Colors of Remnant

Grayson hadn't yet used the combat training room, and the opportunity arose to finally use it today. His classes had been uneventful as always, and thankfully, the Dark Omen had yet to activate him. He figured that it would be a long time before that happens. He looked around, noticing practice dummies, room control modules, and more.

I'm sure some people feel like a kid in a candy store with all these bells and whistles... he mused as he walked around, settling on a practice dummy to spar. He assumed an aggressive fighting position as Bioforge began to transform his fingers, hands, forearms, and elbows before stopping. Grayson then proceeded to show the practice dummy who's boss.

Thump... thump-thump... thump...

Lennie knew the sound of someone using a combat dummy as a punching bag pretty well by now. The timbre of this one was a little different, though - it sounded like whoever was doing the punching was using brass knuckles or some other metallic fist attachment.

Curiosity piqued, he headed toward the sound and peeked his head into the training room to find a man whaling on a training dummy with hands covered in metal. He'd finally found a fellow boxer.

"I was beginning to think there weren't any other boxers around here," he called out when the other guy finished a set. "Wanna go a few rounds?" he asked as he stretched.

One! Two!... One! Two! Grayson thought to himself in rhythm with his attacks as he assailed the practice dummy with a series of jabs, palm strikes, and elbow strikes. Before he knew it, he was practicing boxing techniques that he had seen from pop culture. After some swift practice dodges, Grayson shifted in close to deliver a pair of body shots before throwing an uppercut directly into the dummy, whose neck looked a bit longer than it did before.

"Wanna go a few rounds?" a voice called out from Grayson's right. The other student seemed to be a tall and lanky Faunus, with a nice beard to boot. Grayson allowed Bioforge to settle, returning his arms to their normal flesh and blood form.

Come to think of it, I have yet to spar with anyone. It may be beneficial to do so. Grayson thought.

"A splendid idea. What is your name?" he asked, turning to the snapping turtle Faunus.

"I'm Lennie," he introduced himself as the other student's metallic arm coating vanished. Was that his Semblance? Interesting. "Is that your Semblance? Seems very suited to your style," he commented as he held out his hand for the other to shake.

"I've been looking for a boxing partner for a while - I'm glad I'm not the only one here," he commented as he took in the state of the training dummy. It had taken quite the beating.

"I'm Grayson, and yes, that is my Semblance. That's not the only trick it can do." Grayson replied after the handshake, displaying the other ability on his outstretched arm. The arm seemingly became invisible to the naked eye before Grayson restored it to its natural state.

"Glad I can be of use in that regard. What's your Semblance if you don't mind my asking?" he asked Lennie.

"Invisibility? Very cool," Lennie commented with an impressed nod.

When Grayson asked about his own Semblance, Lennie chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "I have absolutely no idea," he admitted. "I haven't discovered it yet. Hopefully I figure it out before the end of the year, or some of next year's classes are going to be very difficult." He shrugged. "That's a problem for future me, though."

No Semblance? I see... Grayson thought.

"I see. Anyway, let's get started on sparring." Grayson spoke, going over to one corner to wait for Lennie to prepare.

Without a Semblance, that means no surprises for me. It was only fair that I show him my Semblance after all, and it would be unsportsmanlike for me to use it in this case. I sense that I can get some use out of him aside from a sparring partner though... he mused as he patiently waited.

Lennie spent a few minutes getting his stretches in before moving to the middle of the room. With a sharp shake of his arms, he equipped his gloves, making a fist and holding it out for Grayson to look at, the tiny spikes glittering in the light.

"I'm fairly proud of these," he admitted. "Took me forever to find a weave that could hold up to being punched into armor plating, but my uncle's tailor hooked me up."

It would behoove a taller boxer with a longer reach to keep their opponent at a distance... So it seems like I would have to get past his reach to have the advantage... Grayson thought as he slipped on a pair of turquoise boxing gloves. Grayson had been trained in martial arts that were meant to subdue and neutralize threats with surgical precision, so boxing was quite the adjustment for him. He did, however, have enough familiarity with the sport to mimic professional techniques. As Grayson took a step towards the center, he noticed Lennie's gloves, which were sparkling underneath the light.

"Impressive, very stylish." Grayson noted, beginning his own set of stretches.

"In the spirit of fairness, I won't use my Semblance, just hands." he added.

"And feet," Lennie added as Grayson put his own gloves on. "Kickboxing is at least decently close to the 'you are fighting Grimm' style," he explained as he raised his hands.

He's shorter than me, but not by much. Assuming he's got no less experience than I do, he'll know that getting in close is more to his advantage, but we're both tall...

No sense thinking about it too hard. Let's do this.