Chapter 2-

Winter

Her head hurt.

The memories were hazy, but she could still make out a city; an old and battered city that was illuminated by nothing but streaks of gleaming moonlight raining down from the night sky. Dark clouds hung overhead, casting a looming shadow onto the dirty city streets. And then there was the smell... No, the stench of blood and death that hung around in every corner, in every nook and every cranny of the accursed place.

Winter could almost feel the sticky sensation of blood drying in her hair.

She could almost feel the predatory joy that came from the hunt. The raw emotions of the hunt and the blood that came along with it. Those feelings, they were primitive, feral in nature even; and hidden underneath all of the death, all of the blood, all of the creatures of the night, were deep underground crevices and chasms that held knowledge of ancient mysteries and secrets.

Forbidden knowledge that was better left undiscovered by mere mortals—

A sudden sharp stinging sensation of pain raced across her face.

Winter blinked once, and just like that, the images were gone from her mind's eye. The desolate city and its blood red moon that hung in the sky were no more, replaced by ice and snow. The freezing winds of Atlas's Northern Frontier were unmistakable, that feeling of cold had been all but ingrained into her body from being raised in the icy continent after all.

Ever so slowly, she raised a hand towards her face, where the stinging sensation still lingered, anchoring her back into the waking world.

"Ah-hah! There we go! I thought that I had lost you for a moment there, Miss Schnee."

Winter exhaled, letting out a breath that she hadn't realized that she had been holding in. The stinging sensation on her face had now all but faded away due to the cold Atlas air. It was just too bad that the cold couldn't do the same with the current ringing in her head.

"Ephraim…" She slowly began, trying to keep her voice even. "What did I just see?"

Ephraim simply raised an eyebrow in response.

"I'm sorry? I'm not quite sure what you're referring to Miss Schnee, but you should get your weapons ready. Our beastly friend over there doesn't seem too inclined to simply leave us be."

Their beastly friend had then decided that it would be a good time to let out another ear-shattering roar. Winter grit her teeth and brought a hand towards her head. The ringing in her head wasn't getting much better, so the last thing that she needed right now was another fight with what looked like an oversized Ursa. Of course, with everything else in this mission having gone to shit already, the beast had naturally decided right then and there to leap off its perch on the rooftop and start charging at them like an enraged bull. Winter's hand reached for her saber, slightly fumbling around for the weapon's hilt before quickly drawing it out in a familiar motion.

Her eyes momentarily trailed over towards her new companion, curious as to whether or not he would be helping her with the Grimm.

She saw Ephraim's hand reach into the air, and that was when her vision blurred for a moment, just long enough to obscure whatever it was that he was doing with his hands. It was as if there was a tiny blind spot in her eye, casting a mysterious veil over his actions. One moment, there was a hazy blur, and then the next moment, Ephraim held a strange rusted dual-bladed sword in his hand.

Winter blinked, resisting the sudden urge to rub at her eyes.

Had he just pulled a weapon out of thin air? Was that an illusion of some sort? A Semblance possibly? If it was, for what purpose did it serve? She wanted to question him about it, but with the Ursa still barreling straight towards them like the beast that it was, the questions would have to wait.

And then with an emphatic crack, Ephraim snapped the double-edged sword in two, one hand now holding the longer piece and the other hand holding the shorter one.

She watched as the man rushed forward with a sudden burst of speed. The Ursa roared once again and swung a meaty paw towards his direction in response. Ephraim simply side-stepped out of the way before dashing forward to take a slash at the Ursa's hind leg. Once again to Winter's surprise, blood came spluttering out from the wound.

It was just like with the strange Beowolf from before.

Normally, Grimm didn't bleed after all.

Winter continued to watch as Ephraim danced in and out of the Ursa's range, easily avoiding its attacks while quickly counter attacking at the same time, the tactics of a veteran huntsman that was used to fighting against larger Grimm. Whoever Ephraim was, Winter could tell that he was skilled, perhaps even on the same level as some of her colleagues in Spec Ops. The display of agility and combat sense only added more to the growing list of questions in her head.

What was someone like that doing way out here in some obscure village in the frontier to begin with?

With a slight twirl of her wrist, she stabbed her saber into the ground. It was a little ritual of hers that she had developed to help with her concentration. As useful as her Semblance might have been, the difficulty when it came to controlling it usually did a good job of offsetting that usefulness. It had taken her a long time to get to the point where she was able to use her Semblance in combat effectively.

Nonetheless, if the man wanted to play the role of the vanguard, then she was fine with it. With the headache she was still sporting, she didn't fancy the thought of having to get into close quarters with an over-sized Ursa anyway. Flaring her Aura, a large glyph began to spin in the snow beneath her. It started off slow, but as she poured more and more Aura into it, the glyph began to accelerate faster and faster.

And then, as if the dam had finally been broken, the glyph activated and a flock of white Nevermore came rushing out.

They flew straight past Ephraim towards the Ursa and began to peck away at the over-sized beast. The Ursa howled in frustration as it tried to swipe at the summons to little avail. With the Ursa being distracted, Ephraim rushed forward and stabbed his blade straight through the Grimm's skull, easily cutting through the bone and flesh.

The red glow in its eyes soon faded away as the beast finally fell to the ground. Ephraim slowly pulled out his sword and swung it once in the air, splattering away most of the wet blood on the blade into the snow in a practiced motion. Winter pulled her own saber out of the snow as well and sheathed it before she began to walk over towards the now dead Ursa.

Just like with the Beowolf, the corpse of this particular Grimm remained intact, not fading away like most Grimm.

How very strange.

"That was most impressive, Miss Schnee." Ephraim eventually said, as he snapped his two swords back together. "Are you a practitioner of the arcane arts as well?"

Winter blinked in bewilderment.

"What…? Arcane arts? What are you…? No, never mind that for now." Winter just shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. "What I want to know right now is just how exactly you managed to pull a sword out of thin air. Was it a Semblance?"

"A Semblance?" Ephraim repeated in a curious tone, "What's that?"

Winter blinked once again. How did this man not know what a Semblance was?

"How could any huntsman not know what a Semblance is?" She muttered to herself, "If it wasn't a Semblance, then what did you do earlier to get that sword?"

"Oh? Curious, are you?"

Although a dark bandanna covered over most of his face, she couldn't help but imagine a smug grin hidden underneath it. For some odd reason or another, she just couldn't quite shake the feeling the man gave off that reminded her all too much of a certain drunkard. Perhaps it was in his tone of voice, or something else entirely, but whatever it was, it was already starting to annoy her.

"If I wasn't, I wouldn't be asking." Winter grounded out, "Now, are you going to answer my question? Or perhaps you would rather wait until we get attacked by more Grimm?"

"Grimm?" The man questioned with a raised eyebrow, "Is that what your people have taken to calling these beasts?"

"How can you not know what—" Winter paused mid-sentence and narrowed her eyes. "Stop trying to change the subject. Are you going to answer the question or not?"

Ephraim put his hands up in mock surrender.

"Alright alright, no need to get so frosty about it. It's quite simple really, let me demonstrate." Ephraim's hand reached into the air, and once again, it was as if her very vision had simply lost focus in that one tiny spot. "Hmm… Now where did I put those vials? Ah ha!"

And then, just like before, when he pulled his hand back, her vision returned. Winter had actually tried to blink a couple times just to make sure that she wasn't seeing things. This time, rather than a weapon, it was a small vial that he pulled out, one that was filled to the brim with some kind of red liquid that looked eerily familiar to that of blood. He held it in front of her, shaking it ever so slightly as the red liquid inside bounced around like the waves of the ocean.

"It's kind of cheating, but I keep all my equipment stashed away in the Dream." Ephraim said with a chuckle. "And then I just take them out whenever I need them."

"You… Keep them in a dream." She repeated incredulously, "And then just pull them out of thin air whenever you need them…"

Ephraim simply nodded his head in response as if it were the most routine thing in the world.

"Is that strange?"

"I… You know what? I'm not even going to try anymore." Winter muttered to herself as she shook her head. "This is beyond my rank and pay-grade. As soon as the connection returns on my scroll, I'm calling HQ and letting them deal with you."

She had dealt with enough mysteries for one day.

It took some time, but the snowstorm eventually subsided long enough for Winter to contact headquarters.

Atlas forces had arrived in full force not too long after. It was simply a testament to their military might, that they had been able to deploy forces way out here in the frontier as quickly as they had. A quarantine zone was soon set up around the town as more and more Atlas personal began to fly in by the hour.

Ephraim of course, had been detained by Atlas officials for questioning.

Winter could tell that he wasn't exactly happy about it, but he didn't voice it out loud and had instead merely complied with the Atlas officers at the time. She felt a little bad about it, as the man had helped her out against the strange Grimm. The General himself had made the order however, and she was definitely not going to go against direct orders from General Ironwood.

"Hey Schnee." A familiar voice greeted, "You doing alright?"

Silver Soleil.

The man was a special operative like herself, four years her senior. Winter had worked a couple of missions with him in the past, and she knew that he was a capable operative. They weren't friends per say, but they were at least on good enough terms with one another, acquaintances even.

"Soleil." She replied with a small nod, "A little tired, but I'll survive."

"Well, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you'll probably have to be doing some more OT tonight." The older man began, "General Ironwood requested to see you in his office. Something to do with our new 'guest' I'm guessing."

She bit back a sigh.

"I see. I'll be there right away."

Winter gave a crisp salute before she marched away towards their flagship.

General Ironwood's airship stood on the outskirts of the town, among a myriad of other Atlas ships. The vehicle itself dwarfed over even the tallest buildings of the town. As she made her way across the snow, passing by a variety of Atlas personal all running about with their own business to take care of, she began to wonder just what exactly the General had wanted to see her about.

Winter had already given her report during her debriefing, so the General already had her account on what had occurred during the mission.

Two Atlesian androids stood guard outside of the General's office. They were from the Atlesian Knight line of androids and were the newest 200 models. As she approached, the Atlesian Knight's stood aside and allowed her entry. Winter wasn't exactly the biggest fan of all the automation, as she preferred working with people more so than machines, but she still couldn't deny their effectiveness.

The door soon slid open with a hiss and she stepped inside.

General Ironwood sat at his desk, flanked by two Atlesian Knight's at his side. They stood at attention with their rifles strapped over their backs. What caught her eye however, was the man that was currently sitting across from the General. Ephraim sat with his arms crossed over his chest, his expression clearly hidden behind that piece of cloth that he always wore over his face.

"General Ironwood, sir!" Winter snapped to attention, "You wanted to see me?"

"At ease, Schnee." The General replied, "Please, take a seat."

Winter stiffly nodded before she took a seat on the empty chair next to Ephraim.

"You looked tired, Miss Schnee." Ephraim simply remarked, "Perhaps some tea to take off the edge?"

"I'm fine." Winter coolly replied as she shook her head at the offered cup. "Sir, what exactly is this about?"

The General folded his hands over the table.

"You've seen firsthand what happened in Wakefield, Schnee." Ironwood eventually stated, "I've gone over your report already and if I hadn't seen the citizens of Wakefield in person, I would've been hesitant to believe what you submitted."

Winter only nodded along, unsure of where the General was going with his spiel.

"Let me be frank, our medical personal have never seen anything like this before." The General continued on with a frown, "This Plague… The Scourge of the Beast, as Ephraim here kindly termed for us, is extremely dangerous and contagious."

"I would say that's an understatement, General." Ephraim interrupted, "As I've said before and I'll reiterate once again, aside from a swift death, there is no cure for the plague. Your scientists can waste all the time they want, but you must understand, that as a Hunter, I have my own job to do."

"I'm not going to stand by and let you commit murder on innocent Atlas citizens, Ephraim." General Ironwood replied as he narrowed his eyes, "Believe me, with Atlas being on the forefront of technological advances, we will find a cure for this… Disease"

Ephraim only sighed in response.

"I have seen an entire civilization fall because of the Plague, General. I will admit, your technology is advanced, far beyond perhaps what even the greatest scholars from Yharnam could even hope to comprehend, but this is something that goes beyond the tinkerings of mere mortals." Ephraim said in a grim tone. "After all that I have told you, how can you expect me to believe that your scientists will be able to find a cure?"

The steel in the General's eyes could have plated warships.

"I'm afraid that you simply won't have a choice in the matter, Ephraim. If I have to have you arrested, I'll make it happen. I'm not going to let you essentially commit genocide on an entire town without at least giving our scientists a chance to work on a cure."

If the atmosphere was tense before, Winter was sure that the air was now thick enough to be cut through by a knife.

"Very well then, General." The Hunter tersely said, breaking the silence. "I will respect your wishes. They are your people and these are your lands after all. I will stay my hand for now and allow your scientists to have their fun."

"I appreciate your understanding in the matter." General Ironwood replied, "The solution that you suggested… Something like as abhorred as that should only be considered as a last result."

The Hunter said nothing, only nodding his head in response.

"Now, onto current matters. Schnee, I have a new a mission for you." Winter perked up at the General's words. "After some discussion, it's been decided that Ephraim will be staying in Atlas for a while and will be requiring an escort during his stay. I'd like for you to handle that matter."

Winter almost had to bite back another sigh.

There was no doubt in her mind that the General wanted someone he trusted to keep an eye on the man while he was going to be staying within the city's walls. And of course, out of all his operatives, he would choose her for the job because she was already familiar with Ephraim to begin with. Logically, there was nothing wrong with the General's decision and she would've done the same in his position.

It didn't mean that she had to like it however.

"Yes sir." She replied with a little more force than she had intended to.

"Well, Miss Schnee." Ephraim began in a cheery tone, "It appears that you and I are going to be working together for a little bit longer."

Of course it was going to be her job to watch over the crazy one.

Ephraim was strange. He was eccentric, and perhaps just a bit unhinged.

There was nothing wrong with traits like those in itself. Huntsmen that had been in the field for a while all had their own ways to cope with the never ending violence, certain odd mannerisms that made them tick. What made Ephraim strange was that the man seemed to act like he was from a completely different world altogether. With the way he acted, it was if he had never seen an airship or an android before.

Even something as simple as her scroll had drawn his full attention.

And then there was also the most annoying habit that he had of simply running off without letting even her know. Winter knew full well that the man was in the very same room as her when the General had given her the order to be his escort. At this point, she was almost certain that he was doing it on purpose, whether it was running off to badger the engineers with countless questions regarding how an airship managed to fly, or something as absurd as looking for androids to try and have a conversation with.

It was driving her absolutely insane. And this was only within the confines of their airship, she didn't even want to imagine how hard her babysitting job was going to get when they actually got back to Atlas and he had free reign to run all around the entire city.

"Ephraim!" Winter shouted out the name for the third time, "Can you stop running off without letting me know where you're going?!"

"Ah, there you are Miss Schnee!" The man replied in an all too excited tone, "Tell me, what kind of arcane arts allows this strange device over here to display all of these different moving pictures?"

"There's no arcane arts or any other forms of magic involved." She grounded out, the words feeling foreign on her tongue, as she tried her damnedest to keep her temper in check. "It's just a television that's powered by Dust. The same as everything else in this ship."

If Winter heard the words arcane arts again when it came to mundane everyday things like the microwave in the ship's kitchen, she was afraid that she might just lose it.

"Ah, so this Dust is at work again then?" Ephraim asked in wonder, "How very curious. Miss Schnee, I must get my hands on some of this Dust for research purposes."

Winter could already feel the beginnings of a headache.

"Look Ephraim, if I get you some Dust, would you just please stop running off by yourself?"

She'd give him a whole damn warehouse full of Dust if it would just get him to sit still for one second.

"Ah, my apologies. I can get a little too excited at times." Ephraim chuckled a bit as he bowed his head. "Yharnam had its own wonders to explore, but I find the marvels of your people just as intriguing, if not more so."

There was that name again, Yharnam. Winter had done a quick search for any settlements that went by that name on her scroll earlier, out of simple curiosity, but her queries had come up empty as expected. She was sure that the General knew more, but it wasn't her place to ask. She was simply a soldier and her job was to follow orders, not ask why.

"Tell me Miss Schnee, what is the city of Atlas like?" Ephraim asked with a curious glint in those strange golden orbs of his, "Is it similar to Wakefield?"

She simply shook her head at that.

"No, not in the slightest. Though I'm sure you'll enjoy your stay in Atlas, with how much fun you're having simply exploring the airship." She replied in a dry tone. "Atlas is the most technologically advanced city in the world after all."

"Truly? Now I'm equally as curious as I am excited."

"That's great and all Ephraim, but do try to reign in your excitement a bit when we land." Winter helpfully suggested, "I wouldn't want you to wander off and get lost in a city as big as Atlas."

It was already proving to be a challenge in itself trying to keep an eye on him just on the airship, much less an entire city.

Evidently however, with how the man managed to slip away once again, right when she looked away for one brief second to salute a superior officer that walked by, her suggestion had fallen on deaf ears. With a long sigh, she roamed around the ship until she found the man trying to strike up a casual conversation about the weather with one of the Atlesian Knight androids that was currently occupied with mopping the floor.

She felt one of her eyebrows twitch just a tiny bit in response.

Winter was never one to doubt the General's orders, but she was starting to think that perhaps she wasn't the best operative for this mission.