RUBIes at DYWN
Chapter 3
Hey, Partner!
April 8th, Emerald Forest
The wind smelled nice as it battered Matchie in the face!
The damp and musty scent of rotting wood mixed with the fruity smell of wild fruit and flowers. The smaller shrubs' minty tang mixed with the woody aroma of the giant trees. She breathed it all in as she sailed over the treetops.
The speed she was flying at should probably be concerning— those treetops were getting really close— but false bravery still coursed through her from her sneaky dose in the changing rooms this morning. All her fears were burned away, and courage swirled in her chest.
She plucked her weapon from her back holster, and the familiar weight comfortably settled into her hands.
In its base form, Bewitching Match was a deadly hand culverin; a gun so big it might as well be a tiny cannon— and it had the kick to back it up. It was as thick as Matchie's legs but not as long as her arms. It was also painted with a flowery pattern spanning red, yellow, and the colours in between.
Mostly orange, of course.
Straddling the bottom of the thick steel barrel was a decorative curved flange sharp enough for her to seriously damage anything that got close.
Matchie pressed one of the buttons near the trigger. The barrel flew away the stock as a shaft extended between them. Then, five more flanges popped out of the side of the barrel and twisted into new positions.
Tada! A mace as long as Matchie was tall!
Hmm? The sky disappeared? Oh, she'd fallen below the canopy already.
Time to fly!
She mounted the extended weapon midair like a witch on a broom— there were even little pegs on two of the flanges for her to put her feet onto— and gripped the handle to press another button. The culverin barrel hummed briefly before a gout of flame surged out of its mouth.
Matchie took off like a rocket!
She spooked a flock of wild birds milling about in the dirt with a low swoop. A nasty-looking tree threatened to slap her a new colour, but she pulled up and soared back through the canopy.
She grinned at the cloudless sky. "Ahaha! Flying is the best!"
Far above the trees, she pressed yet another button to switch Bewitching Match to float mode. The barrel adjusted its output to maintain altitude while Matchie kept the handle pointing up.
With one hand clung to her weapon and the other level to her brow, Matchie surveyed the forest for potential partners. She had decided the best way to choose hers as soon as she knew they would be thrown onto the forest with catapult platforms.
Matchie wanted a partner that was bold, daring, and stylish! Someone willing to go as far as possible for absolutely no reason other than that they could! Therefore, Matchie's partner would be the brilliant soul who landed deepest in the forest!
She saw Dusk make a fancy landing. He wasn't ahead of the majority but wasn't in the lead, which was too bad for him. Less Matchie for him.
That girl in the fancy red dress she saw through the window yesterday was sliding down a half-fallen tree just a bit was super was super cool! But she hadn't gone very far.
Ren and Pancake Queen landed near each other, which was probably planned, given how far back they landed. They were so an item. Good for them.
Explosions echoed through the air, and a yellow streak caught Matchie's eye.
"Oh? Do we have a winner?" Matchie said.
A bright golden figure soared over the forest. Their weapons barked with fiery explosions that singed the treetops but, more importantly, extended their airtime!
Bold!
They disappeared into the greenery briefly but emerged from the other side of the canopy. Had they used the treetops to slow themselves down for a landing? That was pretty dangerous!
Daring!
Then, they leapt to and from the ancient trees like a master parkourist, nailing the landing with a roll and breaking into a jog!
Stylish!
Whoever this mysterious golden superstar was, they'd earned themselves a ticket for four years of the authentic Matchie experience!
Float mode was disengaged, and Matchie turned Bewitching Match around to fly to her chosen partner. Her excitement only pushed her to fly faster, and she caught up to them quickly.
It also seemed that they'd found some company.
Two ursas. Easy.
Matchie pulled up and deactivated flight mode, putting herself in a gentle arc that would land her right on top of the bear-like grimm, and switched her weapon to high-impact mode.
Yes. With another button.
The culverin barrel adjusted itself until it rested at an angle. A few seconds later, she pulled the trigger, and the force of the blast threw her into a somersault.
She spun once, then twice, and at the end of the third rotation, the bladed mace head slammed down on the first ursa's head plate. Its skull was shattered by the sheer speed of the manoeuvre, splattering grimm flesh in a black and red mess on the ground.
"Whoa!"
Matchie pulled her weapon out of the evaporating viscera and looked to her left to secure that sweet, sweet eye contact! Wow, Matchie's new partner was a girl with the most fantastic head of yellow hair she'd ever seen! "Hope I'm not intruding!" she called out.
"All good!" the blonde said, striding past. "Plenty of ursa to go around!"
The girl faced off against the second grimm. She leapt backward from its initial swipes, then surged forward into an uppercut, catching it in the jaw with a fiery slug. Now that it was forced onto its hind legs and off balance, Matchie's partner unleashed a deadly sequence of explosive punches into its exposed gut.
And just like that, the ursa fell on its butt and started to dissolve.
Matchie clapped enthusiastically at the display. "Woo!"
"Thank you! Thank you!" the girl gave an exaggerated bow. "I'm Yang, and I'll be kicking butt all day!"
"And I'm Matchie!"
"Nice to meetcha, Matchie! That was quite an entrance you made."
"It's pretty easy when you fly in at like, ninety kilometres an hour."
"Oh? You can fly?"
"Yeah!" Matchie showed off her weapon. "Like a witch!"
"Cool. Reckon we could fly to the relics?"
"Nah, this can only carry one person."
Yang shrugged. "Shame."
"We can still walk, though! The Emerald Forest is gorgeous this time of year!"
"Yeah?"
"Yeah! It's spring, so all the birds will come out if you're quiet, and the trees and bushes will be covered with flowers. It's also good for you! Because of phytoncides!"
Yes, she learned that word from Dusk.
"Dunno what those are, but they sound pretty cool." Yang looked around. "Well, we better get going. Relics to grab. Grimm to beat up."
Matchie smiled. "Lead the way, partner!"
April 8th, Emerald Forest
Umber was stuck in a tree.
You aren't stuck if you can still move, idiot.
She'd seen the old thick trunk and decided to try latching onto it with her mattock and then using the sharp edge to slide down, but the pointed iron had dug too deep into the wood. Now, she was dangling at least a hundred metres high, holding on to the tool for dear life.
Umber didn't like her odds if she fell. Aura had been proven to be her biggest stroke of luck these last months, but she wasn't sure it would stop her thighs from relocating to her chest if she landed on the tough-looking patch of ground below.
You could do that if you want.
"… Shut up," she whined.
Her father did not shut up.
It's probably for the best this way. You tried. You fucked up. Now you know where you stand.
Umber willed herself not to cry. No matter what her father said, she was here to do her best, and even if it wasn't good enough, she wouldn't hold back. She'd promised the headmaster.
She needed to get down.
The ancient tree was mainly a pillar to the power of nature with a bushy crown, so there were no branches near Umber that she could grab hold of— just the thick trunk next to her, covered in rough bark.
She put her foot up against it and tested the mattock again. It was still stuck. No surprise. She needed a better way to free it. Besides, if she pulled it out like that, she'd plummet to the forest floor.
Could she hold onto the tree and pull the mattock out at the same time?
She might be able to grip the trunk with her legs. Then she could pull on the mattock with her back muscles as well.
Hanging from the mattock's handle, Umber swung towards the tree and gripped the bark with her heels. Carefully, slowly, she used her feet to shift her lower body closer to the tree until she could squeeze the trunk between her legs. Her legs barely reached halfway around the trunk, so she wasn't confident in her grip. She pulled herself up slightly, gripping the mattock close to the head, then tugged, using her back to pull harder.
After a moment of pulling, the mattock came loose, but Umber lost her grip, and her precious weapon spun through the air. It slapped into the stony ground with an echoing clang and tumbled over a few times before it came to rest some ways from the tree.
Great job.
Her father's sarcasm stung.
Now she was stuck up a tree without the mattock, clinging to the bark like a helpless baby monkey.
… Could she slowly crawl her way down?
If you start moving, you may live to see sundown.
Father was feeling chatty today.
He was right, though, and Umber began shifting slowly down the tree. She'd loosen the grip of her legs and move each foot down one at a time, then lower her hands, then repeat. Her progress was slow, but after going down a few metres, she settled into a comfortable pattern.
A few minutes in, something flew overhead— probably one of Umber's new peers. It was amazing to think she would learn things alongside people who could fly!
They aren't your peers if you fail.
Umber groaned. "Shut up, I'm focusing."
"Hello?"
Umber nearly lost her grip on the tree. A look around revealed that someone was at the bottom of the trunk. "Hey! Up here!" She called out.
"Where… what? Why are you up there?" It was a girl's voice. Probably one of the other applicants.
"Landed here. I got stuck and dropped my weapon. I've been trying to climb down."
"Climb…? It should be possible for you to slide down."
"A-Are you sure?"
She knows better than you do, moron.
The was silence for a few moments. "… You're probably holding on too tight. Loosen you grip a little, and use your hands to keep yourself close to the tree. Use your legs to slow down if you think you're going too fast."
Umber still wasn't sure she could do it, but hearing an explanation from someone who knew what they were talking about made her feel better. So she did exactly as the girl said, and not too long later, she was safely on the ground. That had been much easier than she thought it would be. And now she didn't have to crane her neck to look at her saviour. She had black hair, a large black bow, yellow eyes, and some purple colouring over her eyes.
Umber had heard of makeup before and thought it was strange, but now she could see the appeal. This girl had decorated her face to be prettier. Perhaps Umber should give it a try?
Changing how you look doesn't change who you are.
"I guess we're partners now," the girl said. "I'm Blake."
"I'm Umber."
Blake looked her over more, then said, "We should move. You said you dropped your weapon?"
"Ah, y-yeah, it's… I'll go get it."
She went and plucked the mattock off the ground where it had landed. The sharp point was still sharp, and the flat edge on the other side didn't look like it took any damage.
Umber stopped checking the thing and turned to her partner, looking at the mattock with a slight frown.
"That's your weapon?" Blake asked.
"Y-Yeah," Umber said, squeezing the mattock's handle.
She probably realises how useless you are now.
Father was right. Umber's mattock wasn't a weapon. It was a farming tool that could only kill grimm because it was pointy. Simple and barely reliable, just like Umber. It was meant for her in that way.
A quick glance at Blake revealed that she was looking at her. At her face? Or at her feathers? The ones so hideous they couldn't even keep their colour.
"I-I'm sorry, I won't talk, or, anything else, if you don't want me to," Umber said.
Blake raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"You know… because of my feathers," Umber said. "I know that means… that… I'm no good."
Blake's eyes widened, and she stared at Umber like she'd killed someone.
Umber had to make sure Blake didn't get angry. "I'll… um… you can be in charge—"
"Stop."
Umber was ready to apologise. To say she was sorry over and over again.
Humans don't like you. You shouldn't waste your time.
Blake looked around the forest for a few seconds, then at the ground. Then she closed her eyes, breathed, and said, "You don't have to worry about that kind of thing from me. I'm sorry I upset you."
… Umber wasn't ready for Blake to say that. What was she supposed to do?
Thankfully, Blake changed the topic. "That thing looks like it's seen a lot of use. Have you had it long?"
The question sat in the air before Umber shook her head. "O-Only a few months. It was a farmer's before it was mine. I've cleared rocks and trees with it… but I-I've used it to kill grimm, too."
Blake smiled enough that her eyes squinted. "If you can fight grimm with it, then you must be pretty good."
That was wrong. "N-No. All I can really do is hit stuff."
"Looking forward to seeing you hit stuff, then," Blake said, her smile growing. It was a pretty smile. Blake was really pretty— prettier than Umber would ever be, anyway.
… Umber didn't feel so uncomfortable anymore.
Don't get used to it.
April 8th, Emerald Forest
Ikorie didn't like the Emerald Forest right now.
It wasn't the damp spring soil; her legs could handle it. She wasn't bothered by insects or spiders, either. The one grimm she'd encountered had been a pushover, too.
It was the silence that bothered her.
Where were all the animals? Ikorie hadn't seen so much as a lizard. Sure, a fly was bothering her, and the spiders were still in their webs, but the bugs were the only animals present, and only the wind sang in the branches.
It meant grimm, but not like the boarbatusk she'd made short work of a few minutes ago. This was the sort of behaviour seen in animals when something bigger was around.
Ursa, beowolves, and boarbatusks didn't get big enough for this sort of thing, even in their mature stage. Ikorie doubted the Beacon faculty would have allowed anything elder-class or higher to remain in the forest during the initiation, and that meant it was either a giant nevermore or a goliath. Based on the environment and the absence of huge footprints, Ikorie was inclined to think it was the former.
She moved quickly, using broad sweeps of her blades to slice through the plants in her path. Eventually, she vaulted over a fallen log into a less dense area.
Oh. A doe. A dead doe
It was leaning against a tree and covered in ants. There were bruises on its back, chest, and abdomen, and it had a broken leg. It didn't look like it died too long ago, either— possibly last night.
It also confirmed the existence of a giant nevermore. This doe was probably its most recent toy.
Ikorie didn't have an offensive option with enough range to deal with flying grimm like that. She needed to find a partner and move on quickly, so she continued northward, leaving the doe to its grisly doom.
The moment Ikorie stepped out from the trees, she could hear hurried footsteps from somewhere. Something was nearby, and it was fast.
"Ahh! Look out!"
The warning wasn't enough, and someone slammed into her with a girlish "eep", toppling her to the ground.
"Are you serious?! Look where you're going!"
"I'm sorry! I was lost in thought!"
"Get off me!"
The other girl let out another nervous squeak as she practically teleported away.
Ikorie leapt back upright and took a moment to pat the debris and suspicious rose petals off of her dress before analysing her company.
The dumbass that had run straight into her at full speed was some short girl in a black and crimson goth outfit. She also wore a bright red hood and a box of the same colour was attached to her back. Dark hair with red tones. Silver eyes.
… Did I really just look this klutz in the eye?
Ikorie did her best to swallow her fury. She might have been stuck with whoever this was for four years, but at least she wasn't Schnee. Ikorie couldn't imagine a worse turn of events than that pretentious bitch being made her partner.
"So, um… hi," the other girl said, biting her lip. "I'm Ruby."
A name she could appreciate. "Ikorie."
"Um, where's your weapon? Did you drop it?"
Ikorie gave Ruby a sour look. "That's the first thing you ask?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
Ikorie blinked. "Seriously?"
"Sorry!" Ruby waved her hands about frantically. "I'm not very good at this sort of thing!"
"Whatever. Why do you want to know about my weapon?"
"Oh, um… it's just that weapons are kind of my thing. This is mine!" Ruby excitedly pulled the red box from her back, and it transformed into a giant scythe. "My baby's name is Crescent Rose! It's a customisable high-impact sniper rifle and a scythe! I mean— that last part's pretty obvious, but it's just part of the description. It can fire just about any variety of bullets from elemental to armour piercing, and the blade can—"
Ikorie made what she thought was the wise decision to zone out and let the girl babble. She acknowledged that the weapon was impressive, though. If Ruby really did forge it herself, then maybe Ikorie shouldn't expect her to be a dead weight.
She turned her attention to the sky. That giant nevermore could dive-bomb them any second, and then they'd have to either get away or deal with it. Ruby had a much better ranged option, but Ikorie didn't fancy the chances of the two of them taking it down.
"— finish it sooner. I was lucky to do that since the headmaster invited me to Beacon two years early and all that, but—"
Ikorie caught the little tidbit and interrupted Ruby's spiel. "You're here two years early?"
"Yeah."
So she wasn't short. She was just young. "How did you manage that?"
"I, um… fought a criminal with Professor Goodwitch and… well, the bad guy got away, but I guess I impressed Ozpin?"
Crime fighting was not something Ikorie would have pinned on this girl, but it sounded like she took being a huntress seriously. The combat part, at least. That was something Ikorie could work with.
"Sooo?" Ruby asked.
Ikorie frowned. "What?"
"Your weapon! I don't see one… unless it's those… um… dangly things?"
"Tassels."
Ruby pursed her lips. "… Are they your weapon?"
"No! Obviously not!" Ikorie did her best to repress her anger. "My weapons are my legs."
Ruby processed the words, then dropped her gaze down. "Your legs?"
"Yeah." Ikorie lifted her right foot, and Bloody Marie unsheathed its deadly edge.
Ruby stared.
Ikorie waited for her to say something.
Ruby continued to stare.
Ikorie quirked an eyebrow. "Hello?"
Ruby jittered a little bit before letting off weird humming noises.
Ikorie really hoped her partner wasn't having a bloody seizure in the middle of a grimm-infested forest. "Are you okay?"
"Oh! My! God! Your weapon is literally a part of you and you dress in the same colours as me and—!" Ruby cut herself off with a gasp. "Do you do the maintenance yourself?!"
"Uh, I…" Ikorie decided to just nod.
"How do you breathe when you're suffocatingonsomuchawesome?!"
"… What?"
"You're so cool!" Ruby squealed, eyes sparkling.
"You… think I'm cool?"
"Yeah! I love your legs— well, the swords inside! It is both of them, right? They're amazing! We're gonna be the best friends ever, I just know it!"
Ugh. "No."
"Huh?" Ruby's smile lessened a bit.
Ikorie should probably get this over with. "I'm here to train to be a huntress. I'm not here to make friends. I don't need friends. Don't let that idea stay in your head. It's not that I don't like you, even if you seem a little overexcitable, but anything we do together will only be for successfully graduating and then getting our licences. After that, we will go our separate ways, and if we ever see each other again, it will be on the job or just in passing."
Ruby wasn't smiling anymore.
"Got it?"
"… But—"
"Do you understand?"
Ruby didn't take her eyes off the ground, but she nodded.
"Good," Ikorie said. "Now, if you don't mind, we should get moving. I'm pretty sure there's a giant nevermore in the forest."
Thankfully, that pulled Ruby out of her funk. "A giant one? Really?"
"Yeah. I don't think we want to dance with that thing if we can avoid it." Ikorie looked around. "Which way was north?"
Ruby stoically pointed in the direction she'd been running in the first place. "That way."
April 8th, Emerald Forest
It hadn't been so long since landing, and Dusk was alone for the time being, so the only feelings his semblance picked up on were his own. He couldn't feel those twice, fortunately. If he focused in a specific direction, he might pick up the presence of a person or a grimm, but for the moment, Dusk was enjoying the solitude and the enamouring presence of nature.
This was a gorgeous clearing. A grove of wildflowers and clover, curt by a variety of shrubbery in full bloom and trees that held their canopy above to shield the delicate beauty below.
Dusk could feel his blood churning with the desire to sow words into verse. Was it a malicious blessing or a benevolent curse? He needed to sing, and if he let it out, the grimm would gather upon him…
But would that be so bad?
I must not, but I must. A paradox of will.
Dusk ran his eyes through the foliage. His semblance relayed its wisdom to him— the grimm nearby numbered low.
So, taking a deep breath through his nose, he let his voice echo through the forest.
"Emerald is the colour of this world.
I am awed by nature's majesty,
This lush vista where Remnant's laws are furled,
Thus, offer myself to its fantasy."
A gust brought the trees to shiver before they went still. The forest approved.
"Yet not all is well; my heart is now roiled.
Your dark forms speak to me— you cannot hide!
Sin is present in this green heaven spoiled.
'Tis gnawed and prowled by the wretched black tide!"
The insult was heard. Sinister howls and bloodthirsty shrieks rang out from the thicket.
"Feeble things made incensed and furious
By the raw balladry on my breath.
Your so-called might is naught but piteous!
To the soulless grimm, thy name is death!"
Phonetic Nib came loose of its sheathe. The katar glinted in the leaf-filtered sunbeams, blessed by the woody giants.
"Violence shall punctuate this decree!
Bring your futile rage to bear upon me!"
The nevermores were first to enter the grove. They counted six— four small ones leading the flock and two larger ones following close behind— their spite locked onto Dusk. The first three fell to a single swipe each. Their dark ichor painted the flowers before evaporating.
The fourth was snatched out of the air as Dusk's free hand closed around its neck. "You didn't think that would work, did you?" He asked.
The livid thing screamed at him in lieu of a proper answer, so when the first of the bigger nevermore came close with its beak wide open, he flung it into the open maw and stepped out of the way, letting the grimm land painfully behind him as it gagged on its ally.
The last nevermore decided to hurl feathers instead.
Dusk batted them aside effortlessly as a pair of boarbatusk bounded out of the treeline into the grove and started charging towards him.
With a quick press of his thumb, Phonetic Nib clicked. A seam down the middle of the blade opened, and the two halves of the blade moved aside to reveal the innards of the weapon: a pair of thin barrels and a larger slit between them. Alongside the slit, on the palm-facing side, was a small screen displaying the weapon's battery and current configuration.
Dusk pointed the weapon at the airborne nevermore, and it warbled as it spat hard-light projectiles. They struck true, and the nevermore was brought down to the ground, not dead, but wounded.
Phonetic Nib was unique in that regard. It fired no bullets— only hard light. Occasionally, that hard light would be tinged by other types of dust, and Dusk would also rend his foes with the elements.
A flick of Dusk's pinkie and the display read "ICE".
An ursa made itself known as it charged into the grove.
Once again, Phonetic Nib warbled, and hard light shot forth, but this time, the spray was a frigid blue and aimed at the ground ahead of the boarbatusks. The hard light beads remained glowing amongst the flowers, and once the boarbatusks reached them, Dusk flicked his free hand towards them, and jagged frozen spines erupted from the soil. Both boarbatusks were impaled through their guts and died with rasped squeals.
Dusk flicked his pinkie again, and Phonetic Nib's display changed to "DEFAULT" before he fired on the nevermore. The hard light tore holes in its neck and eye sockets this time, putting it down for good.
The ursa was approaching.
Dusk's pointer finger moved, and this time, the slit between the two barrels lit up, and a hard-light blade was brought into existence.
Now wielding a blade thrice as long, Dusk stepped out of the ursa's reach and swiped its shoulder with the hard light edge. The limb didn't come free, but the grimm stumbled when it couldn't use it to support its weight. Dusk also took advantage of its lousy footing to carve another gash into the other shoulder.
The ursa fell forward, burying its nose in flowers. At least it had the pleasure of a sweet scent to know before Dusk pointed the tip of the hard light blade at its forehead and pulled the trigger.
The hard-light blade shot from the weapon and impaled the ursa's skull to the ground. Both the corpse and the spent blade began to fizzle out of existence.
Dusk turned to the suffocating nevermore on the ground behind him. Despite the smaller one tearing its throat apart in a vain effort for freedom, the bigger grimm had done its best to drag itself over to him. Another hard-light edge was born, and Dusk decapitated it, simultaneously slicing through the smaller one inside.
There was one more left.
A massive king taijitu crushed the flowers in its path as it slithered towards Dusk. Once it was close enough, the dark serpentine head rose high, levelling its deadly gaze upon its target.
Fingers had already moved, and Phonetic Nib created a new hard-light blade. This one was a vivid green. Air swirled gently around it as Dusk pointed it at the menace, waiting for it to lunge and open its mouth so he could blow a hole in its head.
The grimm stared at the luminous edge.
Anticipation.
Dusk hadn't been expecting that. Did it see me execute the ursa? His thoughts turned to worry as he noticed the many scars and chips in the grimm's flesh and plates. It's faced huntsmen before.
In Dusk's moment of awkward patience, the second head curled around on Dusk's right, and now he had two angry sets of fangs to fight.
It's smart!
The white head lunged.
Dusk was ready for it and rolled to the right, putting the white head between himself and the black one. He allowed the green blade to fade and instead fired bullets into one of the white head's eyes.
The hard light struck true but bounced off the brille. All Dusk had done was disrupt its vision in one eye, which didn't stop it from whipping its head towards him.
The bony plate on its snout slammed into him, and dark purple surrounded him briefly as he careened towards the grove's edge.
Dusk twisted in the air and landed on his feet, sliding over the flowers before he was caught in one of the large blooming shrubs surrounding the grove.
He might have landed safely, but the hit left him lightheaded.
The flowers around him were covered in little blooms with yellow beads for centres and thin white spokes for petals. In his daze, he recalled that they were a plant called frost aster, native to the low slopes of Sanus' northern ranges. They were also known as heath aster.
Or myrten aster.
The king taijitu hadn't wasted time. It was already descending upon him, with its jaw wide open to swallow him whole. Dusk could sense it, even as his head rang and his vision refused to focus.
Dusk winced as something bright manifested in front of him with a mysterious hum, and the king taijitu was violently repelled. His semblance told him that someone stepped into the clearing beside him. He didn't need to look to know they were there, so he didn't bother.
"Need a hand?" a girl's voice said.
Dusk grunted as he stood and shook off his stupor. "Yeah."
"I'll take the white one, then."
Dusk picked up his feet and circled left. His backup went right.
The king taijitu didn't dare take its eye off one of them, so a single head tracked each of them.
Dusk's fingers moved, and Phonetic Nib displayed "FIRE" before unleashing red hard light beads that burst into burning tongues on impact.
The fiend reeled from the heat and glared at him, likely opting to wait for its other half to deal with its opponent.
Dusk could hear the clang of steel and see white blurs in his peripherals as his counterpart deflected the other head's fangs and struck it hard enough that its neck bent awkwardly.
Not willing to pass up the chance, Dusk made Phonetic Nib's display show "LIGHTNING" and fired on the black head again. The entire thing twitched as the electricity wracked its body.
The damage was superficial, though. The black head didn't lose its focus and try to bite him, either.
Dusk continued to back away from the grimm, and as he neared the shrubs around the edge, it stopped coming after him. The king taijitu's body wasn't long enough to reach both sides of the grove! His ally must have been backpedalling as well.
Impatience.
"It's getting impatient!" Dusk called out.
"My sword can't cut it!" his ally shouted from the other side of the grove.
"I can't pierce its scales, either, and it's too smart to open its mouth for me!"
"Any ideas?"
"I have stronger projectiles I haven't tried, but I don't know if they'll be enough!"
"I might be able to accelerate them with my semblance!"
"Does it work on hard light?!"
"I don't know! Let's find out!"
"White head first! I'll aim for the eyes!"
"Okay!"
The king taijitu finally realised it wasn't a good idea to let them speak, and the black head retreated from Dusk as the white one no doubt continued to pressure the girl.
Dusk ran after it, knowing the black head could lunge for him at any moment.
It didn't take long, and it lunged at him in an attempt to bash him with its snout, still refusing to open its mouth.
Dusk leapt up before it struck and landed on its head, then slammed the edge of Phonetic Nib into its eye. The king taijitu's brille was still too thick to pierce, but it flinched from the impact, and Dusk used the chance to drop behind it and sprint for the other side of the grove.
Anger.
Dusk's semblance told him that the black head was pursuing him, unwilling to accept his escape.
Dusk formed a blade of light and wind on his katar. "On my mark!"
His semblance told him the girl's focus shifted to him as she caught his words, and the absence of any confusion indicated that she understood.
The white head also heard him, and it turned to pincer him between itself and its counterpart. Dusk was too fast for it, though. He intercepted it mid-movement to vault on top of it.
It didn't even have time to be confused, as within a second, Dusk took to the air again in a display of practised acrobatics. Once he reached the height of his leap, he whipped his weapon around and aimed it straight at the white head's right eye.
"Mark!" he signalled.
Phonetic Nib's trigger clicked, and an odd white ring appeared at the blade's tip before the entire thing vanished in an ear-piercing scream.
Dusk didn't even know if he'd hit the eye, but grimm viscera covered swathes of the grove when the king taijitu's white head exploded.
"Oh my god!" the girl cried out in surprise.
The black head released a pained hiss as its outrage peaked.
Dusk reconfigured Phonetic Nib to display "FIRE" and said, "Don't give it time to think!"
The girl managed to refocus. "R-Right!"
Hard light sailed over the grove to the remaining head, pelting it in fiery plumes a second time. Dusk's ally threw her own hard light projectiles into the mix.
Under the ceaseless bombardment, the king taijitu's fury built with every impact. Bloodlust pulsed from it as it tore its way over the flowers.
Intent screamed in Dusk's mind as it coiled up and sprang towards them. Its dark jaw unhinged in a frighteningly accurate recreation of its normal reptilian counterparts. The sight would have terrified even grown men.
But Dusk simply looked into the gaping maw with a sense of accomplishment.
He brought the katar up and made a green blade.
Shock. The king taijitu caught on, but not fast enough.
Dusk pulled the trigger, and once again, he noted a strange white ring near the tip of his blade. Phonetic Nib released the viridescent edge, and it vanished into a whistle of sliced air.
Everything above the black head's lower jaw disappeared. Stray leaves and petals of every colour flew from the ground, thrown into chaos by the sudden gale. Residual particles of hard light trailed in the projectile's wake, mingling with the sunbeams that spilled through the new opening in the forest roof.
The grimm's corpse began dismantling itself before it even hit the ground before them.
Dusk pressed his thumb twice onto the side of Phonetic Nib's handle, and it sealed itself back up so he could stow it in its sheath. There were no more grimm nearby, and he felt better for it. He let out a breath and chuckled nervously. "Hey, thanks for the… save…"
Dusk's mind stalled.
Standing there, framed by the beauty of the wildflower grove, shifting sunbeams, and swirling floral debris, as her hair, jacket, and skirt rippled in the gentle breeze, with lips slightly parted in awe as she stared up at the scene they'd wrought together, was Weiss Schnee.
It was like an image from a romantic picture book.
But from the moment he recognised her, Dusk was overwhelmed by dread.
And, when she looked over to him— locked eyes with him and bound the two of them together— Dusk knew she saw a sickly red seized in inky black, all curtained by deathly pallor.
Dusk remembered that sometime before yesterday, he had promised Matchie that he would finally stop wearing those uncomfortable undershirts and find the confidence to reveal what was hidden from the world.
He didn't think he could keep it anymore.
A/N
The story continues!
Matchie kicks things off with a Yang!
Umber and Blake look like they'll get along.
Poor Ruby got stuck with Ikorie, though. That's not a very happy pair.
Dusk obviously isn't very happy with Weiss, either. I wonder what's bothering him?
Anyway, it's good to come back to this story and refresh my feel for the characters.
Tell me what you guys think of the new cover art. Bewitching Match and Phonetic Nib, too.
No one has yet determined the fairy tale allusions of Dusk and Umber. They'll become more evident as I update more, but I'd still like to see if people can guess them before I reveal them.
The girls' flower references are on the cover, as well as a hint to Dusk's allusion. If you need a better look at it, it's on my Twitter (or "X" as it goes by now). I'm also GreenEyesOrigamiDragon over there. "greenpaperydoom" is the username.
Also… Rooster Teeth is getting canned. This is a sad state of affairs for RWBY fans, but hopefully, the FNDM will stay together.
I know I'm not going anywhere.
Peace!
- GEOD