Disclaimer
I don't own RWBY, or any company related to it.
Chapter 7
It took her three hours to tell them everything about how she was separated from her mother to the point of her escape and resupplying in the village. Ruby omitted the part about her eyes, as she was scared that they would start doubting her. At one point a woman started hugging her, when she broke into crying. After the tale, Ruby got surprised by an audience that gathered around her and was silently listening to her.
Finally one of them asked softly "Do you know where the mine is?"
Ruby nodded her head and reached for her backpack. Slowly unpacking it, pulling out an unloaded pistol, a couple of empty magazines and two full ones and three maps. Opening the Atlas kingdom map, she pointed at marked localization and said "here".
"Do you have any layouts of this place?" It was the same person and the rest of the white fang members were silent waiting for her response.
She pointed at her head and said "here".
"Dick bring paper and pencil asap". The person, presumably Dick, stood up and ran to the desk nearby, pulling a stack of paper and pens, he ran back to her and placed it on her knees.
Ruby then started drawing crudely the layout, while naming things on plan with 'canteen', 'staff office', 'anti-grimm turret' and other things. After finishing, Ruby handed the paper to the person she took on as a leader of this place.
"How many humans are there? How many faunus? Any important things that we should know about?"
"Umm I think there were about forty humans when I escaped and they always try to have one hundred of us, as there were no more beds. Also they put something under tattooed numbers on right arm to stop us from escaping, not working and reb-belling? It cause us a lot of pain, enough for people to fall asleep from it"
"Thank you young…" he stopped, trying to recall her name, but came up blank.
"Ruby, Ruby Rose" Ruby answered nervously, realizing that she forgot to give her name.
"Well men, muster all our forces and prepare for leave in two hours. We are going to rescue our fellow faunus from oppression. You know the situation. Meet up place will be outside near our main base bullheads. Now do you have anyone to stay with?" The last words were addressed to her.
"I'm coming with you" Ruby replied confidently, as she would not let him change her mind.
"You can't. It's too dangerous and you suffered enough" he tried to change her decision.
"I was there, I know these people and they know me. They had hope when I left and I'm coming"
"You are staying here and you will go back to your father after we end this action" she realized that he figured out that her dad was alive and waiting somewhere.
"Either let me come with you, or I will follow you there" to prove her point she used her semblance to move behind him.
"Fine, but you are forbidden from leaving the bullhead" he finally relented, seeing that she will be there either way.
"Okay" she agreed with his statement.
Two and a half hours later, Ruby was sitting in a bullhead with a couple of armed faunus in dark clothes, with melee weapons with short blades, silenced pistols and smgs. It was getting dark outside, which they would use to attack the compound. They let her keep the pistol, which they added a silencer for emergencies. It was secured to the wall, so she wouldn't accidentally do something with it. She kept two scrolls from sharing her supplies with them. One for her and the second she planned to give to Jim for contact after everything.
Three hours later a speaker came to life "landing in thirty seconds" causing people next to her to stand up and prepare.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six…, two, one landed. Go go go" the leader spoke again on radio and faunus jumped out of the bullhead.
Ruby waited nervously for five minutes in silence, as supposedly nothing was happening. Ten minutes and there was still silence. Finally after thirty minutes of waiting a speaker spoke "All hostiles eliminated, our new friends secured, no loses. Prepare the medical staff for chip extraction".
She then used her semblance to get into the command bullhead and hug the leader saying "thank you"
"I think it's a good time to meet them Ruby, you just become their hero"
These words sparked something inside her. An old flame that disappeared after years of slavery, her mother tales about huntresses saving people. Her reason why she wanted to be a huntress like her mother, to be a hero for people. She cried into his shirt and said again "thank you very much"
"Now wipe yours tears and stand with yours back straight. They should meet a person that brought them freedom"
Ruby steeled her nerves and left the bullhead and followed the leader to the camp. Inside one of the miners instantly hugged her.
"I knew you would make it! Thanks to you I will meet my parents and sister again!" It was Jim, who cried in happiness, while keeping her in a thigh hug.
"You… are… killing… me… let… go" she was barely able to speak under the crushing force of his hug. He was older than her by six years and should know how to not crush somebody in his arms.
He finally let, albeit hesitant to let her go, so she was able to reach into one of hers pockets and pull out a scroll for him. She reached her hand out and said "for you. I added my contact under my name, Ruby Rose" she smiled at him.
Jim smiled "finally I learned your name. It only took you rescuing me twice".
"No. You saved me when you removed the chip, when I was unconscious, giving me a fire crystal and a chance to escape. You are a hero, who risked death, by disobeying the staff"
"Yet you saved me on my first day from possible death without wanting anything back, I merely paid you back, but you Ruby came back to us. You traveled alone and wounded, by the forest full of grimm. You never gave up, or used that chance to live in some remote village. You reached the white fang to rescue. You risked hours life for us, you are a hero here. Ask yourself why you did it and you will know the answer"
Ruby contemplating his words asked herself why and realized "because it was a right thing to do" she murmured softly.
"Yes, you are right, but now everyone does the right things. Huntsmans and huntresses are busy with grimm, often forgetting about common people, as they need money for dust, food and medicines. Politicians are getting blinded by power and fame, while businessmans are wanting more money and are focused on building their legacies even bigger. Some of them are forgetting about the rights of other people and our kind is getting even more pushed with lack of protection from authorities. You acted without thinking about yourself. You are a hero for us".
Ruby cried at his words and decided it was what she should keep doing in future. Rescuing her kind from slavery, oppression was after all a right thing to do.
"Okay now. Let's end a teary reunion and load into bullheads. We need to get out before somebody will arrive here and alarm the military about our presence. Berry set the charges for one hour, we will be far enough at that time" the leader spoke and started leading people with a wave of his hand showing to follow him.
In a moment they reached the bullheads and started embargoing them, when she heard "Ruby you will be in my bullhead. We have to bring you back to the family".
Ruby went into his bullhead and after they took us he asked "How was it? To feel like a hero?"
"It felt like I did a right thing, I was proud of myself and happy"
"Now about getting back home… Where is your family living?"
"I don't think that I should go home after everything that has happened. It's been a long time and they most likely think I'm dead, also I want to join white fang and fight for our kind"
"You are too young for fighting and missed education, also lacking a hand might mean a swift end in your career, unless you would get a prosthetic arm somehow. I can arrange to drop you inside Menagerie, where you could live and learn with local white fang, or somewhere else, but it will be a safe place".
"Thank you again mister, for everything"
She already started planning to learn about machinery and biology in order to build a new arm, but stopped for a while after hearing his next words.
"In the future you will have to face your past and family, because the more you escape from it, the bigger chance it will come to you with a knock. Trust me, I know something about it".
"I will remember that and study hard to make a new arm" with these words she smiled at him.
"People call me Michael, when I'm not wearing a mask and we are going to Menagerie, as I need to make a report to Sienna Khan about our actions and results. Prepare for a long fly with a refuel at Mistral" Michael informed her while sitting comfortably on a padded bench.