After witnessing a Rank 2 so massive it eclipsed the moonlight—splitting itself into an entire flock that blotted out half the sky—the word "wilderness" stopped meaning "open terrain."
It meant kill zone.
So they ran.
Qrow took point, kicking up gray dust as he carved a direct line toward the Dreamscape silhouette of Belmont. Raven trailed a few paces behind him, sharp-eyed and silent. Ruby, Yang, and Jaune followed close, sprinting across the barren plains with the frantic efficiency of people who knew stopping wasn't an option.
Thankfully, no other Rank 2s emerged from the gloom.
Which was good—because any delay in their investigation would be problematic.
But that didn't make the route safe.
Not by a long shot.
The moment they crossed the first low ridge, the ground trembled under their feet. Cracked earth bulged upward—and a Rank 1 beowolf the size of a compact truck tore free of the rotting soil. Why it was hiding in the ground, Jaune didn't know, but what he did know was that it didn't even get the chance to snarl.
Raven flicked her fingers, expression fixed and bored, and a lance of blackened shadow erupted from beneath the creature. The spear drove straight through its spine and pinned it mid-leap. It dissolved into gray ash before the corpse even hit the ground.
A second Rank 1—an Ursa with jagged, plating—burst from behind a dead tree. Qrow didn't even pause. His torso twisted, his arm snapping outward in a practiced motion. Feathers detonated from his sleeve in a violent, shotgun-like burst. The projectiles shredded the Ursa's skull, scattering its mask into fragments.
Jaune sucked in a breath through clenched teeth.
He had never seen Qrow do that.
More Grimm converged as they pushed forward. Rank 0s poured in, in small waves—dog-like grimm, and smaller birdlike horrors that flew around on their malformed wings over the ground. Dream Realm variants were always uncanny and weird, like nightmares rebuilt from scraps that should never have been assembled.
But Rank 0s, at least, were manageable.
Yang slammed her gauntlets together with a metallic clap, igniting a ripple of compressed force. The kinetic wave blasted outward, annihilating a cluster of charging creatures. They evaporated instantly, torn into drifting particulates.
Ruby shot ahead in a sudden flicker of red light as her Accel rune flared beneath her boots. By the time she reappeared behind three canine Grimm, their heads had already been severed cleanly mid-motion.
Jaune held the flank, letting his peak Body stat do the work. The first Rank 0—a warped, hyena-like thing—leapt at him and collided with his forearm. It bounced off as if it had struck a steel beam. Jaune stepped forward and planted a single punch into its chest.
It detonated.
A haze of gray floated in the air behind them as the squad finally reached the outskirts of the city, cutting through the last wave of lesser monsters on the way.
Belmont rose before them—a sanctuary of broken streets and shattered windows. Yet no Rank 2 shadows circled above, and no massive silhouettes prowled between the buildings.
Only silence.
Qrow slowed, letting the rest regroup.
"Well," he murmured, rolling his neck and sweeping the skyline, "looks like we made it. The LUCID base under Creation should be in the city center, so let's move."
This was Belmont. Their mission field. Jaune wasn't sure what to make of the city in reality, but here it was eerie.
"Alright," Qrow continued, voice firming, "from here on out, stay tight. Watch your corners. Don't drift away from me or Raven. I'm not interested in any more surprises today."
But as they advanced deeper into Belmont's shadowed outskirts, Jaune kept expecting the city to erupt with Grimm. Rank 0 infestations were common in abandoned districts, and Rank 1s often lingered like territorial monsters.
Yet the deeper they went, the more wrong everything felt.
There were no Grimm.
The scrape of claws across cracked asphalt and the distant silhouettes of Grimm peering through shattered windows were distinctly absent. Not even the twitchy movement of scavenger-types lurking at the edges.
Only the hollow howl of Dream Realm wind and the unsettling emptiness of derelict streets.
Yang slowed, shoulders tensing. "Oookay… this is either good news or the kind of news that comes right before a jump scare."
Ruby lowered her voice. "If there aren't any Grimm… does that mean LUCID's still holding the area? And that they're—well—not dead?"
Qrow didn't respond. His eyes were locked on rooftops and alleyways, searching, calculating. Raven mirrored him—hand hovering near her sword hilt, posture coiled tight.
A few blocks later, Ruby whispered, "This is really weird. We had Grimm tailing us almost the entire way here. Now there's nothing? Not even stragglers?"
"Exactly," Qrow muttered. "Which is why I don't like it."
But whether suspicious or not, the absence of monsters meant something important:
If something was keeping the Grimm away, LUCID was still operational.
And if LUCID was operational, the city hadn't fully fallen.
Eventually, the city center came into view—or rather, what had replaced it. Where Jaune expected the collapsed mall and skeletal remains of storefronts, there now stood a fortified, gleaming stronghold.
He froze.
The entire mall had been reforged.
Massive bastions rose from former courtyards. Automated turrets crowned scaffolds like unwavering sentries. Steel walls wrapped around the plaza in layered, reinforced rings. Faint lines of energy pulsed along the plating—stable, orderly, unmistakably crafted.
Creation's influence.
Just like Beacon.
Jaune slowed instinctively, struck by déjà vu. The same visual signature—pristine metal, futuristic edges, too perfect for the Dream Realm—was unmistakable.
Ruby breathed out, "Whoa… they turned the whole mall into a base?"
"Yeah. Smaller than Vale's, but still damn impressive," Yang added.
But Qrow and Raven didn't share the wonder. Both stared at the structure with tight, grim expressions.
A chill crept up Jaune's spine. Whatever they were picking up on—he was missing it—but he trusted their instincts enough to know it wasn't good.
Raven exhaled sharply. "That's a problem."
Qrow didn't argue.
As they approached the outer barricade, Jaune spotted personnel patrolling the perimeter. The guards' gear immediately caught his eye—sleek, compact, and civilian-grade. Not LUCID-issue rune frames. No enhanced gauntlets. No bracing.
Just standard tactical armor with minimal shielding.
Not awakened equipment.
And when the guards noticed the group—
"HALT!"
Six rifles snapped upward instantly, all of them aimed at Qrow's chest.
"Not another step!"
"Hands where we can see them!"
Ruby startled. Yang froze with her hands half-raised. Jaune stepped instinctively in front of Ruby, pulse pounding.
Qrow snarled, "We're LUCID. Stand down."
But instead of relaxing, the guards only grew more panicked. One slapped a console, and the nearest automated turret swiveled with a mechanical whirr—locking onto Qrow with chilling precision.
Jaune's heart dropped.
If they were LUCID personnel… why were they aiming weapons at awakened?
Qrow's voice hardened. "Where's your commanding officer?"
Silence. The guards exchanged anxious glances. One swallowed audibly. Another tightened their finger on the trigger.
Raven shifted forward by a single step. Half the squad of guards flinched like she'd thrown a grenade.
"Easy," Qrow warned, raising a hand. "We're not here to start trouble."
But the guards weren't tense—they were terrified.
Terrified of them.
As though Qrow and Raven were monsters approaching their gate rather than allies.
Before Jaune could speak, a voice bellowed:
"Stand down!"
A silhouette launched from the inner courtyard, hitting the ground with a thunderous impact that rattled the steel walls.
A Rune Framed man landed in a crouch—bulky, armored, unmistakably awakened.
And he looked like hell.
Cracked plating. Scorch marks. Energy flickering unevenly along his gauntlets. When he pushed his visor up, the face beneath was gaunt, stubbled, and exhausted to the bone.
His eyes widened. "Qrow…? Qrow, is that—good god, it really is you."
Qrow let out a slow breath. "Evergreen. Yeah. It's me."
The man sagged, as if something inside him finally unclenched. Relief washed through his posture like a collapsing dam.
"Hah… you have no idea how glad I am to see you," Evergreen wheezed, dragging his helmet off. "I wasn't sure anyone from Vale was still coming."
His expression twisted into something more complicated. Grief? Shame? Fear?
He sighed and spoke with tiredness evident in his throat. "You'll have to forgive them. After our previous experience with awakened, we're all a little on edge."
Raven didn't let the silence stretch.
"Previous experience? What happened here?" she demanded, voice sharp as a blade. "Explain. Now."
Evergreen swallowed and gestured for them to follow. The steel doors groaned open, revealing the inner courtyard of the base.
The moment Jaune stepped inside, dread scraped down his spine.
Dozens of awakened lay scattered throughout the plaza. Some slumped on benches. Others leaned against walls. Others simply lay on the floor, armor partly removed to relieve the crushing weight of their rune frames. Their breathing was shallow. Their eyes unfocused. Sweat clung to their faces.
Discard bins overflowed with used stimulant patches.
But the worst were the two unmoving figures.
Rank 0s, judging by the fragility of their frames. Eyes closed. Bodies limp. Completely unresponsive.
Not sleeping.
Unconscious.
Comatose.
Qrow's jaw locked. "This is… erosion. Evergreen, why the hell are your people still here? They should've exited hours ago."
Evergreen grimaced. "Qrow… they can't."
Qrow stared. "Can't?"
Evergreen guided them past another cluster of shuddering Rank 1s. A few attempted limp salutes but their arms gave out halfway through.
"We were brought here suddenly, forcibly by a group of awakened. Not just those in the LUCID base, but ones all over the city as well." Evergreen said, voice low. "Though, we didn't know it was because of them at the time. However, we knew something was wrong. After killing a few Grimm, we tried using the Dream Authority Exit."
He stopped next to the comatose pair.
"But the system prompt wouldn't let us."
Yang frowned. "Wouldn't let you? Why not?"
"When we tried to exit, it said: Dream Authority Exit: Not possible." Evergreen rubbed his face, exhausted. "No explanation. But we figured it out fast enough. We're here in our real bodies. Not dream projections. There's no physical form back in the real world for the authority to return us to."
Qrow's eyes darkened. "That matches what we saw on the cameras, seems we were right to take precautions of staying outside the city, after all. Your bodies physically disappeared. How long have your people been stuck?"
Evergreen's breath hitched. "Around thirteen and a half hours."
Thirteen hours.
Far beyond the safe limit.
Jaune remembered the lessons—the warnings drilled into them.
At eight hours, spirit bodies begin degrading from Nightmare erosion. Higher ranks resist better, but without intervention…
Without intervention, this would end in tragedy.
Raven knelt beside the unconscious Rank 0s. She hovered her hand over one of their arms—close enough to sense, not close enough to touch.
"They're fading," she whispered.
Qrow pinched the bridge of his nose. "So the Dream literally won't let anyone out. Tell me more about this group of awakened that you mentioned earlier."
Evergreen nodded grimly. "They're affiliated with the Vale faction of unawakened. Dragon's gang. From what we've pieced together… they pulled this stunt because of the… situation..." His words trailed off, hiding a hidden meaning inside.
Evergreen's mouth then tightened. "That group is desperate and reckless. And apparently willing to drag an entire base into the Dream to make a point. We've been clashing against them for the last few hours, which is why our people have been on edge."
Qrow's expression sharpened, the air around him seeming to grow heavier. "The scale of the rune that was used… it shouldn't be possible without a true Rank 3 Master Rune."
Evergreen winced. "Not necessarily."
A beat of silence stretched.
Qrow and Raven exchanged a look—a quiet, loaded conversation in a single glance. Raven crossed her arms, shoulders stiff, a cold tension rippling off her like a pressure wave. Something about Evergreen's correction bothered both of them at a fundamental level.
Jaune, Ruby, and Yang glanced among themselves, completely lost. The adults weren't even speaking in riddles—they were speaking in missing context.
And none of them liked being kept in the dark.
Raven's voice finally cut through the charged silence, low and glacial. "Then we already know what we're dealing with."
She turned her gaze toward the inner corridors of the base—toward whatever lay deeper, whatever was responsible for trapping dozens of awakened inside their own bodies.
"Find the Displacement user."
Her eyes narrowed, burning with a hard, lethal focus.
"And force them to send everyone back."
.
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AN: Advanced chapters are available on patreon