Outsider Chronicles: A Wizard at Beacon
Waking up in the body of a baby is rather disconcerting. Finding out I've been reborn in a world of monsters and Darkness is worse. Still, at least I've got some cool powers out of the bargain!
Hello and welcome back. Nothing to say here, so lets dive right in. Enjoy!
Chapter 2
The next day dawned bright and sore for me as I had slept sitting up, leaning against the hard, wooden paneling that lined the Hall. Big mistake. I groaned as I cracked my back, twisting this way and that with a series of satisfying cracks.
"Ohh, thats better," I said, "Now, lets go gear up."
After my morning rituals and breakfast (making sure to keep my fingers well away from Nora), I headed into the armoury to pick up my gear. Yang and Ruby were already arguing about being on a team. I reached my locker to find Pyrrha and Weiss stood in front of it. Weiss had an odd look on her face and was probably in the middle of plotting how she and Pyrrha were going to be the perfect team and such. Unfortunately, my locker was right between them and I didn't feel like waiting for Weiss' little breakdown to finish.
"Scuse me," I said, snapping the white themed girl out of her trance, "Could I get at my locker?"
"Oh, sure," said Pyrrha, stepping to one side and letting me approach.
"You again," sniffed Weiss.
"Whats with the cold shoulder Princess?" I asked as I put on my coat and grabbed my gun, "I didn't do anything to you."
Weiss glared at me as I checked that Sheer Trigger was fully loaded and slipped it into the holster on the back of my belt.
"You mocked me yesterday!"
"Thats what you took away from that?" I snorted, "I was only laughing because of how over the top you were acting."
"THAT GIRL COULD HAVE KILLED ME!" roared Weiss.
"But she didn't and she apologised, so no hard feelings," I said, "So, now thats out of the way, how about we start over. Hello Weiss, I'm James Goodwitch."
"Hello James," said Pyrrha.
I blinked as I realised that yes, Pyrrha was still there. How the hell had I forgotten about her?
"Oh, sorry, that was rude of me," I said, holding out my hand, "Nice to meet you…"
Weiss was quick to plant herself between us, cutting me off.
"Ahem, James was it?" she said haughtily, "Do you have any idea who this is?"
"I do," I said, "Pyrrha Nikos, correct?"
Pyrrha twitched slightly, but nodded.
"Again, its nice to meet you," I said, stepping around Weiss to offer Pyrrha my hand again, "I hope we can get along."
Pyrrha looked surprised, but shook it anyway.
"Um, likewise James," she said, blushing slightly.
Weiss looked between the two of us in utter confusion.
"Bu...wha...she…"
"Breath Princess, don't pass out before we even get to the initiation," I said with a smirk.
That seemed to snap Weiss out of it.
"HOW CAN YOU TREAT HER SO CASUALLY?!" she spluttered, "SHES A CELEBRITY!"
"So?" I said, "So's my Mother...sort of. And besides, past achievements mean very little here. After all, I've never even entered a tournament and yet I managed to get in with one of the highest scores in the combat exam ever."
Whatever Weiss was going to say was cut off by Mums voice over the PA requesting that we all meet at the cliff edge.
"Well, time to go," I said, as I slipped on my coat, "Come on Pyrrha, Princess."
"Stop calling me that!" snapped Weiss.
"Then stop acting like it."
"GAH!"
She flounced off. I snickered as I followed her with a slightly smiling Pyrrha at my side.
We arrived at the cliffs and were directed to stand on the launch pads at the very edge.
"For years, you have been training to become warriors," began Ozpin, drawing all attention to him, "Today, the skills you have gained will be tested in the Emerald Forest."
"I'm sure that many of you have heard rumours about the assignment of teams," said Goodwitch, "Let me put your minds at ease. We will be assigning you into teams. Today."
"What?" whimpered Ruby.
"Your teammate will be with you for the duration of your time at Beacon," said Ozpin, "So its in your best interest to be paired with someone you work well with."
I noticed Ruby clenching her fists nervously.
"That being said, the first person you make eye contact with once you land will be your teammate for the next four years."
I could practically hear Ruby shattering at that.
"WHAT?!" she yelled.
"See, I told you…!" hissed Nora to Ren.
"Once you have partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest," continued Ozpin, ignoring the whispering, "There you will find a ruin containing several relics. You will meet opposition along the way, so do not hesitate to kill anything in your path or you will die. Once you return with your relic, we will guard it and your standing and grade you appropriately. Our teachers will be watching your progress, but they will not intervene, so I suggest you be careful. Now, are there any questions?"
There was not.
"Good, take your positions," said Ozpin.
Thirty seconds later, the launch pad activated and I was catapulted into the air.
"YEEEHA!" I whooped as I flew over the trees, my coat tails flapping in the wind.
I flipped a few times, before gaining control over my flight and readied myself, extending my hands towards the ground.
"Come forth Wind, break my fall, Air Cushion," I said.
The air in front of me swirled as I approached the ground and caught me, slowing me down enough so that when I landed, I touched down gently. As soon as I did, I pulled out Sheer Trigger and shot a Beowolf right between the eyes without even looking.
"Come forth light, sacred shining spear, Shining Javelin," I said, "And Multiply."
In response to my two spells, a large number of white magic circles appeared around me and unleashed a barrage of spears made of golden light that quickly turned the back of Beowolves that had been sniffing around the clearing I landed in into swiss cheese.
"Well, that was impressive."
I turned to see Pyrrha emerging from the treeline.
"Thanks. So, I guess this means we're partners?"
Pyrrha smiled and nodded.
"We are," she said.
"Great. Shall we?"
We headed off into the forest together, leaving the dead Beowolves to dissolve.
"So, do you have any idea where we are?" I asked after we had been walking for a few minutes.
"Ummm."
"I thought so," I said, "Hang on, I think I've got...aha!"
I pulled a compass out of my coat.
"Why do you have a compass?" asked Pyrrha.
"Always be prepared is my Mothers moto," I said, "She probably stuffed the pockets of this thing with dozens of random bits of junk she thought I might need."
To demonstrate, I pulled out a packet of tissues, a packed lunch, a bundle of take out flyers and a packet of condoms. I raised an eyebrow at the last one.
"Err, O...K," I said, "I don't think that was Mums doing…"
"I hope not," said a now blushing Pyrrha as I put the random assortment of items back into my coat.
"Anyway, lets go," I said, "North is...that way."
I pointed in the direction the needle was pointing. Directly at Pyrrha. I narrowed my eyes and took a few steps to the left. To my relief, the needle remained pointing in the same direction, even when I walked past her. Nice to know that joke wasn't an actual thing. Now that we had a direction, we started heading north, keeping our eyes peeled for the Temple as we went. As we made our way through the trees, we passed a certain cave that, had I been less prepared, we might have stumbled into. Fortunately, we wouldn't have to deal with the Deathstalker.
Just as that thought crossed my mind, Pyrrha paused.
"Did you hear that?" she asked.
"Hear what?" I asked.
"Listen."
I stopped and did as she said. For a moment, I didn't hear anything, but then the sound of something breathing heavily in the forest reached my ears. I frowned.
"What…"
Then, the treeline exploded and a wall of black fur and white plates erupted with a horrible, screeching roar. I reacted without thinking, just barely dodging a yellow stinger as it snapped down and embedded into a tree behind me. The tree immediately started rotting as purple venom sprayed from the tip of the stinger.
"MANTICORE!" screamed Pyrrha, whipping out her weapons as the massive Grimm roared again.
It was massive, towering over both of us in a deadly wall of muscle, claws, teeth and venom. It looked like a massive lion, with a pair of bat-like wings and a scorpion's tail curving up over its head and dripping with purple venom that instantly killed any plants it fell on. Its face was covered in a typical white mask of a Grimm and bone spikes protruded from its shoulders.
Manticores are one of the most dangerous types of Grimm in existence. They are incredibly strong, extremely short tempered and so territorial they had even been known to attack and kill other Grimm. Plus, between razor sharp claws, jaws powerful enough to casually crush a man's skull and venom so powerful that it could reduce a person to goo in minutes, they weren't hurting for ways to kill. The only up side was that they were normally found in mountainous areas, far from Human civilization. To see one so close to Vale...it wasn't a good sign.
The Manticore took a swipe at Pyrrha, forcing her to jump back or get sliced to ribbons.
"Pyrrha, keep its attention!" I shouted.
I ignored the red-heads rather colourful response in favor of focusing on my Semblance.
"Come forth fire, crimson eruption, Explosion!" I shouted as the red crystals on my wrists lit up with a ruddy glow.
Pyrrha jumped back as a red circle appeared under the Grimm for a moment, before multiple pillars of fire erupted, blasting it off its feet and filling the air with the stench of burning fur.
"Time to go," I said.
"Quite," said Pyrrha as we sprinted away from the howling Manticore as it tried to put out the flames still licking at its fur.
It didn't take us long to reach the ruin where Yang, Blake, Ren and Nora were already gathered.
"GUYS, WE HAVE A PROBLEM!" I yelled as we sprinted up.
"Huh? Oh, hey James," said Yang, "Whats up?"
"Manticore," said Pyrrha.
That got us four blank looks.
"What?" said Blake.
"Theres a Manticore in the forest," I said, "We REALLY need to get out of here and let the teachers know. Unless you fancy trying to kill the damn thing."
"That sounds like a terrible idea," said Ren.
"Indeed, so lets get what we need and GTFO," I said.
"Er, guys," said Blake, pointing up.
We all followed her finger, just in time to see a Nevermore fly overhead with Ruby and Weiss clinging to its back.
"Awww shit," I muttered, "Thats gonna make things more difficult…"
Ruby chose that moment to jump.
"RUBY!" shouted Yang, worry clear in her tone.
"Accel," I said and vanished.
A moment later, I skidded to a stop, just in time to catch Ruby in my arms.
"Nice of you to drop in," I deadpanned.
"Um, thanks," said Ruby, her cheeks pinking.
I rolled my eyes and set her back on her feet.
"RUBY!" shouted Yang as she came sprinting over.
"YANG!" shouted Ruby right back as she was tackled hugged by her sister.
"Not that this isn't sweet and all, but I feel I should remind you of the very angry Manticore that is probably heading this way?" I asked.
"Huh?" said Ruby.
"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU LEFT ME!" shouted Weiss from the back of the Nevermore.
"I said jump!" called back Ruby.
"Shes gonna fall," said Yang.
"She'll be fine," said Ruby
"Shes falling," said Blake
I rolled my eyes and took a step to the side, catching Weiss with ease, before setting the heiress on her feet.
"Um, thank you?" she said, looking a tad ruffled.
"No problem, now lets grab our Relics and GO!" I yelled as I started herding everyone back towards the ruin.
"Hey, whats the rush?" asked Weiss.
She got her answer a moment later when the treeline erupted and the smouldering and very angry Manticore came barreling out, skidding to a stop and looking around. When its burning red eyes fell on our group, it let out a horrible shriek and started charging towards us.
"Slip!" I shouted, pointing at the ground in front of it.
There was a flash of light and the giant Grimm faceplanted as the friction under its feet was magically removed.
"Lets go, that won't slow it down for long," I said.
"Noted," said Yang as we all sprinted back to the ruin, grabbed a Relic and headed in the direction of the cliff.
"What should we do?" asked Pyrrha as we ran.
I glanced around. With the presence of the Manticore, the Nevermore had flown away to avoid getting killed, but that was a cold comfort. Even experienced Huntsmen balked at the idea of fighting a Manticore.
"Keep moving," I said, "Its not far to the...YIPSE!"
I skidded to a stop as a massive chasm suddenly yawned before us, forcing us to stop or take a very long trip to the bottom.
"Aw shit, the ruins would chose now to collapse," I grumbled as I looked down at the shattered stone blocks far, far below us.
"I take it there used to be a way across here?" asked Yang.
"Yep, but it looks like they've finally given up the ghost," I said, "Come on, we need to…"
I turned, but stopped at the sight of the Manticore slowly stalking towards us. It wasn't running any more, it didn't have to. We were cornered and it knew it.
"James…" said Ruby, sounding scared, "Please tell me there's another way out of here."
Not that I blame her in the slightest. I gave a weak chuckle.
"Yeah, unfortunatally, its about three miles in that direction," I said, pointing off to the left, "And I don't think our new friend is too eager to let us go."
"So basically, what you're saying is that we've got no choice but to fight?" said Weiss.
"Thats about the size of it," I said, drawing Sheer Trigger, "Its that or get eaten. True, we might still get eaten, but at least we can give it indigestion. Besides, I think I have a plan…"
Apparently the Manticore had got tired of waiting as it chose that moment to let out another roar and charge.
"Guys, hold it back!" I shouted, "Weiss, can you make a large block of ice?"
The white clad girl blinked as the others charged the Grimm in an attempt to slow it down, doing there best to keep out of the Manticores reach.
"Well, yes but…"
"Do it," I said, "Quickly!"
While Weiss was doing that, I turned back to the fight and crossed my arms. The green gems in my bracers lit up as the wind began to pick up.
"Come forth wind, shred and restrain, Deadly Maelstrom!"
I threw my arms open and the wind shot forwards, tearing up the ground as it rocketed towards the fight. The Manticore barely had time to react before the razor sharp typhoon hit, lifting it off its feet and shedding its fur. Unfortunately, it didn't have enough power to deal more than superficial damage. Still, it bought the fighters some breathing room.
"Alright, done," said Weiss as she summoned a large block of ice with her sword, "Now why do you need it?"
I smirked.
"Like this," I said, "Modeling."
A circle appeared under the ice and it morphed into a curved lense.
"Didn't think I'd need this trick for a while, but whatever," I muttered, "Come forth light, sacred shining spear, Shining Javelin! Multiply!"
Multiple circles appeared behind the lense and fired off a barrage of light spears into it. THe lense immediately started glowing and focused the spears into a single, massive beam that shot out and hit the Manticore in the side, making it roar in pain. My Light magic was VERY effective against Grimm, but since the light element was mostly meant for healing and defence, I didn't have any truly powerful attacks in it as of yet. Still, with a combination of intelligence, creativity and remembering this particular trick from an Anime I once watched, I could easily change that.
"Modeling," I said with a smirk and the beam of light focused even further as the lense once again changed shape.
The Manticore screeched in pain as the light began to burn a hole through its side. It thrashed and tried to get away, but the others continued their attack, forcing it to remain where it was. Within seconds, its struggles started to slow as the beam burnt its way through its skin and into its vital organs. A moment later, the beam shot out the other side and the Manticore let out one last scream and collapsed with a loud crash. For a moment, we all remained tense and at the ready, just in case it was faking, but when the body started steaming, we all relaxed.
"W-we did it…" whispered Ruby as her legs gave way and she collapsed into a sitting position.
"That we did," I said as I followed her, "Man, I'm beat."
"Your Semblance is amazing James," said Pyrrha.
"Yeah, but it can be draining to use over a long period of time," I said, "Plus, it drains my Aura."
"That sounds like it could be dangerous," said Ren as everyone gathered a short distance from the Manticore.
"Not really," I said, "I just need a Tank to pull aggro."
I chuckled.
"In that regard, Pyrrha is the perfect partner for me."
Pyrrha cocked her head on one side.
"What do you mean?" she asked, "And whats a Tank? And aggro for that matter?"
"Their Gaming terms," said Yang, "Typically, a Tank is a heavy character who keeps the enemy's attention away from the other members of the party."
"Exactly," I said, "In this case, I'm a Mage and Pyrrha is my Tank. I can do a lot of damage, but if an enemy gets up close, it could mean trouble for me."
I smirked up at my partner.
"I hope I can rely on you."
Pyrrha blinked, before smiling and nodding.
"Of course, it would be my pleasure," she said.
"Great, now then, lets get going before anything else attacks," I said, flipping to my feet, "I don't know about you lot, but I need a nap."
Everyone laughed and we started making our way back to the top of the cliff.
And done. I hope you lot enjoyed this, I certainly had fun writing it. I can't help but think that I did a horrible job on the fight though…
If your wondering what James did to the Manticore, it was the same trick Touya used against the Dragon he fought. Basically, its using physics to massively increase the attack power of his light spells by focusing them through a lense.
I considered having Ruby and James be a team, but since I couldn't come up with anything using the letters J, R, B and Y, I scrapped that idea. Still, the team of a Mage and a Warrior is classing for a reason.
Parings...not sure yet, but I am considering using James/Ruby. Let me hear your thoughts on the matter.
And with that, I'm signing off. Don't forget to leave a review on the way out!