Chapter 10: Testing a new technique

RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum. All other mentioned franchises belong to their respective owners. I own nothing but my OC.

(December 5, 2015) Don't worry I haven't forgotten about this fic. It has just been a while since I wrote due to finals coming up and me just being busy. I want to discuss a few things regarding this story before actually getting into it.

I am going to have all the stuff at Beacon begin in about 3 or 4 more Chapters as there are a couple more things I need to take care of. When I do start Beacon, the point of view this story will take will be very different from what I have done so far. As this is a self-insert story, I wanted to make this resemble me as much as I can. With this in mind, self-insert me will not be talking a whole lot during my time at Beacon. This is because in school I was the kind of person who would keep to myself and avoid people as much as I could. I also would not contribute to the class all that much and I would barely study. Even though this story is from my perspective, having me not say a whole lot of things would make for boring Chapters. Most of the point of views would be from Saga or my other teammates and it is possible that I may not be in a Chapter at all given to how I am.

In terms of the romance it will be there and it will be difficult, but interesting for me to write since I have no romantic experience at all. I have been thinking about whether or not I want to have lemons in this story and I have decided to not add any. Even if I got someone to write them for me, it just doesn't sit well with me. That doesn't mean I can't make the occasional innuendo ;)

The focus of this Chapter is going to be about me trying out a new technique. The technique is going to be the Flash Step from the Bleach anime as it is an anime I have taken an interest in. However, since self-insert me did not watch Bleach before coming to Remnant, the Flash Step will be something I will quote-unquote "make up" similar to how self-insert me "theorized" that RWBY Volume 3 would be about the tournament without actually knowing. This Chapter will explain why self-insert me wants to know Flash Step.

I am not sure if Bleach explains the usage of Flash Step or what needs to be done to learn it, so self-insert me will come up with a reason or theory as to how it works. This by no means is the way Flash Step works. If any Bleach fans can give me their thoughts as to how Flash Step works it would be most appreciated.

With all that said, let's get to it!

(December 15, 2015) Well, college is done for now and I have an entire month off! So this means I can put more time into writing.

"Speech"

Thought

Emphasis

Narration/Log

[Flashback]

{Letters/Notes}

[#] Author's Comments which will be shown at the official end of the Chapter and before the ending A/N.

Opallios's Log

Well, I only have about 7 more months before I have to go to Beacon. Master has been training me to fight and I've also been using Black Lightning on practice dummies as well as The Messenger on the target rings I have set up behind my waterfall. The potions are coming out well, but I am nervous that I am not prepared for any situation. Sometimes I wish I had Saga's Pocket Dimension Semblance so I can carry my potions safely. I'm fine with keeping them in my cave for the time being.

I am still unsure what my feelings are for Cinder, but I think I'm starting to realize something is definitely there.

I want to try out something new, but this could very much threaten my life. If my theory is correct, I need to keep my body in shape for this to be able to work.

I wiped the sweat off of my brow as I surveyed my handiwork. Earlier on this Tuesday morning I decided to go for a jog/hike through the forest. I jogged to the waterfall and to the lake. I jogged around the lake five times before heading back to the cabin. I did have to kill a few Grimm during this jog that has become part of my routine, but as per usual they were only Beowolves. I did encounter a few Boarbatusks every so often, but they were rare. After a quick shower I headed back out and grabbed the wood-cutting axe and chopped down a few trees. I then had to cut the downed trees into smaller portions to get to the reasonable size I was aiming for. My body was aching from the labor I was putting myself through, but I powered through it as I really wanted to try this technique I thought of last week.

[Sometime last week]

I was pacing around the cabin stroking my goatee. I heard Master come downstairs and he looked at me with his arms crossed over his chest.

"What's on your mind, Opals?" he asked me.

Snapping out of my daze, I looked at him and smiled while scratching the back of my head. "I was thinking of a way to increase my ground speed using my aura. I already have a decent treeline travel and water-walking has become much easier, but I have nothing for something like rooftops. I do have a theory I want to put into practice, but it's risky."

Master cocked an eyebrow. "What makes this theory of yours so dangerous?"

"My theory is that I can release my aura in short bursts so I can move faster than the eye can follow. The goal of this technique is to get from Point A to Point B in as few steps as possible." I explained as I made air-quotes when I said steps. "I don't really know what to call this technique, but I'll just go with Flash Step. If I were to use Flash Step, then it would give me a way to escape from dangerous situations and give me a method of ground movement. There are problems which arise with Flash Step: I may not know where I am going to end up; I could release too much aura at once; there could be internal damages to my organs from the sudden starts and stops with each Flash Step; there is also a possibility as to how many Flash Steps I can use as it does use my aura; the list goes on."

"If this Flash Step is so dangerous, then why even try to learn it?" he asked me not convinced with my explanation.

"I move slower while I wear my armor and I would like to try and escape from dangerous situations with as little damage as I can sustain. If there is someone who needs my help I can reach them as long as I can sense their aura. I can then use Flash Step to reach them as quickly as possible. Being able to move quickly even in my armor will give me the speed advantage I'm missing. However, Flash Step can be tracked by people who can see faster than normal or who can sense aura. I just think Flash Step would be useful." I explained. Master was silent as he seemed to be thinking on this.

"I am still unsure about this, but I think it can be considered useful. I want you to go ahead and keep your body in shape before you even try to use Flash Step. Judging by your explanation, Flash Step seems to involve being able to be light on your feet as well as having control over your aura. I want you to add jogs to your morning routine as well as to your combat practices. I also want you to make an obstacle course to help with your footwork so you can find a balance with your aura control. If you feel like you are going to be in any and I mean any kind of pain, I want you to stop immediately. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal, Master!" I said with a goofy smile on my face and a mock salute. I immediately began to go and work on keeping my body in shape for the upcoming task of learning Flash Step.

[End Flashback]

I set up what was essentially a parkour course so I could practice and judge my footwork while adding a little challenge as well. There were various logs step up for me to jump to and quickly climb. I studied the course I made and sighed. Even though this is more of a controlled environment, I have to start somewhere. I stretched my body before I ran the course. To make a long story short, I failed a lot of times and lost my footing on more than one occasion. Bruises and cuts formed along my body as I wanted to practice the course without my armor. I knew that practicing in my armor was going to make the course more difficult and I wanted to see how it would be if I didn't have my armor activated. I would practice this until my body felt like collapsing onto the ground. That eventually happened and I looked up at the sky with the clouds passing over the trees. There was a comfortable silence with the wind passing over me and I wanted to sleep, but I couldn't let the cuts on my body get infected. I begrudgingly got up and made my way over to my pack and after a bit of searching I pulled out a small red healing potion. I took a swig of the warm liquid and I could feel my cuts starting to close up. I decided to let my aura heal the bruises on my body. I trotted back to where I was lying down earlier and flopped onto the grass a relaxing sigh escaped my lips. Resuming my staring at the sky, my eyes slowly began to close. Almost instinctively the lighting Dust inside me activated to provide its protective barrier as I drifted off into sleep.

I decided to wake up all of a sudden. I had no idea how long I was out for, but judging from the position of the sun in the sky I would say I slept for at least a few hours. Doing my best to wipe off the grass on my jeans as I stood up, I ran my makeshift parkour course until I was tired. I noticed I was getting better at it despite the fact it had only been a few hours of me practicing. When I felt the familiar exhaustion in my body, I took another break. Instead of me running the course again, I decided to work with Black Lightning and The Messenger. With Black Lightning, I was getting better at hitting certain parts of the practice dummy. Hard thunk sounds of the head hitting the wood were made as I tried to not waste a whole lot of energy. Master taught me that using a mace is more than just putting a lot of power into a swing. He has been telling me that I needed to figure out how much power I put into an attack as well as try to minimize my body's movements so I wasn't telegraphing my attacks. Memories of our one-sided sparing matches came to mind as I kept at the dummy.

[Flashback to a sparing match]

I asked Master if he could teach me some things about using my mace in combat against a skilled opponent and he almost too enthusiastically agreed. We headed into the back and he had his bastard sword drawn and I had my mace and shield ready.

"Now I know that this is just a simple sparring match, but I want you to come at me with everything you got. You shouldn't expect your enemy to go easy on you, unless they underestimate you. Think of this as a life or death match. If you don't come at me with everything you have, you will be in trouble." Master instructed me. I nodded as I placed my shield over my midsection and held my mace at my right side.

Master came at me in almost a blur as I barely had enough time to block the strike. Despite the fact that I had a shield and armor on, the force of the blow was enough to put strain on my shield arm. I tried to strike with my mace at any part of his body, but he was able to block the attack with his sword. I then tried to shield bash him, but he simply took a few steps back. I went for an overhead swing at his shoulder, but he moved to the side and then tried to slash me at my neck. I quickly brought up my shield and the attack bounced off it, but I took a few steps back. Master continued his assault and I did my best to block or parry as many attacks as I could, but my aura was taking a beating. I took a glimpse at it and I saw it was in the mid-yellow while Master's aura was barely gone. Gritting my teeth, I used one of my lightning attacks to drive him back and even though I knew it would cost some of my remaining aura, I couldn't give up now. I proceeded to go ahead and charge him with my shield raised and my mace held close to my body as I tried my best to have my own assault. To say I failed horribly would be an understatement. After only four attacks he was able to knock my mace out of my hands as it flew in the air and landed a few feet behind me. Not breaking eye-contact with him, I brought out me second shield as I tried my best to hold him off without my weapon. His attacks were hitting really hard and my aura was almost red. I charged a tiny bit of lightning into my shields which forced Master to take a couple of steps back, and in that time I pulled out The Messenger and fired two bolts at him. He was able to deflect the first bolt, but the second one grazed his shoulder slightly. I continued to quickly reload and fire a few more shots at him as I made my way over to my mace. Master's clothing had various holes and cuts from the amount of bolts I was firing, but his aura just now reached the high-yellow. I was able to get to my mace, but as soon as I picked her up I felt a sweeping kick to my stomach. I made a small grunt as I was launched and smacked my back into a tree. I knew my aura was either in low red or was completely gone. I slumped down on the ground as I was barely able to keep my eyes open. Through my blurred vision I saw that Master's sword was at my throat thus ending the spar.

I yielded and Master brought out a free hand to help me up. I stumbled as I tried to stand on my own, but I had to lean on Master for support. Master had a small smile as he walked me over to sit down on a tree stump. It took all of my willpower to keep myself awake. I heard his footsteps quickly walk away from me only for him to come back a few moments later.

"Here, drink this." he told me. My mind knew it was one of my aura potions due to its foul smell and I drank the lukewarm and bitter-tasting liquid. My mind wishing I could brew an aura potion that didn't smell so bad. I could feel my aura slightly improve a bit faster than normal, but it would be hardly noticeable. I regained full consciousness and met my Master's gaze.

"Looks like I still need to improve." I said with a sigh.

"Oh yeah, no doubt about that. Your skill seriously needs work." Master said dryly. My pride was hurt a bit, but I knew I needed to improve in order for me to survive. "But you didn't do all that bad to be honest." I felt slightly reassured.

"What things should I improve on?" I asked him.

"Well, your stance needs to be better. You telegraph your attacks too much. You also rely a bit too much on your defenses to have a balance of offense. It's almost like you would rather not attack at all." he said with his arms crossed.

"I'm still trying to get used to fighting." I said with a shrug.

"I know, but you are going to have to fight and be aggressive about it if you want to survive. As far as other things you need to work on, try to switch up your attacks. I know using a mace may give you a limited set of attack patterns, but there are ways to make the style varied so you can have the upper hand." he said. "You did really well utilizing your lightning Dust to drive me back a few times as well as use your crossbow to keep me at bay while you went for your mace. In a one on one confrontation like that, it was a smart move. Keep in mind doing that won't always work as there are plenty of Hunters who are faster than I am." I smiled at his small praise, happy that I did at least something right. Master placed a hand on my shoulder. "I want you to work on keeping a good offense and defense on the practice dummies. Use both of your hands to mix up styles and try to find a way to switch between the two as quickly and/or subtly as possible. You and I will spar again soon so I can see how much you have improved." I nodded as I got up to head inside to go take a shower and catch up on my reading.

[End Flashback]

Master's words echoed in my head as I proceeded to change my mace from my right hand to my left. It has been a bit since I used my mace in my left hand, so I had to adjust for a bit before I was back with the system I was using. I would practice using either hand for the next few days and I would also find time to get my footwork set for Flash Step.

Friday

It has been a few days since I started my parkour course. Although I knew it hasn't been that long for me practicing, I have been able to complete the course without incident twice. I was still parkouring without my armor, but I knew I would have to use my armor sooner or later. My next run through of the course had me complete it flawlessly for a third time. I wasn't sure if I would try with my armor on or try to Flash Step. I thought about it and I decided to go and try it with armor before I attempt to Flash Step. Activating my armor, I tried to run through the course. As I figured it was a lot harder to complete due to the added weight. It took me a few tries, but I was able to complete the course once without a misstep. I figured the reason I was able to get it done a lot quicker than I did was because my memorization of the course. Pretty soon I was able to complete it with my armor four times. My aura wasn't looking too good, so I decided to take a break. Deactivating my armor, I went into the cabin to read some books. The book I decided to read was {Mace Etiquette}.

{Warriors sometimes make the mistake of thinking that there are no tactics with a mace. They assume that the sword is all about skill and the mace is only about strength and stamina. As a veteran instructor of mace tactics, I can tell you they are wrong.

Wielding a mace properly is all about timing and momentum. Once the swing of the mace has begun, stopping it or slowing it down is difficult. The fighter is committed to not just the blow, but also the recoil. Begin your strike when the opponent is leaning forward, hopefully off balance. It is completely predictable that he will lean backward, so aim for a point behind his head. By the time the mace gets there, his head will be in it's path.

The mace should be held at the ready, shoulder high. The windup should not extend past the shoulders by more than a hand's width. When swinging, lead with the elbow. As the elbow passes the height of your collarbone, extend the forearm like a whip. The extra momentum will drive the mace faster and harder, causing far more damage.

At the moment of impact, let the wrist loosen. The mace will bounce and hurt a stiff wrist. Allow the recoil of the blow to drive the mace back into the ready position, thereby preparing the warrior for a quicker second strike.}

That was all that was in this short book, but it did make me think about how to wield my mace. I re-read the book until I have committed it to my memory for future use as well as when I practice with Black Lightning. I went ahead and decided to read some of my Sci-Fi books to pass the time until I felt tired. I made a mental note to go and try to Flash Step the next day.

Saturday

I waited until around eight in the morning to try and attempt to Flash Step. Master was leaning against the side of the cabin to see what I was going to do. Even after I stretched my body, I was incredibly nervous since this would be something I haven't done before. The possible negative repercussions weighed in my mind as I stood there thinking if is was even a good idea. You know what? I'll do it! I spent all that time parkouring, I want to see the results of that. I nodded to myself and took in a deep breath.

I focused my aura around my body. I could feel its energy swirling within me. Taking in one more breath, I shot open my eyes and took my first 'step'. As soon as I released the stored energy, my body lurched forward. When I stopped, my nose was right in front of a tree. My eyes widened in surprise and I fell back from startling myself. I looked at my body and realized I was alive, but my stomach was not feeling good at all. My vision blurred for a bit before I felt something trying to leave my throat. Emptying the contents of my stomach, I heard Master approaching me.

"Holding up well?" he asked me. I didn't immediately answer for obvious reasons.

"I'm alive at least." I answered groggily.

"I'm not so sure you should try this again if it produced those kind of results." he said with a bit of concern.

"I just need to get used to it. Granted I'm not going to immediately try it again, but I may have something here. I did travel pretty far for my first attempt." I said while running my fingers through the curls in my hair.

"That may be true, but I want you to take a break before trying this again." Master told me with a stern but warm expression. I nodded happily and Master left me to my own devices.

I walked over to a tree far away from my vomit and leaned against it. I looked up into the sky and watched the clouds slowly go by. I decided to slump against the tree while I was still looking at the sky, and my eyes slowly began to close as I took in the serenity of the forest.

I didn't know how much time went by, but I felt that I was ready to give this a second try. This time I decided to store a bit less aura than my first attempt so I wouldn't damage myself. When I released the energy, I once again felt my body move on its own. Once again I was face-to-face with a tree, but this time my stomach wasn't hurting. I did however feel tired after this attempt. I pulled out my Scroll to check on my aura and it was a yellowish-green in color which I guess it meant I didn't use a whole lot. I thought about trying this again since my aura was still pretty high. I stored up my aura again and released it and once again I nearly hit a tree, but this time I was able to go even farther than the previous attempts. I checked my aura again and I saw I was in the solid yellow area. I turned around and focused my aura sensing to lock on to the cabin and tried a couple more steps. I nearly smacked myself into the side of the cabin, but I noticed I took three steps to reach here even though where I started was only two. I realized my aura must be low at this point if it took me longer to get back than where I started. My Scroll reading my aura to be in the orange-red zone confirmed my suspicions. I sighed as I felt I wasn't really making that much progress, but considering I was actually able to perform the technique and not vomit or even feel any internal pain meant I was doing well. I decided to take another break to let my aura recharge before making any more attempts. I was able to perform this technique about five more times with each attempt using up more of my time to let my aura recharge to a respectable level. It was almost dark by the time I finished and I was exhausted. I headed inside to go and take a shower before heading off to bed.

Mid-April

By the time the middle of April came around, I pretty much got Flash Step down. Over the past six weeks I was practicing my Flash Step as well as doing everything else and it had kept me very busy. So much so I haven't been able to speak with Saga or Cinder as well as not be able to work at my part-time job. I didn't want to neglect Saga and Cinder since they are really the only people I am comfortable to be around and I really need the money to buy the stuff I'm going to need for Beacon so the job is just as important. I made a mental note to myself to get in contact with Saga and Cinder whenever I can. I was busy firing my crossbow when I felt my Scroll buzz in my pocket. I looked at who was calling me and I paled. Shit! Cinder's calling. I better answer quick. I placed my Scroll up against my ear.

"Hi, Cinder. What's up?"

"What have you been doing?" was her question. "You haven't been talking to me for weeks! I was afraid you forgot about me." she sounded really hurt so I did my best to explain.

"I'm really sorry. I've been training constantly so I am somewhat prepared to go to Beacon. I really haven't had time to do much of anything else. Is there anything I can do to make up for lost time?"

There was silence on the other end. Cinder then responded. "I want to see your progress."

"Huh?" I asked. "You want to see how I am doing?"

"Yes." Cinder answered. I could almost feel her smirking at me. "If you say you are training, then I want to know what kind of progress you have made. I am a Huntress after all. Also I can't have you do something stupid, you're too-" she stopped.

"I'm what?" I asked completely ignoring the part about her being a Huntress.

"I need you to meet me at this place." I saw where she wanted me to be. "Don't be late, idiot." she hung up. I stared at the coordinates she left me as they were not too far from where I currently was. A thought just occurred to me as I began to pack up my weapons.

Did she just pull a tsundere on me? Is she worried about me? These thoughts weighed on my mind as I walked into the cabin.

"Master, I need to go and be somewhere. You don't mind if I leave?" I called out.

"Where are you going, exactly?" he asked me.

"A friend of mine wants to see how I am doing with my training as a way to make up for not spending time with her." I explained. As soon as I said that he gave me a teasing grin.

"Her you say? I didn't know you had a girlfriend."

"She isn't my girlfriend," I exclaimed. "...she is a friend who I find to be admittedly attractive." I finished in a low voice.

Master's smile only grew. "I know you like her. You just have trouble expressing your feelings towards her. Sounds to me she doesn't want to lose you." I shook my head and turned to head towards the door. "Don't get pussy-whipped! Go for it!" he suddenly shouted which caused my face to nearly turn pink with embarrassment.

"Shut the fuck up!" I shouted even though I could still feel my face burning. Master only laughed at me as I tried to concentrate on Cinder's aura. It took me a bit to locate it, but once I did I Flash Stepped over to her. Suddenly my vision went dark and it felt like my face was against something soft. If this is what I think this is... I thought with dread.

"I know it's been awhile since we last saw each other, but I didn't think you would be this desperate for my affection." Cinder said with a tease.

Shit.

(December 21, 2015) Chapter 10 is done! I'm so excited to be back with this story! I hope you all enjoyed it!

I also have uploaded the first Chapter of my very first Cross-over. It is between RWBY and the video game Dust: An Elysian Tail. That is pretty much it.

This has been TheTriforceofAwesomeness and I will be back with Chapter 11!

Peace!