Battle of the Train

"The idiocy of that girl!"

"And to think we had such high hopes for her."

"It is apparent we cannot rely on Salem alone anymore. We will have to act ourselves."

"We cannot awaken them ourselves, you know that."

"We do not need to. All we need to do is set things in motion, which is easy enough. We can start in Atlas."

"What of the mortals that have been touched by the Younger?"

"I… do not yet know."

"We must do something soon. Surely the Younger has told them about us now."

"Be patient. We must do this in an…. orderly fashion."

"And what of our sister?"

"She…. won't be an issue."

(in Mistral)

"You sure you have to go?" Lin asked.

"Yeah, we have to get the Relic to Atlas," Ruby answered, "Probably the only place it'll really be safe." She and Lin were in the Mistral train station, awaiting a train that was going to take them to the city of Argus in the North, where they hoped to get a lift to Atlas. As the two girls were talking, Rowan was standing behind them, bandaged, and with one arm in a sling, but still dutifully standing behind his liege, while a squadron of Mistrali soldiers stood behind him.

"Are you going to be safe here?" Ruby asked, "I mean, you've only got one guard."

"That Sienna Khan has volunteered," Rowan answered, "She and a number of other Faunus, actually." Ruby had heard that as well; the Faunus coming to challenge the White Fang had had quite an impact on the Mistrali people. And now a number of those Faunus, including Blake's aunt, had volunteered to help with Lin's safety, until a more formal guard was installed.

"And as long as I have Rowan, I think I'll be fine," Lin said with a smile. Rowan returned the smile, as he nodded at his charge.

"Anyway, promise me you'll stay in touch?" Lin asked, looking back at her friend, to which Ruby nodded enthusiastically. Then to her surprise, Lin then gave her a hug.

"Thank you," she said," For everything." Ruby eventually returned the hug.

"I'm just glad I could help," she answered, smiling gently. As the two said their goodbyes, Sun and Blake were up at the balcony doing the same. Sun had decided to head back to Vacuo, to, in his own words, get his head on straight. Blake really couldn't blame him, considering the things he had learned in the past couple months. If she was being completely honest, Blake was going to miss him; she'd grown…. used to him.

"Don't worry, Sun said, when she expressed those fears, as he pumped his fist slightly, "I'm thinking you haven't seen the last of me!" Blake just smiled gently at that, before his surprise, she kissed him on the cheek.

"See you soon," she whispered into his ear.

"You… you too," Sun stuttered, as he put his hand on his cheek in surprise.

As he was taking his leave, Blake turned around to look at Ilia, who had standing further back to avoid intruding on their conversation. Blake smiled as she approached her.

"So, what're you going to do now?" she asked.

"I… I don't know," Ilia answered. She had considered going with Sienna and volunteering for the guard, but didn't think that line of work would really suit her. She had considered going back to Menagerie to help Blake's parents in the new White Fang, but somehow that didn't seem right.

"You could come with us." That offer surprised the chameleon somewhat. She didn't think any of them would want her in their group, least of all the Schnee. She glanced down at RYPJ and BRWN, who were waiting for their train down there.

"I… I…," Ilia said slowly. Having a feeling that she needed a moment to think, Blake took a breath.

"Well, we're going to be leaving in about an hour," she said, with a slight shrug, "You know here to find us." With that, she headed back down to rejoin her team, leaving Ilia to mull on her words. Sighing, she stared at the ceiling, considering it all. Was there really a reason she couldn't go with them? It wasn't like the Belladonnas weren't able to do it themselves. It also wasn't like Ilia didn't want to get out and see the world; granted, she wasn't thrilled by the prospect of potentially going back to Atlas after so long.

"You seek to redeem yourself, yes?" Ilia visibly flinched in surprise as she noticed Shade leaning on the railing.

"Can you please not do that?" she asked, taking a breath to calm herself.

"You will not find redemption or atonement if you do not seek it out," Shade said, "Ms. Khan understands this, and she is acting appropriately to that end. You, on the other hand, are simply sitting here, hoping it finds you."

"So… what do I do?" Ilia asked.

"I cannot tell you," Shade answered, as he floated off the ground, "It is your choice." With that, he floated down to where his students were. Ilia wanted to call for him, but found she couldn't. She then looked down, then at her hand, before she clenched her fists.

"Blake!" The cat paused, as she looked over her shoulder to see the chameleon coming up behind her.

"On second thought," Ilia said, "You sure they wouldn't mind?" Blake was further surprised by that, but then smiled.

(with the rest of the group)

If he was being honest, Jaune was't thrilled by the prospect of going to Argus. That was where Saphron lived, and he knew that it was also where his mom had decided to throw their reunion in Argus that year. Now, it wasn't that he didn't want to see his family, but… It would be hard to leave again after seeing them, especially knowing what they had to do. He was staring at his scroll, at his dad's number. Looking around at his team, he saw Pyrrha with her leg in her lap, polishing it slightly, while Yang sat further down the bench, inspecting her arm for defaults. Nora had taken to calling them "Team Metal". Speaking of her, she was trying got sell Ren on an "I love Mistral" shirt, though he didn't seem that interested in it. Shade was standing by the cafe, apparently ordering something. Oscar was sitting the side, talking to himself, though presumably to Oz, while Qrow was getting their tickets. On Oscar's belt was the Relic of Knowledge.

Oz had told them what the Relic could do. Every one hundred years, one could use the Relic to ask literally any question, save for questions about the future. Apparently, Oz had spread the tale amongst his followers that the questions had all already been used. Jaune supposed that made sense; if people thought the Relic wasn't of any use, they'd be less tempted to seek it out for themselves.

"Watcha doing?" Ruby asked, as she suddenly sat beside him. Jaune blinked at his partner's sudden appearance.

"Nothing, I guess," Jaune said, as he put his scroll back in his pocket, "Just thinking."

"Thinking about what?"

"You'll see." Ruby pouted at that, as she weakly shoved him.

"You sound like a grownup," she griped. Technically, everyone there save Ruby and Oscar were grownups, but he decided not to say that.

"I'm just glad to be getting out of Mistral," Jaune said, "It's been nothing but trouble since we got here."

"Come on," Ruby said, "It wasn't that bad. You unlocked Semblance, after all." That was right, Jaune,a after so long, finally had his Semblance. Turns out, using his Aura, he could enhance and empower the Auras of other people. He wasn't sure how that allowed him to literally merge with Weiss as dragons, though.

"I guess that's me, huh?" Jaune said, "I'm the support guy."

"Don't sell yourself short," Weiss said, as she approached them from the side, and sat alongside him, "What you did may have saved my life up there." Ruby pouted a little more at that. She wanted to be the one to give Jaune the pep talk on that.

"She is correct," Shade answered, as he came up to the group, holding a paper cup in his hand, "Your Semblance may prove indispensable at some point." Jaune was somewhat encouraged by that.

"By the way," Ruby said, leaning forward, "I've been wondering…"

"I am not sure how Mr. Arc and Ms. Schnee did what they did," Shade admitted, as he sipped his drink, anticipating Ruby's question, "It is something I will have to study as the time goes on."

"So… could I maybe…. do it?" Ruby asked slowly.

"I cannot think of any reason why you would not," Shade answered, swirling his drink slightly. That encouraged Ruby somewhat, as she scooted a little close to Jaune.

"I'm back," Blake said, as she came up and everyone glanced over.

"Yay!" Nora said, "Blakey's back!" Blake would've been annoyed by that nickname, but found herself smiling instead; it was good to be back.

"And I have someone with me," she said, as she stepped aside, revealing Ilia standing behind her, her hands clenched in front of her, and her eyes on the ground.

"Ilia, right?" Yang asked, as she stood up.

"Um… hello," Ilia said, as she briefly turned purple, as she tried to look up at them.

"She's joining the team," Blake announced. That surprised the group slightly, before Oscar, or more accurately, Oz at this point, rose to his feet.

"Excellent," he declared, "This day and age, we could use all the new friends we can get."

"'Friend'?" Ilia echoed, surprised to already be being called that.

"Welcome to the team, Illy!" Nora said, swinging her arm around Ilia's shoulder.

"Illy?" Ilia echoed, not sure how she felt about that name, or a human wrapping an around her.

(later, on the train)

Once they had boarded their train, it was a six hour train ride to Argus. RYPJ was passing their time in their train compartment, with Yang reading a magazine while Pyrrha was doing some maintenance on Milo. Jaune and Ruby were on the scrolls, playing a fighting game with each other. BRWN was further down in their own compartment, where Ilia was as well. They had no idea where Shade was (they hadn't even seen him get on the train) but figured he'd do what he always would do, and appear when he wanted to.

"You can't beat me, Jaune Arc!" Ruby declared, as she stared at her Scroll in concentration.

"That's what you think, Ruby Rose!" Jaune said back, as he mashed the buttons on his own.

"You know, it's just a game," Pyrrha said, looking up from her weapon.

"Not when Ruby's the one playing it, it's not," Yang said, as she turned a page in her magazine. The partner's kept playing, until finally, Ruby beat him.

"That's what I'm talking 'bout!" Ruby said, pumping her fists. Jaune laughed slightly, before taking a breath and wiping his brow.

"Man, after that I need to get something to drink. If you need me, I'll be in the dining car." He then left their compartment, as Ruby smiled after him. That didn't go unnoticed by her sister, who smiled and shook her head slightly, as she went back to her magazine. Not long after, the door opened, and Weiss poked her head in.

"Pardon me," she said.

"What's up, Weissicle?" Yang asked, "What brings you to our territory?"

"Well, I've been Nora's partner long enough to know when she needs her time with her Ren, and anyone could tell Ilia's uncomfortable around me," Weiss explained, "So I thought I'd go see where Jaune was." Upon hearing her partner's name, Ruby hoped her flinch wasn't too visible.

"Jaune?" Pyrrha asked, "Well, he said he was going to go to the dining car."

"Alright, thank you," Weiss said, as she started walking back down the hall. Ruby's brow furrowed, before she made a decision, jumping to her feet, and hurrying after her.

"Weiss!" Ruby called, as she came up to her, "What're you doing?"

"I'm just looking for Jaune," Weiss answered, as she stopped.

"Why're are you looking for him" Ruby pressed. At first, Weiss was going to simply dismiss her, but figured that after all they'd been through, and the fact that Jaune was Ruby's partner, and decided to change her perspective on that.

"You're his partner," she said, "You should probably know." She then looked around, and brought Ruby into an unoccupied train compartment.

"What is it?" Ruby asked, though she had a good idea what it was. Weiss then took a deep breath.

"I can't believe I'm saying this," she said, "But…. I… I think I've developed feelings for him." Ruby's heart sunk to the floor upon hearing that.

"When did you…," she asked slowly.

"If I'm being completely honest, I first started feeling something after he took me to the dance, and I got a real sense for his character," Weiss explained, "Then, after being separated so long, after we started training together, I began to feel something real." She then trailed off slightly, as she got a far away look in her eyes.

"But then the two of us literally became one, and I saw so much more about him. I couldn't help it." Ruby involuntarily clenched her fists, as she glared at the ground. She knew it wasn't fair to expect Jaune to be all for herself, but that still didn't mean she was happy to know she had a rival for Jaune's affection.

"I understand why that might surprise you, being his partner and all," Weiss said, "But rest assured, I full intend…"

"But…," Ruby said, "I like him!" Weiss blinked in surprise at that. She made an "o" with her mouth before sighing and pinching herself between the eyes.

"Well this is quite the conundrum then," she said. While she understood that Ruby was Jaune's partner, and had known him much longer than Weiss did, that didn't mean the Schnee was going to give up. She liked Jaune too, and was intent on acting on it.

"So… what do we do?" Ruby asked. While she liked Jaune, and wanted to be with him, she didn't want to destroy her friendship with Weiss.

"If we allow this kind of rivalry to simmer," Weiss said, "we'll be lugging it around the whole the journey, and the group as a whole will suffer for it." Ruby opened then closed her mouth, knowing Weiss was right.

"I say we just confess to him, both of us," Weiss continued, "After that, it'll be in his hands now." Ruby frowned slightly; she didn't want to put that kind of pressure and the man she cared about. But maybe this was the best way to put this issue to rest as soon as possible. As if sent by Darkness himself, Jaune strolled by, with a bag of chips in his hand. The girls exchanged a look, before they both stepped out of their compartment

"Jaune!" both called. Jaune glanced over his shoulder.

"Oh, hey," he said, "What's up?"

"Ruby and I have something to tell you," Weiss said, as she stepped forward, "We're not expecting any kind of response now, but we feel if we don't do it now, it may become a problem." Jaune looked between the two, somewhat confused.

"What is it?" he asked. The girls exchanged another look, before they both took breaths. Here goes nothing they both thought at the same time.

"Jaune, I…." Once again, Ruby was interrupted as the train was suddenly rocked.

"I am afraid this matter will have to wait," Shade said, as he materialized out of the compartment Ruby and Weiss were just in.

"Were you spying on us?" Weiss asked. Shade naturally didn't answer. Instead he flicked his wrist, pushing his students down the hall.

"Why does this keep happening to me?" Ruby grumbled, not happy to have her second confession of attempt be interrupted.

By the time Jaune, Weiss, and Ruby finally got out of the train, they saw what the problem was. Descending from the sky was a pack of Manticore, winged, lion-like Grimm that had scorpion tails. At the lead of them was another, much larger Grimm. It had a leonine body, but also had a broad of wings, and a literal snake for a tail. But the most creepy factor was the fact that it had a vaguely human like face. They all recognized it as a Sphinx.

They, to some degree, expected this. Oz had told them that the Relic gives off a very faint force that attracted the Grimm to it. He said he didn't think it'd be an issue, because it was so faint, so long as the group stayed positive. Of course, that would be much harder, as the Grimm bore down on the train. Most of their team, along with Qrow, Oscar, and Ilia were already on the roof, trying to fight them off. Amongst them, Nora had already assumed her dragon form, and was trying to pick the Manticores out of the air.

"I'll go help Nora!" Jaune said, before he assumed his own dragon form, and flew up, incinerating another Manticore as he did, "You guys help the others." Not needing to be told twice, Weiss used her glyphs to launch her forward, but to his surprise, Ruby used her own Semblance to get on Jaune's back.

"Ruby?"

"I'll watch your back!" Ruby said, as she sniped a Manticore coming at him. While Jaune joined Nora in the fight in the sky, the rest of the group kept the fight in the train. As she dashed over, Weiss thrust Myrtenaster into a Manticore's throat, slaying it instantly. One came up behind her, which Blake caught by the throat with the end of Gambol Shroud, catching it off foot. This allowed Pyrrha to leap over, and thrust Milo into it's forehead, slaying it in the process.

"You can thank me later!" Yang said, with a wink. Pyrrha then suddenly fired a shot. It whizzed past Yang, who turned to see a manticore stumbling back. It was quickly dispatched by Qrow, who struck off its head with a single swing of Harbinger.

"I'd say we're even, right?" Pyrrha said, with her own wink. Yang just chuckled, as she leapt back into the fight. She knocked aside another Grimm, and punched one in the jaw. Unfortunately, another was quickly on top of her, only for it to stop when Ilia swung Lightning Lash at it. Electricity coursed through it's body, stunning it enough for Yang to deliver an uppercut with enough force to kill it.

"Thanks!" Yang said, to which Ilia just nodded.

Meanwhile, up in the sky, the Sphinx had decided to try and take the dragons on. It was roughly the same size as Jaune and Nora, allowing it slam into Nora's side, knocking her around slightly. It sank its teeth into Nora's neck, but fortunately the worst of the attack was deflected by her scales. The dragon and the Grimm wrestled around in the air for a time. Noticing that, Jaune veered off to back her up. As he did, Ruby glanced up at the sky, to see a shape coming down through the snow.

"Incoming!" she called. Jaune only had time to look up briefly, as another, massive Grimm slammed into him. Ruby had to hold onto Jaune by the frill around his head, but managed to stay on his back, as he tumbled through the air. Jaune managed to shove the Grimm off, and get it a good luck. It resembled a giant bird like a Nevermore, but looked more like a bird of prey than a raven, not to mention it's neck was noticeably longer, and it's talons considerably bigger. It was a Thunderbird. The Grimm launched itself at the dragon again, as it raked it's talons across Jaune's stomach. His calls and Aura deflected the attack, but Jaune knew neither would last forever.

Meanwhile, on the train, Ren leapt out of the way of a Manticore's claws, before sticking his gun barrel in its mouth, and firing, blowing it's head off. As another one came at him, Oz suddenly sprung forward, and giving a solid strike over the monster's head, killing it instantly.

"It's impressive how much power it has behind it," Oscar commented.

"It does," Oz agreed, looking at Long Memory, "But what really matters is hitting it in the right place with the right amount of force. Eventually, you'll get the knack of it." As he said that, several more Manticores flew over them, heading towards the front of the train, where most of the civilians had gathered.

Jaune! Ruby "said" Look!

"I see it," Jaune answered out loud, as he kicked the Grimm off, and communicating If those things get to the people…

I'm on it! Weiss answered, as she sheathed Myrtenaster. She then let herself fall off the train, as her body vanished into a brilliant white glow, which her dragon formed emerged out of. Swooping back up, she flash froze a Manticore coming at her, before flying towards the front. As she did, Ilia watched.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to that," she muttered. But she couldn't dwell on those thoughts, as a Manticore came at her. She managed to dodge it's claws, and she swung Lighting Lash it, stunning it again, allowing Blake to come up, and strike it down.

At the same time, Nora finally managed to get the upper hand over the Sphinx. With a growl, the electricity crackled down her spine, as she let loose a massive discharge. The electricity struck down several Manticore, and threw the Sphinx off her. Nora then released the full force of her fire, which consumed the Grimm, obliterating it in the process.

During this, Jaune continued to wrestle with the Thunderbird. Jaune tried to kick it off, before he breathed his fire. Unfortunately, the beast easily avoided the attack, before it slammed back into the dragon, and continued to claw at him, but with relatively little luck, until Ruby….

"Claws off my man!" she all but blurted out. She then put a well placed shot, right in the Thunderbird's eye. It instinctively recoiled back, and in it's confusion, Jaune was able to kick it off. He then inhaled deeply, and released his fire, reducing the Grimm to ash.

Meanwhile, Weiss reached the front of the train, outflying the Grimm using her Glyphs on her wings. With a single exhale, she flash froze another several Manticore, as she flew pas the windows. The people of the train looked out in awe of the dragons that were protecting them from the Grimm, while Darkness himself watched in silence, hidden from their view. Floating through the ceiling, he considering their negativity perhaps wouldn't be an issue, as the people would be encouraged by the sight of the dragons that were protecting them. But it wouldn't really matter, considering how the Relic would continue to attract his creations until they didn't have it anymore. It was then that he got an idea.

"Attention, all of you," he communicated to his students and their friends, "I will be separating the cargo section you are on from the passenger section."

"What?" Ilia, Oscar, and Qrow squawked. The rest of the team weren't thrilled by that idea, but figured their teacher wouldn't be suggesting something if it wasn't the best solution.

"You know what you're doing right?" Jaune asked, as he flew over head.

"Of course," Darkness answered, before shifting back to his Shade form. He then held his hands up, palms facing towards the sky. With that, the link that separated the two halves of the train disconnected. The other train sped away, as the Grimm kept their attention on the ones with the Relic, which were quickly mopped up by the students and the dragons. Unfortunately, the speed of the train caused it to rock on the tracks slightly, but Shade simply maintained his stance, as the train went rigid, and floated off the tracks down to the ground..

"Everyone okay?" Jaune asked as he landed.

"I think so," Blake said, as she helped Ilia up. Ilia, however, promptly fell face first into the snow.

"Just leave me here for a moment," she grumbled into the snow. She didn't get her wish, as Shade levitated up her as he floated to the ground.

"You are all indeed 'okay'," he said simply, as he landed in front of them, "Now, gather whatever you may have lost, we must keep going as soon as possible." As the group started doing this, Ruby found the Relic in the snow, which she picked up.

"Good, you have it," Qrow said as he came up to her, and when Ruby held it out to him, he held up his hand, "I'd wager it'd be safer with the girl who can turn into a dragon."

"Never freaking fails," Yang grumbled as she tried to pull her motorcycle of the snow, "We always get this close to our dest, and then something happens." Pyrrha came over to help her, only for both to pull too hard, and to slip in the snow, landing on top of each other. Too add a little insult, the motorcycle slipped into the snow as well.

"Can't you just snap your fingers, and get the Grimm to go away?" Ilia asked Shade.

"I cannot intervene beyond the degree I already have," he answered.

"Is that so?" Attention was then drawn to Oz, who had already started walking, but was now looking back at them.

"And what do you call what you've been doing all this time, sticking your claws into the affairs of these children for what reason?"

"What I am doing is no concern of your's, wizard," Shade responded, narrowing his eyes at him.

"Of course," Oz answered, taking a step forward, "It is not our place to question the will of the gods. No matter what they do." That got RYPJ and BRWN to exchange looks, not sure what Oz was talking about.

"He hasn't steered us wrong yet," Jaune piped up.

"Yeah," Ruby added, "He's helped us a lot along the way. We trust him."

"You trust him?" Oz said, as he came closer, "So I take it he's been completely upfront with you on all matters?" Shade's eyes suddenly looked straight on Oz.

"Mind yourself, mortal," he said calmly but cooly. But Oz ignored him.

"I keep my secrets in order to maintain hope, to win a war instead of a single battle," he said, "What does he keep his secret for?"

"Secret?" Ren asked, looking towards Shade.

"Oz…," Qrow muttered.

"Shade?" Jaune asked, as he and the other's all looked at their teacher, "What is he talking about?"

"Nothing that you need concern yourself with," Shade answered, holding up his hand.

"Naturally," Oz answered, "What do the mortals matter in this affair? What does the true history mean to them?"

"True history?" Pyrrha muttered.

"Be silent!" Darkness commanded as he suddenly assumed his divine form. Oz narrowed his eyes, as he tightened his hold on Long Memory.

"Professor," Oscar said, "What's going on?"

"Your teacher is not who you think he is, and if he won't tel you, then I know someone who will," Oz said, before he then looked to Ruby, "Speak her name to summon her."

"'Her'?" Ruby asked, cocking her head.

"Jinn."

"I said be silent!" Darkness said, as he thrust his hand out, sending Oz careening away through the snow. He then looked to his students, who were staring at him in shock. He almost sounded… afraid.

"What… what aren't you telling us?" Jaune asked.

"It is of no matter," Darkness answered, "It is something that happened long in the past, and has little bearing on what you must do now. Now come, we must go before the storm has set in." He turned to begin walking, but when he looked back, he noticed the mortals weren't following him.

"Come, I said we have to go," he said, gesturing. But again, they did not move, as Ruby stared at the Relic for a time.

"Ms. Rose…" Ruby looked at him, before back at the Relic, and she took a breath.

"Jinn," she murmured. Almost immediately, everything froze in mid air, as if time had stopped.

"No…"

"What's… what's going on?" Ilia asked out loud. Ruby then let out a soft gasp as the Relic floated out of her hands, and into the air, blue mist leaking from it. The mist then flared up, as it congealed into a blue, feminine figure who had gold shackles around her wrists, neck, and shackles. She had long, dark blue hair, pointed ears, and blue eyes with black sclerae. Those traits sent chills down RNJR's spines; they were eerily similar to the traits Viridios had.

"Ah!" the woman said, as she let out a stretch, before smiling down at them, "Thirty years can give you such a crick in the neck!" She then looked down at the people.

"I am Jinn, a being created by the God of Light to aid mankind in their quest for knowledge," she said, introducing herself, before leaning down, "Now, what knowledge to you seek?" It took some time as the group stared at the being before them in shock.

"Well, don't you have a question or something?" Jinn asked, leaning on her hand, with a calm, knowing smile. She looked at them like she knew who each one of them were, which they supposed she did.

"You cannot trust this creature." They looked back to Darkness, who was advancing on Jinn, looking straight at her. The being looked taken aback by the sight of him, before it turned into a glare.

"Well, if it isn't the younger brother?" she said icily. Darkness visibly flinched at that. That surprised the group, Jaune most of all. He'd never seen the god seem this… agitated.

"Why can't we trust her?" Nora asked.

"Because she is one of the High Spirits." All eyes went straight to Jinn, to their first true "High Spirit". Only RNJR had actually seen another Spirit, but Viridios was just a "normal" Spirit, compared to what Jinn was. Jinn didn't seem pleased with that revelation, as she sighed.

"That is correct, I am the High Spirit of Knowledge, created to collect and keep all the knowledge of this world. But rest assured, I am not like my more…. menacing siblings." Jinn then looked down at the Faunus, who were staring at her like she was a divine being, which they now knew she was. The Spirit just rolled her eyes.

"I normally don't do this, but I can see the confusion and wonder in your eyes," she said, "No, I had no hand in your kind's creation." That didn't seem to calm either the cat or the chameleon.

"Now, do you have a question, or not?" Jinn asked, looking towards Ruby. The girl in red stared at her for a time, then at the ground.

"Ruby." Everyone froze, as they looked at Darkness; this was the first time he had ever referred to any of them by their first names. He was still, looking straight at them.

"Please," he murmured. Ruby looked at them, then to Jinn. She then took a deep breath, realizing that at this point, they had to know the truth.

"What is the truth?" she then asked.

"NO!" Then it all went blank…

The Old Ones: The Hunter

Matilda couldn't understand why this was happening. Had she done something wrong? Did someone in the village do something wrong? Was that why everything was on fire?

The night had started so normally, with Matilda sitting down to dinner with her parents and big sister. What followed was a blur; all she could make out were black monsters suddenly appearing in the streets, people screaming, and things catching on fire. And all the child could do now was curl up in an alley, her face buried in her knees, as she sobbed.

Unfortunately, those sobs attracted an Ursa in her direction. It peered around the corner, as Matilda looked up. She wanted to run, but found herself unable to. It was like she had suddenly turned to stone, as the monster loomed over her. It showed its teeth, as it raised it's paw to end it all. Matilda couldn't even scream.

But that was there was a flash of brilliant silver light, so much that Matilda reflexively closed her eyes. When she opened them, the Ursa had been reduced to dust in the wind. The light came from behind her, and when she looked around, she saw a man in a back coat and hood over black pants with red lines, and a button shirt of a similar color scheme.

"Are you okay?" the man asked, bending down to Matilda's level. Matilda, still in a state of shock, just nodded very weakly. The man nodded as he put a hand on her head and tussled her hair.

"Just stay here," he said, "I'll be back soon." He then reached behind him, and pulled out his weapon, it was a scythe, with an otherwise simple appearance, save for the blade itself, which had a glowing red edge across it. It's name was very simple: "Grimmbane". He then lowered his hood, as he revealed he had short, spiky, dark red hair with very fair skin. But his most distinguishing feature, were his large, silver eyes. The man then smiled.

"Let's have some fun," he said. With that, he leapt into the pack of Grimm, striking down a Beowolf in a single strike. A Beringel then came upon him, swing it's fist, only for the man to easily avoid the strike with a duck. He then swung Grimmbane up, creating an arc of fire, the red edge on his scythe being produced by Fire Dust, slaying the beast. A Deathstalker then came upon him, and the man's eyes suddenly flashed again, and when the light faded, the Deathstalker was solid stone.

Right then, a King Taijitu came upon him, and the man turned his brilliant gaze towards the serpent, and his eyes flashed again, turning both heads to stone. An Ursa then came at him, swing it's claws, which the man easily dodged. After decapitating the bear, a Beowolf came on him, but the man managed to flip back, catching the Beowolf under the neck, cutting off it's head at well. As he was spinning back down, his eyes flashed again, turning a Nevermore that was coming down at him to stone as well.

The Grimm attack was over as soon as it began, as the man wiped his bow, surrounded by stone Grimm, and black smoke. Matilda slowly emerged from the alley, looking around in shock. That was when she heard a voice calling out.

"Matilda!" She turned to see her family emerging from a building, and running over to her. Her mother threw her arms around her, as her father and sister came up beside her.

"You saved my daughter," her father said to the man, "Thank you so much."

"Meh" the man said, with a huge smile, as he put Grimmbane on his shoulder, "It was nothing, really."

"What's your name?"

"My name's Jack. Jack Bean."

"How are you such a skilled fighter?" Jack just shrugged slightly.

"Not much," he answered, "I'm just a normal guy, who likes to do good."

Note: Now here it is, the moment of truth for RYPJ and BRWN. Geez, this chapter was way longer than I thought it would be.

I'm going to take this as an opportunity to talk about the romance. Now while I don't think what they did was necessarily a good idea, forcing Jaune to choose between the two of them, I would understand Weiss' reasoning. If the two of them let those emotions simmer and build, it could easily strain their friendship, harming their mission in the process.

Going into Vol. 6, I'm going to say now, I'm not doing Bumblebee. Yang and Blake were never even partners in this continuity, so it wouldn't at all work. Also, I'm promoting Ilia to main character. I feel like she still has some story worth telling, and some redemption that needs seeking. I can now confirm, that I've been entertaining the possibility of doing Greek Fire (Yang x Pyrrha) in the story instead of Bumblebee, but I don't want to fall into the same trap RT did with Bumblebee, where after (seemingly) cracking under fan pressure to get it done, they rushed it out. I'm going to try and do it more naturally as the story progresses.

Be sure to review. How fitting, Vol. 6 begins with chapter 66.