AN: Hello! So I love RWBY. And I love Halo. I've had the idea for a RWBY/Halo crossover in my head for a while now, and I decided it was finally time for me to pull the trigger on making it a reality. This will be a hybrid AU of both the RWBY and Halo universes, so while there will be some canon aspects from both universes (mainly in the form of character names, places, and other things), there will be some parts of this story that will be entirely fictional or exaggerated from the original source material. As for how this story will play out, that's really up in the air right now. I'll write this as it comes to me, but I don't want to commit to a timetable that I might not even use. I will try to update as frequently as possible. If any of you want to help, that's fine! Send me your ideas, plot points, suggestions and I will do my best to make them a reality! Thanks, and i hope you enjoy!

PROLOGUE

0930 Hours, November 15, 2525

Fort Castle Spaceport,

on surface of UNSC Colony World Patch

Clouds aren't supposed to be purple.

That was Ruby's first thought when she saw the glittering metallic mass hovering in the sky.

She looked back down and took in her surroundings. The huge spaceport was usually filled with dock workers and military personnel. But today it seemed it was filled with regular civilians. People were running everywhere, some screaming, some crying, some that looked like they were armed to the teeth, but everyone seemed in varying stages of emotion. Ruby glanced to her right. Her older sister, Yang, looked down at her and gave her a reassuring smile, as her golden hair swayed in the sudden breeze. But Ruby saw the worry even in her eyes. Even though Yang was adopted before Ruby was even born, that still didn't make her anything less than Ruby's sister. Yang always seemed pretty mature for a 7 year old, even though Ruby was only a year younger. Ruby always trusted her judgement. So if Yang was worried, then whatever was happening was a big deal.

"Girls, keep up!" A voice sounded ahead of Ruby. She looked up, and saw her father looking down at her, giving her the same smile Yang gave her just moments ago. "I need you girls to stay close to Mommy and me. We need to hurry if we are going to make it to the ship on time."

"Okay, Daddy." Ruby heard herself reply, still trying to focus on her surroundings. More screaming now. People continued to stream toward the small selection of ships and freighters that remained docked ahead. Warehouses, normally bustling with activity, loomed like silent towers in a sea of humanity. The faint echo of gunfire rang over the docks. What sounded like an explosion rumbled off to Ruby's left.

It's just a huge adventure, Ruby told herself. That's what Ruby's mother had called it, as her father burst through the front door earlier this morning, still dressed in his uniform from the army base, a rifle slung across his back. He was talking fast and loud, telling the family to pack as quickly as possible. When Yang tried to ask what was happening, their father simply said they needed to hurry to the spaceport to catch a ship off planet. When they left the house, Ruby had noticed that all their neighbours were leaving as well. That's when heard the rumbling in the sky that caused her to look up and see the giant purple cloud. The screaming started soon after.

"There it is!" she heard her father say to her mother, as Ruby looked and saw a massive shipping freighter looming ahead. "We need to get on that ship. Summer, take the girls ahead and I'll grab the-"

Ruby didn't hear the rest, as a roaring sound overhead drowned out all other noise. A ship, some sort of military transport, careened over the throngs of terrified civilians, its tail sweeping flame and smoke. Ruby watched as the ship sailed into the roof of a nearby warehouse, detonating in a concussive ball of fire.

The screaming increased a hundredfold.

Ruby's father turned towards the rest of his family. "Alright, we need to RUN! Everybody just RUN to the ship!"

Ruby felt someone grab her hand as she began to move towards the freighter. She looked up and saw it was Yang, running with surprising speed for her age. Debris started to land all around as the family sprinted towards the ship. Wait, Ruby thought. That's not debris…

They were pods. Colored the same purple as the huge cloud.

Air hissed from cracks that appeared in their hulls.

Ruby's father froze. He pushed the three girls ahead towards the ship. "GO! I'll hold them off as long as I can!"

Summer hesitated, staring at her husband, tears welling up in her eyes, but she slowly nodded. She grabbed Ruby and Yang's hands and began to run to the freighter.

"Wait, Mommy, where's Daddy going?" Ruby cried, trying to look back. Gunfire filled the air, along with the sound of what sounded like discharging electricity

"Daddy's coming soon, sweetie." Summer replied, silently blessing Ruby's young age to not recognize the lie. "We need to get to the ship now, so I'm going to need you to run just a bit farther."

What sounded like an inhuman roar made Ruby shake with fear. She looked back. It sounded like it came from where they had left her father. What if he was in danger? Ruby squirmed to try to look for her father. She managed to pull away from her mother's grasp.

"RUBY, WAIT!" she cried, as Ruby turned and ran back the way they had come, red hair blowing in the wind. Summer took off after her stubborn daughter, Yang still in her grasp.

Ruby searched for her father. She was scared, and Daddy had always made things better when things were scary. She breathed a sigh of relief when her silver eyes finally located him in the crowd of people, but terror returned when she saw what was in front of him.

The creature was enormous. It was almost twice the size of her father. It stood in front of him on two, massive armored legs. Ruby had seen this type of creature before, on the news. She didn't know much about them, but her father had said that they were aliens, and that they didn't like people all that much. It roared a guttural scream, its mouth opening like the petals of an obscene flower. Ruby's father shot at the monster with his rifle, but the alien didn't even flinch, his body shimmering with each bullet impact. The bullets didn't appear to even touch the creature's armored chest.

"DADDY!" Ruby screeched. She had to get his attention. Had to get him away from the monster. But if he had heard Ruby's desperate cry, he made no indication of running.

Light flared in the monster's claws. It looked like the creature was holding two wands of crackling energy, roughly shaped into an oval. The alien raised his arm, and thrust the oval towards her father.

Time seemed to stop as Ruby watched with horror. The glowing wands cut into her father's chest like a knife through butter. Even though Ruby was hundreds of feet away, she could still hear her father's flesh crackle as the fiery energy blade cooked his insides. He sank to his knees, eyes vacant, jaw slack. The alien roared triumph, as it brought the blade upwards in a wide arc, nearly cleaving the human in two.

Ruby Rose started to scream before her mind fully processed this scene.

The giant looked up at the sound of anguish, and roared in return. He began to step towards the little girl, armored boots thudding against the pavement.

"RUBY!" a voice from behind her screamed. Summer Rose ran up to her daughter as the alien raised a metal claw-like device that hummed with green energy. She scooped up Ruby and ran. Ruby was clutched to her mother's chest, as Yang waited further ahead, waving them forward. She looked over her mother's shoulder, back at the monster, in time to see an orb of green sail towards them. The hissing orb struck Summer in the back, causing her to shriek in agony. But she kept her stride and together the three girls ran to the freighter.

The three reached the ship and moved to the loading hatch. "We need to get on board!" Summer cried to the armed corporal guarding the hatch. There's three of us!" The corporal quickly ushered them inside. As soon as the three entered, Summer collapsed, dropping Ruby to the deck.

"Mommy!" Ruby squealed, as the crew of the freighter scrambled to seal the bulkheads of the hold. Somewhere deep within the ship, engines began to power up.

Ruby stared at her mother, who was writhing in pain on the deck. The ball of energy the alien had shot at her had turned her back into a charred mess of skin and flesh. Smoke curled up from the wound, as two medics rushed to her side, pulling bandages from their kits.

"R-Ruby…Yang, come c-closer," she whispered, her voice raw and cracked. Ruby and Yang knelt at her side, tears streaming down their cheeks. "I-I-I don't think I'll be here much l-longer…," she grimaced, as she slowly started to sag to the floor. The two medics shared a weary glance, one slowly shaking his head. The ship's engines finished powering up, and the freighter began to lift into the sky. Summer Rose looked at her daughters. "Ruby, I-I'll need you to be strong for me, okay? I'll need you to grow up into a strong woman, do you understand?"

Ruby nodded, whimpering as tears flowed like a river from her silver eyes.

Summer turned to Yang. "I'll need to you to look after your sister, Yang. You're the older one, so keep her and yourself safe."

"I will, Mom." Yang's voice cracked as she replied, but she managed to hold her tears at bay. At least for the moment.

Summer sighed as she let her head rest on the deckplates. It would be a struggle for her children, but they would be safe. She could accept that. "I love you both very much," she whispered, as she felt herself start to fade. "I know you will achieve great things…"

Summer Rose let out one last sigh as the light beckoned.

"No. No! NO! NO! MOMMY! MOMMY NO!" Ruby shrieked, as she watched her mother pass. Yang grabbed her before she could pounce on the body, and held her tight as she struggled.

"It's okay, Ruby," Yang mumbled into her sobbing sister's ear. Her lilac eyes began to water. The tears that Yang Xiao Long tried so hard to hold in came flooding out in waves. "We're gonna be okay…"

The two sisters sobbed onto each other's shoulders as the freighter roared away from the planet's surface. They were oblivious to the other survivors aboard the vessel. The ship entered open space and accelerated on an outbound vector.

Ruby wailed in agony as the other survivors stared out of the viewports. Purple clouds began to rain fire upon what was once their home.