Chapter 21
The Vytal festival has started, with team RWBY beating team ABRN in a spectacular first match. The first wave of fights continues. Ironwood ordered the execution of Roman Torchwick to take place after the Vytal festival is done.
The battles continued. Multiple Jedi padawans and a small handful of knights participated in the battles. Emerald took notes on all of them and was surprised at the numbers she was seeing. It should have been impossible by their current knowledge… but she couldn't deny it. Their information was off, by a lot.
The fights continued. It was getting closer to the big show. Pyrrha Nikos. She was the one they needed to keep track of. She was the biggest threat of the known padawans. Mercury sat down next to her, handing her a water bottle.
"The general signed Roman's execution order." Mercury said.
"Neo's work is done here." Emerald said.
"You know, I could get close to Rosa. Maybe give her a good kiss myself." Mercury said. Emerald shot him a glare.
"She's almost ready to turn. We don't need you fucking this up." Emerald said.
"You don't trust me. That hurts you know. We are a team." He leaned in close. To close for Emerald.
"Back up, I can smell your breath." Emerald said.
"We've got a Jedi watching us." Mercury said.
"What are you planning then?" Emerald asked. "We can't kill him here."
"No, not here." Mercury leaned back in his chair.
Jaune was talking with his team about their strategy. He got info from the schools about the team they were fighting. Team BRNZ, from shade. The leader was Brawnz Ni. He used claws as his weapon. Next was Roy Stallion, a claws user. Third was Nolan Porfirio, who used a cattle prod. Nora asked if that was real.
"Nora, look, this comes from the student database, so we have to assume yes, he uses a cattle prod as a weapon." Jaune said.
And last was May Zedong. She was the ranged fighter of the team, using a sniper rifle. The student database didn't include data about semblances. They looked over all the data they had. Jaune looked over at his teammates. He sighed as Ren grabbed his new Jedi robes. In their last mission, a Grimm ripped the old robe, tearing a massive hole in the chest. He also had to change up his Jedi wear, as a Nevermore stole his cloak. He also ripped a massive hole in it when he was going from tree to tree. He got a set of white Jedi robes. He decided to just wear the cloak. Ren wore his everyday outfit until he finalized the design for his second set of robes.
"So, what's the plan?" Nora asked.
"We need someone able to counter the sniper. But with only two of us being allowed to use lightsabers at a time, we need to think who's the best with them." Jaune said. He looked at Pyrrha.
"Me?" Pyrrha asked.
"Without your shield, you need to bring the lightsaber." Jaune said. She was already going to bring it. She was being modest. She was the best with the lightsaber out of the nine of them.
"Ren, Nora, are you bringing your lightsabers?" Jaune asked.
"Not this time." Nora said.
"No." Ren said. Then that settled it. Jaune would take his lightsaber since in all respects it was the better weapon. He registered his lightsaber as his primary weapon for the fight with no secondary. The registry system made sure no one brought any illegal weapons or dangerous weapons. Lightsabers were all powered down, but any blaster was banned. Nora's grenades were barely legal, but they were. She had to leave her lightsaber behind with a Jedi master. Ren didn't have a lightsaber with him. After their weapons were registered, they were brought to the arena.
When the platform started to rise, they heard cheers from the crowds. They arrived on the stage. The random terrains were spawned. A forest and a mountain. They looked at team BRNZ. Jaune couldn't tell if any of them were Jedi, but they were strong. The countdown began. Jaune took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He told his teammates he was going to try to use battle meditation. They turned to him and nodded. Ren was going to stay close to Jaune. The boost of battle meditation was massive.
The bell rang and Jaune jumped to the top of a rock on the mountain path. He sat cross-legged and began to use battle meditation. The enemy team felt it immediately. They were slower, weaker, and less coordinated. Pyrrha started moving towards May, who was in a tree. She yelled at her teammates. She was outside the radius of battle meditation… or she had a defense against it, like the force. Pyrrha turned on her bronze blade. The crowd shouted as her lightsaber came out. They cheered her for everything. Some were confused at her change of outfit.
Pumpkin Pete's PR department would have had a field day if she was still under contract with them. The bronze blade was a unique color of lightsaber and the first seen in the tournament, and most likely, the last time it would be seen.
Brawnz Ni stopped her march, but she was able to quickly end the lock she found herself in. It was thanks to battle meditation. She took aim at Jaune. She jumped in the air, and swiped the bullet, sending it toward the ground. When she landed, she was slammed to the ground by Nolan.
"Sorry." He said. The bullet went flying. Ren was about to jump to block it when Roy blocked him. The bullet would have hit Jaune if he didn't break battle meditation and take out his green blade.
Team JNPR felt battle meditation leaving them. They knew May was good, and a problem. Nolan got off Pyrrha and rushed to fight Ren. She got up, having to block May as she did. May was pushing her back.
"Fall back!" Jaune said as he descended the mountain. Ren kicked Roy back, into Brawnz. They lowered their heads as the bullets rained above them.
"What's the plan from here?" Pyrrha asked.
"Spread out!" Jaune said. Brawnz jumped over the rock and went to attack Jaune. He stepped back, at a disadvantage. His weapons were so small a target that he couldn't get a good strike on them.
Pyrrha sent a force push at Brawnz, knocking him away from Jaune. Jaune saw the glint from May's sniper. He brought his lightsaber up, blocking the bullet. Brawnz noticed he was tied down and changed targets to Pyrrha. Nolan jumped over a rock, ducking under a swing from Ren, and slammed his cow prod into Ren's chest. He stiffened and dropped to the ground.
"Ren!" Nora said as she rushed forward, swinging her weapon. Nolan ducked under the strike and brought the cattle prod to Nora. She started getting shocked.
"Dear viewers looks like one of my favorite students, Nora Valkyrie, is charging up to use her Semblance!" Port said.
"What?" Nolan asked.
"Yes, Ms. Valkyrie's Semblance lets her produce, as well as channel, electrical energy straight to her muscles! This allows her to jump explosively into the air, wield her mighty hammer, or in this case, absorb Nolan's attacks and send the young man flying!" Oobleck said.
"Oh, shi-" Nolan felt the full power of Nora in one swing. Nora flexed her arms as pink lightning coursed through her body. Nolan attempted to lift his hands up in surrender, but thunder starts sparking from Nora's Aura as she rushes at him. Nolan bounced back across the field, crashing through a rock, and stayed there when he stopped moving.
Jaune looked back at the mountaintop on his team's side as a dark storm cloud appears over it, crackling with lightning. He looked over at his energized teammate.
"Nora! Mountain!"
"Alright!" Nora cried out as she quickly made her way up the mountain. Ren fired at May, not getting close to her, but some of them getting too close for comfort. She turned her sights to Ren, firing, hitting him once.
Roy threw his saw gloves at Jaune. He brought up his lightsaber, blocking the attack, not without getting knocked back a few steps. Pyrrha rushed Roy, getting in his defense. He was forced to move on the back foot until his weapons returned. Pyrrha's skill with the lightsaber was great. She landed a few hits on Roy, taking his aura down to half. Brawnz came to help, forcing Pyrrha to split her attention. Pyrrha kicked Brawnz back, deftly dodged and blocked the discs of the other, throwing her lightsaber to distract the latter while she somersaults back to use both feet to land a blow on Brawnz.
May tried to shoot Ren while he dashed his way toward her, leaping out of the way of her shots, and flying saws. Ren slid under Pyrrha before he ran at Nolan, weapons blasting until he was close enough to start swinging his blades away. He ducked and deflected each of the cattle prod's attempted hits until he managed to hold it in the pistol's blades and double kicks his opponent, giving him the opportunity to catch Nolan's weapon in his own as the prod is forced behind Nolan's head and leaves him trapped. Ren hides behind the sniper's teammate. She stopped aiming at him and lifted her barrel up to another target.
"Nora!" Ren shouted as he tried to keep Nolan in place. Jaune brought his lightsaber up, blocking the claws getting closer to him.
"Pyrrha! Up!" Jaune shouted, needing some help.
Pyrrha rushed towards him, dodge rolling to avoid a launched saw until she bounded over Brawnz and landed on Jaune's open hands. He quickly put his lightsaber away. He gathered the force in his hands and managed to throw her into the air. She raised her lightsaber to block the kill shot aimed at Nora. Nora has just enough time to reach the peak. She lifts her hammer up as a bolt of lightning hits the weapon directly. She changed it back into grenade-launching form and popped the front off to reveal six explosives that shoot out over the field in a heart-shaped formation onto the sniper. May widened her eyes as she jumped from tree to tree, avoiding the explosives.
May jumped down from the branches just as her three teammates looked up and behind them at Nora coming down on them like a meteor, slamming her hammer into the ground and sending the enemies back to the feet of their disoriented teammate.
"This is it, guys! Let's finish 'em with team attacks! Ren! Nora! Flower Power!" Everyone stops and looks at Jaune.
"Wait, what?" Nora asked.
"F-Flower Power. That's your team attack name!" Jaune said as his team shrugged and looked confused.
"Since when?" Ren asked. Jaune could feel Rosa's irritation from here.
"Guys, we've been over this!" Jaune said, as the enemy team started to get up. "Flower Power is Ren and Nora! Ren brings the flower; Nora brings the power!"
"How do I bring a flower?" Ren asked.
"No, silly, not a flower! Flour, like in baking!" Nora said. Jaune could feel the confusion in the stands. His face began to flush.
"Why would I bring that?" Ren asked.
"I- Uh- No, it's your symbol!" Jaune said, almost defeated.
"Sooo, what are we?" Pyrrha asked, in a playful manner.
"Pyrrha! Not now!" The blush covered his whole face.
"Sorry! I just want to make sure it's clearly defined." Pyrrha said.
"Pyrrha, you and I are Arkos. The boost, remember?" They had to change it up when her shield was destroyed.
"Arkos?" Pyrrha asked.
"Yeah! It's our names put together!" Jaune explained
"Right, no, I get it…" Pyrrha didn't get it in fact. This was Ruby's idea in the first place.
"What, do you not like it?" Jaune asked
"No, no! It's... good?" Pyrrha was being nice.
"Mmm, I sense hesitation." Nora smirked.
"Hey!" Brawnz said. Team JNPR looks back with a collective "Huh?" "What do you think you're doing!?"
"We're trying to have a team meeting, thank you very little!" Jaune said, the blush gone. He was getting frustrated now.
"Yeah! Team ears only!" Nora said. Team BRNZ is confused, as is every in the arena, except for Ruby, trying to not notice the glare Jaune was sending right her way. She suggested the names. Her teammates all turned to her as she tried not to look guilty and failed miserably. They all look at her with confusion.
"I… may have given him the suggestions for the names…" Ruby said.
"WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A FIGHT!" Brawnz yelled at Jaune.
"AND WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A CONVERSATION! WHAT DON'T YOU GET ABOUT THAT!?" Jaune yelled back loudly.
"Um, Jaune?" Pyrrha tried to help him.
"Yes, Pyrrha?" Jaune asked, annoyed.
"I think that he means that we're all in the middle of a fight." Pyrrha said.
Jaune hears the sound of the crowds around them come back in full volume.
"Ugh..." Jaune said while putting his lightsaber away and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Nora, just... hit them with the hammer." Jaune never sounded more defeated.
"Got it." Nora said as an evil smirk ran across her face.
"Wait, what?!" Brawnz cried out.
Before anyone can react, Nora jumped in front of Team BRNZ, bringing her hammer around to collide with all four screaming fighters as they soar into the arena's forcefield, sliding down to the ground with arms and legs in bent positions they really shouldn't be.
"And with that, it appears Team JNPR wins by knockout, literally! ...Can someone go make sure they're, okay?" Port declared.
"Man, those kids have talent." A bartender said. Qrow just grumbled.
"Ah, well, Vacuo fans are sure to be hurting after that one, but this next one will have them on the edge of their seats!" Oobleck said.
"Team NDGO of Shade is certainly a crowd favorite, but these lovely ladies are going against some of the toughest, testosterone-filled teammates we've seen so far! I'm of course talking about... Team SSSN!" Port started.
Sun looked back at his teammates. He decided against using his lightsaber. He gave them a thumbs up. They nodded back at him. Scarlet wasn't too happy about the outcome of the last match. He liked team JNPR, but he also really liked Nolan.
"Sun Wukong and his team are certainly a force to be reckoned with, and although he'll be representing the Mistral Academy of Haven, I'm sure his friends and family back in Vacuo will be cheering him along!" Port finished.
"Good luck, Neptune!" Weiss cried out. Yang looked over at her, raising her eyebrow.
"Ladies." Neptune said to his opponents. Weiss felt betrayed.
"Break his stupid face, NDGO!" Weiss cried out. Yang sat back, her eyebrow lowering.
"Alright, girls, try and remember: hands above the waist." Neptune said with a smile. He got some boos for that.
"Ignore him, for he suffers from... Yeah, he's dumb." Sun said, holding onto Neptune's arm.
The roulette stopped on two fields. A dune formation for the first half.
"Alright! Home field advantage!" Nebula said.
"Don't get too cocky! That's my turf, too!" Sun said.
"I hope I don't get sand in my shoes." Scarlet said.
"Hey, be cool man." Neptune told him.
"Hey! The ocean!" Dew called out when the roulette landed on it. Neptune's stomach dropped to his stomach. Fear started rising off him.
"Uhh, what's wrong with Neptune?" Ruby asked.
"Oh, no." Blake started, not able to look at Neptune. "Neptune's... afraid of the water."
As soon as Oobleck started the match, Neptune rushed faster than ever before to the top of the enemy's side.
"Neptune, what are you doing?!" Sage cried out.
"Uh, you know, just gaining the higher ground!" Neptune cried out.
"On the enemy's side?!" Sun yelled.
"They would never expect it!" Neptune said.
"He's not wrong." Dew said to her allies.
"Open fire!" Nebula ordered.
Team NDGO go after Neptune as his team rushed behind them. Scarlet goes after Octavia Ember. She ducked under the swing and slid passed Dew and Sage getting ready to rumble with Sage.
He hefted Pilgrim overhead with both hands and brought it down, only to get knocked back by Dew's spear. He glanced up in time to see the blonde wave her weapon over the sand to create three small twisters that kicked up dust in Sage's face. He looked around as they surround him but didn't realize the danger until they coalesce into one tornado that picked him off the ground. With his weapon gone and screaming in panic, he was helpless as the winds throw him and his blade out of the arena.
He realized too late that he was in danger, and paid the price, getting tossed around in the sand. He was going to find sand in everything for a while now. And his team was down one member.
"Dammit." He said.
Octavia slid in front of Sun and Scarlet, who readied themselves to fight her just as she spun her sword around and produces a wave of flame, which kicked dirt in their faces. Sun managed to jump out of the cloud just in time to call for help in fighting Octavia.
"Neptune!" Sun cried out. He sent a force push behind him in the ground, kicking up dust into Octavia's face. She coughed as Scarlet was able to land a kick against her. She stumbled back, bringing her hand up, sending Scarlet flying.
"Was that the force?" Sun asked. Neptune's eyes widened as he dropped down and went to help Scarlet.
Octavia attempted to use another fire attack to blind Neptune as he came to help Scarlet, but he put on his goggles and fired a bolt at Octavia, who blocked it with her blade right before Sun leap out of nowhere to deliver a powerful kick to her face.
She stumbled backward and looked at Sun. She noticed the Jedi tattoo and smirked.
"Padawan?" She asked.
"Knight." Sun responded. He had his answer. He landed a series of plows on her, taking her down.
"It's a 3v3 now!" Port said.
Neptune was fighting Gwen Darcy while Scarlet was taking on Dew. Scarlet is hit with one of Dew's attacks and is thrown to the other side of the arena. Scarlet glides to a pirate ship mast where he finds his balance. Nebula and Gwen go after Scarlet while Dew starts fighting Neptune. Nebula fires her crossbow, hitting the mast, and jumps up to meet Scarlet in combat.
"Balance…" Scarlet said to himself. Nebula felt how shaky the mast was and wondered why every always had a fight on the mast in pirate movies.
Nebula changed her crossbow into a cross-guard sword, taking one step closer to Scarlet. They start to trade blows carefully. Nebula ducks under one of Scarlet's strikes and hits him in the face with the but of her sword. He stumbles back, almost falling off the mast, but regains his composure before he did. He moved slightly to the side, avoiding a strike, then grabbed the hilt of the sword. He pushed forward, knocking her off balance, then brought his elbow to her face, knocking her off the mast.
"Ow!" She cried.
"Sorry!"
Scarlet saw Gwen dancing like a ballerina and throwing knives at Sun. He smirked as he took out his pistol and shot the hilt guard, sending out the grappling hook. It grabbed Gwen by the leg. Scarlet dropped down from the mast, dragging Gwen up. She quickly brought her hand up to stop her dress from falling. Scarlet realized too late that may not be the kindest, or best thing to do, since all her knives were stored on the metal holders at the hem of her dress. The knives were falling right toward him, and he froze. All but one knife missed one running along his arm. The one that hit bounced off his aura. When they landed, a small explosion of dust rang out at his feet. His aura absorbed the damage.
Dew leaped towards Sun, making him jump back next to a tree. He knocked it and grabbed two coconuts. He tossed them at Dew, who deflected the coconuts. They caught fire. Sun dodged the coconuts, leading them right to Scarlet. Both hit Scarlet in the end. The first hit him in the face, making him spin, the second hit him in a more sensitive local. He grabbed his manhood, letting out a pained cry. He fell over, losing half his aura in a single attack. He was out of the match. Dew smirked at her handy work.
"I will avenge you." Sun said dramatically.
Dew summoned a few water tornados and sent them toward Sun, who had to avoid them.
"Uh, Neptune? Could use some help, buddy!" Sun cried out, avoiding the attacks.
"Uh, you know, uh, it would probably be better if you came over here! Yeah, I can guard this... sector! We're in lockdown mode!" Neptune said. Jaune watched the fight on his scroll, and finally felt cooler than someone.
"What are you talking about? There's nothing to lock down!" Nebula was up, and she got Gwen down. Sun was being backed into a corner.
"Lockdown! Right! You got it!" Neptune said.
"Dude, I know you're afraid of water, but you gotta…" He had to avoid Dew's attempt to get the finishing blow on him. He moved right out of the way, grabbed Dew, and spun her around, destabilizing her for a few seconds. A blue shot slammed into her as soon as Sun was away from her.
"There! I helped! Are you happy now!? Also, I am not afraid of water, and I have no idea what you are talking about!" Neptune said.
Dew got up. Nebula and Gwen came up next to her. Sun felt the force in at least one of them now. He widened his eyes as all three of them send out a force wave. He jumped in the air, and felt the wave slam into the rock formation, cracking it.
"They're all padawans?" Maku asked.
Neptune saw the damage they could inflict, but still felt the fear of water.
"Now GO!" Sun shouted.
"Okay, fine! Just get out of the water!" Neptune said. The three girls were ready for him to have an ability with the water… what they weren't ready for was him sneaking close to the water with a trident, and as quickly as he possibly could, slamming the electric trident in the water. The three women were shocked to say the least.
Three down with one attack. Sun and Neptune chest bumped.
"And with that, Team SSSN moves on to the doubles round! You know what I call that victory?" Port asked.
"Shocking?" Oobleck said.
"No, well earned. What you said is stupid." Port said.
"Now that was a match!" The bartender said.
"Heh, that was a mess!" Qrow said.
"Come on man, you didn't like them, the Vale kids, or any of the rounds before that? What fight are you here for?" The bartender asked.
"That one." Qrow said as he saw Ironwood's ship flying toward Beacon. Qrow slammed down more cash and left. "Happy Vytal festival."
"That was close." Ruby said. "Though I wonder why team NDGO didn't leave the water when saw Neptune coming."
"Maybe arrogance." Rosa said.
"Looks like the dorks made it to the next round!" Yang said. Sun waved to everyone until he saw Blake. He gave her a wink and a nod.
"Emphasis on "dork"." Blake said with a small blush.
"That concludes the matches for today. Please leave the Coliseum IN A CALM AND ORDERLY FASHION!" Oobleck yelled the last part.
"Come on, let's go congratulate 'em." Yang said. Ruby was following, when Weiss stopped, looking at the ship that had Ironwood and Winter. She smiled.
"Uh, what are you viewing?" Ruby asked.
"Winter's here!" Weiss said.
Weiss and Ruby rush to meet Winter at the entrance to Beacon. Clones kept the few people at Beacon a step away from the officials.
"Winter!" Weiss Yelled. Winter stopped and looked at her sister.
"Weiss." The Mirialan couple stepped down the ramp, holding Gold. Weiss saw him. Her heart melted. He wrapped his tail around himself to keep himself warm. The Mirialan couple also had a Mirialan baby with them. Weiss looked at her little brother for the first time.
"This must be Ruby Rose. I must thank you for helping me find the spy." Winter said. Ruby smiled, rubbing the back of her head.
"I don't like remembering that day." Ruby said. Winter and Weiss understood. They remembered seeing Rosa almost kill herself. Winter would rather forget that day as well. But she needed to remember that day. It taught her an amazing lesson.
"Weiss, how are you?" Winter asked, after dismissing the droids with her. Weiss smiled.
"Oh, splendid! Thank you for asking. I'm actually in the very top ranking of our sparring class! And the rest of my studies are going wonderfully, too! I'm…" Winter smacked Weiss on the head, leaving a small bump. Her hands shot up to the bump, and she looked at Winter, not understanding why she hit her.
"Silence, you boob! I'm not father. I don't recall asking about your ranking, I'm asking how you've been. Are you eating properly? Have you taken up any hobbies? Are you making new friends?" Winter asked.
"Rosa makes sure we eat properly. She bakes things and often makes meals for us. There's also Ruby. I would say my entire team are friends." Weiss said.
"Heh, boob." Ruby giggled, still on that comment.
"We also have Jedi training…" Weiss started
"Do you mean gambling?" Ruby asked. They started playing card games again as a way to hide your attentions. Winter rose her eyebrow.
"You gamble?" Winter asked.
"We play the games, but we don't have money." Weiss said.
"Yes, just who get's the chores." Ruby said.
"Ruby, seriously?" Weiss asked.
"I'll need to ask the masters if the can help in your training." Winter said. Weiss finally noticed the lightsaber at her own hip. Winter smirked as she handed Weiss her lightsaber. Her eyes opened wide.
"Why…?" Weiss was about to ask.
"Are you training to be a Jedi too?" Ruby asked.
"I am." Winter said. "Weiss, I would like to inspect your quarters."
"Inspect them?" Weiss asked.
"I will not allow my sister to be living in less than adequate conditions." Winter said.
"Of course. Just so you're aware, the bunk beds only look unstable." Weiss said.
"Bunk beds?" Winter asked.
"I'll catch up with you later." Ruby yelled. Weiss shook her head.
Weiss was really happy. Gold was going with them as well. Almost as soon as Ruby was out of sight, Weiss felt the presence of that mysterious man from Patch. Winter felt the presence at the same time. They turned as the head of one of the knights came rolling to Winter's feet. She turned around and glared.
"Ice Queen, I'm talking to you." Qrow tossed the body of the knight aside. The clones all raised their weapons at him.
"Halt, everyone, stand down!"
Weiss looked at the drunk man confused. She reached for her lightsaber. She held the practice saber, but didn't turn it on.
"Don't play with those things." Qrow used the force to grab the practice saber and put it on his own belt. "You'll get it back when you stop being so loud." Weiss marched up to Qrow and demanded her lightsaber back by holding her hand out. Qrow took out a single Lien.
"Go and play now, the adults need to talk." Qrow said. Winter was tempted to order the clones to stun him.
"What…?" Weiss was confused. Qrow put his hand on her face and pushed her to the side.
"Don't you dare touch my sister." Winter said. Qrow looked at her, then looked at the baby. He looked back at her, to see her coldest gaze.
"You had a kid?" Qrow started laughing. "With a Faunus, oh how daddy's rolling in his grave!"
"He's my brother." Winter said. Qrow stopped laughing for a second, then connected the dots. He started laughing so hard, he couldn't stand.
"That fucker! Man, I hope he's burning in hell right now." Qrow said. Winter couldn't disagree.
"Why are you here?" Winter asked. Qrow took a second to get off the ground and stop laughing. He noticed Weiss grabbed her lightsaber, but he decided to reward her this time.
"Saw that gaudy ship of yours in town. I guess you're here, too." Qrow said.
"I'm standing right before you." Winter said.
"So it would seem." Qrow said.
"You realize you just destroyed Atlas Military property." Winter said.
"What about the 'alliance'? Is that gone now, because I can tell you right now, they aren't." Qrow said.
"I don't have time for your immature games, Qrow." Winter said.
"You know each other?" Weiss asked.
"Let's just say she's been a Bitch in my Ass!" Qrow said.
"That doesn't even make sense!" Winter yelled.
"You know what doesn't make sense, Ironwood selling Ozpin out." Qrow said.
"Ozpin?" Weiss started.
"Weiss, it's time to go." Winter said.
"Listen to your sister, she'll protect you. Just like Atlas will, right?" Qrow said.
"If you won't hold your tongue, then I will gladly remove it for you!" Winter said. She drew her lightsaber. The lightsaber was made with a silver mixture of metals.
"We both know even drunk as I am, you don't have a hope to beat me. Besides, what would the masters think? Their precious student suddenly losing their calm and attacking an asshole?" Qrow said. She realized her mistake in getting angry at him.
"You're right. You're nothing but a drunk miserable asshole." Winter said.
"Just like your mom." Qrow said.
It took everything in Winter not to lash out. She had to practice every Jedi calming technique to ignore the man.
"Why are you trying to provoke me?" Winter asked. Qrow took out a lightsaber from his jacket.
"You know why I don't use this, right?" Qrow asked. He put the lightsaber away. Ironwood put his hand on Qrow's shoulder. Penny was behind him, with a Jedi next to her.
"You made quite the scene here today." Ironwood said. Weiss brought over Ruby. She saw Winter and Qrow standing there.
"I thought they were going to fight." Weiss said.
"That's my uncle!" Ruby shouted. He looked over at Ruby and smiled.
"This is a terrible way to start a meeting, wouldn't you say?" Ozpin said. "Swearing, shouting, and causing a scene. Come now, you're better than that."
"I'm sorry sir… I forgot myself." Winter said.
"Now, let's get going." Glynda said. Everyone started moving again. Ironwood and Winter left first. Ozpin gave Qrow a look, and he nodded his head. After they left, Ruby ran up to her uncle and grabbed his arm. She hung onto his arm.
"Uncle Qrow!" She still hung to his arm. "Hi. It's so good to see you! Did you miss me? Did you miss me!?"
"Nope." Qrow said, laughing.
"Qrow! A word please." Ozpin shouted out.
"Looks like I'm in trouble." Qrow said.
"You did almost start a fight." Ruby said.
"Damn right." Qrow said. Cyan and Mercury spot Qrow.
"That's him." Cyan whispered to Mercury. He nodded, as they went back to their dorm.
"What were you thinking?" Winter asked.
"Are you trying to cause an incident?" Ironwood asked.
"Listen asshole, first things first, I'm out there dealing with all the fallout of your fucking war. I found was this close to finding out who the enemy was, then all hell breaks loose. They deleted everything. Nothing was left to recover."
"They attacked Atlas!" Winter shouted.
"And they attacked Vale. And they were planning on killing you directly. Don't think I don't know about the spy. That was a good one. You couldn't even tell there was a spy until after three hundred of your troops died. What the fuck are you doing?" Qrow asked. "I'm out there having to hide in shit, having to have an open ear everywhere, while you're sipping on fucking martinis!" Qrow shouted.
"You're drunk!" Winter shouted.
"He's always drunk." Ironwood said.
"They're here. I don't know how many, but they're here." Qrow said.
"We know." Ironwood said.
"You know? Well excuse me, I'm just out there every FUCKING day now trying to find out if we're about to be attacked by the Sith. Fuck you Jimmy, I need information as much as you do. I need to prepare my nieces for the Sith." Qrow said.
"We thought you died." Ironwood said.
"Call me god, cause I'm back from the dead." Qrow said.
"Qrow, they had reason to believe you were dead." Ozpin said.
"They didn't find a body, so what else could they have found?" Qrow asked.
"They did find blood. Lots of it. And this." Ozpin put a lightsaber on the table that looked almost exactly like Qrow's. He picked it up and held it.
"Shit… They only got the activation button wrong." Qrow said. He turned on the blade and realized what happened.
"I don't remember losing a lot of blood…" Qrow said.
"We took samples from what body could be found. It was almost certain it was you, with a margin of error." Ozpin said.
"Sith magic." Qrow said.
"What?" Ironwood asked.
"The Sith know who I am. I assume they also know I'm gone for long periods of time… They tried to clone me. They took some poor bastard and forced his body to change to look like mine." Qrow said.
"We're sorry Qrow, we honestly thought you were dead." Ironwood said.
"Was it Raven who killed him?" Qrow asked.
"We can't confirm that." Ozpin said. "…But we did find him in her territory."
"Looks like she doesn't want any reminders of her brother." Qrow said. He sighed and put the false lightsaber in his jacket. Ozpin didn't object.
"Winter needs to leave." Qrow said. "This information is far too sensitive."
"I have a right to be here." Winter said.
"Actually, Ozpin has the final say in his school." Ironwood said.
"Miss Schnee, please." Ozpin said. It stung, but she bowed. She left.
"The Sith are after Autumn. The same Sith. But I have reason to believe she's not here like the others." Qrow said.
"What information do you have?" Ironwood asked.
"The Sith at the docks all that time ago tried attacking Rosa Reidan on Patch about a week ago. I stopped him, but they're persistent. I heard from a Sith that I dealt with they have dirt on her master. She's just as much an objective for Salem as the Maiden's power and the Relic." Qrow said.
"Why a padawan?" Ironwood asked.
"The Sith said something about Mist. I never figured it out." Qrow said.
"Myst, with a Y. She was a Sith Lord that was killed by Miss Reidan when the white fang attacked with the train. But I don't know how, and Roman is the only man who knows. But he isn't talking. His execution has been ordered." Ironwood said.
"Execution?!" Ozpin said, riding from his seat.
"The council forced me on this. They needed the mastermind to the attack on Atlas dead. It was a bi-partisan issue. Even I was surprised. But I ordered it, hoping to get his lips looser." Ironwood said.
"James, he's no use to us dead." Ozpin said.
"He does have a use. It gives the people of Atlas a little bit of revenge for all the death he caused. They need something, and they want this." Ironwood said.
"When did you start caring about what people want. You sure as hell don't care what the people want in Vale. You think this will do anything besides let the enemy know we're afraid?" Qrow said.
"This is a defensive measure as I am sure you understand."
"Don't give me that shit! This is an invasion force. You already control Atlas, was one kingdom not enough for you?"
"Qrow! I am not the ruler of Atlas. I simply hold more seats than one on the council." Ironwood said.
"And when have you though about getting people in those empty seats?" Qrow asked.
"When the threat is over." Ironwood said.
"God, you are a smug bastard. If the Jedi couldn't defeat her after thousands of years, do you really think this machine army can do any better?" Qrow asked.
"The Jedi in the Galaxy at large just finished fighting a war against machines. The machines may have lost, but it was close the whole way." Ironwood said.
"Close means shit when everything is burning James. I want to trust you, but I don't trust power." Qrow said.
"Qrow, James, we need to get back to the issue at hand. The enemy is at the gate. Some have snuck in. We need to find the enemy and defeat them before they rip the walls down to the city. The Jedi are helping us in our search. We've found some Sith already and dealt with them." Ozpin said.
"Then let's root out the enemy." Ironwood said.
Cyan and Mercury reported to Cinder that Qrow was at the school.
"I guess his sister dealt with the clone. But this doesn't change the plan. Be careful. Ten Sith have already been killed. These are the last stages of the plan. Nothing can go wrong." Cinder said. She ended the communication, and the rock fell to the ground, shattering. The communication rock was a one-time emergency item. It was used to contact the inner circle of the Sith and inform them of emergencies.
Cyan looked at the other two. Neo had left the team and moved on to the next part of her mission. Cinder sent them an encrypted file, showing them the next matchup.
"Em, Merc, your up." Cyan said.
"Who are we fighting?" Emerald asked.
"Two members from team CFVY, Coco and Yatsuhashi."
The day of the two-on-two arrived, and they were the first ones to fight. Of course, the matches were rigged by Cinder. She also rigged one of their Sith teams to go against a team of Jedi.
Emerald and Mercury met Coco and Yatsuhashi and got ready for the fight. The Colosseum chose four fields to rise up from below in quarter sections: A patch of tall grassy plains which had a single tree and some rocks; the ruins of a city, complete with buildings holding shattered windows and rubble among the pavement; a hot spring containing geyser spots along a small river and some blue Dust crystal growths; and a familiar section of dense forest.
"Hey! Love the outfit, kid!" Coco said
"I'll try not to get blood on it." Emerald responded.
"I can't promise you'll leave without a scratch." Yatsuhashi said
"I won't be the one bleeding," Emerald said while stretching.
"Ooh, I like her!" Coco said.
Port started the countdown. Cyan sat back, knowing that these two wouldn't have much trouble in this fight.
Instead of charging forward, Mercury and Emerald slowly walk back into the tall grass and disappear behind the leaves. Coco and Yatsuhashi smiled at each other before the leader pops out her Gatling gun and begins mowing down the field as the crowds of sunglasses-wearing fans roar their approval, even when bullets nearly hit them from the other side of the forcefield. Coco lets up as she and Yatsuhashi realize the two opponents aren't in the plains section anymore.
"Where'd they go?" Coco mumbled.
"Lookout!" Blake yelled. Coco looked around but couldn't see them.
Mercury dropped from the sky, aiming for Coco, but Yatsuhashi pushes her out of the way and blocks Talaria with his blade, pushing him back. Coco opens fire at him again, though Mercury is able to outrun each shot.
Sun felt something was wrong but couldn't put his finger on it. Something…
"You good?" Sage asked. Sun turned to him and shook his head.
"He's good."
"Yeah, but where's the girl?" Scarlet said. Sun closed his eyes and stretched out with the force. But something was blocking the effort.
Cyan felt Sun's efforts in the stand. He wasn't the one blocking him. It was too dangerous. The Jedi were everywhere here. He even noticed one of the Jedi slowly inching himself closer to the Sith that was blocking Sun.
Mercury reached the two and kicks away Coco's weapon while dodging Yatsuhashi's blade, then delivered a double blow to the giant warrior before jumping over Coco's continued barrage of bullets. He landed on the barrels and kicked her in the face, leaping over another of Yatsuhashi's swings, only to let himself be hit so he can get behind Coco and force her to press the muzzle up to her own teammate. Everyone stood still until Coco compressed her weapon back into its handbag form and tried to hit Mercury with Yatsuhashi, but he deftly jumps back and launched two blasts from his boots that the members of CFVY deflect.
Coco was unfazed by the one shot but looked surprised at the dozens of them now spiraling around the break-dancing Mercury. He smirks as he sent all of them at his enemies, a barrage of light and smoke surrounding them that provided the perfect cover for Mercury to appear behind the two. He grabbed both of them by their arms and delivered a flurry of kicks that knocked them back, looking back as a chain came out from the forest trees to wrap around Coco and pull her back.
Sun still couldn't sense Emerald. He looked around the arena to find team RRWBY. He saw Rosa sitting next to Cyan. She was talking to him about something. Maku was nowhere near her.
"Something's off…" Sun said. His team looked at him.
"What is it?" Sage asked.
"I've got a bad feeling about this…" Sun said.
"Coco!" Yatsuhashi shouted. Mercury made sure they were separated.
"Your team are monsters." Rosa said. "I'm glad I didn't have to fight them."
"I wouldn't use the word monster… but they are leagues better." Cyan said. "We could help you train."
"Are you sure they'd be up to that?" Rosa said.
"Positive."
Despite his cry, Coco disappeared into the trees, as he had to endure a blow from Mercury before being able to grab and throw him into the hot spring area. He jumped high in the air as Mercury's slid back, but his blade only comes down on his opponent's boots, the shockwave from this clash caused the water to fly back, the earth to crack underneath, and multiple geysers to form around them.
"Shit that hurt!" Mercury said. This kid was a beast. He could of sworn he heard some of the metal bend in his legs. If this kid was faster, Mercury would have had to use the force to fight him.
Why would he have needed to use the force? Wait, no Mercury knew why, the giant kid who nearly broke the arena. What was that…? Was it his semblance?
Mercury gritted his teeth.
Mercury fired his boots and got out of the hold, aiming a swipe at Yatsuhashi's feet that missed. He had to duck around each of his sword's swings. One got close enough to cut a hair off. One of his kicks loosened some stones from the ground. Mercury kicked the stones into Yatsuhashi who quickly recovered and attempted to retaliate. Mercury countered him and fired a couple of shots. Despite trying to block them Yatsuhashi was forced back, giving Mercury an opening to kick him to the ground. This left his head in a small super-heated geyser, that erupted causing him to scream in pain as he frantically gets up, opening his eyes just in time to see Mercury coming at him.
At the same time, Coco was being dragged back into the forest until the chain made her collide with a tree trunk. She shook it off until she realized her sunglasses are lying shattered on the ground. Her favorite pair of sunglasses. She felt the pain of losing them.
"I take it back; I don't like her." Coco said.
A green shot rapidly came at Coco, which she barely managed to dodge as more came down on her from in a tree above her. Coco unleashed her Gatling gun again and shoot high in the branches, but Emerald jumped around, using Thief's Respite to fire back and change them to sickle form so she can swing from each tree until she suddenly vanished behind one of them.
"Damn!" Coco yelled.
"Coco!" Yatsuhashi's voice yelled. She wondered if he got lucky with Mercury.
"Watch out, she's in the trees!" Coco yelled. Something felt off.
Sun heard Yatsuhashi's voice, but knew it wasn't him.
"Emerald… what's your semblance?" Sun said.
"Oh, and with that final blow, Yatsuhashi is eliminated!" Port reported. Coco didn't look up. She realized that wasn't Yatsuhashi. She spun around. Nothing. She knew Emerald was near, but couldn't see her, or sense her aura. She was a stealthy fighter.
"Damn!" Coco yelled again.
Emerald was behind her. She realized too late, as she was sent into the center of the arena, next to Yatsuhashi.
"And with an amazing upset, Emerald and Mercury are victorious!" Oobleck announced. Sun had a frown on his face. Something wasn't adding up.
"I'm going…" He started.
"No, you're not." Karel Allusis said behind him. Sun didn't move.
"Something's off here." Sun said.
"We know." Karel said.
Rouge and a boy named Dan Rosa were up against two hunters in training. Karel watched the match and saw just how strange the two hunters were. They both used Katanas and were doing Shii-Cho maneuvers. It didn't mean anything because a lot of Katana masters used similar attacks to that of Form I, but something wasn't sitting right with him.
In the end, Rouge beat both of them. Dan Rosa was taken out by ringout. They were being watched by the Jedi.
"Keep your eyes open." Karel said, moving away from Sun.
Weiss met up with Winter and Gold. She held her little brother in her arms, playing with him. He smiled at her.
"You have to be on high alert Weiss. Be careful. The Sith aren't gone." Winter said.
"I've defeated my fair share of Sith at Hellio." Weiss said.
"You defeated apprentices." Shaak Ti stepped in the Gazebo. She bowed to Weiss and Winter as a sign of respect.
"I heard you wanted to see how Weiss' master teaches her." Shaak Ti said.
"If you will." Winter said.
"I wouldn't be a bother. Weiss, may I ask for your help?" She asked. Weiss handed her brother back to the Mirialan couple.
Winter was amazed at the skill Weiss showed with the lightsaber. But she was weaker when it came to her use of the force. Her ability with it was lacking, but she still had a good basis.
"Why are you struggling with the aspects with the force?" Winter asked.
"I… I struggle visualizing what I want." Weiss said.
"I can help you." Shaak Ti said. "But you need to be able to do it alone. You have everything you need, you just need to put it together."
After an hour of training, Shaak Ti ended the force training. She left with a bow, leaving Weiss to recover.
"Aside from your Jedi abilities… you have one more thing you haven't shown me." Winter said.
"I can't summon." Weiss said defeated. "I've tried time and time again, but each time, it just blows up in my face."
"Summoning is a part of being a Schnee. Even if that doesn't mean much nowadays. It hasn't left you. It can't. It's a part of us." Winter said.
"Maybe it's not part of me." Weiss said.
"We Schnees are unique. Unlike many, our Semblance is hereditary. But that doesn't mean it will come easily. Your Semblance is like a muscle. The more you practice with it, the stronger it will become. But if you only focus on one aspect of it..." Winter created a glyph in her hand and summoned a Beowolf. "If you fail to test the limits of what you think is possible, then you'll never truly grow."
"How am I supposed to know what to do? I don't know if it's something wrong with the glyph, or wrong with me." Weiss said, getting frustrated.
"Emotions can grant you strength. But you must never let them overpower you. It sounds to me like you have two choices in front of you. Become the Jedi Huntress or fall into a pit of self-despair where you waste away. I don't want that second option for you." Winter said.
Weiss let out a sigh.
"Do you believe I can do it?" Weiss asked.
"Yes."
"Then… I will."
Author's notes: That's another chapter done. Thanks for reading this one.
I have a cold right now, so this is going to be short. I really can't think of anything to put here. I was able to write this one so fast because I had access to the transcript to the episodes.
The changes of Jedi robes for anyone comes from me wanting a different design for the characters. Some of the original robes I have an issue with now, like Jaune's. It was a bit… much. Now he has a simple white Jedi robe.
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May the Force be With You
-DragonZlayerx12