RWBY: Book of Thieves
Ruby hanged her head out of the window of the team van, tongue lolling, in a desperate attempt to cool down against the arid Arizona desert heat. Even with the air conditioning at full blast, it wasn't enough the fight off the harsh rays of the sun beating down on their heads. Yang and Blake were mostly all right – Yang was a human furnace and the cat Faunus loved basking in sunlight – but Weiss was practically melting into a puddle in the back, which was to be expected having grown up in the coldest place on Earth. And Jaune and Zwei flapping their little fans wasn't doing anything more than blowing the hot air around.
"Everything's going to be just fine, snow angel," said Jaune reassuringly. Weiss rolled her eyes at the nickname; somehow the scraggly Jaune developed a huge crush on her, even though she made it very clear she was not interested. "Let's try thinking about cool thoughts like…icebergs…or penguins…or a romantic moonlit stroll – "
"Shut…up…," Weiss hissed to the best of her ability.
"Not that I'm complaining, Jaune, but why are you here?" Yang asked, watching the lengthy stretch of smooth Earth in front of them carefully. "You know we're going after one of the guys from Grimm, right? And this guy is supposed to be a thousand times more insane than Watts. You sure you wanna be here?"
"Hey, I'm part of the team, too, ya know," said Jaune, puffing out his chest to impress Weiss with his masculinity. She wasn't. "And how am I ever going to learn how to be a heroic thief if I'm always stuck at the hideout all the time…. And besides, I didn't want to be alone in case Tai came back."
Zwei made a whimpering noise and covered his eyes with his paws.
"Smart man," Blake acknowledged. "Just…try to keep your head down when we get there. I've heard some nasty rumors about this guy that will make your stomach turn. We'll need to watch our step."
Coming to the conclusion that she wasn't getting any cooler, Ruby pulled her head back in the van and rolled up the window. Hoping to distract her from the heat, the Rose Thief pulled out Winter's file and flipped toward the back. She paused briefly over the photo of Dr. Watts, which had been crossed out of the large red "X", then flipped over to the next profile: a tall, pale-skinned man with braided hair like a scorpion's tail and an unsettling wide grin. The photo itself was a police mugshot…and there were bits of dried blood on the man's face as he smiled at the camera.
"It's been a while since we did a job in the states," Ruby narrated. "And our next target is Tyrian Callows, the main enforcer of the Grimm. A cold-hearted and unhinged psychopath with a complete disregard for life."
As Ruby flipped through the pages of the information Winter had gather on the man, Ruby imagined a child version of Tyrian standing next to a man that could be his father and the older hunter took down a mighty grizzly bear with a shotgun. She then saw kid Tyrian holding a dead rabbit by the ears, its throat slit open, a knife in his hand and a maniacal glee in his eye. Then it shifted to an older Tyrian standing atop another grizzly bear, slicing its body open repeatedly even after it had long been dead, his father in the background gaping in horror. And then, to Ruby's dismay, she could picture the night with perfect clarity, as Tyrian stood in the middle of a wooden cabin, caked in blood, his father's body motionless at his feet, as the young man cackled insanely.
"Tyrian's descent into madness probably had something to do with his father, who was a big-time poacher back in the day, hunting and killing animals for money. He brought Tyrian along on his hunts to teach him "the family business" and Tyrian took to killing like a fish to water. But he probably wasn't expecting Tyrian to become so…passionate in his work. As he got older and hunter more dangerous game, Tyrian's mental stability gradually declined while his lust for blood and violence only grew stronger. Eventually, he grew bored of hunting wild animals and moved to a new prey: humans. And his father became the first victim in what would be a long series of brutal deaths.
A montage of violent scenes passed through Ruby's mind, all of them involving Tyrian standing over his victim, covered from head-to-toe in their blood with a sadistic smile on his face. One of those scenes included Summer Rose, as hard as Ruby tried to push it from her thoughts. She felt some sense of relief as she read the passage leading to Tyrian's arrest, almost chuckling as she imagined the scorpion Faunus flailing on the ground, wrapped up in fishing line, and resisted the urge to smile when the read the section where his tail was sliced off by INTERPOL.
"Tyrian went on to become a notorious serial killer, committing over one hundred and seventy-six violent murders across twenty-two different countries across Africa and Western Asia. But the madman's luck finally ran out when he was caught in a sting operation headed by Inspector Ebi. Tyrian, deemed too dangerous and irredeemable by the courts, had his tail removed and as sentenced to executed.
Tyrian, still grinning insanely, was sitting cross-legged in the back of an armored vehicle trapped in a straitjacket and surrounded by six armed guards. Then, without warning, the armored card was hit by something very large and knocked on its side, throwing the guards out of their seats and slamming their heads against the walls. Tyrian, quick and nimble as he was, managed to avoid serious injury when the doors of the vehicle were forcefully ripped open and stared up in glee at his rescuer. Ruby could picture Tyrian, equipped with a new mechanical tail, standing side-by-side with Watts and three other shadowy figures under the banner of the Grimm.
"However, the transport carrying Tyrian was attacked, leaving everyone involved dead and lunatic missing, I can only guess this was the moment went Tyrian was enlisted into the Grimm. According to Weiss's intel, Tyrian was last spotted in Coquina City, a safe haven for criminals and lowlifes – the perfect place for a monster like Tyrian to lay low after what happened to Watts. But if Tyrian is anything like they say he is, he's not going to stay hiding for long, and that's fine by me."
Ruby Rose and the Gang
In
Death Stalks Her
In stark contrast to the practical ghost town of Gale Island, Coquina City was as noisy and bustling as an actual major city; the narrow streets were choking with hundreds of people from all parts going in every direction. The city was nestled in the shadow of a steep cliffside, made up of ramshackle houses that were slapped together with whatever they could find and practically stacked on top of one another similar to the favelas in Brazil. The better-quality homes appeared to be carved inside the cliff itself, overlooking the dilapidated city like they were gods on high. But despite the poor conditions, the criminals of Coquina City seemed to have made a thriving community with legitimate market stalls, trading posts, a few taverns here and there, and a community bath house. It was a lot better than Ruby had thought from all the rumors she had heard.
The Rose Gang had been able to sneak into Coquina City without much trouble, unlike their little venture to Watts's island. In fact, when Ruby and her team stepped out of the van on the edge of town, the most anyone did was give them, a sideways glance and then went along their way. Coquina City was a place that welcomed criminals with open arms, and Weiss suspected that Ruby, being a famous international thief, would be recognized instantly and seen as just another criminal trying to escape the law. Weiss, Blake, Yang, and Jaune, however, earned a lot of suspicious stares since they weren't as widely recognized as their self-proclaimed leader. Luckily, it seemed to just being in close proximity of Ruby managed to ward off any misgivings as they meandered through the crowded market street together.
"Wow, that was a lot easier than I thought it'd be," said Yang brightly, looking around at the stalls. "Guess we don't have to worry about sneaking around here."
"Yes, mingling in with other criminals will make it easier to move through the city undetected," said Weiss, wiping the sweat from her brow. Even the shade of the cliffside wasn't enough to ward off the heat. "Well, for most of us, at least. Ruby is probably going to be recognized all over the place given her status with INTERPOL."
"Ah, the price of fame," said Ruby with a dramatic sigh.
"This is serious, you dolt!" Weiss hissed. "If people know that the Rose Thief is in town, it could only a matter of time until it reaches Tyrian. He'll be on his guard now that Watts has been arrested, and we have no idea where he might be hiding."
"Maybe he's up in one of those fancier places in the side of the cliff," Jaune suggested, tilting his head back to look up at them.
"Tyrian isn't like Watts," Blake rejected immediately. "He doesn't try to draw attention to himself and is constantly disappearing from the public eye. It's part of the reason why it took so long for INTERPOL to catch him."
"Meaning he could very well be hiding in the slums for all we know," said Weiss, who had now resorted to fanning herself. "We'll need to gather more information about Tyrian and the city before we start making any moves. And we'll need to find a base of operations while we're at it. Ruby attracts too much attention to herself and we'll never get anything done if everyone in the city knows where we are all the time."
"And a place to keep you safe from heat stroke," Yang added.
"That would be preferable," said Weiss with a slight wheeze and a cough.
"We should break up into groups and do some reconnaissance," Blake suggested.
"All right! Let's split up, gang!" Jaune cheered, pumping his fist in the air. The girls and Zwei gave him a couple of long stares; Jaune chuckled sheepishly, lowing his hand. "Uh, sorry, just…happy to be part of the group."
"Right…," Blake said slowly. "Yang, you and Weiss look for a place to set up our base and to keep us cool from the heat. If Weiss ends up collapsing, she'll need someone to carry her."
"You can count on me," Yang said with a wink and a finger gun.
"Ruby, why don't you do some recon on the city itself?" Blake said to the redheaded thief. "Get a lay of the land and take pictures of anything that stands out. Anywhere you think Tyrian might like to hang out. And try to stay out of sight. We don't want people spreading rumors about what we're doing here. Take the rooftops."
"You got it, Blake!" said Ruby with a cheery salute.
"And what about us?" Jaune asked eagerly; Zwei perked up next to him. "What can we do?"
"We are going to investigate the locals and see if we can get any information on Tyrian," said Blake, gesturing to herself and the pair. "Also, someone needs to keep you out of trouble, and I don't trust Yang or Ruby to watch you both."
"A little hurtful, but I'll take it," said Jaune in a chipper mood; he was really happy to be on a mission for once.
"Let's all try to meet up before sundown in three hours," said Weiss, wiping her brow again while looking at her watch. "We'll text you once we've found a place to stay."
"All right, good luck, everybody!" Ruby exclaimed before running over to a pile of tires stacked up against an automotive stall, bouncing off of them like a trampoline, and disappearing over the edge of the rooftops with a flick of her cape.
Weiss was practically drenched in sweat after only ten minutes of walking through the crowded streets of the city, dragging her feet through the sand and clinging to the back of Yang's jacket like a life support. The blonde brawler, on the other hand, was practically strutting, looking around the mudbrick buildings in earnest. Yang had thought to begin their search at the base of the cliff, figuring the dense shade from the bluff would the area naturally cooler. If certainly worked to keep the sun off their heads, but it did nothing to ward off the humidity, which was practically choking Weiss on hot air at this point.
"Any ideas on where we're gonna look for a new hide out?" Yang asked as they passed a Faunus brothel; Yang was definitely not tempted to go inside. "Usually we find some place that's already been abandoned, buuuut I don't think that's gonna work here," she added as yet another group of armed thugs walked by.
"I…don't…care…," Wiess wheezed. "Just…get…me…somewhere…cold…."
"Geez, Weiss, you're falling apart back there," said Yang, looking back with a raised brow. "I know it's a little hot, but it can't be that bad."
"I…grow up…in a mansion…in a snow-covered forest…in the deepest parts…of northern Germany," Weiss gasped out. "So don't…you tell me…it's only…a little hot…. Oh Brothers…."
The poor hacker dropped to her knees, arms dangling at her side, throwing her head back with a long groan.
"That's it," she moaned dramatically, earning a lot of stares from everyone on the streets. "I'm dead – this is how I die. They're going to write on my tombstone…Weiss Schnee: Died from being too hot."
"Nice," Yang snickered. "I think I'll use that."
"No…jokes…Xiao Long…," Weiss said weakly.
"All right, all right, I'll stop," said Yang, kneeling down beside her. Despite all the teasing, the blonde brute really was worried her partner might die of heatstroke if they didn't get her somewhere cool. But where would…. Her eyes then fell on the slanted sign of a building down the road and a wicked grin formed on her lips. "C'mon, snow angel, I know just the place where we can go."
With Weiss in no condition to move on her own, Yang reached around and pulled the snow-haired hacker by the waist into her underarm like a duffel bag. The way Weiss dangled in her arms like that, it almost looked like Yang was carrying a corpse through the street. Yet no one batted an eye as they walked past – this was a town of thieves, murderers, and politicians after all. The team muscle walked down the road at a brisk pace, then came to a stop in front of mudbrick building pressed up against the cliff. Weiss weakly lifted her head when they stopped moving, immediately taking notice of what the sign said.
"A tavern?" said Weiss strangely. "This is where you want us to set up our base? In one of the most crowded stores in the city."
"Tavern in a desert means they have to have cold drinks," Yang said like she was explaining two plus two equaled four. "And cold drinks mean there has to be a cold place where they store their wares. And a cold place makes for a happy Snowpea. Pretty smart, right?"
"And what makes you think the owner of this hovel is going to let us hide out here?" asked Weiss with a doubtful leer.
"Call it a gut instinct," said Yang, grinning mischievously.
Yang hauled her teammate through the swinging double doors, much to Weiss's chagrin.
It was like they had been transported into an old western film. A dozen or so round tables cluttered more than half the room, occupied by a fair number of men and women that were of less than respectable repute. Some of them were playing poker where the stakes were made with stolen gold and jewels, others were drowning themselves in hard liquor, and a mild few were subtly stealing wallets from the drunkards. An old player piano was tucked away in a corner echoing some cliché western song that was always playing in bar scenes. Only two or three people lifted their heads when Yang and Weiss stepped in, and it was probably because they were wondering if the blonde had killed the white-haired girl and was lugging her corpse around. They looked away once they realized that Weiss wasn't dead – they actually seemed disappointed for some reason.
Yang approached the counter and dropped her partner into one of the stools; Weiss instantly flopped forward face first like a dead fish. The blonde took the free seat next to her and banged her fist on the counter. The bartender had his back turned to them, cleaning a glass with a rag – another western cliché – and said, "What can I get for you today, partner?"
"Strawberry sunrise. No ice. Oh, and one of those little umbrellas," Yang answered automatically, a shit-eating grin stretching across her lips.
Her words had the immediate effect she was looking for. The bartender dropped the glass like he had been electrocuted, smashing shards all over the clay floor, and spun around with a look of wide-eyed panic. Yang was not at all surprised to see Junior again; she even gave him a flirtatious wave. The harassed bar owner dropped to his knees, looking up to the heavens and shouting, "Why? Why, dear Brothers? What did I do to deserve this?"
"Well, you haven't got me my strawberry sunrise for starters," said Yang, leaning her head against her hand and looking around the tavern. "Oh, hey, DJ, over here! What's up, my man?"
The ridiculously buff DJ Deadb3ar had been carrying a crate of fragile glasses across the tavern when Yang called out to him. One look at the blonde, and the former DJ dropped the crate, and dived headfirst out the window.
"That was rude," Yang commented.
"Please, blondie, don't start another fight in here!" said Junior, practically weeping while clutching Yang's hand like a lifeline. "I just bought this place a couple days ago, and I still haven't paid off the insurance claim!"
"Relax, Junior, we're not here to fight," Yang said calmly, prying her hand away. "If fact, we hoping you could help us."
"Me? Help you?" Junior said, staring up at her strangely.
"If you're setting up shop in the middle of a godforsaken wasteland," said Yang, tapping her finger on the counter with a thoughtful expression, "then that means you have to have a place where you keep all the alcohol chilled, right?"
"Well, yeah," Junior answered, finally getting up off the floor. "There's a cellar underneath the bar that has great air conditioning. It was a bit expensive, but a cold brew in the desert goes for a lot, so it pays for itself…. Why?"
Yang cast conspiratorial glances left and right before leaning in close and whispering, "You see, me and my team are after some seriously bad guy somewhere in the city, and we need a cool place to lay low while we're looking. So here's the deal: you let us use your cellar as a hideout and I promise I won't smash this place to the ground. Sound fair?"
Junior closed his eyes and rubbed his beard thoughtfully, giving it some serious thought. Yang could practically see the gears spinning in his head. On one hand, he (understandably) hated Yang and wanted to kick her out. On the other hand, if he made this deal, it would be the first time the blonde brute hadn't torn down one of his shops in five years.
"…All right, you can stay," Junior finally said; Yang pumped her fist proudly. "But…you have to help around the bar."
"You want us to work for you?" said Yang with a raised brow.
"Hey, I'm letting you use my cellar," Junior argued. "The least you can do is help out a little."
"Hmm…fair enough," said Yang, shrugging, and shook Junior's hand to seal the deal.
"All right, let me show you where you can set up," said Junior.
Yang followed the bar owner around the bar…then quickly scampered back and pried Weiss off the counter and hauled her along.
Blake's Faunus ears were swiveling in every direction, catching bits of conversations echoing from the open windows in the narrow backstreets of Coquina City. The alleyways were a lot dingier than the main streets and there were a lot more drunks and drug abusers sprawled on the ground, but it was easier for her to filter noise. Also, because there was a lees likely chance of Jaune wandering off and getting lost again; the scraggly blonde had Gambol Shroud's ribbon wrapped around his waist like a dog leash. Ironic when Zwei, the actual dog, was merrily nipping at Blake's heels.
"So, how're we gonna get intel on tyri – YOW!" Jaune yelped; Blake had tugged at his lead roughly.
"Don't say his name out loud!" Blake hissed out of the corner of her mouth. "We don't know who might be listening or if any of this might get back to you-know-who. If you're going to talk about him, at least you some kind of codename."
"Oh, right, got it!" Jaune nodded excessively. "So, how're we gonna get intel on…Mr. Stingy?"
"Mr. Stingy?" Blake repeated with a dumbfounded look. There was so much she could say right now, but she neither had the time nor the aspirin to deal with it, so she let the matter drop. "Well, we know Tyrian is hiding out in the city somewhere, but we don't know where. And an…acquaintance of ours once said, 'if you need to know the city, ask the rats.'"
"So we're looking for rats?" asked Jaune, his gaze falling on an overturned trash bin.
"Not literal rats, Jaune," said Blake exasperatedly. "What he meant was that in order to know all of the secrets, you need to go to the sleeziest underbelly in the city." They stopped in front of a literal hole in the wall where the only thing separating them was ratty old curtain and a slanted sign written in Spanish. "And in a city of criminals, there's no better place to find a rat than…a gambling den."
Blake grabbed the curtain and pulled it to the side with a flourish before stepping inside; Jaune and Zwei stumbled after her soon after. The three of them paused at the threshold and looked around. The den was a lot bigger on the inside than it looked outside, able to fit at least forty-to-fifty people by Blake's count. At least a dozen tables that looked like they were constructed out of scrap and poorly painted were scattered around the room. Tables for poker, craps, blackjack, Three-card Monte, and even a poorly constructed roulette wheel. The air was thick with smoke and cheap booze that made Blake's nose wrinkle, but she willed herself to preserver as she walked purposely across the room, giving off a sense that she was a regular visitor. Unfortunately, it was hard to carry the role when she had an awkward blonde standing over her shoulder and an overexcited corgi pacing around her ankles.
"Are you sure this is a good idea, Blake?" Jaune asked worriedly when a particularly nasty customer glared at him. "This doesn't look very safe…."
"That's the idea," said Blake coolly. "It's because this place is so dangerous that we are more likely to get more information. Scammers, cheaters, and con artists alike frequent gambling dens more often than bars, and they're more in the know about what's going on in the city than the average thug so they can stay two steps ahead of the competition. And with everyone is so focused on trying to rob each other out of their money, they are more easily distracted and likely to spill sensitive information through gossip. It's all about finding the right target."
"How do we do that?" Jaune asked curiously.
"Simple," said Blake with a confident smirk. "We play."
Blake pulled out a chair at a table closest to the center of the room so that she could have a good range of the den. Jaune dropped in the seat next to her while Zwei tried to jump on his lap before succeeding the third time. Cards were passed around the table – they were playing poker apparently – but Blake's body was on autopilot while her mind and ears were swiveling around the room. She wasn't aware of what her cards were or the size of the bet she made, but they weren't important – besides, her money was counterfeit; she wasn't dumb enough to bring actual currency in here. Here and there, she caught a few snatches of conversation:
" – got a new shipment of death sticks to sell if ya want 'em – "
" – I'm telling you, that parrot tried to smother me in my sleep – "
" – the same thing we do every night, Pinky. Try to take over –
" – Kind of a name is Atsuko, anyway? It's like they're not even trying –
" – I swear to Brothers, shut up, Evelyn!"
"You hear about what happened with the head hancho?"
"You mean Tyrian – "
"Shush! Don't say his name! You wanna get your throat cut open?"
Blake's ears perked up as she dumped her hand and money went to someone else at the table. She glanced out of the corner of her eyes towards the blackjack table directly to their right. Two men dressed in leather armor and dirt-brown serapes were talking to each other in low voices, a glass of very pungent liquor in their hands. Blake noticed that they were wearing badges with purple scorpions. Tyrian the color was a shade of purple and Tyrian the Faunus was a scorpion…not at all subtle, Blake thought as the dealer offered her another hand and she placed another bet without looking. Blake extends her hearing to the nearby table.
"Anyway, the head honcho diced up Myrtle last nice," one of the men said in a hushed tone.
"The cook?" the other one said surprisingly. "Why?"
"What else? Because he was bored and Myrtle just happened to be there. Now the head honcho is getting upset because he's got this important dinner coming up in two days and he's got no one to cook for him. And you know what happens when the main man gets upset."
"Well, maybe if didn't go slicing everybody, this wouldn't be an issue."
"Dare you to go say that to his face."
"Er…no, thanks, I'm good."
"Yeah, that's what I thought. Anyway, we're having auditions for the new cook tomorrow at Morado's downtown. If you know anybody that can do the job, send them there. The sooner we can get a replacement, the sooner the boss starts to lighten up."
"Until he gets bored again."
"Well, be grateful you don't work at his place. Now hit me – "
"Morado's, huh? That sounds like a good place to start," Blake muttered to herself, slapping her hand down and rising from her seat. "C'mon, Jaune, let's get back to…."
When she looked over at the blonde, however, she was taken aback by the huge pile of cash, coins, jewels, and other expensive looking items on his side. Zwei was standing on the table with an authentic jeweled crown and a golden scepter in his mouth for some reason. Jaune lowered his cards onto table with glee, revealing he had a royal flush! The dealer and the other gamblers whined and groaned as they threw down their cards in defeat, shoving their bets at Jaune, who eagerly scraped his newest earnings to the pile.
"Blake, check this out!" Jaune said excitedly. "I had no idea I was so good at this game! I could buy a whole new hideout with this!"
"Let's go, Jaune, we have everything we need," said Blake, grabbing the blonde man by the back of his hoodie and dragging him toward the entrance.
"No! Wait! My winnings!" Jaune cried as the catgirl dragged him further and further away from his beloved pile of money.
Everyone watched them leave, bewildered, then looked at Zwei for a moment. The corgi tilted his head curiously for a moment, then tossed his golden scepter uncaringly to the side and shook off his crown before chasing after Blake and Jaune.
Ruby perched herself atop a narrow spire on the tallest building she could find in the city using the Shinobi Spire Jump. The rose-themed thief crouched low to maintain her balance while holding an open notebook on her lap, a pair of binoculars in one hand and a pencil in the other. Ruby scanned the city rooftops with a critical eye.
There was no rhyme or reason to the way the city was structured in Ruby's opinion. It was like a giant had just dumped a bunch of trash wherever and the people just went with it. There were literally dozens of the same stores at almost every street, generally within the range of alcohol, drugs, stolen goods, illegal gun trade, slave auctions, and prostitution. The cliffside houses were well put together, but like Weiss said, it was unlikely that Tyrian would lay low in something so fancy and out in the opening. The only thing that really stood out was the massive domed structure in the heart of the city – a stadium, maybe? Judging by the large crowd swarming around the building, Ruby suspected in might be Coquina's main source entertainment.
"That might be a good place to look," Ruby muttered to herself. "Maybe Tyrian likes sports or something. Do psychopathic serial killers like sports?"
She decided to do one more sweep of the rooftops before calling it a day when caught a glimmer of something on the edge of her vision and swiveled back. She narrowed her eyes on the spot and waited…and a few seconds later, the glimmer flashed again. Ruby used the zoom in feature of her binoculars to focus in the glittering object –
Ruby did a double take, practically smushing the binocular scopes against her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing things. But it wasn't a trick of the light. It was –
"Is that…?" Ruby murmured, a look of suspicion in her eyes. "No way. Here, of all places?"
The red-hooded thief stuffed her equipment back into her bag, then took off in a flying leaping like she was in an Assassin's Creed game. Ruby rolled forward in midair and bounced off an awning over to the next roof, then sprinted the rest of the way looking like a crimson comet to anyone who looked up. She gave a couple of residents tending to their rooftop gardens a terrible fright, but Ruby was hyperfocused on where she was going that she didn't even noticed when they fell over the ledge into the streets. She scurried up the walls of the last few buildings like a rabid monkey until she came to a dead stop in front of her target.
She tilted her head back up the flagpole as its banner flapped in the desert wind. The flagpole wasn't out of the ordinary, but it was the emblem that caught Ruby's eye. It looked like a cross between a bird feather and an eye with a diamond clock piece representing the pupil. Ruby knew this symbol…because she had the same mark tattooed on her left thigh underneath her clothes, just like Yang had a matching one on her right shoulder.
"That's the Branwen Tribe emblem," said Ruby thoughtfully. "But the Tribe wouldn't go anywhere near this city. They're honorable thieves and they prefer to keep to themselves. So what is…"
Something glimmered directly into Ruby's eye, making her wince. It was coming from the top of the flagpole. Ruby scurried up the pole easily enough, grasped the shimmering object, and pried it from the pole with a sharp crack! When she jumped back down and looked at her hand, she realized she was holding a large, green gemstone that reflected the sun like a mirror. Of course, Ruby could tell that it was a fake just from the texture of the jewel – it was smooth like glass.
"Someone left this here knowing I would find it," Ruby muttered to herself, turning the gemstone in her hand. "A calling card. And I bet I can guess who it is…."
While the Rose Thief looked over the clue, a shadow crawled over the edge behind her, rising to the roof without making a sound. There were facing Ruby's caped backside and the redheaded girl gave no indication that she had heard them. Grinning to themselves, the stalker withdrew a pair of jungle-green sickles from their belt and silently stepped across the roof toward the Rose Thief. And still, Ruby did not turn around, her focus solely on the fake gemstone. The stealthy assailant pulled her sickles back, careful not to cast a shadow where Ruby could see it, and swiped across the air.
And air was all that they hit, for Ruby had vanished on the spot.
The attacker realized with a surprised gasp that the Rose Thief had ducked underneath their sickles at the last second, sliding to safety between her parted legs. Ruby swiftly rose to her feet behind the attack and whipped out Crescent Rose, hooking the crook of her mini-scythe at her assailant's ankles and pulling back. The attack fell forward, but caught themselves with their hands and flipped safety to their feet again. They turned on their heel and slashed their sickle at Ruby again, her blade stopping just short of Ruby's throat. And the reason she stopped was because Ruby had Crescent Rose's blade held at the attacker's throat as well.
The attacker chuckled amusingly.
"Heh, you haven't lost your touch, Red," said the assailant. "I was worried you were gonna be rusty."
"Even if I was, I'd still be better than you, Em," Ruby countered with a challenging smirk.
The two locked eyes with one another; silver meeting crimson. And then, quite suddenly, the two of them exploded with laughter. The attacker dropped her sickles from Ruby's neck and hostlers them to her belt while Ruby did the same with Crescent Rose. The pair moved forward and embraced each other, patting each other on the back good-naturedly, before separating.
"It's been a while, Emerald," said Ruby, grinning from ear-to-ear. "I missed you."
"It hasn't been that long, pipsqueak," said Emerald Sustrai, rolling her eyes humorously. "We saw each other three months ago. In Zimbabwe. We stole those priceless uncut gemstones from an illegal quarry in Harare, and I took swiped all the emeralds right under your nose."
"And you left me with the rubies while throwing away the rest," Ruby recalled with a grimace. "You take that whole 'Gem Thief' persona a little too seriously sometimes."
"Hey, all the good thieves have their signatures," said Emerald, smirking. "Just like you and your pretty roses."
"Yeah, I guess," Ruby admitted with an exasperated sigh. She looked back up the flagpole at the Branwen emblem. "You hanged this flag up because you knew I would find it. But how did you know I was here in the first place?"
"Saw your van driving into town," Emerald answered simply. "You guys weren't very subtle."
"I guess we could have been a little more discrete," said Ruby, looking sheepishly to the side. "So, what're you doing in Coquina City? And where's Mercury? I thought he'd make some big dramatic entrance by now."
"Yeah…that's part of the reason why I called you out," said Emerald, frowning. "I need your help busting Mercury outta jail."
For the environment of this "volume", I chose to have story take place in a crowded city full of criminal instead of having some solitary place with only the main baddy and his security team like what happened with Watts. It seems more in tuned with Tyrian's style. Unlike Watts, Tyrian loves to get his hands dirty and doesn't have any need for guards, and a city where INTERPOL has no jurisdiction and can freely kill whenever he wants without consequence seems like the kind of place he would choose to stay. It also adds an element where the RWBY gang can't easily sneak around like usual due to the sheer quantity of people.
And Emerald and Mercury are here. In this universe, they are friendly rivals to the Rose Gang and Emerald grew up in the Branwen Tribe as well, leading to regular competitions between the two groups.
Another poll will be up on my account page as soon as this chapter is posted. As usual, the mission with the highest number of votes gets to go first.