Chapter 2: Meeting the Happy Huntresses
Unknown Location
Josuke, Koichi, Okuyasu, and Rohan all looked up to the sky in shock and awe. A flying structure! Like Cloud City from that old Star Wars movie! The sight of it shook them all to their cores. The hands in the alley had taken them someplace, someplace far away from Morioh.
Josuke thought about his mom. He had told her he was gonna be hanging out with his friends after school. Her only instruction was to be back home before dark. Now he wasn't sure he was going to be back home at all.
That thought scared him. After the Kira mess he had finally come clean to his mom. About Stands, the arrow, and Kira. He had left out some of the more disturbing stuff, but Tomoko had gotten the gist of it. She had threatened to ground him for life after that, but more importantly, she wanted to be in the loop regarding his life for now on. Josuke had protested at first, but realized his mom's fears. She had almost lost him, several times in fact! Her reactions were very understandable.
So the two had come to a compromise, he'd still have his independence, mostly. While Josuke would at least tell his mom where he was going and who he was going to be with. The curfew was also put in place too.
But now that was all completely out the window. For all he knew, the four of them really were dead. They certainly would be dead from Tomoko's point of view if they never turned up. She might try to call Jotaro and maybe even dad. But it's not like they would have much to go on. Even if they did learn that they went into the alleyway, at that point they would probably call it a lost cause. For all Jotaro knew the alleyway only meant death.
Josuke tried to push away the thoughts of his mom and how his disappearance might affect her as he heard Jaune call out to them again. He looked up at the blonde teen as he looked at the four from Morioh.
"Uh hello?" he started. It was clear to Jaune that they were all a bit out of it after the revelation of the flying city above them. "What? Have you guys not seen Atlas before? Somehow?"
"Oh of course we've seen, uh, Atlas before!" Josuke said. "I've just never seen it this close before is all!"
Jaune frowned. "Ok look I'll admit it, I'm not exactly the smartest guy around, but it's obvious that you just lied to me. Seriously, who are you guys?"
Josuke gulped and tried to speak, but Koichi beat him to it. "W-well, my name is Koichi. That's Josuke, Okuyasu, and Rohan. And well, we might be dead."
Jaune looked at the short teen with a weird expression on his face. "Dead? Well I'm pretty sure none of us are dead right now. Though that might change if more grimm like that, that hound, show up."
Now it was the Morioh group's turn to look confused. "Grimm?" Rohan asked.
"Yeah grimm," Jaune began. "You know, the creatures of darkness. The things trying to kill everyone in the world?" He looked at the four with a concerned face when none of them seemed to get it. "How do you guys not know what grimm are?"
"Well how should we know, we just got here!" Okuyasu said. Jaune turned to the scarred teen.
"What do you mean just got here?"
Josuke looked to each of his friends for a moment before they all came to a silent agreement. He then turned to Jaune and with the help of Rohan, Koichi, and Okuyasu explained what had happened in the alleyway. As well as how they had ended up here. Josuke noticed Jaune mutter something while they were describing the redhead girl they saw in the alley. But it was too quiet for Josuke to hear.
When they had finished they all looked at Jaune expectantly. But the blonde teen simply let out a deep sigh before taking a seat on the ground.
"Things just keep getting more and more bizarre. First there were the Maidens, then Salem, and now people falling into Remnant from haunted alleyways. Well, I have no real way of verifying anything you guys just said. But, I trust you. I have a feeling that I should. One more thing though, those ghosts, what are they?"
"We call them Stands," Josuke began. "A relative told me one time that they're sort of like, a magnification of the soul. Of your fighting spirit. Not everyone has one, and not everyone can unlock one. Stands can only be seen by other Stand users. But Stands usually come in all sorts of appearances, and all of them have different powers."
Josuke brought out Crazy Diamond and allowed Jaune to get closer to inspect his Stand. Jaune was in awe at the figure as he turned to Josuke again.
"My Stand, Crazy Diamond, can fix broken things. Windows, machines, even injured people. That's why Rohan and Okuyasu were healed so quickly. All of our Stands have different powers, as well as physical attributes."
Curiosity flashed over Jaune's face for a moment. "You said only Stand users can see Stands? Then how come I can see it?"
Josuke's eyes widened. "You aren't a Stand user?!"
"No," Jaune said. "Here Stands aren't a thing, at least as far as I know, but somehow I can see it." Jaune paused for a moment. "Wait! You said Stands are a manifestation of the soul right? That's kinda like what aura and semblances are! Ruby said that Ozpin told her that once. Maybe that's the reason I can see your Stands. Stands and semblances might just be two different parts of the soul, or something like that."
Before Josuke could reply Rohan spoke up. "Speaking of these auras and semblances, what exactly are they? You did something to me and Josuke, I feel, invigorated somehow. Like I could run a hundred kilometers without breaking a sweat. What exactly are aura and semblances?"
Jaune took a moment to collect his thoughts before diving into a long-winded and somewhat confusing explanation on what both of those things were. But by the end Josuke had gotten the gist of it. Basically aura was like a forcefield that healed you, made you run faster and hit harder. While semblances were personalized superpowers. Kind of like a Stand but instead the person controlled the power themselves instead of through their Stands.
"Yeah I know it's a bit confusing. I probably should have paid attention just a bit more in class." Jaune said.
"Class?" Koichi asked.
Jaune turned to him. "Yeah! Because of the grimm, people are trained to hunt and destroy them at special academies. That's what Yang, Ren, and I are. We're huntsmen and huntresses of grimm."
That intrigued Josuke, a place where you learn to hunt monsters! "It's like something out of a manga or anime!" Josuke thought. Though he wasn't sure what kind of school would teach teens that kind of stuff though.
"I shouldn't judge," he thought. "We're all teens here! Except for Rohan."
They stood in silence for a moment, unsure what to say next, before they all heard a light beeping noise. Jaune put a hand up to his ear for a moment. That's when Josuke noticed a small device inside his ear.
"Yeah?" Jaune said. Everyone looked at him as if he was talking to them, but when he gave no indication of doing so they looked at him confused. That's when it clicked, maybe the device was some kind of phone.
"Listen Yang and Ren have split off from me, something happened to Oscar I'll explain when I get back. I've got some people here with me. No they aren't civilians, technically? Look Fiona I understand and like I said I'll explain everything when I get back… Copy I'll see you soon."
Jaune seemingly finished his call before turning his attention back to the group. He gestured for them to follow him as he began to make his way over to the last hoverbike. The bike, the one the hound threw at Rohan, laid on the ground. The damage to it was obvious.
"Josuke, you said your Stand could fix stuff, can it fix this?" Jaune asked. Josuke scoffed and smirked as he effortlessly summoned Crazy Diamond. The Stand simply held out his hand as the bike went and fixed itself. Within a matter of moments the bike was practically brand new.
"Listen," Jaune began. "Mantle, this city, is being overrun by grimm. Lives are at risk, I know this isn't your city, your home. But your powers are something that we need desperately in order to get everyone to safety. I know it isn't my place to ask you, but would you at least consider it?"
Josuke took a moment to look around. This single city block already looked like a warzone. Plumes of smoke were rising from spots around Mantle. Roars and screams could be heard from a distance. This place, it was nothing like how things had gone down with Kira.
Kira was a silent killer, a shadow over Morioh. This was a war of survival, of extinction, if Jaune's description of the grimm was accurate. Should they get involved? Before Josuke could ponder it further, Rohan gestured to the three teens to come over to him and away from Jaune. They huddled together to discuss their options.
"What do you guys think?" Okuyasu began.
"Well, personally, I think we should try and help. I don't know how we could get home, if we can get home." Koichi finished glumly.
"I don't think we really have any other choice, but think we should help them out all the same. Especially if we are stuck here like Koichi thinks. Yet not before getting some more answers. Jaune mentioned a few things back there. He mentioned maidens as if they were something important. As well as someone called Salem. I don't think we should accept blindly," Rohan said. "What do you think Josuke?"
"We should help these guys, but you're right Rohan. This is all so sudden, we definitely need more info."
They all then turned to Okuysau, the scarred teen simply smiled.
"Hey if these grimm things are like, just monsters, then I can just go all out with The Hand right? I'm in! Let's kick some monster ass!"
They all smiled at Okuyasu's confidence before turning back to Jaune. He had gotten the bike up and running and was waiting on it.
"We're in," Josuke declared. "But we need some answers, starting with where are we going?"
Jaune smiled. "We're off to see the Happy Huntresses! Hop on!"
Mantle Crater
The ride to the Mantle Crater was slow yet reality shifting. Jaune was initially hesitant to answer. Josuke supposed it was an attempt from laying it all on them too quickly and overwhelming them. But in the end he caved and spilled the beans.
An immortal grimm queen, girls with demigod powers, two asshole gods who up and abandoned this place Remnant after killing almost everyone on it. It was a lot to take in, and Jaune was right, it was overwhelming them. Back in Morioh Kira was the highlight, everyone else they fought were chalked up to either being misunderstandings or them being assholes. Angelo and Otoishi were bigger threats for sure, given their nature and what they had done, but Kira was the pinnacle.
In just a day Josuke had learned that Kira was just a big fish in a small pond. And that there were much, MUCH bigger threats out there. It caused within him brief panic, the existential threat to not just him but everyone here was enough to get the pompadour teen to freak out.
The grimm that charged them however put forth a more immediate panic.
The bike was weighed down by the fact that there were five people on it. The speeds he saw it going earlier against the hound were now reduced to a snail's pace. It was faster than walking or running for sure, but it was slow enough for some grimm to catch up.
A large and lanky wolf-like grimm, Jaune later called it a beowolf, had charged them from an alleyway and had pounced. But before any of the rest of them could address it, Okuyasu already had it handled. It seemed he was serious about actually going all out with The Hand, as the Stand was quickly summoned and had swiped at the beowolf. Within an instant the front paws, head and shoulders of the grimm were erased from existence. The rest of the beast harmlessly passed over them and also began to disintegrate. Completely dissolving even before hitting the pavement.
Jaune had seemed both impressed and a little intimidated. But he smiled in awe nonetheless. Then his awe turned to horror as he had realized something. He still hadn't unlocked Koichi and Okuyasu's auras. They quickly stopped for a moment so Jaune could at least unlock them.
"Listen you guys," Jaune began. "Aura is powerful stuff, but take it from me, you won't be masters of it in a day. Having aura doesn't mean you're invincible."
He paused for a moment.
"Also I don't think we should advertise that you guys are from another planet. People might think you're just crazy and just chalk up your Stands to crazy semblances. And the last thing we want people thinking is that you're crazy."
"Where should we say we're from then?" Koichi asked.
"We'll say you guys are from Mistral, students from Haven huntsmen academy. You were visiting Mantle and Atlas when everything went down and have been stuck here since."
"Do you think people will buy that?" Josuke asked.
Jaune shrugged. "Probably not. But a better excuse than coming from another dimension."
After that there weren't many incidents for the rest of the trip. Occasionally they would see a grimm or two in the distance but they would be dispatched by what Josuke assumed to be other huntsmen and huntresses.
Koichi ended up asking what the flying city, Atlas, was doing while all this was going down in Mantle. Jaune scowled and explained that the current leader, General Ironwood, had up and abandoned Mantle to try and save Atlas from the oncoming grimm hordes.
Josuke didn't know what to think about that. On one hand, this Ironwood guy sounded like a real asshole. While on the other hand, maybe it was the case that they simply couldn't save everyone before the grimm all got here. But from where Josuke was standing, it looked like Ironwood would have plenty of time to at least save some of the people down here.
Eventually they arrived at the crater, which was exactly that. The whole place was turned into one giant refugee camp. It reminded Josuke of the documentaries of war torn or disaster affected countries his social studies teacher would show.
They had gotten off the bike and were marching towards a shack. Apparently this was where two of the members of these Happy Huntresses were directing things. Jaune gave a quick knock before opening the door. The four from Morioh quickly shuffled inside to get out of the cold.
Inside it was a typical rundown building, the holographic screens did catch Josuke's eye though. Behind one of them stood a woman seemingly talking to herself. But Josuke suspected she was just using one of those earphones he saw Jaune use earlier. She was shorter than all of them except for Koichi and had curly cream hair.
Her sheep-like ears dumbfounded Josuke and the others however. With Okuyasu staring at her slack-jawed. Thankfully she was too distracted to notice their rudeness.
The other person in the room noticed however.
"Hey stop staring! Jaune what are these civies doing here?"
Josuke then turned his attention to the other huntress. Unlike the sheep-eared woman, this woman was HUGE. Taller than any of the guys from Morioh for certain. While he didn't notice any weird animal ears on her, her hair was a dark green. And Josuke had a weird feeling it wasn't dyed.
"This place just keeps getting more and more bizarre!"
"Joanna I know this looks weird but trust me I have a good explanation for all of this." Jaune said. Before the now named Joanna could say anything else he went into his explanation. The attack by the hound grimm, the kidnapping of Oscar, to Josuke and his friends helping in the fight, to getting back to the crater while Yang and Ren went after Oscar.
Joanna seemed very concerned about what happened to Oscar, but Jaune's story about Josuke and the others wasn't so easily taken. She had a look of distrust on her face as she stared at the four.
"So," she began. "You're students from Haven? Then why have you only just shown up now? Surely you can see what we've been dealing with. And why don't you have your weapons on you?"
"Uh we lost them? Yeah!" Okuyasu said.
Silence filled the room as everyone looked at Okuyasu. Even the woman who was fiddling with the holograms had finally noticed them and was looking at the scarred teen as well. Rohan was glaring daggers into the back of Okuyasu's head.
"Don't worry! We may have lost them, but we still got our semblances!" Koichi had stepped up to Joanna. The giant woman looked down at the short teen as he brought out Echoes. Both of the happy huntresses went bug-eyed at the floating being standing beside Koichi.
"What the hell kind of semblance is that!" Joanna shouted while taking a step back from Echoes.
"I call it Echoes, it has a few uses but it can hold things and people down really easily! Like a big weight or magnet!"
Joanna just stared for a moment before looking back up to the rest of the group. "Well if he has a crazy semblance, what do the rest of you guys got?"
Josuke, Rohan, and Okuyasu each then brought out their Stands and explained their powers. After the Happy Huntresses got over their shock, the one with cream hair stepped forward.
"This is great! A healer, someone who can destroy grimm outright, another that can hold down even the biggest ones! And, well, I'm not sure what we can use your semblance for Rohan. But it's still an amazing semblance I'm sure!"
She had a rather positive disposition given the circumstances. Though this didn't seem to bother Joanna or Jaune, as the tall woman turned to her partner.
"Yeah I guess their semblances are pretty busted Fiona, but I don't know. They only just showed up now, after all this crap has happened. For all we know they could just be plants sent by Ironwood!"
The group jumped a little as Joanna's reaction. There was some truth to her statements, it was suspicious that they had just shown up out of the blue. Thankfully, Jaune was willing to back their case up.
"Trust me Joanna I know how this looks, but I'm willing to vouch for them. They didn't have to help us try and stop that grimm hound. Please give them a chance. Besides, we need more bodies if we are going to get everyone safely here."
The greenette seemed to be in deep thought for a moment, clearly debating the pros and cons. After a moment she took a deep exhale and stared back up at the group.
"Alright then, what's your team name?"
Josuke paused. "Team name? What the hell does she mean by that?" He supposed it had something to do with them being huntsmen. Before he could reply Jaune stepped up once again.
"Team JOKR," the blonde teen declared. "Their name is Team JOKR. Josuke, Okuyasu, Koichi and Rohan!"
Both Joanna and Fiona popped an eyebrow at this. Joanna then pinched the bridge of her nose.
"If we weren't so desperate for help I would say no to this, but fine. Alright 'Team JOKR' we need to coordinate the evacuation to the crater. That means getting civilians out of their homes and away from the grimm. And making sure it stays that way for them until they arrive safely here. Jaune, you'll go with them. Message me the SECOND you get something from Yang or Ren. Fiona will coordinate things with you from here."
Jaune nodded. "Understood, if you hear anything from Ruby's group could you please pass it off to me please. In the meantime I'll get these guys outfitted and then we'll head out."
Joanna simply nodded. She took one last long look at the newly dubbed Team JOKR and shook her head. Jaune shooed them out of the shack and back into the cold. Josuke took one last glance inside before the door shut behind them.
"Well, I think that went about as well as we could expect," Rohan said. He turned to Jaune. "But what's this about weapons?"
"Well," the blonde started. "Did you only expect to fight with your Stands?"
They all looked at him before simultaneously nodding. Jaune's bewildered expression stayed for a moment before he shook his head.
"Well, it would be good to have a backup. Even with how cool your Stands are, it's better to be safe than sorry."
Josuke wasn't so sure about this. Sure his Stand wasn't built for every job, but Crazy Diamond almost always came through in the end. He wasn't sure how much a proper weapon would really change that.
He still followed Jaune anyways, it would be better to fit in if they had weapons than not. Who knows, maybe he will use it before this bizarre day ends.