The rest of the week goes by without much incident. I've managed to get most of my work done, and my mental state has been stable. Surprisingly enough, book reports make a great distraction, and I've taken some time to catch up on some reading. Finished a book detailing a soldier's experience during the Great War, how he lost many of his friends, lost his innocence, and all that good stuff that comes with war. Really good book, honestly. On another note, Weiss and Lukas have cooled off, probably because they're mutually excited about being off for a bit.

It's Friday evening, and I'm walking through the streets of Vale with Lukas, Ruby, and Levi. We had elected to take a walk through town, and I had decided to restock on Dust, seeing as I was running low on grenades and shells. Due to the recent spike of crime in Vale, we're either in our combat gear, or lighter variants of it in Levi and I's case. After stepping out of the store, with a decent amount of fire dust in my pocket, I link up with the others. Lukas is putting his coffee thermos away.

"Kinda wish Jade was here…" says Ruby.

"Yeah, but she has that thing where she goes to the forest," I say.

"I know, but I still want to hang out with her. It would be fu-" Ruby's cut off by a loud popping sound, probably four or five blocks down the street. We all exchange glances.

"The hell was that?" I ask, my voice now filled with urgency.

"Gunshot." Ruby and Levi speak at the exact same time.

I nod.

Lukas is already sprinting down the street, drawing his baton from his hoodie and flicking it out.

"Wait, dumbass!" I say, chasing after him and drawing my own weapon. Hell's Retriever takes a moment to swap into its shotgun form, and I make sure it's loaded. Ruby and Levi are right behind me.

Once we reach the corner of the third block, we hear yelling. I don't have a damn clue as to why Lukas is moving so quickly, but his sense of urgency is definitely infectious. As we reach the fourth block, he's already knocked out one of the supposed thugs and commandeered their gun. Quick bastard.

He's aiming his newfound revolver at something, probably the guy's partner, if I had to guess. I step up behind him, weapon at the ready, and see that we're now in a standoff against several jokers in white animal masks.

"…even know who we are? Who you're fucking wi-" says one of the crooks, with an assault rifle pointed right at Lukas's head.

Lukas laughs, somewhat bitterly, yet smugly, "I don't give a fuck who you are. I've said worse to Commander Tinseltree of the Atlas fuckbuddy brigade, what makes you think I give a shit about you mouthbreathers?"

I take a headcount, and there's maybe six of these guys. It clicks that this is the White Fang we're dealing with, and I tense up. Blake's told me some absolutely enthralling stories about these guys, and they don't fuck around. Basically, imagine a good natured group of civil rights activists turned genocidal maniacs. Yeah, not pleasant. Ok, maybe with some luck I can grab control of the situation? "We can all just pack up and go home, no one has to get hurt, y'know." I offer.

Another one of the extremists, a woman with what looks like a set of canine ears, speaks up, "And who made you the leader, hotshot?"

I don't even think before responding, "Someone who matters a helluva lot more than you." Bad play. Absolutely bad play. The woman snarls, and it's painfully clear that this isn't going to be a peaceful incident, as I hear Levi rack his machine gun, and Ruby cock her rifle. Fuck. I lost my cool, and it's biting me in the ass.

The silence is deafening, no one saying a word or moving. I look at what we're working with cover wise, and it's questionable at best. There's the alley we're corner we're at, so that's great for solid cover, but we're all standing right here. There's several vehicles parked along the street, along with two SUVs in the center of the road, each blocking off a side. There's a mailbox in front of the store that's being robbed, which might be useful. Maybe not, though… I'll consider it a last resort. The final thing I can note is an alley between the building on the corner, and the store. On the other side of the street, the set up of buildings is identical, and I can see a fire escape in the alley. Might be useful to get high ground, I need to keep note of that.

I hear a faint groan coming from inside the nearby store, and I turn my head, in that second, one of the thugs fires, and all hell breaks loose.

"Get down!" Lukas hollers.

Lukas must have shoved me down, as I heard a whizz go past my ear a moment before I hit the pavement head first. I'm disoriented as I hear shouting from both sides. Levi's gun rattles, and I think I hear something about getting to cover?

"Hey! Hey! Get up!" comes from… somewhere…

There's a shout from… across the road? "…hit! Get to-"

I cough, and rub my head. Where the hell did my gun go?

"I think I got one!" comes from… fuck, I can't even tell…

I get up, and catch my bearings. It takes me a solid minute, but I'm mostly back to my senses. I see Hell's Retriever laying on the ground, and pick it up. My head hurts, I can feel my heart pounding in my chest, and my cheek hurts, probably scratched it when I fell.

"Hey, Levi, try and keep up that suppressive fire!" I shout, trying to gain a modicum of control over the situation.

Levi responds, "Don't have to tell me twice!"

His gun continues to spit out bursts of dust, and I get myself back on my feet. I look around from my spot behind the corner and see that Ruby's already on a roof across the street, going for a flank. Lukas is…oh shit…

"Fuck. Fuck! FUCK!" I shout, seeing Lukas on the ground, clutching his stomach.

Lukas' face is contorted with pain, and the revolver is on the ground. There's bright blue sparks scattered around the street, and I watch them fizzle out. I notice that Lukas is trying to grab something from his hoodie pocket. I grab him by his shoulders and drag him behind the bend. There's not too much blood, but he's bleeding regardless.

My voice slightly cracks as I bark out, "Lukas is hit! Shoot to kill if you have to!"

A look of horror crosses Levi's face due to both Lukas's state and my order. His aim is no longer just for suppressive purposes, and one of the White Fang presumably catches a non-lethal shot based on a soon following scream. Ruby's shocked, probably not expecting the second quickest of the group to be the one to eat dust, nor the advisory to go for any killing blows. I'm not expecting her to go for anything other than incapacitating attacks. However, for Levi and I, when they've done something like this? The fucks might as well already be dead.

Red flames are starting to burn across my body. They quickly cover my lighter than usual armor, so they gradually envelop every inch of my being. I have less control of these, seeing as I'm practically going ballistic. It doesn't matter though, I don't need to control it too much, so long as it stays active, It's over for the fuckers now.

Wait, no, no, no, I need to get a grip, bad. If I crash out now, I'm putting them at risk, not just myself. I make a note to try and go non-lethal, but make no promises. If it's me or them, I'm not thinking twice.

Now, before I go on my little adventure down the street towards danger incarnate, I try to give some reassurance to Lukas, "You're gonna be fine, just stay put, alright?" I don't even look at Lukas as I speak, already moving to the edge of the wall. I think I hear him take the cap off of something.

I turn the corner and dash to and between any bit of cover I can find. Cars, one of the SUVs, the damn mailbox when it gets desperate. I manage to get right next to one of the terrorists, and I sock the man right in the mask, shattering it and sending burnt shards of plastic, or bone, or whatever that stuff is around my fist. The man screams out in terror and anguish as pieces of his mask dig into his face. It's not enough to kill, but he's certainly going to be scarred. He swings his rifle at me out of desperation, and I block it with my bracer. I punch him in the jaw, and he falls backwards, presumably knocked out.

I keep moving forward, and my eyes lock on the woman with the dog ears from before, who's pointing her rifle at me from behind the other SUV. I leap for a car as a flurry of gunfire rings out. A burst of machine gun fire rips over her head, courtesy of Levi, causing her to duck. I raise my shotgun, red flames now covering it, and pull the trigger. A jet of fire flies from the barrel, and my aim is spot on. A majority of the pellets hit her gun and forward hand, causing her to drop her weapon. As the woman recoils, I take my chance, and bolt forward.

Her enraged voice fills the air, "Agh! You little shi-" she's cut off by my left hand meeting her stomach. She swings back, and hits my shoulder plate. I punch her in the side, hoping for a hit on something important, and she stumbles. I kick her forward, into the side of the SUV. I grab her neck with my left hand, my grip as tight as I can manage. A sound of pain and shock manages to escape her lips. I use every ounce of strength that I have to slam her back into the side of the van, and bash her in the nose with the grip of my gun, cracking the mask. I toss her to the ground with a satisfying "thump."

"And fucking stay down, you insult to the theory of natural selection!" I shout, the adrenaline still pumping through my veins. My muscles feel tense, and my breathing is heavy.

Ruby has managed to disarm and knock two out, leaving just one. Suddenly, I hear the sound of footsteps behind me and quickly turn around. I'm stunned as someone slams the butt of their gun into my face, and my vision goes blurry, and I keep seeing black splotches. I yelp out in pain land one of my hands goes to my face.There's a massive amount of pain between my nose and my lips. Damn it, I can hardly recognize what's happening. As I fall, a flurry of ashes emanates from me, indicating that my aura is on its last legs. I grunt in pain as I hit the ground, and I look up. I can taste a mixture of salt and copper, and spit to the side.

My nose is bleeding, and it feels like my lip is busted. The raw hatred in the eyes of the person standing over me, the leader, is horrific. I start to panic, now fully at his mercy. I hear a clicking sound before Levi shouts, "Damn it, it's jammed!"

"Doge!" Ruby cries, fumbling with Crescent Rose.

The White Fang leader has his gun raised towards my head, and right then I realize that I actually am going to die. Truly didn't expect it to end like this…

I hear a strained voice call out, "Not so fast, you bastard!" A loud crack is heard as a telescopic baton makes contact with the leader's jaw, sending his rifle jerking to the side, and the bullet meant for me instead being fired into the pavement. I take my chance and start to get up, as another loud crack is heard. I stand grab my sword, and turn to see Lukas is on the ground, but the gun's been knocked away.

"Still got some fight left in you?" asks the leader, drawing a sword. Of course it's a fucking katana. Why wouldn't it be a fucking katana?

"Oh yeah. I'm not done yet." I say, dragging my blade across one of my arm braces, a shrill sound being made. I then spin it, and hold it at my side, ready to stab him at a moment's notice.

He takes a stance, and speaks under his breath, "You kids never know when to call it quits, do you?" He then charges at me with the sword pointed at my heart. I deflect the blade away with an arm bracer, and stop his next attack by half swording into a parry, and knock him backwards. My aura's out, so I can't risk getting hit.

There's a few footsteps behind me, but I hold my arm out. "No. No, this one's personal." I say, never taking my eyes off of the man standing in front of me. I rush forward and punch him right in the gut, before slashing at his head. I nick his face, shown by a bit of blood flying. He staggers, and glares at me. I laugh.

"What's wrong?" I say. "Can't keep up without an aura? You're really in over your head, bud." I'm saying this like I'm not also mostly out of aura. The difference is I had one to begin with, so this guy can get bent.

"I'm going to slit your fucking throat!" he yells, gripping his sword ever tighter.

I giggle a bit, and twirl my blade as I speak, "Keep tellin' yourself that. It might actually come true!" He rushes at me again, and swings wildly. It's getting a bit much, so I decide that I probably have enough aura for one more "go fuck yourself." I block one attack, and in the second he gets ready to swing again, I hold out my palm and launch a small ball of fire. It hits him right in the chest, and he drops his sword. I kick him in the head, sending him down to the floor. He reaches for his sword, and I step on his hand, he yells out in pain. My voice overpowers his, "I really wouldn't do that if I were you. It's over, in case it wasn't clear enough as it is."

"Fuck yo-" is all he gets out before I put all of my weight onto his hand.

"Ah ah, I said, 'it's over.'" I say, before he finally resigns. I take out a zip tie from the pouch on my right hip, and tie his arms behind his back, and feet together. I turn to see Lukas getting up, and I offer him my hand. "I guess I owe you one?" I ask him.

"Nah," Lukas says, his hoodie now blood stained and sweat falling down his face, "…we can call it even."

The adrenaline is wearing off, and I can feel how sore I am. I pinch the bridge of my nose and look down, and after a couple minutes, the bleeding stops. While Levi and Ruby make quick work of binding the other injured White Fang, I remember what I heard. I speak, my voice still somewhat strained, "Hey, one of you, check the store, someone was in there."

I watch as Levi kicks open the door, and quickly sweeps the room with his gun. He grimaces and calls out, "I need some help in here!"

After getting up and grabbing my sword, I run in, and see the store owner, clutching his chest and bleeding. It's not a pretty sight. Most of the dust has been taken, save for a few crystals here and there. Register isn't even looted. Glass and blood cover the floor, and I take great care to not kneel down on a shard of glass or something.

"It…won't stop…bleeding…" the man says, "I've tried everything…" I crouch down next to him, and take some gauze out of my first aid kit. I then put it in front of the man's mouth instead of over his wound. This… yeah, fuck it. It'll work. It has to.

"Not everything. Bite down, trust me." I say, leaving no room for a rebuttal.

The man looks confused, but his eyes then widen as I take out my sword and heat it. I don't know how long this man's been trying or what he's actually done, but based on how much blood is on the ground, a last resort doesn't seem like a bad idea right now. I focus on keeping it right at the threshold for ignition, but not actually blazing.

"Trust me." I say again, before cutting away the top half of his shirt. I begin inching my sword towards his wound. I try to focus the heat to the edge, in an attempt to cauterize the injury. I press the edge of

the blade against all sides of the wound, and a horrid smell of seared flesh fills the room. Tears run down the man's face, but he hardly moves. Someone walks out of the room, evidently not wanting to experience an amateur cauterization. Don't blame them. I pull back the blade, the wound still slightly bleeding, but not nearly as much.

I remove another piece of gauze from the kit and place it over the wound, before patting it down with a bit of medical tape. The man spits out the cloth, and looks down at his chest. The store owner's voice is shaky, "Th-th-thank you…"

I pat his shoulder, "No problem."

Stepping outside to wait for the authorities, who I hope have been called, I turn to Lukas and say, "Alright, let me fix you up now."

"Uhh, fuck that. I've done my own first aid." he says. Honestly, he's probably worried I plan on cauterizing him next or something.

"Ok, sure, whatever, but you're going to a hospital regardless."

"Fine." Lukas resigns, then takes a sip of his coffee. The sound of sirens starts to grow louder.

Well, that's that. Once again, I'll post the next chapter in a week or two, or somewhere in between. Keeping this after chapter Author's Note short and sweet. (like Lukas! Minus the sweet part. Damn gremlin.)