Chapter 26
Amity Coliseum, Doubles Round 1: Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black VS Coco and Yatsuhashi
"Nice dress." Coco praised Emerald
"Thanks. I'll try not to get blood on it." Emerald said causing Yatsuhashi to raise a brow
"I cannot guarantee you will leave without a scratch." Yatsuhashi bluntly noted
"Sorry, but I won't be the one bleeding out." Emerald curtly replied
"I like her." Coco told her partner, slightly impressed by Emerald's confidence
"Let the match, BEGIN." Oobleck announced
With their match already in motion, Emerald and Mercury casually walk backwards into the concealment of the long grass in the savanna biome behind them.
Coco and Yatsuhashi share a brief look before Coco turns Gianduja into its gatling gun form and sends a hail of bullets towards the grassland, trimming its grass short.
However, after all the grass has been cut, Mercury and Emerald are nowhere to be found. Coco and Yatsuhashi glance at each other in confusion. At that moment, Mercury appears from the sky, jumping to the ground to ambush them. Yatsuhashi manages to preempt his attack and pushes Coco out of the way, blocking his kick with Fulcrum.
As Mercury jumps back from his attack, Coco begins to fire on him with her gatling gun, but he is able to deftly evade all of her shots. He then lands in between his opponents, and lands a flurry of kicks on Yatsuhashi. As Coco tries unsuccessfully to get a bead on Mercury, he jumps up high in the air and lands on her gun. Yatsuhashi then tries to attack Mercury but he dodges and uses the force of Yatsuhashi's second hit to get behind Coco, thrusting her weapon into Yatsuhashi's stomach.
Realizing using her gatling gun in close quarters is awkward, she switches back to her handbag form and takes an ineffective swing at Mercury. Mercury jumps back doing a few back handspring walkovers and, performing a kick up, fires a pair of projectiles from Talaria, which take an unpredictable, spinning trajectory towards Coco and Yatsuhashi, who deflect both shots without much difficulty.
However, when they turn their attention back to Mercury, they see that he has fired dozens of other projectiles from his boots whilst performing a flair, which spiral around him like a storm. He sends the storm of projectiles flying towards Coco and Yatsuhashi by flaring into a spinning handstand, landing around them and creating a haze of smoke.
Terrance
"He's good." Kung Lao noted
"I really hope they can win this." Velvet muttered. From her corner, Scorpion is merely observing the fight with his arm folded
"So, who's representing your team in the doubles round?" Kung Lao asked Liu Kang
"We've decided that Hanzo and Kuai Liang will represent us, since they didn't fight much in the previous round." Liu Kang said
"Fire and Ice eh?" Kung Lao said observing a certain Spectre
Arena
When Coco and Yatsuhashi regain their composure and vision from the smoke, Mercury immediately appears behind them, grabbing hold of them and delivering a series of kicks to both. Emerald's Respite's chain springs out from somewhere in the forest biome, ensnaring Coco and yanking her into the forest.
With his opponents separated, Mercury attempts to press the attack on Yatsuhashi, landing a kick on his opponent. Yatsuhashi pretends to use his sword but manages to grab Mercury by his neck and flings him far into the geyser biome. Yatsuhashi then jumps high in the air and attempts to land a devastating over-the-head blow with his sword, but Mercury is able to nullify the hit with his
boots. The shockwave of Yatsuashi's attack causes the rocks in the biome to shatter all around him and the geysers to erupt, but Mercury is unaffected.
The two exchange a series of blows, with Mercury using a piece of rock from the shattered ground as a projectile, which Yatsuhashi deflects with his sword. However, in the melee, Mercury manages to hit his opponent down to the ground, his head landing directly above a geyser vent. At that moment, the geyser erupts. Disoriented and attempting to regain his balance, Yatsuhashi is easy prey for Mercury, who lands a webster kick on him.
On the other side of the arena, in the forest biome, Coco is slammed against a tree and falls down after being dragged through the air an incredible distance by Emerald's chain. Glancing around, she realizes her sunglasses have been broken, much to her chagrin.
"Okay, I take it back. I don't like her." Coco said tossing her damaged glasses
Suddenly, a green bullet comes flying towards her, but Coco narrowly manages to evade it. Coco realizes that Emerald has taken position and is firing at her from the treetops. After dodging a burst of fire from Emerald's fast-firing revolvers, she turns her handbag back into its gatling gun form and sends a barrage of bullets into the foliage. Emerald moves between the trees with great agility, pausing occasionally to counter fire, before disappearing somewhere into the trees. Cursing, Coco loses track of her target.
Unexpectedly, from behind her, Yatsuhashi emerges and calls her name.
"Careful, she's hiding in the trees." Coco warned her partner
"Yatsuhashi has just been eliminated by Mercury!" Oobleck announced causing Coco's eyes to widen
Alarmed and confused, Coco turns back to see that Yatsuhashi is no longer there, and that she has been tricked. Cursing again, Coco looks around cautiously, her hands wavering from fear or anger. Emerald emerges from behind and attacks her with her sickle before she has a chance to react. With one blow, Coco is thrown clear out of the forest and lands in the center of the arena, next to the incapacitated Yatsuhashi.
"Emerald and Mercury win." Oobleck announced causing a great uproar of the spectating crowd.
Gazebo Café, Outside Festival Grounds, Later that evening
Weiss sat comfortably in her chair, fiddling with her teacup filled with sweet and aromatic coffee. Opposite her sat her sister, seated matronly with her posture upright and straight as she sipped from her cup.
Weiss was still a bit hurt from Winter's cold remarks back at the courtyard, but it was times like these that her ice cold façade melted away to reveal the kind and caring elder sister she remembered growing up with in Atlas.
Winter had also chosen an ideal spot for them to chat. It was a marble gazebo surrounded by a lush and floral garden, decorated with beautiful flowers of all kinds with dainty butterflies of all hues fluttering around them.
The interior of the café was also very beautiful. The space had no windows, instead opting for marble pillars upholding the domed ceiling, resembling a pantheon of sorts. Above the pillars, lush green awnings hung overhead, with vibrant vines stretching down to touch the sun's rays.
In the center of the structure, a beautiful fountain stood, consisting of a goblet of sorts erecting from the pool of water, in which its clear and sparkling contents flowed peacefully down into. The two sisters sat at a fancy table, which stood on legs that met at the center, curving outwards to hold it in place. Between them sat two teacups as well as a plate containing two strawberries and a croissant.
"Y-you're… leaving?" Weiss asked, almost in dismay as she heard her sister say it aloud.
"Yes. I was merely needed to direct an escort for additional units into Vale." Winter confirmed to her sister, setting down her cup of coffee from her lips and carefully placed it in its saucer, wiping her mouth with a napkin.
"Our last shipment was lost to an ambush… I believe you experienced an encounter with its cargo, actually." Winter added, causing Weiss to remember the weeks leading up to the festival, in which they had foiled the White Fang's plans to incite a Grimm invasion.
"It's fortunate that the suits you ran into were merely prototypes. Otherwise you and your friends would not have fared so well. Thank goodness…" Winter drabbled on, her mind dreading the loss her precious sister to the machines she had a hand in creating as a military specialist.
However, she looked ahead at her sister, who had a downtrodden expression on her face. She then realized what she'd said. If her sister had trouble defeating a prototype, then she must have felt her confidence shattered upon hearing it was barely even a full challenge.
Succumbing to her big sister instincts, she gently placed a palm over Weiss's, feeling herself smile upon seeing her sister's expression grow warmer. "Weiss… you've done… well here, on your own. You should be proud of yourself. I admittedly was, myself."
Weiss smiled gratefully, feeling her heart open up to Winter more. "To be honest, it was quite amusing seeing Father's face the moment you left for Beacon!" Winter added, causing Weiss to giggle lightly, remembering her father's red face and almost childish tantrum when she left. It was an image he would deny frivolously, yet an image Weiss would never forget in a million years.
"I can't wait to show him all I've learned!" Weiss declared eagerly with a smile to match, her arms crossed in confidence.
"Oh? And what do you think you've learned?" Winter inquired with a snarky grin and a raised brow.
"What do you mean? I've become better and better with my glyphs. I've even started time dilation!" Weiss retorted, her face riddled with confusion. She wasn't wrong from her own knowledge. Time dilation was difficult stuff, almost up there with…
"And what of your summoning?" Winter asked her, her hands pressed up against her chin as her elbows were propped against the tabletop, pushing her chest against the rim as her face became more firm and serious.
"And there's the kicker…" Weiss thought to herself. In all her years, she had tried, but after countless failed attempts, she eventually gave up on trying, despite Winter's excessive pushing.
"I… y-you know I can't…" Weiss whined, turning away from Winter in embarrassment.
"Don't be ridiculous. Every Schnee has the ability to summon. We have for generations." Winter noted with a hint of pride, recalling every brave hero that fought for the Schnee bloodline before Atlas came into being, including her grandfather, founder of the SDC himself.
"I've tried! It's just… It's the one thing I'm having trouble with!" Weiss argued back, throwing her arms out to emphasize her point.
Winter sighed, raising her voice once more. "We Schnees are unique. Unlike many, our Semblance is hereditary, but that doesn't mean it will come easy."
Raising her arm, Winter held out her palm, summoning a small glyph to hover and spin on top of her hand. "Your Semblance is like a muscle. The more you practice with it, the stronger it will become. But if you only focus on one aspect of it, if you fail to test the limits of what is possible…"
Winter then flicked her arm upwards, enveloping the area in a bright flash of light, causing Weiss to flinch backwards, raising her arm over her eyes to shield them from the light. Opening her eyes, she saw a Beowolf standing next to Winter, but completely white and glowing with a pale blue energy. This was one of Winter's summoned, a copy of one of countless Grimm that died to her blade.
"…then you'll never truly grow."
Staring at the beast in awe, she could only imagine the potential within herself as the Grimm bent down, allowing Winter to pet it and stroke its fur under its neck, causing the wolf to growl softly in contentment.
Team RWBY's Dorm
"YOU'LL NEVER BEAT US, GRANDPAS!" Ruby yelled out at the top of her lungs, holding her weapon with both hands and clinging on for dear life.
"Hey, who are you calling a grandpa?" Johnny complained
"Heh, when was the last time you really stood a chance against me?!" Qrow responded, readying himself for a special attack.
"Bet they've never even had a taste of a true pro!" Johnny added, his eyes narrowing in for the killing blow.
"We can do it Ruby! NOW!" Yang yelled out, activating her ultimate attack, speeding towards Qrow with a fiery yell.
"Tsk…" Johnny snickered under his breath, activating his secret technique. He leapt in front of Yang and made his move. Much to Yang's dismay, she dealt no damage, as she felt the force of the attack barrel back down on Ruby and herself.
With this, both of their character's health bars dropped down to zero, causing Ruby and Yang to stare in defeat as the screen darkened.
"FINISH HIM!" The announcer said in a deep and menacing voice, blood-red letters on the screen emphasizing his words.
With an evil grin, Johnny nodded to Qrow, who entered a combination of buttons on his controller, causing his character to move towards the sisters'.
"NOOOOOOO!" Both of they yelled out in horror, watching Qrow's character transform into a massive King Taijitu, devouring both of the defeated combatants with a bloody crunch that tore a hole through Ruby's innocent heart.
"Citizen Cage and Blood Hawk win! Total Annihilation! Fatality!" The announcer declared loudly, causing Qrow and Johnny to smirk in victory, while Ruby was on the verge of tears, curling up into a ball while whimpering like a dying dog and Yang was about ready to burst a vein, the controller in her hands smoking from the heat she was giving off.
"By the way, don't ever call me a grandpa. You'll be a part of the crowd soon enough." Qrow joked, jabbing a whimpering Ruby in the side with his finger, causing her to squeak quietly in response.
"Rematch. Now." Yang growled with a deathly tone, her now scarlet eyes glaring from behind her hair, which was beginning to light ablaze in small embers.
"Sure, your funeral though." Johnny sarcastically added, picking up his controller again and picking his character.
"Now, where was I again?" Qrow asked his nieces, to which Ruby jumped up to answer him, completely breaking out of her traumatized state earlier.
"You were telling us about your last mission!" Ruby chirped excitedly as Johnny took on Yang in the fighting game.
Taking a deep breath, Qrow began his story. "Right… here goes. I come across a small village in the swamps west of Mistral. Right off the bat, I could tell somethin' wasn't right."
"What were you doing there?" Ruby gasped curiously, causing Johnny to chuckle as he evaded one of Yang's special attacks.
"I needed info. Tired of fighting Grimm along the way, I decided to visit the local inn. The place was crawling with lowlifes and thugs, even a few huntsmen I could only assume had been hired by less than reputable people for less than respectable jobs. I walked in… and that's when it happened."
"What happened?" Yang asked in shock.
Qrow's face grew dark and serious, almost as if bearing news of the apocalypse itself. "I was defeated… by the mere sight… of the innkeeper's skirt length!"
With this, Johnny delivered the final blow to Yang, causing the announcer's voice to blare from the TV. "Citizen Cage wins! Total Annihilation! Fatality!"
"Bam. Best two out of three." Johnny said cooly, dropping the controller like a mic.
"YOU ARE THE WORST!" Yang yelled at Qrow, causing him, Johnny and Ruby to laugh uncontrollably.
"Still can't believe you were added to the game as an actual character." Ruby said to Johnny
"Perks of being a movie star." Johnny said
"So… Uncle Qrow, did you get in trouble with Ozpin?" Ruby asked, sitting herself onto the bed.
"Yeah, me and Oz go way back. We're cool."
"Cool for an old guy!" Yang joked
"By the way, what're you doing here at Beacon? I thought Dad said you'd be on a mission for like… ever" Ruby asked him.
"Well, a professional huntsman like myself are supposed to get results as soon as possible" Qrow said picking up a controller
"Heh, yeah. We're pretty much professionals ourselves…" Ruby said, leaning back onto the bed.
"Oh really?" Qrow replied sarcastically with an indifferent face.
"Psh… yeah! Watch the news sometime! We totally saved Vale when you were away!" Yang responded, keeping her eyes on the screen.
"Funny, 'cause I heard Vale suffered a Grimm attack after you almost managed to stop a train." Qrow threw back snarkily as he obliterated Yang's character in the game with his ultimate move.
"And they don't give out medals for 'almost'." Qrow continued, poking Yang in the cheek, causing her eye to twitch in annoyance.
"They do and they're called SILVER!" Ruby blurted out
"Well, we took down Roman Torchwick! He's locked up on Ironwood's ship, and crime's been down ever since. That's basically a bounty mission!" Yang bragged, remembering their lucky victory after the Breach, remembering everybody showing up to fight back the Grimm.
"Sure, you may be acting like huntresses, but you're not thinking like one. Did you really think four girls and their friends could end all crime in the kingdom?" Qrow asked them, raising his eyebrow and remembering a time when he thought similarly.
"Well, I did until you said that…" Ruby admitted, tapping her fingers together awkwardly.
Sighing, Qrow spoke up. "Crime hasn't dropped since Roman's arrest. It's stopped. Completely. No White Fang or Black Dragon activity anywhere in Vale."
This cast an atmosphere of silence amongst the group, as the four of them sat with an ominous air between them.
"You cut off the head of the King Taijitu, but now the second head's calling the shots. That's what Ironwood can't get through that thick metal skull of his…" Qrow ranted, his eyes narrowing at the thought of the general and his ignorance.
"You know the general?" Ruby asked, looking just as confused as Yang. They knew Qrow worked high up, but not to this extent.
"Hey! I know everyone to some extent! Remember, you're talking to a member of the coolest team to ever graduate Beacon!" Qrow said proudly, plucking a photo from his shirt pocket.
In the photo was Qrow and three others. On the far left was a young girl wearing a snow-white cloak, a hood covering part of her face. Her eyes were large and colored a bright silver. Her skirt was black and short black hair extended from under her hood, barely reaching her collarbone. This was Summer Rose, Ruby's mother and Yang's stepmother, at least until she... left…
Leaning against a tree next to Summer was a young man with dark tanned skin and short blonde hair. He wore a brown vest with a pauldron covering his right shoulder. This was Yang and Ruby's father, Taiyang. As a teacher at Signal and a single father of two, he had little time to spend at home, but Yang understood. After all, she had been taking care of Ruby in his place.
Between Tai and a younger-looking Qrow stood another person, a young woman dressed in black and red armor and a black skirt, her arms covered by scale gauntlets and her hair was long, black and spiky. Most notable however, was her face. With large red eyes, a rounded face and beautiful features, it was almost a spitting image of herself…
Noticing Yang's eyes widening over a particular member, Qrow sighed and subtly moved his thumb over her face, blocking it from Yang's view. "Team STRQ. That's where I met your parents. We were pretty well-known back in the day."
"Yeah, for bad fashion sense!" Ruby joked, muffling a giggle under her arm.
"Hey, we looked great! And I got a number of inappropriate stories to back that up…" Qrow said, wiggling his eyebrows at Ruby, causing her to wince in disgust.
"Ich, gross!"
"But... I'm gonna save those for when you're older. Wouldn't want your imaginations runnin' wild." He said, slipping the photo back into his pocket.
"Anyways, I'm getting too old to be hangin' out with a buncha kids. You're gonna cramp my style!" Qrow said, getting up to walk out the door, but before he did, he stopped himself, turning back towards his nieces.
"Look, just remember that you've still got a long way to go. Don't think for a second that graduating means you're done. Every day out there is worth a week in this place." Qrow said before walking off.
"I like him." Johnny said
"Geehhh." Yang joked
"Hey!"
Gazebo Café, Outside Festival Grounds
Weiss stood in the center of the gazebo, her sword pointed at a spinning glyph on the ground. Her stance was elegant, yet her face was ridden with stress and frustration.
Beside her, Winter stood, analyzing her posture. "Excellent form! Now, think to your fallen foes, the ones that force you to push yourself past who you were, and become who you are now. Think of them, and watch as they come to your side."
Weiss' frustration only grew as she concentrated further, the glyph spinning faster, yet nothing happened as the glyph's energy began to flicker like a candle.
"I can't!" Weiss complained, which quickly earned her a smack on the head from her elder sister.
"Stop doubting yourself!" She sternly ordered Weiss.
"I'm trying!" Weiss yelled back in frustration.
"If this is what you call 'trying', then you have no hope of winning the tournament, let alone succeeding as a huntress! Why don't you just move back home? I'm sure Father would give you a nice job as a receptionist!" Weiss coldly rebutted.
"I don't need his charity!" Weiss replied, pouting with both hands crossed under her chest.
"But you do need his money, don't you?" Winter asked Weiss with a clever grin, causing Weiss to gasp.
"W-what? H-how'd you know about that?" She asked frantically.
"Lucky guess. I may have found myself in a similar situation when I joined the military. So what have you done this time?" Winter asked her sister.
"Well, that's the thing! I'm really not sure. I went to pay for lunch the other day, but my card didn't work." Weiss said, recalling the incident at the noodle shop after their first match.
"How embarrassing!" Winter responded in mock surprise.
"I know! Why would he just cut me off like that?" Weiss asked her sister.
"Perhaps so you'd stop ignoring him and call home."
Growling in frustration, Weiss pointed Myrtenaster at the ground once more, summoning her aura to form a spinning glyph into the ground. Sensing her sister's tension, Winter placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Emotions can grant you strength, but you must never let them overpower you. The way I see it, you have two choices in front of you; you can either call home, beg for his money back and explain once more why you want to study at Beacon over Atlas… or you can continue to explore Remnant. Learning more about the world and its secrets, and honestly, more about yourself." With Winter's words, Weiss finally drew a long breath, relaxing as the glyph dissipated.
Turning to her sister with both arms on hers, Winter looked at her in the eyes. "It's time for me to go now."
With this, she gave Weiss a warm hug, which the younger girl happily returned as both siblings remained in a loving embrace.
"It was good to see you again, Winter." Weiss said to Winter, happy to have had the chance to chat with her again.
"Until next time, sister." Winter said, returning Weiss's feelings. The Schnee family was far from a happy one, but the sisters still loved each other, and even felt that they were the only true family each of them had.
It was rare moments like this in which both women could relax and shoulder each other's problems, like any true family would.
Courtyard, Beacon Academy, Later that night
Weiss sat on a bench as she saw Winter's ship ascend into the sky, the engine roaring as the aircraft flew off into the direction of the city across the bay.
Weiss waved off the ship, hoping that her sister could see her from that distance.
But just then, she turned her head to notice somebody sitting atop one of the massive arcs of the courtyard.
Running up to it, Weiss used a glyph to help herself jump up atop the structure, crossing eyes with Scorpion who was without his mask.
"Lovely night, don't you think?" Weiss asked taking a seat next to him.
"Yes…" Scorpion answered. "So, that was your sister?"
"Yes. She came for her mission but made time to visit me." Weiss answered.
Scorpion smiled slightly as he looked above him at the beautiful night sky. Bright, sparkling stars dotted a black canvas decorated with splashes of violet and indigo, with a light blue light illuminating the shattered moon above. Following his gaze, Weiss looked up as well, her sky blue eyes sparkling beautifully in wonder at the sky
"Hanzo?" Weiss suddenly asked, breaking from her trance.
"Yes, what is it?" He responded.
"Do yo-" She began, only to be interrupted by something vibrating in her pocket.
Pulling out her scroll, she saw that her father was calling her. Seeing this, Scorpion said. "You should answer…"
However, his words were cut short when Weiss placed her palm on his with a light blush gracing her cheeks, her scroll revealing that she had hung up on her father.
"No. We could use some privacy." Weiss hummed contentedly, almost melodically in her voice as she lowered her head on Scorpion's shoulder, not letting go of his hand.
"Just… let it happen. It's a rather beautiful night, after all." Weiss continued, her voice calm and soothing to his ears, causing himself to turn red as he turned back up to look at the starlit sky.
With that, Weiss could relax happily, knowing she had found comfort outside her family at last. "Maybe this could become something more…" she contently thought to herself as she closed her eyes into a peaceful slumber.