A/N: Chapter 20 of REKT. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or teams of RWBY, they belong to Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum. What I do own are the characters and teams of my OCs: REKT, GTSY, KACE and DAZE.

Special thanks to the reviewers and to the readers who Fav/Alert this story, I really appreciate it.


Chapter 20: Field Trip

The next morning...

"They were here...Ozpin they were here!" Ironwood's frantic voice spoke as the Atlas headmaster paced around, shaking his head back and forth. He had a stern expression on his face since the incident at the CCTS tower and it seemed to be stuck in that position.

"We're very much aware of that. Thank you James." Glynda's sharp voice cut in as Ozpin released a sigh, burying his face in his hands. The moment the duo shuffled in he knew there was going to be trouble.

"Oh you're aware? Fantastic!" Ironwood's voice, laced with sarcasm, replied and the two of them continued to banter back and forth. "Now are we going to do something about it or should we just stay the course and continue to ignore what's right in front of us?"

"How are you feeling Ruby?" Ozpin finally spoke, cutting the other two off and focused on the girl standing a little further away. She had stayed quiet watching the adults banter back and forth with slight amusement.

"Okay, I guess." She replied before chuckling nervously, rubbing the back of her head. "I'd feel better if my bad guy catching record wasn't 0 for 3...and that Reina heals up after getting shot in the shoulder."

"You have nothing to fear about. Ms. Raylan is going to be well looked after at the nurse's office." said Glynda without missing a beat. "Our nurse is one of the best here in Vale."

"Ruby, I feel it's appropriate to let you know that I think what you girls did last night is exactly what being a huntress is all about." Ironwood clapped her on the shoulder approvingly, giving her a huge grin. "You recognized a threat, took action and did the very best you possibly could."

"Thank you sir." She said with a smile. It's not every day you get a compliment from Ironwood himself.

"Now, the general here has already informed us of the events that, transpired last night. But now that you've rested we were wondering if you had anything to add."

"Was anyone else with her?" Glynda added her two cents after Ozpin, giving the young huntress a look. "Did she look familiar to you at all?"

"I...I don't know." Ruby sighed and shook her head. "She was wearing a mask and she never said anything to me in particular, but I know she fought with glass. I don't think that was her semblance though. Her clothing lit up whenever she attacked."

"Save for the glass, that sounds like the woman I fought the night we met Ruby." The Huntress said after hearing the girl's statements, her eyes calm and calculating behind the glasses.

"Embedding dust into clothing is an age-old technique. It could have been anyone." Ironwood spoke up. "It's too early to start pointing fingers."

"Wait, you think this girl is connected to Torchwick and the White Fang?"

"It's possible." Ozpin mused, putting a finger to his lip. "But we still lack the required evidence to link the two together."

"Actually I-I think I remember her saying something about a hideout or something...in the southeast. Just outside the kingdom." Ruby muddled around as she tried to remember some more information. "Although...I feel as though Reina knows something about the girl while they were fighting."

"Oh?" Ozpin's eyebrows arched up with interest. "How so?"

"I don't remember...I fell over my lady stilts so I couldn't hear their interaction clearly. I just have somewhat of a gut feeling." She apologized for not knowing anymore than that.

"I'll ask for a report from her when she's all healed up. Don't want to stress her with that at the moment." Glynda said, getting a head nod from Ozpin. She then turned her attention to Ruby. "I thought you said the intruder never-"

"Thank you for your cooperation Ruby." Ozpin cut her off, giving the young huntress a smile. "Why don't you go and spend time with your team and friends? You have a big day ahead of you."

"Anytime." Ruby said as she turned on her heels and began to walk off.

"And Miss Rose, please try and be, discreet about this matter."

"Yes sir."

"Well there we have it." Ironwood spoke up once Ruby disappeared into the elevator. "We send as many troops as we can to the Southeast. Find out exactly what's going on and eradicate any forces that stands in our way."

"Why must your answer to everything involve a triumphant display of military bravado?" Glynda snapped with irritation, tapping her foot against the floor. "You treat every situation like it's a contest of measuring d-"

"Glynda." Ozpin cut in from where he sat in his chair, waving his hand dismissively to cut their banter.

"Well he does." came the scoffed reply.

"She's right." The head master agreed from where he sat in his chair. "As much as I too would love to end this situation once and for all, we must remember that this may go beyond Vale, beyond Beacon. And if this truly is part of some master plan for which we know not the final move, we must not be so bold. Nor can we risk the spread of panic."

"I have served you faithfully for years." Ironwood stated grimly as he peeled himself away from the window and stood in front of Ozpin. "But if you mean to tell me that your plan is to really hold the defenses and wait-"

"It is not!" Ozpin shot back, standing up and pointing two fingers in his direction. "You're a general, James. So tell me, when you prepare to go to war, which do you send in first? The flag-bearer, or the scouts?"


Medical office...

I was currently sitting in the medical bay with Cinder's arrow finally pulled out of my left shoulder. I couldn't move around much for fear of irritating the wound. It was a struggle not to cry out every time the wind brushed up against the opening on the way to the nurse's office but I survived...barely.

"All I need to do is disinfect the wound and then you are free to leave." The nurse was saying as she prepared the cleaning ointment. "You're doing exceptionally well, most of the patients I get can't even stay still for at least a minute without crying."

"Here, bite on this." Kairos held out a cloth for me to take. She carried me to the office and stayed by my side throughout the entire ordeal. "It's probably gonna sting."

"Ready?" The nurse asked as I stuffed the object in my mouth, preparing to dab my wound with the cotton ball in hand. Once I felt comfortable I gave her a firm head shake. "Okay. Take a deep breath."

"Mmmmphf! Mmmmmphff!" Tears started to well up in my eyes as excruciating pain exploded from my injured shoulder and I tried to hold myself back from lashing out. My free hand gripped the chair so hard that my knuckles turned white. After cleaning up the wound she proceeded to dress and bandage it.

"There you go, all done! Try not to do anything for awhile and let it heal naturally." She smiled warmly at me and ushered us out of the door. "If something happens such as an infection, come back immediately."

"Of course. Thank you." Kairos replied and we walked back to the dorms shoulder to shoulder. There was a moment of silence before she said, "Was it okay for us to skip out in that meeting with Ozpin? We were also there at the CCTS tower last night."

"I'm sure Ruby got it all situated." I replied with a smile on my face, wiping the last residue of tears from my eyes. "Besides, if she ever needed help I'd get a notification on my Scroll."

"Huh? Our door's open..." The faunus' eyes narrowed on the alert when we approached the room. All senses were on alert in case a fight needed to happen. "Are the boys in there?"

"Only one way to find out. Timber! Efram! You two in here?" I called and stepped in, waiting for a response from either Huntsmen.

"Oh, leader!" Efram's buff body appeared and he gave us a wave. Apparently he just finished up a quick shower since there was a towel wrapped around his lower body. "You're back, thank goodness!"

"Where did you two go after the dance?" Timber asked as he sat up from where he had been laying down in his bed, a book in his hands. "Efram and I looked all over but couldn't locate you so we decided that you'd come back no problem."

"Speaking of which, you left the door open." Kairos pointed to the front entrance with a finger. "Care to explain?"

"Well...Blake kinda came in out of nowhere..." Timber scratched the back of his neck sheepishly and gestured to the giant lump huddling on Kairos' bed. "Like no joke she ran in here like her life depended upon it."

"Uhhh...so why is she in our room?" I asked.

"And she's hissing like an angry cat." Kairos knelt beside the hissing bundle. "Did someone step on you or what?"

"Don't go into our room." The distressed voice of the cat faunus could be heard through the blanket she threw over her head, a pair of yellow eyes were peeping out from underneath my sheets with a threatening glare. "That...thing..." She spat the word like it was trying to kill her. "it must be dealt with accordingly. I don't like it."

"What are you talking about Blake?" I questioned, tilting my head to the side. "Who's in your room that you don't like?"

"C'mere Blakey~" Yang called for her partner with laughter laced in her voice. "Don't be a sour puss! Zwei won't bite you!" What she got back in response was a loud hiss followed by a muffled, 'I don't want that beast anywhere near me'. "Ooookay~ But you asked for this!"

"Asked for what exactly?"

"Zwei! Find Blakey!"

"Oh god!" The faunus tightened her grip on the blanket as the sounds of pattering feet caught our ears. The bundle of fur barged into our room and immediately rushed to the bed, barking excitedly. "Go awaaaaay!"

"Well I'll be, there actually is a dog in this dorm." Kairos chuckled as she watched the action with amusement.

"He looks really cute." Timber said as the animal noticed that there were other bodies in the room and made his rounds, sniffing everyone before making his way back to the bed.

"Zwei! Did you find her?" Yang's voice asked and the blonde peaked her head in. Her eyes lit up when she noticed that everyone was in the room. "Oh, you guys are in here! Wow what a party!"

"Hey Yang. Is this perhaps your dog?" I greeted her with my right arm since my left wasn't supposed to move so much.

"Oh he belongs to both Ruby and I." She replied with a grin. "Our dad sent him through the mail!"

"That's amazing...Come 'ere my lil' buddy!" Efram walked over, scooped the dog up in his arms and twirled around like he was the happiest person alive. "He looks like a fighter! I love dogs!"

"Woof! Woof!"

"Please keep it away from my belongings." Blake's voice floated through, prompting some sympathetic guffawing from the boys. "I'm being completely serious here!"

"Will all first year students please report to the amphitheater?" Glynda's voice spoke over the PA, getting our attention through the whole commotion. "This is important so don't even think about skipping!"

"What are you guys gonna do with him?" I asked as Efram set Zwei down, letting him run back to Ruby who scooped him into her arms as she walked in. "You can't possibly leave him for a week while we're on the field trip right?"

"Yeah, Dad says that he's leaving the island we were raised on for a few days. But the mail he sent Zwei in came with all the food and stuff." Yang replied with confidence. "He'll be fine without us!"

"My mind was still blown that your dad could fit a dog of his size in a tube that small." Weiss commented when she appeared beside Ruby.

"Lets get going otherwise we'll miss Ozpin's speech." Kairos hastily put on a jacket and ushered everyone out of the room. "You coming Ruby?"

"Uh yeah!" She chirped as she carried the dog in her arms and walked in the other direction. "I'm just gonna put this guy in our room for now. I'll meet you all in the theater!"


Amphitheater...

"Quiet. Quiet please." Glynda spoke as the students filed in, including those that were late and had to squeeze in the back. Near the far corner students were allowed to dump their belongings for the trip so my team and Ruby's decided to put our stuff together so we wouldn't be separated. We ended up standing next to JNPR who greeted us warmly and through my senses, I could 'see' the other new teams standing not too far away. "Professor Ozpin would like to share a few words before we begin."

"Today we stand together, united." The headmaster began as Glynda walked off to the side. "Mistrel, Vale, Vacuo and Atlas. The four kingdoms of Remnant. On this day nearly eighty years ago, the largest war in recorded history came to an end. It was a war of ignorance, of greed, and of oppression. A war that was about much more than where borders fell or who traded with whom. But about the very idea of individualism itself."

"We fought for countless reasons, one of which being the destruction of all forms of art and self expression. As you all are well aware that was something many could not stand for. As a result, those who opposed this tyranny began naming their children after one of the core aspects of art itself. Color. It was their way to demonstrate that not only would they refuse to tolerate this oppression, but neither would the generations to come. And it was a trend that is held to this very day. We encourage individuality, expressionism, and unity. Through diversity. As I have said, today we stand together, united. But this bond cannot exist without effort. Which is why today while the rest of the world celebrates peace, huntsmen and huntresses will work to uphold it. As first year students, you will be tasked with showing a professional huntsman or huntress, on a mission."

On the far side of the room, a couple of panels and monitors popped up so that students could use. Ozpin continued speaking, "Some of you may be taken out of the kingdom for several days. Others may work within the walls for the rest of the week. But no matter which path you choose, remember to be safe, remember your training, and remember to do your very best." As the applause rang out, students began to move about.

"This is perfect. All we have to do is shadow a huntsman working in the southeast." Ruby said excitedly. "This is gonna be the best!"

"Yeah!" Yang chimed in enthusiastically. "We'll follow them around by day and give them the slip at night."

"Let's check 'Search and Destroy'." Weiss offered, pointing to a series of machines lined up near the far wall. The four of them walked over just as a guy finished claiming a mission for his team.

"Oh good! Quadrant five needs Grimm cleared out." Ruby announced and Blake added that it was in the southeast so it was a bonus. Getting approvals from the other two, the eager young huntress attempts to register her team only to find out that the mission was unavailable to first-years. "Rats...Fine then. We'll mail ourselves there."

"Well that's one option." Ozpin spoke as the other three girls gave their leader one of 'those' looks. He chuckled before clearing his throat. "Unfortunately, we determined that the concentration of Grimm was too extreme for first year students. It seems that particular region is rather popular. In fact I have the sneaking suspicion that the four of you...no...the eight of you will make your way there no matter which job you choose."

Damn it, he saw through our plan! Yang, Blake and Weiss all furrowed their brows at his statement. Then they directed their stares to the leader who rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. Knew she couldn't keep her mouth shut...

"Hehehe whatever makes you say that?" Ruby asked nervously before something popped into her head. "Wait...Eight? There's only four of us here."

"Why don't team REKT come along with you on this mission?" Ozpin suggested before waving Glynda over. She was currently talking to my team before she noticed him waving her over. Soon all ten of us were standing together in the middle of the room. "The more the merrier. Of course, each team and their team members will receive separate grades."

"But we already got a mission picked..."

"I don't think we can back out of this without approval from the headmaster..."

"We already signed our names on it too..." My team mates grumbled and voice their concerns to him. "Don't you think it'll look bad on our records?"

"Do you think he can handle it?" Glynda questioned, making sure not to spill the name of the huntsman we were shadowing. "I'm concerned about this."

"I'm sure he can handle it. After all, this will push his limits as well since he'll be handling two teams at once." Ozpin smiled in response. "Besides, we have more teams than professors so lets just do it this way. You guys have my approval."

"And Ms. Raylan, I would like your witness report sent to me as soon as possible." Glynda told me and I nodded in understanding. "Perhaps I should push it back since I'm sure you'd be more preoccupied with this mission. Then please send me things a week after this trip."

"Yes Ma'am." I replied.

"I'm still curious as to how you all found yourselves at the docks last semester. I'm interested to know how you really learned about a 'hideout' in the southeast. And I certainly wonder why witnesses reported seeing robots and rose petals in a dance club sometime ago." The silver-haired huntsman spoke, looking at Ruby from behind his glasses.

"Uhhmm...Uh-well..."

"I doubt I'll ever find the exact answers I'm looking for." Ozpin humored her, knowing that Ruby was probably embarrassed if he nitpicked her too much. "So how about this, instead of waiting for you all to break the rules why don't we just bend them?" Flipping out his Scroll he pressed a few buttons and changed the parameters to allow both Ruby and I to register our teams.

"We won't let you down." Ruby told him after registering her team, stepping to the side so I could register mine. "Thank you Professor."

"Don't thank me for this." Ozpin said before making sure he had our undivided attention. "Teamwork and persistence have carried you far, but you must understand, the things that await you beyond the protection of the kingdom do not care. Stay close to your huntsman at all times. And do exactly as he says. He will be leading you on this mission. And he can have you sent back to Beacon, if he finds your skills to be unsatisfactory."

Wow, he isn't beating around the bush.

What kind of encouraging words are those?

Ugh, the pressure is on.

"Oh. Reina come here please. The rest of you can start heading towards the exit." Ozpin made a 'shoo-shoo' gesture with his hand. Giving my hand a small squeeze, my team left along with Team RWBY to pick up our supplies. I stood idly behind with the headmaster who waited until they were out of earshot.

"Yes Professor?" I asked him.

He leans in close and whispered in my ear. "You'll find yourself in a peculiar situation during this mission. I'm curious to see how well you handle it."

"Wha-What? What do you mean by that?" Without another word to explain himself I watched as his aura figure within my mind disappeared, signaling that our discussion was over. What does that even mean? I shook my head to get right of the nagging thoughts and proceeded to head out through the doors. Never mind, I have a mission to focus on.


Outside...

Teams filed out and quickly crowed around the entrance of the school, chatter filled the air as they went over their assignments. I shuffled along behind the others, my head lowered in thought. Ozpin's last words still bugged me to no end and I couldn't figure out why. It was definitely foreshadowing something...anything but I couldn't quite put a finger on it.

"That wasn't exactly uplifting." Yang commented, speaking what everyone was thinking as she folded her arms behind her head. "Kind of depletes the spirit if you know what I mean."

"But it's the truth." Blake countered as she walked beside her partner. "No use beating around the bush. We don't want any false hope."

"It's gonna be tough but I know we can do it." Ruby stated cheerfully just as a student rushed past her shouting, "Hey Team CFVY's back!" That got Blake's attention as she spotted someone among the crowd of students. She hurried forward with the rest of us trailing on her heels.

"Velvet? Are you okay?" She asked when she caught up with the person in turn.

"I'm fine, I had Yatsuhashi looking out for me." The bunny Faunus replied with a small smile and the tall man behind her smiled in our direction too when his name was mentioned. "We weren't alone, team GTSY was with us as well."

"Who?" Ruby asked.

"Another team that comes and goes, they're an espionage team that hunts during the night. They've been away like us to various areas but we met up during our mission by chance. That's the leader over there, talking with Coco." Velvet directed our attention to where an average built man with slick back maroon-colored hair was chatting with Coco. He wore an attire similar to that of an assassin. A cape could be seen resting comfortably around his shoulders with it's collar pointing upward.

"Wow, check out the muscles on that guy." Yang smirked playfully, nudging her sister with an elbow. "I wouldn't mind going a couple of rounds with him."

"Yang please." Ruby huffed with annoyance, shooting the brawler a warning glare. "Now's not the time."

"But your mission was supposed to end a week ago." Weiss directed her statement to Velvet, raising one of her eyebrows in curiosity. "What happened out there?"

"N-Nothing happened. It was just, there were just so many." While the teams chatted with Velvet I decided to check out who Coco was talking to. Weaving my way through the bodies I finally arrived at my destination.

"Ah! A fair maiden has graced me with her presence." The man exclaimed when I approached him, sending Coco a mischievous smirk. Scoffing but bidding him a farewell, Coco nodded her head curtly to me before walking back to her team. He then gave me his full attention, "How may I help you, beautiful?"

"Is that how you greet all female huntresses? Don't you think maybe that's cutting it a little too close to someone you barely got to know?" I asked him. He stroked his chin before laughing loudly, drawing a couple of eyes.

"Feisty aren't ya? Listen, I like ya kid. You'll make a great huntress one day!"

"Thanks for the enthusiasm." I smiled softly, hoping that I wasn't blushing at the praise. "If you don't mind me asking, what were you doing out with the other team?"

"Hmm? Oh Team CFVY? Coco and I had a class together and so I decided to catch up with her." He shrugged his shoulders in a nonchalant way and smiled. "They're a great group to hang around with if you ever got a chance. The thing was I didn't even know they were in the area so I was hella surprised! I was just minding my own business with my team when we met."

"So it was just a coincidence?"

"Mmmmhmm. Now I heard that the first years are off on their missions. You will be fine if you just follow your huntsman or huntress that's leading." The man ran a hand through his hair with a huff. "Ah~ Nothing beats tearing Grimm apart limb from limb. What a great day in age to be a huntsman!"

"Eh?"

"Living the life as a huntsman...That is, after all, the sexy way." He struck a dramatic pose and smirked, giving me a wink. "Shooba-doo-wa."

"...I see..." was all I could muster. This guy just got really weird...

"Grimsley!" An annoyed voice cut through, interrupting our conversation which I was kinda pleased with. "We need to report to the headmaster or did you forget? Don't make me come over there!"

"Well, I bid you farewell for now. Hopefully our paths will cross again." He lightly kissed the top of my hand and trotted away to where his team was. Soon they disappeared into Beacon and I was left to saunter back to where my team was. They were currently getting a pep talk from Ruby who had a stern facial expression.

"We can do this. We've never backed down before and we're not going to start now." The young girl was saying once I was in earshot. "So clean up your acts and get your game faces on!"

"Right!" Blake said with agreement.

"Besides it won't only be us out there. We'll be fighting alongside a genuine huntsman!"

"Yeah!" Yang smiled and that got everybody pumped. "We'll show everyone just how good we are!"

"Well having a little pep cheer now are we? That's new!" That little burst of enthusiasm deflated instantly once we realized who we had. And that was none other than Professor Coffee himself, Oobleck.

"You got to be kidding me..." Weiss mumbled.

"Why hello girls!" He said cheerfully at us. He was dressed as if he was going on a safari and was pretty gung-ho about it. "Oh sorry, guys are here too! Wow Ozpin wasn't kidding when he said I'd have a lot of you kiddos!"

"You were saying Ruby?" I asked trying not to laugh out loud through my teeth. "Not that I mind Oobleck but this should be interesting to say the least."

"My big mouth..." She sighed and deflated. "I should have it sealed shut..."

"Who's ready to fight for their lives?"

We're all screwed.