Volume 3: The Witch's Trial

Prologue

The sun rose on another hot day, as bright rays of light illuminated the dark corners of the forest below. All was silent, save for the chirping of the birds perched atop the trees, safe from the threats that lurked under their feet. If one listened closely, they might also make out the soft drip-drip-drip of last night's rain falling from the leaves.

Without warning, the silence was broken by a loud, shrill cry, followed by the distinct roar of a Beowolf as it leapt, mercilessly, at its prey from somewhere in the bushes. There was a gnashing of teeth and several other cries, each weaker than the last, and soon the quiet reigned again. Whatever animal had just been lost to nature, the birds cared little, as they remained safely up above, chirping solemnly into the sky.

Far below, sitting at the foot of a tall cedar tree, Samson ate his grits, glancing silently in the direction of the cry. The sound had admittedly put him on guard, but outwardly the Huntsman appeared as calm as ever.

Even so, it was better to be cautious. Better avoid that area, Samson noted, swallowing the last bit of his breakfast. With a grimace, he reached up and pulled off several strands of his hair. They gave off a scarlet glow as he grabbed his weapon, an enormous greatsword with a pure-white blade, and inserted the strands into the long red canister lodged in the handle. The sword began to glow with the same energy.

With that done, he got up and continued toward his destination, not caring that it might be days, weeks, perhaps even months away. He'd already been here long enough for time to not matter. He had to fulfill his mission.

"Are we seriously sending one person into that forest, alone?" A man's gruff voice played out in his memory. "Even an A-rank Huntsman like Samson Heracle won't be able to handle all those Grimm alone."

"We have little choice. There is far too much at stake," another voice replied, this one female.

"And he'll be fine, I'm sure," replied a third. "Ozpin clearly trusts his strength. If anything, the Grimm will probably mistake him for one of them. He sure looks as ferocious as one, after all!"

Samson shook his head, shoving those memories into the back of his mind. There was no point in dwelling on the past. That was what he had always believed.

His assignment was simple, in concept. Investigate the site, and report back anything that would indicate movement by their enemy. But the stakeout location lay at the heart of the treacherous Hantel Forest, where few who went in ever came out to tell their tales. The only certain thing about the place was that it was teeming with Grimm.

Which, of course, was why Samson considered himself to be the ideal man for the task.

He heard a noise from nearby, and instinctively reached for his weapon. However, when the noise repeated itself, he recognized it as a human cry. The Huntsman did not lower his guard, however - being human did not extinguish the possibility of them being an enemy. He approached the source of the sound with caution.

He came across a wide clearing, where a young girl lay in the grass, sobbing while holding her cloak over her head. An enormous, ape-like beast of a creature with a single, eternally glowing red eye - a Beringel. It growled softly as it opened its salivating maw.

Samson's instinct kicked in. Protect the innocent. That was his top priority as a Huntsman. He drew his weapon. He swung the weapon as he landed protectively in front of the girl, slicing the Beringel's arm off. Howling in agony, the beast stepped back apprehensively, glancing at the scarlet glow of its stump.

Samson glanced at the girl. "Are you alright, kid?" he asked, his voice a low, raspy growl. She looked up at him, her teal-green eyes peering out from her hood, and nodded silently. Turning back to his foe, he swung his blade to meet the furious Beringel's fist.

The two collided, and the impact launched a gust of wind that knocked the girl back with a yelp. Samson grimaced - truly, the fearsome reputation of a Beringel's strength was not undeserved. Still, that wouldn't be enough to stop him. Flicking a switch on his weapon, the edge of his blade retracted to make way for a small red minigun. A stream of bullets burst out from the tip, tearing the Grimm's arm into shreds.

The beast screeched, its cries even more feral than before as it struggled to stay upright with both its arms amputated. Without hesitation, Samson raised his weapon. A shroud of scarlet-red energy surrounded the blade as he brought it downward, bisecting the Beringel through the head.

Samson breathed a sigh of relief as he watched the beast's body dissolve. With a wry smile on his face, he turned to the girl behind him, who stood silently with her head down. A melancholy warmth flowed through him as he thought of his own children, who had perished at the claws of Grimm years ago.

"It's alright. You're safe now," he murmured as he knelt, extending a hand to her. Suddenly, his body tensed up, as his instincts alerted him to the impending danger. A killing intent! He grabbed his blade and held it defensively in front of him, blocking the sting of the girl's dagger. She removed her hood, revealing her short green ponytail, and the cruel smirk on her face as she leapt backward, extending her dagger into a small glaive. "Awww….you didn't fall for it after all," she giggled, lunging at him.

Snarling, Samson parried several of her strikes, but she was much more agile than he was expecting. The girl struck him in the chest with a brutal stab, and he cried out in pain. In retaliation, he swung his blade and sent her flying into the bushes, out of sight. He approached cautiously, waiting for her to emerge.

Whoosh. He sensed something behind him, and turned around. "Ugh!" Several projectiles hit him all across his body, taking off large chunks of his Aura. When he recovered, he saw that he'd been struck by tiny spheres resembling marbles. They levitated in the air above the girl, who stood serenely some distance away.

"Heehee. Here they come!" Smiling, she raised her arms, and the marbles began flying at him again, far too fast for Samson to deflect them all. How?! He thought desperately as he winced in pain, his Aura levels soon reaching zero. Her fighting style has completely changed!

"Hrahhhh!" Samson howled, firing off a round of bullets from his weapon. The girl motioned with her hands, and the marbles moved in front of her to form a shield, protecting her as she fled back into the bushes. "Get back here!" the Huntsman growled furiously, taking a step forward.

He felt the rush of pain as the tip of the glaive burst out of his chest from behind, and Samson gasped, coughing up spurts of blood. Losing his balance, he fell over onto the ground. He struggled to get up, as the world around him started to blur. Turning around onto his back, he saw the girl standing above him, the marbles floating around her head.

"See? I told you he'd come," she murmured happily, as if addressing someone. "Milady is never wrong, after all."

Salem, Samson realized, growing delirious as he lay there. So they knew. But how….could someone have…?

The girl raised her hand, and a purple marble perched itself directly above the Huntsman's exposed head. She smiled down at him. "Sweet dreams, mister," she cooed.

Samson closed his eyes. Ozpin...forgive me.

The marble embedded itself in his skull with a sickening crunch.

Tai took a deep breath, his eyes shut tightly as he prepared his stance. Calm. Be calm.

He formed a fist, feeling the energy flow through him. His heart was pounding as he fought to contain it, all while hoping his arm wouldn't explode from the power coursing through his veins. Be calm. Focus on your surroundings. Clear your mind. In his mind, he repeated the maxims that he had been taught from a young age.

Hearing a sound from the back of his ear, Tai immediately sprung into action. Turning around on his foot, he swung his fist to deflect the projectile that was flying in his direction. His eyes still shut, he followed up with an uppercut to the right, blocking another shot. Feeling confident, he raised his arm, feeling the warm sting of his tattoo glowing with lightning Dust.

He sensed more of them coming, this time in larger clusters. "Hmmph!" He held out his hand, and an explosion of electric energy burst out from his palm, vaporizing several incoming projectiles at once. Suddenly, he gasped. Oh, crap! More of them were coming...but this time they were flying at him from all directions.

I guess I'll just have to do that! Yelling, he began focusing all his energy into his right fist. He felt the pain in his arm grow, continuing even as it became nigh-unbearable. "Take…" Unable to resist, Tai opened his eyes, looking up to see about ten glowing orbs approaching him. His arm was sparkling with a sinister dark energy. "...THIS!"

He swung his fist upward. An ear-shattering explosion followed, sending out powerful strikes of black lightning that destroyed all the projectiles around him. Tai let out a scream of pain as he felt a scorching sensation all across his arm.

Once it was done, Tai felt all the strength in his body fade, and he fell to his knees, panting. He glanced at his ravaged arm, watching as his Aura healed the burn wound. "Hah...well, at least it worked," he muttered.

A computerized voice rang in his ears. Simulation complete. Systems indicate an 94.7 percent efficiency. Tai gave a sigh of relief as the Dust cannons retracted back into the walls, and the door behind him opened. Raven was waiting for him outside.

"You did well," the dark Huntress smiled as he walked over to his locker. "I see you're taking steps to improve your composure. Being able to fight in the darkness is an important skill."

Tai grinned, opening his water bottle and taking a swift chug. He glanced around the gym, taking note at the various other men and women who were training their bodies in similar battle scenarios. Unsurprisingly, many of them were clad in Huntsman gear. "C'mon Rae, you're not my teacher," he said jokingly.

"That being said," Raven continued unflinchingly, "You really shouldn't have exerted yourself like that, not when we have work to do later. Especially when using such a dangerous technique." She glanced at her boyfriend's arm with concern in her eyes. "Misuse of Blackstorm Dust has caused the death of many careless Huntsmen."

"Don't worry about that," Tai reassured her cheerfully. Even so, he instinctively massaged his still-aching arm. "Careful is my second middle name!"

Raven didn't seem convinced, but she didn't press any further. Instead, she changed the subject. "Your village was certainly beautiful," she muttered. "The atmosphere was calm, there was always a sweet aroma in the air, and it was all so...peaceful."

Tai smiled. "You sound surprised. It's almost like you're new to the concept or something."

"The town where I grew up was...different," she admitted. "Valhalla was a dangerous place, even for the Mantle Wastelands. But it was still my home. Recently...I've started to wonder if I ever truly left it."

"Huh? What do you mean by that?"

"Tai," Raven said softly. "I was thinking...will you…"

Tai tensed up. Wait, where's she going with this?

"...come with me to Valhalla sometime?" she finished. "I want to revisit the place, and I honestly think that if I do...I'll be able to find the answers I've been seeking for so long. And I'd like for you to be there, too. I think you deserve to know the truth - about where Brother and I came from."

"Um..." Tai blinked, slowly taking in everything his girlfriend was saying. He was spared from his confusion by the vibration of the Scroll in his pocket. Relieved, he took it out and glanced at the screen.

He's here. We'll need you at the designated point, ASAP. Please hurry! -S

"Nice." Tai grinned, and quickly texted a reply, before looking back at Raven. "Summer and Qrow are at the mission point. We better get over there quick, or we'll miss all of the fun!" He hoisted his bag over his shoulder as smiled awkwardly at her. "And uh...thanks for the offer. Once the mission's done, I'll give you my answer, alright?"

"Very well." Raven smiled back at him. "It's a deal, then."

Hooray, it's back! Hopefully the wait wasn't too long. I don't know when Chapter 1 will come out, but just getting this prologue done is already a major step for me. Expect more by the end of the month!

- I initially had a hard time deciding what Samson's weapon was going to be, but in celebration of Ruby being announced for BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle, I decided to give him a greatsword similar to the one Ragna The Bloodedge uses. If you haven't played the BlazBlue series, I highly recommend them!

-Tai's new technique was indeed inspired by Deku's "One For All", from My Hero Academia - another really good series. I don't watch much anime anymore, but I'd still give this one a try.

-I'm excited for Volume 5 of RWBY. That's...about all I have to say about that, really.

Hope you all enjoy!