Shattered Rune Arc

by agopessimist

Jaune Arc wanted to be a hero, to be someone his ancestors and family would be proud of. But even after becoming Tarnished, failure continued to haunt him throughout his journey in the Lands Between. Now having returned to Remnant as Elden Lord, Jaune swore he would do whatever it takes to never fail again. He swore to fulfill his friend and mentor's dying wish: protect Ruby Rose.

3. Chapter 3

Hello all, and thank you again for coming to read this! I really appreciate all the feedback you guys gave for last chapter!

I just wanted to clarify some things before I go on. In regards to my previous statement, it was never my intent to imply that I would nerf Jaune to the point where he would always be at or below the level of the other RWBY characters when that couldn't be further from the truth. Though I will say that Jaune has a lot of personal and emotional issues that he needs to work through before he can really go at it with his full strength.

With my previous statement, I just meant to say that I intended for Jaune to primarily be an Intelligence user, though that may change sometime in the future. Won't say anything more than that but as the story progresses Jaune will begin to utilize more abilities and skills as the story continues and he works through his personal issues.

To address randomthoughts96's question, Jaune legitimately became Elden Lord i.e. he defeated Radagon/Elden Beast. I won't go into any further detail on what happened exactly during his journey in the Lands Between just yet, but he isn't just some bystander. He did fight his fair share of battles and no he is not going to be treated as some pushover/gag character in comparison to Summer if you were worried about that.

And to those who said that the story is sticking a bit too close to RWBY's canon story, I sincerely apologize for that. The past 2 chapters have mostly been set-up so that the actual story can proceed, which is why most of it has been relatively the same so far. Rest assured things will start to take a different turn beginning this chapter, and I hope you guys enjoy what I have in store!

Thank you all for your patience and feedback, and without further ado let's start with Initiation! This is a pretty beefy chapter, as there was a lot I wanted to add. Hopefully the length doesn't bother you guys!

---

It was only thanks to years of training and discipline that Pyrrha Nikos was able to get out of bed at the crack of dawn.

Normally, the talented Spartan would have eagerly slept in and cocooned herself in her blankets if she ever had the chance. But her instructors, mother, and sponsors wanted her to appear as an irreplaceable icon. A beacon that can inspire many future Huntsmen, Huntresses, and thousands of young and awestruck girls to be just like her. This of course meant that she had to stick to a very strict routine, which sadly included waking up at the crack of dawn and be combat ready in 5 minutes.

Thankfully, the sole benefit of waking up this early was that she could quickly and quietly slip away from the other students and change into her gear without the worry of anyone recognizing her and devolving into a rabid fan once again. Yesterday had been a horrible indication of the kind of scrutiny and adoration that she would endure here at Beacon. The very same adoration that she despised back in Mistral.

While Pyrrha had once took to her new fame and fortune with a smile on her face, over the years that same smile became more and more plastic as the constant fear of failure and prying eyes began to weigh on her. It was an incredible achievement for her to win the Mistral Regional Tournament at such a young age, the crowd showering her with immense respect. The next year, she won in a landslide victory that had the audience amazed at her winning streak.

The third win in a row? People began to notice her talent, and eagerly started showering her with sponsorships, awards, branding, merchandise, and hand-shakes with the most prominent heads of Mistral.

After the 4th win in a row? All gloves were off, and Pyrrha had the misfortune of becoming a global phenomenon almost overnight. Soon, everybody from Vacuo to Vale and Atlas were screaming her name, calling her the next global phenomenon and the pinnacle of what a Huntress should be. Everyone who was anyone wanted to meet the Legendary Pyrrha Nikos, champion of Mistral.

Her fame even extended to her fellow friends and students in Sanctum. The moment she grew in fame, the more enamored the entire school was to her, and her friends soon became desperate fans eager to show off to the world how close they were to the incredibly talented 'Invincible Girl'.

She soon began losing her once peaceful connections with her home, her friends, her mother, and soon the world the moment she was given the title of 'Invincible Girl', and she now secretly despised the fame that had once made her mother so proud of her.

Pyrrha loved fighting in the arena. She glowed in happiness whenever she was training and honing her reflexes. She always enjoyed the thrill of the fight, and was never one to turn down a challenge. Helping others was always her dream, and fighting and training against strong foes in the arena or on the field was what gave her life joy. She never fought for fame or fortune, but those two things followed her wherever she went back in Mistral, and a couple of months ago she finally had enough.

It had been difficult, but she was successfully able to convince her mother and her sponsors the benefits of attending Beacon rather than Haven Academy. Claiming that she would gain much more exposure and prestige should she win the Vytal Tournament this year hosted by Beacon, they jumped at the opportunity with her mother in particular being careful to stress to her that it was important that she succeed.

Pyrrha could only sigh when reflecting on that memory. She loved her mother and would always beam with joy whenever she saw how happy her mom was after every victory, but she could never understand the loneliness she felt day after day. She herself could never tell her mother how she truly felt, for what would happen if she told her she wanted to stop? Ever since her father passed away, they had been struggling financially for years, and it was only thanks to her sponsorships and arena winnings that she was able to lift themselves out of poverty. If it meant that she could make sure her mother would never have to eat cold cheese soup for the rest of her life, then she would fight in the arenas for many more years.

But she had to branch out, to find some form of escape from the suffocating world that was Mistral. Above all else, she prayed that going to Vale would be enough to distance herself from the constant scrutiny and idolization of her fans.

Sadly, the moment she entered the Bullhead to Beacon nearly everyone on board had recognized her and started to swarm her immediately. They took photos, begged for autographs, and asked her for advice on how to be stronger. Ever the polite lady, Pyrrha would oblige them, but inwardly she could only sigh in defeat as the naivete of her plans blew up in her face.

'I guess it was too good to be true... even out here in Vale I'll always be recognizable as the 'Invincible Girl'...

But to her shock, on the Bullhead she noticed a young man dressed up as a knight make his way through the crowd of fans and completely passed her by without a peep or even a glance in her direction. Did he really not notice her, even after moving through a massive crowd that chanted her name? Or could it be that... he didn't care at all about her reputation?

She hoped to speak with him once more, to see whether he really didn't care about her fame, but when the Bullhead landed at Beacon her crowd of fans continued to surround her. It was only with an excuse to use the restroom did the crowd finally disperse, and she couldn't be more mentally exhausted by her ravenous welcome. She managed to find a quiet corner in the ballroom away from any potential fans and she drifted off to sleep, still hoping that she might find some friends here.

Thankful that there was no one else awake at this time, she seized the opportunity to shower and change in peace. Making her way to the communal showers, she was shocked to see someone emerge from the men's showers all geared up despite it being so early.

It was that same blonde knight she saw on the Bullhead yesterday, and this time she got a closer look at him. Blonde with blueish-golden eyes, he was adorned in blue armor that reminded Pyrrha of the stories of knights and dragons her father once told her as a child. Just like before, the blonde man didn't even notice her near the women's showers and made his way back to the ballroom.

Pyrrha was stunned. It really did seem like he had no idea who she was at all! But, maybe it was possible that he just didn't notice her? He seemed so distracted yesterday and now, and to be fair to him it didn't seem like he had a good night's sleep. There were dark circles under his eyes and he wore a face of grim determination as he sat back down at his usual spot next to the group of girls who caused quite a bit of commotion last night with their arguing. Making her way to the showers, she quickly washed herself and began gearing herself up for Initiation. She had no idea what Initiation would entail, nor how her teammates would be chosen.

Making her way out of the showers, she noticed how there were many more students now awake and making their way to the showers and lockers. Keeping herself hidden Pyrrha made her way to her own locker to grab her weapons.

As a nearby couple composed of an energetic orange-haired girl and a sleep-deprived young man with black hair made their way past her, another young girl proceeded to strut her way towards Pyrrha with the face of someone eager to strike gold.

Weiss Schnee. Heiress of the Schnee Dust Company and one of the many sponsors who endorsed her once she won the Mistral Regional Tournament for the 3rd time in a row. Though she hadn't met Weiss personally, Pyrrha had been invited to tour Atlas at the behest of Jacques Schnee, head of the Schee Dust Company, as a gesture of good faith and sportsmanship after she soundly defeated the Atlas Champion. In all honesty, it was one of the most uncomfortable meetings Pyrrha had ever had with a sponsor. Jacques Schnee had the look of a man desperate to show the world that he was in charge, and during their tour of Atlas, he made sure to put himself in ever picture with Pyrrha and constantly stressed on the generous Dust supply awarded to her for her landslide victory. Pyrrha had been forced to feign a smile on her face and accepted the sponsorship money from him in good faith.

Frankly, she would have much preferred being hounded by the Pumpkin Pete's sponsors any day. Though the cereal was a hazard to one's health, at least their representatives were kind and friendly to her.

"Pyrrha Nikos, I take it? Good morning, I'm Weiss Schnee, heiress of the Schnee Dust Company. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance here at Beacon! I never expected someone of your fame and caliber to come to Beacon for training."

"Oh, well, I just wished for a nice change of pace from Mistral, and seeing as how Vale would be hosting the Vytal Tournament this year I thought it would be a good opportunity for me to branch out and see how other students train here. It would be best for me to better prepare for the Tournament by observing the competition around me." Pyrrha said as she mentally voiced the script PR drilled into her head while shaking Weiss's hand.

"Oh, you shouldn't have any worries Pyrrha! Someone of your talents and caliber would have no trouble handily defeating any small trash that would dare to fight against you while you're here! I, for one, came to Beacon to also hone my skills and to test myself against Vale's supposed best of the best. I am eager to see your exploits in class and in the Tournament. The Schnee Dust Company has been a very generous sponsor for you these past 2 years, and it brought us great pleasure to see you win the Mistral Regional Tournament for the 4th year in a row! I hope we can can cooperate with you more in the years to come!"

"Speaking of cooperation, I was wondering if you've given any thought on whose team you would like to be on? While I admit that I'm unsure of what Beacon's rules are when it comes to team formation, I'm sure everyone here would be more than willing to join a team with someone as strong and well known as you." Weiss said with a hopeful gleam in her eye as she praised Pyrrha.

'Oh no... I hope she isn't implying what I think she is.' Pyrrha had seen that hopeful look thousands of times before when she was offered so many prizes and sponsorships in the past. Everyone was eager to nab her as their icon, and every single one of them had the same exact hungry look that marked Weiss's face. While she personally held nothing against her, she'd rather at least take her chances and team up with someone much more lenient and willing to give her wiggle room to be herself.

"Well, I'm not sure. I was kind of hoping to let the chips fall where they may."

"Well, I was kind of hoping we could be on a team together!"

Too polite to outright say no, Pyrrha could only let out a diplomatic, "Well, that sounds grand!". As Weiss turned around, Pyrrha could easily imagine the confident and gleeful look that had been plastered on Weiss's face at that line of acceptance. No doubt secretly imagining how the two of them would be the star icons of the school and be regarded as legends in the history of Beacon.

'I was planning on letting things play out naturally, but now? I really hope that we don't end up on a team together...'

"Excuse me, do you mind stepping to the side? My locker is right next to yours." A new voice suddenly emerged to her right, and Pyrrha turned to see the same blonde from this morning checking his Scroll as he checked the number on his locker, not even bothering to look up at her.

"Excuse me!? Mr. Arc, we are in the middle of an important conversation right now!"

"Oh, hey, Weiss." The blonde said as he looked up at his Scroll towards Weiss.

"Don't 'hey Weiss' me, Mr. Arc! You and those other girls kept me up all night with that babbling nonsense about children's stories and whatnot! Couldn't you do something to make them stop talking? Some of us would have preferred a night of good rest before Initiation!"

The knight could only scratch the back of his head in embarrassment. "Look, I said I was sorry about the noise last night. I just got carried away with my story, and besides, didn't you just end up arguing with Ruby and Yang for the rest of the night anyway?"

Weiss could only splutter in response. "Y-you! Anyway, I would appreciate it if you would kindly grab your weapons and leave. Me and Pyrrha are having an important conversation right now!"

"Who?" Jaune asked as he turned towards Pyrrha. As she waved a "Hello!" to him, she was immediately surprised to see him glance at her and immediately open his eyes in shock and horror. A look that soon morphed into one of massive grief as he started to back away from her.

'Oh no. I guess he does recognize me after all.' Pyrrha thought in dismay. He must have recognized her now that he saw a full glimpse of her face. And she was hoping to start fresh here at Beacon...

Weiss must have seen his face and mistaken it for horror at who he completely ignored this time. "Hmph! Looks like you finally took your eyes off your Scroll and decided to pay attention to the world around you. Shocked you completely ignored the Pyrrha Nikos for so long? Sadly for you, Pyrrha has agreed to be my teammate and partner!" Weiss puffed her chest and gave Jaune a smug smile as she waited for him to begin lamenting his poor timing and lack of incentive.

"Actually Weiss, I'm pretty sure teams are made up of 4 people so..." Pyrrha began to try to correct Weiss, but was completely flabbergasted by the next words that came out of Jaune's mouth.

"Sorry, I... honestly have no clue who she is." Jaune said, still having that look of grief on his face.

'Wait, what?'

Thank to years of experience and training under her PR team and with meeting so many upper-class members of society throughout her career, Pyrrha could pretty much tell who was lying to her face and who was trying to kiss up to her to curry any favors. More than once she had to turn down many advances by men and women alike for her beauty and strength, and people who inflated themselves to make them seem more attractable. It was a sad aspect of her life that came with the fame, and Pyrrha eventually learned to spot the lies found in the honeyed words of so many enamored people.

Yet Jaune bore no falsehoods in his voice, and he wasn't some big-name figure like Weiss so he had no incentive to lie in the first place. He genuinely had no idea who she was. So why did he look so sad when he saw her?

Weiss wasn't impressed by his answer. "Are you daft!? How could you not recognize her? This is Pyrrha Nikos!?"

"Hello, again!"

"She graduated top of her class at Sanctum?"

"Sorry, never heard of it." Jaune said, lightly shrugging as his eyes never left Pyrrha's face.

Pyrrha started to secretly smile. Did he really mean that?

"She won the Mistral Regional Tournament 4 years in a row! Breaking the world record!"

"The what?"

'Yes! Is this really happening!?'

"She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes Cereal Box!" Weiss screamed, exasperated by Jaune's complete lack of knowledge of her. Unbelievable, has this buffoon been living underneath a rock for the past 5 years!?

"Sorry, no idea what the hell Pumpkin Pete is."

Now Pyrrha visibly smiled. "Oh, it's just a cereal box sponsorship I got a couple of years ago, where they normally put a celebrity's picture on the box for advertising. While it was fun, I wouldn't really recommend eating the cereal as it isn't the healthiest thing you should eat out there."

"Unbelievable! Where have you been these past 5 years, sleeping under a rock!? How could you not know anything about Pyrrha? She's practically been the face of all future Huntsmen and Huntresses for years! She's an icon, a symbol of what we should all aspire to be! I doubt you could even match a tenth of her strength and skill!" Weiss said as she furiously swung her arms at Jaune's lack of common knowledge. What next, he says he has no idea what Dust is?

Jaune looked like he really wanted to say something to Weiss after that last sentence she made, but he held himself back and just raised an eyebrow at her. Shaking his head, he instead turned to Pyrrha.

"Sorry if I didn't recognize you. I've been having a rough past few days and I don't really watch the news or tournaments. Name's Jaune. Jaune Arc."

"Oh, it's fine, Jaune! In fact, I'd be more than happy to be on a team with you if you want!" Pyrrha said as she eagerly shook his hand. This was great! He genuinely had no idea who she was!

"This is ridiculous! Come on, Pyrrha! We have better things to do than to continue galvanizing with someone as ignorant as him!" Weiss said as she grabbed Pyrrha's hand and dragged her to the site of Initiation.

"It was nice to see you, Jaune!" Pyrrha said as she was dragged out.

---

"Having trouble in Paradise, Ladykiller?" Yang said as she circled her arm across his shoulders. "First you charm my sister, then you tell creepy stories to that Blake girl, and now you're making the moves on Ice Queen and Pyrrha-freaking-Nikos?"

Jaune struggled to regain his voice, before failing and shaking his head. It took a while, but he finally managed to let out a hoarse, "It's nothing."

Ruby looked at him in concern, as he started to have that same depressed look he showed when he spoke about his old mentor. "Is everything okay, Jaune? You look really out of it."

"I'm fine, Rubes. Anyways, how about you two? Ready for whatever Ozpin has planned for us in Initiation?"

"You bet! This time I won't have to worry about meeting new people or making a fool of myself! It'll just be me and Crescent Rose doing the talking! Oh, by the way, would you be willing to join a team with us if they let us?"

"Sure, Rubes! I'd be happy to! Let's just hope that's an option, although if it were that easy I doubt they would have us go through Initiation."

As Ruby and Yang made their way outside towards Emerald Forest, Jaune tried to slow his heartbeat after his conversation with Weiss and Pyrrha.

He was honestly surprised that he never saw Pyrrha's face at all yesterday on the flight towards Beacon. Apparently, his stomachache gave him the perfect excuse to not even catch a glimpse of her at all, and it might have been a good thing that he didn't see her at all yesterday. Otherwise he might have just collapsed on the floor just like he did at Summer's grave.

The moment he saw Pyrrha's face, Jaune felt his entire heart freeze. Pyrrha was an incredibly beautiful girl with flowing red hair and emerald eyes, and though she kept it well hidden from Weiss, Jaune could spot the ever growing smile on her face whenever he told Weiss just how little he knew about her.

And the way she said 'Hello, again'...

Jaune couldn't help it. She reminded him too much of another redhead. One who set out on a long, difficult journey. All she was missing was the golden prosthesis...

'No, stop it, Jaune. She's gone. This is Pyrrha. She isn't... her.'

He slapped himself on the face multiple times, trying to pull himself together. Now wasn't the time for tears. He didn't have the right to shed them anymore. Initiation would soon begin, and he had to make sure Ruby was safe. He couldn't let himself get distracted like this.

Making his way outside, he followed the crowd of students as they set out for the very edge of Emerald Forest, a vast expanse of greenery no doubt filled to the brim with Grimm. He could make out several different students standing atop various gray squares dotting the edge of the cliff. He recognized Pyrrha and Weiss standing at the farther left side while Yang and Ruby joined him at the right end. With everyone now gathered in one horizontal line, Professor Ozpin and Glynda stood in front of them carrying their respective coffee mug and Scroll at the ready.

"For years, you have trained to become warriors. And it is here in the Emerald Forest where you're abilities will be evaluated. This will be the site of your Initiation. Before we begin, I no doubt imagine that many of you have heard various rumors about the assignment of teams. Today, I will put those rumors to rest." Ozpin stated as he stared down each and every student.

Ruby practically vibrated in nervousness at the mention of teams, and she soon let out a sad whimper at Ozpin's next sentence. "Each of you will be assigned teams today. The teammates you will have will serve alongside you for the next 4 years of your career as Huntsmen while you are training here at Beacon. It is highly recommended that you find yourself in a team that you can get along with."

Ozpin took one quick sip of his drink before uttering the final sentence. "That said, the first person you make eye contact with while in the forest will be your partner for the next 4 years. This is non-negotiable."

Ruby practically collapsed whereas Jaune literally face-palmed. Really? This is how Beacon chose partners for people? What the hell would happen if someone ended up with a partner who couldn't be more different than them?

Yep. He definitely didn't like Ozpin now.

Seeing Ruby on the floor looking like her entire life's work had gone to waste, Jaune couldn't help but put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Hey, relax Ruby. Maybe I can partner up with you if you want. Just stay still and I'll try to reach you in the forest. Sound good?" he said as Ruby started to smile once again.

"When you have found your partner, you will head north to the northern-most point of the forest, where there will be an abandoned temple containing several relics. Each pair of partners will grab one relic, guard it, as well as your standing, and we will grade you accordingly. Though the staff will be keeping an eye on you all as you proceed through the forest, we will not interfere. Please remember that this forest is inhabited by several different species of Grimm. Be prepared to fight for your life. As future Huntsmen and Huntresses, you should be well-aware of the risks involved in this career path. Fight to protect yourself, or you could die."

Jaune furrowed his eyebrows at the mention of death. He'll definitely have to find a way to reach Ruby before she encounters any trouble. Looking to his left, he noticed how many of the other students barely shown any surprise or fear at the possibility of death. The energetic orange-haired girl practically vibrated in excitement while her black-haired friend simply kept a calm façade. Pyrrha readied her weapons and adopted a look of intense focus, Weiss kept her rapier on the ready and shared Pyrrha's determination, Blake angled her body in a crouch, Yang pumped her fists together while arming her gauntlets, and Ruby fully unfurled her scythe. Seeing everyone get prepared, Jaune pulled out Crocea Mors and strapped on his shield before grabbing his scepter with his left hand at the ready.

Seeing everyone prepare themselves, Ozpin took one last sip from his cup and nodded at everyone. "Now, everyone take your positions. Begin."

Soon, everyone to the left of him were launched in order as each student flew through the air. Ruby gave one last smile towards him before she was sent flying. Mentally preparing himself, Jaune readied his sword and shield as he suddenly felt his body skyrocket into the air, and the feeling of weightlessness linger as his body was shot forward.

'Well, glad to see I don't get motion-sick from being catapulted into the air,' Jaune thought as he tracked Ruby's trajectory through the air. He saw as Ruby transformed her scythe into its sniper mode, blitzing through an Nevermore unfortunate enough to be in her flight path before firing several rounds to lower her acceleration. Spinning her scythe off of a tree branch, Ruby touched down and used her Semblance to find her sister.

'Good. She made it down successfully. Now I just need to...'. His thoughts were interrupted as a golden-red spear suddenly flew straight towards him!

"What the hell!?"

---

Keeping her shield in front of her, Pyrrha successfully blocked each incoming branch before using her slowed momentum to roll to a standstill on top of a nearby tree. Turning her weapon Milo into its rifle form, she looked through her sight and saw the form of Jaune Arc hurtling through the air.

'I'm sorry!' Pyrrha thought as she turned her rifle back into its spear form and began to track Jaune's descent. Though it seemed like Jaune felt a little uncomfortable being around her, she couldn't let this opportunity slip away! He seemed to be the only person in all of Beacon who had no clue who she was, and the small interaction they had in the lockers had done so much to cheer her up after her awkward conversation with Weiss. While she believed the heiress meant well, Pyrrha could tell that Weiss would just see her as the 'Invincible Girl' and not as Pyrrha Nikos. Jaune would be a wonderful change of pace, and she hoped that she could be good friends with him.

Having finally gotten a good angle, Pyrrha moved her arm back before finally throwing Milo at the incoming Arc. With any luck, her javelin would sear through the collar of the armor and pin Jaune to a nearby tree, where she could then track her weapon with her Semblance and partner with him before someone else finds her.

However, to her shock Jaune almost immediately senses the incoming javelin and knocked it out of the way mid-flight with his shield.

'What!? How did he know it was coming? No, I can't let this opportunity slip by!'. This was her last chance to partner with him, and she's not going to let this slip by!

It was extremely rare for her to use her Semblance even during combat, as it was her main strategy to subtly manipulate the movements and weapons of her opponents to her advantage. Information was vital in a fight, and if anyone knew what her Semblance was they could easily counter her at any turn. Plus, Pyrrha had pride in her abilities and refused to rely on her Semblance to win fights easily. Let alone use her ability to control magnetism outside of the arena.

But now wasn't the time to get picky.

Using her Semblance, she found the trace metals embedded in Jaune's armor, and yanked him out of the air before launching him in an area near her. Though she severely underestimated the strength of her toss as she distinctly heard the loud clanging of metal bashing against a hard surface.

"I'm sorry!" She called out, wincing at the loud noise that must have come from Jaune slamming hard into a tree. Praying that his Aura would help him tank the collision, she hastily made her way down her tree, recalled her spear with her Semblance, and ran towards the area she threw him in. Oh, she hoped she didn't anger him with her stunt!

---

Jaune winced as he stumbled down from the huge tree he collided in. Embedding his sword into the tree trunk, he steadily inched his way down towards the ground.

He had no idea what just happened the past few seconds as he began his descent downward from the air. One minute he was tracking Ruby and watching for her path through the woods, and suddenly deep survival instincts kicked in as he felt something fast heading towards him. Relying on his gut, he swiveled in the air and noticed a golden-red spear hurtling through the air towards him! He quickly turned mid-air to face the incoming spear and batted it away with his shield. Adrenaline coursed through his veins as he tried to figure out where the spear was thrown from, but then he felt his body suddenly twitch and stop mid-air. He levitated for a few seconds before he was suddenly launched away from Ruby's direction and colliding heavily against a nearby tree. Right before he began to tumble down from the top of the tree he stabbed Crocea Mors into the tree trunk before sliding down.

Finally reaching the bottom of the tree, he took a moment to settle down before wincing as a sharp pain seared from his back.

"Oww! Oh Marika's tits, that's gonna sting for a while." He grunted as he rubbed his back. Whatever, or whomever, had yanked him out of the air clearly didn't have his safety in mind, and Jaune briefly wondered how he could have been pulled from the sky so easily.

'Could it have been the result of gravity magic? No, it didn't feel like it. Felt more like something was tugging at my armor. But how?'

Pulled from his thoughts by a nearby rustling noise, Jaune pulled out his sword and began to charge it with power. Whatever was going to attack him would soon feel the might of the Carian Knights upon them.

---

Pyrrha ran into the clearing and nearly got bisected by a large glowing sword.

Dodging in the lick of time, she somersaulted out of the way and noticed Jaune standing in front of her, both hands grasping his sword as it shone with a blue aura. Raising her hands up in surrender, Pyrrha let out a quick "I'm sorry!".

Jaune lowered his guard, but quickly flinched when he saw her face for the second time. Pyrrha couldn't help but feel a bit saddened at the sight of him recoiling every time he saw her face.

'Am I really that unapproachable? Or could it be... he really doesn't want to partner with me?'

"Oh... it's just you Pyrrha." Jaune said as he recovered from his sudden flinch before narrowing his eyes at the javelin in Pyrrha's arms. "Wait, you were the one who tried to spear me earlier?"

Pyrrha couldn't help but blush in embarrassment. "I'm sorry! I, uhm, just thought that you might have had some difficulty coming up with a landing strategy! So I thought I could pin you to a tree safely so that you could have an easier way down."

Seeing Jaune narrow his eyes at her once again, Pyrrha felt more and more terrible about the situation. He could have gotten hurt thanks to her stunt, all just so she could have a friend at Beacon. And now she probably ruined any chance she had at being his partner. It was bad enough that he flinched every time he saw her face, but now he probably realized she was the one who yanked him out of the sky and threw him into a tree unceremoniously.

Casting her gaze downward in shame, she shuffled her feet before making her way out of the clearing. "I-I'm really sorry for what happened. I understand if you don't want me as a partner or teammate. I'll just go find someone else and not bother you anymore." Way to go, Pyrrha! You practically just ruined any chance you had of having a normal life here in Beacon, and this time she had no one to blame but herself. She began to dejectedly leave the clearing.

"Wait!"

Surprised, Pyrrha turned around and saw Jaune walking towards her. "Look, I appreciate you trying to help out, but you really scared me with that stunt back there. If you wanted to be my partner or help out, just ask or give me a heads-up beforehand, haha!" Jaune said as he smiled at her and scratched the back of his head.

Hope began to surge through her heart as she saw that he wasn't too bothered by her failed stunt earlier. "So, are you okay with me being your partner?"

Jaune simply held out his hand. "Why not, partner? Now let's head out so that we can find Ruby and hopefully spare her from getting stuck with a lousy teammate!"

Shaking his hand with happiness practically oozing out of her, Pyrrha eagerly followed her new partner as they made their way north.

---

'Why? Why did I have to run into her of all people!?'

Unlike Pyrrha, Ruby had no good luck on her side.

After landing on the ground, she had activated her Semblance and began combing the woods desperate to find either Yang or Jaune. Though she could be okay if she ran into Blake, she personally didn't feel that she could have a decent conversation with her. And she soon started to worry that neither of the two blondes would be able to find her.

Yang had made it abundantly clear in the locker room that she preferred if Ruby partnered up with someone else, giving the same excuse as Dad that meeting new people would help her grow up and mature. Like she needed to meet new people in order to grow up! She drank milk! And having spent the past 10 minutes blitzing through the woods with no sign of the buxom blonde, she could only realize that her sister had pretty much left her on her own again, the traitor!

And Jaune had turned out to be a big meanie and a lying liar! He promised that he would head to her direction once she landed, but she waited for several minutes for him with no success and when the Grimm started to come out of the bushes, Ruby had no choice but to take care of them and leave. How could he leave her like that! She was so going to get back at him for this! No more cookies and talking about his cool weapons for a week, mister!

She had been zooming through the forest before hearing the sound of combat nearby. Praying that it would be either Yang or Jaune, she ran through the bushes eager to see one of the two blondes, but was met with disappointment as the last person she wanted to see ended up looking at her right in the eye.

"Unbelievable! Why do you keep zooming around the place like a girl high on sugar? Can you keep still for one second so I can find out which direction is north? And you nearly abandoned me to the Grimm again! Is this how you treat your teammates!?"

"I said I was gonna patrol ahead! My Semblance let's me move super fast! I wouldn't have left you behind, so stop being such a big dummy! Why'd you have to always be so mean to me?"

"Maybe because you're a hyperactive dolt with the attention span of a dog and the behavior of a twelve-year-old child! Why couldn't I have found Pyrrha instead of you!"

"Hey, I didn't exactly want to be your partner, anyway! I'd rather pair up with my sister or Jaune over a jerk like you!"

They had spent the rest of the journey north constantly bickering with each other, and no matter how much Ruby tried to make peace with her, Weiss was adamant in finding Pyrrha so she could be her partner, rules be damned.

This sucks! Ruby could only pout at the bad luck that just seems to follow her around ever since she came to Beacon. Why, oh why couldn't she partner up with someone more normal?

"Perfect! I believe we should be heading in this direction! We should hopefully find the ruins in a few minutes!"

"Weiss, I think we're going in circles. Didn't we pass that weirdly-shaped tree a couple minutes ago? And look, there's the carcass of that Ursa again! Did you get your directions mixed up again?"

"Quit doubting me all the time, Ruby! I'm trying to lead us to the ruins! Maybe if you kept your mouth I wouldn't have gotten us lost in the first place!"

"So you did make us walk in circles!? Just admit we're lost!"

'Yang! Jaune! Help me!'

---

Pyrrha struggled to make conversation with Jaune as they made their way north.

It was strange, being unable to speak for so long to someone like this. She was usually able to start and keep a conversation, and her mentors and mother drilled her with rules and advice on etiquette to prepare her for the inevitable PR she would receive, but for some reason she was completely lost on how to start talking to Jaune.

Speaking of the blonde knight, Jaune had been unusually silent this entire time. He kept his guard up at all times and never lowered his sword or scepter down at any given moment. She was honestly surprised at how composed and combat-ready he was, despite being only a student like herself. He didn't go into any tournaments and never spoke about what combat school he went to, yet he carried himself like a veteran Huntsman. As if he had decades of experience under his belt, which baffled Pyrrha as even she couldn't match his battle-hardened readiness despite all her training and experience in the arena.

Wait, training! Maybe she could ask about that!

"So, uhm, Jaune. Where did you learn to fight? You have a unique style of fighting I haven't really seen before. And how did you make that sword of yours?" And she meant it. During their trek north they had of course been met with some resistance by several different Grimm. Pyrrha of course had no difficulty in taking care of them, but Jaune made it look like they were beneath his attention. His gaze never wavered, and he dodged and parried his way through all their attacks without so much as breaking a sweat.

And his sword! While Pyrrha was no blacksmith, she had taken a quick glance at it, and she was stunned by the level of craftsmanship behind it. The blade kept its pristine silver shine even after decimating several different Grimm, and she saw a shimmering blue gem embedded in the middle that outshone even the most prized sapphire gems.

What was an even bigger shock to her was when he held it aloft with both hands. When a huge Ursa Grimm charged towards them, rather than raise his shield or try to dodge, Jaune had raised it in the air and Pyrrha was stunned to see the sword glow blue before elongating and increasing in size until it was several meters tall! He slammed the blade down and the Ursa was completely bisected in two, with one strike!

Breaking his concentration, Jaune turned back and smiled, before raising the sword up to his chest. "I went to train at Signal, like Ruby, though I mostly got mentored by a very talented Huntress who showed me the ropes and helped me not make a fool of myself out on the field. As for Crocea Mors, it's actually a family heirloom. One that's been around for hundreds of years, and was used during the Great War."

"Wow, that's incredible! And your swordsmanship is amazing to see! Your mentor must be really proud of you!"

Evidently, Pyrrha made a huge mistake with that last line, as Jaune's face fell at the mention of his teacher. Seeing his expression, she realized her mistake and decided to keep quiet.

They eventually found a large cave with ancient carvings of Grimm near the entrance. Raising her brow, she turned towards her partner.

"You think this could be it?" Jaune asked as he turned towards Pyrrha.

"I'm not sure. Didn't Professor Ozpin say that the relics would be at an abandoned ruin?"

"I suppose..."

"Well, it wouldn't hurt to check inside just in case." Pyrrha said as she started to look inside. "Now if only we had a flashlight or torch..."

Suddenly, a brilliant light shone right above her head, and turning around she was surprised to see a floating orb of light hovering above her head with Jaune offering a cocky grin and holding his scepter aloft.

"Ladies, first then." Jaune said as he comically bowed and gestured for her to enter the cave.

"My, what a gentleman. As you say, sir knight!" Smiling, she and Jaune made their way through the cave, illuminated by the floating ball of light now moving behind them.

As they made their way through, Pyrrha couldn't help but observe the various carvings made in the cave walls. Huge depictions of early man fighting off hundreds of different species of Grimm. She began to wonder if these were hand-carved by the staff at Beacon to give some form of authenticity for Initiation, or if these really were carvings made by their ancestors thousands of years ago.

She was suddenly pulled out of her thoughts when Jaune grabbed her by her arm. She turned and raised an eyebrow at him, only for him to make a 'Shh!' gesture and point forward. Looking forward, Pyrrha immediately guessed as to why.

Now illuminated by the ball of light, she could see that they were right in front of a large Deathstalker Grimm who seemed surprised at how they spotted him so quickly. Pyrrha could easily admit that without this light illuminating the cave, she and Jaune would have walked right into this Grimm even with its golden stinger dangling right in front of them.

"Easy now, Pyrrha. Let's just back away slowly." Jaune said as he looped his arm under hers and slowly pulled her towards the entrance of the cave. Hopefully, the Deathstalker would ignore them and leave them be.

But it followed the ball of light like a magnet, and the moment it dissipated near the entrance, it screeched in a horrible voice before running straight towards them!

"Move!" Jaune said as he grabbed Pyrrha's hand and dragged her with him as they ran away from the rampaging Grimm.

---

Weiss was seriously reconsidering her choice to leave Atlas and join Beacon.

It hadn't been 2 minutes since her arrival to the school when her supply of Dust crystals nearly blew up in her face after an adolescent girl with a red hood (Seriously? Was she trying to cosplay as Red Riding Hood?) sneezed and detonated the Dust in her hands. Then a black-haired girl with an oddly twitching bow on her head started mouthing off at her and belittling her father's company and business practices! While she could readily admit that she highly disapproved of her father's views and treatment of the Faunus, it was hardly fair for this random stranger to judge her so harshly for actions she never committed! The nerve of her!

And that same red-hooded girl started arguing with her on the night before Initiation alongside her older sister and that vomiting knight back on the Bullhead. Why were they intruding on her sleep, talking about creepy stories of a man with two souls and a burning knight?

She had been hopeful that the previous day's troubles would be gone once she found Pyrrha, and was ecstatic to hear that Pyrrha would be willing to join a team with her! It would be simply grand! The smartest girl in school partnered up with the strongest girl in school! They'd be perfect! They'd be celebrities! They'd get perfect grades together! All Weiss needed to do was just find Pyrrha during Initiation!

Only for a certain dolt to come barreling in to her while she was fending off several Grimm, and Weiss could feel her dislike for the younger girl only increase the longer they stayed together. Ruby was reckless, barely spoke or interacted with her during their time fighting off Grimm, she was immature, too young, and completely out of her mind!

Seriously! Whose idea was it to ride on the back of a Nevermore the moment it tried to grab them!? And all Weiss could do was hold on to the Grimm's feathers as she and Ruby were flown to the northern end of the forest.

"Well, look on the bright side, Weiss! At least we know where north is now!" Ruby yelled over the howling winds.

"ARE. YOU. INSANE!?" Weiss yelled. "Are you trying to get us killed? Or are you just trying to show off!?"

"I'm not trying to show off! I'm trying to show you that I'm not helpless! I belong here! And I'll show you how capable I am!"

Ruby then looked down and spotted a small ruined building. She could barely make it out, but she thinks she can see her sister down there!

"How are we supposed to get down!?"

"Jump!"

"Jump!? What is wrong with you!?" Weiss screamed at her, only for her to notice Ruby had long since jumped off. "How could you leave me up here!? Ruby Rose, you are in SO MUCH TROUBLE!"

---

Jaune and Pyrrha successfully made their way out of the forested area, and he was happy to see an abandoned ruin up ahead, with what appears to be Yang and Blake waiting inside along with the orange and black-haired partners from before. Both were holding a large, golden Rook in their hands, with the orange-haired girl jumping up and down singing that she was 'Queen of the Castle".

Looking behind him, Jaune was happy to see that he and Pyrrha were able to outrun the Deathstalker. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he began to sorely miss being able to ride on Torrent and lamented that the brave (and oddly witty) steed was no longer with him.

"You okay, Pyrrha?" Jaune asked as he checked on his partner, gasping for breath.

"I'm fine, but I don't think we'll lose sight of him forever. It's bound to come back and find us sooner or later."

He nodded, and was about to head to the nearby group when he heard a faint girly scream. Looking around, he noticed Blake pointing up for Yang, and he saw Ruby plummeting from the sky!

"Pyrrha! Give me a boost!" Jaune screamed as he saw Ruby plummet closer and closer to the ground. Pyrrha nodded, and Jaune stepped on to her shield before using her Semblance in secret to increase her strength and launch him into the air. He flew up and managed to grab Ruby in his arms before falling down.

"Ruby! Are you okay? Where did you even come from?"

Ruby could only briefly wiggle her head as the dizziness finally settled down, and she looked down to see that she was once again in Jaune's arms. Blushing, she quickly got off of him and patted her skirt down.

"RUBY!"

"Yang!"

"NORA!"

All three girls yelled at the same time, before giving a quizzical look at the bubbly girl intruding.

"Um, is that Weiss hanging off of a Nevermore?" Pyrrha said as she pointed to the sky in confusion. Looking up, Jaune could see Weiss, who was strangely hanging off of the talons of the circling Nevermore. He swore he could here a faint 'Ruby Rose, I am going to KILL YOU!' from all the way up before she too fell off the bird and began plummeting down.

Resigned to the fact that he'll have to catch another girl, he instead raised his scepter, and with a purple sigil forming in front of him, Jaune made a large piece of the ground begin levitating which he used to raise himself up and catch Weiss in his arms just as she fell down.

Slowly letting the platform he created sink down to the ground, he held Weiss in his arms and gave her a quick look to check for any injuries. "Weiss, are you okay?"

"Let go of me! I have a lot of words to say to that dolt over there!" Weiss said, suddenly furious as she left his arms and made her way to Ruby who had then decided to hide behind Yang.

"I can't believe you! First you come up with some Gods-forsaken plan to ride a Nevermore just so we can head north, then you force me to grab onto that Grimm for dear life, and then you up and leave me on top of it! What if Mr. Arc wasn't here to catch me? Have you no shame or even a single brain cell in that empty head of yours!"

"Oh, god not again!" Ruby squeaked as she once again tried to hide behind Yang's thick locks.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa Ice Queen! Let's just be glad we're all assembled together. At least we can grab the relics and go." Yang said, but just as she finished the whole group heard a loud caw, and they saw the Nevermore changing direction and flying straight towards them!

"Okay... anyone have any ideas on how to deal with that?"

"Ah, don't worry, Yang! I've got this!" But before Ruby could launch herself forward, she felt a hand land on her shoulder. Turning, she saw Jaune stop her from running forward and gave her a warning glance. "No, wait here. I'll shoot it out of the sky myself."

"Excuse me? While I appreciate you catching me, I highly doubt you alone can take out a flying Nevermore. You don't even have a...ranged...weapon?" Weiss started to protest Jaune's decision but her last few words faded away as she noticed Jaune's peculiar stance.

Narrowing his eyes at the approaching Nevermore, Jaune held up the Carian Royal Scepter in his left hand, and the rest of the group could only stare in shock with gaping mouths, as a giant blue bow manifested right over his scepter.

The massive ethereal bow grew larger and larger, until the bow was even taller than him, and at the very middle, 4 massive blue arrows were forming and charging up in power. Keeping a close eye on where the Nevermore was flying, Jaune narrowed his eyes and finally released his 'arrows'.

4 massive glowing arrowheads suddenly flew from his grasp and with incredible speed headed straight towards the Nevermore. The airborne Grimm noticed the incoming projectiles and made several turns mid-air to dodge, only to caw in horror as the arrows swerved in midair to follow it, eventually colliding and annihilating the entire Grimm in one massive blue explosion.

Lowering his staff, Jaune turned around and immediately felt embarrassed as the rest of the group could only stare at him with gaping mouths. Blake and Yang stared slack-jawed with their arms dangling, Weiss dropped her rapier in shock, the black-haired ninja held his eyes open as wide as possible, Pyrrha felt her javelin and shield start to slide off her arms, and Ruby and Nora were becoming increasingly more giddy.

Finally, the dam broke and both girls ran toward him with starstruck eyes and amazed voices.

"OhmygoshJaune! How did you do that!? Oh, you so have to let me see what your staff is made of after this!"

"Oh. My. Gosh. Are you a Wizard!? That's it! You have to be a wizard or something! Hey Ren, look! He's a wizard, Ren! OH! Can he do magic? Can he turn things into something else? Oh, let's keep him Rennie! We can have him turn random stuff into pancakes! Just imagine! Our personal wizard who can give us a lifetime of pancakes!"

Both girls kept spinning in circles around him, and Jaune couldn't help but turn beet-red in embarrassment. How long has it really been since he could do something that knocked the socks off of everyone like that?

"Easy there, Rubes. Let Ladykiller breathe for a minute."

"Nora, knock it off. We're not kidnapping him to be your personal pancake chef."

Both Yang and Ren dragged the two girls away from him, but the questioning continued from everyone else, and Weiss hesitantly asked him something.

"Mr. Arc, what was that you just did? I saw a strange blue glyph just before you summoned that bow... Do you by any chance have a Semblance similar to mine? To be able to utilize Glyphs in combat?"

"You could say that... My 'Semblance' let's me summon different glyphs that can let me do different things. I was told by Professor Ozpin that my Semblance is similar to your family's." Jaune said, but was surprised to see the somber look on her face after he said that. 'Did I say something wrong?'

Sadly that discussion would have to wait, as the group suddenly heard a loud creaking noise coming from the surrounding forests. As everyone prepared their weapons, they soon discovered the Deathstalker that pursued both him and Pyrrha earlier finally tracking them down.

"Oh, it's just one Deathstalker! We can take it on!" Nora said excitedly as she transformed her grenade launcher into its hammer form.

Only for said excitement to die as a swarm of many different Grimm, from Beowolves to Ursas to even other Deathstalkers and Nevermores, began to follow the original Deathstalker straight towards them.

Everyone save for Jaune turned white at the massive horde that began to rush toward them. Never in their lives did they expect to encounter a swarm of Grimm like this during Initiation.

"We have to get out of here! Let's just grab the relics and run! Let the professors handle this!" Blake said as she started to back away, but Jaune quickly shouted at them to stop.

"Wait! If we run then what about the other students in the forest who haven't grabbed relics yet? If we leave like this, the horde will just go after them and kill them all! We need to draw the horde away from everyone and keep them busy while the Professors come with help!"

"Are you insane!?" Weiss screamed. "How do you expect us to handle a horde this large on our own!?"

Jaune looked around, and noticed the large area of ruins behind the one where the relics were. Noticing the various towers scattered throughout, he started to formulate a plan in his head.

"No, we can hold them off!, See the towers back there? We can bunker up on top of them and rain hell on them while drawing them in! We'll have the high ground as our advantage, and anyone with a long-range weapon can shoot down any flying Grimm! Whoever hasn't grabbed a relic yet, grab one now and head toward the ruins!" Jaune yelled as he raced toward the relics.

"Hey, you can't just-" Weiss said, but noticed how everyone decided to race after Jaune toward the ruins. "GRRR! This is the worst Initiation I've ever seen! You better hope your crazy plan works, Mr. Arc!"

Jaune, Pyrrha, Ruby, and Weiss both grabbed a white knight piece and raced towards the ruins.

Jumping across and making their way up the towers and various pillars, Ruby then turned her head towards him. "Okay, we're high up top! What do you think we should do next?"

"Ruby, you and Pyrrha get into sniping positions on those towers over there, and rain hell on them! Weiss, if you can use your Glyphs to trap them or slow them down! I'll head further up and snipe any Nevermores or rain down any heavy bombardment needed!"

All three girls nodded and they quickly took their places up on top. Seeing his plan take shape, Blake realized what he was trying to do, and decided to have her fellow students do the same as well.

"Nora, Ren, can you also provide covering fire? Yang and I can help distract the Grimm and draw their attention onto us. Jaune can shoot down any Nevermores that arrive, and Yang and I can help tie down or fight off any Grimm that get too close."

Ren nodded and Nora gave a soldier's salute as they jumped onto various pillars, ready to unleash hell.

And hell would soon come upon them, as the massive horde began to make its ascent towards the students.

---

"Professor Ozpin, what on Remnant is going on!? How is a horde this huge appearing all of a sudden during Initiation!?" Glynda screamed, furious and afraid for the students' lives as she saw through her Scroll the camera footage of the massive swarm of Grimm heading towards the ruins. "We need to call in Bullheads and get them out of there! They won't survive on their own for long!"

Ozpin nodded gravely, and used his scroll to dial in several of the other professors. "Everyone, I need you to assemble as many upperclassmen Teams as you can and board the Bullheads immediately. There is a massive horde of Grimm in Emerald Forest, and I need everyone to come and help rescue as many students as possible." Finishing his call, he then turned towards Glynda. "Take a Bullhead out and check the other areas of the forest for any students on their way back. Bring back as many as you can, but don't bring the Bullhead towards the ruins yet. Alone, the Grimm will tear through the ship and you'll end up as stranded as them."

Glynda held a conflicted expression, but knew that alone she could not fend off the Grimm and protect the students at the same time. Giving a slight nod, she made her way to the nearest Bullhead.

Alone once again, Ozpin dialed a special number on his Scroll and waited for a reply. After several rings, a tired and hungover voice finally answered.

"W-whut iz it Oz? Can't you see I'm a bit...hungover right now? H-hed too many drinks last night, and then there was that inkeeper's skirt..."

"Qrow," Ozpin stated, seriousness carved into his voice, "There's a massive problem here, and your nieces might be in grave danger. A massive horde of Grimm has just appeared during Initiation and both Ruby and Yang, as well as their classmates, are going to be overwhelmed. If you don't want to see them gone then you better head here as quick as you can."

"On my way." Qrow said, immediately sober before disconnecting just as quickly.

This left Ozpin to his lonesome as he viewed the live video footage of the battle occurring, concern and worry growing in his heart.

'Something is very wrong here. There's no probable reason for why the Grimm have formed such a large horde as this, not without a large amount of negativity. Or... external factors.'

Ozpin paled at the implication. Could it have been the actions of her? Did she discover the existence of Ruby Rose?

'No, that can't be right. This doesn't seem like something she would do? She wouldn't let loose a swarm of Grimm just to deal with a Silver-Eyed Warrior. Both Maria Calavera and Summer weren't defeated by Grimm, and with their silver eyes, fighting Grimm would be a cakewalk for them. Maybe this is a trap to distract me? Could they have figured out where Amber is hidden? But why strike now? The timing is too poor, and most of the professors are still here.'

Taking a closer look at the footage, he blinked, before looking more closely at the horde's behavior.

'Strange. Why do they seem to only go after Mr. Arc?'

---

Jaune continued to pelt magical arrow after arrow at the swarm of Nevermores flying around them, each one finding their target and destroying them in an instant. He could keep going, but he was more worried about the state of the others. Any time he noticed a lull in the number of Grimm trying to harass him from the air, he would charge up a massive blue cannonball and send it hurtling down towards the flood of Grimm below.

Ruby and Pyrrha continued to snipe as many Grimm as they could from their high-up positions, Weiss continued to trap and entangle Grimm with her glyphs making them easier targets for Ruby and Pyrrha, and Blake' group were emulating their actions just as good as they hoped. Both groups were doing their best and bit by bit they were destroying the horde. But both teams were quickly losing energy and Aura, and Jaune worried that they might not have enough of either to continue fighting. He hoped that the professors would be on their way by now, but the delay in response was starting to worry him.

"Jaune!" He turned, seeing Ruby stare at him with horror etched on her face. "I'm starting to run out of ammo! Pyrrha's almost completely out too!"

Jaune paled, and soon Blake swung her way towards him, worry also dotting her features as she approached him. "Jaune, me and Yang have been holding on as long as we can, but we can't keep this up for long! We're running out of Aura and Ammo! We need a new plan."

He tried to brainstorm a new plan as he continued to watch the horde get shot down. Looking up, he was relieved to see that there were no more Nevermores flying through the air which meant he had successfully taken all of them out. Looking around the ruins, he noticed a long bridge connecting the ruins together, and that gave him an idea. With no more aerial Grimm around...

"Ok, I've got an idea! See that connecting bridge over there? We're going to run across it and when the Grimm try to cross, I'll blow it up and take out any stragglers trying to cross over. With all the Nevermores taken care of, they won't be able to harass us once we cross the bridge! Get to Ruby and let the rest know what's happening! I'll head down and deal with any still left!"

Blake nodded and made her way to the rest of Jaune's group while he jumped down step-by-step and bringing the attention of the remaining Grimm to himself. What briefly intrigued him was how the entire horde seemed to be gunning after him specifically. Locking that little detail in the back of his mind with the promise to delve into it later, Jaune signaled to Ruby and the rest to make their way across while he draws away the rest of the horde.

Everyone made a beeline across the bridge and eventually made their way to the other side, with Jaune not far behind. With the Grimm now making their way across the bridge, Jaune turned to Nora with a favor.

"Nora, do you have any grenades left?"

"Sure do! What do you have in mind?"

"Ready to cause some explosions?"

"Now you're talking my language!" Nora said as she switched her weapon to its grenade launcher form and took aim.

"YOU. SHALL NOT. PASS!" she screamed as she launched grenade after grenade onto the bridge while Jaune gathered energy into his scepter once again and threw another massive blue cannonball towards the bridge. The combined armaments caused a massive explosion that destroyed the majority of the bridge, disintegrating the Grimm that were still across and stranding the rest that were on the other side. The Grimm roared in anger but could do nothing but growl in fury now that their targets were safe on the other side of the ruins.

"Oh yeah, baby! Now that's what I call an explosion! Nice job, Fearless Wizard!" Nora said as she delivered a powerful slap to Jaune's back.

Wincing at the girl's strength, Jaune rubbed his shoulder before looking over everyone. "Everyone alright? No one got really hurt?"

Everyone looked like they had been thrown into a cheese grater, with a decent amount of damage done to their Aura, weapons, and their clothes. But they all wore relieved expressions on their face as they saw that the danger has passed.

"Whew, talk about a crazy Initiation, huh? Don't know about you guys, but I'm gonna lock myself in the shower for a good 2-3 hours once we get back." Yang said as she plopped down next to Blake who laid down on the ground, chest heaving.

"Jaune, that was incredible!" Pyrrha said, exhausted but proud as she sat down next to her partner. "You were able to get us out of that situation, and you took out all the Nevermore in the sky too!"

"Yeah, Jaune that was awesome!" Ruby said, agreeing with Pyrrha. Weiss huffed in exasperation, but she too wore a smile on her face after that stunning victory.

"Thanks, guys but really you all were amazing keeping the Grimm distracted and taking them out. I just took out the flies in the sky." Jaune said as he rubbed the back of his head before standing up. "Everyone okay to make their way back to Beacon?"

The rest nodded as they stood up, ready to head back to school with a proud smile on their face at having survived such a horrific Initiation.

Until the ground cracked underneath their feet.

---

Weiss felt her heart drop to her stomach as she felt the ground beneath them quake and crack, and she was unfortunate enough to stand right at the epicenter.

"Weiss!" Ruby screamed as she used her Semblance to speed over to Weiss and push her out of the way. Just as the ground beneath her exploded and a massive black trunk unfurled, followed by a massive body with two immensely sized tusks jutting out of its mouth. Recovering from the sudden push, Weiss pulled herself and Ruby up as they shivered in terror at the monstrosity that emerged from the ruins.

'Oh you have GOT to be kidding me! Why is there a Goliath here in Emerald Forest!?'

The massive elephantine creature was several meters taller than a normal Goliath, and had a body covered in heavy Grimm armor. Raising its thick trunk into the air it let out a deafening roar that made nearly everyone keel over and cover their ears in agony.

"Weiss, look out!"

A voice shouted out to her as she raised her head and saw the massive trunk swinging in her direction.

'I'm going to die...'

That was the last thought Weiss had as she closed her eyes and let the inevitable happen. She was too disoriented by its roar, too low on Aura, and couldn't move fast enough to dodge.

'I'm sorry, Winter. I could never be like you... I'm sorry for being a failure compared to you.'

CRACK!

Weiss opened her eyes, expecting death, but not the body of Jaune Arc as he raced forward and shoved her out of the way just in time, only for the trunk to smack right into him, snap his neck with a sickening crack, and launching him straight into a nearby pillar shattering it into pieces with all the debris landing on his body.

"JAUNE!"

Ruby screamed in horror and immediately activated her Semblance in anger, rushing toward the Goliath and slashing at it ferociously. Pyrrha joined in, and soon everyone was driven to anger and made a mad dash to vent their hatred onto this Grimm.

Weiss, however, couldn't move, as her legs shook and she continued to stare at the pile of debris that covered Jaune's body. She couldn't react, her brain entirely shut down as her mind failed to process what had happened.

He had saved her life. Without hesitation, he had somehow barreled through the deafening roar and knocked her out of the way of Death's embrace.

How could she call herself a Schnee if she let other people die in her stead while she remained hopeless to do anything? She was supposed to be a leader, to show her father that she could be an incredible Huntress, to prove to Winter that she had what it takes and that she could one day be as strong as her.

And yet, just now Jaune Arc had died to save her. She saw it with her own eyes: his neck and back shattered, twisted out of shape as his bones cracked and his lifeless body was sent flying to the pillar, where no doubt the heavy debris would have caved his body in and crushed his organs even if he did somehow miraculously survive the initial hit.

She couldn't do this. She couldn't become the Huntress she always wanted to be. She had let a fellow student, a comrade-in-arms, someone who had treated her kindly and who she in turned scorned and ridiculed, die a pointless death.

She had failed...

.

.

.

.

"AHHH!"

Shaken out of her stupor, Weiss turned around and saw the Goliath stomping around, kicking up debris into the air and knocking around the rest of her classmates. Despite their best efforts, the Goliath's armor was too tough and it shrugged off all the remaining ammo everyone had as well as the blades on everyone's weapons. It was clear that everybody couldn't continue like this, not after everyone had exhausted themselves in fending off the incoming horde for so long.

Seeing Ruby get thrown back by the Goliath and falling to the floor, Weiss could only shake in horror as the Goliath raised its leg, ready to stomp the poor girl into a gory mess.

"RUBY!" Yang shouted in horror as her Aura began to run out, and she was left exhausted and unable to stop the Goliath from killing her sister.

Hearing her name finally jolted Weiss out of her stupor. Raising her rapier, she cast several Black glyphs that circled around the Goliath's feet and kept it in place, preventing it from moving its legs entirely.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked as she raised her head towards the heiress.

"I refuse to let us die like this! We're going to kill this thing no matter what! We are not going to let it take another life again! Get up, Ruby!" Weiss screamed as she generated more glyphs before unleashing several darts of ice and fire onto the Goliath.

"Ruby! You, Pyrrha, and Ren focus on shooting its eyes and taking out its eyesight! Blake, help me keep it pinned down! Yang! Nora! Pummel it at its joints! Make it buckle!"

Everyone nodded, invigorated by Weiss's words, and they sprang into action once again. Using her Semblance, Ruby flew up the Goliath's body and unleashed sniper fire onto the Grimm's face while Pyrrha and Ren climbed up its legs and raced up its body before all three began unleashing the rest of their ammo into its eyes. The Goliath shook its head over and over again, trying to get them off but it was soon distracted by Yang and Nora who used their brute strength to attack its joints, forcing it to buckle its legs and collapse. Blake then maneuvered between its legs and used her pistol to tie up and trip the massive Grimm.

It finally began to collapse and fall onto its side, leaving its underbelly completely exposed.

"Now! Attack its stomach!"

Everyone rushed in and attacked the Goliath's stomach, but the beast was still resistant, and soon began to break free from its bindings.

"What the hell is up with this thing!? It just won't stay down!" Yang screamed, eyes red and hair glowing as she grew in anger at how little damage they were doing to it.

"It must be a really old Goliath! It must have survived buried under here until it woke up!" Blake shouted as she tried to run circles around it. As Grimm got older they grew in strength, defense, and intellect, and if this Goliath had survived underneath the ruins for possibly hundreds of years it was no wonder that their attacks did little to it. The only saving grace was that the Goliath was successfully blinded by them, but leaving it here to smash the forest up in its rage was a terrible idea. They had no idea how many students were still out in the forest, and they couldn't go back the way they came as they destroyed the bridge, leaving them trapped here with it.

Weiss's breathing became more rapid as she struggled to keep the Goliath pinned with her glyphs. What else could she do? Maybe she should...

"Keep it pinned, Weiss."

Weiss rapidly turned her head around, and was shocked into silence upon seeing the bloodied body of Jaune Arc wobbling towards them. Raising his scepter up, he channeled more energy into his staff and Weiss saw the glimpse of a small black hole form at the end of his scepter. "Keep it pinned. I'll finish this."

Weiss nodded and ordered everyone to clear out of the way. As everyone moved to the side and Weiss used the last of her Aura to power her Semblance, Jaune continued to march forward with a focused gaze as he continued to gather more energy into the end of his scepter, the black hole growing larger and larger the closer he approached it.

As her Aura finally ran out and her Glyphs started to shatter and disappear, the Goliath began to raise its body upward.

But it was enough time for Jaune to finally finish charging his scepter.

Weiss and the rest could only watch with dumbstruck looks as Jaune thrust his staff forward, and what could only be described as a torrent of cosmic energy burst forth from the black hole in the form of a powerful laser. It shot out at blinding speed, dazzling the others with the blueish nebula that emerged as the laser tore through the Goliath like it was made of paper, and once the onslaught ended, the Goliath was left standing with a massive hole that tunneled through its entire body, before finally collapsing and disintegrating into ash.

Hunched over in exhaustion, Jaune briefly coughed up blood before turning around and giving a slightly smug smile at everyone.

"JAUNE!" Ruby immediately ran forward and threw herself at the young man, hugging him fiercely with her arms and legs as she rotated them around in circles. "YOU'RE OKAY!"

A hug that was soon joined by Pyrrha, then Nora, Ren, a reluctant but smiling Blake, an overjoyed Yang, and finally Weiss as she teared up knowing that he was still alive.

Hearing a loud noise above the, the group tensed up but eventually relaxed as several Bullheads arrived and one landed near them. Said Bullhead opened revealing Glynda as she gestured for everyone to enter while the remaining Bullheads opened up and several upperclassmen teams exited to fight off the remaining Grimm on the other side of the ruins.

---

Pyrrha couldn't believe that she and her fellow friends had survived that hellish horde.

By all accounts, even the 'Invincible Girl' would have stood no chance against that Goliath, and yet not only did Jaune survive its attack, he had completely wiped it out with a powerful burst of energy that made the hairs on the back of their necks stand up. She could honestly say that she had never seen such power before in her life, and she privately shuddered at the possibility of facing Jaune in the arena if he had ever decided to enter a tournament against her.

How incredible to think that such power was inside such a soft-spoken and humble individual. No one would have guessed that someone like Jaune would be that strong. Had she ever faced him in battle, even with her using the full might of her Semblance, she knew without a doubt that she would have lost easily.

The thought brought a small bit of comfort to her. She could have Jaune end her silly charade as the 'Invincible Girl' in a heartbeat, and she would suffer almost little to no repercussions since he was her partner. Sure, she might lose some sponsorships but who cares? Pyrrha had earned more than enough money over the years to keep herself and her mother financially stable for the rest of their lives if need be. While she doubted Jaune would ever try something like that to her, it comforted her that she had indeed made the right choice in coming to Beacon.

She looked around the Bullhead now carrying everyone back to Beacon. Yang was hugging the life out of Ruby after her near death with the poor girl fighting tooth and nail to be set free. Nora was doing the same to Ren, who seems to have long been used to Nora's hyper behavior. Weiss seems to be calling her sister to let her know what happened, and Blake had somehow pulled out a book from her tattered clothes (and the book was still in mint condition!) and began reading, with Glynda Goodwitch speaking to someone over her Scroll.

Pyrrha herself was cradling Jaune's head on her lap and slowly stroking his head, as the poor guy was practically ready to drop and pass out, and Pyrrha had done her best to try and make him comfortable while the Bullhead would bring them to the school's medical ward. Jaune had coughed up blood a few times, and Pyrrha could have sworn he broke several of his bones and snapped his neck, but he was miraculously healthy overall. She was so worried when she saw how the Goliath had struck him with its trunk before smashing him into a pillar. Hearing the sound of bones being crushed into pieces felt like torture to her, and she swore that he would never have to suffer like that ever again as his new partner.

Speaking of, Jaune started to rouse himself and slowly lifted his head from her lap (much to her slight disappointment). He rummaged through his bag before pulling out a golden flask and taking a hearty swig from it.

"Are you sure you're ok, Jaune? You took such a horrible hit from that Goliath, and you probably used so much of your Aura using your Semblance like that. You should try to get as much rest as you can. How could you recover like that so quickly? There's no way Aura could have healed you that fast."

Jaune gave her a sheepish look as he finished chugging the liquid in the flask, before he gave an embarrassed grin at her. "A-about that. I... actually don't have my Aura unlocked. My mentor tried to unlock mine back when I trained with her, but for some reason she was never able to unlock it."

Pyrrha had to physically stop herself from screaming out loud after hearing that. How!? He used his Semblance for so long, defeated all those Grimm, took a direct hit from a Goliath, and survived without Aura? How did he even manifest his Semblance without unlocking it in the first place!?

"You... you actually fought and nearly died out there... without any Aura unlocked? How! How did you survive?"

Jaune just shrugged in response. "Guess you can say it's good luck?"

Shaking her head at her crazy partner, she slowly moved closer and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Close your eyes and concentrate, please?" As Jaune obeyed her and closed his eyes, she chanted. "For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by Death, I release your soul and by my shoulder, protect thee."

As she unlocked his Aura, she felt a massive wave of power surge through her very being. She suddenly was covered in a golden Aura that flooded her entire soul, and for a moment, just a moment, she saw something that she could never have believed possible.

It was beautiful, it was infinite, it was...

"Uh, Pyrrha? You ok in there?"

Jaune's voice quickly brought her down to Remnant again, and she shook her head. "What just happened?"

"You tell me. You told me to close my eyes and you put your hand on my shoulder and chanted something. Did I do something wrong?"

"Oh, no! I had just unlocked your Aura for you. Sorry for spacing out. I was just... taken back by the amount of Aura you had. It was... enormous, more than anyone else's that I've encountered before."

"Oh, thanks Pyr! I can already feel it heal me up!"

Pyrrha smiled at his newfound enthusiasm and the new adorable nickname he gave for her. "Your Aura is now your own Jaune, and it will protect you from harm and act as your shield and your strength. It's your soul made manifest."

Pyrrha would have loved to speak more, but the Bullhead had finally landed at Beacon and Glynda urged everyone to report to the medical ward for check-ups. As everyone slowly made their way out, Pyrrha couldn't help but think back to when she had unlocked Jaune's Aura. Normally, one has to use their own Aura to unlock someone else's, and Pyrrha had used some of her own to unlock Jaune's. But when she tried to unlock Jaune's Aura, it was like she opened the very Heavens itself as a meteor shower of Jaune's Golden Aura opened up. Unlocking someone's Aura allowed the person unlocking it to see a brief glimpse into the very soul of another living being. Pyrrha's soul was described as a velvet river, but she was completely stumped at the nature of Jaune's own soul.

For how could someone's soul somehow look like the entire Universe?

---

"Cardin Winchester. Russell Thrush. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark. The four of you have retrieved the black bishop pieces. From this day forward you will work together as... Team Cardinal (CRDL), led by Cardin Winchester."

Jaune gave a polite round of applause for the newly cemented teams as the four boys made their way up the stage and were congratulated by Professor Ozpin.

It had been exactly one day since Initiation, with Ozpin delaying the Team Naming ceremony on account of the massive horde that emerged. All the upperclassmen Teams had been dispatched along with the majority of Professors to dispose of any remaining Grimm. As for how the horde had suddenly emerged? No one had the faintest idea why, with even the Professors completely baffled by the sudden onslaught of Grimm. The forest had been moderately cleared of Grimm prior to Initiation and the Professors had made sure to both ensure that there would be no mass slaughters while also providing enough of a challenge for new students to test themselves.

Jaune and his new friends were rushed to the medical ward, to which the doctors gave them a quick check up and found no serious injuries or complications aside from Aura depletion and exhaustion. For the past day the students have been sleeping in the ballroom just like the day before Initiation, in which Jaune slowly got to learn more about the eclectic people he'd befriended.

Nora Valkyrie was a super energetic girl who practically radiated positivity, and it was clear from the get-go that she was completely enamored with her childhood friend Lie Ren, who was a quiet sort but who nonetheless thanked him for saving their lives. It was odd, seeing how Nora could be so affectionate over Ren but consistently deny that they were "together-together", but Jaune had met many different quirky people over the course of his many lives and deaths, and so shook the matter out of his mind.

Like Ren, Blake was a mostly quiet individual who sometimes felt and acted like the weight of the entire world was on her shoulders. She had thanked Jaune for coming up with a plan that saved them, and had quietly slipped him one of her favorite novels as a thank-you gift. After spending two whole minutes starting his read-through of Blake's gift, Jaune had made a startling discovery about the reclusive girl: Blake was a complete, absolute pervert. The kind of material she read on a daily basis with a secret smile on her face made Jaune question the girl's sanity. There is no way someone's genitals could be as long as a Katana, and the amount of tentacles and boy-on-boy smut he found in her one gift made him start to slowly inch himself away from her. He had wondered briefly whether Blake had just given him the book as a joke, as he recalled a hilarious memory of a Winter party where one of his sisters had gifted to him a book titled 69 Shades of Love with a smile on her face, saying that it would help give him advice on how to get a girlfriend. Something he had immediately taken to heart and had hastily begun reading well into the morning.

Needless to say, it was an entire night's worth of sleep wasted. He went in expecting the book to give him good advice on how to be approachable to women, and instead he had to hold his stomach in as the main character prostrated herself to one of the most despicable and unlikeable male characters he had ever seen. If this book was meant to show him what not to do when trying to get a girlfriend, then it was a massive success.

But looking at Blake's huge collection of novels that she brought, Jaune had decided that Blake was ten times worse. Looking through his Scroll at the many titles Blake had, he seriously wondered how a person so quiet and secretive could be the biggest pervert on this side of Remnant.

Thankfully, Yang was far more sensible and approachable than the rest of their group, and after saving Ruby's life she had been far more amicable towards him, teasing him about his relationship to Ruby and how he might end up being the sole boy in a team made up of girls. She was fun to hang around with, and she painfully reminded Jaune of his own older sisters. She acted just like them, especially in her teasing and overprotective attitude towards her younger sister. The fact that she was blonde like him only served to make the loneliness he felt even worse, but he still viewed her as a great friend.

No wonder Summer spoke so highly of her, even if she wasn't exactly her daughter by birth.

He had already gotten to know Ruby and Pyrrha very well already, but he was pleasantly surprised to see Weiss Schnee of all people come to him and personally thank him for saving her life. Despite her shortcomings, Jaune couldn't help but see a little bit of himself in her. Like him, she too had a huge legacy to live up to, and a family that tried to hinder her goals just like his. He could tell too, from her eyes alone that she thirsted to prove herself and make a name for herself in Beacon and in her life. Though her pompous attitude had yet to fully dissolve, Jaune couldn't help but greatly respect her for her dedication to her dreams.

Jaune began to clap with even more energy as he saw Blake, Yang, Nora, and Ren walk up the stage, knowing now who he would most likely be in a team with.

"Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao-Long, Nora Valkyrie, and Lie Ren. The four of you have retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as... Team Brandy (BRNY). Led by... Blake Belladonna."

Blake's eyes shot open at this announcement, and soon Nora had pulled her into a rib-cracking hug while Ren applauded with a small smile and Yang wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

Jaune soon saw Glynda wave to his group and he, Ruby, Weiss, and Pyrrha made their way on to the stage.

"Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee. Jaune Arc. Pyrrha Nikos. The four of you have retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as... Team Supernova (SRNA). Led by... Weiss Schnee."

'Supernova, huh? How fitting.' Jaune thought as he clapped and tried his hardest to not laugh at Weiss, who looked like she was struck by lightning at Ozpin's announcement that she had been made Team Leader. But the shock soon dissipated and she adopted a haughty and smug look at her appointment as Team Leader and at the thunderous applause his team got once it was announced Pyrrha Nikos would be in it.

While Ruby was visibly less enthusiastic about the announcement and Pyrrha continued to wear her polite smiling face, Jaune was inwardly glad that he hadn't been chosen as Team Leader. He was here for one purpose and one purpose only. He had no business leading others, except to their early graves, and given time he was sure that Weiss would prove herself to be a great leader. He could see it in her eyes after all. They both desired the opportunity to prove themselves.

---

Jaune waited until he could hear the soft breathing coming from Ruby and Weiss and the loud snores coming from Pyrrha's blanket burrito before he opened his eyes and scanned the room. Shortly after the teams were announced, the newly minted Team SRNA practically collapsed onto their beds in their new dorm, still exhausted from the events in Initiation. Jaune feigned sleep and kept his eyes closed until he could make sure that the other girls were asleep.

Raising his body up from the bed, he quickly dressed himself up into something more presentable and grabbed his bag before quietly sneaking his way across the bedroom and leaving. Walking across the hallway, Jaune soon found the entrance to the nearby rooftop. He made his way to the center and began to stare at the shattered moon up in the sky.

Even though he had just moved into his dorm with his new teammates he still found it hard to believe that he had actually made it into Beacon, and he couldn't help but wonder what would have happened to him if he had never journeyed to the Lands Between. Would he have still met up with Ruby, partnered up with Pyrrha, and formed a team with them and Weiss, or would he have ended up with an entirely different team and partner? Would he have been under more scrutiny concerning his combat skills and strangely positive grades and recommendations on his transcripts? He considered himself lucky that his sorceries would be enough to back up the heavy praise and high grades listed on his papers, but what would have happened to him if he never became a Tarnished in the first place? It was only due to Summer's training and the hundreds to thousands of deaths he experienced that he was able to learn how to fight and hold his own in a stressful situation, but before then? He had believed that he could simply get by with fake papers and hoped that Beacon would be far more beginner-friendly and slowly take the time to teach its students how to fight. All the while forgetting that students went to combat schools specifically to train and learn how to fight in the first place.

Would the Jaune Arc of back then be able to survive a fight against a Grimm, let alone the massive horde that attacked them at Initiation?

Speaking of Initiation, Jaune couldn't help but wonder what could have caused all those Grimm to suddenly form a horde and storm after them like that. He devised a plan to draw the Grimm towards the ruins using himself and his teammates as bait to lure them in away from other students in the forest, but the entire time not a single one of those Grimm decided to move away from their path and continue exploring the forest for other victims. Every single one of those monsters made a beeline towards them, and Jaune couldn't understand why.

He tried to think back to that fight. Had they done something to attract all those Grimm? From what he could remember from old children's stories and scattered conversations between the Professors during their time in the medical ward, Grimm were attracted to negative emotions like moths to a flame. But he couldn't think of any of his friends being miserable or showing such large amounts of negativity. Even as downtrodden as he was on the inside, his mind and heart were perfectly blank as he focused on the plan he created to take out the horde, and he imagined that the others were the same as well. And he couldn't find a good reason as for how they were able to attract what appeared to be the entire Grimm population of Emerald Forest towards them. And the Goliath! According to Blake, a Grimm that large and strong would have no doubt lived for decades or even hundreds of years, and would have been intelligent enough to know that a group of exhausted teenage Huntsmen and Huntresses like them would never be a threat to it. No, something had agitated it, and all the other Grimm. But what?

When did the horde first start to appear? Jaune thought back, and then it clicked.

'It all started when I used Loretta's spell.'

Shortly after he had launched his magic arrows and killed the Nevermore, the Deathstalker from earlier had found them, and following behind it were the countless other Grimm. And back when he was on top of one of the towers raining down cannonballs and arrowheads onto the Grimm, all the Grimm were consistently heading towards his direction. No wonder it was so easy for Weiss, Blake, and Yang to distract them and trap or crowd-control them.

'Were they attracted to my sorceries?'

It seemed to be the only explanation he could come up with that would make any sense. But that explanation only brought up more questions than answers. Why would the Grimm be attracted to his sorceries? Is this even normal? And what would happen if he continued to use his magic inside school?

No one knew where the Grimm came from or why they relentlessly hunted down humanity and the Faunus. They didn't reproduce, yet they always appeared in larger numbers. They weren't made of any organic substance, yet they greatly resembled and acted almost exactly like various other animals on Remnant. They didn't hunt other animals for food or even eat or drink at all, yet they were more than willing to hunt people down and even grow in intellect over the years should they survive encounters with Huntsmen. The only thing most people would agree on was that the Grimm were present on Remnant for just as long as people and Faunus had been, and they were specifically attracted to hunting them down. It was only thanks to humanity's discovery and use of Dust did they ever stand a chance against them and become strong enough to establish kingdoms.

So what was it about Glintstone sorcery that drove them into a frenzy and run towards him? He tried to remember everything Sorceress Sellen had taught him about Glintstone sorcery, but nothing came up that would explain why it would affect the Grimm so heavily. Plus, Glintstone sorcery was just him channeling the residual power of the stars and the power of life within them. What did that have anything to do with the Grimm, beings only found on Remnant?

Jaune just shook his head to try and stop the flow of thoughts in his head. Even if he didn't fully understand the reason why, it seemed to be the only possible answer as to why the horde appeared, and Jaune soon felt immense guilt build up in his heart as he remembered just how tired and beaten everyone was trying to survive. His guilt soon morphed into fear as he remembered just how close he could have gotten his friends killed. Hell, Ruby herself would have died had Weiss not step in in time!

He was supposed to protect her! And instead he was launched into a pillar by a Goliath and had his spine shattered into pieces. Had the Guidance of Grace not revived him, Ruby and the others would have been killed by the Goliath. And he would have failed Summer yet again!

"Damn it! I was supposed to keep my promise to her, and instead I nearly got her daughter killed on her second day at Beacon!" he curled his hands into fists as he cursed in frustration. He was supposed to do everything he could to keep Ruby safe, and yet Initiation showed him that he could never treat his task lightly. What good was becoming Elden Lord if he still remained helpless to protect his friends after all the trials and tribulations he went through!?

No. He would need to be more vigilant from now on. He had no idea how strong Beacon's defenses were should another Grimm horde like the one at Initiation or worse try to assault the school, but he couldn't take any more chances. He would have to make sure he avoided using any more sorceries during his time here, lest he keep drawing Grimm towards Beacon. He might be removing a key part of his arsenal, but he had more than enough confidence in his skills with a sword to make up for it. Worst-case scenario, he could just say it was a fluke or that his scepter stopped working. Maybe he could say that the Carian Royal Scepter was damaged from overuse back in Initiation and he had to send it back home for repairs? At the very least, it would buy him time until he could come up with a more permanent solution.

Casting a remorseful glance at the scepter in his left hand, Jaune made the difficult decision to avoid using it as much as he could.

"Sorry, old friend. But to keep her safe, I can't rely on you too much anymore."

"Oh my. Art thou so depressed that thou would resort to talking to weapons now? And here I thought thou was already strange enough for having a habit of talking to dolls."

Jaune's eyes shot open in shock as a painfully familiar voice reached his ears.

'It can't be... is she really here!?'

He desperately hoped that the melodic voice he heard wasn't a hallucination or a dream. But it couldn't have been her. The last time they spoke together was when he...

He rummaged through his pockets, finding nothing, and then nearly tore his bag open in his haste to find the source of the voice. Pushing aside various tomes and other items, he shoved his hand inside, hoping to find something of great importance. When he felt the soft touch of silky hair on his fingertips, his whole body froze. Gently grasping the object, he pulled it out and held it in his palms.

It was a small doll, with 4 tiny blue arms and dressed up in a pale-white dress and pointed hat. Though it appeared heavily worn down with cracks and bits of thread dangling from its appendages, it was evident that the doll was handcrafted with great care and detail, with dark-blue hair flowing down from the head.

By all accounts, to the average person it was just a plain tiny doll. One that would have found its home at an antique shop or in some young girl's toy collection. Yet this doll radiated a calm, gentle chill that reminded him faintly of the moon and cooled his warm hands.

And it bore a face that gazed at him with a tender expression, while a transparent, blue face appeared next to the fractured right eye of the doll's head.

He had thought he would never be able to speak to her again. To only be granted a passing reminder of her existence through this lifeless doll in his possession. And yet here she was, holding her 4 arms together in a serene pose while her head tilted up and gazed into his eyes with great adoration.

"Ranni? Is it really you?" Jaune had to know if this was really happening. If his friend was actually here...

"Oh? Has it really been so long, that my dear consort would forget me so soon after we had parted ways? Should I be concerned, that my beloved has such poor memory? How couldst thou have forsaken me so quickly, after I had laid bare my heart and soul for thee after thine proposal?" Ranni said in a teasing yet affectionate voice as she raised her 4 arms towards him.

Jaune laughed and cried at the same time, bringing the doll to his head as tears streamed from his eyes. He could feel Ranni's arms lightly touch and rub his forehead soothingly while he continued to shed tears of joy and sorrow, unable to raise his head and look at her.

He couldn't believe his eyes and ears. Ranni was here with him. She was actually here! On Remnant! The fact that she was only here in this tiny doll that was barely the size of his palm didn't bother him in the slightest. He had been convinced that he would never see or hear from her again after they had parted ways. She had one final goal in mind, and though she had asked him if he would be willing to come with her he had to decline, saying that he had to return to Remnant to fulfill his promise. He was scared that he had greatly offended her, that he would leave her all on her own after everything they had worked towards. But Ranni only smiled at his decision and gave him her blessing to return to his home world while she trekked the vast expanse of the cosmos all on her own.

"Thou need not shed any more tears. I am here, and I am here for you. No matter how far apart we are in this infinite universe, I will always think of thee, and hold thee in my heart."

"H-how were you able to be here? To reach this far? I didn't think I would be able to see you again for a long time?"

"Forgive me for my lack of presence, my Lord. I had tried many times to reach thee, to send my soul across time and space to you. But alas, thy world is so distant, billions of stars and planets away from where I am. Even with the Elden Ring in my possession, it took an immense amount of effort and will to project a part of my soul to thee in my doll. I had wanted to see thee for so long. To hear thy voice grace my ears once more."

Jaune blushed at the very evident love and adoration in her voice. Even after all this time, she still had such an effect on him. But guilt soon began to creep into his voice, as he remembered the circumstances which led them to this point. "Ranni, you know you don't need to address me like that. When I returned your ring, I had no idea that it was an engagement ring. I just wanted to save you..."

"And yet my words back then remain unchanged, as are my feelings. Out of all who came and appeared before me, none have persevered and done as much as thy have. Thou had overcome much hardship in the Lands Between, and when faced with the mistakes of thy past, my consort had the will and strength to overcome thy dark fate, to free themselves from the destiny laid out before thee. And when all was done, thou had ascended as Elden Lord, and helped me usher in my Age of the Stars. Even if thou had loved another, my words to thee still ring true to this day, no matter the distance between us. Thou art my dear consort eternal. My one, and only Lord."

His face still beet-red from her confession, Jaune could only laugh and smile at the small doll in front of him. "Thank you for all you did for me back then, Ranni. I never could have gotten to where I was without your help. I-it's so good to hear your voice again."

Ranni continued to hold his face with her tiny palms and hands, rubbing circles all over as if she was determined to remember the shape of his face. "Talk to me. Let me here thy voice. Speak to me of thy adventures, thy story, and this strange yet wondrous land thou calls home."

And so he spoke, talking in a gleeful tone as if he had been starving for conversation for years. He spoke of the world he was from, Remnant. He spoke of the people who lived here, and the Faunus. Jaune told her of the places he visited, the people he had met, and the shock and awe he felt after finally returning home from the Lands Between.

He told her about Ruby, and how he said his final goodbyes to Summer's grave. How he had saved Ruby from a bunch of dangerous robbers, and how both of them were accepted at Beacon Academy. He told her of the Grimm, and how the people of Remnant were forever at war with them. How the Kingdoms across Remnant taught many people about how to fight these forces of darkness. He spoke to her about Aura and Semblances. Of Dust and the different forms of technology that existed on this world and were completely foreign to the Lands Between.

He told her about his recent adventures joining Beacon, meeting his new friends and teammates, and the long battle that he endured.

Ranni was a patient and attentive listener, never interrupting him and nodding her head without complaint even though he must have been speaking non-stop for hours on end. He could tell that she was brimming with curiosity and possibly hundreds of questions of her own about his world and the rules that govern it. 'Must be from her old background as a sorceress herself,' Jaune thought as he continued to talk to her while watching her adopt the same contemplative pose she would often take when speaking to him and Summer at her tower in the old Carian Manor.

"And I wish you could have been there to see my new friends. One of them just loves to devour pancakes and cause explosives, and another is a quiet sort, but has one of the dirtiest tastes in literature! I doubt you'd have ever seen something like that in the Lands Between. I mean, Summer probably would have lost it had she seen just what kind of people Ruby and Yang befriended-"

"Wait."

Jaune immediately froze and stared at her in confusion at the suddenly sharp tone Ranni spoke with.

"What's wrong? Sorry, did I start to bore you? I know I tend to ramble a lot-"

"Hold thy tongue for but a moment, my beloved. I sense we are being overheard. Someone is spying on us."

Immediately Jaune narrowed his eyes, straightened up, and quickly placed Ranni into his shirt pocket to hide her as he grabbed his scepter from his bag and stood up, taking a long and hard glance across the rooftop. Up here, Jaune could see the entirety of the Academy, with the green Clock Tower that housed the Headmaster's office straight ahead. Raising his scepter up just in case, he continued to search the area around him for any eavesdroppers.

But so far, he found no evidence of anyone spying on them. In fact, he couldn't even see a single living thing present near them aside from a dusty old crow sitting atop a lamppost and staring at him with a reddish-pink eye. He just couldn't tell if there was anyone else around.

He didn't doubt Ranni's warning in the slightest however. While Ranni could never claim to be the strongest or most influential of the Demigods before the Shattering, she was undeniably one of, if not the most, clever and cunning individuals he had ever met in the Lands Between. Fiercely independent and refusing to shackle herself to an undesirable fate, she had successfully stolen a fragment of Death itself and in a daring move that shocked even the Two Fingers, she slew her own Empyrean flesh to escape their control and her predestined fate. Not once, during and after the Shattering, was she discovered by the other Demigods, the watchful assassins of the Two Fingers, or the hidden eyes and ears of the All-Knowing, and for centuries she had evaded their every move while working tirelessly to find a way to defy the Two Fingers and oppose the Greater Will. She had to be clever and sharp of mind in order to avoid being hunted down by her fellow brothers and sisters who were eager to grab her Great Rune, and to avoid the Baleful Shadows that thirsted for her blood.

If she believed or sensed someone watching them, then Jaune would believe in her without a drop of uncertainty. Since he discovered nothing, he had to assume that their interloper must have scurried off some time ago.

"Looks like there's no one around anymore, Ranni. They must have left after they noticed me standing up."

"...Wait. That crow over there, standing on top of that light. Can you see it?" Ranni said as she slowly pulled herself up from his shirt pocket while whispering in a low tone that only he could hear.

"Yeah, I can. But why're you so scared of some random bird?"

"Drive it away immediately."

Jaune looked down and gave her a puzzled look, but followed her request nonetheless. Raising his scepter up, he prayed that his sorcery didn't attract another Grimm horde to the school before launching a small Glintstone shard at the bird. The crow yapped in surprise and quickly jumped out of the way of the incoming projectile, before giving him a dirty look and flying away towards the top tower.

Lowering his staff, Jaune took one quick look around for any Grimm or people before carefully pulling Ranni out of his shirt pocket.

"What's wrong? Why did you have me drive away that bird?"

"Forgive me, I cannot speak for much longer. The amount of mental strength and power to communicate to thee across billions of light-years is immense, and I must briefly rest for a time. I promise to speak to thee soon when I have recovered. Sadly, like before, this doll body I inhabit is poorly suited for tasks such as this. Be vigilant, my consort. If thou wishes to keep this Rose girl safe from harm, then it would be best to resist using sorceries unless absolutely necessary. I know not how these shadowy beasts behave, but it is imperative you proceed with caution."

Jaune nodded, slightly bummed out that he couldn't speak with Ranni for longer, but understanding that it would take a lot of energy for her to continue speaking to him across the universe like this. It was one of the biggest downsides she suffered after killing her physical body. Though she was able to free herself from the control of the Greater Will, she lost most of her power and strength inlaid in her original Empyrean flesh. Her doll was just a substitute for her body and nothing more.

"I understand, and I hope we can speak again soon. Though I am curious, what made you so suspicious of that bird?"

"There was something peculiar about that particular bird. Though faint, it appeared to be covered in some strange form of magic. I could not discount the possibility that that bird may have been an assassin taking the form of a crow to spy on us. And besides..."

Ranni turned to him and gave him a slightly amused look.

"Though my flesh is gone my senses remain intact, even in this doll. I know not the nature of the fauna that thrive in thy world, but even I can surmise that the birds of thy realm should not naturally be reeking of drink."

---

"I think I fucked up. The kid's probably on to me." Qrow said as he rematerialized into his human form in Ozpin's office.

When Ozpin had contacted him about the situation occurring in the Emerald Forest during Initiation yesterday, Qrow had immediately bolted out of the bar and turned into his avian form, flying straight to Beacon. He was thankful that he had made it back to Vale in time from his previous reconnaissance mission when he had first received a message from Oz telling him to come back as soon as possible. He wished that he had been able to stay out in the field for longer, as he had solid proof that their enemy had employed some new pawns on the battlefield and were plotting something. Amber Autumn didn't get placed in a coma by fighting mere criminals after all. She had been specifically targeted due to her powers as the Fall Maiden, and someone had been able to successfully steal half of her power before Qrow intervened and whisked her to safety. He had spent the rest of the time finding any evidence of who her attackers were but with little success. He knew there were three of them, but one of them must have had some kind of invisibility or illusion Semblance, as his pursuit of them abruptly ended when he completely lost sight of them.

He had initially assumed that Oz called him back since he might have gotten some info about Amber's attackers, but instead he was told to head back to Beacon to go and spy on some random blonde dressed up like a Halloween costume. Oz was spooked enough by what he apparently saw in the kid that he wanted Qrow to tail him when he got back to Vale. Seeing his picture on his Scroll, Qrow could only scoff at Oz's paranoia. Jaune Arc looked like he had barely started his Huntsman career, and even he could tell that the kid was in way over his head with his attempt at entering Beacon with fake transcripts. It was pretty obvious that this guy must have been raised with delusions of grandeur, and when he couldn't put in the work to prove himself and train, he took the easy way out and probably paid for fake transcripts to get him accepted. Qrow believed he would die within an hour or two of Initiation. Better he had been expelled rather than follow through with Ozpin's crazy Initiation and gotten himself killed.

Those thoughts faded away completely when he nearly got turned into roasted turkey as he barely dodged the massive blue laser heading in his direction.

When he heard of the massive Grimm horde that appeared, he feared the worst and flew as fast as possible to Ruby's and Yang's location. Like Ozpin, Qrow knew that there was no logical reason for why a horde this large would appear in Emerald Forest, and immediately assumed that she must be involved somehow. He may have trained Ruby as best he could on how to use a scythe like him, but he knew she still had a long way to go, and if she was involved then she would be in mortal danger.

He still had nightmares from when he first discovered the torn and bloody fragments of Summer's dress.

He flew over the forest and soon discovered the horde making its way towards the old ruins. Spotting the loud cacophony of gunfire up ahead, he was relieved to see Ruby and Yang, exhausted but very much alive as they battled their way through waves of Grimm. He had landed and transformed near the tail-end of the horde and used the distraction to slice-and-dice his way through them, softening their numbers and making the kids' jobs easier. He flew up back in his crow form, and nearly had a heart attack upon seeing his niece Ruby almost get squashed by a fucking Goliath. How the hell did something like that show up here!?

He beelined straight for the students, only to suddenly swerve away as a blue laser tore through the Goliath, nearly cooked him, and continue traveling as it tore through the trees behind him. By the time he landed, the Goliath had a giant hole going right through its body before disintegrating.

What. The. Hell!?

Did something like that really come from the same scraggly kid Oz warned him about earlier?

It was even worse when he returned to Ozpin, who told him that whatever that kid did, it definitely wasn't due to a Semblance. The power was too great, and according to Ozpin, it might have been responsible for drawing in all those Grimm towards them too. Whether it was intentional of the kid or not, it was his job to find out, as Jaune Arc had ended up on his niece's team and could have plenty of opportunities to assassinate her.

He had spent the next day keeping an eye on him, and very late into the night he spotted the kid heading up to the rooftop, before pulling something out of his bag and talking to it for what felt like hours. Was he speaking to someone? Didn't look like he was speaking over a Scroll, so maybe some other device?

He had attempted to fly closer to hopefully pick up on the conversation by flying on top of a nearby lamp when the kid suddenly froze and looked around. What the hell happened? Did he sense him nearby somehow? How? Qrow had been doing this shit for years, and he knew well how to keep himself hidden and unnoticeable as a bird. It was why Oz always came to him for missions like this.

But Qrow nearly shit himself when he then saw the kid immediately turn his head straight towards him, and kept staring at him for several more seconds, before picking up his weird staff and firing some blue projectile at him.

Yep. He'd been caught somehow, and he didn't want to stick around for another encounter with a laser.

He'd returned to Ozpin and told him of what happened as he grabbed his flask and started drinking shot after shot while Oz furrowed his eyebrows at his blown cover.

"Are you sure he somehow knew you were trying to listen in on him?"

"Positive. That kid stared at me for a good long while and tried to shoot me down with that weird staff of his. He's got to have known that he was being spied on."

Qrow took a long swig from his flask before turning towards Ozpin. "Oz, why don't you just say the word and let me bag him? He can't be that tough if I can get up close to him. Without that staff of his, kid would probably drop like a fly. I don't like how he's so close to Ruby. What if he might be her agent? I don't wanna take any risks with this."

But to his surprise, Ozpin shook his head. "No. We still don't know what his motivations are, and while it is troubling that whatever he used caused all those Grimm to converge on him, do bear in mind that had he wanted to, he could have had miss Rose killed at any point yesterday. All he had to do was ignore any help from her and the Grimm would have taken care of the rest."

"You sure that whatever that kid used brought all that Grimm towards them? You think it might actually be magic?"

"Whatever it was, it definitely did not appear to be from a Semblance. The closest I could compare it to would be the Semblance used by the Schnee family, but even theirs could never be as versatile as Mr. Arc's. Or even come close to him in terms of sheer power. I of course would have to observe it up close to be more certain, but something about it felt... strange. It felt a little similar to what I had felt back when the Brother Gods roamed Remnant, and yet it also felt so...alien. Completely different to anything I had ever encountered or used in the past. It definitely wasn't the power of the Fall Maiden."

Ozpin took a long sip from his mug as he rubbed his exhausted face. "Ultimately, I can't confirm or deny right now if Mr. Arc is an enemy agent or a potential ally. So far, he hasn't harmed either of your nieces yet, and he seems to have an amicable relationship with his team and allies. I would suggest that you continue to keep an eye on him. If it turns out he has nothing to do with her plans, then we may welcome him into our fold."

"And if he does?"

"Then silence him immediately."

---

And that's a wrap for this chapter!

Our favorite doll from Elden Ring (and possibly the most simped for character in all of From's games) has finally made her appearance! I'm sure you all can guess as to some of the events that must have happened to Jaune in his journey in the Lands Between.

I hope I improved this chapter compared to the previous one, and showed that Jaune is not a pushover in this story. He is definitely powerful, but he can't just show off his full strength just yet. There are a lot of physical and mental obstacles he'll have to go through before he can truly go out. Though if he did, would he remain the same person?

Apologies once again for the length of this chapter! I wanted to make Initiation stand out and also be able to show off some of Jaune's power here while also be able to introduce Ranni to the story.

Thank you all again for the positive reviews and constructive feedback! If you had any issues or things you think I should change to make the story better feel free to let me know!