Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A&N: I apologize for any grammatical and spelling mistakes, English is not my primary language. I'll try to squash as many of them as possible pre-release.

Cardin Winchester was in a foul mood today. Well, to say he wasn't always some variation of angry or frustrated with some exceptions such as putting people in their place, would amount to an outright lie. But over this past week, ever since the incident at Forever Fall forest, his mood grew worse with each day. Being called to Goodwitche's office in the middle of lunch break, when he'd done nothing wrong, only added fuel to the fire.

As he walked through the empty hallways towards the aforementioned office, his thoughts once again traveled back to the incident. To the day his plan to put Pyrrha Nikos in her place not only failed miserably, but everything which could go wrong went particularly wrong. Like some fool, he allowed Jaune Arc to get the jump on him, he failed to keep his so-called "team" from abandoning him and worst of all, he needed that cheating bastard Arc save his life and threaten him without getting his teeth kicked in for it.

A hundred times he considered blowing the whistle on Arc. He almost wholeheartedly felt the moron deserved it. He didn't earn his place here, not like Cardin or even Pyrrha Nikos and their band of losers did. He suspected Ozpin might know about this as well, only allowing him to stay thanks to his families name and his discretion on the validity of his appliance here. Many have accused him of the same, but Cardin knew the truth of the matter, he worked hard and earned his place here in spite of his mother and father's renown in the field of engineering and science.

In spite of feeling an even greater amount of animosity for the man, Cardin had to begrudgingly a simple fact about the whole ordeal: Jaune stood his ground to help him when he had no reason to while his teammates ran away. For this simple act alone, even Cardin couldn't deny having a shred of respect for him, for now, at least.

He halted just ahead of the office entrance, staring at the golden plate with its owner's name position on the wall next to the door knob. With a long sigh, he tried to bury the frustration no doubt visible on his face to avoid stirring something similar in Glynda Goodwitch. The woman was cold and commanding and her glare personified the term "if looks could kill". When he wasn't afraid of her, he couldn't help but somewhat respect her ability to position herself as top dog with such ease.

He wouldn't mind having such an ability himself, it would certainly make his team think twice about ditching him again. Letting out another sigh, he knocks on the door twice and receives a muffled response prompting him to enter.

The small office is about what he expected from the professor, well, from his more realistic expectations. He didn't see an elaborate torture device installed into the twin chairs in front of her desk, no spikes lining the walls and certainly no lava pit to drop any poor, unsuspecting bastard into.

Instead, he found an office with a similar color palette to the outside hallways, white walls with a chocolate brown carpet at the bottom. To his right was an equally white bookcase with neatly arranged books on its shelves. He didn't spot any photographs of family or friends, or anything distinctly hers present in the room. In the corner, sat Miss Goodwitch in her usual attire, busy typing away at her computer. If he hadn't heard her a moment ago, Cardin would've thought he was intruding.

"Take a seat, Mister Winchester," She commanded without taking her eyes away from the monitor. Cardin silently complied, sitting down and waited in an awkward, near silence as she finished up whatever she was busy doing.

While he sat there, he wondered why exactly she called him here when today was Pizza Tuesday in the cafeteria. Maybe she somehow found out about the Forever Fall fiasco? It was the only one which made sense for him, he hadn't done anything to earn getting called to a teacher's office since then.

"Do you recall our last lesson, Mister Winchester?" She once again spoke to him without so much as glancing away from the computer. Something which Cardin is thankful for as he can't quite keep the grimace off his face.

The lesson in question was another thing from last week to raise his ire. One he could only stop mulling over by focusing on the farce of Forever Fall. It was a match between him and the notorious Yang Xiao Long, one of the newest students at the academy in his generation and already called one of the best. The outcome was not to his liking.

Gulping to take the edge out of his voice, Cardin mustered his best polite tone. "Yes, Miss Goodwitch."

"And the one before that?"

Another match, this time between himself and another RWBY member, Blake Belladonna, another fight which didn't end like it should have.

"Yes, Miss Goodwitch," He successfully managed another diplomatic response.

"And the one before that?"

His fingers instinctively curled into themselves as he recalled the fight between himself and Lie Ren. "Of course," He answered.

"And can you tell me the result of these match ups?"

Taking a deep but silent breath, he almost physically had to punch down the urge to break something rising in the pit of his stomach before answering the question with a sentence he despises above any other.

"I... Lost..."

"Then you know why I've called you here today," She concluded whatever business she had on her computer and finally turned her chair around to look him in the eye. With a light push of her hand, she adjusted her glasses.

"Your track record is quite frankly appalling, especially for a student who, up until his last year at Blackrock Academy, was at the absolute pinnacle of his generation."

He couldn't quite hide the wince at the mention of his diminished track record or his previous peak. Nor could he fight off the uncomfortableness brewing inside his gut, he secretly hoped she wouldn't press the issue too far.

"Around the same time, many of your fellow students started showing signs of their Semblance."

So much for that idea... He mentally groaned at how quickly she dashed that idea.

"When the headmaster and I reviewed the footage of your previous matches, I assumed your Semblance was something a bit more subtle, mundane even," She leaned back into her chair. "Something along the lines of strength beyond even standard hunters or extra endurance or increased durability. Nothing extravagant but functional regardless."

Bbbbuuutttt...

"However, given how you've failed a vast majority of your matches here and suffered a noticeable drop-off even at Blackrock, I decided to re-review your battle footage, paying special attention to the level of your Aura through each battle."

He could feel a cold sweat slowly but surely break out over his body with every spoken word.

"For example, during your match with Miss Xiao Long, you managed to hold a temporary, initial edge against her thanks to your greater initial pool of aura. It wasn't until her Semblance raised her own power that you lost," She leaned closer, placing her elbows on her desk and interlocking her fingers. "Just before that, your Aura spiked, momentarily but it did."

He remembered the moment very well, it happened just before Xiao Long uppercut him out of the ring. Angry at everyone and everything merely 24 hours after Forever Fall, for a fleeting moment, he let his own rule fall by the wayside and tried to force his Semblance to listen to his command. To let him win this one time.

But it didn't work, as was the case whenever he tried to use it, it simply wouldn't listen to him. Instead, it opted to fizzle out on him and leave him vulnerable to attack, costing him the match. At least it didn't destroy every muscle in his body, this time anyway.

"It did?" He asked, feigning ignorance, his Semblance was a particular sore point of shame and frustration for him and he never felt like discussing it with anyone. Certainly not with someone like Goodwitch.

For a moment, she stared at him with an even greater intensity than before, no doubt watching for any telling sign to determine if he was telling the truth.

"It did," She continued after a few moments of silence. "Spikes in the Aura aren't uncommon for Hunters with non-power related Semblances, however, the increase you achieved leads me to believe your auras true power is something more than merely even greater strength or endurance."

"That's what I always thought it was, Miss Goodwitch," He lied to her face once again with the same ease as he did with his former professors at Blackrock. Most were so enamored by his first few years of success and his family name, they never bothered prying deeper.

He had a sneaky suspicion he wasn't about to pull one over on Goodwitch, not anymore. The implications of that fact didn't sit well with him.

"And perhaps it is," She adjusted her glasses once again. "But for the sake of your continued presence in this academy, and more importantly, for your own well-being, I would like to propose an idea to get to the truth of the matter."

My continued presence in this academy?! He mentally yelled, only allowing a faint twitch of his left eye to betray the explosion of anger mixed with fear rippling inside of him from that simple statement. How casually she said it didn't help matters either.

"What did you have in mind?" He asked, once again trying to betray no emotion, he wouldn't give her the satisfaction of watching him squirm.

"A tutor," She said simply, leaning back into the chair. "An older student, someone of similar build and fighting style to your own but with a bit more wisdom and experience to help you figure out the true power of your Aura. Given the recent break between semesters merely one week away, that should give you nearly a month of time to refine your abilities."

He faintly gulped. "And if this... tutor doesn't find anything?"

"Then you will train under him regardless," She said with an edge to her voice, letting him know he would go through with this regardless of what his Semblance was. "You have a great many other issues, Mister Winchester, issues which you would do well to get rid of. If you don't, it will not end well for you, or your team."

Those chumps can go jump off a cliff, He mentally replied, feeling not a shred of care for them. "Which means?"

This time, she was the one to hold back her frustration. "That your place in this academy will come under serious reconsideration. The headmaster is a man who sees great potential in all people, both in skill and personality."

She leaned closer again, narrowing her eyes at him. "But he is also in the business of molding Hunters to protect the kingdoms. If a student cannot fulfill the necessary requirements to perform such a task, like say, a constantly deteriorating level of combat skill, he will remove them from applying in such a profession. For their own sake as well as the sake of others."

This time, he failed to hide his contempt, letting out an arrogant snort of a laugh. "Really?" He asked as a faint voice in the back of his head told him to stop. "You're going to kick me out, but a chump like Jaune Arc who's lucky he doesn't snap his own neck walking down the stairs is gonna stay?"

"Mister Arc has shown vast improvement in his abilities," The edge became even more noticeable for him, not that he particularly cared. "I would dare say that by the end of this year, he will defeat you."

Cardin snorted again, too wound up to care about the glare sent his way courtesy of the professor. He knew she was full of it, she'd never risk angering a member of the Winchester family by kicking out one of their own, behind all the glares and suppressed contempt, he knew she was just like all the rest of his professors when it came to matters like these.

The fact Jaune Arc was allowed to stay so long despite clearly not being qualified to on just his name alone was proof of this.

"I wouldn't be quite so arrogant, Mister Winchester," A pleased smirk formed on her face, taking Cardin off guard. "Given the fact Miss Nikos has taken to personally overseeing his training, you would do well to keep an eye out on his progress."

Like a punch to the face, Cardin found himself left speechless by this. Suddenly, he felt it again. That same shred of fear when Arc threatened him after defeating the Ursa.

He didn't like his Semblance, he trained long and hard to compensate for it being so unreliable, nor did he like the idea of some student knowing about his battle performance and telling him what to do and how to do it. That was his job. It was his right for being stronger than the rest.

But if there was one thing that overrode all of this, it was the very scant idea of him being outclassed by that worthless clown. And with the help of Pyrrha Nikos? Not a chance, the Prince of Blackrock suffered no rivals.

With a long sigh, Cardin leaned back in his chair and decided to put his facade of politeness back up. "Okay, Miss Goodwitch, you've got me, who is this tutor?"

"A second-year," The smirk thankfully left her face, returning it its default expression. Placing her Scroll onto the desk, it showed him an image of the person-in-question."Yatsuhashi Daichi, another student who, much like you, focuses on using the strength and durability for battle."

"I can see that," Though only viewing this Yatsushi from a small, hand-sized photo, he could see the man easily rivaled him in size and physical presence. The massive sword almost equal in length to his own body spoke volumes about his fighting style.

He had to admit, it was a good match, at least.

"I'm aware you're familiar with a teammate of his, partner in fact, a bunny Faunus by the name of Velvet Scarlatina."

For the second time since coming here, he felt as though she punched him in the face. This imposing monster of a teenager, likely capable of breaking boulders with his face like Cardin could, was the partner of that Faunus freak AND his tutor?

Well... At least I won't live to see Arc maybe get better than me... Is the only shred of comfort Cardin finds in his current predicament.

My second attempt at a Cardin-centric fic and I'm already liking it a lot better than the last one, hopefully, you guys are too. My primary source of inspiration for his inner most feelings is Vegeta from Dragon Ball, specifically from his earlier appearances so expect lots of haughty arrogance, pride, and delusions of self-grandeur! 

Don't expect any romance between him and Velvet, though, this is a story targeting the core of Cardin's personality problems and no amount of "racism is bad!" or "the power of love!" will fix it. Just good ol fashioned shounen self-improvement.

Chapter Text

"And so it was that I found myself alone in the valley, battling dozens of Ursa surrounding me from all sides, my left arm put in a makeshift cast and my body heavy from the strain-"

If it means never sitting through another one of these stories, Velvet's buddy can go right ahead and just kill me, Cardin mentally groaned along with the rest of the day's final class as Professor Port, ever the storyteller began regaling them with more tales of his legendary exploits. Well, legendary for anyone with severe, mind crippling brain damage anyway. This was one of the few things Cardin could agree on with the majority of his peers on judging by their own equally bored faces and eyes glued to the clock above the board. All of them were eagerly waiting for it to just end already.

Not that he particularly cared for what was waiting for him when he did leave. To have a tutor, especially one so late in his training was embarrassing, to say the least, the fact it was someone who'd no doubt make him miserable purely for the sake of it didn't make the situation any better.

He tried in vain to find someone else, anyone else, but Goodwitch was insistent that this Yatsuhashi was the man for the job. Touting his experience in dealing with more... Problematic students from his previous year. The smirk on her face when she said that didn't sit right with him.

Cardin wasn't the problem, his unresponsive Semblance was. No matter how hard he tried to make it obey, it simply wouldn't listen to him. He hated it for it, but he also hated weaklings becoming a threat to his dominance and with Pyrrha Nikos training him, Jaune Arc could become just that, even if admitting that much made him want to puke.

He'd already suffered this a great many times in his last two years at Blackrock, he won't let it happen again. It was the sole reason he would go along with this whole tutor business, for now anyway.

"They struck me from all directions!" Port continued his story, swinging his arm into the air. "And each time, I forced them back! Keeping them at bay while my allies-"

Proving the existence of God, the bell finally rang and the entire classroom practically exploded as almost three dozen people rushed for the doors. Unlike most days, Cardin found himself at the very rear of this rush, this earned him surprised looks from his teammates.

Before they could say anything, however, the glare he sent their way made them rush out even faster. He couldn't help but smile at that.

Good, He thought. The rest of these clowns are gonna remember who's boss around here soon enough.

"What're you smiling at?" Looking away from the vanishing forms of his teammates, he noticed a bored Yang Xiao Long walk by him with his arms resting behind her head. "Knowing you, it's probably because you kicked a puppy or something."

Cardin rolled his eyes at that, just because he didn't stomach Faunus didn't mean he extended the same deserved treatment to animals. In fact, he spent many laborious nights trying to keep a little pet bird of his alive. It didn't end well since he was just 8 years old at the time, but the event left him feeling perpetually sympathetic towards the wildlife of Remnant, minus the Grimm of course.

"Just thinking about how I'm gonna kick your ass when we fight again," He replied with the smirk ever present on his face.

Her snort of amusement, though, quickly lessened it somewhat. "Way I hear it," She turned around with a smirk of her own and an amused gleam in her lilac-colored eyes. "You can't even beat an Ursa without vomit boy helping you out."

That son of a bitch told them about it, did he? He cursed Arc for what felt like the thousandth time since meeting him. Clenching his fist as a way of focusing his anger away from his face, Cardin kept his face in the same expression from moments ago, he wouldn't give her the pleasure of getting to him.

"Pfft, I was having an off day," He waved a dismissive hand as he walked past her. "That's the only reason you and that Ursa gave me trouble."

"Talk's cheap," She said with a bored tone, picking up the pace to walk evenly with him. "I'll believe your *off day excuse* when you actually beat someone."

"Is that so?" He asked, turning his head to look at her as an idea formed in his head. It was true that Yang was considered amongst the strongest first years at Beacon, her reputation easily rivaling that of even Pyrrha Nikos.

Like all champions, they kept their titles and reputations by remaining undefeated and strong in the eyes of their peers. Cardin knew that from personal experience, both on the receiving and the giving ends of the spectrum. Beating up Jaune Arc would be immensely satisfying, to show him how useless his training with Nikos was but defeating Yang?

Beating her would be sending a message to the whole school, that the Prince of Blackrock was now the Prince of Beacon as well. No one would ever talk about the Forever Fall incident near him again, not if they want to stay out of the infirmary.

Plus, it would show Arc just how far the gap between them was, demoralizing him back to the corner of mediocrity he belonged in. It might even make him quit! A man could only dream.

"How about I prove it by beating you?"

Her incredulous look caused another mental firestorm of anger to explode inside of him, another he successfully kept to himself.

"I'm serious, fight me after the break and I'll show who's the toughest first year in Beacon," He shot her his best grin, one which only grew wider when he noticed the annoyed look on her face. It seemed as though she was also someone who valued her reputation as the strongest. She certainly used it to get what she wanted from what he saw.

"Fine," She grinned back, a dangerous sight when combined with her eyes momentarily flashing to red. "But when I win again, I want something."

"Name it," He replied immediately, with his families resources and wealth, there was nothing he couldn't get his hands on if he wanted to. Not that he used it much outside of weapons maintenance.

"You get on your knees," She stepped in front of him, letting an edge enter her voice. "And thank Jaune for saving you in front of everyone. Deal?" She extended her hand out to him.

He shook it and looked her right in the eye without hesitation. "You got yourself a deal."

"So confident," She pulled back, letting the red vanish out of her eyes. "I wonder if that'll last when you're lying flat on your ass again."

"Took the words right out of my mouth,"

"As cute as your flirting is, I believe it's time we moved out, Mister Winchester" A voice Cardin didn't recognize spoke from his left, catching his and Yang's attention. The sight of its owner did manage to wipe the grin off his face.

Standing at well over 2 meters tall, even managing to dwarf Cardin's own height, Yatsuhashi Daichi approached the two of them in his combat gear consisting a green-ish gi with his left shoulder piece missing, brown pants and his equally massive sword firmly positioned on his back.

"Please, like I'd flirt with this chump, Yatsuhashi," She snorted a laugh, managing to get a small chuckle out of the giant two-year student while Cardin, at a total loss of words, merely glared at both of them.

Then, she eyed Cardin with a mix of suspicion and curiosity. "What do you need him for? Oh!" She exclaimed, excitedly bumping her fists. "Are you finally gonna kick his ass! Cause if you are I wanna call everyone-"

"No one's ass is getting kicked Yang," He assured her with a voice so diametrically opposed to his appearance that Cardin felt even more off put by his presence. "I'm merely helping Mister Winchester here with his training as per the request of Professor Goodwitch."

"You mean you're..." She snickered, getting an angry eye twitch out of Cardin. "Tutoring him!" Her explosion of laughter resounded through the hallways, catching the attention of several passing by students. "Oh my God! I've got to tell everyone about this! They're gonna love it!"

"Just wait a second-" Before he could stop her, Yang blasted off, hurrying toward the cafeteria situated in the bottom section of the school. Leaving a chuckling Yatsuhashi and speechless, fuming Cardin behind her.

I haven't said a word to the guy and I already hate his guts, this is definitely a good start... Cardin let out a long, exasperated sigh before finally turning towards the second-year. "Uhhh... Hi?"

"Greetings, Cardin Winchester," He gave Cardin a powerful pat on his back, one which might've hurt if the Winchester heir didn't put his guard up the moment he spotted him. "I'm Yatsuhashi! I've heard you're acquainted with my partner, Velvet."

Cardin couldn't quite get what he meant by that, his face didn't show any sign of anger or hostility and his calm voice didn't hold a hint of either as well. This did little to put him at ease if anything, it only made him more suspicious of the second-year student.

"You could say that," Cardin replied, trying to sound as though he wasn't bothered by the whole situation. "So... What're we doing today?"

"Commencing your training, of course!" He said with a smile. "Meet me at the grounds on the edge of the perimeter with your battle gear on within 20 minutes. There, we'll begin the process of drawing out your Semblance."

With that, he walked off towards the elevator on the other end of the hallway while Cardin went towards the lockers situated near Ports classroom. Despite not being the combat instructor, they frequently fought simulation Grimm to study their weaknesses and put what they learned into practice, hence their close proximity.

Despite not getting a good feeling from this Yatsuhashi, Cardin had to admit that the man looked powerful, at least. No one who wielded a sword of that size could be weak by any stretch of the imagination, so what was the deal with his personality?

He didn't seem like a particularly combative person, nor did he seem to hold anything against Cardin for his run-ins with Velvet. Or was that just a facade? A mask hiding someone vicious. Pyrrha Nikos was about as threatening as an informative video for school traffic safety based solely on her personality but in battle? She was fierce indeed. Even Cardin had to admit this.

Still, maybe this Yatsuhashi being more hostile will help him, Semblances were known to activate in situations of desperation, most of them anyway. Even Cardin's seems to listen to him for a few scant moments during such instances, even if they ultimately didn't last.

"Oh!" He heard Yatsuhashi call from the other side of the hallway, his voice still sounding eerily relaxed even through a shout. "And bring some cups and water! We'll need it for the tea!"

With that, he entered the elevator, leaving Cardin dumbfounded just outside the locker room.

"TEA?!"

I got this done quicker than expected which is saying something as I racked my brain trying to figure out how exactly to do this! Anyway, next time we'll see more of Cardin getting angry! He's a very angry person, in case you hadn't noticed :P

Chapter Text

Many people have called Cardin any number of variants on the word angry these last couple of years. From temperamental to impatient to hostile, he'd heard it all before and staunchly disagreed with these designations of his personality.

They made it sound as though he had no good reason to be angry at others, he knew better than that. As the best of the best, being constantly assaulted by the idiocy, the incompetence and the mediocrity around him was more than a justified reason for him feel such constant annoyance at other people.

In fact, he thought he actually tolerated this constant barrage of annoyances quite well. Given his patience during his first "lesson" under Yatsuhashi that afternoon, Cardin would safely tell anyone who thought otherwise to go to hell for lying. Hopefully, after dropping dead in a vat of acid. Ideally, with the aforementioned second year going down with them.

Three hours he sat there, in the middle of the training ground at the edge of the school grounds. Three hours of doing nothing but sitting or "meditating" as his so-called tutor liked to call it and occasionally drinking tea!

For. Three. Hours!

Most of an afternoon lost to nothing but listening to the sound of the wind along with the ratling of his own armor. A rattling caused by every fiber of his being urging him to do something, anything! To simply sit there like a statue, accomplishing nothing of value or worth was going against every instinct he had.

It wasn't even like him sitting in a class where depending on the subject or the professor, he could almost always find something to keep his mind pre-occupied. But this? This state of perpetual state of immobility where he could sit doing nothing or sit occasionally sipping terrible tea were hardly his ideas of training.

Early on, he asked the second year when the real training would start and he simply told him that this was it. That not only training involved fighting and that meditation could lead to insight into one's soul.

He heard stories about the so-called spiritualism of the people of Vacuo, particularly from certain groups of humans and Faunus who chose to reside outside of the Kingdoms protection. Tales of men and women who could enter heightened states of combat awareness, allowing them to fight with the severity of raging monsters without ever falling to actual savagery.

There was a time when Cardin found this somewhat intriguing, until he learned that fierce training to bring one's true potential out was the way to improve, not sitting on your ass and pondering the nature of the universe.

The worst part of this... Training session was the lost time. Cardin knew Goodwitch wouldn't have the stones to kick him out, his families importance to place such as Beacon was too vital to risk. No, it was the possibility of others improving further in the meantime which infuriated him.

Those same people stumbling onto him sitting like an imbecile out here would only be the icing on that particularly loathsome cake. It was only the small and rapidly shrinking possibility of this tutoring business helping him which kept Cardin relatively quiet so far.

The only thing keeping him from bashing the second years face in.

"Cardin," His eyes snapped open as he heard the man to his right call out to him. For a moment, he allowed himself a brief glimmer of hope that this session would shift into something more to his liking. "Could you please get some water? We'll need it for more tea."

For extra emphasis, he took the nearby tea kettle and reached out with it in Cardin's direction. He didn't even bother opening his own eyes or changing the tone of his voice, opting to keep it in that calm yet friendly one which still put him on edge. The Winchester heir stared at it in stone-faced horror as Yatsuhashi's words slowly but fully sank in.

And then, with a twitch of his eye, something snapped inside of him. With a roar, Cardin's hand smacked the kettle right out of Yatsuhashi's and sent it smashing into a nearby tree. The second-year didn't physically respond to this display or the fact Cardin was now standing in front of him, ready to pummel him into the ground.

"ENOUGH OF THIS!" Cardin yelled as he reached for his collapsible mace attached to his right leg. With a simple button press, the metal stick extended in length and unloaded a massive, metal ball on its end. "No more tea or sitting around or any of your Vacuo crap! Do you understand me?!"

"Odd," Yatsuhashi said, sipping the last drops of tea from his cup. "I always assumed it was the tutor's right to decide how training should occur."

"A good tutor would have that right," Cardin said through clenched teeth. "But since you've done nothing but help me reach a level of mind-numbing boredom I didn't think was physically possible, you don't get a say in how we do things anymore."

"Cardin," He told him in with that infuriating calm, friendly tone of voice. "If you wanted us to spar, all you needed to do was say so. I would have gladly taken your suggestion into consideration."

At a loss for words, Cardin merely stared at the still sitting second-year student before him. His left eye twitching wildly along with his shaking, right weapon hand as he snapped once more. With a powerful shout, he raised his mace high into the sky and brought it down on Yatsuhashi.

His so-called tutor proved himself quick as he effortlessly rolled out of the way, taking hold of his giant sword off the ground and entered his own fighting stance. Finally snapping his eyes open, Yatsuhashi stood a few feet away with his legs spread evenly apart and his gargantuan blade held in both hands.

"Well, well," Cardin commented on the display, casually resting his own massive weapon on his shoulder. "You're faster than you look, you might actually prove a decent challenge for me."

A small smirk appeared on Yatsuhashi's face. "A compliment I cannot extend to you if that's all you're capable of."

Cardin whistled at the retort. "And you've got a bit of bite in you too. But why do I get the impression that little comeback is the most damage you'll do to me?"

"Professor Goodwitch was right," He stated, shifting his blade to a lower guard position. "Your arrogance is truly frightening."

"Clearly, she didn't show you what I'm capable of," Cardin removed the mace from his shoulder and spun it with the motions of his wrist. "It's only arrogance when you can't back up what you say!"

Simultaneously, the two of them leaped from their previous positions and with a loud crashing noise, smashed their weapons against one another at the halfway point. Burying their feet into the cracked ground beneath them, the two unleashed a barrage of swings at one another, each one more powerful than the last and each one unleashing a small shockwave to ripple through the air.

They remained in this deadlock, sizing one another up as neither gave the other an inch. Reluctantly, Cardin had to acknowledge his raw power and surprising speed, to move around so quickly with a weapon that big on top of having your own giant body to take into account was no easy task, Cardin knew this from personal experience. For every swing, he received a block, for every stab courtesy of Yatsuhashi, he managed to either block or dart to the side.

He would even dare say he was having fun. Most other students couldn't handle the raw power of his strikes or had enough nerve to hold their ground in a straight up confrontation with him. It was somewhat refreshing to fight someone similar to himself in fighting style even if their personalities were leagues apart. Still, whatever shred of enjoyment he could find by playing around with another paled in comparison to achieving absolute victory over another, and Cardin was determined to get there.

Catching the sword into a lock with his mace, Cardin adjusted the angle of his weapon without letting Yatsuhashi's sword break away and grinned before pressing down on one of a few buttons situated at the handle. The mechanisms inside the weapon worked their magic, opening one of four holes located inside the ball and promptly fired an explosive round of Dust round into Yatsuhash's face. Ordinarily, Cardin used these or gravity Dust rounds to increase the momentum of his swing or to quickly readjust the angle of one already in motion. But in this case? They were more than good enough for a sneak attack.

It was one of the few concessions he had to make to compensate for a worthless Semblance. With a grunt, Yatsuhashi's concentration was momentarily broken by the blast going off at near point blank range on his head. Chuckling at his dazed opponent, Cardin followed this up striking the second year with the handle of his mace, knocking him entirely off balance with the force of the blow.

With another loud crash, Yatsuhashi fell on his back and was seemingly helpless to avoid Cardin's attack. For an instant, Cardin considered simply encasing him in ice and ending the battle right then and there, but like any good victory, it was to be savored.

"Still think I'm arrogant?" He placed his mace casually over his back as Yatsuhashi tried desperately to reach his sword, it was no use, however, Cardin kicked it away just a second before his fingers could graze the hilt of it. "Oh, that's right, you probably can't hear me. Explosions and ears don't mix much. Guess I'll have to get a bit more creative!"

With a kick to Yatsuhashi's side, he managed to send him tumbling across the grassy floor. "That's for making me sit like an idiot out here for three hours."

Another kick connected to the second-years head. "That's for making me drink goddamn tea."

Using his mace as a glorified golf bat, Cardin once again struck his opponent, this time in the chest and managed to send him flying a few feet off the ground before landing close to his weapon. "That's for thinking I'd sit three more hours sitting around!"

Picking another Dust crystal located inside, this time, one meant to create ice, he slowly made his way to his downed opponent and raised the gargantuan mace over his head. Preparing to unleash a devastating, fight-ending blow to Yatsuhashi. Yet, just ahead of his mace making contact, Cardin momentarily noticed a strange, gray energy envelope the seemingly downed Yatsuhashi and like a tiger after his prey, he leaped out of attacks way as if nothing was wrong.

A mass of ice exploded from the ground once the crystal hit it though it was promptly shattered when this bizarrely rejuvenated Yatsuhashi rolled back to his feet and with a single, mighty swing of his blade, released a wave of Aura outward. Rolling out of the way, Cardin watched in a mix of awe and frustration as the swing left a deep chasm in its wake.

Looking back at the one responsible for it, Cardin noticed the gray energy enveloping Yatsuhashi fade away as he wiped the soot off his eyes. From his initial failed attempt at combining his mace with a Dust crystal, he knew the initial daze and ear ringing would fade away quickly, especially with Aura there to accelerate the process. Still, he lost an element of surprise, while Yatsuhashi was clearly keeping his a mystery.

"I didn't think you'd force me to use that so soon," Yatsuhashi said in that same damn relaxed tone of voice, as though Cardin didn't just unload the equivalent of a grenade into his face. "It seems as though your reputation isn't somewhat undeserved."

Cardin raised an eyebrow at this, was he still thinking he was a push over. "Undeserved?"

"Yes, given how your peers and even teachers describe you, I'd have thought you were completely incompetent and brainless. You certainly choose to fight and act like that, then again," He smirked. "Even the dumbest of creatures occasionally have a good idea."

Grinding his teeth at thought of those people daring to talk smack behind his back, Cardin leaped back into action with far less grace than the first time and only narrowly missed his target. With another explosive round unleashing from the side of his mace, he managed to only graze the edge of Yatsuhash's shoulder armor. A far cry from the decisive blow he was hoping for.

"I knew you'd perform worse once your temper got the better of you, but," Yatsuhashi said as he avoided another swing. "I didn't think you'd decline so quickly."

"Just keep mocking me and you'll see what happens," He swung again only to fail for a fifth time.

"... You'll keep missing me?" Yatsuhashi replied, letting a small chuckle escape his lips as he managed to avoid a sixth mace swing. Then a seventh, then an eight, and so it went on and on with Cardin losing himself further and further into a void of anger where all reason and sense left him. It wasn't until he burned through so much strength that he resorted to using his mace as a glorified walking cane that the onslaught finally stopped.

"Damn it... all..." He growled between long inhales for breath. Glancing to his left, he noticed Yatsuhashi standing there, smudged all over from the few blows Cardin managed to hit him with but overall not seeming much worse for wear. "You... bastard..."

"This coming from the man who beat on a defenseless opponent," Yatsuhashi replied without a hint of anger, more amusement at Cardin's obvious frustration. "You're lucky I don't hold much of a grudge, otherwise you'd be the hospital right about now. Though perhaps I shouldn't be surprised by your actions, little men always act cruelly to boost their own ego's."

"I'll show you little!" Feeling a sudden rush of adrenaline, Cardin flung his mace with all the force he could muster at Yatsuhashi before taking a rushing towards him. "Let's see you talk smack when I crush you with my bare hands-"

With a mighty swing of his sword, Yatsuhashi sent Cardin's mace flying off to the side, this is not what spooked the Winchester heir, no, it was the speed with which the second-year grabbed him by the head and sent it crashing into the ground. As he found himself lying there in the dented floor, his whole body feeling weak, Cardin couldn't help but feel a familiar feeling of despair wash over him.

The same one he felt when another mediocre fighter somehow managed to defeat him years prior, his first loss in a long, long time. The same feeling which cut deep every time he lost, in fact. Against Yang, against the Ursa Jaune Arc saved him from, and now this tea loving moron. Dragging himself out of the small crater, Cardin found enough strength to get back to his feet, though only just.

A few feet away stood Yatsuhashi, resting his blade in a similar fashion Cardin did over his shoulder. "I would say you should stop embarrassing yourself, but it's so amusing to watch, I think I'll let it keep going for as long as you can last."

"You... dare..." Cardin grunted through clenched teeth as he, for the second time in a row as of late, ignored his own rule for dealing with his Semblance and chose to use it. Frustratingly, it was his only way to not only win but to pummel his hated enemy into the dirt. "You dare... to mock... ME?!"

With a loud roar, Cardin used all of his mental fortitude, channeled through years of training but more importantly, raw, unyielding rage to force his Semblance to listen to him. Most times, he could only do so for a few seconds at best, the stress and pain throughout his body was usually too much for right now, too tired and pissed off to care about a little detail like that, Cardin forced himself through it all and, for the second time, managed to actually manifest some of his Aura's true power.

A red surge of energy exploded forth from his entire body, covering him from head to toe in a blood-red shroud of surging, violent energy. Every fiber of his being felt like it was on fire, not helped by the painful spasms causing his limbs to shake against his will. He forced himself through it, however, he wouldn't collapse or leave himself vulnerable because of this worthless Semblance.

He had a tea drinking bastard to pummel first. The same tea drinking bastard now staring at him with awe. "Cardin!" He called out, letting something resembling fear creep into his voice for the first time since they met. Cardin couldn't help but smirk at that even with the storm raging across his whole body.

"Cardin! Listen to me! You have to stop this instant or else it'll-" Whatever warning he had Cardin blocked out with another shout as he rushed toward him, even though it felt like his muscles were being ripped apart with every step taken, Cardin was left in awe of his own speed, managing to close the gap between himself and Yatsuhashi in mere seconds, far faster than his earlier rush attempt.

Raising his fist for a punch, Cardin heightened senses, likely enhanced by his Semblance to compensate for his faster than usual speed, allowed him to savor the look of shock on the second-years face. With a gleeful anticipation, he readied to pummel him into the ground when something simply... short-circuited. Instantly, his red aura disappeared and what replaced it was pure pain.

All over, the pain from his muscles was enhanced several times, sending him crashing on to the ground. Screaming and on the verge of tears, he tried to move, to do something, anything to stop misery but his body simply wouldn't listen, his Semblance had positively destroyed it. When he saw Yatsuhashi rush over to his side, Cardin saw him raise his fist into the air and felt genuine gratitude towards the man for the first time just before his punch knocked him out cold.

And thus we get our first glimpse as to what Cardin's Semblance is! I was hoping to get this out sooner but college has started and that takes both time and energy away from me so yeah, expect updates to be on the smaller side for this mini-series. And yes, there will be a hospital scene and no, it won't end with Cardin suddenly realizing all of his shitty mistakes and vowing to fix them, that's precisely what I wanted to avoid in writing this.

Also, if you're Dragon Ball fans and you know where Cardin's Semblance comes from, please refrain from saying that, don't want to ruin it for those who might not know ;)

Chapter Text

For someone who attributed his many success', minus his devilish good looks and natural charm, on his "man of action" mentality, Cardin found his stay in the infirmary even more insufferable than any class or even the afternoon which put him there. In a boring class, he would fervently take notes, allowing him to learn something quicker or easier down the line. When it came to Oobleck's history lesson's, he could engage Pyrrha or Blake or both in a nice bit of verbal sparring to pass the time with the added bonus of annoying them.

Even the aforementioned afternoon with his would-be tutor in retrospect was only so boring because he allowed it to go on for so long. According to Yatsuhashi, he could have engaged in battle with the man or anything else to pass the time. Any number of which would end with some benefit or enjoyment for him. His stay in the infirmary held no such possibilities, for all intents and purposes, Cardin was little more than a barely mobile head lying in a bed.

Not that he couldn't move his body, the problem was in the fact actually doing caused a series of painful burning sensations to explode all over his muscles. A horrible and frustrating pain which was apparently so bad initially they kept him in a drug-induced coma for nearly two days to keep him from screaming in agony. If it bothered him now, he almost shuddered at the thought of being actually conscious through the worst of it.

And so there he laid, alone and unable to do anything to pass the time until his body healed enough for him to move properly. It was mind-numbingly boring enough he even wished for the company of his teammates. Not that they would visit him, given their actions in Forever Fall, Cardin wouldn't be surprised if he found out they were throwing a party over his hospitalization.

Ungrateful little bastards, Cardin cursed them all, managing to clench his fist through the pain. I knew saving their asses in the initiation was a bad call-

"Cardin? Are you awake?"

Halting his latest mental rant concerning his teammates, Cardin slowly and tensely raised his head and found Yatsuhashi of all people standing in the doorway. If he looked like an imposing, powerful fighter during their battle, his slumped shoulders and nervous smile made him look like Jaune Arc: a mess of nerves.

Ordinarily, Cardin would tell him to piss off somewhere else. But this time, his boredom outweighed his temper, just barely. "Yeah," He said with a raspy voice, it had been a while since he talked or drank anything, leaving his throat a bit sore.

The second-year took this as a yes to his unspoken question of "May I come in?" and slowly walked towards the bed, stopping at Cardin's right side.

"I wish to apologize for what happened," He said with a small bow, causing Cardin to raise his eyebrow at him. "You see, my jabs at your personality along with the meditation were meant to bring you to a sort of emotional breaking point. I thought if I did so, your anger and desperation to win would help bring out your Semblance, instead... this happened..."

It would be easy for Cardin to chastise the man for his plan, to make him feel even worse and gleam a small measure of enjoyment from watching him squirm under a verbal barrage. Part of him wanted to, in fact, to blame him for the whole debacle and end the whole conversation there. But he couldn't bring himself to, his plan wasn't bad by any stretch. A great many people's auras were triggered by desperation or anger, even those not necessarily tied to either. It stood to reason Cardin's could finally listen to him under similar conditions.

But more importantly, Cardin could feel the genuine regret from the other student. A great many false sorry's from his parents for a wide variety of reasons taught him just how false an apology could ring. None of which he could detect from Yatsuhashi's.

"It's..." He started then stopped to sigh. With a pained expression, he chose to admit his own part in all of this. "It's not entirely... your fault... I sort of... Knew that would happen..."

Yatsuhashi stood back up straight, visibly confused by Cardin's statement. "I thought you didn't know what your aura was?"

"I don't," The Winchester heir said matter of factly before deciding to soften his tone. "Not much, anyway. The only things I know for sure are that it won't listen to me and it wrecks my body."

Instead of being upset, Yatsuhashi rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "And you've never managed to use it in a fight?"

"Present company excluded, no," He gave the second-year a small shake of his head. "In the best of cases it just fizzles out before anything happens, worst case is... this..."

"And you've always been under... distress when trying it?"

"I... guess...?" Cardin answered slowly, trying to figure out what he was trying to get at.

"That certainly explains some things," Yatsuhashi stated contemplatively, his voice just barely above a whisper. Upon noticing the glare from Cardin, he quickly stopped and returned to something closer to his usual demeanor. "My apologies, I'm still thinking as your tutor. A position I've surely lost after this."

Cardin hadn't thought of that, surprisingly enough. He could easily request for Goodwitch to find someone else, particularly after this incident. But once again, the fault was not with Yatsuhashi, mush as it pained him to admit it. The incident only went down because he tried to play dumb about his Semblance, if he simply said anything else to steer the man in the right direction or didn't risk using what he knew would backfire on him, he wouldn't be in this bed.

"I already said it wasn't your fault," Cardin said matter of factly, wanting to move the conversation past the stage of admitting to his mistake and on to something potentially more productive. "If you've got some ideas for helping me control my Semblance, I'll vouch for you with Goodwitch and Ozpin."

"You would... actually do this?" Yatsuhashi stammered out, taken completely by surprise for once. Cardin couldn't help but take a shred of joy from knocking him for a loop for once.

"You're the first one to get me to use it in a fight, clearly you're doing something right."

"Well," He took the nearby chair and position it behind him, sitting down on it while he gathered his thoughts. "Given your... fiery personality, I assumed your Semblance was somehow tied to that, as a great many of them are. Recent events and what you just said lead me to a different possibility altogether. Tell me, whenever you've summoned your Semblance in the past, was your state of mind similar to our fights?"

"More or less," Cardin answered carefully, not willing to go into the details of his feelings. Luckily, from the look on Yatsuhashi's face, he didn't think he'd need to.

"I see... Cardin, I believe there may be another reason for why Miss Goodwitch chose me as your instructor. Initially, I believed it was for my temperament and ability to physically take you on should you prove difficult."

Cardin didn't comment on that.

"Perhaps part of it still is that, however, I think a possible similarity between your Semblance and my is the true reason."

"Similarity?" Cardin repeated as he vaguely remembered a sort of gray mist envelope Yatsuhashi during their battle, giving him a sudden boost in speed and strength while it shrouded his body. Upon reflecting on what it felt like seeing his own Semblance in action for the first time, Yatsuhashi may not be wrong in his assessment.

"Indeed, but before I get your hopes up, I wish to take some time to gather my thoughts and give you a proper hypothesis. However," He leaned in closer, his expression and voice growing serious. "If we're going to continue training, I ask that you don't keep any more important information from me. We won't make any headway otherwise and we've already lost too much time from the first instance."

"I already told you everything I know about my Semblance-"

"Not just that," The second-year interjected. "If my theory is correct, your Semblance woes come from your state of mind rather any physical limitations. To even begin mastering what your Aura is truly capable of, you may need to look deep within yourself and dig up certain things you might not want to. The truth can be a cruel thing and most would rather delude themselves rather than face it."

"I'm not deluding myself-"

"H-hey, boss!" Before he could argue with Yatsuhashi over his obvious insinuations, another, somewhat unexpected voice spoke from the doorway. Like a trained dog snapping to the sound of his master's calls, Cardin forced his head up and saw an anxious Russell standing at the entrance to the room. "I heard you were awake so I figured... y'know..."

Noticing his teammates anxiousness at the presence of Yatsuhashi here, a thought occurred to Cardin he hadn't consider up until that point. The boredom must have numbed him badly for not thinking of it sooner.

"Russell," Cardin called out to his teammate in a failed flat voice, barely masking his rising temper. "What are people saying about me?"

All color drained from his second-in-command's face as an expression of stone-faced horror was chiseled onto it. "Okay, before I say anything, can I live if I give you our peace offering?"

"It'll take more than a peace offering to make me forget about your-" He abruptly stopped himself, no one knew about the incident in Forever Fall and the curious look from the silent Yatsuhashi already told him he said too much. "You'll get a one minute head start, and that's only if you give me something good."

Nodding slowly, Russell reached into his back pocket and from it presented something which made Cardin's heart almost leap out of his chest. It was a Scroll.

"We heard yours got busted so..." Tentatively, he walked to his leader and dropped it in Cardin's left hand along with its charger. "We got a bunch of your games on there too, even Citadel Crushers."

"Fine, now," He looked Russel dead in the eye. "What are they saying?"From the corner of his eye, he noticed even Yatsuhashi visibly stiffen.

"Well..." Once more, his mohawked co-leader glanced between the two of them. "They're saying Yatsuhashi broke you like a punk over... y'know... "

For an instant, Cardin too glanced at the giant second year beside him with worry. He wondered just how aware Yatsuhashi ways of his dealings with the bunny Faunus. "And who's been running their mouth off the most about it, let me guess, Arc?"

"Uhhh... close?" He tried to smirk only for it die under Cardin's hard stare. "It's Yang."

As it always did when he felt particularly furious, Cardin's left eye twitched, a little tick Russell was all too familiar with given how visibly he took a half-step back upon noticing it.

"I'm a man of my word, Russell," Cardin told him with a cold voice masking seething anger. "You've got your headstart, now leave before I change my mind."

With a speed rivaling that of Ruby Rose, he fled from the room with enough force to actually, against all logic, leave a puff of smoke in his wake in spite of the diligently clean floor of the room. Cardin would have laughed at it if he wasn't thinking up a hundred different ways to make Yang pay for this.

"Was that necessary-"

"Yatsuhashi," He cut the second-year off, tilting his head to look at him as the cold fury never left his voice. "I don't give a crap if your training has me getting thrown into a volcano, if it lets me murder Yang, I'm in."

The large man next to him sighed, visibly dejected at the statement. "I suppose I should just take this as a yes before you change your mind."

"That would be the smart thing to do," He agreed with him. "And if Goodwitch or Ozpin give you crap over Yang being a lying bitch, send em to me and I'll set the record straight."

"That won't be necessary," He rose from the chair but give him an appreciative smile. "But I thank you for your support. I hope you realize that I did try to explain the real situation to them but-"

"It's better this way," Cardin said as he pushed himself into a sitting position, his anger giving him a good shot of willpower and nerve he sorely lacked a few minutes ago. "As much as I detest being the butt of any jokes, I'll take this over people knowing I got beaten by my own Semblance."

"No one would want something like that going around," He chuckled then left without another word, leaving the fuming Cardin to take his frustrations out through another method when he couldn't train. Video game violence, lots and lots of video game violence.

And so, Yang just went up a few hundred ranks in Cardin's shit list. Honestly, this chapter lasted longer and got more done than I thought it would, even if the ending isn't exactly the best ever. Next time, we'll be going to the main locations for the rest of the story, leaving Beacon behind until the faithful battle between Yang and Cardin!

Chapter Text

Just a little bit farther and I'm home free. Cardin repeated these words like a mantra while traversing the crowded hallways of Beacon Academy. The first semester reached its end and with it, a great many students, particularly those living in farther away Kingdoms, busily go about packing their bags and leaving for the airships to take them home. Others who live closer to Vale already, opt to stay, some of them, at least.

Thus, Cardin was forced to zig-zag around and in-between a great many other students through the aforementioned hallways, much to his chagrin. Every instinct in his body told him to push them out of the way, to assert some shred of control back over them. His damaged reputation from recent events had left its mark and he could see the amused looks in the eyes of his peers or their barely audible chuckles or laughs as he passed by them.

Through gritted teeth, clenched fists, the mantra and a looks on their faces when he returns stronger than ever from his upcoming training all played their part of keeping him in check. Ordinarily, he wouldn't think twice about clubbing the snickering morons all-around him. Yatsuhashi advised against such violent outbursts. He told Cardin to try and keep his temper in check, saying it would make a good prelude for their upcoming practice sessions.

Please, Cardin scoffed at the implications. I can control my anger just fine- Oh God damn it! He just barely managed to bite back the yell rushing to explode from his lips. For situated inside the elevator, he found the two absolute worst people imaginable waiting for him. Yang Xiao Long and Jaune Arc. Both of them packed and ready to leave, not soon enough for Cardin's liking, however.

He hoped neither of them saw him, a hope quickly dashed when he heard Yang's voice echo through the halls. "Hhhheeellllooooo! Cardin!"

Wondering what exactly he'd done to tick off lady luck so much lately, Cardin begrudgingly entered the elevator and to his chagrin, stood in-between the two blondes he loathed. Thankfully, Jaune still squirmed a bit in his presence, a small gesture letting Cardin know someone still knew who was boss around Beacon. Yang, however, was a different story. Though he avoided eye contact with her, he could practically feel her enthusiasm to poke fun at him.

"So, Cardin," She began with a sickeningly cheery tone. "How you been lately?"

He chose to silently ignore her though she was either too stupid or too persistent to get a clue.

"Me? I've been doing pretty great, been getting good grades, kicking lots of ass in class," She continued conversationally. "Speaking of asses getting kicked, how's yours?"

The handful of barely contained snickers from everyone present, even Jaune Arc, nearly set him off the edge of patience he was precariously dangling from since the day began. In spite of this, his only reply was a small exhale.

"He whooped you so hard you can't even speak?" She whistled, giving him a loud pat on the back. "Don't feel too bad about that, I think I speak for everyone when I say it's an improvement."

Another round of snickering broke out, and again, Cardin chose to ignore it with far more difficulty than the last time.

"Maybe now you'll think twice about picking on people," Her jovialness had a bit of an edge to it, along with some obvious condescending.

Clenching his fist, Cardin glared at her from the corner of his eye. The mantra which kept him going thus far was gone, replaced by more thoughts of his impending victory against her once the break was over.

Laugh while you can, when I come back, you're all gonna get what's coming to you, He narrowed his eyes at the blonde brawler. Especially you condescending hypocrite-

When a promising idea popped into his head, one to let him knock Yang down a few pegs without necessarily getting angry or causing a scene, Cardin couldn't help but smirk triumphantly. "Accusing someone else for picking on people is a little hypocritical, wouldn't you say?" He pointed out with the same casual tone she used to mock him earlier. "I mean, with the way you act, I'd say we're more alike than you realize."

Her own triumphant grin evaporated, replaced by a face of restrained fury. A good start, He thought. Just need to push her buttons a little more.

"I don't know what you're talking about but I don't go around beating people up for no good reason."

"Oh, you do it for a very good reason, the best of reasons," He leaned in closer. "To show chumps like these guys," He nudged his head in the direction of the other present students listening to the conversation intently. "You're the top dog around here."

Her eyes momentarily flashed to red. "You don't know what you're-"

"Spare me the moral high ground crap," He let a bit of his frustration with her slip out that time. "You know how strong you are and you're not afraid to show it to get what you want. That's why you're always quick to get mad because you know that everyone else knows that an angry Yang is a scary Yang, and a scary Yang is bad for their health if they don't do what you want."

"I've never gotten mad just to intimidate people-"

"Actually," A timid, crackly voice spoke from Cardin's left, one the Winchester heir didn't expect to talk at all. Jaune Arc's. "You kind of do that Yang, a lot... "

This time, her glare went to the other present blonde, fully red with just a bit of heat coming off of her. "Are you seriously taking his side on this?!"

"I'm not taking sides!" He took a step back, waving his hands in the air. "I've just noticed that you do that... Eye thing a lot to kind of... intimidate people..."

"Hell, she used it on me a few days ago!" Cardin jumped off Jaune's point, it's probably the closest the two have come to a pleasant dialogue exchange. "She uses it to freak out her opponents in and out of combat practice. Didn't one guy almost get thrown into a wall when he accidentally messed up her hair."

"No one. Touches. My. Hair!" She responded through clenched teeth in almost full rage mode, given her shaking palms and the nervous looks exchanged between the students behind him, his point was almost made. All he needed to do was add the final touch.

"Hey! I don't necessarily have a problem with it! Like I already told you, if you know you're the strongest guy around, you've got the right to do what you want!" He leaned in closer, not afraid in the least of her leaking, fire Aura. "But don't go around acting like you don't know and use the benefits of being the strongest. I do it, that psycho Nora Valkyrie does it-"

"Hey! Jaune yelled from behind but everyone ignored him.

"And you do it-" Her hand grabbing Cardin by the throat ended his speech but the display to come more than proved his point. With a snarl, she raised her fist into the air in preparation for a punch.

"Say one more word," She threatened. "One more word and I'm gonna-"

Instead of being afraid, Cardin merely let out a coughed laugh of victory. When she raised an eyebrow at his total lack of fear, he nudged his head in the direction of the other students once more and sure enough, they were all trying to put as much distance between themselves and her. Cardin knew fear when he saw it, and they were all must assuredly afraid of her.

As that realization crashed down on her as well, her anger relented and she slowly backed off. The fire surrounding her body evaporated and the red in her eye's vanished as well. For once, Cardin thought she actually looked vulnerable as she silently stared at her own reflection in the elevator glass. A part of him felt a little bad for going possibly too far but he quickly squashed this bit of remorse. She knew what she was getting into when she goaded him and got what was coming to her.

When the elevator finally hit ground level, she bolted through the doors with a speed rivaling that of her sisters. The other students also dispersed quickly and silently, all of them either heading for the numerous airships parked outside or to talk to their teams before leaving. Yatsuhashi was one of the latter, Carding spotted the massive second-year with his team instantly. He recognized Velvet, her long bunny ears were quite distinct even amongst the Faunus population inside Beacon, the other two he didn't.

From afar, he spotted the girl of the foursome nudge her head in his direction and promptly left with the other three, leaving Yatsuhashi alone with the approaching Cardin.

"Good morning, Cardin!" He said with a smile, flinging his massive bag over his shoulder in the same fashion as he did his sword during their battle. "I trust you've done as I asked?"

The Winchester heir couldn't help but momentarily glance over to Yang Xiao Long, an equally distinct figure in the crowd of colorfully dressed and eccentric personalities. It didn't hurt that her massive hair stood out like a sore thumb. "Yeah," He looked Yatsuhashi in the eye. "I did."

Yatsuhashi looked Cardin over, clearly scrutinizing him for a hint of deceit but the Winchester heir knew he would find none: he answered his question truthfully, now, if the question was phrased differently, then it might be a whole other case entirely.

"Good," He patted Cardin on the arm before walking towards the airship. "You may not believe me, but focusing your mind on a sole objective without letting your emotions run amok will be the key to your success."

"Oh, I'm starting to believe you, buddy," The Winchester heir couldn't help but grin victoriously at how easily he played Yang. "Count on it."

So, Yang got cut down a peg but I think it was as deserved as Cardin's various humiliations here if you ask me. They're both characters who use their apparent strength to intimidate people but for some reason "might makes right!" with Yang and Nora gleefully threatening to break people's limbs is funny or cute but when Cardin does this, he's an asshole?

Chapter Text

During his two-day stay in the hospital, in between various games sessions, Cardin was visited by a few people, the most important of who for the time being was Yatsuhashi. After coming to his defense with Goodwitch and Ozpin to make it perfectly clear that it was predominately, and begrudgingly, his fault for the situation, the second-year was allowed to remain as his instructor. And he proposed an offer for him: come to his home and train with him there during the break.

One Cardin accepted without much hesitation. His teammates decided to stay in Beacon for the break, that fact alone was enough for him to put as much distance between them as possible. The taunts and laughs of the other students still there was another compelling reason to ditch the place. He was close to finally dominating his Semblance and if their antics made that harder for whatever reason, as Yatsuhashi said they could, there was little to mull over once all things were considered.

Besides, the thought of vanishing to some distant, hostile land and returning some time later, stronger than ever before, would add a sense of gravitas when he crushed Yang Xiao Long in their upcoming battle.

And hostile was precisely the word Cardin would describe his destination as he rode in a caravan taking him to Yatsuhashi's home village of Wu Long Cha, so named for its main export of Oolong Tea. Apparently, the village was situated near one of the many oases littered throughout the desert dunes, serving as small pockets of life in the barren wastes. These pockets are what allow Yatsuhashi's village to grow their distinct tea, along with a secret recipe no one from the outside knew about.

When Cardin asked what would happen if he did, Yatsuhashi's flat response to him needing to die confused the Winchester heir. He couldn't tell if the man was joking or not.

Though as he sat in the caravan truck, sweating like never before in his life except maybe when activating his Semblance the last time, Cardin wondered if this environment wouldn't kill him first. As far as he could see through the dirty door window his shoulder presses against, the wasteland stretched on for miles and miles without end.

Nothing but mountains upon mountains of sand constantly under attack by the vicious sun and constantly shifting from the wind or man or Grimm.

Growing up in Atlas where the weather was perpetually some variation on really, really goddamn cold, a place like this where the temperature shot up to heights Cardin didn't think were possible was already taking a toll on him. He didn't think it would be so bad in their approach, opting to remain in his armor even after Yatsuhashi warned him, twice, to take it off for their ride over.

As an ocean of big, thick and obnoxious sweat drops slowly descended from his head to run down his neck, Cardin knew he made a terrible mistake. On the opposite side of the truck, he glanced over to Yatsuhashi and found the man either meditating or napping, he couldn't say for sure.

What he could see was that he was perfectly fine in this weather, without a drop of sweat anywhere on his face. Not surprising since he grew up here, not an easy thing to do just by looking at the place. Vacuo's reputation was nowhere near either that of Atlas or Vale's specifically because of the environment here, to live in a place like this took strength and Cardin could always respect that.

"We'll be there in five minutes," The driver, an older man with a rough voice shouted from the front at Cardin. "Might want to wake your buddy up."

Cardin looked back to the second year next to him and shook him firmly on the shoulder. If the old man's yell over the roaring engines didn't immediately catch his attention, he must have been asleep for sure.

"Hey!" Cardin shouted. "Wake up! We're almost there!"

When he still didn't respond, Cardin decided it was time to pull a little trick which always got Russell's attention whenever he was spacing out. Moistening his index finger, Cardin jammed it into the second-years ear and grinned when he practically jumped out of his seat.

"Rise and shine," He chuckled, wiping his finger while Yatsuhashi returned to his calm demeanor instead of his momentary lapse into a gargantuan, scrambling Jaune Arc.

While doing so, he noticed something through the front glass of the vehicle: walls. Giant stone walls growing larger and larger with each passing moment.

"They've existed for centuries," Yatsuhashi explained. "Built by my ancestors many, many generations ago, back before the Kingdom existed. When roving bands all survived out here, either on the run or building homes near oases."

"It must take some serious guts surviving out here, especially in one of those caravans. Your old man must be strong as Hell."

"So my father claims with a great deal of pride," He said with a smile. "He used to live in one of these numerous groups but when he met my mother in Wu Long Cha, well... The rest is history."

The walls continued to grow larger and larger, positively towering over the truck by the time it reached a pair of metal gates almost rivaling the structures surrounding them in size. With a slow, deliberate pace and a loud creeping noise, the twin doors gradually opened for the vehicle to enter the village.

The truck didn't make it far in before stopping as a man clad in similar robes to Yatsuhashi walked up to it. The second-year quickly exited and went towards the largest man of the group, dwarfing even him in size by a good ten inches in a bear hug.

Paying off the driver, Cardin slowly stepped out of the car and immediately stopped for a moment to adjust. The blast from the mid-day sun overhead felt like getting punched in the face by Yang. Still, he wasn't about to let the sun of all things beat him and forcibly pushed forward, shielding his face with his arm.

"Cardin Winchester," Yatsuhashi stepped forward with the taller man walking next to him. "I would like for you to meet my father, Miyagegashi Daishi."

Cardin figured it out the moment he saw the man's face, with the exception of the brown hair and eyes matching his tanned skin, the man was essentially what Yatsuhashi would look like in 20-25 years. Though, the long beard practically hanging off his chin probably added some years to his appearance.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir," He offered Miyagegashi his hand which the older man shook with a very firm grip.

"The pleasure is mine, and please, call me Miya, it's less of a mouthful that way," He chuckled before patting Cardin on the back, giving the first-year another glimpse into his strength. "And don't worry about the heat, you'll get used to it soon enough."

"I might if we got out of this sun," Cardin wiped the sweat off his brow, cursing himself once more for not discarding the armor when Yatsuhashi advised him to. Luckily Miyagegashi had a spare cloak for him to wrap himself around on the way to the Daishi's home.

As they walked toward said home with father and son exchanging information about their respective lives over the past few months, Cardin focused more of his attention on his new, temporary surroundings and how much of a stark contrast they were to his own land of origin, Atlas.

Renowned as the most technologically advanced civilization in existence, Atlas represented what many would refer to as the future. With its myriad of modern skyscrapers, perpetual advancements from mechanized combatants to things as simple as clothing, the place held an unmistakable, almost cold polished sheen to it.

Yatsuhashi's village, though Cardin finds the term an understatement given its size from up close, looks as though it's from another planet entirely. There was no actual street to speak of and so people, vehicles and animals all walked right next to one another through the sand at their feet.

The buildings were nowhere near the size of those in Atlas and certainly weren't modern. Instead, they mirrored the rough, old stone walls forming a circle around the place and were rarely above two or three stories tall. Likewise, many appeared quite battered and dirty, fitting the rough image of the place along with the myriad of discarded clutter poking out of the sand.

In Atlas, so much as throwing a gum wrapper on the floor was enough to get you a hefty fee, here? No one paid much attention to it at all, in fact, Cardin spotted many children gathering these pieces of wood or metal and using them as makeshift swords or even a fort.

"Must be quite a difference from where you grew up," Miyagegashi looked over his shoulder towards Cardin, clearly noticing him survey the place.

"You have no idea," Cardin admitted frankly as they passed over a busy marketplace positively filled to the brim with people shouting and bargaining at one another. "Like that."

"You don't have marketplaces?"

"We've got malls, lots, and lots of big boring malls," Cardin smirked about hearing a potential customer insult a store owners mother. "That looks like a lot more fun. You'll never see some in Atlas fly off the handle on someone, they value their appearances too much for that."

"Not much of that around here as you can see," Miyagegashi gestured towards the myriad of people going about their business around them. "Out here, you'll find things are bit more rough around the edges."

"Suits me just fine," Cardin told the man honestly. "I never did like all the acts they put up back home."

A thoughtful "hmm" from Yatsuhashi earned the second-year a small glare from Cardin before they both halted at a two-story building with a staircase to the side leading up the upper level.

"Speaking of home, welcome to ours!" Miyagegashi stated proudly at the meager residence as they walked up the stairs. Some would think a man of his wealth would find it beneath him to stay in a simple place such as that but it was of little consequence to him. He came to this place to train and tame his Semblance, not for the luxury of some Atlesian hotel.

The interior kept the stony theme of the architecture going with the obviously old and cracked walls matching those outside. Simple, wooden furniture such as a table and nightstand dominated the decorative purposes of the home. Barring the couch and television from what Cardin could see.

"Is mom not home?" Yatsuhashi asked.

"There was an emergency situation last night," His father yelled from inside the kitchen. "Apparently an airship crashed near the coast holding some valuable cargo from the Schnee Dust Company. Your mother's presence was requested there. And before you start worrying, she called me earlier and said she'd get home by tomorrow morning."

"They specifically asked for your mom?" Cardin asked his tutor, curious about

"Indeed they did," Miyagegashi entered the living room, carrying a tray of three teacups with him. "My wife has a reputation for a high Grimm kill count around, not hard to understand when a chainsaw is your weapon of choice."

Taking the cup simply for politeness sake, Cardin was a bit confused by why she alone was asked there and not him what with his clear physical strength and history according to what Yatsuhashi told him on the ride there.

"Although," Miyagegashi took a sip of his tea. "If you ask me, a good ax can get the job done just as well."

"Perhaps you could have proven that if you hadn't retired," Yatsuhashi pointed out with a knowing smile.

"Oh, believe me, I proved that on the day I finally got her hand in marriage."

"You're retired?" Cardin asked with genuine surprise, diverting the attention onto himself. "Sorry! You just... don't look retired."

"Growing tea leaves in the fields is a very taxing job," Miyagegashi said with fake indignation before smiling. "But yes, I've been retired for a good long while now. Once I realized tea is my true passion, fighting didn't have the same appeal to me as it once did."

Cardin simply nodded, as a man who highly valued his own fighting proves and the thrill of battling and dominating one's opponent, he honestly couldn't see himself every lose interest in it. Certainly not for something like tea leaf growing of all things.

"I assume you boys will want to head out to the training grounds then?"

"We will," Yatsuhashi confirmed, putting his bag of things on the floor while, taking only his sword with him. "Has Hyoko prepared the herbs I've requested?"

"Indeed he has, along with the private room so you two can go about your business with no interruptions."

"Good, for the meditative exercises to come, Cardin, in particular, will need a calm mind free of intrusions for our training if we're to succeed."

Just when Cardin considered actually drinking the tea, the mention of meditation froze him in place. Like a metal man who hadn't been oiled for years, he slowly and jerkily turned towards his tutor with a look of stone-faced horror.

"We're not going to just... sit around... the whole time... are we...?" He asked with as much forced politeness as he could muster.

"That depends entirely on you," Yatsuhashi told him simply while making his way towards the door. "If all goes well, this initial stage should be over within a matter of a couple of days. Now come, we've got work to do."

With flashbacks of three hours of nothing but sitting around invading his mind, Cardin reluctantly followed his tutor out of the house and back into the crowded streets of the village. Hoping beyond hope that Yatsuhashi's estimated would come true or that the scorching sun would kill him if it didn't. Either conclusions were vastly more appealing to him.

Chapter Text

"I can tell you're less than thrilled with this, but before you try to smash me again, I ask that you listen first," Yatsuhashi stated as they entered the private training room, no doubt picking up on the perpetual grimace plastered across Cardin's face on the way there. The room and the building it was situated in fit the aesthetic mold of the village, old, somewhat worn down but sturdy. What Cardin imagined the big gymnasium at Beacon would look like if you went back a few hundred years into the past. Replacing the metal sheen of Atlas with the stonework of Vacuo and putting a fear amount of wear and tear to the various punching bags and other assorted equipment lying around.

The private training room resembled another from Beacon as well, the combat practice hall where Goodwitch pinned student against student in seemingly random selections to test their fighting prowess. It only really lacked the stands for other students to watch the matches. Near the ring, he found several candles positioned in a circular position with just enough space in-between them for someone to sit down in the middle.

"Fine," Cardin begrudgingly agreed, eyeing the ring of candles with suspicion while Yatsuhashi went about lighting the candles. "What're these for?"

"Scented candles intended to help relax the mind, and by extension the body," He finished up, sitting down a few feet away from the ring. "Aura is the manifestation of a soul and to use it, requires diligent training of the physical and the mental aspects of one's self. As every person is unique, so is every Semblance-"

"Stop telling me what I already know and get to the point!" Cardin snapped, growing more and more dubious about coming here. Yatsuhashi didn't seem to mind the outburst and merely nodded.

"The root of your problem, I believe, lies with your mind, Cardin. It is out of sync with your Aura and by extension, makes your Semblance wild and unreliable to you."

"Please," The Winchester heir scoffed. "I can use my Aura just fine, I wouldn't be able to fight if I didn't."

"Only up to a point, enough to enhance your basic abilities and to remain a fierce opponent... But still only up to a point, however. If your Semblance was anything else, let's say closer to Yang's than to mine, that would prove more than sufficient for you. But unfortunately, your Semblance requires a bit more focus than your usually angry mind will allow."

Remembering the gray mist surrounding Yatsuhashi's entire body from their fight, Cardin's anger somewhat relents to curiosity. "And what is your Semblance exactly?"

"To detach my a portion of my mind into my Aura, observe," Almost instantly, Yatsuhashi's usually lively eyes went blank and cold, as if here a corpse. The gray mist followed suit, enveloping his body and a good portion of the arena as well. Upon closer inspection, Cardin noticed the energy around him faintly resemble that of a man of similar build to Yatsuhashi.

"By doing this," He said with a detached voice perfectly matching the blank stare in his eyes. "I am able to see all things through this mist, allowing me to counter opponents to agile or perhaps too fast for my regular senses to keep track of."

"Hardly the only thing," Cardin crossed his arms as he remembered the other benefits afforded to him. "Call me crazy, but I seem to recall you getting faster and stronger too, you suddenly went from on par with me to dodging and countering my attacks at the last possible second."

"The value of mind over matter," He smirked, a disconcerting sight coupled with the utter emotionlessness displayed by the rest of him. "When one's thoughts are directed elsewhere, the limitations of the body become much less of an issue. Past limitations no longer apply and even pain becomes little more than an abstract concept. Though, I suspect your Semblance may take this to far greater heights than anything mine will manage as greater power isn't its main purpose."

With that, the mist faded as did the vacant stare in Yatsuhashi's eyes, returning him to a much less inhuman visage.

"And what exactly do you think my Semblance is?"Cardin asked as he began walking towards the circle of candles releasing a subtle but quite relaxing scent into the air.

"It seems to be some kind of massive upsurge of energy," Yatsuhashi folded his arms across his chest and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "From what I saw and your own recollection, every single aspect of your fighting capabilities was considerably heightened. Speed, power, even vision, and hearing, allowing you to go far past your usual limits. The fact your Aura leaked out of your body to such an excessive degree proves that such vast energy cannot be contained inside and must release to avoid killing the user."

"So... Is that my problem? I'm trying to hard to keep it in?"

"Drawing out, more like. Similar to my own, your Semblance seems to effect every single fiber of your being, and abilities such as that require a great deal of precise Aura control to even begin training, let alone mastering. Aura control which can only come from a calm mind. Something you sorely lack."

Despite taking issue with that statement, Cardin found himself somewhat infatuated with the scent growing around him, easing his tension away like a good massage.

"So," He began with much less anger than intended. "What am I supposed to do?"

"For phase one? Nothing but simply sit there, meditate on your own energies and let the process wash away the thoughts troubling your mind. We will make little progress if you cannot do this much."

With a loud sigh, Cardin silently agreed to the idea and awkwardly mimicked Yatsuhashi's own pose. Closing his eyes, he tried to do as instructed and relax. At first, he stiffly sat there, constantly twitching a hand or adjusting his legs or occasionally clearing his throat. But as he simply sat there with nothing much to do, he let the scent of the candles overwhelm his nostrils and he made it a point to slowly, deliberately take it all in, savoring every moment.

As it happens whenever sleep became difficult to fall into, something, somewhere in his mind just switched off and he gradually felt himself slip away. That is until he felt something made of rubber smash right into his forehead waking him up instantaneously.

"What the hell?!" He yelled, rubbing the impact spot before spotting a small bouncy ball in Yatsuhashi's hand.

"You're supposed to meditate, not sleep."

Cardin's left eye twitched in barely controlled, quickly escalating fury. "And what pray tell... Is the difference?!"

"To meditate is to a engage in a mental exercise intended to help one focus on a particular thought or plan by rendering the body relaxed and immobile, sleeping is well... Sleeping."

"I thought I was supposed to relax!"

"And then use your relaxed state to focus on your Aura," Yatsuhashi reminded him. "Not to let it consume you into falling asleep, or to take in the scent! Now, start over."

Glaring at the second-year for what felt like a good long while, with even greater reluctance, Cardin closed his eyes once more and tried his best to relax but not too much to fall asleep. Easier said than done this time around. When he could simply take in the smell and let the tantalizing grip of sleep take him, Cardin felt eerily compelled to do so. The sun had taken its toll on him more than he expected.

But Yatsuhshi's little warning did help instill an agency into him this time around, pushing him to persevere. He couldn't say if he ever really tried to focus on his Aura like this before, he had the fundamental knowledge put into him to draw it out, to train it, and to use it for combative purposes. You didn't get to become the best of the best without such knowledge. Something along these lines alien to him, however, and more than a little frustrating as he didn't quite understand what he was supposed to do.

"Just relax and get a feel for your Aura," Yatsuhashi gently said from nearby, probably because of Cardin's face once again morphing into a grimace. "Feel the energy coursing through your body and the state of mind with which you reach out to it. Remember that feeling for future, it's the key to your success."

Silently agreeing with the advice, Cardin tried to... feel his Aura. Not force it into a combat ready state or to command it to strengthen his swings but simply let it course through his body. Eventually, he seemed to get close to what his tutor wanted and tried to... reach out to the energy. Yet, somewhere in the back of his head, a thought kept warning him against this, of how violent and dangerous his Aura really was as evidenced by his Semblance's devastating effect on his body. This almost subconscious fear kept interfering with him, every time he thought he was about to achieve the state Yatsuhashi desired or something closely approximating it, the fear crept in and he immediately pulled back, as if his power were a Grimm hiding in the snow, ready to bite his hand off.

"There's nothing to fear," Yatsuhashi spoke again in that same soothing voice. "Your Aura cannot hurt you right now, and it never will when our training is complete. But to get there, do not let it throw you off."

Silence feel again with Cardin silently nodding. Once again, he visualized himself reaching out to the energy through his body, slowly and cautiously, the metaphorical hand approached snow he, for some reason, visualized his Aura as. The hand became more and more nervous with each inch of the distance closed, that voice in the background telling him to back away and never to return getting louder and louder.

Just a bit away, the hand hovered just above the snow, the warning voice now shouting over and over for it to pull back. For what seemed like an eternity, Cardin hovered in this bizarre mental state, seemingly forgetting all about his body, the scent, Vacuo, and what awaits him back at Beacon. Stuck in a stalemate with one side telling him to leave while another, compelled him just grab the snow already.

Deciding he can't just grab all of it but that he can neither simply run away again, Cardin tentatively brushed his fingers against the snow and momentarily felt a soothing coldness wash over him, the likes of which sent his whole system into shock. Suddenly, all of his problems and struggles seemed to vanish, replaced by nothing but the comforting cool of Atlesian snow which he delighted to run and play through as a boy.

But the feeling vanished just as quickly as it came, and with a loud gasp for air, Cardin's eye's snapped open and he practically jumped back to his feet.

"Easy, easy,"Yatsuhashi approached from the side, carrying a flask of water which the Winchester heir instantly drank, almost choking himself in the process. "How did it go?"

"It was... weird..." Was the only thing Cardin could think to say for it, though he remembered the feeling of the snow, how he got to it seemed like a dream from over a month ago. A vague thing jumbling around somewhere in his mind he can't fully recall, let alone describe.

"Sometimes the mind does things like that," Yatsuhashi helped him sit down. "Creating visualizations of what we need to do to help us ease into things."

"That was my mind... easing into things...?" He asked dubiously, feeling positively exhausted.

"It may not seem like it, but yes it was. Our minds are linked to our Aura's so it only stands to reason that when reaching out into it, we feel manifestations of our own thoughts and feelings appear to us."

"Sounds like you're talking from personal experience."

"I am," He smirked. "Trust me, I broke into a cold sweat the first time I did this too, but the fact that you've managed to somewhat successfully grasped on what you'll need moving forward is highly promising. I'd wager that within a few days, you'll be ready for phase 2."

"Whoopie," He replied with a great deal of sarcasm and let his back hit the stone floor, at that moment, he noticed something peculiar from the corner of his eye and through a small crack in the window drapes, noticed it was surprisingly dark outside. "How long have I been-"

"8 hours," Yatsuhashi said as if was the most normal thing in the world. Cardin begged to differ as he stared at him with stone-faced shock and horror. "Trust me, some men can sustain themselves for days, sometimes even weeks without stopping. 8 hours is hardly anything."

"But I didn't even feel it," He said in just above a whisper. Suddenly, he felt worried about the prospect of completing this course in time for their arrival to Beacon. "Is it always going to take that long?"

"Do you remember how it felt to truly reach out into your Aura?"

"I do," He replied immediately and honestly, image of his hand grazing the snow ever present in his thoughts.

"Then it won't, now that you know what you need to do, it's all a matter of practice to quicken the process. Get fast enough and we'll be well into phase 2 by the end of the week."

I guess that'll have to do, He thought, his mind still not put entirely at ease but hopefully a good night sleep will do to alleviate that. Forcing himself back up, he made his way out of the training building with Yatsuhashi and felt the chill of the cold desert air blast him in the face. Whereas Yatsuhashi shivered at it, rubbing his hands together through his thick cloak, Cardin found the feeling extremely refreshing.

"I was really hoping it wouldn't be this bad," Yatsuhashi said through the slight chattering of his teeth, much to Cardin's amusement. "Is it this cold in Atlas?"

"Please, this is nothing, it's ten times colder where I live," He couldn't help but smirk when the second-year glared at him, it was always nice to see the ever-wise, perpetually calm Yatsuhashi get knocked for a loop.

"How can you possibly stand it I wonder."

"I could say the same about your heat," Cardin countered, getting an amused laugh out of his tutor. "Besides, out of all the things that bothered me back home, the cold was never one of them."

Chapter Text

As he whistled through the mostly vacant, early morning streets of Wu Long Cha, enjoying the scant remains of last nights rapidly vanishing chill, Cardin couldn't remember the last time he felt this good.

For almost three years up until that point, due to his issues with controlling his Semblance and his desire to keep such a deficiency a secret to save face, he managed to keep up with others by focusing his attention on strengthening his standard Aura abilities. But the lack of proper Semblance control was an issue, one which took its toll, especially once he arrived at Beacon. Creating a constantly widening gap in power between himself and other highly skilled and talented individuals, it seemed his generation wasn't lacking in those.

No matter what he did to improve his non-Semblance powers, it simply wasn't enough. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Cardin grew fearful for his chances of ever reclaiming his rightful position as the strongest one there is. Until his recent training under Yatsuhashi. Though initially and briefly dubious, Cardin couldn't argue that the results were quickly coming through.

Over the past few days, he continued to meditate on his Aura, becoming more and more in sync with it. As with any other training method, diligence, and repetition were the key to mastering the process. On his first day, it took him 8 hours to get a true feel for his own bodies energy, in the morning of the second it took him 6 then 4 that very same afternoon, by the end of that day, he didn't even need the scented candles to make the process easier.

Following this schedule and training a bit on the side before, in between and after these sessions whenever possible, he felt more in tune with his power than ever before and he found it a comforting sensation in the heat of the desert. If it took him the better part of an afternoon and well into the evening to merely graze into the snow initially, now he felt almost constantly draped in it, reminding him constantly of his youth of scavenging through the forests of his estate and hurtling himself into the stuff during many epic, imaginary battles every boy likes to partake in.

With a content smile and a great boost in his confidence, Cardin reached the building and felt one hundred percent ready to face whatever phase 2 of Yatsuhashi's training was. The Prince of Blackrock was well on his way to becoming the Prince of Beacon.

"Someone's in high spirits," His tutor commented from the ring, enjoying yet another cup of tea from the leaves grown here. Cardin couldn't understand how he wasn't sick of it after spending most of his life surrounded by the stuff.

"When everything's going so smoothly, who wouldn't be?" He stated with utmost confidence and bravado, getting a small laugh out of the second year.

"Keep those high spirits in mind as we proceed into phase 2," Yatsuhashi cautioned though Cardin didn't pay much attention to it, after squashing that annoying little voice in his head, his advances in syncing up with his Aura increased exponentially. With it gone and his understanding of the power coursing through his body, he didn't doubt he would succeed in this next step with complete ease.

"Please, if all that sitting around didn't kill me, I doubt whatever's next will."

"Was it really so bad?" Yatsuhashi asked with a knowing smile. "Surely you must have grown to appreciate it, at least a little."

"It did its job, so it's not all bad," Cardin answered honestly. "It's just not really my kind of thing."

Yatsuhashi's smile disappeared in favor of a blank stare. "You really are one for broadening your horizons, aren't you?"

"I've broadened them enough," Cardin responded in kind. "For example, I never knew how many ways sand could manage to crawl up my ass until I got here."

"Truly, you've achieved a level of wisdom not seen in eons," He rose to his feet, that damned cup of tea never leaving his hands. "But I'll refrain from ripping more of it out of you, best to save it for those truly worthy."

"Don't worry," He pats him on the back. "Once my autobiography comes out, the whole world can enjoy the magic that is Cardin Winchester's inner most thoughts. It's gonna chance people's lives for generations to come!"

Yatsuhashi merely stared at him with an unreadable expression. "Speaking as a man who serves under Coco Adel, assuming you'll be famous enough to warrant an autobiography may be the most egotistical thing I've ever heard."

Cardin took no offense at the comment. "I already told you, man, it's never arrogance, or egotistical in this case, as long as it's the truth."

"Another nugget of wisdom," The second-year laughed. "I knew you were in high spirits, but to spend so much time bantering with me? I can't say I've ever seen you more relaxed."

"Wait until I kick Yang Xiao Long's ass in a couple weeks," The thought of putting the blonde brawler in her place seemed all the more exciting with his recent advances in power. He couldn't help but smile devilishly at the look of shock on her face when his Semblance blasts her out of the ring. "I might even start singing and dancing."

"A match I eagerly await to see," He poked Cardin gently with his elbow. "Especially if you start dancing."

Cardin gave him a puzzled look. "You're gonna be there?"

"Of course," Yatsuhashi replied following a sip. "As your instructor, I feel it's appropriate to see the fruits of your training in live combat for myself."

That possibility honestly hadn't crossed Cardin's mind, he assumed the two would simply go their separate ways following this training and that would be the end of it. But the knowledge that Yatsuhashi would not only attend the match but also scrutinize every move he made gave him a sense of urgency to get down to today's business.

"So great instructor, what is phase 2?"

The playfulness his tutor showed earlier vanished completely, replaced by a stiff seriousness and a bit of uncertainty Cardin couldn't remember ever seeing on his face before. Whatever this phase 2 was, it clearly worried the second-year, Cardin's good mood wasn't that strong to blind him to that fact.

"Phase 2..." He trailed off, staring into the contents of his cup as though the liquid inside would hold the answer. "Will center around your ability to release your Semblance and gaining a degree of control over it."

"So?" In spite of the worry, Cardin didn't really see the issue. "You made me sit around all this time so I could get a better feel for my Aura, now that I do, I should be able to control my Semblance easier."

"Easier but not effortlessly," Yatsuhashi corrected him, the shroud of worry never leaving him. "Make no mistake Cardin, your Semblance requires a determined but measured mindset. Push too little and you'll get nowhere, push too hard and well..."

"Which is what your meditation crap was for," Cardin reminded him again, not feeling particularly bothered by whatever he was frightened off. The Winchester heir heard that same kind of fearful voice hold him back during those initial steps and he squashed it. "So if you're done shaking in your skirt, let's get started already."

"My gi is not a skirt," He corrected with mock indignation, easing away some of the stiffness. "And take a few steps back towards the center of the ring and stand there."

"Woah, first sitting then standing?" Cardin replied with his best, fake look of wonder. "Is jogging phase 3 or is that loitering?"

"Fully blown combat if all goes well." This was a bit of information Cardin couldn't joke about, the idea of demolishing Yang was tantalizing enough, but a possible full blown, all out rematch with Yatsuhashi before then? Exciting things were in store for him in the very near future.

"How would you describe the sensation of raising your Aura? Not how it feels when you're relaxed, but when you're preparing it for an upcoming fight?" Yatsuhashi asked from across the ring.

"I guess like flexing my muscles?" Cardin answered after taking a moment to think about it. "Is that what I'm supposed to do?"

"If that's what feels natural to you, then yes, but you are to reach deeper inside your reserves of Aura this time around. The very purpose of meditation was for this to become far more natural to you, to let these depths become more readily available to you. After all, when you understand how something works better, figuring out its minutia is much easier than being halfway ignorant."

"And that's it? Just keep raising my Aura until my Semblance kicks in?"

"That's how it works for me and should for you if my comparison between the two is accurate, which I believe it is," Yatsuhashi narrowed his eyes at Cardin. "But I warn you, our Semblance's carry a great deal of danger with them, a danger that can become nonexistent with proper practice, but in this early stage, I urge you to remain careful, Cardin. If you force your Semblance too much like last time, you may cause even worse damage to your body, and with the time we have left, another hospital stay is simply not acceptable."

"The days of my own power wrecking my body are over," He replied with a confident smirk, aware of his tutor's worry but not particularly bothered by it at all. "Trust me, you're about to see a whole new, much more powerful Cardin Winchester!"

Despite the clear disapproval plastered across his master's face, Cardin wasn't feeling any less good about his odds. He closed his eyes and almost immediately landed back in the strange mental landscape created by reaching into his Aura: the snowfields. For a few moments, he let the chill of winter wash over him, savoring the feeling before moving on to business.

Then, he went about doing his objective and promptly raised his aura to its standard levels, with far greater ease than he usually did he found. But now he felt something deeper under the surface, buried under the snow, something very, very powerful. And so Cardin did what felt the most sensible thing to do with what he knew about his power: he started digging.

An unintended consequence of this choice heralded the return of the voice. That annoying, frightened and disgusting... thing which impeded his progress early on during meditation. As before, it urged him to go back, to not push forward, it wanted him to remain stagnant and weak while others elsewhere grew more powerful, Cardin would have none of it. He tried to stamp it out again by letting the enchanting chill of snow wash over him, but the sensation of cold grew weaker the deeper he went in, replaced by a steadily growing heat bubbling underneath, somewhere in the depths of his Aura. And as the heat grew, so did the voice.

Still, Cardin didn't let this obnoxious manifestation of some stupid fear get in his way. He ignored it despite its increasingly louder and more morbid warnings and simply dug on until he reached something, not snow but some odd, pulsating rock. Between the cracks of this odd mental image, he could feel a sensation resembling very, very hot air leak through, cracks which only got wider when he grazed his hand against it.

In that moment, he felt something exactly the opposite of the comforting chill of snow when he managed to tune in with his Aura. This felt... hostile, overwhelming and very dangerous. Cardin didn't know how long he floated there in this odd limbo, caught between his pride urging him to break through this final barrier to his aura while the voice seemed almost sane in its assault of mad, terrified ramblings of retreat. But like the last time, Cardin's desire to be the best tipped the scales in favor of pushing forward. Mustering up all his pride and courage, Cardin yelled and made the final push, blasting apart the stone with his fist.

The fire consumed him instantly.

What was once the landscape of snow was vaporized by the torrents of endless, torturous fire blasting upward, consuming and killing everything there while Cardin floated in the middle of this inferno, helpless to stop it. It was the comforting feeling which helped him become in-tune with his Aura, a feeling he desperately wanted to experience more and more of. But this? This was truly Hell.

There was nothing comforting about any of this if anything, Cardin's greater understanding of the finer details of his Aura made the pain of his wild Semblance that much worse. Before it was just physical pain, the tear of muscles all over, but now it was a two-pronged assault, one attacking his body and the other destroying his mind. He tried to concentrate, to try and ease the pain and find some way of blocking it out, but the fire wasn't the only thing tearing him to shreds: the voice was stronger than ever.

With nothing to block or ignore or stamp it out, Cardin felt the full brunt of its insults and indignation now. How he could never control this power, how he would never improve the one thing he was good at, the one thing his family didn't understand but was still his alone. He would never, ever amount to anything and would spend the rest of his days clinging to the glory of old, school days like any other worthless sack of trash.

All he could do was burn and burn and burn...

It wasn't until another, far more precise and far more powerful pain from the back of his head got him out of there, returning him back from the depths of his Aura and into the real world. With a loud gasp, his eyes snapped open and like a wild animal or a crazy person, he immediately scurried across the floor, panting and growling, checking every part of his body for burns. Save for some small aches in his thigh and shoulder muscles, Cardin was more or less physically fine.

When he felt a hand touch him, his entire body jerked once again and he instinctively threw an easily intercepted punch.

"Relax," Yatsuhsahi said soothingly, holding out a bottle of water for him. "It's only me-"

Snatching the bottle out of his hand, Cardin gulped down all of it as though his life depended on it. Though he could tangibly feel that he wasn't burned to a crisp, the memory of intimately knowing his Semblance's true power was far too strong to simply ignore.

"You have to calm down," Yatsuhashi spoke again. "The sensation will only persist as long as you keep focusing on it. Relax and let your Aura calm down along with you. Try to focus on the snow-"

"Piss off!" Cardin growl, throwing the bottle in his face and splattering the remains of it all over him. With an awkward jump, he leaped back to his feet and eyed the second-year with pure hatred. "You did this to me! You and your damn training!" He took a few steps back, staring at his own shaking palms in a mix of anger and fear. "It was never... It was never like this..."

"Cardin," Yatsuhashi took a few, cautious steps forward, not bothered in the least of being soaked. If anything, he seemed even more sympathetic. "I know how it feels like to let your Semblance... Damage you like this. I lost myself in it too the first time, but you mustn't let that dishearten you, only through training and perseverance can you advance forward."

"No..." Cardin stepped back, completely horrified as he remembered he would have to experience that over and over again for who knows how many more times to master it. If it was even possible. "No... I can't... It's... It's too much."

"You can't start thinking like that," Yatsuhashi calmly urged him. "If you do, you will create a psychological block with your power which nothing may ever penetrate! Don't squander the progress you've made thus far. As impossible as it may seem, this is not an impossible hurdle to pass over."

"Is there a place to fight Grimm around here?"

The suddenness of Cardin's question took Yatsuhashi by surprise, it took him a moment to respond. "Yes, of course. But I don't see-"

"Tell me where it is," Cardin cut him off again, his anger superseding his fear now. "Don't give me some lecture about meditation or peace or tea or any of that crap. Just..." He sighed as a pleading tone entered his voice. "Let me hit something already."

His unspoken "please" was clearly not lost on the second-year who, without a word, nodded and exited the training building with Cardin walking a few paces ahead of him. Even though he knew that somewhere, deep down, that this was nothing but a distraction tactic, Cardin couldn't make himself care. He needed to feel like the voice was wrong about him, that he wasn't already a washed up hasbeen, he needed to feel like his world wasn't about to crash and burn around him.

Chapter Text

Just a little bit farther and I'm home free. Just a little bit farther and I'm home free. Just a little bit farther and I'm home free.

Cardin repeated the mantra from his escape of Beacon perpetually and anxiously during the drudge across the desert towards his, and Yatsuhashi's destination, an old base known as one of the Shield. So named for once serving as a series outposts from Atlas' last occupation of Vacuo, they all quickly fell into disrepair upon the conclusion of the Great War.

On most days, they remain as such, small reminders amongst many more of the repetitious cycle of foreign invaders almost synonymous without the desert kingdom. But on occasion, desert Grimm would move in and make it their temporary residence.

Temporary being the keyword. If what Yatsuhashi told him just before they left the village was true, the only reason these places weren't burned down was for two reasons. The ones easier to maintain with the Kingdom's scant resources served as early warnings for Grimm incursions in the past for the Atlesian occupation, now they do the same for Vacuo. What bases were deemed too strategically unviable to hold a garrison in or were already lost to mankind's oldest enemy, were abandoned.

Some in the government considered destroying these as the Grimm becoming too accustomed to a place could serve as a meeting place for a potential Horde. The Academy of Shade, the only authority figure of official designation anyone listened to in Vacuo, deemed them as appropriate training places.

Since Vacuo lacks a sort of "elementary" Academy like Blackrock or Signal, Hunters of younger and older classes were routinely taken to these remote but controllable environments to practice fighting the Grimm, gaining experience in the process.

In fact, Yatsuhashi killed his first Grimm in one of these basses, though, not without suffering a bad cut to his back.

Truthfully, Cardin cared little for the history of it all or its present day purpose. The only reason he even asked was to find something, anything to keep his mind from wandering to the events earlier in the day. To his latest, and most disastrous attempt at using his Semblance.

From the moment they left the training building in the proper morning, the relentless attack of the Vacuo desert sun reminded him of the torturous burning sensation of the aforementioned incident. He needed something, anything, to keep his mind occupied. He would have settled for simply letting Yatsuhashi ramble on and on about anything as a distraction. But his tutor saw his curiosity as an opening for a talk about the morning's events.

Cardin would have none of it. He didn't want to talk, he wanted to hit something. Not just to vent the storm of anxiousness, frustration, and fear all swirling inside of him, but to prove that detestable voice wrong. To show it he wasn't a lost cause and to prove to it, and to himself, that the Prince of Blackrock was still alive and well, and he would return with a vengeance. So he kept silent as they made their way towards this base, keeping his thoughts occupied on repeating the mantra to the point of obnoxiousness.

He quickly reached the conclusion that Yatsuhashi was fully aware of what was going to happen and purposefully gave him that mantra as early as Beacon. Cardin made it a point to get back at him for that. Oh, he knew the second-year probably only meant well, but after what happened earlier? He honestly couldn't care. If she were here, he'd smack Glynda Goodwitch across the face if it gave him a good avenue for blowing off some steam.

"We're here," Yatsuhashi said as they reached the peak of a small sand mountain and sure enough, just a short slide away, was the building in question, what was left of it anyway. Sure enough, even though it was a century old and worn down by the onslaughts of time, sun and desert wind, the polished sheen indicative to all structures from Atlas was plain on the eroded, and at many points, downright broken silver walls.

The glory days of this place were certainly past it.

Massive gaps were scattered through the plain, cube styled fortress with only one of its four towers remaining in relatively decent shape. The other three connecting the place together were either half-way gone or completely destroyed, leaving more than enough spots for people, Faunus or in this case, Grimm to enter through. The problem was, there we no Grimm to be found.

"Where are they?" Cardin demanded as he wildly examined the ruins more closely, his eyes darting over every inch of the place for any signs of Grimm but still, there appeared to not be any. Not on the walls or near their cracks or any of them skulking about its myriad of abandoned buildings once meant to house Atlesian troops, now just as forgotten as the rest of it. He even let out a loud whistle to give the Grimm, any Grimm here, that they had company waiting for them.

Cardin noticed the look Yatsuhashi was giving him but chose to ignore it. Instead, he leaped off the small mountain and with a loud crashing noise, landed just a few paces in front of the many holes in the walls. Stepping inside with Yatsuhashi close behind, Cardin let out another, louder whistle and could almost physically feel it reverberate through the vacant fortress. In every dark interior where even this relentless sun couldn't get into, his eyes eagerly awaited to hear a rumble, or better yet, another pair of eyes belonging to the Grimm to reveal themselves.

Still, nothing happened. Cardin tried again, with much more force this time around. With a swift motion of his arm, he took hold of his mace with both arms and smashed it into the ground. The nearby shot up into a pillar and the ground shook from the force of the impact.

"I know you're around here somewhere!" He shouted at the top of his lungs, as he wildly spun around to look at his surroundings. "Come on out!"

And so began a pattern consisting of Cardin would yelling, threatening or whistling at the top of his lungs to goad any hiding or nearby Grimm to attack before smashing his mace into anything in his vicinity. Eventually, the threats and taunts gave away to animalistic snarls and growls as each mace strike increased in frequency and power. He couldn't tell for long this cycle repeated itself but try as he might, he couldn't find any gratification or relief from simply swinging his weapon around like some crazed barbarian.

He needed an opponent to crush, he needed a way to prove he was still the best.

"Cardin," Yatsuhashi calmly spoke up as Cardin finally stopped a minute to catch his breath. "I understand your frustration and desire to vent it, but no one is here besides the two of us."

"I'm aware of that," Cardin stated through clenched teeth.

"And am I right in assuming you aren't going to stop until you remove this from your system?"

"You are."

"Then I will assist you as your opponent," Cardin turned around to face him and noticed him sitting inside one of the structures lacking a roof, taking shade inside it with a mug of what could only be tea in his hand. "With no Grimm here, you have either me or the sand to choose from."

If this offered came a month or even as little as 24 hours ago, Cardin would've taken it up without a moment's hesitation. He would've been confident in his ability to win a fight between. Even now a part of him wants to do it, to the prove the acidic voice corroding away at him from the inside out. All it would take is a simple yes and he'd have a good fight on his hands.

But one you probably can't win, The doubt suddenly spoke up again, and Cardin instantly felt a mix of anger and gnawing wash over him. He so badly wanted to squash it but the crippling fear of disappointment, failure and something else he couldn't quite put his finger on kept Cardin's mouth firmly shut. He knew he couldn't simply stay silent but the answer that would slip from his lips wasn't to his liking. Feeling as though the universe had once again conspired against him, Cardin desperately tried to quickly get himself out of this deadlock, so caught up in his own mental and emotional maelstrom was he that he didn't even notice Yatsuhashi leap to his feet or the sudden rumbling of the sand beneath him.

No, it was only when the older student practically threw him into the air like a sack of orange did Cardin finally snap back to reality. The spot where he stood exploded into another pillar of sand followed by the emergence of an all too familiar black skinned, white-boned, red-eyed monster. Not a species of Grimm Cardin was familiar with, however. With its massive upper body and utter lack of a lower one save for a long, bone-tipped tail replacing legs, the beast roared and came at the two of them with surprising speed.

Cardin's previous anxiety, mostly and briefly, evaporated as he tried to roll back to his feet and smash the beasts face into the ground. But instead of swiftly and expertly returning to a standing position, he found himself like a turtle knocked on its back, trying to get off the ground with the motions of his limbs. He must have spent quite a bit of time and more energy than intended battering the ground earlier. Now he was paying the price for it, time was running out and so was the distance between them.

Whether Cardin would manage to evade or stop the beast is a question which would stay without an answer, for Yatsuhsahi's massive blade cut the Grimm clean in half mid-run. The ground quivered under the force of the swing and Grimm let out one last, pained howl before crumbling down in defeat. Its body, as the species always does upon death, began to evaporate immediately into a black smoke.

Pulling himself up, at last, Cardin eyed the defeated monster, unsure whether to thank Yatsuhashi or chastise him for dealing with something he could handle himself. To save face, he was heavily leaning on the latter.

"Prepare yourself," Yatsuhashi warned as his sword swung back to his shoulder. "Creepers always hunt in packs, there are sure to be-"

The remaining Grimm, these Creeper's as he called them, burst from the ground, this time from every possible direction. Cardin wouldn't and didn't find himself in a compromised position during this assault, however. Yatsuhashi turned his back to him and stood firm, opting a waiting approach to dealing with his Grimm, Cardin couldn't muster the patience for that, certainly not today.

Instead, he rushed forward, raising his mighty battle mace high above his head and with a roar matching that of the Grimm, brought it down onto the head of the first Creeper of three. The boom followed by the sound of bone and flesh breaking gave Cardin his first bit of satisfaction since the morning's disastrous meditation. In the midst of howling monsters, crunching bones, quivering ground and his own elation.

Noticing the approach of another Creeper, Cardin pressed down to the button situated at the handle of his weapon and from the left side of the orb, he unleashed a round of gravity Dust. The momentum sprang the weapon to life, causing it suddenly blast off to Cardin's right and smash several fanged teeth out of a leaping Creeper's face.

The Grimm howled in mid-air as it helplessly crashed into a nearby, building, one comprised of two barely standing walls. Needless to say, it didn't survive the impact, nor did the creature. Surprisingly, the final one of the three seemed to notice its recently annihilated brothers and turned tail to run rather than face him head on. Cardin, like a raging bull, dashed after it, heading deeper into the ruins. He vaguely heard some warning from Yatsuhashi behind him, one he couldn't make out from the sounds of his own fighting and Cardin's own elation. He doubted his warning was necessary anyhow: Cardin felt too satisfied to care.

Like a raging bull, he dashed after the Grimm, quickly closing the initial gap between them. He could all but catch and yank the Grimm by its tail if it didn't suddenly take a sharp turn to the right, momentarily causing Cardin to lose sight of it thanks to a nearby building blocking his view.

The instant he made the turn, however, his victory streak came crashing down along with the wall next to him. Without warning, the two-story structure, what was left of it on its west side, collapsed right on top of Cardin. His Aura absorbed most of the impact but even without his Scroll, Cardin knew the damage done wasn't to be taken lightly.

Just as he managed to get the stone wall somewhat off the ground, something else jumped on top of it, cracking the feeble ruins apart but once again pinning Cardin to the ground. It was another Creeper, one lying in wait for the prime opportunity to spring its trap and Cardin fell right into it. Soon, the trapper wasn't the only Grimm to converge on his position. Cardin could feel at least three of them clawing at him through the rock of the quickly collapsing wall, through his armor and through his aura.

With so much weight pinning him down and with no way of even lifting his arms or mace up, Cardin could do nothing but flimsy flail his legs in a desperate, last-ditch effort in getting them away. His recently restored confidence collapsed quickly, giving away to an almost paralyzing fear, one made all the worse as his mind, clearly conspiring to undermine him completely today, started flashing back to another situation like this one in Forever Fall forest.

When he couldn't even protect himself from an Ursa, when he needed Jaune Arc of all people to save him while he cried and fumbled around like some worthless novice. If he didn't find this repeat of history so disheartening, the anger over being in a spot like that would've surely let him will himself back onto his feet and at least go down fighting. Not like this.

A sudden claw strike managed to graze through his armor and Aura, taking off a surface bit of flesh and drawing blood. The other two Creepers were making similar progress with one insistent on ripping his head off while another clawed away at his back. With his energy depleting and his will to fight all but gone, Cardin couldn't even muster a lackluster defense, all he do was lie there and let the Creeper's prove the doubt stirring voice from his meditation right: he was completely washed up.

His only solace came from the fact he could feel himself slipping into unconsciousness, the mental and physical exhaustion was taking hold of him so strongly and suddenly that he barely even felt something warm splash against the side of his face before he was lost to the waking world.