The world beyond the base stretched outward in an endless expanse of dim gradients and shifting shadow. Distance felt somewhat unreliable here even though it still followed real world physics. Though perhaps, it was only the shadow of it.
Jaune and Raven had traveled around four kilometers east from the base, far enough that the structured activity behind them had long faded into nothing.
A 1st variant Stalker lay pinned to the ground.
It was slightly larger than the variant Jaune had first encountered, its elongated limbs straining against the restraints that held it in place. Shadow tendrils erupted from the ground beneath it, binding its arms, legs, and torso with absolute precision.
Curiously enough, the only Stalker Variant that they had encountered was the first variant. The second and third variants seemed to be non existent in this region. Jaune wondered if there was something similar to an ecosystem here.
Raven stood a short distance away, one hand loosely at her side, as if the entire act of binding it, required no effort at all. She looked a little bored.
But Jaune knew better now.
Through his Weakness sense, he could feel a thread of curiosity beneath the surface.
He stepped forward and stopped just outside the creature's reach, even though the tendrils ensured it could not move. The Stalker's white eyes locked onto him instantly.
Fear and Hunger.
That same overwhelming, all-consuming hunger. It was unsettling every time.
"Hurry it up, will you?"
Jaune closed his eyes. "Give me a second,"
Raven didn't respond
Jaune turned inward. The connection came easier now.
Where before there had been resistance, confusion, something indistinct, now there was a clearer pathway. The Stalker within him stirred as his awareness brushed against it.
It responded with hunger and greed.
Same as always.
But now there was something else layered beneath it.
Expectation.
Jaune focused on that.
'This,' he conveyed, pushing the image of the restrained Stalker forward through his Will. 'Is this what you want?'
The response was immediate.
Affirmative.
The hunger surged, but it was not wild or directionless. It was focused and aligned with intent. Not just a desire to consume, but a drive toward something.
Progression.
Jaune's brow furrowed slightly.
There was no hesitation or moral conflict from the entity within him. No concept of right or wrong attached to what it wanted.
Even though they were both Stalkers, apparently this, wasn't cannibalism.
It was growth and evolution.
Jaune felt a faint ripple of unease at that.
"…Yeah," he murmured under his breath. "This place is messed up."
"Any day now," Raven said flatly.
Jaune huffed lightly, opening his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah. Got it."
He stepped closer.
The Stalker beneath Raven's bindings thrashed slightly, its form shifting as it strained against the tendrils. Perhaps intuitively it could feel something bad was about to happen to it.
Whether it understood it or not didn't matter.
Jaune raised his hand and unleashed Plunder.
The moment his intent locked in, the effect triggered and the Stalker's body collapsed—dissolving into raw Umbra and breaking apart into shadow essence that flowed forward and into Jaune's body as if drawn by an invisible current.
For a brief moment, Jaune's form distorted.
His body expanded, swelling outward as the incoming mass integrated into him. His limbs thickened and his frame stretching beyond its usual proportions.
Then, just as quickly, it compressed.
Everything pulled inward, condensing back down into his standard shadow form.
Still and controlled.
Inside his mind, something shifted.
A new presence that was both confused and startled.
The newly absorbed Stalker had not even processed what had happened before it found itself somewhere else entirely.
Within him.
Before it could react further, the original Stalker surged forward.
Jaune felt it move through his consciousness like a predator recognizing prey. There was no hesitation or uncertainty.
Only instinct.
The two collided and the new Stalker recoiled in shock, its awareness flaring wildly as it tried to comprehend the situation. But that confusion lasted only a fraction of a second.
Then its own hunger took over and it responded in kind.
They fought.
Not physically or in any way that could be seen from the outside, but Jaune felt every moment of it within his mind. Two entities clashing and tearing at each other, trying to consume and overwrite the other's existence.
Jaune watched it with detached curiosity.
He could have intervened at any moment. Could have crushed both of them if he wanted to. His control here was absolute.
But he didn't.
Not yet.
His Weakness rune maintained a steady pressure over both of them, ensuring neither could reach beyond the bounds he allowed. Still, he could feel the drain.
His Aura was being consumed.
Suppressing one had been negligible but now that he was suppressing two at once? The rate of replenishment was being overcome by the consumption.
It wasn't exactly threatening him, but it was still something to note. Not to be sniffed at.
"…Alright," he muttered. It was time to end it.
Jaune focused on the newer Stalker and greater amount of Weakness surged forward.
He precisely targeted its ability to resist and its cohesion, as well as its capacity to act.
The effect was immediate in that the new Stalker froze. Its movements halted mid-struggle and its presence was forcibly locked in place as if pinned by an unseen force.
The original didn't hesitate to pounce.
The clash ended in an instant with a bout of consumption.
The newer presence collapsed inward, its consciousness breaking apart as it was devoured entirely.
Jaune felt the moment it ended.
A shift and a settling.
Then—
Something changed.
The pressure on his Aura eased.
His body…
Felt better and stronger than before. Not dramatically so, but it was certainly noticeable. Like something had aligned more cleanly within him.
The original Stalker pulsed faintly with gratitude.
Jaune blinked slightly at that.
"…You're thanking me?" he murmured.
The response came again.
Jaune felt half amused and half incredulous.
"What odd thing."
He opened his eyes.
The world snapped back into place around him. Raven stood where she had been, her gaze fixed on him, waiting.
"Well?" she asked.
Jaune rolled his shoulders slightly, testing the feel of his body.
"I think it worked," he said.
He raised a hand. This time, when he reached inward, something responded.
Umbra.
It flowed differently from Aura. Less like a current and more like something being shaped from absence itself. It gathered at his palm, coiling, condensing.
Then it formed.
A spear.
Long, dark, and elegantly shaped, its surface smooth yet somehow indistinct at the same time. It radiated a quiet, oppressive presence. This was the same spear that his little Stalker buddy had first used to try and kill him.
Jaune stared at it for a moment.
"…Huh."
Raven's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Test it." she asked.
Jaune adjusted his grip and nodded.
"Alright."
They moved.
The spar was brief.
Raven didn't move. She simply using shadow tendrils and constructs to attack him. Jaune met her strikes head-on and his enhanced body seemed to respond a littlefaster and stronger than before.
After a minute, Raven stepped back.
"Your physical strength increased," she said. "Roughly ten percent."
Jaune nodded in agreement, lowering the spear as it dissolved back into Umbra.
"Yeah. I felt that."
Raven's gaze remained steady.
"But that's not the important part now is it?"
Jaune nodded.
"Umbra."
"Correct."
Jaune flexed his hand again, feeling the foreign energy respond more readily now.
"It's cooperating," he said. "The Stalker… it's letting me use it now."
"Seems it's because you upheld the exchange," Raven replied.
Jaune let out a small breath.
"Yeah. Guess so. I'm somewhat surprised that it upheld the exchange as well. Guess it's more intelligent than I thought."
He glanced out across the endless shadow landscape, his thoughts turning.
"This isn't just random behavior," he said. "There is clearly a type of progression system here that we don't completely understand. They grow by consuming each other. And now…"
"You've inserted yourself into that system," Raven finished.
Jaune gave a small, wry smile.
"Yeah. Looks like it."
Raven turned back toward the direction of the base.
"Alright. It's about time to get back. We'll need to report this, anyhow."
Jaune nodded.
"Yeah."
.
.
By the time Jaune and Raven made their way back toward the base, the distant silhouette of the structure had already begun to feel strangely familiar.
Oddly enough, it seemed to resemble the Vale LUCID base, if albeit smaller and an outward structure rather than an underground one.
A faint pulse of activity ran through the place.
Researchers moved between workstations carrying slates, crystalline scanners, and field instruments specifically adapted for shadow realm environmental readings. Rank 1 and 2 operatives were scattered around in patrol routes around the perimeter, while near the center of the base a group had gathered around the beacon array.
The beacon device had been almost completed.
It stood waist-high in a circular arrangement, a ring of interlocked metallic plates and runic type lined cylinders that had already partially converted into the local shadow medium. Every few seconds, thin bands of light pulsed across its surface.
The first report window was approaching.
One hour. That was the current cycle.
Once the portal in the real world opened again, the beacon would force a sympathetic lock, guiding the opening toward their location instead of letting it bloom somewhere random in the vastness of the Shadow Realm.
It wasn't a permanent bridge.
But it was enough for their report window. Raven stepped into the center of the base and the ambient chatter lowered almost immediately.
Qrow, gave Jaune a sidelong grin from where he was leaning against one of the shadow support pillars.
"You're not dead after testing. That's always a nice surprise."
Jaune snorted softly. "Good to know the bar's set high, Uncle Qrow."
"Nuh-uh. No chance. You ain't calling me that. Only Ruby and Yang get to do that."
"Aw, but we're practically family now."
Before Qrow could fire back, several researchers were already making their way over.
One of them, a woman with silver-framed lenses and a compact scanning device in hand, looked between Jaune and Raven.
"How was the testing? Did you get it to work?"
Though phrased as such, it wasn't really a question.
Raven nodded once. "We did."
That was enough to bring several more people over, including Clover, Taiyang, and a few of the other Rank 2s.
Pyrrha approached as well, relief briefly softening her expression the moment she saw Jaune upright and apparently in one piece.
And then Auberyn stepped into view.
The beautiful starlight girl's amused demeanor remained intact, but there was unmistakable interest in her eyes.
Beside her stood the Stellar-converted Stalker.
Its body was still vaguely humanoid, but now it glimmered with dim threads of pale light running through shadow flesh like veins of trapped stars. It stood perfectly still behind her, silent and obedient.
Jaune stared at it for a second.
"Well," he said, "that's creepy."
Auberyn gave him the faintest smile with her brow raised. "Coming from the guy currently wearing one, I'm not sure how much that means."
That got a small snort of laughter out of a few people nearby.
An operative researcher gestured toward an open station table.
"Tell us what you have discovered."
Jaune began.
He explained the field test with Raven, the captured Stalker and the confirmation from the consciousness inside him.
As he spoke, the researchers rapidly recorded every detail.
When he reached the part about the internal battle between the two Stalker consciousnesses, several of them exchanged sharp looks.
"So the original entity had indeed consumed the newly acquired one," the silver-lensed researcher said.
Jaune nodded. "Yeah. Completely."
"And afterward? Were you able to access Umbra then?"
Jaune raised his hand.
A pulse of Umbra flowed through his palm.
The gathered shadow condensed outward and formed into the familiar spear.
The room went quiet as they stared at the weapon.
Even people across the chamber turned to look.
The spear's dark surface shimmered faintly, its edges too smooth to be entirely natural.
One of the researchers stepped closer, visibly fascinated.
"You can actively shape Umbra now?"
Jaune rotated the weapon once in his hand.
"Looks like it."
Auberyn stepped forward, eyes fixed on the spear.
"That shape," she said quietly. "Was that the original Stalker's weapon?"
Jaune glanced at her.
"Yeah. Same one it tried to shove through my eye."
Qrow barked out a laugh from the side.
"Still one of the funniest things I've seen all day."
Jaune shot him a flat look.
"I'm so glad my near-death experience was entertaining."
Raven ignored both of them.
"Can your Stalker Umbra create anything else?"
Jaune paused.
That was actually a good question.
He focused inward on the creatures presence.
Jaune extended his hand again.
This time, instead of the spear, Umbra crawled along his forearm.
The shadow flesh shifted and thickened. His hand elongated, fingers fusing together as a long axe blade formed from the side of his arm.
A murmur rippled through the gathered group.
Clover folded his arms, watching closely.
"Interesting."
Auberyn's eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
"So it isn't limited to a single shape?"
"No," Jaune said slowly, watching his own arm. "I don't think it is but... it feels very awkward to use. I think it might be due to it muscle memory or something. Though, perhaps muscle memory isn't exactly the right word. The spear also doesn't take much Umbra to manifest but the Axe seems to be more than double."
He let the axe dissolve.
A researcher immediately leaned in.
"That aligns with earlier observations in which Stalkers only seem to prefer using one distinct weapon type."
Jaune looked up.
The researcher adjusted their lenses.
"The Stalkers we have so far observed fighting, exhibited different combat manifestations. Some formed distinct external weapons such scythes, axes and spears while others altered their own bodies directly."
Pyrrha tilted her head slightly. "So there are different expression types?"
"Potentially," the researcher replied. "But I suspect it's not actually a species distinction."
Auberyn nodded. "A developmental distinction maybe?"
The researcher's expression brightened.
"Exactly."
Now that got everyone's attention.
The researcher stepped over to one of the slates and projected a rough diagram.
"We believe Umbra behaves similarly to runic expression, but without formalized rune structure to contain the power. This is both a boon and a weakness to them"
They tapped one part of the projection.
"Some Stalkers externalize Umbra."
A spear-shaped silhouette appeared.
"These entities shape condensed Umbra into tools separate from their bodies. Weapon manifestations."
Then another silhouette appeared, this one showing a limb morphing into a blade.
"Others internalize it. Instead of creating a separate construct, they reinforce or alter their own physical form."
Taiyang scratched his chin.
"So basically some use weapons and some turn themselves into the weapon."
"Precisely."
Jaune looked at his own shadow hand. That actually made sense.
Auberyn glanced toward her puppet. "My Stellar-converted one seems capable of both."
That caused a momentary silence.
Raven's eyes shifted toward the puppet Stalker.
"Show us."
Auberyn gave a small nod.
Her rune flickered.
Soft starlight threaded through the puppet's body.
One arm extended and sharpened into a long crescent blade.
Then the other hand condensed pale light outward into a floating lance.
Jaune blinked. "That's kind of cool."
Auberyn gave a faint shrug. "I think once the mind is stabilized, the Umbra follows intent more fluidly."
The silver-lensed researcher immediately seized on that.
"Then its consciousness might be the core variable."
Jaune frowned slightly.
"You mean intelligence?"
"Perhaps not intelligence exactly," they replied. "Identity."
That word hung in the air.
Raven spoke next.
"A stronger Stalker consumes a weaker one and becomes stronger."
Her gaze shifted toward Jaune. "Your internal Stalker did the same, which means that their ecosystem really is based on predation and consolidation."
"Evolution through consumption," Auberyn said quietly.
Jaune grimaced a little.
"Still sounds messed up when you say it out loud."
Qrow snorted.
"Kid, you're literally walking proof of it."
Before Jaune could respond, one of the beacon technicians called out.
"Synchronization in three minutes!"
The base shifted into motion immediately and researchers moved toward the central beacon.
Data slates were gathered and field notes were transferred. A formal report packet had already begun taking shape.
The silver-lensed researcher looked toward Jaune and Auberyn.
"You two are going to be central to this first report."
Jaune sighed.
"Great. I'm officially paperwork."
Auberyn gave him a sidelong glance.
"Congratulations."
The mood, though serious, had become strangely energized.
This was discovery and something new. Something no one in the real world had likely ever documented before. A functioning progression ecosystem native to the Shadow Realm.
Stalkers that evolved through consumption and Umbra expression types. Consciousness retention and even Possible human integration.
Jaune glanced down at his shadow hand again. Beneath it all, the Stalker within him pulsed faintly.
Satisfied and still Hungry. But now, strangely enough, cooperative.
"Maybe I should give you a name if we're going to be working together."
The stalker seemed curious as to what he was trying to say. It didn't really seem to understand.
The beacon began to hum louder and thin bands of light rose upward in concentric rings. The first report to the real world was about to be sent.
And Jaune had a feeling that what they sent back tonight was going to change everything in the future.