Chapter 1: Prologue

REMNANT OF A WORM

Post-GM Taylor in Remnant. Taylor Hebert; villain, hero, monster, savior, Khepri. She awakens in a hospital in Vale. Where was she? What would she do? Who would she be? A villain once more? Another monster? Or maybe, a hero, in the ways she had always wanted to be?

Massive spoilers for all of Worm, eventual spoilers for RWBY as well.

Expect friendship and fluff offset with suffering, because I like high highs and low lows. There will be violence, swearing, dark thoughts, PTSD, and a smidge of character death (very little of that though).

Very slow burn for canon divergence. I want any changes to canon to be because of Taylor's actions and their logical consequences. This won't be a retelling of RWBY with Taylor there. By Volume 2 of RWBY, canon is completely off the rails. That said, Volume 2 doesn't start till Chapter 18 of this fic, 160k words in. Some stuff happens the same as in canon, but in different contexts or through different methods, but I do my best not to rehash canon when I can.

Worm readers: I highly recommend finishing Worm before reading this, otherwise, you'll be fine.

RWBY readers: Worm is a web serial about an introverted teenage girl with an unconventional superpower. Taylor goes out in costume to find escape from a deeply unhappy and frustrated civilian life, but her first attempt at taking down a supervillain sees her mistaken for one, thrusting her into the midst of the local 'cape' scene's politics, unwritten rules, and ambiguous morals. Risking life and limb, Taylor faces the dilemma of having to do the wrong things for the right reasons. Her story leads her down the path of a villain who helps people, to a hero using people to prepare for an apocalypse, to becoming a monster sacrificing her body and mind, to save the world.

Prologue

Ruby Rose

I'm going to Beacon.

I'm going to Beacon!

…Oh my god, I'm going to Beacon.

My skipping down the sidewalk slowed as I really let the thought sink in.

I won't have any of my friends from Signal with me… I won't know anyone there at all! I'll be two years younger than the other first-years!

I dragged my fingers down my face and began to hop back and forth on my feet in panic.

Okay, okay. Calm down. At least there'll be, uh, weapons! I'll get to see a lot of cool weapons! And I'll be able to show off Crescent Rose! Bam, perfect conversation starter. And then I'll talk about… something? Oh, why is talking to people so hard?!

Oh, wait, Yang.

I let out a heavy sigh. I wouldn't have to be alone.

Yang will be there. I… I'll just be on her team. Yeah. That way, I won't make an idiot of myself trying to talk to anyone. Whew, that would've been stressful.

An alert buzzed on my scroll, a warning that the last Bullhead back to Patch would be leaving soon. Beating up bad guys and talking with the Ozpin had taken up most of my evening.

I couldn't wait to get back home, grab some milk to wash down that plate of cookies, and go to bed. It had been a very long day.

I hoped Dad hadn't told Yang what happened, like I'd asked. She'd make me stay up all night recapping everything, and I'd had too much excitement today already. I had fought a bunch of robbers, met not one, but two Huntsmen, and I had been accepted into Beacon!

A glint of something caught my eye from an alleyway across the street: a street lamp reflecting off a red puddle on the asphalt.

Did someone spill juice?

My eyes trailed the crimson fluid from the sidewalk and down the alley until I saw its source.

Is… is that?

A woman was lying face down in a pool of blood.

The world stopped.

Oh no—What do I do? Is she—?

Questions flashed through my mind, too many for me to grasp.

I didn't notice I was getting closer until I was already next to the prone figure.

Cracked and broken armor plating were set over an equally ripped and battered bodysuit. A mask that looked almost bug-like covered her face, but one of the broken lenses revealed a red trail trickling over a closed eye. A knife poked from her utility belt.

Is she some kind of Huntress? Did someone kill a Huntress?!

Blood caked the white armor and hid in the black of her bodysuit, but most of it pooled on the ground around her head, soaking her dark wavy hair. She had a strange metal backpack that looked dented and partially crushed. Her right arm just… ended, right below the elbow. In its place was angry scar tissue. The sleeve looked like it had been burned away, despite the wound looking old.

I was torn from my thoughts when I noticed a slight, shallow movement. I shot to my feet when her chest weakly rose and fell.

She's alive!

My fingers fumbled with my scroll as I tried to call an ambulance, but my hands were shaking so badly that I kept missing the buttons.

Stupid fingers! Stop! You have to help this person!

Finally, after the third try, I succeeded.

"Vale emergency hotline, please state your emergency," an obliging female voice stated.

"Help! T-there's a woman. She's—she's bleeding! I…" I stole a quick breath. "I-I think she's a Huntress!"

"Calm down, miss. I'm sending an emergency team to your scroll's location now. Is there anyone else in the area? Are you safe?"

"I-I should be safe—I mean, I'm trying to be a Huntress so I'm fine. I was just—just walking down the street, and I-I saw her lying there."

"You're a Huntress in training? Signal or Beacon? Actually, nevermind. What's your name, miss?"

"R-Ruby. Ruby Rose."

"Alright, Ruby. Can you check her Aura levels to see how depleted they are? It'll help the first responders get an estimate on how to start treatment."

Without replying, I looked for an opening in the woman's armor, someplace where the skin was visible. None of the burn marks or scrapes opened up to the skin. I grew more frantic the longer I searched. Ultimately, I found myself staring at the woman's missing limb. It was either that or her blood-stained eye.

Here we go.

I tried to steel myself, but my breath was too short and I was anxiously sweaty.

I placed a hand on the maimed stub and pushed my Aura out, expecting to feel the weak pressure of a near-exhausted Aura supply. Instead, I couldn't find even a single hint of Aura protecting her body.

Is her Aura so drained that I can't even sense it?

I pushed deeper, trying to find something. Anything.

Anything that could possibly help this person.

Suddenly, I felt my prodding Aura slapped away. To my shock, the blow came from deep within her, too far in for an unlocked Aura.

Wait, she's not a Huntress? Why is she wearing all this gear, then?

"…ss…Mis… Miss Rose… Ruby! Are you still there?! Please respond!"

The noise jolted me from my stupor, making me fumble the scroll and almost drop it.

"Um—Yes! Yes, I'm still here. Sorry!"

"Please stay on the line, miss. Have you checked her Aura levels?"

"Y-yes! I… I don't think she's had her Aura activated yet." I froze, dread forming in the pit of my stomach from the realization. "I don't know how to unlock someone else's Aura!"

That was it.

This woman was going to die.

Without any Aura to help stabilize her, I knew she wasn't going to make it.

She was going to die in this alley, all because I couldn't do anything.

Tears poured down my cheeks, leaving ripples in the pool of blood I knelt in. I sobbed, wracked by helplessness, chest heaving.

"Miss Rose, please. I… I'm going to try to walk you through the process. It might not work, but we're going to try, alright? You think you can do that for me, Ruby?" The responder's voice was comforting.

I sniffed, wiping my face with my sleeve, only to do so again as my vision immediately blurred, new tears forming.

If there's a chance, I have to try.

"O-okay. What do I d-do?"

"The chant is to help calm and initiate the unlocking of someone's Aura. It tells her soul what to do. What you have to do is show that person's Aura how to act. So, I need you to push your Aura out into the woman and shape it within her, just like you normally would for yourself. You'll feel tired afterward, but that's completely normal. Understand?"

"Uh, yes? I think so."

"Repeat after me."

"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality," I repeated as the operator spoke the words. "Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all." My Aura flared and I wrapped it around the woman. With each word, I pushed more and more. "Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee." Finally, I felt the woman's Aura press against mine.

Please work. Please be okay.

I pushed harder.

The woman's Aura didn't push back, it shoved. Goosebumps spread across my skin like I had been doused in cold water. Instead of driving my Aura out, the woman's Aura cut at mine like a wave of knives.

Still, I pushed on, making sure that the cutting Aura surrounded her body as it ruthlessly tried to force mine out.

Then, I felt another surge in the sea of the woman's soul. A cold spark that burst into a blaze as soon as my Aura touched it. But the fire was freezing cold and it grasped toward me—

I didn't feel anything else as the dam broke, and the woman's Aura cascaded throughout her body, completely driving me out.

A ragged breath escaped me, just as the fatigue hit me like one of Yang's haymakers.

I watched the woman's chest rise, more evenly and steadily than before. The dull shine of gray Aura pulsed dimly before radiating out from her still form. It gleamed like it was trying to light up the world around her.

"She… she seems to be doing better. I-I think it worked," I said, my voice raw.

"That's good, Miss Rose. Glad to hear it. Authorities should be reaching you within a couple of minutes. Just stay on the phone with me."

I leaned back and rested against the stone brickwork behind me. It wasn't comfy, but I was too exhausted to care.

The woman was doing better, but each moment of silence made my dread grow, settling in my chest like a stomach ache.

Sweet relief washed over me, taking my panic with it, as sirens sounded off in the distance, getting louder with each moment.

I hiccuped a few times, my sobs trailing off, and formed a shaky smile.

I did it.

After giving a short statement to the police, I watched the injured woman disappear behind closed ambulance doors, the faint glow of Aura still surrounding her. I huddled under the emergency blanket that the first responders had left me, drained and exhausted.

"You certainly seem to get into some interesting situations, Miss Rose," a familiar voice said in an almost amused tone.

I turned to see Professor Ozpin for the second time that night, with the same mug in hand, wafts of steam from the hot drink licking the air.

Professor Goodwitch stood beside him with crossed arms, a riding crop clenched in her hand. It wasn't the coolest weapon… at all, but seeing her use Dust had been super awesome. Just remembering it distracted me from the leftover panic of what had just happened.

My awkward wave was sluggish, but moving too much made me feel queasy. My body was still recovering from the spike of adrenaline and exhaustion from awakening her Aura.

"Yeah, it's certainly been… a night. Heh." My voice died out near the end, and I pulled the blanket tighter around me. I had never actually seen someone hurt like that before, and my mind couldn't stop going back to the image of the woman lying in a pool of her own blood. "Um… what brings you here, Professor?"

"I was alerted to the possibility of a fatally injured Huntress, in the middle of the city no less. When I saw your name on the report, I took it as all the more reason to come by." His expression shifted to concern. "Are you okay, Ruby?"

I smiled. After an experience like this, it was nice to have someone care enough to worry about you.

I wonder if she has anyone worrying about her.

I drew a deep breath and released it in a long sigh. "I'm…okay? I haven't seen… that before. Not up-close. I know that being a Huntress means that I might have to deal with that but… I didn't expect it to be so…" Again, my voice died on me. My mind flashed to the woman lying there. Her blood pooling, breath ragged and uneven, closer to death with each passing second. Not knowing what would happen. Not knowing if I could help.

"Yes. It is an unfortunate reality, one that all Huntsmen experience at some point." He closed his eyes, a solemn look on his face, before giving me an approving nod. "But you did as a Huntress would do, Ruby. There is no question in my mind that you saved that woman's life. I have been told that she would have stood no chance of survival if not for you. So, remember this night. Though your path may be difficult, it is worth it, for all of those you will save." I met his eyes, and saw unflinching honesty.

He was right, I had saved someone.

"Thank you, Professor. That helps a lot, actually." I did save someone, just like a Huntress would have. I couldn't help but grin.

Mom would have been proud. And Dad and Yang too, of course…

Dad and Yang.

"Ohh crap!" I brought out my scroll and saw some messages from Dad, asking where I was and when I would be home. The clock told me that the last Bullhead for Patch had left a while ago, so not anytime soon. I was stuck in Vale for the night. "Ughhhhhhh. What am I going to do!?"

"If you're unable to make your way home, we can prepare one of the dorm rooms at Beacon for you," Ozpin offered, nodding to Professor Goodwitch, who typed out a message on her scroll. "A glimpse of where you will be sleeping in two weeks, if you pass the initiation."

"Thank you, that would be great! I'll call my Dad and let him know! I appreciate it, Professor Ozpin."

"It is no trouble, Ruby. Now come, we mustn't keep the ship waiting. I believe all of us have had a rather long day." Ozpin turned and began walking back to a ship that had parked down the street.

"Miss Rose, I don't think I will need to remind you that even though the semester hasn't begun, you will need to follow all of Beacon's rules for the duration of your stay, understood?" Professor Goodwitch stated, sounding more like a command than a question.

"Um, yes, of course, Professor." I gave her the best salute I could, but it only made her glare, like I was already in trouble.

"Come along." She sighed, and we headed off to Beacon.

Ozpin

Glynda and I arrived at the hospital early the next morning after sending Miss Rose on her way. She had wanted to come along as well, but her father had called and requested she return home to explain what had happened in person. I knew that she would be able to come another day to see the mysterious girl, given that her reported injuries would, without question, mean an extended stay at the hospital.

"What can you tell me about this young woman, Noah?" I asked. A young woman almost murdered in the middle of the city, no less. A disturbing incident, especially considering the execution-like nature of the attempt.

Something wasn't right, and I hoped Noah might provide answers as to what that could be.

The nameplate on his desk glinted copper in the light as the doctor leaned back in his chair.

"I was honestly hoping you would be able to tell me something about your Jane Doe, Ozpin." Noah had the voice of someone three times his size and it echoed throughout his small office. "Criminals don't usually leave their victims like that, so that the public doesn't get antsy and bring the Grimm. Did they get interrupted?"

"I believe we are both looking for answers in this case," I replied.

"Do you have reason to believe she is a criminal, Dr. Sard?" Glynda asked from the seat next to mine.

"Two shots to the back of the head are my only clue," Noah responded grimly, his frown morphing his reddish-brown beard. "Though, I'd guess she was Huntress or a mercenary due to her scarring."

"Scarring?"

Noah opened a folder on his desk and flipped through it. "Scar tissue on over ten percent of her body, from small cuts all the way to a large laceration across the right side of her ribs. Contusions everywhere. Old and recent. There's a plethora of old damage that shows she's had a history of healed injuries. I would guess she's been in a lot of fights."

Glynda and I both frowned; Noah didn't seem close to stopping.

"Her right arm is missing from right above the elbow. It had been cauterized from how it looks. I don't know how, but there's a bit of metal almost infused into the bone of her acromion. Must have gotten stabbed in the shoulder by… something and the bone healed around it." The woman must have lived a sad life, to have weathered this many injuries without Aura.

Noah passed over an x-ray photo of the girl's shoulder; a sliver of dark sat in the middle of the white bone.

"Thoughts?" I asked Glynda.

"If it had just been shrapnel left in, I could guess the cause, but grafted into the bone? That suggests a specific Semblance. Some kind of metal manipulation? I'll look into it," she stated, making a note on her Scroll.

Noah nodded. "There is a faint scar that seems to just peek out from her hairline. The location and the precision of the cut suggests surgery, but we found no evidence of it. Unless someone was cutting her head open and just stopped. Damn, it's a lot when you say it all in a row. Well, almost all of it." Worry and disbelief bit at his tone toward the end as he plucked out another paper.

It was unsettling, certainly. Glynda sported a stern expression, different from her usual one—it was similar to the one she wore for battle. That she'd get this angry over something like this happening to a complete stranger was one of the reasons I was glad to be working with her. I could only imagine her fury if it had been one of our students.

Regardless, if the woman survived, I hoped she would not let her terrible experiences define her. I had seen so many lose themselves to the darkness in their past. It was always painful to watch. And painful to experience.

"And the gunshot wounds?" Glynda inquired, her tone matching the look on her face.

"The bullets seem to have gone straight through. The damage is extensive, but if I'm being honest, this girl must have luck like no other because everything that could have gone wrong hasn't." My brow rose. "No signs of infection or immediate damage to her central nervous system. We did find a rather concerning tumor which, amazingly, took the most damage. Sadly inoperable, but it doesn't seem to be pressing against her brain in any worrying way. As I said, if she pulls through, point her toward a casino." Noah's lips lifted slightly but didn't stay. I was glad for the splash of light in this dark conversation; it was why I liked Noah.

"Any brain damage?"

"Besides her previous injuries—"

"Previous?"

"Scarring around the parietal lobe, possibly from a concussion. Old. Maybe some language problems, maybe spatial awareness issues, maybe a dullness of touch and pain. We won't know until she wakes up… If she wakes up."

Glynda closed her eyes and took a slow breath, centered herself, then snapped back to the issue at hand, ready and stern.

"This new round of damages... Could be memory loss, motor function loss, or a whole host of other possible complications." He looked and sounded tired. It certainly was a lot to process. Then again, the bags under his eyes suggested that he might have been here overnight caring for the mysterious woman.

"You were not able to find any Scroll or other identification for the woman?" I asked.

"No I.D. of any kind. There was a handgun, taser, folding baton, and a fancy black knife. No labels or brand marks. She was also wearing some kind of hi-tech backpack, but it's too damaged to figure out its function. No Dust, no Scroll, no Lien, nothing that would help. Her belt might have held something but all the pouches either have holes or are empty. Might have been scavenged from before or after she was shot. No matching missing person, no matching criminal picture, no emblem, nothing that we could find," Noah read off another list.

Nothing at all? It seems things can never be simple.

"That is an impressive amount of weaponry for someone without their Aura unlocked," Glynda stated.

"Yup, and not only that, she was wearing this weird flexible bodysuit. Extremely tough. Custom-fit. Took us using bolt cutters to pry it off her," Noah said.

"Any idea what it is made of or who manufactured it?"

"No clue. It didn't have any kind of tag or serial number. Never seen something like that before. It was durable but light like silk. The thing has been through hell though; any identification might have been lost or destroyed."

"And her weapons?" Glynda asked.

"Bog-standard. Low caliber and not fitted for Dust rounds. Nothing that would work against Grimm. I don't even think the weapon shops carry such kiddy weapons anymore."

Though they would work against regular humans or possibly someone unskilled with Aura.

I kept the thought to myself.

Customized armor with special material suggested a backer, but why spend the money to make such a suit and not unlock their Aura? Unless the attacker could re-seal Aura with their Semblance? I hadn't come across such an ability in all my years. Something wasn't right about this whole situation.

Now, what to do?

Glynda gave me a perplexed look behind a screen of professionalism. She didn't seem to have an idea about why this woman would be in her situation either.

"Hmmm. Well, thank you very much for everything, Noah. Please keep me updated on the young woman's condition. I would be most interested in hearing her story." I stood from my chair and moved to shake Noah's hand across his desk, my other hand still resting on my cane.

"Any time, Ozpin, I'm glad someone like you is taking an interest in this. I hate having to leave someone who's gone through something like this all on their own," Noah stated, taking my hand with a strong grip.

"Thank you again, Dr. Sard," Glynda said politely.

"Until next time, Miss Goodwitch."

We exited the hospital in silence, neither speaking until we got in our car to head back to the Bullheads leading to Beacon.

"That was a very harsh case, if I may say so," I stated without looking at Glynda.

"I agree. I can't imagine what that girl has gone through. I'm especially worried about the gunshot wounds. Some kind of execution? What kind of gang or criminal organization would need to do that to someone without Aura? Especially with how young she seemed," Glynda added, her fingers curling tighter around the steering wheel.

"I am unsure if it was gang-related. I think that we would have noticed some kind of organization executing civilians in such a fashion. Also, the equipment she had on her… There are too many questions that feel like they would lead further from the truth in this instance." It was always frustrating not knowing, not being able to help. I had taken strides throughout the many years I had been alive to avoid this uneasy ignorance, yet I found myself in it once again. "I think I'll send a message to James, perhaps Atlas has some information regarding her, or an idea on the armor the girl was wearing. Or rather, young woman, she did seem around the age of our first years," I mused out loud.

"Ozpin, are you implying that you are going to enroll this girl at—"

"No. Nothing of the sort. We don't know what kind of person she is, her capabilities, or what her history regarding this incident was. Though, despite their quality, the amount of weapons she carried implies some level of proficiency or an overcompensation for lack of skill. Her custom armor leads me to think the former rather than the latter.

"Regardless, I feel her story might be important to know in understanding if there's a threat that caused her current state. I hope to intervene or prevent anything similar if this isn't an isolated incident. Especially since it happened in the middle of the city."

"This is all dependent on if she wakes up at all."

"Oh, I'm sure she will Glynda. I have a feeling she's not the type to give in so easily."

Khepri?

Pain. Everything pain.

Awake.

Alive?

Alive.

Prologue End