"Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you." -Friedrich Nietzsche
A Kamen Rider x RWBY Crossover:
"Die Set Down"
Have you...ever thought about monsters? As in, have you questioned what the meaning behind the word? What does 'monster' mean? In what context can you define a 'monster'? Is it a creature that you are horribly terrified of? A beast that haunts your every nightmare? Perhaps it's a figment of your imagination, tucked away in the darkest corners of your mind?
Allow me to ask you. When you think of the word, "Monster"...do you think of the Grimm? Those horrible, black creatures that hunt down us beings born from Dust? Or perhaps when you hear the word "Monster" you think of the White Fang? The Faunus who, in their horrible and twisted ways, sought revenge against humans because of their mistreatment towards them?
Well, I'm terribly sorry to inform you, but...
...you have absolutely no idea what a real monster is.
Die Set Down - Taro Kobayashi
[Chorus] As the music plays, the camera shows the girls of RWBY - Ruby in front of her mother's grave, hands clasped in prayer. Weiss walking through the halls of the Schnee manner, passing by Whitley and Winter. Blake atop a tree, staring at the shatter moon of Remnant with Adam leaning against the tree. Yang driving at top speed through the streets on Bumblebee, grinning. Then, the scene shifts to Kamen Rider Amazon Neo, already transformed, his back turned to the screen before smashing his fist into the screen, creating the title card.
"Die Set Down"
[We don't ask, but we were born into the world! God, we believe, if they say it's crime] Chihiro walks through the desolate streets of Vale, holding his Neo Amazons Driver in hand. Behind him, blue veins spread all across the street. When it closes up on his face, it shows his eyes glowing bright blue, and black veins spreading up to his face.
[How we feel? We must say, "must be ah deep punishment!" Oh, no no, ooh~] Ruby sits on the windowsill of her room, Crescent Rose resting against the wall. As she stares at the broken moon, the camera dives into her eyes, finding her cowering in a shed, a younger Yang protecting her with fists raised. Around them, the same blue veins spread through the shed.
[Calmness, I lost in the labyrinth. Pain and relief, my heart is so bluely] Weiss is found in a large hall, her rapier in hand as she stares down a Knight. The room flips over, showing a younger Weiss crying in a fetal position as the veins surround her.
[Crazy, I don't why many bodies surround me! They've been livin' till a while ago] Blake and Adam stand back to each other, with Blake facing the front and a forlorn expression on her face. Adam fades behind her into black, as does the rest of the world while the blue veins creep up on her body. Yang comes up from behind her, pulling her into an embrace and allowing the veins to spread to her as well.
[Oh, yeah~!] Chihiro is shown again, this time with glowing yellow before he screams, red flames consuming his body.
[Whoa~ Whoa~ Whoa~ Take your AmazonZ!] The camera shows Amazon cells being consumed, spreading into black veins that show Chihiro as Amazon Neo combating a Grimm, tearing it apart with his blade.
[Damn! We don't wanna grow to be dead all the way!] The veins expand, showing Team RWBY against an Elder Beringel. It holds a struggling Weiss in its hand before Yang smashes her fist into its jaw, dropping her and being caught by Blake.
[Whoa~ Whoa~ Whoa~ Fate must be done!] Another vein spreads out, showing another image of Chihiro, this time battling Adam Taurus, their blades clashing before parting and clashing once again.
[Set them free! Eat up the ugly desire!] The fourth vein shows Team JNPR facing two Amazons. Pyrrha and Jaune defend themselves against a Shrike while Ren and Nora dance around and attack a Crab Amazon.
[Whoa~ Whoa~ Whoa~ Take your AmazonZ!] Several veins converge, returning the screen to normal and showing Chihiro in the middle of the rain, staring at a hooded figure carrying a belt similar to his. A close up shows bloody tears falling from his face.
[We can't stop the lonely game! Answer is only one!] Team RWBY and JNPR stand in the ruins of Beacon Academy, blue veins covering the entire area. Staring them down is an unseen figure with glowing orange eyes, flames flickering in their their side is a Mole Amazon, glowering at them.
[Already the DIE SET DO~WN!] Chihiro falls into a pitch black ocean, the blue veins slowly dancing their way towards him. A light shimmers close to him, causing him to open his eyes. The final image shows Chihiro in his Amazon Neo form, cradling the body of a black-haired girl while black feathers fall around him.
Hunt I-I: AMAZONZ
The mission was relatively simple.
For the past few days in the Forever Fall forest, Grimm activity had been steadily declining for no apparent reason. There were no Huntsmen posted in the area, so while less Grimm was a good sign, it also brought on worry of them possibly migrating somewhere else. For this reason, Ozpin had requested a team be sent and investigate the disturbances. As added insurance, a back-up team was also requested, should anything go wrong. To no one's surprise, Team RWBY was called in alongside Team CFVY.
The first of Team RWBY is its leader, Ruby Rose. She was a silver-eyed girl dressed in a black blouse, a black waist cincher with red lacing and a skirt with red trimmings, completed by a red, hooded cloak. Her entire outfit is made up of various shades of red and black with black as the primary color on the main suit and red on the cloak. Even her shoulder-length hair was black with a red tint to it. She had cross-shaped pins holding her cloak to her shirt. Around her waist was a belt which holds large cartridges in individual loops, as well as a magazine pouch. She has a silver rose emblem on her belt. Her weapon of choice? A high-caliber sniper scythe known as Crescent Rose.
The second was her sister, Yang Xiao Long. She wore a tan vest with gold piping over a yellow low-cut crop top with a black crest that resembles a burning heart. The vest she had bore puffy cap sleeves with black cuffs. On the sides of the cuffs, there are two small golden buttons. She wore a brown belt with a buckle, a pouch, and a small banner-like object. The same burning heart crest appeared on this banner, except golden in color. She wore black shorts under her belt, which resembled a pleated skirt in the back. Over the short shorts but under the belt was a white asymmetrical back skirt, with an orange infinity scarf around her neck. She wore brown knee-high platform boots that looked to be made of leather, with orange socks of different lengths. Her left leg also had a gray bandanna-like object wrapped around the top of her boot. She also had on black finger-less gloves. Her defining, and most valued trait, was her blonde hair, which is lighter in color at the tips and flowed in a loose and messy manner, with a few locks sticking out and a small cowlick on top of her head, and had lilac eyes...and depending on what lecherous male you asked, an awesome rack. Just don't ever tell her that to her face, lest you come face to face with her shotgun gauntlets, Ember Celica.
The third was Ruby's partner, Weiss Schnee. As her name stated, she dressed primarily in light blue, white, and some red. She wore a pale blue bolero jacket over a similarly colored thigh-length dress with a piece of black lace making up the neckline of the dress. The inside of the bolero was red and the sleeves turn blue as they get closer to her wrists. The back of the bolero displayed a familiar crest, which bore a resemblance to a snowflake. Similar to Ruby, she wore a combat skirt. She wore an apple-shaped necklace along with a pair of thin, rectangular earrings. She had white, heeled wedge boots that go to mid-calf; the insides were also lined with red. Her long white hair was pulled back in an off-center ponytail, at the base of which is a small tiara that resembles icicles. She had a pale complexion and ice blue eyes. She also bore a crooked scar down her left eye. She also wore a small bag on the back of her dress, wrapped around her waist with a ribbon. Perhaps because of her elegant nature and upbringing, she wielded a Multi-Action Dust Rapier called Myrtenaster.
The fourth and final member was Yang's partner, Blake Belladonna. A girl of light olive complexion, similar to Ruby and Weiss, she had long, wavy black hair, and her eyes were amber, complemented by light-purple eye shadow flaring backwards. Her eyes were slightly tilted upwards at the ends, giving her a somewhat catlike appearance. She had on a black ribbon tied in the form of a bow, and wore low-heeled boots and stockings that start off black at her hips, but gradually fade to purple as they neared her shoes. On the outside of her stockings, were white emblems that are most likely belladonna flowers. She wore black ribbons on both of her arms, with a black detached sleeve and a silver band on her left arm. She also wore a black buttoned vest with coattails, and a white sleeveless undershirt that exposes part of her midriff with white shorts connected to her shirt, although it was partly obscured by the vest. Her shorts had a zipper on the front of each leg. She also wore a detached scarf-like collar around her neck. Her weapon of choice, Gambal Shroud, rested on her waist.
Team CFVY, meanwhile, was a more experienced team. Its leader was Coco Adel. She was a teenage girl with fair skin, short dark-brown hair, and dark-brown eyes. She had wavy locks on one side of her face, dyed with a gradient that started in dark brown and transitioned to caramel. Her clothes consisted of a long, cocoa-colored shirt with a dark brown waist cincher. She wore long, dark brown trousers with ribbons on the left side and a brown belt with bullets. Above it, she wore another cocoa-colored belt of bullets with a gold crosshairs buckle. What apeared to be a drape of black skirt hung on her right side. She also wore a pair of dark brown, high-heeled leather boots with buckles. To complete the look of a fashionista, she had on a number of accessories, such a bracelet with black roses as decoration, which were accompanied by black gloves and necklaces. She wore a beret of a darker brown and a pair of black, wire-rimmed aviator sunglasses.
Next was Fox Alistair, her partner. He was a young man with dark skin and dark, messy copper hair that had a long fringe and a cowlick. He wore a sleeveless, muted orange zipper vest with black lining and a high collar, a pair of black jeans, and brown, laced shoes. Strangely, his eyes were pure white, perhaps a sign that he is blind, though no one knows. His arms were covered in scars, and had a vertical scar on his lips. He also wore a pair of long black gloves and had several pouches attached to his belt. He was arguably the quietest one in the group, next to the fourth member.
Third was Velvet Scarlatina, the team's resident Faunus. A small girl with long, brown hair and brown eyes with a pair of long, brown rabbit ears atop her head, signifying her status. While she was normally found in her school clothes, her combat gear was comprised by a short, long-sleeved brown jacket with a golden zipper, brown pants and black leggings with golden detail. She wore a black, semi-translucent undershirt beneath her jacket, along with golden spaulders and vambraces on both arms, as well as a similar belt. The tops of her leggings were edged with a similar band, and her heel and toe were likewise protected.
Lastly was Velvet's partner, Yatsuhashi Daichi. A massive man who said little, much like Fox, he was tall and athletic, having shaved-short black hair and tanned skin, wearing mostly pale-green and brown attire. He had a long short-sleeved robe, which he wpre on one shoulder over a black muscle shirt. The robe was fastened at the waist by a leather armored belt with two pouches on it. He also wore brown pants and black-and-green boots. His left arm bore a 5-layer sode which extended up past his shoulder. His weapon was affixed to his back with a padded brown strap slung over his shoulder. He also wore a pair of bracers as well as a pair of black gloves with green plates on the backs.
The two teams were paired together, and walked together towards the Bulkhead. Ruby, for her part, was slightly ecstatic, as this was the first time she was working with another team. That, and she was quite curious what their weapons were, being the 'weapons freak' Yang described her to be. It was obvious what Fox's and Yatsu's were, but she didn't see Velvet's or Coco's on their person. Then again, looks could be deceiving, much was the case of Yang's Ember Celica.
"Hope you kids can keep up with the big boys," Coco teased the girls as they made their way to their method of transportation. "We've been told we have a habit of going by too quick."
Yang smirked, seeing it as a challenge. "Oh, you should worry more about yourselves," she said, accepting the challenge Coco had more or less presented to her with vigor. "We'll blow you out of the water."
"Oh, for Dust's sake, Yang," Weiss rolled her eyes. "We're working together on this mission. Don't antagonize them! Besides, they're more experienced than us, so we should treat them with respect."
"It's fine," Velvet told the heiress, albeit rather shyly as she hung back behind Yatsuhashi. "This is Coco's way of breaking the ice."
Blake's eyebrow rose to her hairline, curious. Then again, from what little she knew about Coco Adel, it seemed as if she and Yang held similar mischievous personalities, so she didn't think much of it. Instead, she trailed behind the group in silence, wondering what would possibly await them in their mission. Like Weiss, she thought about what would await them in their mission. Grimm activity in the Forever Fall forest had always been changing, though for it to decrease to such a degree was curious. Then again, they would find out in time.
Sometime later, Bulkhead interior...
"Are we almost at the drop point yet?" Ruby asked the pilot of the bullhead that carried both her and her teammates. This wasn't the first time she had asked the question, but she couldn't help it. After all, this was her first time out in the field since Initiation. This question, and many others for that matter, buzzed in the little huntress-in-training's head as she couldn't help but imagine all the possibilities that could be the cause of such a strange event. Thoughts ranging from Roman Torchwick being involved—to aliens from outer space swooping down and abducting Grimm for all kinds of experiments. Though she hoped, and venerably tried to avoid to even think for that matter, that those Grimm weren't getting the infamous alien probe. While they may be monsters, even Grimm didn't deserve such a horrible fate like that.
These thoughts in turn caused her to feel a tad impatient as she flew on the bullhead which only increased the longer they sailed above the sea of red colored trees. "Not yet, Miss Rose." The pilot answered calmly though he would admit that his patience was starting to grow a little thin. "Just a little longer before we reach the designated landing area."
"Come on, Ruby." Yang said with teasing smile gracing her lips. "You been harassing the pilot for the last thirty minutes. Any longer and I'll start thinking you have a thing for him."
Ruby puffed her cheeks at her sister's teasing as she turned to glare at the blonde, but that only made the older sibling chuckle slyly at her little scythe-wielding sister's reaction.
"Oh please just sit down, Ruby." Weiss said from her seat as she examined Myrtenaster with delicate care and making sure that the dust inside of the rapier was perfectly calibrated. "There is no need to pester the pilot as it won't make the bullhead go any faster than it already is." She nodded her head over to the window on the side of the airship to emphasize her point as many of the red trees of Forever Fall disappeared out of eyesight before anyone could even admire their beauty.
"You need to relax a bit like Blake." Yang gestured over to her partner who had a book in the tight grip of her hands and focused intensely on the pages. "She knows how to keep calm and take a load off before starting a mission."
"That's because she is always like that." Ruby said childishly though she couldn't deny that her friends had a point. Still it didn't make the impatience she felt go away, but she would endure for her team and hopefully by the time they did reach their location the wait would be well worth it.
"Don't worry, Ruby." Velvet's voice crackled through the little red hooded girl's earpiece. "I'm sure we'll find whatever made that weird signal around here."
"Yeah, kid." Coco added. "You got to keep calm in these sort of missions otherwise you'll never find what you're looking for."
Ruby kept her pout for a moment before giving a sigh and turned to look out the right side window of the bullhead to see CFVY's airship following close by her team's own. "Oh, alright." Ruby conceded to the member and leader of CFVY respectfully as she sat down beside her partner before taking out Crescent Rose and started to check it for dents or scratches like Weiss did with her own weapon.
"Cheer up, Ruby." Yang said as she walked over and rubbed her sister's hair affectionately. "Once we get there, you can kick as much Grimm butt you want."
"I'm just curious about what caused the Grimm to start running with their tails between their legs." The younger sister said as she carefully loaded a few rounds into her baby.
"That is something that been bothering me as well." Blake said as she put a mark into her book before closing.
"At last she speaks." Yang said with a sly grin.
"I am being serious, Yang," the ninja-like team member carefully put her book into her pack before turning to address her team. "The Grimm in Forever Fall haven't ever declined like this before, at least not since the last decade. So what could have caused it?"
"I haven't the faintest of clues," The heiress admitted as she lifted her eyes from Myrtenaster to gaze at Blake. "However, we won't know anything until we get there so I suggest we just all prepare for whatever we may find."
"Do you think that it could be the work of Roman Torchwick?" Velvet asked over the earpiece, but Blake shook her head.
"I doubt it," she answered. "But, then again, we can't rule anything out at this point."
"Hmm…" Ruby hummed out as she agreed with her teammate's explanation. There was quite a bit to learn about the situation, and any possibility could help them. Just when she thought about it more, she heard the pilot speak.
"We're coming up on the landing site!" Team RWBY's pilot said over the intercom of the Bullhead and thoroughly cutting off anything further thoughts or speculation on the matter. "Strap yourselves down, we're initiating landing procedures now." Ruby quickly put away Crescent Rose while Weiss sheathed Myrtenaster as Blake and Yang sat down in their seats and buckled up. The Bullhead started to shift and turn towards a clearing the Forever Fall while both team JNPR's and team CFVY's own airship mimicked the first before carefully landing on the soft red leaves that were scattered all over the ground. As soon as the engines stopped on each bullhead, all the huntsman and huntresses jumped out of the airships before quickly securing the area.
"The energy disturbance is about 2 kilometers north from our current location." One of the pilots told the students over the intercom of the Bullhead. "Sorry we couldn't get any closer, but this is the only clearly near enough to the anomaly that can actually fit all three Bullheads together."
"That's alright." Coco said as she adjusted her sunglasses. "We'll have some teammates stay behind before we leave so you guys don't feel so exposed."
"Much obliged, Ma'am."
Ruby peered through the scope of Crescent Rose towards the thick red forest, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. If anything, everything around seemed rather peaceful. That made her feel a bit disappointed; even though they were still just a little far away from where the Grimm activity was most concentrated, she expected at least something to be out of the ordinary in Forever Fall.
"Alright then. Yatsu, you are going to stay behind and keep the Bullheads safe." The beret wearing teen ordered her friend whom merely gave a nod as he pulled out his sword and looked for a comfortable positon to stand guard. Being the senior team-leader out of the three teams, Coco had the most authority in the operation and could have ordered which other teammates from the other squads should stay behind. However, she wasn't too uptight about it and decided to wait and see who her fellow leader would choose.
"Blake, could you stay behind with Yatsuhashi?" Ruby asked the cat Faunus.
"Of course and good luck with your search." Blake answered simply before moving to help set up a perimeter with giant swordsman.
"Alright," Coco said, looking at the rest. "Why don't we partner up? That way, we can back up each other."
Ruby smiled, already agreeing with the idea. "Okay then," she chirped. "In that case...Yang, you and Velvet can help out!"
"Fine by me," the blonde buxom brawler grinned, looking at the bunny-eared girl, who seemed to shyly agree with the plan. "This okay with you, Vel?"
"I-I'm fine with it," she assured. "I promise not to get in the way."
"Then that leaves me with Fox," Weiss said, looking at the red-haired. "Is this okay with you?" All she received was a nod of confirmation.
Coco chuckled. "Guess you're with me then, kiddo," she said as she held out a hand. Ruby gratefully shook it. "Alright, let's get this show on the road."
Ruby grinned. She had a feeling that everything would end up great!
Sometime later, Forever Fall forest clearing...
...at least, that was what she thought. When they entered the Forever Fall fores, it had been several minutes, if not an hour, before they had Grimm activity. It should have been easy. It was just a couple of Beowolves and Boartusks. In fact, they had more or less left at least a handful of Grimm left alive...and then Ruby found herself being captivated by Coco's weapon. It was a wonderful work of art! A Gatling Gun in the form of a bag? INCREDIBLE! Then she screwed up. A Creep showed up out of nowhere and smashed into her, and much to her displeasure, she fell down a slope. She lost Crescent Rose somewhere in mid tumble, and vaguely remembered hearing Coco crying out in worry.
She didn't remember hitting the ground. When she woke up, she found her head sore. Worse, it was rather dark out, as she could see the broken moon hanging above the red trees. If she were speaking honestly, this was absolutely horrible! There was a terrible pain in her ankle, and it hurt to walk.
"I must have sprained it," she hissed as she limped across the small path leading, well, somewhere. "And I can't find Crescent Rose...man, this totally sucks."
Were she being completely honest, Ruby felt naked with her trust scythe by her side. She had spent so much time working on it that one might say that it was apart of her. Without it, she felt lonely, insecure, incomplete...okay, well, not that last one. She wasn't THAT attached to weapons. Yes, she was a weapons nerd, she was willing to admit as such, but not so much that she would be so attached to Crescent Rose to consider it to be apart of her. Either way, this was seriously bad. If she encountered a Grimm like this, she'd be completely defenseless! Her Scroll was also busted because of the fall, so she couldn't call for backup either.
"Hello?" she called, tapping her earpiece. "Anyone? Coco? Y-Yang?" She sighed, receiving only static as her only reply. "Figures..."
Shrugging while keeping an eye out, straining to hear anything around her, she continued to limp. Eventually, she came across a small clearing, wide and open with a thin sheet of red leaves covering the ground. At the center were a couple of fallen trees. Ruby breathed in relief, thankful that she could have a moment to rest. She slowed her pace, careful not to put too much pressure on her foot than she already was, and sat down on the log. She gave a slight whimper as she began to undo her shoe, as she needed to see how bad the sprain was. With a bit of effort, and quite a bit of pain she might add, she removed her shoe.
Ruby blanched. Her ankle was a mix of black and purple. What should have been a small bump like any other ankle was now the size of a softball, irritated and hurting. She gave it a light tap, but hissed when the pain flashed, creating discomfort. Thankfully, however, she had a medical kit on hand, as Weiss had suggested before they had left for their mission. She took out the small red case on her person, which had the necessities; bandages, braces, band-aids, medical gel, and an ice pack kept cool via Ice Dust.
First, she applied the gel on her ankle, biting back a scream when the pain returned, even worse due to the pressure. The gel was meant to help the irritated skin while also concentrating her Aura on the damage. The pain was beginning to dull after a minute or so, leaving her to place the small ice pack on the swollen flesh, and then binding it with the bandages. It wasn't the best job, but it would help. Just to be safe, she would stay off of her foot a little while longer. Ruby then took a moment to examine her surroundings. The silence of the forest, as well as the scenery, would have been beautiful in any other situation. However, when said forest was crawling with Grimm, then the sense of beauty suddenly becomes eerie paranoia. In all honesty, it reminded her of the time when Yang had tried looking for her birth mom when they were children.
Contrary to what Yang thought at the time, she was awake the whole time, pretending to be asleep. Even though she didn't understand what Yang was doing at first, she could tell by her face it must have been important. Ruby would have dropped the ruse, had the Grimm not appeared. Seeing one for the first time, a Beowolf of large size with teeth and claws ready to tear into them like the horrible beasts they were, had left her utterly frozen in terror. Whatever voice she may have had went silent while Yang, fruitlessly, tried to protect the both of them. They had hidden themselves inside the shack, waiting and praying to be saved when the wolves had entered. Thankfully, Qrow had arrived in time, ending the monster's lives and holding unto the two sisters in a warm, tight embrace. Ruby still pretended she was asleep, which her uncle and sister seemed thankful for, thinking that she had truly slumbered through the whole thing. Qrow said it would be for the best.
"So creepy..." Ruby muttered, slightly anxious. She could hear leaves rustling in the wind, and occasionally heard a branch snapping. Feeling a slight chill, she pulled up her hood to try and block out the cold wind somewhat. "Oh, I hope the others find me soon..."
Just then, she heard static speak into her ear. "R-y-ca-ou-e?" a garbled distortion spoke. Ruby's eyes lit with hope, praying it was her friends while trying to adjust the frequency. Gradually, the voice became clearer, having a familiar feminine tone. "-y, can you hear me?!"
"Weiss!" she cheered. "Is that you?!"
"Oh, thank Dust," the heiress let out a faint sigh of relief. "Where are you?! Coco came back and said you got separated?!"
"Y-yeah...I'm in some kind of clearing. I busted my ankle, a-and I lost Crescent Rose."
"What?!" Yang's voice cried, causing her to wince, lowering the volume. "Hold on, sis! We're coming for you!"
"O-okay," she nodded. With that, the transmission ended. The news was a welcome change of pace for her. Still, she was a bit worried. Forever Fall was a big place. Another chilling breeze past by, causing her to shiver and wrap her cape around her like a blanket. "Brr, its cold...I thought winter wasn't until in a few months...?"
Suddenly, she heard the sound of a branch snapping. Twitching, she turned to the source of the noise, finding a large amount of bushes to shake. Immediately on edge, Ruby inched away, wincing when she got back on her feet. Her ankle hadn't fully healed yet, so she wouldn't be able to run very fast. If need be, she could use her Semblance, though she doubted it would do much good in her condition. The shaking in the bushes continued, making her even more nervous. Then, without warning, something emerged, being thrown to the ground and tumbling before crunching towards the log. To Ruby's shock, it was a Beowolf...or what was left of it. Its lower half was missing, half of its arm was gone, and several patches of its black skin were torn off in chunks, revealing the writhing red mass that made up their muscle and bones. Its mask was fractured and broken as well.
The sudden appearance of the apparent dead Grimm was enough to startle her, and yelped, landing on her butt. Then something else emerged out from the darkness. Ruby looked up, and paled.
It wasn't a Grimm. No, it was something else. Something...inhuman. Its form vaguely resembled one, having a torso coupled with arms and legs with feet and hands, but that was where any similarity to humans ended. Its skin was more akin to armored shells of insects, especially around the forearms and calves with black ridges forming into a pattern. Its body was colored yellow and black, almost like a wasp, even possessing an insect-like wing draped over its right shower. Sharp singer-like protrusions were found on its knuckles, vaguely resembling brass knuckles of sorts while it had a human-esque like face. It had eyes, but they were wrinkled and twisted with the lids narrowed close as if giving the appearance of a glare, and the upper half of the face was guarded by yellow plating with black stripes. The lower half was purely black, with clicking mandibles tapping against what presumably was the line of its mouth. Two antennae were found on its brow, twitching madly.
'W-w-what is that thing?!' Ruby thought in utter horror. She had never seen such a thing before. It was definitely not a new type of Grimm, but if it wasn't that, then what was it? Was it what had killed the Grimm that landed in front of her? Regardless of what it may be, the way it looked at her was hardly pleasing, especially as it stumbled forward, reaching a hand out towards her. Was it asking for help? Was it trying to grab her? She didn't know. Her thoughts were in a panic.
"S-so hungry..." To Ruby's shock, the creature was capable of speech. It was feminine and weak, garbling and distorted. "Meat...meat...!"
Ruby's heart sank when it suddenly stopped, and its body began to shake. Suddenly, the atmosphere became heavier, and the little girl knew why. The words it spoke earlier gave it away.
"LET ME EAT YOU!"
As soon as it lunged toward her, Ruby's Semblance was already kicking in. She was gone in a red burst of speed, leaving only red rose petals in her wake. The strange wasp-like monster hit the ground, letting out a howl of frustration before it looked around wildly for her. It then found her far away from it from behind, wincing in pain. Like she thought, her ankle hurt even worse from the increased movement and pressure she put on it due to her Semblance. It then began to waltz toward her, translucent liquid dribbling from its mouth. The girl shivered, images of what this thing would do to her already invading her mind. She tried to move, but her ankle was hurting too much. At this rate, the pain would override her own instinct to move.
"P-please, let me eat you...!" the wasp-like monster groaned. There was a begging tone in its voice, pathetically pleading for something Ruby would not allow. "I'm starving...please...!"
The more it talked, the more Ruby felt pity. Whatever this strange thing was, it was starving. Hungry. It would have fed the thing if it weren't trying to kill her. She gave a quick scan of her surroundings. She had to find a way out of here. Or at the very least, stall the thing until back-up came. As the wasp-like monster continued its approach, Ruby gave a small movement on her foot to see how bad her sprain was before using her Semblance again, should she need to burst out of the way. Slowly, the monster's movements were growing more erratic. Its obvious hunger was beginning to drive it mad. It was about ready to pounce again. Bracing herself for the incredible pain, Ruby readied to book it once again. After this, she would have to find a way to kill it without Crescent Rose or stall it until the others got here.
The wasp-like monster's body shook again. Ruby bit her lip. However, just before the creature launched itself at her, and before she could use her Semblance, she heard a shout from behind her, followed by an intense wave of heat.
"AMAZON!"
The sudden increase of temperature, as well the pressure that threw her to the ground, came so suddenly and with so much force that it created a mighty gust of wind. The trees bristled, leaves being blown off their branches and thrown into the air. The leaves on the ground were no different, though many were consumed in flame due to the intense heat. Ruby winced, feeling her body ache from being thrown to the ground so harshly before she looked up in time to see something covered in roaring red flames leap above her, crashing straight into the ground and clashing with the wasp-like creature. The sudden appearance of the strange phenomenon stunned it, leaving it vulnerable to attack. She couldn't see its form clearly, but whatever was inside the flame seemed to deliver a solid punch, throwing the monster straight back, crashing into the tree. Upon impact, the bark was broken. As Ruby watched in in amazement, more waves of heat blew from the figure inside the flame, as if pulsating. After a minute, the flames revealed the figure.
Like the wasp-like creature, it was humanoid, more than the monster that had tried to eat her previously. However, unlike the monster, this one seemed to have a mix of armor and exoskeletal plating on its body. Its skin was black beneath the gaps, revealing toned, thin legs with armored boots, sharp blades resembling fins piercing out from behind the calves. Blue metal covered its ankles, connecting the silver portion of the boots to the fins. Its upper body, meanwhile, was more colorful, being mostly blue with red vein-like markings etched into the armor. Silver bracers covered its forearms, bound by black bands at the wrists and black metal at the back of the hands. It shoulders were covered by round pauldrons, rather flat with a thick black strip at the center. Armor covered its chest, kept in place by the various strips of machinery spanning from underneath its armpits to behind his back, where she saw sharp fins also marked into its back. Keeping in tone with the obvious reptilian-like traits, a large fin sat atop its head, vaguely like the mohawk of lizards with similar fins on either side of its ahead, albeit more apart of the machinery that covered its head. It had large yellow eyes with steel shutters over them, no doubt visors of some sort. What caught Ruby's attention the most was the belt around its waist. It seemed to be some sort of belt, with the buckle resembling the side of a reptile's head, purely red with a yellow eye in the center. A holder was below the eye, with a cylinder attached inside of it.
Ruby stared at it with awe, wondering if it was either friend or foe. However, the reptilian monster, the one that had shouted 'Amazon,' paid no heed to her. Only the down wasp-like creature. It let out a low, animalistic growl before it charged as the creature got up. It barely had time to defend itself as it suddenly found itself viciously attacked. It blocked a punch to the side of its head, but due to the hunger, it couldn't defend itself from an uppercut which sent it into the air. The reptilian monster, which Ruby, for the sake of simplicity, called "Amazon" due to its shout from earlier, wouldn't allow it to escape for even a moment, grabbing its leg and pulling it in. "Amazon" then raised its fist, slamming it straight down into the wasp-like creature's face. Its head crashed straight into the ground, creating a small crater due to the immense force of the punch. However, "Amazon" wasn't done. It grabbed the creature by the head, and began to pummel it into the ground.
One punch. Two, three four. Five, six. The strikes came in fast and heavy before the creature grabbed "Amazon's" next strike, and with what little strength it had, forced it off. It then clambered to its feet, deeming "Amazon" a threat and tried to go in for a punch of its own. "Amazon" easily evaded it, grabbing its wrist and slamming his knee straight into its arm. Even from where she stood, she heard the sound of bones breaking and shattering. The wasp-like creature let out a cry of pain as "Amazon" let it go, letting the creature cradle its now shattered arm before it found a heel slamming straight into its face, sending it flying. It tumbled through the ground before hitting a tree. It tried to stand, but it found itself crumpling to its knees.
"Amazon" let out another growl as it grabbed the holder attached to its belt, twisting it downward before putting it back at its diagonal position, pushing the cylinder in. An electronic voice then rung out:
[A-M-A-Z-O-N S-T-R-I-K-E]
The wasp-like creature found the strength to stand, albeit staggering. Meanwhile, "Amazon" fell into a stance, leaning on its leg while steam began to rise off of its foot. Ruby grew curious in anticipation, wondering what it was doing. The creature then let out a shrill scream, scrambling and charging at "Amazon" for one last attack. "Amazon", meeting its advance, charged forward, but in mid-sprint, took to the air, taking a mighty leap and stretching out its leg, going in for a kick-strike it seemed. However, when it struck the wasp-like creature, it apparently missed, hitting the ground and landing in a crouch several meters behind it. The wasp-like creature fell still. A second later, a geyser of black and green fluid spewed out like a water fountain, a deep gash carved straight through its chest, starting from the shoulder and going straight down to the waist in a vertical slash. Its body convulsed before it fell on the ground.
To Ruby's horror, when it ceased to move, its body then began to melt, forming into a puddle of green and black fluid, much like what spewed out of its body earlier. "Amazon" then stood up, its shoulders sagging up and down. She heard what sounded like panting, perhaps a sign of exhaustion, which confused her. This fight must have lasted at least a minute or two at best. It then turned to her, making her squeak in fear. What would it do? Would it try to go after her like the wasp-like creature did before? Or would it try and help her? She didn't know. Regardless, she readied herself for a quick escape just in case things went south.
Sadly, whatever Ruby expected had gone straight out the window when she heard Yang's voice resound through Forever Fall; "GET THE HELL AWAY FROM MY SISTER!" followed by a yellow blur shooting straight at "Amazon" and striking it square in the jaw. The sound of gunfire reverbrated, the unmistakable sound of Ember Celica unloading mind you, and the blue reptile monster was sent flying, crashing right into one of the more larger trees in the clearing, practically stuck in the bark for a moment before it went limp, slumping straight into the ground, back against the bark. Yang stood where "Amazon" did previously, her blonde hair glowing like fire and her eyes burning red with rage, a toothy scowl marring her otherwise beautiful features. Ember Celica was already armed and ready in gauntlet form, wrapped around her hands and primed for execution.
Ruby's eyes widened, and before she realized it, she sped over to Yang, wrapping her arms around her waist before she could proceed any further towards her apparent "savior." "W-wait, Yang, stop!"
"R-Ruby?!" Yang squaked. "What are you doing?! This thing was-!"
"It SAVED ME, YANG!" she shouted, wanting to get her point across. "IT ISN'T-!"
She was cut off when, to the sisters' surprise, "Amazon's" form began to burn cold blue. The air seemed to suck into the flames, and its entire being consumed by the blue fire that covered its body. Strangely, its form then began to shrink, losing its previously reptile-like features. Then, once the flames dissipated and the air ceased to be consumed, the girls felt their jaws drop. Instead of the reptile creature that had saved the red reaper's life, it was a young boy. Going by his face, he couldn't possibly be any older than Ruby and facial features similar to Ren's, perhaps implying a Mistral heritage. His hair was black, and falling to the base of his neck. Most of his hair was pushed to the right side of is face, curving around his cheek. His clothes were more like rags than anything else; a ratty black shirt with several tears with a thin brown sweater that was several sizes too big for him over it, and black pants with several stains along the front, and shoes that looked to be in serious wear and tear, mud splatters all across the soles and the front. A trickle of blood also trailed down the side of his face.
Yang and Ruby were left stunned by the sudden change, but Ruby, upon noticing the blood down his face, snapped out of her stupor and, in spite of the serious burning pain in her ankle, dashed over and took out her medical kit. "R-Ruby. what are you doing?!" Yang called out. "Get over here!"
"I told you!" she shouted back. "It-he-he saved my life! And you hit him!"
"He's dangerous!"
"And you didn't bother to ask!"
Ruby continued to argue with her sister while she applied bandages to the boy's head. As they argued, the remainder of Team RWBY, as well as Team CFVY had arrived in time to see the aftermath of the battle, with Weiss unfortunately stepping in the gooey puddle that was the remains of the wasp-like monster that the boy had killed.
Unknown to any of them, however, a black crow was observing the whole thing, its red eyes trained on the boy Ruby was tending to before it let out a squawk, taking off into the air.
TO BE CONTINUED