Hello folks! How are we doing? I hope you are all doing fine and you are all okay. Well, here I bring quite… an experiment. I´m….less than proficient with first-person narration, but I think I might handle this one. Well, this is a RWBY centered fanfiction, with a self-insert (and by that, I mean we share name, hair color and generalized hate towards terrorist organizations, world enders, groveling politicians and uppity bitches)….and mention to a lot of different franchises, but nothing you need to know to actually follow that I do not explain in the story itself, with a custom made Team, and kind of an AU RWBY…..because war and real politics are a thing (Now, the matter of me handling well…is another topic altogether).
There is going to be bolters. There are going to be Noble Phantasm, mechs, battelsuits, lots of guns, new types of Grimm, more followers of Salem, terrorist (because killing those is always fun), blood, maybe some smut, and a character that gives zero fucks, in the good way. So, enjoy lads and lasses.
As always, leave comments and suggestions, and ideas, and crazy RWBY hypothesis (and If anyone is a Tau fan and Lore Expert, I will need corrections in a few things).
May the Emperor watch over you.
Chapter 1 – Beginnings wreathed in mystery.
Light
Darkness.
Such strange, different and fundamental concepts. So close, so intertwined in such many ways. There could not be one without the other, and there could not be one in the presence of the other. Two absolutes, two forces of reality always in balance, always in conflict.
It made me think about which fool had decided to pit one against the other, who had dared to take up the mantle of Light and who dared to take the mantle of Darkness. But I did not care too much now. Not on this life, not on the last one, had knowing mattered much. The Conflict had begun long before I had taken a single breath. Now, I just had to fight this Long War.
But, to stare in the eyes of one of the men, one of the…things that had begun such a conflict, irked me to no end. A man I was supposed to trust, to rely on. But I couldn't trust such lies, such a deceiver
CYPR. Cypher.
The name still held an undesired taste in my tongue. I had messed up. Badly at that. I had altered the timeline, fundamentally so. Any pragmatic man would have tried to stop that as much as possible. But the timeline the world of Remnant was going down towards was horrendous and world-ending. So fuck that.
It was time to make a new timeline. Still, I had not expected this…. this amount of change. Not that it mattered much. Things had looked fucked to hell long before I even touched anything.
And I was strangely fine with the new shit-show.
That was why I was here after all. This new maelstrom of possibilities was a new scenario, a more warn-torn world, it felt more real, more alive, more…..chaotic. It meant I could move much more freely. And I liked that.
I eyed Headmaster Ozpin with a wary and veiled look, not trusting the man at all, but refusing to show him my hands yet. The fact that my new old man trusted the silver-haired man helped little in that regard. The Headmistress and Directress of Studies, Glynda Goodwitch (fitting name… in more than one way) was standing at the edge of the room, eyes flickering from the scroll in her hand to my own amber eyes, before smiling reassuringly.
"You seem… tense, Mr. Amaranth" The Headmaster´s voice was calm and collected, never reaching the kindness his eyes seemed to exude. It managed to piss me off. This guy was probably one the most dickish men I had ever had the pleasure of finding. It was like someone mixed Gandalf with Merlin, and then added several tons of secrets to match.
"I am tense, Headmaster. Very much so" I answered in kind, trying my damn hardest to stop running combat simulations on my mind. It was not helping my patience. I had more than a dozen ways to breach the room, and half as many to secure it fast enough to neutralize both of the professors…if my simulations were accurate, which they probably were not. But I did not think it would reach that point. It had no reason why. Old habits die hard, I suppose.
"It is normal" Glynda stated, taking a step forwards "Having been handed the leadership of a Team….specially a team such as this… it is a daunting task"
No shit professor, that is like saying a pissed-off World Eater is dangerous. Kind of redundant. And utterly fucking underwhelming once faced with the ugly truth. My team could either be the perfect kill-team, or a fucking ticking time bomb. And I was the deciding factor.
"I don´t think that quite cuts it, professor…." I smiled weakly at the blonde woman. I had to admit, my dad was right. She was powerful. And intimidating. I needed to find out why she had chosen a riding crop as a weapon…. No, that was too easy of an answer.
"True. Yours might be the most dangerous and potential-filled team of this year, and maybe the last century of our world. It holds a star student of Signal, a renowned young bounty hunter, the Mistral Tournament Champion 5 years straight, and you, Mr. Amaranth…..I have to say, my folder failed to mention the….range of your Semblance" He smiled a little, in a way that was kind of unnerving. Like if he was a hungry shark in front of a bleeding tuna.
I glared at him in my mind. No shit, you silver-haired dick, not even my dad knows what I can do, not really. You, even less if I have anything to say. I trusted you as much as I would trust an Alpha Legionary. Or a Night Lord…..Or a World Bearer….Dammed, I had way too many examples!
"It's a dangerous secret, sir. I don't think even I know the full range, and I assure you, I have been experimenting, a lot" I smiled a little more, straitening my back. He nodded at my comment, sipping from his coffee with an almost lost look.
"If you are the head of the team, Mr. Amaranth, it is because of your leadership abilities, your utter determination and adaptability in the field, your unwillingness to leave no one behind, your impressively unorthodox tactics…and the recommendation letter bearing the signature of Atlesian High-Command that arrived yesterday" I almost froze at that one. Shit dad, did you really have to go that far?
"High-Command tends to exaggerate. My former achievements, as impressive as they may seem in a report, are not merit enough for my position" I spoke calmly, but truthfully. Having to lead 3 other lives into battle…. It was daunting. Not unwelcomed, and I didn´t think myself incapable of doing so effectively, but still. The Headmaster hummed to himself, resting against his chair. It was the Headmistress the one to speak now.
"Condecoration for Dauntless Valor, two Atlesian Silver Crosses for Field Performance, Merit of Selflessness in the face of Daunting Odds for the recovery, against orders, mind you, of injured Specialists on the field, another two Atlesian Golden Crosses for merits on the field, the breaching of Firah City, and for the act of holding the Crystalline Steps of Firah Palace alone, without support against odds that defied logic, mere skill, or luck…." She eyed me dangerously, making me almost gulp. Yeah….self-preservation is not something you keep after dying…or seeing the shit we saw on that campaign.
"Mr. Amaranth, just what the hell were you thinking?" She asked calmly, but toying with the riding crop, eyes gleaming in unspoken threats. Shit, she was scarier than Ahriman. I answered truthfully.
"I wasn't Ms. Goodwitch. On most of those occasions, I simply…. Acted, I suppose. On Firah, though, it was such chaos, such firestorm and roaring chaos, that I just….let go, went full out." I closed my eyes as the acrid smell came back to haunt me, again. The simulations in my head began to rumble harder. It was an old pastime my new dad had taught me to keep my mind working. And it was useful to keep mind-readers from getting anything from you.
"I'm afraid most of the reports of the Siege of Firah are….incomplete, to put it mildly. How bad was it?" Asked Ozpin, suddenly by my side. I almost jumped at that. Just who long ha I had my eyes closed for?
"Officially, sir?" I asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Truthfully, Mr. Amaranth" He answered, smiling and placing a hand on my shoulder. My dislike of the man cooled down a little. Maybe another change of this timeline was that Ozpin wasn't such an asshole here. I hoped so, at least.
"It was hell, sir. Hell, blood and fire" I passed a hand through my hair as the images flashed into my eyes. My breath quickened a little, but I remained calm, I remained in control. I had seen worst. But it was not fear. It was righteous anger, it was fury and hate. I was no green fresh recruit. I was Atlas´s Knight. And I had a well-earned reputation.
"It took three days to breach the walls, not two, like the official report states, and the reason it happen as so, was because Field-Marshall Heagen ran out of patience and ordered us to level the walls and anyone standing on them. So, I happily obliged" I cracked my neck at the words echoing in my lips, phantom memories of a good man that had been forced to do horrible things. It would have taken more hadn't I lost my patience and used an Ironclad Dreadnaught to shatter the walls. And several plasma cannons.
"I leveled 20 meters of reinforced wall, and I entered through, followed closely by the rest of the Ninth, Sixth and Eight Battalions….. Some 4.000 men, with the reserves and support troops coming right behind us, twice our number is combat androids. Some 150 Protector-class tanks, and half as many Stalker class-combat androids. Most of them were veterans, most of them, older, more experienced and battle-hardened than me. Barely a quarter of those reached the steps of the Palace" I stood up and walked towards the windows, hands crossed behind my back, eyes trailing the sea. None of the professors said a thing, although I feel a strange recognition from the Headmistress. And I guessed she might have fathomed who my dad was.
"Each street was a firefight, each square, a killzone, each civilian, rigged with explosives, each window, a sniper team. It was probably the fastest hours of my life because my heart rate never descended from 140 beats per minute. I lost count of the people dying around me, or the buildings we took, secured, and then suddenly exploded when we passed by. There was a point…." I took a quick breath before continuing "That we were just blasting anything that moved, crawled, or breathed. No hesitation, just quick answers" Images flashed by my eyes, of a tank blowing a school sky-high when a rocket flew off a window and struck a group of engineers trying to pry a man from the wreckage of a broken tank, a house full of dead soldiers that had been gutted by knives and sharp sticks, angry small green eyes that held an explosive as the kid ran towards me and my boys, and the red paste he was transformed into when I used "Crusader" on him.
"I remember there was an outrage where some images were filtered…." Ozpin trailed "But I didn´t know it was that bad" He told me truthfully.
"The images were filtered by our intelligence group on purpose. They were the less… brutal ones. We were forced to kill bloody children professor…." I would have continued, but a blast of aura had me on the ground. I blinked to get the blurriness off my eyes, as a furious Glynda Goodwitch stalked me with purple power roaring from under her fingertips.
"You HAD to kill children?!" She almost roared, knuckles white as she gripped her riding crop "YOU HAD TO?!" Ozpin moved to calm the woman, but I spoke first.
"When said children charged at us holding explosives, yes, I had to" That, stopped the blonde woman dead on her tracks, hands falling to her side in utter shock. Ozpin help her sit down, and then looked at me in a mysterious way I could not decipher. The blonde woman seemed lost for a moment. I could not blame. High Chancellor Fallon had been their friend, a staunch ally against the Grimm, or so I had found out. He had been considered by many a good man.
He ended being another vain dictator with delusions of grandeur.
"I always knew Fallon was….radical in many ways, but I didn't think my old friend would step to such limits….Indoctrination was always a topic in which he spent much research time" I chuckled dryly at the remark, but didn't add much to it.
"Well, Mr. Amaranth. I believe that you have revealed more than enough classified information to us for now. And your team will need you. But I would like for you tomorrow after class to join me and Ms. Goodwitch, for a final review, if you wouldn´t mind" I nodded and shrugged. It was fine by me.
"You may leave" He added with a small smile, and I happily obliged, but when I was barely two steps from the elevator, something pulled tugged at my sleeve, and before I could say anything, I was enveloped In slender but firm arms, and brought into a deep embrace. It took me a moment to realize Glynda Goodwitch was hugging me tightly, and I couldn´t but return the hug.
"Thank you headmistress" I whispered.
"Not a problem at all, young man. You are so much like your father" I chuckled at that. She was not wrong, from the hair to my posture, I did look like my dad. I readjusted my glasses a little. I didn't need them, not anymore. They were a memory for my first life. The second had ridden me of such nimieties.
"Don't say that in front of him, or he will poop a vessel" I told her with a chuckle.
"Really?" She asked with the faintest of smirks.
"Yeah. He does not like it"
{CYPR}
I opened the door to my dorm, and found three women staring at me in different ways.
The first one, the red-headed amazon looked concerned, worried and relieved to see the small smile on my face, meaning I had not been expelled or something worse. She came right beside me and pulled a chair for me to slum into.
"Took you long enough" Growled out the blonde brawler, red eyes glaring at me from her position. I smiled at her in response. Good Lord, it was strange to see her filled with so much…hate and anger.
"The Headmaster wanted to reassure me that I was up for the task of leader, and ask questions about m military service" I answered simply, passing my hand over my hair. The third woman's eyes were full of calm and reassurance.
"I suppose he was impressed, then" Rennet said, her pink hair now left to fall behind her back, like a waterfall of sakura flowers in blossom. I almost frowned at that, how did she know I had military honors?
"You served?" Asked the blonde, now in a siting position, eying me carefully, seizing me up and down. I nodded slowly. I was the team leader. I wanted to lead, and I needed their trust, so I could not lie, nor withhold important information. I close my eyes, and with my elbow on my knees, eyes glued to the floor, I told them
"I served in the Atlesian Military, Marine Core, Ninth Battalion, 1st Legion. I was at Pirah, at Mantle, at Cronebreak Pass, River Hallad and Hell´s Mouth. Served with distinction in all of them, so it would seem. Earned my medals and my scars, and my leave of military forces to study at Beacon on my own petition. I was there when we broke Firah Palace´s gates and dragged that tyrant from his mighty chair, and stood to attention where General Ironwood and Field Marshall Heagen shoot the bastard in the head" Pyrrha flinch a little, and I could see a strange emotion pass over the pink-haired girl´s eyes. It was satisfying. Not that I could blame her. I had almost killed the bastard myself.
But my father didn't want me to burn him alive.
"Wait! Wait, wait, WAIT!" The red-eyed woman was suddenly in front of me, crouched to look at me right in the eyes. I couldn´t help but notice they were purple now, not red.
"You are telling us you served from the first battle of the War for Solitas to the last one? And actually managed to fight in the biggest conflicts of it?" She asked in what I presumed was utter disbelief. I nodded slowly.
"The First Legion is General Ironwood's own. We were in the thick of it. High Chancellor Fallon knew that to shatter the atlesian war machine, he needed Ironwood dead. The General knew that as well. So he baited him again and again into every one of the engagements we took part in. Fallon might have been great at speeches and dirty war, but he sucked as commander" The three of them were eyeing me in a strange way.
"Well, fuck me, soldier boy. You might just make do as team leader" She smiled a little, the first time I had seen her all day long "You are pretty badass" I smiled myself and got up from the chair, extending my hand toward her.
"And you are not so bad yourself, Xia Long. First in combat training in your class, took down you first Grimm at age six " She smirked and took my hand.
"Well, aren't you well informed? Seemed like we have a team of badasses right here, eh?" I laughed at that.
"In the Headmaster´s own words, a 4 times champion, a war veteran, a renowned bounty hunter and a star student for Signal" Rennet took a few measured steps forward, not commenting on her bounty hunter condition, and smiled softly. She felt like nobility, and I would know. I had to deal with a lot of rich guys back home. Prepotent rich people acted just like prepotent nobility.
"We will make quite the impression, wouldn´t you all agree?" She asked, eying at me, blue eyes shining in a manner that made me smile, my own amber eyes gleaming in excitement. Oh Salem, you unadulterated bitch. I'm coming for you, and I bring the big guns with me.
"I feel like we will form a great team" Pyrrha added, and I could help but catch a slight awkwardness in her words. Right, big celebrity, dad is a political powerhouse that might or might not have ties with terrorist anti-faunus groups. Of course she was going to be socially awkward. And I was all too eager to help in that regard.
I passed a hand behind the shoulder and brought her close to me, and to the small circle that we had formed, smiling all them. She let an extremely cute yelp of surprise, but I ignored it. This time.
"You can bet on that, partner. We are going to make a quite impressive difference, if I may say so myself" Yang smiled, a full smile that seem more proper of the Yang from the RWBY series than the current one, and she too brought an arm over Pyrrha, making her let out another extremely cute yelp, and also pulled her own partner in the circle, Rennet flowing naturally into the motion, bringing her arm over my shoulder, a smile on both their faces.
"Team CYPR?" I asked, smiling.
"Hell yeah! Team CYPR!" yang pumped her arm into the air, her smile almost blinding, eyes purple and shining in hope and expectation.
"Team CYPR we are" Rennet added softly.
"Yes, Cyrus" My partner smiled at me, green eyes almost shining in her eagerness to help "Team CYPR"
"Then" I continued, placing my arm behind my back "As Team Leader, I feel like it would be proper to speak of the rules our team will have" Yang frowned at that, eyes going red and opening her mouth to protest, before I cut her off.
"We watch each other´s backs, in, and out of the field. I don't know how you guys feel or act at home. But we are a team. And that makes us family. We protect each other, we help each other. If any of us struggles somewhere, we help him, and he helps us with anything else. We rise as one, and we do not fall. I swear an oath to lead you o the best of my abilities, and I only expect you to follow me into the fires of battle with all you have" The three girls nodded, all smiling at the words, zeal in their eyes, especially Yang.p
"If any of you feels like they need to talk about problems, vent out steam in the gym, go for a walk, or just feel like having company, do not hesitate to tell me, or call me. I won't speak for the rest of you, and I know that we have just met, so trust is a little scarce at the moment, but I'm team leader, so you can count on me for that and more. I don't care if it is family problems, a dick boyfriend, or a bitchy friend or sibling, tell me, and I help in any way I can, okay?" Pyrrha smiled and nodded, standing a little taller now after that. Rennet had a wide smile on her face, almost as she had been expecting that small speech. Yang had a serious frown on her features. She simply eyed me and said.
"I'll be holing you on that, soldier boy" I made a smiling bow with my head, and gestured to Yang to speak. She quickly caught on to what I was trying to do, and smiling, continued.
"I don't give a shit if the Brothers themselves look wrong at you, nobody messes with any of us, and gets away with it. Period" Yang´s smile returned, eyes still red, a feral glint in her features. This, she liked "We stick together. If anyone wants to start a fight with any of you, he starts a war with all of us, me, personally" She growled out, smashing a first into her open palm. I motioned to Rennet to continue.
"Teamwork is an essential part of our job. So we need to keep working and improving our skills, but also sharpen each other. We will learn much from the rest of us and others so do not feel scared to learn or teach something the rest of us do not know. May it be in combat, or in studies. Experiment and find out new things we might do together" She looked at me straight in the eyes for the next part.
"We will be dancing in the razor´s edge most of the time, so we will need to trust each other and understand just how far we can push ourselves and each other on combat. So, we all need to know just what our semblances and weapons can and cannot do" Well, I can understand that one. I liked her already. She seemed like a reliable second in command. And she was pretty too. I nodded and gestured towards Pyrrha, who, to her credit, didn't even flinch, more used to attention than to affection, it would seem.
"We are hunters and huntresses. We protect people. That is our foremost duty. Say Grimm, and shield those that cannot protect themselves. We need to keep that as our main focus" I nodded approvingly of the words. That was an important rule.
"Not bad, cereal girl. Good rule" Yang said, flashing Pyrrha a thumbs up.
"Now that that is settled" Rennet said, smiling a little too much for my liking", I believe living arrangements should be informed to our mighty leader" Her smile turned a little…..dark, at that. I frowned. What had the girls planned? Yang had a shit-eating grin, and Pyrrha looked a little…embarrassed?! OH FUUUUUU-!
"We built bigger beds"
I face-palmed hard enough for said beds to tremble. Tzeentch, fuck you and your reality meshing ways. Also, I would say fuck you Slaanesh, but you would like it. It was not that I had a problem with the beds themselves, you see. I had a problem with the fact that Pyrrha´s stuff was beside MY stuff. They hadn´t built a big bed for the girls and left a small one for me, no. They, meaning Rennet and Yang, placed us by partner.
Which meant Pyrrha and I were going to sleep together.
And by the look both Rennet, and Yang, had, this was NOT discussible.
Thank God I use pajamas.
{CYPR}
Sleep evaded me, once again, as every time I closed my eyes, flashes of the War of Solitas came back to haunt me. I sighed inwardly and kept staring into the white ceiling of the dorm, having chosen to sleep on the edge of the bed. I frowned at the fact that I was sleeping with a girl on the other side of the bed. Yang and Rennet had argued that the room wasn't big enough, being in the older part of the complex, and short of making bunk beds, we would have to endure this. So I had resigned myself to that fate. I just hoped to wake up before the girls did, so as to not suffer any embarrassing photos.
Pyrrha, thanks to the Lord, was sleeping comfortably in her side of the bed, in a red pajama of…..bunnies…. well, which I was not expecting, but decided to let it go. Everyone has its likes I suppose. I smiled at seeing her peaceful feature, almost like porcelain, yet holding the strength of chiseled marble. It was outstanding how pretty she was, and et how fit she was. Seeing the show, no one would have guessed, baring those with some common sense, of course, that Pyrrha was…well, extremely well-toned, from the six-pack to the powerful shoulders and strong arms.
And do not get me started in her thighs. Good Lord, I could kill a carnifex with those thighs.
I almost snickered at my own thoughts, before catching a glimpse of movement. I silently moved my head as to see what was it, tensing up. Rennet had gotten up from her bed without a single noise, and now that she had seen my reaction, realized I was awake as well. A quick hand gesture made me get up and move silently towards her. She pointed in between us and the roof, and I got her meaning, placing a hand on her shoulder.
I knew that using my Semblance in such a way was kind of….stupid, but practice made perfect, so I was more than willing. In barely an instant, I found the currents of energy that bin reality together, pulling at the energy with a small tingling in my fingers, darkness coalescing in the corners of the room, slithering silently and quickly towards us, forming an orb around both our bodies, of an oily, yet smooth substance that in a second made a sphere around us. It barely took a thought for the sphere to open again, and this time we were on the rooftop of the building, two floors above, under the night sky, listening to the night fauna and the rustle of the winds on the leaves of the trees, the dainty sound of waves echoing in my enhanced ears easily.
"I didn't know that you could that" She said, blue eyes eying me in wonder. I smiled back, and sat down, back against one of the small windows. She sat down cross-legged beside me, eying the shattered moon.
"You wanted to talk about something?" I asked, letting small pulses of aura flow outwards, expanding soundlessly and invisible outwards, searching for strange movement, rogue aura signs, or any Grimm in the area. Generally, this would have been a very bad idea, but a mix of my semblance, and my massive aura reserved made it quite easy. She nodded still eying the moon.
"What you said down there…." She trailed off a little, blue pools staring down my amber stars "You knew who I was before I even spoke with you, didn't you?" I nodded a little.
"Rennet Valvury, Bounty hunter, class 4. You were originally from the Kingdom of Solitude. As far as I know, you were with the refugees that fled towards Atlas during the war; fleeing prosecution and the work camps Chancellor Fallon was placing anyone that opposed him. Did I get that right?" She didn't react for a moment, her gaze sweeping the sky and the stars that we could see from there, the light pollution of the school being low enough for us to actually catch a glimpse of the beautiful starred sky.
"Yes" She said, sitting now with her legs against her chest, hugging them close "Well, most of it. We did not flee, we hid in villages in the mountains, hoping that time, hardship and snow would make us a less than inviting target, to huddle down and weather the storm. We were wrong. They got to us during the second year. It was a massacre. Unnamed peasants against huntsmen and huntresses. Hadn't Atlas´s forces arrived, I would have joined my parents and my family "She kept looking at the moon, eyes turned away from me. If it was because of tears or in simple remembrance, I did not know. But I placed my arm in her shoulder anyway.
"I'm sorry, Rennet. I did not know. I didn't wish to bring back painful memories, so I apologize….." She shook her head, sitting on her knees again.
"No, no. You didn't do anything Cyrus. Those memories are a part of my life. I have long accepted those deaths and I am thankful to those that saved me and brought me back to Atlas, and later, to Vacuo. Life gave me a second chance" Now, she was looking at me. Her eyes look misty, but she was smiling, features calm and collected.
I hugged her nonetheless.
She didn't recoil or avoid my hug, almost easing herself into it, placing her head against my shoulder, giggling lightly.
"You are very huggable" She said softly. I chuckled at that.
"I am proud of that fact, you know?" She smiled again at me and sighed.
"Sorry, I got a little sentimental" She said, reincorporating herself, returning to her sitting position, all decor recovered in an instant, her long sakura hair suddenly placed into a long ponytail. A smile tugged at my lips.
"The most normal thing in the world after what we were talking about" I said. Tears were more than expected. Losing everything is not easy. Much less when you also lose everyone you know.
"That is why I became a bounty hunter" She said, passing her finger through her hair, combing with her slender fingers "I was so terrified all the time, so angry with the world, because every time I saw a gun, or heard a shoot, I was back there, in that small village, hiding in the snow from those that had sworn to protect us…." She took a deep breath.
"So I choose to confront that fear, to fight it. I learned to hunt, to live with and by my weapon. I wanted to repay what Atlas had done for me, what people had offered me"
"So you became a hunter" I stated in slight awe. Not so weird. People could react differently to trauma. To choose to fight it…to become what you fear to surpass that fear….is brave beyond words. She was brave beyond words.
"But not of Grimm… of the other type of monsters, the ones that feel when they do what they do. The ones I'm afraid of….."
"Of men" Her eyes shone.
"Of men, woman, Faunus, I did not care. If you took a life, if you raped and assaulted others, I would hunt you down" There was a glint of steel in those azure pools. I didn't doubt her words. Not like I hadn´t seen her files on the way back from the Headmaster´s office. I didn't need to believe her. I knew it was true.
"So, you began to face hardened delinquents at age 15… as a sort of treatment to your trauma? " I summarized.
"Sound crazy, right? I thought you would want to know if you had an unstable person on your…."
"I tore 4 White Fang rioters to pieces when I was 6" I answered calmly, and I almost laughed when her head snapped towards me like an owl.
"What?" She asked, shocked. I shrugged.
"I was 6 when I, a friend and her sister were ambushed during riots on Mantle after going to see my grandparents. The car was mauled, and she was pulled from the car. I reacted….badly" It was quite the understatement, really. I hadn't planned on summoning a pack of ravenous genestealers with rending claws, but they got what they deserved. Rennet eyed me, a glint of fear in her eyes that hurt more than I expected. I liked her. I didn't want to scare her,
"You were…..six?" I nodded, closing my eyes before continuing.
"And when my dad was gravely injured during the Provocation War, well…. I ran from home" I began to laugh at the memory "My mum found me two days later, over a pile of dead Grimm. For two full days, I rampaged through the snowy tundra…. Until she found me and told me my dad was going to make it. So, what I suppose I´m trying to convey, is that you aren´t crazy, and you are not alone" I opened my eyes to see Rennet looking at me, eyes full of doubts and….gratitude. I could see in her the pain, the hurt, the fear of letting down defenses built to let the pain out, to keep those that might cause it outside. When you were hurt as she had been, you don't trust easily. And we had met years after the event that hurt her so much, at a time when she had had time to somewhat heal some of the wounds in her soul. Some, not all of them. The barriers, the distrust, the attitude of the tough bounty hunter was still there, a shield made by circumstance and life lessons.
And yet, I could sense the sense of kinship, the bond of having been through many bad things. We both were survivors of the war for Solitas. The only difference is that she didn't volunteer to go through that frozen hell.
"Thank you" She whispered "Would you mind…?"
"Keeping this a secret? Not at all. Unless some crazy old bounty of yours comes back for revenge, I don't think Pyrrha and Yang need to know yet" That got a laugh out of her.
"I think the Headmaster was right Cyrus….you are a good leader" I shrugged.
"Tell me that when we graduate, ok?" She giggled.
"Deal" She stood up "I'm going down. You coming?" I shook my head.
"Afraid not. Sleep is avoiding me like the plague. I think I'll stay here some more….I´ll come down later, I promise" I told her, smiling more than I intended. She caught on a little, nodding before leaving. But she had taken 2 steps when she called me.
"Cyrus…." She said, a single blue orb eying me with what I thought was worry "What you said….It also goes in reverse. You can count on me as much as I can count on you" I nodded at her words, and made a slight bow with my head.
"Thank you Rennet. I'll keep it in mind" She smiled, did a small bow of her own, and left. I watched her leave, pink hair dancing to the night breeze. I smelled the sea for some reason.
It made me smile.
I made the call some 10 minutes later, after making sure my scouting yielded no results. It ringed three times before he picked it up.
"Yes?" His tone was stern, military and commanding, of a man that did not like to waste time. It was his personal scroll, and knowing him, he would have picked it up without looking at the number, too busy with many other duties. The sun would be rising now on Atlas. Of course I would catch him in his office
"Hey dad" I said softly, cracking my neck to the side.
"Hey kiddo" He answered, his tone transforming, becoming warmer, kinder, calmer, and telling me that he was extremely glad to hear my voice "I have been told you made….quite the impression" There was mirth and worry in equal parts on his tone. I was using only the audio feature, not wanting him to see that I was sitting on the rooftop of Beacon. That would bring questions, that would lead to my nightmares, and I didn't want to repeat our last argument.
Not that day, at the very least.
"That´s what they told you?" I asked, barely holding my laughter down.
"That was my assessment after you eviscerated a Dreadclaw Alpha with Wolf Teeth" He stated, matter-of-factly. I could picture his deadpan stare, and it actually made me laugh, a full belly laugh that had me on the floor. I could hear him chuckling in the background. It took me a few moments to regain my composure. Good Lord, I needed that.
"Great work son. You performed beautifully on the field, and I know you will be a great leader" That made me take a deep breath, pride swelling up at the words.
"Thanks dad. I learned for the best" I answered, getting up and walking back towards the roof entrance.
"You mother would be proud too, kiddo" That almost made me stumble. My father normally didn't bring my mom up. So it took me by surprise. Being reincarnated into RWBY wasn't the worst fate ever. Losing my mother to a White Fang attack was. No matter this was my second life. Losing a parent is not easy. Not at all.
"I hope so dad, I hope so" There was silence for a moment.
"How is your team?"
"Quaint, to say the least. Did you get the files I sent you?"
"Yes, looked them over. Impressive range of backgrounds. Nikos will be a good partner for you. Might rein your recklessness a bit. Although if Xia Long is anything like her father, she will have double work. If she is more like her mother….Don't take your eyes off her…."
"Dad" I began, just to be cut short.
"I have a hole in my office to remind me of it. You have a scar from your neck to your waist. Cyrus, please. Raven is dangerous and duplicitous by nature and upbringing. I'm not saying her daughter is the same, but just in case, keep an eye on her" There was a shadow of fear on his words, a silent proclamation.
I almost lost you to her. I won't lose you again.
I sighed, massaging the bridge of my nose, a habit I had picked up from him, before nodding slowly.
"Okay dad, I will" I would. This Yang was nothing like the one I knew. She was more like Raven. And until I could fully trust her, the itching of my scar would be a good reminder.
"Thank you, son. Valvury, on the other hand, is efficient and very skilled. She will be a great asset. Already preparing tactics and plans from your first impression?" I hummed at that for a moment.
"A close-range powerhouse of a brawler, an adaptable close-medium range combatant, a long range sniper, almost a walking artillery battery, and me. I think I might have some ideas" I stated, smiling a feral smile.
"Hey dad, did you send a letter to Ozpin?" I asked, not really knowing why he would do that. He had always wanted me to thrive on my own actions. War medals and battel-honors were nice and all, but he understood that I was seeking to put space between myself and the army, for a time at least.
"Oh, the letter…" He trailed off, and by his tone, I already knew the answer to my question. He hadn't.
"So, high-Command, and I suspect, the Council, went behind your back" The growl was answer enough.
"Indeed. They wanted you to make a good impression, as if you needed their help to do that yourself. Dammed fools" I chuckled at the compliment.
"Don´t worry old man, I think I did just that. I´ll go now. I have classes tomorrow"
"Well, good luck son" My father stated, warmth in his voice "And be careful, okay?" I knew letting me go was the hardest choice he had made since letting me join the military. And I was thankful for it.
"I will dad. Love you. Talk to you later" Id him, before my father hanged. I headed back to my room. After all, I thought I might catch a few hours of sleep.
{CYPR}
I was wrong.
I was soooo wrong.
I had been woken up by a strangely shy Pyrrha, while the other two were arguing about something I did not quite catch. I quickly shook the sleep off my face and managed to establish some sense of order for us to get ready for class. I had never been one to be late, so while the girls showered and prepared for class in quick succession, I focused on the room, spreading my semblance over it, searching for bugs, for anything that might be used for surveillance, espionage devices, or similar. I found nothing, which surprised me quite a bit. I wouldn't have placed past Ozpin to bug my room just in case, then again, he might have backed away from that option once I left his office yesterday night.
With the girls ready, I got changed and we headed to class, thanking the stars Rennet was such a light sleeper and she had brought a very strident alarm clock. Yang had not been happy, but she had complied with waking half an hour earlier than necessary, for us to actually decorate the room.
It took little time with my and Pyrrha´s semblances. Between her Polarity that allowed us to move the beds (which had metal frames, to my surprise), and my own semblance helping to move and place posters, trophies and decorations, we had it done in barely 20 minutes.
My and my partner´s side of the room featured a recruitment poster from Atlas signed by my family and my friend back at Atlas, a few replicas of robots and androids, several slivers of dust in display jars and my soon to be read books, while Pyrrha had added, to much of our chagrin, a few posters of the Vytal Festival, one of the cereals she was the mascot of, in which she appeared, and which she had explained was the first poster she had ever starred in, and was also signed by parents and her producer. She also placed her first trophy ever of the Mistral Tournament, a silver one actually, not a gold one, and a picture of her parents. She also had a poster of her dad I had glimpsed when we had been working on the decoration, one of the political ones, but she had quickly hidden it under the bed, I made a note to speak to her about placing it over the bed. The only two moments of tension had been when Yang finished her side and asked me why I too didn't have a picture of my family.
"Because I don´t have one without my mom" I answered simply, before continuing with the arrangement of the room, biting back a few choice words that I did not want to say like that. My mother was still a sore spot for me, something only a handful knew about, and even less I was actually prepared to discuss it with. It was a lie also. My dad and I had a few photos of the both of us….but it didn't feel right without her, not yet at least. Rennet had caught on to this, but said nothing, just looked at me sympathetically.
The other had been when Rennet had taken from her bags a "Wanted" list.
And one of the photos was that of Raven Branwen.
I almost choked when I saw it, Pyrrha, being too precious of a honey puff, just stared confused, and yang….well, she looked at the picture, scoffed and kept placing her posters. I had to sit after that, under Pyrrha´s concerned care.
So I sat there in the seats of the atrium of our amphitheater of a class, looking like a half-rotten zombie while professor Port began his lecture. We had come a little earlier, hoping to snag a few good seats before the rest of class arrived, and also hoping to get an early breakfast, because Yang was not a human being without her coffee, Pyrrha need her cereals, and I need food. Lots of food. Rennet, though, was the only one among us that was, in fact, a morning person. I was sitting in the middle, with Rennet to my right, Pyrrha to my left, and Yang just beside Rennet, sleeping the class off. And I could not blame her.
I still wanted to die.
Shooting myself with Absolution seemed like a magnificent idea at the moment, or to use Wraith-hunter to vanish from sight. The man was probably the most boring and invested storyteller I had ever known. I sat there for the whole lecture, barely managing to keep my eyes open. Rennet seemed to understand my distress, and patted me in the back reassuringly. How she managed to look awake and invested was beyond me. Yang was asleep, almost drooling on her notebook, while Pyrrha tried futilely to take notes from the lecture. I voiced my desire to end this suffering to Rennet in a whisper, and her answer was understandable.
"Either shoot me first, or make sure my uniform doesn't get stained" She whispered back, abed of sweat coming down her face. I nodded, barely registering Port´s words.
Until shit hit the fan.
"So, do any of you believe that you embody the qualities of a true huntsman?" I almost cried with joy at those words. That meant that I got to actually do something! Finally!
"I do sir!" I said immediately, and, as I expected, the white-haired heiress that was sitting two rows behind me joined in my declaration with her own. I turned towards her, catching her eye. I winked at her and she sported the smallest of smiles, even if her eyes spoke more than her words would have been able to convey.
"Ah! Mr. Amaranth, and Ms. Schenne! Two superb examples, I see. Who would like to try first?" I wasn't listening to Port, still focused on Weiss. I made a slight bow.
"Ladies first?" I asked kindly. She got up and descended the stairs towards the lockers to change into her "combat skirt". Gods I hated that thing. She only spoke when she reached me.
"Always the gentlemen" She said simply, not breaking her step, not smiling, not showing more than the bare minimum decorum, with a hint of familiarity.
"A knight always looks over her dame" I answered in kind. She eyed me with a hint of mirth in her eyes, before passing by. I sat down again, under the stares of all my team…. And the whole bloody class.
"Childhood friend" I answered in kind, resting my back against the chair, waiting for the shit-show to start.
Weiss exited the changing room fully ready for combat, Myrtenaster at the ready. I rolled my shoulders and stood ready. In the show, this had gone…bad. And I had yet to see how she would react to the encouragement from her team. Especially without Yang there.
"Prepare yourself, young soon-to-be huntress!" I groaned at the overly dramatic professor and his hand gestures, as his weapon opened the Grimm cage. A Boarbatusk, not too big, not reaching two meters long. Nothing Weiss could not handle.
The Grimm charged forward, raging like the caged animal it was, hurdling itself, spinning forward along its spine. Weiss sidestepped the blow and slashed the beast´s side, keeping the motion going to activate her glyphs, using the Gravity Glyphs to lock the creature in place for a killing blow to the exposed back. But the creature hadn't stopped its momentum, smashing itself again the side of the small room. Weiss´s glyph missed by merely an instant and she was already lifting her guard for the next attack, cycling the dust chambers to get to fire dust, when Ruby interjected.
"Weiss! Careful with the horns!" The heiress flickered her gaze for a moment to watch the black and red-haired girl, when the Grimm attacked, having gotten the opening it required. Weiss reacted quickly, bringing her rapier in a defensive movement, intending on pushing the Grimm away. But it was stronger than her and faster than she had anticipated. It locked its tusk on her blade, and with a savage pull, threw the weapon through the air. Weiss reacted fast, using the belly of the beast to push herself from its range, skidding through the ground, racking her head to find a way to get her sword back.
The beast didn't give him the chance. It charged straight at her, murder in its eyes.
Weiss tried to pull away. She would have managed, I knew she would, and she would have probably finished the fight in a spectacular display of skill.
But time slowed down, energy ran through my bloodstream, my nervous system, my whole body. I could see Weiss moving, the Grimm jumping forward. I could smell that same acrid smell in my nose; feel the fire against my skin, the blood on my arms and face, the smoke in my lungs. I was there, again, amidst the fire, flame, and fury.
I could hear the sound again, the shell casing hitting the ground, the sound of steel scraping again leather. The sensation of everything around me shattering.
I wasn't in the class anymore. I was back there, in that god-forsaken window, all of it flashing before my eyes. I could feel the blood on my face. I could hear the glasses dropping; I could feel the death around me.
Andi was back into the class, where I could see the beast sinking its teeth on Weiss´s neck, I could see and taste the blood. An illogical thing. She was well trained, had a full aura, and Professor Port was right there. So Weiss shouldn´t have anything to fear, logically.
Same as my mother.
What was the chance, I'm I right?
But I didn't give chance a single inch.
Not today.
Today, I fucking moved.
(Third Person POV)
Rennet almost jumped when the shot roared, and the single diamond-tip, mass reactive explosive shell impacting just over the hind legs of the beast, blowing it up to its torso, the single bolt round scattering its innards over the arena ground.
Another thing that was different, or a misconception of anything else, is that the Grimm do not bleed. They do.
A lot.
The blood disintegrates fast, and does not leave stains. It does not smell, nor does it have a taste, and it barely registers to touch. But they do bleed. Weiss´s red-marred dress is statement enough of this.
It took her an instant to realize her team leader had opened fire. Cyrus was standing tall, his aura on full display, the white and black energy flowing around him, forming a trench coat above his uniform, black and white, the color moving and mixing, changing and looking alive, armor shining in places, such as his arms of legs, giving him the looks of a rogue knight, the whole class staring at him in awe, fear, shock, or even annoyance.
They have never heard the roar of a boltgun. And Rennet could not blame them. The weapon, Absolution Cyrus had called it, sounded like a furious dragon. The weapon looked like a blocky, although sleek gun, a forward drum magazine, decorated with angel wings in the sides, and a scope above it, looking perfectly made for Cyrus´s hand. It was made of the same energy his trench coat was, although to her it seemed more compact, harder and deadlier, most of the gun black with white highlights. It was, in Cyrus's own words, a construct, given form by his Semblance, and whose ammunition was made from his aura, and this, allowed him to create powerful and varied weapons and used them to his leisure. From tanks, to daggers, he could create "templates" he had called them, and form those templates, the more use and action they saw, the more personality and personalization they received, until Cyrus's finally named them, and they reached a level in which they didn´t just look like cheap copies, but whole new weapons, handcrafted with his aura and powered by his will to fight. Thus, Absolution was his own custom-made bolter pistol that used shells filled with self-replicating mutagenic toxins. He had called it Mortis rounds. The effects were in full display, as the Grimm began to slowly corrode from the inside out, still fighting it with its natural regeneration.
But it still was a bolt pistol.
Meaning the Boarbatusk was missing its lower half. And it was still moving. Deciding that the harm was already done, Cyrus let a growl and began to descend the steps from the atrium to the center of the room, eyes going from Weiss to the Grimm and back. When he reached the beast, it was trashing and biting at the air, possibly in a lot of pain. Not that any of them care.
Cyrus placed my foot over its neck and lifted Absolution to its head, throwing a glance in Weiss´s direction. She regarded him with cold eyes, not angry, but distant nonetheless, which bothered Rennet quite a bit. Weren't they childhood friends?
"What up with the uppity ice-bitch?" Half whispered, half-growled out Yang, eying Cyrus with what Rennet identified as mild concern. She shook her head. She did not know. Pyrrha looked at the silent conversation between her partner and his friend in worry. What had happened between the two of them?
"Want to finish it off?" Cyrus finally asked. She took a moment to think it over and shook her head.
"Your shoot, your kill" She told her, eyes still cold. Cyrus nodded closing his eyes and taking a long breath.
And then he fired thrice, everyone but Rennet, already used to the sound of such weapons, Weiss and Professor Port jumping or flinching at the powerful sound.
"Impressive display Ms. Scheene!" Said the jolly mustache man, walking towards the both of them, and to everyone's surprise, patting Cyrus in the back "And a great reaction, Mr. Amaranth. Not a single second of hesitation your reaction! I see your military instincts are still sharp" Shit; now EVERYONE would know that. Cyrus held a sigh and pulled at Myrtenaster, tendrils of light and darkness tugging the blade towards him, before he presented it to Weiss, handle held towards her, blade towards his heart.
She hesitated for a moment.
For everyone else, this would be a friend giving another friend her weapon. To her, it was much more. It was a question, a silent declaration of intentions. One movement from Weiss, and Cyrus´s heart would be pierced, right then and there, killing him in the spot. He was asking her: Do you trust me? Because I trust you.
Rennet closed her hand into a fist, ready to use her own semblance if needed. She trusted their leader, not the white-clad girl.
She picked the blade and gave him a slight bow, which he answered in kind.
"Now, I think that will be enough for today! Class dismissed" Rennet let out a sigh of absolute relief. Yeah, it had been quite a lot, alright.
FUCK YOU, SALEM!
I have a boltgun! And I'm going to use it!
Hehe, first weapon and semblance revealed. Hope you guys enjoy.
Bye bye!