"So… This is Beacon, huh?"
The three Devil Hunters stepped off the Bullhead, walking alongside the path that would lead to the school's entrance. Around them, more Bullheads carrying the students docked near the entrance, letting them disembark and head inside, passing by the trio.
They stopped to take in the entirety of Beacon Academy, unable to contain their awe at the beauty of the building. Nora grinned, bubbling with excitement. "Ooh! Man, I can't wait until we become, like, actual students! I wonder what lessons will they teach us! Or, wait no! What kind of missions they'll give?"
Ren reigned in his girlfriend, halting her thoughts. "Woah, Nora. Calm down. We still haven't passed initiation."
"Yeah. We'll need to pass that first before we can think of what class is gonna be like."
The orangenette shrugged indifferently. "Psh. That'll be a cinch for us. We can pass whatever they throw us at easy!" With a smirk, she grabbed Ren by the arm and started dragging him along. "Now come on! We've got some exploring to do!"
"You guys go on ahead, I'll catch up!" He watched in amusement as the two quickly disappeared off in the distance. He could never really understand how his cousin could always keep up with Nora's seemingly boundless energy.
The blond looked back at the building, a smile making its way on his face. "It feels so surreal. I dreamed of being a Huntsman back when I was, like, five. Now, as a devil hunter, I'm standing in front of Beacon for a job. My past self would've flipped. I wonder…what would've happened had Nera told us - would I have never met Dante? Would I have never met Ren or Nora… Would I have never met Pyrrha or Kyrie"
The cambion shook the thoughts out of his head and focused on the present. As he prepared to catch up to his friends, the sound of a small explosion caught his attention. Immediately, he reacted on instinct, pushing aside his coat to grab Blue Rose.
"The hell was that?" he muttered out loud.
Looking up, he saw a cloud of smoke kick up from a distance not very far. Not even thinking about, Jaune rushed towards it. He arrived and was surprised at the presence of a mini-crater. Peeking inside, he saw a young girl, around the age of fifteen, with a red and black color scheme, hair included. Her head was spinning, muttering something to herself.
Seeing that there was no danger, he holstered back his revolver and knelt besides the girl. "Hey, you okay?"
"Y-yeah, don't worry. I'm, uh, totally fine and dandy."
Jaune helped her stand up slowly, the girl regaining her bearings as she dusted herself. He took this time to get a better look of her. "There's no mistaking it. She looks like she's about fifteen. Shouldn't someone her age be in one of those prep academies right now? And her eyes, they're silver, just like mom's." Seeing that she had recovered from what just happened, Jaune sent her a friend smile. "Looks like you've had a rough start, huh, Crater Face?"
The young girl rubbed her head, blushing in embarrassment, probably at receiving a nickname. Nonetheless, she stretched out her hand and introduced herself. "Hi, I'm Ruby. Thanks for helping me up, and yeah… It was a bit rough."
"I'll say. I'm Jaune, nice to meet you." He took the offered hand and shook it. "So, uh, aren't you a little young to be here?"
Once again, Ruby blushed, staring at the floor as she fiddled with her skirt. "I kinda am, but I guess was good enough to get moved ahead two years? B-but I'm not special or anything!"
Jaune quirked an eyebrow at this, but didn't say anything else, leading to an awkward silence that befell them. In an effort to break it, Ruby drew out a scythe and stabbed it into the pavement.
"So…I got this thing!"
The Son of Vergil looked impressed at her choice of weapon. Dante had told him that scythe's are pretty rare, and that you'd need a great amount of efficiency to use them. For a little girl like her to have one, it must mean she's good.
"A scythe, huh? Does it have a gun mode?"
Ruby beamed and nodded. "Yep! A customizable, high-impact sniper rifle!" Placing away her weapon, she stared at Jaune in curiosity. "So, what do you got?"
Seeing no harm, he kicked Red Queen off his back and caught it, jabbing it through the floor. The young student looked at the sword in complete awe and circled around it. "Wow! What is it?"
"Meet Red Queen - this blade's one of the best battle companion a swordsman could wish for! It's got something called Exceed. Let me show you." Jaune twisted the grip, revving up the sword and causing it to be coated in flames.
The awe in Ruby's eyes grew starry-eyed, looking at the weapon with near reverence. "That…is so cool!"
Jaune agreed, placing his word back onto his back. "Well, with introductions out of the way, let's get to the auditorium."
The two of them walked inside the room, and found it jam packed with students, all carrying around different sorts of weapons. Jaune couldn't believe at the amount that wanted to try and get into the school. Looking to his side, Ruby was no longer beside him, probably having seen someone familiar, leaving him alone.
Shrugging, he placed on his headphones and went off to find a seat. Unbeknownst to him, had he stayed for a second more, he would have bumped up into Pyrrha.
Spotting an empty spot, Jaune sat down and waited. He fished out his Scroll, getting a message from Ren, asking him where he was. He shot them quick reply before placing the device away as Ozpin cleared his throat in front of the microphone, grabbing everyone's attention.
""I'll...keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy - in need of purpose, direction." He said, garnering him whispers among the crowd. "You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."
"I see. That speech wasn't meant to be uplifting, or rousing. It was meant to be a wake up call, that this school won't be like the rest. I can roll with that." he mused to himself.
Ozpin stepped off, and a blonde professor took his place. "You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready… You are dismissed." she sounded off curtly.
Jaune laid on his sleeping bag, wearing just a simple white shirt and a comfortable pair of boxer shorts. He decided to give Ren and Nora some alone time together and stayed by himself. Unfortunately, he's yet to cross paths with Pyrrha.
He looked around, seeing a bunch of topless guys, flexing their biceps at a group of girls. The blond rolled his eyes and moved on. To his surprise, he spotted Weiss talking with Ruby. Well, it seemed more like she was arguing with Ruby, and a blonde-wait.
"Oh boy." groaned out Jaune, massaging his temples.
If Ruby was friends with her, he did not look forward to them meeting again. One last look, he saw a girl with black hair, amber eyes and a ribbon on her head that seemed to resemble cat ears. Jaune's eyes narrowed, recognizing who the girl was based on the description that Eve had given him.
"Looks like her suspicions were correct. Blake Belladonna is hiding in Beacon. Right now, I can't confront her with this many people. Either I do it during the initiation, or some time after."
Placing back his headphones and playing a soft melody that Kyrie sang too, he laid back his head on his pillow and drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, Jaune stretched out his joints as he walked up to the locker room. Everyone was required to deposit their weapons in a locker, probably to decrease the risk of someone ended up getting hurt, or a fight breaking out.
Someone at the administration or some sort of higher deity thought they were funny, because the locker number assigned to him was 666. And as he walked towards to his locker, a pissed off blonde came marching right at him, her hair lit aflame and her eyes burning red, Ruby tailing behind.
"YOU!"
"Oh brother…" Clearing his throat, Jaune crossed his arms and stared passively at the woman glaring at him. "Well, nice to see you too, Yang. Guess you're still pissed off."
Ruby looked at the two of them in surprise and confusion. "Wait, you two know each other?"
"Know him? KNOW HIM?! HE-"
"Kicked your butt because you were thrashing a night club, ruined a lot of people's good time, and crushed the owner's balls for some reason." he said, censoring himself due to Ruby's presence. "Honestly, you're lucky the guy didn't press charges on you."
"As if he could!" scoffed Yang. "Junior's a-"
"Former criminal who cut off his shady dealings, did his time in prison and community service, and has been a law-abiding citizen for over two years. So, yeah. He could have." stated Jaune, in a matter of fact tone.
Yang growled, not liking how Jaune spoke to her. Before she could do anything rash, Ruby stopped her.
"Yang, cut it out. Besides, he is kind of right."
The blonde turned to the young girl with a look of betrayal. "You're siding with him over me?"
"I'm not siding with anybody! I'm just saying he's right. And besides, he's not the one who left me behind so I could get blown up."
Jaune quickly took his time to slip away while the two of them were distracted. He honestly felt bad about the encounter, since they seemed close. And besides, it wasn't his fault Yang held such a petty grudge. He refocused on getting to his locker, glancing at each one as he moved. It didn't take long for him to finally spot it. Opening it, he saw Blue Rose lying down on the case the contained Red Queen's disassembled parts, since it was too big to fit the locker.
Securing his gun in its holster, he pulled out the case and opened it up, assembling his blade back in twenty seconds. He gave the grip a good rev, making sure every part was perfectly connected. Once that was done, he secured it on his back. Jaune prepared to leave, when he saw a familiar mop of red hair.
Grinning, he broke off into a sprint and swept her off her feet, wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace. Pyrrha yelped, before gasping in shock as she felt the familiar heat of the Devil Bringer on her chest. Looking down, she saw Jaune staring back at her with a cheeky grin,
"Jaune!" she cried out in joy.
He let her down, allowing the Hoplite to return his embrace. It's only been a day since they last saw each other, but it already felt like months. Pulling back, she looked at him with slight confusion.
"What are you doing here?"
Before he could respond, the two of the, turned around, hearing a gasp. There stood Weiss, her eyes lightly widened in recognition.
"Y-You're Nero!"
Once again, Jaune didn't get the time to reply as the intercom buzzed to life. "Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation? Again, all first-years students report to Beacon Cliff immediately."
Grunting in annoyance, Jaune turned to his girlfriend with an apologetic smile. "Guess that explanation's gonna have to wait. Party's about to start."
Pyrrha nodded and planted a chaste kiss on his cheek. "See you later then. Preferably on the same team."
All of the students stood on top of silver platforms near the cliffs that overlooked Emerald Forest. In front of them was Ozpin, holding a mug, and the headmistress, Glynda Goodwitch. Seeing that everyone was ready, the headmaster spoke.
"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."
Goodwitch then continued. "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of 'teams'. Well, allows us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given your teammates…today."
Jaune quirked his brows. That soon? He looked out of the corner of his eyes, seeing quite a few of them become nervous, Ruby most of all.
"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon." explained Ozpin. "So it is in your best interest to be paired with whom you can work well." This caused Ruby to groan. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with will be your partner for the next four years."
Jaune crossed his arms, a bit surprised at the given requirements. "That'll be harsh for the people who didn't make a good first impression on each other. But I can understand what Ozpin's going for here. You can't always be with people you work best with. You gotta adapt."
Based on the expression on Ren's face, he had reached the exact same conclusion. Ozpin continued on, detailing how each pair must head north to an abandoned temple, retrieve a relic, guard it, get back to the cliff and to not hesitate. Seeing that there were no one that asked any questions, they commenced the exams.
Everyone readied themselves on their respective tiles. One by one, each of them were rocket into the air by the springboard, the platforms going down the line. A feral smirk crossed Jaune's lips as his turn came. He let out a whoop of excitement as he was flung into the air.
Grabbing a hold of Red Queen, he revved up the exceed to its maximum capacity and used it to propel himself across the forest, laughing as he did so. He looked at the others, curious as to how they would land.
Ruby fired off a few rounds from her scythe to slow down her impact, right before hooking onto a tree. Weiss materialized Glyphs below her, using it as a platform to jump off of and right into a forest. Yang wasn't even taking it seriously, using her gauntlets to keep on propelling herself forward. Blake used some kind sickle attached to a ribbon, using it grab onto a tree and land down on a branch.
Ren tossed Alastor right at the tree nearest to him, before using his wind abilities to boost himself forward and flip down onto the Devil Arm. Pyrrha meanwhile, dove down to the tree branches, crashing through them to slow her descent, before landing on top of one. She looked up, seeing Nora zip fast her with a trail of explosions right behind her.
Back to Jaune, he embedded Red Queen at a tree he passed by, using it spiral himself down to the ground. Below him, he saw a pack of Beowolves passing by. With still one level of Exceed, he kicked himself off and rocketed down onto one of the Wolf Grimm, violently eviscerating it.
"Let's get airborne!" The Son of Vergil jumped up and rode the air, creating some distance between himself and the Beowolves. Standing up, he stared at bunch with a smirk, hefting his blade on his shoulders. "So, you're my first bunch of victims, huh?"
He was responded with a furious growl, making him laugh and raise his hands in faux surrender.
"Hey, hey, easy little pups. Now, which one wants to play first?"
Play - Taste the Blood(Vergil Version)
The Beowolves roared at the cambion, one of them rushing forward. Jaune smirked and launched it and himself skyward, with a revolving slash. He dealt out three quick strikes before grabbing it with a Buster, slamming it back to its pack.
Focusing at it, Jaune dove down diagonally and decimated the Grimm with a single slice. Ducking under a claw, the blond shuffled through the attacks of the packs, evading them with ease. Flipping back, he rode the air once again, revving up Red Queen.
Dropping to his knees, he pulled back his sword, imbuing it with his demonic energy along as flames coated the blade. With a fierce roar, he rushed forward and spun around, decimating the pack with two spinning slashes, burning them down to cinders.
Skidding himself to a stop, he secured Red Queen on his back and dusted his hands. "Guess they're not as durable. But still," More Beowolves burst out of the foliage, surrounding the blond with a snarl. "This may be fun." he finished with a smirk, before charging off to meet with the pack.
"Watching Mr. Arc, I see." Ozpin did not seem to acknowledge Glynda's statement and focused on the footage of Jaune easily fending off the pack of Beowolves that came right at him.
The blonde professor pushed up her glasses, standing besides the headmaster to watch the on-going fight… No, more like a slaughter. The wolf Grimm couldn't even land a hit on the Son of Vergil, who easily decimated them with his blade, still wreathed in flames.
"I see now why you saw fit to hire him and his friends."
"Indeed." agreed Ozpin. "Power like that will prove beneficial in pushing back against her… I dearly hope James finds a solution soon, so we don't have to resort to that."
Goodwitch nodded solemnly. The bespectacled man switched cameras to check up on the other students as some of them paired up, while others continued to trudge forward, combating against the Grimm that appeared before them. However, on one channel, something quite curious was shown. Or rather, it's silhouette, and dark red eyes and blue flames glowing in the darkness. It immediately noticed that it was being watched and soon, static was the only thing that showed up on Ozpin's Scroll.
The bespectacled man shook off his surprise and quickly changed to different cameras, only to find that they have been destroyed as well.
"Sir, what was that?"
"I do not know, Ms. Goodwitch… We can only hope that it doesn't see our students as a threat of sorts."
Ruby started running off in a random direction, with only one thing in her mind - find Yang. She called out to the blonde, each of her shouts increasingly becoming more louder. When she received no response Ruby began to despair.
"Man, oh man, this is bad… What if I can't find her? What if someone finds her first?!" she thought. "Ooh! What about Blake? So, mysterious, so calm. Plus, she likes books! Then again, I don't think I can hold a conversation with her for very long. Well, there's also Jaune. Sure, he and Yang are mad at each other, but he seems nice, and he's got a cool sword!"
The image of Red Queen popped into her mind as she stared at it in awe. Ruby shook it off, trying to focus back onto the matter at hand.
"Okay... Who else do I know in school? There's Yang, Blake, Jaune, and-"
The young girl skid to a stop to avoid bumping into the girl in front of her. Said person turned around, making eye contact with her…and said person was Weiss. An awkward silence befell the two of them as they came to realize that they were now partners.
Sighing in irritation, she walked up to Ruby and started dragging her by her hood. "By no means does this make us immediate friends."
Ruby, meanwhile just smiled and cheered, counting it as a victory. Before long, Weiss released her grip on the hood, allowing Ruby to follow along as the two of them trudged through the forest.
"So… Do you know where we're going?"
Weiss was about to open her mouth to answer when two Ursa Minors surrounded them. The two went defensive, drawing out their weapons - Crescent Rose, for Ruby. And Myrtenaster for Weiss. The two slipped into a stance they were comfortable with. They didn't wait for the three to make a move and immediately charged forward.
Ruby wielded her weapon with efficiency, swinging it around like it weighed nothing. She struck at the bear, deflecting it's claw strikes and retaliated with her own. Kicking herself back, Ruby impaled her scythe onto the ground and fired off a couple of rounds towards it.
The Ursa Minor roared and shook it off and charged right at the young girl. Ruby quickly evaded its attempt at a lunge attack, causing it to crash into a tree. While it was distracted, she disappeared in a blur of rose petals and reappeared right in front the of bear Grimm, stabbed it through the chin.
Ruby pulled back Crescent Rose harshly and tore off the poor Ursa's head, leading her to a front flip. This, however, led to the dismembered head being flung into Weiss's direction, hitting her right in the head and distracted her long enough for the Ursa to ram its head in her stomach and claw her back.
"Sorry!" shouted out Ruby. She jumped back, dodging the bear Grimm's attack
Weiss pushed herself up and sent a quick glare at Ruby, before revolving the chambers on Myrtenaster, stopping on the red slot as it imbued Fire Dust into the blade. She swiped down her rapier, releasing a line of fire that struck the Ursa. It refocused back on the Schnee heiress and lumbered towards her angrily.
With her lithe form and being naturally agile, Weiss easily danced around its claw strikes, twirling around like a ballerina. She then switched the chambers once again, setting it to Ice Dust. Summing a Glyph below her, Weiss used it propel herself right towards the Ursa and slashed through its body.
Turning around, it let out a pained whine as it's body slowly began to freeze up. Ruby jumped above Weiss and rapidly hacked the iced up Grimm Bear to chunks. She faced Weiss and gave her an apologetic smile, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly.
"Sorry about earlier."
The Schnee Heiress nodded in acknowledgement. "Just try not do it again."
Once again, Ruby cheered silently in victory as she followed the leaving Weiss.
Ren walked silently and vigilantly, awaiting for anything to happen. So far, he has yet to come across any of the other students, or any Grimm. He quirked an eyebrow, feeling that he was no longer alone. A large serpent appeared behind him, loudly hissing and coiled around the pseudo-cambion.
The King Taijitu, one of the largest Grimm that exists.
Ren reached for Alastor, before shaking his head and instead slipped into a fighting stance. The serpent hissed and lunged at him. The Son of Dante leaped back into a handspring before doing a continuous series of back flips as it tried to attack him.
Landing on a crouch, Ren equipped Gilgamesh onto his person and went into a battle stance. Once more the King Taijitu lunged at the teen, only to be smacked to the side. Ren followed it up with a barrage of devastating kicks, the last one launching it into the air.
The cambion cocked back his arm, charging up the thrusters on the gauntlets as he awaited for the serpent to fall down. Letting loose a roar, he unleashed the rising uppercut, drilling right into the King Taijitu's chin. Ren channeled wind into his palms and crashed the both of them down with a dive kick, driving the blades on the greaves in its head.
He paused for a moment, pondering on how to kill the Snake Grimm. Behind him, the white half of the King Taijitu rose up, staring intently at its prey and launched itself to bite down on him. Ren acted quickly and raised his guard, the snake chomping down on his gauntlets. He harshly yanked it out of its maw, ripping off its fang.
The King Taijitu flailed back in pain and tried to bite him down once again, only to be stabbed in the eye with its own fang. Ren focused Aura into his hands, delivering a palm thrust to its head, causing it to explode in a mush of white.
The black half hissed in anger and prepared to retaliate. Out of nowhere, a blade of energy passed through its neck, making the both of them blink. The Grimm Snake's head slowly slid off as the body began to disintegrate.
Dismissing his Devil Arm, Ren faced to his left, sending out a mock glare. "I had that handled."
Jaune walked into view, his eyes making contact with his cousin's as he sheathed Yamato back into her scabbard as a grin crossed his lips. "You were taking too long. So, guess we're partners, huh?"
"Nora's gonna be mad. She made up a signal for me to pick up so we could partner up."
As he said this, a bizarre, animal-like sound can be heard a few feet away from them. The two walked up to it and found Nora hanging off of a tree. Her grin was dropped, seeing Jaune together with her boyfriend.
"Oh phooey! You got to Renny first."
"Sorry, Nora. We can still probably in the same team though."
At this, the orangenette's eyes lit up. "Ooh! We need to find Pyrrha! Then the four of us could be the greatest team in Beacon!" She dropped down onto Ren's back and dramatically pointed north. "Onwards!"
The two grinned and rushed off to go find their friend.
Pyrrha frowned in confusion. She's yet to find anyone that didn't have any partners, Which greatly worried her. Was there an odd number of students this year? Shaking her head, she found herself looking down on a clearing with a circular temple, broken and weathered down due to time and nature. There were pedestals at the center, presumably holding the relics.
The young Hoplite found a pair observing them, a blonde and a black-haired woman until they grabbed what seemed to be a golden knight chess piece. She approached them with a friendly smile and waved.
"Hello."
Yang and Blake looked up, a bit surprised to see Pyrrha all alone.
"You...still haven't found a partner?" asked Blake in curiosity.
The redhead shook her head in confirmation. "None, unfortunately. All I've encountered so far were Grimm."
"Huh." intelligently started Yang. "Would've thought people would clamor to have a four-tune champ as their partner."
"YEEEEE-HAAAAAW!"
From out of the forest, an Ursa came stumbling out, being ridden by Nora until it collapsed and promptly dropped dead. She slid off of it, pouting slightly. "Awww. It's broken already." She looked up and, Yang and Blake stare right at her in shock, while Pyrrha had an amused smile on her face. Nora cheered at seeing her fellow ginger and sent her a wave. "Hi, partner!"
Pyrrha smiled, glad that she got someone she knew as her partner. Nora jumped off of the decomposing Ursa and met up with her friend. Jaune and Ren came out of the forest, calmly walking as they conversed with each other.
"How long do you think until we reach the Ruins and run into Pyrrha?" mused Ren.
The two looked up and blinked in surprise, seeing Nora on Pyrrha's shoulders, waving at them.
"Not that long, I guess."
They ran up to their respective female partner, joining them at the pedestal. Immediately, Nora snatched up the golden rook, singing to herself. Following her lead, Jaune grabbed the black rook. He glanced at Yang, who was doing her absolute best not to make eye contact with him. Rolling his eyes, he forced the blonde to look right at him.
"Would you stop being so immature over something that was your fault? Look, we got off on the wrong foot, and considering the fact that we might be seeing each other for four years, it would be best if you dropped this stupid grudge, and we start over, sound good?"
Yang scoffed and pushed him away, crossing her eyes and turning her back on him. Before she can speak her mind, Blake grabbed her attention pointed above. All of them looked up and saw Ruby falling from the sky, screaming. Seeing the falling girl, Jaune launched himself into the air and caught her in his arms, landing down softly on his knees.
Ruby opened her eyes, having expected to crash on the ground, looked up and found herself staring into a pair of ocean blue orbs.
"'Sup, Crater Face? Just dropping in?"
She blushed at the close proximity and quickly got off, brushing her clothes before finding herself being smothered by a very relieved Yang. The moment was quickly broken, when it was brought to everyone's attention that Weiss…was hanging off the talons of a very large Nevermore, scared out of her mind.
"How could you leave me?!" screamed Weiss, as her hands began to slip off.
"I said jump!" shouted back Ruby.
Blake noticed the predicament Weiss was in, and could only reach one conclusion. "She's gonna fall." she spoke in the most deadpan tone ever.
"She'll be fine." Ruby insisted.
"Aaaaand there she goes." commented Nora, watching as the Schnee heiress fell down.
Grunting, he channeled his father's Style and Tricked Up right next to Weiss, grabbing her in a hold before he Tricked Down safely. The white-haired lady blinked, absolutely glad that she wasn't a splatter on the ground. She looked up, seeing Jaune with an amused expression.
"This is the second time I've saved you, Snow Princess. Trying to make it a habit, or something?"
Blushing furiously, she got out of his hands, trying to recompose herself and look dignified. But the redness of her face betrayed her intentions, earning a chuckle from the surrounding audience. In an effort to distract herself from the embarrassment she felt, she turned to Ruby.
"That…was idiotic, and we will never do that again."
She could only nod in agreement. In hindsight, riding on top of a Nevermore to get a literal bird's eye view of the forest seemed pretty ridiculous. An angry squawk grabbed their attention, seeing the giant Nevermore circling overhead.
"I…think it might be mad." meekly said Ruby.
The avian Grimm let out a high pitched shriek, firing out a barrage of feather-spears at the group. Ren ran ahead and grabbed Alastor, channeling wind into the Devil Arm to blow away the projectiles, causing the spears to stab itself on the pedestals.
"Ruby! Grab the last chess piece. We're getting out of here." sounded off Jaune.
The young girl nodded in agreement and grabbed the black knight. The four pairs broke off into a run, in an attempt to lose the Nevermore. Unfortunately, it was persistent and wanted retribution for being turn into a ride. They hid behind a pillar as the Nevermore barred their path, perching itself on top of the ruined tower, screeching at their direction.
Jaune contemplated whether or not to use more of his demonic powers, before deciding not to. Not yet, he couldn't completely trust the others just yet. He drew out Blue Rose, and looked over towards his long-time friends, giving them a nod, which they returned.
"Everyone, run! We'll make a diversion!"
Ruby, Weiss, Yang and Blake nodded and got out of the spots, heading towards the bridge. The Nevermore saw them and prepared to fire, only to be constantly barraged by Jaune, Pyrrha and Nora. With the provided cover, the four of them quickly crossed the bridge.
The avian Grimm squawked against the continuous fire it was receiving and ascended into the skies before swooping down to break the bridge, preventing the others from crossing. It looked momentarily at Jaune and his friends and merely screeched at them before focusing on the four girls.
"Guess even a Grimm can hold a grudge." commented Ren.
Pyrrha looked at her boyfriend with a questioning look. "Should we intervene?"
For a moment, the blond remained quiet, looking intently as Ruby and the others fought off against the giant bird. Turning to his friends, he gave them a light head shake. "Nah, I think they already got it covered."
The four of them watched as the girls fired at the Nevermore with the ranged form of their weapons. Unfortunately, this did nothing as the bird flew through the tower, crashing it and the support that kept them standing. Luckily, they managed to climb back up, using the rubble and their weapons.
"None of this is working." commented Weiss, as she and Ruby landed together on a platform.
Ruby hummed in thought. She saw Blake swing over with her weapon in its whip-like form, while Yang kept the Nevermore occupied with a constant barrage of kinetic blasts. Then, an idea struck.
"I got a plan. Let's go!"
Yang finally managed to land a hit, further angering it as it swooped down to swallow her whole. She jumped right onto its beak and emptied her ammo into its mouth."I! Hope! You're! Hun! Gry!" Looking back, she saw they were about to crash into the face of a cliff and quickly got off, leaving the Nevermore disoriented.
Weiss zoomed pass Yang, quickly jumping up to freeze its tail, preventing the bird from flying away. She launched herself away from its range with a Glyph, while Blake tossed her weapon towards Yang, using the whip to create an improvised slingshot around the pillars.
Ruby jumped in, using Crescent Rose to push back the ribbon to its maximum tension. Weiss materialized a Glyph, readjusting its position as she used it to hold her partner's position. The heiress grunted, a bit impressed at Ruby's plan.
"Think you can make the shot?" asked Ruby.
Weiss only gave her a smirk, which was quickly returned as the young girl cocked her scythe while the Glyph glowed red. The Schnee swung down her rapier and released her hold on Ruby, launching her straight at the Nevermore, who had just managed to free itself.
Ruby fired off a few rounds, increasing her speed and caught the avian Grimm by the neck and trapped onto the face of the cliff. Weiss acted and summoned out a trail of Glyphs, allowing her partner to scale up to the ledge as she harshly dragged up the Nevermore, keeping on firing out a few more shots to boost herself. Once they were at the apex, it was quickly caught at the jagged rock on the cliff, but Ruby pushed on and pulled back her scythe, slicing off its head as she left behind a trail of petals.
Ruby landed down the severed head as the body of the Nevermore fell down right into the pit, slowly decomposing. Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora and Ren were all impressed with the little show that they had witnessed, the former most of all.
"This is gonna be a fun job."
The rest of the girls climbed up the cliff, joining Ruby. The hooded girl rushed towards the ledge and screamed at the four childhood friends.
"ARE YOU GUYS GONNA BE OKAY?"
Jaune nodded and shouted back. "Don't worry! We'll find another way across, you guys get back to the auditorium! By the way, that was amazing!"
Ruby flashed them a thumbs up as the four of them headed back, leaving them all alone. Ren walked up to his cousin, giving him a questioning look. "I suppose you don't want to reveal our heritage just yet?"
"Yeah… Let's get to know them first if they're fully trustworthy before we tell them."
The girls and Ren nodded in understanding. Jaune unrolled his sleeve and transformed his arm into the Ice Breaker, using it to create a stable path for them to cross through. Once done, he reverted back into a regular arm, and gestured for the ladies to go first.
Pyrrha and Nora obliged him and carefully started crossing. Jaune went up next with Ren going last.
CLOP CLOP CLOP
Jaune's ears perked up, picking something up. "Do you guys hear that?"
"Hear what?" asked Pyrrha.
Narrowing his eyes, Ren heard the same sound, and unconsciously clenched his first. "Yeah. I hear it too... And it's coming in. Fast."
From out of the forest, an enormous, dark hued horse with a mane and tail of blue flames, it's hooves, mouth and eyes also possessing a blue glow burst out, letting out a loud neigh that screeched against their ears. Jaune's eyes widened, recognizing it from some of Dante's tales.
"Crap, that's a Geryon!"
Much to their surprise, Ren went completely out of character and broke away from them, running towards the Timesteed with a face filled with rage, his arms billowing sharp blades of wind.
"Ren, don't! Geryons can-!"
His words fell on deaf ears as Ren leaped towards the demonic horse and prepared to blast it in the face, only to find himself slowing down. Around the pseudo-cambion, a large sphere enveloped him, having been sent out by the Timesteed, before headbashing Ren off into the pit.
Jaune quickly reacted and caught him with his Devil Bringer arm, pulling him back onto the icy surface, before switching back to Ice Breaker and froze the Geryon solid.
"They can manipulate time." he finished. "What the hell were you thinking, Ren? I never pegged you as the type to recklessly rush in like that. That's more of a Nora thing."
"I...I'm sorry. I was... reminded of something. Way before Nora and I were experimented on. I don't know what took over me. But-"
The Geryon freed itself from its cold prison, screaming out another loud whinny.
"Nora, distraction! Barrage it with bombs!" ordered Jaune.
The Lightning Bomber complied and fired out multiple grenades at the Timesteed. The Geryon rumbled and its eyes flashed. The grenades halted in mid-air before its trajectory reversed, going right back to sender. Ren released out a gust of wind, scattering the grenades and causing them to blow up while still in the air. Much to their shock, the Geryon had disappeared from its place.
"Be wary." advised Pyrrha. "With its ability to manipulate time, it's highly possible it can use such power to position itself anywhere."
Everyone grabbed hold of their weapons, looking around with apprehension as they awaited for the demon to reappear. Alerted by its call, the Geryon rematerialized from Pyrrha's side as it galloped to run her over. She quickly rolled over to the side, as it left blazing hoof prints before disappearing once more.
Jaune's eyes narrowed, spotting a black and blue orb floating in the air. To check something out, he called out Fenris and summoned Ice Swords in Blister formation, firing them consecutively. To his correct assumption, it swerved around the projectiles to avoid getting hit.
"Target the orb! It's the Geryon!" he shouted, taking out Blue Rose and fired it in tandem with Ice Swords.
The others nodded, using what ranged weapons or abilities they had. Pyrrha converted Milo into a rifle and kept on firing shots at it. Ren had finally drawn out Alastor, sending multiple Overdrives. Nora, on the other hand, had electricity coursing through her arms and started throwing out bolts at the Geryon.
Unfortunately, it was far too agile for them to land a hit. Without warning, it turned back into its original form and stopped time. The Timesteed landed down, causing a wave of fire to erupt from it hooves and wash over the four teens. Time resumed, and they were swept off their feet and hurt.
The Geryon suddenly stayed still and merely blasted them with spears made of blue flame. Jaune summoned more Ice Swords by his side, striking down the projectiles. Seeing the demon stay still, Jaune dashed forward and relentlessly slashed it with fervor.
"Attack it while it's still catching its breath!"
Ren was quick to join his cousin, barraging the Timesteed with his father's moves. He and Jaune attacked it close up, while Nora and Pyrrha provided fire support. The Lightning Bomber shot out grenades at a slow pace, while the Hoplite perched herself onto higher ground for a better vantage point and scope.
The Geryon finally caught its breath and stomped down, releasing another wave of fire. Jaune jumped back and matched it with a shower of snow, dousing the flames. Ren jumped over the blond and struck the demon twice, spinning around before performing a Helm Breaker.
Nora launched herself into the air and slammed down Magnhild forcefully onto the horse's head, making it whimper in pain and fall down in a heap.
"Come on, together!"
Nora's whacks were powerful and swift, thanks to her strength. She was behind the Geryon, swinging around her warhammer like it was just a staff. The Lightning Bomber dismissed her weapon, and moved to her raw strength. Each blow felt like a truck ramming over a person.
Pyrrha kept herself perched on the only standing pillar, firing off shots at what weak spots she could discern. In all honesty, she would just be a hindrance. Every so often, she'd throw her shield at its head, keeping it disoriented.
Jaune was unrelenting, he whacked the prone horse with the scabbard twice before repeatedly striking it with blinding speed, permeating the air with its cold further weakening its flame. He moved onto a rising spiral cut, before sheathing back Fenris to perform a Tundra Vortex, an imitation of the Judgement Cut.
"Get back!" he warned.
His friends rolled out of the way as Jaune's hands blurred around the ice-made Devil Arm, sending out three consecutive spheres of ice that skewered the Timesteed. It nickered in pain, the attack injuring it the most out of all they have done.
Jaune landed down, before flipping to the side, giving Ren the stage as he dashed forward with a lunging stab before switching it to a Million Stab, striking it at a fast-pace. The Wind Demon turned around, slashing at him three times before continuing it with two diagonal strikes and ended it with a golf swing slash.
Finally, the Geryon recovered and used its Quicksilver ability to slow down its surroundings. It turned into its orb form and smacked them around before disappearing in a wisp of smoke as it turned time back to normal.
The four winced, feeling the sudden jolt of pain run down their bodies, that not even Ren or Pyrrha's Aura managed to shield. Once again, they were high on alert, trying to discern where it'll reappear.
Jaune ascended into the air. Switching his swords, he took hold of Yamato and began to spam out Judgement Cut after Judgement Cut at random places for seemingly no reason...until one of them hit something that caused a pained whinny to scratch against their ears.
The Geryon fell back down onto where it first appeared, wounds littering it's body as the flames slowly began to die down. It shook it off and started running around in circles. Once more, everyone switched to using their ranged capabilities.
Along with flame spears, red orbs began to home in on the four. None of them were able to react accordingly as they blew up and slowed down tine. Their moves became slow, like a snail's movement. The spears ground against Pyrrha and Ren's skins, but in the case of Jaune and Nora, they were jammed in their stomachs.
The ginger winced in pain, while the blond merely grunted in annoyance. And not a lot annoyed him. Ripping the spear out, he Triggered into his Devil form. Letting out an enraged roar, he dashed forward towards the demonic horse with Fenris and Yamato in hand, performing a barrage of sword strikes, most of them aimed at its legs.
The Timesteed cried out in agony, buckling under the pain and crashing down. Jaune sheathed away his katana and summoned his Buster arm. He grabbed it by the head and bashed it on the ground a couple of times before pummeling it with a series of haymakers then launched the demonic horse into the sky. Drawing out Red Queen, the Son of Vergil sliced through its stomach and swung his blade line a bat, sending it Ren's way.
The Son of Dante struck with Gilgamesh fully charged up, sending it flying. He Tricked up and attacked with fervor and rage, using the speed-enhancing capabilities of the Alastor. He ended it with a Helm Breaker, bringing the both of them crashing down. Flipping back, he allowed his cousin to shoot with a Charged Shot, accompanied with Summoned Swords.
The flames on its mane began to die down, panting heavily as it struggled to stand up with the number of wounds on its body. Jaune and Ren glanced at each other with a nod, and started sprinting. They roared, grabbing their respective swords and slid forward for a powerful Stinger stab. Grunting, the two jammed their blades deep inside of the Geryon.
Its eyes lost its glow, and it's mane finally extinguished. Leaning back, the Timesteed let out one last whinny and fell off the bridge, leaving behind a glowing orb, wreathed in blue flames. Ren and Jaune placed away their weapons, staring at it with curiosity. The orb seemed confused, zipping back and forth between the two of them before it split into two and slammed into the their chests, absorbed into their bodies.
Jaune and Ren felt nothing. They shrugged and prepared to meet up with their respective girlfriends. Suddenly, the structure below them started to crumble down, the floor beneath Nora and Pyrrha giving away. The two cried out in fear as their boyfriends towards them, unconsciously using their newly attained Quicksilver powers. The debris slowly came to a halt, as did the two redheads. Ren used his wind to pull Nora towards him before launching themselves towards the cliff. Jaune Tricked right besides Pyrrha and carried her in a bridal style, jumping from boulder to boulder.
Once they were on safer grounds, time flowed like natural and the remains of the bridge dropped down.
"You guys okay?" asked Jaune.
Nora could only nod, her wound still in the process of being closed up. Pyrrha smiled gratefully at her first friend, feeling a bit shaky, but fine nonetheless. Although, she couldn't help but frown at the healing cut on Jaune's cheek.
"You still don't have your Aura unlocked?"
"Never found the need for it."
Without any sort of prompt, Pyrrha pressed her forehead into his, gently cupping his right cheek, placing her hand on his chest. Ren imitated her, doing the same to Nora. The two of them glowed with the outline of their respective aura - red for Pyrrha, magenta for Ren.
"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee."
Jaune and Nora looked in awe as their bodies began to glow, their Aura being unlocked. The former shone with a silver-ish white color, while the latter glowed a hot pink. Their respective lovers pulled back, however, Pyrrha fell to her knees, panting.
"Pyrrha! What's wrong?" he immediately asked in concern, kneeling besides her, not noticing that his healing had accelerated nor that he was still glowing.
The redhead smiled and shook her head, reassuring him that she was fine. "I'm alright. Awakening one's Aura uses our own as a catalyst... And you have a lot of it."
Jaune looked at himself, a bit taken aback. He smiled as the light finally died down. The blond helped his girlfriend stand up, only for her to stumble into his arms, the toll of her earlier fights and now the Aura awakening finally having crept up to her.
Seeing no other option, Jaune carried his girlfriend in a bridal carry, making her cry out in surprise, blushing in embarrassment. Not one to be outdone, Ren swept Nora off her feet to do the same. The two smirked at each other before rushing off to head back at the auditorium.
"Russell Thrush. Cardin Winchester. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark. The four of you retrieved the bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team CRDL, led by Cardin Winchester."
Jaune and his friends watched as Ozpin inducted another team of students, four men wearing different styles of armor. He couldn't help but frown, not liking their smug attitude. Then, it was their turn. The four of them stepped onto the stage, awaiting their team placement and leader.
"Jaune Arc. Ren Redgrave. Pyrrha Nikos. Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JNPR, led by Jaune Arc."
Said blond blinked in surprise, not expecting to have been appointed leader. Looking at his friends, seeing their reaction. Ren lightly punched his shoulder, a smirk on his face. Nora was grinning wildly, flashing him a pair of thumbs up. And Pyrrha smiled at him, making him feel warm and joyful.
The newly-christened team stepped off, allowing the last group the stage.
"Blake Belladonna. Yang Xiao Long. Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee. The four of you retrieved the knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team RWBY, led by Ruby Rose."
A large amount of people were shocked, none more so than Ruby herself. Nonetheless, the audience applauded just as loud, congratulating the young girl.
Later, the teams were pushing a pair of dollies, heading towards their assigned forms, where they'll be living for the next few years. Fate thought itself funny, when JNPR and RWBY's dorm rooms were right next to each other. Bidding their sister team a good night, Jaune and his team entered their rooms. It was rather spartan, only decorated with about two paintings, empty book shelves, and four beds. Two other inner rooms - a small kitchen + dining room and a bathroom.
Ren immediately headed into the kitchen, while Jaune hopped into the bathroom. Nora took the time to pick her bed and started bouncing on it. Pyrrha just plopped into a random one and sighed into its surprisingly soft mattress.
While everyone was busy, Pyrrha took the time to unpack some of her stuff in order to retrieve a certain something. Once she saw it, a bright smile encompassed her face as she tenderly took hold of it.
"You still have that?"
Pyrrha turned around, seeing Jaune already out of the bathroom, now clothed in his sleeping attire, looking surprised at the object that his girlfriend held. The item in question was the fox plushy that he had gifted to her years ago during their first meeting. Though of course, there were a few stitches and patches, it still looked relatively fine.
"How could I not? It's the first thing you ever gave me..."
Jaune remained silent, but the smile on his face was enough to convey his emotions. He laid down on the bed next to the redhead and settled in. Taking one last glance, he watched as Pyrrha walked into the bathroom to get changed. The blond sighed and closed his eyes, the lull of sleep drawing him in.
And here's the first official chapter that delves into, finally, the RWBY side of things. It took me this long, and I'm sorry. Speaking of long, I had planned to post this on Saturday, but I kinda got busy in helping my family renovate the room, so I was a wee distracted.
Now, for those of you wondering, Yang and Jaune's confrontation will be posted soon-ish on the Chronicles side story. So, get ready for that. Looking back, imo, it was pretty bad on Yang's part for attacking Junior and his men, just because he didn't have information regarding Raven. Let's not forget the nights of many people she's ruined. I get that he's a thug, but come on.
Jaune and Ren getting Quicksilver - it was a thing that popped into my mind that I had wanted to add once I got to the initiation portion. Now, they can't use the full extent of the powers, since it was split between them. They can only fully use Quicksilver when they're together. Jaune's portion allows him to send out spheres, ala Ragtime, and Ren's let him feel the world as if in slow motion while he moves normally, kind of like Raiden's Blade Mode.
Will it be ever upgraded? That's a maybe.
Until the next chapter. As always, stay safe and sanitized. Peace.