The group coughed, stumbling backward as the blast sent smoke billowing through the room. Ruby rubbed her eyes, squinting to see through the haze. When the smoke cleared, she looked around in confusion.

"Uh… are we supposed to be under attack?" Ruby asked. "Usually, when something blows up, there are at least a few bad guys rushing in, right?"

Blake, still catching her breath, frowned. "Maybe they just left it here as a trap and forgot to follow up."

Jaune, brushing dust off his shoulders, shrugged. "Or maybe we just set it off by accident." He looked around at the others. "But seriously, what are we all doing here?

Blake glanced at Weiss, her gaze wary while she answrs Jaune's question. "I was told to be here for a test. To… prove my loyalty."

Weiss scoffed, crossing her arms. "They're actually testing your loyalty? Seems a bit unnecessary, considering the whole assassin reputation."

Blake's eyes narrowed, but she nodded in reluctant agreement. Meanwhile, Ruby quickly chimed in, hoping to keep the peace. "I got a job offer. Said it involved retrieving something important from this place."

Weiss raised an eyebrow, holding up a rolled blueprint she'd found on a nearby desk. "Like this?"

Ruby squinted, confused. "Wait, you were supposed to retrieve that, too?"

Blake and Jaune exchanged glances before nodding, and Weiss let out a frustrated sigh, tossing the blueprint back down.

"Wonderful. So they gave us the same job and just threw us all together." She huffed and looked around, eyeing each of them. "I know who you all are, by the way."

Weiss pointed at Blake. "Second-in-command of the White Fang. An assassin with a body count. Took down Adam Taurus so Sienna Khan could take charge, right? And even though Sienna has done good work, she still needs people like you to handle the less savory jobs."

Blake's expression hardened, but she didn't deny it. Weiss shifted her gaze to Ruby.

"And you. An aspiring Huntress who gave up on her dreams to be a mercenary after a… tragic event." She trailed off, and Ruby's eyes turned steely.

"Stop right there," Ruby warned, her voice low.

Jaune tried to lighten the tension by sitting down on a crate and giving a weak smile. "Hey, no shame in talking about what led us here. I mean, I used to want to be a Huntsman myself." He hesitated, his gaze dropping. "But I… wasn't exactly skilled enough. So I cheated to get into Beacon. Got caught. Got expelled." He gave a small shrug. "Promised myself I'd get better, and, well, here I am."

Weiss looked at him with a smirk. "A noble story, sure. But you brought shame to the Arc family, didn't you? They practically ghosted you."

Jaune clenched his fists, glaring up at her. "You don't know anything about my family."

Weiss chuckled, unbothered. "You're the one who just said you've got 'no shame' about it." She turned, walking around the room with a smirk before she started in on her own story. "Me? I left everything. Legacy, family. Made my own life, and I'm enjoying it."

Ruby noticed Blake glaring at Weiss and decided to change the subject. "So… you two have some kind of rivalry?"

Blake's voice was sharp. "Oh, we go way back. Just a month ago, Weiss intercepted me and my team. We were robbing a train for dust and money, but this one here…" Blake pointed at Weiss. "She killed them all."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "I had a job to do. Target was a high-value mark. Your group was just in my way."

Blake's fists tightened. "And I don't forget."

Before Weiss could respond, a sudden, blaring alarm cut through the room. Red lights flashed, and the entire group instinctively shifted into defensive positions.

"Looks like someone finally noticed we're here," Jaune muttered, drawing his sword. "Get ready for Vale's finest to crash the party."

A door at the far end of the room burst open, and soldiers poured in, weapons at the ready. A red-headed woman led them, her piercing green eyes surveying the room like a hawk. Jaune's breath hitched. Pyrrha Nikos.

Jaune ducked behind a wall, glancing around to the others. She looked… different. Hardened, more serious. What was she doing here, dressed in the Vale army's colors? He'd last seen her as an aspiring Huntress—someone with dreams.

"Search every corner," Pyrrha ordered, her voice firm and commanding. "I want this area secure."

As her soldiers began combing through the room, Jaune braced himself, clenching his fists. When a soldier walked too close, Jaune struck, catching him in the throat and dragging him out of sight before stashing him in a nearby crate.

Weiss, meanwhile, had climbed onto a ledge near the ceiling, her goggles glinting in the red light. She scanned the room, pinpointing each soldier with precision before silently dispatching them one by one, leaving them unconscious but unharmed.

Across the room, Blake was taking down a soldier when she noticed something strange: the soldier she'd grabbed had cat ears. Startled, Blake released her grip for a moment. The Faunus soldier's eyes filled with fear, and Blake hesitated, her grip loosening before she knocked the soldier out, glancing at Weiss with a conflicted expression.

It wasn't long before only Pyrrha and one soldier remained. Pyrrha drew her pistol, moving cautiously toward a faint noise in the shadows. Jaune stepped out, holding his shield in front of him as she whirled around, her gun aimed directly at him. Their eyes met, and for a moment, neither moved.

"Jaune?"

He held up his hands, showing he was unarmed. "Pyrrha. It's… been a while."

She stared at him, her grip on her weapon tightening. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." Jaune's voice was soft, pleading. "Last time I saw you, you wanted to be a Huntress. You were going to change the world."

Pyrrha's eyes flickered with something—regret, maybe, or shame. "Things changed. The world isn't what I thought it was, and neither are people."

Jaune took a cautious step closer, hands still raised. "Pyrrha, listen. This isn't you. You always wanted to protect people, to stand up for something better."

Her jaw tightened, and she looked away, guilt flickering across her face. "I am standing up for something better. And maybe you don't get it, Jaune. Maybe… maybe that's why you're here now instead of at Beacon."

His face fell, hurt flashing across his features. "Pyrrha, I know I screwed up, okay? But you gave up on your dreams. You deserve more than this."

Her gaze hardened, and she raised her pistol again. "Maybe I don't have a choice. Backup is on the way, Jaune. You should leave while you still can."

Jaune didn't move, his expression steady. "You do have a choice. Don't call for backup, Pyrrha. Just… let us go."

Pyrrha hesitated, the uncertainty clear in her eyes. For a moment, it looked like she might lower her weapon, but then a familiar figure moved behind her.

Weiss sprang from the shadows, lunging at Pyrrha. Pyrrha jumped back, firing several shots that pinged off Jaune's shield as he stepped between them.

"Weiss, stop!" Jaune shouted. "This is my friend—"

Weiss ignored him, but with a frustrated shout, Jaune threw his shield, knocking her off balance. Pyrrha caught it, holding it up with a scowl.

Jaune has his hands up. "Pyrrha...please...don't do-"

Backup. Now!" she shouted into her radio before turning back to Weiss, her stance ready for a fight.

Jaune's heart dropped as he reached for Pyrrha's shoulder, desperate to stop her. "Pyrrha, please! I don't want to fight you."

She twisted away from him, her face cold and resolute. "Then you shouldn't have come here."

Pyrrha the drops his shield next to Jaune.

"Go!!"

Jaune geabs his shield and ran, glancing back as Pyrrha aimed her pistol at Weiss, who managed to knock her down and dash toward a nearby window. Ruby and Blake caught up as they watched her jump out, shaking their heads in disbelief.

"Hey!" Ruby hissed. "Where are you going?"

Weiss looked back, smirking. "I work alone." She then leaps out.

Ruby could hear soldiers closing in, and with a quick look at Blake, the two of them bolted for the nearest window. They dove through and hit the ground running, not slowing down as Jaune stumbled up behind them.

Ruby's stomach twisted. "Wait! I forgot the blueprints!"

Blake reached into her coat and pulled out the blueprint roll. "I'm one step ahead."

Jaune looked around in panic. "That's great, but we still need a way out of Vale!"

"Don't worry." Ruby said. "I planned for this."

She scanned the street, her gaze locking onto a familiar car parked a little ways down.

Qrow Branwen was snoozing behind the wheel, old rock music playing softly through the speakers. Ruby bolted toward him, slamming on the passenger window. "Qrow! Wake up!"

He jolted awake, bleary-eyed as he fumbled for the door locks. "Ruby? What the—?"

Before he could finish, Ruby, Jaune, and Blake piled in, shouting for him to drive as soldiers rounded the corner, their weapons raised.

"Who are these two?" he asked, barely awake.

"Less talk, more driving!" Ruby shouted.

Qrow sped off, swerving around a corner as another car came barreling toward them. The soldiers' headlights faded behind them, and he let out a deep breath, glancing in the mirror.

"So, where am I dropping you three criminals?"

"Just get us out of Vale for now," Ruby muttered, breathing heavily.

Jaune glanced out the back, making sure they weren't being followed. "I think we lost them."

"For now." Blake said. "We did just rob the Vale army. They're not going to take that lightly."

Qrow's hands clenched on the steering wheel, his eyes wide as he turned to face them, incredulous.

"You WHAT???"