Disclaimer: RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum, not me. This is merely a fanwork meant for entertainment purposes only. Cover image courtesy of Jan Chrt (jeni-cek on deviantART). All rights reserved.
Weiss' heels cracked against the misshapen flagstones as she trudged further and further into the shadier part of Vale. Naturally, considering the threat of the Grimm always seemed far more pressing the closer you were to it, most low income housing was very near to the outer wall, and while Vale was hardly the sort of city to contain a slum, the surroundings that greeted Weiss were not all that far off. The only streetlights present were on the main path, casting an eerie blue glow upon the area when they weren't busy short-circuiting or busy not existing altogether. On the paths that the light dared not touch, many bits of junk and refuse were strewn about and, as the evening went on, Weiss found herself seeing bent assassin shapes amongst the rubbish, lying in wait for a single moment of weakness.
"Not here." Weiss whispered, pressing onwards through the cool night air, "Not today."
After several minutes of agonising paranoia, it was with great relief that Weiss found what she was looking for; a lightning bolt shaped neon sign reading 'Red Hunter's Guild'. The building it belonged to was plain and unassuming, not unlike its brothers and sisters the next door down, but unlike its siblings, the Red Hunter's complex was in top condition, scrubbed from top to bottom to present what Weiss could only assume to be a professional finish. However, scanning the crimson red bricks for further information, she couldn't help but frown. Where was the door? This was the correct approach, wasn't it?
Suddenly, as if to answer Weiss' queries, an eerie static noise began to ease out from the wall and, with the assistance of some turning bricks, a gleaming silver speaker revealed itself.
"Attention, visitor." a soothing soprano called out, "If you are here on an appointment, would you be so kind as to present your invitation to the viewport?"
Glancing around like a trapped mouse, Weiss scuttered over to a small black lense that had emerged beside the speaker and, as if holding some kind of vermin, gingerly waved Igneus' letter over the viewport, biting her lip as the device swept over the contents. After a piercing ringing noise sounded from the camera, it seemed it was time for the guiding voice to pipe back up.
"Thank you very much, Miss Schnee. If you will wait a moment, an escort will arrive to guide you inside shortly."
The bitter air was little comfort as Weiss was forced to wait for her 'escort', leaving her to glare menacingly at the beady black lense, hoping that it would somehow unnerve her troublesome cousin. Thankfully, merely ten seconds or so after the speaker's announcement, another section of the wall began to morph and shift, revealing a crude doorway occupied by a tall female figure. Thick silver armour glowed with its own light which, while certainly impressive, gave an odd contrast with the enormous black broadsword belted to her waist, its length pulsing with magical energy. It was all Weiss could do not to recoil in horror; despite its scabbard being etched with magical runes, a malevolent force seemed to scream into the air, asserting its dominance over any and all nearby.
"Welcome to the Red Hunter's Guild, Miss Schnee." the woman announced, her voice holding an odd hollow quality to it, "While you and your family are not well-liked in these halls, know that, for as long as my master commands it, you are under my protection. If any man, woman or Grimm wishes to engage you in combat, they will be forced to go through me first. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, ma'am." Weiss responded, speaking in the same servile tone she had often used for her father, "But may I ask to whom I currently speak?"
The woman's vacant amber eyes stared right into Weiss' own, but instead of looking at her, her eyes instead seemed to peer past, much like one might do when peering into a window. 'Unnerving' didn't even begin to cover it.
"Karyan." she said finally, reaching a gauntleted hand back to adjust her blood red cape, "It is not my true name, but it will do for the moment. Now, are you ready to proceed?"
Weiss barely managed to get a nod out as Karyan turned around regardless, striding through the door at a brisk enough pace that it forced Weiss to go into a half-jog. As she stepped into the guild hall proper, however, she soon realised that Karyan's statement of protection may have been entirely necessary. The only thing that outnumbered the hateful stares she was receiving from the guild members was the sheer amount of alcohol at the ground floor bar which, at least as far as she could tell, comprised the entirety of the ground floor. Still, even as the patrons, in various states of inebriation, regarded her with disdain, their expressions also bore great fear for Karyan, no doubt helped along by her keeping a tight hand on her broadsword.
Eventually, Weiss and her temporary bodyguard made it over to the staircase at the end of the hall which, while it appeared to be a simple black stone at first, swiftly lit up upon contact, displaying job information for whatever contracts the Red Hunters were currently taking on. It was impressive, certainly, but Weiss couldn't help but question the practicality of such a device, especially with large quantities of alcohol so close at hand.
"Impressed, Weiss?" a adenoidal male voice slithered from somewhere to her right, "It certainly cost a pretty penny to implement...though I suppose a Schnee wouldn't understand how much that really means, would they?"
It had been at least ten years since she'd last seen Igneus, but even so, Weiss had to admit that she was caught off-guard by his appearance. Gone was the confident, muscular teen from her youth, and in his place sat a lanky young man with greasy, curly black hair, several expensive cigars sticking out of the pockets of his formal black suit and a lunar crescent earring hanging precariously from one ear. The wandering onyx eyes she so remembered hid behind opaque blue sunglasses, something that seemed especially peculiar considering the fairly low-light of the guild hall. Nevertheless, the same charismatic voice and disarming smile had remained with the man, but no matter how much Igneus tried to turn on the charm, Weiss knew well enough not to trust the man any more than she could throw him.
"No more than a Stormcrow understands wisdom, I suppose." she retorted, folding her arms. In response, Igneus let out a barely-disguised snarl, slamming a fist down onto his rich mahogany desk.
"Oh, so you're going to lecture me about wisdom, eh? Not only did you send an assassin to kill me which, let's be honest, is a truly idiotic move in and of itself, but after that, you thought it was a genius idea to send a spy of all things!"
"I don't know where you get your information from, Igneus, but you should probably get it checked out. I didn't order any assassins, and if anyone from my guild came to spy on you, I assure you they did it without my consent."
"The spy seems to think otherwise. Far as he's concerned, you gave him secret sealed orders to go infiltrate my guild, and given the way he traipsed in here like he owned the damned place, I don't reckon he's smart enough to lie about it."
Weiss sighed, massaging her temples as she tried to figure out why the universe hated her so much.
"Was the document on his person?"
"Well, yeah, 'course it was. What of it?"
"Did it happen to mention anything about you sending assassins?"
Igneus leaned back in his chair, picking out a cigar and absently twirling it in his fingers.
"Hm, now that you mention it, yeah, it did. I just assumed it was the usual Schnee brainwash bullshit that your dad always tries to pull."
"It very well might be, but it certainly isn't me doing the brainwashing. Last night I was visited by a Black Arrow, and while he obviously failed in his task, he claimed that he was sent by you. Can I assume that your confrontation went similarly?"
"...you think someone's trying to set us up?"
"I don't think they're trying, Igneus. Considering I'm already here, I think they've succeeded."
Reaching into one of his many pockets, Igneus pulled out a lighter, leaning even further back as he set his cigar alight, puffing softly as his brain worked away.
"Let's assume for a moment that you're not just giving me typical Schnee bullshit and you're actually telling the truth, as unlikely as that is already. What does this idiot get by sending your blonde boy off to my guild? Did they think that I would simply execute him, and by doing so, get us at each other's throats? Because honestly, before young Jaune decided to pay me a visit, I was planning on just dropping by your lovely little guild hall and razing it to the ground. So, I ask again...what exactly does this guy get from making us compare notes? Isn't that exactly what they want to avoid?"
"I...I don't know." Weiss admitted, "The only possibility I can think of is that they wanted us both in this building tonight, but I have no idea for what."
It started off slowly at first. If she had to compare it to anything, it was somewhat like feeling your heat ebb away in a pool of chilly water, but in a matter of seconds, the chill upgraded into a positive blizzard. Weiss desperately tried to stay standing, to stay awake, but as every second passed, a little more of her energy fled from her body. As she felt her legs giving in, Weiss tried to locate the source of the drain, realising that what she had previously mistaken as an insignificant bauble on Igneus' desk was in fact much, much worse.
She couldn't move anymore; hell, it was all she could do to keep thinking. Perhaps everything would be okay if she just...had a nap…
Oh no you don't!
The spherical device on the desk began to grow and expand, now having reached roughly the size of a football, and even as Weiss felt herself gradually slip into unconsciousness, something was keeping her awake. Having completely lost control of her limbs, she could only watch as a bright pink aura covered her skin, somehow protecting her from the sphere's vile absorption.
"Now this simply won't do, will it?" a voice complained from Weiss' lips, pushing herself into a standing position, "Let's see...where did that boy get to?"
In a flash of pink light, Weiss vanished from the guild hall, leaving behind the few Red Hunters unaffected to deal with the device. Igneus was coughing and cursing as he crawled away, desperately searching for something in his pockets while his strength continued to wane. Karyan, meanwhile, seemed unaffected by the device, snarling with anger as she brought her sword down onto it with as much force as she could muster.
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
Jaune ached all over as he cracked his eyes awake, not quite comprehending as Weiss stood in front of him, cloaked in pink aura. This was a hallucination, right?
"Hello, Jaune." someone said, smiling warmly.
Of course it's a hallucination. They said they were just going to leave me down in the caverns to rot, right?
"I'd recommend covering your ears, by the way. It's about to get really noisy!"
"Yes, Weiss…" Jaune mumbled, semi-delirious as he cupped his mucky hands around his ears.
"Weiss?"
Even through his cushioned ears, Jaune couldn't help but hear the ear-splitting boom from up above, flinching as bits and pieces of rock began pouring from the roof. Still, the cavern just about held up from the blast and, looking up, Jaune realised that his hallucination was giving him a disappointed finger waggle.
"That's Bianca to you, thank you very much!"
Hiya, everyone! Soulwithlife here. How're you doing today?
With this chapter release, I'm announcing a return to weekly chapters on Thursdays, with any bonus chapters being posted on Sunday. Any questions, comments, anything? Post it in the reviews, and I'll get on that like butter on toast! Y'know, unless you're asking about spoilers. I ain't touching that stuff.
'Till next time, all!