Welcome one and all to another chapter of The Darkling Thrush!
This chapter was supposed to be submitted on New Years eve. But, I didn't get to finish it before then. Sorry.
As always, I'd like to thank everyone who left a review last chapter! Thank you MagisterShiryu, jin0uga, noone297 and Baoh joestar! I'm glad you all liked that chapter.
Anyways, on with the chapter!
XL
The Vytal Festival: Conclusion
It was the final day of The Vytal Festival and it began with tragedy. Of the hundred teams from the four kingdoms and their four Huntsmen Academies, only eight participants remained. Of those eight were Yang Xiao Long and Mercury Black, the first match up of the day. And it was Yang who prevailed.
But then the world witnessed Yang lash out and strike at her defeated opponent unprovoked. For her actions, Yang was disqualified from the competition, essentially under house arrest in her room, while Mercury was whisked away by a pair of paramedics.
There's outrage, a rising tension amongst the people. Unsportsmanlike conduct is ill befitting of a Huntress in the making, shouts the media who scramble to ruin a once famed rising star for ratings. All the while those close to Yang worried over her insistence that her actions were self-defense.
In the afternoon of the day, Pyrrha sat alone outside the dining hall, head bowed low, her chin an inch away from her collar bone. There's a breeze in the air, carrying with it the scent of pine from the surrounding forests. And with the air a single orange leaf comes fluttering by, before collapsing onto the cobblestones by Pyrrha's feet.
Yang and her eventual battle in the competition are not the only things weighing heavily on the four time Mistral champion's mind. A lazy, barely attentive glance to the fallen leaf, and those fall colors brought upon the memory of Amber in her comatose state laying in that machine.
"Hey." Jaune's voice called out, snapping her out of her thoughts. Pyrrha turned to see her smiling friend with a large cone of cotton candy. "I-It's no green goop, but I think it still might do some good."
"Um, right. Thank you, Jaune." She said, staring at the offered treat.
Jaune's beam fades as he sees her still-tormented face, and looks to the far end of the building as Nora and Ren come around, the latter of which carrying a cotton candy, a tub of popcorn, and a drink to sip on. Of the two, it was Nora who was conscious of the private moment. With only a stare shared between them, Nora quickly grabbed Ren by the arm and directed him elsewhere, giving the pair their privacy.
So then Jaune took a seat beside his partner on the floor and held up the sugary treat in the air and stared at it. There was a lot left unsaid between the pair, especially after what happened on the night the Memoria Crime Family fell. It was them in an alleyway with their friends. She confessed to him how she felt, how she truly felt. A fact he and several others had been aware.
But simply knowing and experiencing were two different things. For the first time, someone actually showed genuine interest in him and Jaune had finally realized he'd been taking his partner for granted.
"You were the first person to ever believe in me, you know that?" He said, causing Pyrrha look up at him. The knight laughed to himself as he'd stumbled over the words. "Even when I told my parents I was going to Beacon, they told me not to worry if I ended up having to move back home. How depressing is that?"
"I'm sure they didn't mean-" She suddenly paused at the feeling of Jaune's hand being placed upon hers.
"I guess... I'm just trying to say that... you've always been there for me... even when I didn't deserve it." He said, smiling slightly. "And I can tell there's something on your mind, so... I don't know. How can I help?"
"You're already doing it." She said as her astonishment gave way to contentment. And then she leaned over, nestling her head against the boy's shoulder. A smile found its way onto Pyrrha's face and for a long moment as they sat there in each other's company her plight was all but forgotten. But then an additional autumn leaf came floating by, joining the first, causing Pyrrha's expression darken once more.
"Jaune?"
"Hm?"
"I don't know what to do." She said, pulling away from the JNPR leader.
"W-What do you mean?" He raised a brow in confusion.
She thought for a moment, thinking about how to confide in Jaune without revealing the truth of what plagued her. "Do you believe in destiny?" She turned to her friend with pleading emerald eyes.
"Um... I-I don't know. I guess that depends on how you view it." Jaune said, taken aback by the question.
Pyrrha paused for a moment. She thought of all the people she'd met, whom she'd learned from, those who'd shaped her world view. From her parents, to her teachers, to even a lone Thrush standing on rooftop and his defiant views of the world. It was these moments, these experiences that had made Pyrhaa the young woman she was now. "When I think of destiny, I don't think of a predetermined fate you can't escape. But rather... some sort of final goal, something you work towards your entire life."
"Okay. Uh, yeah. I can see that, sure." Jaune nodded, doing his best to follow along.
"Well..." She paused struggling to find the words. "What would you do if something came along that you... never expected? Something that had the potential to stand between you and your destiny?"
"Like what?"
"Or what if you could suddenly fulfill your destiny in an instant, but at the cost of who you were?" She continued, the stressed look on her face causing Jaune to look upon her with worry.
"Pyrrha, you're not making any sense." Jaune Said, leaning over and placing a hand on her shoulder.
"None of it makes sense!" She shouted, quickly standing up as if to run from his touch. This was supposed to be a moment she'd dreamed of, a moment that could have led to more between herself and this young man whom she'd come to adore. But given all that had been revealed to her, Pyrrha was spinning wildly out of control. "This isn't how things were supposed to happen!" She shouted on the verge of tears.
"I'm sorry! Please, I-I'm just trying to understand what's wrong." Jaune said, finding his way to his feet as well.
"I've always felt as though I was destined to become a Huntress - to protect the world." She sighed. "And it's become increasingly clear to me that my feelings were right." A sad smile crept formed on her face. "But...I don't know if I can do it."
"Of course you can." Jaune took a step forward. "The Pyrrha Nikos I know would never back down from a challenge. And if you really believe it's your destiny to save the world...you can't let anything stand in your way." He said confidently. But instead of the relief the blonde knight had intended with his words, Pyrrha appeared absolutely devastated. She placed a hand over her mouth and began to cry.
"Pyrrha?" He said, sounding confused. The Invincible Girl wasn't so Invincible after all.
"Stop..." She turned away.
"Did I say something wrong?" Jaune continued to approach.
"STOP!" She shouted before holding out her hand. A black energy encircled it, signifying the use of her semblance. Before Jaune could even comprehend what was occurring, the knight was pulled back by his armor, pinning him up in the air against one of the dining room's columns.
"Jaune!" Pyrrha gasped before lowering her hand, causing the blonde knight to fall to the ground. "I'm... I'm sorry..." She said as tears began to streak down her cheeks. Without another word, Pyrrha turned on her heel, and ran. She ran as fast as she could, unable to face the boy she adored so much.
"Pyrrha, wait!" Jaune shouted, outstretching an arm as if he could reach out and stop her. But she was so far away now, and there was nothing he could do to stop her. Jaune just faced the ground, unable to determine what it was he did to cause her to lash out at him, to run away.
"I don't trust him." Qrow muttered as he leaned against one of the columns in Ozpin's office. "There's just too many coincidences. Between all the crazy shit this past year, our enemy is lying in wait and this kid joins our ranks? There's got to be something more."
"You're concerns are understandable," Ozpin admitted from where he sat behind his desk. He glanced to his computer, reading messages as he continued his conversation with the veteran huntsman. "But rest assured, Mr. Lark checks out. You needn't worry, his intentions are genuine."
"I don't care if his parents are archeologists. It's still extremely concerning to know this guy just pieced everything together right under our noses." Qrow scoffed. "And how did he even think you were involved? How'd he know to come to us? From some old dusty books in the library?"
"A yearbook, actually." The headmaster said smugly.
"Monty above." The dusty old crow sighed. "This isn't going to end well, Oz. If some first-year student could figure any of this out, you can only imagine what our enemy has been doing behind our backs. For crying out loud, we're supposed to be the 'protectors' of the world. We can't even protect ourselves at this point."
"That's why we must remain ever vigilant." Ozpin said, not once removing his gaze from his computer. On the screen before the headmaster was a message from one of his numerous informants across Remnant.
Qrow remained silent, having taken notice of Ozpin's silent reading. The senior huntsman simply watched as the playful smugness on the old man's face disappeared, replaced by a quiet dread.
"What's wrong?" Qrow asked.
"Kevin Twenty-Two's latest report." Ozpin muttered lowly. "There's something going on in Venezier."
"Venezier?" Qrow raised a brow in confusion. "We talking about the same Venezier?"
"Our agent won't elaborate about the specifics, but he's requesting assistance." Ozpin leaned back in his chair and glanced to Qrow while he stroked his hairless chin. "Thoughts?"
"Our forces are spread thin as it is." Qrow said grimly. "Not to mention, with The Vtyal Festival proving to be the most opportune time for our enemy to strike, we haven't the man power to spare."
"True." The Headmaster nodded in agreement. "But we need to act."
"I can always go." Qrow suggested, placing a hand on his holstered scythe. "I'll set out now, be there by dawn and settle whatever business before noon tomorrow."
"No, you're needed here. There's too much at stake. And besides, I know just who to send." Ozpin smirked before logging off his computer. The Headmaster grabbed his cane and stood from his seat and began to head to his office's door. "I believe it's time we put an end to the question of Mr. Lark's loyalty, wouldn't you say, Qrow?"
"Then just call him." Qrow groaned, not seeing the necessity in meeting with Sky in person outside the office walls.
"I have some other matters to attend to, involving a rather frank discussion with one of my students." Ozpin said over his shoulder.
"You can't be serious, Oz? Yang's been through enough today." But before the Huntsman could protest further, the Headmaster was already a foot out the door.
"I wasn't talking about Ms. Xiao Long."
It was later in the day when things begin to slow down at the fairgrounds. After the morning incident with Yang and Mercury, the matches were momentarily postponed, relegating those in attendance to move down from the floating colosseum in the sky back down to the ground. But now the tournament would continue, with Sun Wukong fighting against one of that Atlas fellow in the power armor.
But while all the people returned the stadium, which left the fairgrounds relatively peaceful to those such as Russel. The Thrush found himself leaning against a nearby pole used to prop up one of the vendor's tents, waiting patiently for Sky to conclude his purchase of some souvenir.
"Thirty lien for a shirt?" Russel could hear Sky say, sounding quite agitated. "That's highway robbery!"
"Hey, you want the shirt or not buddy?" Replied the unamused vendor, who sounded like he'd spent half a life smoking six packs of cigarettes a day.
"Ugh. Fine." Sky said, before being followed by the sound of a cash register ringing to a sale.
Russel eyed his teammate with an arched brow as Sky exited the tent, a white t-shirt in hand. "What was that all about?" The Thrush questioned, jotting a thumb to the tent as he kicked off the pole.
"I got robbed." Sky fumed.
"You didn't have to buy the shirt, you know?" Russel pointed to the article of clothing in Sky's hands.
"Oh, but I did." Sky said, raising the shirt for Russel to see. On I was an image of four silhouetted figures, of which resembled that of Team CRDL. "Turns out they were selling team shirts all along, I just had to get one."
"They're selling shirts of us?" Russel said, genuinely surprised.
"Not just us, but of everyone who's competed in the festival." Sky said, a matter of fact. "But it's so incredibly expensive. Team RWBY's shirts are going for fifty."
"I'd assume it'd be the opposite after what just happened with Mercury." Russel shrugged.
"Actually, it's quite the opposite. Given that any memorabilia of Yang would more likely be discontinued due to her controversial actions, all merchandise featuring her would essentially be double its initial value."
"Economics is bullshit." Russel scoffed.
"Quite." A older voice, one familiar to both boys, caught their attention. Both CRDL boys turned on their heels, finding Ozpin approaching.
"Uh, Headmaster Ozpin?" Sky said, a perplexed look on his face. As long as Sky had known the old Headmaster, which was admittedly shorter than he'd have liked, the Lark had come to know the man to be secretive who rarely made such public appearances. And that worried Sky greatly.
"Headmaster." Russel addressed Ozpin wearily, watching as the old man approached with his cane lightly sinking into the soil with each step.
"Mr. Lark, Mr. Thrush." The Headmaster nodded. "Just the two young men I wanted to see."
"Uh huh." Russel muttered, eyeing the man carefully.
"Since when do you go on strolls?" Sky asked, still confused over the Headmaster's presence.
"Like I said, I wanted to speak with you both." He said simply before fixating his attention on Russel. "When last we spoke, I asked a question. Do you recall what it was?"
Russel frowned, recalling the time he'd been hauled to meet with Ozpin after kicking Lance down a flight of stairs. "Somethin' about a very black and white view of the world."
"My exact question was, whether or not you saw your actions, then, as being good or evil. A simple question. But then you said that they were 'yours and yours alone' and left it at that." Ozpin said with a scolding undertone to his words.
"Where is this going, Ozpin?" Russel's eyes narrowed.
"I'm getting to that." Ozpin said as he met Russel's stare. "Since then I've sat back and watched, deciding what to make of you. I witnessed firsthand your actions during the dance, and then I heard from Professor Port all about you and Mr. Winchester's outing without supervision against the White Fang. And then after that, the incident with the Memoria crime family."
"My greatest hits, eh?"
"Then I saw that little fiasco of yours two days ago. You created an angry mob." "And then the incident with the NDGO girl and Lance-"
"You know about Lance?" Russel said, surprised. "Then why haven't you done anything? Why haven't you called the law down on his ass? We both know you can."
"No, the real question is, why haven't you?" He leaned forward, "Russel, we're Huntsmen, defenders of humanity. You were the first response and you failed, miserably."
"You can't be serious." He uttered lowly.
"My speech to your class on the first day, do you recall it? I said I saw wasted effort. That's what your actions were, wasted effort." "We're Huntsmen, Russel, we protect people, no matter the cost. You failed."
"I stopped Lance." Russel affirmed, doing his best not to raise his voice. After all, this was Headmaster Ozpin he was speaking to, one wrong move on his part and he could very well find himself ejected from Beacon.
"And yet he got away, free to run off and attempt again on some other poor unsuspecting girl." He countered.
Russel's mouth fell open slightly as he stared at Ozpin, a disbelieving look on his face. "You could call on the whole Atlesain army to gaff up a bunch of mobsters, but you can't round up one Huntsman in-training?"
"The Memoria was a different matter." The Headmaster retorted. "There was proof of their criminal activities. You allowed Lance to flee with the evidence to convict him."
"We have NDGO's testimonies." Russel muttered.
"Which could easily be thrown out. Without the physical evidence, a good lawyer could merely attribute her symptoms to that of post-battle injuries sustained from fighting in the festival. And they wouldn't stop there, they'd discredit you as nothing more than a thug, because all you ran in fists first."
"I'm only a Huntsman in-training."
"You don't get to make that excuse." The Headmaster snapped. "Your actions in Oakwood, running off alone without your senior Huntsman and then running off to the Memoria nightclub, it's all the same, Russel. You have all the potential in the world, just like the rest of your peers, but if you continue to act in this manner, I can't say for certain what your future will be."
"A Huntsman can't have baggage, Russel," Ozpin said finally as he stared down Russel. "his own weight, there's just no room for it. He's already got the weight of humanity on his back. No more mistakes, are we clear?"
There was a long pause of Russel's part. It was to be expected, he just got chewed out in public by his own Headmaster. And what made him mad as hell was the fact he understood Ozpin's point of view. If he'd handled the Lance situation differently, then no one would have to worry about that guy ever again. So The Thrush caved with a heavy sigh. "Sure, yeah, whatever."
"Glad to hear it." Ozpin said with a genuine smile, as if the past couple minutes of heated lecture had never happened. "You're dismissed." He said giving a nod for Russel to leave.
The Thrush just eyed the Headmaster with another confused look on his face. He'd allowed Sky to sit in on his little chat, but wouldn't allow he himself to be present for his and Sky's conversation. And the truth of the matter was, Ozpin didn't need Sky present for Russel's scolding, he could have sent him away just as he was doing to Russel now. He didn't only want to lecture Russel, but he also wanted to humiliate him in front of a peer.
And it was upon that realization that Russel broke out laughing. The smile that had graced Ozpin's face disappeared instantly as he watched Russel depart with that mocking laugh of his. Russel had allowed him the final word in their dialogue, but he refused to leave Ozpin with a true sense of accomplishment.
Ozpin waited for a minute longer than he should have, waiting for Russel's voice to leave his ears. He then turned to Sky, an apologetic look on his face. "I'm sorry you had to see that."
"Uh, yeah, I feel real awkward about that." The Lark nodded along. "So…what's up?"
"I'll tell you, back at Beacon Tower, of course." Ozpin said, before turning to head back the way from where he came. "There, I'll tell you the details of your mission."
"Whoa, wait, what? My mission?" Sky exclaimed as he hurried along to catch up with the Headmaster.
"Yes, Mr. Lark." The old man glanced at Sky, a smile on his face. "You're going to Venezier."
When Nebula and the rest of Team NDGO had left Vacuo to participate in the Vytal Tournament, they arrived on the high of claiming a bitter sweet victory against an army of Grimm. And once faced with a life or death, fight for survival situation and emerging victorious, they felt as if they could take on all the world had to offer. And in Nebula's case, she believed she could win the tournament, that she could overcome the stigmas associated with her family and affect change all by herself.
But then NDGO had been eliminated, all because of a simple, avoidable, misstep. Defeat was something every Violette was bound to know, that was a truth Nebula had refused to accept, but given the events of this year's festival and the soul crushing feeling in her gut, it was one she found herself unable to avoid.
And if that wasn't bad enough, some guy had tried to hurt Gwen, right in front of them and they hadn't even known. Gwen didn't want to talk about it, even though her friends could see how much she was hurting over it. She was a dancer, a performer, one who wished to be in the spotlight, but now all she did was recede into herself, and that had them all worrying.
So, faced with the realization that their trip to Vale was anything but the victory lap they'd thought it to be, Team NDGO was now simply trying to make the best of the last day of the festival. The quartet of girls took to the fairgrounds, in search of fun and excitement, something to drown out the memories the past two days.
Down by the northern east part of the fairgrounds, NDGO found themselves, with Octavia doing her best to get Gwen to participate in a carnival game, while Nebula and Dew supervised from a relative safe distance.
In private Nebula and Dew had speculated the nature of Octavia's semblance, often sidestepping the notion of directly asking the girl, associating the act as questioning someone the color of underwear they were wearing or their religious views. They were teammates, sure, but they were polite enough to respect each other's personal space and privacy. The thing about Octavia that the two young women have noted, was her ability to bring out the fierceness in people, as if she were able to amplify emotions. And if that just so happened to be her semblance, well, there was no way the two of them wanted to be standing close by. Gwen was a powder keg, and Octavia a match.
"Now, remember Gwen, the goal of this is to knock down the pins." Octavia instructed as she paid the games operator for three balls to throw at a stack of milk bottles. The fiery member of NDGO then reached over, grabbed one of the balls and placed it in Gwen's hands. "Give it a throw."
"Ugh." Gwen groaned before lazily throwing the ball, missing the stack entirely.
It had taken the trio quite the effort to talk the knife thrower into joining them. For the most part, all Gwen wanted to do was wall herself off inside their accommodations provided by Beacon Academy. At one point, they almost had to drag her out.
Seeing that Gwen needed some convincing, Octavia went to work. "I think you need to work on your form." She said, smirking, as the air around her began to warm against her activated semblance.
"Meh." Gwen grunted angrily before having another ball shoved into her hands. The girl glared at her partner, who purposely aimed to provoke her. And Gwen could feel her anger rising. She then turned her attention back at the stack of milk bottles and threw the ball, crashing it through the center and knocking half of them over.
"Not a bad shot, Gwen." Nebula said, doing her best to encourage her teammate.
"One more ball." Octavia said before handing the last ball to Gwen. "Imagine that guy Lance's face." She said, earning another glare from her partner. "Alright, good, but imagine his face is the bottles." She jotted a thumb in the direction of the stack of bottles.
Gwen followed her partner's direction and set her sights on another stack of bottles. "Now," Octavia said with a smirk. "How bad do you want to throw that ball at that guy's face?" She asked as Gwen's blood boiled.
"Very much." Gwen utter lowly before reeling her arm back and throwing the ball. The ball connected, this time the ball struck the foundation of the bottles, causing them to topple over entirely.
"Woo! Go Gwen!" Octavia pumped her fist in the air while her partner beside her let out a heated breath.
"Nice shot." Dew applauded from the sidelines.
"That imagination worked like a charm, huh?" Octavia said smugly as the games operator handed Gwen her prize, a stuffed elephant. "It always works when you think you're aiming at someone's face!"
"I wasn't aiming for his face. I was aiming for his crotch." Gwen said, causing the games operator to wince.
"Well…that's therapeutic." Dew muttered.
"So, you want another round?" Octavia asked as she raised a ten lien note up in the air for them all to see.
"No, no, I'm fine." Gwen said as she eyed the stuffed elephant. She squeezed the plush toy with her hands before throwing it under her arm and turning to walk away from the games booth. "I don't think I'm in the mood for any more games."
"Alright, taking suggestions. What next?" Nebula asked as the quartet stepped away from the booth, allowing others to pay to throw balls at bottles.
"Well, the tournament will be kicking off in an hour or so." Dew said as they began to walk away. "We could catch a ride on the next airbus."
"Sounds good to me." Gwen said as she wormed her way between her teammates. "I've had my fill of the fairgrounds."
"Then it's settled!" Nebula declared before suddenly stopping in her tracks. Her teammates looked to their leader with puzzled looks, as the Violette stood frozen in place, looking off into the distance. The followed her gaze and found the source of her peculiar actions.
"That's Pyrrha Nikos." Nebula said, her mouth gaping at the sight of the Invincible Girl sitting alone at a noddle hut. The rest of NDGO exchanged amused looks, as they all recalled the fact Nebula owned a poster of Pyrrha which she hung in their dorm room back in Vacuo.
"You wanna go get her autograph or something?" Dew suggested. "Now's your chance."
"Yes, I-I mean, no. No." She said, tripping over her words. "She seems busy, I wouldn't want to disturb her."
"She's sitting alone." Octavia laughed.
"Still, it would be impolite, you know?" Nebula said, once more attempting to dissuade herself.
"Well, all things considered, we're going to go and get our seats before the tournament starts up." Octavia jotted a thumb at the Airbus stop. "When you've finally worked up the nerve to go and talk to her, just meet us there."
"No, I should go with you guys." Nebula protested, before being cut short by her partner.
"We've got reserved front row seating, remember?" Dew said as the trio of DGO began to head out.
With that said, Nebula just watched as her team walked off, leaving her alone to work up there nerve to approach the one who inspired her all those years ago to become a Huntress. Any minute now she would saunter up there and introduce herself to Pyrrha, tell her how much of an influence she'd been. Any minute now she'd thank her for being such an inspirational figure for her peers.
Any minute now….
"I still can't believe what Yang did."
"Bloody hell, she went and bust the man's leg, that's wot she did."
"Crazy woman, doesn't know when to stop fighting."
"She could have killed that poor boy."
"…Cardin?" Cardin snapped to attention and looked to find Velvet staring at him with a perplexed look. "You okay?"
Seated in a booth at the back of a Dinner located in the Merchant District of Vale, the city, sat Cardin Winchester, and opposite of him sat Velvet.
"Sorry." The Winchester apologized. "Just spaced out for a moment, won't happen again." He smiled.
"Alright then, I'll be sure to hold you to that." Velvet smirked playfully before holding up her camera to the young man's eyes. "Do you prefer this one? Or this one?" She asked as she flipped between pictures of Yang punching Mercury in the leg. Both photos were graphic, showing the precise angle in which the blonde bombshell had snapped the Mistralian's leg. To say the least, Cardin wouldn't be ordering any solid food anytime soon.
"The second one." Cardin decided.
"It's just so surreal, you know."
"Yeah, we knew them both." Velvet frowned. "I think it's awful what they're saying about Yang." She nodded to the other patrons in the dinner, all of whom shared their thoughts on the matter with their own company. "Now she's under public scrutiny. All the while Mercury might not be walking again."
"Still, can't believe what happened, after the hell of a time Mercury gave Yatsuhashi, no offense, I mean." He said, quickly catching himself.
"Oh, no, nothing to be offended about." Velvet waved off the comment, seeing no harm in it. "He sure did give them a run, both Yatsuhashi and Coco didn't know what to think afterwards. They got so worn down, that for a moment, Coco thought Yatsu was backing her up against Emerald, but h never made it out of the gyeser field."
"Like a stress-induced hallucination?" Cardin raised a brow. "Reckon that's what Yang had?"
"It's the finals of the Vytal Tournament. Can you think of anything more stressful?" She laughed.
"Hmph." Cardin murmured to himself as the waitress came by to refill his coffee mug. "But what are the odds of that happening twice?"
But before Velvet could engage in more exchanges with the Winchester, the time caught her eye. "The next match will start soon." She said, shooting out of her seat. "Damn, I've got to go."
And before Cardin could respond to that information, he found Velvet quickly walking over and pecking him on the cheek. She then turned to leave, but stopped in mid motion, a shocked expression equal only to the surprised face Cardin himself was making. "Oh, Monty, I can't believe I just did that." She said as she turned a shade of red. "I'm so, so sorry."
"Oh, no, it's fine." Cardin said, doing his best to simply wave of the action while at the same time feeling hot under the collar. "It's fine Velvet. See you later?"
"Yeah, I'll, uh, see you later. Bye Cardin." She said before quickly running out the door, leaving Cardin alone to question exactly what had just happened.
Russel wandered around the fairgrounds, lost in thought. He wasn't a stranger to a lecture, having been given a number over the years from numerous other authority figures. But none of them were able to get under his skin the way Ozpin had. To say the least, Russel was pissed.
But he could also acknowledge the validity to the old Headmaster's words. He'd gone as far as to dig up a number of the Thrush's exploits, to compare and contrast, dissect his actions and use them as fact to further support his argument and he could follow that logic. Ozpin wasn't like any of the other authority figure's Russel had known, he was actually smart, he had to be, seeing as he was the Headmaster of Beacon.
And yet, that didn't necessarily make Ozpin right, not to Russel anyways. The Thrush could understand the Headmaster's perspective, he was a first year student in over his head in his eyes. But Russel resolved each and every conflict as he saw fit, like any Huntsman would if they were pressed into the situation. Or rather, that was what Russel told himself.
He spent a while walking aimlessly, coasting through crowds, lost in his mind. He thought of Ozpin's final words to him and attempted to make sense of them and how his fortune cookie wisdom had any relevance at all. That was until, he stumbled upon a curious sight.
Over on one side of the walkway stood Nebula, whom he recognized by her indigo colored hair. But what stuck out about her was the young woman's immobility, or rather, her lack of agency. She stood in place, but the by the look on her face, that was the only part of her that wasn't active. She looked to be debating a serious question, the life or death kind.
But then Russel took a moment to fully assess the situation. He picked up on her constant glances off to the other side of the pathway and followed them over to a quaint little noodle vendor run by an old man Russel could have sworn owned a dust shop back in the city. But he found Nebula's gaze wasn't fixed on the old man, but rather, to a familiar redhead. There, alone as the stand, sat Pyrrha, sneaking in a last minute meal before she would grace the world one last time for the competition.
Maybe it was the noodles she was eating, maybe the old man got the order wrong and Pyrrha was too polite not to speak up. But Russel could see a look of sadness on the four time Mistral champ's face. Russel found friendship to be a puzzling concept, and there were very few in the world qualified to be more than an acquaintance or co-worker to the Thrush. As far as Russel knew, Cardin was the only person he could really consider a friend, someone he knew he could trust in the heat of things.
But then he thought about Pyrrha, The Invincible Girl, and how he respected her abilities as a Huntress. Not many people in the world can take a team alone, after all. Then he thought about the times she went to him for help. They had a falling out once, almost twice, but here they were, sitting beside each other no ill intent held for the other. All in all, Pyrrha was as decent a human being could be, so seeing her sitting there wallowing in her sadness, got The Thrush's brain spinning.
One mild headache later, and Russel was weaving through the crowd and pulling up a vacant seat beside Pyrrha. With a tired sigh, he sat down beside The Invincible Girl and waved off the old man.
"How you doin', Pyrrha?" Russel asked as he stared off forward, not once glancing at the four time Mistral champ.
"Did Jaune send you?" Pyrrha said, glancing away from her bowl of noodles.
"Nope." He almost laughed at the suggestion. "Just got chewed out by Ozpin over some bullshit. Saw you were moping around all by your lonesome, thought I might join you."
"I'm not moping." She asserted, making an effort to recompose herself. "I'm just thinking. I've got a lot on my mind."
"I bet." Russel muttered, nodding in agreement. "This how you always get during one of these tournaments?"
Pyrrha stared at the Thrush for a moment, thinking of how to respond. "No, not always." She said as the memory of Amber popped into her head. "I just…I didn't think things would turn out the way they are now."
"Yeah, who'd of guessed Yang could be that cold." Russel said, pointing a thumb over to a nearby television set the old man had on hand. There on screen, the local news outlets were having a field day with rerunning the footage of Yang and Mercury's fight while so called experts gave their two cents about the matter.
"I wasn't referring to Yang." Pyrrha said quietly as she looked down to her half eaten meal. She grabbed her chopsticks and circled them in the broth, forcing whatever noodles that remained to submerge, and allowing Pyrrha to view her own murky reflection.
"You mentioned Jaune. Did you guys finally talk it out?" Russel asked, turning to Pyrrha and sideways glancing to Nebula on the other side the pathway, checking to see if the NDGO leader was still there. And, as he suspected, Russel found Nebula on the edge of deciding whether to approach the Invincible Girl.
"This…it's not about Jaune." She sadly said.
"Is that a yes or a no?"
"We haven't talked about it."
"So what's got you so troubled then?"
"Destiny, I guess." She said, trying her best to answer Russel's question, without revealing the nature of her dilemma.
"If it ain't blondes, it's abstract concepts of finality." "You know my stance on the matter."
"By the end of the night, I'm supposed to make a decision." She said, earning an odd glance from Russel. "Nothing bad, I assure you." She quickly said, easing off the look of concern. "But, I just don't know what to think anymore. I-I just…becoming a Huntress was just so natural. And now I'm finding myself becoming…something else."
"Look, Pyrrha, I'm not going to pretend that I know the magic words that'll help you with whatever it is you're going through." He said, casting shade on Pyrrha's inability to confide her situation with the Thrush, let alone go into detail of her dilemma. "But you're talking about decision making and Destiny. Those don't exactly go hand in hand."
"I believe they do." Pyrrha quietly said as she watched her once steamy bowl of noodles cool.
"My Dad wanted me to become a Huntsman." Russel said, earning a surprised look from Pyrrha.
"I had no idea." She said, more surprised to hear of Russel's younger years. In the time she'd attended Beacon, Pyrrha had learned much about her friends and their pasts. Ranging from the knowledge of Jaune's uncommonly large family, Ren and Nora being orphans, to Ruby's mother having been killed when the red reaper was much younger. But she'd known nothing of Russel's past, or even his reasoning for attending Beacon. To say the least, she was mildly interested in the subject.
"I didn't have a say in attending the local academy, predetermination at its finest." He mused. "He even wanted me to go to Beacon, got a pamphlet and form all ready to go." A frown began to form on the Thrush's face. "But then he died."
"Russel…I'm sorry to hear."
"Don't be." He scoffed. "So, my Dad goes and dies and I end up inheriting the farm. I'm completely in no position to move out to Vale. And why would I? It was my Dad who wanted me to go, right?" "Now ask yourself, Pyrrha, if that's true, then why the hell am I here at Beacon?"
"Why are you here?"
"Because, as it turns out, I actually liked the idea of being a Huntsman, so much so that I actually wanted to be one." "So, I sold the farm to a guy named Marlowe and caught the next bus to Vale." "Now, Ms. Nikos, what's the moral to the story?"
"Is it 'Destiny is bullshit'?" She said, paraphrasing The Thrush's words after the incident during The Dance.
"No." He shook his head. "You always got a choice. Good or bad, it's on you. You just gotta want it." He said, before looking over his shoulder once more to where Nebula was standing. But he found the NDGO had departed, having not worked up the nerve to speak to the Invincible Girl. "Well, that's a shame." He muttered.
"What is?" Pyrrha raised a brow at Russel's comment.
"Nothing." "Now don't you have a tournament to win?" He said, jotting a thumb at the old man's television, where it showed Amity Colesseum gearing up for the next match.
With that said, Pyrrha flagged down the old man manning the noodle booth and paid for her meal. Both she and Russel then hopped off their stools and fought their way through crowds, all in an effort to catch the next airbus to the arena.
When they landed, Pyrrha and Russel said their goodbyes, with The Invincible Girl thanking him for his company and Russel wishing her luck in her fight. And so then, Russel watched Pyrrha depart, to no doubt collect her weaponry in the locker room before taking to the stage to fight in a contest of skill before the entire world.
"The least you should have done was ask her for her signature, Nebula." Russel said glanced to his left.
"She seemed like she wanted her privacy. Last thing celebrities want is to be bothered by their fans." Nebula said as she emerged from one of the mobs of people offloading from the very same airbus Russel and Pyrrha had arrived on.
"Well, your loss I guess." Russel shrugged as Port took to the loudspeaker.
"The next match of the Vytal Tournament is about to begin!" The portly professor announced, catching the pair's ears.
"We'd better find our seats." Nebula said as all the other arrivals began to take off into the colosseum. "You got a seat already saved?" She asked, glancing over her shoulder. "If not, you can join me and my team."
"Oh, thanks," Russel said, before catching eye of Team STAG offloading out of one of the airbuses. The Thrush paused, watching as the all faunus team splintered off from the main mob of people and heading the opposite way. Typically this wouldn't have been outstanding behavior, but Russel couldn't help but notice the way Team STAG carried themselves, as they walked oddly with self-imposed limps. "But I'm going to have to refuse your offer."
"Yeah, uh, no problem." Nebula said, not noticing Russel discreetly monitoring Team STAG. And with that said, Nebula departed, leaving with the last of the tournament attendees. But not after stopping in place one more. "Hey, Fern." She called out to Russel, gaining his ear once more. "I don't think I can say this enough, but, thanks again for what you did for Gwen."
"Enjoy the fight, Nebula." He muttered before waving her off. Russel then allowed himself a brief moment to watch Nebula vanish with the rest of the civilians into the stadium, before ultimately turning his attention back to Team STAG, who'd gone and walked off to the far end of the landing area. After witnessing Team STAG's peculiar movements and odd actions, Russel felt an unsettling thumping in his brain, like an alarm. So the Thrush began to follow the team.
He did his best to be silent, but Russel wasn't much of a ninja. He could do discrete, however. He kept his distance, taking cover behind nearby pillars and glancing around corners. Russel also had the benefit of Amity Colleseum floating in the air. This high up, he winds were raging and most of his movements were muted by the sounds of nearby flying unmarked Bullheads and Airbuses.
Russel didn't pay it no mind, however, as he assumed the aircraft were privately owned and not public transports like the airbuses that he and the others used to travel to and from the stadium. He didn't even notice the peculiar flight movements, how they all primarily kept close but refused to land.
"Alright, it's now time to begin the randomization process for our next fight!" Oobleck's voice boomed over the speaker system.
"It looks like our first contender is... Penny Polendina, from Atlas! And her opponent will be... Pyrrha Nikos, from Beacon!" Port exclaimed.
All around Russel could hear the encouraging chants of the audience, all waiting in anticipation of the next fight. But Russel tuned them out, turning his attention back to Team STAG. Up ahead, Russel could see the four man team approaching a squad of Atlesain Knights. The robotic squad leader raised an arm, halting its patrol as they were greeted by Team STAG.
While one of the STAG members distracted the Knights, the rest of the team began to spread out around them, encircling the robotic Knights. And then, as soon as they were in position, Team STAG unsheathed weapons hidden in their clothing and proceeded to massacre the squad of robots.
Russel had to take a step back, alarmed by the sheer brutality of the scene as Team STAG completely destroyed the Atlesain Knights. "What the fuck?" He muttered to himself behind the cover of a nearby pillar.
Once the last Knight quit kicking, Team STAG turned their attention to the nearby hovering Bullheads and Airbuses. Serin Quiet, the leader of Team STAG stepped forward from the others, producing a torch. She raised it up to the night sky and repeatedly tapped the 'on' switch, signaling the awaiting aircraft.
Russel then watched as one by one as the aircraft began to land with an unmarked Bullhead landing before Team STAG. The engines kicked off and the door opened. Out of the Bullhead stepped a bald man with a claw mark scar at the base of his skull. He was brandished with the traditional White Fang robes and wore a eye patch to cover a most recent scar. The man was one whom Russel recognized, after all, he knew him well.
"Landing pad is secure, sir." Serin Quiet saluted.
"Good work." The Iron Nail said as he glanced to the fallen robots. "Take your squad and get into position."
"Belay that order." A voice called out from within the Bullhead. The Iron Nail released a disgruntled sigh, before turning to watch a thin man in grey White Fang fatigues adorned with patch of green scale armor covering his left arm.
"Captain Pangolin, is there a problem?" The Iron Nail asked, doing his best not to sound irritated.
"I believe you and I, Nail, have differing definitions of the word." The White Fang Captain muttered, as he glanced towards Russel's hiding spot. "You missed one." He pointed at the pillar.
"Fighters are you ready?!" Oobleck's voice carried throughout the stadium. "Three! Two! One! Begin!"
"Fuck." Russel cursed before turning to run in hopes of getting help. But before the Thrush could make a break for it, he turned to find more ships landing to his back, with more White Fang members disembarking.
"Russel?" The Thrush turned around, finding The Iron Nail approaching. "What luck."
"Nice eye patch, Nail." Russel smirked.
"You know this human, Iron Nail?" Captain Pangolin asked mockingly. "I expected more, seeing as he bested you so many times." The Iron Nail spared a glare his superior's way.
"Permission to engage the interloper?" Serin asked The White Fang officers. "Please? We all hate him."
"No." Captain Pangolin rebuked the STAG leader. "You have your assignment. Now go." With that said, Team STAG walked off, further into the stadium. Captain Pangolin turned his attention back to The Iron Nail and taunted the man. "Be sure not to fail this time." He laughed before walking off to rally the rest of the White Fang members. The Iron Nail snorted, before turning his eyes to Russel, who noticed stood unarmed.
"So, was that your Boss? He seemed nice." Russel laughed.
"I won't even dignify that with a response." The Iron Nail glared.
"But you just did." The Thrush smugly smirked.
"You shouldn't look so smug, Russel. It's bad for your health." The Iron Nail said threateningly.
"I could say the same for you." Russel retorted. "This is your plan? Attack a Huntsman Tournament? In the next ten minutes, you and the rest of your White Fang pals are gonna feel like a bunch of assholes when we're runnin' your asses out of here."
"Is that so?" The Iron Nail smirked as he turned back to the Bullhead. "Do you recall our first meeting, Russel?" He asked as he stopped onto the ship. The Iron Nail then walked to the back of the Bullhead and unlocked a cage. "You left me for dead at the mercy of an Ursa."
And in an instant, Russel's smug smile vanished, replaced by a look of dread. Against the wind, Russel could hear the rustling of chains and a low, yet familiar growl. Out of the Bullhead stepped The Iron Nail, a chain leash in his hands and a knowing smile.
"I emerged victorious over the beast and he became the first of the Grimm we harvested from your hometown." The Iron Nail said as he tugged on the chain leash.
Out of the darkness of the Bullhead, stepped out The Ursa. The very same unkillable Ursa that had attacked Russel all those years ago in the forests of Oakwood. The Ursa let out a fiendish roar as it set its blood red sights on Russel.
"Consider this a farewell present." The Iron Nail said as he let the chain leash fall from his hands. "Goodbye Russel." He said before turning and walking away, leaving Russel and The Ursa alone.
The Ursa let out another roar. The months in captivity had hardened it, no longer did it fear Russel's visage. And while all the cheers throughout the stadium turned to screams, all Russel could do was stand, frozen in fear as The Ursa approached.
"This is not a tragedy." A woman's voice suddenly appeared over the loudspeaker. "This was not an accident."
And so that brings this Arc to a close! Yeah, it was always going to end in a cliffhanger.
Oh boy, this chapter. It went through a lot of rewrites. Especially the stuff with Russel and Pyrrha.
The Cardin/Velvet.
So, I'm positioning Sky's story arc to be intertwined with this place called Venezier. If you all can look back to Nebula's arc, Venezier was mentioned greatly by people Dr. Kruger had interrogated. So, uh, expect stuff with those people.
At the very end of the chapter, we saw the return of The Ursa. The last time we physically saw The Ursa, was in chapter 4. I play the long game.
Next Arc: The Fall of ValeI hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm incredibly tired. 'Til next time! Later days!