Arrival Day, Beacon Academy

Khovu jumped to his feet, hurrying to get off the airship. He glanced to the side and saw another blonde boy making a beeline for a waste bin, before emptying the contents of his stomach. Khovu wasn't that desperate to leave, but he wasn't about to tarry either. While not the longest journey he'd ever been on (having spent a week in Hyperspace between his last two deployments), he would much prefer to ride his mangled starfighter as it hurtled through Remnant's atmosphere whilst simultaneously fending off a swarm of Separatist Vulture Droids. Whoever designed the airship he had just vacated obviously had never heard of inertial dampening.

As he moved to one side to avoid being trampled by the crowd of potential students, he reflected on how he came to be here in the first place.

12 Hours Earlier

"Going somewhere?"

Khovu tried to gesture down towards the street.

"Yes, actually," he said. "I wanted to apologise to the owner of the store down there. I may have accidentally broken one of the windows when I intervened on his behalf." The woman holding him aloft with the purple glow scoffed.

"And I'm sure that when an opportunity presents itself, you would slip away completely unnoticed, right?"

Khovu caught himself before he replied. That was exactly what he had planned. After all, he couldn't exactly trust anyone right now. Sighing, he looked the woman in the eye, and prepared to use another Mind Trick.

"You will let me go, and forget you ever saw me," he intoned, waving his fingers at his side.

To her credit, the woman didn't even blink.

"No, I don't think I will," she replied, looking even more unimpressed. "I think that you will be coming with me. There is someone who will want to speak with you."

Khovu blinked twice, his jaw dropping slightly. Bewildered thoughts ran through his head faster than an angry blurrg.

'What just happened? That should have worked. That always works. Why didn't that work?'

Ten Minutes Later

Khovu shifted in his seat for the fifteenth time since the woman, who revealed herself to be one Glynda Goodwitch, had dumped him in what appeared to be an interrogation room. He knew that, physically speaking, there was little stopping him from stepping into the hall, Mind Tricking anybody who stopped him, and disappearing into the night. The only reason he was still sitting in the mildly uncomfortable chair was because every time he stood up and moved towards the door, the Force politely steered him back towards the opposite wall. Sighing, he thought about the young girl who helped him prevent the theft.

Khovu had awkwardly introduced himself after Goodwitch had released him from whatever she was using to hold him up. The girl, after introducing herself as Ruby Rose, had immediately asked about his lightsaber, having apparently never heard of one before. That was the detail that confirmed just how deep in the Unknown Regions this backwater was. Even uneducated slaves on seedy Outer Rim worlds had heard of Lightsabers and Jedi.

In return, Ruby had shown him her own weapon, a hybrid Scythe-Sniper Rifle construct she called 'Crescent Rose'. Khovu was still slightly baffled by the fact that Ruby used a slugthrower rather than a blaster, but he could appreciate the craftsmanship of her weapon.

His train of thought was cut short by the sound of the door opening. Turning around, he was greeted by the sight of Goodwitch and a grey-haired man carrying a cane.

"Good evening, young man," said the man. "My name is Professor Ozpin." Khovu took several seconds to survey the man before speaking.

"Look, Professor," he began. "I have somewhere else to be, so if we could make this quick, it would be appreciated." Ozpin merely smiled.

"Of course," came Ozpin's reply. "I would hate to keep you from another night in the Forever Fall Forest."

Khovu faltered at that. 'How did he know? More to the point, what else does he know?' Ozpin continued to speak.

"I merely have a few questions for you, and depending on the outcome, an offer. One that would mean you wouldn't need to return to the forest after dark." Khovu contemplated this for a few seconds, but ultimately the prospect of a decent night's rest won.

"Alright," he said. "Assuming that one of the questions you were planning on asking is what my name is, it's Khovu. Khovu Dameron."

What followed was roughly an hour of discussion before Ozpin made his offer.

"Well, Khovu," he said. "I would like to formally offer you a place in this year's intake at Beacon Academy. Should you accept, we can provide you with lodgings, meals, and an allowance for any course related costs. In addition, the faculty will be made aware of your situation, and will be more than happy to provide individual tutoring in subjects relating specifically to Remnant, should you wish it."

Khovu fell silent for several minutes as he consulted the Force. Finally, he looked Ozpin in the eye

"I accept."

Arrival Day

After most of the passengers had disembarked, Khovu started to make his way towards the tower at the heart of the Academy grounds. Much like when he had set off for Vale yesterday, he had barely made it a dozen metres before something happened. This time, he caught sight of an explosion, one involving lightning, and… ice crystals? Shaking his head, he rushed over to investigate, only to find that everyone involved was unharmed. He was puzzled for a moment before he recalled Ozpin had mentioned that the people of Remnant made use of a phenomenon known as Aura, which could shield them from harm. Khovu did a double take when he saw that the girl from the fight last night, Ruby, was involved. As he got closer, he managed to hear some of the conversation.

"…some recognition," said the short girl trying to look down on Ruby. Another girl, holding an actual book, spoke next.

"The same company infamous for its controversial labour forces and questionable business partners." Obviously, Khovu had missed something, as the girl in white snatched something from the other girl and stormed off. Hearing a muffled thump, Khovu looked over to see Ruby collapse onto her back.

"Welcome to Beacon," she muttered. Khovu chose that moment to step in and extended his hand towards her.

"Hey, need a hand down there?"

A/N: If you've made it this far, then you should have already figured out that I'm not dead. If you hadn't worked that out yet, then consider this official notice: I AM NOT DEAD YET! I do still plan on putting chapters out occasionally, and although I hope I can update more regularly than every 2 years, I make no promises. Between my actual Job, my work within my community as a part of my local Lions club, I find myself with not enough time as I would like to write. What you've read in this latest chapter is what I've been sitting on for several months, while I struggle with writer's block. I did say that there is no real upload schedule for this story, and I'm standing by that.

One last thing: While I appreciate the fact that people from all over the world have found this story and have left reviews, I would like to say that I only speak/read English. A number of readers have left reviews in other languages that, unfortunately, I can't read. I don't want to come across as gatekeeping, but if you're going to leave a review (hopefully with constructive criticism), please make sure I can read it.

Thanks for reading, and hopefully you'll see more before 2024!