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Chapter 45: Let the Games Begin!

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Reminiscence #1

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A mother, father, maybe even a brother or a sister. Everyone had these, even if it was just one of them. Everywhere I looked, it was the same. Their mom come to watch them play. Their father praise them for what they find. They all had their families to keep them happy. Not for me.

Those eyes. The eyes full of pity. The eyes that look away when they see who I am. Those fake smiles that seem to hide their awkwardness and feelings. It's so fake. So disgusting. My father and mother are not my own, and they look at me with those eyes because of it. I hate it. I hate it so much. I refuse to call him by the name they tell me, so I call him Chief.

So I get rid of it. They pretend to know me, so lets teach them a lesson. I put a cockroach in a girl's shoe. She screamed pretty loudly. I laughed at her reaction. She's busy crying to her parents who come to scold me, along with more parents. I recognize some of them. That man was the dad of some kid I pushed into the river. The woman was a mother of a daughter I splashed lemonade on. Their words are so annoying, so I ran away.

Far away, I hid in some bush. They walked by without even knowing. Ha. Serves them right. Everyone was the same. They all had those same eyes full of pity. Stop it. I'm the same, right? Why do you look at me like that? Their smiles are fake. I hate it. I would rather them hate me. Yeah, lets do that. At least then, they would look at me with a face that is genuine.

Darn. I have a scratch on my knee. I need to visit the doctor. Chief wouldn't be happy if I have a scratch. I don't need to see that look.

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Robin stared out the window. Currently, Class 1A was sitting inside of a bus that was driving them to the other side of the kingdom. Today was the first day of the Vytal Festival, and they were scheduled to get to Sanctum sometime after noon. He had just finished reading the text from his parents. Joseph and Christina said they were gonna meet them at Sanctum.

Sanctum was also another top ranking combat school in Vale. Unlike Myriad though, Sanctum's curriculum was set up for allowing students to apply to Beacon after three years of middle school. Myriad, on the other hand, had elementary, middle, and high school level courses. Students were capable of transferring over to Beacon should they choose to, but many decided to stay there.

The students were being transported over by class. All middle-school students were to participate in the Inter-school competition across the world. High-schoolers were eligible for the Hunter tournament in the coliseum, so they were absent. Excited about the festival, all of the kids were busy talking about their expectations for the upcoming tournament. The mood affected Robin and the others, allowing them to converse normally.

“You know,” Conner said. “I never really thought about this before, but the Kingdom of Vale is huge.”

“Well of course.” Ophelia commented.

“It's one of the four kingdoms in the entire world. How long have you been living here, Conner?”

“Well I'm just saying. I have realized how big it was before, but now that we're stuck in this traffic jam, it's kind of annoying. How do they expect other students to get here?”

“People from other kingdoms are flying over.” Robin answered.

“Movement between kingdoms is done by train or flight because it's too dangerous going by car. Apparently, they're landing on an airstrip that happens to be next to Sanctum. Strangely enough, it's actually cheaper to travel by plane since planes don't meet many Grimm along the way.”

“As expected of one of our bookworms. You're just full of knowledge aren't you?”

“You would know at least this much if you paid attention in class.” Adam retorted.

“I'm honestly amazed you passed the final exam.”

“Hey! I qualified to be in the best class of our year right? I think that counts for something.”

“And it's one of the school's seven mysteries, third only to Raven's secret lover and the mysterious Peeping Tom.” Amy said.

“Secret lover? What's this?” Robin asked.

“What. You don't know?”

Robin shook his head.

“That's because he's a guy. Raven is our roommate, so we sometimes see her smiling when she talks to someone on the phone.” Blake explained.

The boys gasped and Osagi frowned. Raven. Smiling. What on Remnant happened? They would never forget Osagi's heartfelt confession to her. It was halfway through the year, and Osagi had asked Robin for advice on how to approach her. Other than him, she was never seen talking to anyone.

Surprised by the question and completely clueless on the subject of women, Robin merely told him to be upfront with her. Osagi had got down on his knees in front of the entire class with a bouquet of roses. The exact wording of her cold response was this:

“Never in this lifetime.”

Osagi had sat in the corner of their room, sulking for the rest of the day. The boy was surprisingly fragile despite his open outlook.

“That's certainly a surprise.” Robin said. “Speaking of which, where is she?”

The group shrugged. Who knew where that loner went.

“Who cares about that girl. I wanna meet some blonde beauties from the other kingdoms.” Conner said.

“I wonder what they look like.”

His mind drifted into dreamland. Ophelia, who was beside him, jabbed his ribs with her elbow.

“Ouch!”

Robin chuckled.

“Hehe. You shouldn't speak like that in front of Ophelia. She'll kill you, you know. Besides, you met Yang already right? Why are you wondering about other blondes?”

“You can't be serious, Robin.” Conner looked at him with disbelief.

“We haven't met her since we were ten years old, and she mainly talked with you in the first place. As for beauties. Are you you not the least bit interested in how the other girls from other kingdoms look like? Take for example Vacuo, home to the desert and their tanned hotties. Or Atlas in the north, home to the ice and girls who have skin as pale as the snow they walk on. Or maybe even Mistral that is located near the ocean. Their schools have girls wearing sailor uniforms.”

He leaned closer to Robin's ear.

“Sailor uniforms.”

= Ok. That does sound a bit enticing. =

Even Adam and Osagi began to fantasize about the women. Amy, Blake and Ophelia slapped each of them on the cheek.

“Ow! Hey, that was a bit too hard wasn't it Blake?”

“I don't know.”

She turned her head to the side with her lips pouting. Robin could not help but think of her actions as adorable. The bus then approached to a stop in the parking lot, signaling their arrival. Mrs. Veranda got up from the front seat and motioned to the students in order to get their attention.

“Attention! Attention students!”

It wasn't working.

Enhance

“SHUT UP!!”

The kids covered their ears (or pair of ears) as her voice boomed inside the bus. Dead silence washed over them.

“Better. As you all know, this is Sanctum School of Combat. First you will be registering in the front. They will do a brief screening in order to judge whether you are actually one of our students. After that, report to the stadium for the opening ceremony. Once that is done, you guys will immediately begin the preliminary round. Your parents should being watching on top of the bleachers.

After the preliminary round, you guys will wash up and do what you wish for the rest of the day. They have provided a hot-spring bath and a hotel room for both you and your parents' stay here as compliments of the four kingdoms. Remember, today you are representing not only yourself, but Myriad and the Kingdom of Vale itself. Good luck.”

The kids all did a quick check over their weapons and gear before filing off the bus. Mrs. Veranda wished each of them luck while giving them a room key. She put a hand on Robin's shoulder and looked him in the eye.

“I'm expecting many great things from you Mr. Wolfheart. You are, after all, one of our top first-years.”

“Thank you. I won't let you down.” Robin replied.

“Here is your room key. Put it in your inventory chip for safekeeping. Good luck.”

The students filed off and they went through the registration without much trouble. They were each given some kind of stick for some unknown purpose. Robin hung the necklace it was attached to around his neck and looked around. Inside the building, all the middle-school students from their school were gathered and separated by year. Apparently, Raven had gone ahead of them to avoid the bus ride as well as the traffic jam.

In front of all of them stood the Student Council: Diana, Ted, Leila, and finally Gaea Bronzewing, their Treasurer. Gaea stood there in her battle outfit which was what appeared to be a white shirt and khaki pants. On her hips rested a utility belt, and strapped on her back was her gun.

None of them were foolish enough to believe she wore any regular clothing. Each students' clothes was specially made for the battlefield, allowing a sense of fashion, but sturdy enough to be resistant to the wear and tear of the environment. Gaea stepped forward to speak.

“You've all trained hard, accomplish many missions, and been diligent in your studies all year--”

“*Cough*Bullshit.” Adam quietly said, heard only by Robin and the others. The smile on Conner's face didn't slip in the slightest.

“And now the time to test your skills has come. Past those gates you will be facing opponents, both new and old. There is no distinction among grades, race, or gender. There are only Hunters and Huntresses. Everyone must participate. Are you all ready?”

The students all nodded in unison. The Student Council smiled.

“Then lets go.”

The kids followed the Student Council's lead. They went down a long corridor and arrived at said gates. The gates had motion detectors, so they opened as the students approached. As they walked through the tall, steel gates, the sunlight glared into their eyes. As he adjusted to the change, Robin found himself in the middle of a giant stadium. The field they were walking in was much larger than Myriad's stage, but was smaller than the coliseum.

Nevertheless, standing there in the middle of it all was truly breathtaking. This was especially true for the others since they only fought on the stage at Myriad with small crowds which were comprised of students. However, here they were the center of attention, and the seats were filled to the brim. The stage lights focused on them as they entered, causing them to once again squint their eyes. A loud voice boomed over the speakers.

“Entering from the East Gate is our very own Myriad School of Combat!”

Cheers erupted from the crowd, the Student Council motioned for them to follow their lead. They casually walked towards the giant stage, the students walking stiffly behind them. Even Robin couldn't help but feel a bit overwhelmed. As they stopped on the stage, he admired the huge crowd of students gathered on the stage.

= Everyone here is for this tournament? Wow. There must be thousands here. That's...unbelievable. Just how many others are at or above my level? How many different weapons must there be just in this stadium. Oh my god I can't wait for this to start! =

The ground underneath them opened up and a man rose from the ground as the floor elevated him upwards. All of the cameras focused on him as he waved to the ground, the holographic images all began to fill themselves with his face.

“~Welcome! Men, women, boys, and girls! I, Perry Anderson, am proud to be your host today for the Inter-school Tournament!

On my right, we have Sanctum, the reigning champions of this lovely tournament for the past two years! Beside them we have Myriad, fierce rivals to Sanctum and former champions. To the far left, we have Haven Academy visiting from the Kingdom of Mistral. Next to them is the lovely Emery Academy from the Kingdom of Atlas, and last but not least, we have the Shade Academy from the Kingdom of Vacuo!

These five academies have paid big bucks and spent an enormous amount of time planning this big event. They've traveled across the globe to compete in this tournament and you've paid to witness it! It is with great honor that I present to you, the Hero of all the Hunters and Huntresses out there: Mr. Zoro Ozpin!!!”

A huge round of applause came from both the stage and the audience. The legend named Ozpin stepped up to the microphone. He motioned for silence.

“Today, we stand together, united. Today marks the 81st Vytal Festival after the end of the Great War, 355 years after the discovery of Dust. In the last Great War, the issues itself was more than just about where borders fell or who traded with whom. It was the about the very idea of individualism itself. We oppressed the people and their thoughts, and as you know, many could not stand for it.

As a result, those who opposed this began naming their children after the core aspects of art itself: color. It was their way to demonstrate that they would not tolerate this oppression, but neither the generations to come, and this is a trend that is held to this very day. We could encourage individuality, expressionism, and unity through diversity.

Which is why today, in order to celebrate peace, we celebrate the training our Huntsman and Huntresses have endured to uphold it. Today, we will look past the exterior -- the qualities that make us different – and we will trust and celebrate our children's growth – our growth – as we take yet another step forward into the future.

Whatever may fall on you today or later on, may you always remember: hold your head high, stand with your back straight. Be proud of what you are, what you've done, no matter what others say. You are important. You are who you make yourself to be. You are our future. Thank you.”

Applause ran through the audience like a storm. Robin clapped the hardest. Ozpin, the man he read in books, was just the man he envisioned him to be.

“Robin, are you crying?” Blake asked.

“Wha- No! Of course not!”

He hurriedly wiped away the tear that was forming in the corner of his eye. It was a new sensation to him. To be told by a man he never even knew that he was important. To be said with such honestly that he mattered. Someone who wasn't family. Someone who was so important said he mattered more. His heart strings was touched that day.

However, the touching moment had to end as the stick they were given at registration began to light up. Perry spoke into the microphone.

“Now that your lights have been activated, I want you guys to mingle. That's right, go! In this entire crowd, you have been mixed at random into a four-man cell for the purpose of this preliminary round. As you get closer to your teammates, it will glow brighter. Yell out the number on the stick, and find them! Hurry up because I might begin without you.”

The crowd of students that were standing still before now became a giant mass. Many people bumped into others as they moved through the crowd. It took a while, but Robin eventually found his assigned teammates.

Identify

Velvet Scarlatina (Lvl 63)HP:1380/1380Aura:2080/2080

Sun Wukong (Lvl 55)HP:1200/1200Aura:1550/1550

Nora Valkyrie (Lvl 53)HP:1300/1300Aura:1460/1460

Velvet was a bunny faunus. She wore a skin-tight brown suit with yellow armor plates covering her joints. On her shoulders was a strap attached to a small chest hanging on her side which Robin assumed contained her weapon. Sun was a blonde, tanned monkey faunus. He wore ripped jeans and an unbuttoned shirt that completely exposed his front revealing his well-built abs and pecs. Nora was a ginger with pink and white clothing. She carried a grenade launcher on her back.

“OOOh! A doggy this time! Sweet!” Nora exclaimed.

Robin smiled wryly at her somewhat racist comment. She didn't seem to mean anything negative by it, so he let it slide. Velvet shyly fiddled with her fingers as Robin stared at her due to curiosity. She was after all the highest level among them.

“Umm.. My name is Velvet Scarlatina. Level 63. Class: Mage. Nice to meet you.”

“Hello Velvet. My name is Robin Wolfheart. Level 62. Class: Mercenary.”

“Hey!” the monkey boy said. “The name's Sun Wukong. Level 55. Class: Rebel”

“I'm Nora Valkyrie!! Level 53! Class: Grenadier! Wow you're so high level! This will be easy!”

“Easy enough to say, but what exactly is th--”

Interrupting Robin's question, the stage answered for him. The floor began to separate and split up into 16 separate parts. Then without warning, they began to rise and the floor floated higher and higher into the sky. Following them, the place Perry stood on also rose into the sky.

“Alright! Time's up! Lets move on shall we? I now want to direct your attention to the stage below you!”

Robin looked down. The floor they stood on was clear like glass yet it couldn't be glass. It must have been a special function of the floor, he thought. Beneath them, the ground began to shape-shift and change. What used to be the area they stood on turned into hills and valleys. Sixteen different hills formed and on the top of each hill was four pedestals.

When Robin examined closer, he realized the stage they were standing on also had split up into 16 parts. Each part was floating over one of the hills.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to introduce to you our very special game just for the preliminary round: King of the Hill! On each of these hills are four pedestals for you and your partners! The game is simple. There will only be sixteen teams to survive the preliminary round. In other words, only 64 people will be moving on to the official matches!!

Each person may put their stick into the slot on the pedestal. The moment it enters, a timer will start inside of the stick. On each pedestal are two slots. If one of them is already occupied, simply insert your stick into the other slot. This will automatically cause the other stick to eject from the other slot, stopping the timer in the other stick while starting the timer on yours!

The game will last for 1 hour. At the end of this hour, your entire team's time will be averaged together, and we shall use that to rank the top 64 people! Thus, it is in your best interest to help your teammates and work together in order to protect your standing.

All weapons and elixirs are allowed. There is a safety function on the necklace. If the necklace judges that you are in danger, a shield will erect in order to preserve your life. However, the moment it pops up, you are disqualified from the match since that means it has judged you unfit to continue in battle. If you feel you are unable to continue, simply raise your hand and announce it.

We have professionals watching from the sidelines ready to intervene should they consider it necessary. Don't worry about the audience. Just like the coliseum, we have set up a barrier in order to protect them from hazards such as this. Same with the stage, we will fix it in time for the next round, so don't you worry!

Are you guys ready?”

Tension was at an all time high. Robin gripped Pantomath in anticipation.

= Come on. Just start already! =

“Oh! And one more thing. Call it a pretest, but I have one more surprise for you!”

Perry drew from his pocket a switch of some sort. He pressed it and the floor that was underneath Robin vanished. Perry roared with laughter as he watched the thousands of kids plummet from 10 stories high.

“Hahahaha! This is what it's about! If you can't even survive a fall this small, you have no right to participate in the main tournament!”

He smiled a devious smile that Robin could see projected on the screen.

“LET THE GAMES BEGIN!”

Yay! Late update! I'll update more this week to make up for the weekend. The competition is starting! First stop! King of the Hill. Rate, comment, let me know what you think! I'm gonna try to put more effort into characterization. Let me know how it works out guys. Enjoy! Thanks for reading!