Legend of Remnant

Chapter 6: Temper the Soul

"Ground! Sweet, sweet ground! I will never leave you again!"

"Come on, Vomit boy, stop being so dramatic. It's not that bad."

"Yeah, you'll have to go back on anyway, if you want to get back to Beacon."

Jaune looked up from the ground where he'd been kneeling, affixing Ren with a glare. "I will walk back! If you make me get back on that metal deathtrap, I'll aim for you if I have to upchuck!"

A pair of boots entered into Jaune's field of vision and glanced up to see his partner smiling down at him, extending a hand. "Hey, at least this time you didn't throw up!"

Jaune took the hand and grumbled. "Thank goodness for small mercies, I guess." Jaune got to his feet, although more on his own power than anything Ruby provided, and dusted himself off. He glanced around to the vivid red canopy of the Forever Fall forest, and fell silent in awe, now that he was able to fully appreciate the beauty without fighting off overwhelming nausea. The seat of red trees seemed to stretch endlessly into the horizon, surrounding the raised clearing that stretched just above the treeline.

"Everyone, your attention!" The voice of Glynda Goodwitch caught everyone's ears, and the murmuring and talking fell to a near silence. Out of all the professors in Beacon, Glynda had a reputation for being no nonsense, and when she said to stop talking, only the most foolish and arrogant would continue to speak. Jaune and Ruby turned to face said professor as she stood in the door to one of the Bullheads. "Before you begin today's assignment, I want to go over some rules. You will all be split up with your partners, and each of you has been given a jar. For full credits for this assignment, you will be required to fill your jar to the narrow point."

Jaune was only vaguely paying attention, his focus more on the ocean of red leaves. It was stunning, something he'd never seen in his lifetime. The sky was clear too. That was a relief, as it meant that the chances of something like the giant Nevermore they'd run into during initiation wouldn't show up again. Of course, that didn't discount anything like the giant Deathstalker, but he had to take whatever blessings he could. He also noted, strangely, that Link had gone silent yet again.

"Do not wander too far into the forest," Glynda continued. "You should be able to get enough Red Sap Syrup close to the landing point. While there have been no reports of any major Grimm, there are still wandering packs around. Make sure to keep an eye out, and report back if you spot anything out of the ordinary. Also, I don't believe I should have to say this, but in case any of you get the idea, you are not allowed to attack your fellow students for access to the Syrup." Her eyes seemed to wander over towards team CRDL, who didn't seem to be paying Glynda any attention either. "I will assume that you're all old enough to simply move to another tree should you need to. With that said, you have five hours to complete the assignment. I expect all of you to reconvene here back at 3pm sharp."

With that, Glynda re-entered the Bullhead, and the students all took that as their sign that it was time to begin their task. Jaune looked to Ruby, who held the glass jar in her hands. "Jeeze," Jaune started, "Could she have made that jar big enough?"

Ruby looked down at the jar and frowned. "Right? Do you have the tap?"

Jaune pulled the tap out of his pocket, bringing it up for Ruby to see. "Yep. Let's get going; I'm sure all the trees nearby will get taken up."

"Yeah. Think we should wander a little further?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, probably better to not get in anyone's way." The two proceeded to make their way down from the hill that made up the landing zone. They walked past Pyrrha and Weiss, who were already well on their way to filling their jar, past Yang and Blake, even past Ren and Nora, the former of whom was trying to convince the latter to cease her desire for Red Sap long enough to complete the assignment.

As they continued to put some distance between themselves and the multitude of students in the area, the two remained silent, something that, while alright at first, began to eat away at Jaune. Especially since Link had fallen silent again, lending the entire thing a sense of awkwardness that only grew with each footstep. 'Agh! I gotta find something to speak about soon, this is too much!'

Jaune cleared his throat, and spoke up while trying to keep his tone as matter-of-fact as he could. "S-so, um...what made you want to be a Hunter?" 'Brilliant. A master of oration are you,' he thought to himself.

Ruby must have been feeling as awkward as he did though, because the young woman jumped onto the topic like someone clinging onto a life preserver in a storm. "M-me?! Oh, um, I-" she paused, her frantic beginning fading into pensive contemplation. "I always wanted to follow in my mother's footsteps." She finished softly, her gaze fixated on the ground as she walked, seemingly far away as though she were looking at something other than the leaf littered forest floor.

"Huh," Jaune replied. "Your mom was a Huntress?"

Ruby turned to Jaune with a beaming smile. "Yep! She was one of the strongest in her year at Beacon!"

"Wow," Jaune replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "She must be really proud of you."

Ruby paused in mid-stride, her gaze once more meeting the forest floor. "She...passed away when I was little."

'Foot,' Jaune groaned internally, 'Meet mouth.' Jaune cleared his throat, then spoke again. "S-sorry…"

"I-it's okay!" Ruby exclaimed, waving her hands disarmingly before her. "It's not like you could have known or anything!""

"Still," Jaune replied, rubbing the back of his neck. The two fell into silence once more, the crunch of leaves underneath their boot heels being the only thing to interrupt said silence.

"What about you?"

Jaune blinked as he looked up. "Huh?"

"Why are you at Beacon?" Ruby asked, glancing at him in an aside glance.

"Oh. Well, uh, it-it's...kinda silly." Jaune replied. Ruby continued to stare at him almost expectantly, so he continued. "When I was little, my dad used to tell me and my sisters stories about our ancestors. My great grandfather was apparently a hero during the Great War. He fought for Vale, and saved a lot of lives. My sisters never really put much stock in those tales, but me?" Jaune trailed off, looking to the side, lost in his own contemplation.

"I dont think it's silly."

"Huh?" Jaune looked back to Ruby smiling at him warmly.

"I mean, I want to be a hero too, you know? Just like my mom. Nothing wrong with that."

Jaune scratched the back of his neck again. "Thanks. My sisters always thought it was silly. They said the world didn't really need knights in shining armor anymore."

Ruby's cheeks puffed up briefly, an action Jaune couldn't help but find rather adorable. "Well, they're wrong! With all the Grimm around, who better to help defend the innocent than a knight in shining armor!"

Jaune chuckled. "Thanks, Ruby. That...means a lot."

Ruby beamed back at him. "Of course!"

"I gotta admit though," Jaune continued, the duo continuing their walk through the forest, "You're amazing though."

Ruby's cheeks went pink. "M-me?! I-I'm just a normal-"

Jaune cut her off with a laugh. "You got into Beacon two years early! Plus, seeing you in combat class? You're already close to the top of the class!" He paused, his expression falling. "Unlike me…" He murmured, more to himself than to Ruby.

Ruby shook her head. "Nope!"

"Huh?"

"You have to have more faith in yourself! I'm sure you can do it! I know you've got what it takes to be a Huntsman!"

Jaune tried to smile back, but it was a weak, thin little thing. "Yeah...sure…" He looked away, mind racing to find something to distract the conversation. "So uh...do-do you remember a lot about your mom?"

Ruby put a finger to her chin in thought. "Not really. She passed when I was really little. Yang knew more about her than I did. She was a really awesome mom though. Baking cookies one day, fighting Grimm the next...she was a Supermom."

Jaune nodded. "She does sound amazing. I bet she'd be proud of you right now."

Ruby's cheeks went pink once more and she glanced away. "T-thanks…"

"Does Yang want to become a Huntress for the same reason?" Jaune queried, not noticing Ruby's embarrassment.

"Um...not exactly."

"Really? She sounds like she respected your mom just as much as you did…"

"Well...her real mom kinda left her when she was little…" Ruby replied meekly. Jaune fell silent, and paused in mid step. Ruby continued walking on, before realizing that Jaune had stopped and turned around. "Jaune?"

"Sorry," Jaune answered, his expression turning rather wry as he waved away her concern. "I'm just savoring the taste of this foot in my mouth."

Ruby laughed. "It's alright! Although, I'd probably avoid talking about that with Yang. She gets a little...um...touchy on that subject."

Jaune nodded. "Duly noted. After seeing Yang fight in combat class, I'm not in any rush to throw down with her any time soon." Jaune began like he was going to start walking again, and froze once more, brow furrowing. "Hang on a tic…"

"What's up?"

Instead of answering, Jaune fell silent, as though he were trying to listen out for something. Ruby blinked, looked around, and tried to strain her ears to hear whatever it was that Jaune was hearing, but got nothing. "Do you...hear that?"

Ruby shook her head. "I don't hear anything?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah. Exactly. I...think we might have wandered a bit further away from the rest than we should have."

Ruby's eyes widened. "W-we're lost?!"

"No, no, I mean, we were just walking in a straight line, right? We should just tap the nearest tree and head back." Jaune pulled the tap from his pocket and looked around. They were in a small clearing, surrounded by various bright red trees. One in particular was quite large indeed, with a trunk that if hollowed out, could have probably fit both Jaune and Ruby within, albeit more intimately close than they'd have been comfortable with. "Think that one would work?"

Ruby shrugged. "Looks big enough! Don't see why not."

The two approached the tree, and Jaune placed the tap spike against the trunk. Ruby unlatched Crescent Rose and swung open, using the back end of the massive scythe to gently drive the tap into the wood of the trunk. "I can't help but feel like that's a misuse of equipment," Jaune jokingly murmured.

Ruby stuck out her tongue at him. "Shush. Crescent Rose doesn't mind."

"Great, my partner talks to her weapon." Jaune teased.

"At least I don't talk to myself when I don't think anyone is looking!" Ruby countered, causing Jaune to bite his tongue in surprise.

"Ow-what?! I-I mean...okay yeah, I talk to myself, but it's to, uhh...think...gooder." Jaune finished lamely.

"Think gooder." Ruby replied dryly.

"Ugh. Let's just finish this and forget about who talks to what or who!" Jaune muttered, his own cheeks acquiring a dusting of embarrassment.

Thankfully, the task itself didn't take as long as Jaune feared. The large tree's sap flowed, well, if not quickly, at least quick enough. The bottle was mostly filled, and it had only been near an hour. The entire time though, everything had been rather quiet, which was something that Jaune was thankful for. Both he and Ruby spent the entire time talking about the latest comic books, movies, and other assorted media that had recently come out.

"Alright, looks like our jar's just about filled. Don't suppose you'd mind carrying it?" Jaune asked.

"Me? Why me?"

"Same reason I wasn't touching the bottle during filling; I'm allergic to Red Sap. I get a rash." Jaune mumbled the last part.

"Didn't need to know that." Ruby replied, picking the large glass jar off the forest floor. "Do you remember which way the landing zone was?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, that way. I was remembering it just so we wouldn't end up lost. Unlike the Emerald Forest…" He muttered again, the memory sending a spike of irritation through him.

Ruby brow furrowed in thought. "You know, you never did tell me what happened to that sword you first brought with you."

Jaune winced. "Yeah, about that-"

SNAP CRUNCH CRACK

The sound of wood snapping and breaking echoed through the clearing and both Jaune and Ruby froze, going silent. Jaune himself nearly jumped in surprise when a flock of birds exploded from the treetops, cawing loudly. Slowly, the two turned to each other, surprise and concern in their expressions.

SNAPCRACKCRACKCRACKCRACK-

The crushing and snapping of wood grew louder, faster, and closer, as though something massive were making its way towards the two of them at rapid speed. Sure enough, after a few seconds, both Jaune and Ruby could see branches and splinters of wood flying into the air with force. Between the trees, they could see a large, dark shape approaching them quickly. As it approached, Jaune could feel the bottom drop out of his equilibrium, leaving him paralyzed.

Then, it was upon them. Whatever it was cleared the tree line, a spinning mass of muscle and bone and fur, and when it stopped its spinning charge, Jaune could only watch in terror as it unfolded itself into what appeared to be the largest Borbatusk he'd ever seen. He could only guess that it was about two and a half stories high, with two blood red eyes staring malevolently out at them. A pair of curved, vicious tusks jutted out and curled up, covered in moss and dirt. The colossal beast took a single step forward, and gave a great huff, seemingly sizing them up. Professor Port's words suddenly sprang to Jaune's mind. 'As Grimm become older, they become more intelligent, bigger, and stronger. Some particularly old Grimm have intelligence comparable to us humans, and are extremely dangerous…'

Jaune's thoughts were broken upon hearing the familiar sound of Crescent Rose unfolding, the mecha-shifting weapon opening up its deadly blade as Ruby got into a fighting position. Her expression was set tight, confident. "An Elder Borbatusk," Ruby murmured softly. "This won't be easy…"

He could scarcely hear her. His heart was pumping rapidly, blood pounding in his ears, and his breath catching in his throat. His hand reached for the Master Sword at his back, pulling it out with that crisp, clear metallic noise he'd heard when first unsheathing it from its pedestal. His gaze flickered from Ruby, to the Borbatusk, back to Ruby, his heart falling in his chest.

'You can't win. She'll have to defend you because there's no way you can fight that thing. She can't protect you and fight that thing at the same time!'

That thought spiked through Jaune's mind, and his mouth went dry. Time seemed to slow down, as the Borbatusk, scratched a massive hoof against the ground, snorting again as though challenging the two. His hand gripped the hilt of the Master Sword with a white knuckled grip. Ruby was saying something else, but he couldn't hear her. His mind kept flashing from thought to thought, memory to memory.

"Are you willing to potentially sacrifice their lives for your own desires?"

"I always wanted to follow in my mother's footsteps…""I know you have what it takes to be a Huntsman!""Jaune?" Ruby asked softly, never taking her eyes away from the Borbatusk, which was still seemingly waiting for their first move.

Jaune swallowed. "Ruby. Run."

"What?! What are you talking ab-"

Jaune cut her off, swallowing the lump in his throat and stepped ahead of Ruby, staring down the massive porcine beast, and doing everything in his power to hide just how utterly terrified he was. "No. Y-you and I can't fight this thing with just the two of us. You're faster than I am, you can get help quicker than I could. And if we both run, it'll just r-run us down." Jaune explained. "I-" He paused briefly. "I can keep it's attention while you get Ms. Goodwitch."

"You can't fight this thing alone!" Ruby hissed, panic in her silver eyes.

Jaune once more swallowed down his fears. She was right. He was probably going to die alone. But this wasn't about him, was it? He was going to own up to his mistakes, even if it killed him. "It's fine," he lied, mustering up every ounce of fake confidence he could. "I don't have to fight it, just survive, right? I'm at least pretty good at dodging. Just uh...d-don't take too long, yeah?" To sell the lie, he turned to Ruby and flashed her a smile.

Ruby, looking nearly on the verge of tears, looked between Jaune, and the Borbatusk. She swallowed, then quickly embraced him tightly, squeezing him. "Stay safe," she murmured. "Please…" And with that, Ruby suddenly burst into a flurry of rose petals, and with speed that stunned both Jaune and the Borbatusk, flew off into the forest, down where the two of them had come from.

Jaune grit his teeth, and swung the sword, the silvery blade whistling through the air. "HEY! PORKER! OVER HERE!"

The beast snorted and its head snapped back towards Jaune, blood red eyes narrowing further, muscles quivering. 'I'm sorry, Mom, Dad, sis...I hope you understand,' Jaune mentally noted, eyes stinging with unshed tears. He blinked-

-and the entirety of the forest fell away, the massive, bright red maple trees vanishing, replaced with an endless expanse of windswept, emerald green grass. The Borbatusk, seemingly on the verge of charging, seemed suddenly frozen, leaving Jaune blinking in confusion. His head swiveled around, recognizing the almost halcyon field as his mental training ground. Sitting on a tree trunk nearby, was the unmistakable figure of Link, his expression neutral.

"I know," Jaune replied, giving a weak, broken laugh. "I screwed up already. Some "hero" I turned out to be."

Link slowly shook his head, and it was then that Jaune noticed his expression had changed. He was smiling. Not the annoying 'holier-than-thou' smirk he'd given Jaune prior, but an honest, almost proud smile. "No, Jaune. Not at all. In fact, for the first time since we've met, you've truly shown me that you've got what it takes to become a Hero."

Jaune blinked. "W-what?"

"You're willing to risk your life, to give up everything to own up to your mistakes, to protect your partner. That, Jaune, is what it means to be a Hero. It's not about fame, or fortune. It's not about the legends that will be passed down about you. It's being willing to put others before you. Standing up for others, protecting them, even if it means sacrificing yourself." Link explained, slowly getting to his feet.

Jaune felt a warmth in his chest, but just as quickly as it came, it was extinguished when he turned back to the colossal Borbatusk. "Yeah. Sacrifice. Looks like I'll be doing that, won't I. There's no way I can face that thing…" He trailed off, hand clenched, struggling to fight off tears.

"As you are now, no. But I didn't simply pull you in here to tell you that. You've been working hard physically, understanding just how far you need to go. You've realized that you need to own up to your own shortcomings, and trust your allies. Most importantly, you've started to understand what it means to be the Hero. Now, I think it's time you take the first step to following your destiny. Turn around." Link explained, pointing over Jaune's shoulder.

Jaune, puzzled, did just that. Behind him, in the middle of the grassy plain, lay a hill, with what looked to be the entrance to a mineshaft that led down into the ground. "Wait, what? What is that?"

"Your first real test. If you pass that, you'll not only become stronger, but I promise you that you'll have everything you'll need in order to defeat that beast."

Jaune frowned as he nodded his head towards the Borbatusk. "That thing isn't going to be patient enough to let me go explore...whatever that is."

Link chuckled. "A memory dungeon. A test created from memories of ages past. As far as your foe is concerned, right now this is taking place in the place between mind and spirit. Time is moving much, much faster now than outside there. Mind, you don't have forever to complete this task, but more than enough time before you're in any real danger. That doesn't mean, however, that you should completely disregard this test. Should you fail this, you surely will fail against that beast."

Jaune stared down the entrance to the dungeon, its dark tunnel lit by the sot flicker of torchlight. "I...are you sure?"

"I am. You have all that you need. You just need to have faith, and a little courage. You were willing to throw your life away to protect your partner. Now you must use that courage to face this task. Your journey, Jaune, your real journey, begins here." Link approached Jaune, and clapped a hand onto his shoulder. "Just remember our training."

Jaune turned to look at Link, and nodded, relief welling in his chest. He wasn't out of the fire, not yet, but things weren't hopeless yet. He squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, and strode forward, into the tunnel ahead…

A/N: Another chapter down, and apologies for the short length, and the lateness. I got distracted by games and such while trying to write this, so I've no excuse for the lateness of it. So Jaune has finally begun his real training by entering the first of what I'll refer to a Memory Dungeons. Basically think a dungeon made up of bits and pieces of various past dungeons all through all of the incarnations of past Links. It's going to be an...interesting chapter to write, trying to make a novelization of a dungeon actually fun to read.

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