RWBY belongs to Viz Media.
Little Nightmares belongs to Bandai Namco.
Chapter 12: Comradery in Contrast
The skies above Vale were clear and bright, there was not a cloud to be seen. Yet, the air was not stagnant as a gentle breeze flowed across the cityscape, refreshing all who walked its streets.
For Ruby who walked alone on this day, it was a welcome feeling given her poor mood when the sun had risen. The rest of Team RWBy had tried to cheer her up, even going so far as to try and cook a full course breakfast for her.
Yang had likely told them that her foul moods were something that led to property damage in the past. Those incidents at school were entirely contextual to their specific situations and were not just because she was gloomy. If that were the case, then all of Beacon would be up in flames by now. Weiss' Maiden powers had given Ruby enough reason to want to rip the place to pieces more than once.
Said gloominess of her demeanor was due to her recent string of nightmares. Nothing she would ever say out loud. If the professors knew then they would dial up her entire phonebook of therapists and psychologists.
And that was the least of her concerns. As she learned more about who she was then, the more ashamed she became. The past was something that she planned on taking to the grave. No one was allowed to know.
Not even Yang.
The thought of keeping her sister in the dark had plagued Ruby's mind for a long time. In the beginning when she had gotten her voice back at age ten, she had planned on telling them, but over time that changed. When she gave it some real thought, she came to the conclusion that it would be better to let the past die.
And for a time it did. She had genuinely started to forget that horrid time she had spent in that Other Place. She had forgotten the monster she had become and just started being Ruby again. Granted she was warped and permanently altered by what she had experienced, but it was still an improvement.
It was only recently, as in a few months ago, that she had began to remember what had happened. Then came the return of her Shadow, who had grown to match her. Then came Weiss' powers and that had only made her situation all the worse.
Pacing gingerly through the streets of Vale, she glanced up at the sky and wondered why it had come to this.
Why had her past come back to haunt her? And she was not referring to her Shadow.
"Sure, you weren't."
Ruby rolled her eyes as she navigated the streets. She had left Beacon in the mid-morning and planned on using her day off to visit Dust Till Dawn. She had missed the last two issues of Mechashift and she had to get the third before she fell too far behind.
Not to mention, it gave her an excuse to get away from Weiss and Nora.
Ruby did not want to see Nora after the nightmare she had had the previous night. Given how close she had come to snuffing out the spark of life in the valkyrie, seeing her so soon would put the normally stolid red reaper on edge.
As for Weiss, it was obvious. Ruby just wanted to get the heck away from those damnable Maiden powers that made the hole in her soul ache.
This was a chance to just take a break and finally put her thoughts in order with no distractions from her team or the pain.
It was not hard to do now that she had attained a level of peace. Navigating the streams of pedestrians was no challenge for her as she made her way to the place where all this nonsense started. At where it started in her mind.
The dust shop in question was within view, her sharp eyes picking out the light up sign from a block away.
The sight of her goal had put a slight spring in her step, and she moved along with an increased vigor. That was until she passed by an alleyway where she heard someone shouting angrily.
"For the last time, girlie! Who's your pops?!"
Ruby stopped at the edge of the alley wall and peaked over. Ignoring the people who were walking at an accelerated pace upon catching sight of what was going on in the alley.
There were three men in rough clothes. They looked like thugs, the messy kind, the ones who were more likely to pass out drunk in a bar than do anything useful. They were nothing like those chumps in suits she had kicked out of this neighborhood along with Torchwick, they had some form of standards. While her angle was poor, she could see they had makeshift weapons. Some knives and the leader had a pistol.
The red reaper almost shook her head in disappointment. At least arm yourself properly before attempting a mugging.
"I am sorry, good sirs, but that is not information I am authorized to share." said a voice Ruby found to be familiar.
It sounded genuine, but also forced. Like someone was being true to themselves and trying to express it as best they knew how. But being extremely new to conversation it always came out awkward and slightly artificial with the person speaking simply not taken notice.
Where had she heard that voice before?
One of the thugs stepped forward and brandished his knife, almost making the observing girl groan. If the target was not intimidated by the three of them already, then brandishing a sharpened piece of metal would not work.
"We know you're from Atlas and they's plenty rich."
"That is correct," said the unseen girl. "I do come from Atlas, but I am not permitted to reveal my personal contacts."
"What? Did yer daddy say you shouldn't?" mocked one of the men.
"Affirmative."
Ruby saw the lead bandit step forward with his arm outstretched to choke the girl. Not wasting another second contemplating her choice to intervene, she exploded into a shower of red petals and surged down the alley.
It only took a second for her boot to connect with the back of the man's skull and send him tumbling forward. The other two fell back, responding to the sudden threat and not bothering with intimidation any longer, brought out their knives to swipe at Ruby.
Sharpened steel met nothing but air as Ruby summersaulted around them and further into the alley than they were.
Taking a fighting stance, she prepped herself to drag this fight out enough for the strange talking girl to escape. Then drag this scuffle into the streets where the authorities would be called.
She didn't have her Cresent Rose with her, much to her constant frustration with Beacon's guidelines. But she was decent in hand to hand, lifting her scythe required a strength that her body tended to not show, and she had gotten into the habit of using that against unwary enemies.
Deception was essential to winning any conflict, as one of her books said.
And the moment she spotted the person she was trying to protect; she knew that deception had been present here long before she turned the corner.
The mans she had knocked down quickly got back up with a large scuff on his head. These guys did not have aura.
"This will be easy then."
"You…"
The man did not get past the first word as his compatriot was suddenly picked up by the girl they were harassing and hurled into their presumed leader.
Ruby smiled at the sudden aggression of the person. For all the politeness and giddy childishness, she had shown the last time they met, she had been monstrously strong.
"I apologize for my aggression," said Penny Polendina, "But I cannot allow you to hurt my friend."
Ruby tilted her head at the statement.
Friend? They were friends?
Then she recalled her almost reluctant agreement to the term. Even exchanging scroll numbers with the strange girl in order to get her off Ruby's back.
The last thug looked at the now unconscious bodies of his associates and broke into a run.
Ruby considered letting him go, it would be simpler, but then again what's to stop him from mugging someone who was not like Ruby or Penny? And even if he were caught, what's to stop him from just doing this again once he gets out?
Then she recalled what she had done the previous day in the cafeteria. How she had brought the mighty Nora low within seconds by accident with the abilities she had attained from that Nowhere.
If it brought her down, then these guys would be corpses in less than a moment.
Would it be right to use them here, on these guys?
All these thoughts swam through her mind withing milliseconds as she cast a quick glance at the prone thugs on the ground.
Would it be wrong to use it on people like them? Would she be able to stop once she began?
"It would be so easy."
Her Shadow did not say this as a form of temptation, but as a simple fact. It would be easy.
But would it be right?
Penny took the burden off her shoulders as a sextet of swords quite literally unfolded from her back. Each blade was a single edge sword with electronics built into them. The blades floated around Penny and while it was hard to tell, she could see small wires connecting them to the ginger haired girl.
With a gesture, the blades surged forward and cut gashes into the soft meat of the man's thighs and triceps. The sudden pain and targeting of his supporting muscles sent him sprawling across the pavement at the edge of the alley.
Ruby understood what Penny had done. She had disabled him. Not permanently, but enough so that he would not be able to escape once the police arrived.
"Aggressor neutralized," Penny said, hopping around on her feet to look at Ruby. "We meet again, friend Ruby."
Ruby glanced at the swords that were returning to the odd girl. The light of the alley streaming behind her gave her the appearance of a spider. Ruby's survival instincts nudged at her consciousness, but she fought them down. Years of self-control repressing that urge to fight and run which had been so heightened in her childhood.
Putting on a smile, she used the façade she always did when she was uncertain about someone.
Be friendly and welcoming but do not be a pushover.
"It's good to see you again, Penny," she said.
"I too feel joy upon meeting you again," Penny smiled that stiff smile of hers that was somehow genuine and oddly manufactured. Ruby had a hard time noticing before due to the headache she had last time and Blake running off, but Penny looked strange then.
Shouts and screams echoed from the street outside the alley and Ruby nearly cut and run then. She did not want to end up at a police station on her day off from her team. Yang would never let her hear the end of it.
"It appears some citizens have stumbled across that man. I should assist."
Penny turned to walk away but Ruby caught her by the arm.
"We need to go," said Ruby.
Penny looked back at her, eyes wide and analytical. Did this girl understand facial expressions?
"Is it not our responsibility as huntresses to aid those in need?"
Ruby wanted to groan. While true, that logic was overly simplistic. Not to mention unnecessary at this moment.
"Yes, but we aren't needed."
Ruby pointed past Penny to the downed thug who was trying to crawl away, leaving a light trail of blood.
"He won't be able to do much after those cuts. So, we need to go."
"How come? Shouldn't we be responsible and wait for the authorities?"
Ruby wanted to slap her forehead at that. Was this girl really that dense?
"If the police get here then they'll lock us up too. We need to go."
Penny tilted her head and appeared to be mulling the idea over in her mind. Turning back to the man she nearly crippled, then turning back to Ruby, she gave a question.
"Is this the right thing to do? Should we not inform the authorities?"
Ruby needed to phrase her next sentence carefully so as to not sound like the near sociopath most people mistook her for.
"They'll come to the same conclusion whether we are here or not. Some thugs got into a fight in an alley. The difference is whether we plan on spending the rest of the day in a cell waiting to be bailed out."
Penny's eyes widened as she appeared to realize something, and the sudden look of worry on her face said that Ruby's words had the proper effect. Perhaps Penny had a reason to avoid being locked up. Most people found it scary, but so long as you were clean there was nothing to worry about.
Maybe Penny had secrets of her own.
To hammer the point home, Ruby said, "I personally don't want to get in trouble for protecting a friend. Do you?"
"No," said Penny, almost blurting it out.
Ruby did not question this, content with the fact that she had convinced Penny to go along with her.
"Then let's go."
With that, the two of them fled further into the alley, taking the back streets of Vale in order to avoid the police force that would arrive to apprehend the thugs.
Mercury whistled as he walked through the streets without a care in the world. It was nice to just relax for a bit while they traveled to their next mission. A part of him was bored though. He wanted to give his cybernetic legs a proper workout before the big plan gets started properly.
He glanced around at the people walking by. Weaklings, one and all. He could get each one with a single kick. But that was dull and boring. What he needed was a challenge.
His thoughts turned to the huntsmen academy up the cliffs. While he doubted any of them could be him or even Emerald, and dust not even close to Cinder. He hoped that some of them could put up a proper fight when the time came.
Rumor had it that the Invincible Girl was attending Beacon this year, maybe she could give him a good workout. Someone who wins a few tournaments should be worth something in a fight right?
His whistling continued much to the annoyance of his dark-skinned partner.
Emerald groaned in frustration and cried, "Can you stop that?"
Mercury's only answer was to keep on whistling. It was more fun this way and Emerald was always stealing his stuff so annoying her made them even in his mind.
While the two of them weren't exactly friends, they didn't outright hate each other. There were always jabs and jokes thrown at one another, even the occasional fight and eventual spar to settle the matter.
The annoying part about that last bit was not that Emerald actually gave him a good fight, but that it was never shown who was the superior combatant between them. Cinder always cut in and that never stopped annoying him.
It was something that frustrated him back when he was rising in skill and prepping to face his father. The only feeling worse than knowing that someone is better than you is not being sure where you stand with them in terms of skill.
If Cinder would just let them finish just one fight, he would be happy. Even if he lost if would make him feel better. At least then he would have something to work towards.
Like Cinder herself. He had no idea what kind of training she did or the type of semblance she had that would grant her that kind of firepower, but he had to bide his time with that. If all those years under his father's thumb had taught him anything it was to spot when you were outmatched very quickly.
One day he would beat her. Skill was everything and he had that in spades. All he had to do was apply enough effort and then he would be the one telling her what to do when he met whomever Cinder was working for.
After a minute of walking, his partner spoke up again.
"You think we'll run into her?"
Mercury stopped his whistle at the strange question and turned his head back to face her.
"What?" he asked.
"Do you think we'll see her?"
"Who?"
Emerald's red eyes narrowed as it was clear he was annoying her. All was normal in that regard.
"The girl Roman keeps bringing up in the meetings."
Mercury raised an eyebrow. "The girl in red? What did he call her? Little Red?"
"Yeah, the one who keeps running into him."
Mercury shrugged and placed his hands behind his head. "I dunno. Maybe."
Emerald scanned her environment carefully. Her years of survival on the streets gave her a keen eye for things of value to steal and spotting danger. She was looking around to see if they could spot the girl in question.
Mercury just stayed relaxed. It was nothing to be worried about. No one knew who they were or who they were working with. They could walk round in broad daylight, and no one would notice them.
The only person who had seen their faces was the huntsmen who saved the old Fall Maiden, but he was not here. They would know if he was.
"You think she's really as much trouble as those two think she is? I mean it's so unbelievable that one kid could keep finding him when the Vale police couldn't manage it even once."
Mercury just rolled his eyes at her question. "Maybe the kid just got lucky? If she really is all that then I hope we see her. Could be a good fight."
The assassin in name stretched his arms. "Remind me what we're doing again. I forgot what those faunus wanted from us."
"We're dealing with a traitor," said Emerald with a neutral tone.
"Right, right. He abandoned the cause and so he must pay yada yada yada." Mercury emphasized how little he cared for his allies' concerns by twirling his index finger around in the air.
"Apparently he runs a bookstore now."
"Really?" inquired Mercury.
"Yeah. Weird because he used to be one of their best undercover ops."
"How boring. Someone like that walking away from a revolutionary cause filled with action to sit around a bunch of worthless books. Makes no sense to me."
Emerald walked past him, nudging his shoulder. "That's because not everyone is obsessed with proving themselves like you."
Mercury frowned as he accelerated his pace to keep up with her. He uttered no words. To rebuke her would be to prove her right and he had nothing to prove. Not to anyone other than whomever Cinder answered to and that was purely for the opportunity to put the fire witch in her place.
Instead, he sighed and followed along. "So, what's the job? Walk in and take care of him?"
"Pretty much. For professing to be so much better than humans, they really are unforgiving when it comes to people walking away."
Mercury noted a hint of sadness in the thief's voice. Was she feeling sorry for the guy?
"When people think you're on their side, it hurts more than you'd think when they tell you they're not."
Emerald shrugged, not bothering to look back at the assassin. "I suppose so. Just shows that they're all the same in the end huh. Everyone is just out for themselves in the end."
"That's just how it is," Mercury said, and he meant it.
That was just the world they lived in. People could profess to being selfless and out for the greater good but in the end, it was all a rouse to get into the good graces of others. Mercury did not believe in there being good people. Those who thought they were are either liars or idiots.
Speaking of idiots, Emerald had her back to him. He had already proven he was the faster of the two of them when it came to reflexes. If he decided to end this now, he could cripple her with a hard enough kick to the back of the skull.
It was tempting, very tempting. But he decided against it as he did every time he found himself in a position to dispose of her. She was more useful alive until he found himself in a better position.
One day he would end this annoying partnership with her. But not today.
"So, what's this chump's name?" asked Mercury.
"Tukson."
Penny ran along the shadowed alleyways of Vale, carefully matching the pace of Ruby Rose. It was a moment of pure joy when she realized that the one who had intervened when she had been cornered by those ne'er-do-wells was her first friend.
Her optical sensors scanned the environment constantly for more threats. Those ruffians were a non-threat to her. Her initial examination of them had proven than none of them had the capability to harm her in any manner.
According to her internal mapping systems, they were making a full U-turn across a large space. This was likely to avoid the authorities when they arrived on scene. The aggressors were likely going to expose Penny and Ruby as the ones who injured them and leave out the part where Penny was held a knife point.
It had taken Penny a full minute to realize the full implications of what Ruby had said before and was grateful to have her around.
While Penny was brought up by the most intelligent man in all of Atlas and perhaps Remnant, Ruby was intelligent in a different manner. One that perhaps would allow her to pass on a different brand on knowledge to Penny.
The pair came to a stop by the same road where they had encountered the scoundrels. Police sirens were echoing down the street and both of them peered around the corner. A pair of police cars were stationed where they had been before.
Penny had to wonder why they had returned to this street when it would have been safer to simply flee.
Staying in the alley, Penny looked at her friend and asked, "Why have we returned here friend Ruby?"
"Hmm?" Ruby turned to Penny; her focus was on the actions of the police dragging the unconscious men into their police vans.
"Sorry Penny what was that?"
"If our objective was to flee then why have we returned?"
Ruby turned away from the scene and pointed towards a dust shop further down the road. It had a glowing neon sign that said Dust Till Dawn.
"I need to go there," said Ruby.
Penny examined the sign and accessed her database on the records provided to her by the General on everything that concerned Vale. It contained nearly everything concerning the local economy and law enforcement.
The name of this dust shop registered in her mind, and she spoke. "I know that establishment. Was it not robbed several months ago by Roman Torchwick?"
"Yup."
Penny tilted her head. Now curious.
"Why do you wish to visit it, friend Ruby? Are you on the hunt for that criminal? I cannot imagine you would have to visit a dust shop since Beacon has its own stockpile."
Ruby smiled and beckoned for Penny to follow.
The two of them walked out into the open as the police vehicles were speeding away. Penny took notes in her data core of everything that happened. The timing of her friends' choices was too on point to be an accident.
As her father had said to her, "Coincidences are merely a series of different events colliding and meeting within the small world we inhabit. What most fail to realize is that all coincidences are caused by people. The difference therein lies in whether it was deliberately orchestrated or not."
Penny could not shake this strange sensation that her circuitry failed to process. But this sensation gave her an indirect indication that Ruby had purposefully timed their exit so that the still conscious thug could not sell them out and allow her to achieve her previous goal.
The General had always tried to instill some form of strategic thinking within Penny, but she was always more concerned with understanding people and learning how to be like a real person.
Ruby appeared to bridge that gap somehow and all she had to do was be herself.
They walked across the street in silence. Ruby looked happy now that the crisis had passed, and they approached the shop.
Penny looked through the window and she immediately noticed that the main window was brand new. It could not have been there for more than a month or two at most. This was in contrast with the rest of the establishment which appeared to be more aged as it used old architectural schema.
As they walked through the door, a bell chime tolled and an older gentleman standing at the counter turned his focus towards them.
"Welcome," he said politely; Penny's audio sensors detecting a slight rasp in his voice, indicating his advanced age.
"How may I assist you…"
The man paused as he leaned over the counter slightly to get a better look at them. Penny felt a small hint of alarm at this sudden suspicion from the shop owner. Had she been damaged somehow, and had he spotted it?
"Oh, it you," he said with a smile on his face.
"Yup, it's me again," responded Ruby with a happy grin.
She walked up to the counter and stood there, her posture and expression completely welcoming.
"Sorry about what happened last time. I hope your business is doing well."
Penny quickly scanned the store and determined that the three of them were the only ones present. Had something happened here with Ruby that might have negatively affected his business prospects?
The man waved the girl off. "Don't trouble yourself with that, little miss. My business is doing just peachy after I got a new window. Cost me some lien sure, but it was great publicity. I haven't had a busier working month since I was in my thirties."
The man laughed and Ruby giggled. "I supposed a robbery can either make or break a store huh?"
The storekeeper slapped his hand on the counter. "Depends on how you spin it and how business savvy you are. Sure, my profit margin was slowed but I recovered due to the other dust shops being hit."
"It is a shame about that huh?" asked Ruby.
"It is," said the man, his mood turning dour for a moment. "Damn shame what's been happening over the past year. Can't these thugs just take the money and leave us with the means of recovering."
Ruby's face turned dark for a moment and Penny's sensors picked it up again. That phantom signal.
"When we find Roman, we'll end this."
Penny had detected this signal the previous time she had been around Ruby. She appeared to be conversing with it. Penny, following the rules of politeness her father had given her, had not interrupted and simply observed.
The anomaly as she had categorized it as, spoke with Ruby as if it were a person. Penny's sensors, arguably the most advanced sensory system in the world, detected one of the most astounding things she had ever seen.
The signal Ruby was conversing with had come from Ruby herself somehow. At first this had given Penny some form of hope that Ruby was like her. But was proven wrong with a quick scan, proving that Ruby was indeed a human.
This disappointment did not last long as Ruby had agreed to be Penny's friend. The acquisition of her first friend had been more than enough to get her to shrug off the disappointment of not finding another like her.
As for the sentient signal that originated from Ruby, Penny had dubbed it as 'the Anomaly' as it was most certainly abnormal, even when considering semblances that utilized frequencies.
Ruby's face brightened again and said, "At least you aren't apart of that statistic."
The man smiled again. "Yes, ma'am. I'm one of the lucky ones, and only lucky because you came along."
Ruby scratched the back of her head bashfully. "Aww, I was just browsing. It's not like I knew Torchwick would be here. If I did, I would have brought my sister. Then I doubt he would have gotten inside your store at all."
"We take our blessings when they are given. No point in wishing it could be better when its already done," said the man reaching under the counter.
"You said you were browsing, yes?" he asked.
"Yup. I was looking through the next Mechashift magazine."
Penny ran the name through her database again. Mechashift. It was a business in Atlas which was also under the employ of the General, but not everyone knew that. They developed new robotic gear for weaponry. Shifting weapons were versatile and durable when bult correctly and the business was always experimenting with different avenues and configurations. The magazines were a way to gauge public opinion and perhaps get some testing done in the field for their more open projects.
So far, the magazines were not very popular. Not for their theme, but just the lack of interest in the cities of each Kingdom. Mose people liked to live within the confines of their walls.
"Mechashift you say? Yes, I thought that was what you were looking at."
The man stood up and slapped a trio of thin books on the counter. Ruby's eyes immediately widened at the sight of them.
"Are those?"
"Yes, they are, little miss," the man said happily. "The last three issues that have arrived since you helped out my store. Now normally I wouldn't appreciate someone looking though some of my stock without purchasing it first. But since you saved my business, I think I could part with these. Free of charge."
"Really?" asked Ruby with no shortage of surprise.
The man let out a bark of laughter. "Of course. Just because I run a business doesn't mean I can't give a gift as thanks."
The man pushed the books over to the edge of the counter. "Take them. I mean it. Thank you for helping this old man out of a bind."
The two left the shop minutes later after some more friendly banter with the store owner who promised to give her premium deals whenever she came to visit him, and she promised to take him up on that after she graduated.
The two walked the streets with Ruby holding the magazines happily.
Penny had been given access to Ruby's profile when she had returned to Atlas weeks ago, but was offered a different alternative by her father.
"When learning about your friends, it is best to keep it to information that is directly given to you. It allows for a sense of trust to be built and maintains that privacy that people value. Trust me Penny, when people see you know more about them than what they have said to you, they will naturally distrust you. If you want to get to know Miss Rose properly, then I recommend you keep it to what she tells you."
Penny still had open access to the information by order of the General but had refused to look through it. Ruby was her friend and friends did not pry into each other's business unless it was urgent.
But Penny was still curious about what had happened back there and decided to ask.
"Friend Ruby, what was that man talking about when he said you assisted his business?"
"Oh? I was there when Roman tried to rob the place."
Penny tilted her head. "So, you were there to witness the robbery happen?"
Ruby flashed Penny a smile and her systems chimed as a new expression was registered. This was not a smile that she had seen before, and it was not in the psychological database she had been provided for reference in her interactions with people.
Penny quickly tried to cross-reference the smile with other expressions, but it went blank. All she could deduce was that it showed some level of aggression, but it was not shown as an act of incoming aggression towards Penny herself.
"Nope, I was the one who chased him off," said Ruby with a hint of satisfaction.
Penny's eyes widened as she cross-referenced the incident with her friend's words. The report said that a huntress in training had been on the scene to intervene until Professor Glynda Goodwitch of Beacon had arrived.
"Oh, so it was you who fended off that criminal."
"Yuppers," affirmed Ruby, her expression returning to the norms she had shown before.
"I am surprised," said Penny as they walked along the streets, avoiding the civilians.
"How come?"
"I was under the impression that you preferred to avoid such confrontations. Not worth the trouble you said when we were waiting by the docks."
Ruby gave a nervous laugh and Penny heard the Anomaly again.
"Have fun explaining that to her."
"Well," began Ruby. "It wasn't really what I planned on. If I knew Roman was coming, I'm not sure what I would have done in that moment. I didn't even know he was there until one of his thugs tapped me on the shoulder."
"Was it not your intent to help that man? Is that not what a huntress does?"
"It was more of an in the moment reaction if I'm being honest. I thought they were just trying to mug me, so I mugged them back."
Penny mulled over her friend's words and came up with another question. "From what you are telling me is that you did not do it because it was the right thing to do?"
Ruby's eyebrows scrunched, as if she were confused by the question.
Her answer came in octaves that denoted a lack of certainty.
"Yes? No?"
The Anomaly made itself known again.
"I can't help you here. You weren't really thinking about that when Roman was busy shooting at us."
"Yes, I suppose contemplation on morality might be difficult when in a combat situation," said Penny making Ruby's eyes go wide with surprise.
"Umm…" stuttered Ruby.
"Did she just respond to me?" asked the Anomaly.
"Why yes, yes I did," answered Penny. "I can hear you quite clearly."
Instead of questioning this as Penny expected, Ruby's face turned dark and she grabbed Penny by the arm, dragging her along the road.
Penny calculated the force her friend was applying and was sure she could break free with minimal effort but decided against it. Ruby was her friend and she had upset her. It was her responsibility to make up for that and understand why talking to the Anomaly angered her so much.
Ruby dragged her into a nearby alley and went deeper inside so that no one could see them. Facing Penny, Ruby's stare showed clear aggression, this time it was directed at her.
"Explain," demanded red cloaked girl.
"Explain what, friend Ruby?"
"How can you hear her?"
Penny froze. How was she supposed to explain why she was able to detect the strange signal emanating from her friend? She had been given strict orders not to reveal her true nature to others. While she was unaware of the consequences of disobeying such an act, she was more afraid of how Ruby would see her.
Her first friend, lost to her because she was a freak.
"Well? Are you going to answer me?" asked Ruby impatiently.
Ruby was clearly upset, but she also looked more annoyed and…
Worried?
Was this strange Anomaly something Ruby had not informed her team of?
A sudden scream from the street behind them grabbed their attention. Penny turned to see a child on the road, he had fallen over and now in the way of oncoming traffic. Penny activated her accelerated processor to assess the situation.
Time slowed to a crawl in her perception as her system sped up to the point where each second spanned a minute in total. This was a function built into her for situations where time may not allow for proper thought.
Given her purpose in the Atlas military she had to treat each situation with the deference required. As such she was given a function that would allow her to do just that.
The child was on his knees, getting up at a snail's pace. Behind him was what Penny deduced to be the boy's mother rushing in to protect him. Her eyes were glued to the child while the child stared blankly off to his right.
Penny came to her conclusion that a vehicle was incoming and was closing in too quickly to slow down in time to prevent damage.
Deactivating her processor, she rushed forward, ignoring the cries from Ruby and surging into the streets.
Her deduction had proven correct, there was an incoming vehicle which was attempting to slow. It was hooting in an instinctual reaction that many drivers did in hopes of suddenly frightening people to leap out of the way.
Penny sidestepped the vehicle coming from the opposite direction and took a stance in front of the incoming truck. Thrusting her arms forward, she caught the truck with her open palms.
The sudden impact jolted her frame, sending several notifications of minor damages to her systems into her datacore for cataloguing and repair.
The front portion of the truck warped under the strain the sudden and immovable obstacle which me its momentum. The concrete beneath her boots cracked and send fragments flying under the shock of the impact.
The truck had been stopped at the unfortunate cost of its functionality but at the very least the child and his mother are unharmed.
Penny stopped and inspected the pair before they walked away. Not even noticing the angry man trying to get out of the truck.
Quickly making her way back to her friend, Ruby just stood there patiently.
"Are they alright?" she asked.
"They are unharmed."
"And you?"
Penny waved her hands and smiled, glad that her friend's line of questioning was over. "I am unharmed."
Ruby's eyes narrowed as she focused Penny's limbs.
"Friend Ruby? Is something the matter?"
"Your hands."
Penny examined her limbs, turning them over to her open palms she froze up.
The synthetic skin she had been given was scraped off, revealing the metal beneath. This left her stumped. She had not been given any information on how to handle this sort of situation. Should she run now?
Ruby walked up to Penny and attempted to grab her hands, letting the magazines drop in the process. Penny pulled back, balling her hands into fists and holding them tightly to her chest.
"Penny," said Ruby. "Let me see."
Penny shook her head and backed away.
Ruby's frown deepened but she did not give chase. Instead, she half turned her head and sighed.
"If you won't let me, see then I guess we aren't really friends."
Ruby turned away and picked up her magazines. Penny felt something in her systems that she did not understand. It was an intense need to act. She did not want to lose her friend. Not like this, not because she showed a lack of trust.
Disobey orders or lose her first friend that was not obligated to be nice to her. Which was more important. After activating her accelerated processor and contemplating for a full ten minutes. Debating with herself over and over and over until she had finally decided.
Ruby was about three steps away from where she had picked up her magazine when Penny called out to her.
"Wait!"
Ruby stopped and Penny did not notice the slight smirk on her friend's face.
Turning around, Ruby stood expectantly.
Penny approached like a prisoner in chains and presented her damaged palms. It was a simple thing to fix but she did not have the means to begin the repairs here. For that she would have to return to the Atlas Embassy.
"Metal?" inquired Ruby looking up at Penny, who nodded somberly.
"You're a… robot?"
To this Penny shook her head. "I am an android with an inbuilt artificial intelligence matrix. I was built by the Atlas Military as special operative to combat the more aggressive Grimm that have been resurfacing in recent years."
"An android…" Ruby trailed off, apparently thinking about something.
Then the Anomaly sounded again.
"If you're not sure, there's one way to see for certain."
"I'm not doing that," snapped Ruby angrily.
"I meant hit her, you dunce."
"That's my word."
"You mean our word. I'm you remember?"
With a groan, Ruby halted the argument with the Anomaly and chopped her hand into Penny's forearm. As was normal, the arm sparked green as Penny's aura took effect.
"You have aura."
Penny nodded.
"But you're an android. A machine. How…"
Ruby paused, then looked at Penny with a sudden anger in her eyes.
"How can you hear her?"
Penny understood what she meant and saw no point in hiding it now.
"I detected a rogue signal coming from you and I interpreted it as speech. At first, I thought you were speaking to me but when I realized you were talking with yourself, I became concerned."
Ruby tilted her head. "Signals? You mean frequencies?"
Penny nodded again. "Yes, it is on a frequency I have never seen before, but I am able to understand what is being transmitted."
"That makes sense," said the Anomaly before something happened that Penny would have difficulty processing for some time.
A black and monochrome version of Ruby appeared at her friend's side. It had not face but the body and the clothing were identical. Black smoke that would appear as glitches on occasion in Penny vision swirled around this dark doppelganger.
"Given what happened to us, it doesn't surprise me."
"You're talking about that shining tower, aren't you?"
"You already know the answer to that."
Penny raised a hand to recapture her friend's attention. "Umm, friend Ruby? May I inquire as to an explanation?"
The two Ruby's turned to Penny.
The dark one said nothing, but Ruby spoke. "It's nothing important now. Let's just say that my soul was split in half when I was a child. What you see here is my other half."
The dark Ruby gave a casual wave with a smoky hand. "Hello,"
"Salutations?" Penny greeted uncertain how to process this. Nothing in her briefings or education had prepared her for anything like this.
"It's nice to finally have someone else to talk to. This dunce is dull."
Ruby smirked. "Ohh? Pot meet kettle."
Penny blinked as she registered that her friend was no longer angry. Taking the chance she asked her own question. Directing it towards the dark Ruby.
"So, what is your name?"
"Me? It's Ruby Rose. Just because I'm the one who was torn from our body doesn't mean I lost the rights to my name."
Ruby smirked and added in a cheeky manner. "You can call her Shadow Ruby."
Shadow Ruby crossed her arms and turned away, clearly not liking the name but found herself lacking the means to state her claim on their original identifier.
"Now, it's your turn," said Ruby looking at Penny.
"Huh?"
"You said you were an android made to fight Grimm right?"
Penny nodded. "Yes. The destruction of the Creatures of Grimm is my primary purpose. I was built as a protector capable of acting independently of direct command."
"Okay, but how did you get aura? Were you a person before and got stuffed in there somehow?"
Penny was about to speak but stopped herself. Telling Ruby about the machine that allowed her father to breathe life into her would be revealing classified information. There was only so far she was willing to go.
Ruby waited for a moment then shrugged. "If you can't tell me then that's fine. Since you're here I don't need to know how they did it."
"A robot with a soul is hardly the most outlandish thing we've seen."
Penny blinked as she processed those words. What was happening? Was she being accepted?
"So, you aren't put off by what I am? The fact that I am a machine? The fact I might not even be truly alive?"
Penny hoped she was right. If she was then Ruby would not only be her first friend, but her best friend. The one who found out her secret and accepted it. But then there was the possibility that she would simply reject Penny.
Just like many of the soldiers and the Ace Ops did. Seeing her as another of those soldier robots meant for nothing but fighting and obeying orders. The General understood but that was because he was personally involved with her creation and was there when the process was underway.
This was something else and she hoped it was as she wished.
Ruby's response was to curl her right hand into a fist and bring it down on Penny's head. The android stepped back and covered her head.
"Stupid questions make you a dunce and that's what I do to dunces."
Penny ran the unfamiliar word through her database.
Dunce. A person who is slow learning. A stupid person. Someone of low intelligence and comprehensive ability.
"I do not understand."
Ruby smiled her usual friendly smile and said, "If I were put off by you, we wouldn't be friends. You being a machine means squat to me. You could be a Nome for all I care. As for whether you're alive. You have an aura. You have a soul."
Shadow Ruby appeared next to Penny; her posture was till completely straight. She did not ever change her posture unless it was a part of some gesture.
"That's good enough for us."
"We don't care if you're not made of meat and bone. You have a mind. You can think for yourself, and you have a soul. If that doesn't make you alive, I don't know what does."
Penny felt some new emotion register in her processor that she could barely comprehend.
She was happy, so happy that words could not describe it.
"Sensational!"
Penny jumped towards her friend and engulfed her in a crushing embrace. The hug was so tight that Ruby's sura sparked as Penny repeatedly said, "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."
Meanwhile Ruby wailed as she was now trapped in another Yang style death beat hug.
The Shadow appeared to be passive, but internally she was cackling. This was hilarious.
Later, after the two had come to an agreement to keep each other's secrets. Penny was surprised when Ruby confessed that no one else, not even her family and team knew about this. That she was the only person who knew about Ruby's split soul.
"No one else knows. So, let's make a promise to keep each other's secrets. As friends, we know something about the other than no one else is allowed to know. Let's make sure it stays that way."
That only made the promise she made all the more important. She had promised never to tell anyone about this, and Penny planned on keeping it. She even prepared a separate file within her datacore, locked and hidden just in case someone tried to pry the information out of her.
She doubted anyone on Remnant outside of Atlas was that technologically talented, but it was better to be safe than sorry as the General often said.
The two had stopped talking for some time and simply wandered through Vale, both solidifying the vows they had made in confidence.
Ruby had not enjoyed the process in the slightest. Penny was too nice. Too trusting. However, red reaper had no alternative but to confront the girl after realizing that Penny could hear her Shadow. The revelation of Penny's secrets was an unexpected surprise, but it worked in her favor.
She doubted that Penny was one to use blackmail or manipulation, that was obvious. She was the type of person who wanted to reach out to other people.
Android or not, Penny was a good person.
Too bad for her Ruby wasn't, but that did not mean they couldn't get along.
Ruby's casual gaze found a windowpane that was filled with books. Curious, she stopped for a moment. Penny noticed this and also halted her almost robotic march. Almost because she had adapted just enough to make it look simply awkward.
The android girl did not ask any questions, she simply followed her friends gaze across the building she was looking at.
Ruby read the sign.
Tukson's Book Trade.
"Let's check this place out," declared Ruby.
"I was not aware you are an enthusiast of literature."
Ruby stared at her reflection in the glass for a moment. "When you can't watch anything on TV, scrolls or computers, you tend to take what you can get when it comes to entertainment."
Ruby then turned away and grumbled, "Not to mention everyone else has their faces glued to their scrolls so it's not like I can get any good conversation out of them."
Shaking her head free, Ruby entered the shop without another word with Penny following suit.
The interior was dimly lit, and the color pallet was nothing to write home about. However, this suited Ruby just fine as she found the drab and dreary places often hid some of the more interesting things in the world. Things that went out of their way to look nice are centered on appearance and very little else.
What Ruby cared more about was the stacks of books covering the store from all four corners, even from behind the counter were a man stood with a polite smile on his face. The storekeeper most likely.
The man was a Faunus of some feline variety. This was due to his catlike eyes, other than that he could have passed off as a human. He wore a short-sleeved quarter-zip burgundy and black shirt with a visible white undershirt. His hair was cleanly cut, and he had noticeable sideburns, along with hairy, muscular arms.
"Welcome to Tukson's Book Trade," he said in a polite manner. "Home to every book under the sun."
Ruby smiled while Penny just stood at attention. "That's a bold slogan. Not afraid I'll put it to the test?"
The man had some social sense, and he could see she was joking. In response he also laughed. "You're welcome to try. I hope you find something you like in the meantime."
"Thank you," said Ruby as she turned to looked at the shelves of books stacked everywhere.
She ran her hand across the spine covers of some of them, as if she could feel their contents from a simple graze. In truth she was just checking to see how sturdy they were. If she could find some hard cover books in place of the paper backs, she would be happy if it cost some extra lien.
Penny watched Ruby make her selection. Evidently interested in her friend's choice of topic more than the topic itself. Carefully, Ruby pulled out a book with the title, Path of Destruction. On the cover was a robed man with a bald head. The image was half white and half red split down the middle, giving this man a menacing appearance.
Ruby looked over the novel and turned to the back to check the topic in question.
"Do you enjoy fiction?" asked Penny.
"I do," replied Ruby, not looking away from the book.
"How come? I see little value in reading what is not factually correct."
Ruby turned her face to the android girl and gave her a sardonic smile. "You'll find that plenty of non-fiction books are also factually incorrect and straight up lies. At least fiction values brining some form of entertainment along with a good life lesson hidden inside."
"Novels have life lessons inside them?"
"The good ones do. They contain a morality or a belief system that is demonstrated to the reader through the characters in the story. All good stories have themes to them."
"What does this one contain?" Penny asked poking at the book in Ruby's hand.
"It is about a man on his journey down a dark path. That is all can I really tell from the summery on the back. I can't get detail until I read it."
"Do you have predictions?"
Ruby thought for a moment. Penny was probing hard here to try and understand. Giving her a proper answer was only appropriate.
"I believe it is about how the world can be cruel and sometimes people are forced to be cruel to survive. However, once you start going down that way it is hard not to go further until you don't recognize the person you used to be."
"And do you believe that?"
Ruby blinked. "Believe what?"
"That the world is a cruel place."
Ruby's mood darkened as old memories threatened to resurface. One managed to break through her suppression. A yellow raincoat floating on the ocean surface.
"I don't think the world is cruel," she said, her tone low. "I know it is."
Penny leaned in close, almost to the point where it made even Ruby feel uncomfortable. "Is that why you want to become a huntress? Because you care about people?"
Ruby smirked, it was a smug thing, and she quickly wiped it away. "Not really."
Penny blinked and backed up. "What do you mean? You don't care about the safety of others?"
"Not exactly," said Ruby, mulling over her words. "I mean, I can't protect everyone. I'm just one person. Besides most people are dunces anyway."
"I do not understand. Why do you want to become a huntress if you don't care for the average person?"
"Who said I don't care for them?" Ruby countered. "What I meant was that I won't feel bad if they get themselves hurt or do dumb things. As for becoming a huntress. I have my reasons."
"May I inquire as to what those reasons are?"
Ruby looked away from Penny for a moment, planning to shoot her down, but her Shadow said something in protest.
"Come on. You can't say all that stuff and not give her something."
With a sigh, Ruby took a breath and began her explanation. "People take their safety for granted Penny. Very few of them nowadays understand just how dangerous the world is. And it is our job as huntresses to keep them that way."
"To protect them from the Creatures of Grimm."
Ruby stayed silent for a moment but forced a smile. "That's right. Since most people are dunces, that means it is up to us to protect them right. Because I'd rather share a world with dunces than be stuck in one with monsters."
That answer appeared to satisfy Penny as she began to smile as well.
Penny was about to speak when the bell for the door chimed. Two new arrivals entered the store. A guy and a girl.
The guy wore a slate grey and black two-tone partial-zip jacket that covers his upper body. He also wore a single notched belt with what appears to be a sash or bandana draped over it. Protecting his arms are a set of rerebraces and vambraces. His skin was pale, and he had grey hair.
Ruby noticed how arrogant he was within a millisecond. He had a confident swagger about him that was tailormade to mock others and dare the foolish to challenge him. He was like Cardin, however, unlike the wannabe bully, this guy actually portrayed a sense of danger.
The girl was a different story.
She wore a pair of strappy high-heeled pumps, an intricate white top and an olive-coloured crop top, and white cropped pants with brown chaps that attach to her brown belt. Around her arms were a series of small arm bands that Ruby did not care to look at. Her skin was a medium brown. Her hair is a light, mint-green with a straight fringe and bangs as well as two long locks on each side in the back.
Ruby's eyes narrowed as she spotted the twin pistols holstered behind the girl's belt.
She did not carry herself the same way as the guy, where he was arrogant and almost begging for someone to come at him, she was cautious. But there was a quiet confidence to her.
It took her less than a moment to realize that they were dangerous.
"Welcome to Tuskon's Book Trade, home to every book under the sun," greeted the storekeeper. "How may I…"
He paused for a moment as he looked at the two newcomers. Ruby noticed a slight change in his demeanour. Did he know these two?
The girl simply looked at him expectantly while the guy was busy browsing books lazily. The way he held the book in his hands would have annoyed Ruby as he was bending the spine on purpose. Had she not noticed how dangerous he was, she would have kicked his teeth in for that.
"How may I help you?" finished the storekeeper.
"Just browsing," said the guy, slamming the book shut, showing no interest in it at all.
Then he noticed her and while their gazes were locked it was clear that he was sizing her up. It was obvious that he was looking down on her. Good. All the better when he lets his guard down.
He gave her a smirk that would have set her blood on fire, but she held herself in check. Walking up to the girl he whispered something that brought her attention to Ruby and Penny.
Something was off. Ruby could feel it in her psyche. The slight buzz in her skull telling her that her Shadow was listening in on their conversation. The girl's eyes went wide, and she became more serious.
"Penny," Ruby whispered. "Can you record what you see?"
"Affirmative," answered Penny matching Ruby's volume.
"Remember their faces. I have a bad feeling about these two."
"Roger that."
Placing Path of Destruction back on the shelf and her magazines on top of it, Ruby turned away, pretending to mind her own business.
The girl turned back to the storekeeper and began to ask questions about books. She began to test him on what sort of books he had. Where Ruby made a joke about seeing if he had literally every book on Remnant, this girl took it literally.
She felt her mood darken as the air suddenly became chilly and for a moment, she felt the eyes on her. Brushing the feeling aside, she focused on what the newcomers were saying.
"Got any comics?" asked the guy.
"In the front," answered the storekeeper.
"Oh oh," said the girl. "What about Third Crusade?"
The storekeeper began to think back, and Ruby could hear him question whether he had that particular book.
"I don't think we carry that one," the storekeeper said politely.
"Oh?" asked the guy as he slammed another book shut.
"I'm sorry, what was this placed called again?" asked the girl as she leaned over the counter.
"Tukson's Book Trade," answered the storekeeper.
"And you're Tukson?"
"That's right."
"And I take it you're the one who came up with the catch phrase?"
"Yes."
"And what was it again?" asked the guy as he walked up to the window.
With a sigh, Tukson recited his greeting once again. "Tukson's Book Trade, home to every book under the sun."
"Except the Third Crusade?"
"It's just a slogan," replied Tukson with a shrug.
"It's false adverting!"
Ruby frowned as if she owned this store, she would have kicked them out already. Her Shadow then reported what it knew.
"They're going to kill him and blame us."
Ruby froze up, while Penny twitched, grabbing the attention of the two newcomers.
"Something wrong?" asked Tukson.
"Nothing's wrong," said Ruby before Penny could say something awkward.
With a smile she walked up to her friend and gave her a tug. "She's just a little shy around strangers. Right?"
Penny gave a quick nod, with a blank expression on her face.
"Mind if we just buy our books and go?" asked Ruby, testing to see if she can put herself in a better position.
"Better if you wait in line," said the girl. "I'm at the register."
"But you aren't buying anything," Ruby countered, deliberately putting on the act of a child. "You're just trolling him, and I know a troll when I see one."
The girl raised an eyebrow. The key to tricking someone is to convince then you weren't a threat. While this girl looked to have more street smarts than her friend, it was plain that she looked down on Ruby just as much.
That was just fine.
"Really? We're a bunch of trolls, are we?" asked the guy.
"Yup,"
Ruby stepped by Penny and mouthed the words, 'wait for my signal.' Making her wat to the counter, she leaned on it, pretending that she was just some cocky newbie. Placing her hand behind a pile of books, out of sight of the two, she grabbed the pen placed by the cash register for signing receipts.
Tukson saw this but did not react.
"You're just a bunch of trolls, and you know what they say about trolls?"
Ruby fount a loose piece of paper and quickly drew her little message.
"What?" asked the guy. "That they turn to stone in the sun or something?"
"No, just that they are ugly, and they smell so they have no friends. Hence why they are trolls."
It was a bad joke and that was the point. The lack of a point will force them to either waste brain power trying to understand what she means, or they will disregard her and let their guard down.
Meanwhile, she had just finished her little message to Tuskon. It was a circle face with X's where the eyes should be and a lolling tongue. His eyes narrowed as understood who was on his side and who wasn't.
Tukson sighed, "Can we get to the point already? You know I'm leaving for Vacuo I take it?"
The girl suddenly change demeanor, now suddenly finding herself not as in control of this encounter as she thought.
The guy moved to the window and turned on a blinder switch, blocking the vision between the interior of this store and the outside.
Ruby narrowed her eyes at him. It didn't matter if he shut the blinds.
"We do, as do your brothers in the White Fang," said the girl.
Tukson was a member of the White Fang? Ruby filed that little tidbit away for later. Maybe Blake knew this Tukson guy.
"They stopped being my brothers a long time ago. I don't want any part in whatever their planning."
"Good news then," said the guy with a cocky grin. "They don't want you in their plans either. In fact, they don't want you in any plans at all."
Tukson sighed and scratched one of his sideburns. "I figured they'd send someone after me. It's shit like this that made me quit."
"So, are you going to fight back?" asked the girl with a grin of her own.
Ruby waited for Tukson to make the first move. These two likely thought she was a greenhorn, and she was looking forward to proving her wrong.
After a moment of silence, Tukson said in an aggressive voice, "Yes!"
He flexed his muscles and claws came out of his fingers. Ruby stepped back, and the two prepped for a sudden attack. They likely expected him to leap over the table at them.
What he did instead was flip the entire counter towards them, forcing both to leap back.
Ruby took her chance and charged the grey-haired guy. The moment his feet touched the ground she tackled him across the store.
Penny, having interpreted Ruby's sudden attack as the signal brought out her blade and rushed the green haired girl. A pair of pistols with blades on them appeared in her hands the moment Penny was on her and the two began to trade blows.
The clash of steel on steel rang throughout the small store, Penny's stray slashes carving up books and shelves. But while the girl had superb acrobatic skill, the number of Penny's swords and the confined space made it difficult for her to fight effectively.
Ruby knew she had taken this guy off guard, but he recovered quickly. Managing to slip out of her grip and rolling away. Once both of them were on their feet he went on the attack and Ruby understood just how dangerous he was.
He attacked with a series of powerful kicks which were downright lethal to anyone without an aura. They were fast and deadly, and from one that managed to knock her across the store, she knew they could shatter bone.
It was like fighting a guy version of Yang who preferred kicking over punching.
Ruby stood up, pushing aside all the books that had fallen on her due to her sudden impact of the shelf.
"I figured you were the one Roman kept blabbing about," said the grey-haired guy with a smug grin. "Thought you'd put up more of a fight."
"Roman?" Ruby asked but stopped herself from saying more as she ducked out of the way of a flying kick that put a hole in the shelf.
Ruby saw that his food was stuck in the wall and saw her opportunity to fight back. The Hunger spiked for a moment as the temptation to use her power made itself known, but she shook it off and grabbed a book trolley.
With a yell, she brought it around and slammed it into him, throwing him out the window and into the streets.
Screams were heard outside, but Ruby paid them no mind as she stepped over the broken glass.
The grey-haired assassin was still busy picking himself back up. Broken glass, splintered wood and torn up book covers and pages were scattered all around him.
"I don't know who you are, but you're going to tell me what Roman is up to and maybe I won't beat the tar out of you."
The assassin chuckled as he gave her that confident grin. "Come and try."
"Gun!"
The sudden click that came from the soles of the assassin's shoes were all the indicator Ruby needed as to where the next attack was coming from.
In an eyeblink, she exploded into red pedals as he fired air dust rounds from his shoes. This rain of fire continued as she circled him like a shark. When she reformed, she was behind him, and her arms were around his throat.
He thrashed and jerked as he attempted to break her hold. While they struggled, the other window of the shop burst open as the green haired girl rolled to her feet, firing her twin revolvers at the admittedly scary form of Penny as she emerged from the shade of the bookstore.
When the girl spied the situation, her partner was in and aimed a shot at Ruby. The bullet hit her in the forehead forcing her to release the assassin.
While she was momentarily stunned the assassin delivered a powerful kick to her stomach, sending her skidding across the road. Her head bouncing on the concrete and making her vision swim.
Damn, if only she had her Cresent Rose with her.
"Ruby!"
Penny abandoned her attempt to apprehend the girl and landed between her friend and the assassin who backed away at the mass of blades staring him down.
Ruby pushed herself up to one knee and shook her head to try and clear away the haze.
"And the robot too? I'm starting to see why she wants you dead, you're a pain in the neck."
Ruby growled as the monster rose up inside her again. It wanted to make him grovel and beg.
"That hurt. I'll rip your legs off for that."
Her words sounded distance and deep. Like she was not speaking with words but using some other medium that did not and never would have a name that somehow gave her words physical force.
The assassin flinched when he felt it, but he stood his ground. "Like I said, come and try!"
"Mercury!" shouted the green haired girl.
"What!?" shouted the assassin who was apparently named Mercury.
"We need to go! Now!"
Mercury looked back at his companion with a disgruntled sneer. "Are you crazy? This is our chance to end all that peacock's whining?"
"That's the robot girl, you idiot and she's seen our faces!"
Mercury's face went pale as he realized what they had just done. Ruby could not understand but she understood the value of anonymity. Whatever they had planned required them to remain unknown and now Penny was here to spoil all that for them.
Mercury turned his attention to Penny, his intent clear.
"Then we scrap the robot."
He delivered a series of rapid kicks that send a barrage of air dust bullets toward Penny who either dodged them or cut them down with her swords.
Ruby meant to help but she was still dizzy from that blow to her head. Just standing was a challenge.
Then as the green haired girl joined in, sirens sounded from the streets around them. The Vale police force was on the way.
"Damn it!" Mercury cried as he gave Ruby a glare.
Seeing his composure broken, all she could do was give him a shark tooth grin. Her vision had cleared by this point, and she was ready to get back in the fight.
Mercury leapt into the air and delivered a powerful downward kick into the road, creating a cloud of dust all over the street.
Not wanted her prey to escape, she surged into the cloud with her semblance only to find that they were already gone. She had to admit it, they were good.
"It appears that they have escaped," said Penny as her blades folded away behind her, reinserting themselves into the compartment built into her upper back.
The sirens grew louder as the police cars came into view. Ruby sighed as she knew Yang would give her an earful for this. Not to mention Weiss.
"Should we flee the scene again?" asked Penny.
"No, they've already seen us. Better to just get this over with."
There was no shortage of conceit in her voice as she lamented the loss of the rest of her day off.
It was not long after that she was taken to her second police station of that year. This time the repose from Beacon was even sooner than the first as Glynda stomped into the cell, a stormy look on her face. A bag underneath her arm and a tablet scroll in the other.
Ruby for her part, simply held that same expression she always wore. The look of befuddlement at the anger of the person before you.
"You have a nasty habit of getting yourself in trouble young lady."
"They were going to kill that guy. If I have to get locked up to keep someone alive that's fine."
Ruby didn't entirely mean what she said, but she knew it was something her mother would say, and they would soften Glynda up slightly.
Good to see her tactic worked as Glynda went from stormy to stern within seconds.
"I understand your intention, but please, be more tactful next time. You ripped that establishment to pieces."
"Understood. Is that Tukson guy alright?"
Glynda offered Ruby the back that she had brought with her.
"Consider yourself lucky he was there to vouch for you, or you might have to stay here overnight while we battle the legal system to get you released."
Ruby took the bag and Glynda sighed as a realisation dawned on her. A conflicted smile plastered on her face.
"Oh, who am I kidding, you've been nothing but lucky since I met you."
Ruby looked inside the back and smiled. Her Mechashift magazines! Alongside the magazines was something else. It was the book she spied at Tukson's shop, Path of Destruction.
With this item came a letter. It read, "You really know how to pick a title after what you did to my store. Thanks for the help kid, I'm not much of a fighter. You can have this as a thank you, free of charge."
With a shriek of joy, she hugged the back. Today was a good day after all.
Penny sat patiently in her own cell. The authorities had not come to question her, and she had not heard from Ruby.
The door to the cell opened and in walked Winter Schnee, calm and collected as always.
"Greetings, Specialist Schnee, I trust you are enjoying your assignment at Beacon?"
Penny had always tried to be nice to Winter, even though her focus was on the ill Maiden who had passed away recently. The Specialist had only rarely returned such warmth though. It was as if she were trying to avoid becoming fond of Penny for some reason.
"It is… more manageable than I first believed it would be," said Winter, presenting a tablet scroll to Penny. "But we are not here to talk about me. You are going to be released but first you have to explain yourself."
The screen lit up, revealing the face of General Ironwood sitting at his desk with his fingers stippled together.
Penny got to her feet and gave the General a salute.
"At ease Penny, you aren't a soldier, remember. You might take orders like one, but you are not one."
"Understood," she said and relaxed her stance, even though from the General's perspective it still looked rather rigid.
"Now, I would like to know why you were arrested. I shall make it clear that I am not punishing you. I simply wish to understand your reasoning."
"There was an incident at a local bookstore where two assailants planned to commit premeditated murder on the store owner as a form of revenge from the White Fang."
"And the owner was a member of the Fang I presume?"
"That is correct, he confirmed so himself."
"And just what were you doing in a bookstore? You have access to the largest database on Remnant, if you want to know something it is one message away from being streamed directly to you."
"I was accompanying Ruby Rose as she was browsing. I was curious about what makes such activities interesting."
The General looked off to the side before speaking again. "And just what did you learn?"
"That lessons can be learned in different fashions other than the direct conveyance of information. And she also conveyed a personal belief that explained her motive for becoming a huntress."
The General leaned forward towards the screen. "And that would be?"
"The world is a dangerous place. That most people do not realize just how much danger they are in with the Creatures of Grimm. That and she is aware that most are incapable of defending themselves when the time comes. So, it is up to us to keep them safe."
Winter for one looked surprised by such words from the seemingly immature leader of her sister's team. Ruby Rose was a complicated creature indeed.
The General for one, looked rather pleased.
"I see your friendship with Miss Rose is paying off. I trust you will continue in that regard. Remember Penny, she has silver eyes. Even without her fighting talent and her tactical acumen, that alone makes her worth keeping alive in our efforts to save the Kingdoms."
"I shall do my best General."
"Good, now the Professor wants to talk to you. He wants to know how your second outing to vale went."
Penny's smile widened. Today was a sensational day.