A/N: As promised, here's the next chapter, the second half of the Beacon Initiation battle. Not much to say about this one at the moment, so I guess I'll just see you at the end. Well, enjoy.
I don't own RWBY or Kamen Rider Ex-Aid
Playing by the Rules!
Ex-Aid immediately began wiping the floor with the Bugster Soldiers, they were admittedly more adept fighters then the ones accompanying the Salty Bugster, but in true beat-em-up fashion they were dispatched with minimal effort. However, the rest of the Huntsmen in training didn't have it so easy.
Ruby activated her semblance and dashed through a large group of Bugsters, cleaving through every single one of them with Crescent Rose and skidding to a stop on the other side. However, when she looked back to admire her handy work, she was shocked to see that the Bugsters were completely untouched, making mocking gestures at her before advancing. Ruby switched her weapon to Sniper mode and fried at the approaching enemies, aiming for a clean headshot every time, but the moment the dust rounds made contact, a blue MISS graphic flashed, leaving the Bugster unharmed and not even acknowledging that it was hit, because apparently it wasn't. Once they had gotten close enough to attack, Ruby switched back to Scythe mode to defend herself, she blocked the creatures' attacks easily enough, but every time she tried to counter she "missed" and was thus left open for them to attack.
Her comrades weren't having anymore luck, no matter how hard Blake and Pyrrha slashed, Yang and Nora bashed, or Weiss and Ren jabbed, the Bugsters were simply immune to their attacks, of course the same couldn't be said for the Bugsters and their attacks, despite their crude fighting style they were beating the highly trained warriors to a pulp, slowly but surely depleting their protective Aura and stamina. Ruby blocked three baseball bats swung at her head only for another enemy to sneak behind and hit her with a folding chair, sending her to the ground. Ruby attempted to get back up, but one of the Bugsters stomped on the hand the held Crescent Rose, completely immobilizing her as the enemies all gathered around and prepared to just beat her into the ground.
"Ruby!' Ex-Aid cried once he noticed the pinch his friend was in. Ex-Aid hit the B button on the Gashacon Breaker three times, charging it with energy before smashing it into the ground, causing a shockwave that sent all three of the Bugsters surrounding Ruby into the air. Ex-Aid then leaped after them, defeating them in what Ruby could only describe as a midair combo, the Bugsters bursting into black polygons before he even landed. "You ok?" He asked as he helped her up.
"Yeah… just a little dizzy." Ruby assured as she shook her head to get rid of her dizziness.
"Just what is the meaning of this!?" Weiss demanded as she nearly backed into Ruby as she locked blades with a Bugster wielding a bokken. "Why can't we harm these things?" She inquired before attempting to thrust her weapon into the creature's chest, having no effect as if to emphasis her point.
"Wait, you can't hit them?" Ex-Aid said quizzically before bashing the Bugster Weiss was engaging in the head, instantly defeating it. "Huh, that's weird, I can beat them just fine." He admitted as he began fighting off some more Bugsters that were closing in. "Maybe only someone using the Gamer Driver can fight them?" He suggested.
"Well if that's the case, then what do we do?" Blake said as she passed by.
"I guess the only thing you can do is get back to Beacon Cliff and tell the Professors what's going on." Ex-Aid replied.
"I am not running away, especially not from these ridiculous looking thugs!" Weiss protested as she desperately tried to fight off the Bugsters.
"Besides, we can't just leave you to fight by yourself!" Ruby added.
"Don't worry, I'll be just fine!" Ex-Aid insisted before breaking a nearby Chocolate Block and getting an Energy Item.
"Speed Up!" The Gamer Driver announced as Ex-Aid glowed yellow.
"If it's a game then I definitely won't lose!" He assured as he switched his weapon into Blade mode and began dashing at high speeds around the area, clearing out the Bugsters only for a second wave to materialize.
"Game…?" Ruby mumbled to herself, come to think of it, Jaune had referred to this whole ordeal as a game a few times before. Sure their enemy was obviously the final boss of a classic video game, but this whole thing couldn't possibly be just a game… could it?
With this in mind, Ruby searched her memories of the hours she had poured into that game with her family for a possible solution. She observed as Ex-Aid effortlessly cleaved through the Bugster Soldiers, their forms disappearing in a burst of black polygons… however, the weapons that they wielded simply fell to the ground, free for the taking. That's when it hit her, a feature in Vale Beat Fighters that differentiated it from other similar games of its time, the ability to pick up and use your defeated enemies' weapons.
"That's it!" Ruby exclaimed in realization before she was forced to block an attack from a Bugster Soldier. "Jaune, pass me a dropped weapon!" She called to Ex-Aid.
"Huh?" The Rider breathed quizzically as he defeated another Bugster Soldier. He then looked down and picked up the weapon that it was wielding, a long pipe with a curious 90-degree bend at one end. It only took a moment for Ex-Aid to understand. "Oh, I see, alright, let's give it try!" Ex-Aid said before tossing the pipe over to Ruby.
The red-cloaked girl pushed the Bugster away and fired her weapon at the ground, propelling her into the air over her opponent and grabbing the crude weapon in midair. She landed right behind the Bugster Soldier, which turned around and went to strike at her again. Ruby reluctantly folded up her Crescent Rose and placed it on her back before brandishing the pipe and quickly swinging it around, nailing the Bugster on its side just before its weapon came down onto her. Despite her quick action, she felt as if things were going in slow motion as she awaited the graphic to confirm or deny her suspicions. Just as time seemed it have come to a complete halt, the HIT graphic appeared right where the Bugster had been hit, the creature grunting in pain before it burst into polygons.
"Yeah!" Ruby and Ex-Aid cried together with joy. As more Bugsters closed in on her, Ruby easily dispatched them, swinging the long metal rod around as if it were her precious Crescent Rose.
After slashing a Bugster dead, it dropped its weapon, a pair of brass knuckles, and Ex-Aid immediately picked them up.
"Yang, use these!" He called to his fellow blond as he threw the objects to her. Yang caught them with ease, looking a bit puzzled, but at this point she was willing to try anything and so retracted her Ember Celica and slipped on the brass knuckles, proceeding to Punch a Bugster square in the jaw, defeating it. The Bugsters paused for a moment, realization dawning on them as Yang cracked an evil looking smile and clashed her fists together, the impact causing the Game Area to glitch for a moment. The Bugsters swallowed the knots in their throats as they charged forward, Yang going ballistic on any that got within punching distance.
"Everyone, grab a weapon from the ground!" Ex-Aid instructed his companions.
Everyone took note of the advice and began searching; Blake looked around the warzone and saw a few weapons dropped by the Bugsters Yang mercilessly punched into submission. There were bats, knives, chairs, but the one that caught her attention the most was a chain; with her choice made she quickly rushed to grab it, using her semblance to leave copies of herself for Bugsters to attack. She picked up the length of chain and quickly assessed its length, looking to see if any Bugsters were in range before whipping the makeshift weapon at a Bugster's leg, pulling it around and slamming it into other Bugsters around it, defeating them.
Ren and Nora immediately obeyed the order, separating momentarily to acquire their desired weapons. Ren grabbed two BB-Guns off of the ground and began masterfully firing at the Bugsters, defeating numerous enemies on all different sides with a well placed shot to the head or a couple to the chest. Those that escaped Ren's barrage of metal pellets were instead faced with the wrath of Nora, who had picked up a baseball bat and began smashing the Bugsters all around the battle field, knocking them into trees and other Bugsters before they burst into polygons.
Meanwhile, Weiss was stubbornly trying to fight the Bugsters with her own weapon, however none of her expertly placed thrusts ever did any damage, and all of the effort it took to defend from any retaliation was taking a toll on her stamina. She was about to engage another Bugster, not noticing that another was about to come from the other side, but before they could do anything, Ruby quickly dispatched them, appearing next to Weiss in a burst of Rose petals.
"Weiss, use this!" Ruby said as she handed the pool cue that the Bugster dropped.
"You cannot honestly expect me to use such a crude weapon, do you!?" Weiss said indignantly. After saying this, Ruby defeated the Bugster Weiss was battling.
"So you'd rather just let these "cannon fodder" enemies push you around, I feel like that should wound your pride a little bit more!" Ruby stood her ground, much to Weiss' surprise. "Look, I know I haven't given you much reason to trust me, but you have to, please, a life is on the line!" She pleaded, holding the pool cue out for the heiress to take. As much as Weiss hated to admit it, she was right, someone was in danger and she couldn't let her pride keep her from helping.
"…This better work." Weiss said as she took the wooden stick and held it as if it were her now sheathed Myrtenaster. With her typical grace, she advanced on the Bugsters and made quick work of them, if anything the long pool cue gave her more reach than her own weapon. Weiss was more then a little surprised that it actually worked. Ruby gave her a look that said "I told you so" before she and Weiss continued battling together.
Despite the ineffectiveness of her weapon, Pyrrha was doing a fantastic job of protecting herself, the moment she realized her weapon couldn't harm them she immediately switched to a completely defensive approach, it almost seemed as if the Bugsters were the ones unable to harm her. Once she heard the instruction, she made her way over to Ex-Aid and quickly picked up a bokken, replacing it with Milo in her sword hand and began to go back on the attack. Her form was perfect; she blocked all attacks while countering at precisely the right moment, decimating any Bugster that dared approach her. Ex-Aid was quite impressed, she wasn't on the front of a cereal box for nothing, the Rider smirked with amusement under his helmet, there's no way he was going to lose to anyone on his own turf. The two ended up back to back as Bugsters surrounded them; the two prodigies gave a subtle nod to each other before engaging their foes.
Defeating the rest of the Bugsters was practically child's play, and once the last Bugster fell, the Game Area flashed for a moment before the pathway opened back up.
"Looks like we cleared the area, next is the Stage Boss!" Ex-Aid declared. "Fair warning you guys, Howling Bancho isn't just any Stage Boss, he's the Final Boss of the whole game, so expect a tough fight." He warned, though his companions didn't seem to lose any resolve.
"We're right behind you Jaune!" Ruby replied.
"Yeah, let's whoop this wolf's butt!" Yang added with a crack of her knuckles.
"Alright, let's go!" Ex-Aid said as he led his companions to the final stage.
The group burst through the trees into the full ruins of the Emerald Forest. Old and weathered stone structures bordered the pathway to a cliff where a series of stone bridges connected to both a large stone tower and then to another, much higher cliff on the opposite side of the chasm. Perched on top of the tower was the giant Nevermore, and on a platform about halfway up the tower stood the Bancho Bugster, the creature leaning on a wall as it tossed one of the relics into the air and caught it repeatedly. Lying next to him unconscious was Sal, looking much more transparent then before.
"Howling Bancho!" Ex-Aid called to it, gaining its attention.
"Well, it's about time you punks got here!" Bancho Bugster said as he stood from the wall and faced them. "I'll admit I wasn't expecting you to clear my stage so quickly."
"Cut the chit-chat you fashion reject, just let Sal go, or else!" Yang threatened, though the Bugster only scoffed.
"Hmph, fine, take the bastard back!" It replied as it picked the boy up from his collar and just tossed him at them.
Everyone was shocked at this but Ex-Aid thought quickly and jumping into the air, propelling himself off of a Chocolate Block and then another that he generated himself in order to catch Sal in the air and land him safely onto the ground.
"Sal!" Yang cried as she and the group rushed over to them.
"Uhhh… Yang?" Sal said, his eyes peeling open at the familiar voice.
"I don't need him anyway!" The Bancho Bugster interrupted the reunion. "All I really need… are these babies right here!" It said as it showed off all of the stolen chess pieces.
"The Relics?" Blake said quizzically.
"Did you know, the latest that this little initiation crap will go to is sundown, after that, all prospective students that couldn't complete the objective… will be immediately expelled!" The Bancho Bugster explained, much to everyone's shock.
"E-Expelled…" Sal mumbled in horror. The green clad boy then began to cough violently, his body becoming just slightly more transparent.
"Sal!" Yang exclaimed as she tried to put a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder, only for it to pass right through him. "What the…?"
"That's right, just like that!" The Bancho Bugster said in a satisfied voice. "All I gotta do is keep these things till sunset and that guy will be expelled, then his stress will reach its max, that little turd will disappear, and I will become a complete being!" It gloated before letting out a cocky laugh.
"Disappear…?" Yang repeated as she glared up at the creature.
"Yeah, that's what Bugsters do, they infect people and completely take over their host's body so they can become complete." Ex-Aid explained as he guided Sal to the safety of the trees.
"Bugsters?" Pyrrha said quizzically at the unfamiliar term.
"Infect?" Ren added with intrigue.
"Sorry, I'll explain everything later," Ex-Aid promised as he carefully laid Sal next to a tree. "Right now, the only way to make Sal better is to defeat the Bancho Bugster." He continued as he stepped forward just before the bridge. "Now, Howling Bancho, I dealt with your grunts, now accept my challenge!" Ex-Aid demanded as he stood tall and pointed his sword at the amused looking Boss Character.
"Hmph, sure you beat the small-fry, but there's still one other guy in my gang you haven't dealt with yet!" As if replying, the Nevermore let out a loud screech as it spread its wings menacingly.
"Eh… EHHHH!" Ex-Aid exclaimed in shock, realizing what it was implying.
"Wait, he can't possibly mean…" Weiss began with hidden dread.
"Go Edgar, tear these bastards to shreds!" The Bancho Bugster ordered and the Nevermore obeyed, leaving its perch to fly over them and fired its plumage at the group of Huntsmen, forcing them to scatter into the series of pillars for cover. They could all hear the Bugster laughing at their retreat, even over the Nevermore's screeches.
"Well this is just great!" Yang complained as she peeked around the pillar to see the Nevermore circling around.
"What do we do now?" Blake inquired, seemingly directed at Ex-Aid, in fact, everyone was looking to Ex-Aid for guidance, understandable, he seemed to be the only one who knew what was going on, and his advice has yet to steer them wrong.
"I… I don't know…." Ex-Aid admitted.
"What do you mean you don't know?!" Weiss demanded angrily.
"It's just… in the game Edgar the Nevermore was just Howling Bancho's way of getting around, you never had to fight it!" Ex-Aid defended before peaking at the circling bird monster. "That thing could probably be considered a Boss in its own right, and with how much time we have left before sundown… we're just not equipped for a speed run, we can't defeat two bosses in so little time!" He declared, despite his hopeless tone he was still wracking his brain for a way to defeat their powerful foes.
"Well then can't we just forget about the bird and focus on the mohawk guy!" Nora suggested.
"There's no way the Nevermore is going to let us get anywhere near its master without a fight." Ren replied.
"That's right, and trying to fight them at the same time would just be suicidal!" Pyrrha added.
"…Then how about we divide and conquer." Ruby suggests, gaining everyone's attention. "There's eight of us here, two teams of four, who says both teams have to fight one boss together?"
"…Well, that's true." Ex-Aid admitted. It wasn't a bad strategy by any means, but he had to admit he didn't really feel comfortable with the idea, after all he could only be on one team, and whether it was his pride as a Genius Gamer or concern for his gaming novice companions, leaving half their group to fight a boss on their own rubbed him the wrong way… but what other choice did they have.
"…Alright, divide and conquer it is." He concurred with a nod of confirmation. "You guys grab the Nevermore's attention, then we'll go after Howling Bancho." He instructed to the siblings and their partners.
"Oh, we'll do more then grab its attention." Ruby said with a spark in her eyes.
"Please don't tell me you have another insane idea." Weiss said cautiously.
"Trust me, just follow my lead." Ruby insisted as she looked to see how they were to approach their enemy. "Alright, team, let's go!" She ordered as she dashed through the pillars. With no time to waste the three other girls followed the red hooded huntress, the Nevermore completely unaware of their movements. That is, until they burst out into the open and onto the stone bridge of the ruins.
"Hey bird brain, over here!" Ruby taunted as the Nevermore circled around. It let out a screech as it dove down towards them, ramming into the bridge with little to no damage to itself. The stone structure blew apart, but fortunately the Huntresses managed leap forward just in time to avoid getting blown off with the debris. The rest of the ruins shifted slightly from the force of the impact, the Bancho Bugster noticing right away what was going on, especially once he caught the knowing smirk from the little red head. Despite Edgar's loyalty, it was still a mindless Creature of Grimm, if they fought it here in the ruins the Bancho Bugster would undoubtedly get caught in the crossfire. So it was either deal with that, or… flee to the cliff where Ex-Aid and the rest were waiting for him.
"…*Tch* You cheeky little red brat." It cursed under its breath. The Bancho Bugster brandished its claws before slicing down a pillar close to it, catching it before throwing it forward, he then took a step back before leaping off of the tower and using the pillar to launch himself the rest of the way to the cliff. It landed with a powerful thud, its knees bent in a dramatic "superhero" landing, the creature slowly rising to its feet as the dust cleared and it faced its opponents.
"Heh, well Ex-Aid, you wanted me, well here I am." The Bancho Bugster said confidently as it cracked its neck in preparation for battle.
"You won't be for long," Ex-Aid stated as he readied his Gashacon Breaker. "I'll change Sal's fate… with my own hands!" He declared.
The Bancho Bugster just scoffed and brandished its boney claws before dashing forward, Ex-Aid did the same, the blade of the Gashacon Breaker clashing with the Bugster's biological weapon. Bancho Bugster followed through with the attack, pushing the blade to the side and leaving its opponent wide open for a strike from its other claw, however Ex-Aid quickly stepped back to avoid the attack and immediately advanced when an overhead strike. The Bancho Bugster easily brought its claws up to block the attack, but the angle of the strike made the weapon slide off the boney knife like appendage as he stepped through, now having a clear shot at the creature's unprotected side. He landed a horizontal outward slash and a diagonal slash on the Bugster before reeling back and trusting the blade at its chest, but it quickly brought its claws up to block, the strike only sending it sliding back a few feet.
The Bancho Bugster took a moment to get its footing back but just as it was about reengage Ex-Aid, it noticed the shadow being cast on it and looked up to see Nora about to bring down her bat on its head. It brought up its hands and caught the bat in a cross block, it grunted under the force of the strike, but no damage was done besides the fracturing ground beneath its feet. Completely distracted by the orange haired girl, Ren circled around, firing at Bugster with his BB Guns, a good number of pellets hit their mark before the Bancho Bugster noticed and pushed Nora's bat away and back flipped out of range.
However, it landed right where Pyrrha was waiting for it, the girl quickly bringing down her bokken to the Bugster's face, dazing it and allowing Pyrrha to land a barrage well placed jabs and slashes that managed to keep it struggling to keep its balance. She then went for a kick to finally knock it down, immediately cursing herself for the instinctual strike as the blue MISS graphic appeared where her boot met its chest, not even so much as making it flinch. The Bugster grinned evilly at the champion's mistake and regained its footing enough to throw a roundhouse kick to her midsection, she easily blocked the attack with her shield, only for the Bugster to pull back its leg and land a kick to her head at inhuman speeds, knocking her to the side where she just barely managed to roll to avoid injury.
Ex-Aid then charged forward, coming at the Bancho Bugster with an upward diagonal slash, the creature nearly avoiding it before it began clashing its claws with Ex-Aid's sword. The rest of his makeshift team joined in, surrounding the Bugster in hopes of overwhelming it with their shear numbers.
Once the Bancho Bugster engaged Ex-Aid's team, the girls all took its place on the tower, watching as the Nevermore circled around as if looking for them.
"Here it comes!" Ruby warned as she prepared for battle.
"Alright ladies, shall we?" Yang said playfully as she redeployed Ember Celica, letting her knuckle-dusters fall to the floor. Blake and Weiss did the same, while Ruby looked at them in confusion.
"Wait, what are you guys…" Ruby began, but was cut off once her comrades open fired on the approaching Grimm. Ruby looked on in a combination of concern and hope, which was shattered once the dreaded MISS graphics flashed wherever it was hit.
"Oh you have GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!" Yang fumed before the Nevermore crashed into the pillars that supported the tower. As it collapsed, the girls all frantically tried to return to solid ground, hopping and shooting themselves off of the stone debris that fell around them. However, Ruby went the extra mile and made sure to retrieve the weapons that they had all discarded before joining them back on the platform that once held the tower.
"Seriously, that thing is immune to our weapons to?" Blake said exasperatedly.
"Great, now what do we do?!" Weiss added indignantly.
"We do what we've been doing, we play by the rules!" Ruby replied as she tossed them back their weapons.
"Ok, now I know you're kidding me." Yang said.
"Are you insane, these may have worked against foot soldiers, but this a Giant Nevermore we're talking about!" Weiss added indignantly, and as if on cue the Nevermore dived down towards them, just missing as they ducked out of the way.
"Well, we can't just do nothing, Jaune and Sal are counting on us!" Ruby pleaded.
"Ruby face it, we've taken this "game" as far as it can go; we can't win with these things!" Weiss insisted with frustration.
Ruby couldn't help but wonder if Weiss was right, killing this Nevermore would've been difficult even with their dust infused gun blades, could they really bring it down with some laminated wood and rusted metal. Her face fell for a moment before she snuck a peek at Ex-Aid and his battle, the Genius Gamer being tirelessly supported by his comrades, all doing what they can even with their impromptu weapons. With her resolve reignited, she desperately searched her mind for a solution, if this was truly a game, then there had to be something that could give them an edge against this neigh impossible adversary. Then she saw it, Ex-Aid leaping off a Chocolate Block to come at the Bancho Bugster from a different angle, however her attention was on the block itself. She looked around and spotted another Chocolate Block floating just within reach, remembering the other way Ex-Aid used them to aid him in combat. With that in mind, Ruby smirked confidently before taking and shifting her Crescent Rose into its Sniper Mode.
"They wouldn't have put them in if you couldn't win with them." She said simply before she propelled herself into the air with a shot from Crescent Rose. She spun in the air with her pipe held out and she struck the block, bursting it open to reveal a blue medal that depicted a jumping rider.
"Jump Up!" The Game Area announced before Ruby absorbed the Energy Item, gaining a blue glow. She landed on one of the bridges and eyed the Nevermore at it circled around. Before the Nevermore even got close, Ruby took a few steps and jumped, propelling herself all the way over to the unsuspecting Nevermore and bashed it in the face with the pipe, damaging it enough to make it struggle to stay in the air. As soon as Ruby landed, she propelled herself to the defenseless Grimm again, hitting its torso three times before leaping off of it and landing on the tallest pillar left standing, her blue glow fading away. The girls were silent for a moment as they processed what had just happened, especially taking in the damaged Nevermore.
"…Whoa, way-to-go Ruby!" Yang cheered for her little sister. Suddenly, the Nevermore let out a powerful shriek, as if to remind the Huntresses that it was far from defeated. With that in mind, the three older girls all shared a knowing glance with each other before they all turned their attention to three separate Chocolate Blocks. The Nevermore dove to where it sensed the highest level of human activity in the immediate area, only for the girls to rush off in opposite directions, avoiding the attack. Yang reached her block first, slipping on her knuckle-dusters and punching it open, revealing a pale red medal depicting a rider with an incredibly long arm.
"Stretch!" The Game Area announced as she absorbed the item and gained a red glow. Suddenly, her legs felt weak, looking down she saw that they were somehow bending and twisting unnaturally, as if they were made of rubber.
"Whoa~, whoa, whoa, easy now." She said as she attempted to straighten herself out. She concentrated and her legs went back to normal, her arms now being the ones acting like rubber. She giggled amusingly as she did the wave with her stretchy arms before bringing her attention back to the Nevermore. Yang stretched her arm out and pulled herself up onto one of the tall pillars as the giant Nevermore came looking for her.
"Looking for me?" She taunted as she threw a punch at it, her arm stretching far enough for her fist to slam into the creature's face. The Nevermore turned its attention to her only to get socked in the face again and then get uppercut into the gut as her arms kept extending and retracting, keeping the creature at bay while also causing great amounts of damage.
Meanwhile, Weiss and Blake both broke open their own respective Chocolate Blocks, only to find nothing inside.
"What?" Blake said quizzically.
"Yeah, not all of them will have an item inside," Ruby lamented as she opened another dud herself. "We'll just have to keep looking."
"Ugh, honestly, this is all just starting to become a real pain!" Weiss grumbled in frustration as she looked around for another block.
Eventually, the Nevermore broke through Yang's defense, taking the opportunity of both arms being retracted to fly head first toward her, only for the blond brawler to let out a cheeky smirk. She leaped up out of the way and wrapped her arm all the way around the creature's neck in a headlock, choking it as she punched at its eye.
"How. Do. You. Like. this!" She taunted with each hit, the Nevermore's flight pattern clearly disrupted and just narrowly avoiding crashing into the ruins. Suddenly, however, the red glow from the Energy Item faded away and Yang's arm retracted back to its normal shape. "Uh, oh." She said as she was left barely able to hang on as the Nevermore recovered and began to thrash about to rid itself of her.
"Yang, hold on!" Blake urged.
"Easier said than done!" Yang responded as she clasped a few of its feathers in her fists. Blake acted quickly and broke open the closest block she could find, finally finding an Item, this one magenta colored with the image of two faded copies coming out of the main Rider.
"Clone!" She heard as she glowed and three new copies of herself appeared next to her.
"Clones, I already do clones!" Blake lamented the seemingly unnecessary power up. However, at that moment Yang's grip failed her and she was flung off of the Nevermore's neck. "Yang!" Blake exclaimed as she saw her partner in free fall.
Almost instinctively she and one of her copies kneeled down with their hand out together, a second copy getting into position and was flung across the large chasm, grabbing Yang in midair and landing safely on a nearby block.
"Whoa, they can… do stuff." Blake said in awe, the clones created by her own semblance could only interact with herself, and to a limited degree. The girl and her copies exchanged glances, the copies glitching slightly as if to prove that they were in fact digital recreations, before the Nevermore regained its composure and turned its attention to the three identical Huntresses on the bridge.
They all prepared to engage the enemy as Weiss leaped up off of the power she stood on and used one of her glyphs to reach a Chocolate Block suspended in the air. She jabbed it with her cue and it burst open, revealing an orange medal that had a smug looking Rider seemingly egging someone on.
"Finally!" Weiss said as absorbed the item.
"Instigate!" She heard before landing on the other side of the tower. Suddenly, the Nevermore's attention was completely directed to the heiress, despite just being the middle of attacking another, it let out a loud shriek before flying up high and diving straight down at her. Weiss, while a little distressed, stood her ground, concentrating for a moment before she thrusted her weapon above her, a large sky blue colored glyph appearing just in time to intercept the fast approaching Grimm, the creature slamming into the barrier as if it were an immovable wall. However, the hindrance did little to dissuade the Nevermore from attacking the Heiress, the creature having lost all interest in the others as it furiously pecked and scratched at the protective glyph.
"Quick, while it's distracted!" Weiss cried to the others, noticeably struggling to keep her assailant at bay.
The girls all complied and went on the attack; Blake and her clones leapt onto the Nevermore's back, whipping at it with their chains while Yang stood on the glyph directly under the rampaging Nevermore, the effects of the Energy Item preventing it from noticing anything besides the white haired Huntress. Yang then began going to town on the Creature of Grimm, pummeling it with powerful punches every time it bobbed its head to peck at the barrier, causing major damage and yet the Nevermore still showed no concern.
Soon enough however, Weiss' glow faded away, as did Blake's, freeing the Nevermore from its trance and leaving it with three Huntresses crowded around it like sitting ducks. But before it got the chance to do anything, Ruby came rushing in, propelling herself high up into the air with a shot from Crescent Rose and broke open one last Chocolate Block, absorbing a red medal that portrayed a Rider flexing its arm muscles.
"Muscle Up!" The Game Area announced. Ruby could feel the power in her arms as her muscles momentarily flexed themselves.
"Heads up!" Ruby warned as she fell down towards them, her teammates heeding her warning and dispersed, the Nevermore sensing the danger and craning its head to look at the falling Huntress. With a grunt, Ruby slammed her pipe against the side of the Nevermore's head, her body flashing red as the strength of her attack was greatly increased, sending the creature flying straight into the edge of the mountain, the whole earth seemingly shaking as a result.
The Nevermore was certainly getting weak, taking a moment to regain its composure, Ruby had a feeling that one last good hit would do the trick, but even then she could feel her power up beginning to fade, she needed to act fast. Just then, the Nevermore let out a desperate shriek before it flew up into the air preparing for a dive bomb, in its last attempt to rid itself of its pesky prey.
"Guys, think you can give me a boost?" Ruby said. The girls all exchanged wondering glances, but it was Blake that was the first to move, taking her Gambol Shroud and tossing it over to Yang, keeping one end of the ribbon for herself, creating a makeshift slingshot with the two bridges. Ruby wasted no time in leaping onto the ribbon, her weight stretching it back and Weiss contributing a special black glyph to the effort, keeping the tension up for just the right moment.
Ruby knew her timing had to be just right, swing to early or to late and she was gonna get skewered. Finally, the Nevermore began its descent, falling beak first toward the girls prompting Weiss to release the glyph, propelling Ruby into the air towards the Grimm. The young Huntress focused what was left of her power up into her arms and then into her pipe, and with a fierce battle cry she met the Nevermore in the air, swinging the pipe they passed by each other, time seemed to freeze as they waited to see which hit landed first.
A PERFECT graphic flashed on the Nevermore's body as it glitched violently before exploding into pixels, Ruby landing gracefully on the top of the cliff as the victory jingle played in the background.
Ex-Aid and his team were doing their very best against the Bancho Bugsters, but somehow, despite outnumbering it, they never seemed to make any real progress. The four fighters all ganged up on the Bancho Bugster, slashing, bashing, and firing all at once, and yet the Bugster managed to defend itself with ease. In fact if anything ganging up on it was putting them at a disadvantage, they had to be fully aware of their comrades at all times so as to not let them get caught in the crossfire, which made landing significant hits difficult, not to mention the Bugster's aggressive attack pattern had them on the defensive a lot of the time.
However, they eventually got into a proper rhythm with each other and finally seemed to have the Bugster on the ropes, but just as soon as they gained the upper hand, the Bancho Bugster leaped out of the circle and landed on a pillar a good distance away from them.
"Huh?" Ex-Aid said at the sudden retreat, realization suddenly hitting him as he saw the Bancho Bugster slice a few disks from the pillar it was resting on. "In coming!" He warned as the Bugster tossed one of the disks at them, the stone projectile catching fire as it soared towards them. The group dispersed, Ex-aid and Pyrrha to one side, Ren and Nora to the other, however this worked in the Bugster's favor as it tossed the remaining two stones at each duo, neither having time to evade the large as the stone disks exploded on impact to the ground, catching all four in the respective blasts.
With a smug chortle, the Bancho Bugster leapt off of the pillar over to Ren and Nora, the two still recovering from the force of the blast. Ren took aim with his pistols, but the Bugster swiftly kicked them out of his hands and landing a sidekick to the face, sending the boy tumbling back to the ground. Without even sparing a glance, the Bancho Bugster blocked an overhead swing from Nora, grabbing the bat before slashing at her twice then kicking her off to the side.
The Bancho Bugster was about to follow up when he was forced to duck under a slash from Ex-Aid, and then block another that came from Pyrrha. It slashed at the red headed champion but she blocked every single strike and locked weapons with it, allowing Ex-Aid an opening to tap the B button on his weapon and land two "B Slashes" at the Bugster sending it stumbling back.
As Ex-Aid and Pyrrha engaged the Bugster, Ren and Nora began to get back on their feet, the duo quickly searching for their weapons to get back into the fight. The Bugster desperately tried to fight off Ex-Aid and Pyrrha, but the two wouldn't let up on the pressure, Ex-Aid landing a few more good slashes before he stood aside to let Pyrrha have a go. The Bancho Bugster managed to duck under her initial swing, but Pyrrha used the momentum swing her legs around in a trip; however, just as before, her deeply ingrained battle instincts backfired as the Bugster didn't so much as stumble, giving it the chance to regain some ground by kicking the champion in the face, creating some distance between them.
"Pyrrha!" Ex-Aid cried in concern before leaping up and off of a Chocolate Block and come down on the Bugster with a downward slash, unfortunately the Bugster managed to roll out of the way just in time.
Just as the Bancho Bugster was going to reengage Ex-Aid, Nora came rushing in, swinging her bat wildly and prompting the Bugster to evade her frantically. Ex-Aid soon joined the assault as well, and in the background Ren was on his knee carefully aiming his pistols at the Bugster in search for any openings. Not appreciating being crowded once again, the Bancho Bugster leaped away from them again, perching himself on a different pillar but still preparing a few projectiles.
"Oh not this again!" Nora complained, but rather then preparing to evade, she held her bat in preparation for a swing.
"Wait Nora, don't!" Ex-Aid warned before being forced to leap out of the way as the Bugster threw one of the stone slabs right at her. Nora swung her bat the flaming object in hopes of knocking it "out of the park", but as soon as it made contact with the Bat, it exploded, sending Nora flying back as her body flashed pink momentarily; her aura was completely depleted.
"Nora!" Ren exclaimed as he began to rush over to her, only to get caught in the blast of a second stone disk, depleting his own aura as well.
"Ren, Nora!" Ex-Aid shouted at the sight of his downed comrades. Just then, realized that there was one more bomb left, and looked over to see it hurling towards a dazed Pyrrha. "Pyrrha!" He called as he dashed towards her, ready to take the hit himself if need be. But just as it seemed that he wouldn't make it, a red blur flashed around them and suddenly he and Pyrrha were just out of the blast zone.
"Huh, Ruby?" Ex-Aid said as she saw the red hooded girl kneeled before them.
"You guys ok?" She asked.
"Yeah, I think so, but what about Edgar?" Ex-Aid inquired, receiving a proud smile from Ruby.
"Taken care of." She assured.
"What, you defeated Edgar!?" The Bancho Bugster cried in disbelief.
"That's right, and you're next!" Blake said a she leaped up to attack the Bugster. However, it was quick to evade, attempting to land a kick to the Huntress as it back flipped off the pillar, only to kick away a shadow clone left behind before Blake took her chain and wrapped it around the Bancho Bugster's exposed foot and pulled him up higher into the air, where it was met with a punch square in the jaw by Yang. The Bugster was sent crashing to the ground where it lay for a moment before returning to its feet, it was then that it saw Weiss gliding across the ground with her glyphs, pool cue in her chambered arm preparing to strike. The Bugster growled in annoyance at their persistence and brandished its claws before dragging them across the ground as it dashed forward, the two meeting halfway as the Bugster brought its claws up to meet her strike, the sparks igniting into a sort of energy slash that forced Weiss back to avoid any significant damage. Weiss, Yang, and Blake then began fully engaging the Bugster as Ruby, Pyrrha, and Ex-Aid went to go help Ren and Nora.
"Are you both ok?" Pyrrha inquired as she helped the ginger haired girl to her feet, while Ex-Aid aided her oriental companion.
"…Ugh, well, we're alive if that's what you mean." Nora replied as she rubbed her head.
"But our Aura is completely gone, I doubt we can survive another hit." Ren lamented.
"Guess that puts you guys out of the game huh?" Ex-Aid said as he led them over to the trees, where they put the duo down for some well-deserved rest.
"I'm afraid so." Ren admitted, Nora just resting her head back against the trunk of the tree.
"Well, don't worry you guys, we've got it from here." Ruby stated.
"You both just rest." Pyrrha added as the two red heads prepared their weapons and went to reenter the battle.
"Hang on you guys." Ex-Aid called, putting a hand on Pyrrha's shoulder to stop her, which in turn gained Ruby's attention. "I don't think ganging up on the Bugster like we've been doing is going to work." He stated.
"What do you mean?" Ruby said quizzically.
"I mean, look at them," Ex-Aid urged, turning the girls' attention to their three remaining comrades. "They can barely manage to keep up the pressure. In fact, we had one extra person and we didn't fair any better then they are." He explained. They had to admit, from where they stood it did seem like the Bugster had the advantage in th battle.
"Then what should we do?" Pyrrha asked.
"Well, I've been thinking, Vale Beat Fighters was a two player co-op game, mostly due to software limitations at the time, but that just meant they had more freedom with how the boss could fight." Ex-Aid began. "Because there were only two players occupying such a large area, Howling Bancho's "area of effect" attacks didn't seem unfair since they could easily be avoided with the right timing. But with three or more players on screen, there's less room to work with and the boss was almost guaranteed a hit on someone. Plus, they were designed to be taken down with strategies that are hard to coordinate with more then two players."
"So you're saying we should fight the enemy with… less people?" Pyrrha wondered.
"Exactly, if we're going to clear this game, it has to be with two player co-op." Ex-Aid confirmed. He then walked passed his eager looking partner and began addressing Ruby. "Alright Ruby, you up for it?"
"Huh, me?" Ruby questioned apprehensively.
"Yeah, you're the only one here who knows this game as well as I do, it's gotta be you and me." Ex-Aid insisted, placing a confident hand on the younger girl's shoulder. "So, what do you say?"
"…Alright, let's do it." Ruby said with a determined nod, which Ex-Aid returned.
"Pyrrha, take care of Ren and Nora." Ex-Aid said in a rather commanding tone.
"Understood." Pyrrha replied before the two gamers left to rejoin the fight.
The three Huntresses were flung back off of the their feet by a powerful spinning slash attack from the Bancho Bugster, though it did little to deter them as they got back on their feet and were ready to continue. However, they were stopped by Ruby and Ex-Aid stepping passed them.
"Yang, tag out, Jaune and I will take it from here." Ruby informed.
"What, just you two?" Yang wondered out loud.
"Just trust us, we've got this." Ex-Aid insisted as he and Ruby brandished their weapons. While that was hardly an explanation, the three Huntresses had little reason to question the two gamers at this point, just did as they said and retreated to a safe distance, leaving Ruby and Ex-Aid to square off against the Bancho Bugster.
"Hmph, so you two are the only ones left with the balls to take me on huh?" It taunted them, but his opponents didn't seem to react. "Fine, let's finish this crap already." It said as fell into a stance ready to fight.
"You familiar with the "Fight or Flight" strategy." Ex-Aid asked his comrade.
"Heh, that's what me and my dad always did." Ruby said with no small degree of confidence.
"Then that's what we'll go with, I'll take point, let's do this." Ex-Aid instructed before he engaged the boss, the two meeting in the middle as they clashed sword to claw.
The Bancho Bugster aggressively clawed at the Rider, forcing Ex-Aid to go on the defensive, eventually breaking said defense and landing two claw strikes before kicking him away. Ex-Aid stumbled, nearly tripping over a Chocolate Block, and with his opponent seemingly dazed the Bancho Bugster leaped into the air and came down on him with an axe kick. Ex-Aid however just smirked under his helmet as he switched the Gashacon Breaker into hammer mode and broke open the block, revealing a grey medal that depicts a Rider with a sword breaking on contact with him.
"Iron Up!" The Game Area announced as Ex-Aid absorbed the item, turning his body into metal. The Bugster's kick landed right on Ex-Aid's shoulder, the force cracking the ground beneath him but leaving the Rider unharmed.
"Is that the best you've got!?" Ex-Aid taunted as he shrugged off the foot and punched the Bugster with his solid steel fist, sending it stumbling back. Just as the Bugster regained its footing Ruby rushed in and nailed the boss in the head with her pipe, following up with a jab to the gut with the end of it and then knocking it off its feet with a low sweep.
"Forgot about me did you?" Ruby said before she attempted to bash the Bugster with her weapon while it was down, only for it to roll out of the way at the last moment and nimbly return to its feet.
"You annoying little brat, stay out of this!" The Bugster demanded as it attacked Ruby with a flurry of claws and kicks, driving her back while she blocked and evaded every strike.
The Bugster eventually saw an opening and scrapped his claw across the ground for a "spark claw" attack, however at the very last second Ruby disappeared in a cloud of rose petals, the Bancho Bugster's claw scraping across Ex-Aid's metal chest instead, chipping a piece of the claw off. The Bugster cried in pain at the loss of its cuticle, only for Ex-Aid to punch it twice in the jaw and then land a powerful uppercut. The creature fell and rolled on the ground from the force of the strike, but the moment it stood back up it was hit in the back by Ruby again, followed by a strike to the face that threatened to daze it again.
However, it endured and managed to block another strike to its face and get inside Ruby's guard, managing to claw her twice before she evaded a kick and retreated. The Bancho Bugster was about to pursue her when it was clotheslined by Ex-Aid's metallic arm, making it stumble back and return its attention to the Rider. It was then that Ex-Aid's power up wore off, leaving him vulnerable; the Bugster saw this as his chance and pounced at Ex-Aid, but the Rider was ready, tapping the B button twice and swinging it into the Bugster's jaw, sending it spiraling into the air where Ruby jumped to meet it and slam it back to the ground. This was the "fight or flight" strategy, a sturdy character engages the boss to absorb damage while an agile character deals out the punishments when the boss gets stunned, the standard strategy most players used when they wanted a quick win against Howling Bancho.
"Grrrrr, YOU LITTLE PIECES OF CRAP!" The Bancho Bugster roared in fury, unleashing its desperation attack. It stomped on the ground, the shockwave somehow slicing the two pillars next to it into a multitude of projectiles, the Bugster letting out a cry of anger as it shot them at its opponents as they fell around it.
However, Ex-Aid and Ruby were ready for this, right when the Bugster did its outburst, Ex-Aid jumped up and hit open a block floating above him, revealing and absorbing the Speed Up Item. The two players then zipped across the field, evading the projectiles in streaks of red and yellow, the enraged look in the Bugster's eyes only growing with each miss. Eventually, there were no more disks to throw and now was their chance to finish things. Ruby dashed in and hit the Bugster in the gut before zooming away, allowing Ex-Aid to come in and slash it across the back before retreating as well, and without giving it a chance to recover, both players struck at the same time, Ex-Aid with a high slash and Ruby with a low sweep. The Bugster fell to the ground, struggling to get up, very little energy left for him to fight.
"Alright, I think it's about time to end this." Ex-Aid declared as he removed the Rider Gashat from the Gamer Driver. With a quick blow, he placed it into a slot on the Gashacon Breaker.
"Gashatto! Kimewaza!" The weapon announced as pink graphic energy began to collect in the blade, Ruby stepping back in awe as it got brighter and brighter.
"…Damn you bastards…!" The Bancho Bugster cursed as it struggled to its feet. Once the blade was all charged up, Ex-Aid pulled the trigger on the handle.
"Mighty Critical Finish!" It announced and with that Ex-Aid leaped high into the air and came down in a vertical spinning slash, the Bugster crying in agony as the blade continuously cleaved into him before he exploded, Ex-Aid landing safely behind where it once stood.
Luckily, the relics that the Bugster had snatched survived the blast, falling to the ground around the Rider like a big item from a real boss fight. Ex-Aid picked up a white rook piece, Ruby walking over as well and taking a white knight piece for herself.
"…ALRIGHT!" The two exclaimed joyously, holding their weapons up together in a victory pose.
"Game Clear!" Everyone heard as the ring of titles circled around them, an eleventh one appearing featuring the cover for Vale Beat Fighters and slapping a GAME CLEAR graphic on it.
Everyone was stunned by the duo's astounding victory, but before they could celebrate and give congrats, all of their improvised weapons vanished into pixels and more importantly, they could hear Sal moaning as he struggled to get to his feet, his body no longer transparent.
"Sal!" Yang called to her friend as she and the rest of the students all went to check on him. "Are you ok?" She asked as she grabbed the boy by the shoulders.
"Ugh, yeah, I'm fine." Sal insisted as he did his best to stand on his own.
"….yeah, I'm fine." Sal's voice came from the scroll Professor Ozpin held in his hands. As stated before initiation, he and other moderators were observing the students, some more then others, and he just so happened to catch Ex-Aid's second victory against the Bugster menace, and he wasn't the only one.
"Well, Mr. Arc's fighting style is certainly as… unorthodox as you said it to be." Glynda Goodwitch spoke up, going over the footage of the battle on her own scroll. "And to be perfectly honest, I don't think I approve of the unneeded eccentricities." She voiced her opinion.
"I'm sure the General is thrilled that you agree with him, Ms. Goodwitch." Daniel Negro said coyly as he and said official appeared on the screen.
"Regardless, it is not his decision to make, nor is it mine." Goodwitch replied, calmly readjusting her glasses.
"Ozpin, what are your thoughts on the matter?" Ironwood inquired to the Headmaster.
"Hmm… it is rather odd and flashy," Ozpin admitted. "But effective nonetheless, and that is all we could ask for."
"I assume that means we have your approval." Negro said hopefully.
"Indeed, Mr. Negro." Ozpin replied simply.
"…Well, if Ozpin approves, then I suppose I do as well." Ironwood reluctantly conceded. "You will have your funding Mr. Negro, use it wisely, and remember time is of the essence."
"Understood, I assure you we will have another Henshin System prepared within the week." Negro promised.
"Excellent, we thank you for your cooperation." Goodwitch said politely.
"And I thank you for yours." Negro replied before he and Ironwood hung up.
"Now then, what are we to do about this?" Goodwitch said as she returned her attention to the surveillance footage. "In one fell swoop eight students have been made aware of the Bugster Virus, this doesn't bode well for keeping everything under wraps."
"…What's done is done, for now let's have them complete the initiation, then we can discuss things with them." Ozpin replied his eyes firmly fixed on the screen of the scroll.
"Russel Thrush, Cardin Winchester, Dove Bronzewing, Sky Lark…" Ozpin announced the names of the young Huntsmen that stood before him on the stage. With initiation drawing to a close, all passing students returned to the auditorium to be assigned their teams. Jaune waited in the crowd with his comrades as Ozpin dubbed the quartet Team CRDL, the whole auditorium giving them an obligatory applause. After the battle, Sal had decided to forego completing initiation in favor of informing the Professor Ozpin of his condition, everyone agreed that it was the responsible thing to do and Ozpin seemed willing to negotiate an alternative initiation for him, much to his relief and undying gratitude.
"Jaune Arc, Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie." Ozpin called, the four named students practically marching up onto the stage and standing respectably before the Headmaster. "The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work as… Team JNPR." He stated, pictures of the four teens with their new team name under them appearing on the screen.
Nora happily wrapped her arms around Ren's neck, practically hanging from there, but even so Jaune was certainly filled with much more joy and pride at that moment. It all finally felt real, being a student at Beacon Academy, on his way to achieving his life long dream of being a Huntsman, and even getting to work under a world-renowned fighter like Pyrrha Ni…
"Led by… Jaune Arc." Ozpin revealed, bring Jaune back from his almost euphoric joy.
"Huh?" He breathed in confusion. "Led by…?" He said nervously, the weight of that tremendous responsibility bringing him straight back to earth from cloud nine.
"Congratulations, young man." Ozpin simply said in response. Jaune was stunned, this certainly had to be another privilege due to his status as Ex-Aid right, there's no way he could be a leader, right? He turned to see the reaction of his teammates and saw nothing but supportive smiles, much to his own relief and appreciation. With their turn over and done with, Team JNPR took their leave back into the audience.
"And finally, Blake Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, and Yang Xiao Long." The four girls took JNPR's place on the stage. "The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as… Team RWBY." Ozpin christened them, and Jaune having caught on to the naming scheme knew exactly who would be leader. "Led by… Ruby Rose." Ozpin announced. The girl in question seemed just as surprised as Jaune was at receiving the title, though, but that didn't stop her sister from engulfing her in a big, proud, sisterly hug. Weiss seemed to be the most shocked of them all, while Blake remained neutral, accepting the decision for what it was.
With the last team formed, Ozpin gave a few more words of encouragement to the students before officially welcoming them to his school, ending the initiation and dismissing the teams to receive their room assignments.
"Right across from each other." Blake observed once RWBY and JNPR were told their room numbers.
"Wow, how about that." Yang said with an amused smile.
"Can you say SLUMBER PARTY EVERY NIGHT!?" Nora exclaimed excitedly.
"No, and neither should you Nora." Ren said, putting a calming shoulder and his hyperactive companion.
"Honestly, I don't understand how any of you can be so calm after everything that's happened today." Weiss voiced her irritation.
"Aww come on Weiss, lighten up a little, everything worked out in the end didn't it?" Ruby insisted.
"Maybe, but I'd still like a proper explanation, like we were promised." Weiss aimed this last remark at Jaune, eyeing him accusingly while her hands rested at her hips.
"Uh, w-well, about that…" Jaune muttered nervously, how exactly could he tell them that he wasn't the most informed person on the matter either.
"Team RWBY, Team JNPR." The two teams heard, turning their attention to Professor Glynda Goodwitch, calling them from the hallway. "May I have a moment of your time?" She requested calmly. The eight students exchanged a puzzled look, differing to their leaders to answer on their behalf.
"Uh, of course Professor." Ruby answered sheepishly.
"Excellent, please follow me." Goodwitch instructed before immediately walking down the hallway. The teams exchanged one last look before following after her. "So… what's this about Ms…?"
"Please hold your questions until after we arrive." Goodwitch interrupted without even sparing the girl a glance.
"Arrive, where are we going?" Blake asked her partner, Yang just offering a shrug.
The students remained silent as they were led to the elevators, Goodwitch calling it and the mobile room appearing moments later. She walked inside and waited, prompting the rest to follow suit, luckily the elevator was big enough to accommodate them all. Once the doors were shut Ms. Goodwitch hit the elevator buttons in a quick sequence before it began descending, the screen above the buttons that showed their current floor rapidly falling, bellow even what was supposed to be the lowest floor. After a few moments the letters CR appeared on the screen, prompting the door to open and reveal a brightly lit, white hallway.
"Right this way." Goodwitch instructed, guiding them down the corridor to one final door, hitting a code on the keypad off to the side in order to unlock it.
Once the automatic door slid open, the lights in the room automatically came to life, giving the students a good look at what was inside. They seemed to have been brought to an room that would've put any school nurse's office, or even the average hospital treatment rooms to shame, there was medical instruments on tables that lined the walls, a multitude of computers that displayed various data on the human anatomy and structures of bacteria and viruses. They were all so engrossed in the seemingly out of place room that they almost didn't notice Professor Ozpin standing at the far end of the room, turned away from them as he looked down into another room from a window.
"Um… what is this place?" Ruby was the first ask.
"This students, is Beacon Academy's Cyber Rescue Center, abbreviated CR if you wish." Ms. Goodwitch replied, Ozpin finally turning his attention to them.
"Cyber… Rescue Center?" Pyrrha wondered out loud as she further examined the room.
"Yes, but as of this moment, you may refer to it as your base of operations." Ozpin added, punctuating his statement with a casual sip from his mug of coffee.
"…Huh?" The teams collectively breathed in confusion.
A/N: Aaaaaaannnnnnd, bullshit cliffhanger ending… Yeah, to be honest I didn't really know how to end this chapter, so I just sort of… ended it. That being said, the next chapter will probably pick up right where this one left off, with everyone getting a proper explanation of what's going on, including this world's origin of the Bugster Virus, so look forward to that. Now about the fight, the whole weapon drop thing was once again brave kid's idea and I think it was a good call, I wanted to have the RWBY cast really involved in the fight, and it helped introduce the fact that Bugsters are in fact invulnerable to typical dust based weaponry, which is part of what makes them such a threat to the Huntsmen and humanity at large. Also, OC Bugsters are pretty much going to a staple of this story, so I hope you enjoyed seeing the Bancho Bugster in action, since you can expect a lot more where that came from. Finally, I adapted the Nevermore fight because I still wanted to showcase Ruby's leadership skills, and I thought guiding her teammates through this unfamiliar situation was a good way to do this. Alright, and with this I'll probably take another short break from this fic in order to work on others, but I'll definitely be coming back to this so I hope to see you all again next time. Have a good one guys, and remember to R&R please.