RWBY:TEAM MGMA
CHAPTER 2
An Exercise of Faith
They sprinted towards the hill after a hurried round of introductions. The roars were getting closer, and the trees were shaking behind them. Modriot looked over her shoulder as she ran, her eyes scanning behind her. She was flanked by Mallaithe and Jacen on either side, and Aiden in front of her, a black metal gas mask pulled over his face. They slid to a halt in front of some crumbling ruins.
There was a shattered bridge, and lots of scattered rose petals all over the ruins. "I think this is where there was that intense initiation a few years ago. I heard they killed a Giant Nevermore by beheading it." Jacen remarked, swinging Starduster around to come to rest in his hands. Mallaithe had her dueling daggers in her hands, nodding in agreement. "Wasn't there another team with them that took out a really big Deathstalker alongside them?" she asked.
Modriot nodded, making sure to keep her magic in check. If it came down to a scrap, she did not want a bronchial attack in the middle of it. "I believe you are right. They killed it by embedding its tail stinger into its head." Aiden had stopped ahead of them and was staring up the cliff face. "Well, great. How are we supposed to get up there?" He looked down at the remnants of the shattered bridge. "Any idea on how we're supposed to get across?"
"Well, probably not by standing there." Mallaithe commented as she sprinted past him. She opened a small vial of water that she wore on a chain around her neck and splashed it all into the air. As she neared the end of the bridge, she jumped off and flung her hands outward. The water condensed underneath her and solidified for a split second, allowing her to take a step and jump off it, the water dissipating and moving to solidify again in front of her. As she landed lightly on the other side, coattails swirling, she motioned with her hand, gathering the water to her. She funneled it back into its vial, and recapped it, letting it hang around her neck.
Modriot rolled her eyes, took a few steps backwards, then started running. She reached the edge of the cliff and pushed off, allowing the strength of her legs to propel her forward to the outer broken edge. The distance was quite a large one, and she knew that she wasn't going to land on the other side. She was going to come down right in front of it. As she had predicted, she dropped right in front of the jutting stone, but as her head slipped below the surface, her right arm shot up and caught the ledge. Taking a breath, she hauled herself up and flipped over, landing gracefully on the bridge.
Aiden and Jacen looked at each other.
"Can you make that jump?" Aiden asked.
"Nope, but I do have an idea. Follow me!" Jacen called as he sprinted towards the cliff edge. Instead of running at it head-on, he went at an angle, Starduster morphing in his hands to a giant greatsword. He swung it, and as he did, he went alongside a pillar that was near the edge of the cliff, slicing it near its base. The pillar toppled, and as it went down, both Aiden and Jacen ran along it. As it went completely horizontal, they leaped, one at a time, from the edge of the pillar to the edge of the bridge. They both looked at each other, and proceeded to fistbump each other.
"So, now that we're over here, how do you proceed that we get up there?" Aiden asked, pointing one of his revolvers up at the sheer face of the cliff.
"And what do you propose we do about that?" Mallaithe asked, pointing to a few large black shapes that made their way out of the treeline. It was a pack of eight Beowolves, standing together and howling. Modriot turned and stared at them studiously. "They are considered to be the lowest tier of Grimm, plentiful but stupid. They don't behave like normal wolves, most noticeably because they don't have any self-preservation instinct. Would those with firearms kindly deal with them?"
Aiden and Jacen flashed each other vicious smiles, and then suddenly, the air rang with gunfire. The snarling mixed with howls, and Jacen's voice mixed with it.
"What the literal blue hell?"
The Beowolves were actually attempting to make the leap, settling back on their haunches, the muscles bunching. They sprang forward, clearing the massive distance, more howls ringing through the forest. "They're calling the rest of the pack!" Mallaithe cried, springing forward to stand beside Aiden, her hands at her belt.
"We don't have time for this." Modriot snarled. "Deal with them, and do it quickly!" A Beowulf sprang at her, claws outstretched. She met it head-on, her right leg coming up vertical in a strong kick to meet the onslaught. Her heel caught the Beowulf dead in the chin, knocking it backwards. She then cut low, her legs cutting in a graceful sweep kick, taking the Beowulf's legs out from under it. It then toppled off the stone platform, howling like it was dying. The sickening crunch of its spine being crushed against the unforgiving ground seemed hellishly loud, even in the growing din of battle.
More Beowolves were launching themselves across the chasm, seemingly unaware of the certain death waiting for them on the other side. Jacen's Starduster was emitting sharp cracks as the bullets left the chamber, and his accuracy was merciless, taking Beowolves in square between the eyes. As a pair of Beowolves charged forward, ignoring the bullets, Starduster sifted into its greatsword form in a fine mist of blue-green dust. He stood, breathing calmly, as both the Beowolves attacked him simultaneously. He exhaled, then propelled himself upwards, barely missing the slashing claws. He tucked the hilt of the sword close to his chest with the sword pointed perpendicular to his body, and then spun rapidly on his descent, turning himself into a bladed maelstrom. He whirled downwards, swift as a top. He sliced into the Beowolves, his blade cleaving deeply through bone, fur, and flesh. Their blood sprayed like a scarlet rain, staining the stone beneath them. They started disintegrating almost immediately, their black flesh turning into a midnight dust so fine it seemed like it would reach up and choke the sun.
Aiden had his gas mask pulled down over his face, obscuring his features. You couldn't tell, but his lips were curved upwards in a thin vicious smile. He had holstered both his pistols, and held his hands out in front of him, palms upwards. Suddenly, his hands flared as a jet of flame erupted from the center of his palms and wreathed around his hands, coiling like a dragon. He rocketed himself forward, his right hand outstretched, seeking. He grabbed a Beowulf by the throat and swung around it, setting his feet against its back and putting it into a headlock.
The flames around his hands snaked around his arm up to his elbow, completely engulfing his arm. The stink of burning flesh and fur simultaneously filled the air with a nauseatingly sickly sweet smell with an acrid tang on the end. Mallaithe, who was nearby, could feel her gorge rise at the smell. She uncapped her water and drew it out, using it to form a barrier over her nose and mouth. She turned her head, and was barely able to leap out the way before the raking claws of a Beowulf descended on her. She sprang back on her hands and her body followed through on the momentum, ribbon tails whispering against each other. She landed on her feet, boots skidding against the stone, one dagger held ready in her right hand.
She heard Aiden call to her, surprisingly loud despite the barrier of his mask. He had released the Beowulf slightly, and he centered his feet between its shoulder blades, straddling the bony protrusions on its spine. He pushed back, kicking it forward, its head flopping, partially severed. Mallaithe understood.
She ran forward, dagger extended. She pushed herself up, the blade burrowing into the flesh. She rocked her body to the side, moving in a wide arc to the side of its head. She could feel the resistance as the side of the dagger hit the connective tendon, but her momentum was too great. She completed her arc with her feet on its back. She pulled the dagger out and pushed off from the Beowulf's back, flipping out far enough to miss its spines as the severed head and body fell, spilling its lifeblood to the thirsty stone. She landed upright, noticing that Modriot was already in combat with the Beowulf who had tried to accost her earlier.
Modriot swayed slightly, keeping her body moving. She artfully dodged every swing and swipe the Beowulf aimed at her. Her dirty gray hair waved in time with her, her footwork light and complicated. At the next blow the Beowulf tried to land, Modriot leapt, almost lazily, only to land lightly on its massive paw. She only rested there for a brief second before she leapt again, bringing herself horizontal and striking both booted feet into the Beowulf's muzzle with great force. The resistance of the Beowulf's skull was enough for her to push backwards and flip, landing gracefully as the giant Grimm staggered backwards. Jacen took its momentary disorientation to take a flying downward strike at it, cleaving it neatly in two.
There were howls on the other side of the chasm as the Beowolves started to retreat, hastened by Aiden casting fireballs at them. One unfortunate Grimm caught a flaming missile square in its chest as it rose on its hind legs, and the force knocked it backwards into another retreating Beowulf. The four of them stood amidst the decaying corpses, the blood on the stone threatening to lick their boots. They turned to face one another, but before anyone of them could say anything, Modriot's commanding voice broke over the silence.
"We need to reach the top of the cliffs with our partners and relics. Firstly, I have a few questions. Aiden, can you use your fire to propel you upwards?" Aiden reached up and removed his gas mask, tucking its straps into its back pockets. He nodded. "I haven't tried it for very long, though. No telling, really."
"Can you bear any weight?"
"I can carry plenty. I don't know if it'll have any effect on said upwards propulsion, though."
"Mallaithe, can your water platforms hold anyone, or just you?"
Mallaithe moved the water away from her face and funneled it into its vial. "Anyone can stand on them, but they don't stay solid for long. I'm hydrokinetic, not cryokinetic. The water will still be a liquid, but I can pull it tight enough for it to be solid for a few moments."
Modriot nodded sharply. "That'll do. Now, you're, what? One hundred pounds?"
"I weigh one hundred and five pounds."
"Good. That means you're the smallest and lightest, and we need you on top of the cliff edge to help Jacen and I reach the top."
Mallaithe looked over them, then returned her gaze back to Modriot. "What about Aiden?"
Modriot's grin was thin and vicious. "He's going up with you. He's going to carry you to the top."
Both Aiden and Mallaithe opened their mouths to protest, but Modriot cut them off with a sharp wave of her hand. "We need to get moving before the Grimm decide it's safe enough to come back. Aiden, channel your flames down for short bursts. Mallaithe, you'll need to make platforms that he can get to and then jump off of to help gain momentum. Once you're on top of the cliff edge, you'll make platforms that we can jump to in an ascending fashion. It'll be like walking up stairs."
"I know that you two could go separately, but together, you'd be faster and the quicker we get up the cliff, the better. Can you make two smaller individual platforms side by side, Mallaithe?"
She nodded. "It's a bit harder than one complete platform, but I can do it. It'll take a lot of concentration, though. Aiden will have to watch my back in case of Nevermores and other potential Grimm."
Aiden put a hand on Mallaithe's shoulder. "I got'cha covered. Let's get going before Modriot kicks off the edge. Are the tails of your coat flame-proof?"
"They're flame-retardant."
"It'll work. Now, you're gonna want to sit high on my back. I assume you'll need to see where you're placing those platforms."
Mallaithe clambered onto Aiden's back. He stood a good eleven inches taller than her, so the tails of her coat barely brushed the tops of his calves. He looped his arms around her legs, holding her in place. "Are you ready?"
"You're not going to drop me, are you?"
"Nah. Then I'd have to go get you and that'd just be too much work. I'd rather not drop you. Now, here we go!"
Aiden took a running start and leapt off the platform. As he soared into the air, his flames licked out of the bottom of his boots and shot them upwards a few feet. Mallaithe yanked the cap off her water and splashed it upwards. She flung her arms and hands outward, and the spread water gathered and coalesced underneath Aiden's boot to form a thin disc of a circle. He pushed off the water, and again fire jetted from the bottom of his boot to lift them upwards. They were averaging five feet per stride, but the cliff edge was at least four hundred feet high.
The wind whipped Mallaithe's coattails into a frenzy, and she looked back as Aiden kicked off another platform.
Fuck.
He was fire, and she was water. She had forgotten the basics of nature. As he kicked off the liquid base, the heat from his boot was evaporating some of the water. If this kept up as it was, she would run out of water before they reached the top, and they still had to get Modriot and Jacen to the top.
This was going to leave them with few options.
"Can you make it the rest of the way without a platform?" She yelled, trying to be heard over the wind. Aiden made no reaction to indicate that he had heard her. Suddenly, there was a pull on her leg. She leaned forward to hear him better.
"Do you trust me?"
"What?!"
"I'm going to let go of your legs. I need to climb around to the front of me. I'm gonna throw you."
"You can't be serious!"
"Just do it!"
She felt Aiden's grip on her legs slacken, and she was suddenly very acutely aware of just how high they were. They were only halfway up the cliff face, and if he was going to throw her, she was going to have to use the rest of the water to skirt the way up. Was he capable of sustaining his own flight for long?
She unwrapped herself slowly, sliding around over his arm so he could get the proper grip on her. There was a moment of terror as she was bounced slightly as he jumped off another platform; she had to unwrap one arm from around him to focus where she was going to place the next platform. She finally made it to the front of him, and he said in her ear "Call your water back. You'll need it; I can't throw you all the way straight."
He was standing in the air, his eyes behind his mask narrowed in concentration as the flames from his boots jetted in a steady fashion. Mallaithe called her water back, focusing it around her mouth like a mask again. "Turn around. I need you facing me for this for work. Whatever you do, don't let go until I tell you."
Taking a deep breath, Mallaithe unhooked her legs from around his waist and lowered them, one at a time, until she was standing atop his boots. He took her hands, one in each of his. "Relax. Don't fight the gravity when it pulls on you."
With that advice, he jetted up and began spinning in a tight circle.
She clung to his hands, feeling gravity pull her legs out behind her. She relaxed her muscles, and felt more than heard him command her to release. She spun outwards and upwards like a clay pigeon, while Aiden plummeted like a stone. The wind was too great for either of them to hear Jacen yelling at them. Aiden got his feet under him and concentrated again, the bursts of flame from his boots stopping his descent and sending him upwards. He couldn't do sustained flight, but he could achieve lift if he timed it right. Just before he felt his body starting to fall, another jet of flame sent him upwards. He had to make it to the top, and he was nearly there!
As Mallaithe felt herself reach the top of her arc, she formed a platform in front of herself, rocketing straight for it. She had made it over the cliff edge, but she needed to stop her flight. She timed it so she landed boot-first on the platform, crouched against it at a downward angle, and leapt off it. She was now aiming for the ground, rapidly approaching it. Another water platform appeared in front of her, and she touched her hands to it, using the platform as a springboard to land on her feet on the solid ground. She called her water to her and funneled it into the vial around her neck. She ran to cliff edge to see where Aiden had landed.
He was nearly there, ten feet away from the edge. The mask on his face made it hard to see, but the lines around his eyes said he was concentrating hard and was near his limit. She got to her knees and reached her hand out. He did one more burst of upward moment, and grabbed her hand, managing to get his arm over the edge to hold himself. Mallaithe hauled backwards, trying to pull him upwards. He outweighed her, and gravity was pulling on his legs that were still hanging down. He dug his elbow into the earth, trying to lever himself up. Slowly, his body inched over the edge before he was completely stomach down on the ground while Mallaithe sat down beside him, panting a bit from the effort. They had made it.
Aiden pulled his mask off his face, and flopped his arm down. "Do you hear that?" he asked. Mallaithe raised her face to the sky, eyes closed. There it was again.
Thunder.
That could only mean one thing.
Rain.
Mallaithe started laughing, standing and throwing her arms to the sky. The clouds were gathering, and the sky was darkening. The first pitter of moisture splashed on her face, and she reached up, watching it slid down her fingertip. She splashed her water out from its vial, and watched it gather around it her outstretched hands. She directed her hands down, and watched the water move through the air like sinuous silvery snake.
It dropped once it came near the cliff edge, falling like the rain from the sky, mirroring her hand motions. It coalesced into a thin disc in front of the stone dais where Modriot and Jacen were waiting. The rain was starting to come down a bit harder now, and while Aiden got to his feet, Mallaithe bit her lip and concentrated harder. Raindrops stopped in their descent around the disc, then melded to it, thickening the width of it. Taking a deep breath, she moved her hands away from each other, causing the water to separate into the two smaller platforms as Modriot had instructed. She watched as Jacen and Modriot jumped onto the platforms, then she quickly made another one in front of them. Her next breath was bit shaky, but she had to keep the platforms.
Aiden stood behind Mallaithe, his pistols gripped in his hands. He didn't trust how quiet the forest was. He could hear the sounds of Jacen and Modriot getting closer behind him, and the much quieter sounds of Mallaithe's breaths growing more ragged. He suspected that her endurance for her Semblance wasn't very high; she had probably never used it for this long. He dropped into a defensive stance as an Ursa made an appearance through the trees, snuffling. It swiveled its head through the trees, nostrils flaring. Aiden noticed with abrupt clarity that the creature was blind. It couldn't see them, and it was likely that the rain was dampening their scents to some degree.
It snuffled again, then proceeded to wander back the way it came. He was vaguely aware that Mallaithe had collapsed to her knees behind him, her arms still outstretched. He could hear Jacen shouting below the edge, but as he turned, he saw the crown of his head, covered in soggy blue and green hair, poking up near the edge. Modriot made it onto the ledge before Jacen, lightly landing on the balls of her feet, her cloak swirling around her. Jacen followed, Starduster once again strapped to his back.
"Get up." Modriot said, swishing past Mallaithe. Her tone held some impatience, likely because she wanted out of the wet. Jacen extended a hand to the panting Mallaithe, who took it gratefully. He hauled her upright, and she steadied herself on his arm. "I'll be okay, really." She said, her breathing evening out. The four of them trudged back to the launching zone, where both Goodwitch and Ozpin were standing underneath a small canopy. Modriot came forward and dropped the gear into Ozpin's waiting hand. Aiden took the matching gear and mirrored Modriot's action. Ozpin nodded, and they walked towards the school, each intent on dry clothes and something hot.
"Canary Achaman, Bacchus Liber, Luck o'Rein, and Timber Aconite."
It was the team assignment ceremony, and Ozpin has called four students forward. The group on the stage consisted of a blonde girl with a winged headband, a bubbly purple-haired boy, a fiery redhead in a matching scarf, and a brunette Faunus sporting wolf ears.
"The four of you retrieved the gray helical gears. From this day forward, you shall work together as team CBLT, with Canary Achaman as your leader."
Applause filled the room, and the newly formed CBLT walked off-stage, Canary nodding solemnly to Ozpin in acknowledgement.
"Modriot Strast. Jacen Galard. Mallaithe o'Ifreann. Aiden Codail."
They filed silently on stage, then stood with their hands behind their backs.
"The four of you retrieved the green spur gears. From this day forward, you will work together as team MGMA. Modriot Strast will lead you."
Applause once again filled the room, and as they walked silently off the stage, Modriot stopped them near the doors.
"I'm telling you this now. Willingly or not, I will drag you to glory. It is up to you to decide just how hard you want to make me wrench you to your feet."