Hello readers, glad to be back with you. Sorry bout the extended break, college and being one of the two family mechanics when one car breaks down I'm called to help fix it
And then another broke
And repeat
Point is my car is back in working shape and I figured I'll just end it where I'm at and give it to you while I make some more edits to it while also getting some one shots out as well
Codex: thanks dude, I'm gonna try to make the Beacon arc a bit more fun before everything turns into a clusterfuck.
I'm still brainstorming on how the origin reveal will go down. I have a rough mental draft of it starting with all of the obviously non-Remnant tech I'm throwing around like TP on halloween
Now, I'm sure you don't wanna listen to me yammer on so without further adieu
RWBY is owned by RoosterTeeth
Chpt 5: initiation
Location: Remnant, Vale, Beacon academy, cliffs
Date: Monday, 12, July, 2021
Time: 0900 VST
Unknown voice: "They will be untouched by plague or disease, no sickness will blight them."
After Ozpin started his speech I kinda zoned out, totally not a morning person
I honestly felt ready for it in a hunter-esque getup with a pair of armored jeans and a shirt with a rail gun graphic and e=mc(2) in red text with a duster compared to what everyone else was wearing
I mean aura is bullshit sometimes, but really, glass cannons the lot of em
No armor at all no one but Jaune and Cardin's group thought to bring some passive defence.
Specially because aura (and lethal amounts of coffee) is bullshit and I stayed awake long enough to cram a few basic chem, anatomy, and material science books into my head for the past two days to improve my creations
Made me some combat stimulant cigarettes baby!
And that set the proverbial snowball a-rollin
I mean the act of pulsing my aura through materials was kinda a sparring accident and yes, I do owe Qrow another blade for his fucking schtye/sword/gun but I'll make it up to him
Now what would be better, Make a lightsaber out of it or just make the blade out of adamantium? Decisions decisions
I turned to my right to address Jaune looking like a fish out of water staring at the forest, while unknowingly standing on a catapult plate
"Hey, Jaune wanna have a puff?"
He slightly grimaced before he asked
"What is that?"
"A cigarette? What you ever seen folk chewing on one of these after a hard day's work?
At his affirmation I flashed a pack of cigarettes into my waiting left hand
"It's made of aura dude. It'll basically feel like suckin in air." I told him
He glanced at the pack for a few seconds before reaching out and waiting for me to drop one into his hand
I quickly swatted his hand another way and stuck an unlit cig between his lips
"Jaune, Don't worry, someone will catch you" I told him as Ozpin was finishing up his speech, I then quickly lit it while he reflexively breathed in producing a small coughing fit and not noticing the dull golden glow that momentarily flashed over his entire body
"cough…spit What the hell do you me- ahhhh!" Jaune was catapulted into the air with a squawk of surprise and the newly lit cig floating in the air for a beat before it disintegrated
I was sent tumbling through the air soon after, going head over heels a few times before spreading my arms and legs to decrease my speed
"Great, now he'll for sure survive this "team making" experience" I thought to myself as I quickly flashed in a parachute on my back and an air pressure altimeter on my left wrist (basically tells altitude by a miniscule pressure increase as I descend)
10,000ft….
8,000ft…
7,000ft…
"O holy Gaben, protect me" I whispered as I pulled the ripcord at 6,000ft
The chute worked perfectly and a few seconds later I felt the force of it deploying and immediately slowing me down causing some of my blood to rush into my legs
"Ahhhhh, shit g-force." I thought as I saw some blackness in my peripheral vision
Yes I don't design parachutes for a living, so I just made sure it would work enough
Sadly in my haste to slow down I forgot to add some kind of controls to the parachute… Yep it's a piece of cloth with multiple braided ropes connecting me to it
This led to me smacking right into one of the taller trees and the chute getting caught in the branches
"Nailed it…" I groaned as I looked up to see if I could climb onto a big enough branch
"Thunk… Thank you!" I heard as Jaune was nailed to another tree close by
"I'm sorry!" Was the call back that had me chuckling under my breath
"Hey! Otto get me down from here man!" I heard Jaune call out to me as he tried in vain to liberate himself
"If you havent noticed jaune, I'm in the same position as you. Man what an adrenaline rush though" I told him after clambering to a big enough branch to support me
He just looked at me like I'm crazy… ok I might be a bit crazy
I then sat down and leaned against the tree while retrieving my lighter and a deathstick, lighting it and slowly taking a drag
"Yea man, can't wait for you to have this stuff. It's outa this world." I told him
"What? The cigarette or whatever is allowing you to make them?" He questioned
I glanced at the sky as Pyrrha entered the clearing with a miniscule grimace when she saw the cigarette and expressed her opinion about it vocally as well
"Uhm are you sure that's really what is needed right now?" She questioned
"Well he survived, I honestly thought Ozpin was insane when I noticed the camouflaged slabs of metal we were all standing on. But these cigarettes are nothing but aura anyways." I supplied as I watched her pull the spear from the tree and it switch back to its rifle form, freeing Jaune and locking in their partnership as they made eye contact
"What does everyone have a shape-shifting gun?" I asked rhetorically as Jaune slowly got back up and proudly displayed the shield of Corcea Mors
"Nope! I've got this shield that's shape-shifting too!" Jaune added in getting a small chuckle from me
Suddenly the silence that was around us was pierced by a howl of a beowulf
"Well then I suggest we get ready. Because the grimm has taken notice of us." I said as a bolter materialized in my hand
Seconds later the bolts hit their target exploding in a glorious ball of fire and shrapnel
Between that and Pyrrha expertly switching between her rifle and javelin forms for long range cover and CQC the fight was done in a decent amount of time
The sad thing for Jaune is the universe will take every chance to spite you
Instead of getting slapped by a tree branch he got whacked in the face with half an ursa minor that while definitely bisected at the waist had enough momentum to swipe at him knocking Jaune down with blood slowly darkening his hoodies left shoulder
"Jaune! Pyrrha check him, I'll cover you!" I said as I cut down the few remaining beowulf's
jaune rolled the now disintegrating ursa off him slowly getting to his feet as Pyrrha got within a few feet of him
"Ugh, it's okay just a scratch, not even that deep." he said glancing down at his shoulder and slightly wincing as he rolled it
"Jaune, why didn't you activate your aura?!" Pyrrha worriedly asked him as I caught up to them with a fresh roll of bandages
"Huh?" Jaune asked
"Your aura?" Pyrrha repeated
"Gazuntite" jaune responded
"Jaune do you know what aura is?" Pyrrha asked him with alarm slowly growing over her face
"Pfh, of course I do. Do you know what aura is?" He asked back trying to bluff his way out and yelping a little as I started to apply the bandages
"Aura is the manifestation of our souls. It bears our burdens and shields our hearts." Pyrrha explained
"Have you ever felt like you're being watched without knowing someone was there?" She continued
"Uh, yea." jaune said
"With practice, our aura can be a shield. Everyone has it, even animals." Pyrrha lectured while gazing at the now bandaged wound that was reddening at a slower pace than before
"What about monsters?" Jaune asked her
"No, the monsters we fight lack a soul. They are creatures of grimm, manifestations of anonymity. They are the darkness, we are the light" She told him
"Right, that's why we fight them." Jaune said
"It's not about why, it's about knowing. Understanding both dark and light helps manifest our aura, everyone has some of both. By bearing your soul outward as a force, you can deflect harm. All of our tools are conduits for aura. You project yourself and your soul while fighting." She responded
"So it's like a forcefield!" Jaune exclaimed happily getting a small laugh out of me
"If you want to think of it that way. Now close your eyes and concentrate" Pyrrha said as she got closer to him and placed her left hand on his cheek
"Uhh… OK." Jaune said as he closed his eyes with Pyrrha's eyes dilating and closing soon after
"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all." Pyrrha intoned as she placed her right hand on his armor chest piece while both of them started glowing red and white respectfully
"Infinite in distance and unbound by death I release your soul, and by my shoulder protect thee." Pyrrha finished as she brought her hands back to her side and slightly slumped forward no longer glowing red
"Pyrrha?" Jaune asked with a worried look in his eyes as she straightened up and opened her eyes
"It's alright, I used my aura to unlock yours. The energy that protects you now is your own." Pyrrha said as I started to undo the bandages which revealed the fresh wound closing up before our very eyes and finishing with a white shimmer that repaired his shoulder and cleaned the blood off
What I was not expecting was the golden outline that surrounded Jaune because I could have sworn that his aura was a pure white
Pyrrha smiled slightly and told him "You have a lot of it."
Jaune looked down at himself and lifted his arms as he took in the white glow that was radiating from his body as I dematerialized the roll of bandages and clapped him on his right shoulder
"Congratulations Jaune, we better get moving. I am pretty sure Ozpin said something about relics we need to find." I said as the group started walking in a random direction eventually finding the entrance to a large cave
"Think this is it?" Jaune asked as he gazed into the mouth of the cave
"Well Ozpin said relics right? I don't think he was just talking about a cave, something human built in obvious disrepair is more likely what he is talking about." I said scratching my chin in thought
"Or he specifically said that to throw us off. That said my gut is saying somethings off here, I would recommend someone goes in to scout while the others stay here and cover the scouts back. With me as the scout and both of you at the entrance I can be quick and quiet, while both of you can be prepared if i encounter something" I proposed as they both looked at me contemplating if it was a sound plan
A few seconds later Jaune and Pyrrha shared a glance and the former unsheathed Corcea mors and deployed his shield while the latter transformed Milo into its rifle form and started scanning the surrounding area
"OK Otto. Sounds good to me, just be careful." Jaune told me
"Aye aye sir. If you feel the ground start shaking you'll know why" I jokingly said as I used my semblance to flash forge my set of Mjölnir mk IV and started my trek into the cave
"VISR, night vision." I thought to myself through the neural lance and the hud responded switching to the familiar colors of white-green and outlines of objects just like H3:ODST
"So, a scorpion bigger than a scorpion main battle tank and enough armor to take multiple of said tank to kill it. Why can't we ever go somewhere nice?" Serina quipped making me smile slightly behind my visor
"I'll be sure to take you on a moonlit walk later, Serina." I thought back to her causing a amused chuckle to come from my helmets internal speakers
"Also I just got a message from professor Ozpin. We have a different objective from the others." She told me
-msg-start-
OBJ-A: Mr.Vantablack, you are to support the other initiates in any way you see fit.
OBJ-B: When everyone has completed their objectives and returned to the cliff you will stay behind and continue your initiation.
OBJ-C: The final part of your initiation is a general extermination of a medium sized pack that has wandered into the initiation boundary
This pack has multiple major/minor Ursa, alpha/omega beowulf's, and a few nevermores. Location is being tracked by an Atlesiian drone which will be your eyes for a couple hours before needing to rtb
use any means you can to eliminate the pack.You will be judged by your planning and how fast it takes to eliminate the pack.
You will be assigned a position based on how well you complete these objectives.
Good luck
-Ozpin
-msg-end-
"Well, I believe I have just the thing for the first objective." I Thought to myself
I stopped for a moment to quickly make 10 stimpacks along with a small bag to hold them
"OK, transport to the cliff could be solved by a couple of warthogs and letting my aural battery's take a hit in charge, saving my internal reserves for the final part."
"What if we run into nevermores?" Serina asked me
"Easily solved with a turret-hog so even the older grimm have a chance of their armor breaking and the fire rate should make target leading a breeze" I thought
Soon the VISR snapped me out of my musing when it started to outline the grimms pincers and the rest of its body as I slowly got closer
Being careful to not disturb it like Jaune did I flashed a handful of UNSC C-14 behind my back and started placing it around the grimm
"The final phase could be tricky. Being defensive and making the pack come to me could be the best option. Serina, any ideas?" I asked
"Well your semblance can make an aircraft right? Along with the grimm not being tough enough to stop a .50 cal, you could just CAS the ground pack. The problem is with the nevermores, if the plane is slow enough it will be easy pickings." Serina theorized
"Oooooooh, you just got me to remember something… there won't be a speed problem with this. If Ozpin wants a weapons demonstration I'll give him one he will never forget." I said
"What are you thinking?" Serina asked
"I'm thinking I will only have to fire once. Please send an affirmative and add that I would like for it to be him and Ironwood only. I can only imagine what would happen if someone acquired a video of the demonstration." I replied cryptically as an uplink to Ozpin's scroll was established and the message sent
I started my trek back out and was soon exiting the cave seeing Jaune and Pyrrha glancing at me I decided to report my findings
"It's not ruins, it's the home of an old deathstalker." I informed them watching as fear started growing on Pyrrha's face and Jaune seeing that look started to get nervous
"Did it see you?" He asked while staring back at the cave with his shield up
"Nope, didn't see me at all. But I left him a surprise that I'll activate once we vacate the area." I told him
With that done Jaune and Pyrrha unknowingly started walking in the direction Jaune was tossed in the canon timeline with me bringing up the rear
As soon as we got under the trees of the forest I started a 10 second countdown for the explosives on my hud
"Fire in the hole!" I yelled as I laid down on my stomach to minimize the airburst that will surely come blazing out of the cave entrance
The other two followed my actions and got to the ground just as the timer hit 0 seconds
There was a great rumble for a bit before a wall of air came speeding out as the entire cave collapsed in on itself asking a neat circle of rubble hopefully burying what remained of the deathstalker and not allowing it to get out if it was still alive
When the ground stopped shaking I got back on my feet as Jaune and Pyrrha had shocked looks on their faces
"What? Aura is an amazing thing. Pump a little in and twice the boom." I chuckled
"Caw"
"Motion tracker ping, south-southwest, 48 degrees up." Serina called out making me turn around just as a large nevermore came into view
A quick thought through the neural lance and my visor was zooming in on it
"well some things never change" I thought as the Mjölnir visor zeroed in on Ruby and Weiss riding on the back of the nevermore
"Hey, grab on. We're going for a ride!" I told the two that had now had their focus on the avian grimm and the huntresses that were using it as an air taxi
When Jaune grabbed onto my shoulder pad I sent a low electric current through him, forcing his muscles to tense and insure he didn't lose his grip as Pyrrha grabbed onto his arm
With that done I quickly pointed my unoccupied arm at the nevermore and with the help of Serina feeding calculations to my visor lined up the shot
boom*
The grappling hook was fired at the nevermore which after a few seconds embedded itself in between one of the bigger cracks of the grimm's armor
"Bullseye!" I cheered as the wire started to reel itself back in, subsequently pulling Jaune, Pyrrha, and I closer to the nevermore whom was distracted by the other humans on his back and didn't notice the three of us until I got close enough to punch right into its armor with all the strength the Mjölnir could give me
To say the least it was a quick death for the bird as its own armor cracked and sent pieces of shrapnel directly into its chest cavity
"Ruby! Grab Weiss and then grab onto me!" I yelled over the wind as the corpse started free falling
She heard me and with the assistance of her semblance latched onto my other shoulder pad, which subsequently locked up their muscles
"Never had spartan ringside seats before. Nice punch." Serina congratulated
"Thank you Serina, please get me enough thrust to glide for a bit. I'm pretty sure the ruins are right over there." I asked her as I tagged a familiar destroyed building in the distance
As the thruster pack unfolded and ignited stopping our free fall I smiled behind my visor with the gimbaling thrusters sending us toward the ruins as the other half of RWBY walked into the clearing
The landing was a little rough as we got a few feet above the ground I unceremoniously stopped the electricity holding everyone onto my armor causing jaune and Weiss to land in a heap as Pyrrha and Ruby absorbed the impact with their aura
"My back…" groaned out Jaune as he unfortunately was used as a cushion for Weiss who as ever the prim and proper Schnee landed gracefully and dug her heels into poor Jaune
"Just.. dropping in?" I said as the Mjölnirs system locked up the armor joints making a small crater in the ground from its weight
"Pff… ha!" Yang laughed as Blake had a look of reluctant acceptance
"Oh my gods there's two of them" She muttered as Yang looped her arm around Blake's shoulders
"Don't say that, you love my jokes I can already tell." Yang said as a medium sized ursa came into the clearing
Everyone tensed expecting another fight only to stare in confusion as the grimms face was caved in and then came Ren running into the clearing
"Nora!" He yelled as the now Identified rider casually holstered Magnhild and practically skipped towards him
"Okay, that was badass." I said as I picked my jaw off of the floor, receiving a humongous grin and amazed eyes from Nora all the while everyone else stared at me
—--
So, thats chpt 5
Just to be clear the "dull golden" and "golden-white" aura glow mentioned in this chapter hints at Jaunes origin for this fic as I really want to crossover with more than just one series, even if it's been done better by someone else in another, the unknown voice lines are obvious to those who know the complete speech