The Ruins were breathtaking, there was absolutely no other way to describe them. The marble pillars still tall and impressive despite the march of time, the stairs carved into the side of a mountain leading to jaw-dropping sights such as various buildings and platforms that had withstood the ravages of nature so that they may serve as a living testament to those who had lived here, whatever civilization that existed here had to have been truly grand. But it all led to a single question: What happened here? Was it the Grimm? Was it a natural disaster? Or was it a war of some kind? Weiss wondered to herself as she along with Ruby continued to follow both Pyrrha and Jaune despite the earlier tension between the two groups, I just hope we find the Relics soon so we can get this over with. Though in hindsight the tension in a rather bizarre way turned out to be a good thing for Weiss, it forced her to slow down and keep a watchful eye on her surroundings which in turn allowed her to really appreciate the view around her. Had she things worked just a little bit differently she had no doubt that she wouldn't even have spared a glance at the lost civilization dismissing it as a pile of rocks, Did the headmaster plan this? Did he purposely place the Relics in the Ruins to force us to come here and see this? Was it to remind us of what we are fighting for and what might happen if we were to fail? If so, then coming to Beacon was the right decision.
Ruby, like her partner, was also impressed by the sights before her, though her thoughts were somewhat different from Weiss, Using ruins like this must really piss off the Archaeological Society, I wonder how he's keeping them off of his back... Unless the ruins are fake which would explain how he was allowed to use them like these, but what kind of construction company would ever agree to build ruins in a Grimm infested forest?
In stark contrast, Pyrrha and Jaune couldn't have cared less about the Ruins even if they tried, though it should be understood that this was not how they normally were. Under different circumstances, they just like their traveling companions would have been enthralled by the rich history of the Ruins and mysteries that it held. But between his accident which very nearly ruined all chances of being accepted into Beacon, her guilt over being the cause for the accident, and the unspoken reason why Weiss had insisted on walking behind them it was more than understandable that neither of the two was interested in sightseeing. Even the fact that they hadn't run into any Grimm on their way here didn't help calm them down and sadly had even made the situation worse since it denied them all a common enemy that could have brought them all together.
As things stood now both Pyrrha and her partner only wished for one thing, I just want for this horrid day to finally end! Pyrrha thought to herself as she walked alongside Jaune up a flight of stairs and she didn't have to ask or even have to look at her partner to know that he felt the same way, "Hey Jaune."
"What is it?"
"When I'm stressed out, I find it very helpful to… break things and scream a little so I was wondering if you'd like to join me when this is finally over."
For a moment he just looked at her, too surprised by the suggestion to really say anything but after a tense silent moment a small smile crept across his face, "That sounds great."
Not too far away from Pyrrha and Jaune but still just out of sight, another pair had reached the Ruins and were also taking in the sight, "Ren Look at this place! It's huge! I bet it was like the best castle ever! Not to disrespect other types of castles, of course except the modern ones. Seriously those wannabe castles are nothing more than over sized mansions and that just misses the point, not to mention it's just boring! If you want a castle then build a real castle, don't take your already over sized house, and just make it even bigger! What do you think Ren?" Nora turned to face her partner in eager anticipation for what he would say.
Ren was deep in thought, mulling over all the information that had been presented to him before coming to a conclusion, "Nora, Ancient castle would have poor plumbing." he wisely pointed out.
Nora was shocked speechless, Dear god how could I have forgotten something so essential!?
Without waiting for his partner to regain her senses Ren continued his ruthless and logical assault. "Don't forget that when they finally did come up with plumbing, they decided to use lead and I think we can both agree that lead poisoning would be an underwhelming way to die."
Nora wailed, "Oh Woe is me! For all my dreams now lie forgotten, abandon to die upon this wretched hill surrounded by the echos of a civilization lost!"
"But now that I think about it," Ren scratched his chin and closed his eyes as though he was deep in thought, "How about we make Beacon our castle?"
Before the words had even left his mouth Nora was already standing right in front of him and staring into his eyes as a smile began to form before she spoke quietly, "Ren…," before turning around and shouting, "I love how you think! Now quickly my brave Knight! Forward to Victory and Glory!" And before she could add anything else she dashed on ahead with him chasing after her with the tiniest of smiles on his face.
Blake should have been happy after all, they found it, they found the Relics! While her natural pessimism was quick to point out that the Trial wasn't over and there was still the return trip that they needed to make before they could be accepted, however even she couldn't deny that what was left was the easy part. All things considered, she and Yang were now students of the most Prestigious Huntsman Academy in all of Remnant and all she had to do was pick one chess piece from pedestals before her. Looking at the Relics Blake felt butterflies in her stomach as she examined the pieces that remained, Black and gold-colored chess pieces but only there are only 20 pedestals while a complete chess set has 32 pieces meaning that six Pawns from both colors have been left out. Now is there any significance to the pieces and colors? Two Black Bishops are missing as well as one Golden Pawn meaning that three teams have already-!
"Blake hurry up and pick one, like the knight or a Pawn!" Yang impatiently huffed while keeping watch for any last-minute surprises that could try sneaking up on the pair, Seriously did she forget that this forest is filled with Grimm?
Blake wanted to turn around and tell Yang that this was an important decision, that there was some sort of special significance to the piece they chose, Because why else would a chess set be chosen to play the role of the Relics? Did they have some sort of cultural or historical significance to the school? To Vale? Or am I simply overthinking things again? It was a hard pill to swallow but no matter how much she thought about it there was no special meaning or message that she could come up with forcing her to consider more base and simple answers, Maybe there is no special meaning here, beyond the Headmaster just being someone who likes to play chess, With that in mind, she walked over to one of the pedestals and took the Gold Knight Piece.
The sound of a snapping branch was the only warning Blake received before Yang suddenly used her weapon, Ember Celica, to shoot the ground at her feet and using the recoil to launch herself towards her startled partner who wasn't prepared for Yang to suddenly kick her away. Shocked and even a little hurt, Blake hurried to her feet and reached for her weapon intending to fight Yang only to stop when she saw a Beowolf standing in the same spot she had been just before Yang kicked her, She wasn't attacking me! She was pushing me out of the way! Blake realized as she drew Gambol Shroud changing it into pistol configuration while gripping the cleaver sheath, but before she could do anything the Grimm fell over forward as Yang struck it from behind, seeing her opportunity Blake rushed forward and cut off its head with the cleaver before the beast had a chance to react.
"Awesome moves! We're going to be an amazing team!" Yang happily declared while walking up to her partner and offering the girl a hi-five that Blake was glad to return, however, the moment was ruined by the sound of heavy footsteps and murderous growls approaching them from below.
Both Blake and Yang ran up the stairs to get a look at the hoard and were shocked by the size of it, "You were on guard, how did they get here without you seeing them? Unless… that Beowolf was a distraction!"
"That can only mean that there is an Elder Grimm somewhere close by!" said Yang as she watched the approaching Grimm, keeping a sharp eye out for any that were larger or more heavily armored than others of its breed. But none before her stood out from the others, That must mean that the Elder is one of the rarer species of Grimm but that's still a rather large list. "We should be able to bottleneck them here but that Beowolf from before was able to get the jump on us earlier so we need to find out how he did it!"
Looking around Blake found a spot on a broken wall that she thought she could climb to get a better view on everything while providing cover fire to Yang, "Leave that job to me and just focus on taking out these guys here!" Yang gave her a thumbs up and in only a moment Blake was able to climb that wall, Welcome to Beacon...
"REN STAY BEHIND ME!" Nora shouted as she crushed a Creep's skull with her war hammer Magnhild before using a back swing to crush the chest of an Ursa Minor. Gone was her cheerful demeanor replaced by visible fear but not for herself, she was worried about Ren who was under normal conditions was certainly a capable fighter however he still needed time to recover his Aura after his encounter with the King Taijitu. It wasn't her fault but she still blamed herself for his condition, If only I hadn't hesitated. A real Huntress would have come running to help the moment they heard that someone was in trouble. But, I didn't and Ren was forced to waste his Aura like that just to live!
Seeing the self-loathing on his best friend's face deeply upset Ren so he followed her instructions and stayed behind her but he refused to become a mere spectator in this fight. So when Nora braced herself to face another approaching group, Ren raised his guns and rained down burning hot lead on the Grimm and unlike the King Taijitu, these ones did not have the benefit of being fully covered in armor. When the last one finally fell, Ren put a hand on Nora's shoulder, "We'll protect each other."
Another group was coming but Nora didn't care, Ren's words had taken all the fear that she had up to that point and made it all disappear, "You're right Ren… I don't know what I was thinking but I'm okay right now." Another group arrived and began to charge at them and at the very front was an Ursa who was notably larger than the others though it wasn't yet old enough to be considered an Elder. However it did give Nora an idea, "Ren just follow my lead!" she said as she prepared her weapon and kept it in hammer form when most would have switched to the grenade launcher.
He gave her a nod which was the only signal she needed before rushing forward to meet the charge. Bullets from Storm Flower flew over her head and intercepting the Grimm causing the smaller and younger ones to falter as the Ursa simply ignored the bullets impacting against is armored hide until it reached Nora and swung out with its mighty claws intending on breaking her neck, however she ducked low avoiding the attack altogether. She then swung her hammer at the Ursa's face however the beast was able to bring its arms up in time to try and block the hit but this proved to be a fatal mistake. Magnhild impacted against the arms of the Ursa with enough force to knock the monster backward right back into the horde who were catching up and were wholly unprepared to catch their kin resulting in a domino effect as they began to knock each other down to the ground in a vain attempt to keep themselves upright. When it was overall the Grimm were on the floor trying to crawl over each other and few of them even attempted to crawl under in an attempt to break free, if any of the beasts had any intelligence beyond how to kill they would have realized just how screwed they were as Nora pressed a button on Magnhild and the War hammer became a Grenade Launcher. With a satisfied smirk, she took aim and fired one single grenade right into the middle of that pile which exploded with enough force to kill each one of those monsters.
Nora admired her handiwork for a moment and then turned around to look back at her partner when she saw it, a shadow quickly running towards Ren while he was distracted, it was the Elder Grimm that had flanked past Nora while she was fighting and was now about to dive right into the backline and right onto the unprepared and still recovering Ren! I'm not going to make it in time and Ren will be caught up in the explosion if I use the grenades I have to warn him! "Red Shadow!" Nora screamed at the top of her lungs.
Ren did not know why Nora suddenly shouted out one of many codewords that he and Nora invented over the years as homeless orphans but he did not hesitate nor did he question her, he just ducked and as he did a Mace flew right past where his head was only a second ago. Moving on pure instinct he then swept the legs of his attacker knocking whoever it was off of their feet, he then attempted to get up but was kicked away by his attacker, however, he then simply used the force of the kick to roll away placing himself closer to Nora and further away from the whoever his assailant was.
Once they were back together Nora and Ren got their first good look at their attacker and gasped when they saw that their would-be Assassin was covered in Black Fur with the occasional White Bony protrusions and on its face was the mask-like mass of bone that marked all Grimm but this one was different from the others they had fought. It stood on two feet in a manner extremely similar to people, it was just as tall as Ren perhaps just a little taller, its body was lean and athletically built for speed and flexibility rather than brute strength, there was a long prehensile tail dangling between its legs, however, none of that mattered when compared to the most noticeable thing about this particular Grimm. In its hands was a weapon, it was a long metal polearm with a spiked club at the end, the weapon was rusted and bent at an odd angle but there was no mistaking it.
It was the weapon of a Huntsman.
Ruby, Weiss, Jaune, and even Pyrrha were running.
They didn't want to run but they had no choice in this matter or rather it would be more accurate to say that all other choices were objectively worse. For example, if they stood and fought then the risk of being surrounded by the pursuing Grimm would go from a mere concern to a cruel reality and with Jaune's Aura reserves being so low, it would be like inviting tragedy. Neither could Weiss simply erect another barrier like she did last time, she just didn't have the time necessary to make one that they could count on, and rushing the process could result in accidentally injuring him thus rendering it the whole effort pointless.
However just because two of their options were bad didn't mean that the fight was lost or the situation doomed, any Huntsman that would have given up here was a disgrace to the name and Ruby Rose was the daughter and niece of true huntsmen who made sure that she would know exactly how to handle this sort of scenario, We are at the base of a small mountain that has the ruins of what appears to be a temple built of the top there are several stairs are leading to the top and some broken walls. Ruby turned to Weiss and was running right next to her and asked "How much Ice Dust do you have left and how long would it take to make another barrier?" She asked while pointing behind her.
Weiss understood Ruby's idea and took a moment to check the gauges on Myrtenaster and found that she was dangerously low on Ice Dust, "I don't have much left, but I do have something else." She then reached into one of her coat's inner pockets and reached for the pocket containing Earth Dust, she then took one of the vials and used it to replace the nearly depleted Ice Dust. "I have a full vial of Earth Dust that I can use to make a barrier, it won't be pretty but I can make a wall in about 30 seconds as long as you're okay with collateral damage."
"Will we be in danger," Ruby asked.
Weiss took a moment to look around and after a few mental calculations pointed to some stairs, "If we can get there then the only ones who will get hurt are the Grimms!"
That was all Ruby needed to hear, "I'll buy you the time needed, just warn me before you start so I can get out of the way." She then looked over to Pyrrha and Jaune and shouted to them, "Head to the staircase with Weiss and once you and Jaune are on it Weiss will make a wall. It won't stop them from reaching you but, it will prevent them from surrounding us!"
"Alright! I'll also give you some cover fire!" Pyrrha shouted as she and Jaune made their way over to the stairs as Weiss followed closely behind.
As they did that Ruby turned around and used her Semblance to dash right into the middle of the Grimm and swung her scythe while she was still mid-air, after completing that swing she pulled the trigger on Crescent Rose and used the recoil to create precious distance before the monsters could counterattack. She then closed the distance again and repeated the process but with each repetition, the beasts would react a little faster and escape would become just a little more difficult. However, out of the corner of her eyes, she could see that they had reached the stairs safely and that Weiss was creating sigils in preparation while Pyrrha and Jaune stood guard, Just a little longer and we'll all be okay!
"RUBY GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Weiss shouted at the top of her lungs before unleashing the Earth Dust creating a wave of stone that splintered the stairs as it moved past ruby and ran right into the Grimm toppling and smashing all that were too slow to move out of the way. When the earth finally settled and the dust cleared Weiss was treated to the sight of a crude wall of stone branching out in several directions splitting the surviving Grimm up in smaller far easier to manage groups. But she didn't see Ruby anywhere, Did she get out of the way in time?
"She's all right Weiss, Ruby more than fast enough to avoid that," spoke Jaune in an attempt to assure her.
In response Weiss took a step back from Jaune and Pyrrha while overlooking her handiwork, "You should be more worried about yourself right now."
"Why?"
"Are you serious!?" Weiss pointed at the wall she had created, "The Surviving Grimm are already climbing over it, your Aura hasn't fully recovered making you liability and on top of that you now have to be fighting alongside the person who stabbed you in the first place!"
"I… I trust Pyrrha," Jaune answered back much to Weiss' disappointment.
"Well, then I hope you don't regret that you'll be alone with her while I look for Ruby!" Weiss then stormed off leaving him behind.
Pyrrha walked up to Jaune's side and placed a hand on his shoulder as they both watched Weiss as she left, "Thank you for trusting me Jaune but please don't hold this against her, she's just stressed out and worried. But she is right in that we need to worry about ourselves right now, let's go." she then turned around and walked up the stairs as he closely followed behind her, when they had gone a little way up she turned around to face him. "Do you have any ranged weapons?"
"No, I don't," he answered.
"Well then, I'll be counting on you to guard my back," With that, she pressed a button on her javelin Miló transforming it into a rifle as she got into position, she then examined the battlefield below her, "Good news! I can see Ruby and she's alright, it looks like her cloak just got stuck between some rocks." She then pulled the trigger killing Beowolf that was climbing over the wall, "It looks like Weiss has found her."
"Well, that's good news," Jaune said as he stood next to her with Crocea Mors in his hands but with really nothing to do but watch her shoot the Grimm and admire her marksmanship, I feel so useless right now… He turned away from Pyrrha just so he could look at something else other than everyone less getting to fight. On a whim he decided to look up at the top of the stairs just in time to see something at the top leap off and towards him, It's going to get Pyrrha if I can't stop it! Just like he had been taught he raised his shield, braced himself, and raised his sword ready to stab the Grimm the moment it crashed into him.
Pyrrha was caught completely off guard by a loud sound that came from right behind her, right where Jaune was supposed to be. Fearing the worst she turned around she found him on the floor thankfully alive but groaning, Thank the Fates. However before she could ask him if she was alright or what had happened to him her eyes spotted the dissolving corpse of a large Creep lying close by him, How did a Grimm get right behind me like that!? She ran up to him and gently took a hold of him, "Jaune are you alright? What happened?"
"I'm fine, but this spot isn't safe anymore!"
Weiss and her partner Ruby were separated in this fight against the Grimm but it was alright, they had chosen to fight separately not out of hostility of blind overconfidence but rather out of convenience. Ruby, while gratefully for the wall that Weiss had created couldn't fight to the best of her ability within the artificial corridors, she needed space to move and so made the decision to make her stand elsewhere. Weiss on the other hand preferred fighting in the wall confines since it made it significantly easier for her to destroy the Grimm who now lacked space to avoid her Dust or Sigils. In time the pair could become a devastating team however that required time to adjust to each other fighting style and even more time to practice, so they would just have to make due on their own.
And made due they did, the Grimm who tried to climb over the wall to reach Weiss found themselves at the mercy of the elements as Weiss fought through the use of her Dust and Sigils became a venerable sorceress obliterating foes with fire, lightning, and wind. Rarely did a Grimm ever come close enough to even look at her and when they did, she rewarded them with a stab from Myrtenaster. As for Ruby, she became an acrobat of death, using her Semblance to dash in and out ending lives with every run. Every swing resulted in another harvest and every shot reaped great dividends as she used the recoil in a bizarre but practiced dance where her weapon Crescent Rose came to life leading and following according to a rhythm that only Ruby could hear. The result was an artful display of her prodigious talent but more importantly, it was a showcase of the hard work she had put in to get here.
However, while this arrangement guaranteed that both could fight to the best of their abilities it also isolated them from not just each other but from Jaune and Pyrrha as well anyone else that could help them should the worst come to pass and that was the point. The Grimm could be replaced easily and without cost but Huntsmen couldn't, even the death of a mere student huntress was a worthwhile outcome. The accomplishment of that goal was what dominated the thoughts of the Elder Grimm as it carefully made its way through stony hallways created by Weiss, the terrible beast had a plan but it needed to decide who of the two girls would be the first to feel his fangs closing down on their necks, who of the two would have their life snuffed out first? After observing a little bit longer it made a decision and made its move.
"Heeelp," croaked out a voice that sounded like Ruby.
Weiss stopped everything that she was doing to try and find the source of the voice. "Ruby? Is that you?"
"Heeelp."
There's no doubting it, that's Ruby's voice!
"Heeelp, please."
She sounds close but, how can that be? She should have been fighting somewhere where we wouldn't interfere with each other... Suddenly it hit Weiss, What if Ruby finished up on her side and was coming to check on me but something happened?
"Please Heeelp." Ruby's voice was coming from behind the cover of some ancient crumbled wall.
Weiss took one moment to make a quick precautionary scan of the battlefield looking for any hidden Grimm that might try and ambush her as she helped her partner. Seeing none Weiss quickly made her way over to where she heard her partner's voice. "Ruby! Just hold on! I'm coming!" Using her Sigils to boost her speed she was able to reach the wall in record time to help her partner in any way that she could.
"Heeelp," The voice was coming from behind the wall, clearly Ruby must have hidden thereafter whatever had happened to her!
In a second Weiss arrived and without a shred of caution, she looked behind the wall and was knocked right off of her feet, fell onto the floor, and felt a weight climb over her pinning her to the ground as she struggled to get back up. She let out a scream as suddenly she felt something sharp clamp down on her shoulder with tremendous force and then it began shaking her! Soon the situation became brutally crystal clear to Weiss, a Grimm was right on top of her and its jaws were biting into her shoulder in an attempt to try and rip her to pieces, and the only thing that had stopped it was her rapidly depleting aura! She struggled to push the monster off of her but she lacked the strength to do so, she tried to stab the creature but the length of the blade and the proximity of the beast made it impossible to find a good angle! Her only option was to use the Dust in Myrtenaster but when she pulled the trigger nothing came out! She would have to cycle through the cylinder until she could find the Dust but her Aura wouldn't last that long!
A gunshot rang out and the beast's jaws let go of Weiss as bullets slammed into its back forcing it to retreat but just before it left it looked up at the stairs and directed a hateful glare at Pyrrha who had her rifle trained at the monster. Weiss recognizing her chance for revenge attempted to stab the neck of the Grimm while it had it back turned toward her however, she was too slow and her would-be-murder leaped away leaving Weiss to hit nothing but the empty air. But it wasn't all for naught, Weiss now free had been able to get a good look at her attacker. The Grimm looked like a cat, a large black lightly armored cat that for a moment reminded her of the Sabyrs back home but there were noticeable differences. First off this one was bigger, it was about the same size as a Beowulf on all fours though judging from its body it couldn't walk on two legs as a Beowolf could. However, the most distinctive feature of the vile creature was a set of horns growing side by side and all around on the beast's neck giving the impression of a bony mane. Just before it disappeared it turned around and looked at her and Pyrrha with oddly intelligent hate-filled eyes which gleamed in the light almost giving the impression like it was weighing its options before doing something that was completely alien to the Grimm.
It ran away.
"Weiss! Are you okay?" In a moment Pyrrha was right by Weiss's side and before the heiress could voice any protest Pyrrha was already examining the shoulder that had been bitten, There are bite marks but thankfully no bleeding or bruises. "Your shoulder is okay, let's get you up those stairs and get this trial over with."
Weiss pulled away from Pyrrha and picked herself up without any help, "Where's Jaune?"
"When he saw that you were being attacked he told me to go help you while he made sure that Ruby was safe. I don't know what species of Grimm that thing was but, if there are more of those things Ruby might just need the help."
Weiss then suddenly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her in close, "Pyrrha we need to find them now!"
"Weiss wha-,"
"Listen to me Pyrrha! That Grimm could speak! It was able to ambush me because it imitated Ruby's voice and got me to come to it by pretending that it was hurt. Do you get it? That thing must have been following us for a while now and can probably copy all of our voices! They are both in danger!"
"Ruby!" a familiar voice cried out and caught her attention.
Turning around Ruby nearly leaped with joy when she saw her older sister running towards her safe and sound. She also noticed that right behind Yang was the girl from yesterday who had defended her from Weiss before walking away and then later tried to blow her off during the sleepover, She must be Yang's partner, well Weiss isn't as bad as though she'd be so hopefully me and her can start over as well! She then noticed an odd playful look in Yang's eyes as she picked up speed and soon realized that Yang was going to give her a big bear hug. Under normal circumstances, she would have run away and let Yang chase her for a bit but after everything that had happened today, a hug was exactly what she needed. So she just stretched open her arms to accept the hug and as Yang pulled her in, she found that she had been right, all of the accumulated stress of the day just melted away as everything became nice and happy once more!
But then Ruby remembered that just because she was fine, didn't mean that the others were, There could still be Grimm out there and Jaune is hurt! "Yang listen to me! My partner is still fighting and I have a friend who is hurt who is also stuck with his partner who might be trying to kill him or at least that's what my partner thinks is going on!"
Yang just laughed, "Woah, calmed down a little! Who's trying to kill who?"
Blake then stepped in, "If you are worried about the Grimm, Yang and I already took care of the ones next to the relics."
Ruby wasn't sure she heard that right, "You found them? You found the Relics"
Yang then released her sister from the hug and pointed her up the stairs, "You're actually almost there, just a little further up those stairs and you would have found what looked to be a shrine of some sort with pedestals, on them are chess pieces which are the relics and there's more than enough for you and your friends!"
"That's Great! Quick, we gotta find my partner Weiss and my friend Jaune, you remember him from yesterday! Oh, and you won't believe who his partner is!" Ruby was ecstatic.
Meanwhile on the other side of the Mountain Jaune was worried sick as he searched through ruins looking for his friend whom he lost sight of thanks to her Semblance, "Ruby! Where are you! Ruby!" he tried calling for her over and over again and every time he received no response, until...
"Jauuuuune," it was Ruby's voice coming from behind some rubble.
"Ruby? Are you alright?" he began making his over to her.
"Jauuuuune, help."
"I'm coming Ruby, just hold on!" without a second thought he began running toward the source of the voice, running toward the awaiting slavering jaws.
Author's Notes: Honestly, I never meant for this chapter to be one big fight especially since fight scenes are one of the many things I don't have a lot of experience writing. So if this chapter was hard to get through... thanks for putting up with me! As for Red Shadow, I just think that Ren and Nora would have some sort of word system since they had to survive together for who knows how long.
As for the Grimm, the Monkey is called a Vanara, it was based on two different sources with the first being Hindu mythology where they are helpful guys. The second source was the Humandrills from One Piece. For those who may not know, Humandrills are a race of baboons who take the Saying "Monkey See, Monkey Do" very literally and they saw War.
Also, if you don't know what a Sabyr is, they are a species of Grimm based off of the sabertooth tiger and are native to Atlas. They were introduced in vol 7.