Chapter 1
Early to Rise
There are whispers in the underworld. Echoing warnings, spanning race, nationality, and borders, of death given form, of glowing embers and precision cut corpses and burning vindication. The details vary from region to region; Vale says it's a young girl, Atlas an older one. Some think she's driven by vengeance, more think it's sadism, and a few, crazy ones think it's love.
It's no surprise the story's a bit fuzzy. The ones that meet her don't usually live to fill in the gaps.
They all agree on one thing, though. A little red hood, black clothes, and a bright, silver eyed smile. Half rumor, half legend, she's known as the Little Black Rose.
"They really call me that?" Ruby asked curiously, feet quiet on the abandoned, decaying rooftops of one of Vale's slums. Despite the treacherous slopes, she kept her balance easily. A wide chasm appeared before her, but without hesitation she sprang across it with a burst of speed, landing lightly on the roof opposite.
"Can you believe it?" Weiss grumbled in her ear. As Ruby's handler, her job was a purely supportive role, to relay information to the young assassin from miles away. "What kind of lame nickname is that? It sounds like something from a kid's cartoon."
"I dunno. I kind of like it. It's pretty cool."
"You shouldn't. Cheesiness aside, Cinder's not happy that people even suspect you exist."
"It was bound to happen sooner or later," Ruby protested.
"If you didn't insist on being so flashy all the time, it could have happened much, much later."
Ruby didn't reply. Weiss complaining was nothing new.
"How's the equipment?" Weiss sighed, realizing that lecturing her partner was a useless effort. "I know it's experimental. Any bugs?"
"Not really," Ruby said. She absently fiddled with one of her earpieces, just a small portion of the boatload of cutting edge tech that Weiss had recently 'requisitioned.' "Most of the time I just forget they're there."
"Good."
"At least until you talk," Ruby teased. "Think you could do less of that?"
"Very funny," Weiss drawled. "As if you could even find the target without me."
Ruby flushed angrily. "You didn't tell me what it is!"
"Because you'd just forget anyways."
"Shouldn't you tell me now?" Ruby said, pointedly ignoring the accusation. She fearlessly leapt off a three story building with a smooth flip, before coming to a soft landing on the pavement below. "I think I'm almost there."
"It's a dust store called From Dust till Dawn." Weiss informed her. "Small shop. Limited security. Continue to the end of the block, then turn left. In about half an hour, Torchwick's going to raid it. Cinder wants him… removed. The method's up to you." Once her favored right hand man, Roman Torchwick, criminal mastermind, had made the foolish decision of double crossing Cinder. Even more unfortunately for him, he wasn't aware that she knew.
Ruby paused in confusion. "Wait, how does this help me assassinate Ozpin?" As one of her last remaining notable political opponents, Cinder despised Beacon's headmaster, enough that she was willing to devote her best agent for years if it meant bringing him down.
Hence Ruby's current predicament.
"I don't know," Weiss complained. "Don't ask me. She comes up with the plans. I just make sure you don't screw them up."
Ruby grimaced. Considering how much the mastermind relied on her, Cinder was remarkably tight fisted with information. "She wanted me to get into Signal, to set up for an inside job, right? Maybe she thinks this is a good opportunity to impress their recruiters?"
"And at the same time she can eliminate a liability," Weiss breathed. "Clever. You're probably right."
"Believe it or not, it does happen once in awhile."
"Awhile might be too generous."
As she approached the end of the block, Ruby noticed the telltale scorched craters of dust explosions pocketing the surrounding buildings. Already dilapidated, some of them now sported gaping wounds so large it was a miracle they were still standing. "These are still fresh," she remarked. "Gangs?"
"This afternoon," Weiss confirmed. "They're gone by now. You're fine."
"As if they'd give me any trouble anyways."
Ruby stepped delicately around a massive crater, idly observing the telltale scarlet stains of blood that crisscrossed it. Ahead of her, a small, glowing sign stretched into the cold night air like an act of lonely defiance. It had once said From Dust till Dawn, but most of the letters had gone out. The remaining ones flickered pathetically, as if mourning the loss of their brethren.
As a small, family owned dust shop, From Dust till Dawn's mere existence was a small miracle. The Vale ghettos were a very dangerous place to run a dust shop, but like all other residents the shopkeeper was likely too desperate to try anything else. Ironically, the constant conflict meant both a booming business and protection. Suppliers were rare in these parts, and anyone who attacked a dust shop usually didn't last long enough to try it again as their opponents mysteriously ended up with larger arsenals. It was an intense, cruel, and unpredictable lifestyle, but far preferable to being forced outside the walls. The Grimm were a more vicious predator than any human or faunus.
The exterior of the shop clearly exhibited the reluctance of the neighboring gangs to bring their conflict to its doors. The walls, while faded and peeling, were untouched by the scars that marred its neighbors, and the doors were automatic and glass, a rare and luxurious combination. The store was comprised of a single room, although respectably sized, all things considered. Display windows provided a view of the shelves of bagged loose dust held within, and in the center of the room. Ruby could see a glass display case containing the larger crystals. All in all, it would be absolutely no match for Roman and his goons, who cared naught for the intricacies of the regional politics.
She strolled into the store, the doors opening before her with a quiet hiss, and she was blasted with a rush of chilled air. Despite the late hour, the seasons had not quite finished transitioning from summer to autumn, and it was still warm outdoors. In contrast, the interior was pleasantly cool.
Air conditioning. Surprising.
"This is a Schnee sponsored shop," Weiss breathed in surprise, and now that it had been brought to her attention Ruby saw the telltale Schnee brand subtly engraved on various surfaces. "That explains the dust supply."
"A lot of people want dust around here," Ruby said. "I guess it was a good chance to make money."
Weiss growled. "How far we've fallen, to be willing to fund gang wars in pursuit of profit."
Instead of responding, Ruby waved to the elderly shopkeeper, who had been shooting her suspicious looks, and flashed him a shy smile. After a moment, he decided that the cute, barely over five foot girl was probably not a threat to him and gave her a tired nod before turning back to his work, shoulders slumped with exhaustion.
"I found our guests. They'll be at the shop in five minutes," Weiss said. One of the privileges of being the Schnee heiress was that she had access to the vast network of SDC security cameras, although Ruby suspected there had been foul play involved in order to obtain it. It was an invaluable boon, however, so she never asked.
The trickiest part of the whole affair would be to convince anyone who saw her was that she was a naive but skilled wannabe hero. Her normal modus operandi would be ambush them and kill them all before they could react, but that method wouldn't speak volumes for her character. Since a scythe and sniper rifle were extremely ineffective for non lethal takedowns, that left unarmed combat as her best option.
"You'll be ok, right?" Weiss asked worriedly, having come to the same conclusion.
Ruby snorted. "Duh."
"I'm sorry I asked," Weiss grumbled.
Ruby caught glance of a magazine stand against one of the walls and made her way over. It held a large variety of works, ranging from technical dust journals to common entertainment, but the apparent frivolity of the material stood in stark contrast to the gloomy atmosphere of the environment. She selected a weapon's magazine; they were something of a hobby of hers, both for interest in seeing developments in technology and to silently gloat over the fact that the best efforts of well regarded professionals couldn't compare to Crescent Rose in lethality, flexibility, or artistry. The shopkeeper gave her another odd look, but said nothing.
"Good choice," Weiss commented drily.
Ruby shrugged. "What do normal girls read, anyways?"
"No idea," Weiss admitted. "I haven't exactly had the most normal of childhoods."
Ruby hummed in agreement. Neither of them said any more, each lost in their own thoughts.
Weiss broke the silence first. "They're here. Four goons and Roman. The goons don't have aura. Roman has his cane."
Before Ruby had a chance to respond, the sliding doors swished open, revealing the aforementioned men. Ruby snuck a quick peek before they spotted her. They certainly looked intimidating: the ring leader with his pristine white suit and arrogant, condescending smile, surrounded by tall, menacing hulks with sinister red shades.
They could probably last ten seconds against her, tops. She turned back to her magazine, content to play innocent schoolgirl until the appropriate moment to transition into idealistic vigilante arrived.
It didn't take long. Ruby could make out the murmurs of intimidation as Roman bullied the shopkeeper into giving up his dust supplies, and although individual words eluded her the general tone of voice made it clear that the elderly man would not put up any resistance. Rustles of movement flared up a short time after as the goons began to ransack the store.
Weiss let out a dry chuckle. "One of them finally spotted you. I know you'll get carried away, but do try not to maim them."
Come on, Weiss. I'm not that bad.
"Alright kid, put your hands where I can see them," the goon said, and judging from the proximity of his voice he was only a few feet behind her. Ruby suppressed a snicker.
Are you trying to act like a stereotypical cheesy villain?
"Hey, I said hands in the air!" the man continued angrily. She ignored him again. Her aura would stop any attacks from behind, and she would prefer the goons to be grouped so she could eliminate them smoothly. Sure enough, two of them began walking over, attracted by the noise, leaving the last one to finish collecting the dust while Roman threatened the shopkeeper.
"You got a death wish or something?!" the goon snapped, and grabbed her shoulder, giving her the excuse to finally turn around. By this point, all three goons were practically lined up.
"Yes?" She asked innocently, pretending that she had only just heard him.
"Put your hands in the air!" the goon exploded.
"Are you robbing me?" Ruby asked, silver eyes wide.
"Gold star," Weiss deadpanned. "Great acting."
"Yes!" the goon said, exasperated.
"Oooh," Ruby said. The goon barely caught a glimpse of a smirk before she exploded into action.
She lashed out with a spinning jump kick that connected with the goon's chest before he could react. She felt a sickening crunch as something gave way beneath her foot, and the goon flew through air, shattering one of the windows with a cacophony of broken glass before skidding to a halt on the street.
Oops. Too much.
The world blurred around her as she darted forward with semblance enhanced speed. She dropped one goon with a rapid fire series of crippling blows, taking care to avoid potentially fatal injuries this time, then knocked out the third with a fluid uppercut to the chin. Managing the power behind her attacks when she was moving too fast for the untrained eye to follow was a daunting prospect, but she was Ruby Rose, one of the most promising fighters of her generation, and she adapted quickly.
Better.
To his credit, Roman recovered rapidly. Three of his men had been dispatched in less than a second, but his cane spat the brilliant red gleam of a fire crystal, and Ruby threw herself out of the way as it erupted into a blazing pillar of white hot flame. She felt a spike of pain even though her lightning reflexes had saved her from the brunt of the attack, but her aura saved her from serious harm.
Two to go.
The fourth goon fumbled for his weapon, bewildered by the unexpected assault that had swept over his comrades. Ruby hurled the sheathed Crescent Rose at him. The unorthodox missile struck him, and he dropped like his legs had been cut from underneath him. She heard a subtle clink behind her and darted away with a burst of speed from her semblance as another crystal detonated, this time in a cascade of razor sharp ice shards.
As suddenly as it had begun, there was a lull in the fight. Roman glared at her, face distorted in betrayed fury, cane leveled at her face. He didn't bother firing. Both of them knew he wouldn't hit.
"What are you doing, Red?" Roman growled. "Are you out of your mind? We're kind of on the same side."
Ruby smirked at him. "Not anymore."
Roman gaped at her. "You've gone rogue? Are you nuts? She'll tear you apart!"
Ruby's smirk widened.
"No, no," Roman muttered. "There's no way her prized dog would turn on her. She had to have sent you here, but she personally told me to-"
His eyes widened in horror. "She set me up."
"Yep," Ruby confirmed cheerily. "Betrayal wasn't a good idea, Torchwick."
"Hey, come on now," Roman scoffed. "Betrayal is such an exaggeration. I just took a bit of dust, that's all. I've done good work for little miss spitfire. Think of it as a professional fee."
"And think of this as debt collection." Ruby countered, before throwing herself at him, a typhoon of black and red.
Roman was one of the most devious criminal minds in Remnant, although his genuine fear of Cinder kept him on a tight leash. He was also a decent combatant, a product of several near shaves with law enforcement and black market dealings gone wrong. Even so, he was absolutely no match for a prodigal duelist with years of hellish training under her belt.
The fight was almost comical. He had a good plan, in theory: keep Ruby at bay, ideally with the superior reach of his cane, until he could catch her off guard with an elemental blast. His crystals were top of the line, easy capable of crippling or killing even a powerful huntress in a single shot, aura or no.
He never got the chance. Ruby took him apart, precise, efficient movements backed by bursts of her semblance countered his attacks as soon as they happened. He swung, and his cane whistled through air uselessly as a slight twist of her body moved her out of harm's way. Then the blows came. One, two, three, four, hands, feet, elbows, knees, an unstoppable machine in the guise of a girl. His aura faltered, and he flailed wildly in panic, to no avail. After only a few seconds, one of her blows left him flat on his back, gasping for breath on the ground.
"Sorry, Roman," Ruby said innocently, and the smirk that had adorned her face for the entire fight fell off her face, replaced by a facsimile of sympathy. In the distance, the wailing of police sirens signaled his inevitable arrest.
"You're going to pay, Red," Roman snarled venomously. "I swear, somehow, someway, I'm going to pay you back."
Ruby answered him with a vicious kick to the head. "Pay Cinder back first," she said with mocking seriousness. "I think you owe her quite a bit."
"Step one down, at least," Weiss commented. "Hopefully you've been sufficiently impressive."
"Aww, come on," Ruby said as the wail of the approaching sirens reached deafening levels. "After a performance like that, who wouldn't want me?"
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A/N: Thanks for reading. Please review!
This is a rewrite of chapter one, so if you read the first version and were confused, now you know why.
Pretty sure I mention it in a later author's note (the joys of rewriting), but as you've probably figured out some character personalities have been modified. Hopefully they're reasonable within the events of the story, while still retaining the core of who they were in canon.