"Well, if I know the author, and I should, being his in-universe avatar, I think it's about time to greet some new arrivals," Abe said to himself, setting down a new film reel next to the projector. He quickly slipped out of his booth and jogged down the steps of the theater aisle, before vaulting up onto the stage, just in time to watch the audience settle back into their seats. "I take it we're ready to continue?" he asked, once everyone's attention was back on him.
"Yep!" Ruby said, smiling brightly. "Jaune's going to save Summer soon. I can feel it!"
"Yeah! Vomit Boy's got this!" Yang grinned. Abe chuckled.
"It's nice to see how much faith you have in your friend. Well, I'll happily put the next episode on! Just as soon as we allow our new guests to settle in." Right after he said this, a purple portal appeared, allowing some new people to step through.
"Jaune!" a blonde woman with blue eyes called as she stepped into the theater. "Jaune, are you in here?" Abe cringed. The author hadn't gotten around to bringing Jaune into the story yet, which meant that his family had come into his own dimension for nothing.
"No, I'm sorry, there is no Jaune in here," he told the woman apologetically.
"You see, honey?" another woman with a darker complexion and wearing a pair of glasses sighed, as she also stepped through the portal, cradling a young boy in her arms. "I told you that we should've checked his room first." The portal closed up behind them, causing the woman to sigh again. "And now we're trapped here. Brilliant."
"You came in here looking for Jaune?" Pyrrha asked the blonde woman, who nodded.
"That's right. I'm his sister, Saphron Cotta-Arc." She gestured to the woman and child behind him. "This is my wife, Terra, and our son, Adrien."
"Aw! You're baby's so CUTE!" Weiss gushed, which was followed by a chorus of similar statements from most of the female audience.
"Thank you," Terra said with a giggle, bouncing Adrien, who squealed happily, which caused a encore of adored coos. Abe, however, folded his arms nervously. Adrien couldn't be more than three years old, and if there was one thing he knew about little kids, it was that they didn't mix well with bloody violence. He was broken out of his musings, though, as Saphron started to speak again.
"My father told us that a wormhole had opened up in Beacon, and that Jaune might have been sucked into it," she explained. "He would've come himself, but he was in the middle of a mission. So we came instead." She paused and blushed. "It seems he didn't fall in here, after all. So now I guess we're stuck in this... movie theater?"
"What a strange place for a portal to lead to," Terra agreed. "How does this make any sense?"
"I can explain that!" Nora declared.
.........................
"I always knew my little brother would be a mighty Huntsman someday!" Saphron declared proudly.
"When she heard Jaune had been accepted into Beacon, she was over the moon," Terra told his team, as the two women took a seat next to Ms. Goodwitch. "He always wanted to be like Jonathan."
"And to think he was able to defeat the Grimm's king!" Saphron went on, excitement evident in her voice. "If he can do that, then these cultists who kidnapped my niece don't stand a chance!"
"You can say that again!" Ruby agreed, before turning to Abe. "Now, can we watch the next episode?"
"Of course," Abe said with a nod, before looking at Adrien, who was sitting in Terra's lap. "But I don't think I should start it until we do something with him." Adrien looked at Abe, and then glared at him. "Hey kid, I know you want to see your uncle, but this show is for adults only."
"That's a nice thought, but I'd rather keep my son where I can see him," Terra told Abe gently. "Couldn't I just cover his eyes during the scary parts?"
"The entire show is the scary part," Ren pointed out, before shaking his head. "But I have a solution. If you would allow me to hold Adrien, Ms. Cotta-Arc, my Semblance will keep him from becoming frightened." Terra and Saphron looked at each, then nodded their consent. Ren walked over, and took Adrien from his mothers, who babbled happily. Then Ren turned back around and took his seat next to Nora, who immediately began fussing over the baby in his arms.
"Alright, that works for me," Abe said with a shrug. "Let's start this thing." He dashed back up the theater aisle, and into his booth, before slipping the next reel of film into the projector, and starting the episode. Everyone settled in to watch as the lights dimmed.
The episode began with Jaune regaining consciousness inside the shack he had stumbled into. To his surprise, he found himself lying upon the stained mattress of a crude bed, rather than the floor where he had collapsed. The Huntsman yawned and stretched, then rubbed his weary eyes.
"What happened?" he asked quietly.
"You passed out a while back, kid," a voice replied, causing Jaune to jump. He looked over at the table in the middle of the shack, where Torchwick was currently seated. "That Lagartodile must've really done a number on you, huh?"
"Wait a minute! Isn't that Roman Torchwick?" Saphron demanded. "Why is Vale's most notorious crime lord in this?!"
"Guess you could say I'm doing your brother a favor, doll," Torchwick said with a smile, causing Saphron to squeak as she realized he was in the audience as well. "That's the second time I've had to save his ass now, by the way."
"I was keeping an eye on you during the fight, and it's a good thing I did, too," Torchwick continued. "You were out cold for so long, the sun went down!"
"What?!" Jaune leapt off the bed, crossed the shack's interior, and threw open the door leading outside. Sure enough, the sky had gone dark, and the moon was starting to rise. "Gods, this is not how I expected this rescue mission to go," the Huntsman groaned, once he had finally regained his composure.
"So it's nighttime now?" Sun hummed. "That's gonna make things a bit spookier..."
At the sound of his Scroll going off, Jaune reached into his pocket and pulled out the device, before holding it up to his ear.
"Jaune, it has been six hours since our last transmission," Winter's voice greeted him, 'I was starting to get worried."
"Don't you mean lonely?" The Huntsman cracked, attempting to lighten the mood. This got a chuckle out of Torchwick, but nothing from the Specialist. Realizing he was going to have to admit to what happened, Jaune groaned. "Anyway, I was feeling really tired earlier. I guess I must've lost consciousness."
"'Lost consciousness?' Jaune, you need to be more careful!" Winter scolded. "Summer is in danger, but you will be of no use to her if you get yourself killed!"
"Sheesh, Ice Queen, you sound less like his informant, and more like his mother," Qrow chuckled, causing Winter's cheeks to tinge pink.
"Can it, drunkard!" she growled.
"Oh, don't let him get to you, girl!" Terra smiled at Winter. "You only scold because you care."
"Okay, I get it!" Jaune groaned, preventing Winter from launching into a tirade. "Look, I'm all right now. I'm gonna continue my mission." He hung up his Scroll, and turned back towards Torchwick. "I suppose you're also going to lecture me?"
"Nah, kid, I think Ironwood's biggest fan covered it pretty well," Torchwick commented. "I take it you'll be heading back out into the slog, now?" The Huntsman nodded. "Then let me fill you in on something, kid. From what I overheard, it sounds like there's something important hidden behind a waterfall further on up the trail behind this shack. I'm betting its just what you need to get Summer out of that church."
"Hey, that's great!" Coco grinned. "That means Jaune doesn't have to go on a giant tour of this side of the lake!"
"Yeah! If it wasn't for that Lagartodile, he could've easily saved Summer by now!" Velvet added.
Jaune grinned and pumped his fist.
"That means we're almost done here, then!" he realized. "Hang on, Summer, I'm on my way!" The Huntsman turned to leave, but stopped as a hand clamped down on his shoulder.
"Hey, be careful, kid," Torchwick continued, not finished speaking yet. "I've been spying on our vile villagers. They've captured more Grimm, and last I heard, they're sending some to guard the church. If they were able to get their hands on a Lagartodile, I can't even imagine what other Grimm they've got."
"Torchwick is correct," Ozpin nodded. "Anima is home to all manner of dangerous Grimm."
"Such as?" Whitley asked anxiously.
"Wendigo, Grendels, and Sphinxes, to name a few," Qrow grunted. "All of 'em are really tough, too. Of course, they might've just gathered up a bunch of Beowolves, which is another story."
"All right, Torchwick, I'll be careful," Jaune assured Torchwick. "I take it that means you're not coming with me?"
"Nope," the criminal replied. "I'm heading back across the lake, kid. I'll find a safe place to hunker down, then come find you once you've got Summer."
"Sounds like a plan," the Huntsman nodded. "I'll see you later, Torchwick." And with that, the two men headed out the door, each going their separate way.
"I can't imagine getting whatever's behind the waterfall will be that open and shut," Mercury spoke up. "I mean, there's gotta be at least a few people guarding it, right?"
"Probably," Emerald said with a nod. "And honestly, I doubt Jaune's just going to be able to walk through the waterfall and grab this key. There HAS to be more to it than that."
Jaune made his way behind the shack, and then began to follow a trail that led him up a slow inclining hill. As he traveled further down the path, he could hear the distant noise of flowing water, which was growing louder at a constant rate.
"That must be the waterfall Torchwick mentioned earlier," the Huntsman reasoned. "It can't be much further now." He continued onwards, but stopped as he noticed movement a short distance in front of him. Jaune's eyes narrowed as the figure drew closer. It was another villager shambling down the trail, his head tilted up to the sky and his arms flapping in the air.
What, is he drunk or something? Neo asked, a little unnerved.
"I don't think so," Tai told her, shaking his head. "His movements look too precise. Maybe he's the village idiot, or something."
The villager continued his strange shamble forward, until suddenly he stopped in front of Jaune, his head tilting down to look the Huntsman in the eye. The man's mouth curled into a cruel smile, and then his eyes turned red.
"What the-" Torchwick spluttered, before he froze at what happened next.
The man twitched violently as his neck bulged, before his jaw unhinged to hang down by his collarbone. Four long, red tentacles, each tipped with a bone-white barb, erupted out of his mouth. The appendages dripped with saliva and blood as they flailed and writhed, seeming to have a mind of their own as the villager took another step forward, his glowing red eyes still glaring at Jaune, who took an alarmed step backwards.
Adrien began to wail, at least until Ren's Semblance kicked in, calming the toddler. The rest of the audience was a lot less silent.
"AAAAAHH!" Ruby screamed, leaping into her sister's arms. Yang wasn't much better off, though.
"What is that?!" the Blonde Brawler cried, staring at the screen in horror. "What the hell IS that?!"
"It has to be a Grimm!" Ironwood deduced, his Semblance keeping him from panicking, though his face was still pale. "There's no other explanation!"
"B-But that's unlike any Grimm I've seen before!" Ms. Goodwitch stuttered, green eyes wide.
Jaune quickly pulled out his shotgun, leveling its twin barrels at the abomination in front of him. But before he could pull the trigger, the villager's tentacles lashed out, wrapping around the firearm and tearing it from the Huntsman's hands. A quick jerk of the villager's neck, and the shotgun was tossed away, leaving Jaune unarmed as all four tentacles thrusted their barbs at his chest. The Huntsman quickly leapt into a backward handspring narrowly avoiding getting skewered. As soon as he landed, Jaune quickly unsheathed Crocea Mors, holding his signiture sword out in front of him as the villager took a step towards him, tentacles twisting in all directions.
"Stay back, freak!" The Huntsman growled, keeping his eyes on the barbed appendages as they squirmed erratically. The villager shook his head from side to side, snapping his tentacles back and forth like a whip. Jaune blocked these attacks with Crocea Mors, but was still being slowly forced backward by the villager. The Huntsman took a step backwards, putting some distance between himself and his opponent, then grimaced at his sword, which was covered in bloody saliva.
"Eww!" Weiss retched, squeezing her eyes shut.
"Oh, those tentacles are disgusting," Cinder stated. "But they're also surprisingly effective weapons."
"Come on, little brother," Saphron whispered, staring at the screen in anxious terror. "I know you can do this!"
Jaune dropped to one knee, ducking under another tentacle slash, then watched as the writhing appendages drew back towards the villager's head, becoming rigid.
"He must be getting ready to thrust those loathsome limbs again," the Huntsman muttered in realization. "I can use that." Jaune braced himself, and then, as the villager's tentacles all thrusted towards the Huntsman again, launched himself into a roll, narrowly avoiding the attack. As he stood, Jaune thrusted Crocea Mors up and into the villager's open mouth, tightening his jaw as the tip of his sword burst out the back of the man's head. All four tentacles flailed and shook, before bursting into smoke.
Terra clapped a hand over her mouth.
"Jaune just killed that man!" she whispered in shock.
"Oh well, better him than Jaune," Adam said flatly.
Jaune pried Crocea Mors out of the villager's mouth, allowing the man to collapse. The Huntsman stared down at the corpse, noting that the villager's eyes had lost their red glow.
"There's no doubt about it: that man was possessed by a Grimm," Jaune determined. "A Grimm I've never seen before, but a Grimm nonetheless." The Huntsman's head tilted as a new idea came to mind. "Are all the people in this village infested with these Grimm?"
The audience was silent as they processed this information.
"That would explain why all these villagers have been behaving so violently," Willow pointed out.
"Those poor people!" Saphron gasped, tears welling up in her eyes. She may have shown up later into the story, but the thought of Jaune having to kill a bunch of people only him to find that they were nothing more than puppets broke her heart.
"Turned into homicidal sociopaths against their own volition," Penny lamented. "It is such a tragedy."
"But are they really being forced?" Whitley asked. "These creeps are part of a cult, right? Who's to say they did not purposefully take that Grimm into their body?" This gave the audience pause once again. The idea of anyone willingly becoming host to a Grimm was inconceivable... except for the fact that they'd already seen this before.
Jaune shook his head.
"Well, I can ponder over that later," he told himself. "Right now, I need to find that waterfall and retrieve that key." The Huntsman stood, retrieved his shotgun, and set off, only sparing the body behind him a passing glance.
Soon enough, Jaune found himself standing in front of the waterfall he had been looking for. It was a large one, pouring down hundreds of gallons of water, which collected and flowed into a river that twisted and winded its way away off to the Huntsman's left.
"Well, there's the waterfall Roman told me about," the Huntsman stated. "But I'm not getting behind it while all that water is crashing down. What to do..."
"Yeah, that's quite the pickle," Roman agreed. "The force and speed of that waterfall would either smash the kid flat, or sweep him away before he got behind it."
Maybe there's some way to block the waterfall? Neo suggested.
"There'd have to be," Qrow grunted. "If Jaune can't get past it naturally, there's no way the villagers could."
Jaune craned his neck to look up at the top of the waterfall, where he noticed a structure stretched across the top. It looked like a portcullis, but much wider and flatter.
"That must be a dam to block the waterfall," the Huntsman realized. "There's got to be something to lower it down here, then." Jaune looked around, but there was nothing on his side of the rushing river that looked mechanical in nature. Frowning, the Huntsman gazed over at the other side of the river, where a small, square hut was resting next to the waterfall. "That's a start," he decided. "Now how to get over there?" It was then Jaune noticed a small crane near the hut. It had a long jangling chain and a large hook on the end. "They must use this river to ship supply crates over to the village," Jaune theorized, before looking up at the crane again. "And now, I'm going to use this crane to do my best monkey imitation," he said with a resigned sigh.
"You got this, Jaune!" Sun called to the screen. "If I can do it, so can you! Swinging around like a monkey is easy and fun!"
"Oh, look at that: a monkey Faunus that likes swing around on things," Ghira grunted. "That isn't stereotypical at all..."
"Dear," Kali scolded, giving her husband a smack on the arm. "Be nice."
Jaune took a couple steps back to get some distance, then charged forward and leapt for the crane. Using Aura to empower his legs, the Huntsman gained just enough height to grab onto the hook and chain, allowing him to swing over to the other side. He rolled up onto his feet, then started for the small hut. As the Huntsman approached the tiny building's open doorway, however, he was quickly forced to take cover as another villager suddenly fired a shotgun at him.
"Whoa!" Mercury yelped, jumping in his seat a little.
"I didn't know there was somebody in there!" Emerald confessed, hand on her heart.
Red eyes blazing, the villager growled as he pumped his shotgun, stepping out of the building to fire at Jaune again. The Huntsman grabbed Crocea Mors off his back, deploying its shield form and holding it out in front of him to block the spray of buckshot, before drawing Ebony and shooting his attacker twice through the heart. With a grunt, the villager collapsed.
"Huh. That was quick," Jaune commented. "Is it just me, or did these guys get less durable?"
"That could certainly be the case," Penny revealed. "Grimm are more active at night. If all of these villagers are all possessed by these Grimm parasites, then I hypothesize that the parasite allows their hosts to maintain control of their bodies during the day, then directly control them at night."
"A most sound theory, Ms. Polendina," Ozpin complimented.
"I do not understand," Winter stated. "How does that prove that the villagers have become less durable?"
"Simple, Ice Queen," Qrow replied. "These parasites are pretty squishy creeps, seeing how they're hiding themselves in meat suits. If they've got direct control over someone's body, then by killing the parasite, you kill the host, too."
With the villager slain, Jaune stepped into the hut his attacker had leapt out of, finding it to be the home of a lever situated in the middle of the floor. The Huntsman approached, studied the lever for a couple seconds, then took hold of it in both hands and pulled. A low rumbling sound was heard, causing Jaune to look out the hut's window.
At the top of the waterfall, the dam slowly lowered to block off the flow of water, causing the waterfall to be reduced to a few small trickles instead. A large cavern was revealed to have been hidden behind the waterfall. A large stone walkway rose up out of the river, granting a quick and easy route to the cavern.
"Alright!" Jaune said with a grin. "Now I can go get that super important item Torchwick said was hidden behind that thing." At that moment, growls and distant shouts were heard, as four more red-eyes villagers emerged from the cavern, heading for the Huntsman. "Right after I deal with those guys..."
"Makes sense that they'd have a few guys guarding whatever's in there," Tai stated.
"You got this, Jaune!" Nora cheered. "There's only four of them! Take 'em down!"
Jaune shifted Crocea Mors into its Claymore form, then charged out of the hut, rushing to intercept the villagers. As he got closer to the group, one of them snarled, before bringing back a hand to hurl a hatchet at the Huntsman. Jaune swiftly dove into a roll, avoiding the projectile, then stood back up as the hatchet's owner charged towards him, hands outstretched. The Huntsman swiftly spun into a sideways slash with his Claymore, catching the villager in the waist and bisecting them in one strike.
"One down, three to go," Jaune murmured to himself, watching as the second villager rushed him, aiming to slice into his neck with a sickle. The Huntsman took a step backward to avoid the wild slash, then brought up his Claymore and swung it down upon one of his attacker's shoulders. The large sword quickly tore through the villager's body, finally catching on the pelvis. Jaune pulled his sword free, watching the man in front of him stumbled backwards and collapsed, nearly in pieces.
"That was awesome!" Yang whooped, before sticking her tongue out at the gore onscreen. "But also kind of disgusting..."
"I think that would sum up this entire season, so far," Blake pointed out.
Another villager shrieked at Jaune as she thrusted her pitchfork at his chest. The Huntsman quickly sidestepped to avoid the attack, then swung his Claymore in a circle over his head, slicing through his attacker's neck. With a splash of blood, the villager's head popped off her shoulders and fell into the river on either side of the stone walkway, her body joining her in the water. Jaune turned to face the final villager, who snarled at the Huntsman. Their red eyes flashed, as their jaw unhinged to open all the wider, allowing four tentacles to burst out of the their mouth.
"Ugh! That is so creepy!" Velvet retched, shuddering in her seat.
"Tell me about it," Adam said, frowning. "I sure hope that Grimm doesn't exist in our world."
Jaune prepared himself as the villager stomped towards him, its tentacles twisting and turning. Suddenly all four of the red appendages burst forward and wrapped around the Huntsman's ankles, pulling him off his feet. Jaune landed on his back, dropping his Claymore in the process, then grit his teeth as the tentacles began to drag him towards the villager, who pulled out a knife.
"Uh-oh," Qrow grunted, eyes wide.
"Look out, Jaune!" Ruby cried, scared for her friend.
Jaune's eyes narrowed as the tentacles pulled him right up to the villager's feet, who sneered at the Huntsman as they released his legs, only for his twisted appendages to wrap around his neck instead. Jaune was pulled upwards, straight towards the villager's snarling mouth, as they prepared to plunge their knife into his neck. And that was exactly when the Huntsman shoved his shotgun up under his attacker's chin and pulled the trigger. Blood splashed across Jaune's face as the villager's head exploded into pieces. The now headless body shudder, before falling spread eagle onto its back. The tentacles wrapped around the Huntsman's throat burst into smoke, allowing him to breathe normally again.
"Oh, that was nasty!" Coco blanched, turning green.
"But very clever," Ironwood added. "Instead of struggling, he allowed his attacker to pull him into a position that allowed him to kill them."
"My brother is so cunning!" Saphron gushed. "Oh, out father would be so proud!"
With his enemies dead, Jaune made his way across the stone walkway and into the small cavern behind the blocked waterfall. Inside, he found a small pedestal with a circular object resting atop it. The Huntsman approached, and picked the item up, finding it to bare the familiar symbol that he has seen several times prior. Smiling, Jaune pulled out his Scroll, contacting Winter.
"I've obtained an object that resembles the cult group's insignia," he told the Specialist.
"Wonderful, Jaune," Winter praised the Huntsman. "Head back to the church. Your daughter's safety is our immediate priority." Jaune pocketed his Scroll, as well as the round insignia, before turning back to look back at the path he came from.
"It won't be long now," he said quietly. "Hold on, Summer. I'll see you soon..." The episode ended.
"Finally!" Ruby threw her hands up in the air in jubilation. "Come on, Jaune! Our daughter is waiting for you!"
"Don't worry, Ruby," Pyrrha said with a smile. "Jaune will save her, I'm sure of it."
"That was amazing!" Saphron cheered. "I wish we'd gotten here sooner! Can we see the next episode?"
"Working on it!" Abe's voice called from his booth.
"Yes, I'd like to what happens next as well," Terra stated. "How is Adrien doing, by the way?"
"Oh, he fell asleep a while ago," Ren told them. "I guess my Semblance made him drowsy. Why can't I do the same thing to Nora?" he muttered under his breath.