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Fighting Rose, Bloom Again!

Chapter 4

Seekers

Ruby grunted as she slammed the hammer down, beating the last piece of metal into shape and inspecting it after a moment. She nodded, satisfied as she placed it into the vat of oil to let it cool off.

"Some strange metal you're workin' with," The local blacksmith noted, "Dunno if my eyes're playin' tricks on me but I swear it eats the sparks that fly off whenever you hit it."

"It's not your eyes," Ruby confirmed, "Got it off a monster with similar abilities, and I figured I could use its weapon, maybe turn it into something better."

"Mm," The blacksmith grunted. "S'long as you know what yer' doin'."

She nodded as the blacksmith left her to her own devices. She took the rest of the other completed parts out along with the recently-cooled final piece, checking each of them and ensuring that they were in working order. Once she was satisfied, she quickly began to assemble her new weapons, the dark metal appearing to absorb the light in the room. She smiled softly, humming a tune as she fell into a familiar rhythm. It wasn't long before she was done, looking at her handiwork on the table: a familiar set of gauntlets and greaves, though sleeker and lighter than its previous incarnation.

Lightbeast reforged

Beowulf Rex

She slipped them on, flexing and clenching her fully-gloved fists, enjoying the feel of the soft padding within and the gentle *clink* of her metal-scaled fingers. She hummed as she tested the range of motion of her fingers and wrists, clenching her fists and finding no discomfort. Her greaves were the same, its flexibility and dexterity increased for her ankles without a loss of support or protection. She got into her usual stance and threw a few flicker-jabs, her right hand whipping through the air in a blur before a left roundhouse kick lashed out. The silver-capped knuckles gleamed like eyes while her fingertips, the talons and the edge of sharpened shins on her greaves left silver streaks through the air with each pass.

She stopped, tapping the taloned toes of her boots into the floor, nodding with a smirk. Even though they looked much less bulky and more form-fitting than her previous set, they were actually heavier than their predecessors. If she'd been the same Ruby from a month ago, she'd probably still have a little trouble using them even with aura's strengthening properties. But after having constantly abused her body without aura and using the instant-healing from her Domain Expansion, she was practically exploiting rapid jumps in strength that would've only been possible with Jaune around.

'Feels good,' She hummed, sharply twisting her wrist and retracting them into thick bracelets and anklets, the silver claws and talons jutting from them like decorative teeth. 'Wish I didn't have to use my eyes to purify the metal on the knuckles and tips though.'

She could hear F##### snicker in her head and clenched her teeth, ignoring his typical goading. Every use of her eyes, no matter how small, brought him a step closer to controlling her body, and she couldn't afford to let her emotions run wild. There was a sound from outside that made her head snap up, a distinct crash of metal. Faint, but unusual. She wished that she could just use her aura and spread her awareness out, but it seemed that her unenhanced senses were starting to pick up the slack. There was another crash, louder this time, and a cry of pain cut short.

She practically flew out of the smithy's nearest window, rolling and springing to her feet the moment she hit the ground to sprint towards the source of the noise. Thankfully it was only a few dozen meters away, the smithy being close to the town's boarders. She saw a group of people in ragged armour attacking the town militia, leaping over the walls and killing the half-trained guards with ease as civilians closest to the gate ran. She felt her mouth twist into a snarl, her blood boiling and her skin beginning to itch, the tell-tale signs of a psychic and demonic presences, and she could see why from a glance.

The attacking bandits made use of unnatural weaponry, some wielding curved swords that seemed to eternally drip with fragrant perfumes, others wielding barbed whips and inappropriately-shaped guns. Some of them weren't entirely human anymore, supernatural mutations sprouting across their bodies in the forms of horns, eyes, mouths or even entirely new fleshy appendages. What caught Ruby's eye was their insignia: a Raven's feather pierced by a purple ring.

'More Branwen defectors,' She thought with a savage grin, 'Even better leads.'

She dashed into the battle without a second thought, dropkicking a laughing man in the chest so hard that his ribcage imploded, his body crumpling under the impact as it smashed into the wall. The bandits' eyes all turned to her, but she never stopped moving. She shot towards a bandit trying to open the gates, quickly realizing that these demon-tainted ones in front of her were the elite shock-troops, the rest likely regular humans.

'Seems to be a Slaanesh-corrupted branch of the Branwen clan too,' She realized, noting the garish mix of colours on their outfits.

The bandit stopped trying to open the gate, her jaw unhinging and unleashing an umbrella of lashing, barbed tendrils that sliced the ground up, Ruby in its sights next as they fanned around her in an attempt to swallow her whole. Ruby grunted as she spun, Beowulf's silver talons cutting clean through the tendrils in a single kick. The woman screamed in pain and pleasure as her tongues were severed, her cry silenced as Ruby closed the distance and stabbed her fingers through her neck, snarling as she ripped her hand out and decapitated the bandit. She felt something resonate within her gauntlets and greaves, a faint, low hum as the woman's mutations were forcibly ripped away from her in the form of an inky stain on reality, absorbed into Beowulf itself. Ruby blinked in surprise at the odd reaction, the momentary lapse in attention almost costing her as she heard the click of a gun's hammer.

She yanked her head out of the way, a bullet grazing her ear and tearing a chunk out of its upper curve. She didn't flinch or cry out, silently leaping towards the gunman until three of them blocked her path, weapons raised as the others cut any path of retreat off from behind. She found that she was always slightly surprised by Slaanesh cultist's tactical soundness in spite of their insanity, but warp-changed or not, they wouldn't stand a chance against her even as handicapped as she currently was. The first swung his blade at her neck with excellent technique, Ruby's hand flicking up and gently redirecting the blade away from her before violently reversing the momentum, tearing his arm off at the elbow and leaping up to roundhouse kick his head clean off. The head smacked the second bandit who tried to flank and stab her with blade-like fingernails, the blood from the decapitated head getting into their eyes and blinding them for a moment. A moment was all Ruby needed, flipping towards them and axing her heel into their face, smashing like a ripe fruit.

She sprung off the body as the third bandit tried to pierce her kidney with a barbed spear, Ruby's mind going a little woozy as she caught a whiff of the liquid coating the weapon: it was the sweetest, finest wine she'd ever smelled in her life. Despite having never drank alcohol in her life, her throat suddenly felt parched, drawn to the taste and smell of the –

Her feet hit the wall she'd leapt towards and she snapped back into the fight, blasting off towards the spear-user as bullets rained down on the wall she was just perched on. She tucked and flipped, the spear barely missing her thigh as she dove in with a flying side-kick into the spear-wielder's head, driving and smashing his head into the ground with the wet *CRUNCH* of bone and brain matter.

Each kill sent inky shadows into the air before they were sucked into Beowulf, the humming growing stronger from the gauntlets and greaves as its silvered parts shone brightly. Surrounded on all sides and with the gunman to her back, she simply acted based on instinct. She hissed sharply as she spun on the spot, her heel flashing out in a hook-kick as the taloned heel of Beowulf unleashed a circle of silver light, passing through the surrounding bandits and splitting them in half at the waist. With nobody left, Ruby took a moment to observe her weapons, watching as the silver glow and ringing hum died out.

'Darkness is drawn to darkness,' F##### mused, 'And the light will rise up to rage against it.'

"Neat," She smirked as she clenched her fists. 'I don't even need to use aura to empower them, it naturally absorbs the energies of beings who're my enemies in the first place, and I can unleash power similar to my eyes without actually having to use them? I really hit the Jackpot with these.'

She looked over her shoulder and saw some of the townspeople peeking out from their hiding spots. All seemed to be quiet, but…

'Slaanesh cultists under a competent leader can make use of sound, well-timed tactics. If there are shock-troops here, then…'

"STAY IN YOUR HOMES AND LOCK EVERYTHING UP!" She shouted, "YOU'RE STILL UNDER ATTACK!"

She was already sprinting towards the other end of the town, watching in horror as the gates were being opened for a large caravan of figures who at first glance appeared to be in bad shape, their travelling-cloaks worn and ragged, skin smeared with grime. Ruby could feel the falsity of their facades.

"CLOSE THE GATE!" She screamed.

She was late, but not too late. A quarter of them had made it in, twelve in all, but the guards were quick to slam the gate shut behind them at Ruby's cry. Almost all twelve had stiffened before throwing off their cloaks, the grime and wretched appearances suddenly fading away from them as if by a trick of light to reveal their garishly coloured clothes and weaponry. Aside from the odd illusions however, none of them seemed to be anything beyond regular humans, a few of them with aura of their own. It was the figure in the very back that worried her the most, keeping his cloak on but doing nothing to hide his seven-foot tall frame. She prepared to launch herself towards the mass of cultists before the man spoke up.

"Hold."

The man stepped forward and threw off his cloak, the cloth going from dirty brown to royal purple and revealing a figure that was perfectly suited towards combat. Deep olive skin rippled with well-shaped muscle on his bare chest, a chiselled face topped with short, dark violet hair, muscular forearms armoured in white leather bracers. A red sash was tied around the waist of his purple pants, dark violet combat-boots and white-steel kneepads finishing off his attire. The cultists were quick to get out of his way as he strode forward, Ruby silently swallowing to wet her drying throat. There wasn't a single sign of corruption on or around him, yet Ruby could just feel that he was levels above even the mutated cultists she'd just put down.

"And you are?" She prompted, trying to get a read on him.

"Soria, once a Lieutenant of the Branwen Clan," He greeted, almost formally. "Now I take what I want and do what I please."

"Any reason in particular why you're here?" Ruby asked, keeping her limbs relaxed and her core tight.

"Supplies, sacrifices, slaves, the usual," He shrugged, "Soon I'll have enough manpower to take over Raven's position as Head of the clan. Besides, Slaanesh is a hungry goddess and I'm not one to leave my benefactor starving - "

Ruby launched herself at him, spinning like a top and unleashing a roundhouse kick at his neck in an attempt to decapitate him on the spot.

"Gento Koken!"

His hands shot up and completely reversed the momentum of the blow, sending Ruby flying back as her knee stung with pain. She landed on her feet, hiding the injury easily enough, but now she was on a time-limit. The longer the fight dragged on, the worse her injury would get, and the more likely she would need to draw on her aura to fix the issue.

"Right into it then?" Soria chuckled, shrugging his cape off and setting himself in a simple stance. "I don't mind quick starts either way."

He began to wave his arms in a circular motion, lines of purple aura drawn in the air.

'Screw waiting.'

She changed tactics, dashing towards the closest cultist before anyone could react and stabbing her fingers up through his jaw and into his brain. Even Soria was taken aback by Ruby's sudden brutality, the latter grunting as she tore her hand out and began to tear her way through the other stunned cultists. She chopped one's hand of as they hastily tried to raise their blade and strike, grabbing and tearing her throat out before ducking under the thrust of a spear aimed for the back of her head. She spun and swept the attacker of their feet, stabbing her fingers through the back of their neck as they fell and pulverising their spine.

"Hey now, that's not-!" Soria started, more annoyed rather than outraged at Ruby killing his men.

Ruby punched both her open hands into he ground as the other cultists began to charge at her, grunting as she heaved and yanked up. A wall of dirt was thrown into the air, filling their eyes and open mouths before they could close in on her. Some, even while coughing and blinded, took wild swings at where they thought she still stood, one of them whooping as they felt their blade bite into flesh.

"I got her, I got - !"

"Y-you got me you idiot!" Their comrade gurgled, the former's blade lodged into their heart.

"Oh."

He didn't get the chance to apologize as a roundhouse kick emerged from the dust and pulverized his head. She was moving through the dust and killing them as fast as she could, weaving under a slashing blade, disarming them and decapitating the wild attacker. She shot her heel into the knee of another blinded cultist, snapping it in half and punching a hole up through their stomach and into their heart. She killed five more before Soria had evidently had enough.

"Ha no Rin!"

He slapped his palm down into the ground, dispersing the dust-cloud in a wave of purple. He looked up in time to see two taloned heels engulfing his vision, Ruby's dropkick smashing into his eye and jaw hard enough to send him flying through the air head over heel, messily tumbling across the ground. Ruby had shot off the ground and bounced off the side of a house wall to where he was going to be, roundhouse kicking him straight in the spine in an attempt to snap it on the spot. She flinched in surprise as he simply bent even further backwards, his eyes alight with pain and pleasure in equal measure as his fingertips pulsed with aura.

"Gento Ryurin Kozan!"

He slashed his fingers at her from is impossibly uncomfortable position, blades of purple aura lashing out to cut Ruby to ribbons. She ducked and leaned so far back that her knees and back almost touched the ground, gritting her teeth and she backflipped away from him twisting around and slamming his palm into the floor where she once stood. She went low as soon as her feet touched the floor and aimed a sweeping hook kick at his head, only for him to smash it aside and pounce on her, his glowing hand aiming for her throat. His fingers tore through the dirt as she rolled out of the way, springing onto her feet and readying herself to charge right back at him, only to find him almost nose-to-nose with her.

His fingers clawed through the air and she weaved under, hammering her left elbow into his chest a right hook into his ribs. He grunted in surprise and pain, forcing her back with another aura-wreathed punch that *CLANGED* off her raised gauntlets, the two facing each other in a stalemate. His eyes narrowed as he looked closer at her, before a slow smile stretched across his face.

"…you're Ruby Rose."

Ruby didn't respond, though she was glad that the people observing the fight from a safe distance couldn't hear him.

"And here everyone had thought you'd died fighting against our God," He chuckled, "What are you doing in Mistral of all places?"

Again, she remained silent, relaxing her body and listening intently to the beating of her heart.

"Forget the chaff here," He grinned, "If I take your head, I'll be rewarded beyond measure!"

She wasn't paying attention to his words anymore, her mouth falling open with a gentle *pop* as the beat of her heart thudded through her ears. Breathe in. Breathe out. Ignore the pain in your knee. Relax.

"And you can't even use your aura?" He laughed, a glowing hand making a motion of wrapping something around his arm, purple rings of aura pulsing around it, "This is going to be easy! HA NO RIN!"

He drew his arm back and stepped in, throwing an overhand blow that would easily tear her head clean off.

"Exploding Heart: Release FIST!"

Ruby's fingers shot forward, ripping through Soria's hand and embedding knuckle-deep into the meat of his wrist. The rings of aura shattered and his entire forearm exploded in a shower of gore as silver petals blasted out from the gore. His eyes bulged and he staggered backwards, wildly slashing with his fingers and scoring a cut across Ruby's collarbone. He cackled and threw another aura-ringed hand at her, only for her to step off to the side and catch his arm in a chokehold.

"RELEASE FIST!"

Her left-straight blasted into his chest, the explosive shockwave of her heartbeat combined with the innate power of her gauntlets passing through his aura and rupturing all of his organs in a single blow. His aura tried and failed to mend the catastrophic internal damage, only to fizzle out and die. He vomited blood, his body going limp as he fell to his knees, Ruby stepping back and gasping for air as she clutched her chest.

'I did it, twice!' She congratulated herself, 'Hurts like hell without aura, but that means my heart and blood vessels are strong enough on their own to pull it off. Probably not as effective without my weapons, but beggars can't be choosers.'

Steadying her breathing, she stumbled over to Soria, the dying man barely able to lift his head as Ruby stood over him.

"How many people are directly under Raven's command?" She asked. "What are her numbers in the main Branwen encampment?"

"S-sixty nine and four-twenty," He half-gurgled, half giggled.

She wanted to kill him on the spot, but she knew that she needed as much info out of him as possible, something she knew she wasn't going to get much of. However…

"…You have a map to your campsite, don't you?"

He stiffened, the grin wiped off his face as she quickly began to search through his clothing. He weakly tried to push her away, only for Ruby to smash a left hook into his jaw, sending teeth and shattered bone flying before she casually went back to looking through his belongings. When her hands touched what felt like a scroll, she quickly checked his reaction as she grabbed it. He struggled just a little harder, and she knew she had what she was looking for.

"I don't need you anymore," She said bluntly before tearing out his throat.

}-Menagerie-{

Blake wasn't sure what she expected when the ship finally touched down, her palms sweaty on the handles of Yang's wheelchair, the blonde's face and body covered by a cloak. Even ignoring the global chaos (a task that required incredible effort), it had been over a year since she'd last contacted her parents. What would they think of her? Would they hate her? Would they think of her as a monster because of her time in the White Fang? What about the fact that she was literally part monster now?

All those thoughts flew out the window when the doors to the cruise opened and she was greeted with the bustling chaos of Menagerie amidst the poor weather, rain falling constantly from the grey skies. The island had always been a little cramped, but now the streets were writhing with people going back and forth in a near-constant state of hurried panic, supplies and rations delivered and received in a never-ending flow. Worse was that though the streets and pathways were full of people, there didn't seem to be as many people around as Blake remembered.

"Are those…?" Sun muttered, his eyes blown wide within the cloak hiding his face. Blake tracked his gaze and she almost sputtered in shock. Running among them bearing weapons still smouldering from when they were freshly cooled, were a handful of Faunus who looked completely transformed into demonic states. Everyone gave them a wide berth as they ran through the crowd, but nobody seemed panicked or even slightly bothered by their appearance.

"Devil Trigger!" Blake gasped, recognising the chaotic power roiling from their transformed states. Despite the wildness of their power, it was clear that they were in total control of their transfigurations, not lashing out insanely like the ones she'd encountered at Beacon. Still more shocking was their garb – the signature black, white and golds of Menagerie's own militia incorporated as part of their very bodies.

"Something's wrong," She muttered tensely. The fact that there were other Faunus openly showing their newfound demonic powers in a controlled manner by all means should have been a good thing, but the busy streets, stream of supplies and weapons made it clear that something close to a war was going on.

"Everyone looks so worn out…" Sun said as they walked along the docks. Tents and shelters were everywhere, others outright sleeping in the open. Gruesome injuries were a common sight, some of them being treated in the open air. Bodies were placed in rows wherever they could be accommodated too. Blake silently increased her pace, making sure to keep a tight grip on Yang's wheelchair and trying not to jostle her as much as her heart thudded painfully in her chest with each passing view of the unfolding suffering. It was when she reached the road that led to her house that she got an idea of what was happening. Hanging over the wasteland and the apparent source of the weather was a swirling vortex of grey clouds, toxic-blue lightning lashing out soundlessly onto the desert below… or was it the other way around?

Even worse was the destruction wrought through the tropical areas of Menagerie that once housed so many homes. Blake and Sun could see the numerous Grimm in the distance throwing themselves against the hastily-constructed walls and the forms of Devil Trigger-Militia leaping through them with kill after kill. Blake bit her lip at how ravaged her home had become, Sun putting a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"We can help them soon," He promised, "But not without understanding our abilities first."

Blake nodded silently and walked down the street, Sun finally noticing the house they were walking to as his brows went up.

"This is where you live?"

It was noticeably bigger and more well-crafted than the other houses, though it was nothing outright ostentatious, sandwiched between the other smaller houses without managing to overshadow them.

"Never really sat right with me or my parents," She said wryly. "Other people not as well-off as us and whatnot, but the people of Menagerie wanted to honour my father's efforts for Faunus Civil Rights."

"Then he earned it," Sun shrugged, "Don't think too hard on it."

"Yeah," Blake sighed, making the move to step forward and knock on the doors. She stopped.

"…What's up?" Sun asked.

"It's… been a while since I've spoken to my parents," She admitted.

"With everything going on, I'm sure they don't blame you," He shrugged off.

"…I haven't spoken to them in over two years."

"Oh." He said, his voice small. "…Well you're here now, and you have someone who needs your help."

Blake looked at the sleeping form of Yang and clenched her teeth. Sun was right. Yang needed her help and she'd be damned if she let her own issues stop her friend from getting the help she needed. She steeled her nerves and raised her hand, about to knock –

The door suddenly opened and voices spilled through.

"Yes ma'am, we'll get to repairing the walls as soon as the horde is cleared," Said a hulking Faunus with armadillo face-plating as he stepped out the door, accidentally bumping his shin into Yang's wheelchair. "Oh, sorry miss…"

He took one look at her, squinted before his eyes went as wide as dinner-plates. Blake sheepishly waved.

"What's wrong?" A familiar female voice said.

"…Ma'am, you're going to want to see this."

Blake could hear rapidly approaching footfalls and the gentle ring of a blade being drawn. She and Sun both tensed, but where Sun had his fists clenched ready for a fight, Blake was fiddling with her fingers nervously. A woman a little shorter than Blake stepped into view, her features almost the same as Blake's save for darker skin, larger eyes and bigger feline ears atop her head of short black hair. In her hand was a simple short katana, hiltless and unremarkable. The fingers gripping the weapon almost went slack as the woman's eyes widened before she quickly sheathed it and practically tackled Blake with a bear-hug.

"Blake!" Kali Belladonna gasped, tears of relief springing to her eyes.

"H-hi mom," Blake croaked, surprised at her own tears before she hugged her mother back tightly.

Sun was content to hold Yang's wheelchair in place and give the mother and daughter their space, though he didn't have to wait long. When Kali disentangled herself from the embrace, she turned to him, recognition in her eyes. He was the nervous one now. People didn't exactly like him for ripping open a giant hole in reality that caused the death of an entire kingdom. He couldn't blame them; he didn't like himself for it either. To his shock though, Kali smiled and formally bowed.

"Prince Broly," She greeted with an outstretched hand, "Welcome to Menagerie."

"M-Ma'am," He bowed back and took her hand, gently kissing her knuckles in respect before undoing the cowl around his mouth to fully reveal his face to her. "How did you-?"

"You have Son Goku's eyes," She chuckled, "And King Vegeta's jawline too. Besides, you made yourself known during the Festival."

"I guess I did," He agreed sheepishly.

Kali turned her attention to Yang.

"Your partner, right?" Kali asked. Blake silently nodded. Kali gently brushed her fingers across the sleeping Yang's cheek before straightening and beckoning them to come inside. It was then that Blake began to have an insidious fear. Why was her mother the one handing out orders to the Menagerian Milita, a role that her father normally took up? Why hadn't she called for him.

"Mom, where's…?" Blake started, her throat constricting as the doors closed and her mother's shoulders slumped.

"…We have a lot to talk about."

...TWBY Continued...

Just a heads up, got a new job! Bad news is that means chapters are most likely gonna be sparse throughout summer, so I do apologise for that. Make no mistake though, I'm far from done, so be sure to keep an eye out for new chapters! For now, peace out and love y'all!