"It's right here, Sir." I pulled the boarbatusk out from behind my back and threw it into the corner of Ozpin's office. I wasn't expecting it to stay all balled up, but it did, and continued rolling until it impacted the window with a heavy-sounding thunk. "One captured Grimm, as requested."
Glynda huffed and waved her riding crop, sealing the crack that had formed. The Grimm was also immobilized by a cage of stone that rose from the floor.
"Remarkable. I saw everything that happened down there, you were in no state to take on a Goliath, even a baby, and live."
"That was a baby?!" Nora exclaimed, clapping her hands together. "Aww!"
"I would hate to see its mother, then." Ren added, to which the grey-haired professor smirked and took a drink from his mug.
"As it is, you have fulfilled the expectations placed upon you and passed the Initiation Exam. Congratulations are in order. You've missed the ceremony, but we will work out a way to recognize your acceptance into Beacon. I must again commend you all on a job well done. Ms. Valkyrie, your power is a blessing, I look forward to seeing you in action in the future. Mr. Ren, Your skill with aura is something many professional hunters would be incredibly jealous of. Ms. Nikos, you have not ceased to surprise me since the day I first met you."
The others of the team nodded and said various thanks. "I would like to speak with Mr. Arc alone, if you please?" Phyrra was the first to turn and go. Ren turned back before the elevator doors closed. "Training field 3." He mouthed with a grin, to which I nodded.
"Mr. Arc, I-" Ozpin began.
"Torga. You can pretend to call me whomever you wish while we're in public, but behind closed doors I will keep my past, thank you." He looked like he expected what I had said.
"Very well Torga, I assume you know what I'm going to talk to you about."
I nodded. "I gave it a lot of thought last night." That was a lie, I had gone to sleep after making sure the rest of the team was out. What, it was a tough day, wouldn't want any late-night moping alone in a scenic area as young 'heroes' are so fond of.
"I nominate Lie Ren for team leader." I said firmly.
He raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
I nodded and steeled my gaze. "Nora has the power to inspire but is too… volatile to bring a team together. Nikos…" Her reputation score was steadily improving but at a very slow rate. We still haven't spoken properly. "An incredible fighter and decent tactician, but she seems to be more of a follower. Maybe in a more military-like setting she would have been a right fit, or maybe with a different team, but as it stands with the people we have, she would be better as one of our heavy-hitters. Ren has a semblance that is perfectly oriented towards battlefield control, he keeps a level head, and has unparalleled situational awareness along with the intellect to create snap-strategies."
"And yourself?"
"He woul- wait, what?" I was ready to keep rationalizing Ren.
"How would you compare with your team in terms of leadership ability?"
"No thank you." I replied, curtly. "Leadership is not for me, not again."
"Again, you say?" He raised an eyebrow even higher.
"I've been there once. Finding a group you can trust with your life is nearly impossible, and having them work together as a team is another impossibility on top of that. I've led squads of soldiers before and had them die, I've led a band of mercenaries and had them kill, and I've led a resistance against oppression where the cost of freedom was the lives of nearly everyone that fought for it. I would very much prefer to not be the leader of this team, Mr. Ozpin." I said his name coldly. With my power back, I felt much stronger, and as a result more sure of myself.
He finally lowered his eyebrow. "Very well, Mr. Arc. I assure you that I will do what is best for the team."
I sighed in relief. I did not want to have any of that bullshit on my shoulders. I'd much rather just have it be 'Torga, smash this!' or 'Torga, kill that!'.
"Thank you, Professor."
"Now, go train with your team. Your classes won't start until the day after tomorrow, now might be a good time to work on combination strategies."
I stood and left as soon as I could. Something about Ozpin's office just makes you feel small, like you're the most chaotic being in a world full of order that's just waiting to suck you in.
"Before you say anything, I had Jakkin ready to help them out at a moments notice, and if it had gotten out of hand, I would have stepped in myself."
"That wasn't what I'm worried about, Ozpin. Why do I get the feeling that we've just seen not one, but two reincarnations of familiar teams this year?"
"STRQ and MRAJ, correct?"
"Professor Ozpin, you remember what those two did to our school, don't you?"
He nodded, taking a sip from his coffee which had long since gone cold. "I remember Glynda. Remember who stopped it from breaking out of the school."
"I'll continue to trust your judgement then."
"That would be wise."
More wooden poles. Apparently we needed to simulate avoidance of environmental hazards, I just think that Ren wanted a way to practice his acrobatic skills. I didn't mind, so focused was I on the impending spar.
I could feel it already, and I haven't even decided where I was going to place all my new skill points. This aura was incredible, the brief taste I'd gotten before losing my title was like a drop of water to a man in a desert, and I had just received a lake.
With my shouts back, even in limited capacity, I felt strong. Very strong. That's why we had once again lined up to go against Phyrra. I was bouncing on my toes, excited to use this power against her. I had some payback to give, and once I'd defeated her I would be able to work out this issue she has with me. If she's an invincible girl, I'll just have to strike with an unstoppable force.
Or an Unrelenting one. I chuckled to myself.
Ren looked at me strangely then sighed. "Alright, let's do this. Nora, hammer. Torga, distract her."
"Ren, I'm much stronger then last time."
"You unlocked your semblance, that's true, but you can't have made such a leap in power since-"
I was gone, sprinting at Phyrra with all the speed I could muster. I drew my sword mid charge, and fired the harpoon at a wooden pole behind Phyrra and yanked to launch myself forwards. With the effects of Aura, I was easily airborne. I came down with an overhead slash, but she smoothly parried it out of the way with her shield, responding with a kick to my leg. It impacted, and I managed to dodge out of the way of a quick elbow to the face and counter with a horizontal swipe. This one she rolled under, springing up as her sword changed to a javelin and stabbed at my face. I ducked under, and a golden boot planted itself right into my nose, sending me back into a pole.
Phyrra pressed that advantage, bashing her shield forwards and knocking me on my ass as I attempted to rise. I rolled back with the momentum, something I would have been unable to do in my old armour, and rose in time to see Phyrra bend backwards under a hammer strike and kick the head of the weapon skywards. With a twist, she had come back to her feet and swept Nora's legs out from under her with her javelin.
"FUS!" I shouted, pushing Phyrra back. I refrained from using the full version of the shout, seeming as it toppled what was essentially a mammoth. Phyrra was sent airborne regardless, though she managed to do the impossible and flip in the air to land on her feet and come charging right back at me.
Nora came down from above with an attempted hammer smash, though the green-eyed warrior jumped through the air, allowing Nora's explosion to propel her even faster towards me. I dropped to a knee, narrowly avoiding a slash as I counter-attacked. A flurry of blows passed between us, keeping her distracted long enough for Ren to hit her in the head with a double-legged donkey kick, using his momentum to flip back to his feet by my left side. Nora came back, standing on my right, and I set my sword towards Phyrra with a huge grin on my face.
"We did it." I said, planting the tip of my sword in the ground and using it to keep my balance as I caught my breath. "We hit her."
"Actually, Torga, only Ren managed to hit me. You and Nora still have yet to land a blow."
I put my sword away and shook my head. "As a team, we hit you. None of us could have done what we had without the support from the others, even if just as a distraction. I think we should work as a four-person team now, get used to fighting with each other as allies, not as enemies."
"Fight against what?" Ren voiced in concern. "Sparring is the best way to train and we can't do that if all of us are on the same team."
"If this is any sort of combat school," I countered, "we'll be doing all the sparring we can handle during our instructional time. For now, I think I have a better idea on how to use our time…"
I sat off to the side, allowing my team-mates to practice their team-moves. I had already gone over my own move with Nora, my move with Ren, and my move with Phyrra. Right now I was 'coming up with an idea for a four-person move', as far as my team was concerned. Ren was over beside me, leaning on a tree and watching the females of our team practice their move, a nasty, magnetically launched hammer drop.
Ren himself was the image of calm. He analyzed the two, while his breath was steady and his eyes full of focus. I, on the other hand, was scrolling through menus. With a sigh, I wondered how I was going to place my points.
The immediate thought was to place all of my points into strength, and hit like a mountain every time I swung my I thought to put every point into agility, become the fastest I could be, but that really wasn't my style of fighting. Intelligence seemed like a good idea, as it would increase my AP and allow me to use power attack more often, but then again wisdom would also help with that. I briefly entertained the thought of placing all of my points into Wisdom to see if I couldn't regenerate AP faster than I could spend it using power attacks, but that would be foolish of me. Or… would it?
My WIS sat at a comfortable 12. INT was at 9. If I raise Intelligence, the resulting AP would help buff my other physical stats due to aura. If I ever ran out of aura, I would be screwed, but for right now I could ignore the physical stats. Something from the 'tutorial' stood out in my mind though:
WIS: A numeric representation of your Wisdom. This number dictates the rate at which you use AP, as well as how fast your AP regenerates. Wisdom also gives a small boost to experience points and the rate at which skills level up. In the physical world, wisdom will help you come up with plans and strategies in order to use what you know to maximum effect.
In theory, Giving myself more wisdom would help me determine what the best course of action would be going forwards with my levels. Hell, if I dumped all of my points into WIS, I wouldn't have to spend another point on Wisdom again until much later, and that could prove useful!
"Status"
Name: Torga
Age: 17
Level: 15
Race: Human
Title: Dragonborn
Status: Healthy
XP: 15.2%
HP: 405
AP: 397
STR: 7
VIT: 6
AGI: 8
INT: 9
WIS: 12
LUK: 4
STAT: 45
'Hm…' I thought to myself, going over the numbers in my head. With a sigh, and knowing that I would never truly decide what I wanted, I began pushing buttons. When I finished, my status page looked a lot neater in my opinion
Name: Torga
Age: 17
Level: 15
Race: Human
Title: Dragonborn
Status: Healthy
XP: 15.2%
HP: 405
AP: 400
STR: 7
VIT: 6
AGI: 8
INT: 10
WIS: 50
LUK: 10
As soon as I finished and hit the 'Accept' Button, a wave of understanding washed over me, as I realized that I most definitely should not have done what I did. I had yet to explore the possibility of raising all my stats to their limit using non-point methods and to not utilize such a blatant loophole was idiotic of me. I felt assured that I would not make such a stupid mistake in the future, provided I was able to get to the future.
I also realized that changing any of my physical stats too drastically after the unlocking of my semblance would lead to raised eyebrows and whispered questions. I personally would rather avoid attention, but given my status as the Dragonborn, attention would find me no matter what I did.
Lastly, I realized that I had missed out on quite a few things, but was interrupted from that thought by 3 blue boxes appearing before me.
Due to raising your WIS to 50, you have obtained the skill [Aura Affinity]!
Due to raising your WIS to 50, you have obtained the skill [Meditate]!
Due to spending over 40 STAT in one minute, you have obtained the perk [Big Spender!]!
I cleared the screens then opened my skills menu and tapped on each of my new ones.
[Aura Affinity] (Level: Minor)
You are in tune with your own aura. All ability costs are lowered by 25%. Aura regenerates 1.5x faster.
[Meditate] (Level: 1)
Remove yourself from the world around you and embrace nothingness.
+1AP/Second
If AP is full, +1HP/Second
Gives 'Immobile' Status during usage.
Holy shit.
This is too much. It's only going to take me 20 minutes to regenerate all of my AP, and that's if I'm not meditating. If I am meditating… I did some quick math in my head. It should take me roughly 5 minutes. I let a feral grin cross my face. Apparently WIS was the perfect choice for me to get for training. With these new skills, I can train myself all night without the need for sleep or the regeneration bonus! On top of that, I can now Grapple without worry, Power Strike to my heart's content, I can do any of my skills easily!
I need more skills. Oh, do I ever need more skills.
I tapped on the perk page, which was completely new to me.
[Congrats! Perks are permanent boosts that cannot be dispelled, forgotten, improved upon, or replaced without very specific circumstances such as an Amnesia Stone or similar item.]
[Big Spender!]
You spend all you've got to make even more! Money drops from enemies are more likely and greater in quantity. Some social effects as news of your spending habits gets around.
All unique store items are double the price. (Does not apply to Dust, medical supplies, or most food items.)
That.. that's good, I think. I get more money from enemies and I- Wait.
"Inventory." I muttered, still attempting to hide my doings from Ren. He seemed just as focused on the girls as ever but it couldn't hurt to check. I glanced at my total and my eyes bulged.
Apparently that Nevermore was worth quite a lot, judging from the hefty boost to my money.
Lien: 140,465
I'm not sure exactly how that compares to gold coins, but it certainly seemed like a lot of money. Maybe I could finally buy some better armor than this basic crap I'm using now. I've grown to like my weapon, it will do for the first few weeks of this combat school but I realize I may need to get a new one, one that's more powerful than I've got. Though, with enough boosts to my skills, I should be able to do the damage I need to do without any problems.
I continued browsing my inventory, mildly surprised at the things I found in it.
Boarbatusk Tusk (x6)
Crafting Item, Uncommon
A tusk off of a Boarbatusk. Used in clothing, armor, and weapon crafting.
Beowolf Fang (x16)
Crafting Item, Uncommon
A fang from the mouth of a Beowolf. Used in clothing, armor, and weapon crafting.
Giant Nevermore Feather (x50)
Crafting Item, Rare
Feathers plucked from a Giant Nevermore. Used in clothing and armor crafting.
The items that really got me interested, though…
Mesynnefa
Clothing Item (Torso), Rare
A shirt made of the feathers of a Giant Nevermore. Grants status effect "The Early Bird". Grants status effect "Bird of Prey". Grants Status Effect "Feathers Grimm".
+10 Elemental Affinity (Air)
+50% Movement Speed
+50% Attack Speed
+200% Visual Skill Effectiveness
Kathamati
Clothing Item (Eyes), Ultra-Rare
A set of goggles that allow the user to see through illusions and walls up to 1m thick. Grants status effect "You Can Run…".
+10 Elemental Affinity (Air)
+100% Vision Range
+100% Visual Skill Effectiveness
Skill Book: Air Slash
I left the items alone for now, I would try them on later when I'm alone so as to prevent anything weird from happening. That was quite a lot of status effects for that shirt, and I had a sinking feeling that they couldn't be all benevolent, especially not coming from something like the Grimm. That would be like trusting a Daedric Artifact. Sure it might help, but when the prince comes along and asks for his/her due, you will regret accepting whatever it is you were given.
The skill book was something completely different. I pulled it out of my inventory to see a black book, which I opened to find an illegible scrawl I had no idea about.
Luckily, my "Gamer powers" seemed to be all over it.
You have obtained the Skill Book "Air Slash"! Would you like to read it?
[YES] [NO]
I shrugged, tapping the [YES] option.
ERROR!
You have insufficient AGI!
You have insufficient INT!
You have an insufficient level in the skill "Elemental Affinity (Air)"!
You cannot learn this skill!
Requirements:
15 AGI
20 INT
Elemental Affinity (Air) Level 5
"Well shit…" I mumbled as I stuffed it back into my inventory. Seems I had a new goal to strive for. With all of my newfound WIS, I realized that I had been a complete and utter idiot by spending all my points on WIS, especially when I could have earned those points by literally just thinking. If I trained up my AGI by running and doing agile things, then INT can be increased by… what, learning things? I am at school, so it shouldn't be too difficult to learn.
It was impossible to start planning my days of levelling up until I knew what my schedule was like. Right now, the only thing I knew was that my first class was in the cafeteria and I need to be there by 8 AM tomorrow, which I was told was about an hour after sunrise. My scroll had a clock feature for telling time, but it was stupid and cumbersome to use.
New Message from BeaconDeputyHeadmaster! Would you like to read?
I tapped yes, curious about this message.
[message]
"Dear Student,
Congratulations are in order for passing your second examination. Please report to Room 1001 at 7:45 PM to receive team details and your admission package.
Tardiness will not be accepted.
Thank you for your time,
Glynda Goodwitch
Deputy Headmistress of Beacon Academy
Scroll Code: BeaconDeputyHeadmaster"
[/message]
Ren looked over his shoulder. "Torga, it's about 6 right now. If we cut out training, we can probably get showered before this. I'd like to wash the grime off, personally."
"I didn't notice any bathing chambers when I entered our room." I told him. "I'm assuming it's communal?"
"No, there's a shower in our bathroom, but if you prefer bathing… I think there's a pond not too far from here? Don't know if you'll make it there and back before 7:45."
"What's a shower?" I asked, and Ren slapped his palm to his face in exasperation.
""C'mon."
Running water.
If there was absolutely anything at all I wanted to bring back to Skyrim, it would be that. Heated, running water. I have never felt so clean and relaxed, ever. Seriously, this was a blessing from the Divines. I cannot comprehend how nobody had thought of this before. Such a simple thing, and yet… so immense.
I learned that when a female "showers", they're expected to take at least 30 minutes. How it could possibly take that long, I do not know.
In the time we were out training, someone had come and placed the uniforms on our beds. We made the collective decision to wear them as a team, make it appear like we belonged here like the rest of them. I was in the middle of trying to fasten the idiotic cloth necklace we had to wear when I heard a knock at the door.
Phyrra thankfully opened it as I tried not to strangle myself.
Ruby Rose
Beacon Of Light
LVL 47
My eyes popped as she came in. She must have thought I was strangling myself with the cloth, because in an instant she sped over and in a few motions I couldn't discern, untied and retied it pristinely. I let out a deep breath and my thanks, tugging at the sleeves of the odd jacket I was given. The colours were nice, and the form of the garment was… sharp. That was the only word I could use to describe it. Still, having been wearing roughspun and armor for most of my life, the materials were comfortable on my body. I could tell that the collar was a little stiff, but I would have to deal with that in my own way. Namely, finding a clothing shop to get it modified in.
Regardless, I coughed out my thanks, trying to ignore the insane level that this little girl was at. If the scaling was simple, she was about 4 times more powerful than I was.
"You're welcome! How'd it go?" She said with a smile as she hopped onto my bed.
"Well, I'm pretty sure we passed Ozpin's test." I replied. "Our only objective was completed, we did it in good time, and nobody was terribly injured. I consider this quest a success."
"It was more than a success! Torga unlocked his semblance and whooie! It's a doozy!" Nora sang from her bed with a pointed finger.
Ruby's eyes snapped to me with excitement before back Nora, confused. "Torga?"
I sighed. "Nickname."
"Okaaay… So what is it?" She got over the name pretty quick, I was glad to see.
"I'm a dragon in a human's body. I can breathe fire, among other things." I oversimplified it, something told me that telling anyone I can absorb souls when literally everything in this school is about harnessing the power of said souls would be a bad idea.
Her eyes widened. "So cool! Can I see?"
I chuckled at her enthusiasm. "Not now, Little Red, I wouldn't want to set our room ablaze. You'll see it if we do sparring in classes, trust me." She scrunched her face up at the nickname before literally waving it off.
"So, Who's the leader?"
"Actually Ruby, we need to go find that out right now. I will call you after our intro, okay?" Pyrrha told her.
"Alright but don't miss the assembly at 8, I heard they're doing something special this year."
I shared a glance with Ren. We weren't told about anything different happening. Pyrrha reassured her we'd be present, then we set off for Room 1001.
Luckily Pyrrha led the way as I still had no idea how to get around this castle. She eventually opened a wooden door to find a small sitting room with a couple of couches, a small table, and a bland speaker's podium. The contents of the room were not so interesting as the people inside. I recognized Professor Goodrich but the other two were unknown to me for a couple brief seconds.
Deanna Goldstien
LVL. 12
Investigative Reporter
Allan Allanson
LVL. 11
Technical Director
With a glance at the clock mounted on the wall, Goodwitch nodded. "Good, I didn't have to discipline you four."
I looked to my team-mates, seeing if anyone was going to reply to that. They didn't appear to be doing anything so I opened my mouth to answer.
"Sit." Her voice turned icy cold and she gave me a glare that promised retribution if I drew her ire. I decided to place myself on one of those suddenly comforting looking couches. Ren sat down beside me, while the girls sat on the couch across. Glynda stood in front of the podium with the duo behind them.
"Headmaster Ozpin has admitted your team into Beacon Academy."
"We know." I replied. Glynda's eye twitched, and I saw the corner of the investigators mouth rise upwards into a smirk.
"No more interruptions." The Deputy Headmistress curtly stated. "Due to the irregular nature of your graduation and growing pressure from the Board of Directors to increase revenue, Your team will be the first televised example of Hunter and Huntress training."
Nora's eyes lit up and with a deep breath she screeched. "We're going to be on TV?!"
"What did I just say about interruptions?" Goodwitch said with a stern glance at Nora, whose hand immediately clapped over her own mouth. "Good. As I was saying, you're going to be filmed for the majority of your training, testing, any off-campus excursions, and will need to sacrifice some of your down time for… ugh, Deanna can explain all this."
"Hello team!" Deanna made her way to the front. She was a blonde woman, with wide hips and narrow shoulders. Her hair fell in a wavy frame around her rounded face. She was a plump woman, by Cyrodiil standards, but by the Nordic standards she was just the right size. She wore a emerald green shirt over a black skirt and spectacles enhanced her icy blue eyes.
"Hello!" Phyra replied with a wave.
"Alright, my name, as the good Professor has said, is Deanna Goldstien. I was a reporter with VNN, but the network is starting up a new show that they want me to host, so here I am. We still need a name so get thinking soon guys, but I'll be attached to you four until either the show is cancelled, you graduate or… Well, either me or Allan dies." She shrugged. "Odds are low of any of those. Projections show that this series will have the highest amount of views since Hunters and Huntresses."
"The soap opera?" Ren quirked an eyebrow.
"Yes, but we're hoping to do something a little different. Our plan is a reality show, where we follow you and the rest of your team in your quest to become great! If all goes well and you four are cool with it, we also have permits from the Kingdom to follow you on post graduation adventures. I hope you four are prepared to become the most loved team that has ever graced the air!" She paused, having thrown her arms wide to accentuate that last point. "In case any of you are uncomfortable being filmed, Ozpin has given us his express assurance that this is the fault of one…" She looked over at Allan who until this point had been standing silently.
"Jaune Arc, that kid." He said in a gruff voice, pointing at me.
"Right! And in the case of you, Ms. Nikos, We've already consulted your agent and he gives a glowing thumbs-up of approval. Any questions?
"Will you be filming in our room?" Len asked immediately.
Deanna grinned. "Not the room you have now. Construction has begun so that by second year, you'll have a room with a built-in mini-studio for video diaries. For now we'll be using empty classrooms."
"Will we have final say over what does and doesn't get released?" Pyrrha asked.
"Ozpin has the ultimate discretion, but anything we're going to air, we're showing you as a team first, with the exception of the pilot episode, as that's already been completed and approved for airing."
I looked over and saw Nora wearing a wicked grin. "Can we get sponsored?"
Glynda butt in. "No. You'll be advertising nothing but the school and yourselves."
I hesitantly raised a hand.
"Jaune?" Deanna asked, staring me directly in the eyes with an intensity I couldn't describe.
"How will we explain...well...me?"
"Ozpin already made your situation clear. We're calling the personality change a result of both your semblance and a head injury in the forest. You're the main reason the Headmaster was so adamant about himself having final say on the content. You had another question, , though, I can see it."
"Yeah, um, what's a TV?"
"I'm sure you're all curious as to the purpose of this assembly." Ozpin's voice rang over the crowd. "I am pleased to inform you that our errant first-year team has in fact been admitted to Beacon. I am also pleased to inform you that a partnership has been struck with VNN to produce a reality series about the hardships and camaraderie of Huntsman training. You've been gathered to view the premiere, and cheer on your fellow students. I will remind all students to behave in a manner befitting television when around the camera, as many of your parents will be watching this attentively, and potential employers even more so."
Ozpin smirked and stepped off to the side, pressing a button on a remote and allowing the booming notes of an opening sequence to envelop the audience.
"So you're telling me that you can record exactly what we say and do, and have other people watch exactly what happened?" I clarified.
"Uhm… yes?" Deanna answered. "The show's already started airing though, and I have a feeling you'll want to see this."
"-n all new series from VNN. I'm your host, Deanna Goldstien, and welcome to Hunter's Gate! We'll be following a team of novice Huntsman on their path to glory and heroism, and only fate knows what will happen! Now, introducing our lovable heroes:
A video of Pyrrha Nikos appeared, in a handicap match of 4 vs one. She easily held her own as Deanna continued. "The Invincible Girl, Pyrrha Nikos, hails from Mistral, where she's won the Regional tournament multiple times. Pyrrha is a girl with a heart of gold and a fist of steel!"
Ren appeared, in the midst of a fight with a giant two headed snake. "Lie Ren, a mysterious boy with a mysterious past, this ninja-themed hunter is quick, acrobatic, and calm, a true blessing around the dinner table but an invisible terror on the battlefield!" Ren's clip ended off with him impaling the snake through the eye with its own fang.
Deanna's eye twinkled as she stood in front of a dark screen. "Our second femme fatale, Ms. Nora Valkyrie is a bubbly, energetic, and outright terrifying huntress in training. The clip speaks for itself. A short clip played of a mass of Grimm being flung bodily from pink explosions, before an equally pink blur sped up into the air. The camera angle changed just in time to see Nora smash a Giant Nevermore's beak off before it cut to black.
"Now, for the last member of Team Juniper, the man who is also mysterious but not quite as mysterious as his ninja partner, the man with aura for days and a semblance that makes you want to watch, Team Leader Jaune 'Torga' Arc! This knight themed warrior will definitely be one to keep an eye on in the coming episodes.
45 minutes later, I sat gaping at the screen. I was brought out of my funk by Nora tapping my shoulder.
"Um, guys? I think he's broken."
I shook my head. "No, not broken. Just thinking about how much easier my life would have been if I had access to this technology." The idea of sitting on a couch and watching the heroes of old defeat Alduin instead of actually traversing time to see in person baffled me.
"Regardless, we'll be putting out an episode per week until further notice so we need to start collecting footage as soon as possible." Alan spoke up again. I noted he didn't seem the type to say much.
"No reason we can't start the interviews tonight! I want some depth on you guys for the second episode." Deanna said with a her finger idly twirling her hair. "The crowds surely loved you, but right now they just love your image, your potential, the group you represent. Our job is to make the nation fall in love with you as people and hopefully as a whole team, and we won't be able to do that with only action shots. We can use this room if w-"
Pyrrha raised her hand into the air. "Mrs. Goldstein, may we take a moment to congratulate our new leader?"
Deannas face went blank for a brief second before her hand slowly made her way to her forehead and she sighed. "Yea, sorry team, take all the time you need."
An awkward silence hung in the air as I tried my best not to look expectant and failed.
"Well… good work?" Ren offered, making me chuckle.
"Apparently not. I tried to convince Ozpin to make you our leader, but it seems he didn't like my reasoning. Don't know how good of a leader I'll be considering the catastrophe that was our initiation, but I'll try. Just don't go expecting me to do this alone, you'll all have a unique point of view that will help when coming up with strategies and I expect you to share that point of view with me. A man I once met told me that many hands makes for light work."
"Torga, quit it." Nora huffed. "You're talking like you aren't gonna be good enough. The minute you start acting like that is the minute it becomes true. Trust me."
"You can trust all of us to have your back, just like we'll trust you to lead us home safe." Pyrrha rested her hand on my shoulder.
A loud rumbling came from my right, and I glanced over to see Ren looking slightly sheepish. "How about you lead us to the cafeteria to start, and we'll take it a day at a time from there?"
"Sounds like a plan to me. Thanks for that unique viewpoint, Ren, incredibly helpful." I jested with a smirk on my lips.
He shrugged. "I try."
Glynda waved her thing and out of the podium came four folders, one floating over to each of us. "These are your admissions packages. Inside you will find your schedule, Student handbook, Kit Requisition Forms, and the information for your" She took a deep breath. "Rockers, the rocket propelled locker so you can store your things literally anywhere. Yes, I do have to say that, and yes, whenever you refer to the Rocket Propelled Lockers, you must call them Rockers."
"I thought we weren't getting sponsored." Pyrrha declared.
"You're not. Ozpin invented the lockers, Ozpin is the headmaster of Beacon and used Beacon resources to complete research and development, then filed the patent under the corporate name for the school to avoid personal attention. So technically, since Ozpin does get final say on what is released, we figured it was too much of a hassle to deal with the potential copyright issues." Deanna explained. "Anyways, go get some chow and some rest team, we can handle the interviews tomorrow after your classes. Actually, that would almost be better, give the viewers a glimpse of how they deal with both deadly combat and social nightmares…" She trailed off as her mind got caught on another idea and she turned aside and started whispering to Alan.
"Have a good night, students." Glynda said with praise in her voice.
We chorused back with various replies and made our way out the door which slid shut with a resounding click. The four of us stood in the hallway, processing how different our lives would be from this day forth.
"Lead on, Torga!" Nora exclaimed. "My pancakes await!"
I looked down the hall both ways, seeing them as identical.
I gave a nervous laugh. "So… how about one of those unique viewpoints?"
*PING*
[Quest Success!]
[Initiation Exam Part 2!]
Ozpin was feeling generous, and gave you another chance to prove that you're worthy of being accepted into Beacon Huntsman Academy. Here you can learn to use your aura and fight the Grimm!
[Main Objective]
Take the Initiation Exam… Again!
[Side Objectives]
Ensure All Team-mates Survive
Pass Ozpin's Leadership Test!
Train Your Ass Off! (All Physical Stats over 15)
Survive the Goliath!
[Rewards] 10,000 XP, 5000 Lien, Title Beacon First-Year, Access to Beacon Classes.
[Side Objective Rewards!] 3000 XP, 3000 Lien, [Perk] "Run and Live!"
AN: Most authors would apologize for taking so long for another chapter, spouting feelings of guilt and calamity to his or her readers in a hope of forgiveness.
Me? I Ain't Owin' Y'alls Nothin'! I put out chapters when I please.
Yea, my loss of girlfriend, job, place of residence, and guddamn drivers license, also contributed to the delay but I'm not making excuses, I'm over here making solutions.
So... yea. Have a chapter.
~HHR