Note: Kept you waiting huh?
Okay so I'm just gonna say now that I kinda rushed this chapter near the end.
I will also be writing Volume 3 chapters which means this is the last chance you have for the OC thing.
Anyway enjoy.
RWBY: Team JSTC 'Justice'
Volume 2.5 - Chapter 13
Team JSTC stood alongside the other remaining teams attempting to qualify for the tournament. RWBY, JNPR, CFVY, CRDL, and JSTC. They all stood in the training hall. In front of them stood Ozpin and Glynda.
Ozpin: The five teams in this room right now have all worked hard to reach the final qualifier rounds, and I want you all to know that each of you have an equal chance of entering the tournament. However we only have room for four to represent the kingdom of Vale.
Ozpin took a sip from his drink.
Glynda: As the tournament revolves around individual and team skill, we will require each of you to present your capabilities in several sparring matches against two other teams in this room.
She taps a few things on her scroll before a small listing of the teams comes up.
Glynda: The screen currently displays each matching that will take place between teams over the course of the day.
The match listings started with team JNPR against team CFVY. Then team RWBY vs team CRDL. Each team would be in two separate matches. Team JSTC's first match would be against team CRDL but the second match would be against team CFVY. This fact shook team JSTC slightly.
Glynda: The first set of matches will be between team JNPR and team CFVY…
For the first hour, JSTC remained at the side of the stage watching the teams battle while keeping their own gear in check. The matches went interestingly similarly to how the tournament was supposed to go. Three rounds, four on four, two on two, then if both teams had won a match, one on one. The selection system was random for the latter two on who would partake from each team.
After a short while, the first match between team JSTC and team CRDL took place. While being an easy win it was easily noted that team CFVY was watching the entire battle. In the two on two following, Shade and Trance went up against Cardin and Sky in a fairly fought, but still easily won match. The two stepped of the stage and joined their team.
Trance: Well I think it's safe to say we've beaten team CRDL on their chances of entering the tournament.
Trance spoke with a sense of smugness in his voice.
Cait: Don't think we've won our entry just yet. These matches are about performance and teamwork. Regardless of who wins, the team with better chemistry and battle coordination will be more likely to qualify.
Jason: And even if team CRDL lost to both of their matched up teams, you could tell they really tried for it.
Trance: I doubt Ozpin want's a losing team representing Vale in the tournament.
Shade: And yet I think he'd prefer that over a cocky one.
Trance glanced his vision over to Shade who spoke with annoyance lingering on his tongue. Trance rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses.
Trance: Then we better think about how we're going to beat team CFVY. Because they are not going to be easy.
Shade: On that we are agreed.
The group glanced over to the team in question. They were discussing something in what looked like a team huddle.
Cait: No doubt that they're already planning on how to counter us.
Jason: This is going to be a tough one.
Shade: We should rest up while the next match takes place.
The team all nodded in agreement.
[Some time later]
Shade sat on a bench in the locker room. Staring blankly at the wall while listening to his teammates discuss their plan to beat team CFVY.
Trance: We should focus on taking down Yatsuhashi. He appears to be the beef of their team.
Cait: Yatsuhashi is strong but if we're fast he shouldn't be much of a problem. Fox is more agile and could pose more of a threat.
Jason: No, I think taking down Coco would be enough to demoralize them. Giving a better chance at taking down the rest of them.
The three standing up had made an immediate takedown plan for the start of the match. They were just having trouble deciding the target.
Cait: I'm serious. If can't take Fox down fast then he'll be the cause of our defeat.
Trance: I can handle Fox easily. The real problem is dealing with the big guy with the giant sword.
Jason: Coco would just be more incited to take us down if we knock off one of her teammates. At least taking her down is less likely to have negative backlash.
Shade rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. After a certain point Shade had enough and stood up.
Shade: Enough! You're going in circles!
His teammates drooped into thought on their plan.
Trance: I suppose if we're talking about the duration of the fight, then getting Fox out of the picture would be a good choice.
Jason: Yeah, we're a high speed based team. Yatsuhashi shouldn't be much of a problem if we stick to that and Coco can always be taken down next. Fox would be the only real immediate concern due to his fast pace and rapid strikes.
Cait smiled slightly at her team's agreement.
Shade: Then Fox is the target. Now we just have to figure out what to do after the first strike.
The team continued to discuss their battle tactics.
[The match]
Both teams stood opposite each other in the sparring arena. Glynda Goodwitch stood of to the side and was ready to start the match at any time.
Jason: Everyone remember the plan?
His team nodded in response.
Jason: Great! Now let's do this.
He activated his helmet, they entered their combat stances, and Goodwitch started the match. Shade immediately shadowed into the ground and within the second had moved up behind Fox, dived out from his shadow with one of his weapons raised and was ready to strike. However the plan immediately turned sour when Velvet kicked Shade back before he could perform his attack.
Shade: Damn it!
Shade attempted to regain his footing. He quickly recovered and attempted to take down Fox with a barrage of SMG fire, in the hopes that the plan could still be recovered. But Fox was too fast and dodged out of the way. Shade suddenly found himself on the defensive against Velvet and Fox.
Jason charged forward to try and aid his brother but was cut off by a line of gunfire. He turned to see Coco with her minigun purse aimed at him. She fired a barrage of bullets at him that he began to run away from. Cait wanted to help him but Trance placed a hand on her shoulder and gestured towards Yatsuhashi, who was starting to charge towards them. Cait raised her staff just in time to deflect his massive sword. Trance went to hit him with a downwards strike but Yatsuhashi dodged the attack and 'Buzz Kill' was implanted into the ground. Yatsuhashi swung his sword up to hit Trance with a counter but was blocked by Cait who locked weapons with the large man.
Shade was having trouble keeping up with both of his opponents. Fox's attacks with his bladed gauntlets were too fast and Velvet was making it even harder. He dodged an attack from Fox and quickly followed it up with a slice up which knocked Fox back. However this left him open for Velvet who used the opportunity to kick Shade's right hand weapon out of his hand and hit him in the chest. Shade had become really angry, he caught one of Velvet's arms mid strike with his empty hand and struck her full force across the face, knocking her to the ground. He picked up his weapon on the floor and stood over Velvet, dark aura flowing from him like a river.
Jason attempted to avoid Coco's hail of minigun fire as best as he could, but one or two shots always got through and decreased his aura a little bit. Meanwhile Cait was using her staff to protect a downed Trance who had received a blow to the right side of his head. Yatsuhashi was pushing his weapon down against Cait's 'Boomstick' as she was losing strength.
Cait: T..Trance! Do something!
Her partner took his hand away from his face and grabbed his weapon which he used to shoot multiple buzz blades towards Yatsuhashi. The large man broke his weapon lock with the cat faunus and deflected each buzz blade. Trance jumped over Cait and continued his advance rapidly striking against Yatsuhashi as the large weapons clashed again and again.
Velvet looked up at Shade and her look quickly turned from one of determination to one of intense fear. Shade hesitated with a blade in the air upon noticing her look towards him. Before he could do anything however, he was struck in the back by Fox. Shade tightened his grip on his weapons and turned around, quickly blocking another attack from Fox with his left handed weapon while using his right handed one to hook his enemy around the neck and force him to the floor. The strength from Shade's move became apparent when the end of the sickle currently hooking Fox implanted into the ground, trapping him there. Fox attempted to throw a wild strike a Shade only to get blocked and punched across the face. Shade placed pressure on his right handed weapon before aiming his left handed weapon point blank at Fox's head and unleashing a storm of bullets.
Within seconds a buzzer went off signaling that Fox had been eliminated from the match. Shade took his finger off of the trigger and released Fox who was in clear physical pain. He stood up and turned back to Velvet only to receive a punch to the face, or mask. Shade stumbled back a bit before falling to the ground as his aura had been depleted.
Another buzzer went off signaling Shade's defeat. Jason, upon hearing this, glared angrily at Coco who had a smug grin on her face. His body began to glow blue as he charged towards her. Coco let loose with her minigun purse but missed when Jason dived into the into the air towards her. He raised both weapons above him, glowing a bright blue as he approached the ground. Before he could impact however Velvet jump kicked him by surprise, sending him flying across the arena and into a wall. The energy he had built up was released into a large blast as he fell to the ground defeated. Another buzzer sounding across the arena marking his elimination from the match.
Cait turned in the direction of the two other members of team CFVY who in turn were already making their way towards them to aid their comrade.
Cait: Trance, we need to regroup and think of a plan!
Trance: A little busy!
Trance blocked another strike from Yatsuhashi before entering a weapon lock with him. Cait jumped onto her partner's shoulders, taking them both by surprise, and jabbed Yatsuhashi in the face and forced him out of the weapon lock. Trance saw this opportunity and used his pulse semblance to push Yatsuhashi back a bit. Cait dived forward and spun a powerful hit onto him which sent him flying into his teammates, knocking them all to the floor. Cait and Trance used this chance to pull back and plan their next move.
Cait: What are we gonna do?
Trance: You're asking me?
Cait: No joking at a time like this!
Trance: Okay, um…
Trance took a quick moment to think and examine the situation.
Trance: We need to take out Coco, right now. She's the only one out of the three remaining that uses a ranged weapon.
Cait: Okay, how do we take her out?
Trance: I'm going to distract Velvet and Yatsuhashi while you charge right in and take her out with your rocket launcher.
Cait gained a confused look.
Cait: Um, charge in? You mean point blank use of a rocket launcher?
Trance: Yeah!
Cait face palmed.
Cait: We're so screwed…
Trance: Let's move now!
Trance shot multiple bursts of three buzz blades towards the now standing Yatsuhashi and Velvet and made his advance. Cait took a deep breath of courage before charging directly towards Coco. Seeing the cat eared girl rapidly approach her, Coco fired her minigun at her. Cait spun 'Boomstick' in front of her continually blocking the bullets flying towards her. A few shots got through as she got closer and the endless spinning was straining her. Once she was close enough Cait smacked the side of Coco's minigun sending the stream of fire across the arena. Cait jabbed Coco in the chest and swung her staff up into her face. The small blast that emitted from her weapon knocked Coco back a few steps. She converted her minigun back into a purse and readied herself for close combat. Cait had a confident smile and began to convert her weapon to it's rocket launcher form. Coco swung her purse at Cait, but she jumped above her and landed on top of her with one foot on Coco's shoulder and the other on her face. Coco could barely see Cait's smirk as she aimed the her weapon at Coco. With a small kick jump off of Coco, Cait fire point blank at Coco, the resulting explosion sending both of them flying. Coco was charred in black as she rolled across the floor into a laying position, she hazily looked up at the match screen above them to see her aura drop to zero. The buzzer went off and she let out an annoyed groan.
Cait on the other hand had been sent flying upwards. She was currently holding onto a loose pole with one hand. She looked down and suddenly realized just how far up she was. She made an audible gulp and started thinking of a way to get down.
Trance successfully blocked an attack from Yatsuhashi and quickly shot a triple explosive buzz blade behind him which knocked Velvet off of her feet. He went to strike Yatsuhashi until said foe planted one of his hands firmly on the blunt side of Trance's weapon and forced it down while using all his strength to use his second hand to raise his weapon into the air. Trance braced himself for the finishing strike when Cait suddenly landed on Yatsuhashi's head and used her staff to knock his large sword out of his hand. She dropped down to the ground behind him while trapping his head between her staff and her shoulder. This forced him into a leaning position.
Cait: Go for Velvet, I've got this!
Cait struggled out the words as Yatsuhashi was attempting to break free from her. Trance glanced over his shoulder to see Velvet had fully recovered from his previous attack. Trance turned fully towards Velvet, placing full trust in Cait's capabilities against Yatsuhashi. He approached the bunny girl and twirled his weapon in his hand cockily while maintaining a smug grin.
Trance: So, you gonna give up now and save me the time or are you gonna keep trying to win a lost cause?
Velvet said nothing and shot an irritated glare at him. Trance's intentions when taunting her going exactly as he'd hoped. To send her over the edge he lowered his weapon wielding hand to his side and raised his free hand to gesture her to strike first. Velvet placed her hands on the projector esce box attached to her side, clearly about to perform something new. But before she had the chance to do anything Cait was thrown to the floor next to Trance in pain. Trance turned around just in time to block Yatsuhashi as he swung a strike downwards at him and they entered a weapon lock. Cait quickly grabbed her weapon and stood up in time to block Velvet from hitting Trance in the back. Velvet, in an effort to prevent Cait from counter attacking her gripped Cait's weapon as both faunus attempted to pull the weapon out of the other's grasp.
Cait and Trance were now back to back in a defiant struggle to overpower their opponents. After a few moments however, a loud buzzer rang across the arena sending the remaining combatants into confusion.
Glynda: Time!
Glynda's voice rang across the arena.
Glynda: Round one ends with a tie between both teams!
The students broke their weapon locks and turned to face Ozpin and Glynda as they approached them.
Ozpin: I must say that while this fight was well performed it is clear that the remaining members of each team are equally resilient in stressful situations.
Glynda: The four of you shall have thirty minutes to recover from the match and prepare yourselves for round two.
Both pairs rushed over to their fallen teammates and shortly after both teams retreated to separate locker rooms.
[Team meeting]
Jason: That could have gone better.
The leader of team JSTC was sat down holding an ice pack to his head.
Shade: I didn't even consider Velvet being a threat. How could we be so foolish?
Trance: Let's not dwell on that. We need to figure out how to win this next match or we're kinda screwed.
Cait was checking her teammates injuries.
Cait: We'll never take down Velvet with Yatsuhashi standing. He'll most likely go full defensive if we try to focus on her.
Jason: Neither of them use ranged weapons. Keeping your distance would be wise.
Trance: Not much use that'll do if they stay defensive. Even if one of us has a rocket launcher.
The group entered a brief minute of thought before someone spoke up.
Cait: What if I lure Yatsuhashi out of a defensive stance and into an offensive one? That would leave Velvet open for Trance to take down.
Trance: That sounds a bit risky. You sure you can handle Yatsuhashi alone this time?
Cait: No? But nobody else has a better plan and we need to be back in the arena in three minutes.
The group agreed on the plan and left the locker room.
[Round two]
Cait and Trance stood side by side, staring down their opponents as the countdown started. Their teammates, alongside the other teams, watched from the side. The buzzer went off and the two pairs engaged in combat.
As predicted, Yatsuhashi and Velvet were playing strong defense. Cait charged up to their left and switched to her rocket launcher. Trance circled around while the opposing tag team attempted to dodge a volley of explosive projectiles. One of the rockets hit near Velvet launching her back. Yatsuhashi charged towards Cait in an attempt at retaliation, giving Trance the opportunity he needed. He charged towards a downed Velvet, preparing for a downwards strike. She looked up with widened eyes just in time to dodge the attack that impaled 'Buzz Kill' into the floor. Once Velvet regained her stance the buzz blade port at the front of Trance's weapon opened up and shot out three small white glowing blades. Velvet went to dodge the small projectiles, but they suddenly each spinning blade burst out into small casings of ice that entrapped Velvet's left leg to the floor. Trance pulled his weapon from the ground and adjusted his sunglasses. Before proceeding he glanced over to check on how Cait was doing.
Yatsuhashi slammed his weapon down onto Cait who blocked it by slamming her staff into the side of it and knocking it away from her. She quickly followed this up by performing a full spin and smacking the large man across the face with her weapon. Cait planted the end of her staff into the ground and spun around one more time and kicked Yatsuhashi in the chest. He fell back a few steps and Cait switched to her rocket launcher. Yatsuhashi saw what was coming and charged forward once she took aim. Cait, in a fit of sudden panic, fired her weapon only to miss when Yatsuhashi knocked her weapon to the side with his own. The rocket trailed off towards Trance who's eyes widened, arcing his weapon to deflect to rocket while using a pulse. The rocket was then deflected towards an unsuspecting Velvet. Trance looked away as an explosion echoed across the arena followed by a buzzer.
Trance turned towards his partner to help her, only to watch as Yatsuhashi pulled Cait's weapon from her hands and knocked her to the floor with his own. Another buzzer went off. Trance sighed.
Trance: I would make a joke about the animal cruelty, but I think that would count as racism.
He readjusted his sunglasses and readied his weapon. Yatsuhashi stared him down, but Trance just smiled. The two charged at each other right before clashing into a tense battle. After breaking a weapon lock Trance charged towards the larger man and threw his weapon into the air. Yatsuhashi raised his weapon above him and brought it down to strike Trance. The leather wearing attacker used his semblance at low force to slow Yatsuhashi's sword and dropped to the floor into a sliding position and passed under his enemy. Quickly entering a standing position he grabbed his weapon that had now fallen back down and blocked an attack from Yatsuhashi. As the larger man attempted to pull his weapon away he found that Trance had closed the buzz blade port onto the larger weapon, literally locking the two weapons together. Trance smiled as he used his pulse to push Yatsuhashi and force him to let go of his weapon. He swung 'Buzz Kill' to the side reopening the buzz blade port to let go of the over sized sword, letting it fall to the floor.
The match was his, Trance knew it, Yatsuhashi knew it, their teammates knew it. So he let loose. Slashing at Yatsuhashi with relentless force, again and again, just wanting the fight to be over already. After countless strikes the arena buzzer went off, signaling his opponent's aura reserves had finally dropped. Trance halted his onslaught and sheathed his weapon. He then turned and rushed over to Cait. The faunus girl slowly got up from the floor rubbing her head. She offered a weak smile to her partner, being glad that he won them the match.
Glynda: The match goes to Cait Heartsong and Trance Luckstrung!
After the match was called both pairs left the stage and met up with their teammates. Team CFVY approached the winners of the match.
Coco: I'll give you credit, for a group of first years you really gave us a hard time.
Trance: It's kind of our thing to go up against stupidly unfair odds and usually come out on top.
Cait: I think the professors are about to announce who gets into the tournament.
The five competing teams all gathered up onto the arena floor in front of Professor Ozpin and Goodwitch.
Ozpin: The teams qualifying for the tournament will be Team RWBY, Team JNPR, Team CFVY and Team JSTC. Congratulations everyone.
The four winning Teams each cheered amongst themselves. Shortly after being dismissed from class the winning teams gathered in the cafeteria to celebrate.
[Party]
The teams sat at the tables chatting about the tournament. The members of team JSTC sat amongst themselves in discussion.
Cait: You know what, I think we can do this.
Shade: Do what?
Cait: Win, I mean Trance was right. We've beaten the odds before, why not now?
Jason: She's right...
Jason stood upon the table in a heroic pose.
Jason: If we put everything we've got into this then we can beat any foe that gets in our way!
Trance smirked in a somewhat amused manner.
Trance: You know at first I said it as a joke, but all this inspirational talk is making me think we really can do this.
Shade sat there in silence for a moment, hesitant to throw his hopes of winning into this just yet.
Jason: Trust me Shade. Once we win people will stop looking at you like a monster, I promise!
Shade stared blankly for a moment.
Shade: Okay, you're right. We'll need to practice immensely but… we can do this.
Cait: Yeah! That's the team spirit I was looking for!
Cait wrapped her teammates into a hug. Just then a flash engulfed their vision for a quick second. Velvet stood in front of them with her camera and gave them a smile.
Velvet: I figured we might as well capture the moment, right?
She handed them the polaroid picture. The four of them had warm smiles on their faces and thanked Velvet.
Cait: I'm going to keep this. Something for the scrapbook you know?
The group continued to enjoy the evening and eventually decided to retire for the night. The tournament was near, and they would need all the rest they could get.
[End of Chapter]
Note: So we are finally approaching the third and final act of the Beacon Arc. I have planned out the things that will happen in Volume 3.
You know what when I finish the first three volumes read through it again but whenever you recognize an reference take a drink, that'll be fun.
Anyway, turns out I might have a few more stories in mind after finishing this one so my creative peanut brain still has something to do during the wait for volume 5.
Anyway thanks to 'Steve' again for submitting your dynamic OC duo. And thanks to everyone who's read this far. Hope you all stick with the story until the end.