From Shadow
A RWBY Fanfiction
Written by: raining-indigo
Prologue
The night was silent and still. Not even the faint chirps of crickets could be heard, nor the lights of civilization could be seen.
A lone, abandoned warehouse stood amidst an abandoned field near the outskirts of Vale. Its windows were broken in, and bits and pieces of the outer wall were rusted and falling apart. The pavement was cracked, and the grass was growing wild. The area was encompassed by a rusting metal fence with barbed wire at the top. Intruders were not welcome here.
A low hum of a motor broke the silence as the headlights of a motorcycle lit up the road. The driver had long, yellow hair that blew out from behind her like flames as her partner, a girl wearing white, clung on tightly. Two dark shapes followed them; one had a billowing red cape with rose petals floating out behind her while the other was like shadow, disappearing and reappearing in the light of the broken moon.
The motorcycle slowed to a stop at the metal gates. Flipping off the ignition, the rider parked the bike and strode up to the gates. Although the gates were rusted and weathered, a relatively new bronze padlock glinted in the moonlight.
"Yang! Yang!" the red shape called out, "Is this the right one?" The yellow haired girl, Yang, looked back at her sister Ruby who was just arriving to her side.
Weiss, the passenger, slid off the motorcycle and peered through the gate.
"It looks abandoned," she sniffed, "Did you take a wrong turn?"
Yang glanced at her Scroll.
"No," she replied confidently, "I'm sure this is the one. White Fang must be carrying out their operations right here, look," she pointed at the lock, "It's brand new compared to the gate metal."
The black shape, Blake, caught up to the girls and stepped up to the gate. With her golden Faunus eyes glowing, she stared at the windows and searched for any form of light source
"Y'know for a White Fang hideout, it sure looks….empty," Ruby mused, "Do you think we were given fake coordinates?"
Yang shrugged, "It's happened before," she said nonchalantly, "But Team JNPR is looking at the other set at the docks, so it's either this one or the other."
"We could be walking into an ambush," Weiss muttered, "Have you contacted JNPR or Sun and Neptune?" Yang shook her head.
"No signal." Weiss rolled her eyes and sighed.
"Blake, do you see anything?" she asked, "Any lights or – "
"I think I see something," Blake responded quietly, "First floor, fourth window." The rest of Team RWBY crowded up to the gate.
"I don't see anything," Ruby said, "Are you sure it's not light reflecting off the glass, or something?"
"No, I'm sure."
"We better hurry then," Yang said with a grave look on her face, "the sooner we find their base, the sooner we can find Penny."
"She shouldn't have gone after them," Weiss commented, "Most of her power was gone, and she was surrounded by water."
"Weiss!" Ruby snapped, "She was trying to help us. C'mon, we need to bust open these gates and go!"
"Fine, stand back," Weiss ordered, "I'll use my glyphs to make a stairway."
"No time," Yang broke in, "Stand back."
"Yang, wait-" Weiss tried to stop her, but it was too late. Yang's Ember Celia began to glow, and, with a burst of flame, her fist slammed into the gate, throwing it off its hinges and sending it flying into the abandoned lot. With a loud CRASH, the twisted metal slammed to the ground.
When the dust settled, Yang brushed off her hands and eyed the metal gate with a confused look.
"That was…easy…" she muttered to herself, "I thought breaking in would be a lot more difficult."
"You…" Weiss looked royally pissed off, "ruined our chance of surprise! You're letting the enemies know we're here! They could be getting ready to attack or retreating!"
Ruby and Yang's eyes widened.
"We have to go, now," Ruby said, "or we'll lose them." Wordlessly, Team RWBY dashed into the lot, threw open the door, and entered the building.
Their shadows cast long shapes as they quietly walked down the deserted hallway, their hands hovering over their weapons.
"Blake, do you sense anything?" Ruby breathed, "Any footsteps or…?" Blake held out her hand for silence. Underneath her bow, the cat Faunus' ears swiveled around, looking for any sources of sound.
Suddenly, the sound of soft voices picked up on her radar. Motioning towards her team, they crept down the side of the wall, staying in the shadow.
A soft light pierced the darkness, illuminating the doorway. Pushing the door open a crack, Ruby peered inside and gasped.
White Fang members were unloading crates of explosives and Dust into a large man hole. Nearby, the recently escaped criminal, Roman Torchwick, and his henchwoman, Neopolitan, were overseeing their efforts.
"Move, move!" he shouted angrily, "They'll be here any moment!"
"It's like the Mountain Glenn!" Ruby whispered to her teammates, "They're using underground tunnels."
"The sewers!" Weiss realized, "They're using the sewers to carry out their plans!"
At an instant, Neopolitan jerked her head, and her heterochomic eyes met Ruby's silver ones. Her mouth curved into a maniacal smile. Letting out a squeak, Ruby instinctively jumped back and unloaded Crescent Rose. It was useless for a sneak attack now.
"Go!" Ruby cried, and Team RWBY burst out from the door and into the room. The White Fang guards paused and dropped their cargo.
"Go on! Hurry up!" Torchwick shouted; he then turned to see them.
"It's been a while, Red," he smirked, "I haven't seen you since I broke out of Ironwood's prison."
"Where are you keeping Penny!?" Ruby demanded angrily.
"Oh, how rude," Roman tutted, "Not even a hello? It's dark outside, and isn't it past your bedtime, little girl?"
Ruby merely grit her teeth and tightened her grip on her scythe.
He sighed and lifted Melodic Cugel.
"I see that you're not in the mood for a chat. I'll cut to the chase, then." The bottom covering lifted off, and he began to fire.
Team RWBY scattered and dodged the bullets. As the members began to speed towards them, Neopolitan moved to counter the attack. Then, Torchwick grabbed her shoulder.
"Stall them," he muttered, "I'll alert the head. Keep them from getting into the sewer." The woman nodded and, like an acrobat, cartwheeled towards them. Five other White Fang members climbed out of the hole and began to fire at them.
With the sounds of battle outside, Torchwick dropped down into the manhole. Yanking out his Scroll, he quickly dialed a number and pressed the call button.
The phone rang once before a "Call Connected" appeared on the screen.
"Get down here!" Torchwick barked, "Hold them off while we move the supplies!" Without an answer, the call disconnected. Agitatedly, he rounded on the White Fang members.
"Hurry up, you animals!" he shouted before glancing up at the hole opening. He could hear the sound of swords clashing and gunshots. However, instead of watching the battle, he squinted at the window in the far corner.
There was a streak of red, and he sighed in relief.
"About damn time," he growled and motioned at a guard. Nodding the guard stepped out of the man hole, carrying a large bazooka.
The villains seemed to back off and retreat down into the man hole at the sight of the weapon.
"Cowards!" Yang shouted, "Come out and fight!"
"Don't let them get away!" Weiss snapped, and the members of Team RWBY raced towards the hole. The guard tightened his grip on the trigger.
"For White Fang!" the guard shouted and pulled. There was a bang, a light whistling in the air, and them a deafening BOOM. At an instant, black smoke filled the room, obscuring everything from view.
Coughing and wheezing, Ruby cried to her team, "Is everyone okay?!" and received three replies.
"Where's the hole?" Weiss shouted, her eyes watering.
"Found it!" Yang cried out. There was a brief flash of light and a clang of metal. Team RWBY gathered and stared down into the black abyss.
"We better be careful," Blake said under her breath. Suddenly, her ears picked up the sound of footsteps, very familiar footsteps. Ones that belonged to the sole person who she wished that she would never meet on the battlefield.
Her hand instantly flew to Gambol Shroud's hilt, and she looked out into the hazy smoke. Blake's eyes could make out a faint outline of a slim figure approaching towards them.
Her eyes widened in shock, and realization hit her like a punch in the face.
"Blake, what's wrong?" Yang asked her worriedly, "Is there something there?"
"Go."
"What?" Ruby looked up at her with a confused expression, "What's going on?"
"There's a White Fang member here," she said quietly, "Go." Weiss huffed and looked at her.
"We're not leaving you to fight some criminal alone," she argued, "Look, we'll fight together or chase down Torchwick."
"If you stay, Torchwick will get away, and if I run, he'll chase after us and pick us off. I know him, and I'll hold him off. Go after them." The smoke was rapidly thinning, and she could see his clear out line. He had stopped walking and was just….standing there, waiting for the next move.
"Guys, we have no time to argue," Ruby's determined silver eyes met Blake's golden ones. She nodded at Blake.
"I'll call JNPR for back up. Weiss, Yang, we need go after Torchwick." Without a word, she jumped down in to the hole. Weiss followed and Yang, sparing a look at her partner, jumped down as well.
Heart racing, Blake's grip tightened on Gambol Shroud, and she turned to face the figure. The smoke had finally cleared, and her former partner, Adam, stood a few meters in front of her.
They stared at each other in silence, not daring to move. Then, Adam's voice broke the silence.
"It's been a while, partner." Blake frowned and spoke.
"Why are you doing this? What happened to you?" She could see his hand inch towards Wilt.
"Drastic times call for drastic measures. You know that," he replied calmly, "They're helping the cause, which is more than you've done. Working with a Schnee? I expected more from you, Blake." Blake tightened her grip on the hilt and could hear her heart pound in her ears.
"There's nothing drastic enough to justify working with these people," she countered, "They use violence, theft, and murder. Weiss and my team can help change things for the better, for humans and Faunus."
"A soft heart like always," his mouth slightly curved upwards before forming its usual straight line "It's working – Our method is working. Faunus are starting to be treated like equals."
"Humans are terrified of Faunus and think every last one of us is a White Fang member," Blake's voice rose a little, "We're being treated like equals not out of respect, but out of fear, Adam!" She could have sworn that she saw him shift a little at the sound of his name.
Breathing in, she continued, "I'm trying to atone for what I've done, Adam. I don't want to use my skills to aid in their violence and cause terror."
"Is that why you left?" he asked quietly, His voice sounding gentler than normal.
"Yes," Blake said softly, "I couldn't take it anymore."
"What are you so ashamed of? Fighting for our rights? Do you really regret everything?" Adam's face remained expressionless under the monster's mask, but she could detect emotion in his voice – sadness and betrayal.
"No…" her voice trembled, "I don't." She kept her head down, not wanting to look at him.
"It's not too late." She lifted her heard and looked at him questioningly.
"You can come back," Adam continued, "I can convince the White Fang to let you back. Welcome you with open arms." Blake closed her eyes and shook her head.
"I can't, Adam. I can't go back. I'm not one of you…I never was, really." There was a long stretch of silence.
Adam sighed, and his fingers gripped Wilt.
"Pity, I wish I could avoid this," he said as he pulled the blade out, "but it looks like we're going to be doing this the hard way." His voice was calm, collected, but forced.
Blake too pulled out Gambol Shroud's blade.
"Don't be so dramatic," she said solemnly, biting back a waiver in her voice.
They locked eyes with each other and advanced, blades gleaming.