Ruby Rose. If you were to ask some of the many students, teachers, and staff members at the prestigious Beacon Academy about that name you could probably get a variety of responses.

Most of the staff would tell you that at 15 years old, she was one of the youngest people to ever enroll in their fine school. Many professors that work with her would tell you that the young girl was full of potential and that she would go far as a Huntress. Indeed, she was accepted into the school two years early on account of her being a talented combatant and later proving that she had the tactical acumen of a team leader during her initiation.

The students that have trained with her would probably know her as the peppy, if a bit socially awkward, leader of the cleverly named Team RWBY. Many of the students who went up against her in sparring matches however, would tell you that in a fight she is fast. Unbelievably fast. The fact that her weapon of choice is a combination scythe and sniper rife would probably be brought up in conversation. Word had it that she built that monstrosity with her own two hands back at Signal Academy.

The Crescent Rose. That was the name Ruby gave to her weapon. It was a beautiful example of a category of weapons called High Caliber Sniper Scythes, or HCSS for short. She never went anywhere without it; the weapon could almost always be found folded up on her back under the red cloak she always wore. She maintained her weapon almost religiously; cleaning, polishing, sharpening, lubricating, and generally tweaking it every chance she got.

Some students claimed they had seen her sitting in the locker room cradling the scythe like a baby and whispering to it.

When asked about this Ruby simply said that they didn't understand proper weapon maintenance.

So, what kind of picture do all these details paint? They paint the image of a quirky, talented, mechanically inclined girl that's practically oozing with potential. Knowing this, it wouldn't be much of a surprise to anyone if she did something else that was strange.

It all started one late night with Ruby laying in her bunk and watching television on her Scroll. The bright screen of the electronic device illuminated her face and the wall behind her. Her teammates, who she shared the room with, were all asleep though so no one was bothered. From the perspective of an observer, headphones blared incomprehensibly as the girl flipped through various programs and channels.

"...but wait! There's more!"

"The chances of survivors are slim to none, unfor-..."

"...UFOs. Alien invaders? Or simple delusions? Find out ne-..."

"...the Brown Bear in its natural habitat..."

"...and that's why its called a clock radio!"

Ruby sighed. Hundreds of channels and nothing to watch. She was about to close her Scroll and sleep when the next show caught her attention.

"...and welcome to Late Night D.I.Y. where the most interesting home projects are displayed and explained. Tonight we'll be discussing how a local man converted a trashed security android into a personal robotic assistant."

Ruby settled in to watch; for some reason the show sounded very interesting to her.

She was completely absorbed into the nearly hour long program. She watched as the interviewee explained how he found a derelict android, an AK-130 security bot apparently, in a scrap yard. She listened as he explained all the things he had to repair and replace "... tighten a joint here, replace a fried interface there...". When she saw how the newly refurbished machine performed however, Ruby knew she had to have one.

She imagined what it would be like to have a servant. "I'm sure Weiss would know something about that." Ruby thought snidely in reference to her well off teammate. She didn't have to stretch her imagination far to see what kind of benefits of having an assistant would be. For example, she could send a robot into the dining hall to retrieve cookies. She could get cookies or strawberries without ever having to leave her dorm!

Even with that single application it was a worthy cause in her mind. However, as a Huntress in training she was expected to slay monsters. Naturally that meant if she had a personal robot it would need to be able to do the same. Perhaps keep it simple and tack a bunch of guns onto it? Or give it a melee weapon like a sword or a spear or maybe even a scythe like hers.

Ruby figured she'd cross that bridge when she got there. She put away her Scroll and pulled her sleep mask over her eyes. That night she dreamt of mechanical cookies and chocolate chipped swords.

The following day during a free period, Ruby ventured to one of the various practice rooms located on academy grounds. This particular room had robotic practice units which students used to simulate being attacked by multiple enemies at once. The girl wasn't interested in that particular feature today though. She passed the door that led into that specific room and instead headed to a nearby office across the hall.

Ruby knocked lightly on the door marked 'Quartermaster and Maintenance' and entered the room. Inside she found a small, narrow office with a wooden desk on the other end of the room. Behind the desk sat an older gentleman with a balding head of grey hair. He was busily typing away at a computer stationed in front of him.

"Take a seat." The man said without looking up from his work.

Ruby awkwardly shuffled into a chair directly opposite of the man.

The apparent Quartermaster finally looked at her with dark brown eyes and said "So, what do ya need young lady?"

She began nervously touching her index fingers together "Well... I was wondering if I could have something..."

The man raised an eyebrow at that, rolled his chair back and placed his hands behind his head. "If you need supplies from the school's warehouse you're going to need to fill out a requisition form. If you need something we don't have and you can't get yourself, talk to 'Acquisition'. If you just need something remotely related to weapons talk to someone over there under 'Ordnance'. Honestly though it would probably be faster to just go into the city and shop around..."

"Umm no." Ruby began "I was wondering if I could somehow get a hold of one of your robots. It doesn't have to be working, just preferably with its arms and legs still attached."

The Quartermaster looked thoughtful and responded "Well, normally I'd tell you tough luck but... there is one particular unit that would be far more convenient for me if I got rid of it than having it repaired."

"Why?" The girl questioned.

"I don't just fill out paperwork all day you know. I got to maintain these buckets of bolts too. And this particular unit is going to be an absolute pain in the as- I mean rear, to fix. Some jerkoff severely damaged the core systems and, due to school policies I hardly agree with, I can't just swap out the parts: I got to fix 'em by hand." The man explained.

"However, if its deemed irreparable or better yet missing I'd be able to order a new one instead."

"So... can I have it?"

"...If you're gonna fix it, yes, you can have it."

Ruby was about to jump out of her chair and give the man a handshake or even a hug when he raised a finger. "But."

"You have to tell me what you need it for."

She gave the Quartermaster her best straight face and stated "I'm going to build a robo-butler."

The Quartermaster blinked "Alright then. Just... don't burn down the school or anything." He clicked around on his computer for a few moments before finally turning back to Ruby.

"Okay, you know where we keep our robots?"

"Yep."

"Okay, great. Just go into the storage room and find locker 23. It'll be already unlocked. Uh, there should be a dolly somewhere in the room to help you move it. You are taking it to your dorm right?

"Umm, yeah I guess."

"Great. Good luck then, on your project. Have fun."

Ruby smiled warmly at the older man as she turned and left his office "Will do!"

It was only after she had dragged the machine back to her dorm and opened it up did she find out the extent of the damage. True to the Quartermaster's word, the damage on the motherboard could be best described as deep fried. Then flash frozen. Then filled with bullet holes.

Fortunately, the damage was only in a single section; the limbs and other important pieces appeared to be functional. The only other damage was superficial. The paint being scratched up from years of abuse. 'Oh well, I was gonna repaint it anyway.' Ruby thought.

Indeed, it wouldn't do if her robot didn't match her usual black and red clothing scheme. The lightish grey would have to go, as well as the obnoxious Beacon Academy crossed axe logos emblazoned upon it.

Sighing, the girl closed the back panel; her hands running over the small engraved text that stated the androids model number. 'AK-130T'. A special variant, apparently. Compared to the standard model used throughout the world, the AK-130T had no internal weapons, making its arms shorter and closer to normal human proportions while also being slightly denser since what could have been weapon weight was now solid alloyed metals. Its hands were also far more dexterous so it could use weapons or tools an overseer assigned it. According to the manual, at least.

Ruby dragged the robot to the corner of the room on the right side of her bunk. As she set the machine against the wall the girl realized she had forgotten to tell any of her teammates her idea. She knew her sister, Yang, would support her and that Blake would probably be indifferent to it. But Weiss... Ruby didn't know how her icy partner would react. Hopefully positively. She had made that promise to be the 'best teammate ever' just a few weeks ago, so surely she would at least go along with it.

She glanced up at a nearby clock, noting she had ten minutes till her next class started. Ruby gave the broken android, her android, one last look before leaving the room and locking the door behind her.

Darkness. Darkness all around. A still, quiet void. Suffocating in its omnipresence.

He couldn't feel his hands. Or legs. Or head. Or anything for that matter. All he could 'see' was pitch black nothing. Though, he supposed you couldn't really see nothing per se, but the fact still stood. He saw nothing.

He wasn't quite sure how long he had been in this state or how this situation came to be. All he knew was a vague awareness of himself. He was still thinking though, thinking that he could think. He counted that as a plus.

Thinking. Thoughts. Memories. Remember... remember! How had he ended up like this anyway?

'You have to remember.' A voice spoke in his mind. It wasn't really a voice. It was like... an idea that wasn't from himself. Close your eyes and imagine a sentence in your head. Kinda like that.

'Very perceptive.'

"Thanks creepy voice."

'I thought I wasn't a voice.'

"Spontaneously-forming-idea-thing is a bit cumbersome. Voice is much easier."

'A fair point.'

Right. He needed to remember something. He tried to find his most recent memory.

[Darkness. Darkness all around. A still, quie-]

"Too recent!" He sighed. He idly wondered how he sighed if he had no lungs or body that he was aware of but decided he would answer that another time.

"A little further now..."

[He walked down the street illuminated by the soft yellow light of a street lamp. A cool breeze ruffled his hair as he shifted his grip on the brown paper bag he held in front of him. A quick glance inside the bag confirmed that the contents hadn't become too jostled.]

"Better."

'Try to remember.'

"What am I looking for?"

'How you arrived here.'

He focused once again, trying to follow the previous memory.

[Out of the corner of his eye he noticed the brick wall to his left light up. Logically, he looked right expecting to see a car approaching the cross at the T-intersection he was passing. Two bright white head lights were visible in the dark; their shining orbs like the eyes of some beast.]

Beast was a very apt description.

[The screeching of rubber on asphalt, the air in his lungs leaving violently, a sickening series of snaps and cracks, and pain. So much PAIN. Then finally, merciful darkness.]

"Oh..."

'Indeed.'

"I'm... dead?"

'Yes.'

Ruby stared intently at a glass shelf filled with a selection of electronic parts.

"Hmm."

"...Hello, miss? Do you need help?"

"Hmmmm."

"Are you looking for anything in particular?"

"Hmmmmmm."

"Alright then if you need anything I'll be right ove-."

"Actually! I am looking for something."

The sales clerk smiled at the teenager; like a predator baring its teeth at a potential catch. Finally a chance for a commission!

"Oh? And what would that be?"

The girl smiled just as brightly right back at him. "A core processor for a AK-130T is all."

The would-be salesman noticeably paused before responding. "Well miss, it seems you've come to the right store. You see, there's an item that fits your needs and its... kinda on sale right now." He gestured with his hand for Ruby to follow him.

The clerk led her to the front counter, dramatically spinning on his heel and letting his dark blue work vest sway in the motion. He reached under the counter and pulled out a small, plain, brown cardboard box.

"Bum da da daaaa! And here it is!"

The worker opened the box enthusiastically and presented it to his young customer.

"Oooooooo! What is it?"

Inside the box, Ruby found a processor chip. The special thing about it was the fact a red gem or crystal of some sort had been embedded into it.

"That, is a slightly modified robotics processor that's standard in most of the the AK line. It... was the project of the late owner of the store." The employee answered solemnly.

"Oh... I'm sorry to hear that." Ruby tenderly replied.

"It's alright. It happened a few months ago. She had no living family to speak of, so responsibility of the store fell to the employees. Why this is relevant you may be wondering is because her Will specifically stated for one of us to give this to a customer the first chance we got." The salesman took a breath "So, what would it take for you to go home with this item?"

"Well, are you sure it'll work in a AK-130T?" The red cloaked girl inquired.

"Positive. In fact it should plug into most anything electronic made in Atlas."

"Really? That's convenient."

"Yeah. You gotta love Atlesian efficiency, ha ha."

Ruby shared the laugh, thinking her partner would definitely know something about that.

"So, how much is it exactly?"

The salesman scratched his head. "Considering the circumstances I'd say 140 Lien would be fair."

"I'll take it!" The girl immediately agreed. She had been prepared to pay twice that amount so she didn't see any downside.

Ruby pulled out a wallet and retrieved the required amount of money. A moment later she left the store, box (in bag) in hand. It was the last piece she needed, having spent the last several days tracking down spare parts around the school and city. She felt good about the deal she got. In fact, as soon as she laid her hands upon the piece she knew she had to have it. It was like... when she touched it, it touched her back.

If she wanted to be poetic, Ruby would have said the little part touched her Soul.

Perhaps, if she were paying attention, she would have found that to be more literal than it should have been.

"If I'm dead, then this is the afterlife?" He asked.

'No.' The Other answered.

"Then what's going on? Why am I here?"

'To hear an offer.'

"Well, I got nothing else to do. I'm listening.

'From this point on, you're fate diverges into two distinct paths. You may rest and await the end of everything, or you may live again.'

"What kind of an offer is that? Anyone would choose life!"

'Because the only reason you get to make this choice is because of special circumstances.'

"What kind of special circumstances?"

'The impossible has happened. The walls between have been breached.'

"What's that supposed to mean?"

'It means Terra has connected to one of the other realms.'

"Wait other realms? Like other worlds?"

'Similar, yes.'

"So there's a way between two worlds now. What does this have to do with me?"

'Victim of happenstance.'

"What?"

'The conditions of your demise and events in both your world and the other have made you the only being capable of transference by this method at this time. Should you choose to accept this offer, you will live again in this other world. If you decline, you may rest peacefully and forget any of this happened.'

He weighed his options. On one hand he could sleep; a nice, long, dreamless sleep could do him some good. On the other hand: live again. In another world even! How could he pass that up? How could he even think about missing that chance? When he was a kid, he always dreamed about going to space. To see other planets and meet strange creatures. Maybe... maybe this could be something like that.

"I can't really say no to a chance to live again, can I?"

'I didn't think you would.'

"Then consider your offer accepted. I want to live. What do I do now?"

'Good. Very good. Now, relax and... prepare for reanimation.' With that, he felt a presence he didn't know was there leave him and the dark nothingness around him lifted. Revealed from behind the veil he didn't know was there before was another wall. This one was red with many facets. It reminded him of a gemstone... like a ruby.

It was a beautiful surface. All clean and polished. Entrancing really. Red wasn't really his color though. He much preferred its opposite: green. The wall seemed to have read his mind because with just that thought it turned a vivid, emerald green.

Thinking that he could change the color at will, he brought thoughts of blue to his mind. It took several moments to realize it wasn't working. Maybe it was because he favored green over anything else? He mentally shrugged it off and focused on something more important.

Now what? How long until... he... got a... new... body?

The strangest sensation overcame him, like electricity coursing through him as his vision alternated between the emerald wall and static.

More senses came to him. He could feel the gentle tug of gravity and the solid ground under his feet. He had feet! And arms, legs, torso and head too! He experimentally flexed his hands and tested the motion of his arms. When he was satisfied with that he marched in place a few times. He didn't dare actually move though; he hadn't gained any vision or hearing yet.

The thought occurred to him that if anyone saw his little routine, they would have found it quite strange. But what were the chances anyone was watching?

"What's it doing?"

"I have no idea."

"I thought you said you were good with this kind of thing?"

"I said I was a dork with weapons, Weiss, software is not my thing."

"Ruby, I hope none of the parts you bought were faulty."

"I hope so too..."

Ruby and Weiss stood in their dormitory and watched as Ruby's robot flexed, nodded, and marched in the center of the room. Thankfully it hadn't actually moved from its spot. The optics hadn't powered on yet, as evidenced by the missing glow from its 'face'.

It was around seven in the evening when they got back from their trip into the city. Blake and Yang had changed back into their school uniforms and left because they had an evening class that day. They said they'd be in the library for a study session afterwards. Weiss had decided to stay and study in the dorm while Ruby tinkered on her project. Weiss was content on studying in relative silence with her partner and team leader in the room. In her mind, just occupying the same room as her was bonding enough. She was thoroughly engrossed in her textbook however, so naturally Weiss nearly jumped out of her chair when Ruby seemingly materialized at her side.

"Hey Weiss!" The younger leader greeted.

"Gah!" The white haired girl had sputtered but quickly recovered "What do you want?"

"I'm about to start it up for the first time!" Ruby announced "You wanna watch?"

The more studious of the pair was about to bite off a scathing remark of having something better to do, but remembered her promise. 'Best teammate ever, Weiss.' Her textbook could wait.

"Okay, sure."

Ruby smiled brightly and zoomed off to her android's side and flipped open a back panel. "Time to wake up!" She pressed down a finger on its back; presumably the power button. A trio of horizontal bars on its chest lit up with a lively crimson light. Which shortly flickered out and turned green.

"Well, that's weird."

That was a few minutes ago. Back in the present the android was still exercising, as it were.

"Should... we do something? Weiss tentatively asked.

"Nah, just give it a few more minutes. It might be some kind of weird start up sequence." Ruby said

INITIALIZING

"Well that is definitely strange." He thought to himself. He didn't think the first thing he'd see in his presumably new body was a elongated, hexagonal text box with that word. As the word vanished a grid pattern traced itself out on his vision, first the vertical lines then the horizontal. They flared brightly then vanished shortly thereafter.

He consciously stilled his body and straightened his back. Doing his best to 'look' what he assumed was straight ahead. He prepared himself just in time for one moment his vision was featureless blackness, the next, like switching channels on a television, his sight finally returned to him. And the sight before him wasn't exactly one he was expecting.

The first and most obvious things before him were two other people. Two young ladies specifically, maybe teenagers. The one on the left was wearing all black and red. A black, long sleeved blouse and skirt with red trimmings and some kind of red stringed corset thing on her abdomen. Black boots with red laces, black leggings. Glancing up he noted her relatively short hair: with bangs parted to the right, black... with a red tint. Speaking of red, she also wore a red cape or cloak on her back.

She had a hand rested on her chin, but as he observed her it fell to her side as she turned and said something to the other person in the room. He saw her lips move but didn't hear anything. A small text box in the corner of his vision helpfully stated 'INITIALIZING AUDIO'.

The other person in the room, the girl on the right, was dressed in white and a light shade of blue. She wore a white, thigh-length dress and bolero jacket. He gave her the same once over as the other girl and noted the calf-length wedge boots and how the collar on her jacket was scarlet on the inside. But the most striking feature on this girl was her long white hair tied up in an off center ponytail. How did someone that young looking have white hair?

He wondered whether it was natural, dyed, or if the girl was really just that stressed out.

While he was pondering this, Red approached him. She walked around him as if inspecting him; given his circumstances she probably was. When he turned his head to track her however, he got a look of his new body.

His body appeared to be made of metal. He brought a hand up in front of his face and confirmed his suspicions. His hand, his arm, presumably his whole body was unmistakably mechanical. As he flexed his fingers, he admired how beautifully articulated and finely machined they were. They had the same range of motion a fleshy body would've had.

While he was occupied admiring his hand, Red had apparently stepped back in front of him; silver eyes looking directly up at his own. Her lips moved, and judging from his limited experience reading lips, he deduced she had probably said "Hello".

Not wanting to be rude he tried to return her greeting but nothing happened. Nothing came out of his mouth. Although, he realized he probably didn't have a mouth but made sure anyway. Sure enough, his hands found nothing but smooth surface on his face. A new text box appeared in the corner of his vision: 'INITIALIZING SPEECH'

Red began speaking again and he still couldn't hear her. He was about to gesture with his arms to communicate that fact, when his hearing finally returned.

"-onding? Hello? Are you working? Hmm maybe there's something wrong with the voice commands..."

He brought one hand up to where his ear would've been with the palm facing forward and then brought it down, closed it into a fist and stuck a thumb up. The intended message was 'I can hear'. Red seemed to comprehend this for the next thing she said was "Can you understand me?"

He nodded his head in affirmative.

"Yes! Alright what about your speech function? Can you talk?"

He tapped his neck and held up one finger. 'In a moment.' Red didn't seem to quite understand with the way she raised an eyebrow and turned to look at White.

White however understood and told Red "I think it's still starting up." Red turned back to look at him. "So you can talk, but not right now?"

He nodded in affirmation and held one finger up again.

"Right. Just give you a moment." Red surmised and walked off towards his right and sat on the bottom bunk of a bunk bed he just noticed.

'That doesn't look safe.' He thought. Indeed the 'bunk bed' looked like a hasty modification of two normal twin sized beds with the top bunk being suspended from the ceiling on ropes. It wasn't even level! Looking to his left he found another shoddy construction: another set of single beds piled on top of each other, this one having stacks of books wedged between the posts to grant additional height.

'That has to be some kind of safety code violation or something.'

He was trying to think of a possible solution to fix the bunk beds (besides acquiring new frames outright) when White spoke up. "You know, I've never heard of an Android communicating through gestures before."

Android? They thought he was a robot? Well, he supposed he probably was now. It would explain the text boxes he keeps seeing and the whole 'being made of metal' thing.

This was not what he was expecting when that... Other offered him a second chance.

"Neither have I. It looks so smooth and natural too." Red responded.

He added to the exchange by simply shrugging.

What followed was several long minutes of him just standing still and observing the room while the two young women watched him. He thought about just leaving the room but he had some questions and these two seemed friendly enough. If only he could talk sooner...

As soon as that thought was half formed the text box in the corner of his vision flashed green and said 'READY' before disappearing. He tried to feel if there was anything different now and felt a new presence roughly where his lips would have been. He tried mentally reaching out for it, similar to the way you'd isolate a single muscle or body part, and instantly felt it come 'alive' under his attention. He let it go, instinctively knowing that if he thought of something while it was active it would be vocalized.

'Wait how did I know that? Why was it instinctive? Was it some kind of perk of being a robot?'

'Well, only one way to find out.' He thought wondering if his instincts were correct. He prepared his first words in this supposedly new world.

"If I'm right, then this is a speaker."

Ruby's head shot up at the synthesized voice and found her robot looking right at her from the center of the room.

"I guess I was right. Hello." It said.

"You're fully functional now?" She asked it, stood and walked in front of it.

"As far as I can tell, yeah." It responded.

"Alright! Wait, now what do I do? Uhhh..." Ruby dashed off towards the desk next to the one Weiss was sitting at and picked up a small booklet entitled 'AK-130T Owner's Manual'. "Umm let's see here... Aha! Test voice commands!" She cleared her throat and struck a pose. "AK-130T! Step forward!" She yelled while pointing at the machine for added emphasis.

The robot merely looked at her blankly before pointing at itself and saying "Who, me?"

Ruby visibly deflated at that and flipped a few pages in the booklet "Hmm, if unit does not respond make sure unit recognizes you as operator..."

"Uh, actually, Miss. If I could I ask a few questions." The android vocalized.

Ruby looked up from her booklet, first at the robot then Weiss. The white haired girl was giving her a questioning stare. She gave her teammate a shrug and a 'I don't know' face before turning back to the android and answering "Umm, okay?"

"Great. First question: I'm a robot, right?" The machine asked.

"Uh, yeah." Ruby oh so eloquently replied.

"Okay. Just making sure. Next question: What's our deal here? Did you buy me or what?"

"Well kinda. You were broken, so I put you back together from parts I found."

"So, you own me?"

"...Yes?"

"Oh." The robot stepped back and fell on its rear; its back propped against the bookshelf under the window. It adopted a thinker's pose with its right hand under its chin and its left hand on its right elbow.

Ruby could already see there was something seriously wrong here. The manual didn't say anything about the unit asking questions. It was supposed to just be a mindless drone that blindly followed simple orders! It was almost as if...

It had a soul.

That thought scared her. If her robot had somehow become a living, intelligent being, she couldn't keep it around and have it do stuff for her. That would be like... slavery! Which is wrong!

Working with that assumption, the red cloaked girl sat down next to the thinking machine. "Hey."

"You're not like any other robot, are you?"

The android in question glanced at her before staring at the floor "What gave you that idea?"

"Well, you ask questions. A machine waits for someone to tell it what to do... and it doesn't care what it is or who owns it."

The android was silent so Ruby took that as a sign to keep talking.

"But you don't seem to be like that. You're like, alive. With a soul. In fact..." She reached out and grasped its right hand "I can feel it."

And she could. That feeling, the powerful, almost indescribable feeling that could only be an Aura.

"You can feel my soul? Literally or figuratively?" It questioned.

"Literally." She answered earnestly.

They shared a quiet moment which was broken shortly by Weiss calling out from the other side of the room. "Wait, it has a soul? How can a machine have a soul? Atlesian Knights don't exactly leave the factory with one you know!"

The android turned its head and looked at Ruby "Atlesian Knight?" it asked her to which she replied by knocking on it's shoulder "What you're supposed to be."

"Oh." It suddenly stood up and started pacing back and forth. "I don't think I'm the most qualified person to ask, but I'll tell you everything I know." It began.

"Okay so one night I pay a visit to the grocery store 'cause I'm out of milk and I already poured a bowl full of cereal. Anyway, I go over there buy what I need and start walking back home. Everything was going fine and dandy until I pass this T-intersection. I see some headlights, car doesn't stop apparently and now I'm dead. Float in darkness for a few minutes or days not sure which, get an extraordinarily vague offer from a creepy voice thing and next thing I know I'm a robot." The android finished.

Both girls looked at each other before looking at the robot. "What?"

"I died and came back as a robot."

Weiss recovered from the revelation first "How... is that even possible?"

"Beats me. I'm just glad to be alive again. Not what I was expecting though."

"Wait, so you were a person before? Where are you from? Maybe we can track down your body and reverse this somehow." Ruby suggested.

"There are two things wrong with that. One, I wouldn't even know how to go about moving souls between bodies and two, remember that creepy voice thing I mentioned?"

"Yeah?"

"Well it implied, no, outright stated I'd wake up in another world or something. But I haven't seen anything too different yet. Except her hair." The android pointed towards Weiss.

"Hey! What's wrong with my hair?" Weiss exclaimed defensively.

"It's white."

"So!?"

"Why would you dye your hair white?"

"Dye!? I'll have you know my hair is completely natural!"

"Strange."

Weiss was about to go off on a tirade before Ruby interrupted her. "Wait, did you just say your from another world?"

"From what I understand, yes."

"Does that mean you're an alien?" The girl asked excitedly.

"...I was Human, if that's what you're getting at." It responded flatly.

"Yeah but if your really from another world you're technically an alien!" She retorted.

The android held up a finger and, if it had a mouth, Ruby was sure it would have been open in a ready reply but its blank green face offered no expression. "You... are correct. Technically correct, which is the best kind." Ruby smiled at her small victory.

"How can you even be sure you're on another world anyway?" Weiss jumped back into the conversation.

"Hmm..." the robot audibly hummed. "Well tell me, do the words America, Europe, Africa, or Asia mean anything to you?"

"Nope." Ruby responded.

"No, they don't." Answered a bemused Weiss. "What do they mean?"

"They're the names of some continents where I'm from." It said. "But I think there is one surefire way to know for sure." The android moved towards the window and pulled aside the curtains. It stared intently into the night sky.

Ruby stood up next to the machine and looked outside as well, trying to discern what exactly it was looking at.

"If I wasn't sure before I'm definitely sure now."

"Why what is it?"

"The moon."

"What about it?"

"It's broken."

"Oh. I'm guessing it's in one piece back home?" Ruby speculated.

"Yeah, it is." The android confirmed.

"Hmm."

"Hmm indeed."

The duo pondered on the new information for a moment before the robot suddenly spoke up. "Well none of that really matters now does it? I'm here now and apparently I've unintentionally possessed your ah, property. Sorry about that."

"It's no problem." The girl answered sincerely.

"...Now what do I do? I get the feeling that a sentient robot looking for a job isn't exactly a common sight around here." It stated

"Nope. Wait, what do you need a job for?" She asked.

"Living expenses of course. I'll probably need to ingest fuel or recharge or something every so often. And let's not forget maintenance costs..."

"Well, you could always stay here." Ruby suggested.

"Pardon?"

"Yeah, I mean, I was already planning on taking care of a robot. Not much has changed. You need somewhere to stay and someone to take care of you. I need an assistant. It's a win-win right?"

The android turned to face her "Well, what kind of work would this entail?"

"Anything I might need help with, I guess. Picking things up, cleaning things up, moving things, killing things. You know, anything an extra set of hands might come in handy for." She happily explained.

"Killing things? I hope you mean small bugs." It worried.

"Those too. But I mean things a little bigger than that."

He knew there had to be a catch. A second shot at life? There had to be a catch. At first he thought waking up as a machine was the catch. Which he was okay with. It would take some getting used to, but it wasn't a big deal. Then he thought officially being the property of a teenage girl was the catch. Which didn't seem so bad; she seemed talented if she could put something as complicated as a humanoid robot together.

Now, he was having second thoughts about that.

"What do you mean 'bigger'?" He asked.

The girl with the red cloak, still wearing a cheery smile, elaborated. "Like scorpions the size of buses, and birds the size of aircraft!"

"...Are you being serious?" He hoped to God she wasn't.

"Of course! There's also wolves and bears and snakes and a whole bunch of other monsters that want to rip people's faces off!" Her face turned to an expression of puzzlement. "Are there no Grimm where you're from?"

"What's a Grimm?" He asked just as confused.

"You know, the monsters that do nothing but hurt people."

"The soulless monsters that have been bent on the destruction of humanity for as long as we can remember." White added matter-of-factly. She was still standing near the desks at the front of the room.

And he found the catch. He was reborn into a world where humanity had to fight or face extinction. Oh joy.

"So, wait. You're telling me that this is a world where violent creatures are actively trying to wipe out civilization?" He voiced, receiving solemn nods. "There was nothing like that back home. All the animals the could pose an existential danger to humans are either extinct, not aggressive enough, or too few in number to do anything."

"Must be peaceful." Red wistfully sighed.

"Hardly." He replied "People still kill each other all the time."

Red seemed disheartened by this while White nodded knowingly. He wondered how dangerous these 'Grimm' were if Red honestly expected him to be able to kill them. He asked in a roundabout way.

"So, how have you guys survived this long against genocidal monsters?"

"Proper application of Dust and Aura of course." White recited.

"Big walls, razor sharp blades, and a whole lot of guns." Red said.

While what Red said made perfect sense to him, White's statement confused him. Though he pressed on with the questions. "And you expect me to be able to kill one of these things?"

"You won't be alone. I'll be right there with you." Red assured.

"You can fight?"

"Yep! I can, she can, everyone here at the academy can." She said proudly.

"Academy?"

"Oh yeah. We're in Beacon Academy, where the very best come to train to be Huntsmen!"

"What's a Huntsmen?"

"Someone who fights for what's right and protects those who can't help themselves!" She explained. "Normally we'd be called upon to slay Grimm, but Huntsmen and Huntresses are also supposed to help keep the peace between the kingdoms."

It got better, or worse, apparently. Not only was he in a world inhabited by blood-thirsty monsters, but there was a special group of people conditioned to fight them. And this girl was most likely training to become one. Wonderful.

"And you're one of these Huntresses? You've killed before?" He questioned.

"Not yet, we're still in training. But yeah. I have a few Grimm kills to my name." Red stated.

He sized the girl up. She couldn't be more than five-two! And she looked so innocent...

"That's hard to believe." He said truthfully.

Red gave him a bright smile and stepped back a few paces. She reached under her cloak and pulled out a rather large rectangular... thing. She held it out in front of her and it transformed. It extended and unfolded into a mechanical masterpiece: a scythe whose length was almost twice the girl's height. More interesting however were what looked like an optical scope, bolt action, and a magazine fitted into a receiver along the weapons haft.

"Is... that a gun?" He asked dumbfounded.

"It's also a scythe." She answered with near manic grin plastered on her face.

What. The. Hell.

He was going to question it. He was gonna ask important things like 'How do you even lift that' or 'How is that even practical'. A small, insane part of him wanted to ask about its muzzle velocity. But he didn't say anything. The girl in front of him looked serious with that thing in her hands. A crazy kind of serious, but serious all the same.

He consciously reminded himself he was on another world and that he would most likely see things that would challenge what he believed to be possible. "Sure, why not."

She laughed. Red laughed like any other innocent kid would. "So what do you think? You wanna work with my team?"

Team. He was sure she meant besides her and White over there. It would explain why there was two sets of bunk beds in this room. But did he want to work with her? It would be nice to have some friends in this new world. It would mean slaying monsters and saving would mean... being someone who mattered. A hero; like a damn fairytale. And besides, it's not like he had anything better to do at the moment.

"I think... I'm gonna have to say yes." He finally said.

Red swiftly folded her scythe-gun back up and put it on her back. "I'm glad for that. Now I won't have to tell anyone the robot I built ran away!" She giggled.

He audibly laughed at Red's little joke but said something he felt was important. "I expect to be entering this agreement as an equal. I ask that you treat me like a human being and not so much disposable equipment."

"Of course. I wouldn't have it any other way." Red said genuinely.

He suddenly realized something: he never got her name or introduced himself! He would rectify it as they sealed the deal.

He stuck a hand out in a waiting handshake which thankfully didn't seem to be a foreign concept here as the girl quickly reciprocated the gesture. As they shook he simply said "Charlie Flater."

"I'm sorry?"

"My name. It's Charlie Flater."

Understanding dawned on her face as she replied "Oh shoot I never introduced myself either did I? My name's Ruby Rose."

"A pleasure to meet you Ruby. And what about you?" He called out the only other person in the room. "I presume you have a name?"

The white clad girl scoffed and trudged over. "Weiss Schnee." She said in a flat, neutral tone. He broke off the shake with Ruby and offered his hand to Weiss which she reluctantly took a hold of and gave two, very stiff shakes before pulling back.

"Ruby. Hallway. Now." Weiss grabbed the red cloaked girl by the wrist and drug her off.

"Wha- Weiss? Hey! What's this about!?" Was all the protest the other girl got out before the door slammed behind them, leaving Charlie alone in the room. 'Or is it a dormitory?' He thought, remembering that Ruby said they where in an academy.

He wondered what caused Weiss to react the way she did. He knew next to nothing about the white haired girl so this could be normal behaviour. Maybe.

"Hmm."

Weiss let go of Ruby's arm and slammed the door behind them. Ruby herself was confused by their sudden departure from the room so offered no resistance.

"Ruby." Weiss started.

"Yes Weiss?" Ruby answered.

"WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU THINKING!?" Weiss demanded.

"Hey, relax! What's the problem?" The red of the two pleaded.

"What's the problem? My teammates 'project' is being possessed by an apparently alien soul and your just gonna let it stay? Can't you see that there are some slight concerns?"

"Name one!"

"We know nothing about it! It could be homicidal!" Weiss reasoned.

"If he tries anything I can always shut him down from my Scroll!" Ruby countered, then remembering she hadn't synched the device to the robot yet. She decided to keep quiet about that.

"He? It's a machine Ruby. It's an it."

"His name is Charlie and he's a he."

"Fine." Weiss huffed in frustration. "Why do you even want to keep him? I don't think anything like this has happened before. Maybe we should turn him over to the experts."

"I don't think there are any experts on this sort of thing, Weiss."

"You know what I mean Ruby. This" she pointed towards the door "is above our level. We should take him to someone with authority. We, should take him to Ozpin. The Headmaster has to know."

"Bu- Weiss!"

"Ruby, as your teammate and your partner I must insist you do this much."

Ruby knew Weiss was right. She knew it was impulsive to arrange for a complete stranger to basically join her team as quickly as she did. She also knew someone would know about Charlie sooner or later. So why not let someone know about him now? And who better than the Headmaster of Beacon? However she feared that Charlie would get taken away; to be cut apart and studied.

'But someone will know eventually.' She couldn't help but feel protective of him. Ruby felt slightly responsible for the whole situation they were in, after all she rebuilt the android in the first place.

"You're right Weiss" Ruby relented "let's take him to Ozpin."

"Thank you." Weiss let out a relieved sigh.

The two informed Charlie of their intentions for him to meet the Headmaster of the academy. As far as they knew, his particular condition was unheard of. So they deemed it necessary for the head of the institution to be informed of the situation.

Ruby and Weiss walked side by side as he followed them a from a short distance behind as they led him across campus. The few people out wandering to and fro paid them little mind as most just gave a short glance or turned their heads to look as they passed. This small detail stuck out to him; it told him that he wasn't an uncommon sight.

Their short journey ended in the lobby of a large tower near the center of the school. Inside, the trio moved into a waiting elevator and Ruby pressed the button indicating the room at the top of the structure.

The elevator began its climb to the top of the tower. Charlie half expected ambient music to begin to play, but the ascent was silent save for a breath of nervousness from Ruby. Had this been normal circumstances, he would offered the two girls a stick of gum: one of his go-to methods for defeating awkward silences. Needless to say he didn't have a pack of gum on hand, or rather, in pocket.

'After this I should get a backpack or bag of some kind. Even a vest with pockets would do wonders.'

The elevator decelerated and the door emitted a customary 'ding' sound before opening and revealing a rather large, circular room. Inside, and most noticeable, were the large turning gears set inside the walls. Looking up revealed a glass ceiling with even more and larger gears in motion above it. 'Perhaps it's a clock tower and I just didn't see the face when we arrived.' He thought.

On the opposite end of the room was an intricate looking desk of glass and metal; its design reminding him of the clockwork surrounding him. Behind that was a large hemispheric window roughly twice the height of a man. And standing before that, his point of reference.

A bespectacled middle-aged man with a full head of greying hair in a black three piece suit and a dark green scarf wrapped around his neck observed their approach. "Miss Rose, Miss Schnee. Always a pleasure to see my students." The man said. "Although, I rarely get visitors at this time of the evening. What brings you to my office?"

"Well, you see, uh, sir we, no, I did a thing." Ruby stammered out.

The man picked up a mug off the desk and took a sip. "Would this 'thing' have anything to do with the android you brought with you?"

"Uh, yes sir."

"What happened, Ruby?"

"Well, I may have somehow accidentally given it a... soul."

The man reached into his pants pocket and retrieved a slightly larger than hand sized black object. He pulled it apart, revealing it to be some kind of collapsible touchscreen tablet with a translucent interface. He deftly navigated the device, and when he opened the application he needed, he pointed the device in Charlie's direction.

"Hmmm. Interesting. You're right Ruby, that machine is definitely generating an Aura." The man stated. "Do you have any idea how this happened?"

"I think, I should let him speak for himself."

Charlie took that as his cue to speak. "Good evening."

"Oh? You can talk."

"Indeed I can, sir."

"Do you have a name?" The suited man asked.

"My name is Charlie Flater. And you?"

"Everyone around here calls me Professor Ozpin. And as I'm sure these two have told you, I am the Headmaster of Beacon Academy."

"Yes, yes they have. It's good to meet you sir."

Ozpin took another sip from his mug "So, what seems to be the issue?"

"We came here to ask what should become of him, sir" Weiss informed.

"I see." Ozpin said. "Ruby, how did Charlie come into your care?"

"He started as a project I've been working on." Ruby answered. "I wanted to build an assistant."

"He looks oddly similar to the units we use in the sparring halls."

"That's because I, uh, got it from there." Ruby said. "But I didn't just take it! I asked permission first."

"Really? Well okay, as long as the Quartermaster approved." Ozpin allowed.

"And what about you Mister Flater? Did you simply come online and choose a name?

"No sir." Charlie answered. "I was Human, once. Last thing I remember was getting hit by a car."

"So you claim you died and came back." Ozpin stated. "How did you accomplish this?"

"Someone or something asked me." Charlie replied.

"Hmmm." The headmaster hummed. "Where did you live? Have you tried contacting any relatives or friends?

"I doubt I'd be able to reach them." Charlie said. "That something that gave me second chance told me I'd have live it on another world."

That elicited a raised eyebrow and a drawn out drink from the mug. "So you say you're from another world..." Ozpin said. "What was the name of your home then?

"Its name is Earth." Charlie answered. "And up until this point it was the only life bearing world I knew of... It's good to know we're not as alone as we thought."

"Indeed. If you truly are from another world then let me be the first to say welcome to Remnant." Ozpin greeted.

"Thank you Professor."

Ozpin walked over to the group and offered a handshake to Charlie, which he graciously accepted. "Now then Miss Rose. What were you planning on doing about this?"

"I was just going to continue what I originally set out to do." Ruby said. "I still want a helper and he needs somewhere to stay. He could be considered as a part of Team RWBY."

Ozpin hummed in thought as he paced back behind his desk. When he took his seat he spoke. "I can't enroll him in the school and make him officially a part of your team. But it seems to me your idea is sound."

"Miss Rose, Mister Flater is now your complete responsibility, for now. Mister Flater, Miss Rose should be considered your direct superior. Officially, you will be listed as a piece of special equipment under her possession. However Ruby, I expect you to treat Charlie with the same dignity and respect as you would any other person. Flater, report any exploitation." Ozpin dictated.

Weiss's jaw dropped in shock. Shocked that the Headmaster was supporting her partner's original plan. "But sir! There are so many things we don't know! Anything could go wrong here!"

"I know, Miss Schnee." Ozpin confirmed. "But tell me Weiss, is there any better place to study something like this than our institution?"

"I... well... No sir." The white haired girl answered.

"So you have an ulterior motive for arranging this." Charlie said.

Ozpin took a swig from his mug. "I am guilty of nothing but the pursuit of knowledge. You are a unique case that warrants study and I'm very curious." He smiled. "Consider this an assignment, girls."

Ruby fist pumped in celebration of the approval, Weiss facepalmed, and Charlie merely looked between the two and shrugged.

"I wasn't kidding. I expect a report written by the end of the semester."

Weiss perked up at that. The chance to earn more credits was always welcome. Ruby however, you could almost see some of the joy physically leaving her. "Alright." Ruby spoke. "I think that's all for now."

"Indeed." Ozpin replied. "I will contact you if I think of anything else. You may go now."

The trio turned and began to walk away when the Headmaster called out "Miss Schnee." He gestured for her to come closer and for the other two to keep walking. When she got to the front of his desk he said in a low voice "If anything does go wrong, I expect you to do your duty as a future Huntress."

Weiss's eyes widened. "Of course, sir."

"Very good. If they ask what this was about tell them I suggested starting by getting to know each other better." He sighed deeply. "You may take your leave now."

The white dressed girl spun on her heel, walked away and joined her compatriots in the elevator. When the doors closed and they departed, Ozpin took one last drink from his coffee and said aloud to the empty room "So, he was telling the truth."

Author's Note: Hello. This is my first attempt at a fanfiction. I started writing this chapter early in September and finished sometime in mid-October. If you liked this, I have chapter two finished but I don't want to upload it until I finish chapter three which I only started working on yesterday.

Please let me know what you think of this concept. Thank you.