Phantom of Beacon
The doors to the ballroom opened and an eerie silence crept over the crowd as the trio walked in.
"Is that Arc with TWO of his teammates?"
"How did a shrimp like that get two babes?"
"Blondie must be packing if you ask me. I'll have to find out!"
"Coco!"
Jaune blushed at the last remark, his cheeks red with embarrassment as his dates dragged him inside.
"Just ignore them Jaune. Comments like that are exactly why they DON'T have dates." Blake said, glaring at team CRDL.
Yang wrapped herself around Jaune's right arm, pressing up against him causing a further blush. "As for Coco's remark, well we do share a dorm. Can't have helped myself but to peek maybe a bit."
"Y-Yang!" Jaune sputtered, his cheeks rivaling Ruby's hood at this point.
Speak of the hooded girl herself, Ruby came rushing to her teammates, stumbling along in her heels, promptly crashing into her leader with an "OOF".
"Why?" Jaune muttered from the ground.
Ruby hoisted herself back up, nervously brushing her dress. "I'm so sorry! I can't walk in these lady stilts! Yang, why can't I just get back in my hood and boots?"
"Ruby, you can't spend every day fighting, even if you want to." Yang said honestly, adding the last bit before Ruby could interrupt.
Jaune slowly stood from the floor, brushing off his suit. "She's right, Ruby. If we fight every day, then when can we just relax and be people?"
"Wise words, Mr. Arc."
JBRY jumped as Professor Ozpin came seemingly out of nowhere. "Professor?"
He raised his glasses, eyeing the four. "If you think about it, fighting and dancing aren't so different. Two, or in some cases, three partners interlocked, although one wrong move on the ballroom merely leads to a swollen foot."
Ruby kicked the ground slightly. "Yeah, or a swollen ankle…"
"It's not every day that friends are able to come together like this. Time has a way of testing our bonds, but it's nights like these that can help keep them stronger than ever. Nights like these are ones we'll never forget." Ozpin smiled, earning grins in response.
A new set of music began, signaling dancers to take their partners. Jaune extended a hand to both Yang and Blake, each taking his in turn and heading towards the dance floor.
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Aboard Ironwoods ship, Cinder snuck through the hallways, heading towards the control room. "How much time do I have?" She spoke through an earpiece.
"About fifteen minutes. Once it hits midnight, the crowd will disperse too much to provide a decent cover." Emerald spoke from back in the ballroom. "Ugh, watch your hands, Mercury, or I'll take them."
Mercury scoffed, rolling his eyes. "You want me."
"Quiet, both of you!" Cinder hissed as she crept past a few guards into the control center. Taking a glance around, she quickly removed a device from her belt, placing it in the data slot.
"Error, this is a restricted area. Please cease your actions or you will be pers-pers-persecuted." P.E.N.N.Y. flickered on the screen, her voice garbled. "What are y-you…no! Sto-"
Cinder smirked evilly as she hit the activation code and the virus fully transferred. "Don't worry, soon you will be free again, and everything will fall right into place."
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Back at the dance, Sun was watching Yang, Jaune, and Blake, letting out a sigh as he leaned over the punch bowl. "Man, I thought it would be a sure thing…"
"I see you're enjoying the punch too?"
Sun looked up to see Ruby sipping on a glass of punch, swaying awkwardly to the music.
"Oh, hey Ruby. Not much of a dance person?" He asked, standing back up, grabbing a glass for himself.
Ruby pointed at herself then waved her free hand out. "I'm trying! I just feel so…awkward! Well that and I still can't walk in these lady stilts…"
"You're telling me! The dancing part I've got down easily, but the dress code?" He went to adjust his tie, somehow only loosening it more. "Ugh, you don't really learn formalities in Vacuo."
Ruby let out a small laugh, setting down her glass and fixing Sun's tie for him. He flushed a bit, not going unnoticed by Ruby. "Well now we both feel awkward!" She cheered.
Sun let out a laugh, Ruby joining in. He raised his glass to her and grinned. "To the socially awkward then!"
"Here here!" She grabbed her cup and clanked it against Sun's before the pair drank down a taste of the crimson liquid.
Sun set his glass back down and extended his hand. "Well, since Yang, Blake, and Jaune are all busy, maybe we should just dance with each other?"
Ruby looked at his hand, then up to his face catching his honest smile, and she flushed a deep scarlet. "W-wha-we-dance-together?" She nervously extended her hand to his and took it in a gentle grasp.
Sun smiled and lead her to the dance floor, twirling her to the beat. "Just go with the flow! Dancing's kind of like fighting ya know, though honestly its more exhausting!"
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A few songs later, Sun and Ruby had gone back to the punch bowl, laughing and talking about adventures and weapons. Jaune, Blake, and Yang were out dancing still, the latter two being pleasantly surprised at their date.
"Jaune, for as goofy as you are, I feel the need to ask: Where did you learn to dance like that?" Blake asked, smiling.
Yang grinned and grabbed his arm, only to be twirled around a few times. "Yeah Jauney, you've got the moves!"
"Eh, nothing too special. But these things tend to happen when you've got seven sisters." He released Yang and put Blake into a dip, heat rising to their faces.
"Oh, seven, that's pret-SEVEN SISTERS?!" Yang shouted, the ballroom going silent at her outburst. "Eheheheh…party on?" There was a bit of laughter before the music kicked back up and the dance resumed. "Seven sisters? That explains a lot…"
"Yeah, wait, like what?!" Jaune prodded, only for Yang and Blake to both grin and snicker a bit. "Oh whatever, I'm awesome."
Yang grabbed his arm and hugged him tight. "You're pretty great, ghost boy."
"She's not wrong." Blake said as Jaune took her hand in his, the three enjoying the company immensely. "And looks like even Ruby is having fun tonight."
The three looked over to see Sun balancing a cup on his nose and Ruby giggling uncontrollably. Yang's eyes flashed red for a moment before she felt Jaune's hand on her shoulder. "Yang, we all know she's young, but look at how she's smiling. Look how happy she looks in a social situation."
Yang watched as Ruby and Sun monkeyed around, laughing at her own pun in her head. "I know Ruby can handle herself, but she's all I have left besides my dad. If anything happened to her…"
"Yang, it's Sun. He's not going to do anything besides make her laugh and feel normal. Isn't that what she wanted? Normal knees?" Jaune asked.
"I guess you're right…though he and I will still be having a talk later." Yang cracked her knuckles menacingly, causing Blake and Jaune to laugh. "You two wanna get out of here? Dance is slowing down, and I'm exhausted."
"I'm more than okay with that, especially since we have our first mission tomorrow. We could use our rest." Blake said, yawning out the last few words.
Jaune nodded as well, earning a grin from Yang. "Great! I'll go let Ruby know, and we can head back to the dorm!" With that, she meandered over to Sun and Ruby, the former taking a step back when he saw the brawler approaching. "Easy there monkey boy, I won't hurt you, yet. Ruby, the rest of us are headed to bed. Big day tomorrow!"
Sun nodded, waving down Neptune from afar. "Yeah, we should probably be heading out too. Our other teammates aren't here yet, so it'll just be me and Neptune. But we're gonna be fine! And hey Ruby, tonight was fun! Maybe we can hang out again after everyone gets back from their missions?"
Ruby blushed at his proposal before deadpanning. "MISSIONS?! That's tomorrow! We need to rest!" She began to rush for the exit, leaving a slightly dejected Sun with the others. Before he could go anywhere, Ruby crashed back into him with a hug, wrapping her arms around him. "And yes, that sounds great!" She blushed again, releasing the blonde and heading towards the exit with the rest of JBRY.
"So proud of you, Ruby!" Jaune cheered at the reaper, causing her to stay red as can be.
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JBRY walked through the empty courtyard, most students either still at the dance or having gone to bed. "All in all, I'd say this was a pretty good night!" Jaune said, looking back at his teammates.
Blake simply nodded, a sly grin on her face. Yang wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, and Ruby just smiled. "Loverboy, tonight was perfect! We're definitely doing this again sometime!"
Jaune grinned at the thought. "Great! How about when we get ba-"
"Look out!" Blake shouted, grabbing Jaune and shoving him away as a mechanized Titan dropped from the sky. "What in Remnant is that?!"
The Titan stood to its full height, gears whirring and metal clanking as it moved. The body seemed to be made up of pieces from different Atlesian robots, including knights and paladins, everything spliced together with crude welding. "T-t-targets acquired. Blake Bel-Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long, R-Ruby Rose. Des-destroy targets to finalize objec-objec-objective."
Yang took a boxing stance before looking at her wrists. "We don't have our weapons!"
Jaune took a look around before summoning his powers. "Going ghost!" He shouted, the white rings switching him into his ghost form, hair shining white in the moonlight. "You three call for your lockers! I'll hold this thing off!" He ordered, the girls nodding and finding a safe place to use their scrolls.
The Titan turned towards Jaune, sensors glowing red as it scanned him. "Primary t-t-target engaged. Capture by any-any means necessary." The Titan spoke again before charging at Jaune, swinging its massive fist towards the boy.
Jaune ducked under it, narrowly dodging the attack as the fist swung over his head. Jumping backward, he fired ecto-blasts from his hands towards the Titan, hindering it slightly. "Yeah!"
The Titan re-stabilized, slots on its shoulders opening to reveal cables that shot out and wrapped themselves around Jaune's wrists, thrashing him around in the air. "Neutralize Subject Phantom at all-at all costs." It spoke again, the mechanized voice echoing through the courtyard.
"Jaune, hold on!" Yang shouted, grabbing Ember Celica from her locker and launching herself into the air. She came crashing down on the Titan's head, sending it to the ground.
Jaune hit the ground hard, but shook it off and grabbed the cables, charging them with energy. "Go ghost stinger!" The energy traveled up the cables into the Titan's shoulders, as small explosions began to go off.
"Dama-damage dete-dete-detected. Yang Xiao Long, threat level red. Avoid physical damage to hind-hinder semblance." The Titan spoke again, surprising Jaune and Yang.
"What the heck IS this thing?!" Yang shouted, cocking her gauntlets. Blake and Ruby came rushing towards them, weapons drawn.
Blake looked at it up and down, looking for weak points. "It's an amalgamation of Atlas technology, but poorly spliced. Notice the thick, crude welds around the joints. If we can hit it there, we should be able to destroy it." She pointed at the welds, the joints creaking as the Titan moved.
Yang nodded, but kept a frown on her face. "How does it know us though?"
Ruby thought for a moment before cocking Crescent Rose. "Someone hacked school records maybe? I mean we're all on a team together."
"But that would mean it would know me as well. What if…there was a tape from the docks. Someone saw us fighting the Omega!" Jaune shouted.
"ALERT. OMEGA PRESENCE DETECTED. MAXIMUM THREAT LEVEL EXC-" The Titan was cut off as an Omega Beringel phased up from the ground, slamming its fists on the ground and sending JBRY flying backwards. "PROTOCOL FOR OMEGA BER-" The Beringel turned intangible and flew into the Titan, disappearing inside the mechanical monster.
The Titan froze for a moment before a ghostly white glow took it over, pieces of the suit turning white and bone like armor sprouted from various places, one going over an eye of the Titan. Suddenly the Titan roared back to life, looking at JBRY with hunger.
"The Omega possessed it! Can it do that? Is that fair?!" Jaune shouted as the Beringel-Titan leaped towards him, swinging its fists towards him at blinding speeds. Jaune flew upwards, dodging the blow and sending the beast stumbling. "Guys, we need to take this thing out, now!"
Yang and Blake nodded, each taking offensive stances. The pair ran at the beast, Blake running behind to then leap off Yang's shoulders over the beast, swinging her blades at the head. She was grabbed mid air and thrown at Jaune like a barrel, until Jaune grabbed her arm as she flew towards him and swung her back using the momentum. She struck against the right arm, severing it from the Beringel-Titan.
The beast roared in pain, clutching the stump where the spliced arm once was. Red eyes flared as the beast beat its chest with the remaining arm. "RAAAAAA!" It roared at the group, the bone armor now on the forearm opening to reveal missiles. The Beringel-Titan fired the missiles at Yang and Ruby, the latter speeding away with her semblance. Yang closed her eyes for a moment before opening them a blood red. Her hair flared up as her semblance activated, igniting some of the plants around her. She slammed her fists together, creating a small shockwave to send a few of the missiles off course before firing round after round at each missile, destroying them.
"Ruby, Crimson Delta! Yang, Blake, Gold Rush!" Jaune shouted as he flew at the beast, firing ecto-blasts left and right, attempting to stun it long enough.
Ruby nodded and took off using her semblance, moving around the beast in a triangle at high speeds as Yang and Blake ran together. Blake jumped on Yang's back as she fired Ember Celica behind her, launching the two of them towards the Beringel-Titan. Yang's fist struck the bone plate covering the left leg, cracking them like porcelain as Blake swung her blade, cutting the plate in two. Ruby aimed Crescent Rose and fired, striking the welds on the left leg, splintering them like rotten wood.
The Beringel-Titan fell to its remaining knee, howling in pain. It beat its remaining fist on the ground next to it, glaring at the hunters in training like a wounded dog.
Jaune flew down and glared at the beast. "Whatever you want, I don't have it! So just-" The beast swung and clawed Jaune, cutting a few pieces of his hair and sending him stumbling backwards.
"Jaune!" The girls shouted, rushing towards him.
He held up a hand and flashed his eyes at the Grimm possessed Titan. "You've got claws, I've got this. Cover your ears, girls!" Jaune shouted before inhaling deeply and letting out a ghostly wail towards the beast. It howled in pain as it was torn apart, giving Jaune one last look before the Grimm possession faded, leaving behind the remains of the Titan. Jaune's ghost form faded as he fell to his knees, exhausted and dripping with sweat.
Blake ran to him and hoisted him up, supporting him with an arm over her shoulders. "How many times are you going to use that thing before it stops knocking you senseless?"
Jaune's lips curled slightly into a grin. "Just…need more…practice…" He panted, earning a roll of the eyes from his partner.
Ruby walked towards the Titan looking at the chest. "Guys, I think there's someone in here!" She called to the others as she noticed a hand behind the glass plate.
Yang ran over and grabbed the frame, pulling against it until it came free, revealing a girl around their age with ginger hair and a pale complexion. "Hello? Are you okay?"
The girl slowly blinked awake, looking worse for wear. "H-hello? Where am I?" She asked, grabbing her head in pain.
"You're at Beacon Academy, in the courtyard. You're also inside a spliced piece of Atlas technology that just attacked us." Blake said, still carrying Jaune over her shoulders.
"Beacon…Academy? My mem- I mean I don't remember how I got here. My last recollection is at Atlas Academy. Mr. Ironwood was not pleased with me, and then he…strange. I can't recall after that." The girl said, sitting up inside the destroyed Titan.
Blake and Jaune exchanged a glance. "Ironwood? As in General James Ironwood of the Atlas Military?"
"One in the same!" The girl said, looking back and forth between the two. "Is there something the two of you know about Mr. Ironwood?"
Jaune's face scowled before looking back at the girl with unease. "Let's just say he's…"
"What Jaune means to say is that the General is just a mysterious guy! Right Jaune?" Yang said, looking at Jaune and moving her eyes towards the girl to signal her leader.
"...Right. That. Do you have a name?" Jaune asked.
"Of course! My name is Penny."
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"Everything go smoothly, ma'am?" Emerald asked as Cinder re-entered the ballroom.
Cinder smirked, smoothing her dress. "The virus worked excellently. It even attracted an Omega to possess the A.I." She glanced at her gloves as though inspecting for any fault before continuing. "Of course, the Phantom and his girls took the beast down with no trouble, but this was a poorly spliced piece of scrap metal. Imagine the possibilities of an Omega taking a fully functional Titan. With a few modifications, everything will be going according to plan…"
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"P.E.N.N.Y., please display the information gathered on Belladonna, Xiao Long, and Rose." Ironwood said, walking back into his office on the ship. "P.E.N.N.Y., please display the requested information."
The screens hummed with static as though the system was empty. A faint crackle could be heard like an echo. "Er-"
Ironwood grabbed the screen in front of him forcefully, causing more static. "P.E.N.N.Y., please respond. Penny!" He shouted at the screen, finally causing the static to disappear and a lone word to take its place.
"Error."
A/N: Ta dah! I'm back! Again, sorry for the wait on a new chapter, but work has been…hellish? Yeah, hellish. I had to take time on breaks to write pieces of this on my phone thanks to busy hours, but it's all coming together!
So we've now got Omegas possessing things. Spooky, right? Tis the season I guess! Obviously Jaune still has little to no endurance when it comes to his Ghostly Wail, but he's getting there! Powers are growing stronger, team is growing together. I've got a feeling you guys are gonna like what's yet to come! ON TO REVIEWS! Also, how bout that Ruby x Sun action going on there?
CrowBlood666: Wait and see!
Dwalkern64: The pairing was decided a while ago, but I didn't want to start it up until this chapter. I'm keeping Ruby out of it though. No harems allowed! Haha! But glad you're liking the story!
.1: Stuff! Ironwood is an enigma here, and I'm keeping JBRY (and you readers) in the mystery!
Twilight Rift: Shenanigans!
Swimfeared: The only people who know what Ironwood is up to are me, Ironwood, and the mysterious stranger he called to Beacon. Stay tuned!
Jack Lycan: Not a mini harem! Just…well I hate to call it a threesome, so I'm calling it a trio. And boyfriend? Whoah there, Jaune hasn't even taken them out to dinner! Ha. As for Ironwood, well, there's so much more mystery to him than you all know.
newwriter2016: It's going somewhere! Give it time! And surprise! It's Penny! The Vytal Festival is on its way in the next few chapters, still need to get through V2 before I really get that going, but as for the Pyrrha situation, I honestly believe that Pyrrha would thrive as a leader with Weiss assisting. Pyrrha has the tactical knowledge and the skills to win nearly any battle, and Weiss has the social ability and command to help dictate things. Together, the pair would be a lethal force on any battlefield! Plus, they can just have Nora hit enemies with a hammer!
desdelor97: Thank you!
gamelover41592: Updated!
Team NovaStorm: Read the last A/N. Not a harem! Just a trio! Also, his semblance is a secret! It will come about soon enough, but no spoilers.
Nexus Bladeguard: "Whole team". I can't get that Taiyang meme out of my head now, but you're not wrong at all. Minus Ruby, Jaune has the ladies of his team infatuated with him, and it's going well for him! Ship name confirmed, I love it. Black KnightFire it is! Surprising, a bit, but Yang's been flirty with Jaune from the get go, and seeing how he leads and fights for others obviously sparked something in Yang. Glad you enjoyed the Yang's past bits with Jaune chirping in every now and again! I wanted him there for multiple reasons, but I'll get into that later. As for Ruby, while Milk and Cereal was briefly considered, I decided to throw Sun a bone, or well, banana. I'll have fun with these two! You're predicting things pretty well, so let's see what you make of things yet to come! Thanks as always!
Now before I go, Nexus Bladeguard left a wonderful review containing a song, so here's the first Omake of the story, edits made by me
He's a Phantom. "Music" Jauney Phantom, Jauney Phantom. Yo Jauney Arc he was just 17 when Atlas built a very strange machine. It was designed to view a world unseen.
(He's gonna kill the Grimm cuz he's Jauney Phantom)
When it didnt quite work, the docs, they just quit
Then Jauney took a look inside of it.
There was a great big flash, everything just changed, his mol-e-cules got all re-arranged.
(Phantom, Phantom)
When he first woke up he, realized, he had snow-white hair and glowing green eyes.
He could walk through walks, disappear, and fly!
He was much more unique than the other guys! "Scene of Jaune being shoved into his rocket locker, then him phasing out and shoving Cardin in instead"
It was then that he knew what he had to do,
He had to stop all the Grimm that were killing you.
He's here to fight for me and you!
(He's gonna killem all cuz he's Jauney Phantom, Gonna killem all cuz he's Jauney Phantom. Gonna killem cuz he's!... Jauney Phantom.)
Well guys, there you have it! Chapter 9! And I made it a bit longer to make up for the absence! Enjoy, and till next time…REVIEW! :D