Author's Note: Massive shout out to Obsequium Minaris for that epic review. Thank you very much – people like you make this hobby worthwhile. I always enjoy reading the feedback from you guys. In fact, I wanna say thank you to everyone who bothered to drop a review – you guys rock. :)
On another note, truly sorry for taking so long… I guess I'm trying too hard to get this stupid thing just right, and I fail to just WRITE. (Does that count as a writing pun?)
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Mother smiled at them, her face tired and sagging from the years of hard labor she'd endured to get them this far. She could tell that Mother did not have many more years of work left in her… but that was why Prim had gotten a job as Mother's assistant at the factory.
Prim stood taller than her, almost a foot, as she set the table for their evening meal. There wasn't much, but she was still grateful for it. Many families in colony FC517 had almost nothing to eat. Mother sat at the head of the table and patiently waited for her to bring the food over from the kitchen.
She pulled the roasted bird from the oven carefully, but almost dropped it – Prim saved them both, as well as dinner. Mother gave them a light clap.
"That was a close one, Katrin," Mother said kindly. Prim relieved her of the burden and ruffled her hair with a grin.
She hated having her hair ruffled, but said nothing as she sat down for the meal.
It was another boring dinner, on a boring colony, in the middle of a boring life… but she wouldn't have it any other way. She loved Mother and Prim, her big sister and best friend in the world. If the price of peace was a boring life, then so be it…
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Chapter 35:
Titan Dream (part 2)
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Ruby Rose once again awoke to a darkened room with a snoozing roommate.
Emphasis on the word 'again.'
While her situation was far better than it had been back in the land of Nippon, Ruby missed interacting with actual humans. The fact that she was only in control of this new body while the owner was asleep was… less than amusing.
She carefully sat up in the bed, taking in the room at a glance to see if there was anything for her – specifically, another letter on the desk – but there was nothing tonight. Sighing, Ruby quietly stood up and made for the bathroom.
Ruby and Primrose, the true owner of this body, had been exchanging letters for about a month. At least, Ruby guessed it had been that long. Only being aware of herself during sleeping hours had a way of distorting her perception of time. Prim had enlightened her on several topics by this point, not the least of which was the fact that they were out in space right now!
Last Ruby checked, that was supposed to be impossible. Dust wasn't supposed to function outside of the atmosphere.
That could only mean the people of this world used a fuel source different from Dust. And Ruby really wanted to know what that was.
All in good time, though. She hadn't even been here that long yet.
Once she was inside the tiny bathroom with the door shut, Ruby flicked on the light and once again examined her new face in the mirror. Prim's face. She was still trying to get used to it, even now.
Unlike Aki, her previous host (was that even the right word?), Prim's hair was totally straight and colored a deep brown. Her face was also closer to Ruby's own face, albeit a bit more round-ish. Prim's body was also closer to Ruby's, but notably smaller in the chest and hips. By her best guess, Prim was about the size of a 14-year-old… although her ID claimed she was 17.
Like Aki, however, those silver eyes were exactly the same.
That was… oddly comforting.
Ruby switched the light back off and returned to the main room just in time to see Val, the roommate, turn over with a grunt. And she had to remind herself again that this girl was not Nora Valkyrie, despite the startling similarities. Not even Ren could have spotted the difference, especially in the dark like this.
Rather than return to bed (because she just freaking woke up), Ruby sat down on the floor next to the desk, crossed her legs and ran through a few meditations Master Oum had taught her during their time together. They were perfect for passing the time when Ruby couldn't even leave the room.
For the most part, anyway. Ruby's left leg had a habit of twitching during these meditations, no matter how hard she tried to still it.
"…"
As Ruby sat there in the darkness, slowing her breathing and trying to focus her mind, she thought about everything she and Prim had discussed in their letters so far.
Prim was from a 'colony' that had taken damage during one of their last big wars, though she didn't go into too much detail concerning that part. Apparently this 'Lunar Academy' had put out the call for new recruits to join their army of sorts – Ruby had to request a few definitions for some of the words Prim used. Like these 'Titan' things.
Twice now Ruby had experienced a dream-event of piloting the machine Prim had dubbed 'Crescent Rose.' And she seriously hoped another would come soon. That thing was just… so cool.
Other dreams had occurred in between – dreams of a life of poverty and hardship. Dreams of living in a place where the ground curved the wrong way… like the inside of a tube. That last dream-memory was one of those.
But… 'Prim' was a character in that dream, but not her.
Mother had called her by another name… Katrin.
What could that mean?
Ruby uncrossed her legs and made her way to the desk, tore off a sheet of paper from the pad and grabbed a pen:
'To Prim –
'While you were awake yesterday, I saw another dream-memory. I recognized your Mother and the place you lived, but there was someone else there this time. Someone you referred to as 'Prim' and as a 'big sister.' And Mother called you Katrin.
'I don't mean to pry, but what was that about? I thought you were Prim. I'm sorry if I'm touching any sensitive issues here, but I was just curious.
'– Ruby'
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The Captain clasped his hands behind his back as he watched her quietly, his light-brown eyes studying her. He seemed to be looking right through her. She tried to stand as still as possible, but she hated standing 'at attention' like this. It was what soldiers did, and she was no soldier.
"As you may recall," he said in a clear and crisp voice, carefully choosing each word, "we have been gathering our forces here for quite some time. Not as openly as a draft, but enough to start rumors. Well, allow me to put any doubt to rest – something is coming."
Her mouth suddenly went dry.
"We don't yet know what it is, but we now have a timeframe. My superiors are confident that this… thing will stick to that timeframe. I believe they are fools. We've known about this thing's approach for a long time now, and there's no telling what will happen once it gets here. That's where you come in…"
A fine layer of sweat now covered her entire body. Her tongue felt like it was stuck to the roof of her mouth.
"Truth be told, I had the Mark-17 brought here as more of a gimmick… but the results you've achieved with it have proven how capable a machine it truly is. And how capable a pilot you are, despite your lack of battlefield experience. Therefore I have decided to send you out with a squadron of my best Titan pilots to intercept this… thing before it gets here. Find it, study it, ascertain its threat level… and destroy it if need be."
It took everything she had to not pass out at those words.
"I did not come to this decision lightly – I'm aware that this is the most dangerous sort of mission I could send hardened soldiers on, much less a trainee. That is why I will be personally training you for the next month in preparation for what lies ahead. You may be a child now, but you will leave here… as a soldier."
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Ruby sat up slowly, her brow covered in sweat. She didn't normally feel such intense fear during a dream, but man… that one was rough.
She knew it was a dream-memory, but she had first seen that meeting as it was happening – what she called a dream-event. She and Prim had watched it happen together. She'd seen a few dream-events like this so far, but not many. That particular one had occurred about twice before. By her best guess, it probably happened about two weeks ago.
The Captain, as Prim thought of him, was certainly an intense man. And this mysterious 'thing' that was coming… Ruby was certainly curious about it, but there was no option but to wait. If she was going to find out anything, it would have to be through these dreams.
There had been no letters for a few days, ever since Ruby had mentioned the name Katrin in her previous one; the next evening had found Ruby with another letter, but the tone and handwriting Prim used gave Ruby the impression that she had stepped on a land mine:
'To Ruby –
'Don't ever use that name again. Ever.
'– Prim'
Well… that was certainly straight to the point. No more letters followed, and Ruby started to wonder just what she had said to offend her mental roommate. Just who was this Katrin?
She sighed as she stood up from the bed, unsurprised to see the desk empty once again. Ruby started the process of stretching as many muscles as she could, then quietly began going through her forms. It was the designated day of the week, and she was not about to miss it.
That was one of the first things they agreed on – no more excessive late-night workouts. Ruby agreed to keep it down to one night a week, but no less.
As she went through each form, her body remembering things her mind had learned in another life, Ruby thought back to the events that led her here. She did that every time she reviewed her routines like this. All of Master Oum's techniques were good for focusing the mind, whether sitting or standing.
The day she met the first look-alike of many, called Carmine, seemed like a lifetime ago now. She and the rest of her team soon found themselves neck-deep in look-alikes from other worlds. It was a mess, but it was somewhat fun as well. How many people could claim to have met a version of themselves from an alternate reality? It was a blast to find out the various ways Ruby herself could have ended up different.
That is, until Ku's death. Ruby still shuddered every time she remembered that massive fireball that took the life of the adult-child. And Rain's emotionless stare right after.
Rain… Carmine… and Red, Rose and Sapphire… how were they all doing?
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The factory lay in ruins. Everything was a wreck. Fire was busy consuming everything that hadn't been turned to rubble.
She knew Mother had been caught in the blast, so there was no point in searching for her. Not enough left to find, much less bury. Prim was still alive, but just by a hair. She clutched her sister's hand desperately, willing the older girl to stay alive.
"Katrin…" Prim coughed, her mouth leaking blood, "…I'm sorry. I can't keep… my promise…"
She couldn't respond to that. Her throat had locked up. She was crying, too.
"Find Jude… he's a friend, and he… he can take care of you… Katrin…" Prim coughed again, a large amount of blood coming out of her mouth as the last of her life force slipped away.
"…I love you, sis."
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The pillow was damp with tears as Ruby awoke this time, the image of the older 'Prim' still burned into her mind. The one who was supposedly the older sister. It looked like some kind of explosion at the factory that Mother and 'Prim' worked at, but she couldn't be sure. An accident, perhaps?
Such intense emotions. That had to be one of Prim's most important memories, and Ruby made a point to remember it.
Jude; that was a young man Ruby had seen in a few of Prim's other dream-memories. He played a role in taking care of Prim, and even had a hand in getting the girl enrolled in the Lunar Academy… though Ruby couldn't remember how. Most of these dream-memories played out of order.
Man… Getting small bits of Prim's past one-by-one was like trying ot solve a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle without having any idea what the final picture was supposed to be. Mind-numbing… yet still fascinating to watch unfold.
There was no letter waiting for her once again, so Ruby simply went into her meditations. This time both of her legs started twitching, and the teenager simply knew that she could only handle this for so much longer… cabin fever was going to catch up with her sooner or later.
Hopefully something would change before she simply snapped and started running down the halls with no pants on.
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"… … …chamber is used for long voyages. You'll need to be in a state of hypersleep during the trip, otherwise you'll experience debilitating effects on your health and… … …"
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"… … …is Sargent Yui. He'll be in charge of the squad during your mission. Anything he says, you do. Over there is Maxwell, Barton, Winner and… … …"
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"… … …mission begins tomorrow, right? I'm sure you'll want to say goodbye to your friends, but remember to keep it low profile. Get some rest, Prim… … …"
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Ruby sat up more quickly than before, a clear sense of excitement filling her mind. Something was finally about to happen, and soon. As long as it meant getting out of this twice-damned room then she was more than ready.
Her mood lifted further upon finding another letter waiting for her on the desk, this one a bit longer than normal. Flicking the desk light on, Ruby sat down and started reading:
'To Ruby –
'Sorry for not writing to you recently, but things have been kind of crazy. I'm actually being sent on a mission tomorrow, but the details are supposed to be secret – I suspect you know at least a little of what I'm talking about. I have no idea how this will affect our… situation… but Doctor Noah says we should be fine. No idea how the hypersleep will work, though.
'And regarding my outburst last time… sorry. I'll find a way to explain more later. Writing it all down like this is a bit risky, as anyone could find it. What I will say is this: my family is dead and I am an orphan. A mutual friend helped me get through the trauma and helped enroll me in the Lunar Academy. After that came… well… you.
'I assume we'll have more time to discuss things later… assuming nothing goes wrong during the mission. I must say, though, that the memories I'm getting from you are certainly interesting. If you don't mind, I'd love to know more about this… Dust, you call it? We have time for one more letter, so… please?
'– Prim'
'P.S. – If you could, please tear up this letter when you're done with it and flush the pieces down the toilet.'
Ruby blinked at the last line. And at the letter as a whole. It almost felt like Prim's tone was… more relaxed towards the end. Almost like she was finally starting to open up. Interesting.
Unfortunately, her request would be rather difficult to meet. All Ruby was able to scribble down was the stuff they taught her regarding Dust at Signal and Beacon – no one knew what it actually was, let alone how it really worked. Hopefully that would satisfy her.
Scanning over Prim's letter one more time, Ruby did as instructed and tore it up (quietly). She then made her way to the bathroom and disposed of the evidence.
Upon returning, she was met with a surprise – a pair of intense blue-green eyes watching her from beneath a mop of ginger hair. Val was awake and sitting upright on her bed.
"You're the one called Ruby Rose… right? Not Prim?" Even her voice was the same as Nora's. Creepy.
"Y-yeah," Ruby replied nervously. "You know about me?"
"Not a lot, but yeah. I'm kind of a snoop." Val didn't bother standing up as she continued to study Ruby. Her smirk helped lift the tension a little. "Don't tell Prim, but… I kinda read a few of those letters."
Ruby crossed her arms and mirrored Val's smirk, musing, "Where I'm from we call that meddling."
Val's smirk spread into a full Nora-grin as she admitted, "…Guilty."
Both girls chuckled for a moment. Ruby's nervousness was starting to fade around the second person in this world she'd had the chance to talk to – that Doctor from before was nice enough, but this was different. Less formal.
"So anyway," the Nora look-alike interrupted Ruby's thoughts, "I assume Prim told you about her mission tomorrow?"
"For the most part, yes," Ruby nodded towards the bathroom, "It was in the letter she wanted me to get rid of."
"That sounds like her. I figured I might not get another chance to say this before you go, so I stayed awake. Ruby Rose, I… I have a request."
Neither girl was smirking now. Things were getting serious.
"Could you… make sure Prim gets back safe and sound …please? I know she's faced a lot of hard times here and she'd probably be fine if she never came back, but… She's important to me. She's my friend."
Ruby blinked at the surprisingly serious tone of the girl before her. She didn't even think Nora knew how to be serious, never mind an alternate-reality version of her.
"Please?"
Ruby did a quick mental check before responding, making sure she used the right name, "Of course, Val. I'll do everything I can to bring us both back. After all, I'm… kinda stuck with her."
Val's face broke into a warm smile as she sighed, "Thank you… that means a lot to me." The ginger-haired girl stood up from the bed to give Ruby a gentle hug, which Ruby gave right back. She was struck by how tall Val was compared to her – back home, Nora was only a little taller than Ruby.
But then Val had to ruin the mood by ruffling Ruby's hair, "I'm going back to sleep. G'night kiddo." Her smirk was back. Ruby growled as she swatted the hand away, causing Val to just giggle lightly.
"Hey Val…" Ruby said quickly, the thought only now occurring to her, "…does the name Katrin mean anything to you?"
Val was halfway under the sheets when she paused, a look of concentration on her face. "Um… I think so. If I remember correctly, Prim told me that was her little sister's name. Apparently both she and her mother were killed in an accident back on her home colony a few years ago."
Ruby considered for a moment, then nodded, "That makes sense. Thanks."
"No… *yawn* …problem." Val returned to the land of dreams rapidly once she was settled, leaving Ruby alone with her thoughts once again.
"…"
This was getting strange.
Prim… Katrin… Mother… Jude… Just who were these people, anyway? What was their true relationship to each other?
Ruby returned to her meditation, hoping to relax enough to give Prim the rest she needed for tomorrow. If there were more answers to be had, maybe they would be in her next dream.
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Well… this is different. Not dreams, just… blackness?
[ What the… who are you? Where are we? ]
Me? Who are YOU?
[ … …Ruby Rose? Is that you? ]
Umm… yes? What's going on here…?
[ This must be due to the hypersleep. Damn. I'm supposed to be unconscious. They said it would take a full month to catch the vessel, so we were supposed to simply sleep it off… so why am I talking to you all of a sudden? ]
No need to sound so pissy about it… You're Prim, aren't you?
[ Nice to meet you, too. ]
Well… I was hoping for more of a face-to-face, but I guess this works just as well. Faster than writing letters, right?
[ That's one way to look at it… ]
This is perfect. No one can overhear us and we're not leaving anything lying around for other people to read, right? So NOW can you tell me who Katrin is?
[ … … …I suppose I can't avoid it, can I? ]
Nope.
[ Fine… I am Katrin. ]
That explains a lot, actually. And who is the real Prim…?
[ She is… WAS my big sister. She and Mother… were killed in an explosion at the factory they both worked at. I was still very young at the time. ]
And then Jude helped you get into the Lunar Academy, right? I gathered that much from your dream-memories.
[ He did more than that. Jude is part of a hacker group that created a false ID for me, complete with changing the information on the network so no one could figure out the scam without some serious digging. If they didn't do that, then I would have had to wait almost three more years before I could enroll… ]
Because you were too young…?
[ That's right. ]
Wow… what could have driven you that hard? Why couldn't you have waited?
[ The colony needed to send enough volunteers to meet our quota, and we were short by just one. If we didn't send enough, then we would have missed out on vital support from the government. Thousands would have starved. I HAD to go. ]
That's …harsh.
[ Life in space has never been easy. ]
What about the surface? You mentioned it in a few letters, but how are things there?
[ The surface is dead. There hasn't been any life for over a century. Humanity used up nearly all our remaining natural resources in order to build the first colonies and we haven't been back since. ]
…Seriously?
[ Seriously. Now enough about me… we've got a lot of time to kill, so tell me more about YOU. What kind of world did you come from? Who are… uh… Yang, Weiss and Blake? And what's a 'Grimm?' ]
Hoo boy… this WILL take a while…
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[ Continued in Next Chapter ]
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A/N: As with the previous Sojourn entry,I'm gonna wrap things up here in three parts. This will likely be a common trait for all of Ruby's chapters, so expect more like it in the future. Don't worry, though… the other tales will have more variety in length.
On to the finale!
=^w^=