Ruby was an average Huntress in training. "Was" being the key word. After her and her friends, her team, RWBY, and the team of NPR (odd numbers in Initiation) were called to Mr. Ozpin's office for a mission, they were confused and excited. Thay had only started official school less than two months ago. They were tasked to search a set of ruins because of odd anomalies and disturbances.
Now, they are here in front of the crumbling and old stone ruins built into a cliff face.
Reaching half way to the front, a series of low growls sounded, putting each person on their guard. Out of the shadows of the huge trees and bushes surrounding the ruins, at least eight Beowolves emerged. No problem right?
Well, the seven were to busy staring at their eyes, which were a pitch black set of orbs instead of the blood red that a Grimm usually had. Looking closely, they could see faint wisps of black smoke outlining them, and they smelled of rot and decay.
Instead of attacking, they got back onto all fours and bowed. BOWED.
Placing their muzzles to the ground, they gave a series of low growls, almost like communication. All eight moved to the sides, still bowing, and making a pathway for the two teams to pass. A deep black smoke covered the ground as it escaped the ruins, the gaping front now seeming darker and black tendrils were gripping the edges.
Horrific and cartoon like, a thick tendril of black smoke made a hand and made the motion with the index finger in the "come here" motion, the index finger bending back and forth constantly.
Confused and slightly scared, they moved forward. Sans Blake.
"Blake, are you OK?" Weiss's voice made them turn, all now confused and worried as Blake, the calm and collected one, was now shivering visibly, paler, her pupils were now thin slits as they widened in obvious fear. Gambol Shroud was shaking violently in her hands, and low growls of fear escaped her throat, her bow flattened on her head.
Looking forward, she rapidly shook her head "no" and backed away slowly, the Beowolves now a deathly still and silent set of black figures.
Blake couldn't explain it, but whatever is in that cave, struck every primal nerve she had, scaring her close to Death, as if the Devil himself were in there.
Hissing, she stood her ground, Ruby disappearing in a flurry of rose pedals and grabbing Blake's arms, pulling the stiff and scared girl forward. They couldn't leave her out here with the odd Beowolves.
"Come on Blake! We've got a mission! What's scaring you?" Yang was seriously silent, knowing that if anything could terrify her partner like that, that means it was a serious threat to not take lightly. Team NPR was mess of confusion, worry, and slight fear.
"N-n-n-n-NO! Wha-whatever's i-in there is! Is-!" Before she could finish, a deep rumbling from the cave captured everyone's attention and made Blake shake even worse. The smoke hand was gone and a set of two pitch black orbs was easily seen, darker than the pitch darkness of the cave.
Out walked a pitch black colt, covered in bone armor with no stomach and nothing but ribs and black and rotted tissue making it's body. The base of the tail was a black flame, the hooves were the grayest steel color ever seen, and rot and decay covered the body, the once thick and majestic mane now a matted mess of rotted flesh and rough hair. Thick black smoke rose out of the nostrils and mouth of the colt, black blood dripping and fizzling out on the ground that was coming from the mouth.
As it walked out, it gave a blood curdling whinny and rose up, the ripped out stomach showing black smudges of innards.
A deep crack sounded out of the cave, and the black smoke on the ground intensified where the ground was now all black, ending abruptly to the colors beyond. A throaty and sickening laugh rose out of the cave, making Blake shriek in fear and cower behind Yang, who was now fearing for her life as a deep feeling of dread and primal fear gripped her's and everyone else's spines.
In a set of pitch black knight armor that was all leather with bone plates in the place of metal plates, the arms ending in long and black sleeves that were wide and glowed a flaming blue, a pitch black cape with flaming blue connecting to a set of rings on the neck, where there was no head except a startling long blue flame in the shape of hair in a long pony tail, the hair reaching down to the creature's thighs, who was a total of eight feet in height.
The eyes were a diamond shaped set of blue flames. And there was a horrifying thing.
There was no head.
The hair and eyes floated where they should be on a head, but there was none.
In the left hand, which a mass of black skin, was a whip that was a long spine, obviously that of a Human or Faunus as it ended in a human like skull covered in jutting, jagged spikes made of stone, bone and black metal. In the right was a long spine that was connected to another one to make it longer, a skull at the top and two hands sharped to a deadly point at the bottom, the skull had a long pure white blade that had a deadly curve, long arm bones layering the top of the scythe. The bone's were reinforced with something none could see, but the only one's to witness it were quivering in fear to much to notice.
With a guttural coming from a seemingly non-existent throat, it raised and placed the massive scythe on it's right shoulder, where the whip was now placed on the black leather belt on it's hip.
Darting back and forth, the blue fire eyes rested on Ruby herself where it grunted and began walking, each step making them ever more terrified. Blake's heart was practically beating so fast you couldn't tell it was beating by looking at it.
Reaching a black hand out, where it was immediately covered in pitch black metal to make a clawed gauntlet, it caressed the side of Ruby's face, where Yang now regained her senses and attempted to stop the creature.
"GET AWAY FROM HE-GWACK!" Before she could hit the creature, it grabbed her by the throat and picked her up, choking her and her feet were kicking a good two feet above the ground.
Regaining their senses, both teams rushed the creature hoping to save Yang. Ruby and Blake were hanging back, Blake quivering in violent fear, and Ruby wide eyed, deathly pale, and breathing was shaky.
The "things'" touch was as cold and chilling as if pure death just touched her skin. Cold. Decaying. Rotting. Terrifying.
Hearing a grunt, Ruby saw that the thing's arm holding Yang was sliced off by Pyrrha, where it writhed and disintegrated. What made the group stop their attack was that the stump didn't bleed, and the creature didn't even flinch.
Instead, an arm grew back, looking completely identical to the one just cut off, and was made in a sickening wet plop of a finish as it was placed in the right socket.
Continuing, the creature just stood there as it was shot, stabbed, frozen and burned, cut and beaten by weapons, the horse and Beowolves still there at the side, the wolves still bowing.
The onslaught had no affect as the creature gave an agitated 'tch' and snapped a clawed finger and thumb, a visible bubble of energy hitting the teens and forcing them down, sapping them of their energy and shattering several bones and bruising some important organs.
Falling heavily with pained screams and groans, they could only watch as they struggled to heal themselves and ignore the blinding pain.
As it began walking again, Blake crouched into a fetal position and shook with sobs of paralyzing fear and anguish.
The entire time, hardly anything was spoken.
Before reaching Ruby, a whiz of air slammed into it's stomach and sent it back a few feet. Grunting in annoyance, it took fascination as whatever hit it managed to make it bleed.
For. The. First. Time.
Looking up, a Bullhead landed in the field, several soldiers running out and killing the Beowolves, but stopping in fear as they looked at the creature. The Faunus that now arrived, like Blake, shook violently in fear and got on the ground, hands on their heads as they shook.
A man with silver hair and a blonde woman with a riding crop stepped off the ship, both trying to shake off the fear and just barely not succumbing as the creature focused it's eyes on the two, layering them with it's focus, making the deep fear that got everyone else now solely on the two Hunters.
"My name is Ozpin. I wish to converse with you...
...Dullahan."
The black colt whinnied louder, thick, black clouds now covering the sun as thunder and blood red lightening flashed.