Disclaimer: RWBY and Hollow Knight do not belong to me. They belong to RoosterTeeth and Team Cherry respectively.
Warning: A spike in body horror for this chapter. Just a warning.
Chapter 18: The Infection
...born again...
"What do you think Team RWBY are doing?"
Pyrrha looked away from the job listings. Nora, who wasn't staring at the listings at all, was scanning the crowds. Students made their way to where their field trips would start, or if they were like JNPR, were still searching for a job to take.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"I mean," Nora said, still scanning the crowds, "That I haven't seen them all day. They weren't at the assembly either."
"Huh," Jaune tore his gaze away from the listings, "Now that you mention it, they weren't, were they? Wonder what's up with that?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
The three of them looked at Ren, who was scanning the board intently .
"I-Is it?" Jaune asked.
Magenta eyes glanced towards them.
"It must be something involving Hallownest."
Pyrrha hadn't considered the possibility till he'd mentioned it, but she was forced to concede that Ren was most likely correct. Especially after the looks Team RWBY had traded when she and Nora had given them that strange plant yesterday.
"O-Oh," Jaune fidgeted, "Do you think they're...Y'know, alright?"
"Probably," Ren said.
"You seem confident?" she asked, confused by his almost bored tone.
Ren sighed.
"Remember that fuss yesterday? With that Atlas soldier getting into that fight with that Huntsman?"
"Oh yeah!" Nora grinned, "And then the Hollow Knight stopped both of them, disarming the lady and scraping Ruby's uncle against the ground! I remember!"
Jaune nodded, before doing a double take.
"Wait, Ruby's uncle?"
"Well yeah! The huntsman was Ruby and Yang's uncle or father or something! And the lady was Weiss's sister!"
"Winter Schnee?" Pyrrha asked.
"Oh, is that her name? It's pretty. She was pretty pretty too. Hey, leader, maybe you'd have better luck with her!"
"I..." Jaune gave the grin Nora shone his way a worried look, "Think I'll pass."
"Smart," Nora said simply, not dropping her grin.
"They must be here to supervise RWBY with whatever they're doing," Ren explained.
"It certainly makes sense," Pyrrha admitted. She'd never met the woman, but Winter Schnee had made a name for herself as one of Atlas's best. Her worry for their friends abated a bit, knowing that Winter was there to look after her sister.
"In any case," Ren said, "There's no use in worrying about them."
"...You're right," Jaune said at last, "We have to trust them, and focus on our own mission. Besides," he let out a self-deprecating laugh, "They kinda kicked our ass at that one food fight, remember?"
Pyrrha hid a smile, and she saw Ren's own lips twitch. He made a sound and Nora was by his side at an instant.
"Ooh, are you looking at that one?" she asked, pointing.
Jaune sidled up to Ren's other side, squinting at the screen.
"A request for aid from a settlement outside the kingdom?" he asked.
"I think we should do it," Ren said quietly. By his side, Nora silently stared at the screen. Jaune glanced at the two before smiling.
"Well, o-of course!"
Pyrrha smiled, and couldn't help but be thankful once again for the teammates that fate had sent her way. She couldn't have asked for better ones, or better friends, and she swore to protect them as best she could.
'Team RWBY,' she thought, 'Whatever you are doing. You too must come back safe.'
...born again...
"Hey, Ice Queen!"
"What!?"
Both Weiss and her sister whirled around to glare at Qrow.
"I mean the bigger one! Well, taller at least!"
"I am going to kill that man," Winter said under her breath as she whirled away. Just in time to kick away the Lesser Mawlek that had charged her. The many legged, and even more toothed, barrel shaped creature scrambled back up and screeched. Before it could spit a gob of corrosive fluids, Winter stabbed it through. The mawlek screeched and cried, spasming, before finally stilling.
"Disgusting little creature," Winter sneered.
"And the mawleks are offensive in their own right," Weiss said. She was rewarded with a rare smile from her sister, and Weiss felt her spirits buoy. In truth, she'd been ecstatic ever since she'd learned she'd be fighting alongside her sister. And now, finally, she could show Winter how much she had improved!
Perhaps it would've been better if they weren't trying to fend off what seemed to be an endless swarm of mawleks, as Ruby had called them - paging through the Hunter's Journal with Doctor Oobleck while the rest of them fought. But, beggars couldn't be choosers.
"Focus."
Weiss startled as her sister appeared before her, a spectral beowulf blocking the glob of acid that had been sent her way. Weiss quickly caught sight of the offending mawlek, skittering on the grey cavern's roof and hissing at them, and sent it falling to the ground with a swish of Myrternaster's ice dust.
"Sorry," Weiss apologized, face flushing.
"You still have much to learn," Winter chided. A shadow dashed past them, and the ice impaled mawlek was skewered through by the Hollow Knight. The Knight glanced back at them, and seeing that Weiss was alright, dashed into the fray of teeth.
"Your summon is...interesting," Winter said at last.
"They are," Weiss admitted, before taking stock of the battle.
Ruby and Doctor Oobleck still hadn't drawn their weapons, pouring over the journal and muttering to themselves. This would've been a problem if it weren't for the rest of them pulling their weight, and Weiss could see her own annoyance mirrored by Winter. Qrow Branwen was in the thick of the mawlek mob, whirling his scythe with such speed and dexterity that it almost made Ruby look clumsy. His expression was somewhere between bored and smug, which ended up making him look more vexing than just smug. Picking off the creatures at the edge of the ever growing mob around him were Blake and Yang. One mawlek made a wretched sound that indicated it was about to spit, only to be uppercutted into the air by Yang. The creature barely had time to writhe around before Blake swooped in, scything it in twain. And as for Penny and the Nailmaster-
"Are they?" Weiss began.
"Now, remember, to execute the Cyclone Slash one must focus their energy into their core," Nailmaster Mato lectured, "One needs total control of their body to hold the stance while attacking. And it helps stave off the dizziness that accompanies novice users."
"I see!" Penny said cheerfully, her eyes completely focused on the Nailmaster. She moved a hand and twitched a few fingers, and several of her blades danced to her will and scythed the legs of an approaching mawlek. The legless creature was then dispatched by the little knight.
Weiss still wasn't sure how the girl was controlling her weapons - perhaps a semblance like Pyrrha's? - but her skill was clear to see.
"That girl…" Winter sighed.
"Now then, are you ready to give it a go?" Mato asked.
"I am not one hundred percent certain that I have mastered it," Penny began.
"Stow away your doubt!" Mato said, "I too, was once like you. Unsure of my strength. Believe in yourself, my girl!"
"I will try!" Penny said, determined, and she leapt into the mob of mawlecks.
"Go, my girl!" Mato cheered, even as Winter swore and ran towards them.
Penny spun on her feet, just as the mawleks turned their attention from the whirling dervish that was Qrow. Green swords fanned out, and soon Penny was a dreadful top, cutting down the mob.
The vortex of destruction didn't last long - Penny came to a stop, spinning slowly and stumbling, and she was caught by Mato before she fell into the pile of legs and teeth she'd just created.
"Fantastic job, my girl!" Mato praised.
"Thank you…" Penny managed to smile, even as her eyes spun.
"Miss Polendina, what do you think you were doing?" Winter demanded.
Penny blinked and looked up at Winter.
"...Performing the Cyclone Slash?" she offered.
"And might I say she's done a great job with her first attempt", Mato said proudly, "She'll have the art mastered in no time!"
The cavern became silent as the last of the mawleks was killed by Qrow Branwen. He pulled his scythe out of the flattened creature, the weapon shifting into sword form as he rested it on his shoulder.
"Geez, here I thought this would be more of a workout. If you guys have time to argue, then this is clearly a waste of my time!" he complained, "This is a job for you kiddos, not me."
"Thanks Uncle Qrow," Yang deadpanned.
"What, it's true! What else are students good for, if not grunt work?"
"To learn?" Mato and Doctor Oobleck said at once.
"Psh," Qrow waved a hand, "All I'm saying is, I want a real challenge."
This was precisely the moment a Vengefly King came screaming out of the darkness of the cavern depths, bowling over Qrow Branwen in an attempt to eat him.
...born again...
"Hang on."
Yang paused as Blake stopped. Around her neck, Grimm's child chirruped. Yang could barely make out Blake's bow twitching in the gloom - her partner hadn't unbound her bow in fear of Winter seeing her faunus ears. Something which irked Yang, especially since she didn't have a solution. Still, Blake could hear better than the rest of them, with perhaps the exception of the Hollow Knight and the little knight.
"What do you hear?" Yang asked, as the rest of the party came to a stop.
"...It sounds like water," Blake said after a moment. Her eyes rose from the ground, amber gold in the darkness. "Right?"
Yang was about to say that she couldn't hear anything when she felt something move behind her, and turned her head to see the Hollow Knight looming over her. They, ignorant or perhaps unconcerned with the near heart attack they'd just given her, tilted their head for a moment before putting a hand against the wall.
"We should be going on our way-" Winter began.
Yang winced as bright stars of light flashed in the Hollow Knight's hand. The Hollow Knight reared back, fist full of aura, and punched the wall. Stone exploded and the wall crumbled. And a blast of hot air hit Yang.
"Is that a hot spring?" Weiss asked, stunned.
In the small cavern that the Hollow Knight had revealed was a massive pool of shallow water. The spring was fueled by several massive stone heads, from whose mouths sprung forth clear waters. The air was filled with glowing particles, and steam, and Yang made an executive decision then and there.
"Right, let's go-!" Yang was yanked back by Winter.
"Hey!" she scowled, "What's the big idea?"
"The water might be dangerous," Winter said, "You can never tell what sort of chemicals lay in such springs."
Yang was feeling more than a little gross, and the siren call of the spring was beckoning her by the second. So, she wasn't particularly in the mood.
"It's cave water," Yang snapped, "What's the worst that could be in it? Moss?"
"Arsenic," Winter snapped back, "Until we can ascertain how safe it is, we shouldn't-"
There was a splash, and they stared at the curved horns of the little knight peeking out of the water. The Hollow Knight stepped past Yang, stopping next to the spring and turning back towards them.
"Looks safe to me," Yang quipped. Winter didn't let go.
"Specialist Schnee," Mato said, "While your concern is valid, I can verify the safety of this spring. See the masks? This was a spring constructed. Perhaps from a natural one, perhaps none. But the water is clean and safe, and will refresh the body and soul. I suggest we take a break."
Yang shot an 'i told you so' look at Winter. Winter shot back a particularly frigid 'fine' with her eyes alone, but in the end they made camp.
"Now," Yang made a 'shooing' motion towards the men of the group, "You guys can just explore the caves for a while, try not to die, and leave us in peace."
"Thanks Firecracker," Uncle Qrow said dully.
"You are welcome! Now scram."
...born again...
"Are you sure you don't want to take a dip?"
"Do not worry about me Ruby! In any case, I don't like hot springs all that much."
Penny hiccuped and covered her mouth. Ruby stared at her for a moment.
"If you're sure..."
"I am very sure!" Penny said, hands still over her mouth.
"You don't know what you're missing out on," Yang chimed. In her lap, Grimm's child chirruped.
The hotspring had been very relaxing, Ruby would admit. Even if it was in the middle of a cave that may or may not have been real – she still hadn't quite gotten all the 'dream' stuff that Weiss had tried explaining. Still, real or not real, the hotspring had been refreshing. She felt like she could take on a whole herd of beowolves!
Not that beowolves traveled in herds. Maybe a swarm of vengefly?
Ruby's gaze traveled across the small cavern. The men had been shunted into one of the smaller caves that lead into the spring cavern, the Hollow Knight guarding the entrance after what had frankly been a quick dip. Winter and Blake were both looking after their packs and weapons – Weiss's older sister had already tied her hair back into a bun. And Weiss…
Ruby walked away as Yang tried to wheedle Penny into giving a reason for her dislike of hot springs. Penny's explanation was hampered by her sudden attack of hiccups, and Ruby took her bottle of water out of her backpack as she looked over Weiss's shoulder to see what she was reading.
"The Hunter's Journal?" she asked.
Weiss, hair still loose, looked up at her in surprise.
"Ruby?"
"What are you trying to find?" Ruby asked, sitting down beside Weiss.
"I'm not trying to find anything in particular," Weiss began, "It's just..."
Ruby waited as Weiss thought of what to say next. A quick glance at the journal revealed it to be on the page of "Lightseed".
"Have you read through the whole journal?" Weiss began.
"Kinda?" Ruby waved her hand, "I skimmed through it yesterday, right after the Hollow Knight finished making those two copies, and after I gave the Headmaster one of them. Didn't get very far, but it's interesting."
"Yes," Weiss began slowly, "Very interesting."
Ruby blinked, and when Weiss beckoned, she slid closer to her and began to read the journal.
"A single-celled organism, completely infected. Scurries about simple-mindedly."
"The infection again," Weiss said under her breath, "It keeps on coming up."
"Is that a bad thing?" Ruby asked, bringing her knees closer to her chest.
Weiss wordlessly turned the page to "Infected Balloon."
Ruby frowned as she read the Hunter's personal notes.
"He makes it sound like it's alive," Ruby said, before continuing, "Well, I guess technically it would be alive, being a sickness and everything. Unless it was a virus-"
Weiss rolled her eyes and turned the page again. Then she took a sharp breath, and Ruby looked around wondering what had caused it until she saw the journal entry.
'Broken Vessel.'
The image was the blobby work of the Hunter's protegee, rather than the Hunter's sharp and clean drawings, but the subject was unmistakable. Both Weiss and Ruby looked up to see the little knight still in the hotspring, enjoying themselves.
Ruby opened her mouth, though she wasn't sure what she was about to say other than something along the lines of 'what'. But then Weiss's gaze sharpened, focusing on something past the little knight – or the Broken Vessel or whatever their name was – to what had just squeezed itself out of one of the spring caverns.
"Hello, hello!" the walking hedge sang.
They were a mosskin. Had to be. But Ruby had never seen a mosskin so large. Or overgrown. The greenery covering them was so large that Ruby could barely see the little stubby hands poking through.
"Identify yourself," in a flash Winter was there, sword pointed at the mosskin.
"Oooooh!" the mosskin quavered, "I mean you no harm! I-I am just a simple traveler!"
"What's going on here?"
Qrow walked into the spring cavern, followed by Mato and Doctor Oobleck. The Doctor was by Winter's side in a flash, adjusting his spectacles.
"Who might you be, my fine fellow?" Doctor Oobleck asked.
The mosskin, still eyeing Winter fearfully, spoke.
"I-I am just a humble healer. An emissary of sorts!"
"An emissary? From who? Perhaps Unn? That is, the goddess of the Greenpath, if I'm not mistaken."
"Er, I am not. I am an emissary of a different sort," the mosskin quavered. "That is to say-"
Ruby stared at them. Though she had no reason to, she felt something dark coil in her stomach. A mix of anger and...apprehension?
"Blake, Yang? Can you guys get the bags?" she ordered quietly. Yang looked away from the mosskin to give her a strange look.
"What's wrong?"
"Just...do it."
When Ruby turned again, the mosskin was staring at Weiss. The hairs on the back of Ruby's neck rose.
"That is to say..." the mosskin trailed off.
"To say?" Qrow prompted.
"...light..."
"Huh?"
"...Blazing...bright..." the mosskin muttered, "...Rising...blinding..."
"Weiss, get behind me," Ruby said quickly, standing in front of her partner.
"Ruby-?"
"Light is life!" the mosskin yelled, with a volume so loud it caused Winter and Qrow to stumble back, "Beaming, pure, brilliant! To stifle that light," the mosskin stared at Weiss, and Ruby saw orange light shine forth from their eyes, "Is to suppress nature."
The mosskin moaned, hunching over.
"Ooooh! Radiant being, give me strength! Bless me!"
"Alright, that's enou-" Qrow began.
The mosskin rocketed towards her at a speed she'd thought impossible. Several things happened then. Ruby whirled out Crescent Rose, taking aim as the mosskin barrelled towards them. In a flash of darkness the Hollow Knight appeared next to her, Shining Daggers in hand.
And the little knight - the Broken Vessel - launched themselves at the mosskin and slashed.
The world exploded into sound and light. Searing orange light, hot and burning, and the air filled with the scent of too sweet rotten things. The floor underneath her feet shuddered and even as the echoes of the explosion began to fade, Ruby could hear the world rumble through the ringing in her ears. Tremors travelled up her legs, and someone yelled.
"Cave in!"
Ruby grabbed Weiss and the Hollow Knight, and ran as the cavern roof collapsed. She ran into one of the smaller caves, and hoped with all her heart that the others had done the same. She ran, and ran, till she was sure they were out of danger. When the rumbling stopped, and the ringing in her ears faded, Ruby finally stopped and looked around.
Blake, Yang, and Penny had managed to follow them, and Ruby felt a drop of relief soothe her pounding heart.
"That. Was close," Blake panted.
"What the hell was that thing?" Yang demanded. Grimm's child, clinging to her shoulder, echoed her voice with a chirrup.
Before Ruby could speak, Weiss spoke up.
"It was infected wasn't it?"
Weiss was looking up at the Hollow Knight. And the Hollow Knight was firmly not looking at Weiss.
"Wasn't it?" Weiss demanded.
The Knight continued not to look at her, and Weiss stomped her foot.
"Tell us! That thing...This kingdom...This entire situation! It all keeps coming back to this Infection! What is it?!"
The Knight finally responded, by shaking their head and turning away. Weiss ran to block the Knight's path.
"Don't you avoid me!" Weiss began, "The Seer told me this infection was the wrath of a god! The journal keeps bringing it up! Why won't you tell me what it was?!"
The Hollow Knight stared down at Weiss, before pointedly looking away. Ruby saw Weiss clench her fists and scowl, and got between the two before any more sparks could fly.
"Let's just focus on finding the others," she said, "We can talk about this later."
Weiss glared at Ruby, before nodding stiffly. The Hollow Knight didn't glare, but their posture and nod was somehow even stiffer.
Ruby resisted the urge to sigh, or to fidget with her cloak, and instead clapped her hands.
"All right. Let's go, team!"
...born again...
"So the vagabond prophet failed?"
The mantises listened in silence as their lord spoke.
"No matter," he scoffed, "The useless lump has done their part, failure though it was."
Blazing eyes glared out at the assembled tribe.
"Spread out!" the Traitor Lord ordered, "Find the intruders! Kill them!"
...born again...
"Whoa..."
Ruby couldn't help it. The sight beyond the heavy doors was something far different from the barren cavern behind them. It stole her breath away.
Ruby stepped out into the humid atmosphere outside the gate. Every inch of the cavern was lush and green, filled with strange plants and flowers. And the cavern itself was clearly not natural, not entirely. Whorled columns of stone rose towards a roof made of arches and tiles. A path, overgrown with vines and creepers as it was, graced the floor. The entire thing looked less like a cavern, and more like a hall.
"Whoa," Yang repeated, coming to a stop next to her. She was followed by Blake, Weiss, Penny, and the Hollow Knight, and the six of them stood there for a moment. Ruby swore she could hear chirruping and whistles in the distance, though they were a far cry from the song of birds.
"What is this place?" Blake asked. From her knapsack, Grimm's child blinked their dark eyes, taking in the sights.
"If I had to guess, this might be the Greenpath?" Weiss offered.
"No, this can't be," Ruby said. Weiss blinked at her.
"What makes you so certain?"
Ruby hesitated. In truth she couldn't say why. Only that something deep in her told her that this wasn't the Greenpath. Something that filled her heart with melancholy and sorrow.
"We were in the Greenpath back when we were trying to save Ren," Yang came to her rescue, "It was different. More humid. Different kinds of plants."
Yang walked up to a massive green flower that was nearly as big as she was, and curiously poked at one of pearly bulbs that hung from its center.
"Plus, there isn't as much acid here as there had been in the Greenpath," Yang said.
"Duly noted," Weiss muttered, "Then..."
"I believe we are in the Queen's Gardens!" Penny beamed at them, before turning around the slate she was holding to show the Hollow Knight's familiar bold letters. The Knight nodded, a piece of chalk in their hands.
"The Queen's Gardens? You mean, the Queen of Hallownest?" Weiss blinked.
The Knight nodded.
"Awesome! That means we're super close to our goal!" Yang cheered.
"Be careful," Blake warned, "Who knows what lives here?"
"It's, like, a royal garden? It can't be that dangerous. Right, big guy?"
The Hollow Knight nodded, though the gesture was hesitant.
"Even so..." Weiss began.
"We should remain on guard," Ruby finished.
Everyone nodded, and they set out into the Gardens.
...born again...
"Where the hell…?" Qrow muttered as the doors opened.
"Ah," Mato said, "These are the Queen's Gardens."
Qrow stared at the lush, dense greenery that threatened to completely take over what once might've been a park. Vines were even slithering their way onto the metal platform they were currently on, trying to overgrow it.
"Well, it's certainly an apt name."
He grunted as someone prodded his back.
"Move," Winter commanded.
"Sheesh, sheesh, alright!" he complained.
The look Winter gave him would've withered the plants of the garden, though it softened as she stared out at the scenery.
"It's...beautiful," she said at last.
"What, ya never seen a botanical garden before?"
"Qrow," Winter gave him a dead stare, "I lived in Atlas."
Oops.
Qrow reached for his flask, only to remember that it was currently empty. He scrunched his nose before sighing.
"I mean...Surely there's, like, something similar? You Atlas bigwigs like to live extravagantly, right?"
"Some, perhaps," Winter sniffed haughtily, "But not the Schnees. Despite father's greed..."
That last part had been muttered under her breath, and if it weren't for his above average-human hearing he'd probably not have caught it. Qrow hid a wince.
"Well, uh, enjoy? I guess? Not much variety," Qrow noted, "It's mostly green, green, some more green, a little white, and hey. More green."
"You referred to these as the Queen's Gardens," Winter turned to Mato, "Am I to understand that you mean Hallownest's Queen?"
"The same," Mato said, "Supposedly this used to be the Queen of Hallownest's retreat from the hubub of the court. Once well guarded and well maintained, so the legends say."
"Well, we can cross out well maintained," Qrow noted, staring at a shattered lantern, "What about the guarded part?"
"Oh, the Queen's guards are most likely all dead by now," Mato noted, "I have my doubts that we'll find this Queen either. No one knows what happened to Hallownest in its last days."
"If nothing else, we'll find her..." Winter hesitated.
"Ghost," Qrow completed, and Winter nodded stiffly.
"Well," he grunted, "Best we get going. Looks like this is a pretty big place."
"Careful," Mato warned, "It would be foolish to travel at ease."
"I thought you said the royal guards were out for a permanent lunch?"
"Yes, well. Some time ago, someone else moved into the garden. Or so I heard."
"What sort of someone else?" Qrow asked carefully.
Something rustled in the dense growth, and in a flash all three of them had their weapons drawn. Another rustle, and Qrow barely saw a flash of green and what looked like a sickle dip into the foliage.
"They say," Mato began, "That outcasts from the Mantis Tribe made their way here."
From the depths of the gardens, bright orange lights stare at them. Like the distant torches of a mob, getting closer.
"Oh," Qrow said, "That's just great."
The garden's growth exploded, and several massive praying mantises charged them.
"You just had to open your mouth!" Winter yelled.
"Less talking, more beating!"
...born again...
"Separated from the others. Alone in a jungle filled with hostiles. Unable to clearly communicate with my partner," Doctor Oobleck looked down at what Team RWBY called the Little Knight. The miniature shadow stared up at him.
"Have I accurately summarized our situation?"
The Little Knight seemed to consider the question before nodding. He nodded back.
"Well! This is certainly. Not good."
This could've been considered an understatement, he noted. Who knew where the others were? Who knew where he was? For all he knew he'd be stuck in this green garden, lost in the leafy labyrinth till he ran out of food to eat or was eaten himself. Or perhaps he would first contract some disease and die of dehydration or even worse? Though, he thought as he remembered the rather large mosquito like bugs that had dive bombed the two of them as they had climbed into the Gardens, perhaps the pathogen carriers themselves would get him before any malady.
Of course, it wasn't all bad. Here he was, surrounded by flora hitherto undocumented – at least, by human hands. Perhaps he'd find an encyclopedia of native plants written by the bugs of Hallownest. And wouldn't that be a discovery? He'd have a holiday gift for Professor Peach that would win him her eternal gratitude at least.
He snipped a pearly bulb from one of the flowers, letting it fall into a plastic bag, before adding a piece of leaf matter from the same plant and a pinch of dirt from the plant's base.
"Well, we best get moving," he said as he pocketed the sample. As much as he'd love to take as many samples as he could, that could take him an entire lifetime and he had to find his students and team members. "Time is of the essence!"
The Little Knight nodded and dashed into the undergrowth, and he followed after them, machete in hand.
...born again...
"Die!"
"Whoa!" Ruby dashed out of the way, just in time to avoid the swing from the praying mantis. The mantis rushed towards her and Ruby swung Crescent Rose. Sickle met scythe, and the two curved blades hooked against each other. For a tense moment girl and mantis stood locked in combat, and Ruby stared into glowing eyes filled with madness. Then, with a grunt she fired Crescent Rose. The recoil snapped the mantis's arm to the side and they gave a harsh hiss. The incandescent madness in their eyes did not abate, despite their limb lying limp to the side, and the mantis lunged at her with a guttural cry.
Shining Daggers pierced through the mantis's body, sending it flying away. The body fell to the ground with a wet thump, and Ruby couldn't help but stare. Sunset orange blood leaked from it.
"Ruby!" Weiss cried out, snapping the young girl out of it. Before her eyes the mantises body bled away into glyphs, and Ruby whirled around to help her team.
'They're not real,' she chanted in her head, 'They're not real, they're not real, they're...'
Already dead.
Ghosts or dreams. Whatever they were, the mantises wanted them dead.
There was a flash of black and gold, Blake spinning her partner with Gambol Shroud's ribbon and Yang slamming into a large mantis fist first. Despite the sickening crunch and the orange ichor that poured from the wound, the mantis brought their sickle arm down on Yang's shoulder, drawing a startled cry.
"Yang!"
Ruby moved, and in a flash she was next to Yang. The mantis's head fell to the ground, and dissolved into glyphs.
"You okay?" Ruby asked, standing with her back to Yang's.
"Took a good chunk of my aura," Yang grunted, "But otherwise fine."
They both tensed as from the green leapt another mantis, eyes made with rage.
"Intruder! Defiler!" they screamed, lunging towards them.
A shadow leapt over them, and the mantis's head snapped back from the force of Blake's kick. In the blink of an eye twin sickle limbs gouged into Blake's chest, and it was only countless times seeing Blake's semblance that prevented Ruby from crying out.
What was new was the shadow that Blake left behind. Rather than dispersing like smoke in a sudden gust, it melted like treacle on a hot day. Blake, who'd escaped to the side as her shadow took the blow, wasted no time and lashed out with Gambol Shroud. The blade scraped against the mantis's exoskeleton and they snarled, finally pulling themselves free from the sticky shadow and whirling towards Blake.
A glob of fire, scarlet and wild, splashed against the mantis's face. As they drew back with a scream Yang moved. Ember Celica boomed, and the mantis slowly swayed before falling to the ground, a hole in their chest.
The gardens became quiet, once more.
"Ew ew ew" Yang muttered, trying to shake away the orange blood on her hands.
"Nice job," Blake murmured to Grimm's child. The child, perched on her shoulder, chirruped appreciatively.
Ruby sighed, heart thumping in her chest. On the other side of the path, Penny retracted her countless blades and Weiss breathed heavily. The Hollow Knight loomed over both, watching the bodies of the mantises fade away.
"Everyone okay?" she asked.
As soon as she received various assents she whirled Crescent Rose back into its compact form and started rooting in her bag.
"Whatcha doing?" Yang asked. She had yet to shift Ember Celica back into bracelet form.
"Aha!" Ruby cried as she pulled out the binder. She began to ruffle through it, and Blake raised an eyebrow.
"Not sure this is the best time, Ruby."
"That's rich coming from you," Yang grinned.
Ruby continued to search, only startling as Penny appeared by her side, staring over her shoulder.
"What are you searching for?" Penny asked, staring at the pages of the binder.
"Er...Ah, this!"
Penny rested her chin on Ruby's shoulder and began to read.
"Once a member of the Mantis tribe, now cast out and driven mad by infection," Penny said, "Belonging to a tribe, or not belonging. I don't really understand what the difference is, or how it works. I have no tribe of my own," Penny blinked.
"That is rather melancholic."
"Yeah, well maybe if the dude didn't eat people he'd have a "tribe" of his own," Yang said, scrunching her face up.
"Mantises," Blake began, "You don't think-?"
"The same ones that Ren encountered?" Weiss finished.
"Well it can't be," Ruby pointed out, "These were Mantis Traitors. Didn't you guys meet the Mantis Queens or something?"
"Briefly," Blake said, "They were...intense."
"That is putting it mildly," Weiss muttered before narrowing her eyes, "Does it say why they were traitors?"
"Uh," Ruby looked back at the journal, "Not on this page."
"Does it matter?" Yang asked, "The regular mantises wanted to kill Ren too, remember?"
"This is different," Weiss insisted.
"What do you mean?"
Weiss opened her mouth, before hesitating.
"It's their eyes," Blake said, "Isn't it?"
"Yes," Weiss admitted. She turned towards the Hollow Knight.
"It's the infection, isn't it? The one that the journal mentions?"
The Knight's grip on their nail tightened, but eventually they gave a tense nod.
"Why don't you want to speak of it?" Weiss asked, nearly throwing her hands into the air.
The Knight shook their head and Weiss's scowl grew.
"Uh, guys?" Ruby began, "I think I found the reason for the 'traitor' part."
Her teammates turned towards her, and Penny began to read again.
"Deposed Lord of the Mantis tribe. Embraced the infection and turned against his sisters," Penny scanned the page and hesitated, before speaking slower, "I have felt that desire...The desire to take the infection into myself. To become stronger, more powerful...These thoughts haunt my dreams during the darkest times. A false hope, but it can burn so brilliantly in one's mind."
"...I can see why they banished this dude," Yang said after a moment.
"Can you?"
As one Team RWBY whirled around, weapons brandished. Penny in particular stood in front of Ruby as she tried to stuff the journal back into her bag and grab Crescent Rose at the same time.
From the shadowed depths of the garden rose the Traitor Lord. Easily as tall as the Hollow Knight, and much bigger. His body was as green as the garden itself, save for the mask he wore – bone white and cracked. He stalked towards them languidly. Following in his shadow were countless mantis traitors. In the half gloom of the gardens, their eyes burned like candles, and the Traitor Lord's own gaze blazed like the headlights of a train. Blazed with a mix of madness and chilling lucidity.
"Do you understand why?" he asked, voice low and deep.
"Does it matter?" Weiss shot back.
"Pale thing," the Traitor Lord hissed, "It matters. It matters. It matters!"
The Mantis Lord bellowed, carving long furrows into the ground as he ranted.
"My kin betrayed us! Betrayed us for the outsiders! Deals and deceit, sapping away our strength! Deals and deceit, which stole away my daughter!"
The Traitor Lord suddenly hung his head low, as if he were a puppet whose strings had snapped.
"My daughter," he whispered, "My daughter..."
A sickle claw slammed into the ground and the Traitor Lord looked up at them. Globs of orange fell from his eyes and seeped out from the crack in his mask.
"I had to kill her," he whispered, and Ruby drew back in shock. A ripple of unease passed through her team, and the Traitor Lord continued.
"I had to kill her. She had been seduced by them. The enemy. Them. The outsiders. She had been tainted. I had to kill her. For honour. I had to kill her."
"You're sick," Weiss whispered.
The Traitor Lord's eyes burned as he reared up to his full height and screamed.
"Don't dare lecture me about honour, pale being! Hahaha!" Suddenly the Traitor Lord laughed, "Don't lecture me when I know your crimes!"
The Traitor Lord looked back to the ground, laughing and laughing.
"Crimes?" Penny asked, "Weiss is not currently wanted for criminal activity."
"I don't think we're dealing with a full deck of cards here," Yang whispered.
"You dare look at me? Judge me? After what your line has done?" The Traitor Lord tilted their head up at them, "Pale being, who will you sacrifice next? Your eldest sibling? Your friends? Your children?"
"What in the world are you talking about?" Weiss demanded.
"The light told me. The light told me everything," the Traitor Lord hissed, "She told me what you did. She told me. She told me that I would become Lord of the Tribe. All I have to do..."
The Traitor Lord suddenly stood up, the fire in his eyes dimming.
"Is kill you," he said with quiet menace.
"Intruder! Defiler!" the mantis traitors chanted.
"Intruder! Defiler!" the Mantis Lord bellowed.
"Guys-!" Ruby warned.
With a strangled scream the Mantis Lord launched himself at them, a blur of green. The Hollow Knight slammed into him seconds before he could swing at Weiss, and the two tumbled deeper into the garden. The mantis traitors closed in on them, and the world blurred into battle.
"Penny!" Ruby called.
"Yes?" she asked, waving her hand and causing her countless swords to fly into the air, several impaling a mantis traitor who'd been pouncing towards her.
"Cover me!"
"Alright!"
Ruby whirled around, firing Crescent Rose and flying through the air. Several mantis traitors lunged for her, only to be impaled by Penny's swords and dragged back. The traitors turned their gaze on her and rushed as one, and soon Penny's blades danced in an attempt to keep them at bay.
"Blake!" she yelled as she flew over the battlefield, following the path of destruction the Traitor Lord had carved.
"On it!" a black blur weaved through the battlefield, confounding several traitors as they sliced into it only to be bound by sticky shadows. One traitor caught sight of Blake, running towards Penny and firing Gambol Shroud into the frenzy of enemies, and rushed after her with a snarl. With twin booms Yang drove the traitor into the ground and put it down with two heavy punches.
"Bring it you bastards!" Yang roared, eyes flaring red. As one the Mantis Traitors charged and Ruby was tempted to dash back to help her sister.
Dueling roars of silence and madness, roars that shook the very gardens, convinced her not to.
The Traitor Lord and the Hollow Knight clashed, and Ruby was loath to get in between them - because even just one of their blows would probably break her aura. The Traitor Lord strikes mercilessly, and it's only the Hollow Knight's speed that prevents them from falling. The Knight used their greater reach, poking and slashing the Traitor Lord as they fell back. Each strike scraped against the Traitor Lord's armor, drawing beads of orange ichor, and more rage from the Traitor Lord. Ruby landed and immediately dashed again, and seconds later landed the Hollow Knight in her place. They leap away just as fast, and the ground where they and she had stood but seconds ago turned to dust as the Traitor Lord slammed into it.
The Hollow Knight wasted no time and was on the Traitor Lord in an instant, arm curled to give a great slash. Steel and sickle flash, and for a brief moment Knight and Lord stood locked, the Hollow Knight's nail blocked by the inner edge of the Traitor Lord's claw. Before the Knight could pull back the Traitor Lord hooked their other claw across their nail.
"Empty one..." the Traitor Lord rasped, "How long have I waited to kill you?"
With a twist the Traitor Lord yanked the Knight's nail from their hand. The Hollow Knight jerked back just in time to avoid the Traitor Lord taking off their head. With a vworp the Hollow Knight teleported away, and the Traitor Lord laughed.
"You cannot escape me, empty one!" he bellowed.
The Traitor Lord lunged, and Ruby fired. Crescent Rose's bullet slammed into and through the Traitor Lord. Orange liquid flew, a sunburst across his chest, and the Traitor Lord turned towards Ruby. Another burst of orange as Ruby fired again, the Traitor Lord rearing back. The third time, the Traitor Lord charged towards her, and Ruby barely moved out of the way in time.
Ruby dashed and dashed again, the Traitor Lord chasing after. But for all his speed he was not fast enough, and Ruby whirled Crescent Rose and fired, flying perpendicular to her previous trajectory as the Traitor Lord pounced on the spot she'd just been.
"Bullseye!" she crowed, firing. She slid across the loose earth, the Traitor Lord's shoulder exploding. The Traitor bellowed, and Ruby lined up for another shot when he swung his arm with such speed that it rended and cracked the air like a bullwhip. A whirling orange disk flew towards her, and Ruby stumbled to the side, slipping as she tried to avoid it. The disk cut the hem of her cape, but that was the least of her problems because the Traitor Lord was right next to her-
It was like being hit by the Hunter all over again, the breath driven from her lungs and the world exploding into stars and spots as the Traitor Lord backhanded her. She felt Crescent Rose fly from her hand, and-
The next thing she knew she was on the ground. The Traitor Lord loomed over her. She ccould barely hear him over the low buzz of panic in her ears as her fingers tried to close on Crescent Rose and found nothing.
"Defiler," the Traitor Lord buzzed, "My daughter..."
Globs of fiery blood fell from the gaping holes in his chest, sizzling against the ground and against her aura, and when Ruby finally drew breath in her lungs she nearly choked on the cloying smell of old iron, rotten flowers, and burning sugar. She kicked up with all her strength, and the Traitor Lord didn't even flinch back as her boot slammed into his chest. Blazing ichor sizzled against her boot. The Traitor Lord glared at her, burning eyes sightless, and raised a sickle claw. It's the injured one, and Ruby saw orange blood warp and quiver, keeping the arm glued to the body.
"Die!"
Something grabbed her foot and Ruby was yanked away. The sight of the Traitor Lord's claw hurtling towards her chest stayed in her gaze, and it took her a moment to realize that she was in the Hollow Knight's arm. An empty gaze stared down at her and Ruby shook herself.
"I'm fine," she managed, stepping down onto wobbly feet.
From across the battlefield of ruined and flattened plants, the Traitor Lord stared at his claw, embedded all the way into the earth. He yanked it out and whirled around, staring at them. Ruby glared back, keeping Crescent Rose in the corner of her eyes. If she can just grab it-
"No, no, no!" the Traitor Lord screamed, his sickles glowing, "Kill! Die! Defiler! Intruder! Die!"
...born again...
The battle had been going alright up till the big mantis had a tantrum.
Sure, they had to fight an entire army of rabid mantises, and Yang's fists were covered with burning orange ichor, flecks of green chiton stuck in Ember Celica. Her own body burned and ached, her aura crackling from several desperate slashes from bugs who should've been dead. And Yang really wanted to dunk herself in another hot spring.
But they'd thinned the enemy quite nicely.
The air was cold, courtesy of one Weiss Schnee - who'd taken the liberty of using the last of her ice dust to encase several mantises in ice completely. Even more were either in pieces on the ground, cut to shreds by Penny and Blake, or outright gone – having bled away into essence. All that remain were a fraction of what they had started with. Yet despite this they didn't fall back. The traitor mantises held their ground, eyes glowing, and it was clear they weren't going to retreat.
"You doing alright?" Blake asked from beside her.
Yang bared her teeth in a grin.
"Never better."
"I believe we will win," Penny said from beside Blake, swords hanging in the air behind her.
"Don't get cocky," Weiss warned from Yang's other side.
"Wouldn't dream of it," Yang still grinned, but her eyes were focused on a point past the traitor mantises.
A red blur danced around the Traitor Lord, the green behemoth carving his way across the garden as he tried to land a hit. The Hollow Knight was to the side, picking up their nail and focusing on the high speed fight before them.
Then at once it went wrong. The Traitor Lord's shoulder exploded in a mess of gore, but rather than flinch back the mantis roared, shooting a blade of wind from his arm and dashing after it.
"Ruby!" Yang screamed as her sister was sent flying by the Traitor Lord. Her body burned and she charged forward. The traitor mantises charged back, and Yang rendered one's head into pulp as she tried to push past them.
"Ruby!"
"Die! Intruder!" a mantis cried as it blocked her way. Something whirled past her and Gambol Shroud embedded itself in the bug's chest. Seconds later Blake kicked the mantis to the ground.
"Go!" she ordered, pulling Gambol Shroud from the corpse and firing at the other mantises. A wave of fire flew past Yang, sending another Traitor screaming to the ground, and several green blades impaled and pulled mantises out of her way as she ran towards her sister.
She wasn't going to make it. The world slowed down as the Traitor Lord stepped over her baby sister, looming over her before raising his claw.
"Ruby!" she screamed, reaching out as if she could close the distance.
A black tendril snapped through the air and pulled Ruby away just as the Traitor Lord struck. The Hollow Knight cradled her sister protectively, and Yang nearly fell to the ground, her legs weak with relief.
She did fall when the Traitor Lord screamed and started attacking the ground, sending tremors across the earth and pillars of aura flying out across the garden. There were dozens of them, flying out faster than she could blink, and one was right on top of her when something slammed into her.
Her aura flared, and she heard Penny scream as the pillar of aura clipped both of them.
...born again...
"Penny! Yang!"
Ruby watched in horror as the Traitor's attack tore through the battle ground, slamming into her friend as she tackled Yang out of the way. The attack didn't stop there, carving the gardens as it traveled outwards, and Ruby saw several mantis traitors fall in pieces, unable to avoid their leader's attack.
The tremors stopped as suddenly as they'd appeared, and Ruby whirled around just in time to see the Traitor Lord looming over her, sickles raised.
Burning blood splattered across her face, and the Traitor Lord gave a wet gasp. The Hollow Knight pushed their nail further through the mantis's chest, the blade's tip bursting out from the base of the Lord's head.
For a moment the world was silent.
Then with a roar the Traitor sent the Hollow Knight to the ground, a claw pressed against their neck and another raised high.
"No!"
Ruby launched herself at the Lord, trying to pull him off the Hollow Knight. Even with the Knight struggling to push aside the claw crushing them, the Traitor Lord didn't budge. Ruby's hands burned, the Traitor's body as hot as an oven. Orange blood fountained from his wounds, flooding the air with cloying sweetness, and Ruby's eyes burned-
"Die, My Ancient Enemy!" the Lord boomed. The claws tore out of Ruby's grasp and plunged-
The claw stopped an inch from the Hollow Knight's head. The Traitor Lord struggled, but still the claw did not budge.
More vines erupted from the depths of the garden, ensnaring and wrapping around the Traitor Lord, pulling him off the Hollow Knight.
"No! No!" the Traitor Lord screamed as the vines bound him.
Ruby startled as a hand fell on her shoulder, and she looked to the side to find Kindly Isma smiling at her. The ground shook and a massive bug in heavy armor appeared next to the Hollow Knight, pulling them up to their feet.
"Quite the harrowing battle, our Hollow Knight," the armored bug chuckled.
"Far too close."
Fierce Dryya appeared next to the Knight, and Isma clucked.
"Come now Dryya, our Hollow Knight and this young girl did well enough!"
Dryya looked at her, and Ruby felt the same way she did when Weiss had looked down at her at the beginning of the year. Then, the white knight nodded, turning towards the Hollow Knight.
"More than well enough," she murmured, cupping the Hollow Knight's face, "Against an enemy so inflicted. But you must do better, our Hollow Knight. You cannot fall."
The Knight stared at Dryya, not reacting as she pulled her hand away.
"Let Go Of Me!" the Traitor screamed, and Dryya turned towards them. In a flash she was in front of the mantis, driving the Hollow Knight's nail further into his body.
"Detestable creature," she spat venomously.
Blood sizzled as it dripped down the nail. Even when it touched her hand, Dryya did not flinch. The Traitor Lord laughed, the sound wet and bubbly.
"I remember you," he rasped, "I killed you. Snapped your body and left you a husk-"
The Traitor Lord gave a choked scream as Dryya twisted the Hollow Knight's nail.
"You did," Dryya said as the Traitor Lord heaved against Isma's vines, "But I won, in the end."
Dryya pulled out the nail, flicking the blood off it with a snap of her wrist. A puddle of ichor smouldered beneath the Traitor Lord, and still his eyes burned.
"I cannot die!" he rasped, "I am too powerful to die! Kill me, kill me, again and again, and I will come back. The Light Cannot Be Consumed!"
The Hollow Knight flinched back as the Traitor Lord roared, and Ruby can't blame them. Yet the knights remained steady, even as the Traitor Lord strained against Isma's vines to leer at Dryya.
"Kill me," he laughed, "For I am undying."
"Are you sure?"
The voice is lilting, more a song than words, and there was something melancholic about them. Dryya stepped to the side and the Traitor Lord screamed as his uninjured shoulder exploded. His arm fell to the ground, burning into a husk, and the Traitor Lord hunched over, gasping.
"It seems to che' that you are pitifully mortal."
The bug next to Dryya looked like no bug Ruby had ever seen before. They look like they're draped in a wedding dress, gossamer and blinding white. It's hard to tell what is her hair – if the sheets of sparkling white falling from her head is hair – and what is her robes. Four thin black horns curled tall into the air. And in her hand is a nail that made Harbinger look like a toothpick.
The bug whirled around, skirts flaring, and stared at the Traitor Lord. Ruby cannot see her face, but it is clear by the way she held her nail that the bug was seconds away from chopping off the Traitor's other arm.
"Ai. What a pitiful sight he is," the bug scorned in her sing-song voice, "To think that a Lord of the Mantis Tribe would fall to such a low."
"Defiler..." the Traitor Lord hacked, eyes burning so bright they were nearly white.
"Geal. He is completely lost. The air is filled with milis. That rotten taste," the bug spat.
"It is best to put him out of his misery," Dryya agreed.
The Traitor Lord laughed.
"Then, will you kill me? Knights of Hallownest? Which will it be? The Root's pet? Or the Defiler?"
The bug's nail came to rest at the Traitor's neck, and slowly he was forced to look up as she raised her blade.
"Dún do bheal," the bug said, deadly quiet, "Che will not be the one to kill you. Le'mer will neither."
"Not that I don't want to," Dryya said, menace dripping from her voice.
"Cowards..." the Traitor sneered, "You were always honorless cowards…!"
"No."
Ruby turned around and saw the mantis and Weiss. The mantis looked nothing like the traitors. Slim and pale brown, the colour of wood and old fallen leaves, rather than deep green. Black trails were etched under her eyes, like tear tracks, and her voice was sad as she spoke.
"The only one here without honour," she said, "Was you. Father."
"My...daughter..." the Traitor Lord croaked.
"Pale one," the Traitor's Daughter turned towards Weiss, "Please. End my father's suffering."
Ruby saw Weiss hesitate for a brief moment. Before bowing her head and nodding. When Weiss lifted her head, her expression was firm.
"Weiss..." Ruby began as Weiss walked towards the Traitor Lord.
"It's okay, Ruby."
Weiss stopped right before the Traitor Lord. Dryya and the ethereal bug stood on either side of her. The Traitor Lord did not even glance at Weiss, staring instead at his daughter. He didn't tear his gaze away even when Weiss brought forth the Dream Nail, even as his eyes and wounds burned and his body trembled.
Weiss plunged the Dream Nail into the Traitor, and he shuddered. The scream that tore forth from him as the Dream Nail erupted into bright light scraped against Ruby's ears and sent a chill down her spine. It was loud and unearthly, filled with such rage that it's barely even a voice. It's the same sound that had erupted from the Moss Prophet.
The Dream Nail's light faded, the weapon disappearing with a chime. And with one last gasp the Traitor Lord fell still, eyes dark and empty.
The infection creeping through the Kingdom's dead veins.
Amongst its hateful kin.
Hallownest is born again, united in your blazing image.
The last chapter of this year. And isn't it a cheerful chapter?
There are so many ways to interpret the Traitor Lord. While I am fond of him having been a good father who turned traitor after the other Mantis's killed his daughter, in this one I took the opposite route - him seeing the Mantis treaty with Hallownest as weakness, and becoming traitor due to that (or perhaps, exiled after he learned of his daughter's tryst and took matters into his own hands...).
Thank y'all for reading! Tune in next time for: "The Root".