"You… you're Raven Branwen… you're Yang's mom." Immediately Ruby could feel her team's emotions plummet into shock, confusion and heartbreak. Her wings drooped and her tail coiled around her at her feet as she stared at the woman clad in black and red with a Grimm mask and a sword sheathed at her side.
"I am." She replied stoically before giving a small backwards tilt of her head, signaling her forces to sheath their weapons. "Where is my daughter? I don't see her with you."
"Yang… she- she didn't make it." Ruby dipped her head solemnly. At her soft but broken whisper, her friends all fell further into grief and anger while a gnawing hunger burned in her stomach, radiating through her black veins and suffocating her heart.
"I see." For only an instant, a flicker of sadness flashed across her face, before she became cold as ice. To everyone else, she appeared uncaring, but the wall of ice around her heart couldn't hide her true feelings from Ruby. Deep down, locked away in the darkest recesses of Raven's soul, Ruby could feel a profound sense of loss and regret.
"She died saving me, and my friends." Ruby spoke up, forcing herself to stay strong, bringing up her silver gaze to Ravens as she approached the mother of her half sister.
"Yang is the reason I'm like this, and because of her I'm strong enough to keep the people important to me safe. I'm going to protect everyone behind me, because I love all of them." Her glistening eyes hardened like steel, burning with a soft flickering light as she glared up at Raven. "If you feel guilty, make it up to Yang by doing the right thing for once."
"You little bitch! What makes you think you can talk to-"
The canon fodder was silenced by a mere raising of Raven's hand, her authority clear and indisputable by right of power, there was no arguing with her. The experienced warrior and full fledged Huntress looked deep into the eyes of her former teammates' daughter, she could see much in her eyes, the suffering, the fighting, the conviction and most of all, she could see the young woman's strength. It only took an instant for Raven to understand… she was outclassed by Ruby, and her team was strong, fighting them would be futile.
"And what would the right thing be? My daughter is dead, there's nothing that can be done about that. She wasn't strong enough for this world." Her simple admission was free of guilt and sent everyone who loved Yang so dearly into a burning rage, but Ruby could feel deeper than any human could, she could practically taste the sorrow, the longing and the self hatred that ate away at the mother who lost her child. She wanted them to hate her, because she wanted to punish herself.
"You know what the right thing is." Ruby's unwavering gaze pierced down to her soul as the half Grimm stepped closer, standing only inches away from the formidable warrior. "Leave, now. I don't know how much longer my friends will hold themselves back."
"Fine… goodbye then, Child of Summer." Raven's expression was hard and cold and her voice was empty, completely devoid of feeling. With a soft breath as she brought her mask back up to her face before turning around… and walking away, without another word.
As Raven walked towards the large double doors leading back to the entrance to the castle, her men followed her, some glaring spitefully at Ruby, those who couldn't see her true power pondering attacking, while those more experienced could feel her strength and eagerly followed their leader away from the monster wearing a girl's skin. However, through all of these feelings, only one stood out to Ruby, the only one she could focus on that overwhelmed all others like a flood of freezing water, it was the most prominent emotions emanating from Raven as she walked away; it was the cold, isolating feeling… of loneliness.
"Do the right thing… for Yang." Ruby whispered softly as the doors closed, Raven and her forces retreating down the hall before leaving the castle behind.
"So, that was Yang's mom?" Jaune asked as he came up to Ruby's side, barely concealing his resentment.
"She hardly seemed like Yang at all. The apple fell very far from the tree in her case." Weiss huffed bitterly. "Yang was warm and funny and spontaneous and bright, nothing like her."
"It doesn't matter." Ruby gave a soft breath, she knew she didn't need to breath, but it helped ease her nerves to do so. Putting aside her own feelings towards Raven, the leader of the group of twelve turned to her two co-leaders, her wings folded against her back and her heart steeled against her growing hunger. "We need to come up with a plan and leave, I don't want to stay here longer than we have to."
"Alright, I guess we need a goal first." Weiss postulated, quickly catching on to the impromptu leader meeting. "If there were a safe zone we should go there but I don't know if any place like that exists."
"That's a bad idea." Jaune's words took on an uncharacteristically dark tone, grabbing the attention of the other two leaders. "We're still carrying the virus. I mean, I don't know about Ruby but the rest of us definitely are. Our group found an isolated village that wasn't hit by the outbreak, we slept there and overnight the entire town was infected… no one survived."
"Are you serious?" Weiss' cool blue eyes grew wide and Ruby could feel her repulsion and horror, and her empathy towards Jaune for what he had experienced. However, Weiss was nothing if not resilient, clenching her fists and taking a deep breath she banished her feelings, trying her best to focus. "I- If that's the case then there is no safe zone… the whole world is infected."
"Jaune, Velvet told me you had contact with my mom, did she tell you anything that could help us?" Ruby sensed the surprise in the room, followed by caring concern most potently from her three teammates.
"Yeah… she did." Jaune shook his head, running his fingers through his short blonde hair before looking back up to Weiss and Ruby. "I guess the best place to start is the beginning. So, that virus that started all of this, it was a biological weapon created by someone named Alexandrite Crowley, a man with silver eyes like Ruby. He captured your mom and used her for his experiments before turning them both into Silver Eyed Grimm. I don't know what his endgame is, but it can't be good."
"Whoa, just… just hold on a second." Weiss rubbed her face with her hand, taking short breaths to try and calm her spiraling mid as she looked up to the high stone ceiling. "That- that's a lot to take in. First Yang's mom now Ruby's? A mad scientist with a virus that he made to cause all of this? Silver Eyed Grimm? Blood drinking? Ruby and Blake are both part Grimm? Ruby's bite can turn people into half Grimm like her?"
"Well, not exactly." Jaune interjected, only really able to address one thing in hopes to halt Weiss' spiraling. "Apparently, when a Silver Eyed Grimm bites someone, they become a Vassal, the person they turn is connected to them, kinda like… well, I don't really know how to explain it but-"
"It's like Ruby and I share the same soul." Blake cut in, saving Jaune from his floundering. "I can very strongly feel what she's feeling, we can communicate to each other and I share her power. I can tell it's not as potent but still… I'm much stronger than before."
"Okay… um, this is all just so weird. I'm sorry Ruby, I know you're still you but… I'm sorry if this question is too personal but you're part Grimm now so I have to ask." Weiss forced herself to meet the confused and worried eyes of her former partner, her own heart aching at the look on her face, but still, she had to know. "Ruby, do um… do you want to eat people?"
"Yes." Cold, simple, concise and honest, that's how Ruby answered, without any hesitation or flicker of fear in her words. "I want to eat people, I nearly ate Blake when I was turning her, you can see the scars on her neck from where I was chewing on her. I'm a Grimm now… this is what I am."
"I- I see…" Weiss' gaze fell nervously away from her former partner and in from everyone else in the room she felt fear and unease, though what hurt the most, more than anything else, even more than the pang of disgust and fear from Weiss… was the fear she felt from Coco.
"Everyone!" Ruby declared loudly, splaying her wings and raising her tail up as she addressed their team as a whole. "Take stock of all our equipment, ammo, food and supplies, we'll scavenge whatever we need and then we're leaving tomorrow morning."
"Um, leaving where?" Jaune asked, his anxiety at her seemingly shameless admission fading as he they all looked to the Silver Eyed Grimm.
"Crowley, he started all of this, he's the reason Yang is gone, Nora and Ren too. We're going to find him, and we're going to make this right." A rage as hot as the sun burned like wildfire in her chest as she picked her sword up off the ground, sheathing it at her side.
"And just how do you propose we find him?" Weiss forced herself to regain her composure, folding her arms over her chest.
"Jaune, did you see which way my mom went after she split from your team?" Ruby's tone was cold and bitter, her back kept turned to her team as she looked up at the mosaic on the castle wall, a depiction of a fierce and holy warrior slaying the Grimm stood before her.
"I did." Velvet chimed in, walking without fear or hesitation to her de facto leader, placing a warm and gentle hand on her shoulder, comforting the lonely Silver Eyed Grimm, letting her friend know that she wasn't alone.
"Then we'll follow her. She's probably after him too." With that, she stepped away, pulling free from Velvet's gentle touch. "I'm going to go rest."
"Ruby." Blake rushed to her side, stopping Ruby as she reached for the handle of a smaller door leading to the bedrooms. "You need to feed, I can tell, all that negativity…"
"I'm fine Blake, ask Coco for some blood, I just fed from her so she can't take care of us both but you haven't fed all day. I'll drink later, for now… I just want to sleep." Then… she was gone. Ruby left her team alone, but even through the door she could feel their worry, their disgust, their fear… their pity. As she collapsed into her bed, she felt her mind and body being consumed by the hunger, the need to eat humans and faunus alive, the innate drive to cause and consume suffering. Ruby closed her eyes, folding her wing over herself before shutting her eyes and shutting the world out.
Dim fluorescent lights flickered overhead, filling the windowless hall with its white glow. Two sets of feet walked down the halls, their steps and the tapping of a cane against the tiled floors filled the silent air as the pair made their way to a par of steel doors. They stopped, hesitating for a moment as they stood at the threshold before the doors swung open automatically, ushering them into a large office with a wall made of a single length of glass, overlooking the icy ground far below.
"It's good to see you both, I'm glad you made it out of Vale safely." A well built man in uniform stood up from behind his desk, smiling amiably.
"I'm afraid I didn't come here for niceties General." Ozpin's stern, cold gaze was enough to unnerve even General Ironwood as the doors closed behind the two guests.
"Most certainly not." Glynda scowled as she and Ozpin approached him.
"Stop right there, I already know what you're going to say." Ironwood sighed, joining the former headmaster of Beacon and his lovely companion in the center of his office. "Let me guess, you disapprove of my containment process."
"You're locking people underground! In cages! Their fear and anger will only end up attracting more Grimm!" Glynda stomped forward, her emerald eyes burning into his.
"Grimm we can handle, but a virus that turns normal people into dangerous vectors and turns those with unlocked auras into extremely powerful monsters? That is a risk I'm not willing to invite into this Kingdom." The General didn't back down, steadfast and resolute as ever in his pursuit of what he thought was right.
"General, we know very little about the nature of this outbreak. However, one thing we know for certain is that these infectious creatures are indeed Grimm and are attracted to negativity. Taking the largest portion of this Kingdom's population and sequestering them from those of us with unlocked auras is sure to bring disaster." Ozpin walked stoically over to the window, gazing down at the city carved into the tundra. It was barren, those who sought refuge in Atlas that didn't have their auras unlocked were forced underground for observation while the citizens that were already here were walled off in temporary settlements with subpar buildings and substandard amenities, kept sequestered at gunpoint. Ozpin couldn't be sure which scene was more depressing, watching Vale burn, or watching Altas consume itself.
"Oh, and do you have another suggestion? I am trying to minimize risk while maximizing lives saved. The best scientists in the world are here working on this virus. This is only a temporary situation." Ironwood stood with his hands behind his back, his posture impeccable and his conviction unwavering.
"As a matter of fact General, I do have an alternative to self destruction." A smirk formed on Ozpin's lips as he stared out the window, leaning against his cane.
"Your pet project I assume? The Child of Summer? The girl with the silver eyes that you've been grooming since she was just fifteen?" The general scoffed, shaking his head at the idea. "And what could she do that my army and my scientists can't?"
"A great many things General… a great many things."
The night was deathly silent, the shattered moon shined in the blackness overhead and stars dotted the sky with the twinkling lights. In the small town no life could be found, nothing save for the flickering orange glow that shone through the large window of the once populated town's tavern.
The bar was dark, the only source of light was an old lantern that gave off an unsteady fire, giving just enough light to see the minimal details of the establishment. The walls and floor were all wood and, front counter was covered in a layer of dust, having been abandoned for months. Underneath the bars counter the sound of glass clattering chimed in the otherwise quiet village. A cloaked and hooded figure layed with its head down, its arms rested under its head as it sat on the stool.
"Good, they've still got some scotch left." A man popped up, holding a half full bottle, his cape dragging behind him as he joined the cloaked figure, pulling up a chair by its side.
"You know, you're not much of a talker… I like that about you." He laughed halfheartedly to himself as he opened the bottle, his dull crimson eyes reflecting the light of the yellow flame, burning painful memories into his mind. Oh well, nothing half a bottle of scotch can't fix.
"So, this is how you've been spending the end of the world? I'm not the least bit surprised." A woman's voice spoke up behind him, stealing Qrow's attention from his drink as he spun around in the stool. A woman with piercing crimson eyes clad in black and red robes stood before him looking entirely pissed off.
"Hey Sis, don't suppose you came to share this drink with me?" With a broken smile he took a few deep gulps of the cheap alcohol, burning like fire Dust as it wash down his throat.
"My daughter is dead." Raven stated coldly as she walked up to him, snatching the bottle from his hands before throwing it to the floor, shattering it to pieces.
"Yeah, I know. I was there, I'm the one that cut her head off. What? You here to fight me or something? Look, I'm really not in the mood for-"
"Just shut up and listen to me!" Raven growled, bunching up Qrow's shirt in her fist before lifting him by his collar. "This wasn't some accident, someone is at fault and they will pay."
"If I didn't know any better I'd almost think you cared." Qrow smirked as Raven dropped him.
"Qrow, stop being a smart ass and listen to her." A familiar voice spoke up as another person entered the bar, taking up Raven's side, looking down at Qrow with an impatient glare.
"Tai?" Qrow blinked in astonishment, his eyes drifting down to the shattered bottle below him. "I don't think I'm that drunk am I?"
"I'm going after the person responsible, and I can't do it alone." Raven stepped back, standing beside Taiyang as he folded his arms over his chest. "Are you in or not?"
"Well well, you, getting the band back together. It really must be the end of the world." Qrow have an embittered huff of laughter before leaning against the bar, his expression cooled and serious and his eyes sharp. "I guess it's that bad then huh?"
"He killed my daughter, it's too late for regrets, but there's still time for revenge." Raven's jaw muscles bunched at her cheeks as she clenched her teeth, her firsts balling at her sides as her rage and pain fueled her single minded thirst for vengeance.
"He?" Qrow tilted his head curiously.
"There's someone waiting for us outside, she has the answers to a lot of your questions… I think it's someone you should see." Taiyang let his arms fall to his sides as he stepped back, clearing the path for them to leave.
"Alright then, I guess it is about time I stop moping around." Running his hand over his sweaty face Qrow pulled his bang back with an excited grin on his face. "You hear that kid? We've got work to do."
"Yes," A boy's voice spoke from under the cloak as his rose up in his seat. Slowly and ceremoniously he brought down his hood, revealing a young man with long black hair, streaked with pink on one side tied into a braid behind his head. His magenta eyes burned with the intensity that only the deepest hatred could wrought. "I heard everything."