Debriefing
"I'd be the first to agree. You both have done VERY well today...very well indeed."
On high alert, Blake and Jaune quickly got on their feet to search for the source of the strange voice, unable to find anything through the dense canopy from a few dozen feet away.
"Hey uh, Blake?" Jaune softly spoke sideways at the ravenette, getting her attention as he cautiously extended Crocea Mors.
"Yeah?"
"If your life has become a game... and monsters now spawn randomly... you don't think," he paused as he gulped and shakily finished his question, "t-that maybe things like Forest Trolls have become real too, d-do you?"
"I assure you, they have NOT, Mister Arc..."
With her enhanced Faunus hearing, Blake was immediately able to pinpoint the source of the sound among the trees, her gaze softening as she ascertained the identity of the voice. Jaune, however, had no such ability.
"It knows my name!" the knight yelped with a girlish squeak, the catgirl merely raising a brow in his direction, "Well I'm not that easy to fool, vile creature! I refuse to answer your riddles! ...Or cross your bridges!"
A brief silence set into the area as Blake blinked incredulously at the knight, mentally facepalming as the voice continued.
"...Vague references to Monty Python aside, I expect a thorough explanation when you return to campus, Miss Belladonna. I've already sent an automated passenger drone to your coordinates, and it seems you both shouldn't be encountering any further creatures of Grimm in the area until then."
"Yes, Headmaster Ozpin."
Jaune's jaw dropped as he finally noticed the small holo-screen and mic embedded in a tree a few yards into the forest, turning back to the ravenette before she silently mouthed at him, Are you crazy!?
"As if I would've known!" he shot back flatly, throwing his arms up in exasperation.
"Seriously?" Blake questioned with a raised brow after making sure the comm device in the tree had shut off, "Forest Trolls."
"It was a fair assumption," Jaune defended simply as he crossed his arms with a huff.
She shook her head at his antics with faint amusement, "Uh huh. Ozpin the Head Trollmaster... makes perfect sense. I think the Ursa may have given you a concussion or something..."
But ditching her sarcasm as a hint of worry overtook her at the possibility, she narrowed her eyes at the knight, "But speaking of which... Observe."
PING!
[Observe's level has risen by 1.]
'That's nice,' Blake thought to herself before Jaune's status window popped up.
Name: Jaune Arc
Class: The Knight
Level: Lv9 (Nxt lvl: 94.3%)
Rank: D (Att: E | Def: E | Sem: S)
...
HP: 497/20000
AP: 275/400
...
STR: 150 -135
VIT: 235 -211.5
DEX: 80 -76
INT: 7
WIS: 15
LUK: 42
...
Emotions: Relief. Contentment. Concern.
'My goodness, he almost died taking that hit for me. It likely would've killed most other people on the spot...' she thought with an internal gasp as she noticed his HP level.
"Uh, Blake? Everything okay?" Jaune asked worriedly as the catgirl suddenly began scrutinizing the window, her brows furrowed and lips pursed to the side as he realized she had a habit of doing.
"And it's... different..." she mumbled under her breath.
"Huh?"
"The status window content has changed," Blake now reiterated at normal volume, turning to face him as a question came to mind, "Jaune, would you say you're feeling... relieved... at the moment?"
He shrugged as he replied, "Considering that we just escaped a painful death at the paws of a giant Grimm, I'd say my reply would be a definite yes."
The ravenette's eyes widened, a small smile growing on her lips as the revelation dawned on her, "Jaune, I think my Observe skill is indeed beginning to show me more information regarding my target as its level rises. I can even see your emotional state now!"
"Wow! That's," the knight began exclaiming with growing excitement until it flatlined into a deadpan as he thought about it, "...kinda creepy, actually."
He paused to glance over at the still-disintegrating carcass of the giant Ursa, something catching his eye as Blake continued her examination of the status window, "And there's more information under your ranking system here, but I'm not too sure what to make of it quite yet-"
"Hey uh, Blake? You gonna pick that up?" Jaune interrupted, the girl's cat-ears perking up beneath her bow before she quickly glanced in his direction.
Closing the window as Jaune walked towards the nearly dematerialized Grimm corpse, Blake cocked her head to the side as he approached a few items clustered where the Ursa was slain.
Of course, curiosity turned into stupefied surprise as the two teens stared at what the items were. Blake was the first to break the stunned silence.
"Is that-?"
"I think it is..." Jaune replied slowly.
"...It's money."
Bending down, Blake then picked up the generous stack of lien and held it up to the sun to ensure its legitimacy, "It doesn't look counterfeit. Must be a couple thousand by the looks of it but I won't know until I count it."
"I can't believe it," the Arc drawled in disbelief with a hand at his head, "Real-life Boss drops... Blake, your semblance is amazing!"
Unable to fight down the warmth that rose up in her cheeks at the compliment, Blake quickly cleared her throat and responded as she pocketed the cash and looked back at the ground, "A-And what's that?"
"Hmm," he hummed as he bent down to pick up one of five flasks, swirling the viscous red liquid inside around until his eyes went wide in realization, "No way. It... it dropped recovery potion, too!?"
"There's no such thing," Blake replied flatly, to which Jaune merely shook his head and thrust the flask into her hands.
"Oh yeah? Do your mind-scan thing and watch what happens."
Rolling her eyes as she took the flask, Blake focused on the foreign liquid, "Observe."
[Lowest Grade Recovery Potion - Class: Normal]
A recovery potion. A lower-middle grade potion that instantly recovers 500 HP.
Tastes like strawberry.
"Oh. My. Dust."
Blake continued to stare at the flask as her concept of the physical world continued to deteriorate around her. How could this be possible? It really was as if video game elements were coming to life all around her... and now, questions about what other unexpected surprises could arise began sprouting in her mind before the one who would likely be able to answer them interrupted her musing.
"It is what I thought it was, wasn't it!" Jaune exclaimed with overbrimming excitement, doing a fist-pump in the air as she slowly nodded at the window in reply.
"This... is supposed to be impossible," she spoke up, looking between the flask and the meadow as the Grimm beast was no longer to be seen, "Highly renowned scientists have only been able to make milliliters of aura-replenishing elixir at a time, each dose costing thousands of lien. Not to mention that these very real items came from a disintegrating Grimm, which otherwise never leaves anything behind upon death."
Nodding at the widely-known facts that they had been taught as Beacon students, Jaune explained, "I know that. But in an RPG, you can fight a ghost and it will drop items for you to keep. Forget physics, this is the effect your semblance now has on the world around you!"
"But-"
"Oh, and you forgot this," the knight interrupted once again as he handed her a small black book that he had picked up from the floor while she was examining the potion, "It doesn't have a title, but I guess you can try to see what you can figure out about it."
Taking the book in one hand with a gratified smile, Blake froze as she began to give him back the flask with her other one, looking up at him as she was struck with a thought, "Drink it."
Blinking at her in confusion for a moment, Jaune quickly shook his head as he declined the offer, "No way. Your boss drop, your loot."
"Jaune," she replied again, a rare pleading tone being heard in her voice, "Your HP is under five hundred, you need it. Take it, and take two more to sell."
"Blake... I couldn't do that..."
"Please," she asked once more, surprising herself with how she had actually said that word for the first time since arriving at Beacon at all. But then again, it was for the boy who had just risked his life for her a second time, so she continued anyway, "We were working together when we took it down. Team-up, remember? Besides, I get to keep the cash anyway... and the last thing you'd want is to run out of funds to pay for tuition next year."
He let out a long sigh as he stared at the flask she was handing him before finally letting out a short chuckle, "You know, I've always had that fear of running out of cash and having to take a job at a coffee place or a club or something to make up for unpaid tuition... I have no idea why, though; my family has plenty of money..."
"But still... maybe for a little extra just in case?" Blake then asked, a small smile adorning her features as she offered her flask a little higher for him to take.
"Gahhh," he grumbled playfully as he shyly grinned at her persistent soft gaze, "Fine. How could I say no to that face!"
Uncorking the flask in his hand, Jaune now chugged the flask in one go, the glass container bottoms up before he finished it and smacked his lips, "Yum. Tastes like strawberry."
"Do you feel any different?" Blake asked in curiosity, to which he slowly began to nod.
"Yeah, actually. Try doing your observe thingy to check."
The catgirl shrugged before complying, "Observe."
Name: Jaune Arc
Class: The Knight
Level: Lv9 (Nxt lvl: 94.3%)
Rank: D (Att: E | Def: E | Sem: S)
...
HP: 1147/20000
AP: 350/400
...
STR: 150 -135
VIT: 235 -211.5
DEX: 80 -76
INT: 7
WIS: 15
LUK: 42
...
Emotions: Curiosity. Contentment. Admiration.
The catgirl read through the stats, displaying an impressed reaction at the numerical changes but choosing to withhold the information she gathered about his emotional state as another light blush led to a checked smile on her lips.
"Your health has improved immensely," she began warmly, having regained her composure as he waited for more info, "The five hundred HP has certainly been recovered, along with about a hundred fifty more that I believe your aura has healed in the past minute or so. That's really something, Jaune..."
"Heh, thanks," he chuckled while sheepishly scratching the back of his head, about to continue when a low revving sound was heard overhead, "I guess the transport is here."
And sure enough, what could be described as a much smaller version of a Bullhead appeared over the forest canopy, a mechanical camera mounted on the cockpit in the shape of an eye spotting them before the miniature aircraft settled on the meadow grounds a few yards away from the pair.
"Hmm, if only we didn't have so much stuff to carry," Blake hedged as she tried bending down to pick up the remaining flasks to no avail, giving Jaune a sudden idea.
"Wait a sec," he began as the side door to the small craft opened to reveal four empty seats within, two on each side facing each other, "Have you thought of trying to open an inventory window or something?"
"Inventory window?"
"Yeah," Jaune replied coolly, "A menu where you can stash or otherwise stockpile resources or other items. Almost every RPG has something like that."
Blake thought about the practicality of such a system for a second before shrugging, "Well I suppose that would make sense if items are becoming as commonplace as they seem to be. It's worth a shot... Inventory."
[Inventory]
Equipment
|...| O |...|
|...| /X\ |...|
|...| /\ |...|
Weapons
|...| |...|
|...| |...|
Items
|...| |...|
|...| |...|
Blake stared with increasing curiosity at the blank window now floating in front of her, an image of her body surrounded by empty boxes next to two other sets of empty boxes under separate categories.
"It worked."
"Nice," the knight replied with a large grin, picking up the remaining flasks and handing them to her, "Take my potions too for the moment, and try putting them all in!"
She blinked at the objects as she took them, carefully cradling the heap of items in her arms as she looked back at the window under some duress. But reaching to pick out one of the flasks, she held it out hesitantly toward the window as she considered how exactly it worked in the first place.
'Could it really be that simple?...'
Her thought lingered for a moment before she decided to simply press the flask into an empty box, both she and Jaune taken aback by the sudden flare of light that overtook the item before it vanished completely and wide smiles grew on both their faces. And after only seconds more, all the items - along with the book - were hastily placed in the newly-discovered inventory function.
FLASSH-FLASSH-FLASSH!
[Inventory]
Equipment
|...| O |...|
|...| /X\ |...|
|...| /\ |...|
Weapons
|...| |...|
|...| |...|
Items
|Recovery Potion x4| |Unknown Item x1|
|...| |...|
"Alright, this is becoming fairly interesting," Blake noted lightly with a small grin as she followed Jaune into the aircraft, the doors closing behind them as they took seats across from each other and strapped themselves in, "I figure storing Gambol in here should work via the same principles..."
She unsheathed her weapon and carefully pressed it into the window tip first.
FLASSH!
[Inventory]
Equipment
|...| O |...|
|...| /X\ |...|
|...| /\ |...|
Weapons
|Gambol's Sheath| |...|
|...| |...|
Items
|Recovery Potion x4| |Unknown Item x1|
|...| |...|
"Hammerspace," Jaune finally stated, snapping Blake out of her awed musing as the mini-bullhead took off toward the academy.
"What?"
"Hammerspace," he reiterated with a small smile, "It's a sub-dimensional storage solution used in many games where a character can keep nearly infinite amounts of items to pull out of thin air at a moment's notice. Apparently it's another function your semblance has."
Blake looked back at the window with a growing smirk, "I'd say so... it even has a thumbnail of me surrounded by available equipment boxes. It seems I can store whole outfits in here as well!"
"Heh! My sisters would kill for an ability like that!" the Arc chuckled lightly at his companion, "Clothes, weapons, items... Hey, I bet you can put the money in there too!"
Her brows shot up at the mention, Blake nodding in agreement as she reached down and pulled out the wad of lien from her side pouch, "Good idea!"
FLASSH!
However, elation slowly turned to confusion when the money disappeared into the window with no discernible change in the viewable data. Cocking her head to the side, Blake tried to make sense of it.
'Wait... the money just disappeared because it must show up somewhere else. But where have I seen money information displayed before? ...Ah. I know.'
She closed the window with a reassuring smile at Jaune before speaking up, "Status Window."
Name: Blake Belladonna
Class: The Gamer
Level: Lv14
...
HP: 343/700
MP: 445/500
...
STR: - 18 +1.8 +
VIT: - 30 +3 +
DEX: - 19 +1.9 +
INT: - 20 +
WIS: - 7 +
LUK: - 4 +
...
Point: 2
Money: 500,300 Lien
"Gah!" the catgirl suddenly exclaimed, startling the knight as he saw her eyes go wide, "A single Mob Boss drops five hundred thousand lien!"
Jaune's reaction was rather similar as he went bug-eyed as well, "What!? Y-You'll get filthy rich at this rate if you keep facing bosses like that! Not to mention that we've probably been missing smaller drops from the Beowolves this whole time!"
"This semblance is incredible," Blake finally drawled as her eyes remained glued to the numerical stat before she slowly looked up at the ecstatic Arc, "Jaune, this semblance is actually incredible."
There weren't many things in the world that Blake Belladonna found truly fascinating. Books, nature, and tuna comprising the fairly short list. But this, this was beginning to become a wonder all in a league of its own...
As far as Blake could tell, there seemed to be no limit to how strong she could get, for starters. Also, there didn't seem to be any limit to the skills she could learn, as it seemed that a repeated action could potentially turn into a skill that could be grinded into mastery. And finally, she had an entire storage system she could summon on a whim, immensely practical and infinitely capable as an arsenal all in itself.
Of course, she still had her questions as was oft her habit. Had there been any record of this semblance class before? What would she be capable of with continued grinding? And where was all this new information provided to her about her surroundings coming from?
"Pfft, and I bet you're barely scratching the surface," Jaune remarked, unwittingly replying even to her current internal musing as well.
Either way, she felt that at least a few of those questions were about to be answered as the aircraft approached Beacon and she saw the placid form of Headmaster Ozpin on the landing pad. Finally touching down, the two teens stood as the side bulkhead door opened downward to reveal the Professor calmly sipping coffee from his ever-present mug with his cane in his other hand.
The engines spooled down as the students waited expectantly for the Headmaster's first action, his unreadable gaze drifting from the knight to the ravenette for a moment more before he spoke up.
"On the eve of this fine day, here I was, beginning to go about my task of monitoring the campus and ensuring the well-being of the student body when I unexpectedly receive an alert that one of the motion-sensing cameras we use during initiation has been activated in the Emerald Forest. I enter my office to activate the live feed, and lo and behold, I find two students engaged in a battle the likes of which have not been seen since the Great War... so now I must inquire... do either of you know what you just killed this morning?"
Blake tried her best to read past his impassive gaze, but either her observation level simply wasn't high enough or this man truly had the best poker face the catgirl had ever encountered. And this coming from a girl who had spent years in an organization where its members wore face masks.
In her moment of meditation, however, it was Jaune who tried to answer first, "Uhh... I think it was..."
"Ursa Rex," Blake finished flatly, the Professor's gaze serenely darting back to her as he shifted his stance ever so slightly on his cane.
'His first tell,' she remarked internally with some measure of victory, 'He wasn't expecting us to know that.'
He passively hummed as he took another sip of coffee, his gaze remaining trained on the Faunus-girl before he replied, "Hmm. Very good. And I must admit, it was a very impressive counter-offense you both mounted at the end... how did you know how to defeat an Ursa of that class?"
Onice again, it was Jaune who tried to answer with a small shrug, "Luck, I guess?"
Blake could immediately tell something change deep within the Headmaster's countenance, a small spark igniting behind his eyes like a Hunter about to corner his prey as he turned his attention to the knight.
"Miss Belladonna, Mister Arc... you may know the identity of the creature you fought today, but it seems you are both entirely unaware of the magnitude of what you've accomplished with your feat. Thousands of warriors died during the Great War trying to rid the kingdoms of high-ranking Grimm like Ursae Rex, which is how - and why - the four-Hunter team formation was developed to successfully engage Grimm of this caliber. Only once in all of recorded history has an Ursa Rex been lain to waste so quickly by a team of only two ever since the Great War itself."
He paused as he noticed the jaws of both teens slackening a bit before finishing, "So once again, I ask of you, how exactly did you know how to slay a Grimm whose general anatomy and structure isn't even taught at this academy until your third year of training?"
Blake was in shock. Not only did she have no idea that such a high-ranking Grimm wouldn't even be included in their curriculum for another two years, but she couldn't believe - couldn't rationally explain - that she and Jaune Arc of all people were the first pair to defeat a Grimm of that caliber in decades. Moreover, this man had seen her in action - which meant he likely already knew about her mana-attacks. So Blake decided that coming clean would soon be inevitable.
The silver-haired Headmaster merely observed as the ravenette turned to the Arc with a questioning expression, his only reply being an uncertain shrug and a short nod before she turned back to face himself with a determined glare.
"Sir," she began, capturing his full attention, "I was provided this information through a status system I obtained yesterday. There was an accident in the pavilion where we defended Vale against the Grimm breach, and my body was infused with large quantities and varieties of Dust, an accident which seems to have altered my perceptive abilities of my surroundings."
He let his mug-holding hand slowly drop to the same level of his cane, surprising the students as the faintest of smirks grew on his otherwise stoic features while questioning, "Then you're telling me, that you received information you've never either studied nor heard of through a notification system you obtained from an accident involving dust infusion?"
"Correct," was Blake's immediate reply.
He hummed again, his subtle nuances a mystery even to the keen catgirl as he nodded and turned to walk away. Jaune and Blake traded a quick uncertain glance before following the Professor who spoke up as soon as they caught up to him.
"I'm not sure whether or not there is such a thing as a Divine Being," the Professor began, his gaze facing forward as the two students glanced at him with quizzical glares, "There are those who believe we were created by the Omniscient Monty Oum and those who don't. But the fact is, there can be no doubt that I, yourselves, and our world couldn't have come about by chance. This is why I believe things like chance, and luck, can hardly explain the things that happen around us."
"Then... Do you know what's happening to me?" Blake asked uncertainly, almost hopefully, as the three neared the central clock-tower spire of the campus.
"No," the Headmaster replied flatly, "Not exactly, at least. You see, years of study, war, and life have taught me that there may be a power... a will, so to speak... that surrounds this very planet and links our auras in ways we do not understand. This, however, is a theory that has met multiple levels of agreement and objections from among certain colleagues and the Valean Council - mostly the latter - but it's a theory I now believe to be truer than ever."
"What do you mean?" Jaune asked as the three now reached an elevator at the ground floor of the tower, the Professor reaching out with his cane and pushing the button before taking another sip of coffee and then speaking up.
"Blake's ability," he explained coolly, "is evidence that such a global force truly exists. Among Huntsmen, auras and our abilities to use them receive ranks. These you will learn about next year. But this ranking system measures both the potential and the range of a Hunter's aura along with their combat ability. Most aura-wielders can manipulate their auras in such a way that affects them and objects around their immediate vicinity in terms of offensive and defensive combat; these abilities receive ranks between the letters E and A, the latter being the strongest."
The elevator touched down with a ding, the Professor pausing as the doors opened and the three stepped in, Jaune and Blake at his sides as the three faced forward and the doors closed before he continued.
"However, there are a special few whose auras become capable of not only affecting themselves, but of the auras of those around them... able to create and destroy in ways that still confound most of Remnant's scientific community to this day. These... natural ability users... receive what's called Shinin ranking auras - or S rank, for short."
Blake's eyes widened as the information began to sink in, "So what you're saying is-"
"That somehow, the world itself is aiding you through your ability," Ozpin declared conclusively, a heavy silence momentarily befalling the rising elevator before he continued, "Through the energy of Hunters before you and the knowledge of generations past, you're being taught by Remnant's aural force about your targets. I'm saying that you, Miss Belladonna, have transcended into a Shinin Ranking Huntress."
Her mouth in a small O of shock as she glanced at Jaune, Blake didn't need her observation skill to tell he was looking at her like some sort of goddess at this point. As the elevator ground to a halt, Ozpin - who despite himself looked calm as always - took another sip of coffee and stepped out as soon as the doors opened.
This, of course, left the students in a whole new level of awe as they were now faced with the striking intricacy that was Ozpin's office. Blake could still recall her team hounding Ruby about it earlier that year after her post-dance visit to the same room, yet it was about what had transpired in said office and not its incredible design. As a matter of fact, even if Ruby had tried to describe it, the ravenette was quite positive that the explanation would not have done the sight justice.
At first glance, it felt like the two teens had been shrunken to the size of insects and dropped into the giant maw of a grandfather clock. Ticking gears of all sizes spun methodically along every wall, column and surface underneath a thick glass covering, the entire framework undoubtedly powering the clock and beacon that sat just over their heads at the top of the tower.
Ozpin couldn't help a smile at the two students who stood nearly back to back as they gawked at their surroundings, taking his seat behind his gear-laden desk before pouring himself another cup of coffee and speaking up.
"Now. As much as I'd like to talk about your new semblance, Miss Belladonna... I first wanted to touch on your choice in Mister Arc as a hunting partner."
Blake immediately spun her head towards the smug Professor, a brief expression of panic flitting across her features before replying.
"What."
Having missed the previous interaction in his admiration of the office, Jaune quipped at the ravenette, "What?"
"What," Blake repeated as she tilted her head indicatively at the increasingly amused Professor, which only managed to get the Arc to think that they were in trouble and deadpan with worry.
"What."
Hiding a smirk behind a sip of the fresh brew, Ozpin now stepped in to get the attention of each confused student, "Exactly my point. You see, apart, no one would even fathom the notion... But together, you two... have a fairly interesting dynamic. As a matter of fact, I'm rather surprised you both didn't become partners during initiation."
The mere thought of it caused the catgirl to furrow her brows, immediately rationalizing the most logical answer to such an unexpected statement, "Jaune and I landed in different parts of forest."
"And I was busy being nailed to tree," Jaune added nonchalantly, causing Blake to snap her head at him with her brow raised in question about his continually dismal use of words.
"Um," she was about to protest with a finger raised until a mental image of him and Pyrrha in the forest playing out a scene from Ninjas of Love flashed through her mind, causing her to slowly put her finger down with a slight blush, "...Never mind."
"And besides," Jaune continued, evidently off-put by Ozpin's statement as well, "Even if Blake and I would've become partners, who would've been our teammates? Ruby and Weiss? Our team name would be terrible. SABR for Saber, JBRS for Jabbers, AWBR for Auburn? ...It'd be awful!"
Ozpin merely blinked at the knight, making a brief mental note to remember some of those names for a future team before setting his mug down on the desk. The amusement was becoming too much for him to handle.
"Very well," he conceded, clasping his hands in front of him as he fought down the urge to chuckle at the interesting pair, "I sense that your unexpected compatibility is a question that will be answered in due time. Changing the subject, then, I did have a another question about the weapon you used to help defeat the Ursa, Miss Belladonna."
Blake blinked as she processed the inquiry, pursing her lips to the side as she realized there was only one answer she could give, "It... wasn't a weapon. My semblance has granted me the use of mana-based attacks, a skill which I have yet to fully comprehend."
Of course, she left out the part about her lack of understanding being due to the fact that it was an element fount in video games. Nevertheless, the hint of surprise now on the Headmaster's face perplexed both students as Ozpin echoed, "Mana? You're saying the energy you were emitting was pure mana?"
Jaune was now the one cocking his head to the side in confusion as he asked, "Yeah. You know about it?"
"Aside from the occasional video game reference, for which it was named after due to its highly offensive capabilities," Ozpin now explained with a more solemn air about him, "I can assure you that mana is indeed a very real substance. However, we know very little about it ever since its relatively recent discovery after the Great War - many are still not even sure whether it's aura-enhanced Dust or Dust-enhanced aura - but you say you can manipulate this substance freely, Miss Belladonna?"
Blake thought it through before nodding, "To a certain extent, yes. I'm quite new to the skill myself."
His clasped hands went from the table to his chin as he leaned forward on the desk, examining the ravenette as if sizing her up once more, "A very interesting semblance indeed..."
"So mana... is actually a thing?" Jaune asked, wanting to ensure clarification from the Professor who promptly nodded.
"Yes, it is. A very powerful 'thing'. The Atlesian military along with the Schnee Dust Company have been experimenting with it for a few years now - doubtlessly, you've both seen the sudden spur in mechanical creativity and engineering that has been brought about in the past five years or so... each with mana at the root of their designs."
"So it's like a power source," Blake observed stoically, trying to piece together what she had seen about the Paladin and subsequent White Fang weaponry.
"Correct, and being such a universal power supply with such offensive potential, both entities have kept knowledge of its existence to as bare a minimum as possible lest others with less than noble intentions catch wind of this substance," Ozpin explained further, answering Blake's internal question as well.
"I think they already have," the catgirl mumbled to herself with concern before finishing her thought in mind, 'I'll have to inform my team as soon as possible. Roman might not have been after Dust, but after mana this whole time!'
"That being said," Ozpin now continued unexpectedly, interrupting Blake's musing, "That brings me to the final reason I have brought you to my office today."
The students focused on the Headmaster as he now stood up with cane in hand, coffee left forgotten on the desk.
"I was going to decline the request, but the Valean Police Department has begun an investigation into the breach here in the city along with a few teams of Atlesian scientists. Being that Roman Torchwick is in custody and any immediate threat has been neutralized, they have forgone their usual request for fully-fledged Hunters and have asked instead for teams comprised of Hunters-in-training."
Jaune raised a brow at the Professor, "And about that request...?"
"They asked for each of your teams," Ozpin now revealed, "By name. They are convinced that you eight are the best options for the protection for their men due to your familiarity with the incident and your proven capability to hold off any unexpected incursions should they arise. However, in light of your newly-found ability, Miss Belladonna, that is a choice I now leave up to Mister Arc and Miss Rose as soon as she replies to my message."
Jaune and Blake, who both stood beside the desk as the ravenette held her arm with the other by the elbow across herself, turned to each other with a meaningful gaze. Jaune was the first to speak up.
"You'll have to tell them if you haven't already."
"I know," Blake replied, her eyes breaking contact with his as she looked at the floor, "But are you sure you're up to it? You haven't healed completely."
"Meh. I've been through worse."
A stare from the ravenette.
"Okay, maybe not worse... but I can manage," Jaune restated with an easy-going grin, "And I know our teams would be up for it as well. There are too many questions left unanswered and I think everyone would like an opportunity to find out more of why this happened."
The Headmaster watched the interaction with an unreadable expression on his face aside from the faint smirk on his lips as the amber-eyed girl softened her gaze at the knight and slowly nodded, to which Jaune smiled and turned back to the Professor.
"Alright sir, what do we need to do."
If the previous statement to Blake wasn't enough, it was his calm demeanor in the face of their first mission that began to impress the silver-haired man himself. But not that he'd show it. He smiled internally at the boy's developing skills as a leader and Huntsman as he bent down and pulled out a black dossier from below the desk... for more reasons than one.
"Very well," Ozpin now began with a steeled tone in his voice, no longer as a Professor but as a fellow Huntsman as well, "Your mission, should you choose to accept it, will be to protect and to aid the combined Valean and Atlesian teams as they investigate the Breached Pavilion, making your way through the collapsed tunnels and clearing out any Grimm you find along the way back to the underground city of Mountain Glenn."
He placed the dossier on the desk and slid it to within Jaune's reach, the blonde now picking it up and briefly scanning the contents before glancing back at the Headmaster with a confirmatory nod.
"Sounds good. I tentatively accept on behalf of team JNPR, and will wait on Ruby's reply to share the information with our teams," he then turned to the ravenette with a smug grin that she couldn't help but reciprocate, "Besides, a week off sounded too boring anyway."
"Excellent," Ozpin now concluded as he turned to face the wall-to-wall window behind him that overlooked most of the campus, implicitly ending the conversation, "I'll wait for your final decision and will provide a bullhead as soon as you're ready. Good luck."
"Yes sir," Jaune replied with a salute before he and Blake turned back to go to the elevator.
However, barely a few steps were taken before he was stopped by a soft pressure on his arm holding him back. He turned to see a curious expression in Blake's eyes, which now turned towards the Headmaster as she spoke up quietly.
"There's one more thing I wanted to try before we left..."
He waited as she focused on the man who had his back to them, willing her passive observation senses to read the information she had previously found floating on her head and on Jaune's. It only took a blink or two before it finally came up.
|The Headmaster|
LV? Ozpin
'What!?'
A/N: Hi there, TPS here! Yes, it's a little shorter of a chapter than previous ones, but it felt like a good place to end it. And next chapter is gonna be a long one, so don't get too disappointed if it takes a while to post ;) Let's just say that interesting things will happen to Jaune once he hits level 10...
Other than that, I hope some of your questions about boss drops have also been answered! Trust me, if I'm leaving out something obvious, it means I have plan for it later... most of the time ^.^ But I do make mistakes - as I mentioned, I'm not as big an RPG buff as I'd like to be - and I really appreciate the little things that people point out about the Gamer aspects of the fic! For example, the principle behind core stats meeting prerequisites pointed out by Arkman and lukefang, very helpful! Thanks, guys :D
And once again, thanks for all your kind words and support - breaking 300 followers was certainly motivation to get myself to finish this chapter on the pronto as well haha :) Side note: hehe, and yes, there are many references to fics and other stuff I like! And another thing... would you guys mind if I made Blake lapse in moments of total Trolling? After all, it's a Gamer semblance and their users have been known to get a bit a cocky at times, heh. It's a bit OOC but I think it'd be fun!
So as always, Fave, Follow and Review to show your continued support as it's always appreciated and your reviews continually help me improve as the amateur writer that I am ~ please notice me, Rooster Teeth senpais! ~
*ahem* Anyways, more to come as the remaining members of teams RWBY and JNPR (and a few others hehe) are tossed into the fray, where the shopping centers sell butt-whoopings in bulk and the light at the end of the tunnel is NEVER a good thing! Until then, take care!
And Happy Reading!