Jaune's head was buried between his legs, stomach roiling. Here he was again. The Grimm had herded him across the school, snapping jaws and impatient swipes all the while. On the way, Jaune had attempted to converse with the Beowolves. Jaune had reasoned, if these creatures could be entrusted with tasks like cleaning or moving others around, maybe they were intelligent?

The violent growling and torn sleeves spoke volumes to how much the Beowolves cared about anything he had to say, intelligent or otherwise. He had to admit, at least they hadn't disemboweled him. That was definitely an improvement over the worst case scenario. Another point in his favor, they didn't just throw him into a room made of screams and spikes! Instead the wolves literally just ran him into a bullhead and growled at him until he sat down.

That was progress! Looking to the front, he saw not the huge, lumbering form of his original pilot. Instead, waiting for him despite Jaune having gone ahead of him, was the limber, scarred Tyrian. Today was getting better and better.

Jaune started to laugh. Sooner than he'd liked, the laughter turned into quiet sobs.

Nurse's office. Of course there wouldn't be a nurse's office in a place like this. Why would there be? He had seen firsthand that students could get injured or even killed and no one batted an eye. Why would a place like this care if you were sick? What were they going to do, send you home?

If only.

Sitting in the back of the Bullhead, it was déjà vu for the boy. He had been on a ship like this, perhaps even this very one, when he had been brought to Grimm Academy. If only he had known then what he knew now, he would have asked to turn around and return to Vale. Before he had seen the sights he had. Before he had learned the horrible information that such a place even existed. Before he had become trapped.

He had no idea where Tyrian was taking him, but it was obvious to him now that it wasn't some remote hospital out in the wasteland. The creepy, horrifying, purple and red wasteland. He couldn't begin to imagine what the insane scorpion faunus had planned for him, but the fear was enough to completely nullify the effects of his motion sickness he would have normally felt at a time like this.

Although... he didn't have to simply sit back and allow it to happen. No, why would he? He had a pretty good idea of what kind of man Tyrian was. He knew what kind of creatures he served. Nothing good could come of this little trip they were taking. And Tyrian had seen fit to allow Jaune to bring his weapon with him...

It would be so easy. All he had to do was sneak behind Tyrian, who was currently piloting the ship, and drive his blade through the faunus' spine. One swift strike would be all that was needed. Tyrian was distracted, lost to his own little world, head bobbing back and forth to the beat of some song Jaune couldn't hear. What came after that wouldn't be too hard. So what if he couldn't fly a Bullhead? How hard could it be? After all, this gibbering madman was piloting it. All Jaune needed to do was stabilize it, head toward Vale, and hope to come in radio contact with someone who could help guide him on landing. Easy. That easy.

Except the thought of taking another life, no matter how bad the person was, sickened Jaune. It would make him no better than the monsters he attended the academy with. What would even be the point of leaving?

Another thought entered his mind. What about hijacking the ship? That seemed like the next best idea. He had seen a Spruce Willis movie about terrorists who had hijacked a massive commercial air ship before. Again, it was easy. With Tyrian busy piloting, all he had to do was go behind him and press the tip of Crocea Mors against his back. He wouldn't be able to do anything to stop it.

It seemed to be the only option of getting out of this place alive. Nodding to himself, and taking a deep breath, Jaune stood as quietly as he could. His right hand drifted over to his sword's handle, and fingers squeezed down tightly on the blue leather. He took a step toward the pilot. And then another. After a third step, the quiet rasp of steel scraping on steel filled his ears, sounding as loud as an explosion in the young man's mind.

Yet, the amused chuckle from the chair ahead was still louder. Near deafening, in fact. What was he laughing about?

"You are so precious, Mister Jaune. Like a child, so unaware of how the world works."

Jaune's heart sank as much as his plan just had. So much for surprise. Bitterness and anger filled him, his hand remaining on the handle of his sword. "I'm not worried about crashing. If someone like you can fly this thing, I bet I can too."

Tyrian giggled, apparently unaffected by the verbal jab Jaune had just thrown his way. "Oh ho, so the child planned to kill me! My, my, here I thought you aimed only to hold me hostage and coerce me into doing what you wanted." The giggling ripped away into outright laughter. "Or, was I right the first time? Are you so weak of stomach that you think you can have it both ways?"

What was galling, to Jaune, was not the sing-song tone Tyrian had taken. It was not the condescending arrogance. Tyrian made no move to face him, to even look his way. He was nothing to the older man, not even something to threaten.

"Child of mine, let me tell you something. In nature, one must be decisive. One must be sure footed and quick witted. You, Mister Jaune Arc, are none of these things."

Jaune snarled, rushing forward drawing his sword. Bringing it up overhead, he reached the chair. He stopped. Disgust filled him. He had almost risen to the bait, lashing out in anger and violence. Lowering his sword, he suddenly found his arms jerked to the side. Something struck at his blade, deflecting it away from the chair entirely, nearly knocking him off his feet. Jaune's eyes widened as he caught up to what had happened, the brown exoskeleton darting out of sight.

His tail. His damnable tail. Tyrian's scorpion tail had knocked away his blade. Even if he had tried, even if he had followed through with the attack, it wouldn't have mattered. Like he was, like he was...

"Nothing." Tyrian's laughter caught Jaune's attention again. "You are truly nothing." The man did not even spare Jaune a glance as Tyrian leaned his head against the window of his door. "I don't believe you could kill me even if I were asleep. Though," this did garner Tyrian's attention, peering back at the boy. "We will need to work on your ability to commit. So many wonderful girls, or lads if you so prefer, will you disappoint being so half-hearted."

Did that mean he would live long enough to disappoint the 'wonderful girls' Tyrian spoke of? With no way to move forward with his plan, Jaune decided to simply ask the million lien question. "Where are we going then if you don't want me dead?"

"Whoever told you that I did not want you dead?" Tyrian sounded genuinely confused, almost insulted. "No, you misunderstand. Quite the talent you have there, your ignorance. It is a gift."

"Then why am I still alive!"

"Why, the chance to prove to everyone that your weakness can be overcome," the man explained. "I am a fair man, Mister Jaune. I want to give you a chance to return to our illustrious academy and continue your education. To prove to your peers, and even yourself, that you are far stronger than you give yourself credit for. Like formless clay, untapped potential that may yet become something. But, we cannot have untested materials produce an inferior product, Mister Jaune. So we come here. The testing grounds. The land of struggle and rebirth."

There were many words Jaune would have used to describe Tyrian. Fair was not high on the list. "But I don't want to go back. I just want to go home. Could you please just do that for me? Please. I'm begging you."

"Home?" Tyrian gasped. "Why, Mister Jaune, I am confused. Whatever do you mean? You are home. This is your home. Before you, should you prove worthy, is servitude to our Goddess. She has plans for you, make no mistake. Whether or not you prove to be the right man for the job depends on if you can rise to the task. You will either adapt, or you will die. Which you choose is entirely up to you."

Jaune shook his head. "How do I adapt? I'm only human! You know that! How does a human like me survive in a school full of monsters?"

Tyrian's tail moved faster than Jaune could register, and the tip of the stinger pressed lightly against his throat. He felt a sudden wetness on his neck. He hadn't felt any pain, but Jaune could only assume it was his own blood from a light scratch wound.

"What did I tell you about calling our goddess' precious children monsters," Tyrian snarled.

He knew he had messed up in that moment. He did indeed know better. He also knew that Tyrian was a psychopath who would get set off by such a word. "R-right. I'm sorry."

The tail retracted, and Jaune brought his hand up to check for blood. He found only a strange purple substance instead. It had come from Tyrian's tail. And with him being a scorpion, there could only be one explanation to what it was. Poison.

"Fret not, I did not pierce the skin," Tyrian said, as if reading Jaune's mind. "However you would do well to mind your words. A single drop of venom would be fatal in seconds for a boy of your constitution. One without even his Aura unlocked..."

"Aura?"

Tyrian rose from his seat, Jaune's eyes widening. Stepping back, hands curled around the hilt of his sword for lack of anything else to hold, he cowered back as Tyrian stepped in front of him.

"Strike me."

Jaune stared at the psychopath.

"Right here." Opening his vest wide, Tyrian pointed to the center of his chest. "Anywhere really. Take your little sword and strike me as hard as you can."

Without thinking twice, Jaune lunged forward, thrusting Crocea Mors into Tyrian's chest with all of his strength. Before his unbelieving eyes, a purple light surged across Tyrian's body, tossing away the strike and knocking Jaune off balance. In one fluid motion, Tyrian caught the young man by the shoulder and rammed his knee into Jaune's chest. He found himself tossed away to the back of the ship, landing with a harsh crash. He wished to cry out but couldn't, the air driven from his lungs.

"That is Aura. That is what you must obtain, Mister Jaune. Make no mistake about it, there is only one path forward if you wish to live. As you are," Tyrian laughed to himself, returning to his seat. "Well that would be repeating myself. You must dedicate yourself to serving Salem just as we all have done. Our Goddess has uses for pitiful mortals such as you and me."

Jaune added fanatic to the list of adjectives he would silently use to describe Tyrian. Only silently, as he did not know how the man might lash out should the words ever be uttered aloud. The boy was certain the only reason his chest hadn't been caved in was because he was wearing armor. "How... how do I serve her?" he managed to cough out.

The words sounded wrong just by leaving his lips. He had no intent or interest in serving that terrifying woman known as Salem. However it would appear as if he would have no choice in doing so.

"The first step is to prove that you belong here. Consider this a trial by fire to prove you are capable of surviving in this school." He giggled softly. "But do not fear failure. For in the end you are nothing and nobody, and are easily replaceable in the grand scheme of things."

Those were not words anyone wanted to hear. Especially one who was fearing for his life.

"What are her plans for me?"

Tyrian stopped for a moment. Looking back, he blinked. "You know, I have no idea. Our future is completely unpredictable! Isn't that exciting?"

Jaune felt as the Bullhead jerked to a stop, and a look out the window showed that the ground was closer, but only by so much. They had almost arrived, hovering a few dozen meters above the ground.

The faunus stood and walked to stand before Jaune. Despite being almost the same height, the long and lanky man seemed gigantic in front of him. Monstrous. Terrifying. Even more so than Ruby herself.

"So..." Jaune began uneasily. "What now?"

Tyrian chuckled lightly, moving to the far wall of the ship. "Tell me. Are you familiar with myths and legends of ancient Remnant? From a time before our limited scope of history was penned by liars, cowards and fools?"

Jaune didn't know if that question was supposed to make sense. Considering who it had come from, it probably only made sense to him. In any case, however, such subjects were not all that familiar to him. "Uh... no. I'm not."

"Then allow me to teach you a lesson. It's only fitting that a professor would educate his student, after all." Jaune wasn't sure he wanted to learn anything that this madman had to teach, but he remained silent as Tyrian continued. "Long ago the ancient cultures practiced a wonderfully pragmatic method of ensuring that only the strongest and brightest would survive to adulthood. A culling of the sickly and deformed. You see, those born with imperfections would be left out in the wild to die so that the rest of the tribe would not waste precious resources on those too weak to be productive. If, by some chance those deemed too weak managed to survive and grow older, then they were welcomed back by their people with open arms!"

Jaune didn't like where this was going. He knew all too well how this story applied to him. He had lied about being too sick to fight. Even if Tyrian knew he had been lying because of his true human nature, in the eyes of his peers... he was sick. Weak. A burden on the rest of them. He had to prove he was strong.

"As for you, all you must do is simply return to the academy," Tyrian continued, speaking as if it was the most easy task in the world. "If you can make your way through the Grimmlands relying on only your strength and wit then you too will have proven yourself to the rest of your peers, and will be welcomed back! And more importantly, you will uphold Salem's faith that you do indeed belong here."

It was a death sentence in all but name. Jaune could only assume there was a reason Tyrian was calling this place the Grimmlands.

Jaune jumped back when a weapon suddenly appeared on Tyrian's arm. Blades and what he could only guess were gun barrels, all bundled around the fists of his so called teacher. "Just to make sure you don't get any cute ideas..." Tyrian fired at the front of the ship, destroying the controls.

Jaune's eyes widened.

Tyrian's grin grew.

"Try not to die, Mister Jaune."

He had never felt pain so horrible as this in his life.

Blue eyes opened as he heard Tyrian's voice again. "But if you must die, you will die alone. No one will miss you. No one will mourn your loss. You will die as you lived, as nothing and nobody."

Jaune scrambled to his feet, his head ringing, vision blurred. The ship had crashed. How was he even alive? A terrible pain tore through him, the same that had woken him. In the back of his mind, he wondered if he even wanted to be alive here. Clapping jerked his attention upwards, Jaune finding himself thrown out of the Bullhead. Atop its burning remains was Tyrian, watching him with excited yellow eyes.

The faunus placed a hand on his stomach, bowing dramatically. "Farewell, and good fortune to you. Don't be too scared now. Fear will only make things more complicated, after all!"

With that, Tyrian leapt away, laughter echoing across the barren wastes. Jaune stared, watching as the faunus vanished from sight faster than he could have believed.

Toward the academy. Struggling to his feet, Jaune could just barely make out the tall dark tower on the horizon. He had no idea how many miles away it was, but in this moment it seemed entirely out of reach.

At least he had his weapon and armor. He picked Crocea Mors off the ground and removed its scabbard from his belt. Shifting it into its white heater shield form, Jaune felt as ready as he could possibly be in this horrible place. Taking a deep breath, he set out back toward the academy, and hopefully toward his own survival.

Familiar desolation was all his eyes could see. Standing between him and the tower was almost completely barren nothingness. Scattered rock formations shot up from the ground offering precious little cover as Jaune travelled, his brisk walk reflective of how badly he wanted to escape this place and return to the safety of the school. That thought alone was as insane as the man who had just brought him to this place. Safety of the school. There was nothing safe about a place teeming with those monstrous beasts. And without Tyrian present, he had no reservations of calling them what they were. They were monsters.

Jaune's hands shook as he continued on his way. The shattered moon which hung ominously in the sky reflected on the strange pools of oozing black liquid which dotted the landscape. He had no idea what those puddles were, but he knew that he should do his best to avoid stepping in them. With his luck it would be some sort of living sinkhole which would suck him down and drown him.

Time no longer seemed to possess meaning as he walked. Who could say if only five minutes had passed, or fifty? Everything around him looked the same, and as far as he could tell the distant tower looked no closer than it had been when his journey began. What he did know, however, was that he had to keep going. At least if he returned to the school there was a slim chance of survival. There was a man there who despite his psychotic behavior, had told him that serving Salem would allow him to live. Salem herself knew he was just a human. If he could prove himself to somehow be valuable to her, to show her that she had not made a mistake in approving of his falsified transcripts...

The thought was driven from his head when a nearby sound drew his attention. One of those pools of black liquid had begun to bubble like a pot of water on the stove. Jaune's eyes widened, taking several steps away from ooze as he brought his sword and shield up in a defensive position in front of his body. His heart rate spiked. His breathing became heavy. Fingers gripped tightly on the handle of Crocea Mors as the bubbling intensified with each second that passed.

His heart skipped a beat when something began to emerge from the muck. A stubby snout poked through the pool, jaws opening to reveal a row of jagged teeth, with two long fangs near the front of its mouth being the most prominent. As it pulled its way onto the ground, Jaune saw how the misshapen creature only possessed two limbs on its unusual body, acting as legs to prop its forward-heavy form upright.

Jaune flinched as the creature opened its mouth again, this time emitting a high-pitched screech. He didn't have a chance think before it rushed toward him on short but powerful legs.

Instinct took over as it dove toward him, and Jaune raised his shield to meet the oncoming attack. It threw itself at his shield, and the impact of the creature nearly knocked him off his feet as he took the attack.

Perhaps the impact temporarily stunned the Grimm, as when Jaune lowered his shield to look down at his attacker it was shaking its bulbous head back and forth quickly. Taking this as an invitation to return the favor, Jaune swung down with Crocea Mors as hard as he could. Steel met the bone-like material on its head, and while the impact was solid, the result was less than ideal. Another shriek sounded from the maw of the Grimm, and Jaune brought his sword back to reveal a sizable dent in his foe's skull. But what should have been a killing blow had only inflicted a wound on the thing's thick armored skull.

It leapt at him again, and this time Jaune barely had enough time to get his shield up before it struck. The lack of preparation cost him dearly, and this time his lack of proper footing caused him to lose balance. The boy crashed down onto the ground on his back, his hands still clutching desperately to his sword and shield as the weight of the beast he was fighting pressed down on him. Snapping jaws and kicking feet threatened every inch of his body as Jaune desperately sought to keep the terrifying thing on his shield. In the end it didn't matter, as one of its thrashing feet finally found something soft and squishy, and its sharpened toes sunk into the flesh of Jaune's thigh.

The boy screamed in agony, his body jerking and spasming involuntarily to try to relieve the offending pain. He twisted to the side, and while the Grimm creature fell off of him and his shield, it also opened him up to further attack. Jaws clamped down on his left arm, and it was pain like he had never felt before in his life. Jaune felt as though he was going to pass out as the twisted beast's teeth clamped down on both flesh and armored plates alike.

He was going to die. Just as Tyrian had said. He was a dead man. This thing, this small little Grimm creature, was going to be the death of him. Maybe it was adrenaline kicking in. Maybe it was some last desperate gasp of life willing him to survive. Whatever the case, Jaune had one move left to make. With his sword in hand, he brought it up and across his body, stabbing the Grimm beast through its neck and into its torso. With no white armored plates there to guard it, the blade cut through black flesh as easily as a hot knife through butter.

The creature screeched again, however this time it was a death cry. It stumbled back a couple steps before the thing's body began to turn to dust right before Jaune's eyes. Soon enough the remnants of the beast's body scattered in the wind, leaving Jaune alone once more.

A look down at his left arm revealed a sight which nearly made him vomit. The flesh of his forearm was torn and bloody, while the armored plates on his upper arm were scratched and reddened from his own blood. If not for the armor, he might have lost his entire arm to the creature of Grimm. It was a small victory, and right now he needed all the victories he could get.

Picking himself back up, Jaune took what little scraps of loose clothing were available to him to try and bind the wounds. The orange band from his right arm would just have to do, and he wrapped it around his wounded left arm to try and stem to bleeding. He hoped it would be enough to prevent him from bleeding out before he could make it back to the academy.

If he could make it back.

He barely had enough strength in his left arm to carry his shield, but he knew that it was better to have it available than to revert it back to its scabbard form. At least he would be able to use it as some sort of barrier in order to buy him time to lash out with his sword.

Setting off toward the academy once more, the full extent of his circumstances began to dawn on him. He was grievously wounded after encountering only a single Grimm. His left arm was all but worthless now after the encounter. And there was still such a long way back to the school. But all he could do was keep moving forward. One step at a time.

Those steps ground to a sudden halt when a sudden looming shadow appeared before him. Turning around, his eyes widened in horror as a massive snake-like creature rose above him. A huge pair of glowing red eyes stared down at him, and its mouth opened to reveal teeth as long as Crocea Mors.

The last thing he saw were those teeth before the snake's mouth fell upon him, and the world went black.

This was the worst day ever.

Fear gnawed at Ruby's insides, emitting enough negativity to silence even the loudest of her detractors. Why? Why did this have to happen? Of all the things that could have happened, why did Jaune have to become ill?

It wasn't fair. She had finally found someone in her life who could see past her glaring flaws. Who could see her as something more than a broken creature. She knew that she was unusual compared to her peers. She knew that she was an oddball. A freak. An abomination of Salem. Her inherently positive demeanor made her a pariah to all those around her except for her sister, and even then that was only because they were kin. Instinct trumped choice there, and Yang was naturally driven to be protective of her own blood. It was an instinct that she was sure would not last forever.

Now her first and only friend was as good as dead. While normally the creatures of Grimm did not fight among themselves, hybrids were a special case. They were not entirely Grimm, nor were they entirely human. As a result they were still seen as dull beacons of light for the creatures of darkness to hunt out in the wild. Jaune was out there all by himself, at the mercy of the creations of Salem.

Perhaps that was why she had come to the training chamber today. To fight a battle she could not otherwise participate in. To unleash her wrath in a cathartic rage. To slay the creatures who would soon slay her friend.

Her black-bone scythe danced in her hands with practiced ease, each blow decapitating a Beowolf who had dared come within reach of her fell blade. She hated them. She wanted to destroy them all. They were proxies for the beasts that roamed the Grimmlands who even at this very moment hunted Jaune. In the end though, they were nothing more than fodder. For each Beowolf she destroyed, Salem could easily raise five more to take its place.

There was only one Jaune. And nothing could ever take his place.

Ruby screamed as the edge of her scythe met black fur, and in one swift flick of her wrist tore the thing's head clean off. It's body began to disintegrate a second later, and Ruby was left panting as she gripped the haft of her weapon tightly in her black fingers.

She was about to summon more of the beasts, but a voice stopped her. "Way to go, sis!" an unwelcoming cheerful voice sounded. Crimson eyes glanced over to see Yang enter the arena. "I think you're ready to graduate to Ursai for your next training session."

The younger sister twirled her scythe with weightless ease, the butt of its shaft slamming down into the ground. "I'll kill them too then."

Yang flashed a predatory smile, her sharpened teeth glinting in the dull overhead light. "I love it when you're feisty! You seem in a good mood today. What's up?"

Good mood. Of course it would seem that way to her sibling. Hatred. Wrath. Aggression. All of these things were seen as good things by her kind. It was only natural that Yang would pick up on her sister's negativity and see it as a good thing. What she didn't know was that she was feeling these emotions for all the wrong reasons.

Air shot through her nostrils as her gaze shifted to the floor. "Hey... Yang?"

"Yeah?"

Her neck move around uncomfortably as if trying to drive a cramp from her muscles. Her eyes remained locked on the ground. "Do you think Jaune will be okay?"

Ruby knew deep down he would not be. However, she still sought out the comfort of her kin. Of her older, wiser, and unbroken older sister. Maybe she knew something that Ruby did not. Maybe she would be able to offer words of wisdom that Ruby herself could not think of.

"I dunno," the blonde girl said instead. Not quite what Ruby had been hoping or expecting. "Does it matter though?"

To her it did. But she could very well understand why it wouldn't matter to Yang. Jaune wasn't her friend. Jaune didn't represent something in her life that she had always lacked. Jaune was seen as weak now. And as everyone knew, the sick and weak must be culled.

Ruby shrugged, feeling a little embarrassed about confiding in even her sister about such a personal matter to her. "It does to me," she said meekly. "He's my friend."

A massive and muscular arm wrapped itself around Ruby's body, pulling the girl closer to her elder sibling. "Aw, it's okay," Yang cooed. "If he's strong then he'll survive. But if he's weak then he'll die, and he was never meant to be here in the first place. And you'll be stronger too because you won't be tied down by him."

A sense of warmth and comfort washed over Ruby as Yang held her in an arm as big as her entire body. Physical comfort, however, could not do away with her worries. "But what if I felt stronger with him around?"

It was an odd question to ask for certain, and even Ruby herself didn't know why she had asked it. But there was just something about being around Jaune that made her feel great about herself. Like she finally had some sense of worth. She wasn't a burden on him like she was with Yang. He wasn't repulsed by her. They just... got along. She liked being in his presence. It was more than just him smelling good. She didn't know why, but he seemed different than all the other hybrids.

Different. Just like her.

"You said he was really strong, right?" Yang asked. Ruby nodded, prompting the girl to continue. "Like, he was always in his human form. He had perfected his human form. Not even Weiss has that down yet, and she's at the top of the class. So Jaune must be super strong."

Ruby nodded again, smiling as a memory came to her. "Yeah. Remember how he was able to dodge your attack when you first met?"

"Oh I remember," Yang laughed. "And trust me, I'm wanna get him back for that. I really hope he does survive because I wanna get some training in with him and see just how tough he is."

The words filled Ruby with a small sense of relief. Jaune had to be incredibly fast to be able to avoid Yang's strong, massive fist. Her right arm was her primary weapon, and the boy had been able to dodge it with ease on his first day. So maybe... just maybe, he would be able to make it back to the school. Maybe he would survive the culling, and prove to everyone just how strong he was.

"I hope so too," Ruby agreed softly.

"And who knows. Maybe he'll even be a good mate if he's really that strong." She gave Ruby a squeeze with her massive fingers. "Imagine the offspring of two strong hybrids like me and him!"

"Yang!"

The blonde laughed, finally releasing Ruby from her grip. "Oh what's wrong, had eyes on him yourself? No wonder you wanted to room with him..."

Ruby shook her head wildly at the accusation. "That's not it at all! We're friends!"

"Uh huh. Well if you're just friends then maybe I will take him as a mate."

A pair of smaller horns swiped up at Yang's own, the clatter of bone on bone resonating through the room. "You'd better not!"

Yang grinned down at the girl. "Oh I love it when you're jealous! But you'd better think twice if you wanna duel with me."

Two pairs of red eyes remained locked on each other, and Ruby wasn't sure if she did indeed want to challenge Yang for dominance. She had never formally clashed horns with anyone before, and her bigger, stronger sister would probably not be a good idea for her first duel.

Luckily the decision was taken out of her hands when a third voice entered the fray. "Wow. What's got you so negative today?"

Turning to the entrance, Ruby saw the massive form of Cardin strutting toward her with his usual confidence. Being hands down the largest of the hybrids in her class gave him a swagger that few people could deny was deserved. He was incredibly strong and tough. Arms the size of tree trunks were weapons in and of themselves, while the armor plates fused to his flesh gave him the protection to withstand even a blow from Yang's powerful arm.

Blood-red eyes narrowed as he approached. "What do you want?"

The boy shrugged as he neared them. "Just came to do some training, but I was surprised when I saw you here. You're actually tolerable for once. What, did Yang finally manage to knock all the positivity out of you?"

The girl in question stepped forward, her right claw balling into a fist. "You'd better watch your mouth, Cardin. Don't think that just because we're not in one of Professor Callows' matches that I won't tear you apart."

Ruby looked back and forth between the two titans of her class staring each other down. One a hulking mass of muscle and sinew, as big and powerful as a Beringel. The other while smaller, was far more agile, and still a powerhouse with her disproportioned right arm. It would be an incredible fight to see for certain, but it was not a fight that Ruby wanted to have happen on her behalf.

Surprisingly, cooler heads prevailed in the end. Maybe Cardin knew that he would likely be double teamed by the sisters should a fight break out. Not in the way he'd prefer, either. He merely smirked, shaking his head lightly. "Sometimes I wonder how you're even from the same pack," he mused. "Your little sister doesn't have the knack for violence like you do."

It wasn't the first time her and Yang's kinship had been called into question. Yang was the epitome of what a Grimm hybrid should be. Strong. Aggressive. Violent. An appendage gifted to her by Salem to enhance her capacity for destruction.

Ruby on the other hand, while she was indeed strong, was cursed with her unnatural positivity. She was defective. UnGrimm-like. And she knew it.

Perhaps it was that deficiency which made her do what she did next. Tugging on Yang's arm, she wished to defuse the situation before Cardin's words provoked Yang once more. "Let's get something to eat," she told the blonde. "All that training made me hungry."

It took a few seconds, but Yang's eyes finally broke away from Cardin's. It was better that way. While the fight would have indeed been a bloodbath, there was no guarantee it would go Yang's way.

With Jaune's chances of survival being as slim as they were, Ruby could not afford to lose her last ally in this school. Though she wouldn't let Yang know, she still held hope in her heart for Jaune.

Jaune was strong.

Jaune was dying.

He knew he was dying. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, a creature of darkness and bone twisted into the shape of a snake appeared. Almost as quickly as it had appeared, it had swallowed him whole. Not even deigning to bite down, the faux reptile consumed him within its blinding, confusing red mass. It seemed to have no organs, no bones, nothing truly living within.

Just blinding, all encompassing red, surrounding, engulfing him. He could feel the red crushing down on him, smothering and burning away at his clothing. His strength, dented and tired, wore quickly within this hellish pit. Was it water? Muscle? He couldn't tell. It was all just red. All he could see was red.

No longer could he see even his own body. Closing his eyes, trying to keep the maddening red from staining his vision further, he swung wildly with his sword. No easy feat, he could barely even move his arms. In fact, he realized he couldn't move at all. Suspending in nothing, body burning and growing colder simultaneously, he was completely immobile. Up, down, nothing made sense anymore. There was no air, no liquid, no earth, only red.

Red is what he would become. It would invade his very core, his very being, it would dissolve his armor and clothing and invade his body itself. There would be no trace of him, no evidence of what had happened. He hadn't even wounded the serpent before it consumed him. This was now his fate. To be eaten by the strong, and reduced to nothing. Just as Tyrian said. Nothing. That was all the madman saw him as, and it would be all that was left.

He had tried. That had to matter for something, right? The gods have mercy on him, he had tried.

Memories drifted, family members coming and going. Sisters, so many older, the twins always causing trouble. Bratty one, always so much smarter than he was. Saphron. Overbearing, loving, responsible Saphron. Never understood. None of them had. None of them got why he was doing this. Why he wanted to fight.

Especially that madman. Red seeped into his thoughts, images fading. Only color remained. That madman. Pale flesh, cooled scars, white leather, brown, and-

Purple. Purple light. Aura. That bastard, he had that. That light. All around him burned, his body chilled, yet within, deeper and deeper, further than the red could penetrate, Jaune found it. White-gold fire, burning low, diminishing by the moment. Jaune reached out for it, touching it. He could feel its warmth, yet it wasn't enough. He needed to build it higher. He needed to rise beyond the dying embers he had found and instead become an inferno.

Grasping the flame, the red was expelled by a blinding brilliance.

Salem watched everything. Nothing happened in her kingdom that she did not witness. Few things happened on this shattered world that she was ignorant of. Seer littered the Grimmlands, infiltrated even the safest kingdoms. Acted as her eyes and ears.

At this moment she was turning away from one vision. The human had failed, of course. He was not the first to fail, nor would he be the last. It didn't matter. Hers was an ageless power, with an infinite patience to back it up. She began to arrange for Watts to feel for further subjects when a most unusual sight caught her attention.

A glowing sword burst out from the King Taijitu's abdomen.

Salem quirked an eyebrow. The sword slashed down, clumsy, but with power. Power that went beyond the child's age or skill. His semblance? The blond haired youth emerged from within the snake, falling to the ground in a heap. His clothing was frayed, skin glowing from the excess of aura healing his injuries.

Aura that was gathering more Grimm. Stronger Grimm. Salem's eyes narrowed. Maybe.

He would be allowed to live, at least a few days longer. It would be nice to finally have found the one she needed. If he disappointed her all the same, it wouldn't matter. His life, the life of his family, the life of his legacy were all nothing compared to something like her. Salem would remove and replace him if needed.

For now, he survived. Eyeing Tyrian making his return, a small smile quirked at her features.

A small jest wouldn't be amiss, she reasoned. If a scorpion took him to his doom...

Jaune found his legs unable to lift him. Yet, on the ground, he never felt happier. Every wound, every injury was fading, the pain ending. The fire he had unleashed, the aura, was mending the physical damage done so far.

Unfortunately it was quick to fade. Exhaustion was overtaking him. Joy turned to resignation when the serpent, hissing and snapping, twisted away to look at him. Only now did he see it possessed twin heads, one on either end. Jaune struggled to stand, stumbling back.

His newfound strength was nearly gone. He wasn't so sure he could draw on it again, at least not so soon. The wound of the snake hissed black mist, even as he spied the endless red that awaited him. Only this time, he knew that the creature would not make the mistake to swallow him whole.

Worse, behind him, Beowolves began to emerge. In the distance he swore he saw gorillas, watching with rapt fascination. Nightmare gorillas, but gorillas. He was being surrounded. The serpent, largest of the encroaching horde, was to be the first to strike. Jaune readied his shield, gripped his sword, and prepared to fight to the end.

An end that came all too quickly for the snake. One neck was grasped by an even larger claw, moss entangled within cracked, ancient armor. The other head, unable to twist fast enough, was impaled by a massive glowing stinger. Jaune briefly marveled at the thing, wondering if it was some kind of relic.

The snake's remaining head being severed from its body and said body crumbling to nothing revealed this not to be so. Instead a great scorpion Grimm stood, massive even for Grimm. It looked down at Jaune, chittering and chattering. Some of the lesser Grimm tried to approach, only to be swept away by its massive pincer claws.

Jaune found himself being lifted up by another appendage, the creature dropping him off on its back. He knew he should have panicked, but he wasn't about to look a gift scorpion in the mouth.

The creature moved swiftly back to the school, something Jaune also could not complain about. Be they monsters or not, at least they could speak. Weariness twisting his thoughts with delirium, he mused he'd rather be with something like Ruby or Yang than these horrors any day of the week. The school fast approaching, something occurred to Jaune as his largely silent guardian transported him safely back.

A scorpion was bringing him to safety. He couldn't stop the tired giggle that tore through him. What a coincidence that was.

It was the last thought his mind produced before weariness, and darkness, overtook him.

Author's Note: As always, my thanks go out to Burkion and Lightningstrxu for all their hard work and contributions to this collaboration.

Ren's flashback showed us that enough stress can unlock both Aura and Semblance. Well, there are few things more stressful than being swallowed whole by a King Taijitu. It's a shame Roman couldn't fight his way out of a Gyrphon's stomach...

So now that Jaune does have these abilities his odds of survival have just drastically improved! His journey is just beginning here at Grimm Academy.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the latest chapter. I'm very excited to write chapter 4, which will introduce a new character to the main cast.

Thanks for reading.