Ghira watched the citizens of Menagerie in the market. The expressions, the atmosphere, it felt precious. Stepping through the doors of the balcony, he entered his estate. The helpers and cleaners smiled and greeted him as he walked. He pushed through the double doors stairs leading to the ballroom. There were many pieces of art, ranging from paintings to small statues. One work of art, however, was placed somewhere else more closely.
Kali cleaned the room of their bedroom. The dust has been stacking more often, something the cleaners have complained about. She swept it away, gathering it in a small pile. She turned to see the one thing that gave her hope to the Faunus—a crystal, bright yet dark in color. It let off frost, yet didn't hurt her. No matter how dusty these shelves get, the crystal is the one thing that seems to remain clean. Stepping toward the crystal, she couldn't help but wonder how their savior was doing. After all, the news revealed that there were sightings in the deserts of Vacou.
"Kali!" Ghira called.
"Yes?" Her attention did not break away. "Did something happen, honey?"
The crystal suddenly brightened as if echoing a heartbeat. "It's Blake; she got into another fight!"
She sighed, her head shaking at the news. "I'll be down."
She turned away from the shard, making her way to her husband. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to witness the crystal began forming more around the pedestal. It stopped, simply creating around the crystal.
In another part of the world, a team was sent to investigate a spotted horde of Grimm. The bullhead flew overhead as the team began to discuss their plan.
"Why not?" The blonde member questioned. "It's playing tonight!"
"Not interested." The raven-haired woman lazily answered.
"You've been asking for a week; isn't it time to drop it?" The brother of the woman shrugged.
"I guess. Do you want to join me?" Taiyang asked, hope in his eyes.
Qrow watched him for a moment before sighing. "You're paying for the popcorn."
"Can I join?" Summer asked as she fidgeted in the seat. "I've never actually finished the movie."
"You didn't finish Raid Of The Sun?" Taiyang mouth gaped. "It's so good!"
"I keep falling asleep through the romance scene in the kitchen."
He threw his hands in the air. "That's the best part!"
Qrow watched with a smirk as Taiyang defended his beloved scene. Raven mindlessly tapped her fingers as she watched out the window. Her eyes scanned the trees, occasionally glancing toward her leader. A voice rang out over the comms, and one pilot spoke.
"We're detecting an anomaly." His voice contains traces of confusion.
Raven turned toward the window, seeing nothing. She grabbed the handle, pulling the door open as the pilot spoke.
"What in the god damn?"
She held herself, her eyes scanning ahead. Her crimson eyes widened, seeing the area they were supposed to investigate. Trees were burned, scorched even. The ground was bright with molten earth. Ice seemed to encase half of the volcanic area. The ice rose to the sky so high that the bullhead passed by. Passing the enormous glacier, Raven's eyes narrowed, seeing Grimm encased in their frozen tome.
"What did all of this?" Tai's voiced everyone's thoughts.
Summer suddenly pointed, the others trailing after the direction. "There! Someone's down there!"
She was right. There was someone on the ground. The figure was with someone else, hovering above them. Qrow told the pilot to bring down the bullhead, pointing out the landing zone. As the bullhead landed, the team quickly approached the two. They came, able to hear the words exchanged.
"-asking again. Why were you hunting me?" The figure slowly landed on his feet.
The woman on the ground coughed, struggling to stand. She spat on the figure's shoes. "The queen sends her regards."
The figure said nothing, the head tilting as it walked around the downed woman. It kneeled, picking up a gun on the ground. Lever action yet had a magazine. Suddenly, the weapon disintegrated as if being consumed and evaporating. The figure turned, a faceless mask greeting the team. Raven's hand snapped to her blade, as did Qrow.
"New arrivals." It stood, hands behind its back. "Are you hostile?"
Suddenly, the woman shouted. "Help, this man's insane! He attacked me and robbed me."
It turned its head slightly, watching the woman. The woman stood on her knees, her expression holding fear. False or not, the team couldn't answer as the figure's hand crackled with electricity. The woman turned, her eyes widening as a bolt pierced through her. The team's eyes widened as the bolt sizzled and began to dissolve her body instantly. No trace was left other than the scorch mark left by the bolt.
Raven dashed forward, sword raised. The blade connected, leaving a large gash across its torso. It stumbled before falling, back flatly planting into the ground. Raven watched, her eyes sharing shock, as did her team.
"What did you do?" Tai voiced.
Summer took a step. "Why did you attack him?"
"He killed her. I just-" Raven shook away the shock. "I thought he would be stronger. At least have his aura unlocked."
"You killed him." Qrow's voice dripped with disappointment. "We should've talked first. Maybe even called Ozpin."
Raven turned with a huff. "You don't believe that. You felt it, he was dangerous-"
Suddenly, a pulse was heard. A small gust of wind blew pieces of embers toward the team. Qrow took a step back, as did Taiyang. Summer's eyes widened, hand slowly reaching toward her weapon. Raven slowly turned; the figure lying motionlessly on the ground was now slowly rising, levitating as it stopped. It hovered, watching the team.
"Got it out of your system?" It voiced. "I'm asking one more time. Hostile or not?"
Raven killed him, she was sure. There was no blood, but she was used to it. He was dead, but now he was there, floating like some messiah.
"Friends!" Tai suddenly shouted. "We're cool!"
"Tai!" Qrow shouted.
"What? If we can talk, let's talk, right?"
"Smart." He landed as he began to walk away. "Why are you here?"
Summer was the first to speak. "W-We were here to investigate news of a horde of Grimm. From the headmaster of Beacon Academy."
"Then you're not needed." He motioned to the area around them. "The horde has been dealt with."
Qrow glanced around, still in minor disbelief over the destruction. "All this for Grimm?"
"No." The sigh that escaped him sounded so augmented, as if someone tried to imitate one with machines. "It was because of her."
He lazily pointed to the ashes. Tai grimaced, glancing toward his leader. Summer tore her eyes away from the result, staring at the faceless mask. His head tilted as if distracted by something. He turned away from the group without another word.
"Wait!" Summer called out to him. "Why did you kill her?"
"She was sent to kill me." His head tilted toward Raven. "I know why; now I have to go."
"Wait, hold on a second." Qrow intervened. "You have to come with us. Our headmaster could help or something."
"No, thank you." That was all he said when he jumped into the air and vanished.
The team stood in place, confusion and shock evident on their face. Summer's scroll began to ring as the bullhead landed nearby. Summer reluctantly opened the scroll and answered.
"Miss Rose, you were meant to check in fifteen minutes ago." Her eyes glanced at the small traces of ash. "What's the status of horde?"
She cleared her throat. "C-Cleared. I give you the full details when we get back."
"Cleared?" Ozpin questioned. "Did something happen?"
"Trust her Oz." Qrow stepped beside the leader. "You gonna wanna hear what we just saw."