Chapter 4: Beacon of... First Impressions
The aerial ride on the technologically advanced vehicle was… uneventful to say the least. Seriously, nothing has happened other than news reports of Faunus rights campaigns and low temperatures on Wednesday being announced.
Other than that, I can sense a certain fellow blond having giddy feelings right now.
"Oh, I can't believe my baby sister is going to Beacon with me! This is the best day ever!"
I can distinctly feel the air being crushed out of a red hooded girl, and it just made me slightly cringe.
"Prease shtop." The silver eyed girl said to the blonde brawler, who released the smaller girl from the bone crushing hug.
"But I'm so proud of you!~"
"Really Sis, it was nothing." She waved off.
"What do you mean? It was incredible!" The blond then grabbed the red riding hood in a one armed hug. "Everyone at Beacon is gonna think you're the "bee's knees"."
"I don't want to be the "bee's knees", okay? I just want to be a normal girl with normal knees."
I inwardly sigh at their conversation. Sure, many people would like to be popular, but then again, I'm guessing people like Yang would go for such an opportunity.
It actually seems noble in a way. Sometimes I feel so stupid, living for such a thing as "following canon", or "training to save the world". I KNOW that I can leave it to them- the characters, the huntsmen, the goddamn wizard etc. But then I look back to when I was given this chance.
Why did I take it? To LIVE.
Exhilaration. Exhaustion. Excitement.
The feeling of wind, running across my skin. The anticipation to the outcome of a risk. The exhilaration of a challenge appearing.
After all, people only want something they don't have, right?
The news feed in front changes from the Vale News Network to a hologram of Glynda Goodwitch, a middle aged woman with round glasses, and light blonde hair tied in a bun with a curl hanging down her right side.
"Who's that?" Yang asked from across the bullhead.
"My name is Glynda Goodwitch."
"Oh."
"You are among the select few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy! Our world is experiencing a time of peace, and as future huntsmen and huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and it is now our turn to…"
Man, I'm bored.
Oh hey! A motion sick blonde who was at the verge of vomiting. Let me just check his stats.
[Name: Jaune Arc]
[Status]
Level:11
HP:706/706
Aura Level:??
Aura Capacity:??
STR:C10
DEX:C4
AGL:C6
END:C8
PER:C7
Aura unknown? Did Jaune not have his aura unlocked yet? I sure am getting sloppy. How about checking the others?
[Name: Ruby Rose]
[Status]
Level:28
HP:1451/1451
Aura Level:B10
Aura Capacity:723/723
STR:B2(A2)
DEX:B9
AGL:A7(S7)
END:B3(A3)
PER:B5
[Name: Yang Xiao Long]
[Status]
Level:34
HP:2073/2073
Aura Level:S3
Aura Capacity:876/876
STR:A3(SS6)
DEX:B4
AGL:B5(A8)
END:A2(SS5)
PER:B3
'Aight. Well I'll be damned. No wonder Yang still got back up from getting hit THROUGH a concrete pillar. Now that's something I can remember.
And we've finally hit land- and there goes Jaune to the trashcan. These are the times I wish I didn't have superhuman senses. Gods, I can smell that from here.
I walk towards the blonde, looks like he's just finished releasing his lunch.
"Uh. You okay there?"
"Huh? Oh yeah. Just some bad motion sickness."
"Well, nice to meet you. I guess?" I reach a hand out. "Grayson Heartvale."
He reaches for a handshake but stops half way to clean his hand.
How nice of him.
"Jaune Arc. If you don't mind me asking, where are we supposed to go right now?"
"Amphitheatre. Straight ahead. Wanna join me?"
"Sure. I'm new and they didn't really give us directions."
"Nah, it's fine. I just figured it would be there since people are heading that way."
In the next minute, a small explosion went off ahead of us, and by the time we got there, a noticeable crater was formed with a frowning Ruby next to it.
Jaune already took the initiative to help the girl up while I followed.
"Hey… I'm Jaune." He held out a hand which the red hooded girl took.
"Ruby... Aren't you the one who threw up on the ship?"
"Aaaannd I'm Gray, nice to meet you."
"Oh uh- nice to meet you too. Do you guys know where to go?"
"The amphitheatre's up ahead, wanna come with?" I answer.
"Yeah, they never really told us where to go."
"Great!"
As the three of us walk down the path, I quietly take in the arching structure, scenic trees, and winding artificial river in touristic interest.
I've already been here many times as a combat school student on tour, but as I walk these concrete roads, the feeling of accomplishment wasn't there yet.
And it won't be there anytime soon either.
"All I'm saying is that motion sickness is a much more common problem than people let on." Jaune debated.
"Haha. Look, I'm sorry. Vomit boy was the first thing that came to mind." Ruby responded.
"Oh yeah? What if I called you Crater face?"
"Hey that explosion was an accident!"
"Well, the name's Jaune Arc! Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue- ladies love it!"
Ruby and I squinted our eyes skeptically at the tall blond.
""Do they?"" We ask at the same time.
"They will! I-I hope they will. My Mom always says… never mind."
During a pause of silence, I decide to take something out of my backpack.
"So hey…" I look at the two huntsmen in training. Well… one huntress in training and a total newbie, but that still counts. "Wanna show off our weapons?"
The glimmer in Ruby's eyes became much more apparent due to my enhanced EVERYTHING. I can feel the joy radiating off her being like a flashlight being shone upon my eyes. Luckily, I got used to this a few months ago.
"Do I!? Um- ahem. I mean yes."
I wasted no time taking the blade out of it's scabbard.
I modelled my sword after the cinquedea, the blade's length being 2 feet long. It had a wide base with a sharp tip, and had a silver luster. The crossguard was somewhat curved up, and the handle was long enough for me to use it with two hands(for good reason).
"I got this sword."
"Hey, me too." Jaune followed.
"Well…" Ruby proceeded to pull out a flurry of red and black that turned into an oversized gardening tool she then stuck into the ground. "I got this thing."
"Whoa! Is that a scythe?"
The red hooded girl smiled and cocked the gun.
I can't help but feel slightly threatened.
"It's also a customizable high impact sniper rifle."
"A-wha?" Jaune responded.
How uneducated did he have to be to not know what that was? By the God of light, I have more than proper swordsmanship to teach this guy.
Before Ruby gave a response him, I dashed in front of the crescent combat weapon in an enthusiastic pose.
"How high impact are we talking?"
She smugly smiled and hugged the weapon.
"My baby's got 12.7x99 standard rounds. Semi-automatic and 15 per magazine."
Crescent Rose, in my eyes, looked to big and unwieldy, especially if I were to compare it's size with Ruby herself. But I knew better than to underestimate a main character.
By standard rounds, she meant the non-Dust type. The recoil from the rifle improved her mobility greatly in combat, and I can't wait to face off against someone with such ability.
"The maintenance on her must be insane."
"Anything for my beloved."
"My turn to show off then."
"Alright then, watcha got?"
"Nothing better than yours, I admit. The blade's made of titanium, carbon, and a bit of Tungsten among others. The long handle is actually for the Dust cartridge, and overall weight is 3.7 pounds."
"Cool."
Both of us then turned to Jaune, who was obliviously standing there until he got the cue.
"Oh. I got this sword and shield."
"Oooh nice! This arming sword is well maintained for it's kind. Vacuan origin too! Is it an heirloom?" I inspected.
When you live your life in a world of epic proportions, you're definitely bound to want to learn something.
I had a lot of free time to research so many topics.
"Um y-yeah. How did you know?" Jaune sheepishly asked. Maybe he didn't really suspect me to know that he forged his transcripts, but anyone who can read someone's posture and walk can identify one's physical ability.
The luster of Crocea Mors was weak, but the edge stayed sharp indeed. Whatever material his family used for it, was exceptionally good at resisting the flow of time.
"The blade itself definitely looks old, but the metal looks pretty rust free and weighs a good much by the way you hold it."
"Well, I got a shield too."
"What does it do?" Ruby asks.
"The shield gets smaller, so when I get tired of carrying it, I can just… put it away."
Put it away? But where was the sense in that?
"But… wouldn't it still weigh the same?" The silver eyed girl tilted her head.
"Wouldn't yours weigh the same?" I ask, raising a brow at her.
"Touchè."
Jaune and I sheathed our swords, and Ruby proceeded to do a mixture of twirling and spinning her sniper-scythe back into a rectangular metal box of red and black.
"Seriously, you must be some kind of weapon fanatic if you designed your mechashift like that. It's so cool and complex."
She scratches the back of her head sheepishly, and chuckles.
"Thanks. I'm really glad to get to know y- Oh! That's Yang. Hey, I-I gotta go. See you guys after the ceremony." She waved and jogged over to the fellow blonde brawler.
"Hey, w-wait!… Ah, great. Where am I supposed to find another nice, quirky girl to talk to?" He turned to me.
"Hey man, don't look at me. I'll see you later after the ceremony, 'kay?"
I pat him on the back and saw him off to the corner.
This is going to be one HELL of a year.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone