Relic Hunting
Cpl. Adrian "The Destroyer" Shepherd
Status: Unknown
Location: Unknown
Shepherd had, at one point, thought he was now an expert on weird. Literally, he fought aliens from another dimension and beaten back an invasion orchestrated by said aliens, only for him to stop said invasion and be saved at the last minute by a mysterious suit wearing man who seemed to control the very fabric of time and reality itself, then gets sent to another dimension after accepting a job offer from said suit wearing man. If that wasn't weird, then what is?
He got his answer in the form of two girls he had just rescued from the maws of certain death.
The girl in white who the Marine knows as Weiss Schnee (who names their kids after snow?) was certainly strange. Quickly sizing her up, he towers over her and her teammate by a head. Her swor- woops, correction, rapier- was definitely peculiar. And… hold on, is that a .44 cylinder at the hilt? A gunsword? Adrian used to work a lot with those back in Texas. Weiss was wearing- somewhat fittingly- white all over her, as her name suggests, the "Weiss" part of her name anyway. Also, heels? A skirt? Seriously? That's a trip to the infirmary just waiting to happen. But if this girl by some miracle learned how to fight with that sword (rapier, Adrian! Remember your ancient weapons lessons!), a skirt, and literal heels, then hey, Adrian ain't gonna judge. However, she has an air of arrogance, standoffishness, if you may, that could practically scream, "I'm the heir to the throne, so treat me as such", which is fitting, given she earlier said that she was the heir to the Schnee Dust Company. Might wanna ask her about that later. Why was dust such a big deal here anyhow?
Adrian then quickly analyzes her teammate, Ruby Rose. Rose. Her clothing has a red-and-black color scheme. Red like roses and rubies. Huh. Did folks here name their kids after colors? Neat. Like with her white haired companion, she's also wearing a skirt. Okay, really? However, what really caught his attention was her weapon. A literal gigantic scythe. What. The. Actual. Heck. And- is that a freaking magazine box on the handle?! A sniper-scythe?! Oh man, I'm gonna have a field day dissecting and analyzing that bad boy, he thought. That aside, it looks heavy as frack. If she learned how to wield that thing with ease, then jeez, there's something about this world and its people he has GOT to know about.
Until then…
"Corporal Adrian Shepherd, huh?" Weiss says.
"That's my name. Uh, well, the "Corporal" part aside anyway." Adrian responds sheepishly, scratching his helmet.
"You don't look like Atlesian Military to me." Weiss says pointedly, giving the Marine a look of suspicion, eyeing the strange gear around his person. Adrian swore to himself. He cannot let them know of his origins. Time to come up with a cover story.
And he has just the one. Fresh out of his mind oven.
"Oh, I'm not Atlesian," he says, hiding the fact he has no absolute idea on what she means by that. "Local militia, actually."
Weiss raises her eyebrows and says, "Oh really? Last time I heard, Vale has no known armed forces whatsoever."
"Yeah!" pipes up the silver eyed girl named Ruby. "The only things that come as close are the Huntsmen and Huntresses situated here in Vale."
Bugger, Adrian thought. Hadn't thought that one through. Hmm…
"Yeah, that's the thing. The group was dissolved 'bout a week ago. Some of our folks stick 'round, but other than that, we're defunct as is."
"Well, if you really were part of a local militia, how can you explain all the weapons and equipment strapped all over your body?" asked Weiss, who was clearly trying to find a trace of deception. He needed to think fast. She's onto him, and he sorely underestimated her.
"Oh, this?" Shepherd says, knocking on his PCV. "Atlesian technology, alright. Bunch spooks at the high ups there sanctioned the tech over to our group for a field test. But, uh, well, the militia was disbanded a week after receiving the gear. Been keeping it ever since. Besides, the project that was fabricating the vest and mask I'm wearing got shelved, so at any rate, it's ours now."
"Wait, what?! But that's Atlesian hardware you're wearing, it shouldn't-" Weiss began to protest, but Shepherd raised a finger in front of her face, saying, "Ah, ah, ah, ah, you heard me, Weiss. Besides, the head for the project personally told us we could keep the tech. Not like it was anything groundbreaking anyhow. Besides, they're working on a better version of the armor anyway."
Weiss was about to argue… then decided against, and humphed in annoyance.
"Good. Now that we're all acquainted, mind if I ask you lot a few questions?" Shepherd asked. He needed to know where he was.
"Sure! As long as you answer ours, if you don't mind?" Ruby asked, a looks of genuine curiosity on her face.
"Aight then. Ladies first." He responded, bowing his head, earning a slight giggle from Ruby.
Ruby calms down after a while, taking a deep breath in. "Awesome! Well, first question…"
Suddenly, at blinding speeds, she zips right next to Adrian, and for some reason, what appears to be rose petals follow in her wake, trailing behind her, much to Adrian's shock. How did she do that?! Okay, something is definitely up with this world. In the meantime, Ruby's gone star-eyed as she inspects every single inch of his armor, and every single armament strapped to his body, talking so fast it was near impossible to be able to tell what she was saying.
He quickly grabs her by the shoulders, stopping her in her tracks. "Whoah, whoa, whoa, easy there buckaroo. Take a deep breath in, and say it again. Slowly."
Ruby quickly heeds his advice, begins inhaling and exhaling, until she slowly calms down, nodding her head, and begins to speak.
"Okay, thanks Adrian. Anyway, what does your vest do? I've never seen a design like that before. And why do you have SO many weapons strapped to your body?"
"Well, to answer your first question, this," he says as he proudly gestures to his vest, "Is the Powered Combat Vest. Designed to protect special operations troopers in the field, it is the first of its kind to incorporate a built-in electrically powered shield. When charged, the shield stiffens up the fibers of the vest itself, creating a powerful and resilient protective layering, allowing it to take a beating and still keep the user alive. If fully charged, the user will be able to tank several rounds of small arms fire, and even a direct hit from an RPG."
"Wow! That's so cool!" Ruby chirps in awe. "Although… the vest seems to only cover the torso."
"As much as I hate to admit it, she's right," Weiss says. "Sure, the vest can take a beating, but what if the user takes hits from areas not covered by it?"
"That's the neat part. The gloves, the pants, the boots, my gas mask, my helmet, and my sleeves are actually connected to the vest too. So when the suit is charged, not only does the vest get juiced up, but each and every part of my uniform gets a power boost too. As such, the suit not only grants added protection, but also gives the user high levels of strength and speed to utilize in the field."
"But doesn't your Aura do that for you already?" Ruby asks
Aura? What's that? Could that be how Ruby rushed over to him so fast? Could that be how she and Weiss be able to fight with ease and without the difficulty of their clothes getting into their way? Adrian tucked those thoughts for later. Might need them in the future.
"Normally, yes, but it's good to have a backup in case. Besides, the suit allows a user to o something admittedly crazy." As he says this, he gestures to his many, many, MANY weapons strapped to his body. "My pops used to tell me, "there's no harm in being too prepared." And I like to live by his words."
"Now, I've answered yours. Care to answer mine now?" Adrian asks, internally snickering as he watches Ruby snap out of her stupor staring at his weapons, clearing her throat awkwardly.
"Oh, yeah, sure! Ask away!" she says.
"First things first, why are you girls out here in the sticks? What with all these…" he calmly gestures to the still fading Alpha Beowolf corpse, then continues, "roaming 'round these parts, you'd think anyone would cotton to the idea to stay a good distance away from here, yes?"
"Well, we're here because we are to-be Huntresses in training participating in the initiation trials!" Piped up Ruby.
"Uh… what?" Huntresses? Initiation trials? What has Adrian walked into? Some sort of academy training kids like Ruby and Weiss to fight and hunt down those wolf beasts? Huh. Guess they hold little regard for the Geneva Conventions here. Also explains the outlandish weaponry too. Getting up close and personal with those things, you need to have the benefit of both range and melee. Their equipment seems to reflect that.
"Huntsmen and Huntresses? Fighter's trained specifically to take down the Grimm and keep them away from the populace as well as uphold peace throughout Remnant? Doesn't everyone know that? Or have you been living under a rock?" Weiss replied, a look of confusion on her face.
So that's what they call the wolves. Well, he has the intelligence he needs. Just need to add to his cover story.
"Yeah, uh, not too far off there, Weiss. I'm actually new 'round here. Just moved into Vale about a week ago. Joined the militia afterwards, ascended pretty quickly to Corporal, but, uh, things got pretty dicey, kinda the reason why our group got kablamoed. Never heard of Huntsmen, Huntresses, and Grimm up until recently, actually."
Weiss was about to say something, but Ruby quickly interrupted,
"Oh, okay then? Well, are you here for the trials too?" She asks.
Uh oh, he thought to himself. Well, now you've gone and done it now, Shepherd. Hmm… well, he needs more information. And answers. This world is full of unknowns and easily crossable lines. He might have to play along.
"Sure! Sure I am! Besides, I needed to loosen up my joints anyhow. Besides, from where I come from, fighting's the norm in our community. Ya can't live there without learning how to throw a punch or two. I've thrown down with a couple meanies or dozen. What's a horde of Grimm anyhow?"
Whooptedoo. Way to go, Adrian. Your Texan drawl's showing again! Stop it, you're getting nervous!
"Awesome! The world could definitely benefit from someone with your skillset! I mean, just, look at what you did!" Ruby waves her arms at the Grimm corpses, some still fading slowly. "Hey, that give me an idea! Why don't you come along! After all, the more the merrier, as they say."
Adrian thought for a moment. Idly unholstering his Deagle, then begins twirling it with his index finger, which would've broke his finger had it not been for the power being routed to his hands. He takes great pride in his fingers after all. After a full minute, he tosses it into the air, catches it in his left hand, then throws it upward again over his head, catching it with his other hand, and fits it back into its respective holster. He then turns to the girls and says, "Alrighty. I'll join your merry band", earning a cheer from Ruby an a sigh from Weiss, who shakes her head, muttering "Show-off" to herself.
"Now, I reckon you lot know where to go to complete the objectives to the trials, yeah?" he asks the two. The looks on their faces after he says that probably means…
"No." Admits a disappointed looking Ruby. Adrian then turns to Weiss, and then says, "Where are you lot supposed to be heading towards, anyway?"
"Well, we're supposed to be heading towards an old abandoned temple somewhere in this forest. A set of Relics is situated there, and our goal is to acquire said Relics. If we do that, our task is complete. However, thanks to the Grimm and Ruby's shoddy sense of direction-"
"Hey!" Ruby yells in protest.
"-We have absolutely no idea where it is." Weiss finishes. "And hey, don't blame me for it. You don't know where it is!" she quickly adds, directing that last bit at Ruby
"Well at least I'm not pretending to know where it is either!" Ruby shoots back.
Wait a minute, Adrian thought. Earlier during his survey, he had stumbled across a weird-ass ruin with chess pieces in it. Could that be…
"Girls?" he said, smirking under the mask. "I think I might know the way."
The trio had been walking for some time now. Every now and then, a Grimm or two would show up, prompting them to either make them meet their makers, or stealthily walk off without a fight, to conserve ammo and Dust, apparently. Along the way, Adrian learned more about Remnant, the name of the world he was in, Dust, the Grimm, Huntsmen and Huntresses, the Academies that train and condition them, and everything else in between, all of which he quickly notes down in his diary, which somehow had came with him when he was teleported here. What most caught the young trooper's attention was the concept of Aura and Semblances. According to his new friends, the Aura is the very manifestation of a being's soul. When activated, users enjoy superhuman strength, speed, and protection. Semblances are that user's special ability, only manifesting if the person's Aura is activated prior. Apparently, each Semblance differs from person to person, ranging from a speed Semblance like Ruby's, or construct summoning, like Weiss. Semblances are rarely, if ever, hereditary, so that makes Weiss a special case, given she, her older sister Winter, and her ancestors have the exact same Semblance.
You know, 2 years ago, if anyone told Shepherd that the concept of souls and their abilities was possible, he would've scoffed at the thought. But now? He literally fought interdimensional aliens. Nothing makes sense anymore. Still, his biology lessons got to work trying to understand how such a fantastical thing that would be seen as poppycock back home, is an everyday occurrence here. Then again, he's in a different world. And he's 17 again. So, no point in trying to make any sense in it.
Back to more pressing matters, Adrian realizes after a while that they've been trekking for a good full hour, and was starting to become restless.
"Okay, so good new and bad news." He announces to his travel buddies, who perk up at the sound of his voice after quite a while. "The good news is, we're on the right path leading to our destination."
"The bad news?" Weiss asks.
"It took me 3 hours tops to walk all the way from the temple to the area where I found you two. It will take us another 2 just to get there again, and I imagine that by the time we do get there, the whole darn trial will be over by then." He replies candidly, with Ruby groaning in frustration.
"We don't have that long, we have to get there fast!" Ruby says, becoming a little impatient with each passing second.
"I know, LRRH, but we're trying to hurry to the best of our ability without causing too much attention. There's a lot of these Grimm things around, so rushing headlong would be suicide. So, if you two have any ideas, any at all, then speak up now, as I'm always open for ideas."
Suddenly, a distant screech pierces through the air. A large black bird, a Giant Nevermore, according to his notes, soars from above. Then, Ruby blurts out:
"I might have a suggestion…"
"THIS WAS A REALLY BAD IDEA!" shrieks a genuinely terrified Weiss, screaming as she holds on tightly to her spot on the Nevermore.
"WOOOHOOOOOOO!" Adrian whoops, laughing maniacally as he rides on top of the giant bird's head, which somehow doesn't seem to annoy it. "GIDYYUP, COWBOY, YEAH!"
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" replies the Little Red Riding Reaper, now regretting her decision to board the Nevermore.
Ruby had decided earlier that they use the Nevermore to reach their destination faster. While Weiss hated the idea, Shepherd had just shrugged and said, "Well, I've certainly done stupider. Let's do this." Ruby and Weiss assisted each other in boosting themselves up to the Nevermore, though Adrian had a more bizarre approach. He had broke out Barney for this occasion, and using him as a living grapple hook, he vaulted over and landed on the thing's head. Ruby had expressed her disgust over the thing, but immediately shut up when Adrian had asked her if she would want to be the one holding Barney instead.
And now, they're on top of a giant killer bird, with the potential of dying higher than ever.
"You're having fun? You're on top of a giant bird thousands of feet off the air with the potential of falling to your death very high and you're having fun?" Sparky, his Shock Roach, mentally spoke to him in a stern tone. Ever since the Marine acquired him, he had been talking to him in his head for at least the remainder of the journey. He was not annoying by any stretch of the term, but he can be a bit of a killjoy.
"Hey, cut me some slack, alright? I've been through hell and literal high water just to be alive, at least give me this much, okay?" Adrian mentally replies, exasperated.
"Fine. Although if you fall, it won't be my fault." Sparky says, turning silent again. Quite the killjoy, ain't he?
"Adrian, look!" Yells Ruby, still hanging precariously on to her spot. On cue, the clouds clear up, and the same temple Adrian had passes by comes into view. Using his mask lenses, he detects multiple life signatures. More Huntsmen and Huntresses, he presumes. "Aight ladies, let's get off this thing now!" Adrian yells, getting into a crouch position.
"Yeah, Weiss, come on! We're getting off now!" Ruby says to her teammate, getting ready to jump.
"Oh Dust no, no way, no way am I-WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" the Marine had jumped off the Nevermore's head, yanking Weiss with him, and Ruby follows suit, falling right next to him. They both go into free fall, Weiss screaming in anger at Shepherd, who laughs heartily at his partner's panicky state, which earns a "THIS IS NOT FUNNY!" from the white haired girl as they plummet towards the ground.
Meanwhile, Yang and Blake were on the ground, at the temple, having already selected their relics. Suddenly, they hear panicked yelling.
"Hey Blake, you hear that?" Yang asks, looking around her surroundings, searching for the source of the hullabaloo. The black haired Faunus (Yang doesn't know that, thankfully) looks around as well, then she looks up. Suddenly, a surprised look flashes across her face.
"Uh, Yang?..." Blake then points up. Confused, Yang follows Blake's finger, until she finally sees what Blake sees.
"Oh boy…"
"HUZAAAAAAAAHHH!" Ruby yells, waving her arms wildly as if it'd help soften up her inevitable crash landing into the ground. But before she could even reach ten feet, she gets intercepted by an airborne Jaune, flung for some reason into the air, causing both to crash into the tree branches nearby.
Ruby shakily gets up, her eyes seeing stars, muttering, "what was that…" before shaking her head and snapping out of her dazed state. As she opens her eyes again, she gets the answer to her prior question, in the form of a hanging upside down blonde haired swordsman. Jaune Arc, the boy she had befriended when they had arrived. Also responsible for puking on the airship. Gross.
"Hey Ruby…" says a very disgruntled Jaune, waving his hand at her, to which she waves back at.
"Did your sister just fall out of the sky without context whatsoever?" Blake asks, her eyebrow raised in confusion. Yang tries to speak, but gets interrupted by a distant roar. They turn towards the source, their eyes trailing up to an Ursa, flailing its arms wildly until a loud bang resounds behind it. The Grimm falls, and a very excited Nora whoops as she rolls, only to turn around and realize the thing was now dead.
"Aw, I broke it." She said in disappointment, her arms drooping. Nearby, her partner, Lie Ren, jogs past the body and stops next to her, panting in exhaustion.
"Nora… *pant* please, don't ever do that again…" He breathes out, trying to regain his air, until he turns and realizes that she had disappeared from her spot. Again. She had zoomed over to the temple and grabbed a white rook piece, singing "I'm Queen of the Castle" before being called over by Ren and runs off to him again.
"Did that girl just ride here on an Ursa?" Blake asked, and when Yang tries to reply, a figure is seen sailing through the air. It's Pyrhha Nikos, the Spartan (sorta), flung into the sky by a very pissed off Deathstalker, who trails behind the airborne girl, hissing bloody arthropodic murder.
"Pyrhha!" Yells a shock-stricken Jaune, who then gets out of his upside down position and jumps towards her, catching her midair bridal-style, before landing in the ground with an "Oomph!"
"Oh. Thanks, Jaune." Pyrhha says, smiling awkwardly at Jaune, who was right under her, pink tinting both of their cheeks, Jaune replying with "No problem, Pyrhha…" as his voice trails off.
"Did that girl just get sent into the sky by a very angry Deathstalker?" Quips Blake. At this point, Yang's eyes turn red, and her hair bursts into flames, yelling in frustration.
"Can crazy stuff just stop happening already for just one minute?!" she shouts angrily, Blake taking a step back. A minute passes… "Yep, all better now" says a calmer Yang as her eyes return to purple, and the fire goes out. Next to her, her younger sister Ruby lands next to her.
"Yang!" Ruby calls. "Ruby!" Yang responds. As the two half sisters were about two high five, they hear Nora shouting "Nora!" as she gets in the way of their moment.
"AAAAADRIAAAAANNN!" Weiss shrieks in anger as she hits the ground in front of them. Face first. I think I swallowed a rock, Weiss thinks incredulously. She immediately is helped up by Ruby, who then asks, "Wait, Weiss, where's Adrian? Where did he go?"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on for a second there, Rubes. Who's Adrian?" Yang asks. Then lips curve into an evil grin. "How old is he?~"
"Yaaaang!" Ruby groans. For crying out loud, she only met him for at least an hour. Already, her own sister's assuming that-
WABAM!
The ground beneath them shakes as something hits the ground a few feet next to them, kicking up dirt everywhere. The teenagers cough as the dirt invades their lungs, forcefully evicting the foreign material out of their bodies as they try to regain their sight, the invasive dirt clouding their eyes.
After a while, they regain their bearings. They stare at the area where the boom originated, the dust still trying to clear.
Then, a large silhouette, easily towering over the girls, rises from the gloom, standing tall and proudly, defiantly. Finally, the dust clears, showing a slightly dusty, but extremely intimidating Adrian Shepherd, armor, uniform and all.
"Howdy." Cheerfully calls out Adrian, his right lens flashing green.
(A/N: So, apparently, I'll not be showing Adrian squaring off against the Deathstalker and Nevermore this chapter. But next chapter, I will. Hopefully. Oh, cut me some slack, I'm a budding writer, a noobie. Anyway, as stated beforehand, any and all criticism from you guys is very much appreciated, 'cause I am in sore need of advice. Like really. Anyway, thanks for reading, leave a review if you want to, and see ya next time. Laugh, signing off)
