A/N: We're back with another update. So far I'm surprised at the support we're receiving for the fic and it's so wonderful seeing people excited and invested. Thank you guys so much for that, now a few more notes before you get started on the fic itself:
Phineas J. Bitterman, Thanks for the offer on helping with the Rwby lore. Honestly, besides Atlas and Vale, I don't know much about what the other Kingdoms have. So if you would like to offer up information on the other Kingdoms, that'd be a huge help. Really anything you think I need to know that will help Remnant fight the Flood that could be added would be really helpful.
Octavio Constant, Sorry I guess I didn't do a very good job of explaining. But the end of the previous chapter is during the breach. I wanted to mirror the end of the episode where Team CFVY arrives in the bullhead and helps RWBY and JNPR clear the area, instead in this story they crash and bring the Flood into the heart of the city.
When it comes to if the Flood can use Aura it's something I've thought about, and I haven't quite come to a decision. I'm leaning toward saying yes. Because that will cause quite the interesting fights for the characters as the Flood gets stronger and starts adapting the powers of their fallen foes. And some very interesting developments to come later on down the road.
OCs will be sprinkled throughout the story but they're just to get the story moving, but they won't be the main characters.
Finally, this chapter will have a slight jump in time and won't immediately follow the previous chapter and will be jumping to different characters.
Well without further ado here is the next chapter of World Eater. As always review, follow, and favorite and let me know what you think.
Consume. Spread. Consume. Spread. Consume. Spread. Grimm...Nusicance
A bit of turbulence shook the Atlas dropship, making everyone on board a little uneasy, "Check your weapons!" Lieutenant Hargrek yelled as he did the same for his. The group of seven Atlesian soldiers sat around him as he inspected each of their rifles in turn, before nodding to himself.
Four Atlesian Knight-130 droids were positioned by the doors as Hargreks' group finished up their equipment checks. The pilot spoke over the speakers "We'll be making landfall at the city entrance in five minutes," the man's voice was a little crackled from the intercom, and Hargrek's grip on his rifle tightened in response to it.
"Lt.?" one of the men asked, looking up at him from his own inspection, "What's the big deal?" he questioned with a small frown playing on his lips.
"What are you talking about soldier?" he asked back with a confused tone lacing his voice. "The city's gone to hell. Something is eating away at it as we speak,"
"Yeah I get that," the man stated, "But zombies? I mean it just sounds like something out of a B-grade movie, or a video game,"
"You watch too much TV Private," a female soldier next to him spoke as she shook her head at the man.
"Regardless, the brass thinks there is a problem. So that makes it our problem too. And if you can't do this then maybe you're not cut out to be in Atlas's military. So suck it up, get it together besides you should be happy you get to fight something that isn't Grimm," Hargrek barked, before he looked down at his own rifle, making sure that it was working.
"Relax Gregory..." the female soldier next to him, named "Amy," began as she placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it. "Hargrek is just being a dick. So just follow his orders, and don't die...got it?"
The private named Gregory simply nodded his head. "Don't worry Ames. I'll make it back in one piece," he assured her as she let out a small smile before nodding.
Entering the city's limits the pilot looked out the cockpit window and saw that it was in an even worse state than what he had expected. "Gods.." he murmured, the center of the city had been engulfed in flames and smoke. His grip tightened on the controls as the radio was suddenly flooded with the sounds of activity.
"This is Igloo we've set up a temporary landing zone, send any civilians you have towards us. We'll get them out of the city ASAP."
"Frost giant here. We've got civis but we're pinned down and could really use some backup."
"Ice dagger - 4 copy, gunship is inbound, take cover and brace yourselves,"
"Wendigo, we've hooked up with local huntsmen, making our way to the center of the city, watch your six!"
"Ice Sleet this is Ice Dagger - 9, be advise the Grimm and those things are going at each others throat down the block, You're heading into a shit-storm! Turn around now and link up with Blizzard and their Paladins."
Feeling a hand on his shoulder the pilot looked back to see the lieutenant standing behind him. "Don't worry about what you see out there soldier, focus on the job we have to do and the job will get done," the man stated before patting him on the back and giving him a reassuring smile.
"R-right umm...one minute till touchdown."
Lieutenant Hargrek nodded to his pilot. "You heard the man!" he yelled at his team, "Grab your shit! It's time to dance!" he gave the droids a hand gesture, ordering them to prepare.
"The Aks will clear the area first. Stay back until the landing zone is clear!" he commanded, as the other six members of the group did their final weapons checks before getting into position near the doors, readying for combat.
As the squad of seven Atlesian soldiers and the four Atlesian knights prepared for combat, the pilot failed to notice a nevermore fly from out of a destroyed building right towards them, the giant flying Grimm unable to fully control its movement due to the infected creatures covering its body, screeching and screaming as they clamored over it, tearing at its body with teeth and claws.
Dropship alarms blaring the pilot had little time to react as the Grimm smashed into the left wing of the vessel sending it off balance, and into an out-of-control spiral downwards. The group of soldiers yelled as they struggled to hang on to something while the AKS thrashed around from the impact.
"Mayday, Mayday!" The pilot yelled into the radio, "We've been hit and are going down, sending co-" A sickening crunch was heard as the ship made contact with the ground, its front crumpling like tin foil before the craft finally came to a rest.
As the sound of alarms and emergency lights faded to silence smoke slowly began to clear within the crashed Atlassian ship. A faint groan was heard as Hargrek's vision finally stopped spinning and his body regained feeling once more. A searing pain burned throughout his head, causing the man to grab and groan once more. He took a few moments to look around and regain his senses. His vision finally came into focus.
His helmet's radio buzzed, "One of our birds just went down..." he heard a man on the other line state with a somewhat worried tone. "Repeat: One of our birds is down. I repeat-" The transmission suddenly went to static.
He took a moment to look at his squad as he let out a small groan "H-how is everyone doing? Anybody dead?" he questioned them, only getting a few groans of pain from Amy.
"Marcus and Erik are dead so is the pilot" Amy spoke out from his side, before letting out a sigh as she leaned her head back. "So much for them," she mumbled, a little bitter, she was rather close to both of them.
"And the droids?" he questioned again.
She let out another sigh as she looked at them "None of them made it through, too banged up for anything,"
Hargrek looked at his rifle to make sure it wasn't broken."Where's the other two?" He asked with a grim expression as he checked it.
Amy took out a pistol from one of her many holsters "I think Gregory and Aaron might've slingshot out of the ship," she spoke grimly.
He nodded at the info, sighed a bit in frustration, and began to move the debris around him before gunshots and shouting came from outside of the ship "Gregory! Aaron!" Hargrek called out loudly "You boys still alive out there!?" he shouted again as more gunshots rang out.
Gregory's voice came out a little broken from the radio as the man answered "Help Lt!" He cried out in a somewhat desperate tone as the gunfire continued to ring out.
Groaning to himself he and Amy grabbed the mangled metal door to the ship and pulled on it hard. It was a bit stubborn at first but soon came out of the wrecked craft, giving the pair access to the outside of the craft. Hargrek's eyes widened and his expression hardened when he saw Gregory prone on his back as he inched backward while firing his rifle. His armor had many cracks and gashes on it and it was clear he'd been wounded from the crash.
Flinching from the shoots a Beowolf let out a low growl, before lunging at him. But Hargrek and Amy didn't let him have that chance, each opening up on the beast, dropping it quickly with the combined fire from the two soldiers.
Gregory huffed before dropping to his back. Amy and Hargreke rushed to his side as he began to cough. Hargrek's hand came down on his chest and his other pressed onto Gregory's headpiece as he tried to calm his squad member. "Greg! Talk to me!"
Amy quickly got to work patching up Gregory's wounds as best as she could "Thought you said we weren't gonna fight any Grimm..." he spoke out in a tired but joke-like voice as he looked at Hargrek and Amy, letting out a small laugh as the two gave him a frown.
"Nice to see you haven't lost your sense of humor, private." Hargrek commented with a smirk on his face as Amy began to finish up with the medical aid she was giving Gregory.
"Not today Greg," Amy said with a small smile on her face before helping Gregory up off the ground and to his feet, slinging his arm over her shoulder.
With smoke and fire starting to build up around the trio as more of the crashed Atlesian ship began to ignite, Hargrek pressed his hand to the side of his helmet. "This is Lt. Hargrek to any available units!" He spoke out to the radio, waiting to hear a reply from the other line, "We're down and pinned. If anyone's near our position, send some assistance."
His words were only answered by silence on the radio, leaving the lieutenant to sigh a bit, "So much for reinforcements," he spoke with a shake of his head before growls and howls began to sound in the distance, growing louder and louder, causing the trio of survivors try and see through the thick smoke, but failing due to the heavy veil.
"They're surrounding us..." Amy muttered as she tightened her grip on her rifle, Hargreke nodding in agreement to her statement.
Gregory shifted himself out of Amy's hold before standing up on his own, grabbing his rifle once more before the three of them heard gunshots coming from within the smoke. Hargreke frowned as he turned to look in the direction the sound of gunfire had come from "Those are Atlas guns firing"
"Aaron maybe?" Amy offered, glancing in his direction for a brief moment before looking back towards the smoke, as Hargreke looked at her in agreement with that notion. "Aaron!" Gregory called out in an attempt to reach their comrade, "That you out there!?"
The gunfire grew more fierce from within the smoke accompanied by growls from beowolves, and monstrous screams of creatures neither of them had heard of before. It was an unholy orchestra of horror.
Amy bit her lip, "Another squad...?" she asked no one in particular, still wanting an answer as the gunfire, growls, and roars grew louder, closer to their position.
Then it all suddenly came to an end as silence took over once again, with the thick veil of smoke surrounding the trio. Amy tightened her grip on her weapon, readying for a fight.
From within the smoke, the three of them saw something moving around, "Aaron...?" Gregory questioned aloud with a hopeful tone in his voice, readying his rifle for a possible attack.
From the cloak of haze, Atlesian white armor appeared before them, causing the trio to smile with relief at the sight, only to drop immediately at the rest of the sight. Hargreke let out a disgusted noise from his throat at what he saw. It was indeed Aaron. But he had changed, so much so he almost couldn't recognize him. The man's face was pale with veins of sickly brown pulsating on it, his armor dented and torn with various rips on the exposed parts of the soldier's body. One arm held an atlas rifle loosely at the man's side, and the other had morphed and deformed, resembling a mix of flesh and bone, a clawed hand. Aaron let out a guttural growl, his face twisted into that of anger, or was it pain? It was hard to tell as he staggered towards them.
A mix of other grotesque beings began to emerge from the veil of smoke, following suit behind the now-deformed Aaron. "...What the hell...is this...?" Gregory spoke out in shock and horror, at the sight of the once Atlesian soldier who was now some form of deformed monster.
Aaron growled out loudly and the horde behind him mimicked the noise, charging forward at them. "Open fire!" Hargreke commanded, he, Amy, and Gregory all opened up on Aaron and the deformed monsters. Aaron roared and thrashed about as his body was filled with bullet holes, before collapsing onto the ground.
Gregory grits his teeth and shifts his aim towards the creatures, gunning down the creatures with a mixture of fear and anger, before suddenly screaming as a small spider-looking creature shoots from a small horde, embedding itself in the man's face. "Gregory!" Amy yelled out in panic, rushing to his side before being slammed aside by one of the monsters as it emerged from the smoke and rammed into her with its head. "Ahhh!" She yelled in pain as she collided with a metal beam on the side of a ruined building.
The small spider-like creature screeched as it burrowed its way into Gregory's head, the man crying in pain, the poor man thrashing about on the ground in agony as he attempted to rip it from his face. Gregory's body suddenly seized and his body fell limp to the ground. His face still contorted into that of agony, he began to stir again, a sickening wet gurgling and raspy noise coming from him as his body rose once again. The spider-like creature now embedded in the right side of his face, its body pulsating and wriggling about.
Hargrek bit his lip as he went to Amy's side, "I need your help, Amy! I know you're hurt, but I can't do this by myself." His voice was firm and determined, though it still had an underlying hint of panic in it, "Can you still fight!?"
"What's happening to him?" Amy yelled out, trying her best to ignore her own pain. She pointed her gun at her fallen comrade. Her expression filled with sadness.
Hargrek let out a frustrated growl as he fired at more of the deformed monstrosities that began to encircle the two of them, "I don't know. But right now we need to survive." He yelled back to her, his grip tightening on his rifle as more and more of the deformed monstrosities surrounded the pair, cutting off all escape routes. "This is Snowman to any unit! We have wounded, and need immediate extraction. Please, anyone. Respond!" he cried out on the radio as the pair prepared for a fight they knew they couldn't win, as their number of bullets and ammo ran low.
Static on the radio was the only thing he received from the other side, "Damnit, this is Lt. Hargreke to any unit. We have wounded! We need assistance! Does anyone copy!? We're being overrun, I repeat we need help! Over,"
More static.
"Goddammit, fucking answer us!" He yelled out in anger, the stress and pressure finally getting to him. His eyes wide with shock as his radio continued to crackle, before going silent. The monsters that surrounded them continued their advance, their deformed forms approaching with sickening growls, their limbs contorting and deforming with every move they made.
Hargrek gritted his teeth in frustration as the clicking noise of empty ammo drums reached his ears, he cursed to himself and threw his rifle at the horde before readying his sidearm. He shot one of them in the face, killing it instantly before a group of three of these things tackled him to the ground. "Fuck off!" He shouted out at the creatures opening fire with his sidearm.
The bullets ripped through the flesh of the monstrosities, but more just took their places. Their twisted, deformed bodies blocked out his view, and soon he was buried underneath a mass of flesh. The last thing he saw before it covered him completely was Amy, as she screamed and shot her pistol at the monsters. Until they eventually overcame her too.
Hargreke and his team weren't special in that regard. The city and those within it were quickly falling to the alien monsters that plagued it. The creatures rampaging about, causing mayhem and destruction, spreading their infection. It was only a matter of time before the entire city was lost and with it Vale as a whole.
A trio of Atlesian drop ships flew low over the Emerald forest as they moved towards Beacon Academy's landing pad. Each aircraft flew in formation, engines whining as they slowly descended downwards.
Atlesian Knight-130s, soldiers, and medical personnel began to disembark as they touched down on the platform, all moving in formation towards the Academy. The knights were out in force, standing guard in small groups as they formed up, surrounding the platforms and waiting.
One dropship landed heavily as its engines roared, the back hatch slamming open with a bang, and out stormed Yang and Pyrrha who both carried Nora who vehemently struggled in their grip. Her cries of desperation echo in the air. "Let me go! We have to go back for Ren!" she screamed.
Pyrrha's voice was barely audible, her words filled with the pain of losing a friend. "I'm sorry, Nora," she croaked. "There's nothing we can do." The redhead turned to watch Jaune as he stepped off the dropship, a distant look in his eyes. "Jaune, we need your help here," Pyrrha called out to him, her voice weak.
Nora's voice rose in desperation as her struggles to get free became even more desperate, "Let go of me!" she cried out in pain as she twisted her body in Yang's arms, her struggles making the two Huntresses stumble. "Ren's still alive! I know it, we have to go back and get him!"
Jaune looked up at her, his face twisted in sorrow. His gaze went to the red-haired woman, who was crying, tears rolling down her cheeks, as her arms were locked under Nora's shoulder blades. He sighed, and slowly made his way over to them, trying his best to help them hold the distraught Nora.
Blake with Weiss' arm over her shoulders, helped the shaken heiress step off the aircraft, Blake's face a mask of shock and fear while Weiss, a mixture of confusion and sadness, eyes glassy and unfocused. The two stumbled slightly before Blake caught them both, steadying themselves as they looked up and stared in shock as a swarm of Atlesian dropships descended from the clouds towards Beacon Academy, the sky full of them as they started to land around the grounds.
People poured from the aircraft, from civilians to soldiers, to Atlesian Knights, all disembarking the transports and moving towards the Academy.
They looked at each other before glancing at the Academy's entrance. They began to walk slowly towards the academy, passing the throng of Atlesian troops as they set up defenses, trying their best to keep a clear head after all that just happened to them, before stopping and watching as the pride of the Atlas Military an Atlesian airship hovered overhead.
Ruby slowly disembarked from the dropship as she watched its massive hulking form taking its place above Beacon. Her gaze turned back to the vessel, giving a measured smile to the trio of
fellow students that had accompanied them in the aircraft, she nodded slightly as she stood at attention, "You guys will be safe here. Don't worry, everything will be alright. I promise," Ruby stated to them.
Mercury, Emerald, and Cinder shared looks as they began to get off of the ship, all of them looking to their new 'friend' and nodding as they stepped onto the landing platform, Cinder speaking up in an attempt to play her role. "Thank you," she said with a small smile. "We'll see you around."
Ruby's gaze remained on Cinder, giving the girl a slight smile, before going to catch up to her team that was already moving towards the Academy.
'Such a naïve little girl.' Cinder thought to herself as she watched Ruby move towards the redhead who seemed to be in an argument with the orange-haired girl who had been dragged away kicking and screaming by the others from the fight against those...things...whatever they were that had emerged from the crash Bullhead.
Watching her move away with the others Cinder nodded towards Emerald and Mercury, "Come along you two."
Following behind Mercury stopped realizing that Emerald wasn't following, turning back to his teammate he found her staring with a far-off look on her face at the dropships that continued to touch down.
"Uh...hello Em?" Mercury called out as he waved a hand in front of his teammate's face. "Come in Em?"
Blinking rapidly, Emerald's eyes fluttered open and she glanced over to the boy, her lips drawing into a small scowl at his smug grin as he looked at her, "What?"
Mercury just shook his head. "We've got a job to do," he replied simply, as he continued to stare at her, watching her gaze dart to the ships again as a Bullhead passed them by overhead.
Emerald narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips slightly in annoyance. "I heard you," she growled before she followed behind her partner towards the main entrance of the academy. "You're insufferable sometimes," she mumbled as she walked.
Mercury just shrugged in reply and turned towards Cinder as he and Emerald followed their leader into the main lobby of Beacon Academy, "So...what do we do now?" Mercury asked.
"We keep our heads down," Cinder stated firmly, keeping her eyes focused straight ahead, and her expression neutral, "We need to lay low while the Grimm continue to rampage through the city," Cinder stated.
"And those things...I don't remember them being part of the plan, Cinder." Emerald muttered in reply.
Cinder let out a small chuckle at that, her eyes narrowed as her gaze flitted around the lobby, "Plans can always change, Emerald."
The two remained quiet, letting the conversation end, Mercury took his position on the opposite side of Cinder as he and Emerald followed her in their line towards the academy.
"No!No! Ren's alive!" Nora shouted in anguish as she fought against the two Huntresses. She turned around in Yang's grasp and pushed against her. "Ren's not dead!"
"...Nora, please!" Yang pleaded. She wasn't sure what to do anymore. The orange-haired girl kept struggling and yelling, her words getting louder and more frantic as she continued, "I know that he was important to you. But..." the brawler paused as she took a deep breath before continuing, "Please don't make this harder for everyone here! There's nothing we can do!" Yang shouted.
Nora just looked at her with a wild expression, her eyes wide as tears rolled down her face. She took a few ragged breaths before speaking again in a pained voice, her voice cracking with emotion "We can do something! He's alive! We just need to get to him!" Nora exclaimed, her voice shaking with despair as she spoke.
Jaune taking Yang's place began to hold her as Yang released the distraught Nora, "I'm sorry, Nora..." he said to her quietly, the look on his face full of sympathy as he tried to keep hold of her.
Pyrrha turned to Ruby and her team who watched on silently as she spoke, "We'll...take Nora to the infirmary," Pyrrha said. "It's been a long day...Jaune, come on," the redhead continued as she and her team leader took Nora down towards the infirmary with her struggling as they did so.
Yang watched as the trio turned a corner, disappearing from sight. Her gaze shifted over towards her sister. Ruby stood there in silence, her silver eyes staring off into space, and the look of despair that was in them broke the Blonde Brawler's heart.
A bark came from the crowd of students and Ruby snapped back to reality. Her attention turning to her right turned towards the noise to find her little corgi companion bounding towards them. "Zwei!? You're ok!" Ruby exclaimed, dropping to one knee as Zwei reached them and she began to shower him with affection.
"It's good to see you all made it out of the city." came the voice of Dr.Oobleck, as he approached the team, the group all looking at him.
Yang took a step forward, "You made it out, too. That's great..." her voice trailed off slightly as her mind drifted to Nora and what had just happened with the girl. "Have you heard any news?"
Oobleck sighed, his brow furrowed slightly as he stared at Yang. "The situation in the City has...devolved. I can say with certainty that it's gone to hell in a handbasket..." the Doctor stated with a solemn tone as he gazed around the group before continuing.
"...Classes have been canceled and Beacon is now serving as an emergency shelter." He glanced at each one of the team before he continued his explanation, "It will serve as a sanctuary for as long as we need it. This will be a very difficult time for all of us," Oobleck explained to them, his tone grave as he spoke.
"...This is...all so terrible," Weiss whispered. "And Ren..." she shook her head slowly, as tears rolled down her cheeks, and a shudder passed through her body as she stared at her hands. She had seen Ren get dragged by those...creatures. After pushing Nora out of the way. But...it all felt so distant now, almost unreal. She could hear herself speaking, but she didn't feel like herself when she did. "Dr.Oobleck? Could you...would you tell us what exactly those...things were that attacked us in the city?" she asked in a small voice.
Dr.Oobleck sighed, his expression troubled, his hands clenched tightly into fists by his side. "...We don't know what they were...and that's what worries us," he told them solemnly as his gaze swept over each of them.
"For now, try your best to settle down here, it will be some time before everything settles down again, so take a breath. And let your body rest." he finished with a small nod.
Yang let out a shaky breath. "Right...let's all try to settle down." she looked towards Weiss as she spoke to them "...I'm sure there are some free beds somewhere...maybe we can get some rest before they make us work," she stated, trying her best to keep her voice strong as she spoke.
"We've already lost someone, Yang," Blake muttered. She took a deep breath before letting it out slowly, her voice strained, as she continued, "We... we shouldn't even be thinking about rest right now."
"No," came Ruby's voice, quiet and filled with emotion. She turned towards the rest of her team. "I know we're all feeling hurt, but we need to stay calm. We... We need to keep ourselves in one piece. We need to hold ourselves together so that we can get through this and keep everyone safe..." Ruby told them quietly, her voice shaky as she spoke. Her gaze went to each of them. Her words were filled with determination.
Her eyes flit between Blake, Weiss, and Yang before she turns to Zwei and picks him up "...Let's get going..."
She moved past her team and continued towards the main entrance to the Academy.
"...Yang, is Ruby gonna be alright?" Blake asked Yang, worry in her voice as she looked at the Blonde, who seemed lost in her own thoughts as she gazed at her younger sister's back, as she walked away. "Yang?"
"What?" Yang looked up with wide eyes, surprised by the sudden question.
Blake bit her lower lip for a second before repeating herself, "Will Ruby be alright?" she asked again, looking to her leader as she walked ahead. "She seems...well, I think she's putting up a good front right now." Blake's voice dropped as she continued speaking, "I mean, I can see it...she's doing a pretty good job keeping it together right now, but...I don't want her to think she has to act strong all the time, you know? It's...not healthy." Blake looked down at her hands. "...We...lost Ren and it was...horrific to watch...I just hope that...Ruby is okay after all this. It can't be easy for her either."
Yang nodded, looking at the rest of her teammates, and then turning back to where her little sister was headed. Her expression darkened as she began walking forward towards Ruby. "Yeah..." Yang agreed. Her voice trailed off for a moment as her eyes scanned around, watching the soldiers that stood guard as civilians came to Beacon Academy to take shelter. The blonde let out a sigh as she continued moving, "Come on. We should go too..." she stated quietly as they followed after the girl.
As the group of four began walking, a thought crossed Yang's mind, a dark and haunting one, that left her heart filled with fear. What if Weiss had died today? Or Blake? Or even her own sister? The brawler stopped walking and her eyes began scanning her teammates. The thought scared her. She could handle it if anything ever happened to her. But she couldn't bear it if it had been anyone else. Not any of them. She couldn't handle losing any one of them.
Ozpin watched the various screens from the holo table within the CCT. Each displays information about the current happenings plaguing the City of Vale, twisted creatures that he had never seen before ravaging and terrorizing the populace. His eyes looked over each one in turn, observing every gruesome scene they displayed, people being killed and devoured by the monstrosities, Hunters fighting with everything they had to defend the people from them. Atlesian soldiers formed barricades around various buildings, fighting for their lives just to give a sense of hope to those within their care, giving them a chance to get to the safety of the local huntsmen academy, Beacon.
His hands tightly grasped at the wooden cane in front of him as the gruesome sight continued. His teeth grinding as his face hardened with his brow furrowing, the events were unlike anything he had seen before in his very long life.
"What in the name of the brothers..." he murmured to himself as he looked at the chaos unfolding through the holo-table screens.
"Ozpin..." The holo-filtered voice of James Ironwood broke his attention from the screens in front of him. His face looked down to his scroll before his attention shifted towards the screen displaying the man in front of him. "What the hell is going on down there?"
The headmaster of Beacon was silent for a moment as he pondered the question before answering with a somber voice. "I'm not exactly sure..." he began slowly "Whatever they are, I've never seen creatures quite like them before..."
Ironwood's brow furrowed as he heard this, "Well twenty percent of the city's been overrun. If we don't get a handle on the situation soon then this might end up getting worse. A lot worse.." he continued grimly as Ozpin gave him a look. "I have half my forces down there as well as the local huntsmen. But the situation is only getting worse by the moment, with all the chaos down there the evacuation is becoming too risky."
The headmaster's eyes shifted from James to the screens again as he mulled over his next move. "...I haven't been able to contact the council..." he stated his eyes scanning the many screens.
"That's not a surprise... " James said, his tone somewhat annoyed. "whatever this is...originated at the heart of the city...They must have been the first ones hit." he paused for a moment as if to gather his thoughts on the situation before he began once more. "Which leaves you as the current head of the Vale council, which makes whatever decision you make here valid and official."
"..." The headmaster was silent once more as he pondered the implications of what Ironwood just told him, a sense of dread welling in his heart. He knew exactly what the general was telling him, as the highest official in Vale, the defense and protection of the kingdom was his to decide, the decision of life or death was placed at his feet. He gave one last look at the screens showing the carnage that was engulfing his city, taking a deep breath as he gave his order.
"...We cannot risk more innocent people to this threat, nor can we risk losing the city itself. I have seen what this enemy can do... and if allowed to remain in Vale, I fear we will not be able to defeat it..." His eyes then shifted from the screen to James as he continued his voice sounding grave and firm "I'll recall any of the local huntsmen who aren't actively in combat and have them help with the city-wide evacuation." He paused once more, "We need to get the people out of Vale and as far from the city as possible..."
James' brow furrowed further at the implications of what Ozpin had ordered "You want to abandon the city..."
"We don't have much of a choice in this James" He retorted in a calm but serious tone "We know nothing about this new enemy. For all we know the threat of them could spread throughout Vale. We must take every precaution in dealing with them... Even if that means leaving the city itself..."
The Atlesian general's face showed no emotion as he took in his ally's words "Very well... I will do everything in my power to get my forces to help with the evacuation." Ozpin nodded before turning his attention back to the holo screens.
"The Grimm won't stay away for long once they sense all that fear...I'm sure they're festering in the Emerald Forest right now, just waiting for that to happen." Ironwood replied grimly. "It won't be long until they start pouring into Vale"
"...Beacon as well. I'm afraid this isn't just affecting the City. With all these scared people it won't take long for them to reach our doors. It will become our duty to hold the Grimm back." Ozpin continued with a firm tone, a moment of silence fell over the two as they each went over their current situation. "...How much time do you think we have, James?" Ozpin asked somberly as he watched the screens.
"Until the city's completely overrun, at the rate that this is going it'll take about five to ten hours before they can fully engulf the city" The general answered before he let out a sigh of frustration. "This whole thing is a disaster...If I had known the situation would escalate so quickly then I would have brought my whole force with me."
Ozpin's eyes continued to watch the screen as he listened to his friend. His heart sank with each new casualty report that appeared before him. "We must not let our fear cloud our judgment..." Ozpin replied calmly. "If we panic, then the enemy has won. We must keep calm and stay vigilant. No matter what comes at us"
James' expression remained firm but his voice softened slightly. "I will keep your advice in mind, old friend." He replied before adding, "I will do what I can from my end...is it possible for me to set up shop at Beacon?"
Ozpin paused for a moment as he contemplated the question, his eyes still watching the screens before him "Of course." He responded finally as he looked at the man on the holo screen. "Your presence would be very welcome, James"
Ironwood's face relaxed slightly as he heard the words of his friend, a slight smile formed on his lips before he continued, his face showing a little bit of hope as he did "I will do what I can...Thank you" Ozpin nodded. The two continued their discussion about how they would coordinate their efforts, ironwood offering advice on the best way to help organize the evacuation of the city.
When it was over, Ironwood hung up leaving Ozpin to ponder the situation before him with Glynda approaching him soon after.
"Is there anything you would like to tell me about those things that are terrorizing our city?" Glynda asked bluntly, her eyes staring down at her headmaster, the scowl on her face only deepening as the man before her shook his head in reply. "So you don't know what they are...Or even why they are doing what they're doing"
The Headmaster of Beacon let out a small sigh in frustration before he replied, "I've never seen any creatures like them before Glynda...All we know is that they're very aggressive, infectious, and don't like the Grimm."
The woman gave the man before her an annoyed glare. "The Grimm aren't exactly here to stop them...they're here because they feel all that fear in the air. They'll attack those beasts and us no matter what. No matter the consequences..." The scowl on her face softened as she finished speaking. Her eyes showed a bit of sadness as she turned them toward the ground.
"I'm assuming the Vytal Festival will be canceled, right?" She asked hesitantly, Ozpin nodded solemnly. "We have children from other academies here, I think it's best if they go back to their home kingdoms"
Ozpin turned to look at the screens showing the chaos outside, "I agree... We don't need any more problems right now."
"...How long do we have?"
The Headmaster took a moment before he replied, his eyes still focused on the screens, "We'll evacuate the city within a day, hopefully with the combined efforts of Atlas, Vale's huntsmen, and Huntresses we can hold off the Grimm and whatever these... creatures are until we find out how to deal with them... We can't let this spread further"
"...Are you going to contact the other headmasters?"
Ozpin's eyes stayed fixated on the screens for a few seconds longer before he replied, "No, I don't believe we need to worry about them...not yet anyways."
"...And the rest of Vale?"
"The last thing we need is to panic the entire kingdom..."
Glynda looked down in frustration "But..." Ozpin held up his hand silencing the woman "More Grimm is the last thing we need right now..." Glynda didn't respond.
"Gather the remaining faculty and tell them what we discussed. Also, prepare the bullhead landing pads for Ironwood's forces. I want you to coordinate with him while I try to organize Vale's forces." The blonde professor nodded as Ozpin gave his order, she was about to walk off before the headmaster spoke up. "I believe this may be a long day, Glynda. We have a lot of work to do and a short time to do it..."
Glynda paused as she looked over her shoulder. "It can't get any worse can it?" she asked, her tone full of concern and worry.
The headmaster was silent as he watched the holo-screens once again, images of chaos and death played across them like a nightmare come to life."You and I both know it can." Ozpin said in a grim voice, his eyes remaining locked onto the screen in front of him.
The blonde professor frowned at his reply. She didn't answer back, instead turning to go to the Bullheads to prepare them for the Atlesians. As she did Ozpin couldn't help but wonder, if what
was happening now was just the start of a larger conflict, if those creatures that plagued their city would soon begin their advance throughout all of Remnant, or even the world at large. It wasn't something he wanted to consider, but he couldn't ignore it, he needed to prepare for the possibility of something worse coming their way, no matter how small or far-fetched the scenario. As he told Glynda
'It can always get worse...'
Consume. Spread. Consume. Spread. Consume. Both Humans...and Faunus
Wiping his blade clean Adam Taurus slowly lifted his sword up letting the tent's light glint off the freshly cleaned blade for a few seconds before slowly sheathing his weapon back into the scabbard at his side. The faunus had been waiting in the outskirts of the city for what had seemed like forever, a few of his men had gone with that fool Roman Torchwick, to bring about a breach to Vale's defenses and allow Grimm to pour into the city proper and cause chaos, but that was hours ago and there had been no word from his underlings.
Having to do the bidding of Cinder was beyond aggravating to Adam, but his organization needed the resources and Dust that Torchwick promised them. He had made a deal and he'd keep to his end, despite how much he'd prefer to slit the human scum's throat and take his resources.
Drumming his fingers along the handle of his sword the flap to the tent was pulled aside and a winged bat faunus who served under his command entered the room, Jenassa her name was, was one of his lieutenants who had helped organize his current group. "Adam...transports coming up the road from Vale,"
"They're back?" Adam asked in a monotone voice as he stood up grabbing the mask that lay on the table and securing it to his face as he followed her out of the tent, several other members of the White Fang joined him outside of the tent as he strode out.
The bull faunus paused to scan his surroundings before focusing back on his lieutenant. A faint smirk spread across Jenassa's lips, her eyes shining as she looked at the man. "Well you did send Barret out there to lead the men, that man doesn't exactly have the smarts to keep himself out of trouble..."
"...You've seen his combat skill, he can deal with whatever problems he runs into." The tall faunus retorted flatly, the smirk on his fellow faunus's face only seemed to grow more amused. "Whatever you say, Adam..."
The leader of the Vale branch of the White Fang said nothing, walking side by side out into the setting sun that hung above them in the sky, his ears perked up at the sound of engines and turning his attention towards the horizon he watched as two of Atlesian dropships slowly flew overhead, there'd been a lot of that recently, more than usual.
"What's the Atlesian military doing this far away from Vale?" one of the nearby White Fang asked curiously as they all watched the transports fly past overhead, his comrade's voice seemed to hold similar curiosity. Adam wasn't interested in it, however.
Passing by tents, and soldiers of the White Fang who milled around doing their tasks, the two moved towards the outer ring of their camp and to a group of guards who stood watch.
Surrounded by trees the group had made a good home base for now, close enough to Vale to conduct their raids but not close enough for authorities to be a nuisance. And far enough from any roads or main paths to be noticed by unwanted eyes, not that any would dare try to find them anyway, most people who knew what was good for them steered clear of their organization.
Moving up beside them, Jenassa turned her head and gazed out to the forest where she could just make out a few vehicles moving in their direction. Weaving through the trees, the armored trucks stopped a bit away from their camp, headlights full on as they shone into the camp.
The bat faunus beside Adam squinted as she shielded her eyes. "What's with the light show?" she asked as she glanced back to Adam, only to notice a frown on the faunus leader's face.
Adam narrowed his eyes behind his mask as the armored trucks just sat there, engines idling and the beams from their headlights bathing their camp in light. There were no signs of movement, no signs that anyone had disembarked from the transports.
"Adam..."
He held his hand up, signaling his lieutenant to be silent as he observed the vehicles. Adam narrowed his eyes, as the doors to the truck began to slowly open. His grip tightened around the hilt of his weapon.
Due to the glare of the headlights, it was hard for Adam to see what was going on, barely able to make out several shapes exiting the armored trucks, one of which looked to be a tall and bulky figure wielding a large chainsaw blade in his hands.
"Barret, you idiot..." Jenassa grumbled out under her breath as she took a step forward, "Can you turn the lights down!"
No reply came back, which made Jenassa scowl in irritation. "Do those idiots have any idea how hard it is to see with their headlights like that? Adam just let me handle this.."
She took a step forward, Adam's arm shooting out to stop her from going any further. "What are you doing Adam, those idiots are blindening everyone in camp," the bat faunus complained as she tried to pull away from his grip. Adam kept her from moving however, his arm remained firmly in place as his gaze was still fixed upon the trucks.
Something was off, something was very wrong...Adam could feel it. And the smell in the air...what was it? He couldn't put a finger on it…
"Adam? What are you-" Jenassa began as she tried to move around the man.
Adam grabbed her by the wrist, his grip firm but not enough to hurt. His eyes locked with hers through the mask before he turned them back to the armored trucks, the feeling of dread within his chest growing stronger as the moments went by. A low gurgling noise coming from somewhere that set his teeth on edge, like a primal instinct in his blood was telling him something was very wrong...
"Don't," he said, his voice firm, his eyes locked on the figure ahead. "Everyone," He said loudly, catching the attention of several members of the White Fang around them, all of whom looked towards him questionably. Gripping his sword's handle tight, Adam slowly drew his sword from its sheath, a deep gurgling growl sounding from within the forest ahead, and his muscles tensing in preparation.
"Prepare yourselves..." he warned.
Jenassa looked towards Adam, confused, before glancing at the trucks ahead. The lights suddenly cut out, allowing the faunus's vision to return. Barret and those with him were now visible, twisted, and malformed. A guttural growl filled the air as Barret swung his weapon back, letting the roar of the chainsaw drown out all the noise around him. The White Fang in the camp tensing up in anticipation, and preparing their weapons.
The forest seemed to erupt into a frenzy of activity, figures of various shapes and sizes darting through the shadows towards the camp. Some on two legs, some on four and others crawling. Dozens at the most, maybe more...but their sheer number was unnerving, their strange alien cries even more so.
Barret roared as he charged at them, his chainsaw raised and ready to kill anything in front of him. Adam and the guards all took defensive positions. Some of them taking aim and firing at the incoming wave of monsters.
The creatures hissed, screamed, growled, and shrieked as bullets ripped through flesh and bone. Jenassa took flight and pulled out a whip, with a flick it straightened out into a bolt action rifle as she let off shot after shot with her wings propelling her upwards and away from the charging creatures.
"Hold the line!" Adam shouted to the guards behind him. The sound of their weapons firing alerted others within the camp as more armed members came running, joining the guards to reinforce them, firing their own weapons to keep the strange monsters at bay.
One of the guards beside him let off several bursts from his rifle before ducking behind his cover. He turned towards Adam, eyes wide with fear as he asked, "W-what are those things?"
Adam's response was short. "Dead." He snarled out, leaping over cover to charge headlong into the swarm of creatures with his sword held at ready. The beasts around him let out screams, snarls, growls, and gurgles as they attempted to swipe at him, trying to catch the Faunus between their razor-sharp claws and fangs. The Bull faunus lunged forward, slashing and stabbing the monsters closest to him with deadly precision, their screams filling the air.
His men did not have the same fighting skills, their training not nearly as refined, and it showed as the White Fang members found themselves overwhelmed by the sheer number of beasts swarming them, the creatures seemed to pay no heed to the bullets striking them, their blood splattering on the ground as they pressed onwards towards the guards and other White Fang.
Another guard, a wolf faunus who had been trying to hold her ground, let out a cry of pain as one of the beasts grabbed hold of her arm and dragged her to the ground. Several others of the monsters rushed to aid their brethren.
One of the wolf faunas's comrades charged in to aid her, his sword raised above his head ready to cut down her attacker. A tendril from another beast shot out wrapping itself around his arm, stopping him in place. More tendrils came flying out, wrapping around his limbs. A guttural hissing sound followed before the creature lunged at the man, sinking its fangs into him as he let out a scream of terror.
"Fuck! Fuck!" Jenassa yelled as she looked over the field and fired her weapon from the skies, hitting a number of the creatures with her Dust rounds. From her vantage point, she could see their men fighting a losing battle. As these abominations poured into their camp, "What the fuck are these things?!" She screamed, her eyes wide in horror as she watched them attack her friends and allies.
The bat Faunus turned her head and looked down towards Adam, he had cut his way through a group of creatures, making it towards where Barret was, who swung his chainsaw wildly into the crowd. Adam's eyes narrowed behind his mask as he moved quickly to finish him off. Barret seemed to notice him approaching and charged at Adam.
The former Barret snarled as he ran, chainsaw raised. Adam met the former White Fang member's attack, sword held at ready. As their blades clashed, sparks flew through the air from the force of metal striking metal. Barret roared out as he swung wildly.
Adam parried one attack then another, then blocked one more before slashing the monster across his chest. Barret roared again, and swung his blade downward, forcing Adam to block again, sparks flew off as he blocked. With a push Barret knocked Adam back, sliding across the ground before stopping himself.
Adam looked around the area around him. Many of the White Fang guards lay on the ground motionless, some being pulled away by the strange monsters. While others still struggled, desperately trying to fend off the horde, and failing.
They were losing the fight, he could feel it...the numbers they were facing were just too overwhelming. Barret charged at Adam again, roaring and swinging his chainsaw wildly.
Sheathing his sword Adam charged his semblance, he wouldn't die here. Not when he hadn't done enough...not when his dream of freedom and equality still remained just beyond his reach. Barret leaped in the air towards him, roaring out as he did, chainsaw held out in front of him as he brought it down hard, aiming for the Bull faunus' skull.
Adam roared in kind, and a crimson energy erupted from his body in a great wave. Unleashing the power of his semblance, the forest was bathed in a brilliant red light, as monstrous hunger met masked fury.
Consume. Spread. Consume. Spread. Consume. Spread. Vale and beyond..
With a start Taiyang Xiao Long shot up in his recliner, his chest rising and falling rapidly as his breathing was short. His eyes were wide as they scanned around him. The living room around him looked no different, nothing was broken or on fire. He looked down to see he was holding his beer can in a death grip, the contents splashing onto his leg as he did.
A knock at the door broke him from his trance and he blinked a couple of times, the feeling of his heart racing in his chest still there but lessening slowly. He swallowed hard and sat back down, setting the beer can down on the coffee table beside his leg and sighing heavily as he did so.
Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes he shook his head trying to shake off whatever he had dreamed. Taiyang was silent as he heard his door knock again, louder this time, "I'm coming I'm coming," he called out to whoever was on the other side, still groggy as he moved toward the front door and opened it.
"...Kris?"
Standing in his doorway was his neighbor from down the road, a woman with blonde hair that went past her shoulders and down to her lower back. She was wearing a plain green tank top and jean shorts, along with brown cowgirl boots, a brown belt around her waist with a silver buckle, and brown fingerless gloves that covered most of her forearms.
She was breathing hard as if she had run to get there, her skin was covered in a sheen of sweat and her hair was disheveled, looking like a wild animal had crawled through it. Her bright green eyes were wide and fearful, pupils dilated as she stared at the man in the doorway, and her body shaking slightly as if she was about to faint.
"...T-Tai..." Kris' voice cracked slightly as she spoke, the sound of panic laced in her tone, and she was visibly trembling as she looked over Tai's form."Something's... something..." She stumbled back a couple steps as her body shuddered, the man caught her before she fell backward and kept her standing.
"Kris, what's going on? Why are you so freaked out?"
"The animals at my farm Tai...the animals, the chickens, the pigs...everything just freaked out" her voice shaking as she spoke, "They ran around screaming...like something was scaring them half to death" Kris swallowed hard and glanced down the road, Taiyang's eyes followed and saw that Kris' car was parked on the side of the road. "Mark thought it might've been a Grimm, so he took a couple of the boys to check the woods." She turned back to face him again, "And then..." she trailed off, eyes wide in shock as they stared at the house behind Tai. "And then he came back screaming, blood pouring down his chest and neck...Said to go get help."
"...Mark..." The man whispered as he followed her gaze, a frown on his face. "Shit.." he muttered before turning around.
"Wait...what are you..." Kris stammered out as she followed the man into his house, the smell of alcohol hitting her nose as she stepped inside the living room.
"I'll help Mark," the blond man replied, walking past the living room into the hallway. "You wait here until I get back," He said as he disappeared from Kris' sight, his footsteps fading quickly as he ran further down the hallway, presumably to his room.
Kris stood awkwardly in the living room for several minutes, unsure of what she should be doing while waiting. After a while Taiyang's bedroom door opened with a creak, a few moments later the blond man emerged carrying a large bag full of medical supplies, and wearing a large gauntlet around his forearm with a spike on it. "I'm gonna go find Mark, can you lock the front door after I leave?"
Kris nodded.
"Stay here, lock the doors, keep a lookout." The blond man turned to look out the window next to the door.
"...Alright...okay...you'll be alright?" The blonde woman asked tentatively as Taiyang turned back to her and nodded reassuringly, before giving his pilebunker gauntlet a firm shake and sliding his left arm into it, making sure that the mechanism that would activate the spike on it was working properly.
Taiyang let out a deep sigh. "I'll be back." He turned around and walked out of the house, Kris closing the door behind him, locking it tight. She watched as her neighbor jogged down the road and around the corner, out of sight, his footsteps slowly fading into the distance.
"Good luck, Tai." She muttered to herself, hoping that the man would make it back to his home safely.
Taiyang reached Mark's farm after about eight minutes of running at full speed, slowing down only slightly once he lumbered through the fields toward the house. The entire area was completely silent save for the wind rustling the corn stalks and a few insects that buzzed about as if they were the only living thing on the land.
Reaching the farmhouse he slowed down even more, scanning the area for anything amiss as he walked. When nothing was seen, the blond man relaxed slightly as he made his way to the door and knocked on it several times. No response.
"Mark!" twisting the knob, Taiyang pushed open the door and looked inside. A wave of dread hit him, the place looked like it had been ransacked. Everything in it was turned upside down or broken in some way. Furniture was overturned, windows broken, paintings knocked down from the wall, bookshelves toppled over onto themselves and all sorts of items lying scattered throughout the room, as if they'd been tossed about.
"MARK!" the blond man yelled again as he walked into the house further, the feeling of dread growing even more. Something wasn't right here. As he made his way past the kitchen area he saw Mark, standing there motionless, now twisted into some unrecognizable form.
Barbs, spines, tentacles, and other bizarre protrusions covered every inch of its skin. The monster looked up as Taiyang entered, and let out a snarl, lunging towards him with surprising speed and knocking him off his feet, knocking the wind out of him in the process. The two rolled on the floor struggling for a moment until Taiyang got on top and pushed Mark away.
"What happened?!" he screamed as Mark pulled himself away from the blond man and lunged once again, claws swiping at his chest and legs. Aura protected the man as he kicked out his right leg knocking Mark back to the floor with a loud thud, a guttural snarl leaving his lips as he tried to get up once again.
Taiyang stood up and pulled out the spike, arming the pile bunker, the device whirring to life as he pointed it at the twisted man. Mark growled in response as Taiyang pointed the pile bunker at his chest and pushed forward, the weapon firing forward with a loud click. The spike embedded itself deep in Mark's torso.
The creature's back was ripped open by the blow as it howled in pain, falling to the ground with a loud thud.
Taiyang let out a small breath as he retracted his pile bunker's spike and let the weapon revert back into its gauntlet form before examining what used to be his neighbor. He shook his head slowly as he stepped over the now unmoving creature to grab his bag, looking it over and feeling his gut wrench at the sight before him. "Mark..." he mumbled to himself. He wasn't sure how, or even what had happened to him. But whatever it was, it wasn't good...and if something like this could happen to one person then...
"Shit.." the blond man mumbled under his breath as he grabbed his medical bag, glancing at Mark's now twisted and disfigured corpse once again before running outside the sound of
monstrous snarls halting him. The blond man turned his head towards the barn to see a strange creature charging towards him from the building. It looked like a cow but like Mark, it too was mutated and twisted into some sort of monstrous being, its entire body was covered in strange growths and spikes that protruded from its body, some were even attached to its face making it look like it had some kind of helmet. The thing charged him with its horns ready, roaring loudly. Taiyang readied his stance as it neared him, but no action was required. The mutant creature let out another loud roar as a figure jumped from a nearby tree and sliced it in half with a Scythe.
"...Qrow?" Taiyang asked as the dark-haired man landed on his feet with a loud thud, the scythe turning into its sword form.
The dark-haired man turned around and gave him a nod of acknowledgment before he looked over to where the creature's remains lay on the ground. "So that's what Oz meant..." he muttered as he bent down and picked up some of its remains, "Freakin' gross..."
"Qrow," the blond man said again, grabbing the older man's attention. "What's going on? What the hell is that?"
"Don't know. But whatever it is, it ain't good. Ozpin made the call for all active huntsmen in Vale to converge on the city to handle whatever this thing is. I decided to swing by your place on the way, figured I'd at least check on you, But then I heard a scream so I thought I should probably come take a look. Looks like I came at a bad time though..." He shrugged and gestured down the road in the direction Taiyang had come.
"Huh?'' Following Qrow's hand the blond man saw Kris' lifeless body slumped against one of the wooden fence posts. "...No. No."
Qrow grimaced at the sight of it and sighed, "It happened so quickly man...I was too late..." the older man ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, "I was too late..."
Taiyang stared in shock at the sight of his dead neighbor, then the mutated monster lying in front of him."Why didn't she stay at my place..." the blond man mumbled under his breath.
Qrow turned and placed his hand on his friend's shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. "Don't beat yourself up over it, she probably thought she could do something..." his eyes widened as they landed on the barn door, "Uh...Tai..."
"...yeah?" Taiyang turned his attention back towards the barn. "...shit..."
Both men could see more of the strange creatures, all of them appearing to be cows, goats, and other farm animals. All of them twisted into some horrendous-looking version of their normal selves and made strange sounds, their heads moving up and down in an unsettling fashion.
The two men stared in shock as they watched more mutated animals move about. Some seemed to have limbs replaced with strange protrusions and appendages, some even had
spines growing out of their sides. The mutated animals looked toward the men, letting out a collective shriek as they charged at the two hunters.
"Well, it can't get worse than this," Taiyang stated dryly, he quickly unslung his gauntlet and loaded it.
A twitching gurgling sound caused the pair to look behind them and see the body of Kris shudder. A thick tentacle sprouted from her head as she started to rise, the sounds of bones snapping and popping filled the air as the mutated corpse twisted itself upright, the body changing as it stood up, bones snapping into a more monstrous shape and flesh turning an odd sickly brown color as it stretched to form more appendages and strange protrusions.
"Dammit Tai..." Qrow mumbled out as the creature screamed. "...You should know, It always gets worse..."
A/N: Yeah, Ren's dead. Don't worry he's the only character who'll die off-screen. I wanted the main characters to escape the initial attack of the Flood but not without cost. So a death needed to happen, again if I decide to kill any major character in this story (I will) it won't happen off-screen.
In one if the episodes in volume 2 Weiss fights a big White Fang goon with a chainsaw on a train. This goon doesn't have a name at least not one mentioned in the series that I know of so I gave him a name for the purpose of the story. Barret.