Chapter 37

Out of Shadows and into Darkness

"AHH! She's not human!"

*thud*

The young faunus wearing glasses atop of his mask set the receiver down with a nervous hand. The sound of a sniper rifle firing and steel being cut had somehow drowned out the screaming and high winds atop the train. He glanced behind him to see a man in the bowler hat motioning for him to speak.

"Well? What did he say, Perry?"

The man's glasses nearly slipped off his face almost as though his mask was sweating. "Um..." He swallowed. "Alpha team is down, sir."

Torchwick removed his hat and ran his fingers through thick orange hair. "Which one were they again?" he asked, returning the hat to its rightful place. "Were they the meat shields atop the train or the ones down below? Sorry, all of you faunus look alike to me."

"On to, sir," Perry answered, apparently not catching the insult. "Bravo team was down below with the Lieutenant. No word from them either."

His boss began rummaging through his jacket but grunted when he couldn't find a cigar. He had chain smoked his way through an entire carton, and him being out only made the new Perry more anxious.

"What about Charlie Team? What are they waiting for? Tell them to get their little furry tails in the fight or they'll have a very stern talking to with Neo."

Just hearing that name made Perry shudder. "N-no word from h-her either, s-sir," he stuttered.

Torchwick's grip tightened around his cane and glared at the young man trying to discern if the crack had been intentional or not. The Grimm mask covering all but his mouth was making it difficult however. Finally when he realized the offence hadn't been on purpose his finger withdrew from the trigger, but the thought of shooting him and finding a better Perry did come to mind. Unfortunately though he was running out of candidates.

"What about Charlie Team?" he repeated, massaging his temples.

When the masked man with glasses was too scared to answer another spoke up.

"There is no Charlie Team," replied a gruff voice reminding them they weren't alone.

Torchwick blinked. "Really?"

Both masked men nodded but the one with the deep voice turned away disinterested.

A smile crawled up Torchwick's face and the young man whimpered. "Congratulations, Perry!" He patted him on the shoulder which did nothing to assuage his anxiety. "You've just been promoted to Charlie Team captain. I always believed in you even when no one else did."

Before he could object, Torchwick twirled his cane and pointed out the door. "You have been my most loyal companion, Perry. I'd even go so far as to call you my friend." He seemed sincere as he placed a hand on his back and gently pushed him forward. "Now go out there and show those dastardly humans what being a faunus is all about. Show them that you're mad as heck and you're not gonna take it anymore."

He handed him a wrench that had been laying on the control panel, and after a moment of hesitation Perry took a practice swing and the wrench nearly flew out of his sweaty palms.

Torchwick removed his hat and placed it over his heart. "Lieutenant, Perry." He wiped his eyes with a handkerchief and sniffled. "It has been an honor serving with you."

With that praise Perry charged out of the room screaming in a high-pitch before running straight into a wall. It seemed the old Perry's glasses weren't quite the correct prescription. Torchwick grimaced sympathetically and pulled the blind man to his feet and set him in the right direction. He charged forward once again but when he heard Perry run into another wall he shook his head.

"Idiots." He shook his head in disbelief. "Every single one of them."

He heard a low growl and glanced over to see the other much larger faunus glaring down at him.

"Not you though," he said quickly. "I like you, along with your sharp fangs and majestic tusks."

The masked man closed his mouth and went back to work staring at the control panel. With half of the equipment removed from the locomotive he didn't have much to do. Everything including the bombs and speed were automatic. He didn't even have to worry about a train car being disconnected prematurely as they each had their own yellow dust engine. His job was mainly to make sure the air conditioning kept working, and that the mute woman's supply of ice cream didn't melt. Specific importance had been stressed about that.

"Say..." Torchwick drawled, realizing there was another spare faunus in the locomotive. "Why don't you check on Charlie Team? Perry could really use the company."

The large man shrugged just as uninterested in his new job as his last, and figured it was too late to save the ice cream anyway. He turned to leave and Torchwick inhaled a breath of fresh air once the man he'd nicknamed Warthog due to his tusks and odor left. That last part he had smartly kept to himself though.

Torchwick reached over and blow the train's whistle. "Next stop the soon to be ex-City of Va-"

*thud*

Something heavy hit the ground and he sighed. "Well, that didn't take long..." He glanced at his new visitor standing in the doorway.

A peculiar girl wearing all black with a bow in her hair stepped over the large unconscious body. Behind her a broken pair of glasses lay close to another body.

Torchwick appeared more annoyed than upset by her sudden appearance. He had really wanted to finish that sentence.

"Look what the cat dragged in," he remarked, looking rather pleased with himself.

From the girl's expression it seemed she had heard this type of wordplay one too many times in her life and didn't find it humorous anymore, but that only made it funnier for the man in the bowler hat.

He peaked behind the girl and his curiosity was evident in his smile. "What happened to Red, White, and Yellow?" he asked feigning concerned. "Don't tell me t-they're dead?!"

She narrowed her eyes and reached for her weapon. Torchwick meanwhile shook his head in disbelief.

"I don't even have anything black to wear at a funeral." He gestured toward the girl and her dark attire. "Doesn't seem you'll be having that problem though. Looks like you just came from a funeral..."

Blake drew her katana separating it from its sheath which she took in the other hand. For the first time she agreed with him. If the bags under her eyes were any indication, she'd had many sleepless nights to think about this moment and was going to let her actions speak for her. Torchwick seemed was fine with this arrangement however as he quite liked one sided conversations.

She lowered her chin and raised her weapons for an attack but Torchwick held up his hands. "Can't we discussed this like civilized people? Why don't we act like humans for a change." When she didn't lower her weapons he smirked. "Oh wait. I'm sorry how rude of me. You're a faunus, and your kind isn't exactly civilized."

Blake snarled and took a step forward. She had so many reasons to despise this man that sometimes she forgot he was a man at all and not some soulless creature of Grimm. He had embarrassed her the night of the docks and nearly killed Sun before her very eyes. The Paladin incident had put Yang and Ruby in the hospital while Weiss had been shot and herself barely escaping with her life.

'So many sleepless nights...'

Ruby being kidnapped had affected the entire team but Yang most of all. She had seen the tears on her partner's cheeks and could still hear the wails of a dying animal when they thought her sister might be dead. It was something she would never forget, or ever wanted to hear again. They still didn't know who the Beowolf woman was that left Ruby in a broken state, but Blake knew she was related to the man before her somehow. And now he was leading a train full of explosives and a legion of Grimm to the City of Vale, and her new home.

The White Fang were now exactly like the Grimm they masqueraded as, but she still couldn't bring herself to hate her fellow faunus. She was one of them not that long ago, and she still understood their hatred and bitterness toward the humans, just as she understood her hatred for him.

'So many sleepless nights...'

Blake roared with the ferocity of a lion and lunged forward.

"That's right!" Torchwick cried, her katana and his cane clashing and creating sparks. "You're not human, so stop pretending that you are!"

He ducked under the girl's cleaver as it aimed for his head, narrowly missing his precious hat. He tried to backpeddle but Blake pursued like a predator, chasing her prey across the locomotive.

She used her speed to her advantage but Torchwick read all her rage filled attacks as easily as a book, and laughed every time her shadow had it's head caved in, relishing the sight of the pain that registered in the empty shell a second before it dissipated. It became a game to him counting each one, and on the ninth he caught the real girl across the shoulder sending her flying.

Blake landed on her feet, and with a swift transformation she fired her pistol but the cane lazily spun around deflecting the harmless bullets. Crescent Rose, her weapon was not.

Gambol Shroud transformed again as she swung its ribbon trying to sweep his legs out from under him, but the crook of his cane easily caught her attack and sent it back over her head.

"Let me show you how it's done!" Torchwick swung his cane around and the handle flew off connected to a thick chain.

She barely had time to raise her cleaver, and the impact sent her boots skidding across the tile floor. She gritted her teeth before knocking the chain to the side, and charged her now helpless opponent who watched wide-eyed as the cleaver aimed to behead him.

Mere inches from her target, something caught her by the neck sucking the air out of her lungs. Too late she saw Torchwick swing his cane and a second later felt her feet leave the ground. Flying through the air the back of her head broke a window and glass showered her. She quickly tried to stand but was immediately yanked back down to the floor.

"I'd stay down where you belong if I were you," Torchwick suggested, pointing the barrel of his cane at her head.

Blake rose to her knees and glanced down at the chain wrapped around her neck like a noose. It was wrapped so tightly she could feel the blood draining from her face as she began to suffocate. She struggled against the chain and tried cutting it with her cleaver to no avail. There was a soft red glow coming from the chain as it began twisting and turning on its own, reeking of tobacco and leaving burns around her neck reminiscent of cigars being snuffed out.

"I like the collar and leash," Torchwick pursed his lips. "It suits you and your kind."

She bared her teeth and snarled which only made him tighten the chain even more. If her throat wasn't being crushed and his aura causing her to gag, she would've had a few choice words learned courtesy from her partner.

Torchwick scratched a secondary trigger on the cane with his finger understanding what her eyes were trying to convey. He had never cared much for vulgarity.

"I suppose I'll be in the market for a black suit. I've got yet another funeral to attend. Unlike your friends though, I suspect it'll be a rather lonely service..."

He pulled the trigger and watched as a fireball burned a hole through her chest leaving a scorch mark on the back wall while a look of horror and disbelief was stitched across her face. Despite the gruesome scene it brought a warm feeling to Torchwick's heart and even his aura seemed to hum with delight. That is until he noticed there wasn't a shadow to go along with the body.

Blake wasn't sure if she would ever get used to watching herself die, especially so violently. She pretended that it didn't bother her and that it didn't give her nightmares but her team knew better. They had all at one time or another caught her talking to the empty shell when she thought she was alone. She'd grown up with her shadow for a best friend, and having to watch her die so often could make anyone desensitized to it, but not her. It still felt like she was losing a part of herself whenever her shadow died. It was her own aura after all that she felt disappear along with the supposed empty shell.

She landed on all fours a yard from the blast and watched her shadow fade. Torchwick cocked his head and pointed the barrel at her chest once again.

"Maybe I should shorten your leash a bit." The chain began to retract back into his cane and Blake dug her boots in and even used her fingernails to claw at the tile, but inch by inch she was dragged closer toward her inevitable execution.

He stopped once she was in the middle of the locomotive with the bright lights above her head.

"You know for a faunus you're not that ugly I suppose. Though, I'd have kept the Grimm mask if I were you."

She managed to find the saliva to try and spit in his face but he raised an arm as a shield. Torchwick then took a handkerchief from his pocket and cleaned his jacket's white sleeve shaking his head.

"Red must have learned her poor manners from you." He tightened the chain causing her to cry out in silence. Tears welled up in her eyes but she refused to let a single one be seen. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

"You're an animal plain and simple," Torchwick reminded her. "Here, let me prove it to you." He raised his cane and pressed a small red device once hidden by the cane's hook.

GGGHHAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

In an instant all the windows shattered and Blake covered her bow in agony as she curled into a ball. She tried to scream but nothing would come out. All she could think of was that her ears were being stabbed by hot knives, twisting the deeper they cut.

"You like it?" Torchwick yelled over the screeching. "Think of it like a supersonic dog whistle, or in your case cat whistle."

He kicked her weapons away and spun his cane around, causing her throat to burn even more. "Installed it myself before coming to this glorified zoo. I wanted to make sure your cousins didn't bite the hand that feeds them."

Blake couldn't hear a word he was saying and normally wouldn't have complained, but not with knives being driven into her skull, and the blood in between her fingers.

"Long before your time, Atlas used these to corral animals like you and ship them to Menagerie in little kitty crates. They're illegal now of course and just owning this can get you decades in prison."

He stuck the barrel of his cane between her cat ears and Blake could literally feel the screaming inside her own head almost making her forget who and where she was, and silently pleaded, begging and promising him anything to end her torment.

"I wonder what the going rate for murder is these days?" Torchwick thought about it for a moment and grinned. "Worth it..."

Her eyelids snapped open as if on instinct and her pupils contracted. She'd fought too long and come too far to die on the ground. It wasn't what her teammates had done, and it wasn't what the faunus had done in the countless wars against the kingdoms.

Baring her teeth, she lunged for his throat wishing to tear it open with her bare hands.

"Oops." Torchwick pulled the trigger. "My finger slipped."

The shadow's head rocked back from the explosion and faded.

"WHAT!"

Another empty shell flew into his chest doubling him over while another headbutted him in the nose which sent him reeling.

Blake crawled to her weapons doing her best to focus on her human senses which didn't seem nearly as affected by the screeching that penetrated the ears atop her head. After the botched haste glyph Weiss had placed on her, she had gone several days without relying on the majority of her superior faunus senses, and it almost felt like slipping on an old pair of boots again.

She reached for Gambol Shroud which was lying several feet away, but the closer she got the more the black ribbon danced from her leftover aura. More tears welled up in her eyes as the chain tightened and the screeching persisted, but she continued to stretch. She closed her eyes shut in agony, but they opened when she felt a spark in her fingertips as they connected with the ribbon.

Her weapon transformed in mid-air so that her weapon was sheathed and in its heavy attack mode. She caught the blade and began channeling all of her aura just as she had copied from Adam and later been properly taught by Yang.

The dark blade turned a shade of purple as she drove it down on her leash. The smell of tobacco made her nose twitch and she could feel Torchwick's aura strengthening the steel. He grinned watching her face contort in agony and change color, but he began to grimace the more his power drained. When he heard the sound of a chain link snap he raised his cane and pulled the trigger.

A fireball shot towards her head but she didn't even blink as a shadow-less body dissipated. Torchwick fired again and again feeling a small degree of joy each time he killed her and saw her expression become increasingly more fearful.

*click*

He glanced down.

*click*

*click*

Torchwick pulled the trigger again but nothing happened. Growling, he then started reeling the chain back but the girl dug her heels in and rocked her head back as they played a game of tug-of-war for her life.

A purple light slowly began engulfing both Blake and Torchwick, who muttered a curse under his breath as the last chain link snapped. The faunus collapsed as the two auras repelled each other while Torchwick flew over the control panel sprawled out on the ground. Blake coughed and gagged as the first breath of air hit her lungs, nearly making her pass out. The entire world was spinning as the blood came rushing back to her head, and she could even feel the color returning to her face.

*cough, cough*

After a coughing fit that put all of Ruby's to shame, and violent dry heaving where nothing would come up, she rested her forehead on the cold tile floor and closed her eyes as the room spun. She spat trying to rid the taste of blood out of her mouth, but found the flavor of tobacco far more appalling. Her shaking hands remained cupped around her neck, lightly massaging the burns and bruised skin. Ever since she'd been a little girl she'd hated burns, and cringed lately whenever she looked at her leader too closely.

When she heard the sound of boots stomp her eyelids snapped open. Torchwick reached down to retrieve his hat, giving it a slight dusting before putting it back on his head.

Blake got to a knee still breathing heavily and dizzy, but no longer gasping like a fish out of water. She reached atop her head feeling for her cat ears which pinned back, sensitive to the touch. The bleeding seemed to have stopped, but they still echoed from the screaming.

He examined the chain links lying all around the locomotive before finding the handle to his cane. "You're gonna pay for that, runt," he promised, wiping the blood from his nose.

*silence*

Torchwick grimaced seeing the faunus clutching her katana and cleaver instead of her ears, and glanced down at the small device in his cane cursing again.

"Everything Junior sells is cheap..." He shook his head before turning his attention back to the girl in black.

He noted the defensive stance she took getting back to her feet, and the almost wild look in her eyes. Ignoring her, he snapped the hook back onto his cane and gave it a twirl.

Despite wanting nothing more than to rush him again Blake held back. Once again she had lost her cool and underestimated him, and had nearly lost her life, again.

She took a deep breath more to calm her emotions than to satisfy her starving lungs. This time she'd let him lead.

Torchwick stepped forward and bowed as if it were a formal duel. "If you had nine lives I'm afraid you just spent them all."

He didn't give her time for a witty retort or even a snarl as he struck with blinding speed. Gambol Shroud blocked his lunge setting up for a counter attack but Torchwick struck too fast.

The cane cracked her knuckles on a quick jab but she returned the favor with a shallow cut to the shoulder. She thrust her cleaver forward but the cane's hook wrapped around her hand twisting it and making her drop the weapon. He pressed forward trying and overwhelm her just as he'd done the night at the docks.

As his cane came within inches from her face Blake parried the blow and sliced the bowler hat off his head.

"Someone's been practicing," he complimented, taking a step backward.

He kicked his hat away which was now it two parts. "The Ice Queen's been teaching you new tricks hasn't she?"

Blake didn't say a word but it was her stance that said it all. Months ago it had been rigid and unrefined, sloppy even. Now it was almost elegant thanks to the heiress. Weiss was the finest swordsman Blake had ever seen, she hadn't been lying to her earlier. In the months they had trained together she had come to realize just how poor her technique had been under Adam's tutelage.

In their first match in Goodwitch's class, Blake had been excited to teach the youngest Schnee daughter a history lesson, but there had been two fundamental things she had done wrong. First, she had probed for weaknesses relying on hit and run tactics waiting for her opening. Second, she had tried to outsmart her.

Both strategies were impossible against Weiss. She had perfect grades for a reason and even their combat instructor couldn't find a flaw in her technique. Often times you could see how she was going to win five moves before she did it, but that didn't mean you could stop her. Blake had walked out of the fight with a draw simply because of her better conditioning and strength, and her more defensive style being enough to let the clock expire with neither girl being able to get the upper hand. Nowadays they traded victories, both getting better each time.

Torchwick pulled out his handkerchief and wiped his bloody nose. He was baiting her into attacking but she wouldn't be drawn so easily into another trap. Instead she'd set her own.

Blake's shadow stretched across the locomotive, and Torchwick glanced down at the shadows growing in the room and how they all seemed to point towards the girl in black. The lights then began flickering, making it difficult for him to see.

Her semblance was more than just a shield to hide behind. Yang had told her so in their first match but just the memory still made her head hurt. While the rest of her class, courtesy of the blonde, had been sent to the infirmary with broken bones and Cardin with a dislocated pelvis, Blake had walked away with a mild concussion. An unmitigated victory if there ever was one.

Without warning she shadow jumped to Torchwick's side who tried to swat her way but his attacks were easily telegraphed. She appeared again to his back but he spun his cane around without even looking and blocked her katana. Again and again she tried never letting him retaliate or think about his next move. She kept her movements erratic, proactively probing for his weaknesses. Just as ruthless and merciless as her leader.

Although Ruby was childish at times and naive, Blake would never forget how utterly unprepared she had been to face off against the caped-girl for the first time. Blake was naturally a defensive fighter who waited for opportunities, but Ruby had never even given her a chance to counter-strike. After a five minute assault she was laid flat out on her back by a six foot scythe, and Ruby afterward had offered her a hand and a chocolate chip cookie.

Blake noticed Torchwick having trouble keeping up with her moves and she couldn't hide her grin. Unlike her skilled and talented teammates, she was a faunus and genetically superior to a human. Her bones and muscles didn't need fortification from aura, which continually drained in prolonged fights. She was stronger, her reflexes faster, her senses sharper, her body more durable, and her mind like a predator.

'It's a game of cat and mouse,''Yang's bemused voice quipped in the back of her mind.

Torchwick stepped into a shadow and regretted it instantly as his heart skipped from the oppressive aura. It was like a dark cloud that hovered over his every thought and his face contorted.

'So many sleepless nights...'

Her aura was so much more than just frustrated and bitter. It was like a record of all the heartache she'd felt since childhood. It was full of all her regrets with the White Fang, and all of the hope she had for a future. Most of all though, it was all of her anger, hatred, and bitterness that had consumed her for much of her life.

Torchwick's movements began to slow as the darkness weighed him down, and he could see how he was going to lose five moves before he did.

With a final flourish of her blade Blake disarmed him and the cane was sent flying. He tried to catch it but a blast of purple aura sent it flying out the broken window.

He raised his hands in surrender and backed away towards the open door. The shadows began to fade and Blake took deep breaths as sweat beaded on her forehead. Unlike her teammates, she rarely used much aura in combat, and wasn't used to dropping so quickly, or using it as a weapon as she had.

She kept her katana on him but didn't dare get any closer in fear of another trick. She still hadn't seen his semblance and knew how dangerous he could be when underestimated.

Torchwick kept his eyes on the blade as he stepped over a fallen White Fang member. He cautiously took another step but froze when the temperature suddenly plummeted.

"Where do you think you're going?" a familiar voice demanded.

A rapier pressed into Torchwick's back sending chills down his spine. His head spun and saw the heiress staring back at him with cold eyes and a bandage stained red around the top of her head.

He noticed the scarred eye but before he could comment the blade pressed deeper into his back making him jump.

"If you make one comment about me not wearing makeup I swear I'll skewer you!" she promised. "I woke this morning with a bad hair day and it's been downhill ever since, and I have a massive migraine because of you!"

For once Roman Torchwick was of a loss for words and hurried away to the other side of the locomotive.

Blake couldn't hide her smile seeing Weiss again. Leaving her with the lieutenant had been one of the hardest decisions of her life, and seeing her alive gave her misty eyes.

"H-hey," her voice cracked.

Weiss regarded her for a moment and frowned. "I told you not to wait for me," she admonished.

Despite her harsh tone Blake could tell Weiss was having difficulty keeping up the Ice Queen's appearance. Blake continued to stare and eventually saw a smile tug at the heiresses lips.

Weiss huffed and they turned their eyes to Torchwick as he hurried up a ladder to make his escape.

He grabbed the metal hatch and recoiled as though he'd touched a hot stove. He shook his hand and reached for it again this time with his sleeve for protection, but cried out when the hatch was pulled away from his fingertips.

Long blonde hair dropped down and he let out a loud curse.

"Hi!" Yang grinned, holding the hatch in one hand and waving. She gave the steel a gentle squeeze and bent it as easily as clay.

Torchwick jumped back and hugged the far wall as Yang hopped down gracelessly.

"Sup," she said nonchalantly to her friends. "Neo says hi by the way."

Once again Blake's heart skipped a beat and did nothing to hide her joy upon seeing her partner again.

"Did ya miss me?"

Blake nodded earnestly, even wiping her eyes but Weiss scowled at the broken hatch. "Where's Ruby?" she asked, trying to hide her anxiety but not doing a good job.

Yang's grin got even wider which they didn't think possible. "Wait for it…"

"AAHHH!" Torchwick screamed as a large blade protruded from the wall just inches from his face, and dived out of the way before he was beheaded. With a single stroke the scythe cut a perfect hole and a girl in a red hood crawled inside using her weapon for balance.

"Here's Ruby!" Yang cried.

Her sister bowed with the scythe behind her back and a smattering of rose petals appeared at her feet as if they were thrown by an audience. Weiss rolled her eyes at the blatant waste of aura but clapped politely.

Ruby's head tilted up as she noticed a rope attached to the ceiling. Her eyes lit up and gave the rope a tug and locomotive gave a loud whistle which made her giggle. She had always wanted to do that. Torchwick however was in disbelief, wondering how this brat became a team leader at Beacon.

Weiss tapped her foot impatiently as her partner blew the whistle for a third and fourth time. "Was it really necessary to cut a hole in my family's train?!"

Ruby seemed to think about it for a moment and nodded. She pulled her hood down revealing tired eyes and a weary smile that seemed to hurt her face.

Blake grinned seeing the young leader again but was instantly struck by all the new tears in Ruby's clothes and flesh. The girl's shoes were unbuckled and unlaced, and the girl was out of breath needing the support of Crescent Rose just to stay on her feet. She glanced at Weiss who was also taking inventory of her partner's injuries. They began to recognize a few from when she was in the hospital.

Yang coughed getting their attention and pointed at Torchwick. The sooner they ended this the sooner her sister could rest.

Ruby glanced over thinking she was signalling for her to speak. "Torchwick," she rasped, "stop the train right now or Yang will break your jaw."

"Your voice sounds like it went through a cheese grater," he remarked, covering his ears as though it actually hurt to hear.

He flinched when the tall blonde began cracking her knuckles.

"Sorry, Red, but I can't do that," he feigned sincerity. "This was a one way trip and I had the brakes removed."

Silence befell the train car.

"Weiss?" Yang asked, not letting her panic show.

The heiress' eyes widened as she noticed several control panels missing along with the dust infused gears that should have been spinning above their heads.

"They're gone," she whispered. "We can't even adjust the speed."

Torchwick rocked his head back laughing at the looks on their faces. He made the sound an explosion and began making gestures with his hands of buildings falling.

Ruby turned her head as a tear ran down her cheek. Her legs seemed to lose all power and she sat on Crescent Rose. Blake and Weiss however were clutching their weapons so tightly their knuckles turned white. Yang's eyes turned red and very quickly the room became a maelstrom of heat, cold, and shadows. Not a single rose flew through the air though.

Torchwick howled in their misery and continued with his sound effects.

"Someone shut him up!" Weiss yelled tired of his mocking.

Blake took a step towards him and rested her blade on his cheek, drawing a thin red line that dribbled down his face.

"Oh come now, kitty-cat." He brought his hands up to mimic her ears. "You and I were on the same side not too long ago."

"Wrong..." She pressed the blade to his throat. "You and I were never on the same side." She let out a primal growl as her weapon pressed against him.

"If you think a little black bow can hide what you are-"

*cough*

"What you've done-"

*cough*

"Then you're in store for a very rude awaking... Blake."

Him using her name caught her off guard momentarily. He had never referred to any of them by their names until now. She glanced back at her teammates suddenly uncertain. Ruby was staring out the window either not wanting to watch or too upset to notice what was going on without her. Weiss watched on with cold eyes but there was sympathy in them as well, as if she knew what Blake was going through.

Yang's eyes were full of fire and anger the same as her aura, but like Weiss' they also carried something else. Warmth...

Her team was battered and beaten. She'd been accepted by them despite her past, and they'd followed her into a war that wasn't theirs to fight all because she was their friend. She had been consumed and obsessed with finding this man, but it seemed they had been equally as determined in protecting her from herself.

Her katana fell from his throat making Torchwick grin ear to ear. "Ha! Can't go through with it can ya?"

Blake remained silent as she composed her thoughts and emotions.

"What's the matter? Cat got your ton-"

In the blink of an eye Gambol Shroud's ribbon was around his neck and covering his mouth. He tried to scream but all that came out was a muffled moan.

Blake flashed a smile seeing him both collared and muzzled. "Sorry, but Yang's the only one who gets to say that to me."

"I thought you hated me saying that?"

"I do..."

His eyes narrowed as he struggled to get the ribbon off with no success.

Blake waved a hand to the caped-girl who was still staring off into space. "The honor is all yours, Ruby."

She turned her head hearing her name. "Huh?"

"If anyone deserves to knock him out it's you."

"Me?" She grimaced. "Why me?"

"Well you are team leader." That only seemed to sadden her.

"And he kidnapped you," Weiss said quickly, "and shot you, tried to kill you, and-."

"-and he put a cigar to your cape," Yang added, her eyes darkening even more.

Ruby turned to face Torchwick who waved. Dragging Crescent Rose along with her she squatted down to look him in the eyes.

"ygonakllmrd?"

"What?" Yang chuckled. Torchwick unable to speak was music to her ears.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "He said 'You going to kill me, Red?', or something along those lines."

Everyone glanced over at the heiress and even Torchwick looked surprised.

"What?" she said innocently. "Ruby talks with her mouth full. I've learned to adapt."

The team shrugged and turned their eyes back on Torchwick who screamed when the scythe was planted between his legs.

Ruby leaned in close. "Lucky for you I don't hit little girls," she repeated, holding her side from where Perry had kicked her.

Instead, she landed a well placed boot in between his ribs, knocking the wind out of him.

'Did Ruby just hold a grudge?' Weiss and Blake's eyes incredulously asked each other.

"Do your thing, Yang." She dragged her weapon away.

'Yep...'

"Wrrrtttt!?" Torchwick's eyes widened. The temperature suddenly went up twenty degrees and he began sweating through his expensive suit.

He continued to struggle against the ribbon and finally loosened it around his mouth. "Wait! hold on!" he pleaded. "Can't we discuss this and share our feelings?"

With hands held up as if to say a prayer, he begged the blonde for something she was incapable of giving right now. Forgiveness and mercy.

Yang's mane caught fire and her pupils disappeared in crimson.

"Okay, let's discuss our feelings..." She cracked her knuckles again and her teammates were nearly knocked off their feet as violent aura began radiating off of her.

"I CHANGE MY MIND! I CHANGE MY MIND!"

She grinned ear to ear as pure rage became unadulterated joy. Weiss took a step back and used her partner as a makeshift shield, afraid Yang might finally combust and figuring her baby sister would be the only likely survivor.

Yang grabbed him by his collar, letting his boots dangle off the ground.

"Wait, hold on!" Torchwick choked, recalling what she had done to his Paladin with a single punch.

Despite her rage and malicious aura, her voice was calm and steady. "I'll make a deal with you, Torchwick." She glanced back to Ruby and her feet. "If you tell me the woman's name who broke into the CCT the other day and where to find her, I promise there won't be any permanent damage to your face." Her sister's mouth opened but she promptly closed it.

Torchwick looked thoughtful. "Did she have dark hair?"

They all turned to Ruby who nodded.

"Did she wear a red dress?"

Again she nodded.

"Sorry, don't know her." He grinned.

Yang tightened her grip around his throat. "Wrong answer."

She pulled back her fist. "This is for trying to kill my little sister, tormenting my best friend, burning Summer's cloak, and making us come to this God forsaken city and listen to Weiss' nonstop bit-"

"Wait her name-"

Yang roared as her fist slammed against his skull, causing the tile floor to ripple and flames erupt from the control panels. Her friends were knocked off their feet this time but Blake caught Ruby and Weiss before they could fly backward.

Torchwick's eyes rolled to the back of his head as it whipped back and his body collapsed atop of itself with his foot in an awkward angle and blood dripping from his mouth. His scorched suit was torn to pieces and he'd been knocked out of his boots.

The blonde's aura died off but she continued glowing in the now dark locomotive, and turned to her team with lilac eyes and an almost euphoric expression. "That felt amazing, and couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. We're so do this again together sometime! I know this great club downtown with a backroom that-"

"What do you think he was gonna say?" Blake interupted, like the other girls smoothing out her clothes and putting out any fires. "By the way, Yang, you're drooling..."

She shrugged before lazily wiping her chin. "We can make him talk, later."

"If you didn't kill him you mean."

Yang paused and looked down at the lifeless body. "Oops..."

"He isn't dead is he?" Weiss asked, not sounding the least bit concerned.

They watched for his chest to rise and when it did their leader was the only one who sighed with relief.

"I almost feel sorry for him," Ruby said to their surprise. "Almost," she clarified with a thin smile while rubbing her burnt shoulder.

A red light flashed in the room causing everyone to jump. Weiss flicked her wrist and the flames caused by Yang were extinguished with a small glyph.

"What do we do now?" Blake asked. "I don't see anything to stop the train."

Ruby looked around unsure what she was actually looking for. "What if we destroy the locomotive? Will that stop it?"

Everyone glanced at the heiress who shook her head. "Each car has it's own motor. They keep the train going at full speed. We'd have to stop each of them."

Yang smiled. "Can-"

"No," Weiss interrupted. "That'd take too long."

"What about the tracks!?" Ruby asked, running toward the ladder. By the time she reached the top she was out of breath and her teammates right behind her.

"This is a Schnee Dust Company train and rail," her partner huffed. "You can't just derail it."

"She's right., Blake agreed a little too quickly which earned her a curious glance. "The wheels are magnetized with yellow and black dust. The White Fang ended up having to resort to blowing the cars up or-."

"-stealing them track and all," Weiss finished causing Blake to look away.

"What if we separate the cars from their engines?" Ruby asked, but again Weiss shook her head.

"Everything on this train is automated, and with bombs wired to go off shutting them down might not be the best idea."

"We might not have a choice," Blake muttered. "If we don't stop them they'll go off in the city."

"Us along with them..." Ruby pulled her hood up unable to look her sister or friends in the eye. She had set the entire chain of events into motion and led her team into a death trap. It was as if all the air in the tunnel had been sucked out.

She bit her lip to stifle a sob. She didn't want this. Being a huntress wasn't supposed to be like this...

Weiss and Blake glanced at one another unsure what to say but said the one thing that had been on their minds.

"Sorry," they said in unison, "for everything."

Their smiles mirrored each other. "Nothing to apologize for."

They grabbed the caped-girl by the shoulders but she didn't lift her hooded face. The sound of knuckles being cracked caused her body to stiffen however, and she pushed her teammates aside who were equally in shock.

Ruby turned around to see her sister's hair catching fire and her eyes turn crimson again, but it there seemed to be no life to them. It made the caped-girl's body shake and her heartbeat quicken.

Yang was not the type of girl who was unsure of herself often, but looking down as the train tracks disappeared at blinding speeds was one of those times. She could see the disbelief on their faces for even suggesting something so crazy, and would've bet she looked the same.

"No," her sister said flatly.

The blonde ignored her and took a step forward to the front of the locomotive. She was gonna stop it with her bare hands if it meant keeping her sister and friends safe.

"Weiss, I'm gonna need some gravity glyphs. Blake, combine them with your semblance and-"

"I said no!" she yelled grabbing Yang by the arm.

"Ruby, I have to try!" Yang shouted back.

The caped-girl tripped and her sister caught her in an embrace.

"Please don't go..." Ruby sobbed. "Please, Yang. I-I can't..."

Yang didn't trust herself to speak. She couldn't help but wonder if Ruby had said the same to Summer.

Death had never frightened Yang as much as leaving her sister. If she had made it to her thirtieth birthday she would have counted herself fortunate to join such an elite class of huntresses. Her mother hadn't hadn't come close, and Summer had been retired for years and barely passed the mark. Nothing burned forever and Yang knew she was no exception.

But... Weeks from her eighteenth birthday was far too soon, and she still had Ruby's sweet sixteen to plan. Who was gonna bake cookies if she was gone? Thoughts of their dad came to her mind, which she tearfully shook away knowing he'd be following her soon after...

"Rubes," Yang said in her ear. "I'm sorry, and I'm sorry I wasn't a better big sis."

The caped-girl held on even tighter. It was almost like she was saying goodbye, but that couldn't be right could it?

"Please don't go..." she whimpered. "Yang..."

Before she could speak, Blake and Weiss tapped them on the shoulders.

"Um, we've got a problem," Blake said in a low voice.

"Huh?" The sisters looked up.

"We're out of track!" Weiss screamed.

'So there is a light at the end of the tunnel,' Ruby thought to herself.

They were at the end of the line. Just ahead was where the people of Vale must've sealed the tunnel off from the lost city.

She tightened her grip around her sister, feeling like the little girl who hid under the bed all those years ago.

"Weiss?!" Yang glanced over at the heiress. "We need an ice shield and we need it now!"

The girl froze as if hypnotized by the barricade they were speeding towards.

"WEISS!" She screamed again snapping her out of her trance.

Weiss spun her dust chamber and the blade began to glow light blue. She drove the rapier into the train car and nearly a dozen ice glyphs appeared around them.

She fell to a knee as the mental strain was too much. Everything began to spin as the ice slowly grew around them. Ruby glanced behind her and saw the White Fang lying on the train cars and her heart skipped a beat and then another one.

"No wait!" she screamed, letting go of her sister. "The White Fang! They'll die!"

She grabbed Crescent Rose but something pulled her back. She turned to see Yang holding onto her cape. Ruby glanced at Blake for support but she turned her head and closed her eyes. They weren't the White Fang she remembered.

The ice glyph rose and a barrier began to surround them.

Ruby tried to pull her caped off but was tackled to the roof by her sister.

"Yang get off of me!"

"I'm sorry, sis, but I'm not losing you again," she promised. "Not ever."

"I can't let them die!" Ruby cried nearing hysterics. "Please!"

"Weiss, finish it!" Blake cried.

The ice barrier formed and all they could see was darkness. They waited a moment breathing heavily and their hearts beating against their chests while Ruby continued to struggle. Yang then climbed atop her sister as an extra layer of protection, and two other bodies fell next to her wrapping their arms around each other one last time.

This was it.

Time to say goodbye...

When they hit the barricade they didn't even have time to realize what had happened. They felt the ice barrier blow apart and then nothing...

Ruby reached out to smack her alarm clock for disrupting her sleep. If she didn't hit it fast enough she knew from experience her partner would scold her, and having to listen to a cranky heiress first thing in the morning was the last thing she wanted.

She slapped the wall where her scroll should have been but couldn't find the source of the disturbance. With her luck she had probably thrown it across the dorm room.

Her eyelids flickered open as she felt water dripping on her face.

A tuft of hair and blurry eyes made it impossible to see. She brushed her hair to the side but paused when something smeared across her forehead. With a fog still in her eyes she glanced down confused. Why was she covered in mud? Why had she fallen asleep in a mud puddle?

And why was there a siren?

It took a moment but the caped-girl remembered hearing the sound occasionally from the Isle of Patch and once or twice while studying at Beacon. It was the alarm that sounded in case of a breach in the city, but had only ever been used for drills.

Ruby racked her brain to try and remember the last time there had been a security drill and vaguely remembered General Ironwood holding one shortly after his arrival.

Why were they having another drill just weeks later? Something didn't feel right, and it wasn't because Ruby had lost her lunch on the train.

Train? She had never been on the SDC train through Forever Fall, yet it seemed to trigger something in her memory. Ruby's head spun as memories floated back to her as if they were rose petals being blown by the wind. Her hand grazed something soft and it felt as though she had touched the stove in the student kitchen.

She dipped her hand in the cool mud and glanced over trying to figure out what the yellow blur was in the fog of her eyes.

"Yang?" she groaned.

The blonde's finger twitched.

"Yang, wake up."

She raised her head as if on instinct but had a far away look in her eyes.

"Weiss...Blake..." Ruby looked around finally spotting the pair lying in front of her.

Blake cried out and pulled her arms over the top of her head.

'The sirens,' Ruby thought a second after she heard the faunus whimper.

Weiss groaned as she lifted her head out of the mud which had frozen to her face. Her partner would have normally found humor in the situation but Ruby's memory was coming back and she was starting to recognize where she was.

The little boutiques she would have never been able to afford without Weiss lined both sides of the street and she could smell the familiar aroma of chocolate from her favorite bakery. Even the people staring back at her with shocked faces looked familiar.

She looked where she and her team were lying. It reminded her of the crater she had left in front of Beacon on her first day, except a giant hole was in the center.

The Central Plaza...

In the City of Vale...

She glanced up and saw rain clouds in the sky as a drop hit her in the forehead. The CCT rose in the distance with newly replaced windows on the top floor mocking her.

Phantom pains shot through her body remembering the incident but she soon realized the pain wasn't going away and it wasn't phantom. It was as real as the shaking of the ground and the roars coming from the abyss. She heard someone squeak like a frightened mouse and glanced over to see a young girl wearing red squeezing her mother's hand.

The mother and daughter both looked close to tears, and Ruby felt her heart break as a pack of Beowolves howled from down below.

"I'm sorry..." she whispered to the girl and her mother. "I'm so sorry..."

(A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. I wanted to give Blake her big moment but I also wanted it to feel like a team victory even if she won by herself. Yang punching Torchwick is probably a fate worse than death and he deserves it. I hope you have enjoyed each character getting a chapter dedicated to them and the fights. I hope I stayed loyal to their characters while creating my own story. I realize there has been a lot of action lately and there will be even more to come but I hope it has been enjoyable. Thank you everyone who has supported me throughout this story and left amazing reviews and PMs. It has been a blessing writing for you. I'm not sure when the next update will be in all honesty. Breach will be a couple of chapters long and I want it to be as satisfying as possible. Until then, thank you so much for supporting me and all the words of encouragement. All credit goes to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ who has made this story possible. God bless)