Chapter 9: The Crimson Duel

"Alright shortstack. Let's see how good your uncle really trained you." Reuben began the banter.

"Hey! I heard that." Qrow yelled from the sidelines

"Hmph, someone count us off…"

"Three" Qrow said as the fighters dropped into their respective stances. Ruby with her hand at her backside waiting to pull out Crescent Rose. Reuben with Grey Talon at the ready in his right hand, with his left hand upward and back, similar to a fencer's stance.

"How in blazes does he think he will be able to wield a sword that size in a fencing stance? Has he truly gone insane?" Weiss questioned in a hushed tone.

"I wouldn't question the one who handed you your ass with you're own semblance and weapon type…" Yang butted in.

"That was a fluke and you know it!"

"Whatever…"

"Two"

Ruby grasped the cold metal body of her weapon, unfurling it with a spinning flourish. Reuben did the same with the gears of the weapon engaging to transform the sword into a scythe.

"One"

Instantaneously, the two combatants vanished into thin air. Only to be seen after clashing weapons, then briefly they vanished again before their second clash. "Wow, he's a fast learner. He's already able to copy Ruby." Blake commented.

After about the fifth clash, the two became locked. "Wow, I'm surprised to see you can keep up with my natural speed."

"Wait what? You can go that fast normally?" Ruby was surprised to see that Reuben was holding back against the rest of her team.

"Yea, anyone can channel their Aura into any part of their body at will, increasing it's strength. Like this!"

Reuben channeled his dull crimson aura into his arms and forced his way out of the very odd scythe lock with the two combatants being forced away like two similar poled magnets.

He facepalmed at a realization."Damn it all. I just remembered something. I can't go completely all out with my scythe techniques. That would require a lot of blood, gore, and brutal impalements. You see, when I wield a scythe it's about using the tip as a way of hooking an enemy onto it, and slamming them around on the ground."

"Sounds painful! I think I'll pass." Ruby bantered back, speeding into a crimson tornado.

Reuben was surprised at the sudden loss of breath and balance as Ruby came crashing into his upper body at full force. "Fucking hell, that hurt kid!" Reuben sputtered out, acting as if he was actually damaged by the attack.

"It was kinda supposed to hurt. Just like this!" Ruby bantered back and came in for a swipe across his body but Reuben jumped over the swipe and came downwards attempting to slam the scythe into Ruby's skull, knowing full well she would dodge it.

"Man, you are really out to kill me!" Ruby said as she rolled backwards out of the overhead swing.

As soon as Ruby dodged, Reuben unleashed a barrage of shotgun blasts from the top of Grey Talon and then dislodged the massive weapon from the ground going in for a second rushing overhead slash at the speed demon. Within a split second Ruby was behind Reuben and made a slash along his back earning her a smile.

"Nice job kid, you actually got a hit in. But, it's gonna take more than that to take me out."

With that, he vanished into the ether moving too fast for the untrained eye. Then he reappeared from Ruby's left, and slashed her across the body. This happened six times in a row from multiple directions.

Ruby let out a blood curdling scream and fell to her knees after the brutal attack. "Come on. I know you didn't get hurt by that. Unless your Aura is really that weak…"

"Ok. You may be able to beat me, but that doesn't mean I can't try to beat you!" Ruby shouted

"Remember kid, combat isn't all about spirit. You gotta get the tactics and physical stuff down too." Reuben reminded the redhead.

Ruby slammed her fist on the ground. "Damn it. I will beat you. Even if it takes my entire life."

"Good thing to strive for sweetheart, now get up. We have a lot of work to do now that I have a baseline for each of your skills." Reuben said.

"Not yet. We still haven't finished!" Ruby shouted triumphantly as she rose and propelled herself toward Reuben with her semblance and gunfire from Crescent Rose. She raised the blade up into it's War Scythe mode and went for a helm splitting swing.

"Oh dust! That might actually hurt! Oh, duh… Qrow's weapon isn't just a scythe!"

The gears began to engage again transforming the giant weapon back into it's smaller Greatsword form. Reuben assumed a two handed defense stance with one hand flat on the blade, and the other in a firm grip on the hilt. Even with the bracing that he used, it wasn't enough to stop Crescent Rose. It slashed right through Reuben's defense and tore through the fabric of his dark gray duster jacket and his signature t-shirt.

"Argh" Reuben cried out in pain from the tip of the scythe going through the left side of his chest in a downward arc, leaving a considerable mark on his breast.

"Dammit. You did good kid. I guess I'm not strong enough to challenge a Silver Eyed Warrior, even one who hasn't yet realized her full potential. Not yet at least. You win that one Ruby." Reuben conceded as he clutched the left side of his chest with his right arm.

"Yea! One point Team RWBY!" Ruby jumped into the air and exclaimed.

"Don't get too excited, I still have 3 points Team Teachers." Reuben retaliated as he cracked his neck and knuckles.

"Yea, and if that was me out there, I'd know how to fight you Ruby. After all, I was the one to teach you." Qrow said, backing his old friend up after his loss.

"Yea. But, Uncle Qrow, I have improved and made some new techniques too! I should show you one day all these new moves I've come up with!" Ruby said with enthusiasm.

"Ok, with my assessment matches done and over with. Let's see the results. Sebastian, if you would do the honors?"

"Gladly Sir!" A screen appeared with the faces of the four girls at the top, with a column each for them and five rows underneath.

"Offensive Power. Yang, 6. Weiss, 7. Blake, 9. Ruby, 9.5"

"What?! Blakey and Weiss are more powerful than I am? What kind of bullshit scoring are you doing?" Yang shouted out, incredibly confused.

"As I recall, you managed to land no hits on me. You have great power, but lack the control and skill required for human on human combat at a high level." Reuben countered.

"But, huntresses and huntsman aren't meant to combat other humans and faunus! We're supposed to be the protectors of the world against the Grimm!" Yang said back.

"Things are changing Yang. We have reason to believe that we need more huntresses and huntsman that can take down human targets." Qrow stated flatly.

"Anyways, back to the rest of the results. Defensive Skill. Yang, 0. Weiss, 6. Blake, 7. Ruby, 7."

"Offensive Aura Capability. 0 Across the board. None of you used offensive aura techniques at all."

"Semblance Use. Yang, 5. Weiss, 7. Blake, 6. Ruby, 7."

"Adaptability. Yang, 3. Weiss, 6. Blake, 7. Ruby, 5."

Each of the girls were mostly happy with their scores, except Yang having a burning desire to punch Reuben in the head after giving her the lowest offensive score.

"So. After these scores, which are not the entire picture of your combat aptitude, but a fairly good one. One such anomaly is Yang's absolutely low Offensive power score, but she can bench several hundred pounds easily. She was ill suited to fighting an agile fighter such as myself when I am using my twin pistols." Reuben began explaining.

"All four of you scored zeroes in the Offensive Aura Capability category as none of you knew how to utilize this form of combat, which is highly effective against other Aura users. However, with practice and time we will fix this. It also will allow you to become better with your Semblances. I know Weiss has trouble performing her Summoning, even after four years at Beacon."

"What? How do you know this?! I demand an answer!" Weiss shouted.

"It was quite simple to figure out. When your temper flared against me in our fight, I noticed that was when you resorted to that pathetic excuse of a summon. When your sister was your age, she was summoning multiple Ursai at a time. I know you aren't your sister, so you learn differently than she does and at a different pace too. But, hopefully through training in offensive Aura techniques, you can quickly master Summoning as well." Reuben finished.

"I'd still love to know how you, a mere student of Beacon and Atlas academies knows my sister." Weiss replied.

"That's a tale for another day Weiss, for now you all need to know is that I know people who you are directly related to, or at least connected to in some way." Reuben cut the approaching talk about his past short.

"Alright everyone, I think that's enough for today. Let's get some rest and relaxation before the extreme training begins." Qrow stated.

"Yes. That would be best. If you are hungry, call for Sebastian and ask for whatever you would like. He is quite the master chef." Reuben said as he began walking off to his and Qrow's living quarters.

"Ok. Well, looks like we are in for a new adventure guys! We have no clue why we are really here, but let's make the best of it. This guy is gonna make us into even more badass Huntresses, so I say we stay. Plus, we get free room and board!" Ruby said excitedly.

"I don't exactly trust this guy, but we don't know how to get out either. I guess we are stuck here for now." Blake deadpanned.

"I agree with you Kitty, but at the same time I do like the premium treatment we are being given, at least we aren't prisoners or dead." Yang stated.

"I agree wholeheartedly with Yang, which is a rarity. This training for, whatever is coming hopefully will pay off." Weiss finished in the agreement.

"It's official, Team RWBY is still in training!" Ruby shouted ecstatically as she jumped into the air with a fist raised.

Chapter End

AN: Well, it's been about a month since the last chapter! I was gone working at a summer camp, and I didn't really think about telling my few fans. But, things are about to get more exciting with me leaving for college in the next few weeks. Hopefully, I'll be able to devote a little more time to this story and less to gaming whilst in College. Don't forget to Review and Favorite!

Good Hunting,

KaosC57