DC: The Shadow Monarch's Chronicles

The room was quiet and sparsely furnished. Two beds, one on each side, and a single large window in the center overlooking Beacon's sprawling campus. Ashborn sat on the edge of his bed, absently gazing out the window while Amazo stood by, his gaze inquisitive.

"Father," Amazo began, "is it really okay to keep annoying people like that?"

Ashborn smirked faintly, not looking away. "It's fine. They're still young and still know no malice. Besides, they were tense after seeing my shadow. It's a good distraction. Keeps them relaxed to some extent."

Amazo tilted his head. "But… why show it in the first place? I could've handled the Grimm or just retreated without exposing that level of power."

Ashborn finally turned to him, his expression calm. "In this world, people unlock something called aura. With it, a semblance manifests, a power unique to each person. They'll assume my shadow is my semblance. It will be just another semblance, albeit a little over the top.... but I must admit I am as baffled as I am amused by Yang, she is showing hostility after seeing some of what I can do, I wonder how long she will continue to try punching me."

"I see," Amazo replied, absorbing the information while ignoring Ashborn musings. "Then… what am I supposed to do here exactly?"

"Well for now," Ashborn said, reclining on the bed, "you attend school. You'll soon be placed in a team with a girl named Penny."

Amazo raised an eyebrow. "Penny… is she the android?"

Ashborn nodded. "Yes. Like you, she's more than metal and wires, she has a soul and emotions. It'll be good for you… experience what it's like to flirt, connect. You might even like it."

Amazo blinked. "I have multiple recorded plans on how to approach and flirt with girls."

Ashborn chuckled heartily. "Keep it simple. Act normal. See where things go."

Amazo paused thoughtfully, then gave a slow nod.

___________

The next day came with clear skies and energetic chatter as students filled the Combat Class. Amazo walked calmly through the gates, class schedule in hand. He scanned the crowd and immediately spotted Team RWBY sitting with a few others: a blond boy chatting nervously, a boy with black hair and a pink streak, and two girls one orange-haired and loud, the other red-haired and calm.

As eyes turned toward him, Amazo gave a small wave and took a nearby seat, his posture upright and composed.

Moments later, three newcomers sat beside him, a graceful raven-haired woman with piercing amber eyes, a silver-haired young man with a confident smirk, and a mint-haired girl with a casual but calculating gaze.

"Cinder," the woman introduced herself, nodding politely. "These are Mercury and Emerald. We are from Haven."

"Amazo Black," he responded evenly. "I'm a temporary student here."

Cinder's eyes narrowed slightly in interest. "I saw the footage of yesterday. Was the darkness your semblance?"

Amazo shook his head. "That was my father's power. He controls and commands the shadows."

Emerald whistled softly. "Impressive… and terrifying. I don't think anyone could fight something like that."

Amazo nodded. "Father is… on a whole different level from the rest of humanity."

Before Cinder could probe further, the doors opened with forceful precision. Glynda Goodwitch entered the arena, her expression strict as ever. Her gaze swept across the gathered students and lingering just a second longer on Amazo.

"Today," she announced, "we have a guest joining our ranks. Mister Amazo Black will be attending our classes for the time being."

She paused, then focused directly on him. "To ensure you're properly placed, could you share how much Huntsman training or formal combat experience you've received?"

Amazo stood without hesitation. "None. I was designed to be combat-ready, capable of adapting and evolving as necessary."

A hushed silence fell over the class.

Glynda blinked. "Designed?"

"I am not a human," Amazo said calmly. "I am an android, a synthetic being created with the capacity to learn, adapt, and evolve."

Murmurs erupted across the room. Eyes widened. Even Glynda seemed momentarily stunned, a flicker of uncertainty passing through her otherwise composed face.

Glynda Goodwitch narrowed her eyes. "Is this some kind of joke?"

Amazo calmly shook his head. He knew her skepticism was natural, even expected.

"Can you prove that?" Glynda asked.

She braced herself for some ridiculous claim or childish explanation, but what followed made every jaw in the room drop. Without a word, Amazo stepped to the side of the room and his body shimmered with golden energy. His form expanded, rising and reshaping until a towering golden giant, over three meters tall, stood before them. Its form sleek and perfect, glowing with subtle internal light.

"This is my true form," Amazo spoke, his voice deeper and mechanical, yet undeniably intelligent. "My human appearance is purely for convenience. It was modeled after a younger version of my father."

Silence. Then stunned murmuring.

Ruby, unable to contain herself, pointed with wide eyes. "Wait… he really adopted you?!"

Amazo shifted back into his human form, blinking. "My father told you no lies."

Glynda took a breath, recomposing herself with visible effort. "This… is difficult to process. It's hard to assess you as we would a typical student." Her voice steadied. "Would you mind undergoing a combat test to evaluate your abilities?"

Amazo nodded. "How will this test proceed?"

"Come to the stage," Glynda said, gesturing toward the sparring platform. "You'll face off against another student."

Without hesitation, Amazo walked to the center of the room. Glynda turned to the crowd. "Mr. Winchester. Would you join us?"

Cardin Winchester stood up with a smug grin. "You want me to fight the smart toaster? I'd never turn that down."

Glynda checked her scroll for aura levels and frowned. "Since you have no aura to track, I'll stop the match if it gets too dangerous for you."

Amazo looked at her curiously. "Is aura normally required in these class combats?"

"It is," Glynda confirmed.

Suddenly, Amazo closed his eyes for two seconds then opened them. "I have aura now."

Glynda blinked and glanced back at her scroll. The screen updated, showing a green bar, Amazo's aura full and active.

"How…?" she asked, baffled.

"I analyzed your aura signature and generated one of my own," Amazo answered. "It is part of my continuous evolution capability."

Whispers erupted across the arena. Even the previously smug Cardin seemed a little less sure of himself.

Trying to regain control of the class, Glynda took a step back. "Do you require a weapon?"

Amazo shook his head. "I can create one if necessary."

Cardin scoffed. "These little tricks won't help you."

Glynda raised her hand. "Fight however you like. Begin."

Cardin laughed and charged, bringing his mace crashing into Amazo's face. A solid impact and Amazo didn't even blink. The aura bar didn't drop an inch.

Cardin attacked again. Once. Twice. Three times.

Still nothing.

"How is your aura not dropping?!" Cardin shouted.

"I am generating it constantly," Amazo replied. "Your damage output is insufficient."

"That's not fair! You can't just have infinite aura!"

Amazo blinked. "Understood. Setting constant aura levels to match yours."

The crowd murmured, trying to process what they just heard.

Cardin snarled and lunged again but this time, Amazo's hand snapped up and caught his arm mid-swing. a casual punch to the chest, he sent Cardin flying across the arena. The force knocked Cardin's aura into the red immediately, and he groaned as he skidded to a stop.

The room was silent again. Even Glynda's expression cracked into disbelief.

Amazo turned to her. "Is this sufficient?"

Glynda nodded slowly. "Yes."

But before she could end the session, Yang stood up, fire in her eyes.

"I want to spar with him."

Glynda glanced at Amazo. "Are you okay with that?"

"I am."

Yang walked to the stage, excited. "Hey! Can you take other people's forms?"

"Yes."

She grinned. "Then take mine. Let's see how it feels fighting myself."

Amazo's body shimmered and twisted and a second Yang stood on the stage. Same smirk. Same hair. Same swagger.

He tilted his head and asked in Yang's voice, "Is this good enough?"

Yang burst out laughing. "Perfect!"

The rest of the class was stunned. Glynda looked back and forth between the two Yangs, genuinely struggling to tell them apart. If she hadn't seen Amazo transform with her own eyes, she wouldn't have known who was who.

Even Weiss blinked. "This… is going to be interesting."

The moment the spar began, fists flew in a blur of gold and flame.

Amazo and Yang collided in the center of the stage, each exchanging brutal punches in a ferocious boxing match. Blow for blow, the two matched pace, and to the astonishment of the class, Amazo's strikes were perfectly synchronized with Yang's rhythm. Every movement she made, he mirrored flawlessly.

Even more shocking, mounted on his arms were a perfect copy of Ember Celica, Yang's signature shotgun gauntlets. With every punch, he fired explosive blasts just like her, mimicking not only her form but her fighting style down to the tiniest detail.

But as the duel continued, something became painfully clear.

Amazo was winning.

He wasn't just mimicking, he was improving at an alarming rate.

From the sidelines, Ruby's jaw dropped. "How is he better at being Yang than Yang?!"

Blake crossed her arms, eyes narrowed in understanding. "He said it himself, he learns, adapts, evolves… I think we're looking at an evolved version of Yang."

Weiss, usually hard to impress, couldn't help but exhale in disbelief. "This is… beyond impressive."

Back on the platform, Yang gritted her teeth as another punch knocked her back. But she refused to yield. Slamming her fists together, her eyes glowed red and her golden hair flared to life, igniting like wildfire.

"I won't lose to a copy!" she shouted, her semblance roaring to life.

But just as quickly, Amazo mirrored her action. He slammed his hands together and his hair ignited as well, glowing gold with fire. The same aura, the same pressure, the same heat. A perfect, terrifying reflection of Yang's power.

The room fell into stunned silence.

Yang's eyes widened, then narrowed, then softened. The fire in her hair died down.

She exhaled sharply. "Yeah… no. I surrender. I'm not fighting a much stronger version of me with my own semblance."

Amazo immediately powered down and shifted back into his normal human form. Calm, composed, almost unaware of the awe he'd left behind.

Glynda stepped forward, her voice steady but incredulous. "Can you also copy other people's semblances?"

Amazo nodded. "Yes. As long as I can analyze the energy output and structural pattern of the semblance, I can replicate it. It does not matter if the energy is biological, artificial, or elemental in nature. If it exists, I can achieve a similar result."

Glynda blinked slowly. She had lost count of how many times she'd been shocked today.

Weiss stared at him. "Who made you? And how does something like you even exist?"

Amazo tilted his head slightly. "My original father died shortly after my creation."

A heavy silence fell over the room, respectful and somber.

Glynda adjusted her glasses, composed once again. "Thank you, Mr. Black. Please take your seat. You've shown us… far more than enough today."

Amazo nodded and walked back to his seat, calm as ever. Behind him, the class whispered, processing what they had just seen, not a machine pretending to be human, but something greater: something beyond.

And so, the legend of the android who could evolve began to take root at Beacon.