Child of Nothing Ch. 2: Isolation
So a faster update then what will come, but because I did a prologue by all definitions I'm going to go ahead and give you a little bit more to sink your teeth into. So many plot questions that I can't address. But someone did bring up Ms. Monica Rogue, who will make her story debut this chapter probably. Also, my choice of Drake over Derek. How peculiar. Anyways, not too much of a surprise since this is a sequel, but thank you all for getting me over 10 follows and 10 favorites. So let us begin and explore a little bit further into the mind of Mr. Flame and company.
The empty halls of Beacon were dead silent. This was a rare instance where no students populated the halls, and it wasn't uncommon anymore. Since Derek's absence, most of the teams were being funneled out of the school to look for him. LOOS, RWBY, JNPR, even the remainder of DRGN. But when the days were over and the hunt had failed, the silent halls were filled with chaos instantly. The anger that followed all of Derek's friends when they came home empty handed was immense. Thus, the arrival of teams DRGN, RWBY, and JNPR wasn't something that was welcomed by the silence.
The sound of angry talking soon became audible, and then it all went to hell.
"How have we not found him?" Monica's voice said, rising above the rest.
"I think we need to take this in stride," Pyrrha offered, taking on the roll {as probably one of the least angry people} of calming down her friends.
"We've been taking this in stride for two months, since the first month he still used his leave. So far, the stride hasn't changed. Why don't we flush him out of the forest?"
"Because he's still our friend," Gwen said, trying to apply logic to a situation where there seemed to be no logic. "And we'd have to flush him out with something like gas. Plus a cornered animal will fight."
"He's never cornered," Yang snorted. "He still has those wings, preventing a lot of common tactics. Even LOOS has come up empty with Olivia's wings. He's got a genetic advantage over all of us." Monica angrily walked over to Yang, her eyes blazing.
"What are you implying?" She asked slowly.
"That maybe we leave him alone. Let him finish whatever it is that he needs too."
"Whatever he's doing," Blake started, her eyes trained to her reflection in her sword. "It's not something that he wanted any of us to know about. Which means that no matter the outcome, he's probably going to get hurt." Blake quickly sheathed her sword, and faced her partner. "That means that it's our job to find him before he gets hurt." Yang just sighed, realizing that her argument had just been thrown away by her partner. Luckily for most of them, they reached the crossroads for their dorms. They quickly broke off without a word, and entered into their dorms.
Emerald Forest: Cave
Derek extinguished the flames, and flexed out his claw. He quickly walked over to the cave wall, and scratched in a single line, adding in another number to his long wall. He quickly moved back over to the empty fireplace, and just sighed. This had gone on for far longer then it needed too. He was forced to hide until something bigger came up. He couldn't even understand Ozpin's obsession with getting him back.
I'm taking part of my leave. Something that I didn't use all of last year.
This is rather odd. But your grades are compatible with taking a leave for one month. May I ask what it is for?
Business. Business that I will not leave unfinished. I don't care if it takes one month, but I have too end this.
At that, he had left. No more questions asked. Unfortunately, that one month wasn't enough. No one found him for another half month, but then someone must have remembered that he spent so much time in the Emerald Forest. Whoever that person was was not going to meet a happy greeting from Derek. He checked outside again, and saw how dark it was. Even if they're out there, no one will be effective enough to outpace me. He quickly flipped around his sword, and grabbed his spear.
He sheathed both weapons, and pushed aside his cover. He quickly made sure that the place was still only just visible, and then pushed aside his cloak to reveal his wings. He had actually lost his clothing {since it was unable to last the journey he had made} so all that Derek had left was his armor and an old cloak he had found somewhere in his journey. He had been extra careful not to burn it since it was the only thing concealing his appearance from the general public.
He flew up into the air, being careful to stay only just above the trees. If he needed too, he could just plunge straight down and lose anything chasing him in the general forestation. He sailed to the edge, which rested just outside of Beacon, and sighed. This was the hard part. It had been several weeks since he had last attempted to sneak by. Raising his sword in a defensive stance, and is spear resting at his side, Derek skirted around the shadows of Beacon. His cloak, luckily, was different shades of black and brown, so he blended right in.
Moving along silently, he peered up at the windows of the dorms. If he were to return, even to say hi, the odds that he'd be able to leave weren't good. So he was forced away from his friends, people who had become the closest thing to family for him. But even the promise he made to a dying Summer Rose didn't out way the promise he had made to himself all those years ago.
But, maybe there was another way. He made it around to the other side of Beacon, and took off in a sprint into town. Only one person would be able to get him connected with those that he needed, and it was time to pay him a visit. He was going back to the Rat.
Beacon Academy: Team RWBY's Dorm
Weiss wiped off the last of the grime on Myrtenaster, and put the sword away. She quickly took a look around the room, and saw the sad looks that rested on Ruby, Blake, and Yang's faces. Weiss, despite not exactly being on even terms with him, missed Derek as well. In a similar way to when Blake was gone, his quiet presence was something incredibly noticeable when it was gone. From a friendship standpoint, his willingness to do anything was missed. From a tactical standpoint, the knowledge that they no longer had the power was uncomforting.
Ruby, who had lost her mother all those years ago, wasn't handling Derek's absence well. He had made that promise to her to start the year. The promise that he was going to be the one to protect her, in honor of her mother. Yang tried comforting her, but it was clear that the blonde brawler was also hurting. Blake and Weiss seemed the most put together, but Blake could seem put together through anything. What could have drawn Derek away?
The Rat's Nest
Derek wrapped the cloak tighter, and looked at the front of the bar. He sighed, and stepped forward. The street lights were the only thing illuminating him, but it might have been enough. He walked up to the front, and took one look at the guard. He simply nodded, and moved aside. He swiftly entered the bar, and spotted the Rat.
"Ah, Mr. Flame," the Rat said, his thick Italian accent shining through his words. "You've returned." Derek sat down directly across from the Rat, and just placed his hands on the table. "You must have some kind of a big reason for coming to me." Derek remained wordless, waiting for his cue to speak. In his time doing minor business with the Rat, in person visits were going to be dictated by when the Rat cued Derek to speak.
"You know," the Rat continued. "I've had a couple of visits about you. Ozpin, that female team, your team, all of them came in offering a payday for finding you. You're one of the few people that have ever eluded my careful watch. So now that you're here, I'm one message away from reigning down Beacon on you." Derek remained silent, already knowing the Rat's next answer. "Even though I'm positive your pay won't be as much, I like a challenge. Plus I'm curious about what brought you out here." Derek pulled out his scroll, and slid it over to the Rat. "Still have your scroll, yet you elude me. I'm impressed." The Rat took a look at him, and his face started to fall.
"Why do you want to meet them?" The Rat asked, his voice lowering.
"Because they know something about my parents," Derek said easily. "That something is something I need to know." Derek dumped a bag onto the table, which prompted the Rat too look inside of it.
"How do you have all of this dust?" He asked breathlessly.
"I haven't ever used any," Derek explained. "Now, is this payday enough or do I have to do more convincing?"
"Your funeral." The Rat began digging, and Derek stood up. He snatched his scroll away, and tossed down a single strip of paper.
"New number," he explained. "I had to adjust to avoid Beacon." The Rat nodded, and leaned back in his chair.
"I'll contact you when I have something. Be warned, you might want to keep a low profile for the next week or so. They might take a bit to find." Derek nodded, and exited the bar. There was still one more thing he had to do.
Beacon Academy: Near Dorms
Derek looked up at the dorms, and checked for the lights that he wanted. Upon seeing them, and kneeled down on the ground. He quickly extended a claw, and covered it in flames. He wrote something down on the ground, and stepped away from the words. He looked up, and saw no movement. Dammit. You guys really aren't too observant. Oh well, it's time to do something that maybe they could notice.
Team DRGN's Dorm
Monica was looking out the window, as she always was. There was a piece of her that still hoped that Derek would return, despite the fact that the odds that might happen were very slim. She let out a sigh, and looked back at her team. Maybe it was time to call it quits for the night. Before she could stand up, something bright went sailing into the air. Monica's eyes took a moment to adjust, but she identified it as a dragon crafted from flames. Her eyes trailed down to where it had gone up, and her heart sailed.
"Derek," she muttered. She ran outside, Gwen and Monica trailing her without question.
All of DRGN made it to where Derek had been, and RWBY, JNPR, and several other teams followed along shortly. All of them looked around, but only caught sight of a dark figure flying off in the distance. Monica was about to angrily slam her spear in the ground, but she caught sight of something in the ground. In claw marks and flames, a clear message was stated.
This is something about my past. Back away from this, or I will have to fight. I do not wish to injure any of you, but I'm willing to do what's necessary to get what I want.
-Drake
Perhaps the clearest part was the ending. Maybe this explained why they had been unable to find him. They had been hunting Derek, the friend that had a mean streak but was always reliable. Instead, they should have been hunting Drake.
The cold blooded monster that left nothing to chance when it was hunting something.
End: Questions, comments, follows, favorites, and feedback is appreciated.