Halloween's coming around the corner soon, time for some spooks!

The sky was fading into a dark purple as the moon began to rise from the horizon. The sound of boots echoed throughout the forest as soldiers dressed in steel marched in a single file line towards the ruins before them. Armor clinks were the only sound made as the army approached the haunting structure, all knowing what was in store for them. Even in this cold evening he felt his palms go sweaty as his grip on his sword tightened, his blue eyes scanning through the soldiers around him as he shook in his chainmail armor. He couldn't help but feel nervous- this was his first time in actual combat, not just against the straw dummies that they provided back at the keep.

He let out a quick breath in hopes that it would calm his nerves. Was he ready enough to fight? He'd heard the tales of these devils of the night from his childhood, about how they killed without mercy and how they dragged their victims back into their world to torture them for entertainment. He nearly jumped out of his armor as he felt someone place their hand on his shoulder, and when he turned around to face them he was greeted with teal eyes.

"Hey, you alright? You're looking pale." An orange-haired girl asked. She had less armor on than him yet she was wielding a war hammer that looked like it was too big for her to carry.

"I-I'm fine, just mentally preparing myself." He replied as he faced back towards the front.

"Alright, just try to stay alive out there." She cautioned as she disappeared into the masses.

After a couple more minutes the army stopped at the base of hill, the ruins of the castle looming over them as the moon began to rise behind it.

"Scouts! Form up!" A male voice barked from behind him, and when he turned around he saw the sergeant march through as the soldiers made way for the orange-haired man. Roman Torchwick was his name- he held a cane in his hand, waving it around as he ordered the troops. Several soldiers broke away from the others and lined up in front of the sergeant- one individual caught his eye as they wore a red cloak as opposed to the others.

They were much smaller than the other scouts, besides wearing a bright red cloak compared to everyone's gray cloaks. Why were they wearing something that stood out so much? Were they from a family that couldn't afford a normal cloak? His thoughts were interrupted as Roman began to shout again.

"Little Red, why are you wearing that cloak? I thought I ask you to switch it back at the castle." He scolded as he stopped in front of the red clad scout.

"And I remember saying I wasn't going to change it." Her voice was quiet yet had a threatening tone behind it. The scouts to the side of her shuffled away as everyone eyed the sergeant to see his reaction.

His eye twitched in irritation as he continued to stare down the small girl, but after a while he let out a sigh and turned towards the rest of the scouts, "You all know what to do- if the undead leeches are there, fire the signal."

"Yes, sir." Every scout excluding the red-clad girl answered as they set out. Before they departed, he heard something unusual as the smaller girl passed next to him. He could've imagined it but he swore he heard rattling chains from her.

"Jaune! Quit slacking off and get to your platoon." Roman ordered as he pointed his cane at him.

"Y-yes, sir!" Jaune replied as he went to search for his battalion.

"Here they come, Sister- don't forget your training." A pale figure stood at the window as moonlight began to enter the room.

"I thought you knew me already- I won't forget." An ebony-haired girl answered as she stepped into the light, her amber eyes glowing in the room as they stared into azure blue.

"I do know you, and that's why I'm reminding you." The white-haired girl said as she approached her, "Even with your skills, you still struggle to kill that infuriating human."

"I could say the same for you, Sister- you still haven't killed that brawler yet, Weiss." The ravenette smirked.

"It's because she's a damn cheat! That insufferable oaf constantly keeps fighting dirty and runs away when I'm about to kill her!" Weiss hissed.

"Not that easy, is it?" Blake said as she looked out the window, her eyes catching onto something in the distance, "Looks like we'll get another opportunity much sooner than I thought."

The pale girl eyed the faunus before she looked out the window, eyes locking onto the familiar shade of red in the distance, "Does she know that she stands out like a beacon when she wears that?"

"Makes it easier for me to find her." The ebony-haired girl answered as she stepped out of the door.

...

The trip to the ruins was much quieter than she'd thought it would be, she mused as she found herself standing in an empty courtyard and carefully eyeing the interior of the ruins. She spotted movement but she couldn't tell if it was wildlife or them. Her right hand rested on the grip of her flare gun as she made her way through the keep. Her feet led her to a large hall, several columns lining the room and cobwebs decorating the corners.

"Well, look who it is." A female voice called out from behind her. When she turned around, she saw an ebony-haired girl standing in the center of the hall. She was wearing a white coat with black leather pants. Her coat went all the way down to her knees while the front was open, revealing a black undershirt. There was a pair of cat ears on her head that flicked- amber eyes locked onto silver as they both stood in place.

"Blake Belladonna." The red-clad girl said.

"Ruby Rose." The ravenette followed.

Ruby took her hand off her flare gun and slowly reached for the weapons on her belt. Blake only stood there with a smile on her face, the two not breaking eye contact with each other. A loud crash caught her attention as several figures began to enter the room, each resembling a human but their skin was pale as snow and their eyes were glowing yellow.

"Always with the thralls." The crimsonette muttered as she pulled her kamas from her belt.

"And to you with your gardening tools." The ravenette retorted.

The first thrall charged at the red-clad girl- Ruby brought down her left kama, severing one of its legs. As it was falling forward she swiftly used her other kama to cleanly cut off the head. Black blood splattered against the stone as the corpse hit the ground. Before any of the other thralls had a chance to move, Ruby tossed her weapons in a sideways arc.

Chains were attached to the ends of the handles- she pulled against the metal links, swinging the scythes against the nearest thrall. The blades sunk into its torso and neck before the smaller girl wrenched her kamas from the body, catching them as they returned to her. Three more thralls crawled out from the shadows and lunged at her from different directions.

Ruby held the chains of the kamas as they hung just above the floor, swinging her blades in a crescent arc as she danced along with them. The scythes passed through and minced the thralls into chunks, the kamas sailing in an arc before the crimsonette pulled back and caught them.

"Is that all you got-" The smaller girl was interrupted as Blake appeared at her side from the shadows.

"This is nothing." The faunus said as she grabbed the crimsonette and in an instant they both disappeared into the shadows.

Ruby's flare gun clattered to the ground as the two vanished without a trace.

The first flare went off minutes after the scouts departed and immediately the soldiers began to form up and march towards the ruins. Jaune felt his heart thumping against his chest as they slowly approach the dark structure. Another flare was fired nearby, scaring the blonde haired boy with the sudden bang. Flames began to light up the darkness as the soldiers raised their torches along with their weapons.

"Men, form up!" Roman ordered. The soldiers lined up in rows, all brandishing swords, shields, or spears.

Jaune unsheathed his sword and raised his shield, but when he looked towards the ruins he felt his blood chill as his eyes were focused on top of the castle.

A pale girl stood at the top of the keep, her white hair blowing in the wind as she looked down at them. In her hand was a severed head, which she held by its brown hair. He felt like he was going to hurl as he tore his gaze away from the gruesome sight. As he turned away he saw someone step out from the ranks- she had golden blonde hair and a leather coat with flaps that extended down to her knees.

She wore gauntlets that had crossbows attached at the tops while wearing gloves with a cross lining the knuckles. Her lilac eyes locked onto azure blue as she stepped into the courtyard below the pale girl. The white-haired girl watched her approach and jumped off the top of the keep, disappearing into a cloud of bats before she appearing in front of the blonde girl.

"Brute, are you ready to die?" The pale girl asked as she drew a rapier from her belt.

"Please, I'm not going to die here." The brawler said as she raised her fists.

"Ignore them and press onto the gate, we need to stop them from flooding into our world!" Roman shouted as the two girls began to fight, ice forming around the two as the rest of the soldiers split away and charged at the ruins. Thralls began to crawl from the cracks of the ruins as they approached the gate, a couple soldiers stopping to engage the new enemies while he kept running. Humans and thralls fell like flies as blood spilled onto the cobblestone ground, more Vampires ambushing the soldiers from the shadows as the rest of the men tried to reach the gateway.

Jaune blocked several scratches from the thralls as he tried to keep up with his platoon. More and more soldiers were killed- their blood splattered against the stone walls and the ground, large pools of blood forming on the cobblestone as bodies were scattered everywhere. Just as he was crossing a catwalk, the wall to his left exploded as a large hellhound broke through.

The blonde boy didn't have enough time to comprehend what was happening as the hellhound tackled him, sending both of them off the bridge and into the pits below. He felt the air knocked out of his lungs as he was slammed against the cobblestone, the hound landing a few feet away from him. He struggled to get up as the hellhound was already on its feet and charging at him.

He raised his shield just as the hellhound opened its jaw, teeth scraping against metal as the beast clawed at his armor. He struggled to keep the jaw away from his throat, and he kicked the hound square in the chest and tried crawling away in desperation. The hellhound recovered and reared up to pounce on the blonde soldier until a large hammer slammed against its skull- a loud cracking sound was heard as it exploded into chunks of flesh and blood. Jaune turned towards where the hammer came from and saw the same orange-haired girl from before.

"I told you to try to stay alive." She said as she wiped blood away from her mouth. She was covered in cuts and was bleeding all over her armor.

"A-are you okay?" Jaune shot up immediately and ran over to her- she had been supporting herself with a wall until he wrapped her arm around his neck.

"This is nothing. ey, can you help me grab my hammer?" She asked.

"We should get your wounds cleaned first!" Jaune argued.

"There's no time," the teal-eyed girl grabbed her hammer with her free hand and used the shaft to support her weight, "We have to move, otherwise-"

"Otherwise what?" Another voice joined in from behind them. They both turned around and were greeted with a red-haired woman- she wore a golden ringlet holding her hair and her hair was in a ponytail. She had brown gloves that stretched up to her arms along with a brown corset- a belt hung off her waist with an emblem attached to it. She had a black skirt with a red sash hanging around it, her green eyes glowing in the dark pit as she raised a circular shield and a spear.

"It-it's a- it's a-" Jaune stammered as he took a step back.

"It's a Vampire." The injured girl took a defensive stance as she raised her hammer.

This was bad- with her wounds she probably wouldn't be able to fight back. But what could he do? There was no way in hell that he could kill a hellhound, let alone a Vampire. He glanced at the orange-haired girl once more- she was struggling to stand and couldn't run in her condition. He felt his feet move before he could think, and he raised his sword and shield and stood in between the two.

"Get out of here!" Jaune shouted as he prayed that his voice wouldn't fail him, "I'll buy you some time."

"What are you doing?! You won't stand a chance against her!"

"I have a better chance than you- find help, find anyone, just go!" Jaune stood his ground as the Vampire approached closer- he fought his nerves to stop him from shaking as he watched her take another step closer. He swallowed the lump that was forming in his throat as he tightened his grip on his sword. He will not falter here, not now.

The wounded girl glanced between the two before she began to hobble away, and in the next moment Jaune couldn't hear her footsteps nor her chainmail clinks. He let out a sigh of relief as he focused on the threat before him.

"That was very bold of you to challenge me on your own." The woman said.

"Trust me, I wish I didn't." Jaune replied.

"Then why did you tell her to leave?"

"She saved my life- I'm only repaying the debt."

"I see. Quite an honorable soul."

The two began to circle each other. Jaune made the first move as he charged, raising his sword as he lunged forward. His sword scratched off her metal shield as she swung her spear to knock him off his feet. His back slammed against the cobblestone floor, and he barely raised his shield in time to block her spear as she brought it down.

He quickly rolled away and stood up to block another strike, his shield making a crude sound as metal scraped against metal. The red-haired woman charged forward and kept gaining ground while Jaune tried to parry each blow. Her spear kept deflecting off his shield yet she struck fast enough that the blonde boy couldn't retaliate.

The green-eyed girl swung her spear in a sideways arc, the tip bouncing off his shield. Using the rebound, she spun on her heel and twirled her spear around her neck. The blonde boy let out a yelp as the spear immediately came back and knocked the shield away. The moment the shield was away, she delivered a sharp kick to his chest- sending him flying flying back.

When Jaune landed, the red-haired woman closed the distance between them. She stood on his sword with her boot as she pointed her spear at his throat, effectively preventing him from moving.

"Checkmate." She stated.

"So it seems." Jaune said meekly. He let out a sigh as he looked up towards his killer, if he had any regrets, one probably would've been not buying enough time for the hammer-wielder to get away. It's funny, really, to die on his first chance to prove to himself that he wasn't worthless.

"Why are you smiling?" The woman asked as she raised a brow.

"Huh?" Was he smiling? "I-I don't know..."

She continued to stare at him in confusion- out of every duel she fought this was something she have never experienced. He looked unusually calm in this situation but didn't attempt to put up any resistance. Did he accept death?

She shook away the thoughts as she raised her spear, "Farewell, human warrior."

Jaune closed his eyes, waiting for the spear to end his life. He didn't feel anything- he didn't open his eyes nor say a word, assuming that she gave him a quick and painless death. That was until he heard the rattling of chains. He slowly opened his eyes, only to see the Vampire's spear caught by a scythe with its chain wrapped around the spear's shaft. His eyes followed the chain and saw the red-clad girl holding the other end of the chain.

"H-hey! Do you have a death wish or something?! Move!" The crimsonette shouted at him as she struggled to keep the spear from killing him.

Jaune quickly let go of his sword and scrambled away from the Vampire as the red-haired woman focused on the silver-eyed girl.

"So you're the one that Schnee's warned about." The green-eyed woman said as she tried to wrestle her weapon back from the human girl.

"So you've discussed me- I'm flattered." She quipped as she swung her other scythe at the Vampire.

The Vampire deflected it using her shield but felt her spear get yanked from her grip- the crimsonette took advantage of the opportunity and retracted her scythes. The red-haired woman's spear clattered to the ground a couple feet away from the two, the hooded girl raising both scythes and took an offensive stance. The Vampire raised her shield, carefully eyeing the human- that was when she noticed two pricks on her neck.

'Blake couldn't finish you off? Just how troublesome is this human?'

Her question went unanswered as the crimson hunter charged forward, swinging her scythes like a bladed storm.

Hours passed before the humans were forced to retreat. Torchwick called the retreat as their losses began to pile up high enough to fill several trenches- everyone that survived was covered in blood, both their enemies and their comrades. The remaining soldiers camped far from the castle, all either bandaging their wounds or counting those who were still alive.

Jaune sat against a nearby tree, scanning through the soldiers for the familiar orange-haired girl or for the red-cloaked girl. He easily spotted the hammer-wielder as she was with one of the medics- she already had her wounds bandaged and was looking somewhat cherry. The blonde boy let out a sigh of relief as he slumped against the log.

"For someone who was about to die, you seem awfully calm." A voice from behind him said.

He immediately shot up and turned towards the voice. What he didn't expect was to see the hooded girl standing there.

"Uh, hi?" Jaune greeted.

"Hello," The girl replied as she sat next to him, "Was... that your first time out on the field?"

"Y-yes, it was."

"You did great for your first encounter with a Vampire. Most recruits I've seen would turn and run at the sight of them."

"And you? You seem kind of… young to be fighting."

"I get that a lot. Although most of the hunters here haven't experienced what I have." The crimsonette said as she rubbed her neck.

Jaune quickly noticed the two pricks on her neck, but before he could open his mouth the younger girl interrupted him.

"Don't worry, I'm not one of them. I had the same reaction when I was bitten the first time, but I haven't changed." She reassured him.

"But couldn't you turn into a thrall?"

"Yes, I could, but being bitten isn't the cause if it. Vampires can either raise corpses to become their thralls or... hypnotize human beings to do their bidding."

"They can hypnotize us?" Jaune asked, slightly scared of hearing the answer.

"Yep." She replied stoically.

"How do you know all of this?"

"I'd rather not discuss it. Got a name?" The younger girl asked.

"Jaune. My name is Jaune Arc."

"Ruby, just Ruby. Nice to meet you, Jaune." Ruby said as she held out her hand.

"Likewise." Jaune replied as he took the offered hand and shook it, "If you don't mind me asking, but- how did you escape from being killed?"

"What do you mean?" The silver-eyed girl asked with a brow raised.

"I've heard from many people that once you get bitten, you're dead. They'll suck the blood from you faster than you can react."

"Oh, right. They're not wrong- you'll feel weak and it's hard to do anything because you're low on energy."

"But how did you make it?"

"I punched them in the jugular." Ruby answered blatantly.

Jaune's mouth was wide open as he stared at the younger girl in awe.

"What?" She asked.

"I-it's nothing."

"Alright. Well, it was nice talking with you, Jaune," The hooded girl said as she waved goodbye, "Take care of yourself out there."

"I'll try." He replied, as he watched Ruby disappear into the crowd. Soon after, he looked up towards the shattered moon, watching it set behind the outline of the ruins.

Update, something interesting came up regarding one of my stories. I'll be vague about the details until it's done, but until then.