Sorry for the shortened last chapter. This chappie will be fun.
Base on the Vanguard's Tomb.
A team of exploration excavators traverse the cave of the Vanguard's tomb.
"Recess-1, take the left corridor." The squad-leader says. The group splits off. "Remember, we have orders to explore these caves, to try to find the nest that Necros thing came from."
"Roger." The team says. Recess-1 grumbles to himself.
"I didn't wanna come to this freak place." He says, before stumbling over a rock. "It's unnatural." The cave grows pitch-black, and the explorer stumbles with his flashlight. Little did he know that he had long since left the Dead Zone, the caves stretching for miles underneath the Wall. He flicks on the flashlight just as he trips over another rock. His flashlight falls from his hand and falls into a deep pit below. The cave is flooded with a demonic red light. Recess-1 stares in horror as a giant Grimm's eye's open, the yellow iris's staring directly at him. A black mist surrounds him, and the man screams in pain as the parasites painfully take over his mind while the Necros roars in defiance.
-Beacon Academy, five hours later.-
Shade was overseeing RWBY sparring with each-other. Yang was teaching Ruby hand-to-hand combat techniques while Weiss was practicing on fighting a fast target like Blake. He glances down to a stopwatch he had.
"And time!" The Scout shouts, and the four still. "Good work you four." He tosses the four water bottles. "Take a breather while I debrief you." The four collapse on the ground, and Shade grins.
"First of all, good job Ruby. You're picking this up faster than I expected. A few more lessons and then all you'd need is some experience. I'd suggest talking to Ren for further training suitable to your body-type." Shade says, and Ruby grins happily. "Weiss, your reaction times have improved, probably something you've picked up from Ruby and Blake. Your casting time is also much faster, so keep it up. Blake, you're doing good on stamina, work with Yang tomorrow on some power moves. Yang, you're good on strength, but work with Blake on speed." The group nods.
"Shade!" Winter's voice cuts through the forest. The Iron Lord instantly is alert.
"Yes?" The Scout asks, alert and ready.
"We have a situation. Report to Ozpin's office now." The elder Schnee says, and Shade breaks off into a sprint after her.
"RWBY, you're dismissed!" The Iron Lord says, fading from view. The two make their way into the CCT tower and catch their breath in the elevator. "What's the situation?" He asks as soon as the doors open. He ignored the presence of Qrow the reaper, and stares directly at Ozpin.
"Our base in the Dead Zone has come under attack." Ironwood says, as a holographic image of the burning base appears. "Initial reports state that the base was flooded with a black mist, and then people started screaming in pain. A few moments later those people turned on their comrades."
"That sounds like…." Shade whispers.
"Survivors say that there was a turtle-like grim in the mouth of the cave." Ironwood continues.
"A Necros." Shade says, his eyes narrowing. "How sure are we on this?"
"One hundred percent." Ironwood says. "The caves stretch outside the Dead Zone, so we can't locate the Necros."
"Mr. Kurogane." Ozpin says. "I'm assigning this to you, at Ironwood's discretion." James nods. "What do you need?"
"I want a small team, no more than six." He says. "Iron Lords generally operate in teams of three or six. I need a Dust-mage, perhaps two. A heavy fighter, and two more speed types.
"I'll volunteer," Winter says, and Ironwood raises an eyebrow. "Shade has become a good friend of my sister, and I wish to help him in return." James nods.
"Very well then." The general says. Winter nods.
"I'll go." Taiyang says. "This guy is training my girls, I want to see his skills." Shade grins slightly at the man. Ozpin nods.
"I'll go." Goodwitch states. Nothing was said after that, and nothing was needed to.
"If we're considering this kid, I need to see his skills as well." Qrow speaks. "I'll go."
"Thank you Mr. Branwen." Shade says. Qrow grunts, taking a swig.
"As much as Ozpin and I would like to assist, we cannot abandon our students, especially when the assignments approaching." James sighs. Qrow thinks for a second.
"I may… have someone. You'd need to come with me to meet her but maybe she'll help us." The reaper says. "I can't say for certain, and she may just try to kill you on sight, she's…. not the most pleasant of people."
"Who do you have in mind?" Shade asks.
"My sister and Yang's mother." Qrow says, his red eyes glinting. "Raven Branwen." A sharp intake of breath fills the room. Shade narrows his eyes.
"Why would Tribe Leader Raven help us, especially after she abandoned the huntsmen world?" The Iron Lord asks. Qrow shrugs.
"Raven may act otherwise, but she cares for this world." Qrow says, "If a Necros breaks out of the Dead Zone, it could endanger her tribe, but also give the queen a powerful pawn." Shade nods.
"How long will it take to get in contact with her?" The scout asks.
"Shouldn't take too long, day or two before student job assignments at most." The reaper says.
"I don't want to order you around, but get to it." Shade says. "I need to know if she will help ASAP, so we can devise strategies and get her the proper information." Qrow nods. "Taiyang, Goodwitch, Winter, could I ask you to start taking solo jobs to shake off any rust? I want everyone at peak condition. Goodwitch, I'll have to ask you to brush up on your shooting skills, since we'll have to enter through the Deadzone, your Dust-Spells will be useless for a bit." The three nod, and set off. Shade stays behind to speak to Ironwood and Ozpin. "I'll have to ask one thing."
"Name it then." Ozpin says.
"If we fail, level that place with enough WMDs to destroy the entire kingdom and then some." The scout says. "If we are about to fail, I'll activate a high powered transponder pinpointing the Necros's location. Level it." Ironwood sighs, but nods. "And if I die, make sure RWBY is well trained, no matter costs." Ozpin nods after that. Shade nods, and moves to leave.
"Shade?" Ruby's voice asks once the elevator doors open. "Is everything alright?"
"For now Ruby." The Iron Lord sighs. "Just some things from the past. I have a mission in a few days. Just need to get the team. And it needs to be professional huntsmen this time around." RWBY sighs.
"Very well." Weiss says. "Just be careful." The Scout nods with a grin.
"I will. I'm gonna stop by the infirmary. Movie night at seven?" Shade asks. Yang nods. He grins and makes his way to the infirmary. A few minutes later he enters the ward, giving a friendly smile to the nurse on duty. He enters the room housing Luna Starlight, his mentor. He says nothing, taking a seat next to the bed as he studies the monitor watching her vitals. Her aura was still dangerously low, but had a slight increase from when she had been first put on the monitor.
"Hey sis." The younger scout says. "Just stopping by. Wanted to check in on you. I'll make sure to stop by to see Kuroka and Celestia in a second." The teen takes a deep breath, steadying his emotions less he break out into tears. "That...thing is still alive. The thing that did this to you. This time... this time I'm gonna make sure it stays dead, no matter the cost. I promise you that." He grabs his surrogate sister's hand and squeezes slightly, before moving out of the room to visit the other two vanguards. Had he stayed longer, he'd see a sudden spike Luna's aura levels, and the hand he had held twitch slightly, before curling into a fist.
Shade's visit to the Vanguard didn't last much longer, and he quickly made his way to RWBY's dorm room once seven o'clock struck. Entering he saw that an entire wall had been cleared. Blake and Yang's beds being moved to the other side by the bathroom door. Ruby had reenforced her bed to hold more than one person, and Weiss and Pyrrha were talking to each other while Ruby and Nora talked on the reaper's bed. Jaune was leaning against the side of Weiss's bed while Ren had taken a spot next to his leader. Sun had taken the top of the desk. Neptune was in the desk's chair. Yang was lounging on her stomach, taking up her whole bed. Blake was sitting against the headrest, leaning on the wall, leaving enough space for Shade to slide in beside her. He did so, and the amber-eyed girl smiles softly as Jaune stands to start the projector.
"How was everyone's day?" The Iron Lord asks as Ruby jumps down to help Jaune set the equipment up.
"I found out the rest of our team got held back for grades..." Neptune sighs. Sun shrugs.
"It's cool though. Lionheart has been working with Ozpin and Ironwood to create an international team. Since I'm from Vacuo we already have two kingdoms represented." The monkey says. "You wanna join?"
"I'll speak to Ozpin, sounds fun." Sun and Neptune cheer. "I will forwarn you, however, that I will only use Forgotten Night if this goes through." The two pout. While the Iron Lord's skill with his Glaive is well above the level of the other students, his skill with his sniper rifle But Not Forgotten was legendary. Shade was known to use that rifle as a shotgun, and was quite frightening while doing so. "How about everyone else?"
"JNPR had fun today." Jaune pipes up. "We trained a bit before we broke off to do our own thing. Pyrrha and I hung out." Pyrrha lightly blushes, and Shade smirks.
"Well, after you rushed out, we caught our breath and waited for you." Weiss says, "I met Qrow, the vagabond my sister rants about." The heiress had an uncharacteristic smirk upon saying that. "I like him, he riles up Winter far better that I could ever hope."
"Yeah Shade, why did you rush out so fast?" Yang's head appears upside down, staring at her friend.
"There was a situation." Shade sighs. "I'll tell you, but you all cannot do anything about it, understood?" Everyone nods. "Apparently, that Necros the Lords fought isn't dead, and the Military base in the Dead Zone was wiped out by it." The room is filled with gasps. "I'm getting a team of pros to take it down."
"Who's in the team?" Weiss asks.
"Your sister, Winter. Glynda Goodwitch, Taiyang Xiao-Long, Qrow Branwen, myself, and..." Shade trails off.
"And?" Yang prompts.
"This one isn't definite, but there's a good possibility of getting Raven Branwen to join." Shade says, looking directly into Yang's eyes. The blonde's eyes turn red momentarily, but the lessons Shade had taught her in controlling her emotions kick in and the eyes return to their violet color. "I know her connection with you, and I'll be sure to bring it up with her if I can contact her."
"Very well." Yang nods, sighing. "So.. What's the movie?"
"The Greatest Showman." Weiss says, and the room votes in their agreement. Shade blinks.
"I've never heard of it." He says.
"It came out while you were away." The Heiress says. The Iron Lord nods. Ruby presses play and rejoins Nora on her bed. "You'll like the music." Shade huffs in amusement. The night was filled with the sound of music and the group singing along.
JNPR had left soon after the movie, Sun and Neptune not far behind. RWBY had settled down for the night and were now going through the motions. Shade and Blake were reading a book entitled The Maze Runner, something Shade had taken a liking to. The two readers were humming to a score from the movie, a song that Weiss said was called From Now On, one of the more inspirational songs from the movie. Weiss had impressed everyone with her singing talent, which wasn't actually that surprising. Neptune was a little off key but everyone had stayed in range for most of the songs. Shade was the biggest surprise, sounding much like the leading star, *Hue Jackman. Weiss had forced him to promise that the two of them will compose something and that she would find the full extent of his musical abilities. Shade had shrugged, not really caring for a skill he never developed.
While Shade and Blake red, Yang had fallen asleep, Weiss was removing her makeup, and Ruby was studying. She would occasionally call over to the two bookworms or her partner for help if she needed it. Another hour later had Ruby falling asleep, and Weiss struggling to stay awake. Blake was also nodding off and Shade had decided to call it a night. RWBY was asleep moments after he left. He was walking to his dorm when he runs into the three people he didn't want to.
"Oh? Pardon us." Cinder Fall says, her golden eyes holding a calculating glint. Shand grunts and moves begins to move along. "I thought there was a curfew?"
"And I thought visiting student dorms are on the opposite side of the campus." The Scout grunts, not turning around. "Rather far off from where you're supposed to, ain't ya?"
"We got turned around." Mercury says with a smug grin.
"Then you should find yourselves a map before you're punished for being in a restricted area after curfew." Shade says, moving on. "Welcome to the world of Huntsmen, where you need to be situationally aware, and know where the hell you're going. Get your act together." Mercury's grin turns into a scowl, and he moves toward Shade, but Cinder holds him back. Shade instantly hears a sound akin to the drawing of the blade, before the sound around him disappears completely. The Iron Lord instantly is on edge, as the three Haven students weren't in the same order as he remembered. Emerald and Mercury flanking Cinder. Instead, only Cinder remained, and she was speaking, but her voice was distorted. Shaking his head, he brings up his hand, and punches himself across his face. The sounds of Cardin's snoring fill the air, and he looks up at the three, noting Emerald's shocked face. "Well, that was interesting. Illusion type semblance... Very useful. Though it would be ineffective against someone like me. Try a bit harder next time sweetheart." Emerald scowls. "Now I'd recommend that you three run along now, don't wanna get in trouble." Cinder frowns, and the three move down the hall. Shade scoffs, and moves to his room. He opens the door to find Qrow there.
"Hey punk." The reaper says, Shade grunts. "Seems like you had fun out there."
"You saw there profiles, were these the ones that attacked Amber?" The Scout asks. Qrow nods.
"I couldn't see Fall's face, but that Emerald chick was there." The elder reaper says. Shade nods.
"Emerald has an Illusion type semblance. She just used it on me." The Iron Lord says.
"How did you know?" Qrow asks, his eyes growing serious.
"You'll hear a sound akin to metal being drawn, and then all sound disappears. You'll need to do a physical cognitive calibration, or probably destroy the Illusion. I don't think it would work one someone knows what it is." Shade says. Qrow nods. "Have you contacted the black-bird?" Qrow nods.
"She'll meet with us the day after the ball." The elder man says. Shade groans in realization.
"I need to get a date..." He says. Qrow chuckles, and takes a swig. The elder reaper stands and moves to the door.
"Best get onto that kid." He says, before walking out the door. Shade groans, before falling onto the bed and falling asleep.
A/N: Okay! There we go.
I put a little * by the name Hue Jackman because I know it doesn't exactly follow the naming rule. Hue is another word for color, and I wanted to keep the name similar so meh.
I don't care if anyone doesn't like The Greatest Showman or the book, The Maze Runner. I do, and that's why they were mentioned.
Since no one gave me their opinion of Team SSSN being an international team, I'm doing it. We have: Sun, Shade, (Oc from Atlas whose name starts with an S), and Neptune. I'll need an OC that has a first or last name starting with S, and they need to be from Atlas. If y'all have an OC, please PM me. I will not accept Guest OCs because I cannot clarify things if something isn't clear. I will reserve the right to reject your OC, and I will say why, I can guarantee it wouldn't be because I hate the OC or the person, but I have to think about the overall team dynamic for SSSN. If I don't get any OCs, I guess I'll make one myself as a last resort, which I can guarantee they wouldn't be as thought out as Shade due to how quickly I need to make them. I'm not going to give you a format. If I need anything more I'll say it. I will say one thing thought, Semblance. A semblance MUST have some sort of limit: energy, power, or time. A semblance cannot be all powerful. I don't like mental semblances like Emeralds but meh. No animal transformation semblances as well. If I see a flaw I'll talk with ya about it.
Now, before y'all jump on my case about Raven, or the raid team in general, I have one thing to say. Deal with it. I've already screwed over the world in this AU. Winter and Glynda are a good pick because of their talents and abilities. Winter needed more screen time tbh and Glynda was kinda just stuck on clean up duty for the show. Qrow is a must because he field scout skills will allow him to track things down. Taiyang was an iffy at first, but since there isn't another adult, tank-class character that ins't a teacher at Beacon or a headmaster, I had to go with him. Raven was something I've been planning since Chapter 1. Throughout season 5 Raven's been passive aggressive. You can tell she does care for her family, Qrow, Taiyang, Yang, and even Ruby to an extent. I'm gonna build on that.
Raven is a fun character because of the actions she's done. And with the revelation of her ability in S5 EP10, it makes sense why she had left her family behind to lead a nomad tribe of bandits. Makes it hard for people to track her, or so she thought.
Besides, if Salem got control of a Necros, it would cause problems for everyone, including Raven's tribe, if you can't accept anything about my choice to use Raven, accept that.