Continent of Anima: Brunswick Farms

It is now the following day, exactly several hours later since the last two people who were awake went to sleep. The entire house is fast asleep, but for good reason as it is not even dawn yet. By now however, the fire is completely gone, though nobody is freezing or even cold, as Maria uncomfortably sleeps in the single seater armchair, having fallen asleep while reading another volume of the same 'books' she started the prior night. Oscar, Blake, Yang, and Ruby remain the same spots, as does Qrow. On the other hand, Weiss and Link are passed out in the same room where they drank, laughed, bonded even more, kissed many times, and got physically closer than they ever have before. Both of them sit on the ground, backs against the wall, Weiss with her head on the latter's shoulder, while the Link gently rests his head on hers, left cheek against the top of her head and the two peacefully rest despite the uncomfortable environment and recent misfortune on the Argus Limited and discovering the horrific ending the people of Brunswick Farms suffered

"Hrmph!…" Link opens his eyes in a daze, the young man's head pounding from the predictable hangover he expected. (What time is it?)

The blond swordsman carefully leans away from Weiss, and cannot help but smile as he watches her peacefully sleep. A quietly yawn follows, along with him slightly sitting up, which causes his sternum and back to pop multiple times

(Oh wow… I need to get Weiss a better place to sleep if my body is feeling like this.)

Deciding to act fast, Link quickly stands up, while holding Weiss' head in place to prevent her from slumping over to the right. He slides one arm under her legs, hooking the back of her knees, while the other arm grips her upper back. With a quick bending of the knees and a hoist, Link lifts Weiss up and carries her out the room, past the bar, swiftly getting by Qrow, and re-entering the study with the rest of the group. The blond shakes his head in disapproval of the floor, and gently lowers the passed out young woman on the couch across the burnt out fireplace

"Huh?" Weiss groans as she immediately embraces the couch and buries her head into the soft cushion, opening just one eye to look around, immediately noticing Link standing over her. "H-Hello… L-Link?"

"Yes Weiss?" Link says, lowering his voice down to the softest whisper

However, in the process he notices something wrong with the girl's open eye as her pupil is dilated, growing nearly to the size of her iris

(Her eye… was it the alcohol? But I do not recall that ever happening to me.)

"W-What time is it?" She softly mutters

"I am not sure, but it is very early." Link smiles

"Are y-you… g-gonna… sleep?" Weiss speaks with a monotone voice as she dozes off

"Maybe." He kneels down, placing a hand on the ex-heiress' back and softly rubs away. "Go back to sleep, beautiful. You are barely awake."

"S-Stop…" Weiss blushes at the compliment, a gentle smile forms immediately. "Okay… you s-sleep too."

Weiss yawns, drifting back into a deep slumber on the couch, arguably much more comfortable than the floor. Link then defies her wishes as he carefully walks to the entrance whilst slowly limping due to his body not fully recovering just yet. He then grabs one side of the drawer and takes a deep breath. First, he lifts it, then silently maneuvers the piece of furniture by turning counter-clockwise, carrying and quietly turning the drawer in a ninety degree angle, until it is off the door and without ever dragging it against the wooden floor

"HUH?! WHAT?!" Qrow snaps and jolts around

(NO! I was completely silent!) Link's eyes dart open

But to his relief, the drunken huntsman returns back to sleep only seconds after his brief outburst. Clearly having just woken up from a nightmare or randomly awakening for a moment

(Phew, that was risky.)

Link slowly turns the doorknob, creaks open the door, and sighs in relief when realizing the storm has calmed down, with no strong wind or snow blasting into the house. He calmly exits, shuts the door behind him, and walks into the snow. Link instantly shivers and balls up his fists, but to him, the cold is something he needs to adjust to, seeing as they are going to Argus and Atlas, more cold cities

(I do not understand. When I visited Garanda during the winter, I didn't feel a thing, what happened?)

The blond's confusion does not last for long though, as he quickly realizes he was in a dark place during the winter months

(Well… I did not feel many things during those months after losing Pyrrha, Penny, and everyone else at Beacon, including the school itself.) He sighs. (I want to like the cold and I do not know how to get better at handling it, this might be the only way to do it quickly.)

One big inhale is followed by an even bigger exhale, before he begins to jog back and forth in front of the house they are residing in. He lifts his knees as high as he can, whilst both feet trudge through the layers of snow that have fallen, his breathing increases due to the cold and a sudden feeling of fatigue that consumes him. Along with this, jolts of stinging pain and ache course throughout his body with every step and high knee he takes. Determined to adjust to the weather, Link continues jogging through the snow, embracing the cold air, steady wind, and snow that will inevitably soak and make his boots wet

"Ngh!"

Link suddenly stops and almost tumbles over, nearly falling face first. Initially thinking the pain and not being fully recovered is the cause, he soon understands it is the fatigue he is attempting to ignore. It proves to be more difficult to mentally set aside with every passing second

(Why do I feel tired? I have gone days without getting any proper sleep and I had more energy… Weiss' eyes, my fatigue, was there something in that wine? Or is something else-!)

"Hey Link!"

(HUH?!)

Ruby's bright, cheery, and prominent voice that is still miraculously full of optimism can be heard as she approaches him, the girl's red hood covers her head

"Ruby?!" Link jumps in shock, whips around to face her, but slips and tumbles into the snow, backside first. (W-When did she even leave the house? My instincts are off too I suppose…)

"HAHAHAHAHA!" Ruby points and laughs hysterically. "What are you doing out here? Ya know, "Weiss would kill you if she knew what you were doing."

"Y-Yes, but we can keep this between you and I until I tell her, yes?"

"Of course." She smiles. "I would never rat you out to your girrrlfriennnd."

"Ruby…" Link sighs and immediately blushes, but it is not the embarrassment, more so the events that transpired last night. "She's not my girlfriend, but yes I obviously like her."

"Duhhh! Everyone and their mother knows you both like each other." Ruby giggles. "But yes, your secret ummm… exercising? Is safe with me."

"Thank you." He nods gratefully. "As for what I am doing… I'm up because I already slept and then something hit me. I did not handle the cold well at all and I need to get used to it."

"Like… acclimated?" She asks

"If that's what it means, then yes." Link nods whilst getting up. (Hm… Ruby's eyes are normal, so I think now is when I can blame the wine.)

"Cool." Ruby smiles. "What did you and Weiss get up to last night?"

"...!" He turns away from his silver eyed friend, as his cheeks turn red from embarrassment more than the cold. "Nothing really. She was fast asleep and I was alone."

"You don't have to lie to me." Ruby groans while her eyes roll in annoyance. "If you guys spent time together, that's awesome!"

"Okay okay, we did." Link sighs and turns around, exposing his blush. "I like being around her."

"Awww!" She cheers. "I'm glad someone else besides me can experience anything other than pessimism. And Weiss was feeling down about us going to Atlas, maybe you cheering her up will make her feel better."

"I hope so too. Although, I do have a confession." The blond chuckles nervously as he scratches his cheek. "Weiss found me on the verge of drinking… then we both drank together."

"HUH?!" Ruby gasps and points at him. "You got WEISS to drink? H-How?!"

"No convincing was needed and I did not make her do anything." Link sheepishly smiles. "She wanted to do it so I would not feel alone. I hope she doesn't feel too bad when everyone wakes up."

"What can we do if she does feel anything other than how Weiss normally wakes up?" She rubs her chin

"Like grumpy?" Link giggles

"YES!" Ruby laughs along with him. "That is classic Weiss. I also mean ummm… what's the word? My uncle Qrow experiences them basically every week."

"Do you mean a hangover?" He raises an eyebrow

"MHM!" Ruby nods. "What if Weiss is experiencing that?"

"Well, I would say water, but considering your uncle said everyone living here is dead now… I would not drink any water from this place." Link sighs. "The same applies to food."

"Dang it!" She groans. "Let's hope for the best then. How long do you plan to be out here?"

"I did not consider that, maybe when I stop feeling my face." Link grins. "Or the tips of my fingers."

"Shush! I'm being serious!" Ruby scowls at him

"And I was serious when I said I did not consider it."

Link's eyes shift downward as he stares at the snow he is stepping in, then a smile forms when a thought hits him

"I have an idea. Ruby?"

"Yes?" Ruby asks

"Do you want to continue where we left off, back in Mistral?" Link picks up his head. "Our early morning training sessions?"

"I never thought you'd ask!" Ruby giggles and jumps for joy. "It feels like we haven't trained in forever! When do we begin? And this is perfect because I brought Crescent Rose."

"When do you not have Crescent Rose on you?" Link smirks

"Fair play." She sighs

"We can start… now."

Link nods and without even having to communicate, he and Ruby begin with the blond's speed training. Ruby gets into her semblance 'Petal Burst' and immediately charges at Link, who activates the lightning dust embedded in his clothes, though it only faintly lights up, as something immediately goes wrong. Upon letting Ruby get as close to him as possible, Link would normally dodge with a twirl, sidestep, jump, or another evasive technique in his arsenal, except this time he does no such thing. And the swordsman's delayed reaction results in the silver eyed girl crashing head first into his chest!

SLAMMMM!... Thump!

"Ugh!" Link collides against the snow back first. (W-What was that? It felt like I was stuck in place… as if I lost the ability to move my feet.)

"Oh my god! I'm so sorry!" Ruby gasps and sprints to him. "Are you okay?!"

"I'm o-okay!" He waves her away and quickly sits up. "That was a nice strike, good power and ever better speed."

"T-Thanks." She giggles. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes." Link nods, scrambles to his feet as fast he can, then exhales. "I felt… very slow is all."

"Maybe it's the lack of training?" Ruby shrugs her shoulders. "Perhaps your body is still not fully recovered? OR your sleep wasn't enough?"

"Maybe." He rubs his chin, but unfortunately there are too many possibilities. "A-Anyway… shall we continue?"

"Are you sure?" Ruby asks

"Yes. I cannot let one setback stop us." Link smiles

And so they continue until the sun rises, but the first incident does not prove to be a fluke as Ruby gets the better of Link in every exchange. Normally, Ruby is naturally the faster of the two, semblance or no semblance. But the latter's improvements are nowhere to be seen as the girl slams into him over and over and over again. Link decides to switch his approach, and instead of allowing Ruby to get as close as possible, the blond young man attempts to evade Ruby's strikes with plenty of time and space in between them. Unfortunately, no matter how much he carefully prepares each dash, spin, roll, jump, backflip, sidestep, twirl, and so on, it is no match for Ruby's superior speed, especially in her semblance. The unfortunate results are that plenty of failed dodge attempts lead to many collisions! Landed strikes! And massive slamming sounds to the chest, stomach, back, and shoulders of Link, who soon finds himself on his back and inches deep in the snow yet again

"Ughhh…" Link sits up while groggily shaking his head. "Today is not my day."

"And that's okay." Ruby smiles as she breathes quickly through her nose, having accelerated plenty in a short period of time. "Nobody has ever had a perfect sparring session. Now come on, let's keep going!"

"O-Okay." The blonde swordsman nods and quickly stands up

The pair continue with Link's speed training, at times Ruby purposely slows herself down for the sake of her friend's morale and confidence, but the former picks on this and insists that the silver eyed girl give it her all, regardless of his inability to dodge. Frustration soon takes over for Link after being knocked to the ground and having the wind taken out of him multiple times. Soon enough, the two best friends abandon the blond's speed training and switch to Ruby's evasion training. Unfortunately, no progress is made as all of Link's sword slashes, swings, and jabs do not come close to touching Ruby. Whether they are thrown in succession, such as Link's rapid sixteen sword jab combination, spinning slashes, diagonal strikes, vertical strikes, powerful slashes, weak and quick slashes, the results do not change. And the same applies to the swordsman's punches, kicks, shield charges, and rapid footwork to switch angles and strike awkwardly. Everything he throws is slow and easily telegraphed. Ruby to her credit, adjusts by allowing each attack to nearly graze her by mere centimeters before dodging, but it is not the same and she finds herself dodging everything with ease

"D-Damn… why is this happening?" Link clenches his jaw in frustration. "My body still aches at the slightest movement, but I still had my speed and strength on the train."

"I'm moving around just fine too, that's weird." Ruby sighs. "Maybe you hurt yourself during the train crash and all of us flying and falling into the snow… but didn't notice it because you're that tough?"

"That could be a possibility." He chuckles. "In my head, I think it could be the change in scenery? I know my body is still hurting, but the cold could play a factor?"

"Hmmm, that also makes sense." Ruby nods, thinking carefully before rapidly snapping her fingers together. "OOOH! MAYBE IT'S BECAUSE YOU HAVEN'T EATEN AND ONLY DRANK ALCOHOL LIKE AN IDI-!"

"Be quiet!"

The voice of a disgruntled Qrow can be heard as he, along with the rest of the group find themselves outside, ready to depart from Brunswick Farms

"How are you already shouting?!" He grunts whilst stumbling, having consumed three bottles of wine himself the previous night. "It's too damn early for that."

"S-Sorry!" Ruby giggles

"There's no need for you to apologize, Ruby." Link glares at the hungover man. "Please don't yell at your niece."

"Whatever." Qrow rolls his eyes. "Ruby, come with me."

"Sure!" Ruby eagerly follows her uncle as they walk off, she turns her head to mouth the words 'thank you' at Link for coming to her defense

At the entrance of the house, Weiss silently marches towards Yang's bike, summons a glyph with her rapier 'Myrtenaster', and uses fire dust to weld a makeshift trailer hitch on the motorcycle. Additionally, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Qrow and Oscar's pupils appear to be dilated, something Link notices but cannot understand why that is

"There." The ex-heiress speaks with an annoyed tone

"Hey Weiss." Link approaches her. "Did you enjoy your extra sleep?"

"Sure."

(Her eyes… they are still the same.) The blond teenager raises an eyebrow. "Question… how do my eyes look?"

"They look fine." Weiss nods. "Dark blue and radiant."

(Damn… all that tells me is I'm okay and she's not.)

"Can we just go back to bed?" Oscar yawns as he sits on the porch next to Blake. "We wanted to leave super early, that didn't work out for us. Why not stay another hour or two?"

"Since we're all so tired, maybe we should make breakfast?" Blake asks

"Uhhh, sure why not?" The farmhand mumbles. "Do you wanna make it?"

"Hm?" She shrugs. "Not really."

"I can, but I would not trust the food here." Link shakes his head. "Considering… the people…"

"Riiight." Blake rolls her eyes

(That was rude… is Blake mad at me?) He internally grunts

"Ugh! We're back!"

Ruby can be heard again as she and Qrow quickly return, pushing a flatbed trailer towards the group, until it touches Yang's motorcycle

"Sooooo! You guys got the bike ready?" Ruby cheerily asks

"Mhm." Yang nods whilst gesturing to it

"Well, it's done now." Qrow mumbles as he attaches it to the motorcycle. "So let's hook this thing up and get the hell out of-!"

Qrow rests his foot on the side of the trailer as he is about to wrap up his sentence… and the tire on the opposite side suddenly loses all its air and flattens in seconds! The older huntsman groans in frustration before kneeling to check on the tire, knowing it was his own semblance that caused this

"You people are just beacons for bad luck, aren't you?" Maria steps out of the house shaking her head in disappointment, after having gone back inside the house to retrieve a book for the road. "Unbelievable."

"Grrr, you wouldn't even know half of it." Qrow frowns, walks away for a short distance, over to a nearby fence, then plops down to the ground

Yang follows suit and also sits on the ground, although she sits against a well located shortly in front of the house

"It's official, the universe just doesn't want us getting to Atlas." She sighs

"None of that, sis." Ruby dismisses her. "It's just a flat tire, I'm sure there's a spare."

"I don't mean only the tire, Ruby. It's not just that, it's everything!" Yang stares at the ground. "Storms, crashes, monsters... I'm so done with it all and I'm so tired too."

"I'm sure we're all tired." Blake buries her face in her knees. "It feels like we're always having to fight to get by."

"Duh! Yeah." Ruby tilts her head in confusion. "But that's what we signed up for."

"She's right, what's up with you guys?" Link slowly turns to Yang, then Blake, and Oscar, then towards Qrow, and his eyes also have the same issue as everyone else's. (All of their eyes… what does this mean? Now I know it was not the wine. Although Yang is right about one thing, I feel very tired and have felt it since I woke up.)

"Except she isn't right." Oscar turns to Link and Ruby, who seem to be the only ones with energy. "We signed up to try and save the world, not delay the inevitable. You all heard Jinn, we can't kill Salem."

"Oscar is right. And yesterday..." Weiss uncomfortably rubs her arm, unable to look at Ruby or Link. "I… couldn't stop thinking, despite conversations with Ruby and a good ending to my night, why are we even going to Atlas?

Everyone looks around, troubled. Qrow looks at Yang, she turns to Blake, who glances at Oscar, and he faces Maria, who shakes her head while keeping her eyes on Link and Ruby, until the latter clears her throat

"Weiss, we talked about this." Ruby sighs. "We have to."

"Do we though? Why?" Yang stands up, turning in her sister's direction. "Ozpin hid the relics behind giant doors under enormous schools, which is going to delay Salem for a long time, right? So how long would it take her to find a lamp in the middle of nowhere?"

(Is she suggesting throwing the Relic of Knowledge in the well?) Link wags his head in disapproval. "What are you talking about? It would have no protection and could be found by anyone or anything. What if a random civilian finds it and tries to sell it or safely guard it? They will be killed."

"Oh well." Yang shrugs. "They should know to leave it be."

"Yang?" Link's eyes widen. "That is really dark…"

"Like you're not used to dark stuff?" She rolls her eyes

"Stop it sis. Link's right." Ruby frowns. "Even if it's buried and no human finds it, Grimm eventually would and they are controlled by Salem."

"Sure, but not for a long time." Yang shrugs again, "If we bury it or just throw it down the well, it will take years for someone to find it. It might not even happen in our lifetime. Think about it." She steps forward, inching closer to her sister. "We can be done with this burden now."

"Ummm..."

Foolishly taking her sister's words into consideration, Ruby detaches the Relic of Knowledge from her belt and carefully looks at it

"Ruby don't." Link sluggishly gets in front of her

His intention is to block Yang from having immediate access to Ruby and the relic. Soon enough however, Weiss and Blake join and stand next to Yang, staring at the two of them with a dazed look and dilated pupils, almost as if they were in a trance

"You guys are being weird." Link sighs, blinking profusely

"And you need to stop trying to be a hero all the time." Yang leans to the right, ignoring Link and addressing her sister. "Come on, sis. We're waiting."

"This is not about being a hero. The three of you, Oscar, and Qrow in some way are all… behaving differently."

"We're being realistic about our future." Blake mumbles

"O-Okay." Ruby takes one more look at the relic before walking to the well

"Ruby no!" Link reaches for her arm

Grab!

Before he can stop Ruby, her teammates Blake and Weiss, who are now right behind Link, grab both of his arms with a relatively weak grip

"Let me go." He protests whilst releasing a calm exhale. (They are barely grabbing me, I could break away but I do not want Weiss to get the wrong idea.)

"Ruby can make her own decision." Blake mutters

"Yeah." Weiss says with a bland tone

(What is going on? It is like my words are being ignored.) Link narrows his eyes and goes back on earlier words, then pulls his arms away with a soft yank

However, he does listen to the request of his girlfriend and the cat faunus, giving in and carefully watching Ruby now

"Maybe… You're right." Ruby yawns. "Come to think of it… I am... really... tired…"

Ruby holds the relic above the pitch black well, a well that nobody has a clue how deep it goes. Suddenly, the silver eyed girl starts to have the same dazed look on her face, her pupils slowly dilating as well. In spite of that, Ruby does not drop the relic, hesitating before composing herself and deciding not to drop the important lamp. She retracts her arm, but then notices multiple red eyes at the bottom of the well, startling her and snapping her out of her semi-dazed state, returning her pupils to normal

"AHHH!"

Out of her dazed state, Ruby understands the red eyes are very real. In her fright, she accidently drops the Relic into the well. She instantly attempts to dive and reach for them, nearly toppling over and plunging downward in the process

"Ruby!" Link lunges forward quickly wraps his arms around her waist as only her lower legs are safely behind the well

"W-Whoa! I regret everything!" She panics. "Helllp!"

"I'm on it!" Link nods, blinks profusely while letting out a quiet yawn, then pulls her back, preventing her from falling head first into the well

"Phew, thanks." Ruby sighs, rests her forehead against the well, then feels her cheeks burn up when she notices the trembling hands covering and wrapped around her waist. "Let go, let go, let gooo!"

"No problem." Link grins and slowly releases his grip around her. "What were you thinking?"

"I don't know! I just kinda jumped it? Aw man! I can't believe I dropped the lamp!" She shakes her head. "I didn't mean to!"

The rest of team RWBY looks at each other before shrugging their shoulders and returning to stare at their leader with fatigued looks

"Ruby." Yang walks to her. "It's okay."

"No it's not! And there's also something down there! I saw it, it was looking at me!" Ruby whips her head around to glance at Link. "Did you see it?"

"Sorry, but no. I was focused on getting you out of the well." Link shakes his head

"GAH!" She shouts in frustration

"Don't worry about it." Yang places a hand on her sister's shoulder. "What's done is done, we should go now."

"What's wrong with you?!" Ruby swats Yang's hand away. "We can't just leave, we have to go down there! We have to get it back!"

"All we really have to do is fix this trailer." Qrow rolls his eyes, "Hey, farm boy." He turns to Oscar. "Check the shed for a spare. You should be able to find it no problem, this is your domain."

"S-Sure." Oscar frowns, stands, and walks off. "He's not wrong but he also did not have to be so condescending."

"In the meantime, relax." Weiss mumbles

"NO!" Ruby shouts, this time with pure intensity in her voice. "I'm not leaving without the lamp!"

"Okay! I will go and get it." Link gets on the well with a quick hop. (Company would be nice, but the only one acting normal is Ruby…)

He nods and does not wait for any protest or approval before jumping down, reaching into his pouch on his way to the bottom for a weapon other than his sword and shield

Gasp!

This drastic action finally draws emotion from none other than Weiss, who looks over the well and shakes her head, with her pupils even momentarily returning to their regular size

"L-Link? LINK?!" Weiss breathes rapidly, "No! Why did he go down there?!" She turns to Ruby. "W-We're going in that well, right?!"

"Yes! Hurry!" Ruby leaps over the well and drops down herself

"In that case, we may as well go together." Yang mumbles

"Sure." Blake nods

Ten seconds later, all of team RWBY 'enter' the well together, where an underground waterway system awaits them. Luckily for them, Link is not too far ahead, only a few feet, and the item he reached for is revealed as he aims his semi-automatic rifle while carefully stepping forward

"Link! Wait up!" Ruby jogs to him

"Hey Ruby, glad you could-!" His eyes widen upon noticing the rest of the team. "Hey guys."

"Let's just find the lamp and get out of here." Yang slumps forward and slowly walks to them, unaware that she is loudly stomping

"Right." Link nods and continues moving forward, now leading an entire team into the unknown

Ruby and Yang grab their scrolls, turn on their flashlights, and light up the way for Link, who maintains the group of girls walking in the same cautious pace

"Come onnn, it couldn't have gotten that far, right?" Ruby asks

"Maybe the current dragged it away?" Yang suggests

"That's possible, but I can hardly even see right now." Blake shields her eyes from the blinding lights only inches away from her. "Y-Your lights…"

"Maybe you guys can turn off the lights and we can look out for the glow?" Weiss turns to her left

"Okay." Link nods. "Ruby, Yang… you heard her."

"Fineee." Ruby sighs, turns it off, and puts her scroll away

Yang does not say a word but does turn off her flashlight as well. Ruby then pulls out Crescent Rose and proceeds forward alongside Link, as the two of them aim their respective rifles, while the three young women behind them walk with their guards down. As they walk, more paths are visible, some originally built for the underground waterway system, while others are recently created tunnels, presumably leading to other homes in the area, one of which more than likely leads to the main home team RWBY, Link, Qrow, Oscar, and Maria spent the night in. The group of former students slosh though as the water is high enough to touch their shins, it feels like multiple minutes have passed by, regardless of the fact that it has only been under a minute. Until a breakthrough happens at last…

"There it is." Blake mumbles, before extending her arm and pointing at a slight glow

"I'll get it!" Ruby dashes forward by herself

"Not alone you're not!" Link shakes his head and slowly jogs. (Ngh! Why is it a struggle to move? Ruby is running with no issues.)

Ruby turns the corner first, and luckily for her, Blake's observation is accurate as she finds the Relic of Knowledge on the ground. She runs over and picks it up, with Link getting closer and closer to her

"Guys, I got it!" Ruby calls out. "Let's find a way back and-!"

"RUBY LOOK OUT!" Link gasps, aims his rifle, immediately starts firing away

"Huh?!"

Ruby jumps, startled by the unprompted gunfire, then looks up and notices what her friend is shooting at. A group… Not humans, but creatures of Grimm, enough to be a platoon, and they have a similar appearance to the humanoid-looking Grimm that made up half of a monster called the 'Nuckelavee'. With human shaped skulls, jaws held together by 'threads, but without the curved horns. However, these are much taller and are their own entity. Similarly, they possess long arms that nearly touch the ground, extremely long fingers, and sharp claws; Their name is the 'Apathy'. The pack of Grimm all whip their heads at Ruby and Link, then begin moving towards them!

"Ah! Ah! Ah! AHHHH!" Ruby shrieks

"Ruby!" Link frowns, clenches his jaw, and continues firing!

However, none of his bullets do any damage, all they seem to do is stall the Grimm. More importantly, Ruby is completely frozen still and Link must act quickly to save her from this twisted situation

"Hey." Link mumbles, slides closer to the silver eyed girl and calmly whispers to her. "Ruby? RUBY!"

"Y-Yes?" Ruby shakily turns to look over her shoulder

"You aren't alone. Now let's get out of here." He musters a smile, in spite of the dangerous Grimm in front of them

"R-Right!" Ruby, feeling calmer now, rapidly hooks the relic to her belt. "Okay!"

Next, the silver eyed girl weakly smiles as she retrieves another item from the same spot on her belt, the steel mask given to her by Link, its previous owner. Ruby puts on the mask, turns to face the latter, and gives him a big nod. The two of them run away and regroup with the rest of team RWBY, who bafflingly remain put, but are attentive and worried by the loud screams

"What is it?!" Yang asks. "Are you okay Ruby?"

"She's fine, but we have a problem." Link disassembles his rifle, returning it to its baton state, slips the baton into his brown pouch, then draws his sword and shield. (I'm not sure how to kill these things.)

"You're not seriously going to charge at them." Ruby gasps. "R-Right?"

"No." The blonde swordsman shakes his head. "But my rifle was no good against those things."

"What things?!" Weiss shouts

The three oblivious girls only need a couple of seconds before they notice the skeletal Grimm slowly walking towards them. Ruby draws Crescent Rose and fires multiple rounds at them. The bullets of her sniper rifle do more than Link's as the Grimm recoil, but ultimately take no damage as well. Multiple of the Apathy open their mouths, tearing the flesh holding its jaw and face together, then letting out an ear piercing scream!

GRAWRRR!

Instantly, all of team RWBY slump forward as if a huge weight has been dropped on their backs, their ears ring in the process. Link also slumps forward, but the ear ringing does not bother him, having experienced it many times, even to this present day when experiencing his dark visions and reliving the moments of his dear friend's passing away

"Ngh!" Link grunts and pushes through, forcing himself to stand up straight. "G-Guys?"

"What is this...?" Yang pants, breathing heavily

"My weapon!" Blake shakes her head. "I can't even pick it up!"

"C-Can anyone move?" Weiss asks

"K-Kinda." Ruby murmurs

"RUN!"

From behind, Maria is calling out to the group of five teenagers whilst waving her arm and cane

"Follow me, now!"

Maria turns around and runs as fast as she can, regardless of her age and physical limitation. Team RWBY and Link watch the Grimm start to move toward them, seemingly debating whether to fight or not

"Well?" Blake turns her head side to side. "What do we do?"

"Go!" Ruby turns around, glances at her team and Link. "NOW! Let's go!"

The five of them turn around and run, catching up with Maria in no time due to their superior athleticism. The sunlight from the well is visible, but more Grimm appear and block their path to the well. Another ear piercing scream follows, affecting the group of six, who slump over in pain again. Luckily enough, Ruby notices that they are coincidentally next to a recently created tunnel that will likely lead to a house, or at worst give them another path through the underground tunnel system

"Over here!" She says, while pointing at what is essentially a hole in the wall. "This way!

Link, team RWBY, and Maria run into the tunnel with the former leading the way. They continue to run blindly through the complex underground passages, while avoiding more of the same Grimm along the way. From running in a straight line, to taking a sharp left, going straight again, taking a right, heading straight once more, the seemingly endless running ends when they make their way into an underground room. Unbeknownst to them, it is the same wine cellar previously seen by Ruby, Weiss, and Link. And before anyone can piece it together, they notice yet another group of Apathy inside the wine cellar, destroying barrels. But they are unable to turn around, as behind them is the bigger group that has been chasing them the entire time. Instinctively, the group of six attempts to run away, in an effort to put distance between themselves at the Grimm. One of the Apathy however, lets out another scream, this one with more ferocity that causes Link, team RWBY, and Maria to collapse on all fours

"I can't…" Yang shakes her head. "I can't do this. I'm so… tired… and weak."

Maria gasps for air as she gets back up, using her cane to support herself before partially collapsing again. However, when she falls, she feels a set of stairs in front of her

"C-Children! An exit." She exclaims. "There's an exit!"

Yang crawls forward with a sudden burst of energy. Ruby looks up, notices the stairs leading up to the cellar door, and crawls toward Weiss

"Come on!" She lifts her teammate up by the shoulders

Weiss simply nods in gratitude as the two girls follow Yang and Maria. Suddenly, two sounds are heard, one is a weapon dropping. This sound comes from Blake, who collapses to the ground, dropping her sword 'Gambol Shroud' on the ground beside her. The other sound is two feet making contact with the concrete floor, as if to get ready for a fight. True to his brave, heroic nature, Link stands in front of Blake, in a defensive stance with both weapons held by shaky hands, while the Grimm continue to inch towards them

"B-Blake…" Ruby turns and gasps, "L-Link!" Her eyes narrow, baffled by what she sees. "H-How is Link on his feet? And why is he trying to fight?"

Neither Link or Blake respond, the cat faunus' pupils dilate once more as her expression changes, from groaning in pain due to the Grimm's screeching, to dazed, tired, and defeated. More of the Apathy emerge from the tunnels. Link growls and does his best to shield Blake from the Grimm, he attempts activating the dust in his clothes to increase his depleted speed and energy, only for the lightning dust to not even glow.

"N-No!" Ruby shouts from a short distance, attempting to crawl to them now. "D-Don't fight!"

Link shuts his eyes, concentrates, and brings out his second form known as 'the demon', which he mysteriously has more control over. Unfortunately, these efforts fall short as well and when he opens his eyes, they only change color. Sadly, it is only a visual change, as Link cannot explode off the ground and attack with more power or speed. He sighs, frowns, and widens his stance even further to cover Blake, while the Grimm extend their hands, two sets of claws manage to touch the shield of the blond swordsman...

"NOOOOO!"

Upon yelling out with all her might, combined with fear and anxiety of losing two friends, Ruby's eyes glow brightly, causing the Apathy to retreat in pain. When the light fades, Link blinks rapidly, immediately realizes he can move but rather than fight, he takes the opportunity to turn and pick Blake up. She also snaps out of her dazed state, eyes returning back to normal. Ruby sprints towards them, but is immediately waved off by the former

"I have Blake, keep moving!" Link nods

"Huh?! What just happened?" Maria shakes her head. "What was that?!"

Weiss, Yang, and Maria manage to get up and run up the stairs, the latter tries to get the doors open with both hands, but they do not budge, as the other side is chained

"Guys? Big problem!" Weiss shouts. "They're locked!"

"There's no time to be gentle!" Yang growls. "Out of my way!"

Yang runs up the stairs, winds up a punch with her prosthetic hand, ready to bust open the doors, but the Grimm recover from their temporary incapacitation, and yet another scream is let out. Everyone falls down again, even Link cannot stay on his feet this time

(Not good.) Link breathes rapidly as he pushes through the pain and fatigue, in order to crawl in front of Blake and Ruby, protecting them in any way he can. (I can't do anything against these monsters.)

As the Grimm approach them, getting closer and closer, Blake struggles to sit up, and she grabs Link's arm for support and comfort. Ruby lies flat on her back, Maria crawls toward the silver eyed girl, and begins speaking to her, but to Link, the sound of the world is slowly drowned out by ringing and white noise

"R-Ru…" Maria speaks, but her words are not coherent to the blond. "Wh… color… y… eyes?"

"S-Silv..." Ruby whispers

(Damn, I cannot understand them.) Link turns to his left, facing Blake who stares at him blankly, though her face dawns a worried expression. (Think… there has to be something I can do.)

Following this, he turns to his right, and sees Maria holding Ruby's head down, covering her ears. The older woman continue speaking, but her words are not coherent to both Link or Ruby at all

"Don… thin… bout… th... hink… abou… the… peo… wh… love… you. Foc… on… the… thought… of… them."

(What is she saying?) Link sighs, shakes his head, and extends his held arm to give Blake an assuring squeeze on her arm. "Blake…"

"Y-Yeah?" She speaks with a monotone voice

"We're going to be okay." Link nods

"Okay." Blake weakly smiles

Meanwhile, Weiss is still trying to budge the doors open, Yang reaches out in desperation before falling and feeling defeated as the cellar doors feel like they get farther and farther away. Link continues looking at Blake, her eyes are lifeless, pupils dilated, but her smile snaps him out of his trance

"Life... is beautiful." Maria softly mumbles, though now her words are clear to those around her. It is precious. And it must be protected."

Finally being able to understand her words, Ruby focuses and shuts her eyes. Seconds that feel like minutes pass before she opens her eyes, and they glow briefly with a bright silver color. She sits up, shuts her eyes again, then opens them for what proves to be the most crucial time. Now her eyes blast an even more blinding, bright, and powerful white light through her steel mask. This time, all of the Apathy in front of them disintegrate within seconds!

"W-Whoa…" Link gasps, then shakes his head, slowly feeling his strength and balance returning to him, "There's our chance!" He rises to his feet, turns around, and picks up Blake for a second time. "Let's go!"

The two of them run towards the stairs, while Maria and Ruby stare in awe. Weiss and Yang on the other hand, are already near the door, the blonde winds up another attack, and with a straight right punch, she opens the doors with a powerful blast from her prosthetic arm. Weiss, Yang, Link, Blake, Maria, and Ruby run out one after the other, and find themselves in the same room with bottles of wine and canned food that Ruby, Link, and Weiss had seen previously

"What is this place?" Blake asks

"We're back in the house!" Weiss gasps

Sprinting through the next door, the five students enter the bar and see Qrow leaning on the counter, nearly passed out with an empty bottle of wine in front of him

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby runs over and shakes her uncle by his shoulders. "Grrr! Get up!"

"Ruby, you pick him up and get him out of here, Blake and I…" Yang exclaims whilst grabbing the cat faunus by her hand. "...will go tell Oscar we're leaving!"

The two young women leave the house, frantically screaming Oscar's name. Meanwhile, back in the bar, Qrow grumbles and groans by the yelling and running

"Hey!" He shrugs off his niece with the lift of his arm. "Get off me! W-Wait, Ruby? What are you doing here?"

"We're leaving, you idiot!" Maria strolls by, limping but using her cane to help her move. "Come on!"

With the three of them gone, Ruby throws one of her uncle's arms over her head, and begins helping him out. This leaves Weiss and Link, who both look back at the open wine cellar

"Not yet…" Weiss turns to her boyfriend and sighs. "Will you help me?"

"Of course." Link nods. "What am I doing?"

"Just throw as many bottles as you can!"

Weiss returns a nod, before quickly tossing three bottles of alcohol from the shelves of the bar, then throws them towards the basement, shattering them and dousing the floor with a flammable liquid

"Okay!" Link grins and repeats the same actions, though he throws four bottles just to be safe. "What's the plan?"

"Watch me."

Weiss smiles while lifting her rapier 'Myrtenaster' up to her head, the blade only inches away from her face. The timing could not be any more perfect, as more of the same Grimm slowly start to emerge from the wine cellar. Weiss concentrates, her rapier summons a wave of fire, alongside a glyph, and with said glyph, she uses it to launch fire toward the cellar doors. Her efforts, aided by Link's to throw as many bottles as they could in the short amount of time they had, promptly sets all the Grimm on fire

"Now we leave!" Weiss firmly nods, turns around, and runs off, her partner follows closely behind

"Before we do that." Link grabs her forearm right as they are about to exit the bar

"Y-Yes?! Is something wrong?" Her eyes widen in panic

"No, nothing like that." The blond swordsman chuckles, casually grabs a bottle of alcohol that does not appear to be wine, and raises his eyebrows. "One for the rest of the trip?"

"You're… cracking a joke? At a time like this?!" Weiss frowns

"Maybe?" Link turns away in shame. "I'm sorry if-!"

"Shhh!"

Weiss quickly steps forward, places her hands on her partner's cheeks and pulls him into a quick kiss. Link closes his eyes and calmly sighs, enjoying the sweet moment after nearly coming close to facing death yet again. Only for a few brief seconds though, as they pull away knowing they still have a burning house to leave

"You're such a bad influence but…" Weiss playfully rolls her eyes. "...Bring it with you. Come on."

Outside, Yang starts her motorcycle while Ruby, Blake, Maria, Oscar, and Qrow sit on the flatbed that now has a new tire thanks to Oscar. All six of them shout the names of Weiss and Link to hurry as they exit the house that will soon be engulfed in flames. Yang wastes no time driving away from the house as soon as the latter two step foot on the trailer

VROOM!

Bumblebee soars down a snowy road, heading northwest from Brunswick Farms, Yang maintains her focus on the snowy forest ahead, everyone else calmly sits on the trailer being pulled behind her. Maria sits at the end of the flatbed, Blake sits next to Qrow, Link sits next to him but next to Weiss, who is beside Ruby, and lastly there is Oscar who sits on the silver eyed girl's left. The older woman however, is unfazed that she could fly off if they hit a bump, then she opens her mouth as Oscar reads the same 'books' that only have numbers for titles

"Those Grimm… they were called 'The Apathy'. They are not strong or ferocious, but drain your will to go on." Maria shakes her head. "Bartleby's estate was hemorrhaging money towards the end. He cut costs on Huntsman protection. And in order to do that without any questions being asked, he needed everyone to be calm."

"I see." Oscar carefully reads each line of the last edition, "Here it says, 'Managed to get two away from their pack. Hike back was miserable, but got the bastards in the cellar. Wife thinks I was out sealing the waterway entrance. I'll do it tomorrow and tell her the truth once these things take the edge off of everyone. I'm tired.' but…" The farmhand looks up. "What's next?"

"Come on child, it is obvious." Maria sighs, "The next page proves that he did manage to get two away from their pack… but not before the rest of the pack followed their missing pair all the way back. My guess is they made their way beneath the estate through the water tunnels that Bartleby sealed up the next morning." She closes her fists in frustration. "Bartleby's plan worked. No one was angry or sad or scared. No one was anything. And then... no one was left.

Maria takes the book from Oscar's grasp and takes one more look at the final page of the diary, with the last words written down being 'I'm tired'. Ominous seeing as the corpses of him and his wife were in bed, 'sleeping' and eventually discovered by Weiss. Maria then closes the book and tosses it out into the snow, the cover having the number VIII on it, the last edition to a tragic 'tale'

(Greed and selfishness, that is all it takes to kill your entire farm.) Link narrows his eyes. (And to willingly use Grimm on your own people, what a horrible man.)

"Hey." Weiss turns to Ruby, "I'm... sorry for what I said... about giving up. I was wrong." She then turns to Link. "Thanks for trying to snap us all back to reality. I know we were acting weird… sorry."

"It is o-okay." Link mumbles

"She's right." Yang suddenly eases up on the gas and slows down her motorcycle. "I'm sorry too. For all the garbage I said, please forget I ever said anything. We can't quit until the lamp is safe."

"Yeahhhh!" Ruby nods cheerfully

"It wasn't any of our fault at the end of the day." Blake sighs. "It was those... things.

"B-Blake's right. You guys weren't y-yourselves." Link grins, despite the cold affecting him more than he wants to show. "I am h-happy you're all back to normal. It even a-affected me… that would e-explain why I was slow and did not feel like m-myself when you and I sparred, Ruby."

"Now that makes perfect sense, dang it!" Ruby groans. "Just when I think I'm getting better than you!"

"You think t-too highly of me." He chuckles. "You are better than me in many ways."

"Liar!" She rolls her eyes and sticks out her tongue

"W-Wait! Sparring?" Weiss raises an eyebrow. "So you didn't go back to sleep?"

"In my defense… I didn't promise I w-would?" Link flashes a goofy smile

"Fine, I will let you get away with it." The ex-heiress signs. "This time."

"Yeah right, like you'd get on his ass anyway." Yang laughs. "She likes him too much for that. When is Link going to make a move on her anyway?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Weiss crosses her arms

"Nothinnn." The blonde smiles deviantly as she starts her motorcycle and drives once more

"Well I'm glad you're all in a good mood at least. Finally, some positivity." Maria cackles. "Although… I cannot help but kick myself. I should have known what was going on, but I'd never seen an entire settlement withered away like that."

"Speaking of should have known." Ruby clears her throat while simultaneously taking off her mask. "Miss Calavera… how do you know so much about Grimm? And in the basement, you knew exactly what to say to make my eyes do… that. How?

"Not you too. The youth should be smarter than this." Maria turns to the silver eyed girl and smiles. "I had silver eyes too, girl."

"You did?!" Ruby happily gasps. "That's so cool!"

"I would agree, if I still had them." She rolls her eyes

"What do you mean?" Oscar raises an eyebrow. "Are your prosthetics not helping you see?"

"Of course they are, but they are all I have." Maria freely taps on the technology helping her see. "My silver eyes have been gone… decades before you were ever born, farmer boy."

"What happened to them?" Blake asks

"Ohhhh, now you want to hear a story?" The older woman snorts in amusement. "Well alright then, I cannot possibly imagine sitting here in silence until we make it to Argus, so I'll tell you, but it will not be my entire tale."

Flashback: Unknown Location

Maria begins to tell her story, or at least, the day she lost her eyes. It begins in a mountainous region, where a younger Maria, face concealed by a skull mask hears the screech of a Nevermore. She turns to face it and she draws her weapons, a pair of kama named 'Life and Death', more than prepared for the aerial Grimm. After a back and forth battle, including embedding one of her kama's in the Grimm's wing, using gravity dust as a way to fly and manipulate the massive bird's movement, slam it into a mountain before sending it crashing against the ground, and eventually using her silver eyes to turn the Nevermore into stone while it was mid air, soon falling and crumbling to thousands of pebbles. Unfortunately, that is not where the fighting ends, as three human men, one with a giant hammer, one carrying a rifle, another with a machete, and one female with a pair of cutlass swords, who also happened to be crocodile faunus named Tock. The group of four assassins assault and intend to kill the young huntress simply because of the silver eyes that were just in action; all while cockily assuming they can do it in sixty seconds. The ticking clock can be heard throughout the entire battle. Maria makes quick work of the three men, using her gravity dust to combine her kama together to form a staff that also acts as a double-edged scythe. Tock, being the toughest and strongest of the bunch, brings the fight to Maria, and when the two ladies lock weapons in a test of strength, the crocodile faunus uses her sharper than razor metal teeth to chomp through the Grimm Reapers staff, returning her weapons to their previous state. Eventually gaining the upper hand, Tock headbutts Maria, stunning the young woman, shattering her skull mask in the and getting the perfect opportunity to slash her eyes! Thus permanently blinding the famous huntress; right as her golden stopwatch rings, failing to kill her target in sixty seconds, but succeeding in her intended mission. Following her victory, Tock taunts Maria, who tries to attack while blind, shooting and throwing one of her weapons, all of which are easily dodged. The smug crocodile faunus readies herself to kill and immortalize herself as THE person who called the 'Grimm Reaper', but foolishly walks in a straight line, unaware that Maria deliberately threw her weapon to land behind the faunus. The blind huntress manages to locate her other kama, clicks the button on the handle, activating the gravity dust once more to retract the other blade back over to her, piercing Tock's back in the process! The faunus gasps, unable to do anything except tumble over in pain, where Maria then uses her other weapon to behead Tock despite not having any vision…

"That assassin… she sarcastically praised me for being a fighter until the end." Maria mumbles. "But I wasn't. I went into hiding soon after."

The elderly woman sighs while dreading the looks of pity she will get, and her gut feeling is correct, as team RWBY, Link, Qrow, and Oscar silently listened to the entire story, with each of their eyes widening with every passing second when describing the fight against the Nevermore and four assassins

"I can't believe it. You…" Qrow shakes his head. "You're the Grimm Reaper, you were a legend! And then you disappeared."

"How exactly does a legend just disappear?" Oscar tilts his head in confusion. "Didn't anyone go looking for you?"

"Nobody could have." Qrow dismisses the farmhand's words. "She never used her name, never showed her face either. A lot of us thought you were just layin' low, Maria. Eventually, we just came to accept that you were probably dead."

"I may as well have died that day." Maria snorts

"Stop saying that!" Weiss snaps

"It's the truth."

"But… you're alive. The stories about you, I even based my weapon off of yours." Qrow gasps. "I wanted to be as good as the Grimm Reaper."

"Well, I'm nothing but a disappointment…" Maria's sarcasm fades away. "...So you're well on your way."

"How can you say that?" Blake chimes in. "You likely inspired so many people and-!"

"Child. A Huntress or Huntsman is supposed to protect others to the bitter end. But after I lost my eyes, I only ever looked after myself." Maria wags her head in shame. "Even after my surgery, I was too afraid to fight. Afraid someone would find me again, finish what the others started."

Finally decided to face those behind her, Maria turns around and with her broken prosthetics, she glances around

"You shouldn't aspire to be like me, especially when some of you are clearly stronger already." She looks at Yang first, then Ruby, and finally Link. "In a way… it's comforting that your generation seems up to the task. I'm just sorry I didn't do more to leave it in better shape."

"Well, maybe you can do something now." Ruby pumps a closed fist in the air. "Teach me to use my powers the way you did."

"Hm…" Maria grins, then completely turns around to properly face everyone. "Very well. I will agree to teach you, under one condition."

"Yes! Anything!" Ruby excitedly agrees

"Ruby, wait. You cannot agree to just anything." Weiss' eyes widen in shock. "What if she demands something outlandish?"

"How else am I going to learn how to use my eyes?" She pouts. "It's only happened a couple of times now and I don't even know how. Buuuuut, with Maria's help I could be able to use them whenever I want!"

"But Ruby!" Weiss sighs. "You-!"

"Don't be dramatic." Maria snickers at the shivering Atlesian girl. "It is nothing dangerous. Besides, my condition has nothing to do with her."

The elderly former huntress picks up her cane and points it at Link, who's eyebrows raise and eyes widen in shock

"Huh?" He blinks in confusion. "M-Me?"

"Yes, you." Maria's grin widens

"I do not understand." Link turns to Weiss, but she shrugs in confusion. "What do I have to do with you helping Ruby?"

"Nothing exactly, but let's call it exchanging favors." She nods. "You intrigue me. When I said, 'a Huntress or Huntsman is supposed to protect others to the bitter end', that really does apply to you, doesn't it?"

"I suppose." Link smiles. "You could say I am willing to do anything to protect my friends, yes."

"Down in that wine cellar… against the Apathy. You were ready to risk your life if it bought the faunus girl some time, correct?" Maria asks

"..."

Link goes silent but nods, much to the shock of Weiss, Ruby, and Oscar. Blake gasps and turns away in shame, Qrow shakes his head, and Yang's expression drops

"You're strong, but something felt different down there, child. You were able to stand, activate aura, wield your weapons, and attack?"

"Almost, I tried to attack… but I could not." Link sheepishly scratches his head. "I appreciate the praise, but for someone able to stand, I did not act smart. Yang and Weiss had the right idea when trying to open that door. Maybe if I followed th-!"

Unable to finish his sentence, Link closes his eyes and sighs

"If you followed them, then what?" Maria asks. "Your faunus friend could have died in that time. You acted with your heart, and in face of hundreds of Grimm you knew nothing about, you showed an incredible amount of bravery."

"Yeahhh!" Ruby giggles, leans to her right and slaps the blond swordsman's knee. "Link is kind of our secret weapon."

"W-What?!" Link shakes his head in horror. "Since when?"

"Since forever, you've been a mysterious but super cool bag of tricks since all of us first met you." She giggles. "But fine, if you want an official time that you became our secret weapon, It's when you kicked butt at Haven, duh!"

"Is this only a Ruby thought?" Link glances at the rest of the group. "Or have all of you felt this way?"

"First time I've heard of this." Qrow shrugs

"We didn't quite word it like that but in a way..." Yang extends her right arm and gives the blond a thumbs up. "Yes."

"Exactly what Yang said." Blake nods

"She actually did discuss it with me." Oscar raises a hand whilst giggling himself. "Ruby and I agreed on the secret weapon moniker."

"I didn't know anything about this." Weiss shakes her head, "And while calling you a secret weapon is demeaning in my opinion… you are very strong, Link." She smiles before thinking to herself. "Definitely the strongest 'student' out of us, that's for sure."

"See child, everyone recognizes you for how truly strong you are." Maria bursts into laughter. "You're an oddball, aren't you?"

"Perhaps." Link playfully rolls his eyes. "Let's go back to your condition, since it has to do with me. What are you asking of me?"

"Come on, now you're just playing dumb." The older woman groans. "Tell me… tell us a story, at least one. I can tell by the life and coldness in your eyes that you have stories to tell."

"A story?" Link turns to Ruby, Weiss, Oscar, Qrow and Blake, glancing at each of them in confusion. "You want me to tell a story? And in exchange you will help Ruby with her powers?"

"Yes child." Maria grins. "I promise."

"Okay. I can do that." Link nods. "I will tell you a story."

"What story are you going to tell us?" Ruby turns to him in concern. "It's not going to be… ya know, that story?"

"No, not the story of Garanda, most of you have heard that one before."

"Heard what?" Oscar glances around, confused. "What's Garanda?"

"A long story. I will not tell that one." Link shakes his head. "The story I have in mind takes place after Beacon Academy was destroyed, and after I left your father's house."

"Ooooh, how exciting." Ruby giggles internally. "He has not talked about anything specific regarding what he has been up to all this time. This is gonna be good."

"What is it about?" Blake turns to Link, smiling warmly

"It is about a village I did manage to save."

Link takes in a deep breath with his nose, exhales out of his mouth, then looks up at the fully risen sun. Weiss places a hand on his shoulder for comfort and support while Yang focuses on the road and Ruby, Oscar, Qrow, Blake, and Maria stare at the blond swordsman, waiting patiently

(Author's Note: Hello everybody, good morning, afternoon, evening, whenever you happen to be reading this story. Chapters 37 and 38 have been edited, repolished, and updated if anyone would like to re-read them, feel free :) This chapter initially had the story Link told included. but as I was writing it, this chapter was getting very long so I decided to split it up into two chapters. If everything goes well and I am not slow when it comes to editing/updating chapters 39 and 40, along with finishing writing the new one, the next chapter SHOULD come out quicker but no promises lol. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I will see you all in the next update! Have a great day you lovely people.)