Chapter 6 - Movements and Motivations
Outside of the school, in the grassy areas surrounding Beacon, the members of Team GRYD and MEAL were at work practicing, much to the enjoyment of many on looking students. Macro, Glyph, and Reyson were engaged in a heated triple threat battle, which each one getting hits on the other, but none backing down. Meanwhile, The Lovers took on Leilani and Yasmine in a tag team battle, in another evenly matched contest.
The only one not battling was Diana, who was entertaining her watchers with one of her dance routines. She elegantly moved through the air, as well as on the ground, even using her whip, and the dust bullets within, to add flair and style to the movements. When she was done, she wrapped her whip around her arm and bowed to the crowd, to which they all cheered loudly. Diana soaked it all in, until she could feel the glares and gazes of others behind her. She turned to see the rest of her team, as well as MEAL, looking at her displeased.
"What?" she asked not getting their expressions
"You keep dodging practice." answered Glyph bluntly
"Wrong you are, partner, this is my practice. My routines are part of my battle style remember?"
"While practice is good," interjected Yasmine, "you need to keep your edge sharp against actual opponents, instead of just placating to a crowd."
Diana became very angry at this, "Don't get mad at me because I can put on a show, while the only "show" you can do is in the classroom answering questions."
Yasmine flared up, and tried to get to Diana, but Leilani held her back, "Don't sis."
"No, let her do it!" encouraged Reyson, "That's a fight I'd love to see. I got ten on Red."
Diana smirked at the compliment, while Glyph, Yasmine, and Leilani glared at him, which made him stand down.
"Right...sorry..."
"Don't push things Diana," warned Glyph, "you said you would overcome your flaw in regards to your battle style. Prove it."
"Fine," she said with a sigh, "next time I'll practice with you all. Promise."
Glyph nodded, and headed towards the school, the others followed, with Macro bringing up the rear, getting close to Diana as he did.
"You don't know Glyph as well as you think you do," he stated with a smirk, "you better keep that promise, or he'll make you keep it."
He snickered at the look Diana got on her face after the statement, then ran to catch up with the others. Diana shook her head as she watched them leave, then sighed heavily and followed.
A little while later, the students gathered in a classroom for their latest session of Survival Training. A burly man greeted them as they all arrived.
"Welcome back everyone!" the man said with a booming voice
He waited for a few moments, but when no one replied, his expression soured.
"I said, WELCOME BACK EVERYONE!"
The class recoiled at the volume of his shout, but all regained composure, and they said in unison, "Good morning Professor Chestnut."
The professor laughed as the reply came. The professor was a very large man, with rippling muscles on his arms and legs. Even his neck was as thick as a log. Unlike most professors, his attire was that of an outdoorsman. He wore clothing made out of simple fabrics and animal skins, on his desk stood a helmet that matched his attire. Much like his wardrobe, he had dark brown hair, with piercing blue eyes. He grinned widely as looked upon the class, rubbing his hands eagerly.
"Now class, today is a day I've been waiting for since school began for you! For today, you are going to be assigned your first official mission as teams."
The students began to talk amongst themselves at this reveal, he allowed it to happen for awhile before calming them down.
"Now to be fair, it's not a dangerous mission...per se anyway. However, it is important to get you out in the field, and this will do just that."
"What's the mission sir?" asked Macro, leaning in to hear the professor
"Good question Mr. Camof. Your mission is two-fold. Retrieval, and survival. All new teams will be blindfolded and sent into the Emerald Forest. Once there, you'll be given an item you must retrieve from the forest itself. I assure you, all items are in the forest, and in fact, have been confirmed to be there just this morning. So this isn't a trick assignment, so that excuse won't work if you fail!"
A worried murmur spread throughout the classroom. Professor Chestnut walked towards a blackboard, where a picture of the Emerald Forest was placed, he knocked his hand against it to get their attention.
"As you know, there are Grimm in the forest..."
"Yeah, and some mutated ones too..." said Reyson bitterly to his team
"...so you'll need to be on guard at all times. To enhance the need for survival. You'll be put into the forest with only 2 hours of daylight left. It'll be up to you and your team to find the item quickly, else, you're staying the night in the forest!"
He roared with laughter at this, making the students again become uneasy. Several of them looked very scared.
"But that's dangerous!" cried out one of them
"This life is dangerous!" he yelled back, stepping towards them, making all of them tense, "Do you think us adults have that excuse? No! We all have to learn to survive. Do you think that every mission is fighting Grimm? No! It's rescue, preparation, retrieving items of importance, even diversion tactics, whatever the job requires. I know some of you want to fight Grimm, that's fine, I applaud that, I really do. But not every mission is fight, but, EVERY mission is about survival. This will be your first taste of that. Any other questions?"
The class was quiet at first, then Yasmine raised her hand.
"Ms. Kaleido."
"What are we retrieving?" she asked calmly
"That...is a surprise. You'll find out specifically what it is you're looking for when you enter the forest. As for what it does, you'll see. I will say this, if you all complete the mission? It'll be worth it. Even if you don't realize it."
"What about time limits?" added Macro
"Another good question Mr. Camof." said Chestnut approvingly, "As I said, you'll have two hours before nightfall to start your journey. Then, you'll have the whole next day to find the item. If you do not get it before midnight of that day? You fail. And before you ask what your punishment will be if you fail...well, I'll let that be a surprise. A very painful one."
A wave of fear spread across the students, only a few stayed calm. Chestnut smiled and shook his head.
"Fear is not to be chastised, it's to be applauded. Fear keeps you alive many a time. But also, your skills keep you alive. So for the rest of the class, we'll be reviewing your basic survival skills. How to build camp, light a fire, purifying water, everything. You will be ready for the forest after this class. Whether you survive though, is up to you. So sayeth Barker Chestnut."
With that, he turned and began writing on the board, all the students began to take notes.
As the rest of the day progressed, all the teams who were to partake in the retrieval mission were slowly getting more and more anxious, and nervous. They constantly went over their training in their head, making sure they would ready for anything that came from being in the forest.
Finally, as the day began to set, each team was brought together and given an escort. Once on the edge of the forest, all members were blindfolded, so that they couldn't determine where in the forest they were in relativity to the school or other major landmarks. The vehicle containing GRYD trudged deep into the forest, until finally the driver stopped.
"You can take off the blindfolds now and exit the vehicle." she stated to them
Slowly, they all removed their blindfolds, and found themselves in an armored truck of sorts. Glyph was the first to rise and make for the door. He carefully opened it, and peeked his head out to ensure nothing was waiting for them outside. When certain of its safety, he turned to the others and nodded, and they all proceeded to get out.
Glyph went to the driver while the others adjusted to the open forest, "I know the time limit, but what are we getting? And how do we show we completed the mission?"
The driver reached down, then gave Glyph a wristband of sorts, "Put that on. It has the info on what you're looking for. Once you find it, scan it, and a signal will reach the school. An airship will pick you up once it's confirmed that you retrieved the item. Good luck. Your mission begins now."
She started up the armored truck and began to drive away, Glyph and the others watched it leave, then huddled together to discuss the mission.
"So, what are we looking for?" asked Yasmine
Glyph put on the wristband, and pressed a button on it. A hologram emerged from the band, and showed a tree and some text.
"We're looking for a tree?" wondered Reyson in disbelief, then motioned all around him, "Take your pick!"
"It's a specific tree Reyson, and we're not looking for it, but the sap in it. Read why don't you."
"How about you kiss my-"
"Enough!" interjected Glyph, shutting down Reyson and Yasmine with a look, "Yasmine, what do you know about the tree?"
"It's called the Tropian Tree." she replied once calm, "It only grows in certain parts of Remnant, including the Emerald Forest."
"At least we know it's here." said Diana happily
"Indeed. However, it's not going to be easy. This particular tree has a particular growth cycle, and it only flourishes in certain areas. It's not going to be easy to find."
"So," said Reyson, mulling over the info, "it's a needle in a haystack?"
Yasmine sighed angrily, but eventually nodded, "Yes, most likely, though not impossible."
The two again glared at one another, which caused Diana to snicker, and Glyph to shake his head angrily.
"Focus," he said to them all, "first things first. We need to try and establish where we are. Yasmine?"
"On it." she replied with a nod
She reached behind her, and pulled out her lance. Once extended, she separated it into her drones, and sent them up into the air. The others watched as they rose higher and higher.
"Ah, aerial recon?" asked Diana impressed
"Yes, my drones have all kinds of sensors, not to mention cameras and scopes."
"Could they find the tree?" wondered Reyson
Yasmine was taken aback by the simplicity of the question, she thought it over for a bit.
"Possibly, but there's risk."
"Such as?"
"Such as, just because they know what the tree looks like, doesn't mean they can find it on look alone. They'd have to slowly weave throughout the forest in all directions. Also, there are Grimm here, and they would likely get destroyed if caught."
"You afraid of losing your pets?" teased Reyson
"If I recall, my "pets" made you think twice about chasing Grimm when we got partnered up." shot back Yasmine, "Want to see their bite again?"
"Will you two give it a rest?" said Diana exasperated, "Fight later, let's get this sap and move on! I have things I'd rather be doing than this."
"Oh, right," Reyson with mock sympathy, "heaven forbid we delay your dance practice."
"Ha, ha. Guess what? I wasn't referring to that."
"Sure you weren't Red."
"Drones are back." said Glyph pointing up
Sure enough, the drones descended upon them, they all gathered around Yasmine and began to buzz. She looked at each one, nodding when done with them and moving to the next. Finally, she waved them off so she could address the others.
"We're approximately three miles from the school," she said confidently, "which means we're pretty deep into the forest."
"Options for finding the tree?"
"As much as I hate to admit it, Reyson was right that my drones could help find the tree. They may not be able to find the tree itself, but they can search for areas that the tree could be in, and constantly searching for more. If you give me a little time, I'll make the adjustments so they can do so."
"Do it." he said, handing her the wristband with the data
Yasmine brought her drones close, and began to input everything they needed to find where the tree might be. The others waited patiently for her to finish. A few minutes passed and Yasmine sent two of her drones into the sky, keeping two with her.
"Ok, they're ready," she said with a nod to Glyph, "the two up there will scan for areas that could have the tree based on atmospheric conditions, while these two will do the same from ground level.. If any find signs of where they are, they will let me know."
The drones beeped happily at the mention, which made Glyph smirk.
"So, where do we go first?" asked Diana looking around
"Well, because the forest looks the same from up there, and down here, we'll honestly just have to walk around on our own for a while. The more we see of the forest, the more my drones will be able to predict areas where the Tropian Tree is."
"Great!" said Reyson happily, grabbing his swords and readying himself for the trek, "More walking means more chances for action. Fun! I pick this way first!"
He pointed in one direction and began to walk off. Glyph teleported right in front of him, making him stop.
"Don't make this any more difficult than it is Reyson." he said warningly, "You run off? I will drag you back."
"I hope you mean "drag" literally." said Yasmine with a glare at Reyson
"I do. You've been warned."
He turned and began to head into the forest. Reyson stared him down as he did, but reluctantly followed. He was followed by Diana and Yasmine.
GRYD went even deeper into the Emerald Forest, keeping their eyes peeled for both the tree, and hidden dangers that might come their way. Several times they were surprised by Grimm, both Beowolves and Boarbatusks try and ambush them, but the team works together and quickly dispatches them.
As they continued on, Yasmine's drones noted areas that would likely have the tree they were looking for. They went to them with high hopes, but upon reaching the potential spots, they found the tree wasn't there, forcing them to continue on without a lead.
Minutes turned into hours, and soon, darkness descended on the forest. The thick canopies of the trees made it so that the darkness was almost all encompassing. Thankfully, Yasmine's drones were able to shed light on the immediate area. She even brought down the ones from the sky so that they could add to the lighting.
"This'll help us see," she noted as the drones shined spotlights everywhere, "but we need to set up camp."
"Agreed." acknowledged Glyph, "But we're not in a good place to do so. We should find a clearing."
"Won't that make us more open to attacks?" asked Diana
"Yes, but, locked in with the trees we're no better off."
"On a level plain, it's an even playing field." added Reyson, "Or, if we get lucky and find a plateau of some kind, we could use that to our advantage."
They all turned to him in surprise, they had rarely ever heard him use such logic. He rolled his eyes angrily.
"I'm a barbarian, not an idiot. Or, at least not when it comes to battle tactics. Lochen is a smart guy, I like listening to his ideas and strategies."
"Which you barely use..." scoffed Yasmine
"Timing is everything Yasmine, I thought you knew that."
He smiled at her teasingly, which fired her up.
"Both of you drop it." said Glyph testily, again forcing them to stop, "Now is not the time. We need to find a good place to sleep and keep watch."
As if on cue, one of Yasmine's drones began to beep. Yasmine looked at it for a bit, then turned to the others, "It's saying that someone has a fire nearby, man made."
"I'm sorry," interrupted Reyson, "but how are understanding it again?"
"I built them so they could communicate with it. I have special lenses on my eyes that interpret the data they find."
"Right..."
"Moving on, the fire is that way."
Yasmine took point, the other followed her through the trees. They all had their weapons at the ready just in case. Soon, an opening appeared, and they slowly approached it. To their surprise, in the now open clearing sat Team MEAL sitting around a fire. They all reacted to GRYD in their own ways. Leilani in particular jumped up and went over to hug Yasmine, who happily returned the gesture.
"Hey Leilani," said Yasmine happily, "good to see you safe."
"You too sis!" replied Leilani beaming, "I was hoping you were ok."
Macro got up and clasped hands with Glyph in a sign of brotherhood, while the rest simply waved and greeted the others.
"Good to see you Glyph." said Macro, "Your team is more than willing to join us around the fire."
"Thanks." said Glyph with a nod
With a motion the rest, they joined MEAL around the fire. Leilani was sure to sit next to Yasmine. Diana made sure she sat next to Glyph, with the rest just picking seats that were there.
"So," said Aaron with a curious look, "may we take it you haven't found your item yet either?"
"No such luck." answered Diana
"We know what to look for," revealed Yasmine to Leilani, "but finding it is another matter."
"Same here." said Leilani sadly, "we know what it is, but it's hard finding it."
"What's your item?" Glyph asked Macro
"Matchen Nuts." he replied simply
Reyson was stunned at this, "Matchen Nuts? Isn't that...?"
"A kind of nut used in high class meals?" stated Erin with a sly grin, "Yes, yes it is. How did you know that?"
Reyson became uncomfortable at this, "My family loves it. We have it on several occasions."
"That's surprising, given how rare it is." noted Aaron
"Let's just say my family doesn't want for much."
They all looked at Reyson for more about what he and his family did, but he looked away, face full of anger and pain. Glyph and Macro looked at each other and shook their heads in acknowledgement that they shouldn't push it.
A rustling of bushes got their attention, and all of them jumped up, weapons at the ready. They waited as the noise got louder, and closer, each ready to strike at a moments' notice. To their surprise again though, a person walked out, the lightning covered them in shadow. This time though, the person was exhausted. As he looked up, she was taken aback by their attack poses.
"Friendly!" she cried, "I mean, I'm not a Grimm."
"We can tell that." say Reyson bluntly
"I know you..." said Yasmine looking closer at the girl
"Elenor Rigby." said Glyph, beginning to relax his pose
Elenor stepped forward into the light, showing that it was indeed her. Her tonfa were still on her arms, but her looks were different. She was covered in scrapes and bruises on both her arms and legs. Macro reacted to this.
"Your hurt, come here. I'll fix you up." he said as he put his shovel away
Without waiting for Elenor to respond, Macro began pulling items out of his vest, then used them on Elenor.
"This'll hurt a little."
He began treating the wounds, she winced at times as he tried to heal them, "Ow, ow..."
"Why don't you use your Aura Elenor?" asked Leilani, "You remember it heals wounds right?"
"I've been doing that for a while now. Almost since we got into the forest. It's...not been easy. Anyway, I'm giving my aura a rest, just in case."
"Where's your team?" asked Glyph, his face hardening, "Where's the rest of PRME?"
At this, Elenor became uncomfortable. Glyph's face became full of rage.
"Did they abandon you?"
"No...not exactly."
Macro stopped tending to her at this and made eye contact with Elenor, "What do you mean, "not exactly"?"
"Well..." she started, clearly embarrassed, "they said it would be easiest if we split up to find the item. So we did."
The others looked at each other knowingly. Yasmine in particular was offended, "No they didn't. They merely sent you away, making you think they all went in different directions, then likely rejoined not long after."
Elenor didn't react badly to this, instead, she merely sighed sadly, "Yeah, I figured."
"Why go along with it then? Why wander the forest?" asked Erin confused
"Still needed to finish the mission. Besides, even if I was with them still, I would've wanted to test my skills at finding the item."
Glyph and Macro smiled at this. While some of the others shook their heads in disbelief.
"You're a brave girl noted Elenor." noted Reyson approvingly
"What's the item you're looking for?" asked Macro, treating her wounds again
"A Gordanian Root." she answered
"Oh! Mission complete then."
He reached into his vest and pulled out a small, withered root. Elenor's eyes lit up at this.
"This is it! Why do you have it?"
"I use it for certain medical purposes. I'm a soldier and a medic, having stuff like this comes in handy. I would've used it on you if you hadn't mentioned it was your goal. Go ahead, take it."
Elenor happily took the root, and put it in one of her pockets. Once secured she bowed to them all.
"Thank you so much."
"You want to stay with us?" asked Glyph, "It'll be safer here until morning."
"Thank you, but no." answered Elenor with a smile, "I need to find them so we can get out. I'll be fine. Thank you all for your help."
With another bow, she turned and headed into another patch of bushes and trees, soon disappearing from sight.
"Brave girl." repeated Reyson
"Remind me to punch Primrose the next time I get a chance." noted Glyph bitterly
"Done." the rest said in unison
"Such bratty girls" said Erin with malice, "why in the world would they do that to Elenor? I would love to know why they wanted to become Huntresses. Likely for fame and glory."
"Or to boost their own egos." added Aaron
They all gathered back around the campfire, putting back their weapons as they did if they hadn't already. Reyson laughed to himself as they did.
"What?" asked Yasmine expecting the worse
"It's nothing."
"Come on." Diana pushed, "Out with it."
"Look, it's just, I can't condemn anyone for being a Huntsman or Huntress. No matter their motivation."
"Why not?" wondered Leilani surprised
"Because, not everyone does it for noble reasons. Some do it for very selfish ones. And there are very good Huntsmen and Huntresses out there who only do it for said selfish reasons. You can hate them, but it doesn't mean they don't get the job."
"So do you do it for a selfish reason?" asked Aaron
"Yes. I do it because my family hates that I do it. That I want to be a pure Huntsman, instead of what they are. Even going to Beacon was an act of defiance against them. Besides, I love to fight Grimm, Huntsman is the best profession to do that. That simple."
They all looked away, but for different reasons, this got Reyson looking at them suspiciously, "Oh, right, and you all have non-selfish reasons for wanting to be Huntsman and Huntresses."
"Some of us I'm sure." said Macro confidently, "My father is a soldier, I wanted to follow in his footsteps. Huntsman skills are valuable to be that, so here I am."
"Me and Yasmine wanted to help our family, and our kind," said Leilani with a small smile, "being Huntresses will help us do that. Hopefully anyway."
"It will Leilani." said Yasmine with a comforting look to her sister
Reyson rolled his eyes, then turned to The Lovers, "You two?"
"I wanted to prove my skills to the world. I'm very accurate with my crossbows as you've seen." boasted Aaron
"I thought it would be cool to be a Huntress," said Erin with a small look of shame, "I was happy my parents allowed me to do it."
"As am I."
The Lovers hugged one another lovingly, causing Reyson to fake vomit in response. Then he set his sights on Glyph, "And you?"
"Desire. Then atonement." he stated simply, his look showing he wasn't going to elaborate
Diana waited for them to ask her her reasoning for being a Huntress, but no one did, making her angry, "What? You don't want to know my reason?"
"You're a dancer Red." said Reyson with a shrug, "You're probably like Aaron, wanting to show off your skills to a different audience."
"Shows what you know, that's not even close."
"Then enlighten us," said Glyph showing interest, making Diana smile
"I will. Esmeralda Fenix."
They all reacted in surprise at this. Making Diana smile even wider.
"The famous Huntress?" revealed Leilani, "Arguably one of the best still in the world today?"
"The very one."
"What does she have to do with this?" asked Macro curious
"When I was young, I only wanted to be a dancer. Then one day, my village was attacked by Grimm. Esmeralda came to save us, and I got to watch her fight."
She closed her eyes and envisioned the battle, smiling as she thought about what she had seen.
"The way she fought, it wasn't just powerful, it was beautiful. Her Semblance allowed her to generate and manipulate fire. And she used that gift in a way I can't even explain. I was...moved, touched in the deepest way by what I saw. Sure, I could dance, but could I move like that? Not yet. So...I decided to become a Huntress, so I could try and be like her."
"Thus why your moves are so elegant in their movements." said Yasmine, realizing the connection
"Yep, even me choosing a whip as my weapon was because of her. Her weapon was an extension of her moves, instead of just a tool, I wanted something similar, and the whip came to mind."
"Surprising," admitted Reyson, though he smiled soon after, "but to be clear. That's selfish."
Diana smiled right back at him, "Oh I never said I became a Huntress for unselfish reasons! I just wanted you to know the reason. Aren't you glad I surprised you?"
The others made varying sounds of amusement and acknowledgement, making Diana scoff.
"Tough crowd."
"One that needs to sleep." noted Macro getting up, "We'll take shifts watching over everyone. That way everyone gets some sleep, while we make sure we aren't blindsided. We'll do it in partner shifts. Me and Leilani can do first watch, if that's ok with you of course."
"I don't mind, I'm not tired yet." she replied with a shrug
"Good. The rest of you get some sleep. We'll wake you up when it's your turn to watch.
They all nodded in agreement, then proceeded to rest on the ground.
A few hours later. Glyph and Diana were woken up to keep watch. They stretched to get more awake, then proceeded to pace around the clearing for a while. Neither of them spoke for some time. Diana got more antsy with each silent minute.
"You know, we can talk during our watch." she said with a look to Glyph
"Then talk." he said back, not returning the look
Diana grabbed his hand, forcing him to stop and turn to her. She looked at him with a playful smile.
"You don't have to play "hard to get" with me."
"I don't know what you mean."
"Oh come on. You bought me the book. That didn't mean anything?"
"I could tell you really wanted it, so I got it for you. That's called being a friend."
Diana smiled even more playfully, stepping closer to Glyph so that they were only a few inches apart.
"What if I wanted something else? Say, something more than a friend?"
Glyph look right into her eyes for a few moments, then stepped back a few feet. Diana's smile faded as he did.
"Then I'd say you'd have to earn it. I'm not that easy." he answered bluntly
"I never said you were."
"Said? No. Acted? Not so much. You call me "partner" all the time. You make looks at the others at times as if to say "he's mine". That doesn't make me happy."
"I didn't mean-"
"It doesn't matter what you meant. You did it. You want to impress me? Be better. Better for me, better for the team, not just for you."
He turned and walked away. Leaving a stunned Diana in his wake. After a few moments of walking though, he paused and sighed heavily. Face full of regret. He slowly turned around.
"Diana...look, I just don't..."
As he fully faced where she was, he noticed she was completely gone. Glyph became afraid, quickly looking around to see where she went, but she was gone.
"Diana..."
Now fully in the forest, Diana walked determined through it. She had her whip out, and lashed out at trees that were nearby. Her face was full of fire.
"Be better, huh?" she muttered to herself, "Ok. I'll show you I'm worth it."
Her eyes darted from one part of the path she was on to the other, fully focusing on the trees themselves.
"Where are you, you dumb tree?!"
She continued on, still whipping the trees that were nearby, slowly creating a path she could follow back to the team. As time went on though, her fire in her face began to fade. At one point she stopped and looked around bitterly, her expression slowly growing remorseful.
"Maybe this was a bad idea."
With no sign of the tree, and very little light to go on, Diana sighed, putting her hands on her hips and shaking her head.
"Nice one Diana. You haven't let a guy rile you up like this in years. I can't wait for the lecture when I get back. Oh well, let's get this over with."
Now refocused, Diana began down her marked path. Seconds into doing so though, a rustling sound filled the forest. She repositioned her whip to be in a more attack posture, and waited for the noise to reveal itself. The sounds got louder, making Diana more tense with every passing second. Then, it suddenly died down.
She waited for it to start back up again, but it didn't, so she relaxed, "Huh, must've been-"
A roar filled the air, and from the nearby trees came a massive gorilla like being. It lunged into Diana with its massive fists, sending her flying backwards into nearby trees. She collided with several branches, and landed broadside on the trunk of a tree. Though in pain, she got back up, her eyes glued on her Grimm opponent.
"A Beringel," she said surprised, "I didn't know they were in the forest. Just my luck. Come on monkey boy!"
The Beringel roared again, and made his way towards Diana. This time though she was ready, and she sidestepped its attack and let loose strikes with her whip. Using both itself and the Dust bullets within to do damage. The Grimm felt the attacks, but shook them off quickly and re-engaged Diana.
Diana tried to keep the Beringel at a good distance using her whip, but the Grimm wouldn't have it, and consistently got in close to do attacks, forcing her to dodge. Then, when she tried to do her more elegant and powerful attacks, the Beringel would break her stride, making her start over.
Getting frustrated, Diana used whatever attack she could get off on the Grimm. Yet despite hitting it, the Grimm kept coming back for more. In one instance, it charged right at her, enduring all of her attacks, then hitting her broadside, sending her crashing into a tree, breaking it in half.
Diana gasped for air as she tried to get up after the attack, "Get up Diana...get up!"
She groaned in pain, but was able to rise up. The Beringel was waiting for her, and charged again. This time though, Diana dodged, and let the Grimm burst through more trees. Sending bark and branches everywhere.
As she took the moment to recover, the words of Glyph echoed in her head, "I've seen you work that whip Diana. It is elegant, beautiful even, but you leave yourself open. A smart opponent can dodge your attacks with ease as you dance around."
"Or endure it apparently." she added with a smile, "What would you do Glyph?"
Glyph's words again echoed for her, "I get...complacent... I don't evolve, and that can be fatal."
"Evolve. Ok. Ok."
She looked around, desperate for any advantage. She saw the tree pieces on the ground and smiled.
"Oh! Idea."
No sooner did she say this than the Beringel again charged her. This time it had picked up pieces of the destroyed tree trunks and threw it at her. She swatted them away with her whip, or rolled under them.
"Guess we had the same idea, your turn to dodge!"
With a quick motion, she began picking up parts of the fallen trees with her whip, and threw them at the Grimm. She did so repeatedly so that the beast would be put off balance.
The Beringel took the hits for a while, then charged again at her. Diana readied herself as it did. Once close again, she used a simple maneuver and wrapped her whip around its leg, catching it. Then, with some effort, tripped it up, making if fall to the ground. Now exposed, and unable to guard, she let loose with her whip.
"Take this!" she shouted as she lashed it repeatedly
The Beringel took the hits, but soon rose and charged again. Diana was ready though, and used similar strikes to gain the upper hand. But the Grimm learned her tricks, and after one instance actually grabbed the whip, and used it to throw her into another tree, again destroying it. Bark rained from the sky as Diana again rose from the ground.
"Ok...this one is smart...great."
She winced in pain as she saw blood coming from her arm. Diana steadied herself though and prepared for battle. However, her eyes noticed a large chunk of tree trunk nearby, one that was conveniently sharp due to its destruction. his caused her to smile.
"It doesn't have to work every time, just once."
She rushed the Beringel, and slid under a swipe of its massive hands, then rose and attacked it again. Making it stumble forward before turning back to Diana.
"See if you can stop this! Come on girls!"
Diana danced in place, and began sending out projections of herself via her Semblance. The colored silhouettes use their own whips to grab onto the Grimm. Together, they were strong enough to hold it in place.
"Here we go!"
Using her whip, she bounded over the Beringel, then slammed her whip onto one end of the tree trunk, making it rise into the air. She quickly wrapped her whip around it, and hurled it towards the Grimm. The Beringel shook off the silhouettes, and turned towards Diana just as the trunk was within inches of it. The sharp end plowed into the Grimm, sending it flying backwards and into another tree. The momentum was so strong the sharpened trunk pierced through the Grimm and through the other trunk, impaling the Beringel, and killing it. Making it fade away in wispy smoke.
Relieved the fight was over, Diana fell to her knees in exhaustion, sighing heavily. Soon though, she began to laugh.
"Oh Glyph," she said with a smile, "I wish you had saw that."
As she rose again, a dripping noise caught her ears. She looked around and saw that one of the trees that had been damaged in the fight was dripping an odd substance. She looked at it curiously, then got closer to examine it. When she did, her eyes went wide in shock.
"That's the sap! That's a Tropian Tree! What are the odds?"
She tapped her head as she began to think.
"Ok, how much did we need? I think it was a good cup full. What do we have?"
Diana looked around, and saw a fractured branch that could suit her needs. She helped shape it so it could hold more of the sap, then once content, went to the tree and filled it up.
"That ought to do it." she said contently with a smile, "Now let's get back to the others."
She slowly rose and looked around for her whip markers. Once she found them, she began down her path.
At the campsite, everyone was up, hoping for any sign of Diana. Glyph looked especially tense, and he paced all around the site.
The rustle of bushes made them all jump up, and to their relief, Diana walked though them, still holding the branch filled with sap. The others raced to her to see if she was alright.
"I'm fine, I'm fine," she said as they bombarded her with questions, "can someone hold this? My arms are tired."
"I got it," said Yasmine taking it from her, "I have a container we can use."
"Thanks Yasmine."
"How did you find the sap?" asked Reyson eyeing her curiously
"Luck, trust me."
The others laughed at this, all except Glyph, who was glaring at her. She sighed and made her way to him. She stood in front of him very relaxed, and looked right into his eyes.
"Go ahead, say it."
"That was reckless, and stupid. Not what I meant by "be better"." he said with force
"I know, and I'm sorry." she said honestly, "I was trying to prove something to you, but I got lost in the emotion of it all I guess. I'll do better."
Glyph's gaze burned into her, but he soon nodded, content with her response, "Good. Despite what you did, I am glad you found the sap. More important...I'm glad you're alright."
"Yeah, he woke us up right after you left," noted Macro, "we had to hold him back from charging right after you."
Diana looked at him pleased and surprised, "Did you now?"
"I wanted to find you. That's what friends do when they think one is in danger."
"Well thank you..."
He nodded and began to walk away, to which he turned to him and smiled.
"...partner."
Glyph stopped and turned to her, his face like stone. But then he laughed and smiled back at her.
"Hate to break this up," stated Reyson getting their attention, "but we have our item, can we go back to Beacon now?"
Glyph turned to Macro, who happily motioned them off, "By all means, we'll finish our task on our own. It's only fair."
With their blessing, Glyph scanned the sap with the device they were given. A screen came up, glowed green and stated, "Mission Accomplished!". Followed by a message stating, "Airship Incoming."
A few days later, they returned to the classroom of Professor Chestnut. He stood in front of his class and surveyed the students. On his desk stood a large item, covered in a cloth.
"Students!" he said, voice still booming, "I'm proud of all of you. Each team completed the task! That hasn't happened in a few years, well done."
The students clapped at their own success, to which Chestnut happily allowed.
"Sir!" called out Yasmine, "May I ask what the purpose of collecting those items were?"
Instead of answering, Chestnut simply smiled, then pulled the cloth off of the item on his desk. Under it stood a large jar, filled with a liquid substance. The class gazed at it in wonder and curiosity.
"This my students...is Chamera Oil."
While many looked around confused, several, including Macro and Yasmine, reacted surprised. Chestnut laughed at their reactions.
"Peace, it's ok if you don't know what it is. Chamera Oil is a rare liquid that can treat certain infections and diseases. Including...a disease that has stricken a local town in our very own kingdom right now."
"So it wasn't random," noted Macro, "it did have a purpose."
"Every mission you will take in this school will have a purpose Mr. Camof. Night and I don't believe in "meaningless missions". Everything should have a purpose. And your actions over that day and a half will help cure many a man, woman, and child. You should be proud."
"What would've happened if one of us failed?" asked Leilani curious
"Good question. Though scattered, Night knows where all the items were in the forest. So if one of you had failed, he would've gotten it himself. Just because you would've failed doesn't mean we should punish everyone, right?"
The class nervously laughed, but Chestnut waved it all off.
"Relax! You did wonderful, and by what I have heard, some of you deserve special praise. Including Elenor Rigby, and Diana Artemisia, who single-handily acquired the items for their teams. Well done ladies."
The class cheered for them. Diana especially was taken aback, and as she turned to her team, she saw Glyph smiling at her, and he even added a wink to show it was him who told Chestnut about her. She smiled playfully at him, which made him shake his head and turn away. But her smile didn't fade, even when Chestnut restarted the class and began his lesson.
*credits*