Greetings!

Here's the Raiden chapter! Originally this was supposed to be one long chapter, but seeing the already high word count, I decided to split it up into two. Sorry.

As usual, Review Responses are at the bottom of the chapter

With that ado, enjoy!

A Few Days Ago…

"Come in, Raiden!"

Raiden opened the door to Jade's workshop, dragging Jaune's suit and arms behind him. He closed the door behind him and took a good look around.

Raiden whistled. "Looks like you've got everything set up now, huh?"

"Yep!" Jade turned around, wearing a lab coat and a pair of gloves, a grin on his face. He opened his arms and motioned around him. "All of your cyborg needs, right here in this very room."

And indeed, that fact was true. Raiden could see various parts he was familiar with from his time in maintenance with Doktor. Servos, energy transfer cables, armour platings, and even some of the more advanced circuitry.

"Oh! And if you're wondering about Jaune's stuff…" Jade motioned to his right and Raiden looked there. On the wall to Jade's right, a new prosthetic arm was being built, right beside a glowing tube filled with a glowing green liquid.

Raiden put Jaune's suit down behind the door and walked closer to the new arm, hand rubbing his metal chin. He examined it closely, noting its design, how robust it is, and its build quality…

"Yeah, that's not a permanent replacement." Jade walked closer to Raiden, standing right behind him.

Raiden kept looking at the arm as it was being built automatically. A blowtorch moving around the surface, cables being wired, metal fillings being applied, the works. Idly, the ninja felt a slight tingle on his skin.

'Must be from the tools…'

Jade decided to explain further, "This is a standard-issue prosthetic arm. Lots of 'em around the market. Since, y'know, I took a look at your blueprints and…." He motioned to the glowing tube next to the arm.

Raiden, even with his back to the scientist, knew what he was referring to. The ninja looked at the glowing tube next. "So, these are the nanomachines, huh?"

"Yep. Compatible with Aura, too, so no need to worry about short circuits."

Raiden turned back and looked at Jade. "Leonardo just called, said we got a mission. You think you can pack this up in a day or two?"

Jade sighed. "No, probably not. For Jaune's, at least. These are new nanomachines, so you're gonna have to leave the suit and arm here so I can adjust them. This is a lot of work, and I don't know how long it'll take."

"But what about me?"

"Oh, yours is a lot easier to handle, Raiden. All I need to do is change some of your parts with new ones. You've looked around, haven't you?" Again, Jade motioned to his surroundings. "We could probably do it right now if you like."

Raiden thought it over. On one hand, he's opening himself up for someone he barely knew, relaxing his guard. On the other hand, he couldn't risk going to Leonardo's mission in anything but the highest quality state he could. The world here was dangerous, and he needed to be at the top of his game.

Raiden sighed. "Let's get this over with."

"Great!" Jade clapped his hands, a smile on his face. "I've prepared a table for you, right over there." He pointed to the edge of the room across from them. "Lie down there, and we can begin."

Raiden did as he was told, still slightly vigilant. Then, as he laid on the table, he saw himself getting connected to various computers, analysing tools, and much, much more.

Raiden turned his head. He saw Jade walking to another computer, typing something on the keyboard. "I'm going to have to put you to sleep." The scientist explained, "That way we won't have to deal with sudden movements, shocks, and-."

"I've got it." Raiden cut him off. "Usual procedures. done this a million times with Doktor before…" he relaxed his every cybernetic muscle, eye drooping down and breath steadying. "Give me a jolt when it's over." He breathed out.

"I won't be long."

Raiden nodded weakly.

"Stabilising."

Darkness engulfed Raiden, covering everything he was.

A Few Hours Later…

"Rise and shine, sleepyhead."

Raiden opened his eye slowly, taking in the surroundings around him. The constant hum of machines, cold air, and familiar voice…

Good, looks like he was still in the lab.

Raiden pushed himself up. He saw Jade putting his tools away. "Try moving around," Jade spoke without looking at him, "Get a feel for it."

Raiden nodded wordlessly and got off his table. He rolled his shoulders and took a few steps, lifting his knee high every step. He tried to 'stretch' with his cybernetic body.

"Everything feels… excellent, Jade." Raiden said in amazement. "Really, this feels so good!"

"Glad you liked it." Jade finished putting his tools away and went to look at one of the screens. "Readings here seem normal too. You sure you don't feel anything weird?"

"Positive."

"Great." Jade seemed tired, but the edges of his mouth quirked upwards. "I've also taken the liberty of optimizing your absorption ports for Dust. You should see a 25% increase in electrolyte intake from every Dust shard crushed. Aside from that..." Jade motioned his hands at Raiden's head without looking.

Raiden felt around his head, feeling a familiar weight near his ears.

"…I've repaired your visors, too. More like made new ones, but same difference. Hope they're up to specs with… Tokugawa Heavy Industries, was it? Yeah, their specifications."

With his repaired self, Raiden decided to deploy his visors. Identical to the last one, he saw his vision shift slightly, then turn to blue with yellow highlights at the side. Various items around the workshop were marked with useful info, and Jade himself was marked with a brighter colour for Raiden to see.

"I've connected your systems to my personal network, so what you're seeing should work out around the neighbourhood. But if you want to go even further, you'll need to connect with the CCTs in each Kingdom." Jade waved his hand absentmindedly. "Figured you could do that yourself."

"Jade…" Raiden disabled his visors, sliding them back to his head's sides. Raiden's lips quirked up slightly and he bowed his head slightly in gratitude "…Thanks. Means a lot to me."

Jade turned his sunken eyes at Raiden and gave a tired smile. "It's no problem, working with this kind of tech is payment in and of itself, y'know."

Raiden raised his head and hummed.

"But can I ask a favour, Raiden?"

Raiden shrugged. "Sure, Doc."

"Tell me... who are the Patriots?"

Who are the Patriots?

Who are the Patriots?

Who are the Patriots?!

"What about them." Raiden tensed. He growled lowly. "They're dead. Nothing for you to be worried about."

"But you're their product." Jade argued, hands in his lab coat pockets. "And you say they're dead? How many people have 'died' and then come back to life? I need to know for sure."

"But WHY?!" Raiden screamed. "How do you know about them?! Why do you care so much?!" Raiden paused, his eyes narrowing. "Unless…"

Jade's gaze met him, challenging his own. The scientist took a step forwards, body tense too at the ready.

The silence went on for a few seconds, neither party making a move. They searched each other's souls, their minds, their motivations.

In a flash, Raiden lunged forwards, hands grabbing Jade's throat and pinning him down. On the other hand, Jade pulled out a device with a big red button on it from his pocket and held it to his side. As he was pinned down, he held the device right next to Raiden's face.

Jade smirked. "Try to do anything. Once I push this button you'll freeze, and all you'll be is dead weight."

Raiden growled. He gazed defiantly at Jade's eyes. "And if I kill you first?"

"All's fair."

Raiden growled again. Damn it, he can't believe he's doing this… "The Patriots were a shadow organisation that controlled the entirety of the United Continents. Food, Water, Natural Resources, Data, Economy, and Military Power, all of them fell under the Patriot's AI, The Sons of the Patriots." Raiden almost spat to his side. "There. You happy?"

"How did they do that? Control an entire continent?"

"Information gatherings, wetworks, and a whole lot of nanomachines." Raiden's grip tightened, as did Jade's grip on his device.

"One last thing..." Jade chuckled. "Are there any more of you? War-machine cyborgs who can take down a Kingdom in a day?"

Raiden looked dead into Jade's eyes again. There was defiance, hope, love…

And a willingness to die for something other than himself.

"…No one else in Remnant." Raiden said.

Jade closed his eyes, his entire being becoming slack and the device falling to the floor. He let out a weak chuckle and sighed. "Good… that's good…" He whispered.

Raiden's lips quirked upwards. "Didn't think you had it in you, Jade."

"Heh, what can I say?" Jade shrugged, or something resembling it. "Anything for my family."

"That'll get you killed one day."

"Then I'll die a happy man."

Raiden got up from his crouch and sat beside Jade. "Still, you'll go far with that kind of conviction, Jade. Just don't go too far, okay?"

Jade nodded wordlessly.

A comfortable silence engulfed the two, one lying down and the other sitting right next to him.

"…Say, Raiden, can I ask another favour?"

"Heh, what's with all the favours today?" The ninja smirked. "But shoot away, buddy. I'm all ears."

"I made a cyborg, a long time ago. She was in critical condition back then, and it took a lot of people to get her back. Heh, kinda like you, right?"

Raiden motioned Jade to go on, clearly interested. The scientist chuckled and continued, "Far as I know, she's the only one of her kind here in Remnant. Your AR vision should pick her up easily if she's near. So if you see a cyborg girl around, tell her I said hey, okay?"

"Sure thing." Raiden nodded. "And her name?"

"Penny."

"Hey, you spacin' out or somethin'?"

Raiden snapped away from his memory. He looked up, to the man sitting across from him in this transport Bullhead. "Nothing you need to worry about."

His client, a Huntress from the village he was assigned to, scoffed. "Don't go lyin' on me now, pretty boy." She hefted her weapon, a mechashift shotgun named Visionbuster, and laid it against her shoulder. "Things like that don't make you survive."

Raiden's eye narrowed. "You and I are on business only, Beryl. I'll get your place free, don't doubt it for a second."

Beryl smirked. "Well don't blame me when you get killed. After all…" she leaned forwards, mocking the cyborg, "just business, right?"

Raiden rolled his eyes. He turned to the cockpit doors and shouted out. "How long till we get there?!"

"15 minutes tops!" The pilot answered.

Raiden leaned back, sinking deeper into his seat. He stared at the still-smirking Beryl. "I'll review the files. That enough?"

"Well that's up to you, isn't it?"

Raiden took that as a yes and closed his eyes. Inside his head, he reviewed the intel that was provided.

His target village was Higanbana, another one of the various villages scattered across the edges of Mistral's reach. It had a population of 200 residents, children not included. Its infrastructure consisted of a moderately sized wall, watchtowers for every point of the compass; south, east, west, and north, simple housings, and a trading centre for the people. 50 of the residents' 200 served as the village guard, split into the 4 watchtowers making it around 12 men in each watchtower, split again into three times of the day; morning, noon, and night.

For two months, the village had become the den of a group of raiders known as the Wild Storm. Reportedly, every settlement they raided fell in a single night, almost always in the middle of a harsh rainstorm, and it was no different for Higanbana. The guards fell in two hours, and their CCT connection was seized. The Wild Storm used it to send out a message that Higanbana had been conquered. After that, all communication was cut.

The Wild Storm was a fairly renowned group of raiders. That came from the fact that their targets weren't only villages. No, they even raided several small towns, razing them to the ground in no less than 12 hours. But as for what they want with Higanbana, the intel couldn't say. It was small, out of the way, and all the revenue they had comes from its tavern and its exports of spices. Hardly resources important to a raider gang.

But then again, what does it matter anyway? They're going to fall, just like raiders usually do. That's what Beryl called him for, to help the liberation of her hometown.

He'll make sure of that.

The two of them landed a safe distance away from Higanbana. The plan was for them to pose as wandering travellers, or at least outmatched Huntsmen. They first planned to get inside the village and see if there was anyone to rescue. Then, they could plan the fall of the Wild Storm, yet planned around the safety of the citizens of Higanbana.

"You sure no one's gonna recognise you?" Raiden asked as walked in the direction of Higanbana's gates. "This is your hometown, after all."

"Dontcha worry, pretty boy." Beryl waved Raiden's concerns away. "I've been gone long enough that no one'll recongnise me from the get-go."

"As long as it doesn't get us into trouble." Raiden answered.

Silence fell between the two of them. They continued on the dirt path, the gates finally coming into view. The gates were average in height, around three men tall. Ten guards were stationed at its top, with five more on the watchtower.

"Freeze! Hands in the air!"

Raiden rolled his eye. "Here they come." He muttered. Beryl chuckled and shrugged. Together, they slowly put their hands up, hands open to show they were empty.

The guards kept pointing their guns at them, gripping them harder and growing tenser. "Put down your weapons!"

"Alright." Raiden slowly put his hand behind his back and pulled the sheathed HF Crocea away. He held the weapon off to the side, before slowly putting it on the ground. He saw Beryl do the same with Visionbuster, putting it to the side before kicking it away. Raiden did the same, kicking HF Crocea to the entrance of the gate.

"On your knees! Hands on your head!"

Raiden and Beryl did as they were told, though Raiden growled as he did so.

Several of the guards looked at each other, while others kept their weapons firmly trained on the Hunters. They nodded in agreement, right before five of them descended and opened the gates. From the five of them, three stayed at the back while two led in front, weird-looking handcuffs visible on their hands. They approached the duo slowly, visibly careful and weary. The two then walked behind them, the three now covering the fronts of the Hunters. As they reached the back, the two forced Raiden and Beryl on the ground. Raiden grunted as he felt his hands being bound, felt the sudden disconnect between him and the Ripper.

'These must be Aura-suppressing handcuffs.' Raiden noted as he and Beryl were forced back on their feet, guns still trained on them. Raiden then took note of the guards' weapons. Military-grade assault rifles, handguns, and a laser-attached sniper rifle on the watchtower.

He felt the barrel of an assault rifle prod against his back. "Get moving!"

Raiden kept his mouth shut, shooting the man behind him a glare.

"I said get moving!" Another prod, this one significantly stronger than the last. A clang echoed as the metal barrel met a metal spine. Raiden's glare intensified.

"U-uh..." The man took a step back, while the others tensed. Raiden could hear the clicks of their guns, rounds chambered and safeties disabled. Without even looking, he already knew the laser sight being trained on his head.

Raiden silently looked away from the guard and instead looked forwards, right at the centre of the now open gate. Without so much as another word, he began walking forwards, Beryl following suit. The three guards at the front turned around and began to lead them in, the two in the back following still with their weapons ready. They entered Higanbana, the door closing behind them shut.

No turning back now.

The guards brought them to the centre of the village, towards the town hall. As they approached, Raiden could see even more armed guards. They seemed even more stocked up than the ones at the entrance, some with rocket launchers and even donning what seemed to be some sort of military-issue armour. They all stood ready around the town hall, fresh and prepared for combat.

"Gonna take us to the leader?" Beryl spoke, "What, the person can't visit us at the front?"

"Shut your mouth!" The guard behind them stabbed his rifle's barrel harder to Beryl's back. "And get moving! She's already been waiting for too long!"

"Fine, fine…" Beryl rolled her head and continued moving. Raiden, on the side, feigned ignorance while watching with interest.

'So whoever the ringleader is' waiting in the hall…' The ninja noted, 'smack dab in the middle. Not safe for prolonged combat.'

Raiden threw a side-eyed glance at Beryl. She nodded silently. 'We're gonna have to draw 'em out.'

'Probably at the edges of the village.'

"Stop!" The guard ordered them and Raiden and Beryl did as they were told. "We're here." Several more guards stepped forwards to the duo, "Search them!"

Before the two could respond, they felt foots ramming into the back of their knees. Forced to the ground, they felt cold steel press against the back of their head. Meanwhile, the new guards patted down their bodies.

"Weapons." One of the guards muttered as he patted Raiden down. He fished them out of the ninja. Holding them up, he showed them to his comrades; throwing knives, three whole sets of them. Meanwhile, the guards searching Beryl found weapons too. Ammo, to be precise. Shotgun shells filled with various forms of Dust.

The guards confiscated them, putting them inside metal cases secured by a padlock. Two of them split up, bringing them away to be stored.

"Get back up!"

Raiden clenched his teeth and did as he was told, Beryl doing the same.

The guards led them in the town hall, no less tense than as they were outside. The wooded door creaked open, giving clear view of the interior. Traditional wooded walls, lit well by various torches. In the middle of the room was a long table for meetings, made of old high-quality mahogany.

Only one person was sitting on the chairs, on the far end from the entrance. She had her hands on the table, her face lit clearly from the torch behind her. She had a scar running down her nose, with another one running down from her left cheek. Different from the almost military-like guards, her sense of fashion and being was clearly Huntress-influenced, if not a Huntress herself. Though she did look on the young side, early twenties at most, so there was a large possibility that she was a recent graduate. The woman was quite built, beside her hands on the table laying a large rifle-spear mechashift weapon. Her gray eyes watched the two with interest.

The guards led them forwards and forced them to kneel to the side of this 'leader.' Seeing this, she pushed back on her chair and stood up, looking down at her two captors.

"What's this?" Her voice stayed monotone. "Leonardo sent you to take Higanbana back?"

"And take you down." Raiden spoke, voice gravelly. He sized her up. "And judging from how you look, it won't even be a challenge."

"Says the man in the cuffs." The woman scoffed. "But I suppose introductions are in order. My name is Soma, the leader of the Wild Storms." He knelt and looked Raiden in the eye. "And you are?"

"Raiden."

"Lightning bolt, huh?" She grabbed Raiden's chin and lifted it up. Her fingers drummed against his metal chin. He scowled in response.

"Well I can certainly see it." She shifted her eyes and looked at Beryl instead. "And you?"

"Beryl Greens. The gal that's gonna put you dogs down."

"Cocky." She lifted herself. "Out here, there are no rules, nothing to hold us back. So tell me…" She turned around, going to the table. She put her hand on her weapon, grabbing it but not lifting it. With her back towards them, she asked again, "Why should I spare you?"

"…"

"No response?" She turned around, looking down at them condescendingly. "How idealistic."

"And pessimistic of you." Raiden spat back. "Nothing to fight for but yourself."

"…" Soma stared at them, dead in their eyes. Silence reigned in the room, the air seemingly growing hotter and the pressure magically building.

"Leave us." Soma spoke, tone again dead. The guards did as they were told, clearing the building empty. What was left were the three; Soma, Beryl, and Raiden.

"Tell you what…" She knelt in front of them and reached for their cuffs. She fiddled around with the two cuffs, adjusting some settings Raiden couldn't see. Once… whatever it is… was done, Soma got back up and looked down at them again.

"You're free to go around Higanbana as you wish, but those cuffs stay on." Soma smirked. "I've adjusted those cuffs to give you all a burn whenever something… unsavoury, let's say, happens. As for how I know that happens, heh, I have my ways."

Soma turned around, walking towards the exit. "Guards will be patrolling you at all times."

She opened the door to leave, but before stepping out, said one more thing. "Welcome to the real world. Enjoy your stay."

After that whole fiasco, Raiden and Beryl decided to split ways walking around the village. Raiden decided to walk around the western and northern areas of the Higanbana, while Beryl circled the southern and eastern sides of the village. They were to return by 22:00 at the village's central tavern. A room had already been reserved for their stay, complete with seven guards standing by at all times, and the other tenants warned of their stay.

The areas Raiden picked were mostly residential ones, paired with Higanbana's market and commercial centre, farming grounds, and their stables. Generally, the ninja wanted to get a good grasp of the people living here. How they went their day by day, how they held themselves, and lastly how ready they were. Getting a general feel of the hostages was something important, one he still held close to this day.

Thankfully, the guards following him didn't seem to be sticking too close. Raiden had a few guesses as to why, and why it was most likely intended to be that way. But still, he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Instead, he walked calmly to the market and tried to absorb how the locals behaved.

He walked calmly along, noting the curious and strained stares the locals sent his way. Their gazes held worry, some even to fear. Others instead glanced at his handcuffs and shot him looks of pity and sorrow. Even after all of that, though, they kept it to themselves. No whispers, not a breath of a word out of their mouths. They glanced, understood, then walked faster along.

'Fear?' Raiden asked himself. 'Of me, or the consequences…?'

Raiden took note of that. Next, he approached a stall with an elderly vendor. "Hello, sir." The ninja spoke. "What are you selling?"

"U-uhm, we've got some refined Dust here." The old man stuttered. "We mined these just a few days ago. We've got fire, earth, electricity, and some others."

"Just a few days ago?" Raiden said back. "So there's a mine around here?"

"Y-yes," The old man responded, "It's not that big, but it's enough for Higanbana to survive for generations."

"Generations, huh…" Raiden picked up a vial of Dust and gave it a close inspection. "These look refined, sir." He put it back down respectfully, "Last I heard some company called the SDC were the ones that made this kind of stuff."

"We managed to scrape enough money to get the refinement assembly down there…" The old man whispered. "It took us a long time… you're not planning on taking it, are you?"

"No, of course not." Raiden quickly answered. He put the Dust vial back down and decided to switch topics. He looked around the market centre "Seems kinda busy around here, sir. At this point, I'm wondering if all of the village's already down here?"

"Well, it's late in the afternoon, so lots of us decide to do our shopping now. Best to get it out of the way now." The old man said, "But it wasn't always like this." He whispered the last part.

"Hm?" Raiden raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

The old man looked around worriedly. Then, he pointedly looked away from Raiden and spoke, "If you want to get a good deal, just don't come at night, boy. Lots of us will be tending to our special customers."

Raiden immediately picked up on it. "Special customers, huh?" The ninja smirked. "They keep you safe at night? Shoot down your worries?"

"Exactly."

'Ah. So extortion runs at midnight.' Raiden noted in his head. He didn't dare look back, dare to challenge if his guards knew about this or not. The ninja decided to switch topics. "I heard Higanbana exports spices. Are they that good?"

"Well, we do have the farming grounds over there, but I'm not the expert on that." The old man gave a small smile, relieved that Raiden got the message. "I can show you to little Jett, boy. He's the herb family's youngest, runs a stall on the other end of here."

"No thanks, I'll walk on my own." Raiden bowed ever so slightly. "Thank you again, sir."

And so Raiden left the stall, off to meet this new 'Jett' person. He strolled calmly between the citizens, making sure his steps were slow enough that his guards would be able to follow but fast enough that they'd end up falling behind a bit more. After all, it wouldn't do for them to lose him just yet.

In all of that, he never noticed a raven bird perched atop a roof, watching silently and intensely.

"So I heard your family runs the spices business around here," Raiden spoke to Jett while the boy was serving other customers. "I'm curious, what's it like?"

The young boy shot a glance at Raiden and smiled. "Oh, boring. But the good kind!" He added, "Steady sort of income and just enough for-That'll be 10 Lien for a kilo, miss!" He grabbed a bag from a customer and weighed it on the scales. "25 Lien." He received the money and counted it down. "Thanks, miss- But yeah, Mister." Jett pocketed his money and turned back to Raiden. "Enough for our family to survive."

"Hm, and the exports?"

"Oh, usually some Mistral merchants come down and buy the stock from us." He noticed another customer come in and began packing some more spices in a plastic bag. He looked to behind Raiden, to the approaching customer. "Hey! The usual, Sterling?"

"Yeah."

"Here you go." Jett finished packing his plastic bag and tied it up. He handed it over to the new customer, "17 lLien, buddy."

"Here you go."

"Thanks." The customer walked away and Jett pocketed his money again. He talked back to Raiden. "And about where it goes, we don't really care. That's for the folks in the Kingdom to figure out."

"Hm, but you still mark it that it's from Higanbana?"

"That's right." Jett chuckled. "Well, if the taste wasn't telling enough, that is!"

"Of course." Raiden chuckled. "So your farming grounds should be around here, right? What's it like down there?"

"They're just before the end of the walls. Lower walls there too, for one. A lot more peace of mind there. Much as they'd like to keep it running, they don't know enough about the plants to be sure not to mess it up."

'Right, right….' Raiden asked again. "Anything else out there on the outskirts? 'Cause I heard something about a Dust mine…"

"That's a little over right next to us. Tightest security around." Jett confirmed. "Back when Higanbana was being built, we tried to centre our village in clean sections. That way it'd be easier for us to live around here." He scoffed. "Fat lot of good that did us. Two hours and we lost outright."

Raiden' felt the guards were going to come closer any minute. He wasn't going to be able to speak as freely soon. He looked back, making a show of gazing at the sun. "Well, sun's about to go down. I guess that'll be it."

"Aw come on!" Jett mock-groaned. "You're not even gonna buy anything?"

Raiden chuckled. He shot a quick look around him as he looked away from the sun. Yep, guards approaching. 'Good. They shouldn't have heard anything else.'

The ninja turned around and smiled. Shrugging good-naturedly, he relented. "Well I guess buying some of it wouldn't hurt." He leaned forwards, "What's Higanbana's specialty?"

As Night Fell…

A knock sounded on the door and Beryl opened it. Raiden stood before her, the guards standing right behind him.

"Come in…" Beryl muttered and Raiden did as he was told. She closed the door behind him, the seven guards not moving an inch.

The ninja plopped down on the couch and laid down a plastic bag on the table across from him. "Here. Got some stuff for us to cook."

"Hm?" Beryl approached him and took a look at the plastic bag, "Nice." She looked back up at Raiden, "You got any preference?

"Not really." Raiden shifted around, trying to take something from his pocket even with cuffed hands. Finally, he pulled out an Electricity Dust shard from his pocket. He held it in his hand as Beryl's raised an eyebrow. The ninja crushed it and felt his systems powering back up. "Just make anything you like, even if it is just for one person."

"Whatever you say, pretty boy…" She turned back and headed to the kitchen, cuffed hands bringing her plastic bag with her.

As she began to chop the spices, she spoke again to Raiden. "Say, since you could do the whole crushing thing, why don't you just…" she made a 'breaking free' motion with her cuffed hands. "Save us a whole lotta trouble, don't'chu think?"

"No. It'd be too soon." Raiden spoke grimly, "We need to know more. Movements, positions. Everything has to be done in one fell swoop."

"Doesn't matter if we get paid, though, does it?" Beryl tossed the spices into a pan and turned on the stove. "Job's a job, after all."

"And how many lives are we going to put at risk?" Raiden shot back. "This may be a job, but it's our responsibility to do it as best as possible."

"Bah. People die, people kill. Stuff like that won't ever change." She let the spices sizzle and pulled out a chicken from the freezer. She put it on the cutting board and began chopping it too. "Doesn't matter when, where, or who, s'long we get to live good."

"Well since you want it done fast," Raiden almost growled. "Then how about you share some of what you found out?"

The sounds of Beryl chopping the chicken can be heard loudly over her voice. "Southern and Eastern sides are combat zones." Thunk! Beryl's knife cut clean, "Well, more like armouries and training halls. Most of the local folks down there were the local guards, just like how I remember 'em." Thunk! "Well, what's left of them anyway. "

"Security's tighter too, I bet?"

"Right on the money." Thunk! "The bastards are using the place to stock up. Dust, swords, guns, some explosives. Makes sense the Wild Storm's grunts made that their hot spot." Beryl put the chickens on the pan. Immediately, a captivating smell captured the room.

Beryl smiled. "Looks like I've still got it." She let it cook for a little while more. After it was done, she set it on a plate and sat down in front of Raiden on the opposite couch.

"Want some?" She offered the cyborg. Raiden closed his eye and shook his head silently.

"Suit yourself." She began eating. With that, Raiden decided to tell his own findings about the village to Beryl.

"So what's the plan?" She asked in response. "Should we go all-out or something more stealthy?"

"Heh, don't worry." Raiden pat his chest proudly. "Stealth's my specialty."

"I'll believe it when I see it." Beryl deadpanned.

"Oh, not you too!" Raiden chuckled. "Everyone's a critic these days, I swear."

"Fine then, stealth it is. When?"

"I'll need to check out some more first." Raiden stood up. With a grin, he pulsed harsh electricity through his wrists. The cuffs fizzled out, unlocking and falling. But before it could clang loudly against the floor, Raiden caught it and hid it inside a drawer.

He rolled his wrists experimentally. "Yeah, that's the way…" He began walking to a window, opening it and feeling the cool night air blowing his hair back. He looked back at Beryl and shot her a smirk. "As I said, stealth's my specialty."

With that, he leapt out of the window and onto the roof of another building, moving faster than the guards could react. As fast as lightning, he ran across the rooftops of the night-blanketed village of Higanbana.

Beryl swallowed the last of her chicken and put her plate down. She leaned back on the sofa, hands on her head.

Intel wasn't wrong, it seemed. Patient and aggressive, with a roaring wildness inside.

Raiden kept his steps quiet as he ran atop the rooftops. The night kept the roofs dark, though the sparks from his footsteps emitted a dim light at his feet.

As he ran, he spotted one of the watchtowers in the distance. The one they entered through, to be exact. Making sure to keep in the shadows, he jumped high and landed on its conical roof.

Keeping his balance, Raiden deployed his visor. Even though Soma's Wild Storm had taken down the CCT connection in the village, Jade had modified Raiden so he would be able to use his own connection. A walking, talking transmitter, if you will. And as such, AR vision was still usable.

As designed, his AR vision connected to all forms of cameras in the village. Raiden made sure to keep the cameras on discreetly; if he alarmed the enemy then it'd all be useless. With this new ability, he began looking over the entire village from the tower.

'Looks like Jett was right.' Raiden thought as he spotted an armed guard inside a house, villagers fearfully doing everything the guard said. 'Extortions at night.'

Raiden swept his gaze across the village again. 'Yeah, no exceptions. They're moving through the town from east to west. Now… where are the rest of the guards?'

From the looks of it, it seemed that with the extortions, most of the guards were focused on the residential areas. Not a lot was left in the armoury and training grounds section of the village. However, the town hall was still as guarded as ever.

'So assassination's out of the table. Doubt it'd solve the problem anyways.' Raiden shrugged and shifted his focus on the farm and Dust mine section. He zoomed in as big as he could. 'Four guards at the farm, six at the mine. Nothing we can't handle.'

"So security at night's a lot laxer. Villagers'll probably be in their homes too…" Raiden whispered. He turned his visor off and rubbed his chin in thought. "Best bet to do it at night."

With that, the ninja leapt off of the tower and back on a rooftop, landing as silent as a feather. He gazed at the village down from a roof one more time, absorbing its atmosphere. "…Draw them out to a single place, end the conflict as fast as possible."

"Really? I'd say the same."

Raiden's eye widened and he spun around, right foot up high for a head-level spinning kick. He heard a clang as his foot recoiled back, the object he hit skidding back too. Raiden quickly put his foot down and put his hands up, knees bent and palm open. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the person that surprised him.

She had pale skin, her eyes a bloody red. Her attire was red-and-black themed, with a sword sheath strapped to her hip next to a Grimm-inspired mask, with angular shapes and red highlights. The sword sheath had a revolving Dust chamber, while the sword itself was coloured red and held in a blocking position by the woman.

"Well, at least you're not all bluff." The woman said, smirking and lowering her sword. She raised an eyebrow in mockery, "But no weapons? Heh, maybe you're not as smart as they say."

'Glowing red sword, cocky attitude, gunsheath. Fuck, not this again.' Raiden growled. "Listen, lady. You better have a good reason popping out of the blue like that. I'm not in the mood for games."

"Then I suppose introductions are in order." The woman relented and sheathed her sword. She nodded cordially, "My name is Raven Branwen, leader of the Branwen tribe. We meet at last, Raiden."

"I don't know anyone by that name, or anything about this tribe of yours." Raiden kept his tone neutral and his stance firm. "Now, how do you know about me?"

"Let's just say we have our sources." Raven smirked, "Among the routes we travelled and the settlements we destroyed, we're bound to find something on someone."

"So you're raiders." Raiden spat out. "Scum like you want to take me on? You're dreaming. What's in it for you?"

Raven chuckled. "What is this, twenty questions?" She opened her arms. "How about this: I'll answer your questions if you answer mine."

"Fine."

"Good. Now, first question." Raven swung her arms open and motioned around them. "What's with all of this? The sneaking around, the intel, all of this effort just for a bunch of wild animals. "

"Minimising casualties." Raiden answered, "Civilians don't deserve to get caught up in all of this."

"Is that so?" Raven chuckled. "Very well. Your turn."

"Who sent you here?" Raiden put it bluntly. "You're obviously not with the Wild Storm."

"Call it personal interest, with a little tip from someone high up in Mistral." Raven waved her hand. "Really, it's because I heard you were strong."

Raiden's eye narrowed. "Explain."

"The strong survive, while the weak perish," Raven spoke chidingly. "You can see it right now, Raiden." The bandit turned around and looked over her edge of the roof. "Look at the Wild Storm. They marched in here and took what they wanted, forcing Higanbana under their heel. And what could the villagers do? Nothing."

Raven turned around again. "So then, you're strong, aren't you? Let loose, Raiden." She smirked. "Take these clowns down now. Don't concern yourself with anyone else. If Higanbana is weak, they'll die either way, Grimm or bandit or raider or whatever. There's no use in saving them now when there's no guarantee for tomorrow."

"Bullshit." Raiden spat. "If you're what you say you are then you would've done it by now. I've met people like you before," Raiden clenched his fist. "But the difference is he's willing to put his money where his mouth is and fight."

Raven sighed and closed her eyes. "And here I thought you'd see reason." She opened her eyes and smirked, "There's a finesse to these things, Raiden. Like I said, the strong survive, while the weak perish." She began stepping backward, closer and closer to the other edge of the rooftop.

Raven's feet half went over the edge. She shrugged and chuckled, "Guess you're not that strong after all."

The bandit leapt back, arms wide in a wild fall. Raiden rushed forwards, just as Raven's body was covered by the edge. He reached the edge and stopped, looking down at the street below. Instead of Raven falling, he saw a red portal, growing smaller and smaller until eventually closing. In all that time, there were no traces of Raven in sight.

Thunder crackled ominously in the distance. Raiden scowled and shook his head. All talk, no show.

"And… there we go." Taiyang strapped the last of his bandages, this time around his gut. After the battle, he was lucky enough to quickly find the village's abandoned medical centre, complete with emergency supplies. He managed to recall basic training and do some hasty patch-ups. Honestly, a minute too late and he would've bled out.

Aura was still shot, though. And he'd doubt he could use it until a few more days at least.

Taiyang stood up, stumbling a bit as he did so. He grit his teeth in pain. Patch-up or not, it still hurt a lot. As he gathered himself, he looked at the …body… below his feet.

The Grimm-Human hybrid he fought, unconscious at his feet. It looked like it's going to be like that for a long time too. In the hours he had after the battle, the monster didn't show any signs of stirring. No groans, no moans, not even a whimper. The Hunter was willing to bet it was a coma. Something in his gut told him it was right.

And besides, he's already decided. He was more use to him alive. Someone clearly sent him here, and he needed to know why. Add to that the fact that he was sent… meant that someone could control a Grimm, or a version of it. Whether it was true or not, the world needed to know.

"Alright then," Taiyang picked up the monster and slung his hand over his shoulder. Slowly, Taiyang began taking steps, away from the village and back on the path towards Mistral.

"Here we go again."

Maybe he should listen to that weird Scroll-like thing on the monster's hip, probably the only piece of tech he had. That'd probably give him a lead. He had already given it a look before, and the label on it piqued his interest considerably.

'Operation' scratched words, revised to 'Stealth and Destroy', and on its flip side, 'From the Man Who Sold the World.'.

"Sniper?! Where?!"

'Boss, you OK?! Could it be that sniper?! 'Quiet'…"

"Our silent assassin… Quiet. Now where's the sniping point?"

"There she is…"

"I'm taking a shot."

Chamber a round.

Peek.

Bang!

Bang!

Get back to cover.

"Bullet's not working." Chamber a round. "Even when I hit her dead on in the chest."

"Try the head, Boss. Lure her out."

Peek.

Bang!

Bang!

Whizz!

Crack!

"See that?! It worked, Boss! Keep shooting her head!"

"Nice shot… looks like Miller's right. Keep getting the head."

Breath.

Breath.

Chamber a round.

Peek.

Bang!

Thump!

"You Got her! With those abilities of hers… bullets bouncing off her skin… Take a closer look for now, Boss."

"Miller's right. Boss, get close to her and let us see."

"Kaz, Ocelot, you getting this? Pale skin, black veins."

"Like some kind of monster…"

"…"

"She's using thick camouflage. The holes where I shot her..." Poke. Bones covering the pale skin. Bones retreating back inside with no contact. "Some kind of bone armour, whenever she gets shot."

"Then the R team'll figure it out from here… Boss, kill her. She's a VOID! She's working for Cipher!"

"Now hold on, Boss. Quiet's a valuable source of information. Maybe we can get some info on whatever these VOIDS are if we spare her….Think carefully. This is your decision."

Aim at her head.

Click a round in place.

"She's a monster. Hurry up and kill her!"

"No! Killing her would be a waste, Boss. Bring her back to Mother Base."

"Boss."

"Boss!"

Sheath.

Red eyes.

Black veins.

Pale skin.

Disarm.

Cuff.

Board the chopper.

Bring her back.

Looks like Venom's not the first of his kind after all, and that Salem's got her hands deeper than first seemed.

At first, the entire 'Raiden's village' was going to be fit in this one chapter. Then, I felt that it'd be way too long, and besides, the Raven part provided a great way to end the chapter.

As always, tell me what you thought!

Review Responses!

To Victorius 435, Thanks for the compliments! Glad you liked it, and I'll keep what you mentioned in mind.

To DrTheo, thanks

for the input! I'll keep it in mind if Jaune and Qrow ever fight.

To TheJSmooth, glad the chapter cleared it out, and yeahhhhh, Venom Snake!

To Skeletalrepublic, yeah, Raiden's the protagonist of this chapter and the next one. Like I said, I planned the chapter to be just one, but it turned out too long and better to split it in two.

To Dasgun, :)

To ISuckM8, I'm gonna put him in more chapters, as you can see. Also, I've read 'The Life that was Finally His' too, and it's pretty fun!

To UnlawfulGentleman, thank you so much! I'll be sure to keep doing my best!

To Kabuto S. Inferno, as you can see, Tai's hanging on a thread right now. I mean like yeah, realistically there's no way he's gonna die here plot-wise, but still, his Aura's shot so any immediate combat is out of the question. And whether his decision of leaving VS alive is going to backfire or not. And, not to forget, more clues as to Salem's reach! More like her actions really, but basically the same. Glad you enjoyed it!

To SolSparda369, I'll try to put in the box at a later, way later chapter. It's been bugging me for a long time, just haven't found the right time. I'm happy that it managed to ring true to MGS! I tried to put in a lot of the usual there; traps, sniper battles, CQC/hand-to-hand, the usual, and I'm happy it paid off.

To Reader, I do understand what you mean by The Boss' impact, as well as her will, and the others you mentioned too, though the point of the whole concept is the usage of RWBY characters as MGS, right? So it'd make no sense to just plop 'em in down there with no explanation. Still, I'll keep your words in mind!

To WarWithoutEnd, Words That Kill! (or, in Skull Face's case) SUCH A LUST FOR REVENGE?!

To VirtualExodus, Heheh, that made me chuckle! Good on you :) Also yeah, Jaune's gonna keep the bow, but whether he wants to use it or not is up to him. And you do raise a good point, maybe I need to rewatch that video on Youtube where real martial artists analysed CQC. I watched it a long time ago, but I do recall them saying something along your lines. And glad you enjoyed the chapter and the difference was apparent, from themes to fighting style! I don't know what to do about the mariachi now, but if I ever get a chance I'll make sure to use it again!

To schwarzhayasaka, Oh you've got more coming ;)

To zakuzilla, thank you!

To paradoxreader, Heh, I see what you did there *finger guns*

To Big E, GIVE IT BACK! THIS ISN'T RIGHT THAT WAS OURS! WE BUILT IT DAMN IT!

To Guest, yeah that could work, I do agree. But I was convinced at the time that show don't tell would be better. The results are, ehhhhhhhhhhh, you be the judge. And to be honest with you, I'm starting to feel like the main cast's gonna get bloated. I've got other characters incoming, like Bladewolf, and some others, including a certain '四代目' who I'm sure many of you are familiar with his legend.