Author's Notes:
I am so sorry about the wait people. But, as my ironclad rule states, real-life must always come first at all times. And I am sorry that this chapter is slightly shorter than usual, but the next one will be longer with a lot more meat to it, promise.
Now, before we get into the chapter, there is one thing I want to address something to a reviewer who is reading this fanfic. While I am grateful about you showing interest, could you not ask about a certain blonde teacher please? If you must know so badly, no I didn't forget about her, she WILL come back when she is relevant again. And not before. So please stop asking about her, okay?
Alright, enough chit-chat, enjoy the chapter.
Grimm Wars
Chapter Four: Hunter and Prey - I
The word that could describe Flinch's emotion was excitement.
She was thrilled at the moment. A permanent smile printed upon her face. She was licking her lips and readying herself as the giant Nevermore flew ever closer to their destination.
Someone had taken in the bait left out for them by her master.
While Flinch didn't know who the tan girl was, she must be very important to someone if she could reel in such a big catch.
The 'big catch' being the very bane of Flinch's existence. And the one who Flinch swore she would make scream in agony. When she was done with her, that wretch would wish it was never born in the first place.
One way or another, Flinch would be the one to make Cinder Fall scream in terror.
She could see it now even. Cinder Fall, on her knees, begging to be put down like some dying animal. With fear plastered on her face.
But Flinch had to hold herself back. Her master's orders were very clear.
'Capture, not Kill. We need more information out of any of the Witch's pawns.'
The reason was very logical, Flinch's master knew next to nothing about his adversary. He needed information about the Witch in order to combat her. Ozpin, before he killed himself, told her master that the tan girl was important to the Usurper's plans. And that keeping out of the Witch's hold was a top priority to Ozpin.
Thus, her master then hatched a plan.
They would use the tan girl as bait to lure out any of the Witch's pawns, capture one of them, and then torture information out of them. The plan was simple, straightforward, and highly effective.
Evident by the way Cinder Fall had taken the bait herself.
This meant only one possible thing.
Which made Flinch all the happier.
Oh, she was going to fully enjoy taking Cinder down a peg or two. To show the bitch where she truly stood in the grand scheme of things. And pry the info they needed out of her very lungs.
Flinch was going to fully enjoy torturing the raven haired whore.
How should she do it, though?
Flinch shook her head of those thoughts as the giant Nevermore she was riding began to descend to the ground below.
Now was not the time or place for those exciting thoughts…
Not yet anyway.
First thing's first though, they had to capture Cinder Fall. Flinch knew this was not going to be easy either. She had a chance to speak to the only two thralls to survive the first failed invasion of Vale.
From what she heard; Cinder knew how to fight. And was highly skilled as well. But, from what she learned, Cinder did have one major achilles heel. While she had good control of her emotions, she did have a limit on how much insult she could take. And being laughed at… that really set her off in a blinding rage.
Perfect.
Now that Flinch had something to work with, she can plan around Cinder's mind somewhat.
Now landed on the ground, Flinch dismounted the Nevermore and slithered away into the dense woods. There she met up with a small group of her thralls that had been shadowing their little lure ever since she was picked up by the two Huntsmen that somehow had managed to escape Vale alive.
Among the squad shadowing them were Gore, Adam Taurus, and of course the white Beowolf, Armor.
Adam turned to her first, "Overseer, we have eyes on Cinder Fall and her companion." he whispered
Flinch smiled, "And that would be where?" she asked with glee in her voice.
He pointed with his sword in the direction of their target, "Down there, just ahead in the abandoned village of Watchroad." he said, looking in the direction of the settlement, "My guess, they're going to ambush the brats there."
Flinch looked over the abandoned village for a moment. She could see it through a small gap in the tree line from their hillside vantage point. She scanned the area for the bait and quickly found it approaching the village fast by the main road.
It was here that Flinch caught sight of the two youngsters who were with the tan girl.
One of them looked to be a boy in the last stages of his teens. He was dressed like a cowboy from the wild west bandit of Vacuo, bandana, hat, and all.
But when Flinch saw the other teen accompanying him, she had to do a double take.
Long blonde hair like a mane, very feminine features, and a gauntlet weapon encasing one of her hands…
The Deliverer!
This was Flinch's first time seeing her, but it just had to be her. She could feel it in her very darkened blood.
If it was possible, Flinch would be smiling even more. This was very good! They're going to sit back, wait till Cinder and her lackey kill the blonde Deliverer, and move in to capture her when she is weakened from the fight. This was going to be a very good day for the master when he heard about the Deliverer's death!
Flinch could see it now, a nice big smile upon his maw. Praising her for taking the Deliverer out with getting directly involved.
Oh, Gods above… she might be getting a little too excited now.
"Overseer?"
Snapping out of her fantasies, Flinch recomposed herself and turned back to the group and gave them their following orders.
"This is a once in a lifetime chance to not only kill the throne in our master's side, the Deliverer. But to also capture Cinder Fall as well to question her." she said as she continued to watch the trio enter Watchroad, "Once the Deliverer is dead or defeated, we move in."
"Understood." the two thralls said in unison.
And, as darker clouds began to move overhead, Flinch continued to watch and wait for the opening to come. She doubted she'll have to wait long.
~o0o~
As the sound of thunder in the distance behind them made its presence known, Yang glanced back to the darkening cloud cover.
"Great…" she said sarcastically.
Rojo growled in irritation at the weather, "Another storm, just what we needed." he said as he continued to carry their unconscious companion on his back.
Yang looked back ahead of them and scanned the town in front of them. She took time to read the tilted sign hung in the town's main gate.
'Welcome to Watchroad' it said.
"So," the blonde decided to try and distract them from the fact that they needed to find somewhere to take shelter again, "Do you know how far we've come from Vale?" she asked her team leader.
Rojo came to a stop and read the sign real quick before answering, "Well, Watchroad is about the halfway point from Vale to the northern island chain of Sanus. So at least we made it a good way from the kingdom." he scanned the town really quick before turning back to Yang, "But I don't think we'll find anyone here, either." he said flatly.
She sighed, "Yeah, you're probably right." she replied as she resumed pushing her bike, which was covered in bags of ammunition, to the town. With Zwei trotting along behind her.
As the teens entered the town, it was clear to them that the Grimm had already been through here. Evadite by the claw marks on the doors and walls of the buildings. Not to mention there were blood stains on the stone roadways.
Soon they found themselves in the town square, where a great down hall stood. It reminded Yang of those old wild west builds back in Vacuo's old days. Cheaply built and just sitting on a makeshift foundation, unlike the buildings in Vale.
"This will have to do." she heard Rojo say as he made his way to the double swinging doors. Yang followed his lead, and the teens entered the building.
Inside was a mess. Flipped over tables, holes in the walls, blood stains, broken chairs, and spent dust rounds scattered all around them. Rojo made his way over the broken counter that had to be a bar while Yang brought her bike fully inside to keep it out of the coming rain. Yang begins to unload the bags from her bike while Rojo sets the girl down on the bar counter to let her rest.
After unloading the last duffle bag from the bike, Yang turned to the marksman, "How is she?" she asked.
"Still breathing, which is good, but the fact that she has not woken up yet is still worrisome." he said, placing his jacket over her body to make sure she stayed dry from any leaks in the roof.
While Yang listened to him, she looked at the sleep girl with interest. And something had been eating away at her ever since they gave their last update to the people over at Patch the other day. While they had sent it to Jaune, they had gotten an unexpected call from her uncle Qrow shortly afterward.
She could still remember the conversation too.
The moment she picked up her scroll, Qrow was hammering her with questions. So fast, that Yang didn't even understand half of them at first.
Questions like: where did they find her? Was she awake? Did she have any items on her at all? Were there any messages from Ozpin with her?
It was such a rapid fire, that Yang was shocked by her uncle's behavior. She had never heard him like this before, ever. So much so, that she called him out on it and told him to slow down.
That seemed to snap him out of it, and he gave them clear instructions.
'Keep the girl safe and alive. And get to Atlas as soon as possible.'
When two teens questioned 'Why?' Qrow didn't give a straight answer. All he said was: "Because that girl is very important to some very dangerous people."
They didn't understand, but Qrow wouldn't give any more details on the topic. Soon after he said 'be safe' he hung up and left the two confused teens to themselves.
"You're thinking about what Qrow said, right?" Rojo suddenly said, snapping Yang out of her thoughts and somehow reading her mind.
She sighed, "I don't know, it just does not add up with the uncle I know and love." the blonde said, "The Qrow I know is usually calm, cool, and collected… if a bit silly at times too."
"Yeah…" Rojo agreed, "I hear ya."
After some silence between the two, with the only sound being the first drops of rain hitting the roof of the building, the team leader suddenly spoke up in a careful voice.
"So, uh…" he paused for a second, "About.. your sister…"
Yang was instantly put on edge at the mention of Ruby as the marksman continued.
"I won't say what I will do, for I am not fully sure myself right now… but…" he stopped as he looked back at the brawler, "Can you please tell me what you plan on doing if you see her again?"
After a few moments of silence, Yang sighed.
"I don't know either." she honestly, "Part of me, I think, needs to acknowledge what happened at Mt. Gleen, what she has done with those psychos… but…" she stops for a moment to look down at the floor before pressing forward in her words, "Another part of me wants to believe that my baby sister is still in there somewhere. I have to believe-."
"But what if she is not, Yang?"
She stared back at Rojo in shock as he continued.
"I am not saying you have to give up and let her go, Yang. I'm not." he said clearly, "But, if there is no choice? If there is no other option open to you? Would you do it?"
Yang's eyes seemed to grow in horror at what Rojo Toro was asking her.
"Can you be the one to kill your sister, Yang?" he finally asked coldly.
Yang was about to burst into tears. It was a burning question in the back of her mind ever since she saw for the first time in over thirteen years on that train. It was a question that was staring her in the face like an enraged, snarling dog.
The burning question: Can she kill her monster of a sister if there really is no way to save her and change her back to normal?
But, before she could even say anything, Rojo suddenly pulled her close into a gentle embrace.
"I'm sorry." he said quietly, "I won't ever ask that again, I promise. I just… had to know. And, by your silence, I think I got my answer."
Tears started to trail down Yang's cheeks.
"I'm not mad, Yang. I promise. But please, promise me one thing, okay?" he asked her in a calm and caring voice, "Promise me you won't ever let trying to save her blind you like that night at Vale ever again, please."
Yang knew it had to come out eventually, she was just hoping it didn't come out into the open like this. Starting to get the hiccups slightly, the blonde just nodded her head quickly.
"Thank you." he said, before backing away from her and handing her his bandana to whip away the tears.
She gladly took it, whipping her eyes before handing it back to him. She then felt something poke her leg from behind and she looked down.
There was Zwei putting on his best puppy dog eyes look. He was obviously trying to cheer her up. And, thankfully, it was working. Yang reached down, picked the dog up, and gave him a hug. In response the little corgi licked his owner's face.
Rojo, sensing she was getting better now, smiled warmly at her.
Suddenly, Zwei's ears perked up and he stopped licking Yang before turning his head around to the door. Yang wondered why he stopped.
But Zwei started growling, which put both teens on alert.
Yang carefully put the dog back on the floor, while Rojo pulled out Red Redemption.
Just as Yang got into a boxing stance and activated her weapon, it happened.
The double doors were blown clean off the hinges, forcing both Yang and Rojo to jump up to avoid being hit by them. But they quickly realized too late, that's what the attacker wanted. Before yang could fully react, a woman with raven hair and red dress popped up in front of the blonde and drove her feet into Yang's chest, sending the blonde through the wall.
Yang was sent flying into a different, more spacious room where she managed to land on her feet and right herself back into a combat stance.
"Yang!" she heard her friend call out before gunshots began barking in the room, she was just in.
Before the blonde could call back to Rojo, she saw a flash of red in the dust cloud kicked up in the hole that just got made by her body. But this time she was ready.
Yang dodged the first arrow that whizzed past her and countered the second arrow that quickly followed with a bust of her gauntlet. But the last arrow did hit her and did a major blow to her aura which flashed yellow to try and counter the damage.
Yang staggered a bit, but quickly shook it off in order to block a pair of black swords with her gauntlet.
There was a sharp clang followed by a pause.
Yang's lilac eyes met a pair of amber colored ones as the woman smiled at her.
"Let's talk, Yang Xaio Long." the raven haired woman said calmly, despite the situation.
Yang growled, "About what?" she asked through her gritted teeth.
The woman's smile only seemed to grow bigger as she replied, "About your little sister."
Author's Notes:
That's all for now folks. I do hope you enjoyed the chapter, despite it being somewhat short. Let me know what you think in the reviews about it too.
One last thing, I am sorry if it does feel somewhat rushed, I had just pulled an all-nighter with almost zero sleep to get this out to you guys. I do hope you all liked it at least.
Peace out for now. And have an awesome day.