NOTE: I do not own either RWBY or Kill la Kill. RWBY belongs to the late Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth, and Kill la Kill belongs to studio TRIGGER…
NOTE 2: PREPARE FOR SUPER LONG CHAPTER, MUTHA#$% 's (P.S. You guy's are awesome, you are not actually mother %$#'s)
...GET OUT OF THE WAY!
Ryuko slammed her scissor blade into the side of another unfortunate One-Star from the gardening club as she pushed her way through them. Fervently, another one of them began to leap at her, only to go slack as she swatted him away-not even bothering to cut through his uniform, and instead punching him in the ribs for his trouble.
I won't be held back by you bastards! I WILL go and save Ruby!
She jumped up into the air, just in time to avoid a large, monstrous plant smashing into where she was standing. In mid air, several more One-Stars leaped up toward her, determined to press a futile attack. Gritting her teeth, Ryuko kicked both in the face and, using them as a stepping stone, moved even higher into the air.
"RUBY!"
She screamed out as her eyes looked over at the desolated area of the school a fair distance away from the battlefield. The area was being pelted with Life-Fiber infused baseballs, which shattered stone and concrete each time one of them hit. The building was falling apart as a result, to the point that the upper half of the school was now nothing but dust. Gripping tighter on her weapon, Ryuko felt rage boiling over inside of her.
{-Ryuko-}
"Don't falter-" Her eyes darted to the ground. The Gardening Club manager-or whoever the fuck it was-stared up at her with a large, cocky grin, "We've got her on the ropes! Don't falter, don't let up-BRING HER DOWN!" He crouched slightly (at least, he crouched about as well as he could, considering his size) and let the One-Stars around him water the pots on his back. From it, several monstrous plants popped out and started flying toward Ryuko.
"The only one going down-" She cut through the plants with ease and sailed straight toward the Gardening Club manager. "-IS YOU!" She slashed through his uniform so quick that none of them could register it until the manager was buck naked. This brought momentary shock to the boy, while Ryuko didn't even take the time to take note of it before she started running toward the disaster area known as Ruby's last position.
"RUBY!?"
{-Ryuko! Focus!}
The distinct sound of a gun firing rang in Ryuko's ears. Turning so fast that the wind seemed to take time and catch up, Ryuko swung her scissor blade just in time to cut through a large needle or something. She didn't have a good look at it, and frankly she didn't care. What she did care about was who it was that fired it…
Mohawk stood several feet away, his arm extended outward toward her as a small opening in his wristband exhaled smoke. Ryuko grit her teeth, This bastard's still trying to get Senketsu, even when there's someone in trouble!
"Leave me ALONE!" She slashed at nothing but air, yet the pressure from the swing sailed straight at him. Realizing what was coming his way, the man dodged to the left-just in time to avoid an overzealous One-Star from smacking him in the back of the head. He had a quick glance at the Mohawk, before he heard something coming his way...and soon felt the full impact of her swing rip his uniform off like paper.
Watching the One-Star run away in fear and embarrassment, the two of them looked at each other dead in the eye. "I have to go rescue my friend! So if you want to settle this, then do it later!" She yelled toward him, her anger barely on the fringes of control. She was sure that she heard Senketsu, but if the uniform did, then it was completely lost on her as the Mohawk narrowed his eyes at her.
"Nonsense. You are my target, Matoi. And I simply won't let you do whatever you please as long as you have that uniform on...even if it involves saving a friend."
This PRICK! Ryuko was on the verge of losing it then and there, taking a step forward with the intent to rip the man apart. Only Senketsu's voice stopped her from going through with it…
{Ryuko! Listen to me-} the girl froze in her tracks, turning her attention to her uniform, {As much as I hate to admit it, we aren't going anywhere so long as this man stands in front of us. The best we can do right now is quickly take care of this man and-}
"And leave Ruby at the mercy of that Ichiro bastard!"
{-I know, you want to go rescue Ruby! I do too, but we can't until we deal with the man with the mohawk first! We have to take these things one step at a time, so beat the man before you, then fight this "Ichiro!" It's the only way!}
Ryuko's expression turned solemn, her body shaking in anger. Even though she despised it, what Senketsu was saying was absolutely true. Beat this guy first, then beat the other guy into a bloody pulp!
Relenting, she glared at the mohawk man as she pointed her scissor blade toward him, her teeth grit as she growled out the words from her mouth, "Let's make this quick." With a single push of her foot, Ryuko shot forward, yelling at the top of her lungs with her scissor blade swinging straight toward the man. The mohawk himself pulled out his sewing gun, his finger closing down on the trigger as soon as she was nearly face to face with him…
The sound of cracking, crumbling concrete rang in Ichiro's ears as he watched the fruits of his planning with a grin. The area where Miss Rose was standing on was nothing more than a ruin now, quickly disintegrating from the constant attacks of his team.
His grin grew wider; Miss Rose had fallen for his plan. From the moment he saw her from far away, he could tell that above all else, Ruby put a lot of her trust in her friends-cared about them more than anything else in the world. So if her friends are taken out of the picture for awhile, making it clear that it was him who did it, then it would throw her world out of whack. Suddenly, Ruby Rose would want payback, and would lose all rationality around other things like her friends to focus on getting it. She would've wanted to make sure that the man with the Mohawk was dealt with quickly, so that she could focus her efforts on Ichiro...not knowing that he'd strike at exactly this time. With her focus entirely on the Mohawk for the moment, he could attack her without any problems, and thanks to the Mohawk man and a few other unfortunate school clubs, Matoi wouldn't be able to come and save her. Leaving her completely to him…
So far, so good. Now if only we can keep it up.
It was clear to him that this may not be all that it took to destroy Ruby Rose, so it was clear that everyone remain on guard. In addition, if Ryuko did happen to beat the Mohawk man, then he'd have to make sure that she was severely weakened as a result. If she was, then he'd be killing two birds with one stone...whereas if she wasn't, then he would have to call a retreat. And considering how well the Mohawk man did against her the first time, and even during the fight, he was putting all his money on the former result.
With that being said...victory was certainly his. After this, Ruby Rose would be a broken mess sprawled across the ground, and Ryuko Matoi would likely be without that uniform to help her. He smiled. He really enjoyed thinking of what could become of both afterward…
He turned to look back at the main building of Honnoji. Jakuzure was standing in the window, watching the fight below with a content smile on her face. With nary a moment to spare, he bowed in her general direction.
Enjoy the show, Lady Satsuki, and your Elite Four...there won't be many more like this for a long time…
That Ichiro creeps me the hell out.
Nonon Jakuzure's felt her attention caught by the Baseball Club Captain as he bowed in her general direction-his hands swaying off to the side. Silently, she ignored him as best as possible. While she could handle the presence of most of the Two-Star's, Kazuya sent a chill down her spine whenever he entered the room. Seriously, how can he seem so content and relaxed in whatever environment he's in at the time, it's weird.
Focusing her attention back on the ground, she watched as the Mohawk and Ryuko fought wildly-only turning away to focus on a club member or captain. The school clubs in particular were getting slaughtered throughout the fight, with students losing their uniforms left and right. She smirked at the sight; it may have cost Honnoji valuable soldiers, but damn if it wasn't entertaining to watch.
"Considering how determined you were, are you satisfied with sending small-fry clubs after them?"
She turned her attention to the voice behind her. Inumuta was leaning against the wall, his silent personage almost impossible to notice if she wasn't so used to it by now. In response to his question, she shrugged, "It would be boring to simply beat her outright, wouldn't it? Wouldn't you do the same if you were me?"
Inumuta remained silent as he watched. "This is an opportunity to watch a pro at work. Isn't this a perfect lesson to train for the genuine battle that Lady Satsuki has in store for us?"
"You've thought this through, I see…" Inumuta said, the front of his coat opening as he spoke. Smirking, Nonon turned around, approaching a music stand in front of a slowly rising curtain.
"I've been with Satsuki the longest. I know exactly how she thinks." She stepped up in front of the stand and grabbed her baton. "Maybe you should be gathering data instead of evaluating me, four eyes."
"Perhaps I should…" he said, just as she was beginning the small symphony in front of her. As she was just getting started however, Inumuta reached for his phone and answered it. After several muffled whispers and yes's later, he nodded and ended the call. "...It seems you'll get your wish. I have to go."
"Ho? Did Lady Satsuki call you back to work?"
"No, that was Gamagoori. He called to tell me to take in Kazuya Ichiro."
"Ichiro? Why?"
"Would you really care to know?"
"...Fair point." She turned her attention back to conducting as Inumuta walked out to conduct his business. With his absence, Nonon let her mind and spirit be taken away by the symphony. A symphony standing dissonantly next to the chaos happening in the courtyard below…
Crimson Incandescence.
Chapter 8: You're in Trouble.
Well, seems like Jakuzure's started her little symphony. Quaint.
The sound of classical music got caught in his ears. Quietly he listened, closing his eyes as the melody flooded his brain. It had been awhile since he had last heard classical music-maybe seven or eight years ago in fact. It reminded him of a simpler time...one before everything had happened several years later.
I wonder...if there's anything different back home...if anyone's gotten any better…
His head started to hurt slightly as his thoughts drifted to where he previously lived, and to counter it he pushed them to the back of his mind. He had already experienced enough pain of that kind-he didn't need anymore he couldn't handle well enough.
Bring yourself back to the present. What's happening on the end of Matoi and the Mohawk man?
He looked over...and smiled: Well, it seems to be going wonderfully…
She roared as she charged, her scissor blade swinging hard enough to cut through the wind. It sailed only to miss Mohawk's...mohawk by a few centimeters, flying through thin air as the Mohawk rolled away. Stepping forward, she also realized too late that the man had left her a present in response: a spool grenade.
Ah shit! She lept back, bringing her arms up to defend as the spool blew up-spewing needles everywhere. Her arms and legs took the brunt of them, and as Ryuko flew backwards she bitterly noted that she could make for a good porcupine impression before skidding to a stop just several feet away. Dammit, I seriously don't have time for this!
She looked back at the rubble that was the upper half of a block of Honnoji. The attacks on it were starting to lessen up, but there was still no sign of Ruby being okay, much less alive. Her anger flared as her thoughts drifted to what she would do to that bastard Ichiro after she was done with the Mohawk, when she suddenly heard the sound of a gun firing. Thinking fast, she started spinning her scissor blade in the general direction of the sound just in time to stop a barrage of needles from pelting her.
"Fuck off already, I need to go save Ruby!" She yelled, swinging her scissor blade at nothing but the air between her and the Mohawk. The swing being hard enough that the air bent against its will, cutting it's way through the needles and flying straight for the Mohawk man. With quick reflexes, the man bolted to the other side, narrowly avoiding the rapidly approaching attack as it cut straight into the concrete wall behind him. Then with a quick glance toward her, he ran toward one of the doors into Honnoji, disappearing inside as he entered.
-No you don't. She shot after him and slammed against the doors, which exploded against the force hard enough to smash the doors though some nearby walls. Looking around, she spotted the Mohawk running down the hall before he turned, disappearing again past the corner.
Gritting her teeth, she started running forward, cursing him under her breath. However, as she was just halfway down the hall, the classrooms to her left exploded outward-several One-Stars charging outward and yelling a battlecry as they focused on her.
She couldn't react, and soon the entirety of the group piled up over her, stopping her in their tracks. "Did we get her!?" "I think so!" "Get off of me! I can't breathe!" "We're showing her who's boss around here!" "Technically Lady Satsuki is everyone's boss around here. Also, GET OFF OF ME!" "Guys-" "Hold your breath, we just need to hold this long enough for her to fall asleep!" "I don't think asphyxiation works that way dude." "Guys, seriously-" "Oh shut up, you heard Carl, he said he can't breathe...oh shit, he can't breathe." "Seriously, GET OFF OF ME!" "Whose ass is in my face! I swear if you fart-" "Well, get your nose out of that place, you moron!" "Guys, we're in trouble!" "And what the hell do you mean by us being in trouble!"
"I've had enough-" Everyone flinched, then froze in fear, before the entire crew was lifted up. With horror on their faces they realized what was about to happen to them and started panicking. From under the pile, a furious Ryuko Matoi lifted the pile of One-Stars over her head. Then, with a loud grunt, pulled them back behind her-raising her leg before slamming it back down-and threw them all down the opposite end of the hallway. "-OF YOU DAMN ONE-STARS!"
The group flew down the hall, spinning like a bowling ball, before they hit the wall and "blew up." Ryuko didn't pay them any heed, as she ran down the rest of the hall and turned the corner. A group of stairs led up to the second story of the building, and she began to run up them fast enough for several students to pop their heads out-wondering what was going on-only to find nothing in the hall.
Ryuko ascended the stairs, "Where did you go, Mohawk!" She spoke, before she stopped as she noticed something drop from the stairs: a spool grenade.
Oh not this again!
The spool grenade-or should she say grenades-blew up, sending her flying up the stairs and against the wall. Sliding to the ground, she gripped the back of her head in pain, then cried out as she felt several needles riddle her in the same area.
"Dammit, how did he set up that trap so fast-"
{Ryuko!}
"What! I'm trying the best I can do here, it's not like he'll...last long?"
She had turned to look down the hall, and saw with horror just what she was facing: several One-Stars were gathered all around the ceiling and walls-some of them even through the windows into the classroom. All of them were shot up and covered with needles, and some were even crucified on mops...mops…
Ryuko gulped, Darn it...just who am I facing here?
Damn, that man is consistent.
Kazuya smirked as he looked into the window on the building opposite to the one he was standing on. It was practically a massacre inside, with various students all unconscious, and some even hanging from the ceiling. He wasn't on the same side as the man with the Mohawk, but god he could admire the brutality left in his wake.
He'll certainly be a strong enemy to Lady Satsuki. I'll have to tell Inumuta that it's important to keep an eye on him in the long run.
He continued looking at the carnage left in Mohawk's wake, when a call from one of his men blared from a walkie talkie attached to his side. "Captain! We've stopped firing as per your instructions. What's our next order?
He turned back to the destruction left in his club's wake. A cloud of dust and smoke was now rising toward the sky, and as he looked down at the edge he saw Sox looking up at him, waiting for a signal. Taking a breath, he pulled his walkie talkie from his side and spoke into it, "You are to go into the cloud and check if Ruby Rose is still alive. If she is, then bring her to me…"
Sox nodded his head and, with his bat raised, took his first step into the dust cloud below. Kazuya smirked as he crouched down at the edge of the roof, waiting for his prey to finally be captured…
A feeling of dread was washing over Sox. He didn't know why-after all, how in the hell could Ruby Rose be alive after that barrage. But he felt uneasy, like it wasn't end of things to come...nor would it end favorably.
He treaded slowly with his bat at the ready, his eyes keeping a close attention to anything particularly red or black. His breath was surprisingly heavy, and he felt a trembling in his hands. Calm down Sox, everything's gonna be alright. The captain's here! He'll keep the team safe, he always has...definitely!
The dust was oppressive, and he could barely see anything in front of him. Silently he kept stepping forward, making sure to keep his eyes focused on his surroundings at all times.
Then, after taking a step, he looked down and saw it: a scrap of black cloth-somewhat ripped and caked in dust from the surrounding building. Nervously he bent down and picked it up, looking at it more closely while wiping away the dust that covered it. The fabric was definitely black, and upon closer inspection he could see that a lower half of it was also red-the main color of Ruby Rose's clothing.
Sox breathed a sigh of relief as he pulled his walkie talkie close to his ear. "Sir...I've found a piece of Miss Rose's clothing. She must've been eviscerated by the attack."
"Good. Continue to look for anymore evidence before you exit that zone. See if her body's still there too."
"Right captain! Over and out." He started to put his walkie talkie away as he started to grow calmer, Look's like all of that worrying was for nothing…
...That thought was the last thing Sox remembered before he felt a round hit him in the chest and he was sent flying-his body spasming from the electricity coursing through his body.
"Sox? Sox!?"
"Help...me…" Was all he could hear before his feed started to cut out. Realizing what was happening, Kazuya stood and began throwing orders out to the rest of the crew. "All hands, continue firing into the cloud now! Ruby Rose is not down for the count, I repeat, Ruby Rose is still mobile! Move your asses!"
"Right sir, let's get this show on the ro-AGH!"
He looked over at the spot that a club member was at, only to see that he was gone-having disappeared from where he originally was. He heard another call in, "Sir! One of our men just got picked off, I think I...oh shit! Captain, she's-GAH!"
"What's going on? Guy's, what's g-OCK!" "Hey, Hey. Keep on the channel, she's trying to...CRAP! No! AAHH!" "What the...is that-" "Shit, shit. Captain, she's after me-eee-ee-" "Captain-BWA!"
Kazuya stood frozen as he heard the various screams and cries of his club members as they were picked off one by one. His walkie talkie shook in his hand as the voices of his crew echoed in his mind. What the...she survived that attack.
Another scream, followed by a cry of pain, followed by a yelp from his men, followed by the walkie talkies turning to static at the end. He heard all of them loudly in his ear, and as they grew louder he started to have a panic attack. His mind flashed back to the many years back, and several of the screams started growing more and more in severity.
God no, not this again.
He gripped his head, which started hurting with a numbing pain. He grit his teeth, while the screams in his ear started extending far past him-surround him entirely until the screaming was all that he could hear...along with something else...something he couldn't pick up well enough.
Stop...please…
"I...ai-ng."
No...no, not that…
"I'm-ait-ng."
I won't listen, I won't!
"I'm...wai...ing."
Get out of my head...get out of my head!
"...I'm waiting."
Go away! GO AWAY!
"I'm waiting."
SILENCE!
"I'm waiting, Ichiro!"
He felt himself be pulled back to reality-his mind shaken as he started breathing out heavily. He looked down, finding himself still in Honnoji Academy-still on the roof he had perched up on. He wasn't there...wasn't back in the place he remembered the most. He sighed in relief, realizing that he was in a better place…
"You wanted me, Ichiro. Here I am."
...And currently dealing with Ruby Rose. He turned around slowly, his eyes falling on the lone girl before him. Her scythe was unfurled in it's entirety and resting on her shoulder, and her hood was left over her head, with only the glint of glowing silver visible underneath. In her hand was one of his club members-held by the back of the neckline, and barely conscious. He turned his head to look at him, "C-Cap-tain…"
He didn't say anything more before Ruby threw him onto the ground and she stepped over him. Her glare didn't leave him, and from the way that she was looking at him, Kazuya could tell easily enough: Ruby Rose was barely on the edge of holding in her rage. He looked closer, taking notice of her grit teeth hidden behind a mouth that was barely open and...were her eyes glowing silver?
"You poisoned Mako, didn't you…"
Hate was something that Ruby had never really felt before. Now, while it was true that she didn't like Roman Torchwick back on Remnant, she never really hated him as much as she found him more of an unpleasant person that should stay in jail. The captain of the Honnoji Baseball Team standing before her however-Kazuya Ichiro-she felt something burning and furious within her. A gnawing at her soul that made her feel...different, almost uninhibited in a sense. It scared her, yet at the same time she was embracing it wholeheartedly, like it was an old friend she had just reunited with.
She remembered on Remnant that the Grimm were attracted to negative emotions like anger and fear. So it's likely that she tried to suppress these emotions as much as possible while growing up, and without the Grimm to bother her, she was now free to feel like however she felt. In this case, if she were to compare how she felt towards Roman to how she was feeling towards Kazuya Ichiro, the feeling was entirely, disturbingly different…
Around Torchwick, she felt like just beating his sorry butt, planting straight in a Vale jail cell, and calling it a day. Around Kazuya Ichiro she wanted to beat him bloody, drag him across the entire campus of Honnoji, parade him in front of Satsuki, and tell him straight to his face that if he ever threatened another friend of his...there would be consequences on his head.
"You poisoned Mako, didn't you…"
Her voice was practically a growl as she glared at Ichiro. The baseball club captain, by contrast, simply had a blank stare as he addressed her-his voice barely audible, "Wh-what?"
"You poisoned my friend! Don't you DARE tell me you forgot, you scumbag!" She was yelling, her rage flaring up almost immediately, and her grip on Crescent Rose tightening. "You poisoned Mako-gave her a disease that could've killed her-may STILL kill her! And all you can say is WHAT!?
He wasn't respondent, instead continuing to stare at her with a look she found to be far more different than she imagined he be. Her body was shaking, "Answer me...or have you seen a ghost and are too shocked to even speak properly…"
At this, Ichiro seemed to respond. His head flinched, and his eyes seemed to light up, as if he was finally recognizing her presence. Then, after taking a glance at her, he started to giggle...which soon turned to chuckling, then to laughter. He practically heaved backward at the statement she had made as he continued to utter that raucous laugh. Then, he began to calm down once more, taking a deep breath in the process.
"...Maybe I have…" His face fell into his palm, "...this is truly embarrassing of me. Here I am reminiscing of the past, when I should be focusing on the present."
He looked at her, his face now the smirking, sly expression she imagined would be his general look. She felt her teeth grate against each other, before taking in a deep breath. "...Answer me. Did you poison Mako?"
He remained silent for a minute, his mind taking it's time to process and think back on present events before he snapped his fingers and smiled, "Ah, miss Mako Mankanshoku, I remember...yes, I poisoned her to get to you."
Ruby barely remembered what happened next after he finished his sentence. All she can deduce is that she saw red. She roared and charged at Ichiro-using her semblance to jump at him so fast that he wouldn't have any time to dodge before she cut him in half. She only skidded to a stop-her weapon barely stopping at his waist-when she barely managed to hear the captain speak, "If you kill me, you won't realize in time what the real problem is in front of you…"
She stopped, not even sparing Kazuya a glance, as she growled through clenched teeth. "Tell me now, Ichiro. Or I pull the trigger and split you in two…"
Ichiro paused-his hands raised-as he looked back at her with a smirk. "Ryuko Matoi."
Ryuko? This got her attention, and she looked back at the captain, "What has this got to do with Ryuko?"
A chuckle escaped him. He was clearly enjoying himself as he teased her with something she didn't know about, "You could call something like this a "gambit" of sorts…"
"A gambit?"
"Yes, a gambit. In essence, I attacked you yesterday, if I remember correctly. I perform what essentially amounts to a shock and awe attack, and I scar my face into your memory. That was the start, and then I poison a close friend of yours-whose father would happen to be both an idiot and a backstreet doctor-and make it obvious that it was me who committed such a "heinous" act. You would angrily confront me, and not even realize the true problem happening right before your eyes."
"What are you talking about?"
"What makes this a gambit. Let me ask you this; where is Ryuko Matoi at the moment?"
Ruby froze, as the puzzle slowly began to come together in her mind. Kazuya's smirk grew wider, "Yes. You see, around the same time I attacked you, Matoi was having problems with a specific man of sorts herself. You may recognize him as the man with a red mohawk?"
...No.
"So I made a plan out of my head that was simple, yet perfect. I take out the middleman that holds you all together so she doesn't meddle in anybody's affairs, and then I attack you here, right now. Either two things happen: I'm successful, and I either kill or capture you...or I fail, and, well...I'm sure you see where I'm going with this."
...Ryuko gets beaten by the Mohawk man. She suddenly felt woozy, as the full brunt of what she just realized hit her like a wrecking ball.
A smug Kazuya continued, pressing the metaphorical knife even deeper, "It's amazing really. That, even with eyes that good, one can't see the real threat in front of them. It also brings to mind a quote from a famous president of the United States: 'A house divided against itself cannot stand.' Little did he know that there are two ways that can happen: either turn both sides against itself, or blind them to their oncoming doom...wouldn't you think so, Ruby Rose."
She was silent. Her mind shooting from one direction to another, looking for a solution or something, as she stood there.
This is my fault. This is all my fault.
An explosion rocked the building as the section opposite of the one they were standing on blew open, with multicolored smoke flying out of the windows of the third floor. Ichiro's head cocked back to get a better look, his eyes blank as they fell upon the disaster area several kilometers away. "Huh, so it ends in an explosive finish, eh?"
Ruby's head flinched back at him. This was all her fault, with her friend currently in danger, and herself not even bothering to put her attention to it. How stupid could she be…
It can't go like this...I have to stop this...now!
Ichiro smirked as he started to speak, "Well, Miss Rose, I do believe that this is the part where I've officially won. So why don't we move past the traditional "this cannot be" and straight to the conditions of your surrender-"
He felt something hard, cold, and metallic smack the side of his head. Within seconds he was flying-wondering what the hell just happened-before he skidded to a stop several feet away, falling unconscious in the process. Wasting no time, Ruby turned to look at the area of the fighting and took a running start. Within seconds she was in the air, shooting straight for what she was sure was a warzone…
I have to stop this now!
...Well, that hurt. My head's ringing…
Kazuya groaned as he rose himself off from the ground, gripping his head and rubbing the place where Ruby had hit him with her weapon. The girl had gone off to save her friend, leaving him to gather himself back up in peace. Which was a good thing too, because his head was pounding well before she had confronted him.
In all honesty, all he wanted to do was clear the field now. He was sure that his job was practically done-with Ryuko about to go down from the Mohawk, Ruby would be captured in no time. All he would need to do was take the credit when it happens, and he would be set…
...Of course, that's if the second plan doesn't override this one.
He rose to his feet and turned to look to where Ruby was heading towards. The girl was nowhere to be seen, meaning that she was already halfway there. Which is impressive-considering he was capable of following her speed well enough yesterday to counter it. He smirked as a thought came to his mind.
...Silver eyes. They're a wonderful gift to have, that much is certain. If only eyes didn't drive me up a wall like the other times...Ah well, looks like they'll be extinguished soon eno-
He didn't get to finish his thought.
He felt something hard pierce his side, causing him to lurch forward. A slight gasp escaped him as his eyes went wide, and he looked back as well as he could to see what had happened. The light blue mop of hair was the first indication, followed by the green eyes obscured behind glasses of a similar tint to his hair.
He knew who this was-how could anyone not remember any of the Elite Four. "In-Inumuta...why are you here?"
"Hello Kazuya Ichiro. It's unfortunate, but it seems that you've done something very against the rules. And now Gamagoori has demanded that you be brought in...to stand before Lady Satsuki."
Gamagoori...I see. Dutiful as always.
He felt Inumuta's hand pull out from where he had jabbed into him, instantly followed by his Two-Star uniform coming apart as he started to fall to the ground. By the time he had hit the concrete, he was completely naked, and rapidly losing consciousness. The last thing he remembered seeing was Inumuta's lithe frame standing over him, looking down at him with those narrowed eyes of his…
...Huh. Seem's that second plan will happen after all...it's just a matter of...time…
Inumuta stared down at the pathetic form of Kazuya Ichiro. He had never liked Ichiro when he first remembered seeing him. He was consistent, that much was for certain, but it seemed almost too consistent at times. That wasn't even worth mentioning how approachable he was-which threw him off considerably. After all, with the other captains ranging from greedy, to arrogant, and even violent, why is there a captain in our ranks who's frequently nice?
It won't matter now. Inumuta thought, as he glanced up to the wreckage of the building across. What does matter is whether or not Matoi, Rose, Kinagase, or all three of them are captured...so let's see if Jakuzure can live up to her end of the bargain, shall we?
Inumuta smirked under his coat, as he soon grabbed Kazuya by the ankle and began dragging him back into the building-deciding that he would watch surveillance later for any valuable data he may find from the aftermath.
...Ow...that really hurt…
Honestly, Ryuko would think that the poor guy with a bunch of those spool needles in his mouth was hurting a lot more than her. But really, she couldn't give a damn enough to care. So yes, that really, really hurt.
She tried to push herself up off the ground. The keyword being "tried" here, as she could barely move at all. She managed to get herself up to a momentary sitting position before she felt her uniform shudder. Looking down, she noticed that Senketsu was transforming back into his normal form…
{I'm sorry, Ryuko. I'm at my limit here…}
Without any warning, red light from the transformation enveloped Ryuko, and soon her uniform was back to normal-albeit looking worn and beaten.
She panicked, calling out his name loud enough for anyone down the hall to hear. A call that was only met with nothing but silence. She looked down at her uniform, and took special notice of the needles embedded in her skin and uniform.
...Dammit, how many are there?
She didn't have time to figure it out before she started hearing something heading towards her. Looking out the window, she spotted the Mohawk swinging down at her on a rope, before he crashed through the window and kicked her...hard.
Almost all the breath in her lungs spewed out as she rolled straight into the wall opposite from the door, and she yelped in pain as her head smacked against the tile. With a groan she strained to look around, and found that she was in the boys bathroom...with the Mohawk man pointing his sewing gun directly at her.
"It seems the jamming rounds have finally taken effect. It seems like with all of the rounds you took, it would be impossible to bring down the Kamui. But it seems even the most powerful of Goku Uniforms have their limits afterall…" He said, his composure keeping itself as tight lipped as ever. Ryuko looked up at him, her eyes narrowed as she glared defiantly at him.
"...Now, take off your clothes. I've sealed the powers of your Kamui, and winning is an impossibility for you."
Ryuko pushed herself forward, "No. You think that I'll listen to someone who up and attacked me out of the bl-AHG"
She felt her gut lurch as the Mohawk man kicked her in the stomach. Heaving out air, she soon felt the butt of his gun hit her head, and she cried out in pain-gripping her abdomen as the pain pulsed through her system. The Mohawk man glared down at her, before he stood up straight and began to talk.
"Let me tell you two useful pieces of information...One: there was once a woman who believed that humans and clothes weren't enemies...a notion that made her a fool. And because of that foolishness, clothing betrayed her." He pulled the pin back on his gun as he aimed at Ryuko point blank, "Two: The path you walk is the same one she walked...and it's end is the same."
Ryuko looked at him, confused as all hell. "What are you talking about? What does that have in relation to me?"
"It wouldn't matter...you'd care about as much as she did when I questioned her…"
The world seemed to stop in that moment. Ryuko watched the Mohawk man as he stood there-his gun at the ready-and prepared for the worst. So this is how it ends, huh? At the least...Ruby will...Ruby!
Ryuko had almost forgotten what she had really needed to do. Maybe she forgot it in her frustration to beat this guy and save her, but she remembered. In that moment, she felt strength momentarily return to her legs, and with some major strain she pushed forward, launching herself forward and past the Mohawk man. The man clearly didn't expect it, and his eyes went wide as he started opening fire in an attempt to stop her.
She had barely avoided it as she rounded past the door and started running down the hall. Her breath was ragged, and nearly every muscle in her body was aching as she ran, but she didn't care. She pushed those feelings into the back of her mind as she focused on finding Ruby.
She didn't stop, nor did she wait to see if the Mohawk man was following her. She only bent herself lower mid-run to pick up her scissor blade on the way. Gotta find Ruby...Gotta find Ruby...Gotta find Ruby-
{Ryuko...Stop for a second...or you're going to run dry…}
She set aside Senketsu's warnings as she turned the corner and started running down the stairs, just in time to avoid a stream of those "jamming rounds" behind her. She got to the bottom of the first set and rounded to run down the other, and was just halfway down them when she heard something clink against the wall.
Ah shit…
An explosion from a spool grenade sent her flying into the wall nearby, and she slammed into it with a sharp gasp of pain before she fell to the floor. Coughing, she tried to crawl, hoping to at least reach the window and see what was going on in that wreckage of a building. However, just as she was getting anywhere, a set of boots landed in front of her, and she felt herself be picked up by the scruff of her neck and tossed into the wall.
The man with the Mohawk once again stood over her, this time with a more angrier expression. Cocking his gun, he pointed it at Ryuko one more time as he spoke up one small line, "You just don't know when you're beaten, do you…"
No...I have a different priority right now. She pushed herself up slightly, so that she had enough of a view to look out the window. With barely any strength left she turned to look out the window and see what had happened during her fight with Mohawk.
The area across from her was a disaster zone. Smoke and dust was still rising from the area that was attacked, and nearly the entire part of that building was caved in. She looked for anything that looked red-anything that signified Ruby. While she couldn't find anything, she did spot something on the roof of another area opposite to the building she was in. One of the Elite Four stood on the roof-standing over an unconscious guy with blonde hair, and a pile of One-Stars all dressed up in what seemed to be baseball gear.
Kazuya, but no Ruby? Is she alive?
A smack to her face brought her back to what was happening presently as she fell to the floor. Groaning, she glanced up to see the man, pointing her gun directly at her face. "Time to end this…"
She looked up at him, realizing that she couldn't win this. She desperately wanted to find out about Ruby-at least make sure she's safe-but it was clear that she was going to be denied this. I'm sorry Ruby…
She looked up at the man with the Mohawk and stared defiantly at him. Narrowing his eyes, his finger was tightened on the trigger, just as a cluster of rose petals flew from the stairs and smacked into the both of them hard enough to send them flying out the window…
Ryuko, Mohawk, and Ruby sailed out of the window, with the man being sent straight for the ground while Ryuko fell down after him. Ruby meanwhile had launched herself farther outward, and was now sailing to the ground with Crescent Rose fully unfurled. Looking back at where she had launched out from, she spotted the man as he pulled out a green and black knife and stabbed it into the wall. Instantly his momentum started to slow, and Ryuko was beginning to catch up with him as a result.
Taking in a deep breath, Ruby landed first-using the recoil from her weapon to soften her landing. The man with the Mohawk landed next, instantly rolling as soon as he hit the ground before popping back up, his gun in his hand. Without a moment's hesitation, he opened fire in her direction, and Ruby could instantly spot around fifty six shots coming her way before she did what she did best: she disappeared in a burst of rose petals.
For a moment, the man was lost. Confused as to what had just happened before his very eyes. Then he felt something quickly rest on his back, and he managed to catch a glimpse of the girl leaning on his back as she held out her arms to catch the falling Ryuko.
Ryuko landed in her arms hard enough that she ended up straining to stay up straight. With a large heave, she yanked Ryuko closer to her chest and pulled her feet up onto the man's back. Then, with a shot from Crescent Rose and her own semblance, the two of them shot forward, heading down one side of the wall while sending the man flying in the opposite direction. The Mohawk, not expecting the move in the slightest, rolled against the ground-smacking against solid earth enough times to get multiple bruises. As he finally skidded to a stop he immediately rose up to face the two girls.
Ruby skidded to a stop and planted Ryuko onto a nearby wall, where she began to look her over. The girl was barely lucid, and badly beaten over her entire body, with bruises covering her body from head to toe. Several needles were embedded in her clothes and skin, and it was clear that she could barely muster enough strength to walk. Ruby looked at this all with solemn horror...why would anyone do all of this just for a Kamui?
Ryuko's eyes opened ever so slightly enough to register her, and with a strained voice she tried to speak to her. "R-Ruby?"
"It's me. Don't worry, I'm here. I'm sorry, it's all my fault, I-"
"It's not your fault...nothing's your fault. If anything, I should've watched your back better…"
"No, no, no. Don't say that, I left you back there to fight Kazuya. I should've watched over you. I'm...I'm-" She was barely on the edge of tears as she looked at the battered form of her friend. Quietly she looked down at Senketsu and cringed at the sight of the uniform. It looked at her with it's single eye before looking beyond her. {Ruby...behind you…}
Ruby turned to look at the man behind her. He was marching toward them-his eyes and grit teeth clearly indicating that he was seething with rage. Ruby could attest herself...she felt a pang of anger well up as she turned with Crescent Rose unfurled. Quickly she spinned the weapon around her upper body before embedding it into the ground and pulling the pin to ready the gun, "Don't you dare come any closer!"
The man raised his sewing gun as he approached, his eyes burning with fury, "Move aside, girl. That abomination must be destroyed."
"No!" She retorted, "I won't stand by while someone threatens my friends! Nor will I let anyone threaten innocent life, be it human, faunus, or a piece of sentient clothing!"
"You call that "thing" innocent…" He motioned to Senketsu with his gun, "My sister thought that clothing was innocent once, and they betrayed her for that naivety. You think that after all is said and done, that uniform on your friend there won't do the same. If not, then you're just as foolish as she was."
Ruby heard a coarse voice behind her speak out, and she turned to see Ryuko talk to him, "Wait...that woman you told me about back there...was that your sister?"
Ruby blinked, "Sister? What does whose sister have to do with this?"
"IT HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH THIS!" She turned to the man-now completely livid-as he began to shout at them furiously. "My sister is DEAD because of monsters like that. One day-ONE DAY-it will find that girl of no more use and toss her aside like TRASH! And if you think I'll let something like that roam this world and cause more tragedy, then you are as blind to reality as much as the one behind you. DO YOU UNDERSTAND, LIFE FIBERS ARE NOTHING BUT PARA-"
"SHUT UP!"
Ruby's scream sent out a shockwave that caused the man to nearly lose his balance. Struggling to keep on his feet, the man kept his gun trained on the girl as rose petals and a red aura flew out from all over her body. Meanwhile her face was contorted in utter rage, and her eyes-a distinct silver-started to glow.
"You lost your sister to a Kamui is something I can give my heartfelt condolences to, BUT USING IT AS AN EXCUSE TO TEAR APART MY ONLY FRIENDS HERE AND DECIDE THEIR FUTURE IS SOMETHING I WON'T STAND FOR! YOU THINK THAT BECAUSE A KAMUI KILLED YOUR SISTER THAT SENKETSU IS NOTHING BUT A HEARTLESS, UNREPENTANT MONSTER! THE ONLY MONSTER I SEE HERE...IS YOU!"
The words echoed throughout the entire courtyard of Honnoji, and likely out to the rest of the city below. Ryuko looked at her friend wide-eyed as she started taking in deep breathes from the seemingly endless shout she had just roared outward. The man with the Mohawk, meanwhile, stood where he was absolutely stunned, his face frozen in shock.
Ruby, with nary a breath to spare, grit her teeth and yelled out one more time, "SO IF YOU WANT TO GET TO MY FRIENDS, THEN YOU'LL HAVE TO GO THROUGH ME! SO COME ON!"
The world seemed to go silent, with only the sound of Ruby's heavy breathing around to break the oppressive tension. The man with the Mohawk looked at the girl before her, wondering where she had come from. He had met several people before that, to him, were weird or extraordinary in many different ways, yet for some reason this girl beat them by a mile. What was so different about this girl? The clothes? The weapon? And what was it about her eyes that greatly unnerved him?
He thought for a minute about the words she said. Friends? She can't be talking about the other girl that was with Matoi yesterday. Is she talking about the uniform…
It sounded stupid. After all, clothes can't speak, so how can this girl claim that a piece of clothing-much less a parasite like a Kamui-be a friend? At this point, he would consider the girl delusional if not for the fact that she was being dead serious. So what was it?
He glanced at the uniform on Matoi. It was clearly weakened-worn and strained from the fight that had transpired through the day. That was his objective this whole time...he couldn't just stop right here, could he?
No...I can't stop here.
He sighed, before he pulled the pin back on his gun, "It seems we have reached an impasse. Neither of us can agree on the Kamui, and it's clear we most likely never will...So for the last time, move aside."
The girl-Ruby Rose-looked at him with a steely gaze, her hands tightening around the grips of her weapon. "No."
He paused, before he reluctantly prepared himself for what was about to follow. "Then you leave me no choice…"
He readied his gun-aimed it at the girl...and suddenly went frozen as the world around him suddenly seemed to shift to a realm made of nothing but multicolored light. His mind tried to process what was happening when he saw it appear in front of him: the Kamui. The uniform, now without anyone wearing it, held it's gaping jaw open and pulled him closer to it's eye. For a split second, he was sure it was about to devour him, and ended up completely taken off guard by what happened next…
It spoke, {If you lay a finger on either Ryuko or Ruby...If you do, I'll make you pay!}
He gasped, just in time to see the barrel of a rifle-along with a large scythe blade attached to it-aimed straight in his face. He glanced up to see the scowling face of the girl in front of him. "There's always a choice...you're just refusing to see it."
He was in shock. "The uniform...it talked?" He said under his breath, which caused the girl to stop in confusion. "Those two...care about each other?" he looked in Matoi's direction. The Kamui was still attached to her body, yet he was clearly sure it had talked to him.
Ruby Rose stood still, keeping the gun in her weapon aimed at him while slowly realizing that he wasn't pressing to attack them. For a few moments it looked like the conflict was over...until they realized that they were suddenly surrounded.
A drum-roll sounded off around them, causing the three of them to see the crowd of female One-Stars around them-each of them carrying various band instruments of different shapes and sizes. The sound of percussion instruments was soon followed by a group of One-Stars separating to let in the person standing behind them: Nonon Jakuzure.
"Your battle against the Kamui was magnificent." She said, a smug grin spread across her face as she addressed the man with the Mohawk. "However, I've grown bored of the melody you play...and considering who's aiming their weapon at you, so has another." She started to walk toward them. "-Hand over Matoi. And Miss Rose, I suggest you quietly surrender…"
Ruby Rose jumped backwards, landing next to Ryuko as she began to look around at the crowd of One-Stars that had surrounded them. The man with the Mohawk meanwhile stood motionless amongst them as he began to speak-his tone back to the stoic monotone he originally had. "Hand over the Kamui. To the likes of you people?"
"Yes...and if you'll be so kind, you surrender yourself as well."
The man with the Mohawk turned to Jakuzure, "Let me tell you two useful pieces of information. One: None of you will ever be able to capture me...and Two: I won't let you have these three, either!"
Without warning, the man's clothes expanded outward from his body, before it exploded in a pink cloud of smoke that surrounded him, Ruby, and Ryuko. Without even flinching or losing her composure, Nonon called for one of her subordinates-a One-Star with a tuba, and had them blow away the smoke in an instant.
As the cloud dissipated, none of them were able to find the three of them. However, what they did find was something a lot more unpleasant: a spool grenade.
The grenade exploded, hitting several One-Stars and causing others to dive for cover as the jamming rounds flew in all directions. Nonon smacked the ones flying toward her out of midair, her smirk slowly turning into a frown as the number of them started to dissipate until the firing stopped completely.
Nonon walked forward, looking around the area for any evidence of the three perpetrators. As it soon became clear that there wasn't anything to find, Nonon sighed in slight frustration. They all got away…
She looked back up at the areas destroyed in the chaos. Hopefully Satsuki won't be angry about two fifths of the school being destroyed…
With that thought, she turned back toward the central building of Honnoji Academy. Today was a long day, and a full report of the situation was in order...not to mention Inumuta's data collecting.
That dog had better been able to find something...
Several Hours Later…
...For someone who ended up getting a serious beatdown just a few hours ago, Ryuko Matoi felt surprisingly at ease as she awoke.
Slowly opening her eyes, she looked around at the room she was in, and soon found herself remembering the various parts of the nudist teachers place immediately. Standing by the window was Ruby, who was looking outside the window opposite to Ryuko. She cracked a meek grin at the sight of her.
I see...Ruby's alright, so I guess that everything's alright...what about-
"Senketsu!" She bolted upward and looked down to see the uniform still on her body-still a little worse for wear, but otherwise fine. She sighed in relief at this discovery, and looked over at Ruby who had turned and was now walking over to her.
Ruby kneeled beside her and started looking over her. "Are you alright! You aren't hurt are you? And what about Senketsu, is he alright?" She said rapidly, her voice quivering with worry. Senketsu blinked, then looked over at her and spoke in an attempt to calm her down. {I'll be fine. Likely thanks to that man, I suppose.}
"I'm also fine. I'll probably be sore for a few days, but everything's otherwise good." Ryuko said with a smile. Ruby exhaled, likely having held her worries inside for a long time today before now. She smiled and hugged Ryuko, who returned the hug...before flinching in pain from the beating earlier. "I'm sorry!"
"Don't be, I just gotta go slow is all. Let my body recover, y'know!" She let out a chuckle as she layed back down on the couch. "The real question here is if you're alright?"
Ruby snorted and waved a hand at her, "Please Ryuko. You're covered in bruises, and you are worried whether or not I'm alright."
"...Well, yeah?"
She went silent for a moment, with her stare being nearly miles long. Then, as she took a seat, looking away she spoke, her tone rather solemn, "I-I'm sorry Ryuko. As soon as Ichiro attacked me, I just forgot about you-forgot about what I really needed to focus on at the time. And as a result, you were nearly…"
"It wasn't your fault."
Ruby's head flicked back at her, an incredulous look on her face. "It was my fault!"
"No it wasn't-"
"It. Was. My. Fault!"
"It wasn't-"
"Ryuko, it was-"
"Ruby-" Ryuko started sharply, making the girl flinch at the sudden shift in tone. Having finally gotten her attention, she smiled at the other girl, "One: I don't blame you in the slightest for getting angry and doing something even I would do given the circumstances…"
Ruby blinked. Her fingers fiddling with each other as she looked away from her slightly. Heartily, Ryuko continued, "-And two: You were attacked first, and stuck having to face an enemy alone without my help. If anyone's at fault here, it would be me...and that bastard Mohawk, but that's beside the point. The truth is...we were caught in a bad situation. We tried to help each other the best we could...and, in my book, that's all that matters."
The girl was silent in thought, before she responded with a rather small voice, "Y-You're not mad with me?"
Ryuko held out an open hand, "Nope, and I doubt I will be anytime soon." She said, motioning for Ruby to take her hand. For a few moments, the red riding hood was a little reluctant, but eventually came around and-with a small smile-took her hand. "Friends to the end?"
Ryuko smiled, "Friends to the end."
Everything went quiet as they looked at each other with smiles on their faces. Senketsu looked at both of them and spoke, {Well, all's well, it end's well, it seems.}
The two of them let go as Ryuko looked down at her uniform, "Yeah...but damn did I lose! It was a complete rout!"
{At the very least, we all live to fight another day.}
Ryuko sighed, "Yeah, that we do…" Ryuko laid down with her arm over her forehead as her expression turned serious, "...Senketsu. Ruby. We all need to become even stronger...No-we can become even stronger, if we're together."
Both Ruby's and Senketsu's eyes went wide at the declaration. Sighing, Senketsu spoke in a softer voice than usual, {Right...I am your partner, after all.}
"No...you're my friend."
The uniform's single eye grew even wider-stunned by the kind words of the one wearing him. He felt Ruby pat him, and both him and Ryuko looked at the smiling, "...We're both your friends, Senketsu."
The uniform felt a pang as he slowly felt his form relax in the company of his friends, {Yes, I am the friend of the both of you.}
The two girls smiled, "Just don't measure my BMI anymore."
{I can't accept that request.}
"But I thought we were friends!"
{We are. Lose 2cm from your waist}
"tw-Get off my case already!" Ryuko replied as she began to argue with Senketsu. All the while Ruby laughed at what was unfolding before her-glad to see both her friends were fine.
Aikurou flicked his lighter on, letting the small fire spew from the opening as he offered Tsumugu a light. "Well done saving Matoi. I'm guessing this means that your "debt" is repaid."
Tsumugu closed his eyes, "That isn't enough."
"It's plenty. Besides, I only put girls in my debt."
Tsumugu looked at the blue haired teacher and sighed as he brought the tip of his cigarette to the light. "Let me tell you two useful pieces of information. One: I'm only giving those two a chance-nothing more, nothing less."
He brought the cigarette to his mouth, inhaled, then exhaled as he cracked a smile, "-Two: If I see things coming apart at the seams, I'll be back to rip it off her-regardless of the red riding hood's opinion."
Aikurou smiled, then watched as Tsumugu started up his motorcycle and drove away-his job officially done, and his true path finally realized…
Kinue would be proud…
Title Reference: You're in Trouble by Ratt
IT'S DONE! THE FIRST STORY ARC IN PART 2 IS DONE! HUZZAH!
*ahem* Hello, ladies and gentlemen! Welcome back to Crimson Incandescence! I said it would be back in the next month didn't I? Well, It's here! It's finally here, I'm so happy! I AM BEYOND HAPPY! AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH-
* has stopped responding, rebooting*
-Alright! Let me get this out of the way, I had a ton of fun writing up this chapter! I had so much fun writing the first half of it that I couldn't help but gush about how much fun I had writing it! That's HOW MUCH FUN I had writing it (and now I'm sounding completely redundant now...derp!)
So, first of all. I really had to follow several viewpoints here-specifically Ruby, Ryuko, Tsumugu (Mohawk), Kazuya, Nonon, and a bit of Inumuta. And I have to say that I think I did a good enough job following each one throughout the chapter. Each one of them I felt had a lot more coherence than usual too, though that's up to personal opinion. Still, I'm gonna say that I did good in these aspects.
And the fight scenes-dear god, the fight scenes. From Ryuko's panic to get to Ruby, to Rube's countering the attack by the Baseball club (no, she didn't kill any of them. She just beat the SHIT out of them), to Ryuko's struggle against Tsumugu. Yes, yes, yes, YES, YES, YES! I FEEL SO DAMN GOOD WITH THE FIGHT SCENES!
...Now, with that being said, I don't think this chapter comes without faults. I do believe that the second half of the chapter is significantly weaker, but I don't think it's as bad as it was before. What I'm more worried about are the scenes featuring Ruby, and certain things regarding how the conflicts are wrapped up.
So first: Ruby Rose. To explain what I was going for, I wanted to have Ruby be enraged. I can't remember, but I think I explained that I like to view Ruby as incredibly loyal to her friends-to the point that she'll become furious upon hearing that their life is put in literal danger, or legitimately threatened directly under her nose. That was what I was going for, and the idea would follow that-being lost in her rage-Ruby would completely forget to watch Ryuko's back in the meantime...hence what a good majority of her meeting with Kazuya would be like.
But I also wonder if I made Ruby a little too...out of character. After all, Ruby is the epitome of sweet and kindness in RWBY behind Nora, Penny, Pyrrha, and Yang. So this makes me worry somewhat. To be honest, we haven't really seen Ruby having seething rage toward someone in-series (save for a small way she say's "Cinder" at the end of Volume 3), so maybe I shouldn't worry about it. But I do-I at least want to do somewhat right by these characters, so I will always worry.
Now, as for how the entire conflict with Kazuya ends...I'll be honest, he is going to return in future chapters (hell, the next chapter will address what happens to him after all of this), so I didn't end up having an epic final clash with him and Ruby here. If I do, it will be much, much, MUCH later. With that being said, I apologize if said end to his part in this arc ends...anticlimactically. To be honest, though, considering I'm holding to the rule that "Ruby Rose can kick Two-Star ass or lower without a problem." Then Kazuya would be utterly destroyed.
And as for how the conflict with Tsumugu ends...I don't really have the same reservations. If I were to worry about this, it would be the stuff with Nonon afterwards that I would look more thoroughly at. So yeah, I don't exactly think the end to that fight is bad...though that's again up to personal opinion, so please share your thoughts.
Now, finishing up with Kazuya. I feel a lot better with writing him here than I did in previous chapters. And this time I tried to flesh him out a bit to where he's not exactly an invincible antagonist who can turn a defeat into a victory. I tried to introduce some flaws, give the reader an idea of how his gambits blow up in his face, and also...well, if you read above, you know what I'm talking about. So, for now, Kazuya is out of the smaller picture for now. He still remains a threat later down the line, but for now he's small time...poor Kazuya.
And, as an aside. Did anyone see some things in his character (the most obvious being his small breakdown) that seem a little off to you. If so, let me ask you this: Does this remind you of a different character either in or out of the two series...please, take your guess. I'll wait…
So, to finish up, an overall good chapter, I think! Hopefully-considering I felt far better writing a large majority of this chapter in comparison to the previous two-everyone enjoys it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
...Now, moving away from CI, let me discuss some things that I want you all to know about.
So, first things first: COLLEGE IS BACK! And I'm gonna be in class for a good few months again. I'm telling you this to let you know that if I get delayed on this story, a good portion of it may be due to college, so a fair warning in the future.
I may have previously stated that Crimson Incandescence will now be updated once a month, and I intend to keep it that way. It gives me enough time to write up an entire chapter (this chapter, without this bottom discussion, is 27 pages long on Google Drive), work on college, and...do something else that I'll get to in a minute. It also doesn't rush me in the way that I did when I started-which was likely why I took some huge hiatuses between the last few chapters. So, yeah, Crimson Incandescence, a new chapter every month! (God, I'll be doing this forever.)
Now...I want to talk about something else entirely from Crimson Incandescence. If you read the last chapter, you may have heard me mention my Tumblr, or mention that I have a story idea in the works that I've decided to go through...well, ladies and gentlemen, I've officially started on that project…
The Ternary.
An Ongoing Web Serial by CrazeStasis.
Yep, I'm doing a web serial novel (well, okay, novel is far too small a word for it. More like a web serial epic), it's to be updated on a biweekly basis (that's a chapter every two weeks), and already has two chapters up for people to read. It's beginnings are those of a superhero story, but as we go along the world will expand to certain subjects that are far more different to a superhero's journey (not that the superhero part disappears). And for those of you wondering, yes the name of the story has meaning behind it...just not at the beginning right now.
Now, to reassure you. No, this isn't replacing Crimson Incandescence or anything, nor do I plan on stopping Crimson Incandescence. It's also entirely optional to you if you want to read it, so don't worry if you just want to stick with this little fan-fic of mine. It won't hurt my feelings at all.
And to go into detail, the reason for the biweekly update schedule is simple: CI has around 18-20 or even more pages a single chapter on Google Drive, while The Ternary has around 8-15 pages per chapter. I can basically sit down and write a full half of the chapter in under a full day. Meaning I'm likely going to be real busy writing CI and this story in the coming months. Hope I can do it!
Oh, and if you do want to read this. Look up The Ternary on Google or Wordpress-that's what I'm using for the site in question.
Ahh...well, I'm officially done for now. So to finish, please-as always-REVIEW! If you like the story so far, then check off the favorite and follow buttons if you want to. You don't have to, but you can. And it's always appreciated.
Now, what's the title tease of the day...hmm. OH! Oh, this one's gonna be very obscure if you don't know the song itself...
Chapter 9: FLY! ON YOUR WAY, LIKE AN EAGLE! FLY AS HIGH AS THE SUN! ON YOUR WAY, LIKE AN EAGLE! FLY, TOUCH THE SUN!
For Fun, Fedora's, and Insanity. Peace!
-CrazeStasis