Silence had fallen over the motorboat after a long, long period of explanation courtesy of Ilia. With nothing else to do while aboard, Moss had asked about the situation in Mantle and Atlas, and the faunus had taken it upon herself to fill him in. Winter added some information here and there, while Whitley and Emerald remained mostly quiet throughout. By the end of it all, Ilia was exhausted… and found herself hoping that their rescuer would relay the information to "Rose" or whoever else ended up being in charge of things upon their arrival. She was in no mood to run through it all again… especially as her recounting of events served to make her miss her unlikely friends almost immediately.

"Sounds like we're in for a real shitshow. Worse than that speech to Mantle made it sound," Moss said solemnly as he continued to steer the boat along a narrow subterranean river. The ceiling above them had turned from rock to a thick layer of ice, obscuring the night sky above and warping what little light managed to get through. Only the small lantern in the center of the vessel provided any real visibility, lending a somewhat spooky atmosphere to the tunnel. "Sounds like Jimmy did what he had to do, but… still. Whole damned world's gonna be up in arms once they hear what happened up in Atlas. Hopefully they can keep their reactionary panic and bullshit in check long enough to help deal with the big problem…"

"That's the job," Winter said icily. "He can handle the anger of those who aren't close to the problem, and he has never expected to have it easy. General Ironwood is likely formulating a plan to handle Salem with those who remained behind as we speak, and Remnant will crown him as a hero after the dust settles. Atlas will not simply sit idly by while out of Salem's reach. There will be a counteroffensive once a solid plan is in place. We just needed to find a way to buy time."

"…so… you actually believe we can do this," Emerald said flatly. She was leaning back in one of the seats on the boat, her head tilted back over the headrest as she stared up at the ceiling of ice. The stars filtering through the material made odd, glittering streaks within the ice, giving the entire ceiling an odd, alien appearance. "You actually think we have a chance at stopping Salem?"

"Fuck yeah we have a chance," Ilia answered before anyone else was able. "I don't care if Salem supposedly can't be killed. Only one on Remnant that's immortal is me, and I've wrecked her shit once already. I'll do it again."

"…I like you," Moss said with a smirk. "What's the secret to your immortality?"

"Too godsdamned pissed off to die," Ilia explained. "That's my working theory until proven otherwise."

"By that logic, aren't we all immortal until proven otherwise?" Whitley asked. "That seems…"

"Like a joke," Ilia finished with a roll of her eyes. "Lighten up, kid. Stupid or dark humor helps keep some people going through rough shit, so you're gonna hear a lot of it if you stick with us. Doubt you'll end up on the front lines, but if you're hanging out while we're around? Get used to it."

"Right…" Whitley said sheepishly. "I don't… really get out much, nor am I in situations with much stress involving people other than my parents…"

"Must be nice," Emerald said sulkily as she crossed her ankles. "Welcome to the real world, kid. It's full of shit."

"He's barely a teen," Winter cautioned with narrowed eyes. "No one should have to deal with any of this, but especially not a child. Go easy on him."

"I don't need to be defended," Whitley insisted as he straightened up in his seat. "And I'm not a child, Winter! I… I'll be fine."

"Alright, alright," Moss cut in as he held up his mechanical hand to call for peace. "Sure, the kid's gotta learn, but we don't need a bunch of posturing and infighting to start. You've all been dealing with a lot, everyone's on edge, and I'm sure most of you guys aren't exactly thrilled at the prospect of meeting Rose. Just… relax. She's already said she'll waive her usual fees to help out."

"Fees?" Ilia asked. "What, she would normally charge for helping to extract people from a warzone?"

"Nah, we don't normally traffic people," Moss elaborated. "With very few exceptions."

"You're dust traffickers," Winter accused. "Pirates. The people that slip under the radar of the Aces and the military by striking opportunistically and shuffling goods around while the major players are otherwise occupied. That's what all of this is, isn't it? It makes so much more sense with Jacques and Robyn on board, the way you've been able to keep it going this long…"

Moss couldn't help but offer the woman a grin, which only served to make her visibly angrier.

"What can I say? We know our role and we play it well. You'll get your answers… if and when there's an opportunity. Not up to me. We're almost there."

"I can see light," Whitley said while pointing to the bow of the ship and sitting up a bit straighter. "Well… moonlight, at least. We're almost out of the cave!"

"About damned time," Emerald snapped while finally sitting up and following Whitley's gesture with her eyes. "Moment of truth, coming up…"

"Why do you suddenly sound so irritable?" Ilia asked. "This is a good thing, isn't it?"

"Yeah, so long as Rose doesn't called Lil' Miss Malachite about me," Emerald warned as she folded her arms across her chest. "That… would be bad. We didn't exactly part on good terms."

It was Moss' turn to experience a sudden shift in mood. The man's confident and relaxed expression had given way almost immediately to one of deep, genuine concern. Emerald looked away from him the moment she saw it.

"…Em. What happened…?"

"…you'll get your answers if and when there's an opportunity," Emerald shot back. "And given how busy we're going to be, I hope there isn't."

Whitley looked between the two, raising a brow at the obvious tension in the exchange.

"So… were you tw-"

"Don't," Winter interrupted as she firmly gripped the boy's shoulder. "Not only does it not affect us either way, but you're poking at an obvious sore spot. Leave it and focus on our current predicament."

"Sorry…" Whitley offered, feeling rather embarrassed. He didn't have much time to hang his head, however, as the boat finally reached the mouth of the cave and emerged into something far more than moonlight. With a gasp and hanging jaw, Whitley sat back in his seat and took a moment to take it all in as Ilia and Winter had similar reactions. "What in the… what is all of this?"

"That never gets old," Moss said with a chuckle as he turned and gestured outward to the waiting location as the vessel approached. "Welcome to Aurora's Cradle- the best-kept secret in Solitas."

Outside of the tunnel was something less than a city, but more than a camp. Somehow, 'village' felt like the wrong descriptor- the area was heavily industrialized and the buildings sitting upon the tundra across a small channel of water looked like miniature versions of those up in Atlas rather than like the brick and wood structures of Mantle. Everything was steel, sleek, and a good bit of it was glowing, giving the place the feeling of a small-scale technological marvel out in the middle of nowhere.

Dead center of the compound consisting of roughly 20 buildings was one too big to be residential, but too small to be any sort of factory or workplace. The structure rose to three stories in height, and atop its roof was a long, thick steel cylinder that stretched another hundred feet or so into the sky with an inverted dish atop it. Said dish gave rise to the most striking feature of Aurora's Cradle- the dome. Extending out from all sides underneath the projector rod was an ever-shifting, translucent veil of some sort that encompassed the entire complex. The edges of the barrier plunged down into the sea and over top of the tunnel, effectively shielding everything and providing some sort of unknown benefit.

"That projector…" Winter began as the boat started to slow while approaching the docks. "I'm assuming it hides this place from view?"

"Visually and from radar tech," Moss confirmed with a nod. "We're effectively invisible… unless you run a ship right up against what looks like an ice shelf from the outside. Think of it like a two-way mirror- we can see out almost perfectly, but anyone looking in just sees a field of ice. No one's ever mistakenly stumbled across us."

"That's remarkable," Whitley said with a clear sense of awe. "How did something like this get built in total secrecy…?"

"Thanks, kid. Made it myself," Moss boated with a knowing smirk in Winter's direction. "And it was built with Schnee money and resources. I just sent an invoice, and parts started arriving almost a decade ago. Took a good godsdamned while and a lot of arguments for Shiv and I to piece it together, but we made it work."

"If you're looking for disapproval, you won't find it," Winter replied. "While I may have a distaste for pirates, burning Jacques' lien and resources is all well and good with me. It's when your actions start to affect others in Mantle and Atlas that I begin to feel uneasy."

"About that. Rose'll explain all your worries away," Moss reassured with a wave of his hand as the small vessel pulled up to a wooden walkway. "And uh… you all might want to look behind you…"

One by one, the passengers did as asked while Moss climbed out of the boat and began to tie it to a waiting post on the pier. Over a small ridge of mountains, the skyline had changed entirely… and most notably, Atlas was gone. Where the floating, perpetually illuminated jewel of Solitas once hung prominently in the sky to where it could be seen from Mistral on a clear day, there were only dark storm clouds with their undersides glowing an unnatural red. Smoke was rising from what had to be Mantle in thick, choking columns, leaving the partially obscured view of Solitas looking like an abandoned wasteland. Barely visible in the distance was Salem's leviathan-class flying grimm, the whale-like creature slowly floating over the area as if on patrol and hunting for something- likely survivors of the initial assault.

"…it looks like the end of the world…" Ilia said softly, her bravado slipping away as quickly as the color drained from her cheeks. "I've never seen anything look so… lifeless."

"We won't let Salem do this to the rest of Remnant," Winter vowed with a scowl. "We can't. I know for a fact that everyone who made it to Atlas is safe and this isn't quite as dire as it looks, but… never let this image leave your mind. This is what we're fighting against."

Whitley was the first to look away, his stomach churning as he shivered horribly.

"Just yesterday, things were so simple…"

"If I had a lien for every time I thought that," Emerald commiserated as she stood up and made her way onto the pier. "One choice changes everything. You could've told your dad to fuck off with the election tour and stayed up in Atlas. You'd have been safe."

Whitley shifted uncomfortably as he watched the others climb out of the boat, one by one. Finally, he cast a glance back toward where his home should have been and shook his head before moving to follow the group.

"…no. I would rather know the truth. See what it is that's happening to the rest of the world outside of my own little bubble. Follow in the footsteps of my sisters."

Winter crossed her arms and looked off to the side as her little brother made it ashore.

"Whitley… as much as I appreciate the sentiment, neither I nor Weiss left home with that intent. We did it to save ourselves from him…"

"Maybe," Whitley agreed. "But maybe where we all started doesn't matter as much as where we're going now. We all have one clear goal, for the right reasons, and we all need each other to get there. We're doing this for Remnant as a whole… and none of us are content to just lie down and let Salem win. Even I'll find a way to contribute... somehow. I promise."

"Well said," Moss praised as he lowered his sunglasses and waved for the group to follow. "Regular bunch of heroes, we are. Let's get this party started."

Author's Note:

Update for the coming week of 8/7. Back to Sanus next time.

-RD