-Semblance of Brotherhood-
Chapter 3: First Lesson
Beep! Beep! Beep!
Silva's eyes opened, only slightly, peeking at the basic looking alarm clock next to his cot.
5:00 A.M.
I should get to the dorm. No point being here any longer.
Beep! Beep! Be- *click*
He reached out, hitting the power switch for the alarm, and pushed himself into an upright position. A white-ish blue glow enveloped the dark room as he pulled his Aura to the surface. It felt warm, complete. His body felt perfect, no aches or burns now that his Aura had revitalized. The haunting, pale glow faded back into shadow, his sight adjusting quickly, given his heritage.
He studied himself, noting exactly ten separate electrodes on his body. He peeled them off, swinging himself over the side of the cot before stopping to dangle his legs for a few seconds. The tingling, spiky sensation of a lack of blood flow began to fade, and the moment it had vanished he hopped to his feet.
Clothes.
His eyes darted around the room, quickly noticing a locker near the door. He briskly paced over to it, pulling it open to see two separate outfits neatly folded inside. One he recognized as his own clothing, a stark white jacket with black cotton lining the inside of it, the silver depiction of a dice pinned to its chest. The collar folded over, and a line of black material ran up and down the sides of the sleeves. Underneath lay a pair of black jeans, his belt and Regalis set off to the side.
Next to that was what he assumed to be the school's standardized uniform. He dismissed it for the time being, setting the folded outfit to the side and retrieving his affects.
Didn't take long to get into his clothing, he draped the school uniform over one arm, Regalis held in the opposing hand. It was only then that he noticed the small piece of parchment stuck to the door. He flipped it up, glancing at the message.
'Dormitory 3, Room 072. Team SCRL (Scarlet)'
He slipped the note into his pocket before exiting his room, casting quick looks down the hall whill he walked. The place was mostly dead at this time, it was almost creepy how quiet it was. He kept following the signs that read 'reception', and before long he found himself crossing into a large lobby.
"Oh! Sorry, I didn't notice you wake up on the readings. Would have helped you get everything sorted out." A surprised voice instantly set him off, his frame tensing as his blue orbs locked onto the speaker. It was a woman, with aurburn hair and dullish green eyes.
"I'm alright, thank you though. Am I set to head back to my dorm?" A look of confusion crossed her face.
"But sir, it's only five in the morning. Surely you'd at least want a full night's sleep?" Her concern was evident, and seemed genuine. It was strange, in the last couple of days he'd encountered more altruism than he'd once thought existed in the world.
"No, I'd rather get a head start. Got to put away my things, maybe settle in for a while before classes start. I appreciate the concern." He didn't slow, leaving the infirmary now that he knew it wasn't forbidden for him to leave yet. Weaving through the halls of the Academy was rather informative, as he'd yet to wander this area of the campus.
Finally, he ascended to the third floor and Dorm. He ignored the rest of the rooms, his eyes locking onto the number '072'. When he reached it he took a quick glance at the note again.
'Dormitory 3, Room 072. Team SCRL (Scarlet) Room Code: 2419'
Internalizing the information, he dialed in the code. There was small 'click' before he was able to turn the knob and open the door. He silently slipped inside, already making out three prone forms on the different beds. The fourth bed lay empty, as expected, and he simply dumped what he was carrying onto it. He shed his jacket, now clad only in a black tank top and his jeans. For a moment he just sat on the foot of the bed, letting the complete quiet soothe his mind.
Focus on the present.
Letting out a huff, he fastened Regalis to his hip. Letting his hand rest upon her pommel was comfort, it reminded him of just what he was here for.
Time to get moving.
With Cardin...
It wasn't right. Who in their right mind would put a Faunus in charge of his damn team!?! When he'd heard the news, it'd taken every sliver of self control he had to not reject it. How did anyone expect him to fold to the orders of one of them!?
And worse, the little freak didn't understand his place in the food chain. At every turn that he'd attempted to put Silva in his place, he'd been met with reprimand and disinterest. Then, when it finally was shown its true station on the pecking order during Initiation, all of the others had acted as though it were some hero.
Disgusting. All they deserve is what the Schnee's give the
Anger spread like fire through his body, heart pumping harshly as he shoved his foot into the leg of the uniforms they were required to wear. His other two teammates seemed to share in his disdain, though their fury wasn't as honed as his own was. All they knew was that their leader was to be an animal.
"Any chance we could rearrange the team? I mean, they can't expect us to obey livestock, can they?" The one to his left, Lark, whined. His sentiment seemed to spark up hope in the one on his right, Russel.
"I think that makes sense. I mean, they can't have meant for this to happen. It's rediculous!" His voice was nearly grating to his ears, but the idea had at least a little merit. Except...
"No, that won't work. Headmaster Ozpin assigns leadership himself. You want to take it up with him?" He was met with silence. At least he didn't have to repeat himself.
Just as they were finishing up their morning preparations, each of their heads snapped up as the door to the dorm suddenly unlocked. It swung open, and his subsiding anger flared anew as his eyes met those of his partner, and their team's leader. They'd noticed his jacket and uniform both set on the foot of his bed when they woke up, and had considered 'misplacing' them. Cardin, however, had quickly dismissed the idea.
"I see you three are awake." He stated, sweat glistening on his head and arms. Though, he didn't seem geuinely tired in the least. They were silent for a moment, none of them wanting to even acknowledge Silva's presence.
"Yeah, and unlike you, we're actually ready for class." Cardin gritted out, standing up and walking over to the small kitchen. He didn't have the patience for dealing with a damned dog right now. Quickly, he began to start up some coffee.
With Silva...
That'd been... a rather odd welcome, all things considered. He'd fully expected the situation to devolve into immature violence in short order. Instead, he was met with mostly just silence.
"Either of you care to tell me your name?" He ventured, but he didn't expect much.
The shorter one spoke up first, his voice laced with venom.
"Russel Thrush. Care to tell me exactly why the Headmaster thought a mutt would be qualified to lead our team?" The boy seethed, clenching his fists. His boldness seemed to inspire the other, who's lanky frame straightened.
"Yeah, why the hell did he put us with one of you? If anything, Cardin should be leader. At least he's the same species!"
Boldly stupid, then. Ozpin, why in fuck did you stick me with these idiots?
He felt his eye twitch of its own accord, his body tensing. Every part of him wanted to slaughter these fools. They were like clones of each other, all varying degrees of racist bigots. They'd been trained at a private Combat School, no doubt. Only there could you ever find the single-minded brainwashing these boys had embraced.
Well, I guess a single lesson wouldn't hurt them.
"Then I think we have some issues to discuss during Combat Class, don't you all?" If they thought he wasn't capable, that was an easy thing to fix. If they apologized, he might even avoid breaking a limb.
"You wanna fight, then let's fucking go already you filthy piece of gar-" Thrush's words died in his throat, a horrifying, cold sensation creeping up his back. Merely tapping into the control he had over his Semblance had allowed Silva to blanket the boy in the same cold, empty void that he felt every time he used it. Only, Russel hadn't been prepared for it. The look on his face said enough, he was done.
Silva's eyes flicked over to the other, the focus of his surface level Semblance use shifting to the taller boy as well. The effect was immediate, and killed any words he had left. He knew what they were feeling, the hopeless sense of futility that encroached on one's mind while interacting with the shadows. It was a feeling that he'd become accustomed to some time ago, but for them it was still fresh. It struck them with the fear of something they would likely never understand, and he'd barely applied any real effort into the display.
This use of his Semblance was ineffective against Grimm, as they literally were darkness, but it worked wonders against humans and Faunus who couldn't adapt to it.
Both of them shuffled out of the room, desperate to gain some distance from him. A few seconds later Cardin returned from the kitchen, coffee mug in tow. He completely ignored Silva, exiting the room after his teammates. Based on the confused look on his face, he'd felt it.
Let's hope that's enough to shut them up. I don't need them bickering with me at every opportunity.
Stepping out of his dorm, Silva immediately noticed several familiar faces. He noted Nikos, as well as the blonde. With them were two others, one a boy with raven hair and a pink highlight, the other a girl with firey ginger hair. They were just finishing descending the steps from the fourth floor, and the blonde brightened up upon seeing him.
"Hey, feeling better, I guess?" Silva gave him a 'no shit' look.
"Well, seeing as I'm fit for class, I'd imagine so." His words were met with an awkward pause.
After nearly five seconds, the boy finally seemed to remember what he was going to say. "Oh, by the way, my name's Jaune. Can't believe we've talked three times and I never mentioned it. Ruby told me your name was Silva or something, is that right?"
He nodded, and the newly named 'Jaune' seemed to relax a bit.
"Awesome. I'm, like, absolutely terrible with names."
"I can tell."
That earned a laugh out of the boy, though it was little more than a passing chuckle. Before either of them could speak again, Phyrra elbowed her leader in the shoulder. "We're going to be late, Jaune." His eyes snapped open fully, and Silva was barely able to discern a 'See you around!' as the four of them sprinted down the hallway.
Such an odd boy. To think, he's commanding an entire team.
Almost laughable.
He then reached out with his Semblance, his body beginning to shift into the shadow cast on the wall by his frame. The moment he fully merged with the dark, he cast his senses outward, feeling all of the possible places for him to appear. To his surprise, there weren't actually all that many. A vast majority of the school was illuminated.
If he remembered correctly, his first class was History, with Oobleck. Honing in on the room, he traversed the shadows. Within a couple of seconds he was just outside, behind something that was hanging on the wall. He slowly released his grip on the darkness, his body emerging from it and pushing the painting back, allowing him to slip out from under it.
He checked around him, not noticing anyone within line of sight, and set the tapestry back into its proper orientation. Just as he finished doing so, he noticed Jaune and his team round a corner, sprinting straight for the doors to his left.
Shit. Oh well, no secrets for little old Taro, hm?
It was an instant later that they seemed to realize who he was, all of their faces twisting in confusion before skidding to a stop. Jaune just looked at him for a moment, at a loss for words.
"Semblance. Makes getting around pretty easy." He decided to give them the short version, at least for the time being. Jaune seemed to accept it, though he still seemed slightly confused. The only person who seemed dissatisfied with his explanation was the quiet one, who gave him a very specific look that he didn't exactly understand.
The four of them seemed to realise something yet again, blasting into a sprint for the classroom doors. They nearly made.
Nearly.
Just as Phyrra's hand grasped the knob, the bell sounded for class to begin. Cursing himself, Silva once again tapped into his Semblance, looking for a seat that wasn't occupied by a shadow. The instant he did, he slipped out of the shadows in a hurry. His form was balled in on itself, having barely fit into the shade beneath the desk. Quickly, he pushed himself up into the chair, his hair slightly disheveled.
When he looked up, he was met with a green head of hair and silvery glasses staring at him from about two feet away. The Professor stared at him for a couple of seconds, before take a blindingly fast sip from his coffee mug.
"Late! Though it was a valiant effort." The words nearly outpaced his ears, syllables blurring together in a tangled web of language. How were humans supposed to learn from this guy? He talked like his brother fought.
The realization that Oobleck had crossed the room to intercept Jaune's team an instant later didn't register until the teacher had already gotten to his podium.
He retrieved his pen and notebook, and prepared to try and decipher the blur of a lecture.
Later...
I think my hand's broken.
The humerous thought did little to stop the throbbing, piercing cramp that taken root in his hand. Every flourish of his pen brought forth yet another agonizing wave of pain, his penmanship at this point was nearly illegible.
Profes- no, Doctor Oobleck, the green-haired blur of a teacher, was the most oblivious, air-headed sadist he'd ever met. Sure, he was the only one aside from the Schnee and Nikos still keeping up, but all three of them were grimacing fiercely as they barely kept pace with the man. Silva wasn't even sure he was actually hearing the words he wrote down at this point, it just went from his ear straight to the page, there simply wasn't time to process it.
To his right, the other members of Team SCRL were mostly asleep. The only one actually awake was Cardin, who was paying at least some attention. He looked like a kid who couldn't afford to just flunk out on a whim. Silva didn't blame him for not bothering with physical notes, however, and was actually mildly amused to notice Cardin holding his scroll under his desk, recording the lecture.
At least you aren't completely useless.
The rest of History was a torturous blur, after that. Cardin had fallen asleep with his still recording scroll hidden underneath his crossed arms. Silva couldn't feel either of his hands, having hoped being ambidextrous might outlast the lecture. Obviously, it hadn't saved him. Nor had it saved Nikos, who was cradling her hands in her lap as the bell rang for class to end.
He hefted himself up, slinging his bag over his shoulder before looking over to his Teammates. They were awake, though a bit drowsy.
"Up, now. We've got Combat Class next, and if I recall, you three seem to have issue with my leadership. I won't bother if you slackers are too out of it to fight properly." He snapped, causing them to stiffen slightly, before scowling at him.
Cardin was the first to speak in return, standing straight and stuffing his scroll into his pocket, "Fine by me, dog. What terms?" He growled.
"You three against me. I'll speak with Goodwitch about it before class starts. I'll be there long before any of you." If they wanted to let him make the rules, so be it. He'd make sure they understood just what a Dog was capable of when provoked.
Fucking racists.
The three of them gave him an incredulous stare, before Thrush grinned maliciously. "Oh, this is gonna be great. That cockiness is gonna get you fucked up, freak." Silva's eyes narrowed.
"Keep fanning the fire, Human. Only gonna make me enjoy this that much more." And without bothering to listen to their retort, he stepped into his own shadow and vanished.
He felt out the school once more, quickly honing in on the arena used for Combat Class and emerged in the shadow of a pillar within a second or two.
"Ah, I see someone's in a hurry. Something the matter, Mr. Taro?" Professor Goodwitch questioned, already making her way over to him. He gave the woman a shrug.
"I wanted to see if you'd be willing to let my Team use the arena to sort out some... authority issues. I figured it would make a good opening to your class, if you'd allow it." He offered, not surprised when she gave him a 'Seriously?' sort of expression, crossing her arms.
"Trouble already? My, usually the dysfunctionality doesn't creep up for a least a day or two. Then again, your particular Team composition isn't exaclty the most hospitable. Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to have the first match pre-arranged. So long as it doesn't take up too much of my class time." She said, before leveling a cold look at him.
"Oh, no worries, I won't need very long. And I can promise not to rough them up too much." He reassured her, causing a small, amused smirk to cross her lips.
"Very well, then. It's not every year I get a situation as entertaining as this, and I'm sure the rest of your class will enjoy a three versus one."
Ten minutes later...
Silva stood, Regalis drawn at his side, across from his Teammates in the arena. Each of them looked eager, almost hungry. He couldn't help but audibly scoff at the irony there. The only one who seemed off was Cardin. No doubt because he was the only one of the three to see him fight.
"Something funny, little man?" Thrush barked, brandishing his daggers with a heated glare. Silva didn't answer, instead giving Professor Goodwitch a thumbs up to begin the countdown.
"Our first match of the day will commence in ten seconds. Remember, children, the battle ends when your opponent falls into the red. For Mr. Taro, that applies to all three of his teammates. Are you comfortable with that, Mr. Taro?" She asked, glancing at him. He nodded, eyes flicking back to his opponents.
"Then begin in three," Cardin drew his Mace.
"Two," Lark readied his Halberd.
"One," Silva shifted into a low stance.
"Now!"
All three of them burst into a sprint, Cardin peeling off to the side while Thrush and Lark charged head-on. The two had some level of basic teamwork, likely from fighting Grimm together during Initiation. That was good. Meant he wouldn't have as much work to do whipping them into a cohesive unit.
Just as Thrush lunged at him with both daggers raised, Silva pivoted off of his rear leg, cutting a blistering one-eighty while driving his other leg into the Human chest in a brutal straight-kick.
As Russel caved against the blow, he switched feet and slung his leg around to catch the shaft of Sky's halberd with his shin. In a swift motion his leg wrapped out and around the hilt, grabbing the weapon with the inside of his knee. He yanked Lark close and smacked the flat of Regalis against his jaw, before releasing his halberd and slamming a brutal axe-kick into his arm.
His ears picked up the sound of Cardin chambering his Mace's ranged function, and just as he fired, Silva fell into Thrush's shadow. Lark was forced to duck the rogue projectile.
"What the fuck was that!?" Lark shouted, his head snapping in a directions. Russel was just staring at where Silva had been a moment ago, his daggers held in white-knuckled grip.
Cardin answered, "It's his Semblance! Watch you sha-" Before he could finish, Silva had reformed behind the Winchester and delivered a solid thrust to the small of his back. Cardin didn't falter much, whipping around in retaliation with a sluggish swing of his weapon. While he could have conceded his offensive and back-stepped, Silva instead decided to suddenly drop to his back, catching himself with his free hand, and as the Mace sailed through where he'd just been, he slashed a Cardin's wrists.
Before sinking back into his own shadow.
"Ah! Fucking shit!" Cardin seethed, Aura flaring as he started moving back to form a tight formation with the others.
"You alright, Cardin?" Russel asked, keeping his eyes peeled for where their leader might appear next.
"Fucking fantastic. Alright, you two try and keep pressure on him whenever you can. He thinks that stupid Semblance is going to win this for him, but I've got something that'll throw that out the window." He explained, the other two nodded firmly as Silva rose from the shadow cast by Sky's weapon.
"Good." Was all he said, before his blade lashed out at them. Cardin shoved his teammate aside, catching the strike on his sturdier weapon before kicking at Silva's stomach. The Faunus had already disengaged the deadlock by then, however, cutting a tight rotation and landing two untraceable blows to Cardin's shoulder and hip. His momentum shifted as he threw himself back, slipping a powerful thrust of Lark's weapon.
Now let's see this ace of yours, Cardin.
Cracking a small smirk, Silva pulled hard on his Semblance, his Aura flashing as his body began to meld with the shadows once more. This time, however, he didn't wait. An instant later he'd surfaced behind Thrush, ripping Regalis across his back. Without hesitation, he flickered into the darkness just long enough for Cardin and Sky to turn back in surprise. Just as they did, he snapped back into existence and laid into the both of them from behind, carving into their already yellow Aura before throwing Cardin to the very edge of the arena with a burst of his own Aura.
Regalis danced in and out of Thrush and Lark's striking range in a blur of white, never ceasing its momentum as it sliced against their Auras, parried their assaults, and knocked aside all attempts at defence. This moment where Cardin had been temporarily removed from the frey served as an ample opportunity to whittle the other two down, and Silva had always been taught to seize every advantage he could muster.
Then, while in the midst of simultaneously deflecting Sky's blade and sidestepping series of violent slashes from Thrush, his ears once again caught the subtle click of Cardin's Mace chambering a round.
Here it comes.
An instant later the entire arena was suddenly basked in a bright, encompassing light. Having not thought to shield his highly light-sensitive eyes, the unexpected flashbang sent a piercing feeling of heat rolling through them. Normally, he'd have teleported the moment his eyesight was compromised.
But there's no fucking shadows right now!
The first blow came from behind, the razor point of Lark's halberd slamming into his left shoulder with enough force to knock Silva off-balance. Before he could think to retaliate, Thrush's daggers raked across his stomach before a heavy boot sent him stumbling into a bone-rattle Mace strike to his side. The sheer weight of it threw him to the ground, his body rolling for a but before he jammed a hand into the tile floor in order to stop himself.
Cheeky... fuckers...
With a grunt, he shoved himself back to his feet. Sunspots still danced across his vision, but he could see enough to tell that he was just shy of dipping into the red at this point. Thrush and Sky were just above him in terms of Aura, while Cardin was still at about half-capacity.
That was... a good plan... if I'm being honest...
"See that, boys? One more solid hit and we've got this in the bag!" Cardin cheered, the other two smirking in anticipation.
They began to edge closer to him, and already Silva's eyesight was clearing up. Had they followed up without hesitation, instead of boasting, they might have landed that final blow.
Maybe.
Alas, before any of them could so much as blink, Silva had closed the distance between them, flashing past the three while lashing out with Regalis in two concise arcs.
"Russel Thrush and Sky Lark have been eliminated via Aura depletion." A monotone voice blared through the intercom, causing the two in questions let out a shared groan of frustration as they picked themselves up. Cardin, on the other hand, looked downright scared.
Silva did the boy a favor, and sheathed Regalis. After taking a couple of steps towards him, the Winchester let a feral cry before charging him head-on.
The Human led with a half-hearted overhead swing, to which Silva merely stepped off to the side while jerking his knee into Cardin's chest, causing the plate of armor over him to buckle and crack as Silva funneled a large portion of Aura into the counter.
The sheer force of it was enough to send the boy tumbling over the edge of the arena.
"Cardin Winchester has been eliminated via Ringout, the winner of the match is Silva Taro." As the dead-sounding voice droned his victory, he left the arena with a hand clasped over his forehead, a powerfuly migraine already setting in from the flashbang.
In the boy's locker room...
His head was absolutely throbbing, now. Every blink of his eyes sent a pulse of deep pain through his entire skull. Just as he set Regalis inside his locker, he was able to pick up the sound of his Teammates finally making their way back to change into uniform.
None of them spoke to him, in fact they never even looked at him while they changed, which only served to annoy him all the more.
"The three of you did pretty well, this time" He said, causing them to all turn and glare at him. Russel even went as far as to spit on the ground at Silva's feet.
"Fuck you, short-shit! You think just because you're a slippery littler bitch of a fighter, that means anything!? We would ha-" Silva was in his face before he could finish, hand locked around the boy's throat in a vice-grip. Instantly it felt like the temperature dropped ten degrees. Neither Cardin or Sky dared to move.
"Let me make this perfectly clear, Human, I don't expect us to get along. Hell, I don't even expect you to follow orders," He growled, pulling Russel closer. "But I do expect you to keep that mouth shut when I'm talking. Now," He continued, shoving Thrush into a bench just behind him.
"You all did well, none of you were any less effective than each other. That stunt with the flashbang? Pure genius. Had you kept focus and followed up before my sight returned, you'd have won without question. However, I noticed that not a single one of you bothered to use your Semblance. Why?" He prodded, looking specifcally at Cardin.
"Well, I did use mine. It's how we made the flashbang so big, I can overcharge Dust with my Aura." He said, still not looking Silva in the eye.
"And what about the other two?"
"They didn't find any good openings. You didn't give us very much room to breathe."
"Then what are their Semblances?" He questioned, turning to look at the two.
"Fuck off, freak. Like I'd tell you my damn Semblance." Thrush snapped, but Silva couldn't find the inclination to care. Sky, however, seemed a bit more willing.
"I can mess with the wind a little bit. Not really the most usefull Semblance." He explained, if not through clenched jaws. Silva couldn't help but just stare at the fool.
Seriously? Does he not see the potential there!?
"Sounds like you need to train with it more. All Semblances get stronger and more complex as your Soul develops, that includes toying around with it and seeing what all you can and can't do." He explained, causing Lark to give him a questioning look. "No Semblance is useless, no matter what it does. Would you believe it if I told you that at first my Semblance could only work at night?" His response was one of complete shock.
"Yeah. And it wasn't even that good, just let me basically turn invisible as long as I was in the dark. I only made it this capable by testing the boundaries of what it could do. I'd reccomend you doing the same." Having said his piece, Silva decided not to hang around any longer and vanished into the Cardin's shadow.
That left the three of them to just look at each other for a moment, before Russel stood up and slammed his fist into a random locker beside him. "Piece of fucking shit!" He shouted, "Who the hell does he think he is!? Some god damned therapist!?"
Cardin just bumped Sky's elbow, "Ignore that freak. He's just up his own ass because he won. We'll make sure to pay the little shit back." He promised, before the three returned to changing, Russel throwing on his uniform in a violent huff.
But, in the silence that followed, Sky couldn't help but wonder;
Does Silva have a point?
Hello again! Sorry for the massive delay, COVID's had my area all out of wack for a while.
So, thoughts on the rest of Team SCRL? I've put a lot of thought into what I want to do with them, and right now I can tell you that things are going to be completely different at Beacon by the time the Vytal Festival rolls around.
Also, I've had to put DASC on hiatus for a while. Just letting those who enjoy that story know. It will return, I promise, but I'm having some issues with it that will still take a while to sort out.
Well, that's all for now. Buh-Bye!!!