An awkward silence filled the vaulted ballroom as no one was quite sure what to say. Darkness seemed to be seeping from behind each pillar, pressing down on the inhabitants with all its weight. Nearly twenty people sat around a long table beneath a crystal chandelier . This was the first time that many of them had met, but introductions would have to wait for another time. After all, none of them were sure if those around them would survive this meeting.

"If someone does not answer me right now, I will start asking in a more persuasive manner," came a female voice from the end of a long table. She sat in a high backed seat, made from wood that seemed to have been charred black long ago. A long silvery dress clinging to her figure. Cascading black hair flowed down her back, framing her slim face. A small scowl was running along her lips, and a crease furrowed her brow. But what held everyone's attention was her eyes. Twin pools of pitch black malice glared at nearly every figure lining the table, as the leaders of the Red Fang avoided eye contact.

"Mistress Luna, I'm afraid none of us are quite sure how to answer," A fox Faunus meekly replied while staring down at the table. He sat five chairs away from the woman, in a position with a much lower profile, but he could still feel her dark presence as if she was right on top of him.

"And why is that?" Luna pressed, her gaze focusing on the fox Faunus. "Is it because you don't know how this happened? Or because you were too incompetent to stop it?"

When he didn't reply, Luna closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair. With a deep breath, she allowed her eyes to fall open once more. The dark pools were gone, now replaced with cold, grey eyes. Suddenly, her hand lashed out, striking air, and it was followed by a cry of pain. The fox Faunus was frozen in fear as the goat Faunus next to him grabbed at her neck, desperately trying to stop the bleeding as her severed artery began to drown her.

The goat Faunus gurgled as she slid to the floor, Luna examining the drops of blood now hanging from her fingernails indifferently. With a flick, the blood scattered across the table, and Luna leaned forward once more, resting her elbows on the table. "While I appreciate your willingness to answer me, Vertalis, you are not the one I am truly asking. What I want to know is how we managed to lose three bases, all in the Vale area, in the span of a single week. This, fell to the fool next to you, desperately hoping you would take the punishment for her failure. But even if she was at fault, someone in here can tell me how they did it."

When silence reigned once more, the cold, black light flooded back into her eyes. With a swing of her fist, the stonework of the table fractured, dissolving to dust in the corners as small slabs rained down to the floor. "ANSWER ME! HOW DID WE LOSE THREE BASES? HOW DID WE LOSE THESE BASES SO EASILY? AND ALL WITHOUT THE REAPER EVEN BOTHERING TO SHOW UP?"

"The demons, ma'am…" was the choked reply, as a quivering frog Faunus tried to avoid direct eye contact.

"What about them," Luna asked. "And your answer had better be good, Raz. You were second in command of those bases. I know that they were primarily manned by the White Fang, but Red Fang agents were still present."

"It was the Demons, ma'am. They each targeted a base. The Wraith targeted the waterfront, Shadow the warehouses, and the Angel attacked our forest base. All surveillance was destroyed midway through the attack and the White Fang on site have been of no help describing what exactly happened. All I know is they chose the nights that me and…" Raz hesitated to glance at the goat Faunus, blood leaking from her split artery as she slowly began to dissolve. He almost choked on the smell of wood smoke as a black mist drifted into the air. "It was a night I was patrolling the city center base. From what I have been told, they each used their own methods to initiate the attack. The Wraith conjured up a fog so thick, patrols could not see one another. Shadow did what she is best known for, and the Angel… they repeated what they did on Vytal."

"And what of the Red Fang Chosen?" Luna asked, not taking her eyes off Raz. "Even when the Reaper was on the hunt, we never lost so many in so little time. But one week after they declare their so-called war, we lose a half dozen of our warriors."

"They pick out the Chosen, ma'am," Raz forced out, audibly swallowing before continuing. "Somehow, they all knew. They knew which ones were the Chosen, and they killed them. None of the White Fang were killed, but watching the Chosen be slaughtered has… Morale is low, ma'am."

"But what I want to know is how, you sniveling toad," Luna growled. "All of our troops are ordered to dress as the White Fang do while on White Fang bases. Yet somehow, they were the only ones targeted. They were the only ones killed. Do you know how the Angel of Death killed the three Chosen in the forest base?" When met with silence, Luna continued. "They landed directly on them. Or one of them. The others were killed as the bunker collapsed on top of them. Somehow, those 'Demons,' as you call them, knew exactly where to jump to land on our troops. They even knew what timing to use to get all three at once, despite them breaking protocol and not patrolling together. Now how could they do that?"

"I… I don't know, ma'am."

"Is that so?" Luna asked. "Are you sure about that?"

"Ye… Yes." Raz stuttered.

There was another quick movement, and the sound of a crash as Raz was thrown back into his chair, eyes wide open as he struggled for breath. A small amount of blood trickled out of the corner of his mouth, but he managed to remain upright.

"I will give you a pass this time, Raz. I believe that there is no way for you to know how the Demons are doing this. At this point, even I only have theories." Luna said calmly as the black faded from her eyes. "Consider that a warning. Fail me again, and I will crush your windpipe."

"Thank you for your mercy, ma'am."

"Do not thank me yet. If that final base falls in the Vale area, you will pay with your life. So I suggest you die defending it before you stand before me again." Luna then swept her gaze over the rest of the present leaders. "I'm sure you are all aware I didn't need to call you all in for this. The real reason I called you in, was for an update on our latest endeavor. How has the alliance with those… Supremes, turned out?"

A deer Faunus near the back of the room leaned forward at this, coughing to draw the attention of all those in the room. "The project is entering the final stages, but we have been having problems with the containment systems. It seems that we will need more dust to succeed in this endeavor. Significantly more dust."

"You shall have it. While Eis failed to secure us the Schnee dust mines, we still have half of those in Atlas and two-thirds in Mistral. Will this cover what you need?"

"It should ma'am," the deer Faunus replied respectfully. "However, there is one other problem. The Supremes have started to question what we intend to use the device for. They still believe it to be for energy storage, but a few are being suspicious. How do you wish to proceed?"

"So they finally begin to question us? Perhaps they are not as foolish as they seem. Do not worry about this, child. I will handle this problem. Just continue as you have. The rest of you, we are to enter phase 5 of our operations. You will be given command positions in the Mistralian and Atlesian militaries. Begin integrating your troops as soon as possible, and immediately start converting as many of the regular soldiers as you can. Remember, you can use your presence alone to begin converting those around you. With little effort, we will soon have literal armies of our Chosen."

"But Mistress, isn't this too soon? We have yet to infiltrate Vacuo, nor truly weaken Vale's defenses. We haven't even replaced our fallen agents. Is Lord Eztil so eager to begin fighting the Reaper that he will forsake his own plan?"

With a sharp glare, Luna silenced the dissenter, before calmly replying. "Lord Eztil has been plenty busy replenishing our forces after the loss of both Lion and Bear. You are correct, apart from Eagle, there has been very few Chosen born, and even fewer agents. Any that were close have been killed off by the Reaper and their minions. So, he has decided to face recruitment with his full strength, and I have been tasked with overseeing our plans. Everything is within his provided parameters, and with the Reaper declaring war, it is time to move on to the next phase."

When no more voices of dissent arose, Luna lifted herself from her seat, looking around the room at her comrades. "The end is in sight. The Reaper may have escaped our grasp for now, but they will soon be drowned in our rising tide. Very soon, we shall be the ones standing atop this world, ruling man, Faunus, and Grimm. Very soon, all of them shall feel the Fang's Embrace."

"I still don't think that that was a good idea."

"Weiss, relax..."

"She has never had structure like that. I doubt she would even show up to classes."

"She showed up to mine."

"That's different and you know it."

Ruby and Weiss were making their way down the airship ramp, casually waving over their shoulders to Cassandra as they started into Vale. "She will be fine," Ruby insisted. "Jade and Jordan will take good care of her there."

"So you are trusting a deadly assassin to a pair of students at Signal? I know she won't hurt them, but I somehow doubt that they can make her do anything."

"You'd be surprised," Ruby said with an awkward shoulder shrug. "Besides, Qrow is there. They have nothing to fear. Bell won't cause any problems."

"Fine, if you say so," Weiss conceded. "Take a left up here, the facility is just around the corner."

"You didn't have to rush them in like you did," Ruby chuckled with a smile. "I could make it a week."

"Please, I saw you just this morning have to choose between your breakfast and a bowl of strawberries. I would have smacked you upside the head if you had left that tray behind."

"But they were fresh picked! The garden club had set them out!"

"Not an excuse," Weiss said flatly, grabbing Ruby by the shoulder and steering her into the nearest building. "Besides, they already own the clinic out here, it's simply a branch office. Them making a personal stop only took a small amount of encouragement."

Before Ruby to complain, she was ushered through tall glass doors into a gleaming white room. White tile, white walls, white lights, even white furniture. The glare in the room was almost too much to bare before a young woman in a blue lab coat stepped through a pair of double doors. At her presence, Ruby immediately stiffened, her silver eyes growing cold.

"Ah, you arrived with perfect timing. I am Dr. Talon, you must be Ms. Schnee and her..." The doctor trailed off as she laid eyes on Ruby, a look of annoyance crossing her face. "You again..."

"Yes, me again," Ruby replied curtly, her cold eyes staring daggers through the woman before her. "We really must stop meeting like this, Doctor. I doubt you're companions at the Dragon Isles would want you to meet such an unfortunate end."

Dr. Talon paused, apparently shocked that Ruby would know that last bit, but to her credit, maintained a steady line of thought. Her hazel eyes remained locked with Ruby's silver as she replied, "So that is the reason. I figured as much. Please, don't compare me to those monsters. While we were once allies, that is no longer the case."

"Really? They were only your allies? Is that why you headed up their research? Is that why you insisted that all dust could fuse in one body?"

"That was my thesis, but I never..."

"Is that why you removed the patients safeguards and allowed countless children to die at your hands?"

"Again, do not compare me to those monsters. You seem to know so much, and yet so little at the same time. Let me guess, you got my name from a roster? Maybe the Dragon Isle group photo? How would you know what I took part in?"

"Before that place burned, every one of them claimed that you would prove us all wrong. That you were the best of them." Ruby paused, closing her eyes and letting out a deep breath as her aura flared up around her. Then a confused look crossed her face as she opened her eyes once more. "But I guess they were wrong. You really are different from them."

"Of course I am. That's what I've been saying. I never went through that mangling they called an 'awakening.' Those fools wanted so desperately to feel power, that they would exile what made them strong. Killing a part of yourself, what utter madness."

"Then why did you let them carry on?" Ruby asked, eyes softening.

"As if I could stop them. They outnumbered me, and while I could fight one or two off, and entire facility was too much." A look of sad remembrance crossed her face before she continued. "But what they started doing after I left... I now wish I had at least tried."

The room fell into an awkward silence, as Ruby and Dr. Talon stared at each other across the room. Weiss felt the air became thick, and quickly began to try to diffuse the situation.

"Soooo... you two know each other then?" Weiss said cautiously, almost afraid of the response.

"I suppose you could say that," Ruby said under her breath.

"That's putting it mildly. She only tried to kill me once."

"Your guards stopped me."

"You put two of them in the hospital."

"Well, they stopped me. I didn't say I made it easy."

"Okay then, but that's all behind us now, right? She hasn't tried to kill you yet, right?" Weiss pressed, realizing she was losing ground.

"No, but what is to say she won't?"

Ruby, for her part seemed to have calmed down quite a bit since the doctors entrance. "Relax, I see no reason to now. I thought you had truly become one of them, Doctor. But I see now I was wrong."

"Well, isn't that reassuring. All things considered, I think I will stay over here for the moment, thank you very much."

"But Doctor," Weiss argued, "I brought you out here to give my friend treatment? How could you hope to accomplish this from across the room?"

"Very simply," Dr. Talon replied. "Ms. Rose, would you please step into the treatment area so I can properly examine the injury? Unfortunately, I will have to require Ms. Schnee to strap you down first."

Ruby simply nodded, calmly walking through the double doors the doctor had emerged from. Dr. Talon shook her head before turning to look at Weiss. "I won't ask how you managed to get that lunatic as a friend, but I suppose she is a good friend to have. She's a strong one, but she still respects life, something that's becoming increasingly rare in this world. I've always had the feeling that if she truly wanted to kill me that day, no one could have stopped her."

"I don't know about back then," Weiss replied with a shrug before calmly drifting past the doctor. "But if she still wanted too, not even the earth splitting and unleashing Grimm from Hell could stop her."

"How did you already have these ready?" Weiss muttered in amazement.

"Which parts, my dear? The straps or the arms?" Dr. Talon muttered without turning away from her workbench. There was a half-dozen mechanical arms lining the wall before her, flanked by a strange array of tools. Sparks flew from the arm she was already working on.

"Let's go with both," Weiss conceded as the examined the thick leather straps holding Ruby down. As soon as she had touched them, she felt the Dust running through them, and could tell that even Ruby would struggle to break free. Even Ruby's medical gown, which she had somehow changed into before Weiss even got into the room, seemed to be lined with enough dust to put a hunter's personal armory to shame.

"I have quite a few huntsman and huntress clients. There are times that my procedure is less than pleasant, no matter how much pain medicine you give them. As such, I would much rather have something able to hold them down, before they make the pain much worse. As for the arms, any good doctor in the field knows that you need to have a nice variety for the client to choose from."

"Yet you seem to already have one picked out," Ruby called out from her spot on the table.

"Of course I do. After all, Ms. Schnee did an excellent job in telling me your basic measurements and what you wanted, while your infirmary was immensely helpful in providing an image of the wound so I could design my mounting bracket." Turning on her heel, Dr. Talon held out the arm that she was working on. "This is, quite possibly, my greatest work yet. Hunting-Steel infused with air-elemental dust. Nano carbon filaments woven to bend with each joint. And carefully calibrated water-dust-lubricant designed to flow throughout the arm. Any of these would make this a top of the line model. But that isn't even what makes me proud."

She strode across the white room to stand beside Ruby, lining the arm up with her marred shoulder. "Nerve-imitators are relatively basic in arms like this. It's a bit less common for them to have an aura channel, although there are a number of hunters who have requested it in the past. However, you, Ms. Rose, are the first person I've ever had request something so... intricate. Not many people would consider having the aura channel mimic human veins, and run the entire length of the limb. Had you asked this of any other cy-tech doctor, they would have asked you to leave. It is very fortunate for you that Ms. Schnee knew exactly who to call."

"I do try to do my homework," Weiss muttered.

"And yet somehow, you weren't able to find out what Ms. Rose seemed to know from the moment she saw me," Dr. Talon said calmly as she moved to Ruby's side. "I am impressed that you are so calm, Ms. Rose. During your last attack, you were quite adamant about finishing what you started, but now you don't seem to mind my presence at all."

"You know how it is. Time moves on, we learn new things, and see people in a new light. Shine any light bright enough, and the truth will be revealed."

Dr. Talon shot a confused glance at the IV stand across the room, before turning her attention back to Ruby. "You certainly are an interesting one, Ms. Rose. Most of my patients need a dose of painkiller before they stand rambling on like that."

"Interesting doesn't even begin to describe her," Weiss sighed, giving Ruby's hand a squeeze as the doctor laid the mechanical arm next to her open shoulder socket.

"Yes, well, I hope that enduring does, because I have unfortunate news for the both of you." Dr. Talon looked first at Ruby, then at Weiss, her eyes softening in apology. "The damage done to her shoulder is worse than I feared. I know you told me it was blown off, and the images sent by the infirmary seemed to support that, but this is more than that. It's almost as if the arm was removed piece by piece, a sliver at a time. Even the nerves were picked apart. If I sedate her, I'm afraid I only have a 5% chance of successfully connecting the nervous system. If you want this to be a success, you must remain conscious, and unmedicated, so I can get realistic responses."

Weiss felt her eyes go wide with shock, but before she could protest, Ruby gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. Weiss looked down at her injured leader, and felt the worry leave her as Ruby's confident eyes stared back at her. Without breaking eye contact with Weiss, Ruby replied, "It's fine, do whatever you need."

Calmly, the doctor reached under the bench, and pulled out a bundle of flat wooden sticks. Handing them over to Weiss, she said flatly, "Let her bite down on one of these, have another one ready should she break it. I fear this may go on for some time."

Time no longer mattered to Weiss. Had minutes passed? Hours? Days? She couldn't tell. Every moment that passed seemed to stretch on forever. All she could do was hold Ruby's hand, and wait for the procedure to end. After all, she had called the doctor in. She had to see this through. But it was becoming so hard. Especially with the screams.

Weiss had never heard such a sound from Ruby before. Growls, yes. Grunts, definitely. Even groans. But never this. A high-pitched howl that seemed to echo around the room, making every cell in Weiss's body squirm with unease. Ruby had long ago snapped every stick between her teeth as she tried to suppress the screams. All the doctor had done was shrug before carrying on. Weiss understood, of course. The procedure couldn't be stopped mid-way through. Not without risking serious nerve damage. But it was so damn hard, to know that every time that woman used a tool, it would make Ruby scream. With every motion, Weiss felt Ruby's hand tighten. And Weiss had long since lost feeling in her fingertips. But she couldn't let go. She couldn't leave Ruby here.

Weiss's scroll had buzzed incessantly for a while near the beginning. Probably Blake. Even without telling her, there was no doubt in Weiss's mind that Blake knew exactly where they were. Or what was happening. 'Probably should have warned her,' Weiss thought, breaking the silence in her own mind. 'I hope she hasn't felt too much as well.'

Gradually, the howls faded into moans, and eventually, just exhausted pants. With a tired sigh, the doctor fell back into her chair, letting her head loll back and her neck to crack. Eventually, she rolled her head around to face Weiss, and gave her a weak smile. "That one has a set of lungs," She said jokingly, allowing her gaze to fall on Ruby.

"You should hear her when she's in leader mode," Weiss replied, finally allowing her eyes to fall to Ruby's shoulder. Dark red metal encompassed the upper right portion of Ruby's torso, with a deep ball socket transitioning into a pitch-black shoulder. The arm itself was covered in black plating, with each joint exposing the crimson nanofiber. The five fingers were already twitching as Ruby slowly returned to the waking world. As if she were afraid to break her, Weiss slowly reached out and slipped her fingers between those metal ones. Surprisingly, they were somewhat warm to the touch.

"That was a personal touch," Dr. Talon said lightly when she noticed Weiss's confused look. "It helps her feel more human. It's the least that people deserve after going through this."

"I'm sure she'll appreciate it," Weiss replied with a tired smile. "I know that I do."

The doctor paused for a moment, glancing over her shoulder at Weiss before sighing lightly. She made her way to the door, waving without turning all the way about. "There's nothing more I can do for now. All the tests came back clear, but we won't really know anything for at least a week. I don't plan on going anywhere, so bring her on by around then."

"But I thought…" Weiss went to interrupt, remembering how much she had paid the doctor to change her schedule for this procedure.

"It's nothing major. Most my clients can afford to make a trip to Vale. Even if they can't, I can cover them. But after a procedure like this, I'd much rather have her close by, should something go wrong. The sad fact is, rejection is a real possibility. Especially among the Faunus." And without saying anything more, the doctor pushed her way out of the operation room, presumably into her office.

A resounding silence came over the two young huntresses. The only noise that could be heard was Ruby's breathing as she gradually regained consciousness. Weiss found herself entranced in the sound, allowing her own breathing to fall into a matching rhythm. Slowly, Weiss's eyes began to travel back up the metallic arm, taking in as much of it as she could, memorizing how all the parts came together to form a new part of Ruby.

When her eyes reached the shoulder, Weiss's breath hitched in her throat as she finally noticed the flesh leading to the metallic mount. Long pale lines splintered out from the frame, standing above the rest of the skin, before disappearing back underneath the operation gown. The discoloration was so severe, it took Weiss a moment to realize they were scars.

"Oh, Ruby…" Weiss mumbled, allowing her hand to slide out of Ruby's and to travel the length of the arm. With a feather touch, Weiss started to run her fingers along one of the larger scars. However, the moment her fingers started their journey, Ruby's eyes shot open, and her unbound hand shot upwards, grabbing Weiss by the wrist.

A gasp escaped Weiss's lips as she felt the iron grasp wrap around her wrist, but she did not pull away. She found herself frozen in place, entranced in the cold gaze that was locked upon her. Just by looking at Ruby, she could tell two things. The first, was that the young girl had reacted purely out of reflex. The sheer force clamping around her wrist was proof enough of this. The second, however, caused Weiss's heart to sink into her stomach.

Ruby still had yet to awaken.

The silver eyes locked on her were filled with an intense light, and seemed to radiate danger, but there was a thin film over them, as if she was looking through a veil. They didn't seem to actually focus on Weiss, as they started to scan the room, seeking out hidden dangers.

And as quickly as it happened, it ended, with Ruby's eyes blinking away the veil, and the pressure on Weiss's wrist lessening ever so slightly. Rather than use this moment to pull away, Weiss used her free hand to clasp the one holding her in place. The action garnered immediate response, and Ruby's head swung around to face her once more.

"Welcome back," Weiss whispered while smiling weakly. She felt the hand begin to slip away as Ruby realized what she was doing, but Weiss instead tightened her own grip, keeping the hand in place.

Ruby struggled to return the smile, allowing Weiss to hold her hand in place. She opened her mouth to reply, but found that only hoarse croaking sounds were able to escape her lips. She quickly closed her mouth, a slight amount of shock crossing her features as she quickly tried to activate her aura to heal her exhausted throat. However, the moment she did, a massive pain flared up in her body, radiating directly from her newly reconstructed shoulder. The gasp of pain that escaped her lips was quick and low, but there was no way to hide such a reaction from Weiss.

"Ruby, don't force yourself!" Weiss called in alarm, her hands shooting to Ruby's shoulder as a white glow encompassed them. The sudden movement only caused Ruby's face to twist in pain once more are Weiss accidentally pressed on the still recovering flesh, but the pain melted away as the soft white glow of Weiss's aura spread out, working to heal the harmed flesh.

Ruby's face calmed once more as she gave Weiss a small smile. "Thank you," she whispered, her voice sounding as if it grated on sandpaper. "It's fine now, I just circulated my aura too fast and woke the nerves back up."

"Even so, you need to be careful," Weiss replied, even as she retracted her hands. "No matter how you look at it, you just had a major surgery, and your body needs time to recover." A thought seemed to cross her mind and she suddenly rose from her seat. "You stay here and don't move, I'm going to go see if the doctor has any pain medicine she recommends. If it's not here, I'll have it here before the day is out." Before Ruby even had a chance to reply, Weiss was on her way out the door, calling out to the doctor with her question.

Ruby laid her head back, performing a mental double check on her body, and becoming gradually more surprised with what she found. She could feel her heart beat pulsing through her body, sending blood to each of her limbs. But, somehow, she could feel it in her newest attachment as well. It wasn't quite clear if this was a phantom feeling, or if her aura was pushing coolant along the metallic arm's length, but she could clearly feel it. It felt like it had always been there, and that it simply belonged.

Moving as gingerly as possible, Ruby raised her head up. Beside her was a glaring difference as the red plating contrasted with her pale white skin. Even to her, it looked foreign. But this was how it was now. She could see where the shoulder mount molded onto her flesh. She could feel where the nerves stopped being natural, and switched to artificial. But most importantly, she could feel right where her thumb grazed against the thigh. With no small effort, she rolled her hand over, brushing each fingertip softly across her leg, up until all 5 rested against it. Carefully, one finger at a time, she began to tap out a soft rhythm.

So its been a bit. I really don't have much to say on that besides writers block and life put together do not make for a good chapter. It took me over a year, but I'm back, so that's what matters, I guess. To everyone who messaged me and sent me reviews asking for more, thank you for your eagerness and your understanding, especially those of you who I told this would be out a lot sooner. Even the best laid plans of mice and men and whatnot. But, that's enough rambling here, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, I'm hoping the next one won't take near as long.

On a different note, Extra Life is coming up this Saturday, November 4th. For those of you who don't know, Extra Life if a 24-hour stream marathon where donations are accepted for various charities, but in particular children's miracle network. As I am sure most of you are aware, Rooster Teeth takes part in this as well. Well, this year, I will also be taking part with Legion205. We will be streaming for this charity starting at Noon eastern time, and will go for the full 25 hours, thanks to time change. Even if you don't watch us, I hope you will find someone to watch that you enjoy, and donate to a worthy cause.

Thank you all for your patience, and I hope that you will continue to enjoy this story.

You all seem to think I'm always make chemistry puns, but I only do it periodically.