Reviews
Magi-Mari: The reveal of Sirius' weapon is in this chapter! And while his weapon inspiration isn't Dante or Nero, but rather another white haired swordsman in red, I did take cues from Nero's weapon for it! Hope you like it!
Guest, Astro-Oro: Thank you for the kind words! Like I said. Sirius won't be getting an Aura, but you're right about one thing, I never said that different energy sources aren't off the table! Your suggestions are appreciated, and I'd love to hear more!
I'm typically don't write extensive harem stories--I'd reserve that for stories like... Highschool DxD or something. But I appreciate you not dropping the story because of the creative decision! One of the few actually mature responses in regards to it. I'm glad you like Sirius as a character, and I hope you enjoy what comes next out of this story!
Author's Note
You all thought this was DEAD, didn't you?! AHAHAHAHAHA--nah. It just took me a bit to get this done. I was procrastinating lmao.
Sorry for the wait! And onto the chapter!
Chapter 9: Reaper's Blade.
Sirius awoke to the sound of his alarm blaring in his ears. He let out a startled yelped and fumbled in his chair, before suddenly tilting over and crashing onto the floor violent enough to cause the entire room to shake. The boy groaned in pain as he slowly pushed himself up and rubbed the bruise forming on the back of his head with a pained grimace. Tired eyes shifted over to his alarm clock, which continued to beep loudly. Pushing himself up to his feet, Sirius suddenly grabbed the clock and crushed it in his fist. As the sound abated, he released a small sigh of relief.
Standing in the middle of the room now, he looked around and winced at the mess he'd caused. There were multiple sketches strewn about on the floor from his fall. Sighing, he began to pick up the papers that had fallen off his desk, stacking them together. He paused, and eyed his notebook, and the sketches and designs he'd made for his weaoon.
He felt a smile tug at his cheeks as he set the papers off to the side, picking the notebook up and shifting through several pages worth of notes, details, concepts, and designs. He hummed and nodded his head with a look of satsifaction, before yawning.
"Guess that all-nighter was worth it.." Sirius mumbled, rubbing at the bags under his eyes as he snapped the book shut and stretched. "Guess I should get ready for the day. Then I can show Ruby what I got..."
Nodding to himself, the whitette turned around and made a b-line for the showers.
[HUNTER]
Walking through Beacon's halls with his notebook tucked under his arm, Sirius looked around for any signs of Team RWBY, but had no luck in finding them. Ruby specifically. Which was beginning to frustrate him. Sighing to himself, the boy pulled out his scroll and sent Ruby a text.
S - Where are you guys at? I need to talk to you about something.
He stared at the screen in silence, waiting for a reply. He blinked in surprise when he got a message almost instantly.
R - Out in the city for supplies! B back soon! :)
He stared at the message incredulously and shook his head. "Great. Now what do I do?" Sirius grumbled under his breath. As he stood in the hallway, his ears perked up at a peculiar sound. His attention was grabbed, and he began walking at a steady pace, following the source with a curious look on his face.
Sirius came face to face with a training facility. He could hear the sounds of scraping metal and shouts of exertion. He pushed the door open slightly and peeked his head inside the room, and let out a small gasp of shock and the person occupying the room.
Dressed in a black tank top and compression shorts was a brown-haired rabbit faunus with a lithe, curvy figure. As Sirius squinted. A look of realization dawned on him as he recognized the young woman. It was Velvet Scarlatina, the one who helped him figure out his scroll on his first day at Beacon. He hadn't seen her in the first few weeks at the academy since then.
The rabbit faunus blitzed across the room like a blur, the obvious signs of Augmentation being put into use. Golden-brown Aura surrounded her legs and bolstered her movements as she touched various drones and lashed out with kicks of her own, effortlessly destroying them in one clean struck. Her movements flowed into one another as she bounced across the walls, far too fast for the drones to track. It was only thanks to Sirius' own superhuman physiology that he was able to keep track of her.
She's as fast as Ruby! Maybe even faster? And this is just with Augmentation? I've never seen someone move so fast with it. Sirius thought with awe. He'd hadn't seen anyone, save Professor Tora, move with such efficiency.
Landing in a crouch on all fours, as if gravity itself didn't affect her, Velvet clung to the ceiling and launched herself off of it. A shockwave rippled through the air like water as she sped down towards the remaining drones like a bullet. She nimbly flipped through the air and swung her leg down in an axe-kick, destroying the metallic, flying spheres in one fell swoop. Skidding across the floor, golden Aura in the form of electricity sparked around her feet as her momentum slowly came to a halt.
Velvet released a soft sigh and stretched her arms over her head with a gentle grunt. Hopping off the stadium, she made her way over to the bleachers and snagged herself a towel and bottle of water. Just as she was about to dry off and refresh herself, her gaze flicked across the room and landed on Sirius.
Once their eyes met, Sirius flinched slightly, gaping like a fish, he waved sheepishly with a slight laugh. "Uh... hello, again!"
Velvet raised a brow in confusion and blinked, sending the boy a befuddled stare. "... Hello? Have we met before?"
Sirius nearly face-faulted, stumbling over himself. Shaking his head and scratching the back of his neck, he sighed. "Uh... yeah. You helped me with my scroll a few weeks back."
Velvet stared at Sirius blankly as she delved into her memories, before letting out a sound of acknoledgement. Her eyes brightened and she grinned. "OH! It's you! the 1st Year. It'd been a while, I nearly forgot!" She giggled sheepishly, popping the cap on her water and chugging the contents within. "How've you been?"
"I've been... alright." Sirius shrugged his shoulders, making his way over and taking a seat next to her. "Adjusting, I guess? All of this is just so..."
"Daunting?" Velvet gave him a knowing look, sitting down next to the boy and nodding her head. "Trust me, I understand the feeling very well. I felt the exact same way during my first year here. It gets better though!"
"Yeah..." Sirius smiled slightly, glancing down at his notebook. "It's been pretty nice. At Beacon, I mean. Had it's ups and downs... but it's nice."
"Hmm." Velvet hummed, glancing down at the notebook in his hands. "What's that you got there?"
"Huh? Oh!" Startled slightly, Sirius flushed and gestured to the book. "Just some weapon designs. Ruby--my friend, she's supposed to help me make myself a weapon. I needed to come up with the designs."
"Ruby..." Velvet tapped her bottom lip, and blinked in realization. "Ruby Rose? Leader of Team RWBY?"
"You know her?"
"I'd be surprised if nobody at Beacon didn't." Velvet said amusedly, shaking her head with a chuckle. "She's the youngest student Beacon's had in it's entirety. Being admitted and vouched by Headmaster Ozpin himself!"
"Really?" Sirius' eyes widened. "I mean, she looked younger than the others... but I thought..."
"She's practically a prodigy, from what I garner." Velvet shrugged her shoulders. "16 years old, and already leading her own team to boot. Takes some serious skill."
Sirius hummed to himself, surprised at the information. He didn't know that about Ruby. Why didn't she tell him this? That was seriously impressive!
Velvet idly pointed at Sirius' notebook, smiling. "Do you mind if I take a look?"
"... Sure!" Sirius shrugged and offered it to her. "It's only rough sketches. I've never had to design a weapon before."
Taking the notebook, Velvet flicked it open and skimmed through the pages, her brows rising at the detailed designs, explanations and details behind their functions and purpose, and examples of how the weapons would be used in battle. Velvet let out a soft whistle. "Holy... these are bloody impressive! And this is your first time designing a weapon?"
"Well, first time designing a weapon for the purpose of creating one." Sirius clarified, flushing at the praise before shaking his head. "It's nothing special, though."
"Nothing special?" Velvet repeated incredulously, shooting Sirius a dry stare. "Sirius, these are damn near professional! You seriously have a talent, here!"
"... Thanks." Sirius smiled softly, glancing down at his lap. "Drawing and writing was always a hobby of mine. I just did it to pass the time as a kid. Eventually, I wanted to do it professionally. Drawing comics. Sharing it with the world."
"What made you stop?" Velvet asked curiously, shutting the book gently.
Sirius paused, his eyes glazing over as he recalled his home, and his family. He bit the inside of his cheek and fought back the trembling in his voice, to no avail. "I-I... uh. Certain... circumstances prevented me from doing so." He muttered, peering off to the side with a solemn frown. "Which led me to joining Beacon."
Velvet eyed Sirius' expression and frowned in sympathy, her ears drooping low. She folded her hands over her lap and glanced down at her feet. "I'm sorry."
"It's fine."
The two sat in silence as the clock ticked by. It was interrupted by the sound of a scroll buzzing. Velvet yelped and took her scroll out. Her eyes widened in shock and she let out a soft squeak, leaping to her feet and snatching a nearby duffle bag. The rabbit faunus sent Sirius an apologetic look.
"Sorry to cut this short! I've got to meet up with my team."
"It's fine," Sirius offered her a smile and lax wave of his hand. "I understand."
Nodding her head, Velvet jugged up the steps and paused at the door, peering over her shoulder and smiling at him. "It was nice talking to you! I'll see you some other time!"
As Velvet ran out the door, Sirius waved goodbye with a small smile of his own. "See you, Velvet."
Now, left alone in the room, Sirius' smile slowly began to fade, replaced by a melancholic frown. A pang of hurt sprang up within his heart and he slowly took in a shuddering breath. His gaze shifted towards the ceiling, his eyes tightening.
"Miss you guys." Sirius muttered softly as his parents came to mind. It hurt, wondering how they must've felt upon realizing he'd went missing. He couldn't imagine the pain they were going through. Sirius bit his bottom lip and looked down at his hand.
He supposed this was what people called 'homesickness'. He missed his family and his home, but there was nothing he could do. No way to go back, at least to his knowledge. He'd been so wrapped up in recent events, he'd nearly forgotten his situation. But no that he had time to sit down and think about it, it... hurt. It was a sobering feeling. One he didn't know how to get rid. Didn't know if he could get rid of it.
Closing his eyes, Sirius shook his head and rubbed at his eyes. Then he slapped his face, wincing at the sting as his eyes began to water. But, it helped. It helped him push those feelings back. Standing up to his feet and dusting himself off, Sirius clenched a determined fist and frowned to himself.
I got other things to worry about. Sirius exhaled through his nose and began making his way out of the facility. Ruby and the others should have been back by now. Which was good.
It was about time he got started on making his weapon.
[HUNTER]
"I think today's outing was a SUCCESS!"
Ruby pumped her fists with a grin as she and her team stepped out of the bullhead and onto Beacon's courtyard. The girls all carried bags filled with both groceries and snacks, but clothes and other essential items for their personal needs. Each and every one of them appeared satisfied with the outing to Vale. Weiss let out a soft hum, nodding her head with a slight smile.
"I'll admit, it was... refreshing." Weiss agreed, her mind drifting back to the day she went out to Vale with Sirius. Today's events reminded her of it. "It's nice to go shopping with friends."
"Hell yeah!" Yang cheered with a pump of her fist, grinning broadly. "I'm tellin' ya, nothing beats a girls day out! Am I right, Blake?"
Blake looked up from her newly bought book, glancing at her partner and letting out a lazy hum in silence, before focusing on her literature. Yang pouted.
"Coulda at least said 'yeah', or somethin'."
As the girls walked through Beacon's courtyard to make it back to their dorms, Ruby's scroll buzzed in her pocket, forcing her to stop. She frowned in confusion and took it out, only to soon realize it was a text from Sirius. She squawked, "Omigosh! I forgot about Sirius! He wanted to talk about something!"
"What'd he say?" Yang peered over her sister's shoulder curiously, with Weiss and Blake silently doing the same.
Ruby went to reply, only for her scroll to buzz several times. She checked her messages.
S - RUBY!
S - I AM RAPIDLY APPROACHING YOUR LOCATION!
S - LOOK UP!
Ruby stared at her screen incredulously. "Wut."
While the silver eyed reaper stared at her scroll, Blake's ears twitched beneath her scroll at the sound of screaming. She looked up to see a black blur in the distance rushing towards them. She quickly nudged the rest of her team, and Yang and Weiss looked up just in time to realize that the blur was Sirius, screaming with the fury of the Gods themselves.
"... We should move."
"Yeah."
"What gave you that idea?"
"RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUBYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!"
"What?" Ruby blinked in confusion and finally looked up from her scroll, just in time to see Sirius sail towards her. Her eyes widened in shock. "WHAT-"
SWOOSH!
And just like that, Ruby had vanished from sight. Yang, Blake, and Weiss stared at the spot where Ruby once stood in incredulity. The silence deafening, which was only broken by Weiss after a long lapse of nothing.
"... Nope."
She spun on her heel and stormed back to the dorm.
[HUNTER]
Ruby's world blurred around her and she yelped as she was plopped down in a chair, which spun from her abrupt collapse, weight, and momentum combined. Any ordinary person would have spewed their guts out from such whiplash. But her body was conditioned to be used to such speeds, thanks to her Semblance. The best that could be done was leaving her in a slight daze. And even then, that wore off quickly.
"Ghuuhhh..." Ruby mumbled as she gathered her bearings, and turned towards her supposed kidnapper. "You couldn't have just... called me?"
"Couldn't wait. Been waiting all day." Sirius affirmed and shoved his notebook into Ruby's hands. "Can we get started?"
"On..." Ruby trailed off as she looked around the room they were in. She soon realized they were in the academy's workshop, and a sound of realization left her lips as she looked down at Sirius' notebook, flipped it open, and skimmed through the pages.
It took a solid minute before Ruby was finished, a grin stretching across her face. Her silver eyes twinkled with awe as she looked up towards Sirius. "I could marry you right now."
Sirius beamed, "Thanks! I--" his expression faltered and he blinked in confusion. "Wait, what?"
His confusion went ignored as Ruby hopped out of her seat with an enthusiastic smile and clapped the notebook against her hand. "These designs are freaking incredible! Well thought out, detailed! Some of them wouldn't work, but most of them I can definitely see working. This marked one is the weapon you're set on, right?"
At Sirius' nod, Ruby began making her way towards the computer, hooked up to a contraption that, to Sirius, looked like a mix between a scanner and coffee maker. Ruby ripped the pages out of the notebook neatly and placed them in the contraption, and began booting up both machines. Sirius blinked in confusion. "What's this?"
"A.B.C," Ruby said in a matter of fact tone. As if sensing Sirius' confusion, she decided to elaborate. "Automatic Blueprint Creator. The beginner academies like Signal have them for when students create their weapons. They take the sketched concepts and designs of weapons and format them into proper blueprints."
There was metallic hiss and a glass tube enclosed around the papers. Translucent blue light ran up and down the sketches. Ruby tapped a button on the keyboard and a hardlight projection spawned, splitting into numerous projections. She swiped through them, as strings of code coalesced together and began to take form, creating blueprints of Sirius' weapon design, and step-by-step instructs on the creation process and most optimal materials to use.
Sirius' eyes widened in awe and Ruby smirked to herself, and began taking off her jacket, which caught Sirius' attention. The girl wore a black tank top with her signature emblazoned on the center. He flushed at the sight of her toned shoulders, and while she wasn't as muscular as Yang, Ruby was surely fit. That much was obvious, and it made sense, considering the occupation she was aspiring to gain.
Ruby peered over her shoulder as she wrapped her jacket around her waist. "You gonna take that uniform off or what?"
"W-What?"
"It gets stuffy in here," Ruby drawled, smiling and jogging over to her bag. "Trust me, you'll be thanking me in the long run if you start wearing something light."
"Uh--right." Sirius mentally slapped himself in the face as he took off his uniform's top and wrapped it around his waist before rolling up his sleeves. "What do you got there?"
"Well~" Ruby hummed merrily, glancing over her shoulder with a smirk and suddenly pulling out a tube of silver liquid that seemed to hold a dark blue glow from within. "I was gonna use this for some weapon maintenance on Crescent Rose, took a lot of begging to Weiss to get this." she winced and sucked in a breath. "...I... have to get straight As for the next few weeks as suitable payment."
She swiftly perked back up. "But considering that this is your weapon we're making, I think it's a good of a time as any to use it!"
"What exactly... is it?" Sirius asked with furrowed brows.
"Silver Dust," Ruby grinned broadly, her eyes sparkling as she looked down at the tube in her hands. "Or more accurately, Metal Dust. It's an extremely rare form of Dust that you normally can't find in stores, and it's normally manufactured all the way in Mistral, where the source is more prominent. It was said to be a source of metal blessed by the God of Light himself, and is one of the strongest forms of metal on Remnant. Some of the best huntsman and huntresses used this stuff, and it's super conductive with Aura and other elements!"
Sirius eyes widened and he began shaking his head rapidly. "Wait, wait wait! If this is so rare--then we can't use this! You were going to use this for Crescent Rose, right?"
"Mhm," Ruby nodded.
"Then-"
"But I want to use this to make your weapon. You need the best of the best, after all." Ruby grinned, her eyes twinkling. "Anything for a friend! And besides... you can consider it as me repaying you."
Sirius frowned in confusion. "Repaying me? For what?"
"For saving me back at initiation." Ruby frowned softly as she set the tube of a Metal Dust down on the desk. "With the Deathstalker..."
"Ruby, you don't need to repay me for that. I was..." Sirius went to refute, only to pause when she whirled to face him, and he found traces of tears welling up in her eyes. "Ruby--"
"I do!" Ruby scowled in frustration and ran a hand down her face, and looked ready to pull her hair out. "I'm a huntress! I was so focused on trying to prove myself, trying to prove Weiss wrong, that I got overconfident. I could have died." she whispered, and crossed her arms, as if she were hugging herself. Ruby grimaced and peered off to the side. "Ozpin said it himself that we could die. I didn't take that seriously, and I nearly payed the price for it. You were a civilian, with no Aura, and you put your life at risk to save me."
"Do you know how that felt?" Ruby muttered hoarsely and sucked in a breath, rubbing at her eyes. "I felt useless! And then--and then you collapsed from the poisoning and I didn't know what to do, and you were taken to the infirmary! You could have died. That would have been my fault."
"So, you say that I don't have to do it, but I feel like I need to." Ruby stared up into Sirius' eyes, her silver irises flashing with determination. "I'm not going to let any of my friends get hurt like that again. And for you, the first step is making this weapon."
Sirius looked at Ruby with surprise, and stood there in stunned silence. Eventually, he stammered and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "... Sorry."
"That's all you have to say?" Ruby rolled her eyes and lightly punched Sirius' shoulder. "Dummy, you don't have to apologize for anything. You didn't do anything wrong!"
"It's an instinctive thing."
Ruby giggled in amusement as Sirius' face flushed red. She turned and grabbed the tube of Metal Dust, flipping it in her hand and jostling the contents inside. "But if you wanna make it up to me, you can help me make this totally awesome weapon and kick butt with it~!"
Sirius chuckled softly and nodded, "That sounds fair. So, where do we begin?"
Ruby grinned brightly.
"Well..."
[HUNTER]
It had been about a week since they'd gotten started on the weapon. Now, in combat class, Sirius and his friends sat at their respective desks in anticipation for the next matchup. Sirius and Ruby in particular looked especially pumped, something that Yang took note of, and decided to bring to light.
"You guys seem rather excited," she said wit a raised brow, smiling. "Something we should know about?"
"Well~" Ruby giggled and bounced in her seat, pumping her fists. "That would be spoilers!"
"You're going to have to wait and see." Sirius agreed with a nod, smiling himself.
"If you keep holding secrets, I think I'll die of anticipation." Jaune piped up with a quip, smirking slightly, earning a few giggles from the group.
"I may have an idea." Weiss murmured as she gave the two a side-eye. Before she could elaborate however, Glynda stepped onto the stage and clapped her hands.
"Alright, class. Today we will be issuing another round of tournament style battles. I'm sure you know the routine by now, so let's get straight to the raffle, hm?" she said, pulling out her scroll and putting up the projection. The slots began to spun, the class watching in silence as the randomizer select the first two students to start off the match. Glynda's eyes narrowed.
"Cardin Winchester, Sirius Caelan, get ready and come down to the stadium."
Murmurs and chuckles began to break out throughout the class, and Sirius blinked in surprise, sweat rolling down his cheek. He felt a tug on his sleeve and looked towards Ruby, who gave him an encouraging smile.
"You got this!" she whispered. "Remember what we talked about!"
Yang leaned forward with a grin and pumped her fist. "Knock 'em dead, Shorty! You've been training for this!"
Jaune nodded. "You can do it."
Weiss shut her eyes with a huff. "I expect nothing short of victory, Caelan."
Blake offered him a small smile. "Fight well."
"BREAK HIS LEGS!" shouted Nora with a frightening smile.
Ren pulled Nora back into his seat and regarded Sirius with a nod. "Do your best."
Pyrrha smiled kindly, "Fight your hardest!"
Sirius stared at his friends in surprise, before it morphed into a look of determination. He stood out of his seat and began making his way towards the locker-room. Cardin past him by, purposefully knocking shoulder against his own and shooting him a sneer before disappearing into the room.
Sirius clenched his fists with a frown and schooled his expression as he stepped inside. His designated locker in sight, Sirius unlocked it with his scroll and pulled out a long, silver metal briefcase. Hefting it up, he made his way out into the arena and took in several deep breathes to calm himself and his racing heart.
"Seems the Nobody's got finally got himself a weapon." Cardin mocked snidely as he stepped into the arena, sending Sirius' briefcase a glance as he lazily held Executioner over his shoulder. "Not like it'll do you any good anyways."
Sirius didn't offer a rebuttal, instead setting the case down and slamming his fist on the button on the side. It opened with a mechanical hiss, steam billowing out as he reached inside and pulled out his weapon for all to see with a flourish, twirling it in his hand with little to no effort despite the massive size.
Teams RWBY and JNPR, save for Ruby herself, openly gaped with wide eyes at the weapon that rested in Sirius' hands. Jaune squawked, "What the heck is THAT!?"
In Sirius' hand was a large, sharp-edged buster sword with no guard, rectangle in shape near the beginning of the blade, and curving at the end. A sleek, black metallic hilt with deep azure accents and a massive white blade, with what appeared to be exhaust vents, decorated the weapon. A trigger was fashioned into the hilt's grip, and a few inches above the trigger in the center of the blade, rested a circular dial with four corners, all of which had a different color.
Red, Blue, Green, and Purple.
"That," Ruby grinned smugly, crossing her arms over her chest. "is what me and Sirius have been working on for the past week. High quality metal alloys for the hilt, a buster blade forged from Metal Dust, and a D.R.S (Dust Rotary System), and you've got yourself Aramasa~!"
"Aramasa..." Blake murmured with interest while everyone stared at the sword in awe.
"Groovy!" Yang whistled.
"I knew it." Weiss hummed with a raised brow, sending Ruby a bemused glance. "That's why you were so smug."
"Guilty~"
"Are both combatants ready?" as Sirius and Cardin nodded, Glynda tapped her scroll and started the countdown. With the help of her Semblance, she floated away from the arena and onto a podium to observe the battle. "3."
Cardin smirked and gripped Executioner.
"2."
Sirius took in another breath to calm himself down, holding onto Aramasa.
"1."
The alarm blared at the fight was on. Cardin charged towards Sirius with a battle-cry, Sirius tensed as he closed in and raised his sword to block a telegraphed strike from Cardin. Grunting at the weight that pushed down on him, Sirius shoved Cardin back and rushed him with a swing of the broadside of his blade, slamming it into the side of the mace-wielder.
Cardin's armor and Aura offered suitable protection against the blow, but with Sirius' strength, it was still felt as he slid across the floor. Sirius wasted no time charging again, bringing Aramasa down in an overhead slash that Cardin leaped out of the way to dodge. The ground splintered under the strike as the buster sword dug into the floor, and Sirius ducked low to avoid a swing from Executioner.
Sirius pulled on Aramasa's trigger twice in rapid succession. Steam billowed out the exhaust fents as the red dial activated. The blade glowed an angry orange, and Sirius gripped the hilt with both hands. In a roar of effort, he whirled around and swung his sword. An arc of flame sailed towards Cardin, much to his surprise, and called upon his Aura to soften the blow.
"The trigger activates the Dust within the D.R.C when pulled twice in quick succession." Ruby commented with a grin. as her friends looked towards her in interest. "One pull switches to one of the four Dust options."
As if on cue, Cardin snarled in anger and slammed Executioner onto the floor, the Dust held within activating with a whir and generating a wave of explosives. To counter this, Sirius pulled the trigger once, and the dial spun to blue. Frost surrounded the blade as he pulled the trigger twice and he stabbed Aramasa into the ground. A wall of jagged ice erupted from the floor just in time to block the explosions.
The wall of ice exploded into shards on impact. Sirius dug his feet into the floor and blasted forth in a burst of speed, shifting the Dust again to green. Cardin cursed under his breath and raised his mace to block as Sirius slashed with all his strength and gathered momentum, a powerful gust of wind slamming into Cardin like a bullhead and sending him flying through the air.
Ruby grinned. "Hold the trigger down..."
Sirius followed Cardin's body as he sailed through the air, shifting the dial to purple with a push, and then holding onto the trigger. Aramasa's larger blade began to shift as Sirius launched himself off the floor and straight towards Cardin. The mace-wielder's eyes widened and he quickly used Augmentation to bolster his defenses. The blade slid up the shaft and extended outwards in length, morphing into a scythe just as an intense weight washed over the blade, and a wave of gravity burst forth.
Sirius roared and swung his scythe down, Cardin grunted under the intense weight and power behind the blow as his body rocketed down and slammed into the arena floor in an explosion of debris. Sirius flipped through the air and landed a few ways away as the scythe shifted back into it's buster mode, exhaling as the adrenaline coursed through his veins.
Yang's eyes widened, and she let out a whistle. "You installed a scythe mode?!"
Blake shook her head, sensing some irony. "And so another reaper joins the fray..."
Ruby grinned cheekily, giggling. "It's not my fault scythes are the coolest weapons there is!" then she let out a sheepish left. "Gonna have to add scythe-combat training to the list, though..."
Pyrrha nodded, eyeing the fight analytically. "Sirius is primarily using his strength to his advantage, there is no technique in the way he fights. Just sheer brute force."
"What's that mean?" Jaune inquired with furrowed brows.
"Do you know how Nora fights?" Ren jumped in, crossing his arms. "It's quite similar. The difference between Sirius and Nora is that Nora flows with her weapon, Sirius is swinging wildly. War-hammers and scythes are similar in that they excel in reach, and in the right hands, devastating force."
"Woah..." Jaune murmured, looking back towards the fight.
Cardin snarled as he pulled himself out of the crater with a grunt, his Aura working overtime to dull the pain that wracked his body. He gripped Executioner hard enough to warp the metal around his fists, as he glared at Sirius. "You... think you're hot shit 'cause you got some fancy weapon now?!" he stood to his feet and held his mace up. "I'll show you!"
"I wasn't even insinuating that." Sirius sweat-dropped.
"DIE!"
The Dust within Executioner glowed violently as Cardin pumped Aura into it. With a mighty swing, Cardin slammed his mace into the ground. The floor trembled and ruptured underneath a destructive explosion. Fire and charred debris flew directly towards Sirius, leaving a smoldering trench in it's wake. The whitette's eyes widened as he braced himself.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Teams RWBY and JNPR watched on with wide eyes, with Ruby biting her thumb in worry. Cardin glared at the cloud of smoke a vicious grin and let out a bark of laughter. "How's THAT?!"
There was no response from the otherside, only for the cloud to disperse as a burst of wind erupted from Aramasa and sent Sirius flying towards Cardin. Cardin snarled in frustration, excess Aura beginning to burn off his body in angry red waves as Sirius swung his blade down and Cardin matched it with a swing. Both weapons clashed and generated a powerful shockwave that rippled throughout the arena.
The two remained in a contest of strength, with Sirius gritting his teeth in strain, while Cardin's face morphed into an ugly scowl, his eyes burning with fury. His muscles bulged and his Aura burned brighter as he pushed Sirius back and forced him to stumble. The Dust within Executioner glowed again as he bashed the mace into Sirius' side, setting off an explosion that sent the whitette flying across the stadium.
Did he get stronger?! Sirius balked in pain and he tumbled across the floor and drove Aramasa into the floor to prevent himself from flying off the edge. Wrenching his sword out of the ground, Sirius reacted quickly as Cardin was upon him once more and flipped out of the way of an overhead swing. The floor shattered under Cardin's strength and Sirius felt himself sweating. Is this his Semblance? He seems angrier. Is he getting stronger than madder he gets?!
His question was answered when Cardin whirled to face him, the mace-wielder's muscles bulging further underneath his armor. He seemed larger than before, as more Aura poured out of his body. The anger radiating off of him was strong enough to give off a wave of heat, and Sirius felt himself sweating.
Eyes narrowing in focus, Sirius exhaled. He's burning a lot of Aura getting stronger. And he's no Jaune, so I just have to wear him down. with a plan in mind, Sirius called upon more of his strength and charged just as Cardin rushed him again.
Blade and mace clashed in a flurry of blows, each strike becoming stronger than the last and leaving fractures in the arena floor. Sirius moderated his strength to match Cardin's as the aforementioned mace-wielder grew angrier. And the angrier he got, the more wild his movements became. The easier they were to read, and more Aura he burned away.
Sirius ducked under a swing and held Aramasa in one hand, pushing forward and clenching his free fist, he slammed his fist into Cardin's chin in a clean uppercut. A minor shockwave rippled underneath Cardin's Aura from the force as his head snapped upwards. Sirius twisted Aramasa into a reverse grip and switched the dial to red. Steam poured out of the vents as Sirius swung his sword in a mighty downward arc.
An explosion of fire engulfed Cardin and sent him skidding back. He dug his feet into the ground to stop himself and braced for more impact as Sirius rushed him with heavier slashes, the gravity surrounding the blade growing heavier and weighing down on Cardin as his Semblance faltered, and his angered haze lessened to a degree so his Aura could weather the blows.
Shit! Cardin cursed under his breath as his Aura flickered under another blow. He looked down to see Sirius' onyx colored irises bore into his eyes. For an instant, as time slowed to a crawl, Cardin thought he witnessed those eyes glow, as Sirius gripped onto Aramasa with both hands and roared at the top of his lungs.
"THIS FINISHES IT!"
Aramasa crashed into the Cardin, and the mace-wielder's Aura held against the blow as he grit his teeth and tried to push back, to no avail. His muscles failed him and locked up, and his body rocketed out of the arena and crashes onto the floor outside the ring. Pain wracked Cardin's body as he laid in a crater. His Aura flickered and promptly broke. Sirius breathed heavily and stumbled over himself, before taking in a deep breath and righting himself.
Silence hung over the arena, and the alarms blared loudly as he was declared the winner. There was clapping, and then an uproar of cheers from all sides. Sirius tuned that out, as he calmed his racing heart and chuckled to himself.
"Shows you..." Sirius snarked quietly to himself, allowing a smirk as he turned towards the cheering crowd, and focused on the cheering crowd. Ruby, Yang, Nora, and oddly enough, Jaune were by far the loudest; but Blake, Ren, Pyrrha, and even Weiss sported smiles. His smirk softened into a smile, as he sent them all a thumbs up, and promptly collapsed onto his back as exhaustion washed over his body.
He'd won.
Ending Author's Note.
And just like that, the chapter's a wrap! Sorry for the wait, this took a lot longer to get our than I care to admit, but we're back!
We'll be moving on into canon territory next chapter, so that's fun. Can't wait for that.
Was Sirius' weapon what you were expecting? Was it not? Do you like it? Let me know! As always, hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I'll be seeing you next time!