Chapter 1

Blood Moon Rising

Running away from almost certain death had a peculiar way of putting life into perspective. Pain became merely a discomfort, and things once thought precious became trivial. Only your reasons for waking every morning were there for you when facing your end.

'Annie...'

For the figure wearing tattered jeans and a dark hood, every sharp breath burned their lungs. Every step on the wet ground felt as though it could be their last, and so they made each one count more than the one before.

Branches and thorns ripped through flesh leaving behind scarlet stains that went mostly unnoticed. Bursting out of the treeline, the hooded figure's knees threatened to buckle, but they continued sprinting toward the open field where the faint glimmer of the full moon reflected in a dirty windshield.

*Aaahhwooo!*

The ever persistent howl was a reminder that the hunter wasn't alone, and that death wasn't far behind.

They preemptively began flexing the blood coated fingers of their right hand which they had long since lost feeling of, but at least the pain returning meant they were all still attached. With every agonizing step the ugly, rust colored vehicle got that much more beautiful. The figure made a dive for the driver's side window but the thought of driving away was the furthest thing from their mind. They might escape in one piece, mostly, but that would mean going home and admitting defeat to a little girl, and another failed job they simply couldn't afford.

Everything was cold and slick to the touch, but fighting through the numbness they finally found the trunk release and breathlessly raced to the back.

Throwing the heavy trunk open, the figure clad in black gazed at the assortment of potential weapons. Shotguns, rifles, rapiers, crossbows, crowbars, iron chains, and anything they may have needed was here. Just not exactly where they had been last night. The smell of oiled steel meant Annie had borrowed the keys again, and obviously reorganized the supplies to her liking.

Irritated that nothing was sacred anymore, they instinctively reached for a shotgun before hesitating. Six ineffective silver buckshots were the reason they were in this mess, and seriously doubted six or seven more would help matters.

Making up their mind, they instead grabbed a black rapier that felt familiar even in a nearly numb hand.

The trunk slammed shut just as the damp grass behind them rustled, causing the figure to expertly stab empty air. Their breathing slowed as every sense strained in search for the beast. Pain was beginning to be replaced by exhaustion, and time wasn't on the hunter's side. But while blood dribbled from the gold nightingale pommel of the blade, all the they could wonder was if Annie had brushed her teeth and made it to bed on time. That is until they felt hot, sticky breath through the hood and on the back of their neck.

The rapier spun but something feeling like knives tore through their shoulder and sent them flying through the air. They rolled on the ground several yards until they came to a sudden stop. Pushing themself up, the hood fell from their face revealing a dark mess of hair with red highlights and tips that fell just past their eyes.

And their eyes... They glowed crimson in darkness and regarded the blood soaked jacket with disgust.

"This," she snarled, getting back on her unsteady feet, "was a gift from my uncle."

The teenage girl raised the blade between herself and the disfigured beast standing atop the trunk. How it got there without making a sound she didn't know, and had long since stopped questioning such abnormalities on hunts.

The beast was nearly seven feet tall and with the body of a man, only covered completely in coarse, silver fur. Its arms were too long and gangling looking, and instead of hands it had claws resembling misshapen fingers dripping with blood, which it was busy licking clean with its long tongue. Malicious yellow eyes watched her every shallow breath and flickers of amusement appeared on its large, wolfish face. Blood poured from the gaping hole in its chest and what was left of its heart could be seen. The beast seemed to know it didn't have much time left. It was going to die soon, and only wished to savor its final meal just as it had the chase.

For the young hunter wielding the rapier however, she was just pissed it hadn't died yet. And that it had ruined her favorite jacket. The job was supposed to be easy cash. Everything had gone exactly as she planned, but like usual life had other ideas.

'SIX!' Her mind screamed as she surveyed the damage done to its chest. Of course she had seen werewolves survive a couple of silver bullets when in a feeding frenzy and their adrenaline was pumping. But SIX silver buckshots to what was at the time a reasonably calm werewolf was absurd.

The beast was spilling blood all over her car and making disturbing sounds as if it were choking, and finally she'd had enough. Her vision was beginning to dim and it was taking both arms and all her strength to keep the blade between them. If it was going to end it needed to end now.

"If you want this body you'll have to get in line." She took a half-step forward, standing up straight with the rapier dangling from her hand. Proper stance be damned.

She smiled weakly and the werewolf needed no invitation. It leaped through the air met the blade in the middle and fell atop the girl. Its teeth wrapped around her neck as its claws sunk into her torso, and warm blood spilled onto her already ruined jacket.

After what felt like an eternity, bright red eyes flickered open and stared straight into the glazed-over yellow of the beast's. Drool ran down her neck, and after several minutes of cursing and careful squirming, she wrenched herself free and rolled the colossal creature over. Kneeling, the rapier slid out of its heart just as easily as it had slid in. A dull glow resonated from the bloodstained blade that matched her eyes, and she regarded the monster's body for only a moment before standing up.

Moving quickly, she pulled the trunk release again and retrieved a gas can. She had no intention of sticking around long enough to find out if the beast had once been human or not. It was easier to let nightmares stay as nightmares rather than consider the alternative. But the clock was ticking, and if she didn't find where her sister had hidden the matches she'd soon find out.

They turned out to be buried under the camping supplies, far away from the gasoline and piles of ammunition, which she admitted was probably a smart idea. By the time she had the body doused in gas, the glow around her blade had faded as had her eyes which were now without a trace of crimson. Now, the left was a dark amber and the right was a dark shade of green.

She tried to avoid looking at the beast's face, but at a glance she saw it no longer appeared quite as wolfish. It had clearly once been a young man, and a handsome one at that. Feeling weak, she knelt down beside him and unzipped her jacket.

"My name is Sarah," she whispered. "and... and I'm so sorry..."

She said the prayer that she had come to memorize after all the years of hunting and covered his face with her favorite jacket before pouring more gasoline. Only when her eyes had dried did she strike the match.

The flames did nothing to fight the bitter chill she felt, and slowly Sarah retreated back to the vehicle. Putting the tools of the trade away she glanced down at the bloodstained rapier, giving it a disgusted look before throwing it as far in the back of the trunk as possible and slamming the lid down.

Stopping at the driver's side door she reached into her front pocket and frowned. Her jeans were torn just like the top she was wearing, and could even see her fingers poking out of the pocket.

With a sigh, Sarah turned toward the dark woods she had emerged from just as the rain began again.

She shook her head almost impressed with herself. "Of course I would drop the damn keys..."

(A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. "Remnants of Salvation" has been a story that's been a long time coming and gone through many different revisions over the years, and is very near and dear to my heart. This chapter's purpose was to serve as a prologue of sorts to introduce Sarah, give you an idea of what kind of world she lives in, and of course hopefully get you hooked from the beginning. This story has obvious RWBY and Supernatural influences, however it is a completely original story with an original cast of characters. It's very possible I may include some occasional references and/or allusions, but for the most part "Remnants of Salvation" will try to be its own entity. You will likely see many resemblances between this story and "The Patchwork Prodigy", but please keep in mind that the story/characters of my fanfic are now in an almost entirely different place development wise compared to their show counterpart(s). This story will be rated "T" for violence, mild language, and suggestive material. If you have any question feel free to ask in a review and/or a PM.

I do now know how frequently this story will be updated. As of right now I have drafts of the first eleven chapters and an overall outline that is still in flux. This is more or less to help me get the ball rolling and hopefully get some feedback on the story. I fully expect to refine this and later chapters over time the more my writing improves, the story evolves, and the characters come more alive. But it will serve as a building block to build from much like "The Petals Scatter Now" and "The Patchwork Prodigy" have.

Speaking of which, I will NOT be abandoning "The Patchwork Prodigy". It will merely become more of a side project as I continue working on "Remnants of Salvation".

I do NOT own Supernatural or RWBY. This is merely a fanfic influenced and inspired by the author's love for both shows and characters. The cover image of a werewolf howling at the moon also does NOT belong to me. It belongs to Dr. Who, specifically from the Series Two Season Two episode "Tooth and Claw".

All credit goes to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who has blessed me with a love for writing and made this story possible. God bless)