Hello there! I hope you have all had a good weekend. I have a few announcements before we get started.
1.) I am currently in the process of going back on all previous chapters to re-read through them to see if there are any improvements I could make to them. This includes adding some bonus scenes or improving some currently featured scenes in some of the chapters. These should be pushed out throughout the weekend and next week. I will have a full detailed list of changes that were made in the next chapter. Let me know if you have any suggestions and I will see what I can do to incorporate them.
2.) I seemed to have forgotten the timeline of events (and content) for Volume 2 episodes 11 and 12. I won't be able to combine both episodes into one chapter because I'm just too damn descriptive. I tried to pack as much as I could into this chapter, but I still had to split it up. I have some portions written up for what I originally planned to release here, so depending on if I can finish up other things on my list, the next chapter could be released earlier (see point 4).
3.) It seems we currently have a tie going for the pick an Ace-Op poll. The scene that will feature the winning Ace-Op will be in chapter 20, so this is now an official announcement for the LAST CALL to cast your vote. Currently, Clover and Marrow are in the lead; I will be ending the poll at 11:59 on the 22nd, so please just comment an Ace-Op that you want to be featured. Ties are not fun. :P Update (8/5/2020): This poll has since been closed, thanks to those who voted!
4.) Another one-shot will be released on Wednesday; this will be put on the other story (go check out the previous one-shot if you haven't yet). The next update for this story (tentative) will be next Sunday. I'm thinking about having this story update on Sundays on the weeks that there is a one-shot. This is to relieve my schedule slightly and to balance releases accordingly. I'll try to have an updated schedule worked out by the next chapter.
I also have some reviews that I need to address :D (Thanks for reviewing everyone!)
Guest (Aka The Guy/Cloud Cartoons) - I always crack up when I read your reviews, thanks for the support! I would go get a place at RT, but I have uni to get through first :P. Also, your vote has been counted, thanks for voting!
TheInvisibleMan33 - I'm happy that I'm able to bring you some entertainment while you're at work. No need to look further because here's the next chapter!
slyer243 - Yes, she won't be the only one. I think I should include an extra scene or two today. ;)
That's all for now; I'll see you again at the end of the chapter.
- Lucky
Disclaimer: RWBY is created by Monty Oum and is owned by RoosterTeeth. I do not own anything except the characters, weapons, original plots, locations, etc. that I have created.
Chapter 17 - A Grimm Situation (Part I)
Mountain Glenn - Encampment - 2:00 am
Yang grumbles as she ties up the last sleeping bag. Mercury needs to grow up, I found three Chibi Chibi comics, over here in his stuff. Who even reads those anymore?
Dr. Oobleck comes over with a bag on his back and asks, "Yang, have you finished packing up over here yet?"
"Almost," She grumbles.
"Hey, now, why are you so glum? We're in the middle of an abandoned concrete jungle! There's nothing to feel upset about here! Except... maybe the cavern full of Grimm, and dead bodies, and quite possibly, a group of terrorists, and now your sister..." He laughs nervously as he trails off, not wanting to clearly anger the blonde brute before him even more.
"I should be helping them. I feel like a boring sack of potatoes." Yang sits down on a fallen concrete pillar, twiddling her thumbs.
Dr. Oobleck lets out a soft chuckle before he sits down next to her. "You know Yang; every mission requires preparation. Nothing can be done without preparing for it first. He glances down at her ring on her right hand briefly before looking forward towards the other end of the abandoned building.
"Care to elaborate?" She asks.
"Without preparation, anything you do will most likely fail. You need to prepare for everything! Like right now, we are preparing to leave. If we don't gather up our belongings, they are sure to be found by a potential underground group of terrorists that might very well be directly below us." He responds.
"They wouldn't be able to tell it was us though. This stuff could belong to anyone," Yang points out.
"Yes, but then they will know that someone was here. Even though I'm pretty certain that they already do considering how your sister literally fell into a hole in the middle of the street." He chuckles again before getting up. "We need to finish up here. Once we are through here, we can go find everyone else. I've already called for the bullhead to come and pick us up within the next hour."
Yang smiles and gets up. "Thanks, Doc."
-0-0-0-0-
Somewhere Yet Nowhere - Time Unknown
A blonde girl sits up against the invisible walls of her invisible prison. The glitching has become much worse over time, the being that tortures her has managed to find her weak spots and uses them against her flawlessly. She's on the verge of shattering, she can feel it.
She does not remember who she is or what her purpose is any longer. All that she remembers is a white-haired man, and that smirk. That gods-awful smirk was the last thing she saw before she woke up here in this world between realms. All she wants to do is punch that smirk and knock out the teeth behind it. She wants to kill the man that has made her suffer for so long. If only she could remember his name.
She closes her eyes and allows the glitching to happen again. Painful yes, but she has become numb to the pain. She begins to think about anything she can remember. She just wishes to have just a little bit of her memory, anything but that man with the smirk and the glowing green eyes. The man that gave her the ring, the man that trapped her here. I want to kill him.
She begins to think about how she wants to kill the man that imprisoned her. She does not know how long it takes for her to hear a name yelled out from the distance, "Yang!" it calls.
She opens her eyes and looks in the direction she suspects it came from. That name sounds familiar, is that my name? What did the voice say again?
"Yang! Is that you?!" Another voice calls.
Yang. That must be my name. I remember now! My name is Yang Xiao Long! I remember my name! Im̲̀ ͇͞he̞̽r̬͛ḛ͗! ̗̊̇͢Who͔̊'s͓͒ ̘͋ć̜̻̍ȁ̗l͉̲̅͡l͌ͅị̇n̘̔g̥̎ ̗̀m̡͈̅̓e̺̓?! She replies, the glitching taking over as her emotions begin to flood her from within. Those voices sound familiar... Who could they be?
"Jaune! It's Yang! It's really her!" A red-haired girl runs forward, glitching slightly as she does so. A blonde-haired boy begins to run after her trying to keep up.
Jaune? Oh yeah, I remember him now, tall, scraggly, lanky, Vomit Boy. Yang gets up from her spot and begins to pound against the invisible walls of her invisible prison. Maybe I can get out; then I can go kill the man that sent me here. I can finally be free!
-0-0-0-0-
Mountain Glenn - Underground City - 2:00 am
"Did you really have to make a hole in the ceiling, Red?" Roman points his cane up. Great, now we have a big fucking hole in the ceiling, ground... Road? Ahh, I give up, who's gonna be around here any time soon?
"It was an accident! It just suddenly happened!" Ruby responds nervously.
Roman looks over at the two guards. "Go find some of your buddies who are slacking off and go repair the hole before anyone notices."
"Yes, Sir!" The two guards say in unison before heading down the stairs.
"I've noticed." An electronic voice chimes from behind Roman.
"GAHH! Neo! What have I told you about sneaking up on me?" A startled Roman turns and looks at the smiling mute. I need to put a little bell on her or something... like a cat. I wonder if Adam has thought about doing that with his little kitty friend.
Neo types on her scroll then smirks as it repeats, "I wasn't paying attention when you ranted about it, what did you say again?" Why do you have that look on your face? Whenever you get that look, it means you have a bad idea that will end up pissing someone off, me most of the time.
Roman grumbles as he looks over at Ruby. "Is anyone else with you?" Please say no, please say no.
"Umm..." Ruby points up at the hole nervously. They all look up to see the shadows of several figures standing around it.
"Great... that was not the answer I was looking for." Roman pulls out another cigar and lights it. This is going to be fun to explain to Cindy...
Neo begins to silently snicker from the staircase leading up to the underground rooftop.
"I could easily just tell Cinder that you did this..." He points up towards the hole.
Ruby innocently replies, "But that would be lying."
Roman and Neo look over at the hooded girl for a moment before bursting into fits of laughter, Neo doing so silently.
"What? What's so funny?" Ruby asks, embarrassed. Did I say something wrong?
Roman slaps his leg then replies, trying so hard but failing at not laughing, "You're joking right, Red? Please tell me you are kidding!"
Ruby begins to laugh nervously, "Umm... Yeah! I was definitely joking and not being serious in any way whatsoever! I know my sister is known for puns, but I'm known for jokes!" Ruby gives a toothy grin. I can't believe I just said that... I think I just put myself in a worse position.
Roman lets out a sincere laugh then goes over and puts his arm around the hooded girls' shoulder. "Don't worry Red, I know you may be new to this sort of business, but if you're anything like your sister, you'll do just fine. Just remember the rules! Rule number one, always do everything that I say."
"Umm... Ok." Ruby replies with questioning confusion.
"Rule number two!" He continues as he begins to push her forward towards the stairs and to where Neo is. "Don't listen to Cindy unless she threatens you with fire."
"Cindy?" Ruby tries to hold in her chuckles.
"Yes, moving on, Rule number three, don't-" he continues.
"Don't listen to him, or else you will get caught holding the bag." Neo chimes in as she follows from behind.
"Neo, you ruin it every time!" Roman sulks.
Neo taps his shoulder then sticks her tongue out.
"Rule number four, one that Roman still needs to learn, is don't be stupid enough to give away your location." Cinder says as she jumps down from the gaping hole in the ceiling, the rest of the group hops down after her. "A good example of potentially giving away your location is blowing a fucking hole in the middle of an abandoned city!" Cinder raises her voice in slight agitation as she finishes her last sentence.
"Yay! You guys didn't abandon me!" Ruby rushes over and gives Scarlet and Weiss a big hug; the sudden force takes them off of their center of gravity, causing them to crash into the ground into a pile.
"Get off, you dolt!" Weiss whines.
Scarlet cries out, "I'm running out of air! I'm being crushed!"
Zwei does not help the situation much but hopping on top of the pile and begins to lick their faces.
"Zwei, get off!" Ruby cries in laughter.
The adorable corgi barks twice in response, which gets a laugh from a few others in the group.
"I had a dog once," Mercury begins.
Emerald groans loudly then replies, "No, we don't want to hear about what your dad did to your dog. Scarlet already complains enough about what Tyrian did to Scruffy."
"Hey!" Scarlet glares at Emerald, clearly annoyed. Don't you dare disrespect Scruffy like that. All you are doing is making me want to beat up Tyrian again.
"Focus!" Cinder hisses as she turns around, her eyes glowing a bright orange.
Ruby, Scarlet, Weiss, Mercury, and Emerald all reply "Sorry Cinder" in various forms. Zwei also responds by barking happily, not really understanding what's going on.
The sounds of footsteps begin to come up the stairs, "Sir! There's been an accident! A giant hole appeared in the middle of the street! We don't know where it leads to or anything, but it could-" Perry stops in the middle of his sentence and looks up. "Ooh. Yeah, we're getting fired."
Scarlet looks over at Perry and his partner and asks, "It took you nearly an hour to get down here?"
"It's been over an hour?" Ruby cries. Wow, time must move a lot faster underground. That or I must have hit my head when I fell down.
Roman lets out a chuckle then walks over to Perry. "Oh, Man. You know, Perry, I really did need this. On tonight of all nights, You won't be getting fired, my friend, but I can't say that Adam won't do his worse." He smirks at Perry who's eyes widen behind his mask.
A moment later, a large explosion sounds from somewhere in the cavern. Some of the group covers their ears, some whimpering while doing it.
"Oh, what the..." Roman goes over to the edge of the building, others following suit and looking over as well. "Perry it's your lucky day, I may let this one slide if you and your boys go take care of that before I find out what just happened."
"Yes, Sir!" Perry salutes before motioning for his partner to go down the steps before him. I'll do anything, even for you useless humans, if it means you don't have to tell Adam about what happened.
Neo narrows her eyes then they widen slightly, she whips out her scroll again and furiously types and hits the play button. "Should Blondie be here?"
"Yang?" Blake asks aloud.
"I thought that your partner was supposed to be helping Mr. Energy with packing things up," Mercury asks.
"She was told to stay behind." Winter looks over the edge then pulls out her scroll to send a message to Dr. Oobleck to ask what in Remnant is going on. But alas... "No signal," she sighs.
"How could she have gotten down here, Roman?" Cinder asks.
"How would I know! The only thing in that direction is... the service exit..." Roman takes a deep breath before yelling very loudly, "PERRRRRRRRYYYYYYY!"
Somewhere down below, Perry cringes. "Fuck," he mutters.
-0-0-0-0-
"Yang! What have I told you about just blasting into places! It could cause a lot of collateral damage!" Dr. Oobleck cries, hoping to grab her attention.
"You said it yourself, Doc; this place is an abandoned urban jungle!" Yang calls back with a laugh. She continues to run down the stairs that lead deeper into the catacombs. Ozpin is going to be very happy about this. I wonder if he would mind me bringing down the roof on this place.
She grins as she stops for a moment and looks at the stone wall next to her. That seems pretty weak... I wonder what my new limits are. She then summons up the emerald flame within her and embeds it into her gauntlets. She then takes a step back and gets ready to hit it hard. A soon as she does, a loud blasting noise can be heard, which nearly drowns out Dr. Ooblecks yelling.
She dusts herself off and walks into the newly discovered cave area. She whistles out loud, impressed with her newfound strength.
"Ms. Xiao Long! That was the complete opposite of what I- Oh, dear." His eyes widen to the size of dinner plates.
"Dr. Oobleck! Look what I just discovered!" Yang turns around and gives him an open mouth smile and throws her arms up in the air.
"Yang, I need you to be very quiet, and I need to you exit the area immediately," Dr. Oobleck commands quietly yet sternly.
"Why would I do that? There's nothing wrong here." Yang asks, she puts her arms down in defeat and tilts her head in confusion. A moment later, she feels something drip onto her neck. She reaches back to wipe it off, and she looks up, assuming its water naturally dripping down from the area. It doesn't feel too moist in here; I don't think that it could be that... She then turns around and finds herself mere inches away from the snout of an Alpha Beowolf. "Oh."
-0-0-0-0-
"Roman, I swear if you messed up..." Cinder growls.
Roman plants his weapon into the ground and leans on it slightly. "Cindy dear, It wasn't me for once who messed up. You can blame Adam's help down below." He jerks his head to the left slightly.
"I put you in charge here, and I even sent Hazel to make sure that you do your job correctly, where is he anyway?!" Cinder begins looking around frantically, looking around for Hazel.
"Oh, our employer called him back to assist with a certain primate." Roman chuckles.
"Why was I not made aware of this?" Cinder questions. Salem wouldn't forget to tell me about something as important as this, would she?
"Ask Hazel yourself, he just told me he was called back to take care of business involving the lunatic, so it's out of my hands," Roman says as he begins to head down the stairs once more.
Neo types something on her scroll then shows it to Cinder. [I wasn't told anything either. Something's up.]
Cinder nods her head, then whispers, "Show the others and keep an eye on him for me." She then motions for the Schnee sisters to follow her, which they oblige.
Neo nods her head then skips off towards, Scarlet, Ruby, and Blake. Once she holds out her scroll for them to see, another explosion rings out throughout the area, this time with much more force. She drops her scroll in the process, and when she bends down to pick it up, rubble begins to rain down on all of them.
"What's going on?" Ruby yells as she covers her head.
Emerald quickly makes her way down the stairs while covering her head. Mercury rushes over to the four remaining girls and starts to push them forward to get them to go down the stairs. If they can find cover, they should be safe.
"We need to get out of here!" Blake yells.
Neo shoves her scroll in her pocket and pops open her weapon to act as a shield, protecting her from the raining debris. She then signs to Scarlet, "This way, I know a shortcut."
Scarlet nods then yells, "Neo knows a shortcut, this way!" She then motions for them to follow.
Ruby unhooks Crescent Rose from her belt and holds it over her head, She grabs Blakes' wrist and quickly makes her way down the stairs with the assistance of her Semblance. Scarlet grabs Mercury and does the same. Neo is just casually walking down the stairs, minding her own business, until she is grabbed by Scarlet. A few moments later they make it to the bottom of the abandoned underground building, and they all take a moment to catch their breaths.
"What do you think could be going on?" Mercury asks.
"Earthquake, maybe? It could have what caused the sinkhole to appear." Scarlet points up towards the hole in the ceiling of the large cave, which is now reasonably larger.
Blake bends down on the ground and lays her hand on it; She also uses her extra set of ears to listen extra closely. She then shakes her head and replies, "Not enough seismic activity. That wasn't natural."
Another boom sounds throughout the caverns; more rubble begins to rain down on the group.
Neo motions for them to follow; they all don't disagree and follow the mute as closely as they can.
A few minutes later, they all file into one of the underground buildings. It seems that everyone else has also filed into the same building.
"What do we do?" They hear Weiss crying out.
"We shut up, and we wait. The Grimm in the area will hide out down here sometimes, so we need to stay calm, so they don't find us and eat us alive." Roman responds in an annoyed tone.
"I don't think that is the way to handle things." Winter argues, "We should be evacuating the area!"
"Listen here, Schnee, I'm just as not happy about being here as you are, I'm in charge around here-" Roman begins
Cinder clears her throat and glares at Roman. Everyone in the room can look and see Cinder's glowing eyes.
"Look, I'm just going with the protocol." He finishes, he then glares at Cinder. Not helping Cindy.
"What is the protocol, just out of curiosity?" Winter asks.
"Hehe..." Roman nervously replies, "Run for shelter and hope we don't d-"
He's interrupted when Winter quickly walks up to him and slaps him. Hard. "How could you have such a foolish plan?!" She yells.
Another explosion rocks the area, a large chunk of stone falls down in front of the entrance of the door.
Ruby lets out a startled yelp then runs over to hug someone, anyone. That anyone ended up being Neo. Neo just rolls her eyes and lets the red-hooded girl do whatever. Don't make this a regular thing.
"Kid, you're gonna have to grow som-," Roman begins, but he is interrupted when he is then slapped again for going off-topic by Cinder.
"Silence, you, idiot!" Cinder hisses. "Look, Ms. Schnee here has a point. At this point, I believe it would be best to evacuate everyone. I want everyone to start packing up as much as they can and get it onto the train. We will leave in twenty.
"How are we supposed to get out?" A guard yells from the back.
Cinder summons a flame into her hand; anyone who was near the door takes a step back, allowing her to send a blast towards the large boulder blocking it. It crumbles and breaks apart upon the flames' impact. "Any questions?"
The guards begin to file out of the building and get to work as quickly as they can.
Winter steps up, "I believe we have transportation arranged by Dr. Oobleck, but the rest of you will need to find alternative transportation to avoid any suspicion."
One of the guards runs back into the room and interrupts their short-lived discussion, "Umm... we have a problem, some blonde bimbo and some very hyper huntsmen just entered the area and are being followed by Grimm."
Roman thinks for a moment before grabbing Ruby by the hood; this surprises her and causes her to let go of Neo. "You're coming with me, Red. I have an idea."
"Wait?! Why me!" She cries and tries to get away, but it seems that Roman has a much better grip than the White Fang guard who did it to her previously. He takes her weapon from her grip and tosses it towards Blake, who catches it easily.
"You fell in the hole; you get to be the distraction. Kitty Cat and Ice Queen, go find Blondie and keep her away from this area for a few minutes. I have a stage to set."
"I have a name, you know," Weiss scoffs as she leaves the area.
Blake glares at Roman as she follows behind. Payback is coming, I can guarantee it.
Roman ignores the two girls and calls back to Cinder as he drags Ruby out the door with him, "You decide what you guys are doing." He then motions for Neo to follow, she skips out the door behind him.
~ 5 Minutes Later ~
"Alright, you sit on the ground here. Neo go hide somewhere." Roman instructs.
Neo nods and uses her semblance to disappear. Ruby watches in awe and wonders where she could have gone. Did she teleport? Is she invisible? Oh, I'm gonna have to ask her!
Roman looks around then yells, "Perry, get over here! And umm... you with the tail, you come over here too."
"Which one?" One guard pokes their head around the corner; another one does the same. Both of them have tails.
"Ennh... both of you. Who cares? Just get over here!" Roman replies. I need to start learning names, or I just need to come up with more nicknames.
Perry and the other two guards with the tails come over and stand around, wondering what the heck they could possibly be needed for that does not involve getting the heck out of this joint.
"I need you three to play along, just act like Red here is an intruder."
"Isn't she an actual intruder, though?" One of the tailed-guards ask.
Roman slaps a hand to his face, "No, no... pretend this is someone who is your enemy."
"I thought that she was the enemy?" The other guard replies, confused.
Roman cries out in frustration, "NO, NO, NO! Just... You know what... just act like you're gonna roughen her up, maybe kill her perhaps."
Ruby lets out a squeak, "Please don't kill me..." She mutters.
"They aren't gonna kill you, Red..." Roman says frustratingly. I'm assuming Adam doesn't let you out of your kennels that often... Roman glares at them and makes a mental note to have a conversation with Adam later on.
"Come on, guys! Maybe she's this way!" A man yells from a distance.
Ruby focuses on the voice, "That's Dr. Oobleck. I think they found them."
"Ok, then..." Roman clears his throat. "Wow, you are much more manageable without that oversized gardening tool of yours," Roman says a bit too loudly.
"What?" Ruby whispers confusedly.
"Play along, Red," Roman mutters before continuing his theatrics, "Oh, man. You know, Perry, I really did need this."
Perry looks at the two guards then shrugs. How insane are you? He then gives Roman a thumbs up, "How am I doing?"
Roman glares and mutters, "You were doing great until you asked, have any of you acted before?" He continues as he points his weapon at Ruby, "But seriously, how'd you find this place, Red?"
Ruby looks at his weapon then looks at him with an uninterested look. She already noticed that his safety is on, "I used a map." She replies sarcastically.
"Maps? Like a paper map or..." one of the guards asks. Do they even still make those?
"Not helping!" Roman turns and glares at the guard who straights his posture and continues to play his part. He then says quietly, "Go run in that direction," He jerks his head towards his left.
Ruby smirks then uses her semblance to start running into the direction of her team.
Roman calls out, "Woah!" before he turns his cane around and presses a button, sending the handle of his cane flying towards her. Ruby turns her head around, hearing the hissing noise coming from it, but before she can dodge, it catches her hood. Roman pulls it back, which reels in his lucky catch of the day.
"What was that for?" Ruby narrows her eyes and glares at him, annoyed. If I had known you would do that, I wouldn't have done what you told me to do!
Roman lets out a laugh before crouching down to her level. "I see that you have some tricks up your sleeve! Let me make this clear; we're not through here yet." He says darkly.
"Ruby!" Yang yells out as she rounds the corner nearby. Her other teammates and Dr. Oobleck follow and look around worriedly, the formers putting on a good show.
I didn't expect them to find us so soon... Roman rolls his eyes and gets back up, flipping his cane around to its normal position. "Somebody kill her." He says in a relaxed tone as he aims to shoot Melodic Cudgel towards the other members of team RWBY and their energetic professor.
"Get down!" Dr. Oobleck calls as he ducks, narrowly avoiding a flare from Roman's cane.
Roman looks around then comes to a conclusion. We have to get out of here. "Alright, Red, we're done here." He motions for the three White Fang associates to open fire on Ruby. She effortlessly avoids every shot then speeds over to her team, straight into the arms of Yang.
"Attack this cart over here and spread the word, We're starting the train." Roman calls loudly, one of the guards pops their head from around the corner and replies in a frantic cry, "But we're not finished, she said twenty minutes!"
Roman walks over to the goon and puts the tip of his cane to his throat; he then replies without faltering, "Do it, or you're finished."
The man takes a gulp, and Roman lowers his weapon. Roman then motions for him to go back to business as usual, except more rushed. Roman goes around the corner to avoid any unwanted attention.
"You alright, Ruby?" Yang asks as Ruby hugs her tightly.
"No, I fell down a hole, and Torchwick threatened to kill me," Ruby says in a huff. She then looks around and asks, "Where's team CMET?"
"We split up." Blake responds and hands Ruby back her 'Sweetheart.'
Ruby looks over her weapon for any damage then clips it back onto her back. "Alright, Listen, Torchwick's got all kinds of weapons robots down there." She points towards the train and down the tunnel.
Weiss responds, "We saw them, lots of androids and mechs, all of them already loaded on the train cars."
"They have to be from that missing shipment from Atlas," Dr. Oobleck wonders. "Anyway, that's ridiculous, These tunnels are sealed, the tracks lead to a dead end!" He replies
A crackling noise sounds from around them; somehow the PA system wasn't damaged from the explosions and falling debris. "Get to your places; we are leaving now!" Roman's voice sounds out around the tunnels. The train then begins making lots of noise and starts moving, specifically towards the direction that it shouldn't be going in.
"Well, it sounds like they're going somewhere..." Yang points in the direction that the train is moving.
Weiss huffs then asks, "So, what do we do?" She looks at the train and swears she sees a hooded figure hop onto it and go inside. She narrows her eyes and watches, waiting to see if anything else happens.
Oobleck replies, "I believe we only have one option."
Ruby, who also noticed the figure hop onto the train, replies, "We're stopping that train." She unhooks her weapon and transforms it into its sniper-rifle mode; she then motions for everyone to follow.
-0-0-0-0-
~ 5 minutes earlier ~
Scarlet comes out from around the corner and tosses Emerald her duffle with her Onyx clothes stuffed inside. Now back in her normal threads and wearing her black cloak and bodysuit, she hooks Phantom Cleaver on her back underneath her cloak then pulls out two throwing knives. "Thanks, Em."
"Now, I understand why you brought your stuff here with you last time," Emerald says.
Scarlet responds without missing a beat, "Always be prepared." She then winks at Emerald before sliding on her mask. "Alright, Cinder, what do you want me to do now?"
"Catch the train before it leaves the station, make sure no one sneaks on." She smiles, then motions or Emerald and Mercury to follow her.
Winter follows from behind and walks a little faster to match Cinder's pace. "So why did you send her separately?" She asks.
"I need you to go back to the surface and wait for the bullhead that our sensors picked up. If Yang or Oobleck asks what happened to us, say that we caught a ride back." Cinder responds.
"Wait, where are you three going?" Winter asks.
Cinder turns and responds, "Oh, we're going with you; Scarlet has a mission of her own though." Cinder smirks and watches Scarlet hop onto the train as it begins to pull out. Don't mess this up.
-0-0-0-0-
Team RWBY and Dr. Oobleck hop onto the caboose of the train. "Has anyone seen Zwei?" Ruby asks.
Zwei barks and pops out of Dr. Oobleck's hood. "I found him earlier." Dr. Oobleck responds.
"Catching rides like always hunh, Zwei. You need more exercise." She reaches over and rubs behind his fluffy ears, to which the dog responds by panting.
"Alright, children, we must hurry and get to the front and stop this train!" Dr. Oobleck exclaims.
"Err... Professor..." Weiss holds up a hand slightly. She sticks the tip of Myrtenaster into the frame of the train to keep herself steady.
"Doctor..." Dr. Oobleck mutters.
"What's that?" Weiss points towards a half-opened hatch on the caboose. When they look inside, they see a device covered in wires and buttons. There's also a little screen showing a very dim countdown clock.
Oobleck bends down slightly and replies, "That my dear... appears to be a bomb."
The members of team RWBY take a step back. Zwei growls at the bomb. A moment later, it begins to start beeping.
Dr. Oobleck looks ahead, surprised that no one has come up to knock them off the train yet, "We need to keep moving; it's time to go!"
The girls nod their heads and follow Dr. Oobleck as they hop from one train car to the next. "Blake," he calls. "Detach the caboose; if we don't then it will kill us all by starting a chain reaction!"
"On it!" She calls back. She hops down between the cars and bends down. She holds up her weapon, ready to slice, when suddenly, the links detach from one another. "Huh?" Her eyes widen a bit before she climbs back up the ladder on the 'new caboose'. "It decoupled itself!" She informs in a worried tone. What are you up to, Roman? I thought we were on the same side.
The group watches as the former caboose begins to slow down, and suddenly, the bomb goes off, sending rubble down along with it.
"I just figured out how Torchwick is going to get past the barriers," Ruby says quietly. She then pulls up the next hatch to reveal another bomb. "Umm... Dr. Oobleck, there's another bomb."
"Another?!" Blake asks confusedly.
Dr. Oobleck begins shaking his head, "Please tell me I'm wrong..." He rushes up and hops over to the next train car and pulls up the hatch to reveal... A million dollars! Just kidding, its another bomb. "They all have bombs!" He calls back in a worried tone.
"This doesn't make any sense." Yang looks around, How come no one has found us yet?
Team RWBY begins to hear beeping again, so they dash forward towards the next car. A moment later, the train car is blown into the air creating another hole in the tunnel. At that moment, they all truly realize Roman's insane plan, to bring the Grimm to the city.
"He's using the cars as bombs! I think he's trying to bring in Grimm towards Vale." Ruby yells to Dr. Oobleck.
"This isn't good. We need to stop him!" Blake responds.
Dr. Oobleck looks at team RWBY, "I need you four to go below and try to stop the bombs."
"What are you going to go do?" Weiss cries back in question.
Dr. Oobleck adjusts his glasses then looks at Zwei, who licks his face, putting his glasses in their previous position. He readjusts them then responds, "We're going to go stop a train."
Zwei barks twice. Translation: ONWARD!
Team RWBY hop into the hatch, each of them avoiding the bomb as they do so.
Dr. Oobleck looks up to see an Atlesian Paladin-290 warming up and hopping onto the car in front of him. Multiple smaller mechs that are manually operated hop up behind it, only about half the size of the AP-290. AP-250's.
"So, that's what you have been up to." He smirks then presses a button on his thermos. It begins to transform into a bat-like object, and at the end, a flame begins to come to life.
Zwei barks again and hops out of the hood of his jacket. Zwei then wiggles his hind-end and his tail, ready for action. Dr. Oobleck lets out a laugh as he gets ready to swing, he does the deed and sends the enthusiastic corgi flying forward then a form of a flaming ball of fury, and fluff.
-0-0-0-0-
Team RWBY hear a loud thud a few moments after they entered the interior of the train. An explosion is heard next, but it wasn't like that of the train cars exploding. They then look out the tinted windows to see an AP-290 tumbling backward behind them.
"Should I even ask?" Weiss asks.
"Nope." Ruby responds, "Come on, we have a job to do!" Ruby then motions for them to follow.
"We've trained for this, who else could do it?" Yang asks rhetorically.
"Shoot, I'm out of Dust," Blake mutters.
"Weiss then pops open a pouch on her belt and pulls out a cartridge and throws it to Blake. Blake catches it then looks at it to see a Grade A, highest of the high, multi-slot Dust cartridges filled with multiple varieties of Dust. "That should help." Weiss offers with a smile.
They all then begin to dash forward but are interrupted when a certain colorful mute appears out of nowhere.
"This one's mine." Yang cocks back her gauntlets then begins to fire at Neo. Out of nowhere, several White Fang guards appear from behind crates, one of them wielding a chainsaw.
"I'll help you out," Weiss says as she puts her back to Yang's.
"You think you can handle the heat, Ice Queen? If not, you won't be the only one melting." Yang quips with a smirk.
"Haha, very funny... NOT!" Weiss scoffs then summons her glyphs around the area.
Neo opens up her umbrella and puts it behind her. She smirks as she lets Ruby and Blake pass her to move onto the next car. Time to have some fun, Blondie.
-0-0-0-0-
Ruby and Blake run-up to the next car only to be stopped by a hooded figure, she spins her throwing knives between her fingers and smirks behind her mask.
"I have been instructed to keep you distracted. A certain drag queen, as you guys like to call him, is in the next car." Scarlet jerks her head motioning towards the door. "Which one of you two want to spar? The hooded figure asks.
Ruby grins as she transforms Crescent Rose into its scythe form. "Let's dance," she replies.
"Gladly!" Scarlet responds as she leaps high into the air, ready to strike.
Blake dashes through to the next car while the two Rose Twins begin to get into the heat of battle.
Ruby continues to block the hooded girl's strikes with continuous spins of her scythe.
"We won't have to do this for long, we just have to cause enough damage to the car to make it believable," Scarlet says between breaths.
Ruby nods her head then changes tactics by swiping low at Scarlet's feet.
Scarlet responds by jumping above it and landing on top of a stack of crates nearby. Ruby furrows her brow as she swipes at the crates, attempting to knock her down. Unknown to them, however, the containers were full of dust. The crates promptly exploded, sending pillars of ice and stone outwards, and lightning through the metal floors of the train.
Ruby drops her weapon unintentionally as she feels electricity surging through her body, her muscles contracting and relaxing rapidly, causing her intense pain. How in Remnant does Nora handle this?!
Scarlet, who was also unfortunate enough to be shocked, grits her teeth as the surge finally disperses.
The two begin to catch their breaths and allow their auras to regenerate briefly. A moment later, they begin to feel the train speeding up.
They look at each other and say simultaneously, "That's not good."
-0-0-0-0-
"What's going on?" Blake asks as she enters the engine to see Roman holding a handle, particularly one that attaches to the brake.
"I came in here earlier and found this laying here," Roman says.
"Is that the brake?" Blake asks worriedly.
Roman laughs nervously... "maybe?"
Blake rolls her eyes then eyes the emergency brake. Phew, at least that is still intact.
"Alright, feel free to break anything... except me, don't do that," Roman calls over as he looks at the GPS console. About another hour or so and we should be back in the main city.
A moment later, they hear a crashing noise and the sound of a small explosion. Another moment later, they start feeling a painful shock go through their bodies; the equipment on the console starts to go haywire. Roman, in an attempt to not fall over, grabs the first thing he can get a hold of.
Blake accidentally hit the trigger on Gambol Shroud, and it causes dust to come out from the barrel.
The pain of his muscles contracting causes him to fall over and, unintentionally, he pulls down too hard on the object that he grabbed previously, it snaps a moment later.
He falls down to the floor and looks to see what broke, unfortunately... it was the emergency brake.
"What happened?" Blake asks as she recovers from the unexpected shock. She gets up from the ground and looks at the distorted stone statue of herself that she accidentally created as soon as the surge of electricity appeared throughout the train. Talk about a bad photo...
Roman looks over, as he holds up the now broken-off handle of the emergency brake of the engine. "Welp, Kitty Cat... We might reach the city sooner than expected..." he replies with a nervous laugh.
Alright, we're at the end of this chapter. I wanted to expand more of the fight scenes (and I might do so this weekend if I have time), but I figured this was a good place to stop for now. I had way too much fun writing this chapter, I wanted to include some comedic moments to lighten the mood, and I feel that I managed to do it pretty well so hopefully, that makes up for the lack of detailed fight scenes (I will improve these!).
This is another one of my shorter authors' notes, so now we must part ways for a while. Please don't forget to leave a review! They really help, and I love to hear everyone's opinions. Have a good week, and I'll see you next time!
- Lucky
~ Last edited on 8/5/2020 to make grammatical fixes and layout improvements. Some dialogue has also been edited to offer a smoother reading experience. Authors' notes have also been edited to remove/update now irrelevant information such as release dates that have already passed, scrapped plans, etc. The disclaimer notice has also been updated to be the same as in other chapters. This is so I'm making sure that I'm covering any loose ends just in case something were to come up in the future.