Sun, believe it or not, knew what the sun felt like on his skin. He knew how it burned and how it pierced one's eyelids. However, this burn was different. This light was furious in a way that competed with that very ball of fire hanging above them all. His eyes slowly fluttered open, taking in the world around him. First, he noticed the hand adorned with a red gauntlet on his wrist, holding back his shotgun. Beyond his barrel, there stood the Grimm, panther-like and monstrous. It just stood there. Black wisps shifted and blinked as red veins dulled. The very air around it seemed frozen. How could one explain how wrong it felt? It was like the very nature of reality had been perverted…

Then, a groan came, and his eyes shot down to the girl in red. She laid on the overgrown root; aura pulsed around her in flashes of crimson. Her eyes fluttered, giving a slideshow view of the red that framed silver. The blood that pooled in her tear ducts trickled down her cheeks.

Sun dropped his gun, shifting to support her head, "Ruby!?" He tried to smile, "Hey-hey, I…" – but just couldn't, "I don't know what to do… Tell me what to do. Tell me…"

"R-Rest… I just need to close my eyes…" She trailed off as her eyes slid shut.

"Hey, no. How about we not do that? Ruby!?" His fingers laid upon the side of her neck, and her pulse seemed like the picture of health. Her chest rose and fell unimpeded. Sun took a deep breath before letting out an even gust, "We need to move…"

Weiss's voice could finally be heard, "There was a bright light and… The Grimm… It's just…"

"What happened to her?" asked Blake, moving to his side.

He shook his head, "Semblance? Genetics? Who knows…? Whatever she used to save our asses bit her back."

Blake's hands slightly touched Ruby's face, "Gods, the area around her eyes feel like they're on fire." The back of her hand fell onto the reaper's forehead, "It's not a fever…"

"She's out cold, either way." Sun shifted his position, aiming to move the girl onto his back, "Let's go, I'll carry her."

Blake hopped off the root, gesturing to her partner, "Weiss, come with me. We need to collect our supplies and fast."

Weiss waved her arms at the beast of darkness, "Are we just going to ignore this?" She flinched when the creature's eye rolled in her direction.

"Yes!" said both Faunus.

Weiss's gaze shifted to Ruby; her eyes widened, "R-Right…" She screwed her eyes shut and shook her head, "O-Of course." She turned and moved with Blake to their impact point, sifting through shrubbery and roots. She called over her shoulder, "Sun, how is she?"

"I ain't a doctor, but other than her eyes, she seems fine…" replied Sun. He pulled the unconscious reaper's arms over his shoulders. His tail flickered when she murmured into his ear, pulling her arms tighter around his shoulders. A spark of relief ran through him before he grasped her legs and lifted.

"I found the Anemoi!" called Weiss, tugging two bags onto her shoulders. "They all combined into one." Her fingers barely grasped around its sides. It's gold and gems were perfectly aligned, and four needles shared a rod, pointing in different directions. The top-most needle glowed with a violet hue as it shook.

Blake nodded, tugging on her own set of bags, "Good. We'll do a count of our supplies once we're at a safe distance from…" – her gaze turned to the Grimm, "-that thing." Her katana found a place on her waist as did Weiss's saber on her own. The cat had to grit her teeth to lift Crescent Rose much less lug over her back. While Weiss simply handed Sun's hilt to him, who then used it to support Ruby's bottom on his back.

Weiss looked to the Anemoi, "This'll hopefully lead us to the closest form of civilization out here."

"Since you have it, Weiss, you're on point," said Blake. "I'll take up the rear."

Sun finished, "Precious cargo in the center, on it."

Weiss moved on uneven ground, leading the group up a terrain of moss and leaves. Sun moved tentatively, trying to move his tail in a way to balance him without brushing up Ruby's skirt. Blake followed the three, sucking in deep breaths to lift the heavy cargo that was Crescent Rose. So, with no knowledge of the Ruby's semblance, the group pushed themselves as hard and as fast as they could. The Grimm could be freed at any moment and be upon them in seconds.

They didn't speak to one another on a casual level. It wasn't the time for it. Blake and Sun occasionally offered what their hearing could catch beyond Weiss's scope, nudging their path as far from Grimm as possible. Weiss led them forward, calling out the terrain ahead and offering whatever warnings seemed necessary. As time went on, the number of trees surrounding them slowly decreased. The foliage at their feet decreased in both number and size. Soon they were no longer walking on dirt and shrubbery, but sand. Sun was the first to step onto the sediment, looking out at the ocean of sand. The dunes looked like waves frozen in time. The occasionally gust of wind glided over the surface, causing grains to hit them, as they stood at the mouth of the jungle.

Sun cautiously laid Ruby onto the sediment, using her cloak as a blanket against its heat, "This should be far enough." He explained, "Grimm have territories. That thing won't leave it just for us."

Weiss crouched nearby, "What should we do?"

He nodded, "We need to flush her eyes." His hand extended, "Canteen."

Blake passed the item to her partner, "You help him. I'm going to check how much we have."

"Okay," agreed the former heiress.

Sun was handed the canteen, "Well, we can't do much. We don't know what's wrong with her." He opened her eye and began to flush it, "We stabilize her and get ready to keep moving."

Weiss frowned, "Moving?" She looked to the sprawling dunes, "We're at the edge of the desert. Is that really safe?"

He lifted the red cloak, "Look, her cloak is lined with ice-Dust, so are her clothes. She'll last the heat."

"What about you?"

"Me?" He chuckled, "Don't you remember I'm the local here? The heat's my… What's the phrase? Bread and butter?" His smile faltered when his gaze trailed to Ruby.

"Do you know her well?" asked Weiss.

His tail flicked, shaking his head, "Nah, I just met her yesterday."

"Really?" she questioned. "Sorry, it just seems you care about her quite a deal."

Sun scowled, shaking his head, "I just don't like this shit…"

"What?"

"She had to know what this'd do to her, but she did it all the same…"

Weiss pushed, "To save us."

"And handicap us." He shook his head, "Potentially get herself killed, too. She's lucky not to be on a team that's completely local."

First, a frown drew across her face. She seemed offended, but then a moment of thought came and then a question, "What do you mean?"

Sun took a breath, "You got a person down in the middle of Grimm-infested territory. Their weapon is heavier than they are. They just knocked themselves out. And made it clear that they'll put the group over themself."

Blake's voice cut between them, offering, "They'd leave her behind. Take the rations and guarantee their own survival." Her head shook; her arms crossed, "She was willing to sacrifice herself to save us once. She'd understand." Two bags were slung over her shoulders while a red block hung on the back of her belt.

"Wouldn't they… Wouldn't they feel guilty? In the slightest?" posed Weiss.

Sun teetered his head, swinging his tail in rhythm, "Maybe, maybe not."

"There's enough rationale to bury it, if need be," explained Blake.

Weiss took in their words but still shook her head, "That… That can't be. We're training to be Huntresses and Huntsmen!"

Sun sighed, "That shit's more of a job title than anything else. They're more like a cop in Vale or a soldier in Atlas…"

"Mercenary Guilds also operate most of the contract boards. You have to be a part of the guild to get a contract," said Blake.

"Unless you're a Huntsman."

"Which is the closest thing to law and order in this kingdom. It's a status, not really an ideal."

The monkey-Faunus turned to the cat, raising a brow, "And here I thought I was the only local."

"You are," she assured. "I've only been here a few months, but I've seen enough to understand how things work."

"Got your ass kicked by a couple of mercs, huh?" said Sun with a knowing smirk and a flick of his tail.

Blake's jaw seemed tight, "Besides the point…" She let out a sigh, "Being a Huntress out here isn't the same as everywhere else."

Weiss blinked, "I…" Her jaw seemed lazy, "I…" She trailed off, losing herself in herself.

Sun blinked in turn, pulling a slow frown across his face. His brow furrowed as his mouth opened and closed. He turned to Blake; she turned her gaze. A question was posed without words. She shook her head, adding a shrug for ensured clarity. Sun then tilted his head in Weiss's direction, not breaking contact with Blake. She frowned and put her hands up. Her head jerked, a counterproposal. His gaze turned incredulous before he made his proposal again with more force behind his head jerk.

Blake bit her lip before a restricted sigh puffed out. She looked to her partner, "Weiss…" No response, "Weiss." She crouched to her partner's level, "Weiss!"

"H-Huh?"

Her brow turned firm, "Look, I'm sure things aren't how you wanted them to be. That much is obvious, but right now, we are in a bad situation. We don't know how far away the nearest town is and we have a member down. Whether or not, Shade Academy is really what y – we wanted it to be can be dealt with later. We need to get somewhere safe and get Ruby to a doctor." She stated, "Everything about Huntsmen and Huntresses can wait. We need to survive. We need to start moving."

"R…" Weiss shook her head, "You're right…" She looked down at her hands, unfurling them from the fists they were, "It… It has to wait…" A breath was collected; a composure was rekindled. Weiss picked up the Anemoi from her belt, examining it, "The top needle is pointing us into the desert…" She noted, "It's shaking quite a bit, so the obelisk isn't too far away."

Blake nodded, "Hopefully, the nearest town."

"Supplies?" asked Sun.

Blake answered, "Few of our supplies were actually damaged. Twelve days of rations dropped to eight." She proposed, "If we play it safe, we can make them last, at least, sixteen."

Weiss stood, laying her hand on her pommel, "We will repeat as we've done before? I will lead, Sun: middle, and Blake will take the rear?"

"It's worked, I guess," said Blake, shrugging.

Sun nodded, turning to the cat, "Mind helping me get Ruby on my back?"

Weiss nodded, standing in turn, "I will collect my share of the packs."

"Okay," replied Blake. The former heiress moved from the unconscious girl to collect her dropped packs from before.

Sun murmured as Ruby was pulled onto his back, "She's not like you'd expect."

"Yeah," returned Blake. Though, she seemed to trail with that single word as if there was more to be said.

Sun's tail flickered as he stood, balancing the unconscious girl on his back.

"Shall we?" posed Weiss with two packs slung over her shoulders.

And so, their trek through the sands began. The group fell into a long bout of silence as their ice-Dust fought the heat. Weiss and Blake exchanged some words, but the heat silenced them. It was an hour or two into the sands where the group began to slow their pace—well, two out of four. The sun's position was slowly sinking into the horizon, shooting sunlight at them directly across the dunes. The heat stung their skin and radiated throughout their bodies. Blake's coat was no longer upon her back as it laid atop of her head to release her skin from fabric. Weiss had stripped her vest and rolled her sleeves. All done while Sun carried Ruby along, occasionally taking a break to examine her.

Sun let out a pant as his calves burned, pushing up the slope of a dune.

Weiss turned from its peak, "Sun? Are you okay?"

"We can take another break if you need to," suggested Blake from behind him.

"No…" Another step forward wafted underneath him, "I'm fine." He had to fight the grunt and growl building in his throat as he did so. So, he distracted himself, "How badly is that thing shaking?"

"Violently," answered Weiss.

Sun shook his head, "We're close… I can wait…" He added, "The sun's setting, too."

"The Grimm are worse at night," affirmed Blake. "Not to mention the coming chill."

"Bright side," offered Sun, "we don't have to deal with an Aspidochelone or a Charybdis."

"Excuse me?" asked Weiss as Sun reached her atop of the dune.

He elaborated, "Aspidochelone and Charybdis. Two giant Grimm that'll drown you in sand or swallow you in a pitfall of it—respectively." He shook his head, "Don't worry about them for now. We're still too close to the jungle for them to be swimming around."

Weiss carefully skidded down the slope onto a plateau. "I haven't even heard of those…"

"The Grimm here… are unique to the desert and rainforest." Sun slid down the dune after her, "There's no reason for any of the other kingdoms to care. Much less ask about 'em."

Blake skipped down the dune, matching the pace of the group, "Too busy protecting their own borders and settlements."

-XXX-

The Headmaster sat at her small desk, overlooking the ocean of sand. Her tablet vibrated before she tapped her screen to answer the call, "Yes?"

Professor Crone responded, "I am reporting on Team Thirty-Five."

"Go ahead."

Professor Crone replied, "When it comes to encounters, in terms of kills, they've done well. Mostly Misgola, however. Shanxiao was killed by Mr. Wukong—not unexpected."

"That's impressive."

He spoke slowly, "A strange… semblance has been noted." He slowly explained, "A bright light shone from Ms. Rose's eyes. While she was incapacitated, a Lynx was as well. It seemed aware while frozen in time. The light shone upon them all—her team, but the Grimm was the only thing affected."

"Hm…"

"And, after the group had moved Ms. Rose closer to the edge of the jungle, the Grimm was freed." He then added, "I did take the liberty of killing it."

She nodded, "Good work."

Professor Crone noted, "They're well into the desert and will make it to Zerzura before sunset. Mr. Wukong has taken up the mantle of guide as of late."

The Headmaster smiled, "As expected of him."

"Headmaster, may I ask a question?"

"You may."

"Are we certain that leaving this selection to complete chance is for the best?"

She examined the cards before her, "Not completely to chance."

There was a pause before he replied, "Of course." He added, "I will be returning to my observations," before the call ended.

-XXX-

Ruby's eyes fluttered open, they were tunneled, and they burned. Of course, they did. "Damn it…" She still couldn't use them; not like her mom left any notes. For all she knew, the only way to get used to them would be to repeatedly use them. "Yeah, right…" Her ears were still ringing, and her head throbbed like the beating heart of a marathoner. It was another moment before she realized she was leaning against someone's back.

It was another moment before he noticed her, "Hey there, Red." He dropped into a crouch, slowly sitting her down, "You're awake, finally."

Blake walked up, setting their bags on the ground, "Ruby, are you okay?"

Ruby sat upon the sediment, "Y-Yeah…" She pulled the hem of her head over her face, "It's just really bright… and don't talk too loud, please."

"Bright?" questioned Weiss. "The sun is setting? How?"

"Hangover rules?"

"You're not experienced in that sort of thing, are you?" pointed Weiss, crossing her arms.

"Eeh…" was the only response.

The former heiress turned her gaze to the reaper, after rolling her eyes of course, "How are you doing?"

The redhead groaned, "Not horrible, but definitely not good."

Sun looked amongst them, "How are your Dust-lacings holding up?"

The former heiress shrugged, "Well, I haven't felt the need to completely abandon any clothing, so everything's going as well as it needs to."

The cat sighed, sitting on her coat, "I'm pretty okay." She picked at her legwear, "Black isn't exactly the best suited for this environment…"

Sun shrugged, "Heh, yeah. Either a new color or a ton of more Dust." He turned, "You, Red?"

Ruby muttered, "Pretty... okay."

Weiss raised a brow, "Do you think you can walk?"

"I can try." She sighed, furrowing her brow and blinking, "But… My eyes... They're barely focusing on anything."

"We can take turns helping you the rest of the way." Blake added, "Weiss and I. Sun's been carrying you this entire way, so he's getting a break."

Sun blinked for a moment before letting a smile break, "Thanks."

"Don't thank me," scolded Blake, rolling her eyes. "You'll have to carry the supplies when we help Ruby."

"That's not that bad," he countered. He smirked, flexing his biceps, "Heck, I could handle Ruby and all four packs!"

Ruby groggily murmured, "Bet you can…", before she blinked. "I feel like I said that out loud…"

Sun smirked with the flick of his tail, "You did."

Her face reddened, from the heat no doubt, as she pulled at her hood, "O-Oh…"

"No matter… Whatever this is," interrupted Weiss, gesturing to the crouching pair. She put her hands on her hips, point to Sun, "You will refrain from doing so. We don't need you collapsing on us too."

A casual salute was given, "Understood, milady." Her eyes practically rolled out of her head for that.

"I'll help you, first," offered Blake to Ruby. "Sun?" said she as her packs slid off her shoulders.

"On it."

Blake then unhooked a red block of metal from her belt, "Do you think you can carry this thing?"

Ruby cried, "Hey!" Then recoiled, bracing the side of her temple, "Ow…" Before murmuring out, "Don't… Don't call Crescent Rose a thing…"

"Right…" Blake then offered, "Sorry." Though, her voice was hardly sincere instead coming off more bewildered than anything else. She ignored the look in response, tugging Ruby's arm over her shoulder. The other half of the team took up the remaining positions. With shoes and boots filled with sand, the quartet pushed forward once more.

-X-

The sun was dipping into the horizon, painting the sky in violets, oranges, and reds. Sun climbed to the top of the dune, looking into the distance. Weiss now supported Ruby, as best she could. The former heiress was equal to the reaper's height while also being on the weaker side in strength. She was more cane than crutch, and thus opted to walk around the dune rather than through. Blake followed after them, ensuring she covered their backs as her position required.

Sun skidded down the dune to meet them, gesturing for them to look onward. A town laid in the distance, silhouetted by the dimming light. It was a village surrounded by a fifteen-foot-tall wall of clay. Combined with these clay walls, there were thick plates of metal riveted into the dried material. At the points along the wall, there were watchtowers made up of similar materials. Atop of those towers, there were large, mounted guns alongside gigantic lanterns with energized gems of Dust, casting light into curved glass. These lanterns were brought to life as the sun had begun to set. There were a small number of buildings that rose above the wall. Their rooftops were flat and some of them even had rope bridges connecting them together. The buildings were primarily made of wood and drywall.

Ruby smiled weakly, "We made it…" Though, she couldn't keep looking forward as the sunlight irritated her damaged eyes. A wince and whine escaped her lips.

"Be careful, you dunce," scolded Weiss, rolling her eyes.

Blake pondered, "Do you think they're expecting us?"

"Probably, considering the Anemoi," suggested Sun with a shrug.

The group moved forward as Ruby asked with eyes screwed shut, "H-Hey… Why haven't we run into anyone yet? I mean… Shouldn't we have seen at least someone out here?"

Weiss turned to Sun, "Are there many towns near the jungle?"

His eyes narrowed as he pondered, "It's hard to say." He shrugged, "These places are like blips in a system. One week, they're there and the next second, they're gone."

The cat muttered, "Yeah, that's just how these settlements are everywhere."

Sun tossed out, "And, well, some of the teams are probably from Vacuo, so they might be trying to hoof it all the way there without pitstops."

Weiss shook her head, "I can't imagine that." Her eyes widened for a moment as she slipped on an uneven surface, nearly sending herself and Ruby into the sands.

Sun chuckled while rolling his eyes, "Hey, Blake?" He held out the Anemoi, "Why don't you take the lead? Weiss kinda sucks at helping out, Ruby."

"I can hear you!" growled Weiss.

"Weiss!" cried Ruby.

A look of worry shot to Ruby, "S-Sorry…" She spat back at the monkey, albeit with a quieted pitch, "And I thought we agreed on disallowing you from assisting Ruby." "You've already done enough."

Sun crossed his arms, shrugging, "We're in the homestretch. Not much walking left to do and comparing the packs to Red, let's just say I'm well-rested."

"H-Hey, I'm not that heavy..." Her eyes barely opened, tilting her head, "Am I...?"

Weiss seemed like she had half the mind to comment, but refrained. She took a moment to reexamine herself. Her ankles and knees shook while her arms' muscles cramped like they never had before. She was more at risk to collapse than Sun was. She shook her head at herself before raising her gaze to meet his. A gesture was made before the two traded luggage.

Sun pulled Ruby's arm over his shoulder, "Not at all, Red, lighter than a feather."

"A bit heavier than a feather," murmured Weiss, earning a chuckle from Sun. His pace was slow with another's in tow. Blake considered properly leading the group to the settlement on point, but with their target in sight, she decided to remain in the rear. Her eyes were focused ahead and around the precious cargo. She blinked when she noticed Weiss's pace slow to match hers.

Weiss offered, "How are you doing?"

She rolled her shoulders, "Now that the heat has died down? Peachy." She looked off to the side and gazed into the distance, tucking her hands behind her back, "When it comes to the walk, I'm fine. I've done this more than once, to be honest."

"Really?"

"Yes. My father had to move supplies from the badlands to our…" She trailed off for a moment before finishing with, "settlement." She waited for a moment to see whether or not Weiss would accept that finish before continuing, "Though, we did have some vehicles to lessen the burden."

"So, is this a dramatic change for you?"

"It's a good one."

Weiss blinked before nodding solemnly; a soft smile graced her face, "Ah, the old life wasn't too charming?"

Blake looked at her, blinking for a moment. It was strange to be on some sort of equal ground. Sure, there wasn't a complete understanding, but that isn't always possible. Everything was relative, after all. "Sometimes, that's enough…" She took a breath, "No… Not at all." She looked towards the shifting sky, "I'll admit that sometimes it felt like I was living my best life, but…"

"You weren't," the former heiress finished. "At least… not for yourself…" The cat stared as Weiss gazed at the shifting sky, "Honeyed words and rose-colored glasses…" Their eyes met, and with a shrug, she said, "Happens to the best of us."

The cat blinked and stared before looking forward and nodding, "I suppose it does…"

-\ XXX /-

AN: Hello-hello, folks! We are back! Now, there's a lot of stuff to go over overall. First, I've decided that team YLAN will be making a reappearance! Eventually... One day... Whatever, in the end, they will be a reoccurring set of characters later on with a plot-relevant role.

Next, Silver-Eyes and my nerf hammer. An untrained user is harshly punished for their use and without the Grim Reaper's teachings, Ruby has no real chance at becoming trained. This makes them effectively useless for the most part. Which is the intention.

From there, the chapter is mostly about the rest of the team with some expositing about Vacuo. Blake and Sun are realists. They best understand the harshness and moral-greyness of the wasteland. Currently, both fulfil a sort of leadership role as Sun is the expert in all things Vacuo while Blake serves survival tactics. Ruby leans more into idealistic beliefs, great sacrifice and other heroics. Weiss shares in some idealism while also being relatively grounded depending on the subject. Both have much to learn over Initiation.

P.S. RETCONS: Yang's 19-Years-Old design has been altered. For those not knowing, she has shorter hair, a Cheshire-grin scar, and an altered outfit.

I'm not sure what else to say, so, I'll end it here.

Criticize away and thank you for reading!