I don't own RWBY, Bloodborne, The Gamer or any of the things I reference
In the story, there will be places where it seems like a choose was suppose to be. That's because there was, I outlined the story with all choices and sent it to my friends, asking for their votes. After getting them I wrote the story according. As much as I would have liked to post a voting table on Fanfiction, it can take time for all votes to come in, then outlining then writing. Where my friends only need the outline with all choices and branches that lead to the different outcomes. But be aware that all 13 friends participating are fans of RWBY. So know that they aren't just picking blindly.
That said let's start.
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Cardin Winchester was having a bad day. It was Team CRDL's first real mission, and while they were only shadowing a teacher, it would be their first taste of what it was like to be a true Hunter. Riverwood, the small village at the bottom of Mistral Kingdom was so isolated that, in the past, the only Grimm to attack were a type of pygmy Beowolf and even then there was only a few packs of them. While the leader of Team CRDL wasn't a coward, ever since the incident with the Ursa in the forest, Cardin was ok with taking it safe.
What they and professor Peach hadn't known was that the village had increased their numbers in the last few years. The increased population, and therefore increased negative emotions of the people, had awakened the dormant Death Stalker's that lived nearby. Luckily, the village had river access that connected to the ocean. With the towns people boarding the ships, Team CRDL and professor Peach stayed to kill the Grimm until the last boat was ready to leave.
However, an Alpha Death Stalker had shown up at the last minute, but thanks to a split-second and stupid idea, they were able to bring the beast down and the last boat departed. Unfortunately, the plan involved a large explosion, one which Cardin was caught in. While he survived and was mostly unharmed thanks to his aura, the blast had not only knocked him unconscious but shoot him into one of the destroyed houses.
By the time he had awaken the last ship had already left, and how long ago was debatable. It had been late morning/early afternoon when the village was attacked and by the sun, it had to be early evening.
Cardin gathered what supplies he could, and journeyed into the forest. It seemed like the best option: walk in till he found any signs of civilization.
His first idea was to call for help, but his scroll was beyond fixing, little more than dead weight at this point, save for the still working flashlight. Waiting for help was also considered. But with the towns peoples evacuated and most of the buildings destroyed, Cardin bet that most would consider the town already beyond saving and abandon it. As well, waiting in an area which the Grimm had, LITERALLY, just finished destroying didn't seem smart.
Following the river and boats was also an idea, but the boats could travel faster than he could walk, and there was also the possibility of the Grimm following them. The idea of following Grimm to safety didn't sit right with him.
And so here he was, walking through a forest that might or might not have packs of Grimm in it. The little supplies he had were stuffed into his backpack and his weapon hung from this holster on his hip.
"Fuck me." It had been a bad day. "So much for playing it safe."
It had been a few hours since leaving the village and the sun was just starting to set. But it was during this time that he had found the first good news he had gotten all day. While looking for food, he had come across what looked to be the severed hoof of a deer. This might not be seen as a good thing for most people but Cardin knew better.
Cardin's father was nothing if not a traditionalist, and while that included his negative viewpoints of a certain race of people, he had taught him how to survive in the wild. One such lesson was how to look for signs of people. Cardin knew that Grimm display no hatred towards normal animals, and only attacked them during territory disputes. As well, Grimm don't need to feed to survive, which means that if Grimm had killed the deer then the carcass would still be here.
Looking around Cardin found just what he needed; foot prints. While they ended with claw marks, the shape was human, and there were no signs of the deer being dragged, which would be visible if a normal animal had killed the deer. The claws put Cardin on edge, but there were all types of people in Remnant, and maybe the person was a type of Faunus.
"I'll take anyone at this point." he said in a tired voice, he had been through allot and all he wanted to do was to get some sleep.
He followed the footprints for about a mile or so, with the tracks leading into a cave.
'Great.' He thought to himself, 'Looks...nice.'
Cardin walked to the front of the cave and looked in and while he could see some shapes it was mostly dark. Remembering that while his scroll as mostly busted, it still had some power and the flashlight was still working. Pulling out the broken scroll and pressing the button on the side lit up the cave, revealing the person inside.
The figure had on a dirty cloak, so covered in mud that the original colour had long since become unknown. From what he make out in the first few seconds, the figure was huddled over the deer, and was holding something to its mouth. The light however, caught it's attention, and it turned towards Cardin, it was...
"The fuck..." He fell back, falling on his ass but he kept the light on the figure as it turned to investigate.
It was a woman. She had large fangs, silver slit eyes and dark red hair that went to her back. What seemed to be dark red fur covered the sides of her head and traveled down her neck, leaving only her face uncovered. As well, her turning had revealed the large wolf ears that seemed to replace her normal ones and her hands that were different; larger, with claws and fur that covered the back of them. She had the leg of a deer in her...hands and was eating it raw, with the blood covering her mouth. As she saw him, she jumped back towards the back of the cave, and pulled her clock in front of her, as if she was trying to hid.
Cardin was speechless, 'Is it a Faunus?' he thought 'I knew they had some animal parts, but this...'
As he looked on, he noticed that the cloak appeared to be shaking.
'If she scared of me?'
Cardin got up and, while moving slowly, walked towards her.
"Ah hey...are you ok?"
"Ok?" The terrified voice made Cardin jump a little. He almost didn't think that she could speak.
"Ok,Ok,Ok,Ok,Ok? Am I Ok? I don't think so but who's to say. Me, that's who. Only me, only ever me. Lonely me. But can't talk to people, nononononono. People only ever talk with their knives and guns and fire. Try to hurt lonely me, try to kill lonely me. Is that why your here, are you here to talk to me, to hurt me?"
She way she spoke through her cloak. She was terrified of him.
"N...no" Cardin said, uneasy. "I won't hurt you."
The cloak opened slowly as she looked at him. What was left of a muscle shirt and pants were caked in mud, and coming through the holes was fur, showing that most of her body was covered in it. Her feet were bare and were similar to her hands; clawed and covered in fur.
"Why then, why here? In this forest, in this cave? I smelled the burning and heard the screams of the dead. The death of humans and dark ones. Were you there? In the village smelling and sounding of death? Of pain without mercy?"
'This lady's nuts.' Cardin thought to myself as sweat started to form. 'I'd better watch my step.'
"Kind of. I was there to protect the people from the Grimm. I'm a Hunter from Beacon."
"Beacon." She said, turning her head "Beacon, a light in the dark. Protect: the people, the school, the city, the kingdom, the world. Protect from the dark, from the dark ones, from the tide of destruction that tries to shallow the world."
"Ah, yeah, that. Whatever you say."
"White spires, aglow when the rays of the sun shine down on from up high. Looking over the city, surrounded by a forest of eme..." she stopped, a confused look on her face, matching Cardin's.
"Wait," he said, "you've been to Beacon?"
"I..." she put her hands on head and closed her eyes, as if reaching for her memories hurt her. "...I don't remember."
"What's your name?" Cardin asked 'If she went to Beacon, maybe I've heard of her.'
"Name? Name, name, name. My name is... a time, what was it? Spring, no warmer then spring, with the heat and the sun and clear skies that are open for the birds to fly."
"Summer?"
"YES! YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES! Summer, that's my name! Summer...agh, there was a second name. It was named after something. A plant..no, nonononono, a flower. It was red, red like the blood that flows and carries life and signals death..."
'Wait,' "Rose?"
"Yes! Summer Rose. It's my name! Summer Rose. It's mine, and only mine. I had forgotten, but that was my name. What people called me, the ones from my dreams, my nightmares."
'Rose? No.' Cardin thought, as more sweat started to form 'Could she be? I mean, now that I look at her, sliver eyes, dark red hair...'
"Summer?"
"Yes. That's my name, Summer Rose. I'll say it again and again and again and never forget. Summer Rose is my name." She hummed. She looked happy that she remembered.
"If I say the word 'Ruby', what comes to mind?"
"Ruby? A gem, a bright red gem. A gem who's luster could replace the sun, a gem who's worth is more than all the wealth in the world, ruby...ruby... Ruby was..." She grabbed her head again, as tears started to form, "...my daughter, and...the other...my sun, my little dragon, a fiery spirit who never let anything happen to her little sister...Yang. My daughters..."
In a moment of clarity, Summer turned her head to Cardin, large tears running down her face.
"I miss them."
Cardin looked at her, at the person who had gone insane. But there was no mistaking it, this was Ruby and Yang's mom. He swallowed his spit, steeling himself, and spoke.
"I know them, we go to Beacon together. I...wouldn't call them friends," he said rubbing the back of his head "but I know where they are. If you help me, I can bring you to them..."
"NO!" She shouted, casing Cardin to fall backwards. Like before she jumped back, covering herself, " NO NO NO NONONONONO! They mustn't see me! Let them remember a mother who was kind and loving and gentle! Let them be at peace! I might be alive but Summer Rose's life is over! Leave me be, let me be my lonely self and take your memories with you!"
Cardin didn't know what to say, how could me. This woman was so afraid of letting her daughters see her that she would rather go back into insanity then let them think less of her. However...
"Listen," Cardin said, trying to get through to her "I have to go back to Beacon anyway, and I'm lost. I need your help to get to the nearest village, and by helping me you get to go home."
"NO! GO AWAY!"
"If you would just listen to me...!"
"NOOO!" Summer jumped from her spot, and shoot towards Cardin. While he was expecting an attack from the action, what he wasn't prepared for was for Summer to sink her teeth into his shoulder.
Now Cardin would be the first to tell people that he didn't have the longest fuse on his temper, in fact it was quite short. But since the Ursa incident he had been practicing on releasing his anger and not resorting to violence.
But all that practice went out the window the moment she sank her teeth into his neck. With a yell, Cardin shoved the woman turned beast with both hands. While Cardin wasn't the best hunter, there wasn't any student among the first years that doubted his raw strength, which was bested only by Yang and Nora. The shove tossed Summer across the cave and into the back wall. She hit with a thud, and fell down with her head tilting forward. Cardin grabbed his left shoulder, her teeth were longer then a humans and her fangs were sharp. Plus who knew the type of infection that she carried in her mouth, she had been eating raw meat not some moments ago.
"Shit, it's really bleeding." While putting pressure on it, he turned to look at her. She had resumed the covered position and was rambling again.
"...I bit him...I shouldn't have...he told me not to bite. Never bite, never bite, never bite, never bite. Don't spread. Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever..."
"What are you talking about?"
Summer looked at Cardin, tears welling in her eyes.
"I'm sorry."
"For what!? Att...ack..i..ng..."
Cardin swayed, his vision was going blurry and his strength began to leave him. In a few seconds, Cardin fell on the floor of the cave, unconscious.
When Cardin opened his eyes he was standing in a void, darkness and a purple/pink mist faded in and out of his vision. He looked around, nothing for as far as the eye can see. That is, until a person appeared a dozen feet in front of him. He was dressed in black clothing, he had a black hat covering his eyes, and a grey trench coat on.
He stood there, his hands in his pockets, and while the hat blocked his eyes, a large smile was clearly visible on his face.
"So," he said, "I guess she couldn't listen."
"Who...who are you? Where am I?"
"Ah, now those are the important questions. But you seem to be forgetting one."
Cardin thought for a minute before coming to his answer.
"What happened to me?"
He clapped his hands together "Got it in one."
He looked up, his right eye was blue with the other being bright crimson and the tattoo of a yellow eye turned on its side was on his forehead.
"My name is Brave Soul, and you my friend are within my mind."
"Your mind?"
"Yes. You see, a while ago, I found a young woman out in the forest, lost and near death. I said that I could help her, but there was a chance that the treatment could cause her to become something more, and less, then human."
"You're talking about Summer."
"Yes." Brave said, with a smile on his face, and turning his head away from Cardin. " Summer was unable to retain the mental strength needed to control the beast that healing her unlocked, and with her transformation, her mind began to slip. When her mind began to fail, her memories went with it."
"Can't you fix her? If you knew what happened to her then you must know how to fix it."
"And why to you care?"
Cardin looked shocked before calming himself.
"I need to get home to Beacon and if Summer has been out here for half as long as I think then she'll know the area."
"Ohhhhh," Brave looked back at Cardin, a shit-eating-grin on his face. "It wouldn't have to do with a curtain Ursa incident, would it." Cardin looked visibly startled at this comment, but Brave didn't stop."And after that, even though you made the promise that you'd be a better person, people are still getting on your case, right? I mean, you are the leader of team CRDL, so even if your teammates get in on the action, you are the poster child of the group. All of their actions comes back to you, as well as all the hate and blame. Am I right? Is that why you want to help her, to prove them wrong or to prove a curtain someone wrong?"
Cardin's teeth and hands were clinched, how dare this guy bring that up! That slimy bastard!
"I see your angry, you might want to get that under wraps. I still haven't answered your last question though. You see, when I healed Summer I told her never to bite someone, as her 'cure' could be transferred into another person."
"You mean.."
"That's right. The thing that turned Summer into a Beast is now in your blood. And now that she infected you, your now connected to me."
Cardin tried backing up, but found that his legs couldn't move.
"Now," Brave said, holding his hand in front of him. "I am interested in seeing where this goes. So here's what I am proposing."
He pointed his finger and a blue light formed around it. What appeared in front of Cardin was a screen, similar to his scroll. On it was a series of words with numbers next to them.
Humanity - 0.00
Beasthood - 0.00
Kinhood - 0.00
Insight - 0
"What...is this?"
"It's an illusion, one only you can see." The glow from his finger stopped and he put his hand back into his pocket. "Instead of Summer, whose body changed biologically, I have altered yours. Whenever, you do something, these states will go up or down. Should one get to high, you will start to change."
"Now the two you will have to look out for is Beasthood and Kinhood, you don't want those to get too high. Humanity, however, will not only help you resist the changes , but will have a chance of decreasing Beasthood and Kinhood. So raise that one whenever possible. Insight will broaden your mind, allowing you to think of new possibilities that you normally wouldn't consider. But it will increase the rate your Beast and Kin hood's go up. Got all that?"
"Yes but...why couldn't you just cure me?"
He smiled "Now where's the fun in that?"
Cardin greet his teeth again, "What are you, some kind of Demon?"
Brave laughed, and held his sides. When he stopped, he looked Cardin right in the eye's.
"I am no Demon. Nor am I a God, Angel, Grimm or Beast. I am the Human Old One; Brave Soul, one who has seen stared into the Abyss and has taken the power of those who stare back."
Cardin tried to stay calm, and took deep breaths.
"Ok, so...I'm a player in this little game of yours. How do I win or lose."
"Hmmmm." Brave put his hand to his chin. Seems he was making the rules as he goes.
"Ok!" he said clapping his hands together. "Here's the rules. If you can get to the statue in front of Beacon, with Summer Rose, I promise I will do whatever it takes to cure the two of you. There are no rules on how you need to get there. You can use a plane or a car or even if you have to saddle a dolphin and ride him to Beacon, you win."
"However, if you transform fully into a Beast or Kin then you lose. If you or Summer Rose dies, then you lose and if you go insane..."
"I lose."
He nodded, that same smile on his face.
"What happens to Summer if I lose?"
He looked at his nails, which were hidden under his gloves.
"I don't know. Maybe I'll make the same deal with someone else. I hear that there are a few people in Beacon that would love a chance to rescue their mother. Maybe the blond, or" He looked up at Cardin "her sister."
Before Cardin could stop himself, he yelled."NO!" but realizing that he said, he quickly shut his mouth and blushed.
"*singing*Someone's got a crush."
"Shut up!"
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"Grrrr."
"Now then, dear Cardin Winchester..."
Brave disappeared, only to poof right in front of Cardin's face, both eyes and tattoo aglow in their colours.
"...WAKE UP!"
-
Cardin shoot up and nearly brained himself on Summer's forehead. He was still in the cave, and he wasn't a beast. He looked over at Summer who, now that he was awake, was hiding again but was behind a fire that hadn't been there before. Cardin didn't know what to do. She was responsible for what had just happened to him. But looking at her now, scared and lost in her own mind, could he really take her head off?
Cardin signed, got up and walked over to her. As he got closer he heard her talking.
"I'm sorry, so sorry. Beast, I'm a beast, I can't control myself. Brave told me to go but I can't. I hurt people, I kill people, I ate people. I can't be trusted. Too lost, too lost to find. No lost and found for Summer Rose. Go, win and turn human again. I can never win. I..."
"For fuck's sake."
After saying that, Cardin wrapped his arms around Summer. It stopped her rambling, and he could feel her tense muscles relax into the hug.
"Listen," Cardin said, not letting go. "if we both get to Beacon, Brave will cure us. And if he cures us then you can go back to your old life. But if you don't come with me then we both lose. I need you to help me get home."
"But I..."
"I don't want to hear it. Besides," Cardin smiled "how can I get back to Beacon and tell Ruby and Yang that I left their mother alone and insane out in the wilds."
She didn't speak, in fact she didn't move at all. Pulling away, Cardin found that Summer had fallen asleep. The hug was most likely the only positive human contact she had gotten in years and it seems to have relaxed her to the point of slumber. Cardin lowered her to the ground and walked to the cave mouth. Looking out into the darkness.
*Sigh*'This is going to be a huge pain in my ass. But maybe this was the chance I needed.' He looked back at Summer 'What are the chances of finding her out here?'
'Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter. I just have to win.' *Sigh* 'My life sucks.'
A small screen appeared in front of Cardin's face, surprising him. It read:
Insight increased by 1.
'Insight? Oh yeah, I remember. But why did it go up? Was it because I figured something out that I didn't know before?'
Insight increased by 1.
'Stupid things probably mocking me.'
Insight increased by 2.
"Fucker."
A second screen appeared after the smaller one disappeared.
Humanity increased by 15.5
Option chosen - Help Summer Rose instead of venting anger.
Beasthood increased by 3
Sub - Having the thought that helping Summer will get brownie points with Ruby.
"Keep it in your pants, buster."
"Fucking thing!"
He covered his mouth and made sure Summer was still asleep. Finding that she was still out, he relaxed and closed his eyes.
'It's going to be a long day tomorrow.'
Insight increased by 1.
End of Day 1 Total
Cardin
Humanity - 15.5
Beasthood - 3.00
Kinhood - 0.00
Insight - 5
Start of Day 2
It was a few hours after sunrise and after a small breakfast, Cardin was ready to head out. His companion however...
"No! The cave is safe! Safe from the people and the dark ones and the rainstorms that flood the forest! Summer Rose won't leave! Never, ever."
"Damn it. We've been over this: you can't get better if you stay here."
"NO!"
"*sigh*"
They had been at this for half-an-hour and Cardin was at the end of his rope.
'How do I word this?'
"Listen," he said, mostly through his teeth " if you don't come with me, I lose. And if I lose, that...asshole is going to get some else to take my place. I don't know if he was joking or not, but he said that he might talk to Ruby or Yang to replace me."
Summer turned towards him, a surprised look on her face. She looked down, the internal debate taking place between the animal instincts that had kept her alive and her newly regained desire to see her daughters. After a minute, Summer stood up, her cloak wrapping around her.
"*inhale*exhale* Alright, I'll go."
"Good."
Cardin left the cave, taking in the morning air when the screen appeared.
Humanity increased by 2
Option chosen - Help Summer Rose with leaving the cave.
Kinhood increased by 7
Sub - Use Summer Rose's children as incentive.
"Nothing's stronger then a mother's love."
"Can't catch a break."
Cardin watched as the screen disappeared. While he assumed that the Beasthood stat was tied to what ever happened to Summer, he had no idea what a 'Kin' was. But if Brave warned him to keep an eye on both stats equally, then maybe he didn't want to know.
Turning, he saw Summer come out of the cave.
"You ready?"
She nodded. Seems she was still having second thoughts.
"Ok, which way to the nearest village that isn't destroyed."
Summer pointed to the north, "That way, two cycles on two feet. But not village; only few houses and large metal tower that hurts Summer's ears. It screams and hums inside Summer's head."
"So a communications tower. Makes sense, this place is so isolated that you would need something to get radio signals out here. Maybe they can send a message to Beacon for us."
Cardin stated walking with Summer a few feet ahead. She knew the area better than he did, so she would know the best way to proceed. Though the way Summer kept ducking her head shoulders made it seem that she wanted to take off on all fours.
It had been several hours since the two travelers had set out, and she had taken off for the second time. Seemed she was used to going on all fours when she had to go long distances. It took a few minutes, but Cardin once again caught up to her thanks to her stopping in place to wait for him.
"Sorry."
"It's alright.*sigh*," Cardin looked up, seeing that it was a little past noon. "why don't we stop and take a break."
He sat under a tree and pulled two apples, tossing one to Summer who caught it in her mouth.
"Hey Summer? Why haven't we seen any Grimm?"
"Dark ones are chasing boats. They follow humans in till end of land and stare into distance. Wanting to follow, needing to follow. Forest will be free of Darkness for several cycles because of village."
"Well, good for us at least."
It got silent after that, with neither knowing what to say. After a half-hour they started to head out and after a mile or so, Summer spoke up.
"Back at cave, you said Daughters aren't friends. Why?"
"Ahhh...*exhale*" 'Might as well get this over with.' "For a long time, I was a bully at Beacon. I picked on the weak and the Faunus that were there. That made me...unpopular with the student body."
Insight increased by 1.
"However, when one of the people I was bulling saved my life I...I didn't know what to do with it. After about a week, I saw that one of the other people I bullied needed help carrying her books, but when I tried to be nice and talk to her, her teammate broke my nose. I...have tried other times since then but a lot of the other student still hate and would kick my ass if they could." Cardin looked down, a sad look on his face "I wouldn't bet on Yang being any different."
Insight increased by 1.
'Bastard.'
"My Gem is different?"
Cardin let out a quite laugh as a small smile appeared on his face; "I think she's angry with me too, but Ruby's too kind to hold true hate in her heart. She seems to see the best in everyone."
Insight increased by 1.
"But she's always with her team and team JNPR, who both hate my guts, so talking to her isn't really possible."
Cardin was going to continue, but stopped when he heard sniffing. At first he thought it was a Grimm following their scent, but he then saw Summer turn around. She grabbed him, and started sniffing his neck.
'Too close!'
"W..what are you doing?"
She didn't answer. She continued for a minute before stepping back.
"You wish to mate with my Gem?"
"THBPBPTHPT!"
Cardin's face turned deep crimson, and instead of talking at first, he just spat up spit.
"N...NO!...Ruby's too young for that! She's just..."he stopped for a second, a stray thought reminding him that he was speaking to her mother. He rubbed the back of his neck and looked to his left"...really adorable and forgiving. She always sees the best in someone, and isn't afraid to speak her mind. I think she's incredible."
He looked at Summer, who was looking down. "You say Ruby too young for mating...how old is she?"
"I...15...she's 15."
"15... I missed so much."
They stood there in silence before Cardin spoke up "Yang's 17, like me. They're on the same team, RWBY, and Ruby's the leader. They're considered the best team of the first years."
Summer didn't speak but her shoulders started shaking and a sod soon escaped. Cardin stepped forward and hugged the grieving mother. They stood there for a while, letting Summer release the built up sorrow that even she didn't know she had. As he hugged her, he saw the screen reappear.
Humanity increased by 15
Option chosen - Help Summer Rose with her sadness.
Insight increased by 6.
Reviled hidden feelings to another.
"All you need is love."
After awhile Summer stopped crying and they continued walking in till sunset when they set up camp. As Cardin started a fire he turned to Summer, "Hey, think you can catch us some dinner?"
Her face lit up and she jumped into a bush, running on all fours. It wasn't until she left that he realized what he had just said.
"Shit."
Kinhood increased by 10
Used Summer's illness for free food for the first time
Insight increased by 2.
With her illness, Summer's a much better hunter of tiny animals.
"Go girl, get the rabbit!"
'This fucking things going to drive me crazy.'
Insight increased by 1
While he felt bad about using her like that, the deer she brought back was great and there was meat enough for the next day.
'I just wish she didn't bring it back with its neck in her teeth.'
"Hey Summer, I can take first watch, you get some sleep."
She nodded, but turned her head to Cardin before she laid down."I believe that I haven't asked the name of my companion..."
"Cardin. My names Cardin Winchester."
She smiled, "It's nice to meet you friend. Thank you for helping me."
He smiled back "It's no problem."
"Summer thinks...you're a good person."
Cardin wiped his eyes "Thank you, that...that really means allot."
She closed her eyes as Cardin looked into the forest, a small weight lifting off his shoulders.
Day 2 end total
Cardin
Humanity - 32.5
Beasthood - 03.0
Kinhood - 17
Insight - 17