Just a quick note, I went back to the last chapter to fix grammar and spelling mistakes. I also added the occasional descriptive words and adjectives to make it more clear but for the few followers I got it's not necessary to the plot to go back and read, no new content was added.

Italics – indicates written words


4 Months Later

The large air ship rose from the tarmac while two Bullheads lifted up ahead of it, presumably to fly escort for the craft. Within the cabin a voice could be heard from the speakers above.

"Attention passengers, as that we have now reached a steady altitude the observation decks are now open and you may now leave your seats. We will be reaching Beacon in approximately 30 minutes."

The young men and women around Kemos began unbuckling themselves and moving forward from the cabin. He stayed seated, waiting for the compartment to empty. The students chatted excitedly as they headed to the rooms ahead; it was rare to be given the opportunity to see Vale from the sky. Air ships of this quality were rare to be in civilian hands.

"Come on Yang, I want to get to the observation deck. I bet we can see Signal from down there." A young girl, looked to be 15 or so, pulled her blond friend up from here seat.

"Calm down Ruby, we have plenty of time." She attempted to calm the excited girl but it had no effect.

"I know, but I don't want to miss anything." The blond girl merely sighed as the younger girl pulled her along.

Kemos chuckled silently under his breath as he stood to follow them.


She walked through the crowd attempting to reach an open spot near the windows of the deck. It had taken 5 years to get this far but all her hard work with her teacher had finally paid off. She had been accepted to Beacon. She had been training with a local huntress that had been assigned to her hometown. She had noticed the bunny girl's talent for Glyphs and ever since then Velvet had been training with the huntress.

She finally reached the open spot she saw, hoping to get at least a bit of peace before the ship docked at beacon. She had noticed a number of students staring at her for some reason ever since she had entered the ship.

Looking to her left she noticed a blonde girl hugging her friend… or sister as she overheard the conversation. The words brought pain to her heart as she remembered the friends she left behind in her hometown of Eben. She wasn't so lucky that any of her friends had the aptitude or even the desire for the Hunting life that she had wanted ever since she first began her tutelage.

"Well what do we have here, didn't realize they let your kind in this school." Velvet turned to the voice behind her.

The man in front of her was tall and well-muscled; he wore a close cropped military cut for his brown hair. Looking further down she noticed the start of a scar on his collarbone that led under his clothing with a strap against his chest which held a large gun to his back.

My kind? What did he mean by… oh, he must mean that I'm from the frontier.

"Oh, there was a hunter stationed at my town that noticed my skill so, here I am." She shrugged her shoulders to further her point putting a broad smile on her face to seem friendlier. The man in front of her looked at her in confusion not sure how to respond.

"My names Velvet Scarlatina, what's yours?" The girl stuck out her hand in greeting. He didn't take it.

"Ignis Dorskey" the man curtly responded. He was astounded by this animal's naivety. Even more so that she showed no recognition of his family name.

"So I noticed the weapon on your back, it looks heavy." She said hoping to spark a conversation.

"Quite" the man turned and walked away from her with not even a goodbye.

"Ah, wait a minute… Dammit, how am I supposed to make friends if you don't talk to me?" She mumbled the last part under her breath. No one would be that rude in Eben.

She turned back to the window, watching the city below as she waited.


Kemos reached the final step of the stairs reaching the lower observation deck. The students were not restricted to just those from Vale. There were a number of men and woman from the Eastern Lands and if the fashion of the tall crimson haired girl is any indication there were also representatives of Mistral in attendance as well.

He adjusted the twin swords strapped to his back as he passed the sisters from before. Kemos no longer looked like the homeless beggar from his times in the town of Manning. He wore a black coat with a hood over his clothes, the tails of which reached just below his knees. He now wore heavy duty boots rather than the rotting tennis shoes he had found in one of the trash cans back in town. He continued to wear jeans like before but now they were a dark navy almost black. Over his chest he wore stained black leather armor with a grey t-shirt underneath it. To finish off his new look he wore a pair of black fingerless gloves.

Ahead of him was one of the news displays which were featuring segments on local activities. Seems the mayor was pushing an effort to repair the old city roads in light of the upcoming Vytal Festival. But that report ended as a mug shot appeared of a red head man in a white coat. Apparently this Roman Torchwick had been stealing large quantities of Dust as of late. The professor had told him that he had almost been caught by Professor Goodwitch if it hadn't been for the interference of some over confident Signal Academy student.

What was more surprising was when Port had told the boy that the Headmaster had chosen to enroll said student into Beacon. It seems foolish to allow a child to enroll but perhaps the Headmaster believes that the rigors of this school will mature her before her time.

"Hello, and welcome to Beacon." A new voice brought him out of his thoughts as an image of Professor Goodwitch appeared before the students, replacing the News Segment.

"My name is Glynda Goodwitch. You are among a privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace and as future Huntsman and Huntresses it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task. And now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world." The image of the professor faded as she spoke the last words.

Through the windows the students could now see the spiring towers of Signal Academy, and for the former students of the said school it seemed an exciting moment.

Moving past the waterfront school the air ship now traveled over the river proper, now on a direct course towards Beacon. From here it would be only a few minutes before they would dock, but not soon enough if the blonde boy holding his mouth was any indication. The boy grunted as a liquid pushed past his fingers as he rushed past the two sisters knocking into the silent man's shoulder as he rushed towards the trash can in the rear of the compartment.

The swordsman turned towards the sick boy and took a step forward but stopped, unsure whether to confront the rude boy but ultimately stopped. It was doubtful the boy would have treated him as such if he didn't have a mouthful of vomit about to burst free.

Looking out the window the boy noticed the scenery rapidly rotating and turning to the starboard windows he could see the ship rapidly approaching the docks.

As the ship finally came to a stop the students around him began heading towards the exit ramp in between the two lower observation decks.

Walking down the ramp Kemos turned to the sound of the blonde boy once again depositing the content of his stomach into a trashcan. The silent swordsman shook his head in pity. If this boy couldn't even hold the contents of his stomach for a short flight how did he expect to fight any of the many flying type Grimm throughout Remnant.

He walked up to the boy handing him his pad.

Need any help? You don't look so good.

The sick boy looked up from his trash can surprised that someone would come to his aid. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand the boy stood up.

"No I'm fine, just motion sickness. Nothing I can't handle." The boy put on a confident smile but the same confidence did not translate to his eyes. Kemos raised an eyebrow in response, not quite believing.

"He he… yeah… anyways my names Jaune Arc, short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, ladies love it."

Kemos once again responded with but a single raised eyebrow finding the boy's statement to be naïve at best.

"Well… ah… I bet if you were a girl you would have liked it!" Jaune nearly shouted the last statement hoping the volume might actually sway him. Once again, a single eyebrow raised was the only response the blonde boy received. "I never did catch your name."

Kemos Shepard

"Well it's nice to meet you Kemos," the two began to walk towards the school proper only to encounter two girls in the middle of a shouting match; the girl in red from before against a girl completely decked out in white, even her hair was white. By the introduction of a third girl in black it seemed the girl in white was some woman of importance, an heiress of some sort. She definitely had the look with her expensive clothing, the look completed by the inclusion of a small crown placed in her ponytail.

This conflict ended with the heiress stalking off in anger and at the same time the girl in black left, seeming as if she had just finished some mission to annoy the girl in white. Perhaps she has some form of grudge against the girl.

With them gone the girl in red collapsed backwards in what looked to be dejected frustration. At the sight Jaune seemed to perk up smile gracing his lips. "I'm going to help her."

Jaune rushed forward his hand outstretched to the fallen girl.

"Hey… I'm Jaune"

"Ruby" she responded taking his hand to allow him to pull her up.

Kemos contitued to walk past the two, not stopping when Jaune called out to him.

"Hey, Kemos. Where are you going?" Kemos merely threw a hand over his shoulder in good bye as he continued to walk away from the two Hunters-in-training.

"Hck… aren't you the guy who threw up on the ship."


Kemos entered the sparsely occupied auditorium. Around him he could only see other first years, most likely the second to fourth year students were already moving into their assigned dorms.

The room was designed with a semi curricular. There was a raised upper section holding additional seating that encircled the entire room until the stage was reached. The stage itself had a castle backdrop to that matched the visage of Beacon.

The students around him seemed to all stay within their own little packs. Most likely they were the ones that had attended the prep schools like Signal Academy. Kemos chose to head towards the back of the auditorium rather than standing awkwardly in the middle of the floor like a few others he saw.

Throwing the hood of his coat up he leaned against the back wall; Kemos closing his eyes he enjoyed the low but steady murmurs of the other students speaking.

"Hey"

He opened his eyes to this new voice interrupting his peace; slowly turning his head he looked to the side to see this newcomer. A girl stood before him with a large rifle hanging from her right shoulder. She was of Eastern decent but by her accent she definitely raised here in the country of Vale. Her hair was black with neon blue streaks dyed into it, she had piercing all around her face; three in her left ear and another one in her right, with two along her right eyebrow, one in her nose and finally one mid left of her lower lip.

Met only with silence she began waving her hand in front of Kemos's face." Hello… You in there…"

Kemos grabbed her hand out of the air, forcing it down giving her a nod of recognition.

"Well… at least I got you to respond." She smiled with the last words, seemingly proud that she was able to get a reaction from the boy.

He shrugged in response, once again leaning back against the wall and closing his eyes.

"Oh, so you're going to ignore me" Kemos once again turned to her, with a slight crook to his neck he raised his eyebrows giving her a matter fact like look.

"Not much of a talker, is that it?" He responded by handing her his pad.

I'm Mute.

She was taken aback by his response. Handing back the pad she said, "to be honest I'm surprised that you would be admitted to this school considering how famed they are for their teams.

He shrugged in response.

"Oh, Confident in your abilities are you? Well it will definitely be interesting to see you in action… oh look, looks like it's about to start.

A man with a cane walked up onto the stage. His white… gray… no his silver hair was a complete mess. He looked like he got straight out of bed, sounded like it for that matter.

"Ahem… I'll keep this brief. You have traveled here today in the search of knowledge. To hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you're finished you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you and all I see is wasted energy. In need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this. But your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

The Headmaster walked off while his second-in-command, Professor Goodwitch, stepped forward in front of the mic.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed.

"Well… wasn't he just a ray of sunshine." Exclaimed the pierced girl. "So are you going to tell me your name or am I going to have to follow you around like a puppy until I wheedle it out of you?"

Kemos was surprised by the persistence of this strange girl. To treat a complete stranger, who acted like they wanted nothing to do with you, like a close friend just seemed, well… strange.

Isn't it polite to give ones name first before asking for another's?

"Well I guess you're right." The girl seemed unfazed by his accusation. "My names Yumi Satou."

With a smile the girl stuck her hand out to shake, which Kemos took in response.

Kemos Shepard.

"Well it's nice to meet Kemos, so… don't suppose you know where the cafeteria is because I haven't eaten since this morning and I am starved." She seemed partially happy that she was able to convince him to give up his name and her raised voice seemed to back up that assertion.

Come with me, there was a map outside the auditorium.


"Come on Kemos, Don't you think it's too early for bed. Its only 8 o'clock." Yumi whined to him as she leaned on him pulling him back away from the ballroom entrance.

Rolling his eyes he shrugged her off and continued towards the ballroom, his gear and annoying enough hers as well, in his hands. Which all in all wasn't too bad considering how small the two bags were.

"Kemos… don't be so boring. We could go explore the gardens or check out… "She stopped speaking as Kemos dropped what he was caring and turned to her.

We have initiation tomorrow morning. Don't you think we should rest up?

She shrugged, "Well, yeah. Of course we should but no one's gonna be out right now. We would have the complete place to ourselves. Think of the trouble we could get in." Her grin seemed to get wider with each word that came out of her mouth.

Kemos turned around and once again picked up the gear and continued into the ballroom.

"Spoilsport" She yelled after him before rushing into the ballroom behind him.

As they entered the ballroom they walked under a set of two curved stairs, to the side the walls were lined with windows showing the night sky, across from them lay a small stage, presumably for a band when the room was in use for more official functions.

"Smaller than I expected" she looked around in wonder, her actions not supporting her words.

"Ahh… Hey!" She stumbled as a hand grabbed her shoulder. Looking over her shoulder to see Kemos nod his head downwards. She looked down to see a Faunus girl sleeping, if he hadn't stopped her she would have tripped over the girl, which would have probably woken the girl.

"Uhh… thanks." He shrugged matter of factly at her gratitude.

"We should probably find a place to set down before I fall over some other gal. Considering how everyone in here is a deadly warrior who knows how they might react. For all we know she might have some giant hammer which she would use to nail me into the floor.

She nudged the boy as she told her joke wiggling her eye brows all the way, "eh… eh… come on. You know that was funny.

He rolled his eyes at her before turning his head away, a small smile on his lips.

"So, see any open spaces, all these here look occupied." Kemos nodded his head towards a spot by the windows which was clear.

"Looks like we found our bedding."

He laid the two bags down beside each other then removed just his coat, his weapons and armor already having been stowed away in one of Beacon's many lockers. He kneeled down placing the folded coat on the ground before reached into his bag grabbing his toiletries.

Yumi sat down beside him, staring up at the moon outside the window. "It's a beautiful night, you know we could still… Hey were you going?"

Kemos turned holding up his blue and white toothbrush.

"Ah… that's a good point, I should probably do that to." She jumped up grabbing her bag as she followed him towards the lavatories.


Yumi exited the lavatory to find Kemos leaning against the wall opposite waiting for her. An almost evil grin grew on her face as she approached him, her hands clasped behind her back.

"Ahh that's cute… you waited for me." He shrugged matter of factly before heading back towards their spot.

His lack of response stumped her, words failed to come to her so that she may continue her teasing. But did notice an opening.

"So…" he turned his attention towards her as they walked.

"I see you're not going shirtless like all the other boys around here. Whys that?"

He looked over at her with an incredulous look. He continued on choosing to not even dignify that question with a response.

Reaching their spot Kemos laid down resting his head on his folded coat before closing his eyes. He then felt a hand nudge him against the shoulder. He turned his head, annoyance apparent on his face, to stare at the girl beside him.

"You're not going to use a sleeping bag or even a blanket." He shook his head in response.

"Aren't you going to get cold?"

It's warm enough to sleep.

"Damn… where are you from that you would think that this was warm. Seriously, they have the air-conditioning on right now, how can you be warm?"

I've slept in worse places.

The way he wrote that made Yumi want to question him further about these 'places' but she could tell he didn't want to discuss the issue any further.

Well… oh come on. How do they expect us to sleep with those girls making such a racket over there?"

Kemos opened his eyes to see a group of people on the other side of the ballroom fighting each other over some issue.

"I'm gonna go over there and give them a piece of my mind." She started to rise but not before a hand reached out and grabbed her shoulder forcing her back down.

I'm sure they'll stop soon.

And luckily enough they did.