A/N: Shorter than I'd like, but here we are.
Daaaang that last episode was heavy.
Still sick, but an update was promised an so an update shall be given.
If I may recommend some music for this chapter, Mephisto's Lullaby by Xtortion Audio.
And so the march Madness -aka RWBY month- continues!
As my fifteen year anniversary on this site draws near, I find myself reflecting on the little things in life. What was once a lazy pastime meant for me and a few friends really grew and evolved over time. There are days when I look back on the last fifteen years here and I wonder if anyone will remember me; if I made an impact, despite never making a single cent on any of these stories. Some days were happier than others, and some stories I enjoyed writing WAY too much; to the point where I'd stay up all night working on them.
And of course, there are times when I look to the future and wonder what will become of things when I'm gone.
Of course, I try not to dwell on the latter overmuch; I'm still alive and still writing. In an ideal world, I'd like to keep doing so for as long as I can. But old age is catching up to me and these days, the world is filled with so much madness and death. The recent earthquake in Turkey/Syria serves as a terrible example. Even before that, so many friends and fellow writers I once knew are gone, now. Will I still be here in twenty years? Ten? Five? Its a chilling thought.
But for now, I'm still here, still writing.
As ever, the Embers rule remains: If people don't like this story? If they don't enjoy it? Well...I' won't be able to continue it. That's no joke, folks. I'm so busy these days with two jobs; holidays are HERE and basically, I don't have time off. Not anymore. My free time is limited and as such, I can't afford to focus on something folks don't like. Reviews keep me writing in these times, and keep the daily updates flowing. Silence...silence only hurts. I hate having to beg for feedback, but without it...well, it feels like I'm not making an impact.
Alright, I've kept you waiting long enough, methinks. Enough of this old man's rambling; you're here for a story.
Once more, I own nooooo references, quotes, memes or themes. Not a wit or a one. Nope.
They're simply tributes to legends far greater than I.
Hope you're ready for some surprises~!
References from the Last Wish here.
Because I finally saw it.
*shivers*
"What's wrong, Roman? Life flashing before your eyes? You're not living up to the legend. You're slow. Sloppy. Sad.
Ah. There it is. I love the smell of fear in the evening...
...what're you waiting for? Pick your cane up.
Pick. It. Up."
~?
Pick it Up
Today just wasn't Roman's day.
Not his day, not his week, not his month, not his LIFE.
Because you see, everything had gone south. Every! Damn! Thing! All of it! Every bit of it!
It should've been simple. A quick smash and grab on the docks with Adam's lousy animals. Get in. Get the dust. Get out. Then throw said animals under the bus and make off with the profits himself. And with said profits, he could commence the final phase his master plan; the grand scheme that would finally get that blasted bloody blond reaper off his arse once and for all.
And he would've gotten away with it too! If it weren't for those meddling kids!
Bad enough that he'd both wasted time an' aura on monkey boy over there-and the damn catgirl!-but now the cops were on the way and half the damn place was on fire! He'd be lucky to break even after this. All that dust! Wasted! He couldn't even pin this on the Fang; those who hadn't rabbited at the first sign of trouble had been beaten down and left to burn.
Just like the embers of his life.
A muffled groan at his feet roused his temper to new heights.
Right, right. She was still alive. He had his boot on her chest. Time to put the curious cat out of her misery.
"Listen you!" he thrust his new-and-improved Melodic Cudgel in the girl's face. "I have had it up to HERE with interruptions tonight! Any last words, kitty-cat?"
"Just three, actually." the girl's golden eyes narrowed and her smile shattered his confidence "Dad! Your turn!"
Roman absolutely twitched. "Da...?"
A low whistle pervaded the air. The hairs on the back of his neck rose. He'd never heard that sound before in his life. And yet it provoked a strange, nameless dread in him all the same. Like fingers of ice tracing the length of his spine; a frigid whisper in the ear, the promise of a shallow grave. Everything he'd ever feared distilled into one, singular moment.
And still the whistling persisted.
He pivoted in place, frowning now as a heavy fog rolled in from the water's edge. The fires faded. Darkness swept in. High overhead the moon hid her shattered face behind a bank of black clouds. With her passing he felt the temperature plummet. His breath emerged as a thin plume of steam. His teeth began to chatter.
"...!"
An awful screech of steel dragging against stone snarled across the docks. He gulped. The pale haze pressed in on him from every side, obscuring his vision further still.
"What the hell is this?!" He cursed himself for the tremor in his voice even as he spoke. "Some kinda of semblance?"
The faunus girl -hadn't even gotten her name-smirked up at him. "...not quite."
He growled and stomped down, only for her to vanish in a plume smoke. Damn tricks! When he got his hands on her...
.
..
...why had the whistling stopped?
A single sharp note echoed behind him.
Against his better judgement, Roman turned to face it.
Red eyes gleamed back at him from the gloom, framed by tawny blond hair and dimpled whiskered cheeks. Was that a shovel in his hand? It was, even now dragging against the ground behind, spitting sparks. Damn thing looked way too sharp for his liking. Why on earth have a shovel...if you weren't...going to...?
Oh.
Ohh.
Ohhh that was bad.
"Sorry to crash the party-actually, no. I'm not." Naruto Uzumaki smiled back at him, idly shouldering his strange tool. "You've been a busy little bee, hiding from me...
Dread became mindless terror.
"No!" Roman stabbed a finger at him. "No, no, no! You're not real! You can't be here!"
"Hello, Torchwick." the madman spoke over his rant. "Been awhile. Do you remember what I said the last time we met?"
He did. He didn't want to, but he did. Not here. He wasn't supposed to be here. Why in the name of the Brother Gods was he here?!
"Had fun with my little Blake, did you?" He waved a hand to the girl, sprawled on her knees behind him. "She wanted so badly to beat you on her own. Just her and Sun. I had to let her try." slim shoulders rolled in a wry shrug. "The foolishness of a father, I suppose. Now she's going to watch, and she's going to learn."
Roman paled. "Oh, shit. You're his kid...?"
This close, he could see the resemblance between them. Nope, nope, nope! All the nope! Time to take the dust and bolt!
"Neo!" he flailed about, looking for any sign of her in the fog. "Exit stage left!"
Nothing happened.
...Neo?" Neo! We gotta go-
A hand closed around his throat, rendering his words a rasp of a gasp.
"She's had her fun." Bloody red slits met his, stark and slitted. "Now its your turn."
Frantic, he swung Melodic Cudgel 'round and bashed at the blond's arm. Rather than take the blow Naruto let him go, swaying back. Roman pressed the attack to swing again. He didn't dare squeeze off a shot, not with so much in the way of dust around. He almost wished he could if only to wipe the smile off that big bastard's face.
Instead his dented cane met empty air as the blond swayed nimbly aside.
"You're slow." Naruto chided.
Twice.
"Sloppy."
Three times, now.
"Sad."
A boot cracked out, caught him in the chest, and sent him slamming down to the docks. He felt three ribs shatter on the impact. His precious hat went flying off into the fog; even as he reached for it a clawed hand caught him by the wrist and hauled him to his feet. He tried to speak. To say something. Anything at all. Clenched knuckles barreled into his face. Teeth flew through the air. He reeled away, only for the hand on his wrist to yank him in for two more. Three. Five. Seven. He lost track after that.
"You're not living up to your legend here, Roman." his tormentor let him droop, dangling by the arm. "I thought the "Gentleman Thief" would fight harder with his life on the line."
He could barely see anymore, let alone speak. "...amn...you...
"There's some spirit!" Blasted blond bastard dropped him like a sack of potatoes. "Now get up."
His legs wouldn't listen. He crawled away. Not like this. Please, not like this. He didn't want to go like this...
"What's wrong, Roman?" he heard the footsteps following him at a laconic pace. "Life flashing before your eyes?
Yes! Very much so! He saw every second of it now, every mistake he'd ever made, reflected in bitter hindsight. But also the happy moments. The good times. The Spiders. Neo. Vale. He had been...happy with life. Content to do whatever he pleased. That was his way. You only had the one go around, so you might as well enjoy it. He'd lived by that creed for the longest time...
Until he raided that store for the damn dust.
"It was Just a Dust Shop!"
"Yes, but that was my shop." a boot crunched down on his hand, drawing a wail from him. "I was out of the game. You dragged me back in." up came his sole, letting him crawl away once again. "What, nothing to say? And here I thought your kind laughed in the face of death. Well? What're you waiting for?" that same foot kicked his cane towards him. "Pick your cane up." another kick sent it skittering his way. "Fight for your life. Make your last moments count."
Roman eyed it for a moment. No. His nerve failed him and he scrambled backward instead.
Naruto advanced, shovel in hand. "Pick. It. Up. Or I'll bury you with it."
Roman's resolve broke. He leaped to his feet and ran.
He didn't get far.
"You're ruining this for me, Roman!" A hand caught him by his collar and hauled him back, nearly choking him outright. "Where's your spirit? Where's your fire?"
"Dad, wait!" Blake's voice cut through the fog. "We need him alive! He knows things about the White Fang! Information!"
"Don't worry, sweetie." Warm breath ghosted over his ear. "I won't kill him...yet."
Roman redoubled his struggled. Killing quickly was a mercy. Any criminal worth his salt knew that. Once you were dead, that was it. Game over. Life wasn't a video game. No extra lives here. No continues. Life was harsh. Life was cold. Life would always take what it was owed. One way or another.
"But you know what they saaay~! An eye for an eye~!"
A knife slashed up. Roman was just a hair too slow.
His vision went dark with a scream.
(.0.0.0.)
Jaune had never fought anyone like Cinder before.
It was nothing like training with Pyrrha; his partner took things slow, giving him time to learn. Adapt, even. Cinder was...none of these things. All deadly grace and in your face, she was bloody relentless, forcing him to fight for his life or be mowed down. No time to flinch, no chance to falter. You either adapted or she beat you into the ground.
He loved it.
Less so the pain, but still!
Breath burst from his lungs as a scorching first found his torso, folding him in half. He stumbled back with a wheeze. Righted himself now, and rushed back in. Crocea Mors struck true, clashing against a black blade forged of hardened glass, forcing a stalemate. Golden eyes leered at him, half-lidded with delight.
"Come closer." she grinned over their interlocked weapons. I won't bite."
Jaune gulped. "Not the biting I'm worried about...
Cinder hummed a little. "Good, you're cautious. That trait will serve you well...now, defend yourself."
A bloodcurdling shriek filled the night suddenly, sending a shiver shooting down his spine.
Jaune rounded on it with a yelp." What in blazes was that?!"
Cinder blanched. "That...would be my father at work."
A/N: Ah, but did Roman die...?
As ever, the "Embers" rule remains in effect for now.
If folks don't like this...well, I won't be able to continue it.
Truly, it pains me to say that, but I work two jobs, and days off are a thing of the past for me as of late. Reviews are the fire that keeps me writing. Without them, I cannot put pen to paper. Simple as that. Every bit of feedback matters, large or small~! Your voice matters! Speak up! I repeat, every bit of feedback matters...even if people think it doesn't. And there we have it.
So in the immortal words of Atlas... ...Review, Would you Kindly?
Here, have a preview! Hope they make ya laugh.
(Preview)
Naruto was helping her.
Why? Why was he training her?
Blake couldn't comprehend it, much less bring herself to understand it.
Was it out of kindness? Annoyance? A desire to see Team RWBY reunited, or simply to get her out of his hair? On a subconscious level she knew he was her father, her blood, her sire, but even so she barely knew him and he'd barely known her until recently. He'd been a perfect stranger to her until then. And yet.
She hit the ground, Gambol Shroud landed beside her, flung at her feet.
Her father whistled softly. "Pick it up."
Blake did...and he grinned.
"That's my girl."
"Its decided, then."
Kali laid her drink down with a scowl.
Summer mirrored the motion, not looking best pleased.
"We have an accord then." Willow smiled softly. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend?"
"I'll agree...on one condition. Raven has no place here."
"Don't have to tell me twice." Naruto took a long drink from his bottle. "Screw breaking her legs, I might just kill her straight up if I ever see her again.
"I know you hate her, but that's still Yang's mother. Doesn't she deserve a chance to reconcile-
"Nope."
"But at least Yang-
"Nope." he smacked his lips with an audible pop.
Summer's right eye began to twitch. She paused. Waited. And then. "Let me finish my sentence-
"NOPE!"
She flew over the table at him.
"Please to meet you! I'm Kyojuro!
She vaguely recalled the old mentioning someone named Rengoku. With that hair and those eyes...if they weren't related, she'd eat her boot.
The young man beamed back at them, utterly unaware of her racing thoughts.
"Wait. I have a big brother?!" Ruby squealed.
"I GOTTA TELL EVERYONE!
"Oi."
"What have you done?"
He grinned. "Scorched earth."
Ruby hit Winter in a cloud of crimson petals. "New sister!"
Weiss stomped a foot. "Ruby Rose! Unhand my sister this instant!"
"But she's my sister too...
R&R~!