The Nuckelavee Grimm: Part Two

All right, if you’re reading this I can assume one of two things: you either enjoyed what I wrote last time or you just want to see how much of a dumpster fire this will become. Either way, I’m happy you’re here. So let’s crack on.

Now, if you read what I wrote last time you’ll know that I’m attempting to address the Nuckelavee Grimm and how I feel like it was misused in RWBY Volume 4. If you’re jumping on now, a quick recap. I feel like the Nuckelavee Grimm was so goddam cool and had such a good build up that it was a disappointment to see it die in less than 10 minutes. So, in my insanity I decided to write about how I would do it.

Basically all the lead up will remain the same, that stuff was great. What I’m changing is everything that comes after the reveal of the Nuckelavee. The initial part of the fight between the Nuckelavee and Team RNJR plays out the same; RNJR looks good, the Grimm looks like it is defeated, Ren is still in a rage because that works well. However, the Nuckelavee shakes off the attacks of RNJR and proceeds to beat them down quite badly, forcing RNJR to flee. Also, just because I want it to because I think it would be cool, the Nuckelavee talks. This all serves to make the Nuckelavee a legitimate and terrifying threat, and plays up the idea that Grimm can be intelligent.

Ok, we’re all caught up so let’s really dive in to how I would want to see this insanity end. Basically RNJR is forced to flee from the battle; they are still dragging the injured Qrowe behind them. All members are battered and injured from the fight. Morale is low all around. All they can do right now is try and put as much distance between them and the Nuckelavee as possible. There should be little to no dialogue between the characters as they are just exhausted and downtrodden. All the while it is seen that Ren is still angry at not only having encountered the Nuckelavee, but having to flee. The other characters recognize this, but can do little to comfort him right now. All they can think about is fleeing. After some time, RNJR decides that they have no choice but to stop for the night, try and rest and regain their strength. They begin the process of making camp and are just about to settle down when suddenly the roar of the Nuckelavee is heard in the distance. The characters spring to their feet to try and find the source. Because I feel it’ll look dramatic and be cool as hell, RNJR sees the Nuckelavee standing on a hill in the distance. It is clearly watching them, but making no move to approach. RNJR has to leave immediately. There will be no rest for them tonight.

We pick this up again the next day. The members of Team RNJR are clearly even more exhausted. They have been moving all night with no rest and little food, they are clearly weakening. Again, they feel like they have put distance between the Grimm and themselves so they decide to stop and try to rest. But guess what? The Nuckelavee’s roar is heard again. It’s following them. Again they flee. Now, I’d want this trend to continue for a while, not too long, but just long enough to really make the Nuckelavee even scarier than before.

My goal here is to make the Nuckelavee seem highly intelligent. To me, this thing needs to appear to have a cruel, malicious intellect. By this point it should be obvious that the Grimm is toying with RNJR. It is clearly following them but making no move to attack. It is announcing its presence to the characters, forcing them to flee again, further tiring them out. The characters start to catch on to this. They know it’s following them, but they also know that they can’t stop. If they do, they know the Nuckelavee will attack them, and most likely kill them this time. They are constantly kept on the move. This hopefully completes my goal of making the Nuckelavee the clear threat that this volume of RWBY needs and truly sets it apart from the other creatures of Grimm. Hopefully now it is properly scary, as I feel it should be.

After a few days of pursuit, it is clear the strain is really getting to the characters. They simply can’t go on like this for much longer. They are getting shorter with each other, leading to a few brief conflicts. All throughout Ren is increasingly frustrated by what’s happening. And now just because I’m an asshole apparently, we come to my finale to this whole thing. The team continues to struggle on when Ren stops walking. He has finally realized that they can’t go on like this. The Nuckelavee has to be confronted. Now naturally the rest of the team disagree, they got pretty handily beaten last time and surely won’t stand a chance now. This is where Ren drops the bomb. They don’t all have to fight, just one of them, just one person, lasting long enough for the rest of the team to get away. To really put some distance between them and their pursuer. Of course Ren states that he will be the one to stay, The Nuckelavee killed his parents and destroyed his village, it has to be him. Predictably Nora loses her shit, saying that there is no way she’d let him do that. Ruby also chimes in saying they just have to keep moving.

Juane is the only one who keeps quiet. After some debate between the other three characters, Juane quietly agrees with Ren. Someone has to stay. It’s either one person stays, or they all die. Clearly Juane doesn’t like the idea, he hates it. But he also realizes that it is the only way right now for any of them to make it out alive. Ruby slowly starts to accept this, as both her and Juane were team leaders they know what Ren is saying makes sense. Nora by this point is hysterical, she simply won’t leave Ren. At this point Ren hugs Nora, putting every bit of emotion he has into the hug, this stuns Nora into silence for a moment. Ren pulls back, smiles at Nora, then bops her on the nose and says “boop.” (this of course being Nora’s way of saying “I love you” to Ren) Nora is totally speechless. Ren then does some aura shenanigans and renders Nora unconscious. Again, because I’m an asshole who apparently loves suffering. He then hands her off to Ruby and Juane and tells them to make their escape, more difficult now that they have two unconscious people, but possible. Juane can say that Nora will possibly hate Ren when she wakes up, Ren replies that she can do so while she is alive. Ren turns to wait for the Nuckelavee.

Sorry team. Ren isn’t making it out of this one alive. He puts up a great fight and stalls the Nuckelavee, hell; I’ll even say he kills it using more aura shenanigans (thus avenging his parents and village) but he dies in the process. I know the Nuckelavee beat all of RNJR earlier, but I’m going to say that it also has an ego and doesn’t see a lone human as much of a threat. Naturally as the fight goes on it takes things more seriously. Ren will still use his father’s dagger to kill the Nuckelavee, but do so by concentrating his aura through the blade, killing the Nuckelavee from the inside out. I think that would be cool anyway.
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And that’s how I would do it. The Nuckelavee looks cool and menacing as hell. RNJR is put through hell. Nora and the rest of RNJR can have some cool development and storylines in the next volume. Plus, I think, you would have a truly unique creature of Grimm. And I don’t think that’s a bad thing.