Elites - Beacon's Test

Ozpin frowned as Mato finished her report. “So this Lirio simply brushed you off, as if you weren’t even trying?” Mato huffed, a rare glare plastered firmly across her face. “Yes, it’s like I didn’t just get through explaining this!” She sighed and made a visible effort to calm down. “We couldn’t so much as put a hair out of place on his head. Current theory is that we just don’t have the right amount of combat experience. Boosted reflexes and all that are cool, but without training we’ll just flail around all over the place.” Ozpin smiled slightly. “Well, I just happen to have this friend who’s in charge of a combat school...” Mato stuck her tongue out at him. “Ha ha. We can be there in ten minutes.” Ozpin glanced at the clock on his tablet. The next combat practice started in fifteen. That would be enough time. “That will do nicely. I’ll see you then.”

TWANSITION!

Thirteen minutes later, the girls were standing up the front of Glynda Goodwitch’s combat class.

The blonde teacher looked out over the students with her usual sharp gaze. “Now, for your first practical combat application, you will spar with these four volunteers.”

If Mato hadn’t fervently promised her mother that she would never ever ever lie about anything ever again after what she referred to as the Kagari Fiasco, she would have said she didn’t expect the low murmur that swept through the room. Only one student was stupid enough to form his opinion into coherent words, however quiet he thought he was being.

“What the hell? Where do they get off volunteering these little girls for combat practice?”

Gyldna raised an eyebrow minutely. “Since you are so confident of your chances, Mister Winchester, your team will spar with them first.”

To his credit, Cardin Winchester did not wither under Glynda’s gaze, puffed up as he was by his considerable ego. “Gladly.”

His team was less confident, but they marched obediently to the training room all the same.

Mato looked over at the others. “Who wants this one? Saya?”

The mentioned girl gave a full-force snort. “The big one’s mace might be good for a whetstone a bit later, but that’s assuming I want to blunt King Saw on their puny excuses for weapons.”

Yuu shrugged. “They’re first years. I don’t wanna kill ‘em.”

Yomi smiled in her uniquely demure way. “I think I’ll have a go at it. I haven’t really had a decent fight since we’ve got here.”

Mato actually laughed. “Go easy on ‘em.”

Her girlfriend’s smile didn’t change, but everyone in the front row of the class suddenly had this pressing urge to duck as the other three went off to one side.

Oblivious to this, the freshmen comprising Team CRDL strode out to the battlefield, taking up positions in a loose square around the Takanashi girl. Cardin analysed the girl’s stance from his position behind her, or rather her lack of one. She had no weapon that he could see, if one discounted those clawed gloves she was wearing, and he really didn’t know how she expected to make any sort of mark with those. His eyes flicked over to Russel, who was to his left, and the mohawk-sporting boy drew his daggers and charged.

Yomi closed her eyes as Russel leapt and raised his weapons, intent on bringing them down on her head. Someone started to call out, but she didn’t listen, she just reached for her power and pulled.

The first idea that Dove had that he was outmatched was when he’d spun into the wall after being knocked sideways by a length of chain with a point sharper than a needle and larger than Cardin.

Dove and Sky rushed Yomi together, and she simply backhanded one weapon into the other, before clicking her fingers and pinning them both under a chain that speared down from the ceiling.

Then, she turned to Cardin, who had frozen in his stance, and decided to channel her Otherself just this once.

A long pink tongue secreted itself from her mouth, running over each of the claws on her right hand in a manner that was downright sinful.

Mato’s mouth went dry in under half a second. “Shut up.” She said distractedly, not even having to look at Saya’s smirk.

Then, Yomi giggled.

The sound set Cardin’s nerves on edge, but that was a comfort compared to the high, teasing voice that came out of her mouth.

“Let’s see if you can satisfy me, little boy.”

Mato swallowed the sudden massive lump in her throat. “Shut up, I said.” she mumbled even more distractedly to Saya, who was outright grinning until Yuu ran a hand teasingly up her arm.

Yomi propped a hand on her hip, leaned over sensually, and stretched her other hand up above her head, splaying her fingers as she went. Her scythe appeared in a burst of green fire that upped the temperature of the room by a few degrees.

It was only his pride that kept Cardin from wetting himself, his rational mind and instinct warring with each other, fixing him in place with one side screaming PREDATOR! RUN! and the other yelling Are you a Winchester or not?! Stand and fight like a man!

Then she was in front of him, slashing at him, and he threw his weight behind a hasty block and his entire Aura reserve behind that, and his gut knew it wouldn’t be enough, she was going to kill him - !

Dead Scythe slid cleanly through the slightly ornate mace and popped his Aura like a soap bubble, stopping millimetres from his face.

The class had the rare pleasure of seeing Cardin Winchester, all six foot four of him, topple over and crash to the floor in a dead faint. Yomi chuckled darkly, leaned over him and wrinkled her nose slightly with a frown. Apparently, that last move had loosened his... ‘control.’

Mato’s lessons on control kicked in and she composed herself before executing a walk most ladylike back to her Mato. The blue-wearing girl cleared her throat and tapped at her head. “Horns.”

Yomi looked up and absently tapped twice on each of the spine-like horns that protruded from her skull, vanishing them. Mato walked forward and drew her Black Blade in a slow burn of blue flame. “So, who’s next?”

To her great surprise, there were at least three people staring at Yomi in utter adoration while three more tried to convince Goodwitch that they wanted to spar with Mato.

Well, at least they wouldn’t be bored.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was a desolate place of crumbling buildings, unfettered beasts and murderous teenage girls that clashed in a manner most destructive on a regular basis.

For Sing Love, it was a home away from home.

The woman was a beacon of white and hot pink against the desolate landscape as she walked along, the very picture of confidence.

A flicker of movement to her left caused her attention to shift.

A flash of black, a blur of white - 

And her would be attacker was pinned under the White Rock Cannon. “Well well, if it isn’t Slayer’s other little pet. Tell me where she is and I won’t be wiping your essence of my cannon this afternoon.”

The girl trapped underneath the giant white weapon glared up at her sullenly, not speaking. She was even younger than most of the Otherselves, only about six years old. She was clothed in a black hooded dress and skirt, with armoured boots on her feet and clawed metal gauntlets on her hands, which were currently scrabbling at said cannon, trying to move it.

Sing chuckled. “Oh, aren’t you adorable. You think you can actually shift it with those tiny little kiddy gloves. Pathetic. Do be a dear and lie still; I’d hate to make a mess.”

A cold voice echoed around the ruined buildings. “Ninja Zero Two, what have I told you about taking on threats bigger than yourself?”

A flicker of relief passed across the young girl’s face as Sing looked around for the source of the voice. “Dragon Slayer. I would have words with you.”

“Release the girl, and then we’ll talk.” An older woman clad in thick leather armour appeared at the end of the street, holding a massive sword bigger than King Saw in one hand and a book in the other.

Sing Love waited dangerously long before easing her cannon off the ground. Zero disappeared in a flicker of movement, reappearing in a kneeling position in front of Dragon Slayer. “I’m sorry, My Lady. I didn’t want you to meet with her. I was afraid you might get hurt.”

Slayer caressed the child’s head. “Your plan was poor in execution, but pure of intent. I will not punish you this time. Return home now, I am more than capable of taking care of myself.”

“Yes, My Lady.” Zero Two vanished.

Dragon Slayer gave the albino woman a calculating look. “Speak, then. You very nearly interrupted one of my hunts.”

Sing Love raised her cannon, and it shifted into her scythe. “I will be brief. I want your word that you will stay out of my way in the coming days. I hold no illusions as to your power, and do not wish to uselessly expend resources keeping you at bay.”

The Slayer smiled. It was all Sing could do not to shudder. “Perhaps some of my youngling’s lesson’s would be better served with you. I will stay out of your infantile spat with the little flame, but if you encroach on my land again, nothing you can do will save you from my wrath. Do I make myself perfectly clear, White Rock Shooter?”

Sing gave no physical reaction, but Dragon Slayer knew she had touched quite a few nerves. She simply spun her scythe about her and vanished.

The older Otherself gave a chuckle as a huge form descended from the heavens. “No matter how hard you fan your flame, you’re still nothing but a match to my power. And I myself am a mere newling next to the power of the Queen, sealed as it is.”

A massive dragon settled itself just behind it’s mistress, bearing several massive scars along it’s body. This was one of the select few that Slayer had allowed to live, for their value as servant beasts and sources of advice in trying times. This one had required some discipline to instil the proper amount of respect and fear, but it had been well worth it. She reached back and stroked it’s snout. “But will the Queen realise her potential? Will she save the world, or doom it? What do you think, hm?”

The dragon rumbled low in it’s throat. Dragon Slayer laughed. “Yes, I agree. So as it is, so as it was, so it will be. Time will tell.”