Coco felt at peace for the first time in days. Though she had managed to exchange only a few brief words with Fox as he drifted in and out of sleep, it was enough to set her mind at ease for a time. Fox was alive. Fox was stable. In a few days, he would be up and walking again. Coco was perfectly content to simply sit at his bedside, holding his hand as he slept in the mostly silent room. Only the heart monitor and the gentle buzz of electronics all around the hospital bed broke up the silence, but Coco found them oddly comforting. All of the background noise moved to a defined rhythm. It was consistent. Stable. Just what she needed as she tried to come down from the adrenaline that had kept her awake almost since her arrival in Atlas.

Another buzz broke up the pattern, emanating from Coco's pocket. The sudden noise was enough to cause her to jolt upright and pull her hand away from Fox's as she reached down to retrieve her scroll.

"Hm?" Fox asked, the noise sounding a bit slurred as he shifted in bed.

"Just a text, go back to sleep," Coco explained in a soft voice as she opened the message.

"Everything's so dark…"

"Oh, shut up."

Neptune, 10:21 AM

Meeting's over. Things are about to get a lot more complicated, and there's a lot you need to be filled in about. The Lamp got used, and we all saw a vision about Salem's past. It wasn't pretty, and there's another meeting tonight. How's Fox?

"Coco?" Fox asked as he turned his hand over atop the sheets. "Where are we? I don't remember…"

"Atlas," the huntress answered as she began to compose her reply. "You need to just rest. I'm not going anywhere."

He's recovering. Still kinda out of it. Can you meet me down here?

"…I'm going to stab Salem back twice as hard, first chance I get."

Coco heaved a sigh and closed her eyes, glancing only briefly at Neptune's affirmative response before stashing her scroll away once again. Slowly, she lowered her hand to rest atop Fox's palm and spoke again, shaking her head.

"Fox… it's not going to be like that," Coco said softly. "I need you to listen to me. This isn't a game. This isn't a normal mission. There isn't going to be some badass moment of revenge followed by a one-liner. We don't even have all of the info yet, but this situation is… different. I haven't really slept. I've barely eaten. I thought I was going to lose you… and we did lose Ruby. We're not fighting to get even- we're fighting to survive, and to protect what we still have. I need you to understand that and take it seriously."

"…we lost Ruby?" Fox asked, his tone entirely humorless.

"We did," Coco confirmed. "And Oscar… and our connection to Ozpin. We're officially nearing the end of this war, one way or another. If you're going to fight, you need to be at your best. If you're not cleared for action at full capacity, I'm not letting you back out there."

"What makes you think I'll let you go back out there if I can't go?" Fox asked. "Do we even have a chance, at this point?"

"I don't know," Coco admitted. "I really don't… but I'm going to fight like hell to keep us all alive, either way. Neptune, Cardin, and I are going to form a support squad and bounce around Remnant using Raven's portals. We'll go where we're needed, and if you get back on your feet in time, you should join us."

"I will," Fox resolved as he gave Coco's hand a squeeze. "I'll make it happen, one way or another. I promise, I'm getting back out there beside you. I don't want you to feel alone."

"Some of our allies do now," Coco considered as she felt another, more persistent buzz and fished out her scroll once again. "It's… Ms. Goodwitch…"

"…that's probably not good," Fox warned. "Why are we in Atlas, exactly? I think I remember a portal or something. Where are Vel and Yatsu?"

"Not now," Coco dismissed as she connected the call and placed her scroll on the bed between herself and Fox. "Hello?"

"Miss Adel," Glynda greeted. The woman sounded absolutely exhausted. "I have a feeling you have yet to be briefed on everything that just occurred."

"Your feeling is right," Coco replied as she ran a hand through her hair. "Fox and I missed the meeting, but Neptune is our liaison. Fox has been in a coma for a while now after our fight with Salem, and he only just woke up. I needed to be with him instead of on that call. I'll get caught up and ready to go before day's end."

"I'm not about to make such demands in a circumstance like this one… just try to do it soon," Glynda advised. "Things are getting dire, and without knowledge of where Salem is or what she's planning next, we're at a severe disadvantage. We knew she was targeting Mantle and Atlas. If she attacks without making her next target clear… we may not be so lucky."

"'Lucky' is a funny word for potentially losing hundreds of thousands of people," Coco considered. "Maybe millions, by the time the grimm are done with Mantle. Fox and I were just talking about how serious this is getting. We won't let you down."

"There's no doubt it my mind about that," Glynda praised. "If any team can handle the coming storm, it's CFVY. You're the stars of Beacon, and one of few that stayed to fight after the Vytal Festival. Speaking of, I… do have a favor to ask of you. It may sound selfish, but my intentions are anything but."

"I really don't like the sound of this, but go on," Coco answered as she transitioned to holding her forehead in her hand.

"Your team and Cardin spent so long here working to fortify defenses and map out potential points of interest… and now, through no fault of your own, three of you are up in Atlas. I'm aware of the situation with Raven Branwen and her portals. I would ask that you consider coming back semi-permanently to pick up where you left off. The time to focus on reconnaissance and potentially launch a counteroffensive in Sanus is now, and there is no one better to lead the charge than you and Cardin."

Coco scrunched up her face and ran her hand down it as she let out a sigh. She knew that the point was valid. Going back to Beacon would mean the opportunity to link up with her other teammates and continue the campaign she had started… but something about the suggestion felt off. Something that the huntress couldn't quite explain beyond just a bad feeling.

"…can I think about it and get back to you?" Coco proposed. "It makes a lot of sense and allows us to push toward taking back Sanus, but… we were thinking of forming a strike team and hopping around Remnant as needed. I guess we could base ourselves out of Beacon and work with you directly until we're called, I just… I think I want to know where the next front is going to be before we commit to anything."

Fox shifted in bed, sitting up against his pillows to help draw Coco's attention as he gave her hand a squeeze.

"Is it really a good idea to just keep being reactive? So far, we've let Salem push and push and push and just been sitting back waiting for it to happen. The current plan is to fortify Vacuo since it seems like the most likely target. Maybe we keep that strike team idea, but we establish the next front instead of waiting for it to be established for us. Catch Salem out and steamroll through one of her defensive positions."

"Exactly my thinking, Mr. Alistair," Glynda agreed. "We should indeed focus on Vacuo and the Sword of Destruction, but going on the offensive- slowly and safely- is a must at this point in time. You would be great at leading the charge, and given how much trouble you gave us in your first year with your unscripted… pursuits… I'd wager that you would enjoy it, as well."

"…maybe the old me," Coco sighed as the door to the small infirmary room opened to reveal Neptune. "There's no enjoyment in any of this, anymore. I just want to do what's right and protect our home."

"Which makes you perfect for the job. I'm… sorry for trying to lighten the mood."

"Don't be. I think I just need some sleep… and then some caffeine. Maybe I'll be back on the frontlines, guns blazing and loving it. I don't know. I'll talk to Cardin and see how he feels about things… and then I'll talk to Ironwood."

"See that you do. I'll let you go."

"I'm sure I'll see you soon," Coco reassured as she disconnected the call and gave Neptune a forced smile. "Hey."

"Hey," Neptune returned, his own expression looking just as strained. "So, there's… a lot to go over. Like… a lot."

"We've got time," Coco replied as she gestured to the chair waiting next to her. "For now, anyway…"

"No, it's… not like that at all," Harriet denied as she furrowed her brows. The Ace Operative was sitting atop the wooden picnic table in the back yard of the summer home, her legs tucked into her chest and scroll up to her ear. "The only side effect I've noticed is feeling weird with my body temperature. It's like I'm constantly freezing, but it feels strangely good?"

"I don't really have anything like that going on… not yet, at least," Raven offered. "Something just doesn't feel right. For a while, acclimating to this magic and figuring out what I could do was difficult, but once I practiced a bit, it wasn't too bad. Now, though… it's like I've hit a plateau. I don't feel like there's anything else to learn, and I'm not saying that because I feel like I've mastered it… it's because I feel like I haven't. Like there's more to Lora's powers, but I don't have access to the rest of them. It's not that I lack the capacity, it's that I lack any idea whatsoever of what it is that I'm missing or how to find out. Like it's not meant for me."

"Yeah, that is weird," Harriet replied. "But then again… you've been a Maiden a lot longer than me. Maybe that's why it's different? I'm learning small, subtle new things I can do with Celes' magic literally every day. I can feel that there's a whole lot of untapped potential, and I'm slowly figuring it out as I go."

Nothing was said for a moment as Raven collected her thoughts. When she spoke again, she sounded far less confident than usual, as though she was almost embarrassed.

"That hasn't been my experience at all. I can tell that there's more, but it's not… I don't think it's in me. It's somewhere else."

"…what are you saying?" Harriet asked cautiously. "You don't think there's another Spring Maiden out there, do you?"

"No, not at all," Raven answered immediately. "Definitely not. But part of Lora's magic- the magic that should be mine- it's… somewhere else. It's like someone stole part of it, or twisted it, or… I'm almost suspecting that Ozma did something, but I don't think that makes any sense."

"…Salem did something," Harriet suggested. "She must have. Maybe it has to do with the godly energy stored in the Relics? Or the order in which the Maidens died? Or…"

"I don't know," Raven admitted. "None of that feels right to me. You're the only person I can talk to that has any hope of understanding what I'm dealing with, but I don't know how to explain any of it. Just do me a favor and call if you start to notice any changes? I'll do what I can to help you, too."

"Of course. We're in this together, and apparently centerpieces of this war," Harriet grumbled. "According to what Ozma said in that… group hallucination or whatever you want to call it, Lora's death should have triggered the full transfer of her powers to the next in line, all the way down the chain to you. I don't know why that would suddenly no longer be the case."

"Yes, it should have," Raven agreed. "But it's becoming clearer and clearer to me that it just… didn't. Something about her death and the transfer of her powers… something about it isn't right."

Author's Note:

What fuckery is this? The best kind.

-RD