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Chapter 71: GRAY Matter
The first round of the Vytal Tournament had continued on through the evening with many matches having taken place thus far; Team SABL of Shade Academy had defeated Halo Academy second years Team AQUA, Atlas natives team SNOW had defeated Team SAND of Haven, Teams TREE and ACRN had both proven to be a credit to their respective academies and Team RNBW had proven themselves something of a crowd favourite when their leader Ranger Altan had fought Team DAWN to a standstill on her own; though the only match that had truly excited the crowd as much as Team FADE and CNBR's opening bout had been between Team CLIR who had been pitted against Atlas first years Team FRST. In a display of sportsmanship that had seen her roundly cheered and applauded by the Atlesian crowd Corvid had elected to enter the arena without the Omega Wing and simply rely on her own prowess in order to make the fight more fair and entertaining; It had also been the only match Felix Xiao Long had managed to pay real attention to, forgone as its' conclusion was.
"Wake up, wake up" the insistent voice of a child was accompanied by gentle prodding
"AJ don't poke him" a deep grumbling voice chuckled and Felix shook his head as he sat up straighter in his seat. Following Team FADE's victory Felix had managed to talk his way into the V.I.P box where his mother and Arctus's patents were situated alongside several other notable figures; as much as he had wanted to catch up with his family and watch the tournament with them he had been unable to stop himself from slowly drifting off due to exhaustion, head lolling onto Blake's shoulder much to his mothers' amusement.
"I'm fine" he mumbled as he worked out a crick in his neck
"You're sure you're okay?" Blake gave him a concerned glance
"Yeah just tired….and ashy" he assured her while giving an annoyed glance at the skin of his forearms which appeared dry and flaky, one of the side effects of using his Semblance to its' full capacity.
"First tournament takes it out of ya, and you put a show on" Gangrel noted with an approving grin
"Thanks uncle Gang"
"It was so cool!" Athena-Jade beamed "Your partner has a shield that's a robot and a tank and she can turn into a bird! And Arctus and Diamond were awesome at the end-"
"Hey come on I threw a Glacier at that guy" Felix interjected, feigning offence at his younger cousins' lack of suitable amazement
"You all did really well and I'm proud of all you" Weiss added, Felix grinning at his aunts' praise "I'd like to see Arctus myself though"
"He'll be fine Weiss" Blake soothed her former team-mate
"That boy beat him senseless" Weiss countered
"He's fine Aunt Weiss" Felix interrupted "Diamond took him to the medics they have on stand by to get some painkillers. Either they're still there, in the stands with Eagle….or they went to find somewhere quiet to make out-"
"EWWW!" Athena stuck her tongue out and covered here ears at the notion, earning a laugh from all present. Gangrel caught his wife's eye and surmised her intentions
"You wanna go see him?"
"We're gonna see Arctus and Diamond? COOL!" Athena leapt from her spot on her fathers' lap, instantly eager to go.
"I'll just message him and make sure that they weren't planning on having some time alone" Weiss was unable to prevent her blush at the implications of that, but was forced to confront the reality of her son being an adult now.
"Okay" Gangrel nodded "I've got some of my people on the security detail tonight, I'll check in with them on the way….Hey AJ, wanna meet some your old mans' work buddies?" the wide eyed excitement on her face at the prospect of meeting real Hunters and Specialists were all the answer Gangrel needed and the Slate family said their goodbyes, promising to catch up with Blake and Felix later if they could before leaving the V.I.P box. After a few moments of what couldn't really be called silence, considering that live bands of all genres and from all corners of Remnant played between tournament matches as a reminder that the event was part of a larger Festival, Felix turned to Blake
"You wanna go see Corey? She'll probably be out of the changing rooms by now" Blake shook her head
"I messaged her before you got here, I'm going to catch up with her at the Festival and get something to eat" Blake paused, the smile on her face faltering for a brief moment before she leaned closer and asked quietly "Is she okay Fluffy? Yang and I are worried about her" Felix ran a hand through his mane of dirty blonde curls, knowing the root of his parents' concern
"Since the mission" he breathed out, nodding in understanding "She's been a little quiet….hasn't spoken to me about anything bothering her but I don't know, she seems okay" he would openly admit that his words sounded like desperate grasping at straws, even to himself. Blake patted his shoulder gently
"Thanks for telling me-" the conversation was cut short by the sound of Qrow Branwen's familiar voice booming throughout the arena once more
"AND NOW!" Blake watched Felix lean forward, suddenly much more alert and invested, with some curiosity "FOR OUR NEXT MATCH, ALL THE WAY FROM NEW VALE AND REPRESENTING THE HALO ACADEMY, SECOND YEARS NYANZA ANGORA-"
"Oh your friend from school is on" Blake sighed in understanding
"OLIVINE DEGRASSE, ETHER ARASHI AND THEIR LEADER HELIOS NIKOS, MAKE SOME NOISE FOR TEAM NEON!" upon hearing the name Nikos Blake did a double take and peered down at the students' assembled around the edge of the arena, catching sight of a young man with deep scarlet coloured hair and many tattoos, clad in armour that bore some stylistic similarities to that worn by the late Pyrrha Nikos. Something seemed to click in the older Faunus's mind and upon glancing between the teams and her own son a sly grin crossed her face at the sight of the soft smile Felix wore
"Oh so this is the redhead that your sister was telling us about?"
"Oum damn it Corey" the Lion Faunus muttered, effectively confirming Blake's suspicions.
"AND THEIR OPPONENTS, REPRESENTING THE SHADE ACADEMY OF VACCUO!" Oobleck announced eagerly "Yuki Shimo, Azure Oxford, Razzmatazz Phosphor and their leader Grease Thunderbird! WE HAVE TEAM GRAY!"
"Oh" Blake gasped, comprehension dawning on her
"Yep" Felix noted
"The leader of the other team….Grease, he's from Patch as well isn't her"
"Mmm" Felix nodded, helping himself to a mouthful of the popcorn Athena-Jade had left behind "Me, Grease and Nyanza were in the same class at Signal….this is gonna get awkward"
"So we're all sure this isn't gonna get awkward right?" Nyanza heard the voice, broad Patch accent unmistakable anyway and grinned
"Course not" he grinned, bushy tail swishing behind him as he took several slow breaths and tried to mask the cold tension building in his stomach. At his sides Olivine was having a hushed conversation with Ether about the mechanics involved in creating the battlefields that the matches took place in while Helios looked unnervingly calm, rolling his neck and shoulders whilst his vivid green eyes sized up his opponents, students whom he had come to know and consider friends over the course of the semester. Yuki Shimo was a slender young man of an unimpressive height with snowy white hair reaching below his shoulders and a high cheek-boned face; his outfit was an interesting blend of cutting edge futurism and ancient Mistrali warrior aesthetic, stylized armour constructed from much more modern materials, his weapon which hung from his left hip in a partially collapsed state appeared to be some form of Halberd. Helios was actually unsure of the correct pronouns to use in regards to Azure Oxford, they wore their deep blue hair in a long ponytail and the highly embellished pea-coat they wore hid much of their physique. Razzmatazz he knew through both her friendship with Diamond and the fact that she almost habitually drew attention to herself in the classes they shared, her vibrant pink hair in its' usual gravity defying mass of spikes whilst her outfit consisted of a figure hugging tank-top and loose pants both of which were overlaid with light armour clearly intending to sacrifice protection in the name of mobility, she was also decked out in a plethora of beads, necklaces and bangles that seemed to have been scavenged from anywhere she could find them; Helios did a slight double take at the sight of her footwear, unless he was very much mistaken Razzmatazz had come to a battle wearing light up sneakers. Shaking his head and resigning himself to never fully understanding those who hailed from the Kingdoms Helios returned his focus to the leader of Team GRAY, Grease Thunderbird was reasonably tall rivalling the redheads' own height and boasted a muscular physique and immaculately styled hair; he wore a spiked and studded leather jacket and similarly adorned fingerless gloves, a pair of ripped jeans tucked into armoured boots and held up by a highly decorated belt buckle while several chains hung from his waist.
"No awkwardness, no hard feelings" he assured Grease the man calmly, his soon to be adversary nodded
"Mind if we pair up then?" he let out a chuckle "I don't really feel like beating on Nyanza in front of everyone so I'll make do with you….ah hell I'll probably have the Xiao Longs coming after me then" Helios's face formed a stern frown at the gentle mocking of his partner, banter and trash talk of a much harsher nature between friends was apparently acceptable in the Kingdoms but to do so here and now was simply petty.
"You will certainly try" if Grease was concerned by the change in demeanour he didn't show it, simply flashing Nyanza a grin and noting
"Scary fucker aint he?" whatever retorts either Helios or Nyanza intended to make went unheard as the stadium began to form itself, each half lowering and making way for the terrain on which the battle would be fought while Helios silently berated himself to not paying more attention to the announcers. A few moments later Team NEON's half of the massive circular pitch was filled with islands of rock floating amidst what appeared to be genuine magma, Team GRAY had the far more tame option of moderately dense woodland which had obscured the four Hunters from view.
"Feel like we got cheated a little here" Nyanza quipped.
"THREE!" Oobleck's voice thundered throughout the arena, buzzing with excitement "TWO! ONE! BEGIN!"
"Olivine hang back and fire on them if you get a clear shot, Ether stay close to her but be ready to assist"
"You got it" Ether slung Ghost Reverie from his shoulder and transformed the guitar into its' blade form
"Guessing we're going in first?" Nyanza observed
"Of course….I grew up Hunting and fighting in deeper forests than those" without waiting for a response he readied Olympus Enforcer in sword and shield form and rushed forwards, scanning the treeline carefully whilst remaining aware of Nyanza's position. A blur of motion ahead of him prompted Helios to come skidding to a halt in a crouch, reaching the grassy surface of Team GRAY's side of the arena with his shield covering him as gunfire pattered against its' surface; hearing booted feet rushing towards him he sprung into action, the darkness of his Aura enveloping his as Helios inverted his Semblance and sprung forwards; Grease's attempt to kick the shield away was halted as he was flipped backwards and fell in slow motion due to the reduced gravity around Helios. The redhead himself followed the move through with an acrobatic kick which landed between his opponents' shoulder at the same moment gravity was returned to normal; Grease however proved himself to be at least somewhat capable as he landed in a crouch and shifted the oversized and oddly streamlined looking hand-cannon he wielded into its' alternate form with a flourish
"A scythe?" Helios questioned as he took in the sight of the weapon whose curved and serrated blade seemed to have been fitted with some kind of rockets which he assumed were intended to improve its' lethality
"Yeah man….come I'm from the same place as Ruby Rose I can't not have a scythe" Grease shrugged "Besides, Outlaw Reaper is cool and you know it" Helios wasted no words simply readying his sword and shield and rushing into combat once more, his guesses being proven correct as the rocket boosters fitted to either side of the scythes' blade came roaring into life. The golden armoured fighter dropped to his knees and slid passed Grease, slashing at his legs with his sword held in a reverse grip. Grease staggered for a moment but used the motion to whirl around and face Helios again, bringing the blade of his weapon down over his head only to realise something was amiss when the blow began to amass too much momentum whilst his opponent rolled aside
"What the-" the blade of Outlaw Reaper crashed downwards with enough force to sink it into the soft ground and send tremors down the shaft of the weapon which forced Grease to release it from his grasp, yet his arms remained heavy and the realisation hit him
"HELIOS NIKOS MAKING EXCELLENT USE OF HIS SEMBLANCE WITH THAT COUNTER!" Oobleck called out to the crowd who may not have realised what had just happened; Grease however had much more immediate concerns; namely Helios Nikos rushing towards him. Seeing the sword aimed directly at his chest the native of Patch tried a desperate gambit and made to catch the blade with his hands only to discover the attack was a feint when Helios leapt over his arms and delivered a punishing kick to the face and following up by launching his shield with his gravity warping Semblance in full effect, the result being that Grease Thunderbird tore a shallow gouge in the ground before coming to a halt as he collided with a tree whose trunk groaned and audibly cracked under the punishment. The crowd went wild and Qrow Branwen's voice rang in Helios's ears
"As someone who saw Pyrrha Nikos fight a few times I'll say this, Helios here is definitely keeping the legacy alive" the redhead allowed himself a moment to bask in personal glory for a moment before seeking out his team-mates, he caught sight of Nyanza currently locked in combat but before he could move to intervene he heard the sound of something rushing towards him and flung his arms in front of his face; the force of his own shield colliding with the bracers on his forearms sent him skidding back several paces and when he had returned the weapon to its' proper place on his arm he saw that Grease had taken the opportunity to ready his scythe. The two of them circled each other for a moment before Grease spoke
"So, you and Felix?"
"Yes" Helios growled out, his opponents' expression softened into a cocky smile and a wink
"All I'm gonna say is that us Patch kids look out for each other, break his heart and I break your legs"
"I believe his sister has already claimed that right" Helios chuckled, a moment later as if they had received some unseen signal the two fighters rushed forwards for the next exchange of blows.
Olivine and Ether had found themselves fighting side by side exactly as Helios had predicted; their opponents being Yuki Shimo and Azure Oxford whom it transpired were also dating, the fact having given each of the fighters a moment of amusement amidst the thrill of combat.
"Ether!" Olivine called out, her partner needing no instruction to perform his part of the combo attack. The diminutive Huntress crouched, aimed and fired with speed and efficiency honed with practice that bordered on obsessive; from her position on one of the floating rocky islands amidst the magma she unleashed Buster Bravo at Azure who made to leap aside, only to be halted by Ether who had traversed the arena in the mist like state his Semblance allowed him to throw his arms around his opponents' pinning them to their chest. The high powered laser still failed to land as Yuki Shimo landed in the beams' path and seemingly used the blade of his halberd to knock it aside with flagrant disregard for the laws of physics; the halberd which Olivine and Ether had learned was named 'Argent Ronin' was quickly collapsed into its' machine-gun form and Ether was forced to fall back as he found himself outnumbered; upon seeing her partner reform safely nearby Olivine turned to Yuki with an eyebrow raised beneath the bulky goggles which contained a targeting system
"Okay, you just bent light….that's not how any of that works"
"Semblance" he said simply "There's nothing I can't block"
"We'll see" she grinned; Yuki gave no verbal response and instead merely nodded to his partner while shifting Argent Ronin back into its' Halberd form, Oxford drew their oversized and ornate pistols as they leapt onto the blade of their partners' weapon at the same time Yuki activated his Semblance, the ability to block any and all attacks also allowing him to act as a springboard in certain situations. Azure sailed overhead both pistols, collectively known as 'The Storm-Bringers' firing explosive Dust rounds which forced Olivine to take evasive action; clutching her weapon tightly she aimed downwards and fired hurling herself backwards towards another of the floating islands where she was caught by Ether who had moved to intercept her.
"How much do you have left in the tank?" Ether questioned in a low murmur, his concern evident
"Enough for one big hit" Olivine assured him, he brushed stands of glossy black hair that had fallen in front of his eyes aside and shifted his weapon back into its guitar form, speaking slowly as an idea struck him
"I won't be able to cover you, but I need you to fire at Yuki"
"He'll just block it" Olivine noted with clear frustration at her opponents ability to simply ignore science at his convenience
"Trust me Ollie?" and though Ether couldn't see behind her goggles he knew that she had rolled her eyes at him
"Okay let's do this" with that she returned her focus to the half of Team GRAY they had found themselves facing, who had seemingly been using the brief pause as an opportunity to reload. She felt Ether's body dissipate into mist beside her as she braced herself and set Buster Bravo to deliver the most amount of damage in the shortest possible amount of time. The brittle rocky ground cracked beneath her feet as the world before was transformed to a display of heat, light and noise which even the filters in her goggles couldn't fully mask; exactly as anticipated Yuki Shimo made no effort to move aside and parried an oncoming wave of bullets, Dust and laser-fire aside in a single broad swing of his weapon. At that moment Ether revealed himself, reforming in the air directly in front of Azure as he brought a pick made of solid Ice Dust down onto the stings of Ghost Reverie, the screeching discordant note coinciding with a two footed kick to the stomach which sent Azure skidding back across freshly formed ice that had already began to melt under the heat of the magma, directly into the path of Olivine's parried attack.
"AZURE!" Yuki called out frantically but the damage had already been done and the crowd exploded into cheers as they collided with the domed forcefield around the battlefield, several feet above the ground before dropping to the hard ground beyond the arenas' edge
"AND AZURE OXFORD IS REMOVED FROM THE ARENA AFTER A COMBINED EFFORT FROM OLIVINE DEGRASSE AND ETHER ARASHI!" Oobleck announced; Olivine herself soon found her attention forced back onto Yuki Shimo who had let out a howl of pure anger and charged towards her, leaping from island to island across the magma with Argent Ronin at the ready. She watched Ether rush to her defence only to find his blow redirected with the same ease as every other attack levelled against the Mistrali thus far and was forced to make several acrobatic leaps to avoid falling into magma. Olivine had used the brief time to prepare by collapsing the now all but spent Buster Bravo and fastening it across her back, the metallic exoskeleton that allowed her to wield the weapon remained around her arm and more importantly her fist. Yuki's eyes visibly widened as his first strike was simply caught in an armoured hand, Olivine slid backwards with the force of the blow but was otherwise unharmed. A moment later Ether was present, a blow intended for the back of Yuki's skull already being thrown as his body reformed though Yuki had clearly anticipated it; faster than either member of Team NEON could react he had weaved beneath the shaft of his own weapon and kicked Olivine's legs out from under her, he then rushed forwards and smashed the blunt end of the shaft into Ether's face and following up with a broad slash that sent the disoriented teen stumbling over the edge of the floating mass of rock at which point there was a collective intake of breath both within the stadium and around Remnant as a whole which was only released when Ether Arashi reformed some distance away, Aura visibly flickering around him as he hurriedly fished Ice Dust from his many pockets and used it to cool the magma dripping from his body
"ETHER ARASHI'S AURA HAS DROPPED INTO THE RED, TAKEN OUT BY YUKI SHIMO!" Oobleck bellowed, the veteran Huntsman just as shocked as the rest of the crowd
"THAT WAS RISKY" Qrow's amplified voice chided "THIS IS A FRIENDLY TOURNAMENT SHIMO"
"AINT FRIENDLY ANYMORE!" was the only warning Yuki received and while he were capable of blocking any weapon or attack he still needed the opportunity to do so, Olivine's exoskeleton coated fist collided with his fist with force that would have most likely shattered his skull were it not for the protection of his now flickering Aura, the last thing he was aware of was the continued cacophony of the audience before everything went black.
Nyanza had found himself locked in combat with Razzmatazz Phosphor, a bout that had proven to be something of a spectacle from the offset; taking place along the dividing line between the forested and volcanic halves of the arena and showcasing the absurd levels of speed, strength, agility and skill that Hunters were capable of to their fullest extent.
"Oh come on!" Razzmatazz snapped as her attempt at a spinning backhand was met by Nyanza using one of his tonfa to redirect her attack and send her staggering forwards, she hastily avoided the gunfire she knew would be coming the moment the Faunus could convert the Pharaoh Mafdet to their pistol forms but was still left wincing regardless as a shot clipped her shoulder, more the result of chance than careful aiming.
"Unlucky" Nyanza grinned, the body language of the bushy tail and feline ears that were his Faunus attributes making it clear that the smugness in his voice was nothing but a cover for his tension; Razzmatazz took a moment to focus herself and aim her weapons at him once again, she wielded a pair of wrist mounted weapons which had been collapsed and hidden before the beginning of the battle, each weapon consisting of a small firearm and a pair of curved and swept forward blades which extended over a foot beyond her closed fist; the pair were finished with a jarring mismatch of clashing colours and were known as 'The Showstoppers' a name which Razzmatazz noted they were failing to live up to
"Yeah yeah, you're Semblance makes you lucky. You've been showing it off since you got to Atlas" she snorted
"And there's still nothing you can do about it" Nyanza countered, Razzmatazz felt her teeth clench out of sheer irritation and charged forwards determined to see how long it would take him to run out of luck. She watched as Nyanza leapt over her wide slashing attack which sent her barrelling towards the magma covered half of the battlefield faster than she could slow down, Razzmatazz simply sped up and launched herself forwards whilst loading Gravity Dust into her weapons; she hit the surface of the floating rock she'd hurled herself towards and immediately fired, propelling herself back through the air towards the forested half of the battlefield where she used her Dust infused blades to neatly sever the trunk of the first tree she reached, hurling the top third of it at Nyanza whilst still airborne
"Good thinking from Razz-"
"WHAT A COMEBACK!" Oobleck, in an odd turn of events, was the one to cut across Qrow. Razzmatazz barely had time to let out an exasperated sigh as Nyanza in a single fluid motion caught the trunk that had been hurled at him, dipped into the lava on Team NEON's side of the field and sent the now burning projectile flying back towards her. She quickly switched to Ice Dust, a few well placed shots freezing the tree trunk solid before it was shattered with a forceful kick; she had little respite as Nyanza was on her in an instant, weapons firing as he closed the distance and aiming an acrobatic kick clearly inspired by watching Helios train at her face, Razzmatazz leaned back and allowed the blow to pass over her before back-flipping over a hasty back-handed follow up and slashing at the Faunus's thighs. The moment Razzmatazz felt her feet hit the floor the two were engaged in combat once more
"Cool trick with the tree" Nyanza beamed as he avoided first a kick to the face and then a low sweep to his legs "The Ice Dust counter was a nice touch"
"Yeah well y'know me" she chuckled as she deflected his tonfa and delivered an elbow to the ribs, finally landing a satisfyingly solid hit "Can't let you have all the crowds' attention" Nyanza let out as much of a laugh as his now pained ribs would allow
"Well they're gonna love this" he flashed her a wink and she saw him shift one of his weapons back to its' pistol form and use his own Gravity Dust round to launch his shoulder into her chest and send her crashing to the ground several feet away
"Oh come on that's just a weaker version of one of my moves!" the pink haired Huntress accused as she returned to her feet; seeing the sheepish expression on her opponents' face she decided to tease him in a way she was something of an expert in "But you do look cute when you're flustered though so I'll let it slide" Nyanza was still sputtering out a half formed comeback when she reached him, blades of the Showstoppers wreathed in crackling arcs of electricity as she stabbed at his chest; his two handed block left his face unguarded, a mistake that was quickly capitalised on as the feline was sent back clutching at his eyes, unable to see after having the live Lightning Dust so close to them
"Oh shit, you okay there dude?" Razzmatazz asked with genuine concern, Teams NEON and GRAY were on relatively good terms and while she wanted to win she did not want to do so at the cost of injuring someone she genuinely liked.
"Yeah, yeah just gimme a sec" Nyanza ground out, blinking until his vision returned to something approaching normal
"WHAT IS SHE WAITING FOR!" Qrow demanded incredulously "YOU'VE GOT THIS IN THE BAG!"
"Time's up" she called out, returning Nyanza's own cheeky wink before charging and delivering a punishing knee strike to the jaw followed by locking her knees around his chest and raining punches down on Nyanza's face and chest until he shook her free
"That was oddly hot" he snorted, an obvious attempt to throw her off her game as he twirled his weapons and searched for an opening
"Maybe we'll go another few rounds later" she shot back suggestively, no stranger to trash talk. She took a moment to risk a glance at the scoreboard mounted below the commentators box which displayed the Aura levels of remaining competitors, Team GRAY were losing but not by too wide of a margin; she and Nyanza had both expended vast amounts of Aura and while Olivine DeGrasse was still on the field her own levels were barely above the threshold of elimination. Razzmatazz decided it was time for a decisive blow to even things out; ejecting the spent Dust cartridges currently powering the Showstoppers she rushed forwards and Nyanza caught the briefest glimpse of an eerie green glow, the signature of Schnee patented Eco-Dust. There was very little that luck could do against the blow that connected with his chest and caused his Aura to visibly ripple as he sailed through the air and fortunately came rolling to a stop on one of the rocks on Team NEON's side of the arena; he was about to be removed from this bout and he knew that there was very little he could do to stop it, whilst he had improved astronomically as a fighter Razzmatazz outclassed him and he could freely admit it. He watched his opponent leap into the air, falling towards him in what was clearly a collision course that would see him defeated and time seemed to slow to a crawl, a smile crossing his face as a last desperate idea occurred to him; as the blades of Razzmatazz's weapons drew dangerously close to his face the feline reached up and grabbed her wrists, redirecting the blow enough to send the tips of the blades into the magma, with the notoriously volatile Eco-Dust still powering them there could only be one outcome and Nyanza used what little Aura reserves he had left to fuel his Semblance and ensure that neither of them were harmed in the resulting explosion
"A DOUBLE KNOCKOUT!" Oobleck fervour was such that his voice carried over the noise of the explosion, the dust yet to clear
"Haven't seen one of those since Weiss took herself out along with Flynt Coal; very rare that it's the right play but hats off to anyone who can swallow their pride and do it" Qrow observed. In the arena below Razzmatazz coughed from the dust and tried to reposition herself into a less painful position, at which point she became aware of the weight on her chest
"Comfy there?" she teased, Nyanza had landed sprawled almost directly on top of her and upon being made aware of the fact quickly rolled away; the two of them having been blasted onto the grassy half of the arena
"Sorry about that, you're weapons okay?….Are you?" Razzmatazz checked the Showstoppers for damage and upon finding realising that the Faunus had most likely used his own Semblance to affect the outcome of events, seeing the blush still dusting his somewhat chubby cheeks she decided he really was cute when he was flustered
"Yeah I'm good thanks, you?" she asked as she rose to her feet and held out a hand to help him up. He took it and nodded silently at which point Razzmatazz asked, her voice betraying a hint of nerves "So….are you doing anything after this?" Nyanza for once, despite his Semblance, could not believe his luck.
As artistic and fast paced as the battle between Razzmatazz and Nyanza had been the crowd had remained focused on the duel between Grease Thunderbird and Helios Nikos, those old enough to have watched Mistrali Tournament matches before the war finding themselves unable to prevent comparisons between Helios and Pyrrha; that many of those comparisons were favourable spoke volumes. Olivine watched the battle from the sidelines, having slunk around the perimeter of the arena and moving between the trees littering Team GRAY's side in order to stay hidden as she searched for an opening. A few dozen feet away Helios had just narrowly avoided another rocket powered scythe attack from Grease Thunderbird who wielded Outlaw Reaper as if it weighed nothing at all, pivoting and catching Helios in the gut with the shaft of the weapon and kicking him aside with force that sent the redhead crashing into a nearby tree hard enough to send visible tremors through its' trunk.
"Mister Thunderbird seems to be holding his own remarkably well" Oobleck noted, sounding on the edge of his seat in comparison to the lazy drawl of Qrow Branwen
"Those Patch kids have good teachers" rather than press the advantage Grease merely twirled his weapon, putting on a show for the crowd while Helios rose to his feet; evidently having no interest in kicking an opponent while they were down in front of an international audience. Olivine rushed out of the cover provided by the trees, shooting her team leader a brief thumbs up as she passed
"Two on one we've got this in the bag!" Grease gave her an annoyed glare and charged forwards to meet her, showing off the way his weapon could use Dust as he swung his Scythe; the flames trailing from the rocket boosters being replaced by streams of crackling lighting which left the smell of ozone and burning in Olivine's nose as she hastily flipped over the attack. As she landed she heard the clanging of steel against steel behind her and quickly turned to find Helios ad Grease with their blades locked together; readying the exoskeleton around her right arm she made to land a crushing blow that would end the battle, no sooner had she taken a single step than Helios called out to her
"STAND DOWN!" the redhead barked through clenched teeth as he forced the blade of the scythe aside with obvious effort "This is single combat Ollie, no interferences"
"Are you kidding me right-" she never finished the sentence, she never saw Grease move either but a moment later she found herself several feet back, Aura flickering around her visibly and frost covering her garments as a result of the Ice Dust powered attack she'd been subjected to.
"OLIVINE DEGRASSE'S AURA HAS BEEN KNOCKED INTO THE RED BY GREASE THUNDERBIRD, LEAVING ONE FIGHTER LEFT ON EACH TEAM!" Olivine rose to feet shakily, hands trembling with sudden coldness and she backed away from the arena slowly. Helios saw nothing other than the opponent before him, his shield cleaving through the air and brushing against Grease's hair as it narrowly missed his skull; the follow up stab was blocked though Helios narrowly avoided the return attack. The two traded blows at lightning speed for a few more moments before breaking apart, both clearly panting for breath and close to their limit
"It's been fun" Grease gasped out "We've definitely given the crowds what they paid for"
"You're stalling" Helios noted gruffly as he readied his weapons, an idea coming to him. Grease rolled his neck and shoulders and shifted his grip on his own weapon, giving no verbal cue before simply shooting forwards at impossible speed. Helios had anticipated the attack and hurled his shield directly upwards, using his sword to block his opponents' strike and lock him in place. Glancing upwards the redhead focused his Semblance, not on his adversary but on the shield component of Olympus Enforcer which began to fall from the air like a golden meteor as gravity was increased. Grease had only a moment to look up in open mouthed shock before the impromptu projectile struck him with a booming impact that resonated throughout the arena
"AND THAT'S THE MATCH!" Oobleck called out "GREASE THUNDERBIRD'S AURA IS IN THE RED! TEAM NEON TAKE THE WIN AND PROGRESS TO THE DOUBLES ROUND!"
"Well shit" Grease laughed as he dragged himself out of the small crater the deciding blow of the match had left "That was a good one, I'll definitely have to find a way to pull something like that. Good game man"
"Indeed it was" Helios nodded his head slightly with respect before making his way out of the arena, the forcefield around which had now dissipated. Upon reaching his team he saw Nyanza was currently talking to one of Team NEON and unless he was mistaking they were exchanging numbers, Olivine took one look at Helios and stalked off with an uncharacteristic huff while Ether merely shook his head
"You've really pissed her off, kinda feels like you put the idea of you getting the win above the team as a whole" the guitarist sighed, Helios was incensed at the suggestion
"I would never-"
"I know, I know" Ether raised his hands "Come on I'll talk to her, it'll be fine" with that the four of them made their way to the locker rooms where they had each stored a spare change of clothes, intending to partake in the rest of the festival after the tournament concluded for the evening. Though none of them said so they were all considering giving the festivities a miss, their bodies ached following the battering they had taken. Helios's exhausted expression brightened as he entered the locker room and caught sight of a distinctive mane of dirty blonde curls.
"Hey Heely" Felix gave him a bright smile "You were great out there man" the Lion Faunus rose to his feet and Helios wearily made his way over to him, wrapping his arms around the shorter teens shoulders
"Will you two stop being cute while I'm getting changed" Nyanza called out to them "It's awkward watching this shit when my dick is practically out" there were laughs all round and Helios noted that he become somewhat desensitised to his partners' peculiarities, when they had first met he would most likely have punched Nyanza in the mouth for such a comment.
"Come on man" Felix murmured, leading the redhead who was still clad in his armour out in to the corridor which led between the changing rooms and the rear entrance of the stadium, not accessible to the public. The moment they had some privacy Helios felt Felix's lips crashing against his and returned the kiss eagerly, they broke apart and the Lion Faunus was at his neck a moment later his breath hot against Helios's skin as he whispered
"You know you're sexy as hell when you go all out like that?" the redhead stifled a growl of pleasure as the Faunus's teeth grazed against his flesh; the moment evaporated into nothingness a moment later, replaced by awkwardness as the sound of a throat clearing caused them to break apart with a sudden jolt. They both turned to the source of the noise and Helios's face paled at the sight of the two newcomers, one a teenaged girl already with tattoos who sported a pair of ornate axes; the other a middle aged woman whose crimson hair was partially obscured by a cloak which appeared to be the pelt of a truly monstrous bear native to the forests of Anima, dyed black with stylised golden armour added to give the appearance evocative of the creatures of Grimm but even beneath the hood of the cloak there was no mistaking the familiar face and the three pronged golden crown of the Nikosi
"Are we interrupting?" Kataigida Nikos asked with a raised eyebrow, Syneffo Nikos barely restraining a cackle at her side
"Oh-" Felix trailed off as he recognised the familial resemblance for what it was
"Felix" Helios spoke hesitantly "Meet my mother, Kataigida Nikos; ruler of the Nikos Tribe"
Authors Notes:
Boom another chapter down, the first round will take up one more chapter….I think Vol.6 is gonna be longer than average just because I have so much fun with these tournament fights.
Nothing much to add but I feel like the premiere of Vol.6 reinvigorated the FNDM as a whole, myself included (I've actually got a few chapters ahead with my planning)
Anyway let's summarise:
Team SABL have been mentioned before, their leader sparred against Felix in Vol.5; Team AQUA is the Halo team whose leader is basically Froppy.
Teams TREE and ACRN are actually references to a RWBY Dungeons and Dragons game a friend is running.
Ranger Altan…..because of course I have a next gen Team ABRN member.
I know a few people wanted to see Team CLIR's match but look at this way, the demolished their opponents so easily it wasn't even worth writing.
We've seen Arctus interacted with the Xiao Long family but we haven't really seen Felix interact with Schnee/Slate family before.
I know a few people said awww at Felix falling asleep on Blake's shoulder.
Kids love Sentinel.
Writing the younger cousins/siblings is always fun.
Seriously, Gang's there the whole point of Team GORE entering was to attract the White Fang; the security are definitely specialists.
Blake and Corvid conversation pending.
"Oh so this is the redhead that your sister was telling us about?" how many people giggled reading that?
"So we're all sure this isn't gonna get awkward right?" I love those kind of transitions lol.
Yuki Shimo is basically a cyberpunk ninja.
Grease is kind of a dick, he does consider Nyanza a friend but Nyanza was always the whipping boy of Patch so he can't really take him seriously.
Yes Grease is a Ruby Rose fanboy…..Everyone who grew up on Patch after the war probably is to some extent.
The Pyrrha comparisons were bound to happen.
A real two on two battle needed to happen.
I love the idea of Hunters who have an understanding of science being infuriated by Semblances.
Tag-team attack for days.
It was actually originally gonna be Ether that stayed on the field but the way the scene played out worked better for Ollie…..besides the idea of her just decking someone is great and you know it.
Razzmatazz's weapons are basically the energy swords from halo but wrist mounted and with a gun attached.
Nyanza hasn't been keeping his Semblance secret like Felix; because he's kinda right it's not something that an opponent can really plan around.
She threw a tree at him, he dipped it in lava and threw it back.
The banter between these two was fun to write.
A stalemate that could only happen because of Nyanza's Semblance.
Corvid and now Razzmatazz, Nyanza has a type and that type is "Bad-ass"
Qrow making no attempt to be impartial at all is fun to write.
I can't imagine Helios taking an unfair advantage in a tournament setting, it's his pride on the line.
Helios is good but it's nice to writing him winning by something other than just raw power.
Olivine will get over it.
Of course Fluffy decided to sneak in.
God I love writing Nyanza.
Battle-Cat shippers, you're welcome.
Equal opportunity cock-blocking for everyone….and now Heely and Fluffy can both meet the parents lol.
Thank you to SumoSnipe, Bankerrtx01, iSassenach, FleetOfWarships and FluffyFirefly for their reviews on the last chapter.
The best part is that it isn't even out of character for Blake.
Yeah the chances of the Vytal Tournament going off without a hitch are precisely none.
I mean in Vol.1 I mentioned that Diamond didn't actually see too much of Cinnabar while he was at Haven, so she may have known his team but not known exactly what they could do but honestly it is just a matter of making the chapter flow better because I wanted that conversation to happen 'on screen' but didn't want to write another scene that wouldn't have added much else.
I promise we will at least see a Corvid tournament fight.
Also, nobody has guessed the pair that will be representing Team FADE in the doubles.
As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.