Author's Note:
Yikes. This took longer than it should have, again. The last couple months have been interesting and busy personally, for better and worse. But here we are with another chapter of Demi-Human Students of Beacon.
I hope you enjoy.
Shock and Lightning
It came again as it always had. Unbidden and unwanted. That damnable combination of memory and nightmare which haunted her sleep.
That home her family made for themselves after generations of struggle. The neighbours whose faces she could scarcely recall anymore. The smoking and torn down remains of that town, and the bodies that paved its streets. Finally, as was the case with the past occasions where she had to experience this nightmare, the Grinning Men came.
They were great looming shadows in her mind, although she knew them to be more than that. After all, shadows did not kill. But she saw them as terrifying shadows with mouths that leered maliciously at her as she watched them stand over the bodies of her friends and neighbours. At the sight of them a noiseless scream would leave her lips, and mercifully it would be then that this nightmare of a memory would end.
Eyes flashing wide open and suddenly bolting upright from her cot, Royal let out a deep gasp as she put a hand over her heart. The organ beneath was beating hard and she could feel a throbbing pain in her skull. Just like all the other nights that she was made to endure this torture.
Around her was not fiery devastation, but the spartan room that she had temporarily called a bedroom during her stay in Vale. There was her cot, a small table and chair, a shower, her armaments, and what few personal effects they could bring with them. Given the nature of their stay in Vale, as well as who they were, they could not keep much and would need to leave quickly if this safehouse of theirs were to be compromised in any way. Royal was not unaccustomed to such a practise, but she found it tiring regardless.
Rising from her cot, Royal quickly showered, threw on her green-grey fatigues, and swallowed a paracetamol tablet before leaving the room assigned to her. Outside she saw that the rest of the safehouse's occupants were fully awake and up to all manner of activities in their safehouse. Some were maintaining their weapons, standing alert for trouble, chatting with one another, and other actions to pass the time. Any who saw or passed Royal bowed to her respectfully, to which she would respond with a wave or word of acknowledgement their way.
They were a motley assortment of people, especially her Shandian Unit. Demi-humans of several different breeds occupied this safehouse with her, each from an equally different background. All were together and in the service of the New Moon, and that was more important than any of the differences that may divide them.
Coming into the safehouse's cafeteria Royal saw it to be largely unoccupied, although there were still a handful present. Two were playing a game of cards, a third was watching, while a fourth was quietly eating by themselves. After getting a cup of water for herself, Royal found a spot for herself and sat in silence. Or at least, that was what she wanted. Instead, a large paper bag was abruptly dropped in from of her, causing Royal to jump and nearly spill the cup of water.
Looking to who might be behind this, she could only let out an irritated sigh as she saw it to be none other than the one-winged Incubus of their unit. Outcast. With that shameless smile of his, the Incubus pulled a chair up to Royal's table and stood opposite her.
"Morning, Your Grace." Outcast continued to smile down at her.
"Outcast. You are up early. Rather uncommon for you I must say." It was too early for her to be dealing with the Incubus right now, and she did not care for how he had addressed her right now.
"For good reason, I assure you. After all these days of instant and quick cook rations the New Moon provides us, I thought you'd like something else for breakfast." Outcast said as he began to dig into the paper bag and pulled out several foodstuffs in paper wraps or boxes while listing each one. "This here is a Kingdom creation called a 'BLT'. Maybe you'd like a sausage roll or a couple pancakes. Hey, if you're feeling a little homesick, got dim sum too."
Examining the packing that the food was contained within, she recognised plenty of them to be from food chains to be found across the city. Judging from the warmth she could feel from the packaging and the aroma that wafted up to her nose, they were also fresh. That could only mean one thing.
"You went out without leave again. Didn't you?" said Royal. Leaning forward in her seat and put her hands together.
"I did. What of it?" Outcast coolly replied, seemingly unconcerned by the implications and possible issues that might arise from his actions.
"This cannot keep happening, Outcast. I have been lenient with you in the past, but I must put my foot down on this matter. For the sake of our mission and the security of all in this safehouse, you must not leave this place without my or any other commander's permission." Royal expressed her disapproval even more with a frown and a shake of her head.
"Tch, I was careful. I hid my wing, so to everyone else I was just a Demon. There ain't much to worry about." Brushing her words away, Outcast opened up one of the boxes and took out a sausage roll, which he proceeded to take a large bite out of as he leaned back in his chair.
Watching Outcast act so nonchalantly and hearing his response to her very serious words, Royal's frown deepened. The Incubus was one of her unit's best. Not simply because he was good in combat, but also because he had a knack for logistics and sussing out secrets from people. Yet his usefulness did not mean he was an exception from the rules and made his capture or incapacitation an even more dangerous prospect.
"Outcast. Look at me." This time Royal spoke to him with an authoritative voice that forced the Incubus to look at her. His cocksure attitude steadily faded, and the smile dropped in the face of her ire. "We are being hunted by our enemy. You are as easily recognisable as I, and if our hunter were to spot you, it could endanger all of us here. You might say you were careful but imagine if you weren't or misfortune made you recognised by our enemy. This safehouse and everyone in it would be attacked, and all harm done would be one your head."
The safehouse was hidden well and any paper trails that might indicate their presence here were erased or just as well hidden. But they all had to be cautious and on alert. They were being hunted and already over a dozen safehouses in and outside of Vale were raided, and all within apprehended by their hunters if they could not prevent their own capture.
With the time of their plan's commencement drawing ever nearer, the New Moon could not afford to lose any more safehouses, resources, and personnel. As she had said, Outcast's unauthorised excursions threatened all of them with discovery, which might ruin the New Moon's entire plan in Vale given the Shandian Unit's part in it. But the plan was a secondary concern to Royal. The members of the Shandian Unit and their safety were her biggest concern, for each one was more than just some soldiers put under her command. No, they were so, so much more.
And Outcast, daring but well-meaning as he was, could have brought their enemies down on them.
"Zhe-" Outcast began, yet his eyes glanced over to the side as he appeared to notice something. Looking over to where his gaze was pointed, she saw an Arachne member from the Shandian Unit's 4th Squad approaching them.
"What is it you need?" Royal stated, rising up to her feet so she could be at eye-level with their comrade.
"Royal. A new communique from Central Operations for you. Marked as urgent." They brough forth a Scroll and handed it over to Royal. Central Operations? Now this was interesting.
Protocols regarding communication between stations, safehouses, and other New Moon installations were strict. You could not even send a paper plane to the window of a safehouse across the street without getting a serious beratement for breaching the rules. Only Central Operations could send messages without restriction, and those were only for important situations. For them to send a message specifically to Royal could mean any number of things, and she was not looking forward to learning which this message would be about.
Accepting the Scroll she unlocked it with a press of her thumb, a beep alerting Royal that the content of the communique was now available to her. With an internal sigh, she braced herself for whatever Central Operations might have for her and read the text on the Scroll.
At first there was the standard message confirming she had received it, which Royal did not bother reading because of the sheer number of times she was made to see them. Reaching the real meat of the message, Royal's eyes narrowed before they widened and then narrowed once again. The heart in her chest beating harder and faster as she processed the message's contents. The message was more than what she expected. In fact, it had to be worse than she initially imagined it to be.
"What is it?" Outcast's voice pulled Royal's eyes away from the Scroll, and she could see the two other demi-humans staring at her with anticipation in her eyes.
Royal put the Scroll facing down on the table and placed both hands flat on it as well. Outcast and the other Shandian member did not utter another word, simply waited for her to speak up and tell them just what the communique had contained. At this she let out a deep breath and looked down at her hands.
Neither of them was going to like the answer to that question. Royal most certainly did not. But she would have to tell them or else she would be hounded for days about its content, and Royal sorely liked it when people were not chasing after her.
"Outcast, get the others and outfit yourselves. We have an internal issue that needs resolving," said Royal. Pushing herself off the table, then swiped the Scroll from it then handed it back to the one who gave it to her in the first place.
It became immediately clear to Royal that Outcast and the other Shandian member were not expecting the nature of the communique to be what she just said it was, and they shared a quick look with one another. 'Internal issues' meant a problem within the ranks of the New Moon, and that meant trouble for all of them. Royal was not unfamiliar with how Central Operations dealt with problems inside their own organisation, but those occasions were due to what they perceived as 'insubordinate behaviour'.
Now though, she was not being called to be judged. She was to be the judge.
Pyrrha had fought many people in the seventeen years of her life. There were the opponents she faced in her days training, the people she battled in the arenas of the Mistral Regional Tournament, those who thought to challenge her, and the students she fought against and with at Beacon. In the early times of her life as a fighter, her battles had been hard, and she struggled greatly against what she now considered novice level fighters.
Yet she had grown through all the years. In time her body became accustomed to holding weapons in her hands. Her mind was made sharper and her reflexes swifter. Foes Pyrrha might have once called equals in terms of fighting skill became people she could defeat without breaking a sweat. She did not mean to sound overly confident, but several opponents had been downright easy to her.
Who she was fighting now could not be described as easy.
Turning her body, the sound of metal sharply striking against metal followed almost immediately as an axehead glanced against the face of her shield. With a spin Pyrrha moved under another attack from her opponent and struck back with a wide slash of Milo's sword-form at her opponent's legs. They jumped back in time and brought her axe down, which she evaded by rolling backwards, the axehead intended for her head striking only the floor.
Once her roll was done, Pyrrha threw her head back to get some hair off her face and rose up to her feet. She did not dive forward immediately but assumed a defensive stance. Opposite her the opponent she faced dragged the blade of her axe along the ground slowly, before then picking it up and assuming a ready stance. Who was her adversary?
Yasmin the Half-Dracon.
Pyrrha had not intended to practise with the demi-human today. She hoped to get some solo practise in preparation for the final round of the Vytal Tournament, but before she could do that Yasmin had come out of the blue and said the two would practise with each other. She attempted to politely decline. Yasmin was having none of it though, and more or less demanded that the two spar. Ultimately, Pyrrha gave in to Yasmin and here the two now were.
"Whooo! You got this Pyrrha!" A Haven student cheered for Pyrrha.
"You got this Pyrrha!" Another student, this time from Beacon, added their own voice to the others encouraging her.
The support plenty of the observers were showing Pyrrha warmed her, but now was not the time to be distracted by them. From her fights in the arena, she had learnt not to take her focus off opponents for any reason unless it was an emergency. A good few were willing to take advantage of any lapse in concentration, and Yasmin was among those number.
Darting forward like a gale, Yasmin charged at her. Pyrrha answered her charge by launching herself forward as well. They were about to collide when Pyrrha leapt over the swing Yasmin launched at the last second and landed right behind the demi-human. She then thrust Milo at Yasmin's unprotected back, but the attack was deflected when the Half-Dracon spun round and turned her blade aside with a hard backhand using her left hand. Yasmin's right hand lifted her axe in one hand and swung it down at Pyrrha.
Her mind thinking fast, she evaded the attack by turning so her right shoulder faced Yasmin and, before she could react, delivered a high kick to the side of Yasmin's head. A new round of applause filled the air when she caused the Half-Dracon to reel from the attack. Pyrrha was more focused on Yasmin's right hand, for she let her axe's handle slide down her hand before suddenly gripping it once it was a hand's length from the end, then turned her wrist. Swiftly understanding what Yasmin planned, Pyrrha jumped back. She did so in time, for the head of Yasmin's axe cut right through where Pyrrha's hip then midsection had been but a moment ago.
Not wishing for Yasmin to have a moment to recover Pyrrha attacked her as she moved to hold her axe with both hands again. Landing a quick slash on her opponent's side, she heard Yasmin snarl beneath her mask and then attempted to strike back at her with the end of her axe. Pyrrha's hand shot in front of the long handle and caught it, then brought Milo's blade on it and slid it up the handle. Yasmin let go of her weapon, narrowly avoiding her hands being hit by Milo, then caught it with one hand just as the end she had held was starting to fall to the ground.
Pyrrha expected Yasmin to take hold of the weapon with both hands and try to pull the axe's handle out of her grasp. Surprise struck Pyrrha when she saw Yasmin not do as she thought she would. Instead, the Half-Dracon's free hand shot behind her back then just as quickly came back to view again, although it now held the tri-blade she would sometimes use.
Lifting up the arm she was using to hold onto her axe, Yasmin turned the axe, so it was now standing vertical then lunged at Pyrrha. The tri-blade in her hand aimed at Pyrrha's throat. Only by leaning to the side did the champion avoid one of the blades hitting her square on the jugular, although another of the weapon's three blades did manage to inflict a light graze to the side of her neck. Forced to let go of Yasmin's axe, the Human positioned her shield to block a kick to her side and parried another strike from the tri-blade.
Now wielding two weapons in her hands Yasmin became more aggressive in her fighting style. She mostly used the tri-blade in her left hand as a quick slashing weapon, while the two-handed axe in her right was more versatile in its usage for the demi-human swung and thrust with it and also used it to block Pyrrha's own attacks. From just a glance at how she moved with both weapons Pyrrha could instantly tell Yasmin had fought in this manner enough times before to be at least capable fighting this way. At the same time, she could immediately spot the weaknesses of this style as well.
Blocking a blow intended for her shoulder with Akouo, Pyrrha shifted Milo into its javelin-form and stabbed it at one of Yasmin's knees. It did not connect for Yasmin pulled her leg back at the right time to avoid Milo's tip, yet it did when the Mistralian champion swiftly cut upward and delivered a slice along the left side of Yasmin's torso. If Yasmin's left hand was free, she might have grabbed her weapon and used that to her advantage but that was not the case. Pyrrha stepped back, dodging Yasmin's attempt to strike her foot with the bottom of her axe's handle, and rapidly thrust Milo at the masked woman several times.
Again, in using two weapons in her hands, and one being a two-handed pole weapon, Yasmin had limited how she could react to Pyrrha's attacks. That became more obvious after Pyrrha landed three stabs on Yasmin, the javelin bypassing her tri-blade and the sweeps of her axe. This was not lost on the demi-human and broke away from Pyrrha as she tried to get a fourth stab in. Looking on her as she planned her next move, Pyrrha took notice of Yasmin's stance, how heavily her chest rose and fell, and then the look in her eyes. In combination all three could inform her on the state of her opponent.
Both had not been fighting each other for long, over five minutes by Pyrrha's own count. That might not seem a long time, but with how they had been fighting, the two could easily start feeling tired from how much stamina they were using.
'She is still able to fight,' Pyrrha thought as she assessed Yasmin. The Half-Dracon stood tall and strong with her weapons still held firmly in her hands. Judging from how her chest heaved up and down, her breathing was still in check and was not tired yet. When it came to her eyes, that told Pyrrha more than she expected.
Yes, when looking into those eyes she could see a burning desire for victory and that they were measuring her in the same way Pyrrha was. Checking for weaknesses and thinking of some strategy, yet Pyrrha could feel there was far more to it than that. Yasmin was judging her for something. Pyrrha had seen that kind of look throughout almost her entire career as a warrior, so she immediately spotted what she was doing. Just what for Pyrrha could not tell at the moment, but there was no mistaking it.
After a couple seconds spent in their brief stand-off, Yasmin stowed her tri-blade away and gripped her axe with both hands once more. She planned to dash forward again, but Pyrrha was already moving by the time Yasmin had lifted her leg off the floor. Adapting quickly, Yasmin planted her foot back down with a hard stomp and assumed a defensive stance in answer to Pyrrha's charge. Once she was at arm's length of her opponent Pyrrha stopped and Milos in its sword-form in time to parry the swing of Yasmin's axe, then leaned back to evade a blow meant for her face using the bottom end of the axe's hand. Pyrrha struck again, aiming a slash at Yasmin's torso but that was blocked by the long handle of Yasmin's weapon.
A strong shove of Yasmin's axe forced Pyrrha to step back a couple steps and deflected a short and swift swing that came close to hitting her forehead. Several quicker blows rained on Pyrrha, each as swift as striking viper. Despite the veritable whirlwind of attacks, Pyrrha was able to block, parry, and weave past the strikes expertly while launching her own attacks on Yasmin.
The two then locked weapons and stood breast-to-breast. As soon as they were this close to one another, Yasmin reared her head back and threw it forward in an attempt to land a headbutt on Pyrrha. Instinctively reacting to this threat, she narrowly avoiding the attack by leaning backwards, following the action up by shoving Yasmin away with a kick to her stomach. Her opponent made to attack once again, but Pyrrha launched a rapid flurry of strikes using Milo's javelin-form to force Yasmin into the defensive and then jump back when Pyrrha refused to relent. Just as the champion planned.
With a spin she flung Akouo at the Half-Dracon, who deflected the shield by swatting it aside with axe then responded by throwing her tri-blade at a now charging Pyrrha. Sliding beneath the spinning tri-blade on her shins, Pyrrha caught the weapon as it flew over her head and threw it back at Yasmin after rising back onto her feet. Yasmin leaned away from the tri-blade and, seeing Pyrrha swiftly close the distance between them, shot a hand forward to grab her. Pyrrha batted the arm aside and threw herself forward, shoulder barging straight into her opponent's torso.
The collision threw Yasmin off her feet and Pyrrha heard her let out a sharp breath as the wind was knocked out of her. Falling to the ground Pyrrha immediately rolled off her opponent and, after a short struggle, put Yasmin into a chokehold with Milo's blade against her throat.
Everything in the room went still as everyone seemed to freeze and hold their breath. In fact, the world outside the sparring hall sounded as if it had gone silent out of anticipation of what would happen next, too.
Pyrrha had positioned her head behind Yasmin's right shoulder to eye the expression on Her face and see if she tried anything. The impression Pyrrha had of the Half-Dracon was that she most likely would do anything if the idea of defeat seemed possible, so there was no telling what she might do. A hand rose into view, and she was ready to act if it attempted something, although it did turn out she had been concerned over nothing at all. For the hand patted her on the arm putting her in the chokehold, a sign of Yasmin yielding and wishing the spar to be ended.
Immediately she released the Half-Dracon from the chokehold and stood up. Her victory confirmed, the surrounding crowd letting out a round of applause to both combatants, although Pyrrha could sense most directed their praise towards her. Pyrrha did not pay the applause much mind, giving a handful of small waves before leaning over and extending a hand to Yasmin, who had yet to get off the floor.
Her former opponent looked up at her, then to the hand being offered. Yasmin gave what Pyrrha believed to be a dirty look at her hand, as though it were unclean or something along those lines and removed herself from the floor on her own.
Suppressing a sigh, Pyrrha watched as the Half-Dracon picked up her weapon and adjusted the mask over her face. By now, everyone knew of Yasmin's disagreeable attitude towards practically everyone within and apparently without the Academy. Pyrrha had attempted to reach out and establish a cordial relationship with her, unfortunately though Yasmin was largely unreceptive of her and treated Pyrrha similarly to everyone else. Even after a spar the Half-Dracon showed no willingness to change that.
"Well done, Nikos." Yasmin's voice interrupted Pyrrha's thoughts. Alongside the unexpectedness of the words, Pyrrha was struck by how the tone behind them was not unkind to Pyrrha's ears.
Still looking at the demi-human, she noted how Yasmin was giving her an unreadable look. Realising that Pyrrha might have noticed the way she was gazing at her, Yasmin turned away from the champion and started to swiftly walk toward the door of the sparring hall without another word. Pyrrha tried to share a word with Yasmin, but the distance between them was already wide and some from the crowd rushed over to speak to Pyrrha.
Pyrrha was able to thank those who congratulated her while politely turning down those who wanted to ask her questions or discuss something with her. The abruptness of Yasmin's desire to spar with her still struck the Mistral champion as odd, and she wanted to clarify what it was all about. And, if possible, try to understand Yasmin as a person more, for that could be how she and others might form a better connection with the aloof Half-Dracon.
After at last wrestling herself away from the crowd of people who gathered around her, Pyrrha hurried to the door and searched for Yasmin once she was outside. The Half-Dracon had disappeared from sight though, and Pyrrha could not see any sign of her. As she decided on a direction and began to walk, a buzz and ring from her pocket drew Pyrrha's attention from what she was doing. The ringtone that went off was the one she set for when she received messages from the teachers, so she put everything on hold to see what it was. For if it came from the teachers, it must surely be important.
Taking out and unlocking her Scroll, Pyrrha received the third surprise of her day. The message was from none other than the Headmaster and it was directing her to Beacon Tower for a meeting shortly before six o'clock.
'Beacon Tower? I wonder what the Headmaster wants from me,' Pyrrha silently wondered to herself. Did it have to do with the upcoming solo matches of the Tournament? Perhaps her overall performance throughout the school year? Jaune maybe?
Today was really turning out to be an eventful one.
Shutting the door behind her, Yasmin placed Amlug-nor onto the table of her quarters and let out a deep breath after removing the mask from her face. Removing the other weapons on her person, she then slumped onto a chair and shut her eyes. The Half-Dracon had quickly made her way back to the place allocated to her after the spar with the Nikos human, and, to her own surprise, needed a moment to recover from it.
Yasmin heard much of the Nikos human. Talk of how she was perhaps the best fighter of their generation was common among those who spoke about the red-haired girl. They spoke of her peerless form, indefatigable technique, and the unwavering strength of her body and mind. As a matter of fact, they went so far as to call Nikos 'The Invincible Girl'. A ridiculous name to match an equally ridiculous claim.
Her thoughts on the name were the same as before, but she had been made to reconsider the Nikos girl's talents as a warrior.
The notion the Nikos girl, a Human, could be the greatest fighter of the generation was preposterous to Yasmin. Upon catching wind of a new development that would involve the so-called 'champion', Yasmin had to test her skills against her. She had witnessed what Pyrrha was capable in training spars and arena battles, but she had not been impressed by those fights. After all, those opponents the Nikos girl faced were not her, and Yasmin had been confident that she would prove a greater foe than even the Mistralian could handle.
It did not go as she planned it would. Pyrrha had not just been able to match her blow for blow but went so far as to force her to concede defeat without depleting Yasmin's Aura reserves. In front of a crowd made up of well over a dozen other people.
Such humiliation left a fire burning inside Yasmin's chest. A fire that urged her to correct this wound to her pride and honour. But that would land her in more trouble, especially since the Nikos girl would be such a more important figure for her superiors. An opportunity would arise in the future, she was sure of it, Yasmin merely needed to quell the fire for now and bide her time.
For now, though, Yasmin needed to get this new information on Yasmin down for prosperity. She kept a record of her interactions with and any new information on all people she deemed of worth and took out the notebook where she kept it. Finding the page she kept on Nikos, she jotted down all her thoughts and put an addendum to some of those that were already there. She made a note of her defeat at the Human's hands, crossed out a question regarding Nikos' skill, and put down some insights she made of Nikos' style.
For the next minute she made adjustments to these notes, then, once she was done, Yasmin turned to her notes on the others in the book. She had gained new information on a handful of other people, including the likes of Headmaster Ozpin, so her notes on them required updating as well. Many of the pages, mainly those of the most important people and those she engaged with often, were covered in long lines of written text. The information written included what brand of coffee Ozpin usually had in that ever-present mug of his, the subtleties in Taupe's body language, what the members of Team FFOG would do in the morning, the distances certain Faunus students could hear, and other information.
Satisfied with what she had done once she had finished, Yasmin was going to close and stow her notebook away, when a knocking alerted Yasmin of someone at her door. She was not expecting anyone, so Yasmin frowned and began to wonder who it might be. Several sprang ro mind right away, but she crossed most of them off for they would not come to her quarters without prior warning or simply notified her through her Scroll if they wanted to speak. Getting up after sliding her notebook somewhere it could not be seen from the door, she got up and went to answer whoever was outside.
"Yasmin, hello! How are you doing today?" A voice immediately greeted the Half-Dracon as she swung the door open. Laying eyes on the person in front of her, Yasmin undid her frown and rose a brow in curiosity when she saw the person to be the Angel, Reuel.
Examining the Angel in front of her, Yasmin saw he was in his casual wear, which was made up of a shirt, grey cardigan, sand-brown trousers, and dark shoes. All of the tops tailored to accommodate for the great wings on his back. Held in his left hand was a brown paper bag, from which an aromatic scent of a baked good of some kind rose. This was strange to her, for although Reuel could be considered one of the most outgoing and friendly of the students, she had spurned his previous attempts to socialise. Why did he think now would be any different?
"Well," Yasmin curtly responded. She did not want him here, and her tone should have informed him about that. The Angel got the message if the way he stiffened was anything to go by, but it looks as though he was choosing to ignore it and press on with whatever he had come here for.
"'Well'. That is good to hear," Reuel cracked a small smile towards her. "Word of your spar with Pyrrha spread quickly, and I heard you took a hard blow near its end. So, I believed I should check on you and see if you are alright. It is good to see that you are."
"Hmmm. Your concern is... appreciated." Yasmin responded to what the Angel had to say, his words had no unkind intent behind them, and he was likely being genuinely sincere. Still, she wanted solitude and his decision to remind her of the battle with the Nikos girl did annoy Yasmin. "Is there anything else that you want?"
Few among the student body in Beacon, or even the other Academies, were worthy of Yasmin's respect. The Angel in front of her stood among that number, both because of the people he came from and the prowess that he demonstrated in combat. Still, his choice to actively mingle with those not of demi-human blood did confound her.
He was an Angel. One of the highest and most venerated breeds of Demi-human. He did not need to speak with these lesser creatures, and many were definitely not worth her time, so it puzzled Yasmin as to why Reuel thought he should treat them all as he did. With a hand outstretched in welcome and a smile on his face. If Yasmin were the Angel, she would not be bother giving these creatures so much as a thought and focus purely on her own advancement through the Academy and the rare few that might earn her acknowledgement.
"This. I would like you to have this," Reuel replied as he offered the paper bag to Yasmin. "I bought some of these muffins for my friends to enjoy, although it turns out most of them did not want the raisin muffins, so I decided to give them out to other people. What I have here is the last of the raisin muffins, and while thinking of who else could want it, you came to mind. I hope you will take and enjoy it."
"Muffins," said Yasmin. He had come to her because of muffins.
"I understand that this may not be entirely to your likely, Yasmin. But please listen to what I have to say." Reuel insisted, speaking right before Yasmin would say something polite and close the door on him. "It came to my attention that few pay any mind to giving you anything, and that none spoke a word to you when you left the sparring hall. So, after consulting someone, I thought that you would like to have these, as a gesture of kindness."
Kindness. A gesture of kindness. As with before, Yasmin scrutinised Reuel's every word and the body language on display to determine the truth of the matter, and as far as she could tell he was being sincere. It was also in character for the Angel to do this because that was the type of person he was. Then again, he may have approached her because of the prompting of another, so even if his intent were pure, the action might not be in truth.
Accepting the paper bag from Reuel, she opened it up and saw one muffin that was a mix of light and dark brown did indeed rest inside. With the bag open, the smell of the food inside was able to rise up more clearly and fill her nose. The smell was alike to fresh bread, although an undertone of chocolate and a hint of raisins were sensed by Yasmin. It turned out to be rather pleasant for the Half-Dracon, and in response her stomach made Yasmin acutely aware of how she had not eaten for a good while by grumbling loud enough for both Demi-humans to hear.
"Your gesture is received with gratitude." Yasmin hurriedly said before the Angel could bring any attention to the sounds from her stomach.
"So long as it is received, I am glad." Reuel smiled, pretending as though he had not heard the sound which he most definitely had seconds earlier. "I shall let you be now. Please, enjoy the muffin."
Reuel turned to leave, but before he could take a step away Yasmin had closed the door. Walking over to her room's table, she put the paper bag onto its surface and leaned over the table with both hands planted flat on it. The end of that conversation had not ended as she would have liked, but it had and all she could do now was move on. She stowed her notebook away and, deciding she needed to get back to work, reached for her Scroll to arrange a meeting. The rats were still out there in Vale, and she needed information if she were to find their hideouts.
Yasmin finished sending a message and was now waiting for a reply when her stomach made itself heard once again and groaned louder than before. Wincing at this, and deciding that she ought to placate her stomach, Yasmin turned to head for the small fridge kept in her quarters. She stopped when her eyes fell on the paper bag lying on the table.
She had not touched the bag since laying it onto the table, and all but forgotten it was there until now. Now that she was paying it more mind, the scent of the muffin inside it made her stomach rumble more and her tongue to subconsciously rub against the back of her teeth.
"A gesture of kindness." Yasmin muttered to herself as she continued to stare at the paper bag, her feet slowly taking her to it.
The Angel was right. She did not receive much from anyone in the Academy, and it had been that way when she had been studying in Sentry, so she was not about to raise a fuss about it here and now. But for some reason, the thought of this muffin hung heavy over her mind, and she did not understand why. It was not because of the Angel, no, she did not have eyes for him, although she did recognise his strength and the power he bore thanks to his blood. Was it some sentimental reason she could not recognise or was it simply a response brought about by her body's physical needs.
Deciding she should at least try the muffin given to her by Reuel, both out of courtesy and to appease the grumbling of her stomach, Yasmin opened the bag up again and took it out. For half a minute she examined the muffin carefully, checking its quality and to ensure that it was indeed a raisin muffin as the Angel had said. She saw nothing off about it and decided to get all this over with before something really important came about.
Finally biting a piece off of the muffin, Yasmin took a moment to pause chew and swallow it down before blinking a couple times. Looking down at the muffin again, she bit off a small piece of it again to properly savour the taste. It was good. She could not say that it was the greatest morsel she had ever sampled, but it was enough to whet her appetite and she would not mind having more it. Before long, the muffin was gone and all that remained was the empty paper cup that held it and a few stray crumbs at the edges of her lips.
"A gesture of kindness," Yasmin repeated once more as she eyed the empty cup. Yes, there was far more to all than her hunger.
The Half-Elf's mind was torn away from the muffin and back to her Scroll. An alert notified her of a message, and judging from the specific ring, it was from the contact she approached for information. They were quicker than usual this time, Yasmin not expecting a reply to come from them for at least half an hour. It either spoke of an improvement in their services, or another conclusion that would see her come knocking on their door.
To her great misfortune, and that of her contact once she got her hands on him, the message said they no longer had any information on the Rats' movements in or around Vale. They were planning something, and she would not rest until she had flung open every single one of their dens and dragged them into the light. First things first though, she and her contact needed to have a nice, friendly chat.
To say Royal was displeased to be where she was right now would be an understatement. Not because of the place in particular, more so the reason why she and the small entourage accompanying her had come in the first place. She should be back in the Shandian's safehouse where they all ought to be readying for the grand plan for Vale, yet for some reason Royal had been pulled into an important yet grim gathering.
Walking up to a metal door at the end of a corridor, the two guards waiting by it opened the door for her and they entered a large room occupied by five people. There stood the militant commander of all New Moon forces in Vale, a tall Vampire male with a shoulder cape over his left arm with two of the others being militant members of the New Moon from the commander's own unit here to watch over their leader and guard the two other occupants of the room. Speaking of which, the last two people in the room was an Orc male in civilian clothing and another male Orc bound to a chair who looked as though they had been in a fight recently.
All looked to Royal as soon as the door opened, the commander unfolding his arms and took a few steps toward her. His skin was as white as snow, the eyes of his sharp face orange as the setting sun, and the long hair that cascaded past his armpits a dark shade of blue. He was not visibly armed at the moment, but he did not require weapons to fight. For of all the people in this room, and despite the guards with him, he was likely to be the most dangerous amongst them.
"At last, you arrive." The Vampire stated a thick accent she recognised not long after their first meeting to be present in the northern regions of Avalon.
"This is the traitor?" Royal almost did not say that last word, but there could be no other way of saying it. Looking over her shoulder she gestured for the other members of her entourage to wait by the door, with only Outcast following after her, but even then, she heard him stop five paces away from the commander. Walking up to the commander, Royal stood beside him and gazed down at the bound figure.
"Yes. He tried to inform the VPD about us and our plans for Vale, however, his brother caught him before they could turn anything over and brought him to our attention." The Vampire pointed over to the unbound Orc standing nearby, then clicked his fingers. One of the guards strode over to a table, picked up a bundle of papers, and handed them to Royal. "He also intended to hand these into the local authorities in the hopes our enemies would act on the information. All have details on our activities, the locations of several of our sites, and segments of information on our designs for the Tournament."
With the papers in her hand, Royal quickly skimmed over the contents of the papers and frowned at what she saw. Some of the papers were notes likely written down by the bound Orc, while others were copies of official papers. Much of what was on them were as the Vampire described, a fact that did no favours for the Orc, for there was information here that was critical to the New Moon and would endanger it if they were passed to less than friendly hands. Seeing all that she needed to understand the full severity of the situation, handed the papers to the Vampire, and looked down at the individual in the chair.
The Orc was not someone she recognised and would not have stood out from a crowd unless one took account the strong build and green-skin he bore because of his Orcish nature. He was dressed in casual civilian wear and, as with his own appearance, none of his clothing were aesthetically noteworthy or bore any devices that would have caused anyone to think twice about him. But that was likely the point behind the Orc's choice of clothing. There was a relatively fresh head wound that had seen rudimentary treatment, with healing scars and bruises on his knuckles and wrists, meaning these might have been sustained when confronted by his brother.
"If you are wondering, no. We have searched his home and place of work for any other materials that could endanger the New Moon and found none." The Vampire spoke, causing Royal to look over to him as he passed the papers to one of his guards. "We have already formulated a believable excuse for his disappearance that shall hold up for a time."
"'Disappearance'." Royal repeated, her tongue feeling as though it were made of lead. Yes, they would be 'disappearing' this Orc. It was for this reason that she stood here now.
"Is that... truly necessary?" The bound Orc's brother asked, the two New Moon leaders turning to his direction. "Can we not hold him securely somewhere? My brother might have attempted to betray us all, which I deeply regret, however, he does not need to die. In fact, he can be made to see the light again. Give me time and I swear to you, on my honour, my brother can be a true member of the New Moon once again."
"Your choice to come to your brother's aid is admirable, young Orc. Bonds between family are invaluable. Yet, in this situation we cannot show leniency." The Vampire put a hand on the Orc's shoulder, his eyes gazing into the Orc's. "Your brother's actions had the potential to ruin all that we have worked so hard to achieve in Vale and bring the Kingdomers done upon us. He was willing to go behind your back, demonstrating a grave lack of trust in you. Consider his behaviour and ask yourself whether he can be brought back to us."
The Orc frowned, and Royal could hear his heart begin to beat like a war drum in his chest. The Vampire spoke of his own flesh and blood after all. Royal could only imagine the raw mess of emotions the Orc must be feeling in his heart, but such emotions would not matter. Not when judgement had already been passed on the Orc that was bound.
Anyone could have been chosen to enact the sentence on the Orc, from the commander to any of the regular troops of the New Moon. Her coming here was unnecessary and impractical in Royal's mind, but a command was a command, and the New Moon's Hierarch wanted this to be a lesson for her. Royal had to endure many lessons from the Hierarch, each aiming to shape her into a model member of the New Moon. On this occasion, the lesson was more dire than most of the others in the past, as the life before Royal was forfeit from the moment he laid hands on these documents.
She could refuse. That was a choice open to her and Royal felt a strong urge to go ahead with this feeling. But what then? What would happen to her and those who followed her if she dared to give these thoughts voice?
The answer was already known to Royal. What was likely to happen stood right before her. Bound in a chair and alive only to wait for death.
Her forces in the Shandian were strong and skilled individually and as a unit. However, there were other units in the New Moon who stood a full head and shoulders above Royal and her band and right now, three from one such unit was in the room with her. In spite of her own skill and formidable strengths, the Vampire would have her neck before she had a chance to successfully land a blow on him, and for the people of her unit and the goal she had worked hard towards, Royal could not afford for it all to end today.
"I... shall carry out the sentence." Royal finally announced to the other occupants of the room.
The Vampire turned his head her way, an unreadable look in his eyes cast in her direction. The Orc shifted his pose to face her fully and attempted to say something, but cast his eyes over to his bound brother, then looked downwards in resignation. Speaking of the bound Orc, his body tensed in response to the words she uttered. He must surely know what punishment awaited when he picked up those papers and what she was about to do, but he remained silent and watched her.
The Orc was watching still as Royal stepped in front of him and looked down at his beaten and bound form. His breath remained steady, yet his heartbeat had elevated. No words left the Orc still, his eyes now looking directly up into Royals. It would be easy for her to say the Orc was being defiant, this silence in the face of his fate an act to be brave in the face of the unavoidable end. Yet that was not what Royal saw.
All she saw in the Orc was regret. For what not even her eyes could penetrate, although she could make some guesses ranging from unfulfilled life goals to the actions of his brother. Pushing down all emotions and focusing her mind only on what she needed to do, Royal raised her arm and prepared to enact the New Moon's judgement on the Orc. All others stepped away as far from the two as possible so they would not be caught in the punishment Royal was to observe. The Orc's brother was reluctant but said nothing as he was tugged away by the Vampire. When all were at a safe distance, Royal took a deep breath in and out and summoned forth the lightning.
A brilliant flash of light and a roaring crack filled the room in an instant then disappeared as quick as it had come. Leaving the room short one living person. Gone like the lightning, in a flash.
Leaning back into the chair he was sat on and drumming the fingers of one hand against its arm, Faen looked on as the opening ceremony for the solo finals took place. Ozpin, as Headmaster of the host Kingdom's Huntsman Academy, was giving a speech on strength, unity, and all those other motivational topics. As that was happening, the participants of this final round were stood in a line at the central platform. Grey being among them.
Halting his fingers from drumming any further, the Elf sucked in a deep breath and clenched the chair's arm tightly, then exhaled just as deeply as how he had breathed in. Grey was their team's representative in this last round of the Vytal Tournament, and he could not be prouder of her for that. Both for being the first Werebeast to stand in the solo finals and being his best friend. He would not be upset with the whole affair if the choice to not be in the finals was his own.
The grip he held onto the chair's arm grew tighter as he recalled the meeting with the Vytal Tournament Commitee. The body in charge of running the Tournament side of the Vytal Festival. They discussed with him that after the assault on his person by Halvard, it was their intent for his participation in the finals to be withdrawn for the sake of public opinion. In their explanation to him, if he were permitted to continue being a contestant after the incident, that would stoke controversy and bad will against him and Vale from Atlas. Headmaster Ozpin stood and defended his case, but he was outvoted in this regard and Faen had to give the chance to be FFOG's representative in the finals over to Grey.
He planned to give it up for Grey regardless of the meeting but for him to be made to do so, and for reasons he disagreed with, set his blood on fire.
A hand touched Faen's forearm and looking toward it he saw it to be his Kitsune partner's doing. Throughout this entire affair Odori had been supportive of him, as had all of his teammates. She was quieter compared to Grey's angry fist-shaking and Friesian's confrontational attitude and showed her support by simply being by his side more often. He hardly seemed to go anywhere for the past two days without her either right next to him, or somewhere she could watch and be there for him in an instant.
He greatly appreciated her efforts, concerns, and presence. Truly he did. But she had essentially decided to become like his shadow, ever-present and unshakeable, and he had come to begrudgingly accept it. Faen understood why she was acting this way, he was just not accustomed to having a person this close to him as often as she was.
"Still can't believe what they did to you, boss. What happened was not your fault, and it's real shit they went and did this." Friesian was heard spitting out with barely contained frustration from the other side of Faen.
"Nothing can be done about it now, Friesian." Faen sighed while leaning further into his chair and gazing even more intently at the final round's contestants. By now Faen was only half-listening to the announcements that followed Ozpin's speech, for all that they were saying did not bother him. "Tell us of that test you took. A theory test for airship piloting, correct? Have you gotten your results for it back?"
"First of all, I think I did okay. Not great, but not bad. Second of all, don't try to change the subject, boss. We know when you try to do that and that was a pretty bad attempt at it." Friesian continued to push the subject, whatever angry emotions he was displaying right now must have been stewing inside the Friesian for a while. The best way to help him deal with it is to allow him to let it all out, but Faen had no patience or desire to hear his complaining.
"Could you not do this right now, Friesian? We're in public and your words are best saved when we get back to the dorm." Faen let his annoyance towards the Dullahan be heard, but it seems he let out more than he intended for, shooting a quick look Friesian's way, the Elf saw his teammate's eye twitch slightly.
Letting out a sigh in his head, the Elf prepared for a barrage of fiery words to come from Friesian. When motivated and in the right state of mind, the Dullahan could get very irritable, almost as much as himself, and was prone to become argumentative and act without thinking. He had seen all of that when the Dullahan argued with a Faunus who made the mistake of saying the White Fang's action were right in some way within earshot of Friesian.
"Enough of that you two!" Odori voice snapped at them, the grip on Faen's forearm tightening as she spoke. "We already have enough problems on our plates as it, and it'd be in all our best interests to not add more to that pile. Besides, is this not Grey's Day? For her sake, let us not drag today down with arguments amongst ourselves."
The Kitsune's words made Faen more conscious of his actions and look towards where Grey stood at the arena. Alarmingly, he saw that the Werewolf was ignoring the rest of the ceremony and looking their way, having probably noted their arguing. Her face was passive, but her eyes told him that she was wondering just what the rest of FFOG were doing, if she had not already heard what they were saying. Shamed by this, the Elf composed himself and quelled his wounded pride for the time being. For Grey.
Next to him, Friesian was similarly affected by Odori's words and took several deep breaths to calm down. A hand coming down to massage the bridge of his nose. After he finished coming down from his heated state, the Dullahan relaxed into his chair and gave Faen and Odori a weak smile, then turned his gaze over to the arena floor before either had a chance to say anything.
Looking on over to Odori he saw the Kitsune gaze keenly at the two male members of FFOG. Satisfaction glinted in her eyes as she looked past him and at Friesian, then those red orbs concentrated on him. Upon gazing at him, the edges of Odori's mouth curled upwards in a slight smile as she offered to him the small pack of chocolate-coated biscuit sticks she had bought from one of the fairground's stands before coming to Amity. Politely declining, she shrugged and took another of the sticks from the pack and bit a third of it off as she stared out into the arena. The ceremony was nearly over and joined his teammates in watching the rest of it.
After a few minutes, the ceremony for the solo finals finally ended and all heads craned up towards the large screens across the Colosseum as the contestants of the first match were about to be picked. There would be no special environ to fight on, as the duels would be confined to the central section of the arena. Drumming his fingers on the arms of his chair, Faen waited with bated breath as the selection system prepared to make its decision.
Grey could be selected right now. There was a chance that the system might select the Werewolf and pit her against any of the other finalists. The Elf would show nothing but support for his friend no matter the foe, even if it had to be people he also counted as friends. Anything less would bring dishonour to his status as Grey's best friend.
At last, the images on half of the Colosseum's screens halted suddenly, stopping on Yang's familiar face.
"Yang Xiao Long! Well, well. I almost feel sorry for whosever is about to face her." Port chuckled to himself. Around him he could hear a number of other audience members laugh and share the professor's sentiment.
Casting his gaze over to another part of the stands, the Elf's eyes caught sight of the members of Team RWBY. Faen could see Ruby throw her arms into the air and could hear the young Human let out a cheer for her older sister. Weiss he could also hear cry out some encouraging words while pumping only hand over her head. Blake meanwhile was silent, but Faen could spot a small smile on her face as she waved a small Beacon flag in one hand.
"Mercury Black! An interesting matchup, I must say. All other contestants, please depart from the arena." Oobleck's voice announced to all, snapping Faen's attention away from RWBY and to the screens around the Colosseum. Sure enough, the sole male member of Team CMNE had been selected to be Yang's opponent in this match.
At this the Elf let out a deep sigh. It would seem Grey would not be fighting just yet.
His white eyes searched for Mercury's team but was quick to notice the only one who appeared to be among the crowd to be Emerald. Frowning slightly, the Elf eyes scanned more of the crowd and failed to spot anymore of Team CMNE's members. With the Tournament having reached the finals and nearing its conclusion, it was seen as improper for team members of contestants to not be present. He could have sworn he saw Cinder when he looked around the crowd before the ceremony started, which was most unusual to him. From his interactions with the Human, Faen figured her to be the type to personally observe and relish in victories, hers and that of her team. Had he been wrong?
Back over to the arena floor, Faen watched as all the finalists except Yang and Mercury stepped off the arena's central platform. The two remaining finalists got into position and stood parallel to each other as the other segments disconnected and retreated from the central platform as the arena reformed into its solo matches configuration. He had seen the arena change into this form several times, both in livestreams of the Tournament and in recordings. While it did not steal his breath away as much as seeing Amity Colosseum in personal, this did cause his heart to beat a little faster.
The battle which followed was as intense as any battle between warriors could be. Both were close-quarters fighters, with Yang dishing out powerful punches with her gauntlets and Mercury launching swift kicks with his boots. This was also the finals, so both warriors were trying their absolute best to outmatch the other. Each combatant pulling some of their best tricks out of their pockets to land the win.
Ultimately, try as he might, Mercury proved no match for Yang. The fight ending with the grey-haired Human falling back first onto the ground after an onslaught of punches delivered to his body by the blonde. The alarm alerting all that his Aura had fallen below the knock-out threshold sounding a second later.
"Ha! Looks like Yang wins!" Friesian cheered as he began enthusiastically clapping his body's hands above his empty shoulders.
"I'm not surprised. She trained with us after all," Odori confidently remarked with a smile on her face.
"If you do not mind, I need to-" As Faen was in the middle of his sentence and preparing to get up from his seat, the Elf's eyes shot wide open and bolted onto his feet as he observed something completely unexpected.
Yang, her back turned to Mercury, abruptly spun around and punched his leg. The Human male, taken by surprise by the attack, fell to the ground with a loud yell of pain and began clutching the leg struck by Yang. In an instant the thousands of voices that were cheering and applauding Yang just a second ago filled the air with confusion, shock, and anger. With all these voices speaking all at once in a chaotic mess, Faen had a hard time figuring out who was talking, so he resorted to relying on his eyes.
Beside him he saw Friesian had gotten up from his chair while physically and vocally grappling with an enraged Haven student, who was launching a barrage of curses at Yang. His gaze shooting over to Odori, he saw the Kitsune had remained seated, but her eyes were intensely focused on the arena floor as a myriad of thoughts appeared to rush around behind them. They were keeping their cool for the most part, which the Elf was thankful for, but his mind was quick to wonder just what Grey was thinking and doing right now as she stood with the other finalists. As he was thinking of his teammate, Faen looked to other parts of the Colosseum.
Eyes first falling on Team RWBY, the Elf's heart ached a little for them as he spotted the aghast looks worn on each of the girls' faces. Particularly Ruby, who looked up to her sister but had now watched said sister assault Mercury. Looking around even more, he spotted the members of Team JNPR. Ren and Nora doing their best to calm down other members of the audience like Friesian, with Jaune on his Scroll and speaking frenetically to someone.
Team AMRT were too shocked to attempt anything. Monica and Tora were rooted in their seats, while Amarantha had stood up and stared at the arena with a rare expression of visible dismay. He saw Team SSSN looking at the arena in disbelief and speaking to one another in an agitated manner. Not far away from them Faen spotted Team CRDL, and they too were in states of shock much like everyone else. The members of team HONE were as shocked as everyone else, and were pointing at the arena and shouting something, yet the Elf could not make out what exactly.
Turning his eyes towards the arena again, Yang and Mercury were no longer the only ones on the arena floor. A full squad of Atlesian soldiers and Knight-200s had jumped onto the arena and now surrounded Yang, their rifles aimed at her. Seeing this, Faen felt an urge to jump into the arena and intervene but restrained himself for all that would only make matters far worse than they already were.
Emerald had jumped into the arena and was now at Mercury's side, acting hysterically from what Faen could see. They were all joined shortly after by an emergency medical team with a stretcher, the team quickly lifting Mercury onto it almost as soon as they arrived and started to take him away with Emerald in tow. Faen's eyes followed the medical team and the two members of CRME leave the arena, then cast his eyes back onto Yang as she was taken off the arena through another exit. Bearing witness to all of this, the Elf had many thoughts running through his mind, but one stuck out more persistently than the rest.
Why in the hell did this happen?
There we go. Another step towards the grand event.
I will see you all when I next see you.
