Once again in Ozpin's office, Drifter held out a device and set it down on the desk. It was a short metal rod with a white, round structure on the end with various wires and antennae sticking out from it at different angles.

"Little creation of mine," he said. "Grimm-repellant. Little spotty at the moment, gotta do more testing."

Ozpin nodded as he picked up the device and examined it. "How does it work?"

"Uses Motes to invert negativity. The Grimm think there's nothing there."

He handed it back to Drifter. "Impressive. I look forward to seeing them in action."

"It'll be a good piece of tech once I'm done," Drifter said. "After the semester next month, I'm planning to head into the wilds for a bit. Would be good to test things in places outside the Emerald Forest."

"I understand that," Ozpin said with a nod. "You should be careful, though. Wild areas can be dangerous for even experienced Huntsmen. Where will you be going?"

"Mistral. Seems like a nice place, I'll do a little sight-seeing while I'm there."

After a few more polite exchanges, the meeting concluded. Drifter walked across the campus, flipping the device in his hand.

He was pleased with it. While mundane in application—why scare Grimm away when you could shoot them instead, after all—it was still a clever piece of tech. He'd been able to rig an old beacon up to match the signature of the Grimm. Powered by a Mote, he could reverse the signal and generate a virtual blind spot for the Grimm.

It wasn't complex to make, and with a bigger generator he could probably rig something up to cover half of Vale. He had, however, intentionally handicapped the design he'd shown Ozpin. Small steps were the key to avoiding undue attention. Plus, it gave him a reason to spend time in the wilds working on his personal projects.

Time it seems he would need. Perhaps he'd gotten lazy after all that time in the Tower on Earth, having young Guardians do his work for him, but between all his work with the Grimm and in Vale, it seemed he never relaxed.

Relaxation. That was a funny word. On Earth, with the Darkness constantly looming overhead, there was no such thing. Free time, sure, but it was always tense, as humanity held its breath, waiting for the next enemy. But on Remnant he was free of the Darkness, so perhaps, for the first time in centuries, he could allow himself to relax.

Drifter shook those thoughts away. There was still vital work to do. Remnant was not a safe place, not yet anyway, and carelessness now could cost him.

Still, he wouldn't mind an extra pair of hands for the heavy lifting.

Finding help turned out to be easier than Drifter thought.

"Woo! Are you having fun yet?" he called out.

"Gah!" Jaune shouted as the Boarbatusk threw him aside. "Not really," came the muffled reply from the boy face-down in the dirt.

The rampaging Grimm turned towards Drifter, only for Thorn to put it down with a single shot.

Drifter laughed. "Well, I can live without him. You caught over fifty already, so that'll do for today."

Jaune groaned as he stood up, brushing dust off his clothes and spitting out grass. "Great, so that's it?"

"Yep," Drifter said with a nod. "Got all we needed."

Jaune's shoulders slumped. "Oh, I see."

"Something wrong?" Drifter asked with a raised brow.

"No, nothing," Jaune replied. "Well, it's just that, you said you'd train me to get stronger too. But all I've done is wrestle Grimm into cages."

"Ah, I see," Drifter said with a knowing smile. "You want something a little more direct? Something that'll hone you into an unstoppable warrior?"

Jaune's eyes lit up as he nodded. "Yeah, like that!"

"All right, hotshot, get ready to fight," Drifter told him. In a hand behind his back, Drifter summoned a Mote.

"What should I—Ahh!" Jaune spun around as a portal roared into existence behind him. His trembling hands drew Crocea Mors as Taken Thrall shuffled out of the portal.

"Lesson one: Survive."

Drifter held back a laugh as he watched Jaune's frantic attacks as the Taken Thrall shuffled towards him. The boy swung his sword in wide blows at the Thrall, but none connected as each one would rapidly teleported to his flank.

The Taken Thrall were weak creatures, and wouldn't cause Jaune serious harm. They were, however, difficult to hit and fearsome to the inexperienced. Drifter decided they would be a good first challenge.

Drifter had come across Jaune on campus one night, as the boy was moping around the campus. After making some idle conversation, the boy had finally admitted he was struggling at Beacon, and feared he was letting his team down as their leader.

He thought back to the funny conversation he'd had with Jaune.

"Well, a little trouble's expected, especially when you fake your way in."

Jaune's eyes widened and gave a startled gasp. "You know? Oh no," he groaned into his hands. "Then Ozpin must know, and he'll expel me for sure!"

"Easy there, Ozpin doesn't know. And he doesn't have to, either."

"He doesn't?" Jaune had asked, hope hovering in his voice.

"It'll stay between us," Drifter reassured him with a pat on the back. "Every man's gotta have secrets. Honestly, I like what you did. You wanted something, and you did what you needed to get it."

"I did? Yeah, I guess I did. Uh, thanks?"

"Tell you what, want to get stronger? Help me out with some work on the side, and I'll give you some training," Drifter offered.

With promises of power and catching up to his peers, Jaune had agreed to Drifter's proposal in an instant. And so, Jaune had snuck away from his team during a free period and come to the Emerald Forest to help with the capture of Grimm for Gambit.

Drifter stroked his chin thoughtfully as he watched the boy stumble away from the flaming claws of a Thrall. He couldn't just throw Grimm at the boy forever and call it training. Teach him how to use that sword properly? A possibility. Drifter knew how to use a sword, but much preferred a gun. Besides, the swords he knew were twice as large as Jaune's, and built for cutting aliens in half.

He could always teach Jaune to use Motes, but not until later. The boy was not ready for such things yet, as using the Darkness required a strong mind and body working in perfect unison. The energy of the Darkness devoured those too weak to wield it.

The sound of a hiss split the air and Drifter looked up to see Jaune cleave through a Thrall, its body dissipating into mist. He nodded approvingly. Looked like the boy was learning.

Jaune's approach had finally adapted. Now, he closed the distance and waited for them to teleport, striking them as they reappeared. A good technique, and one which nullified the only real asset of the Taken Thrall. They were flimsy creatures, and a single hit was enough to dispatch them.

Drifter felt his Scroll—the one kept hidden inside his robe—buzz. He checked that Jaune was still occupied with the fight, and stepped away from the clearing to answer it.

The screen flashed, "Unknown Caller."

He grinned, knowing who it was. "How's it going?" he asked as he answered.

A snort came from the other side. "I dropped the file off with Hei."

"Good, lookin' forward to reading through it."

"I held up my end, so we're done now."

"Offer's still open, Roman. Once in a lifetime chance."

There was silence on the other end, then a click.

He shook his head and pocketed the Scroll. Torchwick was a survivor, someone who would take any side. Drifter liked that in a person. He'd been unable to convince the man on his offer, however. Torchwick believed his boss, whoever that was, was still more powerful than Drifter. People like Torchwick would soon realize there was another power in Vale, though for them it might be too late.

Drifter ducked under a branch as he stepped back into the clearing. Jaune was on the ground, panting and covered in dark ashes from the slain Taken.

"You took 'em all out, good work!" Drifter called out.

"Thanks," Jaune puffed. "Those things were hard to hit."

Drifter laughed. "You got the hang of it pretty quickly. We've been out here for a while though, gotta head back to Beacon now."

Jaune stood with a grunt and nodded. "When's the next time?"

"I'll let you know," Drifter replied as he began walking back.

Jaune hurried to catch up. "Will fighting those really make me stronger?"

"No." Drifter looked over and gave him a hard look. "Honestly? They should be nothing to you. You're not strong enough for the real deal yet."

"Oh, I—" Jaune looked away. "I see."

"Everyone starts somewhere, no shame in that. You've got potential. If you stick with me, I'll make you powerful."

"I will," came the immediate reply. "I need to get stronger."

"Hah, and you will," Drifter said with a grin. "I'll have something good for next time."

After returning to Beacon, the two parted ways. Drifter turned towards the air docks—there was a package in Vale that needed his attention.

Sitting alone in the back room of The Club, Drifter flipped through the files Torchwick had provided. It was less information than he was hoping for, but it was better than nothing.

Most of it was useless: locations of the White Fang that he already knew of, Dust shops that were already hit, and so on. If Roman had planned for the information to present an incomplete picture—which he likely had—he'd done a good job of it.

It at least contained the name of his boss, Cinder Fall. It was something new, at least, but not immediately useful to Drifter. With no pictures or additional information, it could be an alias for all he knew.

The door cracked open. "Everything good?" Junior asked.

Drifter tossed the Scroll over. "Do me a favor brother, have your men listen out for any mention of her, will ya?"

"Who's this?" Junior asked with a raised brow.

"The one that's got Roman and the Fang under her thumb."

Junior's eyes widened slightly. He looked down at the Scroll, stroking his beard in thought. "She's the one? Hm, would've been nice to have a picture. Still," he continued, "if she's in the city, we outta be able to find something. Assuming she's using this name, of course."

"That's what I was thinking too," Drifter said with a sigh. He leaned against the wall and flipped a coin. "Gotta assume Torchwick wasn't lying."

"He's been quieter than usual, it'd be hard to find him again. You sure shook him up."

"Just had to give him a little push," Drifter said with a shrug. "Rest of the information's good, so that's something."

"All right Wu, I'll let you know if I hear anything," Junior said, turning back towards the door. "Mind if I keep this info on the White Fang?"

"All yours. Something up?"

Junior frowned. "They've been getting more aggressive in our area. If they keep this up, we'll have no choice but to fight back."

"Sure thing, brother. Let me know if you need anymore guns," Drifter added with a grin.

The days turned into weeks, and life at Beacon progressed. The Dust robberies continued and the White Fang presence increased. With Junior's help, Drifter outlined the general locations, strongholds, and movements of the White Fang in the city. They were getting bolder, not only pushing away local gangs but also openly recruiting from the Faunus population.

They'd still been unable to get any leads on Cinder Fall. Aside from the growing White Fang presence and scattered Dust robberies, there was no sign of the greater operation.

Yang had not yet given him a reply. Perhaps she had decided against it, or perhaps she was busy with other things. He hadn't seen Team RWBY since their first Gambit game, as all the other first-year teams were to play before any team played a second time. It was only fair they all have an equal chance to learn, Glynda had told him.

A valid point, perhaps, but none of the other teams' games were as entertaining. Nevertheless, they collected plenty of Motes, and that's all he needed.

Jaune's training had progressed as well. He proved himself to be a quick learner and since lost his meekness against the Taken. He even fought a Taken Captain, holding his own for several minutes before Drifter had to intervene.

The students would be busy with their end of semester field trip soon. Drifter decided now was the time to give Jaune a taste of what the Darkness offered—a power boost from a Mote. Similar to that which an Invader received in Gambit, but more potent.

"Hey there hotshot, how's it going?"

"Fine," Jaune replied. The bags under his eyes and tired look said otherwise.

Drifter raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"

"Yeah, just some school stuff," Jaune said with a sigh. "But it's nothing, I'm ready to work," he added with a smile.

"Actually, I've got no work for you today. Got some special training," Drifter said.

Jaune perked up. "Really? What kind?"

Drifter walked over to a nearby rock and sat down, gesturing for Jaune to join him. As the boy sat, he looked Jaune in the eyes. "Dangerous kind. If you want to walk away, now's the time."

Jaune flinched. "Why would I do that? Do you think I can't handle it?"

"I don't doubt your ability," Drifter said, shaking his head. "Wouldn't even be offering if I did. It's rough stuff, though. Worst case? Could kill you."

"It could kill me?" Jaune repeated quietly.

"No shame in backing out," Drifter said. "But if you want power, this is how."

Jaune looked away, staring into the distance. Emotion flitted across his face. He balled his hands into fists and inhaled sharply.

"I'll do it."

"You sure?"

"I've gotten better, but it's not enough. I'm still too weak. Even my partner—" he sighed. "Even my partner thinks I need their help. What kind of leader needs their team to take care of them?!"

"Hah, you remind me of myself. Independent. Ambitious. All right brother, if you're ready for this, let's get started." Drifter sprang off the rock and dusted off his robes.

Jaune slowly stood up after him. "So, what now?"

Drifter's brow furrowed in concentration as he pulled a Mote into his hand. The ones used for empowering and summoning were much smaller and denser than their Gambit counterparts. Being compressed forms, they held much more energy as well.

"Take this. Let it merge with your Aura," he said, holding it out.

Jaune tentatively grabbed it. "A tiny Mote? What is this?" he asked.

"Salvation."

"Huh?" Jaune gave Drifter a quizzical look. He held the Mote up, looking it over. It seemed to hum—no, whisper, with power. It tingled in his hand, like the entire surface was electrified. It softly hummed with energy and whispered promises of power.

His fist closed around it, and the Mote yielded. Like crushing the wall of a dam, the energy within surged outwards and into his palm. Jaune gave a startled gasp as he felt the power expand in his hand, threating a violent eruption.

"Careful," Drifter warned. "Embrace it. Don't fight it."

The power clashed against his Aura, the two forces vying for control. And then Jaune relaxed, and the forces stilled. It was a slick, slimy feeling as the power washed across his Aura, leaving an indescribable taint. He felt strength well up within him. How could he have been so naïve? He was not a pretender in need of help—he was Jaune Arc! He would become the most powerful Huntsman in Remnant.

Drifter narrowed his eyes as he watched the Mote diffuse into Jaune. He worried the process might go awry, but that was not the case. The Mote merged well with the large Aura, creating a potent mix.

"All right, let's get started," Drifter announced. Another Mote formed in his hand and winked out of existence with a snap of his fingers. "Taken inbound!"

Jaune sprang backwards from the portal that formed in front of him. A massive Taken Captain emerged in black flames, roaring and brandishing its lethal shock blades.

Crocea Mors sprang out in an instant—with no hesitation, Jaune charged the monster. It fired a blast of dark energy at him, but he jumped to the side and let the attack roll past him. He raised his sword and lunged at the Taken. It swung its blades down on him, but Jaune spun and they slid harmlessly against his shield.

He delivered a ferocious blow powered by his momentum to the monster's head, knocking it to the side. The side of his shield followed as he struck with all his might. Another cut from his sword found its mark, and the Taken howled and stumbled backwards as its shield shattered.

The Taken Captain unleashed a storm of attacks with its blade. Jaune let them fall upon his shield, the few that got through doing little to harm his reinforced Aura.

The monster may have thought itself strong, but he realized its power was a flicker compared to that which he now held. Despite this, the blows kept coming, and he felt his heels dig into the soft dirt. The monster would never stop the futile assault, he realized—it was a single-minded creature, only knowing violence and brute force, and ignorant anything greater.

"Cardin," he growled.

Finally, he had his chance. Jaune gave a roar of his own as he plunged his sword into the monster, and the Taken screeched as its body shattered and melted away.

The dark aura that had surrounded Jaune faded away too, and he took a few shaky steps away. He looked from his sword to the fading remains, and back again, as if to confirm he really did it. He killed a Taken Capitan by himself, with no help from Drifter.

"Woo! You wake up pissed today or something? I like it!" Drifter shouted.

Jaune gave a half-smile through his exhaustion before he collapsed.

"Move, let me through!"

"Miss you can't—"

"I said move!"

Yang roughly shoved the man out of the way and stormed through. Behind her, Weiss jogged to catch up.

Vehicles with flashing lights surrounded the burning warehouse as emergency responders hurried about the scene. Ahead in the open lot, several people were moving a stretcher to the back of an Air Bus. Her heart raced at the sight of scorched, red fabric.

She ran up and her breath hitched. "Ruby…"

"Hey sis," Ruby whispered. Bloodstained bandages pressed against her body and small rips and burns covered her clothes. Despite that, the girl gave Yang a faint smile.

"She'll be fine," a nearby paramedic spoke up. "Shot pierced her Aura, but only grazed her. She was lucky," he explained.

Yang grabbed Ruby's hand. Hot tears trickled down her face, but she sighed. "I'm glad you're ok."

Ruby laughed weakly. "It'll take more than that to take down the leader of team RWBY."

"We need to get going," the paramedic cut in. "Day or two in the hospital and her Aura will do the rest."

"I'll come visit as soon as I can," Yang said. Ruby nodded and closed her eyes as they loaded her into the back. Yang stepped away as the engines roared to life, and the Air Bus took off into the city.

She heard shuffling behind her and turned.

"Blake! Are you hurt?"

Blake stood next to her, bandages covering her midsection and her signature bow missing.

"No, I'm fine." Blake's ears splayed. "I-I'm sorry Yang, this is my fault. I didn't know Ruby was there, and I didn't think and just rushed in and started this fight with Torchwick and the White Fang," she rambled.

Yang clenched her fist at the mention of Torchwick. "No, it's their fault. Not yours."

"It is!" Blake insisted, wiping her eyes. "If I hadn't run away, tried to hide, she never would've been in Vale—"

Yang grabbed her partner's shoulders. "Blake! It's not your fault, ok?" She smiled through gritted teeth.

"Right…" Blake gave a small nod. She saw Weiss approaching and shied away.

"Blake," Weiss said sharply.

"Weiss, I—"

"Nope! I don't care."

"You don't care?"

"Whatever you had to do with the White Fang, you're not a part of them anymore, right?"

Blake nodded.

"Then I don't care. Next time there's something this big this, though, come to us first. Ok?"

"Of course," Blake said, wiping her eyes.

The three girls fell into silence as they looked around at the scene.

"I-I need to go," Yang spoke up as she broke away from them. "Gotta check on Ruby."

"Wait!" Weiss called. "First, we should inform Professor Oz—" she stopped at the flicker of red in Yang's eyes. "But Blake and I can handle that ourselves."

"Yeah," Blake said. "Let us know how Ruby is."

Yang gave a terse nod and turned, jogging in the hospital's direction. Even on foot, the trip wouldn't take long. She took a few breaths, trying to calm herself as she ran.

The life of a Huntress was dangerous, and she knew that well. Still, she hadn't expected to see Ruby hurt. Not so soon. Never had she seen her younger sister, always so full of life, look so weak.

Yang recalled the paramedic's words. "She was lucky." The other, unspoken half echoed in her mind: "It could have been so much worse."

Her breathing quickened as she increased her pace. A traitorous voice in her head asked, why was she even running? What help could she possibly be there? She didn't even help Ruby in the fight.

"I've always got your back, sis."

ANs:

Questions & Comments:

1. "What if the Drifter wins Jaune over by showing him the power he can have..."

You guessed it!

2. "I wonder who is stealing weapons from Drifter. That can't be good. I wonder is Drifter is going to try and retrieve them?"

Indeed it is not good. He could try to retrieve them, but really they've already been sold to Junior, so they're his property now.

3. "Where does Drifter sit on terms of power compared to everyone else? Could he beat Roman but fall against Cinder or could he easily decimate both?"

Drifter is a formidable force with his Taken, weapons, and Light powers. It would certainly be difficult to fight against him without enough firepower & a numbers advantage.

4. "If only the chapters themselves are longer, you've been keeping me on the edge of my seat for the past weeks. Since RWBY successfully defeated a Taken Chimera, does that mean they're eligible to start to work on getting Malfeasance? ;)"

Haha, I've been working on lengthening the chapters! Because of time constraints, though, I have to keep the update schedule at a chapter ever 1-2 weeks. And no, they won't be getting anything like Malfeasance. (Yet?)