Chapter Two
Under the glow of Remnant's broken moon, Ozpin stood upon a field of destruction. The settlement now lay in ruin: buildings had been reduced to rubble and the ground itself had been heavily disheveled in all directions. Everywhere he looked, he only saw the scattered remains of what had once been a thriving community. Rubble...and bodies. Corpses were littered everywhere, some lay broken upon piles of crumbled structures, others only visible by a protruding appendage. And some had been torn to pieces, their entrails displaying violent patterns on various surfaces. The lone Huntsmen surveyed the carnage, his mouth hanging slightly open. Ozpin was lost in thought as his mind races through an ever-growing labyrinth of questions. What happened here? When did this happen? Was is some unknown variation of Grimm? Unlikely, there were no tracks of any kind noticeable on the ground. Was is a Dust explosion? This settlement was founded, in most part, by the Schnee Dust Company over a mine that had been discovered about a decade ago. The greater majority of the citizens living here were employed by the company, many of whom probably came from Atlas, along with their families. But there were no signs of an underground eruption and the mines, themselves, were down too deep for a blast to reach the surface. So if it wasn't Grimm, or a Dust reaction, just what had done this?
Ozpin knew he wasn't going to find any answers just standing there, but his legs did not seem willing to move, the sinister presence he felt more and more with each step that brought him here was working against his body. Now that he stood in the thick of it, he became acutely aware of how difficult it had suddenly become to simply breath. He closed his eyes and focused his aura around him, a pale green glow emanating around him briefly, as his aura warded off the darker one attempting to suffocate him. Steeling himself and brandishing his cane as though it were a saber, he silenced all other thoughts in his mind, save for only one thought remaining.
He was not alone.
But maintaining his focus proved to be a difficult challenge. With each body he found, he couldn't help but pause to reflect on the existence that had been snuffed out. The goals and ambitions these individuals had, their hopes and dreams: gone. Remnant would never see their like again, and it pained him to no end. If only he had gotten there sooner, he could have helped. No, he was just being too hard on himself, and that kind of negativity wasn't going to accomplish anything. He had no idea they were under attack when they set out from Vale, nor did he even know when this occurrence happened. His thoughts were disturbed when he saw a particular corpse just a few feet away from him. His blood ran cold as he stared into the forever frozen face of a young girl filled with terror. Her dead eyes wide with shock, and her mouth open as if to scream, only to remain forever silent. What horrors did those young, innocent eyes behold in her final moments, Ozpin couldn't bear to think about it. Grimm aside, what monster would do such an unthinkable thing? Ozpin averted his gaze from the young girl and steeled himself for whatever he may have to face.
He walked further into the ruins cautiously, listening for any sounds besides those of his own footfalls churning up gravel. His eyes scanning the moonlit graveyard for any signs of movement, to which he found none. He walked around mounds of rubble, past a ruined fountain, and delicately stepped over and around many bodies. There was a particularly large pile that had once been a building, which Ozpin cautiously rounded all the same. However, to his surprise, there was a something on the other: it appeared to be a makeshift hut, constructed from the debris around it. It's shape was that of a rough square, with multiple large blocks of concrete forming the walls, and a small opening in one of those walls seeming to provide as an entrance. Ozpin noticed that the ground around the structure was disturbed, as though the heavy blocks had been dragged to their positions. Whoever built this must be pretty strong, but how, then, would they fit in through that tiny hold? Ozpin knew that even he couldn't squeeze himself into that space.
"W-who's out there?!" came the sound of a small, frightened voice from within the darkness of the hut.
Ozpin was surprised that whoever it was had noticed him at all. He was equally surprised that this voice sounded as though it belonged to a small child. It was light and innocent, and very fearful of his presence. Whoever this was couldn't have been the cause of all this, could they? The malevolent aura blanketing this place was still tingling the Huntsmen's senses, he could not afford to let his guard down. Someone or something had done this, massacred all these people, and who or whatever had done this was still here, he knew it in his gut. But doubt still gnawed the back of his mind, conflicting with the years of experience he had. He needed answers, but what hope could he have to gleam information from a child? Was this even a child? It sounded like one, but how could he be certain? Then again, he couldn't deny that this may be an innocent survivor, someone who needed his help. He had no other recourse to take, and so he lowered his cane, holding it at his side in a normal, cane-like fashion. He cleared his throat slightly, and addressed whoever was before him in a gentle, friendly tone.
"Hello. My name is Professor Ozpin." he spoke into the darkness of the hut as he knelt down a few feet away from it's entrance. "I'm a Huntsmen from Beacon Academy. And who might you be?"
Silence was the only answer he got. After waiting a few moments, Ozpin angled his neck to try and get a better look inside the hut, but he couldn't see anyone through the darkness.
"I won't hurt you, I'm here to help. Why don't you come out from there so we can talk?" Ozpin gave the darkness a smile, in an effort to show whoever was in there that he meant what he said.
"You lie..." the small voice replied, a mix of anger and sadness evident in the tone. "They all say that, but they all called me names. You're just like them, you'll do the same..."
"You have my word as a Huntsmen, I won't make fun of you. And a Huntsmen never breaks his word." Ozpin reassured, his smile never faltering as he spoke. "Please, come out of there."
"You'll be afraid." the voice replied in a direct and flat tone.
"I have seen many horrible things in my life ('Such as the annihilation of an entire settlement', he thought), I won't be afraid of you." he said, although behind his smile his mind was filling with questions.
"...you really mean it?" there was a twinge of hope this time as the voice spoke.
"I really do." Ozpin replied, "Come on out."
And with that, Ozpin heard the sounds of someone shuffling around within the makeshift home, and before long he saw a shadow in the darkness making its way towards him. A head of dark hair emerged from the hut, as the figure of a young boy crawled out on his hands and knees. His pale skin reflecting the moon's light, which made his black hair appear even darker. What Ozpin also took note of were the boy's circumstantial features: his hair was long, unkempt and dirty and a simple sackcloth fashioned like that of a tunic was all the boy wore. It was also filthy and worn out, a few holes forming in various locations, and his arms and legs were bare. He finished crawling his way out and stood up before Ozpin, being only about the same height as the Huntsmen while he was kneeling. He looked Ozpin in the eye, and Ozpin's smile immediately faded and was overtaken with a serious expression. Ozpin's mind now had even more question: who was this boy, and were the two somehow related? Those eyes...
"I knew it...you're just like them." the boy accused, interrupting Ozpin's thoughts. "Are you going to call me names too? Freak, weirdo, bastard, I've heard all of them. I don't care what you think. Just leave me alone." he turned to head back into his hut, but Ozpin placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"Forgive me. I did not mean to stare." he apologized, "I just wasn't expecting this. I, honestly, never thought I would see eyes like yours again. I don't think you're a fre-" he paused, the boy was giving him a confused look. "What is it?"
"Have you really seen someone like me before?" the boy asked in disbelief. He seemed hopeful, though, as he stood there quietly, waiting for Ozpin's answer.
"I have. I knew someone with eyes just like yours, but she disappeared a long time ago. I haven't spoken to her in many years." Ozpin replied, patting the boy's shoulder. The youth's face was now crestfallen, though.
"Oh..." was all he said as his gaze lowered to the ground.
"What is your name, lad?" Ozpin asked, hoping to cheer the boy up somehow. To his dismay, the boy's face twisted into an expression that held even more sadness, tears welling in his eyes. "What's the matter?"
"I...I don't know my name... I-I don't think I have...a name..." a few tears spilled over and down his cheeks.
Ozpin could tell the boy was an orphan, it was clear just looking at him, but he had to ask anyways, "Did something happen to your family?"
"I don't know...I've been alone as long as I can remember." he said as the tears continued to slowly slide down his face.
"I'm sorry." he said, giving the boy's shoulder a sympathetic squeeze. "How have you been able to get by on your own?"
"The Dust miners..." the boy began, hastily wiping tears from his eyes. "No one here likes me, but sometimes some of the miners would pay me a little to help carry their tools."
Ozpin felt pity for the boy, he truly did, but this boy was the only surviving witness he had found that could potentially answer the most important question he had. As much as he didn't want to ask, he had no other choice.
"...Can you tell me what happened here?" he asked, his tone unable to mask the seriousness of his intentions. The boy seemed startled by this question, and the drastic change in Ozpin's tone.
"I-I...I don't know..." the boy began to panic, "I...I remember hearing the kids calling me names...and I got so angry...I just wanted them to stop. I told them to stop! But then..." his face contorted in horror at whatever thought was going through his head then, "T-the ground...began to shake, a-and the wind was so loud...And everyone started screaming...And...and then there was..." he began to choke on his words, Ozpin could no longer sit there as the boy suffered through his memory. He pulled the youth to himself and embraced him, gently rubbing the boy's back up near his shoulders.
"That's enough, you don't need to answer anymore." Ozpin said calmly. His eyes widened slightly as he felt the sinister presence dissipating. The stillness of the night finally felt peaceful for the first time since long before he had arrived there. Ozpin gently eased out of the embrace and looked into the boy's eyes. He knew what he needed to do, regardless of whatever consequences came as a result.
"How about I take you back to Vale with me? It will be a pretty long walk back, but once we return I can get you something to eat and-" he stopped when he noticed the boy's surprised face gawking at him. "...and I have a spare bed you can us." he finished, giving the boy a warm smile.
"D-...do you really mean it?" he asked, an almost fearful look underlying his hope filled face, as if there was no way this was possible.
"Of course I do. I could never turn away a child in need, not when I could help." Ozpin said.
"Yes!" the boy explained, his first smile stretching across his face. "Yes, please, I want to go with you!"
And that was when Ozpin noticed the boy's eyes were different. Quite literally. The boy's now golden-brown eyes shone brightly in the moonlight as he smiled up at Ozpin. Ozpin had not expected that, just what was this boy? He pushed all other thoughts from his mind, remembering he had four students he needed to return to.
"If they haven't killed each-other already." he smiled at the thought of his four unruly students. He suddenly remembered something else of importance.
"Would you like me to give you a name?" he asked the boy, immediately getting a wide eyed stare and a vigorous nod from his head. "Let's see...We know nothing of where you come from or who your parents are, you are a child of Remnant...How about...Rem?" he asked. The boy's face was awestruck as he softly said the name, his name: "Rem...It's wonderful." he smiled at Ozpin once again, before he started to rub his eyes. Sleep was calling his name, and in his tired state, he couldn't stave it off much longer.
Ozpin picked up the boy and held him against his chest, Rem's head resting on his shoulder as slumber quietly overtook him. Ozpin glanced down at the sleeping child briefly, before he began walking. He made his way back past all the rubble and corpses, and stepped out the gate. After the large doors closed, he too his cane and swiftly smashed the scanner embedded beside the door, effectively sealing the doors and ensuring no one would ever disturb this place again. And with that, they departed from Remnant's second largest tomb.
"Can we please go look for Professor Ozpin?" Sienna pleaded with the others with panic evident on all of her features..
The members of team GAUS sat in a dark cave, the fire they had huddled around was no longer alight. Without the fire, the cave had resigned to the chill winds, and the four girls were beginning to feel the cold sink into their bones. As the four began to shiver, despair crept into their midst. Sienna sat with her bushy tail wrapped around her as best as she could manage, shivering nonetheless. Even though she was cold and worried, Glynda remained composed.
"Professor Ozpin said to wait here, so waiting is exactly what we're going to do." she said in her typical manner, but her gaze softened as she looked at the shivering Faunus girl. "Ozpin wouldn't abandon us. And he most certainly hasn't met any ill fate. He'll come back soon, Sienna, we just need to hold out a little bit longer for him."
"I'm with Sienna on this one." Undine spoke up, as she hugged her knees to her chest. "I think we should go look for him. It's better than sitting here freezing our asses off." She received a strict glare from Glynda, the soft expression she had been giving Sienna just moments ago now gone.
"I already told you, he told us to wait-" Glynda started, but Undine cut her off.
"No, he said to stick together at all times. Sienna and I would like to go find Ozpin. What about you, Azura?" she shifted her gaze to the small girl shivering the corner of the cave opposite of herself.
"Wha- Why are you dragging me into this?" Azura asked, she was quite taken aback and didn't want to get into another argument. She was cold and tired, really she just wanted to go back to the dormitories at Beacon and sleep.
"Because we're a team, and we should decide things as a team!" Undine persuaded.
"And as you said earlier, Undine: I am this team's appointed captain." Glynda cut in.
"That was a different matter all together!" Undine retorted.
"The principle is the same! I'm in charge of this team, and you will oey my authority on this matter!" Glynda replied angrily, her brow furrowing.
"Oh, take your authority and shove it up your a-" Undine started, but was interupted by Sienna, who was unable to maintain her silence in the matter.
"Please! Just stop this bickering." she begged them. "How about we compromise? Let's wait here for just fifteen more minutes, and if the Professor hasn't come back by then, we'll all go look for him. Deal?"
Glynda thought for a moment, and then gave Sienna a quick nod. Sienna gave her a small smile and then got up and walked over to Glynda, taking a seat right next to her. She pressed her shoulder into Glynda's while wrapping herself in her tail. Glynda was about to ask what she was doing, but silenced her question: she knew Sienna was just trying to share what little warmth they had between them. Sienna gave Undine and Azura each a glance before patting the ground beside her, indicating them to come join. Azura stood up and dusted off her uniform's skirt, then took a seat beside Sienna. Undine, however, stayed where she was, giving Glynda a heated glare. Sienna cleared her throat and gave Undine a look that said 'get over it and sit with us', but Undine shook her head and remained in her cold corner of the cave. Sienna frowned, cleared her throat louder, and gave her a more threatening glare. Undine shrank slightly from the Faunus girl's stare. But she gave in, and slowly made her way over and sat down on the other side of Glynda without a word. An awkward silence began to fill the cave, and each of them was keenly aware of it, although Sienna kept a big smile stretched across her face.
"...So fifteen minutes, right?" Undine fianlly said, breaking into the silence.
"Fifteen minutes." was Glynda's short answer, as she kept her eyes closed.
Between the four of them, the girls hardly felt the cold air. It was warm where they sat, huddled together, albeit rather awkward, at least they were warm. They sat together as the minutes slowly crept by. It was late, and weariness was taking it's toll on them, the warmth they felt from each other not helping to elude sleep. Sienna and Azura were the first to nod off into slumber, Sienna's head gently resting on the shorter girl's head, which was rested on her shoulder. Glynda continued to sit in silence, her head bowed slightly and her eyes remaining closed. Undine glanced as her apparently sleeping captain. She felt a twinge of guilt in her conscious about their argument from earlier, her own outburst weighing her down. She never liked to admit two things: defeat, and when she was wrong.
"Hey...Goodwitch? You awake?" she asked softy, hoping to not receive an answer.
"Yes, Amaranth, I am" she answered, likewise addressing Undine by her family name.
"Look...I just wanted to apologize about earlier-" she began, her gaze focused on her own feet.
"Don't. You weren't entirely wrong, and I was not entirely right. We were both stressed, that's all. We have just walked miles through a storm on wild Grimm hunt that turned out to just be a wild Grimm hunt." her eyes finally opened, and she turned her green orbs to Undine, who also looked up to meet her gaze.
"Was...that supposed to be a joke?" she asked, raising a brow to her leader.
"As a matter of fact, it was." Glynda said, her lips only hinting at that of a slight smile. "But I've never been too good at jokes."
"No kidding! That was kind of cheesey." Undine grinned at her, "But in all seriousness, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that."
"I'm sorry as well. I shouldn't have snapped either, it's counterproductive to building team chemistry." Glynda stated in her usual tone. "It's not easy, being captain of a team of people whom you never met prior to becoming their leader. There's a lot of pressure that comes with it." this confession came as a surprise to Undine.
"Well, yeah, but it's just a title they give you-" she started, but was cut off by Glynda.
"A title that comes with a lot of responsibility." she interjected.
"Yeees, buuut it's not like Atlas or anything. We're not here for military training...so maybe you might find your position to be easier if you considered us as 'friends' before 'soldiers'." she nudged Glynda in her bicep with her elbow. "I'll admit, I sometimes have difficulty taking 'orders' from someone, but listening to a friend? That's easier to do."
Glynda closed her eyes again and allowed her lips to form a soft smile. "Perhaps you're right. I'll take that under advisement. Thank you, Ms Amaranth."
"Ugh, first off: stop that! I can't stand the formality of it all. Just Undine." she rolled her eyes as she expressed her disgust.
"Very well, Undine. You can call me Captain Goodwitch, ma'am, and on good days: milady." this statement earned her an 'as if' side glance from her partner. "Glynda will do sufficiently, as well."
"Keep trying, Goodwi-...Glynda. You'll make a good joke someday." Undine gave a light laugh, as she rested her head back against the wall of the cave.
Glynda smiled as her auburn haired comrade gently drifted off to sleep, Undine's head gently slumping against her shoulder. She took a deep breath, holding it in for a few seconds before slowly releasing it. It seemed the first watch would be hers to take, but that was how she expected it to be. Though her composure wouldn't show it, she was quite worried about Ozpin. It shouldn't have taken him this long, should it? But Ozpin could handle himself: he was a professional Huntsmen with years of experience. So then, why did he seem worried before he left? She didn't know how she knew, but she had a gut feeling that something was bothering the Professor, but what? As her mind continued to get lost in worried thoughts, her eyelids grew heavy, and she unconsciously lowered her head onto the one rested against her shoulder. Before she slipped off into a dream, one last thought went through her tired mind.
Please come back safely, Professor.
"Well now, this is an astonishing sight, indeed!" a voice spoke, cutting into Glynda's dream and rousing her back to reality. She lifted her head and yawned, while rubbing the sleep from her still tired eyes. "I guess the four of you made up then?" the voice asked.
It was Ozpin, standing just outside the cave, a sly smile on his face as he observed the four sleeping girls. Glynda went a little red in the face when she realized Ozpin had been watching them sleep just now, her mind immediately scrambling from embarrassment. She tried to find something to say, but couldn't get anything to come out, which made her get more flustered and, likewise, made it harder to formulate a sentence. Finally, words came out from her mouth, without her consciously meaning to.
"I-it's highly inappropriate for y-you to be creeping around watching four girls sleep, Professor!" she said a little too loudly, her commotion disturbing her teammates from their slumber.
"Hey, what's with all the- Professor!" Sienna exclaimed, nearly throwing Azura face first into the ground as she lurched forward with excitement. "We were so worried-...Umm, Professor? Who's that?" she asked, pointing to the child sleeping in her arms.
"This is Rem. He'll be accompanying us as we return to Vale." Ozpin answered.
"Where did he come from, Professor?" Glynda inquired. She had calmed down quickly to avoid showing that embarrassing state she had been in moments ago to her comrades.
"I found him in town." Ozpin said, his smile faded as a serious expression took its place. "He was orphaned, living on the streets. So I've decided to give him a home in Vale."
"Poor boy..." Sienna lamented, as Ozpin beckoned the members of team GAUS to begin heading back to Beacon.
"But, wait...what about our mission? The Beowolf?" Azura asked.
"Fortunately, there was no Beowolf at all, Ms Borealis." Ozpin replied, secretly berating himself for saying what had happened was 'fortunate'.
"But we traveled all this way...for nothing?" she said dejectedly, unable to hide her frustration and disappointment.
"Not all missions come with glory and recognition. That is how it is for Huntsmen and Huntresses, that is our duty." Ozpin lectured. "The important thing is that we responded accordingly to their needs."
"I guess..." Azura shrugged as the four students gathered with their Professor outside the cave.
"Do not let this dishearten you. Take it to heart that what we did, admittedly very little, is appreciated by those who look to us for protection. You four will have more exciting missions during and after your time at Beacon." He smiled and turned his gaze towards the waning moon in the night sky, trying to calculate how many hours were left until the dawn came. "Let us be off. I'm sure you're all very tired, be sure to rest sufficiently, seeing how there aren't any classes tomorrow."
They set off heading west, the trek back being much easier without the storm to hinder them. As they trudged on, sleep wearing down on their tired bodies, Ozpin remained vigilant, constantly scanning for any nocturnal Grimm that might attempt to ambush them. While this region wasn't particularly known to have many Grimm packs wandering around, the Grimm themselves weren't known to comply with normalcy. Even with many top Huntsmen across the continent studying the wretched beasts, very little knowledge could be gleamed from them. Just because they never seemed to settle in this region before, doesn't mean they wouldn't now, and Ozpin knew that he would be the only one able to fend off any Grimm, should any appear.
To his relief, however, the journey carried on in silence, only the sounds of their feet sloshing the soaked earth echoed throughout the night. They eventually reached the checkpoint they had originally made their way from earlier that day, an outpost with strong metal walls nestled between two large walls of mountain rock. Mounted on its walls were two bright spotlights, illuminating the area before the large steel gate which led in and out of the city. As they approached, a voice sounded from a speaker above the gate.
'Please present your Scroll to the I.D. scanner for clearance." it boomed across the still night, startling the four young girls who were half-dead on their feet from exhaustion. Taking his Scroll in hand, Ozpin approached the scanner to the right of the gate. It was a set up identical to the one he had used just earlier that night, and as the device scanned his Scroll, he couldn't help but think back to that place, the destruction and death, and about the young boy he was holding right at this very moment. The machine chimed as it scanned his scroll, and an automated voice sounded from it's smaller, less obnoxious speaker as it said "Clearance granted. Welcome to Vale.", the mechanism operating the gate groaned loudly as the gate slowly opened for them. As the four tired girls stumbled through the gate, Ozpin followed behind them, and the gate groaned once more as it slowly closed behind him and they made their way to his car. It wasn't a flashy vehicle, but it was fairly spacious. The four girls passed out almost as soon as they sat down in the backseat together, and Ozpin started up the ignition and began the drive back to Beacon.
Unbeknownst to him, far off in the night, a silhouette had been watching him from the darkness. It's eyes fixating its sinister aura on the grey haired Huntsmen until he was no longer within sight behind the large metal gate. Once Ozpin was gone, the silhouette had melted away into the darkness, a gentle breeze carrying the faintest hints of a whispered laugh.
**This concludes my second chapter, I thank you, whoever you are, for reading it and I hope you enjoyed it. Truth be told, I had it half finished a few days back, but had this sudden urge to scrap it and rewrite it...so I did. Now I know what some of you may be thinking, while we're two chapters in:
"This is a RWBY fanfic, so where's the fightin'?!"
And to that, I assure you: there will be a-plenty-o-fightin'...eventually... So, if you enjoyed it so far, I hope you'll stick around. Once more, thank you for reading. Please leave me a review telling me what you liked/hated about it. I can't improve if I don't know what I'm doing wrong, after all. And with that, I bid you adieu.
