It's been quite a while, again. As you might have expected, I had some issues with this. I ended up chucking out my entire chapter and starting anew, and this time I'm actually quite satisfied. Please Read and Review, I need all the feedback I can get. Most of all, though, enjoy!
Chapter Eighteen: Darkness in the Light
The first thing I knew when I woke up was that I wasn't in my bed. I was on the floor, tangled up in the sheets, and for a moment I didn't have a clue how I got there. I'd never fallen out of bed before, not even during the worst nightmares I'd ever had.
Before I could really start to think about it, however, a huge shock went through the hotel room. The windows rattled in their frames. Dust began to fall from the ceiling as cracks began to form in the plaster.
I was wide awake now and began to frantically untangle myself from the blanket.
"Ruby?!" I said, sounding more panicked than I had intended.
"I'm okay," she replied from somewhere in the room I couldn't see yet.
I breathed a sigh of relief, freed myself from my soft and fluffy prison and stood up. Ruby was just done lacing up her corset. Her disheveled hair showed that she'd been caught just as off guard by whatever was happening as I was. I quickly followed her example and threw on my clothes.
Another tremor shook the building, less violent than before but still strong enough to create more cracks in the plaster. I grabbed Myrtenaster and shot a look at Ruby, who immediately threw open the door into the hallway.
Yang and Blake were already there waiting for us. We began running down the hall towards the staircase when the building rumbled yet again. What was going on?! Were the White Fang attacking? But how? Northern Star was defended by Atlesian Knights, soldiers, and drones, not to mention all the Huntsmen who were bound to be around. The early detection systems should have picked up any anomalies long before they became a threat. And yet, something was clearly going on. I felt an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach, a sense of dread that I couldn't really explain even despite these ominous earthquakes.
We burst into the entrance hall, where people were frantically running around. Many were carrying large suitcases and arguing with hotel staff telling them to leave their belongings and get outside. I would have shouted at them if we hadn't been in a hurry to get outside ourselves. We ran outside…into a warzone.
Thick columns of smoke were rising all throughout the low-slung buildings of Northern Star. All around us, we heard screams and machine gun fire from the Atlesian Knights, punctuated by the unmistakable sound of hordes of Grimm. Right in front of the hotel, a group of people ran from a pack of Beowolves.
An Atlesian drone moved to intercept, but before it could even get close a Nevermore had opened fire on it with its feather missiles.
Ruby was the first to recover from the shock of what we were seeing. "We have to help those people! Yang, Blake, get the Beowolves. Weiss, you know your way around. Help me get the people to safety," she said.
We nodded and leapt into action. Even now, it amazed me how quickly Ruby could think in a combat situation. It was a far cry from her normal carefree attitude.
We raced towards the group of terrified civilians. One of the Beowolves was about to reach them, but Ruby activated her Semblance and burst forward in a flash of rose petals. She sliced the Beowolf cleanly in half, caught the upper half of the bisected monster on Crescent Rose's blade, and swung the smoking carcass into the rest of the pack, slowing them down a bit. Her action gave Yang and Blake enough time to reach the pack, and as the two of them got to work Ruby and I turned our attention towards the civilians.
"We'll get you to the city gates," I said. "You'll be safe in the town proper, behind the walls."
"We'll never make it," a man in the group said. "There are too many Grimm between here and the city. Northern Star is completely blocked off."
"We can handle the Grimm," Ruby said confidently. "Look, our teammates have already taken care of them."
She pointed at Yang and Blake, who had indeed just slain the last Beowolf of the pack.
"The Beowolves aren't the issue," a woman said. "It's far worse than that. There are…"
A horrific crashing sound interrupted whatever she was going to say, and I whirled around to face the direction of the noise. A three-story apartment building collapsed into a pile of rubble. Then, through the cloud of dust, two massive tusks emerged. Red eyes glowed above them, higher than the building had stood before it collapsed.
The Goliath stepped into the street and I felt my blood run cold. There was absolutely no way we could defeat a monster like that, and it stood in the direction we needed to go. The Goliath spotted our little group and trumpeted, a distorted sound that punched every button in my instincts. It heralded death, I just knew it.
"Into that side street, go!" Ruby yelled at all of us.
I shook my head to clear it from the fear and I began to run. We kept the civilians in front of us, and I used my glyphs to give them a speed boost. There was no way we'd make it otherwise. I still wasn't sure we could outrun that monster, but when I chanced a look over my shoulder it didn't appear to be following us.
"Deathstalker!" Blake yelled. "Straight ahead!"
"Weiss, Ice Flower!" Ruby yelled.
I nodded and summoned a glyph. Ruby took aim, then fired three shots in rapid succession. Each shot formed frozen spikes on the carapace of the Deathstalker, but other than slowing it down it appeared unhurt. I knew, however, what Ruby was going to do next.
Sure enough, she said, "Drop the hammer!"
My mouth was dry when Ruby began to run. Our success rate training this move was…not encouraging, to say the least, but this was absolutely the right time to use it. I focused, and when Ruby was halfway towards the Deathstalker I formed a glyph beneath her, catapulting her up at an angle. I formed another glyph and Ruby twisted in midair to land on it upside down, kicking off at the same time I pulsed the glyph to give her extra speed. She swung down Crescent Rose with all her might, and with the added speed from the glyph bounce she had enough momentum to pierce through the armor of the Deathstalker and nail it to the ground.
I realized I'd been holding my breath and I slowly released the air between my teeth while Ruby pulled her scythe out of the smoking husk of the Deathstalker. Ruby had come up with the move after seeing Team JNPR take care of the Deathstalker in the Emerald Forest in a similar way, but in our practice sessions the tight timing of the move had led to its fair share of mishaps. Fortunately that hadn't happened here, but I hoped with all my heart we wouldn't run into another Deathstalker.
"Who are you people?" the man who'd said we would never make it to the city gates asked with wide eyes.
"We're Team RWBY from Beacon," Ruby said proudly, "And helping people is what we do."
"You dork…" I muttered affectionately. Just like Ruby to say something so cheesy. I smiled at her, and then the world seemed to end.
A building right next to us exploded, showering us with debris. I got hit with a piece of concrete and my Aura flared as I got slammed into the street. I got to my feet, dazed, and looked around to see if I could find the others, but the cloud of dust was too dense.
I heard a scream of horror not too far from me, and I ran over. One of the civilians, a young man, was lying on the ground. One of the others knelt down next to him. Both were staring stupidly at the piece of rebar protruding from the first man's chest.
My stomach churned at the sight of it. A bloodstain was rapidly spreading on his shirt. The man gasped, then gasped again immediately afterward but this time with a sickeningly liquid sound. Blood began to flow from his mouth and nose, first a trickle, but soon in waves.
"No, no, no! Stay with me, Cole, come on!"
His friend was frantic. I just stood there, staring at this young man as he lay there in an ever growing pool of his own blood. I'd seen blood, when I was younger, when the White Fang attacked my family. I'd seen death. And yet, seeing this boy, who I had never seen before in my life, die here in front of me shook me more than any of the others. Maybe because I was older now. I didn't know. I could only stare, repulsed by the sight yet morbidly drawn to it.
Then I was shaken from my stupor by a primal scream, every bit as terrifying as the sound of the Goliath had been. The dust was beginning to settle, and Ruby had now seen the same thing I had, the death throes of this boy named Cole. Her eyes were wide, her pupils pinpricks of black in her silver irises. Her breathing was ragged. I saw her expression turning from horror into pure rage, and she turned to the place the building had stood.
Now, there was a Goliath there. I didn't know it was the same one. I didn't care. Ruby screamed again, then fired Crescent Rose and leapt into the air.
"Ruby, don't!"
My plea was lost in the sound of gunfire as Ruby began to fire at the colossal Grimm. Her shots caused no damage at all to the thick skin. Ruby unfolded Crescent Rose and swung it down with a furious cry. A rain of sparks erupted from the trail of the blade down the Goliath's side, but if it felt the attack it didn't show any reactions of it. Its eyes were fixated on the dying Cole and his grieving friend. It looked content, as if it was feeding on the negative emotions it saw in front of it.
Then, before either I or even Ruby could react, it stepped forward surprisingly deftly. Its massive foot crushed not only Cole, but also his friend.
Ruby went berserk and began attacking the Goliath, again and again, but none of her attacks even scratched the beast.
"Ruby, you can't win this! We have to run!" I yelled, pleading, but it fell on deaf ears.
I frantically looked around, trying to find Yang and Blake. I spotted them on the other side of the crossroad we'd been on when the apartment exploded. With them were some of the civilians, the few survivors. Other members of the group lay in the street, some still stirring, others obviously killed by the flying debris.
A screech filled the air and I looked up. Nevermores had been drawn in by the anguish and were quickly closing in on our location. I ran to Yang and Blake. The Goliath turned to face them as well. It had seen that there were still living humans here, and it was determined to finish the job it had started by tearing down the building.
Ruby was still attacking it, frenzied, but the Goliath paid her no mind. If anything, her rage and sorrow were probably strengthening it.
"Yang! Ruby won't stop attacking the Goliath. We have to get out of here," I said quickly, imploringly.
Yang nodded. "Rubes! Come on! It's no use!" she shouted.
If Ruby heard her, she didn't show it. Still, she attacked the Goliath, which seemed to be lining up for a charge on the survivors.
"Weiss, take the people and run. Blake and I are going to get Ruby and then we'll follow you. Doesn't matter where you go, just get out of Northern Star, now!" Yang said.
I nodded once, then turned my attention towards the group. I hated having to leave Ruby behind, but I knew that Yang would get her sister back no matter what. I had to trust her in this.
"Everyone who can run, let's go, now!" I said.
"But Jazz is still in the street, she's still alive," a woman interjected.
I shook my head. "We can't save her," I said with a sick feeling. "If we carry the wounded we're all going to die here. We have to run, now!"
"She's right, Cherry," one of the men said. "Let's go, or do you think Jazz would want you to die with her?"
Cherry slapped the man across the face, but then she took off running. The man shot her a resigned look and then took off after her, followed closely by the other surviving civilians and me. I glanced behind me as I began to run. Yang and Blake had reached Ruby. The Goliath lowered its massive head and began to run after the civilians and me.
I rammed Myrtenaster into the ground and an ice spike erupted beneath the wreckage of a car, which had been crushed by a piece of concrete. The car was launched into the face of the Goliath. I knew it wouldn't hurt a Grimm of that size, but I hoped that it would be slowed down just a little by the impact.
"Turn left!" I yelled at the civilians in front of me.
I intended to lead them towards the hill west of Northern Star. Like the village, it had been laced with Dust to thaw the frost and make it lush and green. The hill was a symbol of Atlas's power of nature, a green monument next to a gray city. It was also usually forbidden for people to climb it, the small park at the top being reserved for the wealthy businessmen of Atlas so they could, quite literally, look down on the people in Northern Star and the city proper, a bit further in the distance.
I looked over my shoulder and saw that the Grimm, again, had decided to give up the chase. I didn't see Yang, Blake, or Ruby anywhere around it anymore, which I saw as a good sign. I kept running after the civilians. As we got further away from the village's center, the carnage seemed to lessen a bit.
We ran into several Grimm, none of which I stopped to fight. I was able to use my glyphs and Dust to keep the group moving. Every now and then, we had to take a detour because more powerful Grimm were prowling the street. To my horror, I also saw more dead bodies. Mangled Atlesian Knights and drones were usually concentrated nearby, and it made me nervous that the Grimm themselves had seemingly left already. I was afraid that before long, we'd run into another Goliath and that that would be the end for us, but mercifully we didn't.
Then, we reached the final row of houses. The gentle slope of the hill lay in front of us.
"Up, to the park!" I yelled.
The civilians didn't complain. I could see they were exhausted. I was exhausted too, from distracting the Grimm and from boosting everyone's speed with my glyphs, but we couldn't afford to rest just yet. We had to get to the top of the hill. I couldn't be sure there wouldn't be an army of Grimm waiting for us up there, but it was our last option. Atlas proper was too far away and the routes there would undoubtedly be clogged by the other civilians fleeing the village. That was probably where most of the powerful Grimm were headed now, because that was where most negative emotions would be emanating from. Gasping for air and clutching my side, I reached the top of the hill with the small group of civilians.
The park looked pristine, as I had hoped it would. Not many people even knew the park on the hill existed, as Atlesian Knights usually deterred any would-be climbers of the hill long before they could spot it. I wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep for a thousand years, even though it couldn't have been more than a few hours at most since my rude awakening this morning, but I couldn't. Not without knowing my teammates had gotten away safely, not without knowing Ruby had gotten away safely.
There was a rustle in the trees and I readied Myrtenaster, but then I heard a familiar voice.
"It's me, relax."
"Qrow?! Ruby and the others are…"
"I know," Qrow interrupted me. He was still in the shadow of a nearby tree. "I'll go get them; they're safe…but not quite sound."
Another rustling sound and Qrow was gone. I took a deep breath and turned towards the group of civilians. "Is anyone hurt?" I asked.
I had no idea what I was going to do if someone said 'yes' to that question; I had no medical training and even if I had, I had no equipment here, but I felt I had to ask just the same.
"Everyone who was actually hurt is probably dead now, because you wouldn't take them with you," the woman called Cherry spat.
That hurt, and I guess it showed.
"Nothing to say now, mighty Huntress? Figures. You people are all talk."
I was getting angry now. I had just risked my life, several times, to save hers, and this was the thanks I got? I wanted to start an angry rant, but the man who'd spoken up before interjected before I could.
"That's enough, Cherry. She saved our lives, as you damn well know. Losing Jazz is…" He choked for a moment, then went on, "Losing Jazz is horrible, but if this Huntress and her teammates hadn't been here, we would have been dead too. I know you're angry. I know you're hurt. But taking it out on a person who has literally saved your life is just wrong. Jazz would be the first to call you on it if she were here."
Cherry looked murderous for a moment, then broke down sobbing. My anger faded as quickly as it had come, seeing her like this.
The man turned to me. "You'll have to forgive Cherry. My name is Burgundy. Jazz is…was…our daughter. I…I wish we could have saved her, but no matter what, you have my gratitude for saving my life, and the lives of everyone here. Thank you."
He bowed his head, both out of gratitude and to hide the tears, now freely streaming down his face. Did he really think I'd think less of him for it? My own eyes were blurry too, tears flowing freely out of both relief and sadness and horror at the scenes I'd witnessed in the doomed village below.
Once more, there was a rustling in the trees. Qrow stepped out of the shadows, and behind him I heard the sounds of my teammates.
"Weiss!" Yang shouted when she stepped through the trees.
Blake was right next to her, and on Yang's other side… I ran towards my friends, my fatigue forgotten for just a moment, and wrapped my arms around all three of them. I held onto them, crying, for what felt like an eternity, and I knew Yang and Blake were crying as well…but then I realized Ruby wasn't. And she wasn't joining in the group hug herself.
I let go of my friends and looked at my girlfriend. Her eyes were dull, empty.
"Ruby?" I said hesitantly.
She gave no reaction. I looked at Yang, scared all over again now.
Yang sighed. "I…I don't know. She's been like this since we pulled her away from the Goliath. Qrow says she's in shock."
I looked at Ruby again. Her empty eyes made my insides turn to stone. "Ruby? Can you hear me?" I whispered.
She gave no reaction.
"Ruby? You did a great job, you know. You stopped the Beowulf. Killed the Deathstalker. We couldn't have gotten out of this if it hadn't been for your quick thinking."
She still gave no reaction.
"You did what you could," I said, louder and more insistent now.
I knew my breathing was becoming ragged, but I didn't care. I wasn't going to let Ruby sit here, so catatonic and completely un-Ruby. She just had to listen to me, that was all.
"There was nothing you could've done to save Cole…"
Upon hearing that name, Ruby jerked as if she'd been hit by ice water.
"No…" she whispered.
She looked horrified and deathly pale, but her eyes had gotten a little bit of their life back.
"No…." she whispered again.
Her eyes began to fill with tears.
"No no no no no no no…"
She just kept repeating that one word, silently crying. When I wrapped my arms around her, she clamped onto me with surprising strength, but she gave no other reaction.
"No no no no no no no…"
I began to stroke her hair, like I'd done when she had gotten sick in Mistral, what felt like a lifetime ago. The day I'd first figured out I had feelings for her that went beyond friendship.
"It's going to be okay," I whispered into her hair.
I looked at Yang and Blake. They knew as well as I did that I was lying. Because whatever else the future had in store for us, it definitely wasn't going to be okay.
Things have taken a more serious turn now. From this point on, the training wheels are clearly off. Please let me know what you think, and I hope to see you in the next one!
