Requiem for the Amissum

The blood red sky thundered and roared its disapproval of Ruby Rose, made its condemnation of her failure apparent via brief flashes and ear-splitting cracks. Ruby lay face flat on the ground, desolate and alone. They had tried, they really did. Everything they could think of was thrown at the monster standing before her. Every advantage utilized and methodically plotted out to give them as much of a fighting chance as possible. Even with the combined force of every living hunter and huntress on Remnant. Even with the maidens. Even with Ruby Rose, the silver eyed huntress herself. It was all for naught.

The Queen of the Grimm stared down at her, impassively surveying the destruction their battle wrought on her lands. It was funny. Just a moment ago, Ruby was fighting her very heart and soul out, eyes flashing in quick contained bursts as she wielded Crescent Rose with expertise forged in blood. How many has she slain? How many Grimm have fallen to her dance? How much blood has Crescent Rose bathed in since her conception? Bullhead fulls, Ruby reckons. All that effort they put in, all these years of fighting, just for them to fall short at the most critical juncture.

With that thought, Ruby broke. She wept for the fallen, for life never to be, and for all the broken promises. The heroes of old never failed. At the end of the day, they always stood triumphant over the forces of evil and darkness. Not this time.

Mind numbing pain was sewed into her muscles, her bones stabbing into her flesh with every breath, the fractures riddling them likening them to decaying paint on an old oil painting. Her heart was on its last legs, having lost so much of the life nourishing essence that was required for her survival.

Beat…beat…beat

It seemed that the time in between each thump was lengthening, the frequency of her breaths slowing to a crawl, and the darkness dancing around the edges of her vision were closing in, eager to claim their final victim. Training taught her that holding onto a jarring sensation was the key to fighting through, that keeping a constant source of pain was required to keep the addled mind from succumbing. That wasn't a problem with each breath causing agony.

Salem. The fallen monster of the Caelestes, the Queen of the Grimm , whatever you wanted to call her. After bombardments upon bombardments, after being sliced to ribbons, even after tanking the power of the brothers themselves, she still stood, though probably not as steadily as she herself had expected. Salem's breathing was ragged and withered, her body having utilized its resources to push towards healing of the severed arm and eye, curtesy of Ruby Rose. Oh, and there was that missing chunk out of the side of her neck too. It was clear she wasn't anywhere near her full strength, or even half it for that matter.

As Ruby conducted a weary scan of The monster, Salem's vocal cords finally pulled themselves together, into some semblance of normal anatomy. Attempts to form words were rewarded with hacking coughs that took more of her strength away, but as she always seemed to, she triumphed. With a hateful glare she regarded Ruby Rose, the last silver eyed warrior and huntress.

"A thousand years of clandestine operations, preparation and nurturing, all in anticipation for this very battlefield…AND HE SENDS CHILDREN"

A well-placed kick speared through Ruby's broken ribs, brutalizing her already rapidly failing organs. She would've screamed if she could, but all she could give was a choked sob.

"Typical Ozpin, he would sooner send nations after me rather than fight me himself", Salem let out a chuckle followed by an agonized grimace. She surveyed her lands, not much remained. "But I suppose your team got a few kicks in. For what it's worth, I commend you. I commend you all."

The words were so far away now, seemingly drifting further and further away, being carried on the winds of fire and brimstone. Suddenly, the pain ceased, and it felt like an appropriate time for her to rest, for all of them to rest. Her eyes fluttered shut, and her already labored breathing seemed so finite for her last few seconds.

'Everyone, please forgive me. I'll see you soon'

Her last breath came out smoothly, a staggering volume of nothing overwhelming her mind. Darkness all encompassing.

.

.

.

But what of the maidens? And why could she still think? And was that laughter?

Ruby's eyes opened, and where she expected desolation, she found them all. Friends, family, and lovers. They all grinned at her, their cheering echoed in her ears as it washed over her like rain after a drought, she could've sworn there was confetti at some point. The white gold ground was thrumming with laughter and joy. Everywhere she looked she saw love, adoration, admiration, and compassion. This was what she fought for, who she fought for. Her awed state was further bolstered when gloved hands soft as velvet cupped her cheeks. Silver met blue, and the silver eyed warrior was once again reunited with the Winter maiden.

"W-Weiss? Is this real?", Ruby stammered as she struggled to accept this beautiful new reality.

Weiss only smiled, and flicked her forehead which elicited a startled yelp from Ruby. "That feel real enough for you? Dolt", Weiss chuckled with mirth in her eyes. She brought their foreheads together, closing her eyes and sighing as she felt the tips of Ruby's satiny windswept hair on her head.

Ruby brought up shaky hands to join Weiss', eyes tearing as she finally relished in the touch of her partner once again. "I…I…Weiss-"

"I know, Ruby. Me too". A tranquil smile formed on Weiss' face, a dopey smile plastered on Ruby's, and that was the perfect moment.

"But you're not done Ruby", Weiss opened her eyes, resolve apparent as she stood back upright, though not letting go of Ruby.

Upon seeing the confused look being sent her way, Weiss elaborated: "Ruby, the maidens have fallen, and it is now time for them to enjoy their peace. But the power has to go somewhere, doesn't it?"

Understanding came to Ruby like a Zwei to the face. "M-Me? Back out there? But…But… the gang's all here! And I'm all here! With my knees actually intact and normal!" Weiss shot her a concerned and questioning look. But Ruby Rose's antics were a mystery no one could solve, and Weiss just shook her head with a laugh.

"We'll all be together once again much sooner than you think Ruby. But for now, we need you out there, the rest of Remnant needs you out there. And I know you physically can't leave people in danger if you can help it", which draws grumbles from Ruby about becoming too predictable.

"How do I get back though? I mean, I'm already here in this weird afterlife plane, right? Are there magic words I gotta say? Oh maybe thinking of something dear to my heart back on Remnant will bring me back!" Weiss just blinked owlishly as Ruby scrunched up her eyes and started muttering something about chocolate molten lava cookies.

"Ruby…You're already going back. The maidens' powers are healing you as we speak"

Ruby let out an embarrassed: "Oh". Ducking her head as Weiss grinned.

Suddenly the chattering of their friends became a lot muted, and inspection of Ruby's hands would reveal their more translucent appearance.

Ruby eyed darted to Weiss', fear and doubt filling them. "Weiss…I'm scared. What if I fail again? I mean we all couldn't beat her together, now it's just…me"

Weiss rewarded her with a giggle. Which was weird because Weiss Schnee never giggles, but the adoration in her eyes interrupted that train of thought.

"Ruby Rose, you are the only silver eyed warrior since their conception to go toe to toe with Salem. You fought far longer than any of us could have hoped for, and your weapon mastery is unprecedented in the history of Remnant". Weiss' grin sharpened and her blue eyes shone with an edge that took Ruby's breath way.

"And now, you have the full power of all the maidens at your disposal. There is no conceivable way that you won't win, hell-heck Salem herself should be quaking in her boots right now"

Ruby stared at her in horror. "Weiss! That was a bad word! Take it back!"

Weiss rolled her eyes exasperatedly, something that she reserved specially for members of the Rose family. "Ruby, I'm dead. Social constructs conceived by society such as 'bad words' don't apply to me anymore"

A jolt shook through Ruby, that resulted in a surprised gasp. She likened it to the hypnic jerks that she always used to get before an operation against Salem's forces. She peered at her arms as they slowly began fading, and she jerked her head back up at the call of her name.

Weiss smirked at her, sending her off with a dainty wave. The crowd behind her whooped and yelled out goodbyes and see-you-soons. She was pretty sure she just saw Yang chuck Blake up in the air, her apparent equivalent of a sending off gift.

"How are you guys so sure that I'll win?" Ruby groaned embarrassedly with a pinkish tint to her cheeks at the attention.

Weiss gestured to an Oval Cheval Mirror, physically similar to the portals they utilized back at Atlas and Mantle. "You fought Salem for a really long time, we had a little sneak peek into the sequel"

Weiss beamed as Ruby rolled her eyes. "As if you couldn't make it anymore cryptic"

Suddenly, she was yanked back into Remnant.

.

.

.

Salem watched on in horror as Ruby Rose seemingly recovered to the peak of health in a few seconds. All the while letting out a satisfied groan as she stretched and cracked her neck.

"Ah well, here we go again. Hey Salem, you up for another go?"

Salem, still missing her eye, shrunk back with a grunt as silver flames burst to life from silver orbs, eyes hardened with the promise of a whole lot of pain and retributive justice to come.