In Beacon, life had returned to normal. The teachers taught albeit history classes were postponed till a suitable replacement could be found. Sadly, few others than his colleagues missed the former 'Professor' Port. The students meanwhile returned to their daily lifestyles, with the small caveat of a newfound Atlesian garrison parked in the corner of the school for 'security' reasons.

Yes, all normal… if they pretended hard enough. In reality Ports absence was hard on his former colleagues and favored students. It was a double whammy for Team CFVY who learned not long after being refused further information. The student body was growing restless with the oncoming Vytal festival, foreign students, and now if any among the new faces or old acquaintances could be a traitor to the kingdoms as their former classmates had been.

One of the most affected and out of the loop was Ruby Rose and by extension, her team. After another day of classes, studying, training, and the awkward greetings of grown men in full combat gear patrolling, the petite girl lay in her pajamas as her partner, dressed likewise, read a book by her nightstand.

Watching her partner elegantly flip a page in the dim lighting, Ruby's mind was still filled with inner debate over the events of two weeks ago. "Hey Weiss…"

"Yes Ruby?" asked her partner, eyes not moving from her book.

"Why do you think they ran?" she asked meekly from her bed.

Weiss placed a bookmark and closed the cover. With a sigh, she crossed a leg over the other and turned to Ruby. "You've asked me the same question every time Yang and Blake stay out for extra training, which has been every night since that fiasco. What do you want me to say, Ruby?"

Unsure of herself, Ruby meekly looked down at her sheets. "I don't know. I just want to make sense of it…"

"There's nothing to make sense of except what is clear as day. Those boys were arrested under suspicion of several crimes, escaped Beacon and went on the run, and practically spat in the face of General Ironwood and Atlas by damaging a part of the Atlesian fleet."

"But it doesn't make sense. Why would they do all that? Why be huntsman like us, sign up to help others, put in the effort, only to throw it away?"

"Maybe they were spies? A grudge against the kingdoms like the White Fang perhaps?" suggested Weiss.

"But Blake changed… and Niel was always carefree, or Raiden. He was a lot like me especially with weapons! Lukas was harsh with words like you but he changed around his team. And Caelum-"

Weiss lowered her crossed arms. "I know Ruby but… maybe the other three… maybe the news report was right and Caelum forced them. But it's clear that things were by his direction. I for one trust in Atlas and the law. They should have stood a fair trial and if they had committed crimes then they should pay an appropriate punishment."

"But Weiss, one of the charges was treason. If they were found guilty they'd be-"

"I know Ruby" interrupted Weiss. "I know. But so did they. If they committed it that is. Humanity can't afford traitors with the Grimm. We as huntsman can't either."

Ruby's voice dropped to a whisper. "Then why would he train me? Or give us advice?"

Weiss pitied her partner's distressed confusion and so reached for the light and turned it off. "That's enough Ruby. It's getting late. Yang and Blake will be back soon and want to sleep too. Let's get some rest."

"Ok. G'night Weiss."

"Night Ruby."

As the two lay in silence, attempting to drift to sleep Ruby was once again cursed with a mind replaying all she knew of her former classmates as she had every night since their escape. The vague memories of their interactions she saw from afar, the parallel of school life they showed to her own team, the meetings and interactions she had with each. As sleep crept into her vision and mind, the last memory was of her asking Caelum for help. In a soft mutter, she recounted the flat expression he always wore and the look in his eyes when he accepted, "He looked happy..."

As the conversation conspired in their dorm, Blake and Yang were finishing their late-night training as Weiss had predicted.

With a punch that conveyed her still simmering frustrations, Yang destroyed yet another training dummy. Looking over the cindering remnants before her, her mind chastised itself for allowing such a stupid mistake. How had she not seen them for what they were?

'Snakes, Enemies, Threats' she called them many things colorful and not, but in the end she could only settle on 'Dangerous.' They were enemies of humanity and right under their noses at Beacon no less! How had they not seen it? Especially that Caelum.

Yang hadn't been curious in the least towards him, unlike her sister upon seeing his weapon in their first days at school. She had been even less inclined towards him after he rudely turned away Ruby's help after his partner nearly killed Cardin in training. His worst impression of course was when he had pulled her hair and nearly crushed her throat. Despite it all, Ruby still insisted to go meeting with him to train in private. That had been its own fiasco of her prying the truth out of Rubes when she tried playing coy. Yet when the truth came and after days of arguing, Yang relented to her sister's wishes.

How could she have known? Her baby sister might have had a bad taste in her first crush but she allowed it thinking it was cute. So was her thinking at the time, how could she have known Ruby had been alone with a terrorist and traitor? Images of the damaged Atlesian cruiser popped into her mind mixed with the furious expression of General Ironwood and Ruby's innocent smile replaced by shock at the news.

"Yang?" asked Blake cautiously.

Yang snapped back to reality, realizing her semblance had activated and her hair was now crackling like wildfire. "I'm fine Blake. Just… thinking too much." Taking a deep breath and deactivating her semblance, she calmed somewhat and turned to her partner who was dragging the dummy remains to the side for cleanup in the morning. "I know you've been cautious of speaking for my and Ruby's sake but, what do you think about that whole… thing?"

"That's one way to refer to it" replied Blake sarcastically, earning a disapproving look from Yang. Raising her hands in defense she conceded. "To be honest, I don't have a horse in this race. Personally, I'm indifferent to most of them, for their leader, Caelum? I've never really known how to feel about him. He reminds me of some dangerous people I used to know, maybe worse. If the charges are true, and it's looking like it since they ran, a lot of things would add up regarding their suspicious behaviors and Caelum's attitude."

"But?" asked Yang, sensing there was more.

"But morally, I can't judge them, can I? I was in their shoes and-" she glanced around, instinctively cautious to speak further on school grounds. "I'm not an innocent person either," she whispered.

Hearing Blake's voice drift off weakly as she grabbed her arm uncomfortably, Yang reached forward to dissuade her. "Blake… No, I'm sorry to have- I didn't mean to turn this on you. What you did, that was different."

"We both know that's not true Yang."

"It is. You wanted to change the world for the better. You made some mistakes but you weren't trying to overthrow a kingdom! You chose to change."

"Thanks…" said Blake hollowly while averting her gaze. "But what if that's their case too? And they haven't had a chance to change?"

The question left Yang unable to respond. In her anger and distaste for them, she hadn't considered the possibility of a perspective that perhaps only Blake could provide. No matter the case it seemed that Team RWBY wouldn't see those four again unless it was for their international trial on the news.

-In the Southeastern section of the Sanus continent-

-Far fringes of the kingdom of Vales extent-

Reconnaissance teams had surveyed and gathered intel on the areas around the Nyx's landing point and discovered one notable settlement ten kilometers away. A slightly larger than average town consisting of nearly 1,500 individuals named Vicus.

What little was known of the town came solely from the poor recon their gangsters-turned-crew had provided. The most anyone aboard the Nyx had heard of it was that it existed. Almost every structure was wooden including the ten-foot wall defending it with three exceptions, those being the largest and most important to the settlement. The Town hall, hospice, and granary were built of crudely cut stone and well-weathered since perhaps the town's founding.

Being mostly autonomous and self-sufficient, it seemed their main purpose was the production and export of grain to Vale and other kingdoms. This information was only discovered as their recon had witnessed three cargo bullheads arrive from the north and load a few tons of bagged grains while offloading empty bags and new tools for the village.

Any information outside of what they could gather personally was lost to CRLN and the Nyx's crew as they were cut off from the internet at large. One thing was certain however, they would have to make contact and learn more about the town to procure steady food and minor supplies as well as the scheduling of the Valean bullhead pick-ups and dropoffs to prevent any incidents.

Contemplating their next moves, The four boys took what time they had after another day of maintenance, operations, and crew welfare checks to train in the somewhat cramped but stocked training area. It was mostly free weights and dummy training and they could run laps in the wilderness around the ship. It was also a place of solace for them as none of the syndicate members were huntsman trained and saw no need to loiter within as opposed to the whiskey locker and its rations aboard.

With more and more free time opening up, they had addressed some personal queries first. Caelum and Raiden finally announced the unusual enhancements to their semblances. With a bit of practice, it was confirmed Raiden's semblance no longer simply generated electricity and a layer around his body. Now he could expand the field outwards and detect movement and objects within it up to 40 meters so long as his aura and concentration held up. It had niche uses but had saved them once already.

Caelum's was a more peculiar case. Where once only he could see through his 'portals' now others could and he no longer needed to maintain contact with the item. It was through his own personal efforts that he confirmed the new limits of his ability. With a new sensation, he projected his aura onto the object, and then by sensing another person's aura he could allow them to pass through without having to touch either them or the medium.

It seemed infantismal at first but granted him new options, notably that he could now leave a mirror as a portal without even being near as long as it recognized the person's aura. Like setting a waypoint it would use their aura, so long as he registered it through his own and they could pass. The only downside was that it still had to be a reflective surface and unlike himself, it would heavily drain the 'registered' user.

This however brought up a few questions among his teammates as they rested from their intense workouts. It was Niel to ask the curious question.

"Caelum, we have heard of your past in summary and now know about you in some depth but I must ask. Why reflections? I understand not all know why or how their semblance reflects them-"

"Nice pun" interrupted Lukas who went ignored.

"-But surely you have an idea? For example, my semblance though simple is extremely useful and I know when it came about." with a raised finger, Niel closed his eyes and recalled a fond memory.

"My tribe, nomadic as we are, often encounter trouble with Grimm and bandits. For this reason, our Aura is awakened at seven after two years of training. For me, I realized the catalyst for my semblance when I went out hunting. A stag charged a fellow child who wandered too close, I found my pace quickened. None too long after It occurred again when a tree fell atop me and I somehow enhanced my strength. Then as a nine-year-old, I defeated my first Grimm as it enhanced again, granting me my agility."

Niel opened his eyes to see Raiden in awe at the tale while his partner was too beat to show any care. Caelum meanwhile seemed to be digging in his mind for an answer. With an understanding smile, Niel nodded and turned to the other two, perhaps you two have stories as well?"

Lukas struggled to sit up but was eager to do so as he spoke first. "I- egh, I had my aura awoken by my mother at six. Semblance came about at eleven. Unlike Niel however, I didn't fight Grimm in the heart of Vale. It was rival families. When I wasn't running around with street trash" he nodded to Niel who knew of his childhood. "I was under watch but rarely, being ransomed."

Lukas took a swig of water and laughed as he recalled the macabre night. "Kidnapped and ransomed at eleven years old, three bastards were watching over me. Talking about killing me or selling me off after they got the ransom, even roughed me up. Think of that, three grown men beefing with a kid. Pfft. Anywho, I got the urge to talk and I kept talking. Before they knew it they had untied me thinking it was a harmless idea."

Lukas then dragged a thumb across his neck. "I shanked the one with an SMG while they were still unaware of my semblance effects and what they had done. Then used his gun to cap the other's legs before busting tail and running home." With a nonchalant look, he rolled his head towards Raiden who was shaken by the story. "What's yours?"

Raiden suddenly turned meek as he struggled to think of a way to change the subject.

"I may be tired but I'll still force it out of you if you dont tell" threatened Lukas with a grin.

Caelum sat back with his arms crossed and joined in. "I'll help him do it."

Sensing defeat Raiden averted his eyes and conceded. "Fine! I, I happened to be sleep-deprived while working on an extremely early model of my railgun at twelve. I was so excited that I had shrunk the energy demands of it that I inadvertently missed a check and blew it up, electrocuting myself and downing the village's power grid."

Lukas and even Niel busted out laughing at the story as Raiden turned rosy in the cheeks and defended himself. "It's not funny! There was enough amperage to kill me if not for my semblance!"

"You did mention something similar before if I recall" commented Niel from behind a hand.

"Sorry it's not as brave or dramatic as yours!" complained Raiden as he turned to Caelum. "Well, do you at least remember something now?"

"Oh, I remembered all along I was just curious about your stories." As Raiden retreated behind his palms Caelum snickered and told of his own memory.

"I suppose for me, my training began unofficially at five years of age. Atlas saw my first mission at twelve. I didn't kill my first Grimm until then and my first human till a year later. Some in the military count Faunus separately but I don't think anyone here cares for that differentiation. In those five years, I was constantly deployed by Atlas as an attachment to their recon forces as expendable material. There were a couple of suicide missions as well"

Caelum then took a steady breath. He didn't seem to linger bitterly on the memories instead seeming to have a forlorn reminiscence of them. My semblance activated none too long after my first human kill. I was thirteen. It weighed on me along with the abuse, and neglect from my 'colleagues' and superiors. I felt like I was losing myself and wanted to escape. One night after a nightmare, I awoke and showered off the cold sweat. Drying my face I looked into my mirror and felt I couldn't recognize that face anymore. Sunken eyes and a gaunt expression, How could my family look at me? Even If I did it for them, I didn't want my parents and siblings to see me. I didn't want to see myself."

Another breath and this time, he released a small chuckle. "I got my wish, in that moment, I couldn't see myself. In shock, I reinforced my fist with aura and punched the mirror. Then I found my hand had gone straight through it. I don't even know where it connected to on the other side, I ripped my hand back and slipped onto my ass. Ever since I haven't been able to see my reflection and could use my semblance."

"Dramatic much?" asked Lukas snidely.

"You're not one to talk" quipped Niel as Raiden hung his head low.

"I knew it wasn't going to happen with you but I was hoping it would've been casual like mine."

Caelum chuckled half-heartedly at his teammates. "Let me ask a question myself. Why did you all choose to stay here?" His cynical expression began leaking through his usual facade as he anxiously awaited their replies. When only curious gazes came, he applied more pressure. "At first you were essentially pawns to help in the toppling of Atlas without even knowing."

"At first? Were?" interrupted Lukas. "So now we've been promoted to accomplices is that it?" he laughed.

Caelum frowned, displeased at him making light of his query. Lukas shrugged it off. Still chuckling he answered sincerely. "Dont know about these two but I made this bed, that means it's mine and mine alone to lay in." he rolled his eyes and shifted in his seat, leaning his legs off one armrest and his head over the other. "Besides, I want to see where this all goes." he then raised his hands dramatically and spread them wide. "Accessory to a traitor, usurper, and radicalist, a bit long but one hell of a title no?"

Niel rolled his eyes and kicked Lukas' chair sending him into a spin as he shouted at his partner. As Lukas came to a slow, Niel answered for himself. "In Vale and even Beacon, I learned loyalty is rare. But you have mine."

It was succinct as usual for Niel in such serious matters. Satisfied with himself, he turned to Raiden. Raiden meekly muttered his response. "I admit… the battleship is a large part."

Niel and Lukas both began to laugh at him again to his detriment. Quickly he amended his response as he raised his voice. But we did nothing wrong! All we did was survive and they wouldn't even listen to us! And you! I don't know of your family's history but you haven't done anything to warrant what you've experienced. I wanted to be a huntsmen to do people right, to protect the innocent and we, you are innocent."

The touching moment was interrupted by a muffled laugh coming from none other than Lukas. "So far. Does 'coup d'état' wring a bell?"

Raiden wheeled back and glossed over the remark. "We'll cross that bridge when we get there."

The four boys began chatting amongst each other lightheartedly, unaware of the trio of men outside the bridges door. Three syndicate lieutenants, now temporary officers aboard the Nyx, listened in from the bulkhead. They had come to report on the ship's men and daily resources only to stop out of curiosity when the boss's son began speaking with his friends. It was, after all, a rare peek into the personalities of their new bosses.

As they heard the tales exchanged and the hardships endured, they felt a newfound respect for the kids and even some paternal emotion for the two who were fathers. In their eyes, they were worthy of loyalty even under these trying times and circumstances. To help these young men they would do their utmost to wrangle the men in line and manage this ship. They also chose to ignore the rather troubling talk of a coup d'état and its implications. Closed ears were sometimes the best remedy for headaches such as that.

-Chapter End-