Oh wow. It's been so long since I've tried something COMPLETELY new for the first time, so I'm nervous about this. Let's begin properly.
Welcome all! This is my first crack at a RWBY story. As a story, this is going to act as a prequel to the main RWBY story.
The main character of this story will be an OC, and I am aware that most people will disregard this story immediately for it. The characters that this story will center around are obviously the ones in the character tags, but also others to be revealed.
However, the most experimental thing with this story is... music. I HATE songfics. Let's get that out of the way. I dislike the way they're handled in many fics.
However, one of the most important things to RWBY is, for lack of a better term, a soundtrack. I also formulate fight scenes for all my fics by listening to music and imagining it as a music video to the fight. Then, I'll simply transcribe what I mentally pictured while listening to the song. People have messaged me before asking for advice on writing fights, and I've been complemented on writing fights, so... for THIS fic, I'm going the extra mile. There will be fight scenes where I will incorporate a "Soundtrack".
Demonstration:
I write out an action. Actions are regular sentences like you'd read in any fic just like this sentence you're reading now. (I will then place at the end of paragraphs of actions a set of parentheses. Within these, I will place song lyrics or specify which segment of a song is playing during that paragraph of actions)
Songs used for these fights will be placed at the bottom of the chapter they are used in. This will be done so a person can read the fight or emotional moment, see the lyrics and how they apply to the moment, then look up the song on Youtube and listen themselves. The end goal is for the reader to be able to visualize the same vision I was transcribing at the same pace and listen to the same background music that I would have there.
Obviously, I don't expect that to translate perfectly since it is my first attempt at doing so, but I want to tell this story, and many of the moments I envision are emphasized by the music. Any advise on this would be welcome, although if the advise goes more in the traditional songfic manner, I may not apply it due to my inherent dislike of things like: The character starts singing and it's serious, the paragraphs give generic descriptions of the music and not the actions of the characters, or leaving out segments of the songs which is annoying to me personally.
Finally, just like RWBY with the original Red, White, Black, and Yellow trailers, this chapter and the next are each 'trailer music videos' showcasing this experimental style while acting as trailers to the main characters of this fic. This trailer will be for the true main character while next chapter's trailer will showcase the other three main characters. The story will officially begin in Chapter 3.
With that said, let us begin.
Trailer Carmine
The sound of wind.
Creaking. The sound of a door moving, followed by the click of it shutting. The sound echoes unnaturally. The room isn't very dirty. Maybe messy. Shirts, shorts, pants, and a few jackets in odd places. A bedroom. Single bed with red sheets, a silver comforter wrinkled. The bed hadn't been made that day. A brown dresser with none of its drawers fully shut or open. Each drawer had a golden handle.
The red carpet and white walls give the remaining color. A single window glowing white with the light from outside remains. The door remains just beside a brown desk. Across the top are books, papers, an unsharpened pencil... and several broken pencils.
Standing in the doorway is a boy. He's young. Too young to be here. He's short, but his first prominent feature is his hair. A deep red at the roots. His hair comes to his brow, a rather common length. Some parts stuck up on the right side of his bangs. A cowlick. His deep red hair remained such until the very tips shifted immediately to a perfect silver.
His blue eyes were hollow, the white skinned boy having no freckles or skin blemishes. He sighed, wearing a pair of deep blue sweat pants, white shirt under a pitch black jacket. The jacket back had a red sigil of a wolf's head. The clothes weren't baggy, showing an athletic build on the short boy. His emotionless eyes carefully looked over the room, to a picture frame. The frame's picture is hidden...
The room glows too bright... Such a brightness that it couldn't be. The boy glows as well, turning and leaving the room in a flash of white.
Now in the halls. The lower walls built with wood, beige wall above to the ceiling. The boy walks along a red carpet. His eyes a downcast, but he glances up to smile at two others, students. Both taller than him, older, in full uniform. One passes with a massive blade attached at the back. (Keys of a piano play, low notes in the background)
The boy turns into a stairwell, the marble white stairs and floor of the well glows unnaturally. The boy looks out the windows of the well. Once more, too bright to show anything outside. The boy looks out, longing. (Keys play, ending the first melody)
The boy enters through two double doors, seeing a massive workshop. He looks around, eyes brightening a bit. Steel forges and muscled students out of uniform litter the place, hammering at pieces and connecting segments of metal. Weapons. They're making and improving weapons. He's younger than all of them. ("Echoes from the west. Great hammers will fall.")
His attention comes to a single faunus. A male fox faunus with sharp teeth and golden fox ears coming from his blonde hair. The student finishes his adjustments to a bulky rifle mode for his weapon, slipping in ammunition to test the feed. ("Under high rocks, all will answer the call.")
The boy smirks at the weapon, admiring it. The student notices his gaze, raising a brow and shrugging. He continues to work, the kid observing his and the weapons of a dozen other hunters in training. ("Bring us your arms Pariahs of yore.")
The boy looks away from the work before him, pulling an item from from his jacket, a silver revolver, two barrels, one below the main one taking the bullet from the bottom slot. The revolver wore the same red wolf sigil on the boy's back. ("All faces turn now to war.")
A bright flash shows the boy outside, stepping through the door of the marble building. Outside. Everything is brighter than it should be. Colors too saturated. The area before him was open, a few trees and benches with students walking around in pairs or teams. The boy watches the scene before beginning to walk. ("Exiles of the ash stare through crimson glow.")
The boy looks up over his shoulder. Far into the sky over him is a tower. Beacon tower. His eyes find the very top. Within the unnatural shine of the world around him, the silhouette of a man with a cane is in the tower's window at the very top. Near the top of the tower is a floating air ship, an Atlas warship. ("Guards of the North sing their songs of the snow.")
Slowly, the world begins to darken. The unnaturally bright lighting dimming. The bright marble walls of the nearest building disappear, revealing a dirty marble ruin, windows shattered, walls broken in. The trees of the courtyard dim, revealing torn trunks, scars in the bark, branches long broken off where they used to be. ("Bring us the breath of the marshes and rain.")
The students all fade away, the darkened courtyard filled with hulking black beasts... and a few bodies within. The beasts, beowolves, sniff at the ground, one finding a body satisfying enough to bite into. The glowing boy still stands in the ruined courtyard, staring at the perfect tower. ("Courage is rising again...")
The boy turns away from the tower, walking away from it as all the buildings are no longer a perfect white. Only the boy and the tower glow unnaturally. As he walks further from the tower, the glow fades, airship disappearing. The glow dims to reveal a dark sky, slightly orange from a sunset. The top of the tower is gone, replaced by a gargantuan demonic stature of a greater beast. A greater Grimm. ("War will weather the souls of the lost...")
The boy continues walking. Over him, the broken archway to Beacon Academy's entrance stands. He walks, hands in his pockets, scrunching his shoulders like he doesn't want to be seen. Around his glowing form, more beowolves meander. ("Stand together whatever the cost.")
The boy makes it to the archway. From overhead, he crosses the threshold of the archway. His image bursts and disappears. ("Shields will falter and many will fall-")
A new figure walks into the entrance from the outside, a head of red. The nearest beowolf sniffs and looks up at the new presence. Without warning, a shot blows the creatures head off, sending it sprawling on the ground as its pack is alerted. ("-Time has come~ for us all-")
Standing under the broken archway stands a young man. He's nearly a foot taller than the boy. His hair is just long enough to start covering his eyes. The deep red grows out until the final inch of hair shifting into a silver gray. The boy is older, wearing a navy blue jacket half zipped. Around his neck is a saturated green scarf, wrapped snug under his chin and waving with wind to his side. Under the jacket and scarf is a shirt matching his scarf's color. His pants match his dark blue jacket with black plated metal around the sides of his calves above his black shoes. Black straps wrap around his jacket and tie to a belt, metal plates around the straps and belt. Connected to the straps at the small of his back is a thin near straight metal sheath with a sword, held horizontally across his back with the hilt by his right hand. His left hand is held up, holding the silver revolver up, both barrels smoking. ("-to answer the call!")
The remaining pack of five beolwolves charge. The young man rapidly fires twice more, dropping the next two Grimm charging. Down to three. He twirls his revolver in his left hand as the next Grimm lashes out at him. He dashes forward, twisting and bashing the spinning gun into the beast's head. It's knocked aside. (music builds.)
He jumps up, spin kicking the next beowolf in its slashing arm. The metal attachment at the boy's calf shifts, firing a white stream and blasting the beast away. The blast throws the boy into a back flip. He lands with both attachments on his calves firing, his feet ghosting on the ground as he slides back from the remaining Grimm. ("To answer the call.")
The boy narrows both blue eyes focused. He bursts forward under the next claw slash, lazily aiming the revolver up and firing into the beast's under jaw, blowing its head out. He continues forward, grabbing the back leg and spinning in place, calf attachments blowing stronger, as he throws the headless body into the nearest recovering beowolf. (music builds)
The young man stops his spin, aiming at the other recovering Grimm and firing three single shots into it, putting it down. Facing the last Grimm getting out from under its dead ally, he crouches then leaps into the air. (choir chants begin.)
He comes down in an ax kick, the metal plating around his heel bashing through the beast's head as it was getting up. It falls, defeated, as the boy frowns at the environment around him. His eyes widen after finding a flickering white glow at the top of the ruined buildings, not unlike the vision of the boy before. (Music and chant continue then quiet)
The white figure moves into the ruins. The boy's gaze narrows as he bursts forward. With a powerful leap, he makes it up to the roof. However, the figure is gone. He gazes back and forth, focusing into the distance. He spots the flicker of white three rooftops away, over the campus dorms. He takes a slow start before leaping from the edge of the roof, another burst from his feet to propel into a front flip. Sticking the landing on the next roof, he sees the white figure on a taller building. (Soft melody plays)
As he moves from building to building, the white glow moving away from him, leading him, there is movement in the sky. More Grimm, griffons, flying in the sky in great number. They don't seem to notice the fleeting chase below. ("Pride of Summer's shores guide the voices of kings.")
Time has passed as the boy now chases the white flicker through the halls of the inner buildings. He moves over the faded carpet, broken walls around him. ("Children of bark they will tighten their strings.")
The chase moves into the marble stairwell, the boy rushing up the steps. He ignores the odd red smear on the once perfect marble white. He quickly reaches the top of the stairs to a closed door. ("Bring us the wits of the warm Southern sands.")
He bursts through the door onto the building's rooftop. At the edge of the ruined dorm building is the white figure, short sparks coming off it. The image cast no shadow in the sunset. ("Clouds over all of the lands.")
The redhead pauses, his body tensing. His eyes look drained, like he hasn't slept. He stares at the back of the white cloaked individual. Sparks of light flicker off the figure, impossible to miss in the dark sunset land. ("War will weather the souls of the lost.")
The figure is wearing a combat skirt. A female. The underside of the white cloak is a bright red. The sparks flow around, seemingly flipping in the wind. No, not sparks. Flower petals. More specifically, rose petals. The flickers alternate between white and red. The boy takes a few cautious steps, letting out a heavy breath. ("Stand together whatever the cost.")
His focus is entirely on the figure, noticing its now slow movements. The female figure lifts her right arm from the cloak. Still with her back turned, her hand comes up, pointing up as the wind seems to blow her cloak. ("Shields will falter and many will fall-")
The boy grimaces, following the focus into the sky. Black wings flap. Black feathers fall. Above, four griffons dive bomb down, each focusing its eyes on the lone boy on the rooftop. The boy's right hand reaches back, gripping the hilt of the sheathed weapon in a reverse grip. ("Time has come for us all-")
A metallic click sounds as the hilt pulls slowly. A bright reflecting golden yellow blade is visible. ("-to answer the call!")
In a flash, the boy slashes the near straight edged blade out, ripping the first griffon's first taloned foot off. He dodge rolls under the griffon, getting to his feet on the other side of the screeching beast. His left hand brings the revolver up, firing two quick shots into the second. The second griffon halts its dive, flapping its wings to push away from the gun shots. (music builds.)
The first griffon whips around, but the boy turns, switching his grip on his sword and thrusting in one motion. The blade impales the beasts remaining forward foot. ("To answer the call.")
His calf attachments fire off as he jumps. He rips the sword free from the foot, spinning and slashing into the beast's forehead, slashing through its head for the kill. Mid air, he turns and blocks. A third griffon strikes him out of the air with its claws. (music builds)
The boy rolls to his feet and skids to a halt on the rooftop. The boy's body glows with aura, activating a semblance. The metal plated straps separate from his chest. The plates around his calves firing with dust streams release from his legs. The empty hilt of the sword opens wider. The pieces float in the air as the boy whips around, inserting his revolver into the wider open slot of the empty hilt. (choir chants begin.)
His semblance glows a feint green, the metal plates and straps along with the calf/shin armor all begin locking into place as the sheath acts as a new gun barrel. All the metal attachments lock in place, turning the revolver into a hand held cannon. He aims his new cannon at the second Griffon coming his way. The lining of the device glows green, save for the red wolf sigil. He fires. (Music and chant continue and build further)
The powerful dust shot explodes out, hitting the griffon in the chest in a green/red blast. In an instant the griffon's chest explodes out, its limbs, neck and head, and wings all falling to the ground in a pool of red and black. The remaining two griffons shriek as they fly around the boy in a circle. ("White gold... burning sky" "For the souls of the lost.")
The boy pulls his revolver free from the cannon. His semblance glows and holds the cannon out as he jabs his sword into the sheath mechanism, locking down smaller around the sword. He holsters the revolver at his left thigh as the former cannon shifts it's mechanisms, the metal plates forming a blade and calf/shin armor forming the back of a blade. ("Purify~")
He twirls the now large sword as the mechanisms finish the change. The blade is now four times as thick, silver in color with yellow shining through the lining. The first of the two griffons flies at him. The sees the threat coming, gripping the hilt with both hands. ("White gold... burning sky-" "For the souls of the lost.")
With one horizontal slash, he cleaves the beast in half as he dashes forward. He stops himself, looking up at the last griffon. It roars as it charges down. The boy finally growls out in a frustrated yell. A flash as he lands on the edge of the roof, the roaring beast falling in two pieces. ("Purify...")
The boy stands up straight. His right hand twirls the large sword in a flourish. He brings the blade up, resting its back edge on his right shoulder. At the same time, he redraws his revolver in his left hand, aiming it at the side. ("War will weather the souls of the lost.")
The gun is aimed squarely at the white figure on the edge of the rooftop not five feat away from him. No longer with her back turned, he's viewing her from the side. Her dark brown hair with red tips shows under the hood. ("Stand together whatever the cost.")
His aura forms lightly as a silhouette around him. His hollow, tired eyes shift from a bright blue to golden amber, mirroring the lining of the sword on his shoulders. His eyes narrow at her. ("Shields will falter and many will fall-")
His finger twitches on his gun's trigger as the hooded woman turns slightly. Just enough for him to see a single glowing silver eye. ("Time has come for us all.")
His teeth clench. He holds the standoff, aiming the weapon at the glowing woman casting no shadow in the sunset. ("To answer the call...")
RWBY: Volume CRBN
And that's the end of Trailer Carmine. Song used was The Call by Miracle of Sound. For anyone wondering, Carmine is a deep shade of red, sticking with RWBY's lore of some children named for colors.
If it's not obvious, this trailer takes places after Volume 3, so the vast majority of this story will take place before this trailer.
If this managed to hook you, I do need to warn you. I am currently releasing chapters of a Dragon Ball Z Story called Visions of Change weekly, and that is my primary focus since I wish to finish that story before focusing solely on THIS fic after. As such, if that fic is not wrapped up by the time I post this simply out of impatience, please do not expect any type of set schedule of releases in any way. This story is sidelined until the other is finished, so this only gets progress whenever I've already met my quota on the other for the week.