Diamond - Convoy escort

If one was to ask Diamond what she thought was wrong abut the situation, she wouldn't know where to begin. "This is just wrong!" she yelled to be heard over the roar of the engine. "Grimm attacks would have left debris and remains, the grimm usually litter the place with dismemberd bits. There's nothing! Lot of concealment in the grass but there's no cover and nowhere to run! And that Rice guy just looks and acts the part for this to be an inside job! To top it all off he even insists on going ahead istead of lettign the bloody tank take th epoint. I don't like this one bit, it smells of an ambush, and not a grimm one!" she shared her worries.

Her paranoia got so high she kept checking around to see what was there to work with. Ideally nothing would happen, but that was wishful thinking. Worst case scenario, well... They only needed to escort two out of the three trucks, and she suppsoed setting the dust in one of those off, considering it was msotly to blast through an obstacle in a mine, would solve a lot of problems that would come in a swarm as the recording mentioned.

Marcus Goldstein - Convoy escort

“I’ll keep it in mind after I get enough time and resources for a proper overhaul. I have a design ready on paper, but that necessitates an entirely new hull. Prior to enrollment I was happy just getting her to run properly. The original Atlesian design was never meant to carry anything bigger than an eighty-eight mill so I had to overhaul the entire chassis to fit the current one-oh-five mill. This turret? Built completely from scratch, that’s two years of work right there. Don’t even get me started on the nightmare that was automating every single system so I could drive solo.” Marcus replied to Diamond’s comment about a cab. It was a good idea to bump it up the priority list though now that for once he had access to a proper workshop. The situation also helped him get a grip on his urge to swear. He still had no idea where that came from, but it happened whenever he mentally merged with the Unsubtle.

“As for the mission, one second. Our representative should have the very latest intel for us.” Marcus added and popped open the hatch. Just in case he pulled up his own findings on his scroll as well. Once out of Vale they were headed for the south-east, about where the Great Plains starts to run into the Canth Hills. As their guide informed them, the biggest concealment they could expect was tall grass and some old Quartz mesas. Ideal tank country: Anything that could get through the armor would be spotted from miles away. While in return he could vaporise said big things at his leisure. His grin faded and was replaced by a more thoughtful stare once he listened to the recovered radio message. The tidbit about eating hinted towards a Ratatosk swarm, but those could not hope to stop a convoy on that sort of terrain.

On top of that came Diamond’s concerns. She was right in that Grimm tended to leave marks. On top of that, the Grimm of the Great Plains had a tendency to roam about rather than stay in a given place. Vale kept a large number of different of roads open across the plains on purpose: With traffic not forced to go through any fixed place, it was an immediate catastrophe if the Grimm blocked any one route. As a consequence the beasts preferred to wander about in huge swarms, devouring whoever was unlucky enough to cross their path.

It was when she accused Rice of treason that he looked up sharply, though he let her finish.

“Do you have proof that Rice is not to be trusted?” he asked. To leave one’s fellow man to the Grimm was one of the few crimes that still allowed for capital punishment in the field, one that even novice hunters could enact at their own discretion. Though it meant a shitton of paperwork for him as team leader.

“As for the positioning, this was actually planned out. Oswald and Aurellius, you get to go and hitch a ride on the first truck with Rice, while Diamond and I are the rear guard. Oswald has local command up front. Once we’re out of the city we’ll go into the standard open convoy formation.” he explained. That meant at least a good one hundred meters between each truck and finally his own Unsubtle. It prevented the vehicles from all being caught in one go once the ambush started.

“Once the ambush happens the trucks that can will go around and keep moving while we engage. Oswald and Aurellius screen for Diamond and me. I provide long range cover while you Diamond get the most important task: There are two tow cables with grappling hooks on a quick-release latch on the rear of the tank. Hook those onto anything left of the ambushed trucks. Once I’m hooked up I tow it out of the ambush zone while we bail out as a group. Aurellius that includes you.” he said this with a pointed stare. While Marcus was not creeped out by his bloodthirsty teammate, he could not let it get to Aurellius' head.

“Remember, we are not sticking around to kill whatever it is that is doing this. Our priority is to get that town supplied first. Should anyone get separated and unable to get back to the main convoy, you get back to Vale, tell them what happened and get help. Questions and comments?” he outlined his plans. Meanwhile the truck drivers started their engines. Rice was in a hurry it would seem.

Underground Casino - Antagonist

In a rundown apartment building across from the supposed location of The Dragon's Den, Team RCJM's contact stands at the window, peering through binoculars at the shady building's entrance. When the Beacon students walks into the room, with it's peeling walls and barren floors, he does not move from his vantage point. "Hey. Take a seat on the couch," he says. The officer continues to stare at the building for another minute of silence, before finally moving away to brief the hunters. He stares at them with a confused expression before finally talking. "So you're who they sent, huh? Well, alright." The still unnamed officer moves to a rollaway whiteboard filled with pictures of seemingly random people and strange notes, all of which are stung together with red string and tape. "My name's Murphy, and I'll be the one relaying you instructions as you try to infiltrate The Dragon's Den," he said as he passed the teens four small earpieces.

"Now, here's the plan. Each of you will be going in one at a time, because if this all goes South it'll be harder for them to find all of you if they don't think you're all involved. When you approach the bouncer, he'll ask 'Where'd you get that sword?' The password to get in is 'It was given to me by the Lady of the Lake.' Once you're in, try to mingle with the other guests for a while. If any guards are watching you, they'll soon lose interest when you blend in with everyone else. When you think you've lost their attention, head to the backroom where there'll be a staircase leading under the building. We suspect this to be where their offices are. We haven't gotten anyone that close yet, so as soon as you're all inside, or at least most of you, contact me for further instructions. I also suggest coming up with some fake identities in case people start asking you questions, but that's up to you. You can go whenever you're ready," Officer Murphy informed them. He then turned back to the window he had previously been watching from and resumed his surveillance.

Someone dropped Sapphire's bag next to her and she quickly felt around for the clasp and opened it. Running her fingers over the contents till she located the medical kit. Cleaning and bandaging a wound blind was not exactly an easy task but Sapphire's pride and perhaps a touch of arrogance wouldn't allow her to ask Abel or Gren for help. Asking Shiro wasn't an option even if Sapphire was open to the idea of getting assistance.

Sapphire cleaned the blood from her wound. It was not particularly deep, not deep enough to need stitches but it still bled enough to be a problem. After discarding a number of blood covered cloths Sapphire applied a cream designed to stave off infection before finally wrapping her stomach three times around. Sapphire tied it off, just slightly tighter than was comfortable to ensure that it stopped the bleeding completely.

The rest of the ride was spent in silence. It took almost ten minutes before Sapphire's sight returned and when it did looking at the scene that met her gaze Sapphire was sorry for what she'd said. No, that wasn't quite right. She was sorry for when she said it and the manner in which she confronted Shiro. A public forum was not a good place for violent outbursts. It was clear from all three of her teammate's faces that it had damaged relations with her.

Sapphire and Abel had never been friends, far from it but they'd had a kind of cold understanding of one another. Sapphire wouldn't have called it trust more a grudging acknowledgement that they need one another. Looking into his eyes now however Sapphire could see the rage held within him. In the stiff way he held himself and how he just avoided her eyes.

Gren was harder to read. Sapphire could read human body language very easily but it was harder with faunus whose anatomy didn't match the same way. Best she could guess was that he understood her outburst but condemned her methods. That was the logical conclusion she could draw with what little she knew about him.

Then there was Shiro, well he wasn't exactly difficult to read. He bore everything he was feeling in the way he held his shoulders and ears and if she was being honest he only really seemed to have four modes. Depression, he hunched his shoulders and tried to make himself as small as possible. Bubbly, he held his ears and head high and embarrassed everyone around him. Ecstasy, the inability to control his movements and the tendency to damage everything with his in reach. And finally nervousness, he'd fidget and keep very still compared to how he normally moved.

In any situation this made him a liability but the way in which Sapphire had handled him had not been productive or necessary. It would have been best to start pounding these lessons into his head during training not right break his bones with them right before a mission. As it stood Sapphire's actions had fractured the team. That didn't mean that it hadn't felt damn good to do it. Those feelings had been brewing in Sapphire since the moment she met Shiro and letting them hit the surface for an instant was like a breath of fresh air.

Soon as they landed the team boarded a boat which delivered them to the animal shelter on the island. After they docked Shiro bolted ahead saying he would start scouting while Abel moved away from the group to check the doors to the Sanctuary. Only Gren stayed by Sapphire's side asking for her orders. "I... I made a mistake. I was angry and I let my rage get the better of me. I'll not apologize for anything I said to Shiro but it was neither the time nor the place for such a fight. It should have waited till after the mission. Now Shiro feels he has something to prove, it will only make him more reckless and in turn more of a liability. Abel is angry which means he's not going to trust what I say and I can't imagine that you're particularly thrilled at what you saw. I'm sorry for that, for damaging our adherence to one another before the mission began but I won't take back my words to the furball."

Sapphire sighed, at the best of times an apology was not exactly her forte but she needed the team together on this even if she had to sacrifice some of her pride to make it so. "If you would follow Shiro around the building, help him scout and talk to him. Tell him it wasn't his fault or there's always next time or something to make him feel better. Report anything strange. I'll go talk to Abel. I've got to live with him for the rest of my time at Beacon I might as well play nice."

Sapphire left Gren to his devices and caught up to Abel who was checking the doors. "Found anything the mission report didn't mention?" she asked. Gren, Sapphire could talk to more easily than the others most likely because out of all of them he was the most like her. Shiro was too bubbly and Abel didn't understand the place that Sapphire acted from. Gren and Sapphire might not be friends but they understood each other better then Sapphire understood the others. The apology came easier talking to Gren but it wasn't something she could launch into with Abel. In fact she wasn't sure she could do it at all. Time would tell.

Shiro blinked a few times before reaching up to rub at his eyes to ensure what he was seeing was real. Lowering his gloved paws, he blinked once more before he was convinced that what he was looking at was indeed real. Reaching up, he pulled back his hood to reveal his own white, furry ears. Sniffing at the air, Shiro carefully scanned all around him to make sure it wasn't some sort of odd trap. For the time being, all seemed clear and peaceful. As he slowly approached the young Bear Faunus, he was a little confused. From his understanding of the mission, the island they were on was abandoned long ago. There shouldn't be anyone there, as far as he knew. Or perhaps he misread something important. Did people live out here, isolated from the rest of the world? Clearly so, as evident by the young boy in front of him.

Nearing the bear cub on all fours, he maintained his distance. His nerves were frayed and he honestly didn't feel like dealing with something surprising and unexpected so soon into the start of their mission. But, eyeing the brilliant green lizard-pet, Shiro started to feel a bit better and at ease. Having encountered another of his kind, sort of. He would prefer to stay away from any humans presently. Smiling, he sat in his usual unique way. With his bottom, feet, and paws all touching the ground in an odd sit-crouch. Tail swaying behind him, he began to question the boy.

"Hey, kid. You're a Faunus too, huh?" For reasons unknown, Shiro felt like restating the obvious, returning the boy's wave although a bit late. "Oh, uh..My name is Shiro, what's yours? Is that your friend?" He motioned toward the lizard, eying it again with rapt curiosity. He started to feel a bit more talkative again. "Why would I be inside? Who are the 'coats' and why would they be mad?" Shiro looked 'round himself again, before turning back to inquire the cub more. "What is this place, could you tell me?" Shiro realized he may have been asking the boy too many questions at once, partially interrogating him. Scratching his ears nervously, he decided to apologize. "Ah, sorry if I'm asking too many questions." Ear twitching, Shiro detected movement and noise behind him. Turning his head slightly, he went to see if one of his teammates had followed him, but didn't dare remove his sight from the young bear cub and his companion completely.

So the plan was to go through the front with the password...? Well, the problem for Jack right now was the mingling aspect, if he avoided talking with anyone and passed by with few words he should be able to easily mingle. His mind worked fast, but he could barely make a new personality for himself on the spot, but it didn't seem to be a requirement, so researching one wasn't needed.

"Right, I guess I'll go first and check the place out, see ya".

---

"Where'd you get that sword?"

"Lady of the Lake gave it to me, pretty nice of her too", the bouncer raised an eyebrow, it wasn't the exact phrase, but it had all the meaning to pass. He simply said 'go on through', and Jack was in. He himself didn't know what to expect while he was in there, so he made it a thing to keep to the edges and away from the main party.

Diamond - Convoy escort

“You know, given that it would help keep me alive, I think I can help with the resources part. But I ran into different problem when I contacted a professor for advice on something I wanted to do - I got stonewalled!” Diamond complained, “They might not let you use the workshop just like she didn’t give me the information I wanted. Instead I got told that we’ll talk provided we succeed here. You might have to wait until we get enough missions done right.” the girl shared her experiences. “It makes a certain kind of sense, but it’s still a pain in the #...”

When he asked for a proof, she shook her head. “If you grew up where I did, you’d think the same. People are not all nice and these things happen, for both wrong and good reasons. A white fang member with easy to hide traits on one side, undercover cop on the other. Maybe I’m wrong, maybe i’m not, but life taught me to be vigilant and skeptical.” she shrugged.

She listened to Marcus’ plan, nodding along the way and memorizing it. She figured the military buff would have procedures like these drilled in memory, and they were time proven. Her own experience was limited to car chases, which was hardly applicable here.

The formulation ‘when the ambush happens’ instead of an ‘if’ did little to ease her mind, although Marcus redeemed himself a little by stressing out the plan was to get the hell away and not to stay and fight. When asked for suggestions, Diamond pointed to the radio they requisitioned to contact reinforcements. “We can use that to keep in contact with the front through the tank’s radio. I’d rather have even half a minute warning if you spot something suspicious.”

A look back confirmed Sapphire's approach. As much as Abel had wanted to forge ahead, waiting for at least a shred of unity had been the better option. If a fit of poor judgment possessed him into doing something stupid in front of someone he was, sadly, stuck with, he would never be able to rise above the categorization of big, dumb muscle. If a person didn't respect, acknowledge, or at least inwardly recognize intelligence, that person could never consider him as anything but inferior. The guardian resolved to show Sapphire exactly what he thought of her later; now, the mission required his attention.

Before he replied, he cast a look back at the entrance. No sign of Gren lingered about the Shelter's front door, so Abel assumed that he had chosen to pursue Shiro. It was perhaps poetically fitting that he'd be paired yet again with the girl with whom he'd partnered during the initiation ceremony. Of course, Abel detested it, but the alternatives were awkwardly hovering about a faunus he knew not how to comfort, or teaming with Gren and leaving Shiro at Sapphire's mercy yet again. Neither appealed to him, so a grudging show of cooperation was in order.

“Animals behind this door. Just a few, pretty light-footed, guessing dogs. Going in.”

Abel pushed open the double-doors and entered. Immediately he discovered that more creatures occupied the room than he had expect, for aside from the couple of dogs moving around, a great deal more -and cats as well- lay sedately in their pens. This large room housed numerous enclosures, ranging in square footage from a small bedroom to a closet based on the size of the pet within, equipped with bowls and several hairy blankets. A quick examination turned up no creatures aside from everyday animal companions. “Thought as much. Place's still operational. These oughta be the normal fare.” He approached a dog pen, knelt, and placed a fist next to the pencil-thin fence for its occupant to sniff. The canine within, a lean specimen with short white hair, icy blue eyes, a black patch on its back, and stiffly-pointed ears, raised its head in dull interest but did not get up. Instead, a pink tongue stretched from its mouth and through the bars to lick at Abel's hand before retracting. Abel flinched, more from weirdness than fright. “They've got aura. Stretchy-tongue semblance? Huh.” He eyed the doors on the other side of the room, metal ones flanked by a sign on the wall that warned about slippery stairs. “People not up here must be down there. Maybe with animals with stronger auras.” Abel rose to his full height, not noticing an attention-desirous marmalade cat brushing against the fence of its pen halfway between him and Sapphire.



Despite the intruder, the young faunus seemed very comfortable. After sparing an curious glance at Shiro's four-legged mode of movement, the boy patted the iguana's side and yawned. He reclined against the stolid lizard's side, gleefully sharing in the warmth absorbed by its emerald-green scales. “Duh,” he replied, more matter-of-fact than purposefully mean, as is a manner common to children not yet fully aware of the laws of propriety. “It's okay. Question games are cool. This is Porridge. 'Is brudders are way bigger, but I think 'e's just right. You haven' met 'em?” Another yawn opened the boy's mouth wide, earning a concerned look from the iguana. His golden eyes were sleepy.

“Uh. The rest-a you guys are inside. I don' see ya very much after you go on, an' the coats...uh, these doctor-kinda guys, they're always really mean about not lettin' me get in and talk to ya, or lettin' ya out and play. You guys are always so sad! Mom told me that they're jus' 'patients'. That means guys who go in hospitals,” he informed Shiro, nodding his head judiciously. “So they need their rest. Dad lets play with some of the an'mals, though, like Porridge.” Those golden eyes suddenly lit up with excitement. He sat up and turned to his iguana. “Watch this! Porridge, GROW!”

At the command, the lizard stiffened, and his eyes, too, shone with viridian light. Right in front of his left claw, the soil began to shift, and a tiny sprout poked its way from the grass, growing at an impossible rate. Within ten seconds the seedling resolved itself into a tiny strawberry plant, complete with three berries ripe for the picking. The boy wasted no time in pulling one off and popping it in his mouth, while Porridge snapped up one himself. Grinning from ear to ear and licking his lips, the boy lay back down. “Isn't it cool! Porridge is the best dinosaur ever! Of all time!”

Mokuren Sabella

Mokuren was put off by the subtly of this entire thing, along with the need to mingle. She did not mingle, and people where disgusting for their demand to do such. Her personality was not one that, mingled. Or spoke. Or care what any people had to say at all, in any way. They where disgusting creatures for which Mokuren held naught but contempt. So when she followed her team to where they where going, and the first of her number passed, she decided to make entrance a little easier for the rest of them. Approaching the Bouncer with her tail swishing, he eyed her for a few seconds before speaking.

"Where did you get that sword?" He asked. And then realized that the fox-girl had suddenly produced an actual sword, that implanted itself in his face without warning, and drained his blood. Mokuren the entered casually, and moved without care to the back room, still clutching her sword and ready to activate her Semblance if she saw any need to.

Luke Schwarze-- Being the RCJM newbie

Woah, woah woah! What the hell?!

This ws an infiltration mission, right?! How were they supposed to get in without arousing suspicion when there's a body lying around?

Of all the ways his first mission could have gone, this was not what he'd have picked, at all. This was jumping into a very deep lake for a swim with a cinderblock tied to your ankle! He didn't really know anyone on his team yet, but this foxgirl... Mokuren?

There was something up, up there, and he didn't want to mess with it. That much, he could figure out easily.

Taking a deep breath, the now-in-need-of-renaming RCJM's newest member tried to clear his head of panic as he returned to the bench he'd been loitering at previously, before Mokuren had moved in. He'd tailed her a bit to confirm that she was in and offer support should it end up necessary, but apparently she was much, much more than enough. Now though, he had himself to worry about. Ghostly pale skin and an inability to make good of a now-complicated situation wouldnt help his team in the slightest.

Alright, what other entrances are there? there's gotta be at least a few side entrances, right? I've already got my cover alias down... Kumagawa Kuro, nineteen-year old gambling addict and social pariah looking for a place to cut loose. That's simple enough.

"I think we don't wanna use that entrance any more." he reported to the rest of RCJM in a low tone. "Guess I'm up next. I'll head through another side."

---------------------------

"Where'd you get that sword, kid?"

He smirked knowingly, looking the part of the smug kid who was totally the member of the secret club.

"Lady of the Lake gave it to me."

Arthurian Legend as a code-phrase, huh?

Interesting.

Being waved in, Luke entered and promptly dove into the crowd.

Outside the Dragon's Den

The bouncer that Mokuren had stabbed laid on the ground, unmoving, with a large hole in his head. Blood would have been pooling around him if it hadn't been for the fact that the fox girl had completely drained him of the life giving liquid. Suddenly, the man's eyes shot open, the irises now turned a bright orange, and a weird brown energy seemingly came out of the ground and enveloped the body. Color began to return to his skin, and the entry and exit wound in his head quickly reformed as if nothing had happened. The bouncer stood up from the ground and turned to face his previous attacker. "Hey! You think you can get away with killing me that easily?!" he yelled at the huntress-in-training. "What? Did you think they'd just let anyone guard the entrance to the Dragon's Den? My semblance allows me to heal all wounds. Basically, I can't die! So come on! Hit me with your best shot, bitch! Or is that all you got?"

The apartment building across the street

Murphy gave a disappointed sigh as he watched Mokuren get taken away by the bouncer. "Team, one of yours just got into an altercation with the bouncer. This is just a status update, your mission hasn't changed. Saving the girl is a secondary objective, continue with trying to get inside the backroom," he told the rest of the team.

Luke Schwarze-- Blending into the Crowd

"Some party, huh?" he mentioned in passing, flashing a grin the way of a couple female patrons. To his pleasant surprised, they smiled back and shot a thumbs up with their free hands. Ergo, the ones not holding drinks.

Probably doesn't count, does it? I ain't so lucky.

Well, whatever. Now wasn't the time to be worried about that beyond whatever'd make him look like a regular crowdgoer. Self-esteem could shove it, he was on a mission right now.

But, logic also dictated that him stopping and engaging in pointless conversation (always a hobby of his) would probably make much more sense than passing with one line, headed straight towards Jack.

Honestly, he was probably overthinking it. Just going with the flow of things would make this a lot smoother. Meticulousness could shove it, he was on a mission right now.

Enrolling in the walking tri-alogue for as long as he would be welcome, he found himself surprisingly at home shooting banalities back and forth. Maybe heading straight into a mission on his first day wouldn't be quite as bad as he thought.

All the while, he kept part of his brain tuned into his left ear, awaiting any updates. Mokuren's entry was going south... he made a mental note of where she'd been, assuming that no update from her meant that she didn't need help yet.

Murphy'd let them know if her communications were offline for another reason, right?

Right. He needed to play it cool for now, and trust the faunus to handle herself. He may not have liked that one bit, but rescuing urges would need to shove it.

He was on a mission right now.

This was a very interesting mission she supposed first thing she arrives she was thrust into this mission oh well she supposed. A huntress's life was often filled with danger and unexpected twists and turns. With a sigh she slid her hood up letting the long "ribbons" of cloth trail downward as she turned up her music as well. If she was going to try and enter it she might as well look like she was some "punk" off the street or some kind of "airhead" would probably be the better assumption.

Cian Kuze flitted towards the entrance of the den her blue eyes dazzling in the moonlight giving it a unworldly glow. As she approached one entrance she waved and smiled brightly at the bouncer. Her music was blaring from headphones draped around her neck as she lowered her bunny eared hood revealing long blackish blue hair. "Hello mister I would like to gain entrance to this here said establishment" she giggled.

With a grunt the and a nod to his own patience he spoke with a gruff voice "Where'd you get that sword, kid?"

"Why I believe the lady of the lake gave it to me." She said with a slight tilt of her head "though If I am wrong I am sure you will tell me wont you mister?" With another grunt ending her from asking another question the bouncer opened the door and ushered her in. She did get the password right after all a bit oddly worded but it was still there. Not to mention it best hurry her in before she speaks his ear off.

Giggling once more and waving bye she skipped into the building till she heard the door slam behind her. "So rude could have at least said something of enjoy your stay or something like that. Though I guess i'm in time to socialize with the locals." Slipping her hood back on and stashing her music player she gripped her strap to what appeared to be a white purse. Though hidden inside was her weapon Byakko still nothing they needed to worry about she supposed. Skipping once into the main proper she worked her way to the middle of the room making small talk to a few people giggling off a few requests to buy her a drink or two and in general making herself seem as she was apart of the crowd.
Getting herself to a stool she sat down this is harder than it looks she thought to herself acting like how she was and generally being a social butterfly when in actuality she was pretty scared out of her wits was kind of fun but ultimately taxing in the end.

Gren Orchid

Letting out a sigh, Gren loaded a regular box of ammo into The God Eater. Before he left Sapphire, he had one thing to tell her. "I'll tell him my thoughts. You should tell him yours. Make sure your SCROLL is working, I'll be send any message to you over it. If it's a text it's because me and Shiro are in stealth." And with that Gren went after where Shiro had last ran. He would use his Semblance to simply skate on over as though he was on ice, but the debris on the ground would actually complicate that a little. As a mental note, he told himself that he needed to hone the ability of his Semblance more. He supposed he ought to bring Shiro along too. Certainly a better alternative than giving him a lobotomy at least.

It didn't take long for Gren to find where Shiro had left. Though the boar faunas did find it strange how... Lacking this place was in security. No guards, no cameras, not even so much as a "No smoking" sign. In fact, this building was awfully... Nondescript. This made Gren uncomfortable. "Nondescript is what I'd call the perfect disguise. this place is so plain and lacking in details that even if someone walked by it everyday, they might mistake it as a different building." But it also meant that leaving any evidence, even so much as a scratch on the wall, would serve to break that illusion as well as clue in something was wrong. So far Gren saw nothing like that, not that it eased his mind any.

Standing a far distance away, hiding in the cover of a large rock, Gren watched Shiro and the stranger he was with. Though he could tell that the stranger was about the size of a child, Gren wasn't going to make such assumptions. For all he knew the "kid" could just be a midget or a dwarf, and Gren wasn't going to go through that ride again. He had to listen carefully to Shiro and the boy at his distance but Gren was able to get most of what was being said. Shiro asked his questions and the boy answered, though some things caught Gren's attention in particular.

"The rest of you guys? Does he mean Faunas? I thought this was just an animal laboratory... And he said sad too. Damn. Are they experimenting on faunas here or something? And this Porridge, I'm sure he has a semblance, but also bigger brothers? And is he really a dinosaur, or is this kid just dim?"

Gren kept his mouth shut and his thoughts to himself. He would approach, but he didn't exactly look diplomatic. He didn't want to scare the kid off when a giant robot warrior with a chainsaw suddenly makes his appearance.

Patrol Mission

Team KESS's arrival to the city's police was a fast one. The Airship only needed to drop them off at the city below, where they were personally escorted by a couple of officers. They looked fairly plain, all things considered. They had fancy belts with guns and batons and other gadgets, but aside from that they weren't very flashy. Eventually they'd meet a police captain who would be giving them their duties for today.

"You kids from beacon? Good. As you know, I have a couple of my beat officers laid up due to sickness. Normally having a few guys off isn't too bad, just means their partners have to pick up the slack, but I've got at least eight officers down cause they all caught the same flu. If I didn't know better I'd think they were just calling in sick for some night around town, but I don't have time to worry about something like that. Recently we've been getting word about some hoodlums causing a mess around town, and sightings of Grimm in the city. I know it's your job and everything to deal with Grimm, but even if you guys can take them out I want you to report any incident you find. Even if you only so much as glimpse as a Grimm, I want you to call in and tell us. We don't got enough man power to protect everywhere in the city equally, but if we could muster all our force at the heart of it all, than it shouldn't be a problem. Same goes with those thugs too. I honestly don't care what happens to those scum, but whoever you find detain and call us in so we could book em. Now, if that's all, here's the patrol I want you four to cover..."

The police captain gave Krystanthe a map of the city, specfically the Commercial District, marking the area they were suppose to patrol. It was fairly large for just the four of them and even the captain admitted that unless the entire team split up to even out the watch, some parts were going to be empty of watchful eyes. He also gave the team a description of the hoodlums that have been terrorizing the city, though all they could really find from their is "their handiwork"; metal chains and lead pipes everywhere where they had showed up and caused mayhem. Most of the places that got hit were robbed, but rarely of anything of actual value such as money or Dust. Typically it's places like drug stores or gas stations that get hit, and the thing that gets robbed was all the food. There were also tiremarks at each scene, suggesting that the perpetrators had vehicles, likely motorcycles.

Team KESS had at least five particular areas they could investigate based on the map that was given to them by the police captain. There was the "ComShops" which sold electronic technology and gadgets, the "Horn of Plenty" named about the big harvest horn were most of the restaurants were at, an area known as the "Red Asphalt" due to some connection to the street racing scene there, "The Land of Walt" amusement park and shopping mall, and lastly a fairly bland and normal commercial district collectively known as "Square Garden" for no particular reason. It has a bunch of miscellaneous shops, like produce stores, mom-and-pop shops, libraries, and knickknacks. It was still fairly early in the day and the sun was high in the sky. So far, nothing of note was going on.

"Oh come, on really?!", the patrons in the bathroom turned to the occupied cubicle where Jack was right now. He emerged from it with a mask on covering just his upper face. They returned to their business just realizing it was someone taking a rough call.

"Alright alright, I'll get right on that", he thought he could relax a little bit and snatch up a few drinks and snacks, but it looks like they needed to fast track this before anyone caught onto their team. Mokuren was always a bit of a pain, the one he assumed their client was talking about who got caught at the front entrance.

"And I thought I was the stupid one...", he seethed under his breath. He disappeared back into the crowds and noticed some guards moving from a particular direction towards the entrance... When he arrived there, there were still a fair amount of guards, but at least he knew that beyond them was where he needed to go... He can't just zip right past them. They needed to 'find' the backroom, not get there... This obviously takes time, since he didn't know the layout. He can't just stab them either.

He needed an opportunity... As he walked around, he noticed one of the patrons had visible equipment on them. Grenades and the like. He spotted a smoke grenade and simply snatched it casually as he walked by, and dropped it to the floor, leaving the pin still attached to the patron. The moment the smoke burst from the grenade, Jack immediately disappeared into the shadows along the edges as the guards would reprimand this patron. It was enough of a distraction to get the two guards to move from that entrance, and so with his semblance he zipped on through, a trail of black lightning visible for only a split second.

"I'm in the restricted area, searching for back room", he was fast, really fast. Able to check every room he passed by, name plates, room names, and so on. He needed the distractions, that way the guards would be scattered in patrols for much longer, making it easier for him to simply dash right past them and ignore them.

Mokuren Sabella. Dragon's Den

Mokuren was indeed surprised that the man she had stabbed in the face got up and started talking. It was quite an ominous display, and he did it really well. The mystery was somewhat ruined by the fact that he told her his Semblance was giving him the regeneration, it didn't lessen the impact.
"Ohh, my. You are quite the impressive man, aren't you?" She asked, slowly walking forward as she did so. "I don't think I have ever seen a Semblance quite like yours. But, I have to admit, the idea of cutting someone apart time and again is quite appealing" She teased, her rather mental persona coming out now. Then, she suddenly lunged forward with an unnatural grace and moved to cut him in half at the hip with her sword.

She hoped her team mates would take this distraction and get on with the mission, but then there was always the possibility that they where all idiots, so Mokuren focused on her target.

KESS- Skyra Dawn- Patrol Mission

During the rather short flight, Skyra managed to change out of her school uniform she had still been wearing when they boarded the airship, and into her combat outfit.
It dawned her, that her teammates hadn't seen her in her combat outfit and only either in her uniform or in her casual clothes, which mostly consisted of a hoodie and a pair of shorts, both kept in a red-black colour scheme.

But her whole wardrobe changed when she dressed in what she used in missions. Everything was functional, had a certain purpose to it, even the colours. The purple and black colour scheme made her almost undetectable at night and in shadows, as well as hard to see during daylight.



She was quiet up until the point where the police captain gave a quick rundown of the situation in their assigned patrol area.

"We should stay together. It might be quite a sizable area, but splitting up is more risky"

Gingerly, she adjusted Aurora Ravager on her back to sit there more comfortably.

Oswald Connolly- Convoy Escort

This was a bad idea. Everything in Oswald's body was screaming at him to run. Rice's behavior, Marcus's plan, everything all pointed towards a very, very bad ending for everybody. He imagined some explosions and screams would follow along. The fact that they'd only seen tracks so far was unsettling. Not even a single Grimm had shown itself.

"Marcus, Diamond's right, this is all screwed up. We should've seen something by now. A Beowulf, literally anything. But it's been silent all the way. I smell an ambush, and not a Grimm one." Looking around, Oswald groaned at the lack of activity. The grass was tall, but only the smallest of Grimm could be hiding down there. Who could be ambushing these convoys?

Only one answer came to mind- the White Fang. Gritting his teeth in frustration, Oswald sighed. Waiting for the enemy to move was always torturous. If they had any advantage, it would be the Unsubtle. Not that that gave him much comfort. They were on a protection mission, not an eradication job. One stray shell would blow half their paycheck to smithereens. He trusted Marcus, but the drivers were another story. Explaining to the Schnee Dust Company that they'd lost the product because their drivers were incompetent at handling combat scenarios would not be a fun job.

Krystanthe pondered over the map and the information they were given, it seemed they had a lot of ground to cover and not enough people. Skyra voiced what she had been about to say, but Krystanthe went ahead anyway,"I concur, splitting up would be be dangerous, however it is an awfully lot of ground to cover. I think it best that we break into pairs and investigate from there, that way we can stay safe but still cover a lot of ground. Group 1 will investigate Comshops and The Horn of Plenty. Group 2 will work Red Asphalt and The Land of Walt. We both end at center of Square Garden. Yeah that sounds good, then we just keep doing that until our shift is over. That makes it easiest to cover the most ground but still make sure no one gets lost or anything. Remember if we find any Grim call in, and if we find thugs then we call in and see if we can't catch them while we're at it."

Krystanthe stomped her boots on the ground and clapped, a sound of finalization. "Alright! Who wants to pair up!? If we can't decide then we fall back to rock-paper-scissors!" she said loudly and waited to see how her team would react. That should be everything. Likely Ebon would pipe up with something boring to say. Krystanthe herself would've liked to be paired up with Skyra because she seemed like the funniest but she should put the team first. Although she made a mental groan at the thought of being paired with Ebon, oh well, he couldn't be that much of a poor sport right?

@PyroDash888@SevenStormStyle@Ryonara

Shiro blinked a few times, processing the curious bits of information the bear cub shared with him. "P-porridge has brothers? That are bigger?" Shiro's eyes gleaned over the lizard at the boy's side, a nervous bead of sweat rolling down the side of his face. "Exactly just HOW much bigger? And where are they at?" Shiro looked around him, there didn't seem to be very much of a forest for them to reside in. Were they all located within the confines of the Shelter? His ears perked, turning back to the young boy. "The rest of 'you guys'? Y'mean other Faunus like us?" Shiro frowned when the boy mentioned how the 'other Faunus' were here for some illness or disease. As far as Shiro knew, most Faunus were healthier and hardier than Humans. There wasn't any known sickness that he had heard of that specifically afflicted Faunus kind. This worried Shiro some, but when the boy decided to demonstrate one of 'Porridge's' tricks, his eyes widened in awe. Shiro watched with sparkling eyes as the green lizard somehow caused a strawberry plant to suddenly grow, seemingly propagating out of thin air. As the boy and lizard took one of the three berries that had grown, Shiro came closer. Ever so curious, Shiro reached toward the third berry with his gloved hand. Withdrawing his hand, he looked to the boy and decided to ask politely first. "Uh. Do y'mind I try one?" After waiting for the boy's response, Shiro plucked the third berry and popped it into his own mouth. Ears and tail perking, it was indeed a sweet strawberry.

As he munched, he looked around himself once more. How had Porridge caused such a plant to suddenly grow when no other plants found life anywhere on the barren island? He remembered during his classes back at Beacon learning that nearly all living things had Aura, sans the Grimm. But, he thought that Semblances were only reserved for the more sentient life forms, such as Humans and Faunus. He had never heard of everyday creatures having Semblances of their own. Blinking, he remembered his mission, and slipped out his Scroll. He was playing the role of Scout, after all. Might as well relay any curious information to the other teammates. Bringing up his Scroll's camera, he took a quick snapshot of the lizard, the boy, and the now picked-clean strawberry plant. Attaching them to a group message, he relayed his findings.

"From: Kuhaku Shiro
To: Abel Fulgerate; Gren Orchid; Sapphire Rode
Subject: Scout Report #1

Body: I ran into this bear Faunus cub. I didn't catch his name, but his lizard friend is named Porridge. The boy mentioned there are other creatures much larger than his lizard friend present on the island, so take caution.

The boy also mentioned other Faunus being within the Shelter, here for some unknown illness that has afflicted them. This appears to be partly a medical facility, so take caution not to inadvertently attack patients or damage any medical equipment.

On another curious note, the lizard demonstrated the strange ability to cause plants foreign to the island to suddenly appear and grow at a very rapid rate. Attached are three pictures I've taken.

Attachments: Strawberry Plant.img, Porridge Lizard.img, Bear Faunus Cub.img"

Shiro hesitated before sending the message to Sapphire too. He was certain that she probably didn't want to hear anything from him, but to deny his own team leader potentially critical information was unwise. Sighing quietly, he hit the 'Send' button and pocketed his Scroll. Looking up at the cub, Shiro decided to ask "So, is there any way you can help me find a way inside?" He paused and decided to appeal to the younger boy's personality, he would have to lie a little though. "I, uh...I want to pay them a visit and maybe make some new friends!" He nodded as if to affirm the truth of his words, "It sucks that they're all cooped up all the time, so I'm sure a friendly face will help them feel not so sad! Especially if I can be a new friend for them! Maybe I can meet Porridge's brothers, too!" Shiro scratched at his ears, offering a bright and disarming grin.

"Wait.."
Shiro thought for a moment.
"Maybe I shouldn't let on that I'm not from on the island originally. Should I act like I was one of those patients who had gotten better?"
He tried his best to hide his thoughts from reaching his facial expression.
"Y'see, I was here sick for some time too. But, the coats helped me get better! That's why the coats let me out today! I've been here so long though, that I'm afraid some of my other buddies might miss me terribly! I forgot how to get around, since I've been here for so long, y'see? So, could you show me around?"
He grinned again, showing his pearly whites. He wasn't the best liar and Shiro knew it, but he hoped the young cub would buy his lies. His lies weren't concrete, but maybe the cub wouldn't pick up on it.
He forgot one thing to ask.
"Oh, uh. Porridge's brothers. Do they have cool tricks like him? That would be awesome if you could help me see that too!"