Chapter Text
The hallways of Beacon echoed with the sound of a klaxon; the sharp buzzing invaded every corner, claiming it.
“Alert: Grimm Breach reported in Vale. All First Years report to bullheads.”
The beeping sounded again, and the announcement replayed.
The door to team RWBY’s room swung open as Ruby Rose, the team leader, charged out, a trail of petals left in her wake.
Her partner, Weiss Schnee, followed behind, hand tightened around the pommel of her Myrtenaster.
Yang Xiao Long punched her gauntlet together as she let out a “Hell Yeah!”
Her partner, the silent shadow, Blake Belladonna, followed right after.
“Come on, guys, we gotta hurry!” Ruby called back over her shoulder as they made their way out of the dorm hallways.
“Sorry, not all of us have a speed semblance.” Weiss cocked an eyebrow at her words.
Weiss Schnee would not have expected during her tenure at Beacon that she would not have been made team leader, but here she was being led by a Huntress two years her junior.
“You have glyphs, don’t ya?” Yang chimed in, having caught up to her even with her head start.
“Good point.” Weiss flicked out her rapier and cast a speed glyph on all of them, which sent them zooming out of the doors and catching up to Ruby.
Team RWBY were one of the first to arrive at the Bullhead Docks. Glynda Goodwitch stood imposingly with her riding crop at the ready, directing Bullhead crews and the teams.
“Team RWBY, thank you for your speedy arrival. I will be sending your sector to your scrolls. Stay safe and watch yourselves. The second-year teams are handling higher priority sectors for now, but I will direct them to assist you as soon as possible.”
“You got it, Miss Goodwitch!” Her younger team leader saluted the headmistress, who was probably too busy to comment on the impropriety of the salute.
“Your bullhead is ready. Go, protect the civilians at all costs and do your duty, ladies.” The headmistress of Beacon flicked out her crop, directing them to the Bullhead at the end of the pad, its engines spinning up.
The four members of team RWBY gave the older woman a firm nod as they jogged over to the bullhead. Popping into the hold, they all gripped the dangling straphangers.
The pilot glanced over her shoulder. "All good girls?" The soft clicks of switches followed as she completed her final checks.
“Good to rock n’ roll.” Yang gave a firm thumbs up to which the pilot nodded.
The engines grew louder and louder, letting out a final roar which switched to a low rumbling hum. The four huntresses shifted as the bullhead rose, but their legs remained firmly bolted to the floor.
“A month in and there’s already a breach, talk about luck,” Weiss mused aloud. Some would say it's soon, but this was the life of a huntress, dangerous, and they were expected to fight and help, even if they were first years.
“Yeah, but this is a chance to do good and do our job!” Ruby declared with a peppy excitement in her voice.
“And kick some ass,” Yang piped up with a happy grin on her face.
“Is fighting all you think about?” Weiss huffed. She appreciated the Blonde Brawlers' combat strength, but sometimes she felt that she lusted for a fight more than anything.
“Hmmm… that and puns?”
“Please, no puns,” Blake spoke up with a deadpan edge in her voice.
“Come on… they are always a pun time?” Yang replied with the biggest shit-eating grin she could muster.
“Yang! Focus, we have to evacuate civilians first; they are the priority! Blake, if Grimm comes too close, you can distract. If not, Yang deals with them, and Weiss covers and supports us as necessary!” Ruby called out her order.
“You got it, sis!” Yang gave her an affirmative.
“A suitable plan.” Weiss nodded along with Blake.
The hum of the engine continued for a bit longer before the small static of the intercom flicked to life.
“30 seconds to drop, I’ll get you as close as I can!” the pilot called over.
“You heard her! Team RWBY, get ready.” Ruby commanded as she began giving herself a once-over.
Weiss held up Myrtenaster; the soft clicks of the cylinder followed as she made sure the dust was chambered properly.
The cock of Yang’s Ember Celica followed as she checked that the chambers were loaded.
Blake cocked Gambol Shroud and checked the blades.
A small silence filled the hold.
Team RWBY took a deep breath as the bullhead came to a slow stop.
“Good to drop!”
The door swung open, and wind crashed over Weiss’s face, sending locks of her hair waving.
The city of Vale greeted them. Some fires had already begun to spread as she could occasionally see dark masses of Grimm pervading the city; the screams of any would-be civilians were drowned out by the engines.
“Go go!” Ruby dropped first, and a mass of red petals burst forth.
Weiss flicked her rapier as a white Schnee glyph filled the air, and she leapt forth onto the first one and the next one, Blake following behind her.
“WOOH HOO!” Yang cannon dived out of the bullhead, the staccato of her shotguns following as she slowed her descent.
Weiss’s eye twitched at the antics of the blonde.
“At least she’s having fun,” Blake snorted for a moment as they got closer and closer to the ground.
Ruby got there first, a whirlwind of red as she slew the first Grimm of the day. Yang landed next to her, crushing another two.
As she and Blake landed, she flicked to her fire dust chamber and incinerated a trio of lesser Beowolves. Blake darted forward to take care of another pair.
“LZ is clear!” Yang called out as she surveyed their surroundings.
As she announced this, the first group of civilians turned around the street corner.
“Huntresses!” “We’re saved!”
“Follow the evacuation path!” Ruby called out to the frightened mass. Women led the path as they guided the group further down. Men carried children as they ushered forth.
Weiss gestured with her rapier towards the designated evacuation path.
It was controlled but chaotic at the same time. Yang helped a man to his feet, as Blake picked up a child to help them get over the rubble, passing them over to their parents. She noted these civilians, apart from a few scrapes and bruises, looked completely fine; that was good.
Glancing towards Ruby, she noted her speaking with an older woman; she could not make out what they were saying, but their lips were moving. She did notice that Ruby’s hands tightened around her beloved weapon, Crescent Rose.
“WHAT!” Ruby suddenly squawked, and the woman she was speaking to winced, but continued
speaking and making gestures, pointing down the road they came from.
The reaper nodded before the woman gave a small smile and made her way towards the evacuation path.
“Team huddle!” Ruby commanded, her face looking tense as her brows furrowed. Weiss tilted her head. What could it be?
Yang arrived first, then Blake and lastly herself.
“What is it, Rubes?” Yang asked as she placed her hands on her hips.
“There’s a man who apparently was guiding the civilians out!” “So that’s a good thing, no?” Yang shrugged, unsure.
“She told me he was wearing armour and brandishing a sword and shield!”
Weiss froze. That imbecile of a man.
“Don’t tell me he’s roleplaying a huntress, that fool?” Weiss seethed, of all the idiotic things for a man to do. Combat was for the huntress and women; he should have evacuated or helped the elderly and children.
“I don’t know, Weiss, but we have to help him! He headed back down the street, they came from apparently. Seems he might be looking for more civilians?”
“Sounds like a rescue mission now,” Blake stated neutrally.
“Miss G’s orders were to protect civilians,” Yang added.
“It is our job, come on, let’s go!”
“We should check the sectors on the way as well and ensure no one else was left behind,” Weiss added her own two thoughts. They couldn’t just rely on the words of a civilian.
“Agreed!” Ruby nodded before she turned to lead her team down the streets of Vale.
Team RWBY pushed forth as they did street by street, and more and more groups of civilians followed, fleeing towards them. They guided and ushered them forward as they moved forth like a slightly uncontrolled blob of people.
“Grimm corpses,” Blake pointed out. Weiss led another person away, who muttered a “Thank you.” She turned to notice that there were a few dissipating corpses, black steam emanating from the remains as red eyes had gone dark.
“How?” Weiss muttered, " This didn’t make sense. She pulled out her scroll, checking the deployment map that had been sent to them. “The closest team should be Pyrrha’s, but they are at least a few streets over?”
“It was the knight!” A kid chimed in who was clearly snooping in on their conversation, a young boy. He looked a bit worse for wear, but had no visible injuries.
Blake and Weiss turned to face him.
“A knight?” Weiss asked softly. Knights only existed in fairy tales.
“Yes, he had a sword and shield. He said everything was going to be alright and that huntresses were coming to protect us, but that he had others to save!” The young boy nodded with a twinkle in his eyes. To Weiss, it reminded her of when she looked up at Huntresses when she was younger.
“Come along, son, we should allow the huntresses to get on with their work.” The boy’s father came over to grab his hand.
“Sorry,” the boy apologized with a sheepish expression.
“It’s fine, you gave us valuable information, we appreciate it,” Weiss stated with a firm nod. The boy beamed at her.
“Can… you tell the knight thank you? I never got to...” The child admitted with a flush.
“Of course, we can,” Blake answered, to which Weiss nodded her own support, even if she doubted the boy's word.
The family gave one final look at both herself and Blake before heading onwards.
“Do you think what they are saying is true?” Weiss asked Blake, who turned to face her, amber eyes crinkling for a moment.
“I’m not sure… There are too many people saying it. It must indicate there is something, but a man fighting Grimm?” Blake mused.
“Impossible, he doesn’t have aura. He cannot fight Grimm.” Weiss insisted to Blake, whose bow bobbed on her head for a moment.
It was the order of the world; men did not have Aura, only women could become huntresses, and it had been that way for hundreds of years.
“A woman dressing up as a man?” Blake suggested a reasonable alternative.
“Why would a woman do that?” Weiss countered as she cupped her chin with her hand. There would be no shame or need to cover up, would there? Unless the person didn’t want their identity to be revealed.
“You think it’s an illegal aura user?” Weiss asked her teammate, and Blake nodded.
“It’s a possibility.”
An illegal aura user could be a criminal; they would have to arrest them and ensure they are registered.
“Come on, you two! We gotta keep going!” Yang’s loud voice interrupted her musing. Ruby was a little bit ahead of her sister as she was surveying the area.
Weiss picked herself up and made her way over. The team of huntresses began jogging further down the pavements of Vale. Buildings were destroyed, glass windows shattered, and rubble littered the streets.
“Have you guys seen him?” Ruby called out to her teammates.
“Negative, sis!” Yang replied as she continued scanning the nearby area.
“Nothing on my end,” Blake added.
“Nothing here either,” Weiss confirmed as she swept over the vicinity.
A loud roar cascaded off the buildings and gushed forth. Team RWBY turned to the source. Turning to her scroll, Weiss noted they were next to a square.
“The square!” Weiss called out as she pointed towards the area. Ruby nodded as she charged forth, the rest of the team following her.
The thumps and clicks of their shoes and heels filled the air as they rushed to the square; the street gave way to a destroyed square, and benches and lampposts were overturned and warped.
Rubble was piled everywhere. A tall pile in the centre of the square drew all their eyes.
Weiss froze.
An Ursa Alpha stood tall on its hind legs, almost blocking out the afternoon sun, but that wasn't what made her or the rest of team RWBY freeze.
It was a boy, no, a man, who stood facing it.
Brown boots gave way to dark navy jeans fastened with a belt and a torn red sash tucked beneath it, topped with a black shirt or a hoodie; she couldn’t tell at his distance.
To his chest was fastened a white breastplate with bronze edges, and gauntlets ran up his arms as shoulder pads encased his upper body, in his hand was gripped a gold and white long sword, while he hefted a kite shield in the other.
His armour was dulled; she could see scratches and scrapes all over it, in some parts the white had faded into an off-white.
He had blonde hair, which looked almost like someone tried to style it, but more scraggly. Weiss could not see his face; his back was angled away from them.
“What the?” Yang broke the silence first.
The blonde member of the team had no time to say anything further as the Ursa raised its arm, intending to strike down the man. Its claws glinted in the sun.
“NO!” Ruby screamed out as she morphed into a flurry of roses.
Weiss stiffened; it was too late; they were too far away, even with Ruby’s speed.
Something hummed; the air stilled as Weiss blinked.
That energy, no, it wasn’t possible…
White steel struck forth as the Ursa head was cleaved from its neck in one strike before their very eyes.
The Grimm’s body stood tall for a moment before tilting over and back onto the pile of rubble.
Silence filled the air.
Weiss couldn’t even hear the deep breath she took in.
“That’s impossible.” She blurted out in disbelief.
“No way,” Yang muttered as the usual confident blonde looked lost and confused.
Blake was silent, but even then, no one could miss her widening eyes.
Ruby was at the base of the pile of rubble, her head tilted upwards towards the man.
“Aura, you can use Aura!” Ruby practically hyperventilated.
Weiss could see the man’s shoulder rise for a moment before some rocks shifted from the pile as he turned to face them.
She could see his face now; he had a small stubble pricking at his chin and cheeks.
A silver lock of hair dangled above his eyebrows.
Sapphire eyes pierced all of them.
Weiss could feel him assessing them, taking in their uniforms and stances.
It made Weiss freeze.
His shoulders relaxed as his brows furrowed.
“I can,” he replied as if it was the most normal thing in all of Remnant.
To Weiss Schnee, it was anything but.
Ruby had to resist the nagging urge to rub her eyes or pinch herself silly.
It was a fact for hundreds of years that men could not unlock Aura; everything had a living soul, but women could draw out its potential; men could not.
Yet here stood a man before her, his blade humming with Aura. Something inside her shifted, almost as if she was resonating with it; she could feel he had Aura.
It felt warm, present, almost solid? She wasn’t really sure what she was feeling.
“Are you okay?” The man spoke; his voice had a weight to it, but was also a bit higher-pitched.
“I’m fine! Are you okay? You aren’t hurt, right?” She blabbed at a million miles per hour as she closed the distance to him; she missed Yang screaming her name behind her.
As she got closer, the first thing that stood out to her was his height. He was tall, and he looked even taller than Pyrrha. She had to tilt her head up to look at his face.
His face seemed almost carved from stone; the only thing that moved was his eyes as he turned to regard her. His pupils narrowed as he regarded her; she felt like he was watching her.
The same way she and her teammates were watching him.
“I’m fine. Did you catch the civilians I sent your way?” he asked as something clicked on his shield, it mechashifted into a sheath, and his sword rested in it, strapped to his side.
Does someone appreciate the classics? She couldn’t see a gun anywhere on him.
Wait, Ruby, he asked you a question!
“They are good, we directed them to the evacuation shelters.”
“Good, one less thing to worry about. I cleared the Grimm in the square, and I haven’t seen any other right now.”
“How can you use Aura?” A shrill voice echoed behind her. Ruby resisted the urge to wince at the outburst of her teammate, Weiss Schnee.
“Jeez, Ice Queen, I am pretty sure if any grimm didn’t hear us, they sure as heck heard us now.” Her sister chimed in right after as she glanced behind her to find that her teammates had followed.
“This is serious, Yang, not the time for your stupid jokes.” Weiss huffed before she turned to glare at the man.
If he was affected, he didn’t show it; one hand rested on the pommel of his sword, and she noticed a blue wrap around the grip itself. It looked as worn as the armour he wore.
Where did he get it from? His equipment was good quality, huntress level for sure.
“I can use Aura; as for why, your guess is as good as mine.” He shrugged as he glanced at Weiss.
So, even he didn’t know why he had his aura? Or how he unlocked it as a man.
“Got a name, handsome?” Yang stepped in before Weiss could say anything, and Ruby had to resist the urge to groan.
Why was her sister acting like this?
“Jaune Arc and yours?”
Ruby had to blink; Jaune didn’t even flinch or blush when Yang flirted with him. Plus, he wasn’t checking out his sister?
“You can call me Yang Xiao Long. The person over there having a meltdown is Weiss Schnee.” She jerked her thumb towards their white-haired teammate, who looked very, very irate.
“I can introduce myself, thank you very much, but now that you have Yang, it is unnecessary.” Weiss huffed as she crossed her arms, taking a moment to stare at her sister before turning to stare at the man.
“Blake Belladonna.” Blake introduced herself quietly; her amber eyes were also boring into the man.
“And I’m Ruby Rose! We make up team RWBY from Beacon!” She popped in before her teammates could say anything further.
“Pleasure to meet you, team RWBY.” He nodded, his fingers idly tapping his pommel and grip.
“Did you catch that on camera?” An excited voice broke their introduction. Ruby was greeted by the sight of a newswoman and her cameraman.
She somehow looked clean and put together despite the destruction surrounding her; she was dressed in a black suit jacket with a matching skirt and a purple collared dress shirt underneath.
“Yeah, I got it, I still can’t fucking believe it!” The cameraman grunted as he hefted his camera, re-watching the footage.
“Drat, that's Lisa Lavendar from the Vale News Network,” Weiss whispered low enough so only they could hear her.
“Sir, sir! Would you please give us an interview as the first man on all of Remnant with Aura!” The reporter charged forth, the rubble hindering her, but she was determined.
“Rubes, you better call Miss G, 'cause this is waaaay above our pay grade,” Yang suggested, to which Ruby groaned.
She pulled out her scroll and called the headmistress of Beacon.
Glynda Goodwitch had to resist the urge to massage her throbbing temple; headaches and migraines were par for the course as a headmistress of Beacon.
It seemed whenever one fire was put out, another was raised; there was a Breach of Grimm in Vale, but she had organized and deployed the first years to deal with them. From the reports she had been receiving, this was done admirably.
Then came a call from Team RWBY, a rambunctious bunch she could tell, but skilled in their own way.
The team leader, Ruby Rose, claimed she had met a man with Aura, backed by the eyewitness accounts of her teammates.
She would have been caught off guard by the revelation if not for the fact that the young team leader had informed her of a reporter pestering them for access to speak to him.
She ordered team RWBY to prevent any contact with anyone but huntresses. This was going to become an international headache.
The sharp clicks of her heels rang against the pavement as she made her way to the square. She threw her hand out on autopilot, correcting what damage she could, but the priority was reaching team RWBY and getting to the bottom of the situation.
Arriving at the square, she had to resist the nagging urge to growl; the reporter nagging them was none other than Lisa Lavendar.
Glynda liked Lisa as a fellow professional, both set on their jobs and doing their best; they worked collaboratively, but Lisa was always chasing the new lead, and now that she saw this, she was a dog with a bone.
A very irate Weiss Schnee stood in front of the reporter and her cameraman. “No comment.”
Good job, Miss Schnee, Glynda thought to herself.
The remaining members of team RWBY were clustered around the man with an aura; her eyes turned to him. A sword was belted to his hips, his armour looking a little worse for wear.
He seemed completely at ease.
“Lisa, please stop pestering my students,” she announced her presence as the reporter swivelled.
“Glynda, come on! This is the scoop of the year, if not the biggest scoop in all history.” Lisa pleaded with her.
“I assume you can’t gag this till we investigate more?” Glynda asked in the vain hope there was a chance.
“No, this is going out on the news tonight, whether you like it or not.” Lisa shook her head.
Glynda now massaged her temples; this was going to be a nightmare.
“Lisa, please leave my students and the area alone. If he is amenable to being interviewed, I will guide him towards you.” Glynda threw her friend a bone, and Lisa perked up at that with a smile.
“Sounds like a deal, Glynda, you owe me one!” Lisa smiled before turning away. “Come on, we gotta get the footage ready to go on air.”
“Lisa, please send a copy of the footage, We will need it.” she reminded the reporter.
“That makes two favours, but you got it. After all, I’m kinda curious how you huntress academies are gonna go ballistic over this.” Lisa smirked and finally left the area.
Glynda sighed. Huntress academies would be the last of her problems. The governments and research that came next would be.
“Thanks for the save, Headmistress,” Yang piped up. Glynda nodded at her student before pushing up her glasses as she stepped closer to her students and the man with the aura.
Her students stepped aside to flank her as all eyes turned to him.
He glanced up at her with no hesitation, she noted. His hand was firmly rooted on the pommel of his sword. She could see the scratches and nicks of his armour.
“Your name is Jaune Arc, correct?” she started.
“That’s me,” the young man confirmed without skipping a beat.
“My students tell me that you can use Aura. Is that correct?”
He nodded before speaking, “Yes, I can.”
“Do you mind providing a demonstration?”
He shrugged his shoulders before pushing his hand out towards them. Everything went silent for a moment.
Then motes of white light pushed to the surface as it started from his wrist and cascaded up his hands, lighting his fingertips up as well.
Team RWBY sucked in another breath; Glynda herself had to tamp down on the urge to follow them.
This was a miracle or anomaly, she had not decided yet.
She needed more information.
“It seems you can indeed use Aura. Would you mind coming to Beacon Academy? We have further questions.” What went unsaid was that Glynda was going to try to enroll him; she couldn’t do so without additional information, but at the same time, she could not afford to let other academies reach him first.
“That was my goal anyway, I was intending to go to Beacon before… this.” He gestured to the destruction around him.
Glynda turned to regard the damage and ruins before turning back to him.
“If you guided civilians to safety, as Team RWBY has said, you have my thanks.”
The young man’s gaze turned to the city; he took a deep breath before looking her in the eyes. “I always wanted to be a huntsman. How could I be if I left them to fend for themselves?”
The corner of Glynda’s lips twitched.