AN: Oh, my god, I can't wait for this arc to be over! So much regret! But, it serves a purpose! Must keep going!
Ugh.
Chapter 54
Much to Ruby's surprise, the train tracks the group was following eventually led them to a large forest. She had already decided that this was her favorite place.
Everything was just so RED! Yay!
The leaves, to the plants, even to the grass, everything around them was a dense, beautiful red hue.
"Ah, where are we?!" She asked happily.
"Seriously?" Emerald asked. "It's the Forever Fall Forest."
"Oh, yeah," Yang said. "That makes sense. We didn't get to come here yet."
"We were supposed to, but, uh…" Ruby said, her voice trailing off.
"But what?" Cinder asked.
"There was a miscreant in our year named Cardin Winchester," Weiss explained. "Yang humiliated him in a fight, so he decided to hold a grudge."
"Don't forget, he also tried to get me to have sex with him," Yang clarified.
"He did what?" Mercury and Cinder asked, their voices taking on dangerous tones.
"Anyway, on the day that the first-years were supposed to go on a field trip, he decided to take his revenge," Mom explained. "He tied me to a chair in a storage closet, his team kidnapped Ruby, and he used her to force Yang to let him pummel her."
"And what happened to this boy?" Cinder asked, her fists clenched. Ruby could swear she saw the air around the older girl's hands start glowing red.
She really cared a lot about them. That was so sweet. Ruby smiled at the thought.
"Team JNPR saved Ruby, and Yang broke Cardin's sternum," Blake said.
"Good," Cinder said.
"And then he turned into a Heartless and we were forced to kill him," Mom finished the story in a somber tone.
"…I see."
"Yeah, so basically, because of Dick Face, we didn't get to go on the field trip," Yang said. "This is our first time to the Forever Fall Forest." Mercury walked up to her, and put an arm around her shoulder, pulling her into a hug.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she reassured her boyfriend. "It wasn't anything I couldn't handle."
It was kinda weird to think about, Yang having a boyfriend. It wasn't really surprising, given her looks and outgoing personality when Ruby actually stopped to think about it, but after what happened at Signal, her older sister wanted nothing to do with anyone there anymore, let alone any boys.
What came as absolutely no surprise, though, was that Yang had a boyfriend before Ruby did. Of course that happened. It wasn't like Ruby had anybody like that anyway. She was just regular, ordinary Ruby Rose.
Her eyes involuntary roamed to Cinder, looking as elegant as always. Well, there was that one time at the dance where Ruby genuinely felt beautiful, and she had to admit that her date with Cinder was the most fun she'd had in a while, but there was no way that would ever work long-term.
…Wait, where did that come from?
Ruby quickly averted her gaze from the gorgeous ravenette (Stop it, brain!) with a blush on her face, trying to get her mind back in the game. A rumbling sound in the distance was mercifully able to snap her out of it.
"What was that?" Yang asked.
"It kind of sounded like a train," Weiss said.
"Does a train run through the Forever Fall Forest?" Mom asked.
"Yes, a cargo train does," Blake said.
"Correct, but that train doesn't run in that area of the forest," Doctor Oobleck said through the scroll. "In fact, there shouldn't be any running trains in a several mile radius. This warrants further investigation."
"On it, Bart," Mom said. "Well, you heard the man. Let's go."
The group walked further into the forest when they quickly came across another major obstacle: a large stone gate that was close up tight.
"I guess we need to get through there," Ruby said.
"Can I break this one?" Mercury asked, sounding a little eager.
"Don't even think about it, Mister Black!" Doctor Oobleck shouted from the scroll. "This gate is remnant of an ancient civilization, and we cannot destroy such a precious historical find! If you so much as put a scratch on these ruins before I have the chance to study them, so help me…!"
"Alright, alright, geez," Mercury said, putting his hands up in mock surrender. "So what do you suggest?"
"There may be a key lying around somewhere. Look around and see if you can find it."
"Seriously?" Yang asked. "A key? You expect us to find a key to an ancient gate just lying around a damn forest? What is this, some half-assed video game?"
"Well, unless you have any other suggestions for unlocking it—"
"Got it," Ruby said, having pointed her Keyblade at the gate.
"…Oh, right, I forgot you could do that," Doctor Oobleck mumbled. "Well done, Miss Rose. Now, move out, team! Get to the bottom of this!"
"I think we found our train tracks," Weiss said, pointing at an elevated railway several yards above the forest floor.
"Good eye, Weiss," Mom said, and the team dropped down into a clearing with a large red tree in the middle.
"Wow, that tree is beautiful," Weiss commented.
"Hey, Merc," Yang said. "Wanna have a sappy moment with me under that tree?"
"You know it, babe," he said, sweeping her up and pulling her into a kiss.
"Could you please not do this in front of me or your sister?" Mom complained. Mercury smirked and put the blonde down, before his eyes widened and he fired a shot from his boots at something behind the group.
"Incoming!" he yelled. The rest of the supergroup turned around and saw several of those weird green Creeps charging at them. The rest drew their weapons and fired on the mutants, killing them in seconds.
"Man, those things are weird," Yang said.
"Yes, this is indeed concerning," Doctor Oobleck said. "Those mutated Grimm you fought in Mountain Glenn were no fluke if they're showing up in Forever Fall. Now we know there are more of them. Follow those train tracks uphill and maybe we can find out where they're coming from."
Following the uphill path eventually brought them to a large, round clearing.
"This has 'Boss Fight' written all over it," Mercury grumbled.
"Okay, enough with the game metaphors," Emerald snapped at him. "Let's just go." She wasn't able to take another step forward before another mutant Grimm appeared in front of the group. From the look of it, Ruby guessed it used to be a Beowolf, except this one was taller, stockier, and had glowing green spikes sticking out of its back.
"Look at the size of that thing!" Ruby exclaimed, summoning her Keyblade.
"Emerald," Cinder said simply, creating a bow with her Semblance.
"On it," Emerald said, drawing her guns and firing at the mutant while running forward. It took a swipe at her, but she ducked underneath it. Blades popped up on the underside of her guns, and she disconnected one of them, wrapping a chain around the Grimm's wrist. She quickly slid behind the Grimm, wrapping the other chain around the other wrist and forcing its arms behind its back. Cinder created an arrow, knocked it, and fired, embedding the arrow tip deep in the monster's skull.
"Mercury," she said, and the boy ran up and kick the embedded arrow, sinking it even further into the Grimm's flesh. Emerald and Mercury quickly backed away from the mutant, and Cinder snapped her fingers, detonating the arrow inside the Beowolf's head, sending bits of green flesh splattering around it. The creature fell to its knees before the rest of it exploded, painting the arena green.
The members of Team RWBY were dumbfounded at what they just saw.
"That was incredible display of fighting mastery!" Doctor Oobleck said.
"Yeah, what he said," Yang said, unable to think of anything else to say about Team FMBS's teamwork.
"Now then, we must get to the source of where these mutated monstrosities are coming from, and most importantly, who's behind it. I sense we're getting close! If you can manage to get to the end of the rail line, we might just find the answers we need."
AN: Not really much else to say about this chapter. I guess just a reminder about my Xenoblade 2 story.