Look who finally got Chapter Seven out! Also:

I DO NOT OWN RWBY AND AM IN NO WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM AFFILIATED WITH ROOSTER TEETH. ALL RIGHTS AND OWNERSHIPS OF THE SETTING AND A MAJORITY OF THE CHARACTERS BELONG TO THEM. I ONLY OWN THE ORIGINAL CHARACTERS AND OTHER CREATIONS SUCH AS THE GRIMM CONTROL PROGRAM.

VII

Contretemps

Apollyon was patient. His pack was not. This fact was hammered into him with each attempt of his pack to attack the humans. Each time, he had to give a silent warning. Anything too loud or physical would draw attention from the Warriors. The sun was preparing to set before the man with the cane sighed. They had stopped to rest in a clearing after walking for hours. "We will have to try again tomorrow. The Grimm's evaded us," the portly man broke the silence.

"I don't understand," the woman replied. "I've been checking the cameras every chance I could, but I haven't seen any sign of the Beowolf."

"It's possible it's been intentionally avoiding the cameras," the man with green hair guessed.

"You might be right, Bart," the portly man agreed. "It very well could smell us on the cameras and be avoiding them because of it."

"But why avoid our scents if it's a Grimm?" Ozpin wondered aloud. "If it should, like all Grimm, want nothing more than the utter destruction of humanity and all we've created, why would it avoid cameras?"

"Why, indeed," Bart agreed. "Unless, perhaps…" He hummed to himself, sounding unsatisfied. "There is merit to the idea of a third party altering Grimm, after all. But why? How? And, more importantly, where?"

A new scent made itself known, the leading Warrior looking toward its source. Another man walked from the treeline, wearing a grey coat and a tattered red cape. "Qrow. It's good of you to join us, finally," he greeted the man who was very obviously not a crow.

Qrow pulled out a sword and, with the flick of his wrist, transformed it into a scythe. He draped the haft over his shoulders and gave a nonchalant wave to the Warrior in charge. "Hey, Oz."

"Do your reports still hold true?"

"Yep. I counted about...ten? Eleven, counting the big bad wolf itself. Not too far from us, either." Big bad wolf? Apollyon looked at his pack. There were ten of them, eleven counting him.

"Excellent. Glynda, if you would, give us some breathing room." Oz gestured to the trees surrounding them. Apollyon realized exactly what was happening. He charged at the humans, indirectly giving the order for his pack to join him. Glynda pulled out her crop and swiped it through the air, sending several bolts out. They slammed into four packmates, killing them instantly. Qrow charged forward and bisected another. Bart extended his weapon, a flame sprouting on the tip. A ball of fire flew out and exploded against a Beowolf, throwing it into a tree and snapping it in half. The portly man hefted his large axe and brought it down on a charging Beowolf, crushing its skull and shattering its mask. Oz, the one in charge, brandished his cane before charging.

He moved fast enough for separate images of himself to be burned into the air. They perfectly showed his path to each Beowolf and his methodical execution of them. Pinpoint accurate strikes against their throats and eyes preceded thrusts with such power the cane went through the Grimm. When he returned to his resting position, Apollyon was all alone. The five Warriors were all staring at him, weapons ready and faces determined. The children he had fought and even most Warriors he had killed in the past paled to them. Oz's scent was unsettlingly familiar, as well, yet he could not place it. He took an uneasy step back as an unfamiliar cold flowed down his back. He immediately activated the mask in his chest as a bolt from Glynda shot through him. He winced from the trail of stinging pain it left in him.

The adults all took a step back. Apollyon took his chance and ran from them. The cold demanded it of him, as did his brain, so he listened. They were quick to regain their senses, however, and gave chase. Bolts and bullets impacted the ground and trees around him, several passing through him as well. One tree was incinerated from a fireball. He eventually had to deactivate the ability, his stamina draining from the long usage. He leaped over a fallen tree and was smacked in midair by it when it flew up with him. He was carried above the canopy before being slammed back down into the ground. He rolled and tumbled down an incline, the Warriors sliding down after him. He managed to get onto his feet and continued to run, the cold growing more intense and spreading throughout his body. He leapt halfway up a tree and jumped for another from it. He continued hopping from tree to tree, scoring the bark and breaking off limbs, until a shot from the portly man shattered the branch he was jumping for. He hit the ground and hastily scrambled to his feet, narrowly avoiding the scythe blade aiming for his throat.

He kicked, finally attacking back and sparking Qrow's Barrier. He did not follow up, however, and chose to continue running. His running took him to a cliff edge. He slid to a stop and spun around, seeing the five Warriors burst from the treeline in front of him. One of his feet slid back, falling off the edge and taking the lower half of his body with it. He dug his claws into the earth and rock, hoisting himself back up. When he focused back on the Warriors, he saw two of them had been ready to kill him, but Oz's hand had stopped them. He kept himself as close to the edge of the cliff as possible, knowing it was as far from them as possible without falling down. Oz stepped forward, causing him to reach a foot back. He remembered his previous mistake and brought it back onto the ground. The man held out his cane before pulling a lever on its side, retracting its leg. He placed it on his hip and held up his open hands.

"Ozpin, what are you doing?" Glynda hissed.

"This Beowolf is old. One can easily tell that by its battle scars. That means it is smart. It knows it is outmatched." Apollyon growled. "I had Qrow shadowing us in the forest the entire time we were searching, as I had a feeling this Beowolf would be eager to turn us from the hunters into the hunted. It seems my hunch proved correct." He turned to the man with a scythe. "Thank you, Qrow. I know it was risky."

"It was nothing, Oz. But, I'm kinda agreeing with Glynda here. What the hell are you doing?" Qrow sounded annoyed and impatient.

"This Grimm was capable of speaking to our students," Ozpin answered before turning back to Apollyon. "So, I'm going to speak to it."

"Ozpin, you can't be-" Glynda started.

"The moment it makes a hostile move, I have full confidence you all will intercept it. It knows this, too. It is completely at our mercy." As if to boast the fact, Ozpin sat on his knees and placed his hands in his lap. "With this in mind...hello." Ozpin stared at him as they all waited in silence. Ozpin eventually coughed into his hand. "You've killed two of my students and threatened two others with similar fates. I believe I deserve some form of response, at least."

"The last one who believed he deserved anything from me died," Apollyon finally responded. He locked eyes with Ozpin. "I killed him for it."

Ozpin blinked and took a moment to process Apollyon's words, yet the others did not react. "That explains why we never heard it," he muttered before clearing his throat and speaking louder. "What was he demanding of you?"

"Cooperation. Like you. He believed he deserved my respect because he had done this to me." One of Apollyon's claws idly stabbed itself into the ground, causing everyone behind Ozpin to tense. "I crawled from the Pits before man had learned to walk. No man or woman, no matter how skilled a Warrior or how silver their eyes, shall have my respect."

Again, Ozpin took time to process his words. After some moments, the Warrior spoke again. "What do you mean he did this to you?"

"He captured me, brutalized me. He saw fit to make me his weapon, yet did not have the strength to wield me. And neither do you."

"As if I would ever work with you. Not only are you a Grimm, you murdered two of my students. I have one last question for you. Are there more like you?"

"Yes." He slowly rose to his full height, causing the Warriors behind Ozpin to raise their weapons. "But if you think, because I am not alone, that I will lie down and accept my death, you are mistaken. I am a Grimm. I do not know fear, I do not know hesitation. I know only destruction." Apollyon knew his chances of survival were slim against these Warriors. Yet, unknown to them, he had been planning. He swung his paw at Ozpin, ready to face the onslaught of attacks from his allies. Bullets, bolts of Dust, and a fireball all slammed into him, but he held strong. Ozpin effortlessly rolled back from the blow, pulling his cane out and pushing off the ground immediately after. Apollyon blocked his chest with his paw, gripping the cane's leg as it tore through. Ozpin's eyes widened a fraction in shock before Apollyon yanked his arm to the side, disarming the man.

A large metal ball slammed into the Alpha's chest, throwing him back. His legs teetered on the cliff's edge, rock giving way. Qrow appeared before him, a blur of red and steel, before the scythe cut into Apollyon's arm. He pulled the trigger and Apollyon's arm came off. The Grimm staggered back, losing his foothold in the process. With a roar, he began his plummet down to the bottom of the canyon. All that remained of him was a smoking arm, Ozpin's cane stabbed through it. Qrow watched the Alpha plummet, a trail of smoke following it as it disappeared into the fog. He transformed Harbinger into its compact form and holstered it on his back before stepping on the Beowolf's arm, grabbing Ozpin's cane and tearing it out. The arm twitched upward, as if to grab Qrow, before falling back to the ground. He spun it before tossing it to Ozpin, who caught it. "Thank you, Qrow." He planted it on the ground and looked over at the other teachers. "And to the rest of you, as well. I'm sure you're all as relieved as I am that the Alpha will not bother us anymore."

He turned to Glynda. "Glynda, please contact our Bullhead and tell them to meet us here. After that, I want all of you to join me in my office…" Ozpin let out a tired sigh. "I'm afraid we will have more to discuss pertaining to this Grimm."

/ / /

Ozpin retracted the leg of his cane and rested in on his hip before he sat down. Glynda set down a tray covered in warm mugs of coffee. Everyone gathered grabbed a mug and thanked her, taking grateful sips. Ozpin set his own mug down and cleared his throat after making sure everyone else had gotten their energy. "As I'm sure you're all aware, it is confirmed now that the Beowolf was indeed capable of communicating. What I learned was that it did not speak, however. The reason we could never hear it on cameras was because, somehow, it was a telepath."

"No wonder all of those kids thought Duke was goin' crazy," Qrow muttered with some remorse. "They couldn't hear the Grimm talking to him because it never talked at all. I know I sure as hell didn't hear it talk to you."

"That matches with what Miss Minoa told me the Grimm's speech felt like to her," Glynda added in. "That also explains why its mouth never moved on cameras during moments where it was thought to be talking."

"Pushing aside for now the question of how it learned to do this, if it even learned this at all, we have two issues that are of far greater importance. Firstly, much like we have suspected and Glynda informed you of, a third party is indeed at play here. Or, was, as the Grimm claimed it killed the man responsible for doing this. Worse, it told me there were more modified Grimm just like it." The silence from his colleagues was telling of the tense atmosphere in the room. "I do not know how many, nor do I know to what extent these others were modified. Perhaps they were all killed already, and this one simply did not know. Perhaps everything else it said was a lie, to make us complacent enough to fall under an invasion carried out by an army. Truly, it doesn't matter. There were or still are elements out there willing to do anything to achieve their goals, be it the destruction of the Academies, the destabilization of the Kingdoms, or the disabling of the CCTS. That doesn't matter, either.

"What does is that it is our job as huntsmen and huntresses, and teachers of the next generation, to defend those who cannot defend themselves, regardless of what we are facing or the odds of our survival. Be that through manning walls and clearing caves, or sitting behind desks and standing in front of classrooms." They all gained a spark of determination in their eyes. "It doesn't matter if we stand against one more or one hundred, we. Will. Stand." Ozpin turned to Qrow. "Qrow. As much as I hate to take you away from your nieces so soon-"

"I'll find out everything I can, Oz," Qrow interrupted with a smile. "If that's what it takes to protect Ruby and Yang, then I'll do it."

Ozpin nodded before turning to the other three. "Peter. I want you and Bart to look as deep as you can into Grimm theory. Find out everything you can about how they work and what we can expect from other modified Grimm."

"I'm going to need more Grimm, then," Port replied. "It looks like I'll be having more...interesting classes, for the foreseeable future."

"There have been hundreds of legends surrounding Grimm, even cults worshipping them. There's a site just north of here known for it, if I could just-"

"Leave as soon as you're ready." Ozpin knew his idea before he could finish it. Oobleck nodded hastily. He turned to Glynda. "Glynda. It is very likely that these Grimm will not come alone. I want you to prepare our students for this possibility."

"Well, I suppose all those other training arenas will finally come in handy, then," Glynda guessed. "I have just one question, Ozpin." He hummed. "What will you tell the students?"

All eyes were on him. He pushed up his glasses and nested his hands on the table. "...I'm not certain. Telling them the truth would spread panic, but hiding it would breed distrust. Tomorrow, I'm going to have an announcement in the auditorium. I suppose I'll just have to work up exactly what by then."

"I'm sure that, whatever you say, it's the right call," Qrow joined.

Ozpin smiled. "Thank you, Qrow. You are all dismissed. As much as I would love to continue this talk, we have a very busy week ahead of us. We'll need our sleep." They nodded and sat up, leaving their mugs on the tray before leaving. He was left alone with Glynda. "What are your thoughts on what I should say, Glynda?"

"As much as I want to say I agree with Qrow, just thinking that leaves a sour taste in my mouth." Her attempt at humor did succeed in lightening the mood, as Ozpin chuckled. "I think that you should tell the truth to them, Ozpin. Yes, while it might spur this enemy into acting, getting their name out there is the best way to defeat them. Their advantage right now is surprise."

Ozpin hummed before nodding in agreement. "I have many secrets. Some of them would most certainly turn your back on me. You know this. Yet, despite this, you still do your very best to help me." He paused. "That is why I trust your judgement over my own. Your heart is not in my ability, as Qrow's is, but in my cause, in our cause. Thank you for the advice, Glynda."

"That's what I'm here for," Glynda replied with a rare smile. She picked up the tray and left him alone.

After some moments of silence, he spun his chair to face the window. When that left him unsatisfied, he stood up. As he walked to it, he mindlessly pulled his cane out, extended it, and walked with it. He had not actually needed the cane to walk for what felt like centuries, he had always lived so strong or died so young. Much of Beacon campus was visible to him, as was the entirety of the city of Vale. All of it was his responsibility. Farther beyond stood every other Kingdom, all his responsibility as well. It felt like the entirety of the world rested on his back. Many times, it had been tempting to drop it all and curse another to be Atlas for a lifetime. He never did. He was certainly not the best suited for it, but he was the one who had to do it.

In that one moment, the world did not weigh so much.

/ / /

Khryseis stood next to Harley as the auditorium gradually flooded with students. They had all received an alert on their Scrolls that an announcement was being made pertaining to the Grimm responsible for shutting off the Emerald Forest. And killing our teammates. Judging from the unfamiliar face on the stage, it was very likely they had contracted someone to help kill it. Seems overkill, but nothing's overkill when it comes to that thing. She had very vivid memories of how it had knocked them around and how easy it was for it to win. "Khryseis? Are you alright?" Harley must have noticed her mood drop.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just thinking back to initiation." It was a sour note for them both, though Harley was far better at reigning in her emotions; it was a given, considering Khryseis' Semblance. "So, what do you think the old man's called us in here for?"

"...I don't really know if I want to find out..."

"...Do you think they killed it?"

"I can hope," Harley answered almost immediately. Her teammate nodded and looked back up at the stage. Professors Goodwitch, Oobleck, and Port were all up there, along with Headmaster Ozpin and a normal huntsman. He had spiky graying but still black hair and pale red eyes. He wore a tattered red cloak—which Khryseis noted was eerily similar to one a certain first year she had spoken to wore—over a gray dress shirt, black dress pants, and black dress shoes. He dressed oddly formal for a huntsman, but the large weapon on his back sold the image. Ozpin tapped the microphone and cleared his throat into it, grabbing everyone's attention.

"Hello. As you are all aware, this announcement pertains to a certain Grimm that prowled the Emerald Forest during initiation. Allow me to first state that, as of last night, it has been dealt with. After a failed ambush and prolonged chase, it plummeted into the canyon at the base of the ruins in the Emerald Forest never to be seen again." The room was overwhelmed by the sound of the students' cheering, Khryseis and Harley the loudest among them. Ozpin let them cheer for some moments before motioning for them to quiet down. Once they had, he continued. "Unfortunately, that is all the good news I can bring. Some information has recently come to light that will bring changes to the curriculum here at Beacon. Before I speak, you all must understand the gravity of this situation." The silence in the room grew notably tenser. "As of this moment, what I reveal does not leave the campus. If you are uncomfortable with this, then you are welcome to leave the auditorium immediately and continue as a normal student at Beacon." After close to a minute, no one had made to move.

Ozpin smiled, which was barely noticeable to Khryseis and Harley. "Thank you. I will repeat, what I say from this moment forward must be kept secret with those in this room. The other staff will be notified soon as well, so do not fear slipping up in front of them. What you are about to see is a video clip one of our cameras caught during initiation of the Grimm fighting students. MIss Minoa, Miss Graec, if you are here, you may avert your eyes if you wish. The video will also be muted." Khryseis' breath hitched, but she kept her eyes firmly on the screen rolling down from the ceiling of the auditorium. The lights dimmed and a projection started. She glanced at Harley to see her straining to keep her eyes open. She gave her hand a firm squeeze, reassuring her. What displayed was all four of them squaring off against the lone Alpha. They had just defeated the other accompanying it. She also remembered berating Duke for leaving that one alive. She realized that she had acted like a jerk to him, and she was never going to be able to apologize to him. She sighed and watched as the clip started.

The Grimm pounced onto Duke and gave a silent roar into his face. Harley fired one of her pistols at it, the round deflecting off of a spike on its back. The video paused, rewound to just before the shot, and zoomed in on the spike in question. The video played and entered slow motion just as the bullet entered frame. Once it struck the spike, rather than chipping off bone and bouncing off, it deflected in a small shower of sparks. Khryseis' eyes widened when she remembered Harley pointing it out, but everything after that had happened so fast she had completely forgotten. Several pictures appeared onscreen, showing more angles of the spikes. One came into focus in the center of the screen, displaying a manmade bolt holding the spike in place, painted white to match the spike. Murmurs overtook the crowd.

Ozpin silenced the murmurs as they reached a crescendo. "Your eyes do not deceive you. Those of us on the stage are of the assumption that a group similar in nature to the defunct Merlot Industries is behind this, and unlike him, they succeeded in their goal. This Alpha Beowolf had been modified not only with artificial spikes, but the ability to turn into smoke and become immune to all attacks as well. Most worrisome of all, it was capable of telepathic communication, which it used during initiation to psychologically torment the students-to-be. Near the end of the chase, we had the Grimm backed to the edge of the canyon. It had nowhere to turn. I used this opportunity to, for lack of a better term, interrogate it. This is officially the point of no return. This is your last chance to leave the room and not be burdened with secrecy. That is not to say what has already been revealed should be public knowledge, just that what is to come is far more important and dangerous." Again, no one left.

Again, Ozpin smiled. "It was during this interrogation that it was confirmed by the Grimm itself that men did this to it. It claimed to have escaped its captors and prevented them from making any more, but one detail has led us to believe this to be false. Looking over news reports of the Grimm's exploits has revealed that, almost as soon as it was spotted, it was making its way towards the city of Mountain Glenn. Once it reached Mountain Glenn, however, it diverted to Beacon and made haste. It did not go to the walls of Vale, but into our forest. We wondered why, until it told us that it was not alone." Ozpin held his hand up before the crowd could devolve into speculation. "There are more Grimm like it, and we at Beacon believe that they will be used in a conspiracy against Beacon itself, perhaps even the other Academies as well. Because of this, we are changing our curriculum to better prepare you for this inevitable conflict. And we must do so discreetly, not only to keep the civilian populace calm, but to also not warn the enemy that we know of them.

"And now, we come to the changes themselves, all of which will be forwarded to your Scrolls as reminders. Starting this upcoming week, combat classes will be three days a week rather than two. In addition, more spars will have full teams facing off. The larger combat arenas are also being made available to all students as of this week. They will be open every hour of every day, so that you may practice whenever you need to. History class will also be temporarily suspended, as Professor Oobleck will be undertaking a mission to learn more about Grimm. Professor Port's Grimm Studies class will also shift to a more combat-focused class as opposed to a lecture class, making full use of the unlocked combat arenas to allow you to fight Grimm. Trips into the Emerald Forest and Forever Fall will also be more frequent, but you are still recommended to not enter either forest at all outside of class. If you must enter either forest outside of class for any reason, you are required not only to notify Beacon staff, but to also take either a fourth-year team or staff member with you.

"Curfews will also be lifted, but it is still recommended to not travel anywhere on campus alone at night. While the Alpha is dead, we do not know if it was alone or if its death went unnoticed." Ozpin looked over the room and gave a content sigh. "Before you are dismissed, I just want to say I am so very proud of each and every one of you. Despite the overwhelming danger you are faced against, and the burden of keeping this war a secret from your loved ones, you continue to move forward. I am proud to call you my students. You are dismissed."

The crowd immediately erupted into gossiping, theory-crafting, and all manners of discussion. Khryseis and Harley were quick to leave. To say either were happy was a lie. They were glad to hear that Duke and Zeus were avenged, but to then hear that there were even more Grimm just like that one made the victory feel meaningless. One had beaten them all easily. Were it not for Goodwitch showing up, they would have all died. But one hundred? More? They had no chance.

Beacon would fall.

/ / /

Khryseis had a fitful sleep that night. She tossed and turned, waking up at every sound and rarely finding much sleep after. Eventually, she heard something click. She jerked up, suddenly feeling wide awake despite being just on the edge of falling asleep. It came from the front of the room. The door knob slowly turned. She glanced over and saw Harley's bed was empty. She must have left in the night for a walk or something. "Hey, Harley," she whispered. "Can we talk?" She received no response, the door continuing to open slowly. A bone white snout peaked into the room, causing her heart to drop. It nudged the door open and, methodically, the rest of the Alpha slinked in. It let out a low growl, revealing its red-stained teeth. "No…" It made its way closer and closer. "No no no no no…" She scrambled to the side of her bed, falling off and landing in the gap between hers and the empty one against the wall. She scrambled under it in the vain hope that, somehow, the Grimm would believe she simply disappeared. Her breathing quickened as she heard its paws padding across the carpet, getting closer and closer.

It stopped just by the side of the bed. She clamped a hand over her mouth and trembled as its body lowered. A single, baleful crimson eye stared at her. The eye gave no trail, and she faintly remembered stabbing it. It's blind! It can't see me! Sure enough, the Grimm brought itself back up and moved away. She dared not move. The bed was suddenly thrown to the side and she screamed as the Grimm stared down at her. It flashed its teeth and roared before jumping at her.

Khryseis shot up in her bed and screamed, flailing madly and almost falling out. Harley woke up and looked over at her, seemingly just as scared. Khryseis grabbed at her chest and squeezed at where her heart was, noticing that it was pounding. Alive. I'm...I'm alive… She looked around and realized that the bed she had been hiding under was still in place. It was just a nightmare… She reminded herself of the fact several times before finally hearing Harley. "Khry?" She turned to her teammate. "Are...you alright?"

"Can...can we talk?"

/ / /

At the bottom of the canyon lied the body of an Alpha Beowolf with some of the snowy fur found on those from Solitas. It was missing one of its forelimbs, the stump still smoking, and many of its spikes were bent, one cracked and broken off. Its faceplate was shattered, leaving the left half of its face exposed and its left eye blind, but that was from a previous battle. Though it did not have many scars to show for it, it had survived plenty of battles.

He would not let this cliff be his end.

Apollyon's eyes jerked open and his body tensed, causing him to howl in pain. He coughed out smoke and attempted to push himself up, but found he could not. One quick glance showed him that the arm he was trying to use was no longer there. This was not how he had planned it ending. He was supposed to take Ozpin with him. He howled in pain again and tried getting up once more. In a last ditch effort to survive, he had turned to his smoke ability one last time. Through considerable effort, he was finally able to stand on all three of his paws. He was unbalanced and wobbled in place. Walking was difficult, but not impossible. He looked up the cliff wall and ruled out climbing it immediately. With no better option, he turned the opposite direction and walked, hoping that perhaps there was another way out.

He would not let this cliff be his end.

/ / /

A man stood in the center of a small, semicircular room. He addressed the ten people sitting on tall podiums in the round half of the room, pulling out his Scroll and pressing a button on it. "Esteemed Overseers of the Control Council…" He slotted it into a machine and displayed two images. The one on the left depicted the ruins of a facility surrounded by snow and mountains. The one on the right showed a portrait of Arthur Watts. "We have a...situation."

Hoo boy, the wait on this one has been a long one. I hope it's worth it.

Onto changes between this and the original.

First, Oz and the gang. They aren't pulling their punches, and when they said they would deal with this troublesome Alpha, they meant it. Team BLAC will probably make an appearance at some point, but not yet. It doesn't sit right with me how Apollyon was beaten back last time. Overwhelming numbers was the trick, yes, but just the idea of a team going up to Ozpin and saying "Hey, we got a plan" and actually being allowed to enact said plan just feels wrong.

Second, the aftermath. Apollyon revealed some things to Ozpin, and those things scared him, or at the very least got to him. I wanted there to be a bigger consequence to the fight somehow. Initially, it had been Long Memory being lost to the canyon, (hence the paw stabbing scene), but that didn't feel impactful enough. Yes, Long Memory has been Ozpin's weapon for generations, but it didn't feel right. Then, I realized I had Apollyon essentially reveal not only the existence of the GCP to Ozpin, but also the fact that there are more Subjects out there. In the original, once Apollyon was gone, that was it. Now, though, there is an even bigger threat on the horizon. Now, with all the changes made to Beacon, it's become a matter of not if, but when the powder keg ignites. Dust keg? I don't know.

Those were really the only changes, aside from the GCP's formal introduction. Rather than Sia sitting at a desk, we are introduced to the Grimm Control Council and a mystery man. Spooky.

My biggest gripe with this chapter is Apollyon's reveal just before the end. It feels like it takes weight away from his defeat, but at the same time, it would've felt awkward at the beginning of the next chapter or anywhere else in it except the end. But, if it's at the end of the next chapter, what happens in the meantime? This isn't The Grimm Control Program, it's The OMEGA Subject. Above all else, it's Apollyon's story. Having him absent for almost an entire chapter would've felt weird, and I doubt I could fit a good filler to pass the small gap between his fall and his recovery.

Alright, I think that's everything. I want to give a huge thanks to the people behind the 18 Reviews, 41 Follows, 21 Favorites, and all of you for bringing this to 1,706 Views! Following this chapter's release will be some fixes in previous chapters (the Valetes I'd said I would put in that I never did) and some fixes to the Fandom page. See you all in Chapter Eight!

Valete!