I do not own RWBY or other known Rooster Teeth productions. All such products belong to Rooster Teeth and only Rooster Teeth.
A quick note. This chapter is notably more graphic in its descriptions (and more than likely depictions) of violence, gore and trauma. It probably won't affect you much, but just in case you can't handle that stuff...you have been warned!
Present…
Shut up…
Rip their heads off and stick them on spikes! Disembowel them-force feed their intestines to themselves!
Shut up…
Cut their arms and legs off and cauterize them-let them savor the pain! NO, force their "friends" to eat off their own limbs-It'll be BEAUTIFUL!
Shut up…
Rip their stomach's out! Cut open their arms! Carve a SMILE ON THEIR FACES!
Shut up.
Dismember them! Behead them! Break their bones! MAKE THEM SCREAM IN PAIN!
Shut up.
Cave their skulls in!
Shut up.
Make them shit themselves in FEAR!
Shut. up.
Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!
Shut up!
KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!
Shut up!
KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL-
SHUT UP!
The words viciously escaped Ruby Rose's mouth as she bolted up. Her eyes towards the stars above, and the incessant chanting for murder slowly dissipating from her mind.
She breathed ragged breaths as her heart started to calm down and the rate of its beating slowed to a crawl. Her frayed senses steadily returned to a semblance of normal (as in, a mix of paranoia and slight exhaustion keeping her in a bizarre state of constant alert and slowly ending up drained mentally and physically kind of normal) and she began to take note of her current environment.
The first thing that she could point out was that it was nighttime, the fractured moon lazily moving through the star-filled night. As she looked around, she could see that she was in a large, oval room-its floors and walls covered various shades of black, grey, and green. Several massive windows were built into the side walls, capable of showing not just the massive complex the room was a notable part of, but a beautiful view of the "city" just below the cliffside.
At a certain time, it all would've been seen as impressive-almost perfect in its construction and architecture. However, those days had long since passed…
The walls were broken, battered, and crumbling-the floor equally so. She remembered the first time she ended up in that room, took a single step, and instantly fell through two floors onto a piece of rebar. She felt the sting from her rib cage for at least the entire day…
The windows didn't fare much better, with some shattered in several pieces, and others just downright gone from their frames-the remaining edges of glass simple indications of what happened to them. Hell, the entire place could be counted as "not faring well." The several pieces of various furnishings around the room were fractured, cut to pieces, burnt to a crisp, and even rotting in certain areas. The bed she was currently sleeping in was missing a leg, making it lopsided and strange to sleep on without a stack of books to even hold it up properly…
In essence, and in the most succinct way she could put it...the place was fucked to high heaven…
She looked down at her own body. She was naked-not just in her undergarments, not without her weapon, but stark naked from head to toe…but who could blame her, the clothes she had worn around that time were torn to shreds so badly she was practically naked to begin with. She looked over to one side of the room, as sitting on a couple of pieces of debris were two almost identical outfits...with one exception.
She got out of the bed and walked over to the two pairs of clothes. She picked up one of them and unfolded it...and almost dropped the torn, pathetic excuse for clothing onto the ground right then and there. She stopped herself, however, and removed the one major segment that remained undamaged: the red cloak.
Why do I keep this...even when the rest is finished…
Ah great, another question to add to her ever growing list...better write it down before she forgets later…
Digressing back to the clothes, she tossed the torn pair back onto the rock and picked up the other, much more well kept pair. She started with the underwear, then the top and skirt, the corset, the stockings, the boots, the belt, and finally the red cloak she kept for reasons unknown to her...
...It wasn't perfect. The stocking was ripped in several places, and one sleeve was missing from the elbow up. But as she looked herself over, she could tell that she was much more decent than she previously was. heck, she was more surprised by the fact that she found the room that they were still in at the time. The first room in the building she had entered when she woke up.
My room...my room...
Pushing her thoughts back into her mind, she grabbed onto the older pair of clothes and started ripping it into rags. Who knows, it may be useful for later, and she did need one for what she was going to do next...
...Turning around, she looked towards the opposite side of the room. Standing on the wall, fully extended and ready for combat, was Crescent Rose-its blade originally spotless and capable of shining in the light now stained with the blood of those black beasts.
How do I know it's named? Why do I have a deep connection with it in the first place?
She walked over and inspected its design-the barrel of the gun, the parts capable of making it compatible, the stained, dirty blade-before grabbing it from the wall and sitting down with the blade in her lap, the metal shaft resting on her shoulder. Then, with one small piece of torn clothing in her hand, started cleaning the blade as best she could with the rag.
It was still dirty when she was done-she didn't have any water nearby after all-but at least a reflection could be seen in the blade now. That was a bonus...speaking of reflections…
She looked at her own reflection. A young girl, maybe fifteen or sixteen in age, with black, red tipped hair. Her silver eyes dotting over the visage while her mirror self did the same, looking at facial features such as her nose, cheekbones, forehead…
A face with a name...but no past…
She saw a look of longing in her mirror self, knowing that her own face did the same as well. She sat Crescent Rose down right next to her as she looked upward-a hole in the roof showing the moon and stars above…
...Who was she? Her own name was Ruby Rose, her weapon was Crescent Rose, and she woke up who-knows-how long ago. But what was her past before that? Why did she remember blonde hair, or a scar over a blue eye, or a black bow...and why did they make her head hurt whenever she tried to think deeper about them? She had no idea what it all was, or what she could use as a starting point…
She had only her name, her weapon's name...but nothing else…Who was she?
My name...my name is Ruby Rose...and it all started when I woke up…"there…"
Never-Wilt: The Life Eater.
Chapter 2: Pain.
Four Weeks Ago…
"What the hell!?"
Those were the only words that she could speak as she looked at the grotesque mound of flesh and bone in front of her…
...It had clothes. A tan jacket over a destroyed yellow crop top, black shorts with a white back skirt, and leather boots. Under these clothes was a humanoid figure with rotting, burned, or eaten muscle that bled over it all several times, turning the gold or yellow trimmings to a fine shade of red. Several pieces of bone were exposed or sticking out from under it all, stained in various shades of brown, black, or vermillion. Around the chest was a massive hole that exposed the caved in ribcage, missing lungs, and still-beating heart.
What scared her the most though wasn't the destroyed flesh, broken bones, or exposed organs...no, it was the expression she could barely make out on her face: One of pure agony. Her eyes were gouged out, leaving nothing but blackened holes where they originally were. Half of her nose was missing, exposing part of the cranium beneath. The lips and ears were cut into repeatedly, with one ear almost ripped off. And nearly all of it were mutilated and decaying...only a few strands of blonde hair left to confirm who she could be…
...And she was breathing. Hard, grating breaths, but breathing nonetheless…
She could do nothing but stare in terror at the figure in front of her, even as it started to motion itself towards her direction…
The figure stuttered, raised its hand toward her, and said-with a pained, rough effort…
"...R...Ruub-by...PleAsee...K-k-kILl...MEe…"
She woke up in a cold, palpable sweat. Her breathing-quick and raspy-taking time to die down into a more calming rhythm. She reluctantly sat herself up, resting her head in her palm as she took time to get her bearings.
What the hell did I just see!?
She couldn't remember all of it. She had a hard time picturing the clothes, and she was sure the body had some hair left. But all she could vividly see was the flesh, bones, blood, and organs...the heart that was still beating...the raspy voice…
Who was...aghh!
She brought her hands to her head in pain. A sharp spasm in her head, like several knives stabbing inside repeatedly, or someone groping the inside of her skull violently. She convulsed, her body rolling all over the...whatever she was laying on, as her mind seemed to try and incinerate the memories she tried to remember…
Then, as the pain spasmed one more time, she rolled off the surface and banged her head on the floor. In that small instant, the searing pain she felt throughout stopped, only to be replaced by a more tolerable soreness on the area where she hit her head.
"Oowww…" She sat up as she started to rub her head. "...Great, now I'm gonna have a headache for the rest of the day."
She felt her back rest itself on the side of the surface she just fell off of. Her head motioned back to look at it, then reached her hand to pull herself back up onto the surface-which she noticed was nothing more than a slab of rock jutting out of the ground-and sat on the edge as she looked at the environment around her.
It was a massive cavern, almost smoothed out and round. In the center was a platform jutting out from the ground-the area she was sitting in-connected by four bridges leading to four openings that more than likely led to different places. All of these were lit by still burning braziers, the flames emitted from inside a strange shade of red. Above the platform was a light that bathed the center, its colorless hue a stark contrast to the red fire surrounding it…
...And as she turned around to look at the rest, she saw it...a black and red, machine-like scythe embedded in a rock, a strange piece of paper wrapped around the shaft. Sitting right next to it was a large, rusted candelabra-like object holding several unlit torches in its arms.
She stared at the scythe for a minute, her mind trying to remember what it was called…
It's...Crescent Rose…
She remembered almost everything about it, parts of its creation, the fact that it's a high-impact sniper rifle as well as a scythe…
...She was shocked, to be honest. She was sure she would be back on the floor in a fetal position if she tried to remember…
At least I'm not on the floor...should I be glad or worried?
She looked at it for a few more seconds before she recognized the piece of paper wrapped on it…
"What is that?"
She moved to stand...and almost fell flat on her face. She blinked, looking back at her legs…
...Ummm...Let's see...I'm sure I'm supposed to "walk." Yes, that's what it was, "walk." Right…
Slowly, she got up, keeping a close eye on the floor in case she fell over again. When she managed to fully stand, she took a step forward…
...It...was surprisingly difficult, considering she almost fell over several times when she reached the weapon.
How long was I asleep for me to have trouble walking-seriously!?
Taking a moment to rein in her frustration, she took another three steps before stopping in front of Crescent Rose.
Finally! She breathed a sigh of relief as she gripped one end of the paper and started to remove it from the shaft. After several seconds of struggling with one wrapped end of it, she finally managed to pull it off of her weapon easily. Sighing, she unwrapped the paper and started to read what was on the front…
Hello, young huntress, and now fellow Life-Eater…
I cannot tell you of your past, what you are, who you were before now, or if you have any loved ones. All I can tell you is your name, the name of the scythe this paper was left with, and your mission.
Your name is Ruby Rose, and the finely crafted scythe you'll find is named Crescent Rose. I do not know if you will remember it when you wake up, but I can tell you that it is one of the most precious things you would keep with you, along with the cloak you will be wearing when you wake up.
When you "do" wake up, you may ask yourself where you are and what to do next. You simply need to take a torch, light it from a brazier, and walk into one of the tunnels until you come out of the other side. Then, when you do...you need to prepare yourself for what may become…
...A King is moving, the entire world his chessboard, and the darkness his chess pieces. He wishes to bring about things that would end the world as we knew it, and no one else can stop him from trying...except you.
He will send his forces after you. Prepare yourself and fight your way to checkmate. If you fail...then everything you have loved will die with the world.
I know it all seems sudden, but this is imperative. I will most likely be killed before I can even put up an adequate defensive measure, and that leaves you to continue on for me...please.
You are our last hope...don't let it wilt away…
From,
Pr~~~~~ ~z~~~.
She reread the paper again.
S-Save the world...what...everyone I loved will die?
She had no idea what the paper was talking about...in fact, it seemed to leave more questions than answers for her. Who's "King," what's a Life-Eater, what will happen to the world if this "King" isn't stopped? She had no clue whatsoever to any of it…
And yet...the name. It was thoroughly scribbled out, but she was sure that she had heard a similar name before...where had she heard it though, that was the real question…
"...My name is Ruby Rose…" She read the paragraph with her name again...it was odd. Despite her remembering Crescent Rose, and the sharp feeling that she could remember the one who wrote the letter, she felt...nothing, when it came to her name…
Is that really my name?
The sound of a far away cackle drove her out of her thoughts. Her eyes darted around the cavern, trying to locate the source of the noise...nothing. Just to make sure, she glanced around a little more to make sure no one was around.
Who was that?
She looked around the cavern some more, before she shook her head and turned back to Crescent Rose. Slowly, her hand gripped the red and black weapon before her, and with some effort, she pulled the weapon out of the rock. She inspected it closely, instantly feeling a sense of nostalgia as she admired the blade and gun. It was like a member of the family had finally returned after leaving years ago…
"You're Crescent Rose...my weapon."
She smiled...she didn't know why, but she did. She quickly holstered it into its more compact travel form and hooked it up to her, before grabbing a torch from off the rusted candelabra.
She walked across the bridge nearest to her before stopping at the entranceway. She stared into it...seeing nothing but darkness beyond.
"Right...this shouldn't be a long walk...definitely!"
She raised the torch to a nearby brazier to light it, before walking further into the darkness beyond...perplexed and alone.
"Just how long is this thing!?"
Ruby was sure that she should've been out of this cavern by now. She would have walked up rows and rows of stairs by now, and more than likely would be out of this place by now…
...And was it just herself, or did she keep hearing voices around her in the darkness…
A raspy cackle echoed from her left, causing her to shift in that direction. "Who's there!?"
Once again-like the many times before-there was nothing more than silence.
Dammit, SOMEONE! Please, just show yourselves! I've been walking in this fucking darkness for whoever-knows-how long without a clue where I'm supposed to go!? WHERE THE FUCK AM I GOING!?
A whisper passed her, followed by another, and another, and another…
"SHOW YOURSELF!"
...Until they were silenced, simply content to let her building anger simmer.
Ruby walked in one direction, then in an entirely different one, and another different one. She didn't find anything of note in any direction she went...and the voices she had been hearing for so long had disappeared.
Ruby's breathing, having picked up beforehand, slowed down more and more.
Calm down, Ruby. It's all just stupid sounds getting to you. Just calm down and it'll be alright. Just keep walking and it'll be alrig-
"Ruby Rose…"
Ruby twisted around, ready to smack something with the torch in her hand...and literally fell backwards as the sight of a wooden, slightly burned and beaten door appeared before her.
For the longest time, she stared at the door in disbelief. When had it appeared? She didn't remember running into it as she bumbled through the darkness, nor did she remember passing by it when she was walking. It was like the door had appeared out of nowhere!?
What...the hell?
She got up and looked at the door, approaching it reluctantly as she took notice of the burns all over it, the scarring on the wood, even the wearing on the doorknob.
She stared at the knob like it was something ugly, something she didn't want to look at for so long that she was afraid it may jump at her for some reason. Reluctantly her hand reached for the brass doorknob. She gripped it, turned, and slowly opened the door…
...For the first time in how long, Ruby saw light pierce through. It blinded her first-she had to hold a hand out over her eyes for the first few minutes-but soon she was capable of seeing the room she entered without a problem.
It was a rather small room, with walls colored beige and dark grey. The sight of four red beds-one laying over a second with a broken leg, while another was broken cleanly in half-gave a good indication that it was a sort of dorm room of some kind. Several bookshelves sat either between or to the sides of them, the books ripped off, burned, or simply missing. A poster, originally showing off a rather popular group of guys, was missing its entire center-leaving only the top and bottom halves of the poster. The same could be said for a portrait on the wall to the left, completely ruined and torn to shreds. A red curtain that covered the window was torn and ripped from its hinges, leaving the light outside to burst through in full force. The only piece of furniture not destroyed or damaged completely was a wardrobe sitting near the door, its form relatively intact.
Ruby blinked and stood in front of the door as it closed behind her. She was legitimately confused now, was it that she was walking in circles through a completely darkened building?
And why did she get a vibe from this room? She didn't know why, but she found it incredibly familiar for some reason…
Have I...been here before?
A subtle pain ached through her head. Ignoring it as best as she could, she walked around the room, looking at various other pieces that may jog her memory.
For a minute, nothing-save for the itch she had and the aching her head felt-gave her a sudden flash of insight or a memory that may help her. Sighing, she walked over to the nearby wardrobe and pulled on the drawer.
"Huh? This is…"
Several articles of clothing sat in the drawer, one which she noticed was the exact same as the outfit she was currently wearing sans the cloak. Blinking for a moment, she closed that drawer and opened several others to see what was inside. Sure enough, she found several pieces of clothing that she herself was wearing, even an extra belt of all things.
These are my clothes.
Her sight stayed on the wardrobe, before turning slowly to address the rest of the room, stopping at the four beds in the center of the room.
This was my room.
She looked at the two beds to the left. A white sheet and some rope was laying on top of what remained.
This was my bed.
She looked at the other two beds, one slumped over the other. Her eyes kept on both as she slowly walked closer to them.
And this...this is…
For a minute, she was sure that she would finally remember something-about herself, whoever she knew, her past, whatever.
The searing pain that followed was inclined to disagree.
It came swiftly and left the same, but it was enough to send her reeling. She felt like someone just poured hot water over her brain, and she quickly gripped both sides of her head and yelled out in pain. It ended up so great that she nearly fell to her knees.
She panicked somewhat, spotted the door, ran towards it and slammed into it with all her weight and force. The door gave way, flying off its hinges as Ruby landed onto the ground outside the room.
Then, if ever so slowly, the pain receded. Ruby lay on the floor as her head started to return to a simple aching feeling from before.
My...head...fuck…
Ruby sat up, placing a hand over her face, her breathing getting heavier by the minute.
She had no idea what had just happened. She was just trying to remember something, but when she did her head seemed like someone was digging her brains out with a pair of hot tongs. Would this happen to her if she tried again? What would she do then? Wasn't trying to remember the past the only thing that she could do?
Her thoughts drifted from one question to another, then another, and another…
Who am I really? What the heck is going on? What do I get to rip apart? Am I alone in this place? Can I butcher them like pigs if there are? Why am I thinking these things? Why are you hesitating to kill?
W-Wha…
Do you smell prey? Is there anything of value in that room? Why don't I just burn it to the fucking ground? Whose bed's are those? Are you afraid of pain? Are you afraid of loss? Do I really not remember anything but my name? Wouldn't you rather forget it all?
What the hell is this...it's like something's talking to me…
Am I growing hungry? Do you smell the stench of blood? Why is the hallway different? Can I even survive in this place? Are you willing to kill? Weren't you already a killer anyway? Why is the hallway different? Where am I? What is this place? Do you think intestines look delicious? Is the only way out to rip and tear them limb from limb? Who am I? Who are you?
Why is the hallway different?
The thought hit Ruby like a train. Her eyes opened wide as her hand slowly fell limp and into her lap. She looked up and turned slowly, taking in exactly what she was seeing…
...The hallway was entirely different from where she originally came from. Walls colored grey-some of which were crumbling, revealing the light from outside-led down one far intersection at one end, and at another opposite that side. It wasn't a cavern, the light was shining in between the breaks of the hallway, and there were other doors-some of which were bashed down, broken, or missing completely.
"...H-How...How did…"
Ruby Rose was stunned. There was no possible way she could be in a hallway like this, she didn't even remember seeing any other doorways.
How is this possible?
Her thought's were interrupted by the abrupt sound of a wall breaking behind her. Her head turned to look behind…
...It was like the thing of nightmares. A large, blackened beast with red eyes whose form was akin to those of a wolf. It's size was double that of hers, standing completely on its hind legs like it was giving a serious implication along the lines of "I can walk. Therefore I can stomp you into a reddened paste."
It had several parts of the body covered with a bone-like armor, and several spikes were jutting out from its arm and down his back. It had several scars, but the one that she could see prominently was a large gash going down the entire left side of its face, leaving one of its eyes dulled…
...And, also visible-maybe even more than the scar-was the razor sharp row of teeth sitting in its maw.
For a straight second, the two stared at each other, slight disbelief running through the both of them. Then, with reflexes impossible for normal wildlife to emulate, the beast inched slightly forward and swung its arm into her ribcage.
She went flying back into the room, crashing through the window to the outside world, hitting a stone pillar on her way down.
She was reeling, even as she slammed into the ground below. She bounced once before rolling a few feet from the crater she just left, and in that instant, pain spasmed through her body...debilitating, excruciating pain.
"AAGGHHH!" Her breathing became heavy as she gripped her side in pain. She looked down at where she had been hi-good god, how the fuck was she still alive!
At least a significant chunk of her waist had been ripped away, as muscle and flesh exposed itself and an organ or two was left lying on the hard cobblestone. Whatever bone there originally was in that area was now nothing more than splinters piercing what was left of her lower torso.
She puked-a mix of vomit and blood spurting from out of her mouth onto the sidewalk. Her mind raced in panic as her body made an effort to move...and fail horribly in the process.
Gotta get up! Get moving, get moving NOW!
She heard the sounds of claws meeting stone, followed by stone fracturing underneath something. She motioned her head to see what it all was…
There were seven of the black, wolf-like creatures-one of which being the one that ambushed her earlier. It's mouth and claws dripped blood as it munched on something...more than likely what it just ripped from her stomach.
She tried to force herself to stand, but even the strength in her arm had given out. The extreme loss of blood started to work her over, to the point she couldn't think straight.
Her vision flickered, almost going black as she tried to crawl to freedom…
Move...I can't die yet. I need to-GAAGH!
One of the beasts large paws slammed down on her shin. She was pretty sure she could almost hear the bones breaking...at least if that was bones breaking and her voice not screaming in pain.
Her body shook as she layed there. Her breathing was heavy, broken and raspy. She was also sure that whatever she had left for organs were slowly drowning in blood, filling and filling until they were ready to burst.
Ruby was slowly realizing...realizing that this would only end in the worst possible conclusion. As her world slowly faded to black and white, her mind repeated a single sentence repeatedly.
I don't want to die.
I don't...WanT to DIe.
I DoN'T Wantt...TO die.
I...don't want...to die.
Her world faded to black…
…
Then KILL THEM!
Beowolves...a subspecies of the creatures of Grimm. Foul beasts born of nothing but hatred and attracted to hatred from sentient creatures. They have hunted, killed, and feasted on humans and faunus since time immemorial.
This subspecies was possibly the second weakest of them all, but made up for it in numbers-hunting in packs at the best to make sure success (and their next meal) were in reach…
...This pack today had found a particularly tasty-looking morsel. A young human girl in a red cloak. It was already half eaten, but there was enough for all of them to feast on…
...So why did its corpse give them pause for some reason? It was already dead-its life snuffed out from one powerful swing...so why?
One eager beowolf seemed content to answer the question, as it approached the corpse reluctantly. It moved closer and closer until it stood over her, its red, glowing eyes keeping a steady eye for sudden movement.
It came closer, sniffing her over, before deducing that it was safe to chomp down on. It slowly opened its jaw and positioned it's head over one of her arms…
It didn't stand a chance.
The beowolf didn't even see the reaction as the girl's hand gripped on a rectangular shape attached to her waist. Her finger pulled on something, and in half a second at least half the top of the beast's head was grazed off from the shot that flew over it. It staggered away from the girl, who soon flipped horizontally-her weapon flying in the air as her body spinned in one swift motion. The beast couldn't react as it was cleaved in half by her weapon, blood erupting from out of where it used to be a full beast.
The rest roared as the beast hit the floor, but their reaction time was subpar. The second beowolf had the scythe blade embedded in its chest, and it could barely let out a howl before the girl pulled the trigger, which had the blade shoot upward. The beast split in half vertically from the chest, a disturbing amount of blood bursting from the beast's wound.
The girl wasn't done. Following up on this, she flipped vertically towards a third beowolf, who raised an arm to attack. The girl went through the limb like paper, stopping just a few feet behind the beast. Before the Grimm could even turn its head, she pulled the trigger once again on the scythe, bisecting the Beowolf from the waist down. The beast let out a grating scream as blood only filled its sight.
Stopping the spin from the previous blow she turned to the fourth and fifth, who started rushing towards her-eyes filled with hatred and maws snarling with vehement. She angled her weapon and fired behind her, launching herself forward. The fourth could only see a blade getting stuck at its neck before the girl pulled the trigger, decapitating it. Following on this, she spinned again, twirling the weapon with her as she swung it towards the fifth's head. It didn't even fall down as its head flew off, only standing up for a few minutes before its body met with the earth-leaving a splash of blood from its neck as it did.
The girl jumped up in the air towards the sixth Beowolf, bringing the blade down. However, before metal could meet flesh, the beast-with reflexes only seen by humans-caught the blade in midair…
...It was unknown if this beowolf was more intelligent-and therefore older-or if what was happened was simply a fluke on its part. Nonetheless, it capitalized on this moment, pulling the weapon-and the girl with it-towards him. Then he swung outward, catching the girl on the cheek with a backhand.
The girl flew several feet away before skidding onto the ground. Shaking off the sudden break in rhythm, she turned back to the sixth…
...Only to have her own weapon fly straight into her own chest. Her body followed with the motion of the scythe, flying a fair feet away before landing on her back.
For a single, relieving moment the sixth and seventh beowolf could almost sigh in relief that they managed to survive the massacre that just happened. The sixth turned its head towards the girl and stomped towards her…
...Until she stood up like nothing had happened to her, the sound of bone fracturing coming from her. She gripped the weapon and, with some effort, pulled the blade from her chest. Then she turned towards the Beowolf, which started to back away in fear...it would never get the chance to.
The girl disappeared from the beast's sight in a breeze of rose petals. The beast could never see the attack that came afterwards, nor react in time to stop or dodge it. It could only stand there like a deer in headlights as she disappeared from its sight and flashed straight behind her. It couldn't do much as a thin vertical red line appeared over its body, immediately followed by several others that appeared over its body. It could only turn in time to look the girl straight in the eyes before it's body essentially exploded in a torrent of Grimm flesh and blood.
The seventh Beowolf-the very same one that ambushed her earlier-could only stare at her in fear, before it realized that it literally bit off more than it could chew. Deciding to lick its wounds and fight for another day, it turned and ran in the opposite direction…
...It didn't get very far…
It felt a sharp pain around its leg followed by a strange numbness. It looked down...seeing that at least half of its leg was missing from the knee down. Roaring outward as it fell down onto the sidewalk, it clawed anxiously at the sidewalk as it tried to get away. It was only after it turned back to the girl did it stop.
She stood over it, looking down into the eyes of the beast. The beast did the same, and realized the fear the sixth had seen when it looked upon her…
Her eyes were dead, filled with no remorse, no fear, no empathy...no life. It was like staring back into the abyss the beast itself had been born from.
The two stared at each other, doing nothing...then the beast tried to swing at her. It lost its arm in the process, and as it howled out in pain the second arm came afterwards. With nothing to defend itself with, the beast could only watch as she raised her scythe, took a steady breath, and brought the scythe down once...twice...and again…
...And again...and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again…
...Until finally she stopped, pulling back the blade to have a look at her handywork-nothing more than a puddle of blood and beast flesh.
Taking another steady breath, the girl stood there for a moment before falling to her knees. She looked up at the cloudy sky with her deadened eyes, and a smile spread across her face.
She spread her arms outward. For a minute, nothing happened...then the blood around her...started to act up.
It shifted towards her, regardless of the wedges between the cobblestone that would've guided it in specific directions. Soon it moved up her body towards whatever wounds she had-including the cheek and half the destroyed waist. Then it began to condense within these wounds, and the flesh, muscle and skin knitted itself back together...until it was all healed, like nothing had happened to it…
...The entire process would hurt like hell…if the girl was conscious enough to even feel pain, that is…
The girl remained where she was, in the very same position, with the very same smile, even as the rain was ready to fall...and even as she was near the corpses of beasts.
The rain started soon after, and the girl woke from death…
Ruby could only remember blacking out from pain earlier, then waking up in the rain as it soaked her. She blinked a few times as rain droplets fell onto her face before bringing her hands to her head.
What just happened?
She didn't remember what had happened after blacking out, only that she thought she was gonna die. Did the beasts lose interest?
She slowly brought her head down from staring at the sky. She shook her head, before realizing one thing…
I'm outside...what's it like out here?
She looked out away from wherever she was. It was hard to see due to the rain obscuring a lot of the world, but Ruby could make out...something…
Where am I now?
She motioned herself to stand...until her hand touched something thick-thicker than water at the very least. She looked down...and froze.
Surrounding her was a slowly dissipating pool of blood. Sitting in various parts of the pool were the remains of the black beasts from earlier-heads, arms, upper torsos, and one incredibly eviscerated body. Ruby stared at the bloodbath in front of her, her breath growing quicker by the second.
Reluctantly, she looked down at her own hands...They were covered in blood. And sitting right next to her-colored in sanguine-was Crescent Rose…
...I...I killed…
She screamed...the realization having dawned on her in the rain.
The next day, she would find that the entire town was nothing more than a necropolis of what previously existed there. The entire town empty and abandoned from those that lived and breathed.
Once again, she screamed...and then cried herself to a slumber afterwards, simply wondering what was going on…
...And unbeknownst to her, two forces were watching. One was a group of two who watched the scene unfold with a cold, calculated sight, one wanting to kill her and be done, the other simply content to be patient. The second was much farther and more massive.
To many, it would simply look like a large crow from the distance. However, many would actually figure it as a Nevermore, another subspecies of Grimm.
With one eye, it watched from afar-watching her suffering, her bloody battle, and everything else. Then, content for the two days...it flew away, patient in its wait to see Ruby Rose suffer…
...And slowly-ever so slowly-the rose started to wilt...the first petals of many falling away into the cold wind…
Right, that wasn't exactly the best wait time...but then again it's better than possibly four months or so…
Yep, this is a chapter from Ruby's viewpoint. For those that were wondering where Ruby would tie into the story for the last two chapters, this is a taste of what could be happening in the future.
Now many of you may say "Isn't this chapter a little shorter than the last one?" I will say yes, but...if I were to be honest, I think that's a good place to stop for now...and it leaves one heck of a cliffhanger too.
Oh yeah, so now I'm getting the Grimm involved into the story. Many of you will notice that the Grimm actually bleed and don't dissolve (or whatever the fuck they actually do) when fighting Ruby here. I won't say much else, but I will confirm that this little fact is a plot point later in the story.
So now, with that all out of the way...how did you all feel about the chapter. Did you like it, did you hate it, was something just getting to you throughout. Well, if you want to share these things with me...THEN REMEMBER TO REVIEW!
Let me also say that the next chapter I do may not be related to this story. I've recently been getting into Metal Gear Solid 5 (A Hideo Kojima Game, Fuck Konami!) and am pretty much enjoying it so far (I suck at FOB infiltrations).
So without further ado, let me say thank you for reading, and I hope to see you on the next chapter.
Next Chapter: Inverted colors.
For Fun, Fedora's and Insanity...PEACE!