Chapter 20: Multiplayer-Chaos Theory
And I'm back, with another Gamer like fic, only one that is one of the few I consider both good and well made. Created by NeoShadows, this is a story I truly recommend, with the only shame that the author has had a leave of absence for a while. Still, this is a story I enjoy. Have fun.
P.S. Word has it the author of Multiplayer will be returning soon. If you don't believe me, just go to another of his story involving a Certain Magical Index, read the epilogue of it, and it'll explain it all.
"All right people, today's the day. The day we get to see one of the best worlds I have had the pleasure of attaining." Mayden shouted with a high amount of glee that had the audience wondering what kind of world this is. While Mayden has showed happiness at the other worlds, this one seemed to affect him the most.
"You seem really, joyful." Oscar says.
"Is this world really that good?" Blake asked.
"I'm not sure about you guys exactly, but to me it is!" Ah, Multiplayer. How the Creator of that world made such good detail, such exquisite work into it. It made Mayden cry that it stopped updating after so long. Thank goodness though that in the coming days, it will update once more as mentioned in another world involving time travel. Wahoo!
"So, what's this world about?" Cardin wants to know, with many also agreeing.
"Yeah. Is it some torn world planet?" Mercury cued in with Emerald just scowling at his choice of theories.
"Oh-oh, a place with weapons of all kinds?" Ruby's eyes glew in wonder, with her team just rolling their eyes.
"I'm hoping for a nice drama." Tock says her suggestion. Hey, she might be a cold-blooded killer, but she enjoyed her dramas. They were fun.
"Whatever it is, I'm hoping it's something interesting." Qrow said while he drank some more wine. He's so glad he could still feel the buzz yet not get a hangover. This place ruled.
"Oh it's interesting all right Qrow." Mayden told him. "In fact, this world features a concept most of you should all know. Excluding the new arrivals."
"Concept?" Weiss tried remembering what they've seen that had such a thing. "What kind of feature are we talking here?"
"The Gamer system." That got a bunch of chattering to go around. The Gamer system. Something that can change the entire world if used by the right person. Not a thing that should be messed with carelessly.
"Gamer system?" Whitley says. "What the heck is that?"
"No idea. Though it obviously involves games...I think." Cardin figured this system thing must have meant it's related to video games somehow. Or just something super weird. All the worlds had their own quirks here and there.
"Can somebody explain what this Gamer system is?" Tock went. She didn't like being left out of the loop.
"Oh that world." Roman smiled, recalling what Neo 'told' him. "Oh I'm going to enjoy this."
Neo nodded, though secretly hoped it'd be her that got this mythical Gamer power. As for Mayden, not wanting to explain he just zapped the information into the arrivals heads. He forgot if he did this or not, but oh well. He could just use his powers again if he had to. Being a Keeper rules.
As for the arrivals, they now understood everything.
The Gamer.
The ability to constantly learn new skills, gain immense power, always 'evolving' so to say. If used properly a person can be the strongest there is in the entire world. Oh how it tempted them all in their own ways. Shame that the only one who had that power was Roman from another world. Oh how they and even Roman envied that version.
"Of course, the person that has this power," Mayden then told the audience. "Is someone you all know. Man is this person lucky. Much better than the poor sap who got the Gamer, but is in a cruel world where women rule."
Hopefully that version survived that world of unjust womanly action.
"Now, on with the show." With that the screen lit up ready to show the cast what was happening and who had this Gamer power.
Night had quickly arrived sooner than Jaune would have liked. After the four of them had gathered what they felt would be necessary for their stake out they had followed after Sun to the location of the SDC shipment dropping into Vale. The docking bay was where they found themselves hiding out, the smell of the bay water hit Jaune's senses as they waited atop one of the building's rooftops close by. They had a good view of the entire docking bay but they had yet to find any sign of the White Fang to steal the massive crates dropped off. And if he was honest with himself, he was starting to grow bored.
"It's Jaune." Weiss said.
"Jaune." Ruby went.
"Mr. Arc has been stated to be a favorite if I recall." Ozpin went.
"This sucks." Mercury hoped it would be him.
"Hold on, couldn't be someone else?" Whitley said. He did notice some other people there after all.
"Doubtful." Adam wondered just what it was that made this Arc kid so popular in the multiverse. It was strange.
Only one way to find out.
Propping his head to rest on his arm, Jaune idly brought up the map of the docks. It was times like this he wished he had Ren's Scan: Grandscale. The ability only lasted a minute, but it gave a complete scan of the area along with the location of any enemies. Sighing, he turned his eyes to Ciel and Blake resting on their stomachs beside him, looking out for any signs of activity with patience and diligence. Maybe he should have gone with Sun for snacks when he had offered.
Speaking of the monkey faunus, Jaune felt a presence dropped by them. Sun munched on a green apple with little care, staring at the large crates with barely concealed boredom as he settled himself by Blake's side.
"Still nothing, huh?" Sun said through a mouthful of apple, offering one to Jaune with the help of his tail. Smiling in thanks, Jaune accepted the fruit and bit down on as Blake glared at the blond faunus.
"I thought you didn't have any money on you? Where did you get those apples?" she said with suspicion.
"Okay, so a fruit vendor might be missing a few apples right now. But! In my defense, who sells fruit late at night? That's just begging someone to rob them blind."
"..." Many could understand what Blakes thought were. Luckily, she didn't say anything, just had a small look of annoyance on her face.
As for Nora, she just looked excited. "Renny! Why didn't you tell me you had this fancy power called Grand-what's it!?"
"I don't have such a power Nora." Ren calmly told her with Nora booing. Still, it did make Ren wonder why he even had such an ability. Was it some new semblance this version of him had? Other worlds could after all equal different powers.
Jaune on the other hand just questioned how he and that girl Ciel was doing there. Ironwood thinking the same thing.
Blake didn't know what more she could say to Sun. Did he not understand that his actions made their kind look bad? Come to think of it, it was because of him that she had gotten into a fight with Weiss defending him. It must have been nice to be as oblivious as him. She looked to Jaune and Ciel to hear what they thought about his actions, but found herself smacking her head onto the floor of the roof as she found them both nonchalantly eating the stolen goods. Jaune, she could maybe understand, but she would have thought someone who acted so cordial and professional like Ciel would have something to say.
"Odd question, but you wouldn't have by chance stolen some Everybody Love Grape Soda while you were out?" Jaune asked Sun, only causing Blake to groan in disappointment.
"Nope, all they had was Everybody Loves Orange Soda."
Jaune stuck his tongue out in disgust, "Who the hell loves orange soda?"
"That's something I can agree on." Jaune nodded glad this version of him was at least sane. Only a weirdo with bad tastes could enjoy the orange variant.
"..." Ren said absolutely nothing.
Ciel raised her open hand in the air, queuing Sun to throw her one of said sodas. She didn't give Jaune's look of betrayal any mind as she popped the can open and took a sip.
'Am I the only one taking this seriously?' Blake felt a headache coming on, but found herself accepting one of Sun's apples in the end. She huffed, taking a grudging bite. Well it wasn't like they were going to get much done worrying over nothing. She was too tense. She just needed to calm down and relax.
But sadly, the moment she eased her shoulders and shut her eyes for a moment of peace, the loud roaring jets of an airship entered her ears. She winced along with the rest as they felt a strong wind hit them from their hiding spot. The large metal body of an airship slowly came into view from above their location, setting sights on the middle of the docking bay where the crates of Atlas Dust rested unguarded. Her heart sped up at the sight as she watched the aircraft touch ground and lower a ramp. It wasn't long until someone stepped down the ramp and her thoughts were confirmed.
The familiar bone like masks of the White Fang was a dead giveaway.
'Ah yes, this.' Adam still remembered when that fool Torchwick came back to the base, then explaining that all many of his members had been captured. And all for what, Dust? If the bull faunus remembered right, Cinder hadn't even used all the stolen Dust at all. Less than half really.
Roman also remembered this day. Like Adam, he didn't like it.
Mainly because he was once more right that those animals couldn't even make a proper getaway. Also because Red somehow found her way there. I mean, come on! How'd she even find that place?
Neo just smirked at him with a sign saying, 'Told you I should have come.'
"Yeah, yeah." Roman muttered not wanting to admit Neo had been right that day.
Seeing members of the White Fang steadily walk out of the large ship, Sun was actually bummed out that the rumors were true. It would have been nice to discover the culprits as ordinary humans. In his opinion, all the White Fang was good for was dragging the faunus name in the dirt. But Blake still had hopes for them despite what they had done. He didn't understand why with all that he had recently learned, but he guessed she still had some fondness for them. She did say she was born into it.
"You really thought it wasn't them, didn't you?" he asked softly. To his surprise, Blake shook her head with a bitter smile.
"No, some part of me kinda knew it was them. I just didn't want to believe what the others were saying. I guess I was just trying to fool myself and hope it was all some humans doing."
Jaune patted Blake's shoulder in support. She may have left the fang, but she still saw them as family. To hear them bad mouthed without any evidence must have hurt her. The White Fang was still a part of her even if she left them behind.
"What do you want to do now?" Ciel asked as they watched the masked grunts connect cables to the Dust containers. They could simply settle for taking pictures of the scene and hand it the authorities and be done with the matter. Better than confronting a group of terrorists.
"Now that's the smart choice. Better to call the authorities as trying to intervene can risk your life." Ironwood said glad Ciel made the right choice.
"Much as I hate to say it, but that seems like the smart choice." Qrow actually admitted. Ruby and Yang actually looking shocked. Ironwood feeling the same as he hadn't expected that. Not even Winter and Glynda-both who had good stoic expressions-were immune to this.
"What?' Qrow said to them. "Hey, I might be a bit of a daredevil, but even I'm not stupid enough to go in with a bunch of dudes with bullets and the intention to kill. Or at least, if I were younger. Now though, I totally can."
Yang and Ruby gulped, never having told Qrow what they did. Blake also looking down knowing what she did pretty much had been stupid. They only won thanks to Penny's arrival, who changed the tide of battle.
Blake clenched her fists. She wanted to stop them. Make them see that there was a better way than this. But she found herself frozen on the spot.
"Nice move kid." Qrow told her. Oh how wrong he would be. Blake already feeling down with Glynda just shaking her head having known about this. Children.
"What's the hold up? Don't you boys know that we ain't exactly incognito right now? You think no one's noticed a big old ship over the dock by now? I know you're all animals, but I didn't think you'd be as dumb as one."
The ears hidden by Blake's bow perked up at the sound of a new voice echoing in the air. Her eyes then spotted a well combed orange haired man wearing a stylish white suit and bowler hat casually stroll down the ramp. The man's green eyes twinkled with amusement watching the grunts nod their heads with nothing to say back. His name suddenly came to mind having been displayed many times by the major news outlets.
"Roman Torchwick?" Blake whispered in confusion, growing angry at the idea that someone like him was working alongside the White Fang. That didn't make any sense. The White Fang didn't work with humans, period. Adam would never agree to something like this.
'What happened there.' The White Fang weren't mercenaries, nor did they help humans. What changed? Adam then took a quick peek at Cinder. 'Oh right. Her.'
Ciel found it odd as well. Records showed that Roman Torchwick was a master thief with a record that stretched several pages ranging from petty theft to cold blooded murder. But none of their records showed that he was the type for something this big. What would someone like him have to gain from working with the White Fang?
Standing up, Blake reached for Gambol Shroud and readied herself to jump down. She needed answers and doing nothing would get her nowhere.
Jaune moved his hand to stop Blake but found her slipping past him and stealthily jumping below. He cursed, giving a signal to Sun and Ciel to follow after. Why did she have to be so gung-ho? Wasn't she a ninja? Doesn't charging in go against their code or something?
"Really." Blake went deadpanned. "You actually think I'm a ninja?" Jaune didn't say anything, but clearly he wasn't the only one. Those on her team not even meeting her gaze.
"To be fair," Ruby went, her fingertips tapping each other. "You do like dressing in black." Blake wasn't amused.
With her skills, Blake was able to carefully hide in the shadows and sneak close to Roman as he busied himself talking down to one of the grunts. From behind one of the large crates, she grit her teeth as he demeaned the tusked faunus. He was the type of person she despised, using them as work animals for their own gain. Why would they aid him of all people? It didn't look like any of them enjoyed it.
"No, no they did not." Roman smirked with both Blake and Adam glaring at him. The thief only giving the middle finger to them.
"Do you not understand? Hook it up to the crate once the rest have secured the hooks onto the top surfaces. This is not a leash." Roman pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration as the faunus tried to untangle the large steel cable on hand, "I swear only one of you animals doesn't get on my nerves. Do you idiots need a translator or something? I should just get Perry to handle this." he sighed in annoyance. Amateurs the lot of them.
Falling beside Blake, Jaune stopped her from making another move with his hand on her shoulder. Her angry yellow eyes glared back at him, commanding him to let her go. He shook his head. "We shouldn't go charging in like this! Think clearly for a second; do you think this is a good idea? Running into the wide open with enemies armed and ready to kill?"
Blake shut her eyes to calm herself. He was right, she couldn't let her emotions get the best of her.
"Pick up the slack! We're burning night light here! Either you hurry up, or I'm going to have to show you animals my bad side. And trust me, you don't want me to do that. I'll neuter the lot of you."
That smug, proud, arrogant voice! Blake couldn't stand a man like that. It was like a trigger. Brushing off Jaune's hand, she utilized her Shadow to fling herself to stand behind the loud speaking thief. He didn't even seem to notice her, allowing her to easily draw Gambol Shroud's blade to his throat.
The cold, deadly steel of blade against Roman's throat wasn't anything new. Calmly he nodded and glanced back to the furious yellow eyes of a raven-haired girl. He motioned his hand to the surrounding White Fang members to not move as they raised their guns.
"Wow." Qrow just went, being proven wrong already. Ironwood just giving a montone look with Glynda looking on in disapproval.
"Should have seen that coming." Cardin went with Whitley agreeing. This girl clearly wasn't stable.
"Hahahaha!" Tock laughed can't believing that girl actually made herself a target. Couldn't she have just shot and siabled him? Instead, she did the stupid move of going out in the open. Where she's now facing a whole lot of trouble.
"Kids, am I right Neo." Roman went to his partner in crime who gave a silent chuckle.
"And these are the kids that beat us." Emerald went. Cinder silently agreed, feeling that this intervention felt more like a bunch of brats getting lucky in finding them. She may have been wrong on how troublesome teenage brats could be.
"Oh, this is gonna be good." Mercury went with a grin. Fight scene should be happening soon alright.
"Well hello there! I don't believe we've met, Ms. Sword-to-my-Throat. By the way, do you think you can lower that thing? I'm afraid you might nick my scarf and its fine silk for your information." Roman said cheekily. The blade pressed harder against his throat, his aura being the only thing stopping it from drawing blood.
Despite Roman's urging, the grunts locked their sights on Blake. Seeing that, Blake reached for her bow and undid its bindings, showing off the cat ears adorned on her head.
"Brothers of the White Fang! Why are you aiding this scum!?" she shouted, disappointed that they would forsake their pride to work with a human that treated them like dirt.
"Hey! I'll have you know that scum does not dress as finely as I do! You feel that fabric? It's cashmere."
"Shut up!" Blake growled, growing closer to slitting Roman's throat.
Roman pouted, "Now, that's not very nice. Don't you have any manners? And I'll have you know that your brothers and I got a little thing going on here." he smirked, gesturing his head to the grunts. They nodded, raising their guns to aim their sights on him.
"What are you talking about? Why would they help someone like you?" she hissed.
So feisty! Roman chuckled in amusement as he raised his hands up.
Blake never changed.
'That tone.' Ozpin thought. 'It's almost as if, Torchwick knows her.' But that couldn't be.
The roar of jet engines took Blake by surprise as she turned her eyes up. From above several airships just like the one on the ground appeared out of nowhere. Their bright searchlights scanned the area before falling onto her. The lights were blinding, hitting her eyes and making her lose sight for a moment. And that was all Roman needed.
"Fire, boys!"
Roman's body vanished from Blake's hold, leaving her wide open to the gunfire aimed at her. Thinking fast, she let her Shadow take the shots and ran for cover. Their guns followed after her, their bullets whizzing past her as she dodged. Having enough, she made a bee-line for the grunts and jumped high above them.
"Woah, didn't know I could do that?" Roman went surprised by his disappearing trick. Neo just wondered if maybe she was there with Roman in this world. Would certainly explain it.
"This is nice and all, but when are we gonna see Jaune use his awesome Gamer powers!?" Nora went.
"Yeah, I am kinda interested to see what he's got." Yang says.
"Don't worry, you'll see Jaune use his Gamer powers soon enough." So Jaune did have those powers after all. Jaune feeling a bit happy that he had such a power to help his friends. As Mayden stated, those with the Gamer powers can be the strongest there is.
Gambol Shroud's blade switched to its kusaragi form and she swung it around herself by its elastic ribbon. The motion of her attack spun it around her to create a barrier of swinging steel that struck the White Fang members. It was more than enough to knock the few of them down.
Landing on her feet, Blake turned her eyes in search of Roman. She let her guard down at the worst possible second. Where could he have disappeared to?
"Cat got your tongue?"
An amused chuckle tickled Blake's neck. She stopped dead as she felt someone just appear behind her. She growled, swinging the bladed sheath from Gambol Shroud for Roman's chest only to hit thin air. Again, she felt him drop behind her. She moved to attack him but found the bottom of his cane jabbing into her stomach. She coughed, her breath robbed in a single strike as he leaned his head down to stare into her eyes mischievously.
"Naughty kitty. But, I suppose you still deserve a treat. Here, it's got quite a kick to it!" he grinned as his finger gripped the trigger to his cane. He laughed, firing the cannon like flare in his cane into Blake's stomach. It was like a firework had gone off, the force of it carrying her off her feet and flying towards one of the nearby crates. Raising his cane again, he fired off a couple more shots to finish her off before she hit the crates.
Team RWBY and most on the 'Good Side' glared angrily at the thief himself, who just gave them a warm smile.
"When Jaune comes out, he's totally going to kick your ass!" Yang shouted confident Jaune would find a way to beat Roman. He had the Gamer power after all.
"Yeah!" Ruby agreed. "Show him what you got Jaune!" Ruby went also believing Jaune could win.
"You go fearless leader!" Nora shouted.
"Like Nora, do well Jaune." Ren says believing his friend will do what's right.
"While I normally wouldn't condone such action...I wish you luck Jaune." Glynda went not minding of Roman got hit. Or blasted in general really.
Sun didn't waste a second jumping in from the shadows. Running behind her flying form, he grunted as he caught her in his arms. He cursed loudly, seeing the twinkling flares come too close to dodge.
"Reflect!"
Appearing in a blur, Jaune got in the way of the fire with Ciel held close beside him. A mirror like dome of pixels surrounded them, protecting them from the deadly shots. The flares were enveloped by the magic making up the spell, encasing them in a shell and firing them back to their owner.
Many on the 'Good Side' cheered for Jaune who made his appearance. Seems he could use his Gamer powers to reflect the damage.
"This should be interesting." Ironwood mused as he stood watching. He wanted to see more of what this Gamer power could do.
"Oh man, if I had such a power." Mercury could imagine all the cool stuff he could do. It would be awesome.
Roman watched the flares bounce back at him. He frowned deeply, simply craning his head to the side before his shots could hit him. Several large explosions created by his flares hitting the combustible Dust shipment behind him detonated, bellowing a tower of pluming smoke into the air. He gave the fires of elements little thought as he turned his curious eyes to four hunters appearing out of the dark of night.
Were his ears playing tricks with him?
Jaune sighed in relief, thanking Gale Speed for the save. That was too close for comfort. Turning his crosshair sights onto Blake, he was happy to see her HP was still in the green. But it was edging close to half.
Blake Belladonna, The Shadowed Beauty.
7,500HP/13,000HP.
"Oh, that's a good title for you Blakey." Yang said to the embarrassed faunus who blushed at the title.
"I have to admit," Weiss says. "It...suits you quite well." While he wouldn't say it, Adam was in full agreement there. Even Mercury looked like he liked it. Blake did look pretty hot in his eyes.
"Are you alright, Blake? Can you stand?" he asked worriedly.
Blake grimaced, smiling in thanks to Sun for catching her as she turned back to Jaune, "I'm fine. He just caught me by surprise is all." she grunted, gingerly pressing her hand against her stomach. A red burn marked the skin along with blood trickling down her white shorts.
"You should have known better than to run in like that." Ciel scolded as she walked over to her. From her pouch, she handed the cat faunus an odd smooth round rock. It almost looked like a candy.
"Take it. It's an Aura Booster created by an associate of General Ironwood. Despite its appearance of a sweet, it helps one's aura to recover faster and heal wounds. But you will feel some fatigue in an hour or two."
"Weird, didn't know you made candy Jimmy." Qro said while Ironwood just growled.
"No Qrow, I do not." The man made of metal says to his ally. Though he did have Winter take note to remember this, just in case. "This must be a difference in this world if I'm correct. Right Mayden."
"Yep." Mayden replied back. "This world is a type of 'Remix' world. While some things are the same, there are new people, ne items, and of course new 'powers' like Jaune's Gamer ability."
That seemed a bit confusing. But everyone decided not to question it too much. Deciding it was better to watch than just constantly ask questions of the difference in this world.
"Thank you." Blake said weakly with a smile before popping the booster into her mouth. It tasted like lemon-lime, almost like it was a candy. No sooner did she eat it did her wound begin to mend itself.
Now that Blake was healed up, Jaune turned his eyes back to the enemy in front of them. He frowned, finding it odd that Roman wasn't doing anything other than staring at them curiously. It would have been a perfect time to strike, so, why didn't he?
Neo could agree to that. Roman would always take a chance to fight back, fighting dirty. If one showed weakness, he would strike back at that moment. Not even holding back if it meant he could get away properly. It made her interested with what he's planning. Because his expression on screen made her rather curious.
'Doesn't matter. I can't let him hurt Blake like that again. He nearly took out half of her health with one shot! What kind of Boss are we facing here?'
Above in the opening doors of the bullheads, several of the White Fang prepared themselves to lend a hand. But they were stopped by Roman as he raised his hand in wait.
His eyes never left the hunters in training, narrowing as he tapped his cane.
"I know we're fighting and all that jazz, but if I may, a question if I might?" he asked curiously.
Sun glared, "What would you wanna know? If you're trying to stall, forget about it!" he shouted before dashing off the spot towards Roman. The well-dressed criminal didn't make any move to dodge Sun's attack. Reaching behind his waist, Sun brought out Ruyi and Jinju Bang and brought them together to form his staff. His swung for Roman's head but found the criminal's cane blocking his swing. The cane's hook snatched his staff and slammed it down to the side. With his free hand, Roman backhanded the faunus monkey, kicked him back and then fired the handled hook of his weapon to snag his open vest. Spinning on his foot, Roman then swung Sun around before releasing him and sending him slamming against a crate.
"Sun!" Blake yelled in alarm before setting her sights back to the grinning orange haired man.
"Hey now, I just wanted to ask you a question is all. That's what an animal gets for snapping at someone like that." Roman chuckled before his eyes strayed past Blake to Jaune and Ciel. He tapped his chin in thought.
Jaune unsheathed Crocea Mors and raised its shield, "What do you want to know?" he asked as the man grinned widely.
"Nothing too personal. I just want to know who was responsible for that little fancy trick that sent my own flares back at me is all." he said with a chuckle.
Anxiety filled Jaune's being. That was an odd question. And that look in Roman's eyes sent shivers down his spine. Something about him wasn't right. Gulping, Jaune formed a crosseye to scan Roman.
What he saw shook his core.
Roman Torchwick, Soul of The Gamer.
69,600HP/69,600HP.
"WHAT!" Everybody in the room went, including Roman himself.
"Woah, what the hell!" Yang went as her finger then pointed to Roman. "He's the Gamer!? I thought Jaune was the Gamer, not him."
"That's right!" Ruby went with her sister. "Also, what's up with that health, it's ridiculous."
"Guess Jauney-boy ain't the chosen one after all." Cardin said not really caring too much, but still interested in knowing what was going on.
Oh boy. Mayden decided to pause the world for a bit before continuation. This required some explanation as everyone was thinking the same thing as Yang. "Alright then folks, guess I got some explaining to do." This might take a bit.
"Okay, to start out, Jaune isn't the only one with the Gamer power here. Currently there are only four individuals that have that power, Roman and Jaune included." That got many in wonder. Especially some wondering...who are the other two.
"I don't suppose we can figure out who's the strongest?" Emerald asked wondering which one is the most powerful of these Gamer users. Made her think of some game that involved multiplayers.
"Strongest huh." Mayden went. "It's Roman more or less. He's considered the most powerful due to being the oldest Gamer."
"Yes!" Another world with him at top. Oh how he envied this version. And he's the strongest here. "Oh man, this day just keeps getting sweeter and sweeter. Cue the world."
"Sure." Like that the world then resumed on play.
Roman grew even more curious as he noticed Jaune begin to shake visibly and his eyes grow wide in shock. Oh? That was an interesting expression. A grin grew back on his face before he vanished from their sights. Their heads swiveled, looking for any signs of the incredibly fast thief. They didn't need to wait too long as he appeared in the middle of them as if he was always there. Melodic Cudgel was quick to block the slash aimed at his side courtesy of Blake before his free hand found itself aimed at her face. A warm orange glow lit up his face as his palm burned brightly, "Firebolt." his lips curled as the girl tried to step back and dodge. He tsked, firing the grappling hook of his weapon to catch the girl mid-step as he did with Sun before reeling her in. A bolt comparable to lightning flames blew Blake back, sending her carried off by the magical spell and smacking into Sun just as he recovered. He chuckled, turning his eyes back to the other two hunters in time to see an all too familiar ancestral blade swing for his face. Roman went to bat the attack but found a high kick from below his cane swing knocking it upwards. He sighed, turning his eyes down to find Ciel responsible before Jaune's sword met contact with him.
"Barrier."
From thin air, a see through emerald green bubble surrounded Roman at least a yard in diameter. Its appearance said nothing about its durability as Jaune's sword clanged in resistance.
"Hmm? Is that surprise in your eyes, boy?" Roman asked with mirth. He could see the blond knight's teeth grit visibly and his eyes narrow. But he could see it, the shock he tried to hide. Snapping his finger, he dropped his spell and spared little attention to the dark-skinned girl running into his guard and jumping up high for a lashing kick to his head. He caught her ankle easily and tossed her aside with little effort. Again, Jaune swung his sword but found Roman grabbing onto the blade instead of blocking or dodging it. The stylish thief leaned over carefully, whispering.
"Tell me, can you hear the words of The Game clearly, Jaune?"
That confirmed the status Jaune was reading from Roman. It was something Jaune hadn't thought about much until Ren had begun explaining the workings of The Game to him, but it's said that those who don't possess the title of Gamer were deaf to the words needed to activate their abilities and skills. To them their incantations sounded like shouts of determination or battle cries.
And Roman had used his name. Jaune had never even met Roman until today and the guy was saying his name with familiarity.
Silence was more than a good enough answer for Roman. He whistled, finding himself laughing out loud as he kicked the knight back with his foot.
So, this was the so called newest Player in their little party? The one Adam had cautioned him about? Oh, he just had to see what the boy's title was now.
"Adam!?" Blake went. The bull faunus in question raised a brow.
"Yep. The other two happen to be both Ren and Adam." Mayden says explaining how these four were the all-powerful Gamers. "Heck, each one of them are strong, stronger than any other people sans the bosses like Ozpin, Cinder, etc."
"..." Cinder felt glad to know she's a boss...but considering how those with the Gamer powers constantly gained strength, she didn't like her odds against such a foe. A part of her feeling rather envious that those four had such power.
"Wow, this is incredible Renny!" Nora shook Ren with happiness and joy. Her own bestie having the Gamer power alongside her leader. It's incredible. Ren not really saying much, but a small smile could be found on his lip.
"..." Adam didn't say much, but a part of him couldn't help but feel a bit of pleasure. To think in another world he had such strong power. It was...impressive so to say.
"I'm not sure how to think of this." For Winter, she's glad at least two Huntsman-in-Training had this ability. But also two 'villains' had this, a terrorist and a thief. That couldn't be good.
"I guess this just got interesting." Emerald said as she chewed on some popcorn. Time to see what happens next.
"Scan."
Jaune Arc, Heart of The Gamer.
8,000HP/8,000HP.
The Heart? Roman found himself agreeing with the Title. From what he recalled from his meetings with the Arc boy in his many playthroughs it fit him to a T. Easing his laughter, he gave Jaune a welcoming smile as the blond boy glared at him.
"Well, isn't this surprising? I would have never thought that you of all people would fall into this little world of ours. Now I'm even more curious." he chuckled as he spun his cane around with his finger. He sighed though, catching the eyes of the other three hunters recovering from their blows and run at him. "What annoyances. Seems I've got to clear the room before we can talk freely."
Jaune didn't like the sounds of that, "What the hell are you doing?"
Roman smirked and decided to let his actions answer for him. With a flick of his right wrist and a snap of his fingers, four body sized poker cards surrounded Blake, Sun, and Ciel before they could close in on him. From the back of the cards his moniker could be seen as the cards spun around them and prevented them from escaping. They became a blur, tussling the wind before slowly coming to a stop. The cards folded, revealing to Jaune's shock his friends vanishing.
"Local Shuffle."
"Badass!" Roman went now wishing he really did have that power.
"You!" Jaune seethed in anger before spinning his head around, "Blake, Sun, Ciel, where are you guys!?"
"Calm down, kid. You act like I killed your dog or something." Roman said, rolling his eyes as he found Jaune back to glaring at him, "What you saw just now was a little Ability, Local Shuffle. With it, I've simply sent them to another area of the docks where they can't disturb us." And to make sure that they didn't get in their way, Roman reached for his scroll and made a call, "Let the boys know that we got a couple of rats roaming the place. Take them out if you feel like it and if they prove to be a hassle, let Perry know that he has permission to use 'That'. I'm sure he'd love a chance at busting out his new toy."
"Air Slash!"
Roman sighed as he ended the call and batted away several blades of air pressure. Did the kid not know any manners?
"I can agree with that." Tock went, with Neo giving a small nod second.
Seeing his attack easily blocked, Jaune raised his sword high above himself as its blade gained a dark purple tint, "Lunar Divider!" Slashing his sword downward, he released a large tearing blade of purple energy after Roman. It tore the ground to pieces, gaining speed before it met the smirking man head on.
"Barrier!" Calling on the same bubble shield as before, Roman watched as the attack's force fought his defense. That was a new Ability he'd never seen. Barrier shattered suddenly and left him to suffer being hit by Lunar Divider. He grunted as the blade exploded against his aura. Curiously he found his body weakened a bit by the attack. 'Defense Down? Isn't that a nifty trick.' he grinned as he found Jaune prepare the same move again. He moved his feet forward, vanishing from sight to stand right in front of Jaune just as his mouth opened to shout the incantation.
"Steal Wonder."
The power running through Jaune's being died away, robbing him of the strength to use his ability as Crocea Mors lost its energy. His mind went blank, the feeling frightening him as Roman snatched a bubble of luminescent light from his chest. The bubble flickered, popping to form a playing card of his own design in his fingers. Jaune stumbled back in confusion, frowning as he tried to recall what he had just been doing. He was using an ability, right? What was it called again?
"That can't be good." Weiss went. No way Jaune could forget such an ability unless that shameless thief had done something.
Roman smirked smugly, raising his cane in the same manner Jaune had done with his sword as the card in hand sank into his body, "Have you forgotten what your ability was called, kid? Don't worry, here's a reminder! Lunar Divider!"
Purple malicious energy released from Roman's downward swing, forming a tearing blade that collided with its original owner. Jaune gasped, his breath stolen as the energy detonated and left his body weary. He gripped his forehead in pain as the memory of his ability returned.
Lunar Divider, an Ability granted to him from his Friendship with Blake. It fired a blade of energy that dealt decent damage but also inflicted Defense Down; a status ailment that lowered Defense for a short period of time. How the hell did Roman use an ability only he could use? Firebolt he could understand, it was spell that all Players could learn along with Reflect and Power Strike. But Lunar Divider was unique, Ren had even said so himself that he wouldn't be able to learn it. So, how did Roman learn it?
And why had he forgotten?
'I guess we'll find out.' Ozpin thought as he analyzed the situation intently. Things weren't looking good for the young Arc.
"Confused? I bet you are, most usually are when I use Steal Wonder on them for the first time. Boy, was Adam pissed." Roman laughed. The horned boy had lost his patience and tried to end him with one lightning fast slash when he had revealed to him their shared status. But found himself stumped as his mind went blank and suffered the very ability he was about to use. Seeing Jaune glare through a grimace, Roman decided to be a good sport and explain, "Steal Wonder is an Ability unique to the Master Thief Class, it allows me to steal just about any Ability my opponent is about to use and leave them confused. They are unable to use said ability until I've used it myself. Ain't that a useful move?"
Useful? More like terrifying. An ability like that created an opening that left him to suffer an attack. And he wouldn't be able to use the ability he forgot? That was cheating. Fighting the weakness spreading across his body by his own attack mirrored back, Jaune raised his shield in front of his body for any more attacks. Last time he hadn't been prepared to fight Adam, but this time would be different.
"Hold on, he faced Adam?" Blake didn't see that coming. More surprising, Jaune didn't die.
"Oh yeah, some crap went down in this world's Vale. One by those crazy anti-faunus people who cut off animal traits." Everybody felt repulsed by that, sans those who were already a bit twisted. Yet even then Cinder found the thought disturbing.
Adam just felt some rage at that. To think, humans would cut off their faunus traits. Blake and Tock were also just as disgusted. Even Whitley and Cardin felt that was going a tad too far.
"Hold on a second," Glynda went. "I don't recall such an event happening."
"Heck yeah." Qrow agreed. "I may not have been in Vale for a time, but I'm pretty sure that never happened."
"Right, right. Forgot to mention, that while this world is more or less similar to yours, there is of course some differences here and there. Get what I'm saying." So like a world that had some stuff that they didn't. Far from helping with their disgust, but at least they now knew that this only happened to this world directly.
"As for Adam meeting Jaune, well, let's just say that Jaune is technically the weakest out of all the Gamer's." From lack of experience, bugs in his system, and other things like Adam actually going easy and not even wanting to kill him. Even then poor Jaune was still near-death.
"But hey. Things worked out in the end." Kind of.
Roman sighed in exasperation, slouching his shoulders at still finding the blond knight on the offensive. Did the kid not know when to take a hint? Did it look like he wanted to fight? If that was the case, he would have ended him as easily as he sent the other brats away.
"Kid, let's calm down for a second here. There's no need to fight right now." he said honestly, trying to ease Jaune's tension. He even sent his beloved weapon into its inventory space as a sign of good will.
But Jaune wasn't falling for it. Roman was known as a trickster by the media and even Ren had warned him to stay on his toes if he ever had to face Player one.
"No need? You hurt my friends and sent them who knows where! And you're working with the White Fang." the grip on his sword tightened audibly, his mind drawing up the arrogant smirk belonging to Adam, "If you're working with him, then that means whatever you're doing is no good. And I won't fall for anymore of his bullshit!" he roared, dashing off the spot as Crocea Mors slid back into its sheath. He locked his blue eyes with Roman's blank green eyes before his body blurred.
Jaune appeared a few spaces away from Roman's back in a gust of wind, his sword partially drawn before clicking back into pace.
"Sonic Line!"
Idly, Roman's eyes peered down at his stylish coat to find a nick spreading from the center of his chest and running to meet his back. A small amount of blood leaked down the white of his clothing, much to his annoyance. Now that was just rude.
Roman Torchwick, Soul of The Gamer.
69,150HP/69,600HP[DEF-D].
Only 450 Damage? Even with Defense Down active that was all the damage he could inflict? Sonic Line dealt damage by multiplying his Speed by 50. His attack should have done a thousand or more. And Roman treated the wound as if was a bug bite rather than a blade slash.
"Now that's OP." Cardin chuckled.
Roman was not happy with the small cut. Now he was going to have to wash out the blood when he was done and the material he was wearing didn't handle in certain washers very well. He sighed as he turned his head back to meet Jaune.
"You're lucky you're a fellow Player otherwise you'd be dead before you hit the ground." he glared with annoyance before reaching into his coat. The action put Jaune on guard, causing him to roll his eyes. He didn't even have a weapon on him! The kid was really jumpy. Finding what he was looking for, Roman downed the vial of red colored liquid in one gulp. The small wound was quickly healed a second later. "Got to love potions. Much better than your average band-aids, don't you think?" he asked with a smile. But to his ever-growing annoyance, Jaune refused to lower his guard.
"Give me a break kid! Here I am trying to make some small talk and have a conversation, and you're looking at me like I killed your dick or something. What do you have against your fellow Player?"
"You're a criminal and you work for the White Fang for starters." Jaune scoffed, "And let's say that every time I've met a Player I found myself either dead or dying."
Dead or dying? Roman whistled lowly, "I take it Addy-boy and Renny didn't take your arrival very well. Especially Renny, that boy has a hateful bone for you. I'd put down 30,000L that he was the one to kill you on the spot." he grinned knowingly.
"Wait, what?" Ren's stoic expression was no longer stoic. Having not believed what he just heard. Nora and Jaune also showing signs of surprise.
"Oh yeah, fun fact. Ren, a fellow Player, killed Jaune the second they met. Pretty funny and total plot twist." Funny? Plot twist!? That just pissed many of the 'Good Side', particularly team RWBY and JNR.
Instead of yelling at Mayden though-knowing he wouldn't care at all-they just held their breath deciding not to waste their time. Instead focusing on what the heck was going on here.
"Addy-boy? Renny?" Jaune said slowly in confusion. Subconsciously he found his guard lowering as he tried to understand the man in front of him. Roman acted completely different from the other two Players in The Game. Where Adam was cruel and vicious, and Ren was lazy and unmotivated, Roman acted cheerful and full of spirit. This was the Original Gamer? The one who had endured countless lifetimes of Reset with little change other than that occasional Remix?
"Lifetimes?" Oscar went. Ozpin feeling a sense of dread when that popped out. "What's that mean."
"That, right." Mayden says. "Forgot to mention that like a video game where people can constantly reset, Gamers here are constantly living life in an eternal loop living the same lives over and over aside from some 'Remix' thing that changes the timeline." Kinda reminded him about the universe where RWBY is also looping.
"Wait, so your telling us that Jaune, Ren Roman, and Adam ...are in some kind of time loop?" Ruby asks.
"Yep." Mayden confirmed. "And Roman here has lived the longest out of everybody. It's not pretty." Roman wasn't sure how to feel about that. This also included Adam and Ren. Heck, all three of them became warped because of their lifetimes. Ren becoming lazy, Roman becoming chaotic evil, and Adam being way more resolved than the version in the theater. No stalker whiner here folks.
When Jaune had thought of the first one to inherit The Gamer, he had honestly pictured a broken man, a mix between Adam and Ren. Roman was none of that. If it weren't for the fact he had effortlessly thrown his friends around and was a dangerous criminal wanted in the kingdoms, Jaune would have thought of him as pleasant.
Seeing Jaune ease up a bit, Roman continued, "Those are my nicknames for the kids, I did teach them about The Game after all. I like to think of those brats as little brothers, we're all blessed with the same power, or curse if you would prefer, so why not think of each other as family? Unlike those two, I have no feelings of animosity for my fellow Player. In fact, I welcome you to our little party!" he said with a cheerful smile, bowing elegantly to the stunned blond, "Welcome, Jaune to The Game of Life! A world of true freedom where you are free to do as you please."
Jaune didn't know what to say. This was unlike the time his status was revealed to the others. Usually he would be struggling to breath out of his dying lips. But this? This was a little jarring. He scratched the back of his head awkwardly as Roman grinned at him, showing no signs of wanting to harm him.
"Thanks, I guess?" he said after trying to find something to say back. He shook his head, frowning in confusion, "But aren't I in your way? I'm here to stop whoever is responsible for the Dust robberies and your connected to the White Fang, right? Shouldn't it be your mission to stop me?"
Roman shrugged his shoulders, his face showing boredom as he leaned on his cane, "I suppose that is what the Quest I've taken says I should do. Its details say that I must steal at least five cargo shipments of SDC Dust before the clock hits midnight. I am to expect opposition and will receive several bonus rewards if I'm able to steal more than five. But I've done this quest so many times now! If it wasn't a Story related mission I would have skipped it." he grumbled before taking a moment to whip out a cigar. He lit it, waving away the magical flame on his finger used to light it and dragged in a deep breath of the sweet nicotine. At least the flavor of his favorite habit would never change. "Well at least I got the chance to meet a new member of our merry little family." he chuckled.
"So, you're not going to stop me?" Jaune tilted his head to the side, his confusion evident, "Does that mean you can bring back my friends?" he said hopefully.
Again, Roman shrugged with little care, "I can't bring them back, but they are close. I really don't care if this mission goes well, I won't catch any heat from the boss lady. The little girl still has use for me." he laughed. Oh, if only Cinder knew how easily he could have their roles switched. But that would be no fun, not anymore at least.
"..." Cinder had a dark glint in her eyes when she heard that. Time looping, 'Remixes', at the end it didn't really matter. What mattered to her is that Roman has supposedly defeated her on multiple occasions.
She didn't like that.
"Sweet." Oh how Roman wished he had that kind of fire power.
"Of course there is still the matter of the White Fang actually doing their jobs and attaching the cables to the ships, so you'll still have to deal with them. Animals they may be, but they're rowdy bunch. And I can't say that your friends are safe either, especially if my buddy Perry already busted out the little toy I gave him for being a good boy."
That didn't sound good. Jaune spun his head around, trying to listen in for any signs of battle already in progress in the large dock area. Faintly he could make out the sound of gunfire before his eyes caught the sign of a massive column of black smoke rise to the sky from overhead. He had a good guess that he had just found their locations.
If Roman wasn't going to fight him then he had little reason to stick around any longer. Turning his back to the man, he was ready to run to them.
"Leaving already? Come on, stay and chat a bit, Jaune-Jaune! Let the NPC's enjoy themselves, you shouldn't worry much about the non-important. If they die, they'll just respawn in the next life."
"Did...he just say what I thin he said." Jaune then said not liking the tone Roman took. Then again, none of the others in the 'Good Side' seemed to like it. Even Roman looked a bit taken aback.
Jaune stopped cold in his steps. His knuckles popped, shaking as the mirthful tone in Roman's voice hit a nerve. So, he was like the others. For second, he had thought he might have found someone who wasn't uncaring. He couldn't help it, he turned his head back to meet the older Player's amused green eyes.
"They're not NPC's, they're people. I would have thought you understood that with how long you've been in this game." he said with disappointment.
Roman blinked, caught off guard. Did the kid just call them people? He erupted with laughter, holding his gut as his eyes teared up. The reaction made Jaune's blood boil.
"What!" Ruby went. "Roma doesn't see these people as...people?" Ruby couldn't believe Roman would think such a thing.
Sadly for her, it as true. "Not just Roman either." Mayden decided to break the news to her. "After living an eternity, all three of the Gamers, Ada,, Roman, and Ren, no longer see anybody aside from themselves and maybe those they care for as real individuals."
Made sense as after living for who knows how long could affect a mind that badle. Those on the 'Good Side' feeling a chill, Nora included that Ren didn't see people as people at all.
"Oh, Oum! That-That was a good one, kid! I swear, I think I nearly choked on my own laughter there." Snickering as he tried to get a control of himself, Roman sighed in relief, "But seriously, they're just NPC's. No need to worry about trash." he smirked.
"They're human! I don't understand what part of that you all don't understand! They're living, breathing; they're alive!" Jaune shouted, throwing his hand out in anger. But Roman didn't seem to think so, his expression still amused at what he was saying. It frustrated Jaune to no end to see them think so little about the people around them. "Surely you understand that? What about the White Fang members you're working with? Don't they have any meaning to you?" he said solemnly. Even if they were the enemy, couldn't Roman see that they too were alive.
"Meaning?" Roman hummed at the word. He grinned mischievously at that and raised his cane to the sky. Taking out his scroll again, he made a quick call to one of the bullheads to draw closer. The pilot nodded in understanding and settled itself to hover above the two. The mounted artillery locked their sights on Jaune, waiting for Roman's command to fire.
"What are you doing?" Jaune asked, finding himself uneasy as Roman simply smiled.
"Magnum Flare."
To Jaune's horror, a sparkling orange-red flare shaped like pointed bullet slug shot up from Roman's cane and streaked upward to the airship. The faunus inside could do nothing as the projectile pierced its body and detonated in a dazzling bonfire of flames. For a short moment Jaune could hear the chilling screams and cries of the burning White Fang members before the flaming wreckage fell to the earth behind Roman. Then nothing but the cackling flames met his ears.
"Oh my." Cinder went, having never seen Roman be this ruthless before. The thief himself also feeling rather...put off by this versions action. Neo feeling slightly scared as well, though not because Roman killed those faunus. Bt because he did it in a way that reminded her of...her?
Blake growling at the sight of the White Fang falling and burning, Adam also feeling a hate in his gut.
+12,200EXP! +14,000Lien! +(x7)Standard Katannas! +(7)Standard Pistols!
"That is...barbaric." Winter couldn't believe this. Roman just killed those people...and he got rewarded. This Gamer system is much more twisted than she anticipated.
Roman made a noise of satisfaction as he read over his rewarded experience, "Well they do serve a purpose in earning exp, Lien, and some items. So, I suppose that gives them meaning." he mused with little care in his voice. Not even enough to fill up his EXP bar by 5%. What a bummer. The money was good enough for some pocket change too.
A sick lump grew in Jaune's stomach as the faint smell of cooking flesh hit his nose, his eyes watching in horror as the flames behind Roman cackled and filled the sky above with smoke.
"W-Why?" Jaune asked faintly as his shoulders trembled.
Suddenly remembering why he had done what he had, Roman turned back to Jaune with a casual wave, "Eh, I suppose it's because I felt like it honestly. That, and the guy behind the control of the bullhead had given me a funny look just because I may have accidentally scuffed up his shoes in our last heist."
The answer brought Jaune's anger over the edge to the point a vein throbbed visibly on his forehead.
"Oh, what's with the anger? They're NPC's, they'll come back to life in the next reset. Who knows? They may even resurrect following a path that doesn't lead them to the White Fang. Which means I technically saved them and steered then down a brighter path!" he said cheerfully only to frown as something caught the leg of his pants. Looking down he was irritated to see the burning hand of one of the NPC's gripping his pants for dear life and the suffering eyes pleading for help. Melodic Cudgel's barrel greeted the annoyance and put an end to that with a boom. Charred brain matter and smoking blood splattered the ground.
"Mph!" Whitley nearly threw up, with Cardin looking at the scene with a bile in his throat. Even he isn't that ruthless.
+1,000EXP! +200Lien!
Bile rose up Jaune's throat and spilled out from his lips, his stomach unable to withstand the atrocity he had just witnessed. He grit his teeth openly as his eyes glared hatefully at the carefree expression on Roman's face as he kicked away the burning corpse. What the hell kind of monster was he?! How? How could he do something so vile with little care?
Sensing the hostility aimed at him, Roman scratched his cheek with a coy smirk, "Right, almost forgot about your self-righteous soul. Doesn't something like this just tickle your nerves?" he drawled musingly. He threw his hands up and shrugged with an amused sigh, "Seems you still don't understand how this world works. How sad, I'd thought Renny would have showed you the ropes at least. Then again, it would probably take you a few runs before you understood that. This is your first life, so your still naive as a schoolboy going out with his crush."
'The worst part is...Roman is somewhat right.' Ozpin didn't like agreeing with this version of Roman, but he knew just as well that living a long life can take a massive toll on one's mentality.
The former Beacon headmaster having also experienced some feelings against humanity, having once saw them as pawns himself. He eventually grew out of it, but it hadn't been easy.
There's a reason a human should never be immortal after all. A certain woman entering his mind at the thought.
Spinning his cane continuously by his finger, Roman couldn't fight the excited grin spreading on his face. Now that he thought about it, he couldn't recall the last time he had a good fight. Not since his last little heist in Atlas. And it didn't look like Jaune was going to be going anywhere after that fireworks show. He could already see the kid's body strain itself from attacking him.
It seemed that old little Adam and Ren had failed to teach the kid the ways of the world. Well that was alright, that's why good old Roman was here! He properly taught the others, might as well teach the green horned knight whose world he now resided in.
Ren and Adam both looked at this Roman with some contempt. He taught them. That clearly couldn't be good.
A dark shadow grew over his face as he fixed his bowler hat. His visible green eye was filled with mischief and a sadistic glee. The very air around him twisted along with the flames and smoke behind him.
From above the two Gamers, a single pixel unseen by the world radiated in the night sky. It blinked before rapidly spreading to form a dome like bubble around the two, cutting them completely off from the real world. To those blind to The Game, their sense would turn them away from the area for reasons they could not understand or fight. As if something deep in their being forcefully steered them away from whatever forces were at bay.
"Let me enlighten you to the ways of my world, little hero." Roman chuckled deeply, "And in exchange, you can relieve me of my boredom. I never did like standing by while the others had their fun, it's about time I show you what lays ahead of you!"
Jaune felt his anger consume him as the stylish man readied his cane. He forgot about his friends and focused his sights on the amused Player just as the fires twisting around him were blown back into a light shower of dancing embers.
'Roman Torchwick, Soul of The Gamer has formally challenged you to a battle! Will you accept?
Yes/No?'
The scraping sound of his blade drawn from its sheath was Jaune's answer.
The screen then ended at that, with the crowd unsure how to take this.
"You go Jaune!" Except Nora, who had total faith in her leader.
"Can't believe I'm saying this, but even I'm hoping you get a good hit or two." Cardin went, though honestly he didn't think that Jaune could win. The other Roman being stronger, smarter, and more experienced. Still, hopefully Jauney-Boy did some good.
"Team RWBY supports you Jaune!" Ruby told her friend with Yang, Weiss, and Blake nodding to her words.
"Hmph." Adam didn't say anything, but even he held some hope that version of Jaune would avenge those Fang members. Just a bit.
"Shame. I kinda wanted to see the fight. Looked cool." Mercury went.
"It was impressive." Mayden silently said, knowing what happened in that fight. Jaune lived up to his code, and totally gave a good whack to Roman. Showing the thief he's no noob.
Granted Jaune still lost, nearly died, and everybody but Pyhrra, Ciel, Penny, Nora, and a few others were injured. Heck, all of them could be beaten but only escaped unscathed because Roan retreated. That Jaune had a long way to go, and hopefully Mayden could see how that goes.
"Welp, I'm glad you all more or less enjoyed that world. One of my favorites, and who knows, we might visit it again." The screen then lit up. "But for now, time to see the next world. One where the stupidity of people varies."
Stupidity huh? Lots of worlds have individuals we're they're kinda dumb, but the next one is a personal favorite show I watched. Time to see how the cast reacts to that. Until next time.