Qrow and Raven vanished, leaving behind only a violent displacement of force that cracked outward like a thunderclap.
They reappeared in front of the Sleepless leader.
The man was already changing.
His body expanded, flesh folding over itself in thick, layered growth as his frame swelled larger and larger. Muscle and mass coiled together, forming something that was no longer entirely human. The smooth mask across his face stretched as his features disappeared beneath it, replaced by a blank, unsettling surface.
Qrow's blade was already in motion.
Raven's shadow condensed into a cutting arc that followed a fraction of a second behind.
The collision detonated.
Jaune didn't wait to watch it unfold.
His hand snapped to Pyrrha's waist, pulling her in as his legs coiled and released in a single explosive movement. He launched backwards, straight through the building behind them.
The wall melted on impact.
Stone, metal, and fused shadow matter gave way as Jaune's Weakness rune flared, unraveling the structure of the building just enough for them to pass through it like a bullet tearing through brittle glass. Excess debris burst outward behind them as they shot through, barely slowed.
The first shockwave hit.
Even at this distance, it was enough to rattle the air and leave a deep, concussive force that rippled through the environment as Qrow, Raven, and Carnis clashed in full.
Jaune didn't stop.
He barreled through another structure, then another, the superimposed terrain making each building a chaotic blend of Mistrali architecture and jagged shadow rock. Cooled lava cracked beneath their passage as chunks of blackened stone slurrified when as they pushed through.
Only after clearing several blocks did he release Pyrrha.
They landed in tandem, momentum carrying them forward as they sprinted toward a taller, partially collapsed building that still rose above the surrounding ruins.
They scaled it quickly.
Metal aided their ascent under Pyrrha's control, forming brief footholds and supports where needed. Within seconds, they reached the upper levels and then the rooftop.
Jaune turned and took in the view.
Dream Mistral stretched out before them.
Even broken and warped by the violent merging of realms, it retained something of its original identity. The elegant curvature of its architecture, the layered rooftops, the verticality of the city built along uneven terrain, all of it still lingered beneath the damage.
It had a strange kind of beauty.
Like a shattered sculpture that still held the memory of its original form.
But that beauty was scarred.
Large swathes of the city had been overtaken by the Shadow Realm. Blackened lava fields cut through streets and districts, hardened into jagged landscapes that disrupted the natural flow of the city. Entire sections of terrain jutted upward where mountains had been forcibly overlaid onto urban space.
Jaune exhaled quietly. "Who would've thought my first time coming to Mistral would be to see this sight." he muttered.
Pyrrha stepped beside him, her gaze scanning the horizon. There was something distant in her expression, something reflective.
Jaune glanced at her. "Do you know where the base is?"
Pyrrha hesitated.
"It's been a while," she admitted. "I'm… not entirely sure."
Jaune nodded. He didn't press.
That made sense.
This wasn't the Mistral she had known. Not really. The layout had been altered, warped by the merging of two incompatible worlds. Familiar landmarks might not even exist anymore in a recognizable form.
Still, Pyrrha had grown up here.
Just like Blake had once called Menagerie home—and Weiss, Atlas.
None of them had stayed.
Vale had been the place they chose instead. A fresh start and a different path. Jaune's thoughts flickered briefly as he remembered the chats that Pyrrha and he had.
She had been famous.
An MMA champion in Mistral. Recognized, celebrated and pulled into sponsorships and public attention. Her life had been set on a very different trajectory before LUCID had entered the picture.
After LUCID's system had predicted her awakening, everything changed. Now here she was, standing in a broken version of her homeland, spear in hand.
Pyrrha narrowed her eyes slightly, focusing.
Then she raised a hand and pointed. "East," she said. "If the base is still where it should be… it'll be in that direction."
Jaune didn't hesitate.
"Let's move."
They leapt from the rooftop together.
Gravity caught them for only a moment before momentum took over. They landed on the next building and kept running, their steps light but fast as they moved across the rooftops.
They had barely crossed two buildings when a voice cut through the air.
"Halt! Don't move!"
Jaune's instincts flared instantly.
He and Pyrrha stopped mid-motion, both drawing their weapons in the same breath as they turned toward the source.
Four figures moved.
They converged from different angles, landing across the rooftop and surrounding structures with practiced precision. Their formation was tight and controlled, weapons already drawn and aimed.
The man at the front stepped forward.
His weapon materialized in his grip, summoned through a rune. A halberd formed from blazing energy, its blade dripping with plasma fire that flickered and hissed as it stabilized into shape.
He leveled it at them with a suspicion, eyes scanning Jaune's particular odd black body form.
"Operatives," he said sharply, "do you know what's going on here?"
Jaune and Pyrrha exchanged a quick glance.
Before either of them could answer, something else moved.
A Beowolf.
It clawed its way up the side of the building, its form dark and twisted, red Grimm energy pulsing along its limbs. The moment it crested the rooftop, it lunged.
Its claws tore through the air, releasing a massive arc of red energy that surged toward them.
Jaune and Pyrrha split instantly, jumping in opposite directions but the man with the halberd didn't hesitate.
He stepped forward into the attack.
The weapon in his hands cut downward, slicing through the incoming energy claw and dispersing it in a burst of light and heat. In the same motion, he drove the halberd forward, aiming directly at the Beowolf's chest.
The Grimm raised its arms to block.
The impact rang out and for a fraction of a second, the two forces held. Then, the man spoke.
"Sunder!"
The halberd flared.
Runic force surged through the weapon, converting and amplifying it into energy that detonated outwards.
The Beowolf exploded into pieces and the rebounding force carved a crater into the roof, breaking away half of it. Black fragments of Grimm matter scattering outward as the creature was obliterated completely.
Jaune's eyes narrowed slightly as he took that in.
Weapon Rune and some other which could layer secondary effect into the strike. Conversion, amplification… detonation?
He filed it away quickly.
One of the other operatives stepped forward slightly, her gaze sharpening as she looked between Jaune and Pyrrha.
"Baris," she said, voice low but clear. "They're not from Mistral."
That shifted the tension immediately.
Weapons raised and all four operatives adjusted their stances, forming a tighter perimeter around them.
The man with the halberd didn't lower his weapon, instead, he angled it slightly and the burning edge now fully aligned with Jaune's chest.
"Identify yourselves," he said, voice firm. "Now."
The air tightened again with a dangerous glint. Jaune adjusted his grip on his swords, his mind already moving.
One wrong answer here…
And this rooftop would become another battlefield.
A distant impact rolled across the city like a buried thunderclap, followed by another, then another. The rooftop beneath them trembled as pressure waves rippled through the fractured streets of Dream Mistral. Windows that still clung to broken buildings shattered in delayed bursts, raining shards into the alleys below.
The Rank 2 battle had now resumed in full.
Baris's head snapped towards the distance, eyes narrowing as he felt it. "Shit," he muttered under his breath, grip tightening on his halberd. "Seriously, what the hell is happening today?"
Another shockwave followed, louder this time. It carried heat, distortion, and something heavier beneath it. The force made even trained operatives like them instinctively brace.
Pyrrha stepped forward slightly. "There's a situation," she said, voice steady despite the chaos. "A really serious one in which we can't fully explain in time."
The group did not lower their weapons.
Suspicion still held them in place, tension coiled tight between both sides. The operative who had spoken earlier stepped closer, her gaze sharpening as she studied Pyrrha more carefully.
Then her expression shifted.
"…Wait."
Her eyes widened slightly, scanning Pyrrha's face again, slower this time, more deliberate.
"…Are you… Pyrrha Nikos?"
The question hung in the air.
Pyrrha hesitated for only a fraction of a second before nodding. "Yes."
The reaction was immediate, though restrained.
Confusion flickered across the team's faces. Recognition followed close behind it, pulling against their earlier hostility. Weapons did not lower completely, but the edge in their posture softened, just slightly.
Baris glanced between them, then back at Pyrrha. "The Pyrrha Nikos?" he asked, as if needing confirmation twice.
Pyrrha gave a small, firm nod.
Jaune shifted his stance subtly, eyes flicking toward her for a brief moment. She met his gaze, and in that instant, both of them understood the same thing.
They had to be careful. Information here was a blade. Used wrong, it could turn on them just as easily as it could help.
Lionheart's possible betrayal sat like a landmine beneath every word they could say. If this team was compromised, revealing too much could doom them instantly. If they were not, holding back could cost them their only chance to get word out.
It was a gamble either way.
But standing still would kill them faster.
Pyrrha drew in a breath and spoke.
"We're part of the Shadow Realm expedition team," she said, her tone shifting into something more official, more controlled. "There was a terrible incident. Sleepless intervened, and the region we were operating in has been forcibly merged into the Dream Realm."
The words landed heavily.
The team stared at her.
"…Merged?" one of them repeated, disbelief threading through the word.
Another shockwave rolled through the city, closer this time. The ground beneath their feet cracked, a line splintering across the rooftop as distant buildings collapsed inward with a grinding roar.
Pyrrha didn't hesitate.
"We need to contact a Rank 3 from Vale immediately," she continued. "This situation is escalating beyond containment."
Questions erupted almost immediately.
"What do you mean merged?"
"How is that even possible?"
"Where's your command unit?"
Pyrrha cut through them.
"There isn't time," she said sharply.
Her voice carried enough force to silence them.
"This is going to turn into a Rank 3 battlefield," she added. "If it hasn't already."
That did it.
The atmosphere shifted and confusion gave way to something more grounded. Concern and urgency.
Baris studied her for a moment, searching her expression for any sign of deception. His grip on the halberd tightened once more, but this time not in suspicion.
In decision.
"You're absolutely sure?" he asked. "Because if this is false, if you're misleading a LUCID team in a situation like this, you will be put on trial."
Jaune stepped forward slightly, standing beside Pyrrha.
"We're sure," he said.
Then he lifted a hand and pointed.
In the distance, the sky warped again under the force of another collision. Another explosion of force that bent light and shadow as if both had lost their footing.
The implication spoke for itself.
Baris followed his gaze.
For a brief second, silence held.
Then he exhaled sharply. "Alright," he said. "Move. You're coming with us."
They didn't wait for agreement.
The team turned and launched into motion, sprinting across rooftops with practiced coordination. Jaune and Pyrrha followed immediately, falling into pace beside them as they pushed eastward.
They moved fast.
Faster than most Rank 1 teams would risk in a terrain like this.
But speed was survival now.
The city blurred around them as they crossed building after building, leaping gaps and adjusting mid-stride as unstable structures shifted beneath their weight.
Then the world broke again.
A massive shockwave tore through the district without warning.
It came like a wall.
Buildings ahead of them buckled and collapsed, stone and metal folding inward as a dense cloud of dust and debris erupted outward, swallowing entire streets in an instant.
"Get down!" Jaune shouted.
Pyrrha reacted instantly.
Metal surged from the environment, gathering and condensing into a massive triangular shield that flared into existence in front of them. Its surface angled sharply, forming a cone that deflected incoming force outward.
The shockwave hit and slammed against the shield with a deafening roar.
Jaune reached out, Weakness rune igniting as his snapped immediately to the force itself. Not the debris or the structures, but the pressure wave driving it all forward.
He felt it.
Particles in motion. Kinetic energy compressed into a violent surge.
And he weakened it.
The cohesion fractured under his influence. The force did not disappear, but faltered, losing its edge and its overwhelming density by unraveling just enough to keep it from damaging them.
The shield held.
The wave split and passed around them, tearing through what remained of the surrounding buildings before dissipating into the distance.
Silence followed.
Dust hung thick in the air.
Baris staggered slightly, coughing as he waved a hand in front of his face. "Shit," he muttered. "Shit, shit, shit…"
Jaune would have found it funny. Under different circumstances, it might have been. But then he saw it.
A massive shape crashed into the ground nearby.
The impact carved a crater deep into the already ruined city, sending fragments of stone and shadow rock spiraling outward.
An eastern dragon.
Golden, immense, and unmistakable.
Taiyang.
The dragon's body surged, coiling as it pushed itself back up, rising into the air once more before launching back toward the epicenter of the battle.
Jaune exhaled slowly.
"Still think we're lying?" he said.
Baris didn't answer immediately, because he didn't get the chance.
A flash of red cut through the dust.
Jaune's senses screamed.
"Move!"
Baris reacted first, throwing himself to the side as a blade of condensed red energy tore through the space where he had been standing a fraction of a second earlier.
It passed cleanly through one of his teammates.
There was no resistance or struggle.
The operative's body split vertically in a clean, horrific line before collapsing apart, halves falling away as the energy dissipated.
Silence hit for half a second.
Then space distorted and a portal opened. From within it, two figures stepped out.
Adam and Grise
They were no longer riding their swords, as they clearly no longer needed to.
Adam's gaze settled on Jaune immediately.
Calm and measured.
Perhaps even showing a hint of disappointment.
"Sorry, Jaune," he said, his tone unhurried, as if they were speaking in a quiet room instead of a battlefield.
His blade tilted slightly, red energy gathering along its edge.
"Can't let you do that."