Black Sun
Chapter 9
Ruby couldn't help but shudder as she climbed down the ladder after the Marked One. They were headed into complete darkness – the only thing she'd have to mark her way was her flashlight, and that was just as dangerous as going in blind, considering it would give her position away to anyone down below.
She climbed down the final rung of the ladder, nearly tripping and falling when she reached the bottom. The Marked One caught her, thankfully, and she gave him an appreciative nod before dropping down into a combat stance and advancing with her weapon at the ready.
A rotating orange light marked the way ahead. Ruby cautiously approached and peered around the corner; some movement in the darkness caught her attention, and she hurriedly pulled her bead back just in time to avoid an incoming burst of machine gun fire. She grit her teeth as she sidled up the wall and tried to calm her pounding heart.
"Bandits," The Marked One noted.
"I noticed," Ruby said dryly. She pointed her Vityaz around the corner and blind-fired a burst; a pained shout told her she'd managed to get at least one of them. "What should we do?"
"Keep me covered," the Marked One told her. "I'm going to push up."
Ruby nodded. She spun out from around the corner and dumped what was left in her weapon's magazine as the Marked One broke from cover and moved up, eventually sheltering behind a concrete pillar. Her weapon clicked empty, and Ruby returned to cover briefly to reload.
"Ruby!" the Marked One called. "Move up, I've got you covered!"
Ruby chambered a round, then took a breath before breaking from cover herself. She leaped over the stairs in her way, then sprinted for a pillar of her own. Gunfire tore through the air behind her as she ran, but she managed to make it there in one piece. Off in the darkness, she could hear the Bandits shouting at each other in Ukrainian, confused. She looked over to the Marked One and he nodded, and together, they stepped out from cover and carefully advanced.
Up ahead, there was a large door, which led to a pathway on the left and on the right. Ruby could see someone's headlamp lighting the way on the left from behind cover, and she turned to the Marked One.
"You go right, I'll go left," she said.
He nodded, and they separated for a moment, each taking their respective path. Ruby cautiously pressed up the left side of the structure in the center of the room, listening carefully. She could hear the Bandits calling to each other in the darkness from just around the corner. She flattened against the concrete structure, then counted to three before sticking the muzzle of her Vityaz around it and firing. Confusion turned to panic, and the Bandits began firing back at her, but they weren't able to land a hit on her. At the moment her weapon ran dry, the Marked One came out from around his corner, and with the Bandits out in the open from Ruby's blind-firing, they had no chance. A few bursts from the Marked One's Kalashnikov, and it was over.
"That can't have been all of them," the Marked One warned as they both reloaded.
"I know," Ruby answered, chambering a round. "There will be more. If not Bandits, then the Military… I already hate the underground."
"Let's keep moving and get this over with. The sooner we can leave, the better."
Ruby nodded, then the two of them continued on. There was a doorway on the left that led to a steel staircase spiraling down; they both cautiously descended the stairs, and emerged in a long room filled with noxious puddles of green liquid. Ruby just about gagged when the smell hit her, but she forced her own bile back down her throat and continued on.
Movement up ahead caught her attention, and she hurriedly snapped her weapon's stock into her shoulder and let off a burst. The Bandit down the hall fell to the ground, his shotgun going off into the ceiling involuntarily as he hit the floor, raining concrete shards down upon him. Ruby finished him off with a few more shots to the upper torso, and then her and the Marked One advanced.
They came to the next doorway, which led to a large room. This one was a bit more brightly-lit than the earlier rooms, owing to a few spinning lights mounted on the walls. Bloodstains littered the ground, and Ruby paused when she saw them.
"Wait," she called to the Marked One. "Did any of the Bandits get away?"
"Not that I know of," he said. "Why do you ask?"
"Because something caused these bloodstains here, and it wasn't us. Plus, don't you think it's weird that there was only one Bandit in that hallway?"
The Marked One's brow furrowed. "I suppose you're right… what do you suggest?"
"We have to move on, but be careful," Ruby warned. "I think there might be more Bandits in this next room, waiting for us." She gestured ahead. "We sprint for that corner ahead of us. If nobody shoots at us while we run there, then we can move up. Otherwise, we'll have to hold there and try to think of something else."
"Makes sense to me. Let's go."
Ruby took another breath to steel herself, then sprinted through the doorway, the Marked One hot on her heels. To her surprise, no gunfire met them – they were both able to make it to cover without any opposition. Confused, she peered out from around the corner, then beckoned for the Marked One to follow her. They pushed up through the room, but there was still nothing. Ruby turned to the Marked One and was about to make a comment about how they were in the clear when a loud, bestial roar filled the room.
"Look out!" the Marked One called, raising his Kalashnikov in shock.
Ruby turned around, but by the time she did so, it was too late – something had appeared out of thin air, claws extended towards her. It was indescribable – tall and gaunt like some kid of emaciated human, but with sickly green skin and a face that was covered in tentacles, and stained with blood. Beady white eyes stared at her, and Ruby froze out of fear, which gave the monster all the time it needed.
It lunged forward, and Ruby's world suddenly went red as its claws raked across her face. She fell to the ground, screaming in agony as she clutched at her right cheek. Behind her, she heard the Marked One yelling as he laid on his Kalashnikov's trigger. Ruby writhed on the ground in agony, blood pouring from her face.
Someone ran up to her, and for a moment, Ruby was worried it was that monster, but through the blood in her eyes, she was barely able to make out the Marked One's familiar visage.
"Hang on," he urged her as he set his pack down and began to rifle through it. "I'm going to get you bandaged up."
Ruby could only nod through the tears of pain pouring down her face. She blinked, and saw the Marked One tear open a medical kit. There was a stinging pain in her face, and then bliss – he must have injected her with some kind of painkiller
With her agony now a bit more under control, Ruby was able to form words again. She looked at the Marked One.
"How bad is it?"
He paused midway through unwrapping a roll of bandages, and hesitated. "...I think it looks worse than it really is," he ventured. "There's a lot of blood. We'll get it looked at when we get back to the Bar."
Ruby began to shake a bit. Tentatively, she raised a hand up to her face, flinching when she felt a flap of skin hanging off. Marked One hurriedly took her hand.
"Ruby," he urged. "You will be okay. Alright? Don't think about it. Here, let me fix you up."
She nodded, numb, as he began to wrap that side of her face in bandages. That helped stem the flow of blood, but it still hurt, even with the painkiller he'd given her – every heartbeat sent another jolt of fire lancing through her face. Still, it was the best they could do at this time.
After a few minutes, the Marked One finished bandaging her face, and he helped her up. Ruby poked and prodded at the bandages for a bit, trying to test them and see if they would hold, but they seemed firm enough to her. It was definitely a patchwork job, though – she'd need to get her wounds looked at the moment they made it back to the Bar.
"Thanks," she said softly.
The Marked One nodded, then stepped in front of her to take point. Ruby followed after him, her weapon at the ready, only sparing a glance back to look at the monster that had nearly killed her. It was lying in a heap towards the back of the room, riddled with bullet holes and surrounded by spent casings. She shuddered at the sight of it, then moved on.
They both emerged into a long hallway pockmarked with more of those Anomalies that let off toxic green gas. The moment they stepped into it, gunfire erupted from down the hall, forcing them back into cover. Ruby shared a glance with the Marked One, and after a brief nod, advanced enough that she could peer out from from around the corner to lay down some suppressive fire. Her submachine gun bucked in her hands as she let off several bursts, and the Marked One broke from cover, advancing carefully. The two gunmen on the other side of the hall didn't stand a chance, and were cut down in a hail of bullets.
"Clear!" the Marked One called to her.
Ruby stopped to reload, then moved out from behind cover. She found the Marked One standing over one of the bullet-riddled corpses, motioning to the patch on the man's shoulder with his boot.
"Military," he grunted. "Guess they're looking for something, too."
"Great…" Ruby said. "Just what I needed – to mess with the Military some more. That seems to be a thing with you."
The Marked One held up his hands in surrender. "I am not planning this, I swear. I would have nothing against the Military if they didn't always shoot at me first."
Ruby let out an exhale. "Let's just keep moving. Hopefully we're near the end."
To the left, there was a doorway; stepping through it, Ruby and the Marked One found themselves in another long hallway. Ruby saw a headlamp cut through the darkness, and didn't hesitate to start putting fire on that position down the hall. The soldier with the light fell instantly, but his two comrades both opened up on her, and she was forced to fling herself to the ground in order to avoid the incoming fire. Next to her, the Marked One retaliated with several bursts of his own, and managed to cut down the two soldiers just as a bullet grazed his arm. He let out a grunt, and Ruby hurried over to look at it, but he waved her off.
"I'm fine," he said. "It barely even touched me."
"We're getting lucky," she noted. "I think whatever money we get from this, we're going to have to spend it on body armor, because sooner or later, our luck is going to run out."
"I'm inclined to agree," he grunted.
They kept moving after that, pausing only to scavenge through the fallen soldiers' pockets. Ruby came up with some more 9x19mm ammo for her SMG, plus a few more rubles for her troubles.
With the soldiers now cleared out, they turned onto another path. Ruby moved past a large drain pipe and was about to keep going when the Marked One reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.
"What is it?" she asked. "More soldiers?"
He shook his head. "Remember what Mole said? I think that's our drain pipe."
He motioned to her left, and Ruby looked over to it, her eyes widening in recognition. She nodded, and the two of them moved into the pipe. There was a ladder leading up towards the back of it; they both took turns climbing it while the other covered them, but it proved to be unnecessary, as there were no enemies inside.
Ruby emerged from the top of the pipe and into a small, barely-lit room. Ruby hesitated for a moment, then turned on the flashlight mounted to her weapon. Thankfully, nothing jumped out at her, and she breathed a sigh of relief at being able to see.
The Marked One came up behind her, and also switched on his weapon-mounted light. Together, they swept the room, looking for anything useful. Ruby noticed a small light towards the end of the room, between some boxes; she cautiously approached it and was surprised to see and Artifact of some kind.
"Wow…" Ruby breathed, carefully drawing closer to it. There didn't appear to be any Anomalies here, so someone had simply left it there. She reached for the Artifact, only to hesitate and turn back to the Marked One.
"Is it okay if I take this Artifact?" she asked.
"Sure," he said without looking back. "I'm looking for information and maybe a new gun that packs a bit more of a punch than this five-four-five. Anything else you find, you can keep."
Ruby nodded in understanding, then reached out and picked up the Artifact before depositing it in her container. It emitted a pleasant warmth, and she gave a small, content sigh at it; if nothing else, she could take solace in the fact that as long as she had the Artifact on her, she wouldn't be cold anymore.
She turned around just in time to see the Marked One hefting a different rifle up, this one another Kalashnikov of some kind, though it appeared slightly different.
"I thought you didn't want another five-four-five?" Ruby asked.
"It's not," he told her. "It's a Chinese Type 56. It's like a Kalashnikov, but a bit different. It's in seven-six-two. Don't ask me how I know that; I don't even know."
Ruby nodded in understanding, watching as the Marked One dropped his old Kalashnikov and replaced it with the Type 56. He then turned towards one of the other shelves, only to do a double-take and motion for her to come to him.
"Got something else for you," he said.
Ruby blinked, surprised, but drew closer. The Marked One reached out and took whatever he'd been looking at, then offered it to her. She stared at it in confusion.
"What is it?"
"Body armor of some kind," he said. "Looks like it's a bit big for you, but you can get it resized or trade it in for something that will actually fit. Here."
She hesitantly took the armor from him, then stuffed it into her pack. With that done, she turned back to the Marked One. "Did you find what you were looking for?"
He grunted, then shook his head. "Not yet."
Ruby leaned up against a board with some maps on it. "We'll keep looking. I'm sure we'll-"
The board suddenly moved, causing her to stumble and almost lose her balance. She was able to stay upright, however, even as the board moved. She looked over to it in dismay, only for her eyes to widen when she saw a flash drive sitting in a hidden compartment behind where the board was standing. She reached out and took the drive, turning it over in her hands to examine it; it was marked 'Strelok'.
"Hey," Ruby called out, getting the Marked One's attention. "I found something."
She held out the flash drive, and he took it. His eyes widened in surprise when he read the name on it, and he nodded appreciatively, then stuck it in his pocket.
"I think we have what we came for," he said. "Let's get the fuck out of here."
Ruby didn't argue. The two of them climbed down the ladder, then pushed through the rest of the hallway. They came to a large steel staircase that spiraled upwards, and began to ascend. As they climbed, Ruby noticed the dead bodies of several Ukrainian soldiers lying slumped over the steps and against the walls.
"What is this…?" she breathed. "We didn't shoot them… who took these guys out?"
The Marked One knelt down to examine one of them. "No idea. He wasn't shot, though."
A chill went down Ruby's spine. "Is it another one of those monsters?"
"It doesn't seem like it; I don't see any claw marks on any of them."
The Marked One turned one of the dead men over. Ruby froze when she saw the man had been profusely bleeding out of his eyes, ears, and nose, and that an expression of horror was locked onto his face even in death. She turned away from the corpse, looking in a different direction, but unfortunately, her gaze landed on another dead soldier, this one leaned up against the wall in a seated position, his rifle's muzzle in his mouth and his finger curled around its trigger. The wall behind him was painted a deep shade of crimson and covered in brains and skull fragments.
That was too much for her. Ruby retched, and nearly vomited then and there out of a combination of disgust and fear. The Marked One put a hand on her shoulder as she doubled over and dry-heaved.
"Easy," he urged. "We're almost through, just a bit more."
Ruby nodded as best as she could, then rose to stand up straight. Her legs shook beneath her, but she didn't let that stop her. Instead, she fell in behind the Marked One as he continued to climb the stairs, leading the way with his new rifle as he did so.
At the top of the stairs, a doorway opened up into a long room. At the end, Ruby could see a ladder leading up, with a small crack of light leaking through. She breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of it and went to sling her weapon, but her hands refused to move, and a high-pitched ringing filled her ears. Confused, she glanced down, and at that moment, her hands began to move on their own, reaching for her weapon as the ringing in her ears intensified. Alarmed, she tried to force herself to stop moving, but her body continued to reach for her gun involuntarily. It was like she was a prisoner in her own body – she was able to see what she was doing, but was powerless to stop it.
In front of her, the Marked One was going through something similar, stumbling around as if in a daze and clutching at his head as he muttered something in Russian and Ukrainian. Ruby tried to call to him, but the words refused to come out. The entire time, her hands continued fumbling with her submachine gun. Ruby fought the entire time, desperate to keep her own body from betraying her, but to her horror, the gun slowly began to raise up. At first, she thought that it was going to point itself at the Marked One, but it didn't.
Instead, the muzzle of the gun began to steadily angle itself towards her own head.
The sight of the gun barrel pointing at herself was enough to give Ruby one final burst of strength. With all her might, she threw herself to the ground just as her finger was about to break through the gun's trigger. The resulting shot skimmed across the top of her head, the 9mm bullet taking a few strands of her hair with it. The gun fell to the ground, and Ruby landed on her hands and knees, hyperventilating as tears of horror stung at her eyes.
She sat there, trying to catch her breath, the ringing in her ears now gone, when she heard it – from down the hall they'd just emerged out of, there was a loud roar. Ruby instantly scrambled for her weapon, then rose to her feet and flattened herself against the wall next to the nearby doorway. In front of her, the Marked One continued to stumble around, muttering to himself; she could tell he'd be of no help to her here.
Shuffling footsteps suddenly caught her attention; whatever monster had messed with her head was steadily drawing closer. Ruby grit her teeth, then spun out from behind cover, her weapon already in her shoulder.
Whatever this thing was, it had once been human, that much she could tell – the fact it was wearing faded, ripped jeans was proof enough. Beyond that, it was only vaguely human – its skin was a sickly tan, and covered in open, weeping sores. The remnants of torn bandages covered its upper body, but aside from those, it was bare-chested. Its fingers were elongated and tipped with claws, and most strikingly of all, its head was oversized and bulbous. The sheer sight of it made Ruby freeze for a second, and that was all the creature needed – Ruby heard the ringing start up in her ears again, and watched as it raised its hand and pointed at her. Something happened – she wasn't sure how to describe it; it felt as though her mind had been ripped out of her skull and then forced back in. Pain lanced through her head, and she felt her nose begin to bleed profusely as the ringing in her ears picked up in volume.
This time, though, something was different – this time, she was able to maintain control. It took all her strength, but Ruby was able to fend off her own body, and instead force herself to raise her weapon towards the creature. It pointed at her again, and once more, she felt her mind be ripped out and forced back in, but that didn't stop her. Ruby let out a manic scream as she held down her submachine gun's trigger, firing off the entire magazine in a single burst. The monster in front of her twitched and flinched as 9mm slugs ripped through its upper body, then it fell to the ground, where it sat, motionless.
Ruby stood there for a moment, hyperventilating. She let her Vityaz dangle from its sling, then brought a hand up to rub at her nose and ears, which had also started leaking blood; her hand came back absolutely slicked in crimson. She stared at it, then let her hand fall and turned around to tend to the Marked One, who she noticed was huddled up on the floor and rocking back and forth, his eyes screwed shut and his teeth gritted as he continued muttering to himself.
She made it one step before she heard the ringing in her ears start up again, and the creature behind her let out a groan.
That was enough for her. Ruby didn't bother to reload – she turned around, and in the same motion, ripped her revolver from its holster. She cranked off seven shots as fast as she could into the monster, but it still continued to get up, even with the additional holes in its body. Out of options, Ruby did the only thing she could.
She tossed her revolver to the side, drew her Kalashnikov bayonet, and rushed the creature down.
The mutant was bowled over when she made impact with it, and Ruby landed on top of it. She didn't waste any time – she brought the knife down again and again into its upper body, shouting the entire time. Blood arced through the air and splashed against her, over and over again, but she didn't stop – not for a moment. She didn't stop even when it was clear the mutant was already dead, its chest having been cut open and its heart exposed. It wasn't until someone grabbed her wrist from behind and stopped her that she ceased.
"It's over," the Marked One said, his voice wavering.
That made Ruby pause. She stopped and looked down at the mutant beneath her, and again, bile rose up in her throat at the sight of it – both from the sheer disgust at the sight of it, and also from the fear of what she'd nearly done to herself. Ruby scrambled off the mutant and rose to her feet on shaking legs. She gasped for breath for a few seconds, then shook her head.
"...Fuck this…" she declared. "J-just… fuck this…"
Across from her, the Marked One bent down and collected her weapons, then offered them both to her. Ruby sheathed her bayonet, took the weapons, and with shaking hands, reloaded them both, then stowed them. Once she was done, she looked back over to the Marked One, unwilling to even glance in the direction of the monster she'd just killed.
"What was that thing...?" she muttered. "It messed with my head…"
"I don't know," the Marked One answered. "Whatever it was, it did the same to me."
Ruby knew he wasn't lying, but she didn't dare ask what he'd seen that had caused him to react in the way he had; after what she'd been through, she didn't want to know. Instead, she just nodded, and then the two of them wordlessly approached the ladder and climbed up it.
When Ruby finally got to the top of the ladder and saw sunlight, she almost broke down in tears.
Jaune let out a tired sigh as he stared up at the ceiling, idly tapping a finger against his mattress as he did so. Cinder had left several hours ago – she'd been gone most of the day at this point. A simple trip to the Bar should not have taken her that long.
"I swear, if she got herself into some trouble and needs me to bail her out…"
And wasn't that a thought – he'd have to go rescue Cinder Fall, the mastermind behind the destruction of Beacon and the death of his friends… the same way she'd already had to rescue him. It was completely ridiculous, and yet, it had happened. And more than that, he'd finally learned the truth behind why Beacon fell.
That memory earned another sigh from him, this one of frustration. None of this made his current situation any easier – sure, what happened to Cinder was bad, but that was no justification for what she'd done. At the same time, what was he supposed to do about it? He couldn't exactly kill her, especially not when he was relying on her to watch his back.
Then again, perhaps that was a moot point – from what she'd told him, it might be better for her to stay in the Zone. If she did end up deciding to stay… well, it wouldn't undo what had happened at Beacon, but he supposed it would temper his anger more than a little.
"Screw this," Jaune suddenly declared as he threw the blanket off himself and sat up. "She should be back by now. I'm going to look for her."
Jaune stepped off the mattress and tried to struggle to his feet, only for his leg to nearly give out underneath him. He winced, reaching out to brace himself against the wall and stay steady, and took a few breaths as pain lanced up through his leg. After a few seconds, he chanced a step away from the wall. Again, pain rocketed through his body, and he winced, but he didn't care – he needed to go find Cinder and make sure nothing bad happened to her.
Jaune slung his 870 across his front, then began to steadily limp his way over to the stairs. He rounded the corner and nearly ran right into someone else who was coming around at the same time. He stumbled, then fell to the ground with a pained yell.
"Jaune?" he heard Cinder ask, surprised. "What are you doing out of bed?"
"Had to find you…" he said through gritted teeth. "You were taking too long."
"Are you an idiot? What were you going to do with your wounds, aside from die?" Cinder shook his head, then offered him a hand. He accepted, and she carefully pulled him to his feet, then gave him a harsh glare. "You are the one person I can rely on here. If you die, then I am as good as dead, too."
"I'm aware," Jaune said dryly. "Help me back to bed, would you? I don't think I can make it on my own."
Cinder rolled her eyes, but did as he asked, offering him a shoulder to lean on as he marched back to his makeshift bed on unsteady legs. After several minutes of struggling, he made it back, and dropped down onto his mattress.
He'd barely had any time to relax when Cinder tossed her Artifact container on his stomach. He stared at it, then looked back to her.
"What's this?" he asked.
"It's a Meat Chunk Artifact," she reported.
Jaune blinked, surprised. "...You went Artifact hunting by yourself?"
"I did," Cinder answered, steadily growing impatient. She motioned towards the Meat Chunk. "Hold it next your wounds; it will heal you."
"Wait, you specifically went Artifact hunting for-"
"I need you back in action as soon as possible," Cinder emphasized. "Hurry up and use it."
"Don't these things emit radiation? How am I supposed to-"
He was cut off by Cinder reaching into her pack and placing several bottles of vodka on the nearby table. He stared at them, then let out a sigh.
"This is going to suck, isn't it?"
Cinder's expression told him everything he needed to know. He let out another sigh, then turned back to the Artifact container.
"How does this work, anyway? Do I-"
"You will need to strip down," Cinder emphasized. "Hold the Artifact against your wounds and it will help heal them. After a few seconds of doing that, drink some vodka to help flush the radiation out of your system."
"A few seconds? Are you trying to get me plastered?"
"I am trying to keep you from overloading your system and dying of radiation poisoning," Cinder growled. "Hurry up and do it, already."
Jaune hesitated for a moment. "...Look away, because I'm not wearing any underwear."
"That's ridiculous. Might I ask why?"
"Well, it was laundry day the day Beacon fell, and-"
"You know what? I don't care. You have nothing I have not already seen before," Cinder reported. "I shall look wherever I like, especially since I need to be certain you are doing it correctly. Now hurry up and strip."
Jaune's face flushed red. Much as he hated to admit, she did have a point, though this was certainly going to be embarrassing for him.
"Good thing we're going to be drinking…" he muttered as he unzipped his pants and began to shimmy out of them.
"Give – hic! – me the bottle, I could use some more."
Cinder obliged, passing Jaune the bottle of vodka. He set aside the Artifact for a moment and took a few more sips of alcohol. It burned all the way down, earning a cough from him as he pulled the lip of the bottle away from his mouth, but in its wake, it left a pleasant numbness.
It was nice, not having to feel anything for the first time since arriving in the Zone.
Through blurred vision, Jaune was able to make out Cinder as she swayed unsteadily in her seat across from him. Early on, he'd requested that she start drinking with him so he wouldn't be the only one getting hammered, and she had surprisingly agreed. He wasn't sure why; maybe it really was a bit of altruism on her part, but then again, perhaps having to look at him naked from the waist down really was just as awkward for her as it was for him, and she'd needed something to take her mind off it. That would certainly explain the odd looks she'd been giving him since his pants had come off…
"You know," Jaune slurred as he reached for the Artifact again. "I don't know if I've thanked you yet for getting this thing for me."
Cinder waved him off. "Think nothing of it. As I already explained, I need you back in one piece if we are to survive. And besides, having an Artifact such as this would be extremely helpful should either of us be wounded in the future."
"Can't argue with that. Still, thank you; this is one of the few kind things anyone has ever done for me since I got here."
"How ironic that it comes from your enemy," Cinder mused.
Jaune let out a grunt. "Right now, you're not my enemy."
"Oh? What am I, then?"
"The girl who's getting plastered with me while I have my balls out, that's who."
"Are you trying to insinuate something?"
"Hey, you started it when you said I don't have anything you haven't already seen."
To his surprise, Cinder flushed red again. "I did not mean it like that. I simply meant that I have seen videos."
"Hell, everyone's seen videos," Jaune answered. "What are you trying to say? You've got no experience?"
"None."
"Really?"
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"I mean… you're attractive. Very much so, in fact. I'm just surprised, is all."
"My quest for more power did not exactly give me the luxury of attempting to find romance," Cinder deadpanned as she took another deep drink from the bottle of vodka. This was their third one between them, though somehow, Jaune knew that wasn't why she was suddenly being so open. After all, with the truth behind her circumstances already revealed, it wasn't like there was much else she had to hide from him.
"So, how experienced are you?" Jaune couldn't help but ask. "Ever kissed anyone?"
"No more than you have."
"Ow. Okay, how about a date?"
"Again, no."
"Ever even had a crush?"
He'd expected another negative response, which was why he was so surprised when she flushed red again. He blinked. "No way. Who was it?"
"I refuse," Cinder said hurriedly.
"Come on, who was it? I'll tell you mine."
"I already know yours – the Schnee girl."
"...Was I really that obvious about it?" Jaune couldn't help but mutter. He shook his head. "For real, though. We've got nothing better to talk about. Who was it? Someone at Beacon?"
"Cease this line of questioning immediately," Cinder growled.
"Or what, you'll threaten to kill me? Come on, we both know you can't do that, not when you need me to help watch your back. So you might as well fess up, because I'm not going to drop it."
"I will tell you only if you tell me something really embarrassing about yourself in turn," Cinder bargained.
"Deal," Jaune said. "Okay, here goes – Cardin Winchester almost got me kicked out of Beacon. He discovered I faked my transcripts and threatened to expose me if I didn't basically turn myself into his manservant."
Cinder stared at him. "...You were almost exposed by that absolute buffoon?"
"Yes, I know, it's embarrassing," Jaune offered. "Especially now that Cardin's not that bad a guy anymore. Alright, that's my thing. What's yours? Who managed to steal your heart?"
Cinder looked away, as if weighing whether or not she still wanted to tell him. At first, Jaune thought for sure that she wasn't going to admit to anything, but that concern died when she muttered something under her breath.
"What was that?" Jaune asked. "I couldn't hear you."
"I shall not repeat myself," Cinder hurriedly said as she reached for the vodka again and took a deep drink of it.
"Oh, come on. Fine, I'll just guess – was it Sun? Neptune? Ren?" Jaune thought for a moment. "...Ruby?"
"Absolutely not!" Cinder hissed.
"Well, the way I see it, you can either tell me outright or I can keep throwing names out until I land on the right one and you blush like crazy."
"I do not blush."
"Cinder, you look like a tomato right now. I don't know if that's because of the booze or because you're embarrassed, but in either case, it's pretty funny, and it's a really strong tell. Seriously, who was it? Maybe one of the teachers. Goodwitch? I mean, she is pretty hot-"
"It was you!" Cinder said, causing him to fall silent. "There, now you can stop your incessant rambling and give me peace and quiet for once!"
Jaune was stunned. "...Me? You had a crush on-"
"I dreamed of you," Cinder said quietly, that same blush creeping back over her face. "If you can believe that."
"...Holy shit, you're not lying," Jaune realized. "I mean… not that I'm not flattered, but… why?"
"I do not know," Cinder explained. "Truly, I do not. You and I had almost no interactions together. I suppose it was your physical appearance."
"...You think I'm cute?"
"When you are not lying in bed with a gunshot wound and your penis exposed, yes, you are quite easy on the eyes, I believe the expression is," Cinder said dryly.
"Why is this such a big deal to you?"
"Oh, it's just… I've never really had anyone who was interested in me before," Jaune ventured. "I mean… I guess Pyrrha was, but…"
He trailed off after that. Cinder looked away, and for a moment, Jaune regretted saying anything. Silently, he cursed himself for bringing her up.
"I'm sorry," Cinder suddenly announced.
Jaune looked back to her, surprised. "What?"
"About everything," Cinder said. "I… know that doesn't make up for any of it, not even slightly, but… I owe you at least that much."
Jaune stared at her, shocked. Initially, part of him thought that it was the alcohol talking, but one look at her face and the guilt-ridden expression she was wearing told him that she being as genuine as she possibly could be.
She was right, of course – a simple apology couldn't make up for the lives she'd ruined. It wouldn't undo Pyrrha's death, or bring Beacon back from the ashes. But then again, neither would his hatred, especially if Cinder did as she said she would and chose to stay in the Zone.
Cinder suddenly rose to her feet and turned away from him, taking him by surprise.
"I am leaving," she announced.
"Wait," Jaune said, stopping her. "Stay, please."
Cinder hesitated, still refusing to look back. "Why you insist on keeping me around-"
"Because you're the only one who I can rely on," Jaune insisted. "Stay."
Cinder stood rooted to her spot for a moment, but then reluctantly turned back around and sat down in her chair next to him. She reached for the bottle of vodka and drank deeply of it, then passed it back to him.
"Have I mentioned I hate it here?" Cinder said abruptly as she looked out the window. Storm clouds were gathering overhead yet again.
"Didn't you just tell me earlier you wanted to stay?" Jaune said as he took a sip of vodka and set the bottle aside.
"Given the options, yes, I believe staying is preferable," Cinder explained. "That does not mean I have to enjoy it."
"For what it's worth, I hate it here, too," Jaune told her. "I'm sick of it, Cinder – all the killing, all the injuries… fuck me, I've even started drinking and smoking just to cope with it all. And I'll be honest, it's not helping."
"What would?"
"I don't know," he said honestly. "I just don't know. How do you cope with it all?"
"I have been killing people since I was your age," Cinder pointed out. "You get used to that part. The injuries and almost dying on a daily basis, though… those still haunt me. The alcohol helps, but it is not healthy."
Jaune let out a small snort at that. "Nothing in the Zone is healthy. Even this Artifact that's healing me is still poisoning me at the same time."
"I'm open to suggestions," Cinder said dryly.
Jaune shrugged. "Honestly, I've got nothing. Sounds like we both just need a hug more than anything."
"What would that do to help?"
Again, he stared at her. "You're kidding, right?"
"I am not."
"Cinder… have you ever been hugged before?"
"Not that I can remember."
Jaune's shocked expression soon gave way to pity. That was right – Cinder had never had anyone who actually cared about her. That didn't justify what she'd done, but even he had to admit that it was sad. And in his inebriated state, there was only one thing he could think of that would help with that.
"Come here," he said.
"Why?" she asked.
"Just come."
"You're naked."
"You didn't seem to care about that earlier."
Begrudgingly, Cinder stood up and moved over to stand beside his bed, doing her best to keep her eyes off his lower body. She stood over him, her arms crossed.
"Well?" she asked. "What could you possibly-"
Jaune didn't wait for her to finish, instead throwing his arms around her and pulling her in. Cinder stiffened, clearly unused to the sudden physical contact and uncertain as to how she should react, but after a moment, he felt her shift and lean into it.
Neither of them said anything, but they didn't need to – instead, they just stood there, holding onto each other.
And for the first time since arriving in the Zone, both of them felt the tiniest flicker of comfort.
Pyrrha let out a heavy sigh as she lied on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. Her tasks for the day were already done – she'd been instructed to reinforce the border after Monolith's recent probing attack, along with Rat and Swift. It had been very uneventful today, which was a good thing – she was, frankly, tired of all the excitement.
Of course, now that she was alone, there was nothing to do except think.
Images popped into her mind, of her old friends at Beacon. It had ended in tragedy, sure, but there had been plenty of good times before then. A pang of longing lanced through her heart when she thought of all of the ones she'd left behind – Team RWBY, Ren, Nora… Jaune.
Jaune…
What was Jaune to her, exactly? She'd had a crush on him, sure, and she'd even kissed him before she'd headed off to die. But now he was gone, as were the rest of them, and she doubted she'd ever see them again.
Tears filled her eyes, but she blinked them away as Bonesaw's words from a few days ago popped into her mind. Whatever had happened, she was in the Zone now – thinking about what she'd lost wouldn't do her any good. Much as she hated to admit it, the best thing to do was to focus on her own survival at the moment.
"Pyrrha?"
Rat's voice caught her attention. Pyrrha hurriedly wiped the rest of her tears away, then turned towards the doorway to the barracks. He was standing there, his rifle absent; no doubt he'd stowed it away with most of his other gear, now that they weren't on duty anymore. The only weapons he was carrying at the moment were his holstered handgun and his sheathed bayonet.
"Sorry," she said. "Thought I'd try to get some sleep, but I don't think it's happening."
"I don't blame you," Rat noted. "Fucking Zone gives everyone terrible nightmares. Sometimes it's better to just stay awake."
"I take it that's what you're doing now?"
"Yup. Me and a few other guys, in fact. Not Swift, though – that guy can sleep on a dime."
Pyrrha let out a small laugh. "So, what's happening?"
"We've got a fire going," Rat offered. "We're heating up some rations and passing some vodka around. Figured you'd want to join if you were still up."
Pyrrha thought for a moment, then nodded. "That sounds great, Rat. Thank you." She stood up and stretched out. Then followed after him as he led the way outside.
True to Rat's word, there was a small fire going out in one of the corners of the base. A few other men were gathered around it – Pyrrha counted three as she approached, the fire illuminating them through the darkness.
"I brought her," Rat offered as he sat down on a log. He motioned for Pyrrha to take a seat, and she did, sitting down on an old tire. "Someone give me a drink, I'm parched."
"Wouldn't alcohol make that worse?" Pyrrha asked.
"Only if you run out," Rat grunted. He took the bottle someone offered him, then lowered his balaclava enough to take a drink. Once he'd had his fill, he offered it to her, and Pyrrha hesitated before accepting it. She stared at the vodka, uncertain, but then raised it to her lips and took a drink.
She was completely unprepared for it to burn the entire way down. In an instant, she tore the bottle away from her lips and began coughing. The other men laughed at her, and she glared at Rat.
"What is that?!" she demanded.
"Vodka," he said, his tone making it obvious that he was doing his best not to laugh.
"It tastes horrible!"
"That's because it's the cheap shit. That's pretty much all we can get in the Zone. Believe me, I think everyone here would rather drink some imported American whiskey than this garbage, but it's all we've got."
"Not quite," another of the men offered. "One of the merchants can probably get his hands on some American alcohol."
"Yeah, but they'd charge you an arm and a leg for it," Rat reminded him. "Not worth it. Besides, if I'm going to get drunk, it's going to be the cheap shit – at least then I won't be throwing up good alcohol."
"You people are insane," Pyrrha sputtered. "How can you drink that stuff like it's water?"
"You don't," another of the men explained. "Small sips, Pyrrha, small sips."
"What he said," the third offered. "Take a small sip, let it rest on the back of your tongue for a moment, and then gulp it down as fast as you can."
"Would you like to try again now that you've got your instructions?" Rat said, offering her the bottle. Pyrrha eyed it with caution, but eventually relented, accepting it once more. She again raised it to her lips, but this time did as the men had told her. Surprisingly, it wasn't as bad as before; it still wasn't good, but it wasn't completely terrible, either.
Besides, if she was going to be living in the Zone, she'd have to get used to drinking vodka for anti-radiation, and there was no better time to start than now, she figured.
"Okay," Rat announced. "Who's next?"
The other three men exchanged an uncomfortable glance with each other before looking back at him. "...Is this okay with her around?" one of them asked.
Rat waved him off. "It's fine, Polar – don't get too explicit with it and I'm sure she won't mind."
"What would I mind?" Pyrrha asked.
"It's nothing, really," another of the men hurriedly said. "We just… it gets lonely in the Zone, so sometimes we like to get together and reminisce about stuff outside the Zone."
"Why would I have a problem with that?"
"Because it generally turns to talk of old girlfriends," Rat explained. "I didn't think you'd mind-"
"I don't, really," Pyrrha said. "Girlfriends are a fact of life, I suppose; no reason for you all to censor yourselves around me."
"Heh. Knew you wouldn't mind. I told you guys Pyrrha was cool like that."
"Sure, sure," the third man said. "I think I was up next, but I suppose we should introduce ourselves first. I'm Wolverine, the guy on my right is Badger, and the one farther away is Polar."
"Pleasure to meet you all," Pyrrha said with a nod.
"Anyway, where was I?" Wolverine asked. "Ah, right – so, I go back to the girl's house, right? I figure, the date went well, and I've known her for a few months now, so tonight must finally be the night. She leads up to the front porch and tells me to wait there. So I'm standing there, my heart pounding, when suddenly I hear a bunch of shouting from inside the house. Then, before I know it, this old man comes out holding a shotgun."
"That was her father?" Rat asked.
"He sure was." Wolverine nodded. "Anyway, the old guy starts grilling me – demanding to know what I planned to do with his daughter. And I'm just standing there, trying my best to come up with something. Finally, I just stammer out that I was walking her home. Naturally, he doesn't believe me, so he points the gun at me and tells me to empty my pockets. I figure I'm about to be robbed and killed, but of course, I can't do anything but comply. So I do."
"What happened then?" Pyrrha asked, leaning in.
Wolverine shrugged. "He didn't find what he was looking for. After that, he told me to get out and never speak to his daughter again. So I left. And let that be a lesson to you, boys – keep the condoms in your car until you're sure you've been cleared for landing."
"Thar's one way of putting it," Badger said dryly. "How long ago was this?"
"About ten years, I think. I was still in school, though I was just about done."
"How time flies," Rat commented. "How was the girl? Was she hot?"
"Of course she was," Wolverine insisted. "Tall, with blonde hair and green eyes, and the biggest tits I've ever seen. Athletic, too, and she had a beautiful singing voice. I still regret following her old man's orders."
"I can't blame him," Polar said. "She sounds like a real jewel. You, on the other hand… well, you're here."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Only that jewels don't end up in the Zone." His gaze shifted over to Pyrrha. "Present company excluded, of course."
"Flattery will get you nowhere," Pyrrha said, though she had a slight grin on her face.
Polar shrugged. "I just call it the way I see it. Personally, I know better than to try sleeping with a comrade."
"Unlike the guys in Duty," Badger added.
The men all chuckled at that for a moment. Once the laughter died down, Rat motioned towards Polar.
"What about you?" he asked. "Got any more stories?"
"Of course he does, he went to university," Badger explained.
"I studied physics in university," Polar insisted. "There wasn't a single woman in my program at the time."
"You studied physics?" Pyrrha asked, surprised. "How did you end up here?"
Polar shrugged. "Started dealing drugs as a way to subsidize my education. Eventually, the cops found out, so I had to run somewhere they wouldn't be able to find me."
"Do you regret it?"
"Fuck yes, I do; I was dumb as shit back then. But I needed the money, so I didn't have much of a choice. I should have stayed out of trouble and finished my studies instead, but it's too late now."
"So you've got no stories?" Wolverine asked.
"I've got one," Polar offered. "Drunk girl at a party offered to be my first. So we went into one of the back rooms together."
"And? What happened then?"
"We got into bed together, and then she threw up on the floor, fell asleep on my chest, and drooled on me until I got up and left."
"So I take it you didn't get any?" Badger asked.
Polar punched him in the shoulder. "No, I didn't get any. I'm a classy guy."
"You just said you dealt drugs for a living before coming here," Pyrrha pointed out.
"Even classy guys can make bad choices, you know."
"Oh, please, the only classy one here is Pyrrha," Rat said, rolling his eyes. "At least she stays out of trouble."
"But not the infirmary," Wolverine reminded him.
"Yeah, yeah. Who's next? Badger?"
"I've got nothing exciting," Badger grunted. "I'm ugly as shit under this mask, bro. All my experience was paid for."
"All the more reason for you to leave the Zone," Wolverine said. "Go out there and impress the girls with tales of your heroic deeds here. I'm sure they'll all be dropping their panties for you in no time. Hell, maybe they'll even give you a discount this time."
"Nah, if anything, they'll raise the price," Badger explained. "Because by the time I can leave the Zone, the radiation will have made me grow a third nut or something, and there's no way the whores will want any of that unless I throw them a little extra."
"I guess that leaves me, then," Rat said. He shifted a bit, sitting up straighter. "I did have a long-term girlfriend before coming here. She was a nice girl, and very beautiful, too, if a bit short. Long black hair, brown eyes, and a gorgeous body… she was amazing."
"What happened to her?" Wolverine asked. "Did you break up?"
Rat shook his head. "Nah. She died in a car accident – drunk driver in a semi truck hit her while she was trying to cross the street. Dead before she hit the ground. That's what made me come to the Zone – I had to get away from it all for awhile after that. Figured coming here would be a good way to escape."
A pang of sympathy lanced through Pyrrha's mind. She valued Rat and Swift as teammates and friends, but she hadn't known much about either of them before now. Rat in particular had always been very secretive about his reasons for coming to the Zone, but the luminescent blush on his face and his gentle side-to-side swaying told him exactly why he was deigning to reveal this information about himself now.
Pyrrha cast a glance down at the bottle in her hands, then passed it over to him. He raised it to her, then drank deeply of it.
"Anyway, you want a sexy story, you fucking animals?" Rat said. "She once blew me at an ice hockey game."
Wolverine let out a low whistle. "Damn, dirty girl."
"Only for me."
"How did that even work?" Polar asked. "You were both in the stands, yeah? So how come nobody saw?"
"Benefits of being up in the nosebleed section," Rat said. "We ducked behind a pillar in the arena and she went at it. Her idea, not mine."
"Weren't you cold?" Badger questioned.
Rat shook his head. "Brother, at that moment, I wasn't feeling anything except her tongue around my-" He suddenly paused, then glanced over towards Pyrrha. Clearing his throat, he added, "Anyway, that's what I've got for now. We did a ton of shit like that, and it was generally her idea."
"Damn, sounds like she was crazy for you," Wolverine said.
"She was," Rat added, a wistful tone creeping into his voice. He shook his head. "But I won't bring the mood down any further. Who else wants to go again?"
"Pyrrha hasn't gone yet," Badger pointed out.
Rat glared at him. "Don't put her on the-"
"It's quite alright, actually," Pyrrha offered. "I don't really have much, though… I only ever had a crush on one person, and it didn't end well."
"What happened?" Polar asked. "Did he break your heart?"
"What kind of question is that?" Wolverine demanded. "You can't ask a lady that!"
"No, nothing like that," Pyrrha hurriedly answered, defusing the situation. "It's just… well, you know I come from a different world, right? Back on that world – Remnant – we have big schools where we learn to fight monsters. I met him there. I was… a bit of a celebrity back on Remnant. Everyone liked to put me on a pedestal because of it, except him. He was the only one who treated me like a normal person."
"What happened?" Rat asked gently.
Pyrrha looked into the fire. "I don't think he had the same feelings for me. I ended up keeping my crush to myself, until it was too late. Our school was attacked by someone, so I went off to fight her on my own, knowing that I would almost certainly be killed. But someone had to try and stop her, you know? So I tried. But before I did, I met with him, and… kissed him goodbye. After that… well, you know the rest – I went to fight her, almost got killed, and wound up transported to Remnant somehow."
She trailed off after that. Rat handed her the bottle, and she nodded appreciatively before taking another drink from it.
"I don't think he ever felt the same about me," Pyrrha explained. "I was always a good friend of his, nothing more. I think that's all he really wanted from me; I can't exactly blame him for that – if you're not attracted to someone in that way, then that's that – but still."
"Do you still think about him?" Polar asked.
"Sometimes," Pyrrha responded. "But it's becoming less and less frequent as time goes on. At this point, I've kind of accepted it – he was never attracted to me in that way, and even if he was, we'll probably never see each other again. I'm an entire world away, and he could very well be dead by now. Honestly, though, I would give anything to see him again, even if just as friends. I miss him dearly."
"I can imagine," Wolverine said gently. "That's rough, Pyrrha. You have my sympathy."
"Thank you," Pyrrha told him. "Really, though, it's bothering me less and less. It doesn't do to dwell on it, after all."
"You're right about that," Rat grunted. "You're doing the right thing, Pyrrha. You have to let him go."
"I know," she agreed. "I'll move on in time, I'm sure. It's just… it still hurts. Less than it used to, for sure, but the pain is still there."
None of the other Stalkers said anything in response. Instead, Rat gently rested his hand on her shoulder as she stared into the fire, watching the embers as they burned through the night.
Special thanks to Ickbard for all the help with this chapter.
And that's it for this chapter. I'll be honest, I think it turned out pretty much exactly the way I wanted to. I really struggled for awhile, trying to think about how to implement the Underground, since it's pretty much the first big "Oh, shit" moment for new STALKER players – I think everyone remembers fighting that first Bloodsucker and Controller. I tried my best to plan my way through it, but couldn't figure out anything that really worked; eventually I decided to just take a crack at it, and ended up with something I was very happy with after my first attempt. It needed to be cleaned up a bit somewhat, obviously, but I was quite satisfied with it in terms of the basic concept for it.
The Jaune and Cinder scene is similar – eventually I just dove right into it and ended up with something I really liked. The plan initially was to have them have sex in this scene – hence Jaune not having any underwear – but I decided pretty early on that I didn't like that scene as much as this one. I still kept the no underwear thing because I thought it was funny and added some much-needed levity to a pretty heavy scene. But yeah, I really liked how that turned out.
Same with the Pyrrha scene too, come to think of it. I don't have a ton to say about that one, but it is important because it shows she's moving past Jaune in terms of romance. I really liked how that one turned out, too. Honestly, this has been my favorite chapter in the entire story so far – it really came together pretty much exactly how I wanted it to. Can't really ask for much more than that.
Anyway, weapons talk time. I ended up giving the Marked One a Type 56 here because, to my knowledge, there isn't really a way to easily modify an AK to shoot faster in full auto. You can definitely do it in semi-auto with a trigger upgrade (IE dropping in an ALG trigger or something) but full auto is a completely different beast. I picked the Type 56 because The Type 56 AK inherently has a slightly higher rate of fire than the Russian AKM variants simply due to the way the Chinese designed it (it's not much, though – the Type 56 has a fire rate of like 650 rounds per minute vs the AKM's 600 or so). Don't ask me specifics; that's just what I've heard. There are other differences, too – the Type 56 has a stamped rather than a milled receiver, it has a fully-hooded front sight, and it has an affixed spike bayonet, similar to an SKS. Besides that, it's the same AK we all know and love. I don't think it's too far-fetched that a Chinese AK variant would end up in the Zone either, since the Chinese were known for selling those things to pretty much anyone and everyone (this is partially why Norinco and Polytech weapons are now banned from import in the US – because they allegedly tried to sell a couple thousand of them directly to street gangs in the 90s during a crime epidemic, and naturally, the government took offense.) I know some people are going to poo-poo my decision to include a Chinese gun because "lmao Chinese manufacturing" but from everything I've heard, the Norinco and Polytech AK rifles were actually pretty good. They're not, like, Valmet or Galil quality good, but compared to something like a Romanian AK, they're supposedly much better. And that's why the Marked One is now running around with a Chinese weapon despite being in the Ukraine. If you still take offense, too bad, it's my fic and I'll do what I want with it.
Anyway, gun talk over. In other news, parts of the Controller fight were basically taken straight from the Gunslinger mod, specifically the part where the Controller tries to make Ruby shoot herself. I don't really have any particular reason for doing that, I just think that particular trait the Controllers have in that mod is terrifying/cool. Also, Cry of Fear did the same thing with one of its enemies, and Cry of Fear is cool, so I figured I'd throw it in for that reason, too. TL;DR: It's my fic and I'll do what I want to, once again.
But in all seriousness, I hope I did a good job of making the Bloodsucker and the Controller fights cool. Those two in particular are probably some of the most iconic moments of Shadow of Chernobyl, especially since they both happen in the same place, and I really wanted to try and recapture some of the fear and anxiety I felt when I first went into Agroprom completely blind and proceeded to get absolutely destroyed by the Bloodsucker, and then about ten minutes later by the Controller. Good times, good times.
Anyway, that aside, Ruby is not having a good time right now. I mean, she's never really had a good time, but now she's really not having a good time. It's a give-and-take with this fic, everyone goes through stages of having a good time and then not having a good time. For example, Ruby started off not too bad, and now she's having a fucking horrendously bad time. Meanwhile, Jaune started off pretty bad, and now he's doing… still pretty bad, all things considered, but at least he's got Cinder with him. Pyrrha… stay tuned, I'm sure I'll think of something. Point is, it's all relative.
Anyway, that's about what I've got. Hope you all enjoyed, and I'll see you next time!
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