(A/N): Fair warning, this chapter and the next are gonna be pretty long. There's a lot of setup that needs to happen in these first few chapters, and while I don't intend for every update to be a door stopper like Summer Declassified was, sometimes having long chapters is unavoidable. Rest assured, though, I don't intend to publish any more 30k word monsters of chapters - I've learned my lesson, believe me.

So without further ado, let's check in with the girls to see how they're doing in this brave new world!

A twenty-minute swim wasn't the worst obstacle Yang had faced, but in her tired state it was certainly up there.

By the time she finally emerged out of the churning sea and clung to a shore of ashen gray sand, she was thoroughly drenched and waterlogged. Sweat and seawater clung to her clothes and skin, turning her wild mass of untamed golden hair into a sopping wet blanket of dull yellow seaweed. Every part of her body ached from exertion, and her nose still burned from when the waves crashed over her face as she came up for a breath.

None of that mattered. She just had to get out of the water.

With an inhuman groan she dragged herself across the sandbar with no regard for how rough it felt against her bare arm, her usual bomber jacket shed and discarded during the long swim. Part of her mind hated leaving such a good piece of clothing behind in the sea, but the rest of her accepted the loss - better to let it sink into the waves than let it drag the rest of her down. All her ammo was in the pockets of her khaki cargo pants with matching overalls, so she wasn't worried about losing supplies or appearing immodest. (Not that the latter was ever a concern for her.)

At least she still had her orange scarf around her neck, so she didn't have to mourn the complete loss of fashion. But that was the furthest thing from her mind at the moment. She had to find somewhere safe, warm, and dry, even if it meant passing out in the middle of the beach. So she kept crawling, willing her limbs to pull her along.

When she finally felt the tips of her brown boots leave the crashing waves, she collapsed on her side with a loud, long sigh of pain and relief.

Yang curled up into a ball on instinct, coughing up flecks of seawater and doing her best to keep her drenched clothes warm in the face of cold winds blowing in from the ocean. Her lilac eyes scanned the vertical horizon, doing a quick sweep to make sure there was nothing dangerous waiting for her. When she was certain she was safe, at least for the moment, her eyelids dropped and the tension in her shoulders faded. She knew she needed to keep moving, to find food and water and shelter, but right now she was too tired to even cry at being alone. So she shuffled a bit with her metallic arm to dig out a shallow little burrow, hugged herself with her other one, and let sleep claim her.

Maybe when she woke up, this terrible dream would be over, and she'd be back in reality. Back with Ruby, back with Weiss…back with Blake.

Wouldn't that just be wonderful?

"Ruby! Ruby!"

Blake Belladonna gripped tightly to the unconscious red-cloaked girl in her arms, trying to shield her from the wind whipping past them as they both fell out of the sky. Far below them she could see an island rushing closer - a massive chunk of verdant land with a huge volcano in the middle and smaller islets trailing along both the northern and southern peninsulas. Much of the landscape below was covered in green growth, save for a stretch of tan desert across the northern third and a patch of icy tundra that covered the midwest section. A long gash of burnt brown stretching east and a great bay flowing into the northeast corner gave the island a mismatched appearance, but Blake wasn't interested in solving the mystery of how a single landmass could support six different biomes and climates. Right now she was solely focused on making sure the wind didn't rip Ruby Rose out of her arms as they plummeted towards the ocean.

A feat which would be a lot easier if the silver-eyed leader was awake.

"Ruby come on, you have to wake up!" she yelled, though she knew it was a futile effort. She could barely hear herself above the rushing gale, even with the extra set of ears on top of her head. Her Faunus trait was nearly flush against her short black hair, and the remains of her ribbon fluttered behind them like the tail of a kite. No matter how much she shook her friend or how loudly she shouted, Ruby refused to awaken. A small part of her wondered if she was holding onto a corpse, but the rest of her dismissed the notion almost immediately.

Why is she unconscious while I'm still awake? Blake wondered. Is it because she came into this world with her Aura broken? Is that why she's not waking up?

It was an interesting theory, but she didn't have any way of testing her idea. She'd need to see another person come into the world, with or without Aura, to prove it.

Unfortunately, said proof came in the form of a heel driving into the back of her head.

"Ow! What - you!"

The multicolored eyes and hair of Neo Politan spun into view, the former seething with rage while the latter billowed around her. Blake tumbled out of control with no way to anchor herself for a moment, before she regained control and faced the silent stalker. Neo didn't have her usual parasol, but that didn't stop her from launching an assault on the feline Faunus, who shielded Ruby the best she could against the relentless barrage of punches and kicks. A singular strike slipped past her defenses and collided with her jaw, knocking her senseless and weakening her grip on Ruby just enough for the rushing wind to rip her away.

Pink and brown orbs of malice lit up with delight at the sight of the red-caped girl drifting away from Blake, and she immediately moved to pursue.

No you don't you bitch!

Blake grit her teeth and summoned a shadowy copy of herself to use as a stepping stone, drawing the cleaver-like sheathe of Gambol Shroud off her back as she propelled herself towards Neo. The wordless assassin was just about to grab Ruby's throat when Blake latched onto her ankle, swinging her around and throwing her back away from her friend. Realizing she couldn't go for the target of her vengeance with Blake still drawing breath, Neo scowled and aimed to correct that, launching herself off an illusion and spinning in mid-air to once more engage the falling Faunus.

The pair fought furiously for a few seconds, unconcerned with the ocean rushing to meet them and focusing only on blocking, kicking, dodging, and slashing. Blades of semi-tangible glass formed and lunged to strike, only to shatter with a swing of the cleaver. Another pulse of Blake's Semblance caught Neo off-guard with a trapping feint, keeping her distracted just long enough for the feline Faunus to dart behind her and bring the full weight of her weapon down on the assassin's neck with all her might. Neo's Aura dulled the strike and kept her head on her shoulders, but the force of the hit still knocked her out, giving Blake a chance to kick her away unceremoniously as she whirled to find Ruby -

Too far away to save.

The few seconds it had taken her to incapacitate Neo was long enough for the wind to separate them further. Tears pooled in her eyes as she vainly reached out to the speck of red in the rushing sky, unable to reach her even if she had unlimited Aura for her Semblance and an infinitely-long ribbon for Gambol Shroud. All she could do was watch her friend spiral further and further away, as the island and the endless ocean it rested in came closer and closer with each passing second. Blake squeezed her eyes shut and took in as deep of a breath as she could manage, straightening herself out as she prepared to plunge into the icy water.

Gotta pool my Aura around my legs as I dive in, she thought as she locked her lungs and limbs in place. Otherwise the impact just might knock me out too. Or worse.

Less than ten seconds later she felt the impact of landing, and nearly blacked out from the pain.

The cold surface of the ocean split open as she dove down, and she nearly disappeared into the depths before her momentum finally cut out. Her coat and hair floated around her, bubbles leaking out of her nose and mouth as she fought to keep her breath. Rather than immediately scramble back up for air, Blake allowed herself to drift in the water's dark embrace for a silent, sorrowful moment before she kicked back up to the surface. The shifting pressure and the strain on her lungs battered her from within and without, but her mind was far from those aches and pains. Her thoughts went to the smiling, happy faces of her friends, the people she had failed, and that drive to find a way back gave her the strength to keep swimming.

When she finally surfaced and took a shrill breath, not all the water that clung to her face belonged to the sea.

The next time Yang opened her eyes, she was disappointed to find that the beach hadn't faded away like a bad dream.

The blue sky and ash-gray shore still loomed ahead of her, sapphire waves crashing against the beach and splashing foam across the shoals. Birds chirped and cawed as they flew across the tilted horizon, casting winged shadows against the clear sky. Yang wasn't sure how long she'd slept for, but clearly this place wasn't as dangerous as Remnant - if she'd tried sleeping out in the open on the shore of Patch, she'd likely have woken up in the belly of a Scylla or a Sea Feilong at this point.

Instead, the only creature that seemed to pay her any mind was a small crab that cautiously approached her face.

The crab - or at least, she was pretty sure it was a crab - was squatting in the sand just in front of her nose. Long black eyestalks swayed back and forth as bulbous colorless eyes examined her, clicking its gunmetal gray claws together as it tried to determine who or what the blonde Huntress was. And maybe it was just her sleep-starved brain playing tricks on her, but she could have sworn the crab had mechanical components under its carapace, from pulleys across its back to little gearboxes in its belly.

"Well hello there little guy," she said with a soft laugh. "Are you a magical talking animal here to guide me through this unfamiliar new world?"

She extended her own mechanical arm to pet the little creature, moving slowly so as not to startle her potential new friend. Her effort was fruitless, though, as just the motion alone was enough to send the crab scurrying off in a hurry, leaving tiny little claw prints across the beach.

The blonde brawler sighed. "No...of course not. Silly Yang, that only happens in fairy tales."

With a groan and a sigh she crawled to her feet, doing a quick check of her supplies and possessions. Huntresses were always expected to carry enough ammo and elementally empowered Dust for three day's worth of heavy fighting, so she didn't have to worry about running out of either if she rationed them carefully. The cannon built into her mechanical arm still popped out without so much as a jammed gear, and Ember Celica on her left wrist still folded and unfolded into its shotgun-gauntlet form without issue. Finally, her Scroll - a small electronic rectangle that expanded to reveal a hard light screen - still worked perfectly, although the big red "NO SIGNAL" warning that flashed across the top screen reminded her that she was alone in a strange, unfamiliar world.

As if she even needed a reminder.

Yang fought off the encroaching loneliness for a moment longer as she swiped on the Scroll to view her status screen, which displayed her Aura level as well as that of her team members (if they were in communications range, of course). Strangely, it seemed like her nap had been more effective than she thought it would be - the soul-powered force field that shielded and empowered her had already jumped back up to twenty percent of its total amount, with the number slowly climbing even as she watched it closely. Yang knew her Aura regenerated faster when she rested, but it had never come back this quickly before. Maybe it was a side effect of this world? Or maybe her body was rewarding her for actually sleeping for the first time in…

In…

How long had Atlas been under siege by Salem? Two days? Three? Yang wasn't sure, but if she had to guess, she'd say it felt like an eternity. Maybe even two.

At least I still have all my gear, she thought to herself. Minus that sick coat...wonder if it'd be worth diving to get it?

She cast a look back at the churning sea and immediately quelled the idea. Fashion wasn't worth drowning.

No coat, then. Well, at least it's warm here.

That was something that had gone unnoticed until just now, which was just how warm it was. The sun didn't shine any brighter and the air didn't feel any heavier, so it wasn't "humid like a summer day" warm. It wasn't the dry heat of a desert either - it almost felt like it came in waves from a single source, like it pulsed through the ground itself and spilled into the air.

There must be a volcano somewhere further in, reasoned Yang. I wonder if that's why all the trees are burnt?

Her thoughts referred to the massive forest of coal-black tree husks that lay ahead of her, with branches bare of leaves and trunks scorched by past fires. She walked over to one and ran her good hand over the bark, pulling back and examining the soot that stained her fingers. The black dust clung loosely to her skin, easily rolling into a loose ball as she rubbed her thumb and forefingers together before flicking it away. The way the tree practically disintegrated at her touch reminded her of spent charcoal - only instead of lingering in the fireplace long after the blaze died out, there was an entire forest of the stuff stretching for miles in front of her.

She stood there for far longer than she cared to admit, which surprised her. She'd faced down the Creatures of Grimm - monstrous beings of pure darkness who hungered only for humanity's destruction - and leapt into the fray with fists flying. She'd challenged some of the craziest, most powerful Huntsmen and Huntresses from all four Kingdoms, and while some encounters cost her greatly, she always found a way to rise back up for round two. And even in the last few days when cornered by Salem, the immortal queen of the Grimm, she'd wasted no time in calling her out on her cowardice and hypocrisy - and even getting a few good hits in on the witch to boot.

Yang Xiao Long thought she was fearless.

So why was she so hesitant to enter this burnt forest?

Maybe it's cause on Remnant, I knew what I was getting myself into, she thought to herself. Here…I have no idea what's out there waiting for me. Plus I had friends back home, friends I knew could bail me out if I ever got in over my head…best I can do now is tread water or drown.

She shook her head to clear it, willing back the loneliness and despair once again.

No. Come on, Yang. You got this. You're a big girl. If you wanna find a way home - or at least find answers about where you are - you're gonna have to go into the big scary forest. You can do it. You have to do it.

Taking the mother of all deep breaths to steel her nerves, Yang stepped into the woods.

The sunlight seemed to vanish as she ventured into the blackened forest, blocked by both the spiky ebon-black branches and a perpetual smog of dark gray. Yang tread softly through a thin layer of ash that gathered on the ground, which crunched under her boots like it was freshly fallen snow. Occasionally her footing found a loose branch or exposed root, both of which crumbled into dust at the slightest touch. There were no calling birds, no chittering insects, no cute little woodland animals scurrying around. The entire forest was as silent as death, and Yang soon wondered if she was the only thing here that was still alive.

At least, she wondered that until she heard footsteps in the distance.

She felt the muscles in her left wrist tighten in preparation to deploy Ember Celica as she slowly moved towards the source of the sound, already mentally forming a plan to deal with whatever she might face. The Huntress prepared to live up to her title as she closed in on her prey, her ears wide open for more noises with each passing second. The footsteps were definitely getting louder the closer she came, following a rhythmic sort of pattern, and it was soon accompanied by the sound of slow, measured breathing. Whoever she was tracking clearly didn't care about staying quiet, which made her wonder if her quarry was some dangerous predator that ruled these woods - one that others feared too much to approach.

When she finally stumbled into a clearing and found the source of the noise, she was both disappointed and perplexed at the same time.

Yang stared in disbelief as she took in the sight of a small red figure - one about half her height - pacing slowly and deliberately across the open patch of ashen soil. The figure had two ribbed arms that were as long as its wide rectangular torso, along with a pair of big triangular legs that connected to even bigger wedge-shaped feet. A mask in the shape of a four-sided diamond sat on a gray head, one that was bigger than the torso it was connected to, and angled eye slots in the mask revealed yellow lights glowing intensely. Another amber orb shone from its chest and pulsed softly with each slow and deliberate movement, like a tiny little heartbeat dictating the pace of its actions.

What caught her attention was that like the crab on the beach, this being was at least partly mechanical. Servos and hidden gears whirred and whined with each step, and much of its scarlet-red body seemed metallic at a glance. Each movement was mechanical and repetitive, though Yang couldn't tell if that was a deliberate choice or not. What she could tell was that this creature was very methodical in its pacing - twenty steps in one direction, turn around, twenty steps in the other direction, repeat, all done as slowly as a sloth on a lazy Sunday afternoon.

She watched the figure for a moment. Then another. Then one more, just to be safe. After bracing herself for an attack she was certain would never come, she let out a breath she didn't even realize she'd been holding, sitting down on a fallen log and tracking the strange little creature. Her former prey barely even reacted to her presence, which made Yang wonder if it was even aware of her at all.

Until it spoke.

"Hello."

Yang almost fell out of her seat. A modulated male voice echoed across the clearing, one as slow and careful as the rest of the creature's actions. The fact that it talked wasn't what surprised her - what did surprise her was that she could understand what it said. She swallowed the lump in her throat to keep her heart from leaping out of her chest, giving a small timid wave in response.

The little red figure gave a nod of understanding. "I am Kapura," it continued even as it paced. "Are you the Makuta?"

She blinked slowly. This figure sees something as strange and unusual as the blonde brawler interrupting it while pacing, and that's the first thing it asks? She pondered the meaning of the strange things it had said - the first was clearly a name, but the second…she couldn't explain why, but just the word alone made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

"Erm…no." She finally managed to push words through dry, cracked lips. "My name's Yang. Yang Xiao Long. I'm, uh…not from around here, in case you couldn't tell." Yang laughed softly, then paused to gather her thoughts. "What's a Makuta?"

Kapura, as she supposed its - his - name was, gave a sidelong glance as he slowly paced. She couldn't tell what he was thinking, but she had a feeling his face was scrunched up behind the mask, as if he was trying to solve some inscrutable puzzle. All the while he kept his repetitive, slow walking routine, never deviating even as his mind tried to solve the mystery.

"…if you do not know what the Makuta is, then I guess you are not it," he finally said with a shrug. "That is good. Jaller says I have to be careful of the Makuta when I am in the forest. He says the Makuta is everywhere."

Yang tilted her head. "Um…"

"He means Rahi," Kapura continued. "Monsters. Things you can see. But I know the Makuta is here now, in these burnt trees, and in the dead soil. All of these things were destroyed by the Makuta, but he never left them. That is how he becomes strong. That is what the Makuta does. He destroys things."

The Huntress bit her lips, understanding now why the name alone filled her with dread. Great…this place has its own Salem, too. Hopefully he at least has the sense to leave us alone.

"I think the forest looks very beautiful this way," finished Kapura after a pause. "And when it burned, you could see all the fires performing their Great Takara all the way to the sea, and it was very beautiful."

"Right…" said Yang with a slow nod, despite not completely understanding what was being said. "What are you doing? Why are you moving so slowly?"

"I am practicing," he said simply. "Vakama says that even though I am slow, I may be faster than all the other Matoran, and travel very far. He says I must practice. Jaller says I am being silly. I practice often."

Vakama…Jaller…Matoran…a lot of new words were being thrown at Yang in very quick succession, and she wasn't sure what any of them meant. Why couldn't Kapura just tell her what was going on, using words she actually understood? A flare of frustration and anger built up, but she quelled it. No need to lose her temper.

Not yet, anyways.

"So, um…" she said, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible. "What is this place? Where am I?"

"You are where you are," Kapura said. "If I practice, I can be where I am not. The more I practice, the clearer my destination becomes. It is hot here where I am, but where I am not is cold, and I think I can feel it. I must practice more."

Yang frowned. "That doesn't really answer my -"

"This island has many places to visit. I want to see all of them. But the others do not like to travel. Mata Nui is very big."

She let out a sigh. Well…at least she knew what to call the island now. Not that it helped - in her nineteen years of living on Remnant, she'd never heard of a "Mata Nui," not even from Ozpin. Was this entire place just a construct of the Brother Gods? The equivalent of a cosmic junk drawer, where they stored their old creations? Or had she really fallen out of Remnant into a new world entirely, one far away from everyone she knew and loved?

As if he could sense her confusion and rising panic, Kapura spoke up again.

"Vakama knows more. You should ask him. He lives in Ta-Koro. Follow the scratches in the trees. They mark the path I always take when I come here to practice. They will take you to my village."

The tightness and anxiety in her chest faded at the promise of answers. She nodded as she stood up again. "Good to know…um, thanks, Kapura. Keep practicing, I guess."

"Goodbye, Yang."

Casting one more glance back at the slowly-pacing little figure, Yang took a steadying breath and ventured into the charred woods once more.

I sure hope the others are having a better time than me. They've gotta be over in Vacuo by now.

Weiss's breath exploded from her lungs in a great deluge of bubbles as she kicked one final time, breaking the surface with a shrill gasp and grabbing onto a passing ice floe to keep herself afloat. She gripped the cold surface and coughed up seawater, the chill in her arms a stark contrast to the burning in her throat. When she finally managed to empty her lungs of any irritating fluid, she pulled herself up and curled into a ball, huddling for warmth as she suddenly felt very, very cold. Her snow white hair flopped around her in a blanket of wet filth, intricately-woven braids and ponytail done apart by the sea and flowing loosely around her.

Still, it didn't matter too much to the former Heiress that her hair was a complete mess.

If she was lucky, she would live long enough to complain about it later.

Thank goodness Klein had the forethought to give me survival swimming lessons when I was younger, she thought as she puffed hot air into her hands in an attempt to warm them up. Falling into icy lakes is a near death-sentence in Solitas, and he didn't want me to fall victim to it.

The thought of her family back on Remnant threatened to draw forth the tears, but the last thing she needed was more water clinging to her face and giving the freezing winds a new surface to bite her. She needed to get dry, and she needed to get warm. Fortunately she could already feel her Aura pooling back into her limbs, helping her with both; her dark blue overcoat and gloves already felt as dry as fresh linens, and her sky-colored dress and boots weren't too far behind.

Mother always said that Papa Nick's Aura always came back unnaturally fast, even after breaking, remembered Weiss. Guess that ended up getting passed down to me, too...though I think I would have preferred it coming back before I fell here. Wherever "here" is.

Another memory of a family she'd likely never see again passed her mind. Her heart ached despite her chest no longer starving for air, and the cold wasn't the only cause behind her trembling lips. She knew she had to steel herself, had to hold back the misery until she was warm and well-fed, but she couldn't stop a single sorrowful sob from escaping her lips.

Despite her team leader being nowhere nearby, she could imagine her next thought in Ruby's optimistic, confident voice.

It's gonna be okay, Weiss! We came into this world somehow, so there has to be a way back! We'll all see our families again, I know we will!

She blushed slightly. How could her partner be so inspirational and so cute all at the same time?... No. No, there'd be time to unpack that can of worms later. Right now, she needed to move, and the words of her friend in her mind gave her comfort enough to act.

Weiss blinked to clear the tears from her eyes, then sat up with a groan. Looking over herself to make sure all her gear was intact and still there - Myrtenaster, her spare Dust vials, a Scroll, and the borrowed Gambol Shroud, all accounted for - she scanned the horizon with her hand shielding her eyes. Her little ice floe wouldn't last forever, and she wasn't too keen on being dropped back into the freezing ocean when it melted. She had to find solid ground before that.

There. A massive island not too far from her position, one with frosty shores that skirted the edges of a very tall mountain. A tundra of ice and snow separated the low and high extremes of the land, and as much as Weiss loathed the cold at the moment, it was better than being stranded in the sea. So she drew her silvery rapier, spun the main cylinder until a vial of blue powder was locked in place, and pulsed her Semblance behind her. A glyph of sapphire energy appeared in the sea before bursting into water like an overfilled balloon; she plunged Myrtenaster into the ice floe to anchor herself as the resulting wave carried her across the surface, the momentum being just enough to bring her within glyph-stepping distance of the mainland.

A few short hops across summoned platforms later, Weiss Schnee tumbled unceremoniously into a snowbank.

Oh, very classy and graceful. You must be so proud of yourself.

That thought came through in Blake's voice, smug and self-assured yet teasing and good-natured. Weiss groaned inwardly, already feeling some of her weakened Aura fade at the exertion. Part of her knew it would be best to sit and wait for the protective soul armor to finish replenishing, but the rest of her didn't want to stay in one place for too long. Besides, there was another feature on the island she was curious about, something that had gone unnoticed when she was still out at sea.

A massive silver canister on the beach.

Once Weiss crawled out of her snowbank she moved closer to inspect the strange object, running her hands over smooth, cold steel. The canister was massive compared to her; she guessed it could easily hold an entire Ursa Major and still have room to fit a few Beowolves. It's polished metal exterior faintly reflected the light of the sun above, while the inside was cool and dark and slightly damp. It stuck fast to the beach, wedged between the sand and the sea, and a look at the interior revealed a complex array of wires and switches. Finally, a large hollow dome lay face down about a dozen feet away, and it was just the right size to presume that it was once the lid for this strange machine.

This thing was obviously carrying something, she deduced. But what? And why couldn't I have come to the island in something like this?

She filed her complaint about transit options between worlds for later as she looked down and saw a set of large rectangular footprints leading away from the canister, ones that went further inland towards the mountain. Nothing else lingered on the chilly little beach, aside from some strange metal crabs and birds that stayed along the coast. If she wanted to find out what came from the canister, there was only one way to do so.

What's that thing Jaune always says? Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet? She mentally scowled. Well let's just hope for both our sakes that he's right, cause if this gets me killed I'm coming back to haunt that blonde dunce.

Taking a breath to prepare herself for whatever she might find, Weiss kept a hand on Myrtenaster as she followed the footprints into deeper snow.

Not long after she splashed down, Blake Belladonna pulled herself out of the ocean with practiced ease, quickly scaling one of the small rocky cliffs and scrambling to the top. She didn't pause for a breath until she was on dry land, shaking her head to dry out the fur on her Faunus traits and to clear the water that had flowed into both sets of ears during her swim. Once that was done she rose to her feet, taking in her surroundings and warily scanning the horizon with alert amber eyes.

The section of land she'd splashed down near was rough and patchy, little more than a series of bluffs and cliffs that were continually battered by the tide. A sandbar about twenty feet away from her current islet marked the only non-rocky surface that met the ocean, and it was currently occupied by a massive silver canister. Birds chirped and chattered as they swooped and soared overhead, one such creature coming to roost on the strange pod and pecking the lid with its beak. There was a hiss of steam from the sides of the vessel, frightening the bird away before the top exploded off and ejected a collection of black and gunmetal gray objects onto the sand.

Well now that was interesting.

Blake hopped from one rocky outcropping to another to get closer, her catlike agility allowing her to move with ease. As she approached she studied the strange collection of parts, which seemed to shimmer slightly as light reflected off their metallic surface. There were gears and rods and other mechanical pieces, along with jointed segments that seemed to resemble robotic limbs and feet. The realization dawned on her as she caught sight of a huge black torso with an angular head and face and only one arm; this wasn't just a loose assortment of spare bits and bobs, this was a person.

And when the massive claw on the attached arm sprang to life, she froze.

The feline Faunus stayed low to her current perch and watched as the figure's sole limb began to move on its own, filling the air with the whining and whirring of servos waking up after a long period of being inert. The claw served as a great tool for grabbing loose parts out of the sand, assembling a few of them into a second arm and attaching the new limb to its other shoulder. Magnets and catches locked into place with heavy mechanical clunks, and soon the other arm came alive to mirror and aid the first. Blake could only stare in amazement as the biomechanical figure literally pulled itself back together, rising slowly on newly-built legs and slowly testing the weight of its body. Finally, it picked up a diamond-shaped mask that was as black as obsidian, letting sand fall through the cracks in the side before slamming it over the face.

A surge of energy flowed through the figure, and a moment later glowing green eyes shone out through rounded holes in the mask. The resulting being towered over Blake yet still seemed hunched over and squat, possibly owing to the broad shoulders and stocky limbs that made it - him? - seem smaller than he actually was. His three-fingered claws, which were as long and sharp as the cleaver-sheath for Gambol Shroud, hung forward in front of him as he looked from side to side, scanning the horizon cautiously just as she herself had done moments ago. When he sensed no threat in his immediate surroundings he took off at a slow walk, leaving massive footprints in the sand with each deliberate step.

Intrigued by the being of steel and sinew, Blake was compelled to follow silently. If this stranger was a new ally, then learning about him from a distance was the safest approach. And if he wasn't…

The shadowy Huntress gripped the only part of her weapon she still had, already forming a plan to deal with the figure if it came to that.

Which she desperately hoped it wouldn't.

It didn't take Weiss long to remember just how rapidly the temperature could drop in the tundra, and it became clearer still the further she ventured inland. While the winds weren't nearly as bitterly freezing as her homeland of Solitas, it still stuck fast like a thorn in her side with each step, chilling her through her layers of clothing and protective Aura. The field of soul energy was doing its best to warm her up at its low levels, but there was only so much it could do against the cold. She'd need to find shelter soon, especially if the winds didn't stop picking up.

Find whatever left that huge canister, she reminded herself. Focus on that. Then you can treat yourself to a nice roaring fire…and some melted snow. Maybe even some cave moss as dessert.

Her stomach grumbled in protest.

…better skip the cave moss. Too fattening.

Weiss shook her head to clear it, mustering up the will to keep on her current course through the tundra. After ten minutes of following the footsteps, she began to question whether this chase was worth it. After twenty, she considered giving up and finding a cave. Thirty minutes later she was ready to lay down in the snow and let the elements claim her if it meant she wouldn't have to keep walking. But despite her fatigue and frustration, she pressed on. She kept moving forward, determined to find whatever had emerged from the vessel she saw on the beach.

Because she suspected that whatever came out of that canister could lead her to her friends, who were undoubtedly somewhere else on the island.

And maybe, just maybe, it could even lead her home.

She took a few more steps and rounded a corner marked by a glacier when she finally spotted what was leaving the footprints, the sight of which left her (almost literally) frozen in place.

There, standing about twenty paces ahead of her, was a massive humanoid figure clad in silver and white armor. It looked to be about ten feet tall at least, with features such as a rotating gearbox in its shoulders and pistons along its waist and thighs that revealed a semi-robotic nature. When it, or he - Weiss couldn't help but label the figure a he - turned his head to the left, he revealed a single icy-blue eye glowing through a slit in a circular mask; when his head turned to the right, Weiss caught sight of three telescopic lenses that whirred and clicked into place. A large round shield was mounted to his left forearm, and a long notched blade hung across his back with a handle easily reachable across his right shoulder. His appearance reminded Weiss of an Arma Gigas crossed with an Atlesian Knight - except unlike either of those things, this being was alive.

The white-haired Huntress just stood there, unsure what to think of the sight in front of her. For a moment, she wasn't even sure if she was still breathing. When the stranger resumed his walk, it took every bit of willpower she had to leave her glacial cover, doing her best to not make a sound at all as she followed.

Unfortunately for Weiss, her best wasn't enough.

After a few minutes of following the stranger suddenly paused, head turning a fraction of a degree to look over his shoulder. Then there was a sound like whirring machinery as the figure spun on the spot and drew his sword in one swift motion, aiming it in less than a second - directly at her. Weiss barely had time to yelp in surprise before a blast of intense cold launched itself at her, and it was only instinct that allowed her to leap to the side and avoid the attack. The armored figure barely even shifted his stance as he corrected his aim, firing more waves of frost and ice at the evasive Huntress.

Weiss kept dodging for as long as she could, but she eventually made the choice to fight back and draw her sword. Bronze light shone from Myrtenaster as her supply of Earth Dust locked into place; a stab into the ground conjured a massive barrier of stone and rubble to block the assault. Icicles began to form on the bulwark, which only grew as more and more blasts connected and threatened to split her wall apart. With a slash and a yell the earthen barrier shattered under her own power, its pieces raining down on the frosty figure like a localized avalanche.

The figure actually seemed startled for a moment, but quickly clamped down on the confusion, raising his shield to brace himself against the falling debris. It wasn't enough to save him - massive chunks of stone sent tremors across the ground when they landed around and on top of him, and the battle was over just as soon as it began.

Cold air crackled into her lungs as the adrenaline rush of combat wore off, and she looked down at her vial of orange-colored powder with sudden panic. Based on just how powerful the summoned effect had been, she was afraid she'd used her entire supply of the mystical mineral in one single attack. Fear turned to confusion when she noticed that the chamber was barely even emptied - what would have caused a few pebbles to form on Remnant had created an avalanche of stone here.

What is this place? she wondered in awe, I did all that with just a little bit of Dust? On the one hand, this should make rationing easier since I need to use less Dust per attack, but on the other hand…

She looked up at the white armored figure, buried under a landslide that had appeared out of thin air, and dread gripped her heart.

Oh gods.

"Hey! Hey, come on! You better not be dead!"

Weiss took off at a sprint and moved to check on the fallen figure, whose dark eyes and unmoving frame made her fear the worst. Thankfully, the lights flickered on a moment later, and by the time she scaled the small pile of rubble to look the stranger in the eyes, he was already shaking his head and shifting beneath the boulders pinning him down. A sigh of relief escaped her chest, and the pressure holding her stomach like a vice grip finally eased up. She made a mental note to keep her power in check, lest she accidentally freeze the entire island with one ill-timed attack.

First person you meet in this new world and you nearly kill them, she thought to herself in Yang's smarmy, sarcastic (yet somehow endearing) voice as she stared down at her former attacker. Way to make a good first impression, ice queen.

"Sorry about that," she said aloud, mentally shutting off her inner critic for the moment. "I didn't mean to hurt you - I misjudged my own power. Are you okay?"

The figure glared at her with cold blue eyes, the array of lenses on his mask swiveling and clicking in irritation. "I would be…" he said icily, "...if you weren't standing on me."

The heiress looked down at her feet to see that yes, her combat heels were digging through the stone into ivory-silver body armor. She stepped off while lifting her skirt to keep the hem from catching on the stony debris, then looked back at the figure with a raised eyebrow. Her former opponent didn't even bother to thank her, instead lifting his notched blade above the rubble and holding it over the rocks with a thin armored glove.

"Hold on, let me get you out of there," said Weiss as she raised Myrtenaster once again.

"I don't need help."

The air around her suddenly felt about fifty degrees colder, rippling and humming with an unfamiliar sound. Weiss shivered as she saw the sword begin to glow with pale blue light, watching curiously as the stranger brought the sword closer to the rocks. Without even making contact with the blade, the stony debris started to freeze over with a thick coat of frost, which eventually grew into ice so dense it could have held up solid steel.

How is he doing that? she wondered with a tilt of her head. Is it Dust? His Semblance? Or...something else?

Despite her fascination, her pride kept her from watching quietly.

"Just let me do it," she insisted. "It'll be faster."

The figure shot another glare at her. "I said…"

CRASH!

Rocks and rubble exploded in a shower of shrapnel as the stranger brought his sword down on the frozen stone, filling the air with glasslike shards and reducing most of the debris into sharp snowflakes that flew out from the point of impact. Weiss yelped as she instinctively raised her arms in front of her to brace her Aura, calling on what little of her soul armor remained to stop the storm of blades from giving her even more cuts and gashes. Her protective barrier flickered in and out of existence as her muscles screamed for rest, but it did an admirable job of keeping most of the shrapnel away from her face and chest. Her arms and legs weren't quite so lucky, though, and while none of them cut deep enough to draw blood, they did make new holes in her outfit for the chill to pour through.

Once the dust settled, the figure stood up on his now-freed legs, unconcerned with the new scratches on his armor or the fact that he almost turned the heiress into pink puree.

"...I can do it myself," he finished with a cold scowl beneath his mask.

Indignant that she hadn't even gotten an apology for nearly killing her - even after she had the decency to do the same! - Weiss turned Myrtenaster towards the last chunk of rock that had somehow survived the icy implosion.

"Yes, well...you missed one."

Gravity Dust locked into place, and soon an ebon-black glyph launched the boulder and sent it careening into the sky. It sailed across the horizon for a few seconds, before crashing with a distant thud into a faraway canyon. The figure stared at the flying rock for a moment, as if he was wondering whether or not to be impressed.

"Now, if we can talk with words instead of force, then we might actually get somewhere productive," snapped Weiss as she sheathed her sword, extending a hand courteously. "My name is Weiss Schnee, former Heiress of the Schnee Dust Company and second-in-command of Team RWBY. And you are…?"

The icy figure said nothing. He didn't even move to reciprocate her handshake.

"...not going to tell me your name, " she realized with a tight frown. "Alright, fine. If you won't tell me who you are, then would you at least be willing to tell me what you are? Or even where we are, right now?"

The blue stare of the stranger was far from warm or encouraging. He shook his head and turned to leave.

"I'm wondering the same thing myself," he intoned simply. "If you don't have answers, then there's no reason to keep talking to you."

And with that, he walked away.

The heiress just dropped her jaw in shock and watched the white-armored figure march through the snow in the opposite direction, the knee-high banks of powder barely even slowing him down.

"H-hey! Get back here!" With a scoff she moved to follow once again, digging through the waist-high snow that pushed against her with each step. Unsurprisingly, the stranger did not heed her command. If anything, he seemed to move faster.

"Wait!" Weiss said, picking up her pace to try and keep up with the mystery giant's large strides. "If you don't know either, then wouldn't it make more sense to find out together? We'd have a better chance of figuring out the answers - or finding people that do know - if we helped each other."

The stranger didn't seem too enthused. "I work alone."

She huffed. "By choice? Or just because no one can stand you and your attitude?"

Gods, please tell me I wasn't this obnoxious.

The figure once again stopped in his tracks, and for a moment she wondered if her words had struck a nerve. Then she realized why he stopped: his lenses were scanning the horizon in response to a distant howl, one that didn't belong to any Grimm she recognized. Her heart skipped a beat as she suddenly remembered that she was a stranger in a strange land, with unknown dangers and terrors that were far worse than just making a fool of herself. If she wanted to find her friends - if they were even still alive - she needed his help more than he needed hers.

He seemed to come to the same conclusion, albeit far more reluctantly. His blue eyes looked back to her, and he let out a long sigh.

"...fine. Follow, if you want. After all, I might need a mountain moved...or the island lifted."

You'd probably want Yang for that, she thought to herself as she moved closer. She tried to ignore the piercing gaze and the whirring of the lenses, but knew they were watching her move through the snow with none of the grace or agility she prided herself in. When she finally crawled out of the waist-high prison of white powder, the stranger interrupted her panting with one word.

"Kopaka."

Weiss looked up and tilted her head. "Huh?"

He narrowed his eyes. "My name."

The Huntress nodded breathlessly. "Right. Kopaka. Can you spell that for me?"

"No."

Kopaka turned away again and began moving, clearing away the snow banks with small waves of his icy sword. Weiss bit back her next insult and followed her unusual ally, hugging her chest to warm herself as she trailed behind him.

I hope the others are alright, she thought to herself as Kopaka led them deeper into the tundra. And that whoever they've met is friendlier than this.

There was no use denying the facts in front of her face.

Yang was lost.

After her talk with Kapura, she'd spent an hour looking for the scratches on the trees like he suggested, only to end up even more lost than before. No matter how closely she paid attention to the marks in the trunks, or how hard she tried to remember which ones she'd passed and which ones were new, she still found herself wandering right back around to the same clearing. Or maybe all the clearings were exactly the same. It was hard to say.

In any case, frustration rose inside her just as well as the fatigue, and she swore to herself if she saw the same clearing one more time she was gonna tear down the whole damn forest until -

A sudden noise on her left made her snap to attention, the sound of branches striking each other followed by shouting voices. She couldn't understand what was being said at this distance, but the calls and cries drew her closer like a siren song. Yang took off running at full tilt through the trees, the foolishness of such a move barely registering against the desire to find somebody - anybody - who could get her out of these stupid woods.

In this case, her impulsiveness paid off.

As another clearing came into view, she suddenly skidded to a halt and darted behind one of the blackened trees along the edge of the open field. She was rewarded with the sight of more strange figures that resembled Kapura, though these had different masks and some of them had yellow or black parts to accent their red torsos and arms. Directly across from them was a giant bipedal figure, one twice as tall as Yang, with gleaming red armor, a sword in hand, and a withering crimson glare under his own mask. The taller figure was trapped in some kind of cage made of branches - a trap clearly set by the smaller figures, given the way they mobilized and pointed two-pronged spears at their prize.

"Agni, Keahi, take the left flanks!" said a yellow-masked little person. "Kalama, on the right with me! I don't know what kind of Rahi this is, but I intend to find out after we deal with it!"

"On it Captain!"

Yang almost felt sorry for the figure in the cage...or at least, she did, before the trapped being's eyes suddenly flashed a dangerous red. The sword in his hand came alive in a roaring blaze, casting a strong orange light that threw everything else into shadow. With one swipe he easily cut through the charred wood that restrained him, freeing himself and scattering burning cinders in the wind.

The smaller beings paused for a fraction of a second at their trap being foiled, before they fearlessly raised their spears in unison once again.

While Yang may not have known who or what the larger stranger was, she recognized the intent in his eyes all the same. He wasn't just satisfied with freedom. He wanted payback, especially against whatever had tried to trap him in the first place. And considering how the little guys didn't seem likely to back down, it would be all too easy for that fiery blade to snuff them out.

It would be a slaughter.

Her hand balled up into a fist.

Recently she had tried to avoid picking fights she didn't know she could win. She had made great strides to avoid rushing headlong into dangerous situations, to think with her head instead of her gauntlets. But Yang Xiao Long had been wandering around the same dozen or so blackened trees for what felt like years. She was tired, thirsty, sweaty, and pissed.

She really needed to beat something up, just to feel a little better.

And right now, the red-armored giant that was waving a flaming sword menacingly at the group of Munchkins was a very tempting and deserving target.

Ember Celica unfolded with a click, and she fired backwards to launch herself into the fray!