RWBY: Batman Begins

Chapter IV

Bruce stepped onto the ice.

He had spent much time in the lair of the League of Shadows, and though he still had much to learn, he felt very welcome. Even with the knowledge he already had gained, he had learned so much.

"You have learned to bury your guilt with anger," Salem told him. "I will teach you to confront it and to face the truth. You know how to fight six men. We can teach you how to engage six hundred. You know how to disappear. We can teach you to become truly invisible."

That was one of his first lessons: invisibility. He had been assigned with Cinder to teach him everything they knew, and she was quite the teacher.

"A true member of the League of Shadows understands that invisibility is a matter of patience and agility," she told him.

She was a valuable teacher, and here she stood in front of him, holding a katana similar to the one he held in the moment. She had brought him out here to Atlas for this lesson, and though it was freezing, she had taught him to ignore pain, but always take it into consideration.

The two charged towards one another, clashing blades. Bruce had learned since his first fights with the members of the league, and Cinder had proven to be quite the opponent, with any form of weapon. He was proud of himself for being able to take her on without failing miserably, as he had in their earliest battles, but she had also taught him not to let that get to his head.

As he charged forward to attack, he felt the ice shift underneath his feet, and he slowed.

"Always mind your surroundings," Cinder said.

He watched the way she stepped on the ice, making every step, even the quickest, as careful as possible, and he couldn't see a single crack underneath her.

As he ran towards her, he noticed her taking advantage of the ice, sliding backwards with a single kick on the ice.

More memories of the lessons he had learned flashed in his mind with every clash of the blades.

"We employ explosive powders," Cinder told him, tossing the explosive powder to the ground, which resulted in a popping sound.

"As weapons?" Bruce asked, taking the bowl of explosive powders from her.

"Or distractions," Cinder said. "Theatricality and deception are powerful agents. You must become more than just a man in the mind of your opponent."

Bruce took the explosive powder in his hand, and tossed it to the ground.

Bruce was now taking advantage of the ice, just as Cinder was. The sliding was a far easier maneuver, and he managed to find a balance of both the ice, and the sword battle with Cinder.

Bruce had been listening to one of Salem's lessons as he walked alongside her, when he heard a man shouting. He turned to the source of the noise, and saw a beaten man in a cage, struggling to escape, and begging to be freed.

"Who is he?" he asked Salem.

"He was a farmer," the million-year-old woman explained. "Then he tried to take his neighbor's land and became a murderer. Now he is a prisoner."

"What'll happen to him?" Bruce asked.

"Justice," Salem said. "Crime cannot be tolerated. Criminals thrive on the indulgence of society's understanding."

Bruce was knocked to the ground, and Cinder stepped back, watching as he tried to recover. He knew she was going easy, which no real opponent would ever do, which was why he did his best to stand on the ice.

"Your parents' death was not your fault," she said.

Bruce was in no mood for a comfort speech, and he ran to Cinder, swinging his blade at her. She switched to defensive, blocking his attacks. She blocked an attack, and Bruce paused, searching for a good way to attack her.

Then, she continued.

"It was your father's," she said.

Bruce's eyes widened as she said that. Getting the results she was searching for, Cinder shoved forward, knocking Wayne back. She grabbed his wrist, and swung him to the ground, blade pointed at his throat.

"Anger does not change the fact that your father failed to act," she said.

"The man had a gun!" Bruce defended.

"Would that stop you?" she asked, releasing him and backing off.

Bruce stood up, not letting her attack his father. "I've had training!"

She spun back towards him and charged. "The training is nothing! Will is everything!"

She punched him, knocking him to the ground. He slowly stood up, facing his teacher, and getting ready to attack.

"The will to act," she finished.

With her speech finished, Bruce charged towards her. She lifted her blade for an offensive strike, but he ducked down, letting himself slide past her. He kicked a leg out, and knocking her onto her back.

Now with the advantage, Bruce spun back to her, pointing his blade directly at her neck.

"Yield," he ordered.

She chuckled, sword still in her hand. "You haven't beaten me. You have sacrificed sure footing for a killing stroke."

She smashed her katana at the ice underneath Bruce's feet, and he felt himself sink into the freezing temperatures of the water beneath him.