Chapter 2: The Deathwatch
Team RWBY went through the halls to grab lunch, still a little shaken up by the events of last night. Grimm that could camouflage themselves as humans? That was something that threw them for a complete loop, and the group that went after them didn't seem too stable either. One heavy gunner, one speed fighter, one nearly mechanical person and the other an adult biker.
"Yeah, the biker said 'You'll be hearing from us soon enough' and that was creepy as hell." Yang grumbled as they walked.
"The blonde one said we'd be hearing from their organization soon enough." Weiss reminded them, pointing out that they weren't done quite yet. No one wanted to know what they had planned, but they had no idea what they were going to do, and that was the scary part. Ruby remembered that the blonde also turned her weapon on them to preserve their secret, and the only reason they were still standing was they needed extra guns.
"Well, we'll have to be on our guard from now on." Blake pointed out, Gambol Shroud on her back. It was true for all of the team since all of them started carrying their weapons on them almost at all times. Sleep was a little rough since they were plagued by nightmares of the Grimm they ran into, both the full Grimm and Human Grimm forms. All of them did their best to clear their minds, but it was futile since the group from last night was currently sitting at the table with Team JNPR. The biker was having crazy conversation with Nora, while the speed fighter chatted with Jaune, the heavy gunner had a book in front of him and appeared to be talking to Pyrrha about it and the mechanical blonde sat across from Ren, silently eating.
Team RWBY was frozen in place, seeing the group of psychos sitting at their usual lunch table and eating with their friends. They were about to leave the room, but unfortunately the gunner spotted them and waved them over, which caused Team JNPR to look. Team RWBY slowly approached their lunch table, hands on their weapons and ready for a fight. The speed fighter with the clawed gauntlets waved his hand and gave a very calm response.
"Relax… we aren't here to fight. We're just here to talk. My name is Gray, by the way, Gray Trochilidae." Grey introduced. He then began to point at the biker, the blonde and then the gunner. Gray introduced. "That is Unahk, Ledi and Gevehr."
The corresponding people waved, Team RWBY waving uncomfortably.
"Grab some food. Come join us!" Unahk cheered as she continued eating. Team RWBY went to the line, and unfortunately had an unwelcome addition. Gevehr had joined them, clearly not full after his first tray of food. He stood next to Blake, who was unfortunately stuck between him and Yang.
"What are you doing here?" Blake practically hissed, pulling a bit of Weiss attitude into her tone.
"Getting seconds. The food here is simply amazing." Gevehr answered as he grabbed another sandwich and fries.
"No, I mean really, what are you doing here?" Blake repeated.
"Trying to solve this issue without your friends going 'missing'. The four of you discovered something that you should not have known about. Normally, protocol dictates you are removed. Me and Gray are doing our best to make sure that it doesn't happen." Gevehr responded in a quiet, barking manner. All of Team RWBY had a panicked look on their faces, their worst fears being confirmed. The group returned to find them, just so they could kill them. Gevehr saw their panicked looks and immediately comforted "Like I said, we're working on a way where we don't have to do that. You were instrumental in taking out that small nest. That has to count for something."
Gevehr patted Blake's shoulder and returned to the table with the team behind him, the members of his group finishing their food enthusiastically except for Ledi.
"So, why are you guys so happy to be eating here?" Nora questioned as she ate. Team RWBY sorta froze at the question, hoping that Team JNPR wouldn't be dragged into the same situation as them.
"They helped us on a mission. We are simply here to inform their Headmaster of their contribution to the Hunting community." Ledi replied flatly as she ate her food. Team RWBY sighed a bit, happy that JNPR wasn't getting involved.
"Also to grab a bite to eat. This food is fantastic!" Unahk cheered as she ate. "Why don't we get this nice of food?"
"I have a fun game to play. Raise your hand if you're a convicted murderer." Gray proclaimed, relatively loudly. The new group at the table proceeded to raise their hands plainly, like it was no big deal to show that. Everyone at the table looked at the group with a mix of surprised and horrified expressions, seeing that the people that had joined them were killers. Gray put his hand down and finished "And that is why we aren't allowed nice things."
Everyone was frozen in place, forks and spoons stopped mid raise as the new group continued eating as normal. They finished eating and Ledi decided to be the bad guy, pointing at Team RWBY before stating the orders.
"You four, follow us. We have a meeting between your Headmaster and our leader." Ledi stated plainly, sending chills down the team's spines. Team RWBY got up and said goodbye to their friends, hopefully not for the last time. The walk through the halls was uncomfortable, mainly because the group only really talked about the food in the mess hall.
"I think we should bring it up at the next quality of life meeting." Gevehr brought up. He wasn't carrying his massive cannon nor did he have his backpack, but the girls got a good look at him, seeing that he was very heavily built.
"We just went over this, we don't get nice things." Gray reminded. He wasn't carrying his gauntlets or his jacket, so they could see he was a toned individual.
"But still… I like food."
"We are all aware of your desire for better food." Ledi stated plainly. She didn't really change her appearance, still carrying her assault rifle on her back.
"Come on, we can at least try for something. Let Gunner enjoy something in life." Gray chuckled, patting Gevehr on the back. The group chuckled, leaving the rest of Team RWBY in the dark. Gevehr turned around and decided to ask a few questions.
"So… your friend Pyrrha…" Gevehr questioned as he walked backwards. Team RWBY couldn't help but notice the reactions from the question. Gray chuckled a bit while Unahk pulled out her scroll and Ledi made a sound of disgust. "Is… she single?"
"Why do you want to know?" Yang questioned as she crossed her arms. The last thing any of them wanted was to have this group become a permanent part of the school.
"You know… just asking."
"Don't you have, like, 20 years?" Gray pointed out.
"I get lonely. I would like some… company… some time." Gevehr answered.
"Don't worry bro, I'll set you up." Gray exclaimed as he patted Gevehr's back, turning him around. "Hey, Ledi! Want a date?"
"I would rather shoot the remaining half of my face." Ledi answered.
"I tried." Gray exclaimed as he held out his arms. Ruby leaned towards Weiss and whispered so they were the only ones that knew what was going on… hopefully.
"20 years? Who are these people?" Ruby questioned.
"Who knows, but they don't seem very stable." Weiss whispered back. Unfortunately, one person in the group heard their conversation.
"Very few of us are so stable." Ledi stated coldly from the front of the group. The rest of the walk was awkwardly quiet after that until the group rode the elevator up to Headmaster Ozpin's office. Once they arrived, they found their Headmaster having a pleasant conversation with a man in a black suit. He was bald and had a cane leaning against his chair with a golden skull with wings on it.
"We have brought the group that assisted us in our mission." Ledi stated in her usual mechanical manner. The conversation stopped and the man stood up with some assistance from his cane. The team could see he had dark brown eyes, but they gave off an eerie aura.
"Hm… how very interesting." The man exclaimed. His voice was deep, but also very hollow and made him sound even creepier. "But it doesn't matter. I'm sure the four of you have questions, so we'll go one at a time."
"Who are you? And this… group?" Weiss questioned immediately. The man chuckled as he turned his seat towards them and resumed sitting before giving an answer.
"I, am Romanum Imperium. I am the leader for the Vale chapter of a group known as the Deathwatch. We are a group of fighters that have been convicted of heinous crimes and atrocities that would have normally ended with death or life imprisonment, but we proved too useful for that. Instead, we are sent on suicidal missions for a set amount of time before we are released back into the real world. Next question." Romanum answered. The girls shifted uncomfortably, knowing that the group they had worked with were actually killers and murderers.
"What were those things we fought?" Ruby questioned after a long silence.
"Those, my dear, were a species of Grimm we have named Imposters, for their ability to imitate human form. It isn't an immediate change, but in three generations they have completely copied what a normal person looks like."
"And why doesn't anyone know about this? Shouldn't the public be aware of that?" Blake questioned. It seemed like Grimm that could imitate human form should be something that everyone was aware of, not just Huntsman or this Deathwatch.
"Tell me, Miss, how do you think the public would react to such news? That, without their knowing, their friends… neighbors… or even their family… has been replaced by some Grimm? It would be hysteria… madness that Grimm feed off of." Romanum answered, his voice going cold and hard. Yang decided it was time to ask the big question.
"So, what's going to happen to us?" Yang questioned, awaiting the answer. The whole team had been worrying about that very subject, and now they were finally going to get their answer. Romanum smiled as he held his cane out at arm's length.
"That… is a very good question. Now, there is our normal protocol of simply removing you for seeing something so secret." Romanum exclaimed as he stood up and started to pace the team. All of the girls began sweating since they noted Ledi bring her rifle around to her front. Romanum continued "But, with some urging from a few of my soldiers, as well as a nice conversation with your Headmaster, I've decided that we will not follow our usual protocol."
There was a collective sigh of relief from the Team, as well as a few from the Deathwatch.
"Instead, you will be joining us until our current mission is complete. Now, you will not have the same odds of survival as my soldiers." Romanum continued, still pacing around the Team. The chill of fear ran straight down the girls' spines once more since the Deathwatch was sent on suicide missions. Romanum must have seen their worry and simply smiled before reassuring "You will have much better odds. I've instructed the current members you see, as well as the others we have waiting at our base, that you are to be protected as high value assets."
"I have a question. What if we don't want to do this?" Weiss questioned, simply wanting to know all of their options. Romanum picked up his cane and tapped the skull against his chin.
"Well, there is one experimental method we haven't tried before. I could use my abilities to force you to forget what you saw, and this meeting… but I may also turn you into a vegetable. The choice is yours." Romanum answered.
"I see. I'll take your first offer." Weiss replied, not wanting to take the chance.
"Um, Mr. Imperium? What did you do to end up on the Deathwatch?" Ruby blurted out. She immediately regretted her question, since the Deathwatch didn't seem like it was made up of the best kind of people. Ruby immediately apologized "Sorry sir! I wasn't thinking…"
"It's quite alright, young one." Romanum replied, patting the top of Ruby's head like a parent would to a child. "I have a unique ability, to control people's minds, both aware and unaware."
"That's ridiculous." Weiss stated plainly. He could control people's minds? The idea just seemed like fantasy.
"Gunner! Please step forward." Romanum called, Gevehr groaning as he did what he was told.
"Why am I always the guinea pig for this?" Gevehr groaned as he stopped a few steps away from the girls. Romanum simply smiled, his grip on his cane tightening as Gevehr's stare turned into the thousand yard stare. Gevehr then slowly lifted his hand, balled it into a fist, and started punching himself in the face. The girls raised an eyebrow at the action, then he finally stopped after the third punch.
"Have I made my case?" Romanum questioned as he took a seat. Gevehr proceeded to rub his face where he had been punching, grumbling more about being a guinea pig. Weiss crossed her arms, still not completely convinced.
"No, you haven't. How do we know he isn't just an idiot?" Weiss questioned. A few of the Deathwatch chuckled as Gray patted Gevehr's shoulder.
"Look out Gunner, she's onto you." Gray chuckled. Gevehr simply rolled his eyes as Romanum sighed.
"Fine, I guess I can show a bit more. Gunner! Pick one." Romanum called. Gevehr looked at Romanum with a raised eyebrow, who simply nodded. Gevehr looked at the girls one by one with an unsure look on his face.
"For the love of! I'll pick for you!" Gray barked, clearly impatient with Gunner's indecision. Gray looked the girls over himself, immediately pointing at Blake. "Her… black hair."
"Blake Belladonna." Ozpin introduced, remaining eerily quiet the entire conversation.
"Yeah, Blake. Go get her, Gunner." Gray exclaimed as he pushed Gunner forward. Blake looked at Gunner with a raised eyebrow, since he seemed a little nervous. The rest of the team watched as Romanum simply smiled and Blake's gaze went a little distant, eyes drooping a little bit. They were surprised to watch as Blake walked over to Gunner, wrapped her arms around his waist and planted her lips against his. Gunner tensed up a bit before relaxing and leaning into the kiss.
"Okay Gunner, you've had your fun." Romanum chuckled, waving his hand. Blake seemed to return to reality, eyes going wide seeing she was kissing Gevehr. She immediately jumped back, putting a hand over her mouth as Gevehr had a wide smile on his face.
"Hey, Gunner, was that your first kiss since you started the Deathwatch?" Gray chuckled as he pulled Gunner back to the group. Both Gunner and Blake became extremely red faced, Yang, Gray and Unahk starting to chuckle from their reactions. Gray laughed "It was! How adorable!"
"Shut up!" Gunner barked as his teammate laughed. Headmaster Ozpin cleared his throat, causing everything to die down very quickly.
"Girls, I hope you know you've been granted a very large opportunity. You have luck on your side that I have known Mr. Imperium for quite some time. I do know he can be a bit… extreme… but he knows what he's doing. You will be in good hands with them." Headmaster Ozpin stated. The girls nodded, understanding the situation that they were in. He continued "Pack your bags and be ready to leave. You will be staying with the Deathwatch until your time with them has ended."
"Once you're ready, meet us by the docks. Our airship will be there and waiting." Romanum exclaimed. He slightly gesture his cane towards the door, the team moving like a well-oiled machine as they headed to the elevator silently. Once they were gone, the team decided to voice their concerns to Headmaster Ozpin.
"Sir, are you sure this is going to be safe? I mean, all of them are-." Weiss started to question. Headmaster Ozpin held up his hand, cutting Weiss off before answering.
"People who made mistakes in their time. All members of the Deathwatch are people of considerable skill that killed people who, and do not quote me, deserved what happened to them. Take Romanum, for instance. He used his ability to over throw a corrupt government, but his power was deemed too great and he had to be locked away. He is a man of his word, you will be kept safe." Headmaster Ozpin assured.
"What about our work here? At Beacon?" Ruby questioned.
"It will be waived. Consider this… on the job training. Now, go pack your things, you have somewhere to be."
The team nodded and they headed to their room to pack their bags, mainly in silence. They were still a little uneasy about the whole thing, working with a group of killers and murderers. They shouldered their bags and started walking towards the docks.
"Alright, we're going into uncharted territory. We need to stick together." Ruby started. She didn't know what her team was going to go through, but she was sure they were all going to make it out of it. She went on "Try not to be alone with any of them. Who knows what they're capable of."
"I doubt they're going to control themselves. I mean, one already forced Blake to do something she didn't want to. You good Blake? You've been really quiet… well, quieter than usual." Yang stated. Honestly, Blake was still just trying to wrap her head around what happened. She had zer0 control of herself, but it felt like she had control. It was a bit like an out of body experience, her body moving without her actually doing it.
"Yeah… I think…" Blake responded quietly.
"Still rattled from kissing the Big Guy?"
"Yeah… a bit…"
"So… was it a good kiss?" Yang chuckled, trying to make light of a bit of the situation. Blake simply rolled her eyes and remained silent. The group exited the school and made their way to the docks, spotting a strange looking airship. It looked like a large box and seemed more built for combat than transport. It had a wide wingspan with rockets on the underside, a skull with a red eye and a bronze I behind it. The cockpit had blacked out windows with two mini-guns mounted on the front.
The girls spotted the group waiting just out front, all of them seated on a bench. A falcon flew over Team RWBY's head and landed on Unahk's shoulder. As they approached, Romanum held out his arms and made a large declaration.
"Team RWBY! Welcome to the Deathwatch!" Romanum announced. He pointed back at the ship and went on "This is the Blackstar. Our transport gunship. Its pilot, Four Seven Niner, is the best there is. She'll get you where you need to go before anyone is the wiser. Now, let's get moving. We have much to discuss about our plans and get you moved in." Team RWBY simply nodded and boarded the heavily armed gunship. The inside looked like it was prepped for a combat drop into a warzone. The sides had bench seats with locking bars that lowered from the roof with a weapon storage in the back of the airship. There was a clear view into the cock pit with a large number of screens, buttons and levers in it, a pilot sitting in the front but facing them. She was decent height, about the same as Blake, and wore a grey flight suit with a grey motorcycle helmet and blue visor.
"They get younger every year." The pilot groaned as she spun around in her chair, facing the controls. She went on as everyone boarded the airship. "Doesn't matter. I'm just payed to fly. Anyway, I'm Four Seven Niner, but you can just call me Niner. I don't care your history, I don't care your crime. If you need to talk to someone, then find someone else."
The girls looked at each other with raised eyebrows as the members of the Deathwatch took their seats.
"Don't be fooled. She puts on a tough face, but she's a real softy." Gray chuckled as he got settled in his seat.
"You know I'm not, especially when I have to deal with you sick bastards…" Niner argued turning in her seat. She slowly raised her hand and pointed at Gunner, finishing "And he's the sickest of them all."
"She's joking. I'm not that bad." Gunner defended. The girls nodded, unsure of who to believe. Once everyone was settled in, Niner raised the ship and they started flying. Ruby decided to ask a few questions, get to know some of the people they would be working with.
"So… what's with the bird?" Ruby questioned, referring to the falcon sitting on Unahk's shoulder. The bird sat calmly on one of the lowered locking bars like it was a perch. Unahk reached over and started to pet the bird before answering.
"This is Shonkhor. Found him a few years back as just an egg. Hatched him and raised him. You see, I have a Semblance, I can meld with the mind of an animal. I can see what he sees. Very useful when tracking Imposters." Unahk explained simply.
"So, when you said that some Gen 3's were on the highway?"
"That was Shonkhor telling me. He had been watching them, making sure we wouldn't get bit in the ass."
"That seems… useful." Blake stated, breaking her silence around the group. She felt a bit weird being around Gunner, even worse since the group seemed to force her to sit next to her. Not outright force her, just take the seats and leaving the one next to him open. There was an awkward silence before Gunner finally spoke.
"Look, I'm sorry about what happened in your Headmaster's office. Believe me, it wasn't my idea. Still, I'm sorry. Mind if we just… start over?" Gunner suggested as he held out this hand. He introduced "Hi, I'm Gevehr Schwer, but all my friends call me Gunner."
"Blake, Blake Belladonna. Nice to meet you, Gunner." Blake responded. She felt a bit better, knowing that Gunner was sorry about what happened, but it was still a little weird around him. Gray decided to chime in.
"Don't they just make the cutest couple?" Gray laughed loudly, causing a few chuckles. Ledi, as cold and mechanical as ever, joined in.
"Focus. We aren't here to establish personal relationships. We're here for a purpose." Ledi reminded. The Deathwatch got a little somber after that, remembering that they had one job.
"Right, we're some kind of… suicide squad." Gunner pointed out.
"You know that sounds like some comic idea, right?" Gray pointed out.
"Think it would make a good movie?"
"Probably over hyped but poorly written."
"What the fuck are they on about?" Yang questioned as Gray and Gunner finished their conversation.
"It's easier just to let them talk it out as opposed to trying to stop them." Unahk exclaimed, petting Shonkhor again as the falcon squawked. The rest of the flight was filled with small talk simply to pass the time, but it was a short flight, only about an hour. The ship started to land and the locks released, everyone standing to stretch and get the feeling back in their legs. The airship doors opened up and the team was thrust into a town that looked like its police force went on strike. Everyone carried weapons on them with people fighting in the streets.
The girls saw several push others around and kids bumping into adults, more than likely picking their pockets. The Deathwatch started walking and everyone seemed to part for them, so Team RWBY followed to not get left behind. The buildings looked like they hadn't been cared for in years, just on the verge of decrepit but still livable. Ruby slid up to Ledi and inquired about the town.
"Why is this place so…" Ruby started but droned off. She wasn't sure how to put it since she didn't know how the Deathwatch felt about the town. The last thing she wanted to do was insult the people that were supposed to be protecting her and her team.
"Shitty? Run down? Vile? Who would look for a group dedicated to protecting humanity from dark secrets here? Especially one that is made up of killers and murderers." Ledi answered plainly. As cold and mechanical as she seemed, her argument made sense. No one would go looking for them in a town of criminals, even easier to blend in with since they technically were criminals.
"That's a good point… I know I wouldn't want to be here." Ruby added, pointing out her discomfort.
"It's nice enough… once you show people not to mess with you."
The group continued until they reached a warehouse towards the edge of town. It wasn't any different than the ones they had in Vale, only this one seemed like it was in worse condition than it should have been. They walked in, only to find a large number of canisters with electronic locks on them. Team RWBY still followed them as they walked towards the back and found a black canister with the same red eyed skull with a bronze I behind it. Romanum approached the canister and pulled out a scroll, holding it up to the electronic lock and opening the canister.
The group simply entered the canister and the door shut, immersing themselves in darkness. A light came on in the corner and illuminated the container. Romanum opened a hidden panel, and hit a few buttons, then the canister started to lower into the ground, or more accurately, the ground started to lower.
"Team RWBY… welcome… to the Deathwatch." Romanum repeated from earlier as the real facility was revealed. The initial zone was an open room with four Atlesian Knights standing in the corners. They weren't the clunky grey models, but these were sleeker, and white with rifles. There was a door in front of them with two knights guarding it. Above the door in red was what Team RWBY guessed was the Deathwatch's slogan, "Until Death, Suffer Not Grimm to Live".
The group moved through the doors until they entered a large common area, about as big as the main hall of Beacon. To the left of the door was a small library section with five large bookshelves as several chairs. Next to that was a door that had "MESS" written above it. Next to that was a large, almost theater sized television with couches and chairs set up around it. The back right corner had a pool table and a ping pong table with several sticks and paddles for each game, as well as several board games beneath the tables. The immediate right held several long couches that were set up in a circle and seemed more for lounging around.
Between the game section and lounging section was a door with the word "ROOMS" above it. The floor was a low, dark blue carpet with several lights overhead. There were a few individuals around the room, one in the library, one watching TV and the last one playing pool.
"Attention! We have some new members who will be working with us! Get to know them and have fun. I'll be in my office." Romanum announced as he stepped to the center of the room. The three individuals all stood up and moved to the new group as Romanum went through the door on the opposite end of the room labeled "COMMAND". The first one to step up was a large, monstrosity of a man. He was bald with bronze skin and was heavily built. He stood at least 6'6" and wore a red shirt with dirty green jeans.
The feature that stood out the most was half of his face and his right arm was covered in burn scars.
"Hi there, I'm Huh (like Who) K'aak' (K- ah-k). I'm the fire expert of the group." The large man introduced. The next individual was a young blonde man that was as tall as Yang with matching bright blonde hair. He wore a gold shirt with dark red pants and stood with one hip cocked to the side and a hand sitting on it.
"Hey, my name is Meleg Vampir, but you can call me Mel." He introduced. He then proceeded to look the girls up and down with an inquisitive look. He made the corresponding sounds as the last individual introduced herself. She was Ruby's height with a similar body style with short black hair, black pants, a red jacket and white shirt. She also had a pair of wire rim glasses that rested on the tip of her nose.
"Hello, I'm Sanginia Librorum. So, why are you in the Deathwatch?" the girl asked. Mel held up a finger to Team RWBY, preventing them from answering. He pulled his finger back and proceeded to give them his observation.
"You, Little Red, I love the gothic look. It fits you perfectly." Mel critiqued. He slid over to Weiss and went on. "Girl, blue and white, definitely your color. The splash of red though… iffy, if you ask me."
"You, rock it girl. Show those boys what you've got!" Mel complimented, moving down to Blake. He was a bit more critical of her choice in fashion. "You… hmmm… I'd say lose the stockings. Show off those legs of yours. Unless you want Gevehr, who hasn't taken his eyes off of you."
Blake looked at Gunner, who immediately blushed a bit and looked away. Blake felt a small blush on her face as she looked at her feet, Huh pulling Mel back.
"Come on Mel, lighten up on them. So, what did you girls do to get here?" Huh questioned. Ruby stepped up as the leader as the rest of the Deathwatch moved around the room.
"Well, we accidently ran into these guys chasing some Imposters. We decided to help and this was the result. We're going to work with you for a while." Ruby answered, looking the new individuals up and down. They all seemed like good people, but then again, they were on the Deathwatch.
"We know, just wanted to hear it from you. So, want to meet the rest of the group? They aren't as stable as the rest of us, but they're still good people. Here, I'll take you to them." Mel volunteered. Sanginia shrugged and went back to her library while Huh returned to his game of pool. Mel took the girls through the "ROOM" door, which was a hallway with doors and an open room at the end of the hallway. The girls noticed that each of the doors had names on them, each of them of the Deathwatch.
"So there's three others you haven't met. The first is Vael Domatus. He's a little… peculiar." Mel warned as he knocked on the door. The door opened and the girls were met with a very different individual. He almost seemed… normal. He had short brown hair and brown eyes, wearing a blue t-shirt and black jeans. He was holding a ruler and a tape measure in his hands as he poked his head out.
"What is it, Mel?" Vael questioned, a bit of irritation in his voice.
"We have some visitors. You read the file yet?" Mel questioned as he gestured to Team RWBY.
"I have. They found out about Imposters and instead to eliminating them, they're going to learn more. It makes no sense."
The girls looked at each other with raised eyebrows before looking back at him.
"I am Vael Domatus. Nice to meet you." Vael responded with a sigh, holding out a free hand. Ruby reached out and shook his hand.
"I'm Ruby, Ruby Rose." Ruby greeted as she shook his hand. She noticed that as she shook his hand, he counted the shakes. Which was three times. He did the same for all of the girls, greeting them and counting 3 shakes before letting go.
"Nice to meet all of you, but I have things to take care of." Vael exclaimed before closing his door.
"Is he okay?" Yang questioned. "He seemed a bit… off."
"Trust me, he's a good guy… just… he has extreme Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Can't really leave his room other than food and missions since he has a thing about symmetry." Mel answered. He shook his head and continued "Anyway, next is… Tenebra Angelus. She's right down the hall."
The group traveled only to find her door with a note on it. Mel pulled the note off the door and read it out loud.
"Dear Newcomers. I'm Tenebra and I am not to be disturbed." Mel read. "Well, looks like you'll be meeting her later. Anyway, the last member is a bit… unstable."
The group moved to the end of the hallway, only finding the doorway had a red line just behind it. The room beyond was dark, like creepy cave dark.
"So… who lives here?" Weiss questioned as she took a step forward. Weiss as about a foot away from the red line when something shot out of the darkness and stopped just before the red line. This member was female and clearly a wolf Faunus, given her wolf ears and tail. She had long, dark red hair that reached the small of her back with green eyes. She was wearing a black tank top with jean shorts and tribal tattoos on her arms.
She had a wide grin on her face with sharp canines, making her look like a grinning predator. The biggest thing was she had a metal collar around her neck with a chain pulled tight into the darkness.
"Lycana Luna." The wolf growl, sniffing them hungrily. She moved from side to side, eyeing all of them like she was prepared to devour them. She did this for a moment before her eyes finally fell on Weiss, sending a chill up her spine. "I like the white one. I want her."
Weiss took a step back as Lycana licked her lips hungrily.
"I think it's safe to say that you should probably stay away from this end." Mel pointed out. Weiss was nearly frozen in place as Lycana maintained direct eye contact with her, her green eyes bright and reflective in the dark, just like a predator's.
"You don't have to tell me twice." Weiss responded.
"Lycana, back to your corner." Mel barked, trying to shoo Lycana away. "You're scaring them."
"Fine, I'm going." Lycana sighed as she took a step back. She looked back up at Weiss, the same predatory smile returning as she made eye contact. "I'll see you later."
Lycana slunk back into the darkness as the group returned to the main room.
"So, why is she chained up? Is it because she's a Faunus?" Blake questioned with a bit of anger in her voice. They had only met a single Faunus in the Deathwatch and she was chained up.
"She's chained up because she's a dangerous lunatic who murdered 20 people. Granted, all of them were a Pro-human group that burned down a Faunus school, but still, she killed them all." Mel updated. "All of us here did something awful to worse people. But we're mostly good people."
From the pool table, where Gray and Huh were playing a game, Huh spoke up.
"Don't talk about people's sentences. It's rude." Huh exclaimed before he sunk a ball into the corner pocket.
"Right. Some of us here are willing to talk about our sentences, others aren't. But we do our best not to tell people each other's sentences." Mel pointed out. "I would suggest waiting on asking people about their time here."
The group nodded and grabbed their bags, heading to the room that they were assigned, an appropriate "TEAM RWBY" name on the door. It was a decently sized room, about as big as their room at Beacon. It seemed like it was set up for them since it had actual bunk beds and two large dressers.
"So… these are the people we're going to be working with…" Blake pointed out as she started putting her clothes in the dresser. "They don't seem… completely awful."
The team shared the same thought, they all weren't terrible people. Granted, Lycana did seem to be the worst they had, but there was also Tenebra, who they hadn't even met yet. All of them seemed like decent people, but they were still killers and murderers in a town of low lives.
"We have to stay on our game and stay together. Yeah, Romanum said that we would be protected, but we can only rely on each other." Ruby exclaimed, taking a stand as their leader. All of them nodded their heads, agreeing with Ruby. They may have a team with them, but for all they knew, they were on their own.
A/N: Hope everyone is enjoying the chapter, as well as meeting all the members of the Deathwatch. So, what will be next for the Deathwatch and Team RWBY? What horrors will they learn about? Until next time.
-Chief