Corwyn Ambers VII
Corwyn steadied his knees and foot placement on the platform, the heavy weight of his armor and weapon adding up with his own body-weight, causing the launching pad to slightly buckle. His hand reached over his back, making sure that the drawstring around his javelin quiver was secured tightly, not wanting any of them to fall out while he was being launched.
Ozpin spoke about the goals and rules, citing what he was familiar with from his research on Initiation. From his helm he glanced over to Ruby, the girl waving over at him, and with a cool nod, he focused onto the forest.
'North, Northwest.' Corwyn mused, his eyes being enhanced as they picked through foliage and started to analyze the density of the forest; looking for any potential clearings that might hint at an extensive network of ruins.
It was with the 'clunk' of the platform underfoot that Corwyn took a deep breath, glancing over to where Jaune seemed to be praying for his life.
Corwyn chuckled, and then the next thing he knew, he was in the air. Air buffeted his form, Corwyn slowing down dramatically from the drag and resistance of his un-aerodynamic body soaring through the wind. He flipped ungainly for several rotations, growling at the disorienting feeling and flexing the mystical tattoos engraved on his skin.
[Spoiler=Veins of Lighting]
Veins of Lightning (Relic)
Lightning Forged: This tattoo has been forged with Lightning Magic, granting it the aspect of Storm. Storm, Lightning, Electricity, and Thunder based Enchantments are unlocked and enhanced.
Ascendent Quality: This tattoo has ascended. It has ascended past the boundaries of the physical world and has become an entity holding spiritual power and might through its sheer quality. Weaving and Using the Enchantments of this item is more energy efficient.
Elemental Spawn: Your body has been forged in Lighting Dust. Eating, consuming, or directly injecting refined quantities of Dust does not hurt and instead grants you inhuman powers. Lighting and Electricity does not harm you and you have an innate tolerance to Heat and Wind as closely related elements. You enjoy flying and heights do not scare you.
Lighting Quick: Lighting Dances swiftly through the user's nerves as if through gold rather than flesh. Grants the tattoo bearer vastly quicker reaction times.
Divine Grasp: Grasp or throw lighting, as if it were a physical object. You've gained Mastery over the element beyond mortal reach, capable of manipulating existing Lightning like you were an Elemental Magic User.
Sealed Supercell: Your tattoo is animated and ever growing, its symbology developing into an ever-shifting array of lightning bolts and ultra-realistic storm clouds. Within these animated figures an actual storm exists, and you can conjure forth the lighting and winds of this storm into reality.
Elementalization: You can turn into living lighting and clouds for however long your Aura can sustain you within this unnatural form. By absorbing electricity or calling on an active storm, you can sustain yourself in this form.
[/spoiler]
The wrath and warmth of lighting coursed through his veins, The Veins of Lighting burning brightly as in one moment a man made of metal and flesh soared through the air, and in the next he became a storm of raging plasma. In the next blink, Corwyn reformed himself from his brief Elementalization, falling to the earth as he killed all of his momentum transforming himself into lighting.
A storm of petals swarmed around him, the rose leaves buffeting his form, before coalescing into a young woman with a wide smile on her face. "Hahaha!" She cheered, sitting on Corwyn's back as they fell.
Corwyn himself couldn't hide his grin, the ground and foliage of the trees coming closer and closer, until he felt Ruby squeeze his neck, then vanish in a storm of soft petals. His own body flashed with lighting, Elementalizing once more and reforming kneeling on the ground. Next to him Ruby's body reformed from a wind's drift of rose petals, clapping softly as she cradled Crescent Rose across her chest.
"Again! Again!" She cheered.
Corwyn laughed with her, standing from his kneeling position, lumbering over to her and rubbing her messy hair. She stuck out a tongue in response to her hair's violation but pushed herself into his touch just the same.
Corwyn sighed, "I should make an enchanted Compass one of these days." He mused, "Useful to find mission objectives, if nothing else." Instead of pulling out an enchanted compass, he glanced over to Ruby who did have a compass inside a survival knife he'd given to her when they went camping in the forests of Patch.
She hummed, "What direction?" She asked.
"North-Northwest is what I deduced." Corwyn answered, "We didn't go far when compared to other initiates, but those that did went in the wrong direction, so they'll be turned around right now." Corwyn hefted Malleus onto his shoulder, the heavy great hammer clanging onto Stormplate's pauldron.
"Sweet! Think we'll get there first?" Ruby wondered as they started walking in the direction captured.
"Unlikely. While a majority of the initiates were thrown in odd directions, there were a few platforms -ours not included- that were aimed towards the ruins." Corwyn stated, drawing an understanding nod from Ruby.
It was as Corwyn finished his sentence that his left hand drew back and pried out a javelin from his tight quiver, then with a flick of the wrist and an extension of his arm; the Javelin flew. His form was improper and more like he was flicking a toothpick or light knife, but the sundering boom that followed in the Javelin's wake that ruffled the leaves of the Emerald Forest proved that a proper application of force was unneeded.
A thundering boom echoed back to the two hunters that didn't pause in their advance, a bolt of lightning flashing out from the forest and striking Corwyn's outstretched palm: materializing into the thrown Javelin. Twirling the weapon, Corwyn sheathed it back into his quiver.
"What was it?" Ruby asked with simple curiosity.
"Beowolf Alpha scouting us out." Corwyn answered blandly, "Its pack got spooked by the thunder, and they're fleeing right now." His contacts were amazing tools that dramatically enhanced his perception, allowing him to pick out targets from unreal distances away, even disregarding cover and foliage.
"Save some for me at least." Ruby pouted.
Corwyn chuckled, gesturing forward where an ungainly Ursa Major and two of its Minors lumbered.
Ruby grinned, and in a jolt of blurring red vanished towards the creatures. Within the next instant, the Ursa Major had a blade around its neck, Ruby pulling the blade along, slitting its throat and angling her rifle towards the foreleg of one of the minor Grimm. The gun barked, ripping a gruesome wound and nearly decapitating the Ursa Major as Ruby went flying, twirling up in the air to flash down in a spurt of rose petals. The spiked butt of her Scythe stabbing down into the confused skull of the last Ursa Minor.
The weapon Mecha Shifted into its rifle form, ripping out the butt spike from the lobotomized Grimm, and allowed Ruby to summarily execute the Ursa Minor with a wounded foreleg. Ruby turned back to see Corwyn gazing up at the sky.
"Aerial?" Ruby asked, turning her rifle to the sky just the same.
"Nevermore flock, led by a Greater Nevermore; potentially an Elder. Their behavior also suggests the presence of a rival Grimm, likely a Manticore or Gryphon nest located deeper into the forest that forced them to migrate." Corwyn stated.
Ruby nodded, pulling from the small of her back a satchel similar to Corwyn's Stomach. She flipped its leather lid and pulled out a fine looking optic and quickly attached it to Crescent Rose. Corwyn rolled his eyes at the item Ruby had pulled out.
The Targeting Scope was an absolute Impulse Buy when Ruby had been browsing the latest 'Weapons Magazine Vol. 192', purchasing the latest and greatest snipping scope from Ares Armipotent, a weapons firm that was set up in Mistral and Atlas.
[spoiler=Targeting Scope]
Targeting Scope (Elite)
Mundane Craftsmanship: Made of mundane means and methods.
Targeting Guide: Will assist the shooter with illusory infographics of where to shoot to achieve the most effective strike.
Scanning Scope: Highlighted images of hostile targets will appear within the scope when ADS.
[/spoiler]
The scope's cost was utterly obscene, emptying out Ruby's personal funds and also emptying out her Signal Budget, or at least what remained. As an Orphan, Corwyn grimaced every time that thing was brought out, feeling like it was going to break at the slightest touches.
He forced himself to ignore the protective urge to keep the damned thing in a tempered glass container, and instead just let Ruby do her thing while he drew his own Javelins. Chambering her rounds, Ruby started to let them fly, and Corwyn's contacts functioned well to follow the bullets and see the killing blows they struck in real-time motion; his reflexes granted to him by his tattoos allowing him to follow the trail of lighting as it fell, let alone that of a bullet.
The Targeting Scope's most effective enchantment would have to be 'Targeting Guide', giving Ruby a reticle that she needed to put the center of her crosshair on that would account for every possible effect on the bullet outside of direct intervention. Wind, curvature of the earth, the time of day and the temperature of the atmosphere; everything. It was this reticle that guided the bullet to land the most 'effective' strike, which didn't always translate to 'most lethal'.
Case in Point, when Ruby fired at the Greater or Elder Nevermore, her bullet landed not on its eye, head, or a critical organ. Instead, it landed between the crux of its flapping wings, digging into soft flesh and ripping deep into its back, striking spine. The creature's wings froze, and it started to list down, falling to the earth in a complete freefall as its wings failed to do anything other than twitch.
Corwyn then released his own weapon, the javelin streaking through the sky in a thundering sonic boom, before then exploding with the fury and force of Thunder that shook his teeth in his mouth. Ruby laughed, exulting in the feeling of Thunder and its sonic fury, while Corwyn himself chuckled, feeling powerful.
The entire Nevermore flock was struck from the sky with that attack, Corwyn reaching out and grabbing his weapon as the crackling rumble of thunder faded into the skies.
Corwyn continued his journey, sighing softly in relief as Ruby took off the scope mount and returned it to her satchel. Whenever she put the scope on her weapon, Corwyn knew to act as her protector, as they'd made it a rule for her to not snipe without active guardianship as placing the scope on her weapon prevented Crescent Rose from mechashifting.
"W-wait up!" Ruby cried, stumbling into his step, socking him in the arm petulantly. The two enjoyed the pleasant stroll through the Emerald Forest, only to pause as they came across voices.
"-regarding classes and team training, I believe that we could potentially balance training between the both of us. I highly doubt our fellow teammates will be as…skilled or with a pedigree as vibrant as ours. We'll have to work with them to bring them to our level.." A posh sounding voice filtered into both of their ears, sounding grating to one's sensibilities even from here.
"Yes, yes," A distracted voice, soft and pleasant, responded, "Do you know what that boom was? It sounded like thunder…"
"Perhaps an initiates semblance?" The posh voice postulated.
Corwyn and Ruby came into a brief clearing, finding a tall red-headed amazonian woman looking to the skies with a concerned look, while a short white-haired girl didn't seem so concerned beyond looking satisfied as a fat cat that caught its canary.
"Howdy." Corwyn waved, gesturing with his hammer. The two women snapped their attention towards the duo, blinking in surprise at the man in full plate armor and the short girl hugging close to him.
There was a short and awkward silence, before Corwyn ended it, "We're headed for the Ruins, if you want to join…feel free." He shrugged.
The white-haired girl seemed to want to say something about that, before the amazon stepped forward with a wide smile and nodded. "Please, if you'll have us."
The Atlesien frowned deeply, but sighed and nodded, stepping forward with her partner.
Corwyn nodded, pushing Ruby who was hiding behind him forward. She 'epped', "This is Ruby. Names' Corwyn. Pleasure."
"Pyrrha Nikos." She bowed her head slightly.
"Weiss Schnee." The white-haired princess jerked her chin in the air, as if expecting praise and laudable credit for existing.
"Hey, Ruby; that the Ice Knees that blew you up?" Corwyn asked, his voice stained by a hint of contempt.
Ruby blushed under the querying gaze of Pyrrha and the narrowing eyes of Weiss. "Erm, yes." She shuffled side to side.
"Please don't believe whatever slander she's told you; she's just an immature troublemaker." Weiss claimed. Ruby deflated, looking at the girl with troubled and confused eyes.
Corwyn's helm tilted slightly to the side, and all three twitched and jumped when a lash of lighting suddenly charred the side of a tree black. "...Right..." The man's hand clapped Ruby on the shoulder, jolting her around lightly. "You've been a naughty girl, lying to me like that. How dare ye'." He stated in a deadpan apathetic tone.
Ruby choked on her giggles, "Stahp."
Corwyn snorted, releasing Ruby, turning his blank helmet's gaze to Weiss; "Learn how to handle your Dust properly Schnee; waving it around like it's a shaker toy isn't the expected behavior I'd have of someone like you." Corwyn stated in a dismissive tone as he advanced, passing the watching Pyrrha who was watching the peanut gallery as an uninformed observer.
Corwyn waved her to follow him as he passed, the Amazon instinctually following the confident stride of the man; Ruby on his six. They left a wide-eyed Weiss who reacted to his passing words like they were a physical slap.
Pyrrha advanced several steps with the new duo, glancing behind her to see Weiss flushed red slightly with shame and rage. Pyrrha sighed and waited, the group pausing with her, before Weiss grumbled and turned to follow them. They continued on their journey.
"That was kind of you, Pyrrha." Corwyn muttered, his helmet muffling his voice enough that the lagging Weiss couldn't hear him.
Pyrrha blinked and put on a polite smile, "Erm, thank you?"
The man's helmet turned to slightly face her, the shadowed depth hiding his face and eyes. "The rich brat needs to be put in her place, knocked off her high horse. She's of Atlas' spawn, so she'll be hard to chip; like ice. If I'm too mean to her, just say something. But she fucks with Ruby? Then the filter goes away, and I start going for the throat." The man chuckled ruefully, "Ten lien she's got mommy or daddy issues or something." He chuckled, although his grim amusement turned into dispirited grumbling rather quickly as he sighed; "Not getting paid enough to be a fucking therapist damnit."
Pyrrha stared at the man with wide eyes, shocked at the blatantly negative perceptions that the man had of her partner. Perceptions that a voice in the back of her head privately held just the same. She wanted to get angry at the man, but when he spoke nothing but fact and seemed to not revel in the mean-spirited bullying of her partner; instead growing weary of potentially needing to solve it, she floundered.
Her floundering and gaping mouth desperately grasped for something to say, closed shut as Corwyn suddenly stepped forward, drawing his weapon with him.
The hand arresting his Warhammer extended out, being swung in a random direction. Pyrrha followed the weapon, only to flinch back when a torrential wave of wind ripped through the foliage, extending from the hammer and blowing away bushes and branches. The attack seemed to piss something off, as a horrible cerevid scream could attest to.
The squad of four formed up with weapons ready, Corwyn advancing as the rest fell back. Corwyn raised his voice as he called out the identity of their bogey.
"Manhunter!"
From the depths of the woods a gruesome and twisted creature crawled with massive human muscular arms and hands, armored not in bone, but soft spongy black flesh, spotted with white specs. Its arms sprouted from a flayed humanoid torso, the muscle fibers revealed to the elements pitch black with a slightly red sheen to them.
The creature was missing its legs, ending off in tattered strands of blackened flesh where its groin would've begun. The creature's head was an elk's skull, the great antlers sprouting from its skull capped off with a good half-dozen human skulls. The creature dragged itself forward, lunging at Corwyn with hands splayed out and a savage yawning cry echoing from its skull.
His hammer gleamed with a spark of wondrous light, a disdainful huff left Corwyn's mouth as he dodged to the side, leaping to the side and clearing the creature's first attack. His eyes gleamed under his helm, a lash of lightning crackling from his armor and crawling along the creature's side, charring it black. In the same instant, his hammer's head reared back, the pole-haft of the weapon bending back from the sheer force of his rearing, his back arching and bending like a bow.
With one final spark of mystic energy, Corwyn let all the built-up tension in his body and hammer go; crashing his weapon into the reared back shoulder that it kept in reserve, its massive hand already reaching towards him in an attempt to squeeze him out of his armor.
His hammer's head flashed with electricity as it struck the creature's collarbone, the lightning Dust activation; but that was merely the prelude. A crack sounded out, nearing the pitch of a high-caliber gunshot; the watching hunters flinched as blinding bright light fell from the skies and struck the hammerhead in contact with the creature. The Manhunter screamed, Corwyn backing away as the creature convulsed and twitched, one of its arms a mulched mess of cauterized flesh. The muscle and flesh sloughing off while blackened blood steamed out of its wound, the plasma having boiled it inside its flesh..
The creature lashed out, panicking and in agony, yet was utterly silent as the volts and lightning that had crashed into its body paralyzed its body, locked in instinctual and chaotic twitching.
Pyrrha and Ruby advanced without hesitation, Pyrrha going straight for its other arm as she noticed Ruby was going for the killing blow. Pyrrha's javelin was thrown, bolstered by her semblance as it lanced through the creature's elbow, crippling its other arm thrashing arm.
Ruby meanwhile swirled her scythe, the tip of the blade reaching under the creature's deer-mask; with a pull of the trigger a thick sniper's round lanced through its chest, ventilating its insides. The recoil of the shot was channeled up, threading the sharp scythe blade through its chin and out its forehead. With a brutal rip and twirl, the creature's skull was cut in half while its chest leaked blackened blood.
The combat ended quickly, the hunters retreating and regrouping; weapons drawn and ready for more. When nothing more came, Corwyn grunted, "Pyrrha, good job reading Ruby's movements. We'll need to work on call-outs and priority targets, who should execute and who should soften or maim. The Manhunter's arms and hands are its greatest strength, so taking them out is always imperative and key to a clean victory, although one might be tempted to rip out its throat due to its baleful scream. Thankfully we killed it before it decided to use that trump card." Corwyn gave a simple summary of the creature, complementing Pyrrha as she'd acted well.
Pyrrha nodded, smiling lightly at the complement; one not given to her skill, her strength, and her prestige, but instead her thoughtful mind in reading the situation. Not entirely unique but welcome all the same.
Corwyn glanced over to the frowning Weiss, her blade drawn uselessly. "Weiss, you're a Dust Caster, right?" Corwyn asked.
The woman looked like she didn't want to answer that out of spite but nodded anyway. "Keeping in the backline is good, but there's a difference between 'backline' and falling behind. You'll end up getting grabbed by a creepy monster." He gestured towards the creature's corpse. "The Manhunter was stalking us, and without my noticing it, it'd have seen you were distant from the group and just snatched you. They're ambush predators, ya' see?"
Weiss swallowed thickly and nodded stiffly.
Corwyn then glanced over at Ruby, "A patient hunter I've made of you yet." He chuckled, "I remember in our first few hunts together you raced off for the kill; now you waited for a soft target to execute. Good job." His gauntleted hand ruffled the girl's head, Ruby pouting at the action as she shoved the hand off and drew her hood up.
"You're embarrassing me!" She hissed, her whisper entirely heard by the amused Pyrrha and the very unamused Weiss.
"That's my job." Corwyn's previously dead and unlively voice, strict and to the point, lightened with a new life. "Ever onwards, as the ferryman says." Corwyn quoted a common, if grim, legend of death within Remnant, an idiom unique to the world.
The party continued on, soon finding remnants of stones and cairns made by ancient humans, arriving at more substantial ruins like large bricks and chiseled blocks. It seemed that the ruins were uncontested, the party finding their way to the various chess pieces with ease.
"I don't like the symbology here." Corvac muttered, Ruby and Weiss perking up, while Pyrrha frowned deeply.
"What do you mean? It's just chess." Weiss uttered blandly, picking up a bishop for her and Pyrrha.
"What comes to mind when you play chess?" Corwyn asked, picking up a pawn piece, tossing it in the air, then snatching it before it fell.
Ruby and Weiss hummed. "Strategy?" Ruby asked, more than stated. Weiss opened her mouth, but no words came out as she glared at Ruby for having 'stolen' her answer.
It was Pyrrha who stared at the board grimly, "Sacrifice." She whispered.
"Black bishop takes white bishop, white knight takes black bishop, black queen takes white knight, white pawn takes black queen. An endless game of sacrifices." He held his piece up between his gauntleted fingers. "It also symbolizes Hunter-life quite well." He chuckled mirthlessly.
Weiss didn't seem to like that, frowning deeply, "What do you mean? We're not…pawns on a board." She gestured.
"Aren't we?" Corwyn chuckled, "Hunters are the white, and the Grimm are the black; just widen the board endlessly, remove all the rules, and stack the deck in the favor of black. Endless sacrifices; pawns, rooks, knights, bishops, queens. Thrown into the endless maw of the Grimm. All for what?" He questioned.
None liked the question, and before an argument or debate could start, he pointed at the missing piece on the board.
"I guess it depends on what you see as your King." Corwyn mused.
"What we see?" Pyrrha questioned, interested in the philosophical topic.
"For some, it is their pride and glory; the accolades they gain by defending the many. The renown and fame, the acclaim and accreditation, the validation of strength and might. An attractive honey, if a bitter poison once fermented long enough." Corwyn chuckled darkly, his helmeted gaze fixed on Pyrrha and Weiss.
Both girls felt those words resonate in them, staring at Corwyn with wide eyes. Pyrrha grew increasingly discomforted by how…perceptive the man was. Like he could just look at her and understand.
"For others, it is a duty, a calling, or a riveting quest to undertake. A burden most gleefully bared. For it gives them purpose, meaning, and strength in upholding their duty." Weiss, ruminating deeply on the previous draws towards the profession and how it applied to her own desire for self-validation, now remembered her sister. Winter wearing the colors of Atlas.
Corwyn sighed as he tossed his partner the piece, the girl smiling up at the man with a comforting expression. "The reasons for doing this job are many. Endless as the motivations that humans do anything really." He hefted his hammer onto his shoulder, "But, regardless of all our reasons; we do it for one, and one only. It is a necessary profession that we undertake to defend our King. Our core belief, and the one that you tell yourself every time you wake up in the morning. The whisper of purpose and sense of directive that without, we'd just be a husk. Whether that be the loved one's at home, the safety and prosperity of one's nation, a beloved partner…" Corwyn's voice drifted, and he ended his impromptu speech with a single sentence, "Guard it with jealousy." His hand fell on Ruby's head, ruffling her hair under her drawn up hood.
Ruby smiled, pushing herself closer to the man.
Weiss and Pyrrha raised an eyebrow at the affectionate gesture, the previous actions having been written off as them being good friends from their time in their academies. Both wondered if they were related, or dating.
Corwyn laughed as Ruby glued herself to his side, turning his attention towards the Beacon Cliff. "Best get going." He gestured his head, and the group nodded; following his next step, ignoring the gunfire that came from deeper in the forest. This was a test, and they'd be acting against it if they helped others.
The adventure towards the cliff was uneventful, and as they climbed the etched steps and rose to the surface; they found themselves alone. Standing on a podium was Ozpin and Glynda Goodwitch, the two professors watching their scrolls intently.
"Mr. Ambers, Ms. Rose; congratulations." Ozpin nodded, his smile warm and impressed. "A marvelous display of mastery over your semblance, Mr. Ambers." The man stated as he walked down from the podium and came to the group.
"Thank you, Professor." Corwyn bowed slightly, inflecting his tone with a modicum of warmth in it. Corwyn didn't really know what to think of his headmaster.
Ozpin smiled, turning his gaze towards Ruby, "A marvelous shot, taking down that Elder Nevermore, Ms. Rose."
Ruby blushed, rubbing her nose; guilt likely eating up at her as it was the scope doing most of the work. Corwyn rolled his eyes, placing his hand around the back of her neck, the smaller girl being pressed up next to him. Ruby blushed further, their ring's connection allowing them some form of mutual empathy; the nervousness and guilt ebbing away from her by Corwyn's projected warmth.
"Ms. Schnee, your display with your family semblance was ever an inspiring display against that juvenile Deathstalker. I remember Nikolas was capable of summoning truly monstrous creatures." The old Headmaster chuckled, "I'm sure you'll surpass the man quickly."
Weiss blushed at the praise, and the reference towards her long-deceased grandfather shaking the girl. She stuttered a thanks, blushing up a storm for being so taken off balance by the short remarks.
"And ever a capable fighter, Ms. Nikos; a sharp mind, a strong body, and skills beyond your age." Ozpin chuckled, eyes crinkling with amusement, "Leo was beset with envy that you decided to come to Beacon. And, I say this to you too, Ms. Schnee: Welcome to Vale." The man had a certain pride in his voice as he said that.
Corwyn was reminded of the fact that the name of 'Oz' didn't appear in other lands, centralized within the equatorial lands of Saunus; even shying away from Vacuo. Corwyn wondered who the original Oz was to inspire so many great men to take up the name.
With a deep breath, Corwyn took in the campus, staring up at the towering Beacon that was his new school through his visor.
It just started to hit him now that he was here. At Beacon.
He felt a tug on his arm, glancing down to see Ruby staring up at him with exasperated eyes, "C'mon." She whispered, and Corwyn followed her, realizing he'd gotten swallowed in his thoughts and time had progressed. He trudged over to a set of stone benches, sitting down with the other two girls who made their way over as well.
With a sigh, Corwyn sat down, reaching up to fiddle with his armor's straps. The action drew the attention from the other two girls.
https://forum.questionablequesting.com/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2F564x%2F2a%2F8b%2Fd4%2F2a8bd4b055cbecf8ea0fad66c0156e0e.jpg&hash=e08ab6541b00f3b6e9708363f7b54de6
He just had something of a resting bitch face, and raising an eyebrow had them looking away. Relaxing on the stone bench, Corwyn waited, no conversation being made by the somewhat awkward party.
It didn't take much longer for other teams to start to arrive, a quartet of boys soon reaching the platform; cheering as they were wont to do. Teams and people that Corwyn had no reference towards arrived just the same, cheering or celebrating as they started a new chapter in their life.
Corwyn glanced at Ruby, who was doddering around, her feet swinging as she inspected each and every one of the new arrival's weapons.
Soon Goodwitch was yelling out directions, organizing people into lines, and by the time everyone had arrived they were formatted into a rough assembly.
"When your name is called, please come to the stand." Ozpin stated on his microphone, glancing down at his scroll, "Corwyn Ambers, Ruby Rose."
"Welp, we're first." He muttered, helping Ruby up and jaunting over to the side of the stage.
"Pyrrha Nikos, Weiss Schnee." The two also stood, Weiss putting on a plastic smile, but anyone could see that her heart was racing a mile a minute; realizing with a sudden sinking feeling what might be occurring.
"Together you will form Team Asper, spelled ASPR. Led by Corwyn Ambers." Ozpin smiled up at the man who sighed reluctantly, nodding to Ozpin out of respect and shaking the man's hand.
Internally, Corwyn was groaning in absolute agony. He'd heard that small snippet from Weiss, talking about planning and all sorts of bullshit. Now he was going to have to do all of that.
'Thank God I don't sleep.' He thought, realizing he could use his extra hours to do all of his course work and team-planning stuff then. His Team joined him down the stairs, resting and watching the rest of the teams get chosen. Ironically, the only 'cannon' team was Team Cardinal, and the sister team to the theoretical 'Team Ruby' soon joined the stage.
"Jaune Arc, Blake Belladonna." Corwyn winced, they were a team? Yikes. He knew Blake had a reputation within the fandom of RWBY, often called 'The Shitty Kitty' and other derogatory names. Corwyn didn't know if she was the same mess she was on the screen, and he desperately hoped for her to not be.
"Yang Xiao Long, Ren Li." A slight androgynous girl, Yang's partner, joined the stage.
With the naming of Jaune as the Leader of Team Jazzberry, or Team JBRY; the ceremony soon wrapped up. The first years were then guided by a selection of second years or higher to their dorms; Corwyn and his team being led up the tower and to a lonely door at the end of a hallway.
Keying all of their scrolls, they were greeted to a larger 'living space' with empty bunk beds and mattresses still inside their boxes. There were also several massive crates dominating nearly a full quarter of the room, all of them white and marked with Schnee's logo.
Pyrrha's luggage seemed to consist of a pathetic duffle bag that didn't even seem full.
Ruby's was a bit more substantial, two large suitcases: one for her toolings and mechashift engineering supplies. The other for her personal effects.
Corwyn's luggage equaled Pyrrha's own; a large black duffle bag packed with his limited belongings.
However, Corwyn also had a massive hiking backpack that was kitted out with pots, pans, cookware, survival needs, blankets, sleeping bags, and a tent. Everything a survivalist wanted or needed inside of that backpack; there was. Weight wasn't much of a concern to Corwyn, restless and untiring as he was; he could walk around with a ton on his back all day, and so long as his Aura was up, not experience any health side effects other than discomfort from a ton resting on his back all day.
"Ruby, can you organize?" Corwyn stated to his fiancée, "I need to go have a chat with Goodwitch about a few things."
Ruby nodded quickly, "Sure!" She vibrated around, gasping as she saw the connected kitchen tucked around the farthest right wall. "Corwyn, can we have food today?" She begged. "Please, please!"
Corwyn chuckled, "I need food to cook, so I guess I'll be asking Goodwitch about that as well."
"And what exactly are you going to be asking Professor Goodwitch about?" Weiss asked, her voice straining with bitterness. Corwyn had noticed how she'd been swallowing her emotions about not getting Team Leader and was expecting some pokes and prods at his authority from Weiss.
"Team Leader requirements, schedule specifics, Team Building exercises, budget allotments for weapons and armor smithing, the syllabus for various classes, grading rubrics, and so on." Corwyn stated blandly.
Weiss shrunk back, nodding and woodenly moving towards her luggage, sighing as she stared at the mountain. "And Weiss, can you erm, deal with all of that? I'm implementing a 'No Dust' rule inside the dorms; I don't exactly feel comfortable sleeping next to enough ordinance to level half the dorms."
Pyrrha nodded to what Corwyn said, that having been on her mind since the moment she stepped into the dorms. There was no reason to have that much dust on hand.
Weiss frowned deeply, nearly becoming a scowl, before she nodded.
"Good, I'll be going. Pyrrha, you're Co-Captain while I'm gone." He made her Co-Captain instead of Ruby because Weiss was more likely to listen to her instead of Ruby; plus, it'd create distance from Ruby in professional perspective, showing that he didn't favor her. He certainly did, but he didn't want to damage his limited authority over his team with blatant displays of favoritism.
Pyrrha jerked her head towards him, blushing in surprise, but Corwyn just waved and shut the sliding electric door. He then turned and opened his Scroll, opening up the map of Beacon and started navigating his way towards Goodwitch's office.
One elevator ride later, and he arrived before a sturdy door with the professor's name written in bold gold lettering. He knocked, then opened his way into the office. Inside he found Goodwitch typing away rapidly on her terminal computer, glancing over to him in a bit of surprise. With a gesture the hard-light screen faded from existence.
He'd never had the funds to inspect or play around with Remnant's entertainment industry. He wondered what miracles this world had created to keep their populations sedated.
"Hello, Professor."
"Mr. Ambers, yes?" Goodwitch asked, clearing her desk slightly and gesturing for him to sit. "It is not often that I obtain visitors from a first year, let alone on the first day." She mused.
Corwyn raised an eyebrow, honestly having expected a line out the door. "Well, I have questions, to say the very least." Corwyn chuckled. "I guess the first thing I'd need to talk about would be Team Leader requirements." He murmured, "What goals should I pursue, what do I need to turn in, if anything, and what are things that you are looking for within a team?"
Goodwitch smiled, the woman lighting up at the good questions, "For now, your goals should be rather simple; familiarize yourself with one another and try to strike up basic friendships and a degree of trust between one another. Fantastical synergy during combat can come during later years as you learn one another's fighting style. For now, I don't truly expect any first-year team to develop advanced tactics specialized to your team's build, but it never hurts to get started."
Corwyn nodded, his fingers racing over his scrolls hardlight screen, writing down her words with unnatural speed and dexterity. It became even more impressive considering he was still wearing his articulated gauntlets.
It only took him but a moment to write down the note, nodding as he continued, "I'd like to have access to the school's schedule, trips, field trips, special events, and things of that nature. Anywhere I can find resources for such things?"
The professor nodded, "We'll be hosting a tech-class tomorrow. Inside we'll teach you the ins-and-outs of Beacon's local servers and the resources we have uploaded to them. You'll need verification that can only be granted inside of that class, although your class schedules have already been emailed to you."
"Wonderful. My next question would be Beacon's facilities. I've heard much about them." He chuckled, the Professor herself looking rather proud of the topic.
"Yes, we have a plethora of facilities that are available to any student, regardless of year, although you'll need to apply for the que, as some of these facilities require time to set up; or are in high demand throughout the year."
"And where would I access this que list?" Corwyn asked.
"The school's website, which is restricted to accounts; you'll have access to them after the tech class tomorrow."
Corwyn frowned, and without a helmet currently on, the Professor saw it. "Anything wrong with that?" She asked.
"The higher years will have immediate access to the que; worried about getting a good spot." Corwyn admitted.
The professor nodded, "The upperclassmen do have that advantage, but not many immediately jump to obtain spots within the que; adapting to one's academic requirements takes precedence." She warned with a knowing look on her face.
Corwyn chuckled, "That leads perfectly to my next question; grading rubrics and syllabi."
Goodwitch nodded, glancing down to her desk and from a drawer she drew out a page. "This is the grading rubric for Combat Class, my class. You'll be scored in a variety of categories as to balance the grading between those with combat styles that don't conform to arena battles. The most significant grade would be your receptiveness to feed-back and working on your free-time or allotted training periods to work on that feed-back. The more you endeavor to improve within my class, the higher your grade."
She slid the page towards him and Corwyn gave it a quick glance through, nodding as he started to compare it to Signal's grading method that was a bit more subjective. But that was just Tai being Tai.
"As for your other classes, each teacher will have their own Syllabi and Rubrics; they'll hand them out during classes." Corwyn nodded tightly in response.
"My last question would be in regards to Beacon's budget allotments for weapons and armor development." Corwyn stated.
Goodwitch's eyes coasted along Stormplate and Malleus Fulminis. Stormplate wasn't a bad set of armor, and neither was Malleus Fulminis a bad great-hammer. But they were rough. Crude in a design sense, and while Enchanting had done much to refine the quality of the make and temper, strengthening the plates of dust-forged steel into some ascendantly impervious material; that didn't mean much when the design of the armor was of an older age.
Corwyn's armor held the same weaknesses that all plate armor had. Weakness in the joints, weaknesses under the armpit, weaknesses in the visor gap that was crudely chiseled out.
"Beacon's budget allotment is designed to assist students with improving their weapons and armaments, and in that regard we take exceptional strides towards fulfilling even the inanest of ideas; provided that the student in question holds the pedigree of being capable of turning said madness into abject genius." She spoke from familiarity, her tone holding a unique cadence of nostalgia and remembrance.
"As a first-year, you are limited to a strip-spend of two-hundred a fifty thousand lien in the development of weapons, an additional seventy-five thousand in the purchase of Dust-Forged armor for those who need it, which can be folded into further weapons development if needed. For those who subscribe to the combat style of the Dust Mage, as they are often known as, Dust is provided at a hefty discount to all Hunters enrolled within Beacon, allowing for free experimentation."
As Goodwitch spoke, she was accessing her computer again, the hard light screen flashing with information, before she paused on something. "Ah." She frowned deeply. "The Vale Council has also seen it fitting to allot you with a grant of three-hundred thousand Lien in the development of your career, as a reward for ranking within the highest percentage of Signal Academy. Due to your…situation…your academic career at Beacon is also paid in full; provided you pass." She spoke with a heavy distaste of what she'd just read, while sounding like good news, it was really just politics being played.
Corwyn paid such things no mind, familiar with the Government and their pathetic displays; knowing he was likely to be on some tabloid article as the Government's 'Golden Boy', a message for all that their pathetic little plans worked.
"..." Corwyn was silent as he processed the fact that he'd just obtained a disgusting amount of money, ideas brewing inside his skull; thinking deep on what he could do with that much money.
Six-Hundred and Fifty-Thousand Lien was a fuck ton of money; all of it tax-payer, of which he'd be obtaining even more every year he graduated at Beacon. It made him process the fact that his resource requirements that he'd been battling for all his life, were null and void. It also had him start to dream.
He glanced down at his armor. He'd always wear armor, but now he was thinking of ways to improve it. Not by enchanting it, but by improving its design.
He glanced over to his hammer, the massive thing propped up on its flat head, standing tall and resolute.
Ideas started to spark, and Corwyn brewed on how to achieve them. The idea that he had in mind…it was ambitious. But, he had a bullshit semblance that could do anything he put his mind towards, and the gestation of a dream started to become practical if he could get the right enchantments on his gear.
"I, uh, thank you Professor. I need to…think about something." He stated distractedly, his mind awash with ideas and concepts.
The Professor said something that went in one ear and out the other, Corwyn returning to the hall and soon navigating to his dorm.
Inside he found his team arguing.
"No! I need the space for these; I've already talked with the staff, and they've said they couldn't store it!"
"Corwyn said he'd banned Dust in the dorm room." Pyrrha stated firmly, "And I'm going to have to agree with him. It's dangerous to have Dust in a cramped room with four hunters; our Aura isn't always perfectly controlled, so what happens if we ignite it?"
The Schnee growled, "Ruby, please, just let me store it in the closet." She begged his girlfriend, who glanced over to him, protecting the closet that had quickly started to become dominated by white and red outfits; both Ruby and Weiss', it seems. Pyrrha had her things tucked under her bed; very spartan of her.
Corwyn rubbed his skull, his metallic boots clacking on the floor, drawing attention to him. "Weiss, who did you ask about storing your Dust?"
She frowned, "One of the staff." She replied with a clipped tone.
"What were they doing when you asked them?"
"...Cleaning?" She queried her head, crossing her arms as she struggled to find why that was relevant.
Corwyn sighed deeply, "You asked a janitor if you could store Dust. Open your Beacon Map and go to the Quartermaster, ask if you can store your personal dust reserves with him."
Weiss frowned, "Why do they have such poorly trained staff in Beacon…" She muttered.
Corwyn's eyes looked dead, "He's a janitor, he cleans things, and does maintenance on the building. He's not your manservant, Weiss."
She almost seemed to pout, taking her scroll and storming out the door by him without a word. Corwyn closed his eyes at the girl's rudeness, meditating to keep his temper in control.
God, he couldn't wait to spar against Weiss. He was going to fucking destroy her.
He opened his eyes to see Pyrrha rubbing her temple, Ruby sagging onto her bed. It seems they set the beds in each corner of the room, two to the right of the door, and two to the top right.
Corwyn sighed, not breaking the silence as everyone seemed to be enjoying it.
He moved over to Ruby and spread his arms out, the girl smiling and started to methodically remove his armor. He sighed as he tossed piece after piece of Stormplate down, being dressed in a simple gambeson and trousers. He sighed, taking off the rest as Ruby helped him with the most annoying pieces.
"It's getting a bit late." Corwyn stated, realizing he'd forgotten to ask where he could purchase food within Beacon's grounds. No matter, he'll just use his map and figure it out. "I'm going to go get us some groceries to stock up the kitchen, then I'll cook us a hardy meal. Pyrrha, I expect you to wake up around seven thirty at the latest, so don't stay up too late. Best get into the habit of waking up early, as I want us to be open for early morning facility slots."
"Facility slots?" Pyrrha questioned, cocking her head to the side.
"Beacon has a plethora of facilities that assist one's training and development. From advanced gyms, to combat robots, to swimming pools, workshops, Grimm Pens, and more." Corwyn stated, drawing nods from the two girls. "I'm going to be signing us up for these slots as much as I can get them, provided that we all keep up with our course work. Talk to me if it doesn't work and I'll see if I can reschedule things to better fit our needs."
The two girls nodded, Pyrrha smiling at the calm, if weighty confidence that Corwyn spoke with. 'Heavy was the Crown', seemed to be Corwyn's vibe of leadership.
Corwyn then turned to leave, "I'll be back with food." He uttered distantly, mind becoming distracted with ideas yet crystalized.
When he heard of his new wealth, Corwyn started to dream.
In that dream he discovered that he had a 'mental demon' if he was being fancy about it. This 'mental demon' was his inability to see beyond his financial situation, and it made him realize that he had the methods and means to easily conquer his material needs. A single stick, a wand effectively, and one enchantment; Transmutation, and tada. He could turn lead to gold.
Of course, selling that gold came with its own issues and problems, however, Corwyn started to realize that he'd limited himself into a bubble of creativity; enforced by his state of poverty, and had limited his mind into thinking that he had no way out of that impoverished state.
It was all in his head though, all of it was just an issue of mindset that believed he was broke; and hated spending money, even if a single artifact, like a 'Never Ending Wallet' could solve any issue he had with money.
Well, not every issue, as he doubted he could buy a house with straight cash without saying where he'd obtained that cash on his taxes. Still, it came to his attention that he had the potential to create some rather crazy things; and the first project that was enforced in his mind was his Armor and Weapons design.
He'd started to realize that his armor was a bit old fashioned, and while he'd initially planned to create a set of armor that was a more improved and refined version of his own; that was merely his sense of aesthetics talking. The desire to have a pristine suit of armor, rather than the chipped and worn-down suit of Armor he'd made when he was a freshmen.
However, he was thinking too small. Thinking in a reduced form. He realized that he could start creating artifacts that would allow him to enhance his means of designing armor and weapons; creating unique pieces of technology that were further enhanced by his magical enchantments.
He wanted to start to invest away from the combative means of enchantments that he'd been so focused on and now wanted to start focusing on utility. Things that would assist him in the creation of more refined artifacts, artifacts that would enhance his ability to learn, increasing his natural skills to make him a more well-rounded person, not just a combatant.
Corwyn walked the halls of Beacon, lost in thought; his mind brewing deeply on a thousand-thousand possibilities.