The Second Step: Chapter 2
Hero's Pyre: Part 1
A/N: Well, I am I enjoying this particular chapter. The following nine chapter don't focus on Team RWBY though, and are more focused on finishing the characterizations of tema JNPR and CRDL. Don't worry, the latter are still jerks, they just get a couple of chapters to knock some sense into them.
HELLO RED ARMY! I, YOUR SARGEANT, AM HERE TO INFORM TOU THAT WE HAVE SOMETHING THAT THOSE DIRTY STINKING BLUES CANNOT! WE. DON'T. OWN. THIS. WEB. ANIMATION!
Monday
"Come on team! We only have three weeks until the Tournament. Just four more laps!"
Pyrrha ran backwards as Nora and Ren staggered to a halt, gasping for breath. Pyrrha tried to put on a brave face. If this was what she had to work with, they weren't making it past the semis. Speaking of what she had to work with...
"Eh, where's Jaune?" The J of JNPR was missing.
Nora caught her breath as much as she could, reached behind her back and pulled out a telescope From her hammer pocket. She scanned the track and pointed out a flat, black and blue mass near turn three. The three walked/staggered to the unmoving young man and tried to rouse him.
Jaune groaned into the rubber track. "Mommmm, I don't want to take those... oranges." Jaune received a stout and gentle nudge on the side and finally stood up. "All right, (gasp) all right. Let's go." He took off at a light jog... And fell over again.
Pyrrha and Nora pulled their fearless leader up from the track, despite his protests. "Okay Jaune, maybe that's a little much. Let's get inside."
"I'm good. (Gasp) I can keep going." Jaune shook them off and took off again, but only made it three steps before stopping himself. "All right, as (gasp) team leader, I call a vote. (gasp) All in favor of the dorm."
"Aye."
"Floop floop."
"We need to rest."
Jaune finally caught his breath and turned to go home. Velvet Scarlatina raced by, carrying her weapon like everyone else on the track. Jaune turned to Ren. "Okay, what was that? Four? Five?"
"That is the seventh time she's lapped us. Suffice to say, Velvet has surpassed all expectations of her physical capabilities."
Pyrrha twitched. "You don't need to talk like that you know. We're just running."
Ren cocked an eyebrow. "I would imagine that we need to focus on maintaining a certain level of professionalism. We are, after all, carrying military grade weaponry at a military school."
"That's right Ren, but we're at a school. That means we should be focusing on our friends and learning and meeting hot new guys. Not that you're not a hot guy, I mean, you're good looking, but I mean hot new guys as in new hot guys. You know, new people, you know." Nora put in her two dollars.
Up ahead, a knife landed in front of Velvet. Then it exploded.
"Can't believe it. I missed!"
"I can believe it. You're the worst knife thrower I've ever seen Russel."
"Shut up Sky."
Well, lo and behold, the R and L of team CRDL, Russell Thrush and Sky Lark. Being assholes as usual.
"Leave her alone you two." Pyrrha and Ren got between them and Velvet. "Seriously, what is your deal with her?"
Russell chuckled. "It's fun. Why wouldn't we?" Sky nodded in agreement. "Besides, why should you care? What's your deal with her?"
"Just because you think it's fun to turn her into your personal rag doll doesn't mean that we'll just stand back and let you attack her." Pyrrha's hand went to Milo. Ren pulled out his StormFlowers. Jaune and Nora got with the party at that point.
"Guys, guys, just wait okay." Jaune put himself between both groups. "We don't want to fight. Just walk away guys." Velvet slipped behind Jaune, but Pyrrha, Nora and Ren didn't move from their spots. Jaune put his focus back on Sky and Russell. "We don't want to fight, but if you two think you can get away with this, you'll answer to me."
"And-."
"They will answer to all of us." Ren overrode Pyrrha. "The only way we can teach them this lesson is to beat it into them."
Pyrrha twitched.
"YEAH!" Shouted Nora. Magnhild unfolded behind her back. "Lets break some fingers!"
The assembled sweat dropped. "Eh, are you feeling alright, you two?"Jaune asked.
Nora smiled. "Never better!" Ren shrugged.
Sky rolled his eyes. "Freak."
"What. Did. You. Just. Say?" Pyrrha's hands snapped to Miló and Akoúo.
Sky reached for his shotgun. "Freak."
Jaune moved right between Pyrrha and Sky at the last minute, bringing his aura to bear and grabbing and stoping both of them at the last second. "Lay off, both of you. Please."
Pyrrha and Sky stared at each other for a moment. 'Did I, really just do that?' Pyrrha thought. Doubt overcame her, an uncharacteristic thrill of fear coursing through her veins. She'd nearly gotten her team into a fight!
Sky himself shook Jaune's hand off himself and stepped back, fending off Jaune with upraised arms. "Let's get out of here Russell."
"But-."
"Just go!"
Sky nearly dragged his teammate off the field, leaving team JNPR alone, confused and in the case of Pyrrha, unsettled. Nora looked at their retreating forms, then around herself and her team. "Sorry that they were jerks Velvet."
Velvet, as it turned out, hadn't been hurt, the grenade knife Russel had thrown only being a flash bang. "Thanks for helping me." Velvet smiled a little and turned to keep running. JNPR watched her retreating form for a moment, but neglected tI see what was happening with Pyrrha.
Ren turned and started off. "We're done here. We won."
Pyrrha twitched. She began to shake. She gulped.
Jaune, bless his naïveté, was still holding onto Pyrrha's chestplate and only now let go. However, he knew that something was wrong with her almost instantly. He rested a hand on her shoulder. "Pyrrha, what's wrong?"
Pyrrha couldn't stop the fear that flashed through her. She shook off Jaune's arm and turned away from the group. "I, I just, I need to go."
"Wait-."
Pyrrha bolted, leaving her team behind.
Ren shared a look with Nora. "What the hell was that?"
(Four Years ago)
Pyrrha slowly came to awareness in her cot. The exhaustion of sleep passed in moments, as adrenaline quietly kicked in. After one unquantifiable period of time, she pulled herself out of her bed. The others had roused themselves to the rising sun, though a handful of her fellows were still asleep.
She fetched breakfast for herself and after eating, began her morning warm ups. Stretches, a warm up jog indoors, more stretching. What she'd do later that night would depend on what they had ready for her. Would she have a problem with herself... or someone else?
"Hello Pyrrha."
"Hello Nestor."
Pyrrha moved out of the compound and into the sun of the track. The air tingled on her skin, the mid-afternoon sun warming it. Pyrrha pulled out her sword and shield, and moved to the center of the track. Pyrrha ignited her aura and went to work, moving from one stance to the next, incorporating a sword kata from Atlas periodically. Step, strike, step, step, block. Feint low, strike high. Move left, feint, double feint, parry.
Pyrrha stopped every now and again to check the clock. 8:30 finally rolled around and Pyrrha went to her S.O.
"Hey Pyrrha."
"Hey Bear."
Pyrrha moved through the building passing a handful of others, exchanging a number of pleasant greetings. She passed Jason and Lars and quickly reached her S.O.'s office. She knocked, and was presently let in.
"Good evening Pyrrha."
"Good evening Captain Pelias."
Captain Pelias fished out a file from his desk and handed to Pyrrha. "We have a... particular problem with this man, Aeson. You, along with Lars and Jason will fix this problem."
"Yes sir."
It looked like it was time to fix a problem.
"Come on, she has to be here somewhere."
"Let it go Jaune."
Jaune stopped and looked back at Nora and Ren. The trio had been running up and down the hallways of Beacon for the whole of their lunch period following Pyrrha's... episode. The bell had gone off a moment ago, signaling the end to lunch and the return to class. "We should let Pyrrha vent whatever's in her system. In the meanwhile, we should also be in class."
Jaune winced at the blunt statement. "Ren, I can live with missing a class. But whatever's wrong with Pyrrha is a tad more important then that. Besides, she's our teammate."
"I say we skip class and look for her." Nora chipped in.
"Well, I don't want to miss class, I just want Pyrrha to be alright. I say we put it... to ... a vote." Jaune sweat dropped at the realization that they already had. "Just go Ren. I stay on to look for Pyrrha. You can come back later."
Ren shrugged. "See you after class. Come on Nora."
Nora didn't answer. Ren looked back at where she had been and saw, to his dismay that she was walking after Jaune. "Nora! You need to attend class."
"Bye Ren! I'll see you after we find Pyrrha." Nora started skipping along with Jaune. Ren face palmed and set off after them.
"Okay, I'll come with you. But we have to tell a teacher where we are."
Jaune shrugged. "Sure, later. No."
Ren nearly face faulted. "Then maybe we should stop wandering around and check where she's most likely to be. Our dorm is probably were she went first."
The group checked their dorm, something that they probably should have done in the first place. Unexpectedly though, Pyrrha was not there. Nora started to go through Pyrrha's end of the room, much to the protestations of her teammates.
"Oh come on guys. I'm the only person that can look for clues in her stuff. We have a mystery to solve and no stone should be left unturned." Nora rummaged through Pyrrha's stuff, throwing armor, clothing, bullets and what Pyrrha would insist was a back massager had she been present, hither and far across the room. Ren and Jaune shared a look, turned around and stepped out of the room.
"Okay, we know, that she's not in our room. We know that she left heading here, or at least in this direction. What could be here that she'd want to see?" Jaune twirled his fingers, thinking. Ren waited for him to think it out, then pointed at team RWBY's dorm. Jaune didn't say anything, just knocked.
"..." There was no reply. The door was locked. If Pyrrha was in there, she didn't want to talk to anyone.
"Okay, may I tell a Professor now?"
(Four Years ago)
Pyrrha leapt from rooftop to rooftop, carefully gauging whether the next jump would force her to roll on the gravel or plant her sword into the wall and climb. Jason and Nestor were moving in behind her, in standard formation. The night air sank around them, chilling the bones and sharpening the mind.
Pyrrha made another leap, landing on the ledge of the building and racing across the roof, her feet muffled by the rare rubber roofing. Mistral barely stirred below her, the occasional car lighting the distant skyway, the vehicle too rare in this part of the metropolis to warrant the wide roads that would have divided the buildings and slowed her progress.
Jason landed behind her, pulling out his GPS and gesturing at a nearby roof to detour over. Pyrrha and Nestor changed course and cleared the gap. Jason took a run, but misjudged the distance. He hung on desperately to the ledge, slowly working his way up and finally standing. Pyrrha turned and moved to the next rooftop, aiming to catch up with Nestor, already three rooftops away.
This pattern had been present and continued for the duration of the trip. Run, jump, roll, climb. Pyrrha enjoyed the simplicity of it, and the inherent complexity of movement that it also necessitated. It was a strange paradox, not unlike what her trainers had drilled into her. The roofs passed far too quickly.
Nestor and Jason were already on the rooftop, binoculars out and confirming the earlier recon. The plan had been formulated at the compound, and targets were selected, along with paths of entry and exit. Backups and contingencies were established and at the ready. Extraction was in one hour, thirty seven minutes.
"Set, Synch." Jason said.
"Synch." Nestor and Pyrrha replied.
Pyrrha counted down mentally. 'Aaaaand there's the opening.' She and Jason jumped clear of the roof, landing on the road. They sprinted, reaching the gate and using an Aura enhanced leap to clear it. "Door one, clear."
The courtyard was well lit, but it had a single alleyway of darkness towards the front door. Pyrrha and Jason shot across the black, moving like living shadows. The minute gap between guards and camera was closing fast, but the differences of light exposure would buy them the required time.
The two hit the wall below the door, and cleared it with another aura charged jump. One guard was walking away, right on schedule. Pyrrha and Jason separated at this point, moving left and right to the windows. Pyrrha slipped a knife underneath the sill, loosening the lock. A minor application of aura, shifted into Polarity, fooled the magnetic locks hidden in the sill itself. Pyrrha opened the window, stepped through the gap, and set the window back down.
Pyrrha turned and locked the window from the inside. She moved through the halls, using her watch to time the movement of guards, avoiding sight lines and cameras. The clock slowly wound down, and Pyrrha stalked through the building, moving like the angel of death, unseen, unheard, and-
Pyrrha rounded the corner, and was presented with the ever so pleasant image of a guard pissing into a potted plant. Well, here's where the plan breaks down. Pyrrha threw her spear and took him down. "Jason, contact, stage 13." Pyrrha transmitted the warning in all of five seconds. She had to move, now!
The alarm went up, Jason revealing his position on the far end of the compound, distracting the guards. Pyrrha had approximately thirty seconds to move through the building and remove the problem. She sprinted, racing through the gaps of the guards, but now ignoring the cameras. Two guards raced through the hallway crossing, Pyrrha hitting the wall to avoid their line of sight. She cleared the hallways and moved through to the room the problem was in.
From the other side of the door, Pyrrha shifted her aura to her semblance. Pushing magnetic force outward, she detected the individual metallic elements in the room. Magnetism was an incredibly versatile semblance. One possible application of magnetism; endowing someone's tooth implants with a positive magnetic charge, and then imbuing the steel frame of a desk with a positive magnetic charge. Then simply ratcheting up either charge by several hundred times to achieve an incredibly crude nail gun.
The result; no more problem.
Pyrrha ran, placing as much distance between herself and Beacon Academy as possible. She sped through the grounds and down one of the many narrow paths that ran between the school and the Emerald Forest. Finally, Pyrrha came to a halt, overlooking the forest from the cliff. Dimly, it occurred to the huntress in training that she wasn't too far from the launch point, where she and the class of '42 had been initiated into the school.
Pyrrha starred out over the forest. In the distance, the wind ruffled the trees, sending red leaves fluttering up the cliff face. Pyrrha tried to get a hold on her emotions. Oh gods, what was happening to her? Was she having a relapse? She hadn't had one in years!
Pyrrha started to seriously go over what had happened to her. Ren had been, probably unintentionally, using several trigger words and phrases. Typically, those didn't bother her, as four years of therapy, family support and the stress-relieving hobby otherwise known as open combat should have left her a very well-adjusted woman.
Actually, come to think of it, that was exactly what she was. While Ren's words would have affected her a little, and the fight might have provoked her, she should have been able to get through the whole thing Maybe a little angry, but in control. Why had she lost control then?
Pyrrha scanned her memories, trying to find the moment when she fell apart. There had been Velvet, then those assholes from Cardin's team, and then they called Velvet a freak and then...
Pyrrha's brain ground to a halt. OH COME ON! How the literal Shade had she nearly went through a relapse from physical contact with Jaune! Sure he was nice. And cute. And a decent guy. And even a good leader. And good looking in a, nonoNO! Pyrrha tried to focus on what went wrong.
Jaune had stopped her and the guy with blue hair from fighting, and after that she had gotten scared that she had almost gotten into a fight. Then she really freaked out, all sorts of memories from the Argonaut Project percolating to the surface and screaming at her that she had to go now.
Pyrrha drew in on herself, trying to figure out what had gone wrong with her. Figuring this out was precedent to everything else.
BANG!
The cliff below Pyrrha exploded, the face closer to the forest crumbling. Out of the dust, a King Taijitu stuck its head out and up, hissing at her. Pyrrha slowly got to her feet, careful not to lose her balance. The snake Grimm slammed itself into the cliff again, shaking the rock and causing large cracks to form underneath and around Pyrrha.
Pyrrha drew Milò and Akoùo, turning to run and getting all of three steps before the King Taijitu slammed its head into the cliff again and send it, and Pyrrha, into the forest below.
(Four Years ago)
Pyrrha moved with her fellows across the roofs of Mistral, approaching the compound after fixing the problem. The night had been eventful, but overall it had been successful. Pyrrha was satisfied with herself and her fellows, and quite ready to rest.
Jason cleared a roof, then held up a closed fist. Nestor and Pyrrha came to a halt, both pulling out binoculars. Several dozen people, some armed, others unarmed and dressed in aid uniforms. Pyrrha and Nestor shared a glance that iterated their sense of confusion between themselves. What was happening down there? Was it another test?
"Hey, up there!"
"There's someone up there!"
"Holy crap! Is that more of them?!"
A blinding floodlight focused on the trio, as the pop of gun fire filled the air.
And Pyrrha was falling...
Pyrrha landed in the trees, the King Taijitu lunging up at her from the expanding cloud of dust. Pyrrha leapt to the next tree, and then the next and then the next. The serpent plowed through each one, taking them down. Pyrrha hurled herself once more and landed in a heavy and old poplar that survived the first strike. The second shook it to the core though. And the third sent Pyrrha reeling, Akoùo slipping from her grasp.
Pyrrha looked down at her shields shrinking form.
"Oh crap."
A/N: And that people, is chapter two. As usual, I have my editors Ttran2323 and H'te Rarpee to thank for helping with this chapter. I couldn't have done it without you two, and I hope all of your enjoy this story.
Be kind, rewind and review.