Disclaimer: 3.0 and it's respective artworks belong to Dishwasher1910

Chapter 2: Fall

Edelweiss briefing hall

Vale Airspace.

9:00 am, the Next day

All major SRED operatives rallied in the large briefing hall of the Edelweiss as the massive cruiser began to enter the airspace of the Kingdom of Vale. Ruby was sitting amongst the crowd of armored soldiers while Weiss took her place at the center podium. She took a sip of water before saying to all operatives present: "Thank you all for gathering so quickly this morning, operations will begin at oh-nine-fifty, and we have a lot to discuss before you can head out into the field."

After saying her piece, the large monitor behind her flickered on to reveal images that would make anyone's skin crawl. Images of doors smashed in, blood-soaked walls and floors mixed with a form of black-like slime amongst pieces of human remains. "These images were taken from separate sites of confirmed Grimm attacks. Evidence and appearance of the wounds point to the new Grimm type that eluded our branch in Vacuo."

"So that new type is responsible?" One operative asked.

"Yes, that is why the goal of our operations in Vale is to try and assess its power should it ever cross our paths. However, you are not to engage unless you have no other choice," Weiss explained. "I will take any questions you have currently, but you are to report to Operations Director Ashford for your assignment locations." She departed from the podium while adjusting her collar, catching Ruby's attention as the operatives went over to a nearby board where Ashford was. Ruby walked over to the exit doors, where she found Weiss leaning against the wall. She let out a small chuckle, said: "That little signal I give you feels kind of stupid."

"Hey, you only do it if you actually have something to say that is off the Official records," Ruby said in response.

"You'll be going to the forests south of the city. It is the closest to the proximity where the attacks have been reported," Weiss explained. "Yang will be the closest to your location."

"So I would have to rely on her in case something goes wrong?" Ruby asked.

"If that new Grimm shows, run, just get away from it before it can do anything to you. There's no telling what little tricks that he put into it." Weiss ordered.

"Of course, good luck trying to hunt him," Ruby said before heading towards the trams.

Weiss was left alone, thinking to herself how they had gotten to where they are now. At the end of the Salem crisis, Salem's inner circle had broken apart, and each member had taken different paths. Hazel Rainart, Salem's top tier enforcer, was captured a few days after the defeat of Salem after he attempted to kill the girls involved with Salem's defeat, and is now serving a life sentence in the Tartarus Correctional Facility in Atlas. Tyrian Callows, Salem's personal assassin, was slain during the final confrontation. Finally, Cinder Fall, Salem's top agent, and apprentice was left incapacitated and no longer deemed a threat. The special Grimm that Salem gave her to use in the theft of the Maiden's power reacted to Salem's death violently before dying itself. It's death heavily damaged Cinder, leaving her sickly and in an unresponsive, vegetative state. She now resides at the Caldera Medical Institute under quarantine, looked after by her students, Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai. The only member of Salem's inner circle that evaded capture was Dr. Arthur Watts, who issued an ultimatum of retaliation for Salem's death before disappearing. Weiss always held him at the top of the list for individuals connected to the sudden emergence of the new Grimm variant. If they were able to catch him, they would have the answers they need.

Airship 41

Call-sign: Dauntless 3-0

Vale Forests.

9:58 am

Ruby sat in the hold of the airship alongside Yang, whose Bumblebee sat parked near the rear doors. The two sisters sat next to one another, in which the blonde huntress sat next to her sister as the airship roared across the sky. Yang, wearing a long brown jacket with her normal attire, noticed the nice jacket that Ruby was wearing with her normal attire. She turned to her sister and said: "Your jacket's kind of cute, how did you get it?"

"Oh, it's just something that I normally use for special jobs. Weiss helped me design it." Ruby explained.

"Well, you added your own flair to it. Anyway, I hope you stay safe out there." Yang said as the airship suddenly stopped.

"You too, I'll make sure to get a hold of you if something goes wrong," Ruby said.

"Xiao Long, we are at your drop zone." The pilot said over the radio.

"Roger that, see you when this over, Ruby," Yang said as she walked over to her Bumblebee and hopped on, backing out as Ruby waved to her sister. The airship lifted back into the air as Yang put on her sunglasses and drove off. The airship landed at another location, dropping off Ruby so she could carry out her assignment. But, both parties were unaware of the hidden observer who watched Ruby's arrival through a hidden placed camera….

The observer's head was well outlined by the monitors, the darkness of the room providing him unhindered sight of the screen as he watched multiple video feeds. He had a particular focus on one person in particular...

"Ruby Rose, It has been a long time since we faced off. But, I'll let my pet deal with you in my place as I need very good combat data."

Drawing her Crescent Rose, Ruby walked around the forest for a while. She stumbled across a small group of Beowolves, which she easily dispatched.

"Well, that was too...easy," Ruby said as she heard a squishy sound coming up from behind her. Quickly spinning around she came face to face with a Grimm she never had seen before. The creature looked unlike any other kind of Grimm that she had encountered during her service in the SRED. It looked like a sentient mountain of mud that had two holes in place of any normal eyes, and a large, gaping maw that was wide as a car. The teeth in its mouth seemed to mirror the smile of a psychotic killer who was about to kill his mark. In a flash, Ruby quickly swung Crescent Rose at it in hopes it would be easy to kill. But the gap created by her scythe's blade sealed up quickly as the Grimm began to let out what appeared to be a minor laugh. What the hell, was all she thought to herself as she watched the Grimm begin to change shape. She swung at it again, using her speed to propel herself forward with incredible momentum. She managed to slice clean through horizontally on its side, though she felt a sharp pain on the side of her head...and she couldn't feel any signs of injury, just a soreness on the side of her scalp.

The beast laughed again and a large mass dropped from its right side at the spot where she landed her blow, landing on the ground in a quick *splash* before beginning to move. She set up for another attack, priming an elemental dust charge, but stopped when she saw the figure that the mud had begun to change into. Her eyes opened wide and rounded when she recognized who the figure was, from their slender figure, their hair design, and the long, curved blade that was connected to the pole that was clasped in its hands.

"It...just transformed...into me," was all that the huntress could get out of her mouth before being rushed by the muddy mimic in a similar speed to herself. Ruby kept dodging her copycat's Crescent Rose, while her copycat dodged hers. When Ruby managed to put an arm's length of space from the muddy clone who was almost her twin, it twisted its head like a wild owl with a maniacal grin across its face as the creature's mouth began to slowly move…

"M...o…r...e…..Y...o...u…..m...o...r...e" came out of its mouth in broken pieces. This sent horrific chills down Ruby's spine at almost the speed of her semblance. This Grimm was now speaking verbally to her, which was about enough of it that she could handle. She jumped back, throwing her coat in the path of her counterpart, in which the clone sliced it in half, and dashed away from the scene before the Grimm could catch her. As she ran for safety, she placed her hand to her ear so Weiss could be warned…

"Ruby, do you have any information on the new creature?" Weiss inquired over the comms.

"Weiss, this thing is too dangerous, we need to regroup and-" Ruby said before being rendered silent by the pain that shot up through her body.

GAWP...The large mountain of mud managed to hold her back mid flight by clamping its enormous jaws onto the huntress' legs, her aura broke almost instantly. Ruby's hair flew ahead of her while her upper body wanted to obey gravity and drop straight to the earth below. But, the weight and pain forced her afloat. The Grimm, which was standing completely still as a statue while Ruby evaded her clone's strikes, was now in her presence. In Ruby's mind, time itself had just stopped flowing around her. It was all concentrated onto this terrible moment, where Ruby stared in complete horror at the blood-stained, pearly whites of the Grimm as they pressed downward onto Ruby's legs. Sections of bloodied meat began to split while the sound of bones crunching echoed in their presence. Ruby knew that they were no longer than hers, and the pain that was once small had elevated. Words wanted to explode from her mouth, but they couldn't escape. All Ruby could do was watch the creature munch and devour her limbs as the floodgates of her tears opened wide. Large streams of her tears began to race down the sides of her face like a fast moving waterfall, as she let out a loud, painful scream:

"ARGHH...GHHHHRGH...ARGHH!"

The high volume of her scream that far off in the distance, Yang was in the middle of slaying her final Grimm opponent and she heard it, immediately recognizing it. "Ruby" was a worried word that came from her mouth, as Yang hopped aboard her Bumblebee and raced to her sister's location.

Meanwhile, Ruby screamed like bloody murder as she was about to be locked onto her scroll. But, at this moment, the young huntress was doing everything in her power to try and break free from her captivity. Every fiber of her being kicked into overdrive, as she continuously punched the large teeth holding her to the point her hands began to hurt. Her tears began to mix with blood that sprayed from the beast's large maw as the teeth began to shift as it ground the remains of Ruby's legs into a mushy red pulp before swallowing and proceeding to continue. With no other option, Ruby mustered what little strength she had left for one final Herculean effort; in which she pressed against the teeth with all her might and managed to separate herself from the beast's mouth, falling to the rocky ground below with a loud *THUD*

Ruby, who could run as fast as lightning and had carried out so many missions for the SRED, was at her limit. Her arms were covered in scratches from the rocks, and her physical pain that was reverberating throughout her entire body and left her on the verge of losing consciousness. In a final act, the huntress took one look towards her lower half. Her legs were reduced to her upper thighs, and blood seeped out from the open stumps and past dangling chunks of meat that the Grimm didn't eat. The massive amount of blood below her was devastatingly high, reminding her of the old cape that she wore during her time at beacon.

"RUBY! HANG ON, YANG IS COMING...*sniff*...JUST HANG IN THERE!" Weiss screamed over the comms.

Weiss…Ruby's thoughts flooded with images of her and the time that they spent together from their time at Beacon to joining the SRED. They were a notorious duo together, having good times and bad together. She was going to miss being with her, hearing her voice, and playing the occasional joke on Weiss for her height. But, all that she would miss the most out of her memories was seeing the passion and dedication that Weiss put to her position as the Colonel.

Yang, her fiery dragon of a sister. Ruby longed for the warmth of her sister's embrace in this bitter cold. She had only seen her sister after several years, and now she worried about who was going to keep Yang in check when she was gone? Who would look after their father? Who would cook, clean, and handle all the chore work? What about all of the friends that she was leaving behind?

Tears began to flood down her face once more, no longer about the pain she felt, but regret. Regret for leaving so much unfinished, and for leaving all of her friends and loved ones behind and so suddenly. With one final effort, she struggled to reach for her comms, but her strength quickly gave out as she could let out one final word:

"Weiss…" As she began to drift into unconsciousness, the large Grimm had begun to lower its massive mouth towards the vulnerable girl to finish its meal. But, as it opened, a large fireball came flying out of the trees as the roar of an engine was heard. The massive Grimm retreated back, in which Bumblebee was parked in between both it and the wounded Ruby, and its rider turned to see her sister lying on the ground in her own blood. In that moment, Yang shakingly clenched her fists as tears began to flow down her face.

She hopped off Bumblebee, her shaking growing more violent as her hair and eyes began to glow brighter and brighter with each passing second, trudging across the blood-stained ground as she marched forward towards the Grimm as her robotic arm shifted to its combat mode. In that singular moment, Yang began to speak as the Grimm moved closer to her, letting out a violent war cry...

"AAAAAAAGH!" Yang screamed at the top of her lungs, revealing her bright red eyes.

Chapter 3: Rage of the Dragon

Vale Forests

10:08 am

The large Grimm attempted to rush Yang, but the blonde-haired huntress continuously bombarded the creature with heavy attacks. It attempted to attack her with clones of Ruby, only for that move to further anger her. Seeing no other option, the Grimm suddenly retreated to the Huntress' surprise. She would have pursued if but she had to wait as her wounded sister placed a higher priority than her own new bloodlust. Yang turned her attention to Ruby, sprinting to her sister's side where she was horrified to see the loss of her legs.

The first thing that came to Yang's mind was to see if Ruby still had some semblance of consciousness, so she said through her emotion-ridden voice, "Ruby, are you alright? Can you hear me?" continuing for a minute before Ruby started to slightly move and weakly say to her frightened sister:

"Yang?"

"Oh gods, just hang on, I need to stop your wounds from bleeding." The blond-haired huntress said, moving to stop the bleeding. Yang immediately took her coat and proceeded to wrap it around the bleeding stumps of her legs, but knew she needed something to cut off blood flow. Looking around for anything that she could use, Yang spotted the halves of Ruby's destroyed coat and ran over, grabbing the two halves, and fashioning two tourniquets to cut off blood flow to the open wounds. Scooping her weakened and pale sister into her arms, The blonde huntress quickly mounted Bumblebee, in which she spoke to the holographic console; "Bumblebee, activate voice command."

"Voice command system activated, please set course…" sounded from Bumblebee. Yang, clearing her throat, immediately said, "Edelweiss, Hangar, max speed." Clutching Ruby tight, Bumblebee's engine roared as it sped away from the scene. Maneuvering around trees and rocks, while Yang fought off Grimm drawn to Ruby's blood. While Bumblebee sped to safety, Yang's communicator blared with the voice of one of the Edelweiss comms officers; "Yang Xiao Long, this is Edelweiss control, are you able to reach Agent Rose? We are having difficulty reaching her."

"Edelweiss, I have Ruby and I need a medical team for her when I get there," Yang explained as the massive ship came into view. Bumblebee shifted to flight mode and took off towards one of the ship's main hangars. Upon stopping, Yang immediately hopped off Bumblebee, still holding onto the injured Ruby. Rushing over to the door, she grew slightly frustrated at the door's slow open speed and even more concerned due to Ruby's deteriorating condition. When the door finally opened, she came face to face with a horrified Weiss and her officers, as well as a medical team.

"Please *sniff* you have to something...you have to save Ruby!" she exclaimed at the top of her lungs. One of the medical officers came over and took Ruby from Yang, resting the girl on the gurney that they brought with her before examining her. The senior officer of the medical team turned to his subordinate and inquired:

"What's her status?"

"She's lost a lot of blood, we need to get her to the operating theater immediately." The subordinate explained to her superior.

"Alright, get one of the trams to take us to the medical deck right away, no stops." The officer ordered as his subordinates tended to Ruby on the go.

The medical team rushed away with the injured Ruby, leaving Yang alone with Weiss and her subordinates while the former was still in a state of shock. Guilford, noticing the fact that both Weiss and Yang had been affected by this, decided to break the silence by asking the blonde huntress, "Yang, what happened out there?"

Yang, still shedding some tears over the incident, quickly wiped her face and cleared her throat "It was the new Grimm type. It took her legs."

Henley and Weiss let out a *gasp* while Guilford looked completely shell-shocked. Guilford wanted to see what information Yang had gained on it, but the moment they were in right now wasn't really appropriate to do so. Henley decided to speak up and said, "That should not have been possible, our intel clearly stated that the chances of the Grimm being there were low."

"This is the equivalent of a war, Henley. Intel can prove to be questionable when it needs to." Guilford responded in a rather stern tone. Henley wanted to argue, but she was interrupted by Weiss, who blocked Henley with her arm and spoke up with:

"The Intel did say that the new Grimm's chances of appearing were low, but the area Ruby had been investigating was within close proximity to the boundaries of the area where the new breed had been attacking."

Yang looked at her former teammate with shock, while Guilford let out a surprised, "What?" at what his superior had just said:

"I warned her to find you, Yang, if she ever ran into the Grimm and it tried to attack, I just had no-" was the Colonel could say while Yang walked up to her and violently punched the wall with a loud *SLAM!*, her robotic fist landing just inches away from Weiss' head. Weiss was trembling from the shock of the action, but mostly from Yang, whose eyes were bright red as she clenched her teeth.

"Xiao Long, what do you think you are doing?!" Guilford exclaimed as he tried to pull Yang back. Yang shrugged the man off, proclaiming to Weiss:

"Don't give me that crap that you didn't know this would happen, you placed my sister in danger, Weiss. All you can say about that is "I didn't know?" Weiss's knees finally gave out from under her and she began to fall to the floor, only to be caught by her collar by Yang, in which Henley and Guilford decided to try and pry the furious Yang off her. "If you want to stay in better condition, Colonel, then I would stay away from Ruby while I stay on this ship." was the final thought Yang said in her rage. She angrily stormed off with Guilford trailing her, in which a terrified Weiss fell to the floor. Tears began to trickle down the Colonel's face as her breathing became slightly rapid, in which Henley helped her to her feet.

Weiss clutched to Henley, showing that she was terrified of Yang during that moment. "Hey, you have to be strong right now. Even though Yang is upset, Ruby is still one of ours and you have a responsibility to uphold." was all that Henley could say as she worked to try and calm down her superior.

"Am I a good person?" Weiss inquired from her subordinate, surprising the latter. She dried her tears, continuing with, "I knew where Ruby was, I could've warned Yang about the danger and had her go along with Ruby as the backup, but I didn't. And now Ruby is…" was all Weiss could say before she was on the verge of breaking down again. Henley pulled Weiss close, in which she needed to say something, which came out in the form of:

"Listen, Colonel, war is hell, and there are hundreds of people who experience this same crisis as you. Now, get your head in the game, Ruby needs both you and Yang's help to overcome this if she pulls through. Yang's temper may be running hot right now, but she'll need time before you two are on the equal ground again." He finished with, "Now get your head straight and find a way to help Ruby in your own way, I'll head to the Medical deck to check on Miss Rose and bring Ashford up to speed. Maybe I'll even get the info on the new Grimm type from Xiao Long."

Weiss acknowledged her subordinate, then proceeded to the trams to the administrative deck. Henley decided to catch a tram to the medical deck in which she crossed paths with Ashford, who was already on board the tram. Upon noticing how stressed Henley was, the officer decided to ask, "First Officer Henley, is something the matter?"

"Lieutenant Commander Ashford, I was actually looking to talk to you," Henley said as the tram took off.