Heart of Glass 16
"Come on, hurry up you animals! We can't afford to waste anymore time!" Yelled Roman as more and more of the fire dust crates were rigged with detonators and placed on old trains. The entire area smelled from being cramped with Faunus.
Of course, in an instant a red blade was on his throat.
Torchwick turned his eyes left, towards Adam Taurus. "Watch your tongue, human." He said, voice laced with poison.
"Oh please. Don't so sensitive." Upon saying that, the pressure of the blade on his neck became stronger.
"You know I can kill you," Roman had to roll his eyes at pathetic attempt at intimidation.
"Please. You can't kill me. Besides, if you do, then you'll also die." Adam was pushed slightly forwards, and then he turned his head to look at the smiling figure of Neo, who was pushing the blade of her Umbrella upon Adam's back. That woman was amazing when she wanted to be, and Roman felt pride in himself, for attracting such a skilled person with his charisma.
Adam snarled as he retracted his sword. Feeling liberated, Torchwick massaged his throat.
"Isn't this better? Working together so survive rather than kill each other?" He asked. Adam just groaned while turning his head away.
"Cut it out you three!" They heard from afar. A small black spot flew towards them from the dark. A black bird with crimson red eyes. When it came closer, it went to the ground, and then morphed into a woman wearing black and red. "Is everything ready?"
"Man, I love that trick. So flawless," despite his praise, Torchwick could tell the woman was glaring at him from behind her white mask. "Nearly there. If these... people would only hurry up!" He said, loud enough for the rest of his underlings to hurry up.
"Well, it doesn't matter anymore," she said while shaking her head. "Get on the trains and execute the mission." She ordered.
"We don't have enough yet! And I still have to face Blake!" Adam said, stepping up.
"I don't care. They are coming, and the mission takes priority. Get to the trains!" Torchwick simply tipped his hat while going to board his own. With a growl, Adam did the same.
They were on an abandoned metro station, much like any other. It had been kept up well, mostly due the fact that after Mountain Glenn's fall many survivors holed up in the underground. Of course, they ended up like cornered rats and died anyways.
He was not about to be cornered. He and Neo had an escape plan. Even if the White Fang was jailed, the would not be.
Two trains were set up. Same length, three cars each. The front one loaded to the brim with explosives. One would breach southeast Vale, and another southwest. It was a perfect attack.
He approached the west car, and as he reached for the backdoor, another hand touches his. A black gloved one. He turned left to look at Adam, who stared back at him through his white mask.
"So, going somewhere?" He asked him. In a second, Adam pulled his hand away, retreating in disgust.
"You're not coming on this train! This is ours." Roman had to raise an eyebrow.
"Ours?"
"The White Fang's. Humans are not welcome." Adam now stepped up, propping up his chest as if to appear strong. Roman had to suppress an eye roll. Neo was in front of him now, shielding him from Adam, which Torchwick thought was cute.
"Come on, what are you, five?" Roman asked the Faunus. "We are in this together. You need to learn when to make allies, and when to make enemies, kiddo. Allies can be useful too, you know?" Adam looked down, as if deep in thought.
Then, screams of fighting were heard, followed by gunshots, grunts and explosions.
"It's them." Adam said.
"Where is miss Bird?" Asked Torchwick.
"East car." That woman was dangerous, in his mind. And Qrow seemed quite interested in her. They would no doubt send their strongest after her. In which case…
"Say…" Adam now looked at him, and even if he couldn't see it, Torchwick knew he was raising an eyebrow. "… if I bring that girl to you… would you let me come with?"
"What did you have in mind?" The wonders of obsession. Torchwick loved the opportunities those created.
"You'll see. Just get on the train." Adam seemed skeptical, but nodded anyways and entered the back car. Neo followed suit, but Torchwick grabbed her shoulder softly. The small woman looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Neo, go to the other train," Neo looked at him with an expression of worry and incredulity. At times, dealing with Neo was almost like dealing with a kitten that always followed you. "You'll be fine. When the job is done, we'll reunite at the place we had agreed on. Okay?" Neo hesitated, but in the end she nodded and went off into the other train. Roman could tell she was not happy about it. Then again, she was only ever happy around him it seemed.
It would all end soon. He could see it. They needed to be done with this, and move on. Not to Anima, lest he need to deal with Miss Malachite. Maybe Atlas. A huge power Vacuum had been left open after her death. Yeah, Atlas would be good.
Cinder hissed as a bullet rose past her cheek. It lightly brushed her Aura, barely any damage. Still, it was annoying. She fired an arrow in the direction it came, hitting the enemy square in the head. Luckily, that White Fang soldier had aura, so he was left alive, barely. Others had not been so lucky. Ruby had insisted on no casualties, and while she did not agree, she didn't want Ruby to… see her that way. Not anymore.
Even so, they had no time. People would die at this rate. Ruby has holding back was well, using shock bullets to incapacitate. Blake, Yang and Weiss had an easier time, having either dust or simply blunt weapons to incapacitate. Qrow also kept in mind his nieces' mental health into account, and thus also opted for incapacitation.
They were in a tunnel, leading into a Metro station where the two trains would be. They had a good plan. Stop the trains by teaching the control cabin and stop them, along with Torchwick and his other underlings. For reasons unknown, Qrow had asked to not fight any figures they didn't know. Why, she had no idea, but Cinder would not back down for anything.
"I see them!" Blake yelled. Ahead of some barricades, she could see the station.
"Good! Keep pushing!" Qrow yelled, pinning a White Fang soldier to the ground and stomping on him until his Aura broke and he fell unconscious.
Cinder heard something from behind her. And she saw Blake's ears twitch in the opposite direction.
"Get down!" Yelled both women. And everyone did. Above them, multiple missiles flew by, and hit the barricades. Explosions lit up the area and made the entire tunnel shake.
"Are they crazy? They'll bring this whole place down!" Yelled Weiss, erecting a hard light wall with a glyph that protected them from the incoming Atlas Paladins.
"I'll deal with them," Qrow said. Ruby turned around to face him, away from the action.
"B-But… Are you sure? Let me come with," Ruby said, clutching her weapon tight. Qrow looked at her, eyelids lowered, before patting her head.
"I'll be fine. I'll come back, like I always do. Don't you trust me?" He asked with a wink. Ruby looked down, before inhaling and letting go of the air.
"Alright. I trust you. But… What are we to do?" She asked him. Qrow frowned at this.
"That's up to you, Rubes. You're the leader now." He replied.
"Guys! Hurry with the pep talk please!" Weiss said, holding her shaking Rapier steady as the Hard light wall began to visibly crack. Qrow and Ruby turned to the rest of the team, who were fighting the White Fang on the side of the tunnel not covered by Weiss.
"She's right. We're running out of time!" Cinder said, ducking out of cover and firing another arrow before crouching down again.
Qrow faced Ruby again, staring at her hard. "Ruby–"
"–What if I screw up?" Asked Ruby.
"You won't. And if you do, try your best to fix it." With that, Qrow looked towards the Hard light barrier. "Let it go!"
With the order given, Weiss released her hold as a hail of bullets and ordinance flew past them. Qrow ran forwards, swinging Harbinger wildly around, deflecting most of the incoming projectiles. He ducked, slid and jumped on his way to the paladins. Once he reached them, he transformed Harbinger, and with a swing powered by a shot from the gun part, it split one of the machine's arms with it's Scythe mode, and positioned Qrow behind them.
"Woah," Ruby said before turning back into the action, firing a quick few rounds into their enemies. She then went near Cinder.
"Sorry. Are you guys alright?" She asked Cinder.
"Yeah," she replied, before peeking her head out. She saw Yang take down three soldiers, and the others began running back. "They're retreating."
"Push forward, guys!" Ruby said, using her semblance to join Yang at the front. Cinder soon vaulted over and joined them, along Blake and Weiss. However, the faunus quickly overtook them.
They could see the trains light up as their machinery began crunching and screeching.
"Come on! We need to–!" Blake could not finish her sentence as a shot rang out and she was sent flying backwards. Yang caught her in her arms, although the force behind the impact sent her backwards a little. Blake's Aura flickered, but otherwise she was unharmed.
"Gotcha," she said. The members of RWBY turned towards the attacker. Cinder could see two trains, separated by a platform. On the left one, on the door towards it's backmost car was Roman Torchwick, pointing their cane at them.
"Well, if it isn't Red. You just can't help yourself, can you? Always needing to play hero." He said, moving his hand in grand gestures. Cinder was about done with the guy. And Ruby was too judging by her glare, but she would try to talk to him. Cinder had other plans.
She quickly shot a wind arrow at him. It flew faster than others, and would hit dead centre. Her surprise attack was deflected, however. Torchwick simply swatted it away with his cane, embedding the projectile into the ceiling.
"Wow. You're fast lady." he said, now with an amused expression. Yang let down Blake, asking her if she was okay, to which the faunus nodded.
"Stop this Torchwick! It's over!" Said Ruby.
"Sorry Red, but that's not how it works. You won't be getting this one for free. If you want to stop me, come and get me I say!" He paced around, and as he did, the ground began rumbling as roars were heard.
"Is that…?" Blake asked.
"Grimm. Dozens of them. They live in these tunnels now. The gunfire must be attracting them." Weiss replied.
"That's right. Vale's done for kiddos. So with that, I bid you all goodbye. Your performance was excellent though. I'll remember you, for a time." He said, and with a vow, disappeared into the train car. The vehicle shifted, and slowly began moving as he did so.
"They're not getting away! Weiss, Blake, with me! Cinder, Yang, go to for the other one! Keep in touch, please!" Ruby yelled as she turned into a cloud of roses that dashed towards the train and landed on the train before turning to her team. "Come on, guys!" Weiss nodded and chased after the accelerating train, using her glyphs to speed herself up.
Blake was left with Yang and Cinder, breathing hard. Yang placed a hand on her shoulder
"Blake…" However, the cat faunus took a deep
"I can do this…" Blake said, bearing an unusually determined expression on her face as she threw Gambol Shroud's whip and wrapped it around lose iron bars and debris in order to balance herself like a monkey in order to reach the vehicle. Once she had joined Weiss and Ruby, Cinder watched the train disappear in the dark.
She could not see Ruby anymore. She was alone, with the White Fang and Roman Torchwick. Why had she not insisted she herself go with her? A part of her knew she would be fine, but another…
Running is all you can do…
Those thoughts hurt. She needed them out. She needed to focus on the mission… because–
"Hey," she was snapped out of her thoughts by Yang, whose eyes were narrowed, Lilac eyes digging into her amber ones. "She'll be alright. You'll see. Now come on." With that, Yang dashed to the second train using her gauntlets to gain momentum, which began moving slowly.
For a second, Cinder stared at Yang without moving. That was not fair. Cinder was the older sister, the protector, the comforter, the strong one. Needing reassurance from Yang was… shameful, but also made her feel warm.
She shook her head and focused. The train was moving away.
She ran as fast as her legs carried her, jumping into the platform and down into the railway. Yang was already at the entrance to the back car, gesturing her to come. Cinder ran, like she always did. She was desperate to reach Yang, to grab hold of her, but the train was at least ten meters ahead of her.
Channeling her Aura towards her legs, Cinder gave one last jump, extending her hand towards her sister. Yang caught it before gravity took her down to earth and pulled Cinder upright.
"Shame you don't have a gun. Could have used some momentum. Ever tried using your fire arrows to rocket jump?" Yang asked with a smile.
"Rocket jump?" Cinder asked, taking deep breaths to recover.
"Did you learn nothing from the videogames we played?" Yang asked, like a hurt child.
"I sucked," Cinder could never beat Ruby and Yang. She was simply too awkward with videogames and controllers, didn't help she spent fifteen years without even knowing of them. "Come on. Let's not waste time." Cinder said, drawing Midnight in their dual sword form.
"Right. Let's kick some ass." Yang said, cocking Ember Celica.
Cinder opened the backdoor, but they were greeted by an empty train car.
"Uh… where is everybody?" Yang asked, advancing slowly, fists raised to deflect any attack that came her way. Cinder did the same, holding Midnight in front of her torso.
"I don't know. Maybe one was a decoy." Cinder said.
"That's… not what the board on that building said." Yang argued. Halfway through the car, everything was still quiet save for the rumbling of the vehicle and the distant snarls of Grimm.
"Plans change, Yang. Our presence probably changed everything. They probably rushed it." As she said that, they reached the door to the next section.
"So… we caused this?" Yang asked, as if genuinely hurt.
"No. Don't dwell on it. It'll only slow you down." Cinder didn't follow that advice, not always. And she hated herself for it. "Now come on."
With a nod from Yang, the door to the next train was open. This one was also empty, save for a single woman standing in the middle. Barely a meter and a half in height, she smiled with half closed eyes to the huntresses while twirling her umbrella.
"Alright. We're split. Now what?" Weiss asked, clearly annoyed. Ruby thought for a moment. They had separated. She was worried about her sisters, and their uncle Qrow. But now was not the time for that. She had a mission to accomplish. People to save. At least, that's what she thought Cinder would say.
"We go in, and stop the train." Said Ruby, narrowing her eyes. Blake and Weiss nodded and they entered the train car.
"Will you be alright in tight quarters?" Weiss asked. Ruby stopped in her tracks, Crescent Rose dangling from her arms, it's length almost too big to carry through the door.
"I… I'll be fine. That's why I got you guys, right?" Ruby asked sheepishly. Blake and Weiss smiled. Ruby hated not being good in close combat, but she didn't train to fight humans. She trained to fight Grimm. They were the true threat. "In fact, Weiss, could you… give me one of your lightning dust canisters?" She asked the heiress. Weiss raised an eyebrow, but didn't question her as she flipped Myrtenaster open and retrieved the yellow cylinder.
"Be careful with it." Weiss said as her partner stowed it away.
Ruby Rose then steeled herself and pressed a button near the door.
The door slipped open automatically. Inside waited a wagon full of White Fang members, high, wide and long enough to barely swing Crescent Rose. They all had their weapons ready, and as soon as the three girls entered, they began firing. It was almost blinding as deafening shots rang out.
Time slowed down. There were too many. Weiss would not react on time, neither would Blake. Only Ruby herself could. Why did she try this plan? Why didn't she think of something better? She was too focused on saving everyone, on stopping Roman. Why didn't she think of her partner, or of Blake?
Ruby needed to get them out of there. So she used her semblance, and as a storm of red petals, imagined her hands picking Weiss and Blake up. As she ran through them, they became just like her. Weiss was a white blob, while Blake was black. They swirled together around the train at high speeds, avoiding the projectiles and closing the distance between their attackers and themselves.
Normally, Ruby would feel light as a feather and fast as a bullet when using her semblance. However, now, she felt heavy, as if carrying two blocks of metal on her hands. She knew then that ff she dropped them, they would fall.
She flew straight on the roof, and then directly over the heads of the White Fang soldiers. She dematerialized, and her body ached tremendously, as if she had just ran a marathon. The soldiers turned around, but it was too late by then.
Weiss shot ice shards with her Glyphs, knocking out many of them. The lucky few that ducked, where taken out by the combined effort of Blake's acrobatics and Ruby's shock bullets. Blake would kick them, tie a few with Gambol shroud and raise them, and in the air, Ruby shot them before they fell to the ground, incapacitated.
Any stragglers that tried to interfere were beaten by Weiss' swordplay, the heiress too nimble for simple goons with guns.
In the end, the three of them had taken out a wall of fifteen soldiers.
"Alright. That wasn't so hard," Blake commented.
"We still have to deal with that ruffian," Weiss said, then looked at Ruby. She felt herself grow small under Weiss' gaze despite her partner probably not intending to make her feel that way. "You got a plan?"
Ruby thought about it for a moment. "We'll use White Rose on him, while Blake stops the train." Ruby said after a moment. Her teammates nodded, and the three proceeded to the next car.
The door slid open. What awaited was not Roman, but the man named Adam.
"I guess he does keep his promises." He said, looking at the three girls from the other side of the train car. All around, multiple boxes and crates, wired and probably full of Dust where strewn about and stacked. Ruby had never seen such a huge amount in the same place before. And if her Dust classes with Oobleck were correct, such an amount would be enough to level a small town.
She heard Blake choke for a split second, and momentarily turned to see her friend retreat a bit, eyes wide and shaking.
"It'll be okay…" she whispered while keeping her eye on Adam, who simply twirled his sword around and paced around the room with a smile. Ruby squeezed Blake's hand, partly because the energy emanating from the guy made her insides lurch.
"Let us through. We won't give you another warning!" Weiss said loud and clear, stepping up and pointing her rapier at him.
"What confidence. I'll enjoy tearing you apart, Weiss Schnee." Adam said, pointing his sword in return. Weiss growled, taking a step back and holding her rapier to her side. Ruby had enough.
"Why are you doing this? How could any of this possibly help the faunus?" Ruby asked, holding Crescent Rose tightly.
"If all humans are dead, no one will be left to hurt us. It's that simple." Adam said.
"Humans? Or just you?" Blake asked, now stepping ahead of Ruby. Her voice was still shaky, but she held her ground, fists clenched. Adam said nothing, his mouth a thin line as he stared at Blake through his white and red mask.
"Do you really-?"
"Don't give me that shit! You don't give a shit about faunus OR humans! You only want to hurt people!" Blake said, voice cracking. Adam for a moment said nothing. Then chuckled, and then broke into laughter, leaning his head back and covering his face with his free hand.
"Oh man," he said as his laughter died off. "Of course you say that. You don't know anything about me, Blake." He replied.
"I know enough!" She said as she drew Gambol Shroud. Weiss and Ruby tensed, holding their weapons at the ready.
"Really now?" Adam muttered, gripping his sword with two hands. "You know nothing of fighting back, Blake. You may have for a time, but we both know you are only a coward, a coddled girl born to idealist parents. You are no different from the Schnee." For the first time since she met her, Ruby saw Blake visibly grit her teeth, showing her fangs. "You are scared of me. You know you can't fight me. When your two friends here fall, you'll just leave them to die. That's who you are." The way Adam smiled made Ruby wince.
"Alright! Enough of this!" Weiss said, before putting a foot behind and placing Myrtenaster's blade on her palm. "I will allow you to slander my teammate no longer!" With that, Weiss dashed, a white blur that blew air.
"Weiss! No!" By the time Blake had finished her sentence, the sound of metal clashing was heard as a shockwave ran through the room. Weiss had tried to stab Adam, but he had blocked it with the flat of his blade.
The Faunus man smiled, swords shacking from the tension being exerted on them. Then, he pushed their swords to the side. Weiss was faster though, and quickly recovered to slash at his face.
Then, Adam grabbed the hilt of his sword, and a shot rang out, pushing Weiss away slightly. She, however, was once again fighting Adam.
Ruby needed to help. Blake was keeping her distance, as if observing the fight, so she decided to user her semblance and reposition herself. In a second, she was behind Adam, lining up a shot. Weiss was deft, thrusting and slashing while Adam opted for powerful overheads and cuts.
So she did, a shot rang out, and Adam was struck in his back, pushing him ahead into Weiss' attacks. However, he shrugged it all off, and grabbed Weiss by her wrist, snarling. His hair glowed, and he threw Weiss against the ruff with a single motion. Then he reached for his sword and slashed to the air. From his weapon sprung a red wave of energy, much like the one that he had used to escape.
Ruby saw death for a second. Imagined herself being split apart by the incoming attack. There was just so much energy behind it, she could feel it.
But it never came to pass. She was pushed away by Blake, held safely in her arms, and then saw a clone of her being shattered by the red wave. It took it to the door to the train cabin, and the impact was enough to bend the metal.
Ruby took the sight of Blake, panting, staring at her with worried eyes. A shadow loomed over, however, and Blake was forced to block and push away an attack by Adam.
Blake had nearly died to save her.
Ruby had enough.
"Blake! Execute Ladybug!" She shouted, readying a round into Crescent Rose and activating it's scythe mode.
Blake knew what to do. She went into the defensive as Ruby ran in perfectly behind her frame.
Adam saw a hole in Blake's defence, and stabbed. As expected, it was successful. He struck a clone, and his sword was stuck in an ice sculpture.
As he tried to pull it out, Ruby jumped over it, held Crescent Rose in the air, and fired. The recoil was enough to send her spinning. Like a disk of death, Ruby flew towards Adam and successfully struck. The Faunus man was sent flying, his Aura flickering as Ruby landed. But she was not done. She felt a tug on the end of Crescent Rose, and thus knew it was time. She fired again, as if to deal an empowered slice. Instead, she used her weapon as leverage for Blake, who was sent flying like a cannonball. Her boots close together, she struck Adam straight in the stomach, sending him ricocheting from the roof onto the floor.
Blake was then pulled back by Ruby, landing on her side. From the side, Weiss stood up, a trail of blood running from her forehead.
"Are you all right, Weiss?" Ruby asked, winded.
"It's a scratch. I'm fine." Replied the heiress, pointing Myrtenaster at the apparently unconscious Adam. "Is it over?" She asked.
Just as she did, Adam stood up, mask cracked slightly.
"How though is this guy?" Ruby asked in disbelief.
"Very though. He's had time to practice." Blake replied. "His semblance turns any energy that impacts him, or his weapons, into his own. He can then release it through objects that he uses as weapons."
"So like Yang's?" Ruby asked. It was too bizarre.
"Yes. But without the need for the damage to get to his Aura. Or body." As Blake finished explaining, Adam shot from his shotgun hilt, destroying the sculpture and sending his sword flying towards him, which he caught. He said nothing, he did not even smile.
"Alright, let¡s finish him and–"
"–Leave him to us, Ruby." Weiss said, stepping up.
"What?!" Asked both Blake and Ruby in unison.
"You have to stop the train," Weiss replied.
"But we need to stick together," Ruby said.
"No. We need to do what's right, what's necessary," Weiss then stared at Ruby, hard. "You are the leader. You need to finish the mission. We'll cover you."
Ruby hesitated, and then looked at Blake, whose face was strained as she looked at Adam.
"I can't run away from this, Ruby. But thanks, for trying to stay." Ruby blushed, and gave Blake's hand a warm squeeze.
"Kick his ass." She said, before turning around and opening the door towards the next section of the train.
Cinder narrowed her eyes, watching her enemy. Humans were more dangerous than Grimm, usually. They were devious, nimble, and had the hideous ability to mask what they thought very well.
This little woman with hair of two different colours was doing just that, smiling at them silently, body language confident, goading them to attack.
"So… we totally smash this midget, right?" Yang asked. At this, the woman frowned and began walking ahead, umbrella slung over her shoulder.
"She's dangerous. Hold nothing back." Cinder warned, tensing her body.
"Finally!" As she said that, Yang shot Ember Celica and propelled herself like a human rocket at her target. Cinder followed behind, swords at the ready.
The woman smiled, and simply dodged Yang's punch, barely. But barely was just what she calculated, wasting no energy, never overshooting. So she was smart and didn't boast. A dangerous opponent.
While Yang recovered from her failed attack, Cinder engaged the woman. She struck and stabbed at her. However, the woman moved her body like a bunch of clay, moving away from attacks and countering with her umbrella. Cinder was fast and strong, and while the woman was skilled, Cinder was on par. Every attack dodged was followed by another, every strike forced the woman to exert herself when blocking them.
Yang rushed again, eyes red, ready to punch the woman. Cinder kept her pinned, but as soon as Yang charged, she smiled and deftly moved out of the way. Cinder was met with a face full of pellets and fist, sent into the ground.
"Oh… Sorry!" Yang said as Cinder recovered. Her sister approached her, a foolish move, since her Aura was half full still. And worse, the woman was ready to attack the distracted Yang.
"Move!" Cinder yelled, throwing her firecrackers at Yang. The blonde ducked, and the firecrackers exploded upon the little woman. Cinder smiled, and rushed for the attack along Yang. However, the firecrackers did not last, extinguished by the sudden opening the umbrella.
Cinder growled and attack from the front, while Yang flanked her. The woman closed her umbrella, dodged Cinder's shots and opened them to surprise Yang. Then, in a deft move, lifted her leg and kicked Cinder in the chin, with enough strength to push her away.
Angered, Yang attacked from above with red eyes and flaming hair. The woman had her umbrella opened, and no material would be able to withstand an attack like that. Of course, the woman was shrewd, and she closed her umbrella, making Yang miss, embedding her fist tightly on the metal floor.
Time slowed down. Cinder was a few meters away, Yang had put everything into her attack, but the overwhelming forced had missed. Her sister was defenceless. The woman approached, and Cinder rushed, intent on doing something, anything, to prevent Yang from being injured.
But once again, she wasn't fast, nor strong enough.
Yang threw a punch that was deflected, and then the woman pulled away the pommel of her umbrella, revealing a thin blade. In a second, the woman smiled, and stabbed Yang through the chest, easily penetrating her Aura. The blade exited right below where her heart should be, coated in blood. Her sister spit blood as she looked towards the ground with wide eyes.
Yang was going to die.
Yang was going to die.
Yang was going to die.
Her sister… the only person who loved he without a second thought… without a reason outside being her sister… was going to die.
The world slowed down. Just like Ruby's duel with Isshin, Cinder had been too weak to protect her sister. Despite everything that had happened, despite all her training that she went through, people were still taking things away from her.
Something snapped inside of her. A silent rage, a murderous intent. This woman, she would kill her. She would die for daring to take things away from her.
She screamed. The woman turned. Rage was a powerful weapon, Yang was the ultimate testament to that, but it could also blind you, opponents would use it against you. Cinder had internalized that anger. She would get angry, but would not let it undermine her thoughts. It was a cold anger, a fierce brutality with no holds barred.
A slash, up to down. It was dodged, but soon another came from the side. She was not fast enough, her Aura took a hit. She used the momentum and kicked her in the stomach. The woman flipped back, but Cinder knew what she would do. Try to use her umbrella to throw her off, then use kicks and evasion. She would not allow her.
She charged again. The woman did as she expected, opening her umbrella. Cinder touched it, and it went up in flames. The woman was surprised. She barely dodged Cinder's stab to the face, and ducked under a slash, only to receive a fierce knee to the face.
The woman recoiled, Cinder threw firecrackers once again. She would not let her escape.
The woman was blinded, and Cinder continued her offensive. A slash connected, followed by another, then a kick, then a back hand, another slash, another kick. The woman's body twisted from side to side from the sheer force of the hits. Cinder felt cathartic, her rage going to her firsts and as the woman's Aura flickered and broke.
But she didn't stop. She would not get off so easily. She kicked her multiple times in the head, blood splattering over the sides.
She then stopped for a moment to catch her breath. The woman stood there, as if in a trance, wobbling from side to side. It was time to finish her her.
The woman's eyes widened as cinder went for the kill. Midnight closed in to her neck from both sides.
Then a flash of red came in.
A crimson blade blocked her strike. With inhuman force, Midnight was pushed back, followed up by a horizontal strike. Cinder knew she could not take that attack, so she jumped back just in time.
She looked ahead. In front of the woman that had attacked Yang, who was now kneeling on the floor beaten and bloodied, stood another wearing a Grimm mask. Her black hair, her clothes, her demeanour. She was a raven through and through.
"Mind if I cut in?" She asked with some amusement. Cinder snarled, she was tired of interruptions. Tired of people standing in her way.
"Who are you?" She asked in-between heavy breaths, Midnight once again in battle positions.
"It doesn't matter. Rather…" she slashed her sword in the air to her left, and a black and red portal opened. Then she grabbed the woman by the neck and threw her inside before it closed down. "… I'm here for something that belongs to me."
Cinder raised an eyebrow, before noticing that the woman was looking at Yang. Cinder looked back at her sister, who was laying on the ground, holding her side. Did she know what was happening? Or was she unconscious?
"You are not touching her," She growled, moving to stand between them. "And she doesn't belong to you."
The woman lowered her sword. "I'll show you mercy, Cinder Fall." There it was that name again. That name she didn't know. "I take her, you stop the train, and live. Sounds like a deal, right?" Something in Cinder snapped, and in a second Midnight was a bow, shooting a blazing arrow at the woman. She just deflected it with her sword. Of course it was not going to be that easy. "You really want to do this? You really should run away, girl."
Cinder lowered her weapon.
That's all you'll ever do.
She would not allow this. She was not a defenceless girl anymore. She would not allow anyone to denigrate her like that, not again.
"You should be the one to run, bitch." Cinder growled. The woman sighed while leaning her head back.
"So be it," she said, drawing her sword. "I wonder if you'll be strong enough to defeat me. To survive. I somehow doubt it."
"I won't leave Yang again, you can hold me to that promise." Cinder said, more so to herself than to the woman.
(A/N: Play "The Only Thing I Know for Real" from Metal Gear Rising.)
This woman was different from any other opponent Cinder had ever seen. She was confident, she stood at the ready, and exuded an incomparable aura of power. She wanted it, she wanted to know how she got so strong.
But that could always happen later.
Yang was bleeding out, Ruby was on another car fighting for her life, her uncle Qrow facing Atlas Paladins on his own. This woman was part of all of this, she had to pay.
Cinder did not care anymore. Not if she killed, or what Ruby would think of her for doing so. She would give it her all now.
She shot an ice arrow and charged ahead, following closely behind it with Midnight turning to sword mode. The woman would have to either parry or dodge. Either way, she would be left at a disadvantage.
Yet, the woman simply swung her sword, destroy the arrow and forcing Cinder to block. The huntress felt a monstrous weight behind the woman's strike. She was caught off guard when the woman lodged her sword out of Midnight's block and began slashing at a speed comparable to Isshin's or Ozpin's.
She blocked desperately, but her eyes could barely catch the incoming attacks, her legs nearly gave out with every strike. She could not counterattack, the woman was too fast. She needed an out.
She let one half of Midnight slip from her hand and fly into the air, and reach for her quiver, pulling out a gravity arrow which she stabbed onto the floor. In a second, the woman was pulled off the ground, throwing her off.
Cinder smiled as she jumped back, caught the missing half of her weapon and began using her semblance on the floor. The gravity arrow wore off, and the annoyed woman sheathed her sword, only to use some kind of mechanism in the sheath that allowed for a high speed draw. This resulted in a cone of fire coming towards her.
Cinder smiled, and with all her might forced the superheated metal floor to mould and twist to her will. A sharp, orange spike of hot metal shot forwards and broke through the wall of flame, straight to the woman's face. With a little spin, the woman dodged and went into the offensive.
Cinder did the same, attacking with Midnight in a crescent shape while the woman did a forward slash. The swords locked once again. Cinder had to pour all of her strength to hold her guard steady, but the woman was physically stronger, she would not give up.
So Cinder did the next best thing, she would sacrifice her weapon. She used her semblance, and heated up Midnight from the pommels to the blades. In a second, they were as hot as a forge, and the sword from the woman began to crack under the pressure and the heat. With one final struggle, the thin blade broke, and Cinder did a cross slash at the woman's mask.
However, the woman jumped back just a second before the blades connected with her head, thus leaving only her mask scratched. At least she was now defenceless.
Cinder's body hurt, her Aura was nearly depleted, she would not last much longer. The woman just stood there, apparently surprised at Cinder's sudden hit on her. Unfortunately, that was her only hit.
(A/N: Song end.)
The woman's facemask cracked one time, then two, then three. In the end, it fell to pieces on the ground.
Cinder was left staring at Yang's crimson eyes. No, this was not Yang. This person was older, wrinkled, paler. She was much more similar to her Uncle Qrow. That could only mean one thing.
"You…" Cinder whispered. The woman tensed. "You are Raven–"
Before she knew it, a flash of black rushed at her, a grey blade on the sword. How did she get another?
Cinder blocked a thrust, but the only thing that happened was that her sword came undone. Raven broke trough her weapon, her Aura, and lodged her blade into Cinder's shoulder.
It stung, it stung terribly. It felt like she had been shot and stabbed at the same time. The sword must have been infused with wind dust.
She screamed in pain, but it was cut off by a strong hand gripping her neck and lifting her up with inhuman strength. The weight of her body and the strong grip made her neck feel like it was going to snap.
"How weak," Raven snarled, before smashing Cinder into the floor behind her. She felt her back break without Aura to protect it.
"How pathetic!" She then was launched into the ceiling, the front of her body receiving the full force of the impact, before falling to the floor once again. It hurt so much, it made her head ring. She could barely move, or react. Still, she saw Raven loom over her.
"She was wrong about you. You are nothing." Even with a broken body and pain clouding her mind, Cinder grit her teeth at her words.
A shadow loomed over her eyes. Not one of death, despite the circumstances. It was something more, a figure in grey, wielding a massive sword had attacked Raven and pushed her back. She could not see very well, but the voice was unmistakable.
"Get away from her!" She heard her uncle Qrow say.
"Little brother," Raven said. "Why are you here?"
"You know why," Qrow replied, voice laced with venom.
"I understand caring for Yang, she IS your blood too after all," Raven said, pointing at the unconscious blonde. "I understand caring for Summer's daughter, as a matter of honour, of loyalty and friendship," she saw Qrow's weapon shake. He was angry.
"But this trash? She should be nothing to you." She was right. Qrow should not even be caring for her.
"Shut up! Just shut up and leave, like you always do!" Shouted Qrow. Cinder had never heard him so angry before.
"Hmph. So be it, this is your one chance, my brother. Next time, you won't be so lucky." Raven said, slashing at the air and opening another of her portals. Then she walked through it, and the portal disappeared into thin air.
The battle was over.
Cinder had been saved, again. But more importantly, she had been unable to protect Yang. And speaking of her, despite the pain, despite her Uncle's inexplicable presence, Cinder ran to Yang's side. The girl was still curled up upon herself, clutching her side, unconscious.
"Yang…" Cinder whispered, turning the girl around to check her wound. Blood poured from it, dripping into the floor, staining Yang's hands.
"I'll call for evac." Qrow said from beside her. Cinder looked up, and saw him look at Yang with a furrowed brow and strained eyes.
"Alright. I'll wrap the wound and carry her," Cinder said, without much energy. "Stop the train." She ordered. Qrow nodded and went off to another train car.
Cinder didn't care to look. She reached for the waist cape from her uniform and tore it, wrapping it tightly around Yang's abdomen. She hopped that would suffice to keep her alive. She thought about using her semblance but… it probably would not help much. Not after her defeat, after her failure to stop either the small woman, Raven, or even team RWBY from splitting.
The felt the train stop, the force almost throwing her forwards. It was over, at least on her end. How was Ruby doing?
She picked up Yang bridal style, keeping her head close to her chest, then went to a side door and stepped out into the dark tunnel. Her entire body ached, and was barely being held together by her Aura.
She heard another pair of feet land behind her. Her uncle Qrow.
"Alright, we barely stopped it on time. We are actually close to Vale. Use one of the old service stairs. Luckily for you, Grimm can't use them." Qrow said, a little too nonchalantly.
"Qrow," Cinder called, making him turn to her. "That woman… she was Raven. The one you told me about." She said, catching his crimson eyes with her amber ones. Her uncle simply sighed while leaning his head back.
"Yeah. Look… I need to find Ruby. We'll talk later, ok?" He said. She was having none of that as she handed Yang over to him, carefully.
"Sorry, but Ruby is still my responsibility, as teacher and sister." She said, sternly. Qrow shot her a look of disapproval.
"Do you really think you can help her the way you are now?" Qrow asked harshly as Cinder began leaving to search for Ruby, who would probably be on the adjacent tunnel.
"I don't give a shit. Please take care of Yang." Cinder said, not even bothering to look back.
Ruby entered the space in-between cars, and felt the wind blow in her face. They were going at high speeds, they would reach the blockade soon. She had to stop the train.
Yet, her heart didn't start thumping. She had left Blake and Weiss behind, with that monster. What kind of friend was she?
She shook her head. Neither Yang nor Cinder would want her to freeze up. Yes, those thoughts would push her forward.
Gripping Crescent Rose in it's compact form, Ruby entered the control cabin. Sliding the door open, she took her surroundings in first. It was a small room compared to the other cars, but there was still some room to move Crescent Rose. In the other end was a console with controls and a chair. On it, sat Roman Torchwick, relaxed as if having Tea time.
"Red! You really came, huh! But," he leaned forward, placing a hand on his chin. "Where are the other two? Don't tell me you left them behind?" He asked in an exaggerated tone. He was rubbing salt on the wound.
"Move away, Torchwick. I don't want to hurt you. I just want to stop the train," Ruby said, approaching with a drawn Crescent Rose. Even so, her voice was not threatening at all.
"I'm afraid I can't do that. I have a job, you know?" He said. Ruby narrowed her eyes.
"Then I'll move you." Ruby said, nearly growling.
"Okay, okay! Must we always resort to violence?" He asked, standing up. "How about a deal?" Ruby raised an eyebrow.
"Deal?"
"Yes, a deal. Something where we both win!" Said Torchwick, pacing around with his cane. Something he didn't need to do, since he was perfectly capable of moving unassisted.
"Let me guess, you stop the train and I…" she had read about this in stories before. But she never expected it to happen like this.
"… And you walk out of here with me. There's someone very interested in you, dear." Now Ruby was even more confused. Who would be interested in someone like her? She wasn't that more special than Weiss or Cinder. People called her a prodigy, but she still didn't feel like one.
Still, she wasn't about to hand herself over.
"No," was her answer. Torchwick rolled his eyes.
"Come on, Red. You'd be a hero! Besides, what other choice do you have?" He asked with a cocky smile. Ruby thought about it. He was right, if she wanted to ensure that the train would stop, but… to hand herself over…
What would Cinder do?
She thought about her older sister. She knew many things about her, but many more remained mysterious. Even so… she knew one thing Cinder would never do. She would never back down, and never give herself up to the demands of others. Ruby would do the same, starting with Torchwick.
"You're going down, Torchwick. That's my choice." Ruby said, twirling Crescent Rose.
"And it will be the worst you ever made." Roman replied, pointing his cane at her.
(A/N: Play "Time to Say Goodbye" from RWBY Soundtrack.)
Ruby shot him, three times despite the recoil and loss of accuracy. Roman did not care, sidestepping or deflecting the shots. He then shot a grappling hook from his cane, intent on pulling Ruby. She had seen it before. She was ready.
She let it wrap around Crescent Rose, and in a reverse of her Ladybug move, she shot her weapon, the recoil making Roman stumble forwards. Ruby then stomped the cable, and swung her giant Scythe. Torchwick's eyes widened, and he was forced to duck. Crescent Rose missed his head, but cut his hat in half. Now the gentleman was without his attire. And that seemed to enrage him, as he touched his now hatless hair many times.
Ruby smiled at his annoyance. "You cheeky little…!" Roman cursed, locking eyes with her. She then charged again.
No longer would she lose.
Blake dashed around along with Weiss. Two blurs of opposite colours attacked Adam from all directions. While he managed to deflect most of the attacks, many more managed to connect. His Aura was flickering. Soon, he would be unable to use his semblance.
They were playing it safe. Yes, they fed his semblance, but also kept on the move to avoid being hit by a fully charged wave. Besides, and stray attack would blow up the train.
Blake landed at his side, catching his sight. He was shaking, he was at his limit. It was time to finish the fight.
"Face me you coward!" He screamed. From behind, Weiss came, ready to stab him in the back. Then the unthinkable happened. He saw her. He grabbed his sword, it glowed red and he swung. Blake barely managed to throw Gambol Shroud to stop him when the wave rushed forward and hit Weiss directly.
The heiress barely managed to use a Glyph to propel herself to the side, but even so, the wave burned her sleeve and arm to the point her skin was red and blistered. Weiss hit the opposite wall, apparently safe but exhausted.
Adam smiled despite having one hand restrained.
"How does it feel Schnee? To be burned and marked?" He asked as Weiss lifted her face, pained.
"Horrible," answered the heiress. "But I guess I deserved that. I hope that was worth it." Adam stopped smiling, and Blake took it as the signal to attack. She pulled on gambol shroud, and with a flip hit Adam on the head with the back of her heel, slamming his face into the ground.
"Now!" Blake screamed, shooting Gambol Shroud at point blank range and forcing Adam to block. Enraged, the Faunus Man began glowing red. That crimson glow that still terrified her. He was about to kill her, but that was to be expected.
What was not was Weiss striking him on his sword wrist with Myrtenaster. While she did not draw blood, she didn't need to. The sword glowed blue, and then Adam's wrist was encased in ice.
"What the…?" He went for his shotgun, Wilt, but Blake didn't give him a chance to use it as she wrapped her whip around his other wrist and also brought it down. Now he was trapped and disarmed. "No… No! Why you… Let me go!" Adam screamed, snarling like a rabid animal.
"It's over Adam. We're done. You are done." Blake said, pointing Gambol Shroud at his face. Adam let his head fall down in defeat, before he began laughing.
"Oh Blake. Maybe I'm going down, but…" he said, smiling and then he showed his teeth. Between them was a small metal tooth. Before being able to react, Blake fell down, pushed forwards by a strong force. Had Ruby stopped the train?
"...You're going down with me!" He screamed, before his hair began emitting a red light, and the metal object began cackling with red electricity. Adam then spit it, and the small object grew into a bright red energy ball, heading straight towards the Dust crates.
"No…" Blake said, watching in slow motion as the object collided with the Dust containers and a fiery explosion was born.
However, it was not time to say goodbye to life. In a second Weiss stepped in front of her.
"We're not going down!" She screamed asa giant blue glyph began glowing. A wall of ice and… a giant hand. Even so, a huge force broke through, and Blake felt herself slam into the wall behind her, and then something fell as the world began rolling around. After a moment, her world went black.
Ruby had never felt like this. Her every muscle hurt, her breath was short, and her brain was processing every possibility she could think of at every passing moment. Even so, keeping up with Roman Torchwick was a challenge. He easily dodged Crescent Rose's every slice, and counterattacked with his cane and various kicks and punches.
She needed to beat him, to get through his defence.
She avoided a hit with the cane, and used Crescent Rose in sniper form to go back and shoot. He was prideful, he would not take kindly to a tactic such as hers.
And she was right. After two shots his grappling shot forward and wrapped around Crescent Rose, which pulled him towards Ruby. In a second she was hit over her head, followed by a knee to the face.
Stunned, Ruby felt a hand around her neck push her against the wall. She saw Roman's angry eyes stare back.
"You've got spunk, little Red. But this is it, you risked everything and lost instead of taking the path that would lead to living," he said as he held his cane to her face. Ruby grit her teeth, giving him her best glare. "Any last words?"
"Not…" she said, reaching for her pocket. "...today!" Ruby screamed, breaking the flask on Torchwick's clothes. He was set alight with lightning dust, screaming and convulsing in agony. The same happened to Ruby, but she had more Aura. Even as it flickered, she watched Roman fall to his knees. It was time.
Ruby dashed, using her remaining Aura to Petal Burst towards the controls. She spotted a button that was red and labeled 'Emergency stop', and smashed it. She felt the train shoot forwards, but held steady.
As she sighed, Ruby felt something grabbed her head, and smash it multiple times on the console. The first hurt a little, the second hurt a lot, and by the fourth she felt a stinging along a numbness. Was her nose broken? Was the blood splattered in the console hers?
"You little shit! I hope you've said goodbye!" Roman exclaimed, before he and Ruby were launched upwards as the entire train car shook. Ruby felt herself bounce around the room, before being buried under darkness.
(Song end.)
Something creaked above her. It was dark, it was hot, she smelled of ashes, her nose was irritated and her eyes stung.
Ruby Rose did not know where she was, but she hated it. There was an unpleasant pressure in her back, and she feared that anymore of it would break her.
A loud screech of metal was heard, and a thin line of light became a flash. Ruby squinted, before being met with an inferno of flames and cinders.
"Ruby!" She heard someone say. She lifted her head, and spotted her big sister, Cinder. She was in bad shape, a small hole in her shoulder with blood dripping down, along several bruises and scratches. She looked like she was suffering. "Get out of there!"
Her instincts kicked in, and without a hitch she crawled out of wherever she was. The moment she did, she heard something heavy drop behind her, lifting dust into the air. Ruby turned to look at her sister. The girl could barely stand, her entire body hurt.
"Cinder? What happened?" Ruby asked. Her voice was hoarse.
"Your train blew up. We need to get out of here. Come on," Cinder said, walking away.
"Where are Weiss and Blake?" Ruby asked, dread pooling in her stomach. The explosion did not begin in the control room, which meant, it either started on Blake and Weiss' car, or the one before. But… they couldn't be dead. Such a thing was impossible to process for Ruby.
"I don't know. I don't care. We need to get clear," Cinder said, going back to Ruby and pulling her back to her feet. The younger sister glared at the older one, before a voice interrupted them both.
"Ruby?! Are you there?!" That angelic, worried voice she knew well. Ruby squinted, and spotted a white figure among the flames.
"Weiss!" Ruby said, escaping Cinder's grasp and running forwards to her friend. She dodged flames and wreckage, and there she saw her, standing among the rubble, looking like she had just been through a lot.
"Ruby!" Weiss said. She was smiling, she had never seen Weiss so happy to see her before. Such thing made her heart flutter as she gave one last jump, despite her body screaming in pain, and wrapping Weiss in a hug.
"Ow! You dolt!" She heard her say, hitting her atop the head with a weak fist. She did not mind.
"I'm so glad you're okay," Ruby said, separating. Weiss glared at her, but a second later it melted into a smile. Then Ruby looked her over, and spotted her burned left arm, dangling uselessly at the heiress' side. "Weiss…" Ruby said, voice cracking.
"I'm fine," said Weiss, wincing.
"Where's Blake?" At the mention of their teammate, Weiss looked down before coughing heavily. Ruby felt herself being short of breath.
"Follow me," said Weiss, before going a few steps towards a big hunk of metal. Under it, Ruby saw Blake laying face down on the ground, a pool of blood under her. She felt her heart go to her throat.
"Blake!" Ruby screamed, all pain forgotten, as she knelt at Blake's side. "Blake! Can you hear me?" Ruby asked, shaking her a little before stopping herself. That was not the procedure. Peach had taught them that in first aid class. Ruby was so stupid.
"If I…" Weiss said, falling to her knees. "...If I could summon, we could get her out, but… I can't…" Tears began to pool in Weiss' eyes.
"We have to try." Said Ruby, gripping the hunk of metal and lifting, before a sharp pain forced her to retreat. She didn't even manage to make it move an inch. Her hands were burning, the metal was too hot.
"What are you doing?" Cinder asked, walking towards them, Crescent Rose in her right hand.
"We need to save her!" Ruby said, tearing at her cape to cover her hands and protect them from the heat.
"Ruby…" Cinder said as the girl tried once again to lift, to no success. "… Stop!"
At those words, Ruby halted, and fell to her knees.
"if we try–"
"It's over, Ruby. We have to leave," said Cinder in an empty voice. Ruby looked at the ground, shed a tear, and then wiped it.
"No,"
"What?" Ruby got up.
"I'm not leaving. I'm not leaving her behind." Ruby said, fixing Cinder with a glare.
"You want to die for her?" Her sister asked.
"Maybe I do. Or maybe I just refuse to give up on people." Ruby said, looking at the unconscious form of her friend. Ruby remembered all the good times they had, their slow dance at the Vytal party where Ruby felt perfectly at ease even in a huge crowd. All thanks to Blake. "So I'm not running. If you want to… that's your choice." Ruby said. Those words seemed to make Cinder's eyes widen and her lips purse.
"Ruby…"
"You used to be that too. You were my hero, my super sis, and then… you left." Ruby said, interrupting her sister. Cinder said nothing, and then closed her eyes for a moment.
"Fine. We'll do it your way," she said. Ruby's eyes widened, before a weapon flew at her face. "Use Crescent Rose as leverage. Weiss, be ready to move Blake." Cinder ordered, tearing on her waist cape to cover her hands much like Ruby had done.
"Got it," Ruby said, extending Crescent Rose and hooking it's blade under the rubble. She felt horrible, about misusing her baby in this way, but Crescent Rose could be repaired and/or replaced. Blake… not so much.
"Ready?" Cinder asked, kneeling down. Both girl nodded.
Cinder lifted, and at that moment, Ruby began to pull Crescent Rose upwards. The hunk of metal moved, a little. Ruby saw Cinder struggle, hands shaking and smoking. Crescent Rose was about to give in.
"Got her!" Weiss said as she pulled Blake from under it. In a second the debris hit the floor, leaving Cinder and Ruby tired and exhausted.
"Is she… alright?" Ruby asked.
"Yeah… she's unconscious. The blood isn't hers." Weiss said, checking Blake all over.
"Thanks gods," Ruby said.
"Then let's move. We'll run out of air soon." Cinder said, lifting Blake up bridal style. Both girls stood up to follow their professor.
As they began walking towards what seemed to be a connection between the two tunnels, a black figure landed in front of them. A Sabyr.
"Shit!" Cinder cursed. Ruby then noticed, she only had one sword.
Another Sabyr landed behind her, then another, and more and more. Soon, they were surrounded by Grimm.
"No… no… not like this…" Weiss whispered, handling Myrtenaster with her good hand. Ruby unsheathed Crescent Rose, but it felt so heavy on her hands.
"This is not the end." Ruby whispered. She looked at the Grimm, the enemies of humanity, close in on them.
After all of that, after everything, this was how they were going to die? Ruby refused to believed it. She would allow harm to come to Weiss, or Cinder, or Blake. She would protect them, to preserve all those precious memories.
A sabyr jumped forward, intent on mauling Ruby's face off. The huntress-in-training saw the world slow down, and she glared at the creature. Glared at the evil that threatened her friends and family. Memories flashed in her head.
Her friends in Beacon, her first day, building Crescent Rose, meeting Jaune, dancing with Blake, Cinder reading her a story.
Her mom, Summer Rose, smiling at her.
Ruby felt her eyes heat up.
The Sabyr then collapsed as a green beam went through it from it's right side.
"What?" Ruby asked.
(A/N: Play "Invincible Main Theme Epic version" by Samuel Kim Music)
The Sabyr's all turned to the new threat. As they did, they were showered by a rain of ice crystals.
"W-What is-?" Weiss asked as a figure in white and grey landed in front of her.
"Get going! We've opened a small portal. We'll seal it later! Go!" Said Winter, looking back over her shoulder. "We'll handle this." She was like a taller, more confident Weiss.
"Listen to her, friend Ruby." She heard Penny say as she began flying around, attacking Grimm with her spinning blades, all while porting a smile. "I am combat ready!"
Ruby felt a thug on her arm. It was Weiss.
"Come on!" She said, practically dragging Ruby away from the scene.
(Song over)
With the sounds of the fighting behind them, the four women ran towards the exit, a bright hole of light that was like a light bulb in the darkness.
Once they went through, they were welcomed by the familiar sight of the Vale outskirts, which were a simple grassy plain with trees littered here and there. It was so peaceful, in contrast with what had transpired previously.
They had been so close to the main wall, so close to watching chaos ensue. But they had made it, they had all made it. They had saved everyone.
Ruby couldn't help but smile.
She felt good. She felt… sleepy. Maybe… she would lay down for a while.
"Ruby!"
She heard Cinder yell as blackness took her over.
A/N: Yeah baby, grand finale for the first Arc of Heart of Glass. With this, Volume 2 ends and we can get into the juicy stuff, Volume 3. Yet, something still remains. Cinder has some questions to answer. That small epilogue is something to look forward to.
After that, Volume 3 will begin. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It took me a lot of time to write; and even so, I'm not sure how good the end product was. That's all for now. Expect the epilogue soon, since it will be short.
Chiao!