Sweat rolled down his temple as he stood tall, chest stuck out, watching as the last soldier fell to the ground. He had made quick work of them and wondered if they even had anything that would pose a challenge to him. He smirked on one side of his mouth, reaching up to wipe his brow with his sleeve. He wore a White Atlas Military jacket, the same that officers wore, and had a slightly battered black cape that was held together with a broach of a gargoyle's head that clasped together at his neck. He had dark green hair that was slicked back, giving it a certain sheen, and the moonlight intensified his red eyes. He cracked his neck to each side as he made a slow circle, spinning in place and peering out into the forest around him. He knew they'd send the next wave any moment now, but damn it was cold!

"Is that all? I thought that this was supposed to be my final test before I enrolled at the academy?" He called out into the darkness. He slowly unsheathed his weapons, two kopides with Dust-coated blades, a gift from the Atlas army before he began his real training. They only contained gravity dust for the time being, but he knew with some slight alterations he'd be able to use multiple Dusts. "I dispatched 15 of your men with only my hands. Granted, I do have incredible strength, but 15 is just abnormal." Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted one to his right. He quickly spun to face it and deflected the storm of bullets, running to it quickly before slicing it in half with one mighty swing. He turned back the other direction. Here they came…

Titus Prasinos had only been 8 years old when he had dedicated his life to protecting his family and the rest of Remnant. He had trained hard for 9 years, now on the cusp of joining the ranks of the Atlas Academy and truly making a difference for the good of all. As had always been the case, students that hoped to join the Academy had to pass one last test, their entrance exam of sorts, in order to be allowed into the prestigious school. It was an upbringing that one could be proud of. It was something to brag about even, but Titus had never been one for bragging. He knew he was good, but he never assumed that he was better than his opponent. It made a huntsman careless, and he couldn't afford to be. He had never fought harder for anything.

He watched as the Knights slowly came closer, their guns trained on him the entire time. His legs were slightly bent, he could rush to them if need be and dispatch them. As he examined them his fingers lightly caressed the trigger on each kopis. By pulling the trigger, the dust in the blade would activate, and there was almost no limit to what he could do with it. Still, they came, not yet attacking, both sides trying to pick the others mind. Slowly Titus brought the blades up in front of him and crossed them, lightly resting them against each other. One more step was all he needed and the Knight gave it to him, unaware of the mistake it had made. He made his move.

Three of them were close enough and when he squeezed the triggers and crashed the blades off of each other a shockwave of gravity tore through the air and threw the robots onto their backs. He held both of his blades vertical, quickly letting go and flipping his hands over so that the blades faced the bottom of his fists. He turned his hands back over and slammed the blades into the ground, a tidal wave of earth racing in every direction from him and crushing the knights. Another group of Knights opened fire behind him. He alternated swinging his blades, using the gravity to block the bullets as he slowly made his way towards the bots, slicing through them as he reached them. He stayed where he was for a moment, one knee to the ground and arms extended. He couldn't hear any more of them coming, but it was underwhelming. They had told him that this test would push him…

From out of nowhere, he was batted into the woods by a Paladin and he slid through the snow, rolling in an active attempt to find his feet, but with no luck. He finally came to a stop and pulled himself up with his kopides, looking at the large mech. Now this, was a challenge. He smirked again and spun his blades slightly, watching to see how the bot would attack. Tactics and foresight would play a huge role here and he intended to win with flying colors. He had to. It wasn't that he wanted to be the best. He felt deep down that he needed to be the best. This Paladin was not going to be enough to stand in his way. It moved quickly and fired several rockets that Titus rolled out of the way of, strafing in a wide arc to this right and slicing at more incoming projectiles. His finger slipped off of the trigger momentarily as he had taken off, and the missile slammed into his blade instead of being deflected. His body was thrown violently into a tree and he hit the ground hard.

How could he have let that happen? A mild panic set in as he struggled for a moment, dazed by the thought of there being such a wide gap in his defense. The Paladin was sprinting right for him and he leapt up, slicing through the tree before diving out of the way. The tree fell over on top of the robot, not enough to crush it, but enough to slow it down for a moment and allow Titus to put distance between the two of them. He found the middle of the clearing again and his chest heaved, trying to find his breath as his mind raced. He needed to calm down and focus, one blow wasn't the end of the match. He could do this. He noted the small drone robot that levitated just above him and it flew further up into the sky. He gritted his teeth.

So they were watching him. He grinned and set his feet again as the mech spotted him. He hoped that they had been. The Paladin and Titus sprinted for each other and he slid through its legs, slicing out wide with both blades and taking some of its armor off. He crossed his blades in front of him and fired, the force of the gravity Dust enough to stop him instantly and he dashed back in the other direction. The Paladin hadn't had time to turn around and as it did Titus had thrown himself into the air and his blade was coming down. It sliced through the cockpit and split the cabin in two, revealing the pilot inside. As he fell back down the mech balled its fists together and slammed Titus to the ground. It quivered as he met the earth, something was pushing back against it. Beneath the bot's hands was Titus, blades crossed above him as he pushed back, body shaking.

He wasn't sure if he could last much longer and he grunted, his body wanting to give. He closed his eyes and his mind drifted back to home. He and his two sisters would sit on the floor in their small hut, huddled around their mother. She gave them a warm smile and they'd all eat their bread in the quiet. Father was always gone late before his younger sister was born, and wasn't around much, but mother had always told them he was trying to make a better life for them. How could she be so happy, when life had stacked the deck against them? The memory faded and he could hear her voice filling his mind and heart. I know you'll be the best Titus. I know because you're my child, and that alone makes you the best to me. His eyes opened suddenly and he shouted out, throwing the mech back and running for its torso. He climbed it quickly using his blades and threw the pilot out.

He slammed his blade into the console and pulled the trigger, the shockwave of gravity energy coursing through the armor and shattering it, throwing metal and other debris everywhere. He rode the collapsing suit to the ground, letting it scatter behind him. He was convinced that was it, and he was quite satisfied with himself. He wasn't the best yet, but he would be…

"I have to say, that was far more impressive than you explained over the phone Winter," Weiss told her sister as she watched Titus surveying the battleground on the monitor before them.

"He's the best I've ever trained," Winter replied as she sat down. She didn't want to admit it, but the end of the battle had made her just a touch nervous for him. For 5 years she had been pouring everything she had into this child, from knowledge to skills, to advanced techniques, everything! She had vested so much in him because she had seen so much potential.

"Winter," Weiss said as she sipped her coffee and placed it back on the table. "Please don't tell me that you intend to place him in the Academy." Winter looked at Weiss, her head slightly tilted.

"Why not?" Winter asked.

"You of all people should know that it's an unforgiving and tight-lipped kind of place. I'm not saying that it's bad for everyone, but just from seeing how he fights, I almost think he'd be better off somewhere else," Weiss explained to her sister. Winter chuckled lightly.

"Oh?"

"I might not be the Headmistress of Beacon, but I like to try and assure its future as a school that puts forth the best of the best. One that hosts only the best students. Students with dignity, grace, poise…"

"… Like your wife?" Weiss flushed and smiled, lightly twirling her hair around her finger.

"With the… exception of Ruby, most of my classmates would have fallen into the majority of those categories, and as the sole proprietor of the rebuilding of the school, I'd like to see Titus enrolled at Beacon." Weiss stood slowly and motioned to one of the men at the door. He quickly moved to her and she whispered something in his ear. He gave her a confused look and she nodded. He left the room without a moment of hesitation and Winter also stood now, joining her sister by the door. "I think that's where you'd like to see him too." Winter bit her bottom lip slightly and shrugged.

"I don't know Weiss," Winter replied. "I don't want him to end up callous like all of the other Atlas graduates, but Beacon?"

"Where else would you have him go?" Weiss smiled and shook her sister playfully by the shoulders. "Not to mention, Team RWBY saved the world and they came from Beacon. I hear that they are kind of a big deal." Winter offered her a slight smile and turned back to the screen as a thunderous noise filled the speakers in the room. She watched as Titus turned around towards the direction of the drone and looked up towards the sky.

"Well. You look like a handful." He said to it. Winter turned to Weiss.

"Weiss, you didn't!" Winter exclaimed. Weiss laughed, sitting back down.

"You said that he's the best. I wanted to see if it was true." She replied.

"Weiss, you're the youngest person ever to beat the Giant Armor! Doesn't this seem a bit… challenging for someone his age?" Weiss shook her head.

"You don't have faith in him?" Winter looked at Weiss and then the monitor.

"I do, it's just a lot to ask of anyone to fight it alone." Weiss gave a warm smile to her sister.

"He'll be fine. Perhaps I'll get to see this special semblance you were talking about after all."

Well, this should be fun," Titus said to the Armor as it stopped in front of him, sword lifted high into the air. He wondered if this was finally the last test, or if there would be more. He glanced up at the drone quickly and unsheathed his kopides once more. "Come on then. Let's go." Titus reached up and undid the clasp, letting his cape fall to the ground. The Armor swung his sword and it met Titus's blades. He stood his ground and the two struggled against each other's force. The armor wound up again and Titus came in for an attack, only to be swept away by the Armor's free hand. Titus hit the ground but quickly found his feet and took off in a flurry for the Armor. It swung around, trying to bat Titus away with its sword, but Titus met the blade with his own and activated the gravity dust. The force was enough to cause the Giant Armor to stumble and Titus slid in for another attack as he blasted himself into the air. His blades clashed with the giant sword again as the moon shone on them both. He was in for a long battle.

Three trailers down and one left to go before we get to the story itself. You've met Neela the hunter, Ilia the criminal, Titus the militant and next week you'll meet our last member, Eliana the free spirit! I hope that you all enjoyed and stay classy!

A big thank you to Diyaru4500, Demize00Zero, TheCipherNine, SketchHungry, Ookaminoki, Lightning-in-my-Hand, and Dishwasher1910. All of their artwork can be found at Deviantart, you can search Silent-Celica and under my favorites tab, I have a collection for NITE.