RWBY: The Verdant Star of Remnant
RWBY: The Verdant Star of Remnant - Chapter 9: Dragonscale Awakened!
Author's Notes: Yeah, it's a real blessing in disguise that i was able to make C9 as fast as i did. I hope this makes up for the long... LONG upload time from C7 to C8, again, i'm SO SORRY about that, i'll try my hardest to NEVER do something like that ever again!
I hope you guys like Shonen Anime since that's how i'm most likely going to structure the fights for his AU Xover. YES! I know that RWBY isn't a TRADITIONAL SHONEN & doesn't have TRADITIONAL SHONEN FIGHTS (for the most part), but i have to work with what i got in my table. Although i DID read comments complimenting me on my music choice, so thanks to those wonderful people & hope you get excited since i'm mixing up some good tunes here as well.
& I know that there's going to be ALOT of questions after this chapter, MAINLY its ending, but DON'T WORRY, I'LL GET TO THAT! Anyways, let us wrap this Mock Battle up & always remember that-...
The following is a non-profit Alternate Universe fanfiction.
RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth, Warner Bros. & the late Monty Oum. While Fire Emblem: Three Houses is owned by Nintendo, Intelligent Systems & Koei Tecmo. Please support the original release.
Also, major spoilers for both RWBY & Fire Emblem: Three Houses, specifically the Verdant Wind Route. If you haven't caught up with either of them, it's recommended that you catch up with both of them before reading this story.
& On that note, enjoy this chapter.
Byleth's students are getting along very well as of late & are now known as The Garnet Papillon House, similar to Byleth's Golden Deer. At last; The Mock Battle has begun & it begins with a bang with an intense chase of cat & mouse with Ruby & Nora, with the former winning just moments ago by using Nora's Lightning Rod Semblance against her & taking her headband. The other battles are going intense as well, with Pyrrha Nikos confronting the deadly Blake in a battle in the woods after the latter utterly & brutally demolished Jaune, Pyrrha's Partner. Ren is holding off Yang & is going a lot better than he had anticipated, while Glynda is preparing for her battle against Byleth as she uses a large boulder to fly herself towards her fort. Will Byleth's team keep the train going or is there a chance for Glynda's team to make a big comeback?
But before we continue from where we left off, let's take a look at the audience who's watching this spectacle from the Amphitheater, mainly from Velvet & her teammates: Coco Adel, Fox Alistar & Yatsuhashi Daichi.
Velvet: Alright, Ruby! That's how you make a comeback!
Coco: Heh, guess she wasn't just a small child who had high inspirations… She's really good, but I'm more so interested in that Blake girl. I know that kind of look & attitude, she's hiding something within her… *Smirks* I like my women with a little mystery.
Velvet: *Sighs* Honestly, Coco. Now's not the time for that…
Yatsuhashi: I'm more worried about that Jaune fellow, the guy was caught off guard & was utterly decimated in the matter of seconds. That's gotta be a big blow to his pride.
Bully: Heh, as if that weakling had any pride to begin with!
Team CFVY slightly turn to the side to see one of the newcomers of Beacon Academy: Cardin Winchester, the Leader of Team CRDL (Cardinal) & needless to say, he's an asshole! He's a bully who looks down on others & is a complete racist towards the Faunus. It's obvious that Team CFVY do not like him that much & for good reason.
Cardin: It's clear that he's not cut out for this, the guy only managed to get a place at Beacon out of dumb luck & his lack of any actual power shows that!
Coco: Oh, shut up Cardin! The kid just got caught off guard by someone who was just more experienced than him, it happens.
Cardin: Not in a way that makes him so pathetic, I couldn't help but laugh at how he was taken out so easily.
Coco: Considering who took him out, I disagree. This Blake girl didn't show this level of skill & brutality back at The Trials of Emerald Valley, this is the first time we see a glimpse of what she's truly capable off.
Cardin: Spare me the lecture Furry Lover, I don't have time to hear your shit right now.
Coco: You disgusting motherfucker, come here!
Coco gets triggered when Cardin "Furry Lover" due to Coco being a Faunus Sympathizer & hating Faunus Prejudice with a passion, she would've given Cardin a beating if Fox & Velvet weren't holding her back.
Velvet: Coco, calm down! This isn't the place to fight, you can deal with him later!
Cardin: *Smirks* No, she can't.
Team CFVY just sits back down after Coco cooled off a little bit.
Velvet: Look, I hate his guts too. But you can't pick a fight with everyone who made you angry; try to keep that temper of yours under control, please.
Coco: *Huffs* Fine…
Velvet sighs as she keeps watching The Mock Battle going on strong as she sees Ruby catching her breath after taking down Nora.
We then cut to the perspective of Weiss & Byleth who just received a message from Ruby saying that Nora was dealt with, with Weiss sighing in both relief that her Leader's alright, but also in frustration for taking such a risk against someone like Nora. While Byleth can't help but smile at her House Leader's performance.
Weiss: Honestly, why does she always have to be this foolishly reckless?
Byleth: Well, you have to at least admire her quick thinking & resolve.
Weiss: Please don't encourage her, I get the feeling that she's gonna keep getting crazier from here on. Now then, let's hope that Yang & Blake respond back soon as well.
As the 2 were chatting, Byleth noticed a big shadow being casted from afar. That's odd, why is there suddenly a big shadow being casted over there? She looks up & sees a barrage of Psychic Blades being fired at both her & Weiss.
Byleth: Weiss! Get back!
Weiss turns around immediately after Byleth said that & sees the approaching Psychic Blades, she uses her Glyphs to form a giant shield to protect them, but the force behind that attack was too strong & they were pushed back a bit. They both look up to see a big boulder landing on the ground, with Glynda Goodwitch staying on top of said boulder.
Byleth: Wait, Glynda?!
Needless to say, Byleth was beyond overwhelmed when she saw Glynda came here after them by riding A GIANT FUCKING BOULDER WITH HER TELEKINESIS! Ruby wasn't kidding when she called her very powerful, Glynda is the Mage General of Vale for a reason.
Glynda: *Smirks* Good Afternoon, Ms. Eisner. To you as well, Ms. Schnee. I'm rather surprised that you were able to react as quickly as you have, you've certainly become a lot more powerful in the last 5 years.
Weiss: Well, there wasn't anything else for me to do besides training to begin with. But it looks like you've improved as well, given that you came here in such a dramatic fashion. Honestly, I've never expected this from someone as calm & collective as yourself.
Byleth: Wait, hold on! Are we gonna ignore the fact that Glynda just came here by riding a giant, levitating boulder?!
Glynda: *Shrugs* Oh, Ms. Eisner… This was only a glimpse of my true power; this was barely a warm-up to me.
Byleth's eyes widen as her jaw drops when she hears that; she knew Glynda is strong, but not this strong! She thought that the people of Remnant wouldn't compare a lot with the people of Fódlan, especially with some of the big shots like Dimitri or Seteth… Boy, was she fucking wrong!
Glynda: Now I know that you won't just hand over your headbands… So instead of asking for them, how about I take them by force!
Glynda raises her ridding crop in the air as more Psychic Blades are summoned & started firing at the girls, mainly Byleth. She uses The Sword of the Creator to deflect most of them, but some of them are able to hit Byleth & push her back. Weiss does the same as she summons a large Glyph & fires Thunder-Dust projectiles at Glynda, who just casually summons a bunch of leaves & turns it into a hard shield with her Telekinesis; this was not going to be a very easy battle & it shows!
We cut back to Yang hiding in the woods catching her breath a little bit after having to deal with Ren & his constant surprise attacks with Explosive Dust Daggers, those last few explosions took a toll on her aura. Yang then takes a look at her right hand & clutches her fist as she can feel her Semblance powering her up with the damage she has taken.
Yang: (Fuck, those damn things hurt like a bitch!... Guess I bit off more than I could chew, huh? I think I can handle a few more, but I need to find a way to hit him!... If I can hit him with just one good punch, he's out! He's noticeably frail & he's constantly using his Aura to keep himself camouflaged… Think Yang, what would Dad & Uncle do in this scenario?)
Before she could recollect her thoughts even further, she heard the sounds of someone jumping from tree to tree & getting closer to where Yang was hiding to catch her breath; Ren was coming closer & she has to think of something & fast! She looks at the direction where she heard those sounds as she finds Ren from afar, looking to where she went.
Yang: *Smirks* (Actually, I think I just found a way for me to lure him in & finish him off!)
Ren was looking around to see where Yang went, he has run out of Explosive Fire-Dust Daggers to throw at her & deal heavy damage from a distance, but he can still finish her off if he finds her & take more pop-shots at her.
Ren: (She's good, I'm surprised she's lasted as long as she did. I have to find her & go for the K.O. quickly, I know she's hiding around here somewhere!)
Ren keeps running around until he heard a shotgun being fired from his far left, he takes a look to see what it is & sees a tree being set on fire. He just smirks as Yang pretty much told him where she was & thinks that Ren will fall for such an easy trap by getting too close, but he approaches to where he has a safe distance from the fire with his weapons: Storm Flower, are drawn & ready to fire. He looks around & sees no one from where he was, he keeps his guard up as he slowly circles around the burning tree from very far away to see if she can find Yang.
Ren: Come on out, Yang! I know you're here, if you think I'd be foolish enough to get close to a burning tree, then you're lack of humility & self-awareness is disappointing…
Yang: Ya'know, you talk a lot for someone who's supposed to be quiet!
Ren then tenses himself up as he looks around to see where did Yang's voice just came from; he knows he just heard her voice just now, she's here! But where is she exactly?!
Yang: Then again, it's nice hearing you talk every now & then… Makes it all the more satisfying to shut you up in a fight!
Out of nowhere, many shotgun barrels were fired in some of the trees surrounding Ren, she specifically hit close to where you usually cut a tree down & the power of Yang's shots were enough to make the trees fall. Ren jumps out of the way to avoid getting crushed & burned, only to notice that the fire has spread out enough for him to now be trapped in a small forest fire!
Ren: So this was your plan, huh?!
Yang: Damn straight, it was!
[Music: "Clash (Path of Radiance)" from Fire Emblem Premium Arrange 2]
That's when Yang finally jumps in the middle of the circle of fire that's now surrounding them, she's moving her shoulders a bit to make them looser before attacking.
Yang: The Fire Dust will come out in a matter of minutes, but that' s all the time I need for me to take you down!
Yang slams her fist down to make the ground below crack & crumble, Ren jumps out of the way to avoid the attack, but the impact was enough to push him away. He tries to use his Tranquility to hide himself through these flames, but Yang is not letting him go away this time.
Yang: Oh no, you don't!
Yang fires a few pop shots at Ren, with some of them landing & preventing his escape.
Ren: Argh!
Ren falls down to his knees as his Aura starts flickering, but as he saw Yang approach him for the kill, he fired rapid-fire shots at her to slow her down. This doesn't work as he planned as Yang just punches the bullets away rapidly, how the hell can someone punch that fast?! Yang gets close enough to Ren to start firing punches left & right, he trained himself to be as fast, yet calm as the wind itself & even that's not enough to dodge all of Yang's punches, the last of which being a strong hook to the torso.
Ren: KUAGH!
Yang: I got you now, Ninja-boy!
Yang pulls her right arm back to land the finishing blow to Ren, but he uses some of the last of his remaining strength jumps above to avoid the incoming attack & lands behind her, revealing that his guns can also fire its blades as grappling hooks; one of which was able to wrap around Yang's arm in a tight hold. Yang tries to escape from it, but the rope from this grappling hook is too strong for her to snap.
Ren: I normally wouldn't do this to a person, but you left me out of options!
Ren pressed down a button to send out a powerful electric shot that goes through the line of his grappling hook & hits Yang head-on, the power of this electric shock is enough to make an Ursa Major fall to their knees in pain & Yang's no different.
Yang: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!
Yang screams in pain as she's being electrocuted to the point of her Aura flickering at a very fast pace, Ren then pulls the grappling hook away to free Yang after a few more seconds of electrocuting her & she falls to the ground hardly being able to breath. Ren catches his breath after such an intense battle.
[Music End]
Ren: I knew that taking you down wouldn't be easy, but to think that you'd trap be in a small-scale forest fire the way you did… You've certainly proved me wrong, you're not as blind sighted as I thought you'd be…
Ren slowly approaches Yang & takes out her headband.
Ren: But it seems that my quick thinking & surprise attacks were the victors in this battle.
Ren turns around & starts to walk away after winning a hard-fought battle against a fighter who'd give Nora a run for her money… Or so he thinks as Yang slowly regains her composure as she clutches her hands in the grass.
Ren: WHAT?!
[Music: "Nella Cerniera" from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 5: Vento Aureo]
Ren widens his eyes in shock as he quickly turns around to see Yang slowly getting back up to her feet, with her hair flowing in the air alongside the spreading flames.
Yang: Okay, that hurt… A LOT, in fact!
She gets up to her knees as she slowly gets back up while spitting out some blood.
Ren: But- but how?! That amount of voltage is enough to knock a person out cold & in some cases, even kill them! How are you still standing?!
Yang: You're right, that is enough to knock someone out… But to tell you the truth, this wasn't the worse beating I've taken… NOT EVEN CLOSE!
Yang then gets up & clashes her fists together as her eyes shine a bright fiery red, which means that she has just activated her Semblance: Burn. Burn allows Yang to store the energy she takes in battles to power herself up to the point of becoming unstoppable, her strength is enough to demolish an entire building in a single blow at full power; the drawback is that Yang has to take damage through her body & that means she has to feel the pain of every hit she absorbs.
Yang: It's been a while since I had a fight like this, nor have I been pushed this far in a very long time… but unfortunately for you, you've made a grave miscalculation!
Ren: A "miscalculation"?
Yang: Let me be more specific…
Ren tries to draw Storm Flower once again, but Yang quickly charges at him, grabbing his face with her hand & quickly slamming him to the ground, while glaring at him with her burning red eyes before she answered.
Yang: You've picked the wrong prey to hunt, for that prey was actually a wild predator!
Yang gut-punches Ren before throwing him high in the air & utterly demolish him with a barrage of rapid-fire punches to finish him off.
Yang: LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO-LIÁO!
Yang's volley of punches utterly defeat Ren as his Aura finally shatters after the last few punches, while also feeling an intense burn at where Yang landed her punches due to her Semblance having afterburn. Yang does a hand gun sign before delivering the final word.
Yang: Liáo, Baobèi!
Yang's "Liáo Baobèi Rush" counter: 1
Editor's Note: "Liáo, Baobèi" means "Burn, Baby" in Traditional Chinese.
[Music End]
Ren finally falls to the ground unconscious as he not only lets go of Yang's headband, but also has his own headband flung away while he was being beat up by Yang's barrage of punches, Yang's own Aura finally breaks as well as she falls to her knees feeling really exhausted after using so much power in that attack. It felt like she was about to explode from storing so much power & letting said power loose like that… But Yang always has to show off & end things with a Yang, so she's ok with that.
Yang: Damn, I thought this was supposed to be a fun Mock Battle, not an intense battle where it feels like we're beating each other to near death!... But hey, at least I came out the victor… Heheheh…
Yang finally loses consciousness as she falls to the ground completely exhausted, just in time for the Fire Dust flames that were spreading through the forest to finally be extinguished completely. Around 1:15 Hours in & Team JNPR is only left with Pyrrha & Glynda left standing, while Team RWBY has only lost Yang in this battle so far.
Cut back to Pyrrha who's clashing her blades with Blake, who's able to keep up with The Red Tornado with little effort despite Pyrrha being physically stronger. Blake is too fast & relentless for Pyrrha to keep up, it's a good thing Blade's weapons had a reversed edge.
Pyrrha: (By the gods, how can someone be this fast?! I can barely react to her attacks, this is bad! If I can just touch her blades just once...)
Blake is making sure that she doesn't let Pyrrha touch her blades with her hands, she's heard tales of Pyrrha's Semblance of "Polarity" & doesn't want to risk finding out if the rumors are true or not. But she's slowly chipping away her Aura, yet she can't find an opening to take her headband, Pyrrha is a very skilled fighter.
Blake: What's wrong, Nikos? Aren't you going to fight back, or are going to keep standing still like an idiot as I slowly tear you to shreds?!
Blake jumps high in the air to prepare for another attack, but Pyrrha is prepared this time as she takes an offensive position this time & envelops her short-sword with her Aura; which makes Blake stop in her tracks & stay back as she looks at what Pyrrha's doing.
Pyrrha: Oh, don't you worry… I'm just getting started!
Pyrrha swings her blade vertically down & fires a giant Aura Slash that's heading straight towards Blake like a rocket, the attack lands & it deals a massive cut to the forest like a butterknife. But Pyrrha can't see Blake anywhere, where did she go? Where is she hiding?
Pyrrha: Just as I though, she's fast enough to dodge something as fast as that… Now then, where are you hiding?
Pyrrha closes her eyes & clears her mind, trying to locate Blake's Aura; those who are very well trained in Aura can feel the presence & life force of others by simply clearing their mind & using their Aura as a Radar. Unbeknownst to Pyrrha, Blake is literally under her, she's literally hiding in her shadow with her Semblance, which allows her to blend in shadows, as well as become a shadow herself; she finally takes her opportunity as she suddenly jumps out of Pyrrha's shadow to take her headband.
Pyrrha: What the-?!
Pyrrha suddenly turns around to see that Blake was right behind her this whole time, how did she not find her through locating her Aura? Where was she hiding exactly & how did she get behind her without Pyrrha noticing this whole time?! But before all of those thoughts could've fully processed through Pyrrha's mind, Blake turns one of her katanas around & cuts off Pyrrha's headband, taking it before jumping away from Pyrrha.
Blake: Now that's impressive. It's a shame that you weren't the first one who use those Advanced Aura Arts at me, I had you at checkmate the moment I took out your boyfriend.
Pyrrha: *Blushes* He's not my boyfriend, Blake… But enough about that, how did you- There's no way you could've sneaked up on me like that so quickly?! Not even Ruby is able to do that without giving out some kind of sound to alert us!
Blake just starts chuckling while she just toys with Pyrrha's headband by twirling it with her left index finger, she's clearly toying with Pyrrha at this point.
Blake: Oh, come on… Would I really reveal my secrets to anyone? Your mistake was acting purely on emotion & trying to avenge the defeat of someone who's not worth a damn, you've won by now if you weren't clouded by foolish emotions that can cost you your own life in more serious scenarios… I on the other hand…
That's when Blake pulls out one of her sashes from her left hand & suddenly traps Pyrrha in multiple tight sashes & is suddenly hung up high in the air being held down by the trees like how she found Jaune minutes prior. Due to the sudden capture by Blake's hands, she dropped her weapons when she got caught, the sashes are too strong & tight, she can't move her arms or legs very well; that's when Pyrrha realizes Blake's plan all along.
Pyrrha: What the- how did you-?!... Wait, did you-
Blake: Correct… While I was chipping away damage while you took a defensive position, I laid around some of my binding sashes & waited for a chance to catch you off guard. You've made it pretty difficult for me to do so given how you wouldn't stand still, but as I just said, your lack of focus & acting on emotion rather than reason was your downfall!
Pyrrha struggles to get out of these tight bindings, are they infused with Gravity Dust or something?! Pyrrha glares at Blake who just keeps smirking at her, enjoying the scenery.
Pyrrha: Argh, I swear-… Once I get out of here, you're going to be in so much trouble!
Blake: Get out? Oh, by all means… Just be careful on your landing.
Blake reaches for something from her bag & throws a bunch of small Fire Dust Mines on the ground, "of course she has mines too" Pyrrha thought to herself.
Blake: Oh, is that fear I'm seeing in your face? I was a traveler before coming at Beacon, surely you understand the struggles of fighting for your life since your childhood, don't you? You want to become a Huntress to make Mistral a better place & end its constant civil conflicts, correct? Then allow me to give you a little life lesson: "Always expect the unexpected, always use your opponent's weaknesses to your advantage… But above all else, don't trust anyone!"
At this point, Pyrrha just stood still & kept quiet as she listened to Blake, mainly her little "lesson". She doesn't know what Blake went through, but it must be pretty serious if she developed that kind of mindset, to the point where she doesn't even trust her newfound teammates. This wasn't just a Mock Battle for Pyrrha anymore, she's not going to beat Blake to win a simple test… This is now a clash of ideals! Blake's way of thinking is not one that will benefit her in the long-run & Pyrrha feels like she must set her straight.
Blake: Well, this was fun; but I must be leaving now. I could've sworn that I saw some great tea leaves on my way here, I'll pick some up on my way back to the others… I'll see you in class tomorrow, Nikos.
Pyrrha doesn't pay attention to Blake's rambling as she concentrates on her sword & shield that were laying down alongside the Fire Dust Mines, her plan is to quietly use her Semblance to quietly move her sword upwards to cut the bindings in her right arm, grab the sword & cut the other bindings off, than jump at the shield to avoid activating the mines. But first, she must make sure that Blake is very far way to not get her attention.
We cut back to Ruby who had finished catching her breath & finished eating some apples she found on a tree since she could use some extra juice (Literally), then she stretches her legs a little bit before she continues walking back to where Byleth & Weiss are.
Ruby: Man, those were some good apples. I'm not fully back at peak condition, but this will have to do… Now then, where was the fort ag- HUH?!
Due to taking a few minutes off to catch her breath & rest a little bit, she wasn't able to take notice of the large floating boulder from where her fort is supposed to be, what the hell is going on over there?! Why is there a giant floating boulder over here?!
Ruby: What in the world is that?! A floating boulder? But how?! Wait, that's- Weiss, Prof. Eisner, hang on! I'm on my way!
Ruby dashes through the woods to go towards her fort, now realizing that Glynda made her way to their fort, in such a bombastic & dramatic way, no less! This is bad, Ruby isn't aware if Byleth has any reliable long-range damage outside of her sword in its chain-whip form, which also must have a limit on how far it can go, so she's at a disadvantage! Speaking of Byleth & Weiss, they keep struggling against Glynda & her constant psychic attacks; even Weiss is struggling & she's the only one with reliable long-range damage since Byleth can't use her Magic without rousing too much suspicion.
Glynda: What's wrong, Ms. Eisner? Am I overwhelming you too much for you to react? You seem to be struggling a lot in this battle.
Byleth: That's because you're way up there instead of coming down here & fight from up close, you dirty witch!
Due to the long distance (& The fact that Byleth isn't a normal person) Glynda can't quite hear what Byleth's saying, but that doesn't stop her from mockingly putting a hand behind her ear as a way to try hearing Byleth better.
Glynda: What's that? I can't hear you from up here, try sign language! Oh wait, that doesn't work either sense you're even smaller than an ant from up here!
Glynda makes sure to keep a safe distance since she doesn't know Byleth's full range with The Sword of the Creator, Weiss is starting to struggle hitting her since she's now too high up & far away for her Dust Projectiles to land a hit on her.
Weiss: Bloody hell, if I just try to use my Glyphs as platforms to reach higher, she'll just destroy those while I'm climbing up to her!
While Glynda is enjoying her time overwhelming her targets, she's suddenly hit from the back of the head by a powerful sniper shot that takes a small chunk of her Aura away.
Glynda: ARGH! What in the- who did that?!
[Music: "Star Platinum" from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: The Anthology Songs 3]
Glynda turns around & from over 1 kilometer away, she spots Ruby with Crescent Rose aimed at her, she was the one who fired that shot just now. Damn, she really hoped that Nora would've been able to deal with that little upstart by now, but it seems that she got lucky once again. Ruby then takes out her scroll & activates the microphone function to talk to Glynda since they're so far away right now.
Ruby: Hey Goodwitch! Didn't expect me to make a comeback, did ya?! Could you please explain to me why are you suddenly bombarding my partner & homeroom teacher like that? & Here I thought you played fair!
Glynda just rolls her eyes in annoyance as she does the same thing Ruby did & starts using her scroll as a microphone to talk to Ruby from afar.
Glynda: Well, as you can see, I'm currently trying to take them out so that I can take their headbands away! What about you, how did you manage to defeat Ms. Valkyrie?!
Ruby: Oh, ya'know~… Some Water-Dust Crystal here, some supercharged electricity there, maybe even a JoJo Reference somewhere, nothing too grand or anything! Now would you kindly step away from that fort & hand us your headband, cause you're both outnumbered & have already lost this fight. Then again, you're as stubborn as a raging bull trying to catch a red flag from a Latin Valean Matador, so I can see why you wouldn't admit defeat so easily. But hey, ya can't blame me for picking The Pacifist Route!
Glynda had enough of Ruby's rambling & just uses her Telekinesis to create more Psychic Blades & fire them at Ruby, but the young reaper simply smirks as she taunts Glynda before she suddenly disappeared in a burst of petals. Glynda looks around until she spots Ruby again laying down in the grass waving at her, only for her to fire a couple of more Psychic Blades at Ruby, who once again dodges it at ease. This pattern keeps repeating itself a few times & quickly gets into Glynda's nerves.
Glynda: Blast it all, how fast is this brat?! JUST HOLD STILL, FOR GODS' SAKE!
Glynda then uses her Telekinesis to rip out a couple of trees & firing them at Ruby like a massive barrage of missiles, but Ruby hoped this would eventually lead to this as she quickly runs & jumps from tree to tree as she approaches Glynda. Ruby then jumps off the last tree while enhancing her legs with Aura to give her a strong enough jump for her to reach the boulder Glynda is standing on, but Glynda expected this to happen.
Ruby: It's game over for you, Glynda! I have you at checkmate!
Glynda: *Smirks* Are you sure about that, you undisciplined brat?
Ruby: Huh?
[Music End]
Just as Ruby was about to land on the boulder Glynda is standing on, the latter summons Psychic Bindings to trap Ruby midair by trapping her wrists, ankles & neck. Ruby got too cocky & just found herself in Glynda's trap, with Byleth shouting her name in desperation.
Byleth: RUBY!
Ruby struggles to break free from Glynda's Psychic Bindings, but they're too strong for her to break with brute force & although Ruby has some gains due to wielding a weapon like Crescent Rose, she doesn't have godlike biceps like Yang, Nora & Pyrrha have.
Ruby: W- what is this?! Since when could you-
Glynda: *Chuckles* My Semblance doesn't work on living people due to their souls… But to compensate, I developed a few new techniques to trap them with my Telekinesis & you just took the bait like I thought you would! Now then, how about I teach you some proper discipline?
Ruby shivers as Glynda dozens of hundreds of Psychic Blades behind her, ready to cut Ruby to shreds. Glynda fires the endless barrage of Psychic Blades at the young reaper & needless to say, they pack a punch! Ruby screams in pain as her body is being shredded as her Aura quickly dissipates from the force behind these blades.
Ruby: AAAAAAAAAAARGH!
Weiss: Ruby!
Byleth watches in horror as Ruby is being shredded by Glynda's Psychic Blades, it got to the point where she started running towards the boulder Glynda's standing on. Speaking of which, Ruby's Aura finally breaks after taking such a powerful attack head-on & Glynda finally releases the young reaper from her bindings & lets her lay down to her boulder, kneeling down to look at her in the eye.
Glynda: It seems that you've lasted a lot longer than expected, well done… But the real world is far vaster than you realize, you can't pass every trial & tribulation with speed… Not to mention with an attitude such as yours is doomed to-
[Music: Red Like Roses Part 2 from RWBY]
Ruby: *Smirks* For a supposed "great scholar", you really are an idiot, ya'know that?
Glynda: What?!
Glynda expected Ruby to waver now that her Aura is broken & with no way out of victory, but Ruby Rose doesn't know the meaning of the word "Waver" or "Defeat". She weakly tries to explain her real plan for the start to Glynda as she's laying down defeated.
Ruby: Of course I wasn't trying to defeat you all by myself, I can't defeat someone as powerful as yourself like I could with Nora… What I was actually doing was giving the others a chance of victory…
Glynda: "A chance of victory"? What are you on about?...
Ruby: Why don't you look at the boulder you're standing on & see it for yourself?
Glynda does just that & becomes shocked at what she saw, sticky grenades… a lot of them that! They were everywhere in the boulder?! But- but how?! How did Ruby managed to plant all of these grenades if she was trapped by Glynda's Psychic Bindings?... Wait a moment, of course! While she was coming towards her at top speed, she must've thrown them right at the boulder & since she was moving so fast, the impact & force behind her throws were long enough to reach the boulder! Glynda turns around in anger as Ruby slowly gets up at her knees, she's also chuckling at Glynda's reaction.
Ruby: Hah! now you know what being caught off guard & outsmarted by someone else feels like… & What's worse, it was someone who was "a naive little girl unprepared for the real world"! But that was your mistake, Prof. Goodwitch… You always take things around you at face value, never bothering to look at the bigger picture… & In my case… I, Ruby Rose have a mission!... & I will accomplish that mission, no matter what!
Ruby lets herself fall off the floating boulder & just as she got far away enough…
BOOM!
The grenades explode, completely destroying the boulder that Glynda was using to keep a safe distance from the others & attack them from afar. The explosion itself pushes away Ruby even further & sends her falling down like a meteor, she would've crashed down & got gravely injured if Weiss didn't use her Black Glyphs to weaken the fall itself, giving Byleth the chance to catch her once she gets close enough; Weiss is going towards them as well to see if Ruby's alright.
[Music End]
Weiss: *Panting* I swear, you're one crazy little girl, ya'know that?! That little stunt of yours almost killed you!
Ruby weakly looks at Weiss with a smile on her face.
Ruby: Aw~, you do care about me… I knew you guys would save my neck as I was falling…
Weiss: WE ALMOST DIDN'T MAKE IT IN TIME, YOU DOLT!
Ruby: Heh, I'm so thanking Blake for those grenades too; her gadget is insane!... I already did all I could for this battle, I'll leave the rest… to you guys…
Ruby finally loses consciousness & falls asleep in Byleth's arms; she can't help at smile at Ruby being very proud of the young reaper. She lays Ruby down to the soft grass to let her rest a little bit, Ruby would definitely get along with Claude given their tendencies to always have a plan ready to go whenever they're about to lose a fight.
Byleth: Rest up, Ruby… Weiss & I can finish her off now.
As Byleth says that, she sees the remains of the boulder being sent towards her. But Byleth easily deals with them by hacking & slashing them with The Sword of the Creator & swinging it fabulously like a whip. Just as she thought, Glynda was just fine. Glynda comes out of the smoke complete unscathed & what appears to be a Psychic Barrier of sorts, but it looks like all of those events happening at once took a toll on her Aura.
Glynda: (To create such a dangerous & reckless plan right under my nose, much less being able to execute said plan with such perfection… You have proven me wrong yet again, Ruby Rose… After what just happened, you've truly earned my utmost respect…)
Byleth & Weiss stand their ground with their weapons drawn, now that Glynda doesn't have the high ground to snipe them away with her barrage of Psychic Attacks. But this battle is far from over & they know it!
We cut back to Blake who's just minding her own business & picking some tea leaves, she's having some good harvests so far. Black Tea Leaves & Green Tea Leaves were very common around here, she could use some black & green tea by now.
Blake: Alright, I think that's enough. I've spent 20 minutes in this, I should head back.
As Blake is packing her stuff up, she then gets the images of Ruby & Yang in her head, but she doesn't know why, why did she suddenly think of them just now?
Blake: Then again, I'm wondering how those 2 are doing… Did they get some headbands of their own? Well, it doesn't hurt to check.
Blake takes out her scroll & notices that both Ruby's & Yang's Auras are broken, what the hell?! Blake gets a little worried, did those 2 get into trouble or something & why is Blake getting worried?! She plans on ditching them should they hold her back, so why is she feeling worried about them right now?
Blake: By the looks of it, they got into some intense shit… Well, I got enough time to-
[Music: Virtuous Pope from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3: Stardust Crusaders]
Before Blake could finish talking, she narrowly dodges a throwing shield being thrown behind her which was being aimed at her head. The shield then turns back around like a magnet & then gets surprised beyond belief; it's Pyrrha?!
Blake: PYRRHA?! How did you get out of that trap I caught you with?!
Pyrrha moves around her dominate arm little bit & adjusts her messy hair before answering Blake's question, all the while glaring at her with a very cold, yet confident expression on her face that's screams "I'm going to kick your ass"!
Pyrrha: My name is Pyrrha Nikos, people often call me "a goody toe-shoes girl-scout that always does the right thing" or whatnot. I've helped people who are not only ungrateful, but are also disgusting scumbags; simply because I try to save everyone, regardless of whether or not they deserve such kindness. I've put my desires aside to help orphaned children many times in the past, because no one else would've done the same in a place like Mistral. I've even had times where I outright sabotaged missions that weren't up to my own code of honor & morality, mainly about killing those who already suffered way too much… HOWEVER!... Even someone as kind & gentle as myself has her limits & breaking points & when I hear someone saying nonsense like "Abusing the weaknesses of your enemies to achieve victory" or "Never trust anyone", or saying that you're fine with using those around you as tools & would easily dispatch of them should they start holding you back…it makes me furious!
Blake tenses up as she sees the more serious & driven side of Pyrrha, already having her weapons drawn for round 2; but something tells her that this won't go the same way as it did before. Pyrrha then points her sword at Blake before continuing her monologue.
Pyrrha: Someone with your ideals & worldview is doomed to fail in the long-run, yet you refuse to realize that you'll only find yourself with an early demise should you keep going down this path!... I can see that your newfound teammates haven't drilled that simple lesson into that thick skull of yours, which is why… I'll teach you that lesson myself!
Blake is both impressed that Pyrrha can still keep fighting & was able to escape her trap without activating her mines, but also unimpressed by that speech of hers. Blake has heard all of that crap before in the past & those who said it were proven wrong, she just rolls her eyes as she gets prepares herself to finish off Pyrrha for good this time.
Blake: Tch, spare me your "Shonen Hero" bullshit; I don't have time to listen to ridiculous nonsense such as this… When I learned about your past, I thought that you would see how cruel & devastating the real world is… but now I realized I was wrong, you're just another naïve brat playing hero, JUST LIKE ALL OF THE REST!
Blake transforms one of her katanas into a throwing sickle & throws it at Pyrrha to shut her up, but Pyrrha's prepared to face her this time around.
Pyrrha: *Smirks* "A child playing hero", you say?
Instead of Pyrrha blocking the incoming attack with her shield like Blake has anticipated, Pyrrha lets the throwing sickle catch her arm, wrapping it around said arm.
Pyrrha: In that case, let's see who's really the naïve child here!
Pyrrha grabs a tight hold of the ribbon tied onto the sickle with her free hand & quickly pulls Blake towards her direction & just as fast as she pulled the ribbon, Blake quickly gets pulled close to Pyrrha & gets a very powerful Aura infused kick right to the face. Blake is sent flying with so much force that the elastic ribbon from the sickle that was binding Pyrrha's arm was ripped off like paper mâché, she hits one of the trees & loses a good chunk of her Aura; all the while Pyrrha takes a close look at one of Blake's swords.
Pyrrha: So this is the kind of weapon you use, a katana with a reversed-edge… I wonder why would you carry around a weapon that's not made to kill, is there something you'd like to talk to me or your "friends" about?
Blake gets back up & puts back up her bamboo hat, clearly feeling pain from a kick as powerful as that & just to make it worse, it worse from an armored boot with heels!
Blake: I don't see why I would waste my time telling something that's irrelevant & it's none of your damn business to begin with!
Pyrrha just sighs in disappointment as she throws the sickle back at Blake like a dagger, who easily catches it back.
Pyrrha: Fine, don't talk. I apologize for getting to personal business like that, I can have my answers some other time… Now then, how about we get back to business?
Pyrrha quickly makes her way to Blake before she even has a chance to defend herself & begin clashing their blades once again; but unlike in round 1, Pyrrha's on the offensive & Blake's on the defensive. Because of being caught off guard like that & receiving such a powerful blow to the face like that, Blake has trouble keeping up with Pyrrha despite Blake being faster, but Pyrrha is just too strong for Blake to defend against! After a few more clashes, Pyrrha lets Blake back away to attack her with a cross slash with both of her swords; only for Pyrrha to not take a defensive stance. Instead, she waits for the right moment to catch both of Blake's weapons at once like its nothing.
Blake: WHAT?!
Pyrrha just smirks as she hardens her forehead with her Aura & headbutts Blake with a lot of force, followed by an Aura Enhanced Knee right under Blake's jaw, pushing her away as she disarms her of her weapons. Pyrrha tries to swing at her with sword to land the finishing blow, but Blake quickly recovers from the 2 powerful hits from Pyrrha & throws a smoke bomb at her face which blinds her, giving Blake the opportunity to hide in the shadows without Pyrrha noticing once again.
Pyrrha: Argh! You always have to play dirty, don't you?!
When the smoke cleared, Blake was already gone, the same applying to her swords. This time, Pyrrha already knows that whatever Blake's Semblance may be, it allows her to hide her presence, which is why Pyrrha might not be able to find her by reading her Aura. But she has already touched the metals of Blake's swords, so she just needs the perfect opportunity to use her Semblance & finish the ronin off.
Blake is currently hiding behind a tree licking her wounds, those blows to the face really hurt. She knew Pyrrha was strong, but this was just flat-out insanity; now she needs the perfect opportunity to strike her from behind & this time, she won't be as merciful.
Blake: (Shit! I can't believe I let my guard down & let her take the lead like this, she's not fighting me for the ribbons anymore, this is different & the strength behind those attacks showed that… Now then, I must tread carefully & use these shadows to my advantage.)
Blake blends her body with the tree's shadow & slowly approaches Pyrrha, with both of her swords at hand. Once she gets close enough, she waits for the opportunity for Pyrrha to lower her guard, giving the chance to attack. After a few more seconds of waiting, she does so & Blake goes for the kill; little did she know that this was Pyrrha's plan all along.
Pyrrha: Honestly, you're too predictable.
Before Blake connects, she's suddenly stopped as her hands suddenly felt like it froze, she can't move her own damn hands?! What's going on, why can't she move her hands?! That's when Blake realizes that this was a trap set by Pyrrha the whole time.
Blake: This is-
Pyrrha: Correct!
Pyrrha turns around, with her left hand having a Black Aura surrounding it, Pyrrha has now activated her Semblance of "Polarity"; to which Pyrrha explains its abilities to Blake.
Pyrrha: I knew you'd try to attack me from behind again, thinking that I wouldn't have a way to fight back, right?... Well, good thing most people around the world don't even know what my Semblance is & how it works. When I disarmed you moments prior, I've given your swords a temporary magnetic energy so that I could control them like floating metal whenever I wanted, even if you tried to escape, I would've been able to track you down by simply pulling you towards me so long as you held those swords. That way, no matter if you fled or kept fighting, I'd still be able to defeat you!
Blake struggles to get out of Pyrrha's little prison, now she knows what feeling "trapped" feels like. She has no way to escape the incoming attack from Pyrrha, as she enhances her sword now turned into a javelin, ready to finish Blake off for good. She doesn't try to fight back, she already accepted that she lost & so, she let Pyrrha go wild.
Pyrrha: For all of those who have fallen…
Pyrrha begins with a twirl spear slash followed by 2 down twirl spear slashes, followed up by 3 more up twirl spear slashes before slashing her down even more.
Pyrrha: & For all of those who are still living…
Pyrrha spins her javelin around as she sends a volley of spear thrusts at Blake which take out good chunks of her aura, before upward slashing her a few more times & using her Semblance to trap Blake in a tall tree by binding her hands with her sickles in the tree. Due to the Gravity Dust infused in those ribbons, she can't break herself free.
Pyrrha: I shall keep fighting until a brighter tomorrow arrive!
Pyrrha uses a lot of her Aura in the next attack, pulling the javelin back & enhancing it with so much Aura, enough to shatter a building. When Blake opens her eyes to see what's about to happen, it's already too late.
Pyrrha: DRAGON'S MOON SPEAR!
Pyrrha throws the javelin towards Blake, hitting her torso; the force behind that throw & the Aura that was infused in the javelin itself was so powerful that it not only completely shattered the tree Blake was trapped on, but also caused a giant shockwave throughout the forest that could be felt from miles away. Blake's Aura shatters as she begins falling down, completely & utterly defeated.
[Music End]
Blake: {I never thought… That someone so strong… Could ever exist…}
Blake loses consciousness once she falls back to the ground, Pyrrha using her Semblance to get her javelin back. She then turns around ready to leave the area, but not before whispering something big to Blake before she leaves. She does this knowing Blake is unconscious since Pyrrha reveals an interesting detail that she knew about Blake.
Pyrrha: {The ability to blend yourself in shadows, surprise attacks that are like that of an assassin's, I knew I've faced someone with those exact same abilities before I entered Beacon Academy… To think that we'd each other once again, Eve: The Manslayer…}
Pyrrha was already aware of Blake both being a Faunus, as well as the Legendary Eve: The Manslayer. She has faced her in the battlefield almost a year ago, when she had to stay in guard of an important businessman, which was a target of the White Fang at the time. Who would've thought that their fates would've been intertwined like this?...
Pyrrha: {I don't know the true reason why you're really here, but I promise you that I'll keep your little secret safe. Everyone has their reasons, after all… It's a good thing that the microphones from the satellite cameras around here can't hear me whispering right now… But after you recover from injuries, I'd like to have a proper meeting with you, along with some of that homebrewed tea of yours… Take care, Eve…}
Pyrrha leaves the scene, but doesn't take any of the headbands that were with Blake, she didn't need them anymore, she got what she wanted already. Now she must go back to Jaune & take him for treatment, good thing she also deactivated those mines Blake used earlier when Pyrrha was trapped in Blake's… well- trap, god knows how many accidents could happen because of those mines being laid around like that.
Back to the only fight that's still going on at this point in The Mock Battle with only an hour or so left before the timer runs out, Byleth & Weiss VS Glynda. Even though Glynda doesn't have the high ground anymore, she's still very relentless & her Psychic abilities are – for the lack of a better term – ruthless! She's using small rocks & fires them like a barrage of missiles, transforms plants into sharp flying spears, even using the late itself as a Psychic attack, the works! Byleth is on the offensive swingling The Sword of the Creator around trying to get an opening & get close enough to get a good hit on Glynda, while Weiss is supporting Byleth with her many Glyphs, mainly using them as shields to defend themselves from Glynda's constant Psychic attacks.
Byleth: This is going nowhere, how much Aura does this woman have?! How come she hasn't already run out of fuel?!
Byleth spins her chain sword-whip around to cut down the next barrage of Psychic blades & tries to get closer to Glynda, but she keeps finding ways to push back Byleth further either with an even bigger barrage of Psychic Blades or using the water to push her away. Weiss thinks of how she can go to Glynda with her guard down, but she can't seem to find any openings; all she can do is fire more projectiles & hope for the best. Weiss is starting to get tired from using her Semblance like that & is running out of Dust to use.
Weiss: *Panting* Bloody hell, I'm starting to reach my limit!... & I'm starting to run out of Dust, these are my last ones…
Weiss says that as she reloads Myrtenaster one final time before pointing her rapier at Glynda, but then she realizes something. She doesn't have to necessarily fire at Glynda directly, maybe she can fire at something else to take her attention? Yeah, that might actually work! Weiss starts to look around & finds the shattered boulder from afar that Glynda was riding on earlier, that's it! Byleth however can still keep going, but it's really starting to get annoyed at this cycle of "Destroy Psychic Projectiles, get closer to Glynda, gets pushed back by MORE Psychic Projectiles, rinse & repeat". If only she didn't have to worry about exposing herself by using her magic.
Byleth: (Okay, I didn't want to do this… But!)
Byleth takes a deep breath before activating her Crest of Flames, powering up The Sword of the Creator to utterly demolish the next rain of Psychic Projectiles & pushing Glynda away with the impact of her attack. At this moment, Weiss takes this chance to stab her rapier to the ground & create a trail of Glyphs heading to some of the shattered boulders from afar. As she does so, Byleth finally gets close to Glynda & the 2 have a close combat, Glynda creating Psychic Barriers, using her experience & knowledge of Aura to the fullest against Byleth; mainly enhancing her free hand with Aura, almost using as a short-sword of her own. But Byleth is made for close combat, so she's able to get some good hits.
Glynda: Your swordsmanship is truly impressive; it has been a long time since someone has pushed me this far in the battlefield. To think that you never learned to fight like this on a combat school or a Huntsmen Academy before in your life.
Byleth: *Smirks* Hey, being self-taught has its benefits. I don't know about you, but I'm having a lot of fun in this battle. Fighting strong opponents always gets me fired up!
The 2 professors keep clashing a little more before Byleth kicks Glynda to push her away, giving her the opportunity to use one of her Combat Arts. She pulls back & takes a pose that looks like she's about to spin around with her sword, she takes a tight grip of her blade before swinging it with immense force like a hurricane.
Byleth: Take this! WINDSWEEP!
Byleth spins around before swinging her sword at Glynda with a powerful sword attack, so strong that it stuns her for a brief moment to prevent an immediate counter attack. As she's recollecting herself, Weiss takes this opportunity to finish Glynda off. Her trail of Glyphs ended right behind the big rubble of shattered rocks that she was hoping to use against Glynda, she combines Fire & Wind dust before using them at the Glyphs & once they reach the final Glyph, a giant explosion occurs & is sent the shattered rocks firing directly behind Glynda, with the intent to hit her hard enough to break her remaining Aura in a single blow & finally finish her off.
Unfortunately for them, Glynda is an extremely well-trained Huntress that can get her footing back after a big hit like that. So the moment she recovered from Byleth's sword attack, she immediately lets her Aura burst out in such a tremendous show of power & with her Telekinesis, she stops all of the flying shattered rocks just as they were about to hit her head on, making both Byleth & Weiss drop their jaws in pure & utter shock!
Glynda: How repulsive, to think that you'd use a trap like this to finish me off? Using the same boulder that I have used to attack you both to your advantage the same way Ms. Rose has?! Well, please forgive me for disappoint you girls… BUT THE SAME TRICK NEVER WORKS ON ME TWICE IN A ROW!
Glynda in pure vengeful resilience fires some of the shattered rocks at both Byleth & Weiss with her Telekinesis, the attack is powerful & it deals quite a lot of damage to both young ladies. Byleth in particular felt a very hard impact on her right forearm, making her lose grip of her Sword of the Creator which is sent flying away.
Weiss however got it the worse as a shower of shattered rocks hits her dead on, breaking her remaining Aura in an instant & is sent flying to the lake that wasn't very far away from her location, now all of Team RWBY is out, all that's left is Byleth to face off against Glynda who's had enough of this match & just wants to get it over with.
Glynda: Ms. Schnee, you have my highest of praises for lasting this long despite being the weakest of your team. You've truly earned your place in Beacon Academy… As for you, Ms. Eisner… I think it's high time we end this little charade, shall we? I'll take this opportunity to finish you off before you get a chance to get your sword back!
Glynda pulls back the shattered rocks she's thrown before & hovers them behind her just as Byleth's forearm is starting to get healed with her Aura, but she has no way of fighting back against Glynda's next attack, not without exposing herself, at least!... So all she can do is brace herself & hope for the best, just as Glynda has the rocks targeted at Byleth.
Glynda: Say hello to Nurse Peach for me in the infirmary, now begone with you!
Glynda fires all of the shattered rocks at once towards Byleth & they hit her head on; as she's taking the damage head on, Byleth reflects on herself for a moment.
Byleth: (Is this how I'm gonna fail my test?! Being barraged by mere rocks just like this?! Is this really all I can do?!)
Byleth thinks back of her time at Garreg Mach Monastery, meeting the Golden Deer, losing her Father, falling in love with Claude & falling into the abyss below as she saw her home crumble right before her eyes. Then she gets flashes of Ruby for a brief moment, remembering the entire reason why she even got a second chance at life in the first place.
Byleth: (No! I can't fall back now! If I can't even pass a mere test like this, then what good will I be against the greater threats of this world?! How can I help Ruby if I can't become stronger?! No, I can't fail again! I WON'T FALTER AGAIN!)
During Byleth's inner monologue, she feels her body change a little bit, almost hardening itself a little bit; just in time for the last few rocks slam at her with full force, creating a giant smoke. For a few seconds, it seems that Byleth was out for the count, to the point of Glynda already declaring victory.
Glynda: At last, it's over… To think that such a simple Mock Battle could get this intense, but I personally wouldn't have it any other way. These children will become protectors of the world; here at Beacon, it is our duty to guide them & prepare them for the outside world as much as possible, they've fought with everything they've got in this test & as one of their professors, I couldn't help but be proud of my new first-year students. But it seems that we were just the stronger ones in this battle, although even I didn't think that things would get as close as they have…
Glynda cleans up her glasses as well as fixing her hair that got messy during the fight.
Glynda: Don't feel bad about the outcome, girls. You might get us next- wait, WHAT?!
[Music: "Fire Emblem: Three Houses Theme REMIX" from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]
The dust from Glynda's final attack finally clears out & she's seeing the last thing she has expected to see; not only is Byleth still standing on her own 2 feet with her arms crossed in a defensive position, completely fine! But also having with what appears to be bright white scales covering her skin, mainly her arms. At this very moment, Byleth has just unlocked her Semblance & how fitting that the vessel of a Dragon transforming goddess would get a Semblance that can turn her human body into scales of a Dragon! Byleth opens her eyes in shock of what just happened.
Byleth: What?... My- my arms… What is this?
Byleth takes this moment to look at herself, mainly her arms. The Dragon Scales are as tough & durable as diamonds themselves; she flicks her fingers at the other arm & can feel the dullness & durability of her scales; they also look just like Rhea's Dragon Form.
Byleth: Wait… Is this- my Semblance?!...
Glynda: Correct.
Byleth looks back at Glynda, who's just as shocked & confused from what the hell just happened, talk about dumb luck for Byleth for having her Semblance unlocked right there.
Glynda: Semblances are commonly triggered during stressful events, whether they be psychological, physical or both. I swear, your luck truly knows no bounds, does it!?
Glynda creates more Psychic Blades with her Telekinesis & fires them at Byleth, who just flicks them away by swinging one of her arms hard enough, shocking Glynda.
Glynda: WHAT?! THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! Nobody can just deflect my Psychic Blades!
Glynda creates more Psychic Blades & sends the barrage right at Byleth, who decided to go guns blazing & run towards Glynda, not even feeling the damage from her Psychic Blades due to how EXTRA THICK her newly awakened "Dragonscale" Semblance is. By simply using her arms to deflect the incoming projectiles, she finally gets close enough to Glynda & shoots a powerful hook straight at her torso, making her fall to her knees with her Aura flickering, almost at its breaking point.
Glynda:KUARGH!
Byleth quickly catches Glynda by the collar of her shirt before she completely fell to the ground, not quite finished in testing her newfound power.
Glynda: (I- IMPOSSIBLE! Her speed & her power-… It's unreal, how can someone this powerful even exist?! She isn't human!)
Byleth: Oh, sorry about that. Didn't mean to hit you so hard, I'm still grasping this new ability of mine… What was that you said earlier? About "saying hello to Nurse Peach in the infirmary"? Well, look who's going there now… After I take you down, that is…
Glynda shivers in fear from what's about to come & for good reason, Byleth enhances her hand with Aura & pushes her away with an Aura Shockwave as she prepares her new finishing move that she just came up with. (It's anime, don't question it.)
Byleth: The radiant blood flowing through my veins!
Byleth begins with a kick to the face followed up by 3 punches, one at Glynda's right side of the torso, the second to her gut & the third one to her face.
Byleth: The blazing heart that's resonating through my body!
Byleth follows up her combo by a small volley of punches & kicks that hit Glynda head on, Byleth then steps back a bit before bowling her fist for the final rushdown.
Byleth: It gives me the strength to forge a new sacred path!
Byleth finish things up with a final barrage of punches that utterly decimate Glynda & completely shatters her Aura in an instant, this barrage of punches felt like so many hammers being slammed all at once for Glynda & it hurt like a bitch!
Glynda: (H- HOW CAN THIS BE?! The unimaginable power that this young woman has almost feels like she's some sort of otherworldly demigod!)
Byleth: Take this! HOLY DAWN'S RUPTURED HEAVEN!
Byleth delivers the final few blows that send Glynda flying away with immense force before crashing back to the ground, fully unconscious from the final attack. During that attack, her headband was torn off & landed on Byleth's feet, meaning that Byleth's team now has all 10 headbands, just in time for Ozpin to declare the winner with 25 minutes to spare in the 3-hour time limit of this Mock Battle.
[Music End]
Ozpin: & THAT'S THE FINAL CONTENDER OUT FOR THE COUNT! ALL 10 HEADBANDS ARE NOW AT TEAM BYLETH'S POSSESSION, MEAINING THAT THE WINNER OF THIS MOCK BATTLE IS… TEAM RWBY, LEAD BY PROFESSOR BYLETH EISNER!
[Jingle: Round Clear from Sonic Adventure]
Byleth does a victory pose to show off some of her newly formed scales.
Byleth: I'll use this power for the greater good!
[Phase 1: Ashen Rose – Chapter 1: The Garnet Papillons: Cleared]
[MVP: Byleth]
The students in the amphitheater cheered at their new Professor's grand victory in this Mock Battle & what a battle this was, so intense, fun, full of surprises & more! This was quite the grand spectacle for the students, it almost felt like a big team tournament fight of sorts & it shows. As Byleth is catching her breath, she can feel her arms turn back to normal as her Dragonscale is now deactivating, she must've used the last of her Aura to awaken her Semblance in such a way. She takes the headband at her feet & goes to take back her sword.
Byleth: I don't recall my first Mock Battle with the 3 houses being this intense. I guess this is what you get if everyone had superpowers & so many more options in battle…
Byleth watches the waters of the lake flow, even hitting her feet. Although she's scared of the future ahead, she's also excited, wondering what kind of adventures she'll get into in her new life in Remnant. Up there in the helicopter, Sothis & Gayelette comment on their performance in this incredible Mock Battle.
Sothis: HAHAH! Way to go Sis! You show those guys whose boss & who you shouldn't mess with! That's how you teach those kids how to kick some ass!
Ozpin: Language, Young Sothis!
Gayelette: To think that things would go this crazy, they've all done incredibly well.
Sothis: Wait, aren't you upset that your Mom-… Ya'know…
Gayelette: Lost? No, not at all… she's given her all & that's what matters. Besides, if anyone was to defeat her, it'd most likely be Prof. Eisner; she's super strong.
Sothis: Heck yeah, she is!
Ozpin: On that topic; Lady Sothis, has Ms. Eisner ever showed that power before?
Sothis: You mean those dragon scales? No, I've never seen them before. This is definitely new to her, that I'm most certain of.
Ozpin: I see, which means that this must be her newly awakened Semblance & quite the powerful one at that. I've seen shapeshifting Semblance where their body is changed in someway & gives them a new ability, but never to this extent.
Ozpin smirks at the new possibilities given to him, perhaps she's the one who will save Remnant from itself? Only time will tell…
Due to the intense battle, The Garnet Papillons were given a day off from class to rest up & lick their wounds a little more, with Ruby having the fasted recovery oddly enough. She's at the dorm rooftop watching the stars above, appreciating the beauty of this vast night sky & its many wonders. After a few more minutes of relaxation, Byleth come by to go check on her & wanting to talk to her.
Byleth: So this is where you were, I usually expect this kind of alone time from Blake.
Ruby: Believing or not, I actually like to be alone for a little bit. You wouldn't know what a nice nap in a sight like this can do to you.
Byleth: Oh, but I do. Moreover, how are you feeling?
Ruby gets up & faces Byleth before answering.
Ruby: My arms still hurt a little bit, but I'm feeling much better now. I've always healed my wounds far quicker than most, although I never understood why that was the case.
Byleth: Oh, really? Here I thought I was the only one.
Ruby is taken a back by that statement & widens her eyes a little bit.
Ruby: Wait, hold on! You have that too?!
Byleth: Yeah, although it might be for completely different reasons to yours. But in actuality, this isn't exactly what I meant when I asked you "How were you feeling"; there's something I wanted to ask you after you recovered from The Mock Battle.
Ruby: It's not? Well… what is it, then?
Byleth: Back when you were facing Glynda up in her floating boulder in The Mock Battle, I overheard something back there. About you "having a mission that you must complete, no matter what", or something along those lines… & Before you ask how I overheard that if you were so high up, Sothis & I have heighted hearing sense & no, it's not a Faunus trait since we're both humans.
Ruby: Oh, that!... Well, why do you wanna know about it?
Byleth: I'm rather curious, that's all. You didn't strike me as someone who had a grand final goal of sorts when I first met you… Although, I'm not gonna force you to answer it if you don't feel comfortable in talking about it.
Ruby takes a moment to think about what Byleth just said, she normally doesn't like talking about her inner struggles & personal issues, not even to her own Sister. Especially now that she's a leader of a team & class, so she can't let her weaknesses show & must keep her head high up so that she can do her job. Yet for some reason, she doesn't feel that way towards Byleth, she feels like she can trust Byleth with her personal struggles & perhaps even help her in this mission; so she answers Byleth's question honestly.
Ruby: No, it's alright. I don't mind talking about it, not to you anyways…
Ruby takes a deep breath before continuing.
Ruby: Back when I was a small child, my Mother went on a mission, one that she never came back from... By the time I learned that she supposably died, I just turned 6 years old. My Mother was the strongest, yet kindest person I've ever known, she meant the entire world to me… & At that day, the thing I got from my 6th birthday was her bloodied white hood, filled with tears… I was really torn up, it felt like something inside of me wanted to get out… But it wasn't sadness, it was anger!… Vengeful & burning anger…
Byleth doesn't say anything, but her facial expression says it all. This poor little girl lost her Mother the day she turned 6 years old, that'd torn up anyone around her age, Ruby continues her story while Byleth has her full attention.
Ruby: As I lived a motherless life, I've learned bits & bits more about my Mother, why she died exactly & who was she truly fighting against. Records say that it was a powerful Grimm invasion from very far away, but I know that's a lie! My Mother would never fall to those soulless scum who only know how to kill & destroy! That's when I started thinking of something: "What if this is something far bigger than the world knows? What if my Mother died fighting for a cause unknown from the public eye?" Unfortunately, my Dad & Uncle never told me a thing no matter what I asked, so I decided to take matters into my own hands. One day, when I was alone in the house, I did some research on the history of my Mother & the others behind their backs, that's when I discovered a few interesting details, mainly about a supposed "Wizard from the Shadows".
Wait, hold the phone! "A Wizard from the Shadows"?! Byleth is aware that Salem is the one behind Summer's death, thanks to her talk with her otherselves before coming to Remnant. She thinks that this "Wizard" guy might have a connection with Salem in some way, whatever way it may be, that'll eventually lead Ruby straight to Salem without even knowing it! This is bad, this is REALLY BAD! Byleth doesn't even NEED to know how strong Salem is exactly to know that Ruby stands no chance against someone like her, let alone right now where she's a Beacon Freshman & like everyone else these days, she believes that The Dark Goddess died in The Holy War 1000+ years ago, Byleth feels a shiver down her spine as Ruby continues her story.
Ruby: I knew that no one would believe in stuff like that, which is why I always kept it to myself, especially my Older Sister… This Wizard guy is my business, not hers… Which is the main reason why I decided to enroll at Beacon Academy, I felt that if I enrolled in the same academy as my Mother, I'd find something that could help find this guy… While I don't have any evidence to support this, I'm sure that he's still alive to this day!
To say that Byleth is horrified at the story Ruby just told her would be an understatement to say the least, her facial expression can't even fully express that fear. She gulps before finally speaking up.
Byleth: I… I see, I'm sorry about your Mom… I know what it's like to lose a parent in life, in that way, we're the same… But let me ask you, why did you feel so comfortable in telling me this story, if not even your Father, Uncle or Sister know your whole story?
Ruby: *Smirks* It's simple, because you're going to help me!
Byleth: What?!
Now this has become even more shocking! Not only has Ruby told her full story to Byleth, when she's not even that honest to her own family; but she also directly told that she's going to help her in this mission of hers!
Ruby: You heard me, Byleth Eisner! My mission is to discover the whole truth behind my Mother's final mission & finish what she has started! & I want your help in this mission!
At that point, Byleth felt like she was going to mentally shut down. Did she really hear what she just said?! Ruby, a young girl who seems like she just wants to become a Huntress & help those in need… Is unknowingly & ignorantly thinking of declaring war to this world's version of Nemesis himself! Ruby clearly knows of how cruel the outside world is, she's not a naïve girl like many people see her as, but she is an optimist & she can be a little over her head at times, this being a clear case of the latter. Byleth wonders when she herself will have to come clean & be fully honest with Ruby herself, she's given her own life story, so will she do the same? She can't hide forever& she knows it!
The Mock Battle comes to a big climatic conclusion with Byleth & Team RWBY taking the win of this massive battle, but it's been made abundantly clear that some of these kids are much more than initially realizing at first glancing; like Blake, Weiss, Pyrrha, Jaune & now Ruby herself. What will fate bring her? Will Ruby succeed in her mission or will she fail like so many before her? Find out next time on RWBY: The Verdant Star of Remnant!
RWBY: The Verdant Star of Remnant - Chapter 9: Dragonscale Awakened! - End.
Author's Notes: This chapter was hard to write since ya'know, it's MOSTLY A GIANT ACTION SCENE. But surprisingly, i had ALOT of fun writing it this time around. I'd pay a FORTUNE to see some of these scenes animated, now then, onto the questions!
1: Is Dragonscale ACTUALLY Byleth's newfound Semblance or does she have that since she's part Manakete because of Rhea? While it's true that i gave her Dragonscale as a nod to Manaketes in the Fire Emblem series, that's NOT why she has it in a physical sense. So YES! Dragonscale IS Byleth's Semblance & YES, It WILL become more powerful as the series goes on, but NO! She will NOT turn into a giant motherfocking Dragon once she reached its final stage, i'm not THAT crazy... I Hope!
2: When did Pyrrha met Blake (Eve: The Manslayer) prior to V1 & why has she only mentioned it now? To answer the FIRST question, they met 1~ year ago before the current story line. Blake was after someone important in Mistral that Pyrrha was hired to guard at the time & they fought. As to why she only remember her now? Well, for one (& This will be explained better when Blake's secret is out) Blake wore a mask that covered her whole face (Think of that awesome desing from RWBY Henceforward by Kuma) & second, she only realized that Blake was Eve DURING that fight since Pyrrha eventually figured out that Blake can blend into shadows, that's the same Semblance Eve had & Pyrrha's an intelligent girl, so she can connect the dots just fine... Get excited for these 2, but for those who want a romance between them, sorry to disappoint you since i had my pairings planned before i even STARTED writing this series.
3: Why is Ruby suddenly a JoJo MC that can "asspull" her way out of a bad situation & who's this Wizard from the Shadows she learned about in her preteen years? To answer the FIRST question, 1: I LOVE JOJO, incase you couldn't tell by the way i wrote some of these finishers & used their OST which is amazing! 2: Because i wanted to make Ruby stronger, but not with brute force since i didn't think that was as interesting & we already have 3 students in The Garnet Papillon House who are fighters with brute strenght: Yang, Nora & Pyrrha. So insteand, i decided to strenghten her tactics & intelligence on the battlefield. Tricking her enemies into thinking she's doing something only to find out that it was a distraction for them to not notice what was she REALLY doing, catching her enemies off-guard in the chaddest way possible, think of new tactics mid-battle, ETC. I *LIVE* for that shit, i LOVE that stuff so much & it's one of the many reasons why i love JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. Besides, this is the same girl who went head first against a levyathan & shot down a mecha by diving into its arm cannon back in Volume 6 all in the span of 1 HOUR! she was ALREADY crazy in canon, so i decided to up that a little bit as well. As for this "Wizard from the Shadows" guy, that's gonna be expended upon as the series goes. But before you ask, YES! It IS someone who works for Salem & NO! It's not a member of her circle that we know of; so it's not Cinder, Watts, Tyrian, Hazel or ANY of those guys... For those who might've guessed or figured out, i only ask one thing. DO NOT COMMENT ABOUT HIM BELOW! NO SPOILERS IN THE COMMENTS, PLEASE!
Anyways, that's all i got for today. Stay excited for next chapter since it'd be a little break from all of this chaos & it's going to be mainly focusing on Yang. This has been Remnant Bardock & until next time, have a wonderful day, my friends!