Hello, and welcome to the weekly installment of RWBY: The Reapers! And, YES, I MADE IT THIS WEEK!
Now, without further a-do...
Chapter 10 - Priority: Vale II
The 2 teams from another universe walked out of Beacon and headed for the airships. They were heading down to Vale with Team RWBY, in order to finally get an official tour, after spending...a long while...either locked up in Beacon or hunting Reapers in either the Emerald Forest or Forever Fall.
Not too long ago, Teams RWBY and JNPR have been helping the 2 extrauniversal teams unlock their Auras. This was an especially exciting experience for Enigma and Centurion, as they claim this proves the answer to the Geth's question was "Yes", with irrefutable evidence to back it up: when Blake attempted to unlock Enigma's Aura, she succeeded, proving he had one, and, therefore, a soul. They even remembered Rukar's quip when this happened. "HAH HAH!Well, I'll bet all those Quarians who died during the Morning War are just rolling in their graves...HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH..." Lunn gave no comment to this.
Soon afterwards, they all tested out their newly-unlocked Auras, and learned how to use them to defend themselves: the Biotics in the group (Retribution, Rukar, and Drosk) did exceptionally well in that regard, and Enigma, Centurion, and Lunn also did fairly well as well. The others took some time to get used to it, but they managed.
Now, they were heading into town for some well-deserved relaxation, along with one of their groups of friends from this universe. Once the team reached the airships, they found Team RWBY waiting for them. "Hey, over here!" Ruby called out.
When the teams approached, they noticed Weiss seemed to be barely holding in excitement. Retribution gave what equated to an amused look, as Weiss said, "Come on! We don't want to miss the ship!"
The group just followed the Heiress into the ship, and it departed for Vale.
Once the 3 teams finally arrived in Vale, they started to walk around, and the group noticed people seemed to be readying for a festival. One man, the shopkeeper from the night Team REPR first met Ruby Rose, Glynda Goodwitch, and Ozpin, was setting up a banner across the street that said "WELCOME TO VALE!". Then came the talking.
"The Vytal Festival! Oh, this is absolutely wonderful!" Weiss said, with uncharacteristic excitement, much to Team REPR's Collector's amusement.
Ruby seemed nervous. "I don't think I've ever seen you smile this much, Weiss. It's kinda weirding me out..."
"You and me both," Rukar whispered (or as quiet as a Krogan COULD 'whisper') to Ruby.
"How could you not smile? A festival dedicated to the cultures of the world! There will be dances! Parades! A tournament! Oh, the amount of planning and organization that goes into this event is simply breathtaking!" Weiss continued in excitement.
"Weiss does appear to be a cultured individual," Enigma analyzed, "Therefore, it is logical to assume that she'd find some excitement in cultural events."
"Thank you, Enigma," Weiss said to the Geth.
Yang sighed. "You both really know how to take a good thing and make it sound boring."
"Quiet, you!" Weiss snapped.
"And THERE'S the Ice Queen we know and almost tolerate," Drosk quipped...almost met with a backhand smack from the "Ice Queen" in question.
Soon, the group reached the docks in Vale. "Remind me again why we're spending our Friday afternoon visiting the stupid docks?" Yang asked.
"Ugh, they smell like fish!" Ruby complained. Rukar just licked his chops. Pierson just shook his head at that.
"I've heard that students visiting from Vacuo will be arriving by ship today. And, as a representative of Beacon, I feel as though it is my solemn duty to welcome them to this fine kingdom!
As Weiss walked away, Blake and Enigma said together, "She wants to-" They looked sharply at each other. Enigma bowed and backed off, and Blake repeated, by herself, "She wants to spy on them so she'll have the upper hand in the tournament." Enigma nodded in response.
Weiss scoffed. "You two can't prove that!"
"Really? Try me," Enigma challenged. Enigma became well known around Beacon for being able to "dig up dirt on anyone", and reportedly knows more secrets than he lets on. Knowing this, Weiss backed off.
"Whoa." Ruby's comment brought everyone's attention to a crime scene. Ruby approached a detective in front of a robbed store. "What happened here?"
"Robbery. Second Dust shop to be hit this week. This place is turning into a jungle." The detective went to rejoin his partner.
"That's terrible," Yang replied.
Enigma approached and scanned the area. "Money still in the register: Dust taken in massive amounts...this is similar to the robbery Retribution, Ruby, and I broke up when we first arrived."
"Yeah, just doesn't make a lick of sense. Who needs that much Dust?" the group heard one of the detectives say.
The second detective replied, ""I don't know, an army?"
"You thinking the White Fang?"
"Yeah, I'm thinking we don't get paid enough."
"Hmm! The White Fang." It was Weiss speaking now. "What an awful bunch of degenerates!"
"What's your problem?" Blake snapped.
Weiss replied, irritably, "My problem? I simply don't care for the criminally insane."
"The White Fang is hardly a bunch of psychopaths," Blake replied, crossing her arms. "They're a collection of misguided Faunus."
"Misguided? They want to wipe Humanity off the face of the planet!" Weiss snapped.
"So then they're very misguided. Either way, it doesn't explain why they would rob a Dust shop in the middle of downtown Vale!"
Ruby tried to intervene to calm everyone down. "Hmm... Blake's got a point. Besides, the police never caught that Torchwick guy Retribution, Enigma, and I ran into a few months ago... Maybe it was him."
"That still doesn't change the fact that the White Fang are a bunch of scum," Weiss said, ignoring Blake's rising anger, "Those Faunus only know how to lie, cheat, and steal."
"That's not necessarily true..." Yang tried to say, before she was interrupted.
"Hey, stop that Faunus!"
The group turned to see a Faunus on a boat, beingchased by the sailors. The Faunus appeared to have a golden monkey tail.
"Thanks for the ride, guys! Haha!" the Faunus said.
"You no-good stowaway!" one sailor snapped.
The Faunus hung upside down on a lamppost and ate a banana. "He's REALLY going for the "monkey" image, isn't he?" Drosk said.
"Hey! A no-good stowaway would've been caught! I'm a great stowaway!" the Faunus quipped.
"Hey!" Weiss shouted to Retribution, "You can do that..."Biotics" stuff...why can't you use it to stop him?!"
"This amuses me..." Retribution said. Weiss had a hard time NOT envisioning Retribution with a troll face on right now.
"Hey! Get down from there this instant!" one of the detectives said, but the Faunus dropped the banana peel on his face, and the Faunus ran off, passing Teams REPR, CTDL, and RWBY, none of them making a move to stop him. He seems to look at Blake and wink as he passes by, before running off into the distance.
"Well, Weiss, you wanted to see the competition, and there it goes..." Yang quips.
"Quick! We have to observe him!" Weiss replies.
Weiss, Yang, Ruby, and Teams REPR and CTDL give chase while Blake stands still, lost in thought, before coming back to reality and following everyone. The teams round the next corner, but then Weiss and Lunn bump into someone and trip. Weiss gets up only to see the Faunus escape, while Lunn quickly looks over his suit, before sighing in relief, seeing no suit breaches.
"No, he got away!" Weiss groans.
"Uhh... Weiss?" Yang says, pointing out the person Weiss and Lunn tripped over.
"Sal-u-ta-tions!" the girl the duo tripped on commented.
"Um... hello," Ruby said.
Yang then asked, "Are you... okay?"
"I'm wonderful! Thank you for asking," the girl replied. Most of the group found the girl to be quite weird. Ironically, the only 1 who didn't find her weird at all was Centurion: he seemed more amused than anything.
He flashed his 3 face lights in sequence. Over their consensus connection, Enigma replied, "Laugh it up, Triclops."
"Do you... wanna get up?" Yang awkwardly asked.
The girl seems to have to think about it for a moment, before answering, "Yes!" and getting up. "My name is Penny! It's a pleasure to meet you!"
"Hi Penny. I'm Ruby."
"I'm Weiss."
"Blake."
"Are you sure you didn't hit your head?" Yang's first comment earned her a jab from Blake. "Oh, I'm Yang."
"I am known as Retribution."
"Platform-37x, designation "Engima"."
"Pierson Chancellor, at your service."
"Rukar, Battlemaster of Clan Wraksan!"
"Tiara Rogers, nice to meet you."
"Drosk Dosnahal. Batarian Slasher."
"Lunn'Fanaar vas Vera, of the Quarian Flotilla."
"Platform-174c, designation Centurion. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"It's a pleasure to meet you!" Penny said to them.
"You already said that," Weiss commented.
Penny paused again. "So I did!"
"Well, sorry for running into you!" Weiss said, before running off.
The others ran off, with only Centurion and Ruby stopping briefly. "Take care, friend!" they both said, before sharply looking at each other, then following the others.
"She was... weird..." Yang said, after the group was out of earshot of Penny.
"I find eccentric being the more appropriate adjective," Centurion commented.
Enigma looked at him and narrowed his main optic. Through their connection, Enigma stated, "You like her!"
"At least mine's synthetic like myself..." Centurion responded over the connection, smugly.
Enigma glared at the Juggernaut for a moment, as Weiss asked, "Now, where did that Faunus riff-raff run off to?"
Suddenly, Penny appeared again. "What did you call me?"
Weiss seemed to spaz out, looking back to where Penny was before, and where she was now. Yang then sputtered, "Oh, I'm really sorry, I definitely didn't think you heard me!"
"No, not you." Penny then advanced on Ruby and Centurion. "You two!"
Ruby seemed startled. "Me? I-I don't know. I, what I, um, uh..."
"You called me 'friend'! Am I really your friend?"
"Uuuum..." Ruby seemed to think a moment, as the rest of Team RWBY tried to get her to deny it. "Y-Yeah, sure! Why not?"
As Weiss, Yang, and Blake seemed to momentarily faint, Centurion added, "Affirmative."
Penny looked ecstatic, and directed the first comment to Ruby. "Sen-sational! We can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys!" Then, she turned to Centurion. "And we can talk about...well...what your people talk about!"
While Penny's attention was on Centurion, Ruby asked Weiss, "Oh, is this what it was like when you met me?"
"No - she seems far more coordinated," was the answer.
"So... what are you doing in Vale?" Yang asked.
"I'm here to fight in the tournament," Penny answered.
"Your platform does not strike me as combat capable," Enigma stated.
"Looks can be deceiving! I'm combat ready!"
"Forgive me, but you hardly look the part," Weiss stated.
Blake replied, "Says the girl wearing a dress?"
"It's a combat skirt!" Weiss indignantly replied.
"Yeah!" Ruby responded, appearing next to Weiss, the latter offering a low-five, and Ruby following through.
"Wait a minute." Something seemed to strike Weiss.
"Oh, by whatever deity watches this world, not this *unknown Prothean expletive* AGAIN!" Retribution muttered under his breath.
"If you're here for the tournament, does that mean you know that monkey-tailed rapscallion?" Weiss asked.
"The who...?" Penny asked.
"The filthy Faunus from the boat!"
"Why do you keep saying that?!" Blake asked angrily.
"Huh?" Weiss asked.
"Stop calling him a rapscallion! Stop calling him a degenerate! He's a person!"
"Oh, I'm sorry. Would you like me to stop referring to the trash can as a trash can? Or this lamppost as a lamppost?"
Retribution's eyes dimmed. He was about to advance when Pierson stopped him. "Just...let it play out: they'll get no where if you keep going in and scaring her into submission."
"Stop it!" Blake exclaimed at Weiss.
Weiss responded with equal irritation, "Stop what? He clearly broke the law. Give him time; he'll probably join up with those other Faunus in the White Fang!"
Blake growled. "You ignorant little brat!"
"How dare you talk to me like that! I am your teammate!" Weiss replied, offended, as Blake walked off.
"You are a judgmental little girl."
"What in the world makes you say that?"
"The mere fact that you would sort that Faunus boy with a terrorist group solely based on his species makes you just as much of a scoundrel as you believe him to be!"
Yang slid up beside Ruby, and said, "Um, I think we should probably go..."
"Where are we going?" Penny asked.
They slid off just as Weiss yelled at Blake, "So you admit it! The White Fang is just a radical group of terrorists!"
"That's not what I meant, and you know it!" Blake replied in anger.
Teams REPR and CTDL also moved to escape, with Ruby and Yang.
"I don't understand why this is causing such a problem!" Weiss exclaimed.
"That is the problem!" Blake retaliated.
"Oh, for the love of whatever deity is here, I would willingly give myself to Harbinger if it would make these two SILENCE THEMSELVES!" Retribution exclaimed in annoyance and frustration, but his exclamation fell on deaf ears. He, the rest of Team REPR and Team CTDL were all with Team RWBY in their room, there in case things got out of hand.
"You realize you are defending an organization that hates Humanity, don't you? The Faunus of the White Fang are pure evil!" Weiss countered.
Blake huffed. "There's no such thing as pure evil! Why do you think they hate Humanity so much? It's because of people like Cardin, people like you, that force the White Fang to take such drastic measures!"
"People like me?"
"You're discriminatory!"
"I'm a victim!" Weiss exclaimed in retaliation.
"Really, how?" Retribution snapped.
Unlike before, Weiss didn't miss a beat. She continued, nearly uninterrupted, "You want to know why I despise the White Fang? Why I don't particularly trust the Faunus? It's because they've been in war with my family for years. War, as in actual bloodshed. My grandfather's company has had a target painted across its back for as long as I can remember. And ever since I was a child, I've watched family friends disappear; board members executed. An entire train car full of Dust, stolen. And every day, my father would come home, furious. And that made for a very difficult childhood." After hearing that, with the anger and sadness she said it in, it was hard for the group to really blame her anymore.
"Weiss, I-" Ruby tried to enter in, but couldn't as Weiss shrugged her off.
"No! You want to know why I despise the White Fang? It's because they're a bunch of liars, thieves, and murderers!"
"Well maybe we were just tired of being pushed around!" That stopped everyone cold.
"We? What are you talking about?" Rukar tactlessly butted in.
"I... I..." Blake muttered before running out the door.
"Blake, wait! Come back!" Ruby called, as Yang sat down, Weiss looked down, and Teams REPR and CTDL seemed conflicted over what to do.
"What now?" Retribution pointedly asked Pierson, in a way that said 'Your fault for trying to stop me earlier'.
"Well...errr...Enigma, back me up on this..." The group then looked around: the Geth Hunter had also disappeared.
Blake ran outside, and found herself at a statue of an armored man with a sword and a hooded woman wielding an axe on an outcropping. She, in particular, looked at the Beowolf right under them. As she stood there, she removed her bow, showing her Faunus cat ears once more. She neared the point to where she'd start crying.
"I knew you would look better without the bow." Blake was startled by the voice, and looked up, seeing the Faunus from before. However, further up the statue, she noticed a familiar red optic. The Faunus soon dropped down next to her, shortly afterwards followed by Enigma, who landed with a thud. "Tall, dark, and cyclops here wanted my help finding you. Name's Sun, by the way..."
"Blake..." Blake replied. She then turned back to Enigma. "I...don't think I can go back, yet...you should probably tell the others that..."
Enigma then activated and fiddled with his Omni-Tool for a minute. When he came out of it, he paused for a moment, before saying, "I told them I didn't find you yet, but I'd keep looking. Until then, however, I'm deactivating my homing beacon. You need to talk, Blake." He turned to the monkey Faunus, then back to Blake, "And we will listen..." Sun nodded eagerly, a smirk on his face, giving Blake cause to smile a little, despite her tears.
Well, that's it for this chapter, hope you enjoyed.
A lot of people had guessed a Ruby x Retribution thing going...Like I said, however, that doesn't go full-swing for a LONG while (probably not until this story's sequel, or maybe later, or if I can figure out how, carry out my plans to make it less awkward...), but, you guys should probably be guessing a pairing more...closer to present...by now... ;)