Hope Rides Alone

Chapter 1: Introduction

"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 sights 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. As time passed, life grew more and more abundant, as did human resourcefulness. Resourcefulness became knowledge, knowledge becoming technology, and to this very day, technology is still growing... evolving... changing to fit the desires of those who use it. Some use it for good: communication, safety, and defense, while others for bad: war, terror, and intimidation, but one thing has held true throughout time: people hold technology with an iron fist to use for personal gain. Soon, technology will reach the point when it will become self-sufficient, no longer needing the aid of its' creators in order to function. You may prepare your people, your heritage... but there will be no stopping the incoming dissension..."

"Alright kid, put your hands where i can see them."

A person wearing a deep red cape, bobbing their head to a song that was barely audible through equally deep red headphones, ignored the command as it wasn't heard. A man in a black suit with a lighter red undershirt holding a sword that resembled a katana glowered at the cloaked person, not amused in the slightest at being ignored. He walked closer, tapping the hooded figure on the shoulder with his blade. The figure jumped slightly, the action causing the hood to fall back revealing a wall of black and deep red hair and over the ear headphones. Turning, the now revealed girl glared at the man before her, yanking down her headphones as the man motioned to them.

"Can I help you, sir?" the girl asked, heavy annoyance flowing off her voice in waves.

The armed man, slightly shocked, responded. "I said put your hands in the air! Now!"

"Are you robbing me?" The sweet edge on the girl's voice missed by the man's annoyance.

"Yes!" The henchman all but yelled, growing flushed in anger."

"Ooohhhh..." The girl smirked and giggled slightly, discarding the magazine she had been holding and readjusting her glasses.

Roman Torchwick, a renown and notorious criminal, was at his wit's end.

"Of all the shitty luck... i had to resort to Junior's goons. Damn him. Damn him and his high prices for mediocre work..." He thought to himself, not noticing the commotion going on deeper in the dust shop until a small feminine grunt of effort and one of his hired hands flying back into the wall alerted him to another presence. He sighed and nodded in that direction, and the rest of the henchmen drew their weapons as the one who flew into the door returned to his feet. A blur flew past them into the henchman in front of the door, knocking him through the glass and onto the concrete outside. the small blur stopped over his downed body and stomped on him, knocking him out. The small girl looked up to the others, a smirk plastered on her face as she cracked her knuckles and pulled out a long rectangle from her back that quickly transformed into a mechanical scythe that was taller than it's wielder. The girl twirled the black-bladed gargantuan weapon with deft grace and speed, ending the flourish with the tip of the scythe in the ground and the bolt of it's rifle function cocked.

Roman, on his part, was becoming increasingly annoyed at his hired help's lack of incentive. "Are you going to stand there or take on the person who just kicked the fuck out of your own? Hop to it now!"

The henchmen snapped back to attention, rushing at the girl with fervor. She simply smirked wider, although it didn't quite reach her eyes. She spun, her hood coming up to cover her head and deep silver eyes before pulling the trigger on her sniper-scythe, rocketing her backwards. She readjusted and fired again, flying back to the henchmen with an uncanny speed, and began her deadly dance through the crowd.

The screams of the henchmen chilled the bones of the civilians on nearby blocks. Limbs fell like the rose petals that fell from the girl as she danced through the small mob of henchman, deftly cleaving off hands, arms, and the occasional leg that got within her deadly blade's arc. After the last henchman had been felled, she turned to them and scowled. " Shut up, you bitches. i intentionally avoided killing you, you'll live."

"Worth every cent, truly you were..." Roman said to himself, looking at his wasted money with disdain before looking back to the red reaper. "Well Red, I believe we can both say that it's been an eventful, and rather grotesque, evening! And as much as i'd love to stick around..." He smiled and lifted his cane, the tip of it flipping up to reveal cross hairs. "I believe this is where we part ways." He pulled the trigger on the handle of his cane and a red orb screamed its way towards the girl. She jumped high, avoiding the explosion that shook the street with the orb's impact, then looked back to where Roman once was after landing.

"Fuck... up there!" She thought to herself after looking up towards an emergency ladder on the side of a building and finding Roman trying to escape. She turned back to the store vendor. "Stay here and call the police. There may be more!" The old man nodded quickly to his savior as she took off for the ladder. After reaching it, she redeployed her weapon and jumped, shooting downward and letting the weapon's high-powered rounds propel her upwards toward the roof.

Roman had gotten to the roof and activated his evac-beacon within his coat as the red reaper had landed behind him.

"Persistent..." He whispered to himself as a Bullhead transport slowly rose beside the building, a ladder dangling out of the back of it. He grabbed the ladder and climbed up quickly before looking back at the girl, her hair flapping wildly as the exhaust from the flying transport kicked up a small amount of dust around her. Roman smiled and pulled out a red Dust crystal and threw it at her. "End of the line, Red" He cackled before shooting at the brightly glowing red crystal at the girl's feet. The explosion rocked the building slightly as he cackled again before looking down to discover a purple barrier where the explosion had been.

A woman with platinum blond hair and striking green eyes glowered at Roman before readjusting her glasses and firing several purple arcane projectiles at the Bullhead. the impacts didn't do much in the way of damage, but they rocked the ship violently, leading to Roman stumbling to the cockpit before being replaced by a woman wearing a red dress. Where her eyes would have been glowed a bright amber as she cast a fireball at the blond cape-wearing savior. The fireball was met with a barrier, but splattered on the ground. a deft movement from the woman on the transport had the splatter glowing brightly before exploding with a scream. the woman backflipped and cast a ball of energy above the craft that created a black thundercloud that rained ice shards that seemed to be as sharp as razors and as hard as bullets, but disappearing before making impact with the ground. The blond also concentrated on some rubble that was created by Roman's stunt with the red Dust crystal and made a rock lance that glowed purple with energy before firing it, too, at the ship. The woman inside attempted to destroy it with blasts of fire, but all it accomplished was making it split into smaller, but just as deadly, spearing shards. She brought her arms together then spread them quickly, causing a wave of fire to burst out from her and through the metal of the ship, destroy the small spear shards. She gave a final hand motion to the roof and five runes appeared on the ground below the blond woman and the red headed girl. They jumped out of the way as they screamed and exploded, turning back as the bullhead began to race off towards the night horizon.

After both women had regained their breath from the ordeal, the red scythe wielder turned to the woman before smiling. "So you're a hunter..." she said to herself as the blond glowered back at her. "Can I have your autograph?"

"Ruby Rose..." A man with silver hair and deep amber eyes said, walking into the interrogation room with a mug and a plate of cookies. The now-named girl looked up from the table, momentarily forgetting the scolding she had just recieved from the blond woman standing in the corner. "You have... silver eyes..." Ruby stared questioningly at the man who had just walked in as he pulled out an opened scroll with a street camera recording of her fight with Roman's minions.

He smiled. "So, where did an adorable girl such as yourself learn to wield a weapon such as this?" Ruby smirked slightly, rewatching her actions.

"I learned this, and more, from Signal Academy." She glanced back up at the man as he sipped his coffee.

"They taught you how to use one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed?" The man raised an eyebrow as Ruby smirked wider.

"My uncle taught me. He's a teacher at Signal and taught me everything I know." She glanced down and took one of the cookies off the plate, devouring it quickly and adjusting her glasses.

"I've only seen one other scythe wielder with this level of skill before. A dusty old crow..." He smiled off into the distance.

Ruby snorted, "Don't let Uncle Qrow catch you saying that. I made that mistake once... training that week was hell."

The man laughed and sat down. "Of course. Now tell me... what are you doing at a school designed to train warriors?"

Ruby glanced at the man before taking another cookie, taking smaller bites from it. "I desire to become a huntress."

The man quirked an eyebrow. "You wish to slay monsters?"

Ruby giggled slightly "Yep. It helps that getting in a bit of fun helps people as well, but slaying Grimm has become somewhat of a hobby of mine so why not get paid for it? After my last two years at Signal, I will be applying to Beacon to join my sister, as she's already been considered for acceptance."

The man glanced at the silent blond woman apprehensively before smiling at Ruby again. "Do you know who I am?"

Ruby glanced at the man and woman. "You are Professor Ozpin, the headmaster of Beacon Academy. She is Glynda Goodwitch, one of your associates and fellow professor."

Ozpin smirked slightly. "Hello."

Ruby smirked back. "Nice to meet you."

Ozpin's smirk grew. "So you wish to attend my school..."

Ruby's smirk grew into a small, sincere smile. "More than anything."

Ozpin glanced at Glynda, who turned away and sighed. He smiled and looked back to Ruby. "Well, alright. You shall join your sister."

Ruby groaned as her sister wrapped her in a bear hug for what seemed like the hundredth time today. "I'm so proud of you!" came the excited voice of one Yang Xiao Long, Ruby's older and more... endowed sister. Yang had bright blond hair, violet eyes, and a grip that could rival an Ursa. Ruby groaned out a Please, stop" which caused her sister to let go. "Sorry, I'm just so excited that you get to join me at Beacon! This is the best day EVER!" Yang bounced on the balls of her feet as ruby smiled and hugged her sister.

"I know, and im excited too. two years ahead of my old classmates, and two years closer to achieving my dream." Ruby smiled into her sister's hair as Yang held her tight. they broke apart only to observe the tv hologram as a Breaking News warning appeared.

"Last night's robbery has been discovered to be led by notorious criminal Roman Torchwick. The robbery was halted by, from what the police can inform us, a hooded vigilante who used a rather large weapon to dismember Torchwick's men, leaving them availible for pickup by authorities. In other news, this Saturday's Faunus Civil Rights movement turned dark as members of the White Fang disrupted the ceremony..." the two sisters toned out as Glynda replaced the face of the reporter.

"Hello, and welcome to Beacon! I am Glynda Goodwitch, and you are among the privileged few who have been selected to join this prestigious academy! Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace and prosperity, and as huntsman and huntresses, it is your duty to ensure that this peace lasts. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you the knowledge and training to protect our world." The image of Glynda disappeared and an excited buzz went through the crowd of students as Ruby and Yang resumed hugging their happiness out to eachother, excited that they didn't have to separate from eachother.

Weiss Schnee descended from the steps of her plane after just recently landing onone of Beacon Academy's many landing pads. She carried herself with grace and poise that only one of nobility is known to have, her Alabaster hair only reaching the top of her shoulders, and her cold ice blue eyes studying the school before her with minor disdain.

"Why did Father send me here again, Klein?" she asked her butler and flight attendant for the third time since her takeoff from Atlas, flicking her eyes over to the kind and short man.

"So that you can enjoy the world outside of Atlas. You will need to know others outside of home if you hope to one day take over for your father in running the company."

Ah yes, the company. Schnee Dust Corporation. One of the biggest monopolies on the face of Remnant, yet also one of the worst in terms of management in her opinion.

"Why Father forces the faunus to work the way they do will confuse me. they are people too, just like him. Just like big sister Winter, just like everybody else." Weiss thought to herself. She nodded to Klein, smiling, then stepped onto the platform on the ground, waving goodbye to her personal butler and friend. After watching the plane take off, she sighed, feeling alone in an alien place.

"It's not so bad... what could go wrong? It's only day one." Weiss thought to herself and smiled, feeling a bit more confident before hearing a thud and a groan behind her. she turned, confused, before glaring at the sight before her. A girl in a red cape had tripped over her crates of dust, knocking one open as it hit the ground. She stormed up to the downed girl. "And just what the hell do you think you're doing?"

Ruby was not having a fun time. After getting off the transport, she had to dodge a pile of vomit that came from a scraggly looking blond boy who rushed off the plane first in order to dump his bowels into the nearest waste bucket. After that, Yang had ran off with her old school friends, causing Ruby to spin, highly confused, and fall back onto a couple of fancy looking boxes. she heard one crack open and flinched at the contents.

"Damn that was close... could've blown myself up there. I don't really wanna deal with that again..." She giggled to herself halfheartedly.

"And just what the hell do you think you're doing?"

Ruby jumped at the loud voice behind her, quickly turning around and stopping in her tracks, her brain turning to mush.

"Oh my fuck she's gorgeous..."

The girl before her was absolutely stunning. Short, shoulder length hair that had a slight rebellious tussle to it, ice blue eyes that reminded Ruby of photos of the Glaciers off the coast of Atlas, a stark white combat dress that ended at about mid-thigh, arctic white heeled boots that ended half way up her shins. Her skin was almost as alabaster as her hair, and looked as soft as snow. The angered flash in her eyes made Ruby's throat dry. The scar over her left eye twitched with her eye as she started tapping her foot gently.

"Do you have any earthly idea what could have happened! This is Dust! You know, fire! Lightning! ENERGY! A minor misuse could lead to catastrophe!" Weiss shouted in a minor rage, shaking a bottle of red dust she had picked up from the ground. Unnoticed, some of the red powder leaked from the top of the bottle, permeating the air and causing Ruby's nose to twitch.

"Are you even listening to me? You insolent little-"

The resounding explosion of the dust hanging in the air stopped the alabaster girl mid-sentence. Within the flames, small sparks of electricity and flashes of ice were seen. Ruby sniffed and tried to recover from her sneeze as the soot-covered girl started shaking in anger. "This is exactly what i was talking about! You should be more careful you dolt! What are you even doing here? Arent you a bit young to be attending Beacon?" The girl finished with a snap. Ruby had begun nervously tapping her fingers together, not expecting to cause so much problem so soon. "Im sorry..."

Her apology went unnoticed as the girl, dusted of soot, began to rant again. Ruby, growing annoyed, stood and growled, "I said i was sorry princess."

"It's heiress actually." A girl with black hair and a bow walked up to the two. "Weiss Schnee: Heiress to the Schnee Dust Corporation, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world. The same company known for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners." The girl finished with a smug smile as the girl, now named Weiss, became extremely flustered at the revealed information. Ruby giggled as Weiss stormed off towards the school, and the black haired girl walking away as well. Ruby, not wasting time, sped towards the school, rose petals falling behind her.

One of which fell on top of the Schnee Dust logo on one of the exposed bottles.

Tell me how it is. Frst story, first time receiving criticism, so don't hold back. all questions will be answered with time. Also, i will be updating when physically possible. Work is an issue.

Peace.