Hope you guys didn't miss me! Anyway, here it is, the first chapter... of Volume (4)
VOLUME (4)
Chapter 38
The Beast of Beacon
It's been just over a year since the Fall of Beacon.
All in all, things worldwide haven't been good. First of all, many students and civilians died that day, among them my friends, Penny Polendina and Pyrrha Nikos. Second, the presence of many who would upset the current balance of the world came to light, among them a woman searching for power from these 'Maidens', whatever they are, and my own uncle, Oni Strife, who seemed to be doing the same. On top of whatever goals they are working towards, their previous actions led to the destruction of Vale's CCT and, by extension, the complete shutdown of global communications. Thus, unless you were in a kingdom or close enough for local communications, you weren't getting a message out. By extension, communication between kingdoms had been entirely shut down, causing even further unrest in an already divided world. While that woman may be a threat, there existed an even greater one; Oni Strife. This is partially due to my own connections with the man, and partially due to the responsibility I feel for what he has done and will do in the future. Thus, I am currently searching for more that share my blood who could potentially assist in taking down the strongest Huntsman alive. Due to what he's done, I feel this is the only viable course of action, as even myself, a comparatively pure-blooded Strife, was unable to stop him, even with the assistance of the top-ranked Huntsman of Atlas, Noctus Hale, my new traveling companion. This is also to ensure that I don't endanger those unaffiliated with this familial struggle. Even if... Even if I never wanted to leave them.
Pulled from his thoughts, Link shook his head and looked up, he and Noctus sitting at a table in a gas station to refuel and grab a few supplies.
"Lost in thoughts again?" Noctus asked, taking a swig of the drink he'd bought at the counter.
"Just..." Link mumbled, rubbing the bridge of his nose, "trying to figure out what to do next."
"That's fair..." Noctus replied, swishing his drink around. "We've been looking for a while, but with no luck."
"Can't just stop because we haven't had any luck," Link said, grabbing Noctus' drink and drinking the rest. "He won't stop just because he can't find them."
"Dude that cost me like 3 lien, what the fuck..." Noctus said, snatching the can back from Link.
"Yeah yeah, I'll buy you another one," Link said, hearing some rattling outside accompanied by hushed shouts.
"I'mma check it out," Noctus said, rising from his seat, Link sighing and standing as well.
"Might as well join you, we're basically done here," Link said as he followed his partner outside. Doing so, they were greeted by the sight of a few petty thieves trying to steal their weapons and bikes, failing both to jumpstart them and to undo the weapon locks that held them in place.
"What are you doing?" Noctus asked sarcastically, knowing full well what is was that they were doing.
"Back off," one of them said, pushing his coat out of the way to reveal a pistol tucked in his belt.
"Oh no, a gun," Link said, rolling his eye. "Look, I'm gonna give you a chance to leave before my friend and I here get rid of you ourselves."
"You'd better back off before I make your left eye match your right one," the one with the gun said, grabbing the pistol and waving it around in an attempt to scare them off. Naturally, Noctus did the most sensible thing and laughed, calming himself down after a moment.
"That's cute, kiddo," Noctus said, the guy raising the gun and aiming it at him, Noctus nudging Link beside him and faking fear for a moment. "Watch out, I'm gonna get shot!"
"I'm gonna do more than just shoot you if you keep laughing like that!" the guy said, now directly aiming at Noctus, the Huntsman simply laughing again. Link couldn't help but smile as well, though he didn't laugh.
"It's hard to look intimidating when you're holding an empty gun," Link said, shrugging as he took a step forward, the guy aiming at him and fumbling with the trigger, definitely not having expected either of them to approach him so brazenly.
Surprisingly, the thief attempted to actually shoot Link, though as he said, the gun simply clicked. However, the thief was definitely confused, as he was sure that the gun was loaded. He fumbled with his coat for a moment to reach for a new clip, making sure it was loaded before readying the gun and pulling the trigger again, only for the gun to click again.
"Hey Hale, hold these for me, would you?" Link said, dropping the bullets from the gun into Noctus' hand, the Huntsman laughing once more.
"You took his bullets too?" he said, flipping one of the rounds in his free hand like a coin. "That's just mean."
"Yeah, well, I'd say that trying to steal our stuff is just a tad bit worse," Link said, stepping forward and rolling his neck, flexing his back as well before looking down at the comparatively smaller person. Getting this closer look at him, he figured he was in his teens. Likely orphans or part of a bad family, which tended to be more common the further you got from one of the Kingdoms. "So, you gonna leave or do we have to make this difficult?"
To his surprise, it was one of the other teens who stepped forward, pulling a knife and trying to stab Link, only for him to casually catch his wrist and pull him in, driving his shoulder into his gut. Due to the greater amount of armor he now wore, it hurt more than it would have during his Beacon days.
Throwing the poor kid away, he stepped towards his bike, the ones around it taking a few cautionary steps back before another tried to punch him from behind. Noctus chose this time to come in and grabbed his face before throwing him back, waggling a finger at him as he tried to stand back up.
"Ah ah ah, I don't think that was very nice," Noctus said laughing as he walked towards his own motorcycle, undoing the lock and checking to make sure none of the kids had damaged it. "You guys are lucky I'm not actively doing Huntsman work, otherwise I'd haul your punk asses to a local jail and make you wait until you'd learned your lessons."
"Y-you're a Huntsman?" the would-be gunman shakily asked, Noctus looking down at him and smiling.
"Oh no, kid, I'm not just a Huntsman," he said, sheathing the weapon and leaning down over him, smirking as he did. "I'm the best Huntsman of all of Atlas."
"You can show off later, we have what we needed from here," Link said, looking over his own weapons. Lifting them up to examine them for scratches from the kids, one of them got a better look at what they were and looked at them with wide eyes.
"Wait, I know that sword, you're..." he said, taking a step back, "...you're the Beast of Beacon!"
"The beast of what now?" Link said, hooking his standard arms to a strap and slinging it over his shoulder, taking care to tuck it under the white wolf pelt he now wore around his shoulders.
"You're that guy's nephew!" the kid said, backing away. "You were there at the Fall!"
"Yeah, I was," Link said, putting his rifle away as well. "So, do you really think trying to steal my bike is a good idea?"
He got the expected response, namely the teens all turning to run, basically tripping over themselves to get away from the pair. Noctus couldn't help but laugh as he watched one stumble and hit a tree, spinning a little to face them again before scrambling back to his feet and running again.
"How many times have we had thieves try this exact same thing over the past year?" he jeered, pulling his sword back out and mounting it back on the bike where it belonged.
"Too many," Link said with a sigh, tossing Noctus a few lien. "Here, I said I owed you a drink."
"You know, that arm and eye of yours might be why people keep thinking they can try it with us," Noctus said, gesturing to his eyepatch and covered arm before turning and heading back inside to grab himself another drink.
"Yeah..." Link said, holding up his right arm and looking over the thick sleeve bound around it with straps, paired with a thick glove to effectively hide the entire limb. Honestly, that's part of why he wore the emblazoned cloak he now did, to further hide his arm. Even after a year, what his uncle did to him stayed with him, as despite the time that had passed, he still couldn't properly generate aura around that limb.
Noctus interrupted his contemplating, coming back outside with a new drink and taking a swig before leaning against his motorcycle. "You know, if they knew the context, they'd probably stay away."
"Sounds like some people do, I suppose," Link said, referring to the kids from earlier. "What did they call me?"
"The Beast of Beacon," Noctus said as he finished his drink, tossing the empty can into a nearby trash can. "I kinda like it. Makes sense too, you fought like an animal out there."
"My Beacon days are long gone," Link said, hopping onto his motorcycle. "I'm just trying to make sure nothing like that happens again."
"Yeah yeah, I know," Noctus said, rolling his eyes and getting onto his own motorcycle. "Let's get going then. What's the next town?"
"That would be..." Link said, getting out his map and scanning it for their current location. With the disruption of the CCT, scrolls were basically useless for navigation. Especially in Vale, considering the tower was still in pieces. "Ah, looks like the closest town we haven't been to is Kingston, due east of here."
"So due east it is," Noctus said, starting his motorcycle as Link put away his map, starting Epona and pulling off, the Huntsman following behind him closely.
OOO
After a good while on whatever roads they could find that actually led them to Kingston (as well as several detours for the duo to kill any Grimm they encountered, just about the only practice they could get at this point), they arrived at the secluded town. Looking around as they coasted through to look for a place to park, they could tell that the town was made of the remnants of an old outpost from the Great War, providing rather substantial defenses from whatever may try to besiege the settlement.
"You know, I wasn't expecting something from the Great War to last this long..." Noctus said, looking around and nodding in approval.
"I can't really agree," Link said, taking note of the well-maintained structures. "If it survived that war, it can probably survive whatever nature throws at them."
"You know, when you put it that way..." Noctus said, the finally noticing an inn with free parking, the pair heading there and parking, Link securing his weapons back onto Epona and stretching his back for a moment.
"Well, you know the drill, let's see if this town has anyone that might be a Strife," Link said, looking around and heading towards the bar. "I'm taking the bar."
"Ah, no fair, you can't even drink!" Noctus groaned, shaking his head and waving it off. "Ah, whatever, I don't really drink either, so it's not like I'm really missing out..."
Heading the other way, he got the sly idea to check the liquor store, as he figured if there was anywhere else a Huntsman would be, it would be the liquor store.
As for Link, he headed inside and looked around, seeing that it was luckily a bar and grill, and as such he could grab a decent meal if he so desired. Sitting up at the bar, he grabbed a menu and started skimming through it to see what appealed to him. Finding what looked to be a decent steak, he sat back and waited for someone to come take his order. They eventually came, a lean man who didn't seem to be much older than Link himself.
"Hello, sir, what can I start you off with?" he asked, grabbing a notepad. "Any appetizers, or anything to drink?"
"For the moment, just water is fine, but can I get the number 4?" he asked, the waiter writing it down for him.
"Will that be all for you?" he asked, though Link had another thing in mind.
"No, I'm actually curious about something," Link said, setting down the menu. "Does this town have any Huntsmen, or anyone in a similar profession?"
The waiter actually stumbled for a moment, clearly not expecting him to ask about a Huntsman at a bar. "M-may I ask why?"
"I'm looking for someone to help with a job I have in mind," Link said, only trying to give the relevant info. After all, outright saying he was hunting the man who showed up a year ago at the Vytal Festival would likely turn people away. "It's rather long term, but it's honest work."
"Well, I might be able to give you a hand then," the waiter said, looking around to ensure none of the other patrons needed anything. "You see..."
OOO
Heading into the liquor store, Noctus looked around to see that there were only a few patrons inside. Shrugging, he quickly browsed the aisles to see if there was anything that looked worth buying, finding a small bottle of vodka from Mantle, which was admittedly more expensive than usual due to the current situation between the Kingdoms. He could still afford it rather easily, so he'd found what he'd be buying.
Grabbing the bottle, he carried it to the checkout and scanned his item, the cashier putting it in a bag for him.
"Will that be all for you today?" the cashier asked, Noctus taking his item and resting his elbows on the counter.
"Nah, I gotta question. I'm new in town, and I'm looking for a Huntsman to help with a job," he said, passing the cashier the lien he owed. "Anybody here that fits the bill?"
"I'll be honest, I don't think we've got any Huntsmen in town," the cashier said, figuring he had time to talk since the other customers were still browsing. "Not since Beacon got raided."
"Got names?" Noctus asked, though the cashier shook his head.
"No dice, I never met any of them," he said, now taking a better look at Noctus. "Aren't you a Huntsman? Can't you do it yourself?"
"Trust me, if I could do it myself, I would," Noctus said. "Well, thanks for your help anyway."
"We may not have a Huntsman in town, but I still might have something you'd be interested in," the cashier said, getting Noctus' attention back.
"I'm listening..." Noctus said, doing just that as the cashier explained.
OOO
Having eaten his meal, Link figured now was as good a time as any to let Noctus know that he may have found something that could be beneficial to them. Heading back to where he and the pro Huntsman had parked, he saw him sitting on a nearby bench taking the occasional swig from his purchase.
"Where'd you even get that?" Link asked, clearly referring to the drink in Noctus' hand.
"The bench was here when I got here," Noctus said, chuckling as Link glared at him. "There's a liquor store in town, and they had some vodka from Mantle that caught my eye."
"Well, I managed to find some info at the bar that may help us out," Link said, Noctus nodding and leaning back.
"Same, clerk knew a little something," Noctus said, watching as Link came up and sat next to him. "Turns out that even though there aren't any real Huntsmen in this town, there's a local mercenary group that started up somewhere in rural Vale. He wasn't sure where they're based from, but apparently they've got scouts heading around to see if people need their help before sending word back to send a unit."
"That may actually work out for us," Link said, nodding as he thought over the information. "Oh, right, I actually heard about those mercenaries too, but my guy didn't go as far in depth. That being said, he did say that the leader was a licensed Huntsman that gathered up people who could fight. They probably turned into the mercenaries as they are now."
"Makes sense to me," Noctus said, yawning and leaning back. "We should probably crash in this town before we leave; it's starting to get late, and the last time we slept we camped."
"I guess we can," Link said, standing back up and stretching, wincing as he felt the pull on his stomach wound, which hadn't properly healed, as was the case with his arm. It healed more thoroughly though, and luckily wouldn't tear open if he exerted himself. It still hurt though. "I wouldn't mind being able to change my dressings either."
"I'll give you a hand then," Noctus said as he stood back up. "Let's go then, a nice, long rest couldn't hurt."
The pair did just that, heading inside the inn and asking for a room with two beds, receiving the keys and heading up to do just that. Entering the room, Noctus sat gratefully on the bed and sighed, Link removing his cloak and revealing the rest of the large black sleeve bound around his arm. Undoing a few snap clasps and loosening the straps around his arm, he started gingerly sliding the piece from his arm, gritting his teeth all the while. Finally getting it off and removing the glove, it revealed his arm, covered in still blood-stained bandages, though his arm had gotten somewhat better after being treated by a few general practitioners they'd encountered. Sadly, they were unable to find a proper doctor to actually fix it up properly. Slowly unraveling the bandages in order to minimize the pain, he worked his way down from shoulder to hand, dropping the used bandages into the garbage can. This put his arm on full display, still bruised, bloodied, and covered in cuts and tears from what Oni had done to him.
"You're up," he said, Noctus nodding and grabbing a rag and pouring some mild antiseptic on it and tossing Link a belt with several teeth marks on it, the swordsman putting in in his mouth and nodding. With the green light given, Noctus went to work applying the antiseptic to the entire arm, ignoring Link's groans of pain as he kept going. Eventually, he finished up and tossed the rag in the bathroom sink, coming back and grabbing a few rolls of bandages before re-wrapping the entire limb, making sure to do so rather tightly to keep pressure on the still-open wounds. Done with the application of general first aid, he went back to wash up the rag as well as his hands while Link experimentally rolled his arm and moved his fingers, ensuring that it didn't cut off circulation or restrict his movement before taking the belt out of his mouth.
"Yeah, that'll work," Link said, still wincing as he rested his arm back on the bed. "Thanks, as always."
"Yep, no problem," Noctus said, turning over to see there was a shower. "Oh, we've got a shower in here. I'm using it first."
"Go ahead, I need to wrap this thing up again to take a shower anyway," Link said as he took off the rest of his armor. He also removed the eyepatch he now wore, grabbing a small mirror off the desk and looking at his eye, thankful that the wound had fully healed, unlike his arm and torso. That being said, he still didn't like looking at it, but he knew that at the moment he had to wash it up. It really had been a while since he'd cleaned... well, anything he usually wore, and this was as good a time as any. He remembered seeing a washing machine near the lobby, so he removed all his armor, grabbed different clothes, and went downstairs, tossing them all in and running it.
Back in the room, Noctus shortly thereafter finished his shower, getting out and wrapping himself with a towel. Looking in the mirror, he took note of the fact that he hadn't been able to properly shave in a while, a fair bit of stubble lining his jaw. Still looking, he saw the multitude of new scars he'd gotten from his battle against Oni, including the most easily visible one over the bridge of his nose.
"Lucky shots," he said to himself before putting on light clothes and heading back into the main room, seeing that Link wasn't there. Shrugging, he hopped into the bed he'd chosen as his own and got out his scroll, putting in some headphones and listening to some music. Link eventually came back, now with his set of usual attire cleaned.
"They've got a washing machine, I'd suggest using it before we head back out," Link said, tossing his clothes on the chair by his bed and laying down. "I'll shower tomorrow and give my arm some time to stop hurting."
"We aren't really in any rush, especially since we may have gotten a hit," Noctus said, rising and gathering his own combat gear before heading down to wash it.
"Let's hope this one actually gives us something..." Link muttered as Noctus closed the door. He sighed to himself, as the past year simply hadn't been kind to him. After the fall, he was forced to leave all of his friends behind in order to try and save them and stop his uncle. And while Noctus was a good traveling companion, he still wished he could talk to someone he could connect to, someone he could relate to. The former assassin for hire was certainly strong though, and as such Link had few qualms with his inclusion on this quest.
Figuring that now was as good a time as any, he grabbed a familiar notebook and a pencil, taking a moment to look over the worn cover before opening it up, flipping to the first blank page and going to write.
Date: XX/XX/XXXX
Log Issue 8
After the Fall
I suppose it's been a long time since I've written in this journal. Quite frankly, I just hadn't felt the desire to log any part of what simply amounted to a year's worth of failures. Stories of skilled fighters turned out to be nothing more than liars trying to seem important in this secluded world, and records of decorated Huntsman led to nothing more than graves. But this time, we aren't dealing with an isolated occurrence, we're looking at a band of mercenaries that may lead us to another Strife. Even in the case this doesn't directly lead us to a Strife, the network of scouts they possess may prove to be useful in locating someone, anyone who could turn the tide against that monster. And while chances are still slim, this may at the very least lead to a band who could potentially keep his forces at bay while we fight. It's a long shot, but it may end up being the best shot we have. And if we manage to stop him, then I can go back to living the life I saw for myself while I was at Beacon.
I can go back to her.
-Link Valion
OOO
"Sir, we have news."
"Speak."
Despite all Links efforts to try to find someone who could aid him in his efforts to stop his uncle, Oni had continued to search for the next Maiden he was to acquire the power of, which admittedly proved difficult still. He was quite clear in his declaration a year ago; the longer he takes to find them, the worse off they'll be. He may have patience, but even he was starting to grow tired of waiting.
"Our scouts have determined that the girl who wounded the Fall Maiden back at Beacon is currently on her way to Haven Academy here in Mistral. As always, you made the right call in coming here," said Oni's soldier, kneeling before him.
"It makes sense, considering how fickle their headmaster was in 'admitting' GOLD..." Oni said, leaning back in thought. Over the past year, he figured he'd don more Mistralian armor to suit his operations there and stand out ever so slightly less when the time comes to move. As such, he wore much more eastern armor, and even allowed his hair to grow out, now reaching past his shoulders. "Fall proved to be easier to acquire than anticipated, so assuming we find Spring quickly, we may be able to move on to Winter and Summer in due time."
"Excellent, Sir," the soldier said, still kneeling before him.
"You know..." he said, leaning back and crossing his legs, "since my ascension to the Lord of Fall, I don't think calling me 'sir' fits quite as well anymore. Wouldn't you agree?"
"I-I believe that any title you see fit would be nothing short of perfect, Sir," the soldier stuttered, choosing his words carefully. Luckily for him, he chose well, Oni chuckling quietly.
"Good answer," he said, experimentally setting his eyes aglow with his aforementioned power. "Let me think... Ah! Spread the word. From today forth, you are to refer to me as 'My Lord'. Is this understood?"
"O-Of course, My Lord," the soldier said, nodding from his position.
"Good. Now go, you are dismissed," he said, waving the man off, who in turn rose and left the room quickly. "Spring... Where are you?"
Here it is! The first chapter of Volume (4)! Needless to say, this was more of an introductory chapter, so there wasn't much in the way of action, aside from those thieves after their things. I'm also trying a new approach to describing character appearances, only describing parts of their appearance when necessary, so as not to overload you with an emersion breaking wall of text. If that works better than lumping a comprehensive visual description, I'd love to hear feedback on it! As always, any feedback at all, like whatever parts of the story you like, things you didn't necessarily like, or things you'd like to see! I'd be more than happy to work in suggestions that I feel would benefit the story. And now, moving on from the lame stuff, I'd like to add something else.
As you know, many central characters in RWBY feature their own theme songs. Along that same vein, I'd like to say that I have found a suitable theme for none other than one of our favorite villains, Oni Strife. (Or at least, one of my favorites)
Oni Strife's theme will from now on be God Shattering Star, from Fire Emblem: Three Houses. It feels too fitting for an enigmatic pillar of strength such as the strongest Huntsman alive. But that's it for this author's note. I know not all of you will, but I'm sure some of you are really cool and care for what I say. Y'all are the real ones.
OniHelix out!
