Ruby smiled sadly, turning back to the vivid blue ocean and the gentle breeze that caressed her face while Yang retreated across the park, heading to the ice cream shop in search of the treat the young girl had requested. The sunlight filtered down through the clouds above, creating enormous pockets of shadow that slowly drifted over the waves.
The light that hit the waves glittered in the spray, a beautiful visual, and one that kept the rapt attention of those sharing the cliff. It was to her own daydreams that Ruby retreated though, closing her eyes to the radiant display before her and imagining herself standing on the beach, as opposed to being held hostage by her own frail body.
The breeze picked up, ruffling her clothes as Ruby took her first steps along soft sand. An entire stretch of the beach lay open before her, ready for the young girl to fly across at a speed unmatched by any that came before. The waves crashed along the shoreline to her side as she set her feet, pushing them down and feeling the sand pressing up between her toes.
Leaving a spray of sand in her wake, Ruby took off along the shoreline. The wind rose to greet her, a welcome friend that granted life to her imagination. Her real arms shook, protesting against the pressure of her small body as Ruby leaned forward into that breeze, yearning for that speed to become real, to leave behind the body that had failed her in every sense of the word and soar across the sands.
With a gasping sigh, Ruby fell back to rest in her wheelchair, feeling her forearms quivering tiredly. She opened her eyes once more, returning to the cliff that Yang had left her on. Silver eyes glared down at her own body. A deep seated grief surged up along with the anger, nearly overwhelming if it had not been so old a grudge.
Ruby hated everything about herself. From her inability to do anything, to the fact that her greatest desires would never be brought to life. She could never truly run across that beach, feeling the wind in her hair brought on by her own quickened steps. 'I can't even walk…'
And so, could never repay her mother for the life that had been given in exchange. Summer Rose had died to bring Ruby into this world, and what did she have to show for it…?
'Your mother didn't give up her life for yours, just so you could throw it away!'
Yang had spoken those words many times over the course of Ruby's life. When the children at school had made fun of her on the first day, when she hadn't been able to go on school trips due to her disability, every time she stayed in class during recess… not wanting to see others doing what she could not…
A few tears fell down Ruby's cheeks, startling her from the dark thoughts invading her mind before she wiped them away. She had to be strong for Yang today. If her sister knew just how terrible the young girl felt… Ruby didn't want her sister to be held back by her any longer. Yang was finally going to be free of her, and as much as that knowledge weighed on Ruby's chest… Yang had her own life to lead.
'And I'm only in the way…'
A deep, guttural roar shattered the calm afternoon air, echoing out across the waters and causing all those around Ruby to swivel in fear. The roar had sounded distant at first, but the next was louder; closer. Ruby struggled to turn around, to arch her back and crane her neck to get eyes on the creature that was approaching. Her wheelchair was facing the ocean, wheels locked and set to face away from the city itself.
Using what little strength she had, Ruby used both hands on one arm rest to lean to the side, pivoting her body until her eyes finally found the monster in question. A Grimm of unparalleled size, blacker than pitch with large bony protrusions and a white mask decorated with angry red lines flew through the sky on a pair of enormous webbed wings. It looked to be in the middle of a fight, thrashing this way and that in its attempts to attack something much smaller in stature.
Ruby was leaning too hard, too far out to one side compared to the dainty body that still remained. With one gut wrenching moment of realization, she felt the wheelchair tip over, spilling her out on to the grass below.
Screams rose from the city itself, along with those around her. The occupants of the cliff gave in to their fears and fled, running to find relative safety among the buildings nearby. The breath had been knocked from her lungs, but Ruby held an arm up weakly, voice leaving her throat in a choked gasp as she tried to call for help.
"P-please…!"
An older gentleman nearby heard her cry, in the middle of taking hold of what looked to be his granddaughter. His eyes fearfully darted between the beast, Ruby, and the small child that clung to his leg. That fear lasted only a few moments before setting into a grim, determined line. With one hand on his granddaughter, the old man shuffled to Ruby's side.
"Can you get up?" he asked hurriedly, trying to offer Ruby a hand.
Ruby shook her head, reclaiming the breath she'd lost in order to speak, "I-I need my wheelchair!"
The old man nodded and tried to pry it up from the ground, but to no avail. Part of Ruby's body remained tangled within the foot rests, preventing the wheelchair itself from being righted. He realized the issue and struggled to fix it, pulling the first, then the second of Ruby's legs free.
His efforts were interrupted by yet another roar, followed by verdant blasts of energy and the beast suddenly plummeting from the sky. Its body clipped the roofs of the nearby buildings before it landed in the park, crashing through trees and leaving deep furrows in soft earth.
"Papi!" the small child wailed, clutching all the harder to the old man's pant leg and pulling him from his brief, panicked stare. The behemoth of a dragon was moving closer to them, the Hero luring it away from the city and towards the cliff itself.
Ruby took one look at the small girl… and knew that her own life meant nothing in comparison.
"...Go…"
The old man's face broke, both fear for his granddaughter and his desire to help fighting against each other in equal measure. Ruby glared up into his eyes, mustered up what little strength she could into her own voice, and shouted.
"GO!"
The man nodded, tears of his own gathering in his eyes. He blinked them away and grabbed a hold of his granddaughter, raising her up into his arms before running along the edge of the cliff face, out of harm's way from the approaching Grimm.
With Ruby's legs at least freed from the wheelchair, she grabbed fistfuls of grass in an attempt to pull herself closer to the edge of the cliff. She could hear the fight drawing nearer, could feel the earth shaking beneath her with every step it took. The Hero's blasts of energy gave off their own distinct whine as well, charging briefly before firing down and opening large wounds across the creature's body.
Ruby reached the edge of the cliff and turned to see the dragon bearing down on her. The Hero had flown closer within range as they fought, tempting the creature ever further to the ocean and away from the city.
Figuring she had nothing left to lose, but knowing her attempt would likely be futile, Ruby brought one trembling hand up to cup her mouth and shouted up at the Hero, hoping against hope that some stray breeze would carry her voice all the way up.
For one heartbreaking moment, Ruby believed her attempt to have failed. At the edge of the cliff as she was, with the wind roaring around her, she could hardly hear her own voice even as it left her lungs. Then the Hero froze in place...
Orange hair swished and vibrant green eyes darted from side to side as the Hero's attention was caught, visibly scouring the area nearby for the source of the noise she'd heard. Those eyes widened as they fell on Ruby, locking with glistening silver that silently pleaded to be saved.
Powerful jaws saw their opportunity and shot forward, snapping shut with a triumphant growl around the Hero's arm. And yet, it had reached too far out in order to do so, its body's weight far too much for the cliff to bear. With a sickening snap, the ground beneath them both gave way. Ruby tried to scream as they fell, but her impact with the ocean surface tore the air from her lungs before she had the chance.
Frigid waters rushed around Ruby, a frothing whirlpool of ocean, Grimm, and stone that all served to churn the deep blue surrounding her. The Grimm thrashed, fighting a losing battle within the confines of the ocean. Ruby spotted a flash of orange among the falling debris, as green blasts of energy fired through the water to carve into the Grimm's flesh. It's struggles weakened, a fierce anger prevailing all the way until the light faded in its eyes.
It's body began to dissolve, black blood swirling in all directions around it while Ruby struggled to hold her breath. She was slowly falling deeper into the depths, incapable of swimming in any capacity. All she could do was watch on, and hold her hand out towards the Hero in the hopes of being spotted among the falling rubble and swirling black blood that pervaded the entire expanse.
The Hero's eyes searched, scouring the depths for the girl that had caught her attention. Green eyes once more found silver, and in a burst of energy, she rocketed towards the girl that was struggling to move; struggling to breath.
A firm hand clasped Ruby's before pulling her in. The young girl only had time to register a strange mixture of coils within what remained of the Hero's stump of an arm before she was forced to avert her gaze. Water rushed around them as they shot through it away from the Grimm's remains, out of the way of the black blood that simmered and steamed within the waters around them.
In a few seconds, their angle shifted upward, and Ruby gasped for breath as they broke the surface and flew further up into the sky. Ruby trembled as she grabbed a hold of the Hero more tightly, hugging herself against the other girl's chest in fear of falling back down to the crashing waves and earth below.
Their angle shifted once more, their course changing to fly away from the immediate area and across the city. Ruby dared to glance down, and saw the buildings themselves rushing by at a speed that she had never even dreamed of. If not for the utter turmoil of emotions boiling beneath the surface and the chill wind freezing her soaked body… she might have been able to enjoy it.
After a minute, their course corrected so that they were headed towards an airfield. A lone white ship rested there, built to a size and scale that Ruby had never witnessed before. 'The Spirit of Dawn' was written across its side in an elegant font, starkly contrasting the ship's rigid shape and design.
The Hero slowed, lowering ever closer to the tarmac before very carefully landing. She held Ruby as tightly as Ruby held her, keeping herself supported until the moment they touched down. The frail girl's feet grazed the tarmac as well, but she wrapped both arms around the Hero as she threatened to let go.
"I-I can't walk…" Ruby muttered weakly, feeling her arms giving without the Hero's support.
That support returned in an instant, holding Ruby around the lower back and pulling her in, "Sorry! I didn't realize!"
Now that they were out of immediate danger and there was no wind forcing her eyes to slits, Ruby could get a better look at her savior. The girl had short, orange hair and bright green eyes. She looked to be the same height as Ruby, though the frail girl couldn't be certain. She was dressed in mostly green, a long sleeve cotton shirt and medium length skirt held up with a tan sash. She wore black stockings on her legs, green lines leading down to ankle high brown shoes.
Ruby shook her head minutely, feeling her pent up emotions beginning to flow after her near death experience. Her body shook, and she broke down in tears while clutching the other girl, "Th-thank you! I-I thought I was… was…!"
Ruby couldn't finish her sentence, her body betraying her once more and leaving her a sobbing mess against the Hero's shoulder. The Hero simply held her tightly, offering up what support she could, emotional or otherwise. It wasn't until seconds later when the sound of a ramp being lowered was heard before Ruby could pull herself away.
Ruby wiped her eyes against her own forearm to blearily look towards the ship. A man exited in a strange contraption of his own, a wheelchair that had been fitted with large crab-like metal legs that walked instead of rolled. His eyes fell on the two of them, then widened upon seeing the arm that the other girl was missing.
"Penny! Are you alright!?"
Penny frowned and followed his gaze to her stub, looking down on it as if only mildly saddened by its loss. Ruby followed the gaze as well, then balked as her eyes fixated on the metal and wiring that made up the girl's insides.
'Does… does she have a robotic arm!?'
"P-Penny dear, I'm sure it would be alright if you set her down now. There's no danger here."
"I can't, Papa! She's like me!" Penny chirped in response, giving Ruby a comforting smile as she began to carry her towards the ship.
'I'm nothing like her!'
"Oh, really?" the man replied in mild shock before recovering, his eyes meeting Ruby's, "My apologies, dear girl. Come. There's plenty of space for you inside," his crab legs spun him around to face back into the ship as he called over his shoulder, "I believe we might have one of Penny's old wheelchairs still lying around…"
As Ruby was carried into the glistening white interior, she could see quite a few men and women in uniforms moving about. They hurried from one task to another, dressed in mostly grey with white accents. Ruby at least recognized the aesthetic as belonging to Mantle, though what they were doing with a veritable flagship in Vale was beyond her.
"What… what is this place?" Ruby asked shyly, only able to speak in a whisper into the ear of her savior.
Penny smiled back, then looked up to gaze across the ship and those that manned it, "This is The Spirit of Dawn! It's my Papa's ship, given to him by General Ironwood to help with his experiments."
"But… it's so big," Ruby commented, having seen the ship's exterior, "Is it a war ship?"
Penny let out a small giggle, "Not really. It has some guns for defense, but it's really more of a mobile science vessel!"
One of the doors down the hall opened and a brown-skinned girl around their age stepped out, blue eyes spotting Penny as she carried Ruby down the hall. She wore a short sleeved white top with gold bands along the ends, and long, fingerless black gloves that reached up past her elbows. Her navy blue hat and skirt swished as she marched across the intervening space.
"Didn't you say you were going to be careful this time?" she muttered, seeing what remained of Penny's arm and moving to get a closer look, fingers probing around the exposed wiring, "This is going to take weeks to fix!"
"I tried to use my aura, really I did!" Penny protested, flinching away from the girl's probing and almost using Ruby as a shield, "The Grimm bit straight through it!"
The girl looked ready to protest further but was cut off as the older man interrupted, "Ciel. Would you be so kind as to fetch Penny's old wheelchair and a change of clothes? I doubt our guest wants to be carried around for much longer, especially while she's soaking wet."
Ciel immediately stopped and straightened, pivoting on her heel to acknowledge the man with a brief nod of her head, "Whatever you need, Mr. Polendina," her eyes shifted to Ruby, and she gave a slightly apologetic smile before turning back to the man, "Where would you like them to be brought?"
Polendina gave Ruby a considering look, then sighed, "Penny's room should suffice."
"Yes, Sir." Ciel nodded and left, walking with a formal grace before turning a distant corner.
"It isn't much further,' Mr. Polendina promised, continuing down the hall and turning the opposite direction than the one Ciel had. Penny followed, carrying Ruby along with her until they reached a heavily fortified door.
The man leaned forward to press his hand against a pad. The display lit with a green light, a small line running up and down a few times in quick succession to read his prints. The door chimed, then opened with a soft woosh to reveal the brightly lit interior.
Ruby had been expecting a bedroom of sorts, perhaps one akin to those you'd see in the movies that the navy used, with bunks built into the wall. Instead, there were no 'beds' anywhere to be seen. The room was mostly open, the walls lined with what appeared to be various tools and mechanical parts. Off to one side rested a pod of sorts, leaning against the wall. The inside looked comfortable enough, though Ruby didn't see how you could sleep while practically standing.
"This is your room?" Ruby asked, eyes widely staring about for any sign, any hint that this place actually belonged to someone. Her eyes fell on one of the walls, a large assortment of colored drawings decorating its surface.
"Yup! Nice, isn't it!?" Penny beamed, moving over to one of the low tables in order to set Ruby down on top of it. Penny remained at her side, providing support while Ruby attempted to get comfortable on the hard surface. Her body was still soaked to the skin, shaking from the cold that hadn't been helped whatsoever by the flight there.
Mr. Polendina moved closer in his chair, and shifted one of the legs on to the table so that Ruby could lean back against it, "Penny, dear. Why don't you go ahead and get changed while we wait for Ciel to return?"
Penny grinned cheerily and gave a salute, "Okay!"
She made sure Ruby wasn't going to fall over before flashing her a smile and heading over to the pod that rested upright against the wall. With a quick pressing of keys, the pod's glass door slid open, allowing Penny to step inside before closing it once more. She gave a small wave with her remaining hand, then leaned back while closing her eyes.
"Transferring in: Three… Two… One…"
Ruby's eyes quickly scanned the room for the sourceless voice before they were brought back, a bright green flash emanating from inside the pod. Ruby watched in disbelief as a dull greenish light was pulled from Penny's body, up into a series of waiting cables before coursing out of sight. The girl inside went still, body completely immobile while an overwhelming silence prevailed.
"Wh-what…?"
"Just give it a moment," the man smiled, eyes turning to one of the other walls. Ruby followed his gaze, only then noticing a seam along its center indicating that the walls themselves could open.
They waited in silence for a few more seconds before those doors parted, an illuminated fog flowing free as the crack widened. There, standing with all of her limbs attached in the swirling mist, was an exact replica of the girl in the pod nearby…
Penny rolled her shoulders and flexed her hand, the one that had been previously missing off of her old body, "Much better! Now I can clap!"
Mr. Polendina laughed, "You can do more than clap, my girl," he smiled warmly, shaking his head, "But good on you for having your priorities straight."
"But… but… how!?" Ruby exclaimed, eyes darting between the Penny in the pod, and the Penny standing before her, 'How is that at all possible!? Is it a semblance!? Some weird magic from those fairy tails Yang reads to me!? What!?'
"Well…" Mr. Polendina cleared his throat, giving Ruby a shy smile, "Penny isn't like most other girls. She's a robot. A robot with a soul, in fact."
"She... said she was like me…" Ruby's mind tried to wrap her head around it all, thinking on what had been said up until that point, "Why would she need a wheelchair if she has robotic legs?"
"Because I used to be like you!" Penny replied, interrupting the troubled look that her father wore, "Papa made me a new body so I didn't have to be stuck in my old one anymore!"
Ruby trembled, hearing both the answer to her wildest dreams, yet the thing that Yang had always warned her not to do, to never give up on the life she had been given.
"So you're… dead…?" Ruby asked hesitantly, eyes fixated on the body that Penny's soul had been inhabiting before.
"Penny is not dead," Polendina replied firmly, then softened when he caught on to Ruby's fear, "Her soul still remains… In the end, that's all we really are, isn't it? Your soul is inscribed with everything there is to know about you. Your personality, your memories, your desires… Penny isn't dead, because even if her body is gone… her soul carries on in its place."
The door opened before Ruby could reply, admitting Ciel. She pushed a wheelchair in ahead of herself, a small pile of clothes that matched those worn by the other officers on the ship folded atop the seat. They looked to be around Ruby's size, though it was hard to tell.
"Penny, if you wouldn't mind helping…" Polendina paused, giving Ruby an apologetic frown, "Sorry my dear, I didn't catch your name…?"
"R-Ruby. Ruby Rose."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Rose. My name is Pietro. Would you like Penny and Ciel to help you change? You don't appear to be in any condition to do it yourself…"
"Uh… umm…" Ruby looked between the other two girls shyly, never having shown herself that way to anyone that wasn't related to her. Her body ached from the cold however, and the day's events had left her in far too poor a condition to manage on her own. With a timid nod, she accepted.
Penny moved forward to hold Ruby upright while her father left, giving them one parting smile before heading out into the hall and allowing the door to close behind himself. Ciel rolled the wheelchair closer and set it off to the side before leaving the change of clothes there along with it. She dug beneath them to grab a towel though, and set it down next to Ruby.
"It would hardly do you any good if we put the clothes on while your body was still wet," Ciel spoke in a clipped, 'just business' sort of tone that brooked no arguments, "Raise your arms so I can get your shirt off."
Ruby was tempted to protest still, her mind searching for any way around her current predicament. Unfortunately, she knew that with her poor circulation and chilled skin, there was the very real possibility of lasting damage. At the very least, she was likely going to be sick for the next couple weeks.
Ruby complied, trying to keep her mind off what they were doing as she was fully undressed. Ciel never smiled nor allowed her eyes to stray, giving Ruby the chance to retain some modicum of composure.
Wanting to help with the distraction and having a million questions on her mind regardless, Ruby returned her focus to Penny, "So… what, um… what's your skin made of? It felt real enough…"
Penny smiled and leaned closer, proffering a hand in front of Ruby so that she could feel for herself the 'skin' that covered its surface. It was soft and squishy, with a firmness beneath that didn't feel unnatural.
"It's synthetic! Made from scratch in Papa's lab. He wanted to make sure that I could live a normal life!"
Reminded of her own currently undressed state, Ruby's cheeks brightened as she glanced up and down Penny's form, "So you're… anamolically correct…?"
"Anatomically," Ciel corrected, scrubbing a little too roughly down Ruby's lower back, "And yes. She is."
Ruby winced, feeling the course fibers scraping against far too delicate flesh. After thinking about it for a moment, Ruby didn't blame her. In retrospect, that had been a rather rude question to ask...
"I can even eat!" Penny replied happily, then paused to scuff her feet against the floor, "I don't really need to though, so I don't bother often."
Trying to lighten the mood, Ruby offered up a smile of her own, "Sounds like the best of both worlds to me!"
Penny brightened, putting a finger to her chin and staring off into the distance for a moment before nodding fiercely, "I think you're right! And I can eat as much as I want! I couldn't do that before!"
The pressure on Ruby's back lessened as Ciel returned to a softer touch, a fact that Ruby was wholeheartedly thankful for. She was certain that area had likely been rubbed raw, if only because she was far too delicate to begin with. Ciel finished up with her back and began on Ruby's front, avoiding her gaze entirely while doing what needed to be done.
"Do you ever… regret it…?" Ruby asked quietly, knowing that it was likely to be another touchy subject. She had wished to leave her own body behind often enough that the question had to be asked, though.
"Nope!" Penny replied cheerily, entirely subverting Ruby's expectations.
"...No? Not once?"
"Well…" Penny fidgeted awkwardly, then gave Ruby a reassuring smile, "I was afraid at first, before… when I was still in my old body… Who wouldn't be? But since then, I've been able to discover so much more about myself! Now I can do all the things I wasn't able to! I'm finally… me."
'Finally me…' Ruby could understand that desire with every fiber of her being. It was all she had ever wished for. To be freed from her prison of flesh and become a Hero, someone that was capable of helping others as much as they had helped her. A savior to those in need.
"Do you want my father to help you as well?"
The question caught Ruby off guard, her unspoken desire being offered up to her before she'd had the chance to voice it. Was it possible? Would she finally be able to fulfill her dreams? Ciel's hands stopped as she waited to hear Ruby's answer, the entire room growing into a silence so deafening that it pounded away in the frail girl's ears.
'Your mother didn't give up her life for yours, just so you could throw it away!'
The memory echoed throughout Ruby's mind, her sister's words ringing in her ears. 'Would… would I be throwing away my life, like Yang said…?' Or would not accepting the offer be the greater offense? Should Ruby become who she was always meant to be?
'A… A Hero…?'
Ruby raised her silver eyes to stare up into brilliant green, a confidence welling up from deep within now that her mind had been made up.
"Please... Help me become who I'm supposed to be."
Penny smiled widely, stepping closer to lower herself so that she was on an even level with Ruby. She held her hands out, waiting for the frail girl to grasp both with fingers that had been trembling only moments before.
Their hands clasped, and Penny nodded with an overwhelming sense of finality.
"Welcome, Ruby Rose, to The Spirit of Dawn!"
Damn, 93 follows off the first chapter alone. Maybe I should write less fics featuring OC's as the main character, heh. Not really since Olivia is still bae.
As the schedule stands, chapters of 'A Soul Unbound' will be released each Sunday, though the time of day will likely change depending on circumstance. I'll always try to aim for earlier in the day if I can.
Thanks for reading!
- Sybaen
A few notes from this chapter:
Penny was Pietro's actual daughter, instead of only a piece of his soul. She's 15 currently, just like Ruby.
Penny has spare bodies at the ready. Whether or not they serve a function other than on-hand replacements remains to be seen.
As Ciel stated, Penny (and by extension Ruby) are 'anatomically correct'. White Rose might be a little odd, otherwise. Not exactly aiming for a 'love knows no bounds!' romance more than it already would be.
The old man at the monument from Chapter 1 was the same man featured here. Don't know if that was apparent enough, especially since it will have been a week between chapters for many of you. :P