Grade four is the most potent Dust you'll likely see outside of a vault. They're about the size of a fist, and are are flawless faceted gems. They're self perpetuating and draw in energy from the world around them, making them long term resources. They're used for Dust reactors, sometimes big machines like that Paladin you took apart."
I noticed she'd left something out. "What about Grade five?" I asked with interest. I loved learning more about cool shit I was about to steal.
"Grade five Dust crystals are called Minehearts." She said with a grimace. "They don't just pull in energy, they emanate it. Their energy seeps into the ground and crystallizes, causing veins of dust to condense in the nearby rock. They're strategic resources, and there are only ten of them in all of Remnant. The Schnee Dust Company owns eight, and keeps them under lock and key. Mistral and Atlas own the other two."
"You seem to know a lot about this." I observed casually. Her tone was…blank, but I could tell from the twitch in her bow that the last part had upset her.
She shrugged. "Faunus are regularly forced to mine Dust for the SDC. The White Fang is in the business of helping free those workers. Or they used to be. Nowadays they're more likely to blow up a Dust refinery than rescue some miners." Her jaw tightened. "Things have changed a lot since I was a member. Or maybe they haven't and I was fooling myself."
Blake had been open about her past with the Fang when we'd talked. She'd already told all her friends, and I guess the fact that I'd saved her and helped take down Torchwick made it feel like I was in on the secret. "You alright?" I asked quietly. "Because you seem kind of not alright. If this isn't something you're up for, we can go." I'd still be robbing this place, but I could always come back.
"No!" She snapped, eyes blazing. She seemed to realize she'd yelled though, and pulled back a bit. "No." She repeated more sedately, but no less firmly. "This is good. This Dust was taken from the hands of oppressed workers and is being used by dangerous extremists. Neither of the original owners deserve to hold it. Feeding it to a mechanical cat is…it makes me smile. Sorry. I just don't like thinking about the Fang."
"Because of your ex?" I asked.
She grimaced. "Yes. Adam was…he was older, and passionate, and driven. He made me feel special. Like I could save the world. He taught me things. Fighting. Sex. I was fourteen when I ran away to join the Fang, and Adam was twenty two. He was part of the experience, you know? My revolutionary mentor. But he didn't care about me. I was a pretty toy he could drag out. Ghira Belladonna's daughter. Like I gave legitimacy to all the horrible things he did."
"That's kind of fucked up," I said sympathetically. "When did you realize?"
She snorted. "When it was already far too late. Three and a half years or so. It wasn't anything dramatic. He wasn't cheating on me or anything. I didn't overhear him calling me a pet or any of the revelations you might expect. We were robbing a Bullhead. Stealing a bunch of Dust. Adam killed the pilot, and most of the guards. I didn't like it but he was always like that. But one of them survived, managed to get a shot off."
Her hand traced her side, pulling her vest up to show me a scar. "He shot me in the gut. It wasn't fatal, obviously, but I was in pain and afraid. And Adam just…looked at me. Checked the wound and said it was fine. Then he moved on. He wasn't worried, or scared. He didn't even help me bandage it. He just didn't give a shit.
"Adam didn't care about me as a person," she said quietly. "He seduced me because it kept me dependent on him, he trained me because my death would have inconvenienced him, and when I left, he took it personally because it reflected poorly on him."
I stared at her. Looking into her luminescent amber eyes, and I felt the heat in my chest flare. Not in arousal, this time, in rage. Blake, I had already decided, was mine. She was beautiful, and intelligent, and stronger than she gave herself credit for. Adam Taurus had hurt someone who belonged to me. Maybe the order of events was mixed up, but that didn't matter. If I met that jank faced motherfucker, I was going to pulp his skull like a rotten watermelon.
"Adam," I said forcefully. "Is a psychotic terrorist. And his opinion on pretty much anything should be taken as the opposite of accurate. And if I ever meet him, I'll kick his ass for you."
She smiled softly. "You just met me." She pointed out. "A little flirting doesn't entitle you to get all protective of me. I can take of myself you know." Her eyebrow arched in challenge, and I took in her posture, one hand on her hip, which was cocked defiantly, as if expecting me to refute her.
"It's not about that." I said with a head shake. "I'm sure you could kick his ass ten ways from Sunday. But hearing how he treated you pisses me off. So after you have your turn, it'll be mine. Not because I'm feeling protective, but because he made me angry, and I want to vent my frustrations. Nothing to do with you really. I'm just a violent thug." I smirked at her. "If you were smart you'd run the other way."
Her eyes searched mine, luminous in the dark. "Maybe being smart is boring." She said quietly. "And maybe I'm the kind of girl who doesn't mind her men a little violent." She sniffed, flipping her hair over a shoulder. "But you'll have to find that out in time. A little story time isn't going to get you into my pants. I'm not that easy."
"If you were easy," I grinned at her. "Then you wouldn't be worth the trouble." My sentiment was interrupted by an impatient meow as Lucky's head stuck out the wall of the warehouse. "What? Well, why didn't you tell me you were ready?" He meowed again. "No, neither of us is in HEAT. How do you even know that term? You're a machine."
He hissed at me, and I rolled my eyes as Blake started giggling. I raised a brow at her, she didn't strike me as the giggling type. She smirked. "It's nice to know you're a cat person. Speaks well of your character."
"Trust me," I groaned. "I wish I'd gotten a dog." Lucky meowed in outrage, but I turned and ignored him. "Now, he's jamming the security, so they don't know we're out here, and there's only three guards. We should be able to get in and out easy. I can take the dust crates, but I need a distraction. Can you help with that?"
She snorted. "Obviously. I'll draw them off. Take what you can carry with your 'alternate method' and then meet me out here. I'll lose them and rendezvous with you when I'm done." With a wink, she turned and leapt up to a nearby window. I was able to see just well enough to track a pair of shadows splitting off from her as she dove inside.
There was shouting and gunfire, but it faded after a second, and I hopped up to the window myself, staring out into the dark warehouse. There was…a lot of boxes. Just stacks and stacks of crates. I grinned, withdrawing my book, and started my rampage.
D-class story element incorporated: Crate of Grade one fire dust. One hundred Silvertongue points.
D-class story element incorporated: Crate of Grade one lightning dust. One hundred Silvertongue points.
D-class story element incorporated: Crate of Grade one gravity dust. One hundred Silvertongue points.
…
C-class story element incorporated: Crate of Grade three ice dust. One thousand Silvertongue points.
C-class story element incorporated: Crate of Grade three fire dust. One thousand Silvertongue points.
I watched the total tick up. One crate at a time. Forty three total. Eleven of them C-class. Fourteen thousand two hundred Silvertongue points. Counting my current two hundred from this little adventure, which I was about to tick over, and the fifteen thousand six hundred I had in reserve, I was sporting thirty THOUSAND points.
That was enough for three more B-class items, or a third of the way to my first A-class. And I WANTED an A-class. I could get some really crazy shit for that much. Granted, bringing Blake back with me would cost. Stashing stuff in the book was doable, but reading someone out would cost.
Luckily Blake was only C-class. Her Aura made her dangerous, but her power wasn't really impressive in terms of combat. Shadow clones were cool, but ultimately with her limitations pretty tame as far as semblances went.
She'd still be a mid class Brute back home, and I had some ideas for possible powerups. But that was a problem for later. I leapt easily up and out the window, just jumping it from a standing position thanks to my boots. I had a lot to think about, but it was all stuff I could worry about later. For the moment I had a pretty kitty waiting to accompany me back to the dorm with our spoils. I might even try for a goodnight kiss. And after that…well, there were more warehouses to hit. By the time I finished cleaning them out, I'd have plenty of points to test out something A-class.
January 23rd, 2011 Beacon Academy, Vale, Remnant, 1:00 AM EST- SP:30,000
Blake seemed shockingly upbeat when we got back to the dorms, I even got a quick peck on the lips before she scampered off. I was crashing in an empty dorm they'd found for me but as I turned around, I was surprised to find I wasn't alone.
Yang was leaning against a wall, her lilac eyes were focused on me intently, but absent the flirty heat and teasing of earlier. "You're back," she said flatly.
"Yup," I smiled. "We needed to get out, just went for wal-"
Her fist slammed into a wall, cracking plaster. "Don't." She said quietly. "Don't tell me some bullshit story we both know isn't true. I don't know where you went with Blake, and normally, I wouldn't care. My partner needs her ashes hauled bad, and if I thought she was bouncing on what I suspect was an above average dick, I'd be fine with it.
"But you didn't sneak out to fuck. Blake looks happier, but not that much happier, and the only other thing that would have taken the weight off her shoulders like that was White Fang bullshit." Her voice was tense and angry. "So what exactly did you drag my partner into, and why am I not kicking your ass over it?"
"We robbed one of Roman Torchwick's warehouses," I admitted. "I was going either way, and I figured she might like to come along."
She snorted. "You wanted to impress her, you mean. You were sneaking looks at my kitty cat all night. I know what boys look like when they're crushing. I see it plenty. Not from you though. You're all about Blakey. Which is cool, I'm not so insecure I lose my shit when a guy isn't drooling over me. But if your little crush gets my girl hurt, I'm going to break your spine over my knee, kickass heat powers or not."
"Look. I'm not stupid," I responded evenly. "I was the one in all the danger. She just used her clones to bait the guards. I'm not going to get her hurt. That's what I'm there for."
Finally, her cold expression thawed, a wry grin replacing her stony glare. "Careful, keep talking like that and I might decide you're actually good enough. Because right now, the jury is out. Blake is my partner, and she's special. If you just want a fat ass to bounce on your lap go pick up a hooker. My partner deserves better than to be some guy's kitty ear sex doll."
Which was…fair. I kind of had started this wanting to just fuck her. I mean, I always liked her character, but working with her, talking with her. That had made her REAL.
She was funny, in a dry and kind of bitchy way, and sweet, even if she tried not to show it. And she was smart, and passionate, and yes, indescribably hot. I think Yang saw some of that on my face because she stared at me for a second and then smirked. "Well, that's nice to know." Turning to walk away, she made sure to sway her hips, her pajama bottoms clinging enticingly. "By the way," she said over her shoulder. "I'm glad you're serious about Blake, but just in case you were wondering, I was really grateful to you for saving her. If you and her hadn't been on the table, I'd have totally sucked your dick tonight. Sweet dreams."
I stared after her for a minute, then rolled my eyes. That had been uncalled for. But I'd been fucking regularly enough that I wasn't going to freak out about it. Besides, I had something to do that was even more fun than getting my dick sucked by a fictional bombshell. Or, well, almost as much fun. I was going to buy some shit.
I headed back to my room, shutting the door and hopping on my bed as I considered my resources.
Thirty thousand SP. The most I'd ever had. I could afford THREE B-class items if I wanted. Three things on the level of the Heart of a Star. But of course, I had to think ahead.
While I was tough enough to probably take on Hookwolf, and MAYBE Lung if I hit him before a windup, I wasn't strong enough to counter the REAL threats of my world. Fucking Endbringers. Invincible super monsters who regularly faced off against armies of capes and SANK whole islands.
The issue was that they were so powerful that I would need an S-class item to easily put one down. It would be ages before I had enough, even keeping up the pace I was at in this world robbing Roman's dust supply. Which I couldn't, there was a finite amount of Dust here. If I stole it all I was pretty sure I could get past a hundred thousand and afford something A-class, but S-was out of reach for a while.
So I needed an A-class item with a very specific property to counter an Endbringer. I'd also need to decide which Endbringer to focus on, because the specificity was going to mean I'd be lacking against the others.
Picking an Endbringer wasn't EASY exactly, but it was a numbers game. There were three of the bastards, and one of them was water based, and I lived on the fucking coast. So Leviathan was the most imminent threat. The Simurgh would be hell to try to take out or stop, and Behemoth was so big and noisy I'd hear about him coming and worst case scenario, I could fuck off with my family and my girls.
No, Leviathan was the one I needed to focus on. The one who could pop out of the ocean and dick slap my whole city into rubble. Luckily, I'd been doing some thinking about that, and I had an idea of HOW to stop him, or at least slow him down enough to give the other capes a chance. But in order to make sure it would work, I needed proof of concept.
"Lucky," I called my cat. He meowed lazily, swimming out of the wall and floating over to me. "No, not time to eat yet. I'll feed you in a minute, promise. For now…I have other things in mind. How would you like a new power?"
The best counter to Leviathan I could imagine was an ability called Desolate Land. It was from a series called Pokemon, and only usable by some absurd OP legendary monster named Groudon. And not even the base version. Now, I could get that ability on its own, because Pokemon had things called TMs, which let you teach your pokemon moves.
But Groudon was a primordial legendary pokemon, basically a god, and he was pretty much Endbringer level on his own, which mean he was S-class, and getting ENTITIES cost a rank higher. Even if he didn't count like Lucky hadn't, I'd still have to deal with gathering a million SP to get him, and as discussed, that wasn't in the cards.
However, TMs could teach any pokemon moves, and if I dug through enough pokemon novels, I was sure I could figure out how to get a Desolate Land TM. I just needed something to use it on.
I picked up a book off a bookshelf I'd just read into the room, flipping through it. No, next book, also no, the one after that, no again. Books, manga, game guides. Pokemon had a shocking amount of media. It also had a lot of really bullshit moves. I was honestly unsure some of them would actually work on me or my allies, but some were invaluable.
After much deliberation, I decided to get something utility based, rather than trying to stack more raw power. I was pretty much unkillable, and once I got my Aura unlocked (something I was working up to asking about) I'd be even stronger.
[Sufficient point total! B-class educational item. TM - Ally Swap: A technical machine that teaches your companion a psychic type move that lets them swap allies with other allies.]
In my hand, I held…a collar, pretty much. It was a little red band with a machine on it. This had been the earliest form of TM from the games. I reached up and fastened it around Lucky's neck. "Fingers crossed I didn't just blow ten thousand points for nothing. I mean, I could just get a pokemon, but honestly feeding you is already going to bankrupt me, I don't need more animals."
Lucky meowed snidely, and there was a slight flash from the band. It started to glow, then Lucky did, and I grinned. This was proof of concept in more than one way. The Silvertongue system tweaked items. It did it with the snowdrop, adapting the definition of dark magic, and it did it with the anti-thinker backpack, though some of that might have been tinker bullshit from Squealer's power.
But if I could direct that, even slightly, it would enable me to make far better use of my items. Reading out a TM in a different form like this was a great example. An Ally Swap TM would be a disk in most cases, since that was what TMs were later in the series. This one was manifesting like early TMs so I could use it.
The second test was even more important. Lucky was a robot cat. He might not BE a pokemon, but he was close enough that I thought he should count. So I needed to know if he could use TMs like a pokemon, and that was what I was about to find out.
Finally, the light faded, and Lucky sat in front of me. The band was gone, which was a good sign I thought, and I raised a brow at him. "Well?" I asked as he floated away across the room. "Did it wo-" There was another flash, and I was suddenly in a different place. Not MUCH different, just a few feet over…and a few feet up.
I yelped, plummeting out of the sky and barely catching myself on my arms. I glared at my cat from where he lounged on the bed. "Was that necessary?" He meowed smugly.
Rolling my eyes, I snagged a spare bowl I'd stored in my book, set it on the ground, and read out a vial of sand like fire dust. "I hope you're in the mood for something spicy," I said acidly. I dumped the dust into the bowl and Lucky yowled delightedly, dashing for the food.
He shoved his head into the bowl, scooping up the dust in big heaping bites until he'd emptied it and then licking the bottom before looking up at me expectantly.
Sighing, I took out another vial and dumped it it. "You'd better make me some seriously kickass gems this time, cat." I grumbled. "Otherwise I'm putting you back on a diet of cheap metal. Maybe you can recycle my tin cans for me."
Hissing disdainfully, he went right back to eating, and I laughed, heading over to drop down on the bed with a groan. Today had been a big day. Big fight, big theft, big booty cat girl, all sorts of big things. I needed to sleep this off, and then tomorrow, hopefully I would have some downtime. Maybe I could spar with Pyrrha. I remembered her having a fight coming up, and it might help my case for Aura.
As I drifted off, I grinned to myself in satisfaction. This trip was turning out just as fun as I'd hoped. By the time I got home, I should be strong enough to deal with whatever was coming my way. Or at least counter it enough to help. Past that…well, I'd need to figure out a counter for the other Endbringers but that was a problem for Future Simon. For now I was just happy to be alive and having fun.
January 23rd, 2011 Beacon Academy, Vale, Remnant, 10:00 AM EST- SP:20,200
"Good morning!" Came a cheery voice as I opened the door. I stepped out to find Jaune, the blonde guy from Team JNPR, and his teammate Nora, the busty redhead with way too much energy, beaming at me.
I glowered at them. "Prove it," I said flatly. Despite my copious physical modifications and complete immortality, I've never really been a fan of waking up in a bed that wasn't mine. Something about a strange mattress always put me totally out of sorts.
To my eternal irritation, he just grinned. "A morning grouch, huh? Ren is like that too. Don't worry, we come bearing gifts." He shoved a large steaming cup towards me. "There's a professional grade barista on staff in the cafeteria. The headmaster said something it being 'a moral imperative'. Best brew in town."
Taking it from him, I took a long sip. It WAS excellent. Sweet and creamy, as was my preference, but then, I suppose it was most people's. I took a deep, cleansing breath. "Ok, this is pretty good. You can live."
"Generous," he chuckled. "Anyway, I was talking to the others. Seemed pretty boring to just wander around the campus doing nothing. We have combat class today, which is actually tolerable if you're into that kind of thing. Figured you could come along, check it out." He blanched, waving his hands comically. "If not that's cool, you're not a prisoner or anything. Just didn't want you to be bored."
It occurred to me that joking about murder after someone heard about you going full rage beast on a giant robot might not be the least threatening thing you could do. Oh well. He didn't seem THAT worried.
We swung by the cafeteria to get some waffles before the first class, and then I followed them to combat training.
Beacon's combat training room was…large. I knew that from having seen the manga, but this was much different than words or pictures on a page. The assembly area in the auditorium had a section that could rise out of the floor to act as a duelling platform. And the massive hall surrounding it was probably one of the most cavernous rooms I'd ever seen in real life.
Being in Remnant had been weird so far. It was futuristic in some ways, typical in others, and staggeringly alien in subtle ways that I didn't even notice until they slapped me in the face. But this wasn't any of that. This wasn't alien world craziness or superscience. It was giant fuck off room, and in its own way that was the weirdest thing I'd seen so far.
Jaune laughed as we entered and he saw the look on my face, slapping me on the back. "I feel you, man. I came from a tiny village in the middle of nowhere. This was the biggest room I'd ever seen too. It's pretty overwhelming. Even moreso when the platform is down. Oh, everyone is already together!" He waved cheerfully to his friends, and I was pretty impressed by the confidence the guy was showing.
During early RWBY Jaune was basically a shuddering fraud. Once he started his training with Pyrrha he'd grown a spine, but I wasn't sure if that had happened yet. It might just be world variance or something so I wasn't going to question it.
When we arrived, everyone greeted us with surprising enthusiasm. Blake shot me a cool smile, which earned us a wolf whistle from Yang and an eye roll from Weiss. The heiress still gave me a perfunctory nod, and Ruby greeted me with a hug like I was her oldest friend, which was honestly kind of nice.
Unlike a lot of guys who read the manga, I had ZERO sexual attraction to Ruby. She was like a puppy. A completely asexual hyper puppy. I was able to enjoy a totally platonic hug with the cinnamon roll with only minimal staring over her shoulder at her sister's criminally large breasts, and I was proud of myself for that.
"Simon! I'm so glad you came! I'm going to fight today I just know it and I'm gonna win, I'm gonna be like whoosh and then slash and bang bang, because my baby is a scythe but she can shoot stuff because guns and blades are like peanut butter and jelly, do you like peanut butter and je-" Her astonishingly long tirade was cut short by a hand slapping over her mouth.
Yang smiled like it was the most natural thing in the world as her sister KEPT talking into her hand for about fifteen seconds before petering out. "Sorry about that. She's actually gotten much better. She used to keep going for minutes after you covered her mouth. Breathe Rubes, then speak with punctuation."
Ruby closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then let it out. "I'm ok!" She announced cheerfully. "Sorry, I just get so excited to show off crescent rose to new people. And Simon is so cool! He can do all this stuff without aura and…" She froze. "Oh no! We forgot Simon doesn't have aura. How is he going to spar if he doesn't have aura, that's how they decide if you're out or now."
They all blinked. "Well damn." Said Yang with a frown. "I wanted to see him throw down with P-money. Mysterious fire puncher against the invincible girl? I'd pay money to see that."
Pyrrha looked shaken. "I suppose. I do have experience awakening aura. I could always just-"
"No!" snapped Blake instantly. Everyone turned to look at her. "I mean, you already awakened Jaune's aura. Doing it too often isn't a good idea. I've heard stories about what that can do to a person."
Despite looking a little smug at the outburst, Yang nodded her agreement. "She's not wrong. Dad used to tell us that we should never awaken someone's aura if we've done it too recently. Of course, he also told us that boys all have an incurable disease you can contract from skin contact and that holding hands with one will kill you, so I don't know if he's a trustworthy source."
"Wait, that was a lie?" Ruby asked, looking down at her glove covered palms. When everyone chose to kindly ignore the question she removed the gloves sulkily and stuffed them into a pocket on her combat skirt.
Weiss groaned in frustration. "It IS true. Aura awakenings forge a deep sympathetic bond between the initiator and the awakened. Performing too many of them can cause psychological problems, soul strain, dissociative episodes and in extreme cases, death. Two isn't going to push someone over that threshold, but damaging your soul is a 'better safe than sorry' scenario in my opinion."
"I'll do it," said Blake firmly. Her cheeks flushed. "If that's ok with Simon. If you'd prefer someone else I'm sure Yang would-"
"Nope!" Yang said, popping the P. "Can't do it. Used mine. On…uh…Ste-ver-ly. Steverly. Steverly Jones. Super hunky guy I went to Signal with. He moved. To Vacuo. For business." Her face was heating up, cheeks turning red. She glared at everyone looking at her with skeptical looks. "Stop talking about it! It brings back painful memories!"
Clearing my throat, I turned to Blake. "I'm perfectly fine with it being you. Don't want to get in the way of Yang and the 'love that dare not speak its name'."
"He's REAL!' snapped the irate blonde. "He moved there for business."
Pyrrha patted her on the shoulder. "Just stop, sweetie."
Blake ignored her friends and walked up to me shyly. Looking around, she scowled. "Can we have some privacy? Make a wall people, Dust."
Snickering, her friends spread out, standing shoulder to shoulder so we were out of view. She put her hands on my shoulders. "This isn't like…romantic." She said sharply. "This is because I owe you for saving my life. You're cute, but this is way too fast. Only a lunatic would awaken a guy's aura within twenty four hours of meeting him because she had a crush."
I tried not to choke with laughter as I saw Pyrrha twitch at that comment, but managed to smother it. "You sure you can handle this? I'm pretty strong. What if I have buckets of aura?"
She shrugged. "Aura capacity during awakening is pretty much a skeleton of itself. If you're a total monster I might get a little woozy. Think of it like a game. You start with an empty mana bar, and then it fills over time. Now YOU might black out if you have a large aura pool, but you're tough, I'm sure you can take it. Now shut up and let me work. Or I might awaken your aura halfway and you'll be stuck like that."
I was ALMOST positive that was a joke, but I shut up anyway. Blake's hands slid up to the sides of my face, her bright amber eyes staring into mine. "For it is in action that we achieve peace." she intoned as she started to glow. "Through this, we become vehicles of change and bring revolution to the world. Unchained by hatred and free from sorrow, I release you soul, and with my faith, redeem thee."
It was interesting to know the whole fanon chant thing was real (there were PHO threads dedicated to the series on the off topic board, and I'd seen a lot of these), but in that moment, I didn't feel like judging it. I just felt…reborn.
It was weird, because it felt transformative, like it should make me a brand new person, but in the same way it felt like the opposite of that. The change that ran through me WAS an awakening, my true self being unleashed. But it also felt like I was the same person I'd always been. Or maybe people? I could feel both sides of myself with perfect clarity. The versions of me that I'd named Nightfall and Vagabond, the ones that had always been there.
Because I finally realized what those fucking WERE. Vagabond was my Id, the part of me that did whatever it wanted. Nightfall was my Superego, the part of me that did what society told it was right, and then there was just…me. Simon. My ego.
And I felt them distinctly, Felt them composing my very being. My eyes had closed, and when I opened them, I was staring into Blake's shocked eyes, and I felt a sense of vertigo wash through me at the image. It took me a minute to realize why, but when I did, it caused me to whip my head around to both sides.
Triplicate. There were three of me. Vagabond stood to one side, staring at me from a blank hockey mask, Nightfall on the other, in an imitation of his own dragon priest mask. Looking at myself was weird, because I FELT different. Or I should have. It was actually more the opposite. I didn't feel at all. My other selves were staring at me and I should have been freaking out, but there was nothing there.
I flexed my mind slightly and Nightfall vanished, and my superego slotted back into place inside me. I hadn't realized how EMPTY I felt with them both out. I resolved myself not to do that again. But still. It was cool. I wondered if Blake being the one to awaken me influenced my semblance, which was definitely what this was.
"You discovered your semblance this early?" Yang said in stupefaction. "That's got to be a record."
Pyrrha shrugged. " Discovering the semblance on awakening isn't unheard of, though it is rare. You'll want to sit and rest a bit. If we spar it'll have to be toward the end of the class, to give you time to regenerate your aura. Like Blake said, it's empty when it awakens."
I nodded, dismissing Vagabond and sighing as I felt myself become whole again. It felt…jarring. I could tell that my semblance wasn't just clones. There was more to this, and I was going to need to experiment with it to find out what. But, on the upside…free power. Neat. With that settled, I slumped down onto the ground nearby to rest up. I had a fight to look forward to.
January 23rd, 2011 Beacon Academy, Vale, Remnant, 11:00 AM EST- SP:20,400
Becoming whole again after fragmenting like that was…jarring. People talk about Id and Superego all the time, but they rarely mention the Ego in the context of the three parts of the mind. It was something I'd almost forgotten, and honestly that I hadn't really been able to process when I'd JUST been Ego.
The Ego was the calm, logical part of a person influenced by the other two portions of the mind. Basically a meat computer that made rational decisions that got run through filters of Id and Superego.
Which meant when both were out I was…off. Not a sociopath, because even they felt gratification. Just a machine of flesh and bone. I was ALSO one of THREE fucking versions of me. Versions with all my powers and access to my gear. Considering how high my power ramped, being able to work in triplicate was pretty fucking impressive.
So when I stood across from Pyrrha Nikos, the invincible girl, ready for our fight, I was actually pretty excited. I'd been dying to test myself against someone strong now that I had both power and safety. Granted, the Aura actually limited my abilities in this case, because I couldn't just tank hits all day and let my healing and immortality no sell them. If my Aura broke I would have lost, which meant I had to fight smarter, not harder.
"I hope you're ready," said Pyrrha in a kind but confident voice. "Because here I come!"
She blurred forward, weapon coming straight at me, a picture perfect lunge that went from zero to a hundred in the blink of an eye.
I'd been stoking my flames since before the match started, and I knew that with my Aura up, my power would be mostly useless. Pyrrha's weapon would take a huge chunk out of my new shield, and while Aura could be used to boost physical prowess, it was mainly effective for strength, which meant it wouldn't be much use getting out of the way.
So…I dropped it. That wasn't something that happened in the manga. No one ever dropped Aura, because it protected you from harm and why would you turn OFF your passive energy shield.
Pyrrha certainly wasn't expecting it, and her horrified expression when her spear impaled me through the throat was a clear indication that she had no clue how to react to the sudden absence. Blood pumped out of the wound, but almost immediately slowed as the flesh began to knit back together even around the spear. My left hand came up, slapping it out of her trembling fingers as my right smashed into her sternum, turning my Aura back on to supercharge the punch.
The red haired spartan was thrown bodily across the room, speeding toward the wall and a probable ring out. Before she crossed the line of the platform though, she stopped in midair, hanging above the edge before dropping down into a crouch.
Pulling the spear from my throat, I flexed my mouth as I let the muscles in my neck knit together. "Ow," I said casually. I glanced down at the spear, which had held up pretty well under the heat, though it was a little pitted. "Sorry, but I didn't have a blade. Hope you don't mind if I borrow yours."
She smiled tightly. "I'm afraid I'll need it back." She yanked a hand, and I had to pull hard against the sudden jerk on the spear, but I managed to stay standing. Her brow furrowed.
I just grinned at her. "Magnetism, right?" I played it off like an observation. "When you caught yourself before that ring out your armor stopped but your body kept going for a second. How's your aura level?"
"Sixty percent," she said lightly. "I bled off some of the force by throwing myself backwards. People don't usually fly so far, not even when you hit them that hard."
"Good note," I said with a nod. "As for this thing…" I held up her spear. "Can't have you pushing it around when I'm fighting, so I think I'll leave it here." I held it up and slammed it down into the stage, sticking it deep enough that even a strong tug wouldn't pull it out. Of course, she could work it free if she had time, but I didn't plan to give it.
Pumping my Aura, I felt my body roar with power, and I threw myself forward at her like a wrecking ball.
I felt invincible, unstoppable, like I could take on anything. Pyrrha was strong, but my extra power made me even stronger. Based on what was said in the manga, Aura wasn't a passive strength buff as much as a knowledge based one. Sort of a skill for manipulating energy. But I WAS already seeing a blanket increase in my power, and that was on top of my normal enhancements.
My strength outstripped hers by a decent margin, and I knew I was going to take her apart…except I didn't.
My fist sailed through empty air, then my leg as I launched a sharp kick. My limbs flashed out in a blurring combo, fuelled by my flames and by my Aura, but no matter how fast I attacked, I couldn't land a fucking hit.
Pyrrha floated smoothly out of the way of my strikes, returning them with quick jabs. I couldn't drop my Aura because the added power was the only thing even letting me get close, and her hits were small but starting to add up. It was frustrating to be just out of reach of my target, but I just COULDN'T close the gap.
After a minute or two of this, it became very obvious what the problem was. First of all, she was using her semblance to keep up with my brute strength, pulling herself aside before my hits could land, and second, she was just BETTER.
Pyrrha wasn't just strong and impressively powerful, she was also skilled. She trained constantly, fought for a fucking living, and was a natural genius at combat on top of it. I was strong and fast and durable, but I was an amateur. I'd had a few lessons with Kim in unarmed combat and made good use of them, but it was like being a kid who took one art class and tried to compete with Picasso. I just didn't have the chops.
Frustrated, i slammed my foot down on the stage, hoping to unbalance her, but she just leapt gracefully over my head, using her magnetic powers to drag herself further up, lengthening her arc over me to avoid my attempts to grab at her.
She landed on my other side, blurring away from me when I spun to defend, and with a quick jerk of her strong arm and powers both, freed her spear from the ground. She also removed her shield from her back. She'd had both arms through the straps, wearing it like a backpack to make it easier to use the metal to maneuver herself.
"Impressive," she said confidently. "You power is staggering for someone so new. I've met battle hardened veterans with years of Aura training who can't enhance themselves so thoroughly. Sadly, brute force does not win battles."
"I bet if I throw a bullhead at you that might change your mind," I said with a grin.
She laughed. "It might," she admitted. "Sadly you don't seem to have one handy." She spun her spear between her fingers. "Disarming me like that was brilliant. I've never seen anyone willingly drop their Aura to take a spear to the throat. I was completely caught off guard. It won't happen again."
I nodded lazily. "I believe you. Unfortunately, you've made one very crucial mistake. One that I believe will bring this match to a quick and satisfying conclusion."
"Oh," she said with a raised eyebrow. "And what might that be?" She sounded excited, almost manic. I could tell she was genuinely having fun. The whole arrogant trash talking thing wasn't either, she was trying to point out genuine faults in exchange for the fun she was having. Sadly, I was a sore loser.
"Simple," I said as I held out my hand. "I said I didn't have a BLADE, not that I didn't have a weapon." An invisible Lucky dropped the plasma pistol he'd been holding out of phase right into my grip, and I jammed the trigger, firing off a blurring volley of plasma bolts at the red haired warrior.
Her eyes widened and she whirled her spear, shield coming up. She actually caught two shots, denting her bronze shield, and deflected a third with her slightly beaten up spear, but sadly, I'd fired eight times. Three of the shots missed, and two hit home, one in her knee and one in her shoulder.
She was so distracted by the hits she didn't remember to guard against me, which was why she didn't notice Vagabond behind her, grinning viciously as he stomped on the back of her buckling knee, dropping her into a kneeling position before rabbit punching her in the base of the skull. A loud buzzer went off, signalling the edge of the match.
He looked like he might've gone further, but I dismissed him, letting my Id rejoin my main body. He might've killed her if I hadn't. I made a mental note to work on trying to restrain my other selves, maybe use that mental connection to share some of my traits. Regardless, the fight was over, and no one was the wiser about my almost slip with my new semblance.
I walked over and held out a hand. "Sorry, that was a cheap shot. But the rules said weapons were allowed, including your fancy mecha-shift stuff. Seemed like my robot cat was a viable resource too."
She grinned ruefully as I helped her up. "You saw a deficiency and worked to correct it. I can hardly complain. Victory is its own evidence. It was a well fought battle. You acted strategically and with forethought, and you come out ahead. It was an excellent fight."
"That was AWESOME!" shrieked Ruby excitedly as she literally appeared next to us in a puff of petals. "You were like 'I never said I didn't have a weapon, pew pew pew'. What is that gun? Where did you get it? Can I see it? Can I use it? Can I TAKE IT APART?" Her eyes were so wide I was worried they'd fall out of her head, and I took an unsettled step back as Yang sighed and put her sister in a headlock.
The cape was up over her head, and she struggled against the blonde's grip, but couldn't escape. Yang gave me a wry smile. "Gotta keep the midget in line. When she gets too twitchy it goes bad for everyone. Weapons are kind of her thing. Cool gun though, I definitely liked the light show. Where can I get one?"
"Nowhere near here," I laughed. "It was made by a friend of mine. It's…uh, lightning dust. That's why there's electricity at the end. Don't ask me how it works, no idea."
I was pretty sure plasma was at least RELATED to electricity, though it was also its own state of matter. I was just trying to be cagey. Nora, sadly, got super excited because her power let her absorb electricity, and she kept insisting I shoot her with it, despite Ren's strenuous disapproval.
We finished the rest of the class (not much left) and then headed for the cafeteria, anxious to get some food. As we left though, I caught something out of the corner of my eye. A dark haired, amber eyed girl in a tight red dress, watching me with interest and maybe a little hunger. She had a silver haired guy and a girl with mint green locks standing next to her. Cinder, Mercury, and Emerald. I'd officially gotten their attention with that little performance. Interesting. It might be time to make another purchase or two. My combat skills needed some tuning up.