Chapter 6: Emerald Trials
Kaede surveyed the scene, she knew that Aiko had landed here and it would appear that she was attacked by Grimm, there was no blood, only claw marks in the grass where Beowolves had charged... and spent Dust bullets.
Kaede knew from this that someone else had fought here, which means Aiko probably had a teammate of her own, while she was grateful that someone had protected her, she couldn't help but worry that the likelihood of them being on the same team was dwindling fast, and she was so caught up in this that she didn't pay attention to much else.
"LOOK OUT!" Simba cried out, Kaede turned to see an Ursa charging at her.
She stood her ground and waited for the beast to get within two meters.
Just before it got within range of her vectors, Simba tackled the large, bear-shaped Grimm.
Kaede silently cursed her luck while she watched the boy's gauntleted fingers elongate into golden claws which he raked across the Ursa's shoulder.
The Ursa roared in rage and pain as it reared up on it's hind legs.
Seeing the opportunity, Simba lunged forward and stabbed both sets of claws into the Ursa with his wrists pointed up, he then lowered his stance so the wrist-mounted guns pointed at its head and unleashed a barrage of automatic fire.
Kaede titled her head a bit as she started to see Simba in a different light, he was still an amateur in combat, but he was braver than she thought he'd be.
She was violently torn from her thoughts when a second Ursa came at her from behind and struck her hard enough to send her flying.
She landed hard, her aura flickered dangerously, but held...for now.
Kaede was absolutely livid, not once but twice has she allowed herself to be taken off guard, she remembered that fateful day when she was sent to Remnant, Aiko had almost died because she was trying to sound tough instead of looking out for danger even when she was in the middle of a fight, it had always been her flaw, how easily she could be taken by surprise.
The Ursa charged at her, but once again it was tackled by Simba...or so she thought.
The Ursa was lifted into the air by a well built power house of a man that was over a foot taller than her with long, flowing hair and a full beard that was an inch from his face.
The second Ursa charged at the newcomer, who simply threw the other Ursa into it. "You two should really learn some manners, I guess that I'll have to teach you."
But before he could take a step towards the stunned Ursai, Kaede seized the opportunity and propelled herself forward with her vectors, upon closing the distance, she butchered the Ursai.
Kaede looked around for Simba, but he was nowhere to be found. "Well, I see the boy didn't need to help you after all."
Kaede whirled on the newcomer, believing that he had just insulted someone who tried to help her, people so rare that she could count them on her fingers, but then she noticed something.
The newcomer was dressed exactly like Simba and carried the same weapons, he even had same skin/hair/eye color. "Who are you?"
The newcomer crossed his arms and smirked. "I'm a different side of the same coin, you see, young Simba's Semblance allows him to become the person wants to be, both in mind and body, I am what he becomes when he wants to be heroic, he named me...Mufasa."
Kaede blinked in shock, Simba could do that. "...Oh..um, how long does it last?"
"Whenever Simba wants it to stop, however, it's come to the boy's attention that he has been embarrassing himself in front of you, and he believes that I would make a better partner for you." Mufasa explained.
Kaede didn't know how to feel about that, it is true that he didn't make the best first impression, but then he tried to save her, even though she could handle it on her own, so she felt that she could learn to like him.
"He shouldn't hide away from the world because of what other people think of him...but I'll admit that you could be more helpful in a fight, but I want Simba to return at least after we pass this test." Kaede said, earning a nod from Mufasa before they started looking for Aiko's trail.
Elsewhere
Aiko and Oliver stepped into a clearing, within the center was the temple they were searching for...and no less than 16 Beowolves.
The wolves caught sight of the teens and charged, Aiko raised her staff...but Oliver lowered it. "I got this."
Oliver stepped forward, his hands on his pistols, Aiko didn't know how he thought he could take on that many Grimm by himself...until he drew.
The gunshots were fast that they sounded like a continuous buzz and each Beowolf hit the ground and disintegrated, killed by perfect headshots.
Aiko just stared at her teammate as he removed the 8 round drums of spent ammunition from his revolvers and replaced them with drums of fresh ammunition, it was faster than reloading individual bullets.
"Uhh..h-how did.." Aiko was completely lost for words.
"Don't be too impressed little lady, it was just my Semblance, I call it Dead Eye, lets me turn one second into ten." Oliver explained as he finished reloading, giving his guns a spin on his fingers before holstering them and turning to smirk at Aiko.
"And I can do a lot of shootin in ten seconds." Oliver tipped his hat to her and proceeded to the temple, followed by a still impressed Aiko.
The two of them made it to the temple, only to find that the relics that they were supposed to collect were actually chess pieces. "Huh, aren't we supposed to be looking for relics?" Aiko asked no one in particular.
"Yeah, I asked an upperclassman about it before we got started, apparently, if we bring one back, whoever brings the same one back is the other half of our team, difference is that last year, Ozpin used playing cards." Oliver explained.
"Oh...um, do you mind if we wait here, I was hoping to be on the same team as my sister." Aiko explained, grabbing both black pawns.
"No problem at all little lady." Oliver replied.
"And can you please just call me Aiko, you're only two inches taller than me." Aiko asked.
"Fair enough partner, Aiko it is, wake me when your sister shows up." Oliver said as he laid down with his back against a pillar and his hat down in front of his eyes.
Sometime Later
"AIKO!!" Aiko turned to the sound of Kaede's voice and smiled at the sight of her coming out of woods.
"OVER HERE KAEDE!!" Aiko shouted back, jumping up and waving her arms, the diclonius ran to greet her followed by a large muscular man who looked too old to be a student.
The two friends shared a hug for a moment while the muscular man crossed his arms and leaned against the pillar opposite Oliver, who had woken up and straightened himself. "Howdy ma'am, you must be Kaede, the name's Oliver."
Kaede turned to the Native American Cowboy, and seemed to get disheartened. "Oh... you're Kaede's teammate."
Aiko realized what was wrong immediately. "Don't worry Kaede, all we have to do is take same chess piece back to Ozpin and we're on the same team." Aiko said, holding out the two black pawns.
Kaede was taken aback by this information, and only just noticed the chess pieces that surrounded them before looking back at Aiko with an expression that said 'Really?'. "Yeah, I know, but at least it's easy."
With that, Kaede shrugged and took one of the black pawns. "Okay Mufasa, we're good to go." Kaede called out to her teammate, who was chatting with Oliver at the time.
The two teams headed out, making their way back to Headmaster Ozpin, only pausing when a feminine scream echoed through the air. "What in tarnation was that?"
Moments Later
The four students made their back up to the same slope that they had started on, awaiting them was Headmaster Ozpin and his assistant Glenda Goodwytch.
"Howdy boss, we passed the test." Oliver called out.
"Indeed, though it seems that I wasn't needed to do so." Mufasa added.
"Yes, it would appear that the greater challenges to be faced are being endured by others." Ozpin explained.
"But that is not important, you completed your objectives, that is what matters." Ozpin said, holding out his hand to receive the pawns from Kaede and Aiko.
"You're free to return to the academy and rest." Glenda stated while writing down which students retrieved which pieces.
"Thank you Miss Goodwytch, Headmaster." Kaede bowed to each of them respectfully, an action that was mirrored by Aiko and Mufasa, Oliver just tipped his hat.
Mufasa changed back into Simba as they made their way back to the academy, hanging his head low.
Kaede took notice and spoke up. "You don't need to impress me Simba, just do the right thing and get the job done, it doesn't need to be flashy...and I prefer guys like you over guys like Mufasa." That last bit made Simba blush a deep crimson and Kaede blushed as well when she heard Aiko gasp and Oliver snicker, she couldn't help it, he tried to help her, even if she didn't need it anymore, the thought is what mattered.
They made it inside the academy and returned to the meeting room, surprised to see that footage of the remaining students was being broadcasted on a large monitor and being watched by the upperclassman, all of whom wore the Beacon Academy dress uniform, and one of whom recognized Oliver and ran up to him.
"Hey there Oliver, that was nice shooting you showed off." The older girl complimented.
"Why thank you ma'am, and thanks for that tip about the relics, really helped these two out." Oliver replied, gesturing to Kaede and Aiko.
The older student walked up to Kaede and held her hand out, Kaede would've been hesitant, except the girl was a Faunus. "I'm Velvet, it's nice to meet another Faunus who isn't afraid of their heritage."
Kaede smiled at her first meeting with someone as abnormal as she was, if not more so, considering that Velvet's rabbit ears were over a foot long. "I'm Kaede, and likewise."
YO! VELVET! YOU MIGHT WANNA CHECK THIS OUT!!" A girl with sunglasses and a punk rock hairstyle called out.
Velvet and the others looked at the monitor to see 8 students fighting in teams of four against a Nevermore and a Deathstalker.
Kaede and her team took their seats just as a girl threw her shield at the Deathstalker's injured tail and severed it's stinger which then lodged itself into a crack in the giant scorpion's carapace.
"NORA! NAIL IT!!" Shouted the apparent team leader who Kaede and Aiko shockingly recognized as the kid who threw up on the flight here.
Nora, a red head clothed in pink, jumped on top of the shield girl's recovered shield with a large hammer in her hands.
Kaede's jaw dropped when the shield girl tossed Nora at least 20 feet into the air, and she came down hard, slamming her hammer into the stinger and driving it through the Deathstalker while simultaneously causing the ground beneath them to crumble and fall off a cliff, the entire team making it to safety as the Deathstalker fell, disintegrating before it hit the bottom.
"YEE-HAW!!" Oliver shouted, taking off his hat and hooting and hollering while other students cheered in their own ways.
With the Deathstalker down, and the team that defeated it too exhausted to help their allies, it came down to four girls colored in red, white, black, and yellow against the Nevermore.
The first to engage was the girl in yellow who stood atop a tall tower and antagonized the giant raven to attack her before, to the shock of all, jumping into it's mouth.
Everyone rose to the edge of their seat at the sight, until they realized that the student had planted her feet on it's bottom jaw and held open it's upper jaw while the wristband on her right arm expanded into a large fingerless gauntlet with a shotgun attachment that she used to fire flame Dust down the monster's throat, causing it to crash into a mountainside where the girl in white used ice Dust to trap it by it's tail.
After these two disengaged, the student in black threw out some sort of ribbon that the student in yellow caught and held tight, allowing the red student to use it as a slingshot with assistance from the white student's Semblance.
After a brief conversation that they couldn't hear, the red student was launched at the Nevermore, the white student used her Semblance to somehow allow the red student to run up the mountain, the blade of her long scythe cutting into the Nevermore's neck and actually dragging the large bird up the cliff wall with her.
When she reached the top of the mountain, her scythe cut the Nevermore's head off, resulting in an explosion of cheers.
Kaede was stunned speechless, the girl in red was younger than her by two years, and yet her completion of the test was a lot more impressive, Kaede had no doubt that this girl was the hero of the story who would defeat Salem.
Half an Hour Later
After they had eaten and rested, the newly formed teams were called up to sit at the side of the stage that Ozpin stood upon. "As we begin another year at Beacon Academy, we welcome our newest students, give respect to those who tried, and mourn those who fell...of the 60 initiates who tested their resolve today, 52 succeeded, 6 failed and, tragically, two of this years initiates died in the Emerald Forest..."
There were mumbles of sympathy from the graduates and the upperclassmen alike, and from the corner of her vision, Kaede saw Oliver remove his hat and place it over his heart.
"...Yes, the fight against the forces of darkness will always take it's toll, if there are any among you who cannot bear the thought of facing such death, this is your only chance to bow out and return home, no one will think less of you..." Ozpin paused and allow the three teams that lost their nerve to excuse themselves, many other students shook their heads, saddened but understanding, while one team in particular, led by a large boy with red hair, was laughing at them, Kaede made a mental note of the scum.
"There is no shame in knowing your limit..." Ozpin said to them as they were escorted to the waiting airship that would take them home.
"...Where there time at Beacon has ended, yours has only just begun..." Ozpin said to the remaining initiates. "When I call your names, please step forward...Kaede Takada, Aiko Takada, Oliver Miccmacc, and Simba Pride..."
Kaede and her new team stepped forward as the monitor that showed the epic battle earlier displayed their names, standing side by side, as Ozpin continued. "...For retrieving the black pawn pieces, you shall hence forth be known as..." Their names on the monitor then dissappeared except for the first letter in each name. "Team KAOS." Ozpin concluded, saying the name as 'chaos', while the other studentd applauded, it was the first time a large group of people had applauded Kaede. "Led by...Kaede Takada."
Kaede stopped staring at the applauding crowd and stared, dumbfounded, at Ozpin. "L-led by?"
"Congratulations young lady." Ozpin stated as Aiko wrapped her arms around her and Oliver patted her back and Simba promised not to let her down.
Team KAOS took their seats as the rest of the initiates were given team names one by one, but only one caught Kaede's attention.
"Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna and Yang Xiao Long." As Ozpin called out their names, the girls who defeated the Nevermore made their way to the stage. "For retrieving the white knight pieces, you shall be known as..." Their names disappeared, leaving only the first letter of each name. "Team RWBY." Ozpin said, pronouncing it as 'ruby'. "Led by...Ruby Rose."
The younger girl was just as surprised as Kaede had been, Yang hugged Ruby while Blake looked indifferent and Weiss looked jealous.
This all but confirmed it for Kaede, Ruby Rose was the destined hero, she could have the glory, Kaede would play it safe and let Ruby spear head the defeat of Salem, but if the young girl fell, Kaede would reluctantly keep her new home safe the only way she knew how, by killing everyone who could endanger it.
"It seems things are shaping up to be an interesting year at Beacon." Ozpin said in closing, having no idea how right he was.
Author's Note: Don't worry y'all, I'm not planning on the whole thing being devoid of bigger action sequences, but team KAOS will be laying low until Kaede loses faith in Ruby, which will be after the Fall of Beacon, until then, it will mostly be drama and comedy from Simba and Oliver.
If any of you are getting impatient about Kaede's Semblance, don't worry, it's coming up next.
Oliver's last name comes from the Miccmacc tribe of Native Americans, I actually have Miccmacc blood in my vains .
I am also posting an unrelated one-shot at the same time I'm posting this, it's a crossover of My Little Pony and Warhammer 40,000 titled Daemon World Equestria, and yes, it pretty much says what it's about.
Welp, that's all I got, see you all next time.