Legends, stories scattered through time. Mankind has grown quite fond of recounting the exploits of heroes and villains, forgetting so easily that we are remnants, byproducts, of a forgotten past.
Man, born from dust, was strong, wise, and resourceful. But he was born into an unforgiving world. An inevitable darkness, creatures of destruction. The creatures of Grimm, set their eyes on man and all of his creations. These forces clashed and it seemed the darkness was intent on returning man's brief existence to the void.
However even the smallest spark of hope is enough to ignite change, and in time, man's passion, resourcefulness, and ingenuity led them to the tools that would help even the odds. This power, was appropriately named "Dust". Nature's wrath in hand, man lit their way through the darkness, and in the shadow's absence, came strength, civilization, and most importantly, life.
But even the most brilliant lights flicker, and die. And when they are gone… Darkness will return. So you may prepare your guardians… Build your monuments to a so called "free-world", but take heed… There will be no victory in strength.
But perhaps victory is in the simpler things that you've long forgotten. Things that require a smaller, more honest soul.
Or perhaps, victory comes from the darker corners of man's domain. The thieves, the liars, the murderers. Mayhaps they hold the keys to success in this world.
It was fairly late at night when a man in a white suit, with a bowler hat, and a cane walked in to a Dust shop accompanied by a bunch of goons in black suits with red ties and sunglasses.
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a Dust shop open this late at night?" The man asked the shopkeep.
"I-I don't want any trouble sir, just please take my lien and leave!" The older man exclaimed with his hands in the air.
"Relax oldtimer, we don't want your money… Grab the dust, all of it." He ordered his goons. "Sorry about this, old man." The man said as he knocked the shopkeep out with his cane. The man started to crumple to the ground, but the man in the bowler hat caught him and lowered him gently. 'Don't wanna become someone like him.' The man thought darkly.
One of the man's goons was searching the rest of the shop, to make sure there weren't any witnesses. He stumbled onto a girl in a red cloak with black and red lolita attire.
"Hey, hands up!" Goon said.
Silence.
"I said hands up!" Goon said a little louder. He proceeded to notice that she had headphones in and poked her with his sword, so she would turn around. He then made a gesture to take off her headphones.
"Uh, yeah?" The girl asked confused.
"Hands in the air, and give me your cash!" Goon said, trying to be menacing.
"Are you… Robbing me?" The girl asked still confused.
"YES!" The man said loudly, as he was getting frustrated.
"Ohhhh." She said in sudden realization.
The goon finally smirked, as he appeared to have gotten his point across, then proceeded to get his shit kicked in and suddenly fly out the window of the shop, shattering it.
"What now?" The man in the white suit sighed rhetorically. He and his goons then ran out of the store to check on their comrade. Just then the girl bounded out the window, and drew her weapon, it started out looking like a type of club, but then morphed into a giant red and black scythe.
"Shit… Well, don't just stand there, get her!" The man shouted at his goons.
The girl swung her large weapon in a horizontal arc and knocked out five of the thirteen goons. She swung the overgrown gardening tool into the ground and racked it, as it was also a gun. She fired three shots taking out six more of the goons, but she didn't notice the two sneaking up behind her.
All of a sudden, two loud bangs were heard, and the two goons behind the fell over. Large bruises already forming on their faces, and she saw their aura shatter.
"Hey, figured you could use a hand, Red." A male voice came from down the street. Her eyes widened slightly at his visage, and she blushed faintly.
He had a dark blue shade of hair, with silver eyes, just like her own. His complexion was darker than hers, but not brown. He was wearing a shirt that was the same shade of blue as his hair, with a cloth covering his neck and his mouth, as well as part of his nose. He had on blue cargo pants, with two silver belts around his waist, he also had a blue hooded trench coat with silver accents. On his back was a white and red box, but she could only see the edges, and two, long, scabbard-like lengths of metal. He had a necklace in the shape of an arctic fox's head, with blue eyes. And finally, sitting atop his head were two blue and white fox's ears. All in all the man stood at about 6'6.
The man put his hands down to his sides, his blue and silver revolvers switching forms to two trench knives of the same color.
"Great, now I have to deal with two." The man in the white suit sighed.
"Shut up Torchwick." The man with blue hair said lazily.
"Well, at least one of you recognizes me." Torchwick said with a huff.
"Yeah, Roman Torchwick, considered to be one of the greatest single thieves on remnant, before you went and created your own little posse." The man in the coat said with a smirk.
"Ah, you know so much about me, but I have no idea who you are." Roman said with an outwardly confident look, but he was actually looking for escape routes.
"Ah, I'm Argent Azure, thanks for asking." The now named Azure said. "But most people just call me Azure." He continued.
"Well then, Argent. I have to bid you, adieu." Roman said as he fired a shell out of the end of his cane, after a crosshair popped off the end with a comical 'pop' sound. The shell exploded and the area the two do-gooders occupied was covered in smoke.
Roman took this opportunity to escape and climbed the ladder behind him. Azure and the girl ran out of the smoke cloud just in time to see him get to the top. Azure clicked his teeth and dashed up the ladder with almost inhuman speeds, the girl just sped up the side of the building, with ACTUAL inhuman speed.
"Damn brats don't know when to quit." Roman said as he looked back at the kids, he jumped off the roof, and into a bullhead that had just gotten there for him. He fired another shell out of his cane, and just as it was about to hit, it flew off into another direction entirely, exploding in mid air.
"I think you should play with someone who has been trained to deal with these kinds of things, Torchwick." Said a blonde woman who was fairly busty, weilding a riding crop in one hand, as she pushed her glasses up with the other.
"Glynda Goodwitch…" Roman mumbled. "We got a huntress!" He shouted into the vehicle as he ran in and took control, as a woman walked to the edge. Her face was covered in shadows, but her dress was reddish orange, with high heels of the same color. She started shooting balls of flame at the adolescents and huntress.
Glynda pushed the students out of the way using and unknown force, and rolled away herself. She then gathered the debris from the other woman's first attack using the same force and shaped it into a spear-like object, and fired it.
The bullhead turned just enough for the debris to be angled in another direction, and be left only slightly harmed. The bullhead proceeded to turn and start flying away. Glynda then turned back towards the two children who tried to stop Roman.
"Your a huntress." The girl said in awe. "CAN I HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH?!" She squealed the question in delight.
Glynda just sighed and shook her head.
"Both of you, come with me." Glynda sighed as she walked away.
She led them to a police station where she put them into a room meant for interrogation and gave them some water bottles, then proceeded to start lecturing them.
"I hope you realize that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly. You put yourselves and others in grave danger." Glynda started.
"Hey, they started the fight, we just tried to finish it!" Azure said with a grin.
"Yeah, I just happened to be there and get dragged into a fight." The girl said.
"Either way, if it were up to me, you'd both be sent home with pats on the back…" Glynda said. The girl smiled and Azure's grin grew wider. "And a slap on the wrist!" Glynda said, slamming her riding crop onto the table between the two teens. "But… There is someone who would like to meet you." She said with a sigh.
"Ruby Rose, Argent Azure. You both… Have silver eyes." A man with gray hair, wearing a black suit, with a green turtleneck under it, said to them both with mild surprise. He then sat down in the chair across from them.
"So, where did you two, learn to do this?" He said as he gestured to a tablet Glynda was holding that sowed the video of them fighting, and while Azure didn't do much, his aim was impeccable, for someone firing from the hip at 50 meters away.
"S-Signal Academy." Ruby said.
"I just learned from my mentor, and the rest on the streets and gaining experience." Azure said cooly. 'This guy is getting into territory I don't want to talk about.' Azure thought grimly.
"So they taught you to use one of the most dangerous weapons created, and your mentor taught you you to be one of the greatest gunmen I have ever seen on remnant?" The man asked.
"Well, one teacher in particular, I don't know about Azure but I was garbage before he took me under his wing." Ruby said with a small, nostalgic smile on her face.
"I see…" The man said as he slid a plate of cookie onto the table.
"Do you want any, Azure?" Ruby asked as she picked one up.
"Nah, I ain't in the mood for cookies right now, Red." Azure said with a grin.
"O-Ok." Ruby stuttered, with a small blush on her pale face. She then proceeded to almost make a whirlwind with how fast she ate the cookies.
"It's just that I have only ever seen one other scythe-wielder of that skill before. A dusty old crow." The man said wistfully.
"Thash muh unkul!" Ruby said with her mouth full of cookies, spraying crumbs everywhere. Everyone else in the room just sweatdropped and stared at her. She then lightly blushed due to embarrassment.
"Sorry, I mean that that's my Uncle Qrow." Ruby said. "He's a teacher at Signal! Like I said, I was complete garbage before he took me under his wing. And now, i'm all like, HOOWAAAH! WITCHAA!" Ruby said, paramiming some sort of martial art at the end.
"HAHAHAHAHA! You just made my night, Red!" Azure said with a grin, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.
"And what about you, Mr. Azure? Where did you learn to shoot like that?" The man asked.
"Ah, my mentor taught me." Azure said, clearly not wanting to go in that direction. Glynda noticed this and narrowed her eyes in suspicion. But apparently The man apparently didn't get the message, as he continued.
"Well, similar to 's teacher, I have only seen one person wield revolvers in that style, or with that accuracy, a sly, old fox." The older man said with an almost unnoticeable smirk, but Glynda noticed.
"Fuck off, Ozpin." Azure said hotly, his aura flaring, giving him a deep blue coating of energy.
"Young man I don-" Glynda said before Ozpin cut her off with a wave of his hand.
"So, can I assume you know who I am?" Ozpin said with a smile.
"Yeah, you're-" Azure started before he got cut off by Ruby.
"Professor Ozpin, the Headmaster of Beacon Academy." Ruby said.
"So, I hear the both of you would like to come to my school." Ozpin said
"More than anything!" Ruby exclaimed.
"My friends are going, and since Red is going, I guess it will be interesting to go myself." Azure said with a small smile.
"Then, welcome to Beacon." Ozpin said with a grin. Glynda looked at him shocked, but put up no argument, from agreeance, or the fact she was too shocked, he didn't know, nor did he care.
"Now, you two are free to leave." Ozpin said. As the two teens exited the building, Glynda finally shook off her shock and turned to Ozpin.
"Are you sure that this is wise? Ms. Rose is only fifteen, and that Azure fellow is clearly a combat addict." Glynda said leveling a calculating and cold stare at Ozpin.
"While Ms. Rose is younger than her peers, that doesn't mean that she is any less skilled. And I happen to remember you being quite the combat addict in your younger days, Glynda." Ozpin said with an amused smile. Glynda just blushed at that.
"Touche." Glynda sighed.
[]Outside[]
"So, what were you doing by the store, Azure?" Ruby asked, trying to make conversation.
"I was going to see if they had any good Burn rounds for my weapons." Azure said, as he gestured to his trench knives, then to the box on his back. "I know most people only have one weapon, sometimes a pair, but I figured I would need more power than speed at some point." Azure said with a grin.
"So, it's not too late, do wanna get a bite to eat?" Azure asked.
'I-Is he asking me on a date?!' Ruby thought with both a mental and physical blush. "Uhh, yeah sure, where did you have in mind?" Ruby asked.
"Well, it's a bit far, so we should take my bike, but its this Mistrali place." Azure said, adopting a thinking pose. Azure then pulled out his scroll and pressed a button, and she heard the roar of an engine, and a blue and silver motorcycle came roaring down the street. (Its a Harley, Essentially)
"Meet my girl, a Han Duke motorcycle, all customized passed the already amazing specs that she had." Azure said with a glint of pride in his eye. "So, shall we?" Azure said, sticking out his arm, for her to loop hers around.
"We shall." Ruby said with a giggle and a blush.
They both got onto the bike and Azure took off at high speed, speeds Ruby wouldn't be able to reach with her semblance in a million years. Azure weaved in and out of traffic and avoided cars and trucks with practiced ease.
"Hold on tight, Red, we're about to make a jump!" Azure shouted over the wind.
"WHAT?!" Ruby cried. "I don't think that this is a good ideaaAAHHHHHH!" Ruby's common sense devolved into a scream as they roared over a large road using a car trailer as a ramp. But they landed safely and continued on their merry way.
"Hahahaha! That was awesome!" Ruby yelled as she pumped her arms in the air.
"I know right?!" Azure exclaimed "I absolutely love doing jumps!" Azure said with glee. "Although we were supposed to only just make it, so I could give a bit more of a scare, but you are lighter than I thought you would be." Azure said with a mischievous smile.
"Hehehehe, well, I guess that would've been funny, if I hadn't been the target." Ruby said with a giggle, then a pout. Azure then slowed to a stop in front of a restaurant that had a distinctly eastern look.
"Well, here we are." Azure said.
"Yeah, and I can already smell it!" Ruby said with some drool hanging from her mouth. Azure just laughed at that and led her in.
Once they were seated a waiter came over and took their orders, they started talking.
"So, Red, why did you choose a scythe as your weapon, I mean, yeah it's imposing and all, but Grimm don't much care about that." Azure asked.
"Well, I guess, they just spoke to me, I mean, I just felt drawn to scythes when they had the practice weapons at Signal. Everyone else had swords and the like, except my sister and a few others, but while I tried other weapons, I was always drawn back to the scythe." Ruby said, recalling her days at Signal.
"I hear that, my mentor put a bunch of weapons before me and my friend, who is my sister in all but blood, and I immediately picked up the knives, it's not just trench knives I'm good with, but they are my favorite." Azure said as he put one of his knives on the table. It was curved, with a glinting silver edge that looked so sharp it would cut you just by looking at it. It was ridges just above where the knuckles were, and it was fairly beefy, not enough to be uncomfortable or to prevent it from cutting, but more-so than an average knife. It also had a gray fox head painted on, and a white rose painted on.
"Whats with those markings?" Ruby asked.
"They signify people i've lost. My mentor and someone who was like an older sister me." Azure said, a tear sliding down his face. He quickly noticed and rubbed the tear away.
"I've lost someone close to me as well. My mother was killed by Grimm when I was still a little girl. She was super-mom. She made the best cookies, i actually think that she is the reason I have my cookie addiction." Ruby said with a wry smile and a giggle at the end.
"Well, we can both be depressed together, that makes it a little better, right, Red?" Azure said with a sad grin.
"Yeah, that sounds great." Ruby said with the same grin.
"Alright folks here's your food." Said a generic waiter, breaking the air of sadness and replacing it with one of excitement for the food set in front of them.
Ruby had ordered a large meal of beef lo mein, while Azure had gotten the shrimp variant. The rest of the meal was quiet, until the bill came.
Now their meals came with one free fortune cookie each, but an extra fortune cookie cost half a lien, but Ruby had ordered.
"TWO-HUNDRED LIEN IN FORTUNE COOKIES?!" Azure shouted in surprise, as the impossibly large plate of cookies was set down along with the check.
Azure just dug out his wallet and paid the bill, which was around two-hundred forty lien.
"Wow, who knew such a small girl could pack so much food away?" Azure asked the sky.
"Hehehe, yeah, anyone who meets me for the first time is always surprised." Ruby said bashfully.
"Well, Red, I ought to take you home." Azure said looking at the time on his scroll.
"OH OUM! It's almost past my curfew, my whole family is in the city and I need to be back to the Hotel!" Ruby said as it was ten twenty-five, five minutes before her curfew.
"C'mon Red, this time i'm gonna really open her up this time." Azure said as he pulled Ruby onto his bike. He revved the engine and took off at speeds that were almost unbelievable, leaving a trail of blue flames.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Ruby screamed as she held tighter onto Azure.
About four minutes later the two teens arrived at the hotel that Ruby's family was staying at.
"Alright, we're here, with a minute to spare." Azure said with a grin.
"Thanks, Azure, this was fun. We should do it again sometime." Ruby said with a small smile.
"Yeah. Anyway, i'll see you at beacon, Red." Azure said with a smile. Little did either of them know, a blonde man was watching from the window.
'Looks like she found a friend, hopefully he doesn't press his luck, or he is going to be in a world of hurt, courtesy of Yang.' The man thought with a grin.
[]20 Minutes later, Crystal Hotel[]
Azure parked his bike and put it in lockdown, so no one could steal it, he had people try to take it before, but they didn't get the chance to try again. Azure walked up the stairs to he and his friend's room. It was a fairly large one, with two king-size beds and a hot-tub in the bathroom, along with a kitchenette.
Azure reached the door and used his scroll to unlock his door, as soon as he opened the door, he closed it after seeing what was inside the room was his best friend, who also happened to be a criminal and the man he faced earlier that night, Roman Torchwick, partner, Neopolitan.
He then opened the door hoping he was imagining it. He then looked again, and she was still there.
"What do you want, Neo?" Azure asked with a sigh.
'I saw you earlier, with a girl, you aren't trying to cheat on me are you?' Neo texted Azure with a couple heart emojis.
"No, she's Summer's daughter." Azure said seriously. Neo's face got just as serious.
'Really?' Neo texted.
"Yeah, she looks like a younger version of her, with more red." Azure mumbled, with a slight blush.
'Oh don't go on with your little crush, she may look like Summer, but she isn't her.' Neo complained.
"I know, and even if it was Summer herself I wouldn't, you know my first priority is to slowly and painfully kill him.." Azure said with a sneer.
'Don't go on a rant about that guy again, ok hun?' Neo wrote.
"I won't. Anyway, I need to get some rest, tomorrow is the day I restock my ammo." Azure said.
'Alright, but, if you want me to stay and keep you, warm, all you have to do is ask.' Neo messaged.
"I'm good, I don't need you trying to molest me in my sleep." Azure said with a vein bulging in his head.
'It was one time!' Neo said, making a complaining face.
"And even that's one too many." Azure said with a deadpan.
'Whatever.' She texted, leaving a teasing emoji, before her visage shattered like glass, and she was gone.
"Sigh, she has to stop doing that." He mumbled to himself. He stripped down to his boxers, put on his sleeping mask, which totally wasn't girly just because it has white roses on it, and went to sleep.
[]Azure's Dream; Lemon ALERT![]
Azure stared down at the lithe and nude form of one Summer Rose. She had black-red hair that was cut about three inches under her jaw, and silver eyes just like Azure's. She had fairly pale skin, and a white rose tattoo just between her hip and belly button. All in all she looked like a badass Snow White with hair that became red at the ends.
"Are you sure you wanna do this, Azure, I mean, i'm so much older than you, do you really find me attractive?" Summer asked slightly worried.
"How could I not find you attractive? I actually have a little trouble looking away from you sometimes during the day." Azure said with a smile, before kissing her jaw.
"Well then, maybe I should cover up more during training, a turtle neck perhaps?" She asked with a small smirk.
"Even then I wouldn't be able to take eyes off of you without difficulty, it's not just your body that captivates me." Azure said sincerely, giving her cheek a kiss.
"Well, nice to know that you like me for me." Summer said with a breath of relief.
Azure just smiled, and as he leaned down, the dream faded.
[]Morning; Azure's Hotel; LIME END[]
Azure groaned as he woke up when light streamed through his window and hit his eyelids. He sat up and stretched. On his back, just below his neck, was a blue fox head with a broken circle surrounding it with silver eyes, and a rose in its mouth, and gray patches on it's ears.
"Ugghhhh, why did I have to have that dream. Oum, it just makes me feel like i'm disrespecting her memory." Azure mumbled to himself. He then let out a yawn and got in another stretch. He got up and went through a toned down version of his normal workout. He ran in place for thirty minutes, did five hundred toe touches, sit ups, jumping jacks, and push ups.
"Alright, now then, time to get ready for my day. Huzzah…" Azure said, the end being sarcastic.
Alright, maybe Azure wasn't the most stable, or happy person alive, but at least he was functioning, unlike that man. He had given up on his kids, one of which was his age, or a bit younger, she had just turned eleven at the time, and another that was even younger, eight, almost nine at the time.
That man had shut down, he had abandoned his family, and he hadn't even tried to investigate her death further. But Azure had. He had found out that she hadn't been killed by Grimm like they had been told. She was murdered. He hadn't found out who, but he did find out why. She had been a threat, she had come close to finding out exactly what Ozpin and Salems true ideals and goals were. So now, aside from trying to protect his friends, he was there to find out if it was Ozpin, who had made the kill order, or Salem.
He got dressed in some basic civilian attire, a black t-shirt, black jeans, a blue and silver bomber jacket, and blue sneakers. He also had his daggers strapped to his belt, and under his jacket was the long box.
He headed outside and walked to the parking garage, to get on his bike and head to the Dust Shop. He got on his bike and used his scroll to start it, and in a loud rumbling, took off down the road.
When Azure arrived at the dust shop, he greeted the young worker, whom he had known for years.
"Ah, hey Del!" Azure said as he walked into the store.
"He-Heyyy! Azure! How've you been buddy? I haven't seen you in Vale for a while, what brings you back?" Delsin asked curiously as he adjusted his beanie.
"I'm planning on going to Beacon, watch my friends backs, y'know?" Azure said.
"I hear you, although, me going to school with Reggie didn't keep him alive, so don't go thinking that anything bad that happens out there in that big, bad world is your fault, I know I lost precious years blaming myself for Reg's fate." Delsin said sagely.
"While that sounds like the subject and message of something you'd say, it's too wise to be a Delsin thing, you're high ain't you?" Azure deadpanned.
"As the shattered moon in our sky!" He exclaimed happily.
"Well, don't go getting yourself arrested, Banner Man" Azure said, grabbing a few lightning, ice, and fire dust crystals.
"HEY! If you're going to call me something like that, call me… THE SMOKETASTIC MAN!" Delsin said, standing on the counter while smoke wafted up from his hands and feet,.
"Yeah, yeah, Smokey the Bear." Azure said, putting the dust in his case, and grabbing his wallet from his pocket. Delsin just face planted and groaned in annoyance.
"Whatever, you need anything ground?" Delsin asked, while getting up off the floor.
"Ten kilograms of Fire Dust, five of Ice Dust, and twenty of Gravity Dust." Azure said, pointing at the ground up substances.
"I gotchu bro." He said as he opened a secret compartment in the floor.
"That, Delsin, is some good business insurance, its keyed to your Aura I presume?" Azure asked.
"Hell yeah, what else would I have but the best?" The man asked.
"Yeah, yeah, just remember, everywhere I stay for too long, shit goes down, so just.. Watch your back ok? I've lost enough people to this world." Azure said, looking Delsin seriously in the eye.
"I know, Azure." Delsin said, grabbing his hand in a shake.
"Anyway, see you later, Smokey." Azure said.
"Catchu later, Azzy." Delsin waved as Azure walked out.