Chapter 7: Life Force

1 Year Later…

Jaune held tightly onto the rail near him to stabilize himself. This was something new, flying in ships. His stomach was doing flips, attempting to hurl the content of his stomach, but he forced this nausea down. Those lessons in bodily control were useful in helping him suppress the urge to let loose.

It was a surprise to be flying, but Jaune remained calm about it. For one thing, the ship was on its way into the wilds, the place where the Grimm roamed, and in large numbers. This was a place where one could never find civilization within many miles.

And today, Jaune was about to be dropped on in the dead center, or as close to the dead center of the wilds as possible.

Alone.

Jaune didn't show it, but he was positively bristling with fear, or maybe a more appropriate expression was that he was negatively bristling with fear. This day was sure to come, the boy knew, but just the same, this was a major milestone in his training. If he could survive out here, then no doubt there would be more missions outside of base.

The mission details had been explained before boarding the ship. He would be dropped off in the wilds and he would have to navigate his way back to one of four extraction points. Which one he chose was up to him, but each one was at several days travel assuming resistance was light. If Grimm were in heavy resistance, than it could take up to a week.

Of course three years spent in a simulator meant to prepare him for fighting Grimm of all nature should be enough to quell his fears, but in truth, Jaune felt that as long as they weren't real, he wasn't really going to make the fear go away.

But now, this mission provided him with an opportunity to do so, granted that he survived to return back to the base.

Jaune shook his head. He would make it out of this alive, and he would do General Ironwood and Lieutenant Jennings proud. A lot a was riding on his shoulders. Project Sapphire's success depended on his performance.

"Approaching landing zone," the pilot said. "ETA, twenty seconds."

Jaune winked an acknowledgement to the pilot, and opened the side door, feeling the rushing wind all around him.

His blue eyes took in the area around him. It was a dark place, with no buildings or ruins and this particular part of the wilds featured many environments. In no way was this area inviting or comforting in the least. Even the trees looked menacing. This was definitely Grimm territory.

"Jump on my mark," the pilot announced.

"Acknowledged," Jaune readied himself.

Three.

Two.

One.

"Mark!"

Jaune leaped head-first, keeping his body in a straight line, all the while focusing on the ever-approaching ground. He was fortunate enough that his landing would be on flat area, otherwise this would be more difficult to do.

A thousand meters to go. He kept his eyes trained on his approximate landing position, all the while mentally ticking off the seconds to touchdown.

Five hundred meters to go.

Jaune called upon his aura, the white glow surrounding his body. The energy was something that he had grown in his continued use of it. He was more refined in its uses now.

Two hundred fifty meters to go.

He took a deep breath and then held it. The ground was very close now; if he didn't do this right, the landing would be very painful.

Jaune tucked his body and landed with a loud thud, his aura causing a slight energy wave that partially caved in the ground around him. Jaune looked around at his surroundings.

There was nothing around.

He let out the breath that he was holding, standing up and checking himself for any injuries that he may have sustained. There were none.

Now the first thing to do was to find out where exactly he would be going, not an easy task when he didn't have any sort of navigational tools to use. To make sure, Jaune grabbed his scroll and checked to see if he had any sort of connection, and he didn't.

So he was effectively left to his own devices.

Jaune made sure that he still had everything he brought with him. Crocea Mors was strapped to his back, he had a belt with a hunting knife, a medium-sized water canteen, a piece of sharp flint, and some basic medical supplies. Really, the basics that he'd need for survival.

Jaune had already eaten his fill and drank enough water to last for a couple more hours, and since his stomach was still recovering from the ride here, he wasn't in any mood to eat or drink anything.

He needed to know which way was north and south first. The only clues that he was given was that the extraction points were located roughly north, south, east, and west, roughly being the key word. Finding the general compass directions would only suffice as a start, but he'd need to be on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary as well.

So now it was time to find out which was were the compass directions.

Looking around, Jaune found a stick and a few small rocks, Deciding an area that was flat and had sufficient sunlight, he forcefully shoved the stick into the ground, keeping it as straight as possible. When he saw the shadow the stick made, he marked the tip with a rock.

Now he had to wait a bit, fifteen minutes at most. Because it was early morning, the shadow that was cast pointed likely towards the west, but Jaune wasn't taking chances. If he messed this one up, he'd be wandering for more time than he needed. That, coupled with Grimm wasn't something he cared to entertain.

Keeping an eye on the moving shadow, Jaune got out his scroll and pulled out some earbuds contained in one of his pouches. He'd probably be scolded for bringing it, but right now, there were no enemies around, and he had time. And more and more he found himself less intimidated by his trainer's words. He followed orders out of respect, not fear.

Over the past year since receiving the guitar, Jaune had invested many hours after training and educational lessons into it. True to his word, whenever Jaune used his scroll online, it was only for music, and nothing else that was not related to that.

Jaune had begun to develop an understanding of the different genres that people listened too. For the most part, if it appealed to him, he'd put it in his personal music library. Of course there were some favorites he had, but most of his music was suited to a specific atmosphere or mood. Being out here had him listening to more heavy sounds.

And of course Jaune's skill with the guitar had grown as well as his skills in combat. It was the only normal thing he knew how to do, but then again, he wasn't really normal anymore. He stopped being normal when he first came here.

Jaune checked his watch. Seeing that it was time, he placed the second stone, marking an approximate 90-degree angle. Another few minutes of wait.

Jaune's memories of his life with his family had faded away into only the awareness of having a blood family alive somewhere in Remnant. Now he couldn't even remember them in the slightest. Not voices, not looks, not personalities, nothing. Seven sisters, two parents, that's what he knew, and he didn't dig too deeply into it. They were part of a life he was no longer a part of. He had a duty here, and could never return.

Still, it didn't stop him from wondering what they were doing now and if they cared enough to look for him, not that it mattered if they did. They'd never be able to find him, not as long as General Ironwood made it so.

Jaune's mind registered another song change, this time to something more poppy, so Jaune sifted through his songs and got out something more heavy.

Seeing the shadow aligning with his first rock mark, Jaune placed the final stone and looked at his work.

If this was correct, then north was to his left and south was to his right. So he was facing towards east and west was behind him.

With this newfound knowledge, Jaune recalled what he could of the landscape from the air ride.

There were several mountains toward the north. Going that way would ensure less Grimm but more dangerous ones likely hidden in the mountains. Nevermores liked to make their nests in the mountains in addition to the lesser-seen and very dangerous Machaera, a tiger-like Grimm with distinct fangs.

The east feature more forest and therefore couldn't house anything larger than an Ursa, so not an extremely dangerous trek, but certain one bound to have vast numbers in his path. The forest would also provide excellent cover and environmental advantages. His relatively small size would be of use.

Going south probably would be the most dangerous. He had spotted fields nearby, which meant even though it was the shortest route, it was infested with Goliaths, the most dangerous Grimm to encounter. If Jaune dared to go there, it would be the run of his life.

And the west was a more dry region. The Grimm would be less prominent, but the climate would be more intense. Going there meant preparing himself with enough food and water to last him at least several days.

Jaune rolled each option in his head. Each presented him with a danger, nothing he wasn't capable of accomplishing, but he had to consider which pathway would give him a greater chance.

The mountain terrains were less touched upon in his simulations, and the few that he did experience hadn't fully ingrained into his mind. So going there would provide him with more experience in said terrain.

The forest was a place Jaune knew like the back of his hand. Going there would be less trouble for him, even if the Grimm were more numerous. However, he wouldn't really be gaining any new tricks, knowledge, or experience.

Flat terrain was rarely touched upon in simulations. And facing Goliaths was something only talked about, but never done in practice. Jaune had an idea of how to deal with Goliaths, but he was in no way capable of killing one let alone a herd. He wasn't strong enough and he didn't process the proper weaponry.

And the more arid and dry region was unpredictable. King Taijitu were likely dotting that area, and they were very sly. And preparing for that trip would take a long time considering that he couldn't count on animals and water in that region.

Go north? Leaning towards yes.

Go east? A definite yes.

Go south? Likely no.

Go west? Not worth the effort.

Jaune sighed as he decided to trek through the forest. He needed to be certain that he actually could fight the Grimm he did know how to fight. Once he knew how to deal with the real thing, braving new challenges would be more easy to do.

Putting his scroll away and turning it off, Jaune made sure he hadn't lost anything before turning east and began to take off in jog.

(X)(X)(X)(X)

For the most part, the trek had been straightforward. Stay east, check every hour or so if he was still heading in the right direction, kill Grimm in the way, evade groups of Grimm to save time, and stay clear of anything suspicious.

To his great relief, the Beowolves and Ursai that had attacked him were very much as they were in the training simulators. Still, he treaded on the side of caution, only getting into close quarters if he had a killing strike. He was confident certainly, but Jaune wasn't arrogant.

One thing that did bring a huge comfort was that somehow Grimm were no longer frightening to him. Maybe it was because he'd gotten use to be on alert for countless hours that it was instinct to expect an ambush rather than a trigger of fear. Or maybe it was the fact that he knew now that all of his training was actually useful in killing Grimm and he just needed confirmation. Whatever the case, Jaune was satisfied.

Jaune's sharp ears sensed something behind him and he quickly backtracked. Another Ursa roared and tried to take him down. Jaune leaped to a tree and used his backwards momentum to leap over and make a clean slice at the top of its neck. The head hung loosely from the body before the Grimm collapsed to the ground.

Jaune remained still for a few seconds, and then sheathed Crocea Mors. Wiping off a bit of blood that had gotten onto his attire, he was about to resume his trek, but then noticing that the shadows around him were more dim than earlier. It had seemed like only fifteen minutes ago; how long had he been trekking through the woods?

It was getting dark and he'd have to set up camp soon. He wasn't a Faunus, though what he would give to have night vision like most Faunus did. It would certainly be cutting off precious hours of time. However, his body argued for food and water and rest. There was no use trying to argue otherwise.

So Jaune began to look for a suitable place to hunker down for the night. Preferably, he needed to find a place where he could light a fire and not draw much attention from the Grimm with a signal flare and a burning smoke column lighting him up in the night.

Jaune would ponder this further when he found what appeared to be a cliff up ahead. An idea came to mind as he quickened his pace. If he was to look for a suitable shelter, a cliff could house any alcoves or caves. It would preferable to being outside, and exposed on all sides to attack as well as to the elements.

Jaune brought out Crocea Mors and hacked and slashed at a couple of tree branches in his way. It felt a little degrading to be using a weapon that had seen the Great War nearly eighty years ago as a branch cutter.

Despite being able to wield the blade very deftly, Jaune couldn't help but feel that somehow the weapon wasn't truly his own. It wasn't like he crafted the blade with his own hands. It was an heirloom from his family, and it wasn't even given to him. It simply was stolen when he was kidnapped.

I wasn't stolen, Jaune scolded. I was enlisted. And Crocea Mors wasn't stolen; it was re-appropriated.

Deciding to shut down the thought in his head before he began to look to deeply into it, Jaune began to hack more growth in his way. He only did so when it became very thickly dense. The last thing he needed to do was leave an obvious trail behind him for anything to get him, Grimm or otherwise.

The sound of something nearby caused Jaune to turn his head. Thinking quickly, Jaune took cover behind a tree, his blade ready to kill whatever was there if need be.

Deciding not to take chances, he very carefully positioned the flat of his blade to reflect where he needed to see. A small doe grazed nearby, eating grass. Jaune's breath hitched ever so slightly.

There was no way he was going to be able to carry it alone, but perhaps he could hide it somewhere nearby for the night and come back for it later?

Jaune activated his aura and waiting patiently for the doe to turn its back to him. When it did, with inhuman speed, the boy launched forward and very cleanly sliced its throat. It didn't even make a sound as it collapsed.

Jaune began to turn around to look down at his handiwork. It was a clean and efficient kill, no suffering, a good thing. But there was also a feeling of loss, not personal loss, but some sort of loss. It was strange, but the blond shrugged off the trivial feeling.

Jaune retrieved his hunting knife and began to work at skinning and cutting out the parts that he would eat. Inevitably, his arms and hands were covered in blood. He needed to wash this off at a stream whenever possible, otherwise it was going to smell bad later.

The carcass would undoubtedly attract animals or Grimm. He needed to conceal it, not an easy thing when he had to come up with the means to do it.

And the only thing that he could even really think of was using a tree and some leaves, maybe a couple of rocks as well. At the very least, it wouldn't be obvious.

Grunting with exertion, and with a bit of help with aura, Jaune quickly began to haul his kill to a sizable tree. Deciding it would serve as adequate partial cover, Jaune searched for a pile of leaves and a few rocks.

This would not do much to hide the smell, but Jaune wanted to do something rather than nothing. At the very least, he would temporarily throw off a pursuer.

Jaune clutched the raw meat he cut out and quickly set out again, He'd heard the sound of rushing water. It was just a little bit north it sounded like. He could also refill his almost-empty canteen of water.

As soon as he found the water, he almost tripped on a loose tree root trying to run at it. It was like finding the source of life itself for Jaune. Countless hours of intense exercises had turned water into arguably the most important form of sustenance in Jaune's mind. Even food sometimes couldn't hold a candle light.

But before he could drink it, Jaune quickly pulled up his scroll and activated one of its programs. It began to shine a beam of neutral white light upon a portion of the running water. After ten seconds of scanning, the scanner lights shined a bright green. It was safe to drink.

Jaune carefully set down the meat and splashed water on his face and washed himself off a bit. It was cold water, but he liked it that way it, and the shivers were easy enough to ignore outright. He should be thankful for water in the first place.

Jaune then drank the last of his canteen water before refilling it, savoring the feel of the cold metal letting him know he had water. He then set out to clean up what he was going to cook. Once he did so, he carefully attached the raw meat to his belt, then set out once again.

By the time he had reached the cliff, the sunset was reaching its end, orange light shining dimly. Jaune took a deep breath, looking at what he had to work with. And with a thought of confidence, he began to climb.

Thankfully, it wasn't a steep cliff, and there were more than enough to grab onto. Of course Jaune began to test himself by seeing just how far he could reach or how far his muscles could allow him to jump from one hold to another. If he weren't carrying so much with him, he might be able to do more, but he wasn't about to complain. Jennings had put him through worse things.

Jaune felt the rocks slightly scrape against his hands, arms, and legs, but ignored the minor pain and pressed on. His aura would automatically heal him, and still not even take a dent. He was more concerned about saving his aura if he needed to fight in the middle of the night.

Jaune reached up, and felt a flat area, so he pulled himself up, and then surveyed the area around him.

Although he wasn't at the highest spot of the cliff, he definitely was high enough to see a bit of the journey he'd been on. The forest top was visible for a bit of a distance.

And to top it off, Jaune looked a bit shocked to find what appeared to be an alcove nearby the mini rock platform.

But just to be sure, Jaune drew his blade again, and stalked over to cave. If there was a Grimm awake, it wouldn't know what hit it.

Jaune inched closer, his eyes and his ears trained on the shadowy corner. Stopping, Jaune purposefully scratched the tip of his blade against the rock floor.

And then some bats flew out. Jaune kneeled down to let them pass by him. Watching the little critters fly away.

There was no Grim; Jaune put down his sword.

Time to set up camp.

Setting down his kill, Jaune set out to collect just a few things. A few trips down to the ground, a few improvised pathways, and a bit of cursing later, Jaune gathered enough firewood to last him for the night, and a good thing too; it was pitch-black out right now.

Lighting the fire took a little longer than he liked, having to strike the flint against his hunting knife ten times. That was a first time that he didn't get it right the second time.

The boy sat down and stared into the fire as it grew. It was a long day, and he was beginning to feel the fatigue setting in. He was more exhausted than he thought. He must've been so dead intent on making good time that he didn't exactly know how fast he marched through the woods.

When a sizable fire had lit itself, Jaune began to put his kill on a makeshift cooking spit. He also got out some berries that he found on a bush. To Jaune, it was delicious despite a sour taste. It was better than what was back at base by a long shot. That food had little to no taste.

With the quiet moment to himself, the only subject of Project Sapphire let his mind begin to wander again.

Three years ago, he wouldn't have been able to make it even a fraction of the distance that he had covered. In three years, he had truly learned a lot. He could wield a sword with deadly force, he could survive out in the wilderness, he could use aura, he could use a firearm even though he didn't use one regularly right now, and he could free-run with a fluidity that was unnatural for his age. And that was just the beginning.

And when he wasn't physically training, he was with Penny, who taught him to use his mind as a weapon as well. It was clear from the start that Jaune was a brilliant tactician and strategist, able to make plans for the long-term, but also adaptable on the fly. The emphasis on a strong mind was conditioned with holographic games of chess, war simulators, and posed battle situations.

For Jaune, games meant there was always a positive and a negative outcome. Whenever someone won, someone lost, simple as that. There was no way to avoid that outcome because ultimately, everybody wanted different things, even if similar. It was a sad truth, but one he'd come to accept. He was after all living proof of that statement.

Jaune had gained so much from this place, certainly more than he would ever get as a normal child with dreams and ambitions, but with little to no opportunity to express them. Here. he had a chance to make a difference, to become what he wanted, even if not exactly as he'd thought it would turn out. Here, he learned how to fight for others, even if at the cost of normality and family.

It had become clear to Jaune that he was different. There were no other children but him being trained. Penny didn't really count as she already had the skills necessary for combat. And when Jaune had questioned Ironwood about this, the man had confirmed what he already had already realized. It was sad in a way for the boy. He'd never be able to know the world that he was going to defend.

But thinking about it, was it worth it? Was one life really in exchange for the possible billions in his care worth it? Was it worth the moral wrong doing?

Absolutely it was.

There was a war on the horizon, and not men, not armies, not huntsman, and not huntresses could stop it. They weren't him, and nobody else would ever be like him, because he would one day have the power to overcome any Grimm, the power to overcome any who'd abuse the powers of aura, and the power to stop any who dared to strike out against the innocent and weak.

Many would scoff at that theory that one man could possible do so much. After all, it was just one person, and one person was not enough to make a difference.

But Jaune didn't believe that one bit.

One person was all it could take to make a difference. Even if he didn't know how or why or when or what, he knew this much: no threat was ever infallible. All things could be beaten back.

And it was better that no one else have to suffer as he did.

Jaune noticed the meat needed to be turned, so he sat up a bit and carefully rolled the spit with the cooking meat.

(X)(X)(X)(X)

In the dark of the night, there were few who dared to venture out in the wilds. Even if the Grimm did have the habits and instincts and desires of a normal animal, it didn't make them less dangerous. In fact, it may as well be suicide to be out alone.

The night was their element, and ambushes were unseen, sudden, and deadly on almost all accounts. If one wasn't prepared adequately, they would surely be killed and there would be no trace left by morning.

And to make matters worse, the wilds were very vast and expansive. One could spend days, weeks, and even months travelling it and still not see all of it. Navigating it was even more difficult as maps were very rough and there were few very clear recognizable landmarks anywhere. And the remaining ruins of cities and towns were slowly disappearing, never to be seen again.

In short, few people went into the wilds. Even huntsman and huntresses, the defenders of the world against Grimm, didn't come out here often. Or at all if they could help it.

But in every group, there's one that is defiant of the norms, even amongst a group of warriors that were not normal at all. There is that one that has a rather dark but interesting way of looking at the world. There is that one that, in a way, takes some joy out of being out in the Grimm wilds.

And after doing so for many years now, braving the wilds was second nature. And surprisingly enough, it was a place of solitude if dong right. The Grimm were numerous, but they could be manipulated easily enough.

So now the question to be asking was who would be doing something like this?

She was elusive, having spent years away from civilization and from the people she called family. Now, she wasn't even sure if that was the right word to call said people anymore.

Family were the people that a person cared for more than anyone in the world and would do anything for them. In a way, she might say she could see herself saying the same thing, but to what extent? How far could she go?

How far would she go?

Her hand subconsciously grabbed onto her weapon, her eyes ever-watchful as she hiked with near-silence through the night. Her dark clothes also masked her presence physically. She was here like many other nights before. She would rest soon, but for now her senses remained tuned to her surroundings as she moved forward.

Very few nights out in the wilds could surprise her, because she was already familiar with Grimm to the point that dispatching them could be seen as more a chore than a threat at times. Only the most powerful and intelligent Grimm were a challenge.

With her senses attuned, she could sense something off. It was the smell of blood, and she turned her head to see an Ursa corpse lying face-down. Approaching it and inspecting the fallen beast, she found a very clean and neat impale mark on its neck. This death was too clean to be anything wild. This was clearly the work of a sword, and a very skilled or talented or lucky one given that there were no other slashes or cuts or damage anywhere. The fight was over before it began.

Another dead Grimm nearby also caught her attention, this one a Beowolf. This one featured a missing paw and a head that was nearly separated from the body, with a pool of blood left over. Again, these were swift and decisive strikes, the work of someone with a sword.

So perhaps not lucky then, she thought.

Her curiosity now piqued, she began to reach out to see if there were any more indications. She had been able to pick up faint traces of aura, not enough to get any sort of concrete information regarding the level of aura or an identity, not that it mattered who it was. This aura was alien anyway, so she had no idea who it was.

Who else would be crazy like her to be out here in the wilds? Who dared to invade into her private sanctuary? It was bound to happen sooner or later that there would be another who could brave dangers like she could. She just wished it was later rather than sooner.

So she continued to follow a very faint aura trail that the user had left behind. Whoever this was clearly did have at least some training in aura use, as the amounts left behind were barely enough for her to keep following. The only other way she could know for certain that she was on the right path was because of the occasional dead Grimm, all slain in the same fashion as the previous ones.

So it was with some effort on her part that she followed this trail until her eyes caught something that stood out in the night.

A bright light somewhere high up.

And then the faint smell of smoke found her as well.

She had found them.

Now I wait and see...

This chapter was written based on my own experiences out in the sticks. I grew up in Maine, so I do know a bit about what I'm talking about. I'm not saying that I'm a real survivor out there, but I do know a few things.

So anyway, this will be a multi-chapter mini-adventure as you guys can probably see at this point. I really am having fun with it, but just the same, I want to make a good story, so what I think is good may not be for my readers. So anyone who catches something real incriminating can hit me up with a PM or review regarding that mistake along with a way to fix it for future reference.

And now for ship hints. The top three as of right now are Pyrrha, Blake, and Yang, not in that order. I'm sure that many of you Arkos fans are trying hard to get me to do it, and in a way, I understand. If you guys have seen the latest episode of RWBY, you know that Arkos fans are fanboying or fangirling over their mushy scene.

Ruby got knocked out of the top three when I said it last chapter in my notes, so I guess you Arkos shippers are really wanting more Arkos. Still, I won't bend even if I like the ship a great deal. Sorry, but that's how I'm rolling. When I close the poll, the most votes will get shipped.

As I've stated in earlier chapters, this poll will be up until chapter 10 or longer if I deem fit. So go vote for you favorite heroine to be paired with Jaune. Reviews asking for a ship will be disregarded. So make sure to vote if you haven't or if you want your voice to be heard.

And on a side note, do you guys know the ship name for Jaune and Yang? For Jaune and Weiss? I know that Jaune and Ruby are Lancaster and that Jaune and Blake are Knightshade, and I've know about Arkos and Nora's Arc from the start of reading RWBY stories. If I got those wrong too, let me know. I feel compelled to know this for future reference.

Anyway, if you guys loved this chapter, leave a review. If you hated it, tell me why and tell me how to make it better. And feedback and ideas are greatly appreciated. Improving is the name of the game.

And on a final note, can anyone take a stab at who Jaune will soon meet?

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and remember, if you have enemies, that's good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life.

Peace out!