Beacon Academy, Combat Class

Present day

The sounds of battle echoed through the arena, combat class was in full-swing. Students assembled in the auditorial seats around it, eager to watch the fights unfold.

One such student was Ruby Rose, though, from a glance it was easy to tell that she wasn't as enthusiastic.

It wasn't the fights themselves that bored her, rather it was her racing mind that kept her enthusiasm at bay. She'd become far more reserved in the months since that fateful Solitas mission, more so than she already was if she being honest with herself. The mission had gone south so soon, even she had no clue whatsoever that the situation had become so dire.

All because she felt the need to charge head-first into battle, taking a page from her sister's hot-headed playbook.

Had she known that the rest of the Grimm pack were quite close by, she would never have engaged that way, but the excitement of being on a real mission got the better of her. She was completely oblivious to the real danger of the situation and as a result, casualties happened on her watch. By the time she was back inside the Bullhead, the brunt of the situation fell upon her.

Jaune Arc was nowhere to be found.

How? How did she lose him, she's got super speed for Remnants sake so how did she miss him? She could've easily grabbed him and brought him back with time to spare, but when she scanned the area for the adorkable knight, she found nothing but blood stains and evaporating Grimm bodies on top of the fresh, white snow.

Questions echoed constantly in her mind since that day, questions for which she has no real idea how to answer without becoming very depressed at some point. 'How could this happen..?' She repeated so often to herself.

She was upset with him, but out of everyone who hated his guts for what he'd done, she was the probably only one who didn't want to abandon him. She wanted to know for herself, why would he go so far just to be a Huntsman knowing he didn't have the skill? Arc or not, being able to defend yourself is a must and a no-brainer for Huntsman Academies, but Jaune had none of that going for him, so why?

Was he like Weiss? Did he intend to bring honor back to his family name?

Maybe but not to the extent of Weiss, she couldn't see Jaune in that light. He always went on about being a hero because, to him, it was just the right thing to do. Honor and fame had nothing to do with it.

There's no shame having an earnest desire like that and Remnant knows, the more people willing to take up arms, the better. Unfortunately, it just didn't turn out like that.

Eight months later and she still wasn't fully herself. Sure, she had good days where she was able to smile and forget for the moment and she had definitely improved from what she was when it initially happened, but it wasn't the same. She missed her first Beacon friend, dearly.

However, the rest of her team didn't share the same sentiments.

"This is starting to get ridiculous, Ruby... As a leader, you need to be capable of making smart decisions and you can't do that when you're too busy moping," said Weiss with her Atlas-cold, logical way of thinking.

"I know you're upset Ruby, dealing with loss takes time but you can't let that loss take over your life." Blake tried to lean on her more understanding side, but the message was the same.

"Ruby, don't you think it's time to let go of the past? Look, I know you liked Jaune... and I'm sorry for trying to keep you from him, but he's gone sis. He's gone and you've gotta accept it." Yang being in her big sister mode, tried to make Ruby see reason but didn't want to push her away.

Sitting next to her was none other than her sister, Yang, who was currently staring intently at her while she watched the fights unfold.

She knew full well why her sister was acting the way she was, she knew Ruby well enough to know the that girl is and always has been the overly-sensitive type. It was the reason why she tried to keep Jaune and Ruby apart from the beginning of the entire debacle, she has a habit of trying to see the good in everything and everyone.

At the time however, Yang wasn't convinced that a fraud could have good in him. It must've really been a surprise to Ruby when the other girls of the team agreed with her decision and actively helped in making sure he didn't get close whatsoever. In truth, Yang wasn't entirely sure if Ruby hated her for it or not. She never outwardly voiced her opinions, but then again she didn't even get a chance to do so.

Was she just coddling Ruby the entire time? Was she really being protective or just overbearing, she just didn't know.

Yang somewhat hated to admit it but Ruby was growing up, hell she's only two years away from herself. It was easy to see that the young lady had already formed a different opinion than the others regarding his transcript fiasco. If Yang didn't physically take her hand, she was sure that Ruby would've stay behind to inquire more of his side of the story.

'Did I make the right decision... keeping her from him?'

She had no real way of knowing.

"Still thinking about it all, huh?"

From the other side of her seat, Blake had easily noticed her partner's off-putting stare at her younger sister. For her, it definitely wasn't hard to guess what was on her mind.

"Yea... I guess so, I'm starting to think... maybe I was wrong to drag her away like I did." Yang was being way more introspective then Blake was used to, "I still feel like he didn't belong here, but I think that we... weren't acting like Huntresses either when we shunned him. I mean, he did deserve a chance to explain himself, he kinda owed it to us too if you ask me."

Blake herself was unsure of how she felt about the statement her partner, regardless, she pressed on. "That may be, but the fact is that it isn't. Right now, she's trying he best to process her first real taste of being a Huntress, we all are, in our own way." Blake was no different, she too had her own feelings regarding their former friend, but they weren't important now.

Her team however, was.

She laid a hand on Yangs shoulder in confidence, "Just give her some space, I'm sure she'll come around."

By the time they finished speaking on it, they barely noticed the bell ring and the Combat Class end. Ruby quickly was up and out in the hall before Yang could even turn her head, errant, floating, rose petals were the only indication that she was even there.

"Ruby... what am I gonna do with you?"

Meanwhile

Ruby moved quietly through the halls, admittedly, she was looking for the cafeteria. The urge for sweets was currently too much to bear while she was somewhat brooding, she hoped it was empty so she wouldn't have to worry about her team trying to find and constantly console her.

Yet upon arrival, only one person was there.

Here was the young Velvet Scarlatina, sitting alone at a table nearest to the large windows at the far wall. Surrounding her on the table was dozens of gears, lenses and other DIY mechanical know-how spread around. From a glance, you could clearly see that she was making adjustments to her camera, hologram, mechashift... weapon, Anesidora.

Ruby smiled inwardly at the girls dedication to her weapons maintenance, weapon freak herself, she loved seeing them in peak condition.

Taking full advantage of the solitude, she toiled away in silence as the piles of parts grew shorter. This was the perfect time to add her last minute upgrades before the start of the tournament a week from now.

Velvet was never known to be someone who adored the spotlight, even on her own time she was usually out of sight and mind. Being as introverted as she is, her alone time was paramount to her well-being, so she enjoyed these times dearly. She tinkered away, easily losing track of time until the first voices of other students began to fill the cafeteria. The sounds of other people quickly shook her from the silent bliss she was enjoying, but she was more or less finished with her adjustments so she packed all it up and headed back to her dorm.

Until... *Crash!*

Not paying attention to her front, she slammed right into a large mass causing her to spill out onto the floor.

"Oww...," she groaned as she rubbed her side, "I'm so sorry I should have bee-ah!"

A sudden jolt of pain in her ears halted any attempt at conversation she had.

"Yea, you should be little rabbit...," that rough voice was instantly recognizable to her as her constant tormentor, Cardin Winchester. Standing with him was the rest of team CRDL, each of whom had their own unique brand of smugness etched onto their faces.

Cardin sneered and snickered as he spoke, "You know, you should really pay more attention to your surroundings. After all... you wouldn't want to end up like Jauney Boy, right," his teammate, Russel Thrush particularly cracked up after hearing that one.

The offhand comment about Jaune caught her attention for a moment before his grip tightened again.

"Ahh! Cardin quit it!" Velvet shouted as she squirmed desperately to release her ear.

"Just as long as you admit that I'm the best of the first years. Then you can go, Faunus." He squeezed again. "Ok, ok! You're the best of the first years! Just let goooo!"

"Well, why didn't you just say that?" He belted out with a smirk before he released her ears and dropped her to the floor again. Just like that, he and his lackeys were off grabbing food in the cafeteria. She was left there in the middle of the hall to pick up her things.

Rubbing her long ears, she couldn't help but wonder what Cardin had meant by that comment he made. It was common knowledge now, everything that had transpired with Jaune Arc up until his reported death in the field. She didn't like how it sounded either, like he was... implying something.

She hastily gathered her belongings and hurried back to her dorm, not sure how to feel about Cardin's statement.

Only to bump into someone else, a certain Strawberry lover.

"Ah! Not again!~" the unlucky Faunus cried as she scrambled to pick up her things again. "I'm really sorry, I'm having a bad morning..."

"Hey, it's ok..., my mornings aren't all that great either hehehe." Ruby calmly joked but she could see how frazzled the young lady was and didn't want to upset her. She helped Velvet to her feet and handed her the rest of her belongings from the ground, "Say, you're from team CFVY right?"

The young rose innocently popped the question, it seemed simple enough. "U-uh yea! That's me!" She happily yet somewhat meekly answered.

"Awesome~ Oh! Are you ok? I noticed that jerk Cardin bothering you..."

"Ah! Y-yea he always does stuff like that, but I can handle it, no biggie. Say, can I talk to you about something?" Velvet wasn't entirely sure if she should do what she was about to, and what the consequences would be afterwards. 'She was one of his friends so, she has a right to know...'

Ruby, curiousity now peaked, leaned in a bit more, "Sure, I'm all ears~." Nervously, Velvet too, leaned inward to impart the information needed

"Did... did something happen between Jaune and Cardin on that mission?"

Huh?

Instantly, the non-existent hairs on Ruby's back arose like fire. She was immediately zeroing in on the words the rabbit Faunus just said. "What do you mean," she asked as she quickly lost the smile once etched on her face.

Velvet audibly gulped, she could tell that the atmosphere changed completely. Ruby wasn't happy now, she was focused.

"W-well... he just made this weird comment about him. He said I should watch my step before I end up like Jaune... what did he mean by that? It sounds really cryptic."

The little reapers eyes bulged briefly before they seriously narrowed, her mind taking her back to the fateful moment within the Bullhead. Nora holding Cardin by the scruff of his neck as he squirmed and swore that he saw Jaune's end.

Ruby didn't like where this was going...

[O]

The lift was quite the scenic ride, the view awarded to the both of them was of the mountain range surrounding the castle. Truly stupendous and unbelievable were the vistas Azure witnessed as they arose higher.

The word 'breathtaking' instantly came to him, it was beauty beyond all measure.

"It's nice huh? Taking in the sights like this always gets my blood flowing," Moon mentioned as she stretched her arms upwards.

Azure couldn't help but agree with her, nodding softly after she finished speaking. "Yea, the castle is beautiful but this... this is incredible."

The ride up the cliffside was longer than he'd initially thought, however he most certainly wasn't complaining when he considered what could've been. Trying to make his way up the mountain on that heinous trail was pretty much suicidal, plain and simple. It's only recently that hiking became something he was somewhat well versed in, months in the outdoors making it a necessity.

"So, can you tell me more about this artifact we're essentially stealing." he was certainly curious what with the castle's enormous size and stature.

In response, Moon was quick to spin on her heel to face him, "Absolutely, so I've already told you about how the first lord of the this castle subjugated the lands and created the first iteration of Titan, how he was able to do so was because of what we're looking for now."

Now, Azure was on the hook. He waited patiently for her to pick up the tale, she didn't make him wait long.

"The Black Map... A scorched, dark scroll that can pinpoint the location of very old and powerful Grimm anywhere on Remnant. Apparently, the very map itself empowers the user and weakens said Grimm when it's in their presence... according to the rumors." The young exile was suddenly captured and captivated by the description given, a map that can find ancient Grimm would be incredibly helpful for all of mankind. He could Imagine what any of the major kingdoms would do with that kind of knowledge.

"The former lord and his raiding parties would locate and destroy the Grimm around the frozen lands of his territory. The more Grimm slain, the more famous he became, and people from all over Solitas came to start a life here in what was known as the safest place in the land for a time." Moon huffed as she took a pause in her story, but now Azure had questions, he couldn't help but feel like she had summarized a much bigger story.

"Though, after decades of defending Titan, a growing faction of the city's people grew disillusioned with the Lords control over the lands. They argued that the lord shouldn't be the only person to have complete and total access of the map, this was where Atlas's regulations came into play. Once they had caught wind of the Map, they came knocking, each with offers of money and fortune, security or even with threats of violence."

Yea, that seems more up Atlas's alley if he really put some thought to it. Not to say that Atlas isn't great, but a military power that large has had to get their hands dirty in more ways than one.

"After exhausting those attempts, they simply decided to arm the rebel faction and make a play for the map when the dust settled. Too bad that didn't happen in the slightest, when the rebels came to the castle looking for the lords head, they only found devastation. The lord made quick work of many of them before he was fatally wounded, and in his last moments he hid the map in a secret room somewhere within the castle."

"Hey, how do you know all of thi-," suddenly interrupted by a loud screech, the lift had stopped. He took a pensive look around to see a sprawling courtyard and was immediately taken aback by the field of Camellias and Cyclamen flowers before him.

The multicolored field stretched far across the courtyard for at least over one-hundred yards until it met flat, smooth stone. A wide, circular walkway positioned in the middle of the vast expanse. Beaten and broken down statues of unrecognizable warriors littered the yard, sprinkled from place to place. Another stone path was branching off the walkway and leading directly to the castle walls, and to the incredibly large castle doors connected to them. So large, in fact, that he could see them even from the lift.

On both sides of the wall, wide, circular towers were attached with big enough slits around them for someone to look and climb through. Beyond all of that was the what appeared to be inner section of the entire castle.

"Wow..." Azure gasped, he didn't expect to see such a well kept garden all the way up here. Someone must be taking care of these flowers for them to look so healthy and vibrant. "Yea, the townsfolk come by to spruce up the place every now and again," Moon chimed in as she breezily strolled through the field. After taking one last gaze at at the vast garden, he was definitely interested in seeing inner sanctum so he wasted no time and followed suit.

They quickly reached the doors and Azure had yet another key thought, "How are getting in, exactly?"

The grin on Moons face widened menacingly. She pulled the straps off her back to release her giant of a weapon, a solid gold framed Axe with two black and curved blades protruding from both sides of the end.

"Easy. Duck."

Launching herself from standing at a blinding speed, she rocketed into the door with her Battle Axe ready.

"What are you- woah!!" Azure squeaked as he hit the floor, not wanting any part of the giant, dual-edged, kill-stick as he dropped down. Just in time too, as the impact of her Axe slamming into the thick metal over his head was simply astonishing.

A booming thud reverberated through the courtyard like a bell, but the sheer strength of the vibration she produced made the entire area tremble violently.

Trying not to fall over from the tremor, he quickly regained his balance and rose to his full height. After checking himself, he looked up to notice the condition of the mammoth doors, only to gasp again in surprise. Where Moon's Axe had impacted, there was now a gaping hole perfectly centered in the middle of the door. "Ok! Let's get moving!"

With all the vigor of a child, Moon swiftly leapt through the self-made opening. 'Well, she's in a good mood. That map must be something, but how does she know so much about this place? Common knowledge here, maybe?' Azure questioned her information inwardly as he climbed into the castle.

Stepping inside, Azure was immediately shocked once he grasped the sheer size and stature of the room he was in.

The Great Hall stretched out before them, wide columns of marble adorned the left and right sides of the hall just before the windows. Beautifully colored and painted, the windows were covered in ornate artwork and shapes so foreign to the young lad's eyes. Two wide columns sat on both sides of the large door and between them was a long, red carpet stretching to the middle of the Hall. At the very end of the hall stood a massively wide, single set, spiraling staircase stretching higher and lower into the castle proper.

Past the giant stairs was a set of hallways on both of it's sides leading further into the core of the castle. Another set of doors were on the walls parallel to them, one on each side just behind the columns. The overall space had a ridiculous amount of room for a-lot of people, tables, chairs and whatever else was brought through those doors, this must've been were they held most of their feasts.

"Woah, talk about ritzy," he muttered as he stared at the artful windows and carved walls.

"Yea, definitely beyond just fancy huh?" Moon agreed completely, the damn castle was loaded. The sheer opulence around was mind-boggling, gold and silver jewelry draped over statues of knights and warriors, golden picture frames that adorned the walls and gemstones implanted into the floor itself, the castle was truly a gold mine.

"So, where to," Azure asked, eager to see more of the castle. To which Moon put a hand to her chin and thought quietly.

"Well, I suspect that the Map would be somewhere of serious importance here. Maybe the treasury or the old Lords Bed chambers..." Moon pondered on the topic before answering again. "Lets try the basement first, usually the treasury is somewhere hidden from view."

Nodding in affirmation, Azure briskly followed Moon through the hall to the stairs. However, just before they reached the staircase, an eerie, deafening sound pierced their ears.

*OOOOOUHHHHHHH*

The walls shook as the groan reverberated though-out the entire complex

"Moon... what was that?" Azure deadpanned as he asked, knowing full-well what it probably was.

"Probably more trouble..." she sighed as spun her Battle Axe in preparation as the duo was suddenly assaulted by the sounds of skittering feet. Clambering and scraping noises and bounced off of the walls around them as the hallways darkened. Not a moment after, the familiar shapes of black fur and white bone made themselves known, a literal horde of Sabyrs barreled through the corridors, ready for gore.

The first of the foul party received a powerful fire bolt the face, curtesy of Azures new rings. He stared down the rest of the horde with a look of pure resignation.

"I always end up in such nice places..."

Words from the Author

Hey y'all.

Sorry if this ones a little short. This years been a busy one, sorry for the short chapter I kinda wrote it on the fly.

I promise Full Bloom is next and then DIOB

Till then later peeps.