Beacon Academy: The Dormitories, Link's Room

Remaining inside Link's dorm, he is sat at his desk with a coffee of his own as he takes time to himself in order to recall everything he is about to tell the friends sitting in front of him: Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Pyrrha, Coco, Velvet, Sun, Neptune and even Zwei is in the room with them. The one person team, after being persistently harassed to say what is wrong and what's been bothering him, agrees to tell them the important parts of his life story, or at least as much as he can remember and wants to tell. Now with everyone huddled up and sitting around him, some on the floor and others on his bed, all eyes are on him to deliver. And yet, he finds it extremely difficult to do so, he knows the words he needs to say but opening his mouth and allowing said words to flow proves to be more difficult than he thinks...

"Link?" Pyrrha extends an arm and reaches out to him. "Are you okay?"

"Sorry." Link's head snaps up, having been previously staring at the ground. "It's been a while since I thought about everything but specifically on that day."

"Which one?" The red haired girl asks

"The village..." Link nods. "That was probably the worst day of my life."

"You know." Pyrrha shakes her head. "You don't have to-"

"It's okay. I may as well get it out of the way, it is an important part of my life" Link cut her off, "Plus, it definitely fits in with the Atlas military, why they are after me, and it exposes how they are far from perfect." He smiles and snaps his fingers in the direction of the Schnee heiress. "Hear that Weiss? Atlas. Is. Not. Perfect."

"Ha. Ha. Ha." Weiss frowns. "Very funny, I hope you know I'm still skeptical about all of this."

"I figured you would be and I'm not trying to win you over." Link nods. "I know the people of Atlas are very close minded or downright brainwashed. I just hope my story opens your eyes or mind a little bit."

"Hmph! I am not either of those things!" She stares into his eyes. "You'll know exactly how I feel whenever you're done telling us your story."

"Oh I expect everyone's thoughts and opinions, especially yours. Even if I may not want it." Link smirks

"Let's hear it then already." Weiss crosses her arms. "Or are you just stalling because you're embarrassed to tell us certain details of your life."

"Weiss!" Yang slaps her arms

"Ow!" Weiss flinches. "I can't believe you just hit me!"

"There will be plenty more of those if you don't let him start!"

"Yes, please ignore Weiss." Blake mumbles. "Take all the time you need as well, we do want to know what's bothering you but not at the expense of your happiness or sanity."

"O-Okay." Link nods and fully sits up on the chair, exhaling deeply as he feels ready at last

"HOLD IT!" Ruby blurts out. "I'm sorry to interrupt when you are finally ready but I have a question which could lead to a confession depending on Link's answer."

"Yes?" Link turns his head to look at the young huntress. "What's your question?"

"Hmmm, I'm not actually sure what to say or how to ask this but here goes." Ruby nods. "Does the name Ray mean anything to you?"

(W-What d-did she just s-say?!) Link's eyes widen and his jaw drops. The Beacon student even almost drops his mug full of hot coffee from how much Ruby's words shock him. (What the hell do I even reply with? How does Ruby know about Ray?)

"I think that means yes." Pyrrha mumbles. "Who is this person, Link? An old friend of yours?"

"S-Sure, something like that." Link's expression falls as her eyebrows crease. "R-Ruby? H-how? How do you know that name?"

"Your turn sis." Yang nods at her sister. "You said depending on Link's answer, you have a confession to make."

"She did say that, didn't she?" Sun snickers. "I'm glad you didn't forget, because I already did."

"How is that even possible?" Neptune rolls his eyes. "Ruby said she'd ask a question and maybe provide a confession about a minute ago. Or LESS even forty-five seconds!"

"This is a lot of information to take in, some of it has to come out of the other ear." Sun nods

"But..." Link sighs. "What is there to take in? I hadn't even started."

"Uhhh..." Sun scratches his head. "I don't know what to say to this."

"Don't mind my leader, his brain is a rock." Neptune smirks and his insult draws laughter out of Blake

"No more distractions, guys." Blake waves her hand in the air to draw all the attention to her, only for the cat faunus to direct it Ruby's way. "Who is Ray and did it send Link into a state of shock?"

"I'm interested in knowing this too, I've never heard of a Ray." Coco mutters. "Are they some cool guy you met before you enrolled at Beacon?"

"Ray was more than a 'cool guy', she was a really nice girl who got the shortest end of the stick for someone who didn't deserve it." Link whispers but with the deafening silence when he begins speaking, all of his words are heard perfectly

"O-Oh, you said was?" Pyrrha rubs her arm nervously. "What happened to her?"

Link picks up his head to look at the ceiling and blink away tears before addressing his friends

"What happened? Ray was a part of 'the village' I mentioned not too long ago." Link balls up his hands and angrily drinks his coffee. "She would have been fifteen right now, Ruby's age. Sorry if I scared any of you earlier with my reaction, I thought only I knew that name, but evidently not."

"Let's hear it, Ruby." Weiss mumbles. "Who is this 'Ray' person?"

"Be careful Weiss." Link narrows his eyes. "This isn't me threatening you but please be respectful. Ray was very real and she meant a lot to me."

"M-My apologies." Weiss mumbles whilst she drinks her coffee awkwardly

"You are forgiven." He weakly smiles

Throughout this time where everyone else is conversing with one another, Ruby is breathing rapidly too as she is forced to recall what happened on the day she died for about ten to twenty minutes. The young huntress zones out in her own world to contemplate everything. Eventually, when she snaps back to reality, Ruby gasps when all eyes are on her

"H-hey now, all this staring isn't nice!" Ruby blushes, definitely flustered by the overwhelming attention. "At least send it Link's way."

"There's going to be plenty of that when it's my turn to speak." Link mumbles. "How do you know about her?"

"Okay well, this might sound hard to believe but when I did die, for the short time I was gone... I was awake in another world." Ruby nods, "I don't think it was the 'afterlife' but it felt magical enough to be just that." She pauses, expecting questions but receives none. "It was a world that had an orange sky with a pink sun, solid gold trees but they moved like a regular tree and the clouds were so pretty. I will always be a girl who loves her red but baby blue clouds were something else."

"Honestly? Are you sure you even died, Ruby?" Weiss looks at her suspiciously. "Maybe you were delirious and imagined all of that."

"I would be on board with you, Weiss. That is if Ruby didn't say the name Ray." Link rubs his chin in deep thought. "What else did you see in this world?"

"A beautiful forest and everything looked... Peaceful." Ruby smiles. "Then a girl came running up to me and at first I thought it was a threat of some kind, but she was an absolutely sweetheart."

"What did she look like?" Blake asks

"Hm?" Ruby thinks for only a few seconds as the image of the girl is burned in her head. "She was taller than Weiss and I, maybe Nora too. She had these big green eyes that looked like a drawing or something straight from a comic book, they looked cool! Her hair was straight and brown hair like Velvet's and her skin tone was light."

"Did you speak to her?" Yang follows up Blake's question with her own

"For a little bit. She was excited to see that I was a huntress, that was cute in a dorky way." Ruby giggles

(She did always want to be a huntress.) Link sighs and drinks more of his coffee

"I asked Ray about the world and she didn't know what it was. She just admired it for its look and declared that her entire village was there. She told me it's okay to be nervous, unsure, scared, anything I felt in that moment." Ruby's eyes well up. "It was sad, she was optimistic yet defeated at the same time."

"Ruby." Pyrrha clears her throat. "Were you able to ask her questions?"

"N-Not exactly, I was ready to ask so many but then I started glowing white and so did the entire world around me... I asked Ray what was happening but she didn't know either because she had never seen that before. Then it clicked to her before me that it wasn't my time to go yet. I only had time for one question and I decided to get her name.

(Of course it was.) Link shrugs. (Maybe I wouldn't have had to mention Ray by name but... Now that they're aware of her, I can't keep her identity a secret.)

"That is really sad, I hope that poor girl isn't suffering." Blake mumbles

"She seemed content, which is a miracle considering she died and knows she's dead." Ruby bites her lip nervously, "She looks forward to seeing me again and even cracked a joke too by saying hopefully she won't see me too soon." She giggles again. "That was it really, she wished me luck and said I deserve a long life."

"That sounds like Ray, alright." Link roughly wipes his eyes with the palm of his hand. "Always so sweet and optimistic, she could basically be another sister to you with how much the both of you have in common, Ruby."

"I know you're going to tell us about 'the village' incident and Ray, but if you want to tell us anything about her now, what would that be?" Ruby looks to him, hoping for answer

"Hm, what do I say without giving away how the story ends?" Link thinks carefully. "I've had friends, enemies, neutral parties, acquaintances, the list goes on. Ray was my first best friend and her dream was to leave her home and explore the world."

"O-Oh, I see." Ruby wipes her eyes as well

Silence takes over the room, everyone not named Link wants to speak up and comments on the new information they just learned, primarily to ask more about Ray. Ultimately, nobody says a word and waits for the blonde swordsman to begin

"Link?" Velvet reaches forward and touches his leg

"Y-Yeah. Thanks Velvet." Link nods. "Okay so... We start with the proceeding events before I entered life as a mercenary, which would lead to my group working with the White fang. I joined my group about a year ago, two or three weeks after I turned fifteen, I was 'accepted' as a mercenary. We conducted our own business and then eventually we found ourselves as part of the faunus group/"

"But how?" Blake asks. "The White Fang never accepts human mercenaries, regardless of how skilled they are. The strict requirements were that they had to be faunus."

"Looks like Adam decided to run things his own way then. Link rolls his eyes. "Alright, let's get started. I'm going to begin after I escaped my messed up 'home' and my horrible awful 'father' while my 'mother' and 'brother' escaped and ran elsewhere themselves."

(You're not really going to tell the about that powerful woman, are you?! That would be very stupid if you did.)

(Amber? I will tell them... Somewhat, I will mention her but I doubt they have any idea of her significance as a maiden. Professor Ozpin said I shouldn't even know about maidens so I will definitely not mention that to them. She did save my life however, that must be addressed for sure.)

Flashback: Unknown Location in Sanus

It is only an hour after Amber, the relatively hidden Fall Maiden has pulled Link, an unconscious mysterious boy from a massive lake she luckily happened to be residing at for the time being while taking a short break. After receiving treatment from Amber and having a nice but short conversation with the young woman, Link is saddened when he realizes that they must part ways. It is unclear where she is going but it is even more unclear where he will go next, as the only life he knew in the world of Remnant was set on fire, the rest of his memories are nowhere to be found

"Will I ever see you again?"

Link, who is currently fourteen years old boldly asks Amber, who is packing up her stuff and preparing to get a move on as soon as she and this boy are ready to walk away from one another

"Will you see me again? I want to say yes, but I have many responsibilities. I fear this is the only time we will speak." Amber sighs and looks at him somberly

"O-Oh." Link lowers his head in disappointment. "I see."

"N-No no!" Amber shakes her head. "I didn't mean for any bad reason, I just meant depending on how we travel, it will be-!"

"Heh! Don't even worry about it!" Link's head snaps upwards as he gives Amber a nod of approval "You go on and do amazing things in this world, Amber. I will find you myself."

"Really?" Amber warmly smiles. "And how do you plan on doing that? Remnant is a big world."

"I'm sure it is, but I don't care how long it takes, days, weeks, months, years, you name it." Link snickers. "While you do your thing and shed your wisdom across every village, city or kingdom you come across. I will be getting strong in the meantime, that is my immediate goal. If my weapons are as good as you say they are, then I better put them to use. It's going to be hard but I won't back off easily."

"Your mentality is amazing considering your current situation. I... I'm impressed."

"Thank you." Link blushes at the praise. "I won't keep you away any longer than you have to be here. I know you're a busy woman and I will be busy as soon as we part ways. But one day, whenever that may be, I will see you again, Amber."

"Link... I look forward to that day. You're going to be an incredible warrior, I have a feeling." Amber smiles

"T-thanks." Link widely smiles. "I wish you luck on your journey."

"As do I." Amber nods and extends her hand

"Goodbye, Amber."

Link shakes Amber's hand gracefully and respectfully uses both of his to do so. He gets no response except one more peaceful nod as they both depart in separate directions. Amber continues to walk along the lakeside while Link retraces his steps to the best of his abilities. His obvious amnesia clearly becomes an immediate issue, but this does not deter the young man who looks forward to his upcoming journey

Present time

"Ooooh and this isn't Ray but ANOTHER brunette girl? She sounds cool." Ruby nods

"She also sounds made up." Weiss shakes her head. "And I'm not calling you a liar, maybe you hit your head harder than you remember."

"Hey!" Link frowns. "I know I'm too emotional and a bit stubborn but I am not crazy."

"Weiss did say that you hit your head right?" Coco mumbles. "Maybe she's onto something."

"I did hit my head but so what?" Link rolls his eyes. "What of it?"

"Umm..." Velvet shakes her head in a very confused way. "You said she was magical and this was after you hit your head so hard that it wiped your memory and you were unconscious for a while."

"I'll make you believe then, by not hiding the fact that I saw her again."

"Are you saying you would have hid that?" Weiss narrows her eyes

"I digress..." Link chuckles nervously

"You're asking the wrong questions Weiss." Ruby's eyes widen. "You really saw her again? How was that reunion?"

"It wasn't a good one... We were on different sides this time around."

"N-No, did you..." Blake shakes her head. "Hurt her?"

"Of course no! Never! My apologies for not providing context. I was tricked, blackmailed, and didn't know she was the target of somebody. But that's for later... ANYWAY, after I was rudely interrupted."

"Sorry." Ruby grins

"My bad." Blake nods

"No regrets, we all need to be asking questions." Weiss turns her head, annoyed

"I didn't immediately partner with the White Fang, of course. Joining them was not in the plans and heck, it isn't your typical point and choose process, but sorry for going back and forth." Link shrugs. "Life as a mercenary is up next, mercenaries are simple people. They need your loyalty or they need use from you, as long as you do one of the two or better for everyone, both... You'll fit right in." He looks away. "Not to keep switching topics but really didn't want to join them. My group was making noise and our reputation shot up to the moon fast, too fast for people's liking apparently and so, that's how we ended up on their radars."

"Then why become a mercenary?" Blake asks. "Mercenaries kill, steal, abuse power, and are selfish. All of that is just for money at the end of the day! You could get money anywh-!"

"You're right, Blake. Money is what drives mercenaries to do a good job or do their best, no matter the job given to them. Besides, if I was ever going to find my 'mother', 'brother' or even father, I had to keep moving and earn money for essential needs. I could not settle down anywhere... For the time being at least, that mindset changed soon enough. I retraced my steps, it was quite the walk too and then made it back to the cliff I was originally blasted from, it was my choice to climb it and see for myself. I went back 'home'... Or what little was left"

"Your father... What did he do?" Pyrrha mumbles and cannot look Link in the eyes

"He burned it down." Link nods "I don't even remember a lot about that cabin but... He's the one who destroyed it, it's almost fitting too. Only one positive came from this, that I got away from him and his terrible attempt at killing us, if he had just done it himself, he might have gotten the job done."

"Question." Weiss politely raises her hand just as Pyrrha did accidentally before. "Where exactly was your home?"

"The exact location? I don't really know. If you gave me a map of Remnant, I would probably point in between Vale and Vacuo but more towards the second."

"Really?" Weiss nods rapidly, "Okay, that was all I had to ask, proceed."

"Okay?" Link scratches his head, "Anyway, after seeing what was left of my home one last time, I moved on and began traveling. However, before I became a mercenary..." He exhales in embarrassment. "I started off the way any low life scumbag would start, stealing and robbing people. It was easy at first, I never even had to swing my sword, and all I had to do was point it at victims of mine. Yes, I initially did not run into huntsmen, criminals, or strong adults."

"As if little fourteen year old Link could hold a sword." Coco cackles hysterically

"I could actually... Though I needed both hands." Link shakes his head and continues. "Eventually I did have to fight, my first few encounters were umm, rough. I got beat down and could've easily died not just because I was bad at fighting but I was running on no sleep and rarely ate. But instead of getting me arrested or killing me, they chose to steal what I had on me, in terms of money, for whatever reason I managed to hold onto my weapons. Maybe they weren't interested in my stuff but, who knows?"

"Oh no." Velvet's lip quivers. "What changed? How does it work so well initially but then it doesn't?"

"It must have been the initial looks that intimidated people. That wasn't going to last forever of course, plus I didn't have my crossbow-rifle steel bow. Back then, it wasn't even a steel bow either, it was a wooden bow with light stone arrows I made myself or sometimes ditch the arrows and shoot rocks with my bow."

"So the almighty and powerful 'one man team' was a loser at one point?" Coco snorts. "Just kidding."

"You're not wrong but... Keep in mind I was still fourteen and hadn't even been in a fight. I didn't grow up studying or training at an academy like most of you." Link glances to everyone except Blake, the only other person who did not attend a primary academy. "I had nowhere to stay that wasn't a cold floor or wet grass and like I said, barely so my strength was minimal, my instincts kept me alive. I saved up as much money as I could get my hands on and spent no time thinking of different strategies, my approach was a straightforward one. So even back then I was below the level of a mercenary, a small fry if you wish to insult me."

"A small fry would imply you could do cause a little damage at least." Ruby giggles. "You were a baby potato."

"R-Ruby!" Link groans. "You aren't wrong but please, at least give me that little shred of dignity."

"NOPE!" Ruby sticks out her tongue

"Yes Link." Weiss interrupts with a scowl present. "You said that already, you were just a little thief."

"Okay your sarcasm is totally appreciated!" Link shouts. "ANYWAYS! I did eventually get a grip and realized that if anything, being a semi-successful robber and thief was not doing me any well. I was regressing as a fighter."

"Fighter?" Yang asks

"Yes..." Link nods "A fighter because I definitely was not a warrior or a huntsman. Regardless, I traveled west into Vacuo and during that time it took me a while, I would say a few months to be exact, for me to admit that finding my 'family' was going to take a lot longer than I'd like. Weeks, months, years, who knows? Nevertheless, wasting my time by robbing innocent people, only to lose that same money when facing a tougher adversary was getting me nowhere. I used the money I had on me to get by, eating regular meals, securing places to sleep for a night or two at most, and more. I was growing in height too, my clothes were always torn up from fights against casual civilians to farmers and of course wannabe huntsmen. Eventually, after enough growth in my eyes, I stopped and decided to stay put in a village in order to properly plan my next steps. First things first, I picked up sewing and made my own clothes, which I'm currently wearing at this moment as you see me wear them every day but take a look anyway."

Link stands and turns around quickly to show off his green tunic with a white undershirt long sleeve and pants that mostly looks flawless, thought there is some sloppiness on the fabric covering his shoulders

"Look at you, wow. You would be such a good mom." Yang gives the one person team a thumbs up

"Umm... Thanks I guess? Sewing isn't just a job for women." Link shrugs, "My weapons stayed the same, I eventually learned how to use my sword with just one hand, primarily by getting strong physically. This was crucial because it means I could finally use my shield for defense." He remains standing, grabs his sword and rapidly throws weak but quick practice swings. "Here's where we get into me being a mercenary. Wanting to get a new bow is how it started. You know, since the cheaply made wooden bow I made couldn't handle firing steel arrows and be serious, stone arrows don't get the job done unless my opponent is A. Inexperienced B. Has no armor and C. Is a fool."

"I see... Your first steps forward were to get a new bow and arrows."

"Close to but not close enough my blonde hot headed friend." Link nod. "I got my sword examined and sharpened, but that didn't cost much because the blacksmith barely touched it, and said it was fine the way it was. I bought throwing knives, smoke bombs, and then chose to save my money and stick with the bow I had. That is, until I discovered someone inside the shop was keeping an eye on me and undoubtedly stalking me since I kind of told the blacksmith what I was planning to do."

"What did you plan on doing? Blake asks

"R-Right." Link nods after zoning out yet again. "I said I was willing to 'work' for a price, as long as the circumstances are something I can get behind. Let's just say I wasn't too kind to my stalker either."

Flashback: Outside of Vacuo, Blacksmith Shop

"Hmmm..." Link thinks carefully. "I can always drop the bow and hone my craft with my sword." He nods as the young boy exits the blacksmith shop and paces around, trying to think of what to do next. "His bow did look amazing and I don't think I can find another one like that. If I'm going to change my mind I better do it now before I-!"

"Freeze!"

A man loudly shouts, luckily it was past midnight, and there is nobody outside to hear the commotion or close in to interfere

"Stop right there criminal!"

"Criminal?" Link turns and quickly figures it was him being talked to. "You misunderstood, I paid for my stuff and-!"

"DIE!" The man charges at Link with a sharp, medium sized curved dagger in his hand

"Gah!" Link, having only mere seconds to make up his mind on which weapon to draw, he opts to grab his shield, grips it with his right hand and blocks the incoming dagger that was inches away from plunging into his chest

"You're quick! I'll give you that!" The man smirks and swiftly backs away as his advantage in strength does not present itself in the first exchange

"Thanks." Link mumbles as he reaches for his sword

"But you're not quick enough!"

The man launches his dagger at Link, who does not draw his sword out in time and resorts to defending with his shield again, but then notices something that is not right

(He missed?) Link frowns when the dagger flies wide left and nowhere close to him

(YOU MORON! TURN AROUND!)

"Pay attention and learn newbie!" The man is already in Link's face, he springs up in the air and while in mid-air, he spins and throws a roundhouse kick that knocks Link's shield out of his hands and to the ground, while also kicking the boy to the ground with a spinning back kick to the chest

(A diversion huh?) Link frowns again as he quickly spins and kicks up to his feet in seconds

"Hm..." The man nods in approval. "He's really agile for what looks to be merely a frail boy…"

"What?" Link asks

"Nothing... Just needed to think, now you're going to get it!" The man chuckles and charges at Link once more

(Damn! He got to me again!) Link once again is unable to grab his sword and resorts to hand-to-hand combat against a man so eager to fight this way

The man is no pushover either he throws rapid jabs to the head and quick low kicks, forcing Link to stay defensive and dodge every one of his kicks whilst blocking all of his punches

"Is that all you can do?! Fight back!" The man taunts as he reaches behind him and pulls out a metal staff, he confidently twirls it before he swings it at Link's head

"I can do a lot more than just defend!" Link, rather than only draw his sword, grabs the entire sheath off his back and holds it up in front of his head, blocking the impact of the incoming staff with his sheath

"W-What?! How?!" The man frowns and quickly realizes metal clashes with metal. "Ah. You replaced your leather sheath with a metal one."

"You know I changed my sheath? What the-!" Link narrows his eyes. "Who are you and why are you following me?"

Link acts quickly as the man is about to answer, charges forward, and throws a powerful front kick to the man's midsection. Following this, he unsheathes his sword with a quick motion to finally used his signature weapon to slash the metal staff out of the stalker's hand

"That was a pretty good swing, kid." The man nods, completely ignoring Link's question. "You have a lot of potential."

"Grrr!" Link growls and lifts his left hand, the small triforce engraved begins to glow brightly

The boy's opponent is quick to pick up his staff, back away, and he notices a faded triforce forming behind him. He smirks and nods his head, knowing what he needs to do next

"Alright! Alright!" The man raises his hands in defeat. "You win."

"Huh?" Link raises an eyebrow. "I'm so confused."

"My apologies. I was merely testing you." The man smiles. "Daggers aren't even my thing; I required a dummy weapon to make you think differently of my fighting style."

"Well, you tried." Link shrugs. "I could tell something was off as soon as you threw it, since daggers aren't-! I'm focusing on the wrong right. I get your fighting style is different, but why are you following me? Are you here to steal my money?"

"No, nothing like that. I heard you in there. You're doing jobs. For payment? You're obviously a lone warrior looking for 'work'... If you get what I mean?"

"I understand what you're saying but I'll be honest with you, I lied to the blacksmith. If I told him what I really do he would've beaten me to a bloody pulp, likely stolen my weapons and then thrown me out."

"So what is it then?" The man asks, still intrigued by Link. "What do you do that's below an occupation such as a mercenary?"

"I'm a dirty thief, I rob helpless people, I take cheap shots at people I know would not beat me in a one on one fight, you name it." Link nods shamefully. "I may as well be worse than a prisoner. At least when they are locked up they can't hurt the innocent anymore."

"I see, and is that your end goal? Is that what you want to do your whole life?"

"No way!" Link shakes his head, walks over to his shield, picks it up, and throws it on his back; he does the same with his sword, sliding it in its shield and strapping it to his back. "I want purpose, I want to put my dedication and efforts into something that helps myself and those around me."

"Hm..." The man confidently smirks. "What's your name? And your age?"

"I should be asking you that." Link grabs onto the handle of his sword and narrows his eyes

"Sure I can answer you. Though keep in mind, I shed my armor for this fight to look more unprepared and stupid. In case you think I'm an easy pushover you can defeat in a future fight. I'm Carter, I am twenty-five years old, and I'm the leader of a small group of mercenaries."

"My name is Link and I'm fifteen years old." Link sighs when he has to recall why exactly he is on the move. "I have been traveling around ever since I was forced to abandon my home that my father burnt down."

"Jeez, that's rough, kid." Carter shakes his head. "None of us were forced away from home, we chose to leave and do our own thing, but I suppose we don't have to have everything in common to work together. Anyway, you're pretty damn good for being only fifteen."

"Really? You took me by surprise many times there." Link shrugs

"Well you still are a kid, but take it from someone who has fought real huntsmen and huntresses. In my opinion, you're already better than somebody who'd be in a developmental academy and preparing themselves to enroll at the pristine academies like Beacon, Shade, Atlas or Haven."

"Thanks, I guess. I've never fought a huntsman or huntress, but if I'm getting stronger and you think I'm better than a kid at an academy, then I consider it a positive."

"You've never fought one before?" Carter asks. "That's shocking. You look strong and I know you are."

"Yeah never, just the wannabes." Link smirks

"I feel you there. I've beaten many of those loser posers. But yes, you're right, I followed you and decided I was going to test your strength tomorrow. Then I jumped the gun, assumed you were leaving today, and eventually took my chances by simply charging at you."

"You heard I was short on money for that steel bow huh?" Link crosses his arms. "What is it? Are you here to bribe me or something?"

"Not exactly but if you want us to do that, we can. So I, Carter, current leader of the Black Hawks, officially invite you, Link, to be a part of our group."

"That's where we're headed huh?" Link chuckles, "Sorry Carter but I'm not really interested in-!"

"Think about it kid, you'll be taking on people who deserve it more than civilians or helpless people you current target for easy profit. Sure you may get tasked to do jobs that you either don't want to do or aren't strong enough to handle, but they will strengthen you up. And the pay is far superior than robbing an old hag coming home from the market or some kid who happens to run into the bad parts of a place like this."

"Hm?" Link contemplates the change this will have on his life. "What's the least amount I will earn?"

"Perfect." Carter nods and claps his hands together, "Money isn't an issue, check it." He pulls on a bag clipped to his belt, it is medium sized, made of thick leather and clearly full of money, "Here you go kid, see for yourself."

The man, without hesitation, tosses the bag at Link, who nods, catches it with his right hand, and slightly opens it. The young boy finds the bag to be completely full of money

"Wow." Link nods. "All of this would take me three months or longer to get from just robbing people like a fool."

"See?" Carter chuckles, "Usually, we have new recruits do at minimum three jobs for free in order to get in but I'm making an exception for you. Primarily because I think you've got a lot of potential to be really strong, maybe even as strong as a huntsman." He smiles. "Along with possibly becoming the best mercenary ever. Don't expect any special treatment though, we'll be giving you the tough jobs any other person would get."

"I..." Link shuts his eyes and exhales

"You need time to think it over? No problem kid." Carter walks up to Link, taking back the bag of money but also giving him a handful of lien from said bag in the process, "Here's a small token from us, spend it wisely. You could be the real deal, kid but not by continuing to do whatever it is you do, think about it." He nods one more time before walking away. "Peace."

Present Time

"Two criminals getting along, how wonderful." Weiss rolls her eyes

"Good one." Link rolls his eyes. "I'm sure it took you a while to think of that one."

"Excuse me?!"

"I'm sorry Weiss... Sorry we weren't handed credit and debit cards stacked with cash, I'm so sorry we had to fight for our survival." Link frowns

"How dare you?" Weiss crosses her arms. "I was not handed-!"

"Shhhh..." Coco shakes her head. "Let him continue."

"Hmph!" Weiss turns her head to the side

"Thanks Coco." Link nods. "Anyway, I used that money to buy the steel bow, as in he gave me enough for my bow and to live well for a few weeks. I could have easily departed the next day... But I decided to trust Carter's words and trusted them. He was right too, robbing helpless people was going to get me nowhere financially or as a fighter. So I joined their small mercenary crew... When he said small group, it really was small."

"Did you fight lots of criminals and huntsmen?" Ruby asks

"Huntresses too... And luckily for me I didn't have to carry the burden that is a mercenary disadvantage." Link nods

"Mercenary disadvantage?" Yang raises an eyebrow. "I'm lost, don't you guys follow, scout, or receive information about the person you're after?"

"Blake." Link shifts his attention to the cat faunus. "Care to explain?"

"Me?" Blake looks around with a confused look on her face. "What are you implying?"

"Yes you." Link sighs but with a smile present. "After all, you've had mercenaries after you."

"How did you know about that-!" Blake gasps. "Were you one of them?!"

"No no no!" He shakes his head, "I'm saying... Do you think Adam would let you of all people walk away?" The blonde boy chuckles. "If he sent one after me, he definitely sent some after you."

"Adam? Who's that?" Ruby asks

"Nobody!" Blake shouts and draws the attention from everyone inside the room, "I mean... Yeah, nobody." She sighs and shakes her head. "Most mercenaries are used to taking on people on their caliber, like let's say a mob boss or your typical criminal, maybe some strong bandits. But dealing with a huntsman or huntress is on another different level. You can scout someone and find out all their weaknesses for sure, but if you are not even close to their level, you will lose unless the huntsman or huntress is severely outnumbered. Mercenaries have their own fighting style, which can be a good or bad thing depending on the opponent."

"How come?" Sun asks. "Because of the gap in skill and ability?"

"Yes, but like I said, it really depends." Blake nods, "Some of us have been training since we were really young and went to academies before applying and entering schools like Beacon, Shade, Atlas and Haven." Blake looks at Pyrrha, Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Sun, Neptune, Coco and. Velvet, "Whole others didn't." She points to herself and Link. "You guys were taught the basics and fundamentals, it was a process everyone went through; you could then build off of that and create your own unique fighting style if you chose to do so… Link and I had to learn from scratch. So our 'process' when teaching ourselves how to fight or learning from mentors took a different path. I did not become a mercenary but I can say from experiencing mercenaries coming after me, they are generally underestimated. Weiss tell me, if Link did not attend Beacon and you two suddenly had a run in that turned into a fight, would you take him seriously?"

"Why of course!" Weiss nods

"Lies." Link scoffs. "Her initial thoughts would be something along the lines of, 'He's in leather with a plain sword and shield, this should be easy' seeing as how huntsmen and huntresses are dressed in their own unique way, such as Pyrrha having armor and Weiss having exposed skin. One look at me and I look like a bandit or some weird kid living in a forest."

"Hey!" Weiss frowns. "I would not say any of that!"

"It wasn't actually meant to be an insult towards you. I'm just saying huntsmen and huntresses choose to look unique, meanwhile us mercenaries..." Link stops himself and shrugs. "I hate saying that."

"Why?" Velvet asks as she finishes the last of her coffee

"Because I'm not a mercenary anymore but here I am praising them and speaking as if I'm still one. My point is I chose to keep the look while adjusting it a bit, so you can say I'm a bit both." Link turns for everyone to examine him

"I understand you there." Yang nods "You do look like a mixture of both. It's not a bad thing either, if you change the colors you could go from huntsman to mercenary to a mixture of both in seconds."

"Right." Velvet nods

"Eyes up Velvet!" Coco snaps her fingers

"Huh?!" The rabbit faunus shakes her head

"You girls." Link chuckles, "Anyway, thanks Yang." He nods while rolling his eyes at the same time. "Blake summed it up better than I could've, most mercenaries I knew had never even been near a huntsman or huntress let alone had to fight one. I was a quick learner and grew fast, to the point where I was good enough to match the skills of one. But it wasn't as simple as that, I was lucky against almost all of those huntsmen or huntresses until I got even stronger. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here right now and I'd probably be dead."

"Don't say that." Velvet's eyes widen as she looks down at her mug sadly

"Shi-! Sorry, Velvet." Link sighs "I just, it was a lot that I went through and recapping made me think about things. It's almost hard to grasp how all of this happened to me."

"You're fine, kid. Continue." Coco nods. "So you joined a group of mercenaries and got stronger as you did missions with them. How did you cross paths with the White Fang?"

"The group I was in had minimal association with the White Fang initially." He shrugs. "They saw us as small timers so anytime they needed something from us it was always a small job that always needed a non White Fang associated member to do it, but then they took ownership of the outcome. That was the process for them but aside from small jobs for them, we didn't care about them." Link nods. "When I joined the Black Hawks-! Yes, that was our name. I wasted no time and took all kinds of missions, no matter the danger or pay, that's how I surpassed all my comrades within a month, even Carter. Unfortunately, one of these missions got me and my group on the White Fang's radar."

"Did any of your mission's involve taking out White Fang members?" Blake narrows her eyes, eagerly waiting for an immediate response

"No." Link quickly answers along with a head shake. "But it was my 'talents' that made the White Fang want to work with us more."

"But don't Faunus..." Velvet hesitates when she categorizes her own kind. "Don't 'we' hate humans? Why would they work with human mercenaries?"

"One man did all the sweet talking and convincing. Adam noticed we had skills his 'soldiers' could never match so he hired us. Well, as silent and masked mercenaries. Some of us already wore masks but then they became mandatory."

"Wait a minute..." Blake closes her eyes. "It's coming back to me now. Your mask... It was metal, but painted white?"

"Yes." Link nods. "Your memory is pretty good."

"Two red streaks on each cheek? A downwards blue mark on the forehead region?"

"Mhm." Link nods again. "My mask probably looked the silliest but it was also difficult to take off. Hence why I was the last one figured out in my group."

"And how exactly were you found out?" Pyrrha asks. "Did you reveal yourself willingly?"

"I wish." Link chuckles. "It was actually the White Fang leader Sienna Khan who unmasked me."

"W-What?!" Blake's eyes shoot open with shock. "B-But how? She would never allow humans near her or even around any White Fang base of operations."

"You can thank Adam for that, he's the reason we even stood in the same room as her, not that we had a choice." Link rolls his eyes. "I was going to relay my jobs when part of the Black Hawks but I assume you want to know of my encounter with Sienna instead."

"Of course." Blake nods. "Wait but how did you ever meet her? That is practically impossible when you two were not even in the same loca-!"

"Mercenaries travel a lot Blake, this is why Neptune inquired as to how I have so much endurance and stamina, I never stopped moving after I left 'home' and the mercenary group I joined didn't have an established safehouse or anything of the sort."

Silence consumes the room momentarily as everyone takes in the information and waits for Link to speak up and continues his story. Seconds become minutes and somebody else has to end the silence themselves...

"Before you tell us about seducing the White Fang leader." Coco chuckles. "Tell us how YOU got on the White Fangs radar and I guess their bad side for that matter?"

"You got it, Coco." Link nods but then almost chokes on some coffee. "W-Wait what? Seducing who?!"

Flashback: Forests of Sanus

(Listen up, child.)

(My name is Link, whoever you are.)

(I do not care, but listen to me. I can tell that you are getting better but the mission you just accepted, you will run into MULTIPLE enemies. Expect Atlas and White Fang soldiers, do you understand? Just because your group is loosely associated with them does not mean they will spare you if you get in their way.)

(I know, okay? I didn't exactly think this through before I accepted, sure. But did you hear the amount of money that old man offered? It's clear he needed someone reliable for this job and the sooner I keep impressing Carter, the better. I hope to take over the group one day and implement some changes for the betterment of us and the world.)

(So this 'old man' chose a walking dead man... Or boy in your case. He couldn't even pay for multiple of your members to accompany you?)

(No, he wanted this to be a one man mission. The less people there are, the less bloodshed... Those were his words anyway, I personally think it's a lot of crap but I'm not scared to do this alone. I've been trying to practice using my aura... It was activated during that confrontation with my 'father' but now I'm even more lost. I don't know how to use-!)

(Just shut up and figure it out soon because the faster you get better at using whatever this 'aura' is, the sooner you'll become strong and then I can-!)

(Shut up and forget about taking over. Here we are...) Link quietly jumps from one tree to another, his eyes lock onto a large pair of railroad tracks

(I see, you're going to let the White Fang do all the work then take them all out. Play them like fools and then swoop it and take the reward)

(No.) Link shakes his head as suddenly a loud screech is heard

(I see, the cargo train is already being hijacked. Rather than wait for the White Fang to be done which could take plenty of time, you're about to do it now.)

(You got it. That's exactly what I had in mind too, just figured I'd keep you guessing because why not?) Link chuckles and notices the train come to a full stop

Link carefully jumped across to another tree, getting slightly closer to the cargo train, noticing white fang members coming down with loads of crates, fifteen members, each with three crates

(What were you tasked with again? Since you had me guessing like a moron earlier, out with it this time.)

(I have to destroy all the cargo and anyone trying to stop me. This 'old man' hates both White Fang and Atlas military so what better way to go after both of them then by destroying dust and weapons desperately needed.)

"HALT!" The voices of many men are heard as they chase after another group of individuals

"Hm?" Link looks down, carefully eyeing the White Fang soldiers who begin to speed up, they are being chased by none other than Atlas military

"Where's the backup?!" A White Fang soldier shouts at his accomplices, which appears to be about ten to fifteen faunus

"Adam and our brothers should be here anytime now, we just have to keep moving or fight and buy time." Another soldier replies as he draws his gun, aims and the fires at the incoming Atlas soldiers

"What are you doing?!"

"We're outnumbered!"

"STOP!"

"Running will only get us killed anyway!" A second soldier joins it and fired at the Atlas soldiers

"True! A lot of our brothers have gone down INSIDE the damn train, we can't die out here!"

"Screw it, I'm going down fighting them if I must!" The first soldier who cried for backup drops the massive crate he is carrying and uses it as cover to start shooting as well

(Hmm... They could use some help but helping them isn't part of my mission.) Link thinks carefully

(They are going to double cross you as soon as you are done helping them... Assuming these Atlas puppets do not kill them and you first.)

(If I back them up we can take out more Atlas soldiers with our combined strength. It leaves me with less people to hurt and reduces casualties... After all, I'm only here to destroy the cargo in their hands right now and they have already stopped running.)

Link notices all of the White Fang soldiers banding together and taking cover behind their crates. They are at a standoff with the Atlas soldiers, who themselves are a big group as well, at minimum it must be about thirty soldiers or less

"Here goes nothing." Link mumbles as he reaches inside a brown pouch on his felt, grabs a small white ball, lightly squeezes on it and gives it some time. The boy eyes the Atlas soldiers closely just like he has been doing before, having already memorized their firing patterns and when they reload

(Wait for it...)

The soldiers continue to fire at the White Fang soldiers who desperately drop to the ground to avoid the gun shots

(Wait for it...)

Link cocks his arm back, aiming for the middle of the skirmish, but then directs it more towards the Atlas soldiers

(NOW!) Link nods to himself and launches the ball right in the middle of the battle, choosing to blind everyone in sight

"BOMB!" One of the white fang soldiers shouts as all of them remain to the ground

The Atlas Soldiers all take a step back as well, expecting a powerful explosion that wipes everybody close it, but this white ball Link throws is not an explosive bomb, but a smoke bomb instead

BOOM!

This is no ordinary smoke bomb, smoke is not slowly trailing out and briskly engulfing the area, the white ball explodes and smoke spreads everywhere, instantly. It spreads out so much that it covers both White Fang and Atlas soldiers, as well as trails into the sky above them. Link says nothing, grabs the handle of his sword and keeps his eyes in the general area where the Atlas soldiers were before the smoke bomb was deployed. The masked boy decides to target them specifically, jumps down from the tree, draws his sword and shield, then takes off and fearlessly jumps into the mix

"W-we! g-got! o-one!" An Atlas soldier coughs his way through his sentence as no more than ten soldiers surrounded Link while the rest search for the White Fang soldiers or attempts to leave the smoke

"Big..." Link plants one foot firmly on the ground with his right foot forward, left leg back, his other foot slightly arches, torso twisted to the right, the huntsman's right arm which is grasping his shield is behind him and his left arm holding the boy's sword is across his body. "Mistake!" He spins and slashes everything with inches and a few feet to him, the powerful spinning slash catches and shreds through the soldiers armor and aura

"Ugh!"

"Nghh!"

"Ooof!"

"Ahhh!"

"Rrrk!"

With the smoke soon clearing, the remaining White Fang soldiers stay put behind their barricade of crates with valuables in them. Only one of them observes Link taking on the entire fleet of Atlas soldiers by himself

"Is that our backup?" He mumbles

"Who?!" Another soldier glances above the crates. "A kid in green by himself? No way."

...

Minutes later, Link backs away to assess his situation, having taken out more soldiers effortlessly

"Fifteen down..." The boy pants quietly, slowly gaining back his energy with the short recovery time he has

"STOP!" A taller Atlas soldier shouts, appearing to be the leader. "Surrender now and we'll spare you!"

"Atlas? Sparing people?" Link smirks. "You're a funny guy." He grips his sword and shield, charges forward, leaps over the commanding soldier and targets the back of his platoon. The boy easily takes out one of the frightened soldiers by simply swinging at him, clashing his sword with the soldier's gun, knocking it out of his hand and following up by slicing at his chest and midsection with rapid swings within the span of ten seconds. And just like that, another soldier is down and incapacitated

"This kid's no pushover, we should retreat."

"No! Our orders were to take back the stolen product from the train, eliminate all opposing targets was listed in the description as well. We cannot back down because of a kid we weren't expecting."

"It's nothing personal guys. I need to ensure my mission is successful" Link frowns and gets in an offensive stance

The White Fang members watch in unison and in stunned silence as Link sprints forward and proceeds to take out not just one but every soldier in sight. They inspect him closely when the boy valiantly takes on the rest of the Atlas soldiers, switching to a defensive stance upon getting closer and leading with his shield, deflecting and blocking incoming bullets, while also taking hits that his aura manages to protect him from injury. Regarding offense, Link switches from his shield and sword to his bow, waiting for the soldiers to run out of bullets and reload to attack. He targets the shoulders of each soldier and breaks out his newly acquired steel arrows. Link fires away and each arrow pierces through the soldiers armor like a hot knife cuts through butter. One by one, more soldiers begin to drop and it is unknown if they are dead or alive. That is up to Link, who smiles but as he watches the soldiers fall to the ground and none of the arrows hit vital spots or major organs

"You're the last one."

Link mumbles fiercely as he misses a high vertical swing but jumps in the air and lands a flying side kick to the commanding soldier, sending him crashing to the ground. The boy runs over, kicks the soldier's gun far away from his reach and aims his sword right at him while stomping on his chest to keep him down

"Please! Have mercy!" The soldier attempts to sit up groggily

"What?" Link smirks and exhales. "Relax and look around. None of your men are dead, I didn't come here to kill you guys." He applies force to the soldiers chest and forces him down, "My mission wasn't to wipe out Atlas military soldiers or White Fang soldiers; it was to destroy that cargo over there." The boy retracts his sword and points it to the crates now being used as a shield

"Then why not help us seize the White Fang?" The soldier groans

"I couldn't take my chances on you people, see them?" Link points at the White Fang soldiers. "They're cowards, but you're not. You'll fight until you die, and them? They'll do what it takes to survive. Let us say I did help you and your men, but then when you realize I'm a wanted mercenary AND your backup shows up, I would be outnumbered and certainly captured. So instead I decided to take my chances on the White Fang." He releases the pressure on the soldier's chest and gives him a nod. "My mission isn't over yet."

Link turns to face the White Fang soldiers, who are not hiding anymore and feel courageous all of a sudden

"STAY THERE AND PUT YOUR HANDS UP!"

(You were right after all. The White Fang double crosses me after I just bailed them out.) Link shrugs

(Predictable. Deal with them, stupid child.)

"I can't do that." Link raises his voice and reaches for another smoke bomb, "I'm here for a mission too and this payment is too much to just give it up now." He covers himself with his shield and launches the smoke bomb over the crates

"No! Not aga-!"

Before the White Fang soldier can finish their sentence, another explosion of heavy smoke goes off completely

"Stay alert! He's a dangerous one!"

Silence consumes the scene whilst smoke engulfs every White Fang soldier that holds their guns and swords shakily, until suddenly...

"Ahhh!" The scream of a White Fang soldier is ear piercing but also very faint as she drops to the ground and loses consciousness

(One down.) Link mumbles to himself while he sneakily walks in the smoke, no pressure or force is behind her footsteps as he approaches another White Fang soldier, and something becomes obvious to him. He realizes the soldiers all huddled around each other, forming a circle, each member back to back. (Perfect.)

Link puts his shield away and carefully steps back, soon closing his eyes and deeply concentrating as he lifts his left hand up and aims it at the faunus soldiers. The small, engraved triforce in his hand flashes a golden color and soon a thin beam of light fires from the back of the boy's hand and flies to the soldiers

"What the-!" A panicked soldier is cut short as he is stuck in place and helpless

(You're finished!)

Link frowns as two large triforces appear behind and in front the faunus soldiers, one is bright, the other is faded but they both rotate in place. The mercenary opens his eyes and like a flash appears right in front of the trapped White Fang soldiers, wasting no time in slashing and cutting them, with a powerful variety of slashes: two handed, one handed, spinning, full power, jabs, each strike becomes faster than the last. They all land with precision too and the final blow sends the White Fang soldiers crashing through the bright triforce and even out of smoke. Each member lands in different directions and onto different surfaces, such as against trees, in bushes, or flat on the ground

"I did not expect to use that move I'm still working on here of all places... But that was the best one yet." Link sighs in relief and waits for the smoke to clear out in order to approach the crates

"Anything of interest?"

"Hm?"

Link turns and what he sees next is a tall lean man in a high collared blazer, with spiky dark red hair and a weapon on his left hip. This weapon has characteristics of a gun but there is also the noticeable sword handle, suggesting it's a sword in a gun-sheath, and he wears the typical grimm masks that every White Fang member wears over their eyes. This man however, is no ally and proves it when he is in Link's face with his dark red sword out in a swinging motion, almost successfully slicing and slitting Link's throat. Luckily for him, the boy's instincts in just a bit faster, he leaps off the ground and flips right over the crates with a swift backflip, he grabs both sword and shield mid flip and ready for another fight

"What the hell!" Link frowns when he lands on the ground sloppily. "What's your problem? Who are you?!"

"My name doesn't matter to you but since you're about to die... Adam Taurus." The man sheaths his sword. "Why did you attack my brothers?"

"What?" Link looks around "They're not even dead you idi-! WHOA!"

Link takes multiple steps back to get away once more when Adam continues to charge at him. The masked man rushes forward with a rapid pace and what seems to be an unmatchable pace but in this instance he is matched, and Link is able to block the lunging sword slash and effectively avoid critical slices thrown by this mysterious man. The short sequence ends when Link initiates low slashes that Adam dodges and swiftly retreats from

(Two in one night... I'm still working on it and executing it a second time will drain me completely but I have to, this guy is not easy like the rest of them.) Link sighs and uses the space in between the two in order to get away from Adam and hide behind a tree. The boy breathes quick and soften his footsteps, trying to take as much space and time as possible, with the goal to regain his strength

"Come out kid! You're only delaying the inevitable. You'll pay for taking my brothers away from me." Adam walks around the area, his eyes never look away for even a second

"I'm right here..." Link exhales and steps out from behind the tree, sword in his left hand, tightly gripped while his right arm holds his shield firmly

"Well at least you've got guts..." Adam chuckle sinisterly as he unsheathes his sword and aims his 'sheath' at Link and suddenly fires a shot at him

"I'm not stupid!" Link performs a swift jumping barrel roll to avoid the shot and surprised the masked man, who's jaw drops

"A huntsman?" Adam mumbles. "No, you're too young to have graduated from an academy already."

"I wish. I'm a mercenary." Link raises his left hand after correcting the masked man; however, his eyes widen when the triforce on the back of his hand glows but very faintly. (With huntsman tendencies, you could say.)

"What is that?!"

"MY TURN!" Link's left eye glows gold

Within seconds, the boy is now in Adam's face and aims a direct sword jab at his opponents head, the man just about moves his head out of the way before the sharp metal stabs him in the face, only suffering a slight cut to the cheek

"That's not even close to my best!" Link pushes forward and rams his shield into Adam's chest, then displays a move he learned from Carter by roundhouse kicking Adam's sheath away from his hand, leaving him with just his sword

"Then show me your best and MAYBE I'll spare you." Adam stares down Link with only his sword in hand, the man stands his ground and makes no attempts to get his sheath back

Link and Adam charge each other, colliding swords once again, both using sheer strength to push each other back. Both warriors eventually choose to break apart at the same time. The former sheaths his sword, pulls out his bow and begins to fire his steel arrows at Adam, who blocks all of them with ease. With every successful block, his red sword glows gradually

(His semblance must have to do with his sword... I need to keep my distance but my arrows won't do the job, I have to finish him and I have to do it now.)

Link and Adam initiate another sequence with the same opening moves as the previous one and both charge at each other. Adam's experience finally reveals itself when he manages to figure out and capitalize on Link's weaknesses. The fact that he is too careful and instead of focusing all of his energy into his attacks, Link is too focused on having a good, sturdy defense, heavily relying on his shield to do so. Adam suddenly becomes faster with his swings, forcing Link to stop attacking and reverts to blocking and dodging. In the end, Adam is able to implement this discovery into good use when he winds up a swing and purposely hits the side on the boy's shield, the force and impact forces it out of the grasp of his right arm and colliding with the ground

(Crap!) Link frowns and now holds his sword with both hands

"Big mistake kid." Adam shakes his head. "A one-hand swordsman should stay that way..."

Adam dashes forward and gets back in Link's face, they both swing their swords and clash metal on metal. Adam lets up on the amount of strength he puts into his sword as they push each other back. The man grins to fool Link into putting all power into his attack, only to back away, make the boy stumble and with another powerful slash, send Link's sword out of his hands, landing conveniently next to his shield

"For a human you're not so bad, but say your goodbyes!" Adam smiles evilly

"Come at me then, surely now is when you don't slip up?" Link confidently stands still

Adam frowns and mightily swings at Link, who for some inexplicable reason stands still and takes the slash from Adam's sword directly to his chest. The powerful strike breaks Link's aura on his chest area and cuts his chest whilst sending him flying back in the process

(NOW!)

Link reaches for the brown pouch on his belt and draws three throwing knives. He aims quickly while in the air, two knives for Adam's right arm and the third knife for his throat. With a confident sidearm throw, Link launches the throwing knives with incredible power and velocity behind them as he collides into the ground himself

"A last ditch effort to take me with you?!" Adam raises his sword to block but does not take notice of the knives and where they are going until the final second. He gasps, having to choose between his arm or neck and wisely chooses to block the one aimed for his neck. The other two knives dig into Adam's right arm, and break through his aura as well. The long, thin knives both strike differently too, one sinks deep and touches his bone while the other one shreds past the skin and severs most if not, everything vital

"Gah!" Adam frowns and reaches over to pull both knives out of his arm, when he unexpectedly drops his sword and his right arm goes limp. "M-My arm! What the hell did you do?!"

"I figured I'd test out my throwing knives at some point." Link chuckles and struggles to sit up, pressing down on his chest to feel the wound. "My comrades told me if the timing is perfect and my opponent's guard is down, I could do some serious damage by aiming for a precise spot. Now your arm is useless, it's likely not permanent but don't expect to use it anymore tonight." He points to Adam's sword, now on the ground. "Go one Mister one handed swordsman, pick up and fight me like an actual one handed swordsman."

"You're no fraud, I'll give you that." Adam shrugs as he grabs his sword with his left hand, all while paying no attention to his right arm, which dangles and is unable to move. "But you're still just a kid. Time for me to finish this!"

"Feelings are mutual!" Link walks over and picks up both sword and shield off the ground

Adam and Link stare each other down yet again, both are looking to see who would make the first move and do not blindly charge each other like have been doing before

"Boss, they're here!"

"What?!" Adam shouts as he rapidly spins in place and sprints away, completely ignoring his previous fight

"Who's here?"

Link frowns and first walks over to pick up the masked man's scabbard, then decides to follow Adam who is running to meet up with White Fang reinforcements. What the two swordsmen and faunus soldiers see next is more Atlas soldiers approaching them... from both sides as the soldiers Link previously knocked out are getting back up

(Of course... And to think my mission was close to being done until this Adam guy had to butt in. And look at the difference in forces, he only brought a few white fang members with him.) Link keeps enough distance between himself, Adam, and the White Fang soldiers as he eyes how many Atlas soldiers

"Behind us!" The same soldier who warns Adam now turns to aim his gun at Link

"What the-!" Adam whips his head to see his former opponent, but his attention is fully set on the Atlas soldiers coming their way, "Damn..." He looks down at his left hand shakily holding his sword and his expression changes from worry to anger in no time

(He's going to kill them. I cannot let him do-! But I don't really have much of a choice. It's either I side with them or Atlas, taking them both out is out of the question. What should I do?!) Link sneaks off to take cover behind trees before his eyes ultimately settle on the Atlesian soldiers. (I could take out the soldiers on either side, but taking out Adam quickly is definitely not going to happen.)

Link steps out of the trees and jumps back into the fray, despite having allies in this battle. He ultimately decides who to partner up with temporarily when he tosses Adam's gun-sheath back to him lightly, giving him plenty of time to catch it with one arm

"I'm not one to say thanks ever..." Adam shrugs

"Whatever, just fight!" Link shakes his head and shocks everyone when he charges at Adam

"S-sir!"

"What?!" Adam quickly throws his sword in the air, grabs ahold of his sheath and uses it to catch his sword in mid air. The next thing everyone sees is the man's clothes, hair and sword begin to glow. "Now's not the time for-! W-What the-!" The masked man with the red blade stops what he is about to do when he realizes that Link runs past them and is aiming for the Atlas soldiers that previously tried to ambush the white fang members

(These soldiers are defeated already and don't need to stand anymore but their pride is bigger than their brain clearly. Maybe the new soldiers can withstand and survive Adam and his soldiers' wrath, but these guys cannot.)

"Stop right here kid!" The small pack of soldiers weakly aim their guns at Link

"Nothing personal guys, you'll thank me later when you return to your families!"

Link smirks, blocks and slashes away incoming bullets, then aims the back of his left hand at the soldiers. Now that he has gotten some time to recover, the triforce glows profusely and another thin beam of light shoots out at the soldiers. In a sequence just witnessed and experienced by the Atlas soldier, they panic and groan when the same two triforces appear in front and behind them. Link's exhales deeply, plants his feet into the ground and disappears like a flash of light and shows up in front of the soldiers, soon repeating the same attack pattern: Nonstop slashes, stiff jabs and rapid slicing, until the final blow, which sends the soldiers flying and crashing through the triforces that shatter like glass

Originally satisfied with his victory, Link shakes his head vigorously when he looks back at Adam takes on the same foes as he does, nothing but human soldiers

"They're all humans, what the hell is wrong with Atlas?" He balls up his hands. "Why didn't they send some stupid robots!"

"Hehehe..." Adam chuckles creepily rings throughout the forest as his clothes, sheath, hair and sword begin to glow again. The man bends his knees, leans forward and grips the handle of his sword with his left hand

"Damn it, I'm too late!" Link turns around and sprints towards Adam but immediately comes across obstacles in his way in the form of the White Fang soldiers who get in his way to prevent and stall him from advancing

"STOP!"

"But this child helped brother Adam!"

"So? he's a human!"

"No, he isn't! Look at his ears!"

"What is he then?"

"Not sure, he definitely is not a faunus!"

Link ignores their comments and resorts to getting in a fighting stance to scare them into scattering away. However, by the time he is through, all of the soldiers in Adam's vicinity are gone as the man kills them with a rapid slice and now his theory about Adam's sword is true. All the damage it absorbed earlier is dished back with one powerful attack

(That was a hell of a move and it was just one sword slice too. Who knows what else this guy can do with all that power? I wonder if all the power in his sword can shoot out?) Link stops dead in his tracks, knowing there's nothing he can for the soldiers who flop to the ground, some cut in half and others simply bleeding to death

"No witnesses." Adam mumbles coldly and walks to the Atlesian soldiers Link knocked out for a second time, his first target is going to be the soldier in command

(I can't let him do this.)

"G-Get up!" Screams an Atlas soldier who implores his comrades to wake up

"Shhh..." Adam shakes his head and raises his sword in the air

"N-No!"

"STOP!" Link sprints past Adam and stands over the Atlas soldier and raises his shield to block the incoming downwards stab from Adam's red sword that would have most certainly killed the soldier

"What are you doing? Atlas hates you mercenaries just as much as they hate us." Adams points to himself and the rest of his soldiers

"I don't care!" Link growls. "He's just following orders, as am I, but I know that you... You're not following orders. You're the bastard who gives the orders, aren't you? Of course you'd see us as inferior pests."

"Wrong. Mercenaries are the type who SHOULD take the money and shut up, but clearly you're different. You didn't grow up a heartless killer, did you kid?"

"That's right. I'm only doing this to survive and benefit." Link nods

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill a human?" Adam shakes his head and narrows his eyes behind his mask. "He's part of the Atlesian military, who are directly controlled by the Schnee's, who discriminate and kill my brothers and sisters on a day to day basis!"

"Look, just because I'm fifteen doesn't mean I don't know what's happened, I've done my research and asked questions to anybody who will answer them. I definitely had to after defeating Atlas and White Fang soldiers already."

"Y-You what?" Adam growls

"Did you really think this is the first time I've come up against you guys?" Link scoffs. "Regardless, I am aware that the Schnee's and Atlas have been in a blood war with the White Fang and faunus for too long. You both do despicable things to each other but does it have to stay that way? You may think this helps the White Fang but all it does is give all faunus a bad reputation."

"Not good enough." Adam begins to push back, slowly overpowering Link. "Give me more or I kill you both right now!"

"Good luck with that! Your arm is still no good and I'm recovering quicker than you!" Link digs his heels into the ground and matches Adam's strength with his shield resistance

"Pledge your allegiance to the White Fang and I will stop." Adam smirks as he lets go and backsteps

"W-What?" Link shakes his head as he almost stumbles over

"I'm not stupid either. I know who you are, not your name specifically, but I know you're part of that small mercenary group we've contacted a few times to do small jobs for a price. What did you call yourselves, the Black Birds?"

"It's the Black Hawks! And I'm sure you knew that already." Link shrugs

"Whatever." Adam rolls his eyes. "You're skilled and clearly can do damage if necessary, you're definitely inexperienced and you move sloppily but for a kid with no formal training, you're not so bad." Adam's gaze moves to his arm to which he smiles when his fingers regain mobility with the slightest twitching. "If there are mercenaries of your skill or even close to it in your group... Look like we should contract you people for more jobs and higher pay of course."

"I thought you hated humans, why even work with us to begin with?" Link asks

"Exceptions can be made... On MY terms." Adam nods

"So you're the leader of the White Fang?"

"No." Adam shakes his head, "But I do intend on taking the position one day, when the time is right." He shows off an evil smirk and then points at his group. "You! Take the crates."

"Yes sir!"

Link puts away his sword, shield, and grabs his bow. After quickly feeling his quiver and coming to the realization that he only has a few arrows left, he fires one in the air but in the direction of the White Fang soldiers. The arrow misses them by a mile but it certainly catches their attention

"My mission here is not over yet!" Link smirks. "I can't let you leave with those crates."

"What is it? Spill it kid!" Adam winces in pain as he attempts to move every muscle in his right arm but it is far too soon for that

"To destroy whatever is in those crates."

"We can't let you do that." Adam shakes his head "These supplies are crucial for our movement!"

"There's about what? Thirty or forty crates in your possession and they could contain anything: dust, guns, money, the list goes on." Link looks at Adam and then at his group, who aims their guns at him. (Damn it, I'm very outnumbered here and Adam himself could kill me if manages his moves correctly.)

"WE'LL KILL YOU FOR SUCH DEMANDS!"

"THAT'S RIGHT! WALK AWAY WHILE YOU CAN!"

"FOOL! ARE YOU TRYING TO DIE?"

"Stop it!" Adam raises his voice, which ends the smugness of the soldiers that accompanied him. On the other hand, the soldiers who have seen Link's power do not say a word. "If you underestimate this kid, he will kill you."

"WHAT?!"

"A KID?!"

"NO WAY!"

"Don't mind them." Adam shrugs. "Who is paying you?"

"A shady old man, lives outside of Vacuo, runs a big-!"

"I got it, say no more. I know exactly who you speak of." Adam nods and looks at the crates. "Did you give the old man any of your information? Name? Location? Details about you?"

"Not at all." Link smiles behind his mask. "I was masked, spoke little and was in a different outfit when he hired me."

"Good." Adam nods to one of his soldiers. "Bring one of the money crates, quickly!"

"What are you doing?" Link asks

"Something I shouldn't. I should just kill you right now for interfering and screwing up my arm but... You'll be more useful when working for me than would be dead on the ground next to these Atlas scum."

SLAM!

"See that?" Adam points at the slammed crate in between himself and Link. "That's full of money, take it and go. Before I regret my decision."

"Full of money you say?" Link skeptically frowns and opens the crate to verify himself and indeed there is plenty of lien to fill up the crate. Plenty of green, blue, red, and yellow lien cards are visible to the eye. (I still don't get how this money works. Which one is more than valuable? I really should listen to Carter the next time he talks about money in detail.)

"Are you satisfied, kid?" Adam smirks

"Yes. I am so to honor your request, I will get going now." Link nods

"Good, move out everybody!" Adam shouts as the soldiers with him each grab crates and begin walking away, right as more backup arrives

"Took them long enough... If it weren't for Adam and I, they would've gotten arrested or killed." Link turns his back, puts his bow away and walks off whilst dragging the heavy crate of money behind him

...

"How did it go?"

The voice of a young girl approaches the masked man leading this mission for the White Fang, soon enough she stands next to him and without a mask it is revealed to be none other than Blake Belladonna

"It was a success." Adam nods again, his gaze remains on Link to be absolutely certain that the blonde boy leaves

"Who's that?" Blake's voice switches from soft to aggressive when she follows Adam's gaze and stares daggers at Link

"An ally Blake... That kid is a strong ally." Adam snickers

The two faunus watch the blonde masked swordsman walk off, his speed increases as the crate moves faster and he begins speed walking. Link, for his part, does not turn back to look Adam, Blake or any of the other White Fang members that are also leaving

Present Time

"And that's how I got myself and my group on the White Fang's radar." Link nods. (If only I could go back, Adam would be dead, even if it cost me my own life.)

"That move you used twice, is that your semblance?" Weiss smirks as she finishes her coffee. "I knew your semblances shtick that you used against us was just nonsense."

"Hey! I was trying to scare you guys a little, that's all." Link rolls his eyes while laughing. "I don't know if that's my semblance, I gave it a name too. The Triforce Slash, I hope it's not my semblance, that would be kind of lame if you ask me."

"Lame?!" Ruby shakes her head and angrily slaps her empty mug against the ground. "I've seen it in action, it's awesome! Why would that ever be lame?"

"Because it is just a move, one singular move that I can use for about ten seconds. Your semblance is speed, now that's awesome, if you work on it you could probably use it forever. Pyrrha has polarity, which is also awesome. My maybe or possibly not semblance is a one and done."

"Hm, I think you're lying." Pyrrha smiles as she shakes her head. "You are lying, you know the triforce slash is not your semblance."

"Huh?" Link's eyes go wide, shocked that his bluff is figured out by Pyrrha. "What do you mean?"

"This triforce slash as you call it is either a combination of your semblance or an ability you can do based on your own power and ability."

"Interesting, I'm not entirely sure myself so I can't confirm or deny that." Link nods and looks at his 'audience' of whom are still staring right at him. "Half way through..."

"I can't believe it." Blake shakes her head. "I didn't even recognize you when we officially met here, I saw you as a stranger. I cannot believe I didn't even recognize your clothes."

"Don't even worry about it, we were different back then, plus it's been a while so how could you remember my clothes?" Link nods at the cat faunus. "We're better friends because we met as strangers."

"..." Blake says nothing but then nods back, with a bright smile on her face. "Y-You're right."

"You said halfway through, what else is left?" Weiss asks

"I guess technically not half way through now that I think about it. There's meeting Sienna Khan, my reunion with that woman, my group's fallout with the White Fang, trying to escape mercenary life, and the small village."

Link suddenly begins to breathe rapidly, showing signs of hyperventilation half a second after mentioning the village

"L-link?" Velvet rises to her feet and approaches him, she awkwardly gives him a direct hug as an attempt to help

"H-huh?" Link blinks multiple times before snapping back to reality and hugging the worried rabbit faunus back "Sorry Velvet, I just... Reliving all of it in one sitting stresses me out a lot. This room is starting to feel a bit cramped now, can we go somewhere else and finish the storytelling there?"

"The library?" Neptune suggests. "It will be quiet and I think nobody is there."

"Shut up, nerd. You always want to read." Sun snickers

"Is that so?! Why don't you come up with a place then?" He frowns

"I got one, easy. How about the Courtyard?" Sun asks. "I'm sure fresh air will do the trick. Yes? No?"

"The courtyard sounds a great idea! Good job monkey man." Coco nods. "Let's go!"

"Don't call my leader such a redundant ins-!"

"Did you say something?" Coco lowers off her sunglasses to stare down Neptune. "I didn't quite catch that!"

"N-no ma'am." Neptune chuckles. "Nothing at allll."

Everybody inside the room erupts in laughter at Coco's humiliation of the usually cool and suave Neptune... Everybody except Link, that is, he just exhales and stands up

"You guys head there, I better give this back to Professor Ozpin."

Link picks up the empty coffee mugs, only Coco fails to finish her beverage but what is left is minimal. Next, the student grabs the Professor's tablet and makes sure there's no dents to it

"I thought he let you borrow it?" Yang asks

"Well... Yes, he did but-!"

"I knew it was stolen!" Weiss smirks. "You almost got away with it too!"

"Shush." Link rolls his eyes. "Did you not remember that I said it was loaned? I cannot keep it forever and I could've returned it in the time he gave me but you people had to come in, raid my room and now I'm stuck here giving you some of my life story."

"Don't take it to heart, I'm sure Professor Ozpin won't get too mad." Coco does her best to hold a smirk as she points to Velvet and Blake. "Buuut, what do you mean by you people?"

"Shut up." Link sighs and shakes his head "It'll only take like five minutes tops, just go to the courtyard and I will find you guys there. If you guys don't trust that I'll return, someone can come with me. Any volunteers?"

"I will go with you." Pyrrha raises her hand and smiles

"Good, looks like it's settled then."

Link parts ways from the group except Pyrrha as he fully intends to follow through with his promise of returning the tablet and immediately heading to the courtyard. Although the moment he enters the elevator to head up into Ozpin's office, he begins to breathe heavily again... The memories of 'the village' alone are enough to make him have a panic attack

(I-I'm sorry... I knew I should've stayed away.)

"L-Link?!" Pyrrha gasps and immediately wraps her arms around him, her heart rapidly beats when she feels her friend extremely shaking. The red haired girl rests on her head on Link's shoulder and whispers in his ear. "You'll never be alone, ever again."

The distraught blonde boy does not respond with words, instead he hugs back, squeezes Pyrrha tightly and unexpectedly gives her a quick peck on the cheek, more as a gesture of gratitude, rather than something romantic between the two

"O-Oh!" Pyrrha blushes and shakes her head to confirm this moment is real but rather than question it, she smiles softly and continues hugging her friend

...

...

...

To be continued...