Lord of Gifts in the Forgotten Realm

by Djoklecjan

After his defeat, as the last act of defiance, Sauron strikes a deal with his former Master, and finds himself in the Forsaken World, which is set for a downfall. Will Annatar change Remnant's future for the better? Or Sauron will make it even worse? Or, perhaps, Mairon will change some of his views?

19. Chapter 13: Raged Roman the Vale of Fury

Raged Roman, the Vale of Fury
The Show of Fangs

Sauron was working on the crafting bench when his "employees" nervously peeked into the forge.

"Do you see the blonde anywhere?" Asked one with crooked nose, who nervously looked all around.

"Not in the main room, Kris." Replied one of them, Gunther probably.

"Oh, you look for the Huntresses?" Sauron asked in seemingly friendly fashion, yet not looking away from his work. "They left a while ago." And when he said that, whole group left a sigh of relief

"Ufff, we are safe now." Could be heard from the crowd of goons.

"Safe, you say? Funny." Thought Sauron and turned around to them. "Did something happened?"

"What? No, no chief." Answered Grisha, and Sauron nodded with 'understanding'.

"Oh, then maybe some of you suddenly felt ill, and that cause you to leave in such a hurry?" He walked towards them slowly, his face giving them a friendly smile, yet tone of his voice…

"No, we all feel fine." One of the goons said, feeling that the atmosphere in the room is changing.

"That's good to hear" Sauron replied with the most welcoming smile imaginable as he got right in front of them. "Then I have one last, simple question."

"Umm sure boss.." Kris decided to speak up, the rest of the group not able to muster courage. And Sauron looked him dead in the eye.

"Who told you to run?"

Before Kris could even think about uttering a word of apology, Sauron's hand grabbed his neck and picked him from the ground. Goons all around scattered and dropped on the floor out of shock, they looked on the smith with frightened eyes.

"BECAUSE I DON'T REMEMBER GIVING YOU SUCH AN ORDER."

Yowwick, who all this time remained in the forge but decided to to not interact with the Huntresses and now stayed behind the group during this whole ordeal later swore that Smith's eyes, usually red and glowing, this time were black like coal, and the temperature in whole room raised at least ten degrees.

"You were meant to assist and protect, I gave you all the easy tasks, and as a thanks you dare to EMBARRASS ME!?" He stared into Kris's eyes. "SPEAK UP!"

"That blonde girl… she is… she beat us!" Goon replied, like he was compelled to do so, using the precious oxygen he was consistently denied. But Sauron scoffed with disgust.

"You brought me shame before a really important guests, and the best excuse you could think of is cowardice?" Malice in Maia's voice grew, and his grip tightened, as he pulled the struggling goon closer, then hissed to his ear.

"If there is anyone you should fear, it should be ME." Although it was mere whisper, everyone in the forge heard it ringing in their skulls.

"Please… mercy…" Sauron underling's face was becoming redder and redder with every second, while Sauron gave him an indifferent look. But then, the Smith looked away, in the direction of the street, like he noticed someone approaching, and with an annoyed sigh he let the goon go. And as the goon gasped for air beneath his feet, Sauron looked at the trembling underlings.

"If you ever run away without being asked to, better leave Vale and hide in the forests where none will ever find you. Because if you dare to flee again, Yang Xiao Long will be the last of your concerns." Goons nodded their heads, their skin pale as paper, and after seeing that they understood his words, Sauron gave them an order

"Prepare the forge for opening." With no questions Goons rose from the ground like one and moved fast, all started doing their daily objectives trying not to look into the Smith's direction.

Yowwick decided to remain outside for a moment, fearing that he will attract Chief's wrath too. Theoretically he had nothing to fear, he stayed, even though unwillingly, but who knows? He never saw Chief that mad before.

Nathan covered his eyes and tried to stay calm. He witnessed firsthand Junior's outbursts on them, some even called Xiong's short temper tantrums 'legendary', but this… this was something else.

He felt that his heart pounds rapidly, and he forced himself to take few heavy breaths to calm down. For a moment, he thought that something far worse will happen. Smith sounded like he was about to throw his colleague against the anvil or something worse, but he suddenly stopped, and Yowwick wasn't sure why.

"Salutations!" He suddenly heard from up close, and jumped away in surprise.

"By the Brothers, from where did you come from!?" Yowwick shouted, and Penny tilted her head to the side in confusion.

"I came from down the street." She looked behind herself, worried that she did something wrong. "Was I not supposed to?"

"No, I meant…" Yowwick tried to explain, but after seeing her face he left a heavy sigh. "Nevermind kid. Just don't scare me like that again."

"Okay!" She cheerfully replied, and then looked at his pale face again. "Is something wrong?"

Her scan indicated that his heartrate is abnormally high, and his blood pressure seemed to skyrocket, indicating that he is either terrified of something, or stressed by something. She wanted to ask a question like 'your heartbeat is high', but she stopped, realizing that it would sound rather strange for human to ask another for their heartbeat.

"…You look sick." She said after a while, and the goon dismissively waved his hand.

"Sick? Nah, it's just… Chief is in a very bad mood." Penny looked inside the building worried.

"Is he sick too?" She asked, and before Yowwick could answer, Annatar stepped in.

"On a contrary, this is a good day." He said it like the scene from before never happened. "In fact, I had a really wonderful guests, just few moments ago they left."

"Oh, who were they?"

"Huntresses from Beacon, a really colorful bunch. I think you would get along with them quite well." Penny's eyes sparkled with joy.

"Really?" Annatar nodded, and Penny looked at him little sad. "If only I came little earlier…"

Annatar chuckled upon hearing it. "Oh, don't get discouraged! I am more than sure you will meet them at some point. Now, please, come on in."

With eager nod Penny walked into the forge, and before Annatar walked with her, he turned to Yowwick.

"Your concerns..." He started. "…I have no issues with your performance, for you obeyed my command." Yowwick left a sigh.

"I know Chief, but…" He gestured at the goons working inside the forge. "…I like these guys." Annatar stared at them for a while.

"Do you vouch for them?" Sauron simply asked.

"Of course Chief! Anyday!" Yowwick replied. "They will not do it again." Sauron thought for a moment, before he looked back at Yowwick.

"From now on, you are responsible for them. If they fail, I will hold you accountable. Do you understand?" Yowwick nodded, and Annatar put a hand on the goon's shoulder. "That settle's it then. And it comes with ten percent raise."

"Umm thanks Ch…" Without saying another word, Annatar left him where he stood and walked back to Penny, who made a small welcoming tour of the forge. Nathan just shrugged his arms, took a cigarette from his pocket and smoked it while watching a commercial airship advertising the SDC flying above the town.

---

"How is your vanilla ice cream Weiss?" Ruby asked her partner as they were walking down the street, and Weiss first looked at her team leader, then at the ice-cream in her hands.

"It's… alright." She replied and licked the ice cream again with delight. "And how is your… Cookie dough?" She looked at the treat in Ruby's hand, Rose looked at with sparkling eyes.

"It's sooo good."

"You know, I am not even surprised." Weiss replied, remembering how quickly unattended jars of cookies disappear in their dorm.

"Hm?" Ruby looked at her partner curiously, only for Yang to chuckle, as she poked Blake with her elbow.

"Say, if there was a tuna flavor, would you take it?" Blake looked to hide her embarrassment.

"…No." Blake replied and Yang shared a 'she totally would take it' look with Ruby, and Rose couldn't help but smile. "By the way, where are we going now?" Blake looked at Ruby as they approached the crossroads, and young team leader shrugged her arms.

"I don't know yet! But we still have the whole day, so, we can go wherever we want. I propose…"

"Wait." Weiss stopped before Ruby could finish. "We just spent an entire day in the forge you chose, then we went where Blake wanted. It would be unfair for me and Yang." Yang rose her eyebrow.

"Oh, you care about me that much Ice Queen? I'm flattered." She teased the Schnee, and at first Weiss looked flustered, but quickly calmed down.

"I'm simply saying that either me or you should choose next." Ruby thought about.

"Then…"

"Oh I know!" Yang said before Ruby could decide about the matter. "There is a bookshop I need to visit and it's not that far!" Weiss rose her eyebrow in slight surprise.

"You? Going to a bookshop?" Heiress asked.

"Uh-huh! I got that book about nin…" Yang wanted to say but Blake quickly realized what the blonde is talking about and waved her hands to silence her. "…that I promised a friend. So Rubes, what do you think?"

"If it's nearby…" Ruby said, and before she could finish Yang took her under arm.

"Then it's decided! Let's go!" But before they could cross the street, few police cars with sirens drove before them.

"Where are they going?" Weiss looked after the police cars.

"I think we should follow them." Ruby said, but Yang brushed that off with a wave of her hand.

"Nah Rubes, probably some drunkards started a brawl, that's all."

"And how do you know?" Weiss asked.

"It's a popular activity in this part of town." Yang winked to the heiress and walked away with Ruby.

"But what if it is serious?" Weiss interjected, only for Yang to huff in annoyance.

"I think they can handle it." Blake took Yang said. "They are trained for that."

In truth, Blake was just weary of the police – she had to run from them on numerous occasions, even beat up more than few. Although she slowly readjusted to her new life as a Huntress, she still had to control her urge to run or hide whenever hearing the police sirens.

Weiss looked after the police cars, then after her teammates, rolled her eyes, puffed her cheeks in irritation, but followed them regardless. Maybe they are right? Vale seemed to be peaceful city, police is not as militarized as in Mantle, and the largest problem she heard about in Vale were occasional brawls*. Maybe that was that?

Ruby on the other hand wanted to go after the police cars, even just to look what is going on, maybe even help if necessary, for in her head being a Huntress was something more than fighting Grimm – it was to be a hero, stopping the bad guys and saving the day. But she found herself unable to protest against her older sister, so she just left a sigh and continued walking.

And, like Yang said, the bookshop wasn't that far away. It was rather modest building, with one large oak planted right beside the entrance, but the branches didn't obstruct the sign above it.

"Tukson's Book Trade?" Weiss read out loud, and Yang nodded.

"If you ever need to find a book, just ask Tuk, he certainly have it!"

"Do you think he has The Third Crusade?" Ruby asked, and yang pat her sister's back.

"Of course he has it! He has…"

"…Every book under the Sun." Blake muttered to herself and let her teammates go slightly forward, trying to hide her face from them. Of all the places she could go with them…

She planned to visit Tukson soon true, but she wanted to do it alone, afraid of his reaction. What would happen if he loses his cool upon seeing with her team?

She took a deep breath and calmed down. "Tukson is professional, he wouldn't do something like that."

The door opened, and team RWBY walked into the bookshop.

"He is not very good at organizing his workspace." Weiss commented after looking at the piles of books everywhere, paths in between too narrow for even one person to walk in between.

"Hey, he is really busy guy and works alone, give him some slack Ice Queen." Yang said while Ruby looked around and noticed something in one of the piles.

"No way." She run to the pile and dug into it. "C'mon, c'mon aha!" She dug out the book with golden cover and rose it into the air with triumph. "I found it!"

"Twin Ravens?" Weiss read the title. "What is this book about?"

When Ruby jumped to Weiss and started to enthusiastically explain the intricacies of the previous book tilted 'The Pheonix Rising', Yang rung a service bell.

"Be right there!" Soon, the set of double doors opened, and a shop owner carried a pile of books tall enough to hide his face.

"Welcome to the Tukson's Book Trade, home to…"He glanced from behind the pile of books he carried, his hazel eyes widened in surprise, when he noticed who stands before the counter. "Yang?" His smile widened, corners of his mouth almost reaching his sideburns. "Haha, I didn't expect you today!"

"I always love to pay surprise visit to my favorite bookworm!" Tukson laughed after hearing it, dropped the pile to the side and approached the counter.

"Right right, enough pleasantries!" He put his muscular arms on the counter. "You came for that book, right?"

"Yup!" Yang confirmed. "Do you have it?" Tukson scoffed in response.

"Of course I have, right in the back." He pointed his thumb at the doors behind him. "But I am more than surprised you are into this kind of literature." And Yang dismissively waved her hand.

"Me? Nah, it's for my friend here." With that said, Yang grabbed Blake's arm and pulled her closer. "Tuk, meet Blake, my partner in Beacon."

And, like Blake expected, Tukson's smile, at first nearly reaching tips of his long sideburns, vanished in an instant. He blinked few times, like he didn't believe his own eyes.

"Hi." Blake awkwardly waved her hand to him, and, as fast as Tukson's smile vanished, it appeared again, although it wasn't as sincere as the previous one.

"Pleasure to be meeting you, Blake." Blake could feel that, deep down, he tries to keep his cool. "So, you both study to become a Huntresses?"

"That's right!" Yang brought Blake closer. "We had our ups and downs, but we are making a great team." Blake looked away, feeling judgmental stare from the owner.

"Excuse me." Tukson looked at Ruby, who now approached the counter with The Twin Ravens in hand. "How much for this one?"

"And do you have the Phoenix Rising by any chance?" Weiss jumped into the conversation, and Tukson chuckled in response.

"Let me check in the back, ok?" He answered Ruby and Weiss, then looked at both Blake and Yang. "Hey Yang, may I borrow your partner for a minute?" Yang rose her eyebrow.

"Why?"

"I want to give her the book directly, to not…" He discreetly pointed at Ruby, who opened the 'Twin Ravens' and started to read its first pages while Weiss peeked from behind her arm. "…Spoil its contents." Yang and Blake shared a look.

"If you want, then sure."

"Thank you." Blake walked past the counter and followed Tukson to the back of his bookshop.

Like in the previous room, there were piles of books lied everywhere, some even reaching the ceiling, like a labyrinth made of paper and leather covers, in which someone might even get lost for a minute.

"Your book is at the end." Tukson said while walking around the paper towers, not even paying Blake a glance.

"I'm sorry." She said, but Tuk didn't even make a comment on that.

Soon he stopped before one of the bookshelves, reached for the book little in the back and extended his right hand with the book.

"Here you go." He said with stern look, and at first unsure, Blake reached for it.

Tukson's left hand sprung like viper, grabbed her extended hand and pulled her closer.

"What are you doing here Blake!?" He finally snapped, looking her dead in the eyes.

"I'm sorry, I wanted to come alone but…"

"I meant what are you doing in Vale!?" He clarified, taking her by surprise.

---

* Brawls in which Yang really likes to participate from time to time.

---

"Who is that guy?" Weiss asked as she read part of the book Ruby held in her hands.

"A certified bad guy." Yang answered briefly. "We just watch the story from his point of view."

"We didn't see him doing anything evil!" Ruby protested.

"He is preparing a conquest of an independent nation." Weiss pointed out.

"It's just his job! I am sure that he will have a redemption arc!" Ruby argued.

"Rubes we talked about it, just because he loves his wife doesn't mean he is a good guy."

"But…." At that moment girls heard loud voices outside of the bookshop.

"Thief! Thief!" They heard, and Ruby visibly brighten up.

"Finally!" She put the book and rushed from the bookshop.

"Hey wait!" Weiss and Yang run right behind her.

Ruby retrieved the Crescent Rose and looked around for the source of the commotion, and from her right, four men wearing white uniforms with SDC emblems and one short man wearing a white trenchcoat were chasing after a lone, blond-haired Faunus.

"Halt you Schweinehunde!" Short man yelled to the running Faunus.

"What?! Scared of little morning jog piggy?" Shirtless Faunus replied, only to run even faster.

"Do something you buffoons!" The short man replied, and two men up front jumped forward, trying to tackle the faunus, but he sidestepped one and jumped over the second.

"Ha ha! Nice one!" He giggled as he run towards the bookshop.

Ruby wanted to jump into action and stop the faunus, but Yang put her hand on her shoulder.

"We should sit this one out Rubes." Yang said, startling her sister.

"But…"

"As much as it pains me to say, I agree with Yang on this one." Weiss joined, and Ruby looked at them both with utter confusion.

"But, what if he is a criminal!?"

"Believe me, these guys are not worthy of your help." Yang said, giving those five men a startled look, especially the short one, who, last time they met, first let his men at them, then tried to stab her in the back.

Weiss nodded in approval. Technically, she should help them for they work for her father and if it was any other branch of SDC, she probably would intervene. But, since these men worked in SDPS, she preferred to stay neutral.

In mere moments, monkey faunus run to the large oak growing nearby and quickly climbed up, and when his pursuers reached it, he was already on top of the tree.

"What, are you not going to climb up?" He taunted, looking down at the SDPS men, who were just staring at him from below, clenching their fists in anger. "Ohhhh, you guys were cheating during PE, weren't you!?" Monkey faunus laughed at them, retrieved a banana from his white jacket, and took a bite.

"Get down here right now scum!" Nick Harrigan yelled at him, but faunus kept chewing a fruit like he didn't hear that.

"Oh, this one is so good!" He said and mockingly showed his pursuers a now half-eaten banana. "Want some? Just climb up and get it!"

"Permission to fire Ritter." One of the soldiers reached for the handgun on his belt.

"No you idiot! Too many witnesses!" Rittermeister put his hand on the man's holster, giving the crowd, gathered by the commotion, a sideye, then looked back the faunus sitting on top. "You can't remain there fore…" He wanted to say, before an acorn struck his forehead.

"Man, you are so boring! I might even take a nap here." With that said, he left a yawn and lied over the tall branch.

"Hey, you always run around town half-naked?!" Yang shouted to the faunus, and he looked at her, faking an offense.

"Excuse me, Princess of Questionable fashion choices! I have a jacket!" He proudly showed his loose-collared white jacket. "The height of fashion in Vacuo!"

"Are you trying to overcompensate for something by showing these abbs?!" Yang yelled again, looking at the Faunus's six-pack as he giggled.

"A really low blow from down there!"

"Don't try to ignore us you.." Harrigan tried to remind everyone of his existence, but another well-aimed acorn to the forehead sent him to then ground with painful yelp.

"Why are they chasing you!?" Ruby yelled.

"I kinda lost my way to Beacon so I just asked them nicely for the way, but they were really rude!"

"You thieving…" Harrigan wanted to interject, but upon seeing another acorn in faunus's hand, he covered his head.

"You were going to Beacon? That means you are a Hunter right!?" Weiss shouted.

"Still in training but yeah!" He gave them a closer look. "Wait, are you from Beacon by any chance?"

"Yes!" Ruby yelled back, and Monkey faunus's smile widened.

"Great!" He jumped from the branch, spun in the air one, two, three, four, five, ten times before he gracefully landed, earning the applause from the gathered people and few children pointing their tiny hands at him with smiles.

"Name's Sun, and it's nice to meet you!" He said and gave the girls a slight bow.

"Showoff." Weiss rolled her eyes in response.

"What are you waiting for!?" Harrigan pointed at Sun. "Get…" But his command stuck in his throat when he finally realized who is standing there.

"Orders Sir?" One of the men said while Yang gave them a mischievous smile and wave her hand to them, daring them to try.

"We are leaving." Rittermeister said, memory of her punch still fresh in mind.

"Sir?"

"I said we are leaving. Quickly." All five turned around and run away, and Sun giggled as the men quickly scurred away in defeat.

"Phew, thanks for that!" He said to the three girls. "They are really a pain in the butt."

"You said you are a Hunter from Vacuo?" Ruby said, her eyes sparkling with curiosity, and Sun nodded his head.

"Ready to represent the best Academy in the world during Vytal festival!" He proudly proclaimed, earning a smirk from Yang.

"Sorry to break it to you, but Beacon is way better." She said, while Weiss thought that something wasn't right, for the Vytal tournament was still months away, and students from other Kingdoms should arrive in the next two months the soonest.

"We shall see during the tournament." Sun said with confidence, then looked at them again. "Wait one two three… are team's in Beacon smaller or you lack a member?"

"No, Blake is just talking with the owner inside." Ruby pointed at the door behind her.

"Oh, that's great! I wanted to speak with Tuk anyway, so thanks for the chat but …" Sun tried to walk past the team, but Weiss appeared right before him, eyeing him with suspicion.

"And where is your team?" She asked, and faunus nervously chuckled.

"Yeah, we kinda… split a little in Vacuo." He admitted, and Weiss blinked few times in shock, Yang whistled in surprise.

"You left your teammates?!" Ruby shouted, and Sun rose his hands in a defensive gesture.

"No! I just took the quickest freighter to Vale…"

"Freighter!?" Weiss jumped in. "So you arrived here illegally?!"

"Hey, It's not my fault the ticket prices are just atrocious!" Sun replied, and Yang left a friendly giggle, then, just as the trio argued about responsibility, she briefly looked back at the bookshop.

"What is taking her so long down there?" She thought to herself just as the sound of police sirens grew louder and louder, and the faint smell of smoke reached her nose.

---

"What do you mean?" Blake asked in confusion as Tukson's grip tightened.

"I thought you are going back to Menagerie, to your family!" He snap at her with anger.

"You know I couldn't just go back and pretend like nothing happened!" She snap back at him. "Not when I still have a chance to finally change something!" But Tukson scoffed at this.

"Everyone think you are dead Blake!" Tukson roared. "Have you even thought how Ghira and Kali took that!?"

Blake frowned hearing that, her eyes wide.

"I thought you sent them a message?" She uttered, her throat barely able to gasp for air.

"Menagerie don't have the tower, and any letter from no matter who would be intercepted by the White Fang!" Tukson said, and let go of her hand. "If I mentioned in any way that you are alive, they would sent everyone to hunt you down!" His jaw tightened, and then left a heavy sigh. "That's why I insisted for you to go back home!"

Blake leant against the wall and covered her eyes. Her decision to leave the Fang wasn't a spontaneous one, for she prepared to do so long before the robbery of the dust train. For too long she watched how both the White Fang and her friend are becoming something she couldn't follow any longer, and waited for the occasion. And Adam's willingness to slaughter the innocent workers of the Dust train was just the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Tukson helped her both fake her death, and contacted her with someone capable to quietly help her leave Vale and return to Menagerie

But it turned out that the smuggler worked, in fact, for Headmaster Ozpin, who recognized her talents and offered her a place in Beacon, to wipe her clean from all of the police records, to hide her past from the other students, but most importantly, he offered her a future as someone prestigious enough to influence everyone in the Four Kingdoms – a Huntress.

And Blake took that offer, not fully realizing what repercussions it will have. All that time she thought Tuk will send a letter, or…

"Mom, dad…" She thought, imaging as they cry over the shrine dedicated to her. "No..."

Tukson sat on the chair and hid his head in his massive hands.

"Vale is not safe kid." He said with concerned tone. "Especially today."

"I met SDC attack dogs few weeks ago." Blake commented on that while also trying to recompose herself and talk about matters at hand. "And I think they…"

"Look for you?" Tukson scoffed. "Blake, They already interrogated twelve Black Panther's because they had either black hair or yellow eyes. They are here for the different reason." Blake eyes widened in realization.

"The White Fang." She said, and Tuk nodded his head. "What is Adam planning now?" But Tukson shook his head again.

"It's not Taurus, he returned to Menagerie shortly after you left. But before his departure, he handed over the leadership to Roman Torchwick." Blake jumped in place upon hearing this name.

"Roman Torchwick!? But he is a criminal! Adam would never work with a human criminal!"

"A lot of things changed when you left Blake." Tukson looked her deep in the eyes. "And Roman was busy, preparing whole Vale section of the White Fang for months. Every cell in the city, every sympathizer, youngbloods, your previous comrades – all gathered just for this day." Blake looked at him with horror.

"Are they really going to attack SDC storage depots?!" She deduced. "But they are heavily guarded! They won't be able to crack them open, no matter how many will come! It will be a bloodbath!"

Everyone in the White Fang knew that if you want to steal Dust from the SDC, you can do that only during transport, for storage depots were small fortresses full of combat droids, armed guards and dangerous mercenaries, and attacking them head on was a suicide. But if they are working with Roman Torchwick, then he may use White Fang as cannon fodder to steal the vast reserves of dust stored there by the Company.

But Tukson shook his head in denial.

"They are not going after SDC today." He said, his eyes screaming fear. "They want to send the message to everyone in the Kingdom."

"What message?" She asked with voice full of concern, already fearing the answer.

"That the Second Revolution has begun."

---

"You not only arrived too early, but also left your teammates behind!?" Weiss shouted at Sun. "And you are their team leader!? Even Ruby, despite her shortcomings, would not do something so stupid!"

"Yeah!" Ruby added, but then she thought about what Weiss said. "Umm, thanks?"

"Chill!" Sun dismissively shook his hands. "I am sure they will be fine!" But his response only angered Weiss even further.

"Listen you irresponsible…!"

But before she could finish her sentence, four police cars with their sirens on drove from the left, drove past them and stopped in the middle of the road, making barricade from their vehicles.

"Are they always that busy?" Sun asked as the policemen left their vehicles and started to put a spike strip across the road.

"No." Three girls answered nearly simultaneously and run towards the police men, Ruby using her semblance to get ahead and Sun followed them while the small crowd observed the whole scene with worry, but also curiosity.

"They are approaching, eta two minutes." One of the officers said to the radio, then looked at his men. "Get those civilians out of here!" He pointed at the crowd, and two officers run to the groups standing behind.

"What's going on here!?" Ruby reached the officer first, and he only paid her a glance.

"It's no place for kids, get out of here!" He tried to brush her off but Ruby

"They are everywhere!" Both Ruby and the officer heard from the radio, and the policeman quickly picked it up.

"Charles to David, what's your status?" But only static replied him. "Tom, what's your status!? Godsdamnit!"

"We are Huntresses!" Ruby tried to get officer's attention just when Yang and Weiss joined her, but the officer barely paid them a glance, instead focused on changing the frequency of the radio. "We can help!"

"Later kid!" Officer said with irritation in his voice. "Charles to Boy, do you copy? Do you have visual on David?"

"This is Charles, David was overrun and we are not doing too hot ourselves! We need help now!" Voice from the radio replied, and scary thought crossed Ruby's mind: The Grimm. But how they passed the defensive wall and the armored trains patrolling it?

"Goose?" Yang looked under the helmet of the officer, recognizing her gym buddy, and he looked equally shocked.

"Yang!? What the hell you are doing here!?"

"Eta one minute sir!" One of the policeman shouted.

"We are asking exactly the same!" Yang replied. "What's going on?!"

"White Fang attacked the Industrial district en masse!" Goose answered briefly while retrieving his handgun. "Mobs of armed faunus robs every shop and bank in sight and ambush lone patrols, while motorized groups smash through our every attempt of organized resistance!"

"Eta 30 seconds!" Another policeman shouted and prepared his police batons,

"Didn't you call for reinforcements from other departments?!' Weiss asked, only for Goose to spit on the ground.

"They blocked every way into the Industrial district, and use some sort of mobile flak to keep our bullheads away!" He said and put the face mask on. "We are on our own."

"Mobile flak? Motorized groups?" Sun jumped into the conversation. "That doesn't sound like some small scale attack."

"They are coming!" Police officer prepared his gun, full of stun rounds.

On the other end of the street, from one of the corners first came out three police officers, running without their gear in clear panic, and right after them, a small mob of faunus run screaming on top of their lungs, wielding all kinds of tools, from shovels, long staffs and crowbars to knives, short blades and even stop signs.

"FREEEEEDOOOOOOM!" They screamed as they run forward, swinging their weapons above their heads, while some remained in the back and broke into nearby shops.

Ruby took no time in retrieving Crescent Rose. "Stay here and call for your weapons!" She told to both Yang and Weiss while shifting Crescent Rose into a scythe. "I will take care of them."

"Already on it Sis!" Yang replied with smirk as she typed on her scroll. "Just leave some for us!" With loud bang from the Crescent Rose, Ruby leapt into the air.

"Cover them!" Goose commanded his men, pointing at the three fleeing cops, and from behind the barricade, those armed with guns and stun rounds fired at the crowd, trying to slow it down, and with painful yelps, few White Fangers fell to the ground, and then got dragged by their comrades off the street.

"Spread out! Stay focused on the objective!" Leader of the pack yelled to his faunus, and aimed his robbed stun gun at the running cop, pulled the trigger and hit him right under his knee, and the officer fell to the ground with a painful scream, while few chasing faunus pounced towards him like vultures.

"For the Fa-!" One of the faunus cried out and rose his stop sign to strike the down man, but with a loud shot, a red blur severed his weapon, swoop him out of his feet and threw right into the next two behind him, kicked the next running packmember into the trashcan and then slammed another faunus with blunt part of her weapon, sending him tumbling on the asphalt.

All that happened in a time it took the pack leader to blink.

"Hunter!" He yelled and looked at the few packmembers behind robbing the shop. "We don't have time, take whatever you can and run!"

Ruby sidestepped swing of the bat belonging to the nearest white fanger and in the same move hit his hand causing him to drop his weapon. Before her enemies could react she shot the ground magnifying her jump and while airborne she kicked heads of four Faunus, throwing them in all directions.

For years packmaster brushed off stories about hunters being faster than blink or stronger than ursai, thinking that they were just mere exaggerations, but upon seeing the red-caped huntress, he started to realize that all these stories were not fairy tales.

Ruby was dodging bladeswings, stunshots and all other attacks that her opponents could think of, while in turn she shattered their weapons and stun them with the blunt part of Crescent Rose, rarely needing more than two strikes to knock her foes out of the fight.

"Hold fire!" Goose shouted to his men, watching with disbelief how quickly and easily Ruby dispatches the fangers, and then looked over to Yang. "That's your sister?"

"One and only." Yang said with a proud smile, hearing the faint squeaks of excitement as Rose defeated another goon, all the while Weiss paid more attention to the sky, awaiting a locker drop.

Packmaster tried to aim his gun at the red huntress, but she moved too fast for him to get a clear shot.

"Try to pin her down!" He barked an order, but part of him already knew that it is impossible – his pack appeared sluggish in comparison, not even able to scratch her.

Suddenly, he felt someone patting his shoulder.

"You brought a gun to a melee fight!? Lame!" He heard beside his ear, and he quickly slashed with claws, only to hit nothing as the monkey faunus jumped away from the slash.

"Race Traitor!" Packmaster shouted and fired from the stun gun at Sun, but monkey faunus dodged the yellow bullets with childish ease.

"Man, why so serious already!? We barely even talked!" Sun said in turn, and retrieved something from under his jacket, then charged at him with what appeared to be a wooden staff.

Sun struck low, threw the packleader out of balance, thrust the staff at the stomach, with quick spin he knocked the stun gun out of leader's hand, and then with a strong blow on the left shoulder Sun threw his opponent on the asphalt.

"I am not even an hour into the city, and I was already chased by SDC, met really fun people and got myself into a fight!" Sun laughed. "I love this place!"

As the pack leader rose on his knees he quickly analyzed the situation. Two hunters fighting his pack, two more waiting for their weapons, at least four patrols of police, while half of his faunus were already lying the ground. Not only he was certainly outclassed, but started to lose the number advantage

"RETREAT!" He yelled and in an instant his group run in all directions, taking some of their unconscious away.

"Hey! Come back here, I didn't even break a sweat!" Sun called after him, but the pack leader and his faunus already disappeared in the back alleys.

"Apprehend them quickly." Goose ordered, and few cops quickly run to the few remaining fangers and handcuffed them, all the while, with a loud buzz, lockers made a landfall and smashed into the ground, creating large holes in the road.

"Finally!" Yang opened her locker, quickly retrieved her twin gauntlets and put them on her hands. "Now let's get this assholes!"

"That's your plan?" Weiss interrupted, taking the Myrtenaster. "Chasing them around the alleys?"

"Any better ideas?" Yang replied just when Ruby and Sun joined them.

"I think they are here to distract us." She said, gaining the attention of her teammates, Goose and Sun. "If I remember right, Professor Oobleck told us in class that during the battle of the High Castle, Faunus used small but fast groups to lure out Mantle's main force into a unfavorable position."

"The what now?" Said Sun, not particularly interested in history.

"When he told us about it?" Yang asked, not able to recall such memory.

"You are right, I wrote about it in my notes." Weiss recounted one particularly interesting history class with Professor Oobleck, who was, arguably, the most erratic out of all professors in Beacon. It was right after a particularly harsh training session, so she wasn't as focused on the topic at hand as usual, even though he spoke about a really relevant topic, which was the birth of the White Fang. "But I thought you already forgot about it." Weiss added, and Ruby gave them a sheepish look.

"Ehehe, Because I did." She admitted. "But that fight brought back the memory."

Goose scratched his chin, and picked up the radio.

"This is Charles to Watchtower, can you give the visual over the Industrial?"

"This is Watchtower, for what purpose Charles?"

"Hunters require immediate intel, protocol 10-A." He said to the radio, and Watchtower went silent for a moment.

"We are still in training, you know that?" Weiss pointed out.

"Hunters in training or not, doesn't matter right now." Goose responded, not afraid to bend the procedures a little.

"This is Watchtower, giving the overview now." Goose retrieved the scroll from his pocket and turned it on, and three girls looked at the screen while Sun peeked from behind Goose's shoulder

From the bird-eye view, they saw the industrial districts in total chaos – groups of White Fang mobs both on foot and vehicles running through neighborhoods, isolated pockets of the police defending government buildings, piles of smoke from burnt out cars rising into the air, barricades blocking the main approaches to the district, and bursts of a light emerging from a flak guns mounted on the pick-up trucks tore through the air, keeping the police bullheads away.

"Damn, it looks like a battle down there." Sun commented as the rest looked for something which could give them a clue what the White Fang is planning.

"There!" Weiss pointed at the empty highways, left away by the White Fang mobs.

"What? There is nothing in there." Yang said.

"Exactly! White Fang has to escape right? Notice how they attack everything…"

"…Aside from the highway. That must be it." Ruby ended Weiss's thought, and looked at Goose. "This Highway leads outside of the city, right?" Goose nodded his head.

"Yes, but to escape Vale, they would have to open the gates, which means fighting Wardens stationed there. And even if they somehow did that, that's a really long ride to Kalokai."

"I'm sorry, but those "Highways" don't also lead to the harbor?" Saun asked, and everyone looked at him. "I was there an hour ago, I'm pretty sure I saw at least four really wide roads ending near the port."

Girls shared the look with one another.

"I will get Blake." Yang run away into the bookshop, Ruby retrieved her scroll to inform Jaune and team JNPR what is going on, while Weiss approached Goose.

"We need to get to the harbor or the highways as fast as possible!" Weiss said to the police officer. "Can you drive us there?"

"Girl, all of the roads are either blocked or White Fang lay in ambush, I have to regroup with the others first."

"Then maybe you can get us a bullhead?" Weiss insisted, but like an answer, a series of loud bangs nearby could be heard, and a trail of tracer rounds tore through the air above their heads.

"You can take that as a no." Goose said with a dry smile, then picked up the radio "This Charles to Headquarters, I want all available detachments to try to break onto the R-3 highway at once!"

"Copy that Charles, regrouping at point Alpha-9." Voice in the radio responded, and Goose looked at Weiss, Ruby and Sun one last time.

"I will try to get as many as I can and meet you on the highway." He tipped his helmet in with respect. "Good luck out there." He said and boarded the police cruiser, and as soon as he closed the door of the car, Yang run out of Tukson' s book trade with a worried look.

"Blake is gone." She said with clear concern in her voice.

"What do you mean 'she is gone'?!" Weiss shouted in disbelief. "She just left!?"

"I don't know!" Yang replied and looked at her scroll, her worries growing even more. "She turned off her scroll!"

Ruby looked at her own scroll and opened the tab displaying the aura bars of her teammates, and one showcasing Blake' was inactive.

"What if she found herself in some trouble? We have to go and look for her!" Yang declared.

"It will be like looking for a needle in a Haystack!" Weiss snap back.

"We can't just leave without her!"

"Leaders are often put before dilemma's like this – trust their instincts and morals, which will go against the wishes of your group, or listen to your teammates." Annatar's words rung in Ruby's head, and she realized that she must make a definite decision here.

With a heavy breath, she decided to trust her instincts this day.

"Weiss is right." She said, taking Yang aback. "Blake probably went after the Fangs for her own reasons, and turned off her scroll so we won't follow her."

"But why she didn't go with us?" Yang asked. "She should at least told me where is she going!" To this moment, Yang thought that she and Blake reached some sort of common understanding, but it turned out, it wasn't the case.

"Do we have time to discuss that?" Weiss responded, and Yang couldn't find a good answer.

"She had her reasons, and we will talk about it later." Ruby added. "What matters now is stopping the Fang."

Weiss gave Rose an approving nod while Yang left a begrudging huff.

"So, how are we going to stop them?" Sun asked, and pointed his tail at Goose's police cruiser riding away "Mister blueshirt said that all roads are blocked."

Ruby thought about the solutions before a large shadow covered the street, so she looked over and then her smile widened.

"I think I have an idea." She said while the rest followed her stare, and Weiss left a heavy sigh.

"At this point, I am not even surprised anymore." Weiss sarcastically commented while Yang and Sun smiled mischievously.

---

"No non no It can't be happening!" Blake internally screamed as she watched the chaos unfolding before her eyes.

Faunus clashing against the police, breaking into the shops, setting up fires while groups on the motorbikes threw the speakers everywhere they could, and from those speakers, the all too familiar voice spoke.

"For too long, Faunus kind was brought low, forced to bark to the tune played by the Kingdoms and their treaties!" Pre-recorded speech of Adam Taurus could be heard in the entire district. "We endured this shame, this pain, listened to their LIES for far too long! But Our voice WILL be heard! Our ROAR will Echo across the world! AND THE WHITE FANG WILL CARRY THE TORCH WHICH WILL BURN THE INHERENTLY CORRUPT SYSTEM!

FOR OUR PAST, OUR PRESENT, AND OUR TOMORROW!"

"Adam, what have you done…" Blake muttered in the utter horror. All she wanted was equality, that faunus won't be treated as free-labor by the Megacorps, or as a second-class citizens. But she never wanted to start another bloody revolution.

Adam, on the other hand…

"White Fang was manipulated by Roman, that must be it. "She thought as she jumped from one roof to another, while faint sounds of explosions reached her ears, and the smell of burnt tires assaulted her nostrils. "Others couldn't be on board with that."

Part of her knew that she was lying to herself, that what's happening now was caused by years of growing tension, but there was still glimmer of hope that it is Torchwick's sole fault.

That's why she needs to find Douglas, her father's old comrade must be here, and she will find him.

She must.

---

"No, little to the left first." Penny said, and Annatar's hand moved slightly.

"Of course." Annatar said with a chuckle as he worked on a microchip placed on the anvil. "Such little, delicate thing, don't you agree?"

"Mhm! But without connecting it right, you won't build a robot!" Penny said, and Annatar couldn't help but smile.

Although he was glad that Penny came to him, he didn't expect that the girl actually remembered his off-hand remark about building a robot, and brought with her used chips and other components that are 'necessary' to build the semi-sentient machine.

"Indeed." He said when the chip was finally inside the small, cubed shaped robot on the anvil. "Let's check if it works." He looked at the pilot in his hands, and reached with it to Penny. "May you do the honors?"

"But, it's your robot." Penny argued.

"And it would not exist without your help, it's only fitting you would activate it first." After a brief moment of hesitation, Penny pressed the green button, and the robot came to life.

It turned to the left, to the right, ride little forward on its tracks, then looked at Penny and Annatar, its twin binoculars serving as eyes tilted curiously, then it waved it's tiny hand to greet them, much to Penny's joy.

"It works! You really did it!" She gently picked up the machine and tried to show it to the Smith, wanting to share this happy moment. "How are you going to…" But only now noticed that Annatar's head looked in entirely different direction, at the street leading to the forge. And when Penny followed his gaze, she saw a large group of faunus wearing masks riding here on motorbikes and armored vans

"Are these your friends?" She asked with little hope, even though she already noticed a wide array of weaponry they carried while the robots in her hands trembled.

"No." He replied, his gaze piercing, like he could turn those approaching his forge to stone.

"White Fang incoming!" Yowwick yelled to the goons, and they quickly started to arm themselves.

"Prepare yourselves, but do not engage unless I tell you otherwise." He said and stepped out of the forge.

"Where are you going?" Penny stepped right behind him, but he looked her deep in eyes with confidence and anticipation.

"I just want to talk with the newcomers, learn what they want, but I advise you to stay with my men in the forge and do something"

"But, what if they…" Penny tried to argue, but Annatar gave a reassuring smile.

"I assure you, I can take care of myself, friend Penny." He said just when the engines came to a halt. "Just stay behind and do nothing, it will be over soon." And Sauron turned on his heel and walked away, leaving worried Penny standing before the forge, holding a robot in her hands.

The newcomers could pose a threat true, but Sauron saw an opportunity as he approached the group, while they disembarked from their vehicles.

"Secure the area!" Packleader commanded, and his faunus spread around the street, then picked up the radio "Elder, we are in position."

"Good, stick to the plan. Gather as much as possible." Elder replied through the radio.

"It will be done." Pack leader said and rose his hand to give an order.

"You speak with a clear accent." He suddenly heard from the side, and he jumped in place in surprise.

"Godsdammnit, how did…" Pack leader quickly recomposed himself as he saw the man who approached him – A long, blond hair, hands looking like he never worked a single day, and from his posture – clearly shrinking back and shaking in fear. "Who told you that you can approach me like that?" Faunus said with a confident smirk.

"From what I get, you are an outsider correct?" Sauron continued, like he didn't hear the threat. "Your accent indicates you arrived from the Region called 'Moors', south of the Five Fingers. Am I right?"

Pack leader and his faunus were taken aback by this. That's not how a fearful person should speak, for that human spoke calmly, with confidence and without stuttering. This created a dissonance in faunus's mind, for one part of brain told him that the human is terrified for his life, yet the other half warned him of danger.

"Yesss…, HEY!" He pointed his sword at the human, but Sauron stood too far for the tip of the blade to reach him. "Better shut up and behave or…" Dark chuckle interrupted him.

"Or what?" He asked, looking at the gathered band. "You and your kind will beat me up? Fight me?"

"Precisely!" Leader said, and Sauron laughed, while his body still remained in a fearful posture, confusing the gathered faunus even further.

"Oh, that would end really poorly, and you know it." Before the Pack leader could respond, he looked into Sauron's eyes and, much to his horror, he found in this lava-like gaze a threat.

"How many did you bring?" Although his body shook in fear, Sauron still looked all over the pack with scared face, but fanger could later swore that he smiled mockingly. "For I counted forty-seven. Not that much." Just when the pack leader's jaw tightened in anger, Sauron's gaze darted to the side, and locked eyes with a young-looking fuanus without any facial hair. "And you my fellow, how old are you? Fifteen?"

"Sixteen." Young faunus replied sheepishly, being one of many youngbloods in the group, and nearly half of the pack looked away as Sauron glanced over them unamused.

"Am I supposed to be scared of children playing warriors?" Fallen maia asked with a mocking tone, and the pack leader quickly closed the gap between them, his sword now close to Sauron's chest.

"Ssstop playing around human!" He hissed with his snake's tongue. "You might not get it, but we are armed and have a number advantage!" Although Sauron looked like he backed away in fear, his eyes stared at the faunus and sparked with merriment.

"Armed? Oh, of that there is no doubt. But numbers?" He chuckled darkly as his eyes darted to the side, and the pack leader watched how more and more people gathers around the scene, and leader's heart sunk a little bit.

Although they looked afraid, confused and even shocked, there were too many. One spark of anger…

"They are clearly on my side." Sauron finished his thought, and the leader looked into his eyes again, and decided to try and rebuilt his confidence.

"They are clearly ssscared, they won't do anything!"

"Indeed, as long as they are afraid, you are free to plunder and despoil. But do you know it takes only every tenth member of the crowd, or a really prominent figure, to change fear into anger? And anger into violence?

Faunus blinked few times, then nervously looked at the steadily growing crowd. They are under control for now, afraid of the armored intruders, but it can easily change. And leader's imagination brought him the images how hundreds of angry humans toss him to the ground and relentlessly stomp…

"These people recently got out of poverty and finally, their future starts to become bright." Sauron brought his head closer, his body still trembling. "What do you think will happen if you shatter their dream? Or strike the me down? Will your blade protect you from four thousand fists?"

"By the brothers, how is he doing it!?" Faunus internally screamed. His mind told him that the man standing before him will soon pass out because of stress, but his instincts screamed a warning, that his group should run, or face annihilation.

Faunus gulped, and Sauron shook his head in disappointment.

"No, no, don't show them you're afraid." He said, nodding slightly at the gathered crowd. "Humans are like wolves, they will smell your fear. I don't want to scare you, in fact, I offer you an equal exchange."

Faunus blinked few times, and rose to his full height to show that he is not scared. "Exchange?"

"Indeed. Instead of taking from them, and potentially risking your lives, you shall take from mine treasury, and mine alone." Sauron explained. "And all I ask in return is a simple talk." Pack leader was unsure how to answer that at first, and Sauron leant closer looked into his eyes and whispered.

"Aren't these terms more favorable to you?"

Faunus tried to focus on the conversation, to understand what possible motive that guy has or why he wants let himself get robbed, but he felt like his thoughts were swallowed by the fiery lava-like eyes, and mixed into an incoherent moan of warnings, reassurances and screams.

Plan was to steal dust and lien, wait for the convoy and then celebrate, but that goal now seemed to be only achievable by taking that guy's fishy deal. That's just a talk, right? Nothing wrong can come from a simple talk with this human, right?

"Fine human." He said after a while, and smile appeared in the corners of Sauron's mouth.

"Excellent. Now, push me back."

"What?" Packleader looked at him flabbergasted.

"Just do it like you mean it."

---

Penny watched the discussion between the pack leader and Annatar alongside Annatar's workers, worried for her friend.

Even scan from afar showed how terrified he is, his heartbeat abnormally high and blood pressure probably reached a critical height, just like Yowwick's when she arrived in the morning. Although she couldn't hear about what were they talking about, even when she amplified her hearing, it was more than clear that the White Fanger is threatening her friend, especially when he put his sword close to Annatar's chest.

She should defend him, she CAN defend him, but when she wanted to step forward, a directive appeared right before her eyes.

"You can't reveal yourselves to anyone unless you are threatened." General's voice spoke, imprinted into her programming. That's unfair, she can't just stand by and watch, but the restrictions kept her hands tied.

Robot in her hands looked at her with worry, and she pat it's head.

"It's going to be okay." She said both to reassure it, and herself.

Suddenly, Leader of the White Fang pushed Annatar back, and as he nearly collapsed on the asphalt whole crowd gasped in shock.

"Don't worry my friends!" Annatar's voice echoed through the street as he stood up straight again. "These gentleman will take only from me, leaving your homes and workplaces unspoiled!"

"The what now?" Yowwick said in disbelief as the White Fang approached them.

"I will do anything to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, and if the cost are my tools, then so be it." Annatar declared as the leader of the Fang pushed him to the side, and white fang surrounded the forge. "Do what they say, and everything will be fine!" When he said that, leader pushed him away to the side while faunus approached Sauron's goons with a shit-eating grin.

"Give us all lien, dust, tools, all of that pretty stuff." One of the white fanger faced off with Yowwick. "Or the deal is of, capiche?"

Yowwick clenched his fist, ready to strike the cocky faunus in the face, but then looked away in defeat.

"This way." He said and he led three of the white fang into the forge, while the rest of junior's goons remained, staring down at the band robbing them, thinking that it isn't as fun when you are the one getting robbed.

Penny on the other hand watched how the brute push her friend away.

"He sacrificed his belongings so they won't hurt the other people." She thought, but she knew Annatar for quite some time and something wasn't adding up to her. Why her friend would do that? It was kind, but Annatar always said that he is not kind. What is he gaining from it? She recounted her previous talks with Annatar, and thought about his probable reasoning.

But gathered people viewed the matter in a more simple way, and looked after Annatar in clear admiration, even white fangers were astonished by his behavior. But one of them was focused on someone else entirely.

"Do you see that girl boy?" One of the faunus with small elephant tusks whispered to his sixteen year old companion and pointed at distracted Penny. "She is an Atlassian."

"Really?" A youngblood took a closer look. "She doesn't look like…"

"A monster?" Faunus with tusks spat on the ground. "At first they might not look like, but every Atlassian, even those innocent-looking will grow into a heartless beasts."

He still remembered his old home – a small, modest village by the river with a crystal clear water, beside which bunch of faunus kids played with a volleyball while their families worked on their fishnets and fishboats.

Suddenly, as elephant faunus noticed a girl with skin pale as paper watching them play from a distance. She must be one of those "Atlassian's' who just settled nearby, building a new village called 'a Refinery', as his mama told him. For young children, the newcomers were just an interesting addition to their daily life.

They shared a look, she looked at the volleyball he held in his hands, clearly wanting to join the fun, and young faunus smiled a gestured her to come. With a smile she run to them and the group, now with a new member, resumed their game.

A humble beginning of what should be a great friendship…

"Man, cut it out, she didn't do anything." His younger companion tried to calm him, but the older faunus's resentment grew further, like a decade-old wound, filling his heart with venom known as hatred. For now, he contained it within, but it grew and boiled more and more, his rage ready to explode like a volcano.

---

With loud rumbling, line of armored trucks with giant battering ram attached to their fronts rolled on the highway, a column of armored trucks following in tow.

"Brace yourselves!" Driver shouted to the crew behind, and the steel ram smashed into a car, throwing it out of the way as easily as a child tosses a toy.

"Works as intended!" Driver shouted to Roman with childlike joy.

"Don't get cocky Rex, we didn't meet any proper barricades yet!" Roman said.

"We will smash through them too!" Second driver giggled as he put his feet on the throttle to pick up more speed.

Roman just chuckled, admiring their enthusiasm. Speaking of which...

"Column One to scavengers, where are you?" Roman said to the radio.

"Right beside you mate!" Roman peeked out through the window and watched how armored suvs with an escort of motorbikes got close to the trucks behind him, and, without missing a second, he pulled the button above him, and the mighty horn roared it's signal.

Convoy slowed down a bit, allowing the scavengers to drive really close to the massive vehicles, sometimes even touching it. and then, sides of the designated trucks opened, revealing an empty interior aside of few particularly strong faunus standing inside.

One of the suvs roof's opened, white fanger peeked from the vehicle, then pulled out a black bag and handed it over to the faunus inside the the armored truck, then another, and another.

"Don't try to do it fast!" Roman reminded everyone through the intercom while watching scavengers deposit their spoils. "Gently with dust! Be more careful!"

When each pick-up truck finished loading their plunder into the truck, the 'loading bay' closed, and only after that suvs drove away from the truck and slowed down to join the rearguard to either fend off the police, or reinforce the crew of the column if necessary.

"Good enough boys and girls, another area checked off, now prepare for three more."

He couldn't help but feel pride of how well these guys performed so far – during training they sure, messed up quite a few times, but they learnt quickly and eagerly. And now, they were easily the most dedicated and skilled crew he had pleasure to work with.

"We should have worked with them earlier." Roman used sign language to Neo, and she smirked.

"Why won't you tell them that?" Neo replied with her hands as the faunas inside the vehicle looked at them in confusion.

"I don't want them to be relaxed just yet, but after the job is done sure." He picked up the radio and changed the frequency.

"Roman to all the other columns, what's your status?"

"Roman this is Elder, column four is loaded and moves to the next area." Harsh voice responded.

"Nikki here, We have loaded a lot of the shiny stuff! Moving for more!" Roman breathed a sigh of relief. Everything goes according to the plan…

"Haha, we got more lien and dust that I have ever seen in my life! And we are not even halfway through!" Third voice belonging to Laszlo responded with a laughter. "By the Brothers, It's so easy!"

"NO!" Roman screamed to the radio, surprising everyone in the truck and everyone started listening. "Don't say that!"

"What's wrong?" Nikki asked in confusion while Roman angrily gnawed his teeth.

"When you say something like this, everything WILL go wrong!" He said with irritation in his voice. "It's a basic rule dammnit!"

"You are overreacting hu…" There was a brief static on Laszlo's side. "Shit, I have Hunters on my back." Roman looked at Neo and gestured at the radio with "See!?" expression, and Neo started to chuckle.

"This is Elder, Hunter team just boarded my column, moving to kick them out." Roman gestured at the device again, his face red of anger while Neo's chuckle turned into a silent laughter.

"Some bully hunters decided to show up, Nikki signing off." Roman gestured one final time and Neo fell back on her seat laughing. After few seconds of cooling off, he picked up the radio again.

"Don't panic, I gave you guys the plans what to do in situations like these, just stick to them. And for the love of Gods, do not kill them!" He turned off the radio and hid his eyes with his right hand.

"At least we got off easy." Rex said with a grin.

"NOO!" Roman roared in rage. "You don't say that too!"

"Oh c'mon, that was just a…"

"Zenith to Roman, you have a Hunter team approaching your position." Radio chattered, and Roman looked at the driver like he wanted to smack him.

"Anything more clever to say?" He sarcastically asked Rex.

"I will now shut up." Faunus driver replied, and with a heavy sigh Roman finally picked up the radio.

"I heard you Zenith, from they are approaching? North? East?"

"From the above." Zenith's monotone voice replied, confusing Roman.

"What do you mean 'from the above', no bullhead could pass-" He poked his head out of one window while Neo peeked from another. "-you got to be kidding me."

---

"More to the left!" Ruby shouted from the top of the commercial airship.

"Aye-aye Captain! To the starboard!" Yang grabbed the vertical fin and pushed it to the right with all of her strength, and massive commercial blimp changed its course to fly directly above the highway.

"Enough!" Ruby shouted and Yang let the fin go, stabilizing the course, and Rose looked at the Heiress. "Can you push us a little faster?"

"Can't I?" Weiss asked with a confident smirk, then, upon seeing Ruby's confused stare, she realized that that dolt still doesn't understand sarcasm "Gosh, on it!" Her aura glowed brightly, and series of glyphs attached to the back of the airship shined and in a burst, pushed the machine forward. "There." Ruby nodded her head.

"Tell Sun we will jump soon!"

"Wait, what do you mean 'jump'?" Weiss asked as Ruby quickly run up to Yang, leaving the Heiress alone. "Of course, it was your idea all along." With annoyed huff she climbed off to the lower part of the blimp were Sun stayed the entire time.

"We are going to… Are you serious?" She asked while Sun finished drawing a large, black mustache over Jacques's Schnee image.

"What? It's an art!" He said and offered her a marker. "Wanna join?"

Back on the convoy, Roman and all White fangers on board just stared at the commercial blimp catching up to them.

"Should we…?" One of them decided to break the silence, and Roman scoffed.

"No no, let it get closer, let them get us." He said with what he thought was a clear sarcasm, but they didn't get it. "SHOOT IT ALREADY!" Roman shouted and White fangers got up to work, heavy machine guns on top of their vehicles aiming at the flying machine while pulled the rope, horn roared once.

"They are going to do a superhero landing." Neo gestured as the machine guns opened fire and the column slowed down, and Roman rolled his eyes.

"Hopefully not." He replied, and Neo smiled.

"Wanna bet?"

Back on the blimp, Ruby looked down and measured the distance between the blimp and the column, just when shower of tracer bullets reached their vehicle, but mostly harmlessly bouncing off.

"Ready to kick some butts sis?" Yang smashed her fists together, and Ruby gleefully loaded Crescent Rose.

"More than ready." She replied, and with an ear-deafening bang, she jumped from the blimp.

"Geronimo!" Yang followed behind.

On the other side of the blimp Weiss stepped away and like an artist she checked if the horns she added to Jacques's are unequal.

"There, now it's an art." She commented, and Sunn clapped his hands in appreciation.

"Yep, that's more like it. By the way, your friends already jumped." Weiss snapped out of her self-indulgent state and quickly run to the edge of the blimp.

"That dolt!" She looked at Myrtenaster, now out of dust, quickly reached for her pouches, and realized a critical error she made.

"No no no!" She clenched her fists and huffed in anger, then felt Sun't questioning stare on her back and left a sigh. "I forgot to take more dust…"

Suddenly, monkey faunus's hand appeared before her eyes with at least five dust vials.

"Want some?" He offered with a cheeky smile.

"Hey thanks!" She gladly took it, opened Myrtenaster and reloaded it with full dust vials. "From where did you get that much…" Something clicked in her brain and she turned to him. "You really stole from them!?"

"Gotta jump or you will miss all the fun!" With an mischievous laughter Sun jumped from the blimp.

"We will talk about it later!" She shouted behind him and jumped too.

---

With a gust of wind in her hair Ruby approached the column of trucks, with each passing second of freefall the vehicles, previously miniscule size, expanded more and more.

She aimed her weapon behind and fired it once to accelerate even more, aiming to land at the vehicle in the middle.

Three machine guns turned her way and fired in a burst, but she turned into a cloud of rose petals and dodged the series of bullets.

"Brace yourselves!" Quite a dozen of White fanger's prepared their melee weapons while some fired with handheld pistols or submachine guns at her, all missing entirely.

When cloud of rose petals reached the column, Ruby turned back and using her accumulated speed, she started to spin with her weapon extended.

Like a tornado she slammed into her foes, blunt side of Crescent Rose threw quite a lot of them from the trucks, until she lost all of her speed and stopped in place.

With a confident smirk, blade of her scythe cut into the truck, pointing at the white fangers with clear challenge in her eyes. And she didn't have to wait long until they roared and rushed at her.

Just when the group standing behind Ruby wanted to do the same, they heard a voice coming from the above.

"HERE I COME!" Yang landed right in the middle of the group, slamming her fist into the truck's roof.

A fiery explosion erupted from her blow, throwing the white fangers in every direction while the vehicle creaked under her fist, but didn't break.

Nearest white fanger tried to charge at Yang, swinging his shovel in wide arcs, but Yang blocked the shovel with her left hand, her right fist slammed into his face dazing him, then with a kick to the stomach she threw him into another two faunus, staggering them.

"Wohoo!" Sun yelled on top of his lungs, then looked at Wiess slightly behind him. "You guys are crazy!"

"Look out!" She shouted back, and Sun noticed a machine gunner aiming at him, so he started to spin his staff before himself when the white fanger pulled the trigger.

The gun blazed, spewing round after round, but, much to the gunner's disbelief, Sun spun his staff so fast that he was able to deflect the incoming bullets.

Meanwhile Weiss quickly changed dust in Myrtenaster's chamber and summoned a red glyph on her right, pushing herself out of the firing line, then, with twist of her hand she summoned a path of glyphs leading to the column.

She slid on the glyphs like she was using a skateboard while the faunus manning the coaxial machine gun tried to hit her, but he moved his weapons too slowly, and when she was close, she turned the last glyph into red and jumped at the machine gun emplacement.

"Holy…!" Gunners hid their heads inside the truck when a white flash cut through the guns, and with a clang, machine guns fell from its emplacement directly at the highway.

Weiss landed gracefully on top of the truck, stood up and hold her rapier in middle.

Second machine gunner tried to hit falling Sun, but when she realized the futility of it, she quickly hid inside the armored truck while Sun smashed the gun emplacement with one strike of his staff.

"We barely met, but I already like you!" Sun said with a wide, friendly smile to Weiss. "You are really cool, you know that?"

Weiss blinked few times, not well accustomed to genuine praises from other people, especially faunus.

"Thanks?" She said back just before a large white fanger with the sledgehammer roared and charged at them alongisde his smaller brethren.

---

Roman silently handed Neo twenty lien and she quickly hid it in the pocket.

"Stupid kids playing heroes." He grumbled. "Time to give them a reality check."

Neo eagerly nodded when Roman picked up the internal radio.

"Roman to the crew, We are going with the plan three." He said. "Lure them in a bit."

"I understand human." A harsh voice belonging to the boar faunus answered him. "But when do you plan to let me at them?"

"When the time comes, just sit quietly and wait." Roman replied to the radio, and he clearly heard an angry huff.

"One of them is a Schnee." She added, her voice spewing with hatred.

"Remember what we talked about?" Roman said with a stern, commanding voice.

"Strike the Schnees where it really hurts." Nobody quoted, and Roman could feel the shift in her voice. "I shall wait for your mark."

"Excellent." He put off the intercom and turned back to Neo. "Let's not keep the kids waiting, shall we?"

---

"For Taurus!" White fanger swung his spiked club at Ruby's head, but in a single move of her scythe she cut the club in two, pushed faunus back and swop him out of his feet.

Another tried to deliver a kick, Ruby sidestepped then swung Crescent Rose in a wide arc, and threw him out of the convoy.

White fanger in the back aimed his gun at her, but she, in less than a second, aimed and shot.

Her bullet tore the rifle into pieces and stunned its owner, while the recoil sent Ruby back where Yang fought.

Yang took a hit from a baseball bat, but in turn she low-kicked her enemy, then followed with the uppercut to the face that threw him into the air, just in time for Ruby to deliver a devastating dropkick.

"Nice one sis!" Yang shouted as Ruby landed little in the back, unconscious faunus under her boots.

"Thanks!" Ruby replied as she spun her weapon, fired it again and charged past Yang, back into the largest group of the White fang more up front of the convoy.

Yang allowed herself a little smile before returning to her fight with a few remaining white fangers, simultaneously searching for Weiss and Sun.

"Keep them split up!" One of the pack leaders shouted to his faunus as they surrounded Sun and tried to attack him from every side at once, but Sun used his staff as a pole and stood on top of it while various weapons clanged against one another in the middle.

"You gotta be faster guys!" He jumped from his stuff right on white fanger's shoulder, kicked her in the head then pounced at another, parried an axe with staff midair while thrusting the tip of his weapon into another's foes chest. "Like this!" He laughed as he parried a set of daggers.

Weiss dodged the swing of the hammer coming from the left, countered at the large faunus's shoulder, then deflected the hammer to the side and thrusted Myrtenaster forward, finally breaking his guard, and as stumbled backwards, Weiss changed the dust Myrtenaster to deal finishing blow.

But a flying faunus wiggling his arms slammed into his axe-wielding brethren and both fell out of the truck before Weiss could end this brief duel.

"Hey!" She shouted to Yang as the brawler unleashed a flurry of blows into another faunus's torso.

"Stop slacking off Ice Queen!" Yang winked and delivered a final swing to her opponent's jaw.

"But I…" Before Weiss could say anything, Yang run off to join Ruby fighting little up front, and with clenched teeth, Weiss summoned a large glyph underneath the group fighting Sun, pinning them to the ground before turning the glyph red and catapulting them away, giving Wukong little time to jump away.

Sun landed beside her and whistled with admiration as he watched at least ten faunus landing in a large dumpster beside the road.

"You have quite a temper and aim! Can I call this 'Aimper'?" He commented, Weiss rolled her eyes and run to Ruby and Yang.

Just when Ruby defeated one last foe in the close vicinity, she noticed a group of White Fangers aiming their submachineguns at her.

"Yang!" She said and pointed at the white fang.

"Got ya!" Yang grabbed the large hatch on top of the truck, in one swift yet brutal move tore it away, and used it to shield her, Ruby and approaching Sun and Weiss from the incoming bullets.

"What's the plan?!" Weiss slid behind cover while the bullets pinged from the hatch like raindrops.

"We get to the front, break the first truck and the column will stop!" Ruby replied.

"Why don't we just smash one truck after the other?" Sun jumped into the conversation. "It will stop some of them!"

"Look inside!" Weiss pointed at the open hatch and Sun noticed quite a lot off chests and boxes full of dust. "One wrong move and we will all blow up!"

"Pretty sure you wanted to say 'we will be dusted'" Yang snickered, which made both Ruby and Weiss groan while Sun laughed at the pun.

"Well well well, what do we have here?" Yang lowered the hatch a bit to see who is talking, but Ruby immediately recognized this voice.

"Roman." She said staring at the criminal she met all those months ago in "Dust till Dawn". He was still wearing his white suit and the black hat, and nonchalantly leaned on his cane.

"Hello Little Red, it's been a while." He gave a nod to Ruby while girl with half pink and half-brown hair stood right beside him.

"You know each other?" Sun asked Ruby, but she didn't answer,fully focused on Torchwick.

"So you are the one standing behind the White Fang attack!" she pointed her scythe at him with accusation, and Roman theatrically leant back.

"Oh no, you figured me out! It was really hard for you to do so!" He said mockingly while Neo clapped her hands in mockery, applauding Ruby's 'genius'. "But in all seriousness, it is a team effort." He gestured at the faunus gathered behind him.

"Why are you doing all of this?" Ruby asked, and Roman giggled.

"What, you want me to monologue my evil plan? Who do you think I am, some kind of villain of the week?"

"Yes?" Ruby replied, little uncertain, which made Roman's smile drop.

"I mean, aren't you a villain?" Yang joined in. "You literally have army of goons."

"And you have a drip!" Sun poked his head from behind the hatch. "Every villain has a drip!"

Weiss just stood there, wondering why everyone around her is an unique kind of idiot while Roman facepalmed slowly dragged his left hand down his face.

"Alright, quick lesson to you kids." He regained his demeanor and spun his cane in the air. "I am not some cartoon villain or a moustaches-twirling villain-" Neo in the background made a twisting move around her mouth, like she wanted to swirl up a moustache while Roman put his left hand on his chest. "-I am a mastermind criminal!"

"Sounds like villain to me." Ruby said, and both Yang and Sun nodded in agreement.

"Here is the difference sweetheart-"His eyes darted for second to something behind the hunters "– I am prepared for annoying Hunters like you."

"Why are we even talking to him!?" Weiss finally snapped and stood up.

"It's because they want to hear me monologue about my evil plan Little Snowflake, and I shall deliver it" He said and Weiss pointed Myrtensater at him, it's chamber spinning and ready to summon a glyph, but Roman remained calm.

"Step one: Divide the group."

Like a snake, a chain wrapped itself around Weiss's waist, and in one pull it dragged right back to the end of the convoy, giving everyone no time to react.

"Weiss!" Ruby shouted as Weiss slammed into the roof of the last vehicle, finally noticing a new group of white fang emerging from within the trucks, led by an imposing boar-faunus with pitch-black skin, wrapped in chains around her arms.

"Step two:" Roman continued as the roar of the jet engines, previously hidden by the ear-deafening roar of the truck engines, revealed itself to be a low-flying bullhead covered in a markings of the White Fang. "Bring in the heavy-hitters"

Bullhead opened its ramp, and on the convoy jumped a large group of tall and heavily armored bear and boar faunuses, each wielding either a heavy makeshift mace and shield, or a two-handed weapon like clubs or axes. Towering over all of them, measuring more than seven feet was a Rhino faunus with two enormous shields attached to his arms.

"Godsdamn, they have a cave Beringel." Sun noted.

"Yang, Sun go help Weiss." Ruby looked at Roman, now surrounded only by the white fangers scratching his chin, like he contemplated something. "I will deal with Roman."

"Are you sure?" Yang frowned as Ruby said that. "Maybe we should…" Ruby fired Crescent Rose and charged at Torchwick. "…stick together."

"C'mon!" Sun run at the newly arrived white fang, and after a brief moment of hesitation, looking after Ruby one last time before running after Sun.

Meanwhile Weiss used Myrtenaster to free herself form the chain wrapping her waist and tried to assume a combat stance, but like a whip, metal chain almost struck at her cheek, forcing her to dodge.

"Finally!" Nobody said, her voice gnarly, yet gleeful as she span the chains in her hands. "A chance to kill a Schnee!"

She tossed sickle blades attached to the chain in a wide arc, one low one high, Weiss jumped over the one aimed at her knees while deflecting the second mid-air, but before she could counter, white fang warrior rapidly retracted the blades back simultaneously throwing another two, not wanting to let Schnee catch a breath.

Nearly at the same time Ruby closed distance between herself and Roman, ducking and slicing the bullets fired at her by six white fang gunmen, behind who stood the criminal, clearly contemplating something.

"Darn it!" She barely noted that he spoke. "I forgot the third part of my plan!"

Without stopping she changed into the cloud of petals and swoop first two gunmen from their feet, changed back to slice gun of one, then she used the momentum created by her charge to swing the Crescent Rose widely, pushing two gunmen from the vehicle.

One faunus tried to slice at her throat with a knife, but she knee-slid under it, then fired the Crescent Rose to gain momentum, used to jump into the air and swipe her scythe directly at Roman.

"But you know what kid?" Roman rose his head and only now Ruby realized that Roman speaks, yet his mouth is not moving. "Looks can be deceiving."

Scythe slammed into Roman, and he broke into a thousand shards of glass, and before Ruby could react, Neo and Roman emerged from seemingly a thin air.

Neo smacked Ruby's head with her umbrella while Roman knee-capped her with his cane, and Ruby tumbled before she struck the blade of Crescent Rose deep into the truck, using it as an anchor to regain her footing.

"You are cheating!" She accused as she pulled out the Crescent Rose from the metal roof, leaving a large hole in it.

"What, You really thought I would play fair with that overgrown gardening tool of yours!?" Roman aimed with his cane and fired an explosive round.

Ruby ducked under it, deflected the flurry of thrusts from Neo's umbrella, she countered with a wide swing but Neo dodged that with ease.

Roman's henchwoman danced around Ruby, trying to stab her in the throat or legs, while Ruby tried to push her opponent from the truck, but Neo was too agile for Ruby to land a hit, and each time Rose was close to striking Neo, Roman and two remaining fangs immediately unleashed the storm of bullets, forcing her back into the desperate defense.

In the same time Sun swung spun his staff, knocking off the white fangers trying to fight him, struck one in the hand, second in the head, pushing forward and finally reaching the armored fangs.

The nearest swung his axe at him, Sun sidestepped and slammed his staff into the bear faunus face, but the stormfang didn't even flinch, instead he laughed.

"Gotta strike harder than that cousin." He taunted and swung his weapon down, Sun backed away as the axe's head slammed into the metal.

With fast footwork Sun dashed at the bear faunus again, striking his foes's stomach, but stormfang brushed it off and backhanded the cocky monkey on the truck's surface, then, his one-edged weapon fell at downed foe.

But Sun swiftly rolled and kicked the deadly weapon out fanger's hand.

"Gotta strike faster than that buddy!" He taunted back as the bear roared and attacked with its fists.

Yang jumped into the fray right at the boar faunus wielding a large mace, punching him in the stomach, empowering her strike with bursts from twin gauntlets, which quickly turned the makeshift armor into scrappy bits.

Screaming in fury and pain faunus swung his mace from above his head, and it slammed into Yang's left shoulder with a bone-shattering strength, and she knelt under this blow.

But, much to the faunus's surprise, Yang's hair was set ablaze and her eyes, now red orbs of fury, stared at him.

"Now you made me mad!" she grabbed the mace with her left hand and struck with her right at fanger's torso, pushing him back and ripping the mace out of his hands.

She fixed her grip on the mace and swung it like a baseball bat at the boar faunus, and he raised his hands in the vain attempt to protect himself.

But giant shield appeared in mace's way, and it clang against the steel like a church bell.

"No hurting tinies!" Rhino faunus bellowed before standing before furious Yang like a steel bulwark.

Yang tossed the mace aside and slammed her fist against the shield, bending it slightly but not breaking it and in turn, rhino faunus assumed the position, locking his shields together.

"What? Such a big guy yet soo afraid to get hit?" Yang taunted before slamming her left fist against the shields, her strikes powerful, but faunus remained immovable.

"Ray can take hits." Rhino faunus said in a surprisingly friendly manner. "But Ray doesn't hit tinies back, because mama said it's impolite."

"Another nutjob talking in third person?" Yang groaned in frustration. "Whatever!" She struck again, and this time a large chunk of metal flew high into the air.

It would most likely break a window or a car, but instead, a chain wrapped around it.

"Look at you Schnee!" Charcoaled skin faunus roared at Weiss as she tossed the chunk of metal, easily deflected by Myrtenaster. "Running around all in White, like an angel." She tossed another two chained sickles at Weiss, aiming at her feet. "A devilish red suits you more!"

Weiss jumped over one, pinned the second with Myrtenaster, then from the summoned glyph a burst of ice passed through the chain and froze half of Nobody's torso.

Surprised faunus tried to free herself, but Weiss run up the frozen chain and kicked white fang warrior right in the head, sending her foe tumbling over the truck's roof.

"Why should I listen to taunts from a terrorist?" Weiss said as Nobody quickly rose up, and faunus answered with a mocking laughter.

"You do love to call us that, don't you?" She pointed one of her sickles at her, giving Weiss an accusatory stare. "Terrorist, murderers, degenerates – All because we dared to FIGHT BACK!"

Few white fangers charged past Nobody at Weiss, one lunging his spear forward while the other threw the hatchet at the heiress.

Weiss cut off the tip of the spear, dashed under the hatchet and with Myrtenaster glowing, she unleashed a large ring of fire which scattered the assailing faunus, throwing them in all sides.

Weiss charged at her foe, fully expecting her opponent to defend herself, but Nobody seemingly froze in place, her eyes wide in terror and her breath rapid.

The bad men came from the sky, claiming that they 'bought the land' and now own their homes, then kicked everyone out without regard for old and sick. Then, men in iron showered everything in bright flames, demolishing many houses.

A young teenager run to her family home, in which she heard a wail of the trapped dog.

"Hector!" She run to the door, smoke pouring through the cracks, while the dog scratched against the wooden door. "Hang on!" She pulled the door with all her strength, her muscles pushed to the brink.

The door burst open, throwing small child on her back while the dog landed on her chest, licking the face of his friend and savior.

"Hector! You are okay buddy!" She said, relieved that she managed to save her friend, but the sense of danger. "But it's not safe here, we have to…"

Heavy footsteps behind interrupted her, and the dog growled, showing his teeth.

The large Man in Iron came out of the inferno, his eyes hidden behind the red visor, aiming the Scorcher directly at them.

"Hector!" She cried and covered her friend with her body while the monster pulled the trigger and his hellish weapon spewed fire…

Weiss cut high, throwing Nobody on her back, and gracefully landing behind her,

Boar faunus struggled to get up, but managed to weakly garb Weiss's ankle.

"It burns…" she mumbled and Weiss thought it was an attempt to threaten her.

"You just need someone to blame for all of your problems, don't you? To point fingers and hate." Weiss said while shaking of Nobody's grasp, and faunus looked at her in both shock and disbelief. "But you fangs also caused your fair share of misery."

Bombs planted under the airship, attempted kidnappings and assassinations, and many more – Weiss experienced it all, no matter what she did or said, White Fang tried everything to ruin her life, turn it into constant hell. They blamed her for every possible crime company bearing her surname supposedly committed, accused of such terrible things that the hair stood up in horror upon hearing it, which only added to the stress and pain her father already caused her, whitely, and her family.

In her mind, White Fang were just terrorists despised by everyone, using heinous lies to excuse their own terrible acts of violence against those who do not deserve it in the slightest.

Boar faunus shifted her stare to the Snowflake crest on Weiss's back. That accursed crest…

Even though the pain was unbearable and her skin brunt to the crisp, she still felt that someone pulled out hector from her grasp.

"Would you look at that?" Someone standing above her spoke. "A dog survived the cleansing?"

"Hector…" She whispered as the men in a long, white trenchcoat curiously looked over the dog in his hands, which weakly snapped it's jaw at him, much to the man's amusement.

"Tenacious!" He laughed and handed the dog to the grendier in white armor standing beside him. "Bring it to medical bay. Company could use of a tenacious mascot."

"Jawohl Rittermeister." Grendier run away with the dog, which weakly wailed for his owner, while wounded faunus desperately tried to move. And Rittermeister noticed the slight twitching of a hand.

"Hmm? Another animal?" He knelt before her, allowing her to read the name written on a chest: 'SDPS Rittermeister Yunow'.

"Nah, just a Critter." One of the grenadiers said, and other few laughed.

She reached with her hand. "It burns…" a plea for help, for something, anything, to ease the pain, but Yunov just shook his head in disappointment.

"We told you to leave abhuman, you can only blame yourself." He said with disdain, picked up one of her tusks, then rose back on his feet while one of grenadiers drew his handgun, but Rittermeister halted him with a move of his hand.

"Don't bother, let the Beowolves take care of this scum." He said, then turned on his heel and walked away with his squad, whistling a song under his nose, while the Schnee crest on his back burnt into her brain like mark, her teeth clenched in hatred…

Weiss twisted the Myrtenaster's chamber, aiming at the group of white fang standing behind a massive rhino faunus, who currently tried to hold Yang's onslaught, ready to throw an ice shard to scatter the group.

But as she was about to unleash her attack, Nobody grabbed her long hair and pulled, which cause the ice shard to fire harmlessly into the sky.

"Not enough." Nobody hissed, threw Weiss at the truck's roof and tried to stomp her.

Weiss rolled away, jumped into the air and landed on her feet, looking at her reinvigorated enemy with a mixture of disbelief and shock as a black glow erased all off the bruises.

"You have aura!?" Weiss shouted as the rampaging boar lunged at her in amok.

„My sister was right, revenge is not the only thing I should be fighting for…" Boar faunas stated, her irises blazing with uncontrollable rage. "But you butchers still took her away!" She roared and swung her fists like a maniac, trying to rip the Schnee into pieces.

Part of Nobody's brain still remembered the lesson Blake tried to teach her many times – That, if she really wants to bring the change, she can't be a vile and hateful as them. But, as she swung her fits and legs at Weiss in a bloodthirsty rampage, her lessons seemed too idealistic, too pure for the world ruled by the cruel and the cunning.

Blake was an ideal such disappointment like a simple Nobody can't possibly match.

At the same time in the front of the convoy, Ruby sliced low, but Neo jumped over it, then ducked under the next swing and kicked Ruby right in the head.

In a daze Ruby tried to slice at Neo's stomach, but she backflipped away, allowing two white fang gunmen to unleash the torrent of bullets.

Ruby jumped back, only for her landing spot to explode under the shot from Melodic Cudgel, and before Ruby could regain her footing Neo appeared again and smacked her stomach with her parasol.

"I think we have you outnumbered AND outgunned." Roman remarked when Ruby stopped tumbling over the truck's roof. "Still think you can win?"

"We will stop you!" Ruby boldly stated, and Roman visibly cringed. "Because heroes will always defeat the..." Ruby wanted to finish her sentence, but still fresh tale of Turin made her unable to say it.

"There are some foes you can't defeat with the blade alone." she heard Annatar's voice in her head.

"And she still...!" Roman groaned, greatly irritated while Neo made 'barf' gesture. "You have the spirit Red, but it is not the book with the happy ending! It's a real world!" Faunus gunmen opened fire again while Neo charged at Ruby.

Ruby ducked under the gunfire, deflected the incoming blow from Neo, countered with the Crescent Rose but Neo leapt above her, she land behind and pulled Ruby's red cape.

As Ruby struggled for air she noticed Roman unleashing another explosive shot directly at her, and turned into the cloud of rose petals to avoid it.

The explosive round flew through the petals, but Neo opened her parasol just in time for the shot to still explode in the cloud, throwing Ruby out of it, right under the foot of a white fang gunman.

"The real world is cold!" Roman shouted as Ruby rolled away from a fanger who tried to stomp on her head.

The scene of Khim's death and Mim's mourn played inside her mind.

"The real world doesn't care about the spirit!"

Ruby tried to get back on her feet but another fang kicked her in the stomach, sending her on her back again.

"Turin led his men to many victories against the Marrer, but all his efforts were ultimately in vain."

Ruby tried to slash approaching Neo with Crescent Rose, but Neopolitan pinned the scythe with heel, and simultaneously drew a long cylindrical blade from the handle of her umbrella.

"You want to be a hero? Then play your part and DIE like one!" When Roman shouted that Neo thrusted the blade forward, and Ruby only managed to rise her left hand.

That shout got Yang's attention and she turned around, giving her foe some respite, to see Ruby blocking the blade aimed at her heart with her left hand, aura around it turned orange, nearly allowing the steel through. And the red eyes burned.

Neo retracted her blade and prepared for another thrust, but before she could deal a finishing blow, Roman and the other fangs heard an angry shout.

"HANDS OFF MY SISTER YOU BASTARDS!" Yang fired her explosive buckshots at Roman and the fangs, and while shots aimed at the gunmen connected and threw them screaming out of the truck, few aimed at Roman were blocked by Neo, who managed to stand before her partner and open her parasol.

Neo peeked from behind the parasol and wiggled her finger at Yang, treating her more like a petulant child than a threat, and Yang charged without thinking, fully intending to smash both Neo and Roman into pieces.

"You know what Red?" Roman took a cigar, put it in his mouth and looked at slowly rising Ruby. "I suddenly remember the step three!" He lifted up his lighter, briefly glancing at the factory building in the distance, where his trump card patiently awaited.

With an angry roar Yang closed distance between herself and Neo while Torchwick's partner patiently stood in place, like a toreador awaiting the bull, and when the Yellow brawler was close she pounced at Neo, both fists raised above her head.

"Dwindle their numbers." And when Roman said that, Zenith pulled the trigger.

A loud whistle tore through the air, and a high-caliber sniper bullet exploded right on Yang's chest, and with wide open lilac eyes, She fell from the truck, right on the highway.

"YANG!" Ruby cried out in despair when her sister disappeared in the distance, Neo waving her left hand in a mocking goodbye while Roman puffed his cigar.

"You seem to be losing friends left and right little Red." Roman taunted after pulling the cigar out of his mouth, and Ruby didn't respond, just just stood in utter disbelief.

It can't be happening, it is not right, it is impossible.

"Luckily for you, many of my comrades are more than willing to get acquainted!" Roman laughed as another wave of the white fang climbed up from all sides.

But Ruby still remained motionless, deaf for everything happening around her. Time itself slowed down.

It was her fault. Her defeat.

Her Amon Rûdh.

---

"…And that's it, now we just wait for convoy four and leave." Pack leader spoke to Sauron, and he nodded in appreciation.

"Your leader is no fool." He praised, and looked the faunus deep in the eyes. "What was his name again?"

"We refer to him simply as Elder…" Sauron shook his head.

"Why do you lie, friend? Name of the one who planned it all will be known all around the world soon enough, so why hiding it? There is no difference if I learn it one day before others." Faunus blinked few times, then nodded, unable to argue with Sauron's logic.

"Elder is the leader, but this whole thing was planned by Roman Torchwick." Pack leader answered, and Sauron connected the name quickly.

"Well, well, well, Roman Torchwick." Sauron thought with amusement. "They managed to recruit such brilliant mind to their cause?"

He gathered information about Roman from various sources, such as Militia, but his most prominent one was none other than Junior Xiong, who gladly shared his knowledge, for a price, but still.

"Mistrealian descent, first a small thief from a very young age, then worked with the Spider but broke off, highly possible that he is in some way responsible for the gang war between the Spider and Xiong family, which caused the death of Xei Xong, previous leader of the gang, as well as his associate Jimmy Vanille, his wife Carmel Vanille, and daughter, Trivia Vanille, which led to the Xiongs subsequent downfall into irrelevance.

Roman prefers his independence, rarely cooperating with other gangs or mercenary groups. The only person he seems to tolerate is his partner, a woman simply known as Neopolitan (potentially Trivia Vanille, but needs some evidence)"

"You recruited really dangerous man into your ranks." Sauron commented out loud. "Aren't you afraid that he will stab you in the pack?" Faunus scoffed.

"True, he is a human, but he is a useful human. Besides, he is on a leash…" Fauns bit his tongue, and Sauron rose his eyebrow, but decided to not press the question now, let's change the topic, let pack leader relax a bit…

"I see." He looked back at his forge, his eyes sad as they put his hammers in the boxes. "Say, what are you going to do with my tools? Will you use them with purpose?"

"Of courssse!" Pack leader reassured. "Our guysss worked on ssscarps for too long, and will be more than happy to finally get some proper equipment." Sauron didn't look at him, and kept staring at the sacking of Eregion.

"You have to work with improper equipment?" He said in disbelief and faunus nodded his head. "If so, then how you wish to wage war?"

"Hem?" Funaus rose his eyebrow as Sauron turned back, his gaze questioning.

"You don't seem to have a proper base or economy, relay on whatever you scavenge from your foes, and on swift ambushes." Sauron pointed out. "You can evade your enemies for some time, but not win a prolonged conflict."

"And after today, it will change." Faunus boasted with a prideful smile. "Today, we will get so much cash and dust that we will buy ourselves some proper weaponry."

"And then what?"

"What 'what'?"

"Wage an open war without proper logistics? Everything you steal today is not enough to arm even a single division of ten thousand. Do you realize how many divisions Atlas has at their disposal?" Faunus growled in anger

"You don't understand! Our revolution will be a spark that will tear down the system!"

"Then enlighten me, my fellow." Sauron said, his eyes shining.

What followed was a rambling of the fool, full of imaginary ideas as faunuskind flocking to their banner' or 'Kingdoms turning against each other' and all that, but Sauron listened patiently, allowing his prey to ensnare himself, to speak up more about this 'potential future', for Sauron could sense that those foolish ideas has some reflection in the reality.

That faunus spoke like all the equipment, the warriors, the plans will fell on them seemingly out of nowhere, which means there is something hidden behind the thin veil. And all Sauron needs to do is patiently wait until the occasion to finally unravel it presents itself. And if he manage to uncover it, all these tools, money and dust they take from him will be insignificant.

He can always create new hammers, refill his coffers and acquire more dust. They can't steal the forge itself, they don't care about his furnaces and anvils. Starting over again will be so easy for him, while he might finally learn something meaningful about his potential allies, or foes.

While Sauron listened to what he considered a fairy tale, Penny watched helplessly as the white fang stole nearly all of the tools and packed it before the forge to later carry it to their vehicles.

"It is not fair." Penny thought as a pair of faunus carried a chest full of lien to their vehicle. "Ann does not deserve this."

Although Annatar in Penny's had some really controversial views, such as 'being genuinely kind is stupid', she knew how much good his actions brought to Limestone. How he, despite claiming otherwise, treated everyone kindly, and fairly. And now he is robbed just like that? It is not fair. She was created for exactly situations like this, but General's directives made her unable to confront them.

Robot in her hands looked at her in concerned as Penny fought against her programming, trying to finally stop what White Fang is doing. It reached its tiny arm, and Penny gave the robot a soft smile.

"It's okay." She hiccupped right after she said that, and put the robot on the anvil. "Everything is going to be fine." She hiccupped again, which only made the tiny robot lower it's binocular eyes with sadness, while Sauron's staff looked with growing anger, Annatar's orders keeping their hands tight, but they were more than willing for a throwdown, and White fangers standing on guard stared back at them, seemingly ready for any stupid move.

"Hey youngling!" White fang's second in command yelled to the sixteen year old faunus. "You left one hammer over there! Bring it quickly over here!"

"Right away!" Young faunus run to the forge, picked up Annatar's favorite hammer, and run back to the truck.

"Hey, you can't!" Penny suddenly grabbed boy's hand as he run out of the forge, startling him. "You can't take it!"

Crowd gasped as they saw that, and white fangers immediately reached for their weapons.

"Let me go!" Young faunus said, surprised how strong girl's grip is.

"My friend has a really big sentimental value to that hammer!" Penny tried to reason, while the youngblood tried to free herself from her grasp. "You can't just take it!"

Other white fangers looked after the second in command, and he clenched his teeth. If they escalate the scene, things will quickly turn into violence.

"Tag, sort out the kid quickly." He whispered, and an old elephant faunus came out of the pickup truck, holding a metal pipe in his right hand.

"I-I didn't know, we need that too" With a hesitance in his voice.

"Please, you know that what are you doing is wrong!" Penny continued to speak. "Annatar is a good man, he doesn't deserve what are you doing to him!"

Young faunus slowly stopped struggling, feeling immense guilt. They stole enough from this guy right? Will one hammer make a difference? His topaz irises stared into her green, pleading orbs.

Penny slowly lessen her grip, and young faunus looked at the hammer in his hands.

"Please." She repeated, and as faunus was about to give the hammer back, his older comrade pushed Penny's hand aside and stood between them.

"Stop listening to her lies young brother." His voice boomed across the street. "She is only defending that Smith because she has a direct interest, that's it!"

"No, I am doing this because he is my friend…"

"LIES!" Elephant faunus shouted. "Atlasians do not have friends, only interest! And what he gets today is for dealing with your foul kind!"

"But Annatar treated everyone equally!" Penny argued, and in the crowd, both humans and faunus nodded their hands, remembering how it was the Smith who helped them in their time of need. "No matter if they were human, faunus, from Atlas or Vacuo…"

But white fanger didn't care about her words. He knew how Atlasians play this game…

"The Company is truly sorry that it went like this, but your village has been marked as the most suitable place for the machines required to optimize the Dust refining." SDC secretary fixed up his glasses as faunus left their homes, escorted out by the grenadiers wearing white armors and face masks. "Cleansing is the standard procedure to ensure that no emotions are left attached, but don't be sad! Company will compensate you with new homes, built nearby just for you! This comes with the access to the company benefits, such as worker support programs." Company's intern continued, his voice monotone and indifferent, like he spoke to bunch of uneducated children.

"Move." Grenadier pushed Tag into the line with his rifle, and he couldn't do anything but obey.

"I shit on your 'new settlement' or your machines or whatever you want to do!" Rag, the oldest man in the village, yelled at the gren standing before him, spewing saliva over the 'soldier'. "My grandfather lived and died here, my father did too, and so will I!"

Grenadier grabbed the old faunus by the beard and tossed him into the line.

"I told you to move." Grenadier stated as he and two other grens picked up the old faunus.

"Let me go you whoresons!" Old faunus was pushed away, which company intern noticed.

"The Company is truly sorry for any physical or emotional damages caused by the procedure, if you want to submit a formal complaint, you can do so through our public manager." Tag didn't listen anymore, he instead gazed at the large group of Atlasians standing nearby, watching at them from a distance, separated from them by standing Men in Iron.

Between them there stood a woman who settled nearby as a child. Woman he once considered friend.

She didn't look him in the eyes when they took their homes, didn't even utter the protest. She stayed by when they took their past, their identity and scorched it.

He knew that red-head's every honeyed word is a poison for the mind. Instead, his grip tightened on the metal pipe he held. And as she spoke, he tried to stay calm, but…

Those green orbs reminded him of her…

As it was happening, pack leader continued his tale, like he was unaware of growing tension.

"… And after we overthrow Vale's government…"

"You have someone backing you, don't you?" Sauron suddenly interrupted, confusing the faunus.

"What are you talking about?" He said, yet his skin went pale, like Sauron expected.

He knows something he was not supposed to know. Excellent.

"All these talks about defeating the Hunters, overthrowing the government, uniting all faunus around the globe…" Sauron recounted fang's tales briefly. "…Yet the equipment you will use appears out of nowhere, and the amount you will steal will not suffice to obtain it. You also receive help from Roman Torchwick, who is well-known for working alone. That means there is someone more powerful backing your plans of new world order, right?"

"Of course not…"

"Lat saib'av reg." Sauron said, his voice like the crack of rolling thunder, and snake faunus's body shivered upon hearing the black speech. "Do you have someone aiding your cause?"

"…Yesss." Faunus's tongue obeyed, much to its owner's terror.

"Who?" Sauron continued, his stare piercing through the faunus's skull.

"A woman. She will give us everything we need." Faunus uttered, trying to hold his voice in his throat, but his word became two magma pits staring into his very soul.

He remembered that day when Taurus forged an alliance with that woman, he stood outside the tent on the guard duty, and listened to everything they said, about their plans for the future. That day he slept really well, everything they spoke about – Fall of SDC, Faunus Revolution, Destruction of SDC – His wildest dreams would be fulfilled.

"Tell me her name." Sauron commanded, and Faunus trembled.

"I…" He tried to lie that he doesn't know, but he couldn't.

"Her name." Sauron repeated, his voice booming in every inch of leader's being, and in the faunus's mind, memory played against his will.

Taurus lifted his the glass of moonshine while the woman standing on the opposite side of the table lifted the glass of wine.

"There is one thing I want to know before we part ways." Taurus inquired, and the woman with black hair and ember eyes looked at him curiously. "We spoke like an old time allies, yet I still don't know how to call you."

"By the Brothers, don't say anything!" Faunus standing on guard wanted to scream, trying to bury the memory deep down, only for Sauron to force it out.

Woman chuckled, and her lips, crimson as her dress, curled and said…

"SHUT UP!" The abrupt scream interrupted them, and Sauron quickly turned his head in rage, but also in surprise. How did they knew what was he doing? He didn't slip up!

But when his eyes laid on the scene he realized that the shout was directed at someone else entirely.

Elephant faunus swung his metal pipe at Penny's face, his rage overtaking his senses, and Penny's mind calculated quickly.

She won't be able to stop the blow, even if she use Floating Array, but taking the speed of the swing and strength of the faunus, there is a 44% chance that the damages won't be too severe…

Another, familiar hands pushed her to the ground, and Penny fell on her back.

"What? How?" She briefly thought as Annatar pushed her away from danger, his movement a blur. "But no human should be that…"

The metal pipe connected with Mairon's jaw, and the sound of the blow echoed across the street, and with a loud thud, he collapsed on the road.

First, there was shock and silence,

Penny looked at her lying friend with wide open eyes.

Junior's goons blinked few times, their mouths wide open, not able to comprehend the situation.

The crowd gasped in pure shock.

White fangers realized the gravity of the situation and took a step back, while the youngblood stared at the downed smith in horror.

Even the air itself held its breath, not believing what it saw.

"They struck Annatar!" Someone in the crowd roared in fury, and silence was quickly replaced by angry shouts.

"They hurt the Smith!"

"Bastards!"

"Monsters!"

The second blow belonged to Yowwick, who slammed his fist into the nearest fanger's nose, breaking it.

"Drive away! Quick!" Second in command screamed to the driver and jumped into the vehicle as the crowd started to push against the semi-circle of the fang, but it was too late to escape.

Mass of people rushed forward, crushing like a tide, ripping the car door open, and carrying the screaming driver from behind the wheel. They tossed him to the ground and relentlessly kicked while most charged at the gathered fangs.

Few more fangs were pushed to the ground by hundreds of enraged men and women, while others run towards the forge in vain hopes of finding refuge from the enraged humans and faunus, but Annatar's men already jumped into the fray.

"Bandits!"

"Sick fucks!"

While the scene around the forge devolved into a violent whirlwind of chaos, Mairon remained on the paved ground, his eyes wide open. The blow wasn't even painful, barely an inconvenience, but it was something else that made him unable to move and think.

His head felt empty, his logical, carefully cultivated through the eons, mind asked only one, really simple question, but he was unable to find an immediate answer.

"Why did I do that?"

---

Zenith paid one last glance to the column one, ejected a shell from the rifle's chamber, then in a moment, he dismantled it and put it into a portable box on the ground.

"Unable to provide further support, moving to the extraction zone." He said to the radio and put these words on a repeat, so anyone contacting him will hear his message, then turned to the empty room of the factory tower, holding his curved knife in his right, while his left instinctively reached to the holster, but then retracted it.

"Guess who decided to raise back from the grave." He said with a chill tone to the shadows in the corners

"I didn't come here to fight you." Blake emerged from said shadows, both her hands raised before her, showing she doesn't hold any weapon, but Zenith scoffed in response.

"Then for what? To have a nice chat over a cup of tea? Poor timing."

"Why are you working with Roman?" She asked, undeterred by the hostility in Zenith's voice, and he shrugged in response.

"He wants Dust, We want to start the revolution which requires tons of dust. Our goals simply align."

"But why attacking the city?!" Blake persisted. "Our goal was always to..."

"Our goal?" Zenith nearly spat on the ground in anger. "Don't you realize how meaningless it sounds coming from your mouth?"

"Douglas please, you have to..."

Without a warning, Zenith threw a small dagger in the shape of the feather at Blake, and in a blink of an eye she retrieved Gambol shroud and deflected the dagger to the side.

"Zenith to you, Huntress." Hawk faunus said with ice in his voice, then his suit shivered and vanished into the thin air.

Blake stood there, trying to pick up any sound, or sudden movement of the air signifying Zenith's approach. She held gambol high, and her eyes constantly drafted from side to side, searching for any irregularities on the walls or the ceiling.

She started to slowly turn around, holding air in her lungs so her breath won't mask his attack.

"Doug, we don't have to fight!" And when she said that, hair on her nape stood straight.

Like a flexible panther, she turned in place and parried the blow of the curved blade emerging from the cloak, blocked another strike from Zenith's beaked mask and jumped away to gain some distance.

"We do Huntress." Zenith replied and rushed at Blake, tossing three needle like knives, two at her stomach and one at her head.

She jumped over the first two, deflected one to the left, then mid-air parried Zenith's blows, to confidently land on the floor.

He tried to slash at her throat, she dodged that, countered with a low kick, Zenith sidestepped and thrusted his knife at her left eye.

"Please, you have to listen!" Blake redirected the blow to the side and jumped away, holding back against him, even though she knew how deadly he is. "What's happening now is not what White Fang was meant to be!"

"Bold words for someone who bailed out!" Zenith threw a sharp boomerang at Blake, but she used her semblance to get out of the way and appear behind him.

"You never wanted to fight the Kingdoms! You wanted equality, like me!' Blake still tried to reason with her former comrade.

"Sometimes you have to go loud-" He snap back, throwing his left leg right at her, his sharp talons snapping where there was once her neck. "-to get your point across!"

"But this!?" Blake blocked the pair of daggers while dancing on her feet, avoiding sharp talons trying to pierce her boots, then jumped backwards to avoid the beak aimed at her right eye. "This won't make humans respect us!"

"Respect us? No." Zenith agreed, slamming his elbow into Blake's hand, breaking her guard. "Fear us? Certainly!" He thrusted the knives forward, right into her stomach.

Blake disappeared, and the ice dust on her belt shined.

To Zenith's surprise, instead of the shadowy copy appearing in Blake's place, to which he grew quite accustomed after many training sessions he had with her in the past, his hands were now stuck deep inside the frozen replica of Blake's body, while she appeared few feet away, completely unharmed.

"Fear us?" Blake repeated in horror. "You were never like this! What happened to you!?"

When Blake was in the Fang, Douglas was already a veteran member of the organization, they worked together during many missions, and shared viewpoints on what White Fang should be.

But now, he talked more like Adam.

"I changed Blake." He said, focusing his aura around his hands. "A lot of us did since you died." He remarked as his hands turned into gas, and left the trap. "But still, all this years, and you still manage to surprise me with new tricks." He remarked, his voice cold, but Blake could swear there was in it a hint of both admiration, and deep sadness. "They taught you really well in Beacon during these months."

Blake's heart sunk upon hearing it "You know?" She asked as Zenith's hands reformed back into flesh.

"Adam told me." He confessed, shaking Blake to her core. "So I would not go to your shining Beacon and slit your throat."

"But…No…How?" Blake muttered, unable to gather her thoughts. Adam knows. Her body trembled. "Adam knows!"

"You know, you should have talked with him before you left." Zenith continued, twisting the knife between his fingers. "Or simply leave him a letter."

"He would not let me leave…!"

"HE JUST DID!" Zenith left a near primal roar and leapt at her, his two knives aimed at her heart…

---

Yang opened her eyes, and left a pained grunt.

"Darn it!" She looked at the column driving away, and fired few shots from her gauntlets. "We ain't finished yet!" She missed her shots entirely, and she tried to run after the trucks.

"If you hurt Rubes then by the Brothers I will BEAT THE LIVING CRAP OUT OF YOU!"

Part of her brain already told her that she can't possibly reach the column, but she didn't care about such things. What mattered now is that Ruby is in danger.

"And I am unable to help her." A terrifying thought crossed her head, and Yang tried to push it aside, but it grew out of control. "Just like then."

"That day I was too weak! Now they just cheated!" She gnarled, picking up speed, and out of everyone, Annatar appeared in her head.

"There was once a Golden Dragon named Yang." He said with indulging smile. "Her arrogance grew, and she relayed solely on her strength to win her battles."

"Shut up!" She said in her head, but Annatar continued.

"Those with clever minds will use every advantage the terrain gives them and lure you into the trap."

"Shut up!" She shouted but at the same time, she slowed down, her doubts taking control, forcing her to stop.

"They will take what you care most, while you can nothing more than weep." Yang fell on her knees, her lilac eyes staring into distance. "So weep." This time it was not Smith's voice, but hers. "Weep! Admit your defeat!" She stared at her knees while her inner demons whispered inside her head.

She slammed her fist into the highway, cracking it, and then, all of her frustrations, self-doubts, hatred, pain and anger – mixed into one, bone-chilling scream, like she wanted to change what happened with sheer volume of her voice, to bend the world itself.

"Admit yourself to be the failure…" This time, her lilac eyes turned into red orbs.

"Shut up already." She replied, her gaze stern, and rose back on her feet. "I may be a failure, but I will not stop running for her." As she threw two more belts of ammo into the air, Ruby's cheerful smile manifested inside her head, and her body glowed with unrelenting, unbreakable spirit. "I will keep going, even if it means breaking every bone in my body!" She said as she reloaded Ember Celica, finally silencing her inner demons, then prepared to use her gauntlets and catapult herself in the air.

"Cartez believes a motorbike will be much faster, Dragon Dorada!" She heard a surprisingly familiar Vacuan accent behind, and turned her head, not believing who she saw.

---

Roman tossed the cigar away, opened the hatch and paid Ruby one last glance.

"I believe you can handle her?" He looked at White fangers and Neo, and after many eager grunts and Neo's gesture he nodded in appreciation. "Good, then I will check how others are doing." He jumped into the truck's interior.

Neo's smile, at first cheerful turned into a malicious one when she looked at the broken Huntress. Although Roman tried to expunge this behavior, Neo just loved toying with her victims for a bit, thanks to her father who put her through literal hell because she was imperfect. That was her way of paying the cruel world back.

"Since Roman strictly prohibited killing, why not have some fun first?" Neo briefly thought as she and others fangs approached unmoving Rose.

"Watch out!" She suddenly heard behind, and tilted her head backwards to see a monkey faunus bouncing from one fang to another, kicking each in the hand, and in few seconds he was upon her, his staff falling like an oak.

Neo reacted instinctively, opening her parasol which blocked the blow, but Sun used it to bounce form the tip of the parasol and confidently landed between Ruby and Neo.

"Going twenty against two?" He said, looking over the fangs with amused. "You could have use some back-up!"

"Get that traitor!" few white fangs charged past Neo, while she remained still, studying the new adversary.

Sun parried the swing of the pickaxe with one end of the stuff, simultaneously blocking the axe with the other and then pushed first two fangs into the rest, then with a quick swing from the left knocked three out of the truck, forcing the rest to take the step back.

"Hey Ruby, right?" Sun asked frozen Rose. "It's a really bad time for a nap!"

He blocked attack from the fang wielding a glaive, countered into his face, only for his counter to be blocked by a parasol.

"For a moment I thought you will just stand and do nothing!" Sun remarked with a smile as Neo pushed against him, using her parasol like a rapier, forcing Sun into defense.

It took her merely a glance to understand his fighting style with that staff – quick, flashy and totally predictable. She faced many hunters using spears and glaives through her partnership with Roman, and Sun wasn't even the best.

"You really don't play around, do you?" Sun taunted as Neo nearly gauged his eyes out with a tip of Hush. "Alright, I can play silent and serious too."

Neo smirked, but that smirk was quickly wiped out when Sun's weapon collapsed in his hands, and instead of one, long staff he now wielded a pair of identical nunchukus.

Sun counterattacked, completely changing his combat style and throwing Neo out of her guard, now forcing her to give up ground.

Neo never fought against someone using this kind of weapon, attack patterns were unreadable, and not to mention that these two nunchukus were also four pistols, constantly firing at her hands and legs.

Neo misjudged the right nunchuk's speed, which allowed Sun to slip under her guard and struck at her face, but it quickly shattered into glass, revealing a large fang's boot, which he delivered straight at Wukong's stomach, pushing him back where Ruby stood.

"Not bad." Neo begrudgingly signaled with her hands, but Sun didn't get that gesture, instead, his eyes were opened wide with… joy.

"You can make clones too!?" He said with childlike happiness, confusing Neo and the fangs. "Then check out this!"

In a moment he sat on the truck's roof, his aura glowed and three copies of him made of light spun their spectral staffs around.

Fangs took a step back, but Neo just rose her eyebrow in amusement.

As Sun's copies charged and engaged the fang, he leant slightly to Ruby.

"Hey! Time for a break is over!" He said, trying to crack a joke, but Ruby was unresponsive.

"Was that what Turin felt when the bad orcs wiped his friends in Amon Rudh?" She thought with sorrow. "Did he also blamed himself?"

"Hey!" Sun's cheerful demeanor vanished upon realizing that it won't help. "You have to snap out of it!"

"As a leader, I made mistake after mistake." She thought. "And because of that, Yang got hurt…"

White fanger stabbed one of the Sun's copies, then another slammed her baseball bat into it, and it vanished in a bright flash, and Sun clenched his teeth.

"I barely met you and I already know that Yang is tough as nails!" Sun yelled to Ruby, and Rose's hand twitched. "But I am still fighting! Wiess is fighting! And we could use a leader!"

"A Leader…?" A stray though crossed Ruby's mind, reacting to Sun's words. "But I failed…"

In a flash, Annatar's face appeared in her head.

"Being a leader is something you learn through your entire life, and there is no school which can give you this knowledge on a silver platter." The reflection said. "You will make mistakes, for humans are not perfect, but you can learn from that, and from the mistakes of others, to make better decisions in the future."

Then, his face shifted into Headmaster Ozpin's

"Being a team leader isn't just a title you carry into battle, but a badge you wear constantly. If you are not always performing at your absolute best, then what reason do you give others to follow you?"

Then, Annatar appeared again.

"I think you have what it takes to be a good leader…"

Then Headmaster once again appeared.

"…I've made more mistakes than any man, woman, and child on this planet. But at this moment I would not consider appointing you to be a leader to be one of them.

Both the Headmaster and the Smith appeared beside each other and spoke in unison:

"Do you?"

Ruby took the deep breath. She made a mistake and she couldn't deny that, even if she wanted to, but doing nothing won't undo it.

A determined spark reappeared in her silver eyes.

Sun clenched his teeth as Neo pierced the second clone with Hush, making it disappear, but then he felt someone putting a hand on his shoulder, he tilted his head to face Ruby.

"Do you trust me?" She asked, and Sun stared at her with surprise, then gave her a friendly smile.

"We met just two hours ago, stole an airship and got ourselves into a fight! We are friends for life!"

As he said that, his last clone, after knocking over two fangs, was stabbed by the spear and pinned to the truck's roof.

"Then hang on!" She wrapped her hand around his torso and pulled him over the edge.

"What are you…!" Before Sun could finish his sentence, they fell from the truck, and turned into the cloud of red and gold rose petals, flying back to the end of the column, where Weiss, after initial shock of her opponent's going full berserk, finally got an upper hand.

She dodged the left uppercut with a quick footwork, stab the truck's surface near Nobody's leg, creating a large ice shard to freeze her in place, ducked under another blow, and froze her enemy.

Unable to move, Nobody looked up as Weiss leapt into the air, Myrtenaster's chamber shifting to red.

On her part, Weiss wanted to use just enough of her strength to finally break faunus's aura and knock her out of the fight.

Glyph under Weiss's boot gave her the speed boost, and she charged at pinned down Faunus, Nobody closed her eyes, accepting defeat.

"No hurting tiny sister!" A large metal shield slammed itself between Weiss and her target, and Myrtenaster struck the hardened steel, cracks appeared all around the shield's surface, but it didn't broke.

Weiss bounced back from the Ray's nearly broken shield, avoiding a large fist trying to grab her mid-air, landed few meters away and quickly assessed the situation.

Now it looked like the entire Fang started approaching her, three armored faunus on the forefront.

"Do I have to do everything here by myself!?" While she internally shouted, she took a deep breath and put her weapon in close left stance, while the television drones started to circle around the trucks.

"You alright, little sis?" Ray freed Nobody from the ice, and boar faunus left a heavy sigh.

"Not quite, but thanks brother." She panted and nearly collapsed, only for Ray to pick her up in his large hands.

"Ray will carry you to…"

"No!" Nobody protested, and jumped out of his grasp, staring at fighting Weiss. "I want to see her fail."

Weiss used her superior speed to avoid swings of the sledgehammers and first, countering with terrifying precision, her every strike finding its target.

She knocked off the fanger with hammer, tricked a faunus with spear into overextending, snapping his weapon in half, slid under the large fist and counterattacked right into stormfang's shoulder, which made him back off in pain.

But there were too many for her to handle alone, and the truck's roof was too narrow too maneuver, so despite her best efforts, she was slowly pushed back more and more.

Myrtenaster's chamber circled once again, and at the last moment Weiss blocked the axe coming from the above, but much to her frustration, her rapier glowed weakly. She quickly checked between the dodges and yes, she was almost out of dust.

"She is getting weaker, press her on!" Pack leader noticed the brief uncertainty painted on the heiress's face.

"FOR ADAM TAURUS!" First three fangs boldly charged at Weiss, only to realize that Myrtenaster, despite being nearly out of dust, is still a dangerous weapon wielded by even more dangerous fancer. But as they fell from the vehicle, four more took their place, then five more.

She fought fiercely, like a lone Irbis against the whole pack of wolves, soon to be overwhelmed, but not without a fight.

She masterfully blocked nearly three simultaneous blows, but before she could counter she got punched by an armored fang, sending her further back, on the last truck in the column.

"This is it Brothers and Sisters!" Nobody shouted, briefly glanced at the tv drones circling around, and a sudden stroke of genius struck her. "But do not kill her! The deal we struck with her father says she must be left her relatively unharmed!"

Weiss blinked few times in surprise.

"What are you…" a roaring stormfang interrupted her questions, knocking Weiss on her back with her armored fist. The Cameras zoomed in as the stormfang raised her right leg to finally kick Weiss out of the party

"THAT'S FOR THE FALLEN SISTER! FO BLA-!" But all the sudden, a cloud of red and gold rose petals rammed the armored faunus from the side, tossing her from the armored truck right on the highway, and from the cloud emerged Ruby and Sun.

"Missed us?" Sun asked and charged at the Fangs while Ruby run to tired Weiss.

"Are you okay?" Ruby asked, her voice full of concern while offering her a hand, but Weiss rose back up on her own two feet without taking Rose's hand.

"What took you so long? And where is the Anger Issue?" Weiss asked in turn, but Ruby's grim expression said more than enough.

For a moment, Weiss wanted to berate Ruby for lack of the clear plan, for allowing Roman to divide them, or for other reasons. But she felt that none of that would help, in fact, it could make the situation worse.

Sun eliminated two more fangers tricking them to expect him attacking with his staff, but instead he struck with nunchakus.

"I am sure she is fine." She said after a while, and Ruby looked at her partner with surprise, expecting something else. "In fact, Fangs pushing her of probably angered her more." And Ruby couldn't help but smile a little. "But did you check your scroll?"

"…Hold on a sec." Ruby said and pulled of her scroll to check Yang's aura. Before, thought of checking it didn't even cross her mind, and even if it did, she was afraid of what it will show.

But Ruby left a sigh of relief as she noticed Yang's aura bar being still half, while her was below half, and Weiss's was surprisingly high.

Sun dodged right fist of the stormfang and kicked him square in the jaw.

"Yang is fine!" Ruby said, feeling her confidence slowly rising up, then frowned. "…And she is also approaching really quickly?"

Both Weiss and Ruby looked back and noticed a motorbike in distance, making its way towards the convoy.

---

"Roman to column three, what is your status?" Roman asked through the radio, and after brief moment of silence, he heard some mumbling on the other side, like laughter? "What is going on?"

"Ekhem, Paul the driver here." Another voice picked up the radio. "Nikki and her bros are occupied."

"Hunters?" Roman asked wit worried voice.

"Yep, but don't worry! They have dealt with them!" Hearing that Roman frowned in confusion.

"But you… so you have the situation under control?"

"Yes!"

"Then stay on this frequency, I will check others." Roman connected to column two. "This Is Roman to convoy two, how is your Hunter situation?"

"Laszlo here, we kicked them out, cargo mostly intact." He heard hyena faunus jolly laughter. "We should have seen their faces!"

"Then stay on this frequency." Roman said, breathed a sigh of relief, then switched the radio to contact the Elder. "Roman to the column four, how are you doing?"

Only static replied him, which immediately alerted Torchwick.

"Elder, can you hear me? Do you copy?" But only static replied him, which meant that the devices weren't even connected.

"Roman to Zenith, do you have the visuals over column four!?" He tried to contact the Hawkeye.

"Unable to provide further support, moving to the extraction zone." Roman slammed his fist against the truck's wall in frustration.

He heard that the hatch opened for Neo jumped into the vehicle, and she noticed Roman's distress.

"Did you deal with the Huntress?" Roman asked.

"Not quite, but you should see this." Neo gestured, took out her scroll and turned it on, showcasing the footage from the tv cameras.

Large amount of police cars drove like crazy towards them, engaging the rear guard by ramming their vehicles, pushing the vans to the sides, and while fangs tried to fight back with harpoons and sticky bombs, heavy police cruisers were like a stampede of the elephants.

What's worse, driving their way was the blonde huntress on the motorcycle with some back-up in a shape of large Vacuan mercenary. So Roman didn't waste time.

"Roman to all the convoys, drive to the harbor at full speed! Tell your assigned scavengers to abort sector five! Run with what we got!"

"I will relay that!" Paul replied.

"Understood." Laszlo added, then Roman changed the frequency to the intercom.

"Roman to the crew, we are going with plan T! I repeat, we go with the Plan T! Three last trucks, code Black!"

"Heard you Torchwick! Into the trucks, quick!" He heard Nobody through the comms, then Roman turned to Rex. "Full speed, even if it breaks the engine!"

"With pleasure!" Both Rex and his co-driver pushed the throttle, and the engine roared like a dragon, picking up speed.

"The police will catch up to us before the tunnels if we don't do something." Neo signaled with her hands, and Roman's face turned grim.

"Are you sure?" He simply asked, and Neo confirmed her assumption. With a pained expression, Roman turned on the radio one last time.

"Roman to the rearguard, come in."

"We are busy here Roman!" One of the pack leaders shouted angrily through the radio. "Trying to shake off the cops is not easy you know!?"

"You need to slow down the police and the Huntress until we reach the tunnel." Roman said, and silence on the other side.

"You want us to stay back?" Torchwick could feel the grim atmosphere through the radio, and from the fangs gathered inside the vehicle, and he gnarled his teeth, at first unable to say what he must.

"I know what I am asking for, but if you don't hold them off them, they will stop the entire convoy." He finally spoke, disgusted by his own words. "Everything depends on you!"

Like Roman expected, there was silence on the other side, and Roman hid his face in his hands. He is de facto telling them to hand themselves over to the police so the others will safely reach the harbor. He hated throwing competent men and women under the metaphorical bus, which was one of many reasons why he works only with Neo. And he mentally prepared for the curses hurled in his way.

His radio turned back on.

"Brothers and Sisters, show them our fangs!"

"Tear them with our claws!" Members of the fang around Roman finished the battle cry, born all these years ago during the battle for the High Castle, while Neo looked at her scroll, turning the live footage back on.

The rearguard slammed into police's sledgehammer, throwing their vehicles in a reckless abandon, slowing the police down, and the fangs watching the footage put their three fingers on the masks, then crossed it, reflecting the White Fang emblem.

Roman just stared, feeling a sting in his heart. They did it without hesitation…

"I will bust you out from." Roman said to the radio as he watched the rearguard's sacrifice. "I promise."

---

"I see them!" Yang said to Cartez, convoy in sight, on top of the last three trucks fighting Weiss Sun and Ruby, which made her breathe a sigh relief.

"Then hang on!" Cartez pushed the throttle to its limit.

Behind them, a bunch police cruisers tried to drive forward, but in some sort of madness, White Fang's vehicles slammed at them from all sides, firing harpoons or straight up ramming the cops.

"Cartez thinks that these fangs went mad!" Cartez remarked with genuine shock as one white fanger jumped from his motorbike at the police one, pulling the cop and himself on the asphalt, while the harpoon tore the tire from the police cruiser, throwing the vehicle into a spin.

"If you are afraid, then let me drive!" Yang snarled, as two vans positioned before them to block their path, one of them aimed the harpoon launcher, and faunus behind it pulled the trigger.

"Then drive, Dragon Dorada!" With a smile, Cartez jumped from the motorcycle, turned his skin into gold mid-air and grabbed the launched harpoon.

Yang quickly took control of the motorbike while Cartez use the harpoon to swing himself right into one of the white fang vans, and from the terrified screams, white fangers gathered inside weren't too stoked about it.

But Yang didn't care for that guy today, solely focused on getting to Ruby.

"OUT OF MY WAY!" She shouted to the van before her, aimed with her left gauntlet and fired an explosive shot.

The blast exploded right beneath the van, lifting it into air, enough for Yang to turn the handle, put the motorcycle on its side and slid under it without losing the speed.

Two suvs, one on her left another on her right changed their direction in the attempt to sandwich Yang between them, but she let go of the handlebars, fired into both vehicles, hitting their back tires and sending them into an uncontrollable spins.

Another pickup truck tried to aim it's mounted gun at her, but a police cruiser slammed into it, pushing it from the road.

"Make way for the Huntress!" Goose yelled to the radio as Yang drove past him, and police vehicles changed their tactic, establishing the corridor for the brawler.

But as Yang could now see her teammates fighting on top, she noticed the rapidly approaching tunnel.

"RUBY WATCH OUT!" She shouted on top of her lungs, and red-caped huntress managed to hear her.

Ruby first looked at Yang driving in the back, then looked forward and froze.

"Weiss, Sun!" She called to them as both Weiss and Sun threw two more fangs from the vehicles while the others jumped through the open hatches. "Tunnel!"

Weiss looked forward, realizing that the ceiling of the tunnel is nearly as high as the truck and if they slam into it, they will be pasted. But before she could say anything, three trucks on which they stood appeared to suddenly pump brakes while also shifting their gears to the sides.

"JUMP!" Trio jumped alongside the fangs too slow to run away from the truck, which then fell on its side, and tumbled over the highway, right into the entrance of the tunnel. And, as they painfully rose back on their feet, they quickly looked over at the entrance of the tunnel, now blocked entirely by three trucks forming a barricade.

Weiss angrily smack the asphalt with her fist while Sun just stared dumbfounded, while Rose stood, completely exhausted emotionally, while the fight around them ceased, for upon seeing that Roman's escape plan worked, most of the rearguard stopped their vehicles, and decided to surrender to the police, while few tried to run using their motors. Police caught many that's for sure, but Roman escaped with all the stolen lien a and dust.

"We lost." Ruby berated herself as she looked over to Weiss, seeing her partner gnaw her teeth in frustration. "And I…"

"Ruby!" Yang's voice took her out from her chain of thoughts and looked back at Yang, who stopped the motor, jumped from it and quickly run up to Ruby. "Are you hurt!?"

With tearful eyes Ruby run into Yang's arms, throwing her of balance and right on the asphalt.

"ImsorryImsorryImsorry! We should have stayed together!" Ruby said between sobs while Yang just sat there. "They hurt you because of me! I'm sorry!"

After a second, Yang gently patted Rose's head. "I'm fine Rubes, I'm fine." And then embraced the tearful Ruby more tightly, trying to appear strong, but in corners of her lilac eyes, tears formed too, both girls both relieved that the worst didn't happen.

"Cartez admits that he is jealous of you Dragon Dorada." Yang and Ruby looked at Cartez who sat back on his motorbike. "You still have someone who cares about you."

"I guess I owe you thanks, tough guy." Yang said after giving him a nod, and Cartez shook his head in denial.

"No need, Cartez would lie if he said that he helped only out of goodness of Cartez's heart." Merc turned the engine back on. "For Toro Dorado is paid quite well for watching over Dragon Dorada."

"By whom?" Yang asked, which made Cartez jovially laugh.

"Daughter of Raven is sharp, she should already figure Cartez out." He gave her a wink before he drove away, and Yang watched after him for a moment, reading the registration on the motorcycle.

"Who was this guy?" Ruby asked, and Yang's attention returned to her little sister.

"Someone who has to answer me few questions." Yang replied bluntly.

Meanwhile Weiss took few heavy breathes, and tried to recompose herself. She lost against the Fangs?! Unbelievable! Unacceptable!

"Hey, 'Weiss' right?" Sun asked, and Weiss tilted her head to him. "To be fair, I thought you will be as stiff as other guys from Atlas I met, but you're quite fun!" Weiss frowned, and rose her fight eyebrow, and Sun's tail discreetly pointed his tail at the sky, and Weiss looked curiously.

The blimp they used to get on the convoy slowly flew through the air, displaying a large visage of her dad with long horns, blackened eye and a black beard around the city, and Weiss left a quiet giggle, before clearing her throat.

"I suppose you fought quite well too." She said, trying to sound formal.

"Thanks!" Sun grabbed her right hand and shook it. "If you wanna play some more pranks or just hang out, call!" In a flash he met flabbergasted Weiss, and run quickly run to the edge of the highway. "See you at Beacon!" He jumped from the road into the city below while Weiss looked at her hands and found a small sheet of paper.

"The audacity…" She mumbled, but, surprisingly, couldn't get mad at the monkey faunus, even if she found him annoying. At least he was fighting alongside them, and was quite helpful.

The one she was rightfully mad on was Blake. Where the hell was she!?

---

Blake backflipped from the double strike, but Zenith relentlessly pursued her around the room.

"Adam could tell Elder that you betrayed our trust! Tell him to go after you!" Zenith's clawed foot nearly scratched Blake's cheek, she ducked but didn't counter, still not wanting to fight. "Instead, he told the truth only me, because he knew that I would go investigate myself! But when he told where you went, I could not believe my ears!"

Blake deflected the dagger aimed at her left eye.

"You joining the Hunters? Our enemy?!"

"That was the only way!" She jumped away and tried to climb up the wall. "Only with them…" Zenith's explosive boomerang detonated under her feet, and she fell to the floor.

"…you can change the world?" Zenith finished her thought, then spit on the ground." That how you excuse yourself!?" Blake tumbled on the ground and quickly assumed the defensive stance. "I served with the ACES, and guess what? They left me to DIE! You think your 'Hunters' will treat you any better than your brothers and sisters!?"

Thrust, block, stab and parry, they were locked in the dance of swords and daggers while their minds clashed.

"You saw how the White Fang changed since my father!" Blake tried to speak while parrying strike from the heavy beak. "Since Sienna took over…!"

"Keep your father out of your foul mouth!" Zenith kicked her right in the stomach, throwing her against the wall. "At least he had dignity to say he quits!" He threw four needle daggers, and Blake ducked under it. "But you, ohhh, you just couldn't look us in the eyes and say you want to leave us huh!? You still wanted to be our hero!"

"No, it's not like that!" Blake tried to argue but Zenith gave her a chance to get up. "White Fang stopped being what it was meant to be!"

"Then why did you LEFT!?" Zenith roared and charged with such speed that Blake barely had time to rise her guard up and block the incoming flurry of blows.

"THEY MOURNED YOU!" Zenith screeched during his assault. "YOU WERE OUR SISTER!" Another heavy blow nearly threw gambol out of Blake's hands. "OUR MENTOR!" His sharp talons slipped through her guard and slit her knee. "OUR VOICE OF REASON!" his beak nearly pierced through Blake's ear, but she backflipped in time. "WE WOULD HAVE FOLLOWED YOU TO HELL AND BACK!" she deflected one dagger, but the second slit her hand. "YOU COULD REMAKE THE FANG, BUT YOU RUN!" A knee to Blake's gut sent her to the floor. "LIKE A PATHETIC COWARD!" He nearly stepped on her stomach with his talons, but Blake rolled away, and Zenith's falcon feet dug deep into concreate.

It was the perfect moment for a counterattack, to gain the upper hand, but Blake didn't take it. She just lowered her weapon.

"I couldn't stay in the Fang." She said, her voice devoid of all emotions, while Zenith just stared at her. "Both you and I know that the organization wasn't the same since my father stopped being it's leader."

"But you could be another leader." Zenith said coldly. "Keep Taurus in check, make him see reason."

"I TRIED!" Blake shouted back, startling Zenith. "But no matter how much I insisted, I couldn't stop him from slipping into hatred to humanity, blaming them for everything bad that happened to him!"

"Adam is broken, but you were not." Zenith replied, aiming his knives at her. "You could take control from Sienna, show us new path, give us a new future." He pulled of his beaked mask to reveal an old, scarred and pale face with long, reaching his chin, white brows and sharp, beak-like nose, his hawk-like eyes stared at Blake. "But instead, you chose to die."

Blake just shook her head in denial, holding Gambol in the middle, ready for another attack from her former comrade, but after a minute of standoff, Zenith left heavy sigh.

"I promised Adam I will leave you alone Huntress. Let you live your life." He said after putting his mask back on. "And I shall cherish the memory of my friend."

"Doug…"

"Others made her a martyr, do you know that Huntress?" He remarked as he walked to the balcony. "Every new member of the Fang hears the tale of the Fierce Black Panther, who bravely fought against the SDC and died covering Adam's retreat."

"It was not like that!" Blake tried to argue, but Zenith just shrugged.

"It's a tale that we use to remember our dear friend, to make sure that the memory of her will never fade, and the lessons she wanted to teach us will never die." He pointed his finger at Blake. "Go back to your shiny Beacon, forget about us, and you will live your life full of adventures. But if you kill our hero again, I will put a bullet through your skull." He jumped from the balcony, sprung his wingsuit and flew away, towards the harbor.

Blake just stood there, barely holding herself from tearing up.

"I never wanted it go that way…" She murmured bitterly. "I…"

At this moment she realized that she was like Tar Arondir.

---

Sauron remained on the ground, his vision blurred and his ears deafened, for his logical and orderly mind, now thrown into chaos, tried to focus on analyzing what just happened.

"I had her! I almost had the name!" He internally screamed at himself with anger. "And now I lost it! For what purpose!?

The way he acted – Pushing away Penny Polendina and taking the strike to his face – He did it without thinking! And it went against his ploy! It didn't serve any purpose!

"It did." His mind, like many times before, tried to rationalize Annatar's behavior. "I protected Penny Polendina from harm."

"But Penny was probably able to withstand the strike from that crude weapon." Sauron thought. "Human her age would be severely injured, but Penny is not a human, crude club would not harm her that easily."

"And what if it did harm her?" Annatar countered. "I know how some materials are so easy to break, like the microchips Penny so eagerly brought me. What if the strike would broke something inside her head?"

"Then I should finish interrogating the leader and then smash that insolent faunus to bits." Sauron thought, but his mind immediately simulated the outcome – Penny falling to the ground, struck on her cheek by a brute. And It made Sauron sick in his stomach. Why?

"No, It's good I stopped the blow." Sauron thought again. "But I should have smashed my fist into faunus's torso…"

"But it wouldn't ensure Penny's safety." Annatar argued, which made Sauron angry.

"Why do I care for her well-being anyway!? She is…"

"A friend?"

"Just an experiment, nothing more!"

"Then, maybe, it's because I like spending time with her?"

"I would gladly spend time with Glaurung just to advance my plan forward."

"But she is different, isn't she? She actually questions my views."

"Middle-Earth opposed my vision!"

"They opposed it with steel and fire while shows genuine interest, even made few good points."

"She is just naïve, that's all, and pointed an obvious miscalculations on my part, someone as intelligent as her was more than capable of doing it."

But as his internal debate went on, part of him couldn't help notice what was happening around him.

White Fang members were getting beaten by angry people of Limestone, while few remaining warriors got into the fight with Yowwick and his men inside the forge.

"I didn't order them to attack! Why have they done that?" He wondered to himself. Orcs would never fight like that without his direct order.

Someone moved him, he felt that. A man was talking to him, but Sauron's ears were still deafened. The others around him looked visibly worried. Why would he be worried? Annatar couldn't see any wounds.

"He is conscious!" Man said. "Give the Smith some air! Move away!" Voice of elderly woman could be heard somewhere behind Annatar, and the crowd did as she told. Then, once again, the man standing above him spoke.

"How many fingers do you see?"

"What kind of question is that!? Five of course!" Sauron answered, and the man gave Annatar a relieved smile.

"For a moment we were afraid that they broke your skull." Mr Smith, baker whom Annatar helped few months ago, offered Annatar a hand, but fallen maia just scoffed.

"I can't say that strike was a particularly pleasurable experience." Sauron rose back on his feet on his own, then looked at the crowd gathered around him.

The all looked at him with worry in their eyes, and he could feel that their hearts are relieved that nothing worse happened to him, some even wondered how else they can help him.

"Of course they are worried." Sauron brushed their feelings aside. "They are afraid that they would lose the one who makes them gifts and tools."

If he wasn't useful for them, they would not care if something happened to him or not, and in his mind, humans are naturally selfish creatures. He gave them wonders, raised them beyond their initial status, so they care, and would betray him in his moment of weakness.

But as he looked over those faces, he noticed a lack of one in particular.

"Where is Penny?" He tried to sound calm, but his voice partially indicated his worry, for which he scolded himself.

"I saw that she run into the Forge!" Someone from the crowd shouted, and Annatar reacted without hesitation.

"Make way!" He ordered, but people were packed to tightly to do so quickly, so Sauron started to push people aside, trying to get into the forge as fast as possible. For a brief moment he even thought about turning his body to be less corporeal, but too many eyes were on him.

He looked at the forge, in which most of the remaining fangs fiercely fought against his new Herald and his men, while few used his tables to make a barricade to slow down the crowd.

And among there was his friend.

"Penny!" He shouted.

---

One of the Fang's pinned the forge's worker and started to choke him, but Penny struck the faunus from the side, using just enough force to push the attacker of.

Before the man could utter a thanks, Penny quickly jumped to another place and swoop a faunus wielding a sword of his feet, then kicked the deadly weapon out of his hands.

From the bystanders point of view, Penny was shifting her targets constantly and was trying to be in all places at once, but in fact it was the opposite – Her mind calculated quickly, valued each individual white fanger on a 'threat scale', and engaged them with enough force to kick them out from the fight, or to give Annatar's workers a fighting chance.

Her greens eyes moved to the side where the faunus with an axe wanted to take a swing at Daniel, her mind run quick calculation and marked as 'lethal threat' on the most effective approach.

She quickly snatched the weapon out of his hands, then jumped away to stop another faunus using a knife.

Her top priority was not exactly defeating the White Fang, it was to ensure that no one would be seriously harmed.

Her 'threat scale' was impacted by various factors – aggressiveness of the fighters, weapon or tool they use and what damages may it cause, if they are in position to actually hurt anyone, and finally - what amount of strength is required to stop them.

"Back off! Back off!" Young faunus swung Annatar's favorite hammer around in a panic, desperately trying to fend off anyone wanting to fight him, using the anvil as a way to protect his back. He was currently classified as a low threat, because he was panicked, and swung the hammer to scare off the others, not to actually harm anyone, while the large bear faunus who was rising his large fists to smack worker armed with a bat was classified as a bigger threat.

She struck the bear faunus right in the liver, made him squeal in pain, but before forge's worker could strike with his bat, Penny pushed the faunus right on the floor, away from the danger.

Of course the threat scale wasn't set in stone, it shifted constantly – some stopped being a threat because they were in a daze while others aggressiveness increased due to stress or fear. Even Annatar's men often could cause the lethal damage.

But thanks to being a highly-advanced android, Penny quickly adapted to all kinds of situations.

All of her battle systems were active, including the Floating Array, but she didn't want to use it – one, it would reveal her identity if anyone notice her back opening and two – using the array was currently unnecessary.

"Penny!" She heard from the crowd outside, and briefly looked over to see her friend pushing through the crowd towards the forge.

"He is alright." Her mind noted with great relief, but remained focused on finishing the fight in the forge, and only few fangs were still in any shape to fight.

"Just stay down, capiche!?" Yowwick struggled against the cocky faunus from before, trying to pin him to the furnace.

"Human trash!" Faunus shouted back, shook off Yowwick's grip and kicked him in the stomach with such strength that it threw Nathan off, right into the youngblood swinging the hammer.

"Strike imminent." She thought as the time for her slowed down, her mind quickly run all calculations. "99% chance of death upon impact."

This quickly reclassified the young faunus from a low-threat to extreme one, and she quickly calculated the most efficient method.

She is too far to knock the hammer out his hands normally which meant using floating array. Computer deemed that one blade is more than enough, and retains the secrecy.

In less than a second, blade traversed towards the scene.

Not many people realize that computers not only choose the most efficient method, but also they make decisions in a time that it takes the human to blink. Therefore, Penny automatically picked up the option that guaranteed Yowwick's safety, but didn't have time to actually think about it.

And the most sensible, non-lethal approach the computer chose was severing the connection between the brain and the hand of the youngblood, and striking the hand only had 90% success chance, while the spine…

Her sword struck below faunus's neck with it blunt side, and the crack of bones echoed in Penny's head. And by the time Penny realized what she is going to do, faunus already laid on the floor screaming in horror.

"Oh Gods, I can't feel my hands." He started to breath rapidly. "I CAN'T FEEL MY LEGS! I CAN'T FEEL!" He screamed on top of his lungs in anguish.

Penny took the step back while the sword returned to her. "What have I done?!" She thought as the screams in her head got louder and louder. She tried to turn off the audio from the outside but the scream was still there.

"HEEEELLLLPPP!" She fell on her knees, every system in her body running the diagnostics.

"Stress level above 90% and rising"

"I hurt someone…"

"Heart overheated over 67%, 68%..."

"I hurt someone!" Penny thought horror.

She wanted to prevent any kind of severe damage, and she caused one.

"Overheat of the critical systems imminent."

And what terrified Penny the most was the fact how easy it was.

"Initiating system shutdown in five, four…"

Dad told her that she had all those fighting capabilities installed into her to protect people from the Grimm, but she never even thought that she could turn her weapons at humans or faunus.

No, that statement was untrue. She recalled the conversation between her dad and the general, few weeks after her creation.

"James, she still has mind of a child." Her dad protested while she sat behind the wall and listened. "You can't just drop it on her like that!"

"The earlier we start, the better will be the results." General answered, his voice like stone. "You know that we can't keep Fria in stasis forever."

"I know, but let her develop first! To express emotions, to learn what means to be a human"

"Three, two…"

"And how long it will take?"

"I don't know." Pietro admitted. "But you will know when Winter is ready right? It's the same case with Penny. I beg you James."

General remained silent, then left a sigh.

"I won't challenge your expertise Doctor, but don't forget…"

Penny's body automatically started to assume the lying position to prepare for the shutdown, first drop on her knees so she won't slam her head on the ground, then wanted to fall on her back.

But a pair of hands grabbed her, and pair of lava-like eyes stared into her green ones.

He said something but she turned off the audio earlier, so his words fell on a deaf ears.

"…Atlas will need its ultimate weapon."

---

"Penny! Speak to me! Are you hurt?!" Annatar spoke, but Penny seemed unresponsive, just staring past him. "Did they struck you!?"

"...Weapon." She whispered before her eyes turned grey. And Mairon kept her in his arms as the fighting around him died down, the only noise being the scream of the paralyzed boy.

---

Authors note:

There we have it, another chapter. Technically, that were two chapters in one month! But the studies are coming back, which means the story will slow down a bit. But I think I will still manage to post something on the story's anniversary.

Before I go to reviews, I want to address some things:

1) The White Fang.

I went with the different route than the show. In the original, they were basically an army of nameless goons for our heroes to beat up, and I am not criticizing that! I just thougt that the WF could be sooo much more than.

Think of this Fang to be more like a Rebel Alliance from original star wars trilogy - Some fought the empire because they wanted free galaxy, others fought it because it hurt them or thier family, some fought for money and many fough beause they REALLY hated the empire.

You get the idea.

So, "My White Fang" will differ, at least at this point of the story.

Let's see how it will play out.

2) The Shipping (Oh boy)

There are no predetermined ships here! I am not saying that there won't be any ships, only that the characters will pair themselves by themselves. I don't know who will pair with whom.

Konsilio: Neither do I, and I am the lead shipper here.

So dear reader, if I, at any point, stray from your favourite ship, don't get upset.

3) The violence

As you read, I tried to restrain myself here.

Konsilio: Really?

No one died!

Konsilio: What an achievement.

Look, I will avoid gore, but some violence is inevitable. But, to be honest, after reading through other stories in this category, I am not doing anything too graphic.

I think that's all of the points I wanted to write about, so let's get to the reviews!

In response to RedHood001:

"Huh, was the last part an Omake or a genuine plot point that's going to come up?" - I don't know man, maybe?

Jokes aside, yeah, I am more than sure Sauron would be fascinated by the video games. I mean, who wouldn't be fascinated that humans made up a super soldier fighting religious aliens? Of course he knows about the power of human imagination, but the effects the effects surpassed his wildest dreams!

Sauron making a game... Honestly, I am not sure about this idea, I don't know what kind of game he would even make. I will think about in the future.

On my part, I played a lot of Battle for Middle-Earth, and it was soo good. Then, Shadow of Mordor, love it by the way.

"When I say Sauron would be learning from characters like Penny and then Ruby, it would involve different aspects." To that I agree!

I have at least six arcs before the finally of the season 1, and there are more chapters than one in each!

Forge was meant to be one chapter, and you saw how it went.

So we are stuck together for at least a year. It doesn't mean we won't go any further, only that the first season of this story (Not the series) will take a year.

Konsilio: Strap your belts, we are going for a long ride!

"White Fang, Cinder, and Salem as a whole would delay or hinder the progress he's made in Vale" Well, you were right about the Fangs, ealier than you thought I suppose but yeah.

"While I wonder if his immortality wouldn't make him that aggrieved with major losses, I can't see his pride accepting someone else trying to meddle or even threaten him" He HATES that one, just ask Saruman.

"I say Ozpin because there's no guarantee that Sauron would allow himself to be controlled if the Wizard in RWBY tries anything. An alliance would naturally be more plausible but Ozpin really wouldn't have any way to convince Sauron to do anything the Maia doesn't want." When you think of it, allaince between OZ and Sauron is prefreable for both, but neither of them would want to dominated by the other - Sauron because of pride, and Zopin because... well, pride too!

Konsilio: They are more similar than I thought at the beginning.

Thanks for your review, stay safe!

In response to vastoisshin:

"Nothing important to review..." I like the way you troll people!

Thanks for your review mate!

In response to Dhestrya:

Nıɔǝ

In response to Oystermcnutty:

For obvious reasons, in this world Tolkien never wrote LoTR, which means no Shadow of Mordor.

Konsilio: But other medias developed normally, like it was.

For example Elden Ring! It is canon in my version of Remnant, with slight differences of course.

For example in Remnant's version of the Elden Ring, Malenia is voiced by Pyrrha. Because it's funny.

Konsilio: And it won't have any major significance for the plot 'wink, wink'

None at all 'wink wink'

Like always, thank you for your kind words!

In response to CRabbit3428665:

...

Konsilio: My eyes.

This stroy is not going in that direction, but your review made me confirm that I hope I teased ealier.

In this story, Sauron is asexual. He knows what attractiveness is, he knows how to levrage it (His beautiful form), he may even admire it! But he doesn't have the sexual drive.

Thanks for the review.

In response to deathlord9011:

"I love this version of Sauron!" I may be biased, but I like it too!

Thank you!

In response to Valen Skata:

"I liked it." Primary objective acheieved.

"It was funny to be see that so intelligent and perceptive Sauron just didn't noticed that he was asked out on a date." Well, he is attractive, but like you said - he does not have any experiance with that.

Konsilio: Shelob x Sauron from SoW is NOT canon!

Neither Galadriel x Sauron (Seriously wtf)

"I can see that the next arc will be more combat heavy, I hope that you can manage that." You will be the judge of that, I just hope I matched your expectations.

"I wonder when can we expect you to post it?" Twenty five days! but if you meant hours then *Pulls out the calculator*

Konsilio: It would be faster if Dj didn't slack off.

I didn't slack off!

Konsilio: I saw it, you just sat there, read previous chapters, looking for mistakes or fixing grammar.

It's a necessary part of writing too!

Konsilio: You know, it's writers equivalent too...

SHUT UP!

Take care of yourself Vala! Thanks for review!

In response to NavyZero8745:

"Honestly, this is very fun to read but it's so easy to ignore everything that doesn't involve Sauron and still understand where the story is headed."

We have a winner! Congrats for being a 100 reviewer! You may expect a suprise prize in the future!

Konsilio: In the story we mean.

As for your review - If you have fun reading it, then it's more than fine with me. And, if you skip parts that doesn't involve the fallen maia and still manage to understand what is going on with the story, then that's okay!

In Return of the King, you could skip parts involving Aragorn, Merry, Pippin, Gandalf etc. And focus entirely on Frodo and Sam, BUT actions Aragorn and the rest took directly impacted Frodo and Sam's journey (Battle for the Black Gate for example).

Thank for making my day, stay healthy!

That's all from me today! Thank you so much for crossing the 100 reviews and 200 favs.

It genuinely feels amazing.

See ya!

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Konsilio: You already know the drill.

---

Trucks rolled into the harbor from the highway, and drove right into the stolen cargo ships.

"Quick! We will soon have the entire city on our backs!" Roman shouted to the Fangers as they quickly emabarked on the "Queen Marika"

Despite some hiccups, operation was successful - Roman's convoy arrived mostly intact, while convoy two and three arrived even before him. But...

"Elder and the others are not here yet." Nikki said with clear worry in her voice, and she looked at Roman. "Where are they?"

"That's what I am asking myself." Roman thought to himself, trying to hide that he is worried too.

"There!" Laszlo pointed at the sky, and soon after, Zenith landed right before them.

"There you are hawkeye! What happened?"

"I had a fight with a Hunter, but managed to flee." He responded briefly.

"You too?" Nikki asked with suprise.

"Doesn't matter." Zenith replied.

"Do you know the whereabouts of convoy four?" Roman asked, and just like he feared, Zenith frowned.

"They should be here ten minutes ago..." He said then looked back at the highway. "I will go look for them..." But Roman intejected.

"We don't have time! If they don't arrive here in next three minutes, then we..." Roman wanted to explain, but a sound of lone car engine interrupted them.

A single van bearing the White Fang emblem rolled into the harbor, and stopped before the Queen Marica. From it, five fangs jumped off, but something was wrong with them - they constantly looked behind at their shadows, their hands shaking in terror.

And lastly, Elder emerged from the vehicle, and when Roman and the others saw him, Nikki covered her mouth in shock while others just took the step back.

Elder appeared distant, his short black hair stranded, his eyes just stared into distance, and he slowly dragged his legs, before he nearly fell on his knees.

"Elder what happened!?" Roman quickly run to him and stopped him from falling. "Where are the others?!"

"...Gone." He didn't even turned to Roman "He took them."

"Who!?" Elder looked at the criminal mastermind, and Torchwick recoiled from that gaze.

Elder's eyes were tired, like they saw something they shouldn't. His determined spark, the one he saw many times during these months, gone.

His stare felt empty, devoid of emotions.

"The Devil himself."