Bloody Rose

Chapter 13 The Plan

Quick message for all of you. Updates are going to vary from now on. I hope to get them out once a week, but between writing and proofreading, I get bored pretty easily. So, I hope you understand my little problem.

~ Double Agent; Part 3 ~

Waking up, Ruby groaned as a giant headache seized her mind, causing her to flinch. Keeping her eyes closed, she felt around, only for her arms to snap back together behind her back.

'My arms are constrained in one of those Aura-draining cuffs. This certainly brings back some memories,' Ruby thought, smirking at the memory of busting out of a similar pair of handcuffs and fleeing after ripping a man's spine out of his body. 'Man, this place is really making my life dull.'

Putting those thoughts away for later, she let out a deep breath and opened her silver, glistening eyes. Scanning over the darkness encompassing the room, nothing could be found for an untrained spectator. Fortunately, Ruby was trained precisely for this kind of situation. She could see a person standing on the wall to her left and right while she heard someone breathing behind it, albeit considerably silenced.

"Who's interrogating me this time?" She spat out, clenching her hands into fists behind her back.

On cue, an elevator dinged and with the light emanating from it, Ruby's form was overcast by a lanky man holding a cup. Walking around her, that very man slipped into a seat in front of her. Then, with a snap of his fingers, the lights turned on.

Five people remained in Ozpin's office, none speaking a word. Whether that was because the Crimson Reaper was sitting in the middle of the room or the most politically powerful man in the world was sipping from a mug, no one could guess.

"So what do you want this time, Ozma?" The black-haired girl broke the silence, yet still sat in the unbelievably uncomfortable chair she was in.

Setting his mug aside, Ozpin rose from his chair and grabbed his cane, holding it for dear life. "Information." He answered before glaring at the young girl. "Such as how you know that name."

Breaking into a fit of laughter, Ruby hunched forward at the man's expression. No matter how threatening the old man tried to be, Salem was thousands of times more intimidating, even when she did not try to be. It was if Ruby was comparing a stuffed rat to a starving lion.

"Salem trusted me to know," she said, breaking off her laughter. "She also knows about the relics hidden under the schools and your mission to restore Remnant to its former glory."

Completely dumbfounded, Ozpin stumbled back before Taiyang caught him. "How...?" He struggled to speak with his thoughts clouded by the doubts and fears rushing through him.

Standing up, Ruby grinned maliciously and stepped closer to Ozpin's desk. "Did you fail to remember that she controls all Grimm? Did you forget that she has kept her powers for hundreds of years? Did you think she would just sit back until the time was right?" She spat out, though not with venom. She spat out those questions with a trickster's glee.

Before she realized what was happening, Ruby was shot back into her chair with the flat side of a blade held against her chest. Nonetheless, she kept her Cheshire grin spread across her lips.

Now she knew who she was up against for sure. Glynda Goodwitch, Qrow Branwen, and Taiyang Xiao Long. Two retired fighters and one of the best Hunters on active duty.

"Reaper, I advise you to control yourself before we control you." The blonde Huntress warned, keeping her eyes on Ruby's hands. "You're skilled, but you know going against three opponents with decades of experience more than you is a bad idea, right?"