Chapter 19: A Darker Shade of Gold: Hell's Gate
Time for things to get a little darker. Who says gold is a nice color, in this story, not even. Don't worry though, I'll be more focused on a breaking and entering scene then depression and tragedy. This story being the team up of Roman, Ruby, and Jaune himself.
A badass crew with a mission in mind. Enjoy.
"Alright folks, time for another world, this one featuring a good number of people. More focused on a special goal before they ditch each other and leave." Mayden told his good old audience on what they would be seeing next. The crowd sitting down waiting to see just what kind of world they would be watching.
"I don't suppose it'll be another two-parter like last time." Whitley said.
"Nope." Mayden then says to him along with everybody else. "We won't be seeing that type of thing for a long while. Instead this is just a regular paced one. One where you'll be rather surprised on who its featuring."
"Will it be me?" Tock then asked hoping to see more versions of herself. While she didn't mind watching the others, even she wanted to see what other dimensional counterparts of hers was out there. A few like Ironwood and Oscar also feeling the same thing.
"Sorry Tock. But your not exactly...in a lot of created worlds." Mayden then admitted. True he did know one world where Tock was in it, but nowhere else did he find her. The faunus herself just grunting a bit at the unfairness of it all. There was always next time.
"So then, what kind of world will we be seeing." Ruby raised her hand wanting a few spoilers. "Will it fautre people from Beacon, or the 'Bad Side'?"
"A bit of both actually." Mayden reveals.
"Really?" Emerald raised her brow. "Is it some world where, I dunno, we work together or something." She then made a guess, not actually asking a question.
"Your actually close on the mark Emerald." Mayden says glad to know someone was close. "But I won't reveal anything else. Instead you'll have to find out for yourself by watching it. Enjoy." With those words the screen turned on again ready for the cast to watch what world this would be. Some excited, some worried, and some just eating regularly. It was then the screen turned on showing a very familiar face. One that made a few wonder what happened to him.
'Me!' The blond knight thought as he saw his face on the screen. 'But..why do I look so...off?' Many from the good side also thought that, and figured they might find out if they listened.
Jaune trudged through the muddy path with a heavy heart. With every step, he got closer to the end of his mission. Normally, that would've made him happy, but he couldn't help but worry for Summer. His Semblance was not protecting her any more. His connections with his sisters, all normal Marks instead of Soulmarks, were unusable too. Were something to happen to her, she would be without the semi-invincible armour she had always had. Without the armour she had probably gotten used to.
He had begun his mission with the only goal of removing his connection with the woman, but in the two weeks he had known Ruby, he had gotten to care a bit for her. If he could, he didn't want to make her sad by letting Summer die. He knew very well what loss could do to people, and he had the inkling Ruby had never really gotten over her mother's supposed death. She was just too naive to be anything but in denial. In denial of the cruelness of the world, or in denial of her mother's death, he could not say.
If losing her mother once had brought the girl to hide her pain so much, he didn't like the idea of what losing her twice could do to the girl. It might even break her mind.
"M-mom!" Ruby then said more surprised at the implications her mother was alive than the way Jaune looked. Many others like Yang, Qrow, and even Ozpin also shocked as well. Because this Jaune had just outrighted said Summer was alive somehow.
"Now this got interesting." Cardin says chewing on some popcorn. He was also curious about this Jaune, not just because this version seemed a bit more serious, but also it was what he thought. Something about knowing Ruby-shouldn't he already know her since he was in Beacon?
"Wow Jaune, you really let yourself go." Nora said chewing on some pancakes. Ren chastising her for saying such things rather incesively.
"Nora, you shouldn't say such things. We don't know what this version of Jaune went through." Ren told her with Jaune thanking him. But he also wondered what was up with him. Why did this version of him look so...sad? In a way, a part of him didn't want to find out.
He shook his head. 'No. I am not going to let Summer die. I never promised anything like this before, but I will save her. I may not have been able to save Mom and Dad, but those were beyond my power. I'd sooner die than let someone die under my watch.'
"..." Okay, now he really didn't want to know. His parents were gone! That...couldn't be good. Many on the 'Good Side' particularly the students, also felt rather uncomfortable. Hopefully this isn't some tragic world.
"Good thing I' only showing the fight scene." Mayden whispered knowing these students likely would be unable to handle seeing the beginning of this world. It's M rating for a reason.
"So this is it?" Roman's voice cut through his internal musing like a hot knife through butter. The boy looked up and glared at the large, windowless building before him. A muted, constant growling came from behind the well-maintained door. "Sure looks like it."
"And looks like I'm here to. Sweet." Roman said glad he was alive in this universe. Some like Ironwood just growled.
"Looks like you're not the only one either." Mercury also spotted him, and even Neo and Ruby with Jaune. "Man we make a weird sight."
"What could you possibly be doing with them!?" Yang said with Weiss and Blake feeling the same. None of the girls part of Team RWBY sure why someone as sweet as Ruby was with criminals.
"I-I don't know. Mayden." Ruby then looked up hoping the Keeper had an answer.
"Let's just say your only with them because they're your only chance at saving your mom." Now that just made some of the members in the seats even more confused. How is it criminals such as Roman and Neo were Ruby's chance at saving a still alive Summer. Yang herself wondering where the heck she was in protecting her sister?
"I have never been inside, but I think it is. Whenever I passed by this house when I was a kid, I could hear faint screams and Grimm growls." He forced out a sigh. "I cannot hear screams any more, but this might not mean anything. Maybe they just made the labs proper soundproof."
"Well, from my estimation, there is at least a whole pack of Beowolves in there, and they've sensed us already. For some reason, they are not coming out to attack us." Mercury glanced at him. "Must be Watts controlling the Grimm."
Jaune stared at him. "I never told you that," he noted with more than a hint of suspicion in his voice. Mercury stiffened and silently cursed. "How do you know he can control Grimm?"
"Yes, how can he?" Cinder mused wondering how Watts can do such a thing. Then again, she herself could control Grimm thanks to Salem, so it wouldn't be off it Salem herself gave Watts control over some in this universe. The Fall Maiden wondered what it was Watts was doing.
Sighing, the assassin shook his head. "Listen, I put all of that behind me when I betrayed my boss. Long story short, you don't want to know about this. Not yet, anyway. Maybe after we're done with this. But yeah, my boss was the failure so disliked by Watts. During their meetings, I swear I could see the sparks going off between them." He closed his eyes and when he opened them again, they were hard with determination. "I don't want anything to do with that any more. That was a game of chess where no one knows the full truth. I was used as a pawn, and I got away. End of the story. My boss and her colleagues could control Grimm."
Cinder glared at Mercury alongside Emerald. Mercury betrayed her, and considering Roman and Neo are with him, it was likely they did the same. This was...interesting…
Adam just scoffed, figuring there was a good reason those three ditched Cinder. Her personality.
"And just like that Cinder is way scarier now," grumbled Torchwick. "If she can control Grimm, why hasn't she ordered them to track us down already?"
Mercury and Neo exchanged a glance. "Well… because she's too dumb to do that," admitted the boy. "Maybe Watts would, but other than that, only their boss and Watts would actually think of doing something like that. One is a psychopath, and the other isn't too smart himself. Maybe their boss wouldn't, just because she wouldn't worry about us. So that leaves only Watts, and Watts does not know how we look like, so he can't send Grimm after us."
"Makes sense." Winter said as she knew that assassins couldn't exactly do their job unless they had a description. However, she was more focused on Watts and what he could do, controlling the Grimm. That couldn't be good, with Ironwood also thinking the same.
'I wonder if he can do the same.' The general thought now believing he should keep a good eye on the man if he ever saw him again.
"Then let's keep it like that. Blondie, do the labs have cameras?" Torchwick barked at Jaune. "I haven't seen any, but it never hurts to make sure."
"They don't. Watts is very careful, so he doesn't want to leave any video proof of the experiments. Especially because notes can't show you a face." Jaune grinned. "At least this is good for us too, isn't it?"
"Are we going?" Ruby asked anxiously, cutting through the conversation with her high-pitched voice. "My mother might be dying right now!"
Both Yang and Ruby were in agreement. Qrow also feeling the same. To think in this world their mother and friend is alive. Yet it also made them feel a bit glum realizing that their mom and friend was likely dead.
'Maybe she...no Qrow, don't go there.' For a second Qrow thought maybe Summer could be alive like this one, but quickly put it aside. He didn't want to think such things on false hope. Weiss and Blake giving their respective partners sympathy looks, also sad about their mother.
Pursuing his lips, Jaune nodded. "You're right. Everyone, behind me. I have the most Aura, so I'll be the first to enter."
"That's stupid. Never send in the tank first," growled Mercury. "Neo and I are going first. We are skilled at killing, and we're both hard to hit. I highly doubt there will be a trap right on the front door that faces the road, but if there is, we are the ones more likely to dodge or avoid it."
'Agreed!' Neo smirked at a certain blonde who just growled. Yang still remembering the time she got beat by that pipsqueak. One of the few losses she actually had. Well next time they fought, she'll show that squirt who was boss. After all, she's been training and got more than a little stronger during her travels.
Neo didn't seemed fazed at all. After all, she to got stronger.
"..." Whitley was starting to wonder just how much bad blood was between the 'Good' and 'Bad' sides. Considering how they all stared holes into each other, it must be a real feud all right. 'Glad I stay home most of the time.' The Schnee thought gratefully.
"I agree with Merc on that," added Roman.
"Whoever goes, let's do it!" exclaimed Ruby, tired of talking. She would let Crescent Rose talk.
"Definitely!" Ruby smiled with Weiss just shaking her head.
Mercury nodded to Neo, and cautiously approached the door. Opening it just a fraction, he peered inside. Raising his right hand, he gestured them the coast was clear. He stepped into a small atrium with three other doors, one on each wall, that led to other three rooms. He could only see the one straight ahead -empty- but from the light shuffling, he guessed the Grimm were in both the lateral rooms. Neo entered after him, and Jaune followed. Ruby and Roman closed the line. Despite the Grimm having obviously sniffed them out, no Grimm was in sight.
Then a large iron door fell and slammed shut, closing off their only escape route. At the same time, howls rose from the two adjacent rooms.
"Well ain't that obvious." Cardin saw that a mile away.
"Hopefully they'll be okay." Glynda worried for her student Ruby.
"I'm sure they'll be fine." Ozpin reassured her. "Ruby after all is rather talented. And while I can't condone Torchwick, Mercury, and Neo's actions, there all skilled in their own way."
"I knew it! A trap!" exclaimed Mercury, getting into a fighting position. They were slightly cramped, but at least they knew the Beowolves had it just as bad, if not worse. "Ampere or Watts, it's clear they want us to enter and be killed in here."
"Knowing Ampere, this is just a game for him," murmured Jaune as red eyes appeared in both doorways, followed by the bodies of the first two Beowolves. At the same time, the third doorway was occupied by a third Beowolf. "Watch out, they are genetically tinkered with. I am not sure of what they could do."
Ozpin within Oscar's head gave a slight glare. Mutant Grimm. He recalled another mad scientist once doing the same. This couldn't be good, not one bit.
"I don't care!" exclaimed Mercury, performing a spinning kick and beheading the Beowolf with the sheer force of the hit. "Heh, these are easy to kill."
"You bet." Mercury smugly said with many rolling their eyes at his comment. Returning themselves to see the fight.
The body turned into smoke, and then… four more bodies formed from the black vapour. Six legs, bulbous red eyes, and chittering jaws, four Skitters -Grimm beetles- stood where the Beowolf once stood. "Fuck, they multiply!"
Jaune growled and grabbed the oncoming claw of his own Beowolf with a hand. "Then kill them too!" he shouted, unnecessarily, as he drew his sword and clumsily impaled the Grimm. Glowering with distaste at the forming insectoids, he tried to wield his sword as best as he could with the training he had, that was zero.
"This me to...come on." Jaune sadly said.
Meanwhile, Roman and Ruby weren't remaining idle. Since the front lines were being occupied by Mercury, Jaune, and Neo, who had just impaled the third Beowolf through its throat, the two redheads used their ranged options to kill the forming Skitters, and try and aim at the Beowolves still in the doorways. "We have to get more space!" protested Ruby. "I can't fight like this!"
"That's the difference between a Hunter and a good Hunter!" Roman laughed as he blasted two of Jaune's Skitters in one shot. "A good Hunter does not develop a fighting style that can only work with lots of space. Any fighting style that relies on specific criteria to be met is a poor fighting style! Dust, space, comrades… one day, it will always fail you, no matter how big you make your weapon!"
Like the one on screen, Ruby to bit her tongue wanting to so badly make a retort. 'Maybe the old me was like that, but I've changed.' Ruby thought knowing she's grown quite a bit. Though she made a mental note to maybe do a bit of extra training.
Weiss feeling the same as she knew she didn't have much in terms of hand-to-hand combat.
Biting back a scathing retort about Crescent Rose being a very good weapon, Ruby focused on the Beowolves Neo was fighting. Due to her short stature, the small assassin gave her plenty of space to aim.
A rapid series of three kicks cleared Mercury's side, ending the final Skitters, while Jaune was easily holding his own against the last two Beowolves. He was not as skilled as the others, so he got hit quite a few times, but he just shrugged off each and every single hit like it was nothing. His Aura was being as impressive as always, it seemed.
Ruby smiled briefly. At least one thing was going their way.
"Alpha!" Roman shouted as Neo actually had to dodge a large paw that crashed on the ground. He levelled his cane and shot an explosive bullet, but it only cracked its mask. Seeing her chance, Ruby unfolded Crescent Rose and used what little space she had to dart forwards and dig the blade into the creature's neck, killing it instantly. Unfortunately, it turned into four Skitters, but fortunately those were easily taken care of.
"I got way more coming!" announced Jaune, much to their annoyance.
"Yeah, and from the growls I can hear, we got something bigger, maybe an Ursa, a few rooms away. It doesn't seem to be moving, though," added Mercury, turning to look at the blond. "But you're handling yourself pretty fine. Just go on."
"Mercury!" exclaimed Ruby, miffed by his carelessness. However, the boy was already moving, smashing Grimm with his armoured boots like one squashed flies. She actually felt a bit envious of his incredible skill: he seemed basically at her uncle's level. She could understand he was an assassin while she was a Huntress, but that couldn't stop the tinge of envy.
"Hehe, go on Red, adore me." Mercury cockily said glad that version admitted to his skill. Ruby only throwing a raspberry at him sticking her tounge out.
"Hm." Qrow on the other hand looked at the young assassin curious. He knew one didn't get that kind of skill level so easily, the only way was through extreme training. He wondered who his teacher was.
Jaune stepped back to allow more Grimm into the room, and at the same time to allow his companions to fight too. "The Beowolves aren't too hard. We'll take care of the Ursa after we're done with these," he told them as he impaled a Beowolf through the head, accidentally putting too much force into the hit, and sticking the blade into the floor for quite a bit. Shrugging, he stomped the Skitters born from the corpse.
"Why should we kill it?" asked Roman, obliterating a Beowolf's chest. "It's not our job. If we can get past it, that's fine by me."
"If we kill Ampere, the Grimm will probably lose control and return to be wild. So if we leave this modified Ursa alive, it could cause quite a bit of problem back in town," the boy explained as he watched Ruby shoot the last Skitters. "I may not like my townsfolk, but this doesn't mean I'm gonna let a powerful Grimm loose like that."
"Not like them?" While Jaune couldn't say he loved the townsfolk like his family, why wouldn't he not like them. He's been rather good friends with more than a few. This only caused him to really be worried over what happened to this version of him.
Torchwick sighed, but he didn't argue with that logic. He couldn't, actually. Instead, he glanced with disgust at the black smoke coagulating around Jaune's legs. "Ugh, you're doing it again. The Grimm-absorbing thing." Mercury and Neo took notice of that, and quickly stepped back. "Oh, yeah, forgot to tell you. Kid here absorbs Grimm."
"That's… freakish…" commented Mercury, and Neo nodded vigorously. Both were crime-hardened murderers, but to see a person absorbing the essence of the bane of humanity was still unsettling, even for them.
"What!" Jaune then yelped with many others thinking the same. Jaune could absorb Grimm! How was that even possible? Cinder and many others staring at the Arc wondering just how he could do such a thing.
"Mayden." Ren then spoke getting the Keeper's attention.
"Yes." He said.
"Did you know this version of Jaune could..do such a thing?" Ren then asked with Nora nodding.
"Yeah! That our leader could eat Grimm." Ren chose to ignore the feeling of correcting her words.
"That's right!" Ruby joined worried about her friend. "How is Jaune even capable of such a thing?" Many others were also interested. The Creatures of Grimm were humanity's greatest enemies. Beings that killed every human they spotted on sight. Never attempting to reason at all. So what did that say about Jaune who absorbs said Grimm essence.
'I wonder if such a thing is even possible?' Cinder thought wearily. She knew Salem could make, control,and even 'see' through the Grimm. But absorb, something she's never really thought of. Tock also thinking the same of her old master. All of them waiting for Mayden's answer.
"Yeah, I knew." Mayden said, then spoke up before anybody could speak again. "However, trust me when I say the way Jaune grabbed that ability is by no means...pretty."
That got the cast to then stay silent. Now that they thought about it, Jaune did mention Watts and experiments. For Ozpin, he then began thinking that maybe they shouldn't ask any questions on how young Arc got his powers.
Many then thinking the same.
"It is but… right now I feel better than before. As if my body regained a part of itself I never knew I had lost. Do I look different?" Jaune looked at them, and Roman recoiled.
"You have insectoid jaws!" he explained, horrified. Jaune brought a hand up to his mouth, but he could not feel anything. Only then he recognized the joke for what it was, and promptly glared at the thief, who conceded himself a small laugh.
"Man I'm funny." Roman said with Neo also giggling. Jaune just muttering about the two not liking that joke. His counterpart clearly feeling the same.
"Yeah, yeah, keep being funny. I'm sure the Grimm will find you hilarious as well as delicious," he grumbled. Without waiting for a reply, he walked away, in the direction of the Ursa's growls. The group followed him, and they entered the adjacent room.
The Beowolves had upturned tables and scattered notes, but aside from that, it looked like a very normal office, albeit windowless. Even the documents on the floor were legal stuff. Bills, payments, contracts. Apparently, being evil scientists that experimented on humans and Grimm did not stop the law from bothering them. Even the bad guys had to pay the bills. Ruby picked up one and examined it. "That's… weird."
"Looks normal to me," noted Mercury, glancing from over her shoulder. "Also, the Ursa is not coming for us, so it's either guarding something, or it has orders to let us come to it."
"Probably the second," shrugged Torchwick, sharing a few documents with Neo. The mute woman was giggling silently. "Look, this one is the order of three hundreds blankets of some sort. For a lab."
"It's for the experiments, I guess. Blood is hard to wash off," explained Jaune. "Most of the time, the cloth will be stained forever. And in case of an inspection, they needed clean blankets to make it look like a normal medical study or something similar."
"And the prisoners?" asked Mercury. "Those might be hard to hide."
Jaune shrugged. "I don't know. I've never been here, maybe the cells are hidden. In the one I visited, there were no cells."
"But why does an illegal lab like this have… these?" asked Ruby, holding up more sheets of legal documents. "It's full of them! In the next room too!"
"Ruby, this is an illegal lab and all, but Watts doesn't have all the resources he wants nearby. He needs the transport company to bring him the larger cargoes, and surely he too needs to shop for food." Jaune dropped the documents he was holding and continued onto the next table. "Electricity is not generated by willpower, either, and neither is water. Bills, taxes, costs… as evil as he may be, Watts isn't stupid. If he were to steal everything he needed, he'd soon be caught."
"Holy words. Even I have to pay the bills," grumbled Torchwick. "Really. A famous criminal mastermind, having to pay the bills like everyone else. You can't just steal a house."
"Huh, never thought of it like that." To Ruby, she always assumed a person stole and that as it, nothing more. But in a way, what that version of Jaune did make some sort of sense. A thief couldn't go without paying forever.
"Likewise." Yang also agreed with Weiss slapping her head.
Even Blake knew this as she knows Adam had to get his supplies from somewhere. The White Fang did steal things, but even they had to pay for materials now and then. Ruby was about to ask for more detail before the screen gave out a roar.
"Oh boy." Whitley said knowing that sound.
A loud roar echoed in the room, making the flinch and reminding them of the task at hand.
Ruby dropped the documents and unfurled Crescent Rose with a determined nod. "I'm taking care of the Ursa. Don't worry, I've dealt with Ursai before. I'll just look out for any 'special powers' it might have."
The other four members of the group shared a glance, and then shrugged. "Sure," nodded Mercury, giving her the go-ahead. "The more you kill, the less I have to kill. Less work for me."
Team RWBY were really starting to dislike Mercury.
With a twirl of rose petals, Ruby darted out of the room and into the next. It was empty of Grimm, and full of documents like the previous, but there was a door on her right. She took it, and found herself basically face-to-stomach with a huge black mass.
The Ursa was easily as big as a Major, but the lack of spikes of its back told her it was a normal one. A very very big 'normal' one. There was nothing else that could hint at a mutation, just like with Beowolves. It seemed surprised by her sudden appearance, and Ruby immediately capitalized that by shooting off and slicing across its chest.
Instead of roaring in pain and stumbling back, however, the Ursa just growled in anger and tried to crush her with a huge paw. Surprised by the lack of reaction to her quite precise hit, Ruby jumped back and severed the offending paw. Again, the Grimm didn't even seem to register the pain, and the girl found herself stepping back again to dodge the following attack.
When her back hit the wall, she realized she had underestimated the Grimm's intelligence.
Usually, when Hunters called the Grimm 'mindless', they mistakenly used the wrong word. 'Mindless' either meant lacking of a physical brain, or lacking basic intellect. Both were wrong. Although Grimm anatomy was still inexistent, it was common knowledge that a hit to the head or to the chest of a Grimm usually killed it instantly, as well as cutting it in two or severing its head. That proved that Grimm did have vital spots, and thus they probably had organs, though ones humans could not discern when the Grimm flesh was cut open.
"True that." Ironwood got little to no results when his scientists studied Grimm. There was a reason research on Grimm was near non-existent.
The second meaning of 'mindless', lacking basic intellect, was likewise wrongly believed true. Completely lack of brain functions would make the Grimm like statues. Mobility functions, or even just aggressiveness, required intellect to work. Even the fact that Grimm did not attack anything that moved, like other Grimm, spoke of how they could realize what they were attacking. Beowolves worked in packs and Nevermores could aim with their feathers, Boarbatusks charged their opponents with their signature rolling attack to protect themselves from hits, while Deathstalkers and Tajitsu ambushed their prey when they could. Grimm with armoured plates tended to try and shield themselves from attacks. All those actions spoke of an existing, if limited, intelligence.
"Man that's totally right." Tock said. There was a reason many Huntsman and Huntresses died, and not just because of bad luck, but simply because they underestimated a Grimm's intelligence.
Qrow snorted knowing those feelings. He recalled once facing a Grimm in his youth that nearly killed him. Having underestimated it in battle before becoming shocked that the Grimm seemed to know quite a bit in the thing known as battle. It took him awhile to beat that Grimm down.
The term 'mindless' was directed more to the reason for why the Grimm were so aggressive. The Grimm lacked a reason, and they could not be reasoned with.
However, Ruby had never gone to a Hunter Academy, and she had only received two years of combat training from her uncle. She knew next to nothing about all the knowledge Hunters were supposed to have. Like, for example, the true meaning of the Grimm's mindlessness.
And thus Ruby fought Grimm as if they could only roar, attack, and die. Sometimes she took in consideration their numbers. She never thought a Grimm could parry, or dodge, and surely she did not think the Ursa she was fighting could've trapped her in a corner.
"..." Ruby turned a bit red, knowing what the 'show' said was true. She had help from Weiss making up a lot of work and studying quite a bit. Like the screen said, Ruby actually didn't know much when she entered Beacon.
Glynda herself sighed as she faced Oscar, or rather Ozpin who looked away. Believe it or not, she actually disagreed with young Ruby entering Beacon. It wasn't because she thought the girl wasn't capable, Ruby having proved herself time and again. But because she felt Miss Rose could use the time at Sigal to study up a bit more.
Ruby did after all get more than a few bad grades at the beginning.
She could've escaped. Her Semblance literally made her untouchable, after all. But she didn't want to, because that would prove Torchwick -and more recently, Mercury and Neo- right. That she was dead weight to them. She knew she was the youngest, and the worst in combat of the group. Even Jaune, who had literally no training and little skill, was just so tough he could tank anything and power through it. Fleeing from that corner, and thus from the Ursa, would've proven she had bitten off more than she could chew. And she wanted to prove the opposite.
Besides, if there was a will, there was a way.
"That's right Ruby, show them who's boss." Yang encouraged her counterpart sister eagerly.
"You have what it takes." Blake also said.
"You may not be right in studies..but even I know you can defeat that Grimm. Evena mutant one." Weiss says with Ruby blushing glad her teammates believed in her. She also believed in her other as well.
"Show em what you got kid." Qrow also said with Winter hearing it. Hm? Seems there may be more to him than meets the eye.
The Ursa roared again and tried to crush her with the stump of its left paw. Quickly considering her chances, Ruby used the recoil of her scythe to jump over the limb, and then again to vault over the Grimm, scoring a long, if thin, cut on its neck. Landing in a crouch, she quickly stepped away from the oncoming attack. If the Grimm was immune to pain, then she couldn't rely on pain to distract it.
So that was its special power. Pain immunity. Tricky.
However, when the Ursa turned fully, she realized she had been wrong. Both the cuts she had scored on its body were already gone, and the stump was almost completely reformed as well. The Ursa had more than one power, apparently. Without wasting a second, she used Crescent Rose to propel herself up to its head, and slashed one of its eyes closed.
However, she was unprepared for the literal headbutt that followed. The Ursa hit like a train, and she crashed into the wall with a groan. Shaking her dizziness away, she quickly turned into rose petals to avoid the claw coming down on her. Taking advantage of the Ursa's temporary crouch, she jumped on its back and swung her weapon through its neck, beheading the monster and thus permanently killing it.
Many cheered for Ruby at that moment. Even a few like Roman and Mercury gave a little clap. While they were enemies, they knew a good kill when they saw one. Adam also doing the same, t secretly while also wondering why he was even doing so. Cinder mentally reminding herself to learn a bit more about Ruby's fighting style so the next time they met, she wouldn't be surprised.
Jumping off the beast's corpse, she turned when she heard slow, deliberate clapping coming from the southern and eastern doorways. Roman and Neo at one, Mercury and Jaune at the one, had all be watching her. She blushed at Roman's sarcastic applause. "I was hoping I'd get rid of you for a second there, Red," commented the crook. "Alas, the Ursa disappointed me. Let's hope for the next Grimm."
"Don't joke on that!" exclaimed Ruby.
Torchwick grinned. "I'm not joking."
"Let's stop this before it even begins," Jaune cut in, much to Roman's, Neo's, and Mercury's displeasure. "We have something to do. You two can nab at each other all you want… on the way back."
"Yes Mom," grumbled the thief, shaking his head. "Ordered around first by the fire bitch, now by a kid. The great Roman Torchwick, reduced to babysitting."
"You're right, we should move," nodded Ruby, looking at the third, and last, door of the room, pointing north. "Who first?"
"Me," sighed Mercury, taking the lead. "Our tank second. Neo, keep an eye on Little Red. Roman, the rear. If there's space, Neo comes up front with me, Jaune too if there's enough space, while the redheads stay back and shoot. Everyone ready?"
The others nodded, and they all slowly moved into the next room, finding it… full of shelves. Not even a single stack of documents laid on the floor. In the shelves there was plenty of food, as if it had been restocked fairly recently. Roman warned everyone it might be poisonous as a trap, but no one had tried to take it. Mercury and Neo knew it as well, Ruby was against stealing if it wasn't necessary, and Jaune just didn't even care. The room looked completely… normal. Like the kitchen of a town's average house. It wasn't sparkling clean, but it wasn't dirty either. It looked used, too.
"Okay, so here is where they eat. Good to know," announced Mercury, moving to the next door and opening it. He stilled. "Well… shit. There's a lot of webs in here. Like, as thick as my arm. Grimm spiders, obviously. It fills the entire corridor except for a few spots. We could squeeze by, but that would make us perfect victims for the weaver."
"I hate Shadow Phobias," Jaune grumbled softly before raising his voice, "Okay, we cut or burn them. If you touch it, you'll get stuck, but I think we all know that. I suggest we use fire, if we can. It'll burn all the webs, and possibly hurt the weaver, unless it manages to flee. The walls are made of stone, so it might scorch them but it won't destroy the whole house."
Torchwick sighed and opened a few shelves. "Well, then let's use this stuff, at least." He rummaged through the items and found a few Fire Dust batteries for the Dust stove, and a lighter. With a smirk, he returned to the others and threw the batteries in the webs, as far as he could throw them, before placing the last on the first line of web. "Stay back… it's a friendly suggestion."
Everyone backed away and into the kitchen. Roman used the lighter to kindle the web near the battery, so to give himself a few seconds. Then he ran back, slammed the door shut, and stepped back. A few moments later, a series of explosions shook the doorframe, and smoke began to seep from under it. A screech of pain told them that the Shadow Phobia had not liked the surprise, wherever it was.
Mercury nodded to the thief and opened the door, allowing the smoke to disperse before stepping into the corridor. The walls bore small marks of scorching, and almost all the webs had either disappeared entirely, or had been reduced to smoking strands dangling in the air.
"..I guess that's a good way to use Dust." The former heiress muttered.
"From the Dust's Guide for Beginner Users, So Easy Even Grimm Can Understand: 'Fire Dust makes fire and heat. Crystals or powder can explode. Warning: this Dust is extremely volatile. Do not place Fire Dust near a source of intense heat or, Oum forbid, fire, if you don't want an explosion to happen.'" Roman grinned at the others. "Fire Dust is ground and cut at cold temperatures for a reason."
"Nice thinking. I hadn't thought of that," admitted Jaune. "I thought we would've had Ruby use her scythe, or me using my sword. Roman, no innuendo intended, stop grinning like an idiot."
"Sorry to interrupt, but we have a Grimm spider to kill," Mercury butted in. "And it's in the room before us. I see a bladed leg trying to hide in the stairs. Oh, right, there are stairs that go down. I guess that's the entrance to the lab proper."
"It probably is," nodded Jaune.
"Well, watch me then." Mercury shot off with those parting words, entering the room in a flash and slamming his armor boot down on the leg he had spotted earlier, cracking it in two.
The large spider Grimm screeched in pain again, and exited its hiding spot on the stairs to engage the grey-haired assassin. It looked exactly like a huge black spider with white armoured thorax and red eyes, but its jaws and legs had been sharpened into white bone blades. With another screech, the Grimm raised its forelegs and tried to slash at him.
Mercury, however, was far quicker. With two shots from his boots' shotguns, he broke two of the creature's leg joints. Rolling under the body, he then ran up the opposite wall and somersaulted over its body, where the creature could not reach. As Ruby and Jaune looked at him with awe, and Roman and Neo with boredom, he unloaded several shells into the creature's head, effectively putting it down for good. Crunching its head onto the ground was just an added safety measure before he jumped off. He glanced at Ruby with a cocky smirk. "That's how you kill Grimm, Red."
"Man am I loving me." Mercury said glad this world was showing just how cool of a badass he was. Many rolled their eyes, but begrudgingly admitted Mercury had skill.
Ruby pouted as she stomped past him. Without a word, the others followed her down the stairs.
The screen flashed for a moment, entering a new scene. One where it showed some familiar faces. Faces that looked...down?
The raven watched silently as Yang Xiao Long and Weiss Schnee were escorted back to their room by Glynda Goodwitch herself. The two looked both ashamed of themselves, and resigned to their fate. Another bird, a crow, was perched on a lamppost, watching and cawing loudly as the group passed under it. Goodwitch stopped and looked at it with sad eyes, mouthing 'I'm sorry' to the bird before continuing to lead the two new criminals to where they would be kept until their families decided what to do with them.
"Criminals!" Weiss and Yang shouted confused. Both Qrow and Winter-even Whitley-surprised about this.
"What happened with my sister!?" Winter-in a rare act of losing composure, asked the Keeper wondering what just happened. While the younger brother didn't show it, he thought the same question. He knew his sister, and while she was a pain, was certain she wasn't someone that broke the law.
"Yeah, nothing really good." Mayden ominously said making the two former Beacon students worried on what their counterparts just did. They weren't the only ones either. On screen showed a familiar crow Qrow himself knew well enough. But also someone else.
"Raven…" He whispered.
After the three disappeared from view, the crow cawed sadly one last time, and flew away in a flutter of wings. The raven, however, was still staring at where they had disappeared. It was not making any sound, standing so still one could've mistaken it for a statue. Then the raven finally unfroze and took off, flying deeper into the trees it had been hiding among.
A red, swirling portal later, no bird could be seen in Beacon's courtyard.
Far, far away, back at her bandit camp, Raven Branwen sat pensively. Her daughter had grown strong, and ruthless. Maybe she had underestimated her. It was time she and her daughter had a long overdue talk. And of course, she would never visit empty-handed. She had a gift she was sure Yang would've appreciated.
She brought freedom.
Yang couldn't believe what she just heard...but also felt some disgust at this version of her mother. She continued watching though, to see what else was happening.
"Vernal," she called quietly, knowing that her faithful lieutenant would hear. As expected, the brunette immediately appeared at the tent's entrance. "Prepare another tent. We might have visitors tonight. And if things go well, we might have two or more new members of our tribe."
The screen then cut off, with Yang and even Weiss shocked at the implications they just saw.
"Two tents...as if!" Weiss said unbelieved by what she saw. "Why would I-I wouldn't-what did I do?"
Yang tried using her head to process what she heard while also thinking about what she could have done to land her in the slammer. A few thoughts came to mind, and none of them were good.
"D-don't worry Yang, I'm sure you're okay." Ruby tried encouraging, not able to see Mayden shaking that non-existent head. After all, he knew what Yang and Weiss to an extent did. Hopefully in the future they'll repent, otherwise they're paths were looking pretty dark.
"So, do those guys save this Summer person or what?' Cardin then asked reminding Ruby along with her family about their mother and friend. The three-Ruby, Yang, and Qrow-staring at the spot Mayden usually spoke at.
"Hm..I guess I can say yes." They cheered a bit. "But," Of course this would happen! "Let's just say problems occur after saving her."
"That doesn't sound good." Oscar said.
"Pretty much kid. There's always some kind of conflict here and there." That's what made up all stories after all. "In any case, who's ready for the next world? This one being a bit gamey."
"Games. That sounds cool." Jaune admitted sounding interested.
"I'm good with that." Cardin also agreed. Everyone else, somewhat okay they figured.
"Cool, then on to the next." Mayden said as the screen lit up.
And so ends that, and onto a world where everything is a game. I'll even give you a hint on what it is. Let's just say this world has more than one player. Until next time.