The Shadow of Fire
Chapter 3: Complications
"You have two choices! Save her or save your own flesh and blood!"
Weiss wasn't in a very good mood.
Despite all the new information that Orion had given her, including a name that she could blame this entire situation on, she couldn't suppress the feelings that were bubbling in a magma like state inside of her soul. She knew that if she found this Saturn character that she would impale him with Myrtenaster over and over.
The sad thing was that she didn't know if she would be able to stop.
"Weiss?" Orion asked shaking a hand frantically in front of her direct line of eyesight, a look of concern adorned his face.
"Huh? What did you say?" Weiss asked, realizing that she must have zoned out of their conversation.
"I said, do you want to do a little bit of looking around at this store?" Orion asked, gesturing to his right hand side.
The young heiress spun on her heels to face the building Orion was speaking off. A flood of recent memories enveloped her mind as she recalled what they were last doing. Orion had suggested that they spend some time looking around at the street shops in downtown Vale until Ruby is out of surgery, which, according to Orion, was in a few hours.
The bright orange and blue building was of considerable size, about the size of 10 Beacon dorm rooms. A large neon sign hung above its main doors, its lights off but still giving away its name.
The Battle Wardrobe.
"The Battle Wardrobe... Why are we here again?" Weiss asked as Orion walked slowly towards the building.
"Eh? Oh, you need some gear for later. Some... Interesting events happen at the hospital." He said and held the wooden door open for the young heiress.
Weiss walked in with Orion following suit. "Then why won't you just tell me what to do and what happens?" She asked as they began to take in the new surroundings.
"A great magician never tells all of his secrets at once my dear. All in good time." He said and walked over to a rack of cloaks. "Grab a basket." He commanded as he slid hangers around, trying to locate the perfect cloak on the rack.
"I am a Schnee, I don't retrieve simple things such as that." She commented, crossing her arms over her chest in a defiant manner.
"Then I guess you don't want to know about Ruby's health." He call out to her, not bothering to turn around to face her.
Weiss gave a huff in defeat and sauntered over to the baskets with a look of determination on her face. If Orion was kidding, she would kill the God. Weiss maneuvered herself to Orion and shoved the basket in to his hands. "Tell me now." She spoke in a threading voice.
"Easy easy. No need to get all dramatic." He told the aggressive teen. "My dear, what is the number one result of mixing Dust and applying it to your body?" He asked innocently as he grabbed a pitch black cloak from the shelf. "This is nice."
Weiss thought for a second, the question catching her off guard. "Death." She replied to the God.
"Other one." Orion said, placing the cloak in the basket.
"Depends on the type of Dust."
"Purple, Red, and Green." He said, placing another black cloak in the basket.
"That would be... Spontaneous growth of external limbs and/or change in eye appearance... Why?" Weiss asked, adjusting her tiara on her mound of platinum blonde hair.
"Just wondering." Orion replied with a sly smile as he walked over to a rack of ribbons and bows that adorned the wall. "What's Ruby's favorite color again?"
"Red or black... Orion, explain yourself." Weiss demanded, stomping towards him, firmly grasping his shoulder.
Orion gave a small laughed and suddenly Weiss's hand unclenched his shoulder, the heiress losing all control over the limb, dropping lifelessly to her side. "How dare-"
"Tsk tsk, Miss Schnee. Don't be rude." He replied and plucked a red ribbon off the wall, also snatching a red bow as well, disposing of them momentarily in the basket. "As I said before, I'll tell my secrets in good time."
Weiss gave a huff of anger. "Ugh! For a God you can be very annoying." She retorted and began storming off towards the display of swords mounted on the wall.
Orion suddenly tensed, turning around at an un-imaginable speed. "Weiss! STOP!" He called out, his voice flooded with warnings of danger.
Weiss stopped and spun to face the God on the heel of her white and blue boots. "What do you wan-" Weiss began a counter to the Gods words but was interrupted by the sound of a large object landing on the floor behind her.
The young heiress turned to face the source of the sound, and was greeted with the reflection of light on a massive long sword that once hung up above on the ceiling. It was firmly speared into the blue tiled floor where Weiss, mathematically, would have been had she not stopped.
"You were suppose to die right there Weiss." Orion said in a dark tone.
Weiss turned once more to face the God, his words leaving a chilling frost on her heart. "W-what do you mean?"
"I prolonged your death Weiss. You were Fated to die right then but I intervened. I... I wasn't meant to stop you..." He said sadly, barely meeting her fazed look. "I am going to get in a lot of trouble for that." He said and walked over to Weiss, looking down at the younger girl. "That is why you don't want to piss off a God, so be a dear and watch your tongue." Orion warned and yanked the long sword out of the ground, leaning it against a shelf of clothing before proceeding deeper into the store.
Weiss stood alone in utter shock, blinking a few times as she took his words into deep consideration. She had been a brat, and he had ignored that and save her life. The question was why.
Weiss ran after her savior, passing through isle after isle of clothing and assorted combat skirts and uniforms. Weiss eventually caught up to the mysterious God, coming to a stop while he browsed the racks of clothing.
"Orion."
"Hmm? Yes?" Orion replied, putting a few random clothing apparel into his basket.
"Why... Why did you do it?" The young heiress asked.
"You will need to be more specific, I don't understand the question." He replied ever so calmly, shaking his head at the prices of the uniforms.
"Save me." Weiss stated simply. "Why did you do it."
"My dear girl," Orion began and turned to the younger Schnee heiress. "You will do great things in your lifetime... Most people need to be alive in order to physically do something." He answered with a warm smile. "And... I would consider you a... Friend. I would be damned before I let a friend get killed."
Weiss stood speechless, her icy orbs quietly filling with tears. Weiss was still very new to the whole "friend" concept and at any chance that she got to be a friend of someone, she tried to take it. She needed more people to care about, not just her family. Ruby was the first friend she ever had, but she came off as a bitch to the younger girl. Weiss wouldn't make that mistake ever again.
"T-thank you mister Orion." She said quickly, her voice cracking into a high pitch squeak sound towards the end of her sentence.
"No problem." Orion said softly, grinning like a maniac. "Here, since I broke one rule, why not break some more? How does skipping forward in time and going to see Ruby sound?" He asked casually.
Weiss flinched slightly. "Wait? You can do that?" She asked.
"Weiss, I'm a God, I can do anything."
And to that, Orion snapped his fingers together and the world around Weiss became silent, the air becoming colder and harder to breath.
"O-Orion... What's happening?" Weiss asked, knowing the answer already but needing him to confirm it so she could tell that she wasn't crazy.
"Speeding up time. Duh." Orion told the Schnee before snapping his fingers again, causing all the anomalies to cease their attack.
"Attention shoppers! We will be closing in 10 minutes. Please exit the building at your earliest convenience." A female voice spoke out over the loudspeaker above the odd duo.
"That's our call. Come on Weiss, let's get going." Orion said before grabbing the Schnee daughters hand and pulling her along the isles towards the front desk.
Saturn collapsed down in his brass and golden throne, giving out a sigh of relief as he hadn't sat down properly in hours. "Ah! That's much better." He spoke out to no one in particular.
"Sir! You asked for the Silencers?" A cold voice asked towards Saturn, a group of four approaching the older man.
Saturn held out a palm in their direction, gesturing them to cease their approach towards his person. "Ah yes, I'm... glad to see all of you. I have a mission for you in order to complete a very important task. I need you four to steal a shipment of Dust from the docks, my client needs something to run his experiments in order for us to continue to work with him. I have my own work to do and I need people I trust working on this." He explained to the team of lackeys, grabbing a glass of wine next to him.
"And the price?"
"A blank check made out to you four and the White Fang. You will both be generously rewarded." He said in a very calm tone, unusually calm in fact.
"We accept. The Silencers of the White Fang are at your command." The leader replied, bowing his head towards Saturn.
"You have several ships and squads of men at your disposal... do not mess this up." Saturn warned, taking a sip from his glass. "Now get to it."
The hospital was a disaster.
Weiss and Orion had made their way to the hospital, attempted to get up to the room number that Orion had told her Ruby would be in, gotten told she wasn't available by a nurse, snuck up an elevator, and made it to her floor. All in less than 15 minutes.
'Just my day.' Weiss thought as they proceeded down the narrow white hallway, passing a multitude of rooms and medical storage closets.
"Here we are." Orion said, gesturing to a large wooden door along the right side of the hallway. The young heiress bolted for the doorway, the brass handle just within reach. As she grasped hold of it she felt it turn from the other side and she jumped back in shock, moving far from the door.
An older man with a long white beard exited the room, closing the door behind him before examining the duo. He adjusted his glasses over his eyes before speaking. "Erm... How may I help you?" He asked, his voice was dry and rushed, as if he hadn't drank anything in several hours.
"Is Ruby in there?" Weiss asked the doctor, her eyes sparkling with anticipation and worry.
"Miss Rose? Ah, yes she is. Are you two friends or family?" He asked, adjusting his lab coat.
"Family, I am her uncle." Orion lied, moving towards the doctor.
"Ah, very well! You may enter her room but I need to warn you both or something."
"Hmm?" Weiss asked, tilting her head in a questioning manner. "Don't tell me won't be able to stay at Beacon!" She randomly yells out at the doctor.
"What? No, nothing like that. There was a little... Side effect with our Dust equipment... We have no idea how long the effects will last." He said slowly.
"I don't care, let me in." Weiss demanded, stalking closer and closer to the elderly man.
"Be my guest, but don't say I didn't warn you." He said, moving out of the heiress path, allowing her access to the younger teen's room.
Weiss ran into Ruby's room and slammed the door behind her, locking it shut. Weiss could care less about anyone else, she need to see Ruby alone. Once she was certain that the door was properly shut, she gave out a sigh in relief.
"Whatcha doing?" A small voice asked out to Weiss, the voice ringing a bell in Weiss's clouded mind. The young heiress turned so quick to the new sound, she could have gotten whiplash.
There she was, Ruby Rose, sitting on a large black bed. She had a large white bandage around her chest and one around the top of her head. She was still in her combat outfit, clearly changed into it after surgery due to all the ruffles and folded parts that were present on the attire.
"Hey Weiss. Did I miss anything?" She asked in a calm voice, sending Weiss a warm smile.
"N-no, you didn't miss much... Hey..." Weiss began but caught sight of something moving behind Ruby's back. "What was that?"
Ruby began to stiffen up. "I-it's nothing!" Ruby called out in a rushed tone, the object behind her moving faster now.
"Ruby! What in Orion's name is that?" Weiss yelled out, storming towards Ruby.
A look of confusion as to what Weiss just said adorned the younger girls face. "Weiss..." Ruby warned.
"I'm going to see what you're hiding, right no-" Weiss began but was cut off as she spotted the strange object, finally stopping in mid air for her to see.
It was a long and large wire of some sort, black points poking out of it. No... Not points, fur.
'Wait... Fur?' Weiss though as she gave it another look over, blinking a few times to make sure she was seeing it right.
It was "growing" out from Ruby's lower back outward, black for the most part but turning a shade of red as it approached the tip that was hanging in the air by itself. The same red that was present in Ruby's hair color.
Weiss came to a shocking conclusion as she remembered Orion's words at the clothing store.
"Easy easy. No need to get all dramatic." He told the aggressive teen. "My dear, what is the number one result of mixing Dust and applying it to your body?" He asked innocently as he grabbed a pitch black cloak from the shelf. "This is nice."
Weiss thought for a second, the question catching her off guard. "Death." She replied to the God.
"Other one." Orion said, placing the cloak in the basket.
"Depends on the type of Dust."
"Purple, Red, and Green." He said, placing another black cloak in the basket.
"That would be... Spontaneous growth of external limbs and/or change in eye appearance... Why?" Weiss asked, adjusting her tiara on her mound of platinum blonde hair.
"Just wondering."
It wasn't a wire... It was a tail.
"Ruby?" Weiss asked, reaching out to touch the strange appendage that now was attached to her leaders body. She grasped hold of it and could finally feel its texture.
Extremely soft...
"Yeah... That's not the only thing..." Ruby said sadly, gesturing to her bandages over her head.
Weiss glanced up to the girls head and noticed a small movement under the white covering. Weiss let go of the tail and began unraveling the bandages, ignoring Ruby's yelps for the heiress to stop.
As Weiss yanked off the last of the covering a pair of wolf-like ears popped up in attention, flickering around at the change in surrounding. They were black and towards the tip, like the tail, turned red in color.
"Ruby... You're... You... But... You have wolf ears?" Weiss asked, baffled by what she was seeing.
"Yeah..." Ruby said slowly, looking down at the floor before looking into the heiress eyes. Weiss's vision turned to Ruby and her own orbs widened. Ruby's silver eyes now had a small slant to them, giving a wolf and cat-like look to the girl. Along with this was a single pointy tooth that poked slightly out of the teen's mouth, a very sharp looking white tooth.
"The Dust... You're a Faunus?!"