Creating Bonds
Onyx and Red enter a warehouse filled with weapons.
"We need generic weapons, nothing too flashy or identifiable." Red states.
"Why?" Onyx asks.
"Just in case." Red says.
Onyx nods.
"Once the money is gone, the place will go into lockdown. The entire police force will be there, maybe even some huntsmans or huntresses." Onyx states.
"Despite the Chaos Zone's advantage, we'll still need to pass through the police." Red states.
"We won't need to fight them, but a getaway vehicle in the Chaos Zone could assist us." Onyx states.
"The police would have all the streets locked down." Red states.
"So we use the airship." Onyx suggests.
"Hell no! That thing was hard to steal and we don't have a pilot." Red says.
"I can fly it." Onyx states.
"You're ten." Red says.
"Fifteen." Onyx corrects.
"No." Red says.
"What other vehicle?" Onyx asks.
"The truck." Red suggests.
"Roads will be locked down, no driving." Onyx says with a smirk.
"Fine." Red says.
Present Day
The Rider and Weiss walk down the snowy mountain top. The air is so cold it causes Weiss to shiver, but the Rider was unaffected. Weiss sneezes and rubs her nose.
"It's so cold..." Weiss complains.
"You'd think the heiress of the Schnee dust company could handle a little cold." The Rider taunts.
The Rider throws Weiss his overcoat. Weiss catches it and then looks up to the Rider.
"How are you okay in this cold?!" Weiss asks.
"You don't feel cold when you're disciplined." The Rider states.
Weiss puts on the coat and blows on her hands. The overcoat is black leather, yet the inside is made of fur. The coat warms Weiss up.
"How can you handle this in the heat?" Weiss asks.
"The disciplined don't feel hot either." The Rider states.
"You're trying to annoy me, aren't you?" Weiss questions.
The Rider stops at the edge of a cliff on the side of the mountain. Weiss follows behind him.
"You see that?" The Rider asks as he points to a large shed.
"What about it?" Weiss responds.
"That's where we are headed." The Rider states.
"You left the Bullhead there?" Weiss asks.
"No." The Rider answers.
"So why...?" Weiss starts to ask.
The Rider interrupts her by firing a grapnel line at near the shed. The Rider then turns around and fires the opposing end of the line at the side of the cliff, creating a zipline. The Rider pulls on the line to test it's strength. He hands Weiss a rappelling hook. Weiss connects the the hook to the line. She turns to the Rider and notices that he doesn't have a second hook.
"How are you gonna get down?" Weiss asks.
The Rider waves his robotic hand.
"Can't lose my grip." The Rider states.
Weiss ziplines down and the Rider follows behind her. Weiss looks up and watches the night sky.
"Can we stay here?" Weiss asks.
"What?" The Rider asks.
"For the night." Weiss clarifies.
"No, we need to keep moving." The Rider says.
Weiss pouts as she continues to follow the Rider, only to collapse due to a combination of her exhaustion and the cold. The Rider turns towards Weiss and picks her up. Instead of bringing her back to the shed, he keeps moving until they reach a cave. The Rider rest Weiss down inside. Weiss sneezes before she could speak.
"Just rest, you may have developed a cold." The Rider says, "How ironic."
The Rider walks to the cave entrance.
"Where are you going!?" Weiss asks after sneezing.
"I'm going to build a fire." The Rider states.
The Rider and Weiss sit at the campfire in the cave. The silence is broken by Weiss' sneeze.
"You're not going to say anything?" Weiss asks.
The Rider continues to stare at the fire, unphased by Weiss' words.
"Why did Rubine have you bring me here?" Weiss asks.
"To kill you." The Rider states.
"Yeah, but why kill me?" Weiss says.
"To sever all connections to my past." The Rider states.
"What else did he have you do?" Weiss asks.
"Many things, my mask recorded all of it." The Rider says.
The Rider looks out the cave and watches the clouds.
"A blizzard is coming." The Rider states.
"How long...?" Weiss asks.
"An hour, maybe two at the most. As for how long it last, that is unclear." The Rider states.
"Hey, can I say something?" Weiss asks.
"You just did." The Rider states.
"You know what I mean." Weiss huffs.
"Yes, you can." The Rider says.
"Okay, but first, promise me one thing." Weiss says.
"What is it?" The Rider asks.
"Don't leave me here." Weiss says.
The Rider glares at Weiss then nods to give his approval.
"Now would be the perfect time for a portal." Weiss states.
"No." The Rider says.
"Why?!" Weiss whines.
"That's taking the easy way out, a path that I no longer follow." The Rider states.
The Rider sighs as he removes his mask. Weiss stares at his face, specifically his heavy stubble which is now forming a small beard.
"We've met before." Weiss says.
"You've met Shit Sherlock, first name No." Onyx deadpans.
Weiss glares at him.
"It was back in Atlas." Weiss states, "With Winter."
Onyx chuckles.
"Took you that long to remember?" Onyx asks.
"You had a thicker beard then." Weiss states, "And your personality was way different. You were far more carefree."
Onyx gestured to his robotic arm.
"It was a gift from your sister." Onyx informs.
"She really liked you, you know?" Weiss says.
"We were stuck together for a year." Onyx states, "She had to like me or at least tolerate me."
Weiss looked into the fire.
"She was really torn up when you left Atlas." Weiss admits, "You meant a lot to her."
"She understood that Nigt was hunting me." Onyx warns.
"She mentioned you two fought, but she would never tell me what it was about." Weiss states.
"We actually fought three times." Onyx explains, "First time was when we met. I had taken a contract from some Atlesian soldiers. Turns out they were dirty and abusing their authority, so I killed them. Winter was supposed to bring them in. We fought, I was easily winning. Ironwood interfered before I could kill her. We talked and he agreed to hire me to deal with an issue that the council was being stiff on. Winter was my handler, there to make sure the job is done. At the time the military had just finished an experimental airship. I attempted to steal it and Winter tried to stop me, and she failed."
Onyx sighs.
"After a few months in, we discovered Night had infiltrated the Council." Onyx continued, "He almost killed Winter. I stopped him. Night wasn't a part of the deal and I wasn't emotionally ready. So I left, Winter tracked me down and we fought. In the end, I agreed to finish the contract, and I did."
"What was the contract?" Weiss asks.
"Classified." Onyx says.
"You sound like Winter." Weiss responds.
"You should have seen my first conversation with her." Onyx comments, "Couldn't get her to give me a straight answer to any of my questions."
The fire dies as Weiss lays down.
As the Rider stays on lookout throughout the night. The bizzard is thick and heavy. The blizzard is too strong for Weiss to make it through in her condition. The Rider begins to see mirages of himself, Night, Windsor, and Shadow. The Rider then closes his eyes and shakes his head. When he looks again the mirages are gone, but the Rider starts to hear their voices in his head.
"You try to hold us back, but you're weak." Shadow says.
"You know it in your soul..." Windsor begins.
"You're nothing but a hollow shell..." Night continues.
"A rusty trap." Onyx finishes.
The Rider stares at a sleeping Weiss and opens a portal.
"The time has come." The Rider says to himself.
The Rider knocks on the door of Team RWBY's dorm while carrying a sleeping Weiss, who is still wearing the Rider's overcoat. He used the portal to bring him to the Bullhead. He then used the Bullhead to fly to Beacon Academy. Blake opens the door, still paying attention to her book. The rest of Team RWBY was absent from the dorm. Blake looks up from her book.
"Onyx." Blake says, surprised.
Blake steps out of the doorway and allows the Rider to enter. The Rider then places Weiss on her bunk.
"Where are the others?" The Rider asks.
"Looking for Weiss." Blake answers.
The Rider turns to Blake.
"What happened?" Blake asks.
"Ask her when she wakes up." The Rider says.
He turns to leave.
"Um... She still has your coat." Blake states.
The Rider continues to walk away, but stops at the doorway. Blake starts walking towards Weiss in order to remove Onyx's coat.
"Leave it, I'm not going anywhere," The Rider states, "Not yet."
Blake listens and calls the rest of her team back with her scroll. The Rider then leaves the room, closing the door behind him.