AN: After calling these things 'Trailers' for the longest time, I finally remembered that there's a more literature-friendly term that fits much better. Well, better late than never, I guess. Anywho, I hope you enjoy my latest PROLOGUE.
Those who look for extremes will only find confusion, for there is no such thing as black and white, only various shades of grey
A young woman in an orange jumpsuit walked between the cafeteria tables of Atlas Advanced Penitentiary's cafeteria. She was tall, with hazel skin, dark green eyes, and smooth teal hair that was braided to the left side, the right of her head buzzed down so far it was almost shaved. Around her, the various inmates of Atlas Advanced went about their business, sitting down at tables and scarfing down what the prison tried to pass off as "food". Above them, prison guards patrolled the catwalks, watching over the inmates.
The girl walked past all of them, heading towards a table nearest to the south wall, where only one other occupant was sitting. Her face was mostly hidden by the large hood that she had sewn into her jumpsuit, but as the first woman sat down, she saw a pair of ocean blue eyes looking at her, a wide smile splitting the fair skin of her face.
"Good afternoon, Azure, how was your morning," the hooded girl asked. The girl known as Azure marveled that for all the time the girl claimed to be in Atlas, her accent was just as strong as the day she came to Mantle-based prison.
"Good morning, Ink, my morning was quite well, how about yours," Azure said as she began to stab at her food. These weren't their real names, of course. No one called each other by their real names. No one really knew why, or when the tradition had started, that's simply how things were in Atlas Advanced.
The two girls chatted away for a few moments, filling the air with idle chatter. As they chatted, a large man with grey skin, black eyes, and sharpened teeth walked past Azure, bumping her back with his elbow. She turned around to glare at him, only to be met with his own stare as he bared his teeth to the bluenette.
"You better watch yourself, Azure," the shark faunus growled. "I'm starting to get tired of this prison food, and I've been craving human meat."
He leaned down, putting his face level to hers.
"You wouldn't want to be on my bad side should these cravings become…overpowering, now would you?"
Azure growled. She willed her semblance to activate, but as usual, nothing happened. Not for the first time, she cursed the violet lights that were mixed with amongst the standard bulbs. When General Ironwood began his campaign to study from his scientific angle, one of the first things his team ended up discovering was how to suppress it. The means to do so had proven to be inefficient for battle, due to the large amount of energy required, but for facilities like Atlas Advanced Penitentiary, it was perfect. That's what this place was, a specialized prison custom built to house any criminal with an unlocked aura and a semblance that would make them difficult to contain otherwise. The guards were, of course, immune to the field. The bands adorning all of their wrists negated the fields particular effects, but for Azure and the rest of the prisoners, they were as powerless as your average citizen.
Keeping this in mind, Azure forced apologetic smile onto her face as she looked back at the hulking shark faunus glaring at her.
"Sorry about that, Blacktip, I'll make sure it doesn't happen again." Blacktip straightened up.
"Be sure that it doesn't," he growled as he walked over to his own table.
Azure rolled her eyes and turned back to Ink, who was busy staring at the clock.
"Three more minutes," she said, before passing a small package to Azure under the table. Azure grabbed it and opened it up, revealing one of the guards' wristbands as well as a single earbud. The bluenette smiled as she slipped the accessories into their respective places. Ink's friend had come through after all. Grinning across the table to the hooded girl, she dropped her voice to a low whisper.
"Do you remember the plan?" she asked. Ink nodded.
"At twelve fifty-nine, we make sure a riot breaks out. Once the riot is in full swing, the power should cut out just before the guards use their countermeasure. Once that happens, we make our way out of here, you using the north exit, whilst I use the west. From there, we use the routes provided by my friend to make it to the lower levels and use the secret tunnels to gain our way to freedom."
Ink reached over and tapped the band around Azule's wrist, "Be sure not to activate that until you need it. They have very limited power, so we'll need to use them sparingly."
Azure nodded and looked back to the clock. Thirty seconds to go.
"Well then," she said as she stood up, "Better get to work then."
Azure picked up her now empty tray and strolled over to the table where Blacktip was sitting with his fellow goons. Azure slowed to a stop behind him before tapping his shoulder. He looked behind him looking rather annoyed.
"What do you want, princess?"
"Oh nothing," she said with a smirk, "I was just wondering feeling peckish yet."
With that, she raised her tray and slammed it against his shaved head. Roaring with anger, Blacktip rose and swung a fist towards Azure's face. Unfortunately for him, she spun to avoid it, wrapping her arms around his as she used his own momentum to throw him into the table behind them. He slammed into two of the prisoners, causing the rest of the table's occupants to rise from their seats. All around them, the rest of the inmates began to stand, sensing the storm that was about to come. Blacktip rose and tried again to make a swing for Azure, only to be struck from behind by one of the prisoners he had slammed into.
Chaos erupted. Prisoners began fighting one another. Fists and feet were flying left and right, and bodies began flying through the air as a few imprisoned huntsmen began leaping over the rest of the inmates in order to take each other on. Out of the corner of her eye, Azure saw Ink make her way towards the west exit, signaling her to start making her way towards the north. Above the riot, one of the guards inserted a key into the wall, causing a panel to open that revealed a switch that would activate the lightning dust imbued into the floors, taking the rioting prisoners out of commission. Just as she was about to flip it, however, the lights across the room suddenly went out.
Azure bolted towards the north exit, dodging past all of the rioting prisoners, but just before she went through the doors, she looked back to see Ink exiting the west doors. As the doors began to shut, Ink stopped to activate her bracelet. Looking back, she gave Azure a smile and a wink, before her semblance caused her to fade from view.
Azure gave her a smirk before heading out the doors, ready to fight her way past anyone who dared to stand in her way.
# # #
Ink made her way through the corridor, her semblance leaving her completely unseen. The backup generators had kicked in, restoring the lights as well as the aura-suppressing field, but her wristband allowed her aura to remain active. The map that Azure and she had poured over for the last few weeks was burned into her head as she rounded the corners ahead. Left, right, left, left again.
As she came up to the next turn, however, she sidetracked to another hall. Just one small detour, and we're into the home stretch.
She ran down the hall until she came across a door labelled 'Personal Effects'. Inputting a stolen code, Ink opened up the door and walked inside towards the back of the room, pulling her hood down as she walked.
# # #
Azure dashed through the hallways, following the route that Ink had provided for her. A guard ran up to her, but her fist ended up being quicker than his weapon as he was sent flying through the air. Azure blew on her fist, wincing at the pain of landing a punch without her aura. While Ink had activated her wristband right out the gate, Azure's route was considerably longer than her co-conspirator's, and she so she didn't want to waste her advantage unless necessary. Shaking her fist, Azure rounded a corner only to stop dead in her tracks.
In front of her was a dead end. Where there was supposed to be an extended corridor that should have lead straight for the lower levels was instead a short hallway that ended in nothing but a cement wall.
No, no this doesn't make sense, Azure thought. Ink and I have been planning this for weeks. I made sure I knew that map better than I knew the alphabet! This is supposed to be the right way! Unless-
Azure's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of mechanical whirring coming from behind her. She turned to see five AK-130 robots had appeared behind her, their arms in gun mode and pointing at her.
"You are surrounded, Prisoner 2197," the middle robot said, it's artificial voice deepened for the sake of intimidation. "Cease all hostilities and surrender."
Azure sneered at the machines as she hit the activation band on her wristband. She sighed as she felt her aura activate, healing her bruised knuckles and, most importantly, allowing her to finally activate her semblance.
"You may have me surrounded," Azure boasted towards her opponents, as she willed a pair of energy blades to form around her fists, "But you're not even close to having me corner- "
Azure's speech was cut off as her wristband sparked and died. She looked in horror at her wrist as she felt her aura die, taking her energy weapons with it. The robots were unimpressed, and the cocking sound that came from their arms told Azure that they were ready to fire.
"I repeat, cease all hostilities and surrender. This is your final warning."
Azure pressed her finger to her ear, activating the earbud.
"Ink, I need help! My route's been cut off and my wristband isn't working!"
"Yeah, my source said it might do that," Ink replied. Azure's face twisted in anger as the robots' guns began to spin, indicating they were about to fire.
"I appreciate the distraction you managed to cause," Ink continued, "You've certainly made things much easier for me. Good luck on winging it from here."
Azure ripped out her earbud, throwing it to the ground as she screamed.
"INK YOU BI- ", Azure was cut off once again as a hail of rubber bullets slammed into her. She was unconscious before she hit the floor.
Across the prison, an invisible figure stepped out of the 'Personal Effects' room, removing her earbud and crushing it beneath her boot.
Fair travels, Azure, Ink thought with a smile, may you find peace in your solitude.
Ink closed the door behind her and made her way towards out. The only sign that she was ever there was a crushed earpiece, and a discarded jumpsuit with a hood sewn into it.
# # #
On the south side of the prison, the prisoner made her way through the final stretch, a large room that lead to a set of ancient tunnels so old that they didn't appear on any modern maps. The entrances were sealed up, but Ink's source had found a weak point in one of them that could be blasted open by even her weapon. Eyeing the wall across the room, Ink made her way towards it.
Once she made it halfway across the room, however, Ink started as she heard the door slam shut behind her. Around her, a team of AK-130s appeared, coming out of the secret compartments that had concealed them.
Above her head, a voice sounded over a hidden PA system.
"You are surrounded. We know your plan, and we know how your semblance works. Give up this foolish attempt, and surrender at once, River Zelena."
Beneath the guise of her semblance, River, the inmate known as Ink, couldn't help but smile.
"I'll give you this, Madame Warden," she said defiantly, "You always knew how to pretend you knew what you were doing."
River let her semblance fall, revealing herself to the Atlesian Knights surrounding her. The woman that appeared before them was slim, with a toned, athletic body. Over her dark blue tights, she wore a silver breastplate, knee-high boots, and bracers. A green garb was wrapped around her waist, draping over her shoulder and forming a sleeve on her right arm, a blue belt holding it in place. Spiky blue hair flowed down her back, with long bangs framing her smirking face. In her right hand, she held a blue pole that was topped with a silver hook. She looked up at the faceless voice, her blue eyes filled with fire.
"So," she yelled, "Do you want to prove you can take me in!?"
The warden said nothing, but the Knights began to advance, their arms switching to blade form as they approached her.
River smirked as the nearest robot raised its arm. "Pity," she said. The bluenette swung her hook upwards, catching the underside of the Knight's faceplate and ripping it off. Spinning her staff, she stuck the butt end into the exposed opening and, pulling the trigger located near the head of her weapon, blew a hole through the back of its head.
As the machine crumbled to the ground, River turned to the rest of the machines, who hesitated to approach after the first one's defeat. Funny, she thought, I didn't know robots even knew how to hesitate.
River looked around, an annoyed expression forming on her face.
"Well?" she said, "Are we doing this or what? I haven't got all day, you know."
The two nearest her charged first, their arms in blade mode and poised to attack. As they swung their arms, River deflected the blade of the left most robot, stabbing it into the arm of the one on the right. Swinging her hook, she sliced off the arm of the left one, before kicking the right one in the abdomen, sending them both sprawling. Twirling her weapon, she began firing shots at the Knights behind them. Two of them raised their blades to deflect the bullets, while a third rushed forward. The robot thrust its weapon towards her face. It met air, however, as River dropped to the ground and used her legs to sweep the robot's out from under it. Quickly rising, she hooked her weapon under its chin and, before it hit the ground, ripped upwards, severing the head from its body.
Flicking her hook, River flung the robot head at one of its compatriots. The Knight ducked to dodge the head, but it looked back up just in time to see the inmate leaping towards it. River swung her hook down upon the robot, embedding her hook into its head. As it began to spark, the bluenette used it as a pivot, swinging towards its companion and striking it in the chest with an armored boot. The Atlesian Knight slammed against the wall and crumbled to the floor, twitching. Planting her feet on the ground once more, River wrenched her weapon downward, slicing the robot in half. As its pieces fell to the ground, the remaining three Knights approached her, their arms in gun mode.
Pressing her feet firmly into the floor, River launched herself back towards the backmost wall as the Knights began to fire. River twirled her staff in circles, using it to deflect the bullets as they assailed her. After a few moments of the fruitless assault, the nearest robot switched its arms back to its blades and charged towards her. The prisoner waited until the Knight was mere inches from her before leaping away, causing it to run headlong into the wall behind her. The Knight managed to punch straight through the wall, the impact revealing the entrance to the tunnels River had been looking for.
With way to freedom revealed, the bluenette turned to her final two opponents. The robots rushed her, their blades at the ready. As they reached her, they thrust their blades forward, intending to impale her. Instead, River leaped into the air, dodging their blades completely. Just as she reached to apex of her leap, she swung her hook at one of the Knights. Her blade detached from the rifle, flying downwards towards the robots back, trailing a chain behind it. The hook embedded itself into the Knight, and River yanked it back towards her, bringing the robot up to her just as it brought her down to it. She slammed her feet directly into the Knight's spine, crushing the armor as well as a great deal of its internal mechanisms. They crashed to the ground, causing the final Knight to turn towards the noise, only to find the business end of a rifle pointed underneath its chin.
River smiled and pulled the trigger, the bullet blowing clean through the Atlesian Knight's neck and sending its head flying. As the body collapsed to the ground, River let out a long sigh, before looking mournfully up to the ceiling.
"I'm sorry," she said. "You know this is something I have to do."
There was nothing but silence before the warden spoke.
"I'll have no choice but to chase you, River. You know that, right?"
River smirked before making her way to the exit, her semblance causing her body to fade.
"You'll look for me," she looked back at the ceiling, a sad smile forming on her face, "but you'll never find me."
AN: Well, that one ended up being a bit longer than the first two. The final action scene wasn't quite as long as I was hoping, but then this one was a bit more story based than the others, so it is what it is.
Once again, don't be afraid to leave any form of feedback. It's been quite a long time since I've written anything, so if it turns out I'm sucking at this, I would very much like to know. Thank you, and I look forward to seeing you at the next, and final 'trailer'