Rwby reacts to Persona: Grimm tidings

Chapter 36: Exhibition

"Good evening ladies, gentlemen and everyone in between! Welcome to this year's Vytal tournament." Oobleck said, his enthusiasm bleeding through his voice. Crowds cheered around the stadium. "Things are a bit different this year due to the Amity being in orbit so we have a set terrain."
"It should make today's battles rather interesting." Port said, laughing joyously as he did so. "It reminds me of times before the tournament when all we had for training was the natural terrain."
"That it does. Today though we will be kicking this off in a special way." Oobleck said. The crowd roared even louder. "That's right, we'll be playing host to an exhibition match between the four heads of RDT."
"These four have made quite the difference since founding their company a year ago." Port bellowed. "Between their advancements in defence technology and the White Fang's efforts in protecting the world they have certainly made a statement."
"Right you are and today they're here to show the extent of their advancements. I was informed that none of this technology will be available to the public yet."
"Ah yes, the process and technology itself is mostly experimental still."
"Of course, I also want to say that just three years ago they were walking into Beacon for the first time and going towards their own initiation." Oobleck said, his words slurring together slightly. "It's incredible how far they've come since then."
"Oh, it seems they are in the arena now." The giant screen split in four to reveal team RWBY's faces taking up the four corners. "How do you think this will go?"
"Well given their starting positions and abilities I can almost guarantee that Ms. Rose will choose where and with whom the first portion of the battle will happen." Oobleck said, He chuckled. "Afterwards I believe Ms. Xioa-Long decides what's next due in part to her own abilities and also a surprise that is surprisingly unknown."
"For how often she made use of that talent for petty pranks I too find it mystifying how little is known." Port grinned as he spoke. "How about we skip the pleasantries though and kick this match off?"
"Here we go" says Nora
"Yes, I do believe that's what we came here for. The bells signalling the start of the match have gone off so let us see what happens first." Ruby's fingers curled around the staff of her scythe. She leaned forward and vanished into a cloud of petals. Green blades of wind bursting off the swarm and red lightning arcing between. "And it seems things have kicked off!"
Ruby twisted her body through the cloud, bouncing off a tree and bursting around dozens of others. Within seconds Weiss became visible and Ruby came to a dead stop, her three separate sonic cones continuing on briefly. Behind Weiss a glyph spun, her wyvern summoning glyph.
"And it seems Ms. Rose has chosen her target for this battle." Ooableck said, an excited tone taking his voice. "Not an easy matchup by far if what we know of Ms. Schnee's abilities are true."
"Right you are, although it seems like things are kicking up in a different area." Port said, indicating the dull blue glow from Yang's corner of the arena. A swirl of nuclear energy engulfed Yang briefly and when it cleared a falcon hovered in her place. The falcon launched upwards on a jet of nuclear flame. "It seems Ms. Xiao-Long is pulling no punches in this battle."
"I can coat my falcon form in my elements, so cool" says Yang
"Right you are, but it seems Ms. Belladonna has taken her own steps as well." Oobleck gestured vaguely to Blake's corner of the monitor. The cast faunus has sent out white glowing orbs around her, a pair of shining white blades crossed over her back. She was crouching, one hand on the ground as she waited. "It seems she isn't a decider in this battle."
"I wouldn't be so sure, recall this fight has only just started and- oh now this is special." The display of Ruby and Weiss overtook the screen. Weiss's glyph spinning faster and faster as a large clawed fist slammed from it into a tree. Followed by the head of the wyvern, then the neck and slowly the entire body. "We are in for a treat today Barty."
"How can you fight the three of us Sugarcookie?" Weiss said, her oath bursting as Atlea formed behind her. The now fully formed wyvern stands at a mere fraction of its original's size. Ruby smirked and loaded a new magazine into her weapon.
"Easily." A series of six shots rang out, all of them hitting trees or the gorun around Weiss. Seemingly misses. Ruby let the mag drop and slammed a new one in. A burst of fire sent her hurtling forward, Weiss's own smirk falling as the shells from the six bullets exploded. Green and red spirits rising from the ground to claw at her and her summon.
"I was not expecting to see that tonight." Port let out a laugh. "You're more in the loop about their Dust blends, care to explain Barty?"
"Yes of course. What we just saw is what they call spirit Dust, a blend that is based on a combination of what they call MDust, two varieties specifically, curse and wind." Oobleck watched as the wyvern crushed a set of spirits underfoot. "Quiet the interesting combination."
"Okay, that is cool" says Jaune
"Writing down that combination so we can use it" says Weiss
"Use it?" questions Qrow
"Rex said he was going to give us some of this special dust when we're done here." says Blake
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"Ghost hit the ground." A White Fang operative said. "That's our cue, start routing power to the shields."
"Wait what?" asks Ruby
"The whole match is fake and certain moves are signals to the white fang, interesting" says Winter
"On it." Another said, turning back to his station the agent flipped a pair of switches. "By the time Salem appears we should be able to flick the switch and have the shields up before the grimm arrive."
"Good. Station two where are our patrol teams?"
"Everyone's in place. Waiting on New Nest for word of enemy movements."
"By the time she comes through the enemy will already be moving." The agent said, she glanced at those around her. "Keep an eye on patrol routes until then. We need all hands on deck."
"Of course. Word from Rain base?"
"Not yet but the crow's in place." She paused and watched a monitor for a moment. "Tweek the commander's aura display, lower by six-point O'three points. Perfect."
"Shit. We have a problem at lookout station two, a beowulf pack spotted us. Incoming."
"Patrol squad six come in." The woman seemed slightly panicked now.
"Already moving. Keep an eye on the systems."
"Oh boy, here we go" says Oscar
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Blake's form blurred as a streak of blue passed through it from above. The falcon flapped and leveled out it's flight to bank right parallel to the ground. The bird snapped its wings shut passing between a set of white orbs then performed an alaron over another set. Suddenly Blake reappeared, her foot slamming into the birds back and sending it across the clearing and into a tree.
"You need to be faster than that Drake." Blake said, walking a semicircle towards Yang, ever cautious. A swirl of feathers at the tree's base and Blake had to jump back as Yang's fist shattered the earth where she'd been standing. The blonde smiled as her persona filled the air behind her.
"Oh come on, not fast enough?" Yang smirked and pointed to her. "Remember what we learned this year Blake? Assault Dive! "
Blake dove to one side as the attack shattered a tree. Yang's semblance had started affecting her skills, all of theirs did. Blake had just forgotten one detail, Yang's falcon body couldn't take as much damage so it gained way more strength than Yang's human one. Blake reached to her back and yanked one of the bless katana's free. Holding it in one hand and the katana of Gambol Shroud in the other she watched the blonde move forward.
"I get more power for tanking a hit in falcon form, good to know" says Yang
"Why would you need to know that?" asked Winter
Yang just turned to her with a grin and in a flash of gold and a swirl of feathers, she was a falcon.
"Wait, you can do that too" says Qrow in shock
Yang morphs back before saying "Yup, another gift from rex"
"I should have realized you weren't turning back." Blake said, she spun the blade into a reverse grip and launched into the air like a cyclone. Both blades impacting Yang's gauntlets repeatedly until she landed. "You've never done that move without full strength."
"Yeah, but that's what you get." Yang stepped forward and fired once at the ground, sending herself into a sideways spin. Lashing out with one fist coated in blazing blue nuclear energy Yang dove through another Shadow clone.
" Silvered Gaze! " As Yang's feet hit the ground she slowed to a crawl. Her body locking in place, Yang ground her teeth and looked through as much of the clearing as she could.
"Outstanding! Could this be a winning blow from Ms. Belladonna?" She heard Port say over the speakers. Yang felt nearly a dozen impacts from Blake's blades on her back, light and quick, meant to look far more damaging than they were.
"Doubtful, while Silvered Gaze is quite potent its effects are incredibly temporary." Yang's finger twitched and she blasted up as a falcon, a trail of blue left in her wake. Using her nuclear power in falcon form would boost her speed, not nearly to Ruby's level though. "There, temporary. It's definitely a skill you want on your side but it's  not a win condition."
"Sandralin!" Yang let loose a flare of magic as she turned back. " Atomic Meteor! "
Blake was unable to move in time and took the full force of the blow. Yang's fist following closely behind the mass of nuclear energy. The cat faunus bounced off the ground once, rolling into her feet just in time to avoid the next attack.
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"Meteor struck, signal two."
"Do you really think their timing will be right?" One of the agents at the monitors said. "I mean come on, we're talking about predicting Salem's movements."
"Scar said she wouldn't appear until the high ups auras are in the red." The lead agent said, she smirked at the aura display screen. "So we're forcing the issue, lower Blake's aura by sixteen percent."
"I don't know, it just seems risky. But they don't care do they." One of the others muttered.
"This is rain base checking in. Word from New Nest, large force of Grimm incoming, likely Salem." Vernal's voice came over the speaker. "We've got five minutes at best."
"Make 'em count." Qrow's voice came from the speakers next. "Visual confirmation, everyone's in place."
"Right, keep monitoring, leadership is nearing endpoint planning." Her eyes flickered to the monitors. "Get the soma ready for deployment."
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" Flash Freeze! " Ruby twisted in place, avoiding the first three bolts of arctic lightning. The final bolt struck her in the chest and pushed her back. Lightning crawled over her limbs. Weiss gestured her wyvern forward.
"How will Ms. Rose escaped this one? Flash Freeze can paralyze you after all and it seems to have." Port said. Ruby smirked and burst apart, rushing past Weiss and reforming on the other side of her partner. Still unable to move.
"Of course, Ms. Rose's semblance is far from ordinary, going so far as to ignore effects on her body and simply move." ruby smirked and vanished again, her petals splitting and circling the wyvern. Once more she reappeared, this time with free movement.
"I hate your semblance so much." Weiss said, a flick of her sword sending a wave of jagged ice at her leader. Ruby let the wind Dust in her clothes flare, the blades of wind slicing through the ice. " Makajama! "
"Yeah it does seem a little overpowered sis." says Yang
Ruby blinked as the light washed over her, her oath fading slightly. Weiss smirked and rushed forward only to be met with a wall of petals. Ruby stepped out of the cloud and ran a hand over her magazine pouch, pulling one free and loading it in she aimed and fired. A blast of blue light impacting Weiss's shoulder.
"Rad poison. Damn it." Weiss grit her teeth, she could feel the combination of curse and nuke eating away at her aura. A grazing shot wouldn't do much but it still hurt. Ruby dropped the mag and loaded in a single bullet, firing at the ground she dropped into a backwards roll. More spirits erupted around Weiss.
"And Ms. Schee's aura dips below thirty percent." Weiss glanced at her scroll, her real meter was still at eighty-nine. Weiss nodded and spun the chamber on Myrtenaster. She had moments before forget wore off and Ruby summoned Cecilia. A frosted green hue overtook her blade.
Ruby shook her head and grinned. She burst forward like a lightning strike, crimson lighting crawling between her petals, agonizingly slow for her but terrifyingly fast for anyone else. Weiss smirked and swung her blade, a blast of freezing wind launching form the Arctic infused blade. Ruby came to a dead stop, her own blast of cursed wind rushing forward. The two blast sheared off each other and went wide.
"Cecilia Scarlet!" Ruby shattered her own oath by hand, a rarity now. " Wolf's Howl "
Weiss watched as the waves of cursed sound emanated from the wolves, she dropped gripping at her ears as the waves hit her, a temporary immunity protecting her from the skill, no one else had to know about that. She watched her aura meter dip into the red on the big screen by the time Ruby cut the attack off.
"You okay Snow Angel?"
"Go find Yang and Blake."
"Time to get to work" mutters Qrow
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"That's one." The lead agent sighed. She watched the other bars. "One more should do it."
"We're sure about this?"
"No choice, it's either this or wait until Salem makes her move." One of the others said. "To be perfectly honest, if we're fighting to stop her from destroying everything I'd rather it happened on our terms."
"That's the point of the plan." She took a breath in and looked up once more as all three remaining aura meters dipped into the red.
"Our terms."
"Our terms" was muttered throughout the theatre
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The arena was basked in darkness for a moment. Swirls of energy rising and falling over the center. Rising from the energy Salem stood, a cruel grin marring her features as she gazed at the monitor, her victory seemingly secured. Glancing around she snarled at the trees and blew them apart with a wave of her hand. Team RWBY was standing together, each standing straighter and more proudly than should be possible.
Salem looked to the monitor again to watch as their aura meters glitched and transitioned back to nearly full. Turning back she was met by Yang's brightly shining fist slamming into her face. The ancient woman rolled over the ground briefly and stood to watch as twin blue domes encased the arena, one on the inner wall the other outside the stands.
"You knew."
"Of course we did." Ruby said, stepping forward, her and her team's eyes shining silver. Four voices spoke as one. " Unified Blade. "
The attack impacted against Salem and burst apart. Eight elemental blades slashing through the other woman's body, tearing into her, Salem growled as the energy faded and her body stitched itself together. Looking up she found the four's eyes still shining with silver light.
"Your grudge ends here."
"Alright, now for the real fight" says Yang
"Then let's not waste anymore time" says Rex