A/N: And here we are once again. Since this story has been shelved for a while, I thought it was about time to blow the dust off and get another chapter out there. And with season 7 of RWBY leaving some folks indecisive, I figured to put my own perspective on things like many others before me.

X

Beacon academy's forge was located on the far side of the campus in its own building. Equipped with everything the students and professors would need to repair, upgrade and craft their weapons and armor. There was even a small 'lab' of sorts where those with the knowledge could create their own dust rounds, however that was off limits to all but third and fourth year students.

Currently, the forge was empty save for a familiar wolf-Faunus who was standing by a workbench and giving what he was working on his complete attention.

It had been almost two months since the semester began, and Rios had utilized that time to its fullest.

The assignments and tests, although challenging at times, weren't that difficult to overcome. Though he made it a point for his team to study together regularly, helping each other by working on where each of them struggled. They followed the same process in their training.

Even though they trained on their own, team SPRN got together and created a strong dynamic when they fought together.

Though not all of their time was dedicated to school and training. A couple times a week they would go into Vale and simply enjoyed themselves, something new for Rios given where he had lived most of his life, but he found himself having a good time whenever he and his team mates went out. More than once team RWBY joined them as well.

Speaking of their sister team; Ruby and Weiss' relationship had greatly improved. The heiress was still uptight, but she was much warmer and friendly to not only her leader/partner, but others as well. And Ruby took a far more serious approach to her studies and learning to be a good leader for her team. Both girls even helped each other on all fronts.

Thinking back over the last few weeks a moment longer, the wolf-Faunus looked back down at his work before applying the finishing touches.

In his free time while the rest of team SPRN were doing their own personal business, he'd started a couple of projects that he thought would assist him when in a fight.

The first was a set of armor, deciding that constantly using what clothes he had brought with him wouldn't do him any good. Especially since he had to throw out several articles due to rips and tears. He'd finished that two weeks prior.

His second project was a bit more hands on and required more time and focus. And his effort had finally paid off.

Rios picked up what looked to be a simple arm guard. Colored a faded-gold with a half-baseball sized dome in the center bearing the omega sigil of his family and ancestry.

Strapping the guard to his arm over the chains fused into the skin, clipping it into place and ensuring it was tight enough. Once secured, he took a couple steps back from the bench, clenching his fist while testing the weight, the Faunus snapped his arm forward causing a series of shutters to spread out like a fan and come together to form a circular shield only slightly larger than the one his partner used.

He'd been inspired during one of the many visions Kratos had shown him from his past, how the Spartans that once served under the former god utilized such shields with such skill while in combat. This, coupled with wanting a stronger defense in a fight, the Faunus got to work on a collapsable version that he could activate at a moment's notice.

Looking over his work, Rios checked for anything out of place before collapsing the shield and activating it again to be sure there wasn't any delay. With a satisfied smirk, he collapsed the shield before he began cleaning up the spare parts and tools he had been using.

When he was finished, Rios left the forge and made his way toward the cafeteria where he knew the others already were, if the one message from Pyrrha and countless others from Nora were anything to go by.

X

"So, there we were. In the middle of the night." Nora said ominously as the two teams sat together at their usual table at lunch.

"It was day." Ren corrected at her side while drinking tea.

"We were surrounded by Ursa." the girl continued.

"They were Beowolves." commented her partner.

"Dozens of them!"

"Two of them."

"But they were not match," Nora pressed on, ignoring her partner, "And in the end, Ren and I took them down and made a boatload of lien selling Ursa skin rugs!"

Everyone at the table was in various states of paying attention. Yang seemed to be paying the closest along with Ruby. Blake was sitting quietly reading a book but was just as focused on the tale. Weiss was busy filing her nails. And Pyrrha was listening while also looking around the cafeteria for her partner/leader.

Ren sighed when Nora finished speaking, "She's been having this recurring dream for nearly a month now." he explained.

"Sounds pretty awesome to me." said Yang.

"Too bad it's impossible to skin a Grimm after killing it." Blake threw in while turning another page in her book.

Ruby nodded in agreement before looking around their table, "So, anyone heard from Rios yet?"

"Not yet, he said he was going to the forge to finish another project he had started. But that was earlier this morning." replied Pyrrha.

"How has he been as a leader?" asked Weiss with genuine curiosity. The heiress having acquired more than a little respect for the wolf-Faunus after their spar weeks ago and the advice he had given her.

Nora beamed, "He. Is. Awesome!" she exclaimed which garnered the attention of several students around them for a brief moment.

"His training regiment sounds pretty harsh at times, but we've become a tight-knit unit on the battlefield." Ren added.

"Harsh how?" asked Yang while the rest of her team leaned in, wanting to know as well.

"Not in an abusive kind of way." Pyrrha spoke truthfully, "He figured out flaws and weaknesses in our fighting styles and helped us with them through extensive sparring. Targeting those areas so that we'll either overcome them, or make a defense to cover them. He told us it was one of the ways his father trained him years ago."

It was actually surprising to them how well Rios had been able to dissect their strengths and weaknesses. Even more so when he helped them discover ways for them to not only help themselves, but each other in a tight situation.

The Mistrial champion herself finding her semblance almost useless against him in a friendly spar they had during one of their team's training days. Even though she could easily control his frost-axe with her polarity, he also relied on his fists and bow. The latter only being made of wood and sharpened dust crystals, while the former...actually, she couldn't explain it.

With those odd chains wrapped around his forearms, Pyrrha at first thought he would find himself at a disadvantage. But when she tried to use her semblance on them...nothing happened.

She'd been so surprised that she ended up taking a right hook to the jaw that sent her tumbling. To this day the redhead couldn't find an explanation other than the chains her partner wore had to be shielded somehow. However, if she were being honest, she'd gotten a real thrill when the two of them fought.

For so long Pyrrha had been stuck with the moniker of 'The Invincible Girl' thanks to all her training, skill and her semblance. But with her partner, she actually found herself on the defensive more than she'd ever been before.

Rios was a powerhouse, and was able to utilize his strength while maintaining a fair amount of speed and quick thinking. Although they always stopped their sessions before a 'winner' could be found, Pyrrha had a feeling more than once that she would have eventually lost.

Such a thing surprised her, while at the same time making her excited at the same time. To have someone who was on the same level as her, to challenge her in ways she hadn't before. The champion actually started looking forward to sparring with him again and see him in action.

All that strength, it was thrilling to see up close, to FEEL it. She couldn't help but think about it more than she was willing to-

"Uh, Pyrrha?" asked Nora, snapping the red-head out of her daze.

"Huh?" she blurted when she saw everyone looking at her strangely.

"You okay there, P-Money? Your face is turning more red than your hair." said Yang.

Pyrrha's blush deepened as she shrunk in on herself a bit, "I...I'm fine." she said lowly, causing confusion to pass over the others at her odd behavior.

"Did Rios say what he was working on?" asked Ruby, wondering what her fellow leader had been making.

"Something that would help him on a more defensive front." said Ren. "He finished a suit of armor a couple weeks back, so he might be working on a shield or something similar."

Nora bounced in her seat, "You guys should see his new armor! It's so badass! Even Pyrrha couldn't stop looking at it."

The red-headed champion looked away with another blush filling her cheeks. Though their conversation was broken when they heard laughter at a table not too far away. All eyes turning to see Cardin Winchester and the other members of CRDL surrounding a girl with long brown bunny ears who looked uncomfortable.

"Those guys again." Yang said sharply.

"I can't understand why they were even allowed to be here." Weiss added with a look of scrutiny at the other team. "All they do is act like a bunch of neanderthals."

Ruby frowned, "They're bullies...I hate bullies."

Blake's grip on her book tightened when she saw the rabbit faunus being harrassed by CRDL, wanting nothing more than to go over there and defend her fellow faunus. But she didn't want to risk being discovered after working so hard to be hidden.

Cardin reached out and started pulling the poor girl's left ear, making her cry out in pain while his team laughed at her. "See, told you they were-" he never got to finish as someone grabbed his own ear and twisted, hard.

Everyone in the cafeteria stopped what they were doing when the leader of CRDL suddenly shouted in pain and alarm. Finding him on his knees clutching at the arm holding his ear which belonged to Rios. The wolf faunus glaring down at the thug with the fires of Hades burning in his eyes.

"Strange. To you it didn't seem like what you were doing hurt that much." he said with a chilling tone while yanking back and causing Cardin to shout again.

"L-Let go you damn mutt!" the other leader bellowed, his team standing only for a look from the hunter to freeze them in place.

"Or what, Cardin?" Rios asked condescendingly. He looked to the stunned rabbit faunus and motioned with his head, telling her she could leave safely while he handled things. She nodded her thanks and scurried away while he looked down at his captive.

"I'm getting real sick and tired of you attacking our classmates. It was only a matter of time before you pissed off someone enough to do something about it. And it seems your reckoning has come."

He released Cardin's ear and stepped back, the other leader immediately stood and spun around. "You're gonna pay you damn dog!" he shouted while swinging a wide punch.

Rios blocked it with his forearm and delivered a hard palm strike to Cardin's armored chest, sending him over the table and landing on the floor on the other side.

Watching their leader go down, the rest of CRDL went on the attack. Sky tried to kick the wolf faunus but found his foot caught in an iron grip. Rio spun left, taking the smaller teen with him and slamming him into Dove, sending both crashing to the floor in a heap.

Russell attempted to get behind him, but Rio's wolf ears twitched at the last second before he ducked low. Slamming his elbow back into the other teen's stomach before grabbing the back of his head and slamming it into the table.

Cardin got back up to see his team laid out. Gnashing his teeth, he charged Rios with a battlecry. The wolf faunus merely shook his head, "Pathetic." he muttered, catching both of the other leader's arms before delivering a headbutt that shattered Cardin's nose.

Stunned, he couldn't defend himself as Rios wrapped an arm around his torso and lifted him off the ground. Slamming him through the same table they had been sitting at and effectively taking him out.

A thick silence filled the lunch room as Rios looked at the downed team, "This is your last warning. We're supposed to be training to be warriors. Not common thugs. Better learn that quickly." he said, spitting at the floor.

"That was awesome!" Yang shouted, she and the others having been unable to look away from the beatdown Rios had delivered to CRDL.

"Yeah! Too bad you didn't break their legs fearless leader!" Nora added.

"At least someone taught them a lesson." said Weiss, Blake nodding in agreement while hiding a relieved smile.

Pyrrha approached her partner smiling, "That was something. Perhaps now...they'll..." she trailed off and her smile melted away when Rios sent a cold look at her. All of them stopping immediately when they saw the same look aimed at them.

"R-Rios?" asked Ruby with a tremor in her tone.

The wolf faunus took a deep breath, "We are here to fight the evil in the world." he spoke, his voice as cold as his gaze, "But the truest evil that exists...is the indifference of good people."

His words impacted them hard and they immediately realized what he was saying, guilt, shame and regret filling their features. They could have stepped in and helped their fellow classmate when she was being bullied...but they just sat there and watched, not wanting to get involved.

"Rios-" Pyrrha tried to speak, but was cut off by her partner.

"We're supposed to be training to protect those that cannot protect themselves. If we can't even step in when someone needs help, then why bother." he sent a sharper look at Blake who froze in place. Though he said nothing to her directly, the judgement in his eyes was more than enough.

Without another word, Rios turned and left the cafeteria. Leaving his team and team RWBY to think on their inactions and the weight of his words. Ren was the first to break the silence after a few moments.

"He's right." the others looked to him. "It is our job to help others. If we can't even help one of our classmates, then we're wasting our skills."

"I should have done something." Ruby said meekly, "We all should have done something. Now Rios is mad at us."

"He's not angry." said Pyrrha, her gaze at the door where her partner had left. "He was disappointed in us." saying it outloud left a dull ache in the young champion's chest. Even though she hated her fame, she was still looked upon as someone of virtue, to always do right. It was also in her nature to be kind and compassionate to others, especially those in need. Seeing Rios look at her that way...made her feel like she had failed at something for the first time.

Yang clenched her fists, feeling like scum for not stepping in to put CRDL in their place. But also hating herself as well. She used to beat up kids back at Signal for targeting Ruby, like her little sister, she hated bullies. So why did she hesitate?

Rios' words rang through her head, making her chest ache as well when she remembered the look he gave her. She thought only her dad could make her feel like this. But the faunus had just as much of an impact on her.

Lunch came to an end not too long after. The group of seven left to get ready for their next class while at the same time wondering what to say to Rios when they saw him again.

And hoping that they would get back in his good graces again.

X

A/N: 'Jaundice' for me had left a lot of openings for not just for Jaune, but for all the other characters in the series. Training to be heroes, how could they just sit there and let someone be treated that way? That never sat right with me. I got my ass handed to me several times because I tried to help someone in trouble.

It's not about heroics, it's not about getting recognition, it's about being a good person. There are a lot of evils in the world. But those who are indifferent to what's happening around them, that only allows that evil to fester like a disease...

More to come. So stick around and stay healthy out there folks. We're still in this together!