RWBY: Revenant

By Endbeats

Chapter 24: After – Mistral City

Soul awoke from his dream in a cold sweat, which continued to play in his head even as he looked towards the sunlit window. Him, standing over corpses and corpses. It kept playing in his head. Blood, soaking his hands and refusing to wash off. It kept playing in his head. His three targets, standing at a distance, untouched by the horrors. It kept playing in his head.

The cycle was too much for him, and Soul slammed his fist into the wall, shaking the room.

You want to talk about what just went on in your head? the Voice popped in, an unwilling witness to the dream herself. Concern continued to remain prevalent in her voice anytime she addressed Soul, even if she was having a disagreement with him now.

"I'm… not that. I know I'm not that."

You're changing, the Voice simply stated.

Soul growled. "No! I'm not that. I'm not a monster."

And now you've started lying to yourself.

Soul clinched his fist, but relented and let go. It was too late to tell himself what he wasn't. He was a murderer. He was a monster. He's come this far, so what's the point in lying?

Slowly, he climbed out of his small bed, and walked towards the other side of his inn room. Like ripping a bandage off, he threw open the curtains to the beautiful sight of Mistral City. Hundreds of buildings all lined up on the side of mountains, built around the same type of Mistral architecture. Sure, some were unique, but all pertained to the architecture this kingdom had cultivated. At the center of it all fell one large waterfall that glowed with the small outline of a rainbow from Soul's position, and at the top of the waterfall sat the largest building of the city, the capital building. The geography of the place was a little strange, but it's supposed to represent the power of the kingdom, Soul supposed.

"Beautiful place, huh?" Soul asked.

Yep, the Voice said quickly with a forced disinterest sprouting from her voice. She was still bitter about Soul's decision, but retained that she would stay by his side. It had only taken a few days for Soul to arrive at the city, giving him ample time to wait for Adam to attack. He'd specifically chosen the closest hotel to the academy, in pursuit of this. But now, he could do nothing until Adam's arrival. Every day became torture as he felt antsy at the White Fang's attack. He wanted so desperately to face his friend's murderer that he had the perpetual feeling of butterflies in his stomach.

The beauty of the scenery, in the end, did not overshadow his emotional state, nor did it stop his stomach from growling. He closed the window and spun around towards his backpack, taking out money that he stole from a couple of thieves on the road. He pulled his sweater over his head and, with a small touch of electricity, pulled the sweater into his sleeve like a snake.

"Let's go outside," Soul said to the Voice as he pushed the door open.

Okay, she replied passionlessly.

"I'm sure you'll want to see what Mistral City is like."

Great.


The streets were fairly crowded, though nowhere near the level of Menagerie's main street. Tall buildings lined the sides of the road, and filled Soul with a strange nostalgia. Mistral city was close in structure to his old hometown, only a tad grander and more packed. There were a small amount of beggars, but the street Soul was walking down was a good part of town, so the number remained very limited. Soul continued walking down the cobblestone road, looking for a place to find some food.

Eventually, he found something that peaked his interest: a market around the corner. Following the sign and the loud crowds that seemed to also look hungry, Soul reached a large set of stands, filled to the brim with fruits, vegetables, meats, and even some fully-cooked meals. The sight, and more importantly the smell, made his stomach rumble even more, and it made him walk more quickly towards the first stand.

"Hello!" the stand owner said, "Are you interested in some fresh vegetables? Two liens less than whatever the liar over there is selling!"

Suddenly, another stand owner's voice erupted from the left, making Soul jump. "Hey! I'll sell you this fresh watermelon for only one lien!"

"Don't listen to him-"

"Please, sir, have a taste-"

"I'll sell you anything I own! Even my-"

Soul quickly walked away from the entrance, where the loudest merchants seemed to be. Besides, he was staying in the hotel. He had no way of refrigeration, so buying fruit or veggies seemed useless. Instead, he moved towards the back, where the full-meal stands seemed to be. Some owners were brewing large vats of soup. Others were masterfully throwing dough in the air. He even saw a man juggle fruit, which he cut in the air.

There was one stand, however, that did more than make his mouth drool. It made him stand in the center of the set of merchants, dumbfounded and surprised. It was the hat. The musketeer hat.

It was Athos, who caught eyes with Soul. The surprise mirrored in his face as well, and the noodles he was stretching fell out of his hands, and onto the table.

"Liu?!"


Soul sat down in the small wooden table with attached chairs just as Athos came by with two plates of noodles. "Here you go," Athos said with a smile, "Two of the family specials."

After sitting down, Athos took off his hat, revealing a far shorter hair-do than before. It was parted at the center and pulled backwards, though his thin bangs moved gracefully with the wind.

"You cut your hair," Soul said as he started digging into the complimentary meal.

"And you grew yours out," Athos replied. "Strange to see you up and about. The last thing I heard was that you were in the hospital."

"I recovered a few months ago," Soul said. With a false smile, he continued, "Anyways, what's happening with you? I thought you had a mission to become a soldier."

Athos chuckled a bit. "Supporting my family comes first. I guess you could say it's a blessing in disguise after what happened."

Soul nodded and kept silent, as survivors of the Fall seemed to do.

Interrupting the silence, however, was the introduction of two women, possibly college students. "Excuse me," the left one said, "Could we sit on the other side?"

Like from out of a time machine, Athos jumped up and bowed. "Of course, my ladies! Just say the word, and I may shower you with any generosity!"

The two girls, gave each other nervous looks before the right one spoke. "Never mind, we'll sit somewhere else."

Their exit, and Athos' defeated expression, made Soul chuckle a bit. "I'm glad you haven't changed, Athos."

"Hey, I've changed plenty! I'm still training as always, and I will one day join the Mistral army!" Athos stated confidently.

However, the mention of change made Soul frown a bit. He couldn't forget what the Voice told him.

You've changed.

Soul rubbed his eyes, a sight that concerned Athos. "You okay, Liu?"

"Yeah, yeah, just a little headache."

Suddenly, the bell of Athos' stand rang, indicating his substitute required him to take over one more. "Shoot," Athos complained, "Well, if you're still in town, why don't you come by tonight and we can catch up some more, Liu? I'd like to hear what's been happening with you since Beacon."

Quietly, he could hear the Voice, who kept quiet, snicker sarcastically.

Soul nodded. "Sure, I'll come by around six or so."

With a nod and a tilt of his hat, Athos returned to his market stand and continued his noodle cooking.

You've hardly touched your food, the Voice spoke up.

Soul shook his head and gulped his noodles quickly, within the span of thirty seconds. "How's that?"

Good, I suppose.

He groaned. "I don't want to change. I don't want to become what that dream was. But… I know it's inevitable."

The Voice grumbled back. Soul, you've talked about this so much. Can you just stop thinking and look forward to seeing a friend tonight?

Soul nodded. "Okay."

He carefully stood up and threw the plate into the trash nearby. "Did I ever tell you about the time Athos and I fought?" he mumbled quietly while walking back to the hotel?

No, and I don't think I read it in your memories either.

Soul smiled a tad bit. "It was a fun fight. Only a few weeks after…"


(Author's Note: Hello! Sorry it's another short chapter, but I promise the next after chapter will be far longer... maybe... Anyways, have a good night, and God bless!)