Volume 3, Chapter 1: Vytal

"Ladies and gentlemen- welcome to the fortieth biennial Vytal Festival!"

Cannons fired as confetti rained down from the sky, showering the Colosseum in color- blue, green, white and orange, representing the four kingdoms. The assorted bystanders- split into four sections by kingdom, burst out into raucous applause, the cheer audible even far down beneath Amity Colosseum, in the city of Vale itself.

Professor Port's voice rang out over the intercoms again. "Allow us to break down the rules."

"The tournament is divided into three distinctive rounds- teams, doubles, and singles. Age and school year are irrelevant! In this tournament, your only attribute being tested… is skill." Doctor Oobleck, a fast speaking teacher from Beacon, chimed in.

"Correct! The winners of this battle will elect two of their members to represent them in the doubles round followed by the winners of that round choosing one member to advance once again. The remaining combatants will then fight their way through the final bracket in the hope of achieving victory for their kingdom!"

"And yes, Peter, these are some spectacular spectacles on which to spectate on! I don't think anyone tuning in around the world is going to disagree with me on that!"

"Ah, and why would they? And, without further ado, let us begin the tournament!"

A gargantuan holographic screen sitting high above the colosseum's floor blinked to life, whirring through the different portraits of the thirty-two teams, the crowd watching with bated breaths as they waited for the first two teams to be chosen.

The screen slowed, new portraits coming slower and slower:

Team DRAB of Atlas- versus Team SOUL of Vale.

The respective sections of the teams burst out into applause again as the display faded, showing a full bracket for the first round- SOUL versus DRAB, RWBY versus ABRN, DRGN versus BLCK, JNPR versus BRNZ, SSSN versus NDGO, and a handful of others.

"YEAH!" Port yelled out, shooting to his feet- before sitting back down. "Er… apologies. Round one will be Team DRAB of Atlas Academy versus Beacon's own Team SOUL!"

Lance paled as he stared at the screen. "Oh noooo."

Oracle frowned. "What's-"

"We're opening?!"

"What's-"

He turned to her, grabbing her shoulders urgently. "What if it's not a good fight?! What if it disappoints- we're setting the bar FOR THE ENTIRE TOURNAMENT!"

Shinai turned to his teammates. "Perhaps we should be more focused on winning, rather than… looking good."

Ulysses grunted in agreement.

Lance pointed to his leader. "It'll be just as devastating to our reputations if it's a sloppy fight!"

Oracle shook her head, brushing his other hand off and turning towards the stadium floor. "You're somethin' else, hon. 'Sides- what's the worst that could happen."

SOUL stared at their opponents in various stages of dumbfounded.

"When…" Lance began, combing his hair back reflexively. "They said Atlas…"

"This isn't what I was expecting." Oracle finished frowning in distaste as she peered over the top of her aviators.

Shinai placed a hand onto Shi En's handle. "Don't underestimate them. The game plan still stands."

"Are… are you sure, captain?"

Standing across from them- was Team DRAB.

The four Atlesians were gathered, much like SOUL, on the other side of the platform. The one front and center was currently doing one-armed push-ups, eyes locked onto Shinai's-

"You like that, scrub?!" He barked over to the samurai. He was dressed in white battle armor over black, baggy fatigues. His helmet sat to his side, alongside a hulking assault rifle littered with seemingly random attachments. He was fair skinned with dark hair cut in a fade, long on top and dyed stark white, dark eyes glaring SOUL down. "I'll be seeing you nerds here in a minute!"

Behind him were his three teammates- two of which were currently in the middle of a standing arm-wrestling contest. The significantly smaller one (and the smallest of the team) was dark skinned and dressed in darker armor than his leader, white metal straps holding the holster to his weapon across his shoulder blades.

The girl he was arm-wrestling with at the moment stood a half a foot taller than him, body filled out with muscle. She was paler than her teammates, a baseball cap perched on top of her head. She was wearing a dark tank-top and loose, dark pants, sporadic pieces of armor dotting her form. Attached to her back was a hulking white barrel, a strip feeding from it to the equally as hulking minigun discarded on the ground- black metal, and painted with a shark's visage towards the barrels. In the middle of said barrels was a huge, wicked javelin, gleaming in the Colosseum's light.

Off to the side from them was the final member of DRAB, standing much more poised than their teammates. They were covered in head to toe in white armor over a black armor-like undersuit, a helmet perched onto their head staring impassively at SOUL through their black visor. A shield perched onto their right arm, while a bladeless sword was clutched in their right hand- the same white and black armor as their suit.

"They look like a couple of douchebags." Lance said, scuffing his boot against the white tile floor of the platform.

"Say that again to my face, scrublord!" The DRAB leader called over, stopping his push-ups to glare at the blonde swordsman.

"YOU LOOK LIKE DOUCHEBAGS!"

"YOU'RE! GONNA! DIE!" He called back between push-ups. "SEE ME! SWEATIN'! SCRUB?!"

Lance smiled. "I like 'em."

"Captain?"

Shinai nodded. "Stick with the plan. Lance- keep doing that,"

"Being a dick?"

Another nod. "Those three- throw them off if you can."

Oracle shared the nod. "Hotheads."

Lance grinned. "That I can do."

"Watch out for the armored one in the back."

"The poised one?"

"Yes. That one I'm worried about, but don't underestimate the other three."

"Team SOUL of Beacon versus Team DRAB of Atlas!" Port called over the intercom, all eight fighters tensing and stepping forwards. On a holographic screen off to the side of the platform, two icons popped up- and began cycling through several different images, before slowing-

On the image of a volcano, and the image of a meadow.

On cue, the area behind SOUL raised into the air, bringing with it a hellscape dominated by an immense volcano. On the opposite side, behind DRAB, a gentler, rolling meadow of hills rose up.

"3!"

Both teams tensed.

"2!"

SOUL began spreading, eyes locked onto their opponents.

"1!"

DRAB all leaned forwards, weapons drawn.

"Begin!"

Team SOUL disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

The Atlesians skidded to stops from where they'd been charging, faces screwed up in confusion.

The leader shouldered his gun. "What the fu-"

He was rudely cut off as another cloud enveloped the huntsman, waving a hand in his face and… coughing, for whatever reason, as he'd already placed his helmet atop his head. "CAN'T SEE A DAMN THING-"

He trailed off as the smoke began parting- just enough for him to catch a glimpse of Shinai's purple eyes.

"ALL UNITS, BE ADVISED, KYANI IS DEAD AHEAD-"

"YEAH, WE SEE HIM, DELTA!"

"DO NOT TALK DOWN TO YOUR SUPERIOR OFFICER, CHEGS!"

"OH FOR FU-"

They didn't get a chance to continue the conversation as Shinai leapt in the air, corkscrewing as he swiped at the two Atlesian's heads. The duo scattered as they dodged the blow- only for the shorter one, Romeo, to be bodily dragged from the smoke with a yelp.

"WELP, THAT WAS TERRIFYING!" Delta shouted as he scrambled away from the samurai.

On the other side of the smoke cloud, Ulysses snarled as he chucked the significantly smaller huntsman away, clearing the platform and sending him towards the volcano-scape with a fading scream of shock.

He snorted as he turned back towards the other fighters- as a hulking metal object collided with his face. Recoiling from the blow, he turned enraged eyes up to his attacker- the hulking woman swiped at her nose as she shouldered her minigun.

"Yer not so big. Or tough. C'mon then, twinkle toes. Make my day."

Ulysses slowly rose to his feet, pupils expanding slightly as the slightest hints of smoke began to curl from his body. He let Avenger fall to the ground, inclining his head and cracking his neck as he snarled, stepping towards the Atlesian.

The duo were completely unaware of the rest of the melee as Shinai dashed forwards, engaging the leader of Team DRAB as the armored man grunted curses at the samurai, bringing up his hulking gun to block as many sword swipes as he could, lagging behind Shinai's measured strikes, letting a few get in as he yelped intermittently.

Delta was relieved of the onslaught as the other helmeted figure leapt over their leader, bringing their sword down and catching Shinai across the chest, sending him stumbling away as they twirled their blade- now a long, glowing green slab of energy, holding their shield up defensively with their off arm.

"Drop, Fox!"

The huntsman did, dropping low to the ground- giving Delta plenty of room to fire his gun off, a shockwave sending the samurai flying away, tumbling through the air as he attempted to spin and catch himself.

"That was for the thing! THE THING YOU DID!"

In vain, really, as Lance dashed from the original smoke cloud, catching his leader by the back of his collar and forcing him to rotate, landing with armored boots against the ground, not wasting any time and dashing forwards alongside his teammate.

"Sloppy, my man!"

"Shut up- switch!"

At the last second before rejoining the melee, the duo switched spots- the Atlesians they had previously been staring off with following the movements in brief lapses of concentration.

The two swordsman brought their blades up, Lance swinging wildly with his one hand, Shinai striking out with lightning fast speed as they put Fox and Delta on the defensive, the Atlesians backing away from the onslaught.

As the four combatants faced off- two dealing out blows, and the other two avoiding them- Ulysses reached the other member of DRAB, snarl widening as she smirked.

"Yea. You ain't so-"

The girl disappeared, flying across the battlefield towards the hills on the other side. The brooding huntsman didn't let up, dashing after her and letting out another clobbering blow with his off hand as her eyes widened blankly, not processing what was happening.

Ducking low, he wrapped a hand around her ankle and sent her careening out of the air to crash into the short cut grass of the hills, turning on his heel and throwing her away yet again. The girl smashed into the ground, rolling several feet away before stumbling to her feet, except; her skin was a gleaming silver, shining in the stadium lights.

"Aight, big guy!" She barked, bringing her minigun up and holding it at her hip- before pulling the trigger, dozens of bullets firing at Ulysses as he charged forwards, arms held protectively in front of him as the bullet rain fell on him.

From across the battlefield, skirting away from a trail of lava creeping a little too close to him, Romeo scowled at the six other combatants, holding his curved sword at the melee, thumb flicking up to flip a small switched on the barrel attached to the blade's handle. "I'll teach you to forget about…" He began, before trailing off, mind pulling a blank as he stared at the combatants.

"1, 2, 3…" He muttered under his breath as he lowered his sword slightly.

Right before something metal tapped against his shoulder. He turned to it- and the nonchalant face of Oracle, hat pulled back on her head and a toothpick held in her mouth.

"What's up?"

Shinai turned to his teammate out of the corner of his eye, Lance catching it. "Top!"

The blonde swung his greatsword in a wide arc, hulking blade running parallel to the ground as he aimed it towards his opponents' necks. The duo of Atlesians dodged it, scampering backwards.

Shinai, however, leapt upwards, planting his boots onto the blade and vaulting up and over to flank Delta and Fox.

"HEY, THAT'S UH… SOMETHING!" The DRAB leader yelped in surprise, turning on his heel to the samurai.

"I see that!" Fox yelled back, voice distorted through their helmet as they brought their shield up to block a swing from the greatswordsman. Lance twirled expertly and struck low with his sword, sweeping for the warrior's feet, narrowly missing as the huntsman brought their knees to their chest, leaping the blow. Despite that, Lance lifted his free hand, clenching it into a fist, an orb of blue energy exploding in Fox's face.

They yelped and stumbled backwards from the impact, colliding with Delta's back and sending their leader right into the waiting arms of Shinai, the samurai turning on his heel and hip throwing the Atlesian over him and into the stone floor. Without wasting any momentum, Shinai twirled his katana and sent a swipe for Delta's throat, gleaming blade of Shi En nearly meeting its target before the white armored huntsman brought his gun up and fired again, another shockwave sending Shinai high into the air, twirling wildly as he attempted to keep purple eyes locked onto the melee.

Delta turned a knob on the side of his gun, and cocked his head to the side, firing again- this time, however, a round ball flew from the barrel, careening into the air and coming to rest shortly beneath Shinai. Another turn of the knob, and another pull of the trigger was followed with the bang of a gunshot, the bullet hitting the ball and setting off an explosion in the air, the samurai enveloped in a cloud of smoke.

"You had a nice run, but then I happened."

Lance faltered as he stared at the cloud where his leader had previously been, frowning at the lack of a body falling to the ground, but didn't get the chance to question it as Fox's shield bashed into the bridge of his nose, his head swinging backwards from the blow.

Ulysses charged forwards at full speed, the woman's bullets impacting his form as he cleared the distance quickly, bringing a knee up and pushing the gatling gun's barrels away from him, the trail of bullets moving to the side. Without hesitating, he reared back and threw a punch with all of the force he could muster, black-taped hand slamming into her nose, the steel absorbing the impact fairly well, his knuckles beginning to throb from the pain. Even so, her head whipped back from the blow, and he swung upwards with Avenger, the black steel flail catching her under the chin and sending her tumbling into the air, clutching her gun tightly as she began firing again, concentrated stream of bullets flying about the battlefield, trying wildly to re-aim them onto the black-clad huntsman.

Said huntsman, however, swung his flail around him and sent it soaring towards his opponent, catching her against the side of her legs and sending her pirouetting in the air, gatling gun now firing all across the arena, bullets impacting harmlessly into the shield protecting the spectators from the violence.

Ulysses took a few steps backwards before taking off at a run, vaulting into the air towards the girl, wrapping his arms around her and sending them both soaring towards the ground, even as she batted against his back, steel hands making dull thuds echo throughout the arena- before they went crashing back towards the center podium.

Romeo stared up at Oracle with wide eyes. "Uh-"

"Yuh-huh, darlin'."

She struck out with both boots, smashing them into his face and sending him tumbling away back down the slope of the volcano. She took off after him, sliding down the loose soil, firing her revolvers one after another, heavy bullets impacting with his form and sending him further and further back towards the center podium.

Romeo rolled to his feet, scowling at the redhead and reaiming his sword. "Friggin' Vale!" He spat as he pulled a trigger.

With a dull 'thoomp' and a flash of light, a small missile fired from the weapon's barrel, trail of smoke following it as it soared towards the gunslinger.

Her eyes widened and she dove to the side as it impacted next to her, a small explosion sending her tumbling to the side. She recovered quickly and fired her guns quickly, some of the bullets hitting their marks while others were deftly blocked by the Atlesian's curved sword.

Oracle dashed forwards, ready to re-engage her opponent- before a cacophonous, quick succession of booms filled the arena. She skid to a stop, and both huntsmen turned back to the center platform.

On the ground was a cloud of dust, thrown up by the remains of the stone tile, while high above the battleground, a cloud of smoke hung lazily. The two combatants looked at the clouds for a brief moment, before turning owlish eyes back to each other- and with dual scowls, dashed towards the fight proper.

Lance recoiled from Fox's shield bash, stumbling away- and narrowly avoiding the colossal forms of Ulysses and his opponent smashing into the ground, throwing up a cloud of dust as the dull sounds of flesh against metal filled the now concealed battleground.

"Duh? Uh? HOLY CRAP, I'M STILL ALIVE." Delta barked. The blonde swordsman took the opportunity to clench his fist, concentrating on an explosion from where he had heard the voice.

A flash of blue, and he was rewarded with a surprised scream and- "WHAT THE HELL."

There was a whir of movement behind Lance, and he grit his teeth, preparing to turn on his heel- before a familiar voice whispered. "Ssh…"

A flash of purple entered his sight before disappearing. And as the huntsman watched, the flash of purple appeared, disappeared, then reappeared repeatedly, filling the arena with a thick swathe of purple smoke. The members of DRAB and SOUL coughed and waved hands in front of their faces. As the glint of purple eyes took the situation in appraisingly.

Romeo slowed in his run as he stared at the mess of purple that was consuming the center platform. "What in the ass is he doing?!"

Oracle skid to a stop as well, raising her revolvers, coy smile cocked on her face. "Ah, captain. You know me so well."

"What?"

"Nothin'. Just musin'."

"Okay, first off- WHAT!"

The gunslinger shrugged- then leapt into the air, corkscrewing and planting a boot firmly onto the Atlesian's jawline, sending him tumbling meters away, rolling and bouncing across the ground, a groan of pain escaping his lips as he rose to his feet.

"I- HATE- THIS!"

He spat that just in time to see Oracle finish reloading her revolvers, only- they were now glowing brilliant gold, the same energy coursing along her form, jacket's design glowing, as well as her eyes, pupils disappearing altogether as she raised her right hand, staring down the iron sights and closing one eye as she took aim.

Putting two and two together quickly, Romeo scrambled forwards, aiming his sword at the gunslinger. "DAMN, BALLS, PIECE OF- DELTAAAA!" Without another word, he pulled the trigger in a panic.

Too slow though, a resounding 'boom' filling the colosseum.

"DELTAAAA!"

The aforementioned leader of Team DRAB looked up, still waving a hand in front of his face. "Huh? Chegs? That you? Mic check!"

Boom

With surprising speed, a glowing supernova of a bullet came slicing through the now very thick smoke, narrowly missing the Atlesian- but finding its mark nonetheless.

The hulking steel-covered girl who had just regained her bearings whipped backwards as if struck by a mack truck, neck bending to its limits as the cannon-like shot met the middle of her forehead with a dull explosion. Like a blur, she disappeared from the smoke, rolling and clattering against the stone podium, before coming to rest, steel fading back to her original pink skin.

"Sierra Bravo has been eliminated!" Oobleck cried out over the intercom.

"AH SHIT!" Delta yelled from the cloud. "ALRIGHT! TIME TO LEVEL THE HELL UP- ATTENTION EVERYONE! I AM GETTING A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAN I WAS A SECOND AGO!"

"Romeo!" Fox yelled in response.

Oracle blinked and turned to the side- to the rocket barreling towards her, green eyes going wide as the announcers announced her target's elimination. "Oh come on-"

She moved to leap out of the way, knowing full well that she was too slow, when a less-than-a-blur moved towards her, an explosion going off as she expected- but surprisingly avoiding her entirely.

Her vision slowly trailed downwards- to Lance kneeling before her, bracing himself under his greatsword and using it as a rather effective shield for the two of them.

He looked back up to her with curious and slightly panicked blue eyes. "Yo, you good?"

"I mean… yeah. Didja have to save me like that though?"

"…What?"

"I mean… I'm kinda all about that… savin' myself thing?"

He rose to his feet, throwing a hand up. "Was I just supposed to let you get knocked?!"

"I mean… naw. But… maybe… I dunno, hon. I'm grateful, don't get me wrong, but-"

"But you'd rather save yourself. Fine. You know what? I've got a gift for ya- you can go fight the scary sword dude, and I'll face chicken-nuts over there."

"HEY! NOBODY CALLS ME CHICKEN!"

"STRIKE THAT, CHICKEN! NOBODY BUT ME CALLS YOU CHICKEN! YOU ARE ABOUT TO GET K-THE-F-OED! KNOCKED THE FRAG OUT!"

The duo were interrupted as Delta appeared next to them surprisingly quickly, going for a simultaneous bash with his gun and a kick, the Vale huntsmen scattering quickly.

The swordsman and the gunslinger looked over Delta's shoulder and met each other's eyes, acknowledgement lighting up between them as they turned their gaze to the Atlesian leader.

Shinai watched the DRAB leader disappear from the smoke with a previously not displayed speed, before turning his gaze back to Fox, the huntsman doing their best to escape the thick cloud of smoke. The samurai brandished his blade as he felt a looming presence rise from the ground behind him, black smoke like that of a fire's mixing with his own.

He didn't bother turning to Ulysses as they strode in unison after the armored Atlesian.

Fox had retreated far from the swathe of smoke, staring at it anxiously, shield and sword held at the ready- and watched, as Shinai strode slowly from the smoke, purple billowing off of him as he held his katana to the side. And then watched as standing right behind him, Ulysses walked out much the same, Avenger clenched in his hand, eyes nearly completely black and black, and purple smoke curling off of him.

The Atlesian swallowed and bent their legs down in a battle stance, staring the duo down as they deigned to simply walk forwards, faces emotionless. Fox looked off hesitantly to the side, where Romeo was frowning in distaste, and Delta was engaged in a two-on-one fight with the other members of Team SOUL.

Decision made, Fox dashed to the side, and the comforting distaste of their smallest teammate.

Romeo frowned at his leader and the two other combatants as he lowered his sword. "No, yeah, I've got one really cool trick up my sleeve, and you get in the way. Great. Awesome. Good decision-" He trailed off as Fox joined him quickly, almost… scrambling. "Fox?"

He trailed off again as he looked over to the direction they had come from, and the now approaching figures of Shinai and Ulysses.

"Oh come on."

Delta didn't waste any time after narrowly missing his targets, kicking out quickly at the shin of Lance- the blonde's feet going out from under him- and throwing an elbow at Oracle, the redhead narrowly ducking it. She quickly fired quickly into the armored huntsman's midsection, golden shots bursting against his armor as he let out over-exaggerated grunts, stumbling away, before bringing his gun up, a shockwave sending Lance flying away as Oracle spun away from the blast.

She watched her teammate go, coat flapping in the air as he flailed, before turning her attention back to Delta, sending out a vicious kick for his midsection.

His hand shot to the side and caught it. "HAHAHA-"

She cut off his laughter with another volley of golden shots, before her revolver clicked emptily.

"Revenge is a dish best- duh… uh… uhhhI eat revenge for breakfast!" He threw her boot to the side, the girl pirouetting in place as he raised an armored boot of his own to plant it in her stomach.

As Oracle spun, though, she tossed one of her guns in the air, reached into her belt and tossed a cartridge up as well, leaping over his boot and catching him on the side of his head, landing on the ground prone.

Delta quickly stomped down at her, missing as she rolled to the side, kipping up and flicking her lone revolver, its cartridge falling to the side, just in time for the one she had thrown to slide in smoothly. Oracle whipped at him with the barrel of the pistol, steel striking against his white armor as he threw another elbow, this one catching her square in the nose, getting her to stumble backwards from the disconcertingly ever-growing power of the DRAB team leader.

He brought up his gun again- only for Oracle's revolver to finally fall from the sky, clattering against the ground uselessly.

Delta stared at it for a moment. "…Haha, whoops?"

By the time he'd brought his gaze back up, she'd already cleared the distance, smashing her gun against his head again, striking out with a flurry of blows- punches, revolver swats, boots to the knees, elbows- using a well-placed kick to send the fallen gun back up into the air as she caught it, adding it to her arsenal as she intermixed gun bashes with bullets, gun shots echoing across the battleground as she pushed the DRAB leader back.

Finally, though, he caught her boot again and spun, tossing her through the air with amazing ease, the huntress going flying away from him with wide green eyes.

He stared down at his hands. "I… am… ALL UNITS, BE ADVISED! THE ULTIMATE SOLDIER'S EVEN MORE ULTIMATER!"

He laughed and took off at a sprint towards Oracle, moving like a white blur as he cleared the center podium in mere moments.

Rainier frowned at the battle and the Atlesian now whirring about the battlefield with ridiculous speed.

"You okay, Rainier?" Ruby asked with a concerned look. "I think they've got-"

"How in the hell is he that fast?"

"Uh… wha?"

"Nothing, just… feeling challenged. He's faster than both of us, for some… strange reason."

"WHAT. NO HE'S NOT- KICK HIS BUTT ORACLE!"

Lance rolled across the ground and finally slid to a stop, greatsword cleaving into the ground and one knee planted down. Rather than looking hurt- or even mad- he simply stared in giddy awe at the battle happening between Oracle and the way too cocky Atlesian. "That gun is awesome!"

The swordsman turned his gaze to Ulysses and Shinai now marching towards Fox and Romeo, his blue eyes shooting between both encounters before rolling them. "Ul! Switch!"

The hulking teen didn't respond, and he groaned. "Fine! Shinai! Switch?"

The samurai disappeared in a cloud of smoke, giving Lance the okay to dash forwards.

Fox and Romeo stared in confusion at the cloud of purple smoke next to Ulysses, the former turning on their heel to guard their flank- the samurai didn't reappear however.

Rather, a red-clad form rushed from the cloud, Lance grinning giddily as he barreled towards them, Romeo letting out a yelp. "AH FOX!"

The masked huntsman blinked and turned back towards them, just in time to duck a wide sword swing from the Vale huntsman. He was replaced quickly by Ulysses as the duo went on the offensive hard, Lance letting loose with wide, wild swings, the hulking huntsman swinging his flail with just as much abandon, growling animalistically.

Lance vaulted on top of his partner, leaping into the air and twirling Iron Maw around in circles, gaining momentum as he came down, catching Romeo in the side and sending him tumbling away.

Fox sent a swing towards the blonde, now lowered guard, huntsman, only for Ulysses to muscle forward, blocking the blow with his body and grabbing their arm, sending a straight jab with his Avenger hand, morningstar gripped tightly- only for his attack to bounce away-

Now extending from their shield, Fox was blocked entirely with an enormous pane of green energy, the barrier several meters wide and taller than Ulysses, crackling.

The rampaging huntsman narrowed his eyes, and swung again, fist slamming into the shield, the light wavering ever so slightly as Fox shied back from the assault, letting out a growl of their own.

Lance, for his part, had already dashed off after Romeo, the huntsman now at the edge of the volcano biome, narrowly avoiding rolling off and to the floor below, eyes wide. He turned back to the charging swordsman with now wider eyes, as the blonde neared.

The Vale huntsman spun his sword expertly and swung it wide, aiming for the Atlesian's neck.

With one slick movement, Romeo ducked out of the way, put his shoulder into Lance's midsection, raised him up-

Then fired his rocket at the ground, the explosion sending them flying up and backwards-

But Romeo's body collided with the blonde's, ceasing his momentum- and sending the swordsman even further away.

Right past the edge of the battlefield, falling to the floor below and landing with a clatter, Vale's section breaking out in boos while Atlas' clapped politely at the play.

"Lance Zaffre has been eliminated by ringout!" Port called out. "Keep your head up, my boy!"

Lance immediately shot to his feet, but went limp at the announcement, dropping his sword to the ground and leaning against the edge of the battleground, burying his hands in his hair as he shook his head, misery flooding his face.

Oracle shot to her feet from her position rolling away- only for Delta to immediately be there, a white blur as he buried a foot into her stomach, getting her to double over, before he brought his gun upwards, slamming it under her chin and sending her tumbling into the air. She spun as much as she could, angling herself just so that she could fire a shot off-

Just for him to swivel his body, the shot shooting past him as she stared dumbfounded.

"HELL YEAH! Always wanted to do that, thanks, lady! I respect my female adversaries!" He followed the statement of gratitude with a barrage of bullets of his own, Oracle pirouetting in the air from the impacts, falling to the ground.

She quickly looked up to the scoreboard high above the floor- the six aura bars, Sierra's in the red, and her own a dark orange, getting dangerously close to being eliminated.

Delta strode forwards quickly, aiming down at her, gun pointed at her head, finger wrapping around the trigger- just before she spat at him, thick glob of spit landing on his armor. He looked down at it. "Aw, c'mon. It's just friendly competition! No need to be rude! General Ironwood always says that a huntsman is-"

He didn't get the chance to finish the quote as Shinai fell from the sky, katana falling and slashing at the Atlesian's forearm and moving its aim away from the gunslinger.

The samurai swept low with his foot, sweeping Delta's out from under him. The armored huntsman simply angled his body as he fell, landing on his shoulder blades and kipped right back up, landing on his feet- just in range of Oracle's own boots, soles catching him in the face before she scrambled to her feet.

"Took ya long enough."

Shinai said nothing, glaring down at the stumbling Atlesian.

"Lance Zaffre has been eliminated-"

Oracle's eyes widened in horror, eyes finding their way over to the other melee. "LANCE!" She screamed out.

"-By ringout! Keep your head up, my boy!"

Her look faded. "…Oh," She sent a look around sheepishly, avoiding her partner's gaze. "You clumsy idiot."

Delta stared at them haphazardly for a moment, before turning on his heel. "SAFETY IN NUMBERS!"

He began sprinting forwards- only to vault high in the air, clearing half the battlefield in a single bound. He landed on the tile platform uneasily, waving his arms as he struggled to keep his balance and not move.

"Uh… oh…"

Slowly, he began to very carefully step forwards, meticulously making sure to step lightly.

The two members of SOUL watched him for a moment.

"Uh… captain?"

"Hm?"

"What is he doing?"

"I suspect his semblance is a rising level of speed and strength. Eventually that must become too much to handle."

"I… this is such a weird friggin' fight. I'll go help Ulysses, you… do whatever you need to." She shook her head and took off at a run, reloading her revolvers.

As she passed by Delta, the Atlesian looked up from his feet at her. "No, wait! Do not continue- that is an order! Wait up! FOX AND CHICKEN! BOGEY, SIX O'CLOCK!"

Ulysses looked over to Romeo and what had been Lance, the swordsman's blonde hair sticking up into view as he stared miserably at the fight. The distraction was enough to give Fox a moment of reprieve, lashing out with their enormous shield, hard-light smashing into the berserking huntsman's face, it screwing up in pained anger.

They let the shield fall and dashed forwards, ducking under his swing and swiping at his knee with their sword, the huge teen going down to a knee as they rounded towards his back, leaping up and placing their feet on his shoulder blades, striking downwards with the now much smaller shield, catching him at the base of his neck.

He simply rose to his feet, however, reaching upwards and wrapping a massive hand around their neck, whipping them back down and slamming them into the volcanic soil beneath them, red dust flying upwards.

A ways away, Romeo was staring at the downed Lance with wide eyes, before throwing up his hands. "I GOT 'IM!"

"You jackass."

He turned over his shoulder to the familiar twang- and the glaring face of Oracle, glowing golden with a single revolver raised. Without hesitation, she fired, the golden bullet flying forwards with a booming explosion, bursting against his back and sending him tumbling through the air, falling to the ground himself, back smoking from the impact.

The booing of Vale and the polite clapping of Atlas switched, the Atlesians going quiet as the other side burst out into raucous cheering.

"And our first double whammy of the tournament!" Port yelled out with a touch too much excitement.

"Indeed! Romeo Whiskey has been eliminated by both aura level and ringout!" Oobleck finished.

Oracle stared, still glaring, at the groaning form of Romeo as the golden aura faded from her, bags beginning to form under her eyes, her shoulder smoking from the massive amount of energy that had been flying through it.

She turned her gaze to the wide eyes of Lance, a slight smile crossing her face. He let out a laugh and began beating the edge of the battlefield rhythmically. The Vale crowd took up the beat, clapping along as the gunslinger turned her gaze to the crowd, eyes wide.

"GO GET 'IM, TIGER!" Lance yelled, waving at her to go resume the fight.

She nodded and took off at a run.

Shinai's face was emotionless as he reached Delta, not deigning to look over to the other leader as they walked at the same pace.

The Atlesian's head snapped up to the samurai. "GAH! Where in the sam hill did you come from?!"

"…You want to admit defeat or make this harder."

"Don't you get cocky, Kyani! Soon as I reach my boys, this is gonna be an even battle again!"

"Indeed! Romeo Whiskey has been eliminated by both aura level and ringout!"

"OKAY, THIS IS GONNA BE AN UPHILL BATTLE!"

Shinai shook his head and swept out with a foot, taking Delta's footing out from under him. As the Atlesian hit the floor, he immediately began rolling away- except at ridiculous speeds, a white pinball flying across the center podium and towards the dividing line between the two biomes.

The samurai continued to shake his head, sighing as he teleported over to where the DRAB team leader had managed to come to a stop, just a few short feet away from the edge of the arena.

Delta glared up at the samurai. "Fine! Finish me! But I ask you- bury my reputation deep in the annals of history, like my ancestors before me, who knew it was better to be remembered as a loser than not be remembered at all!"

Shinai didn't react, simply blinking.

The Atlesian pushed himself up with an elbow. "Wha… it's Opossum Man?"

The samurai shrugged, shaking his head impassively.

"Oh, come on! Get a life, ya weirdo."

Shinai closed his eyes and shook his head, bringing his katana up and then bringing it back down with a heavy swing at the other huntsman's neck.

"Ooh, brutal!" Port called out. "Delta Oscar has been eliminated, leaving just Fox Alpha left!"

Ulysses stared down with his black pools of eyes at the fallen Fox, Oracle pulling back the hammer of her revolver, before backing down at the look Ebony had shot her warningly.

"…Not for long!" Port finished as the hulking huntsman let his Avenger fall to the ground, before swinging it out behind him, the chain shooting quickly out of his sleeve as he swung it high into the air- then brought it back down with all of the force he could muster.

DRGN rose to their feet, alongside RWBY and JNPR, applauding SOUL as the four huntsmen stood for a few moments, taking in their victory and the crowd's adulation.

Daria looked over to Rainier from the corner of her eye; lo and behold, the faunus' face was carefully blank as he stared at his friends, pale yellow eyes unmoving.

Nash, on the other hand was hopping up and down in excitement. "YEA! GO SOUL! GO SOUL! YEAAA!" Lance grinned and pointed up at the boy, saying something quietly to his teammates.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked. "Those guys weren't actually from Atlas, right?"

The Schnee heiress blushed. "The exception does not break the rule!"

"That is not how the saying goes." Rainier called over.

"Shut it, Platina. Most Atlesians are the symbol of fighting prowess in the huntsman world. Four goons do not break that mold."

The faunus shrugged. "If you insist, Miss Schnee."

"You are incorrigible."

"Incorri-gi-wha-huh?" Nash asked, shaking his head quickly as he sat back down.

Rainier reached around his team leader and patted the boy's head. "I will tell you when you're older."

Nash smiled bashfully, placing a hand onto his head.

Daria, however, had not taken her eyes off of her teammate, even as SOUL exited the stage to the inner corridors of the Colosseum. "Hey, uh, Rain?"

"Mmhm?"

"You wanna go get some snacks?"

The faunus turned suspicious yellow eyes to his leader. "…Of course. Any preferences?"

"Whatever you want. Anyone else want anything? Gail, Nash? Weiss?"

When she turned back to Rainier, the Vacuoan's eyes had narrowed to slits, tanned face screwed up in what looked like a mixture of 'how dare you' and confusion. Nevertheless, he rose to his feet, offered a bow to his friends, and snuck away from the stands.

Daria watched him go, vaguely aware of Weiss' eyes locked onto her back, narrowed in suspicion.

Lance chuckled as he walked into the backstage preparation area, sitting down on a long bench and wiping sweat off of his forehead with a courtesy towel. "Well… what do we think?"

Oracle shrugged, sitting down next to him and leaning back. "I'm tired. And hungry. Hon?"

"Naw."

"Fair."

"You did good," Shinai toned in, not sitting, hand resting peacefully on Shi En's handle. "There are things to work on. Next round will be harder. But… I'm proud. And honored."

Lance turned over to Oracle and gave her a smug, beaming smile. Slowly, though, his smile fell, a heavy sigh escaping his lips. "I'm… sorry, guys,"

"Why?" The lone huntress asked. "Because of-"

"Because I got eliminated. Off of a stupid mistake as well."

"Whatever, darlin'. No harm, no foul."

"But what if that got out of control real quick? I… don't want to let you guys down."

She leaned over and nudged him with her shoulder. "Cheer up, hon. Ya didn't cost us nothin'."

"Your accent's coming out."

"Yea."

"WELL GODDAMN!"

All eyes turned to the entrance- and to the smiling face of Delta Oscar, white hair soaked with water. Standing behind him, in differing levels of pumped as well, was the rest of Team DRAB, all looking mightily refreshed.

The eyes of SOUL turned towards their former opponents, Shinai's wary.

"Sitrep- we come in peace. Bored, tired, and a little bit hungry, but pretty good otherwise."

The samurai relaxed, leaning against the wall opposite of Ulysses, hands resting on the handle of his blade. "You fought well."

"Aw, screw that. You guys were out there like 'pewah-pewah,' and then, like, 're-dun-down,' and then the big guy was like 'repate-te-pate-te-pah-pah,' 'fore she was like 'whe-booom'."

Romeo shook his head. "He means that you guys were awesome."

"DO NOT UNDERMINE MY AUTHORITY, PRIVATE!"

"AH GOD, stop yelling!"

Sierra stepped forward with a big toothy grin towards Ulysses. "Duuude, you were, like, next level tank- I mean, you hit me, and my skin just…" She outstretched her arms, waving them like waves.

The aforementioned tank grunted and gave her a nod of acknowledgement. Lance, on the other hand, swooped towards her, then around her, staring at the minigun strapped to her back at the moment. "…Can I?" He asked quietly, blue eyes pleading.

Sierra shrugged and reached back, letting the hulking gun fall from her back into his arms- the blonde let out a grunt as he almost collapsed under the weight of it, arms wrapping around it as he lifted himself back to a standing base. "Oh my… what's her name?"

The hulking Atlesian stared at him for a moment. "…A Really Big Gun."

"No, but what's her name?"

"That is its name," Romeo cut in, crossing his arms. "She's… not very creative."

"But thicker than bricks." Sierra finished, crossing her arms in return, a lopsided grin planted on her face, watching as Lance greedily explored the length of the gun, brushing off the conversation, his eyes finding their way to the enormous javelin sitting in between the many barrels.

"And hello there," He muttered, looking the bronze spear-tip over- as Sierra reached over and pushed a button. The javelin flew from its resting spot, shooting across the room to bury itself into the wall several inches, a cable attaching it back to the gun. "AH, WHAT THE HELL!"

The hulking girl blinked owlishly. "I dunno, I thought you wanted to see what it did."

"Why." He whispered back.

"Sierra! Be advised- there will be no murdering of the top-tier bros we've just recently made cool with!"

"Like, sorry, dad!"

Ulysses, shaking his head, reached over and pulled the spear out of the wall with relative ease, letting it slink its way back into its resting spot- he did not miss the way Sierra shuddered blissfully, letting out a content purr. He frowned and slowly turned away from the conversation.

"I- oh, apologies."

All eyes turned towards the entrance- and the face of Rainier leaning around the corner, pale yellow eyes wide in surprise.

Delta turned back to Shinai. "You know him?"

The samurai nodded back shortly.

"I… well, just wanted to wish you all congratulations on passing to the second round. It was a… scintillating fight. And, uh… I suppose… good job to you four as well. I'll… be on my way."

With a surprising amount of irritation claiming his face at the last moment, the faunus turned on his heel and stalked off elsewhere, arms full of snacks.

"That… was… awkward." Delta muttered, frowning at the retreating back of Rainier.

"Weirdly awkward." Lance muttered back, matching the expression of the DRAB leader remarkably well.

Delta looked back up to him, excitement rejuvenated. "And, you, my friend! You were just absolutely- mmph! And your pre-fight banter!"

"NO, YOU! When you went into your little power-boost, I was actually worried! Zooming around the battlefield- it was a sight!"

"All units, be advised, I am sufficiently flattered!"

"You are?! Dude, you are my favorite!"

"You and me, we're like this-" He attempted to cross his fingers, fumbling slightly on account of the armor covering his fingers. "You- you get the point."

Lance let out a joyous laugh, throwing his head back.

"All units, be advised- I will cherish this memory and put it in my hope chest."

Romeo inched forwards, alongside Sierra- Fox a short ways behind them and keeping to their self. "Hey, Delta, since in you're in such a good mood… how 'bout that pizza party?"

That made the DRAB leader's face fall, shadow overtaking it as his head bowed. "Pizza party… denied."

Romeo turned on his heel and buried his face into Sierra's shoulder, sobbing over-exaggeratedly as she patted his back.

Shinai shook his head and turned his gaze back to his own team. Lance caught the look as he sat back down. "So? Whattaya think? Not a bad start to the tournament, huh?"

Oracle spun in her spot, kicking her feet up and resting them on his lap, hat still pulled down over her face. "Yea, hon. Not a bad start at all."