Weiss wakes immediately when Ruby screams. After a split second sweep to determine that the cause of her partner's distress was not in the room, she quickly concluded that she must have had a nightmare. "Ruby, Ruby it's ok, calm down" Weiss says trying to calm the red haired beauty down, but it doesn't appear to be working.

As her efforts fail, the Schnee heiress quickly presses the emergency call button and hopes the hospital staff are not incompetent. Luckily for both her and the staff, they arrive quickly and get to work as soon as they arrive.

The medical staff were eventually able to calm Ruby down. It had taken strapping her down to the bed and quite a few doses of sedatives . After sending word to Yang and Blake, Weiss had been forced to stand back and watch while the doctors had helped her partner, unable to aid them in anyway.

Each second was like a knife blade to her heart and there was no escaping it. To watch as the one she loved awoke screaming in terror and being unable to help her, hurt the heiress in ways that she couldn't begin to explain. When the doctors finally succeeded in calming Ruby down, Weiss quickly reclaimed her spot beside the bed and took Ruby's hand into her own. "What happened to you, Ruby?" She gently brushes some hair out of her face. "Please come back to me"

The room lapsed into silence, the only sounds to be heard was the steady beeping of the medical machines and Ruby's soft breathes. This allowed Weiss to have ample warning to the arrival of the rest of team RWBY. The door nearly came off it's hinges with the force used to open it. Normally this would have resulted in Weiss reprimanding Yang, but in this case she could understand the blonde's lack of patience, especially if she didn't even bother to put on her prosthetic.

"What the hell happened?!" Yang demanded in a hushed voice, she might of blasted the door open but she still understood that she was in a hospital. Taking a quick look around the room confirmed one of her fears hadn't come to pass, but she still felt the need to ask. "Did she...you know?" Yang motions towards her eyes, and sighs with relief when Weiss shakes her head.

"I don't know what happened, Yang" Weiss turns back to look at Ruby's sleeping face. "One moment she was sleeping, the next she wakes up, screaming in terror" She chokes back a sob as the memory of what happened tries to resurface. "I tried to calm her down, but nothing I did worked" Weiss looks up at Yang, with tears of sorrow and frustration welling up in her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Yang"

The blonde held up her left hand to stop Weiss from saying any more. "It isn't your fault. We have no idea what happened to Ruby out there, so don't blame yourself, Weiss. Both myself and Blake would feel the same in your situation" Turning her hand and running it through her hair, Yang sits down in one of the chairs provided for them "What we need to do is wait for Ruby to recover. She's going to wake up and then we will find out what happened to her" She pauses when a hand is placed on her shoulder and gives a reassuring squeeze. Smiling slightly, Yang puts her hand over Blake's. While their relationship was almost shattered beyond repair during the battle for Beacon, because of her own rage and Blake's stupid idea in distancing herself to keep Yang safe, the two had rebuilt it into something stronger.

"It seems we do not need to wait for the kid to wake up" The three young women turned quickly to face the new speaker, each of them readying themselves to fight, despite not having their weapons on hand. Qrow smirks from his place next to the door. "Not bad girls, reaction time is a bit slow, but otherwise you did good" He pushes himself off the wall and walks towards them, taking a second to stop next to the bed and looks over his niece. While his face appeared emotionless, inside Qrow was raging. Once they got the go ahead, he was going to take his time in killing the monster that hurt his family.

"What do you mean we don't need to wait for Ruby to wake up!" Normally Yang would be more then happy to see her uncle, but with everything that had happened, his choice of words sparked more anger in her. Seeing his eldest niece about to erupt, Qrow quickly defused the situation. "Calm down, Yang. I want the kid to recover as much as you, so sit your ass back down" hearing the bite in her, normally calm, uncle's tone quickly put a stop to Yang's anger and she meekly sat back down.

With a quick nod, the scythe wielding drunkard turns his attention back to Ruby. "Better. Now the reason I said that it seems we won't need Ruby to wake up, is because Ozpin has managed to recover the footage from the first team who went to extract her after the mission was over" Pausing to allow the information to sink in, Qrow takes a second to chose his next words. "And while it might not really do much, Ozpin has agreed to allow you too view it."

"When" if Qrow was surprised that the response came from the silent member of team RWBY, he didn't show it. He merely turns slightly so that the Faunus was in his field of view. "And who will watch over Ruby while we are watching it?" Blake normally wouldn't have spoken up first, but in this situation she was the only one who still had a moderate grasp on her emotions to think clearly. Not to say she wasn't concerned for her friend, she just knew that losing her head would not help things.

"Right now. That's why I'm here" lightly patting Ruby's hand, he gives her a small smile. "Get better soon kiddo." he ruffles the sleeping Ruby's hair and turns to the others. "Your friends, Team JNPR, volunteered to watch Ruby while you're away, so let's get going"

When they stepped out of the hospital room, they were greeted by the sight of team JNPR. While most of their friends remained unchanged, if not a bit more mature, it was Pyrrha who always seemed to draw stares. Every inch of her exposed pale skin was covered in cracks the color of dying embers, a lasting reminder of what almost ended her life on top of Beacon tower. No one is quite sure what happened when Ruby activated her powers after Cinder shot Pyrrha, but what they do know is that it froze, not only the Wyvern, but also Pyrrha's body long enough to move her into a second stasis pod, similar to the one that Amber was being kept in.

Seeing the WBY of team RWBY come out of the room, Jaune stepped forward to greet them. "Hey guys, how...hows Ruby doin?" The blonde leader had come a long way since 'joining' Beacon, while still not able to active his semblance, Jaune has proven himself time and time again that he is deserving of being a huntsman. "I know it's not much, but we're all hoping she pulls through"

"Yep, the doctors won't let us bring any pancakes, but I'm sure once Ruby is better she will really enjoy having some" The group chuckled at Nora's usual enthusiasm, even when things looked bad, the bubbly young woman tried to lighten things up.

Chuckling softly, Yang smiles, but it was easy to tell it wasn't a true smile "Thanks Nora. I'm sure Rubes will love some of your pancakes when she feels better" She was trying to put on a brave face, but they all were made painfully aware that Ruby might not wake up.

Pyrrha stepped forward and began to use sign language , her only way of communication until a more permanent solution was discovered. It surprised and shocked many of them that Nora could understand sign language, but Weiss knowing it was probably due to some business involving Schnee corp affiliates.

{How are you all doing?} While she was concerned for Ruby, Pyrrha knew that the other members of team RWBY also needed support and she was more then willing to offer it after all they had done for her. {If you need anything, do not hesitate to ask}

"Thank you Pyrrha, that means a lot to us" Both Yang and Blake nodded in agreement with Weiss's statement, as all three of them felt the same about the woman's generosity. "We...it's been rough. We are hoping that she recovers but at the same time..." No one needed to hear her finish the statement, they all understood perfectly what Weiss left unsaid. "Right now all we ask is that you keep Ruby safe for us" The members of team JNPR each offered a nod and a smile of reassurance before moving past them into the room.

"Don't worry, we won't let anything happen to her" Jaune paused for a moment, as if to think about what to say next. "I don't think we can ever fully repay Ruby for what she did for us, but we will do our best, no matter what"

To the surprise of everyone, Weiss hugged Jaune suddenly. After getting over his initial surprise, Jaune returned the hug, years ago he would of enjoyed it, but he knew that there was nothing romantic about this hug, it was simply a show of gratitude. "Thank you Jaune"

With a chuckle, the blonde swordsman released the hug and steps back. "No problem Snow Angel. Now get going, you guys need to find out what happened so we can get some payback for Ruby ."

With that said, he separated from the girls and went to join up with his team. WBY took a second to watch the members of team JNPR before following after Qrow, who had waited for them in silence.

Ozpin looked up at the sound of the elevator's arrival. His face set into a neutral expression as the occupants stepped out into his office. Standing up slowly, and retrieving his cane. The aged professor makes his way around the desk and towards the group. Stopping just short of them, he leaned heavily on his cane, ignoring the pain in his leg. "Welcome, I see Qrow didn't waste time informing you about our discovery"

"They had a right to know, Ozzy" Taking out his hip flask and taking a quick swig of it's contents, Qrow's red eyes sweep the room. "So" Wiping his mouth of any left over liquid "Where is Jimmie?"

"I have told you not to call me that, Branwen" Almost as if summoned, General Ironwood stepped out of the second elevator, accompanied by Winter Schnee. Ironwood nods briefly towards team RWBY, before turning his glare back towards the other two men in the room. "Why is it, that every time you two appear on my desk, it has to do with troubling matters?"Ironwood asks.

Sending a smirk and wink towards the elder Schnee, who scowls at him in return, Qrow brushes off James' frustration "While I'm flattered you thought of myself and Ozpin being on your desk" Yang covers up her laugh as a cough "But you're not really my type, Jimmie" The growl that Qrow gets as a response just makes his smirk even bigger.

"If you are both done confessing your love for one another" All eyes turned back to Ozpin and Yang once more had to cover up her laughter. "We are all here for a reason, so let us not delay any further, shall we?" Seeing that he had everyone's attention again, Ozpin took a sip from his true weapon, and the only thing to survive the destruction of his office, the eternal coffee mug.

Walking back to his desk, Ozpin took out his scroll and inserted it into the computer. Several video screens appeared around the office, each one displaying a different point of view. "This is the footage we have recovered from the first extraction team. It was when they failed to report in that I discovered something was wrong and informed you about ms. Rose's status as MIA" Hitting the play button, everyone turned their attention to the first screen.

Camera 1

The soft sound of music was barely heard over the roar of the bulkhead's engines, but the team sitting inside didn't seem to mind. Each member was doing their own thing, prepping weapons and gear, relaxing, chatting with team mates, or in the case of the commander, watching her team.

Turning her head at the sound of movement next to her, the commander found herself looking at a tall, muscular, blond haired man who smirked in her direction and leaned back in his seat.

"So Commander" The joking tone was clear in his voice "What is our illustrious mission today? Stopping a war? Maybe rescuing some beautiful princess?"

The snort that escaped the commander was anything but ladylike and her tone was equally as joking as the soldier's. "Davids, you ask that every time. When are you going to accept that we ain't getting anything like that. This is just a simple snatch and grab pick up. Fly in, find the huntress and get her home"

Davis just continued to smirk "Even a simple mission can be an important one, commander. Don't tell me getting promoted killed your sense of adventure, Mariana"

A growl escaped the, now named, commander's lips and she narrowed her eyes at the grinning blonde. "What have I told you about using my name, Davids?"

"Hmm that depends Commander" Davids leaned in close to the woman "On which situation you are referring to, Mariana Davids" The camera cuts out as the two share a kiss.

When the camera came back on, the inside of the bullhead is now shaded red and the six members of the extraction team are tense and quiet. A voice came in over the intercom, disrupting the silence. "ETA two minutes, people"

Commander Davids nodded, even though the pilot couldn't see and addressed her team. "Roberts, you're on the roof. Anything moves I want you to report it in. Human or faunus I want you to watch them like a hawk. If it's Grimm, put it down"

A young woman sitting next to a sniper rifle, that was taller then her, nodded "Understood, Commander" her Vacouvian accent came through strong but her team had no problems understanding her.

"Glades one and two" She spoke to the pair of dog eared twins seated across from her "We don't know if the huntress will need medical aid or if there will be any survivors, but I want the two of you to be ready for anything, understood?"

The two silver haired medics saluted. "Yes ma'am" They quickly began making sure they have everything they might possibly need for the situation on hand.

The last two she had to speak to were her husband and the mountain of a man sitting next to him. "Davids, Nikolai you two are with me. We go in, grab the hunter and any survivors and we get the fuck out. I don't want to stay in Mantle any longer then we have to"

"No problem boss" Davids gave his wife a pair of thumbs up, while Gomez nods and spoke in a rough tone "Understood Komandir" The team once more slipped into silence. Only the sound of the engines and the wind filled the hold now. Once more the camera cut out.

Camera 6

"This town is dead, commander" The accented voice of Lt Roberts breaks the silence. "I'm seeing no movement, not even Grimm activity" She continued to sweep the town from her vantage point.

"Yeah we can see that Roberts, how about something new" The Vacouvian woman smirked at the sound of Davids annoyed tone. "Well from where I am sitting, the commander's ass looks pretty sweet" Laughter filled the radio chatter and Davids surprised stuttering caused even more.

The jovial mood was quickly cut short. "Alright that's enough" Commander Davids voice cut through the laughter like a knife. "Focus back on the mission, and not on my ass Roberts"

"Sure thing, commander, but it's not going to" Something darts quickly between some of the buildings and Roberts turns her sight towards it. "Contact. Fifty meters to the north, moving fast" She tries to keep up with the shadow.

The rest of the team swiftly entered combat mode "Anything else, Roberts? Hostile? Human or Grimm?" Mariana didn't like this situation. The town was too silent, too dead. Something wasn't right about this place. "I need a visual here"

"Trying" 'fucking hell, stop moving' Roberts tried desperately to keep up with the shadow. "I'm seeing...looks human, no visible faunus features...seems to be female...boss I think it's our missing hunter"

Camera 1

A small figure wrapped in red stumbled into the street and stared at the group in shock. She was holding a massive red and black scythe and appeared to be quite injured, with blood running down her left arm and her right leg was being held slightly off the ground.

"Ruby Rose?" Seeing the girl nod, Mariana lowered her weapon and stepped forward. "I am commander Davids, we have been sent to extract you and" she takes a moment to look around. "Any possible survivors"

"No" Ruby's voice was quiet, disturbingly quiet "no survivors" When she looked up at them, they saw fear in her eyes "We need to leave commander, we need to leave now"

"Do not worry, miss Rose, we will extract once we" A loud roar filled the air, followed by the sound of gunfire. The huntress seemed to freeze up, but Mariana wasn't concerned about that right now. "Roberts, report. Roberts!"

Camera 6, moments earlier

She watched the interaction between her commander and the huntress through her scope, waiting for the order to either scout for survivors or move out when suddenly something liquid dropped onto her shoulder. Turning her head, she looks at the strange substance that slides down her shoulder. Slowly, she looks upwards and her vision is filled with a gapping maw full of sharp teeth. "Holy shit!"

Roberts turned quickly just as a roar ripped through the silence. The massive Grimm lunged forward just as she fired off a round. The bullet bounced harmlessly off the beasts hide and Roberts screamed out in pain. It felt like her arm was in a vice, but she couldn't give up yet.

Placing her feet on the Grimm's snout, she pushed with all her strength. Slowly her arm went slack and the sound of tearing flesh and cracking bone filled the night. Without any more resistance, Roberts found herself flying backwards, away from the Grimm and over the edge of the building. Pain coursed through her body and darkness began to take hold of her, but still Roberts smirked when a projectile slammed into the Grimm's head and exploded.

The Camera footage freezes on the blurred image of a large creature being slightly illuminated by the light of exploding dust.

Camera 1

Reloading his weapon, Nikolai stepped away from the group. "Komandir" Lifting the large DPG-29 Vampir, the mountain of a man turns to Mariana "I vill keep the Grimm busy. Get little ones too transport" Something grabbed his arm. Looking down, he finds Ruby Rose holding his his wrist.

"D-don't. You don't understand. This...these Grimm. Their...their not" She stopped when a large hand gently rested on the top of her head and ruffled her hair. "do not vorry little one, I know vhat I am doing. Now, all of you, go" A roar from the Grimm brings his attention back to it. "I have vork to do" Nikolai takes off running down one of the side streets and the grimm leaps down from the roof and follows him.

"Dammit Nikolai!" Davids shouted down the street after the giant "Don't you go and get yourself killed, ya hear me!" Turning to the twins. "You two with me, we need to secure Roberts"

Watching the three make haste towards the location that Roberts hit the ground, Mariana wanted to badly to go with them, to make sure her 'friend' and team mate was safe, but she needed to keep a handle on the situation. Turning to Ruby, she took note that the young huntress looked ready to chase after Nikolai.

"Don't" Ruby paused and turned to Mariana "He knows what to do, and if you try to help, you could mess up his concentration. I'm going to need your help here, understand" Seeing her nod, Mariana grabbed her pistol. "Now, let's move"

The two quickly joined the others. As they got closer, they could hear the voices of the twin medics as they discussed Roberts condition and what to do with her. "We should seal the wound, there is no hope of reattachment" "No, we wrap it tight for now and get her to a hospital for more thorough recovery." "If we do that, it's possible she might not make it!" "And I do not want to do her anymore harm by sealing her wound in the field!"

"H-how is she?" She tried to keep her emotions in check, but the thought of any of her team being hurt always got to her. When the two medics reluctantly parted from their patient and Mariana got her first look, it took all she had not to break form. The first, and most obvious thing, her eyes were drawn to was what remained for Roberts arm. Shredded flesh and splintered bone hung down just a few inchs from her shoulder, the rest of it gone, torn violently from her by the Grimm.

Pushing down her emotions, Mariana barked out orders. "Glades, get her to the damn bullhead. Davids, Rose!" Ruby looks at her with surprise. "You two are providing cover, Anything moves and it ain't human, put it down!" she ejects her guns previous clip and reloads it with specialized dust rounds.

The group made their way silently through the town, the only thing breaking the silence was the sounds of battle off in the distance. As they reached the bullhead and climbed inside, Ruby starts looking around at the shadows with a frown on her face and the grip on her scythe increases. Davids, noticing Ruby's behavior, addresses her as the transport starts to lift off the ground. "No need to worry, that crazy giant knows what he is doing and won't be taken down so easily, by a strange single Grimm"

"That's the problem" The remaining members of the team turned to her with looks of confusion. "There was only one" Suddenly the pilot shouts out. "BRACE!" but it was too late. A Flash of white passed by the windows before a heavy impact slammed into the side of the Bullhead, sending it spiraling out of control.

The video footage stops abruptly, and Yang was not happy about it. "That's it?!" Jumping from her seat, eyes flashing between red and violet. "That told us jack shit!"

"Yang!" Reaching up and gently taking her girlfriend's hand in her own, Blake tried to calm her down before something happened. "Remember where you are, deep breathes" Seeing her take in deep, ragged breathes, Blake continued. "I'm sure that isn't all there is, but with what we have just seen, perhaps it is best we take a moment to reflect on it"

"Miss Belladona is correct" Ozpin drew all attention to himself. "Commander Davids camera was quite damaged when it was recovered and the footage is fragmented at best, unwatchable at it's worst."

With one last shuddering breathe, Yang sat back down next to Blake. "Sorry about that"

"While unprofessional, it is completely understandable" Yang turns slightly to look at Winter. "You are concerned for your sister, there is nothing wrong with that" She gave a small smile, one which quickly morphs into a smirk as both the B and Y of the team flush red slightly. Her sister however scowls and begins muttering angrily about overly sexy sisters. "However this" her smirk is replaced by a frown as she turns to the still image of the unknown Grimm "Is concerning. What type of Grimm is it?"

Roberts falling from the roof, and the light from the explosion made making out the Grimm in the picture very difficult, even with the use of enhancement software, it did little other then highlight the general shape of the creature.

"Looks like a Creep, only with more armor" Qrow leaned forward to analyse the image. "Never seen anything like it and I've killed my fair share of Grimm. Could be a new mutation"

"I don't think so" Ironwood looked at the Grimm "Yes it looks similar to a Creep, but similarity is small. Notice the distance between the head and the back legs, the length of the skull, and the front limbs. This is a completely new species"

"Indeed, many would find this discovery frightening while others would be fascinated" Pausing to take a drink, Ozpin carefully analysed the image. "Unfortunately we won't know more until ms. Rose awakens or the survivors are ready to talk"

"Survivors?" They all turned towards Weiss "Who else was found besides Ruby?"

"A valid question Ms. Schnee. The other two Survivors were Commander Mariana Davids and Lt. Christia Roberts. Ms. Roberts is still unconscious from her encounter with the unknown and Ms. Davids hasn't left her side since waking up."

Seeing the confused faces, Ironwood spoke up. "Their situation is their own business, while it has put them into a awkward position, considering that they filed false information, it is not our immediate concern." Turning back to the screens "Now play the rest of the footage, Ozpin."

Notes:

Character Bios

Mariana Davids:
Age 31
Height 5'9
Skin: pale
Hair: Dark Brown
Eyes: Green
Country of Origin: Atlas
Occupation: Military Commander
Sex: Female
Weapon: twin 8mm dual action pistols

Samuel Davids:
Age: 30
Height: 6'1
Skin: Tan
Hair: Blonde
Eyes: Brown
Country of Origin: Atlas
Occupation: Military
Sex: Male
Weapon: M9 rapid action assault rifle

Christia Roberts:
Age: 28
Height: 5'6
Skin: caramel
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Sapphire
Country of Origin: Vacou
Occupation: Military
Sex: Female
Weapon: High caliber Satevari Sniper Rifle

Nikolai:
Age: 35
Height: 6'9
Skin: Pale
Hair: Silver
Eyes: Coal
Country of Origin: Mantle
Occupation: Military
Sex: Male
Weapon: DPG-29 Vampir RPG

Tyson Glade:
Age: 25
Height: 6'0
Skin: Pale
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Race: Dog Faunus
Country of Origin: Atlas
Occupation: Military Medic
Sex: Male
Weapon: Bo Staff

Harrison Glade:
Age 25
Height: 6'0
Skin: Pale
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Race: Dog Faunus
Country of Origin: Atlas
Occupation: Military Medic
Sex: Male
Weapon: Bow