Every part of Blake stood against her desire to rise, and yet through her dazed state of mind she managed to roll over. Her body was covered, that much was new to her and the first thing she noticed upon waking. Had they finally gotten tired of seeing her already? As she wondered the sound of a door opening drew her attention. There were hands on her, gently patting at the wounds which cried out in pain. It stung, and Blake let out a small hiss.
"Blake... are you awake?" The voice was soft, much like the tender touch against her injuries, and yet it sounded so familiar. Something was wrong as the girl finally realized she could no longer feel the bindings of her wrists, nor the chains which scratched at her skin. Fighting against herself Blake mustered her eyes opened, and though her sight was blurry at best she was able to identify the distinct shape of the woman who overlooked her.
"M...mom?"
"Hush now, let me finish cleaning everything up." Her mother's arms moved her over, pushing aside what she thought looked like a quilt. "I've almost got all the bandages changed so try not to move much okay."
That would explain the tightness around her, and yet she felt a question well up in her mind.
"How... how did I get here?" Her voice was still scratchy and her throat sore, although not as painfully as before.
"Sienna brought you back. Try not to worry too much right now and focus on getting some rest." It sounded nice, but Blake felt something come back to her, something that had her almost yank the wrap away as she scrambled to stand. "B-Blake, what did I just say!"
"I can't - agh!" Blake clutched her side as the older woman pulled her arms away from the injury."
"Don't do that! You'll make it worse!"
"They have everyone!" Blake was in a full blown panic. "I need to stop them before-"
"What you need is rest." The voice didn't belong to her mother, Blake recognised it immediately and looked to Sienna who stood against the door frame. "You're in no condition to be doing anything."
"Sienna?" Blake muttered as the woman sighed and walked inside. "What are you doing here?" She brought her guard up almost instinctually as the woman approached, and as she leaned in Blake noticed the slightly off look sent her way.
"Blake, I have a question." Sienna didn't sound as loud or sure as Blake remembered, and noticed the slight show of rings around her eyes. The woman wasn't sleeping right, which brought out a small bit of confusion in her. Yet she would save the questions for later, and instead wondered what Sienna could want.
"Yes."
"Do you know how it was that you were captured, or even who it was that locked you away?" Blake raised a brow.
"No..." Blake honestly had no answer to either. "I assumed it was Adam who sent them out, but the last thing I remember before waking up was a strange fog, followed by pain. I woke already bound, and then they started."
"Did they want anything?" Sienna tried, and yet Blake shook her head and winced a bit.
"No, they just started beating me."
"Did they say anything?"
"No."
Blake could see the agitation in Sienna's eyes, and with the small window of silence sent a question of her own.
"Did you find the others?" The desperation in her tone was clear as day, yet Blake didn't care as her worry overshadowed her pride. "There were two others with me-"
"A monkey boy and a Schnee right?" Blake felt her eyes widen as Sienna scoffed. "Yeah we found 'em."
"Where are they!"
"Still locked away back with the Fang." Blake felt her blood boil.
"Why didn't you save them!? Was it because of Weiss, because she's a Schnee-" Sienna's hand clamped over her mouth and the woman sent a stern look.
"Calm down for a second and I'll tell you." Sienna slowly let go and Blake did her best not to try and jump at her. The woman sighed as a cross look brushed her face. "We couldn't."
"Huh?"
"They were locked up tight and I couldn't break the binds. Trust me if I could I would have, but the Schnee - Weiss I believe you just said - begged me to save you."
"She... she did?" Sienna nodded as a faltered snarl crossed her lips.
"What a world; a Schnee begging her worst enemy to save a Faunus." The scoff fell to a warmer look. "At least it shows people can change." Sienna's eyes met with hers. "I don't know how you did it, but she doesn't seem to hate Faunus... at least openly anyway."
"She doesn't, she... she was just scared." Blake told, feeling a small bit of shock as Sienna giggled a tiny bit.
"Yeah... and I bet it was us who did that to her." Sienna let out a breather as Blake held her tongue. "If she's changed her mind so quickly with you then her hate must have been miniscule at best anyway. Still though, it's almost funny."
"She's still in danger." Blake interrupted. Sienna nodded her way as the relaxed air died off.
"Yeah, I know."
"Then we have to save her and Sun."
"So that's his name." Sienna hummed. "Yeah, we will, but not yet. We don't have the means, and with how much the Fang have done to them I'd say we'll need to wait for an opening."
"They'll be dead by then!" Blake cried, yet froze as Sienna spoke.
"No, they won't. They're planning on moving them."
"How could you know that!?" Blake felt her worry compound, only for Sienna to send a calm look.
"I was out getting something and overheard them talking about moving her in particular. Speaking of..." Sienna reached into her pouch and pulled out some flowers, which confused Blake. She saw Sienna hand them to her mom. "Take these, crush the petals, and add a gram of lightning dust. On it's own it acts as a poison, but in the presence of the original gravity mix they cancel each other out."
"And how do you know this?" Her mom asked as Sienna shrugged.
"Tried to see if mixing the two poisons would cause any extra violent effects. I wanted them to speed up the killing process, but they just negated each other." Sienna's tone was almost casual despite the admittance of outright murderous intent, and yet her mom sighed in a more tired manner; as if to say she couldn't care less anymore.
"So what will happen when I inject it?"
"It'll take around twenty minutes, but it should clear everything up. Ghira will feel mostly muscle pain and shortness of breath for about a week, but otherwise he'll be fine."
"What happened to dad?" Blake asked with a bit of worry. Her mother looked to her and then to Sienna.
"I think it's best if she explains it, isn't it Sienna?" The woman in question grumbled.
"Fine." The woman faced her. "Long story short the White Fang kicked me out and poisoned your dad. I have been trying to find out what they're up to and brought back a way to cure him, so needless to say their little 'assassination attempt' failed."
"THEY WHAT!?" Sienna covered her ears.
"Not so loud." Sienna lowered her hands. "Anyway, I've been trying to stop them, but to do that I need to find out what it is they want first. Ghira's going to be fine now okay, so no more yelling." Blake let out the breath she was holding and set her focus back on Sienna.
"So what happens now? You going to keep spying on them?"
"Not quite." Sienna smirked as she held up what looked like a key. "Turns out monkey boy is pretty slick. Supposedly this might help us break out everyone else who was taken, so we'll be moving onto that next. With any luck the bastard with the key for your friends will be there. Two for the price of one... sounds like a good deal right?"
"Right." Blake let out as she moved, wincing as she stood. "So when do we leave?"
"Excuse me, we? Blake you've been held up and beaten for days, and that's not even considering what other tortures you're probably neglecting from telling us. Neither Kali or I will let you do anything until you've at least somewhat recovered."
"I can't just stand back with everyone's lives on the line."
"You won't." Sienna sent a look her way, one with a playful undertone. "You're just laying low for a second. Trust me I'll need your help later when the show really starts to get rolling, but until then I need you to rest so you don't roll over the moment chaos breaks loose."
"But-"
"No buts, besides... you're parents need you." Sienna relaxed her posture as she leaned against the table. "They've been worried since you first left, and I believe Ghira would recover faster knowing his daughter is safe, don't you?"
Blake wanted to retort, but she knew her dad would be much less stressed if the first thing he saw was her and mom. As much as she hated being left behind she sent a small nod to Sienna as she stood to find her parents, intent on making sure both were okay and to hopefully apologise to them for her outburst when she first left for the Fang.
She saw Sienna stand with a smile and turn to leave. Blake knew all she could do for Sun and Weiss now was hope.
.
.
Ruby didn't know how much further was left, but even so she stood vigilant as Star-Bringer weathered the storm. The snowfall had slacked off slightly, however the speed of their travel still caused the flakes to feel like tiny bullets across her exposed face. When she first woke from the dreams she immediately searched for Pebble, and much like the Dream-Spinner implied he was nowhere to be seen. Everyone else had awoken too, and before most could catch their bearings Ruby informed them of their missing guest.
With an air of tension they instantly snapped to work and set course for their original target: the Crystalline Tower. Despite being well known throughout Remnant the tower itself had few descriptions, and considering how dangerous the land it occupied was Ruby could understand the feeling.
Unlike the other kingdoms which valued heavy communication and trade the often ignored kingdom of Dreallive tended to keep to itself. It's citizens were burrowed underground and a myriad of tunnels littered several meters below the tundra. From time to time the ravenous storms would ease and the people would journey to the surface to try and scout out potential dust deposits as the winds would sometimes blow strong enough to turn the very land, and some of the revealed ice chunks contained several useful dust deposits. Getting the dust was dangerous though and many would die trying. Some would say the last moments before one would succumb to the storm were almost dreamlike, making them feel more alive then ever in their delusionary state; with the knowledge of the Dream-Spinner Ruby could understand why.
Most of Dreallive's cultivation was done underground with frozen ice patches along the surface acting as glass ceilings, protected and cleaned of snow to allow what little sunlight it could through to the farms beneath. While this provided some sense of crop it still wasn't enough to feed everyone, and as such hunter parties were sent to the surface once every month to trap the beasts that managed to survive the harsh environment to use as cattle. There were also several streams and ponds in natural caves that acted as fishing environments for them. All together it allowed them to strike back against the nature that wished their demise.
However few knew this, and the 'frozen sea' as they called it was a mystery to all. Mobius had ties with them though, and queen Salem often made a point in her court to send some representatives to strengthen ties with the nobles of the tower. Sometimes the queens of both kingdoms met and several deals would be struck. For once Ruby was glad to have been in such high standing with queen Salem as it allowed her to be chosen as the servant to accompany her on the trips she made, and with it Ruby gained all she needed.
She knew every inch of the kingdom, as well as the exact location of the tower. The Crystalline Tower itself was the only structure to pierce the frozen waves of snow, and had entrances both above and below ground; Ruby intended to take advantage of that.
"There!" A smirk grit it's way to the surface of her face as she saw the distinct shadow fade through the storm. "Ease up and prepare to dock!"
"We've no shelter!" Called one of the crew who's words struggled against the wind.
"We're coming up! When you see the tower dock right next to it and hopefully the ship will last long enough for me to get Pebble!"
"Ay lass, are you sure the boy is here?" Unlike the others captain Alcove walked over to her instead of shouting, but then again she supposed at his age it would be difficult to strain his voice.
"Positive." She saw the tower rapidly approach. "There's no other place to go." Ruby upon finishing her words quickly noticed the grim look on the man's face.
"That's not what I meant." He sighed. "The storm's as feral as they come, and I fear the boy may have been..." The elder man strained to speak the words, as though they caused him physical pain. Ruby understood, and yet she allowed him to speak his concerns. "Lost to the plains of white."
"He hasn't." Ruby spoke with such sincerity that had Alcove give a curious hum. "I cannot understand how, or why, but I know he's here." Ruby turned to him and allowed her eyes to lock with his. "So please, all I ask is for you to let me prove it." It was a lie, but she doubted mentioning a talking Grimm from her dreams would put anyone at ease, and instead opted for the more fairy-tale approach.
"Right." The man sighed, but she could hear the hope that lined his tone. "We'll be here when you get back, so hurry along."
Ruby sent a smile as the man walked back seemingly to his cabin. The ship stood firmly next to the tower and the men headed below deck to warm up. With a firm jolt of motivation and the desire to find the mysterious artifact that lay at the bottom Ruby hopped over the side and went to the only opening available.
Ruby walked along the edged and spiked wall of crystal until she came to the smooth door. It was crystal like everything else, and yet it always felt weird that they went so far as to make even the door so fanciful. She pushed the door open and immediately her worry rocketed. Despite the absence of visitors from other kingdoms guards were usually positioned to keep away any Grimm or beasts that draw too close, and the lack of such told Ruby that something must have been going on.
The woman drew her weapon as she pushed inside, and as expected she was met with no resistance; despite the apprehension at her fingertips she took in her surroundings. First glance had the reflectively polished walls of soft blue crystal provide a splendid air of calm, however the décor reminded her of just how vile times had truly become.
Ruby disregarded the gory displays strewn across the walls having chalked it up to the impudence of yet another barbaric madman and instead made her way towards the railing which spiraled both high and low. She'd not the feintest hint of which direction Pebble lay, however she knew that at the bottom of the depths she'd find what she needed.
May as well. No use in wasting time.
She chose to descend, and with a little luck hoped to cross paths with the boy on her way.
.
.
"Hey look!" Nora called as she pointed ahead in her usual excited manner. "I think I can see some smoke from here!"
"We should be coming up to the next village anyway." Qrow gave as he let out a chuckle. "Seems you won't be camping out tonight after all."
"Finally!" Yang whined as she stretched. "I'm getting sick of the pain in my neck each time we get up."
"That's because you never take your gauntlets off, and you sleep with them behind your head." Ruby spoke as Yang smirked.
"Never know when a fight's going to break out." She pounded her fists together. "Got to be ready for anything."
"Our weapons are always right next to us anyway. It seems a little overkill to keep them in on while resting." Ren gave his input as Pyrrha spoke up.
"True... having them on could lead to a misfire."
"Come on, I'm not that stupid. I have the safety on anyway and I always unload them when I sleep."
"Doesn't that defeat the purpose though?" Ruby asked as she looked to her older sister. "Why wear them if they won't be able to fire anyway?"
"It just makes me feel prepared. Besides, when in bed I won't need to worry about random Grimm attacks anyway." Yang responded.
"That's true. Even if Grimm do attack we'll have time to grab our stuff and get out to fight." Ruby thought aloud as Yang smirked again.
"See? It'll be good to finally get to an Inn."
"Alright that's enough kids." Qrow spoke from behind. "Talking won't make us go faster. I'll get us a place when we get there so let's just move already."
"Why the rush uncle Qrow?" Yang questioned as the man looked to the sky.
"It'll get dark soon and it feels like it's going to rain tonight. I want us to get a move on so we won't get soaked."
"Fair-"
"Guys!" Nora's shout put a halt to everything, and before any of them could do anything the ginger girl took off.
"Nora!" Ren ran after her, followed by the rest, all the while Pyrrha felt something odd well up in her gut.
Panic flooded through each of them as the sight of the town became clearer with every step. The smoke didn't come from chimneys or the like, but from the smoldering remains of the village. Nora ducked down before a man, a guard from what Pyrrha could tell, and nudged him slightly.
"Hey, hey... can you hear me?"
"Nngh..." His eyelids twitched, however the motion was very feint.
"Do we have anything to help!?" Nora asked, to which Ren leaned closer to look over the man.
"Hold on a moment." Ren pulled back a section of the torn cloth which clung to the man. It was stained bloody, a signal that his condition was through a rather violent encounter. Ren scoffed as he let go. "No good, the wound's are deep and targeted at vital points. Nothing can save him now."
"There has to be something we can do." Ruby spoke up only to stop as Qrow placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Sorry squirt, but sometimes there's nothing to be done." Qrow let go and leaned down before the man who struggled to crack his eyes open. "What happened here?"
"G... Grrr..." The man coughed, which sputtered small bits of blood across his chin and lips, only to go still entirely. With a solemn sigh Qrow reached forwards and closed his eyes completely before standing again.
"Right." He faced everyone. "Guards up. Whatever it was might still be around, and if it's strong enough to wipe out an entire village then it might be more than we can handle."
"He was trying to say Grimm." Ren let out as Qrow nodded and turned away.
"Yeah."
"Do you think it was a wave of them?" Pyrrha found herself asking, only to be slightly surprised as Qrow shook his head.
"No, a wave would have leveled this place. All the buildings would have been crushed with floors torn apart as they slaughtered each and every person they could find, and a few would remain as well until they had the urge to venture off again." Qrow looked around. "The destruction is new, and I doubt the Grimm responsible would have left to soon." He looked to the recently deceased man with a frown. "Especially with it's prey still present."
Thunder cracked in the background and Pyrrha could feel flickers of water across her skin. The droplets very quickly became a full on downpour and she heard Yang let out a growl.
"Great, not only do we not get an inn tonight but we also have a deadly Grimm to deal with, and now we get to do it all while soaked too."
"No." Qrow spoke as he face the village entrance again. "This is good. The rain will drain the fires and drown out the noise of our movements. With any luck we might be able to avoid this fight entirely."
"But they follow our emotions though. It will track us anyway won't it?" Ruby quipped as they slowly followed after Qrow with their weapons drawn.
"True, but that's mostly in large quantities. With only a few of us it'll have trouble pinpointing us directly until it sees or hears us. With the precise wounds on that man back there we'll have to assume it's got a level of intelligence, so it'll most likely be listening and searching for us while using our negativity as more of a general radar."
Pyrrha got what Qrow was saying as Grimm studies had often shown such behavior as common among the older and wiser Grimm, however something about the wounds back there bugged her. It was very small and most likely irrelevant but it was something that ticked at her nonetheless. Back with her fights against smaller Grimm along the way all of them had taken a some hits at one point or another, nothing too serious but enough to damage the aura. Those hits often left a sort of essence in their place which she could feel until the area had fully healed and the aura replenished.
The wounds on that man had no such thing.
Pyrrha wasn't sure if it was because of aura that the 'Grimm essence' as she took to calling it stuck from each attack, or if such a thing would find it's place in every Grimm caused wound - after all she'd never seen anyone injured without aura so she couldn't say for sure it would always be there - but nobody else seemed to notice it, which led her to assume that being able to see it was another side effect of her current condition. Maybe it was just aura interacting with the damage caused by the creatures, but even so the wounds on the man struck her as off. Pyrrha felt that the gashes were too clean, even for an intelligent Grimm.
Pyrrha shook her head and pushed those worries aside as they trudged along; there was no use in worrying now that they took off. She raised her blade, her senses keen on any and all angles of potential attack.
The town despite being of a medium size had plenty of nooks and crannies which she hated. There were too many angles where Grimm could hide, and too little space to maneuver properly. The girl knew that if they got caught there would be little chance of escape, and with cramped area they'd have a difficult fight. She wanted to suggest they focus on the center of town as it would allow for a more open fight, but they were trying to avoid fighting altogether so she knew that idea was out the window.
We'll just have to hope it all goes well.
Author's note
...
Back again, this time with a more quiet chapter. I don't really have much to say this time other than we're moving along and getting closer to some more major events, but not quite there yet.
It's best to sit tight for when things start to go down again, so think of this chapter as a small break from all the chaos - ignoring the obviously dangerous situation with Pyrrha and crew.
That's it for now. See you next time.