The Idiot and Freelancer in Remnant
Washington, Carolina, Sarge and Simmons stood inside the hidden vault below the school, awaiting whoever Ozpin had chosen as his "Guardian", or, a.k.a, the new Fall Maiden.
Washington and Carolina were there because they were…them, Sarge was there because of his understanding of the situation, and Simmons was there to learn about what was going on and to tell the others that only arrived recently.
"Huh. So, the Fall Maiden is someone who's female with the powers of an avatar?"
"If you mean The Last Airbender series, yeah." Washington clarified. He just finished giving Simmons a brief explanation on what and who the Fall Maiden is. Simmons turned towards the elevator.
"Who do you think he's going to bring? Someone with this kind of power must be extremely skilled to use it."
"Who knows? Could be that Specialist that trained Wash." Sarge guessed.
"Oh yeah. You didn't train with her today." Carolina realized.
"She said that I should train by myself, through meditating and other things for today. She seemed kind of excited to see her sister again, or at the very least, less cold and more friendly."
"What, got a thing for her Wash?" Simmons teased. Carolina didn't know why, but that irked her for some reason.
"Nah. Doc told me he and Carolina were datin'." Sarge responded.
"What?! That's not what's happening!"
"No no no no! It's not like that!"
The two freelancers ended up trying to deny it, talking too fast and too mixed for the two Reds to understand, all the while showing "nervous" things like scratching the back of their heads. Sarge chuckled.
"Heh heh. Ain't that kick in the head." The two freelancers had red faces beneath their helmets. Though before anyone could say anything else, the elevator door opened, revealing Ozpin, Ironwood, Qrow, Glynda and…
Pyrrha.
"Pyrrha?" Carolina said.
"Ms. Carolina? Mr. Washington? What are you all doing here?" She asked. Her voice with a mix of confusion and nervousness as she glanced at the vault hallway.
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"Why. Is. She. Here." Carolina said, hostility present in her voice.
"…I said we, found our guardian. And here she is." Ozpin replied, gesturing at the redhead with green eyes.
"Why is our "Guardian" a student? Shouldn't she be, like, Winter, or Glynda, or, someone who has more experience being a huntress? Why. Her?!" Washington exclaimed.
"She's ready-"
"But she's also a student! Why does she have to be involved in all of this?!" Carolina yelled out.
"I could ask you all the same thing."
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"Just give her the damn introduction." Washington sneered, turning back and walking, with the other three following. The five that took the elevator exited and followed along them. Pyrrha still with a confused expression present on her face. Glynda sighed, but it was in understanding rather than annoyance, and turned towards the Mistral Champion.
"I'm sure you must have questions."
"Maybe one, or two... I still don't understand. You said I was next in line to receive the Maiden's power. What do you mean by that?"
"You already told her that part?" Sarge asked. Glynda ignored him and answered.
"The Maidens have existed for thousands of years. But much like in nature, the seasons change. No two summers are alike. When a Maiden dies, her power leaves her body and seeks out a new host, ensuring that the seasons are never lost, and that no individual can hold on to that power forever." She explained.
"Wait, so if that's the case, where did the power come from in the first place?" Simmons asked.
"Story for another time." Qrow responded.
"So, how does the power choose?" Pyrrha asked.
"Through a series of stupid and convoluted rules." Qrow answered.
"Qrow." Glynda said.
"Hey, don't get mad 'cause I'm right." She sighed and turned back to Pyrrha.
"At first, the only thing that was certain was that the powers were specifically passed on to young women. But as time went on, it was discovered that the selection process was much more... intimate.
"...Intimate?" Pyrrha asked, concerned.
"As we understand it now, when a Maiden dies, the one who is in her final thoughts is the first candidate to inherit her power." Glynda clarified.
"Unless it's a dude or some old hag. Then the power goes to someone random, and our job gets a lot harder." Qrow followed up.
The four soldiers just continued to walk and listen to their explanations.
"Why tell me all of this now? Why not wait until I've graduated?"
"Honestly, we've run out of time. I don't know if you've not noticed, but things are getting a lot scarier out in the world. Tensions are high. Grimm are growing stronger, more prevalent. And it's not going to be long before the peace we've been enjoying for so long goes out the window."
"You're not...talking about a war?"
"Not a war between nations."
"But war nonetheless." Carolina finally chimed in, still facing forwards.
"We can fill you on the details once we know that you're with us. For now, all you need to know is that one of the Maidens has been attacked. And for the first time in history, part of her power was stolen." Qrow said.
"Same thing they told us." Washington added.
"Why…why are you four apart of this? Aren't you from another world?" Pyrrha asked, confusion still present in her voice.
"You told them?" Qrow said.
"More specifically, Ruby did." Carolina said. Sarge turned towards the Mistral Champion.
"What's happening may not be our problem. But damn if we're not just going to stand back. War…war never changes. It could be about a flag, it could be about some evil director. It can even be about how two people almost managed to kill an entire planet. But war is war. We're not the type of soldiers to just sit back and watch people die, we're here to fight." He said. Pyrrha said nothing in response.
The group eventually arrived to the machine, housing the original Fall Maiden. Pyrrha hesitantly walked forwards.
"Is that..."
"The current Fall Maiden, Amber." Washington answered. Pyrrha slowly walked closer, but noticed something.
"She's... still alive."
"For now. We're using state of the art Atlas technology to keep her stable. But there is a lot about this situation that is... unprecedented." Ironwood said.
"What do you mean? Won't... her power... just transfer to the next host?"
"Look who's been listening! She is smart." Qrow whispered to Ozpin. Ironwood sighed.
"Under normal circumstances, yes. But this is a delicate situation. It's not uncommon for the last thoughts of the slain to be of their attacker. And to make matters worse, no one's seen the power split like this before. For all we know, it will seek out its other half."
"..Her assailant." Pyrrha pieced together.
"And that's not good." Carolina chimed in. Pyrrha lowers her head in thought, then suddenly comes forward and places a hand on the glass of Amber's pod.
"If all of this is true, why keep it secret!? If this girl is so important... if we're truly on the brink of war, why not tell everyone?" She said, slightly angry.
"We had the same reaction as yours, Pyrrha." Washington said.
"From what we understand, it used to be common knowledge." Glynda said.
"Excuse me?"
"How do you think legends and fairy tales get started? Even the craziest ones come from somewhere." Qrow spoke and drank from his flask.
"Our group was founded in order to protect both mankind and the Maidens. Those hungry for power hunted them with the hope of inheriting their strength." Glynda said.
"Wait, if the Fall Maidens have always existed, then who were the others in the group? Sorry, but four don't exactly sound like a number to combat a literal Goddess." Simmons asked.
"Again, story for another time." Qrow replied, finishing his drink and turned back to Pyrrha." And as you can imagine, the ones that succeeded weren't exactly the ones you'd want to have unimaginable power."
"And so our brotherhood chose to remove the Maidens from the public eye, allowing their existence to fade away into legend." Ironwood followed up.
"The things we're telling you go against hundreds of years of human history and religion." Glynda added.
"Religion and history shouldn't really matter when it comes to stopping a war, right?" Simmons asked, remembering the aliens.
"Yeah. Religion or not, people could be killed." Sarge agreed.
"…" Ozpin said nothing in response.
"No one would want to believe us. It would cause an uproar."
"It would cause panic. And we all know what that would bring to clawing at our Kingdom's walls. Which is why we would like to..."
"I'll do it."
"Huh?" The four soldiers said.
"If you believe that this will help humanity...then I will become your Fall Maiden. That's what you wanted, isn't it?" She glanced at the eight, who only had "Boy there's more to it than that" look.
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"There's more to it than that, Pyrrha. You can't forcibly transfer the Fall Maiden's power, so, our dear "General" has some up with a solution." Carolina said, some hostility in her voice. Ozpin sighed while Ironwood stared at Pyrrha.
"For the past few years, Atlas has been studying Aura from a more scientific standpoint; how it works, what's it made of, how it can be used. We've made... significant strides. And we believe we've found a way to capture it."
Washington remembered the Aura implant crammed inside him, if this really was another soul, then…what was it doing to him? Aura…it's something that no one seems to completely understand. Not even people in this world.
"Capture it and cram it into something else. Or in your case ..." Qrow clarified as Pyrrha stared at Ironwood.
"That's..." Pyrrha started.
"Classified."
"...wrong!" She finished. Glynda glared at the Atlas General.
"The feeling is mutual." She turned back to the Mistral Champion "But desperate times call for desperate measures."
"And these are indeed desperate times. We can't transfer Amber's power to you, but we can give you what those powers are bound to." Ironwood said.
"…Her Aura." Pyrrha said in realization.
"Her life would become intertwined with yours." Ozpin started.
"The question is..." Washington followed up.
"What's that going to do to you?" Both Qrow and Sarge finished at the same time. Ozpin sighed.
"You have an important decision before you, Miss Nikos. There's no guarantee this transfer will work. And there's no telling if you will be the same person if it does. I advise you to take time on this matter. But understand that before the Vytal Festival is over, we will need your answer."
"No one will blame you if you don't." Carolina chimed in, causing the other to turn towards her.
"You may be a huntress in training, but getting caught up in this is your choice." She followed up.
"And wording it like that makes you sound like a bit like the Counsellor, Ozpin." Washington said. Ozpin narrowed his eyes at them but said nothing.
"Alright that's enough." Ironwood said, but was ignored by Sarge, who turned towards him.
"This is war. Real war. Not everyone gets a happy ending, and giving these powers to a student doesn't exactly sound like a good idea, especially a first year who hasn't even graduated."
"Also, why don't you just pick Glynda, or Winter, or even Carolina! Then she'd have aura." Simmons followed up to Sarge.
"The Fall Maiden needs to be kept secret. Should Glynda or Ms. Schnee be the one to inherit her power, they'd be in public view, and Ms. Carolina is from another dimension entirely, there's no telling what merging a life with hers could do." Ozpin explained.
"But isn't Pyrrha a Mistral Champion? That'd make her pretty popular." Washington argued.
"Pyrrha's age is also part of this. Although Amber may be experienced, Ms. Schnee and Glynda are too far of an age gap, and we cannot take any risks here."
"You're already taking a risk by covering all of this up and lying to your students. At least have some sort of defenders, the assailant can literally just walk in here and take the power herself! There's no telling who or what they are." Carolina said, gritting her teeth a bit.
"Ms. Carolina-"
"That's enough Oz. I'll take it from here." Qrow interrupted. The four soldiers and Pyrrha turrned towards him, the latter still feeling overall confused about the situation.
"Look. I get that you're from tormented and used, but what makes you all think that Ozpin's as bad as those guys out there trying to turn Vale into a pit?" He drank from his flask.
"Because, he's doing what the Director did to us."
"What do you mean?" Pyrrha asked.
"The Director didn't care whether or not his agents were in danger. If they died, so be it. He only cared about one thing: His late wife, Allison. He would send them all to die in his place, even if he had…somewhat good, intentions, it doesn't change the fact that his actions caused many people to die, because they were just doing their jobs. Now let me ask you something, Ozpin." Washington said, walking towards the Beacon Headmaster.
"What do you see your students as, Heroes keeping peace? Or are they just weapons you use to claim your "victory"?"
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He sighed.
"I understand your concern, Agent Washington. But I want you to understand. This is my kingdom. This is Remnant. What happens here is my responsibility, and the safety of those who reside in it as well. What this is, is a necessary evil. If we did make our intentions known to the students, even if it's just one team, they would spread it like wildfire. That's what Team RWBY did after all to Team JNPR after all, about how they know your origins from the different dimension."
"That was because it wouldn't endanger anyone, this, can! On a large scale!" Carolina yelled out.
"Sometimes to win, you need to sin. Doesn't mean I'm not a believer. My methods are my own. Now, I believe you all have an arena to guard?"
"Don't try to change the subject!" Washington yelled out, now in front of the Beacon Headmaster as Qrow held his blade just in case, and everyone else beside Pyrrha, Ozpin and Washington held their weapons just in case.
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"…Washington, Carolina. Let's go." Sarge said.
"What the- Sarge?!" Carolina yelled out, confused.
"I don't want this to happen either, but Oz here seems to be dead set on that. Like it or not. We can get all our answers another time. Right now, an arena needs to be guarded." Ozpin smiled. Sarge turned towards him
"But, this doesn't mean I agree with you either. Sending kids to fight a fake war while you fight the real one, is something I know better than others. Better remember that…dirtbag." Ozpin's smile disappeared. The four turn towards Pyrrha.
"And Pyrrha, remember. This is your choice, not an obligation. Take part in this, or not. Whichever choice you make…I'll respect it." Carolina said, walking away with the three others following. A moment of silence falls upon the five remaining in the vault.
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"They're kinda right you know." Qrow broke the silence, Ozpin sighed.
"…I know Qrow." He turned to Pyrrha. "You have a choice to make Ms. Nikos…a choice."
And with that, they walked back to the elevator, Pyrrha still having more questions than answers.
-LINE-BREAK-
"Are we clear?"
Cinder and her two associates were in their dorm room, discussing what SHOULD happen in Mercury's fight.
"Where's Neo?" Emerald asked.
"She should be inside the medical bullhead, preparing her disguise."
"Do I really have to throw in the towel?" Mercury whined.
"In order for us to divide them, we must first divide those who are under them." Cinder replied sinisterly.
"Again, with the Cryptic Bullshit!"
The three turn their heads towards Felix, out of armor.
"It's just not working out for you." He exclaimed again. Emerald resisted the urge to kick this guy in the shin.
"What's your role supposed to be?" She asked, a sneer on her face.
"Felix shall be making sure no Atlesian Guard takes notice of the changes. After all, if people notice that the randomizer isn't actually random…that may cause…problems." Cinder explained. Felix spread his arms out.
"You really should give straightforward answers more often." Cinder rolled her eyes.
"Just make sure you don't get in my way. My semblance needs complete concentration for it to work." Emerald said. Felix just rolled his eyes at the jewel thief.
"Remind me again why we need that Beacon girl for this?" He asked.
"In order for the people to fear, they need something TO fear. Ozpin's been failing as Vale's leader, and our dear General seems to be the current hero in everyone's mind. But what if…" She conjured a small fire in her hand.
"What if Atlas, was the Tyrant? What if Vale is the Victim? Questions would linger in their minds, that question in the back of their minds slowly rising…" She snapped her fingers, vaporizing the small fire.
""If this is the size of our defenses, then what is it we're expecting to fight?""
"…So your goal is to make enough negative emotions to attract the Grimm. A Grimm Beacon." Felix concluded. Cinder smiled.
"Precisely."
-LINE-BREAK-
The ten inside the Vytal Festival Arena were currently going back to their seats. Team NPR had to leave because Pyrrha had to go somewhere, and NR left, while Jaune stayed to record the fights on his scroll for them.
Doc and Grif were currently in their seats again, the latter using two chairs for his gigantic popcorn bucket. He grabbed a handful and scarfed it all down.
"Thgih iz rellzy gof!" He said, chewing some popcorn.
"Grif! Swallow before you speak!" Doc said.
"Ooh! Don't forget to slurp it all up!" Donut said, sitting down on a chair beside the purple medic.
"Hey Donut!" Doc greeted.
"Hey Doc!"
"Hola." Lopez said, sitting one seat beside the orange soldier's popcorn.
"How ya doing Lopez?" Donut asked.
"Nada."
"Sup losers. What's happening?" Tucker asked, sitting beside Donut.
"Lopez said nothing."
Team RWB and Jaune eventually got back and sat down. Ruby looked around in search of someone.
"Where's Caboose?" She asked with a confused look on her face.
"He went to the bathroom." Tucker said.
Caboose was currently walking around the arena….searching for the bathroom.
"Bathroom. Bathroom. Bathroooooom…where are you…?" He repeated for a while.
"PERHAPS ONE OF THE SPECTATORS KNOW WHERE IT IS."
"Good idea Freckles!"
A few minutes later…
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The screen above the arena lit up to reveal the four familiar announcers.
"Now for the moment you've all been waiting for…" Wiz and Oobleck started.
"It's time for the one-on-one finals!" Boomstick and Port finished, the crowd cheering loudly afterwards.
"Barty, why don't you explain the rules?" Port requested. Said doctor pushed his glasses up.
"Ah, it's quite simple, Peter. Instead of a bracket system, each round of the finals will be randomly determined immediately before the match takes place!"
"Still not sure about that random thing…" Boomstick audibly mumbled.
"Much like any good hunt, there will be zero time to prepare!" Port added.
"This will force our fighters to adapt to their opponent, and for all fairness, there will be no outside help of field changes in the one-on-one matches, to minimize biases and lucky outcomes." Wiz added.
"Ah, yes, yes! Now, let's see who our first match will be!" Oobleck announced.
The roulette began and everyone watching stared at it in anticipation.
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"Yang Xiao Long and Mercury Black!" The four said at the same time.
"Break a leg, sis!" Ruby cupped her hands together and cheered for her sister, totally not foreshadowing something. Cinder, who was sitting behind them all, gets up from her place and begins walking out, eyes on the battlefield.
"Would all other combatants please leave the stage!"
The rest of the lineup does so, and Yang starts walking up to Mercury in the middle as the floor around them opens once more, with a ring of spotlights rising up to automatically fix their lights on the remaining two.
"You better not go easy on me." Yang smiled.
"You wish." Mercury chuckled.
Both brawlers face the crowds one last time, then slowly start advancing on each other, arms raised defensively until their hands can almost touch, as the final countdown commences.
"Three…two…one…Fight!"
Then their hands touch.
-LINE-BREAK-
Locus was back in the workshop, working on his weapon. His weapon currently was a long-ranged sniper rifle. The barrel was retractable, and once it was, the weapon would extend a one-sided longsword. Simple compared to everything else, but Locus wasn't going for anything overly flashy or mouth dropping. He wanted a practical weapon.
He was looking over the draft Qrow gave him yesterday, and right now, he had a prototype. He started to wonder if he could make his weapon dust compatible, or maybe even the blade dust-ba-
*SPLAT*
His thoughts were interrupted as a crow hit the window beside him inside the workshop. The bird slowly descended and was out of sight. Locus blinked, before shaking his head and going back to his weapo-
*SPLAT*
He turned his head again to see the crow slam into the window, and descend once more. Locus shook his head once more, and went back to his weapon. He enjoyed a moment of silence.
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Until the door opened revealing Qrow with a…^O^ face. He rushed inside and opened the window, panting heavily, then rushed back out. Locus just stared at him as he did that.
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A second later, he saw a crow flying through the window, then it morphed into a bigger Qrow, still panting heavily.
"Ta-Da!"
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"It only works the first time." Locus said, somewhat amusingly. Qrow just slumped and opened his flask.
"You're no fun." Qrow said as he drank some alcohol. "What do you have so far?" Locus raised the weapon prototype. It was currently a green, white and black Anti-Material Rifle with a short retracted blade on top of the barrel. Qrow whistled.
"Not too flashy, but it looks good so far." He drank from his flask again.
"I still need to fix the recoil system. There's too much for my liking."
"Then why not make it a part of your fighting style?" Qrow suggested.
"Hm…"
-LINE-BREAK-
"Fight!"
Yang pulled her arm back and Mercury jumped and spun, the fist and foot colliding, creating a small shockwave. Mercury charges at the blonde brawler and strikes. Yang jumps over and shoots, but is evaded. The two briefly exchange blows, the end result both being knocked back. Yang launches a barrage of bullets at Mercury, who jumps and evades the blasts.
"That guy is fast!" Grif commented.
"It's a completely normal and natural reaction alright?!" Tucker exclaimed quickly.
"What?" Doc asked.
"Nothing!"
With a grin, he boosts himself at Yang delivering a downward kick, which was blocked. Yang tries to retaliate, but is hit by Mercury's somersault. Yang boosts herself and the two briefly collide once more, Mercury with the upper hand, rapidly and strongly using his legs, at one point he even cracked the stadium floor.
"Damn. That guy has some really strong and muscular legs!" Donut commented, receiving odd looks from RWB and Jaune.
The two continue to clash, until Yang finally manages to land a hit on Mercury, sending him back laying down on the floor. Mercury winced. Yang shot at the downed silver-haired fighter, who backflipped, but was blown out of the arena. Mercury retracted his legs and launched himself onto the arena.
"Someone's been playing Smash brothers." Boomstick commented.
The two briefly clashed once more, Mercury not relenting in his barrage of attacks. He eventually jumped behind her and knocked her back as he launched another shot at the blonde brawler, which she dodges.
Mercury smirked, and began shooting in all directions, creating a whirlwind of bullets.
"Woah!" Donut exclaimed.
"Now THAT is broken." Wiz commented.
"How is he rotating?" Boomstick asked, but got no answer.
Yang eventually clashes with him again, but the end result was Yang kicked into the air and slammed back down, the tornado of bullets rained down on her. Ruby stood up from her seat.
"Yang!" She yelled out in concern.
"YES! PURE SWEET VIOLENCE!" O'Malley exclaimed, receiving a glare from Blake.
"What?"
Mercury stood up and patted his hand on his shoulder, walking away. And then…the volcano erupted.
"Okay, at this point, who didn't see this coming?" Wiz announced.
Yang, eyes red, pounded her fists together and punched Mercury, who blocked it, but was still knocked back. Yang paused a bit, before moving forward, crouching to dodge Mercury's onslaught of kicks. Once she saw the right moment, she unleashed a barrage of punches, eventually punching him in the stomach, eliminating his aura.
"What a way to kick off the finals!" Port announced.
"…" Boomstick and Wiz said nothing.
"Wow. They are good!" Tucker exclaimed.
"I'm just sad Sarge had to miss this." Ruby added, remembering the Red Leader's fondness for shotguns.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the arena seats…
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Emerald narrowed her eyes.
It was time to use her hallucinations.
She stared at the Blonde Brawler, who was currently cheering for her victory.
Emerald smirked, and focused her aura on the blonde brawler.
Mercury would fake pain.
Then she would act concerned.
Then the blonde girl takes the blame.
Then the festival gets delayed.
Then everything will begin to fall apart…
Innocents will be killed…
Lives will be lost…
All because of her actions.
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She hesitated.
She didn't know why…Cinder had always been there for her….right? Why should she question her orders from the person who pretty much gave her everything? The one who saved her when no one else would?
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She shook her head.
"No. I have to do this."
She stared at the blond brawler, and focused he aura on her.
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"Hello!"
"Gah!"
She was interrupted by a certain blue soldier, who popped right in front of her.
"Ah yes, do you know where the bathroom is?" Caboose asked. Emerald just shakily pointed a finger behind her, still shocked as hell by him.
"Thank you." And with that, he walked that way.
Emerald, after a while, eventually recovered and returned her gaze towards the stadi-
And Yang was already out of the arena.
Mercury looked around and eventually turned towards Emerald on the seats and gave a "What the Fuck?!" gesture.
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Cinder was going to be PISSED.
Back with the crew…
"Alright. There's going to be a long break before the next fight." Doc said.
"Huh. Don't know why, but it seems kinda rushed for the finals." Tucker noted.
"Well, the Vytal Festival is still interrupting school work." Weiss said. Ruby groaned.
"But Professor Port's lectures are so boooooring…!" She exclaimed. Weiss lightly slapped her leader on her arm. Jaune stood up and closed his scroll, then turned towards the group.
"Hey guys, my scroll is full so I'm just going to fix some of this stuff in our dorm. Anyone care to join me?"
"Sure. I was running out of popcorn!" Grif said, gesturing towards his empty bucket.
"How did you eat that fast…?" Blake asked.
"It's a gift."
"Yeah! Like how I'm so good at tossing!" Donut exclaimed, receiving several confused looks from Team RWBY and Jaune. They turn towards the other soldiers for an answer.
"Just ignore him." Tucker advised.
"Alright. Let's go." Jaune and Grif walked away.
-LINE-BREAK-
Emerald, Cinder, Mercury, Neo and Felix were currently inside a small room inside the Vytal Festival Arena…
*SLAP*
Cinder loudly slapped Emerald.
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"Ooh that has GOT to hurt." Felix commented. Emerald didn't move her head and just continued to look at the side, fear in her eyes. Cinder had a scowl on her face, Neo and Mercury's was just neutral.
"You've disappointed me, Emerald." Mercury SWORE he saw small tears in Emerald's eyes. He didn't know whether to mock her, or just feel sorry for her. His mind was more on the latter right now.
"But I suppose now is not the time to discuss your incompetence." She turned back and raised a finger on her chin.
"Right. We need to create some sort of delay right?" Mercury asked, but Cinder was inside her own thoughts.
Her goal was to "Divide" the people, for them to lose trust in their supposed "Leaders". The White Fang still weren't completely prepared in their assault to Vale, and the Grimm weren't primed today. Right now, she had four options.
Option 1: Rush the plan. This one would be both the most risky and the least impactful. The White Fang had yet to fully prepare themselves, and the Grimm were still all the way back in Mount Glenn. The event was supposed to draw the Grimm near the walls early so that the Atlesian Guards would stay preoccupied, and all hell would break lose once the Grimm had enough negative emotions.
Option 2: Ignore it and move on as intended. Also risky, With the Grimm far away, the Guards and students could easily just wipe them out, and it would be nothing more than an insignificant "accident" to the world.
Option 3: Consider the Fall of Vale as a failure and search for the Fall Maiden. The power of the Fall Maiden was the main objective and its power was needed for the Queen's plans. This would, however, cause the group of "Guardians" to be prepared, and without their trust divided, Mistral and Vacuo could possibly get into the mix.
Option 4: Cause a different commotion. Atlas was the current "Shady" one in Vale's eyes, but if the event was too small, say, a human guard murdering a student, the people would overlook that as the guard's decision. A machine, on the other hand, would cast doubt. The problem was, she had no control over the robots without being on the main ship. Another possibility was for a Beacon student to assault a student from a different kingdom, much like she originally intended, but that was already wasted.
Cinder, out of ideas, turned towards her subordinates.
"Due to Emerald's recent failure, the best option we have at the moment is to create a commotion, preferably with Atlas technology. Any ideas?" She asked, still scowling.
"If you need a commotion with Atlesian Robots…" Felix started, tossing a scroll in the air.
"I think I can do that."
-LINE-BREAK-
"I can't believe this…"
Carolina said as she and the others walked through the Vytal Festival grounds to the ship. She was still irritated at Ozpin's decision, but couldn't do anything about it to change his mind. Washington placed a hand on her shoulder.
"You still thinking about it?" Washington asked.
"How can I not? They're sending out teenagers to fight a war! And to those that aren't, they're being lied to. Deceived by what they fight for!" She exclaimed, then slumped a bit.
"It's just too familiar for me to just stand around and watch."
"Well, look on the bright side." Sarge started.
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"Sir, I think you're supposed to follow that up with, "the bright side."" Simmons said.
"That's because there is none." Sarge replied.
"Oh."
"Hey!"
The four turned to see Nora, Pyrrha and Ren walking towards them, the first one with cotton candy, and the middle one a sad look on her face.
"Hey guys." Washington greeted.
"Why the sad expressions?" Ren asked.
"How can you tell? We're wearing helmets!" Simmons exclaimed.
"I have a skill in sensing emotions through aura. Though that was more of a guess, due to Washington being the only one with aura." Ren explained.
"Oh." Simmons said.
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.
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"Wait, how and when did you find out I have aura?" Washington asked.
"Since you entered the Vytal Festival Arena."
"I'm guessing you told them too?" He gestured towards Nora and Pyrrha.
"Yes. But since you haven't said anything, I can only assume that you want this as a secret."
"Yeah."
"Why?" Pyrrha asked.
"Because the people who gave me it wanted it to be."
"But how did you manage to get aura in the first place?" She asked again.
"Story for another time." Washington answered.
"Hey guys."
The seven turn their heads to Jaune and Grif, the latter with a giant popcorn bucket. Pyrrha smiled.
"Hey Jaune."
"Why are you two here?" Simmons asked.
"Oh. I ran out of popcorn." Grif answered, scarfing some more down.
"How do you eat that fast…?" Jaune asked, bewildered by how fast the orange soldier was able to eat.
"It's a gift."
"Grif, you fatass!" Simmons said. The other chuckled, though Carolina caught something in her eyesight.
"Wash."
"Yeah Carolina?"
"What is that?"
The group slowly turn their heads towards an Atlesian Guard…spazzing out, small electrical shocks being emitted from their bodies. They looked around and saw that the other ones were doing the same thing, spazzing out.
"Are they…supposed to do that?" Simmons asked to nobody in particular, nervousness present in his voice.
"…No." Washington answered.
The group just stared at the robots around them, uneasiness in the air.
After a few seconds, the droids suddenly had a red glow on their vizors, and raised their guns at the group, the civilians around suddenly started screaming like maniacs and panicking, although the droids only had their attention on the soldiers. They eventually surrounded the nine.
"What the hell is going on?!" Carolina yelled out, pulling out a pistol. Washington and Simmons brought out assault rifles, the latter getting it from Grif, Grif with his GrifShot, and Sarge with his shotgun. Team JNPR activated their scrolls. A moment later, their lockers appeared, revealing their weapons. The nine turn back to the group of Knights, then Sarge stepped forward, cocking his shotgun.
"So…Who's first."
-LINE-BREAK-
Doc, Caboose, Tucker, Lopez, Donut, Ruby, Weiss and Blake met up with Yang and congratulated her on her victory.
"Yaaaaaaaaang!" Was what Ruby cheered as she bear hugged her sister.
"Ruby!" Yang replied, returning the hug.
"Congratulations Yang." Blake said.
"Yeah! That was awesome!" Tucker complimented.
"Yeah! You guys were unloading everywhere!" Donut added. Yang stared at him weirdly, but shrugged it off.
"Nice to see you kept proper form, Yang." Weiss said, a smirk on her lips. Yang chuckled.
"Well, it would've been a cat-astrophe if I didn't." She punned. Everyone but Lopez, Donut, Doc and Caboose groaned, the last one "Ha. Ha."-ing.
"Glad to hear someone likes it." She shrugged.
"I don't get it." Doc said.
"Oh. That's because Blake's a cat Faunus." Tucker said.
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.
.
"You guys know?" Blake asked, head tilted.
"Sarge told us."
"He didn't tell me!" Caboose exclaimed.
"Oh. Well now you know."
"Ooh! Kinky." Donut said. Blake just blushed.
"Anyways, let's go. The front row seats are about to be taken!" Ruby said. The nine walked back to the arena seats in relative silence. When they got there, they were greeted by…
Atlesian droids spazzing the hell out. All around them.
"Uh…is that supposed to happen?" Donut asked.
"Patético. Son malas excusas para los robots." (Pathetic. They are poor excuses for robots.) Lopez commented.
A few seconds later, the robots stopped and had a red glow on their vizors. Everyone around them was screaming and running out of the arena, though it seemed like the robots had their attention focused on the soldiers. Again, there were a LOT.
"What in the Sam Hell is going on down there?!" Boomstick asked from his announcers seat.
"Cut the cameras!" Port ordered.
"Woah! Easy there!" Tucker exclaimed, bringing out his sword. Lopez brought out his missile pod, Caboose activated Freckles, Doc brought out his rocket launcher, and Donut got dual pistols from Simmons. Team RWBY activated their rocket-powered lockers and got their weapons.
"You think the General will be pissed that we broke his robots?" Tucker asked.
"Probably." Weiss answered.
"Llévalo, coños." (Bring it on, Pussies.) Lopez taunted.
"Time for you to taste Oblivion!" O'Malley yelled out.
And all hell broke lose.
-LINE-BREAK-
"What the hell is going on?!" Ironwood exclaimed. He was inside the main ship of Atlas.
"Sir! Someone has somehow managed to gain control of the Atlesian Knights!" A guard reported.
"How is that even possible?!" Ironwood demanded to know, gritting his teeth.
"Sir! There seems to be some sort of Virus! We're doing our best to delete it now!" The guard replied, furiously tapping the keyboard.
"James! What are your Knights doing?!" Ozpin exclaimed.
"Someone has done the impossible and-"
"Not now, James! Do what you can to stop it." Ironwood nodded and hung up.
"Private, contact Locus and tell him to head for the Festival Grounds. Without a ship, it will take too long to get to the arena."
"Understood!" Ironwood stared outside a window.
"…What the hell is going on…?"
-LINE-BREAK-
Cinder stood in her dorm room, checking something on her scroll.
"How were you able to control the robots?" Emerald asked, eyebrow raised.
"Remember that virus you asked me to implant you asked me to install into the computer nine months ago? It turns out that both the security HQ and the main ship have transferred data. Take a guess on what just happened to get transferred along with it." Felix answered.
"Yeah, but controlling all of that from one scroll uses a lot of power. Where are you getting it from?" She asked, eyes narrowing.
"That's because it's not complete. The virus you installed is only half of what it is. It's a forced control procedure, which is why they spazzed out the way they did. It only lasts for around five minutes before their protocol comes back online. Also, it only works in a specific range. Those droids inside Vale City are normal. The ones in the arena and the green grounds…not so much." He answered again.
"Won't that, you know, cause the decline of Atlesian Robots? Isn't that kind of part of the plan?" Mercury asked. Felix chuckled.
"Unlike you, I actually think things through. I aimed the Atlesian Knights ONLY at those fucktards. Their "Don't kill civilians" protocol is still online, so, the only one they would attack are those guys, meaning that general would STILL be willing to put them in the front lines."
"He is a very stubborn man." Cinder added, a sinister smirk on her face. "He would rather than his army be the one to defend Vale, despite the current events. He still believes himself to be invincible."
"Exactly." Emerald narrowed her eyes.
"I don't trust you."
"You are in no position to claim that, Emerald, after your most recent failure." Cinder reminded. Emerald just lowered her head and got a pat in the back by Neo.
"Besides, those guys are STILL posing as Atlas soldiers, so its not like the people will hate him enough for him to do that." Felix finished. Cinder smiled.
"Don't you think that was a little bit of an overreaction?" Mercury asked.
"No. With today being the finals, and the Grimm still unprepared, we cannot take that risk." Cinder responded.
"Couldn't you have just created a small thing? Like a guard murdering a student?" He asked again.
"That wouldn't be enough to delay the festival. Were it to be a student vs student injury, like the original plan…" Cinder glared at Emerald, who just looked away in shame. "It would be much more effective. However, we will need to take the risk of the General allowing the Atlas droids to stay."
"Wouldn't he create some sort of AVG against that?" Felix asked.
"That is why I'm assigning you, to hack into their main ship when the time comes." She replied.
"Just make sure I get my payback on them. Now that the whole crew is here, my trigger finger is getting itchy."
-LINE-BREAK-
.
ROSES ARE RED…
Caboose, Tucker, Doc, Donut, Lopez, Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang are lined up and they ready their weapons in the stadium seats.
AND VIOLETS ARE BLUE…
Washington, Carolina, Sarge, Simmons, Grif, Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha and Ren are lined up and they ready their weapons on the festival.
Both groups in different places stared down a group of Atlesian Knights, Guns raised.
In the Stadium…
"Hey Caboose."
"Yes Tucker?"
"Mind getting angry for us?"
"I don't remember how to do that." The soldiers all took a deep breath in.
"They like Red Bull!"
"They have pictures of spikey kittens!"
"They like Taxes!"
"Pecas es sólo una máquina!" (Freckles is just a machine!)
Caboose started to twitch uncontrollably, until-
"GGGAHHAHHHRHRHA!" He yelled out, ramming through the robots, sending them flying. He rolled and raised his fists up, bullets at the ready.
"MY NAME IS MICHAEL J. CABOOSE." He turned towards a droid charging at him.
"AND I." He punched the droid beside him.
"HATE."
Caboose let out a flurry of punches, sending a majority of the robots flying. He grabbed a random droid and smashed it into several others, then uppercutting more.
"ATLUS!"
"It's Atlas you idiot!" Tucker corrected.
"THAT TOO." He began shooting in a random direction.
"Come on Team!" Ruby yelled out, the rest charging after her.
On the Festival…
"For our ancestors' ancestors, attack!" Sarge cried out.
Carolina charged and lead off with a kick, before shooting with her pistol. Washington followed soon and crouched down and let out a barrage of bullets from hiss assault rifle.
Sarge charged forward and blasted the head off of a Knight, before knocking it down. Simmons followed up and shot some Knights behind Sarge. Grif steadily moved forward and fired his weapon.
JNPR was doing their own thing. Jaune was shielding some projectiles, Nora was bashing a random bot's head off, Ren shot close-ranged, and Pyrrha threw her shield and decapitated another one.
Carolina jumped upwards and-
In the stadium…
Crushed an Atlesian Knight under Caboose's fist. Caboose charged again and launched a barrage of bullets as he did, Tucker stabbed one and swished him towards another Knight, and charged as well.
Doc and Lopez just steadily moved forward and released a barrage of missiles and rockets. Donut shot at several Knights, before tossing a sticky grenade, latching onto a group of knights.
RWBY was doing their own thing. Ruby used her semblance to slice several more in half, Weiss used a speed glyph to repeatedly stab multiple droids, Blake sliced several Knights, using her blade and sheath, and Yang launched a barrage of shotgun blasts at them.
Tucker jumped down in front of a knight and-
On the Festival…
Sliced an Atlesian Knight in half. Jaune breathed deeply at what he just did, but recovered after.
"Grif! Nine'o clock!" Sagre yelled out.
"What?!" Grif then got…shot in the balls. He kneeled down on the floor as Sarge continued to shoot behind him.
"WHAT IS IT WITH ROBOTS AND MY BALLS?!" He exclaimed, getting back up.
"Grif look out!" Sarge warned again. Grif glanced and saw a Knight aimed for his balls….then he was obliterated by a sniper shot.
"Locus!" Grif exclaimed.
"Talk later. Defend now!"
In both places…
The group then eventually found themselves in a circle, shooting and slashing down Atlesian Knights, each wither their weapon at the ready. It was as if the group was rotating with the other group, attacking all as one.
"Déjà vu huh?" Grif asked, a smirk beneath his helmet.
"Yup." Simmons replied, shooting down some more robots.
The two groups rampaged like this for a while, obliterating any and all Atlesian Knights that dared to stand in their way.
"Keep fighting!" Locus/Tucker exclaimed in their respective areas.
.
.
.
.
.
Then they stopped.
-LINE-BREAK-
"What?" Washington said. The Atlesian Knights suddenly stopped moving.
"What happened, did they overheat or something?" Simmons asked.
"No. Look!" Carolina pointed out. The Atlesian Knights were moving again, but the red glows were gone, and their guns were lowered. Then they just started to walk as if nothing happened. JNPR and the others kept their weapons.
"Locus, what the hell happened to them?!" Washington asked.
"They were implanted with some sort of virus. The good news is, it was a weak one. It had limited range and only effected the ones in the Vytal Festival." Locus excplained.
"How did someone manage to implant a virus into the most defended area in their ships?!" Simmons asked.
"I don't know."
Suddenly, they all got something on their radio.
"This is Ozpin. Please meet me in my office. Thank you."
One office trip later…
"What the fuck was that?!"
Tucker slammed his fist down onto Ozpin's table. He and the rest of the soldiers, along with the two Beacon teams were in their office. Glynda, Qrow, Ironwood and Ozpin were there as well. Washington placed a hand on Tucker's shoulder.
"Come on Tucker. We're all pissed off, but let's hear some explanations first." Tucker grunted but calmed down.
"Now then…What the fuck was that?!" Washington exclaimed.
"I don't know!" Ironwood responded.
"It looked like your fucking droids were trying to kill us!" Simmons added.
"I know!" Ironwood, with gritted teeth, responded again, smashing his fist into the wall, then breathing heavily. Qrow whistled.
"Never seen him that pissed off before." He commented, drinking from his flask.
"Someone was able to take control of the robots, albeit for a short time. It's likely that the virus was transferred during the data transferal of the Ship and HQ." Locus explained.
"That doesn't explain how it got there in the first place. Isn't Atlas like, the ultimate defense base or something?" Sarge asked.
"It is. It's heavily fortified with guards everywhere. There was no instance where they were no guards." Ironwood answered, still gritting his teeth. Ozpin casually sipped his coffee cup.
"First of all, thank you all for defending the citizens in the attack."
"Actually, we didn't." Ren said. Glynda raised an eyebrow at this.
"What do you mean?"
"When we were fighting, the knights only had their attention set on the Reds and Blues. Every time we attacked them, we were ignored, and they continued to shoot at them." Pyrrha explained her observations.
"It seems as though they have a grudge against them." Ozpin commented.
"Felix…" All of the soldiers chorused through gritted teeth. Ozpin sighed and turned towards the Beacon teams.
"Thank you both for protecting the Vytal Festival. You are free to go now."
"Can we not stay?" Weiss asked.
"We'll handle this." Carolina assured. The two teams somewhat reluctantly walked into the elevator, going back to the ground floor.
"Bye!" Ruby waved.
"Bye!" Caboose waved back.
"Now then…"
"What about Locus?" Tucker asked, gesturing towards the black and green soldier.
"…Locus. Go to the ship and make sure that the virus is not effecting anymore Atlesian Knights."
"…Understood." And with that, Locus walked into the elevator as well.
"So. What's going to happen to the Festival?" Washington asked.
"…It will continue." Ironwood responded.
"What?!" All of the soldiers chorused.
"Those robots NEARLY KILLED US!" Tucker exclaimed.
"Yes, but the civilians escaped, and there were no injuries. As of now, the Vytal Festival will continue on, as it should."
"But who knows what could happen next?! For all we know, they might be able to control one of those giant mantis things!" Simmons exclaimed, referring to the paladins.
"Our Atlas computers and tech team are doing their best to eradicate the virus. I suggest you have faith. That is what you all said, after all." Ironwood replied, a small smirk on his face. Carolina grit her teeth, and for a while, nothing happened.
.
.
.
Glynda sighed.
"There's a reporting going on right now." She said, pressing something on Ozpin's desk.
"Today, Atlesian Knights have been reported to attacking, however, their main focus seemed to be on the Red and Blue soldiers." The screen shows Lisa Lavender, with a video of the fight before.
"How'd they get the video?" Simmons asked, but was ignored.
"How'd they get that on so fast?" Grif asked, but was also ignored.
"However, this conflict seemed to have been brief, as five minutes later, the Atlesian Knights seemed to have stood down, and act as if nothing had ever happened. What could this mean for us folks? The Red and Blue soldiers had defended the citizens of Vale, but what does that mean for the rest of Atlas? We will now-" The screen closed, and Ironwood sighed.
"The citizens of Vale are only going to be even more scared with those droids running around. If you're going to continue the festival, at least have some huntsman or human guards around!" Washington suggested.
"All of the available huntsman are dealing with Grimm outside the kingdoms. This time of year, they are much more vicious, and the Human guards of Atlas are doing their best." Ozpin said, sipping his coffee cup.
For a while, nobody knew what to do or say.
.
.
.
Ozpin sighed.
"I suggest we delay the Vytal Festival until James can completely assure us that his Knights will not go rouge. Until then, classes and etc. shall go on as per usual. Does anyone have anything to add?"
"Our enemies are making a move. If we delay the Vytal Festival now, it will only give our enemies exactly what they want." Ironwood countered.
"And we can't just continue it, that would bring out a lot more negative emotions than delaying it." Washington countered, staring down the general.
"Ustedes no tienen la mejor relación con este tipo." (You guys don't have the best relationship with this guy.) Lopez noted.
"Yeah Lopez! Their acting like best buds on a hot afternoon!" Donut exclaimed. Lopez helmet palmed.
The two staring each other down ignored the outburst, and continued to do so.
.
.
.
Ironwood sighed.
"Fine. I'll allow the festival to be delayed." Ozpin nodded.
"Make sure your robots don't go batshit insane." Grif added.
"Men. Let's move." Sarge instructed.
"Yes Sir!"
-LINE-BREAK-
Reader: "This chapter sucks."
Yeah…I know this chapter SUUUUUUCKED. I literally debated whether to post this chapter, or to rewrite it and port it next week. I'm pretty sure this is the feeling people have that make their story die.
Feel free to hate it, cause I sure as hell do. Probabla- no, DEFINITELY going to rewrite this chapter at some point. Yeah, this was supposed to come out yesterday, but now with the actual plot-related stuff going on, my mind is just kinda in a jumble right now.
Epsilon: Yeah dude, why the hell did you make that Caboose interrupts Emerald thing?
Well, I could've gone the "Hey guys we're just here but not going to make a difference" route, but I honestly don't know. It just kinda felt right. And don't deny Caboose wouldn't do it.
Epsilon: Toućhe.
Theta: Why are we still here?
Because I'm lonely.
Epsilon: Hah!
Shaddap. Anyways, like I said, the actual plot related stuff is happening, and exams and life and etc etc, which is why this chapter is pretty shitty, either that, or I'm undermining myself, or I'm just a pity person.
Sigma: You have a very low self-esteem, don't you.
Yup. Kinda forcing myself to write this stuff at this point, so no Omake this chapter, sorry guys.
Also, 50,000 Views and 200 Followers, THANK YOU!
Anyways, reviews!
Monna1923: Thank you! Glad to see you enjoy it.
Zowiaki: Thank you to you too! Also sorry that this chapter is short than the last one.
A fan: I'll try my best not too. Good luck with your current endeavors. Glad to see you enjoyed the omake.
FreelancerMissouri:
POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLL POLLL POLL POLL
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Yeah… I have Zero confidence in myself, and I am afraid I'm just going to disappoint you all, so, might as well make it your guys decision. I'm the type of guy who likes to please everybody, but I already know that's not possible, so majority it is.
So. What should Wash's semblance be? Vote for it, I probably should have had this sooner, but eh.
Epsilon: You do too many Polls, you know that?
Yeah. But considering that having a power that could potentially change whether or not a character dies is important, I'm not taking any chances.
Epsilon: Wait, someone could die?
…No…Maybe…
Bismark Alexander: Hey! The Reds are cool characters! So shaddap…anyways, didn't really have any idea what they would react to, so I decided to just eh it for now.
EzioisPIRATE:…NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE.
Beedo and Guest: I'm assuming you two are the same guy. I don't really remember the username of the guy who spoiled me, but I'm assuming that's you, since the whole mentioned in that deleted chapter thing.
If you aren't apologies for what I'm about to say next.
.
I fucking hate you. I really fucking do. What does saying a FUCKING spoiler in the reviews do?! If your goal was to piss me off, WHY?! Why do you want to piss off someone you don't know, WHY?!
If you goal was to get noticed, then leave a MotherFucking review that isn't a spoiler! Seriously! Your spoiler was literally one of the reasons why I fucking didn't wanna write this chapter, but I literally fucking forced myself to. So Fuck off, and don't spoil me….please.
Just don't spoil me. Thanks for reading my story, but please. Just don't spoil me. Please. What do you even get out of it?!
.
Sorry, just feeling pissed off atm.
Feel free to leave your criticism, tips, ideas, suggestions, or just thoughts on the story so far in the reviews!...but please don't spoil me.
I know that I probably got something plot-related wrong in this chapter.
Thanks for reading, and have a great day.
P.S. Still a noob at fight scenes. Any criticism you guys can give me? Or just criticism in general?