Ruby
Ruby sits tight with her fists clenched and Oscar stands in the corner, waiting for the opportune moment. They can hear the gleeful laughter of one Tyrian Callows getting near to their cells. His shadow walks across the walls as he walks towards her cell. "Looks like I need to make another message for them." Tyrian whispers as he stares at Ruby and Oscar, his wrist blades extending quickly, light shining across the curved blades. The edges serrated from where he has recently sharpened them with a sharpening stone. Ruby looks at him and she stares straight into his golden yellow eyes.
"Give it your best." Ruby challenged with a smirk, her confidence angers the Scorpion Faunus. He stands there, and her eyes widen when she sees the tail rising up.
The barb has fully grown back now, filled with poison that could kill her or at least force her into an endurance of agony. She never felt the pain that Qrow experienced as the poison corrupted his bloodstream, slowly killing him over time. It could have been much worse, only a little bit of poison got into him, but now he could get a lot more into her. "I can make you suffer now..." He assures.
"Try it." She challenges, and Tyrian arches an eyebrow, confused at her sudden fearlessness.
"What are you waiting for?" Tyrian questions. But Ruby narrows her only eye as she stares at him, and it further angers the psychotic man.
She waits...
...and waits.
He grabs the latch and then he opens the cell, about to close the door. "The opportunity of a lifetime." She answers when he enters, making him stop, realising his mistake. She screams as she launches towards him in a whirlwind of red rose petals, punching him across the side of his head, hitting him hard. Tyrian grunts in pain and Ruby kicks him in the spine and it causes him to stagger. Normally he is able to counter such a simple attack, but he was not expecting her to do it. She catches the door and slams it shut, locking it behind her with Tyrian trapped inside. "No!" Tyrian roars with anger, reaching through the bars for her. He reaches for the keys on his belt but he feels nothing, and then he sees her holding the keychain with a smirk on her cheeky face. He clenches his hand into a fist. "If you think you're gonna get out of here – you are dead wrong." Tyrian giggles frenziedly. But Ruby just walks over to Oscar's cell and she unlocks his door and lets him out. Oscar steps out from the cell and they both look at the trapped Faunus in the cell, animalistically pounding and scraping his blades against the bars to get out, but to no avail.
The cell was built too strong for a prisoner to escape. Ruby smirks and salutes to him. "Enjoy your stay, Tyrian." Ruby says with a smile, running with Oscar to get out of there. They can still hear Tyrian yelling with anger inside the cell as they flee down the corridor.
"How long until they know we've escaped?" Oscar asks her, wagering a bet.
Suddenly there is a loud alarm that starts blaring in the base as some Acolytes have added security systems to the base. "All hands! Prisoner escape!" The soldier on the comms yells. Ruby looks at her partner and laughs a little.
"That long." She says.
"It seems so." He chuckles, they continue to run down the corridor and Ruby looks at the boy.
"Do you know how to control your semblance yet?" She asks him and he holds his palm out and shakes it from side to side. In a sort of kind of way. "What does that mean? You can so-so control them? So you can so-so stop time, oh that makes me feel so much better!" Ruby sarcastically groans as they run.
"I'll figure it out." Oscar says to her to try and make her feel better, but Ruby is still not entirely convinced. It took her years to control Rose Dash; hopefully he can learn his in a couple of moments.
"How do you intent on doing that?" Ruby asks him.
"I'll improvise!" Oscar says, they turn a corner and their eyes widen when they see an Acolyte of Lien Mercenary aiming his rifle at them. They both gasp and he fires his gun at them, then time stops with a loud unstable crack, the bullets stopping mid-air in this moment. He takes his chance, still not certain on how he did that – maybe because he thought about it? Or is Ozpin helping him do it? Oscar sprints at the frozen Mercenary and he jumps into the air and he arches his fist backwards, smashing his knuckles into the side of the Merc's head so hard that it continued the time lag. The soldier is smashed into the ground hard, either dead or unconscious – probably dead after that almighty punch he just experienced. Ruby looks at where he was and now sees him next to the soldier. She cannot help but double take at the boy who is now all the way over there. He shrugs his shoulder, smiling as he looks at the Rose. "See?" He chuckles and Ruby giggles.
"That's gonna take some time for me to get used to." Ruby says to him.
"Yeah it's gonna take some time." He comments, playing on the word. Ruby groans with disgust as she does whenever her sister makes some kind of pathetic pun.
"Don't fall to my sister's level – please." She begs.
"No promises." He chuckles as she catches up to him and they keep on moving, making banter between each other as they run. They run as fast as they can, the howls of Beowulves grow and grow...Ruby needs to find Crescent Rose if she has any hope of getting out of here alive.
"Search the cells! Find them!" Salem's voice bellows down the halls and they can hear the sounds of the Grimm chasing after them, and there is a lot. They run quicker and quicker, a Creep stood down the end and it starts to run at them, roaring as it charges at them. Ruby bursts into rose petals and she lands on the spine of the Creature of Grimm, using her bare hands to kill it. She has never been a physically strong girl, always had to rely on her trusty Scythe. But she has not got it now.
Think Ruby, think!
Remember back to Professor Port's lessons...where is its weak spot? Oh! It's belly!
Ruby pushes the Creep as hard as she can with her hands and with Oscar's help; they manage to push the confused creature onto its side. It thrashes around, kicking its muscular legs and roaring savagely where it has fallen. Oscar turns and he sees a torch stapled to the wall and he looks at it. He was able to manipulate time by thinking about it, so he has an interesting theory in his head.
What else am I capable of?
He thinks of being able to age whatever he touches, so he places his fingers on the metal bolts and plates that holds the sharp torch to the wall. The end of it would be enough to puncture the flesh. He looks at it carefully and thinks as hard as he can, blocking everything else out of his mind.
And then...
...he sees rust forming across the metal as it starts to crumble apart and come loose. He smiles with amazement and he rips the torch from the rusted bolts and screws that held it there. "Can't believe that worked!" Oscar cheers with success. He holds the stake and he jogs over to the writhing Creep on the floor that Ruby is still holding down. He holds the torch and points the jabbing end above where the heart should be. He stabs into it and black smoke pours from the wound the Creep has suffered and it shrieks in pain. He stabs it over and over until it dies, and eventually after a few hits, the body starts to disintegrate away into smoke. He holds the torch in his hand and he gives it to Ruby.
"Don't you need it?" She asks him, always worrying about other people rather than herself.
"I can use my Semblance, seemed to work on that soldier." He says to her, and Ruby agrees with him and they start to move as fast as they can to escape this place.
Ruby and him look round a corner and there is a blockade. Since Ruby has a weapon, she will be able to do some damage. There are four soldiers there, armed with guns and ready to take them down. They both look at each other and they nod. Oscar charges out first and then Ruby runs with him, bursting into the cyclone of roses towards them. As the swirl moves towards them, the time continuum slows down and the petals flutter gently towards her target. Oscar sprints past her and hops across the barricades in front of them and he jumps next to one of the soldiers and throws his clenched fist into the side of the Mercenary's head, his head smashes into the floor and the slowed down moment in time continues, and Ruby warps towards the soldier she targeted. She returns back to her human form and drives the torch he gave her into his heart, pushing him across the floor. A third soldier aims at her, then time pauses again and Oscar grabs his rifle and smashes it across the man's head with force, taking him out. When time continues, Ruby throws her torch blade into the chest of the last militant, managing to kill him with it, like it was a throwing knife.
Oscar helps her back up and they continue. "That was cool!" She says and they give each other a high five.
They seem to be enjoying themselves.
In advance of when they turn a corner, their eyes widen with dread when they see the Knight of Death stood there, looking over his shoulder and glaring at them with those glowing red triangular shaped eyes, his gauntleted hand of shadows gripping the hilt of Ferrum Arctus, sheathed on his back. He draws the blade, a deep ringing sound escaping the metal as he removes it from the scabbard.
"Where do you think you're going?" He questions, and they start to back up from him. He towers above them, nearly at seven feet high and the sword is still taller than both of them stood on their shoulders. They persist to back up, but Ruby feels her head bumping into someone behind her and she turns.
To her incredulity...
It is Mercury and Emerald with their weapons ready, but not staring at them. But at Death. "Get out of here you two." Emerald says to them as she holds her Revolver Sickles in her hands, swinging them round at the hilt of the chain, smirking at Death. Death snarls deeply as he stands there, glaring at this betrayal that has suddenly been set in motion.
"You dare oppose me?" Death questions, holding his sword tighter, red lightning channelling through the blade as he stands there.
"Well you already put a target on the back of my head – if you think I'm gonna go down easily, you've got another thing coming." Mercury challenges, standing ready to fight, his cybernetic legs primed to battle. Emerald points her weapons at him with narrowed red eyes and gritted teeth. Death stares at her.
"And you? What is your reason?" He questions.
"She is only a kid – she doesn't deserve to suffer like this." Emerald answers and Ruby looks at them, now she is actually concerned for their safety.
How the tables have turned.
Death creates a menacing snarl when he stares at them both. "Then you have chosen your own fate." Death states coldly, swinging the huge blade of his sword right at them both. Mercury jumps backwards and kicks his legs at the Knight, firing shells straight into the blade, which he deflects swiftly. Emerald looks at the two kids.
"Go!" Emerald yells, rolling behind the Knight and slashing her blades up his back aggressively. Mercury sprints directly at the Knight and he jumps at him, kicking his cybernetic prosthetics at him. Death holds the thick metal blade of his sword upwards and he shields his body from the dynamic punts from Mercury. Every impact of the boots hitting the blade resounds metallic twangs across the blade. He pushes both of his feet against the blade and fires the guns inside, using the recoil to soar away from him just at the Knight's black Nevermore Wings fold out from his smoke trailing cape, slashing the fatal feathers straight at him. Emerald uses her semblance, attempting to trick the Knight into seeing her vanish, but it fails and he swings his sword horizontally at her head. She ducks down, dropping her knees and managed to slide between his legs. Emerald aims both of her guns at the Knight and shoots him in the back, doing practically nothing to his invulnerable form. He slowly turns his head and stares at her, until Mercury kicks him in the side of the head.
Emerald leaps into the air just as Death charges the lightning through his sword and blasts a powerful beam of annihilation at her, blowing a hole in the floor. She throws one of her chained sickles and it hooks onto a section of the ceiling and she swings towards him like Tarzan, kicking him in the side of the head and then shooting him with the other. Mercury sprints at the Knight and he spins round, kicking at the air to fire the shells around him into a swirling vortex around Death. Death stands there and he shields himself with his wings and they cross over his head and the shells explode upon impact on his tough black Nevermore Feathers.
As the smoke clears, a pack of Fatal Feathers are thrown directly at them and they take a couple of hits, their auras being damaged in the process. They both look at the cloud of smoke and they see the ominous figure emerging from the gloom, staring straight at them with his sword still gripped. "You are skilled against students." He begins, pointing his sword at them. "But I am anything but." Death threatens and Mercury scoffs.
"Never thought I'd hear someone as formal as you trash-talk...we all have our low points I guess."
Ruby and Oscar continue to flee, hearing them both fighting Death down the corridor. He was their main threat, but they have yet to see what Salem is capable of. And they have no idea of where they are going to get out of here. "Where now?" Oscar asks her as he looks around.
"I dunno!" Ruby responds, looking around the area for answers.
Without warning, they hear the sound of maniacal laughter nearby...he has broken out of his cell already. And he is not going to be peaceful about this, they both look down the hallway and they see him leap down, his scorpion tail arched over his shoulder and he stares at her. "Ruby!" He howls, sprinting directly at her, and they have no other option than to run. But Oscar stops and he grits his teeth and stares at the maniac as he runs at him.
"Oscar!" She yells.
He has another idea...and he has no idea if it will work. He holds his hand out and he gets closer and closer. Until suddenly a flash of light shoots from his hand and there is a ball of fractured matter surrounding him, keeping him stuck in that moment where he is, like a bubble. They can hear his stretched yells from when he was. "Come on!" Oscar yells, knowing that the Time Bubble is not going to last forever. Ruby looks at him as they run, confused of what has just happened.
"How did you know to do that?" She asks him.
"I didn't." Oscar answers.
Tyrian remains frozen in time but the bubble begins to shudder, the sharp fragments of time cracking and coming apart as he forces his way out, his screams of rage growing and growing. Suddenly the bubble bursts and he continues to chase after them, confused for a second of how they managed to get away from him like that. He snarls like a snake at his constant ability to lose them. "Run as far as you want, my little flower! I will find you!" He shouts maniacally.
The hallways just seem to loop and loop, the same thing everywhere they go. Until they find a new room...
One that is haunting.
Ruby gasps in horror...
She has found Tyrian's Trophy Room. And it is a place of nightmares.
Bodies hanged up by nails through their limbs, blood still staining their tormented bodies. All once had silver eyes, but they have been carved from their skulls by his curved wrist blades, stung multiple times with his tail probably from the injection scars across the bodies. Some have been disembowelled, some beheaded, others stabbed to death where they were hanged up. All of them have Silver Eyes...
...and this is what she awaits if she does not get out.
And he will do this to her, there are women, men and children warriors here. And they are all dead. Hazel does not take enjoyment from killing them, he hates doing it, but he does it for his own revenge on Ozpin in the future. Watts does it because it is all just business to him, the Knights kill them because they see it as their duty and they kill anything with a pulse. But Tyrian – he is something else entirely. He takes them, strips them down to nothing, and slowly kills them, makes them endure the worst suffering known to man.
The place has made her stop, frozen in fear, in the middle of the butchering room. Her eyes widen and she jumps when she hears the door slamming shut behind her. She turns, realising that they were too slow.
Tyrian has caught up to them.
And he has a gritted grin growling on his mad face. Ruby stares at him where he stands, her legs shaking from terror as the madman glares at her, not Oscar, her. He has some kind of sick obsession with the Silver Eyed Warriors, especially with their eyes. And he seems to enjoy cutting those eyes from their faces and torturing them to death. They booms can be distantly heard as Mercury and Emerald fight Death, but Tyrian wants to savour this moment. "Like my Trophy Room?" Tyrian asks her, holding his hands out to the place, how many people died screaming inside here. Blood stains the walls, the floor and even sections of the ceiling from where he has conducted his work.
"Why do you do this?" Ruby grills with a broken voice from the horrors and Tyrian cackles, throwing his back backwards.
"What? Why did I carve their eyes from their skulls? Take their guts from their bellies? Make them suffer?" He asks her, walking closer to the little girl who is truly scared of him now, crouching down to stare her in the eyes. "The same reason I do anything." He says, shockingly, he grabs her and kisses her on the lips and she pushes him away, shrieking in horror, staring at him. He smirks as he extends the blades. "Why not?" He asks her, giggling away. Oscar sternfully scowls at the man, clenching his hand into a fist, fractured shards of time floating across his fists where he stands.
Oscar stands in front of Ruby, setting a withered gawk upon the face of the laughing maniac. Tyrian then focuses on the Farmhand. Tyrian chuckles as he sees the brave boy standing between him and his dear friend. "So it is true – you do love her." Tyrian states as he stares at her, but Oscar says nothing.
Showing the truth as well.
Tyrian's smirk never seems to disappear. "If you want to get to her, you'll have to get through me." Oscar states. Tyrian gibbers at him as he stands there, but Ruby has never been one to let someone get hurt over her. She can fight for herself. But they are both outmatched in this fight. But Oscar still has power over Tyrian, but he needs to remember that every semblance has its limitations.
"We fight together or not at all." Ruby says to him, looking him right in the eyes and then they both look at Tyrian. Tyrian cheers, clapping his hands together when he sees them both.
"All we need now is a romantic kiss to seal the deal!" Tyrian squeaks, the blades on his wrists scrape against one another as he claps his hands together. But they are not laughing, and Ruby focuses her only eye on one of the tools he has on the table. Oscar however is fine with his fists.
"Be careful, Oscar – he is on edge." Ozpin advises. But Oscar is angry; he has had enough of seeing her being hurt by this man. Time freezes and he runs at Tyrian, swinging his fist into the side of his head, causing him to stagger when he punches, and he backs into the wall. But when Oscar aims to do it again, he feels an extremely sudden and sharp pain in his head and he grabs his head, falling to his knees, screaming in pain from the pain that he is experiencing.
He has reached a limit...
Your semblance is a great fallback, but you can't let yourself rely on it
It won't always save you
Tyrian stares at him and he roars, punching him with the blades still extended and the impact launches him. He grunts in pain, luckily his aura protected him, but it still hurt a bit. He is pushed back and slides across the floor, his hands still on his head from the side effect of his abilities. Ruby looks at Oscar, then at Tyrian as he gets ready to attack again. Tyrian laughs and runs straight at her.
Ruby dives away, rolling out of his way and she punches him in the side of the head, but the punch hurts her more than it hurts him. He quickly spins round and kicks her in the chest. She slides across the floor and she focuses her silver eye on a still heated branding iron. It has the Eye of Salem Symbol forged onto it, glowing red hot and Tyrian runs towards her. She grabs the iron and pushes it towards his face.
The iron burns into his right eye, and a howl of affliction erupts from Tyrian's lungs as he staggers back, his skin burning and melting from the sudden contact and he presses his hand to his face. She has just burned his eye to the point of no return, the brand scarring the side of his face and he glares at her with his one eye and she stands up, still holding the branding iron, beside Oscar. "An eye for an eye, Tyrian." Ruby hisses, holding it tight. Tyrian screeches, lunging at her, smoke still pouring from the bleeding burns on his eye. She steps aside and smashes the iron across his face, so hard, that it has just knocked him out. A combination and the shock and pain from the burn on his face has done the job.
Oscar shakes the pain off and he sits up, looking at her. He then sees Tyrian's face, and notices that he is still bleeding. "That's one way to settle a score." Oscar scoffs.
"Come on, he's not gonna be happy when he wakes up." Ruby advises, helping him to his feet and they keep moving.
The window is open and it goes into a courtyard. The jump is manageable so they make it, dropping down from his Trophy Room and walking across the area. But as they run, their eyes focus on the main building, the church like glass shatters as Death, Mercury and Emerald are thrown through the building, crashing down into the courtyard. They both groan in pain, trying to get back up and Death stands tall, looking down at them both with Ferrum Arctus in his hand.
Ruby then sees Salem stepping out of the building with something terrifying beside her. It stands as tall as her, a body of bark with roots and weeds growing out of its body. It also has a Buck's skull, antlers displayed outwards with cracks across the bone. The being's hands have three digits, two sharp fingers and a sharp thumb, a pair of glowing red eyes inside the skull. Crows squawk as they follow it when it steps out. Salem stares straight at Ruby and Oscar and she points at them, her red eyes glow bright and the red veins glow as well. "Bring them to me." She demands. The crows then begin to fly towards them.
It's a Leshen.
But Ruby watches Death nervously as he approaches Mercury on the floor and picks him up by the throat, staring into his eyes. Emerald is trying desperately to get up but she has suffered an injury as well, bleeding from her side from her aura which has worn off. But as Death holds him, Mercury takes both boots and shoots into his chest, freeing himself from the gauntleted grip of Death. He flips backwards and goes for an attack.
His worst mistake he could have made.
Because Death swings Ferrum Arctus across his legs and slices clean through the metal limbs, carving them from where they were latched onto, sparks erupting out and he screams in pain, and falls into his grip again. His legs hit the floor, turning offline from the damage that they suffered, electrical fires igniting in places and they lay in the floor. Ruby managed to take a single step forward to help.
But like Pyrrha...
She was too late to stop him.
Death takes his sword and drives it straight through Mercury's chest, the blade bursting out of his back, blood dripping off the blade and onto the floor as Death holds him up there, staring into his eyes. Emerald's eyes widen in horror and Ruby stands hopeless, defeated from failing to save someone else who tried to save her. Death continues to stare at him and then Mercury's pupils dilate, blood dripping from his lips, arms hanging limp from his body. And then the skin turns fiery orange as Death consumes his Aura from the blade, his body burning up and crumbling into ashes. Just like Pyrrha did when Cinder killed her back at Beacon. Ferrum Arctus consumes the soul into the darkness of the blade and his embers float away into the wind, leaving Emerald with no one.
Deaths lowly turns his head and stares down at Emerald, she has no other option.
As a thief always does.
She turns and she flees.
And Death could have gone after her, but he didn't. He just stares at Ruby as the Leshen starts to walk towards her. But Ruby can't stop looking at where Mercury was...
And he is now dead.
She wanted punishment, but never death. She would mourn for him, but Oscar grabs her hand and pulls her away from the scene of his death. "We have to go!" Oscar yells.
"No! I can – I can still." She stammers, wishing she could help.
But the Leshen is getting closer and closer. "Ruby! Mercury is dead – we have to go, now!" Oscar says to her to make her see it and he pulls her away from the area. They run towards a possible exit, a colonnade, but when they run into the pillared paths, Death points Ferrum Arctus at them, charging the lightning through the blade and shooting it straight into the structure they are inside of. The ceiling of the concrete colonnade collapses in an explosion, debris plummeting down between them and splitting them up.
"Oscar!" Ruby screams, finding herself trapped. Oscar tries to find a way through, but all he sees is the Leshen coming after him. Ruby sees Death and Salem coming after her as well...
They have no choice...
They need to split up and pray that they can find each other later.
Oscar
The Leshen slams its rooted hand against the ground, channelling bark like roots through the soil that erupts behind him, trying to snatch him and bury him alive. He uses his semblance to flee as best as he can, but every time he does, he is faced with extreme headaches that could cripple him in the process. He holds his hand against his head and he looks back, seeing the Leshen pursuing him, creating a haunting growl as it follows him. The Buck's Antlers scraping against the stone pillars he runs past.
Oscar turns and he throws another Time Bubble, not as painful to use, but still creates some throbbing pains in his temples as he flees the monster. It has frozen just the legs – that is how tall this thing is. He did not stop the whole thing, just the lower half of its body. The Leshen stops and the upper half of the torso still moves. The head of the Leshen looks down at the bubble that has frozen its legs and it is pulling its body, trying to free itself.
Oscar takes that chance to get as far from the Leshen as he can, the Leshen only walks, it does not seem to run. The Leshen repeatedly forces its body against the time bubble, and every movement seems to make it more and more unstable, the shards flickering and bouncing around in the bubble. It is also quite silent as well, and then it rips its leg straight through the bubble with an almighty bang, stepping onto a chunk of concrete. The wooden foot of the Leshen crushes the concrete like it is made of soil, following the path he fled. Ever step the Leshen takes creates deep quaking footfalls, making the walls tremble in fear from its terrifying presence.
As Oscar runs from it, he is suddenly grabbed by an unseen figure and is pulled into the shadows from the Leshen's view. "Quiet." He tells him quietly, a gruff voice from his saviour. The Leshen stands tall, almost too tall to fit inside of this building, the branches in its body pressed against the walls. It looks around, looking for him and it snarls. It waits a couple of seconds and walks over to the pillar where they are hiding, pressing the wooden hand against the stone, scraping across it, dust falling from the friction of the touch.
The Leshen creates sounds very similar to the Nuckelavee, like the howling screams of the dead in its breath. It then turns and leaves, walking into a tree and vanishing as it uses the plant life to move around extremely swiftly. The hand is taken away from his mouth, nearly absorbing his entire face from how huge the hand is. He looks at the man in the darkness and he steps into the gloomy reddish purple light of the landscape.
It's Hazel.
"What are you doing?" Oscar questions as he looks around.
"Getting you out of here." Hazel answers, guiding him.
"What, no! We have to help Ruby!" Oscar argues.
"I will do what I can for Ruby, but I can get you to safety." He assures, taking him towards some kind of shrine. A crystal hovering before some kind of doorway.
"How? Where are you taking me?" Oscar inquires.
"I have a contact in Mistral; it is the closest place I can get you to find your friends." He explains as he places his hand on the crystal. Oscar looks at him and then Hazel removes his hand from the crystal. The dust crystal glows blue and it shoots a beam into the doorway, forming a portal that he can walk through and he looks at him.
"Please – save her as well." He begs.
"I will try, but I need to keep a low profile." Hazel explains. He holds his hand out and he looks at Hazel.
"Thank you." Oscar says with a smile and it warms the huge man's heart.
For once...he has received a kindness for his deeds. Oscar looks at the portal, and he walks towards it, entering the event horizon of the doorway and he feels the cold chill of the land change to a slightly warmer air.
Nothing like Vacuo though.
He walks into what looks like an office, hearing what sounds like conflict outside, and the portal closes behind him. He takes a step forward and the door bursts open, and he sees a tall man in a tuxedo slamming the door shut. He turns around and his eyes widen, gasping.
It's Junior.
Oscar nervously waves. "Who the hell are you?" Junior interrogates, pointing at him.
"My name is Oscar Pine, Hazel Rainart sent me here..." He explains. Junior's eyes widen in fear.
"You are the friend of that girl – Ruby Rose – right?" Junior asks him, clearly he knew about the whole thing happening.
"Yeah." Oscar answers.
He then hears the sound of the door smashing down behind him. Junior looks at him. "Stay quiet." He orders.
He immediately runs out and locks the door behind him and he starts listening into the conversation outside. Oscar peers through the window and he cannot believe what he is seeing.
Yang and Kassius are here.
He holds his hands up to the sides of his head and he backs up as Yang and Kassius walk towards him, Junior eyes a buzz saw on a wooden table as a possible weapon, but before he does, Kassius grabs him by the neck. "I don't think so." Kassius growls, forcing him against the wall aggressively, staring directly into his eyes and Junior looks terrified. "So – Blackjack, couldn't make yourself disappear, huh?" Kassius asks him with a smirk.
Oscar is watching the whole thing from inside the room, peering through a window to see what happens.
"Who the heck are you?" Junior questions with fear, holding the metal arm that is pressed against his neck. Yang walks over to Kassius' side, placing her arm on his shoulder with a smile.
"He's a friend." She says with a smirk, not stating their relationship to keep each other safe. If he has become dangerous, they do not want to make that a risk.
"Blondie...I've always helped you out, what do you need?" Junior asks them and Yang pats his shoulder to relax. He takes his cybernetic arm away from Junior's neck and he walks around, the man catches his breath as he stands there. Kassius stands to the window and then looks over his shoulder at him.
"I'm looking for someone." Kassius says. Junior wipes the dust from his hands and cracks his neck.
"Well I guess we both have something the other one wants." Junior cockily says the worst thing to say to Kassius as well. Kassius scowls sternfully and he turns to him, and smashes his metal fist directly into his crotch, making him squeal like a little girl, crumpling to his knees with his hands on his genitals. Yang actually flinches from that punch.
"Ouch, that had to hurt." She giggles.
"We're not here to ask favours, Hei." Kassius growls as he limps back up, wheezing in pain.
"You don't say." He whimpers in agony.
Kassius manages to get back onto the subject at hand so fast that it nearly seems scripted. "You helped a friend of mine disappear, I need to find her." Kassius states and Junior looks at him for advice.
"I'm gonna need – a little bit more information that that, pal." Junior tells him with squinted eyes, still suffering from the crotch punch.
"Her name is Ilia Amitola, a Faunus, part of the White Fang." Kassius explains, remembering every detail of her off by heart, but not in the kind way. In the way a hunter knows every single detail of his game.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah – I know who she is and I ain't telling you squat!" Junior argues, testing his patience.
"Junior, this doesn't have to be difficult." Yang says to him with a shrug.
"Screw you, Blondie. Every time you show up, everything goes to hell. I don't give out client information, it's bad for business." Junior says to him, and he never expected Kassius to throw his knee up into his chest and to throw him onto the floor, stamping down on his throat. Kassius pushes his whole body weight down onto the throat of the thug, staring straight into his eyes as he chokes.
"Do you know what else is bad for business? A broken neck!" Kassius barks with rage as he gets ready to twist his foot round, to snap his neck.
Junior struggles, holding his boot and Kassius holds him there until he cooperates. "Alright, alright!" Junior agrees with a strained voice. But Kassius is not so willing to release him, his eyes glowing faintly with a red hue, anger filling his veins as they faintly glow volcanically. Yang touches his shoulder and gently pulls him away from Junior so then he can breathe again.
"He's no use to us dead." Yang whispers into his ear and he exhales. Junior sits up and looks up at Yang.
"Beacon's fall really changed you, huh Blondie?" He chuckles.
Yang glares at him. "It definitely opened my eyes, now arrange the meeting!" Yang demands as he gets up. He looks at her and she glares at him as they stand there. He sighs.
"I'm going." He agrees, finally. He limps over to the console in the corner and he opens it up to a secure channel, speaking to her.
"Hello?" Her voice comes through, sounding nervous. He clearly is using an I.D Disguiser since she has no idea of who he is at first. "Who is this?" Ilia asks, sounding extremely nervous in fact.
"It's Blackjack, now listen carefully. You're identification has been compromised." He explains and the fear can be felt from her silence.
Until she speaks again. "Can you fix it?" She asks nervously.
"That's why I'm calling. I'm sending an agent out to Mistral, where'd you like to meet her?" Junior asks her. Ilia remains quiet for a couple of moments, but she finally responds.
"The Market District." Ilia answers.
"Alright, don't worry. I've got it covered." Junior assures as he ends the call and turns to them. "It's all good, she's gonna meet you at the Market District today." He tells them both, but they did not notice a very important detail at the time.
Under the terminal.
Was a gun.
"It's a shame that you're not gonna be the one to see her." He says, causing their eyes to widen. He suddenly points the gun straight at Yang, loaded with Anti-Aura rounds that are manufactured by Merlot Industries, made from the same materials as Wilt and Blush's blade. He pulls the trigger and the bullet hits Yang in the shoulder and she cries out in pain, blood squirting out from her shoulder, staggering back. Oscar gasps in shock and he runs to the door, trying to open it but Junior locked it, he can't open the door.
Kassius sees her stagger, and he feels his veins ignite with rage. Mr Hyde's roar of rage grows and grows and Kassius' veins glow red, his skin cracking like magma as he becomes volcanic with anger. He punches the gun from his hand and grabs Junior by the throat, lifting him off the floor and slamming him on the table with the buzz saw. "You dare hurt her?" Mr Hyde bellows with pure hatred in his voice, the cybernetic hand keeping his head on the wood, the other on the saw blade, turning it on and the blade spins round with a loud roar. He holds his head down and starts to slowly move the saw blade closer...
...and closer...
...and closer.
Yang's eyes widen and she runs to Kassius' side, seeing that Hyde has taken over his mind. She grabs his shoulder and looks into his eyes, holding her shoulder with pain. The heat from Kassius' animosity can be felt against Yang's skin, and Junior wails in terror, begging him to stop, pleading his apologies for trying to kill her.
The blade is getting closer and closer.
Yang grabs his face. "Hyde...stop...you don't want to do this." Yang whispers to him, remembering what Kassius told her. That if he takes over you must call him Mr Hyde, not Kassius. Because it is not him in there, it is Hyde.
"He shot you! Hurt you! He must die!" Hyde roars, his demonic voice echoing over the other voices inside, faintly Kassius' voice can be heard amongst the others.
"I'm sorry!" Junior screams.
"Hyde – please don't do this, for me. Stop for me." Yang begs as she looks into his eyes, Kassius' face is contorted with anger, teeth grit and the blade still gets closer and closer. The blade starts to cut against his hair and he wails louder, Mr Hyde causes Kassius to start screaming with anger.
But then...
Junior says something that stuns them, stuns Hyde into releasing Kassius instantly.
"I know where Ruby is!" He shouts.
Silence fills the room, Yang's eyes widen in disbelief.
"What?" Yang questions sternly, staring straight at him and grabbing him by his collar, pinning him against the wall. "What did you just say?" She questions.
"I – I have someone in that room who can help you find her, she's missing, right?" Junior asks her, and Yang looks at the door and then at Kassius with wide eyes.
"Open. It." She coldly orders.
"Ye-Yeah...sure." Junior agrees when she releases him. He crouches down and picks up a set of keys and he fits them into the lock, twisting it and opening the door. They both walk inside and their eyes widen with disbelief, mouths agape.
"Oscar?" Yang gasps in shock when seeing him there. He looks up at her with a smile.
"Hi." He greets with a nervous smile.
Ruby
The Silver Eyed Girl staggers through the colonnade, looking back when she hears the voice of Salem speaking to her. "You can run, Ruby, but you cannot hide." Salem says to her, but she ignores the voice of the corrupted woman, and she opens a door, finding a large room, one that has an open portal inside.
Her hairs stand on end.
But when she walks towards the portal, a glass wall slides down in front of her, shielding her from her freedom. "No!" She screams in anger, pounding her fist against the glass over and over again.
She then hears a menacing laugh emerging behind her, and she turns around, seeing the source of the laughter. Fear is there, and he walks up to the glass with Formido Falcem in his hand, staring at her. "Like a rat in a trap." He says to her and she punches the glass where he stands.
"Why are you doing this to me?" She screams.
"Oh I just wanted to let you fight for your freedom." Fear says. But he knows about what happened to Mercury and he smirks menacingly. "Nothing hurts more than losing someone you care for – knowing that there's no one to blame but yourself!" He sharply says, turning and walking away from her, leaving her in the dark trap on her own.
The power behind what he said...
...because she blames herself for what happened to Pyrrha.
The silence that has come about the place makes her shudder and her hairs still stand on end. She looks at the glass and she starts to punch it with her hand over and over again. But it is doing nothing, every punch has no effect. She looks at the floor and there is an object, a brick. Ruby grasps the brick and she starts wailing on it, smashing the brick against the glass with force.
It's working!
Cracks are spreading across the glass.
Every punch she lays, her hairs stand further on end.
Punch!
Punch!
Punch!
She hits the glass so hard; the brick bounces off the glass and lands behind her. She turns and looks at the brick, crouching down to pick it up, and then she rises up.
And her heart stops when she sees him. She takes an inhale so sharp and sudden that she nearly passes out.
He stands tall; wearing a red-lined white suit with long black pants and black shoes. His accessories include a small gray scarf, black gloves with buckled sleeves, and a black bowler hat with a small feather tucked into its red band. The man has slanted, dark-green eyes and bright, long, orange hair, with long bangs covering his right eye. Black eyeliner traced his visible left eye.
He smirks as he points Melodic Cudgel at Ruby's face. "Miss me, Little Red?" Roman Torchwick asks her with a wink.
He then pulls the trigger.
And everything goes black; his laughter heard echoing into the distancelike the gunshot of his cane.