The doors to the sim room hissed open with a mechanical sigh, spilling out a wash of cool air. Jaune stretched his arms overhead, bones cracking in protest, and let out a long exhale. His training frame clung tightly to his body, damp with sweat from the last two hours. Beside him, Oscar wiped his face with a towel and took a long pull from his water bottle.
"That was a good session," Jaune muttered, rolling his shoulder. "If I had to block any more of those chain combinations, I think my arms would've fallen off."
Oscar shrugged. "Right... you're acting as if you totally didn't mop the floor with me. Besides, you're the one who said you wanted more real-time coordination drills."
"Yes, but not get speed blitzed for thirty straight minutes during those drills."
Oscar snorted and smiled. "Details."
The corridor outside the simulation chambers was busy with LUCID personnel walking to and fro, performing their ever shifting myriad of duties. The lights cast long reflections across the floors as they walked together toward the vending unit by the hall's end.
Jaune leaned against the cool metal surface of the vending machine, his gaze caught on the glass panels across the hall. One of the larger simulation rooms was still active — its interior glowing faintly blue from the runic energy-imbued tiles.
He slowed.
Inside, four figures darted through a projection of a dilapidated version of downtown Vale — high-rise rooftops, neon lights, and scattered digital debris. Ice walls snaked through the air like crystalline dragons, dissolving and reforming with Weiss's precise movements. Ruby was a blur of motion, her Accel rune flaring with every step, while Blake's shadow clones flitted between beams of light. Yang, true to form, barreled through a building's side like an incoming comet.
Oscar followed Jaune's gaze and gave a low whistle. "Ruby's team."
Jaune nodded. "Yeah. They're extremely strong."
They both stood there for a while, watching in silence. Inside, Ruby shot forward, vanishing into a crimson blur, while Weiss traced elemental attacks with graceful precision. The training chamber's system responded immediately, spawning a wave of simulated Grimm, Deathstalkers, that came crawling out from the shadows.
Oscar murmured, "Wow."
Jaune folded his arms. "They're synergy is vastly better than ours." he admitted.
"Better?" Oscar said, incredulous. "Jaune, Weiss just froze an entire building mid-collapse so Ruby could run up it sideways. And Yang—"
"Yeah," Jaune cut in, suppressing a grin, "Yang's… definitely Yang."
Oscar laughed. "You can say that again."
They watched for another minute. Weiss's rapier shimmered, Blake's clones dissipated into violet haze, and Ruby's scythe gleamed like a crimson crescent under the digital red moonlight. The four moved like a single living mechanism — chaotic yet synchronized, aggressive yet reactive. Every movement had intent, even in the frenzy.
Oscar took another sip of water, eyes fixed on the fight. "You know… their rune combinations are insane. I can't even imagine trying to keep track of all those interactions in real time. Ruby's speed alone could probably wipe out most Rank 1 grimm in the field."
Jaune nodded slowly, though his eyes were distant. "Mhmm. Her new rune also takes care of the downsides of her first rune. To think that she hasn't yet reached comprehension yet. I wonder how strong she'll be after. Prodigies eh?"
"Yeah." Oscar glanced at him. "But you're the one who hit Rank 1 faster than anyone. How long was that? Three months? Even Ren says that you might be more impressive than Ruby or Pyrrha given a few more months."
Jaune stiffened a little. "Don't think about it too much."
Oscar grinned faintly. "It's just impressive, is all. Though, you're still keeping it a secret huh?"
Jaune exhaled through his nose, expression caught somewhere between amusement and mild frustration. "You know the reason. Besides, Ren's also being a little secretive lately. Said he's finally decided on his second Rune but won't tell me what it is. Apparently, I've gotta 'wait and see.'"
"Sounds like payback," Oscar said lightly.
"Yeah." Jaune rubbed at his temple. "Payback for not explaining how I hit Rank 1 so fast."
"Come on, give me a hint."
"Huh?"
Oscar glanced at him, curious. "How'd you do it? You would have had to kill like... 30 more rank 0's in a night. The first ever rune you created—Weakness—was also perfect. It was like you knew immediately, that the rune was meant for you. And that was without extensive testing. It's incredibly rare that it happens in one try. Besides, you didn't even spawn in LUCID's base when you went out on... patrol. How did Goodwitch even make an exception for you regarding a solo patrol? Throw me a bone here, Jaune. It really confusing"
Jaune looked down at the floor, the cool tile reflecting the faint blue light from Ruby's training room. For a long moment, he didn't answer.
"It's complicated," he said finally.
Oscar raised an eyebrow. "Complicated how?"
Jaune hesitated. The silence stretched thin between them, filled only by the faint thrum of the building's runic tech conduits and the distant echo of Ruby shouting something triumphantly from inside the simulation.
He thought back to that night — to the suffocating presence that had watched him from beyond the world. Then to his father's words. The truth that had cracked the world open... and everything else that happened afterwards.
How was he supposed to explain that to anyone?
He took another drink of water, if only to stall. "Just… stuff happened. Ozpin put a silence order on it."
Oscar's brows drew together as he sighed. "Silence order huh?"
"Yeah."
"Alright... I guess I can't really push it if its that serious."
Jaune nodded faintly. "You could say that."
Oscar studied him for a long moment. "So you can't talk about it at all?"
"Not even if I wanted to," Jaune said quietly. He rubbed the back of his neck, the tension there heavy and familiar. "And honestly? I don't even know how to talk about it. It's… big. Like, world-shattering big. I'm not sure you'd even believe me if I told you about it."
Oscar fell silent. For a moment, the two of them just stood there — two awakened in the middle of a sterile hallway, separated from the roaring digital storm of Ruby's squad by a thin pane of reinforced glass.
Inside, Ruby let out a shout of surprise as Yang threw something at a Deathstalker and shattered its face into glowing fragments. The light reflected off Jaune's face — pale blue and red, like flickers of two different worlds.
"...You okay?" Oscar asked softly.
Jaune blinked. "Yeah. I just—" He paused, searching for the words. "—feel like everyone's moving forward, you know? Ren's making a new Rune. Nora's pushing herself harder than ever. Ruby's squad is already fighting like how a Rank 2 team would operate. And I…"
He trailed off again.
Oscar tilted his head. "You're comparing yourself again."
"Maybe."
"You shouldn't."
Jaune huffed a small laugh. "Easier said than done."
Oscar smiled. "You ever think that maybe they look at you the same way?"
Jaune blinked.
Oscar went on, tone thoughtful. "You ranked up faster than anyone. You're the guy who went from being an anomaly to a... genius... of sorts, or maybe an even bigger anomaly. Trust me, Jaune — you've got your own gravity. People notice."
Jaune didn't reply right away. He watched as Ruby's simulation reached its end — the four girls striking victory poses amid the collapsing skyline before the system dissolved into a wash of white light.
The doors at the hallway hissed open and brisk, deliberate steps echoed against the polished floor, different from the other personnel passing by. Jaune turned, instincts kicking in even before his brain registered who it was.
Four figures strode through the corridor in a loose formation, their presence immediately shifting the air. They wore the standard LUCID training frames, faintly shimmering with accented lines that traced their limbs in orange and silver. Their training weapons hung at their sides.
They walked with that unmistakable weight — the kind that came from people used to being looked at.
Confidence.
And at the front of that small squad was a familiar face.
Cardin Winchester. And next to him — Sky Lark.
Jaune analyzed their movements unconsciously. He was familiar with the both of them from Beacon's regular classes, though they weren't particularly close. In LUCID, Cardin was known for being brash, confident, and something of a prodigy when it came to crafting enhancement type rune skills. Sky, his teammate, was calmer but just as strong in his own right.
Behind them, two others followed — Dove and Russell, if Jaune remembered correctly. He'd seen their names mentioned in passing during LUCID briefings but never actually interacted with them.
As they approached, Cardin's expression was neutral — but the kind of neutral that carried intent. His gaze slid from Oscar to Jaune, lingering a fraction too long.
"Arc. Pine." His voice was casual, but there was a solid undertone beneath it — like a hammer wrapped in silk. "You two done in there?"
Jaune frowned, momentarily thrown off. "Yeah. We just wrapped up."
Cardin nodded once, curtly. "Good. We'll take the room then."
There was nothing inherently wrong with that — training rooms were open to rotation. But there were at least four other chambers down the corridor, most of them marked Available. Jaune's frown remained, though he tried to keep his tone neutral.
"There are a couple open down the hall. Room Six just freed up not long ago."
Cardin's lips twitched, not quite a smile. "Yeah. I saw, but I like this one."
Jaune couldn't tell if it was an excuse or a jab. Either way, it didn't matter — he wasn't looking for conflict. He gave a small nod and stepped aside with Oscar, letting them pass.
As they moved toward the door, Jaune caught the faintest flicker in Cardin's eyes — something sharp, almost evaluative.
Curiosity, maybe. Or something else.
Sky gave Jaune a polite nod as they passed, while Dove and Russell were busy adjusting their weapon calibrations, the faint sound of mechanisms locking into place echoing down the corridor.
They were halfway to the door when Cardin stopped.
He turned slightly, head tilting over his shoulder. "Hey, Arc."
Jaune paused. "Yeah?"
Cardin's voice carried easily across the short distance, steady and even. "Heard you hit Rank 1 already."
Jaune felt Oscar shift beside him.
He blinked once, keeping his expression neutral. "Something like that."
Cardin's brows rose. "Fastest one to do it this year, apparently. People are saying it's one of the quickest recorded in LUCID history."
Oscar scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "It's, uh… true. Kind of crazy, actually."
Cardin didn't look at Oscar. His attention stayed locked on Jaune.
Jaune gave a small shrug. "Guess I got lucky in my patrols."
Cardin's eyes narrowed just slightly — not with suspicion, but with something that felt uncomfortably close to appraisal. Like he was trying to measure Jaune without actually saying so.
"Lucky, huh?"
Jaune nodded. "That's all there is to it."
For a moment, the two of them just looked at each other — Cardin's stance loose but deliberate, and Jaune's posture casual but alert. The silence stretched. Even the faint hum of the simulation systems felt like it was waiting.
Then Cardin smiled — small, sharp. "We should spar sometime."
Jaune's frown was almost imperceptible, but it was there. "Spar?"
"Yeah," Cardin said, tone light but his gaze unwavering. "You know. Compare notes. It's been a while since I've had a good match against someone outside my team. And they say you've got some unconventional methods."
Oscar shot Jaune a quick glance. "Uh… you sure you wanna—"
"Yeah," Cardin cut in, though his eyes never left Jaune. "I'm sure. What do you say, Arc?"
Jaune hesitated. He could sense it now — that subtle tension underneath Cardin's words. It wasn't open hostility, not exactly. But there was something there. Something brittle beneath the civility.
Maybe it was competitiveness. Maybe it was pride. Maybe it was the simple fact that Cardin wasn't used to someone else drawing more attention than he did.
Jaune crossed his arms loosely. "I'll think about it."
Cardin smiled faintly — the kind of smile that didn't quite reach the eyes. "You do that."
He turned then, the rest of his team following him toward the simulation room. Sky tapped at the console, activating their environment settings, while Dove and Russell exchanged quick, quiet remarks.
Before the door slid shut behind them, Cardin cast one last look over his shoulder.
Jaune met it without flinching.
Then the doors hissed closed, cutting off the faint blue light inside.
For a long moment, neither Jaune nor Oscar said anything.
Finally, Oscar let out a low whistle. "Okay… that wasn't just me, right? He's totally sizing you up."
Jaune exhaled slowly through his nose. "Yeah. I caught that."
Oscar leaned against the vending unit. "You think he's pissed that your ranking speed was faster than his?"
"Maybe, but if that was the case why not go for Ruby, or better yet, Pyrrha. She's the real prodigy. I personally think that he's more-so just curious about what I did to get here... and probably the nature of my 'anomalous' awakening."
Oscar grinned. "Well, if it were me, I'd be both."
Jaune gave him a sideways look.
"Hey," Oscar said defensively, hands raised, "I'm just saying. Most people take at least a year just to hit Rank 1. That's including the rune testing, training and drills that they'd have to complete. You however, went from newbie to Rank 0 to Rank 1 before even half a year. That's gonna make waves no matter how quiet you are about it."
Jaune sighed. "That's exactly the problem. I am trying to stay quiet."
"Well," Oscar said with a half-smirk, "you might have to get used to the attention. People like Cardin probably won't just let that kind of thing go."
Jaune didn't answer. His mind had already wandered, gears turning behind a calm façade.
That look Cardin had given him — it wasn't pure rivalry. There was an edge of something heavier. Testing.
Like Cardin was gauging whether Jaune was competition… or a threat. He wasn't sure which possibility he preferred.
Oscar nudged his shoulder lightly. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Jaune murmured, eyes flicking toward the still-closed door of the training chamber. The faint hum of energy behind it was barely audible. "Just thinking."
"About the spar?"
"About what he's really after."
Oscar tilted his head, considering that. "You think it's something else?"
"Not sure," Jaune said quietly. "I'm more curious if others around LUCID are going to start asking me for 'spars' as well."
The vending machine beeped softly, signaling the end of its cycle. Oscar grabbed his drink, but Jaune stayed still, watching the glowing line of light along the floor that marked the training room's power flow.
He could almost feel Cardin's team moving inside, readying their Runes, preparing for their own session.
Oscar cracked open his drink and took a long sip. "You've got that look again."
Jaune blinked. "What look?"
"The one that says you're about to overthink yourself into a headache."
A small, weary smile ghosted across Jaune's lips. "Maybe I already did."
Oscar chuckled. "Well, whatever happens, try not to break the training floor next time, yeah? Those tiles are expensive."
Jaune rolled his eyes. "You an I both know it's practically impossible for a Rank 1 to break those tiles."
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AN: You guys know the drill.
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