Chapter time!
You didn't expect it, didn't you? I said there would be a break last time, I know, but I managed to find enough free time to write it, before my responsibilities caught up to me.
I wrote this chapter a little bit ahead, so I'm not sure what the poll results are going to be on the day I update this, but at the moment I'm writing this, White Knight seems to be winning.
The poll will close a day after this chapter's live, and I will announce the final results in the next chapter. (The poll, reviews, and PMs, will be counted; as long as they aren't all from the same person, of course.)
Now, let's get into the chapter!
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Topic: The game's out and its awesome!
In: Boards: General
XXStephsStarsXX (Original Poster) (Verified Tester)
Posted On Dec 8th AW97:
Everyone, I had the chance to play the game already! It's incredible, they've changed the way it looked almost completely, yet it still feels so familiar to anyone who had played the mod version. I know that many people didn't have the chance to play it yet, but trust me, the wait is worth it.
(Showing page 1 of 46)
() EexcimanN
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
you managed to play it alredy?
() KingofthaWorld1
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
Damn, the OP is one lucky person, huh?
() sADGEbADGE
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
I wish I could play it as well.
() NewestGameR
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
Yeah, the servers our devs have sure aren't good enough.
() HappyNEWby (The Regular)
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
Is it really that bad?
I hadn't really have the chance to try it out yet, but I would love to play it sometime soon.
() Pigeongal
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
trust me, its worse
() SnowCloud02 (Moderator) (ATGDev)
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
We are very sorry for the broken servers. The popularity of our game has surprised even us, and we didn't reserve strong enough servers for it. We promise to change that soon, however, it might still be difficult to connect ot the servers in the upcoming week.
Once again, we apologise for the inconvenience.
() CoolDooD
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
eyyy the community bro has spokeen
() BollyPolly96
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
The Community Bro!
() 1stFRESH_wing
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
I still have no idea why so many people are so excited for the guy. He's just another dev, one that doesn't even make the game itself and works with this very website, instead.
() SpecialAnty
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
its a meme
() CoolDooD
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
u had to be there
() 1stFRESH_wing
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
It's stupid.
() BuggyNuggy (Veteran Member) (Verified Tester)
Replied On Dec 8th AW97:
Hey, we have to occupy our time somehow, when the servers are full. If they weren't most of us would most likely have been b]playing the game instead.
End of Page. 1, 2, 3 ... 44, 45, 46
(...)
The atmosphere in the theatre was serene; gentle music echoed through the rooms and hallways as crowds of refined people patiently enjoyed the performance that was as unique as it was well practiced.
A beautiful singing filled all the guests with emotions many of them preferred to hide.
It was a breathtaking performance.
Weiss Schnee was the artist behind this spectacle.
It was her final concert.
While most artists would have despaired at the prospect of giving their final performance, Weiss didn't count herself among them. On the contrary, she couldn't wait for the dreary thing to be already over.
The only reason she bothered to perform was because she was forced to do that. If it had been up to her, she would have given her final performance months, if not entire years, ago.
Unfortunately, that wouldn't have been a grand enough conclusion to her music career for her family's image.
It was only because the fact that she would soon be going to Beacon was public knowledge that she was allowed to give her final performance in the first place. If it weren't for that, she would have still been expected to give multiple concerts a year.
She was incredibly lucky that the school she and her friends had chosen had a great reputation. It was so good that most elites in Atlas wouldn't think that going there was a step down compared to being a nationally famous singer.
If that wasn't the case, she feared that even Beacon wouldn't have been enough of a reason to abandon her forced music career.
Jacques Schnee certainly wouldn't let her do something like that.
A frown almost appeared on her face, but she stopped herself from showing that; it wouldn't do well for her to appear annoyed on her final performance, especially not when it was being closely observed by her father.
The fact that she managed to convince that man to let her go to a Huntsmen Academy like Beacon was a miracle in and of itself. There was no way she would want to tempt fate by making him angry just before she was set to leave.
She would rather play it safe for now.
There would be time to drop the facade and be herself when she was studying how to be a Huntress with her friends at the Beacon Academy.
Her fingers shook a little as she slowly lifted them from the piano keys after a song had ended.
The trip to Beacon—and therefore a trip to her friends—was not even a day away.
She was so excited.
A loud applause erupted from the audience.
Weiss turned to see the audience.
Ah right, it was her final song, a reprise of the very first song she played that had moved an entire audience back when she had just begun her music career. She almost forgot about that.
She let out a quiet huff.
It was over.
The annoying career that ate away at her free time, and the one she had to so vehemently work for, was finally finished. She could put all of that behind her and start pursuing her career as a Huntress.
There might be a couple of fans of hers that would see her retirement as a small tragedy, but she sincerely doubted that.
No matter what her music might have been described as, or what it might have actually been, in the end it was still mostly played to the biggest snobs of the Atlesian society, the elite of Atlas. Those types of people didn't really care about artists or music of those artists. They only cared for looking refined by appreciating artists that they believed were as regal as they were.
The only real fans she had most likely didn't have the money to attend one of her concerts.
Out of a corner of her eye, she saw her father nodding slightly at her from the VIP seats far above the rest of the audience.
Whatever, as long as she could finally pursue her passion instead, she was more than fine with ending her career here. It wasn't like she particularly cared about it in the first place, after all.
With a deep breath, she gracefully stood up from the piano and fully faced the audience.
She bowed deeply.
A loud applause once again erupted from the audience.
Weiss slowly straightened herself out before reaching for a microphone.
She still needed to give her parting words to all the people that came here; they came here to witness her final concert. It couldn't simply end with her giving a single bow and leaving the scene.
There needed to be a proper closing to this part of her career.
It was expected of her, no matter how much she would rather simply leave instead.
"Everyone, thank you for your attendance." She said. "It has been my final concert, as I will from now on pursue a career befitting someone like me in Vale. I hope that all of you enjoyed my performances across the years and that you will remember me fondly."
A much more subdued applause spread throughout the room.
She bowed once again.
"Thank you all for your long support."
With a quick glance, she noticed her father subtly nodding towards her, allowing her to finally leave the theatre. The man then proceeded to go back to talking with whoever else was together with him in that VIP room.
It looked like her final words were satisfactory.
They could have probably been a lot better—she was going to be hearing all types of complaints about them from her father when she returned home for sure—but, as far as she was concerned, they were good enough for her.
It wasn't like she would have to deal with the people who attended her concerts the next day, anyway.
She was going to be at Beacon by then.
After casting a final smile to her audience, she quietly yet elegantly walked down the stage and left the building through the performer's exit.
The moment she escaped the theatre, and she didn't have to put on any image for the crowd, the smile on her face widened further and her expression became significantly more honest.
It was finally over.
She quickly glanced at her Scroll to check the time and quietly groaned to herself.
Her flight to Beacon was only in a couple of hours, and she still had to pack everything and attend one last family supper before she could leave. There was hardly enough time for a single one of these activities.
It looked like her final day at home was going to be quite hectic.
A huff escaped her.
She really hated her busy schedule.
(...)
If there was one word that could describe the Arc household in this very moment, it would be ecstatic.
The entire family was together and celebrating; it was almost like a party. It was such a great occasion that even the ever-busy patriarch of the family, Charles Arc, somehow managed to make time for it.
There was only a single reason behind those celebrations, and that reason was that the only son of the family was being sent to the world's greatest Huntsmen Academy.
It wouldn't have been a huge deal in most other families, especially families who had Huntsmen and Huntresses in them for generations. In fact, it should have been only an expected moment to happen in such families, certainly not something to make a big deal out of.
The Arc family was different, however.
Despite being technically an old family of Huntsmen and Huntresses that had a history of great warriors coming from it, reaching the great war itself, the amount of current Huntsmen belonging to that family was simply lacking.
There was only one, Charles Arc.
It was barely enough to support a single family through that work, let alone enough to have someone to teach the next generation in the craft.
That was why the fact that Jaune was going to become a Huntsman in the future was such a big deal for the family. He could possibly become another pillar on which everyone could lean on if things went south.
At least, that's what he liked to believe.
"Whoa!" Rouge, one of his oldest sisters, cheered energetically. "Our family is going to have another Huntsman soon! We are going to be rich and famous! There won't be anyone who won't know our names!"
Jaune couldn't help but laugh awkwardly a little at his sister's antics.
Things like money and fame weren't exactly the reasons why he wanted to become a Huntsman. If he wanted those things, he would have simply just asked Weiss or Whitley for help; they would have certainly given him some good advice on that goal.
No, he wanted to become a Huntsman in order to be a hero.
He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
Well, he also wanted to attend Beacon to be with his friends. Living through an academy like Beacon was going to be so much more fun if both of his best friends were going to be there with him the entire time.
Nevertheless, the main reason was to be a hero.
He would fight anyone who would try to question that!
"I think you're overestimating the fame that comes with being a Huntsman, my daughter." Charles Arc chimed in to the conversation. "There are hardly any people who bother remembering the names of Huntsmen who save, let alone consider them as people of any importance. Have you ever heard of the Rose family?"
Jaune looked towards his father with interest.
Was his father about to share with them the intricacies of the life of a professional huntsman?
"I can't say that I have." Rouge said.
Charles chuckled.
"You've just proven my point, then."
Rogue rolled her eyes.
"Come on, that's not fair." The girl whined. "Of course, we aren't going to know about some random Huntsmen family that probably has like two members. There are so many Huntsmen and Huntresses that are actually famous, like The Grimm Reaper, for example!"
Jaune quickly nodded his head in agreement with his sister before looking towards his father with interest.
Although the Grimm Reaper has been an old legend, she was still one of the greatest heroes to have ever walked the Remnant. It was difficult to find a single village that didn't have a tale about her.
That woman was an inspiration behind one of the characters they added to the Arena of the Great.
He would love to hear more about her.
Charles Arc slowly shook his head, with a small laugh.
"Please, that woman is just one old legend." The man said. "There were thousands of Huntsmen and Huntresses in her generation, and yet you haven't heard about any of them. She was the only one that is remembered. She was the exception, not the rule."
The expression on Charles's face mellowed down momentarily.
The entire family became quiet.
It wasn't the time to joke around anymore; everyone could tell that the older man was clearly treating the topic with utmost respect and seriousness. The very idea of not reciprocating that seriousness seemed disrespectful.
Charles sighed.
"The truth is most people in my line of work don't get to be remembered." The man said solemnly. "Do you want to know why? It's because they are dead far before they get the chance to become famous. They encounter some never-before-seen Grimm, or they anger some criminal groups that decide they would rather risk dying by Grimm than letting them live."
The eyes of most of the family turned downwards.
A scoff appeared on Charles's face.
"In the end, the way they die doesn't matter. They turn into corpses, and everybody forgets them." A hollow chuckle escaped the man. "At most, they become cautionary tales for other huntsmen to survive longer, helping people after their death. Those guys are the real heroes down there."
Jaune gulped.
Their celebration turned incredibly depressing surprisingly fast.
He wasn't sure whether he enjoyed having that conversation the very day he was leaving for a Huntsmen Academy.
He wasn't sure whether he was supposed to.
His father turned towards him.
He shook a little in surprise.
"Jaune," Charles paused. "I know that this is your dream, and I know that I should have prepared you for it much better than I actually did. I'm sorry for that. I want you to promise me, however, that you will always make sure that you and the people closest to you will survive any of your missions first. I don't want you to give your life away in the first year of your career because you thought you could save one more person by abandoning your life."
The patriarch's gaze was more intense than it had ever been before. It was obvious that this matter was of utmost importance for him, and he wouldn't let his son go without making that single promise to him.
Jaune nodded his head stiffly.
There was nothing else he could have done.
Charles let out a sigh of relief.
"That's good." The man said, releasing the tension. "Well, now that this is over, how about we get back to celebrating? We still have the sweets to eat, and the train leaves in two hours. We don't want to waste them!"
A loud laughter echoed through their house as everyone relaxed once more.
At least everyone who wasn't Jaune, as he was still going over everything his father had said to him.
Although the way his father said his words might have been far more intense than what he expected from the man, he couldn't help but agree completely with the content of those words. He wouldn't be able to save anyone if he himself was already dead; in the end, one's own safety was still the first priority in any situation they might encounter, no matter the possible dangers.
It was a truth that not only he had just heard from his father, but it was also something that he had learnt by playing support to his friends' aggressive play styles.
A chuckle almost escaped him.
To think that he would learn such an important life lesson by playing video games with his friends. If either Ilia or Weiss were here to listen to his thoughts, they would have unquestionably scowled at him for comparing a real job of a Huntsman to their video game.
Despite all of that, however, he couldn't help but find it amusing.
Who was the one who said that video games were simply a waste of time?
He had just found a proof that they weren't.
(...)
The train from Mantle to Vale was cheap, crowded, and its train waggons were somehow still segregated between different races and social classes.
It was the only way a person without a small fortune could easily get from one capital to another.
Ilia hated it.
It wasn't even a direct train!
She would still have to hop onto a giant ferry to get through the ocean partway through the trip, anyways!
As far as she was concerned, it was basically a scam.
A tired sigh escaped her.
It wasn't like she couldn't have chosen to go on a more expensive train. While the money they were making from the game wasn't exactly significant if looked at from the perspective of a whole game studio just yet, it was still more than enough for her to afford a slightly more exclusive ticket.
No, the choice to travel by a cheap train had been entirely her idea.
She simply didn't want to take their hard-earned money and use it for something as shallow as a more comfortable train ride. It wouldn't have worked well with her moral compass, especially since she was already used to poverty, anyways.
Now, she deeply regretted that choice of hers.
Damn it, why did she have to be so stingy when it came to money?!
There had been nothing stopping her from just asking Weiss to help her cover the journey to Vale, either. Weiss was her best friend; surely she wouldn't have minded spending a little money for her.
It would have allowed her to have a comfortable ride, and her friend probably would have barely noticed the dip in her allowance.
If they had done it sneakily enough, her friend would have been able to do it without her father realising it happened in the first place. It wouldn't have been that difficult; at least Ilia didn't think it would have been.
There was literally no reason why she shouldn't have done that!
Ilia shifted a little in place, as she didn't have the seating place.
Of course, if she had done something like that, then she would have probably ended up feeling guilty about it for the whole journey, just like she would have if she had decided to take the money from their game earnings.
Her heart was simply too soft when it came to matters like these.
She didn't even want to imagine how their game would have looked if she had been the one responsible for their team's finances.
They would have done next to nothing, as she would have been too afraid to spend any money!
Now that she thought about it, they sure were lucky that Weiss and Whitley were so versed in the world of business. They wouldn't have come close to publishing their own game, otherwise.
In fact, it was basically a miracle their game had come out at all.
If even one person among their friend group hadn't been there the entire time—or if their friendship had at some point fallen apart—their game most likely would have never come into existence.
The fans of their game had no idea how lucky they were to play that game.
Ilia quietly closed her eyes and tried to lie down on the train wall she was currently leaning on.
It was her attempt at getting some sleep while in the middle of a journey.
There was a long journey ahead of her; she might as well try to do something to kill the time.
At the very least, that was what she would have done if a somewhat loud conversation hadn't suddenly reached her ears.
"Hey, I'm telling you, Marianna is way better in the forest than most people give her credit for. I know the game's been out for only a month or so, but trust me, I figured her out already; you just need to stack movement speed on her, and she becomes unstoppable." Someone said. "You get what I mean, dude?"
A loud groan echoed through the train.
"Look, I trust you, dude, but this take of yours is just ridiculous." Another person answered. "Everyone knows that currently the best forest champion is Smithersten; it was like that guy was designed solely for that role."
A loud chuckle met that answer.
"That is true." The first person answered back. "Marianna still is better, though."
"She's not!"
A smile formed on Ilia's face.
It was nice to hear people talking about their game, especially when they were so passionate about it. That was a great way to see how big of an impact their project had on the people around the world.
She would have to share that with the rest of her friends; they should know how successful their game had become.
The opinion that first guy shared certainly wasn't among the wisest of opinions, though.
There was no way that Marianna with stacked movement speed was better at playing in the forest than the Smithersten! That character wasn't even designed for such a play style; the higher movement speed wasn't going to change that!
It was basically a blasphemy to suggest otherwise.
That was something she had a hundred percent certainty about.
After all, she was the one who came up with the idea for Smithersten!
She wasn't going to let someone besmirch her creation's reputation by saying it was worse than Marianna! It was especially insulting because that particular character was created by Weiss to be a top lane champion instead.
Before she could turn around and talk some sense into that one misguided player, however, the train reached the next station, and the talking duo apparently had to leave.
A quiet sigh escaped her.
Well, she supposed she should just let those two enjoy their game in any way they wanted. It wasn't like there was a correct way to play their game; experimentation was part of the fun in the end.
Instead, she should probably focus on things slightly more important for the moment, such as Beacon.
It was the main reason why she was travelling to Vale, and she wasn't even sure whether she would be able to get into it or not. A school of such renown was bound to have some tough initiation, right?
She could only hope it wasn't going to be too absurd.
After a moment of thought, she shrugged.
There was no need for her to overly worry over things like that. She was certain that if she worked with her friends, she would be able to pass any qualification test without any issues at all.
A smile formed on her face.
With friends like hers, there was absolutely nothing to worry about.
They could take on anything together!
(...)
The journey by a Bullhead to Beacon was lonely.
There wasn't anyone to talk to, no games to play, or even enough space to train for the initiation. The things that were in abundance, however, were things like comfort, luxury, or prestige of a first-class Bullhead.
Had any ordinary person travelled like that, they would have spent the entire flight gawking at the sheer expense of their journey.
Weiss, on the other hand, didn't find it that special.
When one was a member of a family as wealthy as the Schnee family, things like comfort and luxury became the norm, rather than exceptions. It didn't matter that the vehicle she was flying in was first class when she had never experienced anything that wasn't first class in the first place.
It was just a normal flight from her perspective.
A quiet sigh escaped her.
She really should have flown to Beacon on a public Bullhead together with all the other possible students. At least then, she would have been able to spend the journey with Jaune and Ilia.
It would have certainly been less lonely than this.
Of course, if she had wanted to do that, she would have still had to survive that lonely journey to get to Vale in the first place. The only part of the journey that wouldn't have been as bad would have been the very end.
A low humming of the engine met her thoughts.
Now that she thought about it, she would have taken that option anyway.
She was slowly going crazy here!
Why couldn't that so-called first-class Bullhead fly just a little faster?!
It was the best and most expensive flying vehicle money could buy. The speed this thing could have reached should have been far higher than whatever she was forced to experience right now.
Was the pilot purposefully wasting her time?
A quiet groan escaped her.
She couldn't even waste the time on the Dustless Tales that she had installed on her Scroll. The connection to the net was simply atrocious when flying on a Bullhead, and apparently no amount of money could change that.
If this Bullhead journey wasn't going to end sometime soon, she swore that she was going to complain later.
The vehicle suddenly shook a little.
"We are approaching the landing pad, Miss Schnee." The pilot said. "Please, buckle your seat belt and patiently await the landing. We've reached your destination and have been granted permission to land."
Weiss let out a sigh of relief.
She was finally here.
That atrocious journey was already behind her.
The Bullhead landed and settled down with a grace that shouldn't have been possible for a vehicle of its size. If it weren't for the pilot's message and a little shaking earlier, Weiss wouldn't have even realised that they landed at all.
With the vehicle on the ground, the passenger door opened.
"We've successfully landed." The pilot said. "You may leave the vehicle at your own leisure, Miss Schnee. When you finish taking all your baggage, please close the door behind you, and I will fly back to Atlas."
Weiss nodded her head in confirmation before slowly standing up and starting to drag all of her baggage outside.
There were quite a lot of things to take, so it took her a couple of trips back and forth from the Bullhead to take care of everything. After a couple of minutes of dragging everything outside, however, she was finally standing outside the Bullhead with all the things that she packed for her years at Beacon.
She quickly nodded her head after double-checking everything before closing the passenger doors behind her.
It was everything.
With the passenger outside and a confirmation that it could leave, the Bullhead gently—for a vehicle that weighed multiple tonnes, that was—lifted itself from the ground and started flying back home.
As it slowly disappeared into the horizon, Weiss began to relax.
She was finally here.
In front of her towered Beacon, the world's greatest Huntsmen Academy.
It was a place where she was going to spend her next four years. She would finally have some freedom from her father, and she would be able to meet her friends whenever she wanted.
A wide smile formed on her face.
That was almost a dream come true.
She hadn't expected that a school of all things would have managed to get such an elated reaction out of her, but here she was. If anyone were to see her right now, they would have thought that she had just received some grand reward with how excited she looked.
Weiss chuckled a little to herself.
She must have looked like some starstruck idiot, gawking at the first high-class school they've seen in their entire life.
It didn't matter to her.
As long as she would be able to study here with her friends, she would be satisfied.
There were going to be challenges, of course.
The schedule of a prestigious school like Beacon most likely wasn't going to be much easier than what she had to deal with until now. Despite that, she still wanted to continue her career as a gamer, even here.
Her friends and she would simply have to go down to Vale every evening and have their gaming sessions in the internet cafes around the city.
It was certainly going to be an interesting experience.
Weiss paused for a moment.
Wait, did Vale even have internet cafes?
She assumed that it should have some, but she had never actually explored Vale before; at least not long enough for her to know anything beyond the general layout of the city.
Her knowledge about this city amounted to basically just what she saw through the windows of the grand theatre. It was all that she had seen when she had come here to perform a concert a couple of years ago.
It was a huge city; it should have something, right?
Weiss shrugged.
Whether the city had one or not, she would have to find out with her friends after she found her friends and they passed the initiation. Right now, she should probably start looking for them, though.
All the people who travelled with the public Bullhead should already be here, after all.
Before she could head out and look for her friends, however, a loud crash resounded near her and stopped her in place.
Weiss turned around to see what happened.
It seemed that someone had smashed directly into her baggage.
"Ah! I'm sorry!" A voice called from the unorganised heap of suitcases and expensive bags that had become her baggage. "I-I didn't see where I was going; I mean, I was distracted! I mean, I'm sorry!"
Weiss sighed.
Well, she supposed she could put off finding her friends for a little bit longer.
And Cut!
The Beacon begins!
Also, tell me what you think of the new formatting for the forum section. I decided to experiment a little, since the original one I used ceased to work, for some reason.
I know, I said there would be a break after the previous chapter, but after this one there's going to be a couple week long break for real.
See ya, later!