RWBY OC

Prologue

Life persists. And so hope does as well. These words Rocky Marrone picked up during his childhood and had carried them with him for most of his life. Years spent learning, training and fighting to prepare for more of the same but at a higher level at whatever Huntsman Academy he wished to apply for. His first school of choice would have Beacon Academy which lied on the eastern edges of the City of Vale. Known for its emphasis on teamwork and curriculum, it was the place to go to over all the other academies in Remnant. Rich, poor, Human or Faunus, everyone was welcome.

That was until a year ago, last fall. When the creatures of Grimm, the greatest enemy of Mankind, the reason why he and so many others wanted to become huntsmen and huntresses, had swarmed the Academy in a neverending tidal wave of death and destruction.

Now Rocky found himself here, on a dusty abandoned road many miles south of the Kingdom of Vale. He was on his way to his birthplace: Vacuo. And he wasn't alone either. Joining him on this journey were his closest friends from Signal Academy. Arian Gwynt: Faunus, you easily tell by the squirrel-like ears that jut out from her silver hair when she wasn't wearing her hood of the same colour. A very keen and quick learner and always sociable even when sometimes she can be nervous about certain subjects. Next was Saphire Kishan, originally from Mistral. She often kept to herself when Rocky first met her back at Signal Academy but was surprisingly very artistic in both painting and when fighting Grimm. Last was Phoenix Hendrix, the wildest member of their team. Witty and enthusiastic, his actions brimmed with an aura of passion and weren't afraid to speak to his mind, even if he did so without thinking and was also sometimes a bit of a hothead when provoked. And last, there was Riley, Rocky's four-legged companion. A sheepdog who has been with Rocky even before life at Signal Academy, he could count on him to follow him even to the ends of Remnant. Together minus Riley, they called themselves RASP or short for team Raspberry.

Standing between team Raspberry and their journey to Vacuo was a pack of Grimm. Rocky counted about eight Beowolfs. They all looked the same except for one of them, the Alpha of the pack stood out with additional spikes going down its spine. This one stayed back while the rest of the pack charged forth, their glowing red eyes showing nothing but malicious intent. Rocky stood his ground, readying his weapon, Ruptor Terrae – a long single-sided axe with a built-in pump-action shotgun. The perfect weapon for close quarter combat.

"Alright guys," Rocky began, "Time to put everything Tai taught us to use."

"Oh yeah!" Phoenix answered enthusiastically as he primed his weapon of choice; two golden gauntlets, each had a flame cannon top which allowed him to roast enemies form range. "time ta burn some Grimm."

"Arian and I got the ones of the left," Sapphire added as she presented her trident outward to the enemy.

"Yeah we can handle these," Arian followed, sliding an arrow coated in ice dust into her longbow.

Rocky looked down to his feet to find Riley standing next to him.

"You ready for this Riley?" he asked.

Riley only needed to bark one to confirm his readiness.

"Alright let's do this," Rocky pushed off his back foot and charged forward with his team toward the enemy. The first of the Beowolf pack came at him, claws stretched out and jaws wide open. Rocky swung his axe in an uppercut sweep, sending the Grimm over his head and slamming it into the ground behind him. The impact sent caused a little tremor in the ground, followed with the Beowolf's body disappearing before him. He turned and saw Riley fighting the next Beowolf, he was holding his own for a dog. He tainted the creature with his barking and was smart enough to keep out of the reach of its long arms and claws. Rocky closed in while the beast was distracted, he swung his weapon around and fired off two rounds from the gun attached. The first round went into the Beowolf's right shoulder, severing its arm off and the second round went into its head, the force sending it back a few metres before hitting the ground. A third one came rushing toward him and Riley. But before it could close in, the Beowolf was engulfed by a large fireball, it frantically howled and frantically swung it's arms around before collapsing to the ground. Rocky knew that fireball came from one of Pheonix's gauntlets. He turned around saw the hotshot leap forward punching another Beowolf in the jaw.

"Showoff!" Rocky called.

"Hey can't let you have all the fun bro!" Pheonix replied.

Rocky simply shook his head and smiled.

He turned to his left. Arian and Sapphire were holding their own against the other Grimm. Arian was busy toying one of the Beowolfs, keeping her distance every time it reached out for her. She turned around and ran toward a large pine tree. The Beowolf followed immediately. As she reached the tree, Arian leapt onto the trunk and climbed up quickly before she performed a summersault. Good timing, as the pursuing Beowolf dived for her, but ended up crashing headfirst into the tree. Halfway through the summersault, Arian pulled let loose an arrow tipped with lightning dust. It connected with the back of the Beowolf's head. The creature's body shook violently whilst its head was pinned to the tree before evaporating. Arian landed on both her, though a little off balance but least she didn't fall over.

Meanwhile Sapphire was busy playing with her foe. She was easily outmanoeuvring her Beowolf. By using her semblance, she turned herself into water and started encircling it. The Beowolf swung its claws furiously but couldn't catch her. Sapphire managed to get behind before turning back in her human form before sweeping the creature at it legs with her trident and followed it up with a jab to its chest.

Rocky gave Sapphire a thumbs up. Saphhire returned the favour, but her expression changed.

"Rocky look out!" she called.

Rocky turned around and saw the Alpha Beowolf leap out for him, knocking him to the ground. He found himself pinned, holding the Alpha Beowolf at bay with his weapon. The beast snapped away with his jaws.

"Do something Phoenix!" Rocky heard Arian call out.

"Can't get a shot without hurting Rocky," Phoenix replied.

At that point, Sapphire had rushed in to save Rocky, thrusting her trident down at the Beowolf's spikey back. It howled in anger as it tried to shake Sapphire off. Rocky felt the pressure on him lessen, he lifted a leg up and kicked the beast in the gut whilst it was occupied to free himself.

"Damn this one is tough," Sapphire just before the Beowolf finally tossed her aside. The girl landed a few metres on her shoulder, her aura flicker momentarily. The Beowolf turned its attention back at Rocky but then took a fireball to the face from Phoenix.

"Got ya now," said Phoenix.

The beast was momentarily blinded, giving Rocky the chance to retaliate. He got back to feet quickly. He swung his axe low and caught the Beowolf by its hind leg. The Alpha Beowolf landed on its back, Rocky swung again this time he drove his blade into the chest. The beast flailed about, Rocky fired a shell for good measure. The Alpha Beowolf went silent, its arms drop to the ground before the whole body evaporated away.

Rocky breathed a sigh of relief while Arian went to check on Sapphire.

"You ok? " she asked.

"I'm fine Arian," said Sapphire before turning her attention to Pheonix "You took your time to shoot."

"Hey hey, I didn't wanna risk roasting Rocky here," Phoenix replied putting his hands.

"Is everyone ok out there?" another voice through everyone's com bead. It came Jet, who was a few metres away at the wheel of Dixie, a big old school bus that been modified for travelling on rough terrain. Its yellow paint showed the vehicle's age with the odd patches of rust that had yet to be covered up. At the centre of its roof was a small machinegun turret that was reachable by the step ladder within. Anyone could man the weapon, but he along with everyone agreed to use it only in desperate situations to conserve ammunition.

"We're good Jet. The way is clear," Rocky replied.

"Good, let me drive up so you can hope in," said Jett.

"Well another day, another pack of Grimm slain," said Arian, there was a big smile across the Faunus girl's face that Rocky grin a little.

"But still we nowhere near Vacuo," Sapphire complained whilst rubbing her shoulder.

"Progress is still progress Sapphire," Rocky replied stoically, "Let's get on board and hopefully we'll somewhere good to camp."

Rocky stood and watched as the rest of his walked over to the bus when it close enough. He looked down at Riley, whoever the loyal companion remained by his aid panting away. Rocky knelt down and patted him on the head. "You did good today Riley", he said.

Riley gave a bark before reaching up and licking his face.

"Hey you two, its gonna get dark soon," Jett called out from his window.

"Coming," said Rocky.

Two hours later…

The crew were able to find a safe place to set up camp on top of a large cliff further down the path they were following, overlooking a huge valley filled with an endless sea of woodland. Jett was able to make a small fire with freshly chopped up wood provided by Rocky and the use of Phoenix's semblance, whilst Arian and Sapphire helped prep food.

It was now getting dark and everyone sat around the fireplace. Rocky used part of a tree trunk for a seat with Riley close by. They both were tucking a bowl of rice with added mushrooms, nuts and some venison meat. To his right was Arian, her head covered by her hoodie. She chose sat cross-legged on the grass. Phoenix and Sapphire were on the opposite side of the fire listening to Jett's stories.

Jett Noir was a tall, broad and muscular man. For a hairstyle, he had a short black mohawk that went from front to back, along with a beard of the same colour that split into two, resembling that of a two-pointed fork. He wore a dark blue flight suit which was from his previous career, flying as a pilot for the Atlesian military. After a few years of service and apparently some issues with the way the Kingdom of Atlas was run and its treatment its parent city Mantle, he decided to start again fresh in the Kingdom of a Vale. He had been up 'til now chauffeuring huntsmen and huntresses in training from Beacon Academy to assignments outside the city. During the battle for Beacon Academy, his transport was knocked out of the sky by a Nevermore. Luckily, he managed to make a safe crash landing in the city and survive the whole experience. He was in the middle of telling everyone about his latest mission before the fall.

"So it was 8 pm, I was picking up a team of junior huntsmen and huntresses who were assigned to safeguarding a village," he began, "When the sirens started clanging and we saw smoke coming from the city. Kids told me to head straight for the action."

"Did they have a cool name?" Arian asked whilst chewing her food.

"Why does matter?" Sapphire asked, "Only thing that matters is the name is a colour or makes you think of a colour."

"They called themselves JNPR, short for Juniper." Jett said, he paused to take a drink from his flask before continuing, "Interesting team they were, since most of them were from Mistral,"

"Mistral heh?" Phoenix asked, "You were from Mistral right Sapphire,"

Sapphire put a hand over face, "Ugh yes I was from Mistral. Can we just carry on with the story please?"

"Bad memories heh? Well, I saw the whole battle from the cockpit of my ship.

It was them coming to the rescue of another team that was already right in the heart of the action. Then came the Atlesian military. Quite the spectacle if you ask me."

"Hmph, yeah right," Phoenix scoffed and crossed his arms, "I'm pretty sure that battle would've been won without those dumb robots.,"

"Every little helps Phoenix," Arian replied.

"I'm surprised you're still fascinated by those things after what they did during…"

"But it's not the machines fault," Arian butted in, "Somebody must've hacked their systems. It has to be with that strange woman who took over the comms."

"Hmph, if you think you could a better job making those machines hack-proof why you are with us instead of heading over to Atlas."

"Are you serious Phoenix?" Arian rose to her feet, fists clenched, "You know as well I do that Atlas hasn't got the best attitude towards us Faunus."

"Well, it's better there than Mistral".

"They're both the same damn it!" Arian shouted.

At that point, Rocky put the empty bow down and stood up, "That's enough the both of you."

Riley gave a little a growl followed by a few barks. He too wasn't having any of this either.

"I think you two need to clear your heads before we carry on this crazy journey," Jett replied.

At that point, Arian scoffed and turned her back to the group.

"Where are you going? Sapphire asked.

"Just want some time alone in the bus," Arian replied before walking off.

Rocky sighed, "Nice going Phoenix."

"Man, what did I do?", Phoenix looked frustrated at Rocky, "I was saying that I don't trust them machines or whatever crap Atlas makes these days. And besides, wasn't this what the Faunus Revolution supposed to be about? Give them the right to live wherever they like?"

"It ain't that straightforward kid," Jett stated, "These things take time. You can't force people to treat others the same way they would like to be."

"I had friends in Mistral of Faunus origin," Sapphire added, "always picked on by normal kids as if they were worthless animals. It's sad really, I feel sorry for her."

An awkward silence fell upon the group. Everyone just stared into the campfire. The flames continue to burn. The wood acquired from the woodland

"I'll start washing up the bowls, Phoenix you can help me out."

"With what?" he asked.

"Can't wash dishes with cold water you know," Sapphire replied.

"Alright, I'm coming," Phoenix rose to his feet and followed Sapphire as she went around collecting all the bowls. They went around the back of the bus where a portable basin was placed along with a small lamp.

It was just now Rocky, Riley and Jett around the fireplace. Rocky looked at the former pilot, who was still staring uninterrupted at the fire. The flames glowed as they ascended upward and the wood acquired from the forest hissed and crackled underneath as the flames continued to reduce them to ash.

"I'm… I'm sorry about all that," Rocky began, "I didn't see that coming at all."

"Don't be kid," Jett replied, "It ain't your fault the world is what it is. Since Beacon's fall, it seems to be taking a turn for the worse and I feel like those who came before are to blame for it," he looked up from the fire at Rocky and asked, "Do you know what man's biggest enemy is?"

"The Creatures of Grimm?" Rocky answered. To him it made it sense to give this answer, since they were the reason why he wanted to become a huntsman, just like his mother and those who came before him.

"Nope," Jett replied blankly, "It is man… Man is its own worst enemy kid."

, look puzzled, he wasn't sure what to make of this statement. "But why?" he asked.

"Look back at our history Rocky. Remnant is full of events that we humans could've done better or avoided, but we didn't. was placed Then you have the more recent events like Mountain Glenn…" he paused for a moment and sighed heavily before continuing, "I had friends in that place. Was a nice place in the beginning. People moved in to set up shops and cafes, brought their families along with them. Then along came Merlot Industries, those bastards apparently were experimenting with Grimm and were always looking for more specimens. By the time people realised what they were doing, it was too late. All these events and the negativity they bring out attract Grimm like moths to a bright candle. Doesn't take a damn scientist to realise this, yet we continue to make the same mistakes."

"It's never too late to learn from these mistakes," Rocky replied.

Jett snorted, "The way things are going, its as if no one cares about the world's history. And if it continues like that, I don't think there'll be anyone left to do so."

Rocky resisted the urge to clench his fists. The conversation brought nothing but a growing sense of anger. He had spent most of his life surviving. He left Vacuo from a young age and journeyed to Vale. He thought his life would improve and in reality, they did. All that changed after the fall of Beacon. He was lost in his internal emotions until he something cold and wet touch his hand. He snapped out and looked to see Riley, his canine companion moaned softly. It was enough to make him let go of his internal rage. He kneeled down and stroked the back of Riley's neck.

"Think it's time we checked on Arian," said Rocky, he then looked at Jett, "I'll be back with Arian to patrol."

"Alright," Jett acknowledged and continued to stare at the fire.

Rocky stood up and headed for Dixie. He climbed up the steps and looked down the corridor. It was dark save for a little light at the far end. He walked down the corridor, passing rows of empty seats. Some of them had their bags and small boxes containing supplies for the journey. He stopped halfway down to look at one of the seats to check on his rucksack, there was a small neatly folded blanket was placed on the seat next to it. Satisfied that no-one had touched his things, he continued down the corridor. He found Arian at the end. The Faunus girl was wrapped in her blanket and her squirrel ears were covered up by her hood. She was holding her scroll with one hand whilst reading a book.

"Hey," Rocky started.

"Oh hey," Arian replied quietly.

"So what are you reading?" Rocky asked.

Arian put a finger in between the pages she was at as she closed the book and presented the title "The Man with Two Souls."

"Ah I heard of that," Rocky replied, "Never knew you were into sort of stuff."

"I'll lend it to you when I've finished it if you want," Arian offered.

"It's fine, I prefer comics personally. Pictures are worth a thousand words right?"

"Yeah," Arian chuckled, "I remember when Ruby was with us, we would swap comics and talk about our favourite stories."

"She was a heck of a storyteller," said Rocky.

"I wonder where she is right now?" Arian asked.

Rocky simply shrugged. He was almost in the dark as everyone else about Ruby Rose since Beacon. He decided to sit down on the seat opposite Arian. He opened his legs so that Riley could sit between them.

"Last I heard, her Uncle Qrow brought her back home. Then a few days later she took off with some other students. Weird you know."

"What's weird?" Arian look at Rocky curiously.

"Just that… You, me, Sapphire and Phoenix should be the ones applying to Beacon Academy before Ruby. Next thing we know, she's jumped the queue two years ahead of us."

"Yeah, I agree. But then, she is one of a kind. I mean… hunting monsters has been in her family, plus how many people can wield a scythe that also functions as a sniper rifle? That takes quite a lot of skill and strength to wield."

"Pff come on, my axe Ruptor Terrae is as heavy as her Crescent Rose if not heavier. No different."

"Is it?" Arian looked at him with a blank expression.

Rocky sighed, "Ah heck, its probably some special treatment. I mean both her parents along with her Uncle Qrow went to Beacon. Gotta be to do with some shady favours going on."

"That's not nice," Arian protested, "Tai would never put anyone ahead for transfer to any academy let alone Beacon unless he was confident, they would manage."

"So why weren't we picked to go with Ruby and Yang? Rocky asked, "Again it comes back to why doesn't it? Why her?"

"Are you jealous Rocky?" Arian asked.

Rocky didn't expect Arian to ask him this question, "Wha…what? I…", he took a deep breath before answering, "I don't know. Ok, maybe a little but I'm more surprised. None of it makes sense. If I were there, I would've been by her side."

"So would I," said Arian, "But we weren't ready then."

"I don't think she was ready either, for any of this," Rocky replied but with a lower voice, almost muttering. He lowered his head. He didn't know what else to say.

Arian leaned forward and a hand on his shoulder, "She's stronger than she looks Rocky and I'm sure Yang is on her way to find her. They'll have each other."

"Yeah, I hope you're right," said Rocky

"We need to focus on our team and get to Shade Academy."

"Shade Academy, Vacuo," Rocky muttered. He dreaded the day that he would return to his place of birth. "Are you still ok with this though?" He asked.

"It's not Beacon but…" Arian paused for a moment before she replied, "It should hopefully be better than Mistral or Atlas. And they say if you can survive out there, you're more than welcome there."

"Yeah true," Rocky admitted, "But you won't find any acorn trees out there, or anything that can bear nuts or fruit."

"I know. That's why I got a bag load right here," she pointed down to underneath her seat, where another bag was stowed. Rocky guessed that it contained her favourite types of nuts and other snacks she gathered before the journey began.

"Ever the hoarder," Rocky chuckled. He looked out of the window, Jett was still sitting by the fireplace and he assumed that Sapphire and Phoenix were on watch duty. While there haven't been any signs of Grimm close by. It was always a good idea to have someone on watch, especially when so far away from the Kingdom of Vale.

"Come on, some fresh air will do us some good," said Rocky. He rose to his feet and gestured to Riley to lead the way.

"Hey Rocky, can I ask you something?" Arian spoke again.

"Sure. What is it?" Rocky was curious.

"You know when we talked about where we wanted to go after Signal. You were the most reluctant about going back Vacuo. You never said why."

Rocky put a hand down his face and sighed, "It's a long personal story. Something I don't really wanna talk about at the moment. Short story, I hate sand."

Arian shook her head as she chuckled.

"Believe me," Rocky explained, "All you'll see in Vacuo is sand, sand, rocks here and there, some natural weather phenomenon that the natives have a special name for, Mole Crabs and… more sand."

"Ok you made your point," said Arian.

At that point, they heard Riley bark at them, he was waiting impatiently at the front of the bus for them. Rocky turned back to Arian and smiled, "Don't keep us waiting now," Rocky smiled.

"Ok," Arian returned the smile.

Satisfied with the conversation, Rocky turned around and headed back up the bus. He knew though, that at some point if not on this journey he would have to give Arian the whole story about why he left Vacuo. And why he was reluctant to do go back there.

But for now, he just wanted to get through the night and continue the journey tomorrow.