A/N: I hate SAT Prep. I hate Summer homework. I hate additional textbooks given to me by my parents. I hate not having my computers for a month because of bad grades. My apologies for the small rant, but various projects and school related activities have kept me from writing at any length, as have parents.
Now that that's out of the way, I must apologize for the extremely long delay, as it's already been quite a while since I last uploaded something. I hope that you all enjoy this chapter, have a good read.
Normal Text: Normal
Italic Text: Thoughts
Bold Text: Sounds
Chapter Two
Ruby
The stars twinkled, high above the gazes of three soldiers. Each of them, unique and powerful, each one playing a different part in the story to come.
The first, a woman garbed in a pure white cloak.
The second, a blond haired man, his features set in confidence.
The third, an orange masked warrior, with a mischievous demeanor about him.
These three, so strong, yet so weak, bound by loyalty and values, until all was stripped away and the cold truth lay bare.
"...The sky looks beautiful today, does it not?" The woman in white spoke, a spectrum of happiness entwined within her voice.
"I like to think of it as spectacularly super!" The orange masked man answered back cheerfully.
"Tobi, what's super about the stars? They hardly affect us in any event." The blond haired man responded.
Tobi's stance looked shocked for a moment, before exclaiming, "Whhaaattt? But Deidara-Onii, Stars are so pretty though! And they make you feel all fuzzy and warm and-"
Any further conversation was cut off as the now identified Deidara bonked Tobi on the head, driving him a foot into the ground.
The woman garbed in white laughed, her melodious laughter akin to the tinkling of wind bells, beautiful and clear. These antics were common enough, so much that they had become used to such events occurring.
Pulling himself out of the ground by his arms, Tobi groaned, "Oh, now you're laughing too Summer? Why does everyone bully me?" Tobi finally popped himself out of the ground, flipping in the air before gracefully landing into a sitting position.
The woman in white, now known as Summer, gradually ceased her laughter, before playfully responding with a wink, "But you're so easy to tease Tobi-Kun~"
Tobi brightened up considerably, before laughing a bit.
The three return to their star gazing, before Deidara turned somber for a moment, murmuring softly, "Tomorrow's the day, huh? When all of this ends..."
The atmosphere switched to contemplative in a moment, their attitudes morphing to somber and regretful.
Summer in particular was quite saddened by the reminder, but steeled her resolve, and said, "We can't continue this life. With such vile techniques, it's only a matter of time before we succumb just like the rest of ANBU and the Akatsuki..."
Tobi's mask even looked sad, his frown visible even behind his mask, "But escape we must, for to fall to evil is a fate worse than death."
Deidara was indignant for a moment and jolting up, he threw a brown dust ball at a nearby tree. Upon contact with the bark, the ball exploded with immense power, similar to the might of an artillery shell. Spouts of earth material erupted from the explosive as well, cutting through additional forest nearby. He was about to launch another before Summer placed her hand on his and said, "Honey, calm down."
Deidara calmed himself, relaxing at his wife's touch, before sitting with the other two.
"It's just... So hard to believe. Who knew that Black Dust really existed, and that the others used it so much..."
The three became slightly more depressed, at the mention of the commonly forbidden substance.
Black Dust. Hidden away from the public's eyes, this volatile compound of energy was originally founded in the forgotten histories of Remnant. The only known of information of such times was that a war of horrible proportions was fought, and that Dust became an internationally used resource. And it was in that time that Black Dust was discovered, a weapon compound more powerful and more efficient than nearly all other forms of Dust, excluding the revered White Dust, of which no information remains. Black Dust however comes at a price. A human's humanity is slowly stripped away with continued usage of the terrible substance, their morals overridden to be replaced by the evils of human nature. In short, to use Black Dust is to become a monster.
And the government of the world, GRIMM, an almogoration of various nations joined into one empire, used Black Dust on their special forces en masse, the very special forces that the three were members of.
ANBU, a black operations directive, created in the early years of GRIMM's creation, were widely regarded as the de facto special forces unit of GRIMM, whereas no others had been created in the absence of competition from the other branches of the military.
As the three continued to brood quietly, Deidara suddenly stood, muttering as he walked off, "Get some rest you two, we leave at dusk."
Summer and Tobi turned to one another, sighing as they stood as well, stretching their sore limbs before walking in the same direction of Deidara, back towards the Officer barracks.
The following morning, the trio awoke early, preparing their various supplies for their defection from the Akatsuki, and by extension GRIMM and ANBU.
As their accounts were closed discreetly, supplies were placed into safe houses around the world, and various other actions occurred to ensure secrecy in their defection, they continued their lives casually, greeting their co workers, who had already begun to show signs of corruption.
Comrades who had once been friendly were seen to be shaking down new recruits, the staff were lashing out at previous friends worked up over trivial matters, one of the other officers even tried to grope Summer, which was rectified by a broken arm.
Tobi, who was walking down to his assignment terminal, watched these various acts of misconduct with sadness in his eyes, and guilt at his inability to prevent such atrocities.
"If only I weren't such a coward..." He thought solemnly, regret building up in his mind at the state of evil that his coworkers had began their descent into.
Shaking his thoughts away, he put on his previous cheerful face, even though no one could see his face behind his mask.
Continuing on his daily tasks, he proceeded to clear his schedule of additional assignments, before leaving a bug in the terminal, to track what was transferred through. Hopefully, this would enable him to continue monitoring restricted information being sent to ANBU headquarters.
His preparations complete, Tobi went to his status window, and his finger hovered over the current status option.
"Nothing ventured..." He murmured, carefully considering possibly the most important option of his life.
His mind was filled with the images of Deidara and Summer, laughing happily on their wedding night. Of their child, smiling as she saw Tobi for the first time. Of the last time they had all been stuck in the garage of the General's quarters, involved in the annual prank war orchestrated by himself.
He realized that he wanted them to smile, to laugh, to enjoy life for as long as they could.
His finger switched the status on the window to Vacation, before he headed out of the building to find their escape vehicle.
"Nothing gained..."
Two figures were seen sprinting through the forest of Everlasting Solitude, located near ANBU Headquarters. Unperturbed as they were by the sprint showed their fortitude of strength, the duo made their way with various supplies and a bundle attached to the chest of the woman.
Deidara and Summer, the two figures continued to make their way through the forest's winding tree lines, as they attempted to reach the extraction point predetermined by Tobi, where he would get them out of ANBU territory with post haste. Unfortunately, just because they had set their status to vacation prevented them from truly leaving ANBU grounds, as such, they were forced to actually escape by secrecy.
Pausing to take a quick breather, both of them worried of opposition, Deidara took this chance to glance around while Summer gazed upon the bundle connected to her chest.
"How is she doing?" Deidara inquired while keeping his hands near their Dust supplies, ready to be used at a moment's notice for any type of situation.
The bundle's flap falls away to reveal a young child, about 4-5. A few locks of black hair, tinged with a bit of red at their ends, can be seen on the child's head as she slept soundly.
"Ruby's fine for now. But we need to keep moving." Summer spoke, determined to keep moving and reach their extraction point.
The two soldiers stood once again, and continued their march towards a secluded clearing where their escape vehicle was waiting.
Bursting into the clearing, they looked up to hear the blades of a helicopter slicing through the air. Looking up, the two could see Tobi and an unknown pilot descending towards them.
"Oh thank Shadow... They're already her-"
A rustle from the nearby trees resounded throughout the clearing, as Summer and Deidara draw their respective weapons. Summer drew a scythe created entirely in pure white, with only a simple curved blade, no intricate mechanisms or additional weapons. To many, Summer's weapon of choice seemed rather archaic in this age of firearms and explosives, but not many had managed to survive to tell the tale of her expertise with such a weapon.
Deidara's hands went for his Dust supplies, holding them ready, just as a platoon of ANBU troops burst onto the scene, guns up and blades ready. As the veritable wave of soldiers came from various positions, forming into a circle, surrounding the pair as they moved to cover each other's back.
An officer stepped forward, yelling out, "Second Lieutenant Summer and Captain Deidara Rose, the two of you, along with Major Tobi, are sentenced to death for various crimes against GRIMM, including treason. Come quietly, and there shall be no harm done."
Indignant, Deidara responded, "What, so you can kill us easier? Or subject us to Black Dust? I'd rather die, than become scum like you!"
Summer whispers, "We have to get Ruby out of here... But we can't put her anywhere being being blown to bits first..."
From their com devices, a deep voice resounds, [Toss her up to me. I can use my space time technique to ensure her survival on the trip up.]
Looking shocked at such a thought, Summer asked, "Are you sure Tobi?"
[Positive.]
As the two prepare for their stand, Summer whispers, "I love you Deidara."
Deidara whispers, "I love you too."
The officer, indignant at being ignored, shrieks, "What's your goddamn decision- GUAH!"
The bundle was thrown high into the air, heading directly for the helicopter, when suddenly the bundle phased through the bottom of the helicopter's hull, and was caught by Tobi.
4 simultaneous explosions ripped through the nearby earth at the same time, previous minefields having been placed as a contingency in the event of ambushes.
To the North, Fire Dust fields erupted in unison, creating an inferno of hellfire to consume the soldiers caught within its hungry blaze.
To the East, Electricity Dust Fields electrocuted any unfortunate soul caught within it's shocking field.
To the South, Ice Dust fields tore through soldiers exposed to its freezing temperatures and Ice Projectiles.
To the West, Earth itself seemed to erupt into sentient golems, tearing apart and running over helpless troops unable to escape their clutches.
The screams of the wounded and dying reverberated through the air, as through the din of chaos, Deidara and Summer held fast, awaiting their transport to reach the ground.
As the first stragglers reached their position, disoriented and unable to register their surroundings, each was cut down by Summer's scythe.
Numerous explosions ripped through the forest, as additional platoons numbering to a battalion's strength marched themselves into the other minefields. Bursts of red, blue, yellow and brown could be seen as the minefields activated.
A shadow fell over the earth as the two witnessed a squad of troops, unperturbed by the chaos around them, dropping down on top of them. The two rolled out of the way as the squad made landfall, and their eerily silent helmets gazed upon them with what seemed to be an inhuman gaze.
Summer cursed as she twirled her scythe over her head, "Damn, we've got Augs!"
Deidara yelled as his hands absorbed 20 grams of Lightning Dust, "I got them!"
With a thrust equaling the speed of a bullet, the Lightning Dust short circuited the squad in the blink of an eye with tremendous power, as a fog cloud overtook them from the resulting explosion.
"I can't see anything..." Summer muttered, uneasy at the lack of vision. She closed her eyes, preferring to rely on her hearing as a substitute for her ocular senses.
Deidara closed his eyes as well, before replying, "They can't see us either, as not even enhanced humans can see through such thick fog. We just need to hold out until- GUH!"
A thud resounded through the clearing, as Deidara's figure disappeared suddenly. Flashes of light pierced the thick fog, as various screams of rage and despair ripped through the area.
"Deidara! Deidara! Where-" Summer kept yelling, attempting to find her husband, before instinct made her open her eyes. What she saw was soul shocking.
Deidara, with numerous gashes on his body, his Akatsuki coat in tatters, was being carried away by a squad of ACSs. Their emotionless postures betrayed no sense of human sense, as they methodically marched away with the body of her husband as another platoon charged her.
As the Helicopter landed at that very moment, Tobi called, "Summer, we have to go!"
Summer in her rage, was cutting down foes left to right in a frenzy of berserker's rage, her slashes powerful and cleaving to the point of complete dismemberment.
"But Deidara-"
"Deidara wouldn't want you to die trying to save him! We have to go!"
As Summer debated whether or not to go, she heard a small squeak from the helicopter as she eliminated the surrounding enemy platoon. She saw Ruby, awake, cooing at her mother, even bloodstained and wounded as she was.
"I have to survive. If I die, then Deidara's sacrifice will have been for nothing... And I have to live, for Ruby's sake..." Summer thought, before she made her decision.
She climbed aboard the landed helicopter, as Tobi pulled her on with a hand, "Thank god, I thought I'd have to go down and beat some sense into you." He began to jam the door shut quick as possible.
Summer whispered, "Yeah... How's-"
She never finished her sentence, as her body suddenly was overtaken by an immense cold, spreading from her chest, to the rest of her body. Warm liquid and black particles poured through her shirt, yet none of it touched the ground, as the tendrils began to shift and form in the air, almost of their own volition, before creeping towards Ruby who was looking outside the open side door. Tobi jerked his glance outside, and saw a man, with a grin on his face, and red eyes tinged with black symbols, holding a sniper rifle.
"That's an infection rifle!" Tobi thought as he managed to slam the door closed completely as a second shot rang out, hitting the hull but failing to pierce the military grade armor.
As the pilot maneuvered the helicopter away from the clearing, Ruby fell unconscious as the last of the blood from Summer's body entered Ruby's body, having been absorbed. Tobi withdrew an anti dust pulse grenade from his coat, activating it quickly to rid the air of the Black Dust. The helicopter briefly went offline before it's Anti Dust systems reactivated, recovering from the Dust purge.
As Summer's life faded away, she whispered to Tobi, "Please... Look after her. Give her these when she's ready..."
Summer drew out her old ANBU mask, and a steel necklace, with a pure red Ruby at it's center.
Tobi, having taken his mask off, revealing a face of a spiral blue eye, and a black tinged red eye, grasps Summer's hand, and speaks, "I swear to take care of Ruby, till the end of my days, and even from the afterlife. Do not worry dear sister, for she will be safe."
As her facial expression is overcome by a sense of peace, she whispers, "Goodbye... Brother..."
Summer's hand falls limp, as a red light fills the cabin.
Tobi looks outside at a moving aerial object, and says, "What the bloody hell is that?" In response, the pilot yells, "We've got an incoming missile! Evasive maneuvers!" The helicopter swerves to the side, even as a second missile is launched. "Brace for impact!" The missile rams into the tail rotor, as the explosive material rips apart the rear end of the helicopter.
Tobi yells out, "Don't use the radio!"
The pilot obeys when by instinct, he had been about to report their location to the nearest base, as he attempts to safely land the helicopter.
As the ground swiftly comes to meet them, Tobi yells out, "Hold on!"
"Ruby. Wake up."
Consciousness slowly reared its ugly head along with a pounding headache. A figure blurred into view as it waved a hand back and forth. Her eyes began to follow the hand, "Yes, follow my hand, just like that." A man's voice washed over her. She could make out a few interesting details, like the hetero chromatic red and blue eyes on his face. The man began to speak once again, his words distorted yet clear enough for comprehension,
"Your vitals are reading poorly, and your aura is trying to repair your body. I'm going to need to purge your body with a healing aura. But it's going to hurt, a lot, because your DNA was affected by the Black Dust, and I need to reorganize it. I'm sorry, but you need to be awake for this, otherwise your body won't be able to readjust properly. Any questions?"
As I register the distorted words, he places a flask of water to my lips, and I drink greedily from it, soothing my parched throat. Letting go, I ask, "Who... Are you?"
The blurry figure jolts a bit in surprise before righting himself. "Of course. You wouldn't know who I am like this."
The figure, now identified as someone she apparently knew, removed an orange object from his coat, and placed it where his face was. "Hey-a kiddo! It's Uncle Tobi!"
Ruby's eyes suddenly focus on the ever familiar orange spiral mask that her beloved uncle never took off. "U-uncle Tobi? Where's mommy and daddy, and who was that weird man talking earlier?" Ruby's childish persona returned, having been comforted by her uncle's appearance, questions tumbling out full pace.
Tobi's face froze in fear for a second, but recovered quickly. Ruby's face fell dramatically, and looked up at her uncle. Tobi thought fast, and said softly, "Don't worry Ruby, they're-"
"Dead, aren't they?"
Tobi fell silent, "So you know. How you holding up?"
A joyful bout of laughter rang out, clear as a tinkling bell and full of madness, "As well as you think. The grief induced insanity is setting in. Now, before it consumes my mind, perform the operation."
As Tobi's left hand put a strawberry flavored anti tongue biting object in her mouth, in order to give her something to focus on, his right hand glowed green, a blinding pain registered in Ruby's mind.
She couldn't feel anything else, only pain throughout her entire body could be felt.
All consuming, all knowing, the pain spread throughout her entire body until she couldn't even register her other senses. Her thoughts were unable to move correctly, mixed in a jumble of different pain registering processes.
One thought managed to worm itself to the front of her mind, "I'm going to die..." Then, the strawberry flavor invaded her taste buds, giving her something to focus upon, giving her an anchor to reality.
Seconds, minutes, hours, time had no meaning in the mixture of pure pain and strawberry flavor, so much so that she couldn't even tell how much time had passed, even as a mere 3 minutes went by in reality.
Once done, darkness claimed her once again, as she felt her uncle setting her on his back before beginning to march...
Accessing Codex files...
Level One access granted.
Summer Rose: A former Second Lieutenant of ANBU Special Operations division, she was killed while attempting to escape GRIMM upon learning of Black Dust with her husband, Deidara. Current status: KIA.
Deidara Rose: A former Captain of ANBU Special Operations division, he was killed while attempting to escape GRIMM upon learning of Black Dust with his wife, Summer.
Current status: KIA.
Tobi: A former Major of ANBU Special Operations division, he escaped with Summer and Deidara, yet was the only survivor of the trio while attempting to escape GRIMM upon learning of Black Dust.
Current status: MIA.
Ruby Rose: Child of Summer and Deidara, she was taken by Tobi when they had escaped the helicopter crash immediately after Summer's death.
Current status: MIA.
Augs: Short for Augmented organisms, whether they be human or some other type of species. Mainly augmented by Bio mechanical modifications to strength, perceptiveness, intelligence, among several other traits, some are instead further augmented by biological mutation, removing nearly all traces of their former selves in exchange for monstrous powers.
ACSs: Short for [Redacted]. Information classified under clearance level regulations.
Abilities are classified due to Level One Access. Please contact your administrator for higher clearance.