Author's Note: Okay guys, time to wrap up the second episode of Sojourn. There will also be a couple of epilogues for dessert. Enjoy!
…
… … …
… … … … …
Designation: Remnant-9929 (Future World)
Status: Level of technological development far exceeds other timelines. Population relocated to orbital colonies through use of alternate fuel source, original planet abandoned. Grimm absent. Ecosystem in critical condition.
Condition: Green
Recommendation: None
… … … … …
… … …
…
They found it somewhere between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn.
The Vessel, as they had come to call the alien ship they had set out to intercept, looked a lot like a pill-bug turned upside down – it was rounded along the bottom half and had lots of little masts along the top edge that looked like legs.
Unlike a pill-bug, on the other hand, it was absolutely enormous. The entire Lunar Academy could fit inside the hull three times over. Even their transport, which had a hangar large enough for six Titans, was like a speck next to this thing.
After finding an open dock near the top edge of the rounded part, the team carefully took their machines into the alien craft and got on with their mission. Commander Yui took the lead as they went, and half of Prim's mind was focused on not running into anything that could eat metal. The fact that the passageways within the ship were big enough to allow their Titans to pass unhindered… that implied bad things about the denizens of the craft. How big were these things?
Oh… and the other half of Prim's mind…?
[ Wow… Never seen anything like this back home, that's for sure… ]
"Keep it down, you're distracting me," Prim whispered harshly, not wanting her words to be picked up by the earpiece.
[ Sorry…! ]
Ruby Rose surely had more to say later, but for now she kept quiet. Once just a girl in Prim's dreams, now she was an actual voice in her head. And an annoying one at that. Something changed after their extended conversation in hypersleep on the way here, and now Ruby Rose was awake and actively paying attention to everything around them. And commentating.
More annoying than that, however, was the fact that while Ruby could speak to Prim in her head, Prim could not respond in kind – she had to speak out loud for Ruby to hear her. And when you're wearing an earpiece connected to a network shared by all five of your squad mates, that could lead to… questions.
[ Hope there aren't any face-huggers in here… ]
Prim gave a quick, sharp hiss through her teeth. The voice of Ruby gave a yelp, then shut up again. Prim could imagine the girl flailing her arms in a panic and almost smiled at the mind image.
(You alright, kid?) Maxwell buzzed through her earpiece. They'd heard that hiss, it seemed.
"Yeah, just… working out a leg cramp," she lied. Prim gave her leg a shake to make her point – and Crescent Rose mirrored the move from the outside. Just as it was meant to.
(Happens to the best of us… hypersleep can be a real bitch when you're not used to it.) Commander Yui spoke with a voice of experience, having led more than his fair share of missions. (We gotta stay loose, though… you most of all. No telling what we'll find in here.)
"Got it," she responded. None of them expected her to pick up the standard radio jargon on her first mission, like saying 'Roger' or anything like that, so they kept quiet and moved on.
The team's machines were mostly the same, but each pilot had put their own twist into the design and weaponry – Maxwell used a bladed melee weapon, while Barton loaded his Titan down with high-caliber guns, among other things. Commander Yui's Titan used a powerful-looking energy rifle, a prototype that was supposedly too strong to mass-produce.
They marched on in silence, making their way towards what they hoped would be the heart of the alien Vessel. Thankfully Ruby remained quiet.
But now Prim was also on the lookout for 'face-huggers'… whatever those were. Thanks a lot, Ruby.
…
… … …
… … … … …
Chapter 36:
Titan Dream (part 3)
… … … … …
… … …
…
Once they found the control room (at least, a room that looked like a control room of some kind), things began to change. Commander Yui ordered two of the men to return to the transport and the other two to wait outside the room in their Titans. He and Prim went in by themselves.
Unlike every other part of the Vessel they'd seen so far, the control room was normal size for a human. Long banks of computer screens and keyboard-like input panels lined two sides of the oval-shaped room while the middle featured a chair and a circular device on the floor. Likely where the Captain sat. No windows to the outside, though. As far as Prim could tell, they were probably in the center of the Vessel.
Commander Yui took less than a minute to look around, then walked up to the chair and started investigating quietly… but then he locked gazes with Prim and took out his earpiece, motioning for her to do the same. His dark brown eyes were always intense, but now he seemed to be looking into her very soul.
The teenager swallowed hard, removing her earpiece as instructed. She had a bad feeling about this…
"I need you to be honest with me, Prim… how old are you?" the taller man said once they were off the network.
Prim grew a shade more pale before saying, "…f-f-fourteen, s-sir." She could have continued lying, but the Commander spoke with a tone she knew well – her own Mother used that same tone when she knew her children had done something wrong. It was a test to see if the troublesome child would come clean or keep fibbing. Rare was the child that failed that test more than once.
The Commander nodded, his eyes losing some of their intensity. "About half an hour ago, I received a transmission from Admiral Ray – I have been ordered to place you under arrest for enlistment fraud. Apparently the hacker group that got you enlisted was caught, and they gave up their info in exchange for leniency. The Admiral knows everything now."
[ He takes one step towards us and I'll kick his butt, ] Ruby added unhelpfully. Prim was ready to start crying.
"However… I've decided to ignore that order."
Now she was simply confused. How was she supposed to react to that kind of news?
Commander Yui's face almost had a look of compassion as he said, "I understand your situation – my own colony was also in danger before I enlisted – so don't worry about it too much. Besides… we're millions of miles away from them. Right now, I'm in charge. I say you're staying with us. The mission continues as normal. I'll deal with them when we get back."
Fighting off the urge to run up to the man and hug him, Prim nodded and said, "Thank you, sir."
The man merely nodded and put his earpiece back in, then returned to the task at hand.
[ You know… he's pretty cool. Reminds me of my Uncle Qrow a bit. ]
Prim had to hide her grin as she continued her investigation of the various instrument panels all around her. She silently agreed with Ruby – although she only remembered the man called Qrow from a scant few dream-memories.
It didn't take the pair long to determine that they were completely out of their element amongst all the tech – fortunately, Sargent Winner was a tech prodigy. Once he came in and got to work, the team had a fully operational control room in less than an hour.
Naturally, that led to another problem… no one could read the alien writing, not even Ruby. It certainly looked like everything was operational, but…
(Sir, something's moving out here! Dozens of ships just launched from everywhere… and we're under attack!) buzzed Prim's earpiece in a frenzy. It came from the pair the Commander had sent back to the transport. Sounded like Maxwell.
"Help's on the way, hold tight!" the taller man barked into his own earpiece, then nodded at Winner and said, "Keep an eye on things, report anything unusual. Prim, with me! Move!"
Prim could feel Ruby's excitement building as they rushed back to their waiting Titans and blazed back to the hangar. The girl had mentioned that she was training to be a warrior back in her own world, so she was probably looking forward to the coming battle. Prim just wanted to vomit.
She wasn't a coward or anything… she just didn't like fighting. There were always peaceful solutions to any conflict, but most of the rock-head soldiers and military leaders simply refused to budge on their old-fashioned ideas. They'd rather shoot the problems in the face.
It didn't help that the factory where her family died was making ammunition for the fleet when it went up. In a way, the military was responsible for her being an orphan. Indirectly.
They reached the hangar just in time to see one of the Titans take a hit to the fuel tanks and explode in a fireball. It was Barton. Shit!
The attacking ships were small, but slow and easy to track… yet they proved difficult to shoot. As far as Prim could see, they were likely unmanned drones – none of them had any sort of space for a cockpit and they all moved and fired rather mechanically. They also shared design details with the Vessel itself, which suggested that they were related…
(Self-defense drones,) Commander Yui said over the radio. (Probably activated when we got the control room online. Dammit!)
(There's hundreds more outside the ship! There's no way we can-…) Maxwell never finished his sentence. His Titan blew apart in another explosion.
Prim was now trembling, a movement that was thankfully too small for Crescent Rose to mirror and give her away.
This was… this was too much…!
How was she supposed to fight these things?! Even professional soldiers couldn't do anything against them!
[ Prim! Hey, Prim! Let me do it! ]
Not now, Ruby! We're getting killed out here!
Despite the onslaught of shots hitting it, Crescent Rose was turning out to be quite handy at not blowing up – it's armor was stronger than a normal Titan's, but it was only a matter of time before even that gave out. The targeting system was also quite accurate, but her rifle would only last so long… and there were so many… it seemed like two more appeared for every one she managed to take down.
[ I can help, and you know it! C'mon… switch with me! ]
Prim opened her mouth to tell Ruby to stuff it… but then something strange happened.
Her body did not move, but Prim herself… shifted. It felt like she was being disconnected from her own body and pulled inside it. Bit by bit she slipped backwards. Then she felt… a presence of some kind… moving past her consciousness and… taking control.
"Holy crap it actually worked…!" Prim heard her mouth mumble. "We switched!"
[ Warn me next time you do that shit! ] Prim tried to sound as irritated as she felt, but she couldn't hide her relief that she was no longer responsible for her own actions. She'd been relieved from the battle.
Based on Ruby Rose's memories, this was the best option. Time to leave this to a more experienced warrior.
(Prim, you alright? Why'd you stop shooting?)
"Don't worry, I won't tell him," Ruby whispered with Prim's mouth, then said more loudly, "Yeah, I'm good but I'm almost out of ammo. Switching to melee."
The last thing Prim felt was her mouth stretching into a grin before she lost all remaining physical sensations. That just left her with sight.
And what she saw that day would burn itself into her memory for the rest of her life.
Unlike standard Titans, which had the pilot control the machine from a seat with numerous levers, sticks and dials, the Mark-17 used a prototype setup known as Tandem Control. In short, the pilot was connected to a full-body sensor that took the movements of the body and translated them as movements of the machine. There was no chair – if the pilot took a step, the machine took a step. Prim had taken over a month to get used to it, but now she and Crescent Rose moved together naturally. The targeting system adjusted for Prim's poor aim.
However… with Ruby in control, Crescent Rose was a whole different beast.
Prim could only watch through her own eyes in total awe as the mental intruder took the machine on a whirling dance of death and destruction. The twin blades built into the arms of the machine moved like silver lightning as Ruby destroyed the remaining ships in the hangar in less than a minute. How could the Mark-17 even keep up with all of Ruby's ridiculous moves?!
Then they moved the fighting outside, into open space. Combining her crazy speed and accuracy with those arm blades, Ruby Rose made short work of the alien drones. It was truly insane to watch. Even the experimental flight unit of the Mark-17 proved to be no trouble for her, as the machine moved easily through the three-dimensional battlefield. There was no way Prim could follow more than a moment or two of the action.
Prim never knew anyone could move that fast.
"Hah… hah… hah… Now that was fun!" Ruby grunted as she caught her breath, finally finished with the destruction.
[ Holy shit… did you use that… 'semblance' thing you told me about? ] That was one of the more interesting parts of the world Ruby Rose came from – they apparently had super powers. Ruby was able to move at very high speeds when she wanted to.
"Actually, no… but I did push it …a bit too much… I need a nap…" she replied quietly, between gasps.
(Where the hell did THAT come from?) came Commander Yui's shocked voice over the radio.
[ Either switch back with me or come up with something to tell him. ]
"I… uh… I watch a lot of… Kung-Fu movies…?" Ruby replied lamely.
Both Commander Yui and Prim inside her own head gave a sigh. (Well… let's get back to the control room. Winner made a breakthrough a few minutes ago.)
"Uh… roger that."
If Prim could control her hands, she would have done a facepalm.
…
[ … … …Why haven't we switched back yet? ]
"I'm trying… but it's not working…!"
[ Keep it down, dummy! What did you even DO to get us here?! ]
"I didn't DO anything, I just… kinda… … … came forward…?"
[ Then can't you GO BACKWARDS…? ]
"No, I can't. Maybe you should try it, Miss Smarty-pants…"
[ Fine! … … … … …Just… come forward… right…? ]
"Yep, just… … … okay, that feels really weird… … …"
[ … ]
"…"
[ Did it work? ]
"… … …Looks like it did. Wow, that's freaky… Man, Doctor Noah's gonna have a field day when I tell him about that…"
[ One thing at a time, Prim. Don't we have somewhere to be, first? ]
"If you insist… Oooh… … … Oh God, I'm gonna feel that in the morning."
[ Sore muscles are a sign that you're doing something right. ]
"Oh, stuff it."
…
As it turned out, the 'big breakthrough' was quite significant – Winner managed to connect his personal computer to the main system of the Vessel and put together a rudimentary translation system. Much of the alien writing now appeared in English.
That was all, though.
"Not much we can do with that, is there?" the Commander asked absently…
BEEP-BEEP
No one spoke for a second as the loud buzzer-like sound reverberated through the room. It was the first reaction they'd gotten, but… nothing else.
Winner spoke next, "I have no idea what that was…"
BEEP-BEEP
Commander Yui griped at the ceiling, "Knock it off!"
BEEP-BEEP
Just before the Commander reached for his sidearm to start shooting at the control panels, his nerves at the breaking point, Prim finally spoke up, "Should I wait outside?"
BING!
"…?"
Not a buzzer this time, but now the room almost sounded …pleased.
-VOICE PATTERN RECOGNIZED AS FEMALE-
-BIOSIGNATURE 72% MATCH-
-NEW CREW MEMBER DETECTED AND SCANNED-
-STATE YOUR NAME-
Winner's eyebrows almost leapt off his face as the system spoke in near-perfect English. Commander Yui still looked miffed, but much less likely to start wantonly destroying the place. He glanced over at Prim and nodded – it was clear the system only responded after hearing Prim's voice, so she was the one to continue the conversation.
Swallowing hard, the girl said, "…Primrose."
-NEW CREW MEMBER REGISTRATION COMPLETE-
-WELCOME ABOARD, MISS PRIMROSE-
-PLEASE REPORT TO GRAND ADMIRAL KAANS CHAMBERS FOR FULL DEBRIEFING AND SYSTEM CHECK-
The two men and one woman in the room looked at each other with growing confusion and apprehension. Prim looked around and said, "Um… how… where is Grand Admiral Kaan's chambers…?"
-HIGHLIGHTING PATH-
A door on the far side of the room slid open as the floor suddenly glowed with incandescent light. Commander Yui pulled out his pistol and nodded to Winner, "Keep us posted."
The blonde man nodded back, stating, "It looks like the system adapted to our language by… scanning my computer's hard drive! Amazing! Think of what we could learn from all this… … …"
He kept talking, but the Commander and Prim were already moving down the new hallway.
The path was pretty straightforward – the pair arrived at their destination in no time. A large pair of sliding doors silently opened to allow them in.
As the visitors took in the sight, both sets of jaws nearly hit the floor at the same time.
The chambers themselves were not too big, but three of the four sides were one continuous curved-glass panel. The only things inside the chambers were three round pods, like their own hypersleep pods, that were each lit with a faint bluish light.
But that was nothing compared to the view outside the room.
By Prim's best guess, they were looking into the front half of the Vessel's main hull – and the space was filled with similar glass pods that stretched for miles. Literally. Tiny blue lights adorned each and every setting, like stars that spanned the unthinkable distance. Once again, the sheer scale of the ship left the humans in awe.
Once Prim and the Commander stepped further into the room, the lights in the floor came on. A hissing sound filled the space, followed by a fine mist that seeped out of the pods before them. Moments later, the round glass of the pods lifted up on a hinge, revealing the occupants.
Aliens. Primrose was front and center for humanity's first contact with extraterrestrial life.
It was all she could do to keep from passing out.
The figure on the left sat up first, resembling a female with startlingly human features – except for two animal-like ears on top of her head. They looked a bit like fox ears. The woman's green eyes were also strange, as the pupil was a narrow slit, like a cat's eye. She had long brown hair and wore a black and red set of robes.
The figure on the right was next, and she could have passed as a twin of the first, except that her hair was shorter. Her eyes were a lighter shade of green as well, almost a blue-green.
[ You… have… GOT to be kidding me…! ]
And then the figure in the middle sat up. Prim had no doubt this was the Grand Admiral mentioned by the computer. The other two were probably assistants of some kind.
The woman called Kaan stood half a head taller than even Commander Yui, with regal robes that dragged the floor and a cold look in her golden yellow eyes. Her animal-like ears resembled the ears of a tiger, and her short hair was a deep umber.
"~…~…~"
Despite the clear tone of authority she spoke with, Kaan used words neither human had any chance of understanding.
One of the two fox-eared women offered some advice in their own language, which prompted a short conversation between them. Prim swallowed hard. Commander Yui adjusted his pistol in it's holster.
Kaan looked back and gave a sharp motion to follow. The group, now five in total, quickly made their way back to the control room.
[ Unreal… … … why are faunus on an alien ship…? ]
Faunus? Oh yeah… Ruby had mentioned them during their talk. People with animalistic traits that lived among normal humans. So they were normal for Ruby… but not here? That was strange.
They arrived at the control room just in time to see one of the two fox-eared women start to argue with Winner over the mess he'd made, but Kaan stopped her with a raised hand. Prim watched those golden eyes carefully examine what the man had done, then she nodded to herself and waved the two assistants away to their duties – each one took a position at the computer banks on either side of the room.
Interesting… how much did this Kaan person see?
The woman called Kaan sat down in the main chair, then pointed at Prim and motioned for her to stand inside the circular structure on the floor. The girl reluctantly complied, her heart beating hard enough that she was sure everyone in the room could hear it.
Admiral Ray was ready to chew her out when they got back... and now she was about to get chewed out by another Admiral, this one an alien of some kind.
Would it ever end?
Nodding to one of her assistants, Kaan hit a few buttons on the chair's panel. A holographic screen came up between her and Prim, but it was mostly empty. Kaan said a few of her alien words…
Then the screen lit up with English words, {Who are you people? Why are you here?}
Subtitles? Okay… that's one way to do it.
Ignoring Winner's startled cries from the other side of the room ("Hey! They reverse-hacked my computer! Clever bastards…"), Prim worked a bit of spit back into her mouth before she replied, "I'm… I am Primrose. I… We… are humans. We came out to… investigate an incoming alien vessel… to see if it was a threat… to our people."
As Prim spoke, words appeared on the screen in that alien writing they'd seen when they first arrived. Kaan appeared to be reading it, but showed no response to the message.
She spoke again, and the screen displayed, {Why did you not establish contact through sub-light transmission? Our system would have responded automatically, and there would be no need for trespassing.}
Prim blinked, then said, "I don't… we don't know what 'sub-light transmission' even is."
Kaan read the translation of the words, then finally showed some emotion – she looked stunned. Like she couldn't believe the humans were that stupid.
Rather than keep talking, Kaan brought up several displays on the hologram for all to see. She ran a scan of their transport, doing a detailed diagnosis of the systems, then ran a video feed that was likely filmed by security cameras – it was the battle they'd just finished. Crescent Rose was clearly visible as it danced like a demon while it demolished the drones. More scans showed the inner workings of both Crescent Rose and the other remaining Titans.
Kaan spoke again: {We have some knowledge of your race, but it is clearly incomplete. You lack even basic communication systems, yet have mastered the art of combat with exo-suits… you humans are truly a strange species.}
Prim gathered her courage, her words flowing more naturally, "We simply haven't had much time to develop ourselves as you have. We are a young and frightened race… we only need the opportunity to grow."
{To my eyes, you have already grown in ways you need not continue – war is a base and worthless skill to hone.}
"I agree, yet there is more to our race than war. Humans have art, and music, and poetry… things that appeal to our sense of beauty and compassion. We were once a people that longed to explore the unknown… and we can be again."
{We, too, are explorers. Our planet is dead and we seek a new world to live on. Our entire race sleeps within this very ship, waiting for the day we finally find our home. It is my sacred duty so see us all to safety.}
"Then we are not so different. The world we come from has also died out, and our race lives in orbital colonies. We struggle to hold on to our feeble existence, fighting to survive day by day."
After a pause to consider her words, Kaan studied Prim from her chair with one finger tapping her chin and said, {Perhaps we can help each other.}
"How?"
{According to the system log, our ship automatically set a course for your world because it showed no signs of habitation and it meets the criteria for our terraforming processors – we could potentially transform it into a habitable world for my people. However, if humans still laid claim to it…}
"…You could start a war."
{Precisely. We have no means to defend ourselves from your weapons, but the next viable world might lay millions of light-years away. We do not have enough fuel, nor time. I wish for… a negotiation.}
"I am… not the person to speak to about that…"
{I will speak with no one else. On my authority as Grand Admiral, I name you Ambassador of the Human Race. None save the Empress herself may oppose your will.}
"Wh-What? Why…?"
Kaan thought for a full minute before she gave her answer: {Because you understand what is most important – peace before war.}
…
… … …
… … … … …
Prim stood in the hangar with Commander Yui, along with Winner and the only other survivor of their crew, a quiet man called Fei. The Commander had copies of Barton and Maxwell's dogtags that he was taking back with him as per tradition. No one spoke. No one knew quite what to say.
Commander Yui, Winner and Fei were heading back to the fleet, taking Crescent Rose with them.
Prim was staying here. Like it or not, she had a lot to learn about the politics of an alien race.
"The Vessel slowed down after we 'woke it up,'" the Commander said, trying to break the silence, "It won't reach the fleet for some time yet. You've got plenty of time to figure out this whole 'Ambassador' thing before it gets there."
"And your… previous order…?" Prim asked hesitantly.
Commander Yui grinned for the first time, saying, "Well… Ambassadors usually have diplomatic immunity… so I doubt you'll hear about it again… unless the higher-ups have their heads even further up their own asses than I thought."
"Well… that's good to hear…"
The Commander sent Winner and Fei into the transport, then bent down to give Prim a surprisingly gentle hug and said, "I lost my daughter during the war… and she would have been about your age by now. So… since she's not here… I'm proud of you, Primrose. Good luck out there."
"Thanks…" Prim very nearly choked as she almost called the man dad.
The taller man ruffled Prim's hair as he stood back up, earning a light snarl from the teenager. He chuckled as he strode back to the transport.
Seriously, why does everyone love to do that to her?
Prim wondered if she'd ever see that man again. She hoped so… his presence had become rather comforting of late.
Just before the bay door closed, Winner jogged back out. He muttered, "Almost forgot," as he pulled something from a cargo pouch at his belt. "It's kind of a good luck charm for me, but… I want you to have it… Madam Ambassador."
It was a large card of some kind. Prim absently reached for it, when…
[ WAIT! DON'T TOUCH THAT! ]
Her fingers froze less than an inch from the card, and she could now make out the image on it – a painting of a rose encircled by thorns. The words The Rose sat at the bottom. It looked more than a little familiar…
"What's wrong?" Prim asked quietly.
[ Last time I touched that card, I vanished… and ended up inside your head. I have no idea why it's here, again, nor what'll happen when you touch it, but… ]
Winner looked puzzled, but Prim held up a finger to bid him wait a moment. She murmured, "I remember that part of the dream. But doesn't that mean… it's time for you to go?"
[ I don't wanna go yet! Are you kidding?! With everything you're gonna be going through? I don't wanna miss that! ]
"You might not get another chance…"
[ … … …I hate it when you're right, you know that? ]
"Uh-huh. Even though you've been really noisy… I'll miss you, Ruby."
[ *whimper* I'll miss you too, Prim. Tell Val I said bye when you see her again. I'd hug you right now, but… well, you know. ]
"Of course. Goodbye… Ruby Rose."
And with that, Primrose finally took the card. There was no immediate reaction, so Prim simply gave her thanks to Winner so he could finally get onboard and go home.
When she looked back down at her hands… the card was gone.
"Ruby…?"
No response. No new, separate emotions. No sense of someone else in her head. Only silence. Things were going to be a lot quieter from now on.
Prim's throat locked up as she suddenly felt the sting of loneliness. She felt tears welling up in her eyes as she glanced out at the stars.
"I hope you finally find your way home, my friend…"
…
…
…
…
…
… …
… … …
… … … …
… … … … …
_/_/_/_/_/
THE SHADOW SEEKS A PLACE IN THE LIGHT
SOWING FEAR, MADNESS AND DEATH IN THE NIGHT
_/_/_/_/_/
… … … … …
… … … …
… … …
… …
…
…
…
…
…
The first thing Ruby thought of when she opened her eyes was a sci-fi movie she'd seen a few years ago. In it, all of humanity had been enslaved by robots and imprisoned within a virtual reality while their bodies were kept in nasty-looking cocoon things filled with slime.
That was where she thought she was at first… in one of those cocoons. And it was really warm in here.
It was smaller than the ones in the movie – Ruby was bunched up inside it in the fetal position with only enough space to wiggle around. She could clearly tell it was also filled with a jelly-like substance, but she seemed to have no problem breathing. Maybe she had an air tube in her nose?
She tried to reach up to find out, but was stunned to find that her hand was… was… mutated. The fingers were bony and shrivled, almost like a mummy's hand. Oh gods… what kind of toxic waste did she fall into?
Her legs weren't much better – she could tell that her feet had been stretched out somehow and her toes were long and bony. The rest of the legs felt relatively normal, though she suspected she was very close to cramping. This pod-thing was way too small.
Her eyes were blurry, but there was enough light coming through the walls for her to see. She almost thought she saw something long and skinny sticking up from her backside and curled around her belly. Almost like… a tail. Maybe that was her air tube? She also felt sagging, flappy sheets of flesh hanging from her arms, reminding her of old ladies she'd seen whose skin sagged low enough on their upper arms that they could fan themselves with it when they waved at somebody.
Damn… she must look like a monster right about now.
… … …Not that old people looked like monsters or anything…
Even though her eyes weren't working right, Ruby still looked around her spherical prison for any sort of way out. The cocoon in the movie was soft enough that the guy inside could just tear it open, but Ruby's prison turned out to be far tougher. Either that or she was just too weak to push very hard. Even pushing with both legs did nothing – the walls almost felt like a dense ceramic material, but it might as well have been solid stone. In frustration, Ruby bashed her head against the side.
It was here she discovered two things: first, her prison was not secured in place at all. Shifting her weight like that caused the prison to rock and tilt violently, nearly tumbling it end over end. Well… if nothing else, she might be able to… roll to freedom?
Second, she was not alone in this place. As soon as the prison moved, Ruby felt a massive concussive force rock the floor and heard a badly muffled voice – but a voice that clearly belonged to a giant, booming all around her. Some sort of prison warden? Where in the nine hells was she, anyway? And why was it so hot in here?
Even with a mutated body, she was not about to just sit there and find out the hard way. Looking around again, a new detail caught Ruby's eye – the spot where she tried to smash her head now had a bright sliver of light shining through from beyond. A crack? She tried hitting it with her head again and the line splintered into two lines, then three.
As she kept hitting and pushing the same spot of the prison wall, Ruby made a point to remember how this gave the phrase 'using your head' a whole new meaning. Heh. Yang would have enjoyed that one. The voice of the giant warden continued vocalizing outside, though she had no way of understanding it.
After what felt like an hour of struggling, Ruby finally burst free of her spherical prison – only to find herself in a new and totally alien world.
The room was… absolutely gigantic! Never before had Ruby seen a room that stretched so far into the sky. She almost imagined the ceiling fading away above the atmosphere. She could see a few walls, but they were also miles away from where she lay. The floor was truly strange as well – massive shafts of something wiry and curly kept her from easily moving about, frustrating Ruby's attempts to push herself upright. And it was cold out here… she found herself missing the warmth of her prison.
There was still goop in her eyes, but Ruby could now look back and see her prison. From the outside it almost looked like… an egg? Sitting on a huge warming tray of some kind?
Out of the frying pan, indeed.
"…ere you… re…" the giant's voice boomed over Ruby's head, just starting to clear up as it no longer had to penetrate layers of goop and the wall of her prison. Two mammoth hands came out of nowhere and picked Ruby up off the floor as easily as Ruby picked up a cookie off a plate. Hopefully she wasn't about to be snacked on…
Ruby was shifted onto one massive hand while the other grabbed a towel the size of an airship and gently tried to wipe the goo from her face. She almost thought she could hear… humming. Was it the giant? Was the great warden trying to lull her to sleep before stuffing her back into another prison?
"There we go… now you can see. Such pretty eyes you have, little one…" While still booming and loud, the giant's voice now sounded distinctly feminine. "Welcome to the world."
The sudden sensation of lifting caused Ruby to jump, but her gnarled claws were not very good at clutching the giant's hands for support – yet now that she could see better, Ruby noticed how soft and clean those hands were. Very clean… and very human.
Looking up at the giant's face only confirmed more human-like features, but the angle was all wrong to see anything but a chin the size of a small moving van. The giant held Ruby close to her chest, giving her a good look at rough-spun fibers as thick as shipping ropes. It was likely a normal shirt, but it could probably fit overtop of her house back on Patch.
She was warmer here, too – the giant's body heat was oddly relaxing.
Ruby soon found herself being carried through the enormous room (which, in hindsight, was probably normal size for the giant). She was brought to one of the walls that held a vast mirror that could have fit all of Beacon Academy on it's surface. In that mirror was the smiling face of the giant, clear at last.
"I think I'll call you… Gamble. Since even the breeder didn't know your lineage, so we just took a chance. Looks like it worked out, huh? I think I'll spell it with an 'O-L' …Gambol. Sounds more cool."
Ruby could never have mistaken that ebony hair and those amber eyes, nor the cat-like ears atop her head. The proportions suggested that the giant was actually a child, but there was no doubt that Blake Belladonna herself was holding Ruby's tiny body.
Speaking of which…
The shriveled bundle of scaly pink flesh in Blake's arms looked just as grotesque as Ruby first imagined. Now, however, she could see that her head was the single ugliest part of her – the snout was huge and bony, the mouth was far too big, and the horns on the back of her head were little more than black nubs.
But at least now it was clear what was going on. The look of the creature in the mirror, the sheer scale of the world around her, and the prison she had just escaped from…
She'd just hatched. From an egg.
Ruby… had just started a new life…
As a baby dragon.
"…!"
She opened her mouth to scream, but all that came out was a high-pitched reptillian squeal.
…
… … …
… … … … …
Unknown World, Underground Bunker, Private Room
…
Thorn would have paid a lot of cash to know what the kid was thinking right now.
The black-garbed psychopath stood off in a far corner of the room, watching as the kid took in the newest face to be brought into their little coven. And she didn't look happy.
Soulberry, as the woman called herself, had been fawning over the newcomer for several minutes but had thus far missed the kid's darkening mood. As far as Thorn could see, the Daughter of Salem was ready to snap.
"…And based on what I saw, she's supposed to be a tactical genius. Why, I'd wager we could conquer multiple worlds with her skills…"
The woman in question resembled a vegetable – her eyes were locked onto a spot in the distance and she probably wasn't even aware of the other people in the room. Sad, really… those were the least fun to torture. Didn't even cry out when you stabbed them.
At least she was nice to look at – If Thorn had to give the big-boobed woman credit for anything, it was her taste in bitches. Nine out of ten, would recommend. Very fuckable, even for a faunus.
At last the kid moved, forming a complex motion with her hands as invisible threads of energy were spun into a pattern. Soulberry suddenly gave a yelp as she was lifted into the air and restrained, but there were no ropes to be seen.
The kid was doing her thing again, only this time she was holding the woman in place with the air itself. The woman's mouth was also gaping open, but not from awe… a solid ball of invisible air was forcing her to keep quiet.
Boy… that was a trick Thorn would gladly lick a few shoes to learn.
As the black-garbed woman watched, the kid held a whimpering Soulberry in the air with one hand and used the other to open another rift in space… and then she floated the bound woman through the opening and held her on the other side. Thorn could hear the muffled screams making their way through – it sounded like the woman was fucking dying. She could just make out a few wisps of smoke wafting into the room from beyond the rift, along with an ominous sizzling noise.
In all of this, the kid didn't say a word. Her movements dripped with icy rage, a far cry from her normal I-am-more-merciful-than-you-think routine. Looks like she ran out of mercy today. Yikes.
After several minutes of muffled screaming, the kid pulled the woman back into the room… but what came back through the opening was little more than a twitching, burned-out husk that barely looked human. The smell of charred flesh was strong as the rift in space was closed back up.
Thorn swallowed hard, no longer certain that she would remain unharmed in all of this. By the gods… did the kid open a portal to hell itself?! Or maybe the inside of a volcano?
Still without speaking, the kid dropped what used to be Soulberry onto the floor without any sort of care. She then made another motion with her hands – the kid once called it 'weaving' – and the burned-out husk began to glow with a faint light.
Large patches of new flesh suddenly began to spout overtop of the char, starting with the face. Thorn was treated to the woman's screams again, this time without any sort of filter. Whatever was happening, gods did it sound painful. Who knew healing could hurt that much?
The kid remained impassive as she waited for the healing to finish.
Soulberry continued screaming and thrashing as her flesh was forcibly re-knit.
The new woman didn't so much as blink.
And Thorn was debating whether or not she should find a private place to satisfy herself. All that lovely screaming… gods, it was a wonder she didn't just climax right there, hands-free.
When it was finally over (and Thorn's ears stopped ringing), Soulberry lay on the floor as naked as the day she was born… and almost as small. Gone was the woman with the titanic tits – in her place was a girl not much larger than the kid herself. Same deep red hair, but that was about it.
The Daughter of Salem knelt down so her victim could better hear what she said, but Thorn was certain that everyone in the base heard her words – and even now, the sound of a grown woman's voice coming out of a child's mouth was… disconcerting.
"Act outside my will again, and next time I won't bother restoring you."
The girl on the floor jerked in fear, but nodded without looking up. Her hair was the same length as in her larger form, but now it was almost long enough to reach her ankles if she stood upright. Most of it lay gathered in a pile behind her back.
The kid stood up and gave Soulberry one more look, then glanced at the new woman (who still hadn't moved) before finally heading for the door. Before she left, however, she turned back to the poor sod on the floor and said, a bit more gently, "Have a care, my dear… Death is not as forgiving as I am. Steal away too many souls from her grasp, and you will soon owe a debt you cannot pay. I will not envy you when she comes to collect."
The false child then turned those glowing red eyes on Thorn, who flinched at the sight for the very first time. "And you… find me in the meeting room. I have a mission for you." And with that she left.
"…"
The silence was more than awkward… it was downright dangerous. Thorn considered escaping through the shadows with her semblance, but something kept her from trying. Morbid curiosity, perhaps?
She could just make out the sound of grumpy mumbling, "…stupid sunlight… …now m'hungry… …useless faunus… …just feed on…"
Thorn took one step…
Then nearly jumped out of her skin when the girl on the floor whipped her head around and glared at her with open hostility. Those steel-grey eyes were a little too wide for comfort, her mouth set in a snarl. She resembled an angry ghost that had just crawled out of an old well from inside a TV set.
"Get out," she hissed, a rough sound not at all like she normally spoke. "Before I decide to feed on you, too…"
Thorn didn't even nod as she made for the door, but she did notice the wicked edge to the girl's canine teeth as the creature called Soulberry growled a warning.
There was no denying that the formerly top-heavy woman had screwed up somehow, but Thorn knew that her anger was not in regards to the mistake, nor was it directed at 'her goddess' …rather, her rage was rooted in her embarrassment.
Only a select few people knew that the child-like form on the floor was, in fact, the true form of the being that was once called Ruby L. Rose. The well-endowed variation was just an illusion, along with all of her bravado. That was how she preferred to be seen by those she dealt with.
Thorn spared the enraged girl one last glance before leaving, as well as the lethargic woman behind her – she took note of the tiger-like faunus ears and the reddish streaks in that brownish hair – before walking out.
She just managed to catch sight of the girl standing up and walking over to the faunus woman, then bending her face down towards the woman's neck, right before the door shut with an ominous click.
All she heard after that was the distinct sound of… sucking.
Thorn rubbed the side of her neck and shivered.
…
… … …
… … … … …
What About Roman and Neo…?
…
By this point the duo had seen several different worlds, but they were no closer to getting home than when they started. Neo was running out of paper in her notepad.
"zzz… zzz…" And Roman was proving useless at the moment. The last world they were in offered a good variety of beers and strong ales to steal, and the ginger-haired man was still trying to sleep them all off. He really got hammered – but at least he had fun, right?
Neo squatted next to Roman and reviewed her notes. She had been writing down each four-digit number they'd gone to, trying to avoid any repeats. Given enough time, they would eventually land in their own world. They had to. Eventually. There were only so many four-digit numbers they could try.
The problem now was the simple fact that Neo couldn't remember the numbers she'd entered to get to this world. It probably wasn't a big deal, but still…
"…Didjoo …heer somethin'…?" Roman suddenly slurred. Neo just shook her head no, too focused on numbers to care about his rambling.
They were currently sitting against the wall of a building that was probably a school, but it was hard to tell. All they noticed when they arrived was the fact that there was a big lighthouse-looking structure built onto the place. It was also late afternoon, and the air carried the chill of cold weather. The shorter woman was ready to sneak into the building and climb up to the top of that lighthouse just to get away from her drunken partner for a few minutes…
"Therr'tis ag'n…" Roman mumbled as he staggered to his feet. "I th'nk someone's havin' a little nookie… 'round th' corn'r…" The tilted bowler cap on his head added to the image of a very sloshed man as he pulled his stolen phone out and grinned, "…Blackmail time…!"
Neo sighed deeply as the man staggered away, probably off to take a picture of a seagull or something equally worthless.
Admitting to herself that she would probably never remember the exact number of this world, Neo stashed her notepad and pushed herself upright with her umbrella. She grunted lightly as she popped her back, letting the blood flow back to her feet.
And that was when the shit hit the fan.
The sound of Roman's camera shutter rang out first, followed closely by an angry squawk of "Hey, jerk!"
Exit time already? Oh well… Neo readied the device with another code, this time one she could remember for later.
Then Roman came around the bushes, giggling like an idiot, and staggered into her. Bumping her free hand.
Jarring her umbrella loose.
The instant before she hit the button.
The pair vanished in another burst of light… this time leaving a little something behind.
…
Seconds later, a young woman with platinum blonde hair and wearing a sparkling white jacket burst around the corner in an angry huff, head darting every direction to try and see who had taken that picture. She was ready to tear them a new one.
But then she saw the fallen umbrella… and her anger faded quickly. She picked it up carefully, unable to believe her eyes, and looked around again.
A second teenager emerged moments later, this one with deep red hair and wearing a red hoodie. She looked equally confounded, as well as a bit frustrated.
The girl in white muttered, "It can't be… … … she already found me…?" as she stared at the empty space the traveling pair had occupied only minutes before.
… … … … …
… … …
…
A/N: And that wraps up Round 2! (Finally!) And look! We learned a little about one of the baddies! For those of you who wondered about the names I used for this part of the story (all two of you), I pulled them from the Gundam series of anime (Gundam 0079, Zeta Gundam, and Gundam Wing specifically). Also, Kaan's two assistants were meant to be female versions of the two faunus dudes from volume 5 of the show (whose names I can't be bothered to remember).
I know some of you guys are really trying to be patient with me putting these chapters out so far apart, and I truly do appreciate that. As you all know, real life can be rather unforgiving. Between working full-time in a hot weather environment (with no A/C) and my marriage being in shambles, my brain simply refuses to brain for more than a few hours per day, if that… but I hold onto the hope of a brighter future. After all… it's always darkest before the dawn, right?
Next chapter: Easily one of the most important events in the entire story.
(You knew it was coming… … …
Credits: Worth A Thousand Words written by… some asshat with a box :3)
=^w^=
(Temporary Author's Note: If any of you guys are interested, I'm looking for one or two beta readers for this story (preferably someone who can reliably critique my stuff, not just get the first look at it). I had a beta reader in the past, but I've kinda lost touch with 'em. If you're interested, shoot me a PM and we'll discuss it – but please don't use the review section.)