Hi. This is my first and ever Ruby fice so I would like to go over some things.

First, this a medieval au, similar to something like Dungeons and Dragons. Magic still exists but this is going to be pretty loose in connections to the show.

Second, character ages are a little higher. I don't know exactly but everyone here is an adult. Probably 18+ or in early twenties. The reason I say this is that some things in the story just would not work with the canon RWBY cast in the early seasons. For example, Ruby might be too young to drink or rent out an inn room.

Third, this is a "mature" fic and I debated rating this M. I don't mean mature in the sense that it's gonna be smut. I actually hate smut because it's usually just garbage and doesn't enhance story telling. I typically do fade to black. However, this story is going to be noticeablly more violent and mature than the source material, while still being recognizablly RWBY and frankly tasteful.

Fourth, feedback really helps me improve. Giving a review does more than you might realize, both good and bad.

Fifth, enjoy!

Prologue:

Weiss grimaced as she heard weeping of the crucified faunus. She tried to turn her back, ignore them, and stare into the beautiful grass plains she was in. It was truly a lovely place. A rolling country side road on a bright sunny day. There wasn't even a cloud in the sky. The fields of grass rolled on until they hit the nearby woods, behind of which was the grand city of Vale. By staring of into the scenery, she could almost ignore that something terrible was going on. Why the guards chose such a nice place to kill someone, she would never know. Perhaps it was because the road was well traveled. Plenty of travelers had passed.

She noticed many reactions. Some hurried along, making sure to shield their face as they passed. A few stopped in morbid fascination. One man even tried chatting up the guards. The cross was a gruesome sore in the perfect landscape, an unavoidable grotesque landmark for all travelers, which Weiss assumed was the point.

She continued to stare off at nothing particular. She was a knight in training, as per her father's wishes, and today was execution duty. She had to be given a tour of every military responsibility as an apprentice. One day it was night watch, the other day it was learning siege instruments, the next med bay, etc.. She had had bad days but this was by far the worse

She turned head slowly, almost against her will, and looked at the woman hanging on the cross, she wanted to throw up.

It was a black haired faunus women, cat, likely convicted of some crime against the state, she wasn't told what. Weiss couldn't see the woman's face but she didn't need to to tell that the women was in agony. The soft guttural cries and ghostly tremors were all she needed to confirm that.

But most importantly was the woman's back. The kingdom had standards. Women were crucified facing the wood, their back to the road or populated areas. Even if they were criminals being executed in their undergarments, the empire would not deny women common decency.

Weiss almost wished that this wasn't the case because whenever she stared at the women, she got a nice look at the disgusting mess that was her back.

The back she destroyed. It was her fault.

When it was announced that she was to be on execution duty, Weiss had hoped that maybe she could stay back and not partake much. The idea of hurting someone defensless, even if they were a faunus or a convicted felon, unnerved her. After all, there were plenty of guards who were all too eager to take sadistic pleasure in the torture of the condemned.

But no. Of course, the captain singled out the new knight in training to flog the faunus after they had shackled the condemned women to a pole in a small clearing in the castle yard.

Weiss had a choice. Refuse, possibly get discharged, bring disgrace on her family, and go see her father in the coming hours. He had always hit her but she had never done something as severe as bring shame upon the entire house. He had trained her for years to become a knight, for the honor of the Schnee's and to continue the legacy that he started at her age. He wouldn't kill her but she would probably wish she was dead if she failed so spectacurally. She would be trapped in disgrace, trapped with him, forever.

Or she could wash her hands of this, hurt this person for a few minutes, and be done with it.

She chose the latter and she hated every second of it.

She was given a whip by the captain, multiple strands of metal teeth and barbs sewn in. She then walked into the center of the courtyard and it was eerily silent. Everyone there was simply waiting for her to begin. It was just her and the faunus, who was noticeably shaking. Getting closer, she noticed the faunus was about her age, barely an adult. She could tell that the faunus was terrified but she made no sound. She didn't try moving in a futile attempt to get away. She didn't beg. She didn't curse. She didn't even utter a word. But the faunus did turn her head, ever so slightly that there eyes met, for a fleeting moment. Weiss remembered distinctly those bright golden eyes glaring at her. The faunus said nothing but Weiss understood.

I hate you.

Weiss could have gone easy, maybe attempted to fake some blows, but didn't. She knew that if she did, someone would notice and accuse her of having sympathy for a criminal, of not having the stomach to protect the kingdom. She was a knight in training not an ordinary guard. She was being brought up to be the best of the best.

She began.

The first few lashes Weiss couldn't remember. She blanked out as she brought the whip upon the faunus' bare back. It was as if she wasn't really there. She didn't even hear her screams.

But upon the twentieth lash or so, her body subconsciously found a rhythm to the whipping, much to Weiss' disgust. No more hesitation or awkwardness with the tool. It was just a task to be completed, like a cog in a machine. The faunus at this point had completely lost any sense of composure. She remembered that faunus screaming, no, begging Weiss to stop but she couldn't, she felt numb.

By the final lash, the faunus wasn't even conscience. Her back was completely destroyed, chunks of flesh hanging out as they were torn apart by metal. Her internal organs likely suffered damage. That was when she was finally told to stop by the captain. He told her she had done a good job and to take a break. The faunus was soon revived and taken away to die. The guards laughed, even congratulating her, she didn't need to do anymore. One of them even pointed out she had gotten some of the faunus' blood on her face. Weiss didn't even notice it.

Now, all she could do was stare at that back as the faunus slowly died, knowing she took part of it.

"Hey Weiss!" called her superior, "Care to play a round?"

She looked over to see her captain, looking much more friendly and relaxed then usual. She thought maybe it was alcohol but he seemed to just be enjoying himself.

The other guards were playing some cards and relaxing. Someone had even brought a bottle of wine. The faunus' agony was ignored. They seemed completely content. After all, this was basically time off. They basically, in their eyes, got to do nothing in a beautiful field on a beautiful day for hours.

Weiss smiled politely. She knew it was fake. It was second nature to her at this point.

"Thank you but I'm good." she replied sweetly, "I would likely lose more money to you anyway."

She hoped that she was doing a good job disguising the fact that she didn't want to do much of anything right now, let alone play cards. It felt wrong considering there was a woman dying a few feet away. It was a good thing Weiss was taught manners. She learned to disguise her emotions very well, even when people where irritating her, which unfortunately happened very often. Her captain was a tough man to say the least, perhaps as tough as her father. Waking up at early morning to do push ups and jogs while her ordered her around like servant was beginning to get under her skin. She would be lying if she wasn't tempted to slap the man a few times but that would again, earn her father's fury.

She watched the guards happily play cards, chatting away. Did it get easier? To do things like this?

She understood why it was done. The faunuses of the city of Haven were a restless and frankly, an ungrateful bunch. Always causing trouble, stealing, attacking nobles. They would become dangerous if an example wasn't made of them. To die this way, the woman most have committed a serious crime. Her punishment was deterrent for others.

Weiss understood the natural superiority of humans to faunuses, faunuses were indeed, literal animals, but was this how an animal was put down? No, this was too cruel, even for an animal.

Her thoughts immediately began to turn toward anger to her father. It was him who expected nothing less then perfection of her. She wouldn't be here if it weren't for them. She Schnee house was a noble family and that family needed knights. Weiss was chosen to do so. A knight meant a family could back themselves as legitimate members of the kingdom, with fierce warriors willing to die from their kingdom. A knight made a family's power legitimate and showed a good deal of servitude and sacrifice. A cowardly noble used the wealth but did not give back in any way. A knight was a hero. A figure worth celebrating and just maybe talked about by generation to come.

Everyday as a child, her father ruthlessly trained her in both the ways of nobility and of magical combat. If she failed or protested, he would take her to the shed and box her. He always said that it was her duty to preserve the Schnee honor, become a knight to continue the Schnee name but it wasn't what she wanted. It was something her father did.

And damn him he always got what he wanted. It was never her, always him. And if he didn't get what he wanted, she would suffer.

She was the perfect daughter to many. Deadly with a rapier, amazing with ice magic, as polite as any lady, and as pretty as a rose.

Failure was not an option for her. She had to keep up the image.

But was that all she was good for? Following orders?

She looked at the faunus again. Nothing had changed. She was still suffering and Weiss would have to live with it. Hopefully she would die by morning but Weiss doubted it.

She just wanted this to be over.

She was sure the ache would go away in time. Perhaps she was just being soft. Maybe once she became a full fledged knight she wouldn't have to do things like this. Perhaps then her father would let her breath a bit and she would help serve the kingdom, become a hero.

Hopefully she could forget this day, the faunus would die and it would be all like a bad dream but until then she would have to watch. She had the role of night shift as well so she would have to listen to the faunus some more.

Perhaps that was karma.