-Author's Note-
Hey guys! So before I begin the story, I thought I'd just clear somethings up here, because I didn't have enough space to put all of the info in the summary.
First of all, this story technically doesn't happen in the canon of the show, as an ongoing war is the main plot point which doesn't happen in the RWBY series, and I also add in my own take on the more fantasy-aspect of the show. Now, that doesn't mean that this story can't happen in the currently written world of Remnant (if that makes any sense).
I've written the story in a way that stays pretty true to how they describe characters and basic concepts happening in the show, so I don't think I could count this as an AU, more as a view of the World of Remnant with a few extra ideas. Some minor things will be different, such as Mistral and Atlas's origins and symbols, and some aspects of the world will be more realized, such as how aura and semblances are utilized.
That being said, this story takes place around 20 years before the show begins. Since this is the case, some characters that are in the show are in this story. Because of this, I've decided to give some characters that aren't given much backstory in the show (i.e Cinder, Roman) a bit of a backstory in this story, but you'll see more of what I mean as I continue.
Just one more warning, this story doesn't really revolve around the Huntsmen Academies. I did toy around with the idea of that possibility, but in the end decided I wanted to tell a story that experimented with the world and core concepts of RWBY, rather than having characters tied to a school (Plus I suck at writing school fics lmaoo). This is a completely (hopefully) original storyline.
Yes, this story is mostly OC based, so I apologize if that wasn't quite what you were expecting. I will say that I have tried my hardest to make these OC's as fleshed out and as fun and entertaining as possible, so if you would like to stick around and watch the story unfold, you're in for a wild ride haha. For the past few months I've been slowly shaping this story, only now deciding to actually try and write it down, so I hope you all enjoy.
(Also yes, I did originally publish this chapter a few months ago, but since then the ideas for the story have changed dramatically, so I decided to re-do all of it haha)
"But when she turned her back to the lights, she saw that the night was so dark...She could not see the stars. The world felt as high as the depthless night sky and deeper than she could know. She understood, suddenly and keenly, that she was too small to run away, and she sat on the damp ground and cried."
Run.
A small girl ran through the Mistralian landscape, her bright golden hair contrasting with the snow surrounding her. The yells of people surrounded her, but the only thing she could hear was the thrumming of her own heart.
Tears brimming in her eyes, her nearly numb fingertips grasped the only things she had left, a small, tattered scrap of fabric that hardly stood out against the white snow.
She stumbled as a small sob escaped her pale lips, breath freezing in the winter air.
You must keep going, my love.
Words echoed in her already muddled thoughts, boosting what little strength she had left, feeling sharp pains rip through the numbness she was starting to feel in her ankle. At this point, she didn't know why she was running, her only lasting thought only forcing her too.
The girl pushed away the feeling of herself shutting down, eyelids drooping and steps becoming heavy. The snow suddenly felt like it was pushing her down, the cold air filling her lungs, a burning sensation rippling down her throat.
This was it.
She couldn't even let out a scream as the toppled over, her small feet tripping over one another. Hot tears rolled down her cheeks, her head tilted up towards the blazing sky. Brilliant blue eyes squinting, the sky seemed to explode in bursts of color, the vibrant reds and oranges of the sunset bleeding together before her. The girl smiled despite herself, warmth flooding through her like a blanket.
At least she would get to see a sunset once before she died.
Two snarling silhouettes entered her vision, their fangs framed by the setting sun. In her current state, she could barely comprehend what was going on.
"Oh."
It was barely a whisper, but at this moment, she knew that she wouldn't die from the elements, but from the two monsters before her.
She began to hastily creep backward, small hands desperately searching for traction in the snow.
The black beasts let out a guttural growl, so close she could feel it's hot breath on her face.
Then, time seemed to halt.
The small girl let out a yell, raising her arm in one last act to preserve her life. Her face contorted, waiting for the weight of the Grimm on top of her, but it never came.
A broken whine sounded from a few feet away, and when she opened her eyes, both wolves were scattered a few feet away from her.
She could feel the blood puddling in the snow surrounding her ear, slowly melting into the layer of white, as well as a soft glow on her face.
"What?" she stammered hoarsely, eyes wide in disbelief. In front of where her arm still lay raised, was a glowing golden disc, spinning softly with a strange text she couldn't read, spattered with the animal's blood.
It saved me.
She laughed, almost hysterically, rubbing her shoulders violently to retain some sort of warmth, looking around wildly for the object she had dropped during the whole ordeal. And almost as soon as the apparition had appeared, it slowly faded into the winter wind, dispersing small golden shards into the air.
Before the girl could comprehend what had just happened, a loud gunshot rang out, the bullet nearly clipping the side of her face.
Ringing shortly ensued, as another silhouette entered her vision. The man was tall, towering above her huddled form, a large shotgun in hand. The two monsters lay where they were previously, blood seeping out of their carcasses.
She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
The last thing she remembered was a large hand supporting her upwards before everything went black.
-time skip-
"You chose to Run?"
A tall man yelled in her general direction, searching around the small grove of trees for the golden-haired girl.
She stifled a laugh as she stepped out from behind the aging cedar tree, dropping the flimsy practice sword haphazardly.
He rolled his eyes, leaning down to pick up the discarded weapon, giving it a quick glance.
"Ana, you can't just run away from an enemy."
"Why not?" She shrugged, wiping her gloves off on her pants while heading back to the small cabin. "It worked, didn't it?"
He sighed, running his large hands through his wiry hair. "I kind of meant you should choose how to dodge my attack."
Ana rolled her blue eyes. "And I did." she turned back to face him. "I've been working on dodging for ages, why does it matter how I do it?"
The man let out a grunt, following the girl back to the building. "You're too stubborn for your own good sometimes."
She grinned. "I'm only stubborn when I know I'm right."
He stuck out the sword as an offering. "You shouldn't rough up the weapons so much," He stared dubiously at the dagger in his hand. "...even if they are old."
Ana frowned, pushing the sword back towards him. "I appreciate the sword fighting lessons, I do," she paused. "But I don't think it's a good fit."
The black haired man bit back a laugh. "A good fit?"
"I don't know," she sighed in an exasperated tone. "It's just you get to work with such a cool weapon." she gestured to the grappling hook on his arm as she shoved open the cabin door, the musty smell hitting her immediately.
"So you're saying that the broadsword isn't cool enough for you."
She snapped her fingers, spinning back on her heels to face him. "Exactly!"
Her mentor sighed, a smile still on his aging face as he pulled off his boots, snow scattering to the ground.
"Speaking of cool," Ana began, wrestling her long hair into a bun with a tug. "When are you going to teach me how to use my semblance?"
The man froze, before shaking his head. "You don't need it, any good fighter should be able to hold their own in a fight."
The girl groaned as she flopped down dramatically on the couch. "But I can fight without it, so why not have an extra trick?"
He frowned as he lit the coals of the old fireplace. "A semblance isn't just a trick you can pull out of nowhere, Ana. It takes practice to activate it, and even then it can be completely random."
She studied her feet embarrassed, her face switching to a thoughtful expression.
"But I have!" she exclaimed, sitting up excitedly. Her memories were hazy, sure, but she vividly remembered the moment when she had conjured the disk, her smile falling when she remembered the circumstances.
The night I almost died.
She couldn't remember much about the night, or even her childhood in general, but she could still feel the sparks of fear that she had felt when she got a glimpse of the Grimm.
That's why she wanted to become a huntress- so she would never have to feel that fear again.
The man's face paled, tone dropping a few octaves. "Ana, when was this?"
Her eyes widened at his sudden shift in demeanor. "I don't know, a few years ago-"
"Have you used it since the night I found you?"
She scrunched up her eyebrows, her facial features contorting. "I don't know, maybe?" She shook her head, trying to remember, snippets of the past few years fading away from her. Her golden hair framed her round face, falling out of the already slipping bun. "Why are you acting so weird? Shouldn't you be happy for me?"
Her mentor cursed, shaking his head while pacing around the dimly-lit room. "Ana, you have to promise me you won't ever bring this up again, understand?"
She clenched her teeth, her frustration growing. "No I don't understand," she sat up with a huff. "And I don't get why this is such a big issue, I just wanted to find out something that most already know by my age, is that such a problem?"
The two figures stood feet apart, the anger radiating off of them palpable.
He sat down, holding his face in his hands. "Go to your room, I can't deal with this right now."
The teen let out an audible scoff, hot tears brimming in her eyes. The two had had small squabbles sure, but no argument had ever escalated this fast.
"Fine." She muttered, her gaze turning hard. "I'll figure it out on my own."
With that, she turned away, footsteps heavy as she stormed into her room, her door shutting with a slam. Her previous energy wore off as she slumped against her bedroom door, sliding to the cold wooden flooring beneath her.
Her room was abysmal, to say the least, the space barren aside from a small twin bed in the corner, and a wooden dresser in the other, a sad, slightly crinkled rug on the ground. The only light the room had was a large window on the wall opposite her door, the shining golden rays being the only real source of color.
She chided herself immediately for acting so childish, wiping the tears from her cheek.
Why do I have to make things so difficult?
She stood up after a few moments, overhearing muffled words from the other room. Thinking nothing of it, she walked over to the other side of her room, eyes looking out the window.
The village laid out before her, the citizens winding down after a long day of work doing various tasks. No matter how much time had passed when she had first arrived in the village, she always had that sense of curiosity when watching the people going about their everyday lives.
Sighing, she flopped down her bed, cringing when she heard the unmistakable crunch of the wood floor beneath it.
Great, one more thing to piss him off.
Cursing to herself, Ana bent down to inspect the damage she had inflicted. As she expected, one of the bed's legs had pierced the board below it, causing the bed to dip downwards.
She pulled away from the broken board suddenly, a bluish-gray light emanating from the hole.
The hell?
Curiosity overwhelming the part of her that knew she was being invasive, she scooted the bed away from the gap, prying up the loose floorboard.
Hidden in the space below was a small iron box, an unrecognizable emblem worn away by years of use. Eyes lighting up, she traced over the design, feeling like she recognized it somehow.
Pushing away any attempt to try and remember, she lifted the rusted lid from the box, her eyes squinting when she realized what was inside.
Inside the box laid a few discarded scrolls, damaged in some shape or form, glowing brightly.
Frowning, Ana gently lifted the top one from the top of the stack.
The blue light illuminating her features, she curiously began to look through the files on the device.
CELENA 067
The scroll was filled with thousands of files, all titled similarly.
Celena
She recognized the name, as she struggled to remember where.
"Dammit!" She cursed, impulsively launching the device across the room.
Her eyes widened as she realized what she had just done, shifting her way over to it.
"Nonononono" She hissed, desperately trying to get it to turn on.
"Please" She whispered, tears spilling down her face for the second time that day.
Almost as if on cue, the screen flickered to life, the selector landing on file number 148.
Quickly wiping her tears away, she glanced behind her quickly, making sure that her outburst hadn't alerted the man outside her door.
Swallowing, she lifted the screen of her window quietly, before stepping out into the cold winter air.
Wrapping her lightweight ivory cloak around her shivering form, she sat down a few feet away from the cabin, dusting the snow off of a nearby fallen tree.
"It's now or never." She whispered to herself, trying to reconcile any disappointment she'd have after watching it.
Maybe she was some old actress or something.
Pressing play with a shaking hand, the hologram sprung to life, the image of a woman flickering slightly.
"... local huntress Celena Nightshade found battling a large group of Nevermores just outside of the city of Vale."
The news anchor's voice warbled, as the video recording began to dip in quality. Ana watched in awe as the woman swung her weapons, her graceful movements colliding with the massive birds. Her combat style was simple; rather hit things and run, but the way she did it made it look incredible. The darkly cloaked woman seemed to melt into the darkness of the night, then reappear just in time to take out one of the creatures.
For how long she didn't know, but she sat there, watching the recordings for what seemed like hours, not caring if anyone found her or not.
"-Breaking news, evidence of world renown huntress Celena Nightshade and daughter found dead in Mistralian ruins-"
"What?" she exclaimed, snapping out of the trance she had been in for the past few hours, lunging forwards to turn up the volume on the small device with cold fingertips.
"-the two had been missing for several years up until late last night-"
The flickering news feed radiated off of the white landscape surrounding her, and she couldn't help but wonder what could have killed such a person.
"-local authorities found evidence of Nightshade's presence in the destroyed SYTX building in central Mistral, as well as many others." The newsperson looked to his left, addressing the woman beside him. "You said you saw evidence that the building may have been looted?" Before the woman could begin, she shut off the scroll quickly, sitting in shocked silence.
Well, that was depressing. She thought as she hauled herself to her feet, feeling slightly sad about the Huntress' passing, even though she would have been long gone.
By now the sun had begun to rise across the scarlet sky, the fractured moon slowly dipping beneath the mountains.
With a sigh, she squeezed back into her room, letting out a groan when she remembered what had led her to the tapes in the first place.
Trying to arrange the floor in a way that wouldn't feel suspicious, her hand grazed past something she had overlooked previously.
"Huh?"
Squinting through the darkness, she picked up a small slip of paper- a photograph.
She let out a gasp as she realized who it was.
Celena stood proudly, hands grasped around two identical crossbows, their interiors glowing with a prominent purple light. Ana could see her more clearly now, her prominent cheekbones and proud blue eyes standing out against her deep purple robes lined with an ancient text.
She was beautiful, to say the least, with her slightly cropped black hair laying evenly about her shoulders, contrasting with her pale complexion.
"How…" She trailed off uncertainly, brows furrowed in frustration. Before she could dwell on why these things were in the house, something else met her gaze.
Sitting beneath the box of scrolls was a manilla folder, a large CLASSIFIED stamp over what appeared to be a faded logo of a bird, its wings wrapped tightly around itself.
Ana leaned over to scoop up the file, hesitating for a moment before opening the file.
Who even uses paper anymore?
The paper inside was old, the worn pages slightly ripped from age. There was a generous stack inside, the hastily put together portfolio falling apart in her hands.
"What in the world," She whispered to herself, cautiously thumbing through the delicate paperwork.
The folder was mostly filled with diagrams and photos, the occasional news article slipping out. There was a seemingly endless amount of medical records in the file, one recurring word making its way on every page.
GENESIS
Chills instantly were shot down her spine upon reading the word, the color draining from her face. She was filled with a sense of dread, but she wasn't quite sure why.
Ana shook her head quickly, trying to shake off that feeling. Thousands of questions were running through her head, but she chose to ignore all of them.
"It's probably nothing," She hissed quietly to no one in particular, shoving the folder back under the broken planks of wood.
Wrapping her arms around herself she stood up hastily, she glanced around the room, making sure the large dent in the flooring wasn't as prominent as she thought it was.
As soon as she had begun to push the rug over the hole in the ground, a hushed voice interrupted her.
"Yes, I'm very well aware of the situation." A voice hissed from the other room, heavy footsteps thudding through the house.
Dropping the rug absentmindedly, the girl crept over to her door, creaking it open as silently as she could.
"I just need more time." The man in the other room began, wringing his hands nervously.
I've never seen him like this.
"And we've given you time," A synthetic voice responded, the sound cutting out slightly. "But I'm telling you we can't afford to keep her in the public any longer-"
"Why?"
"Because!" The other voice responded angrily, exasperation in whoever was on the other end's voice. "Black, we've let you do whatever you wanted for too long. Atlas officials are bound to catch on that we're harboring her. And when they realize that she's still alive-"
"They won't," Her mentor responded through gritted teeth. "I've kept her safe for months, haven't I?" He paused, voice shaking with anger. "That's better than you've ever done."
Ana had to clasp her hand over her mouth to keep from making noise. The man she had known for as long as she could remember seemed like a stranger, his dark eyes livid.
"The order won't tolerate this."
"I don't care," The man spat. "Have you forgotten that she's a child? Locking her up in some facility makes us just like them!" He ran his fingers through his thinning hair, seemingly aging in an instant. "No." He shook his head as he continued to pace around the room. "I won't give this up, not now."
"Silenus," The voice began, tone deadly. "I'm afraid you do not have a choice in this matter. They will come looking soon, and you do not want to see the outcome of their actions."
"And how many times have you said that?" He scoffed. "Tell the rest of them that I'm not bringing her around anytime soon."
"But-"
Before the voice on the other end could finish, her mentor hung up angrily, before sitting down, a defeated look on his face.
Ana slowly sat down on her bed, not knowing how to process what she had just heard. Heart thrumming in her chest, she stared blankly at the slightly open door across from her.
He had to be talking about me.
With that, she went to bed, forcing herself to sleep despite her racing thoughts.
And the two never spoke about for the rest of the time they spent together.
And sadly- that wasn't long.
A few days had passed since Ana had overheard the phone call, the initial shock still lingering. All of her wanted to look in the file, but to be honest, she was afraid of what she would find.
So she didn't.
She didn't mention anything she had learned that night, and her mentor never mentioned anything either. Yet the air was still heavy between the two.
"How did I do?" Ana asked tentatively, pushing herself off the ground from where the two were sparring. They had been going at it for hours, Ana refusing to give up.
Maybe if I do well enough he'll break the silence.
"Yeah," he mumbled absentmindedly, eyes darting around the clearing behind the cabin.
She bounced on her heels slightly, fiddling with the sword in her hand.
"Is there anything I should work on?"
Silence.
The girl cleared her throat, not knowing what else to say.
"All right then," she mumbled to herself as she began to make her way back to the cabin, before stopping suddenly.
Four figures were making their way across the small square of the town, forcefully halting anyone who the encountered. All of them donned the same dark uniform, their eyes blank as they questioned the townspeople.
"Hey uh," Ana began nervously, she slowly pointed in the group's direction. "Are they...supposed to be here?"
That seemed to snap him out of whatever trance he was in, for he turned to the mysterious figures, his face going pale.
"Ana," he began, voice low. "Go into the cabin."
"But-"
"Go."
She swallowed, before running into the cabin, trying to push away the thoughts that were telling her that this wasn't a coincidence.
Ana listened as the door slammed behind her as her mentor entered the cabin, cursing to himself quietly.
"What's going on?" she asked quietly, voice shaking. "Who are those people?"
He shook his head quickly as he began to frantically tear through the house, throwing open various drawers.
"I should've listened to them," He muttered to himself, eyes wild. "I'm a fool."
"What's going on?" She repeated, her voice louder this time. "Why are you-"
"Here," He began, his voice tight as he thrust a large bag into her hands. "Run."
"What?"
"Ana, get out of here. Go to the nearest train station, and don't let anyone know who you are."
Her eyes widened as she realized what was happening. "You want me to leave?"
He ignored her, going back to his search.
"Where the hell did she put-"
His words were interrupted by a large bang echoing through the square, screams following the sudden noise.
The man whipped in the direction of the door with his jaw clenched.
"Shit."
"Shit?" Ana breathed, trying to keep herself from shaking. "Someone just got shot!"
He shook his head again. "No time."
"No time…?"
"Stop repeating me, and go." He hissed, his tone dangerous.
"But-"
He shoved her towards the door of her bedroom, throwing the door open with a clang. The two frozen the doorway as more gunshots surrounded them. Unfazed, he made his way across the room, stumbling as his foot met the dent in the floorboards. Ana winced.
Great.
"What is this?" He yelled as quietly as possible, pulling his foot out of the gaping floorboards. His eyes widened in realization as he plucked the discarded folder out from under her bed, the contents of it spilling out onto the ground.
"Ana, how did you find this?"
"I-"
Before she could finish a loud rap sounded on the door, letting out a cough as smoke filled her lungs
"Atlas personnel!" A voice boomed from across the cabin. "Open up!"
"One minute!" The man beside her yelled back. He turned to her. "Ana, go."
"I'm not leaving you!" She hissed back, eyes darting between the entrance to the cabin and her mentor. "They've killed people! They'll kill you!"
"That doesn't matter," He began, glancing quickly at the door.
He grabbed her arm roughly, trying to force her out the window. She gritted her teeth, desperately trying to push against him.
"I'm not leaving you to die!"
"If they get ahold of you," he began, his voice low. "Thousands will die. Now tell me, Ana. Would you rather I die, or thousands of people?"
Her eyes widened in shock, realizing that she was crying. "I don't understand."
For a moment, the man in front of her almost seemed sad.
"I know." He whispered. "I'm sorry."
Before she could react he slammed against her, her aura keeping her from getting too beat up in the process. The girl landed a few feet away in a nearby snowbank, the window slamming shut.
"No," She whispered, trying desperately to heave herself to her feet. "Nononono,"
She stumbled to the window, trying desperately to get back in. Ana watched in horror as the men entered the house, the sound of gunshots filling her ears.
She barely registered as her knees buckled beneath her, only now taking account of the fires that had been started all around the town.
Run, Ana.
But she didn't want to.
She didn't want to leave him behind.
She didn't want to run.
But something told her that she had to.
Feeling numb, she picked herself up, yells sounding around her. She slowly walked over to where the bag laid discarded in the snow.
Swallowing, she slung the pack across her shoulder, her cloak torn in several places.
Her silhouette framed by the woods behind her, she turned her back to the only home she could remember, one word sticking in her racing mind.
Run.