Chapter 17: Weapon Maniacs are Extremely Logical

Kingdom of Vale

Beacon Academy

September 8th, 80 AGW

2300 Hours

Shockwave had been working for the past three hours undisturbed. As he had expected, most of his day hours were occupied by school-related activities in one way or another. Even part a part of his weekend was spent on events going on in the academy. Since all students lived on academy grounds, it was expected that teachers be available as much as possible. To that end, he had set up hours during the daytime on Saturdays and Sundays. Even if no students came to him, it would be to his advantage to make an effort to be inviting and open to all students. It would certainly reflect well in Ozpin's eyes.

It was logical.

In the dead of night, the former Decepticon was able to fully immerse himself into his research. Whenever he was working, all things became irrelevant to him. He had applied this unshakeable concentration during the War for Cybertron. This ultimate dedication was what had allowed him to develop the deadliest weapons ever made by Cybertronians. Autobots and Decepticons alike knew of his reputation as Megatron's most important scientific mind and he was rightfully feared by all.

Tonight, however was not being used for any of his projects. Instead, he was meeting with Amber. One of the reasons for this visit was to make sure that she was rid of any ailments that pertained to the attack that occurred against her. The first tests had been done immediately after Shockwave's arrival to Beacon and ever since that time, the Fall Maiden had been required to make regular reports about her condition as well as her activities. Because the young woman had been attacked, it was requested that she remain within the City of Vale for a time. Depending upon the immediate future as well as deliberation between those who knew about the maidens, this safe period could extend as far as until the end of the year.

Shockwave himself had been charged with overseeing Amber primarily because he was the one who had rescued her and knew the most about their current enemy, which was not all that much when all the facts were laid out, but he was hardly deterred. Even with the brief encounter, he had seen their faces, so the next time he saw them, he would attack on site, no questions asked. Ozpin and his cohorts could raise a fuss about it later if it pleased them. He would not hesitate when the time came.

Being the first physical examination in over three months, this process needed to be recorded in detail. Any differences, no matter how minor, needed to be accounted for and confirmed. Although all traces of the virus had been wiped, being absolutely certain was for the better.

There was one other hidden part to this entire process, one that was only known to the scientist but not to the maiden and it was the biggest reason that this entire test was happening.

Ever since witnessing the power of the maiden, Shockwave knew that he had to understand what magic was exactly. Harnessing such power would bring an immense asset to the battlefield. It could very well turn the tide of this shadow war and he was fortunate enough to be able to have a first-hand source of magical power. Even better yet, said person in control of that power was more than willing to help him out in this endeavor. Amber seemed all too eager to assist the man who had saved her. Whatever her reasoning, it made this all the more easier.

"What are the results?" Amber said with anxiousness in her voice. "Is everything okay?"

"Affirmative." Shockwave glanced her way for a second before focusing on his monitor. "All traces of the parasite have been removed. You physical body is healthy."

"Thank the gods." Amber quietly prayed while sighing. "I hope to never go through an ordeal like that ever again."

"You may not have a choice in the matter." Shockwave typed on his console while speaking. "The attackers are still at large and so far, their location remains unknown at this time. As long as they live, your life is in danger."

"But we haven't seen a single sighting of them in all this time." Amber made her argument. "If they wanted to ambush me again, surely they would have done so already."

"We allowed you some modicum of freedom despite the attempted assassination." Shockwave relayed to her while examining a vial of blood. "Did you never wonder why that is so? Confining you to Beacon Academy or some other isolated site was a perfectly viable option. The faculty discussed this option after deliberation. The ultimate choice to allow you freedom within the city was partially to respect your independence, but also to ascertain if our enemy would seek you out again."

"Then… I was being used as bait?" Amber balked at that conclusion. "Why wasn't I informed about this?!"

"It would have been counterproductive to have informed you. It would have inspired fear and paranoia within you and that would make it more obvious to any would-be attackers that you were on your guard." Shockwave explained all of this without pause. "And in the event that an attack should occur, huntsmen and huntresses were shadowing you, fully prepared to take whatever action deemed necessary."

"I never knew." Amber was surprised, that much could be seen on her face. "I didn't even detect any presences following me all this time."

"If you had, then they would have not been very good shadows." Shockwave commented plainly. "In any event, nothing of note has happened in all this time, meaning that the enemy is not one to be hasty and take action unnecessarily. We must treat them with utmost caution. They cannot be allowed to have any more than they do."

"I understand." Amber clutched a fist to her chest. "She already has a small part of the power. It's not much, but she shouldn't have any of it in the first place."

It was easy to see her mistake his desire to keep her alive as a noble intent. She was useful to him and she looked to him in this time of uncertainty. Keeping her alive was auspicious for him and his goals. He was not about to correct her on this matter; it warranted no need of further attention.

Shockwave resumed his attention back on Amber's DNA. Because of his non-existent knowledge base in magic, he had to rely upon the only other power that served as a usable substitute: aura. It was serendipitous that he had been able to extensively investigate aura by using his own as an example. Combining what he had learned with information from other sources floating around on the Cross Continental Transmit System, he had been able to devise a working theory about how aura functioned.

Common knowledge spoke of aura as a power that drew its strength from a soul, but the scientist had long since dismissed that line of thinking. The soul was an immaterial concept, a simple way to grasp the emotional and moral makeup of a person. Frankly speaking, it was an enduring idea whose time had long since passed. All thoughts, emotions, morality, self-awareness, everything tied to any mental aspect was due in no small part to the brain and all the electrical signals being sent courtesy of it.

The true origin of aura came down to the structure of DNA. All living things on this world were capable of generating aura. Humans and faunus were merely the two races that made the most use of it, but there were massive amounts of studies, research documents, and tests concluding that all animals were capable of generating aura as well. By contrast, the Grimm were completely incapable of using aura in any capacity. That could only mean one thing: the genetic composition that constituted all life on Remnant was uniquely adapted to make use of aura while the monsters that roamed the world could not simply due to their physical code being unstable.

So what did that mean about magic?

Was it the same?

Was it possible that in the past, Mankind used magic as commonly as people used aura now?

If so, why was magic so rare now?

Shockwave imputed some commands into the system. His monitor was quick to show him information regarding Amber's aura readings. On the surface, there appeared to be nothing out of the ordinary. When comparing hers output levels to his own, he exceeded hers by a wide margin, but that was not the issue at hand. He needed to look between their auras down to the most minute of details.

He had a hypothesis about what magic was attached to in her body.

"What is that?" Amber's curious voice sounded off.

"It is your aura." Shockwave replied. "Your blood contains trace bits of it. I was comparing my aura to your own in order to ascertain similarities and differences."

"I see." Amber looked confused. "Is there… anything I can do to help?"

"Being here is sufficient assistance." Shockwave spoke. "But if you wish to be an active participant, there are some tasks I have in mind."

"Sure." Amber appeared eager.

Good.

She followed instructions.

RWBY - - - Transformers

Applied Science Laboratory

September 9th, 80 AGW

1000 Hours

Team JNPR had been lucky enough to get to class and be able to secure seats so that they could sit together. If they needed help, they could ask each other for assistance when necessary.

It was only the second class and already, they were diving immediately into a practical exercise. At every seat in the classroom, there were four dust crystals, the four basic dust elements. Not only that, but these were the very best quality cut crystals that money could feasibly buy. Alongside the crystals, each station was also accompanied by some equipment consisting of vials and an unfamiliar device. None of them had ever seen it before and before anyone's curiosity could get the better of them, the professor had strictly reminded students as they trickled into the room to not do anything with the crystals or their tools until further instructions were given. He said it to everyone who came through the door without fail. This made more than a few students eager to get started. Some of them had never handled dust of this refinement before.

When the bell finally rang to signal the beginning of class, the class began and for the most part, all eyes were facing forward.

"Today's lesson will have you applying your on-hand knowledge about dust." Professor Watson gestured to the large screens at the front of the room. "For the next thirty minutes, each of you will construct a dust arsenal suited to your weapon and fighting style. When you are finished, you will briefly explain your results to the class. Are there any questions?"

"Um, yeah." Jaune raised his hand. "What if we're not finished with the reading?"

"I did say that this is a test of immediate knowledge, did I not?" The man in purple eyed the leader. "Regardless of whether or not you have completed the reading or have understood it, you will use what you know in this moment. As an additional note, textbooks and notes will not be allowed. Any other questions?"

Now the blonde-haired knight felt kind of stupid for answering the question. He had just outed himself by saying that he didn't finish the studying material. He really needed to think more before he spoke.

Pyrrha gently put a reassuring hand on his shoulder to comfort him. The gesture was appreciated, yet he would be lying if he said he was completely happy about it.

"If there is nothing else, then begin." Professor Watson instructed. "Instructions for all of your laboratory equipment can be accessed via the menu of your desk consoles."

As this was classified as an individual task, all the students remained relatively quiet. The only sounds were that of monitors powering on and dust being worked with along with shuffling. It could even make for a somewhat calming atmosphere given the right person.

Ren seemed to already know what he wanted out of his dust. He first picked up the fire crystals, set his equipment to the proper setting, then began to grind the red dust into a fine powder. Once his mixture was sufficiently ground, he used some of his aura to energize the fire dust, turning it extremely hot. He then quickly added the lightning crystal into his mixture, turning a simple fiery dust into a molten mass. Even though he was working within safe parameters, the intense heat was still very much felt. Finally, he crushed his water crystal in his hand before adding it into the mixture. A column of steam resulted before the mixture settled into something dull-greyish in color.

Nora stared closely at her lightning crystal as she held it in her right hand. Then she turned to her left hand, which held her fire crystal. Looking between the two of them, she decided to quickly do away with her water and wind crystal, which Pyrrha caught in her hands with deft dexterity. Meanwhile, the bubbly bomber smashed her two favorite crystals together, then jammed the resulting mixture into a vial. The result was a glowing-orange mass of intense heat and energy.

Pyrrha took a moment to consider her resources, which now totalled to one fire crystal, two water crystals, two wind crystals, and one lightning crystal. Given that their professor had not forbade teams from exchanging resources, she decided that she would use what she had to the fullest. With that in mind, the redhead delicately crushed all of her wind and water crystals into separate vials before pouring them in together. Carefully swishing the two elements together, she saw the color within turn into a cyan blue. When she felt that the combination was stable, the spartan dunked the lightning crystal in, resulting in the cyan color flashing with yellow. It was like a blue sky and a lightning storm trying to coexist.

Jaune regarded his teammates as they worked, trying to reconcile what they were doing with the information from the reading that he could remember. It wasn't working for him at all. The rest of Team JNPR was working at a pace that he couldn't hope to keep up with. That left him with the only option available to him: just do something and hope that it would work out. Doing something was all he could do. With a barely-conceived idea, he too all the crystals at his disposal in two hands and placed them in a mixer container. After carefully reading the instructions, he turned the settings to the lowest speed possible, then carefully observed as his mix glowed white.

All around, students were making use of their dust in various ways. Some didn't touch any tools other than vials, preferring to create formulas by hand. Others were all too eager to test the limits of their new dust synthesizers provided by Professor Watson. A few were even using their own aura to synchronize the dust so that it would only work exclusively with them. Regardless of what each and every individual within this classroom was using as a means to realize their personal creations, there was one thing that could be said about all of them: they were doing things their way.

Some managed to finish within five to ten minutes. Most averaged between fifteen to twenty minutes. A few stragglers, probably the perfectionists, took all the time that was provided. No matter the length of time taken, thirty minutes came and went by swiftly and soon, it was time for the next part of class.

"Cease your work." Professor Watson's voice reverberated. "Starting from the back, each of you will briefly describe what you have made and how you would use it in combat."

As everyone quickly described their process, some of the more serious ones began to take notes as each person went. This inspired others to do the same. Not everyone did this though. Almost half opted to simply listen and take in their peer's work. Explanations were brief and more than a handful were eager to get done and hand the torch to the next person. For those that thought they had some time left to prepare, they soon found out that their time was fast approaching.

Jaune wasn't ready.

Pyrrha quickly ran through her steps one more time.

Nora was just chilling out.

Ren was unreadable.

"Jaune." Professor Watson called upon him. "Your mixture?"

"Um, so I came up with this." Jaune presented his mixture. "I didn't do anything special with it, just kinda mixed them all together at the same time."

"For what purpose?" The teacher questioned further.

"Um, to coat my blade with it." Jaune just made something up. "And my shield."

"Very well." Professor Watson shifted his focus. "Pyrrha?"

"Well, I used Nora's excess crystals to compose something that will help me in close quarters combat." Pyrrha seemed to know the best way to explain what she had in her hand. "This dust utilizes the combined power of lightning in conjunction with storm, which is comprised of water and wind. If used as ammunition, this will allow me to yield immediate damage as well drain an opponent's strength over time."

"Understood." Professor Watson nodded his head once. "Nora."

"Power is the name of the game for me!" Nora proudly displayed her work. "I can incorporate this stuff into my weapon directly for maximum explosion potential!"

"Noted." Professor Watson offered nothing else. "Ren."

"This is dust that can turn into stone upon contact." Ren produced his vial. "It can either be used to coat my blades on my weapons or used with ammunition just like Pyrrha's mixture."

It was clear as day who the idiot was in Team JNPR, or at the very least, Jaune knew exactly what he was lacking. Now he was worried about his academics on top of his physical training.

He bowed his head.

Transformers - - - RWBY

1930 Hours

Ruby needed some questions answered in regards to the assignment due next week. She had almost finished up, but she did have some questions in regards to the finer details of her idea. She just needed to be sure that she was on point.

Thus, she made her way through the halls of Beacon Academy to her favorite class of all time. She wasn't exaggerating when she decided that; unlike her previous science class, this one was filled with less lectures and more cool stuff to do.

In today's class, the red reaper had chosen a simple but effective combative method. She had ground up each of her crystals and explained she would apply them to bullets. The idea was straightforward. Either through individual bullet feeding or a magazine, she could vary her bullet types, creating unpredictable effects in battle. Her fighting style relied on speed, maneuverability, and dexterity. Wielding a scythe was a technical challenge by itself, so having a simple but deadly loadout was handy.

The assignment she would submit on Wednesday would be a far cry from what she had shown in class today and she was proud of it.

Ruby walked a few more meters before coming to the door of the laboratory. She expected to see it closed, but she found it open and inside, she was met with the unexpected sight of many people inside.

There was Professor Shockwave, that much she did expect, but there were four others there as well. Judging by their appearances alone, they were students, no doubt about that. However, the red-clad girl didn't recognize any of them. They might be older students if she had to guess.

The five people inside were assembled around a 3D image courtesy of the projector located on the floor. Based on what she could see, it was an image of a map detailing streets as well as buildings, but it didn't look like any place she recognized within the City of Vale.

"Miss Rose." Professor Watson had his back to the door, yet he somehow knew she was there. "If you have something you wish to discuss, then come inside."

"O-oh, right!" Ruby squeaked, then rushed into the classroom. "Sorry, professor! I just had a question about the assignment due next class!"

"Hey there, cutie pie!" The tallest girl stepped forward. "You must be one of the freshmen. I'm Coco Adel, the leader of Team CFVY. Over there is Fox Alistair who is blind if you're wondering. Velvet Scarlatina's one with the adorable bunny ears. Last, but not least is Yatsuhashi Daichi. You can't miss him."

"H-hi!" Ruby fumbled over her words. "I'm Ruby Rose! I'm the leader of Team RWBY! My teammates are doing their own thing right now, s-so I can't introduce them!"

"Take a chill pill, honey." Coco placed a hand on the reaper's shoulder. "From one leader to another, always stay calm. You'll live longer that way."

"Sure!" Ruby felt very tiny compared to this girl. "Thanks!"

"Coco!" The bunny girl, Velvet chided her team leader.

"What?" Coco looked back with an innocent look

"You're scaring her, Coco." The giant boy, Yatsuhashi commented. "I think that's enough."

The boy named Fox just shrugged his shoulders.

"You guys really like to ruin my fun." Coco placed her hand back at her side and tipped her sunglasses down. "By the way, I like the outfit. It really suits you."

"T-thanks!" Ruby rubbed the back of her head.

She wasn't used to all of this talking to new people. Even though she had teammates whom she interacted with on a daily basis now, things were still somewhat awkward between them all. She could only hope that with time, things would turn out okay. She hoped to become best friends with Blake and Weiss.

"You had a question about your assignment, Ruby." Professor Shockwave steered the conversation back on course. "Elaborate."

"Well, my assignment is two-fold." Ruby pulled out her scroll. "It'll be easier to show you with my scroll."

"I'll think we'll take our leave." Coco quickly grabbed her teammates. "See you around, shorty. Don't be a stranger."

The scythe-wielder could only nod in nervousness. These four were an impressive sight on their own. She couldn't help but watch them as they all left the room with all the swag that she kind of expected from older students.

"Miss Rose." Professor Watson's voice brought her back.

"Right!" Ruby quickly activated her scroll, then powered on the 3D display. "So I've been putting the finishing touches on my dust formula and I've done some test runs on my weapon, Crescent Rose."

True to her word, there were results displayed. The sharpshooter had done some test-firing in the shooting range to determine how effective her latest addition to her weapon would be. She wrote down everything from firing rates to accuracy to target acquisition times and target acquisition time to name a few. Depending on the type of bullet she used and her trigger discipline, the amount of damage she dealt immediate and over time varied, but generally speaking, lightning bullets were her most effective bullet type.

But when combining basic elements with a touch of another basic element or a compound element could influence the bullet effects subtly or overtly. Her last test had involved taking a fire bullet and adding just a pinch of water. The result was an attack that dealt fire damage, but with the added effect of water, steam was produced as well, creating a sort of blinding effect. It was a cool idea and with enough trials, it could be used in lots of scenarios in combat.

"Your weapon theory is beyond average." Professor Shockwave commented. "This amount of technical knowledge is usually gained through years of experience and study."

"Well, I've been a weapon freak for a LONG time." Ruby chuckled in pride and shame. "Ever since I started training to become a huntress, I've always delved into weapon design, weapon history, weapon schematics, and weapon aesthetics. There's so much to take in and so much that applies to all of us who fight the Creatures of Grimm!"

Talking about stuff like weapons and armor and other cool gadgetry was the sort of thing that the red reaper couldn't indulge in often, at least not with another person. Her interest in the subject was uncommon enough given that it was a niche topic of discussion from the start. Add this to the fact that she was imperfect in social settings and this made for a combination which was hard for many people to understand.

Once Ruby realized that she had rambled, she quickly reeled herself in. She didn't want to come off as unstable or weird or anything like that, especially not to the best professor in this academy, at least in her opinion.

Now she felt like an idiot.

"I'm sorry, sir!" Ruby bowed her head. "I did it again! I talk about weapons passionately, but most people aren't interested in hearing."

"I spoke no words dissuading you from speaking about weaponry." Professor Watson said. "And now that I have seen some of your efforts, there are some projects that I am undertaking now that could make use of your skills."

"Huh?" Ruby lifted her head. "You… you mean… you'd like me to help you with weapon stuff?"

"Yes." Shockwave's answer was clear. "It is only logical that I, as your instructor, guide you. You already have amassed a thorough understanding of weaponry that none in the freshman year can match. I can provide you the knowledge, training, and experience to become a true master of this trade if you are so inclined to accept my offer."

Ruby couldn't say what being a master of making weapons looked like, but based on what her professor was saying and based on what she knew about him and his work, it would be a very interesting future indeed. It might be so grand that perhaps Crescent Rose was going to look like a minor accomplishment in hindsight. Actually, maybe her baby would become something so deadly that it would become the ultimate tool to kill monsters.

Her imagination began to run wild with thoughts of what she could do.

What would her career as a huntress be like?

"Allow me to provide you with a taste of what the pinnacle of weaponry can achieve." Professor Watson extended his arm. "Observe."

For the first time, Ruby could see that one of his arms was mechanical. As he rolled up the sleeve, she noted that the entire appendage was non-organic. She had to wonder what had happened for him to receive it.

Her concern was quickly dashed away when his prosthetic arm transformed into a massive canon. It looked unlike anything she had ever seen before. Its design was nothing anything she had seen even from the Atlas Military.

"So COOL!" Ruby's eyes sparkled.

RWBY - - - Transformers

2341 Hours

Shockwave worked late into the night once again. Project Predacon's decoding process was at about thirty-nine percent. A slight complication had arisen which had required him to do some calculations to his construction process. There were some areas of his bone sample that had deteriorated faster than other parts. If he had another bone, he would be able to circumvent this problem.

While working out the bugs in this issue, the former Decepticon's thoughts also took some time to consider one of his students. His initial assessment of Ruby Rose was lackluster, to say the least. The girl was impetuous, impatient, and naive. He still did believe that fully, but her visit to him today had him revising his assessment of her.

The silver-eyed girl's talent with weaponry was abundant in her customized scythe-sniper rifle hybrid as well as her attention to details in the most minute of things. There were mentions on her transcript that spoke about her being very invested in weapons, but it didn't explain that point enough now that he had seen something tangible.

But now that he did know about her talent, Shockwave had already decided that she was going to be an asset. Of course, given her nature, the full details of what he was doing could not be divulged. She only needed to be aware of the job that he gave her.

Getting her to agree to his proposition was predictably easy. People who wished to become heroes were nothing if not uncomplicated. All he had to do was appeal only to what she wanted and nothing more. As the saying went, she wore her emotions on her sleeve, thinking of good and evil as black and white constants.

Shockwave contemplated whether or not he should allow her access to any of his other projects not involved in strictly tools of mass murder. As he had said, her technical skill didn't merely extend to weapons. It was applicable in many other fields, but since he had yet to see what she could do, it was advisable not to overestimate her abilities. Her operational capacity would need to be scrutinized for any further potential gifts.

Ozpin, too had his eyes on Ruby for some reason, but the scientist knew that it likely had nothing to do with her skills as a huntress or traits as a person. The headmaster loved acquiring rare pieces with novel qualities so as to expand his arsenal against Salem, a most logical thing to do.

But all people were flawed, so relying solely on a person as a means to fight was problematic. As long as Mankind and the Faunus were flawed beings, they could never be fully trusted.

Shockwave had not lived all this time trusting in the camaraderie and friendship of his fellow Decepticons. He had lived for so long because he was a superior in body and mind to most Cybertronians.

Emotions were flakey.

Logic was consistent.

If any of you read my other stories, you might notice that I've been updating a LOT more than I usually do. The reason for that is because I made it a personal challenge to see if I could post eight chapters in a single month for a year. Since a chapter for me constitutes at least 5,000 words, that's 10,000 word a week, or at least 40,000 words a month.

That is no small amount of work and I can't that it's been easy, but this change came from a desire to fix my constant problem with procrastination and laziness. In truth, I was always putting things off and making excuses, but now, I know that I have no reason not to do my best. After all, I'm not just letting myself down as a writer. I'm letting all of you down as readers who look forward to the next update.

My goal is to make writing this amount of content more natural.

I've got little to say about this chapter. It was interesting coming up with theories as to why the world of Remnant operates as it does. This could apply to all other crossover stories that I do as well.

Thoughts on this chapter? Feedback is always appreciated.

Thanks for reading.

"Mechanization best serves mediocrity."

Frank Lloyd Wright