Four hours into the march, the original base already felt like something left in another lifetime.
The expedition team had covered an enormous stretch of terrain, far enough that even the first beacon's faint directional pulse was at the distant at the edge of the researchers' instruments. Every so often, one of the portable arrays would emit a soft chiming note as their coordinates were updated and transmitted back to Team 2, confirming their position and status.
It seemed as if both teams were doing just fine. At least, as fine as anyone could be while walking through a world made of shadow.
Jaune adjusted the strap of the instrument pack slung over one shoulder and looked out across the landscape ahead. Behind them, the region they had first entered now existed only as a memory and a growing map projection on one of the researchers' tablets.
That first biome had been a vast plain.
Featureless and open with no rivers, trees and only having a few sparse hills.
Just endless stretches of dark ground rolling into the horizon beneath a black sun that never seemed to shift in brightness.
But now the land had changed. The flat plains had gradually given way to something more textured, more alive.
The first sign had been the rise of uneven ground beneath their feet, shallow ridges and dips like the shadow of a forgotten landscape. Then the terrain had softened further into something closer to fertile earth, if such a thing could even exist here.
Eventually, they had come upon a large lake.
The sight of it had stopped nearly everyone in their tracks.
Though, perhaps calling it large was simply an understatement.
In any case, it was a still body of water which stretched wide enough that its far shore blurred faintly into the haze of distance. Shadowy trees clustered around its edges, their trunks black and matte, branches twisting upward in jagged silhouettes.
The water itself was the strangest part.
Unlike the rest of the shadow realm, it was not black. Instead, it shimmered in an odd grayish-white, like diluted moonlight pooled into liquid form.
Sun crouched near the edge, staring at it with open fascination.
"Hmm," he said, "Honestly, it looks quite pretty."
Neptune folded his arms beside him.
"I can't sense the water with my rune. It might look like liquid, but it definitely isn't."
Coppal knelt and dipped one gloved finger into the lake. The surface rippled exactly like normal water.
"No corrosive reaction, I guess." he said.
One of the researchers was already kneeling nearby, taking samples into a transparent vial.
Jaune watched as the liquid flowed into the container with perfect fluidity. It remind him of water seen through the memory of a dream.
And yet it behaved exactly as water should.
The researchers had spent nearly twenty minutes testing it. Chemical strips, runic resonance and even physical interaction.
Everything came back with the same baffling result.
It was water.
Or at least, it functioned almost exactly like it.
Qrow crouched beside the shoreline, scooping some into his hand and letting it trickle through his fingers.
Taiyang glanced toward him.
"You gonna drink it?"
Qrow looked offended.
"What do I look like, an idiot?"
A beat passed.
Then Taiyang said, deadpan, "That's not actually an answer."
A few quiet chuckles rippled through the rank 2s.
In truth, the question of sustenance had already been answered long ago. Before the expedition had started. Unlike the real world, none of them needed food or water since entering this realm.
Their bodies, now functioning as shadow constructs were tethered to their physical selves in reality—simply meant that they did not require it.
In a way, it was eerily similar to the Dream Realm.
In the Dream Realm, life and sustenance were fundamentally rejected by the Sleeper's subconscious.
Food could not exist and water could not manifest. At least not regular water. If it was born from a rune, it would be able to.
But here, in the Shadow Realm, it clearly could.
Even if they did not need it.
That distinction fascinated the researchers.
One of them was already muttering notes into a recorder.
"Environmental simulation supports liquid-state manifestations independent of biological necessity…"
Jaune let the words fade into the background as the team resumed movement. The farther east they traveled, the more Stalkers they encountered.
At first it had been sporadic with a lone zero-variant moving across the plain and a first variant in the distance, its white eyes glowing faintly against the gray horizon.
But as the hours passed, the sightings became more frequent.
Groups of two, then three and sometimes entire clusters.
And what they all shared was the same singular purpose.
Conflict.
They were always hunting one another.
Again and again, Team 1 would come across Stalkers already engaged in brutal fights, shadow weapons flashing in violent arcs as they tore into each other with animalistic hunger.
The zero-variants, roughly human-sized and far less physically imposing, tended to lose quickly.
The first variants were far more dangerous, being tall and long-limbed.
Strong enough to force even the Rank 1 members into caution. Naturally, most of the kills were being funneled toward Jaune and Auberyn.
This had become a deliberate part of the mission.
Every time a Stalker was brought down, the team allowed one of the two to absorb or convert it.
Auberyn's Stellar puppet now moved with unnerving smoothness beside her, its body faintly threaded with silver light from her rune.
Jaune's own Stalker companion pulsed quietly within him, feeding him the occasional trickle of Umbra and physical enhancement.
But something had changed, as they killed more and more. By the time they crossed the mountain ridge, the returns had become noticeably weaker.
Jaune could feel it.
As another first variant dissolved into him, and the resulting gain was barely more than a faint whisper of strength
A trickle. Nothing like before.
He frowned.
"Diminishing returns."
Auberyn nodded from a few paces away.
"Same on my side."
Her expression was thoughtful as she rested a hand lightly against the shoulder of her puppet.
"It's still increasing in power, but only by fractions now."
Jaune flexed his fingers and his inner Stalker conveyed the same impression. The zero and first variants were no longer enough.
Whatever progression system governed this place, it was clearly scaling. Which meant that they needed stronger prey.
That realization settled over the group with uncomfortable timing. Because it was shortly after that they saw the forest.
Even from the ridge that they were on, it dominated the horizon.
Forest almost felt like too small a word.
It was colossal.
The trees towered upward like skyscrapers, their trunks so massive that even if several hundred people were to link their arms, they likely could not encircle one. Their canopies stretched high into the dim sky, overlapping into an endless dark mass that swallowed the distance.
The entire thing looked ancient and primal. Alive in a way the plains had never been.
The group slowed almost instinctively.
Even Sun, usually the first to make a joke, had gone quiet.
Then Raven spoke.
Her voice cut through the silence like a blade.
"If we go in there," she said, "it's going to be extremely dangerous."
Every eye turned toward her.
She had been silent for most of the journey, offering only occasional tactical input. Now her expression had gone hard and measured.
"You've seen this before?" Jaune asked.
Raven nodded. "A while ago."
Her gaze remained fixed on the towering forest. "Before this organized expedition. When shadow rune users first began solo explorations."
Qrow muttered under his breath.
"The bad old days."
"I was dropped into a forest like this on my first and only solo descent." Raven ignored him.
A heavy pause followed.
"That was where I encountered the 2nd variant of stalker. Or as I like to call it, Asura variant."
Jaune frowned.
"Asura? Like that form of yours that you like to use?"
Raven's eyes darkened slightly but he mouth turned into a chilling smile.
"Indeed. That form of mine... I was able to learn how to manifest it, due to that singular instance of fighting that Stalker. Needless to say, it is extremely powerful."
She folded her arms. "At that time, I was forced to retreat back through the surface shadow layer and return to reality."
The implication landed heavily.
Taiyang whistled low.
"That bad, huh?"
Raven's reply was flat.
"Yes."
A beat passed. "Though," she added, "I was significantly weaker then."
That did little to ease the tension. If anything, it only made the looming forest seem even more ominous.
Jaune stared at it and felt the cold pulse of his stalker's Umbra stir faintly within him. It seemed to be exhibiting excitement from Raven's words.
Jaune couldn't help but contemplate his Stalker's feelings. If the diminishing returns from first variants meant anything…
It might also be exactly what they needed for it to grow stronger.
.
.
By the time the expedition group reached the outer edge of the forest, the atmosphere around them seemed to change. The open terrain that had defined most of their journey gradually narrowed into a heavy stillness, as if the land itself were drawing in a breath. What had once appeared in the distance as an immense wall of shadow now loomed before them in its full scale, and it was difficult not to stop and simply stare.
The trees were truly ridiculously monstrous.
Their trunks rose like pillars carved from condensed night. The bark was dark and almost matte, yet every now and then, faint shadowy pulses seemed to run beneath the surface—giving the impression that something was moving deep inside the wood. Above, the branches stretched so high that the canopy merged into a near seamless ceiling. What was odd, however was the fact that the inside of the forest wasn't dark. The unchanging light of the Shadow Realm's sky, seemed to be able to penetrate through the shadowed leaves at the top of the canopy.
Such a look made it seem like it was less a forest and more the skeletal remains of some ancient city grown from darkness itself.
Sun let out a low whistle as he craned his neck upward. "You know... it might be forest... but do you think there are things like... shadow animals or such? Be interesting to see a shadow tiger or something. Uh... tigers live in forests right?"
Neptune gave a dry laugh beside him. "No idea, never really studied anything about ecology. In any case, this place doesn't really seem to have an ecosystem, unless you count the stalkers eating each other."
Because the forest's edge was close enough for easy access, the Rank 2s quickly decided that this was where they would establish a forward base camp.
The original base was now far enough behind them that returning there for every scouting attempt would be inefficient, and with the forest presenting an obvious point of interest, it only made sense to create a secondary operational point nearby.
The process moved quickly. Under Clover's direction and with the help of the expedition's construct-capable members, the camp began to take shape with practiced efficiency. Shadow walls rose from the ground in smooth, reinforced arcs, forming a compact defensive perimeter. Portable beacon pylons were placed in a triangular formation around the camp's center, each one carefully calibrated by the researchers to maintain contact with both Team 2 and the real world's locked reference point.
Taiyang crouched near one of the instruments as a researcher adjusted its settings. "Signal stability?"
The woman glanced at the readouts and nodded. "Excellent. We're anchored cleanly. Team 2 just confirmed receipt of our latest ping."
"Good," Clover said, rising to his feet. "Then if anything goes wrong, at least we know where to run."
That earned a small sarcastic drawl from Qrow. "Truly Tai, comfort is your strong suit."
Yet what drew the team's attention more than the camp itself was what they kept seeing emerge from the forest.
Stalkers.
At first it was only one.
A zero variant, roughly human-sized, slipping silently from between the colossal trunks with jerky, movements. Then another followed, and another after that. Within the span of twenty minutes, it became clear that the density of Stalkers here was significantly higher than anything they had encountered in the plains or lake region.
More interestingly, the majority of them were the zero variants.
Jaune stood near the camp perimeter beside Auberyn, both of them watching the tree line carefully as several shadowy figures drifted into view.
"That's the sixth one in the last ten minutes," Auberyn said quietly.
Jaune nodded, his gaze narrowing. "And only one first variant among them."
The implication was difficult to ignore.
Whatever mechanism governed Stalker presence in this region, it was centered around this forest. The zero variants were not simply wandering into it but were coming out of it.
Almost as if they were being produced there.
As Jaune slaughtered the stalkers, his thoughts drifted out to the Dream Realm.
Within the Dream Realm, Grimm were born from Nightmare Zones, their existence was tied to the presence of Amalgamations that acted as cores or spawning nexuses. If that principle held any similarity here, then it was entirely possible that the forest housed some equivalent phenomenon.
A Stalker spawn point.
The idea sounded absurd, but in the context of everything they had already seen, it was almost the most logical explanation available.
Their observations only strengthened that theory.
Two zero variants emerged at the same time from separate points along the treeline and almost immediately, noticed one another. The moment their white eyes locked, both creatures lunged forward with singular intent.
There was no hesitation.
Their limbs twisted as Umbra surged outward, one forming a long spear while the other manifested jagged twin blades. They collided with a violent clash, the sharp sound of condensed shadow striking against itself echoing across the camp's perimeter.
Sun leaned against one of the newly raised walls, watching with a grim sort of fascination. "Do they even notice us?"
Raven, who had been silently observing from nearby, answered without taking her eyes off the fight. "No. Their priority is each other."
The battle was quick and brutal.
The spear-wielding Stalker managed to force its opponent backward before driving the weapon cleanly through its chest. The defeated creature convulsed for only a moment before its body dissolved into loose Umbra.
Then the victor absorbed it.
The transformation was almost immediate.
Its body trembled violently as Umbra essence flowed into it. Limbs lengthened, shoulders broadened, and its entire frame stretched upward until what stood there was no longer a zero variant.
A Tall Stalker, the first variant.
One of the researchers near Taiyang let out an excited breath. "It seems our theory was right after all. We just witnessed it's full evolutionary progression."
Jaune frowned thoughtfully. "So they start here as zero variants and evolve through combat."
Auberyn folded her arms. "Which means the forest is either producing them directly or drawing them from somewhere deeper inside."
"Either way," Qrow muttered, "I don't like the sound of it. Especially if there are... uh... Asura Variants or whatever."
As the camp neared completion, the Rank 2s gathered for a short discussion regarding the next phase of the mission. The conclusion came quickly enough.
A scouting party would enter the forest.
Raven's voice carried calm authority as she listed the names. "Qrow. Zeki. Jaune. Auberyn and myself."
Pyrrha immediately stepped forward. "I would like to go too."
Jaune turned toward her, already knowing from her expression that she was serious.
Clover shook his head before anyone else could respond. "Not yet, you wont be."
Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Why?"
"The camp still needs protection," Taiyang said, his tone more measured. "Taiyang and I will be roaming the perimeter and killing as many stalkers as we can find. So, if something emerges from the forest while the main combat force is inside, the researcher operatives need defenders. Your rune is also good for building...so..."
Pyrrha's gaze flicked briefly toward Jaune, then back to the others. She clearly disliked the decision, but after a long pause, she nodded.
"Fine. But once you've established a safe route, I would like to join the next sweep."
Jaune gave her a small smile. "We're just scouting. We'll be back."
She did not look entirely convinced, but she said nothing more.
The truth was clear enough to everyone present. The Stalker presence here was too dense and too organized to be random. There was something inside the forest that was producing them, nurturing them, or at the very least drawing them into a cycle of conflict and evolution.
They just needed to find out what.
With the camp secure and Taiyang and Clover remaining behind to oversee its defense, the scouting group gathered at the edge of the forest.
Qrow rolled one shoulder and let out a quiet sigh. "Well, kid. Let's go see what nightmare factory's hiding in there."
Jaune tightened his grip as Umbra flowed into the shape of a spear in his hand. He could have used his swords, but Jaune felt that it was interesting using a spear. After all, the Stalker body that he currently had was giving him some type of muscle memory in regards to the weapon. It would be a waste not to utilize it, at least for now.
"Alright," he said quietly, eyes fixed on the darkness beyond the trunks. "Let's find out where they're coming from."
Then, together, the five of them stepped past the forest's threshold and disappeared beneath the towering canopy.