Hello everyone! How are you doing? I hope you are all doing fine!
Chapter 111 is here. As always, I hope you enjoy it!
Thanks again for following/ favoring/ simply reading the story so far. You are the best!
See you again next week in chapter 112. Until then, be well and have fun!
The ancient temple stood, as it had always been since creation's dawn in the world of Remnant. Its cyclopean, granite walls stood proud and tall, forming alien, distorted shapes suitable for its God and resident.
Even in this place, where the demonic piping couldn't reach, the green fog and fluorescent lights dyed the pitch-black surfaces, highlighting the figures devoted believers had carved on at the cost of their own sanity.
The flap of winged terrors could be heard from within the mist. Grimm like the ones that had kidnapped RRSN flew inside the vast building- if one could call it that- trying to devour any hapless prey they could spot.
And, inside this amalgamation of black and green, highlighted by the sinister, eldritch lights of a bygone era, a single figure stood out. Ruby Rose, clad in her crimson cape, slowly climbed down the colossal wall, resisting the urge to curse with every single step she took.
Her legs were aching and her back was as stiff as a surfing board. All of her muscles were on fire and her chest was panting, attempting to properly breathe in the unusually thin air. Sweat dripped over her toned body.
Thankfully, even after a couple hours of descent, her thick brown gloves and boots made of reinforced leather were holding strong. Worth every lien she smiled, blowing a sweaty strand of hair away from her face.
Her silver eyes ran across the jagged surface and found another viable foothold. Carefully, she stretched her leg and managed to have her foot step on it, before she shifted her body weight towards it.
First thing I will ask of Blake when she succeeds Glynda; make the SHU operations kits contain a set of mountaineering equipment. She took a few deep breaths to make up for the lack of proper oxygenation.
After that, she looked down and met the same void pit- blinding lights and eldritch mists as far as her eyes can see. There was nothing else but the wall she had been climbing on and a deadly fall into the unknown.
For a few seconds she actually considered trying before her reasoning got her back in track. A flap of wings could be heard and despite its loud echoing around her, she quickly deduced it was too close for her tastes.
Crescent Rose was not fast enough for what she had to do, so she let go of one handhold and grabbed Thorn's handle with her left hand. She let another deep breath to pump up her mind, anticipating the attack.
And she was not disappointed. A large Carrier burst out of the mist and dived at her with its four arms ready to capture the huntress. As it did, Ruby bent her knees and burst away in a flurry of rose petals.
She landed on top of the monster and severed its head with a quick and precise motion. Before its body vanished completely, she used it to step and burst back in the wall, few meters lower than where she had been.
Her hands and waist screamed in pain as she reappeared, mustering as much power as possible to not stumble or slip. This was the fifth one; it has become easier but not any less painful, dust damn it!
Despite her complains, she kept climbing down, making sure to take at least one break every few meters to control her breathing. She stared at the void again- diving right in seemed even more tempting now.
Jeez, Ruby! What the hell are you thinking? She reprimanded herself. A couple more figures could be seen flying above, but their half-covered images were not even trying to get closer. She started moving once-
Ruby stopped. Her eyes fell on a small object, protruding out of the fog. It was larger than normal and full of weird carvings and it definitely was not there a moment ago, but she could see a black pillar's capital burst out of the eldritch miasma just a few meters away from her!
If there is a pillar, then there is a basement where it's standing! All of a sudden, her eyes narrowed in deep thought.
Or at least, that's what I'd like to say. This place is so weird; I wouldn't be surprised to see the pillar end in an ocean or just hovering above a lava pit or something! She stared down and then back at the pillar.
On the other hand, it's not that this wall is much safer. If what Lu said is true, I can see it growing teeth and tentacles at some point. She felt a chill run down her spine as her mind constructed a vivid image of it.
Ok. Here goes nothing. Spending a few more minutes to ensure there was no Carrier around she kicked the wall and made a powerful jump that let her land on top of the massive pillar.
It was big enough for one person to easily step on without problems and solid enough for her to not worry about slipping. She took out her rifle and performed a fast scan of her surrounding area for enemies.
The good part was that no Grimm seemed to be around. The bad part was that nothing seemed to have changed- there was no solid ground except for the wall and the pillar. She looked down; the column seemed to continue, despite its body being concealed by the fluorescent fumes.
Feeling a little better, she stowed Crescent Rose away. This could have been better- or a lot worse, I guess she let out a small laugh. And then, felt all the blood drain from her face as something dripped on her head.
It wasn't only on her head. All of a sudden, she saw water drip down from the ceiling around her. She raised her head as her fingers touched the hilt of her sword… "Son of effing Dust!" she screamed in shock.
A few dozen meters above her head, from the very place she had been climbing down for at least two hours, Ruby could see a mass of water float, no, hover mid-air in front of her flabbergasted eyes.
It was dark, like the deepest night. She could barely see waves form on its surface and if not for the drops falling on her face she would have been reluctant to call it water to begin with.
But this was for sure a pool, no; this mass of pitch-black water that out of nowhere appeared to cover the entire ceiling on this cyclopean ancient temple could not be called anything but an ocean.
An ocean unlike the crystal waves of Patch and the picturesque beaches of Vacuo. It was a primordial sea that belonged to a world shunned by humans. The water on her skin felt so corrupted and devoid of life.
And yet, even inside the deep floating sea that appeared out of thin air, Ruby could see something move. Her eyes narrowed as ripples formed on its surface- and a pair of hungry red eyes stared down at her.
Those eyes are so big; the size of this thing must be impossible! Ruby made a turn around to try and jump back at the wall- only to notice the wall wasn't there anymore.
Her heart stopped. Only now did the brunette realize her predicament. She was standing on top of a pillar in the middle of nowhere, with an ancient sea and a massive Grimm menacingly towering over her head.
Long, thick octopus-like tentacles descended from above. They were so large and so numerous, they blacked out the sky among them; a literal assault of huge enemies fell upon the tiny huntress.
"Shit!" throwing all caution away, Ruby activated her semblance and burst downwards. Where to? She didn't know. All she focused on was run fast and stay on the column, hoping it would lead her somewhere.
A rumbling sound echoed from behind her; the tentacles had grabbed the pillar, causing it to shake violently. With ease, they broke pieces of its capital, sending large pieces of granite fall after the fleeing human.
More! Ruby sped up. She was faster, yes, but the unbelievable size of that thing made up for that. She had to push herself to the limit if she wanted to have a shot at outrunning it without being able to see due to the thick, shining fog clouds.
As she considered using dust in order to boost her ability even more, she slammed on a surface. It was as solid as it was cold, causing her to stifle a pained cry as her skull trembled from the fierce impact.
She tumbled away and burst once more, her feet meeting solid ground. She then stopped, taking a good look behind her, where the tentacles should be coming after her, running down the tall, dark pillar-
Ruby blinked. There were no enemies around her. There was no ocean above and no dripping water through the fog or a loud rumbling sound. No tentacles coming down the pillar; scratch that, where was the pillar?
Instead, she found herself standing in the middle of a large hall. Granite tiles paved the floor, slightly covered in seawater. The walls were much closer now and she could see a large arch a few dozen meters away.
She took a couple steps around, the splashing sound of her boots being suppressed by the return of the fierce, alien piping chirps. Eldritch mist, ever-present and sinister, was considerably thinner here.
After making a few rounds in a ten-meter perimeter to ensure nothing was coming for her yet, she stopped to think about what had transpired since she had jumped on that weird, vanishing column.
Ok, she pondered. Let's assume I am not going crazy and all these really happened. I am sure I didn't move that far and I didn't pass through any gate or turned in any corner that would explain how I escaped like that.
She then let her thoughts drift back to the strategy meeting she had with her temporary team after they decided on their course of action.
-o—
Yesterday night
"Simply put" Ruby said "those spawns seem to be unable to reform again after they are created. The Pyrrha-nurse was an exception; I did a quick search and the poor girl was able to reform her facial structure at will when she was alive. Avyssos simply enhanced that skill to the max."
"This is worrisome, but nothing we can't handle with a proper combat plan" Ren commented, earning a fierce nod of approval from Nora. "Is there another thing you wanted to discuss, then?" the ginger asked.
"I am concerned about its spatial manipulation abilities" Lumia replied instead. "Elaborate please" Ruby stared at her friend with a raised eyebrow, making the tall woman cough in acknowledgement of her confusion.
"Simply put, this thing has the ability to manipulate matter at will. For example, it was able to recreate Riverside using the body of a spawn as the medium for this ability down to an amazingly accurate detail."
"In gaming terms, this sounds broken" Ruby commented "which is why I don't think it is" the tall woman replied again "there is no way such a terrifying ability exists without some sort of requirement or feedback."
"Like rules for setting up the ability to begin with, you mean" Ren once more noted. "It sounds logic; if this thing could control everything in its path, it could have conquered Remnant a long time ago" Nora added.
"This is why I think it has to consider at least three things when it uses its ability; proper time, proper place and an abundance of energy. In regards to the last one, I think it takes it from human bodies" she said.
The silver-eyed girl sighed. She had seen that coming a long time ago, but it still reminded her of how she and her team were responsible for one of the worst massacres in the post-war history of Vale City.
"What of the other two parameters?" Ren kept asking. Lumia took a grim expression before she answered the magenta-eyed boy.
"I have no idea; but as long as it has them covered, I believe it can do literally everything it comes to its mind. And don't forget- we can't…"
"…compare our view of Remnant with a being like this, which has lived more than Salem and was born in an era where magic was essential and humans were nothing more than food" Ruby murmured as she finished her friends thought process from yesterday.
Our understanding of the world is so different than the one Avyssos and its siblings have, it may be straight-up dangerous to try and figure out how their minds work. If that's the case, maybe a simple approach can work better for me. She scratched her chin and the back of her nape.
Taking one deep sigh again, she rubbed off the grime from the silver pin she was using to hold her cloak in place. I haven't been at the top of my game for quite some time; better change that before I regret it, huh.
She then took out Crescent Rose, rinsed the bile from her throat with a small chug of water and made a slow, yet determined beeline for the giant arch, hoping she would have better luck there than here.
-o—
She managed to reach the big gate unceremoniously. It was a huge arch made of black rock, filled in archaic-looking glyphs. Pity that Weiss, Ren or Blake isn't here to check this out, she pondered at the carvings.
Fog, granite, pulsing lights and humid air with and aftertaste of the pipes from hell; yeah, I am in the right direction she joked as she stood by the opening, trying to deduce anything important as she stepped in.
Ruby entered an even bigger room. The vast expanse of the ceiling and the water-covered floor reminded her of the very first room they had come upon when they entered the place.
Again, black and green accompanied her search. The demonic piping was even stronger now- was that a good or a bad thing? She splashed around for a few seconds, until her eyes fell on something unusual.
A large shape became visible a few meters away. She stood still for a minute. It was immobile. There was no breathing to be heard. Is it a statue? And if it is, how did I miss it until now? She walked towards it.
It truly was a statue, after all. It was tall and made of a shining black ore like obsidian. It depicted a human wearing antique-looking clothes and praying in front of a roughly carved pillar made of entangling tentacles.
She stopped and sniffed her nose in disgust. The design was amateurish at best, but the shining ore reflected the eldritch lights in a manner that gave the whole creation an otherworldly, eerie lividness somehow.
To quote Weiss, I worry about the sanity of whoever made this thing. A quick investigation revealed nothing more, so Ruby left it behind and moved further into the colossal area- until another one came into view.
This one depicted the same man. He was now clad in ceremonial robes, kneeling before an altar made of those livid, disgusting tendrils. He held in his left hand a curvy dagger and seemed to have cut off his wrist, as a very elaborately carved line of blood poured down on the altar from it.
Silver orbs narrowed. The detail was phenomenal in the way the blood was depicted. She was no artist but couldn't help being captivated by it. Curiosity filling her mind, Ruby touched the dripping stone.
Thick, viscous goo filled her glove-covered fingers. What? She stared at the blood- that elaborately-made, extremely realistic blood pouring out of the statue's sliced wrist. It- it is real?! The statue is- bleeding?!
Forcing the bile away from her throat, Ruby knelt and washed away the goo, fiercely and intently rubbing the glove on the water-covered floor.
Calm down Rose. She rubbed her fingers together to get the last pieces of goo off and then proceeded in checking out this statue as well. As before, there was nothing to notice save for the blood pouring out of it.
I am starting to get really bad vibes about this. She decided there was nothing more to do, however, and walked away from the idol- but stopped at once at the spectacle suddenly unfurling before her eyes.
A very distinct path shaped out before Ruby's form. Due to the sheer size of the place, it seemed akin to a small boulevard. In the distance, despite the fog, she could somehow see the outlines of a staircase.
The path was outlined by dozens of large statues without podium at each side. Made of the same obsidian ore, they had their faces turned towards Ruby, as if they were guarding the passage for her.
Holding Crescent Rose even tighter, the girl started walking again, into the path. She was sure she was stepping into a trap. She was also sure this was exactly what she had to do at the moment.
After a few steps, her fear gave way to curiosity, astonishment and, in some cases, pure confusion. The statues were carved to represent the same person as before, but they all had him perform different tasks and participate in different events- as if they were telling her a story.
She passed by the same cloaked man, as his granite form chanted upon a fleshy altar where the butchered remains of a woman, dripping thick black blood, were scattered. A Wyvern medallion hung from his neck.
Another statue showed the man cowering in awe before an unnamable amorphous Grimm. Its flesh was made in such detail that Ruby thought it moved before her very eyes, bursting out of the woman's corpse.
She gulped. The concept of invoking Grimm using human corpses had been brought up so frequently those past months it had started getting to her nerves quite a lot. She shook her head and kept walking.
The next one her eyes fell upon made her stop. It showed the cultist in extreme pain. His eyes were bulging and his body seemed to spasm in a very agonizing manner, as the Grimm tentacle firmly held his forehead.
Runes were roughly carved on his face, arms and legs. The sculptor had also designed a runic pattern on the floor around the man. Large eyes stared down at him -and at her- surrounded in a malevolent aura.
She clicked her tongue. The resemblance the runes had to her partner's semblance was, once more, uncanny. What's more, this carving showed that the Grimm and not the human was the one casting the spell.
I don't like where this is going… at all. She took a few more steps. Then, she let her gaze fall on the nearest statue and sighed deeply.
The Grimm stood back as the man rose from the circle. His left arm and face were melting as pulsing, throbbing Grimm flesh devoured his own body, replacing his limbs. The resemblance to Cinder made her clench her teeth in silent anger.
She stared at the next one, where the transformation continued. Flesh was being torn apart and his face was bursting out from the inside. His hands were stretching and his body seemed to compress and reform.
It would seem Salem was not the only one who had- as she turned around, she froze in shock. Her silver orbs fell on the numerous statues that stood before her, separating her from the end of the pathway.
The idols were simply images of cultists' last stage of transformation. It was a practice quite frequented for the Eldergrimms' followers, if the amount of statues was any indication.
They still had their robes on, tattered and torn in many places, slightly disheveled and falling down their shoulders. Their bodies kept their human nature, but the flesh had turned black and slimy, like a frog's.
What made her heart stop, however, were their faces. They were still covered by white bone masks, but had taken a fish-like appearance. She could clearly see tendrils protrude out of the bloody fangs, covered in a slimy, blood-like substance that dripped down their amphibian arms.
Like this, Ruby made the final connection; the last missing piece in the occult puzzle of Grimmwater. It was one very simple, yet really hard to consider, fundamental truth about the islands' fate and Red's ritual.
Those monsters in the graveyard… the amphibian Grimm in the mist that swarmed the island after night fell… they were humans... they were the residents of Grimmwater to begin with!
To stop the mercenaries… Octavios Red turned his people into Grimm!