 Everything has changed. Beacon has fallen, Ozpin is gone, and those responsible have vanished without a trace. With their time studying at Beacon Academy ended abruptly, Team Ruby has separated, each of them following their own paths. Welcome back to Ruby Recap. I am Phoenix Knight, and today we will be covering the events of Ruby Vol. 4 and 5. In the Land of Darkness, Grimm spawn from black pools as Emerald and Mercury watch in disgust. It is here that Salem resides in Evernight Castle, and she meets with her lieutenants. The arrogant Dr. Arthur Watts, the stoic Hazel Reinhardt, the maniacal Tyrion Callows, and the injured Cinder Fall. After the battle at Beacon Tower, Cinder was left barely able to speak, and was now missing her left eye. Watts and Tyrion belittle Cinder for her loss as Hazel remarks that they have dealt with the SilverEyed Warriors before. Salem contradicts Watts' criticisms and praises Cinder for taking the Fall Maiden powers and killing Ozpin. She then orders Cinder to stay close, continuing her treatment, sending Watts to meet with her informant in Mistral, Hazel to meet with the leader of the White Fang alongside Adam Tauros, and Tyrion is sent to capture Ruby alive. Elsewhere in Remnant, a young boy awakens and begins his daily work on his farm. In a forest on the outskirts of Mistral, Ruby, Nora, Jean, and Ren, now collectively known as Team Ranger, battle against a Geist Grimm, a monster that can possess inanimate objects. It had been terrorizing a nearby town, and as payment for defeating it, Jean's equipment is upgraded using the metal that had once belonged to Pyrrha. Communication in Remnant is reliant on a series of relay towers, called the Cross Continental Transmit System. It consists of four primary towers, one located in each kingdom, and a number of smaller relay towers scattered across Remnant, to allow individuals to communicate and share information through radio waves. Due to the destruction of Beacon Tower, one of the four primary relay towers, global communications have been cut off, making it much more difficult for the smaller villages scattered between the kingdoms to call for help when needed. The next town they arrive at, Shion, is much less lively as it is still burning after being attacked by bandits and the Grimm that were drawn by the panic. Only a single injured huntsman remained barely alive, dying soon after Team Ranger had arrived, and leaving a sinking feeling in their hearts as Ren and Nora spot a large hoofprint on the ground. That night, Ruby dreams of Pyrrha once again, and awakens to find Jean as he trains to a recording of Pyrrha he has on his scroll with a heavy heart. Back in the Land of Darkness, Cinder is struggling as Salem is telling her to make something fear her instead of the other way around. They are then interrupted by a Seer Grimm, a being that Salem uses for communication. As it approaches, Salem turns to Cinder and asks again if she did kill Ozpin, to which Cinder chokes out a reply. Salem then orders the Seer to increase their forces at Beacon. She's sure that the relic is there. Meanwhile, the young farm boy, Oscar Pine, finished with his tasks for the day begins to hear a voice in his head, one that we are all too familiar with. As Team Ranger traveled, Crow followed, eliminating many of the Grimm they might encounter. Upon arriving at the next town, Hajibana, he is met by his sister Raven Bronwyn, who wants to know if Salem has claimed Ozpin's relic, to which Crow chastises Raven for not being there for Yang after she lost her arm, and for leading the Bandit tribe that attacked the village of Shion, a tribe that Crow had left behind. He asks Raven if she knows where the Spring Maiden is, and she refuses to answer, leaving through a portal once again. A short time after Crow and Team Ranger had left, another person arrives at the bar to ask for them. Tyrion is close in pursuit. As Team Ranger arrives at another town, named Oni Yuri, that stands completely abandoned, a town that Ren believes was destroyed by a single Grimm, Tyrion catches up with them, and after they refuse to hand Ruby over, he attacks. During the fight, Tyrion easily outmatches all of Team Ranger, and it is revealed that he is a Scorpion Faunus. As he is about to pierce Ruby with his Stinger, Crow arrives to save the day. As Crow realizes that Tyrion works for Salem, he instructs Team Ranger to stay back, as he is too dangerous. The fight drags on, and Crow and Tyrion's aura are both drained, prompting Ruby to jump back into the fight. As she does so, Crow was forced to save her from a piece of falling debris, giving Tyrion an opening to slash Crow with his Stinger. Ruby then severs Tyrion's extended tail, forcing him to flee as Team Ranger turned to the injured Crow for an explanation. Back on the farm, Ospin continues to talk to Oscar, telling him that he is not insane and that their souls have become linked. He stresses the importance of getting both of them to Haven Academy. Later that evening, Crow reveals to Team Ranger the truth of the Maidens and Salem's overall goal. Now, according to Ospin, there is one other fairy tale that has some truth within it. The tale of the two brothers, gods holding sway over the powers of creation and destruction. The older brother favoring creation, bringing life into the world, while the younger brother favored destruction, bringing to ruin all that the older brother had created, eventually leading him to create the Grim, creatures that know only destruction. In time, the brothers did make peace with one another by coming together and making one final creation, the human race, beings knowing both creation and destruction, possessing the knowledge to use it and having the choice to decide which path to follow, each of these four ideals becoming physical form in the relics. These relics are safeguarded under the Four Huntsmen Academies, and it is Salem's goal to possess all of them. Bewildered at what they had just heard, Ruby then asks Crow why he didn't travel with them in the first place, and he tells them of his semblance, misfortune, the ability to bring bad luck to those around him, something that he can't fully control, making it difficult for him to be close to others, especially those that he wishes to protect. Crow then ends the discussion, and the following morning, Team Ranger awakes to find Crow coughing and his wound oozing a purple substance before he falls unconscious. As Ruby and Jon carry Crow on a stretcher, the team splits to increase their chances of finding aid. Ren and Nora head through a mountain pass as Ruby and Jon head to the supposedly destroyed village of Kuro Yuri, as they leave Ruby and Jon pass over the same hoof print seen in Shion Village. Meanwhile, Oscar had made up his mind to accept Ozpin's request and headed for Mistral. While on his way to the train station, he has a brief encounter with Hazel, who actually assists him, not knowing of the passenger Oscar carries inside himself. The village of Kuro Yuri. In a time long past, this is where Ren grew up, living with his parents. One fateful day, he encountered an orphaned Nora, who is being bullied, but Ren doesn't have the courage to stand up for her. Later that evening, he is awoken by his mother in a panic, only to fall unconscious again and wake up in his father's arms. He tells Ren that he must be brave as Ren's father turns to face the monster that approaches. Ren starts to despair at losing everything around him, which awakens his semblance, tranquility, the ability to mask negative emotions. In his calm state, he uses his semblance to help Nora and himself survive the destruction of the village. In present day, Nora and Ren enter a cavern and realize that the same grim from that night years ago was once again on its way to Kuro Yuri. As Cinder trains with her maiden powers, Tyrion returns to Salem and is distraught when she expresses disdain for his failure. He then lashes out at a nearby grim in anger, giving in to his sadistic urges, repeatedly stabbing it without letting it die. Ren and Nora rush to the village and find Ruby and Jon unharmed, mere moments before the monster they feared arrives. The Nukulavi. The battle is brutal as Team Ranger struggles against the beast, Jon gets Kro to safety and Ren begins to give in to his anger as he fights. Nora brings him back to his senses and through their teamwork, Ren is able to finish the Nukulavi with his father's dagger that he had kept all this time. The smoke from the Grimm's demise alerted a nearby airship and Team Ranger is picked up to be brought safely to Mistral. Things are looking up as Kro is healed and they have finally arrived at their destination, but unbeknownst to the group, Arthur Watts has already made contact with Salem's informant, the headmaster of Haven Academy, Leonardo Lionheart. Back on the island of Patch, where Ruby's journey to Mistral began, Yang had stayed behind, dealing with her own inner turmoil and the trauma of losing her arm. She is gifted a high-quality prosthetic from Atlas by General Ironwood, but doesn't feel comfortable wearing it. After her father is visited by a pair of her old professors, Yang realizes that she's not only holding herself back, but also those who care about her. The next day she puts on the arm and steps out of the house. It is time for her retraining to begin. Yang and her father begin sparring, as Tai teaches Yang to fight without relying on her semblance. He opens up to Yang about her mother, Raven, the traits that he admires about her and that it was her flaws that broke their team apart. Some time later, Yang paints her prosthetic arm and is ready to leave. Tai asks her whether she is heading to find her sister or her mother. In the Kingdom of Atlas, Weiss is sought out by her butler Klein to meet with her father. As Weiss solemnly walks through the lavish Schnee Manor, she encounters her brother Whitley. And after an unpleasant exchange, Weiss enters her father's study to find him arguing with James Ironwood. Ironwood had imposed a dust embargo to other kingdoms under the pretense that some may intend to start a war. And this has cost Jacques Schnee, current head of the Schnee Dust Company, a lot of money. After Ironwood leaves, Jacques pressures Weiss into singing at an upcoming charity event the company is holding for Beacon, the purpose of which is to promote the Schnee family image using Weiss, a survivor of Beacon, as a selling point. Weiss reluctantly agrees and as the day of the charity event arrives, she is displeased at the ignorant nature of the people in attendance. As she overhears a woman claim that Vale had it coming, Weiss loses control of her semblance momentarily and summons a grim in the middle of the crowd. As it goes to attack the woman, Ironwood shoots it down before leaving the party. Afterwards, Jacques scolds Weiss for her behavior, claiming she disgraced the Schnee name, to which Weiss responds that it's a name Jacques only married into. Jacques retaliates by slapping Weiss and promptly informs her that she has been disowned, that Whitley will be the new heir to the company. After confronting a smug Whitley and crying in her bed, Weiss pushes herself forward. While working on her summoning, Whitley interrupts to flaunt that he is free to go wherever he pleases, while Weiss is confined to her room. After dismissing Whitley, Weiss manages to successfully summon her knight, the Arma Gigas. And as Klein comes to see if she's okay, Weiss asks him for a favor. She has decided to escape the Schnee manor, and as she leaves, Weiss overhears Ironwood and Jacques arguing again, this time about Ironwood's decision to close Atlas' borders completely. Weiss then leaves through a secret passage in the library, saying a fond farewell to Klein and boards an airship headed for Mistral, hoping to meet her sister there. After the fall of Beacon, Blake had run from her team, and had boarded a ship leaving the kingdom of Veil. While aboard the ship, she was attacked by a seafay long, a monstrous sea dragon Grimm, and with the help of a stowaway, she and the crew of the ship are able to defeat it. Sun had followed Blake, thinking that she was aiming to take on the White Fang alone, but that wasn't what she was doing at all. Blake was heading home to sort out her own turmoil, home to Menagerie, and now Sun was along for the ride. Outside of the four kingdoms, there is another continent that is populated, the island of Menagerie, gifted to the Faunus after the Great War as a symbol of equality, but this island, largely covered in desert, was almost entirely uninhabitable, with only one major settlement, the city of Kuo Kuanah. The Faunus make do with what they have, in hopes that one day true equality can be achieved, and it is this inequality that sparked the creation of the White Fang. After arriving at Menagerie, Blake heads to her home, and we meet her parents, Kali and Ghira Belladonna. As Sun makes his awkward introductions, members of the White Fang, Corsic and Finnic Albain, pay a visit to Ghira, who was the previous leader of the organization. Blake and Sun quickly tell Ghira about the White Fang's involvement in Beacon's Fall, and the Albains blame it on a splinter group led by Adam Toros. Ghira sends them away, and as they leave, they decide that they should inform their brother Adam about Blake's arrival in Menagerie. Blake is then able to reconcile with her father, after she had chastised him for leaving the White Fang when she continued fighting. As Ghira is comforting Blake, Sun interrupts them. He tries to tell her that masked members of the White Fang are in Menagerie, and as Blake is refusing to listen, they notice a masked spy watching them from the darkness. As they give chase, the spy is revealed to be Ilya Amitola, a chameleon Faunus from Blake's past in the White Fang. Blake is able to take Ilya's scroll, but she injures Sun and flees, warning Blake that she should not have come back. Sun is greeted by Blake as he wakes up, and she tells him that this was the reason she ran. She cared about her friends and didn't want them to be hurt because of her. Sun then points out that she's not being selfless, that shutting out her friends hurts more than any physical injury. Ghira then enters, revealing what he had learned from Ilya's scroll, that Adam plans to overthrow the leader of the White Fang, Siena Khan, and repeat the fall of Beacon at Haven Academy. They try to convince the Albane brothers of this plan but are unsuccessful, and shortly afterwards, Adam follows through with this plan, murdering Siena Khan and taking control of the White Fang organization. Ghira holds a press conference to try to convince the people of Menagerie that Adam's way is wrong, urging them all to join him in going to Haven Academy and protecting it from Adam's attack. The people are wary as Ilya interrupts, calling the Belladonna's traitors before fleeing the scene. Afterwards, Blake and Sun try to gather signatures of those willing to go and help defend Haven, but are entirely unsuccessful. Blake talks to Sun about Adam and Ilya, where she says she wants to help Ilya the way that Sun helped her. At the same time, Ilya is summoned by Corsac and Finnic, who tell Ilya about Siena's death, and that they must now silence the Belladonna's. Blake, however, shall be captured and brought to Adam. Blake then receives a note from Ilya, wanting to speak alone, which turns out to be an ambush. Ilya reveals that she had romantic feelings for Blake in the past, but Blake was too busy with Adam to notice. Now Ilya planned to kill Blake's parents and send Blake to Adam. But Blake had anticipated the meeting might turn out this way, and after Ilya leaves, Sun steps in to rescue her. Both of them rush to Blake's home as it is currently under siege by the White Fang. They arrive as Gira fights the Albane brothers alone. He tells Blake to go and help her mother, and as she does, Blake encounters Ilya. The two begin to fight as the mansion catches fire. Ilya becomes conflicted between helping Blake or the White Fang, as Gira and Sun's fight with the Albanes intertwine with their own battle. During the fight, Gira and Sun save Ilya from being crushed, only for Finnick to die while trying to kill Gira. The rest of the White Fang is subdued, and Ilya breaks down, regretting what she has done. The Belladonna's burning home draws a crowd, and Blake addresses them, causing many Faunus, including Ilya, to rally in support of their cause to defend Haven from Adam's attack in two weeks' time. Back at Haven Academy, Crow takes Team Ranger through the city of Mistral to meet with Leonardo at the Academy. Seeing the Academy deserted, Crow berates Ilya for not keeping the relic protected. It is revealed that each relic is sealed within a vault that only a specific maiden can open, so Ilya gave leave to all of his staff after fighting Grimm on the Kingdom's borders. Crow reveals that he thinks the lost spring maiden is with Raven, and Ilya delays pursuing her, later telling Salem of the new information so her forces can get to the maiden first. Afterwards, Oscar finds Crow at a bar, and after drinking his fill, Crow brings him back to Team Ranger, where he reveals to the group that he is also Professor Ozpin. You have silver eyes. Oscar demonstrates that he and Ozpin can switch control of Oscar's body, and Oz tells them that he was cursed by the gods for not being able to defeat Salem in the past, his soul reincarnating to a new host with every death, retaining all the memories from his past lives, as each of their souls eventually merge together. Oz is suspicious of Leonardo and agrees to train a Team Ranger and Oscar while Crow seeks out other huntsmen to help with their cause. During their training, Oscar shows quick improvement, but admits to Ruby that he is scared and asks her how she can handle everything that's going on. Ruby admits her fears and tells Oscar about the loss of her friends, Penny and Pira, that they would keep moving forward if Ruby had perished, and that she will do the same. Ozpin then remarks to Oscar that Ruby has a spark that inspires everyone around her. Meanwhile, Weiss continues her flight to Mistral when her pilot gets a distress call. They try to avoid the conflict, but the nearby Grimm take notice. Lancers, nasty wasp-like Grimm that prey upon airships in the area. Weiss fights from the cargo hold, using her glyphs to keep herself in place. Using her dust attacks and some quick maneuvers from the pilot, they are able to take out the small Lancers, leaving only the queen remaining. Weiss summons her knight to her side and is able to defeat it, but the ship takes too much damage, falling to the ground on the shores of Mistral. Thanks to her glyphs, Weiss survives the crash, only to be greeted by the Bronwyn tribe, and their leader Raven, who takes Weiss prisoner in hopes of ransoming her back to Atlas. While imprisoned, she meets Raven's Lieutenant, Vernal, who tells Weiss that her sister went back to Atlas when Ironwood closed the kingdom's borders. No help was coming for her, and so Weiss takes matters into her own hands, summoning a smaller version of her knight to break her out of the cage. Not long before this, Yang had taken a ship to Mistral, along with her bike and ultimately had decided to seek out her mother. Stopping at a rest stop, she encounters a member of her mother's tribe as he tries to hit on her. After knocking him around a bit, he agrees to take Yang to the tribe's camp and tries to ambush her once they get there. Yang easily deals with them and marches into the camp to confront her mother. Raven congratulates Yang on finding her, but Yang only came to Raven to use her semblance to create a portal to Crow, and thus to her sister Ruby. With the ensuing commotion, Weiss takes the chance to break out of her cage and is reunited with Yang. Before a larger fight can break out, Raven orders Vernal to summon Lightning and warns that more conflict will draw Grimm. Raven then invites Yang and Weiss inside to tell them the truth about the fight they are entering. She reveals to them the truth about Salem and Ospin's war against her, that Ospin had enlisted her team in the past to join the fight, opened their eyes to the terrifying truth of the world, and gifted Raven and Crow the ability to turn into birds. She then opens a portal for Yang, giving her the choice to stay and have their questions answered, or to go to Crow and join Ospin's hopeless war against Salem. Much to Raven's dismay, Yang chose to go, only wanting to see her sister. Meanwhile, Crow had been scouring the city of Mistral for any huntsman to help recover the Spring Maiden and defend the relic, but none of the huntsman he knows or any other huntsman for that matter were available in Mistral at all, most having not been seen for weeks. As he wondered what could have happened to all of them, a portal opens behind him, and soon after, the three members of Team Ruby are reunited after months apart. The members of Team Ruby and Team Juniper share stories of their adventure and reflect on how far they have come since the last time they saw one another. Later, Yang and Weiss are filled in about the maidens, magic, the relics, and that Ospin had gifted a small portion of his magic to Crow and Raven. It is revealed that Oz can still use magic now, but it is dwindling after giving large portions of it to the first maidens centuries ago. He gives them all a choice, to stay and fight or leave, and all choose to stay, with Yang demanding that he stops keeping secrets from them. The next morning, Ruby, Weiss, and Yang enjoy their time together, and Ruby wishes that Blake could be there with them. Yang, however, becomes angry at the mention of her name. Later, Weiss talks with Yang, both confiding in one another, and Weiss tells Yang that Blake was dealing with her own burdens while at Beacon. Weiss reveals that she sees her teammates more as family than her own, and that Blake likely feels the same. She will be there for Blake when she returns, and is there for Yang whenever she needs. Ruby then talks with Ospin and Crow, where it is revealed that the relic under Beacon Academy remains safe, that Ospin took extra precautions with that relic compared to the vaults under the other academies. Meanwhile, Cinder, Watts, Emerald, and Mercury arrive at Raven's camp. They confront Raven, wanting to bring Vernal with them to open the vault under Haven Academy. After hearing of the White Fang's planned attack on the school, and Lionheart's loyalty to Salem, Raven accepts on the condition that Crow be killed. All the while planning to take the relic for herself in the confusion of the battle. Cinder agrees, and alters their plans to coincide with the White Fang's attack, hoping for a chance at Ruby as well, much to Watts' dismay. Two days later, Crow is called to meet with Lionheart, and everyone goes along with him. The meeting turns out to be an ambush, as Raven is waiting, quickly opening a portal to allow Cinder, Emerald, Mercury, and Vernal to arrive. Hazel then enters the room as Adam and the White Fang begin setting explosives around the school. The battle for Haven begins as Jean attacks Cinder. Crow fights against Raven, Emerald confronts Ruby, Yang gets a brief rematch with Mercury, Nora and Ren take on Hazel, and Oscar sneaks up to attack Lionheart. Leonardo sees Oscar using Ospin's weapon, and realizing that Ospin had reincarnated, decides to give him over to Salem. During the battle, Weiss is bested by Vernal, who breaks Weiss' aura, as Jean charges Cinder. Ruby sees Jean's actions, and her memories of Pira's final moments cause her silver eyes to react. Emerald quickly knocks Ruby out, but the silver eyes left Cinder weakened, allowing Jean to attack, narrowly missing Cinder's head and chipping her mask. Infuriated, Cinder conjures a spear and impales Weiss, only to watch Jean fail to protect someone yet again. As Jean rushes to Weiss, Oscar gets the better of Lionheart, who then tells Hazel about Ospin's return. This enrages Hazel as he begins to inject dust into his body and attacks Oscar. His sister had died while attending Beacon Academy many years prior, and he holds Ospin responsible, vowing to kill him over and over again. Jean's desperation to save Weiss unlocks his semblance, allowing him to use his own aura to amplify hers, healing her in the process. In the confusion, Cinder, Raven and Vernal enter the cavern under the school, containing the relic of knowledge. As Vernal approaches the vault, Cinder freezes Raven in place, and impales Vernal with her left arm that had been replaced with Grim. Cinder is confused, finding no magic within Vernal, and as Vernal collapses, Raven reveals that she is the true Spring Maiden. Jean continues to heal Weiss as Ren is defeated by Hazel, and Nora rejoins the fight. Thanks to her semblance, Nora overpowers Hazel, launching him out of the building to where Adam and the White Fang are setting their explosives. Blake then arrives with the Faunus of Menagerie and the Mistral Police Force in tow. Adam attempts to detonate the bombs, disregarding the safety of his allies, but Illya had already disarmed them. He orders the White Fang to kill everyone present, and the battle between the Faunus groups commences. Hazel is then dragged back inside as Weiss is recovered and has summoned a Queen Lancer to her side. Yang gets past Mercury and heads to the vault as Raven and Cinder battle one another, the cavern collapsing around them due to their immense power. As Cinder and Raven reach their limits, in a final act, Vernal attacks Cinder, distracting her and allowing Raven to send her plummeting off the cliff, freezing her in the process. As Raven turns back, Vernal had died. Raven thanks her one last time and proceeds to open the vault containing the relic. Before Raven can enter, however, Yang comes to confront her. Through their conversation, it is revealed that Raven killed the previous Spring Maiden and that she is afraid of Salem. Yang resolves that she will take the relic instead, so Salem will come after her and she will be waiting. After shedding a tear, Raven departs and Yang claims the relic of knowledge, breaking down after doing so. Above ground, the White Fang forces have surrendered and Adam flees the battle knowing that he has lost. After Hazel manages to destroy Weiss' summon, Blake joins her team in the fight against him, Emerald and Mercury. Seeing the battle no longer in his favor, Lionheart flees and Salem has a seer grimm kill him for his cowardice. Yang then returns with the relic in hand, prompting Emerald to despair at the realization that Cinder has fallen. Her semblance goes out of control and conjures a massive and deformed hallucination of Salem that terrifies all those who have not yet seen Salem's face. Hazel and Mercury make their escape, carrying the unconscious Emerald with them as Adam watches from a distance. The battle for Haven was won. The White Fang will no longer follow Adam, and Ghira is resolved to start a new Faunus Brotherhood, striving for a more promising future. Team Ruby is reunited and Oscar passes a message to Crow from Ozpin. They must bring the relic to Atlas. And this brings us to the end of Oymes 4 and 5 of the Ruby series. Haven has been saved but is now left without its defenses. With the relic in hand, Team Ruby sets their sights on Atlas, the Kingdom to the North. Let me know your favorite moments from Vol. 4 and 5 in the comments down below, and I'll see you guys in the next episode of Ruby Recap.