Monday morning Reed walked down the street after lunch, Seraphina sauntering next to him, both with gun-spears held in the marching position against their shoulders. They had been told to report to the North Gate to meet up with the group of veterans that would show them the ropes of Road Patrol. Sergeant Tanners and Corporal Tamus were going to be there, along with two others to ensure the safety of the recruits.

Reed still felt weird walking casually with Seraphina after weeks of thinking of her as an enemy. The other night at Komodo Curry had gone well enough. Melony and Menlo hadn't seen the ones who had assaulted their restaurant, so they hadn't been immediately put off by Seraphina. At her confession they had grown wary, but her obvious regret and Reed's backing had made them quick to accept her. Even though she had barely been able to walk, she had worked tirelessly for hours with Reed and Phaedra to put the shop back together. They had ordered a new window from a local glass worker, and Seraphina's strength had been vital in lifting it into place, while Phaedra did some skilled Dust welding to secure it. By the end of the evening the store had been restored, and the Komodos had treated them all to an exceptional dinner.

Seraphina cleared her throat awkwardly, and Reed realized his inner reverie had caused an uncomfortable silence to fall over the pair. In an attempt to fill it, Reed said, "You, um, look like you've healed fully since the other night."

Seraphina nodded, turning her hands and muscled arms under an inspecting eye. "Got a few new scars from it," she said, "But everything healed correctly, so no permanent damage. My ribs were the last to heal though, and up 'til yesterday it still hurt some to breathe."

Grimacing, Reed said, "Yeah, my bad. Consider it a compliment to your fighting prowess, I felt it necessary to deal you an incapacitating strike before I even considered going for a finishing blow."

She glanced at Reed out of the corner of her eye. Reed got the distinct impression that the taller girl was still analyzing him, trying to figure out what kind of person he was. Silence consumed them again, and within a few minutes they reached the gate. Tanners was already waiting for them under its arch, straight backed and professional as always, while Tamus and two others leaned against the massive open doors.

Reed eyed the other two "veterans" and was thoroughly unimpressed. One was a soft woman with beady eyes and lank, blond hair pulled back in a sloppy pony tail. Her uniform was rumpled and food stained, and her finger was digging so hard in her nose Reed suspected she was getting dangerously close to her brain. The other man had a distinctly unlikable face, eyes narrowed and leering at any woman who passed the gate. He was emaciated, and Reed guessed that the cigarette in his mouth was a place holder for something far more serious once he was off the clock. While Tamus's gun-spear leaned against the wall next to him in easy reach, the other two had stuck theirs point first in the ground, dirt pressed up against the gun barrel, several paces from where they stood.

Reed and Seraphina strode purposefully up to Sergeant Tanners and stood at attention, waiting for him to acknowledge them. He nodded his approval before introducing the other members of the squad.

"Alright, pay attention everyone," he said, his voice authoritative and drawing the attention of the other lounging guards. "These recruits are Reed and Seraphina. They have proven themselves more capable than their fellows, so they will be the first to join the Road Patrol. You two are already familiar with Corporal Tamus."

The Hippo-Faunus nodded at them. "Figured you two would be the first to join us," he said, "that is, if one of you didn't die at the other's hands."

Reed was slightly surprised by that. Seraphina and Reed had never had it out in the Corporal's presence, which meant Tanners must have told him about the patrols.

"These are Privates Katelyn and Jack," Tanners continued, pointing at the plump woman and sneering man in turn. "They have ten years of experience apiece, and have been patrolling the roads for five of them."

Reed snorted inwardly. His assessment had been right, these two had been in the Town Guard for ten years and had never been promoted beyond private. Additionally, they were stuck on wall patrol for five of those years, where it was all but guaranteed that they wouldn't see any action. If they encountered any Grimm on their patrol, these two would probably be more hindrance than help.

"Today we will be patrolling the main road between here and the village of Tani to the north-east," the sergeant continued, drawing Reed's attention back to the matter at hand. "I will take point, with Privates Katelyn and Jack covering the flanks. Corporal Tamus, you take rear guard and keep an eye on our fresh-faced recruits. You two will be in the center. Even if a Creature of Grimm comes after our patrol you two shouldn't have to participate in any of the fighting, but keep sharp nonetheless."

With that they moved out, Sergeant Tanners setting the pace at a brisk march. They reached the edge of the Emerald Forest within a few minutes, and were soon walking down a shaded dirt road. For Reed it was a pleasant walk, the sun-dappled road extending into the distance in front of him.

The constant complaints of the two inadequate guards, however, soon had him grinding his teeth.

"I'm hungry, when's lunch?"

"Couldn't we have got one of the prettier recruits?"

"My feet are tired."

"I mean, seriously, this one looks like a lumberjack."

Private Jack was especially bothering Reed, his constant belittling remarks about Seraphina making him want to feed the disgusting little man to an Ursa. Reed opened his mouth after a particularly vulgar statement regarding Seraphina's likely sexual preference, but Reed felt a large hand fall on his shoulder. He looked up to see Tamus standing behind him, with his finger to his lips.

The Corporal tip-toed behind the disgusting little man, with a stealth that belied his massive size. Tamus took the spear in two hands, with the butt pointed towards Jack, and jabbed it hard into his behind.

Private Jack howled as he hopped into the air, hands clasped around the seat of his pants.

Tamus let out a belly laugh, and said, "Oh I'm so sorry Jack, was that not to your liking? I assumed by the number of remarks you were making regarding same-sex relations that you were looking for a bit of fun along those lines."

Reed and Seraphina exchanged incredulous grins, until a stern cough had them all turning towards Sergeant Tanners. He stood facing them all, the gun-spear in his hand in a dangerously casual one-handed grip.

"This is a patrol, not a playground," he admonished. "Fifty push-ups a piece, Corporal Tamus and Private Jack, and from now on no talking unless it's to point out a potentially dangerous situation."

Jack grumbled and griped the whole way to the ground, but Reed caught a wink pass between Tamus and Tanners. The sergeant had to give the appearance of being fair with his squad, but the push-ups soon turned out to be a very one-sided reprimand. The large corporal belted out the punishment like it was nothing, then stood with a smirk as Private Jack struggled to finish the latter half of his reps.

As soon as Jack had finished his punishment Sergeant Tanners had them all marching down the road in formation again, Jack's eye locked resentfully on the younger man's back. He did not, however, complain. Reed knew who would win in a confrontation between the two, and so did Jack.

After another hour of marching the wooded road gave way to a wide clearing. Towering trees surrounded an expanse of bright green grass, waving slightly in the faint breeze winding its way through the trees. The road bisected the clearing, continuing on into the dense forest on the opposite end.

Tanners called a halt for the midday meal, and the group set up a small camp in the grass to the side of the road. Corporal Tamus tamped down a section of the grass and pulled a portable camp stove from his pack. Jack was sent to a nearby stream for water, and Katelyn was assigned to begin prepping the food. Tamus kept a watchful eye on her as he set water to boiling, but Reed still saw the occasional scrap of food disappear into her mouth when the corporal glanced away.

Reed and Seraphina were set to flattening the grass in a circle around the stove so the group could sit down in comfort. Once they finished they sat down next to each other at the edge of the circle, unsure what to do or say. Tamus and Katelyn were throwing ingredients into the pot, and soon the fragrant scent of hardy stew started to waft from the pot on the trailing steam vapors.

Jack sat opposite them and lit a cigarette, eying Seraphina with his beady eyes. For her part, Seraphina ignored the man's aggressive stare. Tanners, who had been overseeing the preparation of the camp, walked up to Reed with his gun-spear in hand.

"On your feet, recruit," the Sergeant said to Reed. "Grab your gun-spear and follow me."

"This ought to be interesting," Seraphina said with a smirk.

Reed glanced at Seraphina before snatching up his weapon from the ground and hauling himself to his feet. Reed followed Tanners twenty yards from the group before the Sergeant turned around and gave Reed an appraising look.

"The further we get from the town, the more likely we are to run across the Creatures of Grimm," Tanners said, shifting his weapon into a two-handed grip. "I need to know how strong you are, so we are going to have a friendly sparring match before lunch. Depending on the results, I may have to assign one of the Privates to watch over the two of you."

When Reed didn't say anything at first Tanners raised an eyebrow at him. He quickly said, "Yes, sir, understood."

Tanners nodded. "Defend yourself."

With no further warning, the sergeant advanced on Reed. He was quick and with one long stride he was in range to launch a flurry of stabs at Reed. Reed tried to keep his weapon in the forms they were instructed in during drills, keeping the spear point forward and intercepting each of Tanners's thrust with the metal head of his weapon. Soon, however, the sergeant's onslaught gained speed and Reed found strike after strike slipping past his defenses to slap painfully against his shoulders and side.

Even with his semblance on full burn Reed was simply unable to move the spear fast enough to stop all of the experienced sergeant's attacks. Conceding the Sergeant's superiority in pure spear work, Reed began to incorporate staff techniques into his defense. Nothing that took him out of the basic spear stance, but more of Tanners's blows started to be intercepted with the wood of the staff closer to Reed's body, rather than the metal spear head.

A small smile touched Sergeant Tanners's lips as he switched tactics. He aimed a strike at Reed's heart, and Reed raised the middle of the staff to redirect the blow into the air. At the last second Tanners spun the tip of the gun-spear in a sideways circle, bringing the tip to smack painfully into Reed's hip. Reed grunted and shifted his foot back, the movement opening his opposite side. Tanners pressed his advantage and brought the hilt of his staff to crash into Reed's fingers on the forward haft of the weapon.

Reed's gun-spear fell with a soft thud to the ground. Tanners stepped back and nodded to himself.

"Your basic spear work isn't bad," he said to Reed, before amending, "For a recruit. However, I'm convinced that's not all you have to offer."

Reed replied, "During your fight with Seraphina you reprimanded her for diverging from the drill-taught forms. I assumed you wished to test my pure spear work."

Tanners raised an eyebrow and said, "So naturally you decided to start blocking with the shaft, like a staff."

Reed felt the heat rush to his face and looked away. To his surprise the sergeant let out a low laugh.

"I did not reprimand her for diverging from the drills," Tanners said. "I reprimanded her for attacking recklessly. She swung her spear like a club in a roundhouse swing, leaving the fragile wood staff exposed and vulnerable. She had no training in the weapon, that's why I insisted she stick to the drills. She is not a tournament winning staff fighter."

Reed locked eyes with the sergeant. "How did you-"

"Tanaka speaks very highly of you, Reed Aoki. As a former pupil of the great master, I insist you come at me with everything you have."

Reed's mind raced, realizing what he had seen in Tanners. The dangerously casual handling of the spear. The calm demeanor that somehow simultaneously conveyed absolute authority. The firm reprimands, followed closely by advice and guidance. All of the things he saw in his teacher he now recognized in Tanners.

Reed took a deep breath and let it out in a slow, continuous stream. He nodded to Tanners and retrieved his gun-spear, this time facing Tanners holding the back end of the weapon next to his ear, with the shaft coming down across his body, and the spear head pointed between Tanners's feet. Tanners held his weapon in one hand, the shaft crossing his back and pointing out behind his left ear, the metal tip inches from the ground. The exact position Reed's teacher always took at the beginning of their sparring matches.

Taking a step forward, Reed slashed the spear tip, aiming to slice Tanners from his right hip to left shoulder. Tanners's hand flashed forward, his spear tip catching Reed's and throwing it high and to the right. Expecting the counter, Reed spun the weapon in his hands and transferred the spear end to his right hand. Pulling back on the haft with his left hand he aimed another slash at the side of Tanners's head, which Tanners's caught between the two prongs of his spear head.

A gunshot detonated, and Reed's weapon bucked in his hand as it was thrown to the side. Reed had expected the Sergeant to catch his attack with the wooden end of his weapon, and stumbled at the unexpectedly powerful parry. He quickly regained his balance, just in time to side-step an overhand blow aimed at his shoulder.

Blocking a complicated set of swings and thrust, Reed looked for an opening in Tanners's defense. His guard was good, but even the best fighters slipped up eventually.

Tanners's elbow dropped and his spear head rose slightly, indicating the start of a hilt sweep. Reed leaped at the chance, spinning his own spear to strike at the side Tanners was about to leave open.

A smirk flicked across Tanners's face, and he slammed the spear head down on the incoming shaft. Reed cursed inwardly at falling for the feint, as the butt of Tanner's spear connected painfully with his shoulder.

"You react quickly," Tanners said, as Reed rolled with the impact. "But sometimes you need more time to determine whether an attack is authentic. Don't jump the gun."

Tanners did not relent, pursuing Reed even as he admonished him. Reed had barely gained his feet before the sandy-haired man was on him, a series of thrusts keeping Reed off balance.

Reed focused on the man's upper body, letting a thrust slip uncomfortably close to his side in order to regain his footing. He pushed the spear-head wide with the shaft, and pointed his own at Tanners's chest. Seeing the sergeant prepare to intercept the blow with the shaft of his weapon, Reed found the dual triggers on the staff and pressed them. The bullet bounced harmlessly off of Tanners's Aura, but the change in momentum allowed Reed to reorient. Seeing an opening, Reed grinned and thrust the tip at Tanners's face, pushing his weight into the blow.

"Good improvisation!" Tanners said, shifting his weight so the blow passed harmlessly through the air to the left of his head. His hand snapped up and grabbed Reed's spear just below the head. Pulling on it, he dragged Reed forward and planted the butt of his own spear in Reed's armpit, sliding it through the small opening between Reed's arm and side. His foot flashed out and swept Reed's own from under him, and Reed was driven painfully to the ground. He tried to rise, but Tanners kept his weight on the shaft that pinned Reed to the ground.

"You are too confident, though. You thought you won with that strike, so you didn't fire the gun to recover. Never assume that a blow will be the last, always be prepared to keep fighting. Some Grimm can fight far beyond what a human would be capable of, I've seen them shrug off dismemberment like it was a mere inconvenience. However, with your level of skill it would be a waste to restrict you to basic spear stances. Fight as you see fit, just make sure to stick close to your team mates and don't get cocky."

Tanners removed his pin and offered a hand to Reed. Giving him a small self-deprecating grin, Reed accepted the proffered hand, and Tanners hauled him to his feet. The sergeant handed Reed his weapon back, and the two headed back to where Tamus was divvying up the afternoon meal.

Seraphina was smirking at the other two Privates, who were staring in open mouthed astonishment at Reed. Jack recovered first and looked away, refusing to acknowledge that he had been impressed by Reed's display. Katelyn however shamelessly continued to stare, eying Reed's medium build with a new hungry gleam in her eyes. Uncomfortable at the region she appeared to be focusing on, Reed put Seraphina between him and the food stained private and accepted a steaming bowl of stew from Tamus.

"You faired way better against Tanners than I did," Seraphina said, her tone somewhere between annoyance and respect. "I could barely even follow what was happening, it was all so fast. When I fought with him I didn't get anywhere close to landing a blow on him, but the way you guys were going at it I wasn't sure who would win."

Reed shook his head. "It may have looked close," he said, "but the sergeant was in control the whole time. If he had wanted he could have taken me out from the beginning, I think he just wanted to see what I would do if I saw how he used the gun-spear. He certainly gave me a lot to think about."

Digging into his stew, Reed pondered the revelation that Tanners had also trained under his teacher.

Reed had been going to his master's school for almost a decade, but he had never seen Tanners before. That being said, the young man was unmistakably his teacher's pupil, and judging by his perfect replication of Tanaka's style had been a dedicated student for many years. There were, however, several differences that stood out to Reed. Tanners did not hesitate to begin a confrontation, and was not above using pain as a motivator. He also seemed to possess an instinctual understanding of using the gun embedded in the Town Guard's spears to maximum effect. Reed had never even considered using a bullet to parry a blow before.

Reed looked at Tanners across the circle. He was talking with Tamus animatedly about some shared event in their past. The Hippo-Faunus gave Tanners an affronted look, to which the smaller man burst out laughing.

All the casual danger seemed to be gone from him, but Reed saw that his eyes never stayed still, constantly searching their surroundings. His hand was never far from the haft of his weapon, and his seemingly casual sprawl on the ground concealed tensed muscles ready to spring into action at a moment's notice. Reed wondered what experience the young man could possibly have had in the Town Guard to make him so ready to fight at the drop of a hat.

"Sergeant Tanners?" When Tanners turned to him, Reed continued, "If you don't mind my asking, sir, why are you a member of the Town Guard? That was some truly marvelous spear work, I'm sure that Vale's army would love to have a skilled recruit such as yourself."

The grin on Tanners face didn't disappear, but it became a fixed thing, devoid of emotion. "I could ask you the same thing, Private. I'm sure you have your own reasons for joining the Guard rather than the military, and I have mine."

"Oh come now Sarg," Tamus cut in, adding a belittling inflection to the shortened title. "It's no big secret, is it?"

Turning to Reed and Seraphina, the corporal continued, "Felix here is part of the famous militant Tanners family. They are trained from birth to be excellent soldiers, receiving extensive training in leadership and combat that us mere commoners would never be able to afford.

"Vale may not have as large a military as other countries, but the Tanners family assures that the forces we do have are the best of the best, short of Hunters of course. He was actually already a captain in the Forever Fall Squad for several years before coming here."

Seraphina let out a low whistle and said, "That makes even less sense then. What the Grimm are you doing with us?"

Tanners gave Tamus a hard look out of the corner of his eye. "It is customary for Tanners children to enroll in the protecting forces of a town for two years upon reaching adulthood. We start as recruits and work our way up the chain of command through our own merit, no special treatment. This gives us the opportunity to learn how a town's forces are run, which is vastly different from the strict lifestyle of the army. It also gives us a chance to seek out new recruits with potential and bring them back with us to the front lines.

"It is not, however, applicable to our current situation. I am your sergeant, you all are my squad, and we are here to patrol the roads for Grimm. That is all."

The sergeant looked away, clearly indicating that, as far as he was concerned, the conversation was over. Reed's gaze was drawn to the larger man next to him, who despite his unsuppressed grin was a little tenser than he had been before the conversation.

Curious about Tamus's past as well, Reed asked, "What about you, corporal? What's your reason for joining the guard?"

"Not all that interesting really," Tamus replied, shrugging. "As a Faunus, and one of rather intimidating stature, I had a hard time fitting in. Every time I tried to get a job people would either make hasty excuses to end the interview as fast as possible, or assume I was there to rob them and call the Guard. Even a lot of Faunus weren't particularly thrilled at the idea of me working for them. Bad for business, I would imagine, if the customers are scared silly of an employee. It was either the guard or become a hoodlum."

Seraphina shifted uncomfortably at the statement, but Reed wasn't satisfied. "Again, though, you are in a class above most of the guardsmen," he said. "Did you ever consider applying to the Hunter academies or directly with the military?"

"I have a family in Adigiar," Tamus said, looking Reed in the eyes. "One I provide for. Hunters may make a good living, but those training to become one do not. The Town Guard pays me enough that I can take care of them, and that's enough for me."

Reed thought about asking Tamus more about his family, but decided that he had pushed the corporal enough for one day. He returned to his meal, until the hairs at the nape of his neck started to prickle. He looked up to see Jack glaring at him over his bowl as he tilted it back and drained the remaining contents with a large swallow.

Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, Jack said, "Well? Aren't ya gonna ask me and Katelyn here why we joined the Guard?"

Reed shrugged. "Sure," he said, "why?"

"The hell is that?" Jack said, his voice growing louder. "You think you're hot shit, don't you Aoki? That you are better than the two of us? Well let me tell you something, you little runt. All that fancy spinning may have impressed the sergeant, but I bet you don't survive you're first encounter with a Grimm. It takes a strong mind to stare down one of those monsters and choose to fight over run."

"Oh please, Jack," Katelyn said in a simpering voice, "Reed here looks plenty strong. Didn't you see the definition of his muscles when he was sparring with the sergeant? I bet he looks even better without…"

"That's quite enough," Tanners cut in, to Reed's relief. "Time for chitchat is over. Break down camp and get ready to move. We still have an hour's march to Tani, and then a three hour march back. Let's go people."

They stowed their camping equipment and were making their way to the opposite side of the clearing within five minutes, marching in strict formation. As they reached the tunnel of interlacing tree branches another patrol walked into the clearing. This patrol was only four strong and was moving at a sluggish pace, guards chatting casually as they walked in an uneven line. The sergeant in command gave Tanners a lazy nod as they passed, which Tanners returned with a stiff nod of his own, face set in a neutral mask.

As they walked the path began to slope upwards. At first it was hardly noticeable, but by the time half an hour had passed Reed was starting to feel his calves getting sore. Jack's face was set in an irritated grimace, and sweat poured down Katelyn's face and seeped through her uniform. Tanners and Tamus seemed unaffected by the steep road, breathing even and faces expressionless. After another quarter hour of marching the group walked around a bend in the trail and the trees opened up, the land outside basking in the afternoon sunlight.

Rows upon rows of neat rice paddies extended before them, sectioned off by low lines of bushes and climbing upwards in step like plateaus. Villagers bent double in the paddies were hard at work harvesting the crops, and old fashioned wooden hand carts stood at intervals along the roads. Several farmers stood near these carts, either unloading their cargo from the woven baskets slung across their backs or taking a well-deserved respite before returning to their arduous labor.

Tanners's group marched up the road to the small town perched at the top of the hill. It was mostly a collection of homes, black solar panels lined the roofs of the wood-slatted buildings and most of the doors and windows were thrown open in an attempt to let out the heat of the day. A large building in the center of town was the only one made of stone, consisting of four wings extending from a circular intersection with a simple clock tower rising from it.

Tanners went in to check in with the on-duty guard in the large building, which Tamus explained as Tani's town hall. The rest of the squad dropped onto the benches that lined the side of the building, interspersed with bushes of flowering plants a myriad of colors.

Reed and Seraphina claimed one for themselves, Katelyn and Jack did likewise, while Tamus chose to lounge in the shade of a nearby tree.

Seraphina lounged on the bench, one arm thrown over the back. As the silence stretched on Reed's neck began to itch, thinking of the muscular arm behind him.

"So…" Seraphina said, dragging the word out. "Why does a scrawny kid in the Town Guard have a Hunter-class halberd?"

"Uh, that's-" Reed paused, not sure how to answer. "Mostly luck, I guess, if I'm being honest. Phaedra saw me practicing with the gun-spears after drills. She's been looking for a Hunter to test her weapons for a while, but I guess she was having trouble getting anyone to listen to her."

Seraphina snorted at that. "I'm sure that had more to do with her personality than any lack of forging skill."

Reed grinned at that. "Perhaps. Anyway, when I expressed an interest in going into the woods to fight Grimm she asked, demanded really, that I work with her. I don't think she thought very highly of me, though, until I told her I beat a pack of Creepers with a staff her-"

"Whoa, hold up a second," Seraphina spun to look at him, and Reed was uncomfortable at the intensity of her stare. "You've already killed Grimm? With a stick?"

"It was a combat staff," Reed objected, "Made of treated wood, and equipped with an Ice crystal."

Seraphina waved a hand dismissively. "Whatever. What else have you fought? Beowolfs? Ursai? Boarbatusks?"

"A couple juvenile Beowolfs, but nothing bigger than that."

"With a stick."

"By then I had a prototype of the halberd, though at first it didn't have the Wind enhanced speed."

Seraphina grunted. "No wonder. I was confused how you remained so calm when we fought. Compared to fighting for your life, though, I bet our little spat seemed low stakes."

Reed was somewhat taken aback by the bitter tone in her voice. Was she annoyed that he had more real combat experience than her?

"I wouldn't say that. I honestly didn't know if I could win, but I couldn't really leave it alone after…" Reed drifted off awkwardly.

"After I broke in the Komodos' window," Seraphina said, bluntly. "After you saw me beating a Faunus boy in an alley, and rightly assumed I would do the same to your friends."

Seraphina leaned forward, hands clenched on her knees. Her next words were barely louder than a breath, obviously not meant for him.

"Maidens, what have I been doing…"

"Uh, Seraphina, I-"

"Don't." Seraphina stood quickly. She snatched her gun-spear from where it leaned against a wall and walked several paces away.

Tanners exited the town hall several minutes later, and soon the group was making its way back into the merciful cool of the shaded forest road.

The first part of the march back passed in silence. Reed glanced periodically at Seraphina. She marched in rhythm, but her eyes were planted firmly on the ground, their expression distant.

They passed the spot where they had taken their lunch, walking through the clearing without stopping and continuing through the forest on the other end.

Jack's boots started to strike the ground with increasing strength and the sound of his teeth grinding grew louder. Finally he spun on Reed and shouted, "You are really irritating me, you know that Aoki?"

Reed, preoccupied with Seraphina's unusual behavior, looked at him in surprise. "How's that? I haven't even said anything since we left Tani."

"Exactly!" Jack said, pointing an accusing finger at Reed. "This is your first patrol, walking through Grimm infested territory, and yet you aren't even a little bit put off! You just keep strolling languidly, like you don't have a care in the world. Like even if a giant Nevermore dropped out of the sky and swallowed you whole, you would just wander out its ass and continue on your merry way. You are a cocky fool, Aoki, and honestly I hope we get attacked just so I can see that smug smirk wiped off your insolent little face!"

Seraphina finally glanced up from her reverie, her grip growing tighter on her gun-spear.

"Jack, calm down," Katelyn said, looking nervously around them.

"To dust with that!" Jack's voice was growing steadily louder, and Tanners spun on him, fire in his eyes.

"Listen to Private Katelyn, Jack," Tanners said, his voice low and warning. "Reed has done nothing to antagonize you."

"Go to the Grimm, Sarg," Jack spat. "Just because the new kid is teacher's pet doesn't mean I have to lick his boots. I have been on this patrol for five years, I have seniority! But I could see it in that bastard's eyes, he wrote me off the moment he saw me. Me and Katelyn both. He's nothing but a child who needs to learn respect for his elders!"

Jack continued to rant, but Seraphina, Reed, Tanners and Tamus all froze, standing stock still. The experienced fighters sensed that something had changed in their surroundings, and felt hostile eyes watching them from the surrounding foliage.

"Combat formation!" Tanners shouted, drowning out Jack's continued tirade. "Recruits in the middle, Tamus eyes back. Jack, shut your dusting mouth. You and Katelyn keep an eye on the forest."

Reed could see the fear in Katelyn's stance as she gripped her gun-spear too tightly and jerked her head left and right, trying to cover the entire side of the trail at once.

Three creepers launched themselves at her from the bushes, a similar number engaging Jack, while two pairs of juvenile Beowolfs stepped onto the path in front of Tanners and Tamus.

Tanners engaged the Beowolfs in front of him, gun-spear a blur of movement as he deflected blows. The monsters retreated as Tanners's weapon fired again and again, and Tanners pushed in close.

Tamus took a more hands on approach with his pair, catching one Beowolf's wrist and slamming it bodily into the other.

Jack, to his credit, managed to hold off two of the Creepers facing him, his spear darting in and out in textbook stabs and gun-assisted retracts. Seraphina engaged the other Creeper, her face twisted in determination, and her powerful attacks knocking it back as it repeatedly threw itself at her.

Katelyn was less fortunate. She was looking in completely the wrong direction when the three Creepers leapt from the thick brambles along the path. They fell on her in unison, her aura shattering under the assault. Her scream cut off with a gruesome gurgle as one of the Creepers latched its fanged mouth around her throat.

Reed was already in motion, running towards the Creepers, but he knew it was too late for the unfortunate woman. All he could do was hold the line so Seraphina didn't get attacked from behind.

The Creepers were distracted mutilating the corpse beneath their clawed front paws, and Reed was able to dispatch one immediately with a thrust of his gun-spear. The head of the weapon bit deep into the mask, and it let out a pained howl before Reed detonate the gun, blowing the monster's head to black mist.

The other two creatures oriented on him, letting out aggressive snarls. Reed spun the spear head in an underhanded circle, slashing the sharp point up and through the second Grimm's head. Its body fell where it had stood, misting out of existence, as the third pushed itself off the ground using its thick tail. Reed spun the staff in his hand and the blunt end caught the creature under its chin, snapping its head back and exposing its unarmored underside. Reed pushed off with his back foot and ran it through, firing the gun until the bullets blasted all the way through the stocky creature's body.

"Reed look out!"

At the sound of Seraphina's voice Reed threw his semblance into full burn. He turned with agonizing slowness and saw four Creepers flying through the air towards him. Tamus had been drawn out by the Beowolfs he was engaged with, leaving the flank Reed had thought covered defenseless.

Reed knew he could sustain several hits from each of those Creepers before his Aura would give out, but his stance was bad, and he would be hard pressed to ward off four enemies from his current position.

A roar blasted from the side of the road, its intensity causing the ground under Reed's feet to vibrate. His eyes moved in shock to where Seraphina had stood a moment before.

A towering bear stood in her stead, at least eight feet tall, with translucent fur made of shimmering strands the same blood-red as Seraphina's hair. Its eyes were fiery pits of rage as it leapt through the air, ground shattering beneath its feet.

One enormous paw entered the space between Reed and the approaching Grimm. As the bear landed on three feet the raised paw slashed through the air. No noticeable parts were separated from the Creepers, rather all four immediately burst into black mist. The visage of the bear shimmered and vanished, leaving Seraphina face-down and unconscious on the road.

Reed was wrenched from his shock by more rustling in the trees as more juvenile Beowolfs darted onto the road, glowing red eyes intent on Seraphina's prone form.

Reed glanced to either side. Tanners had just succeeded in spearing the last monster in front of him through the eye, but he was at least ten yards away. Tamus was looking in horror at what his lapse in formation had caused and was running towards Reed and Seraphina, but his fight had taken him too far to be of immediate assistance. Jack was laughing maniacally as he stabbed a pinned Creeper repeatedly with a dagger he had pulled from who knows where, completely oblivious to the rest of his surroundings.

Setting his jaw in a stubborn grimace, Reed placed himself over Seraphina and started spinning the spear. The first Beowolf closed the distance as a second, then a third, then a fourth, emerged from the trees.

Roaring, the closest Beowolf raised its fore-paw to slash at Reed. He took advantage of the opening, aiming a round-house slash at the monster's waist.

The spear-head barely nicked the flesh.

Reed fired the gun and moved into a block, cursing the inferior weapon. His halberd would have slashed straight through the Beowolf's thin waist.

Leveraging the weapon against the press of the Beowolf's claws, Reed slipped the spear under the monster's chin and fired. The mask shattered and the creature fell.

It had taken too long, though, and now Reed was surrounded on three sides by the other Beowolfs. He was forced to give up the offensive as six clawed, flailing limbs lashed out at him in unison.

He started to panic as first one blow, then another slipped past his whirling staff to slam into his Aura. He just couldn't keep an eye on all of them at once, and with a howl of frustration Reed pushed at the boundary of his semblance.

To his shock, time seemed to slow even further. Judging by the speed with which the limbs now appeared to be moving, he had somehow pushed beyond his normal ability, and slowed his perception of time to a quarter of normal. Even though his eyes felt frozen in place, he could pick out the clawed paws of the monsters in his peripheral vision, and made slight changes to his defensive form to block each as it came in range.

It felt like an eternity that he stood there, staff rising slowly to meet claw, weight suddenly pushing on the haft in his hands as he strained his muscles to throw the offending limbs away. How he wished that he had his halberd's Dust assisted speed. With the wind crystals embedded in the staff he would have been able to do something other than just defend against the Grimms' onslaught.

His vision started to blur, and Reed realized this new speed was draining his Aura at an alarming rate. Soon he would pass out, leaving both himself and Seraphina defenseless before the ravenous monsters.

The Beowolf on the left twitched violently as a spear suddenly pierced through its arms and into the side of the beast, pinning the limb. A moment later Tanners's spear flashed in from the right, lopping off the right Beowolf's paw.

The sergeant darted in between Reed and the monster with a snarl, and with a massive heave drove the spear up through the bottom of the Grimm's chin. He ripped it out with a pair of gun-shots, then spun the weapon over Reed and beheaded the monster directly in front of him.

Tamus's massive fist slammed into the hilt of the spear in the side of the other Beowolf, driving the spear all the way through the monster's midsection. As the monster leaned its head back in an agonized howl Tamus reached a hand up and grabbed it around the muzzle. Sliding one foot behind its rear legs, Tamus hauled the monster over his thigh and smashed it head first into the ground, its mask shattering into bone white shards in the Faunus's hands.

The clearing fell quiet as Reed released his semblance with a gasp and dropped to his knees. He collapsed backwards and his head landed on the small of Seraphina's back as he panted and the world blurred around him. Tanners's and Tamus's concerned faces swam into view, and every time they opened their mouth a ringing sounded in Reed's ears. He saw Tamus pull out his scroll, and through the holographic display Reed could just barely make out the Town Guard's emergency line.

Then his vision faded to black.