Author's Note:

Finals can't keep me down. I'm going to try to write as much as I can next week, but no promises.

As always, I love you when you review. I love you anyways, but reviews help. Have fun!

Roman ground his teeth, watching as the airship was loading with refugees. Chances were that at this rate, all the spots would be taken up by the time he had Neo got even remotely close to the front of the line. He wasn't even sure why he was in the line to begin with.

The big airship was at the center of the makeshift airfield, but there were many smaller crafts off to the sides, being loaded with essential supplies and refueled. The guards around the area were mostly around the line itself, making sure that no one tried to skip ahead or fight. It looked like a stressful job to Roman, but he couldn't sympathize with the guys. They all probably had guaranteed rides out. He was going to have to steal his.

He looked to his side and down, spying Neo's face. Her smile made it clear that she was thinking the same thing. They would have to either fight their way over to another Bullhead, or come up with a very good excuse to get close. Otherwise there was no way that they would be able to escape Menagerie for sure.

Roman shuddered as he thought about what would happen if Cinder managed to get her clutches on him. She had done a fine job of brainwashing other people, but Roman had the small amulet Naze had given him. He genuinely hoped that the thing worked, but even if it did, he didn't intend to meet Cinder face to face for a while. That was a meeting he didn't look forward to. He had never been fond of Cinder, but she had changed. Something weird had happened to her brain, and he didn't want to run the slightest risk of catching it.

He was just about to step off the line when a small whisper in his ear said, "Where do you think you're going?"

He jumped, and turned in the direction the voice had come from. The woman who he ended up facing looked back at him, startled for a few seconds, before averting her gaze back to the ground. She must've recognized his face.

It was probably safe to assume that she wasn't the one who had whispered to him, so he cast his gaze elsewhere. For a single brief moment, his eyes met those of one of the guards, and he felt his heart stop. This was something that he had been careful to avoid up to this point, and he was sure that it was going to have poor repercussions.

He immediately turned his face away from the man, and simultaneously gave Neo a hardy elbow to the shoulder, indicating that she needed to get ready. If there was going to be trouble, they could wait any more.

Neo got her parasol into what Roman recognized as a very subtle fighting stance, and he took some of his weight off of his cane. The man wouldn't call out their identity before confirming it, right? That would give him a nice opportunity to dispose of the single man, then turn his attention to the rest of them.

Footsteps approached from behind, and he saw Neo make a few final adjustments to her posture, before a hand fell flatly and limply on Roman's shoulder, and a slow, clumsy voice said, "If you agree to something, you should do it."

Roman's eyes narrowed. If this was some kind of trick, it was a weird one. He couldn't help but turn and look, wondering if there was something wrong with the man.

When their eyes met again, it was difficult for Roman to not cry out in surprise. The man was looking at him, but one eye was slowly lazing to the side, and both were half covered by his eyelids. His limbs hung from his body like sacks of sand, and his hand was slowly sliding off of Roman's shoulder like holding it there was too much trouble.

None of this was what surprised him, though. What surprised him the most was that there was a figure, so transparent it was almost invisible, protruding from the man's back. It had odd looking appendages attached to the man's limbs like some kind of bizarre marionette, and seemed to lack any definite form that Roman could make out.

He was sure that Neo could see the thing better, but he was forced to focus on the man. "Uh, I'm sorry, but what are you talking about?"

He had the inclination that it was something to do with Naze, but his going completely insane wasn't a possibility that he dismissed. He had always felt a screw loose up there. Whether it was real or not, he would deal with it anyways in the best way he could.

The guard didn't react too much to his question at first, only giving a slow blink that re-focused his eyes. Then the thing on his back gave a few more pulls, and the somewhat unsettling meat-puppet sparked back into life.

"The deal you made. That-" it gave an uncoordinated jab at the amulet, which was under Roman's coat "-was not given for show! You are expected to use it."

The thing spoke in such oddly fluctuating tones that Roman wasn't convinced it had ever used any language before. Nevertheless, it continued to speak in what Roman thought mush have been a very good imitation of someone having a stroke. "You are going to return to Cinder, and stay until the time when you can strike. Throw your cowardice aside, else you yourself will be thrown aside."

That was about as much confirmation that the thing was sent by Naze as he expected he would get, and he sighed. He was working for Naze, so there wasn't much he could about it. If he was told to go back to Cinder, he had to. It wouldn't surprise him if the amulet was rigged to explode or something if he ever went against Naze.

"Alright, fine, I'll go back." He sounded about as happy as he felt about the situation. He felt Neo relax beside him, allowing her guard to fall slightly.

With a few unpleasant sounding grunts and groans, the specter on the man's back seemed to pull away from its host, resulting in him dropping to the ground. Roman and Neo watched him hit the ground, then slowly rub his head as he appeared to come back to his senses.

"Ouch, what the…" the man stood and rubbed his head, grimacing in pain. Without saying anything else, he turned, and started to walk away. Roman raised an eyebrow, watching his slow stumble back to wherever it was that he had come from.

Roman turned back to Neo, saying, "Well, I guess that we have to get back, then. I don't think anyone's ever made me as uncomfortable as Cinder has recently. She's just so… different."

Neo nodded, but Roman shook his head. "It doesn't matter anyways, I guess. Well, let's go. Wouldn't want to keep her waiting."

The two broke from the line, and Roman did his best to hide his face as he started to walk away. It wasn't going to be fun to get back to Cinder, but they were in the middle of a group of normal people. He was sure that she would come to them before too long. That seemed to be her "thing" now, spreading the weird thing that had made her all creepy. He still remembered some of the things that she had done in that little town.

It would be a while, but he was sure that she would come. Maybe she would beat the airship taking off, maybe she wouldn't. If Roman was totally honest, he hoped that she would miss it. Not because he actually cared about the people, but because it would piss her off.

When he and Neo got a good distance away, he put his back to a tree and slid down to the ground. If he was going to wait, he would prefer to be comfortable.

Weiss gave a sigh as her Scroll started to go off. Winter raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. Weiss took the thing in a quick grabbing motion, and tried to look discreetly at the screen. Ruby was calling, and she knew that it had to do with the lockdown somehow. Did the rest of her team know what was going on? The people in the tower hadn't been told anything beyond the need to stay inside. It was for that reason that the guards were not allowing anyone out.

Weiss had figured that it would be a better idea to simply continue talking with her sister rather than demand to be let out. They were doing their job, and she couldn't get too upset about that. Normally she would, but her chat with her sister had made her significantly more melancholy than she normally was.

Things back at the mansion were mostly as they normally were. Her father was still as short tempered as ever, and Winter's studies had continued to progress, just as she wanted.

Apparently, though, their father was somewhat happy about what was happening in Menagerie. When Weiss heard this, she was shocked. She knew that her father had some hatred for the Faunus, and that it wasn't exactly unwarranted, but that was extreme. He had already made quite a profit off of the raising fear of the world, raising the prices of Dust powered weaponry to make a killing off of the desperation.

She wanted to say that it was wrong to do those things, but she knew that the world of business had little room for moral things like right or wrong. The only thing that mattered to them was the profits. That was a lesson her father had taken care to teach.

Her sister didn't like talking about this, obviously, but Weiss wanted to hear more. It felt like she had been stabbed in the back by someone close, even though she knew already how her father was. She didn't want to push more details, and run the risk of offending her sister. Not when they had spoken the most they had in years.

She found that while her sister and her were not quite as close as Yang and Ruby were, they had a kind of bond that couldn't be easily explained. It was simply easy to converse with. Or, at least, easier. Weiss didn't have problems talking to people, that was easy, but conversing was difficult. She always seemed to overpower whoever she was communicating with, taking control of whatever direction the conversation was going.

With Winter, it was easier not to do this. It was a sharp contrast to Ruby, whom she felt the urge to interrupt more than she would have liked to admit. She didn't want to acknowledge that she acted on those urges more than most would consider friendly. She would make an effort to change that.

She blinked, realizing that she had simply been staring at the Scroll for several rings now, and turned back to Winter, saying, "I'm sorry, but I really have to take this. Excuse me."

Winter nodded, and said, "Go ahead." In a gentle voice. Weiss was sure that it was something she got a lot from their father, but this was for a good reason. Winter would understand.

She stood from the desk and took a few steps away, answering the call and saying, "Ruby? What's going on out there? Are you guys alright?"

The response came quickly, as Ruby said, "Yeah, we're fine. I mean, Blake is a little shaken up, but she'll be alright. Where are you? Are you going to come back?" Weiss noticed that Ruby's voice seemed to be slurred. It was faint, almost nonexistent, but it was noticeably there. Ruby only got like that when she was tired after practice, or coming down from a caffeine high.

"Well, I don't think so. Not until whatever is keeping us here is cleared up. What is it, anyways? All Hunters would have been called to arms if the Grimm had gotten in again, and I've been seeing a few ships flying over the city, but-"

Ruby cut her off, indicating that she was probably more tired than her voice suggested. "It's a long story, but basically one of the old leaders of the White Fang escaped from prison and killed some people. We went out with Blake and my mom to try and catch him, but it turns out that he's possessed by a demon. Blake tried to convince him to fight the other demons, which kind of worked, but then he ran away, and we got sent back to the dorms."

Ruby stopped, as if it had been a simple order of events to follow. Weiss stuttered at first, trying to understand and respond at the same time. "Wait, what? Your mother? So the whole thing with Naze worked, then?"

A rustling of clothing seemed to suggest that Ruby was moving her head, but Weiss could not see what she assumed to be either a nod or a head shaking over a simple audio call. She waited a few seconds for Ruby to realize this too, which she did after what Weiss would consider a slightly embarrassingly long time.

"Oh! Yeah, it worked. We almost got killed by an avalanche, a worm tried to kill us, I killed the worm, and I think I got a concussion."

The incredibly blunt summary left plenty of questions unanswered, but Weiss knew better than to pursue specific answers from an exhausted and possibly concussed Ruby. That stream of nonsense was probably the best she was going to get. She wondered if Yang was available to talk, but knew that she was probably with Blake. Those two were close too.

Her desire to return to her friends grew, but she still wouldn't be able to leave the tower. She also wanted to say something to Ruby about being happy that she had gotten her mother back, but no words that seemed sincere enough came to mind. Instead, she simply said, "I'll be back when I can. Tell Yang and Blake I said hi."

There was another rustling of clothes, and Weiss assumed that she had nodded again. "Alright, will do. Bye Weiss!"

With that, there was a small click, and the call ended. Weiss brought the Scroll in front of her face, and stared at the portrait of her partner as it started to fade. She did hope she was alright.

She brought herself back to the monitor that Winter was still patently waiting at, and sat down again. "I'm sorry for that little interruption, it shouldn't happen again. Now, where were we?"

Winter looked back at Weiss with an expression that she had never seemed to use before. It was almost something like a mischievous smile, but Weiss knew that there wasn't a mischievous bone in Winter's body. Their father had done his best at ensuring that.

She spoke, and the words took Weiss by surprise. "You know, Weiss, I was looking at the design blueprints of the CCT earlier, and I couldn't help but notice the maintenance tunnels in the basement. Sure, they look a bit small, but I bet they wouldn't be guarded. Each one leads to a substation some was away from the tower. I'm sure that if you wanted to… I don't know, go on a little adventure, you could do it that way."

Weiss blinked. "When did you pull up the blueprints? Do we have those just laying around?"

Winter smiled wider, and even gave a small giggle. "Well, you remember how big the computer is, don't you? All sorts of things are just lying around in there."

Weiss wanted to hug her sister, but she settled for a verbal thanks. "Winter, you're awesome. I'll try to call again soon, alright? I really enjoyed the talk."

Winter smiled again, and nodded. "I did too. Have fun in those tunnels. Bye!"

Weiss smiled at her sister and waved, then her image blinked off of the screen. Maybe Winter didn't take as much after father as she had thought. She logged off the terminal, and started to make her way to the elevator. People were allowed to move between levels, just not to go out the exits. Most guards were observing the crowds of scared people, doing their best to calm them. If she was lucky, that would mean that fewer were posted in the basement.

With something of a remorseful look, she turned her attention to her own attire. Dresses and high heels were not well suited to stealth, but there was nothing she could do about that now. She had never much tried to be stealthy anyways, so it was going to be something of an experience if there was anyone in the basement. Pulling the "Heiress of the Schnee fortune" act probably wouldn't work, which was good, because she disliked playing it anyways. It felt like a cop out, if nothing else.

She pushed the small button on the wall, calling the elevator to her floor. The small light at the top of the door lit up, and the doors slid open with a ding. The trip to the basement was easier than expected, and she was surprised to find that it didn't even ask her to identify herself. Perhaps it was some measure taken when the cities alarms went off, she didn't know.

When the doors opened again, she found a cramped looking room mainly garnished with interface panels and fluorescent lights that gave her a headache. She squinted, hoping to block out the imminent pounding in her skull, and took a few steps forward.

The single room stretched a long distance, and she knew that it lay a large distance below the main server room. It was below even the power stations, and even janitorial equipment. The room was only really there for structural support, providing a good foundation for the rest of the tower to rest on. Why there were even access tunnels to begin with, but she wasn't going to complain about it now.

No guards seemed to be down in the room, which was something of a relief. Her heels clicked against the smooth concrete floor rather loudly. It was a good thing that she wasn't going to need to sneak, because she would have to take her shoes off completely to stand a chance.

A few large numbers were scattered somewhat haphazardly around the room along the walls, each one accompanied by a heavy hatch that seemed to cover up the tunnels that Winter had been talking about. Each hatch was small though, and she only just realized how much of a problem that might be. She wasn't the most flexible of people, but she also wasn't the largest. She wasn't at a complete disadvantage, she supposed.

Somewhat hesitantly, she walked towards one of the tunnels, labeled with a big faded grey "5"above it. The hatch itself was mostly red, and unpleasantly blocky. It seemed to stick out of the wall like some kind of growth, and looked like it had far more moving parts than necessary. One small, softly glowing light next to it seemed to invite Weiss to press it, but She wasn't about to hit a button she didn't know the function of.

Instead, she leaned in close, and examined the small panel around the button. Small printed letters read "open" and another non-illuminated light read "close."

It seemed straightforward enough to Weiss, and she made to hit the glowing button. Her finger hovered over it for a few seconds before she swallowed her trepidation and lurched forward, hitting it.

While the metal of the hatch was in good enough condition, its hinges had not seen anything but dust for a long time, and not the kind that her family specialized in. A high-pitched screeching split the air in the confined space, cutting through the sounds of Weiss's breathing and penetrating her ears hard enough to make her flinch. The hatch lifting was not slow, though, a fact for which she was grateful, but any positive feeling was somewhat drained when she saw the tunnel she would have to crawl through.

It was only about three square feet, and there was a heavy layer of dust settled along the sides and bottom. Maybe she would need something to save her lungs from being filled, she hadn't considered something like that. There was also no light within the tunnel, meaning that it simply tapered off into oblivion as it went further down.

She wiped a hand across the bottom of the tunnel experimentally, and found that it came back covered with a thick layer of the grime. Many particles also became airborne, floating towards her face lazily and making her draw back. If just her hand had stirred so much filth, there was no way that she would be able to make it through without suffocating.

A short look around the room confirmed that there were no old rags or pieces of fabric that she might be able to use as a filter. Her options seemed limited, almost exclusively to use the crook of her elbow to avoid choking. The unfortunate thing was that she was sure she would need that arm to pull herself through the tunnel.

Then her eyes fell back to her clothes. They were rather ornate, and definitely expensive, but it appeared to be her only choice. She had to get back to her friends, and this was the only way.

With some hesitation, she reached down and tore a stretch of cloth off of her dress. She was careful to make sure it wasn't too much, then set about tying it around her mouth and nose. The thick white fabric served its point well enough, and she forced herself to get head-first into the hole, pulling her Scroll out in her right hand to provide light.

After the first several feet, it hit her how uncomfortable this trip was going to be. Not only was the way covered in filth, but the metal was also cold against her bare skin. It made her flinch, but she continued on.

Ruby might've been able to navigate the tunnel better, and Blake would undoubtedly be more suited for something requiring such flexibility. But Weiss was not fit for it. She tried to look at the positives of the situation, like Yang always tried to get her to do. At least she wasn't as big as Yang.

She estimated that she was about halfway through the tunnel when she felt the first shake. It was a subtle thing, but disturbed dust all around the tunnel. She blinked away a few painful tears as some of it got her eyes, and let out a deep breath. Did that have anything to do with the sirens? Had she made a horrible mistake taking the tunnels? Were they even structurally sound?

Vale didn't get much in the way of earthquakes, so she knew that it was unlikely that they had been built to withstand a large earthquake. She had to hurry if she didn't want to be buried.

When she increased her pace, she also made more dust fly. Her eyes stung, but she blinked it away and kept going. Her limbs started to ache from the unnatural angles they were forced to adopt, but she didn't let herself slow or relax. She had to keep pushing herself. If she didn't, she was going to be stuck in the cramped hell forever. She didn't consider herself particularly claustrophobic, but she was starting to sweat, and see odd things at the corners of her vision.

Finally, after what felt like hours, she could see a light in front of her. The light didn't look natural, but it was better than the simple Scroll flashlight she had been using.

As she got closer, she could even feel a slight breeze on her face. it was gentle enough that it didn't kick up any more dust, but stood out against the stagnant air enough to get Weiss to redouble her efforts. When she finally got in grabbing distance of the hole, she practically threw herself towards it, poking her head back into the outer world.

Her eyes took a few seconds to adjust to the brighter light, but when they did she found herself in another depressingly grey room, this one much smaller than the last. It hardly mattered, as she scrambled from the vent, and hit the hard floor with an unceremonious squeal. She laid there on the ground for a while, simply enjoying the fact that she wasn't cramped anymore.

She felt a few scratches on her face, and berated herself for not having her aura ready. The scratches started to heal, and she lifted herself slowly to her feet.

If she had thought that ripping her clothes would ruin the outfit, she had severely underestimated the kind of damage that dust could do. It had practically embedded itself into every thread of her dress, and she knew that there was no chance it was coming out.

That wasn't important, though, she reminded herself. What was important was that she get back to her friends. She looked around the small room again, and found a door opposite the hole she had come from. She turned back to look at it, and spied another small light next to it. "Close" was not blinking a soft red color, and she figured that it would be best to close off her path of escape.

She punched the button, and flinched as the metal started to screech again. She turned quickly, not wanting to stay around longer than she had to.

The door was heavy, but it wasn't locked, and after a few seconds of trying, she managed to push it open. The cool, fresh air of the outside was a blessing to her lungs, and she removed the cloth from her face. The sweet, untainted air brought a new life back into her body, and her mind snapped back into seriousness. She needed to get back to her friends, who were at the dorm.

She looked around, trying to tell where she was. A few buildings and shops looked familiar, but the area was mostly residential. The buildings were either red brick or grey, a color that she was getting more and more sick of, and she could see faces up in the windows, looking down at her with frightened expressions. It took her a moment to process why they were staring.

They were probably scared of her. They might even have thought that she was the reason that the alarms were being sounded. It was a slightly amusing thing that she might be considered such a threat, but it was also sad too. She wasn't too intimidating, she didn't even have a weapon.

Her eyes widened as that fact reoccurred to her. She was out in the street, during a lockdown, without a weapon. Her pace quickened to a strong jog, and she started trying to find her way back to Beacon with a new zeal. It wasn't long before she came to a major street, and started to run in the correct direction.

Another rumble seemed to rock the earth, this time seeming to originate from right below her. Her gaze shifted down, dreading the worst, but it seemed to be just a normal blacktop street.

Another rumble, stronger this time, almost knocked her off her feet. She stumbled to the side of the street, and slowed her pace down, not wanting to hit the ground again.

This quake, or whatever it was, was swiftly followed by the sound of an explosion behind her. The ground quaked a second later, and she turned around as she fell, trying to see what it was.

Huge chunks of rubble from the street flew the air, and tongues of fires licked the air as a figure crawled from the new hole. This figure also appeared to be engulfed in flame, but didn't seem to mind it too much. Instead, the masculine figure seemed to be running away from something.

Almost immediately after he cleared the hole, several others climbed out after him. And Weiss thought she recognized a few of the forms. They were the resurrected Heroes.

As soon as they were out of the hole, the figure stopped running, and turned on them, striking what looked like a barely contained combative stance. She could tell from the way he moved that saying still was something that took enormous effort. Ruby got that look sometimes.

The small group of five or six undead Hunters barely had time to take in the situation before the one they were chasing charged them down like a bull. More fire seemed to blaze from his extremities, and he let out a scream loud enough to remind Weiss of Nora. The undead had only a split second to react, but most were able to get out of the way. One person in particular, wearing odd lime-green clothes and wielding a long scimitar-like weapon, was not so lucky. The flaming punch impacted the center of his chest, and the damage that it managed to do was startling.

Not only did the man's fist puncture the other's sternum, but as the punch continued, it didn't seem to lose any force. The Hunter's body was unable to withstand the force, and his torso split from his pelvis, the spine and muscles that connected them snapping. Weiss felt the sudden urge to vomit, but managed to keep her lunch down.

Nothing seemed to come out of the Hunter. No intestines, as would be expected from a split like that, nor blood, of which there would be no shortage if he were alive. Instead, the torso clung to its weapon, and did its best to guide itself through the air. It hit the side of a building, Weiss could see the force from the impact ripple through its structure, before falling back towards the street. Its attacker had moved on by now, turning to look at its other targets, and Weiss realized with some measure of awe what was about to happen.

The torso angled its blade down, and plummeted towards its target like a rock. The figure was about to kick off the ground again and attack another target, when the torso hit. The blade seemed to encounter resistance at first, but then pushed through the aura of fire that surrounded him. It then sank into his flesh, almost hilt-deep in the person's shoulder.

The reaction was immediate. The man screamed, and a wave of fire surrounded his body before expanding out in every direction, throwing both the blade and the disembodied torso away from him, both set ablaze by the ferocity of the flame.

Weiss saw the fingers of the fire grasp out for surrounding buildings, and decided that then was a good time to go and get her friends. They could help with this, they just needed to be here.

She turned around, and set off at sprint towards Beacon. It wasn't too far away, maybe they would be able to get there before any more damage was done. Dust fell from her dress, leaving a small trail in the air behind her as she ran. She hoped her friends would be ready for a fight.

Nora was extremely restless, and the rest of her friends were in that boat with her. The news of a lockdown was distressing, and even more so when it didn't seem that there was any reason for one. Ren's hospital room gave a good view of the rest of the city, and proved how much of a ghost town Vale had become.

Cars sat abandoned in some streets, while others were clear. Not a soul walked the streets, all having fled into shelter. Now the whole city waited for something to happen and break the otherworldly silence that had taken over.

Nora sat on the edge of Ren's bed, mostly trying to comfort her friend in between glances out the window like a dog that heard a noise. Pyrrha sat next to the window, keeping a vigilant watch for signs of danger or trouble, anything that would allow them a clue as to what was happening out there. Jaune had gone out, elsewhere in the hospital, to try and see if he could find out what was up. All Ren could do was stay in his bed and look concerned. They all knew that he didn't like that, but he wasn't strong enough to walk on his own, much less fight.

A few conversations had made attempts at living, but had quickly faltered and died, leaving only more silence in their wake. They all wanted to talk, they simply couldn't. Not when something presumably horrible was happening out in the city.

It was all of their duty to help and save as many people as they could, but under the orders to stay inside. At least, it had been. None were entirely sure that they were still Hunters anymore, given their abandonment of the school. Jaune's and Pyrrha's had been very deliberate, and Nora had, whether she liked it or not, caused considerable damage to other students. All three should have expelled the instant they set foot back on campus.

But maybe there would be mercy for them. They didn't know. Ozpin seemed like he had sympathized with their problems at first, but were they really worth the trouble anymore? None of them were sure that they were.

The silence that had settled over the room was interrupted when Pyrrha gasped, bringing all attention to both her and the window. Nora was off of Ren's bed in a flash, and practically had her face pushed against the glass. Ren spoke from his bed, straining to get a view, asking, "What is it? What's out there?"

Pyrrha was about to answer when Nora cut her off, taking a jerky step away from the window and saying, "It's a demon. It has to be." Her hands went to her head, running through her messy orange hair, and her eyes started to reflect a strange mixture of fear and anger.

Pyrrha stepped away from the window with her, and put a hand on her shoulder quickly. She had already suffered several panic attacks thinking about the things that she had done, but this seemed to be different. It wasn't just that she was starting to panic, it was that she saw a threat. Pyrrha had learned before she had even come to Beacon to be able to pick up on things like mental trauma, but even without that, it was obvious that she was not in a good state of mind.

She tried to speak comforting words to her friend, saying, "Nora, calm down. Please, you couldn't possibly know that whatever is out there is a demon." She glanced back at the rising plume of smoke. A fire large enough to make that much smoke had to have engulfed several whole buildings, and it had all started at once. She was sure that there were other explanations, but whatever they were, she wanted to get out there and help. There would be people to evacuate, and other jobs to do, she was sure.

When she got to thinking about it, perhaps going out wasn't such a bad idea. But still, Nora was distressed, and needed to calm down. Nora seemed like she was about to make a break for the door, and Pyrrha tried to subtly place herself between her friend and the exit. "Everything is fine, Nora, they've got to have everything under control. We can go out if you really want, but-"

She stopped talking when Nora lurched forward and grabbed her shoulders in her large hands, her grip was as a vice. "Pyrrha, you don't understand! I can feel it, there's a demon out there! A big one! If it goes wild in the city…" her gaze went unfocused as she started to picture it in her head, and Pyrrha felt the grip on her shoulders start to grow painful.

"Maybe you could let go? You're starting to…" Nora let go and took another step back, looking first at Pyrrha with shock, then at her own hands with shame. "…hurt me." Pyrrha hated to point things like that out, but she didn't know it Nora would've stopped otherwise. "Nora, it's alright, you didn't mean to. Don't worry about it. Let's keep talking about what's out there, okay?"

She tried to approach her friend again, but this time Nora stepped back with her, keeping distance. Her eyes were starting to water, and her breathing was speeding up. On the verge of panic, no doubt. Pyrrha could see that they were about to lose control of her.

She looked back to Ren, who sat up in his bed, pushing a few of the covers away and saying, "Come back, please. You don't know it's a demons out there. Just stay here, it's safer for everyone that way."

Normally Ren's voice served as the final decision maker for Nora, but for the first time since she had been brought back, it seemed that Ren didn't have much effect. Instead of looking any more soothed, Nora only looked from Pyrrha to Ren, starting to breathe even faster. "I'm… you don't believe me?"

Pyrrha realized what direction the conversation was going, and knew that she had to stop it before she started to doubt her friends. It was time to switch gears. "No, we just don't think that you can be sure yet." Nora looked as though this did make her calm down slightly, but she still shifted and shuffled anxiously. Pyrrha tried not to let her eyes flick to the still-growing plume of smoke. It was growing to a very worrying size now, like a whole city block had ignited.

Her own urge to see what was going on, and to help, was growing greatly as well. It seemed that she was running out of options. "Maybe we could both go out, staying together, you know." She knew that Ren would object, but she hoped that he would see what she did. This was going to be the only way to calm her down.

A small glimmer of hope came across Nora's face, and Pyrrha tried to return it. Her smile was awkward and forced, though. It didn't seem that Nora noticed, because she smiled back, along with stepping towards the door.

Pyrrha knew that delaying any amount of time was probably a bad idea, so she turned to Ren and gave him an apologetic smile. She didn't mean for any of this to happen, but there was no other way that she would be able to make sure that Nora didn't go crazy again. Ren didn't look happy at all, but he nodded his understanding of the situation. Pyrrha was about to offer some parting words, but the quick pattering of feet fading behind her told her that her time was up.

Nora ran through the halls as fast as her legs could take her. She had to dodge a few people dressed in medical scrubs along the way, but that wasn't too hard. When she got to the elevator, she pushed the button to summon the elevator, then leaned slightly back. All the cables were moving, but only one set was going towards their floor. She positioned herself in front of that set of doors, and waited, her mind wandering.

She was happy that Pyrrha wanted to go with her, but as she thought, she was reminded of the dire circumstances. She had felt a demon. Or, at least, a wave of demonic energy. The others couldn't feel it, but that was because they didn't know what to look for. She had been closer to demonic power than anyone.

After what felt like minutes, but, in reality, was around twenty seconds, the doors started to slide open, and Jaune started to step out. Nora could also hear the distinctive sound of Pyrrha's heavy footsteps racing up behind her. That was good, because it meant that Pyrrha would have to wait for the elevator.

If she wanted to take Jaune, she could, but Nora wasn't going to waste the time explaining what was going on. She had to get out there, and find out what was happening. Only then would she be able to feel even remotely calm.

She turned her body, and slid past Jaune into the elevator. He was only just starting to realize what was happening, and by the time He started to turn back, Nora was already looking at the top of the elevator. It only took her rapidly moving eyes a second to find the emergency hatch, and when she did, she reached up to open it without hesitation.

If she were still short, she wouldn't have been able to reach it. But now she was even taller than Jaune, something that she still wasn't quite used to. In her mind, she had never grown, everything else had only become smaller.

Pyrrha yelled something at her as she got closer to the elevator, but the roaring in Nora's ears was getting too loud. She had to go. She had to find out what it was. She had to kill it, if it was anything bad.

The hatch fell inwards, and a small ladder unfolded from it, allowing the occupants of the elevator easier access to the elevator shaft. Nora didn't need this, though, and simply jumped, pulling her arms in so they couldn't catch.

The difference in the air between the general hospital and the shaft was stark. One had an antiseptic, artificially scented air, and the other smelled like grease and machinery. Nora paid this little mind though, instincts driving he body more than anything else. She looked to the side, and spied a few support beams. Those would be enough to get her where she wanted, and she leaped the ten foot gap between the elevator and her destination.

Her fingers caught the edge of the metal, and pulled her close to it easily. Another shout from Pyrrha came from the suspended box, but she ignored it again. After making a few small adjustments to her grip, she pushed off the metal, aiming herself towards the cables beneath the elevator. Again, she caught them effortlessly, and immediately began her descent.

Her hands grew hot with the friction, but she ignored it. It didn't hurt anyways. She continued her controlled fall, the sir that she was rushing through pushing her hair up slightly as she went. It was about halfway down the dark shaft that she realized the imminent problem that she was going to have. Elevator doors normally only opened normally when an elevator was in front of them. Nora was not an elevator, and thus, the doors would not open.

She could force them open, she was sure of that, but she didn't want to. That would be sort of mean. She could damage the doors, and then they would have to get fixed. There was nothing to do about it, though. She couldn't stand waiting for one to open the doors. She shrugged her reservations off, and made peace with the fact that she might have to do that. She couldn't wait.

When she got to the first floor, it was an easy jump from the cable to the small ledge that stuck out from the wall. The elevator above her was sliding down, and although she had descended fast, it was catching up. There was not enough room between the door of the elevator and the door on the wall for Nora to not be crushed, so she knew that she had to hurry.

She pushed her fingers into the small slit between the two doors, feeling the metal bend. It wasn't particularly strong, but she was still surprised by how little it took. When her fingers were far enough in, she pushed her arms apart, and felt the doors start to move.

There were a lot of mechanical parts that she felt give way, making a series of clanking and grinding noises as they tried to keep the door closed. They were no match for her, though, and she had soon forced them back into the walls.

People all over the hall that the elevator opened into were staring at her, shocked and worried. A few were starting to come her way, thinking that she needed help.

She stepped from the hole she had made and started towards the door. She couldn't use the time it would take to wait for Pyrrha and Jaune. She had to get out there and see if her feeling was right. If it was, she needed to help take whatever it was out there down.

She broke out into a sprint towards the front doors. If anyone tried to stop her, she would just have to get them out of the way. She hoped they wouldn't, because then she would have to get them out. Pyrrha and Jaune could catch up, she couldn't afford to slow.

When Pyrrha and Jaune felt the elevator stop and the doors slide open, they were mildly surprised to find that it looked as though a Beowolf had charged through the place. A few people were picking themselves up off the ground, and it looked like one of the main doors had nearly been knocked off its hinges.

Just at the edge of what Pyrrha could see, a lone figure outside of the hospital turned a corner, and disappeared from sight. Pyrrha sighed for only a brief moment, then elbowed Jaune before setting off at a sprint herself. "Come on, hurry!"