Chapter 8: Fight Club
AN: This chapter will lay the groundwork cementing the OC as a hybrid OP/UP character, as well as where she fits in the tiers of power among Beacon students. I know, makes perfect sense, right? Hopefully it will if I write this well. Kassidy metaphorically fights Goodwitch, then physically fights Yang. Injuries sustained lead to her teammates wondering what's up with the third party member.
(Perspective: K)
"Alright class, let's form up here. Are you huntsmen or barkeeps?" Professor Goodwitch was currently trying to get the kids in some semblance of organization. After an unruly minute, she settled for good enough. "This class will teach you how to fight. Now I'm aware that many of you already think you know how to fight, and a select few may even be right. But the world of Remnant is a dangerous one, and you will find that your skills as a warrior will never be good enough. It is my job to make sure that none of you die within five minutes of graduation from this school, and I intend to do just that."
Many of the students around her had been cowed into reverence, but not Kassidy. She recognized the professor was merely playing hard ball to get the class to pay attention. Listening in the background, she fiddled with her pistol and rifle, painfully aware that she only had three remaining magazines for each weapon.
"… and aura is the most important as well as basic tool a huntsman can use. Miss Smith!" Looking up from her impromptu weapons check, Kassidy found Glynda staring her down. "Since you seem to be more focused on your firearms than my lecture, you obviously know so much about the finer points of aura manipulation. Perhaps you would like to step to the front of the room and provide a demonstration?"
Alright, what the hell is this aura crap everyone keeps talking about? And I'm supposed to give a demonstration on it? I don't think that she made a polite request. Taking her backpack from off her shoulder, Kass left her rifle behind, carrying only her holstered pistol to the front of the room. Tapping on her earpiece out of habit, she consulted her AI. "So, uh, Bob, do you know what this aura stuff is that everyone's talking about?"
"Short answer: I don't have anything useful for you."
"Miss Smith, in this class you will be expected to put forth your own work. I will not allow you to use your computer as a crutch. Now, as for your demonstration, please show to the class how to properly flare your aura to compensate for a particularly strong attack."
"Um…" Kassidy fumbled for words a bit. "Right, aura. Could you remind me, by chance, about which kind of aura we're talking about here? I can think of nearly a dozen definitions off the top of my head, but I'd rather get it right the first time."
If looks could kill, then Glynda was giving off such a glare that every student in the room would be dead. "If this is a joke, it's a bad one. Your aura? The physical manifestation of your soul which any competent huntress would use to augment her abilities?"
Despite the situation, Kass had to fight to not laugh right in Goodwitch's face. After taking a moment to compose herself, she returned Glynda's glare. "My soul… right. Look professor, I like to consider myself an educated person, but I tend to not study metaphysical nonsense. I prefer to keep my head firmly rooted in reality, thank you very much."
The professor's glare now looked like it could kill every person in the building. "This 'metaphysical nonsense' you speak of is the single most important tool a huntress has access to. Do you seriously expect me to believe that you've never had a single lesson in manipulating your soul?"
And there's the problem. Kassidy remained unfazed. "I understand that your group has a certain mythology to it, so let me make myself as plain as I can. There's no such thing as a soul. Humanity's been looking for it for the past fifteen thousand years. From science to spirituality, we've searched and come up empty each and every single time." Taking a few steps back, Kassidy continued. "If you want to continue to insist that some religious claptrap is what's behind your physical capabilities, then I'm not in much of a position to stop you. But it's kinda doing a disservice to every student passing through your doors."
Glynda was quivering so much it looked like she was about to shatter into a thousand pieces. A thought apparently appeared, and she took a deep breath, glint in her eye remaining. "So tell me, Ms. Smith, when I summoned a thundercloud and, how was it you put it that night, 'threw reality out the window,' what did you think was happening?"
Kass knew the question was coming, and she was ready for it. "Your stick, obviously. Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic to a being not familiar with it. I'm not going to pretend to know what mechanics you have in that wand of yours, but it's quite obvious that you having a technologically advanced stick is a far more compelling answer than some soul based magic."
Alright, scratch killing everyone in the building. Goodwitch's gorgon-esque stare would turn everyone in a one mile radius to stone. Her voice came out strained, like it was taking every fiber in her being to not scream at rage at the blonde haired student standing in front of her. "The wand I use is irrelevant. I merely use it because it was what I have attuned the closest to. Miss Smith, how do you intend to compete with your peers if you don't have a command over your soul?"
Unholstering her pistol and twirling it a bit, Kassidy replied in a tone equal parts boredom and pride. "I've got a few tricks of my own. Combine them with a penchant for stealth and marksmanship, and I can stack up with anyone in this room." Putting her 1911 away, she made eye contact with the professor and offered a grin.
Glynda, despite Kass' calculations, returned the grin. "If you are so confident, then perhaps a demonstration is in order. Ms. Xiao Long?" The two girls in front of the room turned to her partner. "Perhaps you and Kassidy can show to the class exactly how important an aura is to a huntsman or huntress?"
Kassidy's heart sank. I am not turning my guns on my partner. Not when she hasn't tried to kill me yet. Preemptively removing threats is the type of scumbag behavior I'm trying to get rid of. While she mulled over the predicament she was in, she noticed that Yang's normally carefree face turned to one of sheer terror. "Uh… if my partner doesn't have an aura, then…" The blonde was fumbling over her words in a manner entirely uncharacteristic of her. "Do you have any idea how easily I could kill her?"
The professor offered a huff in response. "I will ensure the fight ends before lethal conditions are reached. I have no desire to clean up a corpse on the first day of class."
Yang sighed. "I'm still doing this unarmed." Unsnapping her bracelets from her forearms, she handed them to Ruby.
"That sounds like a great idea. Hey Weiss, can you put this in my bag for me?" Unclipping her utility belt, Kassidy removed her pistol and remaining ammunition. Her mind raced a mile a minute as she and Yang took up fighting stances across the room. "Bob, have I ever told you how much I hate hand to hand combat?"
"BEGIN!" Glynda barked from the far wall, and the two blondes started circling each other. Alright, I've got a small reach advantage on Yang. I'm faster and can probably fight for longer than she can. Hazel eyes turned to the gigantic muscles her partner had. She'll tear me a new one if she lands a solid hit on me. Keep the fight going long, turn this into a contest of endurance rather than a contest of strength.
Yang made the first move, sending a right hook to her partner's cheek. It was nowhere near as fast as the muscle of the group showed off during initiation yesterday, showing that she was as excited about this fight as Kassidy was. Ducking under it easily, Kass threw a few blazing jabs at the abdomen. Finding an unnaturally solid wall of muscle, the punches bounced right off. She noticed a small spark of yellow wherever her fists made contact.
For about a minute, the fight continued in a similar manner, with Yang making halfhearted attacks, Kassidy easily dodging, and then throwing hilariously ineffectual counters. After a short while, the professor was fed up with the lack of progress being made. "Ms. Xiao Long, if you don't start putting effort in I will have no choice but to give you a failing grade for the day."
Yang caught a hook to the chin, then gazed at her partner. "Sorry K, but I kinda have to hurt you now." Throwing a left straight, Kassidy tried to block the stronger girl's attack. That was a mistake; as the flimsy arm just barely kept her partner from doing any actual damage, a vicious right jab found its way into her chest. Ribs audibly cracked, then failed as the scrawnier girl flew into a pillar, another loud crack resonating as her spine absorbed the impact. "Kassidy!" Yang was panicking at what she had done.
Kass' only response was a small chuckle. Staggering to her feet, the pain almost immediately vanished, and not due to the girl consciously blocking the pain. This was an involuntary reaction, and signaled the arrival of an all too familiar rush. With a highly tuned and engineered fight or flight response kicking in, she could almost feel her body being flooded with enough adrenaline to kill a normal person. Knocking her fists together, her partner had just recovered from the sight before her, and threw out a pathetically weak attempt at a kick. Letting her hip catch the blow, her arm caught the boot as an elbow flew for the larger blonde's face.
A large flash of yellow sparked from her partner's face. Not giving her the chance to regroup, Kassidy threw her partner across the room right at Goodwitch's feet. As Yang stood up, a look of shock regarded their professor. "We aren't still going, are we?"
"I do not believe that the class has fully appreciated the lesson. Please continue fighting." The haughtiness had vanished from Glynda's voice, like she suddenly wasn't so sure about this. Turning around, the muscled girl's eyes had turned from lilac to fiery red. Both girls surging forward, Kassidy had no idea that Yang's semblance had also given her partner a boost. A hook that she had intended to just catch with her head while counterattacking had a far more devastating effect.
"OH MY OUM! KASSIDY!" The brawler rushed over to her partner, upon whom a sickening crack heralded the arrival of a caved in skull. Ruby and Weiss had also raced to the scene. Semblance kicking into full gear, flames started erupting from the girl. She wheeled on her professor. "Why!? You knew this would happen!" She marched closer.
"You knew the consequences that could have come from this fight." Goodwitch had her stick up ready to block the blonde's advances. "Do not blame me for your lack of control." Yang could do nothing apart from returning to her group. Kneeling in front of her partner, tear filled eyes didn't catch a boot flying for her face.
Hazel eyes glassed over. Kassidy didn't know about the specifics of when she was pushed to her absolute limits. It had only ever happened once before. All she knew was that the source of her pain was kneeling in front of her. Her threat was kneeling in front of her. Lashing out, she sent the blonde flying across the room, then fought to her feet while two girls she didn't recognize were torn from hanging on to her arms. The threat had just stood up. If her jaw could have detached itself from her face, Yang's would be on the ground right now. Kass paid no attention, of course. There was a threat to her life, and she would deal with it.
Knocking her fists together again, hazel eyes strode forward, meeting fiery red. Kassidy couldn't think. She could only know. Know that the threat was before her. Know that she needed to end this fight, and now. Know that what amounted to pure energy was coursing through her veins. Ducking under a right straight, she could only know that she could end this with one titanic punch. Throwing her entire body into a right uppercut, Kass could only know the results.
When fist met jaw, it sounded like a clap of thunder. Aura shattering, Yang flew into the air and flipped several times before collapsing on the ground. Silence covered the room like a heavy fog. The threat made no attempt to get up. After sixty seconds, Kassidy's eyes could focus once again. The first thing she noticed was the blinding pain. This was quickly ignored as the second thing she noticed was her partner, decked out in front of her, whole left half of her face already bruising. Two and two were instantly put together. Oh shit oh shit oh shit.
"Ruby, get my bag!" Racing to Yang's side, she glared daggers at Glynda, who seemed to still be in the process of picking her jaw up from off the floor. "I'll deal with you later." Right now, she was too preoccupied to care that she just threatened her teacher.
"Here it is!" Collecting her pack from the team leader, Kass tore through its contents, finding the x-ray scanner in record time.
"Bob! Get scanning. Focus on the brain cavity. Her jaw's going to be completely shattered, we know that already. We need to figure out how bad a concussion we're dealing with, or if that's all we're dealing with."
"On it. Looks like we're dealing with…" Bob stumbled for a second. "This can't be right. I'm detecting only a minor concussion, and only hairline fractures at the point of impact. That punch you just threw clocked in at seven tons of force. Her face should be irreparable by now."
"That sounds about right." The professor had finally composed herself, and joined the four students on the ground. "Her aura absorbed most of the impact. It's a shame it had been depleted so much during the rest of your fight, but it still served its purpose."
Kassidy looked at her teammates. Weiss had a mix of concern and horror on her face. Ruby was filled with concern for her big sister. Putting a hand on her shoulder, she could only come up with one thing to console her. "I'm so sorry, Ruby. But it looks like she's going to be alright."
Ruby sniffled. "I know. It's just…" She didn't finish the sentence, and Kass didn't ask for completion. Looking up at the rest of the room, she could only find faces filled with pure terror. I'm doing it again. They're scared of what I just did. Scared of… me.
She turned to the professor, venom flowing freely. "Well, I hoped you enjoyed your demonstration on how superior this aura forcefield crap was compared to anything I could come up with. You won't be getting another one." Forcing Yang over her shoulder, she staggered to her feet. Yang wasn't light, and her surge of energy was dying fast. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go get my partner to the infirmary before complications develop." Not even waiting for the excuse, Kassidy stumbled forward a few steps before collapsing, with her partner landing on top of her.
"What's happening, Bob? I need more energy."
"You don't have any more energy. You've got nothing left in the tanks."
"Like hell I'm going to die right here. Find me some."
Weiss suddenly materialized in her field of view. "You can't just find energy. But you aren't going to die here. The doctors just arrived, and they'll take care of you and Yang."
As the two now unconscious blondes were attended to before being lifted on stretchers and hauled out, the class descended once again into silence. It took Glynda a moment to get out, "Class dismissed." As the teens slowly filed out, Ruby and Weiss were quickly met by JNPR. The six kids all had the same question.
Who the hell is Kassidy Smith?
