Hello there faithful reader! Welcome to another chapter of 'The Darkling Thrush'!
As always Id like to thank those who left a review last chapter, you guys are awesome.
Thank you noone297, jin0uga, Baoh joestar, King Edgar, Nordlending, CrimsonGrEEd, and Guest! Just knowing your thoughts and seeing your feedback makes writing worth it.
This chapter is a very interesting one. I keep talking about how these go through drafts, this one is no exception. This one took two drafts, the least so far. Fun fact, the character of Hegemony Marlowe was inspired by 'Heart of Darkness' by Joseph Conrad. So you can sort of see some of those themes influencing this entire arc, especially the stuff about truth and lies.
Well, I'll save the rest of my notes for the end as always.
XXIII
Who Dares Wins: Part 3
Dinner at Marlowe's wasn't uncommon to Russel. They were neighbors for years, and though he'd never say it, the old man was the closest thing to a father figure he had growing up. He was a father figure to everyone in fact. A respectable member of the town who looked after his own. Hegemony Marlowe was one of a kind and Russel was grateful to have him in his life.
Russel led the way up to Marlowe's homestead, his team and Port following closely behind. "So how do you know this guy anyways?" Dove would ask in his usual insensitive manner. Russel knew the guy didn't mean it, but the way he usually came across would always be his biggest detractor.
"Neighbors." Russel answered simply. As they continued to make their way to Marlowe's home, Russel's thoughts drifted to when he'd actually met the old man. He'd always just been the 'Old Man' to him, he'd always had white hair and bad posture. It was a summer's day when they'd actually struck up a conversation. Marlowe and his Father had a business relationship, he'd outsource a good deal of work to them. That was the sort of man Marlowe was, always looking after his neighbors, his extended family.
Then one day while Russel's Father was still in bed passed out from a night drinking, Marlowe showed up at their doorstep checking in on the man, he'd received word from one of the big suit types they'd been behind last month. With Russel's Father indisposed, the young boy was forced to entertain Marlowe. They'd never shared a single word before and in a young boy's eyes Marlowe was just another big business guy.
Russel was four, he didn't have the vast vocabulary he had now nor the people skills. So the young Thrush just started blabbing about primary school. Russel forgot the exact topic, but it probably had something to do with the structure of courses. Marlowe kept calm, not bothered by the child's actions and just played along. And then the rest was history, as the saying goes.
They reached the Homestead a tad bit early. Dove couldn't help but be surprised at all the farmland that surrounded the place. Russel didn't mention how a part of the land used to belong to him, how he'd sold it to run away to the big city and become a Huntsman. There were many things Russel wasn't good at, talking about himself was one of them.
So they marched up the porch and knocked. The door opened revealing Marlowe. "Please come in, come in!" He said happily as he urged them all inside.
Closing the door behind them, Marlowe led them all down through the living room and into the dining room. There, the five huntsmen were greeted by a number of other individuals, some whom Russel recognized, and others he didn't. No doubt they were all farmhands enjoying a meal with the boss. On the table, which could seat up to twenty, was a platter of steak, trays of mashed potatoes and gravy, a dish with corn and sweet bread that seemed to have been recently removed from the oven.
By the looks of things, everyone had been waiting for the huntsmen to arrive, not a single plate was touched, the silverware left alone. If Russel had known this was how it would've been they all probably should've left earlier. But Russel pushed that thought aside and quickly found a seat, as did the others.
Port was absolutely delighted, practically drooling all over himself. "You'll love this Professor Port. Grown here in Oakwood!" Marlowe said before taking his seat at the head of the table. He gestured at the food in front of everyone and with a thankful smile they all dug in.
"You really must phone ahead next time." Marlowe directed at Russel. He had said it in a joking manner but there was an underlying serious tone to his words.
"Never had a phone before. It's a new concept to me." Russel smirked.
The old man just laughed while everyone busied themselves with devouring the food in front of them. But beyond them, this wasn't about rewarding noble huntsmen for their good deeds but two friends catching up. "So how's everything been at Beacon? It's been ages since I 've last been in Vale." Marlowe said as his mind slowly wandered to his Huntsman days. "I hope you haven't been causing trouble for your fellow students."
Russel chuckled as he busied himself with cutting the steak on his plate. "You know me Marlowe. I've been on my best behavior."
"I was afraid you'd say that." The elder of the two just shook his head.
"The city's gorgeous." Russel leaned back in his seat and just stared up at the ceiling, recalling the city of Vale. "I look at it from my dorm and it's just this marble of lights. And then I can just look out towards the ocean and see the stars. It's perfect."
"I remember my first time in Vale. I felt the same way." Marlowe muttered as he grabbed himself a spoon full of potatoes for his plate. "The city life isn't like how it is in Oakwood is it? It's grand, bombastic and not at all deep rooted like these blasted trees. You can be whatever you want out there, like a huntsman."
"We just had a dance at Beacon." Russel said as Marlowe passed the bowl of potatoes his way. The young Thrush to grabbed himself a spoonful and passed it along over to Cardin, who was all too happy to receive it.
"Oh dear no." Marlowe feigned a heart attack, placing a hand over his heart. "You and dances aren't exactly a good combination."
"I told you, I was on my best behavior, old man." Russel reassured, raising his right hand and mocking a scout troop salute.
Not believing a word Russel said, Marlowe looked to his teammates and caught their attention with the wave of a hand. "Hey you kids, did anything odd happen during this dance of yours? No drama or people shouting how ruined everything was?" He asked.
"Now that you mentioned it," Dove tapped his chin as he thought aloud. "Some guy was stripped naked and tied to the flagpole right outside the ballroom."
Marlowe then slowly turned his head and shot Russel an accusing look. "You can't stay out of trouble can you?" He laughed.
"Trouble finds me." Russel remarked. "Who am I to resist a challenge?"
"Ha!" "One of these days you're gonna run right into something more stubborn than you are."
"Then I'll just watch where I step." Russel replied. Noticing how long they'd been talking about himself, the young Thrush thought it impolite and decided to change the topic of their discussion. "But enough about me, how've you been?"
"Oh I've had my hands full." Marlowe let out a stressed sigh. "But these fine ladies and gentlemen have been helping me meet demands." Marlowe raised a glass to his farmhands.
"I've only been back in town for a day, but I couldn't help but notice what's changed. The school's closed down."
"Oh, that." Marlowe grunted, not hiding what disgust he felt on the matter. "You've gone there, Russel. The place was falling apart right in front of everyone. Facilities were garbage, text books were out of date, not to mention the attitudes of the teachers." He spared a glance over at Port who was busy scarfing down whatever was on his plate. "Just by being here that gentleman's got more credentials than any other who taught at the local Academy."
"Which reminds me, I'd like to apologize on behalf of the Cherri's." The retired huntsman turned farmer rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "I'd be surprised if you haven't found out by now, but Marie-Anne is attending Beacon as well."
Russel frowned at the mention of her name. He though back to just last night, when in her drunken anger she'd gathered together an angry mob of many others Russel had scorned directly or indirectly and tied him to the very same flag pole he'd later tie Lance to. "I've already had enough run-ins with her."
"Ah, poor lad." Marlowe said sounding sympathetic to Russel's case. "After that business with prom, I doubt she'll ever let up."
"Speaking of Ruddy and Burgundy," Russel said being all too quick to change the topic. "Again, only been here a day. Any chance you know what's happened to them?"
There was a delay in Marlowe's response, as if he had to think for a moment and choose his words. While the others were busy eating none of them would've noticed, but Russel did. "Would you believe they've eloped?" Marlowe said doing his best not to crack up laughing.
"No shit?" Russel's eyes raised slightly in surprise.
"No shit." Marlowe snickered. "I mean, what a heart attack on their parents, god I can't even imagine what would happen what it must feel like. But just when we all had them figured out, that it was over and done with, they just up and vanished. They left a note sayin' 'Welp we're getting hitched. Good-bye.' What a crazy turn of events."
"Well I'm glad they're happy." Russel found himself saying honestly.
"Aye." Marlowe nodded in agreement. The old man then looked across the table following the noise of chair scraping against wood. One of his farmhands had finished his meal and was heading to the kitchen to clean his plate. Time had seemingly flown over their shoulder, too caught up in catching up. "Here we've been blabbin' and the foods been gettin' cold."
"How silly of us." Russel shook his head.
They remained silent for the rest of the evening, Team CRL and Port had gorged themselves on their fill of food, as did the farmhands and Marlowe. The portions were so grand, there were bound to be left overs. So Marlowe obliged Port's request for a box to go. They all said their thanks for the meal and Russel and Marlowe said their good-byes.
Down the road they found themselves yet again, the light that led their way through the darkness was not the city lights of Vale but the stars above. There were nights in Vale where Russel would find himself missing the stars that shone bright above Oakwood, but then he'd turn to sea and find them hiding just outside of Vale's shine.
When they all reached the Inn, the all decided to turn in for the night. Port went off to his room, that box of food still in hand. Dove and Sky said their good byes for the night, they'd resume searching for Grimm in the morning, probably. Maybe they wouldn't, it all depended on Port really. Maybe they'd cleared the Grimm for the time being and they could call it in early. Go back to Beacon and veg out for the remainder of time until the Vytal Festival.
Russel and Cardin entered their room and each began to their nightly routine before bed. Cardin busied himself with looking at his scroll, no doubt he'd gotten messages from Velvet. But the Winchester boy didn't seem all too eager to message back, after all he was still reeling from the other day's activities and the awkwardness that came with it.
So Russel just kicked his boots off and sat on his bed. He glanced at the old hand clock that was mounted on the wall. They'd shown up at Marlowe's a little before seven and now it was ten. Their room didn't have the comfort of a television, you could list that as one of the negatives of Oakwood. So that left Russel with nothing to busy himself with.
But then Cardin started talking. "It's kind of funny." The burnt orange haired boy said as he set his scroll aside. Out of the corner of Russel's eye he could see that Cardin hadn't read any of his messages. The app was bursting with a number in the double digits, referring to the number of unread messages he'd received.
"What is?" Russel asked lazily.
"You actually having a positive relationship with someone." Cardin said, causing Russel to raise a brow in surprise. "I mean that from an observer's point of view. I'm just calling it as I see it. Just nice to see you actually enjoying yourself."
Russel just eyed Cadin curiously, unsure how to take the compliment. So he just smiled and nodded before the gears in his head started moving again. "Don't go getting sweet on me now Cardin." He snickered.
"But what a day, eh? Saved the town from a pack of Creeps. Got a free meal out of it." Cardin mused. "Things wrapped up rather nicely didn't they?"
"Yeah." Russel agreed before falling back on his bed. He thought back to the Grimm, how they were so disoriented from the need to satisfy their hunger that they were barely able to put up a fight. They didn't save the day, it was a slaughter. "A little too nicely."
"What do you mean?" Cardin looked to his partner in confusion.
"They were all in the same condition as the other. The Creeps." Russel muttered as he stared up at the ceiling. "The Alpha would've taken priority over its own wellbeing, right? Then why was it and the Beta on the same level?"
"Dry season. Maybe they couldn't find any food out there? I don't know." Cardin offered his thoughts with a shrug. "But I can see what you're getting at. They were all worse for wear. Too hungry to organize, like it was every man for itself."
"We passed through a lot of farm land on the way to the woods. Creeps are scavengers, they'd have hit a chicken coup if they were hungry."
"But they didn't. They charged straight into town." Cardin scratched his hairless chin in thought. He just shook his head, the more they thought about it, and the more the entire ordeal displeased Cardin.
"That doesn't make any sense." Russel bit his lip. As he thought about it, the concept of starved Grimm lashing out at anything became more and more familiar. Such as one hot day in Gym class, when he and the rest of his class were taken to the field to unlock their auras, the coach released Grimm that all displayed the same traits. The realization caused Russel to shudder. "Maybe we weren't dealing with the garden variety Grimm? Maybe they were home grown?"
"I don't follow."
"Oakwood Academy's closed down. Their facilities had capture Grimm. We kept them in the dark, never fed them anything. Theoretically, all the Grimm would be in the safe state as those Creeps we fought." Russel shared his thoughts before sitting back up.
"You'd think the faculty would kill the damn things before closing shop, would you?" Cardin said hopefully.
"This isn't Vale, Cardin." Russel said disdainfully. "This is Oakwood. Standards here went out the window the same time Mantle decides Atlas sounded better."
"Alright, up for a field trip?" Cardin jumped off his bed and began to get his equipment in order.
"I gotta work off this steak somehow." Russel patted his gut before reaching out for his discarded boots. He and Cardin claimed their weapons and were out the door.
They debated for a moment about involving the others. But they ultimately decided not to just in case they were wrong. So the duo set out, leaving the Inn through the front. Once again, Russel couldn't help but feel the Inn Keeper's eyes following him. He was just about to say something to the lass, but he opted not too. Best keep things quiet, no need to go getting into trouble. Maybe it was Marlowe's words to him earlier, maybe she'd be more stubborn than he.
They calmly made their way over to the boarded up school. Not many people were out on the streets, from the sounds of all the laughter, it seemed everyone was busy own at the tavern having themselves a blazing row with themselves. Cardin and Russel reached the school and circled around to the other side where the field was.
Over the fence they went, which was something Russel couldn't help but laugh at. Years he'd been breaking out of the damn place and now he was breaking in, funny how things turn out. Once they were on the other side, Cardin defaulted the navigational duties over to Russel. Russel took point, whipping out his scroll for light.
Oakwood Academy's layout was odd. Buildings encircled the field where the Grimm were held beneath. They took some safety precautions, last thing they needed was them making a run through a single exit, now all they had to do was rampage through classrooms full of students. Along the way, Russel caught sight of the old library. It looked the same as it always had, dark, gloomy and foreboding.
Back in the day Russel would spend his free time there. When he didn't have class or when he wasn't needed at home, his time was spent in between the library's stacks, getting the best education he could. Aside from the dusty set up, the out of date texts, and the otherwise inattentive staff, it was the perfect base of operations for a kid like himself.
He had a lot of history in that building, some good and some bad. He first met Burgundy in there, in fact. Ruddy was all jazzed up about some girl he'd been talking to and eventually brought her into Russel's world.
They didn't have a negative relationship, but like so many other people in Russel's life the boy could say they were friends. She was always that girl Ruddy was dating, nothing more. He played nice, or as nice as he could. He'd catch Burgundy rolling her eyes at his comments, but she never said anything.
There had been several theories about why Ruddy and Burgundy had broken up. Some assumed it was just a regular falling out, but some would always come back around and think Russel was responsible. Maybe he was, maybe all his shenanigans had pushed Burgundy to her breaking point. Maybe because Ruddy would never oppose Russel, that's why she left him.
Russel was one of three people to know the truth. He'd never say it, however, because he wasn't supposed to be there that day. He'd been in the library when he overheard the shouting. Late in the evening, everyone had gone home. He peaked outside and saw them arguing and couldn't help but overhear. He kept quiet about the whole affair, after all it wasn't for him to tell.
"So this is where you went to school?" Cardin asked, not sounding too impressed by what the school had to offer. "Got any funny stories about this place?"
"I lost my virginity over there." Russel said casually as he pointed a thumb to a nearby bungalow. "Me and Rocio Bluejeans had been at each other's throats for years. It all culminated in the most awkward afternoon detention I'd ever had."
"Oh gross, Russel." Cardin said in disgust, causing Russel to burst out laughing.
"So, you and Pyrrha?" Russel said, causing Cardin to freeze. "Don't deny it."
"Alcohol makes you do stupid things." Cardin held the bridge of his nose and sighed. "I guess on some level, I wanted it. But I don't know, that's not how I wanted that to go."
"She was messed up over it too." Russel said as they made their way onto the grassy field. "I guess she was expecting her first time to be with someone she trusted, like Jaune or something like that. I couldn't tell what disappointed her the most, Jaune not being the guy she woke up beside or herself."
"That's going to be one awkward conversation when we get back to Beacon." Cardin groaned. "You aren't going to say anything, right? I don't exactly have the best reputation, you know. We both know exactly how it'll all go down if word gets out."
"I won't, that's private, for you two to discuss on your own. I only brought it up because I wanted to clear the air." Russel said thoughtfully.
"Why?" Cardin just eyed Russel unsure of his intentions.
"Because we're about to go where all the Grimm live. If they're in there, I want us being straight with each other. You're my partner, I'm yours. We get each other's backs." Russel muttered. They continued to walk through the field before stopping dead in the center. Russel knelt down and peeled away a piece of the lawn, revealing a control panel beneath. He opened it up and hit a switch, causing a section of the field to open up, revealing a staircase.
"They say that the most trustworthy thing two men can do is sit in a room together with a gun in between them. It's to show that each has the power to kill the other, but neither do it, because they mean the other no harm." Cardin said as he and Russel began to descend down the staircase. "Try that scenario but a room full of Grimm."
Down into the dark depths of the underground facility they went. Their only source of light was their scrolls and the magma crystal attached to Cardin's mace. They kept on going until reaching the bottom. Along a nearby wall, Russel fumble to find a light switch of some sort. And as luck would have it, he found one.
The lights switched on, revealing the entirety of the underground facility. To both boy's surprise, they found the complex empty, just a room gathering dust.
"Alright, scratch that. An empty room." Cardin folded his arms over his chest. "Guess they got rid of them after all. Good job crappy faculty."
"No they didn't." Russel grunted as he searched the area. He found a series of scratch marks that seemed to go on forever deeper into the complex. "What kind of Grim makes these marks?" He asked over his shoulder.
"Not Grimm, no. Looks like something was hauled through and scraped the floor." Cardin said as he eyed the markings. "How did they hold the Grimm in here anyway?"
"Cages." Russel uttered darkly. They both looked around, as it would, they found no sign of cages. "Someone took the Grimm."
"They had to get the cages out somehow, right?" Cardin figured. He then pointed down at the scratch marks and began to follow them. As the duo followed the scratch marks, it became apparent that they were just one big line, no doubt left behind by a cage that was hauled away.
Further into the complex they went, through vast open white rooms with steel walls. There were carvings in the walls made by Grimm that spoke tales of the beasts that were held captive beneath the school.
They'd walked for what felt like miles, but eventually they reached the end. A giant door that could open and allow trucks to drive on in, probably to deliver the Grimm for use. They found a smaller side door for personal use off to the side and pulled it open, allowing them to leave the building.
That's when the pair found themselves outside once more, miles away from the town and in the forest that surrounded it. There were sounds and lights up ahead, voices belonging to numerous individuals that neither huntsman in training was too keen on meeting immediately. They snuck off into the woods to get a better angle on things.
There were trucks in an open field, at least ten men and women were operating forklifts, moving cages with Grimm onto awaiting trucks. From behind some trees, Russel and Cardin lay prone with the later using a pair of binoculars to scope out the situation.
"Oh shit." Cardin muttered quietly as he watched the masked men and women in white robes busied themselves with loading all sorts of Grimm into trucks. "It's the White Fang. They're loading the last of the Grimm onto trucks."
"God dammit." Russel gritted his teeth angrily. "There's no telling what those jackasses can do with them. Before they were hitting dust shops, robbing trains and causing minimalized terror. Imagine how much damage they can do with Grimm at their disposal?" He shook his head. "This is bad."
"And then it goes from bad," Cardin and Russel froze where they lay at the foreign voice. They slowly turned their heads around and found the Inn Keeper of all people standing behind them with a gun aimed at them. She moved her hair out the way, revealing for their benefit where her antlers had once been. "To much, much worse."
If it was apparent before, this Arc is very much just Russel's homecoming. It's very much about him coming to terms with his past one step at a time. Marlowe is the only positive influence in his life he acknowledges. The Marlowe/Dinner stuff I tried to write like an almost familial bond.
When it comes to Ruddy and Burgundy, Russel's very uncertain about his relationship with them. You all remember them from Arc 4 right? I hope. You can see some interesting parallels with their situation and Cardin and Pyrrha. I can't say its entirely the same, there are differences, but at the heart of it there are those similarities that can't go unnoticed.
But also, the Cardin and Russel buddy cop feature. Their friendship is one of the main driving points of this story. So, this arc and especially the next one are going to see them become closer, actually become friends. That's not a spoiler right? Interlude 2 was about Cardin reflecting on their friendship.
But anyways, next chapter is Russel and Cardin vs. The White Fang. Oh boy.
'Til next time! Later days!