Gamer4 in. Welp, the vote was pretty clear- and over surprisingly quickly. Nobody even voted past the first couple days. Well, I'm not complaining- I'm eager to get to this universe. Without further adieu...

Disclaimer: Xenoblades 1, 2, and X are the property of Monolith Software and Nintendo.

Episode XVI

The Road to Shambhala

Everyone was staring slack-jawed as the screen darkened again. "That world... is weird," Ruby commented.

"Oh, you haven't even seen the half of it," Crazy smirked.

"But we gotta take a break, don't we?" George piped up, winking at the audience covertly. "Don't you wanna show them that world?"

"'That' world?" Crazy asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"The world of titans!"

Suddenly, Crazy's face broke into a grin. "Oh, that world! I gotcha!"

He beamed as he jumped up to get the next world going when the window burst open and a particularly odd young man burst in. He had dirty brown hair just covering the back of his neck, draped around mud-colored eyes. He wore a white button-up uniform reminiscent of a military officer, complete with a beret, and a large cloak waving dramatically behind him.

"STEP ASIDE!" he declared dramatically. "IT'S MY TIME TO SHINE!"

Everyone stared at him for a solid ten seconds.

"...Who're you?" Ruby finally asked.

He face-faulted. "I'm... Steven Ripfist. The guy... I was here... during the... Halloween special? Dressed up like Shinji Arigaki?"

"Nope, doesn't ring a bell," Nora shrugged.

Stephen forced himself back to his feet, forcing the cloak back for dramatic effect. "Well... well, here I am! And I've got the next universe for-"

"Sorry, Stephen, but we're not watching whatever universe you've got up your sleeve," Crazy interrupted. "We're going to the world of-"

Stephen eyed him up and down ferociously. "I'm sorry, we're not watching my world? I've been waiting forever for this moment! Didn't you join my team?! Didn't you take inspiration from games I recommended?! And now you just wanna leave me out in the cold?! I don't think so! I'm showing off this universe, so SIT DOWN!"

Everyone stared, taken aback. "Wow... guy's got some lungs on him," Yang commented.

Crazy shrugged. "Alright, put it in."

"You're giving in, just like that?!" George asked, aghast.

"I'm a sucker for Robin Williams references," Crazy shrugged again. "Plug 'er in, and show us what you got, Stephen!"

"...It's with a 'V,' Stephen pouted as he plugged the next world in.

(Real) Episode XVI

Trigger Happy Havoc

The screen started black, until a spotlight illuminated a stool, upon which sat a bizarre sight:

It was a woman, but she was... small. Only two and a half feet tall, and rather pudgy- Blake recognized the art style as 'chibi,' to be exact- but the most striking difference was the line down her face. The right side was more normal, regular skin, light blond hair and a blue eye. On the other side, her hair was bone white, her skin like paper, sieged with black cracks and an evil red eye. The more human side had a gentle smile- the other, a wide, toothy, malicious grin. Even her clothes were split down the middle- a single robe, stitched from white on one side, pitch black on the other.

"What is... that?" Weiss asked, unnerved.

"I think we've seen... something like that before," Pyrrha shivered. "I can't quite recall..."

"That... is Salem," Crazy whispered. "The archfiend of your world."

"That... is Salem," Ruby whispered. Her eyes were suddenly itching.

"Why's she so small?" Nora wondered, tilting her head and raising a hand to her chin.

"That... is a good question, Nora," Ren nodded. Nora preened at the praise.

More light infiltrated the scene, revealing the rest of the room- a darkened classroom-style setting, complete with a tall woman tied up to a chair, struggling against the rope and a blindfold.

Weiss gasped. "Winter?!"

"Winter- as in, your sister, Winter?" Ruby asked, aghast.

"That's your sister?" Yang asked, eyes immediately turning red at the idea of seeing a family member in such clear danger.

"How did that... that thing capture her?!" Weiss asked, wide-eyed.

Chibi-Salem tilted her head, giggling quite clearly. A large red button appeared from the ground in front of her- she struck it with a large mallet. Out of nowhere, two large pieces of what seemed to be a spaceship appeared and slammed together around the struggling woman. A moment later, it blasted off into the ceiling- instead of colliding with it, the screen cut to an odd, abstract painting version of space, complete with a sun and moon portrayed with large eyes and mouths, watching with reserved fascination as the ship came up between them before collapsing back into the classroom.

Another moment passed before the ship fell apart, a skeleton spilling out onto the ground.

Weiss's jaw dropped. "No... Winter..."

"That bitch," Yang snarled, smashing her fists together.

"Why... why did you want to show us this?!" Weiss asked, furiously turning towards Stephen.

"Just watch, just watch!" he insisted quickly.

The screen had turned black, then lit up again on a shot of Beacon.

"Oooohhh, Beacon! Just like back home!" Nora grinned.

"Not just like it, I suspect," Ren shook his head.

"Yeah, this ain't the Remnant you know," Stephen agreed.

A voice spoke up, narrating the scene. The massive high school towers over the small city of Vale- from here, it almost seems like the center of the world. Beacon Academy...

"That may not be our Remnant, but I'd recognize our Jaune-Jaune anywhere!" Nora grinned, pulling Jaune into a noogie.

"Nora... stop..." he grumbled as he struggled to pull away.

One of the world's top schools, it brings in top students from every field imaginable. A government-funded school of privilege...

"So no faunus," Blake guessed.

"It's not all that," Stephen shook his head. "Just give it a sec."

They say if you come here and manage to graduate, you'll be set for life. With hundreds of years of tradition behind it, it's got quite the history. There's a reason it's come to be known as the School of Hope.

"Geez," Yang groaned. "We get it, it's a big deal! Tell us something we don't know!"

"If we're going to watch this world, Yang, we should understand as much as we can about it," Blake chastised.

Humans, faunus, it doesn't matter- there are only two things you need to get into this school: first, of course, be a high school student. Second... be the very best at what you do.

"Then how did Jaune get in?" Weiss asked with a quirked eyebrow. At the ferocious glares from the others, she raised her hands. "Don't look at me, it's simply a fact that he's not exactly the academic best!"

"I think you're taking the term 'best' a little too narrowly," Stephen smirked.

There are no transcripts or entrance exams for this school- the only way to get in is if they seek you out. And here, at the front gates of this ultimate school...

Is me.

The camera panned down to reveal Jaune Arc, staring up at the school with sheer awe in his eyes.

"So you must have done something to really stand out, Jaune!" Pyrrha beamed, wrapping an arm around him.

"I'm not gonna hold my breath on that one," Jaune whispered.

Yeah... me... Jaune Arc. The epitome of the average high school student. Average outside, average inside- no special abilities or anything. I mean, if you were to ask me about my favorite show, or band, or whatever, I'd just say whatever's popular.

"Yeah... that sounds about right," Jaune nodded, pulling back a bit.

"You've improved by leaps and bounds since you joined Beacon!" Pyrrha encouraged him.

"And like she said, you've gotta have done something to catch Beacon's attention!" Yang joined in, flashing a sunny smile his way.

Like I said, Beacon only accepts those who are elite in their field- so there tends to be a lot of online discussion about who'll be accepted each new term. To prepare, I looked up online to see what kinds of kids I'd be spending this year with:

The first one to catch my attention was the Ultimate Tournament Fighter, Pyrrha Nikos. Only a high school student, but already a champion across multiple kingdoms for her feats of skill on the battlefield.

Pyrrha blushed, and attempted to turtle her way into her armor- armor that wasn't exactly conducive to being turtled into. The rest of her team smirked at her.

Sage Ayana, the Ultimate Knife Thrower- they say he can hit an apple from the other side of a football field, but that has to be hyperbole... right?

"A more... esoteric skill," Weiss admitted, "but still not beyond the realms of possibility, I suppose..."

Coco Adele, the Ultimate Fashionista- she's been on the cover of tons of magazines- she's what every high school girl wants to be.

"Speak for yourself," Yang scoffed.

"Sure sounds like her, though," Weiss pondered. "i mean, we don't know that much about her..."

And there's even the Ultimate Bike Gang Leader, Cardin Winchester!"

"Cardin?" Ruby snorted. "He's got an ultimate talent?"

"Leading a bike gang is good enough to get him into a school of such prestige?" Weiss asked indignantly.

"Hey, they said you had to be the best in your field- and when they say any field, they mean it!"

"I suppose they must," Pyrrha frowned.

Not only does he lead the largest bike gang in Vytal, he's the de facto leader of every gang in the kingdom!

"I shudder to think..." Weiss muttered.

The Ultimate Track Runner, the Ultimate Martial Artist, the Ultimate Fanfic Writer... sky's the limit around here. But among all these talents, what do I have? What's the purpose of this little housecat entering a den of lions?

...There was a lottery to accept one ordinary student as the Ultimate Lucky Student... and that happened to be me.

"...Ouch," Yang winced on Jaune's behalf.

"Yeah... I guess I really shouldn't have expected much more," Jaune muttered.

"Well... I..." Pyrrha fumbled momentarily. "Jaune, maybe you didn't get in with a fantastic talent... but if there's anywhere that will help you cultivate what you do have, I'm sure it's this school!"

Blake tilted her head. "Which, in my mind, begs the question... what does any of this have to do with the opening?"

Everyone else paused, realizing that she was absolutely right.

Yup, pure luck, Jaune reflected. I was tempted to turn the offer down. Really, it was my sister, Vermillion, that talked me into it.

"That sounds like Vermillion, alright," Jaune smiled wanly.

"One of your actual sisters?" Ruby asked curiously.

"The only one younger than me- just by one year," Jaune confirmed. "She's always been my biggest cheerleader."

But still... standing here, looking up at the school... I can't help feeling like I don't really belong.

"You'll make your place, Jaune," Pyrrha quietly encouraged.

But... I can't exactly hang around all day, either...

I looked down at the note in my hand, stiffened my resolve, and stepped inside.

"Let's see..." Jaune muttered to himself as he looked around. "I'm supposed to be in the entrance hall by 8..."

He looked at his watch to find that it was just turning to seven. "Okay, that's fine, I just need to waiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitttttttttt aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa whhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..."

His speech slurred as the screen distorted, before fading away entirely to blackness.

Everyone blinked. "So, VB," Yang said slowly, "what kinda drugs you on? Let me know so I can make sure to never try them myself."

"You shouldn't be doing drugs anyways, you brute," Weiss sniped.

"I don't think those were drugs," Pyrrha shook her head. "I think something far more sinister is afoot..."

That is how it happened, Jaune's voice returned. That's how life as I knew it came to an end. That was the beginning of my realization... I wasn't there because of my luck... I was there to experience Ultimate Despair.

"Ominous," Blake noted, chewing on a thumbnail.

A groan came from the blank screen, which lit up to show Jaune asleep on a desk, but waking up.

"Really, Jaune?" Weiss asked, crossing her arms. "You have the opportunity to attend the most prestigious school in the kingdom, and you sleep through your classes?"

"Didn't we already establish that there's something more nefarious going on?" Ren pointed out.

Jaune looked around sleepily. "What... what's this?" he wondered aloud as he looked around. "I mean, I've been known to fall asleep in class before, but..."

His eyes fell on the windows. "The heck?" He approached them to verify, but it was true- every window was bolted shut by large, steel plates.

"Oh, yeah, that's perfectly normal," Yang grunted.

He turned to the head of the class, and caught sight of a security camera taking the class- it didn't do anything to comfort him.

"Glad we don't have anything like that in our Beacon," Ruby shuddered.

Finally, his search for answers took him back to the desk he'd woken up from, where he found a crudely- drawn pamphlet- crayon on white paper folded with very minimal effort. He picked it up and read it aloud to himself:

"'The next semester is about to start. As of today, this school will be your entire world.' What kind of message...?"

He trailed off, looking over his shoulder at the door. "Someone's gotta be playing a joke... I should head back to the entrance hall, maybe someone there will know what's going on."

He hurried down a tangle of unfamiliar hallways until he found his way back into the entrance hall- far more crowded than when he'd left it.

"Ah, a new arrival," came a soft, thoughtful voice as he entered.

Jaune faltered. "Oh... so you all must be..."

"Oh- so that's everyone?" Nora asked, blinking.

"Eep! I'm in there!" Ruby squeaked. "I'm an ultimate?"

Yang smirked as she caught her sister rubbing her knees.

"Ah, pooh, Rennie and I aren't there!" Nora huffed.

"Hmm... neither am I," Blake noted.

"You all come in later," Stephen waved aside. "Just watch!"

"Yup," came a far more laid-back voice. "We're all new here- supposed to be at our first day."

"And he makes fifteen," nodded a very soft voice. "A good cut-off point, but I wonder if there's anyone else..."

Jaune looked nervous- narration provided some insight.

All of the Ultimates stood in front of me. All I could do was stand there and take in their faces. It might have just been me, but I could swear I felt an aura of some sort coming from them...

"So aura's a thing in this world, at least," Ruby let out a hopeful sigh.

"Not what he means," Stephen shook his head. "Not your kind of aura, a different sort... of... thing."

"Well, said, Stephen, well-said," George rolled his eyes.

"It's SteVen!" Stephen objected futilely.

Jaune bit his tongue for a moment, then finally spoke up. "Er... hi! My... my name's Jaune... of the... of the Arc family! Last name- last name's Arc. Er... sorry I'm late... stuff happened... and I just... found myself asleep."

"You too, huh?" a young man with blond hair and an open white shirt nodded.

"Oh, Sun!" Nora grinned. "Ain't seen him since that one universe where Jaune was a demon pervert!"

"...Not sure I want to know about that one," Jaune muttered.

"And things only get stranger," commented a tallish woman with light blond hair and tanned skin.

"...Nope, don't know that one," Ruby shook her head.

"Strange indeed! We've certainly found ourselves plunging down quite the rabbit hole!" declared a portly young man with light brown hair.

"Urgh... Dove Bronzewing... like Cardin being here wasn't enough," Blake groaned.

"So you guys don't know what's going on, either?" Jaune asked in disappointment.

"'Fraid not, kid," a dark-skinned man in a blue uniform and dark hat shook his head. "We've been talkin' for a good ten minutes or so. Where you been, speaking of? Thought we all knew the meeting at eight?"

"...Flynt Coal," Pyrrha said after a moment of thought. "He's from Atlas- I've seen him around a bit.

"Oh, Flynt, I think we can give him a break," said a sultry voice interrupted. "It doesn't seem like it's his own fault."

"There's Coco," Pyrrha noted. "...Why is she eyeing Jaune up and down like that?"

"She did it," Ruby declared, crossing her arms and glaring at the screen. "I don't know what's going on in this universe, but whatever it is, she did it."

"Well, hold on, now-" Stephen tried to speak up.

"Nope, Nora's right," George nodded with a note of mischief in his eyes. "She definitely did it."

"Did what, now?" Crazy asked, a question mark appearing over his head.

"It."

Crazy tilted his head, then smirked. "Is this your boat, Georgie?" he asked in an odd voice, raising a folded paper boat out of nowhere. "Would you like it ba-"

His jest was met with a baseball bat to the face.

"Impaled... on my own sword..."

"Ignore him," George instructed.

"That seems for the best, yes," Weiss agreed.

"Everyone, calm down!" piped up a much higher voice. "We should all introduce ourselves!"

"Ruby!" Yang grinned, giving her sister a patented bear hug.

"This ain't the time for introductions, pipsqueak," grunted a large boy with red hair in a clear pompadour.

"And the man himself," Blake groaned even more heavily.

"An awkward time for introductions, perhaps," the tan-skinned woman from before interjected, "but we should at least know each others' names before we can tackle the greater issues at hand."

"That... that's a good point," nodded a meek-looking girl with rabbit ears and long brown hair.

"Oooh, Velvet!" Nora piped up. "I've always wanted to get to know her better- those bunny ears are adorable!"

"Agreed," nodded a red-haired young woman with emerald eyes. "Once we have a basic idea of who we're working with, we can focus on what's actually happening."

"Aaaaaand our Pyrrha!" Yang smirked, thumping her on the back.

I couldn't help agreeing with them- it was best to get to know each other first, worry later.

He ended up talking to Dove first.

"Er... Jaune Arc... Ultimate Good Luck."

"Dove Bronzewing!" Dove introduced himself with much aplomb. "But... if you want to call me by my nickname, 'THE ALPHA AND OMEGA!'... I don't mind."

"Nobody calls you that, you dweeb," grunted a passing Cardin.

"Yeah... nobody does," Dove lamented momentarily, before perking up. "Anyways, I'm the Ultimate Fanfic Writer!"

"Pffft... nerd," Yang chortled.

"I'm right here, you know," Crazy grunted.

"So?"

"...Nyoro~n..."

"On which subject... what do you know about the world of... 2D?"

"Er... isn't that a character in Nier-"

"NO IT IS NOT!" Dove burst out, before calming himself down. "My apologies, Mr. Arc, I seem to have... developed something of a complex."

"So... fanfiction?"

"Yes, indeedie! In fact, I once sold thousand copies of one of my fan comics at a school festival- an event that has since passed into legend! Can you believe some people had the gall to accuse me of 'tainting' the event?!"

"Er..."

"Of course, the words of such philistines mean nothing to me. I am much like Mr. Lovecraft- totally unappreciated in my time! I must struggle, day and night, against such mindless misconceptions of fanfiction!"

"Sweet- power to you, I guess."

"You seem very wise, Mr. Arc- I'm sure if you were to bear witness to my work, you'd understand its deepest meanings immediately!"

"What kind of meaning we talking about?"

"It's all about tapping into our shadows- our very basest urges- and-"

Jaune tuned the rest of it out. Hmmm... suddenly, I'm not certain I want to understand.

"Agreed," Weiss wrinkled her nose. "Dove seems hardly any better in this world than our own."

"I don't know if I'd go that far," Pyrrha shrugged. "He seems far more pleasant to me- in his own strange way."

Jaune moved on to a tall boy with dark skin and gold-ringed eyes. "Sage Ayana," he introduced without preamble.

"Sage?" Ruby asked, tilting her head with a finger on her chin.

"He's on Sun's team," Blake recalled immediately.

"Oh, yeah- you're the Ultimate Knife Thrower, right?"

"That I am," Sage nodded, somewhat curtly.

"Huh... wouldn't have thought..."

"I get that a lot. Most people envision me holding a far larger blade, for some reason. It makes for some awkward conversations when I meet people who don't feel I live up to their expectations."

"Even I've had experiences like that, from time to time," Pyrrha admitted in a tone indicating she didn't particularly care to go too deep into such stories.

"However, I am who I am, accept me or leave me. In all honesty, I don't particularly care for knife throwing in any case- it's not something I truly enjoy, just something I've always been able to do. Because of that, people expect me to stick to it my entire life- but in Beacon, I see an opportunity to hone other skills, to break free of these constrictions. Do you understand?"

"I guess I can understand... wanting to seize your destiny," Jaune shrugged offhandedly.

"Wonderful," Sage smiled. "Should you wish to join me, feel free to approach me at any time."

"I like him," Nora smiled. "Kinda like Ren- though not as cool, of course," she added quickly.

Next up... Pyrrha.

"Ohh, here we go!" Yang grinned, helping herself to some popcorn as she eagerly awaited this exchange. Pyrrha blushed, while Jaune leaned forward, eager to see his partner in another world.

"Hello, again!" Pyrrha greeted jovially. "Pyrrha Nikos- I look forward to getting to know you!"

Jaune remained silent and wide-eyed, clearly starstruck.

"Er... I think this version of Jaune does know about her," Blake guessed, almost apologetically.

"Oh... I suppose that's... to be expected... across enough worlds," Pyrrha muttered slowly, struggling to hide her disappointment.

"Yeah, I... I know who you are," Jaune stammered out. "The Ultimate Tournament Fighter. Head of Vytal's greatest team, undefeated champion."

I didn't say it out loud, but that's not the only reason I knew her...

Pyrrha perked up. "Pardon?"

Clearly a rhetorical question- nobody dared answer.

Standing in front of her... she's like pure perfection.

"Oh, I can assure you, I'm far from perfect," Pyrrha chuckled.

Jaune did a double-take. "Wha- how did you-"

"Oh- I'm psychic," Pyrrha explained as offhandedly as if explaining that her hair was red.

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?!" everyone in the audience gaped.

"You- you wha-"

"Kidding, kidding, just kidding," Pyrrha giggled. "I just have really good intuition."

Yang belly-laughed. "This world's Pyrrha's a bit of a troll!"

Pyrrha shrunk into herself a bit, embarassed.

Huh... a sharp one...

"This may sound strange," Pyrrha continued, "but... did you-"

"Time to switch off, lovebirds," Flynt Coal butted in. "We can talk about our deepest feelings later- right now, we're just doing introductions, okay?"

Jaune and Pyrrha both turned brightly red before moving on to their next partners.

Yang snorted. "Cockblocked..."

"Oh, leave them be, you brute," Weiss rolled her eyes heavily.

Next, Jaune found himself in front of a short, dark-skinned girl with brown hair in a ponytail. She struggled to meet his eyes, seeming more fixated on the ground behind him.

Blake stared. "No way..."

"You know her, Blakey?" Yang asked.

"Give me a minute... I want to see..."

"Er... Jaune Arc?" Jaune took the initiative and introduced himself first. "Who... who might you be?"

"N-n-not that you'll r-remember my n-n-name anyways," the girl stammered, "but... Ilia. Ilia... Amitola. Ultimate... Writer."

"It is her!" Blake exclaimed. "I knew her back in Menagerie- I..." she trailed off a bit. "I left her... in the White Fang..."

Looking for a change of subject, Nora piped up with, "So she's a faunus, too? Doesn't really look it."

"You'll see, I'm guessing," Blake muttered, content to shrink into the sofa, gratefully accepting Nacho's invitation to fluff therapy when it was offered.

Yeah, even I've heard of her. Wrote a novel when she was ten that launched her literary career, but she was fifteen when she released her biggest hit, Ninjas of Love. Can't say I know much about it myself, but it was popular enough with women to launch ninjas back into the collective consciousness...

Upon hearing that title, Blake's ears flattened and she pulled herself even further into the couch, looking like she'd gratefully smother herself in Nacho's fur if she could.

At seventeen, she's won countless prizes and her name is practically enough to guarantee a best seller. Thinking of all that... she's not quite the type I might have expected...

Jaune only realized he'd been staring when Ilia called him out on it in her small, stuttery voice. "I-it's not p-p-polite to s-stare, you know." Abruptly, her eyebrows narrowed and she burst out with "Stop staring at me like some filthy creature!"

"F-filthy... what?" Jaune asked, taken aback. "No, no, I wasn't thinking-"

"I know what you were thinking," Ilia cut him off. "You're disgusted that a faunus dare stands in your presence!"

"...You're a faunus?" Jaune asked, nonplused.

"A chameleon faunus, to be exact," Ilia nodded fiercely, various spots on her body turning red as she glared at him. "Oh, I can smell the disgust coming off of you..."

"No, no!" Jaune waved his hands. "I wasn't-"

"Don't even try to lie to me!" Ilia countered again. "I know it's true, otherwise, you... I KNOW YOU CAN'T STAND LOOKING AT ME! N... n-n-not like I care... I'm used t-t-to it..."

Jaune blinked, then calmly moved on to the next person- who happened to be Flynt Coal.

"Wow... is she like that in our world?" Yang couldn't help asking.

"Less... exaggerated," Blake searched for the proper words, "but... yes."

"Flynt Coal," Flynt finally formally introduced himself. "The Ultimate Moral Compass, so everyone expects me to be uptight... but don't worry, I'll just try and keep you on track from the sidelines."

Yeah... that matches up with what I've read about him. He's a flawless honor student, even if you wouldn't guess it from looking at him. Coming from Atlas, it makes sense that he respects the rules as much as he does, but I'm glad to see he's not... extreme about it.

"So, you were sayin' your name is Jaune Arc?"

"Yeah, that's my name."

Flynt smiled. "That's a good name- strong name. You oughtta thank your parents for that name. I hope you don't mind if I try and help you live up to it."

"Er... sounds like a plan?" Jaune shrugged.

"Well, no point wastin' time- let's trade off, shall we?"

"Never really got to know Flynt," Jaune pondered. "Seems like a decent enough guy."

After some shuffling, Jaune found himself face-to-face with a small girl with black hair and silver eyes. "Hi!" she beamed up at him. "Name's Ruby Rose- you can call me Rubes if you want! I'm the Ultimate Track Runner!"

Yang laughed. "Yup, that makes sense!"

"She does move quite fast," Ren nodded his agreement.

"There is a certain amount of logic within that," Pyrrha fell in.

"Normal knees... normal knees," Ruby was rapidly muttering to herself.

Yup, I know her, too. She's been busting sprint records since elementary school. Word on the Wind is, she's set to run in the Olympics soon. Between that and the whole 'adorable little sister' thing she's got going on, she's earned herself quite a few fans.

"Not that I blame anyone for that," Yang tilted her head, "but they'd better just see her as a little sister..."

Ruby leaned away from her a bit, eyeing her cracking knuckles.

"Sorry, but I already forgot your name," Ruby apologized, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly.

"Oh, no problem- it's Jaune, Jaune Arc."

"Got it!" Ruby grinned, raising her right hand and writing on it with her left finger. "Jaune... Arc... Jaune... Arc... Jaune... Arc..."

"Er... what're you doing?"

"You didn't know? If you wanna remember somebody's name, you write it on your hand three times!" Ruby explained brightly.

Weiss sighed, introducing her face to her palm- conveniently hiding the small smile forming there. "That sounds exactly like the sort of childish nonsense I'd expect from her..."

"I am not a child!" Ruby objected, crossing her arms and pouting childishly.

"Well, glad to know ya, Jaune!" she smiled brightly before moving on. Jaune smiled after her.

She certainly reminds me of Vermillion, in a way...

"Now that I think about it, yeah, she kinda does," Jaune nodded thoughtfully.

Ruby's pout deepened. I don't wanna just be a little sister, though...

Next came the girl with the rabbit ears, looking very shy as he approached her. "Er... nice to meet you... I'm Velvet Scarlatina... the Ultimate Programmer..."

"Velvet's good with computers?" Nora pondered. "Huh, maybe she can help me- our computer just keeps breaking down whenever I touch it."

"I think that has more to do with you zapping it whenever you touch it," Ren speculated. "Besides, I'm guessing that's something exclusive to this world."

"Pooh," Nora matched Ruby's pout.

"Sorry," Velvet apologized. "I get kinda nervous whenever I introduce myself... I just hope we can get along..."

"I'll hope for that, too," Jaune smiled gently.

I've heard of her, too. She's been breaking new ground in the field of programming since she was seven. The whole 'bunny' thing she's got going for her definitely endears her to her legions of fans, too.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Velvet suddenly apologized.

"Sorry? For what?" Jaune asked, taken aback.

"You... you seemed upset... I thought I did something to make you mad..."

"No, no, not mad!" Jaune waved his hands. "Just thinking... about something!"

"Oh... good!" Velvet smiled and sighed in relief. "I was afraid you didn't like me for a second!"

Jaune smiled as he moved along down the line. Yeah... I can see why she has so many fans.

Pyrrha drummed her fingers, eyes narrowing at the prospect of further competition- Stephen watched on with a smirk.

Next, a girl in white with matching hair in a sidetail.

"Oh, Weiiiiiiss!" Ruby grinned, eyes lighting up with excitement. "Weiss, you're here, too!"

"Yes, Ruby, I can see that," Weiss nodded in mild exasperation.

For a long time, Jaune and the girl stood there, him looking at her, her refusing to meet his eyes. Finally, he decided to try and break the ice, so to speak.

"So... I'm Jaune Arc... Ultimate Lucky Student... mind if I ask your name?"

"Weiss... Weiss Schnee."

Jaune waited for anything further, but received nothing.

Huh... pretty tight-lipped. Now that I think about it... I saw the name Schnee on the net, but no 'Weiss...' could it be she's like me? No major talent?

"I refuse to believe that is the case!" Weiss objected.

"I wonder what your ultimate talent is, though!" Ruby piped up in an effort to make her besty feel better. "Oh, I bet it's something awesome!"

"So... what brings you to Beacon?" Jaune prompted again.

"Hm?" Weiss tilted her head imperiously.

"Y'know... you've got a talent, right?"

"...I see no reason to share that information with you."

"Er... I mean, I guess you don't have to-"

"No. I don't have to. Good day."

Jaune scrutinized her a little longer before shrugging and moving along. Nope, no point trying to get information out of her if she doesn't wanna give it...

"That's cold, Weiss," Ruby chastised, her pout returning. "I mean, he wasn't even hitting on you that time!"

"That was rather odd," Weiss admitted, squinting at her other self. "I suspect there's more to this than we know."

The girl with brown hair appeared before him- she was fashionably dressed, including a pair of sunglasses, a handbag, and a dangling lock of hair fading to orange. "Coco Adele, the Ultimate Fashionista... charmed, I'm sure."

The growls returned.

Oh, I recognize this one, alright- I've seen her on enough magazine covers, but... something about it doesn't quite live up to reality...

"'Doesn't live up to reality,' hmm?" Coco spoke up, tilting her head, looking amused. "I hope you mean that in a good way."

Jaune yelped a little. "Did I... say that out loud?"

"You should learn to keep your inner thoughts 'inner,'" Coco advised. "At any rate, of course I'm not identical to all the magazines- those pictures are all photoshopped to hell and back."

"I suppose that's true enough, at least," Pyrrha shrugged offhandedly, reluctant to agree with a potential rival on anything.

I did hear about things like that... guess I never knew quite how true it was...

Jaune shrugged and moved on... to Cardin Winchester.

"Cardin Winchester, Ultimate Biker Gang Leader," the tall redhead didn't waste any time. "Nice to fuckin' meet ya."

"Well... he certainly gets to the point," Blake noted through narrowed eyes.

That's him! Jaune thought nervously. Leader of the biggest biker gang in Vytal! He's earned respect and awe from every gang in the kingdom!

"Um... er... nice to meet you, too!"

"Damn right," Cardin nodded.

Better watch myself around him, if I don't wanna wake up at the bottom of a lake wearing cement shoes...

"Brute though he is, I don't suspect he'd go quite that far," Weiss snorted.

"Er... I dunno... he's gone pretty far in the past..." Jaune muttered.

"Though he has gotten better since the incident in Forever Fall," Pyrrha mused.

Cardin didn't seem much for discussion- after their brief introduction, he moved right along, leaving Jaune to get momentarily lost in the shuffle, ultimately finding himself face-to-face with a blond bombshell.

"Oh, hey there!" she smirked at him. "Name's Yang Xiao Long- Ultimate Martial Artist!"

"Huh... kinda reminds me of that world from before, where she was trying to be the strongest," Ruby recalled.

"We really need to get back to that universe at some point," Crazy reflected.

"Saw you looking at my little sis earlier," Yang noted as he moved around him, sizing him up and poking at his chest and abdomen. "Little Rubes... I hope you don't have anything in mind for her..."

"Wha- no! I just met her today, I mean!"

"Yaaaaaaaaang!" Ruby moaned, burying her face in her hands.

"Sorry, Rubes, gotta keep you pure," Yang shrugged.

"And- what are you doing?" Jaune asked, finally addressing the poking and prodding.

"Eh... no good. Sorry, you're not fit to be a sparring partner."

"Er... sorry?"

"Welp, I guess we oughtta move along," Yang shrugged, pulling back. "Just remember... you keep your eyes front 'round my little sis."

"Gotcha..."

Next up, a shorter boy with white hair and clothing- in fact, it wouldn't be much of a stretch to call him a male Weiss.

"Er, Jaune A-"

"I remember your name," the boy interrupted with a haughty voice. "I am Whitley Schnee, the Ultimate Affluent Progeny."

Weiss groaned. "Oh, good, another one with him..."

"I mean, he wasn't so bad in the last one," Nora pointed out. "Maybe he won't be so bad here?"

"Iunno, he's sounding pretty stuck-up to me," Pyrrha muttered, not liking the tone he was taking with her leader.

Jaune waited for a while, but Whitley said nothing more. What a half-assed introduction... not much I can do about it, I guess. This is the heir to the Schnee Corporation- heck, they say he's already starting managing business operations. Wait... Schnee...

"Say, you don't happen to know anything about-"

"The girl over there?" Whitley interrupted, glancing at Weiss. "Get in line- no, no I don't. I have no idea why she seems to share my name."

"He doesn't?" Jaune asked. "Or is he intentionally distancing himself-"

"I don't think that's it," Weiss shook her head. "I think he honestly doesn't know me in this world..."

"How's that possible, though?" Yang asked.

"Don't ask me, I'm only telling you what I'm seeing," Weiss shrugged.

"If that's all you have to ask, I'll ask you to move along. I'm sick of looking at you."

Pyrrha narrowed his eyes. "I don't like him."

Everyone else nodded.

Pardon me for existing, I guess...

"Ah, don't let that guy get you down," came a new voice- Jaune turned and found himself face-to-face with another blond boy, wearing a white button-up shirt- every button currently undone. He was balancing on a monkey's tail protruding from his backside. "My guess is, he doesn't really get along with anyone." He extended a hand. "Sun Wukong, Ultimate Bro!"

"Is that... a thing?" Jaune asked, taking the hand.

"Nah, I just like making things up sometimes," Sun chuckled. "Nah, you're lookin' at the Ultimate Kung Fu master!"

"I suppose that makes some sense," Blake mused.

"But wait, I thought I was the Ultimate Martial Artist!" Yang piped up.

"Ultimate Mixed Martial Artist," Stephen provided. "I guess I get why she didn't include that."

"So, different types of martial arts... that makes sense to me," Ren nodded.

"Is that... hard?" Jaune asked, glancing at the tail Sun was balancing on.

"Not with practice," he shrugged. "It's kinda like... learning to wiggle your ears. Try to take it easy, alright? I know I'll be!"

"He's not so different," Blake commented, smiling.

"Looks like not many of us are," Pyrrha agreed.

Finally, the other woman- with the tanned skin and blond hair.

"Ah... I don't believe we've been introduced," she began. "Robyn Hill... at your service. I am... the Ultimate Judge."

"Ultimate Judge, huh?" Jaune tilted his head. "What does that-"

"I deliver justice to all- swift and merciless," Robyn interrupted. "That's all you need to know."

"Okay..."

Before he could ask for any more details, Whitley had raised his voice. "Enough introductions! We have no time to waste idly chatting like old housewives!"

Jaune glanced around and gravitated towards Pyrrha- for some reason, he felt more comfortable around her. "So... what's going on?"

Pyrrha smiled gently, grasping on tightly to her own Jaune.

"You said you woke up in a classroom with no memories of going there, right?" Pyrrha verified. "Well... the same is true for all of us."

"It... it is?"

"Enter the school, pass out, wake up in a classroom," Sage nodded.

"But... but that makes no sense!"

"Damn right it doesn't," Cardin grunted. "Why d'ya think we're all freaking out?"

"And, of course, every door and window's been bolted shut," Flynt added. "I'm guessing you saw that much for yourself."

"And all of our personal possessions are missing," Cinder provided. "Right down to our scrolls."

"And the front exit... it's blocked by that large hatch..." Velvet pointed towards the enormous metal device blocking them from leaving. "And... it's armed."

Jaune looked up, and paled when he saw that the hatch was backed up by two large gatling guns.

"Personally, I don't like to imagine what we've gotten caught up in," Coco noted, her smile wavering into a frown.

"I don't get it," Ruby whispered. "How could this all have happened... in an hour while Jaune was asleep?"

"This situation... truly is bizarre," Ren nodded.

"My personal guess is that this isn't Beacon Academy at all," Sage speculated. "Perhaps we were rendered unconscious and taken to another place altogether."

"Nah, I'm guessing it's simpler than that," Sun chuckled, leaning back into his arms. "I've always heard Beacon is a wacky place- odds are, this is just some weird orientation."

Ruby perked up. "Hey, yeah! Beacon can be a little weird sometimes- maybe this is just their initiation! Kind of like when we got launched into the forest!"

"As comforting as that would be," Blake began, "I somehow doubt it's that easy. Especially given... that opening scene."

Recalling the scene that had begun all this, an air of solemnity filled the room once more.

As if on cue, the sound of a bell filled the hall.

*DING DONG, BING BONG!*

"Hello? Hello, hello? Testing, testing... this is a test of the schoolwide broadcast system..."

It was a woman's voice, that much was certain, but they couldn't determine much past that. There were monitors stationed around the hall, alight with so much static that they could only make out the barest trace of a figure within.

"Am I on? Can you hear me? Good. In that case..."

The voice wasn't threatening, Jaune reflected, but still... it was... wrong. Like... like hearing someone laugh at the scene of a wreck. It filled me with dread.

"I... I think I know what he's saying," Ruby nodded, shuddering. She looked very grateful when Yang put an arm around her.

"Hello to all incoming students! I would like to begin the entrance ceremony... right now! Please make your way to the gymnasium!"

"Maybe... maybe it really is just an initiation?" Ruby asked hopefully.

"No... something's not right about that voice... I feel it in my bones," Jaune shook his head tensely.

Coco narrowed her eyes. "What the hell?"

"Hmm... it seems answers await in the gym. If you'll excuse me..." Whitley was already gone.

"You probably shouldn't be so quick to trust-" Coco attempted to chastise- but he wasn't listening.

"Huh- sounds like it's time for the main event!" Sun smiled brightly. "Welp, I'm up to see what they've got planned!"

And he was gone, too.

"I won't pretend to be so confident," Sage tilted his head, "but answers only await us in the gym, so..."

"W-wait! Don't leave me behind!" Velvet ran after him.

"...Indeed," Robyn said simply as she followed.

"I'll b-b-be g-g-g-going too... not that anyone c-c-cares..." Ilia muttered.

Jaune watched on tenterhooks as, one-by-one, everyone filed off. I guess they're right... but still... I can't shake that uneasy feeling...

"You and me both, Jaune," Ren assured him. "You and me both."

Pyrrha was one of the few not to head off immediately. "Jaune," she whispered. "You feel it, too?"

"Yeah... something's wrong..."

"I can't trust anyone who refuses to show their face," Coco scowled.

"Agreed," Weiss affirmed, "but staying put is hardly a guarantee of safety. It seems to me that following instructions- for now, at least- is the only way to gain more information about the situation."

"Leap before ya look- my kinda plan," Yang smirked, smashing her knuckles together.

I saw the logic in their words... so I swallowed my nerves, and followed them towards the gym.

We headed down some halls and through a trophy room filled with golden accolades... and, at last... the gym.

Jaune entered... and tilted his head. "Huh- it really does just look like an ordinary entrance ceremony."

"Huh- yeah," their Jaune nodded in agreement. "Add in more people, and this place would look just like our own orientation- y'know, when Ozpin was standing up on stage."

"I'll keep this brief," Ruby put on a mocking voice, adjusting an imaginary pair of glasses. "'You basically suck now, but we'll get you to be awesome- if you can get through that big ol' forest out back!'"

There was some good-natured chuckling before resuming.

"See? What'd I tell you, bud?" Sun thumped him on the back. "Nothing strange here!"

It wasn't that he was wrong... but somehow, the normal ceremony setup only put me even more on edge.

"Ah, glad to see everyone's here!"

Jaune stiffened. That voice again...

Yang flexed her fists. "Time to see Salem again, huh?"

"That would be my guess, yes," Blake nodded through narrowed eyes.

At the head of the hall, an odd figure appeared and took a seat on the podium- an odd familiar figure. It was, indeed, the bizarre chibi-figure from the opening scene.

"Huh?" Velvet asked of nobody, tilting her head. "A... plush figure of some sort?"

"I'm no plushie- I'm Salem!" the figure objected. "And I will be your headmistress here at Beacon Academy!"

Everyone stared, slack-jawed and unable to even think of something to say.

"A pleasure to meet you all," 'Salem' bowed minutely.

She'd been nothing but polite so far... but it transformed my unease into true fear.

"I don't like it," Ruby shook her head. "I don't like it..."

"The plushie can talk!" Dove panicked, pulling away.

"Relax, Dove," Flynt said, calm as he could. "I'm sure there's just a speaker inside it."

"Haven't I told you already that I'm no plushie?" Salem objected, turning to face them. "I'm your headmistress, Salem!"

It was odd- the more human side of her face took on various expressions of joy or anger, but that awful other side was fixed in that permanent, terrifying grin.

"It... it's moving!" Dove whimpered, pulling even further away.

"Huh... not what I expected our world's version of Satan to sound like," Yang admitted- and it was true, her voice was more high-pitched and playful than anything.

"This world is... a special case," Stephen shrugged.

"Oh, relax, will ya?" Cardin rolled his eyes heavily. "It's just a remote-controlled toy, or some shit."

Salem seemed to sulk at his words. "How dare you compare me to a child's plaything? You wound me, sir... deeper than the wounds that felled Monty Oum himself... I'll have you know that my remote system is so complex that the folks over at NASA wouldn't be able to figure it out- don't tell them, though! They'd just get all sulky, and we'll never get another mission to the moon!"

"NASA?" Ren asked curiously.

"Something from our world," George provided for a change. "Looks to me like this world has elements of yours and ours together."

"Now, enough messing around!" Salem declared. "Stand attention and bow! Good morning!"

Nobody did.

"...You're all so naughty... very well, let us commence with the entrance ceremony! First, I'd like to address what your school life here will be like- as you no doubt know by now, you few exceptional students represent the hope of all Remnant- such hope must, of course, be protected. To this end, you will all live a communal life together within this school's confines... never setting foot outside. You must live in harmony together, following the school rules, of course. As for the end date of this communal life..." Salem's lips curled upwards in a horrible smirk, and she sounded on the verge of bursting out in laughter. "There isn't one! You'll all be here until the day you die! Such is the school life you've been assigned!"

"What?!" everyone cried out.

"Never... allowed to leave?" Pyrrha asked, horrified.

"That's not- but you can't... no!" Nora stumbled over her words, unable to even think of a way to express her horror.

"Until the d-d-day we d-d-d-d-die?!" Ilia stammered, looking truly horror-struck.

"Oh, don't fear!" Salem's voice dripped with false reassurance. "We have quite an abundant budget- you won't want for any common conveniences!"

"You think that's what we're worried about?!" Pyrrha challenged, aghast.

"You think I will submit myself to live here forever?!" Coco agreed, eyes filled with fire. "This joke is in very poor taste."

"Joke? What joke?" Salem volleyed back. "I'm not joking, and I am incapable of lying to my dear students! For your own safety, you must be cut off from the outside world, one hundred percent. Seems wonderful to me- you'll never have to gaze upon that mess ever again!"

"You mean..." Jaune realized, eyes widening, "those metal plates... really are... to keep us in?"

"Essentially, yes," Salem nodded. "They, too, have been put in place for your safety! So please, feel free to live out the rest of your life here with reckless abandon!"

Sage looked up, glaring. "Enough. This joke has gone on long enough."

"Yeah, cut it out- this shit ain't funny anymore!" Cardin snarled.

"Joke this, lie that," Salem sighed heavily. "The current generation is so skeptical! Well, feel free to step out and see the truth for yourself- I promise you, right now, that I will never lie to you!"

"You expect us to just accept this?" Robyn narrowed her eyes. "Surely, you didn't think we would simply-"

"Oh, what's the matter with you all?" Salem interrupted. "Did you not decide, of your own free will, to attend this school?"

"Yeah, to attend it, not get trapped there forever!" Yang snarled.

"The entrance ceremony isn't even over, and you already want to leave?

"Hmmm... very well!"

"Very... very well?" Blake repeated, looking more on edge than ever. "No... there's no way she'd give up that easy..."

"Agreed," Ren nodded solemnly. "Nora, you may want to hold on..."

"Right!" Nora nodded, clutching tightly onto her childhood friend.

"There is a way for you to leave- a little backdoor, so to speak, I was careful to write into the school rules. As I've said, the communal life here is meant to foster harmony- but if a student were to disturb that harmony, I would have no choice but to eject him or her from the premises!"

"And by 'disturb the harmony,' you mean..." Whitley prompted.

"Oh, I don't know, if, for instance..."

Everyone could tell that everything else was simply a preamble to this moment- this, at last, was what Salem had truly brought them here for.

"...If one of you were to commit murder."

Silence.

Silence.

"M...murder?" Jaune finally broke it.

"Murder," Salem nodded, unpleasant smile in full force. "Stabbing, strangling, bludgeoning, hacking, slashing, poisoning, crushing, burning... doesn't matter. You must kill someone if you wish to leave, and that's all there is to it."

XXXX

Huh... I guess that's the Thanksgiving special. I didn't plan that- I'm not crazy enough to have planned that. Apologies for Stephen throwing everything off- we'll return to normal scheduling next time. Until then, please R&R, absolutely anything accepted, Gamer4 out!