Chapter 2 – The Storm
Six Years Ago…
Embers flew through the dark air of the Emerald Forest, distant howls of Grimm and screaming students echoed through the trees…
Weiss ran as fast as she could with Blake's arm over her shoulder, blood pouring from her slit eyes as she whimpered from how much it hurt. But they were not alone, sprinting alongside them was Coco, firing Gianduja behind her. She had blood splattered across the side of her cheek and cut up in places, no signs of Velvet or Fox were there. Weiss kept running, seeing some of the trees were aflame from the superheated embers that stuck to them.
She slammed her shoulder into one of the smouldering trees, the charred bark shattered and crumbled with cinders floating away from them. But she kept running, keeping her eyes forward. But every now and then, she would look back, seeing the massive pack of Grimm chasing after them. "Keep going! Don't stop!" Coco called out, she stood her ground and gritted her teeth as she fired Gianduja relentlessly.
"Coco!" Weiss screamed.
"Go! Get Blake out of here!" Coco commanded with a defiant roar, firing all cylinders at the Grimm, shredding their bodies as they got closer and closer. A Quill suddenly shot towards her, she took cover, narrowly missing it. She let her broken sunglasses fall, letting out a shaky breath, closing her eyes. Then she gritted her teeth with fury as she heard the rustling grow louder and louder. She spun back around as an Alpha Beowulf leapt towards her.
The last thing they heard of Coco was endless gunfire, disappearing into the howling winds. "Coco…" Blake shuddered.
"We have to keep going… come on…" Weiss stammered, they kept stumbling through the dark woods together. Weiss looked back, the Grimm were no longer following them, but there was still that feeling on them. Then… lightning flashed… the sudden clap of thunder caused Blake to jolt, with her hearing becoming more and more acute now that her sight was gone, thunder was suddenly a lot louder for her. The rain fell harder and harder and made the air colder and colder. Blake winced in pain as the rainwater fell into her open wound, she tried to not make a sound, but it was agonizing. Weiss sheltered her head as they kept moving. "There's… gotta b-be some she-shelter ne-near-by…" Her teeth chattered from the cold, the rainwater quickly began to drench their hair and clothes as they walked.
Weiss and Blake kept moving further into the Emerald Forest together, still hearing the terrifying roars of thousands of Grimm nearby. "What do we do?" Blake whispered with fear in her voice.
"We just… need to find… shelter." Weiss stammered, she was exhausted, they both were.
Weiss turned the corner and gasped, pulling Blake behind the tree with her… but Weiss completely forgot what it was that she saw.
Her eyes widened at that fact…
"Abductor…" She gasped.
It was the same one that had been hunting them on their journey, she could tell. For some reason, the other Abductors they saw taking people at Beacon did not share the same feeling this one had. She felt recognition from the little echoes of memory she had of the monster. This was definitely the exact same Abductor that had been stalking them. She could faintly hear its dark croaky voice as it floated through the Emerald Forest, searching for them. It blasted powerful bolts of red lightning from its bony white skeletal hands, shattering some of the trees as it investigated.
"Try not to make a sound." Weiss whispered to Blake, they both covered their mouths and noses to stay as silent as they could. They knew this thing was dangerous and would either kill or kidnap them at a second's notice. Weiss peered around the tree to stare at where she last felt like she saw it, and there it was. Floating alone.
She could actually see it – and it was terrifying.
It was humanoid looking but lacked any legs, with shredded robes dangling from where its legs should be. Instead there was just this black smoke beneath it. It had long bony arms with razor sharp claw-like fingers, and an open ribcage with swirling black blood trapped in the bones. The hide was like a cloak wrapped around its skeletal body, forming a hood over where the face should be, where they could only see the jaws that stuck out, with white teeth inside. No eyes to be seen, but it was clear that it did not need them, because its hearing was so acute that it could see everything.
It floated past the trees, creating that horrible grating croaky snarl it constantly made as it searched for them, opening the bushes and blowing entire trees apart. The trees collapsed and the Abductor shot of the way, suddenly moving extremely fast as the large tree collapsed. It's body shuddered as it moved, creating cracking sounds in its bones. Weiss kept her eyes on the creature whilst Blake tried to not make sound, but the pain in her eyes was becoming more and more unbearable as the cold rainwater continued to crash against the open wound.
Then…
… a small whimper emerged from Blake.
Weiss' eyes widened when the Abductor suddenly stared directly at them, with a flash of lightning following and thunder clapping. The Abductor blew the tree apart, knocking the two of them down to the ground with a heavy thud. Weiss held Blake close, pointing Myrtenaster at the monster as it floated towards them, staring directly at them as it passed through the smoke.
It reached out slowly towards their faces with a dark and disturbing snarl, sharp claws opening. Weiss trembled as she held Blake close, she did not have enough aura or strength to take that thing down.
An Axe swung diagonally, cutting clean through the torso of the Abductor, the body shattered and crumbled into dust right in front of their eyes. And as the smoke cleared, Cinder Fall walked through the smoke with her Obsidian Axe firmly held in her grasp. She approached them; Weiss stared at her with utter disbelief at who their saviour was.
"We don't have much time. C'mon, let's go." Cinder said.
Cinder
Moments prior…
Cinder was working on the fence still, even at night. She hammered the post into the ground and continued to lift up the planks to connect them together. She shook the fence and made sure that it was sturdy, before moving onto the next. Cinder's drive was always something that her allies admired, she just continued to do everything she ever set her mind onto. From fence post to post, she kept on building the place up.
She wiped the sweat from her brow, looking up at the sky as the Shattered Moon looked over her. She stared at it and softly exhaled through her nose, feeling the cool air against her cheek. "Do you ever just take the chance to relax?" Vernal asked her curiously as she approached Cinder, still recovering from her injuries after the Fall of the Branwen Tribe. The lights in the Farmhouse were on, and Cinder could see Oscar inside, helping Amber with some bits of homework that she had in her backpack.
Raven always made sure she had some kind of education, and Cinder wanted to continue that for her. Cinder sighed, resting her hammer against the top of the post she just hammered in. "I can't relax until I know this place is secure." She said.
"It is secure." Vernal said.
"Not until this fence is done. The Grimm are out there, and worse than Grimm… people are out there, I know a Fence would hardly stop them but… I dunno… I guess it just would make me feel a bit better." Cinder said as she continued.
"Okay… why don't you take a break for a second? I can help." Vernal said as she walked over.
"No, you need to recover." Cinder said.
"Seriously? You got beat up too, got hit by a Missile. The only one of us who isn't hurting right now is Amber. But… she is seven." Vernal chuckled.
"Yeah, I guess it would be setting a bad example if a bunch of strong Hunters asked a Seven-Year-Old to do all the heavy lifting. Hell… she kinda has been though…" Cinder said. "That kid has a drive that seriously amazes me. No matter what… she still smiles and smiles."
"We'll give her a good life. Now move out of the way for a second and lemme help." Vernal said, Cinder coughed and stepped aside.
"Alright, alright." Cinder agreed as she held her hands up in submission. She leant against the fence she set up and watched as Vernal lifted up one of the fence posts and hammered it in. Cinder looked around at the dark woods that surrounded them, and the small lake that was behind the Farmhouse, where some ducks and geese landed in the water. Koi Fish swam around the lake together, eating the flies that landed on the surface of the water.
It was so peaceful here.
Until they heard a very loud and distant explosion. A golden glow bled through the darkness of the trees in one direction, Cinder's eye widened with shock when she saw that. Vernal froze as she went to hammer the Post in some more. Oscar and Amber ran outside when they heard the massive explosion. "The hell was that?" Oscar called out.
"I don't know." Cinder replied. "Oscar, take Amber back inside. Vee, go with them." Cinder commanded.
"What are you gonna do?" Vernal questioned.
"Gonna go see what the hell that was." She answered, her eyes ignited, and Cinder flew off into the sky, and she flew over the trees, headed towards the edge of the cliff which looked over the Emerald Forest. She landed down on the rocks, and her Amber Eye widened with disbelief. She saw the huge fiery explosions erupting from Beacon Academy, and the sight of Beacon Tower collapsing down to the ground in the distance.
And the huge dark imperfection that surrounded the Academy and seemed to have flooded inside of it. "Salem…" She softly snarled.
She really did it…
She stood there for a while, watching the destruction and the Grimm swarming into the School… but then she saw the birds flying from the trees. And heard the sound of deadly gunfire erupting from the Emerald Forest, and roaring Grimm. Cinder immediately formed her Obsidian Axe and went to investigate.
That was when she found Weiss and Blake and the Abductor that was hunting them, and when she saved them from it.
Cinder carried Blake in her arms whilst Weiss trailed behind, she looked at Blake's cut open eyes with shock. "The hell happened to her?" Cinder questioned Weiss as they rushed through the woods together.
"Adam Taurus…" Weiss answered, but that was enough of an answer for Cinder to understand what he did.
"Sick bastard…" Cinder hissed.
"You knew him?" Weiss asked.
"Yeah… I knew him." She responded. "Come on, keep up. That Abductor saw you, that means Salem knows you're alive." Cinder explained.
"Why are you helping us?" Weiss asked with confusion.
"I dunno yet." Cinder answered, they kept moving through the trees, and eventually they managed to reach the fence of her home. "VEE! OSCAR!" Cinder yelled, the door burst open and they saw them emerging with Blake in Cinder's arms and Weiss staggering behind her. Weiss was limping on her injured leg and holding her side from the cuts she suffered.
"The hell is going on?" Oscar questioned with wide eyes.
"Get the First Aid Kit… the girl is dying." Cinder commanded; Blake was barely clinging to life right now from how bad her wound was getting.
"B-But…"
"NOW!" Cinder roared, her eyes igniting in the process. Vernal cleared the way and Cinder carried her towards the table. "Amber, sweetie, go upstairs. You don't wanna see this." Cinder told her.
"Who are they?" Amber softly asked.
"Amber! Please… just go upstairs and play with your things for a while, okay? And don't come downstairs… even if you hear screaming, okay?" She asked.
"Why would there be screaming?" She asked with a worried voice, Cinder was purposefully standing in front of her line of sight so she could not see the horrific injury Blake suffered.
"The girl we brought here? She's badly hurt… We're gonna try and help her… but it's gonna hurt a lot for her. I don't want you to see it… so please… go upstairs and close your door. Listen to the music set of Oscar's, yeah?" She softly asked her, Amber nodded her head and smiled. She ran up the stairs and closed her door, just as Cinder asked her to. Cinder exhaled and she walked over to the cabinet and pulled out the newly bought First Aid Kit and got the Surgical Gloves out.
"Can… can you help her?" Weiss shivered, still dripping wet from the rain and freezing cold.
"We'll try. There's no saving her eyes, she's gonna have to live with being blind for the rest of her life now… but Vernal saved me." Cinder said, looking at her.
"From a burn… this? I dunno, Cinder… this is a whole other ballgame." Vernal admitted as she pushed her hands through her short hair.
"We've got a good First Aid Kit. Look I don't plan on letting these two stay here, but I couldn't just leave them out there. Raven could have done the same for me, I can't let her sacrifice be for nothing." Cinder explained, and Vernal let out a trembling breath. Oscar gave Weiss a warm blanket, wrapping her up in it as she shuddered. "Vee… are you with me on this?"
Vernal looked at Blake's face, and she clenched her hands into fists. "Okay… she's got a better chance if we try opposed to if we don't, right?" Vernal said.
"That's the spirit." Cinder said. "Oscar… I need you to hold her down. We don't have any anaesthetic, so this is gonna hurt like hell." Cinder warned.
Oscar held Blake down whilst Vernal searched through the First Aid Kit for the Disinfectant. She pulled it out and she started to undo the cap, shaking the liquid inside. She looked down at her eyes and she felt her hand shaking, but she walked over to the cabinet to the side and started to drink some alcohol to calm her nerves. It worked, and she approached Blake once again.
"Hey… you still with us?" Vernal asked Blake.
"Y-Yes…" Blake moaned weakly.
"We're gonna try and help you… but I'm gonna warn you. This is gonna hurt a fucking lot." She warned her, Blake nodded her head slowly.
"Should we give her something to bite on?" Oscar suggested.
"Probably a good idea." Cinder agreed, so Oscar picked up a piece of leather.
"Here, bite down on this." Oscar said, Blake slowly opened her mouth and did what they asked. Weiss stood beside them, wrapped up in her blanket, shaking with both concern and the cold in her bones. Vernal washed out Blake's eyes with some cold water which made Blake strain with pain… then soaked the towel she held with the disinfectant… and she pressed it against Blake's eyes. Blake screamed with pain, feeling the burning torment erupt from her eyes as the disinfectant worked away on her wound, killing any infections that she could have caught out there in the wilds.
Oscar held her down with all his might as she writhed from it. Blood stuck against the towel, trickling down from her eyes and across her cheeks. But they knew they needed to stop the initial bleeding first. She kept pressure on the wound whilst Cinder got the Needle and Thread out. "We have to close the wound and then bandage her… the bridge of her nose will be easy to handle but… her eyes will be hard." Vernal explained as she kept the towel on Blake's face.
The pain started to subside, and Blake panted from the searing pain. Cinder put the thread through the needle and held it out to Vernal. They switched places, and Cinder carefully lifted the folded towel, seeing the blood that covered the once white cloth. The blood leaked down her cheeks like tears, but it was not as bad as it once was. Vernal held the needle out and blew out a long breath, then she gently held Blake's head, moving her black hair aside.
She pushed the needle into the open wound and pulled the string through. Blake screamed in agony; the leather fell from her mouth as she screamed. Weiss covered her mouth with horror, hearing Blake scream like that was disturbing to hear. "Keep the leather in your mouth or you're gonna bite off your tongue." Cinder said, carefully slotting it back inside her mouth. Her screams were more muffled this time.
Cinder looked at the stairs, but luckily Amber had not come down when she heard the screams. She was doing as Cinder asked her to. Vernal continued to start stitching up the wound. She then punctured the needle through the other side of the open wound, pulling the thread through. Blake screamed again from the pain… but then her screams faded, and she laid there, completely motionless. "Blake?" Weiss panicked with fear. "No! Blake?" She cried out.
"Wait…" Oscar told her, and he leaned down to her lips – she was still breathing, and she still had a pulse. "She passed out from the pain…" Oscar said with relief.
"Oh thank the gods… I guess that will make my job a little easier. I wish we had the level of drugs to keep her under." Vernal said, but she continued to stitch up the wounds. Oscar then noticed her knee, also bleeding heavily.
"Gods her knee… you didn't mention her knee." Oscar said as he approached her long boot and pulled it from her leg. The blood covered her bare leg, and the hole where Adam's sword stabbed straight through. "She's losing a lot of blood."
"We can help her…" Vernal assured as she continued to focus on her eyes. "Keep pressure on her knee, we'll tend to it when we can."
"Alright." Oscar agreed. Cinder looked at Weiss and walked over to her and crouched down beside her.
"How about you? Apart from the cold, you aren't looking so hot." Cinder said, Weiss let the blanket fall and revealed her wounds. She had multiple cuts and slashes from when that Manticore launched that fireball at them, the fragments badly hurt her. But the worst of her injuries where the concussion and bleeding on the side of her head and her bleeding ankle. "Damn… you managed to carry Blake all this way with an ankle like that?" Cinder chuckled with awe, impressed by her fortitude.
Cinder lifted her leg up onto a box and she started to heat up her hand with her Maiden powers to cauterise the wound. She also handed another white towel to Weiss so she could press it against her head. They were going to need to patch them up with a lot of First Aid Materials, however they could easily get some more from Vale when things start to calm down.
Weiss was noticeably quiet. "Did anyone else make it out? Any of your friends?" Cinder asked her.
Weiss silently shook her head before she spoke. "Not that I could see… but…" Weiss closed her eyes with grief. "Jaune… Pyrrha… Sun… Neptune… Jaymes… Ozpin…" She could list the names forever. Cinder looked at her and sighed, there was once a time where she would have cheered to hear that their names had been on the graves of thousands. But now? Now she simply felt sorrow for them.
"I'm sorry." Cinder apologised. Weiss stared at her.
"What happened to you? Last time I saw you… you were at Beacon trying to kill us." Weiss stated.
"Well… I wound up with Raven Branwen. I was helping Ruby and Yang try and kill Jackdaw, but as you know… things didn't go exactly according to plan. And now… Raven and the Tribe are both gone." She explained as she pressed her hand against Weiss' ankle. She gasped but forced through the searing pain, knowing this would help her recover.
"Raven? What happened to Raven?" Weiss asked.
"Ruby and Yang… alongside the others? Valravn came for them, attacked their transport and captured them. Raven told me that Valravn was going to kill Ruby and turn Yang into his puppet. The last thing she told me was that she was gonna get Qrow and Jackdaw to help her take down Jackdaw. The way she talked about it… I think she knew how it was gonna end. I think that night, the Branwens came to a violent end. I just hope that Ruby, Yang and the others managed to get away." Cinder explained. "But with all those Kill Orders on their heads? It won't be easy for them."
"Kill Orders? They could still be alive?" Weiss gasped.
"Again… I hope so. I started to like those brats when we fought together. Their optimism was exhausting, but I misjudged them. But when they were captured by Val, that was when the Kill Order was placed. Fifteen Million Lien per head… everyone will be coming for them with bounties that high." Cinder explained as she wrapped up Weiss' ankle with gauze.
"I… hope so…" She felt kinda relieved.
"Take all the hope you can get right now, Heiress. Salem always talked about the Inhumane Necessity with Killian and Watts. It was always the final step to her master plan to conquer Remnant. If I were you I would find somewhere and lay low. Survive." Cinder explained. "You can stay for the night, but by tomorrow afternoon I want you gone."
Weiss softly nodded her head, she never expected Cinder to let them stay after all.
"What?" The voice of Amber softly said, and Cinder closed her eyes with frustration.
I knew she wouldn't stay put.
"You're kicking them out?" She questioned.
Cinder stood up and walked past Vernal who had just finished stitching the wounds of Blake's, now wrapping a bandage around her head to cover her eyes so she could heal. "We can't risk it, honey." Cinder softly said to her.
"B-But she's hurt. They both are." Amber stated.
"The bad woman I talked about? Salem? She's no longer hiding anymore, she's not a scary campfire story anymore. She's real. She has destroyed the Huntsmen Academies and is taking control of the world. We are all living under her thumb now… these two? They are fugitives to her now, and if she finds out we have helped them, let alone sheltered them? She will come for us and she will kill us all." Cinder explained. "I will not expose you to that… not again… not after Shay."
"That isn't who you are." Amber told her.
Cinder looked at her and she sighed. "It is sweetie. I may be better than I was… but I am still not good. Not like you. And… well… this is the best I can offer them. We sacrificed so much for this home… I am not willing to lose it, or Vee or Oscar… or you… for their lives." Cinder explained, Amber looked devastated by this with tears in her eyes and she stormed back up the stairs to her room. "Amber…"
The door slammed shut, hard.
Cinder sighed, rubbing her tired eyes and she stood back up, turning to Weiss. Oscar was tending to her wound on her head. "We'll patch you up and you can sleep on the couch. But when it's morning, I want you both gone." Cinder explained.
"Okay…" Weiss softly agreed. Oscar sighed as he continued to stitch up her head.
"I'm sorry." Oscar said to her, but Weiss just stayed quiet.
Cinder walked up the stairs to Amber's room and she leant by the door, gently knocking on it. "Hey…"
"Go away." She heard the tearful voice of Amber inside. Cinder looked at the doorknob and she gently turned it, opening the door as she walked inside. She was wrapped up in her bed, facing the wall as she sniffled. Cinder sat down at the foot of her bed, gently stroking her head of hair.
"I'm sorry, sweetie." She said.
"No. No you're not." Amber retorted.
"No I am. But we can't risk it." Cinder said.
"You told me that you wanted to be better… but how can you be better if you keep turning people away? They need us… if what you said really is what's happening… then they will die out there. I don't want them to die." Amber softly said, she sounded so small and fragile as she spoke.
Cinder didn't know what to say. "The girl with the hurt eyes… without our care she will die. And the white haired one? She looks so sad… they won't make it alone. They need us." Amber explained.
Cinder listened to what she said. "If Raven didn't take you in… the same would have happened to you."
That one cut deep – because Amber was right. Cinder looked at her, and she gently stroked her hair again. She stood up and left Amber in her room, gently closing the door. "Goodnight." Cinder said as she thought on what Amber just said. As Cinder closed the door she pressed her head against it and shut her eye.
If Raven hadn't taken me in… I would have died…
I became better because of her…
She sighed and walked back down the stairs to see Vernal had finished what she could for Blake, her eyes covered with a bandage. And her knee was now being tended to as well whilst Oscar wrapped a bandage under Weiss' hair, before tending to some of her other smaller injuries. But for that she would have to take off her dress. "I'll handle Weiss injuries from here, Oscar." Cinder said.
"You sure? You look tired." Oscar said.
"I'm fine." Cinder assured. Cinder took Weiss into another room and stood outside so Weiss could get out of her damaged dress. She let it fall and stared at her bruised and cut reflection, flinching at the blood that leaked from some of them. "You ready?" She asked.
"Y-Yeah…" Weiss answered as she laid down in just her bra and pants on the bed. Cinder brought the stuff in and she looked at some of them.
"Damn… they worked you over good. How bad was it?" Cinder asked.
"I take it you heard the explosion?" Weiss assumed.
"I saw the end of it. The tower collapsing. How did that happen?" Cinder asked.
"Jaune… he set off the bombs Jackdaw had woven into the cement. He tried to stop Salem, but it did nothing." Weiss explained.
"Salem can't be killed… believe me… I've seen her survive things that would kill anybody else. Even the heart of an explosion can't kill her. Nothing can." Cinder explained as she sewed up some of her injures, covering them up with some bandages.
"Is this what life is gonna be like now?" Weiss asked.
"Yeah… Salem is gonna hunt your kind down like dogs. If I were you, I'd be ready for a hard life." Cinder explained, and Weiss gasped from the pain. Cinder looked down at her on the bed and sighed – she couldn't stop thinking about what Amber said. She then saw something outside… lights…
Cinder's eye widened because there were Flashlights on her property.
"Shit." Cinder said. She immediately threw Weiss Vernal's Dressing Gown. "Take your dress and your sword and follow me." Cinder ordered.
Weiss quickly wrapped herself up in the gown and followed her, picking up her dress and Myrtenaster. Cinder walked quickly into the living room. "What is it?" Vernal asked as she finished up on Blake's knee.
"The Black Gallows. They must be trying to track the two of them." Cinder explained.
Should we just give them to the Gallows? No… they will do terrible things to them. Probably just give Blake to Adam… I dread to think what horrible things he would do to her now.
"Please… please don't give us to them." Weiss begged.
Cinder crouched down and she threw a carpet aside, revealing a trap door beneath her. She undid the bolt and swung it open. "Go! Take Blake and hide, do not make a sound." Cinder commanded. Weiss carried Blake down the stairs and Oscar threw Gambol Shroud down there as well. Cinder slammed the Trap Door down and locked the bolt, covering it with the decorative mat.
Cinder immediately walked outside and formed her Axe in her hand with Vernal pointing her Guns and Oscar spinning his Chained Hammers around. "Hey! The hell do you think you're doing here?" Cinder yelled; the Black Gallows Soldiers approached – then parted to reveal that Killian was leading them.
Shit… Killian…
"Hello again, Cinder… how long has it been now? Four years?" Killian asked her.
"Sounds about right." Cinder nodded her head.
"Funny how time flies, isn't it?" Killian chuckled as he walked up the steps towards her. "Nice plot of land you've got here."
"Get to the point. You're not here for a meet and greet." Cinder stated.
"Ah, I have missed that sharp mood of yours." Killian chuckled. "Well… I assume you saw the explosion?" Killian asked.
"Yeah, I know what she's done. The Inhumane Necessity, right?" Cinder presumed.
"That's right. Beacon is no more; the Huntsmen and Huntresses are a blight that must be eradicated." Killian explained.
Cinder scoffed. "Must feel like it's your birthday, huh?"
"Not at all, actually. I never wanted this; I didn't want them to die. I wanted them to serve Salem instead. But things happened… and now things had to get ugly. Which is why we are here." Killian said.
"And why are you here?" Cinder asked.
"An Abductor spotted Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna in these parts. Both of them were severely injured. Then the Abductor wound up dead out of nowhere… know anything about it?" Killian asked her.
"Afraid not. I killed a couple Grimm that showed up here but haven't seen one of those creepy bastards. Unless I forgot." Cinder shrugged.
"Yes, they are annoying like that." He reached down into his pocket, revealing he had a warrant, one which had Salem's Eye as the Seal of Approval.
"That's new." Cinder grasped.
"Yeah we're still working on them. Look I know that they're not here, okay? The rain made tracking them really hard and I know you wouldn't take in old enemies. But… your farmstead is one of the few places they could flee to. We have already checked Vale, and we're checking a couple other places too. I just need to check this place off; we won't take long. Can you help me out?" Killian asked, he genuinely seemed to be certain that they weren't here, so Cinder stepped aside.
"Just don't wake up the kid. She's had a rough few weeks… I mean look at us… we all have." Cinder said, gesturing to her still beaten face after the Fall of the Branwen Tribe.
"Don't worry, we won't be too loud." Killian assured, gesturing to his Raven Talons. They walked inside of their house as they started to search the place. They were very polite and respectful, carefully checking things to make sure things were not suspicious. Killian crouched down and touched the blood on the floor – Blake's blood. "Someone have an accident?"
"No, recently hunted and skinned a dear. We're still getting this place up and running, had to improvise." Cinder answered, and luckily that was not even a lie. Killian could see the hide on the counter alongside the valuable set down as well. And the dinner plates were in the sink, which meant they had just recently finished eating what they gathered from the Buck.
"Not bad." Killian chuckled as he stood up.
The soldiers walked up the stairs and checked around, one of them entered the room where Cinder was tending to Weiss, and luckily there were no signs that she was even there. Cinder remained atop the mat where the Trap Door was. Beneath it, Weiss was ready to use Myrtenaster, but kept Blake close. Cinder turned to Killian. "How many stragglers have you caught?" She asked.
"We nearly got Coco Adel, but she escaped. Velvet Scarlatina and Fox Alistair and missing too, managed to slip right under our noses. But we caught a couple of members from some teams. Bolin from A.B.R.N and May from B.R.N.Z. Both of them were executed… still looking for the other one from A.B.R.N." Killian explained.
"The other one?" Cinder asked.
"Arslan. She's unknown. She just vanished as well." Killian answered, Weiss felt immense relief to know that Coco actually managed to escape.
Don't screw with Coco… Weiss thought to herself.
They took a few minutes longer, but then all the soldiers came down the stairs. "Nothing, Commander. The place is clear." The soldier said.
"Called it. Okay, sorry to have bothered you this late, Cinder. Enjoy the rest of your evening." Killian said to her as he left.
"Yeah… all the same to you." Cinder forcibly said to him. Cinder watched him get aboard the Wasp that was landed in the woods, flying off into the distance. She waited until she knew it was safe and opened the Trap Door once again. Weiss weakly walked out from the darkness with Blake in her arms, still unconscious.
"That was way too fucking close." Cinder snarled, slamming the door shut behind Weiss.
"I'm sorry… we will be gone tomorrow." Weiss said.
"No… you won't." Cinder answered with a sigh. Vernal and Oscar looked at her, hopefulness in their eyes. Amber also walked down the steps slowly as she listened to what Cinder said. Cinder sighed, like she didn't want to say it but knew it was the right thing to do. "If you follow my rules, and don't leave this farm – then I will allow you to stay. But I'm serious – if you step beyond my land, you can't come back. There's nothing left for you out there." Cinder explained to Weiss.
"O-Okay… I understand. And… thank you… thank you so much." Weiss said.
"Yeah… well… you're welcome." Cinder said with a sigh, walking away from them. She stopped at the door and looked back at them.
"I better not regret saving you." Cinder told them, echoing what Raven once told her when she saved her life.
Vernal chuckled. "Welcome to the family, I guess." Vernal softly said.
Weiss
She refused to leave Blake's side, asleep beside her.
Blake was resting on the sofa with a blanket over her whilst Weiss stayed close to her, resting as well. But she could not sleep, not without knowing if Blake was okay. Blake was the only friend she had left now, with Beacon gone and her family – Winter exempt – were dead. She stayed beside her. She wiped the tears from her heartbroken eyes, only now that she could rest did she start to think about what happened. Her sniffles broke down into sobs, burying her head into her hands. Picturing their faces – remembering their last moments. The cataclysmic scenario that happened earlier.
She cried for an hour… but eventually she managed to get that bottled up emotion out of her system, using a cloth to wipe the tears from her cheeks and eyes. She gently held Blake's hand, hoping she would wake up soon. She waited all night for her to wake up.
Four hours later… the sun began to rise…
And in that time, Blake finally woke up.
"W-Weiss? Weiss?" Blake whimpered as she looked around, her ears quickly moving as well. Weiss turned and gasped.
"It's okay… shh… it's okay. I'm here." Weiss promised, squeezing her hand. Blake gasped from the pain as she touched the bandage over her eyes, she hadn't even noticed the pain in her knee until she tried to move it. "Don't move… just rest." Weiss begged her.
"Please… please tell me it was a dream…" Blake begged her.
"Blake… I'm so sorry. But it wasn't… it's all gone. Salem did exactly what we feared she was going to do. She unleashed everything she had and wiped us out. We haven't heard from the other Kingdoms, but I don't think Beacon was the only one that got hit. I think all the others did as well." Weiss explained, wiping the rest of the tears from her eyes. Blake laid there, and she pushed her hands through her hair.
"What do we do?" She gasped.
"I… I don't know. Cinder has allowed us to stay here so long as we follow her rules and don't leave the Farm. Which… is a good idea… the Black Gallows showed up here looking for us. They're hunting us now; this might be the safest place we could possibly be." Weiss explained to her.
"How are you feeling?" Weiss asked her, gently pressing the back of her hand against her forehead.
"Like… death…" She softly answered. "What about you? Did you get hurt?"
"A little, but not as bad as you." Weiss answered. "My ankle is busted, and I got a concussion but…"
"My eyes… what am I supposed to do?" She gasped.
"You learn how to live with it." Cinder answered. Weiss turned to see Cinder stood in the living room. "Looks like you woke up, I'm not gonna lie it was touch and go for a while there." Cinder explained.
"Thank you… for letting us stay." Blake said to her. Cinder walked past them, and she stood in front of the window – she had just finished the fence around the farm, now she could actually rest.
And yet… she wasn't.
"Did Weiss tell you my conditions?" Cinder asked.
"She said to follow your rules… and to not leave the farm." Blake answered.
"Yeah – well, here are my specific rules. Number One: Pull your weight, my lodging doesn't come for free. And we want to build something here. Number Two: Respect each other's boundaries, so no snooping in anyone else's rooms… although that one is kinda for Amber more than anyone else. And Number Three: If you do anything… and I mean… anything… that hurts my girl? I will kill you." Cinder warned as she approached them, staring at them with burning flames erupting from her eye.
They both looked at Cinder and they nodded her head.
"Okay… we would never hurt her, I promise." Weiss assured.
"I know – but after what we went through with Ruby? I'd rather be sure." Cinder explained. "The world is a dangerous place now; I don't know how Salem plans to change what the U.G.R put in place but one thing I do know… is that people like you will be made an example out of. They probably have already captured people so they could slowly butcher them in front of the populous to send a message."
Cinder turned to Blake. "And as for you, Blind Girl – you will have to learn how to live with your eyes."
"Cinder…" Weiss softly said.
"I'm not being an asshole, I'm stating fact. Just because you lost your eyes does not mean you are useless. You have your ears and can use them to help. I won't ask you to do anything too crazy because of your condition but I will find you something to do." Cinder assured. "End of the day there will be more than enough work to go around when we get this place up and running. When things cool down… I will find some stuff to help you grow accustomed to it. I would know, after all." Cinder said, pointing to her eyepatch. "It's not the same since I still have one eye… but I had to learn to live like this. I managed it, so will you." Cinder assured.
Cinder walked towards the stairs so she could get some sleep, but she stopped and looked back. "And if you ever want… to talk… just say. I'm not stupid… I know you both just lost everything… and everyone. And I am sorry… but this isn't the end. It can't be." Cinder said as she walked up the stairs to her bedroom to get some rest.
Weiss laid down on the floor with her pillow and blanket over her.
Neither were going to get much sleep; all they could do was picture their faces…
… Sun and Neptune.
And it brought them to tears, every single time.
Cinder
A few days later…
Cinder landed down on the still smoking rubble of the Decimated Academy of Beacon. The stench of death filled the air as she walked around, her short black hair fluttered in the wind. Smoke blew past her as she walked, finding Crows and Ravens picking and the dead flesh of countless souls who fell here. She walked past some of them, finding the ripped apart remains of Nadir, blood splattered everywhere.
She walked over the rocks, the ground still warm with death and fire. The destruction was unlike anything she had seen before. Her Amber eye was eye as she searched for any sign of life but there was nothing… no one…
… one could hardly even recognise this used to be an Academy, filled with life.
She then found the chasm, where the Vault once was. She dropped down into it, using her Maiden Powers to soften the landing. As she landed, her eye widened… finding Pyrrha's impaled corpse on the ground. Her eyes still open but dead inside, jagged prongs of metal protruding from her corpse, blood everywhere. Skin pale, and crows pecking at her body. She shooed them away and crouched down beside her.
Cinder exhaled with shame. "Seemed like you couldn't escape your fate, could you? It was always going to end this way." Cinder sighed as she stared at her body. She then walked away from Pyrrha's final rest, and flew back up, leaving the abandoned Vault behind, unaware that in six years time that dead body would come back to life.
Cinder landed back atop the ruins, but she stopped with wide eyes from what she saw…
… a Seer.
The croaking Creature of Grimm floated towards her, its long red tentacles pattered against the ruins, staring directly at her. Then the glass dome cracked, and it dropped to the ground with a clunk… and the smoke rose from its corpse, forming into the Apparition of Salem. She held out her hands and stared at Cinder, clasping her hands together.
"Cinder…" Salem greeted.
"Salem." Cinder replied.
"It's been a long time since we last spoke." Salem said, walking alongside her. Cinder walked with her, surprised at how… civil this conversation felt.
"Yeah, looks like you've been busy in that time. You've finally accomplished your goal." Cinder commented.
"Not yet… not all my goals." Salem said.
"What more could you possibly want? The Academies are destroyed, the Huntsmen and Huntresses are no more, and Ozpin is dead – and on top of all that, you are now the Ruler of Remnant. What more could there be?" Cinder asked.
"Let's just say there are things that even you do not fully comprehend about me and my desires." Salem assured.
"That's a fancy way of saying none of your damn business." Cinder chuckled, which made Salem chuckle as well.
"Yes, I suppose it is." Salem said, she then stopped and approached Cinder once more.
"Cinder… tell me… did Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna find themselves at your Farmstead three days ago?" Salem asked her, and Cinder exhaled through her nose.
"No." Cinder firmly answered.
"You're lying." Salem quickly retorted, seeing straight through Cinder. "Killian might have believed you, but I raised you – and I know when you are lying."
Cinder stared back at her; she knew that Salem knew now. "But worry not… so long as they do not interfere with my plans, they can stay with you and I promise I will not harm you or your precious little family." Salem assured, that was not what Cinder was expecting her to say.
And that made her suspicious.
"Why? Why let them go?" Salem asked.
"I haven't… I know where they are now… I am entrusting you to keep them out of my way. At the end of the day they are two injured and broken Huntresses who have lost everything. If you provide them stability then they will be indebted to you, and therefore will do as you ask. So… if you keep them from meddling with my affairs… then your home will be safe. You have my word on that." Salem assured, and Cinder looked and her and exhaled, nodding her head.
"Okay… you have my word as well." Cinder assured.
"But know this, Cinder. If I learn that you have interfered with my plans in any way… I cannot promise what will happen next." Salem assured as she approached. "That girl is a sweet thing… keep her close. And never let go."
The Apparition of Salem faded away and the Seer's corpse crumbled away into dust.
Cinder stood amongst the ruins of Beacon Academy… she knew that the conditions Blake and Weiss were living under now were now the shields that kept them safe from Salem.
They had to follow them…
… or face Salem's wrath.
Blake
The next six years were going to be tough…
… but it was a future, one where Weiss and Blake were not alone.
Blake sat in front of the little exercises that she could use to help herself live with her new blindness, trying to stack some of Amber's old toys on top of each other to make a perfect tower. Weiss sat there and watched her, but she kept on missing or accidentally knocking them over.
These were not the only things she had to learn, she was also given a Guide Stick, bought for her from Vale by Oscar, to help her feel her way around to walk around. Alongside having to heal her leg from constant movements, but it would not come easily, bumping into things and even feeling dizzy from the sudden change of senses.
Blake was not the only one having to find a new way to live in this new world, because Weiss was already given a new job – running the finances of the Farm. She stared at the huge book with Vernal shrugging her shoulder next to her. "Hey, you're a Schnee, you should know how this stuff works."
"How did you get to that conclusion?" Weiss questioned, she sighed and sat down, looking at everything.
However it quickly came to her, writing down every single income and expenditure. The Farm started to grow over the six years they were living there, and the House even got a nice expansion which gave Weiss and Blake their own rooms instead of just sleeping in shared bedroom. Outside, Blake helped Oscar with the Fence Expansion with reached the river where Salmon would rush through, however her blindness was not easy for her.
Many thumbs got hit with hammers, but as time went on, Blake started to improved her coordination, and she started to use her other senses to navigate the world. Her stick became her new best friend, feeling every single thing in her way, and she was getting better at avoiding things in her way.
But every now an then she would still falter and trip, but Weiss was always there to help her, and catch her when she fell. Blake continued with Amber's little puzzles whilst Cinder helped her with homework in the background. As the years continued, Amber grew bigger and bigger, and becoming more mature as they passed by. Amber and Blake's friendship grew, and she started to help Blake with her blindness, playing together outside, catching balls and playing tennis, something that started to really help with Blake's senses.
Even made her smile and laugh.
Blake continued to help Oscar with expanding the fence, and she never missed the nail, and very soon they were fishing Salmon from the river. Weiss sat down and was managing their finances with impressive speed, whilst Vernal sold their Crops and meat and milk from the cattle to the Supermarkets in Vale. And when nothing was happening, Weiss kept herself fit, training with Cinder and constantly practicing her Glyphs and her Summoning. Even using the Arma Gigas to help lift the heavier things when expanding the house for their rooms.
Oscar started to draw impressive sketches of both Sun and Neptune, so then they could always have them close. His Artistic Skills were always very impressive, and Weiss smiled as she held the picture of her boyfriend close to her heart. When their rooms were finished, they both helped each other furnish them and make them their own.
And then every day repeated, Weiss handled the Farm's Finances, whilst Cinder and Amber tended to the cattle together. Amber smiled as she patted their cows on the noses and bought new horses for them to ride into town.
Blake aimed her gun forward, and fired, but she kept on missing the target, and she sighed. The one thing that she could never master was combat… because she was missing an entire sense, one of the most important ones. She sighed and lowered her gun, but Amber could always put a smile on Blake's face as they played together, and Blake helped her tend to the Cattle and even helped with her Homework just as Cinder did.
After the six years… and all her time learning how to live this way…
… the present day came.
Blake focused carefully as she placed each of the old toys on top of each other, leaving only one more to go. Both Weiss and Amber watched intently as Blake carefully held it up… and she placed it atop the tower.
And it didn't fall.
"YES! YOU DID IT!" Both Amber and Weiss cheered as they jumped from their seats together. Amber was much bigger now, no longer that tiny Seven-Year-Old Girl who trailed behind Cinder's footsteps. She was now a Thirteen-Year-Old Girl with long wavy blonde hair and huge eyes. Blake gasped and she bounced up from her chair and she laughed.
"I did?" She gasped.
"You did it!" Amber squeaked, jumping and wrapping her arms around Blake. They both laughed as Blake lifted her off the floor, making her laugh as she swung her around. The two of them were much happier now… and Blake looked healthier than before. "You see Vicky? Blake did it!" Amber called, patting her knees to the new excited Golden Retriever which ran over to her. It jumped up and licked Blake's cheek, she laughed as she held the dog.
"Whoa now, okay…" Blake chuckled. Vicky waddled up to Weiss and she stroked the Golden Retriever gently.
"Hey, girl…" Weiss softly said to the dog.
"So… judging by the cheering… did you do it?" Cinder asked as she walked out from her office, finishing up on the paperwork.
"I did… first time." She said.
"I ain't gonna say I told you so… but… I did tell you so." Cinder chuckled, which made Blake laugh as well. She kicked her Guide Stick up into her hand and used it to help her walk around, but it was like second nature now. She walked over to the glasses and she poured herself a glass of water and had a sip. Weiss walked over to the Finance Book, looking over their expenditures and incomes.
"Things are looking fairly good, Cinder. Where are Vernal and Oscar?" Weiss asked.
"They should be back any second. They went into Vale to go and sell the rest of the stuff to the Markets." Cinder answered as she stretched her arms with a sigh. "Amber… have you fed her yet?"
"Oh yeah." Amber giggled. "Come on, Vicky."
She walked with the Golden Retriever over to their Utility Room where her bed and the food was kept. Now up in the highest place possible so then the dog could not sniff it out. Amber pulled out the crate and reached up to get it and filled up Vicky's bowl with food. "Here you go, baby." Amber softly cooed. "And yes, before you say, I have done my homework."
"I didn't say anything…" Cinder chuckled as she poured herself a glass of orange juice. She walked outside and looked up as an Airship flew overhead with a flock of Nevermores guarding it, with the Schnee Dust Company Logo imprinted on the side of it. But the company was now being run by Arthur Watts. Weiss stood beside her and she sighed.
"It's been six years… and I still can't believe he is actually my Uncle." Weiss said.
"Tell me about it. I knew the guy for over a decade, and I had no clue." Cinder said. "But… despite all the terrible things that bastard did, the Schnee Dust Company has actually been… well… morally improved. Faunus Racism has ended per the new Laws." Cinder explained.
"Yeah…" Weiss sighed as she sat down on the sofa, Blake looked at her and sat down next to her. Blake now wore a Black Ribbon over her blinded eyes instead of the bandage now they had healed up, something that actually looked quite stylish now.
"You okay?" Blake asked her.
"Yeah… just thinking of him makes me… I never cared for my father. But Whitley and my mom?" Weiss sighed. "My family was always complicated… but they didn't deserve that."
"I don't think life is about getting what we deserve." Cinder stated.
"Ever the optimist." Weiss scoffed.
"Eh, not wrong though. We just live with the cards we're dealt." Cinder said as she picked up the television remote and turned it on. The first thing on there was a news report.
"It has been six years since the Extermination of the Huntsmen Academies across Remnant. Reports have shown that more and more survivors from the extermination have been seen in different Kingdoms across the world. If you have any information of the whereabouts of these dangerous individuals please seek the nearest Black Gallows Official, Praetorian Knight or Seer to help us end the threat these men and women pose." The man continued but Cinder switched to a different channel where a movie was playing.
But enough was heard that it clearly upset them. The bad memories came flooding back, memories of Sun and Neptune and how much they missed them… and how they were blaming themselves for giving Ruby and Yang to the Black Gallows. Cinder may have told them that Raven went to save them… but for all they knew… they were dead. And they still felt responsible for everything that went down, accidentally allowing Raven to escape, sending Yang into a berserk state of mind.
So many mistakes… they just continued to linger even six years later.
Amber could see their distress, then an idea flickered in her big eyes. "Hey! Why don't we go fishing?" She suggested, gesturing over to the rods in the corner of the room. Weiss and Blake looked at Cinder.
"Hey, I trust you with her. Go ahead." Cinder said as she read over the newspaper. Weiss and Blake both got up and got the rods and followed Amber to the river.
Weiss
The two of them followed the energetic young lady towards the river, she skipped happily across the field towards it. Despite how dark the days were in their lives; she was a constant light for them to crawl towards. "Hey? You okay?" Weiss asked her.
"Yeah… just thinking…" Blake softly said, gently moving her Guide Stick back and forth like a pendulum, tapping a rock and avoiding it.
"Here we are! Wanna bet on how many we can catch?" Amber asked them curiously.
"Hmm… I'm gonna say… five each." Weiss confidently said.
"Blake?" Amber asked.
"Huh? Oh… uh… three. Each." Blake answered, Amber smiled.
"I'm gonna say ten each! Enough to feed us all the way up to the Winter!" She cheered with her hands out with joy. The two of them chuckled as they got their bat onto the lines. They could see the huge Salmon shooting up the river, swimming to spawn upstream.
"There's some big ones in there." Weiss said, and they cast the lines. They sat down on the chairs they always had waiting since this was the best spot. But Amber – like always – liked to sit on the floor. She held her line gently as she watched them swim by. They waited and every now and then they caught one of them. Blake listened to the rushing water and sensed the movements on her rod.
But she jolted when a crow cawed deafeningly loudly in the tree next to her. She gasped and turned, staring up at the tree. More Crows showed up, all of them cawing in the tree above their heads. The three of them turned their gaze to the crows above their heads, all cawing at them.
"What the hell?" Weiss muttered as she collapsed her Fishing Rod down. The three of them stood up and followed the Crows as they took off from the tree and landed down the river from them. They stayed close to the fence, but approached it…
… and they saw something.
"Oh gods…" Weiss gasped.
"What?" Amber asked.
"Don't look… it's… a body." Weiss said.
"Another one… damn Black Gallows." Blake growled with disgust as they approached the body washed up on the river. Amber waited back, watching them approach the body. They both crouched down, and Weiss turned the body over.
Weiss' blue eyes widened with utter disbelief. "What is it?" Blake asked with confusion since she could not see who it was.
"You don't know who it is, do you?" Amber asked.
"Yeah… we do…" Weiss gasped, struggling to find the words.
"It's… Pyrrha…"
Author Note - Of all the places Pyrrha could wash up... she showed up... at Cinder's home XD
I really enjoyed this chapter, showing what happened after the Inhumane Necessity, these two really had been through the ringer. But it was great to show the survivors of the Branwen Tribe again, and Amber... I love her. She is such a sweet little bean and always is such a moral compass. And showing Cinder being such a great and supportive mother to her is so fun to write. Cinder really did take a risk there, but luckily Salem does not seem bothered by it at all... but this? This could tip the scales.
Because we all know who brought Pyrrha back in the first place.
Blake's blindness has been really fun and interesting to explore as well, and will continue to be interesting to explore in this story. Love her style too with the bow over her eyes. Something I loved about this chapter is that for Cinder it really echoes back to how Raven saved her after the Battle of Beacon, it's like now she is in Raven's shoes, having to help Weiss and Blake. It is a really interesting dynamic.
I love their farm too, and showing the time lapse (I 100% was listening to Brand New Day for that as well XD)
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review, follow and favourite!
Stay tuned for the next chapter - Brave New World
- Matt