A/N: Here's the next chapter, which is one you've all probably been waiting for. It's the time for Cardin to get his partner, and it's not who he expects at all. By the by, thank you for getting me to 15 favorites and 29 follows! You guys are sweet for that. I don't own RWBY; it belongs to the excellent team of Monty Oum and Roosterteeth. Here's chapter 4!
Enjoy~! ^_^
*Chapter 4*
Cardin swung his mace, caught himself on a tree branch, and managed to slow down enough so he wasn't pulverized on impact.
'That would be a really embarrassing way to go,' he thought in amusement. After surviving his father's sadistic idea of punishment, he seriously doubted the best way to die would be on his second day at Beacon, on an exercise to assign teams. His father wouldn't even want his remains.
The orange haired teen pushed those thoughts from his mind, and focused on meeting his would be partner.
'I really do hope it isn't Dove or Russell. Sorry, but I don't want to be stuck with those happy-go-lucky morons again. Sky wouldn't be too bad. Or maybe Velvet. Oh well, it doesn't really matter. I'll let fate decide my partner,' he thought. He pushed his way through the forest, searching for any sign of life.
He heard rustling in the bushes alongside him, and he got his mace out, "Who's there?" He parted them to see if it was Sky, or any other person.
"Hey Sky, is that you?" he asked. A low growling answered him, and he looked up at a Beowolf Alpha, "No it isn't." The Beowolf dashed out of the bushes, and Cardin was surprised to see it was alone. Beowolves were notorious for hunting in packs, and to see one solitary was something entirely new.
"So, mister Big Bad Wolf, you haven't seen a tall, blue haired guy around here have you?" Cardin asked. The Grimm slashed at him, and the indigo-eyed boy was forced to block the attack, muttering, "Geez, you could've just said no." Another Beowolf jumped out, and Cardin knew he had to be careful.
'One lucky shot could take me out, and I'll be wolf food. Not the most pleasant thought in the world,' he thought grimly. The Beowolves slashed at him again, and he back flipped out of the way, an impressive feat considering his massive bulk.
"Haha, you gotta do a lot better than that…" he trailed off as he saw his mace was dented.
"You…you monsters!" he shouted, eyes flaring black. He swung his mace at the first Beowolf, sending it flying into the air. Cardin jumped up, caught it, and threw it on to the ground, breaking the bones and killing it. He landed, and faced the remaining Beowolf, "What, do you want some of this to?"
Multiple slashes of a sword were heard, and the Beowolf fell, dead. The owner sheathed his weapon and gave Cardin a smug smile.
"I'm pretty sure I could've whooped his ass too," Cardin chuckled. Adam looked around, making sure there were no more Grimm around them.
"So, I guess we're partners, huh?" he asked, not minding all that much.
"Yeah," Cardin replied, shaking the Faunas' hand. He saw that Adam was wearing his usual trench coat and black slacks, with the mask on his face.
Acknowledging each other as partners, they set on their way to the ruins, where the relics were contained. Cardin knew from his past life that the relics were simple chess pieces, but they each determined on whom your teammates were.
'In all seriousness, I wish it is someone different from the two morons," he thought. He heard gunfire, and stopped, "Did you hear that?" Adam nodded and unsheathed his katana, and Cardin got to see that the scabbard was a rifle.
"Nice set of weapons you've got there," Cardin complimented.
"Thanks. I got these from someone important to me," Adam replied. He scanned the area, but couldn't see anything. But something didn't feel right.
Suddenly, a large black form sprang out, and nearly smashed into Cardin.
"Was the hell was that!?" he demanded. Getting a look at his attacker, he gulped.
"It looks like we got ourselves a Gyarhino," Adam answered. The beast looked like a rhino, except with white bone spikes jutting along its back, and it had four ruby red eyes. The horns on its snout were at least four to five feet long, and it could kill them easily.
"I can see the fear in your eyes," Adam taunted the beast, trying to make it angrier. It charged again, and Cardin used his semblance again. He picked up the Gyarhino, jumped into the sky, and threw it on the ground.
Adam glowed red, and he used his specialty to slice and obliterate the Grimm. He sheathed his sword quickly again. It was the second time today that Cardin had seen Adam use that fighting style.
"What's that style called? You're the only person I've ever seen use it," Cardin asked.
"It's called laido. It's a fighting style in which you unsheathe the sword, strike, and quickly sheathe it again," Adam answered. It didn't take long before they were attacked again, except the opponent was much larger. Cardin saw the white and black heads, and swore.
"Dammit. We got a King Taijitu," he muttered. Adam grinned. His sword flew out of its scabbard, hitting the two-headed serpent in the white head. Adam dashed forward, grabbed his sword in a backwards grip, slashed, and sheathed it again. Blood leaked out from the wound, and Cardin used his semblance to raise his strength. He slammed his mace into the body of the Grimm, but the beast was much larger than anything he had ever fought, so it didn't do much damage. The tail of King Taijitu whipped around and smacked Cardin in the chest. He was sent into the ground, groaning.
"That really hurt," he complained. Adam soon joined him on the ground, grunting, "I'll agree with you on that one."
"What do you say we hit it at the same time?" Cardin suggested. Adam nodded, "Sounds like a plan." Adam started to glow an even brighter red, and he yelled over to Cardin, "Buy me some time!" Cardin charged at the two-headed snake, dodging strikes from the black head and the tail. He looped himself around the neck and slammed his mace down on the head.
"Move!" Adam shouted. Cardin used his semblance again, and threw the King Taijitu at Adam. He could see the panic in the Grimm's eyes as it was flung towards the Faunas. Adam jumped, spun, and sliced multiple times, severing the black head while Cardin crushed its back.
Both landed, and the Grimm's body fell soon after. Cardin wrinkled his nose at the stench of the snake's blood, "Good God that smells bad."
"We should probably take some of the venom for samples. The Headmaster might find some use for it," Adam suggested. He brought out a flask from inside his coat pocket, and walked over to the corpse. Seeing the white head was still attached even though it was dead, the Faunas ripped out a fang and let a few drops of venom fall into the flask. He sealed it and put it back into his pocket, brushing himself off.
"Well, maybe we should continue on our way," Cardin said. Adam nodded, and fell in behind. They walked through the forest, pushing any stray branches out of their way. Two figures dropped down in front of them, and Cardin nearly swung his mace at them.
"Woah, man. Chill out, it's just us," one of the newcomers said, backing up. Cardin stopped to see Sky and his partner, who made Cardin's heart soar.
'Velvet.' He was truly pleased that it wasn't the two stooges called Russell and Dove. He doubted he could deal with being on the same team as them again. Not that they weren't friends. It was that Cardin wanted a clean slate, and this was a good start.
"So, it seems you got yourself a partner as well," Sky said as he looked Adam up and down. Velvet let out a small squeal of joy as she saw the bull Faunas, "You're a Faunas too!"
Sky raised an eyebrow, as if he wasn't sure how Cardin would react to him and Adam being partners. Adam met his gaze unflinchingly. The blue-haired teen shrugged and extended his hand, "I'm Sky Lark."
"Adam Taurus," the bull Faunas returned, giving his hand a shake. Velvet was next, and she seemed a bit shy to introduce herself, "Ve-velvet Scarlatina."
Their little meeting was interrupted by a loud rustle in the bushes. Everyone was sent into defense mode, looking for the source of the noise. Their question was soon answered by a pair of Ursi Majors leaping out, their huge hands swinging. Velvet jumped back, and threw what looked to be a gun on a whip. The first Ursa roared as the bullet penetrated its thick fur.
Velvet yanked on the whip, and the gun flew back towards its owner. It fired another round, hitting the Ursa in the shoulder. Sky leaped up to stab it with his double-bladed sword, only to get hit with an open paw. The claws dug into his arm, causing the blue-haired boy to yelp out in pain.
'Damn, this might be a bit tricky,' Cardin thought as he ducked a swing from the other Ursa, fighting alongside Adam. The bull Faunas was slashing at the beast, the strikes going through the tough flesh.
Sky's body flickered blue, and he charged the Ursa again, dodging the blows aimed for him. He sidestepped an attack, jumped backwards and stabbed his sword through the Ursa's back. A low wail was heard from the Grimm. Sky pulled the blades out, dual wounds visible.
"Velvet, hit it now!" he ordered. The rabbit Faunas lassoed the Ursa, the whip wrapping completely around its body. Using her aura, she flung the beast in the air, letting the whip unravel from its body.
Sky jumped up again, spun, and slashed at the beast again. The Ursa fell, clearly dead. Sky landed, holding his sword in a backwards grip. In one fluid movement, he sheathed it again.
The duo looked to see how Cardin and Adam were faring. The duo had learned how to coordinate their attacks in the fight with the King Taijitu, and the Ursa was no match for them. From Adam's speed and lightning-quick strikes with his sword to the brute strength of Cardin, it was dead in a matter of minutes.
Sky and Velvet high-fived, breathing hard.
"That was fun," Sky panted. Velvet nodded in agreement.
Adam had sheathed his katana, and pointed to a stone structure ahead, "I think that's the place." Cardin looked at his mace, and saw he needed to make quite the few repairs soon. Dents and scratch marks dotted the weapon.
'Ah well, it's a possible excuse to buy that Fire Mace I saw in that magazine earlier,' he thought.
The structure was circular in shape, and it looked to be the place of an old temple. The group spotted strange objects on the stone pillar.
"Chess pieces?" Sky asked. Velvet picked up a white object, and sure enough, it was a chess piece.
"How about a nice castle?" she suggested. Adam shrugged, as he wasn't one to talk all that much.
"Yeah, that's cool with me," Cardin said, smiling. Sky went along with what the indigo-eyed boy said, "I don't mind." They each picked up a white Rook, and put them in their pockets.
"So, what do we do now?" Sky asked.
"I'm pretty sure we go back to Ozpin and Goodwitch," Velvet answered. Cardin waved them along, "Let's go guys. It's a long walk back to home." The group fell in behind the tall teen, looking out for any trouble.
They were about a mile away when a loud screech filled the air. A large shadow flew over their heads. Looking up, they saw a Nevermore, about medium-sized, overhead.
'Bugger. I knew it was too easy,' Cardin thought grimly. Nevermores were the only aerial Grimm, and that gave them a huge advantage in a fight.
The Nevermore screeched again, only for it to fly away, leaving them alone. They put down their weapons, very confused.
"What was that all about?" Sky asked. Cardin shrugged, "Dunno. But I don't think it was interested in us, that's for sure. Anyway, let's keep going." The group continued on their way until they reached Beacon Cliffs. They handed a waiting Ozpin the white Rook pieces, who took them with a thoughtful look on his face.
"Good job, you are the first ones back. Now, we wait until the others arrive. Until then, make sure you are prepared for the ceremony," he informed. The group nodded and went back into Beacon, where they rested.
It was thirty minutes later when they were summoned again. They went into the Great Hall where they first arrived, and waited patiently. Ozpin started off the teams.
"Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao-Long. You four will be known as team RWBY, led by Ruby Rose." The crimson haired girl was delighted and surprised to be named leader. The next team was up.
"Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie, and Lie Ren. You will be known as team JNPR, led by Jaune Arc," Ozpin announced. Jaune was shocked beyond belief, "Wait, I'm leader!?" Ozpin smiled at the blonde knight, "Congratulations young man."
"Alexander Stewart, Russell Thrush, Kurtis Nielsen, and Dove Bronzewing. You four shall be team ARKD (Arcade), led by Alexander Stewart," Ozpin boomed. Cardin saw Russell give the blonde teen a friendly slap on the back, congratulating his new leader.
"Finally, it is the last team for the day. Cardin Winchester, Adam Taurus, Velvet Scarlatina, and Sky Lark. You shall be known as team CASL (Castle), led by Cardin Winchester," Ozpin announced. Cardin felt his chest soar with pride as he was announced team leader. Looking back at his teammates, he saw the approving nods and claps.
"Now, here are your dorm rooms. Please go to them immediately," Ozpin ordered. CASL left first, wanting to be in their dorm as quick as possible.
On the second floor, CASL was shown the way to dorm 223, where there were four beds, four cupboards, a bathroom, and what looked to be a small kitchen. Adam stepped in first, settling on a bed in the far right corner, "Not bad at all."
Velvet lay down on the bed closest to the kitchen, "Now I have space for my baking supplies."
Cardin crashed on the largest bed, his frame needing the extra space. He looked at the ceiling, "This is quite comfortable, I must say." Sky ran to the bathroom, looked at his reflection, and combed his hair back.
"Hurry up Sky! Some of us want to shower!" Cardin called out teasingly. This brought out snickers from Adam and Velvet. The blue haired teen turned slightly red and left the bathroom, leaving it unoccupied again.
Cardin grabbed a robe and told his teammates, "I'll be out in a couple of minutes or so." He undressed and stepped into the shower, turning the hot water on.
'Ah, that feels very nice,' Cardin thought as the hot water sprayed his muscular body, relaxing his sore muscles. Humming a soft tune he had heard from 'Final Fantasy X', he washed his hair, lathered his body in soap, scrubbing to make sure he got rid of the dirt and sweat.
He turned the water off, dried himself, and put his robe on again. Cardin exited the bathroom, to see Velvet and Adam staring at him.
"What is it?" he asked. His face was met with a slightly damp towel, prompting the two to start laughing. Cardin brushed it off to see it was Sky.
"Very funny Sky. You should be a comedian," he said sarcastically. This only made the two Faunas' laugh harder. Adam got up, cracked his neck, and went into the bathroom next.
"I need to do something real quick," he called over his shoulder. He didn't bother to close the door, and everyone had a clear view of what he was doing.
Adam took out a small bottle, and sprayed some of its contents in his hand. He drew his hand through his hair, and Cardin saw it was hair dye. The Faunas then slicked it back in a windswept style to complete the look. He was met with several stares.
"What, have you never seen someone dye their hair before?" he asked. Sky chuckled, "Nah, you just don't seem the type to spend any time on their hair."
I'll be taking a rinse next then," Velvet said quietly. She was the only female in a room full of guys, so it was natural that she was nervous. She entered the bathroom, and everyone gave the rabbit Faunas the privacy she needed to do her business.
Ten minutes passed by. Then twenty. Then thirty.
"Hey is she okay in there?" Sky asked.
"I dunno. It has been over half an hour," Adam pointed out, concern in his voice.
"I'll knock to see if she's alright," Cardin said. He walked over to the door. He could tell the water was still on. He knocked, calling, "Velvet? Are you alright in there? It's been half an hour." An embarrassed shout came out, "Oh my God I'm so sorry! I accidently fell asleep!" Cardin chuckled, "You might want to hurry up then. We got ten minutes till curfew."
Velvet came out, still embarrassed that she fell asleep in the shower. The water here certainly was very relaxing. A loud knock rapped on their dorm door. On the other side was Professor Goodwitch's voice, "It's time for bed! Lights out!"
CASL climbed into their respective beds, turned out the lights, and tried as quickly as possible to fall asleep.
'I did it. I'm a leader. Now, I can shape myself into a man I'll be proud of,' Cardin thought, tiredness taking over. He closed his indigo eyes, ready for the responsibilities tomorrow would surely bring…
A/N: This is my longest chapter so far, and I have to say I'm pretty damn proud of it. So, Cardin's team is formed. Russell and Dove are with my two OCs on the different team, and RWBY and JNPR are the same. Shoutout goes to HongChong for giving me the idea for team CASL. It was originally going to be CAVS, but CASL sounded better. Plus, special cookie points for whoever guesses the name of the 'Final Fantasy X' song Cardin was humming correctly. Hint: It's possibly the saddest song from the game. Until next time! Review?
RWBYxFluorite