I slowly climbed off the airship and took my first step on a different world. While I had known only trees, this world was dominated by the very same pillars of metal that I had read about within the Forbidden and Hidden Books.

"Amazing…"

I found myself muttering. Ozpin smiled, handing me a cup of some black liquid.

"Here, have some coffee. You've had a long day."

I took a sip from the cup, cringing at the bitter flavor.

"Gross."

He reached into his pocket, handing me three cups of something. Popping them open, I poured them into my cup. He gently stuck in a straw, stirring it for me over the slow whirring blades of the air ship.

"Try that."

I took a sip. It was actually rather good.

With a smile, I looked at the headmaster with curiosity, hoping he would explain this complex world to me. Instead, however, he simply walked forward without looking in my direction.

"Feel free to explore. You can find a new set of clothes in your dorm."

I looked down at the clothes he had given me. They were by no means nice, but the were far superior to the rags I had been living in for the past few years.

"What's a dorm?"

He chuckled, taking a sip of the brown liquid from his cup.

"It's a room in an academy where some people live. I suppose you haven't had a dorm assigned yet, have you? No matter, tomorrow will begin initiation. Simply explore around until then. If you would like a place to sleep, you can certainly join my cabin for the time being. Blood should stay together." He said, using the term 'blood.' Raven had used that to mean 'allies', saying all men are 'blood.' This man really did know her.

"No thank you."

"I thought as much. Anyways, feel free to explore a bit. Try not to go to the library yet, as I know you'll never return once you enter. Or am I wrong?"

"Probably not."

He nodded.

"Then explore and get to know the people on campus. Tomorrow will decide who you work with until graduation, so I hope you get along well with others."

"Do you know who your talking to?"

"Ah, yes. I suppose it should be considered a miracle you can speak, even though you are very intelligent."

"And how can you tell that?" I said, trying not to take offense to his words. My sentences were already shaping up with the exposure I had received, so I would imagine that could be a good indicator.

"I've already explained. You are Raven's child and so thusly I've been keeping an eye on you. The role you and her children play may not be present right now, but will be all too important in the longer game."

"Don't treat me like a tool."

He chuckled.

"Of course not, I'm the headmaster. I care for each student more than my own life. That's why you should just have fun for today, and explore."

"I still don't know what exactly you want from me."

"Its simple, really. You know more about this world than anyone else, thanks to Raven's teachings. We will create a symbiotic relationship. Do you know what that means?"

"Of course I do. Its two members of different species that act to the benefit of another, and receive benefits for that."

He nodded his head, taking a slow sip of his drink.

"Are you comparing me to a different species?" I asked angrily. He smiled and shook his head, looking to the sky.

"Of course not. I'm just using the relationship as an example. I suspect you want to know how the world works, right? Why Dust acts the way it does, why that big fire ball in the sky burns, why we can't fly like birds, no?"

"I know that much. Things like gravity and fusion were in the Forbidden books."

He nodded, but I could tell the concepts were almost alien to him. Did he know those things?

"Then learn the rest. All we want to know is where the origins of this world of Remnant come from. We know nothing of our history, but you do. Raven stole those books from the Union of Beacon, and we let her because she was carrying something far more valuable."

"Her children."

He nodded, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Do you know what the Grimm are, Mr. Black?"

"What sort of explanation would you want?" I said, leaning against a tree. He sighed, the shadow of its branches cast upon his face. He didn't seem old, and his gray hair was very similar to mine. I wondered where he was born, and if he hailed from Wrath like my birth parents did. I wondered if he even knew of Wrath.

"I want the explanation that comes naturally to you. This much I do know, considering I may or may not have peered into the Forbidden Books once when I was your age. I didn't learn much, but I learned."

I nod, understanding his curiosity.

"Before the Dead World died, Humans were perfectly imperfect. They killed, slaughtered, and sinned. They were smart, far smarter than any Hunter alive today. They knew technology that we couldn't even dream of, creating fully aware electronic consciousness called AI, and much more. They, in their perfect knowledge of anatomy, forcefully tore out the part of us that was responsible for evil. I don't know what that part of us was, or how its scientifically possible, but it happened. The Human race was purified, but at the price of the creation of Lich."

"Lich?"

"The ultimate darkness. It infected the fauna of the once alive Dead World, creating the Grimm. Think of it as a disease."

He nodded.

"And you know all of this because of Raven?"

"Yes. How do you know her?"

He sighed.

"That was long ago… Its unimportant. What is important is that you talk with those on this campus." He said, looking at me softly. I felt myself bite my lip subconsciously, looking at all the people behind him. There were just so many. Way more living creatures than I had ever seen in one place.

"How?"

"You'll learn." He said with a smile, waving someone over.

"What other secret's are you holding about my families history?" I asked. He smiled, brushing back his grey hair and patting my head, grabbing a fist full of my blank colored stems.

"Oh, a man can have secrets." He said with a smile. A man roughly my age walked over calmly, brushing aside his blue hair.

"This is Galius Sidonia, one of our top students."

"Nice to meet you."

He said with a smile, sticking out his hand. Again, I felt myself looking at it with a furrowed brow. Just as Ozpin had, he looked away and chuckled with an awkward glance.

"So this is Forest boy, huh?"

"Forest boy?" I said, feeling an angry look flash on my face.

"Yes, please do show him around if possible. He will be joining us in initiation tomorrow."

"Will do, sir. C'mon, Forest boy."

He patted my back, pushing me forward.

"Hey!" I shouted, but his hand wrapped around my dull black clothes. After scanning them for a moment, he dropped them with disgust.

"We need to get you new armor before tomorrow. Let's try to head over to the forge so I can get Lilith to craft you some."

"Lilith?"

"A girl our age, real pretty. Probably not your type though."

"My type?" I felt myself asking in confusion. He smiled, patting me on my back yet again.

"Oh, I forgot you've never seen a girl. How much that's gotta suck."

"Please let go of me." I said, taking his hand in mine and lowering it with a serious gaze.

"Ooh, Forest boy's got some attitude."

"Stop calling me Forest boy. That's not my name. Its Mirror Black." I said, looking up at the expense of the Beacon Campus. How many knew of the death that hung over this place?

"If you say so, Mirror. Still, the school knows you as Forest boy, so get used to it."

Luckily, he stayed quiet for the rest of our walk around the campus. Nobody else talked to me, with the exception of when we entered in what I assumed was the 'forge'. A person, who sort of looked like Raven, walked up to me. Her chest was larger than any man's, and she seemed to have a curve to her figure. I have to admit it was confusing to see such a thing, but I didn't let my curiosity show.

"Hi, who might you be?"

"Mi-"

"Forest boy." Said Galius, tapping my shoulder. I glared at him, thrusting his hand off of me. The desire to go feral and show him his place arose, but I suppressed it. These were Hunters, not my everyday Grimm. I've never fought something bipedal before, and I suspect it would be a challenge.

"Oh, really? Hey, is it true what they say? Did you live in the forest for 10 years?"

"I think." I said, looking past her into the complex machinery.

"That's amazing!"

"And your name?"

"Lilith, but I prefer Lily."

"Is this were my weapon was made?"

I said, holding out my unnamed weapon. It really needed a title.

Bone Claw. That sounds sort of cool.

..Maybe not, but it would do the trick.

She scanned my weapon, carefully clicking its trigger and watching it fold out. Taking it into her oddly small and soft hands, she spun it around, nodding at its weight.

"Definitely made here."

"Can you make me some armor?"

She nodded, waving me over to a chair. Pointing to it, she directed me to sit down. I did as she said, carefully leaning back into the leather. I could tell it wasn't Grimm leather by the smell, but I didn't know what creature gave way to it. My forest was mostly filled with Grimm, never any other of the animals rumored in my Forbidden Books that Mom would read to me at night.

"This machine is going to read your Aura, okay? This might hurt."

Lily gently placed something on my forehead, making sure I was comfortable. With a nod, I asked her to turn on the machine. Her finger pressed the button, the machine clicking on and beginning to whir into action.

"What is an Aura, anyways?" I asked from beneath the machine. Galius snickered, patting my head.

"Dude, that's not what you should be worried about right now."

He pressed a button on the machine.

It shot needles into my temples, causing me to scream in pain. Blood, blood, blood. It dripped down from my head, a yell of pain erupting as my hands flailed.

Fury.

Wrath.

It burned in my blood, activating my fight or flight sense. My body chose fight, bones protruding from my fingers and a yell escaping my throat.

"W-What the hell?!" Yelled Galius, leaping back in shock. I screamed in pain, feeling the grayness of my hair bye black as tar.

"Turn it off! Turn it off!" Lily shouted to Galius, who was frozen in fear. I grabbed the machine, attempting to tear it off its hinges and throw it away, but it stood.

Pain, it hurts. Get it off!

Galius clicked off the machine, waving for Lily.

"Hold him down!" He said, grabbing my left arm. I noticed her nod, her soft hands wrapping around my right. I screamed, my bones clicking as they wrapped around my skin to form a protective shell.

The armored bones of a Grimm.

"What do we do?"

"I don't know! Try to get him to call down, I think this is some kind of Semblance!"

Let go of me!

It hur-

It doesn't hurt. The needles were gone, no longer sticking into my head. I felt my arms slow their trashing, gently settling on the table. My bones clicked as they collapsed back beneath my skin, my hair returning to its pale complexion. Lily quietly removed the machine from my head, looking at me straight in the eyes.

"What are you?" She asked, her eyes more serious than I understood.

"A Hunter, I think." Rising, I gripped my head. A loud throbbing was beating against my skull, causing me to experience the worst headache. Hunter, the genderless word for Huntsman or Huntress.

"That's uh… an interesting semblance. I don't think I've seen one quite like that." He said, flopping against the desk. My frenzy had tired him, to the point where his breath was heavy and shallow.

"I'm sorry." I said, looking down. Lily brushed the notion away, picking up her pad.

"It should have been expected. The goal of this machine is to read someone's Aura and try to bring out their Semblance, so it only makes sense that you'd… do that. What 'that' is, I don't know."

"What are these things anyways? Semblances, Auras?"

"An Aura is something that is emitted by the soul, and that takes form in the Semblance." Said Lily,, who looked at me with an unsettling interest. I felt like some sort of lab rat beneath her, despite never getting the vibe of a her being a scientist. Still, I found myself glaring at her unsatisfied.

"Don't give me that crap. What are they really? A soul can't just 'take form.' That's not how Physics works." I said, causing them both to look at each other in confusion.

"Physics?" They said in unison. Do they really not know what Physics is? How little do they know of the Dead World? Either way, I shouldn't go around preaching the knowledge for the Forbidden Books. Whoever Ozpin was, and he wasn't just a headmaster, I felt a fear from him that I haven't in a while. It was one that said 'you are no longer at the top of the food chain', and that wasn't acceptable. To not be at the top was to be eaten, and to be eaten was to die.

...I suppose he did save me from the woods, gave me a scholarship, and gave me a new weapon, so I doubt he would be trying to kill me. Either way, I should be careful around him.

"Anyways, did you get enough data from that to build me some armor?" I said, causing her to look at her tablet. How did they even craft that with no knowledge of physics? The machinery within that needs a knowledge of Atomic theory in order to function. Coding occurred in binary, which was a literal code based off electrons.

"Who made that?"

"Who made what?"

"That tablet thing. Who made it?"

"Ironwood Productions, why?"

"Do you know how they're made?"

"They just use Dead World tech, so I hear. They got this big machine that just copies things and remakes them. They call it the Prometheus."

I've never heard of such a machine. Even so, could it really accurately scan and recreate old technology? If so, then why wasn't there a monopoly? Whoever created that machine should have complete and utter control over all technological production. If they had all the tech of the Dead World, such as the Heaven's Bomb, they could potentially have enough power to take over a country. No, probably more than just a country.

I'm beginning to see why Ozpin needs this knowledge.

"Well, we did get enough data. Its currently being made down in Cell Block A. Let's go get it." Lily said, hoping from the table. I sighed, following her and Galius down further to a large machine. It clicked and whirred, various molten ores flowing throughout metal piping.

"This armor will be completely unique. There will be no armor like this ever again, and there hasn't been one yet."

"Why is it unique?"

"Because all Aura's are unique, duh. Our machines scan your Aura and channel it into this thing, literally making armor out of it."

"How?"

She shrugged, clicking the machine. It ejected steam, gas flinging from the valves as she pulled the heavy metal door open, revealing my armor. It gleamed in the light, its gray metal shining.

"The leather and cotton part of your armor should be done…" Galius said, pulling out clothes from the second large machine. He threw them into my arms, turning to leave.

"Get changed and meet me upstairs. Up next we'll do a sparring match. I better not get clawed to death." He said, Lily following behind. I shrugged, looking down at the gray clothing. Throwing the clothes over my head and gearing up in the armor, I felt oddly comfortable. The weight of the armor was well distributed, and allowed complete movement. Such an armor would require heavy knowledge of anatomy, another field of study I felt these Hunters lacked.

After changing, I walked out of the forge and looked around, not seeing either Galius or Lilith. My nose flickered as I took in the scent of the wind, my mind racing. A familiar... smell plagued my nose. It wasn't as simple as a smell. It almost could be described as a gut feeling, something that was bringing me back to my time with my mother. I looked around frantically, trying to find Raven. Instead, a boy and a girl roughly my age walked over, waving.

"Hi! Who are you?" One said excitedly. Her hair was nearly black with only exception to the bottoms strands, which were dyed red. The other was a tall blonde, who wore rather heavy armor for a casual wear. Before I could answer her question, the tall blond one spoke.

"Oh! I know this guy!"

"You do?" The girl and I said in confusion.

"Yeah! You're Forest boy! Hey, is it true you lived alone for 10 years?" He said. I instantly felt sick of him, wishing he'd move on.

"I'm Mirror Black, not Forest boy. Yes, I did live alone for 10 years."

"Yang!" The small girl shouted, waving over a blonde girl. The new person, who was probably a year or so older, looked at me with hesitant eyes.

"So you're that kid, huh?" Said the new girl. I sighed, feeling defeated.

"Anyways, I'm Ruby and this is Jaune." Said the small black haired girl, pointing to the tall blonde man. "Oh, and that's Yang." She said, pointing to the girl.

"Mirror Black." I said, watching 'Yang.' Her gaze was suspicious, as if she disliked me before I even said a word.

"Ruby, let's go. You don't want to talk to this guy."

Do you remember Raven's other children? Ruby and Yang?

Ozpin's voice awoke me to the situation. With my eyes focused, I slowly walked up to Yang, making sure she saw into my cold, grey, eyes.

"What do you mean by that?" I said, causing Ruby and Juan to shrink in cartoonish fear. I ignored them, looking at Raven's eldest child. How much did she know? She had to have known about the Dead World. Same with that Ruby girl.

"What do you think I mean? Leave my sister and I alone."

"Why?"

Her glare was red hot, but I didn't back down. The situation I was in was known only by her and Ozpin, and Ozpin wasn't helping me. Even if I had to carve the answers out of her, I would find out why my mother took those books and stole me from the flame.

"Because you're a bad idea. You've lived alone, for ten years, and you don't think you're an animal?"

"I can speak, which is more than most animals can do, can't they?" I said, glaring at her.

"Guys…" Ruby said, mixing in concern and fear.

"You know, don't you? You know about the Dead World." I said, looking into her boiling red eyes. She grabbed me by the collar, hoisting me into the air.

"Drop it, now."

"Yang! Put him down this instant!" Ruby shouted, grabbing her arm. "He didn't do anything!"

The blonde girl did as she ordered, setting me on my own two feet. With a more than suspicious look on her face, she turned away.

"Leave those things in the dark where they belong." She said simply, before walking away. Ruby sighed, looking at me embarrassed.

"Sorry about Yang. I don't know what got over her."

"It's fine. Do you know where the Sparring Arena is?"

"In that building over there." Said Jaune, pointing to a large skyscraper-esc structure. I gasped in amazement at the pure craftsmanship that created such a building, another element of this society that made no sense. With no concept of physics, how do you build that colossus?

I waved goodbye to them, not really wishing to speak with Ruby further. She may be a Child of Raven, but I'm not sure what that means yet. I might as well wait until I'm stronger to start poking my nose in dangerous things. Speaking of noses, that smell still didn't go away. It always was lurking, as if telling me I wasn't alone. Telling me I needed to find the source.

The door to the Arena opened slowly, its creak echoing throughout the metal structure. There, in the middle of the area, was a lone figure. I had expected it to be Galius or Lily, but it seemed to be someone else. His hair was a bright red, his eyes a soft gold.

"Hello? Who are you?"

"Forest boy, but don't call me that." I said, causing him to chuckle.

"Alright then, what do I call you?"

"Mirror Black, you?" I asked.

"Rae, no last name."

I nodded, somewhat impressed.

"I'll avoid the questions you must be sick of." He said, holding up ten fingers. A smile snuck its way across my face. I'm beginning to like this guy.

"Well Mirror, since we're here, how about a spar?" He said, drawing an axe from his belt. I could tell that the blade could be used as a boomerang, and a deadly one at that.

"The thing is…" I said, thinking about my Semblance. Considering my lack of control, I didn't think it would be the best thing to spar.

"Relax, I know about your Semblance."

"What?"

"Yeah, I was one of the scouts that was sent to keep tabs on you." He said, causing an uneasy feeling to rise in my chest. For how long was I watched by these students?

How much did they see me do?

A slight red hue glowed in my cheeks.

I sighed, pulling the weapon from my hip and clicking it into machine gun mode.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. We won't fight serious enough to trigger it, don't worry." He said. Sounds like some famous last words. Well, to be honest, I probably couldn't take him even going feral. These were trained hunters, taught specifically on how to be deadly. While I may have years of experience, I knew nothing of actual fighting.

These thoughts crossed my mind as I climbed onto the stage, readying my weapon and checking my new armor. That would likely be another handicap, this armor. It may be light, but its twenty more pounds than I was used to fighting with. It may not restrict me, but it would slow me down considerably.

"Are you ready?" He said, tapping into the computer. His face glowed on the screen in the air, displaying a health bar. I, however, did not have a picture. Not being yet put into the system had left me without an identity. Still, the computer must have been able to read my 'Aura' and determine a health stat.

Aura, hah. What a load of bull.

I held my weapon up, setting the sights on him.

"3… 2… 1… Spar!" He shouted, bursting into action. He pulled the blade from his axe, thrusting it into the air. The blade flew towards my head with the intent of mutilation, but I was quicker. I ducked beneath the blade and pulled the trigger, causing the gun's barrel to explode with fire. Bullets sped from the rifle as Rae leapt through the air and caught his blade, placing it back within his axe.

I dodged to the right as his blade struck into the ground, causing sparks to explode into the air. Pressing the button on the handle, I folded out the sword. He pulled the blade out, pulling it into two halves of axes, swinging them from the left and right.

There was no way I could dodge-

My arms fall to protect from my head, bone clattering over them, forming a shield over my forearms. The blades bounce off like a toy, leaving me partially in shock. This was the first time I could control my Semblance without going into a Frenzy.

With a smirk, I raised my sword and slashed downwards. Rae was barely able to block the weapon as it struck down, deflecting it to the side. He threw several more blades at me, but I parried and counter attacked each one, forcing him back. Just as I had expected, my attacks were child's play to him, completely without strategy or reason.

His attack came down striking into my abdominal plate. Pain crushed my organs and caused me to gasp out of breath, nearly causing me to drop my weapon. Energy surged through my muscles and forced the blade back, striking him in the thigh.

He countered, slipping underneath my attack and slashing into my arm. Using his momentum, he continued behind me and kicked the nearside of my knee, causing me to fall. As I fell, I attempted to strike him with my staff, but his second axe blocked it. The first one met my throat.

"Game over, I win."

He said, folding away his axes and helping me up. I wince in pain slightly as I do the same, placing my weapon away and looking back at him.

"That was impressive." I said, gently touching the armor of my stomach. He flashed a smile of pride, boastfully placing his hands on his hips.

"I would hope so, I've been training like crazy."

"Well, its certainly showing. Those attacks are unlike anything I've seen in the forest." I said, causing him to smile again. It was clear how proud he was of his efforts here today, and it was well worth it. His skill was unlike anything I've seen, if nothing else.

"I'm going to head back to the cabin, since its probably pretty late. See you tomorrow?"

"Yeah." I said, watching him walk off. His armor clanked and echoed off the wall as he exited through the back door, likely going to the dorm rooms.

Its late, but I'm not exactly sure where to go. Ozpin may have offered me his cabin, but there is no way I'm going through with that. Even if a symbiotic relationship is formed between us, I would never sleep in the mouth of a predator. I suppose, as I've pointed out before, he probably wouldn't kill me. Either way, I shouldn't blindly be trusting my life to him. So, instead, I walk out into the dark and walk up to a tree, snapping off one of its branches with my weapon. It shouldn't be any more than 8 at night, so I should have enough time.

I carefully stripped away the bark of the red tree, pulling it apart until it became thin threads. Taking the wooden fibres, I weaved a thick fabric. It took hours, but I managed to finish it with a perfection that was even impressive for me. Carefully, I tied it within the two trees and climbed in, looking at the fountain in front of me. This was my first day at Beacon since I was an infant, and what an odd day it had been.

Aura, Semblance, Lack of Physics. What was this world, anyways? Could the logic of the Dead World just not be applied to this New World? I nearly laugh at the thought. To change physics was to change everything. There was something Ozpin wasn't telling me, and I was going to figure it out. Who were Yang and Ruby? Did they know who they were? Yang certainly knew something.

Her eyes. Those boiling red eyes.

They were Raven's.

And... Sleep... took me over...

...

"What are you doing?" A feminine voice asked.

"Wha...? Five more minutes."

"You carve up my tree and create a hammock, right in the middle of my school?" Said the voice. Groaning, I opened my eyes and looked at the woman. It was another blonde, but not Yang. Definitely the same age as Ozpin.

"Who are you?" I asked groggily.

"Glynda. Get up." She said, grabbing the wooden fibers of the tree and flipping me over. I yelped in surprise as my face met the cold dirt, several students laughing.

"I understand you are the child of Raven. That is why you are not being punished right now. Do something like this again and I swear I'll have your head on a pike."

I sighed, climbing up from the dirt and sitting on my hammock.

"You guys didn't even give me a place to sleep. What did you expect?"

"Headmaster Ozpin offered you a spot in his cabin, no?"

"Do you honestly think I would just blindly sleep in that man's room?" I said, causing her to give a suppressed smirk.

"Get to class before I can change my mind." She said. Taking advantage of the little she gave me, I left my makeshift bed and fumbled around campus, finally entering the main building. There, a student directed me to the outside, where an airship was waiting for us.

With no explanation, I climbed into the ship. In with my were Lilith, Rae, Galius, and Ruby.

"Hey, its you! Sorry about earlier." Ruby said, slightly embarrassed. I couldn't help but smile, looking at her. She certainly wasn't my age like I originally guessed. She had to be much younger, but I couldn't place how much.

"Do you know what that was about?" I ask.

"Nope. Yang never really acts like that." She said, kicking her feet back and forth playfully.

"So you don't remember Raven Branwen?"

"Who?" She asked. I sighed, leaning back in my chair.

"And what about you two, then? Where did you two run off to?" I ask Lily and Galius. They both blush and look away shyly.

"N-Nowhere."

"Y-Y-Yeah, where did you get that idea." They said, their faces both red. Glancing over at Rae, he gently tapped the tips of his fingers together. So they were a couple, then? I've heard of such things.

"Well, try to warn me next time. I didn't know where to do."

"Did you really make a bed out of a tree?" Rae asked. I nodded, scratching the back of my head.

"Its just an old trick I learned years ago. Those things are always really comfy, and never take for than a few hours to make." I said, trying to downplay the issue. Still, Rae nodded with an impressed look on his face. We continued to fly for probably close to an hour or two, before the airship finally slowed and stopped, dropping us on the ground. There, Ozpin and Glynda stood.

Other students joined us from the other ships, each containing a weapon and outfit unlike the other. Ruby and Yang grouped with Juan, along with another girl in white and another in black.

"Please choose a sigil and stand on it." Said Ozpin, pointing to various metal pads throughout the grass. I chose the far left one, standing on it hesitantly. My eyes gently gleamed over it, inspecting its contents.

Valves, pistons...

"This will be your initiation. Today you will be flung from this spot into the wilderness where you must achieve a prize hidden in the forest. The moment you are stranded, the first person you see will forever be your partner. So don't mess up."

Forever? Like, forever forever? Is he telling me if I saw Yang I'd have to work with her for the rest of my school life? That is not happening.

"Prepare yourselves." Said Ozpin, raising his thumb over the button on his staff. Jaune yelped, attempting to ask several questions, but to no avail. The headmaster clicked his buttoned staff, launching me into the air.

I didn't literally expect to be launched into the air.

My reflexes fired into gear, adrenaline instantly flooding my system and sharpening my vision. Weightlessness lifted my organs and assaulted my stomach, threatening to make me sick.

Trees.

They were coming so quickly.

I clenched my eyes shut, willing for something.

My Semblance responded to my adrenaline, sending bones and armor through my skin and reinforcing my hands. My fingers sharpened to armored claws, grabbing the branch. The force attempted to dislocate my shoulder, but the armor held it stiffly in place. The momentum was instantly absorbed by the Grimm's bones, which slowly vanished back inside as I dropped down.

Oh, I should probably be careful where I lo-

Lily waved at me, running over.

"Hey! Looks like we're partners!"

Well, I guess there are worse people.

"Hey, how was your trip?"

"Good, good. Didn't break anything. How about you?" She asked, placing her hands on her hips.

"Fine. I know he told us, but I wasn't expecting to actually be launched into the air. You Beaconers are insane."

"Says the man who lived off of Grimm meat for his entire life."

"I had berries!"

She chuckled, turning to the mountains.

"The shrine is probably that way, if my Semblance is correct."

"What is it?"

"I guess you'd like this. I can see through the eyes of other animals."

She was right, I did like that. Nice and grounded in nature. Not necessarily science, but that's what I would figure out.

We began walking throughout the forest, stepping over branches and vines. The fauna here was already so vastly different than the Shadow Forest which I hailed from. There, everything was gray with exception of flowers. Sometimes, I'd squeeze dyes out of them and paint on the leather I'd make from Grimm hides, making paintings like I saw within the Forbidden Books. All the color of this fauna reminded me of those days.

"Oh no."

Lily drew her sword, looking at the bushes with focused eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"The shrines due north, but we got ourselves some Beowolves!" She said, black figures leaping from the bushes. I instantly drew my blade, preparing to attack. A monster leapt to my right, his stomach meeting the shaft of my staff. Flipping the blade around, I pulled the trigger, bullets exploding out of the weapon. It yelped in pain, but I sliced it in half before it could retaliate.

Another bit into my leg, causing pain to shoot up my leg with a surge of rage. I flipped the sword around around and stabbed it into his head, feeling my fingers sharpen as claws encaged them. My hair began to dye black at its roots, but it didn't dye completely.

I slashed into another Grimm, slinging him in half. He still opened his mouth to bite me, meeting my clawed right hand. With a twitch of my brow, I yanked out petals of blood from his mouth, returning my bloodied hand to the staff.

A female scream erupted from the forest due east, causing birds to fly into the air and distracting the Beowolves.

"Some girl is in trouble!" Shouted Lily. Taking advantage of the distracted Beowolf, I twirled my sword, cutting it in two.

"We got another! A Nevermore!"

A bird screeched as it flew down, shaking the ground with its impact. Its black feathers contrasted the thick, armored bone of the Grimm. This was the master predator, the only thing below me in the food chain of the Shadow Forest. Even so, it seemed young, small, and weak. Nothing like what I would have to have fought in the forest.

...But it was below me, albeit barely.

"Follow my lead!"

I shouted, leaping into the air and striking into the bird's eye. It squealed in pain, its wings flapping and generating a gale stronger than most could withstand.

"Strike the shoulder!"

I shouted, digging my left clawed hand into its skull for support. Lily nodded, leaping up into the air and slashing at its shoulder with her blade. With wing came clean off, causing the bird to screech in pain. It nearly flung me off, causing me to have to let go of my weapon and dig into its remaining eye with my claw.

"Get the other wing!"

I shouted, causing her to react. She leaped into the air, slashing into the second wing and cutting it clean off. The bird shook violently in an attempt to shake me off, but it was no good. I thrust my hands into its armored skull, forcing a crack large enough for my hands to take hold. With a fury of anger, I reached in and grabbed the bone fiber, tearing it apart and exposing its soft, fleshy core.

I grabbed my weapon and thrust it inside, causing the monster to immediately stop its movements. I had won.

I was at the top of the food chain.

We got out piece with ease after that, retreating to the airship and returning to Beacon. There, in the Sparring Arena, Ozpin formally looked between the students. It appeared that Galius and Rae grouped together, but no two other people I knew where in the same group.

"Weiss Schnee, Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao Long, and Blake Belledonna. Together you will form the group RWBY, pronounced Ruby." Said Ozpin. "Your team leader will be Ruby Rose. Congratulations."

The group scurried off the stage, and Ozpin cleared his throat.

"Our final group is up next. Galius Sidonia, Rae, Lilith StoneHeart, and Mirror Black, please come forth."

We did as he commanded, stepping forward and looking to our fellow students in arms.

"Together, you will form the group GRLM, pronounced 'Grim.' Your team captain will be..."

He smiled, looking at each of us.

"Galius. Congratulations, I have high hopes for each of you."

We all smiled, looking at him.

"GRLM, I wish you well in your hunting." He said. I couldn't help but smile.

I will.