Setting: Frozen Wilderness

The Grimm didn't react or wince at Remus stabbing its shoulder, rather it looked in his direction, swiftly reached out and grabbed Remus. Before he could use his semblance to get out of there, the Grimm slammed Remus into the snow and kept grinding him against its palm. Remus could do nothing but feel the pain, humiliation, and his aura gradually decrease.

"Hey!" Silver shouted to get the Grimm's attention.

When the Grimm looked up it was immediately hit with fire dust gunfire which exploded in its face, but it was unfazed.

"Let him go, Fido," Silver said with Fenrir aimed at the Grimm and the others running into battle.

The large Beowolf growled at the team until it felt a stinging pain in its hand. It looked down to see what was causing it but saw nothing. Remus stabbed into its hand using one of Romulus's blades, but he had little room to move beneath the monster's palm so he managed to deal as much a damage as he could in his circumstance. The first to strike was Azura. She imbued her elemental staff with ice dust, covering it with ice until it took the shape of a frozen club. She leaped toward the Grimm and slammed her weapon against its head. The Beowolf flinched and lifted its hand off of Remus who changed his staff into a railgun. Azura jumped away from the Grimm before it could react to her attack and Remus used this opening to fire a powerful bolt of energy from his railgun. The blast did enough damage to make the massive Beowolf run out of the fight.

The Grimm circled around with its eyes on Tigress, choosing her as its next prey. It was fast, agile, and quite intelligent, dashing across the field of snow while using the blizzard to stay out of everyone's sight. Tigress couldn't see the beast but she could sense that it was near. When it got too close, she activated Gemini to separate into the Tigress Twins. They split from Tigress's original position where the Beowolf slammed its claw and the twins tried to stab it, but the rib bones sticking out of it's torso served as a shield, stopping their assault. The Grimm brought back its arm to rip the twins where they stood but was temporarily stunned by Zelts who released a blast of wind at the monster to save the twins. The Tigress Twins jumped away, but the Beowolf hastily swatted them away with one of his long arms. Zelts sent another wave of wind at the Grimm to keep it at bay, but it wasn't strong enough to stop it only slow it down as it charged straight for him.

While ran for Zelts, Remus and Azura charged straight at him while the Tigress Twins dashed from behind. Remus used Checkpoint to teleport on top of the Grimm's back and stabbed out one of its eyes, making it roar in pain, but not stopping its momentum as it ran at Azura with Remus still a top its head. It was moving too fast for Azura to dodge, so she did the next best thing, she activated the fire dust in her wrists and ankles to cover her body in flames. This done right before she was caught in the monster's grip and she planned to burn its hand, but the bone plates covering its claws were protecting it from the intense heat. The Grimm began crushing Azura in its grip and Remus was ready to cut its head off, but the Grimm was aware the Cobalt was on its neck and quickly grabbed him while he was too focused on killing the large Beowolf. With a burning Cobalt in one hand and Remus in the other, the Grimm slammed his hands together colliding and crushing the Cobalts caught between his hands.

"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Remus shouted in pain.

He was being burned by Azura being pressed against her body still cloaked in flames. His screams were heard by everyone and they rallied to fight the Grimm.

"Shit!" Azura cursed, seeing as how she was hurting her younger relative.

She extinguished the flames to save her cousin from further injury and Remus's aura was teetering on the edge. The Tigress Twins sprinted toward Grimm from its backside and stabbed their Flying Eagles into its back, but their attack didn't faze the Grimm. Silver combined Fenrir into its sniper rifle form and fired ice dust rounds at the Grimm's face, freezing parts of its skull armor. Knowing that it was overwhelmed, the Grimm dropped the Cobalts from its grip and used its hands to smash the ice on its face then swiped at the Tigress Twins only for the to barely dodge the attack, but when the Beowolf missed with the first strike, it immediately attacked the orange twin with a second, delivering a strong uppercut that launched the twin upward. The pain was felt by the black twin who grabbed her chin in pain and fell to her knees.

Silver continued firing shots at the Grimm with little effect. He was getting really upset that his attacks were having the least amount of impact even though everyone was doing very poorly in this battle. Zelts noticed this as well and knew they weren't going to win in these conditions. They were out of their element in this blizzard, the Grimm had the home-field advantage, and it was both strong and smart. The only option they had that could secure their safety was retreat, but the problem was where could they go?

The Grimm turned its attention toward the two Cobalts laying in the snow in pain. Azura was alright if a little battered, but Remus was struggling to stay on his feet. He may have had a hard time standing though it didn't stop him from trying to fight and prove his worth to himself. Zelts knew this was bad and he rushed over to the two to save them. He got in fighting stance when the Grimm rushed his way and Remus tried to attack, but his body was sluggish and for the first time in a fight, he wasn't fast enough. The large Beowolf swung its claw at Remus who tried to bring Romulus up to defend but it wasn't enough. The force of the blow broke through his aura, sent him flying far away and he dropped Romulus somewhere while in midair.

He didn't land in the snow, rather his body slammed against something hard before he fell into the snow. With no aura protecting him, Remus was in great pain with a bruised right shoulder that was also dislocated from the impact. He laid face down in the snow and began to lose consciousness. On the base of his neck, Remus's delta symbol began to flash blue, indicating his life was in great danger. Remus didn't notice that the object he crashed into was actually a small metal building. The lights in the building were lit moments after he hit and the people began to walk outside to see what happened.

"Dammit!" Zelts and Azura shouted in anger.

Azura was upset that Remus was hurt and Zelts for the same reason as well as being unable to properly be the team's shield. Being unable to protect the youngest member, Zelts used Conversion to absorb the dust in his clothing till it was full, though this left his winter attire without any fire dust to keep him warm but he didn't care about that right now. With his physical abilities enhanced thanks to the energy stored in his body, Zelts swung his one wingblade, releasing a massive, powerful gust of golden wind that hit the large Beowolf and knocked it far away and off its feet. The Grimm got up and the team regrouped with the Tigress Twins coming together to form the original Tigress. Instead of fighting, the Grimm decided its best move was to retreat and it did, running away in the blizzard to who knows where.

The team was relived that it left until Zelts and Azura ran into the direction they believed Remus was sent flying.

"REMUS!"

"REMUS!"

The team searched for their missing friend, calling for his name but received no response. They were getting worried when their pursuit bared no fruits until Lily found something in the snow; Romulus. This sparked hope in everyone and they surveyed the area with renewed vigor. Zelts and Azura were the most determined to find him because both believed it was their fault he got hurt and felt it was their responsibility to keep him safe. Zelts's inability to protect him during the battle made him doubt his own skills now that he only had half his Heart of Gold. He also knew he shouldn't focus on his shortcomings rather on Finding Remus and he shouted for his friend.

"REMUS!"

Hello?" someone responded.

It wasn't Remus, but someone answering his call was better than nothing. The team was met with a random middle-aged man in winter clothing. He held no weapons, he seemed harmless, and his expression had no malice or deception.

"Who are you?" Lily asked the man.

"I live in a town nearby. Are you friends with a young man that crashed into my family's house?" the man asked.

"Did he say his name was Remus?" Silver asked.

"Uh… no. He's not really speaking right now. He's hurt pretty bad and for some reason a tattoo on the back of his neck is…glowing?" he man said though he was a bit unsure if they'd believe the last part, but it only confirmed that it was Remus.

Everyone but Azura knew the flashing of the delta symbol meant his life was in peril. They wasted no time with their response. They pleaded for the man to take them to their friend. Luckily the man was kind and he guided them to his home. It only took a few minutes for them to reach the settlement.

"Welcome to Zorin," the man said.

Setting: Zorin

The settlement of Zorin wasn't very large. It was quite small with most of the buildings appearing abandoned or in shambles. Everything seemed old and in decay, showing how this place has been long forgotten by the kingdom of Atlas. The settlement was doing its best to stay afloat even though it looked like it was on its last legs. The buildings were made entirely of metal to protect the residents from the harsh cold. There was one building that was the largest in the settlement and many people seemed to preside there, but it was not were the team was going. They were following the man to his home where he said Remus was located.

The man opened the door to his steel home and the inside was in a poor state. His living room wasn't the cleanest with walls covered in dents and the ceiling lights were either poorly lit or flickering. The couch was where Remus was, laying on the ripped couch either asleep or out cold. It was hard to tell, but the specifics were not important to the others.

Zelts ran to his friend's side and had a worried look on his face. "Remus! Remus!"

Remus didn't respond to Zelts's cries of concern. This confirmed that he was unconscious, too injured and fatigued after their confrontation with that wild Grimm. Zelts sighed and lowered his head in shame. "Dammit…"

Lily walked over to them and took a closer inspection of Remus. She sighed in relief to see his condition wasn't critical, not great but still better than worse. Lily shook Zelts's shoulder to stir him from his guilt trip to give him the semi-good news.

"Zelts. Zelts, it's okay. Look, Remus is hurt, but his breathing is steady. He'll be fine as long as he gets some rest. A lot of rest. His aura will heal his injuries once it comes back," Lily reassured him.

"…It doesn't change the fact that I couldn't protect him during that fight. I'm no shield. I'm half the man I used to be," Zelts said feeling like a failure.

"It helps that you have half a weapon," Silver joked to lighten the situation, but received a punch to his shoulder by Azura. "Ow! It was a joke… my bad."

Azura leered at him for a minute before looking at her cousin in his beaten state. She didn't want to show it like Zelts and the others, but she was worried about her fellow Cobalt. Azura was grateful he was alive and grateful this man took him in.

"Thank you for finding him, I really appreciate it," Azura told the kind man.

"Not a problem. People here have to have each other's backs. Not like anyone from the kingdom will grace us with their presence and lend us a hand. Speaking of which, what were you all doing out there? It's dangerous," the man asked.

No one responded right away. Silver, talented liar that he was, was about to speak until Lily jumped the gun and shouted, "We're nomads!"

"Nomads?" the man repeated.

Silver face palmed his forehead at Lily's answer. She obviously wasn't used to lying on the fly, but he knew that once a lie has been said, they ad to stick with it.

"That's right. Nomads," Silver said.

"In Atlas? That doesn't seem right. Besides the kingdom there's really nowhere to go," the man said.

"What can I say. We're nomads of nowhere," Silver said in a humorous tone and hoped the man would buy it.

"If… you say so," the man said. "Just be careful out in the wild. There's a Grimm out there that's been roaming the land for years. It's called a Wendigo and it's incredibly dangerous. It's ferocious and it even attacks other Grimm.

"I guess that's what we ran into," Lily said with her hand on Zelts's shoulder.

"Thank you for bringing us to your home, but we shall not impose," Zelts said now that he somewhat collected himself, "Is there an inn somewhere in Zorin where we can stay for a few days?"

"Yeah, it's not that far from here. Just head west from here and you should see it," the man answered.

"Thank you," Zelts repeated.

He put his hands under Remus then picked him up, carrying his friend in his arms. Lily pulled out one of the blankets they brought with them from the supply bag she carried and covered Remus with it so the cold wouldn't bother him. The team graciously left the man's home in order to find the local inn. Their walk was short, but they got a good look at Zorin during the night. Many people were inside their homes with the lights on. Granted, no one would prefer to be out in the cold at night so this was a given. The largest building in Zorin also had its lights on though they seemed to be flickering on purpose and the faint sound of music could be heard. It was a curious thing but not the team's concern.

Setting: Zorin Inn

The local inn was just where the man said it was and the team acquired two rooms. The dynamic was the same as last time; Zelts and Lily in one room with Silver, Remus, and Azura in the other though everyone was in the latter's room to discuss their next. Remus was placed in his bed where the others let him rest. Azura sat on the side of his bed, watching over him for any change in his condition while the others conversed. She noticed the flashing of his symbol and wondered what it meant.

"It goes without saying that we should stay in Zorin until Remus recovers. Aura doesn't take long to recover, and the moment it does, it'll begin healing his body. Even so, we should stay for a few days in order to get our bearings and figure out where to go next," Lily told the others.

"Agreed," Zelts responded. "We have to be more cautious the closer we get to the kingdom. We're in uncharted territory. And that Wendigo thing proved to be too dangerous to just wander outside. We'll need to find a means of travel."

"You're right. Atlas isn't made for travelling on foot. Fortunately, we can use local transportation now. Since we're already within Atlas, I doubt we'll be asked to show any identity. Let's face it, no one Atlas will believe anyone is stupid enough or desperate enough to walk through that frozen hell," Silver explained with a smirk.

"But jokes on them! We're that stupid and that desperate… wait a minute that didn't come out right," Silver said.

Lily chuckled at his humorous floundering. "We can figure out the details tomorrow. Right now, it's late and we need sleep."

She looked at Zelts who had his eyes on Remus as he laid in bed. She placed a hand on Zelts's shoulder to get his attention. "We all need sleep."

"Right," Zelts said as he got up to leave the room with Lily. "Night, guys. Let us know if he wakes up in the morning."

"You got it," Silver said.

Zelts and Lily returned to their room while Silver and Azura got in their beds. Silver watched as Azura shared the bed with Remus and she turned towards her relative. He was surprised by the change in the female Cobalt. A couple months ago, Azura was bent on killing Remus and being the last remaining Cobalt to uphold the legacy, but now she slept by his side, hoping he'd wake up soon. Azura went to sleep with Remus's well being as her last thoughts.

It was amazing how people can change and Silver was glad this change brought about a new ally. He was also happy to see that Remus had a good relationship with a blood relative. Someone on Team VRSZ needed one and it's definitely not going to be with Violet and her family. He laid in bed wondering what her family was like and if they'd meet them in Atlas.

"One thing at a time. Can't look ahead to the future if I can't face the problem right in front of me. I got to find a way for us to get a ride or something… I'll figure something out," Silver's last thought before falling asleep.

Zelts and Lily shared a bed and the two were sound asleep, however Zelts was haunted with dreams of doubt and his inability to function as the team's shield. He knew in that situation he couldn't reach Remus in time, but a part of him wondered if he could've done something different or performed better if he had the other half of Heart of Gold. Lily held him as he slept, soothing his mind and dreams as best she could. Even in their dreams, Lily stood by his side to give him love and support. The team finally made it to Zorin, following their make-shift plan, and now they needed to figure out the second part which was finding transportation.


The Wendigo Grimm is based on the mythological creature of the same name. The appearance of the Wendigo varies widely, though the two most common descriptions were it being either bestial or like a werewolf. This is why I decided to make the Grimm a sub-species of Beowolf rather than be its own species. The myth of Wendigo is that it is a cannibalistic, malevolent creature so I decided to make the Grimm one that actually attacks other Grimm and never travel in any kind of Grimm groups.