Sorry for the wait but this chapter took longer then I expected, anyway I hope you enjoy it. I'm already working on the next chapter but it'll be a while until I'll have time to properly sit down and write it in anything but short bursts.
I don't own RWBY if I did I wouldn't have to study so hard...
"It's certainly been a while hasn't it Ruby?" greeted Qrow.
'Does he know? No Ozpin said he didn't tell him anything yet, I have to play my cards very carefully,' she thought as colour began to return to her pale face. Swallowing her fear she forced a weak smile on her face and did the most Ruby thing she could think of, she ran up and hugged him.
"Uncle Qrow! It's been so long, how have you been? Kicking the baddies but like usual, right? I bet you were all like-Hooowaaah! Witchaaaa!," she replied in a voice that seemed too cheerful even to her as she did some over the top karate poses.
For the briefest instant Qrow flinched before he returned her hug and began ruffling her hair playfully, "indeed but enough about me, how have you been? Anything you want to tell me?"
"N-no nothing is wrong, everything is totally AOK," hastily answered Red, waving her hands for emphasis.
"Oh really?" mused Qrow with raised eyebrows.
"Ruby, Qrow kno-" began Ironwood only to be interrupted by Qrow's raised hand.
Kneeling down to look at Red in the eye Qrow frowned, "Ruby, do you trust me?"
She wanted to say yes, in fact she should have said yes if she wanted to keep up this charade and yet…she couldn't. The words simply died unspoken in her throat as memories of Yang's murderous rage flashed through her mind and Red just lowered her gaze to the ground, unable to meet Qrow's eyes. 'Just because he was Ruby's family doesn't he'll help me,' she thought as she stepped away from the huntsman.
Qrow just sighed as he stood back up, "after everything that's happened to you I suppose it's only natural to develop some form of paranoia. I just hope that eventually you trust me enough to tell us."
Red's eyes widened as she looked up to him but remained silent as Qrow turned back to the general, "how are you going to find the Feral?" asked Ironwood.
"We'll go to the locations the victims were found and then try to find some sort of clues that the investigators might have missed," informed Qrow.
"Actually I have a better idea, why bother looking for it when we can bring it to us," said Red as everyone turned to look at her. "Ferals are extremely territorial, one of them attacked my team at Mountain Glen simply because it detected me in its territory."
A sly grin grew on her face, "now imagine what would happen if it was challenged directly for control of its territory. It would rush to this intruder to defend its claim."
"And straight into our ambush," finished Ironwood with a smile.
The reaper stood on the rooftop overlooking the sleeping city, her enhanced vision making the darkened night appear as bright as day as she searched for her prey. It had been hunting in Vale for too long and had already killed several people but now the hunter was about to become the hunted. Seeing motion below her the reaper watched a fearful blonde walking down the empty streets, constantly scanning for threats. Something about the girl seemed odd but Red couldn't quite put her finger on it, only a nagging feeling at the back of her mind told her that it was important. Following high above her Red made sure the woman had left the area safely, the reaper then turned her attention to the others, who were in position and waiting for the ambush.
Seeing they were ready Red closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she was surrounded in a black glow and the familiar half mask appeared on her face. She then let out a loud bellow that echoed across the quiet streets, sending animals scurrying to cover while her two companions got ready for a fight. The silence was maddening as they waited and waited but nothing happened, causing both Qrow and Penny to grow restless as they remembered what would happen if they failed.
"Come on where are you?" muttered the reaper as she approached the roof's edge, looking for a sign of their prey and only to growl in frustration.
"YOU COWARD SHOW YOURSELF! THIS IS MY HOME! MY TERRITORY! YOU CALL YOURSELF A HUNTER BUT YOU ARE NOTHING BUT WEAK PREY! DON'T LIKE IT THEN COME AND PROVE ME WRONG!" she bellowed before letting out another roar, much louder and fiercer then the first.
There was a brief moment of silence that was soon broken by an angry roar in response that brought a smile to the reaper's face as she saw something rapidly approaching her, "I see you heard me."
"It's coming," informed Red as her aura and mask disappeared, being replaced with a blood red glow as she readied Crescent Rose.
"Alright you two get ready we only have one shot at this," ordered Qrow as he and Penny moved to their respective hiding spots in the nearby garbage piles.
Red closed her eyes and fingered her scythe's trigger as she tried to calm her fraying nerves, taking comfort in its reassuring weight in her hands. Not ten seconds later she felt the roof she was standing on shake and opened her eyes to see the Feral towering before her. What made her take a step back was what seemed to almost be recognition in its eyes as it stared at her. No way could it really be the same one? Did it follow them through the tunnels? Was it her fault that all those people died?
'No stop you can't think that! Not now!' thought Red as she shook the questions from her head and forced a smug grin that rivalled even Roman's to spread across her face.
"Well hello ugly, fancy seeing you again. Did you not get enough of me back at Mount Glen?" she teased, causing it to growl as it approached her.
'Just a bit more,' she thought as it took another step towards her before stopping mid stride and beginning to sniff the air. It paused before turning from her to stare at Qrow's and Penny's hiding places, eyes widening Red realized their cover was blown.
"Penny plan B now!" she cried in a panicked voice.
Penny's hiding spot simply ceased to exist as a large green light fired out of it and headed straight towards the Feral. Their prey leapt into the air, dodging at the last second as the green laser passed below it and hit a nearby abandoned building, completely destroying the wall and melting through its support structures. Red didn't have time to admire Penny's handiwork as the three of them surrounded the Feral, blocking off its escape route.
"Aim for the joints and any of the less armoured areas, dust rounds just bounce off the bone plates," she warned them.
"I don't use dust rounds," reminded Penny as her swords began circling her.
"Be careful a cornered animal is twice as dangerous as normal," lectured Qrow.
The two of them nodded and Red felt a shiver run down her spine as she noticed that the Feral's gaze had never left her since they'd surrounded it. The Feral finally began examining the rest of the ambush team as if debating whether or not it could take them before coming to a decision. Quicker than any of them could react their prey suddenly ran towards Red, causing the reaper to disappear into rose petals as she dodged it on reflex. However instead of turning to fight them it just kept running through the now broken encirclement and into the streets below.
"Quick we have to go after it!" yelled Red only to be grabbed by Qrow.
"It's long gone Ruby, we've failed tonight," he informed her with a sigh.
"No it's not, I can track it and catch it. It can't outrun my semblance," cried Red as she struggled in his grip.
"Yes you could catch it but how would we catch up to you? I'm not risking you fighting that thing by yourself, don't worry Ruby we'll find it again," he replied and let go of her cape.
"So what now?" asked Penny.
Qrow just turned to look at them before heading to the exit, "we'll get some rest and then try the original plan in the morning."
It was a long day for the trio as they walked down the streets of Vale, the oblivious citizens paying them no more the a passing interest, thanks to Red using aura to change her hair colour and having fake cat ears on her head to go with her cat like eyes. To the passersby she just looked like a Faunus that was enjoying shopping with her friends and their chaperon. After all it would raise quite a few questions and most likely panic if the people saw a suspected murderer walking around Vale. 'This is working great if I could just figure out how to get rid of the tattoos then this would be the perfect disguise to infiltrate the White Fang,' thought Red as she lead them down the streets.
"Ruby are you sure about this? This area is nowhere near where the bodies were found," frowned Qrow.
"I'm telling you Uncle Qrow I'm getting an odd feeling from around he-" Red suddenly stopped mid stride and looked like she was about to vomit.
"Ruby what's wrong?" asked Qrow concerned.
"I can smell something coming from that building there that's making me feel uneasy, it's almost sickeningly sweet," explained Red as she tried to block her nose.
Qrow's eyes just widened and he froze before placing a hand on his scythe and turning to face them with a sombre expression, "the both of you stay here. I think it's better if neither of you see this."
"What are you talking about? If the Feral is in there then you'll need all the help you can get to fight it, going in there alone is a needless risk. Besides even if it isn't there I've got the best chance of finding clues to where it's gone," argued Red.
Qrow's sombre expression didn't change as he turned back to the building, "that may be true, but don't do it. This is too much for you to handle Ruby."
"I'm not weak!" shouted the reaper before she ran towards the building entrance.
"RUBY WAIT!" cried Qrow as both he and Penny chased after her.
Ignoring them Red opened the door and stepped into the dark room, her enhanced vision making it seem as if it was lit by a very dimly light. Following her sense of smell she headed towards the sickeningly sweet stench and was forced to navigate the twisting corridors until she came across large wooden double doors. Placing her ear against the doors Red breathed a sigh of relief as she couldn't hear anything coming from the room beyond.
Taking a deep breath and readying Crescent Rose she opened the door and was greeted to a room so dark not even her night vision could pierce it. Immediately Red had to stop herself from gagging at the stench that assaulted her nostrils as she walked in, her boots making a squelching noise as they hit the floor. Suddenly the reaper felt something splash into her face as she stepped on it, causing her to look down at her feet with a frown and freeze in horror.
Red just opened her mouth to scream but no sound came out as she stumbled backwards and fell to the floor, her back being covered by a sticky wet substance. The lights in the room suddenly came on as Qrow and Penny entered it, one with an expression of horror and the other with a blank mask on his face. With the lights now on the reaper quickly examined the large room and noted the various remains of people that was scattered everywhere like a dog's chew toy as well as the still wet blood soaked floor that she was lying in. Red vomited up the meager amount of food in her stomach as she started shivering and only stopped when Penny gave her a much needed hug.
"It looks like our target was a lot more productive then we were lead to believe, I recognize some of these bodies as people recently placed on the missing persons list. It's probably safe to assume that it was luring investigators away from its hide out with those other bodies that were 'miraculously discovered,'" Qrow mused before turning back to the vomiting Red.
"Didn't I warn you? I told you not to look," he scolded with a sigh.
"I…I just wanted to prove myself…prove that I'm not weak…prove that I'm worthy of her name…damn it…damn it…why am I so weak?" sobbed the reaper.
"This isn't the time for pride Ruby," replied Qrow as he walked into the centre of the room. "There is nothing wrong with your reaction rather…I'd punch anyone who could see this and not bat an eye."
"What do you mean punch them? Aren't you standing there looking just fine?" cried Red as she looked at him with tearful eyes.
Qrow just took out his scythe, "that's because now isn't the time for emotion. We have company."
Red looked up at Qrow in time to see him dodge to the side as a large shadow crashed through the ceiling and landed where he had been standing moments before. Scrambling to her feet Red unsheathed her scythe while Penny's back opened up and an array of swords emerged from within her body. 'How did it get so close to us without my aura detecting it?!' thought the reaper as she chambered a round into Crescent Rose. Was she so distracted by the carnage around her that she failed to notice it approaching them? And if so did that mean that the Feral knew they would find? Did it retain enough intelligence to prepare at trap like that? 'Apparently so,' thought the reaper as she remembered Qrow's theory of it fooling the investigators.
Shaking the realization from her mind Red took a step backwards in fear as it turned its baleful red eyes to her. As she was moving back Red's attention was drawn to the victims surrounding them and her gaze came to rest on a bloodied child's shoe in front of her. Judging from the size of it the owner couldn't have been older the 10, upon this realization any feelings of fear she held were replaced by a deep unnatural hatred for the beast in front of her. Focusing on the creature before her Red snarled as she was surrounded in a blood red aura and immediately opened fire with a hellish barrage of rounds. Unfortunately the Feral just dodged most of the dust rounds and the few that did hit merely bounced off its bone amour.
Growling in frustration the Feral's gaze intensified before it rushed towards the reaper in an unexpected burst of speed, only to stop midway as Qrow's scythe came in for a decapitating swing at one of the few armoured parts of its neck. Blocking the incoming attack with its bone gauntlets the Feral suddenly disappeared in a black smog as its black smoky aura surrounded it, causing both Qrow and Red to fall to the floor in coughing fits. Red felt something grow in her mind as she inhaled the smog and fell to the floor before being briefly surrounded by the black smoke. It was almost like her rage was spreading throughout her body and that's when she heard it, the soft little whisper at the back of her mind getting louder.
Taking advantage of Red and Qrow's stunned condition the creature attempted to bite out Qrow's jugular, only to be thrown back as a trio of swords sank into its harden bone armour and the wires attached to them grew taunt. Penny sent her opponent flying repeatedly into the walls and floor as she continued to pull on the sword's wires like a puppeteer controlling a puppet. Roaring in anger the Feral cut through Penny's metal wires as if they were string before surrounding the two combatants in its hazardous black smog, leaving only the creature's red glowing runes visibly to Red and Qrow. However unfortunately for the Feral, Penny wasn't effected by the smog as she didn't need to breath and had her thermal vision on, rendering its supposed advantage useless. Realizing it wasn't helping the Feral leapt backwards as its smoky outline faded and charged Red, who had yet to recover from her coughing fit as she collapsed on the ground.
Before it could reach her Qrow appeared between them and blocked the creature's charge with his scythe in a quarterstaff style, locking the two in a contest of strength as each tried to push the other back. Thankfully for Qrow the contest didn't last long as the creature leapt backwards in order to dodge Penny's drone like swords that then preceded to chase the Feral around the room.
"Mr. Qrow something's wrong with Ruby!" cried the ginger as she forced the Feral back.
"Penny can you keep it busy for a couple of minutes?" he asked, causing her to nod as he ran over to Red.
Her blood red aura had changed to its pure black form, the tattoos were glowing a harsh red and a mask had appeared over her face, however it was what Red was mumbling that caused him to worry.
"It killed them…men…women…children…all of them dead…my fault…too weak...that monster…I hate it…I hate it…I hate it…I hate Ferals…kill it…kill it…I'll kill it!" she muttered before Qrow slapped her, causing the mask to dissolve and her aura to return to normal.
"Ruby snap out of it! Rage won't help us here. We need team work to beat it not a berserker, understand?" he snapped as Red got up from the ground.
The reaper just nodded in response but didn't say anything as she stared at the Feral with barely restrained aggression, causing Qrow's worries to grow tenfold as the three of them surrounded it. Feinting a forward charge Red grinned and disappeared into rose petals as the Feral turned to face her, only to disappear in a large green beam of light from behind it. The building shook as Penny's laser punched through the wall and daylight streamed in through the new hole in the wall, the sounds of screams and sirens now rapidly approaching them, obviously drawn to the Penny's display.
"Good work Penny," congratulated Qrow as he walked over to the opening only to be grabbed by Red.
"It's not over yet," she informed him as the Feral appeared in front of them, the lower half of its left arm now a cauterized stump.
The creature just glared at them before letting loose a familiar sound that caused Red's blood to drain from her face as she recognized the call as the one she used back at Mountain Glen. "What's it doing?" asked Penny.
"Calling for help," replied Red with a frown as an entire pack of white Beowolves appeared from the hole that Penny had just made in the wall and in the ceiling.
"This isn't good in all my years as a Huntsman I've never seen Beowolves with that much bone plating. Be careful you two this bunch must be very old and experienced compared to the Beowolves you are used to," warned Qrow as they were surrounded by the Grimm.
Red wasn't listening however and only kept her hateful gaze on the Feral in front of her, watching as it began walking towards the hole. 'You're not getting away this time,' she thought and disappeared into rose petals, only to reappear in front of the creature as she blocked off its escape route. Growling in frustration the Feral tried to bite her but instead clamped its jaw around Crescent Rose as she brought the scythe up to block it.
Snarling at the beast in front of her she activated the scythe's electrical trap and smiled as Crescent Rose came alive with electricity. The Feral just howled in pain as its armour did little to protect it from the electricity now coursing through its body. Red was so focused on the creature writhing in front of her she failed to notice one of the Beowolves had circled behind the reaper and was caught completely by surprise as it leapt on top of her, its jaw clamping around the back of her neck. Panicking Red activated her semblance as she ran at the nearest wall at top speed before flipping in midair, causing the Beowolf to crash into the wall while she used its crushed body as a makeshift pillow.
Panting from exhaustion she just barely leapt to the side as her aura warned her of the incoming Feral that was barrelling towards her like a freight train. Unable to stop itself in time the Feral crashed through the wall into one of the adjacent rooms and they all heard a cry of rage echo from the other room. Reloading Crescent Rose the reaper slowly made her way back to Qrow and Penny, providing covering fire as she approached. With the Beowolves distracted by her, Qrow quickly charged his target before decapitating it with an expert swing of his scythe while Penny sent her swords in a rapid circle around the pair, forcing the Grimm to back off or be sliced to ribbons.
The reaper couldn't watch any longer however as she heard the Feral get up from behind her and stare at Red with an equally hateful glare. 'Looks like it's not a fan of electricity, well at least I know it won't run until it kills me,' she thought bitterly as she used her semblance to flank it. Swinging Crescent Rose in a downwards stroke Red's eyes widened as the scythe's blade sank an inch into its bone armour before it got stuck between the creature's interlocking plates. Realizing this the Feral ripped the weapon from Red's hand and slashed her across the chest and forced the reaper to her knees as the black outlined claws passed right through her aura and inflicted a deep cut.
Red watched as her enemy threw Crescent Rose into the other room it had just vacated, flinching as the scythe gave a loud clang as it hit the floor. 'Alright so aura is useless for protection however my bone plates will definitely work but if I use them then I won't be able to use my semblance or heal myself, is it worth the risk? It probably damaged my sweetheart just then so it looks like I have no choice,' sighed the reaper as a mask grew on her face. All the Beowolves froze and turned to look at her as she was surrounded in the same smoky black aura as the Feral and immediately began to back away towards the exits before the Feral snarled at them. The Grimm just looked between Red and the Feral before whining as they moved back to surround the trio again.
Briefly examining herself Red frowned as she noted the lack of bone plating covering her body, 'what's going on? I know it should work, it did at Mountain Glen and during the Breach.' The reaper didn't have long to ponder this problem as the Feral roared at her and Red instantly found herself on the receiving end of its razor sharp claws. Without either her bone armour or aura to protect her the claws dug deep into the reaper's shoulder but oddly enough she didn't even feel a sting as she brought her other arm up and slashed at the Feral's eye with her own talons. It just hissed in anger before kicking Red in her wounded chest and sending her skidding across the floor, Red groaned as she looked up to see the Feral standing over her.
"RUBY!" cried Penny as she sent another green laser at the Feral, only to see it dodge at the last second as the two of them rushed over to the incapacitated reaper.
"I'm…fine," lied Red as she began breathing raggedly.
"No you're not, if we don't get you medical attention then you'll bleed to death," replied Qrow as he eyed the Beowolves surrounding them.
"We all know there's no chance of that happening now, not when we're surrounded by Grimm. Besides if I leave the Feral will just follow me, I think I made it mad," argued Red with a grin.
"So what do we do now?" asked Penny as the Feral rejoined its pack.
"Can you two take the Beowolves? I can deal with the Feral," replied Red.
Penny shook her head as she stepped between Red and the Feral, "Ruby you're injured, out of all of us I have the best chance to beat it. My lasers can pierce-"
"Can you beat it?" interrupted Qrow.
Red just frowned as she got to her feet, "I think so, I've got an idea I just need you both to buy me some time."
"How long do you need?" replied the huntsman.
"As long as you can give me," answered the reaper as she closed her eyes and was wrapped in a sphere of black smoke that obscured everything but her glowing tattoos.
"Alright Penny can you slow down the Feral and buy us some time? Just keep it occupied for a bit. I'll do the same with the Grimm and keep them away from Ruby," he ordered the ginger.
"Mr. Qrow I have a question, the General told me to follow your orders to the letter so may I confirm something with you?" questioned the ginger as she approached her opponent, her swords hovering around her like guardians.
"What is it Penny?" answered the huntsman as he stood protectively between Red and the surrounding Grimm.
"I can buy time if that's all you want…but it's OK if I take it out myself, right? That way Ruby won't need to do it," she replied as she met the Feral's angry gaze with an unblinking stare of her own.
Despite the situation a small smile spread across his face, "you're a good friend Penny, Ruby is lucky to have you. Of course you can and don't hold back, I'll cover for you if you get in trouble later."
The green lines running along Penny's body began glowing as many small beams of a green light began forming around her, "understood, beginning class five combat subroutines. I am combat ready!"
Red glanced around her and as expected found herself in the familiar snow covered forest that was her mindscape, "you know one of these days I should really try and figure out why the inside of my head looks like this," she mused as she examined the blood red aura around her.
"But that takes the mystery out of it," called a female voice.
Red spun around to see the familiar red hooded figure glowing a vibrant red as it walked out of the tree line to meet her, "I was wondering if I'd see you again," greeted the reaper.
"Well the company here isn't all it's made out to be, besides I thought you might have got me some souvenirs," joked the figure.
"Maybe I would if you let me see you face," replied Red as she reached up to its hood.
The figure immediately backpedaled but was too late as Red simply activated her semblance and flanked the figure before yanking the hood down. At the sight of Ruby's fragmented face greeting her Red just gave a sigh, "I figured as much."
"You knew?" questioned her fragmented doppelganger.
"I suspected it after my fight with that shadow. Why was I able to use its power against it? Why did I know instinctively how to use Ruby's semblance without training? Where did the memory flashes come from? I wasn't originally Ruby or Laura so those flashes had to come from somewhere, right?" elaborated the reaper.
"But what I want to know is, are you really her or something else entirely?" questioned Red.
The counterpart merely shook her head, "I'm only leftovers of her, Red. The pieces that made up Ruby that weren't used in your birth."
"Then that means the shadow that I fought…" trailed off Red.
"Is the minuscule fragments of Laura, it's sad isn't it? At least I retained some of Ruby's personality but her…so much was taken to make you that she was left with only anger and pain and the few memories that not even they could separate from her," confirmed her vibrant red doppelganger.
"The shadow talked about 'becoming whole,' what did it mean by that?" asked Red.
Red saw an ashamed expression cross her counterpart's fragmented face as she replied, "we're only fragments Red. Me, the shadow, none of us are truly a person, truly whole. Those memory fragments was each of us influencing your mind, forcing your dominant mind to accept our memories as its own, trying to be 'reborn' through you."
"Didn't you find it odd that when Ozpin asked you for your real name you instantly said Ruby's, or that Ruby's memories began mixing with Laura's? We messed with your mind because we were jealous," she continued as she looked down at the ground.
Red just hugged her doppelganger, "I don't care anymore, if anything you've done more for me then you realize. You've saved me heaps of times since then, in my books that's more than earned my forgiveness. Besides I wouldn't be here if it hadn't been for those memories, I don't even want to think how things would have gone if I actually did get amnesia at the start."
A small tear trickled down the fragmented face, "you really are like Ruby aren't you? Too forgiving for your own good."
"Guess that makes two of us," grinned Red before she walked into the tree line with her vibrant red partner following close behind.
"Red I really don't think this is a good idea, how do you even know it will help you?" she argued.
"I don't…but I've just got this feeling that it will," shrugged the reaper.
"Alright Red if you say so, I'll be watching nearby if it tries anything," assured her friend before dissolving into rose petals.
Taking a deep breath Red walked up to the invisible prison and saw a familiar shadow form in front of her and give the reaper a sarcastic wave. "Well if it isn't the little puppet, what brings you here Faker?" greeted the masked shadow.
Red just frowned as she walked up to her imprisoned doppelganger, "you should know why I'm here."
The shadow just gave a grin that would make even the Cheshire cat ashamed, "true but that begs the question; why should I help you Red? What does it matter to me if your friend and family die hmm? Or are you going to let me out in exchange?"
The reaper's gaze hardened as she glared at it, "never! You'll stay in here to rot until the day I die, in fact if I could I'd kill you myself!"
Its grin only grew wider, "ooh but you took most of my power and left me powerless, you would kill a defenceless opponent? My my, keep talking like that and I won't be able to tell which one of us is meant to be the monster."
"Shut up!" snarled Red as she felt anger beginning to well up inside her and was surrounded by a black glow.
The shadow merely snorted in amusement as it stood at the edge of its invisible prison, "you just don't get it do you? My power revolves around passion; anger, hate, lust, they are merely methods to increase my own power, the stronger the desire the more powerful it becomes. In order to get to this state you need to embrace my power but instead you're so terrified of it that you've locked it up tighter than even my prison."
Examining the reaper's black aura outline it then gave a smirk, "but even that's not enough. Your hatred for your own power, for Ferals, is so strong that it's leaking out of its cage, unable to contain your rising power. At the rate you're going you'll be consumed by it in a year or two, ironic isn't it? The very power you stole from me will be the thing that eventually kills us both."
"What do you mean 'kills us both?'" replied Red fearfully.
The shadow just shrugged, "exactly what I said, Earth aura is the text book definition of a double edged sword after all. You of all people should understand that at least…or have you already forgotten about the Mountain Glen and tower incident?"
"What are you talking about?" she asked, cautiously.
"You really don't understand anything do you? Did you really think it just gave you some shiny new bone armour and incredible strength?" it laughed. "Didn't you find it odd that even though you were nearly dead on your feet the minute you accepted me and my power the pain stopped? You focused entirely on killing your enemy, ignoring injuries that would have put anyone else into a damn coma. Even now you should be unconscious from blood loss and yet here you are still trying to fight."
Seeing her confused expression the shadow gave a sigh, "well I suppose it doesn't matter anymore since the Feral out there will kill us long before my power does."
"No it won't, not if you help me. Using that power I can beat it," replied Red.
"I told you puppet, you sealed it up tight. Only the very surface of it is accessible to you now and that won't be enough to beat it," repeated her dark doppelganger.
"So tell me how to unseal it!" shouted the reaper.
"That accomplishes nothing puppet, you lack the necessary prerequisites to even fight in the state that I was in. Firstly that seal requires you to accept that power entirely to come undone which as we can plainly see is very unlikely. Secondly the only emotion that you could use with it is your own hatred for that very power itself, which if you embrace it means that you'll completely let go of that empowering hatred in the first place," it listed in a bored tone that reminded Red of a parent lecturing a child.
"In short you've made it so that unless the seal is removed my power will eventually consume us both but if the seal is removed that very power becomes useless," concluded the shadow as it lay down on the ground.
"You wrong," announced Red quietly, causing it to sit up and look at her with a confused expression.
"You said that your power revolves around passion right?" she asked and the shadow nodded in response. "What stronger passion is there than the desire to protect something you care about? Hatred, anger, lust, none of them can compared to how hard we fight to protect what we care for. I'll ask again so please tell me, how do I access your power?"
It just got up from the ground and stared at Red in the eye before nodding in apparent satisfaction, "hmm…that's an interesting idea and it might just work. Very well since I can't have you dying just yet I'll tell you, besides I don't like it when another begins encroaching on my territory."
"Fine just tell me already," snapped Red impatiently.
The shadow walked up to the edge of its prison before sticking a clawed hand out to Red and gesturing for her to grasp it. Frowning the reaper hesitantly touched it and felt words beginning to burn into her mind, words that were both at once familiar and alien to her.
"It's done, now puppet it's time to show that old arrogant whelp who the real king of this concrete jungle is, do put on a good show for me won't you?" smirked the shadow.
Gasping she let go of the shadow's hand and fell to the ground as the pain in her head subsided, replaced by a new strength filling her body. Her task done Red just gave the shadow a grudgingly grateful nod before disappearing from her mindscape.
The shadow was about to head back into its prison when a voice stopped it, "why did you help her? Red might have believed your lies about defending your territory but I've been around you long enough to know better. What's your angle here?"
Spinning around with a frown it turned to see a familiar red hooded figure glowing a vibrant red and gave her a shrug, "I don't know. Was it a whim or merely a last ditch attempt at survival? Maybe but you're right that doesn't sound like me. Who knows maybe you two have started to rub off on me? Now there's a scary thought. Or maybe I just wanted to test the Faker."
"Test her?" muttered the figure in confusion.
The shadow place a hand on its mask and began tracing the cracks from its fight with Red, "I'm curious to see which is the stronger passion, unbridled aggression or the desire to protect. You once said that there is a difference between controlling power and being controlled by it and perhaps you were right. I wanted to see which the Red Reaper will choose, to control her power or be consumed by it. To see what happens when she understands the power Ferals wield. Will she become the very thing she fights or will her desire let her conquer Feral's inborn instincts?"
"Now let's sit back and enjoy the show, shall we?" it grinned eagerly.
Well another chapter finished and let me say this one was a tough one to write, anyway hope you enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to writing the next chapter's fight scenes.