Editorial Note:
Within the following day, Professors Ozpin and Goodwitch and General Ironwood were gathered in the Headmaster's office to discuss the previous day's attack shortly before the freshmen were gathered for their first mission. Ruby was also summoned to the meeting to inform them of what she witnessed during that incident.
The Ozpin Logs: Beacon Tower Raid: The Morning After
It appears that in the midst of the first year's dance night, the communications floor of the Beacon Tower was raided by an agent of Salem. James immediately notified us when he witnessed the detriments of the building and the unconscious bodies of the security officers that were under his command.
Furthermore, he also witnessed a certain prodigy at the scene when he arrived when she was supposed to be enjoying the night with the rest of her classmates. She claimed that she confronted a hostile infiltrator who managed to escape prior to James's arrival at the scene. Of course, since Ruby Rose had no reason to attack James's men and the recovered security footage proved her claims, it was unwise not to believe her. I admit, Beacon's security both in and out currently leaves a lot to desire, but it should be noted that Salem chooses her henchmen very wisely and carefully, so even if our fortifications were more adequate, they would have still found a way to get through.
We decided to discuss the incident first thing the following morning. It was dead of the night and everyone needed some rest after investigating the commotion for a short period. Once the sun rose, James, Glynda, and I convened at my office to put yesterday's attack into discussion. I also invited Miss Rose to provide us with her eyewitness accounts.
Being a step forward for Salem's plans, it instigated James's misguided paranoia as usual. They were here..." He muttered before furiously slamming against my desk. "Ozpin, they were here!"
"We're very much aware of that! Thank you, James," Glynda replied.
"Fantastic! You're aware! Now are we going to do something about it or should we just stay the course and continue to ignore what's right in front of us?!" He yelled when a signal came from the entrance, prompting me to open my office door.
"Come in," I said.
"Ah! Sorry, it took so long," Miss Rose emerged from the entrance. "Someone accidentally hit all the buttons on the elevator on the way up here… It wasn't me."
"Thank you for coming, Ruby. How are you feeling?" I asked, needing to know what state she was in following that attack that she herself witnessed.
"Okay, I guess. I'd feel better if my bad-guy-catching record wasn't oh-for-three," she answered cheerfully but with noticeable trepidation in her voice. She then made a faint chuckle before seeing all of our unamused expressions. "Okay, so that's the tone we're going for, got it."
"Ruby, I feel it's appropriate to let you know that I think what you did last night is exactly what being a Huntress is all about," James walked towards her and held her shoulder. "You recognised a threat. You took action. And you did the very best you could."
"Thank you, sir."
It was pleasing to know that despite his flaws, James proved that Atlesian military officials can be reasonable, not many authority figures are willing to hear what their subordinates have to say. If only he could put trust more in individuals more suited to protecting the world than those who possess no destiny to speak of.
"Now, the general here has already informed us of the events that transpired last night," I said. "But now that you've rested, we were wondering if you had anything to add."
"Was anyone else with her?" Glynda stepped in. "Did she look familiar to you at all?"
"I...I don't know. She was wearing a mask, and she never said anything to me. But I know she fought with glass [1]. I don't think that was her semblance, though. Her clothing lit up whenever she attacked." she answered, hence bringing us the mysterious figure on the Bullhead during our initial meetings with Miss Rose.
"Save for the glass, that sounds like the woman I fought the night we met Ruby." Glynda pointed out.
James was rather sceptical, however. "Imbedding Dust into clothing is an age-old technique. It could have been anyone."
"Wait. You think this girl is connected to Torchwick and the White Fang?" Ruby asked.
There was a short pause for a moment. While I am not going to deny the possibility as Salem is known for using proxies and scapegoats for her schemes, it is yet to be confirmed that those criminals have any sort of connection to her and her inner circle. "It's possible. But we still lack the required evidence to link the two together."
"Actually, I-I think I remember her saying something about a hideout or something… in the southeast. Just outside the Kingdom."
Although it did contradict her claim that the assailant did not mouth off a single word for her, I cannot be helped but be intrigued by her statement. Southeast outside Vale? That is where Quadrant 5 is located, the region containing Mountain Glenn. "Interesting."
"I thought you said the intruder never—" Glynda attempted to point out before I interjected.
"Thank you for your co-operation, Ruby. Why don't you go and spend some time with your team? You have a big day ahead of you."
"Any time," she smiled before making her way to the exit.
"And Miss Rose…" I called her out before she was able to leave. "Please try and be... discreet about this matter."
"Yes, sir." She nodded and left immediately.
Once she was no longer on the premises, Glynda and James turned back and faced me. "Well, there we have it. We send as many troops as we can to the southeast, find out exactly what's going on, and eradicate any forces that stand in our way." James proposed.
"Why must your answer to everything involve a triumphant display of military bravado!?" Glynda huffed. "You treat every situation like it's a contest of measuring di—!"
"Glynda!" I raised my arm and cut her off amid her sentence before she could induce her unprofessional and unladylike vulgarity, which is especially unbearable when she is influenced by alcohol during a certain special day.
"Well, he does." she hissed, which I cannot deny. Despite his best intention, James can be very reckless. Even if he was not wrong, regular humans have no place in a Huntsman's business, I have known that fact for far too long now and we are not to be denied of our duty.
"She's right. As much as I too would love to end this situation once and for all, we must remember that this may go beyond Vale; Beyond Beacon. And if this truly is part of some master plan for which we know not the final move, we mustn't be so bold. Nor can we risk the spread of panic."
"I have served you faithfully for years..." James uttered. "But if you mean to tell me that your plan is to hold the defences, and wait—!"
"It is not!" I asserted, standing from my chair. "You're a general, James. So tell me, when you prepare to go to war, which do you send in first? The flag bearers, or the scouts?"
He sighed and crossed his arms. "Are we going through this again? Even if I do send in my own scouts, I know you would still insist that they would be nothing more than rabble that can neither be trusted nor counted on. I'm guessing you want one of your Huntsmen to investigate the scene?"
"That is correct. Because today is the day when the first-years are available to receive their first missions. In a stretch of coincidence, there is a mission at Quadrant 5 that is yet to be accomplished, the same region where the Southeast outside of Vale is located. And I know a team suited for the job, and you wouldn't need to risk the lives of any of your feeble lackeys, you should be thankful for that." I smirked as he glared at me with indignation.
James and I had always had conflicts over non-Huntsman combatants, he placed too much trust over them when I knew better. They have done nothing but disappoint and die around me for all these years I was convinced that they have no place in our sacred mission other than to be protected. A Huntsman already exists to do things that an ordinary man cannot do, and it infuriates me to no end that some are attempting to undermine that, including James. Nevertheless, he is still a good ally in this war against Salem, if only he could see the truth in this.
"But isn't that mission restricted to upperclassmen?" Glynda reminded.
"I'll be taking advantage of a loophole within the school's system," I said with an affirming nod. "I know that this mission is dangerous for freshmen, but it is not ordinary freshmen I will be sending."
Glynda puffed. She already knew which team I was referring to as they made spectacular performances in her class. "Wouldn't we be violating protocol?"
"Remember who you are talking to, Glynda." I firmly reminded her. "As you know, I have done far worse deeds in the past to meet ends. And being the headmaster, the rules I made and dictate cannot be above me. I'll change them for myself if I have to."
"I only hope you know what you're doing."
"I'll agree with your proposal for now." James conceded but his demeanor remained stern. "But remember, just because you are putting your trust in talented students, it does not change the fact that you are gambling the fate of the world with the lives of children. Pray that this does not go out of control, Ozpin. We've already lost many lives because of this war."
Both of them gave me doubtful expressions, but despite this, they knew that all they could do was comply. "I can assure you. Neither of you would be disappointed."
Nor would they disappoint me. So Salem thinks she made some progress, doesn't she? Well, it is time to make ourselves even then.
=o=
1. While it's possible to create glass through dust—specifically fire dust, the investigatory report of the attack actually indicates that the infiltrator used ice dust, which was proven after it melted minutes after.
To Survive and Prosper
CHAPTER 12
As much as I want to deny it but unfortunately today's the day every blood-thirsty student was looking forward to. It had been bugging me since the moment the dance was over, being the first thought that came to me even before I heard my alarm and woke up. I even had a dream of it, one that I have trouble recalling how it goes. I wonder why they made our first mission take place immediately after a party that could end with us getting too exhausted to take a mission the following morning. It just didn't make sense, not even aura was going to get all that energy back in one night. [1]
I went to the bathroom to clean myself up. I washed my face before gazing at my reflection in the mirror and convinced myself to relax and that I have formidable teammates that have been preparing with me for this moment, and I didn't necessarily have to pick something particularly risky. First missions are usually made to be tame for us freshmen who are barely old enough to drink. Not to mention I heard that some experienced Huntsmen would be accompanying us so there wasn't much to worry about.
After leaving the bathroom to take my breakfast, I went for a round of tanna and florn cakes. While I was trying to enjoy my drink, I almost spilled it when I heard Nora suddenly scream when she learned that her box of pancake mix was empty. I glanced to my side and saw Ren rubbing his belly with a satisfied look. He immediately stood upright and changed his expression back to its usual stoicism when he noticed me staring at him. Unfortunately for our friend, if Nora's face was any indication, she wasn't buying any of it.
So this is how they both start this morning after their totally-platonic night together and even winning the award for Best Couple. Thankfully, I was done eating before things got heated between the two. It wasn't any of my business anyway, the only thing I ask was that this wouldn't affect their performance for our mission.
I immediately went to pack my bags for the journey ahead of me. We plan to travel light, so we only carry what we need; it would be a pain in the ass to carry a stockpile of items while hunting for Grimm on a glorified errand that could last for days depending on how unfortunately long our assignment ends up becoming.
I gazed away from my bag for a moment and looked at Pyrrha, she looked at me back and sported a blush at me, remembering the wonderful night we had recently. "Good morning." I greeted her.
"Good morning…" she replied sheepishly, glancing back at her bag for a moment
"So… big day ahead of us, huh?" I said while I was in the process of organizing my bag.
"Indeed it is," she nodded before giving a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, we'll be right behind you.
I brightened up knowing that my teammates are still down with me, even though I still intend to use them to carry me out of unwanted trouble.
I zipped my bag closed and stood up. "Alright, is everyone all set?"
"I'm ready," Pyrrha stepped in, now wearing her sling bag.
"We're all geared up and ready to go!" Nora said, looking like she's finally cheered up, though she's noticeably infuriated at Ren for eating her last batch of pancakes.
"Will all first-year students please report the amphitheater?" Miss Goodwitch's voice announced on the dorm building's P.A. for everyone to hear.
"That's our cue," I led my team out of the dorms and navigated our way out of the residence hall.
"Hey guys, is it just me, or do you guys hear barking?" Nora randomly asked while we were walking down the hallway before making a shrug. "Eh, it's probably just me."
"Speaking of animal noises, you guys still remember our codes, right?" I reminded them.
"Yes, we do." Ren nodded. "Everything's the same, but if you haven't heard by now, my team attack with Nora are bear roars henceforth."
Yeah, bear roars. That totally brings back good memories. "That settles it then." I opened the building's door and left the building. "Okay, here we go." I breathed out.
We went to the auditorium and saw it was packed full of students in their combat outfits, looking all eager for their upcoming field trip. We dropped our bags on the corner so we wouldn't have to stand in one place for minutes while carrying that much weight.
We stood behind the crowd of Beacon students, few of whom glanced at us upon recognition, especially me and Pyrrha. I glanced around when I spotted Nebula and her team among the throng of Shade students who were beside the column of Beacon's students. She waved at me as I waved back since I had a pleasant time with her and her team yesterday. It was rude not to and kind of like those girls.
The murmuring faded once Miss Goodwitch spoke up. "Quiet! Quiet, please. Professor Ozpin would like to share a few words before we begin."
The Great & Powerful Ozpin came to the podium and began his speech. "Today we stand together—united. Mistral. Atlas. Vacuo. Vale. The four Kingdoms of Remnant. On this day, nearly eighty years ago—the largest war in recorded history came to an end. It was a war of ignorance, of greed, and of oppression. A war that was about much more than where borders fell or who traded with whom, but about the very idea of individualism itself. We fought for countless reasons, one of which being the destruction of all forms of art and self-expression. And as you are well aware, that was something many could not stand for. As a result, those who opposed this tyranny began…" Blah, blah, blah. History. History. Colors. Colors. Freedom. Freedom. Freedom. Peace. Harmony. Despotism bad. You're all gonna be Huntsmen and it's almost time for the Vytal Fiesta amigos.
What, you really thought I was going to write his whole speech word for word about things your history teacher already told you countless times now?
"…As first-year students, you will be tasked with shadowing a professional Huntsman or Huntress on a mission." He continued his speech as holographic boards containing missions began appearing around the sidelines. "Some of you may be taken out of the Kingdom for several days. Others may work within the walls for the rest of the week. But no matter which path you choose, remember to be safe, remember your training, and remember to do your very best."
Well, that speech was a lot longer and less harsh than the one on our first day, that's for sure. Not that I'm complaining, I'm glad he didn't make any subtle messages directed at me this time around.
The audience clapped at his enlightening words of encouragement as he walked away from the podium. Once the prefatory remarks ended, everyone in the crowd began to disperse as they went to a board so they could select a mission.
"What are we waiting for?! Come on, let's go!" Nora excitedly squealed before dashing to the nearest board, prompting the three of us to quickly follow her.
I only needed to pick the least dangerous mission I could get. I should also stay away from missions that take place inside Vale, knowing that White Fang hit squads are still looking for me over everything I did to them so far. When we browsed the board, we were met with three options and it felt like looking at a video game's difficulty selection that disregarded order. [2] The board made it perfectly easy for me on which to pick.
Search And Rescue:
• Missing Supplies
• Quadrant 4
• Mission Start: ASAP
Search And Destroy:
• Moderate Grimm Activity
• Quadrant 5
• Mission Start: ASAP
Village Security
• Increased Grimm Attacks
• Quadrant 5
• Mission Start: One Week
The second one sounded simple enough as all we had to do was clear an area out of any Grimm and then we'll be done. Although the first one sounded trivial on paper, it'll probably be an annoying, dragged-out scavenger hunt, it would involve trekking through the wilderness which is densely packed full of Grimm, and who knows how large the search radius would be if we were going to look for several missing supplies. As the saying goes, 'It ain't easy when it's hard'.
The third one—Village Security wouldn't be bad if it wasn't for the label 'Increased Grimm Activity', plus it doesn't start until next week. its credits to carrots that the village would have been destroyed by the time we get there if someone recently requested for a Huntsmen when Grimm are already multiplying in that location.
Search And Destroy appeared to be less complicated than the other two that they were barely even a choice for me.
"All of these sound boring," Nora sounded disappointed for the lack of missions that would have caught her excitement, meanwhile I was pleased with the straightforwardness and the near-absence of complexity from the second one.
"I suggest we take the first one." Pyrrha chimed in as she took a step forward. "We only needed to look for supplies while dealing with only a few Grimm."
Normally, I would agree with Pyrrha's proposals, but this wasn't one of them. "Thank you, Pyrrha."But I believe we should start with the second one—Search and Destroy with moderate amounts of Grimm. I know we trained ourselves for this but we should start with something nice and simple for now. We just need to warm ourselves out before we take on something more challenging."
"Sounds like a reasonable choice, I don't mind at all," she said; thankfully, without any further objection. This was not something I was in the mood to argue about.
"That's good enough for me!" Nora cheerfully complied. "The only thing I wanted is to smash Grimm with you guys again!"
"I don't know." Ren skeptically uttered. "Don't you think that this mission sounds a little too easy to be true?"
"What do you mean by that, Ren?" Pyrrha asked, looking as confused as I did.
"The mission says it only has moderate Grimm activity, but Village Security takes place in the same quadrant while stating that Grimm attacks were increasing."
Now that he mentioned it, it did seem odd that the region said that the Grimm attacks were growing, yet only said it had moderate Grimm activity. But I thought he could be worrying too much and I wasn't going to waste an opportunity into taking an easy mission. "You're overthinking it. It probably says Grimm activity would only increase if the threat wasn't dealt with by now."
"Then why is the mission being placed along with it? It doesn't make sense." Pyrrha pointed out.
Gee, I don't know. I just wanted to take the relatively safest mission we could get before someone with a similar idea could take it for crying out loud.
"No, maybe you're right." Ren shook his head. "I'm overthinking this. Being in the same quadrant doesn't mean it's in the exact same area. Let's just take what you're going with."
I sighed. "Search and Destroy it is then." Without further ado, I reached the selection with my finger. I typed in my team's name and entered it when a message popped up saying that we accepted the mission and gave us instructions on what to do next. I turned to my team and nodded at them. "Alright, our Huntsman would be waiting for us at dock 13. Let's get to it."
"I can't wait! I've never been this excited since we got to Beacon. May the rise of Team Awesome commence!" Nora pumped.
Yeah, hopefully, it won't involve any stupid large-class Grimm that complicates things nor would it become an annoying mishap like that time with Forever Fall. I have been through enough misadventures for the past week and the week before that I hope that this will be over before I know it. With the training I've been giving my team these past months, I hope it pays off.
And was it just me or was I being watched all of the sudden? Either way, I didn't want to think about it.
Since the missions begin the moment we accepted it, we picked up our bags and immediately left the amphitheater and traversed through the courtyard that was populated with students who were also heading to the Bullhead docks after getting their respective assignments as well as uniformed upperclassmen who were either watching the freshmen or were minding their own businesses. Among these were Coco and Velvet who were taking a snack at a bench, with the former still wearing her signature beret and sunglasses combo even with her school uniform. Coco noticed me and shot me a finger gun gesture with a smile as her way of giving her regards.
We made our way to dock thirteen, with the Bullhead and the Huntsman waiting for us. His stature was somewhat lanky, he was wearing some sort of safari gear that contained a brown long coat and a pith helmet. We did not notice who it was until he turned to face us. Much to our surprise…
"Why, hello my good students!" Our history and humanities teachers pumped up, with all of us confounded at this unexpected revelation that even Nora was baffled.
"Professor Oobleck?!" I exclaimed. Having my jabbering teacher of mine was not exactly something I anticipated.
"Yes, I'm afraid those bags won't be necessary, children, seeing as you've opted to shadow a Huntsman on what is now essentially a reconnaissance mission. I can assure you, we will not be establishing a single base of operations; rather, we will be traversing several miles of hazardous wasteland and making camp in any defendable locations we may stumble upon. I packed all of our essentials myself, plotted our air course, and readied the airship." He rambled, walking back and forth in front of us. By some sort of enigmatic miracle, I somehow managed to record everything he said despite his chattering being so rapid, it was borderline incomprehensible. He then leaned in front of my face to remind me of something I should have thought when I was in his presence, at least he spoke comparatively clearly this time. "And it's Doctor Oobleck, I didn't earn a Ph.D. for fun thank you very much."
He got off my face and I remained unsure of what to think of this. "Come now, children! According to my schedule, we are already three minutes behind...schedule!" he said for the lack of a better word dashing to the Bullhead within a second.
Well, I didn't know what to expect. I'm aware that every professor here is a fully-trained huntsman but with all due respect for the guy, pro—Doctor Oobleck wasn't exactly the first person that came to mind when you picture a seasoned fighter. The thought only made me think about him killing Grimm by utterly babbling to them with history and philosophy.
"That was a surprise," Pyrrha said, giving us a flabbergasted look as she was noticeably grasping that our eccentric history teacher would be our chaperone for this task.
"Well, he did manage to be qualified enough to become one of Beacon's teachers," Ren stated.
"But still, who would have known we'd be saving the world with him of all people?" Nora asked rhetorically, and this was his fellow member of the motor-mouth club.
"You guys are going to save the world without us?" Another high-pitched voice said. We all turned back and saw Ruby and her team approaching us. "Sounds like you got an exciting mission. That makes me a little jealous, but I'm really happy for you."
"Don't sweat it, Ruby. We're all working on saving the world. Our mission isn't really that much of a big deal." I reaffirmed warmly. "Speaking of missions, where are you guys going?"
"Oh, just outside the kingdom. We couldn't get our hands on the mission we wanted so we just decided to go protect a village. The Huntsman we are shadowing is some kind of sheriff, I think."
"Unfortunately for us, the mission does not start until next week." Weiss irritatingly murmured.
Protecting a village that starts next week, sounds like the other mission on our board. Though it's pretty weird why they would wait a week for a defense mission. From my personal experience with them, these girls aren't exactly the type I'd expect to take on that kind of task as their style leaned more on the offensive side.
"How about you? Where are you going?" Yang inquired.
"Oh, just somewhere outside the kingdom like you guys," I answered. "Nothing really special, just going to get rid of the Grimm lurking around the area."
"Search And Destroy, right?" she replied and gave an envied expression. "Lucky you, we were considering that ourselves, but we ended up with this because the stupid board says the one we were picking was not for first years and it was already taken, bah."
"Aren't there any other Search and Destroy missions you could find?" Ren asked.
"Not really." Blake shook her head, looking like she reverted to her disinterested demeanor after the dance last night. "We decided to go with Village Security because Ruby wanted to help some locals. Not exactly the mission we wanted, but it's the closest to what we were aiming for."
I hummed for a moment. For whatever reason, my internal lie detector kept on telling me that there was something they weren't telling. It didn't bother me that much so I dropped the thought.
"Yo, a little birdie told us that you girls won't be leaving till next week," Sun and his partner suddenly jumped in.
"Then you can party with us tonight!" Neptune proposed.
"Sounds cool. Anything to keep me busy while I'm stuck here." Yang assented. "Where are you two off to, by the way?"
"We're shadowing crime specialists. All inner-city detective stuff. We get junior badges." Neptune answered.
Looks like Sun kept his word about assisting the police, that's nice. I always wanted to be a detective; solving mysteries, fighting crime, saving the day, all that kind of stuff. If I wasn't fretting about White Fang assassins, I would have certainly chosen to go on a mission inside the safety of Vale's walls and do missions that involve minimum fighting such as that.
"We normally go to the city with you guys, which means stuff's always exploding and junk, so we thought this might be a better way to check out the kingdom when it's, you know... normal." Sun shrugged at the last word. Like I previously said, I would have done the same if I wasn't trying to lay low from those terrorists after facing them exactly three times, especially when they had a homicidal killer on their side.
"Well…" I tried to speak when Doctor Oobleck hollered to us from the Bullhead, reminding us about the task at hand.
"Four minutes, children!" He instantly returned to the Bullhead afterward.
"Sorry, guys." I apologized to the girls. "Duty calls."
"You and your team are going with Professor Oobleck?" Weiss raised her brow and looked at us disbelievingly.
"Don't worry about him. The doc is completely transparent with us. We may not catch up to whatever he's saying but I'm sure he means well," I told them with a reassuring smile as I silently hoped that I wouldn't be wrong about this.
"Well, suit yourself," Yang said. "Good luck out there."
"Stay safe, everyone!" Ruby cheerfully waved her hand.
"Kick some ass for us, Jaune. We wish you luck." Sun encouragingly said, leaving as well with Neptune.
"You too, guys," I smiled at them before turning to my teammates. "Alright, let's not keep the doctor waiting."
"Search And Destroy, here we come!" Nora enthusiastically pumped as we went to embark on the Bullhead.
Staring at the Bullhead. I gave an agitated sigh as I have to travel by air again and to think I would have gotten used to it by now considering how many times I went back and forth between the city and Beacon for months now.
And I forgot to bring some promethazine[4] with me.
=o=
1. Jaune misunderstood the schedule regarding first missions, they become available the morning after the dance but you don't necessarily have to choose missions that begin immediately once they're chosen. A majority of the missions given to us after the school dance did not actually begin until after a few days, allowing most students to unwind after the party.
2. Missions Variety is limited for students at combat academies. While higher-level missions are restricted to upperclassmen and other more experienced Huntsmen-in-training, many other high-tier missions are outright unavailable to students. Granted, these types of missions require full-huntsman training before they become available.
3. To anyone interested, Team RWBY's aforementioned mission is chronicled in the extras section titled 'Another Side, Another Story' when it gets released.
4. A drug used to treat motion sickness and allergies. Back when Jaune's motion sickness was more severe, he would usually bring one of these with him. As stated by himself, this was not one of those times.