Two hooded figures with cloaks walked through a slightly dense forest, the sun's rays still penetrated through the trees to the stone road even with the sun setting. One of the figures stared into the sunbeams, snarling in irritation at their presence. "Kami Amaterasu, couldn't you once in your divine existence be a little weaker?"

"You're asking a deity to do something for you, and that is to diminish their strength. It sounds kind of suicidal, especially without offering anything in return." The other figure chuckled at the state of her companion.

"Kami Amaterasu wouldn't mind a vampire, so it doesn't matter." The hooded one began to feel a lack of energy and a thirst incessantly, and she sneered at it. From within her robe she took a circular shaped vial containing a stoppered red liquid, a blue magic seal briefly glowed on the vial, then disappeared. She opened the vial, then drank its contents, relief coursing through her when she finished. "These thirsts are getting more frequent… I need better blood."

The other figure looked worriedly at her partner, taking a map from inside her robe. "We are in the province of Draco Convallis, there is a city called Nox Aeterna inside a cave not far from here."

"City inside a cave?" She arched her eyebrows, moving closer to the map. "Usually these are cities founded by dark elves. Dragons and dark elves have had a strong alliance for over five centuries now."

"Do you think we can find better blood potions over there?"

"In legal ways? Unlikely." She asked for the map with a wave of her hand, briefly thanking her as she received it. "But… With luck, we can find it on the black market."

"Let's go to Nox Aeterna then." The figure looked up at the open sky through the trees, seeing the sun finally giving place to the moon. "You can pull your hood down now, the sun is no longer in the sky."

The hooded woman sighed in relief, then revealed long white hair tied in a diagonal ponytail, skin pale as a corpse, cold blue eyes with a vertical scar over her left eye, and pointed ears. "Finally." The white-haired woman watched the star in the sky in awe, a smile on her face. "I wonder who's in the sky today? Lord Khonshu, Lady Artemis or Kami Tsukuyomi?"

"It must be Kami Tsukuyomi. Lord Khonshu tends to take the crescent form while Lady Artemis seems to prefer the diminished form." She also lowered her hood, revealing black hair streaked with red at the ends, bright silver eyes with black sclera, and corpse-pale skin. "May the moon light our way."

"Our light in the dark sky." The vampire continued. "Guide the travelers of the night, and lead us to a place safe from the evils of the world."

The two continued watching the moon for a moment, then walked back down the dirt road. The white-haired vampire opened her white robe, revealing a simple outfit, a white blouse with sleeves reaching just below her elbows, white armbands and fingerless gloves, a pectoral of studded leather protecting her torso, black pants with tall boots, up to the height of her knees, as well as leather greaves and shoulder pads. She had two belts crossed around her waist, both containing several vials of blood potions.

The other also opened her black robe with red interior torn at the ankles, revealing black boots, held by leather straps and silver buckles, a black skirt that went down to the height of her knees, having a red lining with a few layers of fabric. In her upper part, she wore a grayish blouse with long sleeves ending in small ruffles and a black chainmail similar to her cloak, with a red and black leather corset over it all and a black choker.

"You know you don't have to be afraid of me, right?" The young woman with silver eyes assured.

"I'm not scared of you."

"I can feel your fear and nervousness. I have no intention of hurting you, Weiss." She turned to the white-haired woman with a serious expression.

"You Heralds are death omens, yet I've been traveling with you for nearly two months and nothing has happened. Forgive my skepticism, but that's dubious." Weiss declared suspiciously as the girl sighed in dismay.

"I explained more than once that I was ordered to accompany you. Nothing else."

"And why would Death want one of it's Heralds to watch over a common vampire?"

"I don't know. Death said nothing more than that." Her feet hit the ground, and the young woman approached Weiss. "Listen, this wouldn't be the first time Death has done something like this. I've heard from other Heralds that similar things have been ordered before, I'm just doing my job to accompany you on your journey." She arched her eyebrows in curiosity. "This journey you still haven't told me the objective of."

"I don't trust you enough for that." The vampire said in a bland tone. "And I highly doubt it will change."

"Oh, by the gods…" The girl gave a facepalm. "One time or another I'll find out, given that I've been ordered to accompany you. And if you think you're capable of outwitting a Death's Herald, I'd urge you to lower your expectations. How about you just tell me instead of being so headstrong about it?"

"Herald, my purpose for this journey doesn't matter to you. All you need to know is that I need to get to Vale, and we're five more provinces away counting this one."

"And what would you want in Vale? It's the capital of the dragons kingdom, vampires are hunted even more there than the rest of the world. The only place worse would be the dwarves kingdom."

"I repeat, my purpose does not matter to you. If you are going to accompany me, at least do so without disturbing me." Weiss responded in a closing tone, indicating that she did not intend to continue the conversation. And with that she walked again, to the disappointment of her companion.

She rolled her eyes watching the vampire move on, but despite her frustration, the Herald followed her. "Why did Death gave me these orders? May the gods give me patience..."

…

Deep in the caves, the duo finally saw light at the end of a tunnel. They followed the source, witnessing two guards with pointed ears, black sclera, and shadow-like dark skin wearing armor and swords in hand, guarding a metal gate with torches beside it. "Stop! What are you two doing in Nox Aeterna?" one of the guards asked, having light gray hair in contrast to his skin.

Weiss took the lead, bowing briefly. "We're on our way to Vale. My potion supply is low and Nox Aeterna was the nearest town, I hope I can take care of that at the town market."

"What would a snow elf want in Vale?" The other guard questioned his partner.

"It doesn't matter, it's none of our business." The gray-haired elf replied, then looked at the two travelers. "Okay, you both can come in. But don't get into any trouble."

"Yes, sir." Weiss declared, putting a smile on her face. Soon the two opened the gate... And the duo finally understood the name of the city. Stone houses were scattered across a gigantic open space within the cavern, poles with lamps and torches hung at specific points throughout the town. Several people walked the streets, especially dark elves... And high above, illuminating the center of the town, was a hole in the cave that allowed the moon to shine inside.

"Wow… This place is beautiful!" The silver eyed woman said with an ear to ear smile.

"By nature Dark Elves prefer their cities inside caves… But I've never seen one with something like this." The white-haired woman looked at the opening in surprise. "Do they close the opening when the daylight hits?"

"Well I don't know, I just know this place looks amazing."

While she had her questions, Weiss had other priorities there. Then she took her eyes away from the opening, starting to walk through the city with the Herald. 'Good thing vampires can easily pass for snow elves.' She thought to herself, relieved to see that no one was paying attention to her.

The two continued on, and at one point they passed a temple with a statue of a woman in a long sleeveless dress with her face covered by a veil. "A temple in Despoina's name... Some fear her more than Lord Anubis, Madam Ereshkigal or Lady Morrigan herself."

"It's not a good idea to use that name, Herald. Whether it's like Kore, Despoina or the other. People fear her for a reason." Weiss said, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the subject. "As a servant of Death, you should know that."

"I should have. But I never met her, only the other three." She watched the statue a little longer, then looked at her companion. "Let's go on. I don't want her to show up just because we're talking about her."

"We'd better find a place to stay. The night has barely begun, we won't find anything anytime soon."

…

It was after midnight, and with the full moon illuminating the cave, most of the people were sleeping... Except in a deeper part of the cave, where illegal traders sold their items to all kinds of people. It was a tight and busy area, with small establishments among the tents that served as a place for negotiations and the like.

Weiss and the other girl wandered around with their hoods up, avoiding making eye contact with anyone there. The gods knew what kind of people were out there. It didn't take long for the white-haired vampire to find what she was looking for, noticing among the crowds a tent with a simple appearance, but containing several bottles on its shelves.

The two stopped in front of the tent, and the silver-eyed girl noticed that there was no one there. "Hello?" She questioned, and from the back of the tent she heard sounds of surprise. Soon a female figure came from behind the tent, a woman with long black hair with gray skin, eyes with black sclera and golden pupils and a single horn on her forehead.

"Oh, customers!" The woman said with a smile, her voice almost squeaky despite her clearly strong physique. "Welcome! With me you will find potions that the common merchants can't offer you. Not without being arrested by the guards, that is."

Despite the trader's flashy personality, Weiss decided not to focus on that, going straight to the point. "Do you sell blood potions?"

The merchant's eyes widened at the question, but seeing the two, she faintly noticed their pale skin hidden by the cloak. "Vampires? Kind of risky going into a crowded town like Nox Aeterna."

"She's a vampire. I'm a different case." Herald explained. "But to the point. Do you have blood potions? She needs it urgently."

"I still have a good amount, but they're not very good. With how things are going, they should run out by the end of the week."

The merchant crossed her arms, a questioning expression in her gaze. "Well, I'll sell it. I have a great variety, twenty vials of the four types of elves, fifteen of nekomata, fifteen of werewolf, twelve of kitsune, twelve of dragon, fourteen of dryad... I also have five of succubus, if you need that. "

At the last, the albino took on a slightly troubled expression. "Six of kitsune and six of dragon."

"It'll be forty silver coins or twenty gold coins."

"Twenty or forty?" The albino questioned, indignant. "Are you trying to rob me?"

"Hey, I got this kitsune blood from one with seven tails. It affects the quality of the blood from what I know of vampires, so I'll price it accordingly."

Weiss growled in response, but pulled a bag of coins from the pocket of her robe anyway. "Whatever. Just give me the potions, I'll pay you for them."

The brunette smiled seeing the bag of coins. "Give me a minute." She went to the back of the tent, and soon returned with vials of blood in hand. "Here it is. You vampires can tell which blood is which by it's smell, you must handle it yourself."

"It wouldn't be the first time." She took the twenty gold coins with some hesitation, but she placed the coins on the counter anyway, and the merchant immediately took the payment.

"It was nice doing business with you, gals."

"Equally." Weiss said in a dead tone, still indignant about the negotiation. And with that, the two returned on their way, seeking to leave the area.

"What's the difference in blood from species to species?"

"Different tastes and different smells, plus varying effects. I personally don't like werewolf blood, it's too bitter. Kitsune blood tastes mild and helps maintain a youthful appearance, and depending on the amount of kitsune's tails, the magic boost is stronger."

"And do you like kitsune blood?"

"I bought more for the magical effects. Dragon's blood was purely for the taste, and luckily it quenches enough thirst." Weiss tucked the vials into their belts, smiling in satisfaction. "I don't like drinking elf blood, it's bland. I prefer to use it for blood magic, but I was running out of options."

"Okay, and what's so special about succubus blood?"

"...I'd rather not talk about it." The vampire replied, looking away. Soon she looked up at the opening at the top of the cave, squinting her eyes. "We better leave before dawn, I don't want to have to wait inside a cave for the sun to go down again."

"Oh, but already?" She questioned, dismayed. "I barely explored the place."

"For a Herald, you're quite cheerful."

"Can you stop calling me Herald? I told you my name before, it's Ruby."

"And I don't care." The white-haired woman replied dryly, walking towards the gates again.

Ruby huffed at that, following her squadmate. "And the guards are going to let us out at this hour?"

"In a town of dark elves? Yes, they prefer the night by nature. For a Herald, you don't seem to have much knowledge. What exactly did you do when you were alive?"

"I lived on my uncle's farm with my cousin, I didn't have much contact with outside things." The silver eyed girl explained with a smile on her face.

This time, Weiss was curious, finally facing her companion. "What about your parents?"

The Herald's face was filled with sadness at the question. "... It's a long story. Let's say, my father always had problems reconciling work and personal life. And my mother…"

"...You don't have to talk if you want to."

"No, it's alright." Ruby forced a smile, looking down at the floor. "I still got to see her again when I died."

"What about your father?"

"Last I saw, he was deep in work. I tried asking Death to let me visit him... But it didn't work. The gods said he's too busy for that."

"How could he be this busy?"

"Well, he is one of the two forms of Yatagarasu." Weiss' eyes widened at the information, nearly choking.

"Yatagarasu? Like the divine crow and messenger of the gods?" The vampire questioned in shock. "Are you the daughter of the current incarnation of Yatagarasu?"

"Before I died, he visited whenever possible. But after I got sick… He stopped visiting my uncle's house. My mother said he doesn't have the courage to look at that part of his life anymore."

"I'm very sorry." The vampire muttered, looking away.

"It's fine. You had no way of knowing." Ruby assured, watching the full moon in the opening above. "We'd better leave soon."

…

The pair were back in the woods, and Weiss was walking with her eyes closed, bathing her face in the moonlight. "Sometimes I wish the sun just wouldn't come out."

"So you would like Kami Amaterasu to disappear?" Immediately the Herald was hit by a light slap on the back of her head, which she made nothing of it, laughing at the action.

"Of course not, dolt! Just because we Vampires don't like the sun, doesn't mean we have anything against the sun goddess. Or any of the other sun gods, like King Lugh and Lord Utu." The vampire declared, irritated. "Besides, I'm not crazy enough to offend a god."

"Relax, I know she wouldn't mind."

"It's easy to say when you Heralds have direct contact with most of the gods."

"Eh, I personally don't like some of them very much. Zeus, Aphrodite, Utu, Seth…" The girl listed with her fingers, leaving her companion with a sweatdrop. "Madam Eresh and Sir Dionysus are really fun on the other hand, although they scare me sometimes..."

"How can you speak of the gods so casually?" Weiss questioned in disbelief. "Nobody in their right mind would talk about any of them that way."

"Eh. I haven't lived long enough to learn about that." She said, leaving the albino in silence.

"...Your morbid unseriousness about your own premature death is quite disturbing to hear." Weiss said. "Almost all races of Remnant live for centuries, and you died with what? A century of life? Two?"

"223 years to be exact."

"By the gods, that's almost half of my lifespan…"

"And how old are you exactly?" Suddenly, Ruby was floating upside down in front of the vampire, staring at her as her clothes defied gravity.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "386 years."

"Wow, I remember reading that vampires are considered young adults up to age 600." The Herald returned to the ground, smiling. "Hey, there's something I've been wanting to ask. Your last name is Schnee, right? Like Nicholas Schnee?"

"Yes, yes. Weiss Schnee, granddaughter of Nicholas Schnee, the vampire who ended the war between vampires and werewolves by usurping the throne of the Lord of the Blood Clans over two millennia ago." The Schnee sighed, staring at the girl. "If your question is if I have any royal blood, no. First, that my grandfather was not heir by blood, he took the throne by force. And second that the Clans were disbanded over a thousand years ago with the growing hunting for vampires."

"I was actually going to ask if you were as powerful as he was." Ruby corrected, causing the white-haired woman to stop. "I've heard stories that he was the greatest user of blood magic in history, and that he managed to face an army of hundreds of dragons single-handedly before he died sitting on his own throne."

"The first part I can confirm as fact, but the second part is a bit iffy." Weiss responded. "But… No, I don't have the same level as he did." She admitted with a disappointed sigh. "But I long to be."

The young Ruby smiled at that, until she arched her eyebrows as she felt a strange sensation around her. Something was wrong… "You're feeling it too, aren't you?"

The vampire glanced at the trees surrounding the road, then sniffed the air, pulling her head back slightly in disgust. Her ears twitched as she picked up a different sound. "Smell of mutt." The Schnee answered, snarling. Both girls began to hear roars coming from both sides of the road, indicating that whatever it was, was surrounding them.

Weiss reached one hand to one of the vials of blood on her belt, opening it while her other hand rested above the vial. She made a tugging motion with the same hand, her eyes emitting a red glow, then the liquid followed her hand, hovering in the air above her.

The vampire looked closely at her surroundings, using both her hearing and smell to detect any unusual movement. Ruby walked over to her companion, her cloak flapping as if it had a life of its own and hovering its edges above her, almost as if it were getting ready.

The Herald's eyes widened, turning to her left moments before a massive furry creature with sharp teeth leapt out of the trees with a roar. Her cloak sharpened, about to strike, but a crimson stake impaled the creature first.

The moonlight clearly revealed the shape of the thing, a much more monstrous bear than an ordinary one, twice the normal size and a mouth more like a canine snout. Blood leaked from his mouth and hole in his chest, but the stake began to absorb the liquid, pulling out of his body that shrank as if it was weakened.

The stake stopped, floating beside Weiss, then morphed into the shape of a crimson sword the white-haired woman wielded. "Lycanthropy." The vampire pointed her sword at the bear's body in disgust. "Damn disease. I don't know if I hate it or Sanguinaris more."

"There's more." Ruby interrupted the girl's complaints, pointing a finger at the glowing eyes among the trees, who snarled at the two. "Why did you vampires and werewolves have to spread these diseases across Remnant during your war?"

"Shut up and kill those bastards!" Weiss snapped, angry. One of the infected animals, another bear, came from between the trees, taking aim at the vampire. She dodged swiftly, cutting off the animal's head as its blood was drawn by the sword instantly.

Ruby stood still as a moose emerged from the trees intent on charging her. She yawned, watching her cloak come loose from her and move towards the moose, covering it up and swallowing it, the cloak began to crush the animal until the moose exploded inside the piece of cloth, which leaked blood between its openings.

The cloak opened, the blood that covered it disappearing into its fabric, then with a nod from the Herald, the garment entered her side of the forest, starting to attack the other infected animals. The girl smiled, until her eyes rolled into her head as her body began to squirm.

She lowered her head as her back curved. From within her body, her bones began to move, forcing their way out of her body through her back as her skin distorted, until the bones broke through muscle and skin, tearing their way out as blood seeped from the holes. Meat also began to come out, both things coming together and starting to take shape.

Flesh and bone coalesced, forming the shape of a long, massive scythe with a serrated blade. The hilt was made of spine, with small sections between the thorns connected by flesh, and the shape's head was sharpened like a bony halberd point. The weapon stopped beside the Herald, who sighed as she stood up, catching the scythe in her hands and the holes in his back were covered by shadows.

Ruby glanced at an infected wolf that had managed to break out of the onslaught her cloak was causing, snarling at her. "Don't worry, I'll be quick." The young woman assured, her voice like smooth silk and at the same time empty. Before the animal could do anything, she sliced it in half with the scythe.

The Herald watched a small glowing orb emerge from the wolf's corpse, which she picked up with the tip of her scythe, catching in one hand. Her eyes sparkled for a moment as she raised her hand in the air, the sphere starting to fade, eliciting a smile from the girl.

Instinctively, she took two steps back, dodging a sharp blood tentacle that pierced another nearby infected wolf. She followed the tentacle with her gaze, seeing it begin to pierce one more, two, three… The corpses fell to the ground without spilling a single drop of blood from their bodies.

The tentacle flew to Weiss's side, wrapping itself around her arms as the vampire glared at two infected foxes. The albino held her arm out to one of the animals, then opened her hand into a palm as if pushing air, hurling the tentacle at the fox.

Blood seeped through its mouth, lifting the fox off the ground, which writhed in pain. You could see the tentacle forcing itself out through the distorting animal's skin, until thorns pierced the fox from the inside out. The other took a few steps back in fear, seeing the tentacle come out of the corpse.

Weiss looked at the fox, the tentacle of blood encircling the vampire, making the animal snarl. She would throw the tentacle at the target, but a scythe cut off the animal's head before she could do it, making her look at it's wielder. "Good work."

"Hm?" The Herald looked confused at her companion, until she looked at her surroundings and saw that her cloak had killed all the infected there, having just blown up one last wolf. "Oh." She closed her eyes, letting go of her scythe, which began to disassemble as the hole in her back opened.

The bones and flesh returned to her body, and her cloak wrapped around her again after wiping away the blood that covered it. Weiss sighed, returning the tentacle of blood back to the vial where it had been. "That was more than I expected. There must be an infected nest nearby. It's better to- What are you doing?"

The Schnee looked at Ruby, who was on her knees with her hands clasped together, as if she was praying. A light white aura surrounded the young woman. The Herald didn't respond, not until a few minutes later, standing up with a small smile. "Giving rest to these lost souls." She replied, watching the bodies across the floor.

"Oh. Makes sense considering what you are." The vampire said, crossing her arms. "Anyway, we better go. I don't know about you, but I don't want to be the one to explain what happened here when some authority comes through."

"I understand. Let's go." Ruby approached the albino, the two walking back down the road. "I hope the trip doesn't have so many more problems."

"I wouldn't count on it. Maybe I'll need to do some contracts in the next town, that Oni took more money from me than I'd like…"

"It would not be the first time…"

"What did you say?"

"Nothing!" She responded quickly, looking away with a sly smile on her face. "Well, with me by your side, it'll be a easy journey."

"I have my doubts. But who knows? The gods may favor me in the end."

HELLLO THERE! So, you reader that is probably reading this right now, welcome to my RWBY Fantasy AU! I'm Shiro, your dear author, and I want to talk about some things before talking about the story itself. So... Let's go.

First of all, if you reader tought that the writing was too formal and kinda weird? Well, there is a reason. First of all, I'm brazillian, and while I do got a very good (I think) knowledge of english, I hate to translate it word for word. So, I used a translator. And the formality? Blame the site that I use here in Brazil, it has rules again'st common lingo and formality is a obligation.

SECOND THING! I have no idea of when I will post the second chapter, because I'm actually doing a rotation of stories and the first one (this one) is random everytime. And the others? Well, I don't know if I will translate them. Probably not, sorry.

And third! This one is a warning. So, original characters. I have a lot of them, and a lot of them will appear here with great importance in the story. Some of them will be pair of canon characters, and others not, and there might even be poly ships in this story. Also, everyone here is of a fantasy race. No humans. I'll let you all guess what the canon characters are (Heralds aren't a race! Ruby is something else).

Now to the story itself! Well, a lot of info dropped. Weiss is a noble vampire, Ruby is dead and is a servant of Death (any guesses on who is Death?), yes, Ruby is Qrow daughter here, and he's also the Yatagarasu. Well, one part of it, that is. Also, many Gods from Earth are in Remnant, and some bigs name made themselves known already! But wait, some are also missing? I wonder what happened to the likes of Hades and Apollo...

No worries! Many things will be explained as the story goes on. For now, we only know that Weiss is going to Vale, the capital of the dragon kingdom. What she will do there? We'll see. Of course, the path won't be easy. And there is also other things happening around Remnant at the same time, so we might not follow her and Ruby all the time.

Well, that's it! I hope y'all liked, and I will see you all again sooner or later. Until then, sayonara, folks!