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  "Yeah… it's him alright." Cardin announced to his team.

The leader of CEDL studied the images on Asche's scroll as thoroughly as one could. The boy in the photo had been confirmed to be "Russell Thrush", Cardin's original and absent teammate.

Until now, Cardin believed Russell had either dropped out of Beacon. After the two were separated, CEDL's leader went on to complete the initiation, figuring Russell had abandoned the academy midway through the unorthodox entrance exam. But now with these images it was more than obvious that Russell had no choice in being absent.

"Poor bastard… His body is still probably there." Dove remorsefully added.

"Then what do we do? Do we go to Ozp-" Sky started, still lazily sitting on his bed.

"No." Cardin interrupted, a wavering facade of stoicism covering his face. "Ozzy had his scroll. Hell, he even gave it to Asche. It's… just a little suspicious if you ask me. And not in a good way either."

"So… we don't tell the headmaster?" Sky murmured.

The champion of ash, who sat with Sky, placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, shaking his head as he did so. Telling the man who was a suspect in the boy's eyes, was entirely unacceptable. They, the team, needed an unhindered investigation over the incident, one without a certain headmaster trying to steer or shift the blame in the chance he was the true ringleader behind Russell's apparent murder.

Ozpin would likely intervene, or conceal the truth about Russell Thrush. Telling the headmaster could only result in a figurative cold case for CEDL, out of a falsified display of "keeping our students safe". And that was not mentioning the other staff either, who would likely flock to Ozpin over the matter.

"Heh, yeah, Asche gets it." The leader said, bowing his head to the mute member. "We don't tell anyone else about it."

"What are you saying then? That we just drop it and pretend like a student wasn't possibly murdered?!" Dove offendingly said, brushing his hair with a hand.

"What are you, dense? He was my OG squaddie. Sure I didn't know him that well, but I've got an obligation to go find out what happened. A Winchester never leaves his brothers behind."

Dove could only pause, unable to reply to the other young man's words. Sky in a similar manner, bit his own tongue. 'Asche' though, sat in silence, only listening to the other boy's. Other than the very rare messages from typing into his "scroll", he provided no substantial amount to the conversation.

To another, one might feel isolated or ignored. The sensation of being swept under the rug on the grounds of remaining silent was unfair to the others. It could almost be maddening, being left so helpless against others ignoring oneself for the sake of keeping their own conversation simplistic and unhindered by a silent "accompanist".

'Asche' on the contrary, was fine with it. It saved him time and awkward pauses of, well… silence. Not to mention, he was an absurdly slow typer. In fact, he felt a weight in his heart once the boys made their lighthearted jokes about his speed… and so he gave up as quickly as he had not so swiftly done with his typing.

"It's obvious this happened in the Emerald Forest, probably when me and him got separated. We'll go scope out the place first thing after school, if anyone asks, it's just us hunting some Grimm for fun, extra credit, or something like that."

"I see... That could work. I mean, we are hunters in training after all. I don't think a single person would think that's fishy." Dove said, nodding at what the leader suggested.

"Right, So everyone's on the same page?" Cardin asked, receiving a nod from the other boy's. "...Good. see you sorry bastards in class." He added with a smile.

For the remainder of that morning, team CEDL went about their standard routine. They showered, dressed, and promptly attended breakfast. 'Asche' however, chose to wander the hallways as he normally would. His team paid no mind to it, but whether that was out of familiarity or the steady unease of the earlier revelation, was left for only Oum to know.

The layout to the academy, with it's complex turns and rounds, was now a little more familiar to the champion. With each passing day, the school felt more and more natural. So far, he had memorized a rough route to the gym, library, and the cafeteria. Though for his classes, he always opted to stick with Sky, seeing as he already had a better grasp over the layout of Beacon.

Professor Port's class couldn't pass any sooner. Another demonstration against an encaged Grimm had seemingly been a one time event. Professor Peach's Medical Care class was largely ignored by Asche, seeing as he had no need for the information personally. Finally, the short introduction to Doctor Oobleck's history course was largely… forgotten.

The teacher spoke in rapid beats, matching his blinding speed when pacing. Luckily though, 'Asche' was able to decipher the small speech from the writing on the challenge board. Even then, he barely had time enough to copy the board's contents before the bell for lunch rang.

As usual, students poured into the academy corridor. 'Asche' had left with his team for their meal, only gathering two glasses of pomegranate juice from the cafeteria food bar. This, surprisingly, was his own choice. He loved the drink, only enjoying his Estus and The Onion Knight's Siegbrau more. Despite her obnoxious and demanding demeanor, he admitted that Weiss had great taste.

Now though, _EDL sat at their table, awaiting their leader as they leisurely ate their food. Cardin meanwhile, had just entered the lunchroom, making haste to his teammates table. He held a smug grin, proud of his earlier deed, the same that caused him a delay in his meal time. In his hand, he carried a small folder of papers, all courtesy of a certain gullible headmaster.

"Good news boys, we got the go ahead to stay the weekend in the Forest." Cardin announced when he drew near, tossing the file to the middle of the table. "We'll use today to scope it out, and the next two days to explore it thoroughly."

The other men scanned over the document. For every member of CEDL, there had been a document explaining their supposed "training exercise". Each man had a file with a matching cover story for the trip to the Emerald Forest. Moreover, they had received an exemption from having a staff escort for their "training exercise". And lastly, each boy was also permitted the oh so coveted "overnight expedition" pass.

"Holy shit Cardin… You're one crazy bastard if you could pull this off." Dove began, his eyes reading over the fine print again and again.

"Took a little convincing, but Ozzy caved. Hell, I dropped Asche's name, saying this charade was his idea and whad'ya know? He suddenly became a lot more negotiable." Cardin said. shrugging the praise away.

Technically though, he was correct. This entire ordeal had been "Asche's" idea, seeing as he had been the one to propose looking further into the matter. And aside from the banter over his tortoise like typing, the boys agreed. He sowed the seeds, Dove and Sky planned the ordeal, and Cardin performed the "heavy lifting" and "negotiations".

Each member had their own duty and role to fill, one that they may or may not have realized. And though it was definitely the strongest example of a "team effort", it was a team effort nonetheless.

Across from their own table though, there were two fauna males. One was a boar with small tusks growing from his lower jaw, while the other was a bunny faunas, a set of droopy ears and elongated teeth. CEDL found their interest piqued at overhearing their conversation, Cardin more than the others. A shudder would then overtake two members of the knight themed squad, while the unkindled one only stared at the following confrontation blankly.

"Really? Isn't that where we had the initiation?" The boar faunas asked his own apparent teammate.

"Yeah! That place is bigger than you think it is! During initiation, we only covered six percent of it, if Evelyn's calculations are anything to go off of." The half bunny replied, excited to the point of nearly tripping over his own words.

"Yeah but I still don't see why Alwyn would go there so often…I thought the place is just meant for small tests." The boar skeptically added.

"Like I said, we only saw a small section! There's nastier, bigger, older Grimm deeper inside. A lot of other students go there to test their skills and get experience hunting actual Grimm! Shucks, even Evelyn was planning a small expedition to go there this wee-" The bunny sputtered, before being cut off by an agitated Cardin.

"Oi, you two looking to explore the Emerald Forest, right?" Cardin asked, approaching the two faunas.

"Oh, u-us? Y-yeah... we were hoping to ge-" The bunny started, being cut off by Cardin slamming a hand on their table.

"Get lost, you filthy freaks. The Emerald Forest is ours for the weekend. You and your little pig friend can piss off into the fields outside of Vale for all I care."

"I-i'm sorry S-sir but… I'm actually a boar… pigs ar-" The faunas in question shakily defended.

"Did I fucking stutter?" Cardin hissed, placing a hand over the fauna's horned mouth. "I said you're a pig, and that's that. Capeesh?"

"Y-yes sir! W-we understand!" The bunny chimed.

Cardin glared at the two, sizing up each boy in a threatening manner. Both of the fellow first years were shaking, leaning backwards, and covering their heads with their hands. If fear had a true scent, they would reek of it when being confronted by Cardin Winchester. Still, as harsh as his methods were, someone on CEDL would have needed to tell the boys off in fear of them possibly interfering.

"If I even so much as catch a glimpse of you two freaks in that forest this weekend, I'll shove your bodies in a fucking locker after I set the LZ all the way to Vytal. Under-fucking-stood?" He threatened, grabbing the boy's hair to force an exchange of uncomfortable and strained eye contact.

"Y-yes, sir! W-we und-understand!" The two whimpered in unison.

"Good." Cardin nonchalantly said, letting their heads go before backing away.

Cardin snorted at the two faunas, unimpressed by their lack of confidence. To him, they were weak and unworthy of becoming huntsmen. They were cowards. He threw a thumb behind him, barking an order for the two to run while they could.

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"Now fuck off, both of yo- Aw, fucking hell!" He began, feeling a familiar flick to the skull.

"Asche'' stood behind Cardin, his fingers poised and ready for another strike if the need arose again. Under the silver mask, he stared blankly at his leader, fighting back the urge to sigh. Cardin meanwhile, who caressed the back of his head, felt irritated again. But before Cardin could express his anger, the champion titled his head skeptically, knowing his leader could have done better to tell the two faunas off.

"Alright alright, I get it Asche…" Cardin murmured, turning to the two faunas. "Scram you two. We've… got the forest this weekend." He dishearteningly said.

After hearing his defeated demand, the two boy's gathered their trays, quickly fleeing to the other side of the cafeteria. As they passed the masked champion though, they gave faint whispers and words of thanks under their breath, grateful for the small but effective deed. Once they had retaken their seats, Sky cautiously spoke up.

"Jeez Cardin… Wasn't that a little too much?" Sky murmured, pitying the other students.

"Look man.. We know you got a grudge against them bu-" Dove started, his leader cutting him off.

"Can it, Dove. " CEDL's leader quipped. "We don't want anyone to even risk getting involved, remember?"

"Besides… if Russell really did die in that forest, I wouldn't be able to sleep knowing I let another student go there with them winding up like he probably did..." He elaborated.

"...human or not." He concluded in an almost whisper.

The remainder of lunch passed like a blur. Not much else was said between the boys, even less from Cardin. Steadily though, the unease eventually lifted and the men managed to conclude their lunch in a decent demeanor. After cleaning away their trays, they each took their leave to spend their free period in their own way.

Dove went to polish his weapon, Cardin joining him in favor of sharpening his mace. Sky on the other hand, preferred to retreat into the team's dorm room, eagerly wishing to return to finishing a sketch he had begun earlier that day. And the champion of ash… began to walk the hallways, like he always did. Before he left the cafeteria for good though, he saw a familiar boy plumet face first, tripping over seemingly nothing.

He mentally sighed whilst he walked towards the boy, preparing to offer a hand to bring him to his feet. The boy whimpered, a tinge of red painting his cheeks, making it obvious he was now mbarrassed. He was none other than Jaune Arc, the clumsy yet noble leader of JNPR.

"Oh hey there, you…" Jaune said, rubbing his now welted forehead as he glanced upwards at 'Asche'.

The champion lazily raised a hand, titling his head in greeting at the boy before offering the same hand to help Jaune to his feet. And once the blonde knight stood upright, he dusted himself off.

"Oh uh, thanks by the way, Asche." He awkwardly said.

Only silence greeted the already socially inept boy, doing little to help the slightly weird aura. Jaune chuckled to himself nervously, not knowing just where he should take the conversation next. Aside from the two now wandering the halls together, the two had little in common, making the chances of conversation even slimmer. But then a certain red haired spartan grasped the two in an over the shoulder hug, saving Jaune yet again.

"Hello you two! I hope I'm not disturbing anything?" Pyrrha greeted.

"No, you're okay Pyrrha. We weren't really talking about anything important. Or… talking in general really." Jaune said, laughing dryly at his own joke.

Pyrrha surprisingly found the poor joke humorous, shortly laughing before covering her mouth. 'Asche' meanwhile, shrugged the comment off as he promptly began wandering the halls. This time though, he had two accompanying striders… the very two people who practically drug him into the academy in the first place.

It had barely been a week, a little more than a handful of days. Yet he already welcomed them fondly, but was he wrong to consider them friends? Had he rushed anything, or was it just him being stuck in his old ways of Lothric, where one helping deed garnered the title of comrade so easily. He had no answer and because of it, he remained silent… just as he always would.

"Anywho Asche…" The spartan began. "I never got the chance to say this the other night, but I was impressed by your exercise routine and overall physique."

Oh yeaaah, thats right... Pyrrha was one of the ladies that fell victim to Cardin Winchester's ill mannered advances. The champion of Ash had nearly forgotten the three were still present after the fiasco, until now at least.

"You impressed Yang and Nora as well. They were thinking of challenging you to a friendly competition soon, I thought you'd want a heads up." Pyrrha continued.

A friendly competition… that could mean anything from a standard sparring match to a anticlimactic lifting competition. Then again, even from what little of the two he had seen so far, Yang and Nora would refuse to let the competition be anything remotely close to "civilized".

"Oh, speaking of Yang, has she said anything about Weiss and me? Or better yet… has Weiss mentioned me?" Jaune asked 'Asche', earning a twitch of the brow from Pyrrha.

And his answer… was silence, as expected. Then, 'Asche' produced his scroll, quickly to open the notepad app but slow to type a response. And after an embarrassing amount of time spent crunching in patterns on the still vague device, he showed his response. Jaune squirmed his eyes at the screen, slowly reading the strange old fashioned words aloud.

" "Prithee… heed thine… proclamation inst stride… thoust… thou of nobility... Weiss of the Schnee… hast intrigue… in thou… naught…" Jaune began, his confusion rising with each new word. "Thine Heiress… harboreth naught… short of… unequivocal abhorrence… in thou." "

"Excuse me, but what in the illiterate frick?" Jaune asked no one in particular before shaking his head. "O-okay hold on, maybe I just read that wrong…"

The trio paused, letting Jaune piece together what each individual word translated into. The ashen one gave his scroll to the boy, figuring it would only take a moment for the lad to catch on. And like before, Jaune Arc read the words slowly to himself, much like a small child would with their first novel.

"Uhm okay… Yeah, no. I was definitely right the first time." He announced, being left dumbfounded before reading the words over once more. "This makes no sense at all! Asche, no offense buddy, but are you even typing in Mistralian?"

Pyrrha then took the scroll from Jaune, fighting back the urge to apologize to the masked boy for Jaune's supposed illiteracy. Jaune's teammate read over the message herself, piecing together the meaning behind the words and figuring a rough translation into "Modern Mistralian lingo". She let a small chuckle escape her mouth, now understanding why "Asche'' seemed to not only take an eternity to type, but also leave her team captain dumbfounded.

"I'm sorry Asche...but your vocabulary is a little too… outdated, to put it nicely." She apologetically said.

"Ooooohh… So like really really old people lingo, right?" Jaune guessed, pretending to understand what she meant.

"More like… Medieval era Mistralian. I'm sure even our great great great grandparents would have found this a little too old for their tastes." Pyrrha exasperatedly explained, feeling a bead of sweat fall from her forehead.

"Oh. Well dang. That's pretty old." Jaune deadpanned. "So anyways, what does this mean for me and the snow angel?" He said, putting his index fingers together with a puckered expression.

"She kinda hates you, Jaune. That's… pretty much what it translates into." Pyrrha half lied, shrugging her shoulders.

"W-what?! Asche, buddy ol pal of mine… Say it ain't true!" Jaune exclaimed, turning to the other boy with a look of desperation.

"Asche" could only bow his head in pity, knowing Weiss Schnee had her… doubts and grudges against the boy. He raised a gloved but unarmed hand, tapping Jaune's nest of blonde hair sympathetically. The remainder of the free period was spent by "Asche" and Pyrrha reassuring Jaune Arc that he was in fact "A pretty cool and unique guy". Or in "Asche's" own inaudible words: "... pat pat…"

After the hour concluded, the champion of ash regrouped with his team yet again, the quartet now taking part in their final class for the day, and for the week for that matter. Combat Class, taught by none other than Glynda Goodwitch herself.

The classroom was situated in the amphitheater, the very same room that CEDL had practiced in just yesterday. The coliseum inspired chamber held balconies filled and lined with seats, each holding their own student. But very few students paid much attention to the overall decor of the area. Instead, their attention was enveloped by the professor's midlength lecture, detailing the rules of the highly anticipated match-ups.

"...And as customary, you are only permitted registered weaponry and authorized ammunition, dust rounds, crystals, throwing knives, or whatever the case may be." Professor Goodwitch rattled on.

The students in attendance hung on to each and every word. Like moths flocking to a bulb of light, they followed each and every syllable from the teacher. This class was by far the most enjoyable, garnering a captivated audience, the infamously strict instructor aside.

"Asche" though...was utterly bored. He let his chin rest in the palm of his hand as the teacher rambled on and on… and on and on… The rules troubled him little, as he only figured the class would be just another sparring session. Nothing of substantial value was at stake, save for a student's grade.

Whittle your opponent's so-called "aura" gauge to the red zone, force a submission, or other tedious routes to victory. It was

"...In the event of a student not having unlocked or even possessing an aura, extra caution will be taken. I will personally call a match and hail the infirmary in the event of a more than minor injury."

Again, the champion paid the teacher no mind. So much so thatbhe failed to realize the first match had already begun. He was shook from his daydreaming by a near thunderous explosion, almost causing him to leap from his seat. He turned his head towards the source of the sound, spotting Yang Xiao Long standing over a male rabbit student, effortlessly victorious.

"Tyler Mauve, your aura has decreased into the red. Yang Xiao Long wins." Glynda called.

The remainder of team RWB_ cheered at the announcement. JNPR joined the applause as well, while CEDL remained quiet. The next match had been Nora Valkyrie versus a nameless student… the victor being more than obvious.

After witnessing the rather brutal beat down, the champion of ash felt a surge of dread at the thought of facing Nora. For just a moment, he considered using an ultra greatsword against her in the event they would clash. But his thoughts were interrupted by Professor Goodwitch, calling his and Lie Ren's name as the next participants.

"Asche" and Ren both retreated into the locker rooms, changing into their gear and arming themselves with their weapons. Before returning to the amphitheater, both boys glanced at the other, doing their best to spot a crack in the other's facade. Unfortunately for Ren however, the silver mask and hat concealed any fracture in the moonlit knight's demeanor.

The two now stood across from each other. Their weapons were sheathed, but their posture lowered to draw and attack at the drop of a hat. The students gave their cheering, offering support to whoever they had a preference for. C_DL obviously gave support to "Asche" while the entirety of JNP_ praised their own teammate. Team RWBY however, was split.

"Lie Ren and Asche Embers, the rules for your match are the same for the two prior. The first one to force a surrender wins. If Mr.Ren's aura drops into the red. Mr.Embers wins. If Mr.Ren applies too much pressure on Mr.Embers, I will halt the match and Mr.Ren will win."

Yang fluctuated between cheering for the unkindled one and Ren, while Blake only watched on in utter silence. Ruby on the other hand, waved two miniature banners holding either boy's names. She, like her half sister, cheered for both young men. And Finally, Weiss. The heiress applauded neither student, though she did have a not-so-hidden bias towards the masked hunter in training, shown by her subtle and nearly nonexistent clapping.

Glynda Goodwitch though, amidst all the cheering, remained neutral and unbiased towards the two. In her mind though, she was riddled with anticipation.

Both boy's held a similar fighting style, placing greater emphasis on their respective speed rather than brute strength. Unlike Ruby Rose, another first year who relied on her sembalnce's speed, these two men were naturally swift either by rigorous training and or pure talent. The two students had likely spent years, a decade even, refining and perfecting their near dance-like fighting style.

Taking a look at either student's transcripts showed Ren to be the superior in terms of hard case evidence to skill. He had trained under numerous other hunters alongside his long time partner Nora Valkyrie after the destruction of their home village. In conjunction with this, he had traveled throughout Remnant, learning new techniques and honing his acrobat themed style.

"Asche" though, was largely a mystery. His transcripts were vague, unspecific, and filled with double meaning. The only reason he had been accepted into Beacon Academy, was due to the skill he showed during initiation which he likely intruded in. Other than that… He was one of five students to have ever received a written recommendation from the headmaster himself.

"...Three." The professor began, holding her crop rider over her head.

"...Two."

The two boy's kept their eyes trained on the other, not during to take them away for even a moment. While they did this though, "Asche" cupped a hand to his abdomen, stepping backwards to gracefully bow to his opponent. It was something of a tradition between two combatants, from Lothric anyways. As ruinous as the land was, it held a great emphasis on proper manners.

"...One."

Ren was taken aback by the display, but he shook his head to steady himself. The unkindled one on the other hand, felt a tinge of annoyance at the normally collected boy. Not bowing to your opponent… was as insulting as throwing a dung pie at someone.

He lowered his stance, drawing his Sellsword Twinsblade in the blink of an eye. And as the instructor began to lower her lewd whip, "Asche" coated his blades with magic, imbuing the blades with a vibrant shade of blue. Ren, the audience, and the instructor in unison, felt their anticipation or dread rile at the sight.

"...Begin!"

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[BONFIRE: LIT]

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