[31st of August, 2528]
[Western Vale]

Frederic-104 was usually considered a calm, yet light hearted individual, by his fellow SPARTANs. He had a great sense of humor, could hold a normal conversation, and was a capable leader and fighter. These were just a few of his good points. However, tire him out enough, and he becomes the exact opposite of everything listed above.

It was usually a difficult chore to make Fred an angry and impatient man, but walking for nearly three days straight with little rest, little food and water, and a ton of damn animal-like aliens fighting him to the death tends to wear a man down.

Which got Blue Team into the predicament it was currently in. "I told you, Fred! This was a terrible idea!" Shouted said team's typically cool headed sniper, who was trying her best not to be ran over by the huge herd of two meter tall black bulls.

"Well sorry! I thought it'd be similar to normal bull riding! Not this!" He shouted back, trying equally as hard not to be speared by one of their razor sharp horns. He narrowly dodged one of the horns, which was, for whatever freakin' reason, shot out of one of the bull's heads. He gave a tired growl, irritated that nothing here makes any plausible sense.

"Both of you shut up and keep running!" The distinctly British voice of Kelly was easily heard over the stampeding bulls thanks to their innercomms. Both huffed and kept sprinting for their lives.

How'd Fred get them into this mess, you ask? Well, to put a long story short, Fred thought it was a genius idea to try and ride one of these things. Suffice to say that plan backfired the minute he climbed on one. They all immediately became hostile and stabbed the bull he was on to death. He only managed to get out thanks to the hardiness of his MJOLNIR armor, which was made of Titanium-A alloys.

Blue Team had been walking ever since they checked back in with their CO after the swamp incident, and were immediately tasked with hunting down the interfering signal, and destroying it so they could communicate with command. They walked for two days straight; walking and running hundreds of miles to get to their destination. How a signal this strong exists on a planet with no signs of civilization is unfathomable to the SPARTANs, but they didn't question it too much. They were given a mission, and they'd fulfill it.

Or they will, if they get out of this situation alive. Which was looking less and less likely as time went on. They were running low on ammo, which is why they haven't gunned these bastards down, and didn't have enough energy to fight them off with their bare hands/knives.

John had went on to scout ahead, claiming he saw a forest off in the distance and wanted to gauge just how far it was. It was during John's absence that Fred's insane idea came forth, sadly enough, so he wasn't here to rectify his (admittedly) idiotic mistake. Fred sighed, grunting as he put more distance between himself and the stampede. They were starting to outrun the bulls, which hopefully meant the black counterparts were tiring out or realizing the meal wasn't worth it.

They each gave a sigh of relief as the bulls stopped chasing them and instead turned around, having given up on the chase. They stopped running after a few more minutes just for safe measure and put their hands behind their heads to help their breathing. Fred and Kelly began to chuckle and giggle respectively, it eventually turning into full blown laughter.

Linda cracked a small, amused smile at the sight of two SPARTANs actually laughing. She supposed it was the exhaustion making them break down into the fits of giggles, but she can't blame them. It wasn't every day you outran an entire hoard of murderous bull demons with nothing more than scratches on your armor.

She looked around their surrounding area, her small smile slowly turning into a frown as she didn't recognize any of it. It was clearly a forest, but it looked different than the one John was talking about. This one looked as though it were straight out of one of the many forests in the northern hemisphere of Reach. While it gave her a warm feeling of home, it slightly unnerved her.

One, it was unmarked territory. No telling what's here, or if they're even still in the right direction. Two, there was no sign of John anywhere. She looked back at where they came and saw more fall-like forests. Yeah, definitely no sign of John. From the looks of it, they ran in the complete opposite direction of him, and since he was the one with the radio to track the signal...

They were lost. Linda groaned, her hand slapping against her helmet loudly enough to gain her companions attention. They both looked over at her curiously before quickly doing the same thing. She assumed they came to the same conclusion from the action, but couldn't help but looked towards them and ask, "Where the hell did you take us Kelly?" They had been following her, seeing as she's the fastest and all.

"Uh... Well, I was just running without any direction. So..." The redhead sighed at her response, shaking her head in exasperation. She looked over at Fred and nodded. He cleared his voice before stepping up, all previous amusement washed away with professionalism.

"Alright Blue Team, we left out dear leader out there in the wild with no back up and no way to communicate us. Any long distance communication will be blocked by the interference, so we'll have to find another way to contact him without attracting any unwanted attention. Kelly, you'll scout the immediate area to make sure there's no threats around us. Meaning a circumference of 200 meters. I'll go get us some wood we can use for a signal fire while Linda holds down fort here. Any black son of a bitch enters your sight, kill it. Understood?" Both girls nodded and headed off to do their jobs, Fred going to the nearest tree to cut off some branches.

Kelly jogged behind the cover of the forest and counted the distance she ran all the way up to 100m. She looked around as she began speed walking, a DMR at the ready for any enemy she sees. It doesn't hold much more than a single clip, but it's enough to take down at least two monsters.

She sighed quietly to herself, her eyes darting each way as she watched for anything black. The forest, while beautiful, creeped her out. Like every other place she's been to, it had an underlying feel of pure darkness. As though Satan himself walked these lands and cursed it.

As she walked, in an attempt to distract herself from the unease she felt from the forest, she thought about her team leader and childhood friend. She thought back to when she met him - and Sam - when Mendez first formed teams. Yes, he was most definitely talented back then as he was now. If not a little more competitive, if their first meeting was anything to go by. The thought gave her a small smile.

Then she thought about him in training, and how he, while not the best, always tried his hardest. It inspired her, and many other trainees, to do their best. In a way, he was like the big brother to them all, and that was even more shown when he became leader, with Jerome-092, Frederic-104, and Kurt-051 becoming leaders of their own soon after.

Of course Kelly always liked John the best - he was her first friend after all - so she always followed after him the most. Plus he was the de facto leader of all SPARTANs - the three other leaders included. In a way, it kind of made her jealous. He had an insane talent for leading and being a true soldier, meanwhile her talent was being insanely fast. Which was great and all, it made her stand out from the other SPARTANs and give her a specialty. It just didn't make her feel all too... Accomplished? She supposed that was the word.

Now, she was extremely proud of herself and how far she's come, and she wouldn't want it any other way. She was just a tad jealous that John was a natural born leader, and could rally dozens behind him just by doing a small action.

She thought about him before and after the augmentations three years ago. Nothing changed much, she realized, just the physical attributes. He stayed the same. He didn't let his new abilities get to his head, even after he proved his superiority when he defeated 4 ODSTs, killing a couple of them in the process.

He didn't act any better when he was promoted to Master Chief Petty Officer after defending one of the many outer colonies. Although the fact they lost it probably attributed to the fact he didn't act any better. It made her admire the man she came to call brother, and let her give him her undying loyalty. If he was to ever - God forbid - become a deserter of the UNSC, she would follow him with no hesitation. She was positive Linda and Fred felt the same way.


Meanwhile, the object of his team's thoughts was wandering around a lush green forest. He was forced to run into it to lose a group of those bears they fought from their first day here. And, because of that, he was separated from his team. He berated himself as he walked around, angry with himself for going ahead of them just to scout an area they were probably going to have to go anyway. He shook his head, looking around the forest for any sign of where he came from.

Usually he would be able to find the tracks he left behind, but it was like they disappeared. It put him on edge, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up from the threat looming around the forest. This place... It feels like something is watching me from every direction. I've gotten this feeling since we first landed here, but this is the strongest its been since then... John looked around, checking over his shoulders and above his head every minute or so.

If he believed in objective morality, John would assume this place was the very embodiment of evil. All he could think of is 'THREAT' since he got into this forest. It was unnatural. It was suffocating, how much terror looms around this place. It was almost enough to make John feel like he was in the harsh warzone of Harvest again, with waves of Covenant coming at him with their plasma weaponry.

The Petty Officer shook his head to clear his thoughts and examined the forest around him once again. Call him paranoid, but he would rather be anxious for nothing than caught off guard by some unknown entity. Especially on this planet.

John heard the rustling of leaves behind him and swiveled on his axis, his MA37 assault rifle pointing at the bushes with his finger toying with the trigger. He steadied his breathing to get his nerves under control, his adrenaline working full time to help him focus. After a full minute of nothing, he slowly lowered his rifle before turning around. Only to be met with a large werewolf like creature, literally covered from head to toe in bone armor. It stood at least two heads taller than Chief, causing the SPARTAN to take a step back from shock.

How something that tall snuck up on him, he'd never know. Nor would he have time to think on it, as the thing literally back handed the half ton giant through a few trees. Rolling to a stop, John was barely able to dodge the monster's claws.

What the hell?! I haven't seen this much bone on one of these things before! Before he could contemplate further, the SPARTAN leader was forced to catch what would have been a very painful reunion with the beast's hand. He flipped it over with a grunt before stomping his foot down on its bare shoulder. It broke with a resounding crack and a pained howl from the owner.

Chief had to sidestep away from a spear of razor sharp claws less he be impaled before jumping back and away from the werewolf like creature. He analyzed his opponent, all the way from the way it favors its right side due to its left arm being broken, all the way to its labored breathing, showing that it feels the pain. It stood still for a few seconds, most likely doing the same to him, which shocked the super soldier. He's yet to see any semblance of intelligence from any of these beasts; they always ran at you with reckless abandon, preferring to attack and think later.

It gave a low, threatening growl in an attempt to strike fear into his heart. He mentally scoffed at the futile action. John's went toe to toe with literal walking tanks - the Covenant's Hunters - and came out the victor (albeit with internal bleeding and concussions). He readied his rifle and pulled the trigger, the 7.62x51mm rounds slamming into the creature's hardened hide and bone armor. Said bone armor began to crack under the fire, whereas its hide was pierced multiple times. It gave another pained howl and strove left before leaping at the SPARTAN. It managed to catch him by surprise as it slammed its entire body into his, forcing the assault rifle to fly out of the man's grip.

John grunted, one of his eyes scrunching up in pain. This thing hit like a literal truck. If he had to guess, he'd say this thing was as strong, if not stronger, than some Elites. Meaning he had to finish it quick. While SPARTAN strength was comparable to an Elite's, it wasn't advised to take them on without a weapon of some kind, due to their heavy training with blades and hand-to-hand. The only SPARTAN who could take one on with ease would have to be Frederic, and only because of his CQC training.

John shoved the wolf like creature off of him and pulled out his M7 Magnum, firing multiple shots into the creature's face. He shot out one of its eyes and got a few bullets lodged into the bone mask before his hand was slapped away by its meaty forearm. The larger beast scampered up before running off into the cover of the forest, leaving a winded and surprised John behind.

That thing was the weirdest thing he's seen so far, and that's saying a lot. First, it had more bone than any other creature he's seen, which he assumes means that thing is higher up in the chain of command for these monsters. Second, it was actually smart. He swore that thing used some actual hand-to-hand combat moves on him. Third, and lastly, it ran away. None ever ran, as they always fought until their prey was dead, or they were.

He quickly picked up his magnum, keeping it at the ready in case the thing came back as he walked over to pick up his assault rifle, only to notice its absence. He looked around more for it, confusion plastered on his face behind his visor. He grunted in annoyance after a minute of searching. He couldn't find it, and he was positive it was there a few minutes prior. With a defeated sigh, the Master Chief Petty Officer put away his magnum and began walking in the direction his HUD says the interference is coming from.

Usually he'd search far and wide for his team, but he can't even remember the direction he came from, let alone the direction his squad is in. It would be futile and would only get him in more life threatening situations. He hoped his team would be able to find their way to it without him...


Little did the SPARTAN-II know he was being watched by cameras placed all throughout the forest, which was named the Emerald Forest long ago by the founders of Vale.

Even worse than just being watched by cameras was the person watching said cameras. The headmaster of Beacon Academy himself, Ozpin. He hummed behind his mug of coffee, his expression perplexed. He had never seen an Atlesian Knight look and act so... Life like. Nor had he ever seen one take on a very powerful and ancient Grimm. Especially one that's so well known it has a name - The Big Bad Wolf. So it was easy to understand why Ozpin was confused and, if he were to admit, slightly concerned about this new Atlesian Knight.

That is, if it even is an Atlesian Knight. He's yet to see any machine so life like other than one Penny Polendina, whom was the very first Artificial Intelligence to achieve self awareness. He took another sip of his preferred drink and re-watched the entire fight. He studied the large armored being's every move. To the subtle flicks of its head, to the full on flips it performed to avoid attacks. It seemed to examine every attack fully, as if to tear apart its strengths and weaknesses. Ozpin barely knew of any non-huntsman that is that observant in battle, let alone a machine.

And so, he rules out the "robot hypothesis". Next he contemplates the man - if one is going by its body shape - being a Huntsman from another kingdom. He immediately rules that out as well, as he knew of no kingdom or Huntsman with body armor that advanced. A small frown adorns his face as a his eyebrows scrunch up into a contemplative scowl. Just who is this man? Where did he come from? What does he want?

These were a few of the many questions the brown eyed man asked himself as he watched the live feed of the man walking through the forest. Thankfully, Ozpin was able to send out a small rover to retrieve the man's rifle while he was focused on the beowolf. Most would consider it a, in teenage terms, "douche" move, but Ozpin could tell the strike had broken the rifle, and he was almost out of ammunition anyways. So, he justified his theft with 'He can't use it anyways, what's the big deal?'

He sighed as he turned around in his chair to look over his academy in thought. This man, whoever he is, was able to take on an ancient class Grimm, one that has taken down a few Hunters and Huntresses in its time. That should mean he would be well known, or at least had some form of formal education indicating he is at least even a little known. Yet Ozpin has found nothing on the walking tank since he discovered him nearly two hours ago. There was no trace of this... '117' - the number printed on his right breast plate - anywhere in the system. Ever curious, he sent a message to his old friend and general of the Atlesian military, James Ironwood, to see if he can't find out more about this anomaly.

He stood up with the help of his cane and walked over to the window, taking another sip of his coffee on his way. He looked over the courtyard of his school, looking at all the new arrivals for the initiation tomorrow. He would have to worry about the armored man another time. Ozpin had to give the first years their introduction speech, after all.

With that thought in mind, he sighed. He tended to give the same speech every year. One that would discourage the weak and inspire the strong. Its what helped give Beacon the best students. Not just because he handpicked each student, but because he gave them a disturbing image of the Huntsmen life. He wanted - no, needed to weed out the weak. He wouldn't let them die because they chased a dream too big for them. Not against the Grimm, and definitely not against The Queen.

He sighed. The Queen was another issue here, and was the more pressing one. In order from least to greatest, the armored man ranked last, with his new students coming next, and finally her. Prioritizing his issues was always a great way to get him into the 'discourage the first years' mood, if he did say so himself.

He gave a small chuckle as he turned around and towards the elevator, completely missing the armored man looking straight into one of the many cameras on his screen... And shooting it.


Whelp, things are moving along faster now. Sorry for lack of character interaction, but I wanted to lay down the setting a little more so everyone can understand this AU's universe a little more.

To clarify some things for Halo's half: John got the rank Master Chief Petty Officer early on in his career. He denied any rank higher, as he didn't want an actual officer position, as he prefers to be on the field full time. And for anyone worried about any romantic indication for Kelly's part: She compared him to a brother, which is directly stated around the end of her scene. And I mostly added it in to get more of a feel of both her character and to lay out some of the parts that stayed canon in the AU, as well as elaborate on her feelings towards John. I'll be doing this with the other two members as time goes on, as well as John's feelings towards them.

And for RWBY: I won't reveal anything regarding the backstory of Team RWBY or Team JNPR, simply for the fact that I've only introduced one character in those teams; Ruby. And since I have, I'll elaborate on her a little, just to make up for the lack of her this chapter. I'll say she was NOT raised by Tai-Yang, which I'll probably be getting into either next chapter, or the chapter after that. This means she didn't have Yang to watch out for her, so expect a much different relationship between them than in canon.

So, yeah. RWBY is much more AU than Halo honestly, and I intended for it to be that way. I actually thoroughly enjoy Halo's story, so I don't exactly feel the necessity to change much to it. And RWBY's has been established relatively well, but leaves little room for imagination in terms of adding to characters in canon, so I just have to destroy that and replace it with my own version (which will probably have a little more angst for most characters, just FYI).

Anyways, thanks for reading! Remember to favorite and/or follow if you enjoy Of Metal and Magic, and leave a review telling me what you think! Or what I could do better, if you'd prefer to show me off with your lore skills or just simply don't like something I did. Either or.

Until next time.