Gripping her scythe, Crescent Rose, the young huntress struggled to keep her composure as blood dripped from her beaten and cut body. Around her lay rubble and once-intact pillars and furniture, now broken and aflame. Screams, gunshots, and the clashing of swords could be heard in the distance. Much has grown dark in the cold night, save for the fires and dim light of the shattered moon. Staring back at the figure of the man cloaked in a yellow hooded coat, she saw not only malice, but great joy as he looked upon the pain and misfortune he'd wrought upon the teen. His yellow eyes and twisted grin grew more intense as tears began to flow down the eyes of the one foolish enough to challenge him.

"That look in those silver eyes of yours," the man spoke, letting out a brief chuckle. "It's one of fear, sorrow, and regret… How positively delicious." His eyes narrowed as a snake-like chain, clad in black and green, coiled it's way around his prey. The girl winced in pain, caught off guard by the quick tightening of the man's weapon. She looked back at him, defiance in her eyes. "It doesn't matter what you do to me," she said, "The Atlas military will be here any second, and my friends are going to stop you, no matter what!"

The man laughed hysterically in response, mocking what little the girl could provide to threaten him. "Bahahahahaha! Are you fucking with me right now?!" His speech was broken up by another fit of laughter. Barely able to retain any composure, he looked at her while his grin widened ever more. "Did you really think those morons in the airships haven't already been dealt with? As for your friends, I'd seriously doubt they'd have their hands free to do as they wish right now."

Twirling a switchblade in-between his fingers, the man approached her, before resting the blade by her neck. "Y'know, Cinder and her merry band of assclown's really managed to pull the rug out from under your Academy's feet. With the Grimm and White Fang laying waste to this shithole, I'd be surprised if any of your friends and teachers were even alive to begin with!" He began to laugh once again, though his grip on the blade remained as steady as before.

The girl, through all her pain, looked back at the man who had her life in his hands. With what bravery she could muster, she grit her teeth and asked "Just what do plan to do now?! What is even the point of all this? What do you want from us?!"

All of the man's laughter came to an abrupt end, as his expression hardened into a scowl. "What I want, Miss Rose, is-"

Ruby shot straight up out of bed, her heart beating at an intense rate. A cold sweat poured down her chest, dampening her black pajama blouse. The moonlight reflected off her black hair, as the dark strands met the reddened ends. She sighed, realizing that the events she witnessed were just a dream.

Being the only girl on her team, Ruby Rose was given a divider between her portion of the room and the rest of the boys, which locked on her side to ensure privacy. Not that any of them seem the type to intentionally try and peep on me. Leaning over towards a small desk, Ruby opened up her scroll to check the time.

Wow, it's only 4:30? Not like I'll be able to get back to sleep at this point. Making her way out of bed, the huntress-in-training changed into the black and red attire she was known best for, noting that she wouldn't need to be in her class uniform on a Sunday anyhow. As she finished dressing, Ruby unlocked the divider and did her best to tiptoe past her fast-asleep teammates, before making her way to Beacon Academy's long, massive halls.

It had been a few weeks since Ruby had been assigned her new team. At first, she was disappointed to be in a different team than her sister, Yang. Despite this, things had actually been settling quite well for the her. Although she had some difficulty in the classes, her team leader, Yu Narukami, had been a significant aid in helping her study. The other two, Hyde and Ragna, seemed too caught up in their own business to concern themselves with good study habits.

Being the youngest of Team HRRN (which Professor Ozpin pronounced as "Heron"), Ruby was accepted into Beacon after preventing the robbery of a Dust shop in a central town in Vale. With her scythe-rifle hybrid, "Crescent Rose", and the incredible power of her speed Semblance, she managed to prove herself more than capable among her teammates. Plus, her optimistic personality and bubbly demeanor brought plenty of energy to the group.

Yu, on the other hand, was hand selected to transfer from his high school after it was discovered that his Semblance allowed him to summon a "Persona". These beings, believed to be a physical manifestation of the human ego, wield weapons and powers of their own, acting on behalf of their user when called upon. Having received high marks during the initiation ceremony, as well as a natural aptitude for leadership, his role in Team HRRN was clear from the very start. Although his simple appearance and calm demeanor gave off an unassuming impression, people who knew him personally claimed that he had a bit of a quirky side. Ruby thought she saw a glimpse of this once when she saw him doing random poses in front of a mirror, claiming that he was "comfortable enough with his sexuality to become a professional dancer".

Ruby was unsure whether it'd be a good idea to ask what exactly he meant by that.

The other two members were rather similar to one another. But not in a good way, Ruby thought to herself as she approached the school's library, which was fortunately open at all hours. As Ruby made her way to a section dedicated to comics and graphic novels, she thought of Hyde and Ragna, who had left quite an impression among the students and faculty of Beacon Academy.

Hyde Kido seemed fairly level-headed at first, but proved himself to be quite headstrong when getting into an argument with some of the more stuck-up students at Beacon. This, coupled with his improperly worn uniform and partially bleached hair, often gave the impression of a troublemaker to those that didn't know him. That being said, Hyde had demonstrated an inherent desire to protect others, after defending a faunus from a group of bullies at his previous school. His Semblance allowed him to manifest a portion of his Aura into a red blade which he had named "The Insulator". From this weapon, he'd been known to fire off powerful blasts of Aura energy, and cutting through just about any object, supposedly destroying anything it comes into contact with. This incredible antimatter effect proved an excellent weapon against the Grimm, but somewhat dangerous around people. The one saving grace of the Insulator was that an individual's Aura could protect them from its harmful effect, so long as said Aura held.

The final member, and by far the most hot-headed, was Ragna. Having grown up an orphan, Ragna had no family name, and had minimal contact with his younger siblings after they were adopted. He'd spent most of his early teens training to become a freelance bounty hunter, but he'd supposedly been persuaded to apply to Beacon by "his old master". When Ruby tried to ask him who said master was, the response was simply "none of your damn business."

Having white hair, heterochromia, and often dressed in baggy black trousers with a large red overcoat, Ragna's very appearance was more than enough to stand out in a crowd. This, however, was nothing compared to his attitude. From getting in arguments with the professors to starting fights with other students, Ragna was undoubtedly the problem child of their team, and it took Narukami a good week to finally get him to start behaving himself, even if somewhat begrudgingly. These aspects of his character aside, Ruby knew full well that Ragna was the strongest member of their Team by a landslide.

Ragna wielded a hybrid weapon he named "Blood Scythe", Ragna could use both a broadsword form and scythe form to cut down any foe, be it Grimm or otherwise. However, his real power came from his Semblance, "Soul Eater". Like Hyde, he could manifest his Aura as a powerful energy, launching it as a projectile or causing it to radiate from his weapon. What made this so devastating against human and faunus opponents was its ability to drain the Aura of his opponent, giving a portion of it to him. This often meant that fights against Ragna would easily turn in his favor if dragged out for too long. All this, combined with his martial arts training, made him by far the strongest out of their team.

After finally being seated with a comic, Ruby relaxed and did her best to get absorbed into the story. Despite this, she couldn't help but think back to the man in her dream. His yellow eyes and malevolent expression still remained fresh in her memory. What could make me dream of someone so horrible, she thought, just as a figure approached her.

Looking up towards the man who stood beside the table, she saw the Headmaster of Beacon Academy, Professor Ozpin. He held a stack of papers in one hand, and a freshly brewed cup of coffee in the other. "A bit early for comic books, wouldn't you say, Miss Rose?"

Ruby giggled briefly before closing the book. "You're probably right about that, Professor." She awkwardly scratched at the back of her neck before deciding to be up front. "It's just, I had a pretty bad nightmare, and I figured I wouldn't be getting back to sleep anytime soon."

Nodding in response, Ozpin sat down across from Ruby. "I wish my excuse for being up were nearly as innocent," he said, motioning to the stack of unfinished paperwork in his hand. "If I may inquire, would you be willing to tell me about this dream of yours?"

"Uhh…" Ruby cocked her head to the side, confused as to why Ozpin had asked her this. "Well, the school was being attacked by Grimm, and there was this strange man who had hurt me." She cringed as she remembered how real the pain had felt. "I think he was trying to kill me."

"So, what did this mystery man look like?" Ozpin took a sip of his coffee as he questioned the young student.

"His clothes were mostly black, aside from a yellow coat. His eyes were yellow, and he had a scary smile on his face, like he was enjoying hurting me…"

Ozpin sat back as he heard this, a growing look of concern on his face. "Was there anything else unique about this man? Perhaps, the color of his hair?"

"I couldn't really see his hair beneath the hood…" Ruby looked back up to the Headmaster. "Why? Do you know somebody like that?"

The Headmaster chuckled as he got back up from his seat. "Oh, not all! I merely thought I'd seen somebody like that on the Vale News Network." He gathered his papers as the Professor took one last sip of his remaining coffee. "Now, I believe it's time for me to get a refill and finish up my work. Have a lovely day Miss Rose, and do try to get some extra rest before classes on Monday."

"I will, Professor, don't worry!"

Ruby waved to Ozpin as he left, and though he saw a reassuring smile on her face, he couldn't help but think of the man that his student had described. Yellow eyes and coat… black attire… a twisted smile reflecting cruelty, and malice… Ozpin thought back to someone he'd known long ago, in a different life. The name came to him as he remembered the man who'd betrayed his own comrades long ago. The headmaster muttered the name under his breath.

"Yuuki Terumi…"