Ruby and Onyx moved like shadows in the night, their steps silent as they traversed the rooftops of Vale. The figure ahead of them was fast—agile—but not faster than them.
Their pursuit led them to a communications tower, its darkened interior illuminated only by the glow of a single computer screen.
The woman stood before it, fingers flying across the keyboard as data streamed upward in rapid succession.
She's uploading something…
Onyx's amethyst eyes sharpened, taking in the details. She was clearly experienced—her movements deliberate, her attire form-fitting yet tactical. But none of that mattered. If this was a data leak or cyber-attack, stopping it took priority.
"Ruby—cover me."
Without waiting for a response, Onyx lunged forward.
Ruby dashed left, circling the woman at high speed, petals swirling in her wake.
The woman barely had time to react before Onyx struck.
He slammed his foot down, sending a pulse of dark energy into the ground. From the shadows, tendrils of Grimm-like corruption erupted, snaking toward the computer. The screen flickered violently before warping—blackened veins crawled over its surface, consuming it like spreading decay. Metal twisted and melted into itself, hissing as the upload abruptly halted.
A deep, fractured silence filled the room.
The woman cursed and spun, drawing twin daggers.
"You should've minded your own business."
Onyx's expression darkened. "You shouldn't have picked the wrong place to do this."
The woman charged
She moved like a specter, her daggers flashing as she lunged at Onyx.
But Onyx had fought faster.
He sidestepped with inhuman precision, catching her wrist mid-strike and twisting. A dark construct coiled around her arm—shadowy armor-like restraints forming in an instant—but she wrenched herself free before it could solidify.
She flipped backward—only to find Ruby already there.
"Surprise!"
Ruby brought Crescent Rose down in a powerful scythe swing, forcing the woman to cross both daggers in defense. The force sent her skidding back, boots scraping against the metal flooring.
She recovered fast—too fast.
Ruby frowned. Something about this woman's reflexes felt... unnatural.
Onyx didn't give her time to counter. With a flick of his wrist, black chains lashed out, snapping toward her ankle.
She tried to evade—
Too late.
The chains wrapped tight, locking her in place.
Onyx tightened his grip. "You're not going anywhere."
The woman gritted her teeth, her amber eyes darting between them. The air around her began to shift—heat rising in waves, the scent of burning metal filling the air.
Then, her left hand ignited.
Not with Dust. Not with fire Dust, nor any semblance of a normal ability.
This was different. This fire felt alive.
A golden glow crackled in her palm, pure and radiant—a heat that felt primal, like the heart of a raging inferno.
Onyx's instincts screamed.
This… isn't normal.
Ruby felt it too. Her grip on Crescent Rose tightened, her silver eyes narrowing.
Then, the woman exploded forward, wreathed in fire.
The real battle was just beginning.
The woman surged forward, fire trailing from her fingertips like the fangs of a hungry beast.
Onyx barely had time to react before a wave of searing heat roared toward him. He raised his arm, darkness flaring to life—a barrier of pure shadow erupted in front of him, swallowing the flames before they could reach him.
But the moment the fire died down, she was already on him.
Her daggers struck like vipers, each blow faster than the last. Precision. Lethality. Unnatural speed.
She fights like an assassin.
Onyx blocked, deflected, dodged—his instincts the only thing keeping him from being carved apart. Even with his speed, she was keeping up.
Then, out of the corner of his eye—
Ruby.
She blurred into motion, appearing behind the woman in a flurry of rose petals. Crescent Rose whirled in a deadly arc, its blade flashing toward the woman's unguarded side.
But the woman was too fast.
She twisted at the last second, flipping over Ruby's attack and landing in a crouch several feet away.
"Persistent," she muttered, flicking her wrist. Flames coiled around her daggers, dancing hungrily.
Onyx exhaled slowly. His patience was running thin.
It was time to stop playing around.
He lifted his hand, and the shadows answered.
The air around Onyx rippled, a deep chill settling into the room despite the woman's flames.
Then—the growls began.
From the darkness at his feet, black smoke slithered outward, curling and twisting into familiar forms.
A Beowolf's snarl echoed through the chamber. Then another. And another.
The woman's expression didn't change—but Onyx noticed the flicker of recognition in her amber eyes.
'So… she already knows about me.'
'She must have heard the rumors.'
His name had spread across Remnant over the years. Villages whispered about a lone hunter, a Faunus boy who didn't just kill Grimm—he controlled them.
It was a myth, a ghost story—until Beacon students began posting about him.
Onyx, the youngest professor in Beacon history. The boy who commanded the darkness itself.
The woman knew who he was.
And judging by the way she tensed, she wasn't thrilled about it.
"Scared?" Onyx asked, voice calm.
She smirked. "Should I be?"
The first Grimm lunged.
She moved to counter—only for a second Beowolf to flank her from behind.
Her daggers flashed, slicing through one while dodging the other. But they kept coming.
Then, Onyx raised his other hand—
And the Dragon Blasters appeared.
Two skeletal dragon heads, composed of pure darkness, materialized at his sides. Their glowing amethyst eyes locked onto their prey, mouths opening as deep violet energy began to charge.
The woman's smirk vanished.
Onyx pointed a finger at her. "Fire."
The Dragon Blasters roared.
Twin beams of concentrated Grimm energy tore through the air, obliterating everything in their path.
The woman barely had time to react. She vaulted backward, flipping through the air as the energy ripped apart the floor where she had stood.
She landed, panting.
Smoke curled from her fingertips as she gritted her teeth.
This isn't good for her.
She knew she was losing.
She couldn't get close. Onyx's summons and ranged attacks kept her pinned, and Ruby's relentless speed made an escape impossible.
She needed an out.
She needed to disappear.
But before she could move—
Onyx raised his hand again.
Dark chains shot out.
The woman dodged left—right—vaulted over one—
Only to see Ruby waiting for her.
"Nowhere left to run!" Ruby shouted, scythe already swinging.
The woman barely managed to block—but the impact sent her flying.
She crashed to the ground—only to find herself completely surrounded.
Onyx stood in front of her, his Grimm creatures closing in, shadows writhing at his feet.
Ruby flanked the other side, Crescent Rose gleaming under the dim lights.
The Dragon Blasters hovered above, their eyes glowing ominously.
The woman exhaled sharply.
Trapped.
For the first time… she looked uncertain.
Onyx's eyes narrowed. 'Who are you?'
The flames in her palm flickered weakly. She was outmatched.
And she knew it.
Just as Onyx and Ruby prepared to strike, the heavy clank of boots echoed through the room.
"WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!"
The commanding voice cut through the tension like a blade.
General James Ironwood stormed in, his military presence impossible to ignore. His hand hovered near his sidearm, eyes locking onto the chaos before him—Onyx, Ruby, summoned Grimm, and a stranger wreathed in dying embers.
The woman didn't hesitate.
Using the moment of distraction, she slammed a dagger into the floor—a small, cylindrical device attached to the hilt flashing red.
Smoke erupted. Thick, blinding, unnatural—like mist infused with energy.
Onyx's eyes widened. This isn't just a smoke bomb… it's something else.
Onyx gritted his teeth. His Amethyst Eyes burned as he tried to track her movement through the fog, but by the time the last of the smoke faded, revealing nothing but empty space where the woman once stood.
Onyx remained still, his gaze locked onto the lingering embers. His Amethyst Eyes pulsed faintly, the Grimm energy around him slowly settling. His summoned Beowolves and Dragon Blasters snarled before dissolving into wisps of shadow, retreating back into him.
Ironwood exhaled sharply, lowering his weapon. "Someone. Explain. Now."
Ruby glanced at Onyx before stepping forward. "Sir! We were pursuing a hacker—she was fast, dangerous. Onyx stopped the upload, but—"
She hesitated. "She fought like… an assassin. And her flames—they weren't normal, sir."
Ironwood's brow furrowed. "Flames?"
Onyx crossed his arms. "They felt alive." His expression was unreadable, but his eyes still glowed faintly. "She was planning something big. We stopped her from uploading the data, but we don't know why she needed it."
Ironwood's jaw tightened. "I thank you for your work, but I'll handle it from here. You two can leave now."
But Onyx didn't move. His gaze shifted to the twisted, Grimm-corrupted computer, its screen flickering between static and warped, blackened symbols.
A thought crossed his mind. He controlled Grimm. Could he control this too?
Onyx reached out, resting a hand on the corrupted machine. His Amethyst Eyes pulsed—shadows slithered along the metal, wrapping around it like veins. The moment his will connected to the Grimm-infused circuitry—
The screen snapped into clarity.
A voice, deep and unnatural, rumbled through the room.
"DIRECTIVE CONFIRMED. DATA UPLOAD PARTIALLY INTERRUPTED. REMAINING CONTENT AVAILABLE FOR INQUIRY."
Ruby took a startled step back. "It's… talking?"
Ironwood's hand went back to his weapon.
Onyx's voice was cold. "Tell me. What was she uploading?"
The corrupted machine crackled, the screen distorting before flashing a series of classified blueprints, CCT schematics, and Atlesian military assets.
"UPLOADING CCT MASTER OVERRIDE. CONTROL PROTOCOLS TARGET: ATLESIAN KNIGHT-200, PALADIN-290, AND CCT NETWORK SHUTDOWN."
Ruby's blood ran cold. "She was trying to—hijack the CCT?! That would mean—"
Onyx's expression darkened. "She wanted control over every Atlesian Knight and Paladin. An army."
Ironwood's eyes hardened. "That's… impossible. The CCT security is impenetrable. Even if she had the codes, it would take—"
"—an entire kingdom's resources to pull it off," Onyx finished. "And yet, she almost did."
The room fell into silence.
And then—
The computer flickered again. The corrupted screen glitched, and for a fraction of a second, the static formed something else—
A symbol.
Not a military insignia. Not an Atlesian code.
A dark, twisted crest that neither Onyx nor Ruby recognized.
And then—
A name.
"SALEM."
The moment it was spoken, a pulse of Grimm energy rippled through the air.
Onyx felt it.
The Grimm inside his Amethyst Eyes stirred. Not in hunger. Not in aggression.
But in fear.
Ruby saw his eyes flicker, his body tensing as if some unseen presence had brushed against him. "Onyx…?"
He ignored her, his voice sharp. "Who is Salem?"
The machine glitched violently.
The screen fractured—shattered—static screaming through the speakers as if it had been silenced.
The corruption dissolved.
The connection was severed.
And then—
The entire computer melted into nothing.
Onyx's hands clenched. The name echoed in his mind, and the Grimm inside him shrank back.
For the first time, the darkness he commanded was afraid.
Onyx's voice was cold. "I'm not leaving until I know who Salem is."
The room was silent.
Ruby swallowed, glancing between him and Ironwood. "Sir…?"
Ironwood didn't answer immediately. His expression was unreadable, his fingers tight around the hilt of his gun. His blue eyes darkened, calculating, processing.
Then, without a word, he turned on his heel.
"Follow me."
Onyx didn't move. "Not until you tell me who Salem is."
Ironwood stopped mid-step.
The tension in the air thickened.
Ruby hesitated. "Onyx—"
Ironwood exhaled sharply, keeping his back turned. "That name is not for children to know."
Onyx's eyes narrowed. "I am not a child."
Ironwood turned, anger flashing in his expression. "No. You're a Huntsman. A professor. And if you're as smart as Ozpin thinks you are, you'll drop this and walk away."
Onyx didn't flinch. His eyes burned. "I don't walk away from things that make my Grimm afraid."
That made Ironwood pause.
"...Your Grimm?"
Ruby's heart skipped a beat. She glanced at Onyx, realizing what he meant. His summons—the Grimm he commanded. Even they had reacted.
And they had never done that before.
Not once.
Ironwood's expression hardened. His tactical mind raced. This wasn't something he could brush off. The Amethyst Eyes—the very power that gave Onyx control over the creatures of Grimm—reacted to Salem's name with fear.
That wasn't a coincidence.
That was dangerous.
Ironwood exhaled, adjusting his gloves before speaking. His voice was firm.
"You're coming with me. Both of you."
Ruby blinked. "Wait, where—"
"To someone who can actually answer your questions."
Ironwood turned toward the exit, his boots echoing against the floor.
"You're meeting Ozpin."