Hello everyone! New chapter, and only about two more to go (plus an epilogue). Thanks to all who read, review, follow, and favorite!

The air had grown colder in the past months. Ren crouched behind a thorny bush, breathing into his hands to keep himself from shivering. Next to him crouched General Ironwood. Even close to the ground, Ironwood's massive figure dwarfed Ren, but it was the man's stillness that drew his attention. Stony-faced, the general held absolutely still, not even his breathing visible. His posture spoke of years of high-intensity military training.

Emerald had spent one final day in the hospital to recover, the doctors begrudgingly releasing her on joint orders from Ozpin and Ironwood. She rested on her knees in the clearing ahead, the centerpiece to a wide open flat in the Forever Fall Forest. To any outsider, she appeared to be completely alone - which is what Ironwood's plan had counted on.

With the idea of luring Cinder away from school and other students, Emerald had followed the general's orders and sent a message to Cinder, begging for forgiveness. She lied and said she was incredibly injured, and needed medical attention. Ozpin had expressed doubts about the plan's effectiveness, but deferred to Emerald's judgment: If Cinder knew she was alive, she would have to take steps to kill her to prevent information from leaking.

To that end Emerald rested alone in the clearing, with Ren and Ironwood behind a thorny patch of bushes some distance away. Professor Goodwitch observed the scene from a tree on the opposite side of the clearing, while Ozpin was nowhere to be seen. Two of Ironwood's airships waited in a separate clearing for his signal, at which they would fly over and drop a group of Atlesian Knights into the area.

Having seen the aftermath of Cinder's powers, Ren couldn't help but be nervous using Emerald as bait. One wrong move could spell disaster for not only her, but also their chances of stopping Cinder in a clean fight. He nearly jumped in surprise when Ironwood placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Relax Ren, we have an advantage here. I trust Ozpin and Glynda with my life, there's no better pair to have fighting at our side."

Ren nodded in lieu of an answer, turning back to watch Emerald. Still the early morning the air was still and quiet, heightening every sound made by the wind in the trees and the birds.

The calm was violently shattered by the snap of a twig far off to the left, accompanied by the sound of footsteps in the leaves and the sound of something heavy being dragged across the ground. Ren and Ironwood went dead quiet, straining to see through the forest.

The dragging sound continued to grow louder until the branches at the edge of the clearing rustled, before finally being pushed aside with violent force.

Mercury Black emerged from the forest, walking into the clearing with cautious steps. In one hand he held the collar of a girl, dragging her unconscious form through the dirt. The girl's Beacon uniform was tarnished, stained with grass and dirt and ripped in multiple places. Mercury unceremoniously dropped her the rest of the way to the ground where she landed face-up.

Ironwood drew in a hiss of breath as the girl's face was revealed, while Ren clapped a hand over his mouth. The girl was a faunus, as evidenced by the two tusks that came from her upper jaw and extended down her jawline, though one of them was broken off. Her mouth was taped shut, and her neck was a patchwork of blue and purple bruising in the unmistakable shape of handprints. Her chest rose with her breathing, short and labored.

Mercury took notice of Emerald, who kneeled in the dirt, but didn't address her when he spoke. Instead he looked around the surrounding forest, eyes wandering over the trees and rocks, searching for movement. "I know this is an ambush, that's why I brought a hostage. Come out now, and I won't hurt the girl!"

"Mercury," Emerald panted, squinting. "You have to help me, where's Cinder? I made a mistake, I need her to take me back! Please!" She continued begging, dropping forward to rest on her forearms. "Please."

Mercury ignored her entirely, placing a boot on the unconscious girl's knee. "Fine then, but the only ones you can blame is yourselves!" A gunshot echoed throughout the clearing, accompanied by a sickening crack as the girl's knee shattered.

In the bushes, Ren bit his hand roughly to keep himself from getting sick on the spot. Ironwood's visage remained stony. As the sound faded Mercury did a slow spin, eyebrows widening as nothing happened.

"Mercury, I'm alone!" Emerald cried out. "Take me to Cinder, I'm going to die if she doesn't help me."

Mercury blew out a low breath as he looked at Emerald. "Seriously Emerald, this is a pathetic excuse for an ambush even for you. You're better than this." He turned and addressed the surrounding area once more. "If you don't come out in five seconds I'm going to kill her! Five!"

He moved so he was standing over the girl. "Four!" Lifting his foot, he pushed her head to the side, resting his boot on the side of her head. "Three!"

"Mercury, stop!" Emerald begged, crawling forward.

"Stay where you are! Two!"

Ren screwed his eyes shut, holding his breath.

"ONE!"

The gunshot sounded, and Ironwood's hand clamped over Ren's shoulder in a vicegrip. Silence returned to the clearing, making Mercury's breathing stand out in contrast.

"Holy shit!" he yelled, and Ren opened his eyes again to see what was going on, purposefully avoiding looking at the corpse. Mercury swiped aside some branches at the edge of the clearing, revealing nothing behind them. "Who's there!" He scrambled over to a large rock, breathing heavy. Checking behind it, he stumbled back into the clearing. "Is there really nobody here?!"

"No, it's just me Mercury!" Emerald yelled. "Please don't kill me! I need to see Cinder!"

Mercury sat down hard in the dirt, panting. "I thought for sure there'd be a fight. Oh man." He stood a moment later, leaning on his knees. "Ah. Well, I suppose that just makes my job easier then." He began walking toward Emerald, feet making little puffs of dirt. "Holy shit, I didn't realize how bad Cinder messed you up. Your face is all destroyed, I'm surprised you can even see."

"I can't," Emerald responded, slowly standing up. Mercury didn't react, even when she began slowly backing away.

"Well, guess that means you won't get to see me kill you." Mercury stopped in front of where Emerald had been kneeling, looking down at the dirt.

Ren emerged from behind the bushes, stepping gingerly into the clearing. Emerald continued backing away, each step taking her closer to the edge of the clearing.

"It's nothing personal," Mercury continued, addressing nothing. Ren crept closer, now within fifteen feet of him. "You know how it is in the underworld. Business is business. Hey, why did you suddenly go quiet?"

Stormflower was raised in Ren's hands, waiting at the ready. Emerald stopped backing away, giving him a slight nod.

"No last words? Then I'm gonna- Oh wait, shit!" Realizing the ruse, Mercury tried to jump back but was too late to block a burst of bullets from connecting with his face. Suddenly aware of Ren, he barely managed to block two slashes, but took a kick in the chest which launched him back.

The clearing burst into a frenzy of activity. Ironwood dove out from behind his bush, drawing his pistol and firing a salvo of shots to follow up Ren's attack. The corpse of the Beacon girl shimmered as it leapt to its feet, whipping a parasol out of thin air and stopping the general's bullets in their tracks. When her body stopped sparkling a diminutive girl was left in its place, her hair and clothing a mixture of white, pink, and brown.

Emerald fell backwards against a tree, leaning on it for support, her legs trembling with the exertion of keeping her upright. "Where's Cinder?" she yelled.

"Not here!" Mercury yelled back as he crouched behind the parasol to avoid getting hit by another round of shots. Ren and Ironwood advanced side-by side, keeping the pair pinned behind the cover of the umbrella with a hail of bullets. "She thought this would be a trap and sent me and Neo instead!"

His next sentence was cut off as the short woman, Neo, jumped up, springboarding off his back to jump away. Mercury was sent flying to the side, just as the ground underneath them exploded outward. He rolled to a stop and immediately regained his footing, coming up in a ready stance and ducking under another hail of bullets as Ren closed the distance. Ironwood blocked his way as he moved to regroup with Neo, forcing him to jump back.

On the other side of the clearing Glynda descended from her tree, aiming her heels into Neo's face. She cartwheeled to the side just in time, but Glynda's attack had effectively put a barrier between the two fights.

"You go in close, I'll cover your dodges!" Ironwood instructed. Ren nodded, rushing forward to meet Mercury while Ironwood shot at the silver-haired boy, allowing Ren to close without trouble.

Ren's blades met with Mercury's leg and stopped in midair. Mercury spun in the opposite direction and jumped, kicking out with his other leg at Ren's face. Dropping to the ground, Ren dodged, responding with a leg sweep, intending to knock Mercury to the ground. Instead he jumped over Ren's leg, landing neatly and continuing his rotation to hit Ren in the side of his face.

Ren let the impact to knock him back, allowing Ironwood to take his place, simultaneously charging in and emptying another magazine at Mercury, who jumped and allowed his shins to take the shots. Ironwood pressed his attack as soon as Mercury landed, flipping his pistol in his hand and striking with it, but Mercury spun and grabbed Ironwood's wrist, letting the momentum of the pistol-whip spin him further around to the general's back. Attacking with a flurry of light punches and kicks, Mercury managed to get in a few hits before Ironwood dove away into a roll, coming up on his knees in a firing position.

Ren added a round of shots as well, rushing in to take Ironwood's place. He blocked Mercury's opening kicks with little difficulty, this time prepared to deal with the silver-haired boy's surprising speed and flexibility. He responded in kind, striking with Stormflower's blades in a wide arc, continuing the circle and jumping into a double kick. Mercury deflected the strikes with his boots, ducking under the first kick and stopping the second inches from his face with his forearm. His momentum suddenly stolen, Ren could do nothing as Mercury stepped into his guard, knocking him off-balance with an uppercut that connected with his jaw.

Mercury kept the distance between them minimal as he followed Ren's backward stumble, punching him twice in the chest before crouching low and jumping in a corkscrew motion, putting all his force into a kick that smashed into Ren's ribs.

Even with the protection of his aura, Ren was launched backwards, the breath driven from his lungs. Choking on the ground, he could see that Ironwood had taken his place, trading blows with him. Where Mercury had speed and flexibility, the general had strength and discipline on his side. He took the less-powerful kicks and punches with his mighty form, outright blocking others with little difficulty. Mercury darted from side to side and, seeing his attacks were ineffective, fell back with the general's next hit, dropping to the ground on his back.

Kicking out with both feet Mercury launched two projectiles at the general, white blurs that spun through the air in a spiral motion. Ironwood barely had time to dodge them before six more slammed into him, forcing him to take a step back.

Ren found himself in a similar situation, forced to roll out of the way to avoid taking a group of Mercury's spiraling projectiles himself. As he got to his feet he saw Mercury pull himself into a low spin, both legs off the ground as he shifted his balance from one hand to the other during each rotation. He fired rounds continuously from his boots, each projectile joining the spinning white whirlwind around him until they numbered more than a hundred.

Ren and Ironwood had no time to react as Mercury abruptly stopped his spin, the whirlwind of projectiles flying at them en-masse. Ironwood dodged the first few hits before the others began colliding, he resorted to weathering them with his right side. Ren launched himself into a series of complicated spins and jumps to avoid a greater number of them, but dodging all of them was far beyond his ability; each hit he took sailed into him like a punch. Individually they were little threat, but getting hit by dozens wreaked havoc on his aura; he felt drained when the projectiles finally stopped coming. His aura was nearly gone.

Ironwood looked to be in much worse condition. The clothing on his right side had been ripped to tatters. Instead of skin, his right side was entirely metal, high-tech cybernetic prosthetics. Ren didn't have time to appreciate the logic behind Ironwood's decision to let the metal take the hits and conserve his aura, as Mercury collided with the general from the side at great speed, throwing him from his feet. Ironwood had barely landed in the dirt when Mercury came down over him, making to curbstomp his face. The general moved his head to avoid just in time, Mercury's boot firing a shot and cratering the ground next to the general's head.

Despite his vicious attack, he was unprepared when Ironwood grabbed his leg, pinning him. Ren raised Stormflower and shot at him before he could retaliate, giving Ironwood the split-second he needed to bring his other fist into smash against Mercury's leg.

Instead of stopping, Ironwood's fist went straight through, tearing the fabric of Mercury's pants as it went. Mercury leapt back as the lower half of his leg was destroyed, scattered onto the grass. When it rolled on the ground, Ren was surprised to see a marked absence of blood. Instead, pieces of metal and bits of wire littered the dirt.

Glancing up, he took stock of Mercury again. Now leaned against a tree, he panted as he appraised his leg. Broken off halfway up his shin was a jagged and twisted piece of metal, or more accurately, Ren realized, a prosthetic!

"Go help Glynda!" Ironwood shouted, raising his pistol. "I'll take care of this one!" As Ren ran off in the direction of the remaining fight, Ironwood took aim at Mercury and pulled the second trigger, which Ren had failed to notice until now. The revolver cylinder popped out to the side, revealing six cartridges, and with the sound of multiple whips flying through the air, half a dozen metal wires launched from the cylinder.

As they wrapped around Mercury he fell helplessly to the ground, writhing as the wires tightened around his body delivering countless electrical shocks one after another. After a few moments he lay still, unconscious.

When he arrived, Glynda acknowledged Ren with a curt nod of her head, indicating Neo. "Be careful, she's hard to hit. Don't overextend."

"Understood," he acknowledged, rushing the girl with pistols drawn. Neo deflected his flurry of shots nonchalantly with her parasol, spinning it back to rest on her shoulder afterward. Ren slid low on the dirt, jumping up at the last second in a spinning kick, But the girl bowed forward, letting his strike sail over her head. His follow up proved just as ineffective, as she weaved around him like water, easily avoiding his swiftest kicks and slashes.

Neo took the offensive next, jabbing outward with the parasol. Instead of dodging Ren attempted to catch the parasol between Stormflower's blades, managing to halt the thrust just before the blade that extended from the tip pierced his eye. The parasol then sprung open, throwing Ren's arms wide, and he jumped backwards in case Neo attacked his open guard.

Likely sensing his move Neo cartwheeled after him, landing neatly directly in front of him and whipping the handle of her parasol into his ribs twice before jumping and delivering a double kick to his chest, sending him reeling. Kicking off and landing after a graceful flip, Neo reversed her grip on her parasol and caught one of Ren's arms with the curved handle, pulling him back toward her with surprising force for someone of her size. Using Ren's weight as a driving force Neo once again kicked out while forcefully pulling him towards her. Caught square in the chest, Ren was knocked back across the clearing.

Glynda covered him with a barrage of white arcing lights as he got to his feet, jumping to his side. Neo merely whipped her parasol open and blocked the missiles, watching them with a smirk. "Like I said," Glynda chastised, "don't let her get too close. If your aura is low, fall back and let me take point. Ironwood's reinforcements should be here any second, hang tight until then."

Ren nodded, nearly jumping in surprise when Ironwood appeared beside him, taking a ready stance. "He's not going anywhere," the general said, cutting off Glynda's worried look. "He's unconscious and cuffed."

"Good. Be careful with this one, she's faster than she looks."

"I saw," he growled, slotting a fresh magazine into his pistol and reloading the revolver cylinder. "I'll hang back and look for an opening, you two take point. She'd just dance around someone my size; my strength isn't good for this fight. I called reinforcements, so we just need to keep her occupied for a minute or so."

Ren waited for Goodwitch's signal before rushing Neo, firing a line of bullets at her before jumping to the side and continuing his run, hoping to get behind her. Neo spun and evaded his shots, but otherwise allowed him to circle around to her back.

After Ren's charge, Ironwood began firing at the girl, a steady echo of gunshots keeping her on her toes as she danced around the shots and blocked them with her parasol. Goodwitch split off and ran around Neo's opposite side, waving her riding crop in a circular motion when she stopped. A purple wave flashed out from her feet and hundreds of the surrounding pebbles began levitating, ascending until they gathered like a swarm of insects, spinning and whizzing around the professor.

Throwing her hand forward, a purple magic circle appeared in front of Glynda. With her riding crop, she directed a barrage of stones at Neo, one by one flying out of the swarm and through the magic circle with an echo, cutting through the air.

Neo had managed to dodge Ren and Ironwood's gunfire with little trouble, but the blistering firing rate of Goodwitch's stone projectiles forced her to shield herself with her parasol after an unsuccessful dodge left her taking multiple stones to the legs and torso.

Ren attacked with a flying kick from the side, which Neo deflected by grabbing his ankle and redirecting his force. However, deflecting Goodwitch's continues firing as she was, she was unable to spin and increase the force of her throw. Ren landed unharmed a few feet away, brandishing Stormflower.

Neo was forced to give ground as he attacked with Stormflower's blades, aiming for her torso to keep pushing her back. Glynda's stone barrage suddenly let up, and Neo stumbled backward with the sudden absence of force. Ren took advantage of the opening, dropping Stormflower and slamming a fist into her nose. Although she flipped away to recover, Ren felt her aura shatter under his strike, flashing white and purple. She glared wordlessly at him as she got to her feet, wiping blood away from her nose and mouth. Ren picked up Stormflower again, ejecting the empty magazines.

Combat halted as the sudden roar of an airship came from above, a shadow dropping over the clearing as it descended until it hovered just above the trees. Glynda and Ironwood kept their eyes on Neo, but Ren could make out the smiles on their faces as their reinforcements came.

"Wait," Ren said, watching the ship in confusion as nothing happened. The side doors stayed closed, and no Atlesian Knights dropped to their aid. "Why is there only one?"

"What?" Ironwood exclaimed, now looking up as well. "There were two!"

The door finally slid open and a regiment of Atlesian Knights fell from the ship, falling uselessly on the ground, breaking apart on impact. Neo's smile grew wider as a man appeared in the doorway, leaning out over them. His white jacket and orange hair blew in the wind, and he held his black bowler hat to his head to keep it from flying off. In his opposite hand he brandished a cane, although the curved handle was pointed downward.

"Hello general!" he called down, yelling above the roar of the engines. "I missed you so much, that I just had to come pay a visit!"

"Roman!" Ironwood yelled, training his pistol on the man, "How did you escape from my ship?"

Roman cackled, pulling a scroll from his jacket, "It's a little something called technology! Maybe you've heard of it? It's all the rage with kids these days!" He shook the scroll between two fingers, mocking them. "You know, you're not as smart as they say you are!"

The end of his cane fired downward, the handle launching toward Neo like a grappling hook. She grabbed it from midair and immediately began ascending, the airship taking off and pulling her up with it.

"Cut the rope!" Ren yelled, throwing Stormflower like a boomerang. It hit its mark but clattered harmlessly off, falling back to the ground. Ironwood pulled the smaller trigger on his pistol again, launching the taser wires up, but they fell off before they could reach Neo. She grinned in victory, the blood from her nose smattered all over her lips. As the airship disappeared from view behind the trees, Ironwood pulled out his scroll and began barking into it, ordering a strike force to go after the rogue ship.

Glynda sighed in relief and went to examine Mercury, and Ren was left in the center of the clearing. Without a second thought he rushed to Emerald, who still leaned against a tree with her eyes closed.

"The fight's over, Emerald. How are you feeling?"

"My head hurts like hell," she groaned, rubbing her temples. "Keeping up that illusion against the two of them was tough. Are you doing okay?"

"I'm good. Actually," he added with a smile, "I'm not sure if you noticed, but we managed to capture Mercury!"

Emerald's eyes widened and she suddenly looked more awake. "Are you serious?" Ren nodded. "Wow, I didn't think that'd happen, honestly. When he wants to get serious, he's more capable than he looks."

"Do you think it'll do any good?"

Emerald laughed, "Not at all. Any information he knows, I know. And I'd bet even less, since he doesn't pay attention. And he can't even be tried as an adult; he's seventeen."

"I guess Ironwood traded a useful prisoner for a useless one."

"I wouldn't expect anything more from the Atlas military." Ren chuckled at that, helping Emerald to her feet. Across the clearing, Ironwood had slung Mercury over his shoulder, while Glynda spoke into her scroll.

Winded after the fight, the four of them stayed in the clearing until one of Ironwood's ships came to pick them up. Glynda, Ren, and Emerald were dropped off on the Beacon docks, while Ironwood continued on with Mercury, heading to the Atlas military flagship.

Ozpin met them at the docks, a mysterious smile on his face. "Come, you three. I'd like to speak to you in my office."

"I've got a headache," Emerald stated, eyes narrowed against the sun.

"I've got hot chocolate, coffee, cookies, and high-grade painkillers," Ozpin responded, taking a swig from his mug. "We need to plan our next move. With Cinder's pieces gone, we have no time to waste. By herself, a Queen can do little besides attack relentlessly, and I intend to be fully prepared for what will inevitably come next."

Torchwick ex machina!

Much like a roman candle, Torchwick's appearance in this fic is bright, beautiful, but short - and he won't be reappearing. (But he also won't be dying, so that's nice.)