imjusthereforironwood

[imjusthereforironwood]

I am curious: in this story team CRDL will get upgrades with their weapons and possibly semblance evolved.

What kind of upgrades will they get to be more efficient?

Well, the upgrades for Cardin's mace and Russel's knives have been mentioned in their own posts, and I'll eventually get to Sky's halberd axe and Dove's sword, but in the meantime, I'll give a little sneak preview for theirs.

Sky's axe, Feather's Edge, will have a gun built in, one with loading similar to an M1 Garland, meaning it will use clips instead of magazines. Additionally, when he gets to Atlas, he'll design the axe head in such a way they it can be launched out on a chain.

With Dove, I'm still trying to figure it out. He has such beautifully simplicity and efficiency with his weapon that I don't need to add anything. Perhaps I'll have Winter train him with a parrying dagger, I don't know.

#rwby #au: reforming bullies #team crdl #atlas #i love weapons #weapon design

[imjusthereforironwood]

I am curious since they are going to atlas in volume 3:

Will they ever meet weiss and Jacques before weiss leaves?

I am curious to know how there interaction would be especially with Jacques.

A fair question. They'll get there right around Volume 4, towards the middle of the Volume. Because they aren't really high society, and because Weiss was, at this time, basically kept at home during this time, they don't interact much. Of course, each of them have their own opinions on both Jacques Schnee and Weiss. Russel doesn't like Jacques on principle, Cardin is wary of him because he remembers the stories his mom told her about Dust sales, Dove is fairly naive, and doesn't know much about the news surrounding the Scheme name, and Sky Lark actively distrusts Jacques because his father, an officer in the Atlas Air Force, has told him about the SDC corruption.

They will not truly interact with Jacques or Weiss, however, until the events of Volume 7.

#rwby #au: reforming bullies #team crdl #jacques schnee #weiss schnee

[imjusthereforironwood]

Team CRDL's Weapons (Part Two: Russel Thrush)

Russel Thrush, known for such amazing quotes as "that's a big Ursa"...and that's about it, is a very unique character on his team. He's the only one who doesn't wear plate armor of any kind, making him the most agile member of Team CRDL, capable of some pretty impressive acrobatics if the Nikos fight was any indication. Naturally, being athletic and fast, he needs some sleek weapons to complement his fighting style.

Enter his twin daggers, named Shortwings. In the show, they are pretty decently sized, can be thrown, and have what appear to be Dust chambers built into the hilt of the blades, though we never see the Dust function in action.

That's about all we know, so let's move on to my headcanons and additions. First of all, I do enjoy the name of the weapons, but I also like it when each individual weapon in a pair have unique names (for example, Wilt and Blush). So, much like an old meme, I asked "why not both"?

As a pair, they are called Shortwings, however, when referring to each individual knife, Russel calls them Peck and Scratch.

Onto the unused Dust chambers. If you haven't read my post, "That Painful Night", then I'd recommend reading it so there can be a fuller picture of how these things will work. In short, the Dust chambers on the Shortwings are designed with maximum efficiency in mind. He's not a rich guy, and Dust is pricy. Where as Weiss's rapier can be used for flashy, powerful attacks, Russel has to be more conservative and practical with his Dust usage. Igniting the blade with Fire Dust for a little extra bite, shooting out a small bolt of lightning for a ranged attack with the Electric Dust, using the Ice Dust to slash and freeze. Small things like that are what he uses his Dust for.

When he eventually goes to Atlas, he, Sky and Dr. Polendina will upgrade his Dust chambers to be able to take more types of Dust, including Gravity Dust, and allow for remote activation of the Dust chambers. This would let Russel throw a blade, then once it is stuck into an enemy, he could activate the Dust. He could stick a Grimm with Peck, activate the Gravity Dust, and slow the Grimm down using the increased weight of the Gravity Dust. This works by having each activation switch on the other weapon. Basically he can either activate Peck using it's own switch, or by using the switch on Scratch, and visa versa.

I believe that Shortwings gives Russel Thrush the role of a speed and bleed fighter, almost similar to the role Scout from Team Fortress 2 can take using weapons like the Flying Guillotine and the Boston Basher. It's a high risk, high reward fighting style.

Anyway, next time we'll be covering Dove Bronzewing's gunsword, Hallshott. Constructive criticism is always welcome!

#rwby #au: reforming bullies #team crdl #russel thrush #weapon design #I love weapons #tf2 #tf2 scout

[imjusthereforironwood]

You know I’m curious about something: why did you choose russel to lose a leg?

Why not arm or anything like that?

I know it a morbid question it just made me curious?

So, here's the reason why I chose Russel, and why I picked the leg.

To start off with, Russel is the fast, agile member of Team CRDL, as seen in the Pyrrha fight. He relies on his speed and acrobatics to dodge and fight.

So, what if that was taken away? What if he had to adapt to losing a limb?

His legs are his strength, so what if one of them was gone? I wanted the character of Russel Thrush to grow, to improve, and to face challenges. That's part of the reason I made this AU. I wanted Russel, and the rest of CRDL to grow up, and to become more than just a bunch of bullies.

Additionally, there's not that many leg prosthetics in the show. There is General Ironwood's prosthetics, but those are very extensive and cover half of his body (still upset that we never learned the origin of those prosthetics).

Why Russel specifically, though? Why not Dove, Lark, or even Cardin?

Well, part of the reason why I picked the green mohawked punk is because his character is closely tied to fate and luck. Heck, his Semblance, Roulette, is a gamble that can either give him a boon or a bane. And if the rest of his life is any indicator, he's been dealt a pretty crappy hand. Born into an abusive home, got put in the foster system and had a string of really bad homes. With the one family that was genuinely good, the mother passed away, and the father thought that Russel would be better off in a two parent home. Right back into the terrible system.

Yet, despite that, Russel considers himself a pretty lucky guy, because he has his friends, and he's still got his health.

But what if even his health was taken away?

How would he react then?

#rwby #au: reforming bullies #team crdl #russel thrush #amputation #loss of limb

[imjusthereforironwood]

Look, I haven't read After the Fall, but the only thing I care about is the fact that Velvet Scarlatina's dad, Will Scarlatina, was on a first name basis with General Ironwood, said that he wanted to build a statue in Ironwood's honor, and Ironwood set it up for Velvet to get a basically unlimited supply of Hardlight Dust. So, basically what I'm getting is that James and Will were *roommates* and that Velvet and her dad may have had a dinner or two the General's house.

#rwby #after the fall #james ironwood #velvet scarlatina #will scarlatina #they were roommates #mister imma steal yo dad over here #i wish ironchad was my irondad #ironwood supremacy

[imjusthereforironwood]

That Painful Night

(Warning: this short story will feature dismemberment. I don't want to potentially upset people, so I included this warning.)

Russel Thrush pulled Peck, one of his Shortwings, out of the belly of a fallen Boarbatusk. He checked the Dust chamber on Scratch, his other Shortwing. Even though he had designed his knives to be as Dust efficient as possible, he was still running low.

Russel wasn't expecting his night to devolve into chaos like this. He had been sleeping in the dorms, resting after that humiliating loss in the Vital Tournament, when all of a sudden he woke to the sounds of the howls, shrieks and roars of Grimm. Some Atlas soldier announced that the city was under attack and that he should evacuate.

"Like heck Ah'm leavin' without my team," Thrush drawled out under his breath as he continued scanning the run down streets.

The green mowhawked punk had been fighting and searching for almost two hours, and still the Grimm onslaught didn't stop. For every Grimm he killed, there was two more just around the next corner.

Thrush glanced up ahead and saw one of his classmates, Yatsuhashi Daichi, engaged in combat with a King Taijitu. As the massive twin-headed snake attempted to strike with the white head, Yatsuhashi parried with the calm skill of a samurai. But the black snake head lunged forward, missing the bite, but effectively knocking the tall swordsman to the ground.

As the King Taijitu approached Yatsuhachi, Russel activated the lightning Dust setting on Peck and he sent out a small bolt of electricity. It wasn't strong enough to cause significant damage, but it was enough to draw the attention of the monochrome reptile. Russel began closing the distance, shouting at the Grimm.

"Come on, ya overgrown garden snake!" Thrush yelled, trying to draw the attention away from Daichi so that the student could get back on his feet. "Ah've hunted varmints that were twice as scary as you!"

The King Taijitu may not understand the words, but it heard the arrogance. With a hiss, the two-headed snake charged towards Russel with alarming speed. At the last possible second, the green-haired bully dodged out of the way of the white head, but quickly had to jump over the black snake's attack. He began running down the back of the Grimm, moving in such a way that he began tangling the twin snake heads in one another until the disoriented beast could no longer move with the same fluidity. Thrush flipped over the back of the beast and stabbed his Shortenings into the tail, activating the ice Dust, effectively pinning it.

Yatsuhachi approached, Fulcrum gripped in both hands.

Slash! Swish!

In two quick moves, the King Taijitu was beheaded, the black and white heads falling next to the twitching body.

Both boys stand still for a moment, Russel breathing heavy because of the exertion it took to keep the King Taijitu distracted.

"Took you long enough," Thrush grumbled as he retrieved Scratch and Peck.

"I am sorry, but I had to wait for the right moment," Yatsuhachi said in his quiet, measured voice. "Are you alright, Thrush?"

"Eeyup, Ah'm fine," he muttered as he checked the Dust chambers.

Almost completely depleted. That's not ideal.

"Ah'm looking for my team," Russel said firmly. "Have you see any of them?"

Daichi pursed his lips as he collected his thoughts. With how hectic and nightmarish this night had been, it had thrown off Daichi's thought processing, even though he is usually stoic and levelheaded.

"I believe I saw Dove going in that direction, just before I was ambushed by a group of Grimm," the massive swordsman said as he pointed towards a more destroyed and run down section of the city. "But you need to be-"

Russel didn't bother to listen or stick around, choosing to sprint off in that direction. He needed to know that his teammates were safe.

They were the closest thing he had to a family.

As he ran down a dark alleyway, an unexpected pack of four Creeps rounded the corner and snarled at him. When he turned around, he saw a Ursa Major blocking off his escape. From the rooftops above, a pair of Beowolves dropped into the alley, claws and fangs bared.

Russel was trapped, like a bird in a cage. No where to run and outnumbered. He couldn't do this on his own. He needed a bit of luck.

Russel activated his Semblance, Roulette. It may not be the most reliable, and it would definitely require the fates aligning, but if he could get some adrenaline, or a boost to his Aura, maybe he could make it out of this alive.

He felt a deep, stabbing pain in his chest.

Oh no, Roulette's effect had nearly broken his Aura.

His Shortwings flashed in the moonlight as he fought desperately to stay alive. He burned through the last of his Dust. He managed to kill two of the Creeps and both Beowolves.

But it wasn't enough. When a Creep headbutted Thrush, he felt his Aura shatter, his body feeling cold and weakened. He tried to prop himself up and back away, but there was nowhere to run.

The Ursa Major bit down *hard* on his kicking right leg, the sound of bone snapping and muscle tearing audible.

For a brief millisecond, Russel didn't feel anything.

Then the pain set it. It was horrible, the worst agony he had ever experienced. And he had experienced a lot. He could feel his blood spilling onto the concrete as his hands gripped the horrific stump with trembling hands. A wordless scream of suffering was ripped from his lips as hot tears filled his eyes.

As the bear Grimm's bloodied maw pulled back, Russel saw something truly monstrous in it's eyes. It wasn't just a mindless animal. There was hate and malice in those eyes, hatred directed at all life and goodness. Hatred directed at him specifically. The Creeps closed in on him, sharp teeth based in a twisted smile.

Thrush closed his eyes, expecting to die.

But....that didn't happen. Gunshots rang out and he heard the sounds of the Ursa and Creep's bodies hitting the ground.

"RUSSEL!" Dove shouted in a panicked tone. "Y-Your leg!"

"D-Dove..."

Through bleary, tear-filled eyes, the emerald-haired boy saw his teammate rush up to him and place his hand over the open, gushing wound. Dove closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Suddenly, his hand glowed with a bright white light. The sound began closing up, but the leg was still gone.

Russel's eyes began to flutter closed, the blood loss and pain taking a toll on his body as he fell unconscious, the last sound he heard was Dove calling out to him.

#rwby #au: reforming bullies #team crdl #russel thrush #fall of beacon #au #fanfic #rwby fanfiction #angst #amputation #canon typical violence #russel thrush has a tennessee accent. I know he doesn't in canon #I just wanted him to have it. :)

[imjusthereforironwood]

I am curious: how would you use cardin?

Makes me think of the post: How I would use Jaune Arc

Is cardin only good as bully turn redemption path?

Is it better to remove the bully aspect completely?

Is he a rich family or tough street guy that is why he is in canon?

To talk about how I would use Cardin Winchester if I was writing RWBY, we must first look at how he was used. Simply put, he was a high school bully, meant to serve as a temporary antagonist to Jaune. The only things we really get to see of his personality is his arrogance, his pride, and his aggressive behavior. Other personality traits can only really be gathered if you overanalyze him. So, it's up to us as the audience to determine why he acts the way he acts.

After Jaundice Arc, Cardin kinda...disappears? Sky Lark and Russel Thrush appear in a doubles match against Penny and Ceil, so apparently, CRDL won a match. Then we see Cardin for a few seconds during the Fall of Beacon getting saved by Ironwood. And that's it. We never see him in any following volumes. He's never mentioned, even in passing.

This gives the fanfic writer ample blank space to work with. Everyone has their own tastes and ways they like to write Cardin, and if you write him differently then me, that's perfectly fine.

Me personally, I like to write Cardin Winchester as a troubled young man. His father, Caleb Winchester, was a Huntsman who died defending a village on the outskirts of Sanus. His mother had to work twice as hard to support him and his older sister, Carrie, who is about 5 years older than Cardin. When Cardin was 11 years old, Vale was facing some pretty severe racial tensions, after a human supremacist group hung several Faunas. There were clashes in the streets between human supremacists and Faunas eugenics groups. Around this time, the White Fang had begun employing stronger methods to free slaves from the Dust mines and fighting back against human supremacists. A group of Faunas thugs, putting on the disguise of White Fang members, decided to attack a Dust shop and rob it. They figured they could make a quick buck and pin it on the White Fang as well. A Dust shop that Cardin's mother worked at. She was hurt, badly, and to this day, her scars have not fully healed. This memory forever left an impact on Cardin.

Cardin went to Beacon, primarily because he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father. He's agressive and cocky, but Ozpin saw something in him. A chance to be more than just a racist bully.

All of that to say, when I write Cardin, I like to keep some of that pride and arrogance, but I like to show how he grows up. Have him redirect his aggression away from other people, and towards the Grimm. Have him mature into an adult.

So, yeah, that's how I like to use Cardin Winchester.

#rwby #au: reforming bullies #team crdl #cardin winchester #character study

[imjusthereforironwood]

Team CRDL's Weapons (Part One: Cardin Winchester)

I love weapons. It's what drew me into RWBY to begin with. In my personal life, I own a few firearms, and what I loved about early RWBY weapons is that you could mostly see how they worked. Ember Celica was fed by shotgun shell belts, Crescent Rose worked because of how the rifle would unfold, and it was fed by magazines. I love knowing how weapons work, I love when they had names that fit their "personalities", and I love seeing what niche each weapon fills.

The point of my rambling is that each member of Team CRDL has a weapon, and I'm going to talk about them. I'll mention what they have in canon, then try to mention any additions that I've included.

Starting off with Cardin, and arguably the simplest weapon of the team, his titanium mace, The Executioner. However, just because it's simple, doesn't mean it isn't cool!

The Executioner is a flanged mace, which, according to the RWBY manga, is built from titanium, and features a Fire Dust crystal in the center. There are eight flanges, two on each side, and he is apparently able to channel his Aura through it (also RWBY manga), though whether this is a skill all Hunters learn or if it's special to Executioner is unknown.

In combat, Cardin is able to wield it one handed or with both hands. (fun fact: Cardin is canonically left handed). He adopted a very powerful and agressive fighting style, willing to tank hits if it means he can close the distance. Flanged maces specialize in piercing and damaging armor, smashing them inward for maximum damage, and this means Cardin fills the role of the team's bruiser/tank. He gets in close and bashes some Grimm skulls.

The thing that makes The Executioner unique is the Fire Dust crystal inside. Cardin uses this to add a bit of explosive "oomf" to his strikes. As seen in the Pyrrha fight, Winchester was able to strike the ground and cause a line of explosions in front of him.

Side note, after doing a bunch of math that I probably messed up on, (basically, I took the size of a mace handle (38 inches long, 1.25 inches in diameter), and multiplied it by the weight of titanium (2.624 oz. per cubic inch)) I estimated that the handle of The Executioner weighs about 7.8 lbs., and the flanged head probably weighs about 1.25 lbs, making the whole thing weigh an estimated 9.05 lbs.

But please take my estimations with a huge heaping of salt. Even I'm not 100% on them. Plus, we don't know how much Dust weighs, nor what the mechanisms inside of the Executioner are made out of. It could weigh more than my guess, it could weigh less.

Anyway, when Cardin and crew get to Atlas, they will have the opportunity to upgrade their weapons. With Sky's help (in this AU, Sky is the weapon nerd of Team CRDL) the Executioner will be upgraded to be able to launch a medium range fire projectile at enemies, similar to the projectile Reinhardt from Overwatch can shoot from his hammer. (Come to think of it, both Cardin and Reinhardt fill a similar niche: heavy-hitting tanks that struggle with flying targets and long range enemies.)

Anyway, that's all for now. I'll cover Russel Thrush's weapons, the Shortwings next!

#rwby #au: reforming bullies #team crdl #cardin winchester #weapon design #i like medieval weapons #medieval weapons #reinhardt #overwatch

[imjusthereforironwood]

As I said in my post, I'm not trying to tell people how they can use Jaune in their fanfictions. I'm simply sharing how I like to use Jaune, and saying what I would do if I was the one writing him in canon. If you disagree with my opinion, that's perfectly fine. The fun of fanfiction is that you can write him as a villain, write him as a hero, make him lame, or make him awesome, and it's all up to the author.

I was simply sharing my two cents on the matter, and saying how I would use Jaune.

How I would use Jaune Arc

"Okay, look. The city is flying, we’re fighting an army of robots and I have a bow and arrow. None of this makes sense. But I'm going back out there because it's my job. Okay?" ~Hawkeye, Age of Ultron

Jaune Arc is...probably one of the more contentious characters on RWBY's cast. There are opinions ranging from absolutely gushing, to wishing he would be killed off. In fanfiction, you see everything from Jaune being a walking deity to being absolutely destroyed and hated on.

I'm not going to tell you what to do with Jaune in fanfics. However, I will give my two cents on how he's used in canon. In short...he is a vehicle for the writers. Anything they personally want, they put on Jaune. Any character growth, they put into Jaune. Need someone to hurt, or someone to lift up, someone to be their hero or their main character? Look to Jaune.

Which sucks, because, personally, I think Jaune could be better used as the "Everyman" and not as the "Writer Insert". What do I mean by this?

Well, Jaune could be the average guy among our team of superheroes. He's the Hawkeye of the group, the normie. And yet, he's still here. He fights, and fails, and gets back up again. He could be Mumen Rider, while he may be just man, he still fights for what he believes in. Make him a personable character, give him a good head on his shoulders, but don't make him the Harem King, don't make him this all-powerful fighter. Make him average, normal, but still willing to fight. Heck, I'd argue that Jaune would be more intriguing if he didn't even have a semblance. Make him the Hawkeye of the teams.

"We're fighting a Grimm witch, there's an army of monsters outside, and I'm just a guy with a sword and shield. Nothing makes any sense. But I'm going to go out there, because there's people that need my help. Because my teammates are counting on me to help evacuate people. You can stay in here, and hide. Or, you can follow me out there. Once you do, you'll be considered a Hunter."

#rwby #jaune arc #rwby critical

[imjusthereforironwood]

How I would use Jaune Arc

"Okay, look. The city is flying, we’re fighting an army of robots and I have a bow and arrow. None of this makes sense. But I'm going back out there because it's my job. Okay?" ~Hawkeye, Age of Ultron

Jaune Arc is...probably one of the more contentious characters on RWBY's cast. There are opinions ranging from absolutely gushing, to wishing he would be killed off. In fanfiction, you see everything from Jaune being a walking deity to being absolutely destroyed and hated on.

I'm not going to tell you what to do with Jaune in fanfics. However, I will give my two cents on how he's used in canon. In short...he is a vehicle for the writers. Anything they personally want, they put on Jaune. Any character growth, they put into Jaune. Need someone to hurt, or someone to lift up, someone to be their hero or their main character? Look to Jaune.

Which sucks, because, personally, I think Jaune could be better used as the "Everyman" and not as the "Writer Insert". What do I mean by this?

Well, Jaune could be the average guy among our team of superheroes. He's the Hawkeye of the group, the normie. And yet, he's still here. He fights, and fails, and gets back up again. He could be Mumen Rider, while he may be just man, he still fights for what he believes in. Make him a personable character, give him a good head on his shoulders, but don't make him the Harem King, don't make him this all-powerful fighter. Make him average, normal, but still willing to fight. Heck, I'd argue that Jaune would be more intriguing if he didn't even have a semblance. Make him the Hawkeye of the teams.

"We're fighting a Grimm witch, there's an army of monsters outside, and I'm just a guy with a sword and shield. Nothing makes any sense. But I'm going to go out there, because there's people that need my help. Because my teammates are counting on me to help evacuate people. You can stay in here, and hide. Or, you can follow me out there. Once you do, you'll be considered a Hunter."

#rwby #jaune arc #media criticism #rwby critical #hawkeye #mumen rider

[imjusthereforironwood]

That Chaotic Night

Cardin Winchester was breathing heavy as he slammed Executioner into a Creep's skull, the heavy mace cracking the Grimm's head with a sickening thud. Black ichor drips off the titanium flanges of Executioner as he removes the mace from the monster's shattered skull.

The Fire Dust crystal inside Cardin's mace had been drained of it's energy, and now he was left with a regular titanium mace. The only thing keeping him alive was his wits. He had been using his Semblance, Dreadnought, on and off, trying to conserve his Aura and only using it only when absolutely necessary.

The world had fallen apart in less then one hour. Cardin was in a burger joint when the final match between Penny and Pyrrha occured, and he watched on in horror as Penny was torn apart. That woman, that strange black-haired woman gave a speech about something or other. It seemed so long ago, but what she said stirred up panic and fear.

And that drew the Grimm in. On top of that, these airships flown by what looked like White Fang dropped off more Grimm! What was wrong with those animals!? To make matters worse, something was happening to the Atlas ships, it looked like they were fighting each other! Did the White Fang infiltrate them too?

Cardin hadn't been able to find or contact Russel, Dove, or Sky, and panic for their safety had begun to set in.

The young student heard the sounds of a kid calling for help. He may be selfish, he may be a bully, but he's not a monster. He starts running towards the voice, his exhausted, burning legs aching with pain, but he couldn't stop.

Rounding the corner of a bombed out building, he found the source of the voice: a small family, backed into an alleyway by a Beowolf and an Ursa Major. The father was standing in front of his family, a rusty pipe held in his shaking hands as he tried to keep the beasts at bay. His wife was standing in front of their daughter, a broken board in her right hand as she gripped her daughter with her left. They were scared, terrified.

Cardin Winchester refused to let them die. Steam escaped his lips as Dreadnought was activated. He could feel his strength increasing, adrenaline pumping through his veins. Cardin bellowed a feral roar as he charged in. The Beowulf and Ursa turned to fight the intruder, teeth bared and claws extended.

The red haired Huntsman-in-training allowed the Ursa Major's claws to glance off his plate armor as he closed the distance on the Beowolf. One quick swing, and Executioner knocked the wolf Grimm's head from it's body. Pivoting on his foot, Winchester raised his sturdy mace to block heavy paws of the Ursa. Usually, the raw strength from the bear-like monster would be enough to knock anyone off their feet. But Cardin's natural strength, combined with Dreadnought, allowed him to block the blow and parry with a mace to the ribs.

The Ursa stumbled back, growling and snarling, swiping with unexpected speed. The claws scraped against his breastplate, leaving large scratches and knocking the wind out of the brash fighter. The Ursa swung again, the claws just missing him, but the paw slammed into his face and torso. His Aura sparked at the contact.

'I'm pretty sure one of my ribs just cracked,' Cardin thought painfully.

Undeterred, however, Cardin moved in close and slammed Executioner into the Grimm's left forleg, causing the beast to stumble. Wasting no time, Winchester brought the heavy weapon down into the Ursa Major's neck, killing it instantly.

The indigo-eyed student took a moment to catch his breath, and he glanced up at the family he had just saved, and for a breif second, he paused in shock.

The father was a Faunas. Though Cardin hadn't noticed it before, the man had a raccoon's ringed tail flicking behind him. The wife was human, and the daughter had black markings around her eyes, like the mask on a raccoon.

If he had seen them on the street earlier in the day, Cardin probably would've made a snide comment, or rolled his eyes in disgust.

But right now, that seemed so unimportant. This family was fighting to protect each other.

Cardin wiped a bit of blood from his busted lip as he narrowed his eyes.

"What are you just standing around for?" he barked out loudly as he waved his hand at the family. "I saw the police set up an evacuation route in this direction, get a move on!"

The family began to follow, the father and mother giving Cardin looks of eternal gratitude. The small half-Faunas girl looked up at the red-haired teen like he was her guardian angel.

"You saved our lives," the husband murmered gratefully, his racoon tail flicking behind him.

"Yeah...sure," Cardin said quietly.

The police had set up a barricade as they attempted to establish an evacuation route.

"Hey, you!" Cardin shouted at an officer as he led the family up. "We've got three civilians. Get them out of here!"

The officer didn't protest, he simply led the family behind the barricades. The little girl turned around, her blue eyes exaggerated by the dark mask around them. She gave Winchester a small wave.

Cardin glanced back at the street he came from. He could evacuate right now, but he knew that there were more civilians out there.

So, the bully went back into the fray, Executioner becoming stained with Grimm ichor as he looked for more survivors.

Bu as Cardin chased down an Ursa Minor and killed it, he saw some Atlas Knights stepping out. These robots had been helping clean up some Grimm, protecting people. Which is why Winchester froze in shock when the Knights turned their guns to him.

Time seemed to slow.

Bang. Bang.

Cardin opened his eyes to see two of the Atlas Knights missing heads and sparking. His jaw dropped as he watched a man in a torn shirt absolutely destroy the group of robots in the span of a few seconds. Half of his torso looked to be prosthetics, and a large white revolver was gripped in his hand. It took Cardin a moment to recognize his savior as General James Ironwood, the Headmaster from Atlas.

"This area is secure," General Ironwood said in a commanding voice. "We need to-"

His words were cut off by a dark-haired Huntsman pulling out a mecha-shift scythe with an intense glare directed at Ironwood.

"Qrow, this isn't my doing!" the general called out as the scruffy Huntsman began to charge.

Cardin was still frozen in shock as he watched Ironwood flip his gun around, prepared to fight this Qrow guy as he jumped. But instead of going for Ironwood, Qrow went for the Griffin behind him, slicing the flying monster in two.

As the two halves hit the ground behind him, the scraggly man let out a dry chuckle.

"You idiot, I know you didn't do this," Qrow muttered. "So, what now General?"

Ironwood stiffened up, and and began giving Glynda and Qrow some directions. The initial shock had worn off for Cardin, even as one of the Atlas warships crashed into a field outside the city, just a few blocks away.

Cardin Winchester took a deep breath, and stepped towards General Ironwood, Ms. Goodwitch, and Qrow.

"Tell me what I can do to help."

#au: reforming bullies #rwby #james ironwood #cardin winchester #team crdl #angst #Fall of beacon #AU #fanfic

[imjusthereforironwood]

Featuring a wacky group of side characters like tired cyborg dad, a Clockwork Orange cosplayer, an edgy dead Chick Fil A mascot, the mom who went out for milk, and a living ice cream bar.

Sometimes a family is a girl who laser-beams monsters with her eyeballs, a class traitor, a rebel cat princess, the concept of California beaches made flesh, a support main who moonlights as a criminal, the pink goddess of thunder, a dead cereal mascot, an invisibility cloak of emotions, a 5000 year old farmboy, and a depressed bird.

#rwby #totally legit recap

[imjusthereforironwood]

I am curious about cardin semblance: is it like port that doubles his strength or more like temporary invincible?

Either way it would make sense how he was able to hold against Pyrrha.

The best way I can describe it is like a Beserker Barbarian's rage from DnD. Increasing strength, durability, and speed for a duration of time. Less of temporary invincibility, and moreso like doubling strength and increasing Aura levels.

#rwby #au: reforming bullies #team crdl #cardin winchester

[imjusthereforironwood]

It would've been cool if Adam Taurus had an Irish accent. It would've added a bit to the character while still being fitting to his name, and it would've been a good allegory for how much the Irish suffered bigotry, oppression, and being treated like second class citizens. Agree or disagree, there was a reason the IRA was founded, same for the White Fang.

#rwby #adam taurus #irish #just a thought

[imjusthereforironwood]

Team CRDL's Semblances

Here's a short little note about the Semblances of Team CRDL. Because the show never gave the four of them Semblances, I will be creating my own. Most of them will be original to me, except for Sky Lark's semblance. His was made by rainstorm4 in the great fanfic, Redemption. Give it a read if you have the chance.

Also, a side note. I like to give my semblances two things: visual cues and realistic drawbacks. I personally feel it gives the semblances more impact, and it avoids the problem of "well, why don't they keep their abilities active all the time?", respectively.

Second side note, I try to make semblances represent something about the character. Once upon a time, semblances used to be a representation of the soul. Although that idea has been totally scrapped, I'm going to kinda incorporate it.

Starting off with Cardin Winchester, his semblance is called "Dreadnought". It increases his speed, strength and durability fivefold. It is an active semblance, and while active it allows Cardin to pull off incredible feats of strength and fighting prowess. Downside, it takes a lot of aura out of him to activate, and when he shuts it down, either of his own accord or by being knocked out, he is left pretty exhausted. Visually, you can tell his semblance is active when his breath has the appearance of hot steam. This ability represents his stubborn determination, to win at all costs.

Next up, we have Russel Thrush, and the semblance I personally love the most, "Roulette". Tell me, do you like gambling with your life? Roulette can be an absolute boon or bane. In short, Roulette can cause a number of different effects when it is activated, some good, some bad. Sometimes, it will supercharge his Aura, sometimes it will give him a boost of adrenaline, sometimes it will damage his aura, cause immense pain, and everything inbetween. He doesn't use it unless he is completely desperate, or if he's just testing his own limits. Every day, he is still finding new effects. Visually, you can tell he has activated Roulette because his pupils will shift different colors from his usual deep blue. It represents the more risky side of Russel's personality, the daredevil in him, but it's also emblematic of his outlook on life. Sure, he's been dealt a pretty crummy hand in life (in this AU, he ran away from an abusive situation, shifted hands a lot in the foster system, lost his leg in the Fall of Beacon) but despite his bad luck, he still considers himself a pretty lucky person for meeting the friends he did, despite what his cynical and grumpy nature may tell you.

Dove Bronzewing, in this AU, will be the younger brother of the group, the more innocent one of the team, has probably the most benign ability, Angel's Touch. It gives healing, at the cost of his Aura. His abilities may not be on par with Jaune, but it is more versatile than Jaune's Aura Amp, being able to heal people regardless of whether or not he has a crush on them. (Oh snap, shots fired, Jaune could've totally saved Penny. Jokes aside, my problems with Jaune have least to do with his character, and more to do with his writers.) Angel's Touch can be used to heal external wounds, but he struggles to heal internal injuries. The deeper the wound, the more impossible it gets, and the larger the wound, the more aura it will take for Dove to heal. Visually, you can tell that he's using it by a crackling white energy around his hands. This ability represents Dove's desire to help people, to protect the ones he cares about. Also, here's a little tidbit, he unlocked it during the Fall of Beacon, and he couldn't use it on a lot of people because they had already died. I love angst.

Lastly, we have Sky Lark, the blunette axe wielder of CRDL. His Semblance is called Keensense. It is a passive Semblance that increases his sense of smell, sight, hearing, touch and taste to better than a human. While there is seemingly no downside, the problem comes that he is extra sensitive to everything. An explosion goes off beside your ear, it may ring for a bit. You smell something bad, he smells it even worse. An explosion goes off beside Lark's ear, and he'll go deaf for a few moments. That being said, Keensense can come in handy when it comes to tracking Grimm, listening for danger, and gives him a general quality of life ability. Because it is passive, there is no visual cue. I believe it represents his calmer, more logical and pragmatic way of thinking.

Anyway, there they are! Feel free to drop an ask if you have any questions!

#rwby #team crdl #au: reforming bullies #cardin winchester #sky lark #dove bronzewing #russel thrush

[imjusthereforironwood]

[imjusthereforironwood]

I am curious more about the story AU down the road: let’s say team rwby and others come into Atlas:

I know things will changes gradually but how is the question:

Ruby tells the truth: maybe nothing too much change but ironwood will keep a sharper eye on them?

Would yang and Blake still try to tell Robyn the project? And if they are still trying too trellis her how would team CRDL stop them?

I understand if you wish not to spoil but I was just curious.

So, telling James Ironwood the truth early will change a few main things in this AU. First of all, Ironwood will begin working with a few key Atlas scientists on ways to reverse her immortality. Secondly, Team CRDL will be brought in on this secret when Ruby tells Ironwood that they were the ones that pushed her to tell the truth. Because of that, when Ironwood sends Yang and Blake down to capture Robyn, he'll also send down Cardin and Sky. Blake will express some misgivings, but with the four of them, they'll actually arrest her and bring her to Ironwood. Of course, this causes more upheaval in Mantle, upheaval that Watts and Tyrian use to cause more chaos.

It doesn't help that Jacques is also using this as an opportunity to falsely paint Ironwood as a tyrant.

All of this will culminate in a riot instegated by Watts and Tyrian. (Side note, there will be a subplot of human supremacists and faunas eugenicists fighting each other in the streets, as well as legitimate faunas and human protestors who want things to be better. It will come to a head when the chaos of the riots causes a Grimm invasion. It is only narrowly avoided by a show of unity between Ironwood and Robyn, as well as the legitimate protestors and Atlas military teaming up to push back both the human supremacists and faunas eugenicists.

Then, a few more things proceed similarly to how they did in canon. Jacques is arrested, Watts is captured, and Ironwood sees the chess piece. Penny gets the Winter Maiden powers, but this time the power overloads her systems. In a tense argument between Ironwood and Oscar, where Ozpin shows back up to speak with his old friend, Ozcar talks down Ironwood from the brink of losing it.

#au: reforming bullies #rwby #team crdl #james ironwood #cardin winchester #atlas #russel thrush #sky lark #dove bronzewing #jacques schnee #ozpin #oscar pine