From the Journal of Oren

"As our rebellion against the Imperium continues, the Imperium's responses grow more brutal by the day. In the midst of this, the various Rebel Leaders continue to bicker amongst themselves. In hopes of brining unity to the Alliance, I have conveyed a meeting at Mountain Glenn to discuss our future."

In the abandoned settlement of Mountain Glenn, the leaders of the various Rebel cells that make up the ARK arrive. Inside an office room, Oren ponders the future when Coco enters the room.

Coco: Most of the Alliance is here, Oren. The only one missing is Commissarius Broga. We've....we've got reports that Commissarius Broga had been captured. Most of the Marauders had been rounded up and killed.

Upon hearing this, Oren paused for a moment. Oren then gets up and makes his way to the meeting place with Coco. Oren then addresses the other ARK leaders.

Oren: Thank you all for meeting me. As we speak, the Imperium seeks our destruction.

Steel: We heard about what happened to the Commissarius and his Marauders. Good riddance if you ask me. One less group of animals to deal with.

Lanius: Agreed. They were soldiers of the Imperium. They may claim to have forsaken Adam Taurus, but we can't be too sure.

Coco: Right now we can't afford to be choosy with our allies. In case you two couldn't be bothered to notice, we're outnumbered. The only way we're going to beat them is by working together. Commissarius Broga had invaluable information on the Imperium. With him gone, we've lost the advantage.

Oren: Regardless, we must carry on. I know many of you have feelings of mistrust of each other. Your cells were born from different aspects. But one thing binds us all together: the Imperium seeks our destruction. And if we are to overthrow the Imperium, we must remain united.

As Oren said this, there was a moment of silence among the Rebel leaders. It was clear to everyone that there was mistrust between each other due to their backgrounds. It was something Oren knew all too well. Eventually, one of the leaders spoke.

Alba: You speak of unity, but how can there be unity. The Khan Loyalists adhere to the old White Fang. This....Imperium is a perversion of what Sienna Khan wanted for the Faunus.

Topaz: Sienna Khan was a fanatic. The White Fang was meant to be a bridge between Human and Faunus. It was Sienna Khan who allowed Adam Taurus to grow in power. Had she remained true to the cause, none of this would've happened.

Carmine: Sienna Khan wasn't the only one to blame for the rise of Adam Taurus. Did you forget that Ghira Belladonna allowed Sienna to seize power. The Belladonnas are as much to blame for the rise of the Imperium.

Coco: Enough! While we're all at each other's throats, the Imperium is hunting us all across Remnant!

Steel: Good. That means they're afraid.

Coco: Afraid? They're not afraid, you idiot! They're pissed and out for blood. Your little fear campaign has given the Imperium ammo to use against us. If they paint us as monsters who want to destroy their way of life, then if we win, the people we intend to help would rather burn it all then allow us to help them!

As Coco said all of this, there was a moment of silence in the room. Oren could see that the divisions between them would threaten the entire Alliance.

Oren: My friends, we cannot lose sight our our goal. The Imperium has hurt us all. As Miss Adel said, we cannot afford to alienate our allies. With the loss of Commissarius Broga and the Marauders, we are vulnerable. Now if you'll excuse me, I would like to speak with Miss Adel in private.

With that, Oren and Coco left the meeting room to discuss in private.

Coco: What is it, Professor?

Oren: I had hoped it would not come to this, but given the situation and the ever growing threat of the Imperium, I'm afraid we have no choice.

Coco: What are you talking about?

Oren: There's a harbor in Mountain Glenn that was once used as a trading port between Mountain Glenn and the other kingdoms. However, when Mountain Glenn fell, this harbor fell into disarray and all the kingdoms ceased all trade within that harbor out of fear of Grimm attacks. There's a ship that will take us to an island currently housing Dr. Merlot.

Coco: Who's Dr. Merlot?

Oren: Dr. Merlot is a brilliant, albeit misguided man of science who founded Merlot Industries. Merlot Industries was a research and development corporation that led research into artificial intelligence and genetics. There were rumors that Merlot Industries were performing experiments on live Grimm, even going as far as to lure attracting Grimm to Mountain Glenn in order to acquire additional specimens for their experiments. When Mountain Glenn fell to the Grimm, Merlot Industries lost it's primary facility along with several key staff. At first, I thought Merlot was among the dead. However, I soon learned that he survived not only Mountain Glenn, but the Imperium's rise to power.

Upon hearing this, Coco didn't like what she was hearing.

Coco: Are you seriously considering getting that nutjob to help us?

Oren: I had hoped it wouldn't come to this, but we are left with no choice. Merlot's experiments with the Grimm while monstrous may give us the edge.

Coco: I hope you're right.

With that, Oren began laying the groundwork for bringing Dr. Merlot into the ARK. But what Oren and the rest of the ARK didn't realize was the the Imperium was marching on Mountain Glenn, eager to end the ARK.

"The divisions and mistrust within the leaders of the threatens to undo everything I am attempting to accomplish. This division reminds me all too well when Miss Rose and her allies learned the truth of Salem. It seems no matter what I do, mistrust and division will always arise. However, I must not lose faith. I must fight on, whatever the consequences may be."