Here we are at Chapter 43. Time for the gang to see the dangers of living in an abandoned farm in the middle of nowhere. I do not own RWBY or Transformers. They belong to theire respective owners. Here's chapter 43. Enjoy.
Chapter 43: Alone in the Woods
The gang are all back inside the house, with the moon up in the night sky, and the fire still going in the living room. Megatron stands in front of one window, watching the outside for any signs of danger.
"Everything alright?" Yang asks as she walks up behind him.
"I do not know. Something about this place... it gives off an aura of death, and it's not because of the bodies we found earlier. It reminds me of a place back on Cybertron known as the Sea of Rust," Megatron says.
"I didn't know your world had seas on it," Yang says.
"It wasn't an actual sea like the ones here on Remnant. It was land, but it was a wasteland. Structures fallen apart, bodies of long-lost comrades, and an endless storm of rust that never ends. It may slow and grow weak, but it never ceases. And you always had be most careful... of what lurks within that rust. This place gives off that same feeling," Megatron replies.
Yang looks out the window, "Well at least the storm's died down. We might be able to leave this place tomorrow. Just need to get the trailer hooked onto Bumblebee and we'll be all set," Yang notes.
Megatron hums, "It would be best for you and the others to get some rest. We should get up and prepare to leave at first light so we are not here any longer than necessary. I will take the first watch," Megatron says.
"You sure?" Yang asks.
"I know you're tired Yang, as are your friends. Please, do not be concerned with me. I am fine," Megatron replies.
"...Alright, but don't stay up too late," Yang says and returns to the others.
Megatron glances over to see Qrow drinking a bottle of wine, and shakes his head before he looks out the window again. A moment later, Predaking joins him.
"May I ask how the others are doing?" Megatron asks.
"You may NOT... But they are scared, and tired. More so than usual. My instincts have been clawing at me, telling me to leave this place as soon as possible," Predaking says.
"I am inclined to agree," Megatron replies.
"The old human woman has been reading those books on the founder of this settlement. From what she gathered, their idea of living on their own was successful... until it wasn't," Predaking says.
"Grimm, I imagine. Among other things. Every civilization that takes its first steps will always face hardships. There is no escaping that fact," Megatron says.
"Like the fact that you destroyed our civilization and prevented my kind from being born on Earth?" Predaking says accusingly.
"I have no intention of escaping my past. That is why I am here..." Megatron says and looks back to Yang as she crawls under some bed sheets near the fire. "I am here for her. That is all," Megatron says as he looks back out the window.
Meanwhile, Ruby sits up against a wall with a sheet covering herself. Soundwave approaches her and sits next to her. Laserbeak flies up and perches himself above the fire place.
"You sure you don't want a blanket, Soundwave?" Ruby asks. Soundwave just shakes his head. "Oh, I see... You know, I asked Dreadwing about you. About why you never speak... well, like a normal person anyway. He told me about when you were on a council back where you come from, and that you were angry at them for not doing anything except waiting when things got bad. That you were tired of speaking to them with words that they would never listen to... and decided to stop speaking altogether. You let your actions speak for you. I... admire that about you," Ruby says while Soundwave just listens. "But, you know... if you ever want to, you can always talk to me, okay?" she asks. Soundwave just stares at her for a long moment before he lifts his right hand and pets her head like a cat, making her blush a bit. "Um, Soundwave?"
"...Thanks... Ruby..." Soundwave says through his visor as he pets her.
While he doesn't show even a hint of a smile, Ruby can feel that he's grateful for her words.
"Of course. Goodnight, Soundwave," Ruby says and snuggles up to get some sleep.
Soundwave sits there watching her. It doesn't take long for sleep to full take her and she ends up falling onto his side, fast asleep. Soundwave just sits there and lets her sleep. However, he eventually wraps an arm around her and pulls her a little closer. The next morning, Megatron is the first to awaken, having fallen asleep next to Yang and finding her once again laying her head on his chest. Megatron sighs and glances up to see a little ray of sunlight begin to appear through a crack in the curtains. Megatron gently moves himself out of the position while carefully placing Yang's head back on the floor so as not to wake her. He walks up to the window and looks out to see that the sun is beginning to climb over the trees. He looks over to see Qrow alseep on the chair near the front door, an empty bottle of wine in his hands and a few others by his feet. Megatron growls and walks over to him. He then takes the bottle from his hand and then smashes it on the table next to Qrow. This wakes Qrow right up as he bolts up from the seat.
"What the... Is it morning already?" Qrow asks as he looks around.
"Yes. Yang warned me about staying away from alcohol. I can see she was right. I wouldn't want to end up like you after all. Get up, we need to get ready and get out of here. Preferably while everyone else is not intoxicated," Megatron berates him and then walks away to wake the others, while Qrow groans as he slowly gets up.
A few minutes later, everyone is up and moving about. Or at least, some are moving about normally. The former cybertronians notice their charges and their allies seem to still be tired, low on energy. Outside, Megatron and Dreadwing push the flatbed to outside the shed. Meanwhile, Weiss welds a makeshift connector onto Yang's motorcycle for the flatbed. Blake and Oscar sit on the steps with Maria standing behind them, while Soundwave and Ruby are watching their surroundings. A moment later, Qrow and Predaking walk out of the house.
"Is your motorcycle ready, Yang?" Megatron asks, to which Yang gestures to her bike, ready to go. "Good, now we can get ready to leave," he says.
"Do we have leave right now? I'm still so tired," Blake complains.
"You can rest on the flatbed, Blake. There should be enough room for all of us," Predaking says.
"Maybe we're tired because we haven't had breakfast yet," Oscar says, eyes half closed.
"You want to make breakfast?" Oscar asks.
"Not really," Blake replies.
"Come on guys, let's just get the flatbed hooked up and we can go. I'm sure we'll all feel better once we're out of here," Ruby says.
Laserbeak flies down and lands on Soundwave's shoulder, "No life signs nearby. I'm not picking up anything," Laserbeak says.
Qrow walks up to the flatbed, "Come on, let's just-," he begins as he puts his foot on the flatbed and suddenly the right tire blows out.
Qrow growls in anger at his semblance delaying their departure and walks off to sit down against a wooden fence.
Yang, too, takes a sit on the snow with a heavy sigh, "I'm starting to think the universe just doesn't want us to get to Atlas," she laments.
"Yang, there will always be trying times, and these are trying times, but we cannot afford to quit now. Otherwise, we leave Remnant's fate in the hands of a monster who will destroy everything," Megatron says.
"But, lately it feels like we've been fighting with everything we have just to get by. I just... I'm so tired of it all," Blake complains.
"Blake, I know it feels exhausting, but fear not. As long as I'm by your side, you won't have to worry about that. I gave you my word that I would help you after all," Predaking tries to ease her worries.
"What is going on with them?" Megatron mutters.
"Look guys, it's just a flat tire. I'm sure there's a spare," Ruby says.
"Yes, I believe there was one in the shed. Soundwave, would you go and retrieve it please?" Megatron asks. Soundwave nods and heads back to the shed with Laserbeak to retrieve the spare tire.
"Look, I've been thinking... Why are we going to Atlas?" Weiss speaks out.
"What do you mean?" Ruby asks.
"I mean... Well, you heard what Jinn said, didn't you? Salem can't be killed. If we can't kill her, how can we stop her? Ozpin has fought against her for hundreds of years, but he's never been able to beat her. So... how can we stop her? We couldn't even stop her when Beacon fell," Weiss asks.
"Milady, are you suggesting we... give up?" Dreadwing asks.
"I just... I don't know what to do right now. Aren't you tired of it, Dreadwing? All the meaningless fighting?" Weiss asks.
"I swore I would follow Milady wherever she goes, but... if I give up here and now... then I would never be able to save my brother," Dreadwing thinks. "I have fought battles that were meaningless, Milady. But... the reasons why I fought those battles. Especially the battles I have fought here on Remnant. They are not meaningless. I fight for you, but I also fight so that my brother's spark my finally find freedom, and more importantly, peace," Dreadwing reasons with her.
"Weiss, we have to go," Ruby says.
"Why..." Yang says as she stands up. "Ozpin hid the Relics behind giant doors in enormous schools. But... you saw what happened at Beacon. That didn't stop her, but how long would it take for her to find the lamp in the middle of nowhere. Maybe days, maybe years; it may not even happen in our lifetime. We can drop it down the well, and be done with it," Yang says.
Ruby holds the lamp as her teammates stand in front of her, but then Soundwave comes in with the spare tire and takes away the relic with one of his tentacles.
"Soundwave?" Ruby asks.
Megatron stands in front of Yang, "Forgive me for this," he says. Yang looks confused, but then Megatron suddenly punches her in the face and knocks her to ground.
"Megatron, what are you doing?!" Ruby yells.
The others are all shocked by his sudden actions.
"You intend to betray them just as you did me, betrayer?!" Predaking seethes as he approaches Megatron, only to be stopped by Soundwave getting in his way. "Do not interfer, Soundwave!" Predaking roars.
"Stay your flames, Predaking. I am not betraying anyone," Megatron says, keeping his eyes on Yang.
Yang sits up, holding her face for a moment, "What was that for, Megatron?!" Yang yells as she gets back up.
"Well, it seems you're back to normal now," Megatron notes, confusing her. "Yang, when you left home, what was the one thought on your mind?" Megatron asks.
"I... wanted to find Ruby. To make sure she's safe," Yang says.
"And you know your sister better than any of us. Tell me: is she the type to ever give up, no matter how dire things appear?" he asks.
Yang looks at her sister, seeing the sad expression on her face. "...No, she's never given up," Yang replies, feeling a little guilty now.
Megatron activates his semblance arm and holds Yang's face close to his, "And I know you. I know you're not the type to simply give up. You didn't allow losing an arm to stop you. You didn't let your mother stop you at Haven. And I know you won't let this stop you now," Megatron says.
All the while, Yang is blushing from the close proximity of their faces. So close, she can see her own reflection in his eyes. Meanwhile, Laserbeak flies over and lands on the edge of the well and peers down into it. A moment later, a pair of red eyes look back at him and he jumps back and lands on Megatron's shoulder.
"There's something down in the well," Laserbeak informs them.
Megatron separates from a blushing Yang and looks down in the well, but sees nothing but darkness.
"What is it?" Dreadwing asks.
"I'm not sure. Soundwave, stay up here and guard the Relic. I'll be back," Megatron says as he prepares to jump down the well.
"Megatron, wait!" Yang exclaims, but he already jumps down into it.
Megatron lands in an underground tunnel, water going up to his ankles. He looks around, but finds nothing. Just then, Yang jumps down and lands behind him, followed by the rest of her team and Dreadwing and Predaking.
"Don't go jumping off on your own like that!" Yang tells him.
"You see anything?" Ruby asks.
"No, but we should stay vigilant," Megatron says as he leads the way and heads further into the tunnel.
They search around, using their scrolls for light. As they walk though, Megatron can notice Yang and her friends slowing down again.
"Yang, are you alright?" Megatron asks.
"I don't... know. I just feel so... tired," Yang slowly says.
"Dreadwing, Predaking, how are you feeling?" Megatron asks.
"I do feel a little drained, but it's nothing to be concerned with," Dreadwing replies as he tends to Weiss.
"Do not dare to be concerned about my wellbeing, betrayer," Predaking retorts.
"I'll scout ahead," Megatron says and moves ahead of the group.
He looks around, turning one corner and finding two alternative routes ahead of him. Coming to one pathway, his eyes go wide when he finds a large group of Apathy Grimm waiting for him. They slowly turn their heads toward him and start moving. Megatron fires his arm cannon at a few of them and then makes his retreat.
"We need to move! Now!" Megatron yells as he reaches the others.
"Why? What's wrong?" Blake asks.
They look back to see the Apathy Grimm following him; the sight of them spooking the girls. Megatron and Dreadwing fire their weapons at them, but what shots don't kill them only seem to do little damage. The Apathy scream and suddenly the group find themselves losing their strength.
"What... is... this?" Yang asks as she tries to pick her arms up.
"My weapon... feels heavy," Blake complains.
"It must be those Grimm. We need to leave. Now!" Megatron says as he manages to get back up.
He activates his semblance to create a mega cannon and fires a few shots, taking out a number of the Apathy. Megatron feels the effects of them weaken. With that, the group leave and look for a way out of the tunnels. However, as they continue looking for a way back up top, they find more Apathy blocking other pathways and following them. Predaking breathes his fire at one group, incinerating them. But more seem to just appear and take their place.
"These things are everywhere!" Predaking yells.
"Keep moving!" Megatron replies.
They eventually find themselves in what appears to be a wine cellar, with a cellar door up top. Weiss runs up the stairs to open it, but she can't get it to budge.
"It's stuck. I think it's locked!" Weiss says.
"I'll get it!" Yang says as she rushes to her.
However, more Apathy appear and scream, causing thew group to lose their strength again.
"I refuse to die down here by these mindless drones that won't even fight me!" Megatron yells as he activates his semblance again to create a shield.
He uses the shield to push back the Apathy and causes them to fall on top of each other.
"Predaking!" Megatron looks back.
Predaking roars as he breathes fire upon the fallen Apathy, with Megatron jumping out of the way at the last second. The fire engulfs the Grimm, causing their effects to weaken again. With their strength back, everyone gets back up and Yang punches through the cellar doors. They all run inside and find themselves back in the house. Moving through, they find Qrow drunk at the bar and almost passed out. Megatron growls and kicks his seat, causing Qrow to fall onto the floor and wake up.
"H-Hey! What's going on?! What are you doing here?" Qrow asks as he gets up.
"We're leaving. Now!" Megatron yells and looks back at the cellar door.
The others move ahead, but Megatron moves back and looks down at the cellar doors as more Apathy are seen below. He closes the doors and then he and Predaking pull Qrow by his arms to get him out despite his struggling. They come outside to find Soundwave and Oscar finishing up with repairing the flatbed, and Maria sitting on the steps, reading a book.
"What's going on?" Maria asks.
"We're leaving. Everyone onto the cart!" Ruby yells.
Everyone loads up onto the flatbed, except for the former transformers.
"Fire at the house!" Megatron yells and creates two mega cannons.
They all fire their weapons, or breath fire in Predaking's case, at the house, causing enough damage to get it to crumble down on top of the cellar doors, keeping the Apathy buried and trapped underground. After that, they retreat onto the flatbed and Yang hits the gas and high-tails it out of the settlement. Once they've gotten a safe distance away, Yang slows down a bit.
"What were those things?" Blake asks.
"The Apathy," Maria says as she shows them an image of one of them in the book she had with her. "They're not strong or ferocious. They drain your will to go on. I was about to go down there and find you, but then you already came back up. The settlers here were hemorrhaging funds. To cut costs on huntsmen protection, they needed everyone calm. All the time. They captured two of them and locked them down in the underground tunnels. Then they sealed those tunnels away a day later... But, before they did, the rest of the pack followed their missing pair using the underground tunnels, and were all sealed inside without the settlers knowing. They lost their will to live. No one was scared. Then no one was anything... And then no one was left," Maria says and then tosses the book aside.
Hearing exactly how the settlers died unsettles the group and makes them think. About many things.
"I'm... sorry about what I said before. About giving up," Weiss says.
At this point, Yang stops the bike, "Me too. We can't quit. Not until the relic is safe. Sorry about making you did... what you did back there, Megatron. And thanks for knocking some sense into me... literally," Yang says.
"It was not your fault, Yang. Those Apathy are to blame. Be glad that we were able to escape that death trap. At the very least, if things got difficult, we could've used Ruby's eyes to help get us out," Megatron notes.
"Her eyes?" Maria asks and then looks at Ruby. "Ruby... what color are your eyes?" she asks.
"Um, they're Silver," Ruby replies, making Maria gasp.
"I didn't think any of them still existed. A Silver-eyed warrior. The one thing that the Grimm are afraid of," Maria says.
This surprises Ruby, "Maria... How do you know that?" she asks.
"Well, the truth is, my dear... I had Silver eyes," Maria reveals, once more shocking the group.
And that's the chapter. The gang finally escape the hell of the settlement and the Apathy, but now are surprised by the fact that Maria once had Silver eyes like Ruby? How did she lose her eyes? What will the gang do now? Until then, please Read and Review.
