Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY or Inheritance Cycle.

"No . . . PYHRRA!" Ruby screamed as she saw the red-haired champion turn into nothingness.

The young huntress felt something inside her surge and burst forth, surround herself, Cinder, and the Dragon Grimm in a blinding white light that could be seen by the Hunters, Huntresses, White Fang, and Grimm that were fighting down below. No one knew what it was, or what was actually happening up on the tower. When the light faded, the Dragon Grimm was left frozen and Cinder was injured . . . but Ruby Rose was nowhere to be seen. The unworthy Fall Maiden slunk off to nurse her wounds.

• • •

Three days later, Ruby awoke. Her head was pounding, she was hungry, and she was thirsty. Slowly sitting up, she cradled her head gingerly with one hand as she looked around, taking in her surroundings. Ruby was surrounded by large trees and lots of fauna, so she was able to deduce that she was definitely in a forest, but it didn't look any of the forests she'd ever been in, not the one by her mother's grave, or the Emerald Forest that was overlooked by Beacon Cliff. Something seemed . . . different about this forest, as if it resonated with a strange energy . . . not a bad one, just something that Ruby had never felt before.

Standing up, Ruby called out for her teammates. "Weiss!? Blake?! Yang?!"

If she was honest, Ruby was afraid. She was all alone in a place she didn't recognize, and she had no idea what happened to Beacon. But at least Crescent Rose was still with her. Hugging herself, she began to slowly walking in a random direction, hoping to find someone eventually, or even find some water. She walked for what seemed like hours, wandering the forest. Ruby found it odd that she hadn't come across any Grimm yet, but all she's seen so far were birds and small forest critters. Finally, she heard the sound of running water. She ran towards the sound. When she got to the river, she collapsed to her knees at the shore and stuck her face into the water, drinking greedily.

She came back up with a relieved gasp and just sat down to rest. After a few minutes, she noticed something peeking through the sand on the riverbed It looked like a small, black stone with a red vein running across its surface. Curious, she reached into the water to retrieve it. Upon trying to grab the stone, she realized that what she'd seen was just the tip of the iceberg. Ruby began digging around the stone. When she finally pulled it out, the whole stone was a little over a foot in length, and was oblong in shape, perfectly smooth.

The entire stone was black and covered in those red veins, and when she lifted it out of the water, it wasn't as heavy as it should have been. There was something about the stone that Ruby couldn't place . . . like a feeling that said this was important to her, but she couldn't figure out why. Knowing it was probably pointless, she took the stone with her anyway. Still hungry, and still tired, she began walking again. She needed to get back home. It started growing dark and Ruby had to stop. Starting a fire using dead branches that were laying on the ground, which had been surprisingly hard to find, and some dead leaves as kindling. She sat back against the trunk of the tree and tried to stay awake, in case she was attacked by Grimm during the night. It didn't work out though, as her exhaustion caused her to gradually fall asleep, try as she might to stay awake. She slept with the stone cradled in her arms . . .

When Ruby woke up, she would be in a cell. Crescent Rose was gone, as was the stone.

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