Prolong: Welcome to beacon rewrite

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Remnant. A world inhabited by three lifeforms. The first are humans, simple and basic. Second, are the Faunus, human-like, but with the features and abilities of animals. And finally, the Grimm. Mindless, savage beast, created from the darkness in the hearts of both humans and Faunuslike. From the beginning, the human and Faunus were at each other’s throats, and an endless war raged on between the humans and Faunus. The creatures of Grimm seek only death of all life on Remnant. And from the conflict, four kingdoms rose from the ashes. To the north is the kingdom of Atlas, a human-controlled kingdom where the rich and powerful live with their armies and machines. In the south, the kingdom of Vale is a peaceful place where humans and Faunus live in harmony with one another. Vacuo, the Kingdom of the West, is a wasteland-like place in which survival is possible but challenging. Mistral, the kingdom of the east, with mountains to protect the people. Most come here to lead a life of peace. All the kingdoms have armies and huntsmen, to hold back the Grimm, and to protect the world from the darkness.

(Echoes Of The Past)

In a huge study, with many bookshelves, filled with many, many books, is a small table, with a young-looking woman with blond hair and wearing a white dress, and a tall man with grey skin and white hair and wearing a black suit, sitting in armchairs as they face each other. On the table is a Chess Board, already set up for a game. The woman was using white pieces, while the man used black pieces.

“Let's be honest here,” said the man in a cold voice, as he made his first move of the game. “This Godless world is doomed. It is only a matter of time. And when the darkness swallows this world whole, You know I’ll hate to say I told you so.”

The woman simply kept her gaze locked on him as she gave a sweet smile. “You may think the world might be swallowed by the darkness,” She said, as she made her first move. “But I believe where there is darkness, there will also be light,”

There was silence between them as the game continued. As the game neared its end, the man held up one of his remaining pieces.

“Well, then. We’ll just let time be the judge for us, shall we,” He said, as he placed the piece on the board.

“Very well then. We shall see who will prevail, the Light, or the Dark,” The woman agreed, as she also placed one of her last pieces on the board. It was her White Queen, which now faced the man’s Black King.

Both this conversation and this game will be lost to the march of time as the world enters a new era.

(Present Day)

Flying towards the gleaming tower that was Beacon Academy, an airship full of new students, on their way to become Huntsmen and Huntresses. On this ship are four individuals, Ruby Rose, Onyx Shinra, Sunset Shimmer and Eclipse Khan.

Sitting in an isolated area, Onyx is on his scroll. He was dressed in a traditional tuxedo and black shades.“Yes, I'm en route to Beacon… Don’t worry… I threw a dart at the map. I've told you all of this, there is nothing you can say to change my mind… ok I love you too… goodbye.” He put his scroll in his pocket, looking out the wind, seeing the reflection of someone. He then turns to look at the person. “Weiss Schnee. There’s a face I never thought I’d see outside of Atlas.”

Standing before him was a young girl with white hair tied back in a ponytail and blue eyes, with a scar over her left eye from her brow to her cheek. She wore a white dress, with a matching jacket with red lining, a silver belt around her waist, and white high-heeled boots which also had red lining. On her belt, she had a rapier. She looked down at Onyx, in more ways than one. “Onyx Shinra,” she said in an icy tone. “What in the whole wide world of Remnant are you doing here?”

“Well, that's a fine ‘how do you do’,” Onyx said.

“That doesn’t answer my question,” said Weiss.

“I think it’s pretty obvious what I’m doing here,” Onyx replied. “I’m here to become a Huntsman. What are you doing here?”

“Simple,” Weiss said smugly. “I’m here to become a world-class Huntress.”

“Well, good luck with that,” Onyx said, rolling his eyes.

“Now, listen here, Onyx,” Weiss said. “You and I may be cousins but were from completely different families. A Schnee and a Shinra simply can not work together.”

“I couldn’t agree with you more,” Onyx said. “So, why don’t I go to Beacon, and you go back to Atlas.”

“Excuse Me!” Weiss snapped. “What gives you the right to tell me where I should go to receive my education?!”

“Ok, I overstepped my bounds,” Onyx said placatingly. “Look, here’s the deal. We are both going to Beacon, but you stay out of my way and I’ll stay out of yours. Deal?”

“Alright, fine,” Weiss said with a huff. “You know, sometimes I have to wonder how in the world you and I are cousins.”

“We’re cousins on my mother's side,” Said onyx. “But then again, you probably wouldn’t have known that, see as she was kicked out of your family.”

“Hmmph,” Weiss huffed dismissively, as she turned on her heel and marched away.

Onyx sighed. “I don’t know why, but she always brings out the worst in me.”

In the lower area, a young girl with red and yellow hair, fox ears and a large bushy fox tail was watching a news report that was being aired over the airship's broadcast system. “The White Fang is just making things worse for the rest of us,” She muttered with a frown, as she continued to watch the news feed.

At the front of the airship, sat a young Faunus with stripes like a tiger. Next to him was a young, dark-haired girl wearing a black bow on her head. The girl was reading a book, and the boy was reading a comic. He suddenly laughed out loud. “Ha, Ha, Ha! Stupid Coyote. He’s never gonna catch that Bird.”

“Eh-hem!” The girl said, nudging him with her elbow.

“Sorry, Blake,” He said. “But this is just too dang funny.”

“Look, Eclipse,” said Blake. “I don’t mind you chuckling, but volume control.” Before Eclipse could answer, at that moment, a woman with blond hair and a witch-like outfit appeared on the holo feed.

“Hello, and welcome to Beacon. My name is Glynda Goodwitch. You are among a privileged few who have received the honour of being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Here at Beacon Academy, we will teach you the skills to fight the good fight and protect Remnant from the creatures of Grimm, and maintain the long-standing peace which our world now enjoys, and we hope you have a most prosperous time during your stay here at Beacon. Welcome to the first day of your new lives.” The feed then ends.

When the airship landed, the recruits disembarked to see their new home from home. A young man with blond hair ran out of the ship to the first trash can to vomit.

“If he pukes from motion sickness, it makes you wonder why he’s even bothering to become a Huntsman,” said a tall, blond-haired girl, as she walked past with a younger, dark-haired girl with dark red highlights, and wearing a red hood.

As the fox girl stepped off the airship, she was just in time to see the blond girl dash away from the red-hooded girl with a bunch of other people, practically abandoning her. “Survival of the fittest,” She said under her breath. Taking in the sights of the school campus, the fox girl’s breath was taken away. “Wow! It’s Beautiful!” She gasps. She then heard a loud bang. Turning around to look, she saw a girl dressed in white, yelling at the poor red hooded girl, who looked like a kicked puppy right now and immediately recognised her as a member of the Schnee family. “Oh, great! A Schnee! That’s all this school needs! A pampered little princess!” She said with a groan and a scowl. She then muttered and turned to walk away again. “Whatever, I’ll deal with her later.” Then, without warning, someone stepped on her tail. “Ahhh, what the hell! That hurts!” She screamed. She spun around to confront the person, coming face to face with a tall, brown-haired boy, with a huge smirk on his face.

“Oops, sorry, not my fault you didn’t have that thing cut off!” He said cruelly and started to laugh along with his flunkies.

“WHAT DID YOU SAY!?” The fox yelled furiously, her tail bristling.

“What, are those ears for decoration?” He continued snidely. “I said you should have that thing cut off!” He threw back his head and laughed mockingly, his gang of goons following suit.

The fox girl's ears folded back, as her eyes narrowed dangerously. “Oh, you’re just asking for a fight, aren’t you, tough guy?!” She snapped.

“Oh, this is gonna be fun,” Smirked the big guy, as he and his goons cracked their knuckles. But before anything else could happen, the thug spontaneously began to lift off the ground and float in mid-air. “W-whoa, what’s going on!” He shouted in shock.

“Whoa, boss, you never told us you could fly,” said one of his goons dumbly.

“That’s because I can’t you idiot!” The bully shouted angrily. “Don’t just stand there, do something! Get me down, now!” At that moment, he was suddenly flung through the air, and landed, head first, in a trash can.

“Aw, man that was like a pure cartoon/anime group right there,” laughed a new voice. Just then, Eclipse the tiger Faunus stepped up in front of them, smirking.

The thugs turned to glare at the newcomer. “Did you do this to our boss?!” One of them snapped threateningly.

“Would you prefer the truth or the lie?” Eclipse said, still smirking.

“You little freak!” Yelled one of the other thugs, pulling out his weapon, his cohorts following suit.

Eclipse then raised his weapon, which looked like a giant pair of scissors “Oh, you wanna fight?” He said confidently. “I’ll give you a fight! I’ve got nine lives and I’m willing to waste them all here on you guys! Come on! Come on!”

At the sight of the giant scissors, the cowardly bullies lost their nerve. “W-we’ll get you next time you freak!” One of them stuttered, before they turned and ran, one of them knocking over the trash can their humiliated leader was still stuck in.

“Well,” Said Eclipse, “That was disappointing?” He sheathed his weapon and turned to the fox girl. “So, you ok, there-” He was cut off when she gave him a hard left hook to his cheek, knocking him to the ground.

“You should have kept out of it!” The fox girl snapped. “I was just about to give that meathead just what was coming to him! I didn’t need your help!”

“Then what was the punch for?” Eclipse asked, holding his cheek.

“I just felt like it,” She replied with a dismissive wave.

Eclipse’s eyes went wide. “Wait! Don’t tell you're a Tsundere?!”

“A what?” The fox girl raised an eyebrow.

“Tsundere,” said Eclipse as he got back to his feet. “You know-”

“You know what, I don’t care!” She interrupted rudely. “Here's what’s going to happen, cat boy! You stay out of my way, and I stay far away from you!”

“For the record, I’m a tiger,” Eclipse said.

“Don’t care! I’m out!” With that, she turned and marched away.

“Geez, can’t a brother help out a sister,” Eclipse muttered to himself, just as Blake walked up beside him.

“Did I miss something?” She asked.

“You missed a lot!”

(5 minutes earlier…)

At the landing platform, a tall, dark-skinned woman, with a huge, square Athro, wearing a sharp black suit and large black shades, stood in front of Onix, presenting him with a large rectangular metal case. “You will require this,” she said calmly.

Onyx took the case. “Thanks for coming with me Garnet,” He said.

“No problem sir.” Garnet then noticed the airship was preparing to leave. “I must be leaving you now, sir.” After saying their goodbyes, She then reboarded the airship, and Onyx made his way toward the school. He didn’t get very far when he suddenly heard a loud BOOM! He looks up to see Weiss walking away from the red-hooded girl, as well as Blake walking away in another direction. He heads toward the red-hooded girl, hearing her mutter under her breath.

“Welcome to Beacon.”

“Where everyone wants you dead,” He said jokingly.

The girl's eyes went wide. “What? Really?!”

“No,” said Onyx with a smile. “Just kidding. But I so had you going there, didn’t I?”

The girl leapt back to her feet, pouting in annoyance. “That wasn’t funny!”

“Yeah, it was.” Onyx then looked at the girl curiously. “Wait. Aren’t you a little young to be attending Beacon?”

The girl rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, I know,” She said in frustration. “This isn’t your typical combat school, we're here to fight monsters.”

“Let me guess,” Said Onyx. “That girl in white told you all that?”

“Yeah, she did,” The girl grumbled. “Little Miss Know-It-All Princess.”

“Yeah, she’s a handful,” Said Onyx wistfully. “Well, allow me to apologize on behalf of my cold-hearted cousin.”

“Wait, what? That girl is your cousin?”

“Yeah, we’re cousins. Oh, by the way…” He paused, looking closely at her. “Wait a minute…” He suddenly zoomed in close to her, his face just inches away from the girls. “You have silver eyes.”

The girl flinched nervously. “Uh, thank you, I think?” She said awkwardly.

“Sorry, it’s just,” He paused, reaching up to remove his shades, revealing... “I have silver eyes, too.”

“You have silver eyes, just like me?” The girl asked. “But, wait, why is that such a big deal?”

“Well, think about it,” Onyx said. “Out of every single person you know and love, how many of them have silver eyes?”

Ruby thought hard before she gasped in realisation. “Oh, my gosh, Your right! None of them!”

“And you know what that means?”

“It means…” Her face lit up in glee. “That we’re silver eye buddies!”

“That’s right,” Onyx chuckled. “Now, I think it’s about time we properly introduced ourselves. I’m Onyx Shinra.”

“I’m Ruby Rose!” She then stopped and stared at him. “Wait? Onyx Shinra? Are you part of the Shinra Family?”

“Well, I don’t mean to toot my own horn,” Onyx said casually. “But I’m the fourth in line to the Shinra Legacy. So, tell me, Ruby. What are doing here at Beacon? Aren’t you a little young to be here? What, are you on a field trip or something?”

Ruby scowled indignantly. “Do I look like I’m twelve?” She said, placing her hands on her hips.

“Whoa, sorry. I was just curious, that’s all,” Onyx said placatingly.

“I was allowed to skip two years,” Ruby said sheepishly. “Miss Salem said, based on my abilities, I was eligible to attend Beacon.”

“Ohh, you must be the bee's knees,” Onyx said with a chuckle.

“No no no no, I’m not, I’m just a normal girl, with normal knees,” Ruby replied in a panicky voice.

At that moment, they heard the sound of a bell. “Oh, no!” Ruby panicked, “The ceremony! How could we forget that?!” The two of them dashed away toward the great hall at a run.

Ruby and Onyx ran as fast as they could to reach the great hall where the students were instructed to go. They finally arrived just as the ceremony was about to begin.

“We made it just in time,” Said Ruby, gasping for breath.

“Yeah, just in time” agreed Onyx

“Now where’s Yang?” Ruby said before looking through the crowd and spotting her sister. “Oh, my sister! Well, I’ll be seeing you.” Ruby then walked away, waving goodbye.

“Yeah, see you around,” Onyx said as he waved back.

“Hi Yang,” Said Ruby.

“Hey Ruby,” said Yang. “So, how was your first day of school, little sis?”

“Since you ditched me and I exploded?” Ruby huffed.

“Yikes, meltdown, already?” Yang said.

“No, I exploded a hole in front of the school,” Ruby went on. “And there was some fire, and think some ice?”

“Are you being sarcastic?” Yang smirked.

“Huh, I wish!” Ruby scoffed. “I tripped over some crabby girl's luggage, and then she yelled at me, and then I sneezed, and then I exploded, and she yelled again, and I felt bad, and I just wanted her to stop yelling at me.”

“You!” Said an annoyed-sounding Weiss from behind her.

“Oh, god It’s happening again!” Ruby whimpered as she lept into her bewildered sister's arms.

“Your lucky we weren’t blown off the side of the cliff,” Weiss, unported

“Oh, my god, you exploded,” Yang said in astonishment.

“It was an accident! It was an accident!” Ruby insisted as she was put back on her feet, only for Weiss to shove a pamphlet labelled Dust For Dummies in her face. “What’s this?”

Before Weiss could reply, the pamphlet was yanked from her hand and tossed away. “For goodness sake, Weiss, leave the poor girl alone,” Said a voice. They all turned to look. It was Onyx.

Weiss scowled in annoyance. “What do you think you're doing, Onyx?” She scolded him. “I was just about to tell this upstart-”

“You mean ‘Prodigy’, not ‘Upstart,” Onyx interrupted.

“What? There is no way that this little kid,” She said, pointing at Ruby, “Is a prodigy at anything except being a total klutz!”

“Regardless, I would prefer if you left her alone, now,” Onyx said, staring Weiss down.

“Why should I do anything you tell me to do?” Weiss shot back. “Besides, why are you so interested in her?”

“That’s because,” He paused, looking over at Ruby. “She and I are silver eye buddies.”

“Yeah,” Ruby smirked, stepping up beside Onyx, who held out his hand for a low five, which she gladly returned with a resounding slap.

Weiss was confused by this. “What, I don’t understand…” Then she looked closer between them. They both had the same silver eyes.

“Well, in any case, she said she was sorry, so leave her alone,” Onyx commanded.

Weiss deflated under Onyx’s gaze. “You know what, I don’t care anymore,” She pouted.

“Hopefully that will end this whole thing between the two of you,” Onyx said to Ruby.

“Thanks, Onyx,” Said a grateful Ruby

“Ooh, is he your new boyfriend?” Teased Yang.

“Eww, no!” Ruby shouted, her face scrunched up in disgust. Onyx just laughed at this, while Eclipse looked on from across the hall.

“Hmm, looks like they're having fun,” He said to Blake.

“Yeah, looks like they are,” Replied Blake.

“Can I have your attention please?” Everyone turned their eyes to the stage. Standing on the stage was Glynda Goodwitch. “Welcome to Beacon Academy. And now I would like to introduce you to your Headmistress.” Miss Goodwitch stands aside and a woman dressed in black steps forward. Her hair is blonde and her eyes are blue.

“Greetings, students. My name is Salem, and I am the Headmistress of Beacon Academy. It is my task to turn you from children to Huntsmen and Huntresses. I will do my best to do so and I can only ask the same from all of you. Tomorrow, you will be divided into teams, but for now, all you need to do is rest and mingle with your peers.” After she finished her speech she walked out of the light and back into the shadows, and Ms Goodwitch continued the assembly.

It was now nighttime, and all the students were gathered in the same room, getting ready for bed. The fox girl was looking for a place to sleep, when, suddenly, she crashed into Onyx.

“Oh sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going,” Onyx apologised.

“It’s fine,” she said, looking up at Onyx, only to scowl at him with anger and hatred. “Wait, you're a Shinra!” She yelled.

“Umm, yes, is there a problem?” Onyx asked in confusion.

“Yes, there is! I’ve got a spoiled princess from the Schnee family and now an overly rich daddy’s boy from the Shinra family!” The fox girl ranted.

“Well that’s uncalled for,” He said, trying to calm her down.

“Look at my face, does it look like I care?!” She exclaimed, pointing at her face. “Stay away from me Shinra!” She turned and stormed away from a stunned Onyx.

The fox girl stopped as Eclipse walked up to her. “You know, that was a little uncalled for,” He said to her.

“And why do you care so much?” She asked, rolling her eyes.

“I just think that you’re not gonna make any friends with that attitude,” He replied.

“Let me make this clear. I don’t do the whole friend thing. Never have and never will,” She said in an ice-cold voice, before heading off once more.

“Wow, it just got chilly around here,” Eclipse stated.

Ruby and Yang naturally have their sleeping bags next to each other. Ruby was sitting up, writing a letter. “What are you writing there Ruby?” Asked Yang

“Writing to my friends at Signal. Telling them all about Beacon,” Explained Ruby.

“Aww, cute!” Cooed Yang teasingly.

“Yang, get a life!” Ruby said with a huff, rolling her eyes.

“No way, you make it way too easy,” said Yang, her voice full of amusement.

“Hey, Ruby. Hey Yang.” The girls looked up and saw Onyx standing above them.

“Hey Onyx,” Said Ruby.

“What can we do for you?” Asked Yang.

“I was hoping that you would let me crash with you two tonight,” He explained.

“It's fine with me,” said Yang.

“Just set yourself up,” Said Ruby.

Onyx rolled out his sleeping bag. “Thanks a lot, everywhere else is taken,” He said gratefully. He settled himself down and pulled out a small silver box.

“What’s that?” Asked Yang.

“Just a midnight snack.” He opened the box and showed the girls. The box was filled with cookies. “Can I tempt you?” He asked.

Ruby's mouth was drooling. “Well, maybe I'll just have 1 2 3 4 5 6!” She said excitedly, quickly snatching a handful of cookies from the box.

“Hey, save some for the rest of us!” Onyx shouted, but amused.

“I was just counting down the seconds,” Chuckled Yang at her sister’s antics.

“I have no sin,” Said Ruby firmly.

“Yeah, none at all,” said Onyx with an amused smirk, before eating a cookie from the box.

In another corner of the makeshift dormitory, sat Blake, reading a book, as Eclipse sat down next to her.

“Hey, Blake,” said the striped-skinned boy. “I’ve been thinking about this whole being split into teams business. Do you think that we should be on the same team?”

“I can’t guarantee that we’ll be on the same team, Eclipse. But in case we are split, I think you should try and start making some friends,” said Blake.

“Your right, Blake,” Said Eclipse with a sigh. “I’ll try tomorrow. Goodnight.”

“Yeah, goodnight, Eclipse,” said Blake. She placed a bookmark and put her book away, before then laying down.

Then silence filled the room as the students fell asleep one by one.

Meanwhile...

In a large warehouse, dozens of White Fang members were going through crates of stolen goods, Dust, weapons, etcetera. The crates were either stamped with the emblem of the Shinra or Shnee companies. One White Fang member opened a crate with the Shinra Emblem, marveling at the weapons inside. “You know, I gotta say, credit where credit’s due. The Shinra copcorporation knows how to make quality stuff,” he said.

“Yeah, I know,” said one of his colleagues. “I can’t wait to try out these beauties.”

Overseeing the whole operation was a well-dressed man with a cane, and wearing a bowler hat. He smirked as he puffed on a cigar. At that moment, a White Fang Lieutenant walked up to him.

“Everything is proceeding on schedule, Mr Torchwick,” He reported.

“Yes, yes, that’s all well and good,” The man known as Torchwick said. “But I’ve just received orders from up top. We need to double our efforts.” He then walked over to a wall, pointing to a world map. “Which means,” He continued, “We are expanding our operations from Vale to the remaining three kingdoms. So from here on out, we’re going to be busy.” He finished by taking a big drag on his cigar and blowing out a big plume of smoke.

To Be Continued...

Chapter 1: Into The Forest

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It was a beautiful morning at Beacon, and the students were in the Dining Hall. There was talking and laughter among friends. Sunset was sitting by herself, eating cereal. Just then, a girl wearing a cowgirl hat walked up to her. “Pardon, is this seat taken?” She asked with a Southern accent.

“Nope, it’s free,” Replied Sunset. The girl sat down next to her. Sunset looked up at her. She had green eyes and blond hair which was tied up in a ponytail. “Wait, Applejack?” She asked in surprise.

“Sunset Shimmer? Applejack asked, just as surprised. Well, I’ll be. I haven’t seen you since…” The girl pauses for a moment. “So what have you been up to since then?” The two girls then continued their conversation while eating their breakfast.

Across the Hall, Cardin saw Applejack sitting with Sunset. He looked around at his goons with an arrogant smirk. “Watch this, boys,” He said in a boastful, smarmy voice. “I’m about to get a gal.” He stands up and walks over to Applejack and Sunset’s table.

“Oh no,” Sunset said, putting her hand on her forehead as she saw Cardin heading toward them.

“What’s wrong?” Asked Applejack.

“Hey, there,” Cardin said, leaning in close to Applejack and putting on what he thought was his most suave smile. “What’s a girl like you sitting next to an animal like that?” He asked, thinking he was God's gift to the world. He put his hand on her shoulder.

“I’m giving you the count of 3 to take your hand off my shoulder before I break your arm in 3 different places,” She said in a threatening tone.

“Oh, come on. A girl like you, and a guy like me? We’ll be unstoppable,” He went on.

“1”.

“Think about it, a girl like you needs a man like me in your life.”

“2.”

“Look, let's face it, anything you got, I can handle it,” He said with a grin.

Applejack gave him an overly sweet smile. “Listen, big boy, a gal like me,” she said, “You can’t handle it. 3.” She grabbed his hand, squeezing hard, and a clicking sound could be heard, as Cardin's face scrunched up in pain. “Now, run along back to your little boy band,” she said in a cold voice. She let go of his hand, and he retreated to his goons, clutching his aching hand.

“That was fun to watch,” said Sunset with a satisfied smile.

“Yep, it was fun, but now my hand smells like a pretentious jerk,” Applejack replied jokingly. The two girls laughed heartily.

Meanwhile, Onyx was in the middle of his morning ritual. At that moment, Weiss walked up to him. “We need to talk,” she said in a no-nonsense tone.

“What about?” He asked nonchalantly.

“About this whole team system. I don’t know how it works. But if we end up on the same team, we need to designate who will be the leader,” Weiss explained.

“Weiss, we'll cross that bridge if we come to it,” Onyx replied.

“You might be right. But as you know, the Schnee family and the Shinra family never work together,” She said, before turning, about to leave.

“Regardless of whoever’s on your team, your attitude won’t make you a team leader,” He said to his cousin.

Weiss was insulted by what Onyx said. She turned on her heel to face him again, scowling angrily. “Where do you get the audacity to talk to me like that?!” She snapped. “Oh wait, I forgot. Shinra pride is so hard to control isn’t it?” She finished mockingly.

Onix was not intimidated. “You know, sometimes I pity you, being a Schnee, considering it’s your arrogance that makes you think the world revolves around you. But guess what. It doesn't. And without a word of a lie, if your Dust Company went under tomorrow, the only ones shedding a tear over it will be you Shenee’s. Crying pathetically over the loss of all your precious wealth, which you conned, stole and cheated out of the hands of good people,” He said with a determined look.

Weiss gasped before she twisted into a furious scowl. “How dare you!” She yelled, using every one of her wills to restrain herself from slapping him across the face. “We Schnee’s built our company on pride and honour!”

“You know, it’s ironic you chose a snowflake as your company’s emblem,” Onyx went on, unfazed by Weiss’s outburst, “considering you’re all full of nothing but hot air.” He and Weiss were now standing within arms reach of each other, and leaning forward so their faces were mere inches apart, as they glared into each other's eyes. But then, the two of them, in unison, straightened themselves up.

“Stay out of my way,” Weiss said simply.

“Will do,” Onyx said with a nod, “Just don’t go breaking a nail.”

Weiss then turned and walked away, muttering under her breath as she did so. “Moron.”

As he watched her leave, Onyx also muttered under his breath. “Bitch.”

Meanwhile, Eclipse had just finished reading a comic. “Hmm, now I just need the next volume,” he said to himself.

Blake then looked over at Eclipse. “Do you have a plan?” She asked.

“I’m just going to wing it,” Eclipse replied with a shrug.

“I think that might be the best idea,” Blake agreed. “Considering we don't know how the process goes.”

Just then, there was an announcement over the school's PA system. “Attention all first-year students. The Initiation Test will begin in 1 hour. Can all candidates please proceed to the locker room?”

Everyone in the dining hall made their way to the locker room. Once there, Onyx saw Ruby and Yang, who were talking about teams. He also saw Weiss, who was attempting to recruit a girl with long red hair who looked familiar to him. He equipped himself with his hunter outfit. It consisted of black shoes, black pants, a black jacket with red lining, and a single shoulder pad on his right shoulder. On both hands, he wore a pair of dark red gauntlets, with thick grey cuffs, which had slots for small chambers filled with Dust. His weapon was a curved bayonet, which was in his holster. On the back of his jacket was his emblem, which looked like a half-white, half-black face, with the white half smiling, and the black half giving a jagged smile.

Sunset finished getting changed into her huntress outfit; it was based on a Chinese female fighting style outfit, with a red and yellow finish. The top was mostly red with gold lining, with her shoulders and arms exposed, except for red sweatbands on her wrists. She also wore black pants, and black and gold boots that shows her toes and heels. She then tied a golden sash around her waist. She had tied her hair into a Chinese-style hairball. Then she placed her weapon on her back, behind her right shoulder, which was in travel mode.

Eclipse was in his hunter outfit. He was already dressed in his fighting gear, which consisted of padded white boots, violet baggy pants, an indigo tank top, and a white hood over his head, with his tiger ears sticking out of the top. On his right shoulder was a tattoo of his emblem, which looked like a red circle, with the two halves of his scizor blades overlapping, with another line between them, forming the shape of a capital A, standing for Anarchy, which was covered by a long, jagged scar. He wore the two halves of his scissor blades at his sides.

Ruby then looks up and sees Onyx in his outfit. “You're looking sharp,” She said with a smile.

“Thanks, I've been working on this for a very long time,” Onyx replied.

At that moment, there was another announcement. “Can all new candidates make their way to BeaconCliffs,” The announcement then ended

“Show time,” he said with a small smirk. He started to make his way out when he bumped into someone. “Sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going,” He explained apologetically.

“No, it’s fine, I…” said a girl's voice, before pausing, and then continuing in a surprised tone as she stared up at him. “Onyx?”

Onyx also looked down at the girl with wide eyes as he recognised her. She had short lime green hair, tanned skin, and deep red eyes. She wore brown boots, brown leggings over white pants, and a green halter top, with a white tank top over it which crisscrossed over her shoulders. “Emerald?!” He exclaimed.

The two of them just stared at each other, before the girl stuttered, “I...I gotta go.” She quickly walked away.

“Do you know her?” Asked Ruby.

“I did, a long time ago,” Onyx replied simply.

Ruby could tell that this subject was a sensitive one for Onix to talk about, so she didn’t press any further. He would tell her in his own time. “Let’s go, they’re not going to wait for us,” She said.

Onyx and Ruby then made their way out of the locker room and toward the cliffs.

The new students all stood in a row along the cliff which overlooked the vast forest. They stood on square panels, which were all marked with the emblem of the Kingdom of Vale.

Professor Salem and Professor Goodwitch stood in front of them all, as Professor Salem gave a speech to the new students.

“For years, you have all trained for this day. Behind me is the Emerald Forest. To the northern side of the Forest are Ruins. Inside those ruins are relics. All you need to do is retrieve one relic each, and you must bring the relic back to Beacon before the day’s end. Failure to do so will result in the end of your studentship here at Beacon. Now, I know there is confusion about the teaming. Allow me to put an end to it. Your teams will be decided by chance the moment you make eye contact with anyone in the Forest. They will be with you for the duration of your stay here at Beacon.”

The students all looked at each other in apprehension.

“Now, ready yourselves. You will now be launched into the Emerald Forest,” Said Professor Goodwitch.

The students nodded and got into their positions.

“Umm, sorry, did you say launched into the Emerald Forest?” Asked Jaune with a worried tone.

“Yes, Mr Arc,” Replied Professor Salem.

“I don’t have a parachute,” Said Jaune.

“We didn’t give out any parachutes,” Replied Salem.

“How are we supposed to land?” Asked Jaune, sounding even more scared.

“You will use a landing strategy,” Explained Salem, with an edge of impatience in her voice.

“What’s a landing strategy?” He asked again.

Onyx rolled his eyes at the blond boy’s antics.

As Jaune continued to ask questions, one by one, the students were being catapulted into the Forest.

“Here, Jaune, use this before you hit the ground,” Onyx said, giving him a small cylindrical object.

“What’s this?” Jaune asked.

“It’s an anti-grav grande, just push the button and throw it at the ground, and it will slow you down,” Explained Onyx.

“Good luck,” Ruby said before she too was catapulted.

“Anything else I need to know?” Asked Jaune again.

“Put your head between your legs,” said Onyx, before he was also catapulted.

“Wait, whaaaaaaa?!” Screamed Jaune in terror as he was also catapulted.

“Now, we will see where they land,” Said Professor Goodwitch, as she and Professor Salem looked out over the great forest that lay out before them.

“Yes, we shall now observe, and let fate be decided,” Agreed Professor Salem.

To Be Continued...

Chapter 2: Emerald Forest: Part 1: Team W.A.V.E

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Flying through the air, Weiss cast her gravity glyphs to slow her down, and then brought herself to the ground, landing gracefully. “Right, now I just need to find Ms Nikos,” She said to herself and started her search for the ruins.

At this point, Applejack was getting close to the ground. She reached out her hand and grabbed a tree top, which caused it to bend down until her feet touched the ground. She let go, and the tree sprang upwards again. She was wearing brown boots with laces and tassels, daisy dukes with a belt and belt buckle with three apples on it, an orange top that showed off her belly, a brown waistcoat with tassels, and brown fingerless gloves. She carried her weapon on her back. She then took out a compass and followed it North.

Zooming through the air, a bat Faunus named Vinyl Scratch held out a huge boombox; she pointed it toward the ground and shot powerful sonic blasts to help her land. She wore black boots, black pants, a white T-shirt with blue stripes on the sleeves, blue cuffs, dark pink/purple arm warmers on her lower arms, and purple shades with black frames over her eyes. When she landed, she began her journey to find the ruins.

Emerald was approaching the ground when she pulled out her revolvers. She used her chain scythe to grab a tree to help her land. Once she landed, she started to search to find the ruins.

Weiss was trying to navigate through the Forest. She stopped and drew her weapon when a group of Beowolves surrounded her.

“Beowolves. There sure are a lot of them. I just need to remember what my sister showed me,” She said to herself, taking a stance she had practised countless times.

One of the Beowulfs roared and charged at her. She dodged the attack and thrust her sword through the Grimm's head, killing it. Then all the Beowolves begin to attack her. Weiss fights back, using everything at her disposal. She managed to kill six or more of them before she had to pause. “They just keep coming,'' she said with a huff.

At that moment, one of the Beowolves jumped at her, Weiss didn’t react in time to counter the attack, but before the Grimm could land a hit...

The Beowolf was shot by someone, causing it to crumble into dust. A cowgirl, holding a lever action shotgun, stepped from the bushes. “Howdy,” She said to the young heiress, tilting her hat politely.

Just then, one of the Beowolfs turned to the cowgirl and ran at her, roaring furiously. She turned to face it, transforming her weapon from gun mode to sword mode. With a strong swing, she cut its arm off. It howled from the pain, and then she transformed her weapon again, aimed the gun, and blew its head off before it disintegrated!

“Alright, who's next?” She asked with a smirk.

Once again, The Grimm begin their attack. Working together, Applejack and Weiss work together to fight off the Grimm. After some time the Beowolf alpha appears. Applejack pulls out an apple. She pulled out the stork and threw the apple at its mouth, and the Grimm swallowed it.
After a few seconds, it exploded from the inside.

With they're alpha destroyed, the other Beowolfs retreated. Applejack then started to laugh. “How do y’all like them Apples?” She said with pride as she turned to look at Weiss.

“What was up with that apple you fed it?” Weiss asked with raised eyebrows.

“Nothing special,” Applejack said with a casual smile. “Just an Apple Grenade.”

“A what?” Weiss asked slowly.

“It’s what we members of the Smith Family use as our trademark weapon,” Applejack said with a wide, proud smile. “A grenade that looks like an apple. The name’s pretty self-explanatory. So, I guess we’re partners now,” She stated, holding out her hand in greeting.

Weiss just looked at her with deadpan eyes. “No, we’re not,” She said with her nose in the air, before turning and starting to walk away from the cowgirl.

Applejack frowned, before putting her hand on Weiss's shoulder to stop her. “Didn’t you hear what Miss Salem said? The first person we see becomes our partner,” she reminded her.

“True, but we can pretend we didn’t see each other,” Weiss replied dismissively, trying to brush Applejack’s hand off her shoulder.

“I can’t believe you! I saved your hide from that Grimm, and this is the thanks I get?!” She said in disbelief.

Weiss paused and thought about what the cowgirl said. “I suppose you have a point,” She said with a sigh.

Before anything else could happen, music could be heard, causing the two girls to look around in confusion. Then, out of nowhere, an Ursa came flying from the trees.

“What in tarnation!” Applejack exclaimed as she and Weiss moved out of the way of the flying Grimm.

At that moment, a girl with lightning-blue hair stepped out of the bushes. “Oh yeah, you can’t handle this girl!” She cheered, grinning with excitement. Weiss and Applejack both stared at the girl. “Yo, what’s up?” She asked, waving at the other two girls.

“Howdy, the name’s Applejack,” Applejack introduced herself, holding out her hand for the new girl to shake.

“Name’s Vinyl Scratch,” She replied with a friendly smirk, shaking the cowgirl's hand.

“And I suppose I should introduce myself too. I am Weiss Schnee,” Weiss said with her nose in the air once more. “Oh well, I guess I’m stuck with these two,” She thought to herself.

“A Schnee, huh,” Vinyl said, “Well nice to meet ya.” She then paused, before looking up at one of the trees. “I can hear you breathing up there,” She said, “So why don’t you just come down and show yourself.”

Just then, another girl then dropped down from the tree, which turned out to be Emerald. “You could hear me up there?” She asked Vinyl.

“You betcha, I can hear anything and everything, thanks to my semblance,” Vinyl replied with a huge smile.

“How long were you up there?” asked Weiss with narrowed eyes.

“Not long,” Answered the mint-haired girl with a nonchalant shrug, “what, you thought I was doing something up there?”

“Maybe,” Weiss replied with her nose in the air.

“Well, before we start getting into a ruckus here,” Applejack said placatingly, “I wager you know our names, so what’s yours?”

“It’s Emerald,” She answered, “Remember it.”

Weiss sighed, before saying, “Well, now, if you girls don’t mind, I’m heading north.” She turned and started to walk from the other girls and towards the trees.

“Hold on there,” Applejack said, “you do know you're going the wrong way, right?”

“WHAT?!” Shouted Weiss, as she turned to look at the cowgirl with a look of annoyance.

“North is that way,” Applejack said, pointing in the opposite direction.

“And how do you know that?” Weiss asked, looking down at Applejack.

Applejack answered by showing her compass to Weiss.

Weiss saw the compass. “Oh, I see you brought a compass.” She said

“Of course, that is Navigation 101 for any Combat school,” Applejack said, she then turned to the other two girls. “You two have a Compass as well right?” She asked

Emerald was silent and Vinyl gave a nervous smile.

“Wait a minute. Am I the only one who brought a compass?” Applejack asked

“Okay, how about we just get going before more Grimm shows up,” Emerald suggested

“Oh right, yes, let’s head North,” Weiss said, her brow covered in a cold sweat.

“Right sure.” Said Applejack, rolling her eyes.

With that said, the group of girls headed off into the woods, as they navigated their way north, led by Weiss.

In a short time, they find a cave. “The relic must be in this cave.” Said Weiss, as she stepped toward the entrance of the cave.

“I’m not sure about that,” Said Applejack with a cautious look.

“Well, regardless, we’re going in,” Weiss said before she entered the cave alone.

“I think we better follow her,” Said Emerald, “Who knows what kind of trouble she could get herself into?

The other two girls nodded before they headed into the darkness of the cave. “I can’t see a thing in here,” Commented Emerald.

“Just keep going,” Called Weiss from ahead of them.

“How are you doing, Vinyl?” Asked Applejack.

“I’m good,” Vinyl replied with a shrug.

Not long after entering the cave, they find a glowing object floating above them. “There it is, the relic,” Said Weiss with a smile.

“Y'all sure that’s a relic?” Asked Applejack, eyeing the object warily.

“Of course it is,” Weiss snapped impatiently. She reached up and tried to grab the relic, but it moved away from her. “Hey, stop moving!” She shouted in frustration as she kept trying to grab it.

“I don’t think that’s a relic,” Said a now nervous-sounding Emerald.

“I think you're right,” Agreed Vinyl.

“I think we oughta get outta here,” Applejack said warningly.

But Weiss didn’t listen, as she finally jumped up and grabbed hold of the relic with both hands. “I got it!” She said in excitement... before she and the other girl's eyes shank into pinpricks, as they all saw six red eyes glowing in the dark. “Eep.” Whimpered Weiss.

The girls came running out of the cave, being chased by a Deathstalker, with Weiss letting out a high-pitched scream.

They quickly turned to face the massive Grimm, as Applejack pulled out an apple grenade, pulled the pin from it, and tossed it at the Deathstalker. The grenade hit its skull-like head and exploded, but all that seemed to do was make it eveangrier. It then raises its tail and strikes at them with its deadly stinger.

Emerald then draws out her revolvers and starts to shoot at the Deathstalker.

The Deathstalker then swings and snaps at the girls with its claws, trying to cut them to pieces.

Applejack then ran at the Deathstalker with her sword. But the Deathstalker was ready for her, as it grabbed her with its claw. She kicked and punched hard at the tight pincer, and try to cut herself out with her sword.

“It’s got Applejack!” Yelled Vinyl.

Weiss then ran at the Deathstalker and stabbed it in the eye. It screamed from the pain and let go of Applejack.

Vinyl then transforms her boombox into a huge hammer. “Time to drop the beat!” She shouted with a smirk. The Deathstalker strikes at her with its stinger And Vinyl counters with an upper swing. The force of the blow forced the stinger backwards, and it was then stuck into the ground.

“Quick, let’s blind it,” Emerald told Applejack. Applejack nodded, and the two girls ran at the Deathstalker. Emerald then extends her Sickles and shoots out the chains. She jumped into the air, and swung down, stabbing its top eyes. Then Applejack used her sword to stab the other eye. Vinyl transformed her weapon from hammer mode to assault rifle made. Then she shoots at the last two eyes The Deathstalker screamed and entered a panic-like state.

Weiss now saw her opportunity, as she turned her dust revolver to the earth element. With her glyphs, she coursed a landslide, Applejack, Vinyl and Emerald ran away from the landslide which finally killed the Deathstalker. The girls all take a moment to catch their breaths.

“Is it dead?” Asked Emerald.

“Yeah, it’s dead,” Replied Vinyl. “I can’t hear it breathing.”

“Well, then, I think we’re done here,” Said Applejack.

“Let’s just find that ruin,” Suggested Weiss. The other girls nodded, and they headed off in the northern direction.

On the way, Applejack and Weiss walked alongside each other. “Hey, I guess we’re even now,” Applejack said to Weiss.

“Excuse me?” Weiss asked.

“You saved me from that Deathstalker, and when we first met, I saved you from that Beowolf,” Applejack explained.

“Hmm, I guess you're right,” Said Weiss with a little smile.

Emerald and Vinyl were walking next to each other too. “What are they talking about?” Asked Emerald.

“They’re saying something about being even,” Vinyl said.

Emerald raised an eyebrow. “Even?” she asked.

“Don’t ask me, I dunno,” Vinyl said with a shrug.

The 4 girls continue walking, and eventually, they find the ruins.

“This must be it,” Said Applejack.

The girls approached the ruins and came to an open area with a row of stone pedestals. On top of each pedestal were different objects.

“So, are these the relics?” Asked Emerald.

“Some of them are missing. So they must be,” Said Applejack.

Weiss looked at the relics in front of her, thinking carefully. “Let's take the Staff,” She said to Applejack.

“Go ahead, I don’t mind,” Applejack replied.

Weiss walked up to the pedestals and picked up the Staff.

“Why don’t we do the same?” Asked Vinyl.

“Sure why not,” Replied Emerald, before taking the other Staff.

With their Relics in hand, the girls left the ruins and made their way back to Beacon.

Meanwhile, Ms Salem was watching Weiss and the others on her Scroll.

“Hmm, Ms Schnee might be a fine leader for this team,” She thought to herself.

With one set of Team members decided, she continued to watch the rest of the students to see whose fates would be decided next.

To Be Continued...

Chapter 3: Emerald Forest: part 2 Team B.L.I.T

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Flying through the air, Blake looked straight ahead at the trees as she pulled out her weapon. She then threw her Kusarigama Pistol to perform her landing. She quickly landed in the top branches of a tree, before she looked around to find her way north.

Back in the air, Lemon Zest glided towards the ground. She wore dark purple high-heeled boots, sparkling dark purple leggings, a lilac-coloured skirt with a yellow overskirt, a sparkly light pink top, and purple wristbands. She also had a first aid pouch on her hip. As she descended, she looked up and saw a bird flying in her direction. “Aww, a cute little bird,” She said with a smile. As it got closer, the bird got bigger and bigger, much bigger than a normal bird. “OK, not so cute and not a real bird.” She repositioned herself, and a blade shot out from her sleeve. Once the Grimm got close enough, with a quick swing, she cut its wing clean off. She then grabbed the wing, before putting her weapon away and using the Grimm’s wing like a parachute. Once her feet touched the ground, she let the wing go. “Alright, yeah, nailed it! Now, time to find me some relics!” She said excitedly, before heading off into the forest.

Up in the air, Indigo Zap looked around for a landing spot. “Hmm, there’s one,” She said as she saw a lake of water. She performed her landing by crashing into the water. She then swam to the edge and pulled herself out of the lake. She wore a purple two-piece divers outfit and goggles. With a rifle on her back and several pockets on her legs, and also a belt with magazines in pouches. On her feet was a pair of custom boots for land and sea. On her back was a purple cloud with blue lighting shooting out of the bottom. After she got out of the water, and back onto dry ground, she started to make her way north.

Also flying through the air, Twilight Sparkle was scanning the Forest with her computer glasses. Her computer calculated the best odds for her landing. She found the perfect landing zone and teleported to the ground. She wore dark blue boots, navy blue leggings, and a maroon top with a skirt, and left her arms bared, which had six-pointed stars around the skirt. She then scanned the area to see if there were Grimm or anyone else nearby. “Hmm, good, nothing else here. Now all I have to do is head north,” She said as she set off for the ruins.

Blake, staying hidden, made her way through the trees, using them to her advantage. She kept her distance from the Grimm, and some of the other students. Salem’s instructions were clear, the first person she makes eye contact with will be her partner for the semester. She continued moving along the trees, on the constant lookout for her friend. “Eclipse, where are you?” She asked herself. She had to find her friend fast. Just before she could resume her search for Eclipse, the tree she was in violently shakes. Blake looked down and saw 3 Boarbatusk crashing into the tree. “Did they see me?” She pulled out her weapons and jumped down to face the Boarbatusk.

The 3 Boarbatusk turned to face Blake, growling viciously. She was not intimidated though, as she readied herself for battle. From out of nowhere, a fourth Boarbatusk rolled out of the bushes and crashed into Blake in her back. Blake was tossed to the ground, as the other 3 Boarbatusk charged at her.

At that moment, a girl with lime and lemon-coloured hair came jumping from the trees. She extended her arm, and using two machine guns, started shooting at the Boarbatusks. Her bullets bounced off their armor and one of them rolled up into a ball and charged at the girl at high speed. She pulled back her leg, and once the Boarbatusk got close, she kicked it with incredible force, sending the Boarbatusk high into the air.

Once she recovered, Blake got back on her feet, raised her weapons and she started to shoot at the Boarbatusk. And together, the two of them worked to kill the Boarbatusk.

“Alright, that was awesome!” The other girl said with hype.

“Yeah, thanks for saving me back there,” Blake said, straightening her back.

“How’s your back? That Boarbatusk hit you hard there,” She said as she walked up to Blake.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” Blake replied dismissively.

“Well, I guess from this point we’ll be partners. The name’s Lemon Zest! And you are?” Lemon asked with a grin.

“Blake Belladonna,” she replied simply.

“Nice to meet ya. Now, which way is north?” Asked Lemon.

“This way,” Blake replied, pointing in the direction and starting to walk.

“H-hey, wait for me!” Lemon called as she caught up with Blake.

As Indigo walks through the forest, she keeps a sharp look out for the ruins. Just then, she can hear the sound of running water. “That might be it,” she said to herself. She ran up to where the sound came from and found a beautiful river. She crouched down by the edge of the river to take a closer look at the glistening water. “Well, I could use a drink,” She said, as she scooped up some of the water with her hands and carefully drank it. “Wow, sure tastes better than salt water,” She said with a smile before she stood up and dived into the water before she began to swim down the river.

Twilight, using her glasses to find the ruins, soon found the river and scanned it. “Hmm, good, it’s clean,” She said, before kneeling to have a drink herself.

Hidden in the bushes, an Insect Grimm approached Twilight slowly and quietly. However, Before it could attack, Indigo rose from the river and shot the Grimm 3 times with her rifle, killing the Grimm and saving Twilight. Indigo, still in the water, looked at Twilight and waved. “Hi, how’s it going?” She asked.

“Fine,” Twilight replied bluntly.

Indigo climbed out of the water and walked up to Twilight. “So, I guess this means you now owe me,” She said with a cheeky grin. “So what’s your name?” She asked.

Instead of answering her, Twilight suddenly pointed her arm at Indigo, and it unfolded into an automatic crossbow. Indigo ducked as she shot several arrows at her, all missing her.

“What the hell!?” Indigo screamed in annoyance. At that moment, another insect Grimm fell from the trees behind her.

“Deathstingers always hunt in pairs. And the name is Twilight,” Twilight said as her arm went back to normal.

Indigo moved away from the dead Grimm. “I’m Indigo. I’m gonna be your partner for the year,” she said.

“Then let's keep moving,” Said Twilight. The two girls then resumed their search for the ruins.

Meanwhile, Blake and Lemon continued their search for the ruins. “Are you sure we’re heading the right way?” Asked Lemon.

“Yes, I have a good sense of direction,” Replied Blake.

Lemon looked over at Blake and noticed she was not walking straight. “How’s your back?” She asked, concerned about her companion.

“Yes, I’m fine,” Blakereplied, trying to make it look like she was ok.

They come to a revenue. “Okay, I’ll go first,” Lemon insisted.

Blake just let her go first, as she then jumped down into the revenue. Blake then jumped down to join Lemon, but when she landed, Blake suddenly yelped in pain.

“Oh gods, I knew your back was bad,” Lemon said, quickly looking for her first aid kit. She pulled out a small red pouch, then she got a syringe with the Shinra logo on it.

“What’s that?” asked Blake, eyeing the syringe warily.

“Painkiller shot, it'll help you with your back,” Lemon explained before she crouched down next to Blake. “Brace yourself, this will sting,” She warned Blake before she carefully stabbed her with the needle in her back.

“Ahh, that hurts!” Blake yelped.

“You'll be fine in a second,” Lemon reassured Blake.

“How long will it take?” Blake asked through gritted teeth.

“Not long,” Lemon said as she put the syringe away. “So, tell me about yourself,” she said conversationally.

“What?” Blake said in confusion, “Why would you ask me that?”

“Well, you know, just to talk to each other and take your mind off the pain,” Lemon said casually. “So, come on, let’s hear it.”

“Look,” Blake said, giving the green-haired girl an odd look, “It’s nothing personal, but I’ve only just met you.”

“OK, sure, I can respect that,” Lemon said with a shrug. “Anyway, where to begin?” She continued, “Well, I was born in Atlas, believe it or not.”

“Oh no,” Blake thought to herself with an internal grimace, “An Atlas elitist.”

“And, when I was 3, my parents died,” Lemon went on, making Blake look up at her in shock.

“Wow, she’s just putting that straight out there, isn't she?” She thought with wide eyes.

“Not long after that, I was put in an orphanage in Vacuo of all places,” Lemon continued, oblivious to the look on Blake’s face. “Don’t know why I wasn’t put in an Orphanage in Atlas, but I didn’t care at the time. You know, due to the fact I was grieving over the loss of my parents and all.”

“Er, OK,” Blake said with an uneasy nod.

“And then, when I was 5,” Lemon continued, “I was adopted by a Faunus family.” At this, Blake looked up at her in shock, before she concluded her story by saying,“So, they raised me as their own kid, and when I was older, I decided to become a Huntress, and that’s what led to me coming here. So, that’s pretty much my back story, or summary of it.”

“Uhh,” Blake said, staring at Lemon strangely, “Why are you telling me all this? You only just met me today. Why are you being so open with a complete stranger?”

“Well, you're not a complete stranger,” Lemon said with an easy going smile, “I do know your name, which is Blake, and since we made eye contact, we’re partners. So, we may as well get to know each other now, so we don’t have any problems with each other later.”

This brings a little smile to Blake's face. It actually slightly warmed her heart that this girl who was raised by Faunus and that she would be so open about it. By now, Blake can feel her back getting better. “Wow, you know what, that injection did help, thanks,” she said as she got back to her feet.

“You're welcome,” Lemon said with a smile, “but take it easy, OK. Just because you can’t feel the pain, doesn’t mean you can’t still do some damage to your back,” she explained.

“I will, thank you again,” Blake said gratefully. Just then, she realised this is one of the few times that she actually thanked a human. With all that said and done, the girls then headed off to continue their search for the ruins.

Meanwhile, Indigo and Twilight continued walking through the Forest. “Hey, are you sure we’re heading north?” Asked Indigo.

“Yes, I am quite certain. My glasses have built in computers that can scan the surrounding environment, help with navigation, and also have a Night Vision mode, infrared, et cetera,” Twilight explained.

“Wow, where did you get that?” Indigo asked with an intrigued look on her face.

“I made them myself,” Replied Twilight, sounding quite proud of her invention.

“Can you play music on them?” Indigo asked.

“Yes,” Twilight said.

“Can they stream movies and satellite tv?” Indigo asked again with great interest.

“Yes,” Twilight said again.

“I want a pair,” Indigo said with envy.

“Even if I did give you a pair, which I can’t, you wouldn’t be able to use them anyway,” Twilight responded.

“Aw, why not?,” Indigo complained.

“They are not waterproof,” Twilight stated.

“Touche,” Indigo said with a nod, as she placed her hand under her chin. “Well, anyway, which kingdom are you from?” She asked.

“Atlas. Why are you asking so many questions?” Twilight asked.

“Just curious,” Indigo replied with a shrug, “I’m from Mistral, by the way.”

“Just to let you know,” Twilight went on, “that we should be close to the ruins soon.”

“Oh great,” Indigo said with a grin, before she continued to bombard Twilight with questions as they made their way toward the ruins.

Eventually, the four girls finally found the ruins.

“Lucky us we got here without running into anymore Grimm, huh?” Lemon said to Blake with a Smirk.

“Yeah, lucky. But just to be safe, keep your guard up,” Blake suggested.

Just then, Indigo noticed Blake and Lemon. “Hey, did your glasses see these two as we approached?” she asked Twilight.

Twilight looked at the two girls and scanned them with her high tech glasses. The results showed Lemon was human, and Blake was a Cat Faunus. This made her hum in suspicion.

“Is everything okay?” Asked Indigo.

“Oh yeah, just scanning for Grimm,” Twilight replied, keeping her suspicions to herself for now.

After that, the four girls headed into the Ruins, seeing the objects on the pedestals.

“What are those?” Asked Lemon with a raised eyebrow.

“Maybe The Relics,” Stated Twilight.

“Hey, shouldn’t we introduce ourselves to each other?” Said Indigo.

“Yeah, I think she's right,” Agreed Blake,“I’m Blake Belladonna.” This got Twilight’s attention.

“The name’s Lemon Zest,” Lemon said with a smile.

“Indigo Zap’s the name,” Indigo said with a smile of her own.

“And I’m Twilight Sparkle,” Twilight said, finishing off the introductions.

They then all looked at the relics. “So, we just need one relic piece per pair?” asked Lemon.

“Yep, that’s what Salem told us,” Indigo replied as she threw the selection.“Let's take... this one,” she said slowly, before picking up the Lamp.

“You want the Lamp?” Asked Twilight.

“Yeah Lamps are cool.” Indigo answered, with a smile.

Lemon then stepped forward and took the other Lamp.

“So you chose the Lamp too,” asked Blake.

“Well, yeah,” Lemon said with smirk, “like Indigo said, Lamps are cool.”

“That’s your only excuse, isn't it?” Blake asked with a deadpan look.

“Pretty much,” Lemon replied with another smirk.

“Of course,” Blake sighed, rolling her eyes. She then suddenly grimaced, before she collapsed forward and grabbed the pedestal to support herself.

“Whoa, you ok?” Asked Lemon in a worried tone.

“I think that pain killer you gave me wore off just this second,” Blake said with a slight hiss.

“Hold on, I’ll give you a top up,” Lemon said as she pulled out the first aid pouch, opened it, and pulled out another syringe. “Same as before, brace yourself for the sting,” she said. Blake squinted with one eye, as she kept the other on Lemon, as the green haired put the needle in her back. Job done, she then put the used needle back in the pouch. “There, that should hold for a little while,” she finished reassuringly.

“Thanks,” Blake said gratefully and with a relieved smile as she felt the pain begin to slowly ebb away again.

As this was happening, Twilight then scanned Blake with her glasses again, seeing the damage done to her back, and she figured out what was causing her the most pain. “We need to get her back to Beacon as quickly as possible,” She said to the others.

“Why?” Asked Lemon.

“I’m afraid that there is a fracture in her spinal cord,” Twilight explained seriously, “If we don’t get her some proper medical attention soon, she could run the risk of permanent paralysis.”

“Wait, what?!” Lemon said in shock.

“Oh my gods! You serious?!” Indigo exclaimed, just as shocked as Lemon.

Blake just turned to look at Twilight, and locked her eyes with her own. “How long do I have?” She asked calmly.

“I would estimate that you only have two hours at the most,” Twilight said just as calmly.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Lemon said with determination. “We’ve already got what we came for, so let’s just concentrate on getting Blake back to Beacon. Don’t stop for anything.” She then walked up to Blake and took her arm, placing it over her shoulders. “Can’t put strain on that injury, so you better lean on me on the way back.”

“Thanks,” Blake said with a small smile. “Look at this,” she thought, “this human girl, who was raised by Faunus, is going out of her way to help me, even willingly carry me to safety. How would Adam react if he ever met her? Would she be able to change his feelings towards humans? Probably not, but she does give me hope, and maybe that's all that matters.”

With those thoughts, the girls headed away from the ruins to make their way back to Beacon, with Twilight and Indigo taking point, so they could keep an out for any Grimm, and fight them off if necessary.

What they didn’t know was that hidden from sight was a King Taijitu, watching them intently, and slithering towards them.

As the girls walked on, Twilight was constantly scanning for any sign of a threat. Just then, she received an alert, and through the trees, she spotted the first head of the giant serpent. She instantly knew what it was, and knew what was about to happen. Just as the serpent pulled back its black head in order to strike, she quickly used her semblance, teleporting over to Lemon and Blake, grabbing them by the arms and teleporting them away, disappearing just a split second before the snakes jaws snapped shut on the spot they were standing a moment before.

The three girls reappeared next to Indigo, with her and the other two girls very startled. “Hey, what’s the deal,” Lemon asked.

“Look!” Twilight shouted, drawing their attention to the giant twin headed snake. “That’s a King Taijitu! It always attacks the weakest member of a group first, and that’s you!” She finished, pointing at Blake.

“Whoa, are you saying we almost became that thing’s lunch?!” Lemon shouted wide eyes.

“Don’t these things have two heads?” asked Indigo. “Where’s the second head?”

As if on cue, the white head of the King Taijitu rose up right behind Twilight, Lemon and Blake, eyeing them as it hissed angrily at the one that had stolen away its next meal.

Just as it was about to attack the three girls, Indigo, seeing what was about to happen, ran forward and lept up toward it, changing her weapon into its Trident mode, and shoving the three prongs into its skull, as it screamed in pain and fury. She then activated her semblance, sending a jolt of electricity into its head, causing it to hit the ground with a great thud.

“Twilight, take care of the first head!” Blake ordered. “Lemon, you're with me! Indigo, keep doing what you’re doing!”

“As if I have a choice!” Indigo yelled back, as the second head began to shake, trying to shake her off as she continued to give it an electric shock right into its skull.

As this was happening, Twilight teleported over to the first head, transformed her claws into crossbow mode, and began firing a barrage of arrows at it. As she shot arrow after arrow, she would teleport after every shot, keeping the giant serpent disoriented so it couldn’t strike back at her.

“Ok, so, what's the plan?” Lemon asked.

Blake then pulled her Gambol Shroud from her back and gave a fiercely determined look. “We’re going to kill that Grimm,” she said seriously… before she suddenly let out a yell of pain, as her body went limp. Her aura had finally been depleted, and the pain from her injury had returned tenfold.

Lemon quickly caught her before she could hit the ground. “If you keep this up your’re gonna kill yourself,” she said warningly.

“I will not just stand by and watch as others fight my battles,” Blake stated firmly in determination. “As long as I can hold a sword, I will fight.”

Seeing that Blake would not be convinced, Lemon decided that she would have to make a desperate decision. “Alright, looks I have no choice,” she said with a heavy sigh, before racing into her first aid pouch once more, and pulling out another syringe. “I’m gonna have to give you this.”

“Another pain killer?” Blake asked.

“No,” Lemon said seriously, “This is no pain killer. This is what’s known as an Aura Booster, recently created by the Shinra Company. It will temporarily increase your Aura tenfold. But, fair warning, they are dangerous.”

“How dangerous?” Blake asked warily.

“Well…” Lemon said slowly, “The last time I had heard of a guy using one of these… he suffered and died from major organ failure.”

“What?!” Blake shouted in shock.

“Look, no kidding here,” Lemon said seriously again, “This is the only way, you’re gonna be able to fight that Grimm. Still want to go through with it?”

At that moment, Indigo was thrown off the serpent's head. Seeing this, Blake looked up at Lemon and nodded. “Do it,” she said simply.

“Alright,” Lemon said as she got behind her. “Ready for the sting?”

“Just get on with it,” Blake said, before feeling the now familiar prick of the needle in her back. She felt the effect immediately, as she felt her strength return. She now felt like she could take on 10 King Tijitu’s single handed. “Whoa, I feel amazing,” she said with awe as she straightened up.

“Yeah, Shinra usually brings out the best stuff,” Lemon said with a smirk, “Better than those clowns from Atlas Medical.”

Blake smirked back. “Then, let's do this,” she said. With that, the two girls dashed into battle. “I got a plan!” Blake shouted to the other girls, “Lemon, help Twilight, and I’ll go and help Indigo!”

“Alright, you have 10 minutes. Make them count,” Lemon said, before she ran off to help Twilight, multiplying herself into three copies as she went.

Blake then separated her weapon and tied her ribbon around the cleaver’s handle. She then ran towards the white head, before she jumped on its body. The serpent saw her, and lunged itself at her. Blake then created a shadow clone, and then dodged the attack by jumping over it. She then threw her cleaver into the head of the Grimm in the same place that Indigo impaled it with her trident.

The snake hissed from both pain and anger, as Blake flew past the head, and ran around the body to tie it up in the ribbon. “MOVE AWAY FROM THE HEAD!” She yelled to her teammates. Hearing this, Lemon and Twilight moved out of the way.

Blake then shoots at the Black head to get its attention. The snake hissed and charged at her. Once again, Blake used a Shadow clone to avoid the attack, and the black snake bit into the neck of the white snake.

The white snake screamed in pain and anger, before biting the head of the black snake in revenge. Blake then wrapped both heads together with her ribbon, before throwing her pistol to Indigo.

“SHOCK HIM!” Blake yelled to Indigo.

Catching the pistol, and grabbing some lightning dust crystals from her pocket, Indigo threw them into her mouth, and bites down, unleashing a power load of electricity throughout her body. She sends the electrictricity through the ribbon, towards the King Taijitu, creating an electrical loop, which shocks the serpent’s entire body from end to end. After Indigo depleted her electricity, the King Taijitu was now completely stunned.

“Come on, let's finish him off!” Lemon said to Twilight.

Twilight nodded, and the two of them quickly ran forwards towards the heads of the King Taijitu. Lemon extended both of her swords, and made a clone to throw herself forwards towards it faster. With an almighty swing of her blades, Lemon cut off the giant serpents Black head.

Twilight then teleports over to the White head, and, using her claws, she cut off the second head.

After both heads were cut off, the Grimm disintegrated into dust.

With the grimm finally defeated, the girls took a moment to catch their breaths, before they celebrated their victory over the King Taijitu.

“HELL YEAH!” Yelled Indigo in triumph, and with a mouth full of broken teeth.

The other three girls stopped and stared at Indigo's mouth in concern.

“What?” Indigo asked them in confusion.

“Are you okay?” Asked Blake with a raised eyebrow.

“Fear not,” Twilight then answered, walking over to stand next to Indigo, “Indigo is a Shark Faunus, related to the Great White, I believe.” She explained.

“Yeah,” this kinda thing happens all the time. Besides, I needed a new set anyway,” Indigo said with a casula shrug, before reaching into her mouth and pulling out the broken set of teeth like they were denchers, and immediately growing a new set of teeth. “Ahh, that’s better,” She said, licking her new teeth.

“Okay,” Lemon said, processing what she just saw.

“How did you know she was a Faunus?” Blake asked Twilight with a slight tone of suspicion.

“My glasses scanned her and informed me on her biology,” Twilight explained.

Blake's eyes widened from Twilight’s answer, knowing that Twilight would certainly know she was a Faunus as well. Unfortunately, before she could say or do anything about the matter, the pain from her back suddenly returned with a vengeance. “AHH!” She yelped, as she completely lost the strength in her legs.

“Oh no, Blake!” Lemon cried, catching Blake from hitting the ground.

Twilight then gave another scan. “It’s spread. At the present rate of deterioration, she won’t make it back in time,” She explained grimmly, choosing not to sugarcoat the situation.

However, they all looked up, as they heard the whining of engines, and saw a Bullhead flying over them, before hovering down next to them. A woman with pink hair and in a nurse’s uniform opened the door.

“Bring her here!” She called urgently.

Not wanting to waste time, Twilight took Blake from Lemon and teleported the two straight into the Bullhead. Lemon and Indigo then ran over and jumped onto the Bullhead as well. They quickly got seated and the Bullhead took to the sky again, speeding towards Beacon.

Inside the craft, the nurse looked over Blake carefully. “Don’t worry, you're in good hands,” she said reassuringly.

As the Bullhead flew back to Beacon, Salam was watching everything on her scroll.

“I’m glad that she made it in time. It would be such a shame if this team of knights lost their leader,” she said to herself with a smile.

To Be Continued...

Chapter 4: Emerald Forest: Part 3 Team Y.E.L.O

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Flying through the air, Yang, the thrill seeker that she was, was using her Gauntlets to increase speed.

“Woohoo!” She screamed in joy. Up ahead, she then saw the top of a tall tree. With a smirk, she then thrust her gauntlets forward to slow herself down, before she crashed into the branches of the tree and then jumped down. Once she was on the ground, she brushed the leaves out of her hair and then gave a celebratory whoop. “Nailed it!” She then looked all around her, not seeing anyone else. “Well, I better go find Ruby. No telling what trouble my little sis has got herself into without me.”

Ember was soaring through the air her wings unfurled, before she saw a clearing to land in. She easily glides down to the ground. She was dressed in deep blue leather boots, jeans, a white tank top which showed her stomach, and a deep blue leather scale-mail jacket, with shoulder pad armour and knee pad armour on her arms and legs. After she touched down, she looked all around, seeing no one. She sighed. “Well, looks like I’m alone at least, that’s just great,” She said, before heading off north.

Lyra glides through the sky before she finds an ideal area to land. She then used her semblance to form two Aura Arms, which she wrapped around herself and absorbed the impact as she hit the ground, helping her to land safely. She was dressed in black shoes with bandages wrapped tightly around her legs, lime green fighting pants with an emblem of a Lyre on each of the legs, a tight black sports bra that showed off most of her stomach and six-pack, and there also bandages around her arms.

Taking a quick look around, she saw no Grimm or the other Students around. “Okay now to North.” She walked heading North

Octavia, soaring gracefully through the air, saw a place to land. She was dressed in red shoulder pads with gold lining, a white shirt with a pink bow around her neck, a silver corset with gold clasps, a black belt with a gold ornate belt, a short grey skirt, pitch black leggings with armoured knee pads and shin-guards, and black high heeled boots. Moments from the ground she pulled out an Anti-Grav Pad, and threw it to the ground. It creates a dome of anti-gravity to catch her. After she landed on the ground, gave the area a quick look around, before then setting off, heading north.

“Hello?” Yang called out as she headed through the forest. “Is anybody out there? Hello? Getting bored here.” She turned as she heard a rustle in the bushes behind her. “Someone there?” She turned and pulled back the bushes. “Ruby, is that you?” She looked up and she heard a low growl. “Nope.” She leapt to one side as Ursa lunged at her before she rolled back to her feet and readied her gauntlets. A second Ursa jumped out alongside the first. The first Ursa lunged at Yang again, only to be flung back as Yang threw a punch at her, firing an explosive round, giving her punch more impact. The second Ursa came forward, Yang lamed it with an explosive uppecut, before sending it rolling away with a strong kick. “You guys wouldn't happen to have seen a girl in a red hood, would you?” The Ursas just roared at her. “You could just say no,” Yang said cheekily, “before somersaulting away as one of the Ursas tried to swiper her with its claws. “Ha ha!” Yang chuckled. “Geez, you two couldn’t hit the broadside of a…” She trailed off as she saw a single strand of her blond hair float slowly past her face, and down to the ground. “You…” She said with an angry tone, as her eyes suddenly turned bright red. “YOU MONSTER!!” She yelled in rage, as her body lit up like it was on fire, before charging at the first Ursa and unleashing a melee of rapid punches, and sending it flying. She then turns to face the second Ursa as it lumbers toward her. “What?! You want some too?!”

Just as Ursa came charging at her, a girl dropped down in front of Yang, who then folded away a pair of dragon wings. She had blue spiky hair with white highlights. She then raised a Tommy Gun and unleashed a volley of gunfire on the Ursa. This went on until the entire magazine was used up. For a moment, everything was still, before the Ursa dropped dead. “That was fun,” She said with a wide smirk.

“Well, that was kinda overkill, don’t you think?” Yang asked.

“Says the girl who went berserk and burned down the whole forest over losing a single strand of her hair,” The dragon girl shot back.

Yang folded her arms and scowled. “You win this round,” She said in a low voice, just as a burning tree fell to the ground behind her. “So, I guess this means we’re partners now.” She then held out a hand to shake. “Im Yang Xiao Long. And you are?”

“I don’t do handshakes,” the other girl said with narrowed eyes, “I do clasps.” She then held up her hand.

“Oh, I like this reptile,” Yang thought with a smirk, before clasping the dragon girl's hand with hers.

“And by the way,” The other girl said as they pulled their hands apart, “the name’s Ember. Ember Bloodstone.”

“Well, I think this is the start of a beautiful partnership,” Yang thought with intrigue, as the two of them headed off north together.

Meanwhile, Octavia was working through the forest, a peaceful look on her face. “Ah, now this is proper tranquillity,” She said in a relaxed tone. “And the only way to make this day perfect is if Vinyl shows up out of nowhere and ruins it with her music.” She then paused as she heard the distinct sound of gunshots in the distance. “That’s not the same calibre as Vinyl,” she said thoughtfully. She headed off toward the sound of the gunshots.

She then saw a girl with lime green hair fighting with a huge insect-like Grimm. The girl was using a pair of Tonfas. She recognised the Grimm as a Lancer Queen, the larger and more deadly leader of a Lancer swarm. The girl was doing her best but was struggling against the dangerous Grimm. Getting down on one knee, Octavia then transformed her weapon into an anti-tank mode, set it down on the ground, looked into the sniper scope, and then activated her semblance, as in her eye, two red lines criscrossed, like the crosshairs on a gun. Using her newly enhanced sight, she was able to pinpoint the Lancer’s weak point, and taking precise aim, she pulled the trigger. The shot echoed everywhere, before the Grimm fell to the ground, and then disintegrated.

The other girl then looked toward Octavia as she stood up and transformed her weapon again. “Thanks for the help,” she said gratefully, “that Lancer Queen just came at me out of nowhere.”

“Did you kill any other Lancers?” Octavia asked.

“Yeah, I actually fought against a small group of them,” The girl replied.

“Then that’s where that Queen came from,” Stated Octavia.

“Well again, thanks,” said the girl before introducing herself, “My name’s Lyra, by the way. Lyra Heartstrings.”

Octavia gave Lyra a small bow in return. “Pleasure to meet you,” she said with a smile, “I’m Octavia Melody.”

“Well, I guess this means we’re partners from now on,” said Lyra.

“Indeed,” replied Octavia, “We should continue making our way north now.”

“OK, let’s go,” Lyra agreed, as they both headed off together.

Yang and Ember continued walking north.

“So, your name is Ember and you're from Vacuo?” Yang asked.

“Yeah I came here to become a huntress,” Explained Ember.

“That's cool. Hey, what’s your semblance?” Asked Yang with interest.

“Mine’s called Fabricator. I can use it to create just about anything as long as I have the right materials. One time, I was able to turn a piece of silver into pure gold,” Explained Ember proudly.

“Okay, yeah, that is awesome,” said a very impressed Yang.

“Yeah, back at home, I was the most popular girl in town,” Said Ember with a smile.

“Yeah, I bet, I mean, turning silver into gold? Are you a super rich girl or something?” Asked Yang.

“Yeah, we used to be,” Replied Ember with a huff.

“Used to be? What happened?” Yang asked curiously.

“The IRS happened!” Ember said in annoyance.

“Ohhh,” Yang said with a wince, “that sucks.”

“Hey, look, I think we’re getting close to the ruins,” said Ember quickly.

“Yeah, yeah, sure we are,” Yang said with a nod, glad of the change of subject.

Meanwhile, Lyra and Octavia were walking through the Forest.

“Are you sure we’re heading north?” Asked Lyra.

“I assure you we are headed in the right direction,” Replied Octavia. “I am following our fellow student's footprints.”

“Footprints?” Lyra asked as she looked at the ground in front of them. “What footprints? I don't see anything.”

“My eyes are capable of seeing the unseeable,” Octavia explained, “It’s part of my semblance.”

Lyra whistled. “Well, I bet that comes in handy,” She said, impressed with Octavia.

“Yes, it’s very useful for fighting against the Grimm, as well as for finding hidden objects,” Octavia said proudly.

Not long after, Lyra and Octavia arrived at a huge clearing and saw some ancient ruins.

“Those must be the ruins we’re looking for,” said Lyra.

“I can see someone coming, two females,” Said Octavia, pointing in the right direction. Lyra looked where Octavia was pointing, and saw Yang and Ember enter the clearing.

“Looks like we’re not the only ones who found this place,” said Ember.

“Well, this place wasn't exactly hard to find,” said Yang.

After brief introductions, the four of them headed into the ruins. When they reached it, they saw a row of pedestals, some had objects on them, some didn’t.

“Looks like we’re not the first ones here,” Stated Octavia.

“Well, regardless, let’s grab our relics and head back,” said Yang.

They stepped toward the pedestals, and looked between the remaining Relics. “ how a about this?” Asked Ember.

“The Shield?” Asked Yang.

“Yeah, my Dad used a Shield before he retired,” Ember said

“Okay, I won’t argue,” Yang said, understanding Ember’s choice.

Ember smiled and grabbed the Shield.

Lyra then picked up the same Relic. “Alright, we have what we came for. Let’s head back,” She said.

They were about to start heading back to Beacon when suddenly, the ground began to shake. Before they could ready themselves, the ground beneath their feet split open, and a giant worm-like Grimm shot up out of the ground.

“THAT’S AN ARMOURED TUNNELLING TERRA!” Yelled Ember.

“WE GOT TO MOVE!” Yelled Yang.

The girls quickly turned and ran from the huge Grimm. It reared up, and then dived into the ground, burying through the ground like it was water as it chased them, the girls trying to outrun it. “We can’t outrun it! Climb the tree!” Shouted Octavia.

Ember opened her wings and lifted off the ground before she picked up Yang by the arms.

“Thanks for the ride,” Yang said with a smile.

Following her lead, the other two girls quickly climbed the nearest tree.

When they got to the top, the Grimm resurfaced, trying to find them, as it jerked its armed head in all directions.

“What’s it doing?” Asked Yang.

“Tunneling Terra’s are blind. It can’t find us up here because we’re not on the ground so it can’t sense our vibrations,” Explained Octavia.

“So now what, we stay up here until it loses interest?” Asked Ember.

“No, they're smart. It will figure out we’re up here, sooner or later,” Replied Octavia.

“I thought these Grimm were only found in Vacuo,” Stated Lyra.

“Who cares! We got a deadline and this guy to deal with. We need a plan here,” Said Yang with determination.

“My semblance is named Target, I can find a weak spot, and kill it,” Explained Octavia. “But, unfortunately, I do not have any armour-piercing rounds.”

“Quick, give me one of your Magazines,” Ember said reaching her hand out.

“Why?” Asked Octavia.

“My semblance is called fabricator. I can use it to turn your bullets into armour-piercing rounds,” Replied Ember.

Octavia grabbed one of her magazines and tossed it to Ember.
“Give me a minute and I’ll give you a full magazine.” Said Ember, transforming Octavia’s bullets into armour-piercing rounds

“What about you?” Yang asked Lyra.

“My semblance is called Astral Projection. I can use my aura to create ghost arms. I can use them to pull the Terra from the ground, and hold him down long enough for you to kill it,” she explained.

“Alright, that’s good. My semblance is called Burn. I take damage and I can give it right back,” said Yang.

“Ok, done, you have five rounds,” Ember said as she tossed the newly altered bullets back to Octavia.

At that moment, the huge Grimm crashed into the base of a tree, knocking it over with a crash.

“I think it knows we’re in a tree,” Said Lyra.

“Alright, here’s the plan. Octavia, get to a vantage point. The rest of us will keep it busy,” Yang explained.

Octavia nodded, as she then loaded the armour-piercing rounds into her rifle, before popping out the bullet that was in the chamber. In alarm, she tried to catch it, but it slipped through her fingers and fell to the ground.

They all saw the bullet fall, and they held their breaths as they waited for the impact.

When the bullet hit the ground, the Terra instantly noticed the vibration, as it turned towards it, and charged it from beneath the ground.

“Now or never!” Yang called. She and Ember then jumped down from the tree and ran to give Terra something to chase.

As Yang and Ember were being chased, Octavia looked through her scop to find a weak spot. “Come on where are you!” She said, trying desperately to find a weak point. “Oh no! I can’t find one!” She said with a panicked tone.

“Then I’ll make one!” Lyra called out as she jumped down from the tree, and she pointed her weapons at the Grimm and opened fire at it. “Come on big boy! Come and get some!” She called out to it.

Hearing this, Yang and Ember ran over to back up Lyra. The Terra was getting angry, as it opened its mouth wide and shot its razor-sharp fangs at the three girls.

“It can do that?!” Yang yelled in annoyance as she and the others dodged the projectiles.

“Yes, I forgot to mention that part! My apologies!” Octavia Replied.

The Terra kept shooting its fangs at the girls until Octavia shot at it with her high-calibre rifle.

She quickly shoots again at the same spot, causing a large crack to form in the under armour of the Grimm.

“There! Concentrate on that spot!” Shouted Yang to the others.

Everyone opened fire on the spot where Octavia was shootin, while Lyra used her semblance to create four aura arms. She ran toward the Grimm and climbed towards the crack. She pulled out her Tonfas, combined them onto a bladed bow staff, thrust her blade into the crack, and pried it open, then with her new arms, she tore off the armoured plate.

The Terra screamed in pain and rage, as Octavia transformed the rifle into a huge arm blade. Ember then flew down and picked up Octavia, and flew towards the Grimm. Once they got close enough, Ember dropped Octavia towards Terra, as She thrust her blade into the now-exposed flesh. However, as she tried to pull it out, she found that the blade had become stuck fast. “I’m stuck!” She yelled.

Yang saw she was in trouble. “Quick!” She shouted. “Lyra, throw me!” She ran towards Lyra, and Lyra then made two big arms, which she used to grab Yang. Lyra then uses the arms to throw Yang towards the Terra, as Octavia jumped back from her weapon, and Yang punched it with full force.

The blade was punched straight through the Grimm.

The Terra then fell and disintegrated into dust.

“Is everyone okay?” Asked Yang as she and the others regained their breaths.

“Still breathing,” huffed Ember in relief.

“Still in one piece,” Replied Lyra with a smile.

Octavia retrieved her weapon and checked it for any damage. “My weapon is a little damaged, but both it and will live,” She also said with relief.

“Well, in that case, let’s get out of here before we attract any more unwanted attention,” Suggested Yang.

The other girls all agreed, and with that, they made their way back to Beacon.

Meanwhile, Salem had been watching the entire event on her scroll. “Hmm, Miss Xiao Long, the older sister to Miss Rose. She has the potential to become a great leader,” She said with a proud smile.

To Be Continued...

Chapter 5: Emerald Forest: Part 4: Team R.O.S.E

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https://youtu.be/Wwohhs3LvRQ

Up in the air, a humble crow, minding his own business, soared gracefully along.

That was until, suddenly, Ruby crashed into him. “Birdy, noooo!” She yelled.

She then used her gun, shooting 3 times to slow herself down, and then using her Scythe to hook onto a tree branch, before swinging down to the ground.

Once she hit the ground, she picked a direction, and ran off to find her sister. “Gotta find Yang. Gotta find Yang,” She muttered urgently to herself.

Onyx flew through the air, humming a happy upbeat tune to himself. The cuffs of his left glove rotated to the gravity chamber. He raised his left hand and created a black Glyph, positioning himself to land on it, before he created more black Glyphs, making a stairway in the air. After landing on the first Glyph, he strolled down to the ground, with his hands behind his back, as he started to whistle to himself, a song called This Will Be The Day. Once he set foot on the ground, he looked around, seeing nothing and no one about.

“Okay, so which way is north?” He asked himself, as he checked his compass. He got his direction, and headed off into the trees, heading north toward the ruins.

Sunset was soaring along through the air before she curled into a ball, and flames shot out of her feet, slowing her down. She landed on the ground in a skid leaving a trail of fire in her wake. Once she straightened up, she looked all around her, eyes narrowed as she looked for any threats. Seeing none, She began her journey north.

Flying through the air, Eclipse was casually reading a manga, chuckling to himself at the story he was reading.

“Where do they get their ideas for these?” He said to himself in amusement. Just then, he looked up from his book and saw the ground approaching. He then put away his comic and used his telekinesis to stop himself, mere inches from the ground. He placed his feet on the grass and looked around him.

“No sign of Blake,” He said with a slightly worried frown. “I better find her fast. I don’t wanna risk being on a team without her.” With that, he quickly headed off to find Blake, heading towards the north.

Walking through the forest, Onyx kept a lookout for Grimm and the other students. Just then, he heard a noise, something coming towards him fast. He pulled out his handgun, which had a carved bayonet.

Suddenly, Ruby came running out of the bushes and came to a stop as she ran into him, before he aimed his gun at her, pointing it right at her nose, which made her stare at it with crossed eyes.

“Umm, hi Onyx,” Ruby said nervously. Onyx didn’t reply, and the look in his eyes said he was ready to kill. “O-Onyx, are you going to put down your gun?” She asked in a cold sweat. Again, he didn’t respond. Instead, he clicked his gun. “Onyx, did I make you angry? It’s the cookies, isn't it? I'm sorry, but you did offer them!” She said hurriedly, waving her hands in a panic. Instead of shooting, Onyx suddenly grabbed Ruby’s hand and pulled her in close. She blushed at the sudden action. “Uhh, Onyx?” She said in a whisper.

Then, Onyx shot his gun at a tree behind her. After a second, a Grimm decloaks and drops down to the ground dead. “Cloaker. They are so annoying,” Onyx said with an annoyed mutter, while still holding Ruby’s hand. “So I guess we’re partners now,” He said, when he looked back at Ruby, seeing how she was blushing. “Oh, sorry, Ruby,” He apologized.

“It’s okay, it just caught me by surprise,” Ruby said, letting go of Onyx’s hand.

“Alright, well anyway, let’s head north and get our relics,” Said Onyx.

“Okay, let’s go. Try and keep up,” Ruby said in a cheery tone.

“Don’t worry, I can…” Onyx began but stopped talking after seeing Ruby run off as fast as the wind, leaving a trail of rose petals in her wake. “OK, I might have some difficulty with that. Hey Ruby! Come back!” He waited for a reply, but there was none. “She’s too far.” Then, he heard something. “Ruby, is that you?” He asked, but it wasn't Ruby. A pack of Beowulf appeared, surrounding him. “How long were you guys there for?” One of the Beowulfs roared in answer before it jumped to attack him. He shot the Beowolf in the head, bringing it down in an instant.

Then, another Beowolf charged from behind him, and he caught its claws with his bayonet, and then he fired another shot, shattering the Grimm’s claws. The Grimm howled in pain, and Onyx cut his head off with the bayonet.

Two more charged at him before he shot one in the leg, and the other jumped, making Onyx jump back, placing a Glyph on the ground. When the Beowolf landed, ice spikes impaled it, killing it. “Heh. Childsplay,” He said tauntingly.

Another Beowolf ran at him, and he kicked it in the throat, sending it hurling into the air, and spun around, kicking it in the stomach, and sending the Beowolf colliding into another one, before he shot three times, killing them both. Then, the alpha Beowolf, much bigger than the others, appeared from the shadows and howled in fury. “And the big cheese comes out to play,” Onyx said and got ready for a fight.

The alpha ran towards him.

Onyx pointed his gun at it, before rotating his right glove to the red chamber, and the red glowing lines went down the fingers, which moved to the barrel of the gun, which turned a deep red. “That’s right big boy just a little closer,” He said, ready to blow it to ashes.

Just as he pulled the trigger, from nowhere, Ruby rushed in and slashed the Grimm in half. Onyx, with only a split second, pointed the gun away from Ruby. The gun went off, and the bullet hit one of the other Beowolfs, causing it to explode into flames. Unfortunately, these flames resulted in the start of a forest fire. Onyx then quickly grabbed Ruby by the hood.
“Come on!” He shouted, and he began dragging her away from the fire.

“Hey! What was that for?! We could have taken them!” Ruby yelled back at him indignantly.

“Are you serious right now?!” Onyx asked her back in frustration as he dragged her onwards.

Ruby was confused at Onyx’s reaction.

“I almost shot you back there! You just came out of nowhere just as I pulled the trigger to kill that Alpha Grimm! Thank the Gods I managed to point my gun somewhere else!” He yelled in anger. “I could have killed you back there. What would I tell Professor Salem and Yang?” He said, placing his hand on his head. “Oh sorry she just came out of nowhere, and I just pulled the trigger of my gun!”

“Look, I’m sorry, I didn’t know you had already pulled the trigger!” She yelled.

“Regardless, the fact remains Ruby!” Onyx went on as he looked at Ruby, before reminding himself that she was just a kid. “Look, I’m sorry for shouting at you,” He said, before then taking a deep breath to calm himself. “You just freaked me out back there.!

“No, you're right, I shouldn’t have just jumped out like that,” Ruby said, accepting responsibility for her actions.

“OK, I’ll let you off with a warning this time,” Onyx said in understanding. “Alright, come on, we've got a deadline to meet, so let’s get going.” He pulled out his compass and checked it. “This way,” he said, pointing north, and leading on.

Ruby followed him, keeping her head down for the moment. What neither of them noticed, was a Giant black feather, as it floated down and landed where they had just stood moments ago.

Meanwhile, Eclipse was walking through the Forest, looking anxiously for Blake. “Where are you, Blake?” He asked. “I haven’t been away from you for this long before. I know I've just gotta find you before I find anyone else.” He then heard Gunshots from the distance. “That must be Blake,” He said out loud, before using his Telekinesis to fly towards the gunshots.

Meanwhile, Sunset was being attacked by three Ursa Majors. She quickly backflips, and with her rifle, she shoots at one of the Ursas. She then flipped her weapon, transformed it into a Pudao, and threw it at the Ursa. As she throws it, the Pudao fires a shot, giving it more thrust, before it lands in Ursa’s head. She runs toward the dying Grimm, jumps and grabs her Pudao, before pointing it at the two remaining Ursa’s.

As she fights, Eclipse hovers above the trees, while watching Sunset as she fights the two Ursa’s. “That’s not Blake, and because of the loophole, we’re not partners until we make eye contact,” He said, about to fly away, when he saw two more Ursa appear from the shadows. “OK, she's good, but I don’t think she can handle four of them,” He stated, and despite his worries about finding Blake, he rushed in to help her.

Sunset turned and saw the other two Ursas as they closed in on her. “You gotta be kidding me!” she shouted in frustration. She was surrounded. She then transformed her weapon from Pudao mode to Dadao mode. Then she takes a defiant stand to fight the four remaining Ursas. At that moment, Eclipse fell from the sky, and he pointed his two blades at two of the Ursas. “I got your back, Sister,” He said with reassurance.

“Don’t call me Sister!” Sunset hissed at him. She was not happy about being helped. She then ran towards two of the Ursas, and Eclipse ran towards the other two Ursas. One of the Ursa’s swung its claws at Sunset, but she slid on her knees, under the attacking Ursa, and with her Dadao, slashed its back leg. It collapsed to the ground, before Sunset jumped on its back, and slashed its neck, killing the Ursa.

Eclipse, with both of his scissor blades, stabbed one of his two Ursas in its paw, and threw the other blade in the head of the second Ursa, easily killing it. He used his telekinesis to bring the blade back to his hand. The first Ursa swings his second claw at him, but he turns and stabs it again, with both blades, in both of Ursa's claws. It roared in fury and pain and tried to bite him in his head. Eclipsed jumped back, before attaching the loops of his swords to a double blade, and the blades began to spin. He then ran at the Grimm and cut it in half from the waist.

Sunset had just finished off the last Ursa. Eclipse then turned to look at her. “Well, hi again. I guess we’re a team now?” He said with uncertainty.

Sunset turned to look back at him with a frown, but before she could say something, a fifth Ursa came stalking towards her from out of the bushes. “Five Ursa’s?! This is just getting ridiculous now!” She said in annoyance.

“You’ve done enough, I’ve got this,” Eclipse said as he gets out his scissors and opens them before jumping in front of her. “Alright, big boy, a little off the top?” He asked Ursa jokingly before he used his scissors to decapitate Ursa’s head.

Sunset could only stare in terrified shock at this. “You just... decapitated an Ursa... with a huge pair of scissors,” She stuttered with dilated pupils, and with one of her eyes twitching.

“What else was I going to do, dance with him?” He asked rhetorically.

“Well no but still...” Sunset paused to take a deep breath to calm her nerves. “Well, I guess this means we’re partners now.”

“Yeah, I guess we are,” Eclipse said. “Right, we need to head north to find Blake.” He started to walk into the forest.

Sunset quickly followed him, falling into step beside him. “So who is this Blake? Is she like your big sister or something?” She asked.

“She has been like a big sister to me for a very long time,” Eclipse said with a contemplative tone. “And I owe her a lot.”

Sunset nodded in understanding of what Eclipse was saying, and the two of them continued to make their way north.

Meanwhile, Onyx and Ruby continued heading north. “Onyx, can I ask you something?” Ruby said.

“Go ahead,” He replied with a nod.

Ruby took a breath, before asking in a quiet, uneasy and cute voice, “Umm, do you think I belong here?”

Onyx stopped and turned to look at her. “Okay, how long have you been a prodigy?” He asked.

“Just under a month,” Ruby replied with a hesitant look.

“Okay Ruby, I’m not going to answer that question. You are still young. I could say yes you belong here, and at the same time, I can say no you don’t belong here. You haven’t been here long, so I’m not going to give you an answer. That’s for you to figure out, and you alone. Now, come on, Let’s go. We still got a deadline to meet,” Onyx said with big brother-like Wisdom, before counting heading north.

Ruby smiled warmly. “Thanks, Onyx,” She said softly. “For being honest with me.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s what teammates do,” Onyx said with a smile and a shrug.

“So, can I ask you about Emerald?” Ruby asked as she stepped up beside him again.

Onyx already knew what the question was going to be. He sighed and explained, “Emerald’s mom used to work at the Shinra Corporation. She and I used to be close friends, like siblings in a sense.”

“So what happened?” Asked Ruby curiously, even though she could tell the answer wasn’t good.

“One day, I showed Emerald something…” Onyx stopped talking, as remembering the past was upsetting to him.

“Are you okay?” Ruby asked with concern, as she reached for Onyx’s hand to comfort him. However, the second she touched him, Onyx pulled his hand away fast, a sudden look of panic crossing his face, as he was breathing heavily.

“Onyx, what's wrong?” Ruby asked in confusion.

“Nothing,” Onyx said, as he took a deep breath through his nose. “Anyway, Emerald left and went to Mistral, and I haven’t seen her since then,” he said to finish his story.

Ruby could see how the subject of Emerald was uncomfortable for Onyx to talk about. “Um right, yeah. Hey, we must be getting close to the ruins now.” She said, changing the topic.

“Yeah, I think we are,” Onyx agreed. But, just before anything else can happen, they looked up and saw Jaune come flying through the air, screaming like a little girl. “Hey, was that Jaune?” Onyx asked.

Just then, Pyrrha came running past them. “Run!” She yelled in a panic.

Before anything else could be said, a Deathstalker came crashing through the trees.

Ruby and Onyx looked at each other with shocked faces, before turning and running for their lives, with the Deathstalker chasing them.

As this was happening, Eclipse and Sunset had just arrived at the Ruins.

“Alright, here we are,” Eclipsed said.

“Yep, so let's just grab our relics and get back to Beacon,” Said Sunset as she approached the pedestals.

Before she could grab one of the remaining relics, they both turned and saw an Ursa appear from the bushes, accompanied by the screaming of two voices, with the Ursa screaming in pain and rage, and another voice screaming in excitement and joy, followed by an explosion, causing the Ursa to collapse to the ground dead.

“Wooo hooo!” A ginger-haired girl cried as she jumped off Ursa’s head, where she had been riding it. “Aww, it broke,” She said with a sad tone as she looked down at the now-dead Ursa like she had lost a new toy.

Off to the side, a boy dressed in a Chinese-style outfit struggled to get back on his feet. “Nora... never... do that... again!” He said, huffing and puffing as he tried to regain his breath.

Sunset and Eclipse just stood and watched the newcomers with deadpan stares.

“Any ideas who they are?” Asked Eclipse.

“Not a clue,” Replied Sunset.

Just then, more high-pitched screaming was heard, as Jaune came plummeting out of nowhere, and crashed in front of Sunset and Eclipse with a dull thud.

“Hey, vomit boy,” Eclipse said casually.

“Where did he come from?” asked Sunset as she looked down at the groaning boy, but before she got an answer, Onyx, Ruby and Pyrrha came running past them at an alarming pace.

“RUN!!!!” Ruby screamed as she zipped past.

Then, the Deathstalker rammed through the trees, and, upon seeing it, Sunset and Eclipse turned and ran for their lives.

Jaune soon got back to his feet and followed them, while Onyx turned around and shot his gun at the giant Grimm.

The bullet hit the ground, and ignited, the resulting firewall stopping the Deathstalker in its tracks.

“What the hell! You idiots were stupid enough to lead a freaking Deathstalker here?!” Shouted Sunset in anger and disbelief.

“Hey, don’t look at us! It was sir puke-a-lot and little miss perfect over there!” Onyx yelled back, pointing toward Phirra and Jaune.

“Yeah!” Agreed Ruby.

“Is that firewall going to be enough to hold back that Deathstalker?” Asked Eclipse.

“Yeah, for now. Deathstalkers don't like fire,” Replied Onyx.

“Are you okay, Jaune?” Pyrrha asked the blond boy worriedly.

“Yeah, I think so,” Jaune replied, panting.

“What the hell were you two idiots thinking?!” Sunset shouted at the two of them.

“Hey, look we only just-” Pyrrha began before she was cut off as, from the sky, a Nevermore flew overhead.

“What’s a Nevermore doing here?” Asked the boy in green.

Ruby took a closer look at the Nevermore and saw a small bird flying alongside it. “Wait, is that Birdy?” She asked.

“Umm, Birdy?” Asked Nora with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah, I crashed into a cute...little...birdy,” Ruby said slowly, as her eyes widened just as she realised why a Nevermore was there. “Oh no.”

The Nevermore then flapped its huge wings hard and fired a shower of its quill-like feathers at the group.

“MOVE!” Yelled Pyrrha.

The group ran from the rain of giant feathers. The Nevermore then flew away, for now, at least.

“Hey guys, it's coming back around!” Jaune pointed out.

“And my firewall is going out!” Onyx added.

“Hey, can we use this?” Jaune asked, pulling out the Anti Grav Grenade.

“Is that the Anti Grav Grenade I gave you?” Onyx asked.

Before Jaune could answer, the flames died out, and the Deathstalker charged towards the group.

Seeing the incoming threat, Eclipse quickly took the Anti-Grav Grenade from Juane. “Need to borrow this,” He said before he armed it. He then used his telekinesis and threw it at the Grimm with great force.

The Grenade exploded and released a dome of Anti Gravity. The Deathstalker began to float above the ground, unable to move. “We only have 5 minutes before the Anti Grav Grenade wears off,” Onyx explained.

“Look, the relics are right there, let’s just grab them!” Sunset said insistently.

“Yeah, she's right,” Agreed Ruby. “We’ve no time to waste.

The Nevermore was once more on the approach as the group reached the ruins. “SNATCH AND RUN Y’ALL!” Eclipse yelled out.

Everyone ran up to the relics. “Get a relic, Ruby!” Said Onyx.

“Leave it to me!” Ruby said as she ran ahead and grabbed one of the Crowns.

Eclipse then used his telekinesis to grab the other Crown as well.

“Why did you take The Crown?” Asked Sunset.

“Who gives a damn, let's just get the hell out of here?!” Eclipse replied frantically.

Jaune and the others took the last remaining relics, the two sword relics, and then ran after them.

As they all kept running, the Nevermore flew ahead of the group and turned to face them once more.

“He just cut us off!” Said the boy in green, and the Deathstalker was not far behind them. The Nevermore then shot more of its deadly feathers, and the group scattered to dodge them. “Nora, distract it!” The boy Ordered.

“You got it, Ren!” Nora replied with a smirk, as she pulled out her grenade launcher, and opened fire at the Nevermore.

The Nevermore flew away, and then the Deathstalker tried to grab Nora with its pincer.

Seeing this, Onyx shot at it with ice bullets, causing its pincer to freeze.

Eclipse then used his telekinesis to move her out of the Deathstalker’s path. “Thanks!” Nora called gratefully.

“Anytime!” Eclipse replied.

They came upon a high bridge across a deep gorge. Ruby and Sunset quickly crossed the bridge.

“Wait, where’s the others?” Asked Ruby.

Onyx and Eclipse were in combat against the Deathstalker, along with Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora and Ren. The Deathstalker struck with its huge stinger, making everyone jump back.

Eclipse, using his scissors, tried to cut the stinger off. “My scissors are stuck!” He shouted as the blades became wedged in its long tail.

The Deathstalker pulled back its stinger, and struck at the defenceless Eclipse, throwing him toward Ruby and Sunset, pulling his weapons with him.

“Thank you!” He shouted to the Deathstalker as he hit the ground in front of the girls.

“Did he just thank a Grimm?” asked Jaune.

“Yep, He just thanked a Grimm,” Confirmed Pyhrra.

“What a weirdo,” said Nora.

“Says the weird girl,” Muttered Ren.

“I heard that!” Yelled Nora indignantly.

“You okay?” Ruby asked Eclipse.

“I’ll live,” Eclipse replied as he jumped back to his feet.

The Nevermore came flying towards the crumbling tower, as Ruby, Sunset, and Eclipse opened fire on the Grimm bird.

“ONYX! WE NEED YOU!” Ruby yelled.

“Go! We got this!” Called Ren as they held off the Deathstalker.

“Thanks,” Onyx said as he ran towards Ruby and the others.

The Nevermore dived under the bridge, As Onyx ran to the others, then the Nevermore flew up the other side, and shot its fathers at them, destroying the bridge, but Eclipse then used his telekinesis to bring Onyx up to join them.

“Thanks, man,” Onyx said with a smile.

“Anytime,” Eclipse replied with a smile of his own.

“We’re not doing any damage!” Stated Sunset.

“Then we hit him with everything we’ve got!” Ruby ordered, transforming her weapon into scythe mode, and the four of them began throwing everything they had at the Nevermore.

Sunset shoots fireballs from her rifle. Onyx used his Glyphs to enhance his shots. Ruby shot at it with her sniper rifle. Eclipse shot at the Grimm with his scissors guns.

The Nevermore then crashed into the tower, bringing it down, and the four of them jumped and climbed up the falling pieces, with Ruby using her speed to jump from piece to piece, Onyx using his glyphs as steps to run up the pieces of falling debris, and Eclipse using his telekinesis.

Sunset then used her semblance, shooting fire from her feet to fly. Then, the Nevermore flew towards her and caught her in its mouth. Sunset turned her weapon into Fighting Spear mode and used it to keep its mouth open. She then snaps her fingers, causing a crackling sound to be heard before she began shooting flames down its throat. “Here’s some heartburn for ya!” She yelled.

Onyx, Ruby, and Eclipse then landed on the second bridge. “Where’s Sunset?” Asked Eclipse.

The Nevermore came flying over, with Sunset still in its mouth, and Sunset still shooting her flames down its throat. “Cook, you overgrown Chicken!” She shouted in rage.

“Found her,” Said Onyx, as he pointed his gun at the Nevermore, and shot out its eye. It screeched from the pain and released Sunset from its mouth. She came tumbling down, using her flames to slow her descent and landed beside Ruby and the others. “Not gonna lie, Guys,” She said, “This one’s a tough one.”

The Nevermore flapped its wings, shooting a slew of feathers at them once more. Eclipse combined his two blades into a double blade and threw them at the feathers to destroy them.

Onyx transformed his gun into a long hooked sword, and both of his cuffs rotated to wind and ice. Then he placed both hands on the handle. The dust infused his blade, changing the blade edge into a mix of blue and green, and he pulled the trigger, shooting to give more power to the swing, and a huge blue beam of light flew from his blade. “Frozen Blade Beam!” He shouted. The Nevermore was hit by the beam, and in an instant, it was trapped on the cliff’s wall, in a sheet of ice. The Nevermore quickly began trying to break free of the ice. The others all turned to stare at him. “What?” He asked.

“What the hell was that?” Sunset asked with an incredulous tone.

“My special attack,” Onyx said. “When you perform it, you shout out its name. Doesn't everyone do it?”

“No!” Shouted Sunset. “That’s stupid!”

“Onyx,” Ruby said softly, patting him on the shoulder, “No one in their right mind does that.”

“Except for Anime characters,” Said Eclipse, “which we are not.”

They were then interrupted by loud, angry screeching, as they looked to see that the Nevermore was almost free of the ice. “Oh, yeah, forgot about that,” Ruby said nonchalantly. She now saw her opportunity. “Eclipse! Help me get closer!” She ordered, and Eclipse used his telekinesis to fling Ruby toward the Nevermore. As the Grimm freed itself from the ice, Ruby hooked her scythe into its neck, and Onyx then created a set of Gravity Glyphs up the side of the cliff, which Ruby used to run up the cliff face, dragging the helpless Grimm along behind her.

Sunset then jumped off the bridge, and with her flames, she flew up above Ruby and the Grimm, before she spun her weapon above her head, and pointed her blade down. She shot fire from the weapon and dived towards Ruby. Once the two girls met, Sunset stabbed the Grimm, and Ruby cut the Nevermore’s head clean off, the Nevermore finally dying, and at the same time, Jaune and his team had just finished off the Deathstalker.

Soon, the boys had reunited with the girls on top of the cliff, along with Jaune’s team.

“We did it! We just took down a Nevermore!” Cheered Ruby in pure happiness.

“Hell, yeah! I haven’t felt this much adrenaline in what feels like a lifetime!” Agreed Eclipse with a satisfied smirk.

“I gotta admit,” Sunset said, “I had my doubts, but I stand corrected. We made a good team out there.”

“You know what? I think we’re going to be the best team ever!” Onyx said with his rush of adrenaline, as he raised his weapon into the air, and let off a shot in his excitement.

“Whoa! What the hell!” Eclipse exclaimed.

“Hehe, sorry, I just got excited,” Onyx said with a chuckle.

Their celebration was then cut short, as a Bullhead came hovering down before them. They turned to look, as the door opened, and Miss Goodwitch stepped out, a very strict look on her face. “Get in,” She said sternly.

“What? But why?” Asked Ruby in confusion.

“I’m afraid you have all missed the deadline,” Miss Goodwitch explained, “So none of you will be attending Beacon this year.”

“WHAT!?” Everyone yelled at once in shock and disbelief. They all tried to protest, but, unfortunately, it was no use arguing with Miss Goodwitch, who ordered them all aboard the Bullhead, which they did so with their heads hung, as they handed over their relics to her.

On the flight back to the Academy, Ruby, Onyx, Sunset and Eclipse were all depressed about not attending Beacon.

“You know what? Who cares about not going to Beacon?!” Onyx suddenly spoke out. Everyone turned to look at him. “There are three other schools on Remnant,” Onyx went on, “and my Aunt is a teacher at Haven. I’m sure She’ll let us attend there instead.” He then muttered under his breath, “After a lot of begging.”

“You’re right. I’m from Haven, and you guys might not be as good as Blake, but I like you guys,” Agreed Eclipse.

“You know, I rarely get along with humans,” Said Sunset with a slight smirk, “but I have to agree with Shinra. This team is possibly the best group I’ve ever worked with.”

“Yeah, Onyx is right,” Ruby said with an optimistic smile. “Let’s do it. If we can’t go to Beacon, then we’ll go somewhere else, and with you three, I believe we can do anything!” She was very happy that they all agreed to stay together no matter where they went.

Jaune and his team looked on with smiles, as they also agreed to stay together.

Unbeknownst to them, Salem had been watching the whole exchange through the Bullhead’s onboard security cameras. Seeing the newfound loyalty between the new teammates made her smile. She then used her scroll to make a call. “Glynda? There’s been a change of plans.” On the screen, Miss Goodwitch rolled her eyes. “I saw that,” Salem said with a smirk.

In the great hall, the students had all gathered to see all the formations of all the new teams.

Up on the stage, Salem listed off the names of each new team member. “The first new team of this year will consist of Weiss Schnee, Applejack Smith, Vinyl Scratch, and Emerald Sustrai, who retrieved the Staff relic. You will be known as Team Wave.”The girls stepped forward onto the stage and bowed respectfully. “And your leader will be Weiss Schnee.” Weiss smiled with pride and a hint of smugness before Salem moved on to the next team.

“Next, Blake Belladonna, Lemon Zest, Indigo Zap, and Twilight Sparkle, you retrieved the Lamp Relic,” she continued as they now stepped forward. “You shall be known as Team Blight And your leader shall be Blake Belladonna.” Blake looked noticeably nervous about being in the position of leader. They left the stage as Salem went on speaking.

“The next team shall consist of Yang Xiao Long, Ember Bloodstone, Lyra Heartstrings, and Octavia Melody,” she said as they now stopped forward. “You retrieved the Shield Relic, and you shall be known as Team Yellow and your leader will be Yang Xiao Long.” This made Yang smile her biggest grin.

As the ceremony went on, Ruby and her teammates watched from the side of the hall with solemn looks. “Okay, I’ll book us a hotel to stay, and tomorrow I can arrange transport for us,” Onyx explained. “So, we best decide which Academy we’re going to.” The others nodded, and they were just about to turn and leave but paused as Salem announced the names of the next team.

“And the next team shall consist of Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, Pyrrha Nikos and Lie Ren.” The four of them stepped forward, looking very surprised, especially Jaune. “You retried the Sword Relic, and you shall be known as Team Juniper, and your leader shall be Jaune Arc.” Jaune looked astonished, while Pyrrha smiled at him proudly, and she then gave him a friendly punch to the shoulder, which knocked him off his feet, making everyone in the hall laugh.

Ruby and the others were surprised at this development, to say the least. “Wait, I thought they missed the deadline like us?” Asked Ruby, very puzzled. But then, all four of their jaws nearly hit the floor, as Salem made her next announcement.

“And last, but most certainly not least, Ruby Rose, Onyx Shinra, Sunset Shimmer, and Eclipse Khan.” They stared up at her in disbelief, before stepping forward, and onto the stage. “You four retrieved the Crown Relics,” Salem went on, smiling proudly at them, “and from this day forth, you shall be known as Team Rose And you shall be led by Ruby Rose.” The four of them just looked at each in utter confusion, all thinking the same thought, was this happening?

Salem then turned to look at the rest of the students of her Academy, smiling at them all. “Today, you are all now Hunters and Huntresses in training. Starting tomorrow, you will learn how to protect Remnant from the forces of Grimm, and those who have chosen to go down the dark path. This is not a simple task, and it will come with many dangers and perils. I will not lie, this is not a path for the faint of heart. Some of you may lose much along this journey, including your lives. But remember, this is a path you have to choose to go down. And also remember, that you shall never walk this path alone.” With those words, she finished her speech, and the ceremony was over.

As the assembled students left the hall, Ruby and her team walked up to Salem. “Professor Salem, why did you let us stay? I thought we missed the deadline?” Ruby asked in confusion.

Salem smiled as she said, “Yes, you did miss the deadline, but when I saw your performance in the Emerald Forest today, I must say, I was most impressed. How could I possibly decline your entry into my Academy?” She explained to Ruby. “Now, I must take my leave, as I have other matters to attend to, and you and your team should get some rest, Miss Rose. After all, you four have a big day tomorrow.” Salem nodded her head respectfully to all four of them, before turning and walking off the stage.

“So, she’s just gonna overlook the fact we missed the deadline?” asked Sunset with a raised eyebrow.

“Seems so,” Shrugged Eclipse.

“Well, anyway… I’m tired,” Yawned Onyx, “How about we head to our dorm room?”

With that said Ruby, Onyx, Sunset, and Eclipse left the hall and their way to their dorm room.

When they got there and looked inside, they saw four bunk beds.

“I call the top bunk!” Ruby cried excitedly, running and jumping up onto the left-hand top bunk.

“I’m okay with the bottom,” said Onyx casually, as he sat down on the bed beneath Ruby’s.

“So Sunset, top or bottom?” Asked Eclipse as they looked at the right-hand bunks.

“Don’t care,” Sunset replied with a noncommittal shrug. “You can have the top if you want.”

“Thanks!” Eclipse said with a big smile, before rushing over to the bunks and hoisting himself up onto the top bunk.

Sunset just smirked and rolled her eyes. “Such a kid,” She muttered good-naturedly.

Soon, everyone had changed into their nightwear and were tucked into their beds. “Well, everybody. Big day tomorrow," said Ruby softly.

“Yeah, big day, indeed,” Agreed Onyx, “still can’t believe we’re all still here.”

“Hey, are you going to be OK without your big sister Blake to hold your hand, Eclipse?” Asked Sunset teasingly.

“Yeah, don’t you worry about me? I’m a big boy,” Joked Eclipse.

“Yeah, sure you are,” Sunset said, rolling her eyes again.

Ruby then let out a huge yawn. “Well, goodnight guys,” She said sleepily, snuggling into her pillow.

“Sweet dreams,” Onyx said.

“Night,” Said Sunset.

“See you guys in the morning,” Eclipsed said.

They all drifted off to sleep with their thoughts full of anticipation of the new lives that lay ahead of them.

In her large office, which had a glass floor, through which could be seen the cogs and gears of a great machine, Salem was at her desk, which was also made of glass, through which could be seen more cogs and gears, going through some paperwork.

“The next generation of guardians. I pray they can be the shining light in the darkness,” She said contemplatively, looking out of the large office window at the broken moon.

To Be Continued...

Chapter 6: The first step’s

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Within Team R.O.S.E dorm room, Ruby Rose, Onyx Shinra, Sunset Shimmer, and Eclipse Khan were sleeping in their bunk beds having blissful dreams. The early morning sun crept in through the windows, and the moment the light hovered over Ruby’s face, she slowly opened her eyes.

“Hmm, morning already?” She mumbled with a tired tone, turning her head away from the morning light. “5 more minutes.” It took a second for Ruby to remember where she was, and her eyes snapped open in alarm, as she sat up with a start. “IT'S MORNING!” Ruby yelled at the top of her lungs, instantly waking the rest of her team from their slumber, before she zoomed out of bed, and whooshed around the room, stopping at each bed for a split second before moving on to the next. “Come on, up, up, up, it’s the first day!” She yelled ecstatically at her half-asleep teammates.

“Ruby, calm down, volume control,” Onyx said, rubbing his tired eyes.

“Ironically, I get told that,” Eclipse mumbled to himself.

“Why are you yelling so much?” Sunset asked Ruby as she sat up and rubbed her own eyes.

“It’s our first day at Beacon!” Ruby answered in excitement, as she grabbed Sunset by the shoulders and shook her like a rag doll.

“Okay, okay, stop shaking me!” Sunset told Ruby in annoyance.

“Yeah, Sorry, I’m just super excited!” Ruby said like a giddy schoolgirl.

“Come to think of it, we do need to get ready,” Onyx said, getting out of bed.

“He’s got a point, we still need to unpack,” Eclipse said as he used his telekinesis to float down from his bed.

“Okay, sure,” Sunset said, rolling out of bed.

“Alright, Team ROSE, let’s get ready!” Ruby said, jumping with more excitement. Ruby and her team got changed into their new school uniforms. After they got changed, the team unpacked their cases, placing their clothes into the closet and dressers.

Onyx took the case Garnet gave him and slid it under his bed. Ruby saw him doing this. “What’s that, Onyx?” She asked curiously.

“Just something I brought from Midgar,” Onyx replied as he stood up. “Well, looks like we finished unpacking. So what’s next?”

“Now…” Ruby, sitting on her bed. “Classes,” She said with a sad tone. “First at 9 is-”

“Wait! Did you say 9?!” Eclipse interrupted.

“Umm, yeah…” Ruby said slowly.

“You guys know it's 8:55 right?” He asked his teammates.

The others just stared at him for a brief moment. “What!?” The three of them yelled.

“Come on, we’re going to be late on our first day!” Sunset yelled as she dashed out the door.

“Go, go, go!” Ruby shouted as she ran behind Sunset, with Onyx and Eclipse running right behind them.

As they ran to their first classes, Salem and Glynda were walking through the school halls. They paused as they saw Ruby’s Team sprinting to their classes. “Hmm, they are cutting it close,” Said Glynda disapprovingly as she pushed her glasses up her nose with her index finger.

“It is their first day, Glynda,” Salem said with a lighthearted smile, before taking a sip of her cup of tea.

Ruby’s team just managed to make it to their first class by a hair. After that, most of their first day was mostly uneventful.

It was now the last class of the day. The teacher in charge of the lecture is Professor Port. His classroom looked like a generic classroom with some posters of sketches of Grimm and trophies of Grimm heads, and tusks. Professor Port was a robust man with grey hair and a very thick grey moustache. He stood in front of his desk and took a deep breath. “Demons, monsters, Grimm. Those are some names we use to call our natural enemies, but I just call them prey, and soon you too will see them as prey,” he said in his grand voice to start his class.

As the class continued, and Professor Port continued his lecture, Onyx, Sunset and Eclipse were taking notes. Ruby, however, was having trouble staying awake. Onyx noticed this and nudged her arm to get her attention. “Stay awake,” He whispered to her. Ruby nodded with a bored expression and tried to stay awake.

“Now, to tell you all a story about my younger days,” Professor Port rambled on, as he got sidetracked by telling his story rather than the subject he was supposed to be teaching. Ruby quickly grew even more bored and began to draw a picture of Professor Port as an old fat guy that smelled. She gave a childish smile as she showed it to Onyx, who smiled back, as Eclipse tried to hold in a laugh. Sunset, who was trying hard to concentrate on her work, looked up and saw her teammates' antics, and she gritted her teeth in annoyance and disgust. Then, Professor Port cleared his throat to get their attention. “So in conclusion, a Huntsman must have honour, respect, and above all else, must carry themselves with pride!” He finally finished his speech.

Sunset looked over at Ruby with revulsion as the younger girl continued her childish shenanigans. As far as she was concerned, she couldn't see those qualities in her “leader” at all. “Why did Professor Salem make her our leader? Stupid privileged little child!” She thought in frustration as she clutched her hand into a tight fist.

“Now, who among you thinks they have all of these qualities?” Professor Port asked his class.

Sunset immediately raised her hand. “I DO, PROFESSOR!” She declared to the whole room.

“AND SO DO I!” Everyone looked and saw Weiss Schnee, also with her hand up.

Sunset ground her teeth and glared at Weiss. “HEY! DON’T JUMP ON MY BANDWAGON PRINCESS!” She yelled at the young heiress.

“I did no such thing!” Weiss shot back defensively.

“Well now, two young Huntresses eager to show their vigour. However, unfortunately, I have only one Grimm, so who will fight this beast?” Port said to Weiss and Sunset.

“I will!” The two girls declared in unison. The two of them turned to stare daggers at each other.

“Hmm, well now this might be a problem,” Professor Port said.

“I have a way to sort this out,” Said Twilight with her team.

“Ohh, Ms Sparkle, what solution do you have to offer?” Professor Port asked.

“A simple solution, a coin toss,” Twilight replied.

“Ahh, a simple yet effective solution. What say you, ladies?” He asked the two girls.

“I am fine with this solution,” Said Weiss with a nod.

“Same here,” Sunset agreed, if reluctantly.

The two girls now stood facing each other on either side of Professor Port. He tossed the coin into the air. The coin came down and the Professor caught it. “Now ladies call it,” he said.

“Heads!” Weiss announced.

“Then I’ll have Tails then,” Sunset agreed, still staring daggers at Weiss. Professor Port removed his hand to reveal the Tails face of the coin. “Ha! In your face, Ice Queen!” Sunset yelled at Weiss in triumph.

Weiss simply raised an eyebrow. “There’s always next time,” She said with her nose in the air. She turned on her heel and walked back to her teammates.

Sunset quickly changed into her Huntress outfit. She then faced the cage with the captured Grimm, taking her fighting stance with Sunburn, which was in its Pudao mode. She spun the Spear from her left to her right and back again, before pointing the blade at the caged Grimm.

“Ready?” Professor Port asked, ready to open the cage.

“Ready!”

“Alright!” Professor Port raised his axe. “BEGIN!” He called, swinging his axe down to cut the lock of the cage, and Boarbatusk charged towards Sunset, as she swung her weapon upwards to get under the Boarbatusk. But she failed and was rammed out of the way of the rampaging Grimm.

“SUNSET AIM FOR ITS UNDERBELLY! THERE’S NO ARMOUR THERE!” Ruby called out.

“SHUT YOUR MOUTH!” Sunset snapped back at her. Needless to say, everyone was shocked that Sunset would show such disrespect to her team leader. Ruby, of course, was more shocked by this than anyone else, and more than a little hurt.

Onyx saw how sad this made Ruby, so he put his arm around her shoulders to comfort her. “Thanks, Onyx,” She whispered with a small smile.

The fight between Sunset and the Boarbatusk continued, as the Boarbatusk rolled toward Sunset with full force, and knocked her off her feet. She tried to get up, but the Grimm crashed into her yet again, and Sunset lost her weapon. “Oh ho, now what will you do without your weapon?” Professor Port asked.

“I’ll show you!” Sunset answered with determination, igniting the fire Dust in her sweatbands, creating two fireballs in both hands. “Time to burn, little piggy!” Sunset shoots a jet of flames at the frightened Grimm. The Boarbatusk ran from Sunset’s flames.

As this went on, Sunset was setting everything on fire. Weiss and Onyx quickly reacted and used their Glyphs to protect their classmates from Sunset’s flames. The frightened Boarbatusk ran from Sunset’s fire and got itself cornered. “Game over” She was abruptly interrupted as the Grimm was gunned down by Professor Port’s rifle. Sunset looked at him with anger. “WHAT THE HELL!?” She yelled at him, her flames getting stronger in the process.

Before the Professor could answer, the sprinklers came on, raining water down to put out Sunset’s flames. “Look around you Ms Shimmer, this is not the way of a Hunter,” Professor Port said sternly as the fire died out. Sunset looked around and saw the scorch marks she made as well as Onyx’s and Weiss’s Glyphs in front of the rest of the class. “Class dismissed!” Professor Port told the rest of the students. “And no homework either,” He added as the now wet and grumbling students left the room. “Not you, Ms Shimmer.” Sunset looked over at Professor Port. “A word please,” He said in a voice that left no room for argument.

Ruby, Onyx, and Eclipse were waiting for Sunset in the hallway. Eclipse was pacing backwards and forwards. Ruby was sitting on a chair with her hands on her knees, looking quite downtrodden, and Onyx was sitting next to her, as he bounced his knee up and down impatiently. Weiss then came walking down the hallway, stopping in front of the rest of team ROSE.

Onyx looked up at her as she approached. “Weiss? Why are you here?” He asked.

“I was summoned by Professor Salem,” Weiss replied.

Just then, Sunset came out of the classroom. She didn’t look happy. “Sunset, are you ok?” Ruby asked, but Sunset didn’t answer, she just kept walking down the hallway, completely ignoring her leader.

Professor Goodwitch then walked out of the classroom. “Ms Schnee, and Mr Shinra, Professor Salem would like to see you both.” She told Weiss and Onyx, and the two of them entered the classroom where Professor Salem and Professor Port were waiting for them. Once they had gone, Ruby and Eclipse chased after Sunset.

Ruby and Eclipse were still chasing after Sunset. “Sunset wait!” Ruby called after her.

Sunset stopped in her tracks, turned on her heel, and glared at Ruby with hatred and anger. “What do you want?!” She hissed at her.

Ruby was shocked by Sunset’s glare and words. “Sunset, why are you so angry with me?” She asked the angry Fox.

“You want to know why I’m angry? Ooh, I’ll tell you why I’m angry! I came to Beacon to become a Huntress, and it’s bad enough I’m here with a Schnee, and I’m on a team with a Shinra, but on top of all that, this joke of a team is led by an underaged, over-privileged brat like you!” Sunset raged on at Ruby. “Why don’t you just go home, you dumb little princess?! YOU DON’T BELONG HERE!” Tears started to form in Ruby’s eyes, and Sunset saw this. She smirked mockingly as she added, “What!? Are you going to cry? Why don't you run home to Mommy and Daddy?! I’m sure they-”

“YOU DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ME!” Ruby screamed at the top of her lungs, with tears falling from her eyes, before she turned and ran, leaving a trail of rose petals behind.

“Ruby, wait!” Eclipse called to the fleeing girl. He turned to look at Sunset, aghast at what had just happened. “What the hell is your problem?” He asked in disbelief.

“What do you think my problem is? That little underaged rich girl bribed her way in, and she’s put in charge of us two Faunus’. Professor Salem should have made one of us team leaders.” She told Eclipse with conviction.

“WHAT!?” Eclipse yelled in shock. “That’s what this is all about, you’re stupid pride?!”

“No, it’s about what’s right! That spilt redhead has no place leading us!” Sunset shot back.

Eclipse just shook his head in disgust. “You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about!” He said irritably, before running off down the hallway to find Ruby.

(Meanwhile inside the damaged classroom.)

Onyx and Weiss approached Professor Salem. She was looking over the damages that Sunset had caused. “Professor Salem, Ms Schnee, and Mr Shinra are here to see you,” Professor Goodwitch informed her.

Salem turned to face Weiss and Onyx. “Ahh yes, Mr Shinra and Ms Schnee. I believe a thank you is in order,” She said to the two of them.

“Why are we being thanked?” Asked Onyx in confusion.

“For answering the call of Duty,” Professor Port answered with a proud tone.

“Indeed, when Ms Shimmer went out of control with her flames. The two of you protected your fellow Students with your Glyphs,” Professor Salem explained.

Weiss looked proud of herself, while Onyx just waited for what Salem had to say next.

“Yes, so thank you for saving your fellow students from the fire,” Salem said to the two of them with a smile. “Ms Schnee, you may leave, but Mr Shinra, can you stay for a moment?” She added.

“Yes, Professor Salem,” Onyx replied.

“Thank you, Professors,” Weiss said with a polite nod, before she turned around, and left the classroom.

Onyx was left alone with the three Professors. He stood like a statue, waiting for what they were going to say. “Mr Shinra, has Ms Shimmer acted out of character at any point before today?” Asked Salem.

“No, Professor Salem, this is the first time she has done this,” Onyx replied.

“I see. Mr Shinra, who taught you how to use your Glyphs?” She asked again.

“I was self-taught, Professor,” Onyx answered. “Why do you ask?” He asked in return.

“From the footage of the incident, we can see you were having trouble holding your Glyph,” Salem replied with a hint of concern.

“I’ve always had trouble with the big ones,” Onyx explained simply.

“Did you not ask for training from your Mother?” Asked Professor Goodwitch.

“My Mother was killed when I was 8, Professor Goodwitch,” Onyx replied a bit more sharply than he intended, causing Glynda to bite her bottom lip.

“I see, and what about your cousin, Winter?” Salem asked.

“She had no time to train me,” Onyx replied with a shrug.

“Hmm, well since you have little training in regards to your Glyphs, I believe you will need some additional training, and Professor Goodwitch does use Glyphs herself. Glynda, would you please train Mr Shinra?” She asked Glynda.

“Yes, I will give Mr Shinra additional training with his Glyphs,” Glynda replied with a nod.

“Well, now that’s sorted, is there anything you need to ask of us?” Salem asked Onyx.

“Yes, Professor, what is going to happen to Sunset?” Onyx asked.

“She will have detention, and have to repaint the classroom,” Professor Port answered.

“Ok thank you for not kicking her out of Beacon,” Onyx said with relief.

Salem raised an eyebrow. “So tell me Mr Shinra, what are your views on Faunus’?” She asked.

“I believe Humans and Faunus can stand as equals. If only those in power would give them a chance, but unfortunately they hold on to outdated ways of thinking,” Onyx replied, making it clear how he saw the world.

“Hmm, so you would give Sunset a chance?” Salem asked again.

“Yes, I would.”

“And what of those who were a part of the White Fang?” Salem asked once more.

“Everyone deserves a chance. The White Fang was created because Humanity kept suppressing them, and I truly believe they do have their kind’s best interests at heart. If the day came that I ever met their leaders I would listen to every word they have to say, and hopefully, I can help them make this world a better place for all of us,” Onyx carefully answered the difficult question.

“Well, that was a very interesting answer, Mr Shinra. It’s rare to see someone at your age who thinks the way you do,” She said, seeing Onyx not as a student, but as a man who might be able to help rebuild this broken world. “That will be all Mr Shinra. You're dismissed.”

Onyx nodded and turned to leave. “One last thing Mr Shinra,” Professor Goodwitch said to him. Onyx turned back to look at the teachers again. “On your form, you put down you had a personal teacher. But there is no given name, why is that?” Professor Goodwitch asked.

“My teacher didn’t want their name placed on my forms,” Onyx replied. Glynda scowled at Onyx.

“Well if that’s the case you can leave now Mr Shinra,” Salem said, ending Glynda’s interrogation. Onyx nodded and left the room.

“So we’re not pursuing this any further?” Asked Glynda in annoyance at being cut off.

“No, everyone is entitled to their secrets,” Salem replied mysteriously. After all, she had more secrets than anyone else in the world.

Meanwhile, Eclipse was looking everywhere for Ruby. It seemed the trail of rose petals disappeared after some time. Eclipse couldn’t stop thinking about what happened in class, it was ironic that for the first time, he was on the receiving end of a rampaging Faunus attacking with fire. How many times did he use fire against humans, and how many times did just watch as the flames he caused destroyed homes, shops, and workplaces with people still inside? “Why am I thinking of this now, at this time? I need to find Ruby,” He thought to himself with determination and worry for his teammate.

As Eclipse searched for Ruby, he suddenly bumped into Yang, who was with her team, just as they were leaving the library. “Ohh, sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going,” Yang apologised to Eclipse.

“It’s fine,” Eclipse replied with an aggravated look.

“Is everything okay?” Asked Ember.

“I’m trying to find Ruby,” Eclipse said.

“Hmm?” This catches Yang's attention. “Why are you looking for Ruby?” She asked.

“Sunset yelled at her, and she ran away. I think I saw her crying,” Eclipse explained to Yang.

“What!?” Yang yelled, her eyes turning bright red. “Where is she?!” She asked Eclipse angrily.

“I don’t know where Ruby is,” Eclipse replied.

“No! Where’s Sunset Shimmer?!” She asked, gritting her teeth.

“I don’t know! I went after Ruby after she ran,” Eclipse replied. “Wait, why does this bother you so much?” He asked.

“Because Ruby’s my little sister, that’s why!” Yang growled, before she pushed Eclipse aside, and began her search for Sunset Shimmer.

“Yang, wait!” Called Lyra, as the rest of team YELO chased after their leader.

Onyx was walking back to Team ROSE's room when his Scroll buzzed. “Hmm?” He pulled out his Scroll and saw he had a message from Eclipse. He tapped on the message, and it opened. The message read, “I can’t find Ruby, and Yang’s hunting for Sunset. What should we do?” Onyx finished reading the message.

“I’m not sure, we’ll try to find Sunset and Ruby. Where are you?” He typed back to Eclipse.

“I’m by the Library,” Eclipse replied.

“Okay stay there, and I’ll make my way to you. Then we’ll look for Sunset and Ruby,” Onyx typed back to Eclipse. He ran towards the Library where Eclipse was waiting for him.

Sunset walked through the school grounds, thinking about what Salem and the other professors told her. “Ms Shimmer, this kind of vandalism will not be tolerated in this academy young lady!” Professor Goodwitch told her with a stern voice.

“Yes I agree with Professor Goodwitch. The walls will need repainting,” Professor Port said.

“Ms Shimmer, you will have detention with Professor Port for the next two weeks, and you will also repaint this classroom,” Salem told her.

“As well, I suggest you learn some self-control in the future Ms Shimmer. We don’t want any more wildfires,” Professor Goodwitch told her.

Sunset’s anger starts to rise from remembering what Professor Goodwitch said. “WHAT DOES SHE KNOW!?” She shouted, kicking over a trash can. “Stupid Blond!”

Yang heard Sunset yelling. “There she is,” Yang said, power-walking towards Sunset, her eyes red with anger. “HEY!”

Sunset turned and saw Yang walking towards her. “What do you want?” She hissed at Yang.

“What’s your deal with my sister?” Yang said bluntly.

Sunset raised an eyebrow. “What? Who’s your sister?” She asked back cluelessly.

“Ruby! Ruby Rose!” Yang yelled in indignation. “Eclipse told me you yelled at Ruby, and you made her cry!”

“Ohh, so that little spoiled brat’s your sister?” Sunset said with a snarky tone.

“WHAT DID YOU SAY!?” Yang exploded with rage towards Sunset, her blonde hair on fire.
Just then, the rest of team YELO found Yang as she confronted Sunset. “Call her that again, I dare you!” Yang growled fiercely at Sunset.

Seeing the enraged state of her team leader, Ember quickly ran to Yang's side. “Yang, come on, you have to calm down, or you could get in serious trouble,” she tried to reason.

“Stay out of this!” Yang snapped, as she clenched her hands into fists. “I'm going to give this little BITCH the beat down of a lifetime!”

“Oh, you think you can take me, Blondy?” Sunset huffed as she ignited her fire Dust. “Bring it on!” She challenged Yang.

“Ohh, you're going to regret screwing with my sister,” Yang threatened, getting closer to Sunset, ready to give her the beating of a lifetime.

Octavia ran forward and stood between the two fire starters. “Yang, stop! This isn’t worth it!” She pleaded.

“Move it, Octavia! This will be so worth it!” Yang told Octavia, shoving her aside.

Lyra then stands in Yang's way, using her Semblance to create 6 arms, and using them to stop Yang and Sunset from getting closer to each other. “Come on guys, can’t we all just get along?” She asked, trying to calm the girls down.

“Really? Another of your girlfriends is getting in the way?!” Sunset yelled.

“Out of my way, Lyra! She’s asking for it!” Yang ordered Lyra.

Ember then grabbed Yang from behind. “Come on, Yang it’s not worth it, you don’t want to do this!” She said, trying to pall Yang back.

“Oh, it’s going to be worth it, after I’m finished with her!” Yang replied, trying to force Ember off her.

“Are we doing this or not?” Sunset asked impatiently. “I’m ready to go here!”

Yang pushed Ember and Lyra off her, and she sprinted towards Sunset.

Sunset and Yang were about to fight when a stern voice shouted, “Stop right there you two!” Everyone looked and saw Professor Salem walking across the courtyard towards them. “Ms Xiao Long, your team is right, this isn’t worth getting kicked out of Beacon over,” She told Yang in a voice that left no room for argument.

“But Professor, she made my sister-”

“Ms Xiao Long, I know you love your sister very much, but there will be times when Ms Rose will have to fight her own battles without you,” Salem told Yang firmly but wisely. It was hard for Yang to accept the truth, but deep down she knew that one day Ruby would no longer need her. She also knew Ruby would have to fight her own battles. She took a deep breath, and her eyes changed back from red to lilac. “I think you and your team have homework to do,” Salem said, placing her hand on Yang’s shoulder.

Yang took another deep breath. “She’s right, come on guys, let’s go,” She said, walking away, and her team followed her.

Sunset just huffed in annoyance, turned her fire off, and turned to walk away.

“Hold on, Ms Shimmer, I believe we need to have another chat,” Salem said before she could leave.

“What now?” Sunset said in a snarky tone.

Salem raised an eyebrow at Sunset’s attitude. “Ms Shimmer, why are you so angry with Ruby Rose?” She asked, wanting to know what was wrong with her student.

“I don’t think that Ruby Rose is leader material of any kind, and I know for a fact you made the wrong choice,” Sunset told Salem firmly.

Salem looked at Sunset with judging eyes. “Hmm, I suppose you may have a point Ms Shimmer. Perhaps Mr Shinra might be a suitable leader. Or maybe Mr Khan could make a good leader,” She told the Fox girl.

“What? What about me?” Sunset protested.

“What about you, Ms Shimmer? What have you done to prove to me you are worthy of leadership?” Salem asked Sunset.

Sunset had no answer to the question. “Well…” she said hesitantly.

“Exactly, Ms Shimmer, you have done nothing to prove your worth as a leader,” Salem said, “Do you know what Mr Shinra and Mr Khan are doing right now?” She asked.

“Umm, not really,” Sunset replied.

“They are both looking for you and Ms Rose,” Salem told Sunset.

“Wait, they are?” Sunset said in surprise.

“Yes they are, and Ms Rose has disappeared,” Salem went on.

“Wait, Ruby’s gone?” Sunset asked in sudden concern for the missing younger girl.

“Why do you sound so concerned?” Salem asked Sunset.

“I didn't mean to scare her away. I just got so angry and…”

“And you took out your anger on Ms Rose. Ms Shimmer, I know you have not been in a School in a long time, and I also know you were bullied at your last school. I am wagering that you subconsciously enter a form of a defence mechanism, and instead of confronting it, you allow it to take control. As a result, you almost ruined your team, and your studentship here,” Salem told Sunset.

Sunset knew Salem was right. She was in the wrong, and she needed to make things right with Ruby. “I…I need to find Ruby,” She said to Salem with regret in her voice.

“Well, may I suggest you look in a high place,” Salem said.

“Yes, thank you, Professor Salem,” Sunset said, and ran to find Ruby and apologise to her.

“Now let's see what this first step will lead to,” Salem thought to herself, walking back the way she came.

Sunset ran to the rooftop of her team’s dorm. She looked over the edge to try to find any sign of Ruby. “Come on! How can a red hooded girl be this hard to…” her train of thought stopped when she heard what sounded like someone sniffing. “Ruby?” Sunset approached where the noise was coming from, and she saw Ruby, down on her knees, and looking at a picture on her Scroll. The picture was of a group of girls from Signal Academy holding a sign saying “Good luck at Beacon!”

“Coming here was a mistake,” Ruby whimpered, continuing to cry. She didn’t notice Sunset was behind her.

“Ruby?” Sunset said softly as she got closer.

Ruby looked up at Sunset with bloodshot eyes. “Go away, Sunset,” She said miserably.

The guilt, along with the broken tone of Ruby’s voice stung Sunset like a knife as she sat down next to Ruby. “Are those your friends from Signal Academy?” She asked.

“Why do you care?!” Ruby snapped without looking at her.

“I…I don’t know what to say, Ruby,” Sunset said, trying as hard as she could to find the right words.

“You're right, I don’t belong here. I’m going to see Professor Salem and tell her I’m leaving Beacon,” Ruby said, wiping more tears from her eyes.

“No Ruby I… I was wrong. I let my anger get the best of me, and I had no right to yell at you the way I did,” Sunset said in a guilty voice.

“It doesn't matter, Sunset, I’m leaving Beacon,” Ruby said, looking away from Sunset again.

“Ruby… the truth is I was bullied a lot in my old school, and I’ve not been in an Academy in a long time. Without knowing, I did to you what they did to me, and I said some hurtful things to you. I’m sorry Ruby, I truly am,” Sunset explained, trying to make amends with the stricken girl.

Ruby didn't say anything to Sunset for a moment, before staging firmly, “I made up my mind Sunset.” She then made to stand up.

Sunset took a deep breath. “OK, I can see what I need to do here,” She said, before inching closer to Ruby, moving her long bushy tail in front of her, and then flopping it across Ruby’s lap.

“Huh?” Ruby said in confusion. “Your tail?”

“I’ve noticed you’ve been staring at it all day. You like it. So, go ahead, cuddle it,” She said as she blushed a little.

Ruby stared at Sunset in stunned silence for a moment, before she looked down at the very soft and fluffy-looking appendage in her lap. She gently took hold of it with both hands, feeling how warm and soft Sunset’s tail was. She lifted the tip to her face and nuzzled it with her cheek as she started to cuddle it. “Wow, your tail is so soft,” She said with a sweet smile, rubbing her face in the soft tail.

“Yeah I take really good care of it,” Sunset said with a bit of pride in her voice, before saying warningly, “But this is a one-off deal, and if you tell anyone I did this I’m roasting you.” Instead of answering, Ruby just continued to hug and snuggle Sunset’s tail. “Feeling any better?” Sunset asked.

“Yeah, much better, thanks,” Ruby said with a smile, and then the two girls stood up, and the two of them hugged each other.

“I am sorry, Ruby,” Sunset apologised once more.

“I forgive you, Sunset,” Ruby said, smiling happily.

“Come on, we have homework to do, and we should tell the boys they don’t need to keep looking for you and that we’ve made up,” Sunset said.

Ruby and Sunset made their way back to their Dorm room, where Ruby called Onyx and Eclipse and told them that everything was now OK between her and Sunset.

At the end of the next day, Sunset went down to Professor Port’s classroom to carry out her punishment of repainting the walls. She was now ready to get started repainting the walls. “Well, better get started,” She said to herself.

“Yeah we better get started,” Ruby said as she walked up to her with Onyx and Eclipse. Each of them was holding paintbrushes.

“Why are you guys here?” Sunset asked.

“Ruby suggested that we should help you with repainting the classroom,” Eclipse said.

“And the four of us can get this done a lot faster than you doing this on your own,” Onyx added.

“So shall we get started?” Ruby asked.

“Well, I was told to get this done, but they didn’t say you guys couldn't help,” Sunset said, rubbing the back of her head.

Then Team ROSE started to repaint the classroom together as a team. Salem, who was standing outside the classroom, smiled upon seeing her students working together. “Looks like this was a well-placed step,” She thought to herself, before walking back to her office.

Hidden within the Kingdom of Mistral, The White Fang’s high leader, Sienna Khan, a Tiger Faunus, was sitting on her throne. She gripped the arms of the throne tightly and had a frustrated, angry look on her face. A woman then ran inside the throne room and kneeled in Sienna Khan’s presence. She wore the uniform of a White Fang Grunt. On the top of her head was a small set of antlers, showing that she was a Deer Faunus. “High leader, I have news on the search for Eclipse,” The female grunt reported.

“And?”

“We haven’t found him yet. We searched most of Mistral, and we can’t find him anywhere.” The Deer Faunas explained.

Sienna Khan shot to her feet, her face scrunched up in fury. “Double your efforts! I want my son found! NOW!” She ordered, and the Deer Faunus sprang to her feet in fright and ran out of the Throne Room as fast as she could. Once the Deer Faunus was gone, Sienna Khan slouched back down onto her Throne, took a deep breath to calm herself, before she reached into her coat, and pulled out a picture of her son. “Eclipse, where are you?” She asked herself, looking longingly at her son in his childhood. “Come home, Eclipse, come back to me,” She whispered to herself sadly, a single tear running down her cheek. Sienna’s face then changed from sadness to anger. “This is her doing,” She hissed in a venomous tone. “Once she left, you disappeared along with her. She’s the one who led you astray. Blake Belladonna! I will have your head on a silver platter for stealing my son from me!” She shouted in hatred. “COTTON!” she yelled.

A female Bunny Faunus with a cottontail entered the Throne Room. She approached the throne and knelt at Sienna Khan’s feet. “Yes High Leader?” The bunny woman asked.

“Find Blake Belladonna and bring her to me,” Sienna Khan ordered Cotton.

“It will be done, High Leader,” Cotton said before leaving the room.

“I swear, I will make you suffer for what you have done, Blake Belladonna.” Sienna hissed with even more hatred, her eyes narrowed dangerously, and gripped the arms of the throne even tighter, making grooves in them with her claws.

To Be Continued…

Chapter 7: on a different path