I knew that I shouldn't have cut through this damn alleyway. I always knew that the city was a bad place to live, then again the whole damn world itself is in total disarray. Vale is probably one of the worst places right now though, what with crime on the rise here in the capital city. Knowing this, I should be smart enough to know that I shouldn't be running through alleyways in order to get home quicker. Now here I am, a mugger in my face, holding a gun up to my head, and now I'm freaking out. And this is not anywhere near how I thought my day should go at all!
Actually, I should explain a couple of things first. To start off, my name is Ruby Rose. I live in the 'lovely' city of Veldin, the capital city of the Vale Kingdom, one of the most crime heavy cities in the entire world of Remnant. Second, the reason why I say that this city is one of the most crime heavy cities is because of some of the past few years and what has been going on in the world.
A couple of years ago, humanity had finally driven the Grimm back enough to the point where they were no longer considered a threat. The war itself, however, took a major toll on the people, and the economy of the world. Many Kingdoms were thrown into disarray, and as a result, criminal elements took over and started to take the Kingdoms bit by bit. The Kingdoms tried to fight back, but all they would ever do is slow them down for a little bit, or provoke them even further. Eventually, most of the Kingdoms went under martial law, causing even more problems within the cities. People would start to riot, curfews were initiated, but the worst of all, innocent people were occasionally kidnapped, murdered, or victimized in general, and the military and police force wouldn't do anything to fight back. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if the police force cut a few deals with the criminal empires in order to save their own skins.
The worst of the worst is a group known as the White Fang. They are probably the world's biggest criminal empire by now. They're made up of a large contingency of Faunus who have been displaced during the war, and discriminated against for being different. Personally, I love Faunus, they are some of the best people I know, but the White Fang, they are terrible people. I know so many Faunus that agree with me, in fact, most would agree that the White Fang is a terrible organization, but no one can do anything about it. The White Fang is too large in number, and if people even start to stand up to them, they decide to just, remove them from the equation. Politicians have been killed in drive by shootings, local leaders had their cars explode when they started them up, hell they even openly gunned down the few good cops in broad daylight, and get away with all of it. Unfortunately, they aren't going away any time soon, and that's what sucks the most about this. We're basically caught in the middle of a cold war, and we're paying the biggest price for it.
That doesn't mean that all is wrong, not by any standard. There are a few people who stand up and fight back against the crime that plagues the Kingdoms. Vigilantes of sorts have risen up and taken a stand, people with super-human powers that use them to protect the people. What sucks though, is that the police are actually calling for most of them to be arrested because they are apparently breaking the law in doing what they do. That's just another reason why people don't really like the police here, or most of anywhere. Honestly, I really wish that I could do something to make the world a better place, like the heroes who protect us every chance they get.
Anyway, you guys are probably wondering why I'm in the situation that I'm in right now. Let's just say that I was running late getting out of work, and I needed to run home before curfew got initiated. Unfortunately for me, I work in a coffee shop that just happens to be located on the COMPLETE OPPOSITE SIDE OF TOWN THAT I LIVE ON! It also doesn't help that this coffee shop stays open pretty late into the night, and I don't have a permit to be out past curfew due to travel time for my job. I normally work in the mornings, but on this particular day, one of my coworkers JUST SO HAPPENED to be sick, and asked me to cover for them, since I actually had the day off for once. So not only did I have to cancel on spending time with my sister, Yang, but I also had to work an extra day that I wasn't scheduled for.
Ok, getting side tracked, where was I? Oh right.
So, since I got out so late and didn't have a special permit to be out for extended curfew, I needed to run back to my apartment before the timer struck and the military started to patrol the streets. I've heard enough stories of people being arrested for getting caught outside after curfew, and having bad things happen to them in jail. I wasn't exactly in the mood to have that happen to me tonight. Unfortunately, in my moment of brilliance, I thought it was great to cut through the alleys in the hopes that I would be able to get home quicker. Stupid me, I ended up running into a mugger looking to prey on innocent people.
Now, here I am, a gun pointed directly at my face, and I'm freaking the fuck out! Who wouldn't freak out at something like this happening to them? Dear god, I try to avoid getting into trouble, and now I'm practically about to die, and there isn't a thing I could do about it.
"Just hurry up and give me the money, lady," The mugger kept shouting to me, ordering me around. I hated that he was giving me orders like a dog, but given that he had a gun to me, I wasn't about to argue with him.
As I was reaching for my purse to just give to the guy, shaking in terror, I suddenly heard the guy in front of me start to shout and freak out. Now, normally I would be confused as to what was happening, but that wasn't until I noticed one very important detail. First things first, what I noticed was that the two of us are no longer alone out here, someone else showed up. But what brought a smile to my face was what had happened now that I looked up after trying to reach for my purse.
Not only was the gun no longer in the hand of the guy who was trying to mug me, but it was in the hands of the newcomer, who was standing a good 15-20 feet behind him. Second thing, was the pretty recognizable outfit of one of the most well known vigilantes out there. A leather corset covering the torso of a woman, with a pair of bronze greaves, a bronze gauntlet on her left arm, and crimson red gloves on both of her hands. A metal circlet also braced her upper left arm, and she wore a belt that went around her waist, three cloths coming down behind her rear and reaching the back of her knees. Throw on a pair of crimson red leggings, and a cloak that covered not only her head, shoulders, and upper chest, but it also had two strips of cloth coming down behind her shoulders. Almost immediately I could tell who it was, even without being able to see the face underneath the hood, and I'm more than glad to see this person standing there.
"Polaris," I whispered to myself.
Tonight has certainly been a calm night thus far. No one seemed to be in that much trouble, but I know for certain that it could easily change in a heartbeat. I've been helping to save the lives of this city for quite a while now, and that experience has told me to always be ready for something to happen out of nowhere.
Let me introduce myself first. My name is Pyrrha Nikos, but I go by a second name. Right now, I'm what people refer to as a vigilante with the name, Polaris. I'm one of the heroes who seeks to protect this city from the terrors of the White Fang. So far, it's been pretty straight forward, but nothing is that simple, and life has a way of screwing around with you after a while.
You might be asking yourself how I became one of the heroes that are seeking to do what's right. Well, part of it was that I was in the right place at the right time. See, I'm a part of an organization that works with people all over the world, seeking to bring peace to the Kingdoms and the cities within them. I personally have only been around for about a year and a half, but I've definitely shown that I'm capable of fighting for what is right.
The person who leads us, well, let's just say he immediately gave me a purpose once I found out about the powers that I have. Powers that I discovered during desperate times. He gave me a family, people I could count on, and helped me develop those powers that I apparently held inside of me for a long time. Now, I seek to bring peace to the city of Veldin, and despite the opposition from the local law enforcement, I know that my work is making a difference.
Most of the time, we don't end up going out alone, and actually I'm jumping from rooftop to rooftop with one of my friends. He's one of the people who I defend the city with, one of the first friends I made when I went to become one of the guardians hidden deep in the night. My friend Ren, otherwise known as Lotus to the people, was out with me right now as we were searching throughout the city in the hopes that we could help someone out. He was a normally quiet character, unlike his overly loud and rambunctious girlfriend, Nora. She works as a mercenary, for a group that just so happens to have the same ideologies and long term goals that we do.
Of course, as I was patrolling through the city, I just so happened to hear the sounds of someone in trouble. I stopped moving immediately, and motioned for Lotus to wait up for a moment while I investigated. In the alleyway below me, I noticed a woman getting mugged with a gun to her head. Without hesitation, I jumped off of the roof and landed behind the guy, activating my powers as soon as I hit the ground. With no resistance at all, I had the gun pulled towards me, and it was now resting comfortably in my hand.
So, these powers of mine, I should do a bit of an explanation on them. Most people wouldn't be able to pull a .44 caliber revolver out of someone's hand using only their mind. The thing is, I have the ability to control the magnetic current of an object, and manipulate it to my will. It works on just about anything metal, and I can either pull it towards me, or push it away from me at will. A simple handgun being pulled from someone who doesn't suspect a thing is child's play compared to some of the more daring stunts I've pulled in my somewhat short time.
With the gun out of his hand, the mugger nearly crapped his shorts in fear. Normally, I would knock the guy unconscious and leave him to the police, but I was feeling generous, and could tell that the guy was afraid now that he was disarmed. I could understand why he did this, even if it was wrong. Times are desperate after all, and many people feel like they have to turn to these drastic steps in order to just get by. I could tell in this guy's eyes that he was in this situation.
With a swift motion, I tossed the gun up to Lotus above me, and walked up to the guy. While I was going to show him mercy, I still needed to remind him that doing these things isn't the greatest idea out there. He needed to know that he was getting a second chance, and that he shouldn't waste it.
"Leave," I said to him firmly. "Leave and don't pull another stunt like this again. You're getting a second chance, now don't waste it." Without a second thought, the guy took off down the street, and now my attention turned towards the woman who was almost mugged.
I don't know why I thought about this, but something about this woman screamed to me that she was going to have a major impact on my life. Her short, dark brown hair was tipped red, and she had these gorgeous silver eyes that most people could get lost in for a long time. Deciding to put these feelings aside for the time being, I needed to make sure that she was alright.
"You alright, ma'am?" I asked her.
"Mhm," She replied. "I can't believe you're really here! The actual Polaris, and I'm guessing that's the Lotus above us on the rooftop right now!"
I couldn't help but chuckle a little bit at the pure jubilation that this girl was exhuming. Even with the voice modulators we all wore to disguise us, it was clear to tell I was laughing. "You certainly seem to know about us," I commented.
"Well, it isn't every day that the heroes come in and save your day," The girl replied. "You guys are all incredible, every single one of you. There are days where I wish that I could be just like you."
This girl definitely seemed to be incredibly charmed by our order and the work we do for the world. It was such a wonderful thing to see such kindness and light in the world, no matter how dark it seemed at times. "Well, who knows, you may be able to help change the world one of these days, even without super powers." It was completely true, too. You'd be surprised what you could do, even without the powers that most people wish they had.
Smiling in response, the girl seemed to be bursting at the seams with joy over the praise that I was giving her. That joy turned into fear as she seemed to recall something, but I didn't know what was going through this girls head.
"Oh man, I'm going to be in so much trouble," She said, panicking.
"Wait, what do you mean?" I asked the girl, hoping to help her in some way.
"Curfew starts soon, and I remembered why I got into this situation in the first place!" She started to shout. "My home's all the way on the other side of town, and I'll never get back in time at this rate. Oh god, I'm going to get into trouble, I just know it. The military is going to find me out after curfew and they won't care that I was called in to cover someone else's shift, and-"
I decided that I was going to do something for this girl and help her get home. "Well then, I think I can help you some more, how about that?"
"Really? You'd do that for me?" The girl asked in response. When I nodded, she got super excited and seemed to be jumping around in joy. I already knew this was going to be fun, I could just tell from the singular moment that we had shared together.
"Alright, hope you don't mind a piggyback ride," I said to her and turned around to give her a chance to climb on. Once I knew that she was securely in place, I leapt up towards the ceiling, using my power to give myself an extra boost. Having the power of magnetism was great when part of your armor was made of metal, it made jumping across the city much easier.
Once we reached the rooftop, I could tell the girl was both excited and scared at the same time. I walked over to Lotus and, without saying anything, he almost knew what was going on. "So, where are we bringing her to?"
"Oh my god, I can't believe I actually get to meet you guys," The girl said before any other words could be spoken. "This is so exciting, you guys are super cool and incredible...and I'm probably rambling like an idiot right now so I'm just gonna shut up right now."
"It's fine," Lotus said to the girl on my back. "I can understand why you would be excited to meet us. Now, why don't you tell us where you live so that we can help you get home on time?"
"I live out on Crescent Road, on the west side of the city," The girl explained.
"Well then, I hope you're ready for a ride," I mentioned as I started to back up towards the back ledge of the building, preparing to get a running start. "This is where the fun begins." Once I had reached the edge, I looked back and waited to see a nod in response, noticing the excitement in her silver eyes once more. Once I saw that she was ready, I started to run towards the other edge of the building and took the first leap onward.
AN: Oh boy, this has been a lot of planning and now it's starting to come together! I present to you, the first chapter in what I refer to as my own personal Vigilante AU! If you couldn't tell by the title of the story, this is just the first story in multiple parts that will be taking place, and I can't wait to get to some of the points that I want to hit later on in the story.
Shoutout to MartunaMajor for editing this for me and making sure it is up to snuff.
Also, shout out to BurningPeace as well. It was after reading the most recent chapter of Fang's Embrace (which you guys should also be reading since it's a fucking amazing story) that I got this idea in the first place. So fuck you Peace, you gave me a new idea! In all seriousness though, this idea has been great and I really do gotta thank him for what he wrote, which inspired me to write this out.
Anyway, thanks for reading this first chapter. Can't promise when the next update will be, but I can promise that it's going to be good! Please let me know what you think of this because this is my newest idea and I'm absolutely in love with it.