of the guards so the prisoners wouldn't try anything, injected her with an aura booster.

"Indeed," Ebony replied, causing Blake to growl as she gave Lisa a polite, but terse nod before wrenching herself free from the reporter's grasp and laying down on her bed.

Sighing, Lisa sat down on the edge of Blake's bed with a grimace and gently placed a hand on her arm.

While the huntress scoffed, she otherwise didn't remove the extremity.

"Blake, if what Ebony said is true, then I need you to realize that I'm the only back up you have," Lisa pointed out which, to her surprise, made Blake sit up and lock her yellow, predatory eyes with Lisa's calm amber ones.

"Once we get out of here-"

"If you get out of here," Lacey interrupted while not looking up from the sheet of paper she was writing poetry on.

This prompted the huntress to shoot a brief, but intense glare at the fallen hero before looking back into Lisa's eyes.

"Once we get out of here, you stay back from any fights we get into and let me handle it," Blake told Lisa, causing the reporter to nod as she thought she got the meaning of what the huntress said.

"Right, I'll provide cover fire and occupy the enemies that escape your notice-"

"No, I mean you hide somewhere and then I'll tell you when it's safe to come out," Blake gently interrupted, causing the reporter to stare at the huntress as if she grew a second head and huffed.

"I'm not a defenseless child, Blake," Lisa grumbled, causing the huntress to release a breath and gently clasp Lisa's shoulder.

"I know, but you're not on my level, let alone Lacey's level yet. It's why you got hurt the way you did," Blake explained, hoping this would make Lisa see "reason."

This, however, only made the reporter ground her teeth and unconsciously grasp her missing arm.

"You try fighting when a bone is sticking out of your arm, your body is running a high fever, and you haven't fully recovered from your previous injuries," Lisa snarled, causing the huntress to almost shout at her ally about all the wounds she received.

Blake just managed to bite back such a statement in time though, even if she was still sorely tempted to bring such a point up.

"Look, you're right to be worried since I can't fight as well up close like you or any other huntress. However, you know I'm still a good shot and making me sit on the sidelines could have grave consequences for both of us!" Lisa seethed with her teeth gritted, making Blake to stare at the reporter with narrowed eyes before releasing a breath.

"Don't say I didn't warn you if you wind up getting hurt like this again," Blake huffed before laying back down on her bed and turning her back to Lisa who scowled.

"Well, maybe if you trained me-"

"Even if I did, you still wouldn't be a match for Adam, Ebony, Lacey, Deshret, or any of Adam's commandos!" Blake sharply interrupted while leaping from her bed and standing toe to toe with Lisa who resisted the great, overwhelming urge to groan.

"I'm not trying to be a match for them, Blake! I just want to improve to the point where you won't have to worry about me as much!" Lisa rebuked while wincing slightly as the stress from this situation sent a sharp, brief wave of pain throughout her body, making her feel light-headed.

"I am not going to let you lose another limb! Once we get out of here, stay out of my way and keep your head down, understand!?" Blake thundered, making it clear her decision on the matter was final.

"No, I don't," Lisa gruffly replied causing the huntress to throw her arms up into the air, groan loudly, lay back down in her bed.

Releasing a breath, Lisa forced down the residual pain that cropped up and placed a hand on Blake's arm.

"Blake, I wasn't trying to make you mad-"

"You failed, now please leave me alone," Blake bluntly interrupted while slapping Lisa's hand off of her, causing the reporter to pinch the bridge of her nose, tilt her head back, and sigh softly before acquiescing to her ally's request.

Just as Lisa laid down on her bed, however, she saw Adam along with some of his commandos, approaching their cell with Sienna Khan being projected from his scroll via hologram.

"You've had to have known that there would be consequences, you've had-"

"Be silent, Adam. Now, I've been informed that you three went against orders?" Sienna patiently inquired, causing Deshret to step forward, plant her fist against her heart, drag it across her chest in a formal salute, and kneel.

"I put them up to it, High Leader. I received intel that said the police and the huntsmen knew we were coming so I proposed to Ebony and Lacey that they should distract our enemies. Meanwhile, my squad and I would retrieve as much dust as we could. The strategy paid off at the cost of two of my warriors and Roman Torchwick getting captured," Deshret explained, causing Sienna to raise a brow, cross one leg over the other, and lean forward, casting a brief, suspicious glance at the Crimson Scourge as she did so.

"Roman Torchwick? Is he not the crime lord who has a stranglehold on Vale's underworld? Why would you lower yourselves to working with someone like that, human or otherwise?" Sienna asked with a slight growl, causing Ebony to step up to the metaphorical plate.

"It wasn't a willing choice on our part, High Leader. A woman wearing a red dress infused with dust attacked our camp a while back and killed all of our troops with the aid of Marcus Black's son and a green haired girl with a hallucination semblance. We were given the choice to join her or die and Adam took the former without putting up a fight," the soulless soldier added, causing Sienna to turn her head and glower at Adam who was now starting to regret calling the High Leader in the first place.

"You caved into a human's demands when you had Adolf, Ebony, and Lacey with you!?" Sienna incredulously shouted at the Crimson Scourge who grit his teeth and tightened his grip on the hilt of his blade.

"Why didn't you inform me of this, Adam? I could have sent reinforcements to help you unless...you want to be this unequal partnership, don't you?" Sienna stated and though a small part of her wished that it wasn't true, she knew it was foolish, wishful thinking.

Adam's smirk all but confirmed it.

"Yes, I do. At first, I was just doing her bidding so she wouldn't kill me, but now? I see the perks of fulfilling her agenda. Namely, she'll give the White Fang what we want, overthrowing the humans and subjecting them to the same oppression they've inflicted on us for years! We'll be the dominant race and the humans will serve us!" Adam vehemently retorted with some of his commandos cheering in agreement.

To this, Sienna pinched the bridge of her nose, shook her head, and exhaled, wondering what she saw in the Crimson Scourge in the first place.

"Overthrow the humans? You've gone...no...you've always been mad. I was just too blinded by my pride to see it," Sienna frustratingly breathed out as she surveyed the group and locked eyes with Lisa, causing the High Leader to widen her eyes for a brief moment.

"Is...is that Lisa Lavender? And...Blake Belladonna? Why is Lisa missing an arm...you threw them to the Grimm!? Why can't you realize that only validates our enemy's view of us!?" Sienna roared, no longer able to maintain the cool, collected façade of an unflappable leader.

"Why can't you realize that it doesn't matter how our enemies view us? As long as our goals get accomplished, that's all that matters," Adam retorted, causing the High Leader to ground her teeth as looking back, she was starting to regret giving the Crimson Scourge such high praise and freedom.

"Ebony, I'm entrusting Blake and Lisa's imprisonment to you. If Adam or his partners try anything, contact me immediately," Sienna stated, but before the soulless soldier could give any form of acknowledgment, Adam abruptly ended the call and squeezed the scroll with a tight, trembling hand.

"I knew that soft-hearted weakling wouldn't do anything about your insubordination," Adam growled with as much venom as he could muster, making Ebony, Lacey, and Deshret snort, but otherwise didn't rise to the provocation.

"Considering we're following her orders, and you aren't, High Leader Khan taking our side was a given," Lacey coolly pointed out, making the Crimson Scourge scoff and was sorely tempted to damn the consequences and take out his adversaries, but begrudgingly backed down when he realized who he was up against.

"I'm not going to stand for this, and neither is Cinder so you guys watch your backs," Adam warned them before walking away with his entourage.

At that moment, Ebony was sorely tempted to shoot him in the back, but stayed her hand. After all, she, her fireteam, Deshret, and her squad could openly try to kill him after he massively screwed up and turned the majority of their forces against him, his followers, and Cinder.

---

Sighing heavily, Ozpin reviewed the footage of Deshret's skirmish with Team RWBY again and again, watching every little detail the desert fighter made. In particular, he made sure to take note of the heavenly flames healing the desert fighter which made him clasp his hands together. The headmaster of Beacon didn't want to admit it, but there was no denying it. Deshret was using magic, albeit on a tactile scale. A million questions ran through his head just then. How did she wield a long forgotten skill that the second iteration of humanity was unable to use? Where did she acquire such power? Did Salem teach her? If so, what did she have to gain from being in league with the Mistress of Grimm? Of most concern, was she planning on taking over Signal Academy like she did with Tenebris Academy? Taking a deep breath in and letting it back out, Ozpin turned off the footage, leaned back in his chair, and tightened his grip on his cane.

There had to be some way he could gain at least an inkling on what she was planning on doing...which is when a light bulb went off in his head. Pulling up footage of the police station from the bug he planted in the building, he saw the remnants of Team RWBY sitting down next to the bed of Yang with Penny and Sun, Chief Asher nodding in approval when a group of White Fang soldiers told him something aside from where the main base was, and Jin and Wilma sitting in their cells with absolutely bored expressions. Switching the camera feed, Ozpin focused on Roman Torchwick who was sitting in his cell without a care in the world and even found the time to harass the occasional guard that passed by his cell. While he heavily disapproved of Asher's actions, he would at least admit that the lawman did good by bringing the mob boss in.

"Something wrong?" Glynda suddenly called out to the headmaster who didn't flinch or waver at the sudden intrusion as he brought up the White Fang goon's holographic profiles, along with showing the camera feed of Torchwick's cell.

"Quite the opposite. With Torchwick in custody, along with some of Deshret's subordinate's, we have the keys to help deal with our primary and secondary threat," Ozpin replied while gesturing at Jin and Wilma with a tilt of his cane.

Widening her eyes briefly upon recognizing Jin, Glynda pulled out her scroll and ordered one of the aides to get Ozpin's car ready.

"Maybe so, but Jin has proven to be hard to crack while Torchwick will only divulge what he knows if certain monetary requirements are met," the headmistress of Beacon pointed out as she and Ozpin descended to the lower levels using the elevator.

"That's why we will interrogate Mrs. Beekman before Mrs. Hu," Ozpin countered, causing the battle master to bring up Wilma's profile on her scroll, along with the footage of her interrogation.

"The reports say she's only been with Deshret for little over a year which is certainly not long enough to make her privy to whatever she's planning. Do you really think someone like her knows something?" Glynda inquired as they exited the elevator and walked across the campus.

"We have to take that chance, Glynda," Ozpin said as they approached his car, entered it, and instructed the driver to go to the police station.

"I know, but I hope this isn't a waste of time," Glynda responded, which the headmaster nodded in agreement to and said 'So do I.' as the rest of the car ride was in complete silence.

When they got to the police station, Ozpin told the driver to wait for them around the back before entering the building with Beacon's battle master at his side. Needless to say, neither he or the headmistress received a warm reception as the officer manning the front desk derisively snorted when they spotted them.

"Here to rub salt in the wound?" the lawman spat as venomously as possible, causing the headmaster to shake his head and hold up a hand in a placating gesture.

"Not at all, I'm here to interrogate a few of your prisoners that you recently acquired," Ozpin replied, causing the lawman to give the headmaster a gaze that could kill many times over.

"Don't blame me if the Chief rips your head off," the lawman remarked, causing Ozpin to nod as he and Glynda entered the station where they received nothing but spiteful glowers from the various officers.

When they ran into Asher down the hall, the former Chief of Police looked ready to follow through on his prior threats, but simply narrowed his eyes at the huntsmen instead.

"What, are you going to get the Council to take my apartment from me too?" the lawman seethed, causing Ozpin to shake his head as Glynda projected the holographic profiles of Jin, Wilma, and Roman from her scroll.

"No, Chief, I've come to interrogate these prisoners," Ozpin explained, causing the officer to look at the huntsmen blankly before curtly motioning for the headmaster and headmistress to follow him.

"Some huntsmen from your school already tried that and now one of them is in the infirmary. Yang, I think. She said things she shouldn't have to one of the prisoners and paid the price," Asher elaborated as they came to a stop in front of the one way mirror where they saw another officer unsuccessfully trying to make the mob boss talk.

"We're not having any luck with this bastard either and I'm afraid that Neo is going to try and bust him out any time now," Asher admitted, causing the headmaster of Beacon to nod slowly as the gears in his head started turning.

"I will interrogate Torchwick. Glynda, you question Mrs. Beekman and Mrs. Hu," Ozpin ordered, causing the member of his inner circle to nod while Asher begrudgingly ordered some of his officers to fetch the White Fang soldiers from their cells.

While he waited for the officer in the interrogation room to finish, the headmaster went over what he already knew about Cinder and her grand plan in his head. Admittedly, it wasn't much, but couldn't mull over it any longer when the obviously frustrated police officer exited the room, released a long groan, and shook his head. Saying nothing, the headmaster of Beacon walked into the interrogation room with his head held high, causing Torchwick to tilt his head with a shit eating grin on his face.

"Well, as I live and breathe, if it isn't the big cheese himself. I'd tip my hat to you if those pigs hadn't taken it-"

"Let's cut to the chase. I want to know what your boss is planning and you want to fill your pockets," Ozpin sharply interrupted the mob boss while never losing his dignified tone, causing Torchwick to smirk.

"So, you're going to do what these pigs won't, huh? I gotta say, that's not very huntsmen like, caving into the demands of filthy degenerate and what not," Torchwick remarked, but to his surprise Ozpin gave him a smirk of his own and projected the camera feed of the mob boss's hidden caches from his scroll.

He was glad that Glynda took the video from Lisa as one, the contents allowed them to track down some of Roman's hideouts and two, he got to see the shocked expression on the mob boss's face.

"You're absolutely right, it would be quite demeaning if I lowered myself to such levels. That's why I'm going to hit you where it hurts," Ozpin replied as he pressed a button on his scroll and said 'Do it.'

Almost immediately, two of Roman's personal caches exploded, rendering the lien and any other goods stored there useless. Seeing all of his hard, stolen cash literally go up in flames, Torchwick could only stare at the camera feed with his eyes as wide as a goldfish before setting his shocked gaze into a hard, fierce glare.

"I swear, you'd better kill me because if you don't, I'm going to devote every second of my life to make yours-"

"Do it," Ozpin calmly cut off the mob boss, causing two more of Torchwick's stockpiles to explode.

The veins on Roman's forehead bulged as he screamed at the top of his lungs and wildly banged his fists against the steel table.

"If you want me to stop, tell me where the White Fang is and what your boss is planning," Ozpin demanded, causing the mob boss to ground his teeth as he would like nothing more than to teach this huntsman what happens when you mess with Roman Torchwick.

However, the thought of more of his retirement money getting blown to hell brought a sense of calm to him so he composed himself as best he could.

"Those filthy animals are hiding out underneath Mountain Glenn, but I can't tell you what my boss is planning. I like to have my head on my shoulders, you know?" Roman commented, causing the headmaster to say Do it.' into his scroll once more.

The next moment, more of Roman's caches went up in smoldering flames, bringing the mob boss to near tears as Ozpin exited the room. Asher, for his part, looked at the headmaster in a mix of anger for what he did to him, but admiration for what the huntsman accomplished.

"Son of a bitch, you actually did it. I mean, it's not everything, but it's something we can grab onto," Asher told the headmaster of Beacon just as two officers walked up to them with a restrained Wilma and Jin.

"Please get Mrs. Beekman set up, I'll be in there shortly," Glynda requested, causing the officers to comply as the headmistress of Beacon adjusted her glasses and glanced at Ozpin.

"Don't be too harsh on her, Glynda," Ozpin requested, making the battle master scoff, as she entered the room and sat across from the White Fang goon who narrowed her eyes at her.

"I'm not talking," Wilma huffed, which the headmistress of Beacon merely snorted at and projected the profiles of the huntsmen coming from Atlas for the Vytal Festival, along with the White Fang goon's family from her scroll.

"Let's consider your background. You're a foot soldier in the White Fang, you're working for Adam Taurus who's despised even among his peers in the White Fang, you're serving underneath Deshret who's a known warlord, and you're working with Jin who's a ruthless, psychopathic vigilante. You will be tried as an adult and sent to a maximum security prison due to your association with these people," Glynda bluntly told the White Fang goon who widened her eyes and seemed to want to say something, but couldn't quite form what she was thinking into words.

"B-but I-I'm only s-sixteen!" Wilma stuttered in a voice barely above a whisper, which the headmistress of Beacon said nothing to, and projected the profiles of Winter Schnee and the current iteration of the Ace Ops.

"You committed serious crimes and your punishment will reflect that. Now, you're familiar with these people, correct?" Glynda asked while gesturing at the profiles, causing Wilma to give a barely noticeable nod.

Whatever happened after this, the Headmistress of Beacon hope that whatever punishment Wilma did face wasn't too harsh.

"Then you should be well acquainted with how those in the White Fang fare in Atlesian military custody. Given your connection to the prior mentioned people, your interrogation will be particularly...severe if you don't cooperate with them," Glynda calmly, but mercilessly went on which caused Wilma's lips to quiver.

"Let's say you and Jin escape and rendezvous with Deshret. Now you're wanted criminals and not only will the police be searching for you, but every bounty hunter in Vale as well. Should you escape notice, General Ironwood will send someone after you like say...Specialist Schnee. You know that she has a soldier's mindset, not a huntsman's, so she will take your life, along with your family's life, if you put up resistance," the battle master ruthlessly continued, making tears well at the corner of Wilma's eyes as she imagined seeing her mom, sister, and Vickers being cut down by Winter's blades.

"While Deshret might be able to beat Winter, I doubt she can do so when Specialist Schnee is aided by any of the huntsmen from Atlas coming for the Vytal Festival," the headmistress of Beacon surmised, causing Wilma to widen her eyes before dipping her head to avoid eye contact as she mulled over the huntress's words.

What Glynda said couldn't be true! Deshret would find a way to win no matter what!

"If you don't want such a fate befalling those you care about, tell me what you know about Deshret. If you do, Professor Ozpin and I will put in a good word for you, your family, and Vickers when you're in court. If you're very cooperative, we also might be able to convince General Ironwood to spare Deshret," the headmistress of Beacon offered causing the White Fang goon to say nothing and look down at her hands.

If it were Adam, any of his commandos, or Adolf saying such things, Wilma would tell them that she knew they were lying through their teeth. However, Glynda was a huntress...who threatened to have her and those she cared about killed by Atlesian specialists if she didn't cave into their demands or tortured by handing them over to General Ironwood.

"You threaten me and those I care about-"

"I'm merely telling you how things are going to go down if you don't cooperate as we know where the White Fang's base is," Glynda calmly, but firmly interrupted making the White Fang goon jolt and feel a chill go down her spine.

The huntsmen knew they were in Mountain Glenn?

"I want to go back to my cell, please," Wilma requested, causing Glynda to narrow her eyes and adjust her glasses.

It was working, Wilma was slowly being broken. Now the headmistress had to break what was left of her spirit.

"You think that Ironwood or anyone under his command are going to care what you want?" Glynda retorted while slapping her riding crop down onto the table, causing Wilma to tightly clench her fists to the point her knuckles turned white, all while tears fell down her face.

"I don't want to talk to you anymore; please take me back to my cell-"

"No, I have something else in mind," the headmistress of Beacon interrupted as she used her semblance to break the handcuffs binding the White Fang goon to the table.

Asher, remembering what happened just recently, widened his eyes while Ozpin, as usual, was unreadable.

"W-what are you-"

"Teaching you a lesson. Your father deserved to die when he decided to help the soldiers clear out the Grimm nest beyond Mantle's walls," Glynda coldly told the White Fang goon which left a significantly sour taste in her mouth.

It, however, got the desired reaction as Wilma's eyes bulged out of her sockets before grounding her teeth and setting her enraged, murderous gaze squarely on the unflappable, seasoned huntress.

"DON'T YOU TALK ABOUT HIM!" Wilma roared as she ripped the table off of the floor and swung it at Glynda's head who simultaneously spun underneath the blow and held her foot out.

Gasping, Wilma tripped over the huntress' foot, sending her sprawling to the ground, and brutally face planted against the wall while the table skidded across the ground with an ear piercing screech.

"Whatever game she's playing better pay off, Ozpin," Asher warned the headmaster of Beacon who nodded as a half conscious Wilma twitched before groggily getting onto all fours.

Before she could clear the cobwebs from her head, the White Fang goon gasped and then wheezed as the steel table coiled around her and trapped her arms at her sides like an anaconda constricting its prey.

"If you tried this against the Ace Ops, you'd be in far worse shape right now," Glynda told the White Fang goon while telekinetically lifting her up in the air and tightening the pressure around her body, making Wilma scream.

"I don't care, you don't talk about-hrghk!" Wilma wheezed as the table constricted her even more, making her hunch forward with her teeth gritted as streams of saliva began pouring down the sides of her mouth.

"The Atlesian Specialists will say things like this to provoke a reaction out of you during interrogations and judging from your reactions, you don't want that," Glynda informed the prisoner, but only got a glower in response as Wilma continued her effort to free herself.

The White Fang goon's struggles began to die down as the piece of furniture put even more pressure around her, making her face turn a light shade of blue. When she still struggled, the battle master slowly put more pressure around Wilma, making the White Fang goon hack and wheeze as she wildly flailed about like a fish out of water. Slowly, but surely however, the fight left Wilma's eyes as her limbs became as limp as noodles, her head slumped forward, and her breathing was barely audible, causing Glynda to relent.

"I gave you a watered down version of what to expect if we turn you over to General Ironwood. Now please, for the sake of yourself and those you care about, tell us what you know about Deshret," the headmistress of Beacon ordered while gently setting Wilma down with her semblance.

As a precaution, she kept the table wrapped around Wilma, even though she was sure she wasn't a threat anymore, as the White Fang goon sucked in long, slow breaths.

"All I know is that she has this secret room in our barracks that she goes into sometimes. Whenever I ask why, she just says it's for business," Wilma got out in a voice barely above a whisper while still trying to catch her breath, causing Glynda to purse her lips.

A secret room? Perhaps whatever she was using to communicate with her allies will hold the information they needed.

"Where are your barracks?" the huntress inquired while releasing Wilma from her table binding, making the White Fang goon slump forward onto fall fours.

"Near the airfields, there's an emblem of a cobra on top of it," Wilma murmured, causing the huntress to nod, glance at the one way mirror, and gesture at the fallen White Fang goon.

Officers immediately entered the room to put Wilma back in restraints, causing Beacon's headmistress to back off in order to let them work.

"Thank you, Mrs. Beekman, and I'm sorry that your father is either missing or worse," Glynda said in a genuinely sympathetic tone, causing the White Fang goon to glower at her when the officers picked her up off of the floor.

Understanding the White Fang goon's reaction, the huntress left the room and approached her allies where she expectantly looked at Ozpin.

"Alright, we now know where the White Fang is holed up at and we have a lead that can potentially tell us more about Deshret and her agenda. I say we launch a joint strike with the huntsmen from your school, SWAT teams from my department, the huntsmen and soldiers Ironwood is bringing for the Vytal Festival, and the Valean Miltia," Asher recommended, causing the huntress to scoff while Ozpin merely raised his brow.

Asher, not appreciating that they were looking at him as if he had gone crazy, gathered his thoughts as the headmaster began to speak.

"If we launch an attack that size, then the people-"

"Are going to panic, I know! But we have an opportunity to prevent the White Fang from becoming more of a problem than they already are!" Asher interrupted, but the headmaster of Beacon wasn't convinced.

"Chief, when you go to war, who do you send first? The flag bearers, or the scouts?" Ozpin inquired, causing the lawman to bristle and fold his arms.

"We can get our combined forces in position and send scouting teams forward to probe the White Fang's defenses before moving in. Overall, this is a golden opportunity, and we need to act fast before it's wasted!" Asher retorted, but once again the headmaster didn't buy into it and shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Chief, but no. We need to fully ascertain what the White Fang's capabilities are before we even consider sending some kind of force to subdue them," the headmaster of Beacon countered, causing Asher to resist the urge to flip the table near him and opted to pinch the bridge of his nose instead.

"So what, we're just going to sit on our hands and let the White Fang run amok in Vale!?" the career officer nearly shouted, causing Ozpin to shake his head.

"No, Chief, we're going to determine what the White Fang is capable of and then use the necessary force to neutralize them in order to not attract the Grimm," the huntsman responded, making the career officer want to tear his hair out as he removed his glasses and ran a hand over his face.

"If that's the road you're going to take, fine. I obviously can't stop you, but a word of advice. Don't sit on the fence too long or else it's going to be swept right from underneath you," Asher warned the huntsman before walking away, causing Ozpin to sigh softly.

On one hand, he truly wished he didn't have to ostracize the lawman like this. On the other, however, he would continue to treat Asher as a pariah until the lawman recognized that there was more at stake than the safety of the people of Vale, something that would never come to pass.

---

Releasing a breath that became cold, frozen mist in Atlesian air, a lioness Grimm with a heavenly white coat, razor sharp claws perfect for mauling, and divine blue eyes sprinted through the snow with another member of its kind. Thanks to the Ironwood's men of iron, their inventions like the automatons, their facsimile kin wearing knight armor, and last, but not least, the lightwielders, they went from a mighty pride of 20 to a measly two. Oh, how it longed for the days when the beast walkers and the god progeny had only sticks and stones to rely on! They were much easier to kill when they didn't have these new inventions things killing them left and right! Sure, it wasn't alive back then, but it must have been a golden age! Shaking these thoughts aside, the lioness Grimm and its comrade took cover in a building they were using as temporary den and ascended to the second to last floor. Looking through the shattered window with their binocular vision, they saw the Snowborn known as Winter and the sorceress known as Fria conversing as per usual which made it want to attack now, but knew such actions were folly. As it waited, it wondered what Salem would do if...no...when they brought their master's long sought after prize. Would she reward them?

Ooh, maybe she would make them bigger or give them wings? Or both! Maybe she would gift them the ability to shoot fire or lightning out of their mouths like some of their other brethren? It was practically bouncing on its toes at this point, but stayed focused. Not once did it move as it waited...and waited...and waited. Winter had long since left Fria's room, but the lioness didn't give the signal to attack and continued to observe its quarry. Only when the Winter Maiden fell into a deep slumber did the lioness finally get up, causing its cohort to follow suit as they checked to make sure the coast was clear before jumping out the window and down into the snow. Cautiously creeping forward with its second in tow through the tundra, they sprawled to the ground face down in the snow when a dropship passed overhead. Keeping as still as possible, the Grimm sighed in relief when the aircraft soon moved on, causing the demons to continue on their way while keeping an eye out for enemy patrols.

Reaching the edge of the building Fria was in without incident, the Grimm made sure no one was around before quickly scaling the building by digging their claws into the concrete and trying to keep as quiet as possible. Soon, they reached their destination, causing the leader to carefully cut a circle in the glass with the pointed appendage of bone on the end of its whip like tail and removed the shape from the window. Dropping the glass onto the snow below, the leader and its second entered the room, ready to claim one of the things they came for...only for the lights to suddenly come to life and the alarm to blare unceasingly. Jolting, the leader wondered how they could have been discovered so quickly...until it saw those infernal glass eyes on the corners of the wall, transmitting what it saw back to its masters. The lightwielders knew they were here, but maybe they could still complete the mission! With that hope in mind, it lunged at the Winter Maiden who was wide awake at this point while its second strained to keep the door closed to the point the veins on its arms and forehead looked like they were about to burst. Just as the leader was mere inches from Fria, it was sent violently crashing against the wall with a gale force wind of icy blue fire that crumpled and folded in the surface of the steel wall.

Grimacing, the leader, with the entire right side of its torso torn asunder, slowly climbed to its feet by using the wall as support where it looked at its comrade, then Fria, and then itself. Sighing, the Grimm howled at its comrade who widened its eyes, but nonetheless abandoned holding the door closed and leaped through the opening they created after a moment's hesitation. The second hit the ground running and didn't stop while the leader faced down Winter who burst into the room and deftly sliced off its only remaining arm at the elbow. Grimacing, the Grimm retaliated by kneeing the specialist in the chest, making Winter grunt as she sidestepped the follow up bite to her skull that took off a few locks of her hair and stabbed at the demon's throat. Wincing as the Grimm's whip like tail smashed against her wrist, sending the saber in her off hand clattering to the ground, Winter felt her strike connect and heard the Grimm yowl as her sword stuck all the way out the side of its throat. Crumpling onto its knees, the lioness Grimm futilely tried to pull away from the blade, only to wail as Winter impaled from the bottom of its mouth all the way up through its skull. With its last vestige of consciousness, the Grimm cursed Winter with every fiber of its being before everything faded to black as it broke down into dust and scattered into the wind.

"This is Specialist Schnee, I've killed one of the Menhittes and I'm in pursuit of the last one! It seems to be heading towards the warehouses east of campus!" Winter shouted through her scroll as, after checking to make sure that Fria was okay, jumped through the window and used a glyph to soften her landing.

"Then its just sealed its fate!" Harriet shouted through the communication channel with a loud chuckle as she informed all the patrols in the area to converge on the building.

As if it wasn't overkill enough, Harriet activated the prototype AK-200s which sprang up from the ground in capsules from around campus and rushed toward the target area as well.

"I'm heading over there now, Specialist Schnee!" Marrow shouted, causing Harriet to roll her eyes as she ran past Winter, inadvertently kicking snow into her ally's face.

"Then get here fast, kid!" Harriet retorted as she grinded to a halt in front of the warehouses with Winter joining her shortly where the lightning fast brawler activated whatever prototype AK-200s they had in storage.

Immediately, the deafening sounds of gunfire, the inhuman screams of the Menhitte, and the loud, screeching sound of metal being torn asunder echoed throughout one of the buildings. With their enemy's location confirmed, Harriet to rushed in, leaving Winter in the dust. Rolling her eyes, Winter ran after her ally as the Menhitte grimaced as its hide was pelted by unceasing gunfire that shattered the plating on its back.

Forcing down the pain, the Grimm zig-zagged and rolled around the bullets while charging towards the stairs that led to the roof. It ground its teeth the next moment though as the onslaught of gunfire shattered its mask and ruptured its eye. Tenderly touching its face, which was now oozing with black ichor, it hissed before continuing on its way where it crushed the head of an AK-200 like it was a paper cup while bisecting another from the hip all the way up to the shoulder. Tossing the remains of its slain enemies at the other robots, which knocked some of them down, the Menhitte got up the first step only to yowl as a volley of bullets completely broke through the plating on its leg and tore through its thigh. The Menhitte retaliated by ripping off a spike on its shoulder and flinging it at the automaton which pierced right through its head and caused it to collapse on its back where electricity wildly sparked around it. Gritting its teeth, it limped up the stairs only for its face to be smashed through the steps by Harriet and then impaled on its side by a nearby AK-200.

Wailing, the Grimm kicked the automaton in the face, making its head fold in like sheet metal, while Harriet ruthlessly rained down blow after blow on the lioness' face. So ruthless was the assault that teeth flew from the monster's mouth from every punch with a spray of white blood. The Grimm wailed ghoulishly as it forced down the pain and grabbed Harriet's face, but before the lioness could throw the specialist off, its fingers were snapped in half with a loud crack. Shrieking just as Winter arrived, who wondered how she could assist when the stairway was so narrow, the monster ululated as another punch cracked more of its mask.

Snarling, the Grimm somehow managed to wrap its tail around Harriet's neck and flung her down the stairs, causing Harriet to yelp as her head connected with every step on the way down. Jumping over Harriet who wheezed when she landed on the floor, Winter rushed the Grimm who hobbled up the stairs as fast as its legs could carry it. However, the door was held shut by a black glyph, making it turn around and block the stab to its chest with the plating on its forearm. While this did make Winter's saber glance off to the side, the lioness, in its pain, forgot the specialist possessed two and thus was too slow to react to the swift, nearly impossible to see follow up slash which cut off its entire arm. Screeching, the Grimm collapsed on its back, barely coherent thanks to the earlier beating Harriet gave it, grasped one of the specialist's wrists before she could finish it off.

When it kicked at Winter in desperation, it received a nasty cut to the limb which would have been sliced off had it not been for its natural armor. Before Winter could capitalize on her advantage, she gasped as the Menhitte wrapped its tail around her ankle and twisted it, making her wince as she was sent tumbling down the stairs. This, fortunately for the Menhitte, caused the black glyph to fade away. Immediately, the creature of Grimm burst through the door and collapsed face first in the snow. Picking itself up, no easy task due to its broken fingers, the Grimm jumped, weaved, zig-zagged, and rolled around the gunfire from the group of dropships that fired upon it and kicked the door to the stairwell down to stall the specialists.

This action bought it precious seconds as, due to the cramped corridor, Harriet, Winter, and the myriad of AK-200s couldn't just rush it en masse. Moreover, Harriet was forced to stop in her tracks to catch the large piece of metal. Nearly losing her balance due to the uneven surface, the specialist tossed the door overhead which unintentionally collided with the back of Winter's head. Cringing, the Atlesian specialist fell forward with gritted teeth, caught herself with a white glyph, shook the cobwebs from her head, and picked herself up...where she noticed Harriet impatiently tapping her foot.

"About time, come on. The damn thing jumped off the platform and is in free fall," Harriet informed her ally while getting onto one of the dropships.

Grounding her teeth and blinking which helped with the pain somewhat, Winter summoned a Sphinx and mounted it with her saber pointed forward.

"Then let's go get it," Winter gruffly responded as her Sphinx took off and then dive bombed towards the rapidly disappearing Grimm with Harriet's dropship close behind...just as Marrow and the platoon of AK-200s got onto the roof.

"Hey, what about me!?" Marrow shouted while waving his arms to catch any of the dropship's attention, but either they didn't notice, or Harriet ordered them to not break off from the chase.

"I guess I'll go file my report now," Marrow remarked as he walked past the robots and down the stairs as the Menhitte dry heaved when it crash landed atop a gigantic Atlesian airship.

Inspecting its hand, it sighed in relief when it saw that its fingers had healed for the most part and crawled toward the cockpit only to widen its eye when it saw Harriet land right in front of it and nail it across the face with a vicious hook. Grimacing as more white blood and teeth flew from its maw, the Menhitte latched onto Harriet's waist with its remaining arm, bit down her skull, and lashed at her sides with its knife like tail. Wincing, the specialist retaliated by pounding its midsection with fierce knees and punches, making the Grimm wail as depressions and cavities formed on its torso from the brutal, unyielding strikes.

"Harriet, disengage! We can't hit it with you in the crossfire!" Winter yelled over the scroll, which her ally tried to do, only for the Menhitte to send them both tumbling over the edge to avoid being turned into chunky salsa.

"Stay calm, I'm coming to get you!" Winter bellowed as her Sphinx dove toward the free falling combatants where the Menhitte ate a hard punch to its side only to retaliate with a clawed kick to Harriet's face.

Screeching as the sharpened digits dug into and tore apart her face, the specialist responded by grabbing the Menhitte's ankle and snapping it like a twig. Screaming, the Grimm riposted by grabbing her ear and savagely tearing it right off the side of her head, causing blood to gush out of the side of her head like a fountain. Wailing like a madwoman, Harriet grabbed the Menhitte's neck and slugged the Grimm on its single remaining eye, causing the organ to depress and burst like a water balloon.

Shrieking as its vision was now nothing but blurry, bloody fragments, it briefly lost all higher function before managing to grab Harriet by her neck and viciously slam its tail against the now open wound on the side of the Ace Operative's head. Screeching, the specialist fell unconscious, which the Menhitte took advantage of by wrapping an arm around her neck. If it wasn't going to escape, it was certainly going to take this lightwielder down with it. However, this hope was dashed away as Winter, with deft precision, sliced off its head as if its neck was made out of wet paper before the Grimm knew what was going on. Grabbing Harriet who was erratically tumbling through the air, Winter secured the specialist to her mount before getting on her scroll.

"All units, the Menhitte has been dealt with. Return to base," Winter ordered, causing the pilots to voice their affirmative before turning around and heading back to Atlas Academy with Winter close behind.

Ignoring the curious stares of the students who had left the academy to see what the commotion was about, Winter had her Sphinx land on the roof and called for a medic just as the lightning fast brawler came to.

"Tell me you got it," Harriet stated, making Winter nod as she helped her ally off of the Sphinx and deposited her on the gurney the medics brought.

Marrow, who arrived back on the scene, concernedly glance at his wounded teammate before Winter put a hand on his shoulder.

"Come along, Marrow. We have to make an...unpleasant call to General Ironwood," Winter stated, prompting the specialist to nod as he followed Winter down the stairwell.

Once inside the school, they made their way to the communication room where the students they walked past stood at attention and saluted them.

"I...I don't understand how these things keep getting in. I mean, everything is accounted for and triple checked before its allowed in Atlas," Marrow pointed out causing, Winter to look down at the floor as if it would contain the question to this conundrum.

"I agree, but the fact of the matter is that we're vulnerable somewhere," Winter replied, which Marrow grimly conceded to, as the specialists entered the communication room and ordered the soldiers to leave.

Contacting Ironwood despite not wanting to, the stoic, steely gaze of the general projected from the device, prompting the two specialists to stand at attention.

"At ease, I've been informed that you took care of the Menhitte pride that infiltrated school grounds. Normally, I would commend you for dealing with such a threat, but the fact that they got this far reveals gross incompetence and negligence on your part. I expected more from the best operatives I have," Ironwood calmly, but firmly admonished the specialists.

Hearing this made Winter ground her teeth and tense her hands while Marrow awkwardly, and briefly, looked off to the side before returning his attention to the general.

"Sir, that's the thing. We don't know how they're getting in. Everything from transports, supplies, and people are thoroughly checked before they're allowed in Atlas," Marrow stated, causing the general to level his steely gaze at the specialist who wanted to sink into the ground, a sentiment Winter shared.

"Well, there's the problem. Obviously, we have faulty inspection officers," Ironwood replied, causing Winter to bite her lip before locking eyes with the general.

"All due respect, sir, that's not the case. The inspection officers are people you hand picked," Winter countered, making Ironwood huff, as he brought up footage of the inspection officers.

Everyone saw that they were working as thoroughly as ever, even Ironwood himself. Still, even this clear dedication to their role wasn't enough for the general.

"It's clear my faith was misplaced which is why I'm going to relieve them of duty and hire new inspection officers. Hopefully they'll spot things they didn't," Ironwood responded, making Marrow cringe for a split second before he returned to a neutral, stoic expression befitting that of an Atlesian Specialist.

Winter, meanwhile, was taken aback before she grit her teeth and balled her hands into fists.

"Sir, I've worked with these people for years and they've been nothing but loyal, reliable troops-"

"They're not as reliable as you think if Grimm keep getting in!" the general sharply interrupted Winter with a loud roar and it was as if time stood still as Ironwood and his protégé stared at each other in dead silence.

Nothing seemed to be able to cut the tension before Ironwood closed his eyes, released a breath, and looked right into Winter's eyes.

"I don't want to remove them from their posts, but I will because it's for the good of all Remnant," Ironwood coolly told her as if he was a father giving advice to a young child.

For her part, Winter said nothing as the general ended communications. Not that she would be able to. She didn't exactly trust herself to say something without it devolving into yet another heated shouting match. Thus, in spite of wanting to hack and slash every single device in the room, she restrained herself and marched out of the room before Marrow could offer some words of encouragement. While all this was happening, Salem dispassionately reviewed the slow, but sure decimation of the Menhitte pride through the seer at her side. It was a shame, really. Winter would have made a great asset, but instead she decided to serve the most cowardly man on Remnant and by proxy, the most foolish. Shaking her head, the Mistress of Grimm exited the throne room with the seer hovering behind her and entered the training grounds. In response, Arthur Watts bowed in supplication, a gesture Salem didn't acknowledge, as watched the former Atlesian scientist "tutoring" more Menhittes.

"Good evening, ma'am. Is something wrong?" the former scientist inquired, causing Salem to point at the seer which replayed how each member of the Grimm pride met their fate.

"I'm terribly sorry about their performance, ma'am. I assure you this next batch will be even better," Arthur assured the mistress of Grimm who held up a hand in a placating gesture to indicate that she wasn't mad and floated over to the crystal railing that glowed a dark, eerie purple.

"Ironwood doesn't realize it, but he reveals more and more gaps in his security with each successive defense of the relic," Salem informed her servant who smirked as they both watched Tyrian slit the throat of one unfortunate Menhitte before slinking back into the darkness.

Before any of the monsters could even figure out where he was, the serial killer plunged the tip of his stinger through the eye of another before disappearing like a phantom.

"Indeed, he's as predictable and single minded as ever," Arthur replied with a slight chuckle, which Salem was silent to, as she watched Tyrian slay a trio of Menhittes with a mad cackle before slinking back to another of his chosen hiding places.

Smirking ever so slightly, Salem held up a hand just as Tyrian was about to slice a Grimm's face in half. While obviously disappointed if his quizzical stare was any indication, he quickly comprehended what the Mistress of Grimm had in mind and took his leave, cackling down the dark hallways all the while. The remaining Menhittes, with a myriad of lacerations, stab wounds, and cut off appendages like fingers, hands, or toes, gladly took the reprieve. One Menhitte in particular with a sliced in half mask, a notched ear, and a nasty gash starting from its shoulder and stretching all the way down to its hip picked itself up and glared at the scientist. It wanted nothing more than to just go up there and maul Arthur, but stayed its hand due to knowing how it would be slain by both the scientist and its master.

"Hazel, I believe it's your turn to whip them into shape," Arthur hollered into the dark and suddenly, the Grimm felt the ground shake and cautiously peered into the dark as a giant bear of a man slowly stepped into the light.

"Kill them," Salem ordered her servant in a tone of voice that made it seem as if she was asking what ice cream she wanted.

In response, Hazel reached into the pouches on his hips and pulled out lightning and fire dust crystals.

"As you wish," Hazel replied as he stuck the both dust crystals into his arms making him double over before he let out a roar at the top of his lungs as his veins pulsated and glowed in a reddish-yellow hue.

With a war cry, the brute launched himself at the Grimm and fired a sphere of fire from his fist then an orb of electricity which the Menhittes dodged...save for two. One of the unfortunate monsters had their head fried by the shock, complete with its eyes popping out and then its skull exploding into bloody, black chunks. The other had its entire face burnt to a crisp, completely disintegrating the skin and revealing the flesh underneath.

The Grimm's cohorts widened their eyes before they launched themselves en masse at the giant. Despite this show of force, Hazel remained calm and when one of the Menhittes was in range, slugged right on the snout, causing its entire face to fold inwards with a wet squelch while the resulting shock wave from his punch knocked the rest of the horde back. Five of their number were torn asunder by the kinetic energy outpouring from the punch, making the survivors spare a glance at their fallen comrades, only to have to leap up into the air to avoid fast moving waves of fire and lightning running along the ground. One of them, however, wasn't fast enough as it was simultaneously charred to a crisp and then outright vaporized.

Seeing this and enraged beyond all belief, some of the monstrous lionesses charged at the giant in a mad frenzy upon landing back on solid earth. Before the battle scarred Menhitte could order them back, Hazel viciously backhanded one across the face, causing its eye to depress into its head and chunks of black flesh to fly from its face. Another had its head crushed as if it was a grape in Hazel's giant hand while another Menhitte had its chest caved in from a forceful kick from the giant brute's foot. When one Menhitte tried to chomp on Hazel's head, the giant used his forearm to block and felt like the teeth was simply poking him. Grabbing the Menhitte's jaws, the giant slowly pried them apart with a sickening, wet squelch to the point the Grimm was gruesomely torn in half, in spite of it putting up resistance the entire time

Tossing the corpse of the Menhitte aside, he launched a continuous stream of fireball after fireball and lightning bolt after lightning bolt in an unending onslaught which the Grimm avoided by zig-zagging, rolling, or sprawling to the ground. The battle scarred Menhitte, however, caught one of the lightning bolts and violently crashed against the wall due to the kinetic energy behind the projectile, making it grimace as a pain that it never felt in its short life surged throughout its body. Even with its black coat, the severe electrical burn marks it suffered on its arms, torso, and neck were visible to all as it tossed the lightning bolt back at Hazel who staggered slightly. This was all the opportunity the battle scarred Menhitte needed as it rushed up to Hazel and forced the giant to the ground with a stiff kick to the side of his knee, making him grunt.

"I believe we found our field leader, ma'am," Arthur stated with an impressed nod as Hazel blocked the follow swipe to his face and forced his foe back with a devastating palm heel strike to the chest only to wince as a clawed kick from the Grimm scraped across his face.

As his attention was elsewhere, his head suddenly snapped back when one of his fireballs was thrown back at him, making him yowl, and then glare at the offending Menhitte who was surging toward him as fast as it could.

"And our second in command," the scientist added, causing Salem to say nothing as she watched the potential second feint a lunge at Hazel before trying to stab him in the eye with its tail.

Snarling, Hazel caught the pointed tip of bone in his glove like hand only to grimace as the Menhitte planted its foot against his face, making him relinquish his grip. As he was falling though, he landed a solid punch to the lioness' chest, with the hand embedding itself into the Grimm slightly. Yowling, the potential second flew backwards and brutally collided against a pillar that broke apart with a loud bang which trapped both the battle scarred Menhitte and the battered lioness underneath the rubble.

"If they survive," Salem retorted, with all Arthur saying 'Of course, ma'am.' in response as Hazel grabbed two Menhittes by the neck and completely atomized them when they lunged at his face.

Before the giant could continue his assault, he hobbled backwards when a boulder collided against his chest, causing him to home in on the source and saw the battered Menhitte glaring right at him. Gritting his teeth, the giant charged at the Grimm with a war cry. When he was mere inches from it though, the battle scarred Menhitte emerged from its hiding place behind a pillar and savagely smash a boulder across his face as if it were a wrecking ball.

Grunting, the giant was tripped by the Grimm's tails, sending him sprawling to the ground with an earthshaking thud. Before the battle scarred Menhitte could stomp on his face, he released a maelstrom of searing hot, fiery electricity that consumed the arena with a loud, bestial howl. The survivors, however, jumped into the air in time and clung to the pillars before they could be disintegrated and dropped to the ground when the electrical storm passed. Surrounding the giant, the lionesses cautiously moved in as Hazel got back up and charged at the battle scarred Menhitte who met him head on with the potential second.

"That's enough, Hazel," Salem ordered just as the giant's fist was mere inches from the Grimm's face.

With masterful restraint, Hazel ceased his brutal onslaught and coolly removed the dust crystals from his arms.

"I was happy to help, mistress," the giant stated as he put the dust crystals back into his pouches and took his leave.

The remaining Menhittes, eight in total, wondered if there were going to be more enemies like him once they got out into the field.

"They're certainly fewer in number than the last squad. Should we create more and add the...graduates to this batch?" the former scientist asked, causing Salem to replay the events of every Menhitte pride she sent up until the recently slain one with the seer.

The first pride got into the city of Atlas, the second got as far as the checkpoint leading to Atlas Academy, the third managed to get to the front gates, the fourth got onto campus for a few minutes before being gunned down, and the fifth would have gotten their hands on Fria had they been more careful. The fifth pride was definitely the most successful, and the most numerous. The fourth was second in that regard and only contained four members, the equivalent of a huntsmen team. The current pride standing before her seemed to be a compromise of the two, something she hoped to be the case once they were out in the field.

"No, this batch will suffice," Salem replied as she floated down to the ground with the seer close behind and landed in front of the sixth pride who respectfully dipped their heads.

"Step forward," Salem commanded the sixth pride causing the Grimm to immediately comply.

Without warning, the seer stabbed its tendrils into each of the Menhitte's heads, causing them to screech as images unceasingly flooded into their heads. Over the pain, the lionesses saw every decision the previous prides made, the results of said decisions, and how each and every one of their kin were killed. The seer removed the tendrils from the lioness' heads once the needed information was given, causing the Menhittes to rub their fresh wounds as Salem placed her hand on the heads of the two lionesses that showed the most promise.

"Use this knowledge to succeed," Salem murmured while staring right into the eyes of the battle scarred Menhitte, who nodded slowly, as the mistress of Grimm then locked eyes with the battered Menhitte.

"Use this knowledge to check your leader's decisions and should they prove inadequate, take over in their stead," Salem whispered causing the lioness to blankly glance at the battle scarred Menhitte who looked back at it with a stoic, wooden gaze.

If the Mistress of Grimm was satisfied with this answer, she certainly didn't show it as she merely held up a hand. Immediately, the Grimm fell onto all fours and screamed as they felt as if a million bugs were crawling inside of them and gnawing their insides as their pitch black, dark as night coats turned into a vibrant white, complete with changing their eyes and tongues a bright blue.

"Now go," Salem muttered as she floated into a dark corridor with the seer in tow.

While the Grimm wished they knew where their master was going, that was not for them to know. Instead, they shifted their attention to Arthur who turned around and walked down a hallway as if expecting them to follow. Snarling, the Menhittes jumped onto the platform above and followed the scientist down the hallway for what seemed like an eternity before they were outside of the castle. Before the battle scarred Menhitte could inquire as to where they were going, the pride came to a stop in front of an Atlesian airship as the scientist opened the cargo hold and gestured for them to get in, all while never losing his smug, arrogant grin. Without giving a gesture of acknowledgement, the lionesses entered the aircraft only for the battle scarred Menhitte to pause, turn its head, and glare at Arthur with its teeth barred, something which brought no end of amusement to the scientist.

"If something is wrong, we can...discuss our differences," Arthur offered while moving his coat aside which showed off his revolver.

The lioness seemed ready to take him up on this offer as it bared its fangs and crouched down as if it was on the hunt. At the last moment, however, it regained its composure and lumbered onto the aircraft. Laughing all the way to the cockpit, Arthur closed the cargo hold and took his place in the cockpit. The Menhittes, meanwhile, took the time to rest and review the information Salem gave them while the battle scarred Menhitte and its second locked eyes with each other. Just as it looked like they were going to fight it out to see who would lead, the Grimm walked over to a separate corner of the cargo hold and laid down next to each other with the second resting its chin atop the battle scarred Menhitte's head. Even though some of their pridemates tilted their heads, and others growled and revealed their fangs, neither made any attempt to move away from the other.