Ruin

There's a day when all hearts will be broken
When a shadow will cast out the light
And our eyes cry a million tears
Help won't arrive

It doesn't hurt, she noted dimly as she stared down at the golden, gently curved spike protruding from her abdomen, stained red with her blood. Maybe it was because there was so much adrenaline pumping through her veins that pain wasn't really something she could experience right now. Maybe she was too tired. Or maybe it was just that she was in too much shock, and her body wouldn't allow her comprehend what was happening. Either way, all she felt was a tugging sensation, like her clothes had snagged on a branch or something.

The world was surprisingly quiet. At least, it seemed that way. Yang was screaming, but it sounded muffled and so far away. She thought maybe she heard Weiss and Blake cry out too, but she couldn't be sure. The stinger impaling her shifted, and she could feel and hear her insides move with it as more blood spurted from her wound. It raised her into the air. That's fine, she thought as the ground fell away beneath her, I couldn't feel my legs anymore anyway. A trail of crimson followed her path as the Deathstalker lifted her limp body into the air, letting out a scream of victory.

"-uby!" Glazed silver eyes looked left, seeing a small flash of yellow.

Yang, she tried to say, but she couldn't get her mouth to work.

"Ruby!" Yang screamed again, and the panic and desperation in her voice pierced Ruby's brain, shaking her from the hazed stupor she had slipped into. Her grip on Crescent Rose, which had been loose and weak, tightened into a vice-like hold. Sound returned to the world, and the cries of Beacon students mixed with the snarls and howls of the Grimm as they emerged from over the cliff. Her own heartbeat thumped weakly in her ears. She wasn't dead yet.

She could still fight.

Cinder looked up from her position on the ground whenever she heard the sickening sound of tearing flesh. Her eyes took in the scene before her, but she almost couldn't comprehend it. The red-cloaked girl she had been fighting still stood before her, but she now sported a new accessory: the golden tip of a Deathstalker's stinger, straight through her back.

But…how? Roman said-

And then it hit her. Roman had lied. He had thrown her one last bone, telling her the remaining Grimm wouldn't get to her in time to help, when in fact they were very close. He had deceived her, and in doing so, had ensured her opponents believed in the deception. What a dangerously sly man. She was going to have to regard him with a much greater degree of caution in the future.

Cinder watched as the Deathstalker began to lift the little Huntress into the air, her mind clear of the panic that had beset her. With the red nuisance out of the way, she could turn this around. The remaining Grimm under her control were pulling themselves up from below the cliffs. The amount left was more than enough to squash the remaining defenders, even without many powerful Grimm. The yellow brawler was trying to fight her way through the Grimm to get to them, but as Cinder watched, she was slammed by three different monsters, sending her flying backward.

One of the other students, the cat faunus, leapt forward and caught her before she could hit the ground. She laid a restraining hand on the yellow one's shoulder whenever she made to jump right back into the thick of it. Cinder motioned, and the first wave of Grimm charged the defenders, holding them in place and buying her some time. A stab of pain shooting up her arm brought her attention back to herself, and she looked down at the stump of her wrist with disgust. Her hand wasn't coming back, and she couldn't afford to leave it alone to drain her strength. She really only had one option. Cinder summoned a flame in her remaining hand and, without giving herself anytime to think about it, pressed it into the bleeding nub where her left hand had been. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from screaming again, and tasted blood.

Cinder held the flame there for a few second before yanking it away and drawing a deep breath. Stars were floating in front of her eyes from the pain, but she shook it off and looked down to examine her handiwork. The place where her arm ended was now blackened and burnt, but the wound was cauterized. She no longer had to worry about losing blood that way. She pulled herself shakily to her feet, eyes now set on the group of fighters watching the growing mass of Grimm. She was going to end this. Now.

But movement caught the corner of her eye, and she turned to the Deathstalker behind her.

Her jaw slackened in disbelief.

She was still moving. How? How was this possible? She was beaten, broken, and impaled. Yet, somehow, the young woman was not only still alive, she was still trying to fight. Her arm wrenched upward with jagged movements, pulling the large, curving blade deep into the soft tissue that secured the stinger to the Deathstalker's tail. It wasn't enough to sever the flesh, but the Grimm screeched and thrashed in pain, yanking the stinger from Ruby's body. She fell through the air as even more blood poured from her wound. Ruby somehow managed to twist herself on the way down, embedding Crescent Rose up to its handle right behind the Deathstalker's eyes as she landed, the blade erupting in between its mandibles.

She immediately collapsed to her knees atop the corpse, breathing heavily and entire body trembling. She knew she didn't have much longer. Black was creeping in the edge of her vision, and her head was so light she felt like it was in danger of floating away. Ruby was dead, and she knew it. Her body was beyond repair, and she had lost far too much blood. It was just a matter of how much she managed to accomplish before she went. A Deathstalker was a good start. Silver eyes glanced up, catching golden ones wide with fear and amazement. But killing her would be a good end.

Her hand tightened on Crescent Rose, and she tried to pull herself up, but slumped back to her knees. Her body felt too heavy, and there was no strength in any of her muscles. Cinder seemed to notice, as the fear left her eyes, replaced by determination.

Looks like a good start's all I'm gonna get, Ruby thought as the runes on Cinder's crimson dress began to glow a maniacal orange. The fire witch extended an arm as Ruby felt her consciousness fading. She heard her sister and her teammates calling out. Sorry…Yang…everyone...

She closed her eyes, and Cinder let loose a ferocious wave of fire so intense it scorched the very air and blackened the stone beneath it as it slammed into the Grimm's corpse and Ruby. The Deathstalker turned to ash where the flame touched. Ruby felt the fire wash over her.

Then she felt nothing.

Yang watched as Ruby was dropped from the Deathstalker's tail, managing to somehow kill the beast, and felt a stab of hope in her chest. She was still alive. If they could get to her then maybe they could save her. Weiss still had her healing Dust, and Yang could pump her little sister full of Aura, consequences be damned.

She got two steps in Ruby's direction before a wall of Grimm got in the way. She tried to dodge around them, tried to blast her way right through them, but there was always more. Still she tried to push through, ignoring the wounds she was accruing. She didn't feel them, and it wouldn't have mattered even if she did. The only thing that mattered was getting to her baby sister. The only thing that mattered was Ruby.

But she couldn't break through. No matter how many masks she shattered with her fists or limbs she broke with her feet, there were always more, and they kept her penned in. She couldn't reach her. Again. The air around her ignited as her rage and frustration fueled directly into her Semblance. Not even the mantle of fire helped, though. She was dimly aware of Blake and Weiss next to her, trying just as hard to cut through the wall of black. She had to get through. Had to get to her little sister. If she could just get there, if she could just save her, then she wouldn't have betrayed her promise. She wouldn't have failed her.

An Ursa charged her, and Yang met it head on, eyes burning crimson. She caught its face in between her hands, skidding back a few paces as her muscles strained with the attempt to stop such a large opponent. The Grimm let out a sound of confusion as its momentum ceased.

"Get the fuck," Yang seethed through clenched teeth, "out of my way." She planted a foot on the Ursa's chest and pulled with all of her might. The bear Grimm shrieked in agony as Yang ripped the mask from its face, along with half of the flesh from its head. The Ursa's body collapsed to the ground as Yang snapped the mask in half and began to charge forward again. She froze though, as her eyes once again landed on her sister. She was kneeling on top of the Deathstalker's corpse on the edge of the cliff. She tried to rise, but couldn't seem to make it.

"No," Yang whispered in horror as she saw Cinder begin to glow. "No!" Blake and Weiss saw too, and together they increased their efforts to break free.

Weiss pulled on the last of her Aura, and created a glyph. "Yang!" she called, while Blake tried to keep her clear of Grimm. A Beowolf got through, and landed a vicious blow to the Heiress's back. She sank one knee, but managed to maintain the glyph. Weiss grit her teeth and spun, stabbing vertically as she did so, Myrtenaster taking the Grimm through the throat. Yang leaped onto the glyph.

"Do it, Wei-" she was cut off by a great roaring sound, and everyone's eyes snapped to the edge of the cliff, where Cinder had let loose an inferno of hellfire.

"RUBY!" Yang, Blake, and Weiss all screamed helplessly as the fire smashed into their teammate so strongly that the ground beneath her fissured and cracked. An entire section of the cliff shuddered and broke off, sliding into the abyss.

And then Ruby was gone, blackened ashes the only thing left in her wake, a cruel mockery of the petals that always followed close behind her.

The glyph underneath of Yang vanished as Weiss collapsed to her hands and knees, choking sobs bubbling up from her chest. Blake merely stood there in shock, eyes wide and disbelief written across her face. Yang slid to her knees, her hands lying uselessly on her legs, all fight gone from her.

Ruby, her baby sister, who she swore to protect, even at the cost of her life, was dead. She was gone. Tears fell from her eyes, but Yang couldn't feel them. She had failed. She had let down the one person she had promised to never let down.

A snarl made her glance up blearily. The Grimm were circling around the remaining students of Beacon, teeth bared and eyes glowing harshly. She didn't care enough to wonder why they weren't attacking, but she got an answer soon enough anyway, as Cinder's voice carried across the open air to her ears.

"Oh, but this is wonderful. Seeing you all in so much pain almost makes this all worth it," she sneered. Cinder wasn't in the best shape herself. Her clothes were torn, and she was covered in wounds and dried blood. Her left arm ended in an ugly, hastily treated stump, but still, she was victorious. She surveyed the people before her, noting with pleasure how demoralized they all were now. They couldn't fight anymore. They were all drained and exhausted, worn down by battle and watching their friends die. The only reason they had pushed on this long was the hope that they would see the end. But now she had taken that hope away by killing the very person who had given them it.

Cut off the head, and the body dies with it. She raised her hand, and the remaining Grimm gathered around her. She admitted halting the Grimm's attack after killing the red-cloaked brat was unnecessary, but she wanted to savor the despair on their faces after all the trouble they had caused. She wanted them to suffer, and she wanted to enjoy it. "As much fun as this has been, children, I do believe we've finally reached the end. Don't bother trying to surrender. I intend to kill every single one of you." There were a few of them that were still willing to fight, she could see. The blond boy with the sword and shield was glaring at her fiercely, and one in green at his side had his weapons at the ready. It didn't matter. They'd be slaughtered, just like the rest.

She motioned with her hand, and the Grimm charged. Cinder smirked. She didn't hear any speeches or bravado now. Finally, finally, she could kill all of these children, and get what she came for. Afterwards, it would be eternally known that she was the one who had brought Beacon to its knees and broken it. Her victory assured, she tilted her head back and laughed.

"So you're the one who attacked my school."

Cinder's laugh abruptly ended in a harsh choking sound as the cool, clear voice cut through her thoughts. Her eyes snapped open, and the first thing she noticed were the airships. There were a dozen of them, hovering silently above the battlefield. How had she not noticed them? Had she really been that wrapped up in herself?

"Oh, don't worry about them. I made sure we took the quietest models."

Cinder's gaze drifted downward, already fearing what she knew she would find. People were leaping from the airships and gathering up around the students upon landing. Professors of Beacon and veteran Huntsman and Huntresses alike formed a line between them and the Grimm. The field was already awash in black mist. Somehow, the entire first wave of Grimm was dead, and the rest were holding back. She didn't know how it had happened, and she didn't really care. Her concern was focused on one thing and one thing alone.

The man at the center of the assembly.

He stood calmly, his dark suit as impeccable as always. White hair swayed gently in the breeze, and amber eyes glinted as he pushed dark green spectacles back up his nose with his right hand. His left hand rested on his cane, and for once, there wasn't a mug to be seen.

"Ozpin," she stated, struggling to keep the fear bubbling in her chest from showing.

"Cinder," he replied, voice level. Anyone who didn't know the man could've thought he was just greeting an acquaintance, but those familiar with him would notice the death grip he had on his cane. They'd see how straight his spine was, where normally there was a slight slouch. They'd hear the flat tone in his voice, and the threat behind it. "I see you've made a mess of my home. Worse, I see you've hurt my students."

Cinder gulped as wave of pressure washed over her. What was this man, to be able to have this effect? This was getting dangerous. The glorious victory she had been so close to achieving was slipping through her fingers. She had one last chance. The same strategy as before. Cut off the head… Her finger twitched with a silent command, and three Boarbatusks burst into motion, spinning end over end and pelting toward Ozpin. He didn't react, didn't move or flinch. The Grimm were still a good twenty feet from him whenever six spears of light arced out from behind him, slamming into the Grimm and the ground around them. It was that blonde bitch of a Dust user, the one who never left his side.

It didn't matter though. Cinder smirked. It was her victory. Through the resulting dust cloud shot one more Grimm, an Ursa Major.

It would be impossible to react quickly enough to stop it, and even if they managed it, all but the most powerful attacks would be useless against it. Her smile vanished, though, as the Ursa Major fell into pieces in front of Ozpin. Amber eyes turned to her, piercing her from all that way across the field. Cinder took a hesitant step backward. He didn't even move! What the hell is he?

"Don't bother trying to surrender," Ozpin parroted her words with a small smile, and Cinder felt a shiver travel up her spine. "I intend to kill every single one of you."

Cinder grit her teeth and launched a fireball at him. Her Grimm howled and charged with her attack.

Glynda gave a small, "hmph," and swung her crop up to aim at Cinder's attack. An ice spike shot forward, piercing through the center of the fireball, and they both dissipated.

Ozpin took one step forward, and the fighters assembled behind him exploded into action. The sound of gunfire and metal scraping on leather rose to a tumultuous din as Dust attacks flash into existence and bullets whizzed through the air. Those with melee weapons tore across the open space separating the two armies, hollering war cries and taunts. The student fighters stayed in the back, hardly even believing what was happening.

A third of the charging Grimm never even made it to their lines. The rest found themselves running up against a wall of steel and experience. They never stood a chance.

Cinder watched in horror as the Grimm were utterly decimated. Wave upon wave of the soulless beasts fell, some missing limbs or heads, others a significant amount more. Huge Dust attacks lanced downward from the sky, wiping out entire pockets of them.

And yet, through all of the chaos ensuing around him, Ozpin continued to walk forward at an even pace. He never flinched, and his eyes never left her face. Cinder felt her blood run cold, and something Roman had said to her before, during the planning of this entire operation, surfaced in her memory.

"If you're serious about taking Beacon, you have to do it at a time when Ozpin is not there."

"I hardly think one man will make a difference with an army like this."

Roman shook his head. "He may seem like an arrogant idiot sometimes, but I'm speaking from experience when I tell you…" he trailed off, and he shivered as Cinder witnessed something like fear pass across his face. "That man is a god on the battlefield. He can turn an entire war around if he wants to. An indomitable intellect coupled with a monstrous ability that defies logic." His emerald eye bored into her own, and she could see just how serious he was about this. "They say Beacon is untouchable, but do you know why? It's not because it's the top combat school, or because the academy itself it particularly defensible. It's not the teachers or the students. The reason Beacon is called untouchable…"

Two Ursa leaped at Ozpin from either side. His expression never changed, and he never slowed. He seemed to flicker for a moment, and the Grimm each fell in halves behind him. He hadn't even looked.

"…is that man."

Pure, raw fear punched Cinder in the chest, and she backed away from Ozpin's advance frantically. He was a monster, something beyond any sort of reason. She couldn't defeat him. She couldn't win. It was over. The Grimm were practically finished now. Only a couple dozen struggled to keep fighting. Cinder bit her lip as she glared back at Ozpin and the group of students who had defended it, reaching a decision that she was sure would torment her the rest of her life. She created a wall of flame in between herself and her enemies. It wouldn't do much, but it might buy her a bit of time.

She turned and leapt off the cliff, blasting fire from her hand to slow her descent as she reached the bottom, where an airship was waiting, engines on and prepped. She hated running like this, especially like that coward Torchwick, but she had no desire to die. She clambered into the cabin and growled at the pilot, "Go. Now!" The vehicle lifted into the air and blasted out over the city. As the spires of Beacon Academy faded in the distance, Cinder slumped in the chair, her eyes sliding close as weariness and pain slammed into her body in equal parts.

Someday, Beacon, I'll be back. And then I'll crush you properly and completely. And not even your "god" will be able to save you.

Ozpin watched the airship lift out of the gulf and jet out over the city. He made a small motion with his free hand, and two of the hovering airships peeled off to give pursuit. He already knew they wouldn't catch Cinder though. Her vehicle was fast, and theirs were built for stealth, not speed.

Glynda stepped hesitantly up behind him, reading the tension in his shoulders as he glared at the fading dot on the horizon. "Professor?" She could literally feel the rage rolling off of him. Ozpin's grip on his cane tightened, and a green aura burst into existence around his body. He seemed to shimmer like a mirage for a second, and then he was solid, the glow gone. Glynda's brow furrowed in confusion, wondering if she had actually seen that. She stopped, though, when she noticed that all of the Grimm that had still been alive, all two dozen of them, were not anymore. Every single one them was dead, slashed to pieces. Bright green eyes widened as she watched his back. He had never gone in details about what his ability was, but it was clearly obscenely powerful.

"You can run wherever and however far you want, Cinder," he growled in a low voice, and Glynda had to suppress a shudder of her own. "But I swear that you will pay for what you've done here." He continued watching the horizon for a moment, and then turned around, suddenly composed again. She noted his shoulder were slumped more than usual, however. "Professor Goodwitch," he addressed her, and she straightened her back, "begin an immediate investigation into Cinder Fall and Roman Torchwick. I want to know everything."

"Yes, Professor."

"Before that though," his tone softened, "we must see to the stude-" he was interrupted by the sound of booted feet harshly slapping the stonework. He turned, not showing any sort of reaction when he was greeted by a gauntleted fist flying straight at his face. It never connected. Glynda intervened before Ozpin could even think of dodging or blocking, sweeping Yang's legs out from under her and dumping her face first to the ground. She placed one knee on the small of the teenager's back and kept a firm grip on her arms.

"What is the meaning of this, Miss Xiao Long?" she asked angrily, eyes narrow.

Yang didn't even acknowledge her, crimson eyes focused solely on Ozpin, shining with so much anger he wouldn't be surprised if he burst into flames from the sheer force of it. "You!" she spat. "Where the fuck were you?!" She struggled underneath Glynda's restraint, but the Huntress didn't budge. Ozpin didn't respond; words would only add to the fire. "Why weren't you faster?! Why didn't you get here sooner?" Yang's voice grew weaker with each question, and her struggling ceased. "If…if you had just been faster," tears began to fall from her once more violet eyes as her voice broke. "Then Ruby wouldn't have…wouldn't have…"

And Yang broke. The invincible, perpetually smiling and sunny brawler broke down as the true loss of her little sister hit her.

Glynda released her as hysterical sobs wracked her body. Blake stumbled over and collapsed on her knees next to Yang, leaning her head in between the blonde's shoulder blades. She took deep, stuttering breaths, trying to keep a hold of her emotions. She found she couldn't, and she succumbed to the yawning sadness in her chest as she bawled into her partner's back. Weiss sat beside them, silent tears streaming down her cheeks as she looked up into the sky as if it held some sort of answer.

Pyrrha tucked her face into Jaune's neck as he wrapped his arms around her waist. He felt his shirt grow damp beneath her while his own tears left salty tracks on his face. Nora's head was bowed, mouth turned downward in an almost never seen frown, her knuckles white on Magnhild. Ren was sitting down in the same position he had that night with Ruby, and he could almost swear he could feel her weight against his chest. But the only thing in his lap were his hands. He was staring at them, wide-eyed. Useless. Weak. You couldn't save her. All that training, all that power, and you couldn't even save one girl.

Ozpin observed all of this as the healers began to busy themselves with the worst of his students' injuries, and he felt his chest tighten. He had experienced what they were going through far too many times in the past, and he had hoped that as headmaster he would've been able to prevent any of his students, his children, from suffering the same thing. He had failed each and every single one of them in the worst way. He bowed his head.

The school was torn up, scars from the battle scorched into the ground. Many of those who had risen to defend it had lost their lives, and those that were left would bear horrible physical and mental scars the remainder of their lives. Beacon would recover, in time, but it would never quite be the same. Roman and Cinder had gotten away. They had accomplished nothing for any of this. Nothing.

The headmaster turned away as he felt tears prick at his own eyes. He couldn't show weakness right now. He needed to be strong, no matter how intensely this reminded him of his friends and his own powerlessness.

I'm sorry, Summer. It seems I was too late, for both you and your daughter.

Yang's shattered sobs carried through the air, a grim reminder to those present that although they had won, this was anything but a victory.

A/N: And there it is, my friends. Book One of the Rending Trilogy is complete! Man, it's been a fun ride, but I can't wait for the second book :D

So, who all hates me? Raise your hands. I know I'm a bastard, but if it makes it any better there's plenty more on the way!

...on second thought, that probably doesn't help.

Anywhoo, thank you to each and every single one of you who followed this story. Your comments and support kept me going at this it with just as much fervor nd excitement as whenever I initially conceived the idea. I love all of you. Seriously, you're great and fantastic and I'm so glad all of you decided to give my story a shot, and that many of you enjoyed it as much as you do. Please look forward to Book 2!

And speaking of Book 2: I am gonna take a few weeks to rest my brain and let my creative juices recharge before I start the second book. I wanna be fresh going into it. In the meantime, I'm going to touch up the plot of Book 2 based on some changes I made from the original outline of Book 1, as well as some extra ideas I've come up with. I'm also going to be endeavoring to step into the world of digital art and draw up some character designs for everybody for the next book(s). May even start a tumblr dedicated to the trilogy, if I can produce enough content for it, but we'll see

I think this is a long enough A/N, so I believe I shall bid you all farewell for now. Once more, thank you so much, I look forward to your continued awesomeness. I'll see you all for Book Two of the Rending Trilogy: Redemption

Until next time, my friends!

EDIT: Book 2 is now live! Find it over on my page