Remnant: the Endlings
A RWBY/Werewolf: the Apocalypse story...
Sanus, Vale, Eastern Mountain Region, 10 years before the Great War
"This is SDC Scout Bullhead 7G6F, reporting that we are currently five minutes away from the landing zone to drop you off Sample Collection Squad. LZ beacon is active, and no Grimm are currently in sight. Remember to stay safe out there." was what crackled in the radio headsets of the occupants of a Bullhead Hover Plane as it flew over to a clear field at the foot of the mountains bordering the Kingdom of Vale. In total, there were nine of them, all Human men and women, divided into two teams of four. Dressed in the white combat armor fatiques of the SDC, or Schnee Dust Company, the Humans were chattering with each other. One of them, a dusky colored man who spoke with an accent that marked him as being from another Kingdom, Vacuo, spoke up.
"So, just to clear things up, why aren't we being dropped right at the cave entrance?" he asked, looking at one of the women. Unlike the others who carried guns of various kinds, she held a sample collection set.
"Cave is located in too small an area to just drop everyone off there, so we'll have to be dropped as close as possible to the entrance at the base of the mountain, then hike up to it. Everyone made sure to have your spelunking and mountain climbing gear ready?" she replied, turning to the rest of the group. A shared sound of affirmation went out anong the group. They then heard some more static, as the pilot spoke up to them.
"Prepare for drop off." he said briefly, which was followed by the Bullhead pausing to lower down onto the ground. The SDC employees then shouldered their guns and backpacks, waiting as the doors in the back opened up and ran out. They quickly scanned the fields around them for signs of the creatures known to them as Grimm, and confirmed there was none around the immediate area.
"Alright, site is clear. Team One, stay by the Bullhead, Team Two with me." one of the men, the only one wearing a cap besides the woman with the sample collection set ordered. The SDC employees divided themselves into two groups, with the second being followed by the woman with the sample collection set.
The next hour and a half was spent climbing up the mountain, leaving a rope wrapped around various stakes hammered into the ground for a quicker descent when it was time to leave, the group conversed with each other as two of the SDC employees, both wearing helmets, hammered a new stake into the ground and making sure the rope tied around was taut.
"Anybody hear that recent news about Mistral and their expanding into Sanus?" the one holding a hammer said, the other pulling the rope and tying it.
"Yeah, something about a bunch of Grimm running around on the other side of this mountain range." the second SDC employee replied, inspecting the rope for any flaws in it.
"Not just running around. Apparently, there's been a mass migration of the beasts charging the Mistral colonies. Happened just a few days before we got orders to explore the Eastern Vale Mountains for Dust deposits."
"...Shit, pretty interesting coincidence if you ask me. Think things will boil over into a war like everyone seems to think will happen?" the rope inspector asked.
"Well, if it does the SDC is definitely going to be making bank on Dust sales." It was then that the team captain spoke up.
"Hey, get a move on! Payment is not hourly here!" the team Captain shouted to his subordinates, who quickly packed up and ran to him and the rest of the team. As they approached, they then saw the entrance to the cave they were sent to explore. Yawning open into a void of darkness, it was open enough for the team to enter as a group and have enough arm and leg room to not get in one another's way.
Flashlights attached to their guns were turned on, and the armed members of the SDC team scoured the entrance for anything in it while the civilian with them watched from a distance.
The trip into the cave was done in complete silence, until they spotted a light green glow. Deciding to investigate the light, the SDC employees approached the glow, and then paused as they saw what it really was.
"...Well this is new." the Captain of the team commented. While they didn't find Dust, what they found was definitely something which peaked their interest: a series of glowing glyphs lining the wall, and what seemed to be the bones of various individuals. The scientist of the group, adjusting her white coat, approached the glyphs and picked up a skull to examine it.
"New is definitely touching on it Captain, though I am not sure these are human remains." she said, showing them the dried out piece of dead bone to the SDC employees.
"The fuck is that?" one of the men muttered, as the skull, at first glance seemed human enough from a distance. However, when looked up close enough, the teeth were clearly fused together, the eye holes warped, and where the nasal cavity should have been, was what appeared to be a set of spikes jutting out of the skull. It also sported a set of faintly visible crests which formed what appeared to be small, but highly sharp blades and horns.
"Apparently a fossil for a newly discovered species, and it isn't the only one." the scientist said as she looked around alongside the SDC as they looked closely at the other remains. All of them sported what appeared to be extreme forms of disfiguration and mutation, with various examples including such things as claws made two or more fingers fused together, a rib cage that extended all along the spine down to the hips and waist, and other various things that looked uncomfortable at best, with them all notably in various states of damage. The SDC employees began debating amongst themselves about this fine.
"You sure this isn't some long forgotten bunch of Faunus?"
"Name a single Faunus that you know of that has five eyes on their forehead."
"Mermaid Faunus exist in the oceans."
"...Fair enough."
"Well, whether or not that is true, they apparently had died fighting each other, or some other bunch of freaks." the Captain interrupted as the group found themselves in a wide cavern that was lit with more of the glyphs giving very faint loght to the place, the man himself pointing to what appeared to be a bunch of the mishaped skeletons that had broken arrow shafts laying around them, or embedded between their bones. a number of craters lined the walls and floors, with scorch marks at their edge.
"You sure?"
"The ones in the tunnel looked like they were killed violently, but this bunch here about confirms..." the Captains' voice trailed off as they approached. The rest of the group followed his gaze, which led to a rusted metal object with a trail of skeletons leading to it, and several craters in-between it and the tunnel entrance. They walked up to it, and examined it. The object was on top of a broken tri-pod, and a rotted cloth box was attached to the side of it.
"Is that what I think it is?" the scientist asked, as one of the men ripped it open, and a bunch of rusty, corroded bullets clattered onto the ground.
"Yep, this was a machine gun emplacement."
"Where the fuck would these people have gotten that kinda gear?" another SDC scout chimed in.
"Guys, these skeletons, some of them are normal bones." someone pointed out, and the group indeed confirmed that was the case. The SDC team, not ones to be discouraged by this, continued on with their exploration. However, they were now on the alert for anything that made
As they continued on, they saw more bones, and a eclectic mix of armor, shields, firearms and what appeared to be munitions not made of Dust. The SDC scout team, while slightly unnerved by this disturbing discovery, saw nothing other then the glowing glyphs as merely a cause to continue their descent into the cave system. Some time passed as they navigated the area, following the glyphs that seemed to line the entire cave system.
After some time passed, they found a overhang that faced a door made of carved stone, which glowed a pale green light that was bright enough that the SDC team turned off their flashlights. The employees got down in crouching or prone positions, and slowly approached the edge to get a look at it from their vantage point, holding binoculars to examine the area.
"See anything?" the scientist of the group asked, holding onto her sample kit. The Captain of the team spoke up.
"No Grimm, and I don't- hold on, we might have something. Front entrance, down on the ground, everyone see that?" he asked. As the group all turned to look where he verbally pointed out, they saw a patch of crystals that was glowing like the glyphs and doors. However, it shone with a clear dark purple coloration.
"Holy shit. Is that Gravity Dust?" someone asked.
"Looks like it, but it isn't floating. probably because it's held down by that door somehow." the scientist replied, trying to get a closer look at the possible Dust Crystal.
"Hmm, while I would like to collect a sample and leave the mission here, we still have to confirm if there's more Dust, likely behind that door." she says, turning to the Captain.
"...Ah, whatever. Hopefully we just found some long forgotten Dust cache, in which case the archaeologists can kiss my Lien." he says, though there was the hint of glee in his eyes. The scientist smiled.
"There's the spirit." she says, and with that the SDC team made their way to the Gravity Dust crystal. As they came up to the door, it was clear then that the crystal was indeed fused to it. The scientist frowned upon inspecting it.
"Hmm, this is odd." she commented, and the SDC team approached to see what she was looking at. They then saw that the supposed Gravity Dust crystal was encasing an object, which they couldn't quite make out.
"Huh, never found a Dust crystal that grew around something before." the Captain commented.
"That's because they don't... I'm going to try and see if I can get a piece to examine." the scientist remarked, then pulled out her sample collection kit. Upon pulling out a hammer and chisel, she then began tapping the chisel to break into the crystal.
Upon the first strike into the crystal, it immediately release a burst of pale green energy, blowing the SDC team back violently as it broke apart, and a chain reaction spread with all the glyphs and the door flaring with a bright light.
After a few seconds, the cave was immediately covered on darkness, and the SDC team turned their flashlights on.
"Who's not dead? Sound off!" the Captain shouted. A chorus of groans echoed back.
"Shit, that crystal must've been unstable. Never had one react that harshly before now," the scientist said, taking a moment to stretch her neck, and continue on with "I suppose we should-"
"AAAGGH!" someone within the SDC team shouted, gunfire echoing out as everyone turn to see the shooter in question had been ripped in half, with the only suspect they saw was a blur flying out of sight.
"WE'RE UNDER ATTACK! GET OUT!" the Captain screamed, only for a silver arrow to hit his head, going straight through one side and out the other. He dropped dead on the spot.
"CAPTAIN!" the scientist screamed, as she heard gunfire echoing out from the other three.
"THEY'RE COMING FROM THE DOOR!" the Vacuoian screamed repeatedly, terror in his voice as he laid out a volley of bullets at the entrance, while the other two tried to find where the blur that attacked their comrade had hidden itself. One of them saw the scientist staring wide-eyed at the three of them, and suddenly tackled her.
As she fell down, she faintly saw an arm, ending in a clawed hand swipe at the empty air. The SDC scout quickly turned their gun, firing at something which roared in pain, and pure anger. The scout, hearing another of his comrades screaming in terror and being torn apart, lifted up the scientist and shoved her.
"GET TO THE SURFACE AND CALL OFF THE MISSION!" he shouted, immediately firing off his gun as the scientist dropped her kit and made a run for it, hearing the last two SDC scouts screaming as snarling and barking sounds filled the cavern.
For the entire journey up to the surface, the scientist cried out and yelled, as she could hear her whatever those creatures were following her. She could tell from what the small hints she saw of them that they weren't Grimm... Grimm don't have flesh, they aren't capable of emotions. Grimm don't howl in victory like animals, they simply killed you and moved on. Grimm don't wield weapons, and if the fact one of the beasts seemingly had a Semblance, they don't have such things either!
What the hell have I unleashed?! I'm going to die! I'm going to die, I'm going to die! she thought, tears of despair leaking from her eyes as she could hear them gaining on her. Just as she rounded the corner and saw the exit, she felt something grab her ankle.
"No! NNNOOO!" she shrieked as she was carried into the darkness of the cave. She felt herself being slammed in a wall, and stayed there waiting for the final strike to come.
.
.
.
When she didn't feel any claws or fangs tearing into her, she dared open an eye, and was met with a light flashing her eye.
"Guh!" she flinched, covering her eyes as the light blinded her, and after she was allowed to adjust as best as she was able, she could just make out several figures from behind it, pointing what had to be her teams' flashlights at her and a spot on the ground.
"Wha...what do you want?" she asked. In reply, one of them simply tossed the cap of the SDC Captain to her. When she examined the cap, she saw that a marker was used to draw a question mark was drawn on it.
Upon noticing it was next to the label of SCHNEE DUST COMPANY, she realized she was being interrogated.
"Uh, we're employees from the Schnee Dust Company..." she offered. Upon being met with silence, she continued, "...the number one mining conglomerate on Remnant. We were looking for Dust, an energy propellant that grows naturally, like the crystal that sealed the door to your home?" she asked, seeing if they recognized what she was talking about.
She only had another piece of clothing, this one a vest, tossed at her. When she looked at it, she saw it said the following: HAROLD AND HAROLD MINING, INCORPORATED
"I never heard of this company." she said, before feeling like taking a chance to ask her captors a question, now that the edge of her adrenaline-fueled panic wore off.
"How do I know you won't just kill me after I answered your questions?" she asked. One of the figures raised a gun at her, a revolver that was of no design she recognized.
Click!
She flinched as she heard the hammer drop, but the gun didn't shoot. The revolver's cylinder was then opened and showed it to have had no bullets. After a moment passed, the one holding the gun flipped it so it was down, made a show of putting in one bullet, spun the cylinder, then clapped it back into the revolver's frame.
"Fine, just promise you'll let me live as a prisoner. Surely you can understand why I am worth more to you alive then dead." she requested of the creatures. She could feel them staring down at her. After a brief moment passed, she heard one of them, a woman it sounded like, speak.
"You will live." those words made her sigh, releasing a breath she didn't realize she was holding. Though it disturbed her that they sounded so... Human. She half-expected whoever spoke to have had some form guttural tone, but they sounded so normal, albeit with a tone that was more stating dry fact then offering mercy.
"Are there others from the Schnee Dust Company?" the voice asked of her. The scientist nodded, to which she could see the silhouettes of the creatures gesticulate between each other.
"How many, what vehicles were brought, and how did you find this place?" the scientist answered as best as she could, then asked another question.
"Team Two and the pilot for the Bullhead, are you going to take them prisoner as well?" she asked. If they can get back together, she and other SDC employess might a chance to-
"No. Sarah, Luca, assemble your Packs and kill the other intruders. We only have room for this one for now." the scientist felt her eyes widen. several of the figures shifted and disappeared, and she could hear them leaving with a distrubing level of silence.
"What? No!" she tried to protest, only to stop and pause as five or so pairs of yellow eyes flared at her.
"Do not argue with me. The rest of you, take this woman to her new home."
And with that, a new story is done. Before anyone asks, no, this will not be in anyway related to New Moon of Yharnam.