ANGR

by epicvictory2025

RWBY AU. An adventure of Four teenagers attending Beacon Academy. They all have their reasons for being here, and they are gonna prove they can face the dangers and protect Remnant. But can they remain brave and face the unknown that's hiding in the shadows?

8. ANGR Assembles

RWBY belongs to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth

OCs are mine

ANGR

Chapter 4; ANGR Assembles

---

Beacon Academy; the Amphitheater

In Beacon Academy, it has gone quiet. The new students are out in the Emerald Forest in order to enroll after completing their tests. Inside the amphitheater, all the other students, second, third, and fourth year, have gathered here. They are all wearing their Beacon Academy uniforms for their dress code too, boys and girls alike.

Among the crowd, there are four certain students that are close together.

The first one is a young girl with pale skin, long brown hair and brown eyes, and she's a rabbit faunus due to sporting a pair of rabbit ears on the top of her head.

Next to her, on her right, is another girl with pale skin, dark brown eyes and short, dark brown hair with caramel tipped locks. She seems…. fashionably stylistic, as she's wearing a pair of aviator shades and dark brown beret, with a fancy necklace.

On the bunny faunus' left are two boys. One with dark skin, dark copper hair that's messy and with a cowlick, and a scar on his lip. The most notable trait is his eyes that are pure white which suggestively hints he may be blind. The other is… let's just say he's a rather big guy; easily standing 7 feet tall; even taller than Gale himself, with tanned skin and shaved black hair.

These four students are a well organized and rather "stylish" team known as CFVY; consisting of Coco Adel, Fox Alistair, Velvet Scarlatina, and Yatsuhashi Daichi, respectively. And today, they are now in their second year, while also being transferred from Shade Academy.

What they are witnessing are dozens of holographic screens showing several locations of the Emerald Forest which also showcases the new students in action. Most of them in the amphitheater are hooting and hollering at how awesome and badass the newcomers are, even some being seemingly comparable to many of the other students that have been in the academy longer.

CFVY was having their own thrill watching these newbies actually impress them. Though, Fox doesn't appear to be watching the holographic screens directly.

Coco and Velvet were chatting over witnessing the action before them on the screens.

"I must say, I wasn't expecting some new students this year to be so effective and skilled." Coco mused, while she moved her shades down to get a better look at several girls, especially ones like Weiss, Blake, Yang, Pyrrha, and a few others… but she couldn't help but notice Nigel, especially after seeing footage of him fighting and killing a Reaper Mantide... and she's also liking his outfit too, especially his hat. "Not to mention a lot of pretty girls and quite a few handsome boys to meet." She thought with a smirk on her face.

I have to agree with you on that." Velvet agreed with her teammate" I haven't seen newcomers being on such a level that are capable of being on par with someone like us. You think they will be great classmates and friends for us?"

"As much as I am curious about meeting them, let's not jump to conclusions. We haven't personally met or befriended them yet." Yatsuhashi softly spoke, which caught Coco and Velvet's curiosity since he prefers to stay quiet and not speak much, unless when necessary or he's being serious. Fox was facing his head towards his other two teammates and nodded.

"He's not wrong." Velvet replied to the logic her partner said.

"That is…. IF they make it out alive and don't become Grimm chow." Fox bluntly told them with a hint of sarcasm, using his semblance to telepathically say to Coco and Velvet which was just simply conveying his thoughts. He's also telepathically communicating with Yatsuhashi who is giving out the details on what's happening in the initiation to Fox since he's blind.

"Well, He's not wrong either." Coco also said which made Velvet nervously chuckle and Yatsu give a deadpan look on his face towards Fox's remark.

Meanwhile, in the hallways of Beacon, which are empty… well, mostly empty, as the sound of a sweeping broom and stepping sounds of work boots echoing the halls.

It revealed to be Nevins who is busy doing his job as the custodian and keeping the halls clean as a whistle, not leaving a single speck of dust in sight.

Though, he couldn't help but stop in the middle of his duty when he noticed the several dozens of holographic screens that broadcast throughout the hallways of the academy that shows what is going on right now in the Emerald Forest.

He watched the many footages of the new students duking it out with the Grimm and some even becoming partners and team members…. but he also sees plenty of footage with some of them bickering, teasing, flirting, rough housing with each other, and even going as far as pulling pranks for giggles.

Nevins narrowed his eyes like he isn't amused…. as much as he was telling himself that. "Hmph. Kids these days…." The custodian muttered under his breath but less out of annoyance and more out of concern for their safety. Yet, he stared at the footage of Rocky for a few more seconds in silence before returning back to his duties and sweeping further down the hallways

---

Emerald Forest; The Gorge.

Within the bottom of the gorge, the ground was shaking as Adam and Gale with their weapons drawn and backing away from something massive hiding in the shadows.

What they have discovered down here was already bad enough; the skeletal remains of previous students who didn't pass the initiation, many of them spread out in large piles, their broken and scattered weapons littering the ground… and the ominous atmosphere that gives off the feeling that it's nothing more than a forsaken place condemned by the gods which no living soul should ever set foot in…. and here they are; standing, dead center, in the middle of it… and they feel like getting out of there ASAP.

But that's the very least of their worries because it's not just the place they are dreading right now… it's what resides in it.

And it's staring right back at them.

The two slowly backed away to get some space but the giant Grimm has no intention of letting them go. Its gargantuan and heavily muscular frame towered over them, as it's red, glowing, singular eye that's located in the center of its large head glares at them, like a spotlight catching a pair of escaping convicts.

As much as they wanted to get away, they can't help but feel that they won't be able to go very far, since they don't know what this massive Grimm is capable of doing, such as the possibility that its faster than it looks and could easily kill them if they turn their backs on it.

The only thing they can do is to stay put and hold their ground, but they can only do it for so long until things get worse for them…..

As they continue to back away from the Grimm's seething presence, it kept lumbering forward with no intention of letting them escape. Every step it took shook the ground that even the scattered bones and ruined remains of rusted and broken weapons rattled and jumped. Any unlucky skeletons and weapons were crushed underneath its feet and reduced to grounded powder and twisted metal, while it dragged its massive spiked club in one hand which the spikes dug into the solid ground, leaving behind trails of sparks and deep scratches.

Eventually, the two backed away far enough to step out of the shadows and into the gazing sunlight. The massive humanoid Grimm trudged out of the shadows which gave the two boys a good look at what kind of Grimm it is… and it wasn't inviting for their eyes to gaze upon.

Seeing it out in the open now makes it look even more massive than before; standing at least two, maybe three, stories high. While it's nowhere half as large as a Goliath, it still dwarfed many other large Grimm, including the Nevermore, DeathStalker, and King Taijitu.

While it had the same physical traits as all the other Grimm, jet black skin and pale white bone armor with red markings, the armor itself was heavily thick that it covered the majority of its body. Most of its abdomen, back, neck, and joints of its limbs were bare but still covered in thick hide and muscle.

Sharp and curved spikes protrude out of its shoulders and knees, along with three curved horns on its head. Along its back is what looks like its spine with rows of sharp spikes protruding out of it.

But the most horrifying traits are rows upon rows of razor sharp, bone crushing, teeth, including four massive fangs that stick out the most within its gaping maw. Not to mention, located in the center of its head, is a large single eye, with a slitted pupil, that glows reddish orange like a burning ember.

It's a rather uncommon but highly infamous Grimm known as the Cyclops; A dreaded and gargantuan monstrosity of destruction and ferocity. Known far and wide across Vale and much of Western Sanus, mostly living in the high mountain slopes and dense forests, infamously known to have desolated entire villages outside of the kingdoms with their titanic might, and sending bone-chilled shivers down the spines of even the bravest of huntsmen and huntresses who stare into the burning wrath of its single eye.

It's a monster that should never be taken lightly, not even from highly experienced huntsmen.

The two teens and their giant adversary stand still as the gorge itself, not moving an inch, and stare at each other without even blinking… more like the Cyclops staring DOWN at them from above. The only thing breaking the silent standoff is the Grimm's heavy breathing and the chilling howls of the wind passing through.

The Cyclops lets out a deep and rumbling growl towards these two puny morsels, followed by sticking it's long tongue out of its mouth and rubbing it across its lips and sharp teeth, with puddles of drool flooded out of its gaping maw and splashing the ground.

Gale and Adam couldn't help but feel intimidated that this Grimm is giving out the hint it wants to eat them alive; feasting on their flesh and crunching on their bones, even using Adam's Wilt as a toothpick once its done devouring them.

"There's no need to even guess what he's thinking about towards us…." Gale thought of the idea that this Grimm wants to make a meal out of them which he does NOT want to experience in the slightest. He slowly turned his eyes towards Adam while still taking his fighting stance.

"Hey, Adam?" The taller boy whispered to his partner, turbine gauntlets at the ready. "Any bright ideas you have on how to deal with this oversized lug? Because I don't have one at the moment."

He may have faced many types of Grimm back in the jungles of Sanus, as part of his own training, with and without the tutoring from his long gone grandfather, and just to survive. However, he never has ever encountered a Grimm this large and ferocious up close, let alone facing one that makes him feel nervous…. but also blood pumping determined.

Adam also isn't sure what to do since he never faced a Grimm like this either. He remained silent for several more seconds until he gave his best answer.

"Based on my assumptions, this Grimm appears to be heavily armored, even the exposed areas look heavily thick skinned. Making it unlikely for us to do major damage with basic attacks." He informed, despite how much he hates to say it. "I'm afraid attacking it head on without resorting to stronger attacks will likely be the result of us two becoming Grimm snacks."

"Well. That sure makes me feel a whole lot better than I was seconds ago" Gale sarcastically joked and rolling his eyes but isn't berating his teammate since he's trying to lighten the mood a little…. which it isn't.

"Although…." Adam tried to assure Gale with a hint of hope they still have a chance. "The only available option I can deduce for us, for now, is the eye." He's referring to the giant eye that's pretty much a big glowing target that's asking to be hit like a bullseye. Gale noticed that too as he stared at the rather big and glowing eyeball.

"Huh. Come to think of it." Gale announced as he started to get the picture and had an idea. "The more I look at it, the more obvious to me it's begging to be hit."

"Wait. What are you suggesting?" Adam asked Gale who shifts his turbine gauntlets and aims Gust at the eye, as he activates the Wind Dust inside the dust chambers which begins to create a condensed and concentrated ball of green wind just in front of the spinning turbine.

The bull faunus suddenly felt his instincts warning him that what his partner is about to do isn't a good idea.

"I'm about to do some sharpshooting!" Gale hollered as he took aim and prepared to fire.

"Wait! Don't-" Adam shouts, trying to warn Gale….. but he was too late.

Gale instantly shot a projectile of Wind Dust that easily broke the sound barrier and towards the Cyclop's one eye. The giant saw the projectile coming towards it but it seems too slow to even react as the speedy ball of green winds slams right into its face, dead center of its single eyeball.

Gale Hathi just shot a freaking Cyclops right in the eye.

The Grimm actually flinched from that attack as it stood still and tilted its head up that it's face was facing up towards the sky.

"Bullseye!" Gale cheered for getting a direct hit and seemingly noticed how the Grimm flinched, likely got its eye damaged. Despite his excitement, it ended when he noticed the Grimm wasn't reeling in pain or making any sort of reaction… it just appears to keep staring up into the sky.

"Um… is that how it's supposed to react or am I missing something here?" The orange haired teen said, confused and nervous that what he did only made things worse since Adam didn't show a look of approval but more like disapproval.

"Tch. Tell me something about how it shouldn't react." Adam sarcastically scoffed, with a tick mark over his forehead, as he now grips Wilt even tighter. "I suggest you start preparing yourself, if I were you." His tone was filled with a mix of anger directed at Gale and a warning he should get ready for what's about to come.

After hearing that advice, Gale turned his attention back to the Cyclops which was still facing the sky. As on cue, it started to move it's head back down to it's normal position. What surprised him was that he noticed it has its eyelid closed which only shows a slight dent.

"Did… did that Grimm shut it's eye right before the impact to reduce the damage?!" Gale thought, baffled at the reflexes that a massive Grimm like this shouldn't be capable of doing.

Just then… the Cyclops opens its single eye…. and glares down at the two but especially directs it at Gale who struck it. At the same time, it started to tightly clench both its free hand and its other hand holding its giant club. Red veins become visible beneath the charcoal skin as it starts to breath faster and growls even louder.

Adam looked calm behind his mask but a single drop of sweat rolled down his forehead as he knows the inevitable duel he and his partner are gonna have to overcome won't be close to being easy.

"If we don't survive this, this is all on you." Adam angrily stared at Gale.

As for Gale…...

"Well…. " He bluntly says with a blank expression on his face and a monotone to his voice, realizing what he did and internally regretting it. "...That doesn't look good…."

"GRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The Cyclops unleashed a deafening and earl splitting bellow that echoed across the entire gorge, which goes further out across the forest which sent birds flying from their perches and smaller animals to scatter and hide. Adam and Gal were forced to cover their ears from the roar so loud that it started hurting their eardrums and came close to making them go deaf.

---

2 Miles away

Nigel and Rocky are still sprinting as fast as they can towards the gorge where Nigel sensed the two auras from before along with that dreadful cloud of putrid negativity which made the faunus feel a little unsettled by the sheer pressure emitting from it.

"Just what kind of Grimm should be living this close to a kingdom like Vale?" The kangaroo faunus thought, can't help but feel like something feels wrong here. "Most Grimm at that size and power are smart enough to avoid even being near them since it usually spells their own demise… unless…."

Without warning, the roar from the gorge rumbled across the forest and the two faunus teens stopped in their tracks once it reached their ears. The roar was strong enough to even send out a slight gusts of wind that even made the leaves in the trees quiver and shake.

Nigel and Rocky stayed in place and looked completely surprised by the sudden roar that caught them off guard.

As the roar ceased and the wind passed, both faunus stood in place and didn't move an inch from what they heard.

"Don't tell me that's a roar belonging to a very big and strong Grimm…." Rocky meekly sputtered, trying to not sound scared but chills were racing up his spine.

"Yeah. It's definitely a big and strong Grimm." Nigel replied, now feeling the pressure of the vile and putrid negativity, much more closely now. "Much larger and stronger than any I've ever sensed so far in my life…. and that was only about a mile and a half away."

Rocky couldn't help but let out an audible gulp and feeling nervous from hearing Nigel's statement. The mere thought of a Grimm capable of unleashing a roar that powerful from that kind of distance is astounding and even bone chilling.

That's when the road runner faunus suddenly got out a random piece of paper and started writing on it with a pencil with a cartoon rabbit head eraser.

"And just what the bloody hell are you doing?" Nigel said confused and bewildered towards his partner suddenly writing in the middle of a forest filled with death and terror.

"My Will and Testament, I'm writing out. What does it look like to you?" Rocky replied with a straight face as he was halfway done scribbling what he wrote down.

"What the- Hold the phone." The kangaroo faunus says with a raised eyebrow in slight disbelief of what. "Are you implying we'll be facing something inevitable that we might not make it out of there alive? Like we're gonna be walking to death's door and you're writing a will and testament because of that?"

For one thing, Nigel has seen and faced many different kinds of dangers throughout much of his journey across the more treacherous parts of Menagerie; from the harshest of environments filled with the most lethal of of death traps, to some of the deadliest and most ferocious of Grimm that ever exist. He's hardly ever afraid and mostly pushes through without stride and now he sees Rocky is filing a will and testament against something they haven't even gazed upon yet, despite the roaring they heard.

"Well, in a world where you dive head first into the unknown, you may never know." Rocky replied with a shrug of his shoulders as he folded his finished will and puts it in a small stomach acid-proof container which he puts in his pocket. "Might as well write something down if we're gonna go up against a Grimm that probably eats skilled huntsman for breakfast and never be seen or heard from again."

As much as he sees that as ignorance… At the same time, he would take that into consideration as a warning of what they may be up against. Nigel sighs but goes along with it. "Fine than. If that floats your boat, mate, then let us get to it and save those two mates before it's too late."

"Right ho!" Rocky shouts and sprints alongside and easily keeps up with Nigel towards the Gorge, getting closer with each sprinting step.

"I sure wish I had another chocolate bar I could savor, if what he says may be true…." Nigel thought in desperation, wishing he could taste another piece of dark chocolate, if not for that Reaper Mantide ruining his last one that he bought from the vending machine before starting the initiation... A waste of good lien.

---

But the roar didn't end there…. It traveled further out by a few more miles, as it got fainter to hear, that even other students nearby heard the haunting roar that some even stopped in their tracks as they felt chills run up their spines.

But the ones even further away from the temple and the gorge hardly heard it and continued doing their own activities.

However, there was one person that was able to hear the roar from such a distance that everyone else near and far couldn't…. a certain black haired girl with a black bow on her head.

She was in the treetops and silently moving through them, like a ninja, searching for a partner… but that faint roar she managed to hear with her cat ears made her stop on a stray branch and turn her head towards the direction it came from.

She narrowed her eyes and wondered what kind of creature or Grimm that roar belonged to. Seconds later, she heard a loud yell and the sound of an explosion which caught her attention.

She decided to ignore the roar to heads over there, recognizing those shouts coming from a person.

Not far away, Nora and Ren were also in another part of the forest and they have recently partnered up as well, much to Nora's delight and Ren's apparent indifference to it…. but deep down, he's actually a bit delighted too.

Though, Ren's thoughts were interrupted when he swore he heard a distant sound that sounded like a mighty roar.

Ren stared into the direction he heard the sound coming from and can't help but feel concerned and even a bit scared what's out there. His mind briefly flashed… showing a silhouette of what looks like a deformed horse with its "rider" that appears to have horns and glowing eyes.

"Is there something wrong, Ren?" Nora asked, noticing Ren had stopped and is now behind her. As much as she's known Ren for a long time, every time he stops in place and stares into another direction means something may be wrong and she's already starting to think that's not far off from the truth.

Ren doesn't answer at first and keeps staring silently… until he decides to answer his childhood friend.

"I believe that I have… but it's very far away so I don't think we should worry for the time being." Ren replied, thinking it would be safe not to go near the source and find the temple.

He's about to turn his head back to Nora. "Anyways, we should be close to the tem-"

"GRAWR!"

"YEE-HAW!"

"Please tell me it isn't what I think it is….."

For having his eyes taken off of her for several seconds, once Ren turned towards the noise…. he now sees Nora riding an Ursa that was roaring and trying to get her off of it like a bucking bronco.

Ren sweatdropped at what he's seeing. Of course, every time he takes his eyes off of her, Nora is likely gonna do something insanely random which is pretty much what she's doing right now. And where did that Ursa even come from without being noticed before?

"Get along little doggie!" Nora chimed, in a southern accent for some reason, as if she's a cowgirl that was able to stay on the Ursa's back which then started running on ahead with Ren left behind.

Ren's eyes widened and immediately sprinted after his patner. "Nora! Wait!" The young man shouted as he gave chase and did his best to keep up with the Ursa that was rather fast for its size. "Don't leave me behind like this!"

---

In another part of the Emerald Forest, Pyrrha and Jaune were still on the move, not long after Pyrrha unlocked Jaune's aura and starting to get to know each other a little bit more, along with Pyrrha teaching Jaune a few more things he doesn't know about.

But even they stopped in their tracks from hearing a faint sound that sounded like roaring. Pyrrha felt her nerves tense and put up her guard while Jaune couldn't help but shiver and feel his legs shake.

"Uh… Pyrrha?" Jaune calmly said, sounding like he was trying not to sound like he was scared out of his wits…. which he is.

"Yes, Jaune?" Pyrrha replied, also being on guard what she heard but she's more calm and collected.

"Was that a roar we just heard or am I hearing things… like my stomach?" The blonde said, with his pupils slightly shrunken, hoping it's the latter and doesn't want to know the source of the roar. He hoped he was hearing things as he patted his stomach to hear any growling… except he realized he had breakfast this morning…..

Though, Pyrrha couldn't help but giggle from hearing the last part, as Jaune hasn't noticed that. It seems she's starting to like him a little bit more because he's being so casual towards her… like he's just being himself around her as if he doesn't know her, instead of many, especially Weiss this morning, before who treat her like some kind of top celebrity that only knew because of her status before even meeting her in person.

But she narrowed her eyes a bit more towards where the roar came from. As much as she can fight any threat, she rather prefers to avoid fighting and deeply hopes it's their own minds playing tricks with them… but she can't help but doubt it's not their imagination.

"I'm not quite sure." She said firmly and not looking concerned. "But we shouldn't worry about it and continue on with our trial."

But Pyrrha couldn't help but release a small drop of sweat since that roar did make her hair stand on end. "As much as I try not to admit it, even I cannot help but feel the cold dread crawling up my back from hearing that."

Throughout her life and training, the red headed champion has heard and read many legends of powerful Grimm that have been known to send even the bravest hunters and huntresses shivering in their boots. Deep down, she hopes she and Jaune never encounter this potential life ending threat they have heard and especially wish to never cross its path.

Those thoughts were put aside when they saw a cave ahead of them with strange engraving images on them... one that looked like a giant scorpion fighting people with spears

---

Beacon Cliffs; Ozpin and Glynda.

Meanwhile back at the start where it began, Ozpin and Glynda are still monitoring the footage of the initiation and finding things to be going fine. Much of the students have already found and formed pairs, found the relics, and still no casualties ... for now.

Glynda was standing close to Ozpin who remained silent and . But staying quiet was getting a little boring for them, at least for Glynda. standing around and monitoring everything felt like being a security guard at a shopping mall.

The blonde professor sighed in boredom… looking over at Ozpin again who is still monitoring certain students, especially Ruby Rose who is with Weiss Schnee.

"If this keeps going in silence, I'm gonna die of boredom here." Glynda mentally sighed and just went with it. Talking with him is better than nothing but silence and monitoring all the students which nothing interesting has happened yet, aside from random pairings and occasional relic retrieving….

"So the relics you've chosen this year… are chess pieces." The blonde professor said as she ended the silence and pointed out what the relics are this year. She feels the need to have a conversation with her headmaster whom she's been working with for so long… ever since becoming a huntress and a professor not long after going through all that hard work and effort over the years that got her where she is now.

"Of course they are." Ozpin finally answered after not saying a word since after he launched the students. "And they fit quite nicely as ancient treasures that will feel like an award for our new students they have obtained and bring back to pass their initiation."

"You sure remained silent when I'm talking about the students but then you finally speak after I start talking about the relics." Glynda said that sounded a bit sarcastic but also with a hint of teasing.

Ozpin chuckled a little to what Glynda says is partially true. "Well, on the contrary, dear Glynda. I have heard you, every word of it in, in fact." The headmaster answered with a smile towards his colleague. "You do know I'm not deaf or anything of the sort. For a headmaster like myself, I'm quite good at multitasking."

Glynda couldn't but give out a small chuckle, already knowing Ozpin is sort of right. Working with him for so long, she knows he can hear her, even if he's focusing on something else. Showcasing he is the multitasker, which he has used for many years that keeps the academy in tip top shape.

"Don't get me wrong, Ozpin." Glynda calmly said like she's not trying to argue but wants to point out exactly why all of this. "Ever since I've begun working for you, I've always been curious for what reason you would change them; from ancient artifacts, to player cards, and now to chess pieces?" She remembered last year's relics were stone tablets with playing card symbols etched onto them.

Many years ago, during the time of her own initiation when she was only in her late teenage years and when Beacon Academy has been around not long after the Great War, the relics she and other students have retrieved resembled swords, staffs, crowns, and lanterns….. and her relic she got to pass her initiation was a staff.

"You… do make a good point, Glynda." Ozpin said with curiosity in his tone about the topic since he too was now thinking about why he changed the relics design each year. "What you've said is actually quite symbolic and meaningful for me that it's now worth mentioning why I would change the relics once every few years."

Ozpin sighs. "Though, that's more of a common answer most would say; it's true that it seems I'm merely changing the relics design to spice things up, not to make them be the same which eventually makes them dull and boring."

Glynda can agree he's got a point there. Even though she knows having the same design for the relics for too long can get pretty tacky and dull over time so it's fresh to try something new once in a while.

"That said, there's another big reason why I change them." Ozpin takes another sip from his mug and turns his head and stares at the Beacon Academy in the distance. He can imagine all the other students watching the events unfold. "I also intentionally make their aesthetics more diverse, unique, and appealing to the separate generations of students that come and go. To make them different and to stand out from each other because they symbolize the ways of change between the older and newer generations. To represent the different students they are collected by, respectively, as time passes."

Hearing that actually surprised the blonde professor from how deep and meaningful Ozpin meant by it. She has heard all kinds of wisdom from Ozpin for many years, yet, he can still surprise her from time to time.

"You know, despite the fact that I've worked for you for so long, you never stop amazing me with your mere 'words of wisdom'." Glynda softly smiled but went back to her stoic frown when she got back to her scroll.

"Do I?" Ozpin raised his eyebrows and smirked. "Well aren't you all flattering when you're also being serious with me." The headmaster teased his co-worker who grew a tick mark but managed to hold herself from laughing, while she silently glared at him from the corner of her eye that's visually saying "Don't push yourself".

"Anyways." Glynda straightened her glasses and got back to her scroll and surveying what's happening. "As I've noted before, most of the students are still making good progress and a few of them even formed four member teams." She noted her scroll shows the percentage numbers of all students forming pairs while a slightly smaller percentage shows four member teams being formed.

"I can agree on that." Ozpin answered with delight. "I'm actually surprised and impressed this year's new batch of students are capable of taking on such highly dangerous and powerful Grimm than any before." He took another sip of his mug and sighing of the soothing taste warming him up, as he remembered the certain encounters with certain students before the initiation, such as Ruby and Rocky. "This year's events have indeed piqued my curiosity."

Glynda knows he's not wrong, even if he was joking with her. She also witnessed many of the footage showing the students… well, most of them, as she still recalls Jaune who still makes her feel suspicious towards him and the papers statements about him.

"Well, either way." Glynda says. "If they keep this up, we should be done in just a few more hours and we'll assign them into official teams."

"Well, then let's make this a good day for us." Ozpin chirped and sipped his mug again.

Glynda sighed and went back to her own scroll in silence… but just as she picked a random footage showing a group of students that formed a team… the audio suddenly picked up a very faint sound that entered her ears. At the same time, the four students stopped what they were doing and looked a bit frightened.

"What was that…?" Glynda whispered quietly enough to not let Ozpin hear her while pondering what made the students stop and look in a different direction while looking slightly spooked..

It sounded something like a rumbling roar from a monstrous beast but it's too faint to make any distinction of it and coming from the audio speakers of her tablet… but the professor instinctively felt it's enough to give her a slight hint of dread that faintly brushed across her soul.

Whenever it's instinct or curiosity that told her to find it, Glynda went back to her scroll and tried to find the source where the sound came from within the forest…. While Ozpin didn't hear it was minding his own business.

---

The Gorge.

The roaring from the Cyclops continued which started making it worse for Adam and Gale. Their ears are still ringing and close to going deaf. If it wasn't their aura and hands shutting tightly to their ears that's managing to block out most of the roaring, their eardrums would've ruptured by now.

"Just how loud is this Grimm?!" Gale thought as he gritted his teeth even harder and shut his ears even tighter and tried to use focus a little more aura around opening of the ears to block out the loud noise.

After several more seconds of seemingly endless roaring, the Cyclops finally ceased... and, without warning, started stomping towards the two puny insects at such surprising speeds that it nearly took them off guard. It raised its massive club above its head with one hand and started bringing it down, intending on flattening them.

"Look out!" Adam warned Gale they are gonna get crushed. They both jumped out of the way in that split second, right before the club slammed into the ground where they once stood, with Adam dodging to the left and Gale going to the right.

However, even when they managed to dodge the spiked club, they didn't avoid it unscathed, indirectly.

BOOOOOM!

Once the club impacted the ground, further backed up by the Cyclops titanic might, the ground was heavily smashed and cratered, followed by a large shockwave that kicked up several tons of rock and debris into the air that flew everywhere. The two boys may have dodged it but they were vulnerable to the shockwave which sent them spiraling out of control and smashing into the walls of the gorge, Adam on one side and Gale on the other.

At the same time, stone hard walls received several cracks around the two teens which also knocked the wind out of them. They went so deep into the walls they were practically embedded into them and momentarily dizzy. Their aura barely kept them from getting knocked out which meant they lost a decent chunk respectively.

Though, if one looked closely, Adam's Wilt glowed a little bit before dimming back down. Just before the moment the shockwave hit him, he managed to turn around and face the shockwave with Wilt in front of him to absorb some of the it's kinetic energy and reduce the damage dealt to him. Even then, it was still strong enough to make him feel sore.

The bull faunus was coughing up a wad of spit from feeling that and was a tad slower at recovering compared to Gale who recovered first, due to having a sturdier body and having more aura to spare compared to Adam. Gale was already prying himself out of the cliff side while Adam was just catching his breath and regaining his senses.

"Man. Even indirectly, that guy sure packs a serious wallop behind that club." Gale grunted, still feeling sore from that, as he cracked his neck while his aura managed to heal him quickly.

He looked ahead and noticed a large dust cloud that covered much of the gorge that it was difficult to see through. But what he could see… was a glowing reddish-orange light… that was staring at him.

"Oh no…"

Coming out of the dust cloud is the Cyclop's free arm that came down from above, intending to smash Gale beneath its palm. Gale's reflexes kicked in and instantly leaped out of the way as the giant hand smashed into the ground that kicked up debris and left a large hand print shaped crater.

But it didn't stop there. The giant's hand swung its palm out towards Gale which carved up the ground it grinded against. The young fighter responds by clenching his right fist and activating Gust. He thrusts his arm forward and, in an instant, collides against the Cyclop's palm which created another shockwave that sent pieces of dust and small rocks flying in all directions. For one second, Gale managed to halt the palm dead in its tracks… but the Cyclops growled and only pushed harder which easily overpowered the young man and sent him falling on his back, skidding dozens of feet back until he crashed into the wall behind him.

Gale gave a look of surprise at just how easily it overpowered him and his jet thrust enhanced punch, with just one hand no less.

"Okay. It's definitely really strong but I wasn't expecting it to easily overpower me with just one hand like that." Gale thought with his eyes narrowed and was about to get up. "...There's no doubt I'm gonna have to take it up a notch if things go south."

Just as he was about to rise to his feet… he noticed it suddenly got darker until he noticed he's surrounded by a dark shadow which means something is blocking out the sun. He looks up… and sees the Cyclops raising it's foot that is about to squash him… while the Girmm was seemingly giving off a sinister growl.

Gale's pupils shrank and wasn't quick enough to react as the Cyclops prepares to put its foot down on him ... literally.

Nearby, Adam managed to dislodge himself from his crater and saw the Cyclops going to crush his partner beneath its foot. Without a second thought, the bull faunus darted forward with Wilt tightly gripped in both hands, just as his blade and hair dimly glowed a little, and leaps up towards it.

Just as Cyclops was about to crush the puny human, it suddenly felt an extremely stinging sensation across the bottom of it's entire foot, causing it to halt and briefly roar in pain that it even dropped it's club and clutched its foot out of reflex.

In the nick of time, Adam managed to sprint over fast enough, leaped up towards the foot, and unleashed two slashes across the sole which two slash wounds appear. This left the Grimm wide open.

Gale took the hint and instantly launched himself forward with the aid of Tempest and Gust that blasted him forward, like a propelled bullet, until he flipped in midair and landed feet first on the Cyclops chest, and into a crouching position against it.

The Cyclops felt something slamming against its chest rather hard and looked down… looking at that orangette human who stares back and grins.

"Hi there." Gale mocks his large opponent and releases a powerful burst of air from his gauntlets, combined with the powerful force of his strong legs that launched him off, like a spring, of the Grimm. He somersaulted several times in the air and skidded next to Adam with grace. The two managed to widen the gap between them in the Grimm from a safe distance.

As for the Cyclops, the combination of Gale's wind dust, his strong legs, and having the unstable balance standing on one leg, it could no longer remain standing and collapses onto it's back which results in a loud crash that kicked up a dust cloud.

The two stared at the downed Grimm and noticed its foot. Despite how it reacted in pain, the slash marks are visible but barely even superficial; they look more like paper cuts than anything fatal.

"Just as I thought." Adam said affirmed his hypothesis and much to his annoyance. "It's hide is far too thick for even our basic attacks to do any serious damage."

"If only I could absorb just a little more energy to charge my semblance than we could easily harm it…. but taking it from the Cyclops itself is too risky."

A second after, the Cyclops shifted and was already getting back on its feet, angrily glaring and growling at the two with murderous intent. It reached down, picking up its club, and began stomping over to them.

"Well…" Gale said with a smirk on his face and his aura started to glow a little and his back tattoo also began to glow an orange tint. "Looks like we're gonna have to improvise than."

Before Adam could ask what he meant by that, he was caught off guard when he noticed Gale was changing and his tattoo also suddenly glowing orange.

He grew several inches taller and gained more muscle mass that he now appears more muscular. His hair grew a little longer and his eyes changed yet again with his sclera black and pupils remaining turquoise.

But that wasn't what surprised Adam for the most part, since he has seen plenty of semblances that changed the body of their wielders. It's actually the elephant ears and tusks he sports to complete the transformation that was what caught him off guard.

"Am I being deceived here?" Adam thought in confusion, unable to comprehend what he's looking at that's right next to him. "Is he…. a faunus?"

Truthfully, he's never seen anything like this before, at least not between changing forms to resemble a human and a faunus, especially with certain animal features most common to them. "He can't be… can he?"

That doesn't go unnoticed. Gale can tell, even behind that mask, Adam is surprised looking at him go from a human to what looks like an elephant faunus without warning.

"Yeah. I bet you're wondering just what exactly am I, don't you?" Gale thought with demur and slight anxiety, imagining what Adam would now think of him; anywhere from indifference, to curiosity and acceptance… or rejection and disgust. Either way, Gale knows whenever someone sees him going from human to something that resembles a faunus, everyone is gonna react to him either way.

Regardless, Gale managed to move those feelings aside and not cloud his mind. "Yet, I cannot worry about that now, nor should you worry about me, since we got a Grimm to deal with. Until we are out of the woods and safe, neither I or you should lose our focus." And with that, he keeps his smile on to not waver or show any signs of weakness towards his partner.

The Cyclps began to pick up speed again as it charged towards them again.

"Seems like he's asking for more. Looks like we're gonna have to take this up a notch. Don't you think, partner?" Gale gave a smirk on his face and felt a little bit excited facing this threat.

Even after he heard and saw the look on Gale's face, Adam couldn't help but smile a little, despite meeting this mysterious young man who now looks like an elephant faunus. Both knowing they are fighting and training for the same goal right now; Getting the chess piece, forming a team, and surviving the initiation all the way through.

"Yeah." Adam replied firmly as he sheathes Wilt back into Blush but doesn't let go of the handle as he gets into his stance. "It looks like we might have to."

"Alrighty then." Gale grinned and cracked his knuckles as he stood next to Adam and glared at their Grimm adversary. "Let's get to it."

The Cyclops roared even louder stomps even faster that it's almost jogging.

"From where we're at now, we're gonna have to work together to take it down… and we should be a little more cooperative with each other, this time." Adam instructed a bit darkly to Gale, putting some emphasis on those certain words. Gale couldn't help but nervously chuckle about what he a little over a minute ago which he admit wasn't the brightest idea and should've heeded his warning.

"To be fair." Gale answered awkwardly. "You said the eye was its weakness so that got me thinking….."

"Just because I told you its weakness doesn't mean you should instantly jump the gun and shoot it, especially when we don't know what else it's capable of." The bull faunus interjected but he can't help but internally agree towards Gale's point that he should've further elaborated on. "Who knows what it could do that may take us off guard and get us killed."

Even when looking and being serious, Adam felt a tad guilty of what he just said to his partner that was rather harsh, as he started to calm down a little by taking a single deep breath.

"Heh…. heh….." Gale sheepishly chuckled his partners words of advice but managed to regain his composure. "Guess I shouldn't have been so hasty there."

Before Adam could respond, the Cyclops threw a large boulder which forced them to leap aside as the large piece of stone flew past them and crashed into the ground, shattering to pieces.

"It doesn't matter since what's done is done. We got bigger fish to fry anyways." The blue haired swordsman huffed and glared at the Grimm, feeling a bit frustrated how things are going now.

"Right." Gale said but then got serious. "So what do you think we should do against a Grimm like this?"

"From what I can see, right now." The swordsman inspected, not taking his eyes off of the enemy that's hard to damage. "It's very strong and destructive when it comes to brute strength, especially when backing all that power up behind its club. But it's massive size also makes it harder to hit smaller targets like us, while making itself the bigger target. The best I got now is that we need to split up and force it to focus on one of us so the other can attack it's unprotected places, including the eye."

He also stared at the club which was being dragged along and scraping the ground. "It's also viable for us to disarm it, which will make things easier for us. "

"You've sure have read my mind." Gale agreed, gazing at that club and not wanting to imagine getting hit by it head on. "I can say it would be great for us to get rid of that club. Such a pain it is."

Like before, the giant Grimm stomps towards them yet again, raising it's club and prepares to swing down on them yet again.

"Remember… like we've planned." Adam instructed and prepares to move once the Cyclops swings it's club which is just about to, as Gale nodded in response.

"You've got it!"

Adam then noticed something in the corner of his eye looked down next to his foot… another sword that's a katana. One that once belonged to a fallen student in training who perished the same way like the others in the gorge.

Adam momentarily felt a feeling of sorrow upon seeing many of these young people having their lives ended down here. Never to be seen or heard by their families or loved ones again, as their remains and weapons rot and rust in this dark forsaken place, including someone like Gretchen.

"This place…. This gorge…. Where so many have perished down here…." Without a second thought, Adam scooted his foot under the sword's hilt and flicked it up which caused it to spin in midair, followed by Adam casually catching it by the hilt with his free hand. Now he's dual wielding two katanas with a tranquil glare at the Grimm.

"...It's nothing but a complete Hellhole." His hair and mask glowed a bit brighter. "And this is where the demon that dwells and crawls within will be slain."

Adam silently bids his condolences to the fallen student of the blade he's now holding which he will use his aid against the Grimm.

Gale noticed that but didn't say a word as it looks like Adam knows what he is doing. The tattooed boy closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before opening them back up, watching the Cyclops approach them and threatening to charge again.

"Grandpa. If you can see me down here in this deep and dark place right now…. I'm still gonna make you proud." Gale gazes up towards the sky again, despite being over a hundred feet down here, he can still see the sky and the clouds…. than he takes his stare back at the Cyclops. "Because we're about to slay some big beefy Grimm here."

Both young men glare at the Grimm which glares back at them until they prepared to fight again.

"Let's do this!" Both brothers in arms shouted in unison as they prepared for battle.

The Cyclops bellows at the top of its lungs again and swung down with everything its got. This time, the bull and the elephant were ready.

Just as the club was about to hit them, they leaped upwards and out of the way this time. The club ended up smashing into the ground which again shattered the ground and sent another shockwave that kicked up tons of shattered rock. However, since they jumped upwards, the two easily avoided the shockwave.

"Ha You missed!" Gale mocked as gravity brought them back down.

Adam made the first move, due to being the quicker of the gracefully landed and instantly dashed towards the Cyclops, with both Wilt and the borrowed katana in hand. The Cyclops single eye spotted him and it responded by reaching out with it's free arm and tried to hammer fist him into a pulp.

Adam saw the fist coming and managed to stop and move to the side which easily missed him but the ground still shook and cratered close to him. Yet he didn't falter as he took advantage of the opening by leaping onto the arm and ran up it, while dragging both the sharp tip of both blades which left trails of scratches across the bone armor and hide. It did no serious damage but it was able to harass the Grimm which Adam was doing it out of spite and to show he means business.

The Grimm then tries to swat him like a mosquito with its other arm but Adam dodged that one by leaping. With both arms out of the way, the masked faunus leaped towards the Grimm's eye, intending to slice it out and leaving it blind to make things easier.

But the Grimm anticipated that and managed to move it's head to the side a bit which made Adam only end up grazing its cheek which doesn't even compare to the slashes he did to the bottom of its foot.

In response, the Cyclops opened its mouth wide and attempted to chomp down on Adam. Before it could do that, the blue haired swordsman managed to pour a small portion of his stored semblance and swung Wilt and the other katana several times in rapid flurries that they unleashed a few dozen airborne slashes that flew inside its mouth… which left nasty gashes across its entire tongue and the insides of its cheeks which bled black ooze and smoke…. Even it's uvula wasn't lucky as it too suffered a single gash.

The Cyclops' pupil shrank and let out a pained shriek of how agonizing it felt. It recoiled and used its free hand to cover its mouth to ease the pain, but Adam wasn't done yet as he fell towards the Cyclops hand holding the club and swipes at the uncovered wrist which made the Grimm roar yet again and actually lets go of its club out of pain and reflex, causing it to fall and crash into the ground.

"It's now disarmed! Hit it with everything you got!" Adam yelled towards Gale who smirked that now it's his turn..

He leaps up and opens fire, unleashing a bombardment of pressurized wind Dust from Tempest and Gust. The first few managed to slam into the Cyclops head and shoulders which gave its attention made it focus on him. The Grimm quickly went on the defensive and put up both its arms and used them to block the rest of the projectiles which exploded harmlessly of it's armored forearms.

Gale pulls his arm back and clenches his fist, preparing to unleash an almighty punch, the Cyclops glared with it's single eye but it kept it's massive arms in place, confident in itself it can block him since it easily overpowered him a minute ago.

Though the Cyclops wasn't aware Gale has already enhanced himself, for a split second, it noticed the puny human looked a bit different when he got closer.

Gale, with his already boosted strength, combined with his turbine gauntlet, punches forward and slammed right into one of the Grimm's boney forearms that created a big shockwave. The Cyclops managed to stay firm…. but it did not expect to suddenly feel the bone armor to rattle and slightly crack under the pressure of that punch. It isn't much but what Gale left was a large, fist sized, dent on the armor with cracks around it, showing he's now able to do some damage if hit in the right places.

But Gale didn't stop there as he used the forearm as a platform to launch himself right at the Cyclops. Green swirls of wind snake around his gauntlets in a corkscrew fashion to land a massive punch right into its cheek. It recoiled from the hard impact that it almost stumbled off balance.

Though, that leaves him in midair as the Cyclops recovered and glared at the tattooed young man. It tried to swat him with a backhand but the young fighter propelled himself in midair with the help of his gauntlets and easily dodged the backhand by somersaulting downwards. He repositioned himself and began charging Tempest and Gust in which the turbines spun and hummed with great pressure and intensity as it started combing the two winds together into one powerful attack.

With great force, Gale launched a decently large, spiraling, twister of green wind that shattered the sound barrier and slammed into the Cyclops's midsection with a shattering boom. It definitely felt that, as it's single eye widened and pupil shrank of the stinging pain, like taking a sharp jab in the stomach… that also kept twisting around and around, further in, nonstop. But it didn't falter and stood firm against it until the attack died down. Gale landed and looked at the result of his attack and gazes upon how it barely even did any visible damage.

It's midsection is slightly bruised and even twisted a little. However, the one eyed behemoth managed to stand tall, glaring down at it's tiny opponent with no apparent sign of discomfort. It's almost like the Cyclops is showing off how it took that hit like it was nothing, despite the faintly visible injury.

The tanned and tattooed fighter sweatdropped, audibly gulping like he was being intimidated… which he pretty much is at the moment.

"You've gotta be kidding me…" That's what Gale could muster to say, seeing even one of his stronger attacks that could easily tear up and scatter lesser Grimm still ain't enough to do massive damage to the Cyclops. "Just how tough is this guy?!"

But it wasn't completely futile as he can still see there's a visible wound so it's possible they still got a chance at this.

For a split second, Gale swore he saw the Cyclops give off a rather menacing grin… instantly reminding him the grins those Death Howlers, once led by the now deceased Alpha Beringel, gave him back at the temples in the jungles of Sanus.

But that made Gale suddenly feel less deterred and intimidated by that look. In fact, seeing that grin only made him more furious and determined to slay it and avenge all of those lost souls that were slaughtered and eaten by the monster. "Okay. Now you're really just asking for it." Gale growled with rising fury behind his tone.

The Grimm roars yet again and steps towards Gale… but Gale grins back as Adam dashed towards him from behind at full speed. By instinct, Gale turned around and clasped both of his hands together and crouches a little with his palms out that serves as a stepping platform.

"You know what to do!" Gale shouts.

Adam already got the memo of what his partner is implying and runs towards him with both swords spread out. Once he got his right foot up and steps on Gale's hands, the orange haired fighter grits his teeth and, with a mighty heave, sends Adam rocketing over his shoulders at the Cyclops like a missile.

As he got closer to the Cyclops, it heavily growls and punches forward with its free arm but Gale interrupts the Grimm by shooting it again with another Wind Dust bullet that smacked it in the cheek hard enough to make it lose focus and divert the punch off course, slamming it into a nearby boulder which shattered to pieces.

That left it open for Adam to attack as he used the arm as a platform to leap towards the eye again but the Cyclops was quick enough to block with its club in time before both Wilt and the other sword only hit the club… and not a single scratch was visible which shocked Adam. Normally, Adam can casually slice through steel like wet tissue paper but that club easily took the slashes and wasn't left with a visible scratch.

With nowhere to jump or leap, Adam was helpless in the air as the Grimm now raises its club and is about to smash him overhead.

"Adam, heads up! I'm about to give you a lift and you do the rest!" Gale shouts as he focuses his gauntlets and fired a gust of wind which formed into a miniature twister that caught Adam and carried him up to the Cyclops. Adam quickly understood and did the rest and went towards the Cyclops which was caught off guard.

With the aid of the miniature twister, Adam starts spinning rapidly with both Wilt and the borrowed katana spread out which made him look like a man sized blender. For extra measure, he used his semblance and added just a little more of what he had in store to increase his cutting power. Upon contact, he repeatedly struck Grimm's throat, intending to slice the jugular… but he only wasn't able slice deep enough and only got superficial cuts that only bled a little.

"Still not enough?!" Adam mentally exclaimed, seeing his attacks still aren't doing any enough damage… and he's now left open as the Cyclops glares down at him and instantly hurtling him down into the earth with a smack of it's palm, leaving an Adam shaped dent several inches in the ground.

"Adam!" Gale shouted in worry for his partner possibly getting harmed.

The blue haired swordsman was fine, though, but that hit from the Grimm and hitting the ground hard sure hurts like hell and also taking another chunk of his aura. Also, he managed to use both swords to block and absorb much of the Grimm's attack but that left the borrowed katana slightly cracked and damaged….

"Gonna be feeling that one in the morning." Adam grunted of the soreness but widened his eyes as he sees the Cyclops raising it's foot above him… the exact same foot he slashed earlier, and prepares to step on him like it tried on Gale.

Another wind bullet flies towards and smacks into the Cyclops but it doesn't seem to respond to that.

"Hey! Why don't you pick on someone your own size?!" Gale mocked the giant Grimm with irony and kept firing more Wind Dust bullets at the which bombarbed its midsection and head.

However… the Cyclops only bothered paying attention to Gale with a short glance for a moment with little interest until it brings its attention back down at Adam with sadistic glee in its eye. The two started to realize it has caught up on their strategy and now it's turning the tables on them by ignoring one of them that's trying to get it's attention while attacking the other who's now vulnerable.

"Dammit! It figured out our strategy!" Gale mentally cursed and launched himself like a rocket from the aid of his gauntlets to get there as fast as he could.

Adam quickly tried to pry himself out of the ground but he isn't fast enough to get out of the way in time as the giant foot starts coming down like a giant press that's gonna flatten him. Adam shuts his eyes and prepares for the crushing blow he's gonna feel… but it never came.

Adam opened his eyes back up and now sees Gale standing above him, pushing against the Cyclop's foot from crushing both of them with all of his might. But he's crouched so low he's using every bit of strength he had in himself to keep both himself and Adam from being crushed. He gritted his teeth so hard they threatened to break and his eyes were shut tight. He's never resisted against something like this until now, even in his half transformed state.

"Gale?" Adam said in shock of seeing his teammate resisting the Grimm's giant foot but can tell Gale can only do it for so long.

"M-Move it! I-I... can't hold it…. m-much…. longer!" Gale grunted and started to feel the Cyclops putting more force in it's foot that he's starting to buckle under the weight.

Adam took his words as he pried himself out of the ground and dashed away. With Adam out of the way, Gale activated his gauntlets again and released a powerful stream of wind that pushed against the Cyclop's foot long enough for Gale to let go and dashed out of the way. Just in the nick of time before the Grimm dissipated the winds and shattered the ground beneath it's mighty foot, leaving a similar footprint indented in the Earth that was similar to the one Adam saw earlier.

Both teammates now widen the distance and stand side by side, yet again.

"You okay there?" Gale asked Adam if he's okay from that kind of hit. "Looks like you took quite a hit that could break every bone in your body."

"Yeah. I'm fine." Adam answered, despite taking that hard hit and having another chunk of his aura taken. Gale feels a bit concerned since Adam appears to have less endurance and aura than Gale is known to have in store. If this keeps up, Adam's aura is at the risk of shattering and left vulnerable to easily getting killed. "But that's the least of our worries."

They observe the Cyclops has accumulated some damage; small cracks and dents were seen across it's boney forearm, it's midsection was bruised and slightly twisted, and several gashes across its cheek and throat that slightly bled but not enough to be fatal. Black ooze and smoke was leaking out of its mouth, thanks to Adam cutting the inside of it.

Otherwise, the Cyclops isn't seriously damaged and still looks like it can keep going. In fact, it looks more pissed off than harmed which made Adam and Gale sweatdrop that they barely did anything to it. The Cyclops then leans down and picks up the club yet again and starts stomping towards them with murderous rage in its eye.

"Well…." Gale sweatdropped. "This guy is a bit tougher than we thought it would be."

"Hate to admit it… but yeah…" Adam agrees. "It's still too durable for even our stronger attacks to do serious damage." He's starting to sorry a little but keeps his guard up.

"So what now? Should we go all out or high tail it out of here?" Gale asked and quickly hoped Adam gave a good answer since he's having second thoughts about going all out against the Cyclops.

Adam was also thinking if they should keep fighting or take another option for the time being since they aren't doing much and if they keep this up.

Though, everything around him went silent, Adam looked down at the borrowed katana he has in his one hand, staring at the cracks running across it. Despite just being some ordinary sword that's not as sharp, nor dexterous, or advanced, or even as long and sturdy as Wilt, along with being on the verge of shattering with more hits… Adam can't help but feel absolute admiration and respect towards whoever used to own this sword before their demise.

"This sword; it's been neglected and worn down for so long….." Adam deeply thought as he looked at all the remaining weapons scattered down here. "They all have been."

But he didn't falter and gripped the hilt even tighter as he started to feel more resolved and willing to fight that isn't just for survival or for the trail… it was also something much more. "And yet, for some reason…. every strike and cut I make with it against that monstrosity, the more I can feel the fallen being avenged."

That's when Adam remembered something connected to how he feels with all of this. A soft and gentle voice that belongs to his master whom he hasn't heard in years. The last he has heard those words was on the day he earned Wilt long before going on his own and eventually joining the White Fang.

"Heed my words, Adam Taurus. From this day on; if you have chosen this path to wander Remnant, with Wilt in your hand, then use it with honor and integrity. Remnant is a dark and Grimm place we live in so you mustn't forget that we all are fighting for the same cause against a common enemy. Humans and Faunus; no matter our differences and beliefs, everyone of Remnant needs to band together, to breach the darkness that is the Grimm and despair, and bask in the light that is peace and unity. Even as we now part ways, I bid you my blessings, my pupil. May all of my lessons and teachings guide you for the life you seek."

That was the last time he heard and saw of his master since he moved on from where he trained to reach the capabilities he's currently at…. and now he has to keep improving and fighting without his master's guidance, after making his hard decision.

Even if it's just a coincidence or that he's really feeling the will of the fallen humans and faunus that died here, Adam feels more determined to slay this monster that took their lives…. And yet, he doesn't let that blind him as he knows he and his partner have the odds stacked against them and they aren't doing any better just trying to fight it when they can barely even damage it..

If only they could have just at LEAST two more skilled huntsmen to join in and help them… they might have a chance to beat or, at least, do some serious harm to the Cyclops, even with the lowest chances of coming out alive from it.

"Uh… Adam?" Gale interrupted, a bit confused and worried his partner has been silent for a bit. "You okay there? Because you better think of something fast since that Grimm is starting to come over here…. and it looks like it wants to smash us to a pulp after what we did to it."

Adam snapped out of his deep thoughts and noticed the Cyclops is heading their way again.

"Right." Adam responds and looks ahead with a determined stare. "Guess things are starting to have the odds stacked against us."

"Don't tell me…" Gale thought a bit worried, wondering if Adam tells him they are gonna have to still fight. "We're still gonna fight it…? Sigh. It seems like it… guess that means I'm gonna have to use my trump-"

"We need to retreat." Adam finally answered which surprised Gale.

"What?" Gale responded with a surprised look on his face, a little relieved he doesn't have to transform again.

"Due to what we are in now, I consider it's the best for us to retreat and get out of this gorge." Adam says like he means it. "If we use the thickets of the forest to hide, it would have a harder time finding us there than out in an open and narrow place like down here."

Hearing that actually makes Gale smile a little bit. He can agree with Adam making that kind of choice in a tough situation like this which makes him respect him more.

"Oh yeah. I'm so with you on that one." The taller fighter agreed. He's a bit glad he doesn't have to use his trump card just yet, both for practical and personal reasons for himself and everyone else around him.

"But first. We need something to distract it long enough for us to escape." Adam also informs since they see the Cyclops is already close enough to not let them even get the chance to escape right now.

"Right-o!" Gale hollered and actually thought of something that could distract the Grimm just long enough to help them get a headstart. "In fact, I do have something that could give it some company to give us a head start!"

He quickly reloads Tempest and Gust with more Wind Dust to charge up more wind. At full charge, he starts twirling in place which gathered the winds spinning around him which he halts his spin and swings his clenched arm forward to create a decently large tornado that's almost as big as the Cyclops itself. The large tornado created powerful winds that blew dust and rocks away, even some of the bones and weapons were blown back a bit but are otherwise unharmed. Gale mentally hoped the bones and weapons weren't too badly harmed by the tornado but it should be enough to distract the Grimm.

At that moment, both made a run for it in the opposite direction. Gale kept his gauntlets activated, while still in his half transformed state, while Adam sheathed Wilt back into Blush while he managed to hold the other katana in his free hand.

As for the Cyclops, it sees the large tornado standing in its way, but it wasn't even bothered by the winds since they weren't strong enough to even budge it. But it was enough to catch it off guard until it regained its bearings, easily dissipating the tornado in half with one mighty swing of its club. The Cyclops then noticed the two puny insects that it was fighting were gone… until it's single eye spotted them far up ahead and running away. That's when it realized that tornado was used to distract it so it roared in anger yet again and gives chase, stomping forward in longer and faster strides that it was basically jogging.

The two boys looked over their shoulders and can see their pursuer is already chasing after them, motivating them to sprint faster. Thanks to Gale's current form, his increased stamina and taller frame gave him longer strides but Adam was still able to keep up due to his lighter build and having faster strides.

The ground trembled as the Cyclops was keeping up with them, not letting them get away that easily as it pried a nearby boulder out of the side of the cliff and tosses it at them. The two barely avoided it as it slammed into the ground and rolled on for a bit until it slammed into a large rock spire that shattered upon impact.

While they were running, Adam and Gale were thinking about what they should do next, considering they haven't seriously damaged their giant adversary while it could easily kill them with one well placed hit. They barely avoided yet another boulder thrown by the giant Grimm which also shattered to pieces. One stray piece smacked Adam in the face but his aura managed to reduce the damage… and he was very lucky it didn't hit his mask but it did almost slip off his face that he quickly readjusted it with his free hand.

That didn't go unnoticed by Gale as he already saw Adam looking a bit distressed as he adjusts his mask back into place. The tall young man raised an eyebrow with slight curiosity but decided to ignore it for now.

For now, they need to keep running in hopes they can find a way out of this trap, since the cliff sides are far too steep and flat to get any proper footing to climb or jump on. And so, they kept going to stay far ahead as they can as the gorge, maneuvering through all kinds of obstacles, with the sounds of giant footsteps and bellowing roar of the Cyclops right behind them.

---

Half a mile away.

On a large hill that could almost be a mountain, two figures have just reached the top of it who reveal themselves to be Rocky and Nigel. The two have ran for quite a while nonstop since they tried to

Rocky whistles as he got a good look at the view which shows a wide open view of the valley. Far in the distance are lots of snow capped mountains and in the center of the valley is the gorge itself which looks like a rather small and narrow canyon from up here.

"Whoo Wee! Would you just look at the view from up here? You can see miles from up here! Heck, you can even have a picnic with the girl of your dreams in this very spot!" Rocky smiled but then frowned. "If it wasn't a place that's Grimm territory"

"Yeah… I sure would." Nigel said a bit sarcastically like he didn't really care. "If I had my chocolate bar with me right now, I definitely would." He thought in annoyance as he activated his scanned the gorge and the area around it in hopes of finding the two aura signatures. All he sees are mostly trees, boulders, some random Grimm, and the gorge itself which looks like a giant gash in the earth.

"Anyways, it seems we're in the much deeper parts of the Emerald Forest ... and based on my semblance, this area is where the aura signatures and the negative energy should be around here somewhere." He further said as he started to stare at the giant gorge.

Rocky agrees and puts his hand over his eyes to see better since the sun is still high in the sky. "I can agree on that with you. Now where is the Grimm and our two-would-be-teammates?"

Nigel then scans the gorge. Thanks to that, he's able to partly see the bottom of the gorge despite the angle where he's standing at and wouldn't be able to normally see it.

Eventually, he's able to pick up two aura signatures that are blue and orange and they appear to be moving through the gorge.

"Found them." Nigel said to Rocky as he points where he spots them. "It's definitely them that I sense down there in that gorge."

"Down there? Huh. Wonder why they would be down in a gorge like that in the first place?" Rocky rubbed his chin, pondering why they were down there. "I mean, it's a gorge and all, but there really isn't a lot of interesting things down there… unless there's some hidden passage that holds the answer to the universe and the meaning of our existence."

Nigel slowly turns his head from what he just heard that it sounds redundant to him.

"And just what the bloody hell are you now mumbling about?" Nigel asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing really. Just comparing it to the typical places you would find in those dungeons exploring adventure games." Rocky shrugged his shoulders as he was thinking a bit about the many video games that he played before.

The two suddenly heard the roar again and it's definitely that of the Grimm they heard earlier. This time, with them being so close, it was more clear to them it belongs to a Grimm but, while loud, not as deafening and powerful as the last one.

"Yeesh. Even from here, it's just as nasty but not as terrifying and ear rupturing, thankfully." Rocky said about the roar which wasn't as loud as the one they heard way back.

Nigel activates his semblance yet again and spots something not too far behind the orange and blue aura signatures…. A massive cloud of dark and negative energy that is chasing the two signatures through the gorge.

It's definitely the Grimm he sensed many miles back but now he can sense its potency much more clearly that it makes his hair stand on end.

"Such dark and negative energy coming from a Grimm like that... has to have been living around for quite a long time to build up so much of it." Nigel thought with concern and shock of never sensing a Grimm with this potent energy of negativity.

"We need to get moving. They definitely need our help." Nigel spoke but groaned a bit. They are still a bit far away and it doesn't help the aura signatures and the Grimm are now starting to head towards the end of the gorge which is a dead end . "And standing here only makes their lives more at stake here." He begins to run but Rocky than shouted.

"Wait!" Rocky blurted out to Nigel from going anywhere who turns around and stares at him with a look of confusion and seriousness.

"What is it? It better be something good to help us and not be another one of your obsessions involving pizza and nightclubs." Nigel groaned, remembering how far they traveled but Rocky has talked a lot about himself along the way that… it's getting a bit annoying to him.

The bird faunus stood there when a lightbulb suddenly appeared and floated above his head…. which burnt out but Rocky quickly tapped it with his finger to turn it back on again "My brain just flipped and is telling me something!" He spouted as his arms were flailing like rubber hoses.

Nigel's reaction remained stoic but he wasn't amused in the slightest that Rocky is probably thinking of something random yet again.

"Ugh. Rocky, mate. Whatever it is you're thinking, I rather hear it another time since we need to get down there and save those two before they're good as dead." The kangaroo faunus said as he started running downhill but Rocky wasn't done yet.

"Oh come on!" Rocky exclaimed as he cartoonishly zipped in front of Nigel that stopped him in his tracks that he practically now has his face inches from Nigel's and eyes wide open. "Did you forget about how this trial works and what Ozpin said? We're supposed to be working together as partners but you ain't even listening to any of my ideas that may actually be beneficial."

Nigel didn't respond as he stared at Rocky, thinking if he should go his way or go along with Rocky's plan. Then he spoke a little more clearly.

"Even if I decided to agree with you, you haven't even explained what your idea is to me." The kangaroo faunus pointed out.

"Oh right. Silly me." Rocky chuckled about what he didn't explain what the idea was. "Well, while I want to save out the details, let's just say it will help us get over there in a flash."

But Rocky still wasn't done on his plan yet. "And if you're gonna agree with me on this, then there's no backing out on it. Okay?"

"No backing out?" Nigel asked with a raised eyebrow but Rocky doesn't answer and just smiles at him like he's daring him to decide. Even if Rocky won't tell him, it's likely harmless and nothing life threatening, because his semblance reads that Rocky isn't lying or having any sadistic thoughts… almost like it's innocent and harmless. Since they are far away and running may do no good to get there in a short amount of time weighs down Nigel's options… so what the heck.

"Fine. Do whatever it is that you can to get us over there quickly, because they need us." Nigel snarked as he crosses his arms, barely even tolerating to go along with this but whatever gets them fast enough in any way, he'll do it, even if he won't like it.

"Roger that!" Rocky cheered with a thumbs up and instantly zigzagged all over the place, near the trees, and gathered what he needed, like a blur. Once he had the resources he needed, he was wearing a construction hat and started putting everything together in a cartoonish manner.

"...Then why do I feel like I'm gonna regret for ever agreeing with you on this?" Nigel muttered as he still isn't sure with Rocky's plan that he's going along with.

---

2 minutes later.

"I regret myself for ever agreeing with you on this." Nigel said with his teeth clenched in complete annoyance and disdain as he and Rocky are now sitting in a crudely made wooden catapult that Rocky was able to build with the aid of his semblance in a speedy and cartoonish fashion. "Now I'm starting to have second thoughts."

"Hey. You agreed with me on this. There's no going back on your word, pal." Rocky jeered as he prepared to launch them. "Besides, it's not like we're gonna die or anything since we did survive the launch pads from the start… hopefully." He then got out a piece of paper that shows a rather crudely drawn image of the landscape and the hill that shows two stick figures that's likely Rocky and Nigel and an arrow that shows where they will launch and land. But what's weird is that the stick figure that's supposedly Rocky appears to be wearing a cape….. and there are also pictures of a ferris wheel and a circus tent randomly drawn in it.

"See? I did my own research and even calculated the coordinates on the angle, velocity, timing, and trajectory on where we will exactly land!" Despite that, Nigel had doubts looking at the drawing and the grinning look on his partner's face.

"Right… like that's making me feel any better and secure with this." Nigel mentally sighed and tried to remain stoic and calm…. which he could hardly do.

"You sure about that?" Nigel sweatdropped with uncertainty and dread that something is about to go wrong. "Do you even know what you wrote down with absolute confidence and certainty? And why is there a ferris wheel and a tent in it too?"

"Oh I did that for fun. As for your first question, of course I do! What can possibly go wrong?" Rocky casually asked like this is all ordinary to him.

"I…"

"Alrighty then! Without further ado, let's go save our new teammates, be one step closer to getting our initiation done, and form our four man team!" Rocky cheers as he unties the knot the rope that restrained the mechanism from hurtling them with one little tug.

"No! Wait-!" But it was too late as the entire knot went undone and a loud click was heard.

"I so wanna strangle you right now…." Nigel darkly glared at Rocky who gave a wide toothy smile in return, just before what's about to happen next.

The catapult springs and launches the two into the air faster than the speed of sound. Unlike the launch pads back from the start, the catapult's crude and poor design did little to stabilize their balance in midair as the both of them were flying head over heels through the air like a pair of wheels, as they shot across the forest and towards the edge of the gorge. In fact, the catapult collapsed and fell to splintered pieces right after launching.

"If we don't survive this, this is all on you. Hell, I'll even be giving you an eternal wallop in the afterlife, as a bonus!" Nigel yelled as he was rapidly spinning nonstop that he couldn't balance himself… but Rocky is somehow falling stable as he's doing a pose like he's lying down on his side with one hand against his head, looking so chill while doing it.

"Well what if it's just me that survives?" Rocky smirks like he's having too much fun with this.

"Then I will haunt you for the rest of your life!" Nigel screamed and tried to glare at his annoying partner but can't due to spinning and he's now starting to get dizzy.

"Well then there's no need to fear!" Rocky announced in a booming and superheroic tone as he starts spinning that he's a blur and then stops which suddenly changed his appearance. Now he's wearing a dark green cape, a bright green domino mask, and has the green letter "R" etched across his black T-Shirt for some reason where his normal symbol on his shirt should be.

"Because your partner, Rocky, is here!"

And so, Rocky gets into action as he puts his arms out and looks like a caped Superhero that is flying in the sky as a bird or plane. He uses his tail feathers to steer and get behind Nigel as he grabs the kangaroo faunus at the right moment to make him stop spinning. Now he's carrying Nigel safely and begins to slow down their fall which then started to be something like falling or gliding.

This made Nigel start to calm down a little as he realized Rocky is now helping him from meeting mistress death. Though, he still ain't forgiving him launching the both of them out of a catapult, especially not telling him what the plan was, beforehand, until it was too late. For now, he relaxes and lets Rocky do the rest.

And so, the two young faunus practically glided across the valley until they got near the edge of the gorge which is where Rocky begins to descend even faster.

"Alright! We're almost there!" Nigel shouted as loud as he could since their fall was loud to their ears from the wind. "Now do the safe landing!"

"Well.. about that. There is one thing I left out that I didn't think about through.." Rocky admitted with a tone that was nervous and awkward.

Nigel's face went pale and gave off an annoyed expression as he had a bad feeling about what's gonna happen next.

"And what would that be?" he deadpanned, not even bother putting any emotion in his tone.

"I never thought about the landing strategy in the position that we are in now. The superhero phase was just thought up right after we launched!"

"...Great." That's all Nigel could sarcastically say as they plummeted down towards the ground with their velocity increasing. "Even IF we somehow survive this and our aura takes it… we're gonna be nothing but a pile of broken bones wrapped in skin and muscle." Despite still having plenty of aura, it's just that if they hit at this velocity and angle, head first no less… they would have to be VERY lucky if their aura soaked up the impact and prevents instant death….

"That may be true, but that doesn't mean I can't improvise!" Rocky shouted as he gets out his Double Barreled Revolver and takes aim at the spot where they are gonna land. He shoots an Ice Dust Bullet which shoots into the ground and explodes. But instead of Ice, there was a large pile of snow for the soft landing.

"Oh. Well I'll be." Nigel said with surprise as they both dived into the snow which definitely softened their landing that their impact was strong enough to send snow everywhere like a bomb went off in it. After seconds of silence, both crawled out while covered in frost and snow.

"Told ya I could get us over here in a flash." Rocky smirked, somehow now back in his default outfit, with the domino mask and cape gone, while his default symbol is on his shirt again.

"Yeah yeah. No need to remind me that…. but I'll consider your plan and improvising approach on the fly is what impressed me. I'll consider letting you off from me strangling you." Nigel replied and started walking towards the gorge.

"Really?" Replied Rocky like he was happy to hear Nigel giving him some praise.

"Yes and No…. but mostly no." Answered bluntly, looking over his shoulder with a rather serious look in his eye, as he kept walking. Rocky couldn't nervously chuckles as he wipes the snow off of him and joins in. They reach the edge of the cliff and look down to see how deep it is; at least over a hundred feet, maybe even deeper.

Nigel turns his semblance on yet again… and he sees the two signatures heading their way but they're still a bit far away from them.

The black cloud of negative energy of the Grimm is surprisingly even further away but still persistent as it appears to be slowly catching up like it's desperate to get at the two.

"Seems like we've managed to get here before those other two did and they are heading right this way as we speak." Nigel informed as he eyed them but he and Rocky also heard the distant roaring that's getting louder and closer. "And the Grimm that's after them is not too far behind."

Hearing the roaring, which is now very loud and clear in this location makes Rocky audibly gulp and sweat a little. "Yeah. No need to guess on that…. 'cause my ears are ringing right now."

"Alright. We need to find some way to get down there but I'm finding it risky to do it the simple and straightforward way." Nigel informed and rather wanted to avoid the Grimm than to fight it, especially that he can sense their aura signatures have taken some damage. Not to mention he and Rocky have accumulated some damage of their own, so the risk isn't worth it.

"Yeah. I don't feel like wanting to go a round with that thing either. I'm good having myself left in one piece for today." Rocky agreed with Nigel. "But yeah. There has to be a way to get them out of that gorge… but how?"

Seeing the bottom of the gorge is over a hundred feet below, falling or climbing down won't be much useful when they need to get back. Not to mention that, while Nigel can only jump about halfway up as high, but only by himself and that would leave three people behind him. Climbing back up would take too long either. There has to be something that could to that's practical and effective in getting the two up here without needing to get down and back up here that wastes so much time.

And so they looked around to see if there is anything they could use to aid them. Naturally, there doesn't appear to be anything… until they noticed a nearby elm tree that's covered in thick vines.

"Well I'll be. If it isn't a bunch of Bungee Vines." Nigel said out loud in curiosity as he walks towards the trees that have the vines wrapped around the trunks and branches. "You can mostly find these in the jungles of Sanus which grow on many of the trees in tropical regions but subspecies like these here can also be found here in mountainous forests and valleys of the same continent as well." He begins to reach up and grips a vine and uses a specialized technique he learned from a survival instruction book back at home to gently pull and dislodge it off of the tree without harming the tree nor damaging the vine itself until he's got a long rope full of it. Then he rinse and repeats with several more until he's got enough than starts tying them together into knots by the ends.

From what he's seeing, Rocky noted of Nigel's knowledge on his survival skills and what to do with the environment around him quite well. Of course, it kinda fits him being all stoic and serious, based on his outfit and his way of speaking. He looks like he travels outside of the kingdoms and endures many kinds of environments… It makes him wonder just what he witnessed and experienced outside of the kingdoms.

"Alright. This is what we're gonna do, mate." Nigel instructed Rocky as he breaks down the plan. "We're going to be using these bungee vines that I tied together as our artificial bungee cord that will aid us in getting those two mates trapped down there. The person who is gonna be bungee jumping will be you, mate. When they are directly below us, you're gonna grab them and the vines will launch you right back up here. Simple as that and you know the rest of the plan."

"I suppose that is simple enough." Rocky smiles like he's going with the plan without concern or question. "Got that all memorized in my head like it's set in stone! I'm more than ready! Now let's get warmed up!"

Rocky started taking deep and slow breaths. Followed by doing all the basic stretches in the body to loosen up and strengthen his muscle fibers. When he was done with those warm ups, he then started to do flexible handstands and even goes further by balancing on a single index finger for several seconds, showcasing his resilience and balance.

Nigel was watching the whole time.. and is actually impressed by him with such balance and flexibility from the likes of someone like Rocky.

"Well… aren't you flexible." Nigel said as if a bit surprised and stunned never seeing someone that flexible before, having that kind of balance to boot." Nigel

"I know, right? I mean, I'm not even using my semblance right now. Just good old fashioned, routinely, acrobatic training, every single day. Though… I can go even further when I do use it."

That's when Rocky suddenly started twisting and contorting his body at impossible angles and such that he even tied himself in a knot. What's strange is that there were no sound of cracking bones, it's like Rocky is a being made of putty or clay, all thanks to his semblance defying the laws of physics with that of cartoon physics.

"See?" Rocky shows his now contorted form that he's basically a literal human pretzel, even beyond the shape normal contortionists could ever reach.

"Right…. I did NOT need to see that. Now you're just disturbing." Nigel deadpanned at seeing what would've caused anyone else to faint of witnessing that but he didn't seem that disturbed or shocked… It's like he's seen enough in his life already.

Rocky then twisted himself back into his normal shape and stood back on his two feet, feeling all loosened up and was ready to go.

"Alrighty then! Let's get to it!" Rocky cheered as he ties the Bungee vine to his foot and walks towards the cliff. "Hope I score a perfect ten on this."

As for Nigel, though, despite being tolerable and casual with Rocky… something has been bothering him for quite some time since they met and became partners.

"Why are you being like this?"

The moment Rocky heard those words, suddenly coming out of nowhere, as he stopped dead in his tracks, inches away from the edge of the cliff.

"Wait.... What did he just say to me?" Rocky thought as he looked over his shoulder and looked at Nigel who has a serious and skeptical look on his face… and he also sees his eyes are glowing in a violet hue…..

"I'm sorry…. what?" Rocky turned, sounding confused what Nigel is talking about. Knowing the kind of guy Nigel is, despite their short amount of time they've been partners, though, Rocky doesn't need to guess Nigel isn't being random to start something like this, and the kangaroo fanus can sense his emotions, if what his claims about his semblance are true.

Now this shouldn't feel like an appropriate time but Nigel is feeling like he needs to bring this up since he's a bit concerned with Rocky, if he's a total screw loose and may need to at least want to know him so he can understand him better. Not that he's judging him either way, the best to cooperate with your partner is to understand them better. They still have plenty of time until the other two get here.

Thanks to his semblance in reading emotions, Nigel has a rather decent experience in seeing how to properly make conversations with just about any person, even people who can hide their facial expressions and body language almost perfectly.

"I repeat... why are you being like this?" Nigel repeated with emphasis to his tone, gesturing to Rocky whom he's talking about. "Being a looney goof in the middle of a forest filled to the brim with Grimm and Death. Especially when there's no one else around here within miles, besides me. It doesn't add up, logically."

Rocky didn't move and heard what he said is partly true. While he does keep it to himself for the most part, he sometimes can't help himself but be a total goofball around places that would see him as weird but that doesn't bother him what they think of him.

Still, this is the first time someone would question that. It makes him feel unsure and on edge how this will go between him and his partner, some guy he met yesterday, partnered up with recently, still know very little of each other on a personal level.

Regardless, Rocky knows he can't argue out of it because Nigel isn't likely gonna take it beating around the bush so he's gonna test him first if Nigel has a rather good judge of character and doesn't look down on him for who he is.

Rocky turned around and looked at Nigel in slight confusion. "Uh. What do you mean by that?" He asked, sounding a little confused but Nigel can sense he's less confused and more a bit on edge. "Is there something wrong with me being funny?"

"Naw, mate." Nigel shook his head. "There's nothing wrong being funny, especially for an oddball like yourself…. well, as long as it isn't taken too far and no one gets seriously hurt." He warned since he won't take pranks that cause serious harm to innocent people.

"He's got a point about that one. No way am I crossing any line with my power of comedy." Rocky mentally admitted but didn't change the expression on his face to not falter towards Nigel and show any signs of weakness.

"So then…. are you saying I'm insane?" Rocky than asked with a raised eyebrow

"No." Nigel answered sternly like he means it but with good reason. "You stand out among the insane lunatics that I've encountered more times than I can count, from where I'm from and traveled. You're different from them because I can read your emotions clearly, while I have a hard time trying to read the emotions of the insane… so unpredictable, inconsistent, and full of madness."

He recalls the many types of insane lunatics that tried to kill or mug him and he ended up beating them without much trouble but can't properly read their emotions because they are constantly changing on a whim.

"Then what's the point you're trying to make?" Rocky objected, still trying to stay calm but Nigel doesn't flinch as he remained focused. "I mean, I wouldn't mind because I take no offense to what people think of me, crazy or not."

"At least not the 'me' before that day in Atlas…." Rocky yet again unintentionally remembers his younger days but he still shrugs it off and stays focused but that brief moment was enough for Nigel has sensed a slight bit of frustration. Nigel kept going with the topic since he wants to get to the bottom of it, at least if Rocky is willing to go there.

"Don't take this the wrong way, mate." Nigel says, trying to not sound rude. "It's not like I'm trying to berate or intimidate you, regardless that I can read your emotions like an open book. It's just that I can't ignore my semblance right now, not after meeting you yesterday and especially partnering up with you today" He stayed silent for a few seconds until he spoke again. "The point I'm trying to make, you ask? Because I sense there's something else about you than what's on the surface."

Nigel then started to mention down all the moments with Rocky with his fingers. "For starters, you've been yammering 10 minuttes straight about your favorite stunts, hobbies, pizza, and certain types of girls you like talking about nonstop while we were running. You launched us out of a poorly made catapult while acting like some kind of superhero out of a comic book that is here to save the day...and you twisted yourself into a literal pretzel that should be physically impossible, even for the most flexible faunus could ever accomplish. I could say you are an oddball among many"

"Ah yes, I remember those moments. Those sure were some good times, eh?" The bird faunus sarcastically tried to soften the topic but Nigel doesn't blink.

"They sure were." Nigel sarcastically answered but gets to the point. "Now this may sound like I'm going a bit too far here, for no good reason at least." Nigel narrowed his eyes. "But truthfully, there's something else about you."

"And….what would that exactly be?" Rocky asked awkwardly as he looked straight in the eyes of Nigel.

"You may be all funny on the outside; a bright and cheerful clown who's all smiles and laughs … but on the inside, deep down, there's another emotion in you that's the exact opposite. Something under that goofy exterior that you deeply hide… something like a sad clown would."

Through his vision with his semblance on, Nigel sees Rocky's aura, which is green, and senses a lot positive and joyful emotions, that are seeping and flowing on the surface. But as time passes, the happy emotions are slowly being replaced with caution, uncertainty, and nervousness of what Nigel is trying to discover. Being closer to him, Nigel dug through the layers of Rocky's emotions.. and senses another kind of emotion within Rocky…. a kind of emotion that he senses, akin to sadness, grief, and fear.

Yet, Nigel senses something else deep in Rocky's soul. Something that feels like…. hope, acceptance and dignity.

This surprised Nigel of sensing a kind of less comical but more positively genuine kind of emotion hidden within the more genuinely sadder emotions was something he did not expect.

"What is this?" Nigel thought in curiosity. "Just what did I feel that he's hiding?" Since Nigel can't read minds, he isn't sure what Rocky has been through to have these emotions locked away so he decides to go a little more straightforward with this.

"Rocky, mate, please listen to me." He said with his a little more reason behind. "That is, if you don't want to answer, then that's fine with me. I honestly got nothing against you or anything of the sort… aside from the catapult incident which I'm willing to look past right now." He then narrowed his eyes as he was thinking about the catapult part.

Rocky felt nervous as he awkwardly chuckles at the catapult part. He's starting to admit maybe the catapult was a bit too far but no complaining over spilled milk already. "At least I made up for that by improvising…."

"Aside from that, if you think I'm trying to make you spill the beans for my own gains, I wouldn't even try to rat you out with anyone else because I'm not that kinda guy, despite my rougher exterior." Nigel crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes to show he's being honest. "We'll simply be keeping it a secret between you and me. We'll just let bygones be bygones, as partners."

"Well…. I'm honestly feeling a little better of hearing that… thought I was gonna have a heart attack." Rocky says, feeling a little bit better, yet, still not fully secure about it which Nigel doesn't blame him since they don't know each other that much.

"If you think I know anything about you, just because I can read your emotions that easily. You're absolutely dead wrong because I honestly know nothing about you and your past. All I know is how you feel and what kind of emotions you have locked up in you that I don't know what they really mean in your life."

Nigel's face grew a little solemn as he looked down to the ground and took off his hat, holding it in his hand.

"But you ain't the only one here... because those emotions you hide… they are like something I have and hide too."

Rocky widened his eyes a little after what he just heard from Nigel, not expecting him to have something in common with him.

"For fairness, you wouldn't know anything about me either but if I wanted to share my side of the story to you; Many would think I'm just some stoic and serious punk who travels across the deserts endlessly with no issues or regards to everything and anyone around him…. but that's not true either. For what I am, I have my own secrets I keep to myself because I need to hide what I'm doing for my own goals.

He slowly takes out the photo of his mother, father, and baby sister, with his other hand. It's the same one he still has. Since he's a decent distance away from Rocky, the bird faunus can't see the photo but he's putting the pieces together what Nigel may be looking at.

"I need to do what I can…. to make up for what I've done in the past…. for those closest to me….

But his family isn't the only thing he envisions…. as he also thinks of Jackal, Serpent, and their followers…. the two gangs he fought back in Bardus but learned of their struggles and intentions that he gave them a chance to make their lives easier for them. Jackal and Serpent are holding hands like reunited lovers while they and their followers are warmly smiling to Rocky, especially Whiptail's dopey smile and Bitsy shyly smiling and waving at him.

"...and to those that seek for better lives and the happiness they deserve."

Rocky didn't say a word in silence. Nothing but the wind and the distant roaring of the Grimm was heard as the two faunus stare at each other, trying to think of something to say. In fact, Rocky eventually realized he's a bit like Nigel… as he too momentarily envisioned Wily, his former rival and current acquaintance, whom he helped learn the error of his views and chose a better path.

Nigel slowly puts the photo of his family back into his pocket and his hat back on his head as he looks back at Rocky with a serious look in his eyes.

"Basically… all I'm telling you is… I just want to understand you… so that you can understand me." And with that, Nigel lets out a heavy sigh like he got a huge weight off his chest.

"And now that I've spilled some of the beans about myself and shared to you what we hace in common, are you certain you are willing to share with me more about yourself too? If not, then I'm willing to pass it and we'll be on our way."

Even after hearing everything, Rocky wasn't entirely sure how to react to that, like he is speechless.

"Alright then. I'll take it, you'd rather have it be forgotten." The kangaroo faunus accepted with dignity. "Very well then. Let's just be on our way because we got a team to save and make."

Nigel begins to walk towards the cliff and inspects the status of the two teammates and the Grimm…. but he felt an emotion coming from Rocky… who felt willing to answer.

"Actually..." Rocky calmly said as he caught Nigel's attention. "Hearing what you said to me… I think maybe I'm starting to consider I could-"

"GRAAAAAHHHHH!"

Before the road runner faunus could even finish his sentence of what he wanted to say to his partner, the loud bellowing roar was heard again, now even closer than before that it's hurting their ears which are ringing. The two covered their ears and slowly turned

"Ah! That's loud!" Rocky complained as he got out oversized ear plugs and stuffed them in his ears to dull the noise and prevent his ears from rupturing.

"It's definitely close now." Nigel muttered, annoyed at the irritating roar that is making his ears ring.

The loud roar stopped but that didn't end the shock on the two faunus as they witness what was far down the other side of the gorge where they are from

They looked on ahead…. and can see the Grimm itself that just rounded a corner of the cliff sides and now comes into view… and they are shocked by seeing the size and appearance of the Grimm.

"Crikey. Would you look at the size and power of that thing." Nigel droned as he was feeling overwhelmed by the pressure and negative energy the Cyclops that surrounds it. "It's definitely a Grimm that's been around for at least over a century."

"And far meaner than I thought it would be… and that's not a good thing in any way." Rocky dreaded as his eyeballs comically shrank into his sockets like he's scared of facing it head on. Even at that distance from here, they can tell it's really big and Nigel's semblance is very such powerful and intense pressure of its power.

The Cyclops begins to stomp forward yet again after letting out another loud roar.. Nigel notices the Cyclops isn't focused on them. In fact, it doesn't even notice their presence and appears to be focusing on something else… that's when Nigel looks down and sees the same aura signatures backed up against the cliff faces which he and Rocky are standing at the top.

"Well I'll be. Seems like those two got here quicker, when I wasn't paying any attention." Nigel dryly admits he was so focused on talking to Rocky he didn't notice the two have come sooner and now there they are.

"So what now?" Rocky asked with no hesitation in his voice as Nigel looked back at him and looked just serious as him.

"Stick to the plan. We gotta help those two now because I can sense their aura has taken some damage by that Grimm. I also sense they are getting cornered and feeling desperate." Nigel replied as he starts heading towards the vine and grips it tightly. "Get ready to bungee jump down there and grab them. I'll support the vines and bring you back up the moment you get a firm grasp on them."

"Alright then! Then let's get to it"! Rocky begins to take position as Nigel takes several steps back and heads to the other end of the vine and prepares for the stunt. But Rocky suddenly thought of something about Nigel. That guy heavily respects him and now he helped Rocky feel like opening himself up a little. Maybe even sharing his background that he has never shared with anyone before. The only ones that possibly know his background are the Snake Eyes who are now very far away and shouldn't worry about them.

But that will come later since they got a job to do but Rocky does one more thing to Nigel.

"Hey, Nigel."

Nigel stopped and turned around back to Rocky. He looks at him who stares back for several seconds until he spoke of what he wanted to tell Nigel.

"What? Make it quick because that Grimm is on it's way towards them." Nigel says with slight impatience.

Rocky hesitated for a second but spoke anyways. "I was thinking that, If we survive and pass this test, and form our official team… mind if I buy you a chocolate bar and maybe some pizza for us and our two soon to be teammates? As our ways to celebrate?" He gave an awkward smile in hoping Nigel would give a positive reaction.

The only response was the kangaroo faunus has widened his eyes at hearing the mention of chocolate bars that he was almost flabbergasted by hearing that.

"The moment I encountered you in this forest, I noticed you got pretty pissed at that Reaper Mantide for running your chocolate bar which I saw laying way back their all broken and messed up. So I was thinking….. maybe it would be pretty great to strengthen our partnership by doing something a bit of generosity." Rocky explained to Nigel with a nervous smile in hopes Nigel would accept that/.

"Isn't that what partners and friends do?" Rocky further asked. "For making me feel a little more open with myself and understanding how I feel, I was wondering if I can return the favor for you."

And so, Rocky slowly walks up to Nigel, talking out his hand and spits on it, then extending it out to Nigel. "So, how about it, partner?"

Nigel is still a little flabbergasted hearing what Rocky said to him. Surely, while he knows Rocky is no idiot or lunatic, he wasn't expecting Rocky to have that level of awareness and foresight to even be aware he got upset of losing his favorite chocolate bar in the heat of battle. And seeing how Rocky is now showing his softer side with no hint of comedy to it, he starts to smile a bit.

"You got yourself a deal, mate." Nigel agreed as he spits on his own hand and then grabs Rocky's own spit hand and both shake in agreement. "Pizza it is."

"Sweet!" Rocky cheered.

"And make sure it's Dark Chocolate." Nigel further added which Rocky nodded.

They see the Cyclops is now beginning to pick up speed which means now or never.

"Now then. Let's form our team!" Rocky shouts as he gets into position as he does a pose like he's about to perform an olympic dive. And after one big deep breath, he leaps into the air with such grace that he's doing so many different twists, turns, and somersaults until he straightened out and dives head first down the gorge.

As for Nigel, he grips the vines tightly and anchors himself in place, assuring himself he can support the weight of three people, including the tallest and heaviest one he sees with his semblance.

---

A few minutes earlier.

Taking place at the bottom of the gorge and near the end of it, coming around a tight corner is yet again Adam and Gale who have been running for some time like they were on a marathon. They are heavily panting since they have run for quite a while through the twists and turns of the gorge filled with all kinds of obstacles that are scattered across the gorge

Based on the lack of bones and weapons in this location, the Cyclops likely doesn't dwell in this part of it very often, if at all.

That is, once they managed to turn that corner and dashed ahead… they noticed something that stopped them dead in their tracks and much to their horror.

"You've got to be kidding me…." Adam groaned how much more lady luck isn't on their side.

"Oh crab baskets…." Gale also said in a mix of horror and disbelief of what's in front of them.

Much to their distress, they have now reached the edge of the gorge… there is hardly any way out of it. The walls are mostly smooth and don't have a lot of ledges and places to grip onto to climb up, along with no place to jump onto either. Even if they somehow managed to climb as fast as they can up the vertical cliff, it would take too long to climb over a hundred feet when the Cyclops isn't too far behind. They doubt they could even get halfway up there before the Cyclops gets in range and grabs or smashes them to a pulp.

"Great. Now we're at a dead end and there's no place for us to climb or jump onto." Adam groaned in frustration. "To think we would get a head start to escape. Only to end up being cornered again."

"Hate to say it… but yeah. This just ain't our lucky day." Gale agrees, but then he is thinking about using that technique he did back in the underground ruins of Sanus that helped him launched up like a rocket and helped him escape back to the surface. "Maybe we can use some wind Dust to help us.

"What are you implying?" Adam asked.

"I did this stunt once a little while ago and it helped me escape a place that I would call a deathtrap. Let me make some preparations."

"Well if it's gonna get us out of this hellhole, then be my guest. Because that Grimm is about to round that corner and we're already cornered." Adam deadpanned right before another roar echoed across the which indicates the giant brutish Grimm not far away.

However, Gale realizes he doesn't have enough Dust. Only half the amount left in each gauntlet and that's all he has left, as he used up some of it during the beginning of the initiation, more on the other Grimm, and especially tons of it against the Cyclops.

"Maybe if I poured half of one and filled the other half to full, maybe it will… no. That's too risky trying to fly with one arm, especially carrying another person."

"Sigh. Well doesn't that suck to have lost one good option? I was hoping I could do that again since I actually had fun doing it once. Guess I overdid it and didn't check."

"Don't blame it on yourself." Adam looked at Gale with no ill intent against him. "Even if we had enough Dust and got out of here, that Grimm will likely just persist and keep chasing us until it either catches us or we're forced to stand our ground again." He leaned against the wall to ease the soreness and to think what they should do; either stand and fight or escape and run away again… they feel like picking the latter but that seems out of the question.

If they had at least two more teammates with them, their odds would stack in their favor.

"And besides… for what I said to you earlier about calling you out for shooting the Grimm in the eye when I tried to warn you…"

"No no. It's pretty much the fact that one was on me and I'm the one who wasn't thinking straight." Gale raised his hands and smirked at his partner. "I got nothing against you either so we're cool."

"Heh. Same for me then." Adam smiled back but they both frowned as they heard the roaring again.

The two laid against the wall of the cliffs, waiting for the inevitable that's just around the corner, while trying to think of a way to escape… and there are none yet.

"Well, for what the headmaster said, he wasn't joking about his warnings for this initiation… because I can't help but feel there's a chance we may die if we don't escape or get help, as much as I want to deny it." Gale drly admits and feels a chill running up his spine. Honestly, for many of the battles he has faced, this is perhaps the scariest yet that he has ever faced a Grimm like this. He isn't sure if even his full transformation could take it on alone and win, let alone with Adam supporting him….. what's harder for him was that he used to rely on his grandfather for comforting warmth, grandfatherly care, and especially his protection to the point he had to train himself so hard to even take care of himself properly.

But, at the same time, since his grandfather passed away when he was barely a pre-teen, he had to fend for himself and can't stay in the nearby villages for long, because they either rely on him too much to protect them or fear him when they discover his mysterious heritage and power which just attracts more Grimm. Despite how much he wants some of the attention and gratitude, after losing his grandpa, all he has known back then was to fend for himself, even trying to not to succumb to his loneliness that kept crawling up his back. At least some of the villages will still remember him, even with statues, in their gratitude.

Adam felt a similar feeling. For one thing… he hasn't experienced fear much… In fact, he barely even feels fear creeping up on him because he's seen so much of the horrors in his younger days that some even have scarred him physically and mentally at a really drastic level…. Only the help of his master's training has helped him get a grip on his emotions better; constantly practicing to keep his emotions in check and not succumb to his anger or fear. In fact, he did a little bit of that this morning before preparing for the initiation.

But this… this Grimm they are trying to run away from… has somehow managed to make him feel afraid of it, since he first laid eyes on it when it hid in the shadows.

With the possibility that death is at their doorstep, they feel like talking to each about themselves to ease the fear and dread that's trying to choke them.

"So, uh. What reasons have brought you and your black haired, bow wearing, friend to this academy?" Gale ended the silence with a question.

Adam looked at Gale and felt a little perplexed why he would bring Blake to this conversation since it's just him and Gale but goes with it anyways.

"Well, not gonna say too much, but let's just say we came here to become huntsmen so we can end the injustice this world suffers from." Then he frowns a little. "Yet, deep down, I find it harder than simple words and dedication to end all of it in such a short time…. It will always be here." He sighs but remains determined. "Even then, that's why we continue to do what is right until it finally ends." Adam wanted to leave out the part he and Blake are from the White Fang... even if by chance Gale has no idea about what the White Fang is. He's not taking no chances and is intending to keep it a secret... for now.

"Man. That's gotta be rough." Gale sympathized but understands and still supports Adam. "For what I know and heard, regardless that I haven't traveled outside of Sanus, I'm pretty sure and agree with you that not everything is right with this world and something must be done about it, no doubt."

Adam nods. "Indeed. That's why many of us are here for our reasons, justified or not."

Then Gale suddenly smirked a little at his partner which made the mask wearing faunus raise an eyebrow.

"And as for your friend….are you two, well… you know?" He gestured with his shoulders of what he's suggesting and still smirking at him while also raising his eyebrow. Adam went stiff and his face turned a little red behind his mask but calmed down and answered firmly, trying not to falter.

"No… not really. We're just really close friends. We've known each other for quite a long time… it's kinda natural between us to stick close together for so long." Adam said, trying to not sound flustered. "But now, since it seems now I'm your partner and Blake has likely already found her own, if not an entire team; I guess we can only see each other at certain times."

"I was just wondering so that's nice to hear." Gale nods and respects that. As much as he enjoys the company of other guys… Gale doesn't have a lot of experience being around other girls, despite all his grandfather's teachings about the opposite sex….. though, there's that blonde girl he knows… but doesn't want to think about it.

"Guess you were thinking long ahead and prepared to teach me a lot of things, before I was ready, Grandpa." Gale mentally thought about his grandpa who was as wise as he was old. "Were you doing all of that for me, because you knew your time was short?"

Adam stared at Gale with slight interest, who is still in his partial transformed state. He's curious but decides to talk about something else first in slight curiosity. "Since I have given my reason, Gale, then what are your reasons for being here?"

Gale thinks about that question… in fact, he still isn't exactly sure of himself what it is, besides making his self proclaimed promise to his long dead grandfather of becoming a huntsman and to prove himself of becoming strong. The more he thought about it, the more he was puzzled as he realized he didn't exactly think this through.

"Huh.. come to think of it." Gale scratched his chin a little. "I haven't really thought of it, besides slaying a Baku with my bare hands, pledging an oath of becoming a huntsman, and making my grandfather proud for what I can do."

"Your grandfather?" Adam said in curiosity but Gale then looked a little sad which made the masked swordsman begin to think something wrong had happened. Though, he was also impressed hearing Gale's claim that he slayed a Baku which he has heard of their cunning and ability to put their targets to sleep, yet, never seen one with his eyes.

"Yeah… he was the only family I had who properly raised and trained me… only to pass away when I was barely a pre-teen…" Gale said in somberness. As much as he managed to move on, his memories with his grandfather will never be forgotten, even until he too dies.

Adam frowned and felt even more sorry for Gale and his backstory, now wondering what kind of personal hell he's been through compared to his very own that he tries to on from… but he knows it will always be with him which frustrates him to no end.

"Since then, I was left to fend for myself and train, mostly alone… not even bothering to stay in other villages for too long, not wanting to risk having them either rely on me, nor them finding out about what I am…." He sighs but remains looking on ahead, still waiting for the Cyclops to show and get this over with. He would rather fight the Grimm than sit here and wait. But sharing a bit about himself makes him feel more open and relieved to have yet another person, human or faunus, to not see him as some kind of freak.

"Speaking of that… then what do you believe you are you exactly?" Adam asked, trying to sound as respectful as he can without offending Gale but the elephantine humanoid isn't offended in the slightest. "I'm just being curious and mean no offense to you."

Gale chuckled, not feeling offended, considering they are in a situation where they could die, it doesn't hurt to share a bit of himself. Might as well bond a little if this will be their last moments… hopefully not. Just before he gave his answer, he reached into one of his pockets and pulled out his lucky blue feather that he still has with him, the same one his grandfather gave to him.

He calmly stared at it for a few seconds and answered Adam's question.

"Well… hehe… as much as I myself want to know… but even I'm not sure what I am exactly." Gale chuckled awkwardly as he continued to stare at the feather. "Am I a human? A Faunus? Some kind of unnatural hybrid that stands between the borders of them and breaks the laws of nature? I just don't know right now…. even grandpa didn't know and had a proper answer for me." He scratched then elephant ears which twitched and flap in response while poking the tips of his tusks with his fingers, showing his new features are in fact a part of him.

"Or maybe it's because he would never tell me…?" The orangette thought but shrugged it off and didn't want to think about the possibility of his grandfather keeping a secret from him.

"It's fine, Gale." Adam answered without sounding disappointed. "If you don't know your origins and can't find them yet, then you shouldn't think and worry about what you are that matters... but who you are…" He stayed silent until he finished it. "At least that's what my master said to me during my training."

Adam can still remember being taught by his master to focus on being himself and not about his faunus heritage that defines him, which helped him pretty well…. It took him awhile to realize that due to having anger issues he couldn't deal with easily until he did eventually.

"Heh. Seems the both of us have something more in common than we first thought a few minutes ago." Gale complimented

"I can agree on." Adam affirmed than looked at the feather which actually seems to almost match the color of his hair. "Nice feather, by the way."

"Thanks. Grandpa gave it to me as a gift and a charm to keep me safe." Gale smiled.

"I can imagine your grandfather must be proud."

"And I can imagine your master must be proud too."

Both of them chuckled and went silent again of how much they are really bonding during such a time like this.

"I hope that's true…." Adam mentally said to himself, wondering if his master is in fact proud of him…. despite going their separate ways without any mutual goodbyes besides his mentor's last words of advice…..

But all that deep thought is over as the ground trembled that they almost lost their footing and the Cyclops has finally found them, as it rounded the corner and glared at them with it's one eye.

"Whelp. I guess that's enough sharing about ourselves as we may now be facing our possible demise." Gale deadpanned as he straightened up and prepared for battle. "Guess I'm gonna be using my trump card after all."

"Yes. It seems this might be the fight for our very lives so give it everything you got as I will too." Adam glowed a bit again and gets into stance as he draws Wilt out and holds the other katana in his hand. "As much as I hate to say it, Gale….. If we perish here, then it was nice getting to know you… and it's an honor for you being my partner.

"Yeah…. You too, Adam." Gale smiled but then decided to reach his arm out in the shape of a fist, asking for a fistbump. "Wish you luck and hope we make a great team."

Adam looked at the fist but easily knew what it meant and smiled back as he formed a fist with his free hand.

Adam's only was a nod as he stretches his arm out and does the fistbump with Gale. The two then turned their attention to the Cyclops. They got into their battle stances, as Gale puts his fists up while Adam draws Wilt out of its sheath and wields both it and the borrowed katana.

The Cyclops itself that stood in place and tried to intimidate them with its one eyed glare and soul wrenching growl, since it has them cornered but it hardly felt any fear coming from them… and all there was emitting from the two are their determination and desperation to fight and live.

"Blake… if I don't make it back alive… please take care of yourself. If you already have a team…. let them watch your back. That's all I wish to tell you."

"Grandpa… as much as I want to deny it, but if this is where I fall today… I'll see you soon and tell you I did my best."

The Grimm stomps forward which begins to pick up speed, intending to smash it's now cornered targets, giving out another roar of ending this senseless chase.

"BRING IT ON!" Both shouted at the top of their lungs in defiance, as if it's their last stand and the will to never fall to the darkness that is coming towards them like a massive shadow of darkness threatening to swallow them up.

Though… among such a tense moment…..it seems fate has decided a different path for the two… well, a rather exhilarating kind of path.

"Hidey Ho there!" Shouted a voice from above which caught the two off guard who looked up with confusion on their faces. What they see is another faunus who's a road runner, with a green mohawk, and is coming down fast with what appears to be a vine wrapped around his legs….

They are confused and don't know what to say as Rocky is now within arms reach

"Need a lift, you two? Because you definitely need it!"

On cue and perfect timing, Nigel finally anchored his feet into the ground and pulls with all his might which forces the vines to straighten out and stretch from the force of Rocky's weight and Nigel's pulling.

As Rocky's descent began to slow down from the bungee vines reaching their limit to stretch, he reached out and grabbed the two confused boys by their arms; grabbing Gale's arm with one hand and grabbing Adam's with the other… the same hand that still has his and Nigel's spit on it…. which is now all over Adam's arm.

The Cyclops was at first confused but then bellowed in complete anger as it realized what's happening. Where did this feathered insect come from? It looked closer and saw the vines the feathered nuisance came from and also saw another insect up there at the edge of the cliff. It's too far away to get there in time.

So it decides to improvise by gripping it's club with both hands and reeling them back… like as if it's going to throw it….

Next stop; The Surface!" Rocky cheered as the recoil of the vines kicked in and now both he and his two new buddies start ascending up the Gorge at a fast pace.

But the Cyclops wasn't done with them as it threw the club with all its might that it spun and hurtled towards them.

"Now just keep yourselves calm, as me and my partner will bring you up and we'll be good as- HOLY MOTHER OF FU-!" Rocky shouted in complete shock and horror, as his eyes bulged out of his head, seeing a giant club the size of a tree coming at them full throttle that may turn them into a smear against the cliff faces if it directly hits them. Thankfully, they were lucky to barely miss it as the club smashed into the cliff with such great force that it embedded itself into the cliff which shook like it was a small earthquake and sent massive cracks snaking all over it that some even reached the top and cracks opened up near Nigel's feet, lo.

"Holy-Dooley!" Nigel exclaimed as he already felt the vines loosen up which means Rocky and the other two are coming up but he almost lost his balance of the shaking in the ground which was splitting apart. Still, he kept his grip steady as his partner and the two boys are nearly at the top. "What just happened?! An earthquake?!"

"I think my life flashed before my eyes…." Rocky said with his pupil shrunken and sounded shocked out of his wits. But he didn't let go of Adam and Gale as they finally reached the top seconds after. Rocky regained his senses and he let go of the two who landed on their backs while he twisted and twirled in midair until he landed on his feet and struck a pose like he completed an olympic stunt.

"TA-DA!" Rocky shouted with flair as if he's reliving his good old days again. For some reason, even a bunch of floating giant cards with the number "10" on each of them have suddenly appeared and are floating above him. But all Adam and Gale sees is him seemingly being a show off and are wondering where those cards came from which shortly disappear after.

"Just… what is going on?" Adam said in confusion, trying to wrap his brain around this. First he and Gale were about to fight to the death and now they got saved from these two who came out of nowhere… and now here they are.

"Well… at least we managed to get out of that gorge… just not in the way we expected it." Gale says as he says as he got and helps Adam to his feet too. "Plus, I didn't even need to waste the rest of the Dust I still have."

Nigel and Rocky then walk over to Adam and Gale who stare back right after they recovered. The four boys, two pairs, stared at each for a few seconds until Adam spoke to end the silence.

"I take it you two have saved us?" Adam asked, making sure they are students who are partially attending the academy and not a bunch of spies trying to sabotage this place or something or the sort…. Or Grimm disguised as humans. You may never know.

"You bet your sweet little lives that we did." Rocky smirked as he stood next to Nigel and having his arms crossed.

"In his words; you are correct, mate." Nigel affirmed while tipping his hat in his way of greeting.

"So does that mean we're a team now?" Gale asked as he rubbed the back of his head, still trying to comprehend what happened that went from what seemed to be the ultimate battle to now shifting to being saved in a rather silly way.

"Based on us four being in the same location and being this close while having direct eye contact, than yes." Adam affirmed as he walked up to Rocky and Nigel with Gale also stepping up and getting close to their new teammates.

And so, the four introduce each other by their names as they shake each others hands.

"Adam Taurus." Said Adam.

"Nigel Arvo." Replied Nigel.

"Gale Hathi." Gale spoke with enthusiasm.

"And I'm Rocky Rhode Runner!… and before you say something about my name, of course, it rhymes with the kind of bird that I am." Rocky finished which made Nigel chuckle but Adam and Gale were a bit confused but tolerated it no less.

After their mutual greetings and handshakes, they got down to business.

"So it's apparent we have come together and we're yet another step closer to finishing our test." Adam said as he looked at Nigel and Rocky. "The only thing we need to do now is retrieve the relic and we'll be done."

"Speaking of the relic. Have you guys already retrieved one or you haven't yet?" Gale asked in hopes they have the relic so they can finish their test sooner. Truthfully, Nigel and Rocky already got the relic which is the White Bishop which Nigel still has tucked into one of his pockets on his vest.

Before Nigel and Rocky could answer their question, the ground suddenly trembled, followed by the roar of the Cyclops coming from the gorge.

"Don't tell me what I think it is…" Gale mutters as the four peer over the edge of the cliff and look down… what they see almost scared them out of their wits… the Cyclops CLIMBING up the cliff faces by digging it's fingers and toes into the stone to give it a place to grip and help it climb up. It already yanked its own club out of the wall and is carrying it with one hand.

The four boys, especially Gale and Adam, were shocked seeing the giant being able to climb up like that, showing it isn't giving up that easily, as it roars loudly to announce it isn't done with them.

"Tch. Still persistent, aren't you?" Adam scowled at their adversary who just won't leave them alone."

"So it seems the bugger still has unfinished business with you two?" Nigel asked Adam and Gale who looked at him like it's obvious to them.

"Yeah. It just won't leave us alone." Gale answered with a sigh.

"You know… that Grimm is actually pretty damn scary coming up towards us with that look in its eye…." Rocky gulped as he stared down into the Cyclop's burning eye. If looks could kill, then he would be instantly dead just by gazing into that intense orb of hate and rage.

Out of reflex, Rocky draws his revolvers and open fires, unleashing many bullets laced with fire, ice, and electricity… but none seem to be working as the Cyclops quickly shuts its eyelid and turns it head away and tanks all the bullets and their elemental effects. There was no damage done as the fire and electricity dissipated while the ice cracked and melted away shortly after.

"Not even a scratch?!" Rocky exclaimed.

"It's no use. For what we have, we can't harm it that way." Adam said and looked towards the forest. "We need to make a run for it and hope it loses us." Gale nodding in agreement that he too feels like running for it. Nigel seems also feeling like they should run while Rocky was already putting his weapons back into his holsters since they aren't working.

"Yeah! I'm with you on that! So let's all… RUN AWAY!" Rocky shouts and begins running like his life depended on it.

And so, the four teenagers began to sprint towards the forest as the Cyclops finally reaches the top of the cliff and stands up at full height. It already knew what they were doing as it roared and chased after them into the woods.

The four are trying to shake it off their trail and force it to lose them in its sight so they can hide and escape it. But it's still too close for them to lose get it off their tails as it barreled through the forest, knocking every tree in its way, even uprooting a few and throwing them at the four in hopes of hitting them.

The Emerald Forest was now getting riled up as a path of destruction was made by the Cyclops which sent clouds of dirt into the air and the thundering bellow of the Grimm echoed across the entire forest.

The only thing the four huntsmen in training can do for now is to run and hope they can get the Cyclops off their backs.

---

Meanwhile; The Temple.

Back at the temple where the rest of the remaining chess pieces lay, there stood Blake and Yang who just retrieved their own white chess piece which is the Knight.

Earlier, Yang and Blake ended up encountering each other when Yang was fighting off a pair of Ursai Grimm… and she completely annihilated one of them after it swiped out a strand of her luscious blonde hair, while Blake killed the other with her Gambol Shroud shortly after.

After they partnered up, the two have recently found their own chess piece and are now wondering what they should do next..

"GRAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Their silence ended when they heard a faint but still audible sound that sounded something like a bellowing roar…. The same one Blake heard earlier but much more clearly now.

"There it is again… but it's making my hair stand on end…." Blake thought in concern. Recognizing the same kind of roar she heard before.

"Blake… did you hear that?" Yang said to Blake, sounding like she was on her toes and trying to not sound scared. She wondered what that sound was… it sounded so monstrous and bone chilling than any roar she's heard so far.

"Yeah… I clearly have heard it." Blake answered, also feeling a little unnerved, even if it was far away from their location. "It has to be the roar of a Grimm. What else can make a sound like that?"

"Yeah.. I think it definitely is too." Yang agreed and confidently smirked, feeling excited, despite the chills going up her spine. "As long as I can remember, I've never heard the sound like that one before. I can't help but feel like going over there and giving it a knuckle sandwich."

Blake sweat dropped from hearing that, already starting to know her partner is a little too passionate when it comes to fighting. "Yeah… good luck with that."

She recalled how feisty and smug Yang was against the Ursai, right before demolishing one of them when they swiped a strand of hair from her head so she can tell Yang loves the thrill of fighting, even against bigger and meaner threats above her level.

Though, before Blake could think any further of the possibilities, she and Yang heard another sound… that sounded like a girl screaming.

And now some girl is in trouble!" The blonde added, until that's when Blake's cat ears that are beneath her bow.

"HEADS UUUUUUUUUUP!" Shouted a high pitch scream that belongs to none other than Ruby Rose… who somehow ended up in the sky is now falling towards Blake and Yang…. Only for Jaune, who is also flying in the air out of nowhere, for some reason… and ends up ramming into Ruby….

---

Meanwhile; Ozpin and Glynda

Glynda was skimming through every drone that is online within the forest, trying to find the source of the sound and to make sure she's not her having her mind play tricks on her.

She broadened the entire screen of her tablet with every video footage from the drones she's connected with are minimized and lined up on the entire screen. She's constantly sliding the screen to find what she's looking for but there hasn't been any yet.

"As much as I don't want it to be true, I need to see for myself either way."

That's when she decided to find a video with a frequency filled with lots of Grimm activity which may help her find what she may be looking for. After several seconds of scanning and loading, the tablet finally gave Glynda a footage that she may be looking for.

She hesitantly taps her finger on the live footage and watches.

For one thing, one of the drones has managed to find Rocky and Nigel who are now running with Adam and Gale.

"It's those four. And they managed to form their team, no less. Well at least they-"

That's when the drone saw something massive bursting through the trees and coming towards it. It moved so fast that the drone couldn't move out of the way in time and all Glynda sees, seconds after, on the screen is static.

"What was that?" Glynda thought in surprise, being caught off guard of whatever came at the drone and likely smashed it out of commission. "It happened to fast that I didn't even see it..."

Thankfully, right before the drone was destroyed, it already recorded the footage and saved it on the recorded files which Glynda accessed. Once she found the most recently uploaded footage, she played it again, seconds before it was taken out, and paused the video at the exact moment and sees something massive and balck... but it's so blurry and its hidden behind the trees. She than managed to slow down play through while she enhanced the quality of the video to make it a not more clear to see and got a good look at it... and that's when Glynda's blood ran cold and her pupils shrunk in slight terror.

While the figure is still blurry and hard to see... it was massive and humanoid in shape... and in the center of the head appears to be some a reddish-orange sphere glowing in the center of the head...

The more she stared at it... it highly resembled something that seemed familiar to her... that's when something snapped in Glynda's mind as she put the distant sounds and the image together...

"No… it can't be…." Glynda whispered in horror and disbelief, trying to deny what that thing on her scroll is suppose to be as her hands started to shake and her hands ran cold. "That's can't be possible... it just can't..."

But that didn't go unnoticed as Ozpin saw Glynda visibly shaking and sweating that she looked pale and sickly.

"Are you alright, Glynda?" Ozpin said in hopes she's okay… but Oz knows far better than that because he knows she's not okay in the slightest.

But Glynda didn't answer as she was still as a statue, slowly starting to shake and her pace of breathing began to increase, like she's suffering a fever.

"Glynda?... Glynda?"

But Glynda couldn't hear Ozpin as her mind, because she was experiencing a memory…. a tragic memory that she wanted to forget but never could….

Everything within the memory was blurry and hazy, along with being surrounded by thick green smoke, almost like it was a mirage and an illusion to her.

Suddenly, the smoke started to swirl and conjure into something that was part of the memory; it looked like it takes place somewhere in the Emerald Forest but the memory is still blurry.

That's when she hears a soft and gentle voice within the memory… a voice that Glynda knew so long ago and were the last words she heard in person… the voice of an old friend.

"For the sake of our academy and for me, I ask you, please become a skilled and wise Huntress, Glynda."

Among the illusion of her memory, two silhouettes materialize… one is a massive humanoid, one eyed, monster, while the other appears to be a young teenage girl in a combat outfit that's made of blue with skin tight bodysuit and a skirt, and two pigtails with blue ribbons attached to the ends. But the strangest thing is what appears to be her feet which are apparently glowing red and sparkle with energy. The two appear to be squaring off like it's a fight to the death.

"Wait! Don't do this-!" Yelled another voice that actually sounded like Glynda… but younger…. "Don't fight it without us! Without me! You can't do it alone!"

"That's why I'm giving you all the chance to escape… because if you all stay with me… then we will all perish. That's why you're going to make that promise for me, my dear best friend."

Through Glynda's vision, it appears the silhouettes are coming distant as if she's being dragged away.

"No! Please no! You can't do this!" Shouted the voice of the young Glynda who now sounds desperate and full of distraught like she doesn't want this to happen. The silhouette of the girl then gets into her stance as her feet glow even brighter like she's charging a powerful attack.

"Be strong, Glynda… because there's no place like Beacon."

"DOROTHEA!"

"GRAAAAAAHHHHH!"

"Glynda!" Ozpin shouted for the seventh time, trying to snap Glynda out of her trance. At the same time, the roar finally reached where they were standing, faint, but audible for both of them to hear.

"What in the Brothers Grimm did I just hear?" Ozpin thought but kept his focus on Glynda since she was panicking and she needs help.

Glynda started to breath faster that she was starting to hyperventilate, as she was starting to sweat, almost like she's losing her mind. She even felt her legs weaken and she shakingly fell to her knees.

"Glynda!" Ozpin shouts in worry as he quickly walks over to her and puts his hand on her shoulder to slightly comfort her. "Are you alright?"

"No. She's not alright." Ozpin worried, already knowing something is wrong with her reaction and the roar. "I know her better than anyone else in the academy and I know how she feels in different situations."

"She's been traumatized by something that triggered her to relapse…. In fact, I've never seen her this traumatized since...no… how can it still be here when it should've been dead a long time ago?" Ozpin thought in a realization of horror but he needs to focus with the surveillance but he needs to help Glynda first.

Ozpin gazed towards the horizon where his new students have gone… having a really bad feeling there's something out there that should be impossible to be around but he still put his hand on her shoulder to support and comfort her.

The blonde professor eventually managed to calm down, as her breathing finally slowed to a normal pace. Regardless, the huntress is still shaking a little and barley holding her tablet in her hand.

"At least I got her to calm down a little. We don't need any Grimm coming over here." The headmaster mentally sighed, trying to make the situation as calm as possible. Once Glynda was able to regain her bearings, she still looked distraught that it made Ozpin still worry for her.

"Since you are able to hear me better, are you alright, Glynda?" Ozpin asked his co-worker who is able to hear him more clearly.

"I'm… not fine... but I can manage…" The professor paused between her words but is able to think more clearly. Ozpin helped her up back to her feet until she was able to stand by herself.

"Professor... I think I need to speak to you about something... something that I consider may STILL be here... the same thing that I've encountered before..." Glynda weakly spoke that it's barely above being a whisper, as she shakily points at the footage showing the Cyclops chasing the four boys through the woods.

Ozpin didn't want to admit it, but he can't deny that it was the same roar of the Grimm he had heard all those years ago on that day….. and the blurry image that is the apparent evidence supports the possibility even more

"Hmmm..." Ozpin hummed at the image, narrowing his eyes a bit since the image does look blurry but he can clearly make a distinction the thing is clearly humanoid and may also have one eye... and appears to be carrying what looks like some kind of club in its hand.

"Ah." Ozpin answered. "It appears we have a peculiar resident in the Emerald Forest that we clearly have never seen or heard before... one that looks oddly familiar..."

"Yes." Glynda said but slowly feeling more distressed by the second. "And does it remind you of something during my own initiation?"

Ozpin didn't answer right away and just stared.

"As I've feared... even if by the smallest chance it isn't what we think it is... its clearly the monster that really changed Glynda's life... and I'm shocked how its still here."

Ozpin lets out a small sigh and looks at Glynda with slight concern as if he's on the same boat with what Glynda fears may be true.

"I don't even need to assume what that image is may relate to what you have experienced all those years ago?" The headmaster said to Glynda.

"Yes." Glynda answered but sounding really concerned that she looks like she wants to take immediate action like its an emergency. "We clearly see this as evidence its no doubt a Cyclops... most likely the very same one that I've met before."

"And that's quite a shocking discovery to comprehend, even for me." Ozpin says but sips his mug after.

"And with that kind of Grimm being in the Emerald Forest... I believe we need to do something about it." Glynda says, with a more serious tone like she wants to

Ozpin doesn't say a word which further encountered the blonde professor to give out what she thinks they need to be doing to deal with the Cyclops...

"Professor Ozpin... I deeply know how important the initiation is for us and especially for the students to become huntsmen and training they dreamed of becoming and are almost reaching that dream... but I think we need to call the initiation off and deal with that Cyclops before it takes any more lives because they don't stand a chance against it..."

Glynda felt like something must be done... even if it involves disrupting their surveillance and deal with the problem directly themselves, saving the lives of the new students that are in the same place that demonic monster is hiding.

Ozpin stared at Glynda in silence after what she just said to him who stares back at him for several seconds until he gave his response.

"I understand your reasons, Glynda. I really do." Ozpin responded but didn't budge as lets out a big sigh, already knowing how Glynda is gonna take his response that she will definitely not like hearing. "Yet, despite that it may still be out there... it doesn't change our position for this initiation."

Glynda's eyes slowly widened at what she heard from the headmaster... like its some kind of sick twisted joke and brushed aside like its nothing to him. Even with something that gave her terror is still out there, Ozpin answered as if its a minor inconvenience and continues his duty.

"As always, we remain here and continue to observe the initiation." Ozpin said calmly said, even if bit coldly to his tone, that Glynda stared at him in disbelief to his answer.

That's when Glynda finally snaps right after seeing how Ozpin's responded to this problem that she sees as a really big one.

"W-W-What?!" Glynda responded in surprise and shock which slowly risen to anger.

"A-Are you not taking this seriously? Like it's nothing to worry about, professor?" She growled, seeing Ozpin doesn't seem too phased that she's starting to lose her patience. "Don't you get it, Ozpin? That's the very Grimm that me and many others that also attended could not even come close to killing it?!"

"Of course I do." Ozpin answered and still being calm but Glynda knows he's taking this seriously by the look in his eyes. "And I surely haven't forgotten of the footage when you were doing your initiation many years ago. I've seen with my own eyes what it can do. And I'm especially wondering how it's still here after it was reported that it is believed to have been slain. And yet, it somehow managed to be alive and stayed hidden from us."

"Seeing a blurred image of it on a scroll tablet while standing right here is one thing. But directly witnessing that Grimm face to face ,up close and personal, while feeling it glare into your soul is another." Glynda pointed out, mentioning how scared she felt staring into a Cyclops burning eye that it petrified her way back than. She also felt her patience running thin since she wants to do something about this asap.

"I know that too." Ozpin noted. "I especially remembered you were horribly traumatized that you had to go through almost an entire year of mental therapy to recover, with my help and the best therapist I could find, while still learning in my academy until you've fully graduated."

"But it wasn't just the monster that traumatized you… it was also your childhood friend, Dorothea. The gifted prodigy who sacrificed herself to help you and many others escape. Rest her soul." Ozpin also said, feeling somber of losing a highly gifted girl, who was a close friend of Glynda whom he saw as inseparable together that they were almost like siblings… then she had to stay behind to fight the Cyclops since it slaughtered so many just to buy Glynda and the others some time to escape…. and she hasn't returned ever since.

Even to this day, Ozpin was still filled with sorrow to lose such a highly optimistic and innocent young soul who was willing to give up her life and dreams of becoming a great huntress… for the sake of Glynda. But Glynda took it the hardest that she almost gave up becoming a huntress… but her friend's last words to make the promise helped her keep going forward to where she is now. Even then, Glynda still hasn't completely forgotten that day and she even blames herself for Dorothea's demise.

The more the professor thought about it, the more stressful and angier she got that she wanted to do something to end the torment the Cyclops has wrought, which it still is, once and for all. She focuses back to her scroll and starts typing on it.

"What are you doing, Glynda?" Ozpin said in concern as he doesn't need to guess what she's doing.

"I'm calling the rest of the staff to aid us in stopping that Cyclops before any more students die at the hands of it." Glynda answered as she got her scroll and began to contact Beacon Academy. "I'm considering this an emergency that needs to be directly dealt with."

But just as she was about to send the message, she was stopped by Ozpin who gave her two words.

"No, Glynda."

Glynda stopped her finger pushing the send button as she slowly turned to Ozpin who had his eyes narrowed like he wasn't happy with her.

"Professor…" Glynda said in surprise that Ozpin told her to stop what she was doing… for the first time in her life no less.

"I said, NO, Glynda." Ozpin says with high authority in his tone. "You are not going to do that, not without my permission which I'm not giving you."

"Professor!" Glynda yells, now lost her patience. "I wasn't able to stop that thing when I was just a teen but I'm now more than capable of taking it on and even killing. If you just let me and the other staff track it down and finish it off, it will pay for what it has done."

"Do not make me repeat myself." Ozpin said with a warning. "There will be no staff members who will interfere with the initiation, no matter the dangers of Grimm, and that's final."

"So you're saying you're just gonna let all those students die by the wrath of that monster which I couldn't even come close to killing it?" Glynda shook and quivered. "Have you forgotten what happened to everyone on that day, along with many before and after that were slaughtered?"

"You think I have forgotten all of the previous students that I've sent out, who have fallen and perished in the past initiations?" Ozpin spoke, now sounding that calm and replaced with sorrow in his tone. "Considering they aren't worth my cause and are just expandable in the end to find the perfect huntsmen and huntresses?"

"I…" Glynda tried to say but Ozpin wasn't done as he continued.

"No. I do in fact care about them. The reason I'm doing this is because I want them to prove they are capable." Ozpin said as his tone darkened a little like he's not enjoying what he's telling Glynda "Even to this day, I still remember all of them, since I opened my own academy; their names, faces, weapons, signature colors, symbols, and especially their families that mourn for them. Every. Single. One of them."

He's right on that part. He remembers every last student he invited to his academy and he especially remembers all of the ones that died in the initiation, along with the others on their missions he assigned them to. With each death added, he takes another full brunt of being blamed for their deaths by their families or loved ones.

"And must I remind you; they've signed up by their own decisions, under their own free will? Where they knew, from the start, about the risks and dangers that can get them killed? Having to muscle through all of it to become huntsmen and huntresses in training? Just to protect Remnant with their very lives and without regrets?" Ozpin asked Glynda without missing a beat.

Glynda stood frozen as the headmaster's words bored into her how true they are. She too remembered she had to do the same thing during her initiation and she managed to retrieve the relic she needed… but at the cost of losing her friend. Yet, she did what she had to do, despite how much she was against it in leaving her best friend behind…..

"I've especially haven't forgotten Dorothea;The highly gifted prodigy who was your closest friend that she was practically your sister…" Ozpin calmly said as if saying it hurts him to his core as much it does to Glynda. "As much as I believed something could've been done that she could've been saved, she made that decision for your own sake to live."

He wavered under his breath a little which slowly began to rise. "But even after losing her, I absolutely refuse to have any of my staff, you, nor myself to interfere with the initiation, even if it ends with a few more students dead in the process."

Glnyda didn't say another word as the headmaster tightens his hand around his cane. "Even IF I allowed that, it would only make them lose their confidence because it makes them feel they are not strong and skilled enough to protect themselves; It goes against everything I've built to birth the next generation of huntsman, for the sake of Remnant, and for the peace we're trying to bring that the Grimm are still trying to tear down and destroy."

The headmaster sighed, feeling more somber as he thinks about everything he's done that got him here now. "Yet…. despite all that I just said to you, I have no excuses, Glynda." His head hung low and looked at his mug. "Time and time again, I have made many of the worst mistakes in my life that I still carry with me. I still mourn for all of them and especially for Dorothea... as much as their families and you do."

He loosens his grip on his mug and looks out into the horizon again. "Yet, I will continue to endure and carry the heavy burden on my shoulders, even if I take it all to my grave."

"And then I have to do it all over again… until either I win… or SHE wins."

Glynda can see Ozpin's hands quiver… She knows what he's thinking about but keeps her mouth shut to not reveal their secrets for the rest of the world to know.

"So please, Glynda. Let them finish their initiation, without our aid. I'll take full responsibility if any of them die." Ozpin says in hopes Glynda will listen to him.

Glynda was silent for several more seconds thinking about what he said…. as much as she questions his ways of doing things, she knows Ozpin is a good and honest man at heart. She knows he is doing what he believes is right for the greater good in humanity and for Remnant, even taking the responsibility to the fallen and going as far to sacrifice everything he has to protect humanity.

And besides, she has seen what those four boys are capable of compared to what she could do during her younger days… just maybe…..

"Alright. I now understand what you mean, professor." Glynda accepted Ozpin's words but still wasn't fully with it. "Even then… it doesn't change the fact that Grimm is still somehow here and it has murdered a lot of people and counting. It needs to be slain."

"Then let us not be paranoid about the Grimm that's still here." Ozpin told Glynda as he sipped his mug again. "We must trust in them and ourselves they can slay it which will avenge Dorothea and the others. They all may be youths with their futures at stake but they've chosen these paths they have embraced. From there on, they will continue to fight for a future where no one will be divided and living in the darkness."

"Alright. I'll accept it and leave our trust to them to slay it." Glynda narrows her eyes at Ozpin like she's got one thing to say. "But if that Cyclops kills them and comes anywhere near Beacon in a 20 mile radius, then we're calling the staff and taking down that Grimm ourselves."

Ozpin nodded. "I'm absolutely fine with that because there's nothing that says that our staff aren't allowed to kill any Grimm, especially very large and old ones, that come anywhere near the Academy. Lastly, I'll especially take responsibility if they die as well."

And so, the two professors continue to watch the footage of the teenagers facing off against the threat of humanity.

---

Meanwhile; Emerald Forest.

Somewhere further out in the forest, the four young teens have been running with the Cyclops hot on their heels. The boys were using the trees to swing and leap through them while the Grimm knocked them down in pursuit.

"Can't this guy just give up already?!" Rocky shouts in annoyance as he was leaping through the trees. "Is it THAT desperate to chase us to the ends of Remnant just to taste our flesh?!"

"I have to agree! Even the most stubborn Beringel I've fought wouldn't pursue someone for as long as this!" Gale also shouts as he was also using the trees to swing and leap through.

"Well. Considering this guy likely has eaten so many people, it considers us addicting snacks." Adam also shouted.

"WHAT?!" Both Nigel and Rocky shouted at hearing what they heard but stayed on track of maneuvering through the woods.

"We'll explain later!" Gale told them. They do need to worry about what's chasing them than what it has been eating.

Minutes have passed but the four boys are slowly getting ahead of the Cyclops due to maneuvering through the trees while bigger trees slightly slow it down which gives the four an edge. Eventually, they were reaching the edge of the woods, as trees were spreading out and were fewer in numbers.

Soon, they exited the forest and are out in an open field which wasn't too vast but quite spacious enough to house a few city blocks. Yet, not a single tree or rock in sight within the field, nothing but fresh grass… and standing in the field is something they did not expect.

What the four teenagers have noticed… are a flock of Dire Sheep.

These hoofed mammals are a breed of wild sheep that closely resemble domesticated sheep, covered in thick wool to keep themselves warm during the winters of Vale… except these ungulates are quite massive compared to their domesticated cousins; with females reaching the size of an average cow while the bigger and more sturdy males can reach sizes rivaling that of a full grown bull.

The male sheep each have two pairs of horns; two that curve up and back like that of an antelope, while the other two curl from the sides of their heads like the horns of a ram. The females sport only one pair of horns which are smaller and curve back less on the tops of their heads.

The herd was grazing on patches of fresh grass, while many were bleating and braying to each other. In the center of the flock is a large and heavily muscular alpha male with the thickest coat of wool and the biggest horns to sport. It's busy dining on the finest of grass while showing off it's horns and fleece to it's herd, snorting to assert its dominance to the beta males that live amongst the herd.

"Huh. Looks like we came across a flock of Dire Sheep." Nigel raised his eyebrow in slight curiosity as he turned his semblance on again for a split second. Like all living things, the sheep also have aura which vary in color and patterns. The alpha, obviously, has the strongest and most potent aura of the flock.

"Mostly, these kinds of wild sheep prefer to graze out in the open grasslands and meadows. Though, it's not unheard of to have flocks grazing in the fields surrounded by forests." The kangaroo faunus said to his teammates.

"Ho boy. Just imagine all the sweaters and money we can make with that amount of fleece!" Rocky spouted which made the three other teens slowly turn their heads at him in confusion…. but Gale ended the silence and went with it.

"Sure. Why not? He's not wrong if we did do that." Shrugged the orange haired teen, admitting the amount of lien they could make if they shear all those dire sheep.

That's the least of their worries as they now hear the bellowing of the Cyclops yet again that's getting closer as they can see the trees falling over.

"Just can't leave us alone, can you?" Adam muttered under his breath. As much as they want to fight, since now it's four on one, they rather want to hide or at least gain more distance since they need to recover… but where? They are out in the open and there's no place to hide as there's nothing out in the fields…. but Dire Sheep.

That's when Rocky had yet another idea that he's grinning.

"I got it! I have another idea that will surely save us!"

"Like what?" Nigel snarked as he rolled his eyes. "Another catapult but with four people this time?"

"...Catapult?" Gale said in confusion. "Uh... Am I missing out on something here?"

"Don't ask." Nigel firmly told Gale that definitely tells him he doesn't want to discuss it, especially how embarrassing it was for him.

"Trust me! No one is getting launched across the Emerald Forest this time and this will surely help us evade the beast!"

Adam didn't know what to think of it but he sighed anyways since they had little time to argue as the Cyclops is getting closer. "Fine. Let's go along with this and it better be beneficial in sparing our lives or this will all be on you, Rocky."

As on cue, several more trees toppled over and smashed into the ground, as the Cyclops is just about to exit the thick forest and out into the open field where it will surely smash those puny insects. Once it got into the open, it unleashes another loud roar to announce its presence… but once it came out in the open… its targets are nowhere in sight.

The Cyclops tilts its head and grunts in confusion, a bit baffled where the heck those four puny fleshlings went… did they disappear into thin air? It looks around, left and right, even behind itself by bending over and looking between its legs to see where they've gone… but all it sees out in the field are nothing but Dire Sheep.

Strangely, most of the sheep were at first startled by the Cyclops announced roar but they didn't panic nor run away. In fact, once the roar dialed down, the sheep all went back to grazing, not feeling any threat coming from the Cyclops because it isn't directing it's attention or killing intent on them. For some reason, even to this day, animals and Grimm are apparently neutral towards one another and never attack each other, unless it's for territorial disputes.

Though, the alpha male was glaring at the Cyclops and snorted at it but the Cyclops didn't bother with it. It still kept its eye on the giant Grimm, though.

The Cyclops isn't convinced the four insects would just disappear like that. In fact, it swore it can still smell them as it sniffed the air… the last location the Grimm can faintly smell their scent is within the flock, despite it can't sense their fear or negative emotions. Regardless, it stomps out into the field and through the flock. Most of the Dire Sheep ignore the Grimm, except for those that are in it's path as they quickly get out of the way and avoid getting stepped on. The Alpha Male snorts again but decides to ignore the Grimm since it has no interest towards him.

The Cyclops trudged through the flock, trying to find a sign of the four morsels it was chasing after…. but not a clue in sight.

However, among the flock, one of the sheep appears to have something… or someone hiding underneath it and clutching to it's belly by wrapping his arms around the torso and gripping tightly on its thick wool that partially hides the arms and hands.

Upon closer inspection… it's none other than Rocky who has managed to hide underneath the sheep and hugged himself closely to it's midsection, using its wool to hide himself from the Cyclops.

Nearby, two other sheep also appear to have two people hiding underneath them; And those two are none other than Nigel and Adam.

But Gale is nowhere to be seen among the sheep. For such a guy his size and bulk, it would make one think it would be easy to spot him trying to hide under one of them, even the slightly larger beta males. That's because he's hiding under the alpha male himself who doesn't seem to be bothered, as it's massive size and thicker wool is enough for Gale to hide perfectly. In fact, Gale had to shrink back to his default human form which is barley small enough to hide under the alpha completely.

Rocky's plan turned out to be that they are using the sheep to hide from the Cyclops which actually appears to be working for them, despite how ridiculous the plan was, since Adam and Nigel weren't too pleased due to the putrid stench of the sheep, and the thick wool getting in their eyes and clothes, were getting on their nerves but Gale doesn't seem to mind while Rocky was glad his idea is working.

Eventually, the Cyclops was scratching its head with its finger, as it was starting to lose patience and thinks they aren't here. They may be elsewhere. It snorted out a cloud of black smoke in slight frustration and began to walk away….

"ACHOO!"

But the Grimm stopped in its tracks when it heard something…. something that caught its interest again.

With such bad luck, Rocky got a piece of stray wool up his nose which forced him to sneeze. Now he's giving off an expression that says "Oh crap" to an all new level but he tries to clear his mind as much as he can to not emit any negative emotion or he will give off his location to the Grimm.

"Rocky! You bloody idiot!" Nigel mentally hissed at his partner now putting them at risk of getting exposed. "If we really do die, I really am gonna give you an eternal wallop and there ain't gonna be any breaks in between!"

"Oh no…" Gale also mentally groaned but stayed put. Adam said nothing as he tried to tolerate the wool getting through the eye slits of his mask.

The cyclops stomped over towards the sheep it swore it heard the sound coming from and even kneels down to get a closer look…. and Rocky is sweating bullets while barley keeping his mind clear to not feel an ounce of fear.

The other three boys couldn't watch and shut their eyes tight as they embraced the possible chance of getting their covers blown and forced to fight it… twice for Adam and Gale.

Though, Gale suddenly felt the alpha he's hiding underneath begin to move….. and gaining speed….

Rocky was starting to sweat even more as the Cyclops was now just feet away that he can even feel and smell its breath… which really stinks.

"Please go away. Please go away. Please go away. Please go away….. for the love of whatever kind of Gods exist, PLEASE GO AWAY." Rocky mentally repeated, hoping the Cyclops would go away but it already began to raise its hand and started pointing its index finger at the sheep… intending to poke it and knock it over….

But just as the Cyclops was about to poke the sheep…. something charged at it from the side and smashed into the side of its arm that it flinched and moved it aside.

The Grimm grunted and turned its attention towards the attacker… the Alpha Male sheep, which was the one that rammed its arm.

The Grimm growled in surprise while the Ram snorted and bleated in defiance, feeling provoked the Grimm seemingly looking like it was about to threaten one of its mates so the alpha sprung into action to defend one of his herd members. Though, the Cyclops was more annoyed than angry towards the mammal as its ram did little damage to its bone armor but it was still enough to shove its arm away.

The alpha pawed and scrapped its hoof against the ground and glared at the Grimm, daring it to threaten its herd again. However, the Cyclops was losing interest the longer it stared at the alpha of the herd and even began forgetting about that one sheep it swore it made that suspicious sound.

And so, the Cyclops doesn't bother even attacking as it stood back up and stomps away. While it believes the four insects aren't here, it still ain't done with them as it decides to find them or maybe other humans and faunus elsewhere… it still craves their flesh that it so much enjoys feasting on.

Through the whole thing what the alpha did, Gale was hanging on for dear life and almost lost his grip when the alpha rammed itself into that Grimm arm.

"Yeesh. For a sheep, this big guy sure packs a wallop. Even from underneath it, I felt its power."

Once the cyclops was gone, the four boys dropped from their respective sheep and fell on their backs while gasping for fresh air.

"I think that's enough ideas from you for today…." Nigel groaned, trying to remove stray pieces of wool stuck to his clothes and hat.

"At least we're not in a Grimm's stomach." Gale said as he got up and wiped the wool off his hakama pants but he doesn't seem as irritated with it.

"Either way, we managed to narrowly avoid the Grimm so we now have some time to recover and recuperate." Adam informed as he got up and tried his best to get the wool out of his mask without taking said mask off… this doesn't go unnoticed by Gale again as he wonders why Adam doesn't bother taking it off.. but he ignores it for now and regroups.

"But that doesn't mean we're done with it yet…." Adam also thought with a fire in his gut, still feeling the will of the fallen that were slaughtered by that abomination.

As for Rocky, he was laying on his stomach, as he was still sweating and spit a wad of wool out of his mouth.

"Phew. I thought it wasn't gonna fool that Cyclops and with us ended up as goners... and a close call for my sneeze" The bird faunus sighed in relief… However, what Rocky wasn't aware of something next to him was a small, adorable, young lamb that stumbled next to Rocky. The lamb easily mistook the green tips of his mohawk as a nice patch of fresh grass that it started to bite down and started chewing on it, even tugging on it to tear it off.

"What the- HEY! That's not a patch of grass, you little piece of lamb chops! That's my hair and you're messing it up!" Rocky exclaimed in annoyance as he stood up which made the lamb let go but it just stood there with a cross eyed look on its face. Rocky checks his hair… which is all ruined and covered in lamb saliva.

"Gross…." Rocky said, grossed out, as he tries to clean it but is not doing very well at it…. and he notices the lamb is just standing there and staring at him.

"Are you gonna stand there like the brainless sheep that you are or are you gonna go back to your mother who you belong with?" Rocky said to the lamb with slight annoyance.

"Bah." Bleated the lamb, not budging an inch.

"Look. As much as I wanna chit chat with you and your ways of grazing in the fields, me and my teammates here got important things to do so…shoo." Rocky flicked his hands like he was trying to shoo the lamb away… it still didn't budge.

"Bah!" Bleated the lamb yet again, even louder and still not moving.

"I said shoo! Shoo! Don't make this harder than it already is!" Rocky yelled in annoyance at the lamb which won't go away.

"Rocky, quit being such a drama queen. It's just a little lamb and it's too young to fend for itself." Nigel told Rocky, not giving a care about this, despite being partners now. "It's not like it's gonna follow you all over the place and see you as it's mother." Rocky's only response was an annoyed glare.

But Gale suddenly walked up to the lamb and knelt down as he gently patted it on the head. "Oh come on you guys. It's probably just hungry and likely got curious upon seeing us."

"Bah." Bleated the lamb yet again but appears to be liking that it's getting the attention. Rocky crossed his arms and gave a stink eye at the sheep for messing with his mohawk which he was fixing with some hair gel.

"Hear. Why don't you have some of this for a treat, little guy?" Gale gently said to the lamb as he pulled out what looked like some dried oats which the lamb quickly gobbled up in it's mouth.

"There you go." Gale said like he was enjoying the lamb cooperating and eating off his hand.

Rocky and Nigel watched on but didn't seem to care. But to Adam…. He saw something precious that he couldn't help but admire and feel a little amused by, despite how simple it is by just feeding a little lamb with oats.

"Bah!" The sheep bleated once more, now satisfied with having such a tasty treat. But the adorable encounter didn't last long for the hoofed mammal and the four teens.

"BAAAAAAAHH!" Bellowed the alpha male, calling out to the entire flock that it's time to move out and find greener pastures to graze on. Hearing the call, the entire flock stopped grazing and headed out in another direction with the alpha leading the herd. But before it went ahead to lead the flock, the alpha stopped in place and stared at the four young boys for several seconds, especially towards Gale, until it saw enough and moved on.

As for the lamb, it quickly reunited with its mother and joined the flock… but it stopped and stared at the the mysterious four beings that it met and especially at the one that fed it those delicious oats. It happily bleats as if it's saying it's own goodbye before heading off with its mother and the flock.

They watched the flock head off which… was actually kind of adorable to them but they got bigger things to worry about since they heard the frustrating roar of the Cyclops nearby.

"I think we need to hide for now, before it decides to come back and spot us." Adam told the other three who nodded in agreement. They quickly ran back into the woods where they came from and hid in a dense part where the Cyclops won't be able to spot or get at them easily.

They finally all sighed in relief and collapsed down on their butts to catch their breaths and recuperate after everything they've been through. While doing so, they are slowly recharging their aura while trying to relax but still on guard in case the Cyclops somehow tracks them down.

"Okay… that was something that saved us from certain death." Adam sighed, admitting it was strange they were saved by sheep, of all things, from a Cyclops Grimm.

"Yeah."Nigel agreed. "Seems I just keep stumbling into things that are just keep getting more bizarre." He looks at Rocky who sheepishly grinned and shrugged his shoulders.

"Either way, we managed to at least find a safe spot to rest and recuperate. Now is the time we should get down to business with each other." Gale pointed out that Adam nods in agreement who turns to Nigel and Rocky.

"So, as we wondered earlier; do you in fact have or don't have the relic?"

"That we do, mate." Nigel confirmed Adam's question as he pulled out the Bishop relic he still had in his vest pocket, showing them they already got what they needed to finish one the main tasks for the test.

"Huh." Gale said in slight surprise. "Guess we don't need to worry about that now since we now have it."

"And with four of us together. Now we're pretty much a team now." Nigel added to the obvious detail between them.

"So does that mean we're complete now and we just need to return to Beacon?" Rocky

"Technically, yes… but-" Adam tried to say but Rocky didn't let him finish who sounds excited and jumps to his feet.

"Well then what are we waiting for? Let's get out of here and get back to the headmaster so we can finally have our team!"

Feeling confident, Rocky pulled out the capsule with his will and testament in it, as he yanks the paper out and rips it to shreds which he puts them in a plastic bag to not litter. "Guess I don't need this anymore!"

"Uh… we didn't say we were-" Gale tried to say but Rocky

"Now let me scout the place so we can safely make it back without the big guy spotting us!" The bird faunus announced as he begins to sprint away but Adam isn't done with him yet.

"Now you wait just a second. We're not done yet." Adam interrupted with a firm but stern tone to his voice which made Rocky stop in his tracks… that not even both of his feet are touching the ground that he's practically floating in midair just by stopping from Adam telling him to wait. One second later, Rocky fell on his stomach with a loud "OOF!" and looked back at Adam in confusion.

"What do you mean by that?" Rocky said in confusion. "We have what we need so why stop now?"

Adam and Gale looked at each other with concerns on their faces like there's something more to it than that. Nigel can already tell since his semblance read their emotions so it's definitely not that simple to them.

"Rocky." Gale said to the bird faunus, trying to sound like they need to be concerned about it. "As much as I want to get back to the headmaster as well… we really shouldn't… not with a problem that we feel needs to be dealt with."

For emphasis on his words, the roar of the Cyclops bellowed in the distance yet again which made Rocky audibly gulp.

"You're saying….." Rocky tried to figure out what Gale was trying to say until Nigel sarcastically pointed it out.

"Oh it's nothing, mate." Nigel said in sarcasm. "All we gotta do is collect some flowers and an entire, double layered, marbled cake for the Headmaster, as a special bonus test to our initiation…. Isn't it obvious, Rocky? We apparently have to slay that Cyclops."

"And you're agreeing with them?" Rocky said with wide eyes on his face like he can't believe his partner is siding with them.

"They haven't explained anything to us why we have to do this so I'm willing to listen first." Nigel pointed out. "And you should too."

"Sarcasm from Nigel aside, but yes, we have to slay that Cyclops." Adam affirmed to what is going on.

"Then why?" Rocky objected, wanting to hear an answer. "It's not like we have to slay every Grimm we come to complete the test, when we get what we need for our tasks."

"True. That may seem easy for us and we could just leave and be done with it…. but you aren't aware of what we saw back in that gorge where we were, before we met you." Gale pointed out with a chill in his tone… remembering what he's seen that made his spine shiver.

Nigel can already tell this isn't gonna be a cheerful topic to talk about since he can sense Adam and Gale are filled with remorse and slight terror but they had to shrug those emotions off to not attract any Grimm and especially not the Cyclops again.

"Why don't you just sit down and listen to us? We'll explain everything to you two what's going on." Adam said to Rocky who seemed unsure of this when they got what they needed already… but since Nigel is siding with them, he doesn't have a choice so what the heck.

"Alright… I'll listen… but it better be a justified reason." Rocky sighed as he sits down next to Nigel while Adam and Gale sit next to each other and across from Nigel and Rocky.

Adam then gets out what looks like a wrapped cloth and reveals it to be a shattered sword.

"What in the four kingdoms is that?" Rocky asked in concern and doesn't need to guess what that is….

"It's a shattered weapon… that belonged to a fallen soul named Gretchen who has apparently fallen to the Cyclops that also took her life." Gale said and looked at the blade with sorrow "...and it's not just her… but many, many, many more back in the gorge."

Nigel and Rocky widened their eyes of what they heard.

"When we entered that gorge to find a way to reach the relic… we stumbled across…. a complete hellhole filled with nothing but death and decay…" Adam growled as he tightened his fist with his anger suddenly rises but he breathes deeply to stop that from getting worse. "While that demon spawn treats their remains as nothing but complete trash left out to rot."

Nigel and Rocky widened his eyes even more in horror, not wanting to imagine that they were slightly shaking what it must've looked like

"It was like we have entered a forbidden place that no human or faunus belongs being in… it's a living nightmare that's brought into reality." Gale finished

Nigel and Rocky had nothing to say as if now their reasons are truly justified without an excuse put into it. Nigel can tell they are not joking and they are just as scared, even by explaining it in their words. They may have seen and heard many scary things in their lives… but this one has topped them all, yet. And now they realize they are dealing with.

"Bloody hell…" Nigel said in disbelief. "So it's really that bad for a Grimm to exist and run rampant in a place like here?" He has encountered a lot of different Grimm through much of his early life, many were life threatening that they can give you nightmares, while others weren't even that scary and are easy to kill… but this Cyclops that was chasing them… is that horrifying to imagine what it's capable of and it's even still trying to find them at this very moment. "Now you've caught my attention, mates."

As for Rocky… he was shocked out of his mind that he can't process what he's just heard. For much of his life, he rarely encountered Grimm of that size and power since he mostly lived with his trainer and usually lived in the most urban areas where Grimm cannot easily invade which makes him feel safe. Not that he's a coward and can fight Grimm of any kind, it's just he feels safe haven in the kingdoms and likes to avoid living outside of said kingdoms where a Grimm.

"And this katana I have in my hand…" Adam gestured with the sword in his hand that doesn't belong to him. "...it isn't mine. It also belonged to another fallen soul who died in that gorge that I felt like wielding to avenge them for that monster taking all of their lives.

"Many more weapons also litter that gorge… so much blood, sweat, and tears to make those tools to fight the darkness… only to rust and fade away to nothing." Gale finished as he stared at Gretchen's sword and the sword Adam holds… then he looks at his own gauntlets he too built with his own hands to show what he made to fight the Grimm as well. This also made Nigel look at his bladerangs and Rocky stare at his double barreled revolvers in silence.

They all look at each other, finally showing the gravity of the situation they are in.

"Now you see why we can't just let that abomination run loose?" Gale now said to both Rocky and Nigel, not a single hint of saying it as a joke. "We're dealing with a monster that is obsessed with the taste of human and faunus flesh. An addiction that can never satisfy it's appetite that it will keep eating until there's no human or faunus left to devour."

Rocky and Nigel still didn't say a word like they are listening to a horror novel being told by a narrator on audio tape. It just sounds so terrifying that they wonder how Gale and Adam are even able to stay this calm but they are just as scared talking about something this surreal and nightmare inducing.

"But there's another I wonder. What I don't understand is how such a Grimm like this lives not so far away from Beacon…. Does Ozpin even know this thing exists?" Gale pointed out and wondered which made the other three think about it too… but there's no evidence to suggest that hypothesis for now so they finish that subject.

Adam nodded to Gale and then turned back to Nigel and Rocky yet again, now drawing his conclusion to what he and Gale had to share.

"Now you see just how serious this is?" The masked faunus says and pointed out, gesturing towards the sound of where the roar last came from. "If we selfishly leave behind that Grimm that has been terrorizing this forest for so long and slaughtering so many souls at its mercy, just to form our own team, then we're all nothing but a bunch of spineless cowards who aren't fit to stand up and fight for the goodness of humanity and the faunus."

Those words struck deep into everyone but especially Rocky, who now instantly regretted trying to get away from the Cyclops but now he understands why it must be stopped which makes him reconsider.

"If we aren't here to fulfill our duty to attend Beacon and save Remnant, then what the Hell are we even for?" Adam asked his teammates to question their motives. "We may have our own motives and reasons, but we all know the primary cause and reason is to become huntsmen

Adam then puts his hand out with his palm facing down, gesturing what he means by it.

"So who's with me?" He asked as the others gaze at him but one is already smiling to his partner

"I'm definitely in, partner!" Gale hollers as he puts his hand on top of Adam's hand, further strengthening their partnership even more.

"Heh. Hearing your story and speech alike makes me want to give that one eyed cretin the one thing it freaking deserves." Nigel smirks as he too puts his hand on top of Gale's.

They all turned to Rocky who seemed full of awe and amazement after hearing Adam's speech like he doesn't know what to say.

"So, how about it mate?" Nigle smirked at his partner. "Wanna prove ourselves that we are men amongst men?" He gestured to the three hands on top of each other. "Doing this will prove we are huntsmen in training, after all?"

Rocky still didn't answer… but in his mind, his fear was slowly melting away and was replaced with a voice that echoed in his mind.

"No matter how bad things may look to you or anyone around you, Rocky Rhode Runner. Always try to look up to the positives, over the negatives, and you'll find that even your worst days can have something to remember and treasure forever…."

Those were the words of his trainer on the same day Rocky's life forever changed.

After several seconds of processing those words, feeling his fire spark and intensify further to be himself, Rocky sucked in his gut, puffs out his chest, and salutes to Adam like a soldier to his general with great honor. "Sir, yes, sir!" He shouted with energy and pride as he raises his other hand and prepares to join in. "As a member of this four man team, I'm gonna help you guys slaughter that bastard and avenge the fallen of all the innocents it took! WE SHALL ASSEMBLE!"

To complete the team up, Rocky slams his hand on top which finally assembles the four together.

And so, a team of Beacon Academy was born… but it will only truly be official under Ozpin's honor and blessings when they complete it.

The four started to calm down after that assembling moment and sat back down, trying to think what they should do first, and soon since the Cyclops is still out there and still wanting to eat them alive.

"Wow… such an inspiring speech…. Where did you learn to say that?" Rocky said, impressed with Adam's long spirit raising speech.

"I… let's just say my Master has taught me a lot of things." Adam said, trying to brush it aside since he doesn't want to say further which his three teammates can accept.

"Anyways." Adam announced and changed the subject, trying to speed things up in the situation. "It's obvious we have to slay the Cyclops, whenever if it's our weapons, our semblances, or both."

"We all know that's easier said than done, right?" Nigel pointed out the obvious that Grimm is tougher than it looks.

"Yes. For a Grimm, it's really hard to damage that even my stronger attacks barely even put a dent in it's bone armor. Unlike any other we've ever faced in my life. Hell, it's probably more durable than a freaking Alpha Beringel." Gale butted in which made Nigel, Adam, and Rocky stare in surprise at what he claimed about his experience in life.

"And lets not forget it's a club that could flatten us." Rocky also added. "Even with my semblance that could protect me… that thing would still possibly kill me."

"Yes… that's true…" stares at the ground and suddenly feels the need to plan something as he picks up a random stick and begins to draw a stick figure of the Cyclops, wielding its club included. "Just because it's tough and hard to harm, does not make it invincible." The blue haired faunus points out as he taps the stick onto the stick figure. "Every Grimm has a weak point and I think it already has one from the start."

"If we find a way to exploit it, once we nullify all of its strength and exploit its biggest weaknesses, then we can surely slay it before it can counter us."

Adam then stands up and looks at his team with confidence rising in himself.

"So what do you say, team? We must formulate a plan so we can end that Grimm's rampage once and for all."

The other three boys smiled in agreement like they are filled with determination and hope that there may be a chance to win this, as they too picked up their own sticks to draw into the soil.

And so, a montage of the team constantly drawing into the soft soil, with Adam doing most of it with the other three adding some of their own; now they drawing an entire map of the area they are in, writing and drawing all kinds of steps and coordination that each team member is a specific task they will do, with their biggest strengths that will be the most beneficial for them. The entire team drew out the plan that took up most of the area they were sitting in that it could almost fill the space of an entire dinner table.

After twenty minutes of discussing and cooperating, they finally finished their entire layout for their plan. For the finishing touch, in the center of it all was the Cyclops stick figure itself. It's club now has an "X" crossed out on top of it while many arrows connected to other parts of the plan's layouts were pointing directly at the Grimm itself as if it's the main target they must destroy.

"Alright, guys… this is what we'll do with our plan." Adam finished as he and his teammates nodded together and started preparing for the plans to be made. As a final gesture to his plan, Adam dramatically stabs his stick right into the center of the Cyclops Stick figure's eye, showcasing how they are gonna beat the one eyed abomination… while the Cyclops kept roaring in the distance, still searching for them.

---

Finally managed to get this done. Took so long from the distractions of the holidays last year and other things to do but I managed to finish it.

Well, I originally was gonna have them face the Cyclops in this chapter but it seems this chapter was far longer than I thought it would be so I had to cut out their final battle with that one eyed Grimm which will be finished next chapter so stay tuned.

Anyways, the four boys have finally united and assembled into the team that I've been waiting for so be prepared everyone.