The sound of animals and trees as I ran was terrifying—one of the most horrifying things you can hear when you're being hunted. It only lost to the sound of footsteps behind me.
I'd been running for so long that every heartbeat shook my entire body. If this kept up, they'd catch me soon. With the last of my strength, I threw myself behind a tree—just in time to dodge an arrow that would have pinned my leg.
Too bad it didn't stop the arrow from leaving an ugly gash.
"Shit!" I yelled in pain.
Who the hell uses arrows these days?!
"I hit him!" one of the bastards shouted.
I whipped my head in every direction, searching for an escape, until my eyes landed on a waterfall—the start of one, to be precise.
I forced myself to stand and twisted toward my only possible hope. I hesitated when I reached the edge. The idea was good, but in practice it was awful: the drop was so steep my body ached just looking at it. Things got even worse when I saw one of them had caught up.
"Tired of running, Schnee?!"
"...Honestly, yeah," I answered truthfully, not even trying to hide my panting.
A big Faunus with horns, wearing a Grimm mask. Strangely, he wasn't in uniform—instead, he wore a large robe.
"Didn't they have a uniform in your size?"
That seemed to piss him off even more, and now he definitely wanted—and could—tear me in half.
"It's over, Schnee," he growled, voice low and heavy. "No more running. No more hiding. This ridiculous game is done—and you're terrible at it."
He paused, his smile widening behind the mask.
"What's it been... twelve hours since you turned into a little bunny and hopped out of camp?"
Ten or twelve hours. Since the explosion early that morning. The sun was low now, golden light turning orange. I'd run all day—stumbling through the dark forest, hiding, running again. Legs burning, stomach empty, the cut on my leg throbbing.
My hand instinctively went to the holster at my waist—the Glock was still there, loaded. For a second, I considered drawing fast, aiming at this idiot's head, and ending it.
I didn't want to kill anyone else... I'd have more nightmares, but at least I'd be alive to have them.
Then I heard branches snapping behind him. Heavy footsteps. Muffled voices.
I gave up immediately. My hand slowly left the holster. One against one, I'd risk it. One against a whole squad? No fucking way.
Two of Raven's tribe bandits emerged first—filthy, one with a crude bow in hand, the other with a club, looking pissed for wasting the day chasing a "rich kid." Right behind them, two more White Fang with firearms.
Five now. I was sure there'd been a sixth guy.
Perfect mix: Raven's crazy bandits and the White Fang fanatics, all after the same prize.
I took a step back, closer to the edge. The waterfall roared, water spray soaking my back.
"What happened to the other one? The little guy with a tail?" I asked, nodding toward the empty space beside them, my voice anything but steady. "Get too hungry, big guy?"
The big one ground his teeth.
"He fell into a pit while chasing you. Some Grimm took care of the rest. You'll have similar luck if you don't come quietly."
The others chuckled low.
I laughed too—nervous, but loud enough to annoy them.
"Grimm eating White Fang? Kinda ironic, you know? Because of the mask and all."
The silence that followed was heavy. Nobody found that funny.
One White Fang—the skinny one who'd just arrived—stepped forward, slowly raising his rifle until it aimed straight at my chest.
"Shut your mouth," he said, voice low and controlled. "Sienna wants you alive. But nobody said you have to be in one piece. One less leg would still teach the lesson."
The bandit with the club stepped closer, slapping the weapon into his palm.
"Or without a tongue," he added, grinning with yellowed teeth. "To stop you from talking shit."
The big guy in the robe crossed his arms, his horns casting shadows over his face.
"Choose fast, Schnee. Quiet, or in pieces."
Five guys circling me like wolves.
Raven was probably back at camp, dealing with the chaos I'd caused—smoke, injured. If I went back there, she'd definitely beat me worse than these guys.
Would this Sienna woman take a deal?
No, I think she might have an even worse temper than Raven.
I'm terrified of jumping. I'll probably die.
The drop is too high. The water below is white, foaming—looks like concrete. Even if I somehow survive the fall, the current will drag me, spin me, drown me. Pain, cold, darkness, end.
But if I go with them... I'll die too.
Maybe not right away. Maybe slowly.
Cage. Punches. Knife. "Example."
In the end, same result.
Just without a choice.
I backed up another centimeter. My boot slipped on the wet rock. The spray hit my back like the waterfall was already pushing me.
The fear was so intense it paralyzed everything. My heart was pounding so loud I was sure they could hear it. Breathing short, almost hyperventilating.
The big guy gave his final ultimatum.
"Decided yet?"
I took a deep breath. Once. Twice.
I looked at the waterfall. The void.
Looked at them again.
Smiled. A crazy, wide smile—the most arrogant and desperate one I could pull from inside me.
"Remember this day, gentlemen..." I said, voice hoarse but loud enough for all of them to hear. "The day you almost caught the great and magnificent Whitley Schnee!"
The big guy blinked, confused.
"Wha—?"
I stepped back.
Fell.
The wind screamed in my ears like a thousand Grimm.
The world spun—orange sky, rocks, white water, sky again.
My stomach rose to my throat.
I thought maybe I'd die.
I don't wanna die.
But at least I'd die choosing.
The water hit like a punch.
Impact.
Pain exploding in every bone, every muscle.
Absolute cold swallowing me.
Everything dark, spinning, sinking.
I don't wanna die.
Lungs burning. Icy water forcing its way into my mouth, my nose.
I kicked. Kicked again. But the current was stronger, spinning me like I was nothing.
Vision darkening at the edges. The cold seeped into my bones, like it wanted to freeze me from the inside.
This is it.
I'm going to die here.
At the bottom of a river in Anima, alone, as always.
Will my family even care?
I think Klein might be a little sad.
I don't wanna die.
…
…
…
I don't wanna die…
Light.
White, with shades of blue, exploded from my body, lighting up the water around me like I was a falling star.
The current lost strength for a second. The cold retreated. The pain turned into a warm tingle running across my skin.
Aura.
My Aura.
It formed like a second skin—thin, glowing, pulsing around me. The pain in my back and ribs dropped to a bearable throb. My lungs stopped burning as much.
I kicked again—harder, faster.
Swam upward. Arms slicing through the water like it was less dense.
I broke the surface.
Air.
I gasped deeply, coughing up water, panting, but breathing.
The current still tried to take me, but now I could fight it.
I swam sideways, toward the shore.
Reached a large rock, grabbed it with my hands, and pulled my body out.
Collapsed onto the wet earth, belly down, coughing out the rest of the water.
The Aura flickered one last time and vanished, leaving only absolute exhaustion and the feeling that something had changed.
"Heh heh…"
"HA HA HAHAHAHAHA!"
The laughter came on its own—hoarse, uncontrolled, like my body had been saving it all to let it out at once.
I laughed loudly, echoing through the empty forest.
Laughed until my stomach hurt, until tears mixed with water on my face.
"I survived…"
.---.---.---. 3rd person.---.---.---.
"Where is the Schnee?!"
Back at camp, the air still smelled of smoke.
Sienna stood in the center, arms crossed, her amber eyes locked on Raven—who was tending to the wounded alongside Vernal—as the five returned: dirty, panting, weapons lowered, faces pale in the firelight.
The biggest one, the Faunus in the large robe with horns, spoke first, voice low, almost ashamed:
"He... jumped."
Sienna spoke slowly, the black stripes on her arm looking darker and deeper.
"J-jumped!?" she echoed, incredulous. "What do you mean, he jumped?!"
The bandit with the bow nodded, staring at the ground.
"A waterfall deeper in the forest, about 50 meters. No one survives that—at least not without Aura."
The skinny White Fang, rifle slung over his shoulder, added:
"He laughed before. Told us to remember the day we almost caught the 'great and magnificent Whitley Schnee.' Then... he jumped. Without hesitating."
Raven stopped what she was doing, her red eyes narrowing toward the dark forest.
"Did you check?"
"W-what?"
Raven took a step forward, her presence making the air feel heavier.
"Did you check the body? Go down the waterfall? See if he drowned, broke his neck, or is just playing dead down there?"
The bandit with the club swallowed hard.
"There was no way down, boss. It's... it's too high. Impossible."
Sienna let out a short, dry laugh—not amused, but something between admiration and irritation.
"He's brave," she murmured, amber eyes gleaming in the firelight. "Or insane. Maybe both."
She looked at Raven.
"Looks like coming here was a waste of time, Branwen."
Raven didn't answer right away. Her red eyes were fixed on the dark forest, as if she could see through the trees.
Then she spoke, voice low but loud enough for everyone to hear:
"If he survived… he won't stay hidden for long."