Oasis Arrival

[A/N:

So it has been a little bit, and I'm not going to apologize. Instead, I'll tell you that this chapter gave me monumental trouble since I had changed how certain things work in this universe.

One of these things would be how dust works as a resource, which caused its regeneration rate to greatly increase and show up more in places of great ecological strength. Since this wouldn't necessarily drain resources if controlled properly, I had to basically revamp Vacuo without changing its core pieces.

Add to that a scene or two I made on the fly that caused me weeks of headaches due to it changing literally whole Beacon years later on, and you have writer's block, lore changes, and all the whatnots of fuckery that caused this delay.

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't choose to go back, which is why this chapter is how it is, but I thought I would let you all know. Because I'm just such a magnanimous author like that.

I hope your holidays went/are going well (I'm not well-versed in things outside Christmas so I have no clue if there's some going on now) and I hope you enjoy the chapter.]

<Argento POV>

So as it turns out, the Vytal Festival was quite similar to how the one in RWBY worked, but with some major changes to the balance. When we, team AZTC, gathered with the rest of the teams going to the festival, the details were explained in great detail along with documents sent to our scrolls going into even deeper detail.

The biggest difference would be the separation of years, which made it so each year would fight their own, and then work toward the middle. So a first-year team would have to fight the other first years, then second years, and if they won that they would fight whoever came out on top in regards to the third and fourth years.

It also lined up so that each school's students would only have to fight each other should they win their brackets, and though it wasn't impossible it had a tendency to not occur very often. On a similar topic, each school was sending two teams from each year.

With four people per team, two teams per year, four years per school, and four schools total, that would lead to a total of 128 participating students. The first set of battles would be 4x4, the second 2x2, and every sequential battle being 1x1 until there is only a single victor at the top.

The general rules of battle seem to be the same as well, where the victor of each battle is decided by aura remaining or knockout. Each battlefield will be divided by the number of participants and the arena sections made by said divisions will become a randomized environment to fight in.

When the time came to depart Beacon for Shade Academy, a sense of excitement seemed to imbed itself within many. However, there are always exceptions to such an event, such as those who believe themselves better than the chosen teams.

Such problems were trivial though, since they weren't, in fact, stronger, and therefore not a problem even if they got butt-hurt. So off we set.

As we flew across vast swathes of water, since we almost primarily stuck to a straightforward route, I mostly kept myself occupied by looking over and, when necessary, editing my blueprints. Though I wouldn't get much of a chance to make them, and therefore test them, until we get back to Beacon, which sucked.

It was a few days of constant flying before we made it to the desert surroundings of the Kingdom of Vacuo, and the only reason many didn't go insane was because of the sheer size of the transport we took; at least, in comparison with how many people were aboard our aircraft.

Even with all the competing teams, a few staff for cleaning and cooking, as well as supervision in the form of the ever-diligent Glynda, there were a good couple of unoccupied rooms of various uses. This is given the fact that each room was sized comfortably for one, with storage for general and personal use while abroad.

But the days of air travel, which slowly seemed to drag on, were most definitely worth it, if only for the sight that we came across. Speedily approaching the desert oasis of Vacuo City, it was nothing like how I remember it being described in RWBY.

Each time I think the world can't be more similar yet different, it proves me wrong by showing the impact of these differences, because I most definitely was not expecting as much green as there is.

Obviously, there would be at least some green, it was and still is an oasis after all, but it held almost jungle levels of green in places. To still hold this much vitality, even with the problematic history Vacuo has, is a testament to how resilient the land truly is.

So as we unboarded the airbus at the foot of Shade Academy's property, getting a clear view of the many lighter pallet-colored buildings and massive pyramid-esque main building, I stayed in my pondering state at the sight of yet more green.

[Insert Image of Pyramid-esque Main Building Here]

[Argento] - 'So it seems that Vacuo has plenty of resources left to use even with the problems past and present. This brings into question if it's just here that has seemingly favorable conditions, or if it's "better" everywhere else too.'

Similar thoughts continued to swim through my head, but in the end, I let them go. Since the chances that such information is confidential are low, and even then I'm sure if I just asked Glynda or Oz they would give me access.

Feeling a feathery nudge on my right arm, I'm brought out of my head as we are guided into the auditorium-like area that is held at the bottom of the main pyramid-esque building. As is tradition for the 4 Great Academies, the building itself is massive in all three dimensions to allow its main purpose, being the kingdom's main CCTS tower.

As a show of its importance, all Headmaster offices are located at the topmost floor of these buildings, which tend to be the tallest buildings in their city. This is also a show of solidarity, where the strongest of the Academies, normally Headmasters, are seen as the last line of defense for the CCTS.

Whatever happened during the short talk the Shade officials gave, I caught none of it as I once again slipped away from reality for a moment. This got an especially firm nudge from Celestia's wing after it finished, and looking over I saw the annoyed, though slightly curious pout that she was giving me.

[Celestia] - "A penny for your thoughts?"

[Argento] - "Nothing much, I just wasn't expecting as much green in Vacuo as we've found."

[Dawn] - "Yeah, for a desert it isn't really as… sandy, as I would've expected."

[Eugene] - "That's probably because of the rules the Council, backed by Shade Academy, set forth for resource consumption. It was a few decades after the Academy grew in influence throughout the Kingdom, but because of how big those changes were it's only gotten back to more of an oasis in the last decade or two."

[Celestia] - "Interesting, though it's usually Argento who knows all these niche facts."

[Eugene] - "That's because my parents saw it important for me to know my origins, regardless of where, or if, I settled."

As Eugene shared a little of his vague nomadic past, we were ushered to a building that was strikingly similar to the unoccupied dorm building that Beacon has. The main difference lay in the fact that all the colors and specific designs of things were much more Vacuo-based, and the alcohol, which was surprisingly unlocked, was mostly Vacuo breweries.

With a short stop by our room that held the same similar but different aesthetic as the rest of the building, and which already held our possessions and directions on how to key the locks to our scrolls, we mutually agreed to explore the campus with the provided map.

This was mostly decided by the various factors that locked us onto campus for a limited time, but it was clear that we all yearned to be free to explore the city. So instead we channeled that into roaming the campus, which has been surprisingly temperate compared to what deserts should normally be, though that probably has to do with the oasis nature of the city.

At the time we set off to explore, the envoy from Mistral had seemingly just arrived, bringing along who I assume to be the Deputy Headmaster since Lionheart was nowhere to be seen. While we explored, I couldn't help my brain wandering to the subject of the Academies, and the duos that led each.

Beacon is a no-brainer, but the others only really have half the picture at any time. James Ironwood is Headmaster for Atlas, and though his character behavior is mostly vague due to the damned fog that covers a lot of my RWBY memories, I remember a very charismatically militaristic General.

With no Deputy Headmaster/Headmistress in memory for them or Mistral, the final "known" character would be Leonardo Lionheart. Once again the fog blurs many things that have to do with him, but anything I could recall had him acting strangely squirrely for someone in his position.

As I fell asleep that night, curiosity as to what Shade's Headmaster Theodore was like rolled around, but knowing it was only a matter of time before we met made it incapable of keeping my sleep from overtaking me.

Lo and behold, the next morning the intercoms buzzed with activity as it called all students, including those visiting for the festival, back to the pyramid-esque building. Making our way over, it was easily apparent as to why we were gathering, and that simply had to do with the Atlas envoy finally arriving.

I assume they were later because of the sheer size of their envoy, which consisted of the main ship bringing the participants and a respectably sized fleet that guided the massive floating landmass that was the Amity Colosseum. I know I've been in this world of magic and advanced technology for quite a while now, but it truly was a breathtaking sight.

Had it not been for Celestia dragging me along, I might've even attempted to find my way up there preemptively. By the time I was able to focus on walking on my own, the Atlas participants were deboarding and I almost stumbled upon noticing one of the participants.

With a familiar head of long, stark white hair and eyes as blue as ice, Winter Schnee gracefully walked beside what I assumed to be her team and the Deputy Headmistress of Atlas Academy. Either due to the fog or her nonexistence in RWBY, the Deputy Headmistress held no details that I could remember.

Sheer willpower was the only thing keeping me from staring at the duo, but it seemed my gaze had lingered for just a few seconds longer than it should've. This is simply because I felt a pair of eyes boring into the back of my head as soon as I turned away, though not out of hostility.

Before either of us could act upon this, we found ourselves separated into our respective schools with the lights dimming. A mildly entertaining opening speech was given by a nameless faculty member, and once he finished he did the strangest of things.

[Professor] - "And now, ladies and gentlemen of both near and far, coming to the floor is a man of many talents, with just as many strengths. With looks that rival the best, a charming smile that swoons any, and muscles that can barely be contained within his specially tailored clothing.

Give it up for Headmaster Theodore!"

With the most WWE entrance possible, he nearly explodes from behind the auditorium stage curtains with flamboyant movements and unnecessarily colorful lights roaming his immediate area. None of this is to say it wasn't a blast to watch, because it was, and the near roar of approval from Vacuo's students can attest to that.

As baffled yet amused as the rest of us were, or at least I was, firm and respectful cheers and claps came from the rest of us, some more subdued than others. When he finally took full center stage, and the colored lights lifted with only normal spotlights on his figure, I got a good look at this enigmatic Headmaster.

Standing comfortably over six feet, his more lithe structure held muscles that were toned to perfection. With a head of short dark hair that connected flawlessly with his well-kept beard, it merged seamlessly with his more tan complexion and semi-rugged facial structure.

With a skin-tight checkered vest and an ankle-length cape clasped onto his shoulders with a silver chain, he had a silver, round buckle belt upon his bright white slacks with deep side pockets. On his hands were red gloves that held engraved crystals, and from the color I guessed them to be gravity crystals.

[Insert "Image" of Headmaster Theodore Here (This is because to my knowledge he has yet to be officially animated as of this chapter)]

Though odd at first glance, the ensemble worked surprisingly well with his persona, which as he continued his dramatic showing and words showed he was probably very enthusiastic, very high energy, and loved to show off. Given everything he is though, the desire to flaunt it does make enough sense.

[Theodore] - "Welcome one and all, to my humble Academy. Now I could try and fool you all with a speech full of big words or deep meanings, but I'd rather not, so I won't. 

All the visiting students in front of me are the best of their years, and in a few cases the best of their entire Academy. So in other words, you're all strong as hell.

Now I would love nothing more than to go a round or two with some of you…"

As he says this I can see his eyes first settle on Winter, then seamlessly settle on me only long enough for me to notice. I would've thought it a trick of the eyes, but sharing a glance at Winter I saw her looking at me, having noticed the same thing.

With a very audible and forced cough, we all see an annoyed woman of a shorter stature giving the Headmaster a hard stare. With a dry chuckle, Theodore moves onward.

[Theodore] - "But unfortunately, the Deputy Headmistress would have my ass if I did so now. Therefore, I'll need to leave said fights between the competitors for the upcoming tournament.

I do hold a word of warning for those of you who might've gotten a little full of yourselves, and that is to never let your guard down. Even the strongest people can be subject to loss if surprised.

That being said, should your schedules find a strange absence of activity, you may always petition one of my professors for a friendly bout with myself - or at least, someone who isn't competition, if that's your fancy."

Muffled mumbling can be heard coming from who I assume to be the Deputy Headmistress. Taking that as his sign to leave he slams his fists together, causing a small shockwave as his body lifts off the ground.

[Theodore] - "Enjoy classes to your leisure, join whatever missions you wish, and I look forward to the show you'll all be putting on for us in a few months."

With a confident wink, he whisks himself away as cheering and applause from his gathered audience begins. Before anyone had the chance to believe the meeting was over the woman from before came to the stage.

Now in the spotlight herself, barely over four feet tall, her sandy brown hair reaches her ankles while held in a long braid bound by a golden cord. With a more squarish frame that seemed to exaggerate her shortness, she wore brown pants with a loose, dark green tunic cinched with a brown leather belt at her waist.

Together with her sleeveless long coat that was dark brown and coarse on the outside with glittering flecks, a deep tan, her fine features, and the lingering details of a mischievous expression, her rough age estimation was hard to tell.

[Insert "Image" of Deputy Headmistress Rumpole Here (This is because to my knowledge she has yet to be officially animated as of this chapter)]

[Rumpole] - "Greetings everyone, I am Deputy Headmistress Xanthe Rumpole. In just about a week we will be holding our annual Huntsmen Shadowing.

You will all have until this Thursday night to choose to participate and to find a mission of your caliber that is not already full. If you make a choice but then change your mind before the timeline has come, you may always find me either between or after classes.

That is all, you are dismissed."

At her words, several screens rose out of the perimeter of the auditorium-like area we were in, ones that I recognized as the screens we took our forest mission on. Not wasting a second, we collectively moved to one of the screens in search of a mission we wished to partake in.

<Celestia POV>

As I rubbed the remnants of sleep out of my eyes, I looked around at the slowly growing group of teams and Huntsmen. Having read the mission description I wasn't surprised when there turned out to be so many people, but even so, I didn't think there would be THIS many.

Two particular teams of note were one third-year team from our school with the speedster, and the fourth-year one with Winter, from Atlas. It's hard not to know her since she is the eldest child of the current head of the Schnee Family and Schnee Dust Company.

But seeing her in images is not even a close comparison to in person. She was beautiful on screen for sure, but the sheer gorgeousness and grace she gave just by standing at the ready was on another level.

It was because of this that when I found Argento constantly looking at her I wouldn't - Shouldn't - be annoyed. And every time I caught his eye mid-glance, there were never any hints of the emotions he gave that night.

Yet even knowing that I still found annoyance trying to bubble up in me, so I began asking him about it. Every time, he wouldn't give a straight answer, always squirming away with his stupid intelligence, and his stupid humor, and his stupid good looks.

This lightly bubbling annoyance kept trying to chip away at my values, trying to dig me down to how my family, rightfully so, views the Schnee name.

Taking another deep breath, the brisk morning air speeding through me and calming me down, I vowed again to not let it do so. There will always be bad apples here and there, especially in affluent families, but I mustn't let them ruin the whole family.

Thankfully, as I settled my thoughts, Rumpole could be seen approaching the airbus we would be taking, with a small bag no doubt containing some of the similar things to the rest of us.

This particular mission was scheduled to be about a week-long, taking into consideration resting and traveling. We would be going via a mid-sized airbus, just big enough to comfortably fit all involved, and doing what the Professor described as a routine cleanup of the area.

This mission sounded eerily familiar to our last mission which nearly went south, so I couldn't help the nervous twitch that found its way into my wings. It was quite minor, so if anyone noticed it they should've assumed it was normal or not even there, but a firm, yet comforting hand on my shoulder proved me wrong.

As Rumpole calls forth the eldest teams of each participating school, I look to my left to see a slightly concerned but fully confident Argento.

[Argento] - "Hey, it'll be fine. Even if it goes like last time I have complete confidence in our ability to run away, especially when one of us has the aerial advantage."

Giving me that stupid grin he always does at the perfect moment, I instinctively send a pulse behind his head. Why he never dodges those I'll never know, but the small smile I can't keep down would happily thank him if it could.

[Celestia] - "Keep that up and I may just end up leaving you behind to be Grimm bait."

Giving a dramatic grab of his heart, he holds the shoulder of Eugene who is already shaking his head slightly with a sigh.

[Argento] - "Can you believe this Eugene? You wouldn't leave me behind, right?"

Without skipping a heartbeat, Eugene stares straight into Argento's eyes and drops every hint of emotion as he replies.

[Eugene] - "Absolutely. I grew up learning how to traverse the desert, so unless you want to throw Dawn to the Grimm then I'd suggest learning your true role in this team."

Upping his dramatic anty, to what some Vacuo students would later comment was almost Headmaster Theodore levels, he crouches down as a shimmer of a rain cloud hovers above his head while he pokes at the grass below him.

Unable to hold it in anymore, I hear Dawn begin near-cackling, seemingly trying her best to rein in her laughter as she holds onto Eugene to not fall over. With us now getting just a few curious looks I send another pulse behind Argento's head, making him playfully glare at me in a way that is admittedly a little cute.

Before we can begin bickering, with him now officially making me forget any trace of nervousness I held before, a familiar forced cough makes us all look to see Rumpole standing in front of us, with the speedster from Beacon at her side looking as confused as he is amused.

Realizing rather fast she was here for us, we all rid ourselves of our humor and stood loosely at attention. The fast switch seemed to pleasantly surprise the Professor, as she only slightly looked toward our upperclassman while still keeping most of her attention on observing us.

[Rumpole] - "Are you sure about this Mr. Adkins? This is a great chance to exercise a leading position."

[Turk] - "I am completely sure Professor Rumpole. They may be first years, but their potential far exceeds the limitations set by year.

Besides, I don't care much for leading more than a few people. If it's satisfactory, I would like to get back to my team and update them."

Taking another second to do a final scan of us all, she nods her head, to which he speeds away. Motioning her head in a "follow" sort of command, we acquiesce as we follow, with Argento being at the forefront of AZTC.

[Argento] - "So if you don't mind me asking, are we replacing team TRQS as Beacon's leading team?"

To this she simply nods, once again doing a once over of Argento as a smirk plays upon her lips.

[Rumpole] - "You know, whether you know it or not you remind me quite a bit of Theo, what with how you were playing around yet switched so fast to being serious."

[Dawn] - "So Headmaster Theodore does have a serious side? He didn't strike me as someone with one."

[Rumpole] - "Well don't let how he acts and dresses fool you. Underneath all of the overenthusiastic, muscle-headed bravado lies one of the smartest, and honestly, most shrewd men I've ever met."

Giving a small twirl while maintaining her pace forward, she winks at all of us with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

[Rumpole] - "But don't tell him I told you that."

A quiet peal of laughter left me before I could control it, but thankfully she simply smiled at me before facing forward once again. Before more conversation could happen, we reached the rest of the leading teams of this mission.

Without stopping, Rumpole makes the same "follow" motion that causes the other three teams to fall in step with us, and we all make our way onto the airbus. Hearing the other Huntsmen start calling out team names, it seems the time to set out has been reached.

Along the way the other teams sent curious gazes at us, clearly only knowing the bare minimum, except for Winter, who seemed to have a strange pseudo-epiphany. We finally find ourselves in what seems to be a meeting room of sorts when the Professor begins.

[Rumpole] - "As you may have pieced together by team TRQS's words, they relinquished their role in favor of the first-year team AZTC. You will all be working together for the next week, so if there are any doubts or concerns you must state them now."

As a few seconds passed and no one stepped forward with complaints, the team leader from Mistral eventually came forward. Instead of doubts, they suggested quick introductions to familiarize ourselves going forward.

With the go-ahead of the Deputy Headmistress, each of the leading teams began introducing themselves, starting with Mistral, and then Vacuo, and then Atlas. As it continued normally, we introduced ourselves, but something strange happened.

When Argento introduced himself fully, his name seemed to elicit a reaction of confusion for a moment or two from Winter, before a flash of recognition and trepidation crossed her eyes as fast as she hid it. It was very brief, almost making me question if it even happened, and glancing at Argento after we finished our introduction shows he either missed it or that it didn't happen.

[Rumpole] - "Alright, now that introductions are over, we shall begin the strategy meeting."

Tapping the table in front of us all, she brought up a holographic map of a vast portion of the desert surrounding Vacuo City. At decently vast distances apart there were red dots, some bigger than others, with red-shaded circles surrounding them at varied distances.

[Rumpole] - "For the past few weeks, we've been gathering as many Grimm as we could into groups spread around the city. We shall be hopping between each group, eliminating every one of them swiftly but safely.

Your current jobs are to assess the danger level of each group and properly place every able body in the "correct" place; which is to say, you will all be the collective strategists for these battles.

I am going to oversee this because I already know a very viable course of action, and I will only intervene when a plan that does not closely match or exceeds mine is not created. On the map, you will see our ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) for our current target, so you have until we have an hour left to formulate a working plan of action.

You may ask me anything, but I will not answer anything that I believe to take away from this experience until the final hour. You may begin."

And with her abrupt end, discussions quickly began as we all saw the first timer was merely a few hours. Taking out our respective scrolls, we accessed the information channel from the table that let us read in-depth details while keeping the map as it is.

Knowing we could rely on the Professor kept the anxiety of leading a mission from settling in, which helped my focus stay on task. The information was terrain, estimated numbers of Grimm, the types of Grimm, and the number of able bodies we had access to.

As strategizing began, more offhanded as information was being absorbed by all those present, Argento seemed to have practically finished as he frowned in concentration. As more people began finishing reading, the meeting began in earnest, as constant, but respectful, back and forth was made between all those present.

I'm not ashamed to admit I had little input, and the things I did input weren't great, but I could already tell this may be a valuable experience later on. It seemed Eugene and Dawn were in the same boat, but Argento kept that silent frown as he pondered something.

Knowing how fast he was with planning, this came as a slight surprise, but since our previous battles were either straightforward or small it made sense. Finally, he resolutely snapped his head up, which caught the attention of those at the table, but instead of addressing them, he looked to the Deputy Headmistress.

[Argento] - "Do you have a simplified list of all participants and what they can do? And if you do, may we be allowed to view it?"

The Professor let a small smirk settle onto her face as she walked up to the table, typed a few things in, and walked away as each of our connected scrolls pinged with new information. With a few looks of recognition at the simple, yet potentially fatal, mistake, a few looks of respect fell onto my team leader as I smiled in pride.

Why pride? I have no clue, but I don't care because he caught something that must have been purposefully withheld, hinted at by the speed at which Rumpole put it in and her smirk while doing so.

After a few minutes of relatively silent reading, a few people began giving new spins on ideas that were already given. About thirty minutes before our planning time was up, with another moment of silent contemplation, Argento stepped forward to gather attention.

[Argento] - "I'd like to first ask a question to those present. Do you all think we should be going for speed or preservation of energy?"

Everyone took a second to ponder, and Winter stepped forward first to speak.

[Winter] - "I believe the preservation of energy would be key here. With the number of groups we will have to take on, if we are to finish within a week we must take out a few per day."

[Argento] - *Nods* "That's what I was thinking, since we need to be as close to peak each fight to get the best returns. So here's my idea.

With the number of teams we have, and the level at which some of them are, not everyone has to actively fight, and some would be best kept in reserve."

[Eugene] - "If we attract other Grimm, or some circle around and surprise us, it wouldn't be pretty."

[Argento] - "Exactly. So we have the groups that can hit the most targets at once go first, getting as many as they possibly can before they fall back to semi-guard our rear as they replenish.

The heaviest hitters, in a more small group or singular sense, will be going directly afterward, taking the brunt of the attention after so much firepower is used against them.

Those with the best support abilities will be spread about, doing their best to keep all the Grimm from fighting at full power, and the younger or less powerful teams will be mainly guarding these groups, so that if they can't beat them someone else can assist after they distract their targets.

Once the AOE teams are back in good shape, should the group still be large enough they will switch places again, take as many as they can out, and fall back to recharge. Rinse and repeat until we're done."

[Winter] - "That makes sense. If a single group was always relegated to non-action they may get antsy, and if one is always too headfirst they'd tire out not just physically, but mentally too.

This is a great plan, but that still leaves the Huntsmen and our airbus out of the picture."

[Argento] - "Ah, but that's their job. The Deputy Headmistress and the other Huntsmen will keep a vigilant watch of the situation from vantage points *here* *here* *here* and on the airbus.

They would mask their presence to not distract the Grimm, and only interfere if they see sections faltering. As professionals, they will be better at keeping calm, and as support, this allows them an easier time to be vigilant while asleep."

[A/N: *here* means he was pointing at the map for specific vantage points]

[Dawn] - "Asleep?"

[Argento] - "Yes. Though it's a few fights away, we will eventually have to sleep, and it's far too unproductive to go back when we have the facilities here. As fully trained Huntsmen they will be more sensitive to danger, so even while we have a rotating nightwatch they'll be capable of being the final line of detection."

With everyone taking his speech in, each person noticed parts of their plans that had been picked apart or that were very similar to what was said. With nods of agreement from each person, and the leaders of each team giving verbal affirmation to agreeing with the plan, everyone turned toward the Deputy Headmistress before the timer had struck the one-hour mark.

Walking back to the table with a slightly raised eyebrow, she gave an approving nod to everyone, with Argento being a bigger focus in said nod.

[Rumpole] - "Very impressive. I didn't think your plan would end up so similar in effectiveness, though I didn't hear any mention of who would go where?"

[Argento] - "Well I thought it was mostly irrelevant if the plan itself wasn't accepted, so I simply waited until you actively participated to speed things along."

Seeing bigger nods of respect from those around the table, I couldn't help but lightly punch Argento's arm in affirmation as I grinned at him. With the next few minutes spent deciding where each team/person would go and why, we soon set out of the meeting room with everything in order.

Now, per Rumpole's directive, each team would spread the roles of their respective school's participants, making sure any questions are answered and that they know this is the role everyone, including Rumpole, agreed to. 

If the other teams from Beacon had a problem with our being the leading team they didn't show it, though with team TRQS readily following orders I doubt many would doubt it in the first place.

The four-man teams have been a ready tradition from the very induction of the academies, but for various reasons, it would be far more effective if the teams were split according to their best-suited roles.

At the moment of disembarking the airbus began arriving everyone separated into their assigned sections, with their assigned teammates. A few of the first years from the other schools seemed to hesitate, but ultimately they followed the confident upperclassmen as they similarly separated from their set team.

Following the plan, I and Argento bid farewell to Eugene and Dawn as they went over to the support and large-scale damage teams respectively, and we met up with the close-quarters teams. Not surprisingly we were met with Turk, which I now fully learned is the name of the Beacon speedster, and Winter as our direct teammates.

Though we won't really be individual teams, having a specific group of people to fall back on allows smoother combat - or so we were told by Deputy Headmistress Rumpole. 

My thoughts become interrupted by the sound of the doors opening, with the airbus having stopped far enough away and up to not attract unnecessary Grimm attention. The signal to jump was given, and without hesitation, the AOE (area of effect) and CQC (close-quarters combat) teams lept from the hovering ship first.

The fall was barely enough to even be felt, given the sand and relative height, so it was without effort that everyone began the initial silent sprint toward the Grimm horde. Granted we wouldn't get far without being spotted or felt, considering the number of both us and them.

As if my thoughts summoned them, howls, growls, clicks, and clacks could be felt as a rumbling of the sand showed their approach before they were visible. Due to how they were led about, it was imperative to hide them in the small collections of vegetation and/or natural outcrops to do so stealthily.

This first battle would be among the easiest of them, though only our leading teams were aware of that, so there was no nervousness as the AOE teams let loose.

Massive fireballs boosted by great gusts of wind, large red-hot boulders, booming arcs of lightning, and near-spontaneous combustions erupted among the impressive assembly of Grimm. I was able to take particular note of many blades of light constantly flooding into the Grimm clearing from Dawn. Without mercy, bits and pieces of Grimm small and large flew about, often interrupted by further chaos created by more attacks.

Due to the relatively easy difficulty of this encounter, by the time the onslaught of Semblances ended nearly half of the forces were already completely wiped out, with almost another fourth sporting injuries that limited their capabilities.

With a nearly derisive laugh, Argento was among the first to charge headfirst into the oncoming group. Winter followed just behind me and Turk sped ahead of us all to begin his blitzkrieg of an assault.

This particular group had few arial enemies, and the ones that were present were quickly dispatched by the supporting teams behind us. This meant I was free to stay on the ground or use the air as I needed, which I made full use of when I quickly flew just a few meters off the ground.

Using my temporary placement, I sent a pulse behind me to greatly increase my downward speed and smash my staff onto the head of a wounded Death Stalker, nearly completely shattering its whole head.

Before I could get readjusted three Beowolves sprung at me, trying to take advantage of my freshly landed form. Twisting my staff apart, it splits into its tonfa form as I extend the blades, and in the same motion, I flick them out and impale two of the Beowolves through the head with minor assistance from my Pulses.

In the next second a small blur of scarlet flashes in front of the third one, leaving it fully restricted and unable to move. Taking full use of Eugene's timely assist, I swing both tonfas from opposite directions, fully decapitating the Beowolf.

Not letting myself revel in my kills, I pushed my wings and legs at the same time to propel myself under a Taijitu's head. In the second before my arrival, I reassembled my staff with the blades still out and proceeded to use it with a pulse to behead the snake-like skull from its barely aware body.

Looking up for a second, to find my next target, I witness the handsomely feral grin splitting Argento's face as he speeds his body up enough to shred several Beowolves in a flurry of blade swings.

To my right I see Turk speeding between several Grimm at a time, chipping away at their more vital areas or straight up cutting through them. And to my left was Winter, a similar blur of movements that led to synchronized takedowns with what I believe to be her summons, with random appearances of glyphs that had various effects.

Knowing I'll have all the time I want to study their fighting styles later, I leap back into the fray, feeling a level of giddiness I've only felt from the battle freak Argento turns into. As I break open the skull of the wounded Sulfur fish that was in my way, a part of me begins to worry.

[Celestia] - 'Has Argento's battle craze rubbed off on me?'

<Argento POV>

So it's been a little while since I last truly let loose while fighting, because I'm usually held back by something. Either I'm alone, I'm protecting something, or I'm getting somewhere; so I have to constantly watch what I do and how much aura I use.

And while I still have to watch my aura use, it's much easier to lose myself in the motion knowing I have others who will cover small errors I might make here and there. And when I lose myself, a massively overpowering urge to fight until I drop surfaces, and is normally only abated when the fight ends.

It was no surprise, then, when I found myself liberally using my, albeit large, reserves of aura in ways that just feel the best, yet are not necessarily the most effective. This would include overcharging my time dilations, an abundance of slightly unnecessary Time-Steps, and even experimenting with an idea that had been rolling around my head for a while.

So when I threw my fifth Time-Net, as I am going to call it once I perfect it, and it once again failed, the annoyed look only stayed until a gentle and familiar pulse hit the back of my head. Snapping out of my battle-crazed state, I noticed the fight was practically over, with the few remaining groups being nowhere near me.

Looking around for her, I found Celestia slightly behind me with an annoyed frown directed at me.

[Celestia] - "I knew you were kinda dumb, but experimenting in the middle of a battle? Really?!"

Seeing the irritation twitching in her wings, I had to hold back a smile at the adorable subconscious movement, as well as her very accurate assessment. However, I couldn't quite stop myself from messing with her just a little.

[Argento] - "And how do you know it was me experimenting?"

[Celestia] - "Oh please. We are around each other damn near 24/7, I've seen the difference between a failure and an experiment."

[Argento] - "Really? That must mean you've watched me quite often since those moments are too random to regularly observe. Am I just so blindingly handsome that you can't resist ogling me?"

With a roguish smile and wink I know looks good, as it is simply a fact of life, her frown turns into a playfully teasing smirk that creases her cheeks into that dimple I can't quite make myself look away from.

[Celestia] - "You wish! I just happen to look at you so often because you're quite often doing something weird or eye-catching, or something as foolish as experimenting during a battle!"

And though she kept that playful look, her eyes readjusted to their previous annoyance. Rubbing the back of my neck, I look away out of what I am not ashamed to be a slight embarrassment.

[Argento] - "Alright fine, I get your point. I just lost myself in the moment, and I got annoyed at the faster Grimm for causing me to have to speed up so much, and I wanted them to stop.

And so my brain decided now would be a good time to test an immobilizing move I've been thinking over, but as you can see it didn't quite work out."

With my eyes closed in thought and from my slight embarrassment, I only opened my eyes upon feeling Celestia lightly patting my head. While some would see it as demeaning, I chose to not resist my desire to lightly push into the familiar and pleasant feeling.

A small giggle could be heard from Celestia as she was now about eye level with me, having used her wings to stay steadily afloat to comfortably reach my head. Now looking into her electric blue eyes, neither of us shied from the contact as we simply stayed there for a few seconds.

With a small clearing of a throat going off to my left, the small bubble of whatever was happening popped, and Celestia removed her hand and went back to the ground. With a displeased frown I quickly hid behind a neutral face, I looked at Turk, who was the one to clear his throat, and just missed the gentle smile Celestia aimed at me after having seen my displeasure.

Because the battle ended, without a single intervention from the Huntsmen might I add, we all boarded the airbus once again, setting off for the next site that was just a few hours away. Once we all got inside, Rumpole proceeded to list her observations, occasionally pointing out flaws some groups or individual people showed, while doing the same with the good points.

As soon as we finished, our leading teams were brought once again to the war room to plan the next encounter. Because we did so fast enough we were allowed to debrief the teams much sooner than our previous arrival, which lent us time to relax before the battle.

Having forgotten my previous displeasure at being interrupted, I was pleasantly surprised when Celestia guided our team to some seats off to the side, telling me to sit on the floor in front of her. Seeing no harm in doing so I followed orders like a good soldier, and while we began talking to each other she undid my hair and began running her fingers through it.

Ignoring the incoherent words and giggling that came from Dawn, I faded into a state of almost meditation as I barely participated in the conversation and focused on the calm that flowed through me. No matter how many times she does it, every time feels like the first, and so it tends to focus my brain on singular thoughts instead of multiple at a time.

Normally these end up being topics of conversation, or even random thoughts akin to shower thoughts, but this time it focused on combat. Maybe it was the fight we just had, or the ones to come, but the trail of thoughts led to the unpleasant thought of a difficult fight that would bring one or more of us to the brink.

This made me unconsciously activate the aura training meditation, and due to the current hyperfocus of my brain, I noticed it felt similar to something else. It took a few seconds, but I linked the feeling to the other form of aura training, which was simply a fight to near death.

Furrowing my brows, I'm broken from my thoughts and meditation when I hear Celestia's slight worry.

[Celestia] - "Argento, are you okay? You suddenly started your aura meditation, and that's something you never do with others around."

[Argento] - "Yeah, just some unpleasant thoughts. Though for once they might've led me to something, what that is I can't quite tell."

[Dawn] - "Well as long as you're fine, but do try to not do that. We have a fight coming up, and though it doesn't drain too fast it can still add up in emergencies."

With a slight nod and a look at the time, Celestia kindly puts my hair back up as we get ready for the upcoming battle, which will be definitively harder. I assume the difficulty spike is simply because Rumpole didn't want to let anyone grow complacent in this actual mission of very possible death.

However just because the difficulty increased doesn't mean the plan changed. Because of the relative ratio of aerial to ground units, it was deemed unnecessary to have a specialized air unit, and therefore the teams were the exact same.

With an efficiency that surprised me, we proceeded to absolutely stomp the Grimm. The initial assault injured just as many, but that was simply a fraction compared to before, and it was only manageable because it was mostly lower-level Grimm in large numbers this time.

In total, the AOE teams had to fire three times, and even then we just barely killed enough for them to not have to go a fourth time. Knowing how much more difficult it was supposed to be I kept my head on straight, but I still found a moment or two to further my Time-Net into an actual move.

With minimal success for my experiments, it was an all-around well-fought battle that only had the Huntsmen jump in four times, and simply because of the numbers they began to overwhelm some of the weaker fighters. It did make me happy to see Dawn and Eugene playing both their roles perfectly, and not once slipping up, at least from what I saw between the Grimm I was killing.

I didn't have to go far to see how effortlessly Celestia was dancing between her opponents, using both the ground and air as fluently as one could to pull off impressive athletic feats. Turk's impressive speed executions and Winter's Schnee abilities honed to an impressive degree were as clear as day too.

It was to my slight disappointment that the next fight would be pretty much the same, which Celestia chastised me for. Taking longer than the first but less than the second, the only thing to really note was the fact that there were no Huntsmen interventions.

With Rumpole's quick rundown and another war table meeting, this time about night-watch rotations, we were finally done for the night. Going back and updating Beacon's participants, my team quickly followed me to our room to fully monopolize our night of no nightwatch.

Making it to the rooms, which had been left nearly untouched since we boarded the airbus, we found the one with our team name on it and unlocked it. Walking in, I found a room that looked eerily similar to the dorm room for team RWBY in the original scaling, but with bunk beds properly built in and slightly bigger in size.

With two side doors, leading to a bathroom and the closet, we all quickly claimed our beds. Dawn basically once again dragged Eugene to her side, so I took the bed below Celestia's, as her's was a bit more spacious for her wings to freely stretch without worry.

A quick round of showering and changing got us ready for sleep, and some idle chatter led us to accept the growing mental tiredness from several battles and planning sessions. As sleep quickly creeped in, my earlier dilemma of a potentially dangerous fight brought me to ponder on my earlier observation about my training methods, and as I drifted off a memorable thought took place.

[Argento] - 'Could I make it more effective?'

<Winter POV>

I held little fascination in participating in the Vytal festival this year. The last one I was forced to attend by that bastard of a father, saying it was for the publicity.

As if his actions that he "hides" don't already give us plenty of it, because I'm reminded of them every time a faunus looks at me with those eyes. And every time, I think I might just deserve it.

This of course is just an arbitrary thought, but one that consistently tries to dig its way into my very soul. That is why I found the blue-winged faunus named Celestia Zeros interesting. 

I've come across plenty of faunus within my years, and each one held one of three emotions; for the younger and easily impressionable, it was common to see fear, no doubt due to heavily spread slander about malpractice in labor - though I can't say it's actually slander.

For the older generation it was often apathy, probably due to their age they know I can't truly do much when the company isn't in my hands but the tyranny of my father's. As for the generation between the two, it's normally a mix of the two, though there is always at least a simmering anger.

Some try to hide it, and others not so much, but I still can't blame them. That is why Celestia's actions have come to surprise me.

Every now and again I can see a flash of these three emotions, brief but still there. Yet almost immediately after she visibly calms herself, and whether she knows it or not she shows a spark of guilt that goes away similarly as swift.

I'm sure she's not the only faunus in this world that acts this way, but she is the only one that I've met. I know it's improper and unbecoming to simply go up and ask her about it, but otherwise I find myself at a loss of how to even approach her.

I thought maybe this temporary team placement might give me the chance, but for the life of me I can't find the chance to break from the image I've spent my life building. So currently I am merely observing her, inside and outside of battle, during the strategy talks we've held, hoping for some way to spark a conversation with just her.

Or at least as alone as I can get her, since she has almost always been with her team, particularly her silver-haired leader named Argento Chrono. With how they act I've concluded they must be together, so it shows Celestia doesn't hold contempt for humans as a race; that is also including her positive interactions with the abundance of humans around us, so I guess it can't just be down to her relationship with a particular human.

Having my thoughts once again drift to the silver-haired Chrono, I finally finish my internal debate of what to do about him. So I took temporary leave of my team, not that I could really call those political puppets real teammates, and head to the communications room.

One of the few perks I still hold with my wavering title of heiress was a collection of classified communication codes, all of which bring me to different people with a fully secured line. Locking the room, and engaging the sound-lock all rooms like this have, I input the code I despised the most.

It was only a few seconds later when the screen popped up, showing a man in his later years that held hair deceptively similar in color to a real Schnee. With a matching bushy mustache and well-maintained stress wrinkles, Jacques Gelee Schnee sat in his trademark white suit and blue underclothes, with a white tie and a red pocket square.

[Jacques] - "So the oh-so-powerful Huntress finally saw fit to call her father? If you were hoping for some kind of help then may I remind you who drove herself away from her position in this family?"

To my credit, the bastard's words didn't get a rise out of me; though I'd say that's simply because he only targeted me, and that my emotional training is finally useful.

[Winter] - "Nothing of the sort father, I have simply run into an underclassman at Beacon that holds a name I believe holds some importance. It simply escaped me where I recognized it from."

With his glare deepening, Jacques seemed to just keep himself from cutting the communications off at such a seemingly redundant reason to call.

[Jacques] - "What name could possibly make you think calling me was an appropriate response, let alone at such an ungodly hour?"

Ignoring his obvious attire that showed he wasn't anywhere near sleep, I just wanted to get this damned call over with. So I kept it brief.

[Winter] - "His name is Argento Chrono."

It seemed to take a few seconds, during which his face turned completely neutral. Before curiosity could make me ask what could deserve this reaction, he suddenly cranked it up by several notches by morphing into a mask of such pure hatred and fear I've seen on only the rarest of occasions.

[Jacques] - "WHAT?! Impossible, they should all be dead!"

With only a small involuntary finch I hated myself for giving, the deadbeat seemed to give it no mind as he began fuming while no doubt deciding his next words. What felt like hours passed, until finally he looked up with an angry but calculating look.

[Jacques] - "Tell me everything about your encounters so far."

With a quizzical raising of my eyebrow that I quickly hid, I recounted the times I could catch him looking at me, the interest the Headmaster and Deputy Headmistress of Shade gave him, and the few times we crossed paths during our Grimm clearing. After I finished he continued to sit in silence, which irked me as he was yet to answer my questions, until I couldn't hold back.

[Winter] - "Who exactly is this Chrono family?"

Upon hearing my question, his present fury simmered as I saw him roll words around his mouth until he finally spit them out. During which, a look of calculative satisfaction continued to grow, as if he found a solution to a particularly difficult quandary.

[Jacques] - "There's not a lot known about the family, but it is said to be nearly older than all the present kingdoms of our world, with power that is unmatched by almost anyone. Even the weakest members of the last hundred years or so could match the strongest of Huntsmen in strength.

With their never-ending energy, unbound strength, and near unaging bodies, I struggle to even call them humans. Even armies have fallen to sole members of this golden-eyed demon family.

Despite their questionably high strength, they have a way with others that led them to become the most influential, and yet least known name across the globe; only those of high enough status are let in on their existence.

Your forefather, the founder of the SDC, was extraordinarily close to one such member of this family, which is the only reason I know what I do. With their resources and avid assistance, the Schnee name quickly spread and became synonymous with Dust.

It is for these reasons that during your heiress training you might have looked upon some documents holding this name, for they own a small, but decent portion, of this company. Due to how it was agreed upon they got none of the money, they never needed it in the first place, but if they pulled all their weight back then they could've wrestled control of the company from the Schnee name.

Even now they hold this, but after rumors of the deaths of all Chrono were spread, holding that number became advantageous to us as it became unusable to all other parties. I thought I wouldn't have to worry about it, but I should've known the bastards wouldn't stay down!"

With a sudden influx of information that seemed far too vague to be truly reliable, I focused on the most important parts. The Chrono family is, or was, influential, powerful, and greatly feared.

If even Jacques, the undeserving bastard that he is, is this scared of them, then there might just be merit to some of those words. Though this talk of demons seemed to come from the fear and anger their name brought, so I strategically ignored that part.

[Jacques] - "I do not care what you do, but remember this. If you so much as think to anger that man, and therefore setting his sights on MY company, I will bring down every ounce of hell upon not only you, but your siblings and mother as well.

Am I understood?"

With a curt nod, I desperately held my neutral mask in place as he blatantly threatened my family. I couldn't care less if he came after me, but I had been underestimating the fear the Chrono name inspired in him if he's willing to threaten people he should cherish!

[Jacques] - "Good, now begone and stop bothering me. I have a company to continue bringing to greatness."

After a few seconds of him forcing the communications closed, knowing it was truly over, my slipping hold on my emotions fell. Summoning the sturdiest Grimm I could, I didn't hesitate to begin yelling obscenities as I punched the summon full force.

Over and over, I continued to punch and scream as I let out my barely contained hatred of that vile excuse for a father. It was only when the clock made noise, notifying midnight had hit, that I stopped my words and punches, and just took a second.

As my panting quickly recovered to normal breathing, and my mask fell back in place, I began my portion of the nightwatch. My anger simmered, but seeing the beautiful sights from the windows of the airbus helped calm me as I did my normal mental exercises.

Seeing the almost silver glow from the broken moon shine onto a particularly bright blue flower in a small collection of vegetation nearby, I was once again brought to the subjects of my recent thoughts.

The faunus that seemed to feel guilty for occasionally hating me and the boy-wonder from the mysterious Chrono family, along with their strangely powerful teammates, were a strange but refreshing group. Similar to many teams outside my own, they hold a true bond with each other.

With my emotions settled, the battles with Grimm so far have shown me a little of what they're capable of, and it makes my fighter's senses tingle with excitement. If not for the mission still going I might've professionally requested a few spars, but either way I looked at it I would most likely be fighting Argento Chrono in the final round.

I know for a fact no one else can match my strength in my bracket, and he seemed most suitable for the rules of the Festival. As I stared off into the moon-bathed desert, alone in the dimly lit hallway, I let a small smile encroach on my face.

[Winter] - "This might just be an interesting Festival after all."