Didn't like the version of this chapter that was poster earlier. Revamped for better story telling.
Night descended in Mantle as Atlas's shadow cast an imposing shadow on the city below. Citizens tucked themselves in for the night so that they could be ready for the adversities of tomorrow.
Apparently, Grimm did not need to sleep so I was stuck working on the car for the entire day, hoping that whatever the hell I did was somehow going to make it magically work again.
And what did my troubles give me?
I clutched my head before repeatedly banging it on the hood in frustration from having a whole day wasted. Just when I thought that my luck was turning around for me in this unknown, but also familiar, world it just has to remind me of how much bad luck could screw you.
What was I thinking!? I wasn't some mechanic that worked on cars for a living so why did I think I would somehow know the innerworkings of a car! I'm pretty sure that I just stared at the engine for half of the time while I fumbled around with the various innerworkings of it for the remaining half of day.
Still tediously working the day off had revealed to me many small but very important things in Remnant that were significantly different than Earth.
For one, electric dust effectively replaced oil. I don't know the whole situation about minerals and ores that did and did not exist in this universe but I could effectively guess that electric dust was used to make any vehicle operate.
Combing through the car, the only source of fuel that I could find was the residual remains of lightning dust, evident by the small miniscule patches of the yellow substance in the car's pipes and the fact that it shocked me when I put my hand too close to it and got zapped from the exposure. So that effectively made every vehicle like a Tesla.
Go Mother Nature, I guess.
…
Huh maybe that's why the air quality seemed so clean in the show, even for Mantle's shambled like state the air here wasn't that bad to look at.
Another thing that I've came to realize was something about my Geist body, more importantly the reason why I couldn't defy the odds and transform into a menacing robot of death.
My body wasn't developed to achieve that sort of feat yet.
Throughout the show, older Grimm were seen as smart and powerful. The extra bone armor or the pronounced horns protruding from them signified how long that Grimm had lived. If I were to guess then I would probably be a rank-and-file Grimm, one of the common Geists that you could find running wildly in the wilderness.
The one that Team RNJR fought in the beginning of Volume 4 would've probably be between my rank and that of an elder Grimm, slowly making its way to become a terrifying Geist. Unfortunately, it had to deal against plot armor and we all know that's impossible to beat.
Though this revelation brings forth a much more serious problem that I did not think would be such a problem until now.
How would I 'upgrade' myself in the first place?
The show never goes in depth with how Grimm evolve in the first place. Was it a time thing or was it like an MMORPG where I needed to kill a certain number of things before reaching the next level? Or maybe it was like a natural selection kind of thing? One line of Beowolves would be completely different than another line.
I suppose that has to wait since none of that matters if I can't figure out my next step.
Taking a quick look around, I've effectively cleaned out the run-down playground for any valuables that I could possibly use. From pieces of clothing to a fully charged car battery, this place had things that I would guess a person would need to survive with.
Not a Grimm though, especially not a Grimm.
So, I guess the next thing I have to do was effectively the quickest way for me to land in an early grave.
Go and venture out the slums of Mantle.
Now that I'm thinking about it, a Grimm popping out of nowhere in Mantle wasn't as strange than I thought. I mean in Volume 7 a Sabertooth managed to get cornered in one of these alleys so I guess this place had holes that the occasional Grimm was going to use to try and get inside.
I considered wearing some clothes to try and blend in but I quickly discarded that idea. It would work for my upper body but it was useless when it came to my wispy bottom half.
That means I have to rely on the good ole sneaky approach, time to use my skills that I've learned from playing Assassins Creed to use at last.
I peeked my head out of the alleyway that the Happy Huntresses had entered to chase me, making sure that I could hide my body as best as I could whilst looking out for anyone that could see me.
Luckily for me it was the dead of night and the streets looked empty, save for that lone person taking a midnight stroll. Cautiously leaving my hiding spot I walk-, floated, don't have legs got to remember that, into the middle of the empty street.
It felt so weird standing in the middle of a street that I had seen in the RWBY show. If I was still human I would've probably fanboyed too hard from the fact that I was in RWBY. Now that I was a Grimm, that joy was replaced with fear? Hatred? I was barely a day in, don't tell me this Grimm body has already had a major influence on my mentality?!
!
Ow what the fuck was that! A sudden migraine filled my mind as I clutched my head to try and ease the pain away. What the hell was happening to me! Before I could do anything else, another wave of migraine hit me before I was forced to the ground.
"YOU ARE USELESS!" A gruff voice echoed in my mind.
"HOW ARE WE GOING TO PAY THE BILLS!" Another less matured voice echoed.
"YOU'VE BEEN CHEATING ON ME!" A feminine voice now yelled in my mind.
"YOU SHOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN BORN!"
"FUCK YOU!"
"FAUNUS SCUM!"
A plethora of other baneful voices begun to fill my head at an alarming rate. What the hell was going on right now! My two bony hands grasped my head to try and make the ringing pain in my head stop.
My lone red eye glowed intensely as my vision begun to darken. I could see it all, the people that were living in these apartment complexes, those who called the alleyways their homes, I could sense them all.
Their hatred, their anger, their jealousy at others.
I could feel it all pouring down on me like a tidal wave.
GET OUT OF MY HE-
In a last-ditch effort of rational thought, I forced my body to fly in a random direction. Didn't matter where just somewhere not here!
I could vaguely feel my body hitting multiple objects but all I could focus on was getting the hell out of there. I could care less if I bumped into the Happy Huntresses right now, anything to escape this mind wracking pain!
By the time the pain stopped I found myself in an unfamiliar alleyway, hand placed on a garbage bin so that I could stabilize myself. Deep breaths in, deep breaths out.
Wait a minute I don't have a nose at all, I can't do that.
…
I guess mentally counting to ten would be the next best step. Alright starting off, one...
"Sir I don't think that this is a good idea at all." Hold up inner dialogue, someone seems to be rudely interrupting us.
Slightly poking my head above the garbage bin, I noticed a lone figure that appeared to be engage in a rather serious conversation on the phone. Judging by the way the figure kept looking left and right to see if anyone was there meant that something illegal was probably going on.
"Did I stutter? You have a mission to accomplish, finish it." Ah so we're dealing with an idiot then, seeing how he's neglected to turn off his speaker and broadcast the entirety of this illegal conversation that they were having.
"Sir, they will most certainly know that we the White Fang did this." The plot thickens then. I'm dealing with White Fang then. Screwed does not convey how much trouble I've potentially gotten myself into.
"That's the point recruit. This couple has shown their distaste over Faunus, openly shaming them in public. It's time that they are taught a lesson."
"Sir..." The recruit tried to argue but the higher up was not budging on it.
Suddenly, I felt a pull on my senses. The corners of my vision darkened as I could feel something within me trying to tell me something. Like if someone had placed their hands on my controller and was trying their hardest to steer me into doing something. Let me tell you that's its not so easily ignorable.
Deciding to humor the unknown entity, I followed what my body was trying to point at. Was it someone approaching us? Was something important going on that I needed to see?
Imagine to my surprise that all I saw was a lone rock. A fairly large rock the size of a human fist.
Really? A rock of all things?
"Kill." A dark ominous voice filled my body, making me shudder at the sheer malice behind the voice. Really driving the point of creatures that were made of negativity. Still why should I kill this not so innocent faunus right in front of me?
"Kill human...evolve further." The dark ominous voice answered for me. So, you're meant to be the Geist that I've hijacked then. Still for you to have a voice is quite ground breaking if I'm being honest. You're supposed to be soulless creatures that just destroy everything in their path.
"Always had voice...hard to bring out. Only elders can speak. You, no we are...different" I could feel the slow speaking voice slowly recede back to where it had come from. So, I'm sharing a body with something now...cool I guess.
Still just straight up killing someone? I was many things but a killer? I may have become a Grimm but there was a human soul somewhere in the dark depths that made this Grimm up. Did I even have that sort of obligation that a normal human being had as I was technically a Geist now?
My internal battle was cut short as the sound of honking filled the other side of the alley. A bright light filled the dark damp alley as I lowered my head to avoid getting my sole eye hit by the bright illumination. As the light died down, I peeked my head out of the dumpster with more precaution as a dirty van pulled into the alley. Were they reinforcements?
Judging by how the grunt hanging up on his superior and begun backpedaling in fear, I think this was something else entirely.
The side door slid open and out walked five different people, all sporting the typical gangster package.
Bandanas over their face? Check.
Hoodies with some sort of symbol, was that a sword? Check.
The fact that they all had some sort of blunt weapon like a baseball bat? Check.
"Hey where's our money!" The lead thug yelled, pointing his bat at the backpedaling Faunus threateningly. Noting all of the physical features of every thug, it was obvious that not one of them was a Faunus. And judging by how the White Fang grunt was trying to put as much distance as possible between himself and the thugs, this was more than just owing some money.
"B-But I already paid you guys!"
"Hahaha you think you're so smart huh mutt?" The thug on the right sneered as he rested his steel pipe on his shoulder. "Didn't we tell you not to get smart with us!"
"W-What are you guys talking about!?"
"Didn't you know? We upped the rent this month. We're just here to collect it." Another thug spoke as the group shared a collective laugh. Their laughter only grew when the grunt fell on a puddle in shock, getting himself and his clothes wet.
"T-That's not fair! I don't have that kind of money!" The Faunus yelled as the thugs were closing the distance. He tried looking behind himself to see if anyone was behind them that he could ask help from. His hopeful look promptly fell as he saw no one walking by.
How he didn't see me was a miracle. Maybe it was the shadows that helped me stay hidden.
"Aww is the mutt looking for his bastard friends to bail him out?" The lead thug taunted as he loudly stepped onto a puddle causing the Faunus to jump with fear which caused his hood to drop and reveal his dog ears which flopped downward in fear. "Sorry to bust your bubble buddy but no one's coming to help you here."
"I-I'll pay you for sure next month, I promise." The Faunus desperately pleaded as the thugs caught up to him, encircling him as they smiled sinisterly at the fallen grunt. "I swear on my life!" He yelled in a last attempt to save his life.
"...Well alright I guess." Wait, huh? The lead thug dropped his bat and lent a hand to the fallen Faunus to take. There was no way that he just suddenly decided to act friendly now of all times. This was most certainly a trap.
Naively thinking that was the case, the grunt took the thug's hand with glee. "T-Thanks, I promise that-" His promise was sharply cut off as he got slugged in the face by the very thug that gave him his hand. Should've seen that coming. Judging by how much blood flew out of the grunt's face, this dude was no slouch himself.
"You really think I'm going to trust the words of a half breed!" The lead thug spat as he picked up his fallen bat. He motioned for the others to ready their respective weapons. "Let's teach the other animals what happens when they think that they can trick us humans!"
Raising his bat into the air, he promptly slammed it down onto the defenseless grunt. I did have to applaud the Faunus's quick thinking to curl up into a defensive ball as the other thugs soon joined in as they gleefully used their weapons to hit the downed Faunus.
"Perfect Opportunity." The dark voice of the Geist came back as my vision darkened once more, this time my arm was itching to reach over and grab the rock to bludgeon someone, not caring if I was severely outnumbered. Was this why Grimm always died dumb deaths?! Their drive to kill overturning any logical senses that they might've had?
"This is not a perfect opportunity!" I bit back as the killing urge got stronger. "I'm going to die if I do this!" I argued.
The Geist promptly ignored me. "Kill the humans, kill them-". Whatever the voice was going to say was cut off as the connection suddenly vanished, the killing urge dissipating and my vision clearing up to see that the thugs were still beating up the grunt. This time yelling out profanities that even a drunkard would gasp at.
"What the hell was that all about!" If I could I would've leveled an internal glare at the Geist whose body I was sharing.
"Car approaches, the one that flashes red and blue. Escape trouble." A car that flashes what? Popping my head out of the alleyway, I could see a police cruiser doing their nightly patrols around the city to ensure the safety of the citizens.
Too bad that they couldn't come here and solve-!
A light bulb lit up above my head as a plan begun to formulate. A Geist couldn't help a human, but maybe I could lend a helping hand to said human. Though a new problem wormed itself into my head with this way of thinking.
The thugs would just climb into their van and drive off into the night, leaving the Faunus that was a member of a very renown terrorist group in the hands of the police. If he was caught alone then his punishment would be very severe.
BUZZZZZZ
Oh, for crying out loud! Now I'm getting that tingly electric feeling all over again! There's nothing here for you to take dumb body! All that there is in this alley is a dirty van that-.
Realization slammed into me as I poked my head out and locked my gaze with the thug van. The driver had gotten out to observe the beating taking place and had very foolishly left the key still in the van's engine. That meant that it all it would take was a simple push of the pedal and they would be flying down the streets.
"Why do you seek to help him?" The Geist within my body resurfaced as I picked up the rock and peaked out of the alleyway to see the police cruiser coming closer and closer. "They will only hurt others if they are not killed here, better to kill them off now." I couldn't even refute that it was just trying to satiate its killing urges by playing coy as its reasoning was partially right.
Why the hell was I doing this in this first place? It wasn't like any of them back there was innocent. Both sides involved were involved in illegal activities that probably killed a load of innocent people. He couldn't even argue that it was the right thing to do, for the right thing to do was embrace his new body and follow its urges.
"Truthfully..." I readied the rock in my hands as the police cruiser was nearing the alley. "I don't know either."
And I let the rock fly.
The rock flew across the air and nailed the window of the driver seat, not enough to shatter it but definitely strong enough to crack it. Within seconds I could hear the sirens turn on and the police cruiser ready to chase me down.
Alright time for phase two.
Readying myself I floated as fast as I could in this new body straight at the van, ignoring everything that was going to happen.
"Mutt you should've never messed with-What the hell is that!" The lead thug was in the midst of monologuing when I zoomed past him, his blue eyes widening in shock as I flew past him and straight at the van.
"That's a damm Grimm!"
The sound of the cruiser driving into the alley shifted the thugs' attention. "What the-! The Police are here!"
The cruiser doors swung wide open as the officers held their guns out and took cover behind the doors. "This is the police! Get down on the floor with your hands behind your back!"
"Fuck this I ain't going to jail!" I could faintly hear a gun being drawn from one of the thugs and before long a bullet was fired that soon escalated into a full out alley shootout.
"Just ignore them and focus on the task at hand." I reminded myself as the van came closer and closer. Pushing my hands out, they soon begun sparkling with the same electric energy that I felt when I had first possessed the rundown car to escape the Happy Huntresses.
Within seconds of touching the car, I could feel myself seamlessly integrating with the automobile. Wasting no time, I kicked the gear shift into reverse position. Rubber burned as the engine floored it and the van begun to get farther away from the shootout.
"The damm Grimm took the van!" A thug who had went to reload his weapon had noticed my plan and tried to warn the other but was too late as I made the van shoot out of the alleyway with resounding speed. Swiftly switching the gear shift into the drive mode, I floored the van down the streets. Paying no attention to the fact that I may have accidentally hit someone going this fast nor did I think to obey the rules of the road.
There was only one thing running through my mind as I tried to put as much distance as possible between me and the crime scene.
There goes trying to keep a low profile.
If you read the previous version of this chapter, I just really did not like the way that I wrote it. After an hour of posting it, I was like this doesn't make any sense at all. The way that this character just suddenly becomes a murderous being made no sense whatsoever. I don't know what I was thinking when I made that chapter but I fixed it so that the internal battle between human and Grimm will continue for a while.
There will be a gradual increase into dark themes but I've never written a dark story so if it seems that if a certain chapter that's meant to be dark sucks then by all means, roast me in the reviews.