Chapter 4: The Initiation Process
Author's Note: Hello guys, I'm back with a new chapter of A Lotus Beyond the Night. Hopefully you all read my Roman X Neo one-shot stories. If you want more, let me know. Episode 12…what an episode. I may not have gotten emotional like most people but it was devastating for me. Anyway, enjoy the chapter.
I do not own RWBY. It belongs to Monty Oum (R.I.P.) and Rooster Teeth.
I do not own Batman. He belongs to DC Comics.
A new day has arrived. Everyone was currently looking through their newly acquired scrolls as one student found an interesting news video. It was a news video about Batman and Nightwing. Lisa Lavender was reporting the news
"This is Lisa Lavender reporting about a robbery that was attempted at a Dust factory last night. However, the robbery was stopped by the mysterious two vigilantes Batman and Nightwing. The leader of the group, who is known a Firefly, will be admitted to Arkham Asylum on diagnosis of pyromania," the newswoman reported. A picture of Firefly was shown. "Pyromania is an impulse control disorder in which an individual repeatedly fail to resist impulses to deliberately start fires in order to relieve tension or for instant gratification."
Everyone was already talking about the news and the two vigilantes. They were excited as they were getting more news about the vigilantes, especially a certain red cape wearing girl. She was jumping up and down like the hyper school girl she is.
"Oh my god Yang! Batman kicked some butt last night! Apparently he fought this White Fang member name Firefly," Ruby told her older sister.
"That's cool Rubes. What kind of name is Firefly though?" Yang asked.
"Well according to the news lady, he's an insect Faunus who wears this suit so he can use his semblance to set things on fire," Ruby explained as best as she could.
"That sounds pretty cool. Too bad he's going to a place for crazy people," the blonde girl replied. Yang heard a few things about Arkham Asylum. She knew that the institute is for those with mental conditions, especially for criminals with those mental conditions.
Meanwhile, not everyone was excited about the news. Blake was the one person who was frowning the whole time. She couldn't believe the White Fang are still committing more crimes, especially stealing Dust. While she knew that the organization have stolen Dust before, she never thought they would gone this far.
Blake knew who Firefly was. He was one of the White Fang's majors and one of the strongest members. If he was defeated by Batman, then she was definitely scared of the vigilante. She wasn't sure if he was still coming after her. She came to Beacon to atone the wrong doings she did in those years of terrorism. She won't be able to if Batman comes after her.
It was then that the first year students went to the lockers to gather their weapons. They needed them for their initiation test. While the students were either at their lockers or having breakfast, Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie were at Professor Ozpin's office with the headmaster.
"I saw the news report. It seems Arkham Asylum has a new inmate," Ozpin stated.
"Well, he really was excited about setting us on fire," Nora replied.
"Anyway, have you received any information from Firefly?" the headmaster asked.
"Apparently, he's one of the majors of the White Fang. He supposed to be one of the strongest members," Ren told him.
Flashback
Ren, as his vigilante alter ego Batman, was interrogating Firefly. At first, the villain wasn't willing to talk. However, he and Nightwing, Nora's vigilante alter ego, started beating him, but he wouldn't give in. It wasn't until that Nightwing broke one of his legs that Firefly decided to talk.
"Tell us what we need to know now," Batman demanded. "What is your position in the White Fang?"
"I'm one of the organization's majors. Only the strongest members can get this position," Firefly explained.
"We know that the White Fang are working with Roman Torchwick. What are they planning to do with the Dust?" the vigilante asked.
"We need it for supplies. Our numbers are growing. Soon the revolution will start," the pyromaniac answered.
"Not if I'm here. Who is Torchwick's superior?" Batman demanded.
"I don't know. Only the Lieutenant knows," the villain replied. "We only meet up with Torchwick though."
"Is that all?" Batman asked. Firefly nodded. The vigilante threw the pyromaniac to the ground. They still got no leads on Torchwick's superior.
Flashback End
"Anyway, that what happened," Ren said.
"It seems we still have no information. Considering you took down one of their majors, you should expect to face more," Ozpin told the student.
"So? Let them come. We'll win no matter what," Nora commented.
"I admire your confidence. Knowing that you cannot use the weapons of your vigilante personas, I assume you have alternative weapons to use," Ozpin asked them.
"Yes," Ren answered. He took out black colored dual machetes with green blades. "Lie Ren's weapon is dual machetes that can shift into a large shuriken when connected together." Nora took out her weapon, which is a dark gray and blue war hammer.
"Nora Valkyrie's weapons are a war hammer that can also shift into an axe," the gingered haired girl explained.
"I'm surprised that they're not part guns," Ozpin commented.
"We don't use guns," Ren told the headmaster.
"It's kind of our rule," Nora added.
"I see. I won't question it any further," the headmaster replied. Glynda's voice can be heard in the intercom.
"Would all first year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation? Again, all first year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately," Glynda announced.
"I believe you two should get going. I have to be there as well," Ozpin told the two students. Ren and Nora nodded and made their way towards the cliff. They would join the other freshman students, who included Ruby, Yang, and Blake. Ren was still wary of the former White Fang member. He still didn't trust her.
Ozpin joined Glynda and the first year students at Beacon Cliff. Nora noticed that there were silver tiles on the floor and got on one next to Ren. Ozpin was holding a mug while Glynda was holding a tablet.
"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest," Ozpin stated.
"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of "teams." Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates…today," Glynda announced.
"What? Ohhh…" Ruby muttered. Nora just hoped the young girl knows what she's doing.
"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be partnered with someone with whom you can work with," Ozpin stated. Ruby groaned at the statement. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years." Ren was impressed at this method, knowing that he and Nora needs to find each other quick.
"Whaaaat?!" Ruby shouted in disbelief. Nora sighed. She just hoped Ruby do well. She doesn't seem fully prepared like the rest.
"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path…or you will die," Ozpin explained. Juane laughs nervously and then gulps loudly. Ren shook his head. He didn't know how the blonde boy got into Beacon. "You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"
"Yeah, um, sir?" Juane asked as he raised his hand. Ren only shook his head in disappointment. The boy really doesn't have what it takes does he? Hopefully he doesn't get himself killed.
"Good! Now take your positions," Ozpin said. Everyone strikes a pose. Nora crouches low, Ren wields his weapons, Yang raises her fists, Ruby readies her body, and Juane is still raising his hand.
"Uh, sir? I've got, um…a question," Juane told the headmaster. He misses the tile under Weiss rising up into a springboard, rocketing into the air and over the forest, as the platforms activate down the line. "So this landing…strategy thing…uh, wha-what is it? You're, like, dropping us off or something?"
"No. You will be falling," Ozpin simply answered. More students are being thrown.
"Oh, uh, I see…So, like did you hand out parachutes?" the blonde boy asked. Now Ren was getting suspicious. Juane should have known what kind of school Beacon Academy is, yet he doesn't seem to understand the concept. Ren was going to investigate the Arc boy. He feels like the blonde was hiding something.
"No. You will be using your own "landing strategy,"" the headmaster answered. It was then that Nora and Ren were launched into the Emerald Forest. The magenta eyed teen would have continued listening to the conversation, but he needed to focus on pairing up with Nora. Using the blades of his dual machetes, Ren latched himself onto a tree trunk and spiraled down the tree until hitting the ground and brushing himself off.
The teen looked up to see Yang Xio Long propelling herself into the air with her shotgun gauntlets. He paid no further attention and took out his Batman scroll. He knew that the forest is littered with cameras, so he decided to hack into the security system in order to look for his friend. He succeeded and multiple screens appeared on the scroll.
"Okay, where are you?" he asked himself. To Ren, this is an advantage because he now knows who's in what location. One of the screens showed Blake Belladonna landing on her feet. That action and the fact that her bow look like cat ears made it obvious that she's a cat Faunus. Of course, Ren already deduced it. This also helped the teen keep a close eye on the former White Fang member.
Through his scroll, it seems that Juane managed to survive his landing. However, it involved him requiring help by being speared to a tree by Pyrrha Nikos. Ren also found Ruby and Weiss together, so it seems those two are now partners. Pyrrha met up with Juane a moment after. There was something that caught Ren's eyes all of a sudden.
One of the screens showed Yang mercilessly killing an Ursai after the creature cut off a strand of her hair. He also took note that the girl was full of anger and the color of her eyes was now red instead of lavender. Truth be told, Ren was disappointed at what he just saw. The blonde girl became completely angry after losing some of her hair. Not only that, it seems her anger was controlling her as well.
Ren had no doubt that if Yang continues her style of attack and not keeping her emotions in check, she's going to make a lot of mistakes she's going to make. A lot of skilled people can take advantage of her anger in a fight. It's an emotion that makes someone too predictable. What surprised him even further is that Blake is her knew partner, as the former White Fang member killed another Ursa. He'll give her points for that.
As Ren continued to make his way through the forest, he saw through his scroll that Nora was getting closer. Given the fact that the other first year students were pairing up, there were no doubt he and Nora would become partners.
Suddenly, the magenta eyed teen heard a loud hiss coming from behind. It seems he's not alone in this area of the forest. Readying his weapons, Ren turned around to see a King Taijitu flicker its tongue at him. He narrowed his eyes at the snake Grimm. While he did fight criminals most of his vigilante career, he does have some experience in fighting the creatures of Grimm.
The King Taijitu was an interesting species of Grimm. It has two heads, one white and one black. Each head has a mind of its own as a matter of fact. The black head strike at the male teen, but Ren performed a flip and landed on top of it. He stabbed the top of the snake head with one of the machetes. The creature roared, or rather hissed, in pain.
Before Ren could dig the weapon deeper into the Grimm's brain, the white head charged at him. The male teen quickly jumped off, causing both heads to collide with one another. Seeing this as an opportunity, Ren threw his other machete at the black head. This proved successful as the machete pierced its eyes, finally killing it. All that's left is the white head.
The white head attacked Ren to avenge his fallen brother, but the male teen dodged the attacked. He grabbed his weapons from the dead black head and leaped over it. The white head went for another attack, but Ren quickly connected his dual machetes together and shifted them into a large shuriken.
As the white snake head gave a large hiss, the male teen threw the projectile at the Grimm. The result was that the head was cut clean off its body. As the Grimm was now disintegrating, Ren collected his weapons, which was attached onto a tree.
"Having fun?" a familiar voice asked. Ren looked up to see his childhood friend Nora sitting on a tree.
"Were you sitting there the whole time?" the male teen asked.
"Kind of, I was going to help, but you seemed to handle it very well," the girl replied. "It looks like we're partners."
"Well that was the plan after all. Anyway, we need to go get an artifact," Ren stated. Nora nodded happily, and the two headed to look for the artifacts. Luckily, Ren still has access to the security cameras, and one screen showed the location of the artifacts. As the two were making their way, an Ursa was blocking their path.
"Let me handle this," Nora told her partner as he was preparing to fight the Grimm. She hasn't even come close to a Grimm ever since she landed in a forest. Seeing Ren kill a Grimm made her jealous. The bear-like Grimm roared at her, but Nora was unafraid. She just looked back the creature.
The Ursa swiped its paw at Nora, but the girl knocked it away with her weapon in hammer mode. Activating her semblance, Nora sent electricity to her arms and legs. When the creature charged at her, the female teen landed a roundhouse kick that sent electricity to the Grimm's head. The Ursa roared in anger and pain, but Nora wasn't done with it yet. She shifted her hammer into axe mode and sliced the monster's head off in a quick fashion.
"Now with him out of the way, let's go," Nora said. The two partners rushed to look for the relics. The two suddenly heard a loud girlish scream. "Is that a girl in trouble?" Ren looked at the camera monitors on his Batman scroll.
"No, that's the blonde boy from earlier. He's currently dangling from a Death Stalker's tail," Ren stated. "I seriously need to talk to Ozpin about this boy. He's even crying." Nora cringed at the news. That was really embarrassing, especially for someone on camera.
"Should we go help him?" the girl asked.
"He has Pyrrha Nikos is with him, but he's still in danger. Wait, the Death Stalker just flung him into the air. There's no way telling where he might land," Ren replied.
"What about Pyrrha?" Nora asked.
"She's running from the Death Stalker. It's a smart choice considering those things are hard to beat alone," her friend reported. "The direction she's going indicates she's heading towards where the artifacts are. We should go there." They eventually found a circular stone temple that contained numerous black and gold colored chess pieces.
When Ren and Nora got to the temple, they found that they weren't the only ones there. Blake and Yang were there was well. Ren quickly put away his Batman scroll because he definitely didn't want anyone to see it, especially Blake since he and Nora fought her as their alter egos.
"Hey Ren, Nora," Yang greeted them.
"Sup," Nora replied. Ren didn't say anything and focused on the artifacts. All of them were chess pieces of two different colors. One chess piece caught his eye. It was a black knight relic. Nora came up with different nicknames for Batman. The most common ones are the Dark Knight and the Caped Crusader.
For some reason, he preferred the former as he saw it fitting. Ren grabbed the black knight relic as it reminded him of the favored nickname. He joined his partner who was talking to the other two girls. A screech is suddenly heard from their right, and Pyrrha Nikos comes into the scene as the Death Stalker from earlier uproots entire trees in its chase after her. Pyrrha narrowly dodges its giant claws and keeps on running.
"Juane!" the Spartan shouted.
"Pyrrha!" the blonde boy shouted back from a tree. So that's where he landed. In fact, Ruby is with him as well. Ren was confused on why Ruby was there and not with Weiss. He did witness them become partners earlier through his scroll. The red caped girl stood up and looked at the Grimm blow.
"Whoa!" Ruby cried out as she ran off the branch and landed in a roll. Nora gave that landing an eight out of ten.
"Ruby!" Juane whined. Ren couldn't believe that the blonde actually whined.
"Ruby!" Yang called out to her sister, who was standing back up.
"Yang!" the red caped girl called back in an excited tone. The two sisters embraced each other in a hug. As much as Ren hates to break up a family reunion, the group do need to address a Death Stalker chasing a still running Pyrrha.
"Did she just run all the way here with a Death Stalker on her tail?" Blake asked.
"Umm…Yang?" Ruby muttered to her sister while tugging her sleeve.
"Yeah Rubes?" the blonde girl responded. The red caped girl pointed up to the sky. It is revealed that Weiss Schnee is hanging onto a talon the size of her body that belongs to a gigantic Nevermore. So that's where she was.
"How could you leave me?!" Weiss yelled at Ruby.
"I said "jump"!" Ruby yelled back.
"She's gonna fall," Blake said.
"She'll be fine," Ruby replied.
"She's falling," Ren muttered. Juane is finally out of the tree, panting until he looks up and grins at the sight of Weiss falling through the air, giving him the opportunity to jump off the branch with arms outstretched and catch her.
"Just…dropping in?" Juane said as he smiled at the heiress. Weiss was speechless and Juane realized why when they looked down.
"Oh god," the blonde muttered. They both hang on to each other wide eyed as they suddenly fell to the ground with their weapons falling behind them. Ren has to give some props to Juane for saving Weiss. "Oh, noooooooo-Oomph!" Juane does a faceplant into the dirt, limbs sprayed out, and serves as the perfect landing spot for Weiss as she falls into a seated position on his body.
"My hero," Weiss said in a mocking tone.
"My back…" Juane groaned. At least the blonde had his moment. Meanwhile, the Death Stalker is still hunting Pyrrha, but she manages to land on her side at the feet of the group. Ren knew that the Grimm needed to be dealt with already. Just as Ruby was about to charge at the scorpion creature, the magenta eyed teen went in her place.
Connecting his dual machetes, Ren shifted them into shuriken form. The Death Stalker gave a roar and crawled towards the male teen that was challenging it. Ren threw the shuriken, which sliced off the creature's stinger. The Death Stalker screeched in pain as a result. Ren knew that a Death Stalker's stinger can release person if it jabs an opponent. Taking it away was the first priority.
"Nora, I'm going to need your assistance on finishing it off," Ren told his friend as he recollected his weapon and the stinger. From what he knows, the stinger is one of the few things that can pierce a Death Stalker's armor. Pretty ironic, isn't it?
"You got it!" Nora called back to her partner, running to join fight the scorpion Grimm.
"Hey, let me join the fun!" Yang called, joining them in the fight. She shot a couple of blasts from her shotgun gauntlets at the Grimm. However, this only made the creature angry.
"Normal bullets won't work on a Death Stalker. Their armor is too tough for that. We need heavy power," Ren explained to the blonde girl. Nora demonstrated this by smashing the creature's head with her weapon's hammer form. This managed to daze the monster for a bit.
"Oh I get it," Yang replied. Using her gauntlets, she leaped herself into the air. When she came down, she slammed her right fist onto the Death Stalker's head. This caused the creature to screech in pain again. Ren knew that the creature was weakening, so they needed to land the finishing blow. Seeing that the monster's shell has been weakened, Ren pierced the Death Stalker's head with the stinger. The creature gave one last screech before collapsing to the floor dead.
Meanwhile, the rest of the group was fighting the giant Nevermore. Ruby, Blake, and Pyrrha were shooting at the Grimm bird while Weiss was firing blasts of Dust. The bird was dodging the attacks. Ren knew that the Nevermore is an aged Grimm. He realized that Juane wasn't doing anything, just standing there in fear. The boy's weapons doesn't shift into a gun, just a regular sword and shield.
"Juane, do something useful and distract that thing!" Ren shouted at the blonde boy.
"What? Why me?" Juane asked.
"If anything happens to them, it's on you!" the magenta eyed teen responded in frustration. Juane gulped, knowing what he needs to do. He picked up a rock and threw it at the Nevermore. Amazingly, the rock hit its target. The giant Grimm turned to see Juane who was waving his arms at it.
"Hey, come and get me!" the blonde shouted. The Nevermore ignored its attackers and dove at the boy. Ren knew this was all according to plan.
"Nora, now!" Ren told his friend, tossing the stinger towards her. Nora quickly used her weapons hammer form to smack the stinger, sending it at the Nevermore. The stinger pierced the bird's left wing, causing the creature to fall to the ground. Ruby used Weiss's glyphs to finish it off by cutting off the Grimm's head.
Most of the teens cheered at the results of the battle. Juane was relieved while Ren simply smiled at the success of the fight. Maybe it wasn't that bad working with others. He was even impressed with Blake's performance in helping out against the Nevermore. However, he still had a bit of distrust in her due to her criminal background. However, Ren will no longer distrust the cat Faunus if she continues to prove herself.
"Russel Thrush. Cardin Winchester. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark," Ozpin announced. The screen of the auditorium shows each of their profiles as the boys are lined up for the applauding audience to see as the headmaster continued. "The four of you retrieved the black bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team CRDL (Cardinal), led by Cardin Winchester!"
The audience gives one more wave of ovation. Ren only saw a glimpse of the four boys through his Batman scroll back at the Emerald Forest. He didn't see much from them. He watched as four other students walked up to the stage to take Team CRDL's place in front of the headmaster as their faces appeared on the screen.
"Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee. Pyrrha Nikos. Juane Arc. The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team RWNJ (Orange)," Ozpin announced. "Led by…Ruby Rose!" Weiss looks to her right surprised, where Ruby is obviously in shock. Yang rushes up to the stage to hug her sister.
"I'm so proud of you!" the blonde girl told her sister. Ren and Nora clapped along with the rest of the crowd. Nora was happy for the young girl. She believes that Ruby has what it takes to be a natural leader. It was then that she and Ren head toward the stage with their future team members.
"And finally: Lie Ren. Blake Belladonna. Yang Xio Long. Nora Valkyrie," Ozpin announced as he motions over them. "The four of you retrieved the black knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team RBYN (Robin). Led by…Lie Ren!" Nora clapped with the rest of the crowd. In her honest opinion, Ren would make a perfect leader.
"Robin. I like that name," Nora said. Meanwhile, Ren was focusing on the fact that he's the leader of a new team. While he knew that it is a big responsibility, Ren believed he could work with it.
"It looks like things are shaping up to be an…interesting year," Ozpin said amid the last round of cheers.
Author's Note: There you have it. While we didn't get to see any Batman and Nightwing action in this chapter, we did see some Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie action. The pairs received different chess pieces, resulting in them to be placed in different teams.
Team RBYN (Robin) Does anyone get the reference?
Lie Ren
Blake Belladonna
Yang Xio Long
Nora Valkyrie
Team RWNJ (Orange)
Ruby Rose
Weiss Schnee
Pyrrha Nikos
Juane Arc
Anyway, we'll definitely see some vigilante action on the next chapter. Before that, check out the RWBY community I created. It's called Gelato/Partners in Cream.