It was around midnight that he'd heard footsteps, hasty but light, racing down the halls coming ever closer. He was not alarmed, as the scent accompanying the sound was that of roses, one he'd already become familiar with that same night. It would seem the girl was still curious, though he could not blame her, as he was something she'd possibly never even imagined could exist. He could easily track just how far away she was, how fast she was coming, and other things about her as she approached, noting how much faster she was than any other human he'd met. On her feet, she could easily see her keeping pace with some Eldar. It wasn't long before he heard a knock on the massive doors at the front of his large room, though he was debating whether he should just ignore the request for entry or allow her in and humor her with half of his attention.

Deciding against the former, he pressed a button on the underside of his desk, and a small buzzing sound resounded. It was an annoying sound, one he'd have to have removed it he thought to keep his sanity. Slowly one of the doors opened to reveal who he'd already known was coming. He was facing the window in his chair, not bothering to turn around to greet the girl entering the room as the moonlight illuminated the front of his form in a pale glow. She slowly walked down the crimson carpet, slowly taking in everything within the room, and the sheer size of it. It felt like he'd be waiting an eternity for her to finally reach him, but after about a minute, she'd finally reached his desk...

"M-mi'lo-" She began, but was swiftly cut off by the astartes.

"Need I ask why I'm being disturbed, Rose?" He simply stated, though his voice froze her in place. "Well? Out with it!" he sharply said, which snapped her back to reality.

"Y-yes, mi'lord! I ah... I was wondering what exactly a ah... a 'Chaplain' does... and what's a 'Blood Raven'?" she asked meekly.

"Curiosity, is it? You broke curfew out of idle curiosity?" he waited for a response, but received none, merely noting that she'd started hanging her head and swinging her arms. "Well, I suppose I've nothing better to do, and your curfew really is of no matter to me... Now, to understand the role of a Chaplain, you must first understand the Space Marines, and their relation to the Emperor, and the whole history of it is rather extensive."

"Ah, I understand... Well, I-I don't r-really, ah... have anything to do tomorrow... It's the weekend, after all..."

"I suppose that's a good thing, after all, you've no choice in whether you were going to listen or not after you asked. Now..."

Ten thousand years ago, in the 30th millennium, the Emperor, or, if you were to ask a Space Wolf, the Allfather, revealed himself upon Holy Terra, and swiftly reunited Terra under one banner through crushing the Techno-barbarian tribes. From there, he began his creation of his favored twenty sons, the Primarchs, from whom the Space Marines would be born.

Metaphorically speaking, of course, any Space Marine you'd ever see was born much the same way as you were, but I digress. The Primarchs, through a force you may not yet know the name of, were scattered across the galaxy in their infancy. As a response to this, the Emperor launched his great crusade in search for his lost sons. The Space Marines he'd already developed upon Holy Terra were already legion, and set to the stars to reunite with their long Primarchs.

As the Great Crusade carried on, and the Primarchs were reunited with their legions and vice versa, war followed in their wake as the Space Marines reclaimed the lost fragments of humanity scattered across the stars. We Space Marines stood at the forefront of the Crusade, fighting mutants, aliens, and traitors alike. Those worlds that did not comply through diplomacy, did by force. The Imperium of Man stood in a Golden Age of a sorts... and then, Horus happened.

Ah... sorry to interruption, Mi'lord... But who is "Horsus?"

Horus, Rose, not Horsus. Horus, of those Primarchs found, was made Warmaster, and took the Emperor's position leading the Great Crusade in his stead. Though as the Crusade dragged on, and we continued to conquer worlds, unite humanity, and make species of xenos go extinct, the seeds of treachery were sown. The Warmaster, Horus Lupercal, and those legions loyal to him over the Emperor, turned their backs on humanity, sending all those still loyal to the Emperor in their legions down to the surface of Istvaan V before virus-bombing the entire planet. On 566.006.M31, The Horus Heresy had begun. For nine years, the war between loyalists and the foul traitors would rage across the galaxy, setting it aflame, though after only two Horus had been slain by the Emperor's hand, and the Emperor himself was interred upon the Golden throne. At the conclusion of the Horus Heresy, several Primarchs lie slain, and the Space Marine Legions were broken up into smaller chapters of Astartes following the 2nd Founding ensued by Roboute Guilliman, the Primarch of the Ultramarines. Each Chapter was to number only around 1000 Space Marines, though this rule is sometimes not applied to chapters of Space Marines, such as the Black Templars who are said to number around 5000.

Ummm... You didn't say what-

I was getting to that... Now, the role of a Chaplain originated from the Word Bearers from before they betrayed the Emperor, though their original role was to keep the Legions' Librarians in line and maintain the spiritual well-being of their Battle-Brothers. The contemporary role of a Chaplain is not quite the same in all aspects. We're still charged as spiritual and battle leaders, though our association with the Librarians in our respective chapters is not quite as much as it used to be. This is no different than with the Blood Ravens, the Chapter I myself hail from.

You said that the Space Marine chapters descended from the original Legions, right? Who are the Blood Ravens from?

That is a question I cannot answer, because I do not know the answer to it. We Blood Ravens, unfortunately, have lost all record of the legion we hailed from, and our Primarch. However, this does not shake our loyalty to the Emperor, nor does it hinder us from our duties. We do, however, know when our Chapter was founded. During M36, the Blood Ravens Space Marine Chapter was founded, and since our founding, and we have served the Emperor of Mankind faithfully for five thousand years.

And you also said you were the Chaplain of the... second company, I believe you said?

Yes. I, Carolus Vhemias, am the Chaplain of the Blood Ravens' 2nd company, and have held this position for 125 standard Terran years.

"Wow... that's... wow..." Ruby said, astonished by what she'd just heard. She could easily tell he'd grazed over many of the details, that much was obvious... though part of her was glad he did, for she had a feeling she'd be there all night were he to go in depth...

"I take it this has sated your curiosity, Rose?" the marine questioned, to which the girl gave a swift nod.

"Good. Now, Leave." he stated simply, but was somewhat surprised when she spoke up again...

"A-actually... t-there's something I-I'd like to ask o-of y-you..."

"Only the brave or the foolish do not leave when a Space Marines demands they leave. Which are you?" the Marine tested, turning around and finally facing the girl. His blazing eyes bore into hers, making her feel tiny against him. Though, unlike every other time, despite shaking like a leaf, this time she stood her ground and dared to look him in the eyes...

Smack!

Ruby was sent reeling across the room, and smacked against a pillar adjacent to where she stood. She'd barely caught herself, and just barely raised her aura in time to take the blow. She stood, though on weak legs. Despite having raised her aura in time, it still hurt like a bitch and and opened up a gash along her cheek. Not to mention her aura was now so easily shattered. Looking back up at the Space Marine, who now stood mere inches from her, she once again looked him in the eyes...

"I see..." he said, "I have my answer, now... Speak your request, I might consider it."

Collecting her thoughts once more she took a moment to breathe deeply, as though she'd passed some great test. Continuing to meet the gaze of the Space Marine, she spoke.

"You said you're a leader, you've led the charge into war for a century... You must have great leadership experience... I'd like to learn from you. Not just to be a better leader but to become a greater warrior. When I saw you, part of me froze... I knew actual fear for the first time... I don't want to freeze like that a second time." She spoke boldly, never breaking eye contact with the Astartes before her.

"I see... it is strength you seek? You wish to become more powerful?" He stood still for a moment, merely waiting for a response. He got what he desired as she firmly nodded her head to him. "And you realize exactly what you're getting yourself into, here?" Once again, he received his reply in the form of a nod. "I can grant what you seek... but why should I? Noble your reasons to fight may be, it is hardly enough alone for me to consider taking you, a mere mortal, under my wing."

"What more is there? You yourself said my reasons to fight are noble, and-"

"A test, if you will, shall prove your worth to me. Bring me evidence of strength you already have, and I shall... humor, your request." Carolus said with a sardonic tone in his voice. Carefully, Ruby considered his offer with some hope. She could prove her strength if she were given a target... but what target could she bring low that would impress a Space Marine such as himself?

With a hopeless sigh, she looked around the room for a moment, as if trying to find an answer from the walls. However, as the walls could not speak they would not provide her an answer. Looking back up to the Space Marine in front of her, she supposed daring once more might not be the worst idea...

"You want me to find a target and bring it down, right? Just give me a target, I'll tear it up!" She beamed up at him. The cold, green stare that met her she could only be certain was, in a way, mocking her. Yet she didn't dare back down, not now.

"I suppose your enthusiasm counts for something... however pointless. You're a bold one, Rose, to speak as you do to one such as I. But, I suppose it is of no consequence to me to send you the location of a beast with which to prove your strength against..."

"Give me a target! I'll prove to you I have strength!"

Smack!

Ruby clenched her jaw as she fell to the floor. She coughed up blood as she quickly pulled herself back up to a standing position to look him dead in the eyes once more. Having braced herself for the blow she knew was coming, she was able to mitigate some of the damage, though her left cheek was now bleeding more profusely. The Chaplain returned her gaze, a look of wonder behind his lenses.

"Hmmm... Yes, this will do... in Minstrel, there is a beast of Grimm I have read about. A creature so dastardly that in a thousand years no man has ever been able to fell it... you shall bring low this beast, or you will die trying. I will arrange your transport, and you will be provided proper preservation equipment. You will bring me this creature's head, or your corpse will lie still there as another of the thousands that have tried before you. You have until Sunday night to kill this beast, you will meet that time frame, else we have nothing to say to each other afterwards. You understand this?" Carolus said, his voice sounding much less harsh than it had before. With a quick nod, Ruby turned about and headed towards the landing pads.

With the girl out of his hair, Carolus returned to his desk before bringing up Beacon's aerial transport. He honestly doubted that she'd actually return within the time frame, or at all, for that matter. Though, he supposed he could not fault her for wishing to prove her value and place there. It was, after all, a very human-like thing to do... however fickle their tendencies may be in nature.

This line of though earned a small chuckle out of him, having momentarily forgotten that he too was human, even if only to an extent. It was an easy thing not to consider, he thought. Having been a Space Marine since the tender age of 15, it was all too easy, he found, to forget his own mortality had once been a thing. Nevertheless, the mission the girl was about to embark upon was easily a suicide mission, but a suicide mission she'd asked for... if she returned, he supposed he could honor her request.

After another small call, he'd been informed that the girl, Ruby, had been given all the necessary equipment for preserving the beast's head, should she manage to kill it. To be fair, he did feel somewhat bad for the girl, being so desperate to prove herself that she was willing to risk her own life if only for a chance to train in a way that would yet again endanger her life... but such were the ways of warriors and soldiers, he knew. She'd not be the first to die chasing a dream, and she'd certainly not be the last.

Shaking such thoughts from his head, he returned his gaze to the window, looking upon the shattered moon so mesmerizing above...

It wasn't an hour after six that his presence had been requested once more at the tower. It was something he'd known would happen. Several members of this organization he'd be meeting, even the supposed uncle of the girl he'd sent to fell the beast. It would be a conversation he'd have little interest indulging himself in, though he knew he'd have little choice in the matter, considering the details of the mission were already popping up all over his feed. Nevertheless, he'd been informed of this "Qrow" figure by the information already provided to him. A veteran huntsman, adept with a scythe, sword, and reportedly a shotgun too, with the semblance of bad luck, however that did work, to boot. A skilled fighter, perhaps, for a mortal. Certainly better suited for the missions he's sent on than Carolus himself would have been. It was of no matter, he thought as the elevator climbed up the tower at a snail's pace.

It had taken longer than he would have liked, reaching the top of the tower that is. Immediately upon the doors opening he'd noticed the... variety, of figures in the room. Despite some only being present as a hologram, he could easily tell that they all had some modicum of training and just as much if not more combat experience. The dusty old Qrow silently glared daggers at him as he strode into the room, while a man in a white military uniform present only as a hologram, seemed to only raise his eyebrows slightly. Various other faces were seen and recognized, present in the room with them whether in person or otherwise. The headmasters of other academies, their seconds in command, and individual agents and Glynda were all present. After a small delay, Ozpin turned his gaze to the Space Marine before him, smiling at the sight that he'd already gotten comfortably settled in, to an extent at least.

"Ah, so our esteemed guest, Chaplain Vhemias, has arrived. Everyone, this man, no, Space Marine, is from the Imperium of Man, the very dominion we all know so little of. Lord Vhemias, have you-" the headmaster spoke, before being rudely cut off by one of his agents...

"Okay, there's a really damn good reason I ain't piss drunk right now, and before whatever ass kissing begins, I'll be damned if I don't jump on it!" The veteran, Qrow, interrupted. "I wanna know why the hell this so called, "Space Marine" send my niece on a suicide mission to kill the Manreaper!"

Carolus merely turned his gaze to the man, whom did not flinch under his harsh gaze, and began looking the man up and down. He already knew all relevant information about him, merely wanting to make personal observations for a moment before responding.

"Your niece, Ruby Rose, as I recall, did not unwillingly go on this mission. She practically pleaded for it, the opportunity to prove her strength to me. IF she manages to slay the beast, I'll honor her request... but as stated, she must prove her strength to me, first." he stated matter-of-fact-ly, earning a further narrowed glare from the huntsman.

"Oh really? And what the hell would she want from YOU?" Qrow growled, daring to step closer to him...

"Mr. Branwen, take a step back! I should remind you that even if everyone here were physically present, we would not win if we were so bold as to attack our own esteemed guest!" snapped the ever stern Glynda Goodwitch. Carolus merely nodded at her, before returning his gaze to the uncle of the girl he'd sent out...

"Ignoring your tone, your niece pleaded to be trained by me in the ways of being a Chaplain. The selection of this target was not random, I assure you, as it will not only allow her to prove her strength, if she succeeds, she'll have removed a rather painful thorn from your side, no?" In response, the dusty old crow could only growl, before taking a step back. The reasoning behind his targeting was sound... but they still knew it was most likely a suicide mission...

"Even so, sending her after such a target... I can't quite fully agree with your reasoning, lord Vhemias." Spoke Ozpin, before Carolus then turned his gaze to him.

"It would not be an impressive target if it was something you were certain she could kill, would it? No. She, like all warriors before her, and all that will come after, will be staring straight into the maws of death. Whether she emerges triumphant or falls before this beast, we will know in due time. Now, Headmaster, I believe you were asking me of something?" the Space Marine stated plainly, dropping his conversation with Branwen in favor of continuing the previous line of thought.

"Yes... have you settled in well?" The headmaster asked somewhat casually.

"As well as one night would permit. The room provided is spacious, but will need some obvious remodeling and redecorating... however, that being said, before you ask, I've already gotten the lay of the land, so to speak. Anything of any importance in this facility I'm already familiar with, at least of it's location."

"Excellent. Now, If there isn't anything else needed to be said before we start, speak now, or hold your peace." He stated simple. Nobody spoke, knowing well that it would be promptly ignored by the member there of the highest seniority.

"Very good. Now, let us get onto the topic at hand..."

Carolus had only listened with half an ear during the meeting. Mostly everything discussed were in preparations of the up-coming "Vytal Festival," as they'd dubbed it. He could honestly care less about it, but as it seemed to be such a major event, he supposed at least ensuring the safety of civilians during the event was important. Come the conclusion of the meeting, he'd made his way down to the training rooms, curious as to the styles of battling he'd find being used there...

The first sight he was greeted to was the sight of the blonde girl from last night flying across the room and slamming her fist into the face of some boy with a mace that he could not bring himself to feel sorry for. A redhead, cackling like a maniac, swung a warhammer around aggressively at all those unfortunate enough to be her training partners. A blonde knight and another redhead with armor and weapons akin to that of a Spartan's practiced basic sword and shield techniques, though it was painfully obvious who there was the better of the two. The girl in white, Weiss, he recalled, practiced her dueling techniques with another student using a sort of halberd. A boy in green, the odd one out, was sleeping in a chair.

As he continued to stride forth into the room, combat gradually ceased around him. He paid it no mind, only continuing to move until he found himself in the center of the room, and everything seemed to stop around him. He cracked a slight grin under his mask, and looked back upon all the warriors present in the room. There were at least nineteen, counting the boy in green, whom had woken up to see what exactly was going on. It would seem that with just but a few steps, he'd become the star of the show, and it wasn't in his nature to show why he was just that...

"Well, warriors? Are you just going to stand there, gawking, or will you show me a true fight?!. Come! Come do battle with me like a warrior of old and show me you're worth something, Mortals!" Carolus boomed, immediately being met with the charge of eight warriors. He knew these ones, teams JNPR and CRDL, and he showed no hesitation returning their charge.

His speed, far superior to theirs, let him close the gap in an instant. Swinging Worldsplitter around in a low, horizontal arc, he easily caught Lie Ren and Russel Thrush between their ribs, sweeping them aside easily, smashing their auras and snapping ribs as they were flung aside. Ducking low, he rammed forward, catching Pyrrha Nikos in her abdomen and throwing her over his shoulder before spinning about and meeting the oncoming warhammer with his Crozius, flinging the former weapon out of the Valkyrie's hands before shoving Deathsong against her chest and firing. The bolts blasted against her chest, flinging her back, demolishing her aura and shattering a rib or two of hers in the process. Being in Terminator Armor, he was easily granted 360 degrees of vision (I know that sounds like a stretch, but look at the lore, seriously, don't know if that's been edited or not since last I read, but Terminator Armor grants that), allowing him to see the blonde girl, Yang, blasting full speed towards him. On the other hand, in front of him, the boy with the mace had since brandished it in both hands, and was swinging it in a very wide arc... 'Oh, this is just too good!' Carolus thought, as instead of meeting them head on, he simply opted to teleport away, letting the blonde girl fly headlong into the boy's mace. The collision of the two objects flying at each other at such a great speed proved too much for either to withstand, with the mace shattering upon impact, the boy being flung onto his back, and the girl sent reeling back into Blake with enough force to severely damage the latter's aura, while her own was reduced to nothing from the brutal impact. The boy, Cardin Winchester, skid to a stop right at Carolus's feet, and he grinned in satisfaction as he turned around and loosed sixteen shots, each finding their mark in a target still charging at him. Three fell to the Storm Bolter's song, as Cardin could barely manage a scream when Carolud brought his foot down upon his chest, quick enough to shatter the boy's aura and make an indent the shape of the hapless boy in the floor.

With all of CRDL out of the picture and JNPR reduced by half, that only left Weiss, Blake, CFVY, Nikos, Arc, and team SGTA (which unsurprisingly enough was led by some guy in a karate gig named "Segata Sanshiro"). Blake was shooting at him from a distance, which really hadn't done a thing to him. Though, to their credit, he was somewhat annoyed by the constant pinging noises made by Coco's minigun as it ricocheted off his armor harmlessly. Jaune and Pyrrha were trying to be sneaky, and he did not appreciate that, so he did the only logical thing he knew to do...

"Go Away." Carolus droned in a bored tone, spinning about too quickly for them to follow and kicking the already damaged Pyrrha Nikos in the face, knocking her away, before dropping the head of Worldsplitter down upon Jaune, who, interestingly enough, withstood the blow... well, stayed conscious through it, at least. Turning his attention away, he moved to face the incoming gunfire... to suddenly feel slightly stuck in place. looking down, he saw his legs, up to midway up his thigh, at least, were totally encased in ice. Scoffing at the pathetic attempt of immobilization, he easily broke free of the ice, simple walking through it, the servos in his armor assisting in breaking through, despite him not needing it. Teleporting up behind them, he swung his Crozius low, smashing Weiss aside before pivoting about and blasting the big man with a greatsword in the face with a flurry of bolts. A blind faunas swiftly closed the gap with him to try to slash at him with the blades mounted on his wrists, though he could only laugh at the notion. Clipping both his weapons to his belt, he swung his arm out, catching the poor boy, Fox, by the throat, before heaving him up, and savagely slamming his fist into the boy's face, shattering his aura and bloodying his nose, before casting the unconscious boy aside like a broken doll and moving onto the next faunas. Blake was too slow to activate her semblance to take the hit for her as she'd within an instant from Fox getting cast aside, found a knee driven into her face, knocking her out cold. The annoying minigun was still pinging off his armor, the bunny Faunas, Velvet, he chalked up to being downright useless, merely taking pictures as she would, and team SGTA was... nowhere to be found. looking around, he merely saw a note left by their leader. Picking it up, he read the contents of the note...

"Off to fight Club Zombies again. Wish us luck.
Sincerely, Segata Sanshiro"

Dropping the note, he merely rolled his eyes before breaking into a sprint towards Coco. It took only a second to close the distance, laughing internally as he'd made a mockery of these warriors so far. Swiftly, he sent his beloved mace sailing towards Coco...

CLANG!

Carolus's attack was forced back, and he swiftly looked to his right to see the bunny girl suspended in mid air, in a sort of holographic version of his own armor using such weapons as well. Spinning Worldsplitter in one hand, he rushed towards the bunny girl and swung, her barely, just barely, catching his attack with her own holographic version of his Crozius. Thinking fast, he sidestepped the next attack of hers, opting to punch her face once her uppercut had passed over his head before spinning about and slamming his mace into the side of Coco's head, knocking her away, unconscious. Quickly looking back to his target, the bunny girl, he spun around, deftly avoiding another uppercut, before kicking her in the chest to stagger her, and throwing himself forward, slamming his own Crozius into the girl's face. Velvet's aura was reduced to only about 12%, which was leagues better than any of the other opponents thus far.

Staggering back to her feet, her armor gone, Velvet swiftly retreated to help her fallen comrades back up, as Carolus merely chuckled under his mask...

"You all did battle with a Space Marine, one of 175 years of experience in war, with terminator honors and chaplaincy to boot. You should all be so proud that you lasted this long, even it it was under a minute. Now, get yourselves patched up, a warrior who cannot fight is useless on the fields of battle. See to it that you can fight again by this afternoon." Carolus spoke plainly, before once more taking his leave...

The cafetorium was good enough, serving actual food to the warriors of Beacon as opposed to the junk most schools would normally dish out for their students. He'd sat at a table, unknowingly, in Ruby's usual spot, as the rest of the students began to file in for lunch. Yang took a seat next to him, too exhausted to realize she had, only noticing when Weiss had pointed it out. They talked freely, with Carolus himself ignoring almost all they said as it mattered so little to him. He'd almost finished his food when Yang had finally worked up the courage to seek his attention...

"Uhh... Lord Carolus?"

"Speak, Xiao Long. I might hear your request." He spoke, his deep voice still resounding powerfully despite the lack of the metallic tang to his voice.

"Well... I was wondering if you'd seen Ruby... She went to your chambers last night and never came back. We haven't seen her at all, today..."

"Ah, so the lack of her presence worries you? Well, I suppose it's no secret. Your sister has embarked upon a journey, to slay the Minstrali Manreaper to prove her strength." he stated casually, causing everyone at the table to either spit out their drinks or momentarily choke on their food...

"SHE'S DOING WHAT?!." Everyone of RWBY and JNPR screamed at him. they all looked ready to kill, but he simply halted them all with the raise of his hand...

"I needn't repeat myself. She's undertaking this journey because she wants to. Should she slay the beast, She'll have proven her strength to me, and I'll honor our bargain... though, if she falls, there'll be little way to honour that bargain, as she herself is needed for it. Do know that this trial is being taken under her own choice, and she had all the capacity to not take it." He said, silencing all the teens around him. They knew well that, despite most of them only having been friends with her a week, that if Ruby had wanted to embark upon this journey given the choice, there was little any of them could do to stop her. Yang sighed in defeat before looking back down at her food...

"She could have at least had us go with her... facing it alone is..."

"All but suicidal, I know. But it wouldn't be a trial if she didn't face something everyone knew without a doubt she'd triumph over. No, she faces a deck stacked completely against her, but should she come out on top, she'll be stronger for it, will she not?" He stated, calming the girl somewhat. She didn't respond, nobody did, merely going back to their food to eat the rest of it. Not a word was spoken for the remainder of the time they were all together. Not even one.

Night had fallen and Carolus had since retreated once more to his room. He'd ordered some redecorating and remodeling that morning, and was pleased to see that they'd already finished his requsition. Now he sat at his desk, once more facing the window, letting the moon's pale glow rest upon the front of his frame, illuminating his black armor in it's light. It was peaceful, something he knew was just so rare now, so he relished it while he could. The stars in the skies aligned in no way he could recognize, making it impossible for him to pin down where exactly in the galaxy he was at that very moment. Sighing, he knew the chances of him seeing his brothers again come the next millennia were so slim, but he'd be damned if that'd stop him from trying to reach them.

It was only fifty minutes past midnight when the request to enter had arrived. pressing the button, he was instantly greeted with a familiar smell, and the sound of something being dragged across the carpet...

"So, You've already returned, have you? You have not come empty handed, have you?" He said calmly...

Thump!

A massive head was thrown forward, rolling to a stop just before his desk. Pivoting around to see what it was, Carolus raised his eyebrows in surprise. Here lied the head of the Minstrali Manreaper, and behind it stood a little girl, her clothes and cloak tattered and torn, blood caked on whatever remnants of what she once wore hugging her frame loosely. Fresh scar tissue running down her face, from the top of her forehead, around her right eye and down to the back of her jaw. Blood was splattered across her face, her own blood... but nevertheless, she stood here, triumphant...

Removing his mask, he looked her dead in the eyes, honest surprise held in his. It only took a moment for him t crack a slight grim, before walking past her, and gesturing her to follow...

"Come, Apprentice. It is time to get you properly equipped and trained."