Here we are at Chapter 44. Time for the gang to listen to another story told by Maria, her story. I do not own RWBY or Transformers. They belong to their respective owners. Here's chapter 44. Enjoy.
Chapter 44: To be a Warrior
"...It was a long time ago. I was much younger back then. I was hired to take out some Grimm that have been harassing a village in Mantle that was near the mountains. I already dealt with most of them; all that was left was a giant Nevermore. I found it in the mountains. It wasn't really that much of a threat, and I killed it... But that's where my luck ran out. A group of thugs appeared, and apparently, I was there target... Because of my eyes. They knew who I was, too. The Grimm Reaper. I managed to take down most of them, but their leader, a crocodile Faunus with a pair of cutlasses managed to get one over on me. She took out my aura... and then my eyes. I was blinded, weakened. For a moment I thought I was gonna die. But then that Faunus started monologuing at me and I thought that if I was going to die, then I was gonna take her with me. Somehow, I managed to take her out and I survived the encounter, though not unscathed. I got some friends to get me to Atlas, where I got my prosthetic eye surgery. I could see again, though not in color. But it was better than being blind for the rest of my life. However, I lost more than my eyes that day... I lost the will to fight. I was no longer a huntress. I went into hiding after that, and kept to myself. Until now," Maria explains her past.
While the others are awed by her tale, the one that's the most shocked is Qrow.
"I can't believe it... You're the Grimm Reaper. You were a legend. Many thought you were the greatest huntress that ever existed. But... then you just disappeared without a trace.
"How would a legend such as this just disappear and no one was able to find her?" Dreadwing asks.
"You never showed your face. You never used your real name. When you vanished, most thought you were just laying low. After a while, people just assumed that you were dead. But, the stories about you never truly died. I grew up on those stories. Hell, I based my weapon off of yours. I wanted to be just like the Grimm Reaper," Qrow explains.
Maria sighs, "Well, I'm nothing but a disappointment, so you're well on your way."
"Why would you think you're a disappointment?" Blake asks.
"My dear, a huntress is supposed to protect others to the bitter end. But, after I lost my eyes, I only ever looked after myself. Even after I had my surgery, I... was too afraid to fight again. To afraid that those who were after me before would return and finish what their friends started. I couldn't fight anymore. You shouldn't aspire to be someone like me... Especially when some of you, who have been through far worse than I have and keep fighting anyway, are a lot stronger already," Maria looks to Megatron. "To learn of your mistakes, and to not only accept them, but to work to atone for them, even knowing you'll never be forgiven; that takes a strength that so very, very few possess. It's a strength that I don't possess."
"You weren't a power-hungry monster, Maria Calavera. You always worked to help others. You did the same back at the settlement and back at the train crash. You've made mistakes, but no nearly as many as me," Megatron shakes his head, while Yang looks back as she continues driving.
"But, you still learned from them. It's... comforting, knowing that your generation seems capable of inheriting this world. Even more comforting that you have powerful friends that wish to protect it just like you. I'm only sorry that I didn't do more to leave it in better shape. Sorry that I couldn't help prepare you better for the dangers of this world, and that I only allowed them to get worse," Maria laments.
"...Silver Eyes..." Soundwave speaks through his visor.
Ruby smiles, "Soundwave's right. You couldn't help out before, but maybe you can help out now. You know more about the Silver Eyes than I do. Maybe you could teach me. Teach me on how to use my eyes the way that you did."
Megatron glances at Ruby, "Optimus said that Ruby is the one destined to save this world. If she can learn how to master her gift, then maybe this world will have a chance. After all, while Ozpin can't kill Salem, someone else might."
Maria looks back at Ruby, smiling, but then Ruby's scroll starts ringing.
"My scroll... Wait, we have a signal. It's Jaune!" Ruby cheers and answers the call. "Jaune? Jaune!"
"Ruby! Oh man, I am so glad to hear from you. We've been trying to call you guys since we got here!" Jaune says from the other end.
Ruby looks confused, "What do you mean by... 'here'?"
Yang looks up ahead a a hill and hits the gas hard. She speeds up to the top of the hill, just as the sun comes into her eyes and she stops. Using her hand to shade her eyes, she looks ahead and then gets a big smile on her face. The others look and are just as pleased at what they see.
Yang looks back to the group, "Ladies, gentlemen, and birds alike... Welcome to Argus."
Before them lies the port city of Argus. A tall wall separates the city from the land behind it, and they see the coast in front of it. A wave of relief washes over the group as they finally reach their destination after all the trials they had faced thus far. They enter the city and Yang parks and secures her motorcycle in a garage by the wall for visitors. After making sure everything is in order, the gang move on through the crowd to their next destination. However, they don't have to look far before they see the familiar red head that belongs to Nora Valkyrie who looks around for them. When she spots the group, Nora gets a huge smile on her face.
"Cute boy OZ!" Nora screams as she rushes at them and tackles poor Oscar to the ground.
Ren joins in on the reunion, "Where have you been? We were all so worried about you," he asks as he hugs Yang.
Yang hugs him back, "We got a little sidetracked,"
"That's an understatement," Weiss notes.
Megatron steps up, "We apologize for the delay in our arrival. We were... preoccupied,"
Jaune joins in as he and Ruby share a hug, "I'm glad you guys are okay," he releases Ruby.
Ruby shrugs her shoulders, "Hey, I promised, didn't I?"
Jaune smiles, "Yeah, you did."
Maria walks up, "So I take it that these are friends of yours?" she asks.
Nora pops up while Oscar slowly, painfully, sits up, "Hey, who's the old lady?"
A few minutes later, the gang are on a train car as it rolls through Argus.
Ruby marvels at her surroundings, "Wow, I never realized how big this place would be!"
"Argus is one of the largest non-kingdom cities on Remnant. It serves as a massive trading hub between Atlas and Mistral, as well as a focal point for relations and communications between the two kingdoms. Many people here were originally from Atlas, and some are from Mistral. They helped build this city in the beginning and since then, it's grown into what it is now," Ren explains.
"But, if this place is not one of the kingdoms, then wouldn't it be rather more difficult to keep it safe from Grimm attacks?" Dreadwing asks.
"The Atlas military maintain a presence here in Argus in order to keep the peace, protect the people, and keep trade going between the two kingdoms. That's how they made it possible," Ren explains.
"Well, that's how it was before... Until recently when Atlas closed its borders," Nora says solemnly.
The train stops and the gang exit on their stop, "If we are to reach Atlas, then we must first secure ourselves a transport to take us there," Predaking says.
Dreadwing steps up, "Agreed, but before that, we should find ourselves a place to rest. It has been a long journey. Jaune, where have you and your team been staying at since arriving here in Argus?"
Jaune gets a little nervous, "Well, the truth is, um..."
As the train moves on, Soundwave looks back and sees a blonde-haired woman carrying an infant baby with black hair in her arms.
The woman looks over to them and smiles, "There you are!" she calls out, waving her hand.
Blake raises an eyebrow, "Wait, isn't that..."
"Hey Saph," Jaune weakly greets her.
A short while later, the group are all at the woman's home. It turns out that she is one of Jaune's older sisters, Saphron Cotta Arc, and her son, Adrian. They are all in the living room, spread out while Yang and Weiss are playing with Adrian.
Ruby is still excited, "I can't believe I'm meeting your sister. I have so many questions,"
"Oh, I'll tell you all about it later," Nora jokes.
"Will you guys quit it?!" Jaune complains.
"Ah, it's so cute seeing you all embarrassed. You don't need to hide it," Saphron coos as she playfully pulls his cheeks.
"I am not embarrassed!" Jaune argues.
The interaction causes Adrian to laugh, which makes Yang and Weiss go goo-goo-ga-ga over him, must to the confusion and slight annoyance of Megatron and Dreadwing. Just then, Laserbeak hops down and lands in front of Adrian. Laserbeak looks at Adrian curiously, but then Adrian suddenly grabs him and pulls him into a tight hug, much to the bird's ire as he squawks and tries to break free.
"Help! I could use some assistance, Soundwave!" Laserbreak cries while Soundwave just stares at him.
"Adrian, that is NOT a toy. Put it down," Saphron says as she picks up Adrian, who releases Laserbeak and flies back onto Soundwave's shoulder. "Sorry about that. Adrian just wanted to be friends with your, uh... robot bird?" Saphron says.
Megatron steps forth, "That is Laserbeak. He's not a robot, but a falcon with specially armor and weapons for battle. He's Soundwave's partner,"
Saphron looks between the two, "Laserbeak? Soundwave? Those are... interesting names. Did you train Laserbeak on how to fight?" she asks Soundwave.
"He doesn't speak," Weiss says.
'Why not?" Saphron replies.
"He doesn't say," Yang adds, leaving Saphron confused.
Just then, the front door opens up and in walks another woman with glasses and black hair in a bob-cut carrying a few bags of groceries.
Saphron smiles, "Everyone, this is my wife, Terra Cotta,"
Everyone greets her with a reply, a wave, or a simple nod.
Terra smiles, "Hello, wow there sure are a lot of you. You weren't kidding. Hun, can you give me hand here for a minute?" Terra asks as she heads into the kitchen with the groceries with her wife in tow.
Team JNR helps out with making sandwiches for everyone while the rest of the group is still in the living room with Saphron and her family.
"And you're sure it's okay for us to crash here for a little while?" Ruby politely asks.
Terra sits with Saphron, holding Adrian in one hand, and Saphron's hand in the other.
"Of course it is. You huntsmen and huntresses risk so much to keep us all safe. It's the least we can do. Besides, one of your friends here looks hurt," Terra says as she stares at Megatron and his missing limb.
Megatron sighs, "I appreciate the concern, Mrs. Arc, but there is no need. I am adequate, and I am quite capable of defending myself. Besides..." he activates his semblance for a moment to show them his semblance arm before making it disappear. "I have ways of dealing with an injury such as this."
Terra and Saphron are surprised by this, but it does make them feel more relieved knowing he's okay.
Just then, Team JNR return with the sandwiches and everyone has a meal as they talk.
"Trust me. In training, I had two arms while he had one, and he still wiped the floor with me over and over. I wasn't able to win a single round," Yang says, and while she does have a smile, the memory still annoys her a bit.
Terra turns to Qrow, "Well, while that does put me more at ease, I am a little concerned. Are you sure it's okay to bring students with you? I know you're an experienced huntsman and all, but isn't that a little dangerous, even by huntsmen standards?" she asks.
Qrow doesn't really say anything until Ruby elbows him in the side, "Oh-yeah, no it's perfectly normal. It's basically like an extended training mission. We did the same thing when I was a student. Thankfully, these kids are really good, even better than a lot of us from back then. Well, not good as me, mind you, but they have what it takes,"
"Jaune was pretty worried when he arrived and told us what happened on the train. He was practically balling his eyes out," Saphron pinches Jaune's cheek.
Jaune shakes her off, "I was not crying," he retorts but the group stare at him. "...Much."
Just then, Terra gets a call on her scroll. Saphron nods for her to go ahead. Terra gives Adrian to her and walks away to answer her scroll.
"Everything good?" Ruby asks.
"Oh, yeah, nothing to worry about. Terra is an engineer that works on the relay tower her in Argus. With the CCT network still down, they've been putting more work in to keep the tower running properly to make up for the issues with the communications system," Saphron explains.
Megatron looks between the members of Team JNR. With Terra on her call and Saphron focused on Adrian, it might be a good time to have a little talk with them about a few things.
"If you'll excuse us for a moment, Mrs. Arc, we need to have a discussion with our friends. They need to learn a few things. We'll have our discussion outside so as not to disturb you," Megatron says and begins walking to the back doors to the back yard.
"Oh, of course. It's almost time for Adrian's nap anyway. Take your time," Saphron replies.
Jaune stands up, "What do you need to talk to us about?"
Outside, Megatron had just finished explaining the true origins of him and his allies. To say that the members of Team JNR are shocked would be an understatement. The looks on their faces are a mix of confusion, shock, fear, and concern.
"...So you're... you're aliens from another world. One that was destroyed in a very long civil war, but is now over?" Jaune begins.
"And you were sent here by this... Optimus Prime, to help protect the members of Team RWBY and Remnant," Ren continues.
"And you were giant robots that could change form, but were changed into humans and Faunus went you were all sent here. I'm sorry but... that's a little hard to believe," Nora finishes.
Ruby steps forth, "Believe me, it wasn't easy for us to accept either, but it's the truth. We saw it. We saw Optimus Prime, and he showed us images of their world and their people. We saw it all."
Jaune looks from Ruby to Megatron, "Then... is that's the case, then it's true that YOU started that war and killed a lot of innocent people. You're people. And that you've betrayed those that were loyal to you in the past," his rage growing.
Megatron nods, "Yes. It is all true. It is also true that I have come to realize the true gravity of my mistakes. That is why I came here; to atone for those failures. To make sure that another world is not destroyed just like my war once destroyed Cybertron."
Jaune suddenly punches him across the face, though it barely phases Megatron, "How can we believe that?! You killed so many people, and now all of a sudden you say you 'changed' and now you want to help people. You're no different than Salem!" Jaune goes for another punch, but Yang grabs his arm and stops him before his fist can connect. "Yang, what are you doing?!"
Yang remains calm, "Jaune, I trust him," her words make Jaune stop and look even more shocked. "I know what he's done. I know what he USED to be. But what he used to be isn't what he is now. He's been punishing himself everyday by staying away from Cybertron. He wanted his home brought back to life, and it is, but he'll never get to see it. That's a punishment worse than death. To never be able to see the one thing you wanted most. What's more, ever since he came here to Remnant, he's done nothing but helped. He cut off his own arm to understand my pain. He helped me get back on my feet. He helped me find Ruby and get back together with Weiss and Blake. Please, Jaune, I trust him, and you can too. This doesn't change the fact that Megatron, and the rest of them are our friends," Yang says.
Her words help calm down Jaune a bit, "But... how can you? He kept such a huge secret from us. They all did,"
Weiss steps forth, "We know, but if they told us before, we wouldn't have believed them. Dreadwing helped me when I had just about no one to help me back home. He helped give me the confidence to break free from my father. I know I can trust him."
"And don't forget all those times Soundwave and Laserbeak helped us when we met them in Anima. Jaune, it's okay," Ruby adds.
Ren calmly puts a hand on Jaune's shoulder. One look from him is all that's needed to tell him what Ren is thinking. Jaune takes a few deep breaths to regain his cool.
Jaune glares at Megatron, "Do you regret it? What you did?"
Megatron holds his ground, "Everyday."
"...Fine then, but just know that I'll be keeping an eye on you," Jaune points his finger at Megatron.
"Noted," Megatron replies.
Blake steps up, "We need to remember that we're all on the same side here. We all want the same thing: to stop Salem. We can't forget that."
Ren nods, "Agreed,"
Megatron sighs, "So, what's the plan now? You spoke with the military base here while we were gone, correct? Any progress?" Megatron asks.
Now, Jaune isn't as confident, "Well, the thing is..."
…
The next day, they all show up at the front gates of the military base, only for said gates to close right in their faces.
…
Meanwhile, in the wilderness of Anima, a familiar, ghoulish figure walks through the forest, wailing and growling as it continues on its course... heading straight for Argus.
And that's the chapter. Megatron and his allies finally reach Argus after learning about Maria's past. Team JNR learn about the former Decepticons, and go along with it, albeit with some hesitation. However, now they have a new problem to deal with. Will they be able to reach Atlas? Until then, please Read and Review.
