Team SWRZ Volume 2 - Chapter 9 - Until Tomorrow!

"This day can't get any worse," Rowan Cassidy thought bitterly as she and her partner, Zorina Teufel, got escorted down the street of Asago Village. Their hands were secured and bound together by Gravity Bolas. It's safe to say her little visit to the crash site didn't exactly go as planned.

What was supposed to be a quick, in-and-out operation turned to complete shit once the frightening Atlesian Officer arrived. Now Rowan and Zorina were being transported to God knows where. Any attempt of conversation typically earned them strikes to the head by the gung-ho officers.

Getting a great view from his vantage point, Schwartz der Hund looked down to the scene with glee. "Remember back when Rowan said I was the trouble maker of the team?" He looked back to Watchet with the widest grin. It's karma at its finest work. He never thought he'd see the day of Rowan in trouble with the military. The opportunity to gloat is too good to pass up.

Schwartz couldn't let this chance slip away. He eagerly opened the window and jumped out into the middle of the street. The military officers instantly turned their guns on him. They were seconds away from firing until the Lieutenant waved her hand out.

"Don't shoot," She commanded.

"Oh no," Rowan groaned, knowing nothing good would come out of this now that Schwartz was here. It was already bad enough she got apprehended by the authorities. But now, her team leader was most likely here to make matters worse.

"Leader!" Zorina desperately called out to Schwartz.

"What are you doing here?" Rowan complained, using a tone unbefitting someone in need of rescue.

"I wanted a front-row seat to your walk of shame," Schwartz pulled out his scroll and focused in on Rowan's infuriated face. "Smile!" He snapped a picture. Yup, that was going to be his home screen for a while.

Rowan gritted her teeth at the young man's insensitive and immature antics. It was what she expected from him. But it didn't mean she didn't want to strangle him. Her hands being bound was his only saving grace.

The Atlas Lieutenant eyed Schwartz carefully. He was quite brazen to impede the march of her men. "I take it you know this girl?" She inquired.

Schwartz heaved a sigh before answering, "I know them both, unfortunately."

The other students trickled out from the inn and stood behind the black-haired young man.

"More of you?" The Lieutenant set her hand on her hip, dangerously close to her holstered gun. She didn't intend to use it yet unless the students gave her a reason.

"Excuse me, ma'am," Watchet politely addressed the Lieutenant. "Those are my teammates you have apprehended there. Would you mind telling me why?"

"Hm, all of you are students?" The Lieutenant glanced at the children suspiciously.

"Yup, from Haven Academy," Schwartz nonchalantly announced.

"See? I told you we weren't lying! Now let us out of these!" Rowan said to the Atlas Officer with a scowl. All the time she wasted trying to prove her innocence, and the Lieutenant refused to listen to a single word.

The officer shook her head. The audacity of this child, demanding her freedom despite the crimes she committed. "Regardless if she's your teammate, it doesn't excuse her crimes. I will not release her, even if you beg me."

Schwartz scoffed at the notion. Him? Begging? That would never happen. He'd never lower himself to that state.

"You've got it all wrong, sweet cheeks," The Lieutenant's eye twitched upon hearing Schwartz's flirtatious remark. "You can keep her locked up for all I care."

"You're insufferable!" Rowan exclaimed.

"Schwartz..." Watchet sighed. Why couldn't they get along like a regular team?

"If there's nothing else, then get out of the way. You've wasted enough of my time." The Lieutenant gestured for her men to continue with their march.

"Hold on!" Watchet stepped forward. If the team leader wouldn't act, then he would. "To what crimes are you referring? I assure you that this is all a huge misunderstanding."

"What's a misunderstanding?" The students parted and allowed Professor Lilith Hale to stand front and center. She locked eyes with the Lieutenant and glared at the Feline Faunus.

"You," The Officer spat, her tail curling in anger at the sight of the woman. "What are you doing here?"

"What's it matter to you, Joan?" Lilith responded.

"That's Lieutenant Stark to you!" Stark snapped. Her face seething with rage.

"Why do you have two of my students contained?" Lilith quickly changed the subject, swiftly taking control of the conversation. That proved to upset the Lieutenant even further.

"Figures they would be your students," Stark sneered. Her tail swayed playfully behind her. "No respect for rules, authority, private property. We caught them trespassing on our crash site. They assaulted my men and destroyed some of our androids."

"It really speaks volumes when mere students can embarrass you, Atlas "Elites," Lilith smirked, prompting Stark to grip her holstered gun.

"This isn't a game, Lilith! I'm holding you responsible for their actions!" Stark pointed at the smug Huntress. Her men trained their guns on Lilith. "They've interfered and derailed our investigation! And since you're meant to look after them, I might as well apprehend you too!"

"I don't give a damn about your investigation! One way or another, my students are coming back with me!" Lilith took a step forward despite the number of weapons trained on her.

"Not a chance," Stark retrieved her gun from its holster and rested it at her side. She wouldn't be the first to shoot. It had to be a case of self-defense.

"This'll be good," Schwartz chuckled, waiting in anticipation for the inevitable fight. He'd seen the professor spar now and then. But he never saw her in a real fight. The Atlas Elite looked tough, from what he could tell. So a catfight between them was sure to get his blood rushing.

"Oh, here we go," Watchet shook his head and directed the students off the street. They couldn't get caught in the crossfire of their fight.

Lilith approached Stark, standing face to face with the Faunus. The two stared each other down, just begging for one of them to make the first move. The first to break the tense silence was Lilith as she said, "I don't have time for this. Innocent lives are at stake, and I can't waste time here with you!"

"What are you babbling about?" The tension between the two women seemed to settle once Stark set her gun back in its holster.

"Children have been kidnapped, and I need all hands on deck to rescue them. After that, we can work on my students." The Professor bargained. Under any other circumstances, she wouldn't be caught dead making deals with Atlas. But now wasn't the time for personal grudges.

The lives of innocent children hung in the balance—every second wasted meant danger for the twins.

Stark stared into the purple eyes of her rival. They were as cold as she remembered and yet determined all the same. "You're not lying. I'll give you that much." She raised her hand and signaled for her men to release the prisoners. The soldiers were hesitant at first but ultimately followed directions.

"You're letting us go? Just like that?" Rowan eyed the officer suspiciously. Something wasn't right. That was far too easy.

"For now," Stark replied with a nod. "But, I will accompany you on this rescue mission."

"What?" Lilith narrowed her eyes.

"To ensure you won't try and run off afterward," Stark stated in her case. "I won't absolve them of their crimes just because they're students."

"Fine," Rowan reluctant accepts the answer and returns to her team along with Zorina.

"Welcome back," Schwartz smirked at Rowan. Now the team was back together.

"Piss off," Rowan flipped him off.

"Are you two alright? What happened?" Asked Watchet. It wasn't like the girls to get themselves captured and arrested, let alone commit crimes. He expected that from Schwartz, not them.

"Who cares about that? Get back to the twins! What happened to them?" Rowan asked.

"It turns out the couple we dropped them off with were imposters," Lilith bitterly revealed. "I went by the house, and they're gone."

"I knew I should have drunk their blood!" Nagina complained.

"Do you have any clues as to which way they went?" Amani asked.

"None," Lilith shook her head. "We should split up and ask the villagers if they saw something."

"That's as good a plan as any," Schwartz shrugged and went along with the plan. The group split and asked the villagers around, giving them detailed descriptions of the twins and the imposters. They reconvene a half-hour later at the entrance to the village when they receive a call on their scrolls from Watchet.

"Everyone's here? Good," Watchet smiled when the group arrived promptly. "I've received news from a villager that the imposters took Brulee and Maple out through this entrance."

Nagina stepped forward and spotted the footprints heading in and out of the village. For the ordinary observer, it would be difficult to differentiate them from others. But for the well-trained tracker of team ARNC, it was a piece of cake. She could easily tell the old ones from the new ones--if anyone was injured, judging by the depth of the footprints and much more.

"I got the footprints! They went this way!" Nagina announced and took off down the path leading into the forest. Her teammates followed close behind.

"Back into the forest, we go," Rowan shook her head and reluctantly followed the second-year team. She'd had about enough with forests, especially since she never got the chance to take that well-deserved shower of hers.

"Aren't you coming?" Lilith glanced over to Stark and her men. Not that she wanted the Atlas officers to follow her group, but something felt wrong with how slow they were to move their asses.

"We are waiting for our transport ship," Stark replied. "We will follow from the sky. Try not to get yourselves killed out there."

"Hmph," Lilith shook her head and led her remaining students back into the forests.

"Ma'am," One of Starks subordinates approached her. "Our mission has nothing to do with them. Why are we wasting our time?"

"I believe our missions are connected in some way," Stark answered. "Our transport ship was attacked near this village, and now an escorting mission turned to kidnap? I don't believe in coincidences? Do you?"

"No, ma'am," The young soldier shook his head.

"We will follow them and see where this leads us. If it's nothing, then we will arrest them and continue where we left off. However, if it leads us to our target, then fortune may have smiled down upon us," The Feline Faunus smiled.

"Quit struggling!" Blane demanded from the comfort of the campfire. He glanced over his shoulder, witnessing Brulee and Maple trying to escape from their restraints. After trying to escape in the dead of night again, he and Prim were left with no other options than to tie them up to the tree. The brats proved more trouble than they were worth. The easy operation turned completely on its head.

"If you promise to be good and not try to escape again, we'll feed you," Prim approached the girls with a bowl of soup, freshly prepared. "We'll be at our new home soon. The more trouble you cause us, the longer it will take to get there."

"Fuck off!" Brulee furiously kicked at the woman.

"Naughty child," Prim shook her head, disappointed by the lack of etiquette shown by the child before her. Her gaze moved to Maple, hopeful that she was the most sensible of the two. "How about you? Do you wish to starve along with your sister? There's no reason for both of you to suffer. She's clearly the trouble-maker. Don't let her drag you down with her."

Maple looked away from Prim. How many times has she heard that--people telling her not to let her older sister drag her down? Is that how they saw it? Every time people tried to drive a wedge between them, she made sure to cement her stance on their relationship.

"My sister isn't dragging me down! Don't you dare speak badly of her!" Maple looked to Prim, an intense fire of determination burning in her eyes.

"You tell her, Maple!" Brulee happily encouraged her sister. No matter what, the two would always be in it together.

"Shame," Prim turned her back to the twins and returned to her partner with the bowl of soup, ignoring the insults the children hurled at them. "Those brats are giving me a headache."

"What do you expect? They're from that godforsaken orphanage," Blane shrugged his shoulders, knowing that there wasn't much any of them could do about it at that point. His well-earned money was already spent, and they weren't far from their destination. One more day of travel, and they'd be good to go.

"These two better be worth all this trouble," Prim set down her bowl and sighed. "Why is it that we're the ones that have to take all the risks?"

"It's our job," Blane stated plainly, earning an irritated groan from his partner. "We finish this up, and then we're golden. Quit complaining and take the first watch."

"What?!" Prim exclaimed. Blane got up without another word and walked into his tent, wanting to get a few decent hours of sleep before the big day tomorrow.

"What are you going to do to us?" Brulee asked.

"Nothing, as long as you play nice," Prim replied, her usual soft and nurturing tone vanished. "This is supposed to be a smooth transaction. It's nothing personal, kids. It's just business."

"What kind of business deals in kidnapping children?" Maple asked.

Prim chuckled in response. These kids had a lot to learn about the real world. They thought they had it bad living in the orphanage? Poor, sweet, ignorant children. They knew nothing of the horrors the adult world had in store for them.

"The way I see it, you kids have two options," The woman raised two fingers with a sinister smile, more befitting of her true nature. "One, be good, and let us take you to your new home. Or two, keep slowing us down, giving the White Fang or Grimm more opportunities to catch up to us. I promise you, if it comes to a point when we need to choose between saving your lives or ours, we'll choose ours."

"You're pathetic!" Brulee spat. "What kind of adult would abandon children?!"

"It depends on the circumstances, but in our case, smart ones," Prim answered with sadistic confidence, frightening the Faunus twins. "I'm not going to let a bunch of snot-nosed brats weigh me down. I don't care about the job. My life is far more important."

"That's horrible," Maple lowered her head.

"Survival of the fittest, kid. You'll learn that lesson soon enough," Prim assured them. "Now try to get some sleep. You've got a big day ahead of you."

"You think we can sleep like this?" Brulee complained. "Let us out, or else we'll scream."

"Have you forgotten what I told you? You'll attract Grimm if you do that." Prim warned Brulee against the suicidal idea. One wrong move, and the Grimm would swarm the place. She wouldn't hesitate to leave the children and escape the forest with her partner. They could always get more children.

The twins realized the dangers of that plan and reluctantly fell silent. Was there really no means of escape for them? Where were they headed the next day? Not knowing frightened them beyond belief. But, what could they do?

They had not the bravery nor the strength to fight back against their captors. All they could do was keep their heads down, follow directions, and pray that someone would rescue them in due time.