A/N: Yeesh, late again. You think I'd write these earlier but I never seem to have the time now. Probably because I've been stuck at work all day in recent months. Whatever though, I'll still try my best to update this story regularly. Blah de blah~

Short chapter by the way. The next chapter will be FAR longer because of it though...

Chapter 11

To the High Templar and the Lord's Council of Shiloh,

Only a small amount of time has passed thus far for myself, but I can imagine it has felt longer on all of your ends, and to that, I send this letter bearing... news. Good or bad, we have yet to see.

To get most pressing questions out of the way, I've acquired us the soldiers, though not in quite the way you may think. Perhaps even better however, though the man doing the giving is worrisome on his own.

On a less pressing note, Vale is an interesting city of study. The structure of the city flows far more dynamically than Shiloh and they expand outwards instead of upwards like ourselves. Grimm are few and far between it seems and I haven't seen, much less even heard whisper of a larger incursion. They enjoy luxuries most of us could only dream of and have technology far along from what we currently employ, though most of it isn't quite so practical for our living in the first place. The people here are indeed, a bit more free spirited than I'm used to.

Some in ways good.

Others in ways bad.

A man named Ozpin, who is of high repute here, has offered us the services of not just several hunters, but something else entirely that he believes will be fit this request more properly. In return he's chosen to accept our substitute payment of dust, but also requests one further payment.

This additional request is nothing of grand detail. Something we can provide assuming all goes well, but it is the manner of the man I believe to be an issue.

I do not trust him.

He knowingly withheld information from me to keep me a tied down to where I currently stay for reasons yet unknown. Any insight into his character is regularly rebuffed with an insipid smile or a quiet chuckle. Going past character statements however...

Attached to this letter is a lengthy description regarding the exact specifications Ozpin has outlined as payment and services.

Objectively, I see it to be fair, far fairer than we'd get at Ashkelon.

Subjectively, I'd sooner see it burned, along with the man who gave it to me.

Post Scriptum - If it may be allowed, tell my family I am well without illness.

Post-Post Scriptum – I would like to request a better weapon. The blade I have is now found lacking for the job. The Feather is fine.

From,

Jaune Arc

Was it proper?

Check.

Was it complete?

Check.

Was it going to get him what he wanted?

...Check?

Well he'd find out soon enough.

Jaune folded up his letter into neat thirds before rolling the parchment into a tube and sliding it into the waiting container strapped to the messenger bird that waited patiently before him. How they got them so disciplined, Jaune couldn't imagine, but he could still appreciate the end results. The avian letter carrier hopped cutely from one foot to the other, anticipating the most cheerful part of its journey. It looked up at him expectantly with wide eyes, chirping once, then twice when some seconds passed.

He smiled and reached into his pack rummaging around for a moment before bringing out a small piece of meat. The bird immediately fixated onto the dried, meaty goodness, small head twitching to follow it's every small dip and dive. Jaune rolled his eyes.

"A gift for the weary." He quietly spoke to the bird. If it understood a lick of what he was saying, it didn't show, more than happy to just reach out and snap up the treat.

It hopped around then, spread its wings, and took off into the sky.

Jaune felt some remorse well up inside of him as he watched his one link back home fly away, zipping into the sky a streak of black. There had been so much he had wanted to say, not to the Council of course, but to his father, mother, and sisters. So much he wanted to express in these short jots of black ink. He wanted to tell them about all that had transpired, to share his struggles and his hardships, even if only with people who were so far away. As he watched the small black form of the bird slowly disappear into the blue sky, he felt his chest well up with a heavy sigh.

The rage had died off now and had been replaced with an emptiness.

Either that or smoldering in the vestiges of his mind, just ready for an errant comment or action to feed life into the inferno once more.

Worst thing was that he couldn't tell which he preferred.

Ozpin's deal still left the taste of ash in his mouth every time he thought of it, but now calmed down, Jaune couldn't help but see some positivity within it.

The esoteric man pushed forward the idea of sweetening the pot so to speak, mentioning the acquisition of soldiers that could be acquired en masse. Soldiers that could number in the thousands. Soldiers that would fight with no fear and no tiring. Soldiers who could die, without dying.

He called them the AK-130's which gave Jaune no real information.

Was that the name of the contingent of this fighting force? Jaune didn't know and upon asking, Ozpin had just given him another indecipherable smile, the bastard.

Soldiers who could die, without dying.

He couldn't even begin to understand such cryptic language, but what he did know, was that Ozpin had promised him a personal meeting with the man who would supply such a force.

One James Ironwood from the northernmost Kingdom, Atlas.

A long trip it'd be, to head so far up North, but lucky for him, he wouldn't have to. Apparently this Ironwood would be coming down to Vale soon where they could negotiate in person. Though if Ironwood was anything like Ozpin, then Jaune was most certainly going to die by aneurism before anything got done.

But bursting blood vessels aside, the time table was already set and as long as the Council agreed to the deal, Shiloh would be set for the coming onslaught. Hopefully they'd send someone to replace him soon so he could head back over and help with the defense preparations. He rubbed his fingers over the pommel of his sword impatiently, a nervous habit many fighters seemed to develop. Fighting Grimm day after day could do that to a person.

"Jaune, we should head for breakfast soon." Ren's voice called out calmly.

He didn't want to leave, rather to stay there and think of home and family. But leave he did, turning around with a sigh.

His fingers never left his pommel the entire walk.

"So, you guys ready for the trip?" Ruby addressed the two teams in between bites of her pancakes, pausing only to swallow and take a quick swig of her milk.

"Don't talk and eat at the same time Ruby." Her partner grumbled in a not-so-quiet voice.

Ruby did a quick cringe, long having accepted the fact that she'd have to survive through the onslaught of disappointed looks and sighs for the rest of her tenure at Beacon. Her relationship with Weiss hadn't exactly shot off to the skies like she had wanted it too and while it hadn't exactly dive bombed so hard it reached Remnants core like she had come to expect, she was now stuck in some quasi-peaceful-but-mostly-chaotic in-between land that had her sweating by the bullets.

Pyrrha diplomatically came between then with a warm smile. Addressing Ruby first. "You're talking about the Forever Fall trip, right?" She nodded.

Ruby matched the gesture, not daring to open her mouth while she tasted the soft, bready goodness. Only after she swallowed did she reply. "Yeah! It's gonna be our first time out of the city limits, right? I wonder what we're gonna be doing out there?" Probably fight Grimm! After all, that's what they were learning to do, right? Miss Glynda would probably have them do some forest cleaning or something like that, not that she really minded though. Clearing Grimm was one of the few opportunities she had to show off her baby. Ruby gently traced the form of Crescent Rose on the table wistfully.

Or maybe they would be tasked with saving some villages! Then she could finally show Weiss what she was made of! Then they could finally be friends because Weiss would see that she was competent and cool like everyone else! Not some... some dweeb or dolt as she usually referred to her as.

"Ruby? Hello?" She snapped back into reality when Yang worriedly shook her shoulder. The hooded heroine gave her sister a confused look.

"What?" She asked with a blank stare.

"I said, did you hear what we were going to be doing when we got there?" Yang repeated. Ruby shook her head at that. When had that information even been given out!? "Apparently we're-"

Ruby's desperately hoped for adventure like saving an entire city from the Grimm, or maybe rescuing people from a gaggle of criminals, or perhaps-

"-collecting tree sap."

Ruby blinked once, then twice, and finally thrice before finally finding her voice. "We're... collecting tree sap?"

"Yup!" Yang popped the word and shrugged. "Guess they need more in the kitchen or something?"

"Wouldn't they just buy some then?" Pyrrha questioned, some disappointment marring her expression as well. Though she probably hid it better than Ruby herself, who's forehead thudded onto the table before her, all hopes of saving face abandoning her.

"Maybe they wanna save on labor costs?" Weiss suggested, though even she didn't seem to believe her statement. No one else seemed to either.

Jaune particularly. Ruby peeked at him from the corner of her arm, the first look she'd given him since they had all entered the lunch room. Her sister had mentioned it earlier, that her first friend who happened to also be a boy –Yang still wouldn't stop teasingly calling him her first boyfriend- was clearly down in the dumps. Despite her own youth, Ruby wasn't so socially blind she couldn't see the obvious mood Jaune had swirling around. Yesterday, he'd looked ready to fight just about anyone had they given him a reason to, which worried her. Jaune was... well he was a bit scary to be honest, but he was a nice guy!

He had helped her earlier and he defended her from Weiss before. He even kind of helped Velvet... Kind of? Point being that Jaune was a nice guy through and through, which is why she was so worried he was being uncharacteristically... virulent.

The looks he shot the professors really sealed the deal though. What they had done to bother him was unknown, but it had to have been terrible to elicit such a reaction.

Lucky today though, he seemed quite mellowed out. Not nearly as angry as before.

Maybe it had passed?

"Jaune," Ruby piped up, raising her head. "What about you? You excited for the trip?" How could he not? It'd be the first time he had seen sights outside of Vale! She was sure he'd enjoy every moment of it.

Sadly, Jaune shook his head. "No. No, not really." He abruptly said. Lips thinning into a line as he stabbed his fork into a pancake. He let it sit there, jutting out like a stake or a gravestone. When it became awkwardly apparent that he wasn't going to continue talking, Ruby cleared her throat and stuttered forwards.

"We-Well I hear it's really nice out there, I'm sure you'll enjoy it!" She threw him a thumbs up and a vibrant smile.

He just nodded silently. Ruby wasn't sure what to think of that. He wasn't so mute before, but whatever had happened seemed to rob him of his usual mannerisms. Heck, even Blake seemed to talk more nowadays!

Ruby just sighed, unable to think of a way to help her friend.

The days just seemed to slogging by now with no rhyme or reason.

Hopefully this trip would be enough of a change of pace to jog something into them all.

"Traffic's getting bad isn't it?" Roman looked up from his clipboard just for a moment to give his chauffeur a most harrowing glare. The henchman stuttered out a quick apology before getting back to driving, or his lack thereof to Roman's pleasure.

Though looking out the window of his car, Roman couldn't help but smile and agree.

Cars were pressed tightly up against one another, each one just barely inches from a fender bender accident. He could hear the intermittent honking horn and shouts of expletives as people from all walks of life frustratingly fought to make their way through the horrendous blockade.

A simple traffic jam.

Roman chuckled as he leaned back in his seat and tapped rhythmically on his clipboard.

Steps one and two were already in full effect and with only mere weeks till the shipments arrived, things were going perfectly to plan. Of course, what that left him with was wondering how he'd eventually extricate himself from Cinder's clutches. Oh he had no doubts the woman planned on stringing him up the moment his usefulness had run its course, both he and Neo if he had to guess. Which meant he needed to make sure he had an avenue of escape for the moment their relationship went south.

He couldn't fight her; that much had been made brutally clear quite early on. He and Neo couldn't even double team her with the sort of firepower she so casually tossed around, not unless they wanted to die together in excruciating pain. No, he'd have to fight her on a playing field he knew he could beat her on.

Cunning.

He knew Cinder was no fool and she wouldn't be caught off guard by simple schemes and simple ploys. Unlucky for her, Roman was no simpleton, no matter what she said or though. She was so certain that she'd be able to handle whatever Roman threw at her, confidence practically oozed out of her every orifice during their scant encounters. He knew that Cinder was expecting him to fight back in some way for control, so he knew that whatever he came up with had to subvert all of her expectations of him.

She could beat him in any sort of physical encounter, that much was clear.

She could track him down easily if he ran, he had no doubts.

So if he couldn't fight and he couldn't run, there was little left, but he'd find a way. No matter what, he'd find a way.

He was unwilling-no, he hated the idea of letting her take all he had built up over the years.

Roman had spent years building himself into the criminal mastermind that he was today. From reading through the endless tomes of laws that governed Vale to cozying up to corrupt politicians, Roman had spent his entire life building an empire unlike any other. Every move meticulously planned to pull him ahead of everyone else who tried to spurn his growth. So many men and women had tried over the years to stop him, and while many had come close, barely scraping a loss to him, all had eventually fallen short of their lofty goals.

His empire had been built up to be more than just a petty crime syndicate and he wouldn't see it crumble to ash, not while he still breathed.

But what would be the plan?

"Sir, we've arrived." Roman was jostled from his thoughts and looked out the window once again to see his familiar warehouse looming tall and dark. He put aside his scheming for the moment, he still had a role to play after all.

His father had once told him something a long time ago, and it seemed to float up onto the surface of his mind, now more than ever.

Life's a never ending game of chess where you can be any piece, at any time.

He'd treated it that way for a while now. A simple game. All the pieces firmly under his control to manipulate and toss to and fro. Cinder was a new piece –she fancied herself a queen at that- one he couldn't control, but that didn't change anything.

If he couldn't move her, than she was just a piece for the enemy.

He'd just have to treat her as such and work around it.

A/N: Filler chapter for now. It's really short to just set some stuff up. Things will move along much faster with the next chapter since we'll finally be getting into things like Forever Fall, the big heist, and some more Shiloh stuff.