Ruby Rose: Huntress of Fenrir
2-Whitstone [Ni]
Ruby exited the elevator as she finished the last bite of her oden sandwich, quickly looking around at the elegant and fancy red/gold carpeted hallway before her. As she sat in the Lobby, the displaced Remnatian decided to see if she could sit in and watch Nana's training. Without having an idea of where to do so, she decided to go ask Dr. Rachel. The problem was…
"Now where's Dr. Rachel's office?" she murmured as she continued through the hall. "I couldn't find it when I was up here earlier. Not to mention none of the rooms have plaques telling me who they belong too. Geez, would it kill these guys to at least text a layout to the newbies?" she grumbled. "How else do they expect everyone to find their superiors? I swear, General Ironwood would likely be mighty disappointed with the severe lack of organization on that part. At least when the Beacon students got to tour the Atleasian Frigate, we were told where the Directories were stationed."
She continued grumbling to herself as she glared at the floor. This caused her to bump into someone. "O-Oh! Sorry about that! I-I wasn't watching where I going! I'm sorry!" she cried noticing papers scattered across the floor now.
"N-No! I-It was my fault! I-I-I was so engrossed in my thesis I wasn't paying attention!" the man apologized as he fell to the ground to grab his papers.
"Here! I'll help!" she quickly grabbed as many loose papers as she could and handed them over to the man, who she saw wore a white lab coat and had large round glasses. "Again, I'm really sorry!"
"N-No, no! I-It's fine!" he waved off. "I-I should have been paying attention more!" He looked to her and noticed her Armlet. "Y-You're a God Eater, I take it?" he asked, and she nodded in affirmation.
"Yep! Just became one. I was hoping to ask Dr. Rachel something, but no one told me where her office was," she admitted.
"H-Huh?! Oh! It's straight down this hall!" he informed her, pointing. "Last door to the right before Director Grem's office at the end!"
"Awesome! Thanks, sir!"
"N-No problem!" The two waved bye to each other, and Ruby continued her way to Dr. Rachel's office. She made her way down the hall and easily found the last door on the right, just like the lab assistant had said. Ruby took a moment to settle her nerves before she knocked on the door.
"Dr. Rachel? It's Ruby," she called out.
"Please, come in!" came Rachel's reply. Ruby opened the door and saw Dr. Rachel, a tall redhead, and Julius all staring at her. She tensed.
"Oh. Uh, hiya Captain!" Ruby said with a small salute. "I'm, uh, not interrupting anything, am I?"
"Not at all!" Rachel chirped, a teasing smile gracing her lips. "We were just about to watch Nana's training simulation. What brings you to my lab, Ruby?"
"Well, I was kind of hoping to sit in on Nana's training, too," Ruby admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head as she grinned slightly. "We'll be working together, right? So, I thought it'd be a good idea to see her fight, and then she could watch how I fight in my training later."
Julius raised an eyebrow at her explanation. "Hm…I don't see anything wrong with that," he admitted and turned to Rachel. "If it's ok with you, Dr. Rachel, I wouldn't mind having her join us."
"Oh! I don't mind at all!" Rachel said cheerily. She clapped her hands and continued, "I, for one, approve of her decision!"
"And you'll get no objections from me!" the redhead said with a smirk, making Ruby turn to her in confusion. "Nice to finally meet you, kid. I'm Leah, Rachel's older sister!" she introduced, making Ruby's eyes light up as she smiled.
"Nice to meet you! I'm Ruby, but I guess you already knew that!" she joked, making Leah laugh.
"Yeah, that's true!" Leah replied, noting that Ruby didn't seem confused at her being Rachel's sister for later.
Rachel turned to her monitors and hummed. "It would seem Nana is ready for her training," she announced, making everyone turn to the screen. It showed Nana in the training area, a pink Boost Hammer in her hands. Ruby's eyes lit up again at her weapon as Julius called for the training to start.
Once Julius started Nana's training, however, Ruby's face fell as she analyzed Nana's abilities. Julius noticed this and turned to her. "Something on your mind?" he asked, spooking her a bit as she fell out of her trance.
"A little," she admitted. "Nana is amazing! She's one of the strongest people I've seen my age! And she's got a bit of speed to help her keep the attacks coming. It's just I don't like how…wasteful, she's being." The Blood captain raised an eyebrow.
"How so?"
"She's wielding a giant hammer with what's essentially a jet engine attached to it," she explained dully. "Yet, all she's doing is either staying in one place swinging her hammer like a bat, or charging the Aragami with the engine's boost, or using the boost to enhance multiple swings. It's wasteful because she's too open in her stance; she's far too vulnerable to counterattacks and is also not aware enough of her environment, leaving her open for sneak attacks and ambushes.
"There's also the fact she's not using her shotgun or shield all that often. In underutilizing her firearm, she's neglecting the opportunity to create openings to attack and even stunning the Aragami so she can perform stronger attacks or create an opening to heal. As for the shield, eh, I can't really hark on that, as I didn't really use it much myself during those God Arc tutorials I had to take. Why take a hit if you don't plan on getting hit at all, right? Hehe…
"But anyways, back to Nana: her swings are the next issue. A hammer is meant to spread out its force over a wide radius for maximum effect, hence why it's striking area is wide and flat. While she gets good hits the way she's doing it now, it's more exhaustive on her because she constantly has to reposition the hammer face every time, meaning she's wasting energy and stamina that could save her life.
"And then her boosted swings! Doesn't she know that the timing skips every time she repositions for a swing! Her boost engine's performance is suffering because it's forced to work harder to compensate! Not to mention the risk of her exhaust port becoming clogged because of it! Ugh!" she finished with a growl of frustration.
She didn't want to be harsh, especially to her new friend, but Nana had the worst qualities of her sister Yang, her friend Nora, and even Ruby herself when they first started out at Beacon. Cocky, showboaty, swinging a massive weapon around very haphazardly, and all around all strength, little-to-no form. The only difference was that, from what Ruby could see, Nana had the strength to back up the last part. If Ruby had to guess, she'd say Nana was close to the level Nora was by the end of their first semester, strength wise, at least.
But sadly, Nana didn't have Nora's unnaturally high amount of stamina. The reason Nora got away with her negative traits for so long was that she literally could stand and swing Maghild around for hours on end and not once feel the slightest bit tired. And then there's her attitude. It was very similar to Yang's and Ruby's own at the start of Beacon: overconfident, eager to prove herself worthy, and not taking situations seriously.
It was something Ruby knew all too well could get Nana into a situation she couldn't escape without help.
The researchers and God Eater stared at the blue-eyed God Eater in varying stages of impressed and awe. Leah was amazed at how easily the girl broke down Nana's flaws and presented them so simply. But Leah would admit her favorite part was Ruby's little rant at the end, loving the passion that the girl spoke with about God Arc Maintenance.
Rachel just giggled behind her hand, not giving away what she was thinking.
Julius stared at Ruby with a critical eye, impressed by her analysis of Nana's skill level. "You make sound points, Ruby," he told her. "What would you suggest to help her work past these problems, if I may ask?"
"Spatial awareness and stamina training to start," Ruby answered. "It also wouldn't hurt to have her to get some staff training, as it would give her an option of blocking and deflecting without relying on the shield, and help her focus on using centrifugal force in her strikes, thus increasing the effectiveness of her hammer strikes."
Julius smirked. "Agreed." He looked to the monitor and said, "Looks like Nana's training is complete. How about you head down and prep for yours, while I finish here?" he asked. Ruby nodded.
"Sure thing!" Ruby was practically vibrating with glee at the thought. "You gonna let Nana watch my training?" she asked.
"I think I will," Julius admitted. "Something tells me that Nana might learn a thing or two from you." Ruby chuckled sheepishly.
Nana had been a bit nervous when Julius walked up to her after her training, but when he invited her to watch her new friend Ruby's training live, how could she say no?! She stood next to her new captain as Ruby too the training area, her black scythe held over her shoulder. She felt a bit hurt when Julius told her of Ruby's analysis of her training, but Nana didn't let it get to her. Ruby did also praise her strength and offer ideas on how she could improve, which Nana thought was pretty nice of her.
She leaned forward in excitement, wondering how well Ruby would be in actual combat.
"This training will test your combat effectiveness against the Aragami," Julius announced over the intercom. "Are you prepared?" On screen, Ruby laughed.
"As a dear friend would say…" she said as she twirled her Arc expertly before grabbing the scythe and swinging it behind her, blade outstretched and ready to cut Aragami flesh. "…I'm combat ready!" she called out as she settled into a stance.
Julius snorted, making Nana blink in shock that such a stoic guy would do something like that. "Then your training begins…now!" he called out as the simulated Aragami were released. Several large, bipedal beasts with monstrous faces ran into the area and roared in fury. Ogretails.
Inside the training area, Ruby smirked and raced towards the small horde. One roared and immediately pushed forward with its tail to try and bite her, but Ruby was too fast for it and easily sidestepped the attack. As she did so, she brought her scythe around and slammed into the back of the Aragami's leg's slicing them off and causing the beast to fall unceremoniously to the ground, roaring in pain.
Noting her swing was too wide, she instantly corrected by planting her feet and spinning in place as she swung her Arc upward to catch another Aragami in the face, making it roar as the blade slashed through its eye. Ruby repositioned the Arc in her hands to bring the blade down into the side of a third Aragami's face, then as another ran up behind her, she brought the butt of the scythe around to slam into the monster's jaw. It roared and broke off its assault, allowing Ruby to finish the Aragami attached to her blade by removing its jaw.
The weight of the God Arc caused her swing to dip slightly, making Ruby grit her teeth. She spun the Arc around and quickly lashed out at the incoming Ogretails with vicious, semicircular slashes. During this assault, an Ogretail lost its tail, while other's head was cut in half, a third lost its legs before its brain was destroyed, while the fourth's heart was pierced.
The blue-eyed God Eater easily kicked off the Aragami from her blade and turned to face the remaining three. The roared, and one tried to fire spikes at her. Ruby saw them coming and quickly spun her Arc, deflecting the spikes as the second ran at her to headbutt her. She deflected the last spike and swung the scythe's heel around to smack the Aragami, disorienting it. Ruby then used the momentum to spin around the third's jumping assault as she spun the God Arc in her hands and brought the scythe up to slice the Ogretail in half.
Within Rachel's lab, Nana watched in awe as Ruby sliced up the simulated Aragami. "Whoa…!" she breathed out. "She's amazing…!" Ruby looked as if she was dancing out there, with how she moved so gracefully…
"She is," Julius agreed with a nod. Like he suspected, Ruby was a speed fighter, which was a benefit for Blood. Even more so seeing she also had the strength to back up her swings. Her situational awareness was also on point, further proving Ruby had combat experience. A bit rusty, maybe, and certainly still adjusting to the God Arc and its weight, but they were negligible.
She may very well end up being the best fighter in Blood.
"No wonder she survived the Satellite Base massacres," Leah commented. "Her skill is phenomenal! I don't think I've seen a God Eater wield a Variant Scythe with as much skill as Ruby."
"There are a few who are better than her, simply by the grace of age and experience, but she certainly stands amongst them!" Rachel commented.
Nana stopped watching and stared at Leah with wide eyes. "Wait! Y-You mean she's a Golden Week Hell survivor?!" she asked incredulously.
"Yes, she is," Rachel told the young God Eater. "In fact, during the assault at the base she was in, she held off multiple Aragami alone without a God Arc."
"S-She did?!" Nana was shocked and horrified. Her new friend had done that?! Without a God Arc?! And survived?! "T-That's insane! How did she survive?!"
"I think it was a combination of her skill and no small amount of luck," Julius commented as Ruby cut the tail and legs off another Ogretail, leaving only one left. "Now let's see how well she handles her Arc's gun form," he continued and pressed a button.
As Ruby was facing down the last Aragami, more sprouted up around the area. They were cocoon-like entities with furry casings with a large eye in the center. Night Hollows. Ruby smirked and rolled under the jumping Ogretail, swapping the scythe for the sniper. She frowned. 'First order of business before missions, fix the damn sights!' she raved mentally.
Clearing her head of those thoughts, she took aim at the furthest Night Hollow and fired, using the recoil to backstep out of an orb of energy shot from another Hollow as the Oracle cell-enhanced bullet tore through the side of the Aragami's eye socket. Noting the Ogretail's roar and heavy stomps behind her, she took aim at a Night Hollow to her right and fired. The recoil propelled her to the side, and she used the momentum to side roll out of the bipedal Aragami's path. Returning to her feet, she thrust the barrel of her sniper into the eye of a Night Hollow in front of her and fired, killing the Aragami instantly.
Back with the others, Julius was smirking as he watched Ruby display more of her combat ability. She was an excellent shot, just like her records showed. While not on par with Ciel's, a future member of Blood and his old acquaintance, accuracy, it was still impressive. And unlike Ciel, Ruby was far more proactive; using the recoil to escape dangerous situations or simply lining herself up for a better shot.
"Wow...!" Nana again was struck breathless by Ruby's skill. "She's slaying out there!"
"She certainly is!" Leah agreed, grinning in disbelief. "Using the recoil like that takes a great amount of concentration and skill."
On screen, they watched as Ruby positioned herself to having the Ogretail behind her and a Night Hollow in front of her. That's when it happened: Ruby fired at the Night Hollow, killing it with a perfectly aligned shot. She stepped backwards and swapped the sniper for the scythe, using the recoil to propel the changing God Arc towards her final opponent. However, the Ogretail stepped away, causing the scythe to cut part of its tail off. The Aragami roared in pain and backpedaled from Ruby. She gritted her teeth as she activated her God Arc's Devour mode, jumped forward, allowing the artificial Aragami to tear into the simulated one and tear out the core.
"Whoa!" Nana shouted. "What just happened?!"
"She attempted to use the recoil of the sniper to gain momentum, then swapped to her scythe to cut the Aragami," Julius explained. "However, it likely didn't work as she planned, as the God Arc is not built for such a maneuver."
"That's not to say it wasn't effective, though," Leah added. "I'd say if the distance between her and the Ogretail wasn't as great, she might have succeeded."
"Possible," Julius conceded. "But that does raise another question: that maneuver she tried…that wasn't something she just came up with. The way she moved, her grip on her God Arc, the movement of her body…it makes me wonder…"
"Huh? Wonder what, Captain Julius sir?" Nana asked curiously, tilting her head and placing a finger near her lips.
"Where did she learn to fight like that?" Rachel answered. "And if that was a move she used often, just what was she fighting that required such an odd method of combat?" The founder of Blood continued to stare down Ruby with a curious expression. "So many fascinating questions we find ourself pondering about our mysterious new God Eater…"
An: So, the training and other stuff took longer than I wanted, but it's not so bad. Hope everyone liked how Ruby is still getting used to the God Arc, and her analysis on Nana. Next chapter we'll be introduced to the fourth member of Blood, currently, and the live combat training mission. Also, we'll get some information about what Ruby went through during the two year skip between her arrival and her ascension as a God Eater. Hopefully. 'Till next time!