Cinder Fall woke up and blinked a few times. She could see out of both eyes which startled her. She lost her left eye during the fall of Beacon on top of Beacon Tower but now she was able to see out of both eyes.

"Maybe the whole thing was a dream... Maybe meeting Salem and all this was a dream... Maybe I'm not scarred and have two normal arms..."

Cinder placed her hand over the left side of her face and she felt her fingers make contact with the rough patch of skin over her left side. She glanced up and saw her reflection in the mirror. The big half x-shaped scar remained on her face and the scarring went all the way down to her neck and covered part of her left leg and the top part of her arm.

"Just wishful thinking I guess..."

Cinder muttered to herself.

This only confused Cinder more. How was she able to see? Cinder then saw a metal arm where her Grimm arm once was. This startled her for a moment and she quickly glanced down at her left arm and sure enough a silver metallic arm was in place of her grimm like one.

Cinder was happy about this but was very confused as to how it got there. She felt very strange and could visually see numbers circulating through her head which freaked her out.

"What the hell is going on?"

Cinder murmured to herself.

Cinder saw a little girl sitting at her bedside and she jumped.

"Shit..."

Cinder muttered.

"You okay miss?"

Asked the little girl.

Cinder rubbed her eyes.

"Who are you?"

Cinder Asked groggily.

"I'm Hanako. Mr. Kaz brought you here."

Said Hanako.

"Where is here and who is Kaz?!"

Asked Cinder while rubbing her eyes.

"That would be me."

Cinder looked up to see a young man in his early twenties wearing a black suit carrying a black cane with a metallic silver crow head, which served as it's handle.

"Hanako leave the room please."

Hanako quickly left the room and cinder watched the little girl run off.

"You must be Cinder Fall."

"How the hell do you know-"

"You're even prettier in person than in your wanted posters."

Said Kaz giving her a sly but perfect smile.

His teeth were white and looked practically perfect, maybe a little too perfect. Cinder could see the numbers and words jumbled in her head again and then Cinder could see a digital like font appear as if her brain were a computer. Well it practically was now. Part of it was at least anyway. Cinder read the digital font.

Kaz Blacrow
Age: 21
Height: 6'3
Hair color: Brown
Eye color: green
Occupation: atlas's most wanted
Charges: Petty theft, auto theft, armed robbery, gang activity/gang affiliation, drug smuggling, public intoxication, and blackmail.

"You've got quite a rap sheet."

Cinder muttered.

"Mass murder, Murder, attempted murder, aiding and abetting a murderer, treason, grand theft, and submitting false documentation."

"Excuse me-"

"That's a list of of all the crimes the atlesian police force has charged you with. I must say it's an impressive amount for a girl who's only twenty. I take it that your "mother" is the one who's guilty of these crimes. Not you."

"How do you know all that-"

"I've done my research. Plus I don't think a privileged girl like you from outside the kingdom who practically had everything at her fingertips would have a reason to commit these crimes. Unlike me you had everything you could've wanted. Well you may have met your match with those slave traders but you were able to escape your captors in atlas and return home to your village in the middle of nowheresville outside of the kingdom of Mistral."

Cinder looked down at her mechanical arm.

"I don't want to know her reasons for murder..."

"Your "mother" has her reasons for the things she does. Even monsters have their reasons. Using You was just the tip of the iceberg of her master plan until Ruby rose injured the Grimm inside of you."

"And who are "they"!and what happened to the parasite inside me?"

"If I told you who helped ice cream girl would spoil the fun now wouldn't it? I can tell you about the parasite though. it's dead my dear. Neo stabbed you in the back quite literally. The parasite didn't stand a chance."

Said Kaz.

"Don't be an asshole just tell me! Who else was on that airship?!"

"You're going to go after Wendy aren't you?"

"No..."

Cinder lied.

"You wouldn't stand a chance against her. She's extremely powerful as you know. She'll cut you in half with those Grimm claws of her's. You wouldn't stand a chance. She definitely knows how to command a great deal of power."

"It's my problem! I can handle it myself!"

Cinder snapped.

"Really because if I recall you lost your eye to teemage munchkin and got your ass kicked by a midget!"

"That midget is Neapolitan and she's stronger than she looks!"

"Personally I think you could've done better but you were weak from the Grimm sapping your life force."

"What?"

Asked Cinder in confusion.

"Well Fall if you must know when a parasite Grimm is damaged internally it starts sucking the life force from their host in order to survive. Those parasites just love to live in mantle. They make people go crazy but only temporary but if someone like Wendy or Salem was controlling them, then the parasite can latch onto it's host for years."

Said Kaz.

"You'd think that Ruby's eyes would've killed the Grimm and then... Maybe-"

"Well Ruby Rose hasn't fully tapped into her power yet. In other words she's still learning. And she's quite young and she's a few years younger than you and is already is gifted with such immense power. You wouldn't have been able to have gotten away Cinder. Hell you're lucky that your "mother" hasn't even killed you yet. You lost your beauty and the Grimm spell was wearing off. Wendy was running out of ways that she could use you. You were outliving your usefulness as a pawn in Salem's game. So far the heroes think they're winning but Wendy is Salem's trump card."

Said Kaz.

Cinder looked down at her mechanical arm sadly.

"Did Neo beat me up that badly?"

Asked Cinder changing the subject.

"Yeah it was pretty bad but she didn't do it alone. Someone else was with her sporting the tackiest black hooded cloak. Cloaks went out of style years ago."

Kaz stated pulling a cigarette out of his pocket.

"You wouldn't mind giving me a light would you?"

Asked Kaz gesturing to his cigarette.

Cinder looked a little fearful.

"You know about the maidens?"

"Cinder I'm practically one of the lords of Mantle's criminal underground. I know everything. I know about Wendy and even know about Salem. I heard Wendy's here in atlas on some long mission. Now give me a light please it's been a dreadfully long day."

Said Kaz.

Cinder rolled her eyes but complied and a small flame emerged from her finger tip and she touched the bottom of the cigarette giving it a light. Kaz then started to smoke the cigarette.

"Wendy never told me what it was. What kind of trouble is she causing now?"

"No clue. I just know she's in atlas."

Said Kaz.

"And you claim to be the one of the lords of the criminal underground."

Cinder scoffed with an eye roll.

"Oh c'mon. I don't know what she's planning and frankly it's none of my business and nor do I care. Also you're welcome for me bringing you here by the way."

Said Kaz exhaling as cloud of some emerged from him mouth and it was blown into Cinder's face causing her to cough.

"Gods do you want lung cancer?"

Kaz rolled his eyes.

"I don't smoke that often."

Said Kaz blowing a cloud of black smoke in her face.

Cinder started coughing and she glared at him

"Can you tell me what exactly happened to me and why I can see words and numbers in my head like a Some super computer!"

"Ah Yes That... Well you suffered from internal damage to your organs and you suffered from internal bleeding. You honestly would've died but thanks to cybergentics, you live to see another day in a frozen hell, congratulations."

Said Kaz sarcastically blowing another puff of smoke in her face.

"Cut that out would you?! I'd prefer not to smell like an ashtray!"

Cinder snapped as she coughed.

Kaz smirked.

"So this cybergenetic surgery was very expensive but my uncle willingly paid for it."

"So... Can I leave now?"

Kaz laughed.

"Leave? No. That's not how it works. You owe us. Not to brag or anything but I did save your life from ice cream girl."

Said Kaz while releasing another puff of smoke.

"Look Kaz I owe you and your uncle nothing, now I have to go back to mistral to find my parents-"

"You're not going anywhere."

Cinder gave him a look.

"You can't keep me here!"

"Fall, I'm the leader of a very notorious gang in Mantle so let me explain something to you."

Kaz paused for a second and released another puff of smoke from between his lips.

"Atlas doesn't give a shit about mantle. We built everything for them. We had a king and queen and a council. Hell we built atlas academy but five years after the Great War they took credit for our inventions and built their own little kingdom above us as a permanent reminder that they were better than us. So while the Mantlen government has fallen to ruin, crime continues to thrive as well as disease such as fire pox and Lutemosis. There are a total of five notorious gangs in Mantle and they practically run the place. I happen to run the most powerful gang in Mantle known as the dregs. So in other words you won't survive a day out here by yourself on the streets. So here's what's going to happen. I'm going to let you pay off your debt by working for me."

Cinder looked up at him in disbelief.

"What could your uncle possibly want from me?"

Cinder snapped at Kaz's boldness thinking that she would do anything he said.

"You're extremely stealthy Fall and extremely skilled. Your father was a renowned huntsman and your semblance is quite powerful. Not to mention you're a maiden."

"I just heat objects to their boiling point! It's not anything special and I can barely use my powers! Wendy-"

Kaz smirked and Cinder froze. She didn't like the way Kaz was looking at her but she refused to show her fear.

"Then you'll just stick to what you know. I heard you're quite creative. You can shape objects by changing their temperature. That's pretty useful if you ask me."

Cinder looked extremely uncomfortable about this. She always ended up with bad people. All she wanted right now was to lay low, hide, and head back to mistral to see her family. She hated atlas and definitely didn't want to stay in Mantle.

"Kaz I can't-"

"You don't have a choice."

Said Kaz.

Cinder looked a little scared. She had heard rumors of gangs in mantle and a very particularly dangerous crime lord but they were only rumors though she knew Kaz wasn't playing around.

"Aw what's wrong? There's no need to be scared."

Kaz traced the scars on Cinder's face. She pulled away from his touch and smacked his hand away.

"Don't touch me!"

Cinder snapped.

Cinder saw Kaz's eyes darken and she felt his dark forest green gaze grow cold.

"I'm probably the only guy who will ever pay attention to you with those scars covering your body. Are you really going to push me away?"

Cinder clenched her fists resisting the urge to punch Kaz in the face and break his perfectly sculpted jaw. Cinder didn't want to admit that he just struck a nerve. She thought about Charlie. A guy from her past but that was years ago. He's probably forgotten all about her and would he like her if he saw what she's become? Cinder felt broken and felt as if he wouldn't forgive for all that she was forced to do.

She was a pawn. She was taken from her home and taken back to Salem's lair. She hated Wendy. Wendy had "adopted" her and made her do things that she would've never done before.

Cinder felt like she was nothing more than her doll. Then when she got the scars on her face and lost her eye, the abuse started. She was no longer Wendy's beautiful and obedient doll. Wendy often used the words "ugly" and "tainted." Cinder hated to admit but those words struck a nerve.

"Hanako we're leaving. Cinder, let's go. We're heading to the crow club."

Said Kaz.

"I'm not going anywhere!"

Cinder saw Kaz walk quickly towards her. Cinder tried to fight back but he had her pinned down before she knew it. She felt him push her against the bed's headboard. He placed his cane on her neck keeping her pinned to the wooden headboard. She then felt him grip her wrist pulling her to her feet and forcing her to stand up. Kaz kept his cane to her throat and began to apply pressure.

Despite how lanky Kaz looked he was strong. He gripped her wrist so hard she felt like Kaz could pop her arm out of socket if he yanked on her wrist hard enough. Cinder could barely breathe as Kaz backed her up into the brick wall keeping the cane on her neck and keeping ahold of her wrist.

"We can either do this the easy way. Or we can do it my way."

Said Kaz.

Cinder felt Kaz's grip tighten on her wrist and she grimaced from the pain.

"I don't think you're going to like the second option! We can either walk there together or I can bring you there bloody and unconscious. Either way you're going to the club but wether it's willingly or by force is up to you. I guess you do have a choice but either way you're coming with me. So what will it be Fall? Take your pick."

Said Kaz through gritted teeth.

Cinder struggled to move him off of her and the more she moved the harder Kaz held his cane to her neck and the tighter his hand gripped her wrist. Cinder felt tears well in her eyes from the pain.

"Okay... J-just let me go..."

Cinder felt him lift the cane off of her neck but he kept his tight grip on her wrist. Cinder used her semblance making her wrist extremely hot and Kaz yelped in pain as he let go of her wrist. Cinder tried to take the opportunity to run but Kaz was fast held his cane in front of her legs causing her to trip.

Cinder felt Kaz pick her up off the ground and slam her hard into the wall. She could feel her aura flickering. She realized that her aura wasn't fully back up yet but Kaz knew that. Kaz roughly grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and slammed her hard to the ground. He then roughly pulled her to her feet and started tightening his grasp around her wrist. Cinder winced as Kaz kept tightening his tight grip. Kaz pulled her to face him. She saw him pulled a small hand gun out of his suit coat pocket. He held the barrel of the gun to her temple. He tucked a strand of her ash black hair using the barrel of the gun and then placed it back against her temple. Kaz began to softly whisper into her right ear.

"I don't think you understand how things work around here but I'd be happy to educate you."

Kaz tightened his grip even more and Cinder let out a cry of pain. She knew if Kaz applied more pressure he could break her wrist. Cinder saw Kaz place one of his fingers on the trigger ready to pull it at any minute.

"Don't try anything stupid. You're not fully recovered and your aura is extremely low. I could kill you with one bullet and I won't hesitate if you try to run."

Cinder could see Hanako crying out of the corner of her eye. Kaz quickly turned to Hanako keeping the gun held against Cinder's right temple.

"SHUT UP!"

Kaz shouted at Hanako.

"Kaz please stop she's just a kid-"

Cinder felt him nudge the gun at her temple prompting her to stop talking. Kaz began to whisper into her ear again.

"I've lived on the streets since I was nine years old. I'm not stupid. Don't try anything else because you won't get very far. You're a privileged little brat who won't survive a day on the streets in Mantle. You need me and I need you to cooperate. And if you don't I'll kill the kid and make you watch."

Cinder felt tears start to stream down her checks. She had a feeling that Kaz wasn't willing to shoot this child but she knew he had no qualms with killing her. Though she didn't want to take her chances and then watch as Kaz actually carried out his threat. She knew not to underestimate people and what they were capable of. People were all scared of grim but humans were just as capable if not more so of committing terrible atrocities. She cursed herself for crying but Kaz genuinely scared her. He could kill her right now and not even bat an eye. Cinder complied as she gave him a pleading look.

"Okay I'll go with just please don't hurt her..."

Cinder pleaded.

Kaz let go of her wrist and she saw a black and blue bruise forming from Kaz's tight grip.

"Good. Now you understand. Follow me."

Cinder watched as Kaz put the gun in his pocket and he turned his back to her. He kept his pocket open as a reminder to her that he wouldn't hesitate to shoot her if necessary. Cinder saw Kaz then then turned to face her.

"Oh and don't worry. Salem and Wendy aren't going to find you at the club. You're safe with me."

Kaz then turn his back to her and Cinder followed behind. She felt so sore from Kaz tossing her around. She was terrified that he had overpowered her so easily and effortlessly. Cinder had a feeling that even at her full strength he'd still overpower her. Cinder looked over at Hanako and she gently placed her hand on Hanako's shoulder. She felt the need to protect her. Hanako then gently held Cinder's metallic hand. Kaz had told her that she was safe from Salem but she didn't feel safe from Kaz.