I have a request for any reader: at least read halfway through this chapter before clicking off because the beginning parts are sucky but later on it gets better.
Words in italics are thoughts.
Ruby Rose's POV
It's the weekend, I'm playing with my daddy and my sister in the park. "1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15," I counted covering my eye's. We're playing hide and seek. "16,17,18,19,20," It's a nice day, there's wind to cool us down but not too much to make us cold. "21, 22, 23, 24, 25," I bet Yang's hiding in the forest again. The park we are playing at has a forest right next to it, Yang, my sister hid there last round. "26, 27, 28, 29, 30, ready or not here I come!"
I ran to the forest looking in the bushes for Yang. I looked in the bushes she hid in a few rounds ago, she wasn't there. I looked around a little longer before giving up on the forest and going to look in the play areas.
I looked around for a while before hearing a giggle to my left. Turning to my left I see Yang hiding behind a trash can, "I found you!" I shouted pointing at the trash can.
"Good job sis, now you gotta find dad," Yang got out of her hiding place and followed me as I looked around for daddy. I looked by the swings but he wasn't there, I went by the slide but he wasn't there either. I looked around a little more before I caught a glimpse of blonde hair. "Over there," I shout running to where I saw my dad's hair.
"Aha found you! I winnnnnnnnn!" Daddy was hiding under a bench. Daddy crawled out from underneath the bench.
"Good job Ruby," Daddy smiled at me proudly and patted my head."It's getting late we should probably get going soon."
Daddy wants us to leave I wanna stay here and play, "can we stay for one more round pleassssss," I begged daddy.
"Yeah dad we can play one more game," Yang backed me up.
"I suppose we can play one more round of hide and seek."
"You have to be it this time," Yang demanded pointing at daddy.
"Me?" Daddy raised his eyebrow.
"Yeah Ruby was it last round and I was it before that so it's your turn now," Yang told daddy.
"Ok then I'll start counting you two go hide," Daddy turned around closed his eyes and began counting. "1,2,3..." Yang and I ran off looking for places to hide.
I looked at the forest where Yang hid a few rounds ago. That'll work. I ran into the forest and hide behind some thick bushes. Yang hid in the slide.
Daddy counted up to 30 before shouting "Ready or not here I come."
Daddy walked close to Yang and looked around it didn't take him long to find her, she wasn't hiding in a very good spot. I watched daddy look around the entire play area, he didn't find me. Daddy and Yang started walking over to my hiding place. They're gonna find me I need to move, I thought before slowly walking further back into the forest.
I walked further into the forest I couldn't see Yang or daddy anymore but I could hear them looking in the bushes where I was hiding a little bit ago. They looked for a little bit before walking off looking for me somewhere else.
I heard a rustling sound, when I turned my head to see where it was coming from I found a bush behind me rustling. "Hello?" The rustling stopped then shot backward's running into the forest. "Hey get back here," I chased after whatever was running from me.
I chased whatever it was for a while before it stopped. "A rabbit?" Standing in the middle of the forest was a black rabbit I walked up to it to pet it. "RUBYYY WE GIVE UP YOU CAN COME OUT NOW!" I heard Yang and dad shout at the same time. I turned around and yelled back "OK I'LL BE THERE IN A SECOND!"
I turned back around to look for the rabbit but instead of a rabbit, I saw a masked man. The man grabbed me by the arm and poked something into my arm. "DAd. YaNG." I slumped to the ground my vision going fuzzy, I felt weak, my body refused to listen to my commands. "Please help me..." Everything went dark and my consciousness slipped away.
-Line Break-
Taiyang and Yang
Yang and Tai looked for Ruby for about 15 minutes before they gave up on their search "RUBYYY WE GIVE UP YOU CAN COME OUT NOW!" They shouted. "OK, I'LL BE THERE IN A SECOND!" Ruby shouted back. So she was in the forest, Tai thought,her shout came from the forest so it made sense that was where she was hiding.
Tai waited a little longer before he yelled for Ruby again, "RUBY COME OUT WE GIVE UP!" "..." She didn't respond. "RUBYYYYYYYYYYY! COME OUT NOW!" Tai got more demanding it was getting dark and they needed to get going. "..." No response.
Rubys not the type of kid to ignore an adult. A shiver ran down Tai's spine and his throat felt dry. Tai ran into the forest where he heard Ruby yell. "RUBY WHERE ARE YOU!" Tai shouted running further into the forest. "..."
Tai stopped in his tracks staring wide-eyed at the red cloak sprawled across the forest floor "Ruby would never leave her cloak out here. Where is she?" he looked around but she wasn't there. "RUBYYYYYYY!"
"Dad where's Ruby?" Yang asked from behind him.
"I don't know but we need to find her."
They looked all over the forest but found nothing. Besides
Ruby's cloak there was no sign she'd been here. Tai fell to the ground clutching his head barely holding his tears in "Ruby where are you?"
Tai stood up whipping his scroll out of his pocket. He quickly found Qrow's contact and dialed his number.
"HeLLo," Tai heard Qrow drunkenly answer.
"Qrow I don't care what you're doing or that your drunk, bring your ass to greenwood park, Ruby's gone missing and I can't find her, you're the best tracker I know," Tai growled into his phone.
"Woah Tai calm down are you sure she's missing she's probably just playin a trick on you," Qrow seemed to sober up.
"Qrow, Ruby's not like that and even if she was I would be able to find her I'm a professional huntsman and she's a 10 year old, just get your ass over here now before something bad happens. I have a bad feeling."
"*Sigh* I'll be there soon keep looking," Qrow relented, any hint of drunkness gone.
"Thanks Qrow, if you're right and she's just playing a prank on us I'll pay for one of your nights out at a bar," Tai hung up his phone.
Tai looked for Ruby or any clue that would indicate where she had gone but once again he had come up empty-handed. It didn't take Qrow long to show up and begin helping Tai and Yang search for Ruby.
With Qrow's help, they found some tracks they missed that led from the park to Ruby's cloak it was obvious she had run into the forest. Sadly once they got to where they found her cloak any clues disappeared leaving them standing in the clearing scratching their heads.
"Tai, I'm sorry but there's no tracks or anything of the like through here it seems pretty obvious someone kidnapped her, someone experienced," Qrow looked away from Tai in shame.
"How do we know someone took Ruby she's probably just... hiding, yeah she's probably hiding, I just have to find her," Tai trembled.
"Tai, an untrained 10 year old wouldn't be able to allude two huntsmen if they tried and any grimm wouldn't have been stealthy there would be footprints or blood splatters, the same thing with any animals, it seems most likely that she was kidnapped or... killed by someone, someone skilled," Qrow rationalized.
"Ruby's gone?" Yang asked her voice breaking.
"Qrow..." Tai whispered.
"Yes."
"Find my daughter or I'll make sure that you'll never be able to drink alcohol again," Tai threatened glaring at Qrow with monstrous red eyes.
Qrow felt a shiver run down his spine at the cold glare "I'll keep looking
Tai you should go report her missing to the police, normally they don't let you till the person's been gone for 24 hours but because she's a minor they can rush things, if you do that we can get a full search party out here instead of 3 people," Qrow urged.
Tai's glare softened and he turned around grabbed Yang's hand and walked off to the police station. "Ruby where the hell are you?" Qrow sighed staring at the night sky.
-Line Break-
Ruby's POV
I feel numb, like that time dad took me to the dentist to get my tooth filled. What happened? There was a strange man in a mask then he poked me and I ended up here, wherever here is. I can't see a thing even though my eyes are open. I think there's something on my head.
Blinding light assaulted my eyes as whatever was covering my head was ripped off. A man stood in front of me, his face was saggy, his brown eyes looked like they would swallow you whole. The rest of his features were covered by a black hoodie.
"Hello little girl my name's Alastor, your new name is A45," Alastor whispered leaning in close to my face, his yellow rotting teeth and horrible breath nearly made me gag.
"What are you talking about my name's Ruby Rose," I growled at the nasty man.
*Smack* Alastor smacked me, "your name is A45. Do you understand?" He growled in my ear.
"My. Names. Ruby rose," I bit back threw grit teeth.
"OH, a rebellious one huh?" His frown twisted into a sickening grin. He slammed his fist into my face slamming me into the wall I just noticed I was in front of. He didn't stop there he stomped his heel into my leg and began grinding it. "What is your name?" He asked his grin widening.
"RUBY ROSE!" I shouted at the sadistic man.
"Your really rebellious, I was told not to ruff you up too much but if your gonna rebel then I'll have to beat it out of you," He smashed his fists into my face repeatedly. I tried blocking the strikes with my arms but the much larger man just punched harder.
"*HUFF* *HUFF* Whats *huff* your *huff* name little girl," he stood over me panting.
"A45..." I mumbled clutching my head in pain tears leaking from my eyes.
"I'm sorry I didn't hear that can you repeat that for me?" He asked, I could see his satisfied face even through my tears, blood, and swollen face.
"A45!" I shouted gripping my head.
"HA! Very good, you would do good to remember this beating if you act out again I'll make sure it's much worse," my abuser promised me before he exited the room and closed the door behind him.
"Daddy, Yang, please save me." I sat on the floor sobbing in a puddle of my tears and blood for a while before I stood up and looked around the room.
The door was made of metal and was closed there were bars on it that allowed me to look outside and see what looked like a jail. In the corner of my room was a bed with no sheets or blankets only the hard mattress bolted to the ground. There was also a toilet and a sink. There was a mirror above the sink which revealed my current appearance.
My hair was wild, both of my eyes were swollen and black, my nose was bent weirdly and I had blood covering most of my face. My cloak and shorts that I had been playing in earlier were gone I was now wearing a, what did dad call them again? Oh yeah, a hospital gown which was now smeared with blood because of that man.
I slumped against the wall holding my head, it felt like my head was going to explode. I sat in the corner for a while before I got up and laid on the hard bed, I was given no comfort that night only loneliness and pain.
-Line break-
Next day Ruby's POV
*Oof* I grunted as I felt a strong force crash into my stomach and knock me off my bed. "Get up A45," the voice of Alastor ordered. I tried to stand up but couldn't because I just had the wind knocked out of me. I tried to breathe in and stand up but couldn't. I tried to say I can't but the only sound that came out was wheezing.
"What did I say A45, STAND UP!" He kicked me in the head sending me to the ground causing my head to spin. "Guess you're so weak you can't even take a punch, don't worry I'll help you," I barely heard him sneer at me through grit teeth.
He grabbed my hair and began pulling me out of the room. "Please I can stand up just quit pulling my hair," I begged finally able to breathe again.
"What's that? You refuse to stand guess I'll have to pull you the whole way."
"That's not what I said!" I snarled at the man pulling my hair. Tears were streaming down my face at this point.
"Oh you're talking back now, I'll fix that with some extra punishment later," he grinned at me.
"Please just stop..." my begging went on deaf ears.
I squirmed and thrashed the whole time but he didn't care he just kept pulling, it was amazing he didn't pull the hair out of my head. I begged I pleaded, I cried, even screamed, but he didn't care it was all just amusing to him.
I don't know how long he pulled me but eventually I was thrown into a blinding white room strapped to something and rolled away. The ride was spent crying from the lingering pain from my hair being pulled. Strange men in white coats were pushing me through long hallways.
Eventually, I ended up in a large room filled with strange machines and screens. The thing I was strapped to was propped up so I was in a sitting position. Now that I was sitting up I could look around the room a little better, there were a lot of strange men wearing white coats and one man wearing a larger white coat.
The man in the large white coat walked up to me and looked me over. "That man," he growled. "I'll have a chat with your keeper to make sure he doesn't do stuff like this again. My name's Wilke but you can call me doctor," he smiled at me kindly but something about him made me shiver.
"Hi, my name's Ruby Rose," even if he scared me I still needed to introduce myself.
The doctor's smile faded. "Oh no honey, your name's A45, Ruby Rose is dead."
"No my name is Ruby Rose I don't know who A45 is but that's not me," I tried to reason with the doctor.
"No I don't think you understand, you are no longer Ruby Rose you are A45, if you keep talking back I'll have to have Alastor punish you when you're back with him. Now tell me what is your name?"
I looked away from him towards the floor and whispered, "A45."
"A45 look me in the eyes and tell me, what, is, your, name?"
I looked into the man's narrow brown eyes and whispered, "A45."
"Hmmmmmm," he hummed. All the kindness seemed to fade "let's start the infusion you three strap her down you two prep the machine," he ordered pointing at certain people to do his bidding.
The three people he pointed at unstrapped me and gently led me to a machine in the middle of the room. They gently placed me in a sitting position in a chair that was attached to the machine. The machine was a cluster of wires with a chair under it and a rainbow crystal above it.
They strapped me to this new seat even tighter than my previous ride. Then I had wires attached all over me, basically from head to toe.
"Start the infusion," the Docter ordered. I saw some men hitting buttons on something then I felt a pain so extreme I screamed at the top of my lungs. I writhed in pain trying to get out of my restraints. I screamed loudly, if I was paying attention I would've seen doctors covering the ears from the high-pitched noise.
I screamed, cried, thrashed, anything to relieve the agony. The pain didn't stop nor did I get used to it, the pain just kept increasing my thoughts started going fuzzy my vision, my sense of smell, my hearing, all of it faded the only thing I could perceive was pain. I have no clue how long this went on but I do know I eventually passed out.
-Line Break-
PAIN, that's all I felt when I woke up my entire body screamed with even the slightest twitch. I heard some muffled talking but I ignored it, I just wanted to go back to bed. "She's awake," I heard a voice shout and the whole room went quiet.
Then the whispers started, things like "she's awake already, no one ever wakes up this quickly" or "get Docter Wilkes this is unprecedented."
I felt a hand nudge me back and forth a couple of times. "We know you're awake you can quit faking," I slowly opened my eye's looking around the room the pain was already getting a little better. "How do you feel?" The same man asked.
"It hu-rts" I croaked out from my dry throbbing throat. The man nodded before he was shoved out of the way, standing in front of me was Dr. Wilkes.
"Hello A45 do you know what's going on?" Dr. Wilkes asked. I slightly shook my head groaning in pain. "You've woken up from something very few ever do, and those few normally take hours to do so, you have been unconscious for 20 minutes at the most. Now we need to find out why."
He walked off to one of the machines and began messing with the screen. One of his grunts brought a beaker of water to my lips and let me gulp the drink down. The water refreshed me and lubricated my throat.
"AMAZING!" The doctor shouted staring at his screen, multiple grunts piled around him and began murmuring about whatever was on the screen.
"What's going on?" I asked.
"You my dear are very special, you have something no one else we know of has ever had, the dust we just implanted into your bloodstream and DNA is slowly being purified out of your system," The doctor smiled at me kindly again.
"I need to study this more, you two feed A45 while I'm gone, if she hasn't had a full meal by the time I get back you'll suffer," The doctor ordered around the grunts to feed me and walked out of the room leaving me alone with the grunts.
When the doctor left all the grunts seemed to relax and start conversing. One of the grunts whispered something to me "He might look calm but he's been known to fly off the rails, be as respectful as possible and listen to everything he says," after the feminine-sounding grunt whispered that to me she walked away.
My pain wasn't as bad now, I still hurt all over but it isn't as severe as before. The two grunts charged with making me food returned with a tray of food. One of the grunts held the tray the other fed me the weird jelly-looking food with a spoon. It didn't taste as bad as you'd think. After they finished feeding me they left going to do god knows what.
Not long after they left the doctor returned. "Prep the surgery room!" He ordered. "Hello A45, I trust my staff treated you well in my absence," I nodded. "Good, we're gonna have to perform surgery on you soon, now I know that sounds scary but trust me you'll be numb the whole time," he sounded like he was trying to comfort me but his words only scared me more.
"Why do I need surgery?" I asked the doctor.
"You have an incredible ability, we need to test its limits this surgery is the best way," he answered my question. "Prep her for an upper back surgery," the doctor ordered some of the grunts, who quickly unbound me put me back on my stretcher, bound me, and wheeled me out of the room.
This ride didn't last long maybe 15 seconds. I ended up in another bright room. Another grunt, this one feminine-looking undressed and cleaned me with a horrible-smelling soap then I was dressed in a looser fitting hospital gown and wheeled off to another room.
They brought me to the new room and injected something into me, one minute I was perfectly fine, the next I was frozen unable to move laying stomach down on some sort of table.
"You already administered the numbing agent correct?" The doctor's voice spoke from behind me.
"Yes doctor."
"Very good grab the crystals I'll begin the incisions."
"Yes doctor," the nurse walked away.
"Now I'll begin the cutting, you may feel a little uncomfortable but there should be no pain," the doctor warned me before he started cutting me. He was right there was no pain, but the feeling of a blade piercing your skin and not feeling any pain was almost as bad as the pain would've been.
I don't know what he was doing specifically but he was cutting back there for a while before they started forcing the crystals into my skin. There was no pain even after they shoved around 15 lightning dust crystals into my back. At least there was none untell the doctor injected me with a strange liquid and my entire back erupted in pain.
It wasn't as bad as before but it still made me scream. Unlike before I wasn't bound so I was able to roll off the table and try and clutch my back in pain. This mercy didn't last long because I soon found my neck injected with something and everything started fading to black.
-Line Break-
I found myself in what I now realized to be my cell. The pool of blood and tears had been cleaned up. This was the first time I felt at peace the whole time I'd spent here so I decided to enjoy it. All my pain and injuries seemed to be gone.
My moment of peace didn't last long. The door to my cell was thrown open and Alastor stormed in. "So you're tattling to the boss man huh!" He yelled in rage.
"No, I didn't say anything to him," I backed into the corner away from the enraged man.
"You're lying to me, how would he know I hit you if you didn't tell him, HuH!?" He grabbed me by the hair and threw me against the wall. *Crunch* I clutched my bleeding nose.
"I didn't tell him anything I swear."
"Stop LYING!" He roared as he slammed my head into the floor. "MAby this will teach you to snitch," he slammed my head into his knee and then ground his heal into my face.
"I'm sorry, please I didn't tell him anything," I cried curling into a ball.
"You know, you completed your first transfusion so that means you've unlocked your aura, you should be able to heal injuries meaning I can damage you as much as I want," he pulled something out of his pocket. "Look's like I can finally use this."
In his hand he held a spiked whip. His grin widened and he brought the cruel weapon down on my back, my hospital gown did nothing to stop the blow. *Crack* The whip tore into my back splashing blood onto the wall and causing me to try and protect my back with my hands, bad idea. With no mercy he brought the whip down onto my hands shredding the skin on my hands.
"AHAHAHAHAHA" he cackled while he continued whipping me. By the end of my torture my back, legs, and arms were a bloody mess, covered in lacerations and I was just sitting there not even able to cry anymore.
"See ya later A45 I have things to do. I would clean up I'm gonna come to get you in a few hours and if you're not cleaned up I'll have to punish you more."
I stared up at the ceiling seeing the faces of my family. "Mommy daddy Yang, please, please save me."
-Line Break-
Later the same day Ruby's POV
I used the sink to wash the blood off the walls and floor of my room then I cleaned myself up, by the time I was getting done cleaning the room all of my injuries were healed.
My door slammed open "Hey looks like you cleaned up pretty well. Let's go, don't lag behind or I'm dragging you," Alastor grunted. I followed him to the same bright white room where he once again left me. The grunts there replaced my hospital gown because my old one was barely hanging on because of Alastor's whippings.
I was once again strapped to a stretcher and wheeled off to the room with that machine, the machine that almost drove me crazy. They wasted no time and strapped me to the chair again.
"Please don't do this to me again, please I'll do anything else," I begged the doctor and the grunts.
The doctor only smiled at me "there's nothing else you can do that would be more of a help than this," his grin was almost as bad as Alastor's.
With a push of a button I was once again thrown into a pit of pain and agony. Like last time I screamed and thrashed in agony but unlike last time I wasn't granted the sweet relief of unconsciousness at least till much later.
-Line Break-
"Yang, daddy, mommy, uncle Qrow, what are you guys doing here?" "Not that I mind or anything. Oh, you've come to help me, but then help me escape, I can't get out without you guys."
"Who are you talking to?" Alastor asked walking into my room.
"My family," I responded pointing to where my family stood smiling at me.
"There's no one there."
"What are you talking about my family's right there, tell him Yang."
"..."
"See she agrees with me," I smiled at Yang who smiled back.
Alastor looked at me then back at Yang and left. "Weirdo..." I muttered.
-Line Break-
Taiyangs POV about a week after Ruby's disappearance
Why was I so foolish, I let Ruby go off on her own, I didn't protect her like I should've, and now look what happened she's gone. Even with 100 plus people looking for her we didn't even find a clue. I grit my teeth tears streaming down my face. I don't know who or what took my daughter from me but when I find them they'll regret even breathing the same air as Ruby.
"Dad, have they found Ruby yet?" Yang walked into the living room her head hung low, she just wasn't the same without her sister, "No Yang but they're trying their best your unclue Qrow included," I tried to cheer her up a bit but It didn't work.
"I miss Ruby, I hope they find her soon," Yang teared up.
"Me too, Yang me too," first she lost her mothers now her sister's missing I can't imagen feeling so much pain at such a young age. I want to help Yang but there's only so much I can do.
-Line Break-
DI1's POV
My name is DI1, it was A45 but It was changed by Wilkes for some reason. I think I've been here about two weeks but I don't know for certain. It feels like there's something I'm missing, like a large piece of me that was just cut away, but I have no clue what that piece is or would be.
My door slams open and in walks Alastor, I hate him he's been mean to me since the first day I got here. "You know the drill, stand up it's time for your dust infusion," he growled at me rudely. I want to beat him up but I know better. I follow after him to what I like to call the white room, why the white room, well because it's white duh.
Once we get there he leaves and I'm strapped to the stretcher. Then I'm wheeled off to the infusion room, the room that always causes me pain, I hate this room just as much as I hate Alastor I wish both of them would just disappear.
Once we got to the room I was strapped to the pain machine and it was activated. Like always it was pure agony and by the time it was over I was sore all over.
"Please stop making me do that I hate it so much, all I want to do is die. Please, please, doctor please I'll go crazy if this doesn't stop," I begged I pleaded but he didn't respond he even pulled his scroll out and said something about ES-10, he doesn't care about my pain at all. "Your not a doctor, doctors help people your a-a monster that's what you are."
"I monster huh, oh I'll show you monster all right," he growled at me. He sneered at me and turned the machine back on causing me even more pain than I was already in. "This is a real monster someone that shows no pity I hope you like your stay in there because you'll sit there till you're physically incapable of absorbing anymore."
The pain I endured that day taught me to never disrespect Docter Wilkes.
-Line Break-
AN: Trust me things can only get worse from here.
This was the first time I've done 1st person in a while so I was a bit rusty, you can really tell during the beginning.
If you don't like the darker parts of this chapter I would quit reading they're not going anywhere for a few chapters at least.
I rushed my spell check so sorry about any bad grammar.
Please review it helps motivate me, if I were to post a chapter and get 0 reviews I might not update that fast but even one or two reviews can make the next chapter come out days faster even if the review is rude I ask for honest criticism not flattery.
Thanks for reading =)
