Continent of Anima: The Forests
Many months have passed since the Fall of Beacon, with the season now being spring. Warm weather and the bright sun shining in the neverending forests of Anima, the continent that the City of Mistral and Haven Academy reside in. A small group of huntsmen and huntresses compired of Ruby Rose, Nora Valkyrie, Jaune Arc, and Lie Ren from the now defunct Beacon academy are here after their academy was brought down by a combination of manipulation to destroy the academy's reputation and ultimately destruction at the hands of Cinder Fall and her crew, who had assistance from the White Fang and Grimm they were able to attract to the school. All in all, with evil forces growing stronger and the heroes falling apart, something must be done before it is too late…
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Ruby, Nora, Jaune and Ren, who were previously debating on whether to go by team JNNR or team RNJR, find themselves in a battle now, very much a detour from where they really want to go. However, when passing through yet another little village on the way there, the villagers were kind and friendly but also afraid. They rejected the idea of traveling with the team of former Beacon students, preferring to stay in their village; essentially choosing comfort over safety. Rather than agree to travel as one big group, the villagers do ask for the students' help, seeing as they are unofficially huntsmen and huntresses. As for the help needed, there is a geist terrorizing their village and it needs to be eradicated as soon as possible
"Guyssssssssssss! Are you guys sure this was worth it?" Jaune stumbles back and forth, showing signs of dizziness. "Ughhh!"
"Hey! We asked for no money or food in return for this! We needed to get those upgrades for your gear and this is how we get them for free!" Nora growls. "Unless you want to become a blacksmith along with a huntsman?"
"N-No ma'am." He groans
"Yeah! We cannot possibly give up now only to go back, say we didn't defeat the monster terrorizing their village, and then leave with NOBODY benefiting." Ruby frowns as her back is turned and just about manages to dodge an attack. "No regrets!"
"Okay okay..." Jaune shakes his head. "Hey guys, my bad for my moment of weakness but I got it! I know how to defeat this thing. Everyone listen carefully!"
"Great, so what's the plan? Cause I'm so ready." Nora smirks in anticipation
"We need to hit it harder!" The blond nods with a big smile on his face
"Is that it?" Ren sighs in disbelief, mumbling in his usual monotone voice. "That's your plan you've been coming up with this entire time?"
"No, no I'm being serious." Jaune claps his hands together, "Haven't you guys noticed? This entire time we have been fighting it, that thing has been trying to keep us from its face. If we kill the limbs and weaken its defenses, we'll have a shot to kill the whole thing!" He turns to his orange haired companion. "And Nora, you are perfect for this. Out of all of us, you're the one here who can generate the most power with a single attack sooooo yeah what do you guys think? I know it's sloppy but-!"
"Alright Jaune, we trust you." Ruby turns to her new team, and is seen wearing the mask left behind by a friend, as she nods in agreement. "Come on, team, let's do this!"
Ren and Nora look at each other and respectively mouth the words 'yeah' and 'right' at the same time
"What should we do Jaune?" Ruby points at herself, Ren and Jaune
"We have to keep it distracted at the very least, unless you're able to kill any of its limbs while distracting it, that would be awesome." Jaune extends both of his arms and aims them toward the opposite sides of the opponent in front of them, "Ren, left. Ruby, right. I will go behind and try to distract it in my own way, while you two attack it and Nora waits for her chance to strike. Ren, move out!" He then turns to the silver eyed girl, rather than dismiss her. "Before you go Ruby, can I ask you something?"
Ren and Ruby give nods as the former departs as rapidly as he is told, with Jaune not even able to see him leave
"Yes Jaune? Make it quick too!" Ruby jumps in excitement but also experiences nervousness. "Time is of the essence."
"Well okay how do I put it? Nora, Ren and I have been wondering, could you take off that mask?" Jaune chuckles as he signals for the new leather straps that keep the mask on Ruby's face to come undone. "It's weird."
"That was your question?! Are you serious?" Ruby's eyes widen in disbelief. "Jaune..."
"I'm just saying-!"
"We don't have time for this! No thanks, this conversation can wait." Ruby takes off and almost instantly catches up to Ren
"Oh man, even to one of my closest friends I still can't pick the right words to say." Jaune sighs. "What was I thinking?"
The tall blond jogs away from where he and Ruby just finished talking before catching up to Nora in about twenty seconds
"O-Okay Nora!" Jaune glances in her direction. "Ready to try out the new upgrade?"
"I'VE BEEN READY!" Nora nods and sprints to get in position
"Right on!" He exclaims. "I on the other hand will-!"
Jaune attempts to call out what is about to do but is promptly flattened to the ground by the Petra Gigas, a giant boulder grimm, with the rocks and elements within the monster controlled by the same Geist terrorizing the village who asked team RNJR-JNNR to put a stop to its destruction
"Jaune!" Ren calls out
"I'm okay!" Jaune quickly springs up to his feet to dodge further attacks. "...Just might need to change my pants later..."
Ruby springs forward and attacks the right side of the Geist while Ren attacks the left, giving Nora plenty of time to activate a new feature that generates a current of electricity across the top of her long hammer 'Magnhild'. On the other side of the grimm is Jaune who runs around to make himself a target this time purposely, waving at the Grimm
"Over here you ugly pile of pebbles!"
The Petra Gigas goes after Jaune at full speed, the weaponless huntsman gulps as his eyes widen
"G-Guys... too close for comfort!" Jaune initially dodges one attack but realizes he won't be able to dodge the next and braces for impact by simply raising his forearms to cover his face. "GUYSSS!"
However, the dramatic huntsman is quickly saved as Ruby and Ren divert the attention of the Petra Gigas by attacking it with all their firepower available! The two work solidly with Ren being an aerial distraction and dodging every attack the geist throws at him while scaling the massive beast made of rocks. Meanwhile, Ruby provides the offense by firing bullets from 'Crescent Rose' in its scythe form, whilst she also avoids attacks with quick scythe slashes to block the incoming blows. The Grimm scrambles to pick its target as it wants to kill the easy prey that is Jaune, but the armed huntsman in Ren, and two huntresses in Ruby and Nora are making that far too difficult. Right as it is about to figure out how to attack the team, Ren begins to attack by firing rapid fire shots from 'Stormflower' and Ruby gets closer to the monster whilst switching up her attacks to powerful swings of her scythe, rather than bullets. The decision to mix up their attacks pays off tremendously as the grimm returns to square one
"READY WHEN YOU ARE!"
Nora shouts and fully charges Magnhild while digging her feet into the ground, the power she generates is tremendous enough that the ground beneath her cracks
"You gonna be okay?" Ruby asks as she lands next to Jaune and checks on him
"Y-Yeah, now go! Use everything you've got!"
Ruby uses her lightning fast speed to fly at the Petra Gigas, she grabs Nora on the way and spins with her. The red and pink swirls of rose petals and pink lightning surge through the geist's defenses, with Ruby slicing its main form of defense which is a tree arm in half. Opening the way for Nora to strike the head of the boulder grimm with a powerful and direct hit
BOOM!
The rock body promptly shatters into many pieces! Boulders, rocks, and pebbles fly everywhere, with the ghoul like Grimm rising out of it and flying off, attempting to live another day
"You got it?" Nora nods at her new leader
"Hell yeah!" Ruby aims a shot at it, squints her eyes and fires a flaming bullet out of Crescent Rose. "Gotcha!"
And what should have come next is the Geist meeting its demise with a direct shot, but instead it falls dead before the bullet ever reaches it… because a quicker projectile strikes it directly in its head
"Hm?" Ruby cups her ear, waiting for the sound she always expects when shooting grimm. "Uhhh, did I just… m-miss?!"
Jaune jogs towards Nora and Ruby, he breathes heavily before smiling and posing with both hands on his hips
"Another victory for Team JNRR!" Jaune notices the instant silence and only seconds pass before he shrugs and speaks in a deflating manner. "Yeah, okay. Ren, I think you're onto something. It's just not sounding great anymore, RNJR it is."
"Finally a tiebreaker." Ren smiles
"YOU DON'T GET IT DO YA?" Nora whines
"Guys?" Ruby asks… Then growls when everybody is obviously ignoring her. "GUYS!"
"Yes?" Nora turns around first and notices Ruby's eyebrows creased. "What's wrong?"
"That Grimm, my bullet didn't hit it." Ruby turns head to the side
"Are you sure? You're always accurate... even if your bullets are sometimes ineffective."
"Hey!" Ruby stomps her foot on the ground. "Friendly fire much?"
"Oop! Sorry!" Nora giggles
"Back to what Nora said, are you sure?" Ren speaks as he agrees with his close friend. "You never miss."
"I'm positive, I have to go check it out... ya know, to be sure that Grimm is dead." Ruby nods, then quickly starts to jogs away. "I'll be back in a little!"
"No!" Jaune grabs her by her hood and pulls hard, easily holding her in place with his immense strength. "You can't!"
"You're choking me!" Ruby scrambles and squirms. "L-Let go!"
"S-Sorry!" He gasps and releases his grip on the girl's hood. "I just meant that we should go together, it could be a trap... Not that Grimm know how to play dead but what if it lures you in and then you're surrounded by more?"
"Ohhhhh, right! Well let's go together then!"
Ruby waves the rest of her newly formed team as the four of them leave the open area and head back into the forest. The search does not take long, and they find the remains of the grimm they just defeated but Ruby's bullet clearly continued to travel as it pierced a handful of trees ahead of them
"Yeaaaaah, something definitely killed this Grimm before my bullet reached it."
"That's incredible." Jaune's eyes widen. "Something had to be thrown or shot faster than you can shoot Crescent Rose, but who would possess that kind of strength or speed?"
"More like impossible! Unless they were at a really close range." Ren looks around but sees nothing or nobody. "However, it is definitely only us here."
"You're right." Jaune sighs. "Or maybe somebody is around and took off already?"
"I say oh well, what's important is that the Grimm is dead so the people of the village are safe." Nora grins. "Right?"
Ruby, Jaune, and Ren look to one another in confusion at first, but then nod in agreement. Just as the new team is about to walk away, it is the quieter member that notices something glowing, and responsible for the dissolving, dead Grimm
"Check it out." Ren kneels next to the remains of the soulless monster and picks up a glowing object
"What is it?" Nora asks
"It looks like a knife, a knife engraved with dust perhaps?" Jaune rubs his chin as he inspects it
"Let me see! Let me see!" Ruby tries to barge through the JNPR trio in order to take a look, but they are sturdy and do not budge at all
"No, it would be much heavier if it was a knife engraved with dust. Additionally, why would someone just throw it and not retrieve it?" Ren passes the knife to Nora, who does not take a lot of time to inspect it before she hands it off to Jaune. "What do you guys think?"
"Maybe we can take this to the blacksmith too?" Jaune raises an eyebrow
"Unlikely, it looks like the entire weapon is made of dust, so any time now it will just-!"
Ruby finally manages to push through Nora and Jaune, grabs the dust knife for herself, but the second she gets her hands on the dust knife, it explodes into many dust pieces! What she was able to notice though, was the shape, design, and length of the knife, it was not a hunting knife or a dagger but a long throwing knife
"Great!" Jaune sarcastically laughs. "Look at what you did."
"M-Me? I barely even got to touch it because you were hogging it!" Ruby scans the area, hoping to see anyone hiding in the forest or watching from a distance on top of a tree. "I know I'm not going crazy, that knife was exactly like Link's, I've seen and touched his throwing knives before, but if he's here… why doesn't he show himself?"
The silver eyed girl continues scouting the land around them, her eyes narrowed and ready to spot who she thinks it is or if it happens to be somebody else with an identical weapon
"Ruby?" Ren speaks quietly
"Ruby!?" Nora shouts
"Hey! Earth to Ruby!" Jaune waves his hand in Ruby's face, breaking her concentration at last
"Whoa, thanks. Sorry…" Ruby softly laughs but her attention is still elsewhere. "I didn't hear you guys, did you say something?"
"I said we should get back to the village." Jaune nods. "Our job is done here and the sooner we tell the mayor we got rid of that grimm, the sooner he and the rest of his people can rest easy knowing that thing will never terrorize their village again."
"Right, let's go!" Ruby, the assigned leader of the team happily shouts and leads the way
Minutes later… And a head does poke out of the bushes. Ruby's theory and slight glimpse of the dust knife used are indeed a mystery, but a mystery she is correct about. The person watching the group of former Beacon students who took out the grimm is hooded, a dark green cloak covers their head and a wooden mask covered mostly by shadow hides their face. Rather than run out and address them normally, or being a slimy scumbag who demands compensation, they do and say nothing. This mystery person's expression remains cold, eyes lifeless and yet despite not moving an inch to approach the former Beacon students, the hooded figure continues to watch the four discreetly
"..."
The person with the hood over their head says nothing and continues to watch them walk off. Until there is enough distance between themselves and the team of four, only then do they decide to advance and continue following
Fifteen minutes later, after talking to the mayor and saying their goodbyes to him, team RNJR next go to the town's blacksmith, who agreed to make the upgrades to Jaune's armor, sword and shield as payment for defeating the Geist. After some time, Ruby who has now taken her mask off, Ren, and Nora exit and wait outside the shop. Jaune comes out wearing the upgraded armor. He pulls out the sword, expands the shield and smiles at both of his weapons, almost shedding a tear in the process until the blacksmith cuts in and pats Jaune on the back
"He cleans up alright, don't you think?" The faunus asks
"Certainly." Ren softly smiles
"I still think a grenade launcher would've really brought the look together, but hey the classics work fine too."
"Nothing's gonna stop us now!" Ruby cheers, "Go team R-!"
"JNRR!" Nora cuts in and celebrates as if she got the final say
"...Still not a color Nora." Ren's polite smile turns into a grin
"It doesn't matter what we're called." Jaune says as he sheathes his sword, then his shield retracts to its scabbard form. "As long as we're together."
"YEAH!" Ruby jumps for joy at this statement
After some more talking with team RNJR inquiring about the next village they will go to next, only to be given next to nothing regarding information. Sadly, the blacksmith nor anyone in the village has been in contact with the village of Shion since Beacon was taken down. With a somber wave from all four, Team RNJR turns and leaves; The blacksmith waves back and grunts in approval
"Mister? Are you lost?"
From a short distance away, an elderly woman walks up to the hooded figure following team RNJR and almost manages to touch them
"...!" The hooded person quickly takes off and does not look back, but at the same time is careful since the people they are following are only walking at a slow pace
"C-Come back son! You look like you haven't slept in days!" She calls out, but to no luck as the person in the hood keeps moving
The next path through the forests of Anima consists of less and thinner trees, and a pattern of rocks in the form of a road to lead the way. Jaune, Ren and Nora walk ahead, while Ruby trails behind
"Everyone got ammo?" Jaune asks
"Locked and loaded! Thank you, Schnee Dust Company!" Nora nods and gives a salute. "Ren?"
"So do I, yes." The quiet young man nods
Ruby's face falls, saddened and now thinking about her teammate Weiss Schnee as soon as Nora says the name 'Schnee'. Soon enough she shakes her head to wake up, and reaches for her belt. Next, she grabs her gifted mask and slowly putting it on, still getting used to the tightness of it along with how the straps work
"Who's got the map? I want to see approximately how long the next village is."
"Ren's got it." Nora nudges Ren with an elbow to the arm of the student
"No, I don't. You have it." Ren shakes his head
"Wait, what?"
"Guys..." Jaune almost comes to a complete halt. "Please tell me you're joking."
"Uhhhhhh..." Nora smirks in shame and amusement
"Guys!" Jaune raises an eyebrow, until it finally dawns on him and Nora and Ren are being serious. "Guys?"
"I got it right here!" Ruby speaks in a chipper tone whilst signaling to herself. "Even with no map we would be okay. We're huntsmen and huntresses, we could have figured out where to go next alllll on our own."
"Ruby is right. Hey, why are you behind us anyway-!"
Jaune turns whilst in mid sentence, then shrieks like a girl when the metal mercenary mask that is back on Ruby's face frightens him!
"Ahhhhh!"
"HA! HA! HA!" Nora points and laughs at her former leader, who almost falls to the ground in fright. "You're such a chicken!"
"S-Shut up!" Jaune blushes in embarrassment
"Jaune it's still Ruby." Ren puts his hand over his mouth to cover a smirk. "Who else could have taken her spot in such little time?"
"I know I know…" Jaune groans. "Ruby, can you please stop wearing that thing?" He crosses his arms and looks away to hide his embarrassment as the team slowly keeps walking. "It's creepy!"
"Well then… I do not find it creepy at all." Ruby speaks with a completely serious tone. "In fact, I think it's nice that Link left something behind for me."
"Riiiight. I get the sentiment buuut..." Nora shrugs her shoulders. "He could've left you some cash or weapons or if he wanted to be discreet, his hat? I dunno."
"Nora, that's ridiculous. Money ultimately has no sentimental value, it isn't something that lasts forever." Ren says softly, barely heard by any of his friends. "So I have to side with Ruby on this one."
"Yeah and besides, he's our friend and seeing this mask should let you all know he's probably fine. That he's with us in spirit AND that we will see him again one day." Ruby smiles until she crashes directly into Jaune who stops walking, "Ow! What gives? Is there another monster to take down?"
"No no, thankfully not." Jaune shakes his head. "I just wanted to ask… will we see him again? Because he had no problem abandoning you. He also had no problem telling the rest of us off before abandoning us. At least you got spared from the ugly rant."
"Whoa whoa... you got spared too. " Ruby frowns. "But anyway, what are you getting at?"
"Weiss was forcefully taken home by her father, Yang is at your house dealing with her injury, Blake witnessed something that scarred her and given her reasons for running away, but what about him?" Jaune looks at the ground, eyes full of disdain. "You said he was brought back to your home when the battle was over. Your dad made him feel welcome to the best of his abilities and as soon as Link got the chance, he left..." He shakes his head. "He could have been here right now with us."
"But that would have made the name picking process a lot harder though, what would we have been called then with a spare L?" Nora laughs, clearly not reading the room. "Guys? Anyone got ideas?"
"Not now Nora." Ren put a hand on her shoulder and shuts his eyes
"You don't understand, he witnessed something scarring too." Ruby smacks her lips in annoyance. "Link was with m-!"
"No offense Ruby." Jaune sighs, "Maybe it's best that we don't say his name right now. Ren and Nora told me everything he had to say, if he doesn't consider us his friends anymore then I don't know. It's sad because I hope he's okay but knowing that he doesn't care about us… it doesn't feel good at all."
"That isn't fair." Ruby grits her teeth. "I understand he said hurtful things, but we can't just assume he actually hates us."
"Easy for you to say." Nora grunts, "You weren't there when he said everything he had to say. Believe me when I say it was a lot of awful things, and I know that you were hurt by what he said too. But it's different when you hear it from somebody else versus actually hearing it from him." She sighs. "He didn't just say we weren't his friends anymore, he said we had no concept of the word friend, as if we don't truly know who we love and care for. Like Jaune said, I hope he's okay too but-!"
"ENOUGH!"
Ruby loudly shouts, her voice prominent travels through the forest, and likely loud enough to be heard by the village they just left
"Stop, just stop it." Ruby mumbles coldly as the rest of team RNJR turns to face her, "Stop emphasizing 'he' and let's stop pretending like our friend doesn't exist. Link gave me this mask for a reason. If he didn't want to be reminded of his mercenary past, or quite frankly anything else he wanted to erase, he would have broken or burned this. So I'm treating it like a cherished gift from my friend, a friend who I know still cares about me and all of you. No matter what he said on that day, anger was at an all time high…" She exhales. "I know it's not an excuse but he had plenty of reasons to be angry. We probably wouldn't be on this mission right now if we heard him out and listened to everything he wanted to say to us."
"Ruby." Jaune growls. "Are you saying if he told us everything s-sooner… Pyrrha could h-have-!"
"Alright that's enough, like Ruby said." Ren slowly lowers his head. "It really is unfortunate how everything unfolded the way it did. Things could have gone far differently."
"Well we can't turn back time now can we?" Jaune grips the handle of his sword and begins to walk forward once more. "No. What's done is done, so let's just keep moving forward. That is why I question your choice to wear the mask, it's just more reminders of the past."
"You can't erase the past, silly." Ruby shrugs. "And let's be honest, Link isn't the past. I know we will see him again. I know he isn't and was not perfect either, there was a time and place where he could have told us everything he knew and he chose not to. Maybeee he needed more time."
"Yes, he chose to withhold information and I don't understand why. Needing time is no excuse, we didn't have the time to wait." Jaune's grip on his sword tightens in anger. "If we do see him again, I have plenty of questions but-!"
"But!" Ruby interjects, attempting to shift the mood of the conversation. "Ultimately, whatever his reasons were, that doesn't matter anymore, it won't change what happened. He didn't have to explain himself then and doesn't have to when we see him again. Those decisions are his and they should have been and will be respected."
"Why are you defending him so much?" Jaune scoffs, not bothering to even turn around and look back. "He didn't exactly name drop you as people he still liked during his entire blow up."
"Because Jaune..." Ruby scowls, "He is our friend and that really should be all I need to say. But if you really must know more... we already lost our school. According to my uncle Qrow, there is no sign of Professor Ozpin, our teams are either broken permanently or separated by entire regions. Plus we are potentially walking into something that will be more difficult than anything we have ever faced before. The last thing we need is animosity and tension between people who should be allies. And we could seriously use all the help we can get against Cinder and everyone who is helping her destroy the world."
Ruby plants her feet and in a rapid motion she springs into the air and jumps in front of the JNPR trio, forcing them to stop yet again
"We are all in this together, whether it's those of us here traveling to Haven right now, my sister at home, Weiss in Atlas, Blake wherever she is, Link wherever he is, and the rest of our friends from Beacon. And whether there's a grudge or no grudge being held, needing time alone, being forcefully kept at home… it doesn't matter because we are going to save the world together."
"Those are beautiful words Ruby and I know you believe in them but, we'd be lucky to be allies at this point considering we're dead to him." Jaune sighs, blatantly going against Ruby's request in the process. "Either way, if we see him again back in Vale or wherever he chose to go during all this time, hopefully things can go back to normal at the very least."
"What is normal now?" Nora asks
"I guess you're right." Jaune's eyes rise to the sky, "If we see him again and he joins us... amazing. If we don't see him, then it is unfortunate but we do not need his help. We're all strong and are more than capable of saving the world, just us four." He quietly grunts. "We haven't seen him in months, Ruby. He probably doesn't care or even think about us."
"S-Stop." Ruby shakes her head
"That is not me being unfair, either." The blond speaks sternly. "It's assumptions based on hurtful words spoken by our supposed 'friend' to state a clear message about where we stand."
Not waiting for a response, Jaune, Nora, and Ren intend to continue the journey. However, Ruby stalls them even more, as she lifts her arms for them whilst revealing that she has been crying through sniffles and tremendous blinking under her mask
"Look… it doesn't matter how long it's been since we last saw Link, we haven't lost him, have we? There is always a chance for a positive reunion, then we can come together and save the world. With everyone included, not just us four." Ruby's tone lowers as she struggles to say her next sentence. "We already lost Professor Ozpin, Penny, Pyrrha, and many innocent people. I don't want to lose anybody else."
Regrettably for the silver eyed girl, he words garner no reactions. Instead, Jaune speeds past Ruby and continues forward, Nora follows suit, but Ren stays behind to keep Ruby company
"He'll come around, it's been a tough time for all of us but, especially Jaune. He blames himself for a lot and took everything to heart. This 'mission' for him is more than just assisting you. He wants to take down the woman who..." Ren cannot even bring himself to finish the sentence. "For what it's worth, I agree. We are all in this together."
"Thanks Ren." Ruby weakly smiles as they both jog to catch up to Nora and Jaune, who are now speed walking
Kingdom of Atlas: Schnee Residence
Elsewhere, the slow, soft clicking of heels on a pristine carpeted floor are heard as Weiss walks down a long, blue and white hallway. Columns from the walls are decorated with candles that are lit. Next, she walks on a balcony above a large dining hall, a white and green floral centerpiece decorates the table, with there being plenty more to admire and appreciate. However, Weiss does none of that and continues to walk, dreading a requested talk with her father. She walks down a wide stairway with curving balconies on both sides above it, with large armor statues filling the space on either side. The statues resemble the partial summoning Weiss used during the fall of Beacon, when she and other students faced off against two Atlesian Paladins. Soon thereafter, the heiress enters another room with blue and white floor patterns, much like every room and hallway in the Schnee household. Weiss slowly walks past a life size statue of a King Taijitu, but never once does she look up at it. To wrap up the tour of her home, she stops when passing by a small music room with a grand piano. Exhaling deeply, the sad young woman walks towards a window and stares out of it, her eyes full of worry and dejection
"I miss all of you." Weiss mumbles out loud as she looks up at the bright blue sky
The elegant young woman thinks about her team first, with Ruby coming to mind first, then Blake and Yang. Next, she thinks about team JNPR, her mind lingers on the deceased Pyrrha. Following them, there is team SSSN, thinking of the few moments of flirtation she had with Neptune. Team CFVY also crosses her mind, having been cordial with every member of the second year team. Last but not least, there is Link who more than anyone, has predominantly been at the front and back of her mind since she was forced to return home
"I hope you're all safe, wherever you are. I promise I will see all of you again one day, especially you Ruby... and you Link." She smiles, a light blush spreads across her cheeks when mentioning the latter. "One of you always wanted to be my friend, while the other became my most unexpected and fastest 'close friend' I have ever experienced."
Weiss smiles, thinking about how she can potentially see her friends again. Unfortunately, the happy vibes are promptly cut short, as before any daydreaming can occur, the heiress notices her brother approaching her rapidly. Weiss' smile instantly drops, her mood sours, and she shoots him a nasty glare…
Continent of Anima: Continuing in the Forests
Days later, team RNJR is back to traveling through the endless forests on foot after a successful night of sleeping in the woods in their sleeping bags. Their next destination is the village of Shion, a familiar sight to Jaune, who has visited many times with his family. Ren and Nora only know the village by its name, and Ruby has no clue what is in store for herself and her new team
"...They just kept doing pigtails, but personally, I think I'm more of a 'warrior's wolf' tail kind of guy." Jaune says as he puffs up his chest as much as he can. "If ya know what I mean?"
"Isn't that just a ponytail?" Ruby cackles
"I stand by what I said."
The two friends exchange warm smiles before burying their faces deeper into the the map as they blindly continue walking forward
"You guys..." Nora says as she and Ren stop walking at the same time, she gasps while Ren's eyes widen
"Yeah?" Jaune asks as he and Ruby simultaneously look up from the map
Instantly, the pair react the exact same way as Nora and Ren did seconds prior. In front of them is a village that just met its destruction. The sky is gray, not due to incoming rain or a sudden weather change, but it is from two ginormous trails of smoke in the air the size of a communication tower. Dead bodies can be seen on the side of the road immediately upon entering the village and for the most part, every building is either dismantled or completely looted and vandalized, but something else is different too. Apart from dead bodies and destroyed buildings, there are many dead creatures of Grimm on the ground as well. All four members of team RNJR sprint into the village, with Ruby and Jaune dropping their map as facing the destruction head on is more important at this moment
"Over here!" Ren who sprints ahead of everyone, finding the first and what looks to be the only survivor
"A Huntsman!" Ruby says as she recognizes the weapon
This injured person, who looks to be young, likely the same age as Jaune, Nora, and Ren or possibly only a year older. He breathes heavily and presses his hand against a bleeding wound in his chest, only slightly below his heart
"What happened?" Jaune quietly asks. "Who killed all these people?"
"Bandits. The whole tribe, they all just came and..." The young man coughs out blood. "Then, with all the panic..."
"Grimm." Ren says with anger and sorrow in his voice as he stands up and puts his hands on his head in disbelief. "Is that what happened?"
"Y-Yes." He whispers softly. "I'm only alive because... someone saved me from an instant death."
"Really? Who?!" Jaune kneels down next to the huntsman. "Are they still here?"
"No I... told them to save themselves, it's too late to save me anyway."
"Hey don't talk like that!" Jaune shakes his head. "You're strong and have plenty left to give."
"Did you get a look at this person? Was it a man or woman? Or the direction they went towards?" Ruby asks
"H-Hey he doesn't need to answer anything!" Jaune shakes his head. "Conserving his strength should be top priority."
"It's okay... you guys could use all the information you can get out of me." The young man sighs as he accepts his inevitable fate. "This person, they were really fast... I initially couldn't see their face at all because they were wearing a green hood and a mask made of wood. When the grimm arrived, the bandits got scared and ran off. Although some didn't even make it... one of them had the nerve to still try and kill me for my weapon, and that's how I have this stab wound right now. Before he could kill me though, that's when an Ursa wiped him out in one strike and I was next until..."
"That person arrived." Ruby slightly smiles
"Y-Yes." The young man smiles back. "They were like nothing I'd ever seen before, I only got a glimpse of some blonde hair poking out of a wooden mask. I believe he was a male, but not a man. He fought with only a sword too, but that's all he needed to wipe out every Grimm here, and fast too. I couldn't get a good look at his sword because it was glowing with a bright golden energy. Then after all the Grimm were gone that's when they came up to me and..."
"He tried to patch you up?" She asks
"That's right." He chuckles now but it was a painful chuckle. "He got closer to me and that's when I could tell he was a boy, young like you guys and myself, but a boy with a lot of experience. Although, he felt really cold and sad, almost like he was saving me just for the sake of not wanting another person to die."
"W-What..." Jaune's jaw drops
"I told him to save himself, this village is gone and the area will be overrun by more grimm soon, once more of them sense what happened. The boy looked hesitant until he understood there was nothing to do anymore. T-That's when I saw his eyes, they were..."
"They were?" Ruby's eyes widen as she realizes the man is really struggling to speak now
"Ruby!" Jaune shakes his head and pulls Ruby aside until they're both side by side with Nora. "Don't push yourself sir."
As the members of RNJR look on with sadness and confusion, the same hooded figure that was just described shows themselves again. He peeks from behind a building that did not get destroyed and when he is absolutely certain that nobody is looking his way, he carefully treads back to the front of the village. He breathes heavily from having just fought Grimm and bandits, but soon gains his composure. Sprinting across, he swipes the map off the ground and quickly hides again by going behind more buildings
"Guys, I think we can get him to the next village." Jaune looks around, expecting assurance. "Right?"
"YEAH!" Ruby nods. "If we move fast we could get him to a doctor there! Let's get going now, our chances will be better this way. I can run ahead and look for help!"
"I don't know if he'll make it." Nora mumbles sadly
"He will. He has to." Jaune, with a look of determination, turns back around but his face falls as the huntsman slumps over
"Guys..." Ren shakes his head, as he is the first to realize the huntsman has died
"Should we bury him?" Nora suggests whilst looking around for tools
"No." Ren walks right past his team without a backward glance. "We should go. You heard him, it's not safe here."
"Ren..." Nora turns with concern and follows him, no questions asked
"It's going to be okay." Ruby puts her hand on Jaune's arm, noticing her friend appearing stressed and sad
"I believe that you believe that. I'm just tired of losing everything... and everyone."
Jaune and Ruby look at each other with somber expressions as they walk to catch up with Ren and Nora, who look shell shocked after recognizing a hoofprint on the ground. While the four of them regroup, the hooded person takes advantage by getting ahead of them, using the stolen map to see for himself where to go next. However, he is unaware that while he is following team RNJR, he himself is also being watch by a lone crow in the distance
"I don't know who that guy is but... he seems to be on our side."
The crow somehow speaks to itself, but this is no ordinary bird as the voice is that of Ruby's uncle, Qrow Branwen
"I already got enough on my plate keeping an eye on these kids. A fifth person is going to drive me nuts but… ah to hell with it, let's get this over with."
Qrow, while ironically in his namesake bird form, leaps off the hill he's on and flies towards the hooded figure. This is new for him, as opposed to flying behind team RNJR like he has been doing all this time. The hooded boy sprints through the forest, his head down and eyes on the ground while he runs. Qrow flies inconspicuously near him, or so he thinks. Unfortunately, the older huntsman does not realize that the person he is tailing is more aware than he thinks. And when the bird gets too close...
"...!"
The hooded boy suddenly slows down and in a rapid motion, he spins with his sword drawn, throwing a powerful slash in the process! The same bright, gold energy mentioned by the dying young huntsman surrounds the blade
"Shit! How did he know?" Qrow attempts to fly upwards to avoid the strike, knowing he does not have the time to transform and defend himself. "Damn! Not good!"
However, the boy stops at the last moment, right as he is about to slice the bird in half. He shuts his eyes and sighs, realizing that he is just paranoid and not actively being trailed by 'anybody'. The hooded individual nods at the 'innocent bird' as an acknowledgment of guilt, puts his sword away, and proceeds to slowly walk away initially, before sprinting off again
"That would've been some way to lose my life, dying as a crow to a kid." Qrow shrugs as he flies away and back towards team RNJR to resume traveling behind them like was doing before, "He was way too fast for a kid, and I didn't even get a look at his face. I just saw he had a stupid wooden mask with a strange design painted on. Nothing says bizarre like a face in red paint and a creepy yellow eye in the middle. But I suppose the kid isn't all that stupid, he did cut out what he needed to for his own eyes and mouth to see and breathe... but that mouth was something else. It was a carved sadistic smile... Must be a weird kid to design a mask like that. I suppose it is to make his opponents fear him so I can give him props there, but he's not slick, I saw blue eyes." He internally chuckles. "If only I saw the blade of his sword. A person can change their appearance all they want, but they can't replace their weapons."
The crow and hooded young man go their separate ways, and quite literally as Qrow flies back to watch over and protect Ruby and her team from the stalking grimm. The hooded boy, on the other hand, sprints to stay ahead of everyone in order to potentially eliminate future threats that may come at himself and the team he is watching over. Qrow stays focused on traveling back to his sport and continuing his original mission of ensuring Ruby, Jaune, Nora and Ren make it to Haven alive and well. The person who almost sliced that suspicious bird in half turns back and narrows his eyes, questioning why a crow of all birds was so close to him when normally they are difficult to spot
Elsewhere…
Later that day, it is now nighttime in the forests of Anima, and a Beowolf attempts to retreat and flee, sprinting as fast as it can! Only for its life to be cut short when a sword pierces through its back, the same blade seen earlier in the day. As it falls, two more beowolves, along with a massive Ursa, charge at the cloaked young man, who evades their attacks with slick footwork and picture perfect dodging until it is his turn to strike. And strike he does, he closes in on the evil grimm in the forest and has to pull out a familiar shield in order to block several powerful attacks. While he blocks successfully, he also gets closer and closer, shredding through the beasts with only a single slash for each monster that is in front or at his side. First, a ferocious upward diagonal slash to the Ursa, which falls back, dies, and perishes into black smoke due to a large wound starting from its midsection, and traveling all the way up to its neck. The second beowolf however, meets the most gruesome death as the boy charges at it and aims directly for the neck. With a simple leaping dash and only a single slice!... The Grimm's head is cut completely off its body and sent flying to the ground along with the body. Lastly, the third beowolf manages to get behind the huntsman and almost clobber him with a big claw strike. Fortunately, the blonde calmly lifts his right arm. With his shield now raised, he effortlessly blocks the attack without planting his feet into the ground or even setting himself up in a defensive stance. To repay the beowolf that came the closest to harming him, the boy spins with lightning fast speed and stabs it directly through its stomach! The Grimm lets out a shriek of pain before it flops over, soon disintegrating exactly the same way as its three companions who died before it. The boy retracts his weapons and returns them back to their original state, while never making a face, sound, or having any other reaction. No smile, shock, anger, displeasure, amusement, excitement, relief, fear, and son on. The boy simply looks around to see if there are any more Grimm lingering around. When he ensures that the part of the forest he is at is to sleep is secure, he nods to himself and finds a big tree to rest on
(...) The hooded boy does not speak, but instead remains prepared for another night in the forests
With only the weapons and clothes on his back, the cloaked individual has no supplies to make a proper campfire or build a tent, but there is also no issue. He simply sits on the ground, back pressed up against the selected tree of his choice, and coldly stares at the shattered moon, just like he did when revisiting a special place close to his heart. After a minute of this, the blond young man shuts his eyes and proceeds to inhale and exhale calmly, attempting to ease his mind and hopefully fall asleep soon. Having found somewhere to sleep was not easy as he had to clear out the Grimm in the area, doing all the work that would have come directly at team RNJR by getting rid of the danger ahead of them. Unfortunately, the boy cannot fall asleep, almost as if his brain refuses to let him, despite the fact that he has evidently not slept in a while. Upon realizing this yet again, he begins to panic and breathe heavily. His heart, which was once calm and cold enough to be considered frozen solid, is now beating rapidly and loudly too. A churning feeling in his stomach occurs, along with uncomfortable tingling and borderline prickling sensation is present in his hands. The distressed teenager attempts combating these negative emotions by closing and opening both hands repetitively, along with trying to slow down his breathing, but when he begins to feel light headed, he gives up. While feeling restless and unable to sit still any longer, the anxious and panicking 'huntsman' debates on getting up and running. Until...
"Ahhhhhh!"
The hood covering the mysterious boy's head comes completely off, revealing blonde hair and his mask nearly comes off too. He hears screams in his head that feel too raw and real. He recognizes the voice behind the scream as well… the scream of pain and agony is that of Pyrrha Nikos
(...where...)
Finally mustering up a word in his own head, the blond young man frantically looks around, hoping to spot beautiful red hair on a tall student, along with her sparkling green eyes and an angelic smile. All while she wears her usual red and gold attire. However, when he tries to get up to physically look around for the scream, he is quickly aware that he cannot move in the slightest. The boy grunts and tries to move everything, from his feet, hands, arms, legs, AND any attempt to explode up to his feet quickly fall flat, all he can do is turn his head side to side
(...c-can't... move...)
The attempts to calm himself down from earlier prove to be futile, and now he ends the slow breathing, along with the clenching and unclenching of his fists. Having seemingly given up, the individual lets the sensations take over, showing that he has dealt with and is familiar with them. But, as a last ditch effort, he removes his mask and opens his mouth to breathe without the small nuisances that come from his makeshift wooden mask. The blue eyes Qrow noticed, paired with the blonde hair by the unfortunate huntsman from Shion, and Ruby's suspicions about the throwing knife made of dust all lead back to none other than Link, who has revealed his face. His cold and expressionless eyes say more than any words he could express. The blond then lets out a quiet sigh, what sees next is an all too familiar sight
(...is... t-this...)
The world suddenly disappears all around Link, from the grass, trees, dead Grimm, and so on, until he can see nothing but black for about five seconds… Until a new world flashes right before his eyes, it is the entire scene from the top of Beacon Tower about to play out in his head. Link grunts in pain and anger as he visualizes it right in front of his own eyes… While he cannot move a single muscle
"Do you believe in destiny?" Pyrrha with no fear in her eyes stares right back at her opponent, never once breaking eye contact
"Yes." Cinder's smile disappears and a frown takes its place
Cinder stands back up and forms her bow and arrow again from what seems to just be shards of glass. She pulls back an arrow and lowers the bow to aim at her weakened opponent. Pyrrha shuts her eyes and accepts her fate, Cinder narrows her eyes even further and releases the bow, striking Pyrrha directly in the chest within a second!
(...where... am... I?... and... Ruby?) Link blinks and breathes harder in panic
In this recollection, he sadly never makes his appearance to try and stop the arrow from Cinder and Ruby never springs to the top from the opposite side to end Cinder's destruction with her special silver eyes
"Finally, I will be the catalyst for everything!" Cinder's smirks, amused at her victory
Her clicking heels get closer and closer to Pyrrha as she places a hand on Pyrrha's head, using her fully acquired maiden powers to finish off the young girl for good. The angelic and powerful student from team JNPR gasps and gasps, then she suddenly stops moving and gasping… Her body briefly glows orange and then she scatters away into ashes. All that is left of Pyrrha is the circlet she wears on her head, which is in Cinders hands now; the evil woman's smirk remains strong while she drops the circlet it on the ground like a piece of trash
(...RAHHH!...) Link finally breaks the paralysis his body was under and sprints at his own vision, he swings his sword, unleashing every combination to his knowledge
Ultimately, absolutely nothing happens, when it happened in real time he couldn't stop Cinder and even during his vision he could not stop Cinder either. The former one man team from Beacon closes his eyes and attempts to scream loudly, but no sound is produced by his vocal cords. When reopening his eyes, the vision is back again and it replays the exact same way: Pyrrha being shot in the ankle, her failed attempts to get up and continue fighting, Cinder's heartless execution, Pyrrha scattering into ashes and the evil smile on the latter's face, only this time the entire scene feels even more real than the last one
(...w-what... is... this?) Link's eyes widen as he is seemingly physically there at Beacon tower but he is clearly just a bystander as neither of the two women notice him and yet again, Pyrrha's execution replays for a third time
This time when Cinder is about to drop Pyrrha's circlet onto the ground like a worthless scrap of metal, Link grabs his sword and swings it to sever Cinder's hand, only for nothing to happen to Cinder again. When she and Pyrrha disappear, the huntsman is left on top of the destroyed tower alone and on a brink of self-destruction, as he cannot understand why he continues to see Pyrrha's death over and over and over again. What is clearly just a vision feels quite real, as the 'concrete' Link stands on suddenly collapses! The blonde starts falling down the entirety of Beacon tower, with every single floor having been destroyed and the bottom is the vault where Link almost found Amber
(...why... is... this... happening?!) Link attempts to reach for his hook shot to stop his fall but it is not there anymore
The same applies to the rest of his weapons, projectiles or accessories and he has nothing to grab onto for stability, having been right in the middle of the destruction. The way down feels like it lasts hours as the huntsman continues to fall alongside a heap of never ending rubble and materials of importance from the most significant building of Beacon Academy. At one point he manages to spot Professor Ozpin's coffee mug and that nearly brings a smile to his face, but ultimately it does not. Link closes his eyes and accepts his fate, falling all the way down and slamming against the floor of the vault… But not with a sickening thud. It is actually a massive plop into a big body of water! Link plummets into what feels like powerful ocean waves actively being pulled back and forth by the moon. However, the vault is now submerging with water. The panic-stricken young man tries to swim, but every time he swims forward, backward, east or west, the water prevents him from getting anywhere and instead keeps him in the same position, with the only change being the water rising and Link eventually not floating to the surface anymore. The amount of water increases at an unrealistic and rapid pace, going past Link's chest all the way up to his nose in seconds. Creepily enough… It gets slower and more methodical when it is about to submerge his entire head to die a slow, painful, and horrible death by drowning
(...No!...)
Link opens his eyes and sighs when realizing he is back in the forest. At last, he is able to move more than just his head sideways, and just to make sure it is not another dream or hallucination, he performs various physical tasks. First, he moves his head up and down, then wiggles each one of his fingers individually, flexes and extends his arms, rotates his shoulders slowly, completely extends his legs, bends his knees and lastly, rises to his feet. Link sighs again, this time it is one of pure relief, before walking back and forth to regain his composure, whilst trying not to think of what he just witnessed for a fourth time today. His body shakes, struggling to even clasp his hands together due to his unsteadiness and nerves. To make matters even worse, basic noises like wind are now louder than ever before, making the huntsman paranoid over his surroundings again, despite being in no danger whatsoever. Link reaches for his waist, digs into the pouch on his left hip, and pulls out Ray's pendant. He takes the pink rock with his right hand, and with his left hand once more, reaches for his belt and grabs Pyrrha's circlet, having managed to grab it during the chaos at the top of Beacon tower. Link balls up his fists without any force, holds both items dearly and with plenty of care. Finally, the tiniest smile emerges from the corners of his mouth, a smile so unnoticeable that anyone could confuse it for a fake smile. To Link however, it is the most emotion he can show while holding two priceless and sentimental items to him, and holding both the pendant and circlet close to his chest immediately helps calm him down. The paranoia, nerves, shaking body, and rapid heart rate all come to a swift conclusion in under thirty seconds. Link picks his head up to look at the dark but well lit sky; he remembers his lost friends and remains that way for a long time. After ten minutes of moon gazing, a weak smile, and two individual tears streaming down his cheeks, the troubled boy puts both of the precious items back where they belong and proceeds to sit against the tree one more time for the night. Link sighs yet again, looks up, and stares at the shattered moon as the night fades away...