Dead by Roselight

Chapter 30: End of Dreams

Weiss' eyes were wide with horror as she watched Freddy emerge from the blood that was pouring out of the generator. While the heiress might have faced numerous horrors that would give any normal person nightmares for their entire lives, especially in this world, but there was something about the burnt man that caused all sorts of alarms to ring in her head.

For starters, the way Freddy had just appeared practically from thin air had caught Weiss completely off-guard. The killers up to this point could have all been detected through hearing the sounds of their movements, but this killer seemed to be able to avoid that entirely. Other than teleportation, the white-haired girl could only fear what else this killer had up his sleeve.

However, what really disturbed Weiss was the fact that this killer could actually speak. This was very alarming to her, as almost all of the killers had shown no communication skills at all. The only exception was The Legion, who were able to pretend to be survivors and thus get mixed in a group of others unnoticed. If this burnt man had same level of intelligence, he could prove to be very difficult and dangerous to deal with.

"You really shouldn't have gone and fixed my generator. Had you not done that, I would have simply tortured you to death," Freddy said as he glared at Weiss. "But now that you've gone and done that, I'm going to have to keep you alive for quite a while before killing you. And I'm going to make sure that you'll beg for death through all of that."

"Sorry, but I wasn't planning on staying here," the heiress said as she was slowly backing away from the killer. "Besides, this is how you play this world's game, right? We come in, fix the generator and get out while avoiding people like you. Don't blame me just because you don't like the rules."

"Oh, you think you're a clever one, don't you, little bitch?" Freddy said with a snarl. "Listen, I couldn't give any less of a shit about the rules of this world or whatever that damn spider-thing in the sky wants, okay? All I want to do is follow my passion, and I already lost two people from the last group that came through here! I am not about to let more get taken by that asshole at the exit!"

"At the exit?" Weiss repeated having caught that one bit of information the nightmare man had let slip. "You mean there really is a way out of this world?"

"When there's a way in, there's always a way out. One just needs to find it," the burnt man answered. "The other guy and I were placed at the end in order to cut down anyone who gets too close to escaping. Unfortunately for us, that means we only get the sloppy seconds left by all the others! Do you have any idea how annoying it is to just wait here with your thumb up your ass, just for the small chance some clowns get here!? Well, let me tell you, THAT'S A REAL BITCH!"

"Not exactly my problem, but thanks for the info," the white-haired girl said before turning around and running away. "It's good to know that I can get out of this world!"

"It won't be that easy, bitch!" Freddy roared angrily, as he began to run after Weiss. "You still have to get away from me, as well as my little helpers!"

"Your what-?"

Right before the heiress' eyes, she saw Pyrrha appear before her. Much like the ghosts that Yang and Victoria had faced, the amazon was also pale and had her eyes missing.

"Why didn't you help me, Weiss?" the fake Pyrrha asked while staring at the white-haired girl with her empty eye sockets. "Had you helped me, I could have-"

Whatever the amazon had tried to say was quickly cut off by Weiss tackling her out of the way and running along. This act even surprised Freddy, who could only stare after the heiress with wide eyes.

"You'll have to do better than that!" Weiss taunted the killer. "I have already forsaken practically everything I have! Nothing else matters to me anymore but my goal!"

"IS THAT SO, HUH!?" Freddy yelled in rage, as he slashed at a nearby wall with his glove, "Well, I guess we're doing this the old fashion way then!"

Back with Yang, the blonde had just heard the voice of Bill calling for her. She looked up in the hopes of seeing the old soldier and saw him running towards her in a hurry. Bill had obviously been running for quite some time now, as he was clearly out of breath.

"Glad I was able to find you," the veteran said while trying to catch his breath. He then noticed the state Victoria was in and immediately knew what had happened. "Vicky... Is she...?"

"Yeah..." Yang managed to reply while wiping away her tears. "The killer of this realm got to us. He's very powerful, more powerful than any of the other killers we've faced. I... I couldn't save her..."

"It's not your fault. This world is nothing more than a nightmare that keeps taking good people away from us," Bill said in a sad tone as he knelt next to the brawler. "...And Lucy?"

"She was the first to fall to the killer," Yang answered. "The killer got her when she was asleep."

"...Damn," the old soldier silently cursed. "Well, at least you're safe. Let's get going before the killer comes for us as well."

The blonde simply nodded and got up. The two survivors then went on to search for their way out of the realm they were stuck in.

Suddenly, Yang remembered a certain someone that had been traveling with Bill.

"Hey, Bill, what about Weiss?" the brawler asked, hoping that her friend was still alright. "Where is she? She isn't hurt, is she?"

"I... I'm afraid I have some bad news regarding her," the veteran answered. "As far as I'm aware, she is still alive. However, there is something that you need to know about her."

"What do you mean?"

Back with Weiss, the heiress was running as fast as she could in order to get away from Freddy. The burnt man had been chasing after the white-haired girl furiously, while throwing everything he had in order to cut off her escape. He had used phantoms of Weiss' deceased family and friends, and even created all sorts of obstacles to stop her escape.

However, no matter what he did, Freddy was unable to even slow down the heiress. Whatever he threw at her, she simply passed it like it was nothing. It was almost like Weiss was possessed by something that was driving her forward.

Now this obviously left the nightmare man rather upset.

"GODDAMMIT! COULD YOU STOP FOR ONE FUCKING SECOND!?" Freddy yelled angrily while chasing after his prey. "I swear, if we were back in my neighborhood, you would already be squealing like a pig!"

Despite the furious threats by her pursuer, Weiss simply ignored him, knowing fully well that any slowing down could lead to her own death. It was best to simply ignore what the burnt man was saying and to just focus on staying alive.

However, even if she was able to get past whatever Freddy was throwing at her, the white-haired girl was still getting exhausted from the chase. She needed to figure out a way to get rid of the killer or else she would get to experience all the things that Freddy had threatened to do to her.

Weiss suddenly heard a someone talking rather loudly and the voice sounded very familiar. A small smirk appeared on the heiress' face, as she just realized how she was going to shake off her pursuer.

"No way! You can't be serious!" Yang yelled at Bill in disbelief and anger. Even her eyes had turned red from what the old soldier had just told her. "There is no way that Weiss could be like that! She is one of my best friends in the world and I know-!"

"Everything I've told you is the truth, Yang," Bill said calmly, cutting off the raging blonde. "I know that this must be hard for you to swallow, but I would not lie about something like this. Your friend was ready to abandon you and the others the moment things started to get bad around here. She knew that you were in trouble, but she didn't care."

For a second, Yang felt like punching the veteran for daring to say such things. No one talked badly about her friends and family or there would be hell to pay. Luckily for both of them, the brawler managed to hold back her anger and not lash out. Instead, she took a deep breath to calm down.

"Are you certain that Weiss was really abandoning me?" Yang asked, not willing to believe her friend would do something so horrible. "Maybe she decided to go get the key and the generator, so we could all get out of here."

"Yang, you need to trust me on this. She wasn't thinking about what was best for you at all," Bill said with a sigh. "I saw the look on her face and it was not the look of someone that actually cared about others. It was the look of someone that didn't have any feelings at all."

"She might be an ice queen, but she still has feelings!" the blonde quickly said with her anger rising up again. "Also, how the hell can I trust you on this!? I've known Weiss for a lot longer than you and I have actually entrusted my life to her! How do I know you're not just someone with a grudge against the Schnee family or something!?"

"...I can't do anything else other than ask you to trust me. It isn't much, but it is all I have," the old soldier answered. "Besides, I've got nothing against the Schnee family. I have always had better things to worry about."

"Really? Then what are these better things for you to worry about?"

"Fulfill my duty as a soldier and protect the good people around me. Something I have unfortunately failed here way too many times, but I wish that I won't fail with you."

The old soldier's answer took Yang by surprise. Just the way he said carried so much pain and emotion that the blonde could feel her heart stop for a brief moment. Either Bill was a REALLY good actor or everything he said was completely genuine.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Yang asked, hoping to understand the veteran a bit better.

"When I was a small kid, my village was attacked by bandits. I lost everything in that attack and was left to die alone. Luckily, there had been a patrol of Vale's soldiers nearby, who came to investigate my village and found me. It was thanks to this that I became the man I am today, as I wanted to help others and prevent tragedies like that from happening again," Bill explained. "I suppose that's also what drew me towards Ruby, when I met her in this world. We were both driven by our will to simply help those who were in need of assistance. However, ever since I got to this world, I've failed to fulfill my duty, which has cost the lives of many good people. I... I just don't want to see that happen to you as well. I could never show my face in front of Ruby ever again, if I let something happen to you. I've failed too much already."

For a moment, all Yang could do was stare at the old soldier with wide eyes, thinking about what he had just said. There were no hints of him lying at all, so he must have been speaking the truth. It was unbelievable to the brawler that her older comrade could be carrying such a heavy burden on his shoulders.

"...I'm sorry doubting you, Bill," Yang finally said with a hint of shame in her voice. "But I can't just completely forsake Weiss. I understand that you see her as someone we cannot trust, but I need to see it with my own eyes first. I've lost too many friends for me to just completely disregard her."

"I understand. We have both lost way too much in here," Bill said with a deep sigh. "I just hope that when we do find her, we won't-"

Suddenly, the veteran was cut off by Weiss running past the two survivors without even sparing a glance at them. To say the least, Yang was shocked by her friend's action.

"Weiss!?" the blonde called out to the heiress, but didn't get a response. "Weiss, wait up! Where are you-!?"

Before Yang could finish her question, she heard someone stop right behind her and Bill. The two turned to look who the new arrival was and were shocked to see Freddy standing there with an unpleasant look on his face.

"I see what that little shit is playing at. She wants me to waste time with you two, so she can get away," the burnt man said angrily. "I guess I just need to deal with you two quickly then!"

"Wait, what did you just-!?" Yang tried to ask, but was forced to dodge a slash from the killer's glove.

The brawler couldn't believe what had just happened. Weiss had just led the killer to them in order to use them as sacrifices for her own escape.

'Weiss... Why?' Yang wondered in her mind.

The shock of betrayal had been so bad that it had actually managed to dull the blonde's movements somewhat. This made her an easier target for Freddy, whose attacks might not have managed to cause lethal damage, but they still gave Yang scratches that would bleed.

The mix of having her mind being a mess from Weiss' betrayal and being attacked relentlessly by the burnt man caused the brawler to trip and fall on her back. She looked up and saw Freddy raise his glove up to pierce her body, which caused Yang to instinctively close her eyes and wait for the pain.

However, the pain never came and she opened her eyes to see Bill holding back the killer. The nightmare man was furious as he struggled against the old soldier's hold, angered over being prevented from getting his next victim.

"GET THE HELL OFF ME, YOU OLD BASTARD!" Freddy roared in fury. "I'VE GOT NO INTEREST IN SOME WRINKLY OLD SHIT THAT WANTS TO PLAY GRABASS! LET GO!"

"YANG! GET OUT OF HERE!" Bill yelled at the blonde girl. "I'll hold him back as long as I can, so get going!"

"B-But I can't just-!" Yang tried to argue but was quickly cut off.

"YOU HAVE TO FIND YOUR SISTER, DON'T YOU!? GET OUT OF HERE WHILE YOU STILL CAN!"

With tears falling from her eyes, the brawler got up and ran away, leaving her last comrade behind to struggle with the most dangerous killer they had faced yet. Freddy's furious roars started growing more and more silent as Yang got further and further away from him, until she couldn't hear them anymore.

As she was running blindly, the blonde suddenly heard a certain noise. It was the alarm of a gate being opened, which meant that she could possibly get out of this realm. Yang immediately began to head towards where she had heard the sound come from and soon found a fully opened exit gate.

Not only that, but the brawler also managed to see a familiar white figure run through the gate just as she arrived there.

"Weiss..." Yang said with an angry growl as her eyes turned red for one brief moment. With new determination, the blonde began to make her way to the gate, fully intent on making her former friend pay for her betrayal.

However, before she could chase after her traitorous teammate, Yang felt something grab her ankle, causing her to fall down. She looked at what had take hold of her and saw a hand made of blood gripping her ankle as tightly as possible. The brawler immediately began to kick the hand with her free leg in the hopes of freeing herself, but it seemed like it was going to be too late as Freddy was already making his way towards her.

"Think you can just walk away!? Think again, bitch!" the burnt man yelled angrily. "First that damn red-haired little shit got away from me with her little friend, and now THIS SHIT!? No way in hell am I letting another prey slip away from me! I only get few people in here anyways, so I take everything I get!"

Freddy raised his glove up and struck down at Yang, who just barely managed to free herself from the hand that was holding her and roll out of the way of the blades. She was still hit by the attack, as the blades left cuts to her side. They weren't deep, but they still hurt a lot.

The blonde struggled to stand up, as the pain from her wounds and exhaustion were making it difficult for her to do anything. This was something that Freddy noticed, as he got closer to his prey with a sick smile on his face, thinking about how he was going to enjoy killing his soon to be victim.

The nightmare man was about to prepare another attack, but was suddenly tackled to the floor by something from behind. Yang turned to look what had happened and saw Bill holding down the killer. The old soldier had deep cuts all over his body and was covered in blood. It was nothing short of a miracle that he was still breathing, let alone fighting.

"I'M NOT GOING DOWN THAT EASILY!" Bill yelled at Freddy, before looking at Yang. "THE HELL ARE YOU WAITING FOR!? GET OUT OF HERE ALREADY!"

Giving only a nod in response, the brawler got up and ran out of the exit. Just as she got out of the realm, she heard a pained scream that most likely belonged to Bill. This caused her to stop in her tracks and look behind her in the vain hope that the veteran would still make it.

Unfortunately, the only person to come walking towards her was Freddy, who had a look of pure fury on his face. He was also holding Bill's bloodied and torn up hat in his left hand.

"Here. A little souvenir from your trip to my place," the burnt man said as he tossed the hat next to Yang's feet. Since the blonde was already outside his realm, he couldn't chase after her, but he could still at least taunt her a bit. "You were lucky to have that old bastard with you, but now you're on your own. The next guy is someone even I wouldn't want to mess with, so he'll make short work of you. I'm just pissed that it won't be me who gets to do it."

With his last words to Yang delivered, Freddy turned around and walked back to his realm, leaving the blonde alone. Once the killer was gone, Yang fell to her knees and shed tears over the loss of her last comrade. Now she was all alone in this world.

After a short while, the brawler got up and started to make her way through the fields around her again. As she was walking, Yang wondered just what she was going to do. Up until this point, she had people with her that had helped her through some of the hardest challenges she had ever faced in her life. But now that she was on her own, what was she going to do?

There was also the matter of Weiss. Not only had the heiress obtained the key to get out of this world, but she had also betrayed Yang and the others. Not only did the blonde want revenge on Weiss for her betrayal, but she would also need to confront her for the key. But with the state Yang was in, was that even going to be possible?

However, the biggest problem Yang was facing was finding a reason to continue. Every single one of her friends had died in this world. Even if she were to get back to her world, would she be able to live with herself with the losses she had gone through?

Just as she was thinking these things in her head, the brawler noticed something out of the corner of her eye that really stood out in this world. The reason was its bright color, as The Entity's world was mostly made of dull and lifeless colors, such as dark gray and brown. However, this thing was bright red.

It was a rose petal. Similar to the ones that appeared when Ruby used her Semblance.

"Ruby?" Yang asked with wide eyes as she looked around herself, eventually spotting a small trail made of rose petals.

Author's notes: I believe people may have misunderstood one of the things I mentioned on the last chapter's notes. When I said I had been dealing with health issues, I wasn't dealing with anything serious, just a rather bad flu. While I still have a nasty cough and my voice hasn't fully returned yet, I'm much better than I was at the beginning. I'm still very thankful for the concern and support shown by you guys.

Since I'm trying to finish this story, I decided to end the whole thing with Freddy on this chapter. I tried to add a couple of things from the game, such as his teleportation to the generators ability and the dream snares, which is kind of what I based the hand that grabbed Yang's ankle in this chapter on.

Next chapter we are finally going to see Ruby and find out what happened to her. Hope you guys will check it out.

Until next time.

RWBY is owned Rooster Teeth and Dead by Daylight is owned by Behaviour Interactive.