Chapter 4 – Destiny

Beta read by Levi Ackermanlet

Zuko didn't dream that night. He felt too tired to dream. His uncle had held him for hours until he was so exhausted he'd imply gone limp in his arms. The elderly man had laid him down in the bed and nestled himself into a chair watching over him.

At first, he'd been out like a light. Then, after just a few short hours, he'd woken up again. He didn't move though. He didn't see the point. Why move? What was he going to move to do? There was no crewmembers to command or inspect, no village they had to reach. There was…nothing. So he'd laid there, and emptied his mind of all thoughts. Every plan he'd ever made, every hope he'd ever had…he let them all drift away.

After what must have been an eternity, the sun rose, and Zuko felt its familiar embrace touch him again. His uncle stirred, likewise feeling the strength of Agni fill him. Zuko was turned away, but he could practically feel his uncles eyes wander over him.

"Prince Zuko…?"

He said nothing. He did nothing.

"…are you hungry?"

As he heard nothing but silence, Iroh sighed to himself. He was afraid of this. For years he had worried that his nephew would lose hope. He almost had before they had sighted the Avatar, and then he was more alive than he had been for years. Now…no more avatar. No more hope.

"Prince Zuko, what will you do now?"

"…nothing."

"Nothing? Will you simply stay here for the rest of your life? Never eating, never sleeping? Until you waste away into nothingness?"

"…maybe."

"…I felt like you once. In Ba Sing Se, when I heard that my-… I didn't know what I would do. I took my army, and I returned home a broken man. But life did not end. I found myself a new life, and a new purpose. Sometimes life is like a dark tunnel, you can't always see the light at the end, but if you just keep moving, you will come to a better place."

"What better place?" Zuko lifted his head up and looked tiredly at his uncle. "What do I do?"

"You could attend Beacon."

The two fire benders turned to see Ozpin standing in the doorway.

"I don't know if I will ever believe what you two have told me, but I do believe that you need help."

"We most certainly do. My nephew and I…well, we don't exactly have many places to go…"

"Clearly. Which is why I would recommend that Zuko studies here at Beacon Academy, so that he may be trained as a Huntsman."

Zuko lazily glanced over to the man. "A what?"

"Huntsmen and Huntresses; the best and brightest warriors of Remnant, ranking higher than Kingdom police and even military, in terms of strength, and skill. The occupation was established alongside the Huntsmen academies after the Great War, with the hope of creating elite warriors whose sole purpose would be to combat the creatures of Grimm."

"Grimm?" Zuko sat upright in his bed, only somewhat intrigued, but polite enough to at least extend the man the courtesy of listening.

"The Creatures of Grimm; a ravenous, destructive force that covers the majority of Remnant. While often referred to simply as 'Grimm', these beings are the greatest foe to mankind. For as long as humanity can recall walking the surface of Remnant, they remember this wicked force."

Something flickered in Zuko's mind. One thought quickly connecting to another. "Those things that we faced when we woke up…were they Grimm?"

"From what I've been told, yes. And you were quite lucky you were trained, Grimm wreak havoc on any undefended village they can find." Ozpin stepped closer until he was just beside his bed. "You have potential Zuko, one I would like to help you improve. But to do that, I need you here, attending classes and studying with the other students."

"I'm not going anywhere without my uncle. Besides, we don't even have any money. How could I afford to come here?"

"You won't need to worry about that. Your uncle can stay here and help in the kitchen. For you, your expenses will be covered under our combat scholarship."

"That sounds wonderful! Zuko, this could be a new chance for you."

Zuko was silent, his eyes not meeting the two adults as he sat in thought.

"Uncle. Why should I bother to become a Huntsman? I fought, for so long to find the Avatar. To bring him back to my father, and restore my honour. And it was all for nothing."

"Yes, you have. You struggled. You suffered. But you have always followed your own path. Why not choose the path that fate has opened for you? I do not believe that you would be sent here without reason. You may find that it is your true destiny to become a Huntsman."

Zuko went quiet.

"I'll need your answer in a few hours Prince Zuko. If you decide yes, let the nurse just outside this room know." Ozpin turned and made to leave the room, stopping just as he opened the door. "I have a good feeling about you, Prince Zuko. I hope that you decide to stay."

The door slid shut by itself, and the room was silent once again.

"…your thoughts, Prince Zuko?"

"…is there any way we can return home?"

Iroh cupped his chin thoughtfully. He'd mulled over every choice they could make while Zuko was asleep, but he did it again anyway for him. "If we were brought here by a spirit, and it does not seem that these people know of them…then I believe not, Prince Zuko."

He knew it was coming, yet even after the previous day it still hurt to accept it. "What if we went somewhere else? Find a city, get some jobs, and then we'll…"

"We'll what?"

"…I don't know."

Zuko and his uncle sat in silence once more. One awaiting a decision, the other struggling to make it.

A voice from nowhere broke the silence of their contemplation.

"Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation? Again, all first-year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately."

Zuko recognised it as that of the woman who'd entered the room the day before. Glynda, if he was correct. He didn't even bother searching for her, he already knew the room was empty. It was just another mocking example of this world's strange technology.

~RWBYZ~

At the top of Beacon Cliff, just overlooking the Emerald Forest, students were lined up on silver tiles. Behind them, stood Professor Ozpin and Glynda, the former enjoying a fresh cup of coffee.

Ozpin took the lead in addressing the new students, his voice clear and rehearsed. "For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest." He motioned for Glynda to take over for him.

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of 'teams'. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates... today."

Ozpin switched with Glynda as she pulled out a tablet and began to make preparations. "These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well. That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... or you will die.

"You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

A blonde-haired boy in armour raised his hand. "Yeah, um, sir?"

"Good! Now, take your positions."

The students readied themselves on their tiles, pulling their weapons to the ready and bracing themselves. All, except for one…

"Uh, sir? I've got, um... a question." Behind him, a tile rose up into a spring, and rocketed a white-haired student away. "So, this landing... strategy thing... Uh, wha-what is it? You're, like, dropping us off or something?"

"No. You will be falling."

"Oh, uh, I see... So, like, did you hand out parachutes for us?"

"No. You will be using your own 'landing strategy.'"

"Uh-huh... Yeah."

"So, what exactly is a landing strategYYY!..." Having not paid attention as the other students were launched, Jaune found himself being flung through the air as he ineptly tried to balance himself. Standing calmly on the cliff, Ozpin merely took a sip of his drink at the sight.

~RWBYZ~

"…I'll do it."

The nurse nodded to Zuko and pulled out a device from her pocket as she walked away.

"You did the right thing, Prince Zuko. This will be the beginning of a new adventure for you."

"I don't care about adventure. I just don't know what else to do."

"True, we do need somewhere to stay. But you've always strived to protect people, even when you were a little boy. I believe, this will be very good for you."

Zuko sighed and hung his head in resignation. His uncles reassuring hand on his shoulder failed to lift his spirit. He was a prince! A warrior! He'd already received his education from the palace tutors, now he'd have to waste his time doing it all over again. And with the dishonour of having his uncle slave away in the kitchen, no less.

He was already starting to regret saying yes.

~RWBYZ~

"The last pair has been formed, sir." Glynda tapped the screen of her tablet, showing the male and female walking with each other through the forest. "Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren. Poor boy... I can't possibly imagine those two getting along. Still, he's probably better off than Miss Nikos." She tapped the tablet again, showing the redhead in question walking alongside Jaune.

"Mmmm…"

"I don't care what his transcripts say. That Jaune fellow is not ready for this level of combat." She deactivated her tablet and took a few steps away from the window. "I guess we'll find out soon enough. At their current pace, they should reach the temple within just a few minutes. Speaking of which, have you given any thought to how you will handle our guest? He's already missed initiation, and we don't have even numbers anymore for the teams."

Ozpin answered without looking up from his own tablet as he typed away furiously. "One of the relics has been marked. Whichever partner group collects it, will have him added to their future team."

"A team of five? Won't that be unfair to the others?"

"From Qrow's testimonial, his combat skills are exemplary. But by his own statements, his academic skills will be atrocious."

"If his story's even true. And Qrow's hardly a reliable source anymore. He didn't even stay to tell you what he saw himself. Passing along a note of recommendation is hardly proof of competence."

Ozpin said nothing, continuing to type away on his Scroll in deep concentration. After a moment, he laid the tablet down on his desk and slid it over to Glynda. She picked up with one hand and regarded it briefly.

"You've already made a combat scholarship offer?"

"He said yes just a short while ago. It requires both our signatures."

Glynda laid the tablet down on the table and looked him in the eyes. "It's not like you to be this lenient, Ozpin. First Miss Rose, now this boy? Why?"

Ozpin stood up and walked over to the window behind his desk, gazing out into the distance. "There's something special about that boy, Glynda. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I feel that he needs to come here. He needs to study here for his own good."

Glynda crossed her arms and looked him over. He wasn't acting like his normal self. Then again, he'd always liked to be mysterious with his plans. She sighed and signed her name on the tablet. "I trust you, headmaster. If you say it's for the best…"

He took the tablet and sent the form over to the nurse in the infirmary. "Thank you, Glynda."

~RWBYZ~

"Just sign your name here."

Zuko stared at the glowing piece of glass she held before him. He hesitantly scribbled the royal emblem with his finger, still surprised as it morphed with every stroke as if it were a real scroll and his finger were a quill.

"Thank you, and as his guardian you will have to sign here, Mr Iroh."

"Oh ho ho, I'm hardly his guard. But, if you say so."

He stared even longer than Zuko had before slowly wiping his portly fingers along the 'Scroll'. The nurse stared at the smudge of a signature he'd made, before sighing and deciding it was clear enough. She put the tablet down on a nearby table and began to take out several items.

"Here is Zuko's key, he'll be staying in a dorm with his teammates who will be announced at the ceremony in a little while. Mr Iroh, you will be staying in one of the spare staff quarters on the fourth floor." There was a slight engraving of letters and numbers on Iroh's key, while Zuko's remained blank. They both took them without a word, even if Zuko seemed to snatch his in protest of being separated.

"Here is a map of the school. Normally students would download this onto their scroll, but in light of your…background. A physical copy has been provided for you. Here is your complimentary school equipment Zuko, including books, pens, and your uniform. Please wear it at all times when attending class, and go to the store if you need any replacements."

Zuko began to tune her out as she listed off item after item. Some things he did pay attention to. Like his class schedule, the general rules, and the hours his uncle would be working. It was mostly stuff he could look at again later in the day if he needed to.

"Now that that's sorted. Let's head over to the ceremony so you can meet your new team, shall we?"