Jaune's eyes slowly opened. To his surprise, he didn't open them to the blinding hospital lights like he was expecting, but instead to a stucco ceiling with a fan in the center. Stretching out, he got out of bed and looked around. The room was painted blue with small yellow stars, there was a shelf filled with books on one wall, and out the window he could see a large field filled with grazing cattle. Something about this place felt familiar, but he couldn't remember what. With nothing else to do, he decided to explore his new surroundings.

Traveling down the hall he saw that there were pictures hanging on the wall of a family. A very large family judging from the number of children in one of them. In the living room there was a sword and shield hanging above the fireplace. There was something engraved on a bronze plate beneath them, but Jaune couldn't read what it was.

The sounds of something cooking drew his attention to the kitchen. He went in and saw an elderly woman busy at the stove. She was short, with white hair tied into a bun. She was hard at work making breakfast for someone.

"Hello?" Jaune said.

The elderly woman turned and smiled when she saw Jaune.

"Jaune. It's so good to see you again. I thought you'd never visit."

The woman walked up and wrapped Jaune up in a tight hug.

Jaune remembered instantly.

"Grandma!" he shouted, wrapping his arms around the woman and lifting her up.

This was his grandfather's farm. He was granted this land after the Great War. This was where Jaune's father grew up. Jaune would stay in his father's old room whenever he would come to visit.

"It's so good to see you. How have you been?"

Jaune's grandmother smiled. "You've gotten so big, Jaune. You look just like your grandfather. Sit, I just finished making breakfast."

Jaune took a seat at the table and dug into his breakfast. His grandmother made all of his favorites: pancakes, sausage, bacon, hash browns, and a tall glass of apple juice.

"This is delicious," Jaune said. "So, have you talked to mom and dad lately?"

The elderly woman shook her head. "No, I haven't been able to contact them. I do hope that they're safe. The world has changed so much in such a short time."

Jaune frowned. "Yeah, I was just..."

Jaune's voice trailed off. Something was wrong, but he couldn't place it. He tried to remember what he was doing the day before, or how he got to this place, but it was all a blank.

"Grandma, where am I?"

"hm? You're in my home, Jaune."

Jaune racked his brain, trying to remember. His insides turned to ice as the realization hit him.

"Grandma, you died when I was ten. I went to your funeral."

He shot out of his seat. "I remember now! I was fighting a demon, and then I lost my arm and everything went black. Oh god, am I dead?"

Tears ran down the old woman's face. "I'm sorry, Jaune."

Jaune ran for the door. "I can't stay here. I have to go back. My friends are waiting for me."

He threw the door open and saw an infinite darkness in front of him. A frigid wind blew into the house, chilling Jaune to the core.

"Jaune," the old woman said, "it's already too late. Don't fight it, just let go.

Jaune shook his head. "I can't. There's too much left to do, and I can't leave my friends behind."

The old woman sighed. "You sound exactly like your grandfather. He never knew when to quit. But, I never disliked that part of him."

Jaune knelt down and kissed his grandmother on the cheek. "Goodbye. One day I'll be back, but I have to go."

Jaune left the house and traveled into the endless dark. He walked for hours, days, weeks, years. No matter how far or how long he walked he came no closer to any kind of destination. The darkness surrounding him expanded without end. His legs grew weak. He could no longer breathe. With no strength left in him, he fell to the ground.

I talked a big game, but look at how I ended up. Looks like this is it.

He chuckled to himself. As far as ways to die go, getting mauled by a giant tiger was pretty cool.

Looking up into the sky, something caught his eye. Somewhere, off into the distance was a faint red light. Something about it seemed out of place. Whatever it was, it didn't belong in this place, wherever this place was.

Then, everything ceased. He no longer heard the howling wind, he couldn't see the sky above him, and he no longer felt the cold.

And then, even his thoughts ceased.

XxX

Ruby ran to the infirmary as soon as she got the call. When she arrived she saw the rest of Team JNPR waiting outside the operation room. Ren's arm was in a cast, his eyes blankly staring ahead at nothing at all. Nora was trying her best to console Pyrrha, who was crying her eyes out.

Ruby didn't even need to ask what had happened. It was a demon. Once again, something precious to her was snatched away.

For hours they waited, none of them saying a word. The ticking hands of the clock were the only sounds they heard. The doors to the operation room slid open and a stern faced doctor walked out.

"Are you all his friends?" he asked.

"More than that," Ren said.

The doctor nodded. "I see. I won't lie to you, his injuries are catastrophic, for lack of a better word. We were able to stabilize him, but I don't see him surviving the night. If there's anything you'd like to say to him, this is your final opportunity."

"No," Nora whispered.

The doctor sighed. "Situations like these are never easy. We need to make notification. Does he have any next of kin?"

"He, oh god," Pyrrha sobbed. "He has two parents and s-seven sisters."

Pyrrha sobbed into Nora's chest. Ruby felt like the floor had fallen out from under her. She leaned against a wall to steady herself.

She walked to a window where she saw him lying in a bed, hooked up to machines that were keeping him alive. His entire body save his face was covered in bloodstained bandages. The steady rise and fall of his chest was the only sign that he was still alive. Every other part of his body was completely still.

Ruby felt a tightness in her chest. It was one thing to hear it, but another to see it. This truly was Jaune. Her closest friend, the very first person she met when she came to Beacon. They had fought together, laughed together, become the best of friends together, and this is how it ends.

It shouldn't have surprised her at all. It wasn't like he was immortal, and this wasn't even the first time she had lost a friend. But, for some reason, seeing him here hurt her in a way she couldn't describe. A naive part of her thought that he was immune to all this. A world without Jaune in it wasn't something she wanted to consider. She had already lost her teammate, her best friend and her sister both disappeared, and now, it was Jaune. She had no one left, no one to fight for.

She didn't realize when she had started walking away, but before she knew it she was back where she usually found herself, sitting on the edge of the dorm building.

Everything was going wrong, and she didn't know if she could fix it. Another part of her wondered if she even wanted to. From what Ozpin had told her, he'd already gone through this twice, and every time it never really worked. It wasn't like she cared if she went down saving the world, but dying for nothing didn't appeal to her at all.

Suddenly, she sensed a presence behind her. It wasn't a demon, but something else. It felt there, but it wasn't. It belonged, but it didn't at the same time.

"You look like you could use a drink."

Ruby gasped and jumped to her feet. She ran towards the voice and threw her arms out.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby shouted. She wrapped him up in a crushing hug.

"Hey, kiddo," Qrow said, slowly running his fingers through her hair. "You've gotten bigger, haven't you?"

Ruby looked up at her uncle. He was even thinner than normal, there were deep lines in his face, and the edges of his hair had gone gray. He looked like he'd been on the edge of death for some time.

"Where have you been?" Ruby asked.

Qrow sat down on the edge of the roof. "I've been busy with some personal stuff. What about you? I heard some things happened while I was gone."

Ruby flopped down next to her uncle. "'Things', that's one way to put it. One of my friends is dead, two are missing, another is hanging on by a thread, the world is on the brink of destruction and I'm probably going to die trying to save it."

She laid back and looked up at the sky. "I don't know what to do. Everything's going wrong and I can't stop it."

Qrow took a drink from his flask. "Sounds like you've got it rough."

"If you say so. What do I do if it seems like no matter what I do things won't get any better?"

Qrow was quiet for a moment. "Your mother asked me the same question once. You're a lot like her, you know. She got knocked down, a lot, but she always got back up. Sometimes, I thought that she'd give up. But, she told me that if her actions could save even one person, she'd never stop fighting."

"But what if there's no saving anyone? What then?"

"You won't know that until you try. That's what your mother said. I admit, I didn't see eye to eye with her. But seeing those smiling faces of the people she saved, I understood why she did what she did."

Ruby felt like she understood. "Uncle Qrow, thanks."

"Any time, kid."

XxX

The sun was setting, but Pyrrha hadn't moved from her seat. Ruby, Nora, and Ren had all gone, but Pyrrha didn't move. She couldn't. She felt like if she did, then he'd really be gone. A small part of her felt like her presence was keeping him alive. She stared at him in his bed. His eyes were still shut, and his body hadn't moved in the hours since he was brought here. The steady beeping of the heart monitor and the slow, heavy machinations of the ventilator were all she heard.

A part of her wanted to think it was a bad dream, that any moment she'd wake up and everything would be fine. There'd be no demons, their friends would still be alive, and Jaune would be safe. But no matter how hard she wished otherwise, this was reality. There was no changing it. No fighting against it.

Unless.

She shook her head. She could never go against her friends. They were like family to her. And if Ruby had a way to rid the world of demons, then following her was the right decision.

But, this feeling ate at her. She had never felt so helpless, so weak. This is what it felt like to have everything you cared about stolen from you. This is what normal people felt all the time.

Her mother told her to protect the people around her, but she couldn't even protect her friends. It was a farce to think she could save anything.

"I'm sorry, Jaune. It's all my fault. I should have been stronger, I should have kept you safe. I'd do anything to get you to wake up. I want to see you smile again. I want us to fight together again."

She began to cry. "I want to tell you that I love you. Please, don't leave me. I don't want to be alone again."

The heart monitor suddenly began to beep rapidly. A piercing alarm sounded throughout the room. A group of doctors rushed in, forcing Pyrrha out.

Pyrrha could only watch helplessly as the doctors tried to save Jaune. But, despite all their efforts, it was for naught. The long, steady beep of the heart monitor told the tale. Jaune's heart had stopped.

Pyrrha's breath stopped. It was too much to bear.

Pyrrha didn't understand why, but slowly, she brought her hands together. There was something calling out to her, telling her that this is what she should do. She clasped her hands and closed her eyes. With all of her heart and soul, she begged for her wish to be granted.

Please, save him. I'll do whatever you ask of me, just don't let him die. Please, God.

The ground trembled as the room filled with a blinding white light. When the light faded, Jaune was sitting up in his bed, his wounds healed save for his arm. His hair had gone grey, and there were several scars on his body, but he was alive and well.

Jaune looked around the room. "What happened? Did I make it back?"

Pyrrha ran into the room and threw her arms around Jaune.

"You're okay! I was so worried about you."

Jaune smiled. "I gave you all a scare, huh. Sorry, that was my fault. I promise it won't happen again."

"What in the world happened?" one doctor asked.

Pyrrha smiled and squeezed Jaune even tighter. "A miracle."

XxX

Weiss sat upon her throne, looking down upon her servants. She had never asked anyone to serve her, they did so willingly. To serve Weiss was to serve the Lord, and their devotion to God was without question.

"So, you have discovered where the White Fang are hiding?" Weiss asked.

"Yes," Ironwood responded. "They are hiding inside a demon's stomach. We will soon begin our assault and eliminate them."

"Very good. We must retrieve the artifacts before Ozpin or Yang are able to. If possible, I would like to eliminate Yang as well. She is growing at an exponential rate. If left unchecked, her power could rival my own in short time."

Winter looked down at the floor. "Forgive my impropriety, my sister, but what about Ruby Rose? If she is one of the heretical beings, then she could pose a threat to your design."

"You need not be afraid. I have thought the same as well. I am yet incomplete, a part of my human heart still remains. The thought of killing her weighs heavily upon me. Heretic though she may be, I believe that she can be saved. If we can bring her into the Lord's grace, then we will obtain a powerful ally."

Weiss felt the rumblings of the planet. She looked up in the sky and a wide smile crossed her face.

"This is truly an auspicious day."

"What is it?" Ironwood asked.

"Can't you feel it? Our lord has returned."