It was Saturday morning. The group rode together in Ben's car with heavy metal music playing low as they rumbled along. Desperate for some conversation, Nina piped up from the back seat.

"You really need to update your playlist, Ben."

"Sorry, I've been out of the musical loop while I've been technically dead. Besides, driver always picks the music."

"Do you even have a license Mr. Deadman?" Eve asked.

"Not from Vale, and I'm pretty sure my license from Atlas has expired by now."

"Great…" Eve nervously stroked her seatbelt.

"Relax, I'm the best damned equipment operator and driver in the world!"

Nina laughed. "By whose standards?"

"Mine, mastering prosthetics well enough to drive and operate machinery as well as I could beforehand was no easy task."

Eve rolled her eyes. "I'll have to take your word for it. By the way, we're almost there."

Ben slowed and pulled into an alleyway. "Alright, we're ditching the car and going in on foot."

Nina raised an eyebrow. "Why are we doing that?"

"If this is an ambush, I want to be able to fall back to the car and bug out if need be."

Eve nodded. "That sounds good, we still don't know what we're getting ourselves into."

Ben pulled into a small parking lot and then backed into a spot. Once everyone had bailed out and gathered their gear, he made sure the girls saw him place the keys inside the gas door of the car. They continued on toward their destination while sticking to the alley.

Eve had her Twain del Sole, and over her shirt she was wearing a utility vest that belonged to her father with vairous supplies in the pockets. Nina didn't have a weapon of her own, and was still wearing shorts and a tank top with elbow and knee pads. She also had a small pack with various items that she deemed necessary to bring along.

Ben held a hand up to stop the girls as he peered around the corner of a building. Once he was satisfied that the coast was clear, he turned to them.

"The address he gave us is an open lot across the street. I dunno what the significance of that is. Do either of you know what's in this building here?"

Nina answered. "It's From Dust Till Dawn, a dust and book store."

"Is it open?"

"Yeah, unless the old man that runs the place keeled over from working himself to death."

"Perfect. We need to get some fire and ice dust for Eve before they get here."

Eve went wide eyed. "How the hell are we supposed to do that? I didn't bring enough money to buy ammo!"

He smiled. "I have enough, it's not like I can go on shopping sprees when I'm trying to lay low. You're mom taught you how to use dust, right?"

Eve looked to the ground. "She was able to teach me the motions, but I was never able to practice with live ammo when she was here."

Ben softened. "Alrighty then, we'll get enough to practice with and use during the initiation. Hopefully I can cover any gaps that you have in your training with what I've dabbled in."

Eve was speechless, so Nina took the initiative. "Then let's go, we're still pretty early."

Ben paid the pleasant old man and took the newly acquired dust cartridges to the back to give to Eve. He smiled when he found her pouring over a book about the use of dust in combat. Nina was glancing through a gun magazine with music blasting in her headphones. She removed them when she saw him approaching. Ben set the bag of cartridges down on the table between them.

"Alright ladies, it's about time. Load these up in your pack and stay in here. I'm gonna wait outside for them. If this goes bad, I want you to slip out the back and forget about me. You got that?"

"But…" He held up a hand to silence Nina.

"No buts. I don't want you involved if they try to take me out. I'll get away, I always do, but I couldn't live with myself if either of you got hurt becau…"

Eve silenced Ben with a glare. "Don't you give us that lone wolf crap. We're in this together. We'll watch your back and act as we see fit if necessary. Now get out there."

"Yes ma'am." He chuckled as he turned and walked away. It was nice having someone on his side for once.

Once he walked out the door, Eve looked to Nina, and saw that her hands were trembling. She reached over and placed a reassuring hand on top of them.

"This is what we've been waiting for. Are you ready?"

Nina looked up and Eve could see doubt and fear in her sister's eyes. "I... don't know. I'm not strong like you guys, I don't know how I can help."

Eve smiled warmly. "You don't need to be strong like us, you need to be yourself. Ben's as stubborn as a mule, and I lose my temper easily. That's where you'll shine. You can come up with a strategy faster than anyone alive." She then pounded a fist into her palm. "Together we can all lay the smack down on some candy asses."

Nina couldn't help but laugh, her fear subsiding. "We almost had a moment there, sis. But I'd say you ruined it with candy asses."

"What can I say? I have a way with words."

Eve stowed the dust cartridges and returned her attention to the book before her. Nina did the same with the magazine, but left her headphones off. They both kept Ben in their peripheral vision through the store's main window.

Ben looked at the scroll, it was 6:03. He made sure that he was visible to the girls inside while he checked both directions for their supposed ride. A faint noise brought his attention skyward.

"Hmm, so that's why it's an open lot."

A Bullhead with the Beacon insignia roared into view and brought itself to a halt above the clearing, then it gracefully lowered to ground level. A short, stocky man with grey hair and a huge mustache stepped out and walked toward Ben with a purpose. Once he was close, he loudly greeted Ben.

"Greetings! I'm Professor Port from Beacon Academy, would you happen to be Ben Shields?"

"I would, and I'm not completely deaf. You don't need to shout."

"Ho ho! A sense of humor I see, I like it!"

Ben shook his head. "So that's how it's gonna be."

"I've heard of your family Ben, I look forward to seeing what you're capable of." He looked around. "Say, weren't you supposed to have a team with you? Where might they be?"

Ben grinned and nodded at the professor's chest. "They're around."

Port followed his gaze and saw that there was a red dot on his chest. The man froze, speechless for once.

"Now here's how this is going to go. You're going to stand at attention right there while I go vet your Bullhead and make sure you guys aren't pulling a fast one on us. If everything's kosher, we'll continue. If not… well, you'd better hope everything's kosher."

Ben patted him on the shoulder as he passed on his way to the craft. Once there, he cautiously approached the open door and peered in. After making sure the passenger compartment was empty, he stepped in and opened the pilot's door. He found one pilot who was too busy doing a pre flight check to notice him, so he backed out and quietly closed the door. Satisfied, Ben hopped out of the Bullhead and made his way back to Port, who was nervously waiting for him.

"Please understand, I've had people hunting and trying to kill me for quite a while now. So please excuse me for exercising caution."

"You're quite thorough. Very impressive." Port nervously stated.

Ben waved to the girls and the dot disappeared from Port's chest. Moments later, Eve and Nina emerged from the store and stood beside Ben.

Ben gestured to the girls. "Professor Port, this is my team."

"Hi, I'm Eve Weyhart." She shook his hand.

"Pleased to meet you miss."

"And I'm her sister, Nina." She shook it as well, but left something in it. Once Port saw what it was, his eyes grew wide. Nina winked and the three of them made their way to the Bullhead. The professor held up a laser pointer on a keychain in front of him as they left him behind.

"Excellent! This team should be very interesting to see."

The group climbed aboard the craft and took up positions where there were handles to grab onto. Professor Port finally made his way on board and pounded on the pilot's door.

"Take us to Beacon Cliff!"

The Bullhead began to lift off. Once they were at a travelling altitude, Ben nervously peered out of the window and his grip tightened hard enough to bend the handle that he was holding onto. Eve noticed and inched closer to him.

"Are you afraid of heights?"

Ben jumped, and then settled down. "Heights aren't a problem, I am NOT a fan of flying."

Nina laughed. "That's surprising."

"Dear boy, there's no need to worry. The pilots at Beacon are some of the best in the world!"

Ben stared down the professor. "That makes me feel sooo much better."

Port cleared his throat. "It should, now would you mind easing up on the poor, defenseless handle? You're going to break it off if you keep that up."

"Oh… sure." Ben released it, revealing the imprint of his hand on the bar. He stepped aside and took hold of another one.

"You know, you're going to have to get used to these things. They use Bullheads to drop teams off in hostile environments." Eve teased.

"Doesn't mean I have to like it, just means I'll have to endure."

"Very well put, young man. Endurance is a key feature of a huntsman. Allow me to tell you about how I defeated an Ursa Major with nothing but my bare hands…"

Whether they liked it or not, they listened to the professor's long-winded and farfetched story for the duration of their flight. They were greeted by the sight of Ozpin and a blonde woman when they arrived at the cliffside and filed out. Port stayed in the Bullhead as it lifted off and departed.

Ozpin greeted them first. "Good morning, I take it you all had a pleasant flight?"

"I'm not sure if I should be impressed, or slightly disturbed from that fella's stories." Ben chuckled.

Eve stretched. "I think the whole thing was made up. I was waiting for him to end it with 'and that's how I saved Christmas' or something like that."

"Indeed, Professor Port can tend to get a little carried away with his story telling. I would like you all to meet another member of my faculty, Glynda Goodwitch."

Glynda didn't look up from her scroll as she spoke. "Let's get started, shall we? I would like for each of you to take a position on a platform."

They obliged, and Ozpin positioned himself in front of them. He noted that Nina was unarmed, but said nothing about it.

"In front of you lies the Emerald Forest. This is where your skills will be evaluated and we will determine whether or not you are fit to be trained at this academy. Upon landing, you will regroup and make your way to the Northern end of the forest. There you will find an abandoned temple containing an item that you must collect and bring back to the cliff. You will be monitored throughout the challenge, but no assistance will be given to you. Be warned, this forest is home to many creatures of Grimm. If you are unable to handle yourselves against them, you will die. Are there any questions?"

Eve raised her hand. "You said something about landing, but not about how we get in the air. Care to elaborate on that?"

Nina looked down and quickly analyzed the platforms they were standing on. "Eve, these are catapults!"

Ozpin nodded. "You are correct, young lady."

Both girls nervously looked to Ben, who tried to reassure them. "Don't worry, we'll stick the landing."

"If there are no more questions, we will begin." Glynda touched a button on her scroll.

A series of metallic clicking noises could be heard beneath each of the platforms. They braced for the oncoming launch. A slight snap was heard and the sisters were catapulted from their stations, but Ben's platform released a horrible popping sound as its spring broke under his weight.

"Aw crap!" He sprinted toward the cliffside and put as much force as he could muster into a leap that he hoped would allow him to catch up to the girls.

Ozpin turned to Glynda. "Glynda, could you please contact the observer? I want to exchange the artifact for something else."

"Of course."

"Also, could you make a note that we need to upgrade the catapults?" He asked before he took a sip from his mug.