"Perhaps he presents a noble motive in the abstract. But look any deeper, and you are sure to find a warped and twisted thing behind that empty mask of his."

- Winter Schnee, briefing agents before their departure to Vale

Zero and Blake stood in an apartment-turned command post, overlooking a wide street in the ghetto where soldiers were training hard. Today was a special day, as they conducted a live-fire combat exercise aimed at getting a batch of new recruits ready for battle. It contained everything, ranging from marksmanship practice to fire & maneuver drills and other small-unit tactics.

They watched as one of the squads was suppressing a designated building with gunfire, while another unit moved forward until they got close to it, only to throw mock grenades into the windows and rush in afterwards. It was basic stuff, but it sure beats target shooting in some cramped basement.

This sort of stuff was obviously risky, it had to be coordinated with great care as they should disperse quickly lest they attract unwanted attention. While there was some shooting in the settlement at all times, owing to its rampant criminality, this was larger so a security perimeter was established all around it, and the nearby civilians were told to stay indoors. To minimally interfere with them, the Knights had taken over and cleared a particularly criminal and sparsely inhabited area of the settlement to conduct their training.

"They seem down," Blake said to him, "They were much more lively last time."

"No doubt," Zero said, "They're having second thoughts about things now that we've had a real loss. But they need to toughen up. Victory is easy, one needs to be graceful in defeat as well."

Blake smirked, "Heard that one before. You copy it from the fang?"

"It's a common enough saying. Our enemies will know it intimately soon. How are the locals handling things?"

"They don't like it, but not so much that they will do anything about it. They're certainly more hostile since the incident two weeks ago."

"Yes, but it made them hate the Atlesians more. We had a big wave of recruits after it."

Being in the settlement had its advantages as well. Atlas tried interdicting them with military police at first, but they could never gather a large enough force in time and the Knights were ready to ambush them on the approaches to the area, so they resorted to airstrikes instead. It was a troublesome, development at the time, but two weeks ago they accidentally hit a residential building half a mile away, and they couldn't quite hide it from the public. Suffice it to say they haven't tried any airstrikes since.

His radio on the table crackled with static, "This is Green-1 reporting in. West sector has spotted hostiles, at least a platoon's worth. They're not engaging yet. Over."

Violet turned to a sprawled-out map on a table, approaching it and noting down the change with a marker.

"The usual?" Blake asked.

"Yeah. I think they'll just watch like last time. They'll wait for good intel from their inside guys before trying anything serious." He sat down on a couch and casually picked up the radio, "This is Zero, Reserve team move in to reinforce Green team. Training team, wrap things up. We're leaving in 15 minutes. Over."

He put the device down before turning to Blake, "Anyway, I trust your mission was successful?"

"Yes, I watched over Marrow and the various other suspicious persons you pointed out, and as you suspected they seem to interact more than usual. The man himself seems to be a status seeker, only looking to network with those at or above his rank unless absolutely necessary.

"And have you talked to others about him?"

"Glaston and a few of his fellow recruiters kept track of his input during meetings. I have a full list of those he vouched for, and many of them seem to be among your suspects. What I still don't get is why you don't just use your semblance on Marrow to expose his associates?"

"I have other plans for him, given that he's managed to worm his way up the ranks so well…"

"I don't follow."

"You don't need to."

She narrowed her eyes, "You're keeping secrets again. Tell me something, Violet. Roman said you used your semblance to great effect back at the docks. If you can only use it to make people tell the truth, what possible effect could it have in a fight?"

He pondered her question for a few moments, "Well, people have no choice but to stand and answer my questions when asked. And as it turns out, unresponsive statues tend to be combat ineffective. Is my answer satisfactory?"

She sighed, "It is. I doubt many truthtellers have used it that way, you're certainly creative."

"It seemed obvious to me. And it should seem obvious to you if you are to ever act as a commander."

"You're still set on that? I thought it was only in case of emergency that I might take over for you."

"And that is still the case, but as we grow I'll need to delegate further. You're smart and work well under pressure. It was a mistake for me to give command to anyone other than you last time."

"Um, thank you." things were still awkward, but they tried to maximally separate their personal and professional lives. It's worked well enough so far, so neither could object.

Blake looked out of the window again, "Looks like they're almost done. We should be heading out as well."

"Yes. I want you to tell the senior staff to prepare for a major action soon. Keep it vague though."

"Oh? Just what are you planning?"

He gave a sadistic smile before standing up and donning his helmet, "A purge."

Later that evening, Violet was seated in an interrogation room. Blake was supposed to bring one of their suspects to him for 'questioning.' As he waited, his personal phone rang. He removed his helmet before answering.

"Hey, Vio," Pyrrha's soft voice spoke, "How are you doing?"

"I'm good, is anything the issue?"

"It's just that you haven't been here the whole weekend, and you missed the lessons today and- Is everything okay? I didn't do something to make you angry, did I?"

"No, everything is fine. I'm just focused on my standard extracurriculars, so to speak. I have an excellent lead right now and I can't afford to be distracted."

"Again? I guess you really are dedicated, and that's good and all but… Just don't forget that you are not alone."

"Of course. How are things going at Beacon?"

"I know you don't think about it that way, but the whole team does miss you when you disappear like that. And we really should work more on team training, Ren is always talking about it."

He sighed, "Listen, how about… next Friday we meet at a training facility in the city for a day of intense work? Or I can find some other opportunity just like two weeks ago?"

"I- I think ordinary training will be sufficient. Next Friday it is."

They fell silent, with Violet absentmindedly tossing his helmet in the air, "Well, is that all you called for?"

"One… One more thing. Ruby told me you aren't answering your phone calls. Nobody on team RWBY can reach you at all, you only answer when I call."

Because you usually don't ask uncomfortable questions, "Whatever do you mean, I talk with Blake all the time?"

Pyrrha's breath hitched, "Yeah… I guess that's right. Hey, Vio. If what you're doing is so hard and time consuming… I've been thinking, if I could help you investigate in some way. I'd be very glad to be useful to you."

His helmet dropped to the ground, "Yes! I mean, it'll be difficult for you to do typical missions with how recognizable you are, but we can find work for you too."

"Really? You mean it?"

Violet heard knocking on his door, "Yeah… We'll talk more on Friday, okay? I'm busy right now. And… needless to say, don't mention anything to anyone else?"

"I- Yeah… I won't."

He hung up before picking up his helmet and putting it on, "Come in," he said.

The door opened to reveal Blake and another woman he recognized as a relatively new member of the Black Knights. She was a tall and upbeat woman, with blonde hair and a beaming smile. She walked in and saluted Zero.

"Lance-corporal Juniper, reporting for duty."

"At ease," he said, "Sit, Juniper." She did as instructed, though he could tell she was a little nervous as she fidgeted her hands.

He looked over various papers on the table, trying to make it look like this was just another mundane meeting, "You joined the Black Knights 3 weeks ago, is that correct?"

She hummed affirmatively and nodded.

"You demonstrated good firearm and stress handling skills, as well as remarkable physical fitness and deep aura reserves. Basically huntress level. You were promoted to lance corporal in only a week by Lieutenant Marrow Amin."

She gulped, "That is correct."

"And now you are being considered by him for another promotion. In light of your leadership abilities, as he put it. According to him, you are the perfect candidate for the role."

She smiled, "I- thank you and him for considering me. I hope I can be ever more useful to the cause."

"Of course, you will be useful without a doubt… But first," his helmet opened up, revealing a glowing eye, "You will tell me the truth."

He saw that Blake had her head turned away, despite his assurances she would be immune to it.

Juniper calmed down, ceasing her nervous ticks, "Yes, I will do so."

"Good. Now tell me, where do your loyalties lie?"

"I am loyal to the military of Atlas and its commander-in-chief, General Ironwood."

Any apprehension or pity left Blake instantly, she could only shoot a death glare at the robotic face of the woman being interrogated.

"I see. And are you operating alone as a spy here?"

"No."

"Who else is working with you?" he asked, glancing at Blake to get her attention. She pulled out her phone and started writing down Juniper's words.

"Specialist Amin is our most senior infiltrator due to likely being the only faunus working with us. After that, I know of Alice, Kingsly, Ember, and Sparrow."

"Are those the only ones?"

"I'm likely only aware of a handful. For some of them, I wasn't aware of their involvement until I was instructed to have them promoted by command."

"I see. What do you know about the plans against the Knights in general?"

"Things are kept on a need-to-know basis, but it is common knowledge that the current commander is too cowardly to report how serious the situation is to the higher-ups. So we've adopted a more passive strategy."

Perfect. He's got practically everything he needs. Just one final thing, "What… are your exact orders regarding emergency situations? I want to know how you'll act in the future."

"Our instructions are to immediately inform command, even if at risk of being found, should any maneuver credibly expose the Knights. However, they usually employ strategies of internal deception and surprise that frustrate these methods, so we should be cautious in our risk assessments. That's all I'm told."

"Very well, that's all I needed to know," his helmet panel retracted, concealing his eye again.

Not long after, she returned to her senses and gasped, "I'm so sorry, Sir. I- I must have spaced out for a moment. I apologize."

"It's alright. I'm happy to inform you that your promotion to a proper Corporal has been approved. You will be placed in command of second reserve squad in the following days."

All tension left her body, "I… Thank you, Zero. I promise to do my best!" She stood up and saluted him again.

"There's no need to thank me, you doing an excellent job is all the thanks I need," He gestured at Blake, "Escort her outside and bring in the next one."

"That's 12 undercover agents in total," Blake said, "And they've all managed to attain reasonably high ranks in a short time frame."

"That's to be expected, they've been trained beforehand," Glaston said.

"Of course, that's not the only reason," Zero said, "They've also been too nepotistic in how they behaved. As their members promoted each other, they necessarily needed to know the identities of their comrades."

Glaston sighed, "So, we're just going to kill them, right?" He didn't like the idea of it, as he'd grown fond of some of the implicated members.

"I understand your concern, but rest assured my sources on this matter are perfect. I've already been too hesitant to act on this because I wanted to leave no room for doubt. If we're to move forward with our current schedule we need to do it the following morning."

"Very well, I trust you on this. It'll be hard to explain to everyone else, though."

"Don't worry, I'll smooth things out personally. In any case, I never got to ask about that huntress I sent your way. Did she show up?"

He chuckled at that, "Ah, well she walked past the place nervously, like it was some trap. The profile you sent me said she was supposed to be confident."

"It's understandable given the circumstances. Is that all?"

"I approached her myself and we eventually had a pleasant talk on faunus rights and other abuses of power. It seemed to strike a nerve with her, but she wasn't too keen on the more… radical stuff."

"That's unfortunate. Not the first Beacon student to be like that."

"It's not that she thought it wrong or that she had a special aversion to violence, she was more afraid for the safety of her family and friends. When I suggested getting her team onboard too she grew agitated."

"I understand the situation. Blake, I want you to visit her when you can but don't push her too hard. I want you to make it so that we're perceived to be more numerous at Beacon. I expect the lot of them to easily fold once we manage a breakthrough success of some kind."

"The rest of the huntsmen too?"

He nodded, "You will be talking to them as well. The list I gave you documents a lot of information, use that to your advantage. Again, no need to push things too hard, that can wait for when the authorities inevitably screw things up and we have a more concrete event to point to and rally around."

Her gaze shifted downward, "Must I really? It's one thing to watch you manipulating others, but to do it myself?"

"You said you would do it. I thought you didn't run from your duties. Was I wrong in my assessment?"

"No. Still, it's not… something I'm used to."

"And yet you lied to us for months about your identity," he paused, carefully considering how to proceed, "It's a good sign that you feel that way. Surrounding yourself in lies isn't good for the mind, I would know. If it makes things any easier, remember that even though we deceive, we are ultimately fighting for the truth."

She gave him a questioning look at that.

"We fight so that we can one day say truth to power. Those who turn their heads at the sight of injustice are deceiving themselves too. Either way, the world is forcing you to lie. Might as well also do the right thing."

She considered it for a while, "I guess that's a good way to think about it. Should have led with that one first."

"I'm glad you understand. So what do you say?"

She nodded, "I'll do my best. For truth."

"For truth," he said.

Marrow Amin styled himself a rather simple man. Sure, he was part of an expert team and on a very serious mission, but that didn't mean he had to be a grumpy buzzkill like most other big huntsmen he knew. Of course, that's not to say he was naive about how the world worked, otherwise, he could never have made it into the Ace Ops, much less as a faunus. He knew how most humans look at him as an intruder, how his fellow faunus look at him as a traitor, as a pet dog of the general.

He tried his best to ignore it. And it's not like everyone looked at him that way, many people changed their views on his people after he proved himself to them. Juniper was a good example, he thought to himself as he traveled with her to yet another surprise meeting of the Black Knights.

It was routine by now, how they walked along the streets of the ghetto together while trying to ignore the scenes of abject poverty and decay around them. "Ah, disgusting," Juniper said as they passed by a decomposing corpse, the heat rotting its body beyond all recognition, "How hard could it be for the army to clean it all up? Couldn't take more than a single division to restore order here."

It was true, there certainly were valid issues in Vale, and he couldn't really hate the people Zero manipulated into fighting for him. He understood their desperation, but rebellion wasn't the solution. How could the people of Vale expect help if they're committed to resisting their rule every step of the way?

"The Knights would have whittled down their numbers in a war of attrition if they stepped foot here though. Every civilian could be a threat. The humanitarian disaster it would cause…" he began.

"So what? Stopping them as soon as possible would prevent the most harm, they're just accelerating the decline and picking up ever more desperate people day after day. It's awful."

"Quiet, Juniper. Pretty sure those guys over there are undercover lookouts," he gestured to a couple of lounging people in civilian clothes. They're hard to keep track of, as they're usually new recruits or aren't even officially integrated members.

They've been his greatest asset though. Even if the cops managed to get here in a reasonable time Zero would just slip away like so many times before, but not before catching a good amount of their men in an ambush somewhere. That man must spend an unhealthy amount of time planning every tiny detail of every action. He had to give respect where it was due, the man was a mastermind. A pity he decided to work against them.

They halted, "This is the spot," Juniper said as they stood at an imposing building with huge rusty pipes protruding from it in seemingly random spots. It looked to be a factory or something similar. A woman approached them, clad in Black Knight uniform.

Her expression was hard to see behind the tinted visor, "Good to see you two, we're almost starting." She gestured at Juniper, "You'll be entering through the door over on the ground floor. Amin, head up the stairs. Zero's waiting for you there."

He did as instructed, climbing up a staircase and entering into a section overlooking the ground floor. Zero, along with his most trusted men were with him, though they were escorted by almost a dozen more Knights he wasn't all that familiar with. On the ground, an agglomeration of men both in and out of uniform stood around socializing. Even so, the atmosphere felt strangely tense. He dismissed the feeling, it wasn't the first time he was nervous behind enemy lines.

"Hi, everyone. I was told this wasn't gonna be an armed affair, I could've brought more than my handgun if we needed this much security."

"It's quite alright," Zero's metallic voice responded, "There's still a lot of risk today, so we upped security last minute."

"Yeah," he studied the uniformed soldiers, "Those are some of the best weapons we've got, most seem to be proper automatics."

"Yup," Hawk added, "And a few are of my own design. Zero has already agreed to give me the men to start scaling production."

"I see. So… What are we doing here exactly? I heard something about reorganization but I didn't think it warranted anything more than a meeting round a table."

"Oh, you know how Zero can be. He likes his dramatics. Don't worry though, our men are on their A-game today," he blew a whistle, signifying for the ceremony to begin.

The people without uniforms numbered about a dozen and formed ranks, stepping on a slightly elevated, well-lit platform reminiscent of a theater stage. The rest of the men, about 40 or so, lined up some 50 feet away, ceremonially holding their rifles. He smiled when he saw Juniper standing proudly in the former group, waving at him. Alongside her were other faces he knew, like Konrad and Alice.

Zero took a step forward, "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. Today is a special day, for the Black Knights and the whole of Vale. Today we recognize the deeds and accomplishments of our fellow compatriots, and we signal the start of a great change in how we operate from now on."

He almost considered tuning out his tireless droning, but that definitely got his attention. Where there's reorganization, there's opportunity for advancement. All things considered, they did an admirable job of infiltrating them as is. Everything apart from his very inner circle must be thoroughly compromised by now, and once the hammer comes down they'll have no safe place to hide. It's so close, he could practically feel it.

"The bravest of all have already pledged allegiance to the cause, but despite our great victories on the field of battle, many still doubt us. And it is not without reason, for we may have proven we can defeat our enemies, but have we proven we can help our countrymen rebuild after the final victory is achieved?"

Minor murmurs came from the crowd. Amin understood where he was coming from, and though he was curious to see how it would all turn out, he knew Zero wouldn't live long enough to try. He glanced at Juniper again, she told him last night how proud she was of getting that promotion, and now even Atlas is considering giving her a promotion of their own. He too was proud of how far he'd come with her, from someone unwilling to even look in his direction to someone who accepted him for who he was.

"No, we have not!" Zero continued, "That is why our efforts must be redoubled and focused on aiding the settlements on the periphery of Vale. We will clean out the criminals and other evildoers like the knights of justice we are. We will restore order, and ensure peace and prosperity. In other words, we shall assert ourselves as legitimate rulers to the people. Once they see that, there will be no more doubt as to which side they are on."

And just like that, any hope for Zero evaporated within him. That man could never bring himself to do something if it didn't have a military purpose. It was all just a cynical game for his sick and twisted fantasy of playing freedom fighter. Even Juni couldn't keep her smile up, he noticed. And neither did the other people he recognized. Looking them all over again, he noticed yet another of his comrades in the group, and another that he saw interacting with Juniper frequently.

A sense of horror came upon him as he comprehended what this meant. He looked around himself, the guards next to him readying their rifles. The men on the ground started moving too, taking the rifles into firing position and taking aim.

"So I ask you all now, which side are you on?" Zero announced, arms triumphantly outstretched.

The flashes of light and the torrent of bullets overwhelmed him, forcing him to close his eyes and ears. From screams and fire to absolute silence in an instant. Just like that, it was over. So much firepower, even the deepest aura pool had to have been depleted by it. No that's impossible, he thought. Because if that was the case, then…

He couldn't open his eyes. How could this have happened? He failed. They knew. They all knew, almost 50 people knew about this and he didn't. Had he missed it somehow? Was he too distracted to notice? No, that's not possible. Was he not trusted enough? But then he'd be down there as well, right?

"Are you okay?" A soft voice he didn't recognize spoke as he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned away from the massacre before opening his eyes to see none other than Zero checking up on him. He'd turned off his voice filter for some odd reason.

"I- What happened?" he barely said it, fighting back tears.

"We purged various infiltrators before our newest action, didn't you get the memo?"

"W- What? Memo? But H-hawk said it was a promotion ceremony. It-" he started hyperventilating.

"That was the code word, yes." Zero said in an unbearably empathetic voice, "Anyway, we discussed it in a prior meeting. You might have spaced out. Try not to miss anything that important again, alright?" he patted him on the shoulder again.

"No, that's… That's impossible."

"It's okay, I understand you're a bit disturbed, but I assure you they were without a doubt all spies and saboteurs."

It took every ounce of willpower for him to answer, "I… Alright."

One of the soldiers spoke up from afar, "I think this one's still breathing."

He gasped. Zero turned to look at it again, then back at him, "How about this, as an apology you can go finish that last one off."

"Excuse me?"

"You spoke so often about how passionate you are about taking revenge, I figure this is satisfactory."

He was in a nightmare. No, nightmares had to end at some point, "I… I think I'm good actually. Not really in the mood."

Zero chuckled, "It's alright, it's only the most dedicated members here, they won't judge you. I insist."

He could kill Zero. He could do it right now. He drew his gun. He could use his semblance to freeze Zero in place and shoot him. No, by the time he'd get through his aura, he'd be killed 10 times over. He could talk to him alone and take him out silently. Yes, that's right. Just a moment of patience before he could get revenge.

"Yes, thank you." he held onto his pistol while jumping down to the ground floor, his aura softening the blow. Steeling himself, he looked at the scene. It was scarily mundane. Like it was an appropriate prop for a rundown building such as this. The people were lined up against the wall and shot, their corpses littered about, with their blood stains and bullet holes scarring the concrete wall.

A few tried running as they realized their situation, but their auras went out before making it even a few steps. A lone Knight knelt there, waiting for him to come closer. Closer to… of course it was Juniper. If anyone could have survived it was her. The soldier stood up and left them alone.

How did he even get here? How had it come to this? Memories flashed before his eyes, from arguing with his family over the decision to enlist, to being bullied by his fellow privates. The acceptance into a huntsman certification program. The years of hard work overcoming both himself and people's prejudices. All that struggle to end up here, being forced to kill a beloved comrade in arms.

Juniper opened her eyes for a moment. She groaned in pain, before looking at him with those warm eyes. Why did she have to look at him like that? Why did he have to get attached to anyone? It's not like they were lovers or anything. Though who knows what could have been. He didn't want to dwell on the what-ifs. She was heavily bleeding, her fate a foregone conclusion by now. Because of him… Because he'd failed.

She noticed him and smiled, "Duty…" She said weakly, "We have a duty… Amin…"

Ever focused on the common good till the end. He understood what she wanted to say, and he shed a tear for her selflessness in her final moments. He couldn't bear this anymore. He just wanted it all to end as soon as possible. He leveled his pistol at her head, closed his eyes, and pulled the trigger.

A bang, and her suffering was cut short. He didn't want to think about anything, just go home and drown his sorrows in whatever way he could. To hell with both Zero and Command, they can wait a day for all he cares now.

He saw that Zero also descended to meet him, "Satisfied?" he asked, again without the voice filter. How dare he talk to him with that sympathetic voice?

"I don't feel that good. Must not be used to this much blood, I would like to request the day off."

"That's quite alright. Those tears… catharsis can be overwhelming at times," his gloved hand went to his cheek, wiping away a tear, "We have some more organizational work to discuss and we're planning on starting our law enforcement policy today. But you've been an excellent soldier thus far so I'll grant your request."

He should care about all the other stuff he's saying, but he can't bring himself to, "Thank you… I'll be on my way now," he scurried out of the building, not caring about the looks everyone was giving him.

"That was unnecessarily cruel," Glaston said.

"Don't act like you didn't enjoy it," Violet retorted.

"Exactly," Hawk said, "I think I'm starting to get why people like you. There's so much passion in every little thing you do, it's intoxicating.

Glaston was not amused, "It's barbaric. Why even keep the guy around at this point? Just to torture him? It's way too risky."

"It provides an easy way to pass false info to the enemy," he chuckled, "Don't go soft on me now, we've got a lot of dirty work ahead of us. Is everyone ready?"

"Yeah, we called everyone we could and are reorganizing command as per your orders. I've already briefed them on all of our targets today."

"Good. What's your estimate on casualties?"

"Very few. These are criminals we're up against, and if Blake's scouting is any indication they're unaware of us. They only know how to terrorize defenseless people, not to fight an organized and well equipped army."

"I wouldn't exactly call us well equipped," Hawk said, "But I shudder to imagine what passes for weapons elsewhere in this dump."

"Watch your tongue," Glaston said, "This is my home."

Hawk ignored him, "I trust you found my rifle design adequate, Zero. It's the best you could get with such limited resources."

"It's acceptable," Violet said, "How's the paladin doing?"

"The weapons and joints were patched up, and a rudimentary cockpit is almost done. All we need now is that control software you promised me and I can hook it up to the hydraulics."

"It has proven harder than expected, but I think I've got a decent lead. Expect results soon after we deal with this mess here. Glaston, since you know the area better I will trust you with supreme command." He took the Mordred from his back and unfolded it, "I've yet to properly break in my new weapon. And… I've been itching to bring about some justice personally."

AN: My man sure is making a lot of enemies. I'll admit I hadn't originally planned to give Marrow a larger role but I have a lot of interesting ideas for him in the future, so stay tuned for that.

I'm not sure if it's a good or a bad thing, but again my chapter ballooned past its intended length and is being split in two. Rest assured the second half will arrive soon.