Here's the next chapter of Forged Destiny. The cover image has been kindly sketched by A Stuck at Home Tome from the forums. I do actually intend to draw my own for this eventually, though knowing me that could take many months. I often have people ask "how do you write so much?" and the simple answer is by dedicating a lot of time to it. Naturally that pushes back all my other little projects like drawing cover art and such. ;)
Beta: College Fool
Chapter 5
The training halls of Beacon Academy were much larger than I'd ever expected. A separate building in their own right, the large central room was surrounded by changing rooms and showers, with a medical wing attached to one side and a storage room the other. We were all shocked to see our weapons too, which most of us had left by our beds, arranged in neat rows with names taped to each. It looked like the staff at the Academy had been busy, and that they also somehow knew all our names already.
"Wait until you are called up before collecting your weapons," the stern blonde woman called as they filed into the room. When Yang had told me it was combat class my first thought had been to panic. I had no idea how my skills would hold up against dedicated heroes, and since my level was also so low it probably wasn't going to be a fun experience either way. It wasn't until I walked into the room, however, and saw the teacher – that the second thought struck.
Just why was a Warlock in charge of the duelling and training classes anyway? Miss Goodwitch towered over everyone with a presence that could be felt across the entire hall, but she was still a Mage-class Hero, which meant her forte would surely be in long ranged combat. She also didn't have a melee weapon on her, so it made even less sense. Would not someone like Professor Port – the Cavalier – have been better for the role?
"Your main opponents will often be Grimm," the blonde woman said, silencing them all with stern, green eyes. "Heroes are occasionally called in to deal with human opponents, most often other Heroes who have broken the law or gone renegade, but these situations are rare. You will also not be able to gain Exp from sparring like we shall here. So do not expect to be gaining any Levels in the ring. This does not make such training useless, however, and you shall give this class the respect it deserves."
As though any of us would have dared do otherwise with her watching.
"Training among your peers allows you to practice your skills in a safer environment, while also learning to cope and adapt to a wide array of different styles and abilities. Grimm are common and varied enough that the lessons you learn here could very well save your life – and those of the people around you. As such, I expect that you will all be deadly serious while here, and will follow my instructions without question."
There was a general chorus of agreement from the crowd.
"Battles will be one vs one, the combatants as I decide them. You will come up and collect your weapons, then you will present them to me so that I can imbue them with a curse."
There were confused and concerned murmurs at that. Pyrrha didn't notice the questioning look I sent her, and the others were too busy trying to figure it out themselves. The teacher clapped her hands loudly to draw attention back.
"This will be a temporary curse," she explained. "It will cause any damage you inflict to add an additional status effect which simulates the damage you would have received in combat. It will also cause complete paralysis when you reach 40% of your aura reserves, at which point the fight is considered over. In addition, I will be casting a field over the arena to mute the effects of spells. While they will still work, their offensive capabilities will be lessened and I shall imbue a complete null zone over the arena should I believe there is a risk of injury."
"Why don't we just use aura?" Some brave soul in the crowd asked. "Couldn't we just stop at whatever level you tell us to?" Miss Goodwitch didn't seem displeased by the question, and now that I thought about it, this was probably something she had to deal with every year.
"This is an added safety measure," she said. "While it is true that aura, or health as some people like to refer to it, can be used to dictate a fight, there is always a chance that someone might misrepresent their reserves or choose to endanger themselves by fighting on. Your precise aura level is tied to your Constitution and is therefore not something I, or anyone else, can judge at a distance. It would be very easy for someone to drain and kill themselves in what should be a friendly spar. The curse I will apply shall prevent this ever happening, and should there be any injuries our resident Priest, Kitsune, is on hand." The blonde woman pointed over our heads, and I could just about pick out what looked to be a faunus leaning against a back wall. I'd later come to realise it was the entrance to the medical area, but for now the brown-haired woman waved happily at us.
Either way, aura and how it worked wasn't something I'd really considered. It was true that you couldn't judge another's aura, though I knew some medical Classes could when healing – but even that required them to be touching the patient. There were medical Classes among the Labour Caste too, with Doctors, Nurses and such able to tend to the small injuries any normal person might pick up. I could only guess that a Priest would be a bit more heavy-duty about it, able to heal more or somehow do it better. If Miss Goodwitch's curse worked as advertised though, then it wouldn't even be necessary.
"The first fight will be between Mr Jaune Arc and Miss Yang Xiao-Long." My stomach dropped at the realisation that I'd be the first person up onto the stage. Whether that was a good or a bad thing I wasn't sure, but as Yang stepped forward I wasn't surprised to find myself rooted to the spot.
"Kick ass Jaune!" Nora yelled, pushing me forward and cutting the teacher off at the same time. I staggered a little but recovered in time to make it look like I wasn't as terrified as it seemed. Yang didn't look quite so concerned, so maybe I shouldn't have been panicking either.
"Don't kill him Yang!" Ruby yelled, doing wonders for destroying my already flimsy confidence. The blonde Brawler grinned, placing both hands on the edge of the raised arena before flipping herself up, performing an elegant backflip to land opposite me.
"Hey," she grinned – and it didn't seem to be a particularly friendly look.
"Collect and bring me your weapons," the teacher instructed, and I obediently picked Crocea Mors and my shield off the racks, bringing them towards her. I don't think I was the only one watching with rapt attention as she whispered some unknown words, hands touching the metal, which began to glow a dull purplish hue. I let out a sigh as it was handed back to me, as undamaged as it had been a second ago. Everyone seemed to relax a little at that and for a moment I felt silly for even doubting what had to be a far more experienced person than I. Crocea Mors didn't seem affected at all as I slashed her back and forth.
Yang handed over her own weapons and I took the chance to look at them. Yang had two sets of gauntlets, the material of which I wasn't certain. They looked simple enough in design, closing over her knuckles but with bare fingers so she still had the use of them. It didn't take a genius to figure out they were for hitting things.
Not all weapons were subtle, and as I'd soon find out, neither was she. "Begin!" Miss Goodwitch called, as I fell into a stance.
Yang was on me in an instant. The first blow rained down on my shield. For a moment I thought I'd blocked it but the smile on her face, along with the agony that rocketed down my arm, told me she was actually trying to take it out of the equation entirely. A follow-up blow hit the side of it, jerking my arm to the side and letting her place an open-palmed strike to my bicep.
If there had been any thought of the teacher's curse weakening the attacks, then I was quickly disabused of it. Yang's strikes were agonising and made all the more so for the fact that with the added curse they sapped at my body as well as my aura. Crocea Mors swung in a downward arc, but the girl slipped to the side, slamming a boot down onto the flat of it and pinning it – and my arm – to the ground.
I blocked her left hook with my jaw, before quickly grabbing her right with my stomach and flipping myself over her head to slam into the hard ground. Yang didn't even give me the time to try and stand up, driving her shin into the side of my ribs and knocking me onto my side. My shield came up at the last second, deflecting some of her attacks as I staggered back up. But the damage was already done.
Eyes narrowed I tried to concentrate on my stats. My Constitution was fairly high and I still had around 65% of my aura remaining, but it was a drop in the ocean compared to hers – which would obviously still be full. She was picking me apart, but from the surprised look on her face, it must have been taking a little longer than she had expected. I didn't know if I should have been proud of surprising her, or upset at being underestimated.
I had to use that, somehow. Back in the Quest I'd used what I had to my advantage, Stoke the Forge and my high Strength on the Canis. Yang was strong, definitely stronger than me, so fighting her toe to toe wasn't going to work. She was a Hero, which meant she'd always be better in straight-up fighting than I was. I was struggling to hit her, but if I managed it, I would hit hard – and I could take a beating too.
So when her next attack came, the girl covering the distance in what felt like a fraction of a second… I dropped my guard and let her in. A blow hit my stomach, driving the wind from me as she spun and delivered a kick to the side of my head. When I fell back she kept the pressure on, unwilling to give up the momentum as she sought to bring me down. So close, my sword was just about useless, which was probably her plan.
She didn't expect it when I dropped Crocea Mors entirely, nor when my arms wrapped around her in a bear hug, the girl too close to react.
We struck the ground together, her gasping for breath as I fell on top of her, my armour adding quite a bit of extra weight. One of her knees hit my back but I ignored the pain, sitting up on her stomach and punching her in the face. I think it shocked more than just her. The crowd went silent, before erupting in violent cheers as I lifted my fist once more and delivered another powerful strike, dazing her slightly. She recovered quickly, however, bringing up her hands to block before launching a counter-attack herself, catching the side of my neck.
I was losing aura still, 55% now and approaching the point of defeat, but my attacks were having an effect on her too. What I lacked in my ability to dodge and hit, I made up for with the sheer power behind my blows, and with her pinned beneath me actually hitting was a moot point anyway. Raising both hands above my head I joined them together, shouting as I brought them down in a hammer blow towards her head.
Yang's grin widened, "Bad move," she whispered. Her face flicked to the side as I hit, but it seemed to bounce back as if elasticated – her eyes flashing bold crimson as she smiled, all teeth. An open palm struck up towards my chest but I ignored it. My armour should have blocked it, and from her position on the floor the attack couldn't have had any real force behind it.
Which was why I was caught so unaware when the blow hit hard enough to crack my armour, denting it inwards as air exploded from my lungs. The force was so great that it lifted me a good four inches off the ground before I collapsed back down atop her.
"The match is over!" Miss Goodwitch called, quickly stepping forward lest Yang decide to continue the assault. I'd lost, and pretty badly too. Yang pushed me off her, my limp body falling to the side. I couldn't move and for a second a spike of panic shot through me, had she broken my spine!? I managed to wriggle on the ground, in what must have made for a ridiculous sight, as people started to laugh and point. Light footsteps came closer, before from the corner of one eye I noticed a bushy brown tail and white robes. A cool sensation washed over me, easing the terrifying paralysis, though my limbs were still sore and stiff. The curse, of course… in my panic I'd forgotten all about it.
That brought me back to reality as well. Yang's eyes were purple now, the red mist I'd seen earlier gone – or had it even existed? Maybe it had been something I'd imagined in the heat of battle. Everything hurt, from my legs to my arms, but most of all my stomach, where my armour was still dented and cracked. That would need repairing.
"A fair match," Miss Goodwitch said, stepping between us as I clumsily and awkwardly staggered to my feet. It felt like my muscles still weren't working correctly, no doubt the lingering effects of the paralysis. "Mr Arc, I would advise that you look to plugging your defences so that a faster enemy has more trouble getting inside them. That said, your reaction, while unorthodox, was better than trying to fight her with a sword. To everyone else as well, I would advise not finding too much amusement in my curses, lest you find yourselves on the end of one." That shut everyone up, and I couldn't help but feel a warm sensation towards the teacher for sticking up for me. "The after-effects vary baded on your Constitution," she said softly, mostly just to me. "You may be stiff still, but rest assured it will wear off."
I nodded to her, feeling euphoric despite having lost. Even in defeat I couldn't help the smile that slipped across my face. I'd been praised by a Hero - a real, proper Hero. It was incredible.
"Miss Xiao-Long, a well-thought out strategy and good pressure but you were unprepared for Mr Arc's decision at the end. A wise opponent will not continue a losing strategy so you must never become complacent in your victory."
I noticed Yang giving me an odd look as she nodded, though for the life of me I couldn't tell what for. The fight had been… well, it had been bother better and worse than I'd expected. I had lost, which honestly had been somewhat predictable, but I'd at least gotten some hits in.
"I hope I didn't damage your armour too badly," Yang said. There was a curious lack of any real emotion behind the words, as though she were saying them to be polite more than anything else. I probed and poked at the damage, running my fingers along the cracks. It wasn't anything too devastating; I could probably smooth it out myself with just my hands and some heat, which I could generate as well. I'd have to be careful on where to do that, though. Couldn't let people see me doing things I shouldn't be able to.
"I don't think it's too bad," I said with a little shrug. "Better my armour than my rib cage so at least it did its job, eh?"
Yang paused and tilted her head, one fist on her hip. "You're not upset?"
"It's just armour. This is kind of what it's for."
"I meant about the match," she said. I blinked lightly, thinking back on it for a moment. Sure it had hurt, and I'd been tossed around a bit, but I actually felt a damn sight better now than I did before.
"It was a good fight," I said, holding my hand out and grinning honestly. "You kicked my ass but it's just a spar. No hard feelings?"
She burst out laughing.
"I didn't do that badly, did I?" I asked, arm dropping a little. Before I could say anything Yang was beside me, looping an arm under my own and around my shoulder, helping me onto my feet.
"You're still stiff, right?" she asked when I stared at her. Moving was hard, and I still felt like I might have stumbled climbing off the stage on my own, so I nodded and whispered a small thank you. "You did fine," she laughed, "that move at the end, sheesh. What kind of Knight throws his sword and shield away?"
"One that doesn't want to be beaten into a pulp?" I could see a few people laughing at my expense in the crowd, though the stern words from the teacher had cut down on it a bit. My eyes caught a pair of golden ones looking my way and I shrugged and gave a small smile to the black-haired faunus. Blake blinked and looked away, making me wonder if I'd upset her somehow.
"You know what? You're not half bad," Yang said – and there was a strange note of surprise in her voice, like she had expected me to be much worse.
"Should I be?"
"Honestly, yeah… but this is much better." She rapped a knuckle against the side of my head, before laughing and helping me over to the others. "Come on honourable loser. Let's go meet your adoring fans."
"Y-Yang, wait," I tried to stall but she wouldn't have it. In truth I could admit to feeling a little surprised, especially at how she was suddenly treating me. While she hadn't been rude in any way, it never felt like she had really addressed me before. She hadn't been my friend, if that made sense, but rather she had been my friend's sister, who tagged along as part of the package. Maybe we'd just needed to break the ice?
"That was a good fight," Pyrrha was the first to congratulate me on our return, making Yang pout and mumble about no one complimenting the winner. When Ruby did the same, offering her support to me – it honestly looked like Yang might sulk.
"Yang did better," I said, half to stop her but also because my cheeks were going a little red at all the praise. "I've never been on the back foot so much before. She was incredible."
"That's my sister!" Ruby crowed proudly, and I don't think any of us missed how much Yang preened. I rolled my eyes but put up with it as best I could, honestly too relieved by having gotten through it to actually feel bad about losing. Besides, I'd already been fairly sure I would, so it hadn't come as any big surprise.
Any further conversation was cut off as Miss Goodwitch called out the next competitors, who luck would have it, was Weiss and some guy whose name I didn't recognise. The words above his head painted him as a Warrior, however, and as he climbed onto the stage I remember it was one of the Warriors I'd tried to pair up with early on. According to what Miss Goodwitch shouted out, his name was Sky Lark.
"Go Weiss!" Ruby yelled, seeming to break the ice as other people in the crowd shouted their support for one or the other. Sky Lark was a Warrior and one of the people I could remember I'd tried to team up with. He had a single long sword on him, which he kept switching into his other hand and back. Was he ambidextrous or just nervous?
"If he can get close he should win," Pyrrha whispered from beside me, maybe for my benefit too – I wasn't sure. "A Warrior has a clear advantage in melee compared to a Mage, and it's difficult to cast when someone is on top of you."
"But he'll lose if he can't get close," I finished, getting a nod from Pyrrha. I'd have liked to feel proud at having figured that one out, but as far as Class dynamics went it was a fairly obvious one. I was part of the Labour Caste, but that didn't make me an idiot. I knew what a Mage did, just now exactly how or what spells they might have.
In the end it didn't even matter. Weiss kept him at bay with a combination of ice attacks and spells that shaped the landscape around her. For a while it didn't look like she was doing much in the way of damage, but the sheer amount of control she had won it for her. Poor Sky Lark never got within two metres of her, and the frustration on his face was as clear as day. It was, in all honesty, one of the most one-sided things I had ever seen. Enough so that it made my performance look stellar by comparison. As the poor guy fell to the floor, paralysed, I noticed the white-robed girl hold out her sword and his fall slow. He touched the mat gently, earning the girl some appreciative murmurs for her mercy. Maybe I was being cynical but I couldn't help but think the acerbic girl had done that purely for the kudos.
There wasn't much in the way of criticism for her, and as Weiss re-joined us it was almost impossible to ignore how smug she looked. I let Ruby deal with it, since she seemed keen to lavish praise on her apparent friend. Weiss, for all her complaints, seemed happy to accept it all.
There were a few other spars following that, though none were quite such a massacre. Warriors faced off against Barbarians, there was an interesting one where an Archer and a Geomancer hurled projectiles across the arena while ducking from cover to cover – and even what was probably a tense Rogue battle of stealth, but which in truth was one of the dullest things I'd ever seen (both fighters spending the majority of it hidden from view). I realised after the first five or so that there was no way we would get through all the students. That was kind of a shame, since I could admit to enjoying watching the fights a lot more than I thought I would.
"Miss Ruby Rose," the Warlock called next, making us all jump, "and her opponent, Mr Russell Thrush." I didn't recognise the name, though I picked out the guy walking towards the stage. He had a dagger in each hand, and the words over his head labelled him as a Duellist.
"Good luck Ruby," I called, noticing how nervous she looked. Yang gave me a wan smile before stepping forward to whisper something into Ruby's ear. The girl nodded, taking a deep breath and walking towards the stage. To my surprise, however, she didn't reach for a weapon, but instead went to whisper something to Miss Goodwitch. "Everything okay?" I asked Yang, leaning a little closer but disgusting the motion as my muscles still acting up.
"Define okay," Yang sighed. "Ruby lost her weapon in the first Quest. It got lodged in a Grimm and the haft snapped."
"It can't have been a very good weapon," Pyrrha frowned, echoing my own thoughts and managing to sound very offended by the idea of it. "A proper weapon should be able to take wear and tear like that, unless she took very poor care of it."
"Yeah well it wasn't really a proper weapon," Yang crossed her arms defensively. "She uses scythes, which aren't exactly in high demand."
"Scythes?" Ren's brow quirked. "I've never heard of people using those as weapons, not outside of desperation or self-defence anyway." No doubt he meant farmers when he said that, members of the Labour Caste who might be using them in the fields but had been attacked by Grimm.
"Shh," Yang waved one hand, "I need to hear what Miss Goodwitch says." Ren sighed and nodded, but I couldn't help but wonder at how defensive Yang sounded. In my own head I wasn't quite sure what to make of it either. Scythes were… well they were a farmer's tool pretty exclusively. I wasn't sure how you'd go about using one as a weapon, since the blade was at a strange angle and you would be pretty open when swinging it, but hey – maybe it was a Hero thing. Either way, if she'd just had a regular scythe then it was little wonder it had snapped. The haft would have been wooden, and likely only strong enough to deal with someone suing it to cut wheat.
We didn't hear what Miss Goodwitch said, there was too much distance and she spoke to Ruby rather than the whole class. But the look on my friend's face said it couldn't be good. The hooded girl nodded and smiled, skipping over to a different weapon's rack and picking a short sword off of it – but that didn't stop my worry. Yang groaned and palmed her face, while Pyrrha frowned at what even to me looked like a really bad stance with which to wield a sword.
"She can use a sword, right?" Nora asked, sounding as nervous as I felt. Yang tried to answer, mouth opening and closing before she huffed and ignored us, eyes focused on her sister.
Miss Goodwitch started the fight, the two Heroes sizing one another up from across the ring. Ruby had the advantage of reach, since the Duellist seemed to favour twin daggers, but other than that I wasn't sure what a Duellist or Reaper were capable of. The former at least I could guess was some kind of melee fighter class, but there was no telling what kind of abilities Ruby had.
I just hoped they would prove enough, as I could practically feel her quailing under the gazes of so many people.
Come on Ruby, you can do it. She took a deep breath, and then she moved. The speed she ran at, it was enough to make me gasp in shock and I could hear others doing the same. The Duellist swore angrily, backtracking to try and make some distance but Ruby was on him in an instant, thrusting towards his midriff with the weapon. He deflected it well enough, if a little clumsily due to his surprise, and Ruby was able to quickly disengage before the second dagger could score a hit. My shoulders relaxed a little, the tension seeping away as it became clear that Ruby wasn't going to be completely useless after all.
"Hah!" Ruby cried, ducking under the boy's guard with her incredible speed. Everyone gasped as she pushed up into him, thrusting the sword into his chest.
Her opponent blinked, looking down at it. Even I felt a moment of surprise, like I was unsure what it was I was looking at. The blade had skittered off his chest, and though it had struck true, it was clear the actual damage was meaningless.
"Damn it," Yang growled, right before Ruby let out a loud shriek. I winced as an elbow caught her face staggering the girl more than it ought to have. She recovered quickly, dodging the next attack while deflecting the third with her sword, but her opponent had thrown away all pretence of defence, going on a blistering attack now that it was clear his Constitution would be enough to deal with her.
"Why didn't it do any damage?" I hissed, directing the question towards Yang. She didn't turn to look at me but I could see the blonde girl biting her lower lip.
"Bad luck?" she offered half-heartedly, hands clenched into fists. "Maybe his Agility is high, or she just didn't get a proper strike off." I looked back to the fight, trying to figure out what had gone wrong. Ruby was fast – incredibly so – but she still looked a little clumsy, which I supposed made sense. She didn't know how to use a sword, or at least not as well as most others would. Maybe that was why she hadn't been able to do any damage, had it bounced off some armour he wore beneath his clothes?
Yang hissed as Ruby took a blow, unable to dodge as her opponent herded her with one dagger, before scoring a scratch across her arm with the other. It wasn't a solid blow, nor a particularly devastating one, but my eyes widened as Ruby's arm went limp, her hand clutching it in pain. My hands clenched on my thighs, and I wanted nothing more than to rush up there and help her. It was hard watching a friend be knocked around like that, and I realised that up until that point I'd never had to face it. My friends who had gone up so far had all won.
"You can do it Ruby!" I shouted. Nora echoed me, along with Yang who cheered for her little sister. There were a few in the crowd cheering for the guy as well, but my eyes were only for my friend, who seemed to straighten a little at hearing our support. She took a deep breath, crossing the sword before her body and charging in, still at speeds I could never hope to keep up with. The Duellist fell back, his daggers in position as the two clashed.
I couldn't make out what happened – silver flashes of light too fast to keep up with, and the swirl of melee was frantic at best. But as Miss Goodwitch called for them to cease, my eyes clenched shut as Ruby slammed to the ground.
"Russell Thrush is the winner," the blonde announced. The guy turned away from Ruby to lift his arms into the air, accepting the cheers of the crowd. I felt a stab of fury at that, not for him enjoying his victory but the way he turned his back on her, as she lay paralysed on the ground. Ruby was like a statue, silver eyes wide as she struggled to move. The white-robed faunus strode onto the stage, kneeling down to touch the girl and whisper something, but to my surprise Ruby still didn't get up.
"Damn it," Yang cursed, leaving me behind and leaping up onto the arena. I watched as she knelt down, lifting Ruby up onto her back.
"Miss Rose," the stern teacher said, before Yang could carry her away. "I would encourage you to work on your skills with the blade, specifically your striking power. Your defence is good, but that means little if you cannot damage your foes." Ruby nodded stiffly, still looking worse for wear. "As for you Mr Thrush, I would suggest you consider your defence, since if Miss Rose had struck a little better, you would not be celebrating right now."
That shut him up, and I felt a little bit of vindictive glee at the way his face twisted. She was right, though. It was only bad luck that had cost Ruby the match, since she'd definitely managed to strike the first blow.
"Good match Ruby," I was quick to compliment as Yang carried her back. Ruby's face pushed down into her sister's shoulder, not meeting my eyes. Was she still upset?
"That was bad luck," Pyrrha came to my support, pressing a gentle hand to the girl's shoulder. "I was impressed with your speed and there's certainly no shame in losing to an opponent, especially when you are without your weapon."
"Thanks guys…" Ruby whispered, though it still sounded a little weak. "I'd have been better with a scythe… I promise."
"Does that have something to do with your Class?" Ren asked. Nora and Pyrrha looked at Ruby expectantly, but Yang shifted the girl higher on her back and cut in.
"I'm gonna take Ruby back to the dorms," she said. "The curse is still affecting her pretty bad and we've already fought anyway. The Priest said we could."
"Get well soon," Pyrrha said lamely, watching as the two sisters walked away, one carrying the other. I looked back to the stage, as two new combatants were called up, before glancing to the door Ruby and Yang had left from.
What was that all about?
It didn't take me long to find Ruby. She was sat outside the girl's dorm, on a low-level wall with her legs dangling over the edge. From a distance she stood out, red cape against green grass as she massaged her stiff left arm with her fingers.
"Hey," I greeted, waving one hand as she smiled sadly.
"Hey…" She didn't sound particularly enthused to see me, but nor did she move away when I sat down beside her. My feet touched the floor, while hers hung above it, emphasising the differences in our height. "I didn't do very well, did I?"
"I thought you did okay," I said. Now that I was with her, I had no idea what to say. Speaking to people had never been one of my strongest strengths, and it wasn't like my Charisma score was going to help. Instead I settled for something that didn't involve words, just shifting closer so that my shoulder bumped against hers, trying to show solidarity through sitting beside her. "I lost too – and it's not like I have the excuse of not having my weapons."
She giggled a little at that, "But you have the excuse of fighting Yang. She's really, really strong."
"She is," I agreed, wincing at the memory of her blows. "But not everyone else knows that yet, so it still looks like I got beaten up by a girl who didn't even have a real weapon." I wasn't sure if anyone actually thought like that or considered me weak for it, I just hoped it would be enough to cheer Ruby up a little.
"I would have been better with a scythe," Ruby whispered, not quite meeting my eyes.
"I'm sure you would have."
"I would!" she growled and look straight at me, eyes narrowed. "I would – I promise!"
"I believe you!" I said, making sure to look into her eyes as I said it. She seemed to find the honesty in it, or was it just that my crappy Charisma wouldn't have let me lie anyway? Either way, she seemed to flush a little and look away, but there was a tentative smile there.
"Sorry... Yang and I are going to go get one tomorrow in Vale," she whispered, kicking her legs against the wall. "There's a free period from the morning up until lunch."
"Sounds fun," I said, not having actually read the timetable myself. It seemed odd that there would be a free period so soon into classes, but maybe that was when they were supposed to go out and earn the lien they needed to keep studying at Beacon. I'd have to see what times I had free as well, along with come up with a plan to go earn some lien with Pyrrha, Ren and Nora.
"Come with us?" Ruby asked, making me blink.
"Sorry, what?"
Ruby glanced away, kicking her heels a little harder against the wall before looking back towards me.
"I said do you want to come with us, to Vale?"
In all honesty I didn't. It wasn't that I had anything against the idea, rather I wanted to get stuck into trying to find a solution to the money issue as soon as possible. At the same time, however, Ruby was a friend and this was apparently effecting her a lot more than I thought it would. Plus, I considered, as I looked down at my ruined armour, I could probably use some material to help repair it.
"If you'll have me, sure." It was the right choice. I knew that as soon as I said it, for Ruby's smile could have rivalled the sun coming out in the morning. It made me feel better instantly, like I'd stopped and healed a wounded puppy on the side of the road. I noticed her left arm, still limp at her side. "Does it still hurt?" I asked, nodding towards it.
"Huh? No, not really," Ruby lifted the dead arm with her other, before letting it flop limply back down. "It's just the curse still affecting it," she laughed, "It doesn't hurt but it feels really weird, like it doesn't belong to me."
"I know what you mean," I sighed dramatically. "I thought Yang had broken my back when our fight was over." Ruby laughed and said something about how her sister probably wouldn't have done that. I had to wince a little at the probably she felt the need to add. "Still though, Miss Goodwitch said it would affect me based on my Constitution," I said, recalling how mine had worn off pretty quickly. "I guess that means yours is pretty low."
"E-Eh-!?"
"Well I mean if your arm is still numb then that means the curse is sticking for longer, so it must mean Constitution is one of your lower stats, right?" I turned to Ruby to see if my guess was correct, only to freeze at the mortified expression she was giving me. Oh hell, had I don't something wrong? "Was I not supposed to ask?"
"Eh, eh!" Ruby's face was bright red, silver eyes wide and mouth wider, as she seemed to shake beside me. For a moment I thought she might spontaneously combust, but she managed to shake her head and glare at me – though her bright red cheeks destroyed any hope of it being intimidating. "You can't just ask me things like that!" she gasped, right before turning and poking her fingers together. "I-I mean, not just like that!"
"Uh…" I tried to find the right words, but she just pouted and glared at me.
"You don't even know, do you?" she sighed, still a little red, but calming down. I winced and nodded. "Geez…" she pouted and poked my side, "Asking something like that – asking someone about their stats – it's one of the most intimate things you can do."
"Stats are?" I asked, not at all getting it. My family and I had pretty much laid everything open, and it wasn't like the other kids in school hadn't boated about their own at times.
"Our statistics are what make us who we are," Ruby explained. "Aside from personality and stuff, if you know a person's stats then you know every physical thing about them. Their skills, their body - everything. It's like…" she blushed a little and looked away, "if I asked you how big you were."
"Six foot two," I answered instantly. Her mouth fell open as she stared at me in horror, before again shaking her head and pushing me with one hand.
"Not your height," she growled – sounding even more humiliated. It took me a second to get what she meant, aided by the way she kept trying to nod at my lap without ever actually looking there. My eyes widened, even as her face seemed to reach the colour of her cape.
"Oooh…" I said, and then I remembered what I'd been asking Ruby, and felt my cheeks begin to match hers. "Ooooooh… Uh, sorry?" So I'd practically asked my friend to get naked and tell me every little thing about her body. That was cool, definitely nothing to feel humiliated about or anything.
"Am I interrupting something?" a dreaded voice asked, making my eyes widen even further as I looked at the very curious – and very dangerous – blonde girl stood beside us, tapping one foot against the ground. Yang glanced between us, lilac eyes narrowed. "I got us some food Rubes, though I didn't know you'd have company."
"That's okay," I squeaked, "I've just finished eating my foot." Yang gave me a curious look, but sat down on the other side of Ruby, apparently deciding I hadn't done anything to warrant another beating. For that I could only thank the little mercies.
"You remember I told you he was raised by NPC's?" Ruby said to Yang. I felt a little stab of annoyance at the derogatory term, but Ruby didn't seem to mean anything by it, so I let it go. "He was asking about my Constitution," Ruby admitted, cheeks still a little red.
"Oooh," Yang grinned at me, leaning forward. "That's bold. Any particular reason you're asking about my sister's stats lover boy? Maybe want to know how much stamina she might have?"
"Y-Yang!" Ruby gasped, even as my own cheeks flamed. Yep, it looked like I'd been promoted in Yang's eyes, though my elevation from friend of a friend to perfect teasing target wasn't exactly what I'd been hoping for.
"Your sister sucks," I said, slumping beside Ruby. Yang burst out laughing, dropping some terrible puns about how agile a person might be in bed, or how she hoped I didn't have too much dexterity that I finished too quickly.
"I know," Ruby sighed, breaking apart a muffin that Yang had brought and holding half of it out to me with an embarrassed smile. I took it with a quick thanks, biting into it at the same time Ruby did hers. Maybe the fights hadn't gone as we'd hoped they would. Maybe Ruby was still a little down over hers, and the loss of her weapon had made it all the worse. But as the three of us sat together on that wall, sharing food as Yang laughed at our misfortune?
I couldn't help but think that things hadn't worked out all that bad.
"How did it go?" Ren asked, as we met once more after dinner in our dorm. The quiet young man was sat cross-legged on his bed, reading from a big tome. I settled down onto my own sheets, feeling something sharp underneath me and fishing out a heavy leaflet. As I flicked it open lists and prices were revealed, showing how much I'd need to earn and what any extra lien could buy me.
It was much more extensive than I'd expected, with pages upon pages of things. I skimmed through it in interest, noting some of the more exciting options like private rooms, some with en-suite showers, but also additional training or lessons too.
"Ruby's feeling a lot better," I said. "I think it was just nerves acting up."
"Hmm," Ren turned a page in his book. "For every fight there will be a winner and a loser. She held her own, though it was a shame her blow didn't land."
"Yeah." Ruby had said she would have done better with a scythe and I'd promised to believe her, which meant I would trust that it was just her not being used to swords. Either that or her Strength was also a low stat – and just thinking that had my cheeks going a little darker. "I'm going out into Vale with Yang and her tomorrow to buy her a new weapon."
"Do you need me to come with you?" Ren asked, and it surprised me that he felt the need to ask. The way he'd offered made it sound like he would not only go with me if asked, but that he expected he would have to.
"Not if you have anything you'd rather do," I said lamely.
"I was thinking of sparring with Nora," Ren said. "Although by that, what I mean is that I'm thinking that Nora will randomly attack me and I'll have to defend myself."
I laughed a little at that, before realising he was being completely serious. Okay, mental note – keep an eye on Nora when she has her weapon anywhere near me. "Then have fun," I said. "I'll be fine in Vale with them.
Ren looked at me for a second before nodding, going back to the pages before him.
"What are you reading anyway?" I asked, curious despite myself. There hadn't been any homework set, so it wasn't like he had to do any work, and the thick, leather bound tome looked a little large for a novel of some kind. He hefted it up so I could see the cover, and the words embossed there,
"It's a Hero Compendium," he said lightly, resting it back on his knees. "it comes with basic information about Classes."
"Sounds interesting," I said, wondering if I should read through it to find out how I was supposed to act. From how thick it was, it must have been very detailed – or maybe there were just that many Classes in the world. "Anything in particular you're looking for?"
"I was hoping to read up on the Classes of our friends. You can tell a lot about a person from their Class. How they will act, what sort of things they like or what their basic personality is." He pointed to one section, "For instance, Barbarians are quick to anger and act on instinct rather than logic or analysis. They will often speak their minds as well, and are unlikely to see any merit in lying, cheating or stealing."
There was something about that which rubbed me the wrong way. I wasn't sure what it was, but the enthusiasm I'd felt to read it dwindled away quickly. Could the words above your head really determine so much about you? I wasn't so sure, and I didn't like the suggestion that my personality wasn't my own.
"Don't you already know Nora, though?"
Ren nodded, "I do. I was actually curious to look up Pyrrha and Ruby's Classes, since those are a little rarer. I've found some information on Champions, though there hasn't been many. But I've been completely unable to find any mention of Reapers."
"Hmm…"
"Do you want me to tell you if I find anything?" Ren looked at me curiously, the offhand gesture hanging in the air between us. Basic information about a person's Class likely wouldn't have been considered very personal, and I doubted it was anything at all like the faux-pas I'd made earlier in asking about Ruby's stats. But I could still imagine her, sitting on a wall on her own, kicking her feet.
"No... I'm okay." I said at last, feeling a little more cheerful for having rejected the offer. "I'd rather get to know Ruby and Pyrrha myself and make up my own mind. I think it'll be a lot more fun to discover what you're all like on my own, and not be influenced by what some dusty, old book says."
I didn't think it could judge Ruby, nor tell me what she was like. Nor with Yang either, who I could imagine the book labelling as a brutish and reckless fighter, someone who relied on her fists more than her brain. They were deeper than that, with the way the older girl looked over her sister so, or how Ruby could act so brave one moment, meek the next, yet still be a Hero. And what would such a book say about me, a simple Blacksmith? Likely nothing good, that I was a useless and weak NPC who couldn't look after himself - that I needed other people to make my decisions for me.
I had to admit to a little satisfaction, however, when after a moment or two's thought, Ren pushed the large book onto his bedside table, closing the cover and leaning back on the bed.
Some exposition here, but also Class dynamics expanded on for those who care to read between the lines. Some might wonder at the paralysis curse, but I likened it to technological advancement and such, with the idea that if Stats are hidden, people would be unable to see it – at least using devices like scrolls (which don't exist).
There were a lot of comments last chapter about economics and how the structure doesn't work because hyper-inflation would kick in. The forums went over it to death and I don't want to belabour the point here ( I did respond to a lot of PM's to explain) but the short of it is… a lot of people who believe that are relying on a modern market model. In an ancient or medieval society, it would not have been the same at all – and it wouldn't be here, either.
The long theory is long, and covered in the forums with evidence from history referenced, but the tl;dr is that inflation on that level only really happens if you have a global or country-wide economy, where any fluctuations in price can be noticed. In medieval times (and in Remnant here) you don't have banks, internet or guilds that would regulate that, so even if a bazillion lien arrived in one spot – no one would know, and the price changes would only happen in the immediate vicinity. Like sure, they would buy all the grain in that town and drive prices up, but then the people would just travel to a nearby town, where the grain price would be perfectly normal again. There's no CPI (Consumer Price Index) and no method of tracking inflation.
And money would exit the economy too. No banks means no safe way of saving, people used to bury money in ancient times. But here, Grimm attacks, lost towns and villages, lost money or just savings would get rid of a lot of lien, meaning that Hero influx would not unbalance it too much. Similarly it would make no difference within Beacon itself, because any money entering Beacon is paid to the NPC workers, who then spend it outside Beacon – i.e. in Vale. So money comes in, money flows out – balanced economy.
It's a long theory and this is a vast summary, but the basics are – for hyper-inflation, you need price regulation or at least fast-travelling news or centralized price control, which would let merchants raise prices across an entire country at once.
There is "debasement" (the practice of making coins with less mineral value) which could cause inflation in ancient times, but since lien here is not minted, that wouldn't be an issue.
Anyway, I don't want to invite a big discussion in reviews, but if you do want to know more then check the forums for the "Professor Arc Forums" and feel free to flick through the Forged Destiny discussions for more information on economics through the ages, lol.
Next Chapter: 19th September
P a treon . com (slash) Coeur
