Platinum slid her carry-on off the overhead compartment and onto the thin aircraft cabin floor. The automatic female voice over the intercom spoke as the doors to the airship slid open.
Welcome to Mistral. Please enjoy your stay, and we look forward to seeing you again.
If only things were that simple. A six month search for her best friend had culminated in said friend revealing herself as, of all things, a member of a kingdomwide organized crime network. The shock of the unmasking had caused the mutual friend accompanying Platinum on her search to walk out on both her and Fen, and all of her attempts to talk to her about the issue was met by an absolute refusal to pursue the matter further.
Automne, what are you thinking?
They had come so far together. They'd found Fen again. And now Automne wasn't going to have anything to do with it. Unbeknownst to Platinum, the former street urchin fox had a plan of her own: to kill Fen. End the threat to their lives by eliminating the very voice which had spoken against them.
She knew nothing of this plan. Instead, Platinum was in Mistral to reunite with her father after a year-long absence. He'd been awaiting her return, eagerly at first as she progressed through Beacon's classes, but from their recent phone calls she knew now that all he wanted was to see her safe. She looked forward to seeing him again as well. A seasoned officer of Mistral's law enforcement, perhaps he could give her the advice and solace she sought after a truly tumultuous previous eight months.
There were many things she wanted to do. She wanted to step back from the drama and take a deep breath. She wanted to understand how the friendships she cherished so much were falling apart before her eyes. But all of the problems could be traced back to one source: The Nine Dragons of Vale. A crime network so expansive that it pierced into Beacon's population, such that the two Huntresses she and Automne had partnered with on that fateful night were involved in the network as well. Platinum knew she had no chance of confronting such a massive enemy head-on, that much was obvious.
But she knew who to target. The former CEO of the Daybreak Syndicate, and probable identity of a Dragon Head. A shady young woman with a face like Fen's. If she could gather the remnants of Team RASB, perhaps it would be possible to ensnare the Dragon and force her to confess what she had done to Fen. It certainly didn't seem like the heiress was part of the Dragons by choice, if her words were to be trusted. But such an operation was risky, especially if the Dragon was in league with another crime boss.
Platinum clenched her fist as she strode out of the airship and onto the tarmac. She released it slowly and took a deep breath, as if trying to clear her thoughts. Things were personal enough already, but it seemed everything just kept hitting closer and closer to home.
Zanipher Hei'An had been accompanied by a white-haired young man with a metal whip-arm. If Bernie and Automne's descriptions of him were correct, then the name of the associate was none other than infamous gang leader Decadere Diaboli. The man who had beaten her father, an experienced police officer, to within an inch of his life. If he, too, was involved, then he, too, was her target.
"Jesus, this is why I gotta get away for a while," Platinum muttered, shaking her head vigorously. She took another deep breath and stared into the vibrant blue sky, before walking towards the train station.
_______________________
Little did Platinum know she was already trapped by the Dragons. The Heads never took personal threats lightly, and this was no exception. A black-haired woman, with baseball cap and broad tinted sunglasses, stepped out of the airship Platinum just exited, and took a moment to adjust her navy green drawstring jacket, before stepping briskly after the silver-haired girl. She kept a good distance and meandered somewhat so that the Huntress was completely oblivious to her presence.
But Zanipher had an agenda. Platinum would not leave Fen so easily. Her job would be to dissuade the girl from any semblance of pursuit, and she would strike when the wannabe detective was vulnerable. She could have done so back in Vale, but this method was much more personal, and of course, much more exciting.